Gov’t swings to surplus in April as spending slows on 2019 budget delay
UNDERSPENDING due to the delayed passage of the 2019 national budget caused the government’s fiscal position to swing to a surplus in April, the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) reported on Friday.
Razon’s Wawa bulk water project gets MWSS go-signal
Razon-led Prime Metroline Infrastructure Holdings, Inc. (Prime Infra) has secured the government regulator’s approval to start building the Wawa Bulk Water Supply project that can supply up to 500 million-liters-per-day (MLD) by 2025.
PECO gets provisional authority to continue power distribution in Iloilo
PANAY ELECTRIC Co., Inc. (PECO) has been granted provisional authority by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to continue operating in Iloilo City as the company’s certificate of public convenience and necessity (CPCN) expires Saturday (May 25).
Thrift, rural bank reserve requirement cut
THE MONETARY BOARD of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Thursday announced an expected reduction in thrift, rural and cooperative banks’ reserve requirement ratio (RRR) -- a week after it did so for big banks and two weeks after it cut policy interest rates -- releasing more funds for lending to further prod economic activity at a time of easing inflation and slowing gross domestic product growth that disappointed at a four-year-low 5.6% last quarter.
ADB OK’s its biggest infrastructure financing yet
THE ASIAN Development Bank (ADB) on Thursday approved financing for up $2.75 billion for the construction of a passenger railway linking Malolos in Bulacan to Clark economic zone and international airport in Central Luzon, making it the regional lender’s “single largest infrastructure project financing ever.”
Senate pushes bigger increase in tobacco tax
THE SENATE is pushing a bigger increase in excise tax on tobacco products, proposing a hike to P45-60 per pack by 2023 from P35 currently, against the House of Representatives’ proposed P37.50-45/pack rates by 2022.
Fed’s patience on interest rates to last ‘for some time’
WASHINGTON -- US Federal Reserve officials at their last meeting agreed that their current patient approach to setting monetary policy could remain in place “for some time,” a further sign policy makers see little need to change rates in either direction.
IMF flags gaps in state spending practices
THE GOVERNMENT is on the right track in ramping up spending, especially on infrastructure, but much remains to be done to improve project planning and implementation, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in a May 16 report that was e-mailed to journalists on Wednesday.
PHL growth outlook eases with rest of the world
SIMMERING trade tensions between the world’s two biggest economies, the United States and China, will weigh on global economic prospects, the United Nations (UN) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) reported on Wednesday -- a factor that led Fitch Solutions Macro Research to slash its own gross domestic product (GDP) growth projection for the Philippines in particular for this year.
Gov’t exempts gold sales to central bank from taxes to boost reserves
THE GOVERNMENT has exempted from excise and income taxes the sale of gold by small-scale miners to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) in a bid to “further build up” the country’s foreign exchange shield against external financial shocks.
Five charged for $81-million 2016 Bangladesh Bank heist
THE DEPARTMENT of Justice (DoJ) charged five current and former officials of Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) with money laundering in connection with the February 2016 Bangladesh Bank heist.
Regulator calls Maynilad to account
THE METROPOLITAN WATERWORKS and Sewerage System’s Regulatory Office (MWSS-RO) has issued a notice of service obligation failure to Maynilad Water Services, Inc. for not meeting requirements under its concession agreement, the chief regulator said on Tuesday.