Economic surveillance group maintains expectation of ‘robust’ Philippine growth amid risks
PHILIPPINE economic growth prospects remain strong despite inflation challenges and external headwinds, the ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO) said in a statement late Tuesday that showed projections were maintained from a previous report.
Transport dep’t seeks jeepney fare hike review
THE Department of Transportation (DoTr) will ask the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to review the jeepney fare hike approved two weeks ago in the face of receding world crude oil prices.
Another policy rate hike ‘on the table’
THE BANGKO SENTRAL ng Pilipinas (BSP) may still gun for another interest rate hike next month, a senior monetary official said even as he noted that inflation could clock in slower from here on.
Q3 GDP likely grew faster than 6% — report
ECONOMIC GROWTH likely picked up last quarter from the preceding three months’ disappointing six percent, analysts of First Metro Investment Corp. (FMIC) and the University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P) said in their latest joint assessment, even as they still slashed their full-year 2018 projection.
Gov’t aims to complete Marawi rehabilitation in three years
THE GROUNDBREAKING ceremony for the rehabilitation of war-torn Marawi City finally pushed through on Oct. 30, with the Task Force Bangon Marawi (TFBM) head promising completion by 2021.
Banks grow realty risk at slower clip
BIG BANKS still have room to expand real estate lending as latest exposure levels remain well below the 20% limit set by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), with credit growth slowing from a year ago.
Business watches as Duterte orders military ‘takeover’ at Customs bureau
PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte is putting soldiers in key positions in the Bureau of Customs, which has reeled from revelations of a record estimated P11 billion worth of methamphetamine that slipped through the country’s ports.
NEDA body approves Marawi rehab work
THE NATIONAL Economic and Development Authority’s (NEDA) Investment Coordination Committee-Cabinet Committee (ICC-CabCom) has approved new road and drainage projects for the rehabilitation of Marawi City, as well as the next phase for the flood management project in Metro Manila and repair of roads in other conflict-affected areas in Mindanao.
Philippines still compelling for miners, but mineral output growth to ease
THE PHILIPPINES will remain a compelling case for miners at least until the end of President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s term in 2022 despite an increasingly trying regulatory environment, according to Fitch Solution’s Philippines Mining Report.
Banks’ bad debts grow further
BAD DEBTS held by big banks kept growing in August but at a slower pace compared to the pickup in total lending, latest central bank data showed.
Employers’ group presses for pay increases based on productivity
EMPLOYERS again pressed for a shift to “productivity-based” daily minimum wage raise during a public hearing on proposals to hike the floor pay of Metro Manila’s private sector workers on Friday last week.
IMF ups Argentina financing deal to $56.3 billion
WASHINGTON/BUENOS AIRES -- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Friday increased the size of a standby financing agreement for Argentina to $56.3 billion in a deal that toughens previously agreed fiscal measures.