Monthly Archives: August 2010

MANILA, Philippines—Sending a strong message to officials of government corporations, President Benigno Aquino III has slashed the allocation for subsidies to government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs).

SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga, Philippines  – The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has slated a series of public hearings in Central Luzon to tackle the labor sector’s petition for a P75 to P125 increase in the region’s minimum wage.

SAN FERNANDO City, La Union, Philippines – The Automobile Association Philippines (AAP), with the assistance of the University of the Philippines Center for Transportation Studies, has produced a 10-minute video on safety driving tips for bus and taxi drivers in the country.

MANILA, Philippines – There will be no wage increase for domestic helpers in Hong Kong, the Labor department announced yesterday. Hong Kong Chief Executive Donald Tsang, meanwhile, assured President Aquino that Filipinos will be shielded from any backlash arising from Monday’s hostage-taking incident where eight tourists from the Chinese territory were killed.

Flag carrier OKs equity restructuring THE NUMEROUS labor issues hounding Lucio Tan-led Philippine Airlines (PAL) have scared away potential investors from bailing out the bleeding flag carrier.

MOST SMALL and medium enterprises in the Philippines are upbeat on domestic business prospects, resulting in a potential expansion in capital spending and hiring of more employees, according to separate survey results released yesterday by two multinational firms.

The Government released a proposed tax reform to cut 10 million won in tax for every new job A new system of ‘the tax benefit for job creation investment’ will be temporarily in place from 2011 to 2012, to reduce tax for the employers offering more jobs. Instead, the 29 year-old ‘temporary tax benefit for…

The Aquino administration is not keen on creating new economic zones to reduce foregone revenues resulting from the granting of fiscal incentives that could have been used to fund infrastructure projects.

THE Asian Development Bank is offering the Philippine government as much as $280 million in loans to finance a proposed refleeting program for tricycle drivers and operators to shift to electric motorbikes or e-bikes.

DANANG, Vietnam — ASEAN leaders warned Wednesday of a widening gap between Southeast Asia’s richest and poorest nations that could threaten the region’s drive for a single market.

Filipino maids working in Hong Kong are being sacked by employers angry over the deadly hostage crisis in the Philippines, a news report said Wednesday.

According to a recent Gallup survey, about a quarter of all Filipino adults would live elsewhere permanently if they had the chance. Many of those who can already are. It’s been estimated that about 10% of the population is living in some 200 different countries. Filipinos have long dominated emigration to Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore,…

MANILA, Philippines—The Supreme Court Tuesday created a special committee that will try to mediate the two-decade land dispute between Hacienda Luisita Inc. (HLI) owned by the family of President Aquino and the farmer beneficiaries.

DUBAI – Filipino workers inside US military camps in Iraq are now exempted from the travel and deployment ban imposed by the Philippine government.

Four in 10 Filipinos are optimistic that their lives will improve in the first year of the Aquino administration, according to a latest survey by the Social Weather Station (SWS).

Picture this scene happening in a factory: RECRUITMENT OFFICER — “I am sorry we cannot hire you.” TESDA GRADUATE — “Can you please tell me why?” OFFICER — “Because you have no experience.” GRADUATE — But how can I get experience if you do not hire me?!”

It was only on May 8 when Italy (where the Vatican, home of the Pope, leader of the largest religion in the world, resides), held its first divorce fair, with the aim of providing life coaching, beauty tips, tips on getting rid of former spouses who turn to stalkers, and helping couples with legal proceedings…

Former Social Security System (SSS) president Romulo Neri, along with some top executives of the agency allegedly appropriated for themselves bonuses and other incentives totaling more than P127 million over three years based on data provided the Senate in relation to its current probe into excessive compensations given to officials of government-owned and -controlled corporations…

Conclusion IT IS LITTLE WONDER that with the country’s poor showing in trade and investment, Philippine firms’ use of ASEAN free trade agreements to facilitate export sales pales in comparison to its neighbors’.

Aroutine check into why the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management (PSALM) has been filing petitions for power rate increases with reckless abandon led former colleague and now Eastern Samar Rep. Ben Evardone into a closet full of skeletons.

THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) on Tuesday said it would aim for a 30 percent reduction in the air pollution of Metro Manila and other urban areas by next year. DENR Secretary Ramon Paje said this move would cut by P7.6 billion a year costs arising from respiratory and cardiovascular diseases caused…

THE National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) on Tuesday said it is crafting a National Transport Plan aimed at easing the economic integration between and among regional growth centers in the country. In a statement, NEDA Director-General and Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Cayetano Paderanga said the plan will give policy directions for a complete network of…

MANILA, Philippines – The mother of a call center agent who passed out and died while at work has filed charges against his employer for allegedly not giving her son first aid treatment.

MANILA, Philippines – Four board members of state insurer Social Security System (SSS) made a killing from the P78.9-million sale of shares of stock of Philex Mining, all of which were never turned over to the pension fund, it was revealed during yesterday’s Senate hearing on the alleged excessive salaries and perks enjoyed by the…

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines will soon sign with the United States Millennium Challenge Corp. (MCC) an agreement for a grant of $433 million which would be used to finance crucial revenue and infrastructure projects, Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima said yesterday.

MANILA, Philippines – The economy is poised to grow by 6.2 percent this year on the back of a recovering global environment, the Institute of International Finance (IIF) said in its latest report on the country.

SAYS ACTIVISTS FROM ASIA, EUROPE MANILA, Philippines—As trillions of dollars in stimulus packages are running out and as governments deliberate on new ones to stave off the inevitable collapse of the world economy, social movements belonging to the Asia-Europe Peoples’ Forum (AEPF) urge decision-makers to re-think their assumptions and actions.

Asean economies are rebounding well from the global financial crisis. According to JPMorgan Chase & Co., investor interest in the stock markets of Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia could increase because of the resilience they showed during the credit crunch, and the economic growth in the region. They predict that Thailand’s economy will expand…

THE PHILIPPINES needs to beef up defenses against a pandemic, a government official said, noting that a collective effort from the government and public is needed in such a crisis.

Today Malacañang submits to Congress the proposed P1.645-trillion national budget for 2011. According to Budget Secretary Florencio Abad, the proposed budget is P104 billion higher than this year’s P1.541 trillion.