THE ASSOCIATION of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) must continue to work on harmonization and convergence after it pushes through with market integration next year, a Cabinet official said.

COMMON TICKET: The use of a common ticket for all MRT and LRT train lines in Metro Manila is a great idea, but its adoption is being delayed as contentious issues surface involving some bidders vying for the ticketing contract.

The National Grip Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP), the private consortium that holds the franchise and is responsible for bringing the electricity produced by power plants to distribution utilities, has a lot of explaining to do.

LAL-LO, Cagayan—The New People’s Army (NPA) has taken responsibility for the Jan. 13 burning of vessels, heavy equipment and machinery belonging to a Chinese company that is conducting black sand mining operations along the Cagayan River.

(First of three parts) MANILA, Philippines – In the 1980s, smuggling of agricultural commodities had evolved into a big-time illegal trade, with the value of such products estimated at $6 billion a year.

SINGAPORE — Bapari Jakir’s employers wanted to see him off the job, but the welder was heavily in debt and didn’t want to go back to Bangladesh. So, he says, they encouraged him to leave — by hiring a company whose thugs held him captive in a room, holding a knife to his throat.

The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty. — Winston Churchill At the Feb. 5 conference of the 130-year-old multinational American Standard at Shangri-La Makati Hotel, I was invited to give a speech on the topic “How to have a winning attitude.” Here’s a condensed version of my…

MANILA, Philippines – With traffic jams expected to worsen this year due to infrastructure construction, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Francis Tolentino is pushing for a four-day school week.

MANILA, Philippines – Most Filipinos do not see themselves entering into a relationship with someone of the same sex, according to a recent Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey.

There was slightly stronger-than-expected growth in Germany and France in the final three months of last year, helping the eurozone’s recovery.

MANILA, Philippines – Can you imagine your city with cars occupying only half of the roads, while all-weather bike lanes and sidewalks, bus rapid transit, and public trains have the other half?

The Philippine gaming industry will continue to ramp up materially over the next few years, Fitch Ratings said in a report released Friday.

The Philippine digital marketing industry is estimated to be worth P8 billion by 2016, requiring a surge of talent to meet the demand, said Michael Palacios, the newly inducted president of the Internet and Mobile Marketing Association of the Philippines (IMMAP), on Thursday.

MANILA, Philippines – Can you imagine your city with cars occupying only half of the roads, while all-weather bike lanes and sidewalks, bus rapid transit, and public trains have the other half?

MANILA, Philippines—The Philippine automotive industry continued to trudge behind its Southeast Asian neighbors, ranking last among five countries in terms of motor vehicle production as of end-December 2013.

MANILA, Philippines—President Aquino has created a club of 30 poorest provinces that will receive increased funding and national government support between now and the end of his term in 2016.

MANILA, Philippines – The Joint Foreign Chambers (JFC) support a proposed measure seeking to change the foreign investments law by removing restrictions on practice of professions and lowering the employment threshold for small and medium enterprises.

Despite big jump in November inflow MANILA, Philippines – Despite rising foreign direct investments, the research arm of Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co. said the country remains a laggard among Southeast Asian countries in terms of annual average FDI.

MANILA, Philippines – President Aquino ordered his Cabinet Tuesday to “intensify programs on job creation and social protection” amid the ballooning 12.1 million unemployed Filipinos.

The Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) are an unprecedented global effort to achieve human development goals that are identified collectively, achievable, and measurable. Globally, substantial progress has been made toward many MDG targets- including cutting in half the proportion of people living in poverty. Every region of the world has made progress.

MANILA, Philippines – Motor vehicle assembly in the Philippines rose by five percent in 2013 compared to a year ago but the country still lags behind its peers in the Southeast Asian region, according to the ASEAN Automotive Federation (AAF).

The Philippines is becoming one of the most notorious countries in the world for having the most number of coffins on wheels, specifically public transportation buses that people use when travelling on the roads.

BAGUIO CITY, Philippines – The Philippines slid to 149 in the 179-country World Press Freedom Index of the France-based Reporters Sans Frontiéres (RSF or Reporters Without Borders).

CABINET PRESSED TO EXPLAIN MANILA, Philippines—Baffled by the high unemployment rate, President Aquino on Tuesday quizzed the Cabinet on its “action plan for poverty reduction” as the benefits of a strong economy were eluding the country’s middle class and poor. Aquino presided over a rare full Cabinet meeting that included Vice President Jejomar Binay in…

RECENT discussion over the labour-supply effects of Obamacare has touched off a debate over the usefulness of the dignity of work as a social value. Leading Republicans argue that policies that discourage work and therefore signal that work is not important should be strongly resisted. Paul Krugman insists that it is impossible to maintain the…

MANILA, Philippines – The business process outsourcing (BPO) sector will further help drive economic growth in the Philippines but this could be dampened by the forthcoming ASEAN integration in 2015, a study by an international business consultancy group noted.

Contrary to popular belief, the majority of those who get infected with the deadly human immunodeficiency virus infection or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) in the country are highly educated.

MANILA, Philippines – Merchandise exports hit an all-time high in 2013 amid growth in shipments of non-electronic products. Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) released yesterday showed the country’s merchandise exports reached $53.978 billion last year.

PARIS – Worldwide, one woman in 14 has been sexually assaulted by someone other than a partner, according to the first global estimate of the problem, published on Wednesday.

The Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) raided an illegal mining operation in Camarines Norte at the weekend and arrested 14 Chinese nationals, MGB Director Leo Jasareno said.