ALARMED by the impact of the global economic turmoil, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is pushing the Philippines to create a task force headed by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) to respond to the global economic crisis.

JUST when the Filipino masses were wondering how the economic meltdown was shaping up with regard to them—with mixed signals coming from various quarters on the issue—along comes Paul Roebuck, chief executive officer of BBDO Gurrero/Proximity Philippines with glad tidings. 

At the Philconsa monthly meeting on Tuesday night, former President Joseph Estrada identified the 10 most serious violations of the Constitution by President Gloria Arroyo.

Recently, the United States passed a credit card law as part of its wide-ranging reforms in the finance industry. This law is to curb abuses by banks who are the major credit card issuers. Here in the Philippines, with our mass of consumers with relatively low purchasing power, the menace of credit card debt and…

Filipino workers who will run away from their employers in Saudi Arabia will be banned from returning to the country to work, a local migrant group said yesterday.

GENEVA – After all is said and done, now comes the hard part. At the conclusion of the three-day Job Summit organized by the International Labor Organization (ILO), member-states agreed in principle to adopt a Global Jobs Pact, which puts jobs creation and social protection at the core of stimulus packages.

MANILA, Philippines – The Ayala Group has turned more upbeat on the high-end property market given a recent resurgence in demand from discerning buyers, encouraging the rollout of upscale projects for the rest of this year.

President Arroyo has lifted the order limiting the Order 807 repealing Letter of Instruction No. 58 issued by the late President Ferdinand Marcos which had limited the area for plantations of export-quality bananas to 26,250 hectares nationwide.

MANILA, Philippines – Instead of going on work stoppage, disgruntled workers are now mounting on-line protests to express their grievances against “abusive” employers.

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Philippines — A Korean foreman at the Hanjin shipyard in Subic Bay Freeport was held by company officials after he hit a Filipino worker with a steel flashlight on the face and head on Tuesday.

An employers group urged lawmarkers to train their sights on measures that would mitigate the impact of the ongoing crisis – especially in terms of saving business and jobs – instead of pursuing bills that would deny enterprises the needed flexibility in the employment and deployment of their workforce.

The Philippine National Police and the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) yesterday signed a memorandum of undertaking (MoU) on the commission’s visitorial powers over PNP-operated jails and detention facilities at the PNP Museum at Camp Crame, Quezon City to mark the second anniversary of the activation of the PNP Human Rights Affairs Ofice (HRAO).

DEMAND for high-end real-estate projects in the domestic market is recovering after a slump last year, the Philippines’ biggest property developer said Tuesday.

DOMESTIC trade flows in the Philippines dropped nearly a fifth in the first quarter of the year from a year ago, the National Statistics Office (NSO) said.

CITING lower real estate and auto loan rates, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said banks have begun passing on to their lending business the monetary authorities’ cut in key interest rates.

THE Philippines ranking as a destination of global retailers inched up, according to an international consulting firm.

AS migration continues to be the way out for Filipinos seeking for a better life for their families, Spain has earmarked $6 million or P270 million for a project designed to harness the skills of the Filipino youth and make them be of service to the Philippines rather than abroad.

TOKYO: Sixteen Asian workers on training schemes in Japan have died within 12 months of health conditions linked to “overwork,” triggering concerns of widespread labor exploitation, a lawyer said Tuesday.

Malacañang conceded on Tuesday that there was cause for concern over a World Bank prediction that the Philippines would slip to “outright recession” this year, even as the Finance secretary rejected the idea.

CEBU, Philippines – The Salcon Independent Union has agreed to withdraw its notice of strike after meeting with the management in a talk brokered by Governor Gwen Garcia yesterday.

CEBU, Philippines – More than 300 workers of Paul Yu were suspended for 30 days starting yesterday for participating in the work stoppage last week in support of their seven leaders who were earlier suspended by the management.

MANILA, Philippines—The Italian Senate should reject legislative proposals that would impose criminal penalties on undocumented migrants and provide a national framework for vigilante groups, Human Rights Watch said in a statement released from Milan.

TOYOTA Motor is projecting this year’s industry sales to decline by 5 percent from last year’s level as buyers postpone purchases following fears that economic recovery still far off.

MANILA, Philippines – Domestic helpers and other lowly paid overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) are actually sending home more remittances than the highly paid ones.

MANILA, Philippines – Remittances from the US declined by 10 percent in the first four months of this year and if this continues for the rest of the year, total remittances could post the first decline since the country started sending workers abroad.

If you are diabetic and reading this article, chances are your blood sugar is not controlled. Having a slightly elevated blood sugar level is not good for you. Should you be worried? Yes. Should you go for changes in your life? Yes, because new studies have shown that your pancreas get damaged even with borderline…

MANILA, Philippines – After issuing an executive order banning firms that could cause pollution in any form in Manila, Mayor Alfredo Lim directed officials yesterday to evaluate and inspect all existing industries in the city to ensure that their operations do not violate anti-pollution laws.

This is in response to the June 9 column of Marit Stinus-Remonde, “NPA injustice in N. Samar.” The column scores the New People’s Army (NPA) for the civilian casualties in its May 30 raid on a military detachment in Catarman, N. Samar. There are also allegations, without any credible proof offered, that the NPA supports…

IT is a good thing indeed that the A(H1N1) virus that hit the Philippines is not deadly. As of last Sunday, the Department of Health (DOH) has reported 428 A(H1N1) cases in the country. Not one of those so far infected has died, thankfully, because the A(H1N1) cases that were transported and readily transmitted here…

The migration of youth from the provinces [promdi] to urban centers could threaten further the country’s food security as most of them come from farming communities,” a party-list lawmaker said on Monday.