NTUC Blog

MANILA, Philippines – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) upgraded anew yesterday the Philippines’ economic outlook for this year after the stronger-than-expected gross domestic product (GDP) growth in the first quarter of the year.

MANILA, Philippines – President Benigno Aquino III said his administration will make the country more attractive for investors.

CEBU, Philippines – A libel case was filed before the Regional Trial Court against two labor union leaders who allegedly made defamatory remarks last year against the late Luis Alfonso Y. Aboitiz.

MANILA, Philippines – Contrary to public perception, even members of the militant bloc of the House of Representatives belong to the millionaires’ club, based on their annual statements of assets, liabilities and net worth. Representatives Satur Ocampo of Bayan Muna and Liza Maza of women’s group Gabriela – who both lost in the May 10…

PHILIPPINE economic managers on Tuesday revised the country’s economic growth target to a range of 5 percent to 6 percent from the earlier 2.6 percent to 3.6 percent. Finance Secretary Margarito Teves said the major drivers of expansion would be consumption, investments and exports.

Here’s something to think about as we celebrate our Independence Day: the “trilemma” between democratic government, free markets and the processes of globalization. The notion of a “trilemma” has emerged among commentators on the evolving financial crisis in Europe. It refers to the apparently irreconcilable qualities of the three elements characterizing the modern nation-state.

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) has submitted to President-elect Benigno Aquino III a 100-day economic road map that aims to help the new administration fulfill its own economic agenda.

COMBINED profits of listed companies ballooned by more than three-fourths to P357.84 billion last year due mainly to one-time gains and some improvements in performance, the stock exchange said yesterday.

MANILA, Philippines – The European Union (EU) and the Philippine government have agreed on the final text of a partnership and cooperation agreement (PCA) between the two parties, EU Ambassador Alistair MacDonald said yesterday.

MANILA, Philippines – Monetary authorities said over the weekend that inflation would no longer hit six percent this year in light of lower oil prices, stable commodity prices, cheaper power and water rates as well as the stronger peso.

“Fantastic” corporate earnings in the Philippines will drive stock valuations back toward levels in December, when multiples touched the highest in almost two years, according to ATR KimEng Asset Management Inc.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said the timing and amount of wage increase is crucial to revisiting its baseline inflation forecast for this year and 2011.

Japanese companies have raised the high local electricity prices, the lack of infrastructure and the need to improve the tax refund system between Japan and the Philippines as among the major constraints to the exchange of benefits under the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (Jpepa), the first free trade agreement for the country.

About 11 million Filipino households remain without access to the banking system, Bangko Sentral Gov. Amando Tetangco Jr. said Monday.

AS in past election years, the Philippine economy surged in the first quarter of this year with a 7.3-percent growth, driven by the massive spending that accompanies every election, whether from government or otherwise. Also a factor but to a lesser extent has been the general recovery in rich economies from the global financial crisis,…

MANILA, Philippines – The country’s merchandise imports climbed by 38.9 percent to $4.543 billion in March from $3.270 billion in the same period last year as payments for electronics surged by 35.4 percent during the review period, the National Statistics Office (NSO) reported yesterday.

MANILA, Philippines – The ratio of non-performing loans (NPL) of universal and commercial banks to the industry’s total loan portfolio continued to improve as of end-March this year as corporate and individual borrowers were able to pay their outstanding financial obligations on time, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported yesterday.

MANILA, Philippines—Roman Catholic bishops around the country Thursday aired their support for “president-in-waiting” Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III in his promise to fight poverty and corruption, but reminded that the Church’s stand on the Reproductive Health (RH) Bill would never change.

THE members of the so-called Hyatt 10, who defected from the Cabinet of President Gloria Arroyo in 2005, on Wednesday outlined the agenda for the new administration under Senator Benigno Aquino III.

MANILA, Philippines – The country’s export earnings rose to a record high of 43.7 percent to $4.18 billion in March as the global recovery spurred demand for locally-made electronics goods.

Had Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile bowed to pressure, especially from some of his colleagues, to elect a new Senate head before the May 10 elections to avert a leadership vacuum in the executive branch, that would have been a futile exercise. The proposed change in the Senate leadership stemmed from fears of a failure…

MANILA, Philippines – The real lending rate in the Philippines continued to slide in the first quarter of the year due to the steady decline in nominal bank lending rates, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported yesterday.

Trade union leaders of nations involved in talks to create the latest international trade deal—the Trans-Pacific Partnership Trade Agreement (TPPTA)—are calling for the negotiations to be inclusive and open, not conducted behind closed doors with a few corporate players, as too many other deals have been.

While living in the United States, I often saw or heard radio and TV commercials concerning “Drunk Driving”. To this day I distinctly remember the commercials warning us about how drunk driving kills people and how choosing not to drink and drive can save lives.

MANILA, Philippines – A village guard allegedly shot dead his colleague for reporting late for work in Quezon City Friday night.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo Saturday directed Labor Secretary Marianito Roque to speed up the ongoing tripartite negotiations on wage hikes as well as to immediately address the pending labor cases before the National Labor Relations Commission.

The skirmish in the hikes in charges of Manila Electric Company (Meralco) intensified further when the operator of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) tossed accountability on the distribution firm’s independent power producers (IPPs) as the ones contributing substantially in the hike in its generation charges.

Two decades after the Aquino government successfully rammed through the first major revision of the country’s Labor Code to the detriment of workers’ rights, the Employers’ Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) recently aired its desire to revise it anew. As with previous attempts to change the Labor Code, their stated reasons boil down to the…

MANILA, Philippines – Monetary authorities see merchandise exports and imports  accelerating at a faster pace this year after major markets led by the United States and  Japan were battered by the global economic crisis last year.

Chances are by the time this column sees print, the Comelec may have decided that the idea of having a parallel manual count is an exercise in futility. Of course the Comelec has to be proper in its actions and its language. But just in case some holdouts decide to put up a fight, here’s…