Philippines Morning News For August 10

Philippine GDP Growth Drops To Three-Year-Low
Economic growth in the Philippines slowed to six per cent during the second quarter of the year, the Philippine Statistics Authority said on August 9.
— Investvine

Bangko Sentral pulls trigger on highest rate hike in 10 years
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas on Thursday raised its benchmark rate by 50 basis points on Thursday, after inflation breached its target for 5 straight months.
— ABS-CBN (video)

P500-M budget eyed to power up unserved, underserved areas in 2019
The Department of Energy (DOE) will allot PHP500 million for the electrification of unserved and underserved areas next year, spokesperson Felix William Fuentebella told the Philippine News Agency (PNA) on Thursday.
— Philippine News Agency

House members want P93-billion DPWH budget slash restored
Lawmakers on both sides of the political fence have united to push for an increase in the budget of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) for next year.
— Business Mirror

DND earmarks P90-M for M-16 bullets
The Department of National Defense is allocating some PHP90.3 million for the acquisition of 21 million rounds of 5.56mm M855/SS109 bullets.
— Philippine News Agency

Telco to sell majority of digital arm, books P78.5B revenues in H1
PLDT Inc. yesterday said it is selling majority of Voyager Innovation Inc. to a group of foreign investors to help fund its digital innovation expansion in the next three to four years.
— Malaya

Philippine Navy successfully tests its first missile system
The Philippine Navy, successfully tested its first missile system which was aboard the Multi-Purpose Attack Craft (MPAC) Mk III as it conducted its Sea Acceptance Test (SAT) near Lamao Point in Bataan.
— Rappler

Monetary policy ineffective vs supply-driven inflation — NEDA
An aggressive monetary policy could prevent second-round effects of rising inflation, but would have little impact on nipping the source of domestic inflationary pressure, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said yesterday.
— The Philippine Star

PLDT to sell stake in Voyager for P10 billion
That was how businessman Manuel V. Pangilinan, chairman of telco PLDT Inc., described the foreign investors interested in buying in Voyager Innovations Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Smart Communications Inc., for about P10 billion.
— Business Mirror

10,000 jobs await jobseekers
Over 10,000 job opportunities await jobseekers in a mega job fair under the government’s “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure program on Sunday at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City, the Department of Public Works and Highways said.
— Manilastandard.net

Roque: PH eyes signing of exploration deal with China before Xi visit
Malacañang is looking forward to signing a joint exploration agreement with China in the West Philippine Sea before Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit later this year.
— Philippine Daily Inquirer

House endorses tobacco harm reduction
The House of Representatives unanimously adopted a resolution urging the Department of Health to promote harm reduction measures as part of its National Tobacco Control Strategy, especially the use of electronic cigarettes or vapes as a less harmful alternative for smokers.
— Manilastandard.net

Philippines: World-class export processing hub opens in Calamba City
A world-class, cutting edge product processing facility and food logistics hub opened Wednesday at the sprawling Calamba Premier International Park (CPIP) in Barangay Batino here, following the inaugural rites that signalled the first ever entry of the Middle East conglomerate.
— Fresh Plaza

PHL hopes to expand nursing education ties with Indonesia
THE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said it hopes to expand cooperation with Indonesia to upgrade standards for nursing education.
— BusinessWorld Online

EXCLUSIVE: Boracay sewage system rehab to finish next month – DENR
Rehabilitation of the sewage system in Boracay will be completed by September as the government is bent on meeting its deadline for reopening the island to tourists on October 26.
— CNN Philippines

6% GDP growth below gov’t target
The closure of Boracay, high prices and tighter mining regulations weighed down the country’s economic expansion in the second quarter to 6 percent year-on-year, or below expectations, the government’s top economist said on Thursday.
— Philippine Daily Inquirer

Funds released for pension arrears for AFP, PNP retirees
THE Department of Budget and Management (DBM) in a statement Thursday, Aug. 9, said it has released the pension differential arrearages for retirees of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP).
— BusinessWorld Online

Cabinet unanimously rejects zero tariff plan
Cabinet officials are unanimously against the proposal to reduce to zero the tariff on some agriculture products as part of measures to control inflation, citing the scheme’s adverse effect on local producers, Malacañang said yesterday.
— The Philippine Star

Government owns P74-billion coco invest fund—Sandigan
The Sandiganbayan says about P74 billion in assets from the Coconut Industry Investment Fund belong to the government and should be distributed to coconut farmers.
— Manilastandard.net

DTI eyes 35% tariff on sugar imports
THE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is proposing a 35-percent tariff on sugar imports as the government plans to increase these to stabilize prices, its chief said on Thursday.
— The Manila Times

DBM cuts CHED student aid fund by more than half
The proposed 2019 budget for aid to government scholars at the college level has been slashed by more than half from 2018, leaving some programs granting educational aid with zero allocation.
— ABS-CBN (video)

Accenture calls for job overhaul as response to automation, AI
COMPANIES must do their part to make the labor force more competitive in the age of automation and artificial intelligence (AI), professional services company Accenture said.
— BusinessWorld Online

NPCC bats for importation to ease supply, higher prices
The inter-agency National Price Coordinating Council (NPCC) has batted for the importation of some commodities such as fish, rice, sugar, and vegetables at reduced tariff rates, perhaps a uniform rate of 5 percent in the meantime, to augment local production as tightness in supply of these commodities have driven prices higher.
— Manila Bulletin

Feature photo Brian Evans

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Philippines morning news by AEC News Today is your one stop source for Philippines news on matters of governance and policies affecting Asean business communities. It is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.

Philippines morning news for August 10 added by Stella-maris Ewudolu on August 10, 2018
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Stella-maris Ewudolu

Journalist at AEC News Today

Stella-maris graduated with a Bachelor of Arts, Education from Ebonyi State University, Nigeria in 2005.

Between November 2010 and February 2012 she was a staff writer at Daylight Online, Nigeria writing on health, fashion, and relationships. From 2010 – 2017 she worked as a freelance screen writer for ‘Nollywood’, Nigeria.

She joined AEC News Today in December 2016.