Philippines Morning News For August 13

Seoul’s $1-B loans boosting PHL’s infra buildup, says envoy Continued from a1
MORE than half of the $1 billion worth of concessional loans the South Korean government is extending to the Philippines in the next three years will go to helping the country address its infrastructure constraints, according to Seoul’s top envoy to Manila.
— Business Mirror

Flooding displaces 383,000 in Philippines
Days of torrents of rainfall and flooding battered a widespread area in the Philippines, displacing nearly 383,000 people, a disaster agency said on Sunday.
— Xinhua

DBM releases 91.5% of nat’l budget as of July
The national government has released 91.5 percent of its P3.77 trillion budget in the first seven months of the year, data from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) showed.
— The Philippine Star

Deficit to GDP in H1 falls below target
The national government’s fiscal deficit in the first half reached 2.34 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), the Department of Finance (DOF) said over the weekend.
— The Philippine Star

Foreign investments soar 142.9% in May 2018
Investor confidence in the Philippine economy remained strong as foreign investments more than doubled in May.
— Rappler

P2.1 billion set aside for upgrade of 6 VisMin airports
A total of P2.1 billion has been set aside to modernize the infrastructure in six airports in the Visayas and Mindanao, Makati City Rep. Luis Campos Jr., an ex-officio member of the House appropriations committee, said over the weekend.
— Sun Star

State universities may get P280-million budget for free Wi-Fi
The government is allotting P280 million to provide free Wi-Fi hotspots in 112 state universities and colleges (SUCs) nationwide under the proposed P3.757-trillion budget for 2019.
— Rappler

Govt capital expenditures surged 42% in six months
The fiscal space expanded by the implementation of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion law enabled the government to boost investments and growth in the first half, the Finance Department said over the weekend.
— Manilastandard.net

P1.65-T add’l cost needed under federal charter
The draft federal constitution, if adopted and implemented beginning next year, will require more than a trillion pesos in additional expenditures for the government until 2022, data from the Department of Finance (DOF) showed.
— Manila Bulletin

DENR to develop management plan for bat conservation
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is set to develop a management plan for the conservation of bats in the Philippines.
— The Daily Guardian

National ID system to boost number of Pinoys with access to financing
THE creation of a centralized identification system is expected to increase the number of Filipinos with access to formal financial tools, especially since financial technology companies are on the rise.
— Business Mirror

Rediscount loans surge to P10.61-B as of end July
The central bank said it has released P10.61 billion worth of funds to banks under its peso rediscount facility as of end-July, way more than the P27 million it released in the same period last year.
— Manila Bulletin

PH to stage 1st garments, leather goods expo
The country will be hosting the first Philippine Garment, Leather Goods Industries, and Fabrics Expo on Aug. 23-26 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City to showcase the opportunities in this sector in the domestic market.
— Philippine News Agency

IMF: Slower Q2 growth still ‘respectable’
ECONOMIC GROWTH remains “respectable” despite slowing sharply in the second quarter, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said over the weekend, welcoming last week’s aggressive interest rate hike as a necessary policy step.
— BusinessWorld Online

US will return bells seized from Philippine church during military operation in 1901
The United States will return to the Philippines church bells seized by American forces in a bloody campaign more than a century ago, its embassy said on Sunday, following a demand by President Rodrigo Duterte.
— South China Morning Post

Senate panel to probe economic impact of federalism shift
The Senate Committee on Economic Affairs will investigate the economic impact of the proposed shift to federalism, its committee chair Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said Saturday.
— ABS-CBN

PH Navy now capable of using modern missile weaponry
The Philippine Navy (PN) is now capable of using the missile weaponry and other equipment it is acquiring for its ongoing modernization program, the Department of National Defense (DND) said.
— Philippine News Agency

PH garment exports rising on US-China trade war
The country’s garment and textile export is expected to post between 10-20 percent increase this year as some orders are now being shifted from China to the Philippines to avoid the high tariffs imposed by the US on Chinese goods, including garments and textile.
— Manila Bulletin

P1.3B for poor left unused – COA
About P1.3 billion set aside for cash grants for nearly two million beneficiaries were not claimed in 2017, an indication that the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) failed in helping the “poorest of the poor,” or that the people the funds were intended for were not in dire need and should have been delisted, according to a Commission on Audit (COA) report.
— Philippine Daily Inquirer

Govt sets P885-M bid price for MTPP site
THE government has set a minimum bid price of P885 million for the sale of the Manila Thermal Power Plant (MTPP) site.
— Business Mirror

OPINION: Duterte government slashed disaster fund without explanation
By the time many Filipinos turn 21, they would have experienced a volcanic eruption, several strong earthquakes and over 400 storms – dozens of them worsened by deep floods, violent winds and landslides.
— ABS-CBN

Tax effort climbs on higher revenues
The government’s tax effort climbed in the first half of 2018 from a year earlier on the back of a double-digit expansion in tax revenue, the Finance department reported over the weekend.
— The Manila Times

Health facility in Marawi relocation site to be set up
SEVERAL PRIVATE sector groups have partnered with the military to build a health facility in Barangay Sagonsongan, where the largest relocation site in war-torn Marawi is situated.
— BusinessWorld Online

Philippines: Former MILF Rebels Start Decommissioning of Firearms
The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has begun decommissioning firearms following the historic passage of a law giving the former separatist group autonomy in the south, its chief peace negotiator told BenarNews on Friday.
— Reliefweb

Airline’s losses surge to P444M
PAL Holdings Inc., operator of Philippine Airlines, said its losses surged by 59 percent to P444.8 million in the first half of the year, from P 279.7 million in the same period last year due to higher expenses in operation and costly fuel.
— Malaya

Mideast supermarket chain aims to import $100-million PHL products by 2020
ONE of Middle East’s most popular supermarket chains is now importing farm products and other commodities from the Philippines, and is targeting to procure at least $100 million from local producers by 2020.
— Business Mirror

Drug smugglers becoming bolder: Malacañang
Malacañang on Saturday described drug manufacturers and smugglers as “bolder” after a recent report which showed PHP6.8 billion worth of “shabu” from an alleged Taiwan syndicate had recently slipped past the Bureau of Customs (BoC).
— Northbound Philippines

Education key to stem rising numbers of Filipinos with diabetes
THE Philippine Center for Diabetes Education Foundation cites diabetes as the eighth leading cause of death in the country.
— Sun Star

PH coconut production rebounds
The Philippines produced more coconut in the first half of 2018 compared with the same period last year, on the back of favorable weather, specifically enough rains, and government fertilizer inputs.
— Philippine Canadian Inquirer

PHL ‘won’t be left out now’ in space program
‘WE [the Philippines] do not want to be left out…we want to build our space technology capability” in order for the country to benefit from it, Science Secretary Fortunato T. de la Peña declared after Maya-1 cube satellite (CubeSat), the second Philippine satellite, was deployed from the International Space Station on the afternoon of August 10.
— Business Mirror

DFA, PCOO launch book on ASEAN achievements under PH hosting
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) on Friday launched a book highlighting the achievements made by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) during the Philippines’ chairmanship in 2017.
— Philippine Canadian Inquirer

Rates of gov’t securities to move sideways after fresh BSP rate hike
YIELDS on government securities on offer this week will likely move sideways following the policy tightening by the central bank.
— BusinessWorld Online

Analysts: MB not done with hiking interest rates
Monetary authorities will likely continue to raise interest rates given the need to temper inflation and despite a softening economy, analysts said.
— The Manila Times

Health and wellness industry top earner in 2016—PSA
Filipinos remain conscious about their health and wellness as companies engaged in these activities earned the most among industries under the Other Service Activities Sector of the economy, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
— Business Mirror

Feature photo Peter Rowley

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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 13 added by Stella-maris Ewudolu on August 13, 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.