TACLOBAN CITY — Northern Samar emerged as the top province in Eastern Visayas for labor and employment in 2024, preliminary data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA)-Region 8 said. The province had a 98.1 percent employment rate and the lowest unemployment rate at 1.9 percent. It also...
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has downgraded its projection of the Philippines’ rice imports this year by 500,000 metric tons (MT) due to the 60-day import ban that will come into effect beginning next month. In its report on the global grains trade, the USDA’s Foreign...
Despite recent interest rate cuts by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), inflation hitting nearly six-year lows in recent months, and still-muted second-quarter growth in some sectors, further reductions in key borrowing costs are seen as necessary. “We think the second-quarter GDP [gross...
Amid expectations of slower economic growth and lower inflation this year, global investment banking giant Goldman Sachs sees more interest rate cuts by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) Monetary Board (MB) during the next three quarters before pausing its easing cycle. In an Aug. 7 report,...
The Philippines and Southeast Asia may attract foreign investments avoiding China and India if the United States (US) pushes through with its threat of higher tariffs on Indian goods, according to the think tank Capital Economics. “[US] President [Donald] Trump’s threat to impose an additional...
As Filipinos evolve alongside technology, the marketplace tradition once reserved for the hustle and bustle of wet markets is finding new life in the digital realm. The art of “tawad” or haggling is seen growing in the world of online shopping, yet its brushstroke still paints the same...
While Philippine gross domestic product (GDP) growth showed relative strength in the second quarter, private-sector economists believe it is not strong enough to prevent the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) from further reducing interest rates, as inflation is expected to remain soft and growth...
Malacañang on Tuesday welcomed the steady decline in the country’s inflation rate over the past six months, describing it as a “magical” feat given global economic pressures. Speaking to Filipino reporters covering President Marcos’ state visit to India, Communications Undersecretary...
Coupled with an increase in unpaid workers, the number of jobless Filipinos swelled by more than 300,000 to 1.95 million in June from 1.62 million a year ago, with the online gambling sector partly contributing to the pool of unemployed. Preliminary data from the Philippine Statistics Authority...
Rice prices dropped at their fastest pace since 1995, bringing consumer price increases to below one percent in July, partly supported by the current administration’s ₱20-per-kilo rice program. Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Undersecretary and National Statistician Claire Dennis Mapa...
The Philippine economy is enjoying low inflation and accelerated growth amid a manufacturing rebound plus improved consumer spending in the second quarter of 2025, according to global investment banking giant Goldman Sachs. In an Aug. 1 report obtained by Manila Bulletin, Goldman Sachs Economics...
With rice prices still seen to have dropped further recently, the central bank has forecast that increases in consumer prices likely slowed even more in July, following the five-and-a-half-year lows of 1.4 percent in June and 1.3 percent in May. As such, private-sector economists said that the...
