The government is counting on the vaccination drive and the safe reopening of the economy to help stimulate job creation in the country. Essential workers get coronavirus vaccines inside the SM Manila cinema that has been converted into a vaccination hub on cinema turned vaccination hub at SM...
The World Bank expects the Philippine economy will recover at a much slower pace than initially estimated due to resurgence of coronavirus infections and prolonged movement controls that held back the nation’s early signs of a rebound. The Washington-based financial institution on Tuesday, June...
The Fiscal Incentives Review Board (FIRB) has adopted the framework for the grant of incentives to qualified industries under the government’s Strategic Investment Priorities Plan (SIPP). As provided in the newly enacted Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Law that...
SPEAKING OUT Ignacio R. Bunye Speaking before the Regis CEO Roundtable Series last May 18, Fernando Zobel de Ayala (FZA), President and CEO of Ayala Corporation, disclosed that “two of Ayala’s most cyclical businesses – Ayala Land and BPI – are priming themselves for a post-pandemic...
Senator Nancy Binay on Sunday urged the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) to “have a heart” and spare private schools from a 150 percent increase in income tax. Binay said the BIR should withdraw its Revenue Regulation No. 5-2021 which seeks to impose higher income tax on so-called proprietary...
Senate President Vicente Sotto III on Thursday, June 3, appealed to the government to forego the mandatory 14-day quarantine for fully-vaccinated individuals entering the Philippines. Senate President Vicente 'Tito' Sotto III "Calling on IATF/DOH (Interagency Task Force on the Management of...
OF SUBSTANCE AND SPIRIT Diwa C. Guinigundo It was good for the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to shift the release of Financial Stability Report (FSR) from annual to semestral beginning second semester of 2020. There is a dearth of reliable and timely information that the Filipino public could trust,...
As Metro Manilans and residents in the NCR-plus bubble settled into another fortnight of general community quarantine (GCQ), they as well as those in the rest of Luzon from the Ilocos region to Bicolandia were greeted by rotational brownouts that are expected everyday during the first week of...
The Department of Finance (DOF) bucked assertions that the Philippines will be the “laggard in Asia” in a post-pandemic world. Finance Undersecretary and Chief Economist Gil S. Beltran assured the country’s stamina to endure its marathon towards inclusive and sustainable development after the...
Unlike the House of Representatives, the Senate still does not seem to think that revising the Constitution is an urgent measure amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Senate of the Philippines (Senate PRIB) Senate President Vicente Sotto III said that senators may tackle their counterpart's proposed economic...
GOVERNANCE MATTERS Former Vice President Jejomar Binay We seem to be hearing more bad news than good news these days, and these do not bode well for government’s optimistic scenario of a jumpstarted economy by the second quarter of the year. The scenario is dependent on two factors. One is the...
A full month of General Community Quarantine (GCQ) would be completed by June 15 in the National Capital Region-plus bubble area following President Duterte’s announcement on June 1. Recall that Metro Manila and the provinces of Bulacan, Rizal, Laguna and Cavite were placed on Enhanced Community...
