Philippines Morning News For July 3

Cigarettes more affordable despite ‘sin tax’ law
Bobby Falible was only 17 years old and a high school drop out doing farming jobs in Romblon when he started smoking, a habit he picked up from his friends.
— ABS-CBN

PSA: Farmers, fishermen remain poorest in PHL
Farmers and fishermen and children of low-income families are still the poorest of the country’s basic sectors, according to the latest report of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
— Business Mirror

PHL ‘more attractive’ to FDI — US report
THE PHILIPPINES has become “more attractive” to foreign direct investments (FDI), the US State Department said in a June 29 report, but nagging constraints like limits to foreign ownership, poor infrastructure, corruption and red tape must be addressed to improve competitiveness and ease the conduct of business.
— BusinessWorld Online

Jail facilities congested by 583 percent
One year of President Duterte’s campaign against illegal drugs has congested the facilities of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) by 583 percent, the government agency’s chief said yesterday.
— The Philippine Star

Manny Pacquiao’s camp slam unanimous decision in loss to Jeff Horn
Manny Pacquiao’s Australian strength and conditioning coach has labelled the judges who awarded Sunday’s Battle of Brisbane to Jeff Horn “crazy”, saying the unanimous decision should have gone their way.
— ABC News

Rates of Treasury bills may climb as central banks move to tighten
TREASURY BILLS (T-bills) on offer today are expected to fetch higher yields amid expectations of a spike in global interest rates, with several central banks abroad set to tighten borrowing costs.
— BusinessWorld Online

Unionbank confirms ‘possible fraud’ after P17-M theft arrest
Unionbank of the Philippines said Sunday authorities were investigating a “possible fraud incident” involving one of its employees.
— ABS-CBN

DA rolls out P25.9-M projects to N. Cotabato farmers
North Cotabato’s rice producing town has received another boost to its farming activities with a PHP25.9 million agricultural intervention from Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol.
— Philippine News Agency

Davao City allocates P6.5-M for malnourished children
The Davao City government has allotted PHP6.5 million for nutrition program which focuses on children with severe malnutrition cases.
— Philippine News Agency

Former Abu Sayyaf fighter warns worse to come in the Philippines
A decade after his release from prison, a former henchman of ISIS’ leader in Asia predicts the battle unfolding in the southern Philippines city of Marawi won’t stop there.
— LocalNews8.com

Philippines’ Duterte threatens to jail martial law critics
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has threatened to jail critics of his use of martial law in the violence-wracked south, days before the Supreme Court is set to rule on its legality this week.
— Daily Times

Philippines a net gainer from peso depreciation
The economy stands to gain more from a depreciating peso, the Department of Finance (DOF) said.
— The Philippine Star

Solar Philippines offers to replace coal power plants with solar farms
SOLAR PHILIPPINES Power Project Holdings, Inc. has offered to replace all planned coal-fired power plants with solar farms equipped with battery storage in a move that it expects to significantly cut electricity rates.
— BusinessWorld Online

WB tempers 2017 Philippine growth forecast
THE WORLD BANK has tempered its economic growth outlook for the Philippines to 6.8% for this year from an April 6.9% estimate, after official first-quarter data bared slower investment and public spending, but kept its 2018 projection at 6.9%.
— BusinessWorld Online

DoF says warnings of overheating farfetched
THE Finance department said macroeconomic fundamentals remain sound and that the risk of the economy overheating, flagged by debt rating agencies, remains farfetched.
— BusinessWorld Online

Foreign Investment pledges imperilled
Foreign investment pledges secured by the country are on the verge of being pulled out as delays on the proclamation of new economic zones have resulted in applications piling up in the Office of the President (OP).
— The Philippine Star

Jeff Horn defeats Manny Pacquiao: ‘Ridiculous’ decision blasted by US
MANNY Pacquiao’s trainer, Freddie Roach, has called for one of the judges from his fight against Australian Jeff Horn to be investigated over her controversial scoring.
— News.com.au

‘Marawi siege derailed deadline to defeat terror groups’
The fighting in Marawi City derailed the goal of the military to defeat the Abu Sayyaf and other terror groups by June 30.
— The Philippine Star

Politicos may derail antipoverty plans
President Rodrigo Duterte’s socioeconomic agenda shows signs of promise, but so far, there have been no drastic reforms meant to cut poverty while sustaining economic growth, economists told the Inquirer.
— Inquirer.net

Indonesia, Philippines jointly patrol Celebes Sea to cut off militants
The Philippines and Indonesia will jointly patrol the Celebes Sea this week to stop Islamist militants reaching the Philippines’ restive southern island of Mindanao, where rebels have seized a city, an army spokesman said on Sunday (Jul 2).
— Channel NewsAsia

Duterte urged to use popularity to institute ‘bold reforms’
A year since assuming office, President Rodrigo Duterte continues to enjoy high popularity ratings and he should use this political capital to push for major reforms, an analyst said.
— ABS-CBN

ERC modifies rules on refund of power bill deposits
The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) is modifying rules on pay-back and reporting requirements on the bill deposits of customers in the electricity sector.
— Manila Bulletin

Housing agencies ordered to use gender and dev’t funds for Marawi
Agencies under the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) have been ordered to use their Gender and Development (GAD) funds for women and children displaced by the Marawi crisis.
— Rappler

PH-US sea drills

Naval officers of the United States and the Philippines concluded the joint patrols conducted in the Sulu Sea on Saturday, a day after three Chinese outposts were reportedly deployed over the contested waters of the West Philippine Sea (WPS).
— The Manila Online

Mitsubishi donates hybrid cars to DENR
Japanese automaker Mitsubishi Motors Corp. (MMC) donated 10 units of electric and hybrid cars to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) as part of their commitment in promoting clean energy and environmental protection.
— The Manila Online

DOH distributes TV sets to strengthen health promotion
THE Department of Health (DOH) has distributed television sets to the Barangay Health Stations (BHS) to strengthen the health promotion campaign here in the region.
— Sun Star

Feature photo Brian Evans
Find our previous morning news feature photos in the AEC News Today Morning News Feature Photos gallery where you will find a pictorial display of daily life throughout the Asean Economic Community (AEC).

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 July 3 added by Stella-maris Ewudolu on July 3, 2017
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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.