Philippines Morning News For August 31

Fed shift to cost up to P253B: On first year of implementation
The shift to a federal constitution will result in an estimated incremental cost of P156.6 billion to P253 billion, and will put pressure on the budget deficit, data from the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) showed.
— Malaya

Senate OKs ₱6.7-B 2019 budget for Office of the President
The Senate approved Thursday the 2019 budget for the Office of the President (OP) amounting ₱6.77 billion.
— CNN Philippines

10 infrastructure projects worth P36 billion to roll out in 2019
The government is set to implement 10 big ticket infrastructure projects worth P36.23 billion in 2019, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said yesterday.
— The Philippine Star

Duterte to sign 8 deals in Jordan, Israel visits
The Philippines is scheduled to sign at least eight agreements with Israel and Jordan when President Rodrigo R. Duterte visits both countries from Sept. 2 to 8, a Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) official said Thursday.
— Philippine News Agency

AIIB proposes local currency financing for PH projects
Beijing-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) wants to explore the possibility of local currency financing and a variable spread facility in providing loans to help fund the “Build, Build, Build” program of the Duterte administration.
— Manila Bulletin

FAO to grant $22.6-million aid for PHL food security, nutrition, agriculture sector
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) will be extending a total of $22.6 million in grant assistance to the Philippines in the next six years, according to its Country Programming Framework (CPF) for 2018 to 2024.
— Business Mirror

Around 400,000 illegal Pinoys in Malaysia to be affected by immigration crackdown
An estimated 400,000 undocumented Filipino workers will be affected by Malaysia’s nationwide crackdown on illegal migrants beginning Friday after its amnesty program ended on Thursday, the Department of Foreign Affairs said.
— GMA News

Philippine rice crisis escalates as shortages push prices to a three-year high
The price of rice in the Philippines has increased for the eighth month straight and hit a three-year peak, despite the injection of rice imports.
— Food Navigator-Asia

Security Bank’s $1-b notes receive investment grade
Global debt watcher Moody’s Investors Service assigned an investment grade rating to the $1-billion medium-term note program of Security Bank Corp., the country’s sixth-largest lender in terms of assets.
— Manilastandard.net

Digital drives PH SMEs to grow faster than APAC average — study
Vast majority of Philippines’ small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are posting strong trade growth boosted by the country’s digital economy that is rapidly growing at a rate faster than the Asia Pacific (APAC) average, according to a study.
— Manila Bulletin

Lawmakers take DOLE to task for not using P2 billion for emergency employment program
Lawmakers grilled the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) during its budget hearing on Thursday over the concerns raised by the Commission on Audit on the 2017 finances of the said agency.
— Business Mirror

PH vows to bridge, protect WPS interests as ASEAN-China coordinator
As the new country coordinator tasked to bridge the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China, the Philippines will play a constructive role in promoting good ties between the two parties, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano said.
— PTV News

Debt repayment costs now higher due to rising interest rates, weak peso
Costlier debt servicing due to rising interest rates and exchange rate volatility is the biggest concern faced by the economy, and financial authorities are now planning to introduce “interventions” to manage risks arising from credit.
— Philippines Magazine

Govt rejects all unsolicited LNG offers
The government rejected all unsolicited offers for the proposed $2-billion integrated liquefied natural gas project after they were found non-compliant, Energy Undersecretary Donato Marcos said Thursday.
— Manilastandard.net

House resolution extending funds for victims of human rights abuse OK’d on final reading
THE HOUSE OF Representatives has approved on third and final reading a joint resolution extending until December 2019 reparation funds to victims of Ferdinand E. Marcos’s martial-law regime.
— BusinessWorld Online

DBM nixes subsidy grant to minimum-wage earners
Government economic managers have officially thumbed down a proposal raised by the Department of Labor Employment (DOLE) to grant financial subsidy to minimum-wage earners.
— Business Mirror

BOI, Japan bank ink deal on investment promotion
THE Philippine Board of Investments (BOI) signed earlier this month a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Japan’s Shoko Chukin Bank Ltd. on encouraging investments in the country and strengthening ties between firms in Manila and Tokyo, the agency said on Thursday.
— The Manila Times

Jailed senator files bill to raise Philippine age of consent from just 12 to 18
Jailed senator Leila de Lima has filed a a senate bill to raise the age of sexual consent from just 12 years old to 18.
— Philippines Lifestyle

Win: Convert P4-billion airline losses to fare discounts
CITING airline industry estimates, Sen. Sherwin T. Gatchalian disclosed Thursday that foreign and local airlines landing at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport incur nearly P4 billion in annual losses as their aircraft are compelled to take holding patterns and go around Naia’s air space as inbound planes are unable to land due to congestion.
— Business Mirror

Japan bank to promote investments in PH
Shoko Chukin Bank Ltd has agreed to promote Japanese investments in the Philippines.
— Malaya

Comelec to acquire more than 70K new ballot boxes for 2019 polls
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) will be acquiring over 70,000 new ballot boxes to be used in the May 2019 midterm polls as majority of the ballots used in the May 2016 elections are unavailable.
— Philippine News Agency

DPWH Engineer, 4 others in P4-M bribery suspended
A district engineer and four other personnel of the Department of Public Works and Highways – Pasig (DPWH) were suspended by Public Works Secretary Mark Villar for allegedly accepting a P4-million bribe from a contractor to make sure he gets the project.
— Manila Bulletin

Galunggong imports seen threatening1.5M fisherfolk
THE importation of round scad, or galunggong, will affect the livelihoods of 1.5million fisherfolk, according to Senator Cynthia A. Villar, who chairs her chamber’s committee on agriculture and food.
— BusinessWorld Online

MoneyGram & GCash Launch Money Transfer Service in the Philippines
Just a little over a month after announcing it was extended its digital money transfer services in five new countries, MoneyGram (NASDAQ: MGI) announced it has joined forces with GCash to launch a new money transfer service to more than 10 million GCash mobile wallets in the Philippines.
— Crowdfund Insider

National ID system to help reduce ‘unbanked’ Filipinos
The National ID system will help more Filipinos become financially stable by improving access to credit, an information solutions firm said Thursday.
— ABS-CBN (video)

P2-B credit facility set for Cosiquien’s business
The country’s largest lender BDO Unibank has opened a P2-billion credit facility for the real estate business of young tycoon Michael Cosiquien, cofounder of Megawide Construction Corp., who is now building his own business empire.
— Philippine Daily Inquirer

Crime down by nearly 12% in Cebu
This was the plea Gov. Hilario Davide III made when he met with police officials during the third quarterly Provincial Peace and Order Council (PPOC) meeting yesterday.
— Sun Star

The Philippines’ forced disappearance crisis
The Philippines has a long history of forced disappearances that began during the military regime in the 1970s.
— Aljazeera

Malaysian debt watcher upgrades Philippines’ credit rating
The Philippines has secured a credit rating upgrade from a Malaysian debt watcher, which applauded the country’s fast economic growth, increasing foreign investments and economic reforms.
— The Philippine Star

DPWH Samar completes P10-M flood control project
As part of the Build Build Build Program of the Duterte administration, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) of the Samar First District Engineering Office (SFDEO) completed the rehabilitation and improvement of the flood control project along Bantian Creek in Brgy. Bantian, Calbayog City.
— Reliefweb

DTI, private sector to revive PH wearables
THE Philippine government is working with private sector stakeholders to reignite the development of the wearables industry as a competitive player in both domestic and international markets, with strategic initiatives currently underway, according to a Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) official.
— Sun Star

Bomb prank leads to arrest of PAL passenger
Legacy carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL), adhering to security protocol, turned over to the Police Aviation Security Group on Thursday a male passenger bound for Cotabato from Manila after uttering a bomb-related joke.
— Business Mirror

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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 31 added by Stella-maris Ewudolu on August 31, 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.