Philippines Morning News For March 23

ICC told: PH won’t assist in probe
The International Criminal Court (ICC) could expect no cooperation from the Duterte administration, even if it continues with its efforts to look into the human rights situation in the Philippines amid killings in its war on drugs.
— Philippine Daily Inquirer

Philippines’ exchanges merger under threat
The Philippine Stock Exchange’s bid to create a unified bourse for stock and bond trading is in danger of being scuttled, with no less than a state-backed lender moving to thwart the merger.
— Nikkei Asian Review

Megaworld P30-billion bond bags PDS award as top traded issue in 2017
MEGAWORLD Corp.’s P30-billion bond issue bagged the “Top Traded Corporate Bond Issue of the Year” given by the Philippine Dealing System Group held during its annual awards night in Makati City.
— Business Mirror

Philippine senators vow to kill divorce bill
A proposed law that would legalize divorce in the predominantly Catholic Philippines is as good as dead once it reaches the Senate, according to Upper House lawmakers.
— UCA News

BIR sues gold trader over P1.7 billion in back taxes
THE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Department of Justice (DoJ) filed five separate complaints against a gold trader over P1.7 billion in taxes allegedly evaded, BIR Deputy Commissioner Marisa O. Cabreras said.
— BusinessWorld Online

P10 billion monthly losses seen from income tax cut – DOF
The newly enacted tax reform law is expected to slash the government’s income tax collections by P10 billion a month, the Department of Finance (DOF) said yesterday.
— Philippine Star

NAIA ranks 10th on ‘world’s most improved airports’ list
The Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) ranked 10th on a list of the “world’s most improved airports” for 2018, released by London-based Skytrax.
— Rappler

Pilipinas Shell spending P4.3B for expansion
Oil refiner and retailer Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. said it allocated a capital expenditure budget of P4.289 billion this year mainly to expand its retail business.
— Manila Standard

PH promotes Clark as Asia’s new aerotropolis
The Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), a government-owned and -controlled corporation (GOCC), is promoting Clark in Central Luzon as Asia’s next aerotropolis.
— Philippine News Agency

P94B worth of infra projects in Davao Region
THE top 10 key developmental infrastructure projects for Davao Region amount to at least P94 billion, as per data by the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) Davao Region.
— Sun Star

BoI registers three manufacturing investments worth P6.95 billion
THE Board of Investments (BoI) said Thursday that it approved three manufacturing expansion projects worth a combined P6.95 billion.
— BusinessWorld Online

House plans P100,000 fine for gov’t men caught in casinos
The House committee on games and amusements is looking at a P100,000 fine for government officials and employees, as well as soldiers and police officers, who are caught gambling in a casino.
— Philippine Daily Inquirer

PSEi climbs out of correction territory
Philippine shares staged a strong comeback, escaping from the deep correction in the past two trading sessions.
— ABS-CBN (video)

Deadline for Filipinos in Kuwait availing amnesty set April 12
More than 6,000 remaining undocumented Filipinos in Kuwait are urged to register early for repatriation, with amnesty program granted by the Kuwaiti government expiring in a month.
— Philippine News Agency

3 Beechcraft TC-90 planes leased from Japan set for turnover on Monday
The Philippine Navy will get hold of the remaining three of five units of Beechcraft TC-90 that it leased from Japan during the scheduled turnover ceremonies in Cavite on Monday.
— Business Mirror

PSE lists SRO shares to raise P2.9B
THE Philippine Stock Exchange, Inc. (PSE) marked the listing of its stock rights offering (SRO) shares with a bell ringing ceremony.
— Sun Star

Auto loans up 22% in 2017
Motor vehicle loans jumped 22.2 percent last year as buyers opted to acquire new units ahead of the effectivity of the higher excise tax imposed by the government.
— Philippine Star

‘Kiddie’ Savers in the Philippines Just Put Away $577 Million
While most of his friends trooped to shopping malls to spend their Christmas money last holidays, Hortaleza put the $57 he received in the bank, adding to the $2 per week allowance he’s been saving.
— Bloomberg

BCDA wants Clark as next ‘aerotropolis’
The Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) is pitching Clark to global investors as an airport city which would join other so-called aerotropolis in Asia.
— Malaya

Duterte sets terms for lifting ban on OFW deployment
President Duterte will not lift the ban on deployment of workers to Kuwait until the Kuwaiti government accepts the conditions he has laid down involving humane treatment of Filipinos in the wealthy Gulf state.
— Philippine Daily Inquirer

Aquino found liable for Dengvaxia mess
FORMER President Benigno Simeon Aquino III and his officials have been found liable for the hasty approval of the dengue vaccination program and procurement of the anti-dengue drug Dengvaxia, Sen. JV Ejercito said yesterday.
— Malaya

House okays mandatory SIM-card registration bill on second reading
The House of Representatives has recently approved a measure requiring the registration of all users of subscriber identity module (SIM) cards.
— Business Mirror

Government gung-ho on RCEP. But is PHL ready for it?
Manila’s aggressive stance to push the immediate conclusion of the China-led Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) has left local stakeholders—especially exporters and consumers—wondering if the Duterte administration is walking the talk in the form of safety nets and capacity-building programs.
— Business Mirror

Key BSP rates unchanged, inflation seen hitting target
MONETARY authorities decided to keep key interest rates unchanged on Thursday with inflation expected to remain on target this year and the next.
— The Manila Times

36,000 jobs, P56 billion ‘at stake’ if Boracay closed for a year
Over 36,000 jobs would be affected and about P56 billion in revenues would be foregone should the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte decide to close the world-famous Boracay Island for a year to fix its environmental woes.
— Rappler

Exhibit shows women-farmers in PHL work more, paid less
The conditions of women-farmers, including the huge gap in the pay they receive compared to their male counterparts, were highlighted in an exhibit mounted by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) in its headquarters in Muñoz, Nueva Ecija.
— Business Mirror

Feature photo Fabio Achilli

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 March 23 added by Stella-maris Ewudolu on March 23, 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.