Philippines Morning News For May 24

Economic crime hits record high in PH
Economic crime hits record levels in the Philippines on wider awareness and understanding of threat, according to a survey.
— Manila Bulletin

PHL competitiveness falls most in Asia
NOTWITHSTANDING relatively robust growth so far, the Philippine economy’s competitiveness ranking suffered the biggest drop in Asia over snags in ease of doing business, “worsening” public finances, as well as tourism, employment and education concerns, according to a research group of Switzerland-based business school International Institute for Management Development (IMD).
— BusinessWorld Online

Robbers steal cash grants worth P2.7M for 4Ps beneficiaries
Robbers took P2.7 million worth of funds for Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program beneficiaries in Tinoc, Ifugao Tuesday night.
— Philippine Star

Pagcor donates P5 million to NBI
The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR) has donated P5 million to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to support the agency’s efforts to combat illegal online gambling.
— Philippine Star

Philippines: Ayala’s AC Energy invests $30m in Australian power JV
Philippine-listed conglomerate Ayala Corporation is entering Australia’s renewable market by investing $30 million in a joint venture with global renewable energy developer UPC Renewables, according to a disclosure on Wednesday.
— Deal Street Asia

Authorities seize P5.3-billion fake goods
The National Committee on Intellectual Property Rights, led by the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines, said it confiscated P5.3 billion worth of fake and counterfeit goods in the first quarter, with cigarettes and cigarette production equipment accounting for the bulk.
— Manila Standard

Political killings, atrocities in Mindanao multiplied under martial law — lumad group
The number of political killings and atrocities in Mindanao have allegedly multiplied since President Rodrigo Duterte declared martial law, according to a coalition of indigenous tribes.
— Philippines Magazine

Isabela proposes P2.5B for tourism development plan
IN its bid to make the locality as the top tourism destination in Negros Island, the Municipal Government of Isabela is proposing for a P2.5 billion worth of tourism development plan, its top official said Monday, May 21.
— Sun Star

P30-m Tuba waterworks project set
The municipal government is embarking on a multimillion-peso waterworks project that will guarantee sustainable water supply for the growing population in the town.
— Manila Standard

Gov’t underspending leads to narrower budget deficit as of April
The Philippines narrowed its budget deficit in the 1st 4 months of the year to P115.9 billion, after it posted a budget surplus in April alone, signaling that the government has been spending less than what has been budgeted.
— Rappler

Mindanao lawmakers hit Marawi rehab: ‘Painstakingly too slow’
Lawmakers from Mindanao are dissatisfied with the government’s pace in finalizing plans to rehabilitate Marawi City, calling the proposals faulty and “painstakingly too slow.”
— Rappler

House panel OKs P1.1-B Dengvaxia assistance fund
appropriations panel of the House of Representatives has approved the proposed P1.16 billion supplemental budget for the Dengvaxia Assistance Fund that will be used to aid those who have been injected with the anti-dengue vaccine.
— The Manila Times

Borrowings push debt-to-GDP ratio up in March
GOVERNMENT borrowings pushed the country’s debt-to-gross domestic product (GDP) ratio higher in March, the Finance department reported on Wednesday.
— The Manila Times

House minority nixes impeachment bid versus anti-Sereno SC justices
The House of Representatives’ duly recognized minority bloc will not join the opposition’s plan to seek the impeachment of the eight Supreme Court justices who voted to oust Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno.
— Philippine Daily Inquirer

PH bank introduces digital money
Yuchengco-led Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. has launched the Philippines’ first-of-its-kind digital money called e-Piso.
— Philippine Daily Inquirer

Tech parts giant wants to hire 8,000 Filipino workers this year
Taiwan’s New Kinpo Group said Wednesday it planned to nearly double its workforce in the Philippines, as it sees revenues from its electronic parts factories reaching $1 billion by 2020.
— ABS-CBN

SWS: Net optimism over quality of life, economy still ‘excellent’ but slightly down
Filipinos’ net optimism over their quality of life remained “excellent” despite a decline in their outlook on the economy, a Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey revealed Wednesday.
— ABS-CBN

Governor awaits PB’s assent on P1.5B loan
A 20-STOREY building that will house some of the Cebu Provincial Government’s frontline services will be built within the Capitol compound.
— Sun Star

Thailand to supply bulk of next rice imports
Thailand will likely supply the bulk of the 250,000 metric tons (MT) of rice as part of the open tender importation scheme to boost the country’s depleted buffer stock, with government saving about P500 million in the process.
— Philippine Star

PH to call for database vs natural disasters
The Philippines will urge its fellow Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) member-states to create a region-wide database on disaster risk management, which aims to reduce the effects of climate change and ensure timely and better cooperation among them in the face of disasters.
— The Manila Times

Weak demand prompts BSP to trim term deposit volume
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has slightly lowered the volume of term deposits to be auctioned next week as the term deposit auction facility (TDF) was undersubscribed yesterday.
— Philippine Star

SEC warns against online firms offering ‘paid-to-click’ programs
THE Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has warned the public to be cautious when dealing with online-based advertising companies offering “paid-to-click” programs, saying these may be Ponzi schemes.
— BusinessWorld Online

Interest-rate outlook compels investor shift to bonds
BPI Asset Management and Trust Corp., a fully owned subsidiary of the Bank of the Philippine Islands, is firm on its long-term bullish outlook of the global equities market as global economic growth continues.
— Business Mirror

Extremists turn to social media for recruitment
It was on May 23 last year when the five-month battle for the city of Marawi started, but an expert claimed that a year after, some allies of the extremists behind the attack are using social media for recruiting new fighters.
— Philippine Canadian Inquirer

Government eyes fuel excise tax suspension
The government is considering suspending excise taxes on fuel products imposed by the tax reform law to mitigate the effects of soaring global oil prices, a Palace official said.
— CNN Philippines

HIV cases rising among homosexual men in Baguio
The city government is initiating a ceremony of lighting candles on Thursday, May 24, to make residents become aware of what it describes as continuous increase in cases of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) here.
— Northbound Philippines

Militant farmers group rejects Castriciones’ bid as DAR chief
The militant peasant group Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) said it will not support the current bid of Atty.
— Davao Today

2 Chinese firms in Marawi rehab plan not disqualified: Roque
Malacanang on Wednesday said the two Chinese companies that are part a consortium tapped to rehabilitate war-torn Marawi City are not disqualified to participate in any government-led project.
— Philippine News Agency

Duterte to mark Marawi liberation in October
President Rodrigo Duterte will visit Marawi City on the first anniversary of its liberation by government forces from terrorists in October.
— Philippine Daily Inquirer

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 May 24 added by Stella-maris Ewudolu on May 24, 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.