Philippines Morning News For May 31

War: Philippines Says it Will Fight if ‘Red Line’ Crossed… With what? (video)
Philippines Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano on Monday defended the administrations apparent soft stance against China saying the country would go to war if its new-found benefactor crosses a red line.
— AEC News Today

PH ranks 104th among best, worst countries for children
The Philippines fell to 104th spot among 175 countries in the global ranking of best and worst countries for children to grow up, the latest report of Save the Children revealed Thursday.
— ABS-CBN

World Bank flags ‘sluggish’ poverty reduction in the Philippines
The Philippines’ bullish economic fundamentals helped bring down the poverty rate, according to the World Bank, although poverty reduction in the country has been sluggish due to a wide wealth gap.
— Philippines Magazine

P10.5-billion NLEX Harbor Link Segment 10 completed by 2019
The P10.5-billion North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) Harbor Link Segment 10 will be complete and operational before the end of next year.
— Manila Bulletin

10k free HPV vaccines for Davao girls and women
The City Health Office is set to provide free Human Papillomavirus vaccines for women from June 1 to 5 to bolster its campaign against cervical cancer.
— Manilastandard.net

Govt raises P66B from RTB offering
The government raised P66 billion—more than double the amount initially considered—from the first day of its latest retail treasury bond (RTB) offering.
— The Manila Times

San Miguel revives plan to put up $100-million US brewery
San Miguel Brewery Inc. (SMB) has revived its plan to put up its first brewery in the US, allotting an investment of $100 million within the year, its top official said.
— Philippine Star

DFA: 100 protests filed vs China; Philippines keen on UN ruling
Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano said Wednesday the Philippines has filed close to 100 diplomatic protests against Chinese actions in the West Philippine Sea in two years even as National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr. insisted that the country is not abandoning the favorable ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration.
— Manilastandard.net

Does Philippine Licensing Problems Offer An Opportunity To Thailand?
Philippines has for a number of years found itself in the unique position of being the only country in Asia that licenses online gambling sites, done under the auspices of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), which also runs land-based casinos in the country, along with VIP slots clubs and bingo parlours.
— Thailand Business News

Private sector key to priming Philippines to be top MICE destination, says PACEOS chair
By 2030, the Philippine meetings, incentives, conventions, and exhibitions (MICE) industry targets to earn a revenue of PhP 24.8 billion and achieve an International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) rank of ten and above among countries in Asia Pacific and the Middle East.
— Marketing Interactive

PDEA opens rehab center for women in Caloocan shares
The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) inaugurated yesterday a drug rehabilitation center catering exclusively to women in Caloocan City.
— Philippine Star

‘Philippines must endure high prices’
Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno on Wednesday said Filipinos should be “less of a crybaby” over the rapidly rising prices of goods and services as a result of the government’s tax reform law.
— Manilastandard.net

Negros Occidental net P18M in sales at International Food Exposition
ARTICIPATING producers and local government units (LGUs) in Negros Occidental have generated about P18 million in sales during the three-day International Food Exposition (Ifex) Philippines 2018 held at the World Trade Center in Pasay City until Sunday, May 27.
— Sun Star

Enshored Announces Expansion Plans to Match Rapid Growth of Outsourced Operations
Enshored is excited to announce the opening of a second operations center in Ortigas, Metro Manila, the Philippines, to match growing demand for Enshored’s outsourced services.
— AEC News Today/ PR Newswire (media release)

Philippine debt at P6.88 trillion in April 2018
The country’s outstanding debt stood at P6.88 trillion as of April, according to the latest data from the Bureau of Treasury (BTr).
— Rappler

Rockwell Land spending up to P5 billion to expand landbank
Rockwell Land Corp. plans to spend up to P5 billion on land acquisition activities in the next two years as it targets to expand its landbank from three percent to 12 percent of its total assets.
— Philippine Star

The Philippines’ FTA with the European Free Trade Association Enters into Force in June
The Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the Philippines and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) will enter into force for Switzerland and the Philippines on June 1, 2018.
— Asean Briefing

Government wants to cut interconnection charges to help third telecom player
The government wants to further reduce the interconnection charges for text and voice call services in preparation for the entry of a third major telecom player.
— Manilastandard.net

Philippines set to buy oil from Russia in June—Cusi
The Philippines is set to import oil from Russia next month to boost the country’s fuel reserves, Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said in a radio interview Wednesday.
— Manilastandard.net

More than 100 smuggled vehicles destroyed at Bureau of Customs
President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday led the destruction of more than a hundred smuggled cars and motorcycles worth more than P34 million, nearly four months after several luxury vehicles were destroyed in the government’s campaign against smuggling.
— Philippine Daily Inquirer

Jeepney operators stand to get P26,000 fuel subsidy
About 30,000 qualified jeepney operators could be looking at P26,000 in fuel subsidy every year as the Department of Transportation (DOTr) gears up to revive its Pantawid Pasada program at the end of 2018.
— Philippine Daily Inquirer

Infra spend jumps 96%
The government’s infrastructure and other capital expenditures jumped by 96 percent in April, on account of various road infrastructure projects of the Department of Public Works and Highways nationwide, the Department of Budget and Management said.
— Malaya

Bananas: The Philippine’s pride
In 2017, world banana exports had grown to 20.5 million tons, or 10 percent more than in 2016.
— Fresh Plaza

DENR prepares charges against owners of hidden pipes in Boracay
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has identified the business establishments that are illegally discharging untreated wastewater in Boracay through hidden pipes.
— Business Mirror

Group vows to fight ‘white collar’ crimes
The Anti-Crime Council of the Philippines (ACCP), broad-based multi-sectoral council was formally convened during the first Anti-illicit Trade Summit of the Fight Illicit Trade (Fight IT) Movement at the Fairmont Hotel in Makati City on Tuesday
— Malaya

AUB plans to pay stockholders P776 million in cash dividends
ASIA United Bank (AUB) on Wednesday disclosed its intent to pay a total of P776 million in cash dividends to its stockholders in the next two months.
— Business Mirror

‘GIVE IT TO THE PEOPLE’: Duterte reaffirms ‘entire island’ of Boracay to go under land reform
AMID REHABILITATION efforts in the tourist island of Boracay, President Rodrigo R. Duterte said on Wednesday, “I’m declaring land reform for the entire island of Boracay.”
— BusinessWorld Online

BSP to launch banking sector outlook survey
THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) monetary board has approved the rollout of a semi-annual survey of the country’s top banking executives to gauge their sentiments in the industry in terms of important banking metrics.
— Business Mirror

Gov’t accelerates inflation mitigation measures’ rollout
The national government is accelerating the rollout of its social mitigation measures to further ease the impact of inflation on the country’s vulnerable sectors, the Department of Finance (DOF) said.
— Manila Bulletin

Next PH-China bilateral talks on WPS expected in Q3
Philippine Ambassador to China Jose Santiago Sta. Romana said the next meeting for the bilateral consultative mechanism (BCM) between China and the Philippines is expected on the 2nd half of the year.
— Philippine News Agency

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 31 added by Stella-maris Ewudolu on May 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.