THE Philippine government is not planning to counter Trump’s tariff moves, saying the new trade policy of the United States is even advantageous for certain local goods.
In an interview with reporters on the sidelines of the National Food Fair held in Mandaluyong city on Wednesday, Trade Secretary Cristina A. Roque said the government is unlikely to retaliate against Washington for slapping the additional 17-percent tariff on Philippine exports.
“We don’t have any of those [retaliatory moves]. We just want to increase trade with other countries,” she added.
Roque made this pronouncement after she
revealed that Asean economic ministers will have a virtual meeting on Thursday to discuss the plans of member-states regarding the reciprocal tariffs imposed by Washington.
“On Thursday we have a meeting with the ministers all over Asean where we will discuss the stand of all member-states. Of course, we are Asean and we need to bond together,” she said.
While the Philippine economic team convened on Tuesday over the reciprocal tariffs imposed by the US government, Roque said the country’s economic managers which include the heads of the government agencies such as the Department of Finance (DOF), National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) have not yet discussed the concessions that the country will offer.
“We just wanted to discuss also what are the possibilities of how we can strengthen trade just in case it remains at 17 percent or let’s say the other countries are reaching out to us so that we can have a unified Asean stand on the tariffs,” she said.
As for bilateral talks with Washington, Roque said the Philippines is still awaiting word from her US counterpart.
“The president has already instructed me three weeks ago to pursue this and we have already written to them also for the meeting but I guess they’re busy because there are so many issues about the tariff,” she added.
Despite the disruptions that may be triggered by the US-led trade war, Roque said she remains optimistic that Philippine goods, such as coconut-based products and dried mangoes, will enjoy an advantage.
“At 17 percent tariff, definitely, the Philippines will have an edge like for example products, our main competitor is Thailand which was slapped a reciprocal tariff rate of 36 percent,” she added. Dried mangoes, she said, will also be relatively cheaper compared to those coming from Cambodia whose exporters will have pay additional tariffs of 49 percent. While the reduction of reciprocal tariffs may be the “best option,” Roque said it may be best for the Philippines to shift its
By Reine Juvierre S. Alberto
ADB: TRADE WAR MAY DAMPEN PHL GROWTH Govt unlikely to counter
Asean
By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
“There’s going to be a chilling effect on
By Malou Talosig-Bartolome
“We
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah last Friday. (See related story: https:// businessmirror.com.ph/2025/04/07/ malaysia-leads-asean-response-on-ustariffs/) At the Asean Conference Investment Conference in Kuala Lumpur Wednesday, Ibrahim said the $3.5-trillion total trade in goods by all the Asean members is now at risk with Trump’s tariff scheme.
“With the barrage of tariffs sweeping across the world in fast and furious fashion, we are witnessing the fraying of the global order. Therefore, Asean must rely more on itself,” Ibrahim said in his speech. He called on members to strengthen its intra-Asean trade, to “move beyond rhetoric to execution.”
“Tariff liberalization within the region is largely complete, but regulatory alignment, cross-border logistics, and digital connectivity remain unfinished business,” Ibrahim said.
He said under Malaysia’s leadership, Asean will also prioritize the revitalization of Asean Plus 3 and other strategic platforms. Asean Plus 3 includes the 10 Asean members and China, Japan and South Korea.
“Asean has always been a creature of evolution, not revolution. Its strength lies not in drama, but in durability. Over nearly six decades, it has withstood wars, crises, and coups, and still managed to inch forward, often frustratingly, but forward nonetheless,” he said.
“The Trump tariffs are not the first challenge to multilateralism, nor will they be the last. But if Asean can hold its
‘Millions of workers in PHL still underpaid, lack benefits’
By Justine Xyrah Garcia
MORE Filipinos may now be employed, but a significant number remain unprotected and underpaid.
Despite the positive labor figures recently reported by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA)— which pegged the country’s unemployment rate at 3.8 percent or 1.94 million individuals in February 2025—an economist said the number does not reflect the full state of worker well-being.
In an interview with BusinessMirror on Wednesday, Ateneo de Manila University economics professor Ferdinand T. Aldaba said the decline in unemployment does not necessarily indicate improvements in job quality or economic security.
“The unemployment rate is not a good indicator of the welfare of workers,” Aldaba said. “They have jobs, but they have very low-quality jobs. These are unpaid family workers, part-timers… they don’t earn much income. Sometimes they earn very, very minimal income in these kinds of jobs.”
He added that underemployment also remains high at 10.1 percent, affecting 4.6 million Filipinos. Moreover, discouraged workers—those who
have stopped seeking work—are excluded from official unemployment statistics, further obscuring the real extent of labor market insecurity.
Aldaba’s observation followed the release of the State of Social Protection Report 2025 by the World Bank, which urged countries to strengthen both social protection systems and labor market programs.
The report stated that 2 billion people in low- and middle-income countries remain either uncovered or inadequately covered by social protection mechanisms.
In the Philippines, the issue lies not only in coverage but also in the adequacy of benefits.
The World Bank noted that over 30 percent of the population in lower-middle-income countries such as the Philippines are either missed entirely or insufficiently supported by existing programs. It also underscored the need for social protection systems to be “shock-responsive,” capable of addressing crises caused by climate change, economic downturns, or other major disruptions.
‘Fragmented protection’ ALDABA said gaps in social protection are especially evident among informal workers and those em-
Asean told to hasten economic…
Continued from A1
nerve—staying open, pragmatic and cohesive—it may yet be among the last believers in a world that works better when it works together,” Ibrahim added. Among Asean countries, Singapore has been slapped with the lowest Trump reciprocal tariff of
ployed in micro and small enterprises.
While Universal Health Care Law has expanded basic coverage, many workers remain excluded from formal systems such as the Social Security System, Government Service Insurance System, and Pag-IBIG Fund.
Based on data from the Employees’ Compensation Commission, only 14.6 million out of 36.6 million registered SSS members were actively paying contributions as of 2022.
This is coupled with the fact that the PhilHealth, despite its universal mandate, only had a 63 percent utilization rate in 2024.
According to Aldaba, sustaining contributions is difficult for many informal workers, especially those in microenterprises.
He said low registration rates persist and emphasized the need to support the formalization of small businesses to ensure that workers can be enrolled and protected under formal programs.
An Asian Development Bank (ADB) report supported these findings, highlighting fragmentation in the system and significant gaps in coverage.
The ADB stressed the need for well-coordinated delivery systems that include integrated social
10 percent.
Wong said, however, that the 10-percent tariff was not a “reciprocal” rate since Singapore and the US has an existing Free Trade Agreement— which means goods traded between their countries were tax-free. Singapore also ran a trade deficit with the US.
“We are very disappointed by the US move,
registries and “devolution and localization of programs” to improve efficiency in the rollout of social protection programs.
“The effectiveness of a social protection system depends on the collaboration of national agencies among themselves and with the local government units at various levels...In the next few years, better complementation of SP programs of the national and local governments will be needed,” the report noted.
While these findings show the cracks in implementation, Aldaba, who helped draft the country’s 2023–2028 Social Protection Plan, still clarified that social protection was not put up to become a quick fix to solve all issues.
He added that above else, the government should prioritize improving the quality of jobs to improve the economic condition of Filipino families.
“Social protection is not the answer to all problems of households...it still really would come from permanent jobs that will be generated by a sound macroeconomy. Social protection is just one part of a gamut of programs,“ Aldaba said.
especially considering the deep and longstanding friendship between our two countries. These are not actions one does to a friend,” Wong said.
The Singapore prime minister told the Singaporean parliament to prepare for weaker global growth, which will have a domino effect on Singapore’s external trade.
“Singapore may or may not go into recession this year. But I have no doubt that our growth will be significantly impacted,” he said.
“Slower growth will mean fewer job opportunities and smaller wage increases for workers. And if more companies face difficulties or relocate their operations back to the US, there will be higher retrenchments and job losses,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Malaysian prime minister said he has dispatched his officials to Washington D.C. to negotiate for a lower tariff rate.
While doing this, Malaysia is also rolling up its sleeves to diversify its market across the European Union, Asia, Middle East and Africa.
“Malaysia will adapt, as we always have. Winds may shift, but we do not drift. Our trade diversification strategy is already gathering pace,” Ibrahim said.
Malaysia and Singapore’s dominant trading partner is China.
Among Asian countries, China suffered most from Trump’s new trade policy as it was initially slapped a reciprocal tariff of 34 percent reciprocal tariff, and another 50 percent last Tuesday when Beijing pushed through with the imposition of retaliatory tariffs.
ADB…
Continued from A1
Although this is at the lower end of the government’s growth target of 6 to 8 percent, ADB said the country will “continue to be one of the fastest-growing economies in Southeast Asia.”
ADB Senior Economics Officer
Teresa Mendoza said the slight downgrade considered the lowerthan-expected economic growth turnout in the fourth quarter last year, at 5.7 percent, due to moderate household spending.
The lingering impacts of high inflation for most of 2024 and tight monetary policy were also considered in ADB’s latest forecast, Mendoza said.
ADB disclosed that its growth forecasts were finalized before the April 2 announcement on new tariffs by the United States administration.
Impact of protectionism
HOWEVER , ADB said the increased uncertainty due to shifts in trade and investment policies, as well as increased protectionism, would “damage market sentiment and dent growth.”
“Heightened geopolitical tensions, weather and climate shocks could also drive commodity prices higher,” it added.
Mendoza said there are still spillover effects across financial channels, foreign investment and global monetary fiscal policies, which can have “a lot of impact.”
If the impact of trade policy uncertainty on investments, financial markets, financial volatility and global risk aversion worsens, this could be a huge downside risk to the Philippines’s economic growth, as well as that of Asia and the world, according to Abdul Abiad, director of ADB’s Macroeconomic Research Division.
“Tariffs are bad for everyone, including the country imposing the tariffs. Retaliation is also uniformly bad. It has negative effects on everybody,” Abiad said.
Policy response
AN intra-regional trade, which is expected to expand, is a “proper” policy response, as well as negotiations and doubling down on open trade and investment, according to Abiad.
“I would expect to see, especially if these tariffs from the US persist, that you’ll see this reconfiguration that will actually strengthen intraregional integration,” he added.
ADB Country Director Pavit Ramachandran said implementing ease of doing business reforms, cli-
ICE detentions to have…
Continued from A1
VFR (visiting friends and relatives) travel from green-card holders (permanent residents) from the US. This obviously affects balikbayans. but other non-Filipino permanent residents and other temporary visa holders (work/student) who might have considered the Philippines and Southeast Asia are now going to hold off on foreign travel.”
He added that he’s already heard from Fil-Am friends and other overseas communities that they are “postponing their outbound travel plans for the remainder of Trump’s term.” In the event of a global economic downturn, “the traditional market response has been to shift more towards shorthaul/regional travel. Shorter distances, shorter stays,” explained Alampay.
This was echoed by Arturo P. Boncato Jr., group general manager for Megaworld Hotels and Resorts, who likewise warned that the ICE detentions “could deter movement. Statements like deporting US citizens are new and could be taken with extra caution.”
A Fil-Am green-card holder is currently being held by ICE after arriving in Seattle from the Philippines in late February. Her lawyer surmised this was due to her conviction from a non-violent
mate reforms and strengthening logistics and infrastructure will make the Philippines more resilient. Increasing the “sophistication” of the Philippine economy is also a resilience strategy, as there are opportunities to reinforce engagement in the Asean region, Ramachandran added.
Meanwhile, Abiad said the Philippines should negotiate to bring down tariffs.
“[The Philippines] needs to prepare for that world. So having discussions on who to strengthen your trade ties with, how should we reshape supply chains,” he said. The country should also take advantage of its participation in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, where trade barriers are lower, according to Cristina Lozano, principal country specialist at ADB.
Having free trade agreement talks, especially with the European Union after a five-year pause, should be considered by the Philippines, Lozano added.
“This renewed commitment to regional trade agreements will support positive changes and will gain momentum, given the situation,” she said.
‘Gradual rate cut’
MEANWHILE , the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is expected to continue its monetary policy easing at a “much more gradual pace.”
“We expect the real interest rates to remain above neutral during 2025, just to help anchor inflation expectations and to manage the capital outflows as well,” Lozano said.
ADB forecasts inflation to average 3 percent this year and still within the government’s target range of 2 percent to 4 percent in 2026.
“This reflects stable global commodity prices, particularly oil and a slowdown in rice inflation,” it said. Still, the Philippines is at a position of “relative strength” as it faces the new US tariffs and potential global slowdown, according to Lozano. “The macroeconomic fundamentals are very strong,” Lozano said, citing high employment levels and lower inflation.
“We don’t know what’s going to happen, but for the moment, the Philippine economy is protected because most of the exports of the Philippines are in the semiconductor sector,” Lozano added.
Strong domestic demand, sustained investments in social services and vital public infrastructure and modest inflation will prop up growth, according to ADB. The Philippine economy is seen to grow by 6.1 percent in 2026.
embezzlement charge in 2001.
Another Fil-Am was detained by ICE after a routine check-in at the latter’s field office in Georgia.
For his part, Jose C. Clemente III, president of Rajah Tours Philippines, which runs the popular Very Important Pinoy (VIP) Tour for the Department of Foreign Affairs and its foreign service posts in the US, said, “I’m keeping my fingers crossed that the program won’t be affected. We’re still receiving registrations from our Fil-Ams.” About 200-300 Fil-Ams regularly participate in the VIP Tour, now in its 20th edition.
Data from the Department of Tourism (DOT) indicated that Filipino-American visitors grew substantially to 128,772 in 2024 from just 44,422 in 2019.
A leading real estate brokerage firm in the country recently projected foreign tourist arrivals to remain unchanged at six million this year, due to the fall in the South Korean arrivals in the first quarter of the year and the general sluggishness of the China market. Alfred Lay, Leechiu Property Consultants (LPC) Director for Hotels, Tourism, and Leisure, noted that many of the Philippines’s neighbors have offered visa-free periods or reciprocal visa-on-arrivals with foreign
markets, “which has helped them boost their arrivals to the country.” (See, “‘Foreign tourist arrivals stay unchanged at 6 million for 2025’,” in the BusinessMirror, April 9, 2025.)
Reacting to this projection, Philippine Hotel Owners Association executive director Benito C. Bengzon Jr. said, “We remain hopeful that inbound arrivals in the country will recover to pre-pandemic level as quickly as possible. Our hotels continue to depend on a large extent on business coming from international guests. Revenue is still our main performance indicator, but we still need to see growth in the headcount to achieve full recovery on all fronts.”
Boncato noted a possible improvement in South Korean arrivals as political issues there settle down. “We could attract them by underscoring the benefits of short-haul travel at this time,” he suggested.
The DOT is expected to recalibrate the rest of its targets under the National Tourism Development Plan for 2023-2028, following the 5.95 million foreign tourist arrivals last year, 23-percent less than the agency 7.7-million goal. The NTDP is a blueprint of strategy for the DOT to reach several annual tourism targets such as foreign tourist arrivals, domestic trips, inbound revenue, employment, among others.
Marcos to other countries: Make peace, not war
By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla
AS armed-conflict and economic uncertainty
gripped parts of the world, President Marcos expressed disappointment on how some countries are undermining international peace by waging wars.
In his speech during the Araw ng Kagitingan (Day of Valor) rites on Mount Samat in Bataan, the Chief Executive highlighted the importance of cooperation to achieve global peace.
Marcos noted such cooperation was demonstrated during the Battle of Bataan, that saw the Filipino and American troops fight together against the force of Imperial Japanese during World War II.
“Peace cannot be attained by one person, by one country alone. And that we have to bring together all the parties that are involved. These are the lessons that we hope to have learned,” Marcos said.
House leader expresses alarm over ‘distortion’ of free speech
By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz @joveemarie
“We are a little bit disappointed to see that the world—parts of the world, and many countries in the world have yet to learn that lesson. And we hope that that peace will be brought to us soon,” he added.
This was echoed by Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Endo Kazuya, who also raised the same concern about the current state of the “global security landscape.”
“The current global security landscape is fraught with challenges. Unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force continue to intensify creating a complex and uncertain environment,” Kazuya said.
Both Marcos and the Kazuya spoke amid ongoing armed conflicts between Ukraine and Russia, civil war in Myanmar, growing aggression of China at the South China Sea (SCS) including the West Philippine Sea, and the global trade war.
Heroism’s true meaning: to be a Filipino–Teodoro
AS the country’ observed the 83rd anniversary of the Fall of Bataan (that has been renamed Araw ng Kagitingan), Secretary of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro on Wednesday said that the heroism and bravery of those who fought in the last World War shows the true meaning of what it is to be a Filipino.
“As we commemorate Araw ng Kagitingan, we remember the bravery of those who fought and sacrificed their lives for our country. Their heroism is etched in our nation’s history, a powerful reminder of what it means to be truly Filipino,” he added.
In line with this, Teodoro also extended his gratitude and respect to all veterans, soldiers, and every Filipino who continues to show courage and patriotism.
“Yet beyond remembrance, this day calls upon each of us to rise to the challenge of nationbuilding—to contribute to the continued progress, peace, and security of our beloved country. In these uncertain times, may we draw strength from their legacy and stand united in purpose and resolve,” he added.
The defense chief also said the Department of National Defense remains committed in honoring the legacy of the Filipino veterans and protecting the future of the country.
Araw ng Kagitingan, is the national observance in the Philippines that commemorates the fall of Bataan to Imperial Japanese forces in World War II. On that day 83 years ago, Maj. Gen. Edward King, the commander of US-Philippines forces in Bataan surrendered to the Japanese Army led by Gen. Masaharu Homma.
The day is officially celebrated every April 9, the start of the
Bataan Death March
Meanwhile, in commemoration of Araw ng Kagitingan (Day of Valor) on Wednesday, Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez honored the nation’s war heroes and urged Filipinos to reflect not only on the battle of Bataan but also on the silent sacrifices and human cost that came with it.
“Eighty-three years ago in Bataan, thousands of Filipinos stood their ground. They were tired. They were hungry. They were outnumbered. But they kept on fighting—not because they knew they’d win, but because they couldn’t give up their dignity as Filipinos,” Romualdez said in a statement.
He described the annual Day of Valor as a solemn occasion that goes beyond history books and ceremonies.
“Today, we remember more than just a battle. We remember the young lives lost too soon. The families who waited for loved ones who never came home. The quiet acts of courage that never made the headlines. Their bravery wasn’t loud—but it was firm, unshakable, and true.”
He said Araw ng Kagitingan is not only about looking back, but also about honoring the enduring spirit of service and sacrifice that continues to define the Filipino people.
“Araw ng Kagitingan is a time to reflect on what courage really means. It’s not always about medals or ceremonies. Most of the time, it looks like ordinary people doing extraordinary things,” he said.
“To our Filipino veterans and their families, thank you. What you gave up can never be repaid— but we honor you by building a country you can be proud of.” Rex Anthony Naval with PNA
VOICING alarm over the “dangerous distortion” of free speech, a leader of the House of Representatives on Wednesday said that it is time to hold erring social media influencers accountable for their actions, asserting that freedom of speech should not be a shield for spreading lies, hate, and harmful content without consequence.
House Assistant Majority Leader Jude Acidre’s call for urgent action followed a House Tri-Committee hearing addressing the unchecked proliferation of disinformation and harmful online behavior.
“It’s both upsetting and honestly quite alarming that some influencers and online personalities today feel like they can say whatever they want—no matter how offensive, harmful, or untrue—without facing any consequences,” Acidre, chairman of the House Committee on Overseas Workers Affairs, said.
“They act as if they’re above basic decency, beyond civility, and free from the responsibilities that come with having a public voice,” he added.
He underscored that while freedom of expression is a constitutional right, it is not absolute.
“You can’t just exercise your right to free speech at the expense of someone else’s freedom to live with dignity, truth, and peace. As the saying goes, your right ends where my freedom begins,” Acidre, the nominee of Tingog party-list group, stressed.
Societal disparity
HE questioned the “societal disparity” in holding traditional media to ethical standards while seemingly allowing digital content creators to operate with impunity.
“We don’t allow television, radio, or newspapers to publish or air irresponsible and harmful
content. So why are we tolerating the same kind of speech on social media, where it spreads even faster and reaches even more people?” he asked.
He argued that the core issue lies in the misuse of social media platforms, transforming them from tools for connection and information into platforms for division, attack, and deception.
“Social media was meant to connect us, to help us share stories, ideas, and important information. But right now, it’s becoming something else—something dangerous—because of the way it’s being used by some people,” he warned.
“When influencers use their platform to spread lies, attack others, or stir hate, that’s not free speech. That’s abuse. And it’s hurting real people,” he said.
During the Tri-Committee hearing, lawmakers and stakeholders observed a growing mindset among social media users, particularly those with large followings, that equates freedom of speech with a license to act without accountability.
Acidre insisted that this flawed interpretation must be corrected promptly.
“One of the biggest reasons for the spread of fake news and harmful content on social media is this mistaken belief that ‘freedom of speech’ means ‘you can say whatever you want, no matter what.’ That’s just not true,” he stressed.
“And if we don’t correct that, we’ll
keep seeing lies and hate spread like wildfire online.”
Acidre advocated for the establishment of clear and fair rules to reinforce responsible digital behavior, not to stifle expression but to ensure online speech respects the rights and dignity of others.
“We don’t need laws that take away our freedom. We need guidelines that protect our dignity, our truth, and our safety. We need to find a balance where people can speak their minds, but not at the cost of others’ well-being,” he said.
Selective ACIDRE also called on social media platforms to stop “selectively enforcing their community standards.”
“If you spread harmful content, you should answer for it. And the social media platforms? They can’t keep turning a blind eye,” Acidre said.
“They have rules. They set community standards. They should be the first ones to enforce them— not only when it’s convenient, but all the time and for everyone,” he added.
Acidre warned of the broader societal consequences if the country continues to allow disinformation and digital toxicity to flourish.
“We’re letting social media— something that should bring us together—turn into a tool that tears us apart. We’re letting lies overpower truth. We’re letting bullying drown out fairness. We’re letting chaos replace decency,” he said.
Acidre reminded the public that this is not just a digital dilemma but a moral and civic one.
“This isn’t about taking away voices. It’s about making sure that when we use our voices, we’re also thinking about the kind of world we’re helping to shape,” he said.
Welcome
HOUSE Deputy Majority Leader Paolo Ortega V on Wednesday welcomed tech giant Meta’s (parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) support for Congress’s plan to establish a regulatory body to combat fake news.
Ortega, who represents La Union, said that Meta’s stance
Navy firepower gets boost with ‘Miguel Malvar’ arrival
By Rex Anthony Naval
THE Armed Forces on Tuesday night said that the newly-delivered guidedmissile corvette, BRP Miguel Malvar (FFG-06), highlights military’s commitment to enhance its defensive capabilities.
This as the AFP welcomed the ship, the Navy’s (PN) newest and most powerful, at Naval Operating Base Subic in Zambales on April 8.
The ship left the HD Hyundai Heavy Industries shipyard in Ulsan, South Korea on March 27 and arrived at Subic Bay on April 4.
Among the dignitaries present in her welcoming ceremony were Secretary National Defense Gilberto Teodoro, South Korean Ambassador to the Philippines Lee Sang-Hwa; the AFP chief of staff, Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr.; and the Navy flag officer in command, Vice Admiral Jose Ma.
Ambrosio Ezpeleta.
“The arrival of the BRP Miguel Malvar is a significant step under Horizon 2 of the Revised AFP Modernization Program, which prioritizes the enhancement of the country’s naval defense capabilities amidst evolving regional security dynamics,” the AFP said.
affirms the growing momentum for institutional reforms aimed at safeguarding truth and public trust while simultaneously balancing digital safety with the constitutionally protected freedom of speech and expression.
Ortega expressed his hope that Meta’s endorsement of the congressional initiative would encourage other social media platforms to follow suit.
“If Meta is ready to cooperate, others should follow. We cannot fight this individually. This is where we see who truly stands for truth, and as lawmakers, it is our responsibility to uphold what is true—especially in a time when it is being poisoned,” he said. Ortega said disinformation is not merely a technological issue but a threat to democracy itself.
“When people can no longer discern what is true, that’s when trust in the government, the law, and each other begins to erode. The fight against fake news is not just a fight against lies. It’s a fight to protect the truth and the trust of the people,” Ortega asserted.
Meta’s Director of Public Policy for Southeast Asia, Rafael Frankel, told congressmen durng the hearing d that the platform was “more than happy” to collaborate with Congress on initiatives designed to protect users while respecting their freedom of expression. He added that Meta has worked with governments across Southeast Asia and the Asia-Pacific region to develop localized regulatory approaches that balance safety and expression. For his part, Antipolo City Rep. Romeo Acop argued that Meta and other social media platforms should bear some responsibility for fake news and harmful content.
During the hearing of the TriComm, former Vice President and veteran broadcaster Noli de Castro echoed this sentiment, stating that Meta holds “great responsibility” as the primary platform enabling the spread of disinformation.
Lawmakers clarified that Congress is not seeking to control political discourse but rather to safeguard against deliberate deception.
Pinoy, American troops hone joint warfighting skills
FILIPINO and US troops participating in the joint “Salaknib” exercises have conducted a series of drills that would increase interoperability between the two militaries.
The Army spokesman, Col. Louie Dema-ala, in a media statement issued on Wednesday, said these drills, under the first phase of the exercises, include radio communication, field artillery live fire, sling load operations using helicopters, and medical evacuation. Dema-ala added that these “subject matter expert exchanges [SMEEs],” crucial in warfighting functions, took place in Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija. Dema-ala also said Philippine Army (PA) and US Army Pacific (Usarpac) signalers trained to familiarize and operate each other’s radio equipment. Participating
BRP Miguel Malvar (FFG-06) during sea trials off the coast of the South Korean city of Ulsan. WIKIPEDIA
A4
Thursday, April 10, 2025
www.businessmirror.com.ph
Problems still hound SIM registration
By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan
THE Philippine Chamber of Telecommunication Operators (PCTO) has expressed reservations regarding the current implementation of the SIM Registration Act, highlighting challenges in identity verification and the potential shift to offline registration methods.
PCTO Vice President Roy Ibay told reporters that telecommunications companies are still challenged by the verification of government-issued IDs required for SIM registration. He explained that while the law
permits the use of any government ID, not all such IDs are linked to centralized databases, like the senior’s ID cards, which makes the validation process complicated.
“Not all government IDs have a database. So that’s another issue
that we are trying to clarify and still address,” Ibay said, adding that there is a need for a robust system to effectively vet these IDs.
Furthermore, Ibay cautioned that shifting to in-person registration could significantly hinder the process, suggesting that faceto-face verification be reserved for instances where online registration encounters technical issues or when the authenticity of an ID is in question.
Implementing across-theboard face-to-face registration could pose logistical challenges for telecommunications companies, especially in establishing the necessary physical channels, he said.
“To across the board state that from now on the process will now be face-to-face even if, say, there’s no problem in the submission of the requirements, that would severely be a challenge for telcos in terms of physical channels to be set up for that,” he said.
Ibay proposed a potential interim measure: Limiting acceptable IDs to the national ID for a specified period, given its centralized database.
“There’s a way that we can probably interlink the telcos’ systems to be able to vet the national level up to the barangay level,” he said.
In March, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) announced that it is studying the possibility of introducing a “personal appearance” requirement for SIM registration, similar to the process for obtaining a driver’s license or clearance from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).
This proposal came amid growing concerns that the current online registration system is being exploited by scammers who sell registered SIM cards to criminals despite existing penalties of up to six years in prison and fines of up to P300,000.
Simplify requirements for cash aid–Marcos
By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla
PRESIDENT Marcos has ordered concerned agencies to simplify the requirements for the distribution of government cash aid under the Comprehensive Social Benefits Program (CSBP) to the beneficiaries of uniformed personnel, who died in service.
Marcos said he gave the instructions after learning of the numerous requirements the beneficiaries must submit and the
long processing time before they can avail of the CSBP cash aid.
He said new CSBP rules will apply on uniformed personnel, who were killed in action (KIA).
“So what we did was I said, let’s prepare the documents. Let’s organize their needs so that our celebration on the Araw ng Kagitingan [Day of Valor] will be more meaningful, so that what we are doing today will be given more meaning. We should be able to provide it today,” Marcos said in Filipino during the distribution of
CSBP benefits at the Armed Forces (AFP) General Headquarters in Camp Emilio Aguinaldo, Quezon City on Wednesday.
The families of 62 uniformed personnel were the initial beneficiaries of the streamlined implementation of the CSBP.
Each beneficiary initially receives P250,000 and get another P250,000 for the second tranche.
Marcos assured that the new initiative will be institutionalized.
“So that’s what we’re doing
today. We’re making sure that all the families who lost loved ones are given their benefits as soon as possible and we’re starting today,” he said.
Aside from the distribution of CSBP cash aids, the President also awarded certificates from the National Housing Authority (NHA) to the families of fallen soldiers and members of the Citizen Armed Force Geographical Unit (Cafgu) as part of the commemoration of Araw ng Kagitingan in Camp Aguinaldo.
LTFRB ensures smooth Holy Week travel for commuters
IN preparation for the annual Holy Week break, when Filipinos prepare to head to the provinces, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) has issued more than 1,000 special permits allowing Metro Manila buses ply provincial routes to ensure adequate transportation for the expected passenger surge.
LTFRB Chairman Teofilo Guadiz III said a total of 1,018 special permits have been released as of April 8 to augment the fleet of public utility buses that ply
US commitment
provincial routes.
The permits are valid from April 11 to 27, covering not only the Holy Week but also the days immediately after when many travelers are expected to return to Metro Manila. Guadiz added that the LTFRB has started a series of random inspections of public utility vehicles and terminals to ensure compliance with safety regulations and prevent overloading or unauthorized operations.
“Ang paalala po namin sa mga
AMID such global uncertainties, the US Embassy, through Deputy Chief of Mission Y. Robert Ewing, said Washington remains committed in strengthening its partnership with the Philippines and Japan not only in security, but also on economic matters. The Philippines-US-Japan trilateral arrangement was launched last year in response to China’s aggression in the SCS. For the Philippines in particular, Ewing said the US hopes to accelerate the enhancement of military alliance through the Balikatan exercises, which will start by mid-April and last until next month.
BRP
Designed to serve as a force multiplier, BRP Miguel Malvar will boost the operational readiness and maritime capabilities of the AFP.
The ship will play a critical role in protecting the nation’s territorial integrity and advancing maritime domain awareness.
It measures 118.4 meters long, with a range of 4,500 nautical miles, a cruising speed of 15 knots, and a maximum speed of 25 knots. Armed with advanced sensors
and weapons systems, it is also capable of anti-ship, anti-submarine, and anti-aircraft missions.
“BRP Miguel Malvar is here today, not only to serve as a deterrent and as a protector of our waters, but also as an important component—not only in joint operations, but in the equally important combined operations—as we learn with other countries to work with one another, in the spirit of upholding norms of international law,” Teodoro said.
He also emphasized key areas of focus in the country’s defense strategy: developing core capabilities and systems, ensuring sustainable revenue sources for sustainment, continuous train -
pasahero ngayong Holy Week ay magplano nang maaga. I -check ang schedules ng biyahe at tiyaking maayos na ang mga tiket at ibang necessary documents,” Guadiz said.
The agency started its inspections on Monday and will continue its monitoring throughout the travel period. Inspectors are checking operators’ permits, fare matrices, vehicle markings, and the presence of required safety equipment.
Beginning April 11, the LTFRB will also deploy personnel
He noted this year’s PhilippineUS military drills will feature the use of unmanned surface vessels, and include special operations forces training in Batanes for the first time, as well as cyber defense. The US partnership with the Philippines, he said, will also feature US businesses investing in vital Philippines sectors such as energy, infrastructure, and people-to-people ties.
ing and education of personnel, and integrating domain awareness and response systems to establish a unified, multi-domain defense posture.
Teodoro further highlighted the Philippines’ enduring partnership with the Republic of Korea, thanking them for their continued support in building sustainable, resilient, and job-generating defense capabilities.
“We thank our reliable partners, the people and the government of the Republic of Korea, not only in providing capabilities, but in building sustainability, redundancy, and resilience through actual capital investments,” he said.
DA finds new market for 3 high-value farm produce
Tto monitor private bus terminals, making sure that help desks and sufficient staff are available to assist passengers.
Guadiz also warned the public against riding unregistered or “colorum” vehicles, which he said pose safety risks.
“Iwasan din sana natin ang pagsakay sa mga ‘colorum’ o illegal na mga sasakyan dahil ang mga ito ay hindi dumaan sa tamang inspeksyon at walang insurance coverage para sa pasahero,” he said. Lorenz S. Marasigan
“The shared experience of the United States and the Philippines during and after the war forged unbreakable bonds between our two peoples. These bonds are now the foundations of the ironclad, US-Philippine alliance,” Ewing said.
“Today that US-Philippine alliance stands as a pillar of security and stability in the Pacific,” he added.
By Ada Pelonia @adapelonia
HE Philippines can now ship Hass avocado, calamansi and okra to Russia after these gained access to that country’s food market.
The Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), an agency attached to the Department of Agriculture (DA), announced that it secured market access to Russia for the three high-value crops, a “hardearned” milestone that followed rigorous negotiations since 2017, it said.
“With Russia emerging as a growing market for tropical and temperate crops, the Philippines stands to benefit from a wider array of export opportunities, helping to secure long-term growth for the agricultural sector,” the BPI said in a statement.
The agency noted that the Philippines has long sought to expand its export portfolio to Russia, adding that this breakthrough is expected to bolster trade relations while creating new opportunities for Filipino farmers and exporters.
The BPI said this development comes after several diplomatic efforts led by Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. and BPI Director Gerald Glenn Panganiban.
On February 10, the agency noted that Laurel met with Alexandr Syrtsev, the representative of Russia’s Ministry of Agriculture to the Philippines. This was followed by the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM) meeting held in Rome from March 17 to 21, which was attended by several DA officials.
“The meetings with the Russian delegation emphasized shared interests and the critical role of plant health standards in facilitating global market access. This development is a key part of the DA’s broader strategy to diversify its agricultural export markets.”
Meat plants
EARLIER, the DA authorized the individual accreditation of 17 foreign meat establishments (FMEs) of Russia, which signaled additional sources of meat products for Filipino consumers. This will be effective for three years, starting February 6, 2025, until February 6, 2028. The agency allowed the entry of meat products, such as beef, pork, and poultry goods, from 17 Russian FMEs following the Russian Federation’s application for individual FME accreditation. The Department of Agriculture Inspection Mission (Daim) was conducted last September 7 to 20, 2024.
“After thorough evaluation, the application of 17 FMEs of the Federation of Russia for accreditation to export beef, pork and poultry—chicken, turkey, and duck into the Philippines have been found to be satisfactory.”
Under existing rules and guidelines, exporters to the Philippines are required to secure the accreditation of their FMEs to ship meat and meat products into the country. The accreditation would ensure that an inbound shipment is safe for human consumption and does not pose a threat to the domestic livestock and poultry industry.
between both systems.
On the field artillery live-fire training, Dema-ala said PA and Usarpac cannoneers exchanged tactics, techniques, and procedures, deepening their understanding of each other’s operational approaches.
“The said training simulated the integration of both forces to enhance the overall effectiveness of ground operations, providing critical fire support to infantry and armored units,” he added.
PA and USARPAC troops likewise conducted sling load operations to improve their skills in airlift and logistics.
Dema-ala said sling load operations could provide rapid
movement of heavy, outsized equipment or emergency supplies directly to forces on the ground by bypassing surface obstacles and allowing for rapid relocation.
Aside from this, PA medics and their counterparts teamed up for a medical evacuation or Medevacfocused SMEE.
“Both forces gained practical knowledge in Medevac procedures, equipment handling, and patient transport techniques designed for combined operations in austere environments,” Dema-ala said.
“Salaknib” Phase 1, scheduled from March 24 to April 11, is the 10th iteration of the annual military maneuvers between Filipino and American troops.
“Salaknib” Phase 2 is scheduled from May 19 to July 20. PNA
Comelec boosts cybersecurity measures after foiling
60,000 hacking attempts on online voting platform
By Justine Xyrah Garcia
Commission on Elections
HE
T(Comelec) on Wednesday revealed that the first-ever Online Voting and Counting System (OVCS) has recorded at least 60,000 hacking attempts.
Comelec Chair George Erwin M. Garcia assured the public that none of these attempts were successful, thanks to the commission’s 24/7 monitoring and coordination with cybersecurity partners.
“We are doing everything necessary
in coordination with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and other service providers to ensure that our systems remain secure,”
Garcia said, partly in Filipino. Garcia disclosed that while most of the hacking attempts initially appeared to originate from the Middle East and South Africa, further investigation revealed that the hackers were actually based in the Philippines, using foreign locations to mislead authorities.
To bolster their defenses, Garcia said the
Comelec immediately coordinated with the DICT to reinforce the security systems of its service providers—SMS Global Technologies Inc. and Sequent Tech Inc.—who are facilitating the pilot test of internet voting for overseas Filipinos.
The common method used by hackers, he said, is to attempt to register through Comelec’s official pre-enrollment website for online voting.
“They cannot gain access unless they are verified by the system and have a valid registration,” Garcia emphasized.
1 of 4 missing OFWs in Myanmar confirmed dead from quake–DFA
ONE of the four Filipino workers who were missing in the 7.7 magnitude quake in Myanmar has been confirmed dead, the Department of Foreign Affairs said.
The Filipino was identified as Francis Aragon, a 23-year old teacher.
The Comelec earlier clarified that not all registered overseas voters are automatically eligible to vote online; they must first undergo a separate verification and registration process for the online voting platform.
According to Comelec data, more than 1.24 million overseas Filipinos are registered to vote in the May 12 elections.
O f this number, 436,332 are men and 805,358 are women.
Overseas voting—both online and through automated counting machines— runs from April 13 to May 12.
Garcia also noted that the reported 60,000 hacking attempts on the OVCS are separate from the “millions” of unsuccessful attacks previously recorded on the Comelec’s main website.
He expects these numbers to rise further as the elections draw closer, especially with the upcoming launch of the online precinct finder.
Garcia also urged the public not to attempt hacking the Comelec’s systems, emphasizing the agency’s high-level security measures in place to deter such actions.
“What do we gain if we compromise the integrity of our elections? Our democracy is at stake here… Let’s protect our democracy. Let’s respect our processes and systems,” he said.
Comelec likewise warned the public not to easily believe individuals claiming to have access to election-related data, as such information may have originated from the 2016 data breach, not from recent sources.
Garcia assured that no similar incidents have occurred since then.
Deputy speaker pushes for mental health reforms in education to combat bullying
By Jovee Marie Dela Cruz @joveemarie
He thanked God, their church community, and the families for their support and prayers during the past 11 days of uncertainty.
Ipinapaalam po namin na nakita n po yung kapatid namin at masakit man sa aming tanggapin na kasama na sya ni Lord ngayon, we are currently mourning and grieving for the loss of our youngest brother,” Alvin Aragon posted on his Facebook account.
“Tol Francis Aragon, I love you tol. Life is different kung wala ka. We will miss you,” Alvin said.
The DFA initially did not identify Aragon as the one who was confirmed dead.
“The family of the deceased Filipino has been so informed. Out of respect for their privacy in this time of grief, we are withholding further information on the matter,” the DFA said in a statement.
In a radio interview, Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega said that Aragon’s remains
Nationwide teacher development: Binay proposes Makati-style training framework
ADVOCATING for a national strategy, senatorial candidate and Makati
Mayor Abby Binay proposed the nationwide implementation of Makati’s teacher development framework, which prioritizes continuing education and training.
Binay expressed her desire to implement nationwide the successful programs established in Makati, where her administration prioritizes education by allocating an annual budget for teacher resources and training.
“We must ensure that our teachers are well-equipped and can keep pace with the rapid changes brought about by technology. They cannot be left behind. If they are, their students will also be left behind,”
Binay stated.
She drew a parallel with the legal profession, noting that lawyers are required to pursue continuing legal education. Similarly, teachers should continuously enhance their knowledge and skills to remain current in their field.
Bina y argued that without this focus, investments in modernizing school facilities would have limited impact on the country’s education system.
“Ultimately, the quality of education rests on the effectiveness and competence of our teachers. They should be empowered to be excellent educators capable of adapting to technological advancements that are rapidly transforming
traditional ways of teaching,” Binay said.
However, she stressed that the government should subsidize these programs to avoid placing additional financial burdens on teachers.
We must invest in the professional development of teachers and provide them with ample opportunities to become better educators,” Binay said.
Binay aims to replicate Makati’s successful programs on a national scale.
In Mak ati, her administration has consistently prioritized basic education, allocating annual budgets to provide teachers with necessary tools and training.
Under Project TEACH (Teacher Effectiveness
Court junks raps against former Mexico mayor
By Ashley Manabat
MEXICO , Pampanga—The Supreme Court (SC) has dismissed the graft and malversation charges against the former mayor of this town, Teddy Tumang, and businessman William Colis owing to the delay in the prosecution of their case.
The Court’s Third Division affirmed the Sandiganbayan’s June 10, 2024 resolution to dismiss the charges filed by the Ombudsman against Tumang and Colis, saying “Accordingly, the petition for certiorari dated August 8, 2024 is dismissed, and the Sandiganbayan First Division’s Resolution [dismissing the cases] dated June 10, 2014 is affirmed.”
were retrieved Tuesday night. Forensic experts from the National Bureau of Investigation who were deployed to Myanmar last week identified him through the victim’s tattoo and passport. Since it has been 11 days the quake, the victim’s body is on advance state of decomposition. Repatriating his remains, De Vega said, could be difficult.
As with other r emains retrieved from the collapsed Sky Villa condo, Aragon’s body will likely be cremated in Myanmar. Another option would be bury him immediately in one of the Catholic cemeteries in Mandalay.
As for the three other Filipinos, the DFA said they continue to work and hope that they survived this tragedy.
Malou Talosig-Bartolome
and Competence Honing), the city government, through its Special Education Fund, subsidizes executive courses for public school teachers, with annual allocations ranging from P7 million to P15 million. This year, Makati is implementing an Executive Class Diploma program in partnership with St. Paul College of Makati.
Other benefits enjoyed by public school teachers in Makati include free access to health services under the Yellow Card program, such as medical checkups, laboratory services, hospitalization, and maintenance medicine, among others.
Binay said teachers also enjoy additional monetary benefits that include a P3,000 monthly incentive, P6,000 year-end and fringe benefit, monthly allowances of P2,500 for SPED teachers, P3,000 for ALS, and P4,500 for ASATIDZ teachers, and a P5,000 chalk allowance for preschool teachers every school year.
Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz
In other words, these criminal cases against Tumang and Colis can no longer be reopened or re-litigated,” the decision read.
AIMING to prevent bullying through improved student mental health, a deputy speaker calls for institutionalizing targeted interventions in education, including the expansion of Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) benefits to include mental health disorders.
Deputy Speaker Camille Villar said she already filed three measures to ensure the mental wellness of students, as well as teachers.
“It is crucial that we ensure the mental wellness of our students. We need to make sure they are in a sound mental state, especially knowing the significant influence of peer pressure and discrimination in schools, which often leads to bullying,” Villar stated.
To address the rising incidents of school bullying, Villar advocated for learning institutions to hire more guidance counselors to conduct regular counseling sessions with students and assess their mental well-being.
She also emphasiz ed the importance of improving mental health access and therapist services not only in schools but also in communities to tackle the worsening mental health crisis within the education sector.
Villar filed House Resolution 900, urging
the House Committees on Health and Basic Education to examine the status of mental health within the education sector and the general population to raise awareness and determine the extent of the mental health crisis in the country.
Improving the education sector is a key priority in Villar’s senatorial campaign.
“ We have long been pushing for the passage of bills that ensure the well-being of our students. I believe that education is a great equalizer, which is why the government must ensure that our students are in a good state for a better future,” Villar said.
In addition t o focusing on student mental well-being, Villar has filed House Bill 10933, the proposed Teacher’s Mental Health and Wellness Act, to provide comprehensive support to educators nationwide. This measure aims to prioritize teachers’ mental, emotional, and psychological well-being alongside their professional development. She has also introduced House Bill 10934, which proposes the inclusion of mental health disorders in the benefit packages of PhilHealth.
“We need a whole-of-government approach and more proactive solutions to the problem of mental health. We need to look at the problem with a new and modern perspective so we can come up with proper solutions to address the mental health crisis in our country,” Villar said.
Go calls on barangay officials to prioritize health, safety and dignity of evacuees
FThe case stemmed from the complaint filed by the Field Investigation Bureau of the Office of the Deputy Ombudsman for Luzon on December 13, 2017 alleging that Tumang, as mayor, illegally approved disbursement vouchers for purchases made from Colis’ construction company, Buyu Trading and Construction, between 2006 to 2007.
The decision, written by Associate Justice Samuel Gaerlan, emphasized that the prolonged delay in the Ombudsman’s investigation which lasted six years had hindered Tumang and Colis their ability to adequately defend themselves.
The Court cited the Cagang v Sandiganbayan case which laid out the guidelines that must be considered concerning inordinate
“Criminal Cases SB-24-CRM-0013 to 0043 against Teddy C. Tumang and Willaim B. Colis are dismissed on the ground that the Office of the Ombudsman violated their right to the speedy disposition of their cases,” the SC concluded.
delay and the right to speedy disposition of the cases.
The SC said that the Ombudsman’s justification for the delay due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic was insufficient given that the pandemic was officially lifted in July 2023. However, the Ombudsman did not resolve motions for reconsideration until April 2024.
The Sandiganbayan earlier ruled in favor of Tumang, saying that the delay had prejudiced their case and violated their constitutional right to a speedy trial.
In addition, the Court added that the ruling amounts to an acquittal, preventing the case from being relitigated under double jeopardy protections citing Almario v CA.
“Undoubtedly, therefore, double jeopardy has attached in this case given that the reason for dismissal of Tumangs and Colis’s criminal cases is the inordinate delay in the proceedings.
Extraction attempt on Chinese kidnap kingpin leads to BuCor security review
THE Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) is set to review its security policies and procedures following an extraction attempt on a Chinese national believed to be the head of a kidnapping syndicate along the Manila-Cavite Expressway last Monday.
Tumang, in an interview on Tuesday hailed the SC decision saying it was “vindication” as it cleared his name of the case. However, he clarified that the ruling does not affect his perpetual disqualification from holding public office due to an ongoing case in the Court of Appeals (CA). In August 2024, CA affirmed the dismissal of Tumang over alleged procurement irregularities.
“But just because they came out of the SC doesn’t mean can return to my post. That’s different. The case that came out of the SC, that’s my case in the Sandiganbayan that the Ombudsman elevated. The SC has not issued any decision regarding my perpetual disqualification and that’s what we are waiting for now,” Tumang added.
“To me, it seems it’s really political as the SC has spoken that my case is dismissed, that’s final.”
in Parañaque City following a hearing at the Regional Trial Court of Makati City.
OLLOWING renewed volcanic unrest from Mount Kanlaon on Negros Island, Senator Christopher “Bong” Go urged local officials across the country to prioritize the health, safety, and dignity of disaster evacuees—underscoring the urgency of fully implementing Republic Act No. 12076, or the Ligtas Pinoy Centers Act, which he principally authored and co-sponsored.
Speaking before barangay officials from Bulacan during the Liga ng mga Barangay - Bulacan Chapter Provincial Congress in Iloilo City on April 8, Go reminded local leaders of their vital role in safeguarding vulnerable communities during calamities, especially in light of natural disasters such as the recent eruption.
Meron lang po akong paalala sa inyo.
‘Yung Mount Kanlaon po, parang nagaalburuto na naman po. Paalala ko lang po sa ating mga kababayan, of course sa
atingmgabarangayofficials,magtulungan po tayo na ilikas po‘yung mga kababayan natin sa ligtas na lugar at anong sinabi ng LGU, sumunod po tayo,” said Go during his speech. Mount Kanlaon erupted at 5:51 a.m. on April 8, producing a voluminous ash plume approximately 4,000 meters tall that drifted southwest. Pyroclastic density currents descended the southern slopes of the volcano, prompting evacuation orders and the suspension of classes in affected areas. In a statement, Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) Director Teresito Bacolcol emphasized the importance of vigilance among residents. He noted that while the volcano remains under Alert Level 3, indicating a high level of volcanic unrest, there are currently no additional signs, such as increased volcanic earthquakes, that would necessitate raising the alert level.
BuCor Director General Gregorio Pio P. Catapang Jr. said he has directed the agency’s intelligence, security and operations unit to conduct an assessment of its existing security protocols to avoid lapses following the attack. The attack targeted a transport vehicle of Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) vehicle carrying Hu Yang, a 37-year-old Chinese national deprived of liberty (PDL), who is facing serious charges, including violations of the New Anti-Carnapping Act and the Firearms and Ammunition Regulation Act. Hu was arrested in Parañaque City in September 2024 through coordinated efforts of the Chinese and local authorities. The suspect is said to have links with a kidnapping syndicate known for torturing and killing its victims. He is facing serious charges, including violations of the New Anti-Carnapping Act and the Firearms and Ammunition Regulation Act.
“The review aims to identify vulnerabilities and implement more stringent protocols to safeguard the transportation of high-risk detainees effectively,” Catapang said.
Bolstering security measures, according to Catapang, reflects his proactive approach to prevent similar incidents in the future, ensuring the safety of both law enforcement personnel and the public at large.
“Although it was reported that six of the assailants were arrested, it is better to take precautionary measures,” Catapang said.
Furthermore, Hu is wanted by Chinese authorities for his involvement in a kidnapping case in Jinjiang City.
Based on initial investigation, two vehicles blocked the BJMP transport along the service road of the Cavitex expressway
The suspects’ vehicles then retreated but one of their cars crashed into a tree, prompting its occupants to flee on foot toward the mangrove forest at the Las Piñas-Parañaque Wetland Park.
Authorities were able to capture the six occupants of the vehicle identified as Filipinos James Bales Lasam, Jerom Pascua Salvador, Jerry Calino Escalde, John Paul Chua and Chinese nationals Yang Yang Shin and Wang Hongjie.
On the other hand, Hu was safely returned to his detention facility by BJMP personnel while a jail officer reportedly sustained a gunshot wound to the left shoulder during the incident and was brought to a nearby hospital.
Asian shares deepen losses, with Tokyo’s Nikkei down 5%, as US tariffs take effect
By Elaine Kurtenbach Ap Business Writer
BANGKOK—Asian and European shares slid on Wednesday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 dipping more than 5 percent, as the latest set of US tariffs including a massive 104 percent levy on Chinese imports took effect.
Markets have been wobbly for days, with investors flummoxed over what to make of President Donald Trump’s trade war.
On Tuesday, the S&P 500 dropped 1.6 percent after wiping out an early gain of 4.1 percent. That took it nearly 19 percent below its record set in February.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.8 percent, while the Nasdaq composite lost 2.1 percent.
Stocks had rallied globally on Tuesday, with indexes up 6 percent in Tokyo, 2.5 percent in Paris and 1.6 percent in Shanghai. Any optimism or buying enthusiasm appeared to have dissipated by the time the sharply higher tariffs became reality.
The Nikkei 225 lost 3.9 percent to 31,714.03.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng lost 0.4 percent to 20,041.03, while
the Shanghai Composite index reversed early losses, gaining 0.9 percent. to 3,173.56. Taiwan led losses in Asia, as its Taiex plunged 5.8 percent. Big tech manufacturers were among the biggest decliners. Computer chip giant TSMC Corp. dropped 3.8 percent while iPhone maker Hon Hai Precision Industry plunged 10 percent. South Korea’s Kospi lost 1.7 percent to 2,293.70, and the government said it would provide help for its beleaguered automakers. The S&P/ASX 200 in Australia declined 1.8 percent to 7,375.00. Shares in New Zealand also fell.
In India, the Sensex declined 0.5 percent as the central bank cut its benchmark interest rate, while Bangkok’s SET shed 0.8 percent. Analysts have been warning to expect more swings up and down
in markets given the uncertainty over how long Trump will keep the stiff tariffs on imports, which will raise prices for US shoppers and slow the economy. If they last a long time, economists and investors expect them to cause a recession. If Trump lowers them through negotiations relatively quickly, the worst-case scenario might be avoided.
Hope still remains on Wall Street that negotiations may be possible, which helped drive the morning’s rally. Trump said Tuesday that a conversation with South Korea’s acting president helped them reach the “confines and probability of a great DEAL for both countries.”
On Tuesday, Japanese stocks led global markets higher after the country’s prime minister, Shigeru Ishiba, appointed his trade negotiator for talks with the United States following a conversation with Trump.
China said it will “fight to the end” and warned of countermeasures after Trump threatened on Monday to raise his tariffs even further on the world’s secondlargest economy.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday that Trump’s threats of even higher tariffs on China will become reality after midnight, when imports from China will be taxed at a stunning 104 percent rate.
South Korea unveils $2 billion in aid for tariff-hit auto sector
By Shinhye Kang & Soo-Hyang Choi
SOUTH Korea unveiled a package of emergency funding worth 3 trillion won ($2 billion) for its automobile industry to soften the blow from US Presi -
dent Donald Trump’s tariffs. The package will increase the low-cost financing made available to the industry by state-run lenders and agencies by about 15 percent to 15 trillion won. Under the plan released on Wednesday, Hyundai Motor Co. and its affiliate Kia Corp will form a 1 tril -
That would coincide with Trump’s latest set of broad tariffs, which are scheduled to kick in at 12:01 a.m. And Trump has made clear that he does not intend to have any exemptions or exclusions, according to the top US trade negotiator, Jamieson Greer.
The US trade representative also said in testimony before a Senate committee that roughly 50 countries have already been in contact, and he’s told them: “If you have a better idea to achieve reciprocity and to get our trade deficit down, we want to talk with you, we want to negotiate with you.”
Trump’s trade war is an attack on the globalization that’s shaped the world’s economy and helped bring down prices for products on store shelves but also caused manufacturing jobs to leave for other countries. Trump has said he wants to narrow trade deficits, which measure how much more the United States imports from other countries than it sends to them as exports.
In other dealings early Wednesday, US benchmark crude oil fell $2.73 to $56.85 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, shed $2.62 to $60.20 per barrel.
The US dollar fell to 145.21 Japanese yen from 146.29 yen. The euro rose to $1.1049 from $1.0995.
The price of gold rose $35 to $3,025 an ounce.
Trump’s trade war panics global markets, threatens global stability
By Paul Wiseman Ap Economics Writer
WASHINGTON—By declaring a trade war on the rest of the world, President Donald Trump has panicked global financial markets, raised the risk of a recession and broken the political and economic alliances that made much of the world stable for business after World War II.
Trump’s latest round of tariffs went into full effect at midnight Wednesday, with higher import tax rates on dozens of countries and territories taking hold.
Economists are puzzled to see Trump trying to overhaul the existing economic order and doing it so soon after inheriting the strongest economy in the world. Many of the trading partners he accuses of ripping off US businesses and workers were already floundering.
“There is a deep irony in Trump claiming unfair treatment of the American economy at a time when it was growing robustly while every other major economy had stalled or was losing growth momentum,” said Eswar Prasad, professor of trade policy at Cornell University. “In an even greater irony, the Trump tariffs are likely to end America’s remarkable run of success and crash the economy, job growth and financial markets.’’
Trump and his trade advisers insist that the rules governing global commerce put the United States at a distinct disadvantage. But mainstream economists—whose views Trump and his advisers disdain—say the president has a warped idea of world trade, especially a preoccupation with trade deficits, which they say do nothing to impede growth.
currencies lower to ensure that their goods are price-competitive in international markets. Some governments lavish their industries with subsidies to give them an edge.
However, the United States is still the second-largest exporter in the world, after China. The US exported $3.1 trillion of goods and services in 2023, far ahead of third-place Germany at $2 trillion. The fear that Trump’s remedies are deadlier than the maladies he’s trying to cure has sent investors fleeing American stocks. Since Trump announced sweeping import taxes on April 2, the S&P 500 has cratered 12 percent.
Despite high trade deficits, the US economy is strong TRUMP and his advisers point to America’s lopsided trade numbers—year after year of huge deficits—as proof of foreigners’ perfidy. He’s seeking to restore justice and millions of long-gone US factory jobs by taxing imports at rates not seen in America since the days of the horse and buggy.
lion won financing program with financial institutions and credit guarantee funds to facilitate auto-parts makers’ bond issuance and borrowing.
The government will also extend EV purchase subsidies to the end of the year to boost demand and designate self-driving technology as a national strategic technology with tax incentives.
The 25 percent levy on all auto imports into the US took effect last week and the new duties are expected to have a significant impact on the industry, the South Korean government said in a statement. It presents a real threat
The administration accuses other countries of erecting unfair trade barriers to keep out American exports and using underhanded tactics to promote their own.
In Trump’s telling, his tariffs are a longoverdue reckoning: The US is the victim of an economic mugging by Europe, China, Mexico, Japan and even Canada.
It’s true that some countries charge higher taxes on imports than the United States does. Some manipulate their
“They’ve taken so much of our wealth away from us,” the president declared last week at a White House Rose Garden ceremony to celebrate the tariffs announcement. “We’re not going to let that happen. We truly can be very wealthy. We can be so much wealthier than any country.’’ But the US is already the wealthiest major economy in the world. And the International Monetary Fund in January forecast that the United States would outgrow every other major advanced economy this year. China and India did grow faster than the United States over the past decade, but their living standards still don’t come close to those in the US. Manufacturing in the US has been fading for decades. There is widespread agreement that many American manufacturers couldn’t compete with an influx of cheap imports after China joined the World Trade Organization in 2001. Factories closed, workers were laid off and heartland communities withered.
See “Trade war,” A7 See “South Korea,”
www.businessmirror.com.ph
Beijing ups diplomatic pressure on Africa as the US pulls back
By Dake Kang The Associated Press
BEIJING—Chinese diplomats threatened to cancel a summit and called top officials in two African countries to pressure lawmakers to quit an international parliamentary group critical of China, officials from the group told The Associated Press.
It’s an example of how far China will go to influence politicians overseas, and how that pressure can succeed behind closed doors.
In the past year, lawmakers from Malawi and Gambia withdrew from the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, or IPAC, a group of hundreds of lawmakers from 38 countries concerned about how democracies approach Beijing, according to letters, messages and voice recordings obtained by The Associated Press.
Founded in 2020, the group has coordinated sanctions on China over rights abuses in Xinjiang and Hong Kong and rallied support for Taiwan, a self-ruled democratic island Beijing claims as its territory.
African politicians and experts say it’s an escalation of Chinese diplomatic pressure in Africa, where Beijing’s influence is growing. Beijing has built deep ties with African leaders by developing mines and building infrastructure through state-owned construction companies, often funded by loans from state-owned banks.
The pressure is also part of Beijing’s longstanding effort to influence groups and lawmakers across the world, including in New York state, where a former governor’s aide faces charges for acting as an agent for the Chinese government.
‘Very shocking news’
IN January, Gambian lawmaker Abdoulie
Trade war. . .
Continued from A6
Four years later, nearly 3 million manufacturing jobs had been lost, though robots and other forms of automation probably did at least as much to reduce factory jobs as the “China shock.’’
Tariffs are Trump’s all-purpose weapon
To turn around this long decline, Trump has repeatedly unsheathed the tariffs that are his weapon of choice. Since returning to the White House in January, he’s plastered 25 percent taxes on foreign cars, steel and aluminum. He’s hit Chinese imports with 20 percent levies, on top of hefty tariffs he imposed on China during his first term.
On April 2, he blasted his big bazooka: 10 percent “baseline’’ tariffs on just about everybody and “reciprocal’’ tariffs on everyone else that the Trump team identified as bad actors, including tiny Lesotho (a 50 percent import tax) and China (34 percent before adding earlier levies).
Trump views tariffs as an all-purpose economic fix that will protect American industries, encourage companies to open factories in America, raise money for the US Treasury and give him leverage to bend other countries to his will, even on issues that have nothing to do with trade, such as drug trafficking and immigration.
The president also sees a smoking gun: The United States has bought more from other countries than it has sold them every year for the past half-century. In 2024, the US trade deficit in goods and services came to a whopping $918 billion, the secondhighest amount on record.
Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro calls America’s trade deficits “the sum of all cheating’’ by other countries.
However, economists say trade deficits aren’t a sign of national weakness. The US economy has nearly quadrupled in size, adjusted for inflation, during that halfcentury of trade deficits.
“There is no reason to think that a bigger trade deficit means lower growth,” said former IMF chief economist Maurice Obstfeld, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute of International Economics and an economist at the University of California, Berkeley. “In fact, the opposite is closer to the truth in many countries.”
Ceesay sent a voice message to an IPAC staffer saying the Chinese government had complained to the Gambian foreign ministry about his membership.
“We have very shocking news…it’s a problem right now,” Ceesay said in the recording, which IPAC provided to AP. “The president is not happy with us at all.”
Later the same month, Ceesay and fellow lawmaker Amadou Camara informed the alliance they were withdrawing. Ceesay told IPAC in a written message that his decision was “not influenced by the Chinese embassy,” a position Ceesay reiterated when contacted by AP.
Gambia’s information minister said he was unaware of any attempt by China to influence his country’s politicians.
“They decided on their own behalf to opt out of IPAC after realizing it goes against the government’s bilateral (relationship) with China,” said the minister, Ismaila Ceesay, who is not related to Abdoulie Ceesay.
The Chinese government has targeted lawmakers over the alliance before. Beijing has sanctioned some members and last year, lawmakers from at least six countries were pressured by Chinese diplomats not to attend the group’s summit in Taiwan. Kenyan lawmakers cancelled their plans to attend but stayed in the alliance. The group was also targeted by Chinese statesponsored hackers in 2021, according to a US indictment.
“Foreign legislators are being bullied out of a free alliance between them and other politicians,” said IPAC head Luke de Pulford. “This is clearly a result of Chinese pressure.”
In a statement, the Chinese Foreign Ministry accused IPAC of “smearing China” and said that “China has never engaged in coercive diplomacy.”
See “Beijing,” A8
A trade deficit, Obstfeld said, does not mean a country is losing through trade or being “ripped off.”
Spend a lot, save a little and see trade deficits swell THE faster the US economy grows, in fact, the more imports Americans tend to buy and the wider the trade deficit tends to get. The US trade deficit—the gap between what it sells and what it buys from foreign countries—hit a record $945 billion in 2022 as the American economy roared back from Covid-19 lockdowns. Trade deficits typically fall sharply in recessions.
Nor are trade deficits primarily inflicted on America by other countries’ unfair trading practices. To economists, they’re a homegrown product, the result of Americans’ propensity to save little and consume more than they produce.
American shoppers’ famous appetite for spending more than the country makes means that a chunk of the spending is used for imports. If the United States boosted its saving—for example, by reducing its budget deficits—then that would reduce its trade deficit as well, economists say. “It’s not like the rest of the world has been ripping us off for decades,” said Jay Bryson, chief economist at Wells Fargo. “It’s because we don’t save enough.”
The flip side of America’s low savings and big trade deficits is a steady inflow of foreign investment as other countries sink their export earnings into the United States. Direct foreign investment into the US came to $349 billion in 2023, the World Bank reported, nearly double No. 2 Singapore’s inflows.
The only scenario in which tariffs reduce the US deficit is if they cause investment in the US to crash, said Barry Eichengreen, an economist at the University of California, Berkeley. That “would be a disaster.’’
Harvard University economist Dani Rodrik said a “well-designed industrial policy” supported by select tariffs “might have fostered increased investment and capacity in manufacturing.”
Instead, Rodrik said, Trump’s actions just “throw up a lot of uncertainty” and alienate America’s best allies, making for “a terrible policy all in all.’’
AP Economics Writer Christopher Rugaber contributed to this report.
Republicans break ranks with Trump over new tariffs, worry about economic impact
By Stephen Groves The Associated Press
WASHINGTON—
Manufacturers struggling to make long-term plans. Farmers facing retaliation from Chinese buyers. US households burdened with higher prices.
Republican senators are confronting the Trump administration with those worries and many more as they fret about the economic impact of the president’s sweeping tariff strategy that went into effect Wednesday.
In a Senate hearing and interviews with reporters this week, Republican skepticism of President Donald Trump’s policies ran unusually high. While GOP lawmakers made sure to direct their concern at Trump’s aides and advisers—particularly US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, who appeared before the Senate Finance Committee Tuesday—it still amounted to a rare Republican break from a president they have otherwise championed.
Lawmakers had reason to worry: the stock market has been in a volatile tumble for days and economists are warning that the plans could lead to a recession.
“Whose throat do I get to choke if this proves to be wrong?” Repub -
South Korea. . .
Continued from A6
to South Korean automakers since the US accounted for nearly half of the nation’s $70.8 billion worth of vehicle
lican Sen. Thom Tillis told Greer as he pressed for an answer on which Trump aide to hold accountable if there is an economic downturn.
Tillis’ frustration was aimed at the across-the-board tariff strategy that could potentially hamstring US manufacturers who are currently dependent on materials like aluminum and steel from China. His home state of North Carolina, where he is up for reelection next year, has attracted thousands of foreign firms looking to invest in the state’s manufacturing industries.
Ever wary of crossing Trump, Republicans engaged in a delicate two-step of criticizing the rollout of the tariffs then shifting to praise for the president’s economic vision. In the afternoon, Tillis in a Senate floor speech said that the “president is right in challenging other nations who have for decades abused their relationship with the United States,” yet went on to question who in the White
exports in 2024, according to government data. Automobiles and auto-parts are among South Korea’s biggest export items to the US. “South Korea will be hit with a 25 percent reciprocal tariff, on top of existing 25 percent global tariffs on autos, steel and
House was thinking through the long-term economic effects of the sweeping tariffs.
Tillis even allowed that Trump’s trade strategy could still turn out to be effective, but said there is a short window to show that it is worth the higher prices and layoffs that will burden workers.
For his part, Greer emphasized to the committee that the US was engaged in negotiations with other countries but that “the trade deficit has been decades in the making, and it’s not going to be solved overnight.”
Republican leaders in Congress, as well as a sizeable chunk of lawmakers, have emphasized that Trump needs time to implement his strategy. They’ve mostly rejected the idea of putting a check on Trump’s tariff power, but it is clear that anxiety is growing among rank-and-file Republicans about what’s ahead.
Sen. James Lankford, an Oklahoma Republican, said there is a company in his state that had spent “millions of dollars” moving its parts production from China to Vietnam. But now that Vietnam is facing steep tariffs, the business is unable to move forward with negotiating prices with retailers.
Lankford pressed Greer for a timeline for negotiations, but the trade representative responded, “We don’t have any particular timeline. The outcome is more important than setting something artificially for us.”
Trade agreements between countries typically take months
aluminum—a blow to the country’s exportdriven economy. Bloomberg Economics trade team estimates that the tariffs could reduce exports to the US by 50 percent and put 2.5 percent of Korean GDP at risk,” said Bloomberg analyst Adam Farrar. South Korea ranks as the third-biggest
or even years to work out and often require the parties to navigate through a host of legal, economic and business issues. Still, Republicans said they were encouraged by the indications that Trump is entering into negotiations with other nations.
Sen. Steve Daines, a Montana Republican, said at the committee hearing that he was “very encouraged” by news of trade negotiations and attributed a momentary upward tick in the stock market to “hope that these tariffs are a means and not solely an end.” He told Greer, “Who pays these high tariffs? It will be the consumer. I’m worried about the inflationary effect. I’m worried if there is a trade war that we’re going to have markets shutting down for American farmers, ranchers and manufacturers.”
Other GOP lawmakers contended that the pain was worth bearing.
Republican Rep. Ralph Norman of South Carolina, a member of the conservative Freedom Caucus, said the president is on the right track. “It’s pain, but it’s going to be,” he said. “The president will make the right call. He’s doing the right thing.”
Still, traditional Republicans were looking for ways to push back on Trump’s tariff plan.
Sen. Chuck Grassley, a senior Republican, has introduced a bipartisan bill to give Congress the power to review and approve of new tariffs, and Republican
See “Tariffs,” A8
vehicle exporter to the US, behind Mexico and Japan, according to the US Commerce Department’s International Trade Administration. Bloomberg Intelligence estimates the levies will slice about 0.1 percentage point from South Korea’s pace of GDP growth. Bloomberg News
Iran’s foreign minister to meet with US envoy in Oman for nuclear negotiations
By Jon Gambrell & Amir Vahdat
The Associated Press
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates— Iran ‘s foreign minister said Tuesday he’ll meet with US envoy Steve Witkoff in Oman for the first negotiations under the Trump administration seeking to halt Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program as tensions remain high in the Middle East.
Speaking to Iranian state television from Algeria, Abbas Araghchi maintained that the talks would be indirect, likely with Omani mediators shuttling between the parties. US President Donald Trump, in announcing the negotiations on Monday, described them as direct talks. Years of indirect talks under the Biden administration failed to reach any success, as Tehran now enriches uranium up to 60 percentpurity—a technical step away from weapons-grade levels. Both the US and Israel have threatened Iran with military attack over the program, while officials in Tehran increasingly warn they could potentially pursue a nuclear bomb.
“Our main goal in the talks is naturally restoring rights of people as well as lifting sanctions, and if the other side has a real will, this is achievable, and it has no relation to the method, either direct or indirect,” Araghchi said. “For the time being, indirect is our preference. And we have no plan to alter it to direct.”
Araghchi’s comments left space for Iran to potentially hold direct talks eventually with the Americans. Such talks aren’t known to have been held since the Obama administration.
State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce told reporters
Tuesday that Witkoff would participate. “He’ll be present,” she said.
The Washington Post later published an opinion piece from Araghchi in which he maintained that “Iran is ready to engage in earnest and with a view to seal a deal.”
“Pursuing indirect negotiations is not a tactic or reflection of ideology but a strategic choice rooted in experience,” he added.
“To move forward today, we first need to agree that there can be no ‘military option,’ let alone a ‘military solution.’”
News of talks boosts Iran’s ailing economy AFTER Trump’s comments on the talks went public, Iran’s ailing economy showed new signs of life. Its rial currency, which hit a record low of over 1 million rials to the dollar, rebounded Tuesday to 990,000 rials. The Tehran Stock Exchange separately rose some 2 percenton the news. Iran’s economy has been severely affected by international sanctions, particularly after Trump unilaterally withdrew America from Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers in 2018. At the time of the 2015 deal, which saw Iran drastically limit its enrichment and stockpiling of uranium in exchange for lifting of international sanctions, the rial traded at 32,000
to the dollar.
Economic upheavals have evaporated the public’s savings, pushing average Iranians into holding onto hard currencies, gold, cars and other tangible wealth. Others pursue cryptocurrencies or fall into get-rich-quick schemes.
Trump’s letter sparked talks
THE negotiations Saturday come after Trump wrote to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, trying to jump-start direct talks between Tehran and Washington. Khamenei came down hard on Trump in February and warned talks “are not intelligent, wise or honorable” with his administration.
Meanwhile, Trump is continuing an airstrike campaign targeting the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, the last force in Tehran’s self-described “Axis of Resistance” able to attack Israel with any regularity after other militant groups were severely weakened by Israel during its war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip. There had been anger toward Trump from Iran’s theocracy, particularly over his decision to launch a drone strike that killed prominent Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad in 2020. US officials have said Trump faced assassination threats from Iran in the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election.
But Iran may be taking a different path now. The hardline Iranian newspaper Kayhan on Saturday published a piece warning: “Trump will be dead from several bullets into his empty head in revenge for Martyr Soleimani’s blood.” A day later, the Press Supervisory Board in Iran’s Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance issued a warning to the daily over the article, which the newspaper later described as satire.
Israel and Russia react
ISRAELI Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu published a video reiterating his claim that only a deal like one struck with the late
Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi would work for Iran. It saw Gadhafi give up his clandestine nuclear program. Iran has insisted its program, acknowledged to the International Atomic Energy Agency, should continue.
“We agree that Iran will not have nuclear weapons,” said Netanyahu, who was sitting next to Trump when he announced the talks. “This can be done in an agreement, but only if this agreement is on the Libyan model, where you go in, blow up the facilities, dismantle all the equipment, under American supervision, American execution.”
He added: “The second option is that this won’t happen, that they will just drag out the talks, and then the option is military. Everyone understands that. We discussed that at length.”
Meanwhile, asked about Trump’s mention of planned direct talks between the US and Iran, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow welcomes them, adding that “we support settling the issue of the Iranian nuclear dossier by political and diplomatic means.”
Peskov added in a conference call with reporters: “We are aware that certain contacts, both direct and indirect, are planned in Oman and we can only welcome them as they could lead to the de-escalation of tensions around Iran.” His remarks come as Trump is trying to negotiate a separate peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, talks that also have happened in the Middle East, in Saudi Arabia.
An expert-level meeting among representatives from Russia, China and Iran was to take place in Moscow on Tuesday to discuss Iran’s nuclear program, according to Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova in comments carried by Russian news agencies.
Vahdat reported from Tehran, Iran. Associated Press writer Natalie Melzer in Nahariya, Israel, contributed.
98 dead, 160 injured in Dominican Republic as nightclub roof collapses during concert
By Martín Adames Alcántara & Dánica Coto
The Associated Press
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic—Rescuers frantically searched overnight for more survivors in the rubble of the iconic Jet Set nightclub in the Dominican Republic’s capital, more than 24 hours after the roof collapsed during a merengue concert attended by politicians, athletes and others. At least 98 people were killed in the collapse early Tuesday.
Rescue crews shushed people around them so they could listen for faint cries for help in the rubble of the one-story building in Santo Domingo. Firefighters removed blocks of broken concrete and used wood planks to lift heavy debris as the noise of drills breaking through concrete filled the air.
Late Tuesday night, those still looking for their family and friends gathered around a man playing a guitar outside the club as they sang hymns.
Emergency operations director Juan Manuel Méndez said Tuesday evening sounds were still being been heard in the rubble and the rescue crews were prioritizing three areas.
“We’re going to search tirelessly for people,” Méndez said. Jet Set is known for its traditional Monday parties where renowned national and international artists perform.
Officials said at least 160 people were injured in the collapse, among them national lawmaker Bray Vargas. Those confirmed dead included a provincial governor and two former Major League Baseball players.
Montecristi Gov. Nelsy Cruz had called President Luis Abinader at 12:49 a.m., saying the club’s roof had collapsed and she was trapped, first lady Raquel Arbaje told reporters. Officials said Cruz died later at the hospital.
“This is too great a tragedy,” Abraje said, her voice breaking.
Cruz was the sister of Nelson Cruz, an MLB official and former player. Former MLB players Octavio Dotel and Tony Enrique Blanco Cabrera were also among the dead.
Merengue singer Rubby Pérez, who was performing when the roof collapsed, is among the missing, Méndez said.
Pérez’s manager, Enrique Paulino, whose shirt was spattered with blood, told reporters at the scene that the concert began shortly before midnight, with the roof collapsing almost an hour later, killing the group’s saxophonist. “It happened so quickly. I managed to throw myself into a corner,” he said, adding that he initially thought it was an earthquake.
Manuel Olivo Ortiz, whose son attended the concert, was among those anxiously waiting in a large crowd for word on their loved ones. “We’re holding on only to God,” Olivo said.
Massiel Cuevas, godmother of 22-yearold Darlenys Batista, was firm in her belief that Batista would be pulled out alive. “I’m waiting for her. She’s in there, I know she’s in there,” Cuevas said.
Abinader visited the scene and hugged those looking for friends and family, some with tears streaming down their faces. “We have faith in God that we will rescue even more people alive,” he told reporters. An official with a megaphone stood outside the club imploring the crowd to give ambulances space. At one hospital where the injured were taken, an official read aloud the names of survivors as people surrounding her yelled the names of their loved ones. People also gathered at the National Institute of Forensic Pathology, which shared pictures of the victims for identification.
The club said it was cooperating with authorities. “There are no words to express the pain this event has caused. What happened has been devastating for everyone,” the owner, Antonio Espaillat, said in the statement. It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the roof to collapse or when the Jet Set building was last inspected.
A spokeswoman for the Ministry of Public Works referred questions to the mayor’s office. A spokesperson for the mayor’s office did not respond to a message for comment.
Prosecutor Rosalba Ramos told TV station CDN that while “everyone wants to know” what happened, authorities were still focused on finding survivors.
Coto reported from San Juan, Puerto Rico.
members in the House were also working to gain support for a similar bill. Such legislation would allow Congress to claw back some of its constitutional power over tariff policy, which has been almost completely handed over to the president in recent decades through legislation.
But the White House has already indicated that Trump would veto the bill, and both Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., have said they are not interested in bringing it up for a vote.
Sen. Markwayne Mullin, a Republican closely aligned with Trump, said on social media that the bill was a bad idea because “Congress moves at the pace of a tortoise running a race.”
“The reason why Congress gave this authority to the president to begin with is because the ability to pivot,” he added.
But the president’s unclear messaging has also left lawmakers only guessing as they try to decipher which advisers and aides hold sway in the White House.
Sen. John Kennedy, a Louisi -
But a Malawian lawmaker, Ephraim Abel Kayembe, told an IPAC staffer he had been contacted by the speaker of the Malawian National Assembly shortly after he and another lawmaker joined the group at last year’s Taiwan summit, according to the staffer. The staffer declined to be named for fear of damage to their relations with other politicians.
The speaker told Kayembe the Chinese government had threatened to cancel the president’s upcoming visit to Beijing for a regional summit and meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, according to IPAC head de Pulford, programs director Tom Fraser and the person who spoke directly to Kayembe.
Less than two weeks after the summit, the two Malawian lawmakers said they were withdrawing. Kayembe said in a letter to IPAC that he had been tricked into joining.
ana Republican, said that as he’s received calls from the business community in his state, he’s had no answers for them besides telling them the prospects for the economy are uncertain. The communication from the president’s aides has often been conflicting, Kennedy said even as he voiced support for Trump’s long-term goals.
Kennedy told reporters, “I don’t think there’s any way to double or triple your tariffs on the world when you’re the wealthiest country in all of human history without being somewhat shambolic.”
“I want to extend my sincere apology to the People’s Republic of China,” Kayembe wrote in the August 7 letter.
When contacted by AP, Kayembe denied being coerced by the Malawi or Chinese governments, writing in an e-mail that he withdrew because the alliance appeared “aimed at achieving geopolitical intentions against China.”
Malawi’s government did not respond to a request for comment.
Shifting alliances
FOR decades, Beijing has cultivated ties with African governments, seeking diplomatic partners and access to natural resources.
Many African leaders have welcomed Beijing’s presence since it brings muchneeded capital and construction expertise that can contribute to economic growth and development. Critics say China strikes secretive, sometimes corrupt deals with African leaders that mainly benefit Chinese
companies and workers brought in to build mines, bridges and railways.
“China has been investing and being present in African countries when many countries were not willing to come,” said Christian-Geraud Neema, Africa editor of the China Global South Project, an independent research group.
Chinese leaders have repeatedly promised not to interfere in the internal affairs of African countries, saying there are “no political strings attached” to its investment. But China has pressured African governments to shun Taiwan or Tibet’s spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, efforts that Neema says appear to be escalating.
Last October, South Africa demanded that Taipei move its unofficial embassy out of the administrative capital, Pretoria, and in January, Beijing sanctioned the head of South Africa’s second-largest political party for visiting Taiwan.
Moves like these mirror efforts China has made against governments elsewhere
in the past. Beijing blocked exports from Lithuania, for example, after the northern European country allowed Taiwan to open a trade office. But experts say the pressure against the IPAC members is unusual. Lina Benabdallah, a professor at Wake Forest University who studies China’s relations with Africa, said she has never heard of China using direct coercion against African parliamentarians before.
“This is very new to me,” Benabdallah said.
Zimbabwe lawmaker and IPAC member Daniel Molokele said he expects to see more coercive behavior from Beijing, especially as the Trump administration pulls back from Africa.
“I expect China to benefit,” Molokele said. “It will definitely use this opportunity to grow its influence in Africa.”
RESCUE workers carry a person pulled from the wreckage of the Jet Set nightclub after its roof collapsed during a merengue concert in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. AP/RICARDO HERNANDEZ
Trade jitters seen cutting price of rice imports
TBy Ada Pelonia @adapelonia
HE quotation for imported rice could further decline after Washington announced the reciprocal tariffs it will slap on the trading partners of the United States, according to analysts.
BMI, a unit of Fitch Solutions, recently reported that rice futures posted the largest annual decline among grains after US President Donald Trump unveiled America’s new trade policy last week.
“Following the announcement of US reciprocal tariffs, we have seen bearish sentiment across grains markets,” the research firm said in its report.
“The closing price on April 2
for rice represented the largest year-on-year decrease, of 17.9 percent year-on-year and we forecast prices to remain below recent averages throughout 2025.”
The BMI said soybean trailed with a 12 percent annual decrease, followed by wheat at 1.6 percent. Corn was the only grain the registered an increase at 5.5 percent, it added.
For the chief of the University of Asia and the Pacific’s
(UA&P) Center for Food and Agribusiness (CFA), Trump’s move could signal a potential slide of the staple grain’s prices.
“Tariffs tend to increase the cost of goods for foreign buyers, which can lead to lower import volumes and push prices down further,” UA&P CFA
Executive
Director Marie Annette GalvezDacul told the BusinessMirror
“Still, the overall effect will depend on how producers respond and how demand shifts globally, so the results could vary over time.”
Meanwhile, Roehlano Briones, a senior research fellow at the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (Pids), said grains are not spared from Washington’s new tariff scheme.
“World trade is at risk, including grains,” Briones told this newspaper.
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) noted that since February, global export quotes
continued to decline sharply.
For instance, Vietnamese prices decreased by $7 per metric ton (MT) to $387 while Thai quotes dropped $19 per MT to $418 with reduced sales to Southeast Asian markets.
Pakistani quotes decreased $20 per MT to $380 and India is down $10 per MT to $400 with large supplies, it added.
PHL kicks off efforts to develop vaccine against ASF
THE Philippines has jumpstarted the development of its own vaccines against transboundary animal diseases, such as African swine fever (ASF), with the inauguration of the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) vaccine development unit at the Center for Transboundary Animal Diseases (CenTrAD) last Tuesday.
The DA said the facility will develop vaccines against transboundary animal diseases, particularly ASF, food and mouth disease (FMD), and avian influenza (AI), which are major threats to the country’s livestock and poultry sectors.
Agriculture Secretary Tiu Laurel Jr. noted that while vaccines for these infectious diseases are available internationally, locally developed vaccines based on indigenous strains tend to be
more effective in preventing outbreaks.
He said a dedicated facility like the vaccine unit at CenTrAD is critical for addressing the economic losses caused by ASF and bird flu and for safeguarding the country’s livestock from FMD.
“The National Animal Vaccination Program is about empowerment—empowering our farmers with knowledge, our veterinarians with resources, and our nation with the assurance that we are building a stronger, healthier future,” he said.
“It is a testament to the power of science, the importance of collaboration, and the undeniable truth that prevention is always better than cure.”
The DA allocated P151 million for a three-year vaccine development program, which
includes the procurement of the government’s first Biosafety Level 3 Laboratory (BSL-3).
It explained that this type of laboratory allows research on microbes, both indigenous and exotic, that can cause serious or potentially lethal diseases through inhalation. The program aims to deliver vaccine prototypes by 2028 or sooner.
CenTrAD, a joint project of the agency’s Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) and Central Luzon State University (CLSU), is funded by the DA. It is set to become the leading agency for the diagnosis, surveillance, research, and technology development related to transboundary animal diseases.
The CenTrAD houses laboratories for microbiology, virology, parasitology, histopathology, and molecular assays, along with an
epidemiology training and digital analysis room. The construction of the entire facility started in 2019, with an estimated cost of P230 million. It was completed in 2022.
The country’s swine sector has incurred billions in losses since the ASF outbreak was detected in 2019, with the current swine population only at 60 percent of the nearly 13 million heads recorded before the outbreak. Bird flu has also led to the culling of over 10 million chickens since its first outbreak in 2017.
Though the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) considers the Philippines to be FMD-free, the DA said cases in neighboring countries still pose a substantial risk to the swine and ruminant industries since it has no cure.
Ada Pelonia
Surigao farmers get rice combine harvesters from DAR
THE Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) has provided rice combine harvesters (RCH) to 2 Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Organizations (ARBOs) in Surigao del Norte. Funded through the DAR’s Agrarian Reform Fund (ARF), the farm machinery and equipment (FMEs) worth P3.55 million streamline the harvesting process, allowing ARBs to work faster and with less manual labor and reduce postharvest losses.
Rocky M. Aborro, Chairperson of the Roxas Community Agrarian Reform Cooperative (RCARC) in Brgy.
Roxas, expressed gratitude for the support that they received.
“We are very thankful to the DAR for this Farm Machinery and Equipment [FME]. It is a great help to our cooperative and to all farmers in need. We hope this assistance continues so more ARBs can benefit,” Aborro said in a statement.
The RCH can perform six key operations—gathering, transporting, reaping, threshing, cleaning, and bagging—making the harvesting process faster, more efficient, and labor-saving. It can harvest up to three hectares
daily, reducing manual labor dependency and minimizing postharvest losses.
Designed to be climateresilient, the equipment is well-suited to local conditions, ensuring reliability even in challenging environments.
“Harvesting will now be easier in our rice fields. Our palay will no longer be at risk of rotting. Thank you, DAR, for this invaluable support,” said Lisa A. Aclo, a member of the Board of Directors of the Mabini Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Cooperative (MARBC) in Brgy. Mabini,
Meat prices more expensive in March—report
T HE average prices of meat products rose in March due largely to rising quotations in the European Union after Germany regained foot-and-mouth-disease-free status, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said in its report.
FAO said its meat price index averaged 118 points last month, up 1 point or 0,9 percent from the revised February value and 3.1 points (2.7 percent) from its year-earlier level.
“The increase was primarily driven by higher pig meat prices, mainly due to rising quotations in the European Union after Germany regained foot-and-
mouth-disease-free status, prompting key trading partners, such as the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, to lift import bans,” it said.
“Rising demand contributed to stabilizing the market, while the strengthening of the euro against the United States dollar supported the upward trend. Ovine meat prices also increased, supported by strong global demand ahead of the Easter holidays.”
FAO said world bovine meat quotations also rose, reflecting tight global supplies and robust international demand. Meanwhile, poultry meat prices remained largely stable, as global
supply and demand remained balanced despite the continued challenges posed by widespread avian influenza outbreaks in some major producing countries.
FAO said its Vegetable Oil Price Index averaged 161.8 points in March, up 5.8 points (3.7 percent) month-on-month and remaining significantly higher (23.9 percent) than its level a year earlier.
“The continued increase in the index was driven by higher prices of palm, soy, rapeseed and sunflower oils.
International palm oil prices rose for the second consecutive month, primarily due to persistently tight supplies in
Surigao City.
DAR Provincial Agrarian Reform Program Officer (PARPO) Crisostomo N. Bernaldez emphasized the initiative’s impact.
“By equipping ARBOs with modern FMEs, DAR is helping ARBs improve efficiency, increase their income, and modernize their farming operations.”
This initiative underscores DAR’s commitment to strengthening agrarian reform communities (ARCs), enhancing agricultural productivity, and ensuring a more sustainable future for the ARBs.
Jonathan L. Mayuga
major producing countries in Southeast Asia, where outputs were at their seasonal lows.”
Meanwhile, the FAO All Rice Price Index declined by 1.7 percent in March, as weak import demand and ample exportable supplies kept export quotations under downward pressure.
The FAO Food Price Index (FFPI) averaged 127.1 points in March, nearly unchanged from February. Declines in cereals and sugar price indices offset increases in those of meat and vegetable oils, while the dairy price index remained stable.
Overall, the FFPI was 8.2 points (6.9 percent) higher than its corresponding level one year ago but remained 33.1 points (20.7 percent) below its peak reached in March 2022.
year’s record, due to the recovery of local paddy rice output.
Agriculture Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa said rice imports will decline this year after shipments of the food staple from other countries reached an all-time high of 4.8 MMT in 2024.
Meanwhile, US prices dropped $19 per MT to $678 on weaker sales to Latin America, while Uruguayan quotes fell $56 per MT to $612 following the harvest of its new crop.
Last week, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said the country could import as much as 4 million metric tons (MMT) of rice this year, lower than the previous
THE Bezos Earth Fund is putting money into research programs to breed climate-smart cattle as part of efforts to curb the environmental impact of livestock.
The Jeff Bezos-backed philanthropic organization is funding $19 million for an initiative to help identify genetic traits in low-methane emission cattle and sheep, it said Tuesday.
The research, spread across the Americas, Europe, Africa and Oceania, will involve scanning more than 100,000 animals to generate data to help predict methane-emitting traits, which will be used for breeding.
“We’re going to measure their emissions, we’re going to measure their genetics, we’re going to measure the microbiome in the rumen,” Andy Jarvis, the Bezos Earth Fund’s director of future of food, said in an interview. “You put all of that together, and then we can predict the likely methane emissions.”
Food systems—encompassing everything from growing and processing food to consuming it or throwing it away—account for about a third of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Much of that footprint is linked to livestock farming, a major source of methane that’s 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period.
“The reasonable level of rice imports [this year is between] 3.8 MMT to 4 MMT,” De Mesa told reporters in a press briefing. Data from the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) showed that rice arrivals as of March 27 stood at 804,347.09 metric tons (MT), 32.21 percent lower than the 1.19 MMT recorded in the first quarter of the previous year. The country’s rice arrivals have been on a downward trend, with the monthly average shipment settling at around 270,000 MT this year from nearly 400,000 MT recorded a year ago.
“If this trend continues, rice imports will definitely decline.”
emissions vary even within the same herd, scientists say selecting and breeding for lowermethane traits can lead to big and permanent reductions in emissions, the Bezos Earth Fund said.
The approach won’t require farmers to change how they feed or raise livestock. It will probably take two to three years to get the data in place, before the methane scores appear in bull catalogues, according to Jarvis.
“Once we’ve got enough of a data set, that starts then feeding into breeding programs,” he said. “Breeders can start selecting for that and farmers can start selecting for it. It’s kind of an elegant solution.”
The funding is part of a $1 billion commitment to tackle food’s impact on climate and nature. The Bezos Earth Fund has already announced a total of $239 million for food and farming, and will allocate the remaining $761 million by 2030. The work so far has included establishing research centers for improving alternative proteins and research into vaccines and feed to curb livestock emissions.
Farmers have for centuries bred cattle to improve milk yields and make them more fertile or resistant to diseases. Because
Tuesday’s announcement forms a total of $27.4 million from the Bezos Earth Fund and Global Methane Hub, an alliance to support reducing emissions of the gas. Recipients of the grants will include the Wageningen University in the Netherlands, Angus Foundation and University of Nebraska. Bloomberg News Bezos
R. Calso
Frontier technologies: PHL’s progress and the path to innovation
THE recently released UN Trade and Development’s (Unctad) Technology and Innovation Report 2025 has shed light on the impressive strides made by developing countries in technology readiness. The Philippines, Brazil, China, and India have emerged as outperformers, showcasing their potential to drive economic growth and development through innovation. (Read the BusinessMirror story, “UNCTAD: PHL among tech readiness outperformers,” April 7, 2025).
The Philippines, in particular, has caught attention, ranking 60th in the frontier technologies readiness index, despite slipping two notches from its 2022 ranking. With a score of 0.61, the country has demonstrated its capacity to adapt and integrate new technologies. The report highlights areas where the Philippines needs to improve, including skills development (107th rank), research and development (68th rank), and finance (75th rank).
The Frontier Technologies Readiness Index (FTRI) measures a country’s preparedness to adopt cutting-edge technologies, which include fields such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, and the Internet of Things, among others. By ranking countries based on their FTRI scores, the index provides a comprehensive snapshot of the global landscape of frontier technology readiness, helping policymakers, businesses, and stakeholders to identify areas of strength and weakness, and to prioritize efforts to foster innovation, entrepreneurship, and economic growth.
The Unctad report offers a valuable lesson for policymakers and stakeholders. The country’s strong industry performance (9th rank) is a testament to its potential, but it must be matched with investments in human capital, research, and development. The government’s efforts to promote innovation and entrepreneurship are commendable, but more needs to be done to create a robust innovation ecosystem.
The report also underscores the significance of skills development in driving technological progress. As the Philippines continues to grow its developer base, with a 30 percent increase in recent years, it must prioritize education and training programs that equip its workforce with the skills needed to thrive in a rapidly changing technological landscape.
The report notes that many developing countries are experiencing rapid growth in developer numbers, with India, Vietnam, and Indonesia also recording significant increases. This trend presents both opportunities and challenges for the Philippines, as it competes for talent and investment in an increasingly globalized innovation economy.
So, what can be done? Firstly, the government must prioritize investments in education and skills development, ensuring that the workforce is equipped to adapt to emerging technologies. Secondly, policies must be put in place to encourage research and development, including tax incentives, funding for startups, and support for innovation hubs. Finally, the private sector must be encouraged to play a more active role in driving innovation, through partnerships with academia and government.
The Unctad report’s message is clear: technology readiness is a critical factor in driving economic growth and development. The Philippines has made progress, but it must build on this momentum to seize the opportunities offered by frontier technologies. By harnessing the power of technology, the country can unlock new industries, create jobs, and improve the lives of its citizens.
BusinessMirror
Your wisdom or their word
EJohn Mangun
OUTSIDE THE BOX
VERYTHING is far more complex than we want or expect it to be. And even while it might be important, even crucial, for us to understand what is going on, we all have other lives to lead. As a result, we defer to the experts to keep us informed. They do the heavy intellectual lifting and then guide us along the straightest path. Or so we hope.
As I have said before, that puts every one of us at the mercy of experts who may or may not have our best interests at heart.
Peanut allergies hovered at 0.1 percent in the 1980s; now, 1.5 to 2 percent of Americans suffer. The 1990s saw studies and media ignite parental panic. In 2000, the American Academy of Pediatrics, echoing a baseless 1998 UK rule, banned peanuts for “high risk” kids under 3 and pregnant mothers with Anthony Fauci backing it. By 2003, rates doubled; hospital visits tripled from 2005 to 2014. An extensive 2015 study showed early exposure cuts allergies 86 percent, but AAP and Fauci stalled until 2017, leaving many with allergies and EpiPens. Fauci shrugged in 2019: “Judgment call”. Evidence ignored, bad policies
copied, judgment flawed—classic expert fumble.
Science or panic dressed up as wisdom. From peanuts to profits, more experts trying to run the narratives on the markets and economic issues.
The headline: “Japan’s stock market surges over 6 percent at the open.” Why? “Local traders assessed strong performances of U.S. technology stocks”. Accurate? Is there more to the story that you need to know before you start slamming the BUY button?
Along with the six percent surge in Japan’s Nikkei 225, there was also a sharp spike in JGB (Japanese Government Bonds) yields—up 7 percent—meaning investors were selling those bonds. Stocks soared; bonds tanked. That seems contradictory because interest rates go -
ing higher is supposed to be bad for stock prices. Now it gets complicated, but the simple part is these are in Japan’s playground, not Uncle Sam’s or ours.
One reason stocks surge and bonds slump is forced repatriation or the unwinding of carry trades. Picture a carry trade as a clever financial dance: shrewd players borrow yen where interest rates sit near one percent, then scramble to put that cash overseas to chase juicier returns in foreign bonds or stocks. Borrow cheap yen; buy “cheap” U.S. stocks. It is beautiful music until it stops when rates spike or currencies flip.
The whole scheme can unravel fast, sending everyone scrambling back to safety. Get out of New York; get back to Tokyo. Hedge funds and Japanese institutions yank their money home, juicing the yen and igniting the Nikkei index with a rush of currency swaps, short covering, or a pivot to local risk assets, while bonds take a beating as sellers flood the exits.
Then there is the flight from bonds to equities, a shift that lights up Japan’s strange financial scene where the banks and insurance companies call the shots. Rising bond yields can suddenly scream “time to move,” pushing big players to ditch bonds for stocks, trying to bet on the Bank of Japan’s next move.
Adding to all that is a derivative or options-driven “gamma squeeze”—
forced buying—when dealers panic, stocks soar, bonds bust. A wild ride as options dealers, caught flat-footed, scramble to cover shorts as a bond selloff sets off a chain reaction of hedging that jolts equities skyward, not because the world’s rosy, but because positions demand it. Meanwhile bonds sink deeper into the chaos. It is not manipulation. It is riding the markets for thrills and profits. No matter what happens in the days or weeks to come, it is all uncharted territory. The restless churn of bonds and stocks does not reveal any robust foundation. They lay bare a system strained to its limits, a desperate recalibration posing as momentum. The point. Only two choices. Learn more, do research, gain wisdom. Or listen to the experts.
Two paths diverge before you. One requires rigorous effort, sifting through the noise, dissecting the numbers, and carving out your own understanding amid the tempest. It is a pursuit for the resolute, not the timid. The other permits passive acceptance, an acquiescence to the expert narrative, where you ingest their polished claims and wager their history of blunders will not sink you once more.
E-mail me at mangun@gmail.com. Follow me on Twitter @mangunonmarkets. PSE stock-market information and technical analysis provided by AAA Southeast Equities Inc.
Chinese stocks swing wildly as Trump raises trade war stakes
CHINESE stocks whipsawed as the country’s trade war with the US worsened, after President Donald Trump promised to push ahead with even bigger tariffs.
The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index tumbled as much as 4.4 percent in early before paring most of its losses, while the onshore CSI 300 Index swung from a 1.7 percent loss to a small gain.
Market sentiment in both China and the US has been badly hit by the trade war, and a series of threats and defiant responses have forced investors to confront the possibility that the worst is still to come. Trump has pledged an overall 104 percent levy against Chinese goods, rapidly increasing his previous tariff after Beijing retaliated.
“The roller-coaster ride isn’t over yet and investors will probably need to strap themselves in for more twists and turns today,” said Kyle Rodda, a senior market analyst at Capital.com. The 104 percent tariff on China is “massive” and if there’s a response from the Chinese government, things could get far worse, he said.
Beijing has vowed to “fight to the end” in response to the latest tariffs, calling the escalation “a mistake on top of a mistake.”
Shares of Chinese companies that are deeply embedded in US supply chains were among the worst hit during the morning selloff. Shenzhou International Group Holdings Ltd., which gets 26 percent of its revenue from Nike Inc., fell as much as 7.4 percent. Apple suppliers GoerTek Inc. and AAC Technologies Holdings Inc. were down more than 8 percent before paring losses. Pharmaceutical companies also came under pressure, after Trump said he was planning to announce “a major tariff” on the sector soon. BeiGene Ltd. dropped as much as 12.7 percent, and has lost around a quarter of its market value this week.
State funds help
THE trade war is providing a test of China’s ability to coax the stock market higher during times of turmoil. While Trump has largely shrugged off the market impact, Beijing has pulled out all the stops: easing its grip on the currency, promising loans to state funds, loosening investment rules for insurers and
turning to a group of state-backed funds to buy stocks and exchangetraded funds.
Inflows into ETFs linked to the so-called national team were 87 billion yuan ($11.9 billion) on Tuesday, hitting an all-time record for the second day running. That suggests state funds stepped in en masse to prop up the market.
Chinese state media outlets struck a triumphant tone as these measures helped push markets higher on Tuesday. The China Securities Journal said authorities had developed a more optimized approach to stabilizing markets, and still had room to boost investor confidence.
Shanghai Securities News talked of a new stage in the construction of China’s capital market stabilization mechanism.
But investor sentiment remains on a knife edge. Chinese securities brokerages have increased monitoring of their margin financing businesses in response to the volatility, according to local media. Foreign investors are calling for a big program of fiscal stimulus to offset the damage of tariffs.
“With Trump signaling a tough stance on China, markets are bracing for more pressure, and sen -
timent around Chinese equities remains fragile,” said Charu Chanana, chief investment strategist at Saxo Markets. “A lot now hinges on China’s response. A strong retaliation from Chinese authorities could further hurt investor sentiment unless it comes with a massive domestic stimulus—not just policy promises.”
Chinese Premier Li Qiang said his country has ample policy tools to “fully offset” any negative external shocks. Beijing is considering frontloading its stimulus to counter the hit, Bloomberg News previously reported.
Stocks around the world have plummeted in response to Trump’s tariffs, with the S&P 500 now down more than 15 percent this year. Still, Trump continues to tout the positives, saying Tuesday that he expects the levies to bring in revenues for the US Treasury and shield critical industries.
China’s offshore yuan hit its weakest level on record Tuesday as the central bank loosened its grip. The currency
of
El Salvador is now viewed as safer to visit
than France by the US
By Eric Martin
PRESIDENT Donald Trump’s administration on Tuesday elevated El Salvador’s travel safety designation to the best possible, putting it above countries in Western Europe, before President Nayib Bukele’s visit to the White House next week.
“Exercise normal precautions in El Salvador,” the State Department said in its updated travel advisory. “Gang activity has decreased over the last three years. This has caused a drop in violent crimes and murders.”
The upgrade to Level 1 puts El Salvador ahead of some more traditional travel destinations for Americans like France, the UK and Italy. They’re all at Level 2, a recommendation to “Exercise Increased Caution,” because of threats from terrorists. Some other nations in Central America, including Panama and Costa Rica, are Level 2, with neighboring Guatemala Level 3, which carries a recommendation to “Reconsider Travel.”
Last November, El Salvador was upgraded to Level 2 from the previous Level 3.
“Keeping Americans safe overseas is our highest priority,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a post on X. “President Bukele’s leadership has been crucial in improving the security of his country for foreign travelers. Gang activity, violent crime, and murders in El Salvador have significantly dropped. The Trump administration updated our Travel Advisory.”
He will visit Trump at the White House on April 14, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday, making him the first leader from the Western Hemisphere to do so in the new administration. Trump and Bukele will talk about using an industrial-sized prison in El Salvador for housing deportees, Leavitt added. Bukele promoted the new travel rating on X, calling it the “travel gold star.”
The upgrade to Level 1 puts El Salvador ahead of some more traditional travel destinations for Americans like France, the UK and Italy. They’re all at Level 2, a recommendation to “Exercise Increased Caution,” because of threats from terrorists. Some other nations in Central America, including Panama and Costa Rica, are Level 2, with neighboring Guatemala Level 3, which carries a recommendation to “Reconsider Travel.”
He has actively courted Trump and last month accepted for incarceration more than 200 alleged members of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang who had been deported from the US. He made the commitment to accept deportee criminals of any nationality from the US in February for an undisclosed fee when Rubio came to El Salvador with promises to encourage more investment.
El Salvador was one of the deadliest nations on earth before Bukele took office in 2019. He’s ridden a crime crackdown to a 90 percent approval rating and made the world’s former murder capital less violent than Canada, spurring a boom in tourism.
The country also has the highest per capita incarceration rate in the world, more than triple that of the US, and has drawn criticism from human rights groups over harsh policies and neglect of due process. With assistance from Michael McDonald /Bloomberg
Oil extends steep selloff as fresh tariff wave imperils demand
OIL extended a steep selloff that’s driven prices to four-year lows as an intensifying trade war threatens to batter energy demand, with investors waiting for a fresh wave of levies to go into effect.
Brent sank as much as 4.2 percent to drop toward $60 a barrel, as West Texas Intermediate fell for a fifth day. While the White House said it is open to deals with some trade partners, tit-for-tat retaliation against China—the largest crude importer—and Beijing’s pushback have sparked fears of a recession.
Crude has collapsed by almost a fifth this year as US President Donald Trump’s aggressive trade agenda has eviscerated appetite for risk assets, with oil joining other commodities and equities in a swift and deep global market slump. The losses have been compounded by a decision by Opec+ to loosen output curbs at a faster clip than previously expected. The onetwo punch has spurred concerns that the oil market will be saddled with a glut.
“Tariff escalation continues to sour the global growth outlook, leaving further downside risk to oil demand,” said Warren Patterson, head of commodities strategy at ING Groep NV in Singapore. “With no signs of de-escalation, risks remain skewed to the downside.”
Trump is pushing ahead with higher duties on roughly 60 trading partners that he dubbed the “worst offenders,” with the new levies set to take effect after midnight New York time. Most critically, the president plans what would amount to a
Treasuries curve steepens as investors spurn long-end US bonds
By Ye Xie, Alice Atkins & Masaki Kondo
TREASURIES sank for a third straight day with long-end yields rising most amid growing cracks in the haven status of US government debt.
The selloff was sharpest in notes and bonds maturing in 10 to 30 years, where losses are amplified when yields climb. The yield on 10year notes rose 10 basis points in Asia trading Wednesday, while the 30-year’s was up 11 basis points to 4.87 percent—more than a half percentage point from last week’s lows.
The rise in longer-dated yields came alongside smaller gains in their shorter-term peers after a disappointing auction of three-year notes on Tuesday. Ten- and 30-year debt will be sold over the next two days.
“It’s very weak,” Steven Zeng, an interest-rate strategist at Deutsche Bank AG, said of the auction result. “It speaks to the skittishness around buying Treasuries given the recent rise in term premium and lingering uncertainty.”
The divergence in yields led to historic gaps between shorter- and longer-maturities. The 10-year exceeded the two-year by more than 60 basis points, while the 30-year traded more than a full percentage point higher than the two-year, for the first time since early 2022.
Alongside the steepening of the curve, interest-rate swaps have extended their recent extreme outperformance of Treasury securities as traders sought to avoid costs associated with holding bonds. Preference for swaps drove swap rates further below corresponding Treasury yields, with the spreads reaching the most inverted levels in years.
The moves continue a volatile week for bonds with Monday the
wildest day for bond traders since the height of the pandemic in March 2020.
With little clarity on whether President Donald Trump is willing to compromise on tariffs and how they will affect the US economy, a gauge of Treasuries’ implied volatility has soared to its most extreme level since October 2023. Currency fluctuations are the highest in two years, and the VIX index of equity volatility reached an eight-month high.
Traders posited an array of reasons for Monday’s whiplash: a market primed for a pullback after such a sharp rally; lurking concerns about tariffs stirring inflation or necessitating government stimulus; liquidations in favor of cashlike instruments; and rumors that foreign owners, including China, were selling.
“The pervasive uncertainty created by continuously changing US tariff threats and the scope of potential retaliatory measures remain a major blow to the global economy,” said Elias Haddad, senior markets strategist at Brown Brothers Harriman. “Bottom line: relief rallies in risk assets will likely be short-lived.”
The moves were reminiscent of when a highly leveraged hedge-fund wager—the basis trade, which exploits gaps between cash Treasury prices and futures—was unwound in 2020, rendering the bond market illiquid. Others more generally pointed to the possibility that money managers, including foreign inves-
Alongside the steepening of the curve, interest-rate swaps have extended their recent extreme outperformance of Treasury securities as traders sought to avoid costs associated with holding bonds. Preference for swaps drove swap rates further below corresponding Treasury yields, with the spreads reaching the most inverted levels in years.
tors, were selling en masse.
The episode required the Federal Reserve to take emergency action to stabilize the market, and while this one is occurring at much higher yield levels that have rendered it less damaging, it has nonetheless stoked debate about whether it could lead to interest-rate cuts sooner than has been anticipated based on the economy’s performance.
To Maya Bhandari, multi-asset strategies EMEA CIO at Neuberger Berman, the moves early in the week were a signal that bond markets may not be so orderly.
“If this bond rout has legs, that strengthens the case for the Fed to respond,” she said on Bloomberg Television. “But it’s got weaker growth and stickier inflation, so it’s not in an easy spot.”
In addition to drawing a higherthan-anticipated yield, Tuesday’s $58 billion three-year note auction produced weak bidder-participation metrics. As investors bid cautiously, primary dealers were awarded 20.7 percent of the notes, the biggest share in more than a year. That bodes poorly for auctions of 10-year notes on Wednesday and 30-year bonds on Thursday, because longer-dated tenors experience bigger price changes when yields shift.
Already, the uncertainty tied to Trump’s policies has begun to push traders to find alternatives to Treasuries as havens, with bunds and Japanese debt looking more attractive to foreign buyers on a currencyhedged basis.
But a sale of Japanese 30-year government bonds drew weak investor interest this week and yields rose further on Wednesday.
The US bond selloff “may be signaling a regime shift whereby US Treasuries are no longer the global fixed income safe haven in periods of risk-off,” Ben Wiltshire, G-10 rates trading desk strategist at Citi, wrote in an e-mailed note.
“Fed Chair Jerome Powell is in no hurry to cut interest rates.... Other major central banks have a clearer path to helping their economies, as the US dollar’s recent weakness allows them to focus just on bolstering growth. That may end up driving some underperformance in Treasuries, a worry that has been lingering due to ballooning fiscal deficits,” said Garfield Reynolds, MLIV Team Leader in Sydney.
Markets are pricing in over 100 basis points of interest-rate cuts in the US this year—equivalent to four quarter-point cuts, after pricing in as many as five cuts on Monday.
BlackRock Inc. warns the chance of a recession has increased if tariffs stay at this level, but that it’s unlikely the Fed will be able to cut rates aggressively given the likelihood trade policies will boost inflation.
“The effect of tariffs is stagflationary,” said Wei Li, global chief investment strategist at BlackRock on Bloomberg TV. “The Fed is not going to be able to come to the rescue of the economy as readily as they were able to before.” With assistance from Umesh Desai, James Hirai and Cormac Mullen /Bloomberg
Trump woos political donors as tariff worries rattle Republicans
By Billy House & Jennifer A. Dlouhy
PRESIDENT Donald Trump cast his tariffs as a political winner in an attempt to assuage fears from wealthy Republican benefactors about the fallout of his signature trade policy just hours before even more sweeping tariffs were due to take effect.
“We’re going to win the midterm elections, and we’re going to have a tremendous, thundering landslide. I really believe that,” Trump said Tuesday at a fundraising gala for House Republicans at the National Building Museum in Washington.
Trump’s appearance comes as lawmakers and business leaders fret over the White House’s sweeping import levies on trading partners, which have prompted a large market selloff and spurred predictions about a looming recession amid higher prices for consumers.
104% duty on many Chinese goods after Beijing hit back at the US with its own charges.
“Assuming China does not announce another round of countertariffs, then Brent should just be able to hold above $60,” said Robert Rennie, head of commodity and carbon research at Westpac Banking Corp.
“However, if we see another round of retaliation, then another leg lower through $60 looks likely.”
Key market metrics point to fast-loosening conditions. Among them, the spread between Brent for this coming December and the same month in 2026 has plunged into contango, a bearish pattern in which the nearer-dated contract trades at a discount to the longer-dated one. Other portions of the futures curve are also in contango. Elsewhere, crude options are at their most bearish since late 2021, as of Tuesday’s close, while a gauge of implied volatility has rocketed higher.
While the bulk of Trump’s tariffs, as well as retaliatory levies from other nations, threaten to stoke inflation by making goods more costly, oil’s collapse—plus associated declines in products such as diesel— will offset some of that process. US gasoline futures have sunk about 15 percent so far in April. With assistance from Yongchang Chin /Bloomberg
The event offered Trump a chance to speak directly to lawmakers and the party’s major contributors to soothe their jitters about the market and economic reaction to his trade plans.
The president was unbowed. He cast his tariffs as a moneymaker for the US government, said his announcements had sparked negotia-
tions from trading partners offering concessions they never would have floated otherwise, and promised his long-planned “major” tariff on pharmaceutical imports would be announced “very shortly.”
Yet the tariffs could put Republicans in a precarious position including with the party’s deep-pocketed donors, directly hitting both the businesses they run and their personal fortunes as financial markets balk at the scope of the trade levies.
Citadel’s Ken Griffin, the fifthlargest donor to Republicans in the 2024 election cycle, has called the tariffs a “huge policy mistake,” and Home Depot co-founder Ken Langone called the import duties “bulls—” and said Trump has been “poorly” advised.
House Democrats’ campaign arm, motivated to flip the chamber in the 2026 midterm elections, has so far outraised their Republican counter-
The event offered Trump a chance to speak directly to lawmakers and the party’s major contributors to soothe their jitters about the market and economic reaction to his trade plans.
part this year, capitalizing on donors’ desires to put a check on Trump’s power in Washington.
If that trend continues, that could be a worrying sign for Republicans who will be defending narrow majorities in both the House and Senate.
Vice President JD Vance has been put in charge of the Republican National Committee’s fundraising, a crucial test for Trump’s No. 2 as he eyes a 2028 presidential bid.
Trump is facing reluctance from a faction of House fiscal conservatives, who are balking at voting for a Senate budget blueprint to begin the process of fast-tracking the president’s tax cut bill. Those members have criticized the framework for not calling for enough spending reductions.
Republicans have leaned on the tax package—also a priority for donors—as a crutch to downplay fears
about the fallout from the tariffs. House Speaker Mike Johnson has said he wants to pass the tax outline this week, allowing Congress to draft and pass the legislative package— which also includes an increase to the debt ceiling and funding for energy production and border security—by late May.
“We really don’t have time to dither on this thing,” Johnson said Tuesday.
The Senate-passed plan calls for $5.3 trillion in tax cuts and a $5 trillion debt ceiling increase that required just $4 billion in spending cuts. That was different from an earlier House-led effort allowing for $4.5 trillion in tax cuts and a $4 trillion debt ceiling increase in exchange for $2 trillion in budget reductions. Narrow majorities in both chambers mean that Republicans must stay unified in order to pass Trump’s agenda amid universal opposition from Democrats.
“We’ve got to get it done and get it done now,” Trump said, warning Republicans against waiting because “crazy things” can happen in the world of politics. “Just get the damn thing done and stop showboating.” Bloomberg
Asian nations promise to buy more US gas to win tariff relief
By Stephen Stapczynski
ASIAN governments from South Korea to Indonesia are rushing to sign up for liquefied natural gas purchases from the US, hoping to reduce trade surpluses with the world’s largest economy and secure some relief from President Donald Trump’s sweeping “reciprocal” tariffs. Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, promising to “buy more” goods from America, said on Tuesday that would include LNG, while Thailand has also said it is considering snapping up more. Trump himself said that he had discussed “large scale” purchases of US LNG with interim South Korean leader Han Duck-soo. Japan, South Korea and Taiwan have all said they are considering
The one exception to the buying spree is China, the biggest importer of the super-chilled fuel. Beijing has slapped retaliatory levies on the American fuel and Chinese importers have been reselling contracted US LNG shipments to Europe and elsewhere in Asia.
investments in a long-delayed $44 billion LNG export project in Alaska backed by Trump.
A cascade of global tariffs introduced last week left Asian economies reeling from the worst levies. As governments seek to easeº the pain, LNG is a natural option, as one of a handful of US exports that Asian nations can easily commit to ramping up. The US is the world’s biggest supplier of the
power plant and heating fuel, with exports already slated to double by the end of the decade.
Asia, meanwhile, is home to the top buyers and demand from emerging nations is slated to grow as economies expand, domestic production stagnates and many begin to shift away from coal. LNG is also usually purchased via long-term contracts that last decades and can be worth billions of dollars—headline numbers large enough to capture the White House’s attention.
“There is talk of a big energy deal in Alaska where the Japanese, and perhaps the Koreans, perhaps the Taiwanese, would take a lot of the offtake and provide financing for the deals,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on CNBC Tuesday. “Not only would that provide a lot of
American jobs, but it would narrow the trade deficit.”
India’s LNG importers have been lobbying the government to abolish a 2.5 percent customs duty on US gas shipments, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Price remains a concern there, though. Gail India Ltd, which has a long-term contract to lift 5.8 million tons a year of US LNG, currently resells most of the volumes overseas under swap deals as it is too expensive to bring home. The one exception to the buying spree is China, the biggest importer of the super-chilled fuel. Beijing has slapped retaliatory levies on the American fuel and Chinese importers have been reselling contracted US LNG shipments to Europe and elsewhere in Asia. With assistance from Rakesh Sharma and Heesu Lee /Bloomberg
Thursday, April 10, 2025
Ban steel from plants using induction furnace, govt told
By Andrea E. San Juan @andreasanjuan
THEgovernment should impose a total ban on the use of steel bars produced by facilities using induction furnaces (IF) as these are substandard and could pose a threat to building safety.
Roberto Cola, former president of the nonprofit Philippine Iron and Steel Institute (PISI) a member of the Department of Science and Technology-Metals Industry Research and Development Center (MIRDC), noted that these IFproduced steel bars continue to proliferate in the market.
“For the Philippines, induction furnace steelmaking capacity increased from less than 150,000 MT per year in 2017 to around 3 million MT [MMT] tons today,” Cola said during the Kapihan sa Manila Bat briefing in Manila on Wednesday.
“These facilities are the main source of substandard deformed steel bars and angle bars in the market today,” added Cola.
This is because IF facilities do not remove harmful elements in the liquid steel, resulting in the inconsistent quality of products they churn out, according to the former PISI chief. He said this can be hazardous since these steel products are used in the construction of buildings and other infrastructure.
“The operation of these induction furnaces also harms the workers and surrounding com -
‘New tariff regime won’t deter local MSMEs from penetrating US market’
By Samuel P. Medenilla
GOODS from local micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMES) will still be able to penetrate the United State (US) markets despite its new tariff regime, according to Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise Development Council (MSMEDC) member Jose Maria Concepcion III. The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is now eyeing to boost the access of the local MSMES to the makers of the US and other overseas markets through its new Bagong Pilipinas Marketplace platform.
In an interview with reporters in Mandaluyong City last Wednesday, Concepcion noted that the impact of the new reciprocal tariffs on Filipino good products is “minimal.”
He said locally manufactured products, such as instant noodles and ketchup, are still not widely distributed in the US and are often sold in oriental stores instead of large supermarket chains.
“I am confident that we will continue. We still export basically in some parts of the United States ourselves,” Concepcion said.
The Go Negosyo Founder, however, said he is wary of the indirect disruptive effects of the US reciprocal tariffs on the global supply chain and on the local production of goods and services.
“Well it depends on what raw materials will be affected. It is very hard to predict right now. Yes there will be really some disruption but I think we will be okay,” Concepcion said.
Last week, US President Donald Trump announced he will be slapping reciprocal tariffs ranging from 10 to 50 percent on goods coming from 180 countries.
The 10-percent baseline tariff was implemented last Saturday, while the 11 percent to 50 percent tariffs took effect on 9 April 2025. Trump hopes the measure will convince more firms to manufacture their products within the US
by making goods entering the country more expensive.
Philippines was slapped with an additional 17-percent tariff, which is lower compared to those imposed on other Asean countries like Vietnam (46 percent), Indonesia (32 percent), and Malaysia (24 percent).
Recognition
AMID the challenging global trade environment, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said it is currently enhancing the competitiveness of local MSMES and providing them greater access to overseas markets through their Bagong Pilipinas marketplace.
DTI Secretary Cristina A. Roque noted that the Bagong Pilipinas marketplace is a business-to-business platform, which allows MSMEs to sell their goods wholesale both locally and globally.
“The Filipinos need to cultivate and they need to thrive in these trying times and in these times that we are full of competition. So they need to build bridges and we need to connect them to exceptional talent with the vast promising global stage,” Roque said in her speech during the Bagong Pilipinas National Food Fair (NFF) in SM Megamall, Mandaluyong last Wednesday.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. lauded the new platform since it will help in popularizing Filipino products abroad.
“The platform will empower MSMEs by providing them a space where their products can be seen, recognized, and valued by a wider market,” Marcos said in his speech during the NFF.
He assured the government will provide MSMEs “with the knowledge and the resources that they need to navigate this new digital landscape” and access to secure cashless payment systems.
“With every online order that is placed, we are not only supporting the local products and services of our MSMEs, we are helping our Filipino entrepreneurs realize their dreams,” Marcos said.
munities, since they do not have dust and emissions. Harmful gasses and dust generated during scrap melting are just allowed to be emitted directly to the environment,” added Cola.
He said a total ban should be imposed considering that the Philippines is located within the Pacific Ring of Fire, making it vulnerable to earthquakes.
“The continued high instances of non-conformity of samples purchased leads us to conclude that there are larger quantities of substandard products being sold in the market today,” PISI President Ronald C. Magsajo said in his April 7 letter to Trade Assistant Secretary Agaton O. Uvero.
“We must learn from the recent tragedy that has hit our Asean neighbors and take the necessary steps to guarantee no such disaster occurs in our country,” it read.
Magsajo claimed that Thai authorities had found out that IFproduced steel bars were used in the construction of a building that collapsed in the recent earthquake in Bangkok.
Cola divulged that the Chinese government issued a policy state -
ment on January 24, 2017 banning induction furnace facilities for the production of construction-based steel.
“The Chinese government proceeded to enforce the policy and the entire induction furnace facilities producing steel products were completely closed down in June 2017,” he said.
John Steven Magboo, senior trade industry development specialist at the Department of Trade and Industry-Bureau of Philippine Standards (DTI-BPS), said the government has not yet prohibited the use of steel from IF facilities.
“Wala pang nailabas na policy regarding sa prohibition sa paggamit ng induction furnace for the manufacture of deformed steel bars, but we are definitely open to discuss regarding that issu,” he said.
“With our PS [Philippine Standard] licensees, we both issue PS licenses for those who use induction furnace and electronic arc furnace since based on our systemic product audit, they conform to the Philippine National Standards,” he added.
‘FRIED-FOOD NATION’ GRAPPLES WITH MORE EXPENSIVE LOCAL COOKING OIL
By Ada Pelonia @adapelonia
THE steep rise in cooking oil quotations driven by price hikes in copra stoked fresh worries about its potential impact on consumers in the Philippines, dubbed a fried-food nation.
The sustained surge of copra prices stirs fears that it would ripple through the value chain, according to the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA).
“The Philippine coconut industry is at a critical juncture. If not addressed urgently, the rising costs of copra and coconut oil could strain the operations of processors and ripple into widespread food inflation affecting every Filipino household,” the PCA said in a statement.
Citing data from the agency’s Trade Information and Relations Division (TIRD), the PCA noted that the national average farmgate price of copra reached P58.10 per kilo as of March 31, more than double the level seen in the same period last year.
Millgate prices have also soared as they reached a national monthly average of P75.34 per kilo last month, exceeding the peak triggered by the Russia-Ukraine conflict in March 2022.
The agency raised concern over the effect of copra price hikes that translated to “alarming” retail prices for Refined, Bleached, and Deodorized Coconut Oil (RBD CNO), commonly used as cooking oil, which currently ranges from P172 to P182 per kilo at the millgate level.
The PCA said major domestic suppliers reported a company price of P168.83 per liter, with a suggested retail price of P173.90 per liter. These figures are causing significant con-
cern for ordinary Filipino households and the food manufacturing sector, it added.
To address this continued surge in prices of domestic copra, cooking oil, and other coconut products, the PCA convened industry players and stakeholders from the coconut oil milling, refining, desiccating, and oleochemical sectors.
Among the proposed resolutions on possible strategies to mitigate the risks associated with the soaring coconut oil prices was an intensified monitoring of export activities and re-evaluation of biofuel blend increase.
The PCA said several stakeholders proposed a temporary suspension of the scheduled 1 percent increase in the coco-methyl ester (CME)
Group
By Reine Juvierre S. Alberto @reine_alberto
THE government should also consider “progressive measures” that will make the country’s wealthiest pay their fair share to increase its revenue collection, according to Ibon Foundation.
In a commentary on Wednesday, Iron Foundation Executive Director Sonny Africa criticized the World Bank’s push for the Philippines to expand its VAT base to increase government revenues.
“‘Expanding the tax base’ is a term used to hide all sorts of development sins,” Africa said. VAT is a convenient revenue source, for it has to be paid for by everyone who consumes the taxed good or service and sellers become tax collectors for the government, Africa explained.
This consumption tax is also regressive, indifferent to the income or wealth of the consumer, which takes a larger share of income from the poor compared to the rich, he added.
Citing figures from
Editor: Jennifer A. Ng
‘Stock market volatility good for fundamental investors’
By VG Cabuag @villygc
THE current volatility in the stock market after Washington unleashed tariffs has opened up opportunities for fundamental investors to find high-quality companies that are seeing lower valuations, a research note by Manulife Investment Management and Trust Corp. (MIMT) revealed.
MIMT, the global wealth and asset management segment of Manulife Financial Corp., also noted that the bond market is acting as a diversifier and likely will continue to do so.
“As equity correlations spike, asset class diversification from stocks and bonds likely increases,” it said. Initial market reaction to the US reciprocal tariff stance was negative, with equities seeing a decline.
The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index lost 4 percent on
Monday, giving up 261.34 points to close at 5,822.85 points. It regained most of it on Tuesday, to close 183.49 points higher to return to the 6,000-point level.
“Markets often respond with knee-jerk reactions on the back of fiscal policy developments. In doing so, broad equities often correlate and trade in a similar fashion. This high correlation means that markets are treating all companies equally even though they can vary greatly funda-
DLSU to lure industry players
By John Eiron R. Francisco
THE De La Salle University
(DLSU) Inc. announced it expects “innovationdriven” firms to locate within its Laguna campus once it secures official recognition as a Knowledge, Innovation, Science, and Technology (KIST) Park from the Office of the President.
DLSU Laguna Campus Vice President Jonathan R. Dungca told the BusinessMirror the KIST Park recognition from the national government will actively strengthen the institution’s role in advancing research and sustainability in the country. This could be done, Dungca said, if companies establish operations within the Laguna campus; an approach he described as “building a true innovation ecosystem.”
Target sectors include those working in biological control, chemistry, biomedical engineering, and health technologies.
“When they engage with us, we can have collaborative projects, research projects, or we can also involve our students in the partnership,” Dungca said.
He noted that 10 percent of the campus’s 51-hectare property has been registered with the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) to allow co-location of industry partners, provided they engage with the university’s academic programs.
“The DLSU ‘Innovation Hub’ is a specialized economic zone that is currently under the registration process under the PEZA which is designed to foster technological innovation, industry-academic collaboration, and research commercialization,” said Dungca, also the dean of the School of Innovation and Sustainability.
DOST endorsement
DLSU Laguna campus’s KIST Park tack was solidified after the visit there last March by Science and Technology Undersecretary Sancho A. Mabborang.
According to Executive Officer Lenor Aguinaldo, Mabborang expressed excitement over developments in the campus.
mentally,” according to MIMT.
The US bond market, for now, is pricing in three rate cuts from the US Federal Reserve over the course of 2025, the company added.
“In our view, high-quality bonds offer attractive income and can potentially benefit from further interest rate cuts,” MIMT researchers said adding that the US macro backdrop has been more stagflationary.
The US Federal Reserve, they said, will likely look through inflation pressures to focus on employment.
“If the US employment picture deteriorates, we’ll likely see more than three cuts in 2025, and Treasury yields may fall further. In our opinion, high-quality bonds offer of the best risk-adjusted returns at these levels,” according to MIMT.
“Inflation in the US may rise due to tariffs, but we see housing prices moderating and expect broader energy prices to be contained,” it added.
Housing has a large component of the CPI calculation in the US.
“In addition, with a more modest fiscal spending impulse, inflation will likely moderate beyond tariffs on imported goods. For now,
on-campus
As the endorsing agency for KIST initiatives, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) endorsed the university’s application less than two weeks later, allowing PEZA to forward its recommendation to Malacañang, she added.
”We’re really hoping by the end of this year, together with our Jubilee Year celebration, we’ll get the proclamation as PEZA zone,” Aguinaldo told the BusinessMirror.
She emphasized that this would significantly boost the campus’s identity as a dedicated School of Sustainability and Innovation— distinct from other Lasallian institutions.
“At least here, we want to bridge the gaps between the academic research and the industry,” Aguinaldo added.
Dungca also underscored the educational value of having companies within campus grounds.
“We want them [students] to learn beyond the four walls of the classroom,” he said, noting the difficulty of sending students to external industries for practical experience.
By hosting industry partners on campus, he said, students would gain first-hand exposure to the professional environment, helping them better prepare for real-world challenges after graduation.
‘Ecozone living’
Alongside this development, the DLSU Laguna Campus is also constructing a 400-bed residential facility within the campus called the “University Pad,” or UPad, Residences. The project aims to improve campus life by offering affordable and accessible accommodations for students, faculty, and staff.
“It will hopefully attract more students, more faculty members, more researchers to come here and study or teach for the teachers,” Dungca said.
Dungca added that the new facility is also expected to complement the university’s plan of hosting industry partners on campus. “For the industries, we will be allowing them to operate here as locators and enjoy the benefits of being situated in an ecozone,” he said.
Managed by Arthaland Corp., the UPad Residences will feature amenities such as elevators, lounges, laundry facilities, kitchenettes, and high-speed internet. It is slated for completion in 2026.
Aguinaldo, on the other hand, said the residential project aligns with the university’s long-term strategic goals to expand the campus and foster partnerships with government and private stakeholders.
“This definitely supports our initiatives to grow the campus,” Aguinaldo said, echoing Dungca’s sentiment that the facility will help draw more investors, students, and collaborators under the KIST Park initiative.
She highlighted the collaborative nature of the project, noting that the partnership with the government, private sector, and other stakeholders strengthens DLSU Laguna’s commitment to sustainability.
“This initiative is in line with global sustainability goals. We’re excited about the possibilities that come with having these facilities that benefit both the university community and the surrounding areas,” she said.
Reflection framework
ACCORDING to Aguinaldo, DLSU is now focusing on advancing research and innovation, with an emphasis on contributing to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
“While we may not claim to be a leader in achieving the SDGs, DLSU is definitely participating and contributing through our programs, projects, and learning frameworks,” she said. “Our challenge-based learning approach and the ‘Lasallian Reflection Framework’ are key to helping students and partners address real-world challenges.”
According to Dungca, sustainability must be integrated into everyday activities to empower students and staff to work toward a greener future.
“A sustainable campus also begins with education itself by embedding sustainability into the curriculum,” he explained.
we would look for high-quality US stocks on sale amid the volatility and high-quality intermediate bonds to provide income and diversification,” according to the company.
Alex Grassino, the company’s global chief economist, said as the tariffs being slapped on countries, with the Philippines getting 17 percent, there would be negotiations between countries and the US.
“We’re a bit concerned that as the number of countries being tariffed expands, there could be delays in negotiations that could prolong uncertainty and hurt growth in those economies,” Grassino said.
“The United States is heading toward effective tariff rates not seen in our lifetimes, and the short-term outcome is likely to be negative for growth and will push inflation higher,” he added. “Against that backdrop, the US Federal Reserve will likely have to wrestle with whether it prioritizes inflation or the labor market/economic growth, and we—and the markets—suspect that growth will ultimately win the day, and we could see easier monetary policy.”
NBy Lenie Lectura @llectura
IPPON Sanso Ingasco Group (NSIG), a subsidiary of Japanese multinational industrial gas manufacturer Nippon Sanso Holdings Group, has partnered with First Gen Corp. (First Gen), to power NSIG’s manufacturing facility in Mindanao with renewable energy (RE).
Under the agreement signed last April 2, First Gen will supply 2.6 megawatts (MW) of electricity from the Mindanao Geothermal Power Plant in North Cotabato, owned and operated by its subsidiary Energy Development Corp. (EDC), to NSIG’s gas manufacturing facility within the Phividec Industrial Estate in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental.
“As part of the Nippon Sanso Holdings Group’s global commitment to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, we are continuously working to minimize our environmental impact. Partnering with First Gen to power our operations in Tagoloan with 100-percent RE marks a significant milestone in our sustainability journey,” said NSIG President Takenori Kawachino.
The deal between First Gen and
NSIG is made possible through the Retail Competition Open Access (RCOA) provision under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001. This law allows customers with an average peak demand of at least 500 kilowatts in the past 12 months to purchase electricity directly from qualified suppliers.
“Transitioning to direct RE supply under [the] RCOA comes with challenges, but the benefits far outweigh them. We are committed to helping our customers like NSIG achieve their decarbonization objectives through ensuring stable and efficient power supply from RE sources and optimizing electricity utilization using energy efficiency solutions,” First Gen Chief Customer Engagement Officer Carlo Lorenzo L. Vega said. First Gen has a total generating capacity of 3,668 MW. Of which, EDC’s share has reached 1,189MW.
Why feedback is important
THERE was a time when banks were afraid to go into the realm of social media. Back then, the main reason would be the banks’ unpreparedness in handling possible trending issues that would adversely impact its reputation and being able to monitor these threats before it could do substantial damage.
Today, of course, banks are now heavily invested in their social media channels. Some now have full digital teams to not only push their message to their intended audiences in digital, but to monitor any issues that may arise. These go hand-in-hand with human and AI-led customer touchpoints to address any inquiries, concerns or complaints. All this simply means better service and easier access for the banking public.
In 2022, the Philippine government enacted the Financial Products and Services Consumer Protection law or Republic Act 11765, which the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) implements through its Circular 1160. The circular’s laudable objective is to protect financial consumers via fair and transparent practices, sound market conduct and effective dispute resolution.
As bankers, whether we like it or not, complaints are feedback from our customers who provide business revenues, which in turn, give us our jobs. If handled properly, complaints provide insights into areas for improvement, service fixes and changes and even strengthen customer loyalty. Also important is being able to analyze these complaints quickly and to promptly detect and understand trends.
For example, if your contact center notices a slight uptick in the complaints received regard -
Banks’ Feb bad loans ratio remained steady since Jan
Bing mobile app fund transfers— that bears looking into right away. Or you’re getting more reports or social media posts that a certain ATM is usually offline— could be a hardware or connection issue that bears resolving immediately.
In other words, complaints give the banks an important glimpse of how their customers view our services; both good and bad. Proper handling and quick resolution are key. And hopefully, this becomes a factor and will remain loyal to your bank.
Having said that, Filipinos are not as vocal when it comes to complaining as compared to customers from the West. In fact, some just leave and transfer to competitors without a word. So it is important to note that when a Filipino customer resorts to filing a complaint, it bears looking into. Not receiving complaints may be good at a certain level. But, at another, I’d say more important level, it deprives the banks of feedback and even losses in terms of potential revenues and loyal customers.
So, my call to bank clients is: give your bank feedback and complain if needed. If you see our mobile app not working properly, or an offline ATM, send us a message via Social Media, SMS or call our Toll-Free numbers. If your bank doesn’t appreciate it or doesn’t respond at all, then it may be time to look for another bank.
Miguel Angelo “Mike” C. Villa-Real is a past president of the Bank Marketing Association of the Philippines (BMAP) and is currently its director for Publicity. Villa-Real is also the Veterans Bank’s Marketing Communications and Consumer Protection Group Head and may be reached at mcvillareal@veteransbank.com. ph. The writer’s views do not necessarily reflect those of the B usiness M irror and the BMAP.
Security Bank program seen helping MSMEs access funds
By VG Cabuag @villygc
SECURITY Bank Corp. an -
nounced last Wednesday the launch of a program to help micro-sized, small-scale, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) to have access to financing and cash flow management.
By offering preferential financing rates, waived service fees, data-driven insights and dedicated relationship management, the bank said it aims to equip business owners with the resources they need to scale and compete more effectively.
Security Bank Senior VicePresident John David G. Yap said the lender developed its “Business Elite” program (BEP) “with a clear focus on the needs of our high-value MSME clients.”
“MSMEs are a critical driver of the Philippine economy, and we want to provide them with the right mix of financial and operational tools to support their growth,” added Yap, who also heads the lender’s business banking segment.
To be eligible for the program, MSMEs must maintain a P2-
million monthly average daily balance.
“Building a best-in-class proposition for MSMEs requires a deep understanding of their unique challenges, a commitment to simplicity and value, and the agility to evolve with their needs. These principles guided us in building [the BEP] to help MSMEs grow, compete, and thrive,” First Vice-President Leo Xerxes C. Cimagala said. The program includes waived fees on below-maintaining balance requirements and business loan processing, preferential rates on banking products, partnerships with service providers offering data analytics, tax filing assistance, business registration support, payroll management and legal consultation at exclusive rates and non-life insurance coverage in partnership with the Philippines British Assurance Co. Inc.
With the launch of the BEP, Security Bank said it aims to reinforce its position as a financial partner for MSMEs, ensuring they have the tools, resources, and expert support needed to thrive in an increasingly competitive landscape.
By Reine Juvierre Alberto @reine_alberto
AD loans held by the Philippine banking system remained in the same ratio in February 2025, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
Latest data from the BSP showed the gross non-performing loans (NPLs) ratio was at 3.38 percent, the same level that was recorded in January 2025.
Gross NPL amounted to P513.348 billion in February 2025, while the total loan portfolio (TLP) of the Philippine banking system reached P15.173 trillion in the same period. According to Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort, the “steady” NPL ratio signals “better” management
THE Republic of the Philippines, through the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr), is eyeing to raise at least P30 billion from the issuance of fresh peso-denominated 10year Fixed Year Treasury Note (FXTN) in an auction spanning 10 days.
In a notice of offering to all government securities eligible dealers (GSEDs), the Treasury said it will issue new FXTNs, maturing on April 28, 2035, at a minimum principal amount of P30 billion.
“The Republic reserves the right to increase the overall size of the Issue,” the Treasury said. GSEDs will be allowed to submit one bid per interest rate with a maximum volume of P10 billion.
The Treasury said that for avoidance of doubt, GSEDs may submit
THE Bureau of Customs (BOC) believes that companies in the Philippines certified under Level 2 of the Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) program will now benefit from expedited clearance procedures for their exports to member-countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).
The BOC said last Wednesday its belief is based on the expected results from the implementation of the Asean Authorized Economic Operator Mutual Recognition Arrangement (AAMRA).
“This marks a significant milestone in the country’s efforts to enhance trade facilitation, bolster regional cooperation and align with international standards in the global supply chain,” read a statement the BOC issued on April 9.
Firms under Level 2 will also have a dedicated processing lane, an advance clearance process, periodic lodgment, a one-time exemption certificate and other benefits consistent with the Revised Kyoto Convention.
Importers and exporters may apply to be part of the AEO program. The rollout of the implementation of AEO for other stakeholders, meanwhile, shall be upon the issuance of subsequent regulations.
“The full implementation of the AAMRA underscores the Philippines’ dedication to strengthening regional trade relationships and improving the ease of doing business in the country,” the BOC said.
The AAMRA came into effect on August 1, 2024, which initially involved three Asean member states
of credit risks amid the faster loan growth in recent months.
Ricafort asserts that further monetary policy easing by the US Federal Reserve and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) in the coming months would help improve the NPL ratio amid faster loan growth.
However, Washington’s higher reciprocal tariffs and other protectionist policies could slow down world economic growth and, hence, could reduce sales, incomes and borrowers’ ability to pay, he added.
a maximum of 10 bids at different rates capped at P10 billion per bid.
The FXTNs will be issued in scripless form and will be sold in minimum denominations of P10 million and integral multiples of P1 million.
National Treasurer Sharon P. Almanza said the new 10-year benchmark bond issuance is part of the government’s domestic financing program for 2025.
“This offering will establish our new 10-year benchmark bond. It will be priced during our auction next week, but we will have an offer period until April 24 for investors to participate and place their orders,” Almanza told reporters in a Viber message.
The start of the public offer will be from April 15 until April 24, or dur-
BSP data also showed the current gross NPL ratio was lower at 3.44 percent in February 2024. The gross NPL was at P512.828 billion in January 2025 and P466.114 billion in February last year.
Meanwhile, the TLP was at P15.175 trillion in January this year and P13.540 trillion in February 2024.
Based on the BSP data, the gross NPL ratio of Universal and Commercial Bank (UKBs) settled at 3.11 percent in February 2025.
UKBs’ gross NPL ratio is slightly higher than the 3.10 percent recorded in January 2025 and but lower than the 3.14 percent in February last year.
BSP data showed the gross NPLs of UKBs amounted to P435.327 billion while the total loan portfolio of these major banks reached P14.015 trillion as of February 2025.
Bad loans logged by UKBs amounted to P435.131 billion in the previous month and P393.460 billion in February last year.
ing an earlier date within the public offer period as determined by the Treasury. The settlement date will be on April 28 unless another date is announced by the Treasury.
“When subscription has reached a level deemed sufficient by the Treasury, the BTr- Securities Origination Division shall announce the termination and closure of the Public Offer Period through electronic financial information providers chosen by the BTr, such as the BTr website, NRoSS system, Bloomberg, PDEx, etc,” the Treasury added.
Meanwhile, interest rate will be based on current market levels of comparable securities rounded down to the nearest one-eighth of 1 percent.
Interest on the FXTNs, to be cal-
briefs
➔ CIBI, Korean firms ink deal
such as Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia and Singapore. It was later extended to Thailand on August 19, 2024, and Indonesia on October 1, 2024. Businesses accredited under the AEO programs of these countries will also enjoy the same benefits for their goods exported to the Philippines.
Under the program, economic operators are provided with unique AEO codes, which must be declared in the export or import declaration submitted to the respective countries’ Customs administrations.
Meanwhile, business partners in these countries do not need to be accredited by the AEO to avail of these benefits.
While the AAMRA is already fully operational in the aforementioned countries, the remaining four Asean member states—Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Vietnam—are expected to implement the arrangement at a later date.
Facilitating smooth trade relations is a key aspect of the BOC’s “2025 Five-Point Priority Program,” which aims to streamline customs procedures and enhance secure trade by implementing the AEO program.
The BOC also regularly holds consultations and awareness programs to increase company participation in the program.
“The BOC will continue to focus on modernizing and improving the efficiency of the country’s customs operations, ensuring the Philippines remains competitive in the global marketplace,” Customs Commissioner Bienvenido Y. Rubio was quoted as saying in the statement. Reine Juvierre S. Alberto
Meanwhile, for thrift banks, the NPL ratio was at 6.61 percent in February 2025. This is lower than the 6.69 percent posted in January 2025 and the 6.73 percent recorded in February last year.
Gross NPLs of thrift banks were at P54.431 billion in February 2025, higher than the previous month’s P54.065 billion and the P49.242 billion recorded in February a year ago.
culated on a 30/360-day basis, will be paid semi-annually, in arrears, on the last day of each six-month Interest Period.
Data from the Treasury showed the outstanding 10-year T-bonds issued by the national government reached P2.268 trillion. The securities are set to mature from 2027 until 2034.
The government is set to borrow a total of P2.545 trillion this year, following an 80:20 borrowing mix in favor of domestic sources amounting to P2.037 trillion, based on the state’s budget documents. It has borrowed P552.692 billion as of the end of February, while the government’s outstanding debt reached a new high of P16.632 trillion. Reine Juvierre S. Alberto
THE CIBI Information Inc. announced having entered into an agreement with JB Financial Group (JBFG) and NICE Information Service Co. Ltd. to establish a credit linkage system between the Philippines and Korea. “This collaboration enhances connectivity by allowing Filipino and Korean nationals to use their home country’s credit information to access financial services abroad,” a statement issued by the CIBI read. “This partnership eliminates barriers by fostering a more inclusive and streamlined banking experience and enables both Filipinos and Koreans to navigate financial services with greater ease across borders,” the statement continued. According to the CIBI, Filipino nationals living in South Korea can leverage their credit information from the Philippines to access financial services, while Korean nationals in the Philippines can do the same using their home country’s credit data.
➔ PDIC backs rural banks
THE Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp, (PDIC), represented by Vice President Niño Ray L. Villaluna (Examination Group I), recognized the important role that rural banks play in empowering communities and promoting financial inclusion, during the recently concluded Annual Management Conference of the Confederation of Central Luzon Rural Banks (CCLRB) held in Clark, Pampanga on March 6, 2025 with the theme, “Rural Banks: Empowering Communities Through Financial Innovation.” Highlighting the importance of good governance and financial innovation, rural banks were assured of the PDIC’s commitment to contribute to financial stability by helping strengthen banks and ensuring crisis readiness.
➔ BPI, Araneta Group ink QR deal
THE Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) announced last week the lender entered into an agreement with the Araneta Group of Companies that expands BPI’s “OneQR” platform across the latter’s establishments. In a statement, the agreement signed last March 21 by executives of the lender and the Araneta Group allows customers to make cashless payments across various partner merchants. Customers can scan the QR code and pay for their purchases using any QR Ph-accepted bank app or e-wallet, the lender explained. The deal allows use of the OneQR in Pizza Hut, Dairy Queen and Taco Bell restaurants nationwide. The payment solution is also available at Araneta City parking spaces, Snaxx snack bars and World Kitchens in Gateway Mall 2 in Araneta City, Quezon City.
➔ Fintech firm launches e-wallet app
THE Orange Co. Inc. announced last week it launched an e-wallet app in a market dominated by GCash and Maya. In a statement, the company explained the “Top.ph” app is integrated with a card (Top Card) that allows users to withdraw cash at BancNet ATMs and from their TOP.ph accounts. With the TOP Card, TOP.ph is seen as an emerging yet reliable and accessible e-wallet and financial tool provider that bridges digital capabilities and everyday practical needs, making financial management simpler and more relevant for our users, the statement read. The app features include card locking, PIN changes and in-app real-time transaction monitoring.
Health&Fitness
AI-powered doctor assistant launched to address physician shortage in PHL
By John Eiron R. Francisco
LOCAL tech firm 1Life, Inc. has launched DocMate AI, an artificial intelligence-powered “doctor assistant” designed to ease healthcare issues like “doctor shortages, long wait times, and the need for more efficient diagnoses.”
Tech firm chief Niño Namoco said during the launch, held alongside a medical mission in Barangay Sta. Lucia, Novaliches, Quezon City, that the platform addresses common healthcare challenges in the country—especially in remote areas—such as the so-called “four-day problem.”
This refers, he said, to the traditional process patients in far-flung barangays often go through: on the first day, they visit a health center for a check-up, but the doctor cannot provide a diagnosis without lab test results. On the second day, patients undergo the necessary tests. On the third day, they visit a public hospital to access affordable lab services. Finally, on the fourth day, they return to the doctor for a diagnosis—resulting in at least a four-day wait.
With the introduction of DocMate AI— which uses advanced Machine Learning (ML) technology integrated into their Doctor’s Patient Management Systems—Namoco said the previously time-consuming diagnostic process has now been shortened to just one to one and a half hours.
“You can now get a test and a diagnosis in a single visit, and it’s affordable,” he said.
“The cheapest public hospital in the Philippines is around 30 percent or 40 percent cheaper. Our price is 20 percent to 40 percent cheaper than the cheapest public hospital in the Philippines,” Namoco said.
According to Namoco, DocMate AI not only enhances diagnostic efficiency but also offers significant cost savings, reducing medical expenses by 60 to 70 percent for healthcare providers.
He clarified, however, that 1Life operates as a social enterprise. The development of DocMate AI was not driven by profit but
began as a passion project funded by nongovernment organizations and the government. The company is also an accredited service provider of the Department of Health (DOH) and PhilHealth.
“We are not selling the system. Anyone can request access—as long as it’s for public healthcare,” Namoco said, emphasizing their commitment to making the technology accessible.
He added that while government funding is available, their main responsibility is to ensure the system is implemented efficiently and sustainably to benefit thousands of Filipinos, particularly those in remote and underserved communities.
‘Not replacing, just assisting’ THE World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a ratio of 10 doctors per 10,000 people as a benchmark for achieving universal health coverage. However, the Philippines falls significantly short of this standard, with only about three doctors per 10,000 people—just 30 percent of the ideal ratio.
This shortage was acknowledged by Namoco, who pointed out that many Filipino doctors and other medical professionals continue to seek employment abroad for better opportunities. This ongoing exodus, he said, creates a healthcare gap that prompted their company to develop DocMate AI.
Despite the integration of artificial intelligence into healthcare, experts emphasize that the platform is meant to support, not replace, medical professionals. Dr. Minguita Padilla of the Barangay Health & Wellness (BHW) Party-list clarified that while AI is an advanced tool, there is no reason to fear its use in healthcare.
“AI can only suggest. It can guide doctors on what actions to take, but the final diagnosis still lies with the human doctor,” she said.
This view is shared by 1Life Chief Technology Officer Eric Ke, who emphasized that DocMate AI is designed to assist medical
professionals. “DocMate AI is here to augment doctors, not to replace health workers. The final say will always be with the doctors,” he said.
For Global AI Council Philippines Chairman Brian Poe Llamanzares, “AI is still not at that point where you remove human nature. Healthcare will always be a very personal and very sensitive thing. People will always still look for someone to be on the other side of the table and explain that data analysis to them in a way that’s friendly and actionable.”
Padilla, a practicing doctor, added that AI tools offer reliable data analysis and help minimize human error. “Doctors are still human. We get tired, and sometimes we forget things. But AI can support us by analyzing all the information,” she said.
“In the end, AI can never replace a human being. As a doctor, I’m not threatened because the final decision still lies with us. AI can’t replace compassion, personal care, and the soul of a doctor,” she added.
She also emphasized the importance of prevention and health promotion in achieving Universal Health Care.
Padilla emphasized the importance of platforms like 1Life and Konsulta, noting that they play a crucial role in enabling early diagnosis before symptoms escalate.
She explained that 90 percent of diseases can be managed through primary healthcare, which ultimately helps reduce medical costs for both patients and the government.
‘Unlocking AI in healthcare need synergy’ MEANWHILE, supporting this initiative,
Llamanzares said that AI holds vast potential for improving healthcare in the country, especially in terms of cost, efficiency, and accessibility.
“When I ask people on the ground why they don’t get vaccinated or go to hospitals, the number one reason is cost,” Llamanzares said. “They lose an entire day’s income just to get checked—and they’re not even sure if they’re sick.”
He cited the example of a high-risk patient who was identified and treated promptly through the help of AI-powered consultations during a community-based medical mission by 1Life.
Llamanzares emphasized that while AI cannot replace human medical professionals, its ability to process and analyze large amounts of data quickly can significantly enhance early detection and diagnosis, especially in underserved areas.
“This is why we need grassroots medical services that are not just present but also efficient,” he said.
Llamanzares noted that AI helps cut through layers of bureaucratic processing by speeding up data collection and analysis.
“The more data platforms like 1Life collect, the more accurate AI becomes in identifying health risks ahead of time,” he added.
However, he cautioned that while the technology provides efficiency, it must still work in tandem with doctors and ethical data practices. “We need to prioritize responsible data governance. Medical data is sensitive, and our privacy laws need to keep up,” he said.
He also pointed out the need for government investment in AI research and development. “If we don’t support AI innovation like this, we’ll fall behind. Other countries— China, the U.S.—are investing heavily in AI. We need public-private partnerships to catch up and lead in this field.”
However, he remained optimistic that initiatives like DocMate AI could help the country catch up—if the public and private sectors work together.
“This is a new frontier. We still have time to catch up if we synergize government support with private innovation,” Llamanzares said. “AI has a lot of potential, especially in healthcare, where it’s most urgently needed.” He expressed hope that with new leadership in key government agencies like the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), AI can be made a national priority.
Considering injectable treatments? Seek a board-certified specialist–expert
By Rory Visco Contributor
DURING the past several years, the cosmetic industry in the Philippines has experienced a boom in injectable treatments like botulinum toxin or “botox,” plus dermal fillers. These procedures have become well entrenched in many Filipinos because they are designed to smooth out wrinkles, add volume to the face, and enhance facial features. These treatments garnered massive popularity, thereby pushing demand for it.
However, in a statement, experts from the Philippine Dermatological Society (PDS) have raised concern about treatments administered by nondoctors. The PDS warns that receiving injectable treatments from unqualified individuals can lead to severe and, in some cases, irreversible complications.
Continuing threat
INJECTABLES that are administered by non-doctors, which are often offered in beauty clinics, spas, or even home-based settings, have become a significant issue in the country. In many cases, these treatments are positioned as affordable alternatives to those offered by licensed medical professionals.
However, the Philippine Dermatological Society (PDS) is clear: this practice is illegal and is punishable by law as per Republic Act No. 2382, and those who perform these procedures without proper medical qualifications are putting patients’ health at serious risk.
Injectable treatments require intensive knowledge and understanding of facial anatomy, precise technique, and the ability to respond to adverse rea ctions. Without these qualifications, patients are left vulnerable to complications, some of which can be life-threatening. According to the PDS, these risks are amplified when procedures are performed by individuals without the medical training to handle potential emergencies.
A swelling list of complications
THE PDS said that several disturbing cases have come to light, among the most common include blepharoptosis (eyelid drooping), supraorbital neuropathy (forehead and scalp numbness), conditions that can significantly alter one’s appearance and cause long-term discomfort.
However, more grave and irreversible complications have been reported, such as skin necrosis (tissue death) and blindness, extreme outcomes
BARBIE MEETS LOCAL BEAUTY Lovely Causemetics’ collection is a dream in pink
By Bless Aubrey Ogerio
THINK high-shine lip tints, radiant blushes and glow-getter highlighters, all wrapped in sleek, collector-worthy and, of course, girly packaging.
Lovely Causemetics’ Barbie collection is a love letter to doll-like beauty, with it being pink, playful and proudly Filipina.
In a collaboration of global nostalgia and local artistry, Lovely Causemetics has unlocked a milestone moment for being Barbie’s first-ever collaboration with a Filipino beauty brand. It is something that the local brand considers proof of the Philippine beauty industry’s rising influence and creative force.
So, I got my hands on the collection. The verdict? A mix of magic and a bit of a learning curve (we’ll get into that soon). But once you figure it out, the payoff is as dazzling as the doll figurine herself. For Lovely Causemetics, a brand that labels itself as built on empowerment and self-expression, Barbie was a natural fit. Over the years, the iconic doll has evolved into a symbol of inclusivity, diversity, and limitless potential, making this collab more
than just makeup, but a statement.
“This collaboration is incredibly special to us. We were approached by Barbie and it has been our pride at Lovely Causemetics for being chosen by a global brand,” shared Lovely Geniston, Lovely Causemetics owner.
Lip tints: Juicy, glossy, oh-so-pretty THE Water Glowy Tint is the perfect multitasker, doubling as a lip, cheek, and lid tint that gives a juicy, high-shine finish. The collection offers a lovely range of shades to suit every mood: Girlhood, a deeper pink with a hint of red; Pink Princess, a soft pink with a touch of mauve; Fairytopia, a rosy brown that gives off just the right warmth; Ballerina, a dark rose with a subtle plum undertone; Ribbon, a vibrant pink with a pop of red for those bold moments; and Charm, a deep brown with more red tones than Fairytopia for a richer, grounded look. The packaging is small, chubby, and lightweight, easy to toss in your bag. It’s made of sturdy plastic that gives a glass-like look, but it doesn’t feel fragile. The shade names are printed on the bottom, so no guessing games.
that can occur when injections are not placed in the correct areas or when the wrong dosage is used. In some cases, the products injected may be counterfeit or improperly stored, further increasing the risk of adverse reactions.
The damage caused by improper injections can be costly and time-consuming to correct, which may lead to more intensive treatments or even surgery.
Costs over quality and safety
MORE often, lower costs are a factor when going for procedures performed by non-medical practitioners than by board-certified dermatologists or licensed physicians. For many, this makes the idea of cosmetic enhancement more accessible.
But as the PDS pointed out, cost-saving may come at a steep price. Non-medical practitioners often lack the knowledge necessary to ensure safe and effective treatment, while the use of unregulated or counterfeit products is another significant concern. In an industry that relies heavily on precise measurements and sterile conditions, the margin for error is tiny, and the consequences of a mistake can be severe.
Additionally, non-doctor injectors are unable to manage complications, recognize signs of a compli -
The metal applicator is sleek, hygienic, and gives a cooling feel on the lips. Yet, if you’re used to a doe-foot or brush, it might take some getting used to since it picks up less product than expected. Formula-wise, it’s clean, smooth, and effortlessly pretty. The water-based tint gives a glossy, moisturizing finish that isn’t sticky. Honestly, you could skip lipstick altogether with this one.
Price: P480.00.
Highlight: Glow up in an instant THE Glass Glow Pressed Highlighter & Powder Blush lets you dial up your glow with ease. The collection includes two stunning shades: Sparkle Queen, an icy white highlighter paired with a bold hot pink blush, and Pop Culture, a soft gold highlighter with the same hot pink blush. If you’re a fan of gold and silver tones, these would be great additions in the future. The packaging is sleek and lightweight, with a mirror included (though no brush). For the highlighter itself? A little goes a long way. Just a light tap, and the color payoff is intense. The only catch is you’ll want to apply it carefully. Otherwise, you might end up with more glitter than glow.
Price: P538.00.
Blushes: Soft glow, bold color
THE Soft Glow Cream Blush is a creamy, pigmented
Robotic surgery system ushers in new era of precision at MakatiMed
By Anne Ruth Dela Cruz
The robotic surgery system was initially used for gynecological and prostate procedures. This was the case for Makati Medical Center when it acquired the top of the line da Vinci XI Surgical System last May 2024. However, almost a year later, the robot is now being used for hepatobiliary, colorectal and otorhinolaryngology surgical procedures as well.
According to Dr. Saturnino P. Javier, MakatiMed Interim Co-President and CEO and Medical Director, the acquisition of the da Vinci Xi Surgical System is part of its comprehensive care, adding that the technology “ will usher in a new era of precision.”
The da Vinci Xi features multiple arms that are capable of performing maneuvers and rotations beyond the natural ability of the hand, all controlled by the surgeon siting just a feet away. It delivers proven capabilities for a wide spectrum of procedures across multiple specialties. It offers advanced instrumentation, vision and features such as Firefly fluorescence imaging and integrated table motion.
“Precision is a key issue that we are aiming for with this technology. Second is the less invasive nature of the procedure. Unlike formal open surgery, this will give us the capability and the platform to do surgery with very minimal incisions,” Dr. Javier said.
Exclusive media session
DR. Javier welcomed members of the media to an exclusive session titled “Advancements in Robotic Surgery with the da Vinci Xi.” The session showcased doctors who successfully used the robot in their respective fields. Present were Dr. Jennifer Marie M. Jose, Chief, Section of Urogynecology and Pelvic Reconstructive Surgery; Dr. Jaime SD. Songco, Chairman of the Department of Surgery and is a Urologic Oncologist; Dr. Catherine SC Teh, Chief, Section of Hepatobiliary and Liver Transplantation; Dr. Mark Augustine S. Onglao, Consultant, Department of Surgery, Section of Colorectral Surgery and Dr. Arsenio A. Cabungcal, Consultant, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery and Chief, Section Head and Neck Oncology.
The exclusive media session started with a tour of the hospital’s surgical suite where a product specialist showed off the capabilities of the da Vince Xi Robotic Surgery System.
All the doctors present agreed that robotic surgery has several benefits for patients. These benefits include small incisions which translates to less pain. Chances of developing an infection are less and blood loss is very minimal. Patients also experience a faster recovery, meaning that they can return to their normal routine as patients can go home as early as three days after surgery.
“In my case, robotic surgery is good for the elderly women. Why? Because the chances of recovery is faster and there are less complications. And they will actually spend very little time in the hospital,” explained Dr. Jose.
Complex cases
SHE added that surgeons like her also benefit from the robotic surgery system since the system allows them to do complex cases. That’s because the system gives them a very clear and precise view of the operating area.
cation, or provide the necessary aftercare as compared to a trained doctor, who is equipped to handle emergencies to ensure quality care and safety.
Safe treatment is a priority
THE PDS stressed that safety should always be the top priority when considering injectable treatments. Those who seek treatment should first verify the credentials of the practitioner, to make sure that he/she is a board-certified dermatologist or a licensed medical doctor who has undergone specialized training in cosmetic dermatology. Board certification ensures that the practitioner has met high standards of medical knowledge and experience.
Patients should always choose a reputable medical clinic or healthcare facility and avoid home-based clinics or non-medical settings as much as possible since many of them may not provide the same level of safety as licensed medical establishments, who follow strict hygiene protocols and use Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved products to significantly lower risks of complications. The PDS also reminds to put safety first ahead of costs since, as mentioned, lower prices may mean treatment quality is imperiled.
formula that effortlessly adds a soft, natural flush to your cheeks.
The packaging is compact, smaller than the highlighters, with a glass-like finish but no puff or brush included. Despite this, the blush’s formula more than makes up for it, delivering rich, blendable color with a natural finish.
There’s a variety of shades to suit different moods and skin tones: Pretty in Pink, a muted, dusty rose with a vintage touch; Malibu Magic, a warm, peachy-coral with a sunny, slightly orange undertone; Dreamhouse, a delicate peachy-pink, softer and more pastel; Style Icon, a terracotta or burnt rose with earthy reddish-brown tones; Barbie Core, a bold, vibrant pink that screams playfulness; and Doll Life, a muted, rosy-brown with natural, brown undertones for a more subtle look.
The blushes are highly pigmented, and while the pink shades may seem intense in the pan, they tend to soften on deeper skin tones, giving a more muted, wearable color.
On lighter skin, the shades pop a little more, especially the ones with a touch of glitter.
The shimmer lingers on the face, adding a soft radiance, although those with darker skin tones may find that the glitter effect is more pronounced than the blush itself.
Overall, the range is broad, but the shades seem to work best for lighter to medium skin tones.
Price: P488.00.
“It is like saying that we can offer more accurate surgery. And because we are actually controlling the camera and all the arms, you achieve autonomy. You control everything and therefore, it becomes very precise,” Dr. Jose said, adding that MakatiMed has a very good credentialling committee that accepts surgeons who are trained for this procedure. For his part, Dr. Songco pointed out that robotic surgery is the gold standard for prostate cancer surgery because of “better nerve sparing, improved continence, erectile function, less blood loss and shorter hospital stay.”
“On the average, our patients go home on the second day and they are already walking on the first day postoperatively,” he said.
Challenging surgery
DR . Teh related that what makes hepatobiliary surgery challenging is that she needs to take out parts of the liver, gallbladder, bile ducts, pancreas and duodenum in order to perform a procedure.
“And after taking them out, you also need to reconstruct them to establish the continuity for gastrointestinal functions. What complicates it more is the rib cage. So the liver is hidden under our rib. So how can we operate on the liver precisely when it is underneath that,” she said.
With the help of the robot, Dr. Teh can clearly see everything inside the abdomen and there is minimal tissue manipulation which “ is very, very crucial in surgery.”
“The more you touch the organs, the longer and the more inflammatory the response, and the longer the recovery and of course more complications,” she said.
Operating with chopsticks
DR. Onglao described laparoscopic surgery as operating with chopsticks because “you have to reach the rectum with very long instruments” which is very difficult to do because the area is surrounded by a lot of structures and it is very deep in the pelvis which is surrounded by bone, nerves, vessels and genitourinary structures.
“If you use the robot, it’s as of your hand is inside the patient. Because the robot, with the wrist and instruments, it’s able to replicate the movement of your hand,” he said.
“Robotic surgery is better for the more complex procedures that we do. Robotic surgery can be done in most colorectal procedures. And I believe robotic surgery is the better surgery for complex cases. Better surgery leads to better patient outcomes, especially if we are talking about cancer,’ Dr. Onglao said. For ENT cases, robotic surgery is best for transoral robotic surgery which makes use of natural openings in the head and neck “to allow us to be able to do surgeries, resections and treat our patients,” said Dr. Cabungcal.
Team effort
HE added that the robotic surgery procedure is a team effort where everyone is “well-adept and equipped and have the skill to assist us in the surgeries because they are important to us.
While the cost of robotic surgery is relatively high compared to other procedures, Dr. Javier pointed out that a price cannot be placed on productivity and how soon the patient can go back to work.
“You have to factor that in. The days of recovery because it is a short period of recovery only, So whatever was spent on the robotics platform will be recovered because
Editor: Anne Ruth Dela Cruz
Ambassador discourses on Austria-Phil. relations & renewable energy initiatives
AMB. Johann Brieger recently elaborated on bilateral engagements and future plans between Austria and the Philippines, as well as his active diplomatic engagements.
The envoy delivered a lecture on “Diplomatic Encounters: Fostering Connections between Austria, the Philippines and the World” for the latest installment of the University of Santo Tomas’ (UST) “Ambassadors Lecture Series.”
The academic discourse coincided with the celebration of the 78th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two republics.
Brieger began his talk by describing the Central European country’s rich international cultural and economic contributions, as he noted its historical and modern icons and achievements. He also mentioned the cordial relations between the Philippines and Austria, even before the two’s official diplomatic partnership. In light of present engagements,
Austria’s top diplomat emphasized the vital role of culture and arts in building international relations, as he highlighted contributions toward mental health, anti-human trafficking, women empowerment and gender equality, child protection, as well as education. In relation, a memorandum of understanding was signed between Gov. Susan Yap of Tarlac and State Councilor Dr. Wolfgang Hattmansdorfer of Upper Austria during the first “OFW Serbisyo Caravan” in the province to promote mutual cooperation for engagements in education, arts, culture, health and other sectors.
“We also opened [in September 2024] a Migrant Worker Office in Vienna,” the envoy shared, as he expressed Austria’s nonstop support for Filipino workers.
He also touched on bilateral trade relations that encompass importation of electronic equipment and minerals, with emphasis on improving long-term trading schemes between both countries because “the Philippines has a dynamic economy,” and that “Europe lacks representation in Asia.”
Brieger also noted opportunities for further cooperation in sectors such as major infrastructure, water supply and wastewater disposal, energy, health care and agriculture. Renewable energy sources such as hydropower, solar and wind were also cited as prospective areas for improvement, “with proper coordination.”
In the open forum, the ambassador
Norway, Sulong Peace Inc.
addressed several queries on Austrian and Philippine relations, specifically on study opportunities where he opened the conversation about the European Higher Education Fair where several universities within European-member countries offered student-exchange opportunities for Filipino learners.
A question on the state of the Philippines’ energy production in comparison with Austria prompted Brieger to discuss the probability of assisting the former in producing cleaner energy due to its abundance of renewable energy sources.
Dir. Michaella Lagniton of UST’s Office of Public Affairs introduced the ambassador in the event, where she noted his career experiences. She mentioned that Brieger has over 30 years of experience as a foreign diplomat, having previously worked as the envoy of Austria to the Republic of Kosovo from 2011 to 2015, and the Republic of South Africa from 2018 to 2022.
He also received the French Order of Merit with the rank of “Chevalier,” and has served in various administrative positions in Austria’s private-sector.
strengthen peace and security efforts in Negros
THE Royal Norwegian Embassy (RNE) in Manila, in partnership with Sulong Peace Inc. (SPI), conducted a field visit to Negros Island that reaffirmed Norway’s commitment to peacebuilding, security cooperation, and participatory governance in the Philippines.
The visit led by Amb. Christian Lyster coincided with Mt. Kanlaon communities’ 90th day of evacuation under “Alert Level 3,” which highlighted the intersection of conflict resolution, disaster response and sustainable development.
“For Norway, peace and reconciliation work is long-term. In the Philippines, our cooperation started in 2001 when Norway became the third-party facilitator in the peace negotiations with the National Democratic Front,” said Lyster. “The visit to Negros underscores [my country’s] continuing commitment to the Philippines’ quest toward lasting peace.”
Don Salvador Benedicto, Negros Occidental, along with local government officials and barangay leaders. The discussions reaffirmed their commitment to sustaining peace efforts through strong local governance. SPI also provided updates on its “Transitional Justice and Reconciliation” initiatives that were implemented since 2023 to promote participatory governance, human-rights advocacy and capacitybuilding in conflict-affected areas.
A gathering with former rebels focused on reintegration challenges and pathways toward dignified livelihoods that reinforced peace and stability efforts in the said communities.
BCCP: Agriculture now a key area of UK-Phil. partnership
THE British Chamber of Commerce Philippines’ (BCCP) executive chair
Chris Nelson has welcomed the recognition of the agricultural sector as one of the vital areas of collaboration between the United Kingdom (UK) and the Philippines.
This, Nelson said, aligns with the BCCP’s advocacy on ensuring food security, managing inflation, as well as promoting British pork and beef exports.
According to him, food security through enhancing productivity in the agricultural sector is among the Philippines’ key priorities: “Headline inflation rate in February 2025 witnessed a significant downward trend at 2.1 percent due to a sharp decline in rice inflation. Despite this, higher annual growth rates were observed on meat and other parts of slaughtered land animals at 8.8 percent. [Weather disturbances and the spread of African swine fever also posed challenges, as there were active cases] in seven regions, 13 provinces, 27 cities, and 39 barangays, as reported by the Bureau of Animal and Industry.”
BCCP officials recently met with Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr., as they discussed the growing agricultural trade between the country and the UK. Nelson shared the longstanding work with the UK Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board, which marked a growth in pork exports. The Philippines is the European country’s second-biggest export market in Asia, and ranks fourth globally alongside the EU, the United States and China. Overall, meat and meat preparations were identified as the second-top UK exported goods valued at £38.9 million.
Nelson also welcomed the inaugural Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) meeting where
he addressed market barriers and promoted the agricultural sector, infrastructure, renewable energy as well as trade and investments. The chamber, he said, looks forward to welcoming back AHDB to the Philippines in September 2025. With its advocacy on managing inflation, BCCP has consistently supported the extension of lowered tariff rates for agricultural commodities, now extended until 2028. Finance Secretary Ralph Recto expressed high probability of a rate cut in the policy meeting today, April 10, with 50 to 75 basis points rate cuts expected this year, as he noted that it “will help propel growth, consumption and investments moving forward.”
Nelson also cited that these developments will further leverage the region’s competitiveness that will also contribute to growing bilateral ties, as the 80th anniversary of diplomatic ties will be marked in 2026. He acknowledged agriculture’s role in the Philippines’ economic growth, and “we believe that the JETCO, with other initiatives of the UK and the Philippine governments, will continue to strengthen the sector.”
The meeting led by Minister Douglas Alexander and Usec. Allan Gepty of the Department of Trade and Industry tackled the continued collaboration with the Department of Agriculture and the UK’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on a more proactive approach in animal disease detection mechanisms, along with other breeding and genetics agricultural technology. BCCP thus reaffirmed its commitment in ensuring food security and helping with the challenge of inflation by introducing quality British meat and establishing long-term relations with importers to support the Philippine market.
Malaysian Embassy marks Eid with Aidilfitri open house
In Bacolod City, the delegation met with Mayor Abelardo Benitez, the 303rd Infantry Brigade and local units of the Philippine National Police, as they discussed security
“Continuous dialogue reaffirms the role of civil society and local leaders in shaping inclusive, communitydriven policies,” said SPI’s executive director Seth T. Villaruel. “For peace to be lasting, governance must be inclusive, responsive and centered on community voices, human rights and sustainable solutions.”
conditions, conflict prevention and disaster response. The engagement emphasized the security sector’s role in stabilizing communities, protecting displaced populations and strengthening local governance.
The delegation also dialogued with Mayor Jose Chubasco Cardenas of Kanlaon City, Negros Oriental and Mayor Laurence dela Cruz of
With Mt. Kanlaon’s crisis displacing communities for over 90 days, discussions underscored the importance of integrating peacebuilding with disaster response and recovery planning.
Through sustained engagement, Norway and SPI remain committed to breaking cycles of conflict and fostering an inclusive, lasting peace in Negros, according to a statement from the Norwegian Embassy.
EU-funded ‘ADDVoice’ Program gaining ground in Leyte and Samar
THE European Union (EU)sponsored “Advancing Adolescent’s Voice for Violence-Free, Inclusive and Safer Family and Community Environment” (ADDVoice) program is gaining headway in the provinces of Leyte and Samar, according to the bloc’s delegation to the Philippines. Almost 2,000 adolescents, parents, caregivers and service providers from Abuyog, Javier, Mayorga and MacArthur in Leyte, as well as from Gandara, Matuguinao, Pagsanghan and San Jorge in Samar are currently benefiting from the said program.
Adolescent pregnancy is a complex issue requiring a multisectoral approach involving collaboration among providers of health, education and social services, as well as, other relevant sectors who are preventing unplanned childbirths, providing comprehensive care and supporting
adolescent mothers along with their babies.
The EU has collaborated with nongovernment organization Save the Children-Philippines in enhancing access to gendersensitive and adolescent-responsive child protection, as well as sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and rights information, programs and services.
Amb. Massimo Santoro said that ADDVoice helps empower women and girls so that they could realize opportunities in education and employment, ultimately contributing to a gender-equal society. The program, he said, is aligned with the values and dedication of the EU in advancing equality and social progress.
According to Santoro, ADDVoice aims to prevent and address early pregnancies and sexual violence against children. It focuses on areas in Samar and Leyte which had high
numbers of adolescent pregnancies in Region 8 per the “2020 National Safe Motherhood Program” of the Department of Health’s (DOH) regional office. Save the Children and Western Samar Development Foundation are implementing such. Save the Children’s ADDVoice project coordinator Junalie Katalbas said the program, now on its second year, has significantly helped decrease teen pregnancies in project areas by 10.89 percent, with a corresponding increase in the number of girls accessing the Adolescent-Friendly Health Facility, family planning, plus antenatal and postnatal care.
According to Katalbas, “adolescents are effective change agents when provided with inclusive, safe and engaging platforms.”
Save the Children reported that, while it takes time to invest in child-led initiatives to make peerto-peer engagement more effective,
communication has become easier once adolescent-facilitators are trained well. In view of the project, adolescents, parents and caregivers have reported either an increase, or improvement in knowledge on adolescent SRH and child-protection awareness.
Coordination has also been made by the program with relevant agencies such as the DOH, Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Interlocal Health Zone in establishing two child-protection units in Gandara District Hospital and Abuyog District Hospital. There has also been an increased reporting of sexual violence cases, indicating greater awareness and trust in reporting mechanisms.
“Engaging parents, particularly male caregivers, significantly improves outcomes in adolescent health and child protection,” confirmed Katalbas.
THE Embassy of Malaysia opened doors to its compatriots in the Philippines and friends from the Philippine government, diplomatic and consular corps, along with the business community, as it celebrated this year’s Eid and the end of Ramadan.
The Aidilfitri Open House at the Ambassador’s residence commenced on March 31 with the Eid prayer, followed by a speech by Amb. Dato’ Abdul Malik Melvin Castelino. Highlighting the importance of unity and inclusivity, he addressed the Malaysian diaspora: “Hari Raya is a time when we are reminded of the strength of unity that is deeply ingrained in our Malaysian identity. Whether Malay, Chinese, Indian or from any other background, we come together as one big family to celebrate, just as we do in [our homeland]. This unity is what makes us strong, both at home and abroad.”
The diplomat also took the opportunity to thank Filipinos for their warm hospitality, especially for always welcoming Malaysians with open arms. Among Filipino guests in attendance were Budget Secretary Amenah F. Pangandaman, Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo J. Cacdac, Secretary Ernesto V. Perez of the Anti-Red Tape Authority, Asean Ladies Foundation chair Pamela Louise Hunt-Manalo, Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Enunina V. Mangio, as well as Greggy and Irene Marcos-Araneta.
Guests were treated to a sumptuous feast of Malaysian dishes such as satay, nasi impit, ketupat, kuah kacang, lemang and karipap, which were all prepared by the embassy’s officers, their spouses, and Chef Ammar Syafiq bin Ayob.
He encouraged Malaysian entrepreneurs to take advantage of business opportunities in further strengthening economic ties with the Philippines, young Malaysians to be proactive in various fields as they shape the future of their country and the region, and all Malaysians in the Philippines to serve as “little ambassadors” to “help foster goodwill between [both nations].”
THE Royal Norwegian Embassy in Manila delegation met with Mayor Jose Chubasco Cardenas.
MRS. Indriati binti Iskandar (standing, from left), AFEX chief sales officer Gel Swiecinski, Amb. Dato’ Abdul Malik Melvin Castelino, CARMA director Joanna Christina Tinio, the embassy’s deputy chief of mission Norjufri Nizar Edrus, plus Araneta Properties chair and CEO Greggy Araneta; with Asean Ladies Foundation chair Pamela Louise Hunt-Manalo (seated, left) and Irene Marcos-Araneta.
AUSTRIA’S top envoy addresses Thomasians in attendance.
Gen Santos emerges as a Mindanao farm tourism hub
KNOWN for decades as the “Tuna Capital of the Philippines”, Gen. Santos City has earned itself a new moniker as an emerging farm tourism hub in Mindanao. This after its successful hosting of the recent 8th Philippine International Farm Tourism Conference, the country’s largest gathering of practitioners and authorities in the industry.
Organized by the International School of Sustainable Tourism (ISST) with the support of the City Government of Gen. Santos, the event was held last February 24 to 26, 2025 at the KCC Mall of GenSan.
Themed “Stimulating Sustainable Economic Growth in Rural Communities through Farm Tourism,” the three-day confab provided avenues for collaboration among farm owners, farmers and participants, and emphasized the positive socio-economic impact of the sunshine industry to the countryside.
“At the heart of farm tourism lies a
simple yet powerful idea: that our farms are more than just places of production. They are living landscapes of culture, history, and sustainability, where traditions are passed down, innovation takes root, and communities find new pathways to prosperity,” says Tourism Secretary Esperanza Christina Garcia-Frasco who was the confab’s keynote speaker.
This year’s conference highlighted sustainable growth through the cultivation of fruit farms, aquaculture and livestock, and investments on agriculture and tourism.
Themes included Diversified Agriculture
and Sustainable Farm Tourism Models, Enhancing the Land for Food Security at Home, Innovations and Technology Adoption for Increasing Farm Productivity and Sustainability, Peace and Trust in the Communities, livestock farms tourism sites, and aquaculture development on new products.
Resource persons included owners of successful farm tourism ventures from Mindanao, Visayas and Luzon, as well as experts from the United States, Malaysia, Indonesia and Japan.
Participants visited the city’s leading sites such as Felicidad Orchard and Garden Organics, and Bougainvilla Avenue, Sarangani Highlands. MBX Grape Vineyard, Saxonylyn Scifish Farm, Envirogreen Village Educational Foundation, Villamor Agrotourism Park, Keisha’s Garden, JB Guava Farm & JBalayo H20 Garden Villas, and Patricio’s Coco Island.
The farm sites, which provide agricultural activities and experiences, have become additional tourist destinations on top of the usual attractions in the City.
Concentrix Strengthens Employee Security, Well-being Through Comprehensive Benefits
AKEy in reinforcing a culture of care, support, and resilience in the workplace is ensuring the financial security, peace of mind, and holistic well-being of employees. Global technology and services leader Concentrix embodies this and prioritizes its people by offering them benefits that extend beyond the workplace.
“Our people, whom we call game-changers, are at the heart of everything we do. Providing comprehensive group life insurance is a fundamental part of our commitment to their well-being,” said Hazel Banas, VP of People Solutions at Concentrix Philippines. “This ensures they have financial security and peace of mind, aligning with our holistic approach to game- changer care, which includes physical, mental, and financial wellness.”
Concentrix prioritizes initiatives that provide stability and security for its employees, from competitive compensation and various benefits to wellness programs and career development opportunities. The company ensures that its game-changers and their loved ones, including non-traditional families, have access to financial protection, particularly during unexpected life circumstances.
Beyond financial benefits, it fosters an inclusive and
RIZAL Park recently became the stage for a unique and hilarious prank courtesy of Vita Coco. Instead of a typical product sampling, the brand staged a lighthearted prank that left parkgoers both entertained and refreshed.
The “Vita Coco-riton” stunt began innocently enough, inviting people to try Vita Coco’s coconut water. However, the “payment” request – a playful suggestion to shave their heads inspired by the infamous “gupit buko” – sparked a wave of amused disbelief. Many took the initial offer in stride, while others hesitated, leading to some comical moments. A staged, theatrical confrontation added to the absurdity of the scene, culminating in the reveal that it was all a lighthearted prank captured on camera. The fun didn’t stop there. Participants were then offered a
supportive work environment that values employees not just for their professional contributions but as individuals with unique needs. Programs such the Concentrix PLEDGE program, and financial assistance initiatives such as emergency loans reflect the company’s ongoing dedication to enhancing employee security and well-being.
“In today’s competitive job market, employees are not just looking for career growth but also security for themselves and their families,”adds Banas.“Comprehensive protection fosters loyalty and engagement, contributing to a positive workplace experience.”
As part of the fast-paced and dynamic tech solutions and services industry, Concentrix continuously assesses and innovates its employee benefits to remain competitive and relevant. It is committed to leveraging technology, expanding wellness initiatives, and enhancing financial security programs to support its employees’ evolving needs.
“We understand that our game-changers’ lives extend far beyond their roles at work,” Hazel further said. “That’s why we design our benefits to offer security in all aspects of life—whether through life insurance, healthcare, financial assistance programs, or multifaceted wellness initiatives.”
To further enhance its employee security initiatives, Concentrix partnered with MaxiLife, one of the industry’s most trusted providers of group life insurance. With over 100,000 lives entrusted to MaxiLife, Concentrix ensures that its employees receive sustainable, flexible, and future-ready insurance solutions.
“We chose MaxiLife because of its strong track record in providing reliable and comprehensive insurance solutions,” affirmed Hazel. “MaxiLife’s commitment to innovating its suite of products to match individual needs, coupled with its customercentric approach, aligns perfectly with our company values.”
“At MaxiLife, our mission is to simplify the insurance journey for Filipinos, ensuring they have the protection they need for lifelong peace of mind,” said Anthony Perez, MaxiLife’s Business Unit Head. “Through our partnership with Concentrix, we are reinforcing this commitment by providing a group life insurance solution that not only safeguards employees but also supports their aspirations and those of their families.”
MaxiLife plays a crucial role in ensuring the future readiness of Concentrix’s workforce by offering adaptable insurance solutions that evolve with industry trends and employee expectations.
Concentrix encourages its employees to maximize the benefits of their life insurance coverage, emphasizing that financial security is a crucial component of long-term resilience.
“Life is unpredictable, but financial security doesn’t have to be,” according to Atty. Michael Montero, Head of Legal at Concentrix Philippines. “We encourage our game-changers to view life insurance not just as a workplace perk but as an essential tool for safeguarding their families’ futures. By investing in protection today, they create a stronger, more resilient tomorrow.”
Through its comprehensive benefits and strategic partnership with MaxiLife, Concentrix continues to uphold its mission of creating a supportive and secure work environment where employees can thrive professionally and personally.
The 8th Philippine International Farm Tourism Conference is supported by the Tourism Promotions Board, Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority, Department of Agriculture–Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources,
of Animal
Exporters Confederation
Department of Trade and Industry, Department of the Interior and Local Government, and Philippine Airlines as official carrier.
SM Foundation honored with Champion of Community Excellence Award 2024
SM Foundation, Inc. was awarded the Champion of Community Excellence Award: 2024 Best Civil Society Organization (CSO) by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Field Office MIMAROPA last March 28, 2025, during the 74th DSWD Anniversary Celebration held at the Manila Prince Hotel, Metro Manila, Philippines.
This year, the SM Foundation stands as the only private organization to receive the esteemed recognition. The award recognizes organizations for being a catalyst partner that have been instrumental in initiating positive transformation, demonstrating significant contribution, and impactful interventions for the betterment of the DSWD Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).
KMC’s 10th Anniversary in Cebu: ‘Sidlak’ to Shine as a Celebration of Growth, Community
KMC Solutions, the Philippines’ leading provider of flexible workspaces and Employer of Record (EOR) services, is set to commemorate a decade of operations in Cebu with “Sidlak,” a festival-inspired event that underscores its long-term investment in regional development.
The celebration will take place on April 30, 2025, at 6 pm at the Garden Row Activity Court, Ayala Malls Central Bloc. The event, which means “to shine” in Cebuano, will feature indie-pop act Autotelic as headliner, alongside live DJ performances, Filipino festival-style food, and festivities. More than a company milestone, the event highlights Cebu’s emergence as a prime destination for business expansion outside Metro Manila.
Since opening its first Cebu site in Skyrise 4A in 2015, KMC has grown to operate across four key office locations: an additional floor in Skyrise 4A, Skyrise 4B, HM Tower, and most recently, Lexmark Plaza 3 in 2023. These locations support a wide spectrum of companies, from agile startups to large-scale enterprises, and offer professionals access to premium workspace environments integrated with EOR services, including HR, payroll, and compliance support.
“Ten years ago, we took a bet on Cebu — and it paid off in ways we couldn’t have
imagined,” said Michael McCullough, KMC’s Co-Founder. “This city is a magnet for talent, creativity, and resilience. As we celebrate a decade here, we’re not just looking back with pride — we’re looking ahead with conviction.”
Backed by more than P100 billion in infrastructure investment, Cebu has become a competitive choice for firms building high-performance teams outside Metro Manila. With over 160,000 BPO professionals, 54 percent of provincial office transactions, and a 97.1 percent employment rate in Central Visayas, the region offers both scale and sustainability for business growth. Additionally, operating costs in Cebu are estimated to be up to 30 percent lower than National Capital Region, making it a strategic location for regional hubs.
“Cebu is evolving into a true innovation hub, and we’re expanding our presence to help visionary companies build the future from here,” McCullough added. To meet rising demand for regional workspaces and talent services, KMC is set to expand into Skyrise 3B, adding a fully serviced floor within Cebu IT Park. This move not only strengthens its operational footprint in the province but also reinforces the company’s commitment to supporting businesses through its end-to-end EOR model—covering recruitment, HR, payroll, legal compliance, and office spaces. Today, KMC operates over 30 flexible office locations nationwide, positioning itself as the preferred partner for companies scaling across the Philippines. The upcoming Sidlak celebration will serve not just as an anniversary gathering, but as a testament to Cebu’s transformation and the vital role KMC aims to play in its continued development.
For event updates, follow @ kmcsolutions on social media or visit kmc. solutions.
IN the photo are Felicidad Orchard president James Reamon, ISST director Ida Rosario Joseph, ISST president Dr. Mina Gabor, Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia-Frasco, ISST corporate secretary Corazon Alma de Leon, Gen. Santos City tourism officer Leonard Flores, city councilor Virginia Llido, and Gen. Santos City Tourism Council chairperson Ace Buensuceso.
Bureau
Industry, Philippine
(Philexport), the
Solutions, Concentrix; Anthony Perez, Business Unit Head, MaxiLife; Michael Manrique, Vice President - Conglomerate Partnership Head, MaxiLife; Arianne Barrientos, Head, Corporate Solutions, MaxiLife.
IN the photo are, from left, DSWD Field Office MIMAROPA Asst. Regional Director for Operations Sheila S. Tapia, SM Foundation Project Supervisor Shiela Marie L. Bahoy, SM Foundation Asst. Vice President for Outreach Programs Cristie S. Angeles and DSWD Field Office MIMAROPA Regional Director Leonardo C. Reynoso CESO III.
Vita Coco welcomes the summer season with a playful take on the iconic kariton
Parentlife BusinessMirror
Beyond DHA: The nutrients that truly power brain development
PLAY ON EFFECTS OF TRAUMA, ABUSE, TOXIC MASCULINITY THIS APRIL
FERMATA, a play by Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awardee Dustin Celestino, delves of the themes of trauma, abuse, and toxic masculinity through the lens of Generation X—those born from 1965 to 1980.
The piece, which runs up to an hour, follows decorated music composer Ben (Jack Denzel), who was approached by a media outlet to write an article as tribute to his late father—a prominent jazz icon.
In an attempt to uncover the truth of his patriarch’s dark past, he reconnects with Alex (Philip Emilio Macabantad), his childhood friend and the old man’s former student.
Fermata, which fosters empathy between generations, identifies the various ways Gen X men respond and cope to the life-changing effects of abuse.
It likewise studies the nature of avoiding confrontation for a good cause. It touches on the stances and consequences of unhealthy parenting, and explores the challenges of loving a person despite their shortcomings and mistakes.
Fermata is the debut production of WID(e)YE Collective, a newly-founded group of young artists from the Theater Arts Program of the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLSCSB) School of Arts, Culture, and Performance (SACP).
Driven by their advocacy to draw a sense of awareness and acknowledgment of humanity’s passiveness, the students hope the play will help examine the significant effect of generational gaps in perspective and differences on important issues.
Fermata speaks volumes for the painful yet blatant behavior we are used to, leaving us in an unrecognizable and unfinished form of healing,” the team explained.
“It is an attempt for the younger generation to understand the side and psychology of Gen X—how they were raised and how they were trained to be passive with mental health,” filmmaker, composer, and educator Celestino stated.
“This is not a battle of sexes and generations—it is for us to listen and hear them out,” he added.
Fermata is directed by actress and theater practitioner Edith Garcia and co-directed by character performer Coleen Aldana—both homegrown talents from the college’s Theater Arts Program.
WID(e)YE Collective is under the guidance of Theater Arts Program faculty and Production Management adviser Glen Dominic Alarcon.
Fermata premiered on April 4, 2025. It will also be staged on the following dates: April 10 and 11, with performances scheduled at 3 pm and 6 pm. On April 12, the show will be presented at 1 pm.
All shows will be held at the 6th Floor, Black Box, Benilde Design + Arts Campus, 950 Pablo Ocampo Street, Malate, Manila. Tickets are priced at P320 for Benildeans and P350 for regulars. Discounts for persons with disabilities and senior citizens are likewise available.
The Gala, the culminating show on April 11 at 6 pm, is priced at P500.
For updates, visit www.facebook.com/wideye.collective.
RAISING children who are ready to take on the world isn’t just about choosing the right schools, enrichment programs, or extracurricular activities. As a parent and licensed teacher, I know that long before a child steps into a classroom, the real work of development is already happening—inside their growing brains. Every new word they say, every problem they figure out, and every story they remember is a sign that their cognitive abilities are taking shape.
But here’s something I’ve learned, both in my years of teaching and in raising my own children: Brain development doesn’t happen by chance. It’s nurtured, fueled, and built with the right combination of love, stimulation and nutrition.
For years, DHA has been the go-to nutrient for brain growth. We see it everywhere—on formula labels, in pediatrician recommendations, in marketing campaigns. And while DHA is important, the latest research tells us something crucial: DHA alone won’t cut it. To help our children truly reach their milestones in language, focus, memory, and problem-solving, they need a broader spectrum of nutrients working together to fuel their brains.
Dr. Nora Schneider, an expert in pediatric cognitive development, explains it perfectly:
“A well-nurtured brain is critical for developmental changes in children. Brain development happens in waves, with different areas maturing at different times.”
This means that the way a child learns to speak, the way they process information, and the way they solve problems are all connected—but they each need specific nutritional support.
THE FOUR ESSENTIAL NUTRIENTS FOR BRAIN DEVELOPMENT
RECENT studies highlight four essential nutrients that play a vital role in brain development:
n DHA (Problem Solving): Enhances learning abilities, supports brain and memory development.
n MOS+ Sialic Acid (Language): Supports neurotransmission crucial for memory and learning, with links to stronger language function.
n Choline (Memory): Helps process and retain information more effectively.
n Lutein (Focus): Supports visual and cognitive development, helping children concentrate better.
These nutrients don’t work in isolation—they
reinforce each other, strengthening different aspects of cognitive growth.
Dr. Ed Posecion, medical director of Wyeth Nutrition, explains, “Every time a child speaks a new word, remembers a detail, focuses on a task, or solves a problem, that’s brain development in action. Proper nutrition provides the necessary building blocks to accelerate these cognitive milestones.”
I love this idea because it reminds us that parenting is about more than just reacting to a child’s needs—it’s about preparing them for success. It’s not enough to simply wait for our kids to hit their milestones. We need to actively nurture their development through everyday interactions, learning opportunities, and, yes, proper nutrition. As a parent, I know how easy it is to focus on whether our children are meeting their milestones “on time.” We celebrate their first words, their first steps, and their ability to count or recognize letters. But milestones aren’t just numbers on a growth chart, or skills checked off a list.
They are the building blocks of a child’s confidence, independence, and future success. A child who can express themselves well grows into an adult who can advocate for themselves. A child who learns to focus early on is more likely to excel in school. A child who remembers details and solves problems efficiently will develop strong critical thinking skills.
And just as I encourage my children to be curious,
Cooking with kids teaches healthy eating, life skills and more
By Tracee M. Herbaugh The Associated Press
TO raise adventurous, self-sufficient and health-conscious eaters, get kids in the kitchen. It may sound too simple, but those are just a few of the benefits when kids learn to cook. Cooking builds life skills, promotes healthy eating, boosts confidence and strengthens family bonds—all while making mealtime fun.
“It helps to think of it as less of a chore and more of an opportunity to be together as a family,” said Jessica Battilana, staff editor at King Arthur Baking Company, which offers adult and children’s cooking classes. The food doesn’t need to be fancy, and it doesn’t all have to be homemade.
“The investment parents make early on to encourage their kids to participate in mealtime will pay dividends later, when they’re able to handle kitchen tasks independently,” Battilana said.
Whether your child loves to cook or has never held a knife, it’s not too late to start building these skills.
Some of the rewards:
n A sense of accomplishment. If the Covid-19 pandemic taught us anything, it was the importance of knowing how to cook. During the lockdown, Becca Cooper Leebove, a mom of two in the Denver area, began teaching her children how to do simple tasks in the kitchen. Just 3 and 8 at the time, they began by dumping
ingredients into a stand mixer, rolling out dough, or icing a cake.
Five years later, their skills continue to grow. “My ultimate goal has always been family time—something to do together that’s engaging, but also important to get them off their phones or iPads,” Leebove said.
“They also love to brag when it’s done and we all eat their masterpiece together,” Leebove said. They clean up after cooking and know how to set the table. Now that Leebove’s son is 13, he helps chop veggies and sauté meat.
n Confidence and real-world skills
(like math). “It can feel special to kids to be included in an adult activity,” said Cristi Donoso, 38, from Alexandria, Virginia.
Donoso is a speech therapist and encourages her clients to cook with their kids in age-appropriate ways. She’s also the mother to a 5-year-old, who has been baking with her since toddlerhood.
“There’s a lot of real-world learning involved,” Donoso said: math concepts, language skills and self-control. Kids learn by reading and following a stepby-step recipe. It takes concentration and other executive functioning skills. They
explore, and challenge themselves, I also want to make sure their brains are getting the best possible support.
When we talk about early childhood learning, we often focus on stimulation—reading books, playing with puzzles, engaging in conversations. But stimulation alone isn’t enough. The brain needs the right nutrients to build the neural connections that make learning possible.
That’s why I appreciate brands like Promil, which has taken brain nutrition a step further by formulating a milk supplement that doesn’t focus just on DHA but includes all four essential nutrients for cognitive growth.
To help parents reinforce the importance of brain development in a fun and engaging way, Promil (www. promil.com.ph) has launched an interactive Gifted Brain Challenge on TikTok.
This AR filter game allows kids to “catch” these four brain-boosting nutrients while playing, turning healthy brain development into an exciting activity.
It’s a creative way to keep children engaged while also educating parents on what truly fuels their growing minds.
At the end of the day, whether we are guiding our children’s learning at home, advocating for their education in schools, or choosing the right nutrition for them, our goal remains the same: to give them every possible advantage in life. n
also learn how to be safe in a kitchen, requiring self-control. Exposure and sensory experience with food help kids become well-rounded eaters,” she said.
“Your food experience isn’t just about sitting down to eat. It’s about making a list, going to the store, and feeling the fruit,” she said.
n An adventurous palate. Eric Brown, along with his wife, Elizabeth Brown, opened Third Space Kitchen in August 2023. At their two Massachusetts locations, they offer cooking classes for kids, often through day camps, birthday parties or as a school-break activity.
“One thing I see a lot is that they’re willing to experiment,” Brown said, and knowing what’s in the food helps kids get over any squeamishness. Or perhaps the common aversion to veggies. Younger kids might start by making pizza dough from scratch or decorating cupcakes. Older kids have participated in full-cake icing competitions.
“As the programs progress, I hear less of ‘Eww, I won’t touch that’ and more of ‘What is that? I’ll try it,’” said Brown, who has four kids of his own.
n Paving the way for healthy eating. Childhood obesity rates have been rising for decades, and studies have show a positive correlation between healthy eating and home cooking, which can be a good alternative to ultraprocessed foods Jennifer Schittino, a Maryland-based
working mom of two young children, wants to help them shape healthier habits for the future.
“It’s both healthier and cheaper to cook from scratch.” she said. She also wants her children to “understand the fundamentals so they can make healthy and nutritious meals on a limited budget.”
Her kids know how to use knives and rolling pins, as well as hand-crank pasta, separate an egg, cut an avocado and toss pizza.
n Parents might learn about cooking, too. Even if you’re not a skilled home cook, don’t be intimidated teaching kids to be one. Start simple. Make a list of 10 things that kids can learn to master, Battilana suggested. It might include scrambled eggs, a quesadilla with guacamole, or pasta with steamed veggies.
“Practice making those 10 things often so you get good at them, can shop for them easily, and make them without a recipe,” she said. (King Arthur has a kids’ baking cookbook due out in September, “Sweet and Salty!”) Cooking and shopping for fresh foods become a lot less intimidating the more you do it.
“I think kids are far more capable in the kitchen than we give them credit for,” Battilana said.
“They may be slower, messier, but they’re capable of a lot, and usually pretty eager to try new foods—especially if they’ve had a hand in making them.”
PHOTO BY ANNIE SPRATT ON UNSPLASH
S. Ramos
vu all over again?
WILL Petro Gazz finally change the narrative, or will Creamline once more defy the odds? The Angels drew first blood in the Premier Volleyball League AllFilipino Finals at the Araneta Coliseum on Tuesday, 25-17, 25-20, 18-25, 20-25, 15-10. Two years ago, Petro Gazz also claimed the opener of the best-of-three showdown only to suffer a heartbreaking series loss as Creamline stormed back to win the next two matches and captured its sixth conference crown.
This time, the Angels are determined not to let history repeat itself.
We just can’t think about that time,” said star hitter Brooke Van Sickle. “We remember it, we take lessons from it, but we’re not going to relive it. One game at
Choco Mucho at 4 p.m. Van Sickle led the Angels to victory with a 24-point explosion and 14 excellent digs, igniting the Angels and earning praise for her clutch performance. But she knows the battle is far from over.
“I’m expecting Creamline to come out with their best volleyball on Thursday,” she added. “We need to be ready. We can’t let the energy drop, especially not against a team like Creamline.”
MJ Phillips, who delivered 16 points—including six in the decisive fifth set—echoed that resolve.
“I just kept looking them in the eyes, like ‘You got me, I got you.’ I treated every point like it was my last,” said Phillips. “And with my team behind me, I was able to do well.” Despite the momentum, the Angels
the
THE
Basketball Association (PBA) is turning 50
semifinals at the Philsports
performance,” said Petro Gazz coach Koji Tsuzurabara, sidestepping further questions with his trademark “no comment” cool.
And it’s not just Van Sickle and Phillips who have stepped up. Jonah Sabete and skipper Remy Palma have provided stability and firepower when they mattered most.
We’ll play the second match like there’s no tomorrow,” vowed Sabete in Filipino.
“ When we see Rem and MJ shouting and lifting the team, it motivates us to bounce back and do what each of us is meant to do,” she added.
Despite leading 2-0 in the match, Petro Gazz knows how quickly things can unravel. The third set lapse was a warning sign—a reminder of how dangerous Creamline can be when given a sliver of momentum.
“It was what we expected—Creamline has a massive fan base. It was loud and chaotic at times,” said Van Sickle. “A fivesetter can go either way. At that point, you never know who’s going to win.”
S till, the Angels held their nerve,
drawing from the composure of their veterans and the energy of a squad that’s been battle-tested in this sixmonth-long grueling tournament organized by Sports Vision. Super important that we won Game One—it really boosted everyone’s confidence,” said Sabete. “We just did our individual roles, and then we connected as a team.”
To finally break the spell and secure their first All-Filipino Conference title, Petro Gazz knows what it must do. We need to bring the energy back, stay consistent, communicate constantly and play as one,” said Van Sickle. “Passing needs improvement—that’s where we broke down in Set 3. And in volleyball, serving and passing are everything. We just have to be better.”
As Creamline prepares to mount yet another comeback and Petro Gazz tries to forge a new legacy, one thing is clear: volleyball fans are in for another unforgettable chapter. Whether it’s a rewrite or a replay, this Finals is one for the history books.
semifinals which they can secure on Sunday when they take on the Ateneo Blue Eagles.
“I’m glad the team recovered from that painful loss,” two-time MVP Bella Belen said, referring to the four-set defeat to Adamson University last week.
“I just kept reminding the team that we need to play at a high level in the next matches.”
The Lady Bulldogs eased to victory in one hour and 38 minutes, with Belen Vange Alinsug, Aisha Bello and Erin Pangilinan showing the way.
“I’m so happy and all thanks to the coaches and my teammates for trusting me even though opposite is not my natural position, I’m trying to put my effort so I’m so happy to show what I am,” said Bello, who earned the start in place of Solomon.
Bello, a Nigerian middle blocker, tallied nine points and four digs, while Alinsug also scored nine points.
B elen, on track for a third MVP award, scored 16 points on 14-of-29 spikes and two aces.
serving as the very template of the PBA. Legendary Filipino players gained fame and found fortune there—even representing the Philippines in international competitions, like the Asian Basketball Confederation Championship (“The ABC”), the Southeast Asian Games, the Asian Games and the Olympics no less.
Carlos Loyzaga, Bonnie Carbonell, Charlie Badion, Eddie Pacheco, Freddie Webb, Yoyong Martirez, Kurt Bachmann, Robert Jaworski, Rudolf Kutch, Bogs Adornado, Manny Paner, Ed Ocampo, Geny Lucindo and so many others sparkled there.
MICAA basketball was the national pastime with colossal rivalries like YCO-Ysmael spicing up conversations and alienating fans against each other. As the 60s pushed into the 70s, new champion teams would emerge—Crispa and Meralco, specifically. Later, in another universe called the PBA, these two teams would meet and clash again as Crispa and Toyota.
But we’re getting ahead of the story. Right smack in the middle of the new decade, the PBA boldly, unstoppably announced its own birth. It was a totally alien, unfamiliar concept in those days. Basketball fandom asked questions like: Why a pro league? Are we ready for it? They were dealing with the great unknown.
But there was no stopping this new basketball league—
B8 Thursday, april 10, 2025
mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph
Editor: Jun Lomibao
By Josef T. Ramos
GILAS PILIPINAS faces a tough early task after being drawn with world No. 22 New Zealand and two other dangerous teams for the 2025 International Basketball Federation (FIBA) Asia Cup set August 5 to 17 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
The draw was held on Tuesday, with the Philippines landing in Group D which also has world No. 92 Iraq and No. 73 Chinese-Taipei.
CJ Perez sees a difficult preliminary round for the Philippines, but he is confident of the team’s chances of contending for a medal.
“It’s like our [FIBA] Asia Cup qualifiers again. We will be facing New Zealand and Chinese-Taipei, same countries, but we are not sure if it is going to be their same lineup,” Perez, 31, told BusinessMirror on Wednesday. Just a few hours before San Miguel Beer’s Perez played against Meralco in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) 50th anniversary on Wednesday at the historic Rizal Memorial Coliseum, the
AFORMER jiujitsu competitor and now sports and tourism administrator in Guam lauded Philippine jiujitsu officials in the country as the sport continues to grow in the country.
Steve Shimizu, President of Marianas Open International and sports tourism in Guam, is in town for the Marianas Pro Manila tournament in Alabang over the weekend. Shimizu, looking to strengthen ties between Philippine and Guam athletes, is hoping more Filipino jiutitsu practitioners would compete in the coming events.
The Marianas Pro Taiwan is set April 26 to 27 and finale, the Marianas Open International, set October 18 in Guam and offering a prize purse of $50,000.
Jujitsu has grown popularity among Filipinos as well as the Guamanians who love to compete here,” Shimizu said.
country’s top and rising tennis players compete for prestige and ranking points in the Semana Sang Iloilo National Open Championship starting on Thursday at the Iloilo Sports Complex. eading the pack is former junior standout Alberto Lim, who holds the top seed, while second ranked Eric Jed Olivarez aims to extend his streak of Open victories. Their anticipated clash headlines the 32-player draw that serves as a centerpiece for the week-long celebration of Iloilo’s founding anniversary. hallenging the LimOlivarez showdown are
seasoned competitors including Vicente Anasta, Fritz Verdad, John Kendrick Bona, Noel Salupado, Rolly Saga and Philippe Coteron. R unning concurrently is the Juniors Championships, sanctioned by the Philippine Tennis Association (Philta), which features five age divisions for boys and girls. Top names in the 18-and-under division include Ian Ituriaga, Zane Hechanova, Anthony Zapatos, Gian dela Cruz, Alexandra Onte and Aleeva Suace. In the 16-and-under bracket, all eyes are on Anthony Castigador, Andrian Rodriguez, Fredrick Perlas and Gabriel del Rosario, alongside standout girls Besper Zapatos and Kathlyn Bugna.
the first professional basketball league in this part of the world, second only to the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was run by a forward-looking and determined PBA Board of Governors who no longer wanted anything to do with the Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP), the governing body for amateur basketball then. Disagreements between MICAA team owners and the BAP came to a boil and there was nowhere to go but out. For a long time MICAA team owners disagreed with the way the BAP did things. One of the major causes of friction was the fact that players were being yanked out of their club teams unceremoniously to play for the national team. The team owners resented this. Another league—a professional one— would keep them out of the BAP’s clutches.
L eopoldo Prieto led the league as its first Commissioner, with Emerson Coseteng of the Mariwasa Group as its first President. The first PBA Board of Governors was also made up of governors representing their teams and companies: Walter Euyang (Utex), Domingo Itchon (Yco-Tanduay), Leonardo “Skip” Guinto (San Miguel), Jose “Dondo” Lim III (Concepcion Industries), Enrico Villaflor (Seven Up), Porfirio Zablan (Consolidated Food Corporation), Pablo Carlos (Toyota), and Valeriano “Danny” Floro (Crispa).
The PBA’s early years were a bit shaky, with basketball fans still trying to accustom themselves to the new set-up,
and the reality that when the country would compete in international tournaments, its best players had already lost amateur status and could no longer represent the country. But basketball is in every Filipino’s blood. And as years passed, the same old rivalries proved irresistible. The CrispaToyota rivalry—now in the pros—was as intense as the sun shining directly overhead in summer. Loyalties were rabid. Devotion
NU CLOSES IN ON TITLE. Jasmine Jaran downs Patricia Lim, 6-3, 6-4, as National University moves closer to the University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 87 women’s
YOUNG athletes duke it out out during the Marianas Pro Manila Jiu-jitsu Championships at the Filinvest Mall in Alabang, Muntinlupa City over the weekend.
BROOKE VAN SICKLE (fourth from left) and the Angels are determined to finish off the Cool Smashers this time.
ROOKIE Celine Marsh helps provide the lift for the Lady Bulldogs.
