Govt eyes SRP as pork prices rise again By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas
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HE government is mulling over releasing a suggested retail price (SRP) on pork products anew—both local and imported ones —following a sudden spike in prices of locally-produced kasim and liempo in the domestic market, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said. The DA explained that the measure seeks to temper the increase of pork prices as the holiday season nears, when demand is anticipated to pick up. Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar said he will receive a formal recommendation from concerned agen-
cies after they conduct consultations with stakeholders on whether or not to implement an SRP. Dar pointed out that the recent uptick in locally-produced pork prices is one of the main considerations for the SRP. “We saw an upward movement in pork prices. Within the week, I will be receiving a formal recommendation. There are already ongoing discussions between our operations and livestock groups and consumers group,” he said in a virtual press briefing on Monday. “We will have a decision within the week whether the SRP mechanism will be followed or not,” he added. Dar revealed that part of the ongo-
“We saw an upward movement in pork prices. Within the week, I will be receiving a formal recommendation. There are already ongoing discussions between our operations and livestock groups and consumers group.” — Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar
ing discussions on SRP is to implement it among both locally-produced and imported pork products. Citing the DA’s price monitoring reports, Agriculture Undersecretary for Consumer and Political Affairs Kristine Y. Evangelista said the retail price of locally-produced pork kasim last week rose by P40 per kilogram to P320 per kilogram from P280 kilogram in October. Evangelista added that the price of locally-produced pork liempo increased by P20 per kilogram to P360 per kilogram from P340 per kilogram. Dar said the recent uptick in pork prices could be attributed to an increase in demand stimulated by the opening up of the country’s economy. See “Govt,” A2
OFW SEND HOME $2.74B IN SEPT; $23.1B IN 9 MOS
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Tuesday, November 16, 2021 Vol. 17 No. 39
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P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 20 pages |
By Bianca Cuaresma
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BOC told: Help blunt impact of fuel tax cut
@BcuaresmaBM
ILIPINO migrant workers continued to send more cash back home at the start of the “ber” months as the global economy adjusts back to normal, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported on Monday.
According to Central Bank data, overseas Filipino workers’ (OFW) cash remittances grew 5.2 percent in September this year from the same month last year, sending about $2.74 billion back to the Philippine economy during the month. The growth is faster than the 5.1 percent in August. The total volume of cash remittances is also $128 million larger than the level they sent in the previous month. The September remittance performance brought the total OFW cash remittance to the Philippines to $23.12 billion in the first nine months of the year. This is 5.6 percent larger than the $21.89 billion in the same January-to-September period in 2020. Broken down, remittances increased from both land-based and sea-based workers during the month. Remittances from land-based workers rose by 6.2 percent to $2.156 billion from $2.031 billion in September last year. Remittances from sea-based workers, meanwhile, grew 1.9 percent in September to $581 million from $570 million last year. The BSP said the growth in cash remittances from the United States, Malaysia, Taiwan, and South Korea greatly boosted the increase in remittances in the first nine months of the year. In terms of country sources, the US registered the highest share of overall remittances at 40.8 percent in the first nine months of 2021, followed by Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Canada, Taiwan, Qatar, and South Korea. The combined remittances from these top 10countries accounted for 78.9 percent of total cash remittances. Earlier this week, BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno said the prospect of stronger overseas Filipino remittance inflows in time for the Christmas holidays is expected to support the peso.
By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz @joveemarie
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FORMER PNP chief Guillermo Eleazar and Presidential spokesman Harry Roque file their certificates of candidacy for senator at the Comelec office in Manila on Monday (November 15, 2021), the last day for filing of substitutions and withdrawals of COCs in the 2022 National Elections. Just before the filing process closed, a lawyer for President Duterte filed his COC for Senator under the PDDS party, not his own PDP-Laban, substituting for a senatorial aspirant of PDDS who withdrew. ROY DOMINGO
AKLAN BANS UNVAXXED TEENAGERS FROM BORACAY By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
@akosistellaBM Special to the BusinessMirror
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EENAGERS who want to travel to Boracay Island with their families will have to be vaccinated first. “Yes, they have to be vaccinated [before traveling to Boracay],” clarified Aklan Gov. Florencio Miraflores to the BusinessMirror, after issuing Executive Order No. 028 on November 13, which said, “Effective November 16, 2021, Only Fully Vaccinated Individuals are al-
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 50.0020
lowed to enter Boracay Island.” He added, “Only minors 12 years old and below are allowed without RT-PCR/vaccination certificates as long as accompanied by parent/guardian.” He said he would release a new advisory within the day, Monday. Miraf lores’s confusing EO, posted on his Facebook page on November 13, reaped comments and questions from netizens who wanted to know if they could bring their children. No one from his office responded to the inquiries, prompting the Department of Tour-
ism (DOT) to seek clarification on the matter. Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat said, “Children will be allowed to enter Boracay, as long as they have a negative RT-PCR test result.” While she wasn’t able to personally speak with Miraflores, she told this paper, “According to the province [governor’s staff], it should be interpreted, ‘if unvaxxed, negative RT-PCR is required.’”
More destinations ease travel requirements
M E A N W H I L E , more le i s u re
destinations have eased their entry requirements for visitors, kickstarting a real recovery in the domestic tourism sector. In lieu of RT-PCR tests to check for the Covid-19 virus, vaccination cards are now accepted in the following destinations as of November 15: Tarlac, Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Camiguin, Batangas, Oriental Mindoro, Masbate, Camarines Norte, Iloilo, Negros Occidental, Bohol, See “Remittance,” A2
HE chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means on Monday called on the Bureau of Customs (BOC) to further intensify its anti-smuggling efforts to help the government reduce foregone revenues from the proposed 6-month fuel excise tax suspension. During the briefing on the collection of oil taxes, fuel marking program enforcement activities and oil importation, Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda cited the BOC for complying with the committee’s requests to intensify the fight against smuggling in petroleum products. “I am thankful [to] the Bureau of Customs for complying with this committee’s request to strengthen the country’s antismuggling efforts on petroleum. I noted earlier this year that the gap between exports to the country and imports of the country is narrowing, a sign that smuggling efforts are getting more effective. I urge the BOC to go harder at smuggling as oil price increases,” Salceda said. Salceda said BOC’s strong antismuggling measures will help reduce foregone revenues from the proposed fuel excise tax suspension under House Bill 10488. Under the bill, now ready for plenary deliberations, excise taxes on low-octane gasoline, used primarily by tricycle drivers, will also be reduced to P4.35 from the current P7, while taxes on premium gasoline will be retained at P10. This proposal will cost the government around P45 billion. In the same briefing BOC Deputy Commissioner Teddy Raval told lawmakers that the bureau has entered into a memorandum of agreement with the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) for data sharing. This MOA allows the three agencies more access to information, such as notifications submitted by oil companies, as well as the amount and quality of fuel intended to be imported. See “BOC,” A2
n JAPAN 0.4389 n UK 67.1027 n HK 6.4183 n CHINA 7.8392 n SINGAPORE 36.9837 n AUSTRALIA 36.6015 n EU 57.2473 n SAUDI ARABIA 13.3324
Source: BSP (November 15, 2021)