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Gov’t to borrow $ 900 M this year
Finance Secretary Margarito B. Teves said yesterday the national government is returning to the foreign debt markets to borrow $ 900 million despite talks of adjusting the borrowing mix.
DTI lauds 3 schools, ship firm for quality excellence
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has lauded three schools for achieving the highest awards given to organizations for excellence in performance.
BSP eases rules on money changers
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas has approved new rules relaxing documentary requirements for operators of money changers.
23 mining projects require $ 8.5 B
CLARK, Pampanga — The country’s needs $ 8.5 billion to push 23 priority mining projects and 37 exploration deals for the sector’s revival from years of neglect, Benjamin Philip Romualdez, president of the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines, told a forum of the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines here Friday.
Banks’ agri loans up 12% at P524 B
The banking sector lent a total of P524 billion to agricultural activities last year, up by 12 percent from the previous year’s P468 billion.
Pinoy TV shows, movies, music promoted in Jakarta
The government will be promoting more Philippine television shows, films, and music to Indonesia following a selling mission to that country.
NEWS IN BRIEF
The peso rate closed at P51.26 to the US dollar last Friday at the Philippine Dealing System of the Bankers Association of the Philippines. The weighted average rate stands at P51.211.
BUSINESS and SOCIETY
Oriental Mindoro is a microcosm of the Philippines. Its potentials for high economic growth, full of employment and an equitable distribution of income and wealth have been largely unrealized because of the long years of neglect of rural infrastructures such as feeder roads, post-harvest facilities and irrigation systems. Oriental Mindoro is one of the major victims of an inward-looking industrialization strategy followed by our leaders for some twenty years after the Second World War. Part of the hundreds of billions of pesos that went into the financing of the infant industries that never grew up could have been spent on a good network of rural roads that could have lowered the cost of distribution of such agricultural products as calamansi, banana (Saba), and rice. Those same roads could have also attracted millions of tourists to the province.
RP still attractive for Japan investors
The Philippines remains competitive in attracting foreign direct investments from Japan despite concerns on political uncertainty.
Stock market
While the market is on the upward trend, the upcoming Easter holidays may dampen investor accumulation with profit-taking expected ahead of the long vacation.
Meralco consumers to benefit from gas deal
The Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) consumers are expected to benefit from lower rates arising from the recent settlement deal inked between First Gas Power Corp. (FGPC), FGP Corp. (FGP) and the Malampaya Natural Gas Consortium (SC 38) composed of Shell Philippines Exploration, B.V., Shell Philippines, LLC, Chevron Malampaya LLC and PNOC- Exploration Corp.
GMA Network earmarks P900 M for local expansion
CLARK, Pampanga — GMA Network is planning capital expenditures of P900 million this year to expand and upgrade its provincial stations and to build a new office-studio building.
Semirara Mining earns P1.59 B in 2005, up 21%
Semirara Mining Corp.’s reported P1.592 billion in audited net profit after taxes (NPAT) in 2005, up by 21 percent from from P1.318 billion in 2004.
Mirant sets .2-B refinancing program for Philippine assets
The top-level management of Atlanta-based Mirant Corporation has informed Philippine energy officials of their plan to scour for new investors to infuse .2 billion on refinancing program for their electricity generation portfolio in the country.
Biodiversity center gets EC grant
The European Commission (EC) has financed with euro 6 million (US.14 million) the putting up of an Asean Center for Biodiversity (ACB) which aims to boost environmental conservation in the Asean and arrest rapid biodiversity loss over a three-to-five-year program.
Dollar trade lower as home sales drop
NEW YORK, Mar. 26 (AFP) — The dollar traded mostly lower Friday after a report showing a steep decline in new US home sales prompted traders to rethink their outlook for future rate hikes by the Federal Reserve.
BUSINESS FOCUS
With the introduction of the Unit Investment Trust Fund (UITF) during the second quarter of last year, the trust banking business has been gaining public interest with respect to the return performance of these funds. These returns have not been seen in the market in recent times considering that the 5-year FXTN rate hit a low coupon rate of 9.375 percent p.a. December of last year. The UITF industry ended 2005 with an astounding P122 billion in Assets Under Management (AUM). The exceptional performance is attributable to the global standards of the UITF which marks-to-market its investments, the bond friendly domestic market where bond prices appreciated generously, and the professional management of the funds.
Silver, copper prices scale new records
LONDON, Mar. 26 (Reuters) — Silver spiked to a high not seen in more than 22 years on Friday, with investors pouring money into the metal on expectations the first silver-backed security is closer to approval by US authorities.
Aviva drops plan to bid for Prudential
LONDON, Mar. 26 (Reuters) — Britain’s biggest insurer Aviva Plc dropped its planned 17 billion pound (.5 billion) all-share bid for Prudential Plc on Friday and said prospects of a deal in the future were "very low."
Delay in power assets sales may weigh on credit rating - S&P
MANILA (XFN-ASIA) - Delays in the privatization of power assets could hamper the country's bid for an upgrade in credit ratings, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services analyst Agost Benard said.
Gov't plans to borrow P66B from local market in 2nd qtr
MANILA (Dow Jones)--The government plans to borrow a total of P66 billion ($ 1.29 billion) from the domestic debt market in the second quarter, the national treasurer said Monday.
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