21 April 2008 – The Department of Labor and Employment has announced that it is not possible to order an increase in wages by 1 May, Labor Day, despite workers’ growing clamor for a wage hike.
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16 April 2008 – The National Statistics Office released today the final results of the 2007 Census of Population, which placed the Philippine population at 88,574,614 as of 1 August 2007. The count is 12 million higher than the recorded 2000 figure of 76.5 million, translating to an average annual population growth rate of 2.04%.Read more

Quarterly Economic Review
 MBC Research forecasts 6.6%–6.8% GDP growth in Q4 2007

30 January 2008 – MBC Research estimates the country's GDP growth to have picked up to between 6.6% to 6.8% in the last quarter of 2007, up from 5.5% in the last quarter of 2006. Read more

18 January 2008 – Despite the threat of the strengthening peso, the country’s business process outsourcing sector still achieved its target of a 40% growth in revenues in 2007. Read more

18 January 2008 – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo signed last week Executive Order 691, a directive that slashes the import tariff on diesel to 1% from 3%. For motorists, this will translate to a P1 discount for every liter of diesel starting 1 February.
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18 January 2008 – To avoid a garbage crisis, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources has issued the Rizal province a permit to operate the new 19-hectare sanitary landfill in Rodriguez, Rizal.Read more

16 January 2008 – The downgrading of Philippine aviation safety by the United States’ Federal Aviation Administration will adversely affect the expansion plans of Philippine Airlines in 2008. Read more

OFW remittances in Jan-Nov hit US$13.1B

 15 January 2008 – Overseas Filipino workers' remittances coursed through banks from January to November 2007 reached US$13.1 billion, 14.1% higher than in the same period in 2006. Read more

Tourism receipts hit US$4.9B in 2007

11 January 2008 – The Philippines' international tourism receipts reached US$4.9 billion in 2007 as the tourism industry reached a new high in visitor arrivals with 3,091,993 visitors compared to 2,843,345 in 2006. Read more

Car sales top 100,000-unit mark in 2007

10 January 2008 – The Philippine car manufacturing industry exceeded its full-year sales target of 108,000 units in 2007. This is also the first time the industry has gone past the 100,000-unit mark in a decade. Read more

Net FDI inflows reach $1.9B in
January-September

10 December 2007 – Net foreign direct investments in the first nine months of the year reached US$1.9 billion, 22.3% higher than the US$1.6 billion posted a year ago.
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Transportation strike and fishing holiday loom due to oil price hike

10 December 2007 - Several militant groups are planning to hold protest actions in response to the rising prices of petroleum products. Last weekend, oil companies again raised fuel prices, bringing the price of diesel to P38.45 per liter. Read more

Bill seeks to protect cab passengers

A bill seeking to protect the taxi-riding public from holdups, theft, and overcharging has been filed in the House of Representatives by Caloocan Rep. Mary Cajayon.
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Biodiesel improves air quality in metropolis

5 December 2007 – Judging from data produced by the Asian Institute of Petroleum Studies, the mandatory use of a 1% biodiesel blend in diesel products sold in the country beginning in May has significantly improved air quality in Metro Manila. Read more

RP coal demand to rise to 12.25M metric tons in 2008

29 November 2007 – Based on the Philippine Energy Plan, the amount of coal needed to fuel the production needs of the country will reach 12.25 million metric tons next year. Of that amount, only a third will be sourced locally; the remaining two-thirds will be imported from China, Indonesia, and Australia. Read more

Strong peso cuts gas prices by P2 a liter

19 November 2007 – The impressive performance of the Philippine peso against the U.S. dollar lowered the cost of gas by P2 a liter in January to October, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. Read more

Domestic air travel lifted by cheap fares

15 November 2007 – According to data released by the Civil Aeronautics Board, domestic air travel soared in January to September, boosted by airlines' aggressive marketing campaigns. Read more

Gov't won't resort to oil tariff cut

8 November 2007 – To mitigate the impact of surging world oil prices, the government will resort to long-term measures instead of oil tariff cuts. According to the Cabinet committee on tariff-related matters, the proposed oil tariff reduction would lead to a reduction in pump prices by P0.23 a liter, but the government would stand to lose P450 million in revenues. Read more

P1B to be released to mitigate hunger

7 November 2007 – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has ordered the Department of Budget and Management to release an additional P1 billion this year to fund the government's antihunger and antipoverty programs. The immediate release of the funds was ordered by the president during the Anti-Hunger Task Force meeting held today at the Manila Hotel. Read more

BPO industry upbeat despite negative effect of rising peso

6 November 2007 – According to the Business Processing Association of the Philippines, the umbrella organization of call centers and other IT-enabled service providers in the country, the strengthening peso has had a negative effect on the industry's revenue margins. Read more

Tourist arrivals hit 2.2 million in January-September

5 November 2007 – The number of tourists that visited the Philippines in January to September reached 2,265,993, 8.6% better than the 2,085,783 visitors in the same period last year. This means the Department of Tourism is only 734,000 tourists shy of its 3 million target for the year.
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Air travel between ASEAN capitals fully liberalized by December 2008

2 November 2007 – The ten members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations are set to sign an agreement that will fully liberalize air travel between their capitals by December 2008. Read more

First CNG stations open for business

24 October 2007 – Pilipinas Shell today launched the commercial run of its “mother-daughter” refilling stations for compressed natural gas extracted from its Malampaya gas-to-power project in Palawan. Shell's main CNG station is situated in Tabangao, Batangas, while the refilling station was set up in Biñan, Laguna. Read more

Tourism receipts to hit US$4 billion this year

24 October 2007 – Philippine tourism receipts are expected to reach US$4 billion in 2007 due to the rise in the number of long-staying and high-spending visitors to the country, says the Department of Tourism. This is a substantial increase from last year, when tourism receipts from 2.84 million visitors were measured at US$2.7 billion (P135 billion). Read more

Metallic minerals production value up
58.8% in H1

23 October 2007 – According to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the production value of metallic minerals in the first half of the year rose 58.8% to P39.42 billion from P24.83 billion during the same period last year. Rising metal prices in the world market boosted the local metallic mineral output. Read more

Belgian-led consortium is highest bidder for Calaca power plant

17 October 2007 – Calaca Holdco, a consortium led by Belgian firm Suez-Tractebel SA, has won the bidding for the National Power Corporation's 600-megawatt Calaca coal-fired power plant in Batangas with a US$786.53 million offer. The Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation has confirmed that the Calaca Holdco offer bested the two other bids submitted by AES Corporation and First Gen Corporation. Read more

Hotel occupancy rate hits 74.8% in
January-August

9 October 2007 – The Department of Tourism reports that the hotel occupancy rate in Metro Manila reached 74.8% in January to August, up from 71.3% in the same period last year. This is a clear indication of the steadily increasing number of tourist arrivals. Read more

RP not ready for nuclear power—Greenpeace

5 October 2007 – Department of Energy secretary Angelo Reyes is considering tapping nuclear power to reduce the cost of electricity in the country and address future energy security concerns. Read more

NBN deal scrapped

3 October 2007 – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo yesterday told Chinese President Hu Jintao that she has decided “not to continue” the controversial national broadband network deal with the Chinese telecommunications firm ZTE Corporation. In Shanghai for a visit, President Arroyo relayed the message during a meeting with President Hu. Read more

1 October 2007 – Cebu City came in fourth in the list of most-favored emerging business process outsourcing destinations worldwide in an industry study published by global services and investment firm Tholons. Three Indian cities—Chennai, Hyderabad, and Pune—topped the list. Read more

1 October 2007 – Effective 30 September, oil companies imposed a P0.50-per-liter price hike for diesel, gasoline, and kerosene, as well as a P0.50-a-kilogram price increase for liquefied petroleum gas. The latest increases follow last week’s P0.50-a-liter adjustment in fuel prices. Crude oil has shot up to US$82 per barrel in the world market. Read more

18 September 2007 – Export firms operating in special economic zones in the country will be given reduced electricity rates to neutralize the adverse impact of the strengthening peso on their businesses. Read more

14 September 2007 – According to the results of the July 2007 Labor Force Survey released by the National Statistics Office, the country’s employment rate stood at 92.2% in July, which is just 0.3% higher than the rate a year ago. Read more

14 September 2007 – In January to July, overseas Filipino workers remitted back to the country US$8.1 billion, US$1.1 billion higher than the US$7.0 billion recorded in the same period last year. In July alone, remittances coursed through banks reached US$1.1 billion, 4.6% higher than a year ago.
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14 September 2007 – Commission on Higher Education acting chairman Romulo Neri has ordered an investigation into the agency’s P500 million Integrated Multi-Site Business Process Outsourcing-Incubation Contact Centers (BPO-ICC) project. This project was set into motion by Neri’s predecessor at the CHED, Carlito Puno. Read more