PH, Lao PDR forge new agri cooperation agreement
Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, Jr. of the Philippines and Linkham Douangsavanh, Minister of Agriculture and Forestry from Lao PDR, convened at the World Food Forum to discuss a new memorandum of understanding (MOU) aimed at enhancing agricultural collaboration.
BSP OKs $3.81B public sector foreign borrowings for Q3 2024
The policy-making Monetary Board of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas has approved USD3.81 billion in foreign borrowings for the public sector during the third quarter of 2024, marking a 36 percent increase from the USD2.81 billion approved in the same period last year.
Marcos trust rating up, Sara down
The trust and satisfaction ratings of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte took divergent paths in the October poll of Acquisition Apps Inc., owner of the biggest online market research panel in the country. The survey period showed the widening rift between the President and his VP. Marcos’ trust rating rose to 59.3 percent in the October 16-19 survey, up from 58.8 percent in September, while his satisfaction rating rose to 46.9 percent from 46.4 percent. His ratings are better in Luzon and Visayas while Mindanao, considered a bailiwick of VP Duterte, showed the highest dissatisfaction. Meanwhile, the trust rating of the VP declined to 56 percent from 56.8 percent while her satisfaction rating slipped to 48 percent from 48.7 percent.
Tiktok pledges not to air Philippine political ads
Politicians hoping to leverage TikTok to boost their campaign during next year’s electoral race will have to look at other social media platforms to do that. TikTok Philippines public policy manager Peachy Paderna said the short-form video platform won’t air political advertisements to foster an environment “that brings people together…, not divide them.”Tiktok along with Meta—Facebook, Instagram and Threads—and Google pledged support to the Commission on Elections’ campaign against misinformation and disinformation during the 2025 elections.
IMF reforms concessional lending for low-income countries
The International Monetary Fund's (IMF) Executive Board has approved significant reforms to enhance the Fund’s concessional lending facilities for low-income countries (LICs).
