Context Dispatch

More than 200 representatives from government, industry, and academia in Japan and the Philippines convened for the Space Economy Co-Creation Symposium, jointly hosted by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and the Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA).

Building activity sharply contracted in September as the number of approved construction permits plunged 25 percent to 11,746, Philippine Statistics Authority data showed, signaling mounting investor unease amid the ongoing flood-control controversy affecting several growth corridors.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday accepted the voluntary resignations of Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin and Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman after their implication in a flood control anomaly, signaling a swift shake-up in Malacañang. Press Officer Claire Castro announced that Finance Secretary Ralph Recto will step in as Executive Secretary, while Budget Undersecretary Rolando Toledo has been named Officer-in-Charge of the Department of Budget and Management. To fill the vacuum at Finance, Presidential Adviser on Economic Affairs Frederick Go will take over Recto’s former post, marking a rapid realignment of the administration’s top economic managers.

The government has confiscated more than P3.5 million worth of substandard steel products since the start of the year, tightening its crackdown on unsafe...

Australia has pledged AU$3 million (P115.9 million) in humanitarian assistance to support the Philippines’ response to Typhoons Tino and Uwan.