Top News

ASEAN business group urges ministers to turn gains into jobs

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ private sector is pressing economic ministers to turn years of regional integration into actual business opportunities, investments and jobs, with easier trade rules and stronger support for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) at the center of its agenda.

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iPeople targets 200,000 students with global expansion push

iPeople, the listed Yuchengco-Ayala education joint venture, is pursuing an expansion strategy built around international partnerships, new campuses and facilities, sustainability-focused programs, and deeper artificial intelligence integration as it aims to nearly triple its student population to 200,000.

Agriculture

DA backs industry P210 hog floor price proposal

The Department of Agriculture is backing a proposed P210-per-kilo floor price for live hogs as farmgate prices plunge to P120 to P160 in some areas, but Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr. said the government has no legal authority to impose such a floor price for now.

Corporate

DigiPlus turns first Brazil revenue; maps more expansion beyond Asia

DigiPlus Interactive Corp. has started generating revenues from its Brazil operations, marking a key milestone in the firm’s push beyond Asia.

Banking & Insurance

St. Peter Promotes Advance Life Planning for Families

St. Peter Life Plan Inc. is encouraging Filipino families to consider memorial arrangements as part of their broader financial and emergency preparedness, saying advance planning can help reduce uncertainty and ease decision-making during difficult times.
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Markets

Hawkish Fed, $100 oil keep peso, PSEi under pressure

The Philippine peso and stocks could remain volatile this week as a hawkish US Federal Reserve, crude oil prices above USD100 a barrel and heightened Middle East tensions keep investors cautious.

Travel

Damosa expands Samal hospitality push as hotel sales surge

Damosa Land Inc. is stepping up its hospitality investments in Samal Island, with its upcoming 100-room TRYP by Wyndham Samal already 90 percent sold as the developer positions for rising tourism demand and better connectivity with Davao City.
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Energy

AboitizPower signs 15-year power deal with LVECA

Aboitiz Power Corporation has secured 15-year baseload power supply agreements with the Luzon and Visayas Electric Cooperatives Aggregation (LVECA). Through Therma Luzon (222.5 MW to 19 Luzon co-ops) and Therma Visayas (48.2 MW to 10 Visayas co-ops), it shares in the total 565.5 MW awarded via NEA-supported joint competitive selection process (CSP). Aggregation replaces separate biddings, boosting co-ops’ market leverage and supply stability. Covers key provinces across both islands. For AboitizPower, this follows its 2025 LECA deal, expanding strategic footprint. Long-term terms mitigate disruption risks, strengthening co-ops’ operations and service reliability for households.

Transport & Communications

Aznar Shipping earmarks P504M for 2 RoRo vessels in 2027

CEBU-BASED Aznar Shipping Corp. will invest P504 million to acquire two new roll-on/roll-off passenger vessels next year, backed by proceeds from its planned initial public offering.
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Property

Federal Land uses Kaizen to reshape projects

Federal Land Inc. is bringing the Japanese principle of Kaizen, or continuous improvement, into its Philippine residential business as a long-term partnership with Japanese real estate and lifestyle companies moves from one project to a broader development strategy.

Environment

Filipinos unite in ICC drive vs marine litter 

Over 103,000 people across all 17 regions joined this year’s International Coastal Cleanup, collecting more than 466,000 kg of waste from 369 coastal, river and underwater sites. Turnout and recovery nearly matched 2025 levels, reflecting steady public backing for marine litter prevention and sound waste management.
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Technology

Starlink seeks NTC nod for two data transmission roles under Konektadong Pinoy rules

Starlink Internet Services Philippines Inc. has filed applications with the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to operate in two key data transmission segments: Core/Backbone Network Provider and International Gateway Facility Provider.

Health & Science

Underwater solar cells reach 10 meters deep

A solar panel that works underwater sounds like the sort of thing a fish might invent after getting tired of waiting for Wi-Fi. But researchers have now shown that the idea is more than a science-fiction prop.
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Opinion

We have basketball at home

Filipinos have never really needed an invitation to love basketball. Give us a hoop, a ball, and approximately four square meters of concrete and we will figure out the rest. There is no requirement for proper flooring, air-conditioning, seating, parking, or even a complete understanding of the rules. Someone will keep score. Someone will call a phantom foul. Someone will bend the rules to ridiculous proportions in plain sight. So when the National Basketball Association brought basketball to the Philippines once again, nobody complained. After all, Filipinos have been quite willing to make room for basketball for decades. We simply cleared a little more space.

Fed moves in Washington, Filipino wallets feel the pinch

When the US Federal Reserve, the world’s most influential central bank, moves interest rates, Manila can feel the ripple, even 8,500 miles away. The effects do not arrive all at once, and they do not affect everyone in the same way. But eventually, they can show up in the mortgage, car loan, credit card bill, and even the grocery budget.

The great Philippine parking expedition

There are two kinds of Filipino motorists: those looking for a parking space and those who have already found one and are determined not to tell you where it is. Parking has become one of the more demanding sports in modern Philippine life. It requires patience, spatial awareness, quick reflexes, and, occasionally, the ability to stare at another motorist for several seconds without saying anything that could get you into trouble.

When 16 becomes a constitutional question

A Constitution is not a calculator. Yet when constitutional questions become uncomfortable, there is always a temptation to reach for one.