The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas is pushing to close a persistent financing gap for micro, small and medium enterprises, with bank loans to the sector reaching more than P580 billion but accounting for only about 6 percent of total business lending.
Treasury bill yields rose across all maturities at Monday’s auction as the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ recent rate hike pushed borrowing costs higher and investors braced for the possibility of further monetary tightening.
Philippine inflation eased to a five-month low of 6.1 percent in August, offering some relief after prices accelerated sharply earlier this year, but the reading remained elevated enough to underscore the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ decision to raise interest rates last week.
Treasury bill yields rose across all tenors at Monday’s auction as investors priced in the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ recent rate hike and the possibility of further monetary tightening.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas on Thursday delivered a preemptive 25-basis-point rate hike and left the door open to further tightening as stubborn inflationary pressures threaten to keep prices above the central bank’s target range.
The Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) fined Pilipinas Enterprise Management Holdings Inc. (PEMHI) and Meralco PowerGen Corp. (MGen) P5.8 million for repeatedly missing reporting deadlines tied to their merger clearance, underscoring the regulator’s tougher stance on compliance with post-merger commitments.
A community‑led nature‑based restoration project is helping protect over 1,000 Ata‑Manobo residents in Sitio Patil, Barangay Gupitan, Kapalong from worsening riverbank erosion and climate‑driven hazards. Ten major flood and landslide events hit the area between 2020 and 2023, as strong currents at the Kapalong‑Maguimon river confluence wore away soil and threatened homes, farms and ancestral lands.
PLDT Inc. and Smart Communications on Friday say businesses should focus on pairing artificial intelligence with human empathy and judgment rather than rushing full‑scale automation, as generative AI reshapes customer service across industries.
Planters Products Inc. (PPI) welcomed the indictment of former agriculture secretary Leonardo Montemayor and pledged full cooperation with government prosecutors pursuing the cyber libel case over false and damaging statements against the company.