Moody’s Ratings affirmed the Philippines’ Baa2 sovereign credit rating on Monday, citing expectations that the government’s fiscal position will stabilize over the next two years despite a sharp slowdown in economic growth.
Treasury bill yields were mostly higher at Monday’s auction as investors appeared to price in the possibility of tighter monetary policy ahead of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ interest rate-setting meeting later this week.
The Philippines’ gross international reserves (GIR) fell to USD103.3 billion at the end of July from USD104.7 billion a month earlier, while the country posted a USD1.5-billion balance of payments (BOP) deficit, reflecting continued pressure from external transactions.
Digital payments accounted for nearly two-thirds of retail transactions in the Philippines last year, putting the country within its national target range and underscoring how quickly electronic payments are replacing cash in everyday commerce.
Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) is among the first banks to join Direct Debit PH, a new automated recurring payment facility championed by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to modernize the country’s payments system and accelerate the shift toward a cash-lite economy.
Grandsun Advanced Electronics (Philippines) Co. Inc. plans to hire about 5,000 workers as it expands production and begins making a new product at its LIMA Estate facility in Batangas, Trade Secretary Cristina Roque said.
Philippine chief executives remain confident about business prospects, but many companies are struggling to turn growing investments in innovation and artificial intelligence into programs that can scale across their organizations.
The Philippines is seeking to regain its position as Japan’s top banana supplier as Manila pushes for lower tariffs in the ongoing review of the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA).
Former House Speaker Martin Romualdez was arrested Monday in connection with a P7.44-billion flood control case filed by the Office of the Ombudsman against him and other officials, Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said. Remulla told reporters that authorities served the arrest warrant on Romualdez at Cardinal Santos Medical Center, where he was receiving medical care. The case involves allegations of irregularities in controversial flood control projects that have triggered a wider government investigation into public infrastructure spending. Romualdez’s arrest marks a dramatic escalation in the probe, with the Ombudsman pursuing charges against several officials over projects worth billions of pesos.