ROTARY CLUB OF MANILA JOURNALISM AWARDS
2006 National Newspaper of the Year 2011 National Newspaper of the Year 2013 Business Newspaper of the Year 2017 Business Newspaper of the Year 2019 Business Newspaper of the Year 2021 Pro Patria Award PHILIPPINE STATISTICS AUTHORITY 2018 Data Champion
BusinessMirror
EJAP JOURNALISM AWARDS
BUSINESS NEWS SOURCE OF THE YEAR (2017, 2018, 2019, 2020) DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
2018 BANTOG MEDIA AWARDS
A broader look at today’s business Tuesday, July 23, 2024 Vol. 19 No. 280
Q
www.businessmirror.com.ph
P. nationwide | sections pages | 7 DAYS A WEEK
MARCOS JR. BANS POGOS, SETS END-2024 DEADLINE PBBM touts public infra, econ reforms in 3rd Sona
G
OVERNMENT accomplishments, which helped lift 2.5 million workers out of poverty and were “felt” by the masses, became the highlight of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s third State of the Nation Address (Sona). The chief executive started his one hour and 22 minute SONA speech at the Batasang Pambansa Plenary Hall by citing his “hard lesson” on how the countr y’s improvements in economic figures “means nothing to a Filipino, who is confronted by the price of rice at 45 to 65 pesos per kilo.” “My dear countrymen, I know you feel it. We do not ignore your grievances and sufferings,” Marcos said. He cited government efforts to control rice prices by increasing the production of the food staple by boosting support to farmers, going after hoarders and smugglers, and extending the reduced tariff rates to facilitate the importation of rice, corn, and pork until the end of this year. Infrastructure projects such as stage two of the MalitubogMaridagao Irrigation Project, Cabaruan Solar-Powered Pump Irrigation Project in Quirino, Isabela, and the Jalaur River Multipurpose Project sa Iloilo will also help ensure long-term food security, he noted. “Since this is the main grievance of the people, we will not stop fighting poverty, and in finding a remedy to bring the price of goods back to normal—especially rice,” Marcos said. The increased availability of affordable food, he said, will be augmented by the government’s nationwide rollout of the “Walang Gutom 2027” by the end of the year. “The program will go on until we feed the one million most foodpoor families by 2027.” He said the poverty rate in the country has significantly dropped to 15.5 percent, down from 18 percent in 2021.
Connectivity, energy RAIN, REIGN AND RALLY AT 2024 SONA Despite the pouring rain, the 3rd State of the Nation Address (Sona) of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on July 22, 2024, unfolded with fervent support and vocal protests. Senators, representatives, cabinet members, and guests arrived at the Batasang Pambansa complex, showcasing their best Filipiniana attire for the opening of the 3rd Regular Session of the 19th Congress. Meanwhile, along Commonwealth Avenue Quezon City, militant groups advocated for the rights of women and jeepney drivers, with police on standby to maintain order amid the rising tension. In stark contrast, administration supporters defied the weather, rallying enthusiastically to express their unwavering loyalty to President Marcos. RTV MALACAÑANG, NONIE REYES, ROY DOMINGO, NONOY LACZA, JOVIE MARIE N. DELA CRUZ
ASIDE from agriculture, Marcos said he administration has also See “Infra,” A
By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla
P
RESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Monday announced a ban on all Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (Pogo) nationwide, effective at the end of the yearend, saying it was time to end the evils associated with them.
Toward the tail end of his State of the Nation Address (Sona), the President instructed the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) “to wind up and cease operations of Pogos by the end of the year,” and directed the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) in coordination with economic managers, to help affected countrymen find jobs. “This will solve many of the
problems that we encountered, but it will not solve all of them,” he conceded. T h e P re s i d e n t m a d e t h e a n n o u n ce m e n t , w h i c h d re w overwhelming applause at Batasang Pambansa Plenary Session Hall, amid the public clamor to stop Pogo operations, which critics have blamed for cases of serious crimes, though regulators have pointed out the crimes
PHL STEPS UP DRIVE FOR MORE FREE-TRADE DEALS, EYES CPTPP By Andrea E. San Juan @andreasanjuan
T
HE Philippines is expanding its efforts to forge more free trade deals as it eyes to “formally” apply with the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) this year, among others. “Another promising [free trade agreement] FTA is our interest in the CPTPP. So we’re pursuing that and we’re eyeing to hopefully at least formally apply [with] that this year,” Trade Undersecretary Allan B. Gepty told reporters at a recent briefing. “It’s a good FTA for the Philippines in the sense that once we become a party [to] the CPTPP, our value added...will be of course...[the presence there of] Chile,
Mexico, Peru and also Canada. And now the UK is there…with more reason that we need to join, so that our reach can at least be more comprehensive,” added Gepty, partly in Filipino. The CPTPP, as explained on the website of the government of Canada, is a free trade agreement between Canada and 10 other countries in the Indo-Pacific. The agreement is in force among: Canada, Australia, Brunei, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. On July 16, 2023, CPTPP parties signed an “Accession Protocol” with the United Kingdom. “The CPTPP is a trading bloc of 580 See “PHL,” A
See “Marcos,” A
PESO EXCHANGE RATES Q US 58.3480 Q JAPAN 0.3707 Q UK 75.3915 Q HK 7.4705 Q CHINA 8.0261 Q SINGAPORE 43.3814 Q AUSTRALIA 38.9940 Q EU 63.5293 Q SAUDI ARABIA 15.5562 Source: BSP (July 22, 2024)