Consumption growth to slow down–think tank By Cai U. Ordinario
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HE domestic economy, weighed down by private consumption, is expected to slow down the country’s growth next year, according to BMI Country Risk & Industry Research. BMI, a Fitch Solutions Company, said that given the GDP growth of 5.5 percent in the second quarter
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and 5.4 percent GDP growth in the first semester, it was keeping its growth forecast at 5.4 percent in 2025 and reduced its projection to 5.2 percent in 2026. The United Kingdom-based firm said consumption growth is expected to slow down. This, despite the growth of household final consumption expenditure to 5.5 percent in the second quarter of 2025, the fastest in nine quarters,
or since the first quarter of 2023 when it grew 6.3 percent. “Further acceleration in H2 [second half of] 2025 remains unlikely: a slowdown in remittances will weigh on private consumption while heightened global uncertainty will continue to chill investment,” BMI said. Private consumption is expected to post a growth of 5 percent in 2025. This will largely be due to
the projected slowdown in remittances, thanks to the 1-percent tax on remittances imposed by the Trump administration. BMI noted that 40 percent of the country’s remittances come from the United States. Apart from the tax on remittances, BMI noted the Trump administration’s clampdown on immigration as a factor that could affect inflows. See “Consumption,” A2
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H1 SUBSIDIES TO GOCCs CUT BY 21.9% TO ₧52.5B www.businessmirror.com.ph
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Monday, August 11, 2025 Vol. 20 No. 302
P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 28 pages | 7 DAYS A WEEK
By Reine Juvierre S. Alberto @reine_alberto
HE national government provided smaller subsidies to government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs) in the first semester compared to the same period last year, according to data from the Bureau of the Treasury. Latest Treasury data showed subsidies handed over to staterun corporations from January to June this year dropped by 21.88 percent to P52.498 billion from P67.206 billion recorded in the same period in 2024. The bulk of the subsidies was given to major non-financial gov-
ernment corporations, which totaled P29.660 billion during the six-month period. Of these firms, topping the list was the National Irrigation Administration (NIA), which received the highest amount of subsidies worth P17.725 billion, See “H1 subsidies,” A2
DOTR RAMPS UP BID TO BETTER BUSWAY NETWORK IN METRO By Lorenz S. Marasigan
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HE Department of Transportation (DOTr) is ramping up efforts to enhance Metro Manila’s busway network, with new stations set to open in the southern part of Edsa. Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon said that the agency is already “in talks” with stakeholders in Aseana and Double Dragon, two strategic locations situated close to the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX). When asked when the stations will be built, Dizon replied: “I think by next year.
In fact, we might finish the one near the Double Dragon building this year.” The addition of these stations is part of the government’s ongoing efforts to improve the efficiency and accessibility of the busway system, which has become a crucial part of Metro Manila’s public transportation infrastructure. Dizon said this expansion is concurrent with the government’s efforts to introduce more busway lines. He said the agency plans to draw funding from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to complete the study for the España-Quezon Avenue busway line. See “DOTR,” A2
THE ‘EAGLE’ IN SUBIC A foreman (main photo, above) explains the intensive process of painting a vessel hull to media visitors at the Hyundai Subic facility on Thursday, August 7. Inset, top left,
trainee learns the craft of welding at the Hyundai skills training center in the Agila Subic facility; and bottom left, workers walk past the steel-cutting bay at the Hyundai shipbuilding facility in Subic. Six long years after shipbuilder Hanjin left the shores of Subic, a new tenant is painting positive prospects for the long-idle 310-hectare shipyard at the Redondo Peninsula. Story below. HENRY EMPEÑO
6 yrs after Hanjin: Agila revs up Subic shipyard
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13 PRODUCTIVE YEARS A10-A11
CABUYAO’S CELEBRATION OF PROGRESS AND TRANSFORMATION
By Henry Empeño
UBIC BAY FREEPORT—Six long years after the bankrupt South Korean shipbuilder Hanjin left the shores of Subic, a new tenant is painting positive prospects for the longidle 310-hectare shipyard at the Redondo Peninsula here. Agila Subic Compass, which took over as new facility operator after US-based Cerberus Capital Management acquired the site in 2022, has rebranded the defunct shipyard for multiple use, taking in partners from diverse fields like shipbuilding, logistics, warehousing, and telecommunications. Agila Subic general manager Mark Millan said in an onsite media briefing Thursday that three years into operation, Agila has already signed in four major tenants to kickstart the transformation of the distressed facility into a new economic growth center. These include Hyundai Heavy Industries Philippines, one of
the biggest shipbuilders in the world, and the Philippine Navy, which has established its main naval operating base (NOB) within the facility. “When we started operations in 2022, we made it our commitment to transform the facility into an economically viable site that would bring in world class locators and create thousands of jobs—both direct and indirect—to Subic Bay and nearby communities, thereby contributing to the Philippines’ economic growth,” said Millan. “We are pleased to see that we are on track in achieving that vision after only three years of operations through partnerships with our locators and with support from the Philippine government,” added Millan, a native of San Antonio, Zambales and a former Philippine Navy officer. While seeking out locators from businesses other than shipbuilding, Agila Subic has retained the industrial ethos of the $1.7-billion Hanjin facility
that once boasted of more than 30,000 workers. Millan said Agila Subic expects to generate investments of up to $1 billion, some 4,000 new jobs by the end of this year, and about 10,000 workers by 2027. As of now, Hyundai has taken over the facilities vacated by Hanjin Heavy Industries in 2019, and is using the same for shipbuilding, ship repair, and construction of offshore wind platforms, he said. On the other hand, the Philippine Navy is leasing 90 hectares at the northern section of the shipyard for training, billeting, and repair maintenance services. The Navy also docks its latest naval assets, including the guided-missile frigate BRP Miguel Malvar (FFG06) that was commissioned last May, at its NOB here. Two other tenants, Subcom and V2X, have taken over some of the cavernous warehouses in the area for storage and warehousing operations, said Millan. Subcom is a leading global
manufacturer and installer of subsea fiber optics cables and communications systems, while V2X is a logistics firm listed in the New York Stock Exchange. Easily the shipyard locator with the biggest potential in terms of investment and employment is South Korea’s HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, which now employs 1,300 workers at the Agila facility and expects its workforce to reach 2,000 by the yearend. Ralph David Magno, Hyundai’s human resource manager in Subic, said the firm is now recruiting welders, fitters, painters, production engineers, and heavy equipment operators who have the skills and experience in shipbuilding. It now has 140 welder-trainees, the 10th batch so far to undergo training. Hyundai, Magno added, offers very competitive compensation packages and perks, including free board and lodging and shuttle services, ass well as health insurance upon reaching one year of service.
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 57.1970 n JAPAN 0.3890 n UK 76.8899 n HK 7.2870 n CHINA 7.9645 n SINGAPORE 44.5841 n AUSTRALIA 37.2810 n EU 66.7317 n KOREA 0.0414 n SAUDI ARABIA 15.2416 Source: BSP (August 8, 2025)