SEAFARING LEADER PHL WINS NEW IMO COUNCIL TERM By Malou Talosig-Bartolome and Lorenz Marasigan
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TEAM Philippines wins another two-year seat at the IMO Council. The Philippine delegation to the 34th IMO Assembly was led by Ambassador Teodoro L. Locsin Jr. and included officials from the Department of Foreign Affairs, Marina, Department of Transportation, Philippine Coast Guard, Department of Migrant Workers, Philippine Ports Authority, Philippine Association of Maritime Training Centers Inc., and the Maritime Academy of Asia and the Pacific. PHOTO COURTESY OF PHILIPPINE EMBASSY IN LONDON
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HE Philippines, the world’s leading supplier of seafarers, has been re-elected to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Council for the 2026–2027 biennium—affirming its leadership in global shipping and its commitment to protecting the rights and welfare of maritime workers. The Philippine Embassy in London said Manila’s re-election under Category C reflects a renewed vote of confidence from the IMO’s 176 Member States and the wider maritime community. It highlights the Philippines’s unmatched contribution as the world’s premier provider of highly skilled seafarers who power the global supply chain and keep international trade moving.
“The Philippines offers not only its membership to the Council, but its vision of a maritime world safer, more sustainable, and more equitable for all, anchored in steadfast commitment to multilateralism,” Ambassador Teodoro L. Locsin Jr., Permanent Representative to the IMO, said.
Global seafaring powerhouse
THE Philippines represents 25 percennt of the global maritime workforce, the largest nationality serving the international merchant fleet. More than 500,000 Filipino seafarers crew ships worldwide, ensuring the steady flow of goods and energy across oceans. The country has been an IMO member since 1964 and a Council member since 1997, consistently championing maritime safety, security, search and rescue, and envi-
ronmental protection.
Louder voice for seafarers–Marina
THE Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) welcomed the re-election as a stronger platform to advocate for seafarers. “It means a louder voice for seafarers, their rights, safety, and wellbeing. We raised the flag,” Administrator Sonia Malaluan said. As the maritime sector undergoes rapid transformation—from digitalization and automation to decarbonization—the Philippines’s voice has become more essential. Its election strengthens partnerships with IMO Member States and reinforces its role in building a resilient global maritime sector. Under its renewed mandate, the Philippines seeks to advance the human rights, safety, and wellbeing of seafarers as enshrined in See “Seafaring,” A12
BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business
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GROSS BORROWINGS DIP 32.1% TO ₱87.81B IN OCT www.businessmirror.com.ph
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Monday, December 1, 2025 Vol. 21 No. 54
P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 24 pages | 7 DAYS A WEEK
By Reine Juvierre S. Alberto @reine_alberto
HE government’s gross borrowings dropped sharply in October amid a steep decline in external financing, even as domestic debt uptake remained on the rise. Latest data from the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) showed gross borrowings slumped by 32.07 percent to P87.806 billion in October 2025 from P129.264 billion in the same month a year ago. Borrowings from foreign financiers plunged by 76.12 percent year-on-year to P14.756 billion from P61.800 billion.
The government obtained P49.892 billion in program loans in October 2024, but did not receive any in the same month this year. Meanwhile, domestic gross borrowings rose by 8.27 percent to P73.050 billion in October, sourced from Treasury bills (Tbills) and bonds (T-bonds), up See “Borrowings,” A12
COCO EXPORT EARNINGS SURGE TO RECORD $2.91B
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By Ada Pelonia
XPORT earnings from coconut-based products surged to a record $2.91 billion as of end-October, surpassing the value of shipments in 2024, as a supply crunch sent global prices soaring. Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that the value of coconut-based exports grew by over a third to 39.8 percent from $2.1 billion in the same period last year. Shipments of coconut oil held the lion’s share in the product
group among other products, as it leaped by 35.8 percent to $2.32 billion from $1.71 billion in the same period of 2024. The latest figures exceeded the all-time high value of coconut-based products exports and shipments of coconut oil last year at $2.6 billion and $2.22 billion, respectively, spurred by tight supply and booming demand for the crop. Historical data from the World Bank showed that the average price of coconut oil rose to $2,589 per metric ton (MT) in October. See “Coco,” A2
‘TRILLION PESO’ PROTEST SPREADS NATIONWIDE AS CLERGY AND CITIZENS DEMAND ACCOUNTABILITY Thousands of Filipinos, including members of the clergy, joined coordinated protests on Sunday to demand accountability for alleged anomalies in flood-control projects. Demonstrators urged the swift prosecution of implicated legislators, officials and construction executives—and the recovery of public funds lost to defective or non-existent projects. Security was heightened across Metro Manila as crowds gathered near major landmarks and church-led groups marched for transparency. Meanwhile up in Baguio, about a thousand protesters gathered at the Baguio Convention Center, bringing together students, artists, teachers, market vendors, jeepney drivers, seniors and environmental groups. Participants raised concerns over corruption, rising prices, displacement, unsafe infrastructure and threats to public spaces before marching toward Burnham Park, where the main program was set. NONIE REYES, ROY DOMINGO, BERNARD TESTA & MAU VICTA
Peso slide to swell peso value of $-tagged debt
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HE peso’s recent slide will result in a higher peso value of the government’s foreign-currency debts, according to National Treasurer Sharon P. Almanza. Asked whether the government is on track to lower its outstanding debt by the end of 2025 despite the recent weakening of the peso, Almanza said the projections assumed a weaker foreign exchange rate. “So it will really affect the revaluation of our foreign currency debt,” Almanza told reporters. The government aims to bring
down its outstanding debt to P17.359 trillion by the end of the year, based on an exchange rate assumption of P57 to the US dollar. However, the peso has been trading at P58 levels in the past weeks, after sinking to an alltime low of P59.17 against the US dollar on November 12. This is the lowest that the peso has ever closed, already exceeding the previous record high closing rate of P59.13 on October 28. According to local economists, the peso has been weighed down by local governance issues and
strong global demand for the greenback. Michael L. Ricafort, chief economist at Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation, told the BusinessMirror that the weaker peso makes the government’s foreign debt higher in peso terms, even if the exchange rate is still close to where it was a year ago. “[It’s] still possible, especially if anti-corruption measures/reforms and other fiscal reform measures are taken seriously,” Ricafort said, when asked if the government could still lower its outstanding debt by end-2025.
This could be achieved through reduced and more disciplined government spending, as well as increases in tax revenue collections to narrow the budget deficit in the coming months, he added. Currently, the government’s outstanding debt is at P17.455 trillion as of end-September 2025. This is down by 0.07 percent from P17.468 trillion as of end-August 2025. By the end of 2026, the government projects its total outstanding debt to reach P19.057 trillion, using a foreign exchange rate of P57. Reine Juvierre S. Alberto
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 58.7920 n JAPAN 0.3762 n UK 77.8465 n HK 7.5575 n CHINA 8.3040 n SINGAPORE 45.3432 n AUSTRALIA 38.4088 n EU 68.1752 n KOREA 0.0402 n SAUDI ARABIA 15.6728 Source: BSP (November 28, 2025)