BSP: PHL may hit target GDP for the year By VG Cabuag
T CHRISTMAS BY THE LAKE Christmas light displays, holiday-themed installations, activities and entertainment—these are on offer at Taguig City’s Christmas village, which is now open daily from 5 pm until midnight. Taguig City Mayor Lani Cayetano and Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano graced the opening of the city’s Christmas village on Wednesday night (November 30, 2022). NONIE REYES
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HE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas underscored the resilience of the Philippine economy after its gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 7.6 percent during the third quarter of the year. “The robust expansion recorded for the third quarter of 2022 places the Philippines in a strong position to meet its target GDP growth rate of 6.5 to 7.5 percent this year,” BSP Gov-
ernor Felipe M. Medalla said. The latest GDP growth rate marks the sixth consecutive quarter of economic expansion after pandemic-induced contractions between the first quarter of 2020 to the first quarter of 2021. “The favorable growth outcome shall also provide the BSP the flexibility to maneuver as it acts to bring inflation back to the target while helping the national government steer the economy towards a durable recovery,” Medalla said.
The central bank has increased its benchmark interest rates by a cumulative 300 basis points since May 2022 to anchor inflation expectations amid price pressures stemming from local and global developments. In line with its mandate of ensuring price and financial stability, the BSP stands ready to adjust its monetary policy settings and is reassured by the timely implementation of nonmonetary interventions meant to address supply-side inflation pressures, it said.
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Friday, December 2, 2022 Vol. 18 No. 51
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GROWTH DOWN SHARPLY By Samuel P. Medenilla sam_medenilla
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ISING inflation and a slowdown in economic growth worldwide dragged down the real value of wages of “tens and millions of workers,” according to a new International Labor Organization (ILO) study. In its “Global Wage Report 2022-2023: The Impact of Inflation and Covid-19 [novel coronavirus disease] on wages and purchasing power,” ILO said global monthly wages fell in real terms to minus 0.9 percent in the first half of the year. It noted this was the first time this century that real global wage growth has been negative. The labor arm of the United Nations attributed the trend to several factors including the war in Ukraine, pandemic, international economic slowdown and energy crisis. ILO Director-General Gilbert F. Houngbo expressed concern over the trend, which he said could lead to the rise in income inequality, poverty and even trigger economic and civil unrest. See “ILO” A2
HOUSE PANEL CLEARS P250-B MAHARLIKA WEALTH FUND BILL By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz
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PIYESTA PERYA A Carnival-themed fiesta greets visitors to the SumBingTik Festival at the intersecting barangays of Santo Niño and Santa Rosa in Cainta, Rizal. The festival originally focused on the town's native delicacies (suman, bibingka at latik), but two years since the lockdown, the Cainteños took it a notch higher, elevating their creativity to wow the crowd in the two-day fiesta. They wanted this to be more exciting and bigger every year as it brings local and foreign tourists alike. Now on its eighth year, the festival will end in the new year. BERNARD TESTA
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HE House Committee on Banks and Financial Intermediaries on Thursday approved the proposed law of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. creating the P250-billion Maharlika Wealth Fund. The committee approved House Bill 6398, filed by Speaker Martin G. Romualdez, after the panel adopted and passed the proposed amendments of the technical working group headed by Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda. Under the bill, the four GFIs—to be known as the founding GFIs—are mandated to invest equity with a com-
bined total of P250 billion to start up the fund. The Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) will provide an initial investment of P125 billion, the Social Security System and Land Bank of the Philippines will each invest P50 billion, and the Development Bank of the Philippines, P25 billion. The bill also mandates the national government through the Treasury of the Philippines to provide P25 billion as investment. As an annual contribution to the fund, the measure mandates—through the BSP—foreign currency equivalent of 10 percent of the remittances See “House,” A2
Foreign chambers target $128B in FDI by ’30, mostly for energy By Andrea E. San Juan
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HE Joint Foreign Chambers (JFC) targets to generate $128 billion worth of foreign direct investments (FDI) by 2030, and noted that majority of these might be poured into the Energy sector. “We set the target to $50 billion [in 2020] and now it’s at $78 billion. We have raised it. Make it a total of $128 billion by the end of 2030,” American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines Inc. (AmCham) Executive Director Ebb Hinchliffe
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said at the press briefing for the 11th Arangkada Philippines Forum on Thursday. I n a j o i nt s t at e m e nt , t h e seven members of the JFC said they expect the strong economic performance of the Philippines to continue on the back of the recent undertaking of reforms and policy directions that they believe “can provide significant opportunities for foreign investment, job creation, and improved services.” On the “game-changing” liberalization reforms long-advocated
for by the seven business groups and its partner Philippine business groups, the JFC said these are: the amendments to the Foreign Investments Act, Retail Trade Liberalization Act, and Public Service Act. The foreign business groups are also banking on the reforms to develop “important” sectors of the economy such as the Creative Industries Development Act and the Electric Vehicles Development Act (EVIDA). See “Foreign,” A2
n japan 0.4101 n UK 68.2515 n HK 7.2471 n CHINA 7.9795 n singapore 41.5764 n australia 38.4074 n EU 58.9129 n KOREA 0.0435 n SAUDI arabia 15.0567 Source: BSP (December 1, 2022)