A broader look at today’s business www.businessmirror.com.ph
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Wednesday, December 4, 2024 Vol. 20 No. 56
P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 22 pages | 7 DAYS A WEEK
APPRECIATION FOR FRIENDS
Demand for PHL goods in Dec drives freight rate hikes
END-OCT DEBT EXCEEDS P 16T AS PESO WEAKENS
By Reine Juvierre S. Alberto
The BusinessMirror and the ALC Group recently hosted the “Envoys & Expats Appreciation Night” at the Hilton Manila to highlight the key role of diplomatic missions and business expatriates in promoting peace and progress among peoples, especially with the Philippines’s closest allies and economic partners. In top photo, BusinessMirror and ALC Group Chairman D. Edgard A. Cabangon and BusinessMirror Publisher T. Anthony C. Cabangon lead the ceremonial toast with guests as the night’s highlight. In photo at left, Chairman Ed Cabangon (second from left) and Publisher Anton Cabangon (right) present a token of appreciation to the event’s guest speaker, Energy Secretary Raphael P.M. Lotilla, who was represented by Undersecretary Rowena Cristina Guevarra (third from left). Most of the foreign missions were eager to hear from DOE updates on the energy roadmap, especially in renewables. Also in photo are BM’s President Benjamin V. Ramos (left) and Editor in chief Lourdes M. Fernandez (second from right). Two dozen diplomatic missions were represented in the Appreciation Night, meant to manifest the ALC Media Group’s commitment to the legacy of BusinessMirror founder Antonio L. Cabangon Chua, former Philippine Ambassador to Laos. BERNARD TESTA
@reine_alberto
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HE weakening of the Philippine peso has pushed the national government’s outstanding debt to breach the P16-trillion mark as of the end of October 2024. Latest data from the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) showed the government’s outstanding debt reached P16.020 trillion as of end-October, up by 0.8 percent from the end-September level of P15.898 trillion. The BTr said the valuation impact of the peso depreciation against the US dollar, from P56.017 at end-September to P58.198 at end-October, drove the country’s debt to increase. Year-on-year, the outstanding debt jumped by 10.6 percent from P14.480 trillion, of which 67.98 percent comprise domestic debt while external obligations account for 32.02 percent. External debt increased by 3.5 percent to P5.130 trillion as of end-October from last month’s P4.957 trillion as the foreign exchange movements added P152.90 billion to external debt. The government also availed itself of P20.47 billion in net foreign loans. “The impact of peso depreciation against the US dollar has increased external debt by P193.00 billion; however, this has been tempered by the P40.10 billion effect of favorable third-currency movements relative to the US dollar,” the BTr said. External debt rose by 12.1 percent year-on-year from P4.578 trillion. Since the start of the year, external obligations grew by 11.6 percent from end-December’s P4.598-trillion level. Government securities, such as global bonds, worth P2.710
By Andrea E. San Juan @andreasanjuan
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EM AND for Philippine goods during December is driving freight rate hikes and creating space constraints for long-haul shipments particularly bound to Europe and the United States, according to Dimerco, a global logistics services provider. “Seasonal demand in the Philippines during December is driving rate increases and creating space constraints for long-haul shipments,” Dimerco’s Asia Pacific Freight Report for December 2024 noted. For goods being transported through ships, the report noted that upcoming holidays to watch
out for in the country include December 24 and 25 (Christmas) and December 30 and 31 as these “may have limited staffing during the period.” Dimerco noted t hat ocean freight rate from the Philippines to Asia is stable, while shipments to Europe and the United States may be transported at higher costs due to rising rates. In the case of Philippine cargo being shipped to Asia by sea, supply is more than demand while shipments to Europe and the United States are at a tight capacity, meaning pre-arrangement of space is needed as space gets tight. See “Demand,” A2
GROWTH GOALS A TOUGH CLIMB, SAY ECONOMISTS By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario
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HE lack of a comprehensive strategy that allows the Philippines to address global headwinds and exploit opportunities at the same time will make it difficult for the administration to reach its growth goals, economists said Tuesday. In the years following 2020, the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Philippine economy enjoyed robust growth, even exceeding its historical GDP average of 6 percent in 2022 when the economy grew
7.6 percent. However, this growth was fueled mainly by what Ateneo de Manila University economist Leonardo Lanzona Jr. said are unsustainable strategies that caused the country to keep trailing its neighbors. “These trends are related in such a way that a comprehensive strategy can be designed to effectively address all challenges and exploit opportunities at the same time,” Lanzona told BusinessMirror. “Unfortunately, we have not seen such a comprehensive strategy from the government. Instead, all we see are
infrastructure and the continuous f low of social protection that are not sustainable,” he added. On Monday, the Development Budget Coord ination Committee (DBCC) adjusted the government’s growth targets to 6 to 6.5 percent this year and 6 to 8 percent in 2025 to 2028. (See: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2024/12/03/ t y phoons- d im-hopes- of7-gdp-growth/) Lanzona, however, called this a feeble attempt from the administration to cover up the See “Growth,” A2
See “Debt,” A2
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 58.7440 n JAPAN 0.3927 n UK 74.3523 n HK 7.5492 n CHINA 8.0759 n SINGAPORE 43.6986 n AUSTRALIA 38.0132 n EU 61.6695 n KOREA 0.0418 n SAUDI ARABIA 15.6375 Source:
BSP (3 December 2024)