Auto industry to shoot for 500k units for ’25 By Andrea E. San Juan
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HE Philippine auto industry will shoot for another record of 500,000 units of vehicles this year as it banks on newly-launched models and anticipates the introduction of new models, according to the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (Campi). “Campi is confident in setting the aspirational figure of 500,000 units sale as its target for this year. Newly-rolled-out models and anticipated introduction of new models are some of the factors that will contribute to achieving this target,” Campi President
WORLD » A12
TENSIONS RISE AS ZELENSKYY AND TRUMP EXCHANGES HARP CRITICISM AMID UKRAINE WAR NEGOTIATIONS
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Rommel Gutierrez said in a statement on Thursday. In 2024, a joint report by Campi and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA) showed that the auto industry sold 467,252 units of cars. The Campi-TMA report showed that cars sold in January 2025 reached 37,604 units, 10.4 percent higher than the 34,060 units sold in the first month of 2024. Compared to the previous month, however, car sales plunged by 10.6 percent to 37,604 units from the 42,044 units sold in December 2024. In terms of vehicle segments, the auto industry group reported that commercial vehicles grew by
16.6 percent with 29,875 units sold in January 2024, compared to the 25,614 units sold in the same period last year. Meanwhile the passenger car segment declined by 8.5 percent, selling only 7,729 units compared to the 8,446 units sold in the first month of 2024. Under the commercial vehicles, all categories except medium-duty trucks and buses posted increases in vehicle sales. The Light Commercial Vehicle category cornered the larger piece of the pie in January 2025, with a 74.81-percent share, selling 22,350 units. This was followed by Asian Utility Vehicle, with 22.42 percent share as it sold 6,698 units;
Light-Duty Trucks and Buses, 497 units; Medium-Duty Trucks and Buses, 261 units; and Heavy Duty Trucks and Buses, 69 units. Across car brands, Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. led the pack, selling 18,078 units in January 2025. This accounts for 48.07 percent share of the local auto market. This was followed by Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. with 7,374 units sold, 19.61 percent share; Nissan Philippines, Inc., with 2,366 units sold, 6.29 percent share; Suzuki Phils.,Inc. with 1,781 units sold, 4.74 percent share, and Ford Motor Company Phils. Inc. with 1,577 units sold, See “Auto,” A2
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Friday, February 21, 2025 Vol. 20 No. 132
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DA lists 12 regions with sharp rice price hikes
By Reine Juvierre S. Alberto @reine_alberto
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HE Philippines’s balance of payments (BOP) posted a deficit of $4.1 billion in January, the widest in 11 years, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said. Figures from the BSP also showed that the January deficit was wider than the $740 million recorded last year. The BSP’s net foreign exchange operations and drawdowns by the national government on its foreign currency deposits with the BSP to meet its external debt obligations led to the BOP deficit. Month-on-month, the BOP deficit posted in January 2025 is bigger than the $1.508-billion shortfall in December 2024. The BOP is a summary of the Philippines’s economic transactions with the rest of the world for a specific period. A BOP deficit position means there are fewer exports or inflows than imports or outflows, while a surplus means there are more. The BOP deficit widened amid increased market volatility largely brought about by possible protectionist policies or measures by US President Donald Trump as well as other geopolitical risks, according to Michael L. Ricafort, chief economist at Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC). Jonathan Ravelas, senior adviser at Reyes Tacandong & Co., said the higher deficit can be “concerning” as it indicates a substantial outflow of foreign currency. This can put pressure on the Philippines’s foreign exchange reserves and the peso weakening, he added. “However, it is important to consider the context, such as the national government’s foreign debt payments and foreign exchange operations amid a volatile peso exchange rate.” See “BOP,” A5
By Ada Pelonia
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PESOS FOR PESTS Armed with containers and determination, residents of Addition Hills, Mandaluyong City, join an unconventional anti-dengue campaign—capturing mosquitos, dead or
alive, for a token bounty. With dengue cases surging across Metro Manila, village chief Carlito Cernal leads the charge, offering P1 for every five mosquitos or larvae turned in. The initiative follows a 40-percent spike in dengue cases nationwide, prompting urgent action in densely populated areas. AP/AARON FAVILA
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HE Department of Agriculture (DA) said 12 regions in the country, including a major rice producer, saw extraordinary price hikes of the staple, with the prices as of December 2024 described as still “elevated.” The areas with price spikes were given priority in allocations for cheaper rice under the recent declaration of a food emergency. The resolution justifying the declaration had noted that “the price levels of regular milled rice [RMR] and well-milled rice [WMR] were respectively 19 percent and 20 percent higher compared to the period before the price spikes in July 2023.” The agency identified areas affected by the surge in rice prices along with their corresponding monthly rice allocations. On the list is Western Visayas, one of the country’s top rice-producing regions. Under Department Circular (DC) 4, an initial allocation of See “DA,” A2
REMULLA TELLS MALAY LGU: CUT BORACAY FEES By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo Special to the BusinessMirror
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HE main white beach in Boracay Island, Malay, Aklan was named among the Best of the Best Beaches in Asia for 2025 in Tripadvisor’s Travel Choice Awards for 2025. Attracting some 2.08 million visitors last year, though 2 percent less than in 2023, Boracay ranked fourth on the list, which was topped by Banana Beach in Phuket. Nacpan Beach in El Nido, Palawan also made the list, and placed eighth among the 10 beaches ranked. As this developed, the Malay government will likely be forced to cut its visitor and municipal fees starting this year, after being dealt the hammer blow by Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla, who led a meeting to discuss the fees with Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco, Aklan Gov. Jose Enrique “Joen”
Miraflores, Malay Mayor Frolibar Bautista, and private stakeholders’ groups from Manila and Boracay. “Secretary Remulla gave the mayor a two-week deadline to either reduce the fees for island hopping, picnicking, and snorkeling or impose a moratorium on them,” said a BusinessMirror source who participated in the meeting, held on Monday at the Philippine International Convention Center. “[Remulla] also shared an important lesson from his past experience, noting that Bataan was once more prosperous than Cavite. However, as Bataan’s local government became overly restrictive and failed to collaborate with stakeholders, businesses started relocating to Cavite, reversing the economic dynamic,” the source added.
‘Tense’ meeting
BORACAY visitors pay a terminal fee of P150 per person, an environmental fee of P150 (domestic tourists) or (P300 foreign tourists),
and P50 for a boat to ferry them from Caticlan to Boracay (v.v). Aside from these fees, visitors also pay a number of fees, based on several Malay ordinances: P30 convenience fee for using the e-Boracay app, P100 snorkeling fee; while tour guides pay the LGU an undetermined amount for island hopping and picnic activities for guests. Two separate sources speaking on background described the meeting, which lasted about 45 minutes, as “somewhat tense, but there were no direct confrontations or heated exchanges.” Also, “It was stern with a little pushback [from Bautista], but in the end there was no other option but to cooperate.” Another source noted that “[Miraflores] expressed willingness right away [to have the fees reduced or removed]. But [Bautista] worried about where [the LGU] will get its funds if he removed some fees/taxes.” One source intimated that “Remulla was See “Remulla,” A5
NOTICE OF FILING OF APPLICATION/S FOR ALIEN EMPLOYMENT PERMIT/S (AEP/S) Notice is hereby given that the following companies/Employers have filed with this Regional Office application/s for Alien Employment Permit/s: ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.
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AB LEISURE EXPONENT, INC. 5/f Sm Megamall Bldg. D, J Vargas, Wack-wack Greenhills, City Of Mandaluyong
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Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin language. Salary Range: Php 90,000 - Php 149,999
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PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 58.1170 n JAPAN 0.3837 n UK 73.1519 n HK 7.4729 n CHINA 7.9859 n SINGAPORE 43.2933 n AUSTRALIA 36.8694 n EU 60.5753 n KOREA 0.0404 n SAUDI ARABIA 15.4966 Source: BSP (February 20, 2025)