Palace suspends fare hike for public land transpo By Samuel P. Medenilla & Lorenz S. Marasigan
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ONCERNED over how the newly approved fare hike for all land public utility vehicles (PUV) will affect commuters, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has ordered the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to suspend the implementation of the measure for now. Citing the economic impact of the ongoing Middle East crisis, which resulted in higher pump and rice prices, the chief executive said the implementation of the higher fares will be temporarily deferred.
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IRAN VOWS REVENGE FOR ALI LARIJANI AS TRUMP SAYS WAR MAY END SOON
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“You know, when I woke up this morning, I saw the headlines and what was being talked about was the approved fare hike for our passengers. In my opinion, since we still have problems due to the war in the Middle East, maybe this is not the time to increase fares for our countrymen,” Marcos said in Filipino. The Department of Transportation (DOTr) said on Wednesday it will implement Mr. Marcos’s directive to suspend pending fare increases for public utility vehicles. In a statement, the DOTr said it is preparing a package of relief measures including free rides for passengers and toll discounts, the lat-
ter after Transportation Secretary Giovanni Lopez held talks with toll operators. The department added it is fasttracking the release of fuel subsidies for qualified drivers and operators. “The DOTr and all its attached agencies will continue to act swiftly to ensure that all possible assistance and support are immediately extended to commuters, drivers, and transport operators,” the department said. The suspension covers fare hikes for land transport modes only. It does not extend to the Level 8 fuel surcharge that the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) approved Tuesday, and
the Maritime Industry Authority’s (Marina) memo on the same charges for vessels. When sought for comment, transport group Manibela President Mar Valbuena was scathing, sarcastically praising Mr. Marcos as “napakabait, napakabuti [so, so good] for suspending increases that had not even taken effect. “How kind, how good of the President for not even thinking about the fare increase. However, the fare increase they gave us is garbage. A one-peso increase won’t even get you anywhere,” he said. “To our beloved President, you are so good— See “Transpo,” A2
BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business
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‘GLOBAL HEADWINDS TO CUT CAPITAL EXPANSION’ www.businessmirror.com.ph
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Thursday, March 19, 2026 Vol. 21 No. 158
P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 20 pages | 7 DAYS A WEEK
By Andrea E. San Juan
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SLEW of risks outside the country’s borders may keep bankers’ hands in their pockets, thereby tempering the pace of expansion of resources held by the Philippine financial system, according to analysts.
The growth of loans and investments could also be placed under strain by increasing prices of oil and energy costs, putting upward pressure on inflation and interest rates, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said. What’s at stake is the total resources held by the Philippine financial system, which rose to P36.33 trillion as of January, as reported recently by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). Based on central bank data, combined funds and assets of banks (excluding those held by the BSP) and non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs) increased by 7.29 percent to P36.33 trillion as of the end of the first month of the year, from P33.86 trillion in January 2025. The year-on-year growth in financial system resources reflects “solid deposit inflows, steady loan expansion, and banks holding more investments amid still‑high interest rates,” according to Jonathan L. See “Headwinds,” A2
GENERATIONS IN DEVOTION The Diaz-Taguba family of Barangay San Roque upholds a longstanding Holy Week tradition through the Pabasa ng Pasyong Mahal ng Panginoong Hesus Kristo, a continuous chant narrating Christ’s passion. The annual observance began on Tuesday and concluded Wednesday at 3 p.m., drawing cantors from various barangays who took turns in solemn recitation. Among them, the oldest participant, aged 90, and the youngest, 10-year-old Carl Nazarene Nuncio, reflect the enduring passage of this sacred skill across generations. For the past 16 years, the current custodians of the Diaz-Taguba family’s religious images and traditions have faithfully organized the pabasa, preserving a vital expression of Filipino faith and cultural heritage. BERNARD TESTA
‘Wages must keep pace with commuting costs’ MIDEAST WAR SEEN PUSHING By Justine Xyrah Garcia
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FTER a fresh round of fare hikes, labor groups are making it clear: if commuting costs are moving up, wages cannot stay stuck. Several labor groups on Wednesday renewed calls for an across-theboard pay increase, saying workers will once again absorb the brunt of rising prices following the latest increase in public transport fares. The Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (Sentro) and the Federation of Free Workers (FFW) said the fare adjustment was justified, noting that transport drivers and operators are among the first to feel the impact of surging fuel costs. But they stressed that relief should not stop
at the transport sector. Sentro Secretary General Josua Mata urged Congress to prioritize the proposed P200 across-theboard daily wage increase for minimum wage earners, as this would help cushion workers from the ripple effects of higher transport and commodity prices. “This will further erode real wages that have stagnated for years. Workers are being squeezed from all sides—higher prices, stagnant pay, and no relief in sight…A wage increase is not just urgent—it is necessary,” Mata told the BusinessMirror. He added that a wage hike should form part of a “comprehensive government response” that will protect “incomes, stabilizes prices, and ensures that workers are not left to
carry the burden alone.” The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) also urged Congress to convene a special session to deliberate and pass the propose P200 legislated wage hike. “There have been successive increases in oil prices, then fare hikes follow, food prices go up, but workers’ wages are fixed. If workers need to render overtime just to get their families by because of the four-day work week and because goods are so expensive, then Congress and the Senate should also be ready to render overtime to pass a wage increase,” TUCP Party-list Representative Raymond Democrito C. Mendoza said in a statement. For its part, FFW President Sonny G. Matula said the fare increase adds to the growing financial strain
on workers, especially as food and non-food prices are also expected to rise in the coming months. “If there is an adjustment in fares, there should also be an adjustment in wages.” Workers, he said, should not always “be the ones who have to adjust.” He said the group is studying the filing of wage petitions before the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards (RTWPBs) to push for region-based increases amid the current economic pressures. He added, however, that wage boards should also take the initiative to review prevailing wage levels. This view was echoed by Mata, who said RTWPBs “can—and must—review and adjust wage rates motu proprio.”
INFLATION TO COVID LEVELS
By Malou Talosig-Bartolome
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HE Philippines could face inflationary pressures as severe as those experienced during the early months of the Covid-19 pandemic if the war in the Middle East continues, a leading economist warned. Dr. Cid Terosa, associate professor at the University of Asia and the Pacific’s School of Economics, said his simulations show that even a modest 10-percent increase in global oil prices could push Philippine inflation up by 6.8 percentage points. He explained that refined petroleum products, electricity, land transport, water transport, air transport, and retail trade would absorb the ini-
tial shock, but ripple effects would spread across food products, fast food chains, and other consumption-linked industries. “A prolonged war probably can achieve the same level of inflation that we felt during the early periods of Covid. Maybe 9, can even be 10 [percent]. I just simulated five industries plus retail trade, and it already went up to 6.8. Can you imagine? Only those five, [it’s already at] 6.8,” Terosa told reporters at the sidelines of a UA&P forum on the Middle East conflict.
A painful benchmark
AT the height of the pandemic in 2020, Philippine inflation surged as supply chains collapsed, transport costs spiked, and consumer See “Inflation,” A2
See “Wages,” A2
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 59.7420 n JAPAN 0.3758 n UK 79.8332 n HK 7.6240 n CHINA 8.6771 n SINGAPORE 46.8197 n AUSTRALIA 42.4228 n EU 68.9363 n KOREA 0.0401 n SAUDI ARABIA 15.9104 Source: BSP (March 18, 2026)