Peza awaits Marcos govt nod for 13 economic zones
‘Close borders, cut Omicron exposure risk’ By Andrea E. San Juan
Trade and Industry [DTI],” Panga Panga divulged these figures said in a statement. at a consultative meeting with HE Philippine Economic “These 13 pending ecozones the Philippine Ecozones AssociBy Cai U. Ordinario with their loved ones, while forwhich, she said, the economy can no Zone Authority (Peza) said are expected to bring in inations (PHILEA) last November @caiordinario eigners living in temperate regions longer afford. Monday that the 13 pendv e s t me nt s a mou nt i n g t o 9. The meeting was intended to usually want to relax in tropical “It is better that we do protective ing economic zones it recorded as P17,924,887,016.72,” he added. discuss the plans, updates and LOSING the country’s borders countries like the Philippines. This preventive measures than get exof October are expected to bring Panga said there are sevkey concerns on economic zone is one of the most immediate year’s influx of OFWs is expected to posed again. We have a lot to lose,” in investments amounting to en pending manufacturing development. courses of action the governbe heavier since many of them were Oplas said. “We should do it now so more than P17 billion. ecozones, four for IT Parks In continued pursuit to carry ment must take to prevent the latunable to come home for the holidays that we can open just before ChristPeza Officer-in-Charge Tereso Centers, one for the Knowlout the agency’s mandate of atest Covid-19 variant, Omicron, from in December 2020. mas. If it gets contained, we can open O. Panga said the investment edge, Innovation, Science and tracting investments and implereaching Philippine shores, accord“My recommendation is to protect it again.” promotion agency is looking forTechnology Park, and one Agromenting the ecozone program naing to local economists. the borders. Do not allow people with Ateneo Center for Economic Reward to having the 13 pending industrial ecozone which are all tionwide, Panga said, “Peza would T he new var iant is a threat, a history of travel to countries with search and Development (ACERD) economic zones proclaimed by located outside Metro Manila. not have been a success story withe s p e c i a l l y w it h t he hol id ay s positive cases to enter,” Oplas said. Associate Director Ser Percival the current administration. As for investments in existout the support from PHILEA.” coming up and more foreigners “We should be more restrictive. [We K. Peña-Reyes said closing the “Peza currently has 13 pending ecozones, the current chief For his part, PHILEA Presibeing a llowed to travel to the have to be] more protective in terms country’s borders would be effecing economic zones that we look of Peza expressed confidence dent Francisco Zaldarriaga said, Philippines, De La Sa lle Univerof our measures.” tive but should still adhere to the forward to be proclaimed by the that this year, “there will be an “Ecozones are developing comsit y economist Mar ia Ella Oplas Oplas said that while this will be standards set by the World Health current administration. One is upturn as we have been getting munities as well. Part of the told BusinessMirror. a setback to some industries, this Organization (WHO). already endorsed to the Office of big-ticket projects enough to ecozones’ core is also commuThe holidays usually bring in is a fair measure considering that What is needed, Peña-Reyes told President Marcos, while 12 are recover and even surpass our nity-building.” Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) this could help prevent placing the this newspaper, is for travel restricendorsed to the Department of 2019 [investment] levels.” Zaldarriaga said that from who are eager to spend Christmas country in another strict lockdown, tions to be put in place swiftly and
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US, JAPAN, S. KOREA VOW UNIFIED RESPONSE TO NORTH KOREA THREAT
Monday, November 29, 2021 Vol. 17 No.52 Tuesday, November 15, 2022 Vol. 18 No. 34
1995 to March 2022, total investments from PHILEA ecozones reached P1.13 trillion, generated for government to be proactive in $411 billion in exports and emimposing them. ployed 378,395 workers. With Previous instances when the aggressive investment promocountry had the opportunity to imtions, Panga said he is confident pose travel restrictions did not prethat Peza could achieve its invent the spread of Covid-19. That was vestment growth target of 6 to mainly because the decision was not 7 percent for this year. made immediately, he said. “Just last month, the LISP “Kung papatay patay [If we’re closed a project with a data slow] and we get caught flat-footcenter with P2.4 billion of ined, [that’s risky] We were too revestments. Another big-ticket active instead of proactive before. is currently in talks with SunWe should learn from that,” Peñatrust,” he said. Reyes said. “It’s a delicate balancing Meanwhile, at the recent inact. We need to push testing and vestment forum in Taiwan and tracing to be properly informed South Korea, Panga said bigof our decisions. Blanket/shotgun ticket projects from Taiwan and approaches could have dire conseSouth Korea are ready to apply quences on the economy.” and register with the Peza. See “Omicron,” A2
NATL GOVT BORROWINGS HOUSE PASSES PBBM’S FOR 10 MOS DIP TO P2.75T PRIORITY TAX MEASURES w w
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P25.00 nationwide nationwide || 32 sections sections 26 20 pages pages || P25.00
By Bernadette D. Nicolas By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz
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Omicron risk ‘Budget spurs revival to support of quarantine rules in PHL economic revival’
@BNicolasBM @joveemarie
HEHouse national HE of government’s Representatives gross on Monday approved on third and borrowings as of final reading three end-October shrank priority tax bills of the by almost 6 percent Marcos administration year-on-year to and the 19th Congress. P2.75 trillion.
After the approval at the lower chamber, House Bill (HB) 4102, or Latest data from the Bureau of the the Single-use Plastic Bags Tax Act; Treasury showed that the governHB 4122, or the VAT on Nonresident ment’s gross borrowings during the Digital Service Providers (DSP); and 10-month period fell by 5.99 percent HB 4339 or Package 4 of the Comprefrom P2.92 trillion a year ago. hensive Tax Reform Program will now With only two months left for be transmitted to the Senate for its this year, the latest figure is already own deliberations. These three proequivalent to 89.6 percent of its posals could yield a total of P48 bilP3.07-trillion borrowing program. lion annually for the government. Broken down, gross domestic borOf P48-billion revenue from rowings from January to October these tax measures, House Commitsettled at P2.23 trillion, down by tee on Ways and Means Chairman 5.08 percent from P2.35 trillion Joey Sarte Salceda said some P19 bilin 2020. lion will come from the nonresident The bulk of the amount was DSP VAT, P9.3 billion from plastic sourced from Fixed Rate Treasury bags, and P20 billion from PackBonds (P1.19 trillion), followed by age 4, the bulk of which will come short-term borrowings from Bangfrom removing the tax exemption ko Sentral ng Pilipinas or BSP (P540 on pickup trucks, and increasing billion), Retail Treasury Bonds/Prethe tax rates on foreign currency myo Bonds (P463.3 billion), Retail deposit units to 20 percent. Onshore Dollar Bonds (P80.84 bil“With this, the House wraps up lion). In the same period, there was with all the priority tax measures also a net redemption of Treasury of the Duterte-era Comprehensive Bills amounting to P43.94 billion. Tax Reform Program, and is ready Net debt redemption means to move on to tax collection rethere were more debts repaid comforms, as prioritized by the Marcos pared to the amount borrowed duradministration,” Salceda said. ing the period. The authors of HB 4102 said plasMeanwhile, gross foreign bortic pollution poses a major threat to rowings in the same period also the environment, particularly bodies contracted by 9.7 percent to P518.7 of water such as rivers, where fisherbillion from last year’s P574.4 billion. men depend on for their livelihood. This was raised through global The Philippines is the third largbonds (P146.17 billion), program est contributor to plastic pollution, loans (P139.98 billion), euro-dewith 2.7 million to 5.5 million metnominated bonds (P121.97 billion), ric tons of plastic waste generated a project loan (P86.41 billion), and each year, a fifth of which finds its yen-denominated samurai bonds way into the ocean. (P24.19 billion). Under HB 4102, a P100 tax would See “Borrowings,” A2 be imposed on every kilo of singleuse plastic bags removed from the place of production or released from the Bureau of Customs. The tax would be increased by 4 percent every year starting January 1, 2026.Thebilldefines“single-useplastic bags” as “secondary level plastics made of synthetic or semi-synthetic organic polymer such as ‘ice,’ ‘labo,’ or ‘sando’ bags, with or without handle, used as packaging for goods or products.”
PESO EXCHANGE RATES
By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla
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NTER NATIONA L concerns LEADER of the Senate on over the possible spread of the Monday assured that the more infectious Omicron CoP5.268-trillion national vid-19 variant prompted the govbudget for next year will sustain the ernment to reimpose mandatory positive momentum of the growth facility-based quarantine for all of the Philippine economy. arriving passengers in the country. Senate Majority Leader Joel VilActing Presidential spokesperlanueva also said that the governson Karlo B. Nograles announced ment should not waste any opportuon Sunday that the Inter-Agency nity after the Philippine Statistics Task Force for the Management Authority reported the economy is of Emerging Infectious Diseases growing faster than expected with (IATF) suspended the implemena third quarter GDP growth of 7.6 tation of its Resolution No. 150percent. A (s.2021), effectively imposing “Economic revival is in the minds stricter protocols for all inbound of all our colleagues in the Senate travelers. as we deliberate the 2023 national To note, IATF Resolution 150budget in the plenary,” he said. A had allowed fully vaccinated “We need to ensure that the naPEOPLE walk past the mural of Gat Andres Bonifacio at Manila City Hall Underpass. non-visa travelers from Green List tional budget will support this posiThe country will celebrate the 158th birth anniversary of Filipino revolutionary areas to enter the country withtive momentum in our economic hero Gat Andres Bonifacio on Tuesday, November 30. ROY DOMINGO out the need for facility-based PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. takes part in a bilateral meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during the ASEAN Summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on Sunday, November 13, 2022. growth. For example, addressing quarantine as long as they secure the economic agenda of creating Indonesia's president vowed Sunday not to let Southeast Asia become the front lines of a new Cold War amid increasing tensions between the United States and China, saying as his country took over the negative Reverse Transcriptionmore jobs and building the necchairmanship of the influential Association of Southeast Asian Nations that it would not become “a proxy to any powers.” SEAN KILPATRICK/THE CANADIAN PRESS VIA AP Polymerase Chain Reaction (RTessary infrastructure to support PCR) test within 72 hours prior development are main priorities,” to their departure. Villanueva added. “Except for countries classified By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas dating its registry following the them. This allows everyone to see programs as President Duterte For the medium and long term, as ‘Red,’ the testing and quarantine @jearcalas enactment of the Coconut Farmwho are listed in the registry and if is expected to sign the industry Villanueva said that the government protocols for all inbound internaers and Industry Trust Fund law. farmer doesn’t see his name then he development plan in early 2022. By Cai U. Ordinario cents. Children as young as 10 ing from wasting and 3.6 percent The FNRI data also showed should focus on food security by suptional travelers in all ports of entry ORE than 3 million Rosales explained that about shall coordinate with the PCA imRosales said the PCA will not @caiordinario years old have also started smokwere overweight. 13.2 percent of Filipinos aged 10 porting the agriculture sector. shall comply with the testing and coconut farmers and 500,000 coconut farmers and mediately,” he explained at a recent stop updating its list of coconut ing and drinking. For children aged 3 to 5 years to 19.9 years are current drink“Our agriculture sector urgently quarantine protocols for ‘Yellow’ workers are now regisworkers were added to the PCA’s dialogue with coconut farmers. farmers and enjoined them to regHE country’s future labor “During this pandemic the old, 26.6 percent of them are ers or those who consumed one needs support to increase our capalist countries,” Nograles said, citing tered with the government’s reg2018 list that had about 2.5 million “On the other hand, if people ister in order to reap the benefits force are either malnourmost vulnerable have been hit stunted; 19.7 percent were unor more drinks of alcohol in the bility and capacity for food producthe provision of IATF Resolution istry, which serves as the basis coconut farmers and farm workers. would see names on the list and of the decades-long idled coconut ished or have already adthe hardest. Therefore ensurderweight; 4.8 percent suffered year preceding the survey. tion. By providing such, we hit a lot No. 151-A. for the number of people to be The PCA’s next step is to conthey think they are not coconut levy fund. “We will not stop at 3.1 opted bad habits, such as smoking good nutrition especially from wasting; and 5.9 percent Data showed 38.2 percent of of birds with one stone: controlling He noted Hong Kong, which has covered by the utilization of the duct an exclusion-inclusion profarmers or their details are incormillion. We hope that more indiing and drinking, based on the of the most vulnerable, that is were overweight. 18 to 19.9 year olds are current inflation, generating jobs, and imconfirmed a case of the Omicron P75-billion coconut levy fund. cedure by making the updated rect, they can report it to the PCA viduals will register in our coconut latest data from the Department women and children builds our Data for Filipinos aged 5 to drinkers followed by the 22.8 proving competitiveness of local variant, will also fall under the YelPhilippine Coconut Authority farmers’ registry public, providfor immediate action,” he added. farmers registry,” he said. of Science and Technology’s Food resilience as a nation,” National 10 years old showed 20.8 percent percent of 16 to 17.9 year olds; food producers,” Villanueva said. low list countries. (PCA) Deputy Administrator Roel ing everyone the opportunity to The PCA official noted that The updating of the coconut and Nutrition Research Institute Nutrition Council (NNC) Execuwere underweight; 19.7 percent 7.8 percent of 13 to 15.9 year olds; “No Filipino should go hungry as The suspension of the rules for M. Rosales said about 3.11 million check the veracity of the list, Rothe completion of the initial list farmers registry is mandated by (DOST-FNRI). tive Director Azucena M. Daywere stunted; 14.1 percent were and 1.6 percent of those aged 10 we grow our economy,” he added. “Green List” countries will be in coconut farmers and farm worksales added. of coconut farmers registry would Republic Act (RA) 11524 or the Based on the 2021 Expandanghirang said in a message of overweight; and 6.9 percent sufto 12.9 year olds. Villanueva also remarked that effect from November 28, 2021 to ers have been registered with the “The list will be posted in public be just in time for the expected Coconut Industry Trust Fund Act. ed National Nutrition Survey support at the ENNS data disfered from wasting. FNRI data also showed 4.9 perpart of the government’s support December 15, 2021. government since it started upspaces where people can easily see rollout of coconut levy-funded See “3-M farmers,” A2 (ENNS), the prevalence of food semination event. Among those aged 10 to 19 cent of 10 to 19.9 year olds confor the economic growth momenContinued on A2 insecurity nationwide was at 33.4 “Nutrition adequacy is a smart years old, 22.3 percent were stuntsumed alcohol in the past 30 days tum should be to ensure food sufpercent representing those who Covid-19 response as it is a strated; 13 percent were overweight or and more than half or 51.4 percent ficiency, as the rise in food prices n USreduced 50.4600 their n JAPAN 0.4374 n UK 67.2329 6.4722 nutrition n CHINAfor7.9013 SINGAPORE 36.8968 nsuffered AUSTRALIA are 36.2807 n EU binge 56.5758drinkers n SAUDI Source: BSP (November 2021) food consumption egy n for HK ensuring re- n obese; and 10.9 percent considered or ARABIAis13.4531 the biggest driver of26,inflation, or skipped meals and 2 percent of silience. Nutrition is a key founfrom wasting. consumed alcoholic beverages of which hit 7.7 percent last October. this represent those who went on dation for human capital without The data also showed the four or more in a row. He said that, in the short term, no food for one day or more. food and nutrition, wala din tayong current smokers, or those who The ENNS surveyed a total of the government can temporarily This included many young lahat dito,” she added. smoked at least weekly in the past 54,060 households and 200,853 address food inflation by extendFilipinos since stunting, underFNRI data showed that among month, included 8 percent of the individuals. The response rate ing the reduced tariffs on basic weight, and wasting affected children aged zero to 23 months, 18 to 19.9 year olds; 4 percent of for households was 89.8 percent commodities such as meat and rice nearly a fifth of children aged 21.6 percent of them were stuntthe 16 to 17.9 year olds; 1.1 peror 48,530 households while the under Executive Order 171, which zero to 23 months; 3 to 5 years; ed; 12.3 percent were undercent, 13 to 15.9 year olds; and response rate for individuals was will expire after December 31 of school-age children; and adolesweight; 7.2 percent were suffer0.01 of the 10 to 12.9 year olds. 70.3 percent or 141,189 Filipinos. this year.
OVER 3-M FARMERS LISTED FOR P75-B COCO LEVY FUND
SURVEY: YOUNG PINOYS SUFFER FOOD INSECURITY
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PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 57.3510
Continued on A2
n JAPAN 0.4126 n UK 67.7029 n HK 7.3190 n CHINA 8.0850 n SINGAPORE 41.8101 n AUSTRALIA 38.4194 n EU 59.3181 n KOREA 0.0436 n SAUDI ARABIA 15.2570
Source: BSP (November 14, 2022)