Smoke from Indonesia forest fire chokes NCR By Jonathan L. Mayuga
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IR quality in Metro Manila has dropped to an all-time low owing to the smoke and haze from a forest fire in Indonesia, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) reported. A DENR official said that while the haze and smoke are currently beyond control, there’s hope air quality will improve if rains brought by the southwest monsoon or habagat continue to filter the air. Citing the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) air quality monitoring in the National Capital Region
(NCR), several areas of Metro Manila recorded high PM2.5 levels, with air quality reaching “very unhealthy” to “acutely unhealthy” levels. EMB National Capital Region Office reported that the elevated PM2.5 may be associated with smoke and haze from ongoing fires in Kalimantan, Indonesia, transported by prevailing winds toward the Philippines. Las Piñas, Malabon City, Mandaluyong, Manila, Marikina City (Parang), Muntinlupa (Filinvest) Parañaque, Quezon City (Ateneo), San Juan City, Taguig (TUP) and Valenzuela City registered above 200 air quality indexes, which means the
air is “acutely unhealthy.” Air quality in Navotas and Pateros, meanwhile, registered 153 and 172 AQI, respectively or “very unhealthy” while Makati registered 111 AQI or “unhealthy for sensitive groups.” Meanwhile, air quality in Quezon City (SMPH Commonwealth) recorded 98 AQI or “fair.” Jundy del Socorro, chief of the Environmental Quality Management Division of EMB Central Office, said: “At this point, the haze situation is largely beyond our control because it depends on several factors outside the Philippines, including the intensity of the forest fires in Kalimantan, prevailing
wind patterns, and rainfall across the region.” Del Socorro said that from September 1 to September 3, haze may continue to affect parts of the Philippines because smoke from Kalimantan is still being transported by the prevailing southwest monsoon while fires remain active. However, he said that periods of rain can help reduce pollution levels by washing smoke particles and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) out of the atmosphere. Between September 4 and September 6, air quality could gradually improve if rainfall remains See “Smoke,” A2
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Wednesday, September 2, 2026 Vol. 21 No. 323
P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 20 pages | 7 DAYS A WEEK
By Andrea E. San Juan
ROWING expectations of a Federal Reserve rate hike combined with higher oil prices amid renewed tensions in the Middle East put further pressure on the Philippine peso, which fell to a new all-time low of P62.4 against the dollar on Tuesday. Analysts said this after the Philippine peso weakened for the third straight trading day—falling further to a P62.4-per-dollar finish on Tuesday. The rate is 13.5 centavos weaker than its finish of P62.265 against the greenback on Friday, data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP) showed. Jonathan L. Ravelas, senior advisor at Reyes Tacandong & Co., said the USD/PHP weakened to 62.40 against the green back “as safe-haven demand lifted the greenback amid renewed Middle East tensions and ahead of Fed Chair Warsh’s Jackson Hole remarks.” Ravelas’s sentiment was echoed by Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion, chief
economist at Union Bank of the Philippines (UBP), who further explained what has been fueling the strength of the US dollar environment. According to Asuncion, the greenback’s strength has been driven by “rising US Treasury yields, growing expectations of a Federal Reserve rate hike, and higher oil prices amid escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.” “These developments have encouraged investors to shift toward dollar assets while increasing inflation and import cost concerns for oil-importing economies such as the Philippines,” added Asuncion. See “Peso,” A2
SSS EYES P71.4-B INVESTMENT INCOME, UPBEAT ABOUT ASSETS By Reine Juvierre S. Alberto
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HE Social Security System (SSS) sees room to be more aggressive in managing its assets, as higher interest rates provide an opportunity to boost returns and push investment income toward P71.412 billion this year. In a press briefing on Tuesday, SSS President and Chief Executive Officer Robert Joseph M. De Claro said the state-run pension fund booked a net income of P55.5 billion as of July 2026, up from P48 billion a year earlier. Income from investments, which stood at P27.157 billion in the first half of the year, is projected to reach P71.412 billion by year-end. SSS Executive Vice President for the Investments Sector Ernesto D. Francisco Jr. said government securities will be the biggest contributor to investment income, as they account for about half of the pension fund’s invest-
ment portfolio. Of the pension fund’s total investments worth P1.271 trillion as of end-June, government securities accounted for P629.050 billion. SSS expects a return of P34.748 billion by yearend from this, providing a stable and secure foundation for the pension fund. “We are comparing our portfolio regionally and globally. We are actually still quite conservative,” Francisco said. “We should be adding a little more aggressiveness because half of our portfolio is in government securities.” With the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) raising the key policy rate to 5 percent, Francisco said SSS could also benefit from the high-interest-rate environment and earn better returns on new investments, with prospective investments expected to generate yields of around 7 to 8 percent. “But we cannot hope for interest rates to remain high forever because high rates also affect the See “Investment,” A2
SECURING THE FUTURE Finance Secretary and Social Security Commission (SSC) Chairperson Frederick D. Go (right) and Social Security System (SSS) President-CEO and SSC Vice Chairperson Robert
Joseph M. De Claro lead the SSS 69th anniversary celebration on Tuesday, September 1, 2026. The SSS marked the occasion with the theme, “Bawat Isa Protektado, Bawat Bukas Sigurado,” underscoring its mandate to provide social-security protection to Filipino workers and their families. The anniversary comes as the pension fund continues to strengthen its finances and expand benefits. SSS assets reached P1.36 trillion as of July 2026, while its reserve fund surpassed P1 trillion in 2025. The second tranche of its three-year Pension Reform Program provides a 10-percent increase in monthly pensions for retirement and disability pensioners and 5 percent for death and survivor pensioners; the 2026 rollout was accelerated, with eligible pensioners receiving the increase beginning June, while those with contingencies from June to August began receiving the higher pension on September 1. NONOY LACZA
PHL factory growth strongest since 2016 By Bless Aubrey Ogerio
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IMPEACHMENT WATCH AFP Col. Manaros Boransing II appears as a prosecution witness during the 20th day of Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial at the Senate in Pasay City on Tuesday, September 1, 2026. Boransing testified on the prosecution’s allegations involving the use of confidential funds. He said the Philippine Army’s 1st Infantry “Tabak” Division received no funds from the Department of Education, the Office of the Vice President, the Vice Presidential Security and Protection Group or other government agencies for its 2023 Youth Leadership Summit and Information Education Campaign activities. See story in A3 Nation. ROY DOMINGO-SPPA POOL
HE country’s manufacturing sector accelerated in August to its strongest pace in nearly a decade, as stronger orders, a return of export growth and renewed hiring lifted factory activity after a flat second quarter, Standard & Poor’s (S&P) Global Market Intelligence said. The Philippines Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rose for a fourth straight month to 54.9 in August from 51.8 in July, marking the sector’s strongest improvement in health since December 2016. The reading also signaled a sharper expansion from July, with manufacturers ramping up purchases and hiring to meet stronger production requirements. “Firms responded by increasing
both purchasing and hiring to keep up with greater production needs. At the same time, cost pressures eased, and confidence about the year ahead improved to a 21-month high,” S&P Global Market Intelligence economist Maryam Baluch said. Manufacturers attributed the stronger output to improved underlying demand and greater production efficiency. New orders rose robustly in August, with firms citing new product and model launches, more repeat business, and a wider customer base. The pace of growth was the fastest in six months. International demand also improved, with new export orders for Philippine manufactured goods increasing for the first time in six See “Growth,” A2
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 62.2090 n JAPAN 0.3895 n UK 84.3367 n HK 7.9366 n CHINA 9.2580 n SINGAPORE 48.9526 n AUSTRALIA 44.5790 n EU 72.3180 n KOREA 0.0455 n SAUDI ARABIA 16.5692 Source: BSP (September 1, 2026)