Oil drops as US midterm caution prevails

Brent crude futures fell 4.5% to about $108 as Iranian negotiators have left talks with Qatari mediators and a draft proposal is being circulated with a follow-up meeting possible.

Gasoline prices up P3 per liter starting November 3

Mixed fuel price adjustments will take effect on Tuesday, November 3, with gasoline increasing while diesel and kerosene prices roll back.

Gasoline prices get big hike on November 3, diesel and kerosene roll back

The hike in gasoline prices comes after two consecutive weeks of rollbacks

Kiko Pangilinan urges crackdown on hoarders, profiteers amid El Niño threat

Senate Agriculture Committee chair Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan on Monday urged government agencies to intensify their crackdown on hoarding and profiteering as the looming Super El Niño threatens food production and…

Gasoline pump prices up; diesel and kerosene down November 3, 2026

Motorists will face mixed pump price adjustments this week, with gasoline prices set to rise while diesel and kerosene prices are expected to drop for another week.

Binance sees outflows stabilising as exchange returns online after $6.3-billion heist

The Binance theft, which analysts say could be the biggest financial robbery ever, adds to a string of recent crypto thefts

Binance sees outflows stabilizing as exchange returns online after $6.3 billion heist

Binance customers pulled $3.64 billion, or 2.1% of its assets, as the world's biggest cryptocurrency exchange resumed service after a security breach linked to North Korea saw $6.3 billion stolen from the platform last…

WTO flags high trade costs, regulatory hurdles in PH

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND -- The Philippines needs to address non-tariff barriers to reduce trade costs and strengthen its competitiveness in global supply chains, including the semiconductor industry, World Trade…

NorthPort installs hybrid cranes to cut emissions

NORTHPORT, the domestic cargo terminal operated by International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) at the Port of Manila, has installed four hybrid cranes as part of efforts to improve cargo-handling efficiency…

WTO chief urges PH, ASEAN to diversify trade beyond US, China

GENEVA, Switzerland -- The Philippines and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) should diversify their trade markets and shift away from heavy reliance on the United States for exports and China for…

Binance sees spike in withdrawals as exchange returns online after $6.3 billion heist

Binance customers pulled $3.64 billion, or 2.1% of its assets, as the world's biggest cryptocurrency exchange went back online on Sunday after hackers the FBI links to North Korea stole billions from the platform last…

Peso, oil risks cloud prospect for equities

RISING oil prices and continued pressure on the peso could weigh on Philippine equities in the coming weeks, with the possibility of a twin interest rate hike by the US Federal Reserve and the Bangko Sentral ng…

Manufacturers put growth plans on hold

PHILIPPINE manufacturing conditions are not expected to be worsen for the rest of 2026, but manufacturers are putting expansion plans on hold, according to Federation of Philippine Industries (FPI) Chairman Elizabeth…

Democratizing power generation

EPIRA created an oligopoly of power generators by making power generation an exclusively private sector endeavor.

NG debt payments drop in first 9 months

THE national government’s debt service declined in the first nine months of 2026 as lower principal repayments more than offset an increase in interest payments. Data from the Bureau of Treasury (BTr) showed that the…

High oil prices, geopolitical tensions weigh on business confidence

PERSISTENT concerns over fuel prices, inflation and geopolitical tensions continued to weigh on Philippine businesses in September, keeping overall confidence in negative territory, according to the Bangko Sentral ng…

Undas 2026

As I write this column over the traditional All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day holiday, I wonder if the recent deterioration of the peso against the US dollar, the rising inflation and the high cost of jet fuel have…

BCCP warns raising pork tariffs to hurt consumers

THE British Chamber of Commerce Philippines (BCCP) warned that raising tariffs on imported pork and imposing a two month ban on pork imports would worsen food inflation and hurt consumers. Speaking at the sidelines of a…

BCDA signs P85M lease deals for tourism projects

THE Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) has signed three lease agreements involving at least P85 million in investments for leisure, recreation, and tourism projects in Clark, Pampanga, and Camp John Hay…

Pinoy technopreneur makes global waves with AI chatbot

A Filipino technopreneur is making his mark in Silicon Valley with an artificial intelligence (AI) innovation that is attracting major investors and international attention.

ERC OKs P7.35B grid link for Acen wind project

THE Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has approved Giga Ace 6 Inc.’s transmission facilities to connect its 344.5-megawatt Quezon North wind power project to the national grid. Giga Ace 6 is a subsidiary of Ayala-led…

Higher PH dairy output expected amid El Niño

DAIRY production in the Philippines is projected to increase next year, driven by expanding government-funded nutrition programs, dairy herd growth and strong demand from the domestic retail and coffee shop sectors, the…

Japanese investors flag new mining auction rules

A group of Japanese businesses has raised red flags over the Philippines’ new framework for awarding mining and other natural resource contracts, warning that it could undermine investor confidence.

Belle nine-month net climbs 26% to P1.66B

BELLE Corp. reported a 26-percent increase in consolidated net income in the first nine months of 2026, supported by higher revenues and lower financing costs following a significant reduction in outstanding debt. In a…

China Bank Savings ties up with three developers

CHINA Bank Savings (CBS) is expanding its housing finance network through partnerships with three property developers, seeking to widen access to home loans as it taps residential markets outside Metro Manila. The…

Due diligence

Are there still investors who make financial decisions based on “hot tips” from friends, insiders or proponents of schemes that are “too good to pass up?”

EastWest Jan-Sept profit drops on higher provisions

EAST West Banking Corp. (EastWest) reported net income of P5.0 billion in the first nine months of 2026, down 24.2 percent from P6.6 billion in the same period last year, as higher provisions weighed on its bottom line…

US looking at report Nvidia CEO target of China spying

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump voiced on Saturday (Sunday in Manila) his support for the “brilliant” head of US chip giant Nvidia, Jensen Huang, after a report surfaced that he was targeted by a Chinese spy plot…

Robinsons Malls tops energy awards

Robinsons Malls, the commercial centers division of Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC), has earned national recognition for its efforts to promote responsible energy use, being named as an Energy Efficiency and Conservation…

South Korea exports nearly double on AI boom

SEOUL — South Korea’s exports nearly doubled in October, the sharpest jump in more than 50 years, as robust global demand for artificial intelligence (AI) investment boosted shipments of the country’s chips, government…

Binance resumes bitcoin withdrawals

BINANCE, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange, resumed bitcoin withdrawals on Sunday and said others would follow in phases after covering 95 percent of the $6.3 billion in tokens stolen from its platform in the…

Pork tariff hike seen to stoke inflation

The British Chamber of Commerce Philippines (BCCP) warned that raising the tariffs on imported pork could further stoke inflation, as the government moves to impose higher duties on pork meat to protect local hog…

Malaysia Airlines assessing Amadeus breach

SINGAPORE — Malaysia Airlines said on Sunday that some customer information may have been affected by a cybersecurity incident involving Amadeus, its reservation-technology provider. The airline joins Cathay Pacific…

Indo-Pacific denounces ‘economic coercion’

ATLANTA — Foreign ministers from the US, Australia, India and Japan on Saturday (Sunday in Manila) pledged to work on building reliable global supply chains and expressed grave concerns about what they called “economic…

Government OKs $1 million funding for LRT-1 O&M PPP advisory

The Project Development and Monitoring Facility (PDMF) Committee has approved $1 million in advisory support for the restructuring of the Light Rail Transit Line 1 (LRT-1) extension operations and management (O&M)…

India liquor firms alarmed over Scotch import probe

NEW DELHI — India’s government will hold talks with liquor companies on Monday after domestic firms joined Diageo and Pernod in expressing alarm about a federal investigation into bulk Scotch imports, according to four…

Analysts: Inflation likely hit 7.7% in Oct

INLATION may have accelerated further in October as higher transport, fuel and food costs, coupled with the weakening peso, added to price pressures, economists said, potentially prompting the Bangko Sentral ng…

Sideways trading expected this week

The local stock market is expected to trade sideways this shortened trading week, with upcoming third quarter corporate earnings results hopefully giving it a much-needed boost ahead of the release of October inflation…

Philam Bond Fund calls for Annual Stockholders Meeting at Philippine Exchange Plaza on Nov 23

Philam Strategic Growth Fund calls for Annual Stockholders Meeting at Philippine Exchange Plaza on Nov 23