MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines may return to pre-pandemic level of economic output only by the end of next year, making it the laggard in the region as the country continues to grapple with the COVID-19 outbreak, according to Moody’s Analytics. In a commentary titled “The Philippines struggles to shake the pandemic,” Moody’s Analytics economists […]
Read MoreMANILA, Philippines — The financial performance of the hardest-hit sectors and highly vulnerable banks needs closer monitoring as the non-performing loan (NPL) ratio of Philippine banks may climb further to exceed six percent this year amid the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). “The current challenges in the financial performance of […]
Read MoreTrans-Pacific treaty to trim tariffs, boost trade – DTI (Conclusion) MANILA, Philippines — Allan Gepty remembers it all too well. In 2014, when then US president Barack Obama paid the Philippines a visit, he told then president Benigno Aquino III to consider enlisting the country in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Aquino promised to study the […]
Read MoreMANILA, Philippines — A sluggish vaccination program and a “decentralized” healthcare system is delaying the Philippines’ economic comeback, with growth prospects for this year turning bleaker as the country struggles to contain an unexpected flare-up of coronavirus cases. From its previous forecast of 6.3% annual growth for 2021, Moody’s Analytics slashed its gross domestic product […]
Read MoreMANILA, Philippines — The country’s credit grade remains on solid footing despite the rising costs of pandemic response, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Benjamin Diokno said yesterday. He said major international debt watchers such as S&P Global Ratings, Moody’s Investors Services and Fitch Ratings are likely to consider the sustainability of the government’s borrowing […]
Read MoreTHE Philippines received the highest score among its peers in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) in an independent global study that rated cigarette tax policy performance over a six-year period from 2012 to 2018. A 2020 Tobacconomics Cigarette Tax Scorecard study involving cigarette taxation in more than 170 countries, said the Philippines was […]
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