Peza, Baguio City to work for greater transparency

The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) and the local government unit (LGU) of Baguio City have signed a pledge, affirming commitment to uphold transparency and accountability such as prohibiting bribery in all activities under their control, among others. The investment promotion agency said Peza Officer-in-Charge Tereso O. Panga and Baguio City Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong signed an “Integrity Pledge” in Baguio City. Back in 2012, PEZA said it also inked an Integrity Pledge with the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP) to support campaign against corruption.

Foreign chambers push for air transport reform legislation

Members of the Joint Foreign Chambers (JFC) urged Congress to approve a much needed air transport reform bill, after technical glitches hit the country’s main international gateway earlier this year. “The members of the JFC — with other industry associations such as the Safe Travel Alliance, Air Carriers Association of the Philippines and the International Air Transport Association — have long advocated for these reforms and we are optimistic that with congressional, executive, and private sector support, we will finally see their enactment in the 19th Congress,” the business groups said.

FDI inflow to PH shrank 23% in 2022 to $9.2B

The net inflow of foreign direct investments (FDI) into the Philippines shrank by 23 percent to $9.2 billion in 2022 amid a slowdown in global economic growth, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). BSP data show that Philippine-bound net FDI inflow decreased from $11.98 billion in 2021 as both lending and equity capital from overseas dropped last year.

Moody’s Analytics: Inflation, spending confidence to erode household savings

Household savings in the Asia-Pacific region are expected to dwindle with inflation remaining persistently high and consumers spending more since the end of the lockdowns, Moody’s Analytics said. “In the Asia-Pacific region, excess savings began unwinding as effective vaccines were rolled out and lockdowns became less frequent. Put simply, households became more confident to spend and found it easier to do so,” it said. The Philippines has had to deal with the highest inflation in about 14 years, driven by high food and fuel costs. Headline inflation slowed to 8.6% in February from 8.7% in January. However, this marked the 11th consecutive month inflation was above the central bank’s 2-4% target.

No numbers to push charter change in Senate – Zubiri

Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri poured cold water on a move to amend or revise the Constitution, saying it did not have enough senators to back it up, especially since President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. himself wasn’t supporting charter change. “The truth is, we don’t really have the numbers even though I want to push that,” he said in a radio interview. “It will still require three-fourths, or at least 18 votes. Almost half of the senators I talked to are against charter change.” Zubiri made the statement as the Senate committee on constitutional amendments, chaired by Sen. Robin Padilla, embarked on a nationwide “consultation caravan” by conducting hearings in the cities of Davao, Baguio, and Cebu.

Finance dep’t studying feasibility of carbon tax

The Finance department is still looking into the feasibility of implementing a carbon tax in the country. “We’re still studying the feasibility (of the tax). Unlikely that it will become a bill within the year,” Finance Undersecretary Maria Cielo D. Magno said. The Finance department earlier said it is considering a carbon tax to encourage businesses that emit carbon dioxide to shift to sustainable practices. The country currently does not have any explicit form of carbon pricing. A carbon pricing scheme in the Philippines could raise up to $7 billion in revenues by 2030, according to an earlier study by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Budget release rate hits 61.4% at end of Feb

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said 61.4% of the 2023 national budget has been released as of the end of February. In its Status of Allotment release report, the DBM said that P3.23 trillion of the budget has been released to national agencies and local government units. This leaves P2.033 trillion remaining undistributed from the P5.268-trillion budget for the year. The pace of releases was slightly ahead of the 60.8% rate posted a year earlier. At the end of February, releases to government agencies and departments amounted to P2.7 trillion or 85.9% of the total.

Philippines needs $1.2B for transport modernization

The Philippine government would need more than a billion dollars to help jeepney drivers move to cleaner vehicles under its transport modernization program, congressmen were told. “We are looking into a P64.2-billion ($1.16 billion) fund requirement,” Riza Marie Paches, a member of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), told a House of Representatives hearing. This is assuming the so-called equity subsidy given to these drivers is increased to P360,000 per unit, she said. The fund would cover 178,213 public utility jeepneys and utility vehicle express units nationwide, Ms. Paches said.

PHL working on possible Marcos visit to Washington – envoy

The Philippine ambassador to Washington said Manila is working to arrange a possible visit to Washington this year by Philippines President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel G. Romualdez told an event hosted by Washington’s Institute of World Politics that Mr. Marcos is expected to visit the US West Coast later in the year for the APEC summit, which is scheduled to be held in San Francisco in the week of Nov. 12. “We are also working on a possible standalone visit here in Washington DC, although we have yet to agree on the likely dates,” Mr. Romualdez said.

Real estate tax reform bill seen to make property valuation market-driven

A proposed law reforming real estate taxation in the Philippines will make property valuation more market-driven through a government database, a finance official said.    Finance Undersecretary Maria Cielo D. Magno, speaking at a Senate ways and means committee hearing, said under the proposed Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform Act, local government assessors will use market data as basis for setting the valuations and the corresponding tax rates. “We recognize that we are giving power and accountability also to the local assessor, but the assumption is that in this process, we’ll also be building a database where the local assessor should refer to,” she said.

Large taxpayers’ electronic invoicing seen to start next year — BIR

Large taxpayers should be able to file returns and pay taxes electronically by next year, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) said. “There are many challenges with the e-invoicing, but we are working double time so we can take the necessary actions with respect to that. The pilot should be (completed) by June; and by next year, all large taxpayers (should be covered),” BIR Commissioner Romeo B. Lumagui said. Last year, the BIR selected 100 large taxpayers to pilot test its e-receipts and e-invoicing system. In August, the agency said that only 15 out of the 100 pilot taxpayers were utilizing the system at the time.

BIR eyes ways to tax online sellers

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) is looking to collect taxes from online sellers on e-commerce platforms more efficiently. BIR Commissioner Lumagui said it is difficult to monitor taxes on individual online sellers on e-commerce platforms. “We’re in constant communication with the platforms, because it’s a challenge to monitor. We’re thinking of ways to approach it because if we look at individual online sellers, it’s a bit difficult. It’s a challenge,” he said. Mr. Lumagui said the BIR is prioritizing ways to better collect taxes from online sellers and other new platforms this year.

Benchmark rate may reach 6.75% this year — Nomura

Elevated core inflation may likely prompt the Philippine central bank to hike its policy rate to as high as 6.75% this year.In a report dated March 10, Nomura Global Markets Research raised its consumer price index (CPI) forecast for the Philippines this year to 5.8% from 5.6% previously due to persistently high core inflation in the first two months of the year. This is lower than the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) full-year forecast of 6.1% for 2023, but still above the 2-4% target range. The projections are contained in a note, “Philippines: Higher inflation for longer” written by Nomura Chief ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Economist Euben Paracuelles and analyst Rangga Cipta.

EV sales to rise 30%

The electric vehicle (EVs) industry is gearing up for  good prospects this year with the effectivity last month of the zero tariff on EVs. Ferdinand Raquelsantos, chairman of the Electric Vehicle Association of the Philippines, estimates this year’s sales of pure four-wheel EVs and battery EVs and other plug-ins to grow by another 30 percent on top of the 20 -percent increase recorded in 2022.

DOE greenlights 17 RE projects for transmission impact studies

The Department of Energy (DOE) has given 19 renewable energy (RE) and energy storage projects the green light last month to conduct system impact studies (SIS) with the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines. SIS is conducted to evaluate the impact to the reliability of the transmission system if a new power facility will be connected. Of the 19 projects, 17 are RE power plants with a total capacity of 2,690.9 megawatts (MW).

Car sales to top 400K 

Total vehicle sales are seen growing 10.4 percent this year, the joint projection of industry groups. Rommel Gutierrez,  president of the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (Campi), said total industry volume is forecast to reach 408,300 units from 369,981 units sold in 2022.This will be higher than  pre-pandemic levels, only second to 2017 sales performance, a year prior to the implementation of excise tax under the Tax Reform for  Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law. “Favorable various economic indicators are prevailing, leading to improving the overall outlook of the economy alongside increasing consumer demand for new motor vehicles,” Gutierrez said.

‘Senate can’t ignore House voting on Cha-cha initiative 

The chair of the House Committee on Constitutional Amendments yesterday said the Senate leadership cannot ignore the overwhelming support that lawmakers from the House of Representatives have thrown for the Charter change initiative. Cagayan de Oro City Rep. Rufus Rodriguez said Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri “cannot and should not ignore our initiative, which is an expression of the people’s consensus we gathered in our recent nationwide public hearings and consultations.”Rodriguez, a leading proponent of the House’s call for the convening of a constitutional convention (con-con) to introduce constitutional amendments or revision, said Zubiri “should not be afraid of the result of the Senate vote on the matter.”

ERC hints at possible lifting of WESM price caps 

The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has hinted the possibility of lifting the secondary price caps in the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) after the idea was officially presented to President Marcos Jr. in a meeting with the Private Sector Advisory Council (PSAC). The secondary price cap serves as a consumer protection from unwarranted increase in electricity prices due to the inherent volatile market price movements in the WESM . The cap effectively lowers the clearing price of electricity to P6.245 per kilowatt hour (kWh) when average prices breach the threshold of P9 per kWh over a 72-hour period.

Grid link 80% done, MOU vs security threat inked 

The Mindanao-Visayas interconnection project (MVIP) is 80 percent complete and can already transport power from the two islands, according to the Department of Energy (DOE). This developed as the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) signed yesterday a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA) to jointly strengthen the country’s defense and efforts to fend off attacks especially on energy infrastructure. Through the MVIP, the Mindanao grid will be linked to the Visayas grid using a high voltage direct current system with a 450-megawatt (MW) initial capacity.