By Riza Lozada  A surge in initial public offerings (IPOs) last year countered weak trading at the bourse to boost the Philippine Stock Exchange Inc.(PSE) net income by 3 percent to P701.54 million last year from P682.81 a year ago. 

Major lender Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. (Metrobank) reported a consolidated net income of P18.1 billion in 2016 Profit for the fourth quarter grew 3 percent to P5.5 billion from a year ago, the bank reported. 

Century Pacific Food Inc (CNPF), the country’s largest canned food company, has been awarded by Asiamoney as the country’s Best Managed Company in 2016, under the small capital category. 

A systematic process of identifying the next Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) governor should be done to ensure that only a qualified individual would get the position, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said. 

More than 400 dignitaries, including President Duterte, celebrated last Feb. 21 the 50th anniversary of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) headquarters in Manila. 

Philippines (HCPH), a unit of a Prague-based company offering in-store financing for purchasing appliances and gadgets, plans to expand its nationwide footprint and product offerings to increase its customer base to one million milestone by the end of 2017. 

The Philippines and South Korean governments have agreed to work together for the conclusion of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led trade pact, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). 

Listed Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) reported a consolidated net income of P3.86 billion last year with its net interest income of P15.7 billion, accounting for 69 percent of total revenues of P22.81 billion. 

Ayala Group unit Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) achieved a full-year net income of P22.05 billion in 2016, growing by 20.9 percent with comprehensive income reaching P21.74 billion which was also a 30.2 percent improvement.

By Riza Lozada The Gokongwei group’s food conglomerate Universal Robina Corp (URC) and Hong Kong’s Vitasoy Group have established a joint venture in the manufacture of high-quality, nutritious and sustainable food and beverage products.