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By Luis Leoncio Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are the key drivers of growth among economies of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) members, but experts say these remain one of the region’s untapped resources. 

By Luis Leoncio  Reforms in the country’s tax rates, considered one of the highest in the region, and the tax system itself, and a final, vigorous push for the long-shelved efforts to relax constitutional limits on foreign ownership are on top of the final wish list that the business sector has come up with for the successor of President Aquino.

By Luis Leoncio  As the Aquino administration draws to a close, more details are being revealed about the supposed reforms initiated under his term, with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) attributing the improvement in fiscal management to measures undertaken during the term of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. 

A victory for potential strongman Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte is causing considerable anxiety in the business community and has already resulted in a downswing in the Philippines Stock Exchange index (PSEi), among other business indicators. 

Even before the money-laundering scandal involving the $81 million hackers stole from Bangladesh Bank, foreign banks had already been reducing money-transfer operations that were having an adverse impact on the remittance costs and flows of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Gov. Amando Tetangco Jr. said. 

By Riza Lozada Manuel V. Pangilinan, chairman of the board of directors of the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), has reminded the government that power interruptions remained a “cause for concern and visible indicators that much more needs to be done in the power supply chain.” 

By Lito U. Gagni  The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) tripping, with trade executions worth billions benefitting hackers and their sponsors, ATM (automated teller machines) illegally coughing out money at designated points in the country, and unfunded checks involving millions being cleared by no less than the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

By Luis Leoncio  The business sector does not seem comfortable with the prospect of Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte succeeding President Aquino, as the peso and the stock index have been on a continued decline since he topped the pre-poll surveys that analysts attributed partly to increased political uncertainty. 

By Riza Lozada Globe Telecom is urging local government units (LGU) to assist it in providing fast and cheap Internet connection in the country. 

By Luis Leoncio The patience of the Bangladesh government over the recovery of the $81 million stolen from its central bank, Bangladesh Bank, is wearing thin.