The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
The return of siblings Alan Peter and Pia Cayetano to the Vice President’s impeachment proceedings adds another layer of political theater to an already extraordinary spectacle. Their participation is significant because the Senate impeachment court must ultimately confront a fundamental constitutional question: conviction requires the concurrence of two-thirds of all Senate members. The debate over how that threshold should operate …
Points of View & Perspectives
September, 2026
-
20 September
Customs Under Nepomuceno: The Numbers Tell the Story
LOVE FOR ALLBy: Virginia Rodriguez Government agencies are often judged by promises. The Bureau of Customs, however, can also be judged by numbers. Under Commissioner Ariel F. Nepomuceno, the BOC has reported substantial gains in revenue collection, enforcement, modernization, and trade facilitation since he assumed office in July 2025. The figures are difficult to overlook. From July 2025 to June …
-
20 September
A wake-up call
REALPOLITIKBy Benjie Alejandro The latest data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) should serve as a wake‑up call. Net inflows of foreign direct investments (FDI) fell by 17.8 percent in the first half of the year, dropping from over $4 billion last year to just $3.38 billion today. FDI is not abstract money—it represents real businesses: factories, infrastructure projects, …
-
20 September
China’s answer to high diesel prices
EBITDABy DIEGO C. CAGAHASTIAN The world is reeling under the weight of high diesel prices. That’s a cold fact, without any exaggeration. In Metro Manila, jeepney drivers, operators and other players in the transport industry are protesting en masse, with the Department of Energy and Malacañang unable to do anything substantial but to issue promises. During the Sept. 15-21 weekly …
-
13 September
Democracy Is Bad?
There is talk, once in a while, that the qualifications of our candidates for public office leave much to be desired. Social media commentators point out that most employers require basic education and skills for even the lowliest of jobs, be it that of a carpenter, plumber or household help. But as for public offices, even for the Presidency of …
-
13 September
Another big fish
It seems that only the government is celebrating the Philippines’ improved showing in the latest Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). Four years after the advocacy group Philippine Business for Education ranked the country near the bottom of the list, hardly anyone appears convinced that the dramatic improvement in students’ science, mathematics and reading skills reflects reality. The numbers may …
-
13 September
Fairer global governance at BRICS
EBITDABy DIEGO C. CAGAHASTIAN Before he left for New Delhi to attend the BRICS Summit on Sept. 12-13, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. told the Filipino people why he was going and what were his expectations on this trip. Since his attendance there is tied to his responsibilities as chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) this year, Marcos …
-
7 September
Leadership in the Midst of Storms
LOVE FOR ALLBy: Virginia Rodriguez In times of crisis, true leadership is measured not only by speeches and promises, but by presence, action, and compassion. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has demonstrated this kind of leadership as he continues to work despite the challenges brought by typhoons and the southwest monsoon, or habagat. His inspections of areas affected by severe weather …
-
6 September
The political math of impeachment
Beyond the Vice President’s impeachment trial and the massive flooding in Metro Manila and neighboring provinces, another political drama is unfolding quietly at the Office of the Ombudsman. Its next moves could have consequences far beyond the corruption investigations earlier making headlines. The Ombudsman said that more senators are facing criminal investigations following the arrests of Senators Rodante Marcoleta and Jinggoy Estrada. Yet there has been little …
-
6 September
Tiu Laurel on Chinese smart farming
EBITDABy DIEGO C. CAGAHASTIAN The Department of Agriculture (DA) under Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. should be commended for keeping an open mind and welcoming novel and tested ideas and technologies in the farm sector. Even if other government officials and elected senators and congressmen are vehemently against China, thus effectively prohibiting the Philippines from sharing in the economic benefits …