The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business

An economist of ING Bank Manila said the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) inflation forecast for January 2018, at 3.5 to 4 percent, may concern the market since the upper end is already higher than the central bank’s 3.2 percent average projection for the year.

By Leslie Gatpolintan Net income of Metropolitan Bank & Trust Company (Metrobank) rose 10-percent to PHP18.2 billion in 2017, Metrobank President Fabian Dee reported Thursday to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) Thursday.

By Joann Villanueva Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Nestor A. Espenilla Jr. said the peso “is just fine” amid its recent weakness and stressed that the currency’s performance only reflected current market environment.

By Joann Villanueva Impact of the first tax reform package on inflation is “more or less as expected” but Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) officials continue to monitor developments to be able to make the necessary adjustments if needed.

Passenger demand for air travel is likely to level off this year after a strong increase in 2017, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said February 1.

Three foreign airlines — Oman Air, Bangkok Airways and Thai Smile — shut down their Bangladesh operations last year as they found the route to be commercially unsustainable.

The Cavite Super Ferry Transport System has launched a ferry boat transport service that will cut travel time from Noveleta to Manila to only 35 minutes from the current land travel of 1.5 to 2 hours.

The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) wants to review certain provisions of its Memorandum Circular (MC) 2018-003, which limits to 45,000 the common supply base of Transport Network Vehicle Service (TNVs) units in Metro Manila.

Tax incentives granted to the country’s two major airline companies will be revoked once the Department of Finance’s (DOF) proposed second tax reform package is passed into law.

As Central Luzon gears up to be the next real estate hotspot, more infrastructures are underway at the next big business hub.