The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business

Did you ever think it was possible to visit the Arctic and interact with a polar bear without leaving the country? Well, Shangri-La Plaza is making that true this summer as it offers its “broadcast augmented reality” experience at the mall’s East Atrium from May 6 to June 4. 

The Philippine econ­omy is expected to grow the fastest in the region, even bet­ter than China and next only to India, as the outlook for de­veloping East Asia is expected to remain broadly positive in the next three years, according to a new World Bank (WB) re­port.

Environment Secretary Regina Lopez is blocking a plea of the Department of Finance (DoF)-led Mining Industry Coordinating Council (MICC) for the government to allocate P50 million to review the mine closures ordered by the Department of Environment and Nat­ural Resources (DENR).

The Supreme Court (SC) re­jected with finality a petition of intervention filed by lawyers questioning the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) implementation of the high court’s June 2011 ruling that ef­fectively stated the regulator has the jurisdiction in ruling on Phil­ippine Long Distance Telephone Co.’s (PLDT) compliance to the 40-percent limit to foreign own­ership.

The country seeks to add at least 20,000 megawatts of renewable energy (RE) capacities by 2040 to sustain economic gains and continue efforts to elevate the quality of life in the country, Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said.

The Philippines has to “re­invent its logistics sector” to raise its visibility as a favored business destination in Asia, or increasingly lose out to neigh­boring countries, according to industry analysts.

Cebu Landmasters Inc. (CLI), Metro Cebu’s leading local housing developer, has obtained the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) clearance for its P3.8-billion initial public offering to fund its expansion plans. CLI filed its application with an offer price of up to P6.56 per common share, consisting of 505 million shares, with an over-allotment option of another 75 million secondary shares …

By Riza Lozada  Communications giant Globe Telecom has signed a 10-year P8-billion term loan facility with BDO Unibank Inc. to finance the company’s capital expenditure and general corporate requirements.

8990 Holdings’ two largest ventures in the Visayas region, DECA Homes Mactan Prime and Urban DECA Homes Mactan, have taken the lead in mass housing development. 

Container terminals managed and operated by International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) at the Subic Bay Freeport are expected to beef up trade between South Korea, Taiwan and the Philippines with Evergreen Marine Corp. launching a new direct service at key ports of the three trading economies.