The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business

By Teresa Cerojano / The Associated Press The Filipino-American co-director of the box-office hit Inside Out says it’s a dream come true for him to be sharing with Filipinos the animated film he helped create.

Review by Jocelyn Noveck / The Associated Press I’ll admit it: About an hour into Fantastic Four, the inexplicably plodding and dreary new attempt to adapt the beloved Marvel story, I started thinking about Ethan Hunt from Mission: Impossible.

After 39 years, 180 productions, numerous artists and countless possibilities, Dulaang Unibersidad ng Pilipinas (Dulaang UP or DUP) is all set to begin its 40th season with the theme “20/20 Vision: Clarity. Originality. Perspective.” With Dexter M. Santos as the theater company’s new artistic director, this season’s line-up puts premium on strengthening the DUP brand and continuing its legacy. The …

By Luis Leoncio The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) under Secretary Florencio “Butch” Abad, a key member of President Aquino’s Liberal Party (LP), is now in control of the billions intended for the rehabilitation of the survivors of Supertyphoon “Yolanda” (international name: Haiyan).

How was the pork-barrel system embedded in the 2015 budget? Former Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson said his research team found that lump-sum items are parked in the National Expenditure Program (NEP)—or the Palace-proposed budget— for later distribution to members of the House of Representatives, then to administration allies at the discretion of the Speaker in the approved General Appropriations Act (GAA).

Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., articulating his vision for a better Philippines, said the government should create a better environment for the business sector and work for a more equitable distribution of wealth to improve the lot of the poor.

By Riza Lozada Major Russian carriers, including Aeroflot, will be used as platform for the marketing of the “More Fun in the Philippines” campaign, according to the Department of Tourism (DOT). Some 40,000 Russians visit the country annually, according to government data. “We are confident that the new arrangements will help us meet our targets for Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS),” Tourism Undersecretary Benito Bengzon Jr. said. The CIS includes Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, …

Listed mass housing developer 8990 Holdings Inc. is confident of surpassing its P10-billion revenue target this year on the back of new projects and good first-semester financial performance.

More women should be elected to the boards of local companies, House Deputy Majority Leader and Makati City Rep. Mar-Len Abigail Binay appealed to shareholders of Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE)-listed corporations to elect more women to their governing boards.

By Riza Lozada The Joint Foreign Chambers of the Philippines (JFC) lauded the ramping up of public spending by nearly double mainly on infrastructure in the proposed budget for next year. The budget proposal or the National Expenditure Program (NEP) proposed a five percent share of infrastructure spending in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which was JFC’s recommendation since 2010 when President Aquino started his term and when spending for infrastructure in …