The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business

The University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital (UP-PGH) Cancer Institute opened two new facilities aimed at advancing precision medicine in the country, particularly in the treatment of cancer last week. “Many of our kababayan fighting life-threatening illnesses face a sobering double burden: the high cost of care, and the grim prognosis that often accompanies late or limited treatment. It is …

Filipino theater, TV and movie actor Bong Cabrera is too excited for being part of internationally renowned filmmaker Lav Diaz’s “Magellan” to premiere in the prestigious 2025 Cannes International Film Festival this month. “Excited for my first Lav Diaz film. I was so nervous on my first day of filming for ‘Magalhāes’ (the Portuguese lexicon for Magellan),” admitted Bong. According …

By Boy Villasanta Controversial and fastidious filmmaker Jade Castro is back to the grind. After being indiscriminately accosted in a bucolic town somewhere in Quezon Province early last year for a crime he surely wasn’t even an accomplice, Jade and three of his companions suffered, endured and languished a jail term that lasted for months. Castro was hailed by his …

BYD Cars Philippines and ACMobility teamed up to accelerate Cebu’s transition to electric mobility with the arrival of the BYD Tech Tour at the SM Seaside City Cebu and the activation of new ACMobility electric vehicle charging stations (EVCS) at 16 locations around the island province. These mark a significant expansion in Cebu and the broader Visayas region. With BYD …

In most National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) major events, expect its ambassador 2018 Miss Universe Catriona Gray to be in attendance sharing her precious time and throwing her pretty face around to promote local arts and culture. In the celebration of National Heritage Month, though, that started last March but largely performed in May, Catriona’s participation isn’t …

Here’s a poignant narrative of two young guys in love but no histrionics, steamy bed scenes or sex acrobats elsewhere, just feel-good moments. As a matter of fact, their gayhood per se isn’t the source of the irony or conflict in the story but realizations of their little mundane thoughts as jealousy or self-consciousness which they easily dismiss. Main characters …

Security personnel at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) have been instructed not to touch passports during terminal entry and for security verification following the incident of slightly damaged passport allegedly due to tampering. NAIA management said its security staff are now mandated to reduce “unnecessary contact” with passengers’ travel documents. “Passengers will simply be asked to show their valid ID …

The Clark International Airport Corp. (CIAC) will open by the first quarter of 2026 the public bidding for the construction of a P8.5-billion food hub that is expected to open the first phase in 2027. CIAC corporate planning manager Melissa Feliciano, on the sidelines of the Philippines Logistics Summit 2025, said they are finalizing the engineering design and bidding documents …

Government is willing to support Lufthansa Technik Philippines (LTP) through possible lease options to convince the world leading Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) service provider to stay in Manila. Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon will be talking with LTP, one of the biggest locators at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), to resolve lease concerns after NAIA’s operator, New NAIA Infrastructure …

Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) said the newly-completed Port Operations Building (POB) under the Balingoan Port Expansion Project in Misamis Oriental will improve the tourism landscape and mobility in Northern Mindanao. The Port of Balingoan – located 84 kilometers from Cagayan de Oro – serves as a vital transport and economic connector between Northern Mindanao and the islands of Camiguin and …