The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business

Mega Prime Foods Inc. (MPFI), the company behind the Philippines’ leading sardines brand Mega Sardines, marks a significant milestone in its growth journey as it expands beyond seafood and into agriculture through a landmark partnership with global agro-industrial leader Charoen Pokphand Foods (CPF). The two companies recently broke ground on the Mega CP Layer Complex in Zamboanga City, positioning the region …

Manila, Philippines — Global Compact Network Philippines (GCNP), the country network of the United Nations Global Compact, has elected a new set of officers for 2026–2027. GCNP’s new officers include: PLDT’s Chief Sustainability Officer Melissa Vergel de Dios as Chairman, Globe Telecom Head of Sustainability and Social Responsibility Apple Evangelista as Vice Chair, PTC Holdings Corp. Executive Director for Corporate …

The Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) will release more than P19 billion under its Balik Ginhawa (Loan Moratorium Through Refund) program, benefiting 1.37 million members and pensioners with active loan accounts. GSIS data show that monthly loan amortizations range from ₱4,000 to ₱39,000, depending on the loan amount, equivalent to roughly ₱12,000 to ₱117,000 over three months. The program covers …

(Clockwise from top) Bea Alonzo, Vincent Co, Beatriz Saw, Dimples Romana and Boyet Ahmee, Jr. (Photo Credit: Dimples Romana/Facebook); Vincent Co and Bea Alonzo (Photo Credit: Oskee Racabar/Facebook) Once is not enough. Two or more isn’t too much especially if it is an expression of love like getting married. A Filipino hyperbole “…pakakasalan sa lahat ng simbahan (…will marry in all …

These days have been seeing frenzied Filipinos over the continuous oil price hike that makes life harder to bear. There are panaceas, though, no matter how short-lived but still curative. Noticeably, each sector has a way of adapting to the current realities of an economic debacle to lighten up. The Catholic Church in its pastoral letter last Easter Sunday had …

If there’s a compelling issue that needs to be settled, count on art to mediate. Arts have the power to inspire people, decide and move them to action, after all. That is what the purpose of the Camp Aquino Station Hospital (CASH) in Camp Servillano Aquino in Tarlac City is all about when it launched the SGD-WPS art exhibit last …

Original Pilipino Music (OPM) stalwart and Organisasyon ng Pilipinong Mang-aawit (OPM) founder Celeste Legaspi did it again. It’s up her alley, indeed. It wasn’t only to stir the social consciousness of the public through music which is her cup of tea but to offer fun and entertainment as well. “Groovin’ OPM Greatest Hits” was a success at the Newport World …

It’s the cord that binds body and soul between a mother and child. It is more than the love, affection and care of a son to his mom. Kristoffer Ian de Leon, simply called Ian, has been fond of his mother, the eternal Superstar, the National Artist for Film and Broadcast Nora Aunor now and beyond. On the observance of …

BEYOND ELLIPTICALBy Rose Marie de la Cruz THE FUEL crisis triggered by the ongoing war in Iran is definitely affecting the food supply chain and energy programs of the world. Its  negative impact in the Philippines is on food and energy supply which all depend on petrochemicals. Prices of urea—the most used chemical fertilizer in our farms– have skyrocketed to …

DAIRY imports in 2025 declined by 3 percent as a result of 3.388 million metric tons in liquid milk equivalent (MMT-LME) down from 3.5 MMT-LME in 2024 because of better milk production, according to the National Dairy Authority (NDA). This is because the country’s milk production surged to a record-high of 43.3 million liters in 2025, according to the Philippine …