The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business

SM Prime Holdings Incorporated is investing P100 billion this year, with around a fifth of its capital expenditures going to three new malls that are opening this year and the renovation of some existing mall spaces.   SM Prime also said it expects spending in the May elections to boost its growth this year after it attained a record profit of …

BEYOND ELLIPTICALBy Rose Marie de la Cruz I don’t blame AgriSpecialist Inc., a legitimate and massive investor in a biofertilizer plant, a cheap but technically and scientifically- tested product, for looking to export its product to the Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia and other markets for its field-vetted soil rejuvenator in view of decades long use of urea and other fossil-fuel based chemical …

The Department of Agriculture (DA) is finalizing the minimum access volume (MAV) quota for pork imports this month of 55,000 metric tons amid pressure from meat importers and traders. DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel said of the 55,000 MT around 30,000 MT would be allocated to meat processors and 10,000 MT will be “equally distributed” to meat traders, he told …

Chicken from four states of the United States were temporarily banned from being imported here because of confirmed avian flu outbreaks. Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. issued Memorandum Order (MO) 11 banning such imports of domestic and wild birds, including their products such as poultry meat, day-old chicks, eggs, and semen from the states of Illinois, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin. …

Given more than enough budget, the National Food Authority wants to buy from 545,000 metric tons to 870,000 metric tons of palay from local farmers, at competitive rates for 2025. Last year, the NFA Council raised the palay procurement price range to P23-P30 per kilo for clean and dry rice; and P17 per kilo for wet palay. Previously, palay buying …

The Sugar Regulatory Administration is revising its import rules for sugar alternatives to reduce red tape– a common complaint of industry stakeholders– to be later augmented by the use of an online portal for better access to import data, supply and other relevant information. The streamlining stemmed from consultations with users, which surfaced concerns over bureaucratic inefficiencies and the lobby …

By Tracy Cabrera  While Chinese naval ships and coast guard vessels continue to patrol within Philippine territorial waters near Scarborough Shoal, the Philippine government is adamant not to pullout the Typhon missile system deployed by the United States last year. President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. is firm in his decision not pull out the vaunted US missile system unless China …

By Tracy Cabrera  The North Luzon Expressway (NLEx) Corporation has tapped China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) for the construction of the ₱2.2-billion NLEX-C5 Northlink Segment 8.2 Section 1A Novaliches.  According to NLEx Corp., the project aims to extend the NLEx Mindanao toll plaza to Quirino Highway in Novaliches through an all-weather elevated expressway crossing the Tullahan River in Quezon City. …

In the wake of the first public appearance of the so-called Queen of All Media Kris Aquino after three long years of absence from the physical scene as she is more active in virtual media, here’s a two-cent worth of thought about the scenario. What is show business is political. Or more to it, what is political is personal and …

Before the final visit of the stork anytime, couple Mikael Daez and Megan Young managed to go nature tripping and immersing in the cool spring waters of Batangas recently. Mikael and Megan went to San Benito Farm in Lipa City to commune with nature like they owned the world. Young, heavy on pregnancy, floated on backstroke in the pool with …