Shortly after the legislature passed the new energy bill, Indonesia's president travelled to South Korea this week, overseeing the signing of several bilateral deals in the hydrocarbon sector. The clarification of the government's strategic thinking and the new investments come at a ripe time for Indonesia as it addresses its energy gap. With President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in Seoul from July…
Philippine Airlines (PAL) has called for the elimination of all government airline subsidies as a pre-requisite for the liberalisation of the aviation industry and a new regional open skies policy. Such a move could delay the country's inclusion in the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) open skies agreement. In 2004, ASEAN member-countries to adopt open skies policies in the region by…
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and the department of budget and management have submitted to the House of Representatives a budget proposal for 2008, which is scheduled to be reviewed and approved before the end of 2007. The proposed national budget of P1.227trn ($24bn) is 8% higher than the 2007 budget and, according to Arroyo, the first balanced budget in over 10 years as the expenditures…
After many of Qatar's companies published their first half results mid-August, the astonishing level of net profits revealed promptly sent the local bourse straight through the roof. By August 23, upbeat trading sentiment at the Doha Security Market (DSM) had sent its benchmark index to a close of 12,634.20 -315 points, or 2.56%, up on the previous day. Meanwhile, Market capitalisation (MCAP) jumped…
The International Finance Corp (IFC), a unit of the World Bank, recently submitted a report recommending the government withdraw the income tax holiday incentive enjoyed by some businesses and replace it with a more rationalised fiscal incentive programme. "Income tax holidays are acknowledged to be among the bluntest incentive instruments most open to abuse. There is little evidence to suggest that…
The Philippines' global ranking in terms of the ease of doing business tumbled even further this year, according to a recent International Finance Corporation study. The Doing Business Survey 2008 (DB 2008) placed the Philippines at 133 out of 178 economies, down from 126 in 2007. They also finished in the bottom three of the East Asia and Pacific region just ahead of Cambodia (145) Lao (164) and…
Up four spots from last year, the Philippines was ranked 71st this year in the World Economic Forum (WEF)'s annual Global Competitiveness Index, released on November 1. According to the WEF, "The Philippines [..] derives competitive advantages from its market size, where it ranks 24th in domestic size and 25th in foreign market size. [...The rise was] driven largely by gains in macroeconomic stability,…
The Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC) announced on November 21 that Red Vulcan Holdings was the top bidder for the government's remaining 60% share of the geothermal energy producer, PNOC-Energy Development Corporation (PNOC-EDC). PNOC-EDC is considered to be the most sought-after company to be privatised by the government. With assets worth $1.76bn and a capacity of 1145 megawatts, it is the…
The business process outsourcing (BPO) industry, the fastest growing sector in the Philippines, expects to rake in more outsourcing and offshoring (O&O) accounts this year despite the economic drag caused by a weakening global economy. The industry's players share the same optimistic outlook for 2008 evidenced by news of expansion programmes by BPO companies. IBM Daksh Business Process Services Philippines…
Despite worries of a slowing US economy and an increasingly strong peso, the Philippine National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) recently reported that exports jumped 21.4% for the month of December. These numbers have served as counterbalance to reports of weak exports in 2007 and worries about 2008, causing many economists to forecast a brighter outlook for the economy. While many segments…
