BAGUIO CITY—Many in (and even out of) the summer capital celebrated when news broke that a project involving the Baguio City public market would not push through. In a letter dated Dec. 19, 2025, and addressed to Mayor Benjamin Magalong, SM Prime Holdings Inc. (SMPHI) officially withdrew its proposal of redeveloping the public market under a...
Category: Business
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The illusion of Asean’s economic integration
Since its establishment in 1967, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) has gone through several phases in its bid for regional integration. From the 1992 Asean Free Trade Area, the 2002 Asean Economic Community, and finally the 2007 Asean Charter provision of three guiding pillars foremost of which was the Asean Economic Community, a...
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Something greater results when cooperatives harness the collective power
BAGUIO CITY—When cooperatives invest in their people and innovate together, they transcend traditional business boundaries to become something greater: both social movements and economic forces united by shared aspirations. This was the vision shared by leaders of cooperatives at the inaugural National Cooperative Summit 2025, which was held on Oct. 9–10 in Baguio City. It...
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Amid extreme inequalities, 306 million Southeast Asians languish in poverty and low incomes
Southeast Asians classified as poor and low-income shared a high 44.7% of the region’s population, or 306 million of a total of 686 million. Social inequalities are similarly endemic in Southeast Asia, as reflected in the distribution of incomes across seven categories—poor, low income, lower middle, middle, upper middle, upper income and rich (see Table...
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Revamped forex mastery series for Filipino traders launched
SmarTrade, the financial education company dedicated to empowering Filipinos through free learning sessions and personalized coaching, has officially launched its revamped forex mastery series. The program is designed to help aspiring traders, from beginners to advanced learners, understand the world of forex trading in a clear and structured way. By providing accessible financial education, SmarTrade...
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The unrest in Indonesia is driven by inequalities and entrenched oligarchic rule
Indonesia has been ravaged by its worst popular unrest since the downfall of the dictator Suharto in 1998. Large-scale street protests began last Aug. 25 in the capital Jakarta—the culmination of widespread economic frustration and anger at widespread corruption, democratic regression, gross inequalities, and the indifference and lack of empathy of Indonesia’s leaders, elite classes...
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The employment impact of a national ban on single-use plastic will be manageable
Negotiations for an international plastics treaty ended in failure last month, setting the stage for a new round of talks. Nevertheless, local environmental groups argue that no deal is better than a bad one or a watered-down treaty. An agreement could have nudged the Philippine government to finally enact a national ban on single-use plastic...
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Southeast Asian social protection systems have an erratic record and ignore informal work
Social protection refers to a set of policies and programs designed to reduce poverty, inequality, vulnerability, and social exclusion, and to mitigate economic shocks by ensuring income security, access to essential services (e.g., health, education, and housing), and support for life’s hazards (e.g., unemployment, sickness, disability, and old age). In Southeast Asia, social protection systems have a...
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The delusional promises of the Asean 2045 Roadmap
At the 46th Summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) last May, leaders adopted what appears to be a landmark document, the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on Asean 2045: Our Shared Future. The declaration sets a 20-year roadmap to transform Asean into “a resilient, innovative, dynamic, and people-centered community.” It further emphasizes “regional solidarity,...
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Donald Trump’s brutal tariff assaults on Southeast Asia
As of Aug. 1, US President Donald Trump has finalized a sweeping set of new and brutal trade tariffs on Southeast Asian countries after a series of bilateral negotiations with the region’s leaders and trade representatives. These tariffs reflect an increasing trend toward protectionism and moving away from free trade principles and practices. The tariffs...