Asean Tribune

MANILA: The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) will likely ease policy rates starting August this year.

“We are actually somewhat less hawkish than before, which means we could ease or cut rates Q3 (third quarter) or Q4 (fourth quarter) this year, so the second half of this year,” BSP Governor Eli Remolona Jr. said in a briefing on Thursday.

The Monetary Board is scheduled to hold a meeting in August.

“Yes. Possibly by August this year,” Remolona said when asked about the timeline of the possible easing.

“As you know, there was a good number in April, 3.8 percent [inflation]. That was mainly driven by rice inflation. But also, 3.8 percent was better than expected. Actually, it’s better than it looks because that included some positive base effects. It’s actually better, and then there were other factors for good news in terms inflation,” he added.

The Monetary Board of the BSP on Thursday kept policy rates steady for the fifth consecutive meeting.

The BSP’s target reverse repurchase rate was retained at
6.50 percent, while the interest rates on the overnight deposit and lending facilities will also remain at 6 percent and 7 percent, respectively.

“The BSP’s latest forecasts indicate that inflation would settle close to the upper end of the [2 to 4 percent] target range,” Remolona said.

In a separate interview with reporters in Makati City on Thursday, Remolona said the BSP might cut rates twice in the second half of the year for a total of 50 basis points.

BSP deputy governor Francisco Dakila Jr. said the BSP’s latest baseline forecast was adjusted downward to 3.5 percent from the previous 3.8 percent for 2024; while the projection for 2025 went up to 3.3 percent from 3.2 percent.

The risk-adjusted inflation forecast for 2024 was also adjusted to 3.8 percent from the 4 percent in the previous meeting.

For 2025, the risk-adjusted inflation forecast rose to 3.7 percent from 3.5 percent.

Dakila said risk factors that were incorporated into the assessment of the forecast include higher transport charges, f
ood prices, electricity rates, and global oil prices.

Dakila said inflation may temporarily accelerate in the coming months but will return within the target in the latter part of the year.

“That will still happen. It could be again because of positive base effects. We’re looking particularly the period May until July of this year. So, we just monitor the inflation,” he said.

“But even if there were to be some breach of the inflation target band, the expectation is that this will be temporary and then, there will be a reversion to the target band,” Dakila added.

Source: Philippines News Agency

MANILA: Hong Kong will be the venue of this year’s 3×3 World Tour Finals, the FIBA announced on Thursday.

It will be the city’s first time to stage the 12-team competition from Nov. 23 to 24.

Along with the announcement, FIBA also said Hong Kong can qualify for the finals via a three-team play-off.

The season’s top 11 teams will qualify automatically, while the 12th team in the rankings, along with Hong Kong and the team with the most combined World Tour and lower-tier Challenger victories, will dispute the last spot.

Hong Kong hosted World Tour events as well as the FIBA 3×3 Universality Olympic Qualifying Tournament last April 12-14.

“The 13th edition of the FIBA 3×3 World Tour Final in Hong Kong is a testament to the city’s growing importance in the 3×3 community and its ability to host world-class sporting events,” FIBA 3×3 Managing Director Alex Sanchez said in a press release posted on the FIBA website.

“After the success of our World Tour events here in the past two years and the recent FIBA 3×3
Universality Olympic Qualifying Tournament, it was a natural step to bring our biggest pro tour event to this vibrant city,” he added.

Kenny Wong, the chief executive officer of the Organizing Committee for the World Tour Final, said Hong Kong is ready and enthusiastic to host the tournament.

“Hong Kong is thrilled to welcome the world’s best 3×3 teams and their fans to our city. With its iconic backdrop and passionate basketball community, we are set to provide a spectacular setting for the pinnacle of the 3×3 season,” he said.

The 2024 World Tour kicked off in Utsunomiya, Japan on April 27-28.

The next stop will be in Marseille, France (May 31 – June 1), followed by Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia (June 8-9); Chengdu, China (June 22-23); Edmonton, Canada (July 6-7); Almaty, Kazakhstan (July 13-14); Lausanne, Switzerland (Aug. 16-17); Debrecen, Hungary (Aug. 31- Sept. 1); Shanghai, China (Sept. 21-22); Wuxi, China (October 6-7); Amsterdam, the Netherlands (Oct. 12-13); Macau (Oct.19-20); Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emi
rates (Oct. 26-27); Manama, Bahrain (Nov. 1-2); Neom (Nov. 7-9); and Shenzhen, China (Nov. 16-17).

Source: Philippines News Agency

MANILA: A Catholic prelate on Thursday urged lawmakers to focus on efforts to strengthen the bond of Filipino families instead of breaking it.

“I urge members of Congress to reconsider the proposed divorce bill and instead focus on promoting policies and programs that support marriage, strengthen families, and protect the well-being of all members of society,” Tagbilaran Bishop Alberto Uy said in an interview over Church-run Radio Veritas.

Instead of divorce, he said, Congress must enact laws focusing on methods to solve the marital problems of couples, such as providing marital counseling for couples to address their problems, help them heal, and eventually reconcile.

The Bohol prelate said the bill contradicts the teachings of the Church on the sacredness of marriage and Jesus Christ’s teachings on the importance of commitment, forgiveness, and reconciliation that strengthen the union of couples.

“A society that values strong, stable families is a thriving society. Divorce weakens the fabric of society
by eroding the foundation of the family unit. It leads to social fragmentation, increased poverty, and a host of other societal ills. By promoting divorce, we are contributing to the breakdown of social cohesion and the erosion of moral values,” he added.

The Catholic Church staunchly opposes divorce and insists on the sanctity of marriage provided in Matthew 19:6, which states that no man can separate what God has joined together.

On Wednesday, the House of Representatives approved on second reading Bill 9349, which reinstitutes absolute divorce in the country.

Vatican City and the Philippines are the only two nations in the world that prohibit divorce.

Source: Philippines News Agency

South Korea’s police chief Yoon Hee-keun held talks with his Chinese counterpart in Beijing on Thursday and agreed to intensify their agencies’ joint response to transnational crimes, such as drug offenses and voice phishing.

The meeting between Yoon, commissioner general of the National Police Agency (NPA), and Minister of Public Security Wang Xiaohong marks the first talks between the public security chiefs of the two nations in 10 years.

During the meeting, Yoon pledged a joint response with China in tackling drug crimes, voice phishing and other transnational crimes, while proposing the resumption of human exchanges and a bilateral pact for mutual recognition of driver’s licenses.

“On the occasion of this visit, I hope the two institutions, as strategic public security partners, could enhance the public security environment of both nations, and take the lead in ensuring regional peace and stability,” Yoon was quoted by the NPA as saying in the talks.

Wang was quoted as saying that the two agencies wou
ld be able to wisely deal with such transnational crimes as well as future crises if they closely cooperate.

The two sides also upgraded their memorandum of understanding on police cooperation, signed in 1996, in reflection of the agreements made in the Yoon-Wang talks.

Source: Yonhap News Agency

South Korea and China discussed ways Thursday of strengthening bilateral cooperation on supply chains of critical minerals and key industry items, Seoul’s finance ministry said.

The discussions were made during the 18th Korea-China Meeting on Economic Cooperation held virtually between South Korea’s Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok and Zheng Shanjie, chairman of China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

It was the first economic ministerial meeting between the two nations since August 2022.

“Now is the time to upgrade bilateral relations to a mutually beneficial partnership amid fast-changing global circumstances,” Choi said in his opening remarks.

“The two nations should cooperate not only on supply chains of raw materials and critical minerals, such as urea, gallium and graphite, but also those for bio, clean energy and other new industries to jointly lead the global industry,” he added.

The meeting came as South Korea has been working to
intensely manage supplies of critical items and diversify their import channels in the wake of a series of disruptions in supplies of major items following export control measures by China in recent years and the intensifying Sino-U.S. rivalry.

The South Korean government also called for beefing up bilateral cooperation in the gaming, filming and music industries and other cultural contents, and the establishment of a working-level consultative body to promote the tourism field.

On the table of Thursday’s meeting was how to enhance bilateral relations on responses to climate change and the achievement of net-zero goals.

During the talks, Zheng invited Choi to China for further discussions on the bilateral economic cooperation, which Choi accepted, according to the ministry.

If the meeting takes place, it would be the first face-to-face economic ministerial meeting since 2018, when the then South Korean finance minister Kim Dong-yeon visited Beijing.

On the sidelines of the meeting, the Korea Institute fo
r International Economic Policy and the Chinese Academy of Macroeconomic Research renewed their memorandum of understanding that calls for information sharing, joint research projects and personnel exchanges to enhance bilateral economic cooperation, according to the ministry.

Source: Yonhap News Agency

Police raided famous popera singer Kim Ho-joong’s house in Seoul on Thursday over suspicions that he caused a hit-and-run accident while drunk driving last week, officials said.

Investigators from Seoul Gangnam Police Station searched Kim’s house as well as the home and office of the head of Think Entertainment, an agency representing Kim, to figure out the whereabouts of Kim and his manager following the incident.

Kim is suspected of fleeing after hitting a taxi while drunk driving in Gangnam district last Thursday night.

Around three hours after the accident, Kim’s manager visited a police station and said he caused the accident, but the 33-year-old singer reportedly came to the police about 17 hours later and confessed he had driven the car.

Earlier in the day, the head of the singer’s agency said he ordered Kim’s manager to make false testimony and Kim visited a bar before the accident but was not under the influence of alcohol.

Kim rose to stardom after finishing fourth in the finals of TV Chosun’s
hit audition show, “Mr. Trot,” in 2020. Kim, once an aspiring opera singer, earned the nickname “Tvarotti,” which is the combination of the word “trot” and the name of legendary Italian opera singer Luciano Pavarotti.

Source: Yonhap News Agency