ASIA-PACIFIC

Government seeks to expand 2027 national budget to US$117b – 6% above 2026’s – to boost economy

The undervalued benchmark index could rebound from a five-year low to hit 7,100 this year, says analyst

[MANILA] The Philippines will join Malaysia and Indonesia in blocking Elon Musk’s Grok artificial intelligence chatbot amid growing concerns over sexualized images generated by the AI system, according to a top government official.

It could bring an end to its easing cycle soon

Twin crises of the South China Sea and the Myanmar conflict aside, Manila’s chairmanship comes with the responsibility of engaging Timor-Leste

Data last month showed annual growth slowed to a four-year low of 4.0% in the third quarter

[MANILA] Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr ordered local authorities to reach out to Malaysia and Singapore where he said a former lawmaker may be hiding his aircraft that are among assets Manila has frozen as part of a corruption crackdown. 

Efforts are underway to arrest those who are still at large 

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr is accused of receiving 25 billion pesos (S$549.7 million) in kickbacks from 100 billion pesos of project spending