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Persisting jobs crisis belies gov’t claims of growth momentum
July 8, 2022
The increase in May 2022 unemployment and informal work shows that the jobs crisis persists despite government’s opening up of the economy and hype of economic growth.
Marcos should admit 3-year high inflation to propose real solutions — IBON
July 6, 2022
Inflation is at its highest in three years, but instead of offering a real solution to soaring prices, the newly-installed Marcos administration is downplaying the severity of this and saying it is beyond government control.
Tales of Tinang and our worsening agricultural crisis
July 5, 2022
The incident in Hacienda Tinang, considered as one of the biggest illegal mass arrests in Philippine history, has shattered the illusion of peaceful transition from Duterte to Marcos Jr.
Discerning Bongbonomics from the Inaugural Address
July 4, 2022
Imagine if the inaugural address had mentioned – big fiscal stimulus from more ayuda and support to MSMEs to spur aggregate demand, prioritizing social spending over infrastructure and debt service in the 2023 budget, expanding fiscal space with a billionaire wealth tax, higher wages, arresting environmental destruction by corporations, financial regulation, public ownership, protecting and supporting domestic agriculture, and a comprehensive plan for national industrialization.
New admin needs new policies to fix old problems — IBON
June 30, 2022
As the next president is inaugurated and the new administration is ushered in, new policies are desperately needed to fix old economic problems that worsened under the Duterte administration.
Is it time to move on?
The resiliency myth
June 29, 2022
The Philippines recently ranked as one of the five worst places to be as the ripples of COVID-19 continue. This is contrary to the outgoing Duterte administration’s repeatedly built narrative – that it did well on the pandemic and is leaving behind an economy that is on a quick rebound.
No Mavericks Among Economic Top Guns
June 15, 2022
The next administration’s economic agenda will be fully presented at the state of the nation address in July. There are hardly any specifics yet. Still, the tidbits already emerging can be interpreted against the incoming economic team members’ individual track record and especially in the context of the long arc of neoliberal thinking that has defined Philippine policymaking over the last half century.
1.3M jobs lost: Fall in number of employed bursts full recovery hype bubble
June 11, 2022
The incoming finance secretary claims that the economy is on its way to full recovery, but the over one million drop in employed persons in April 2022 proves otherwise.
Real wages fall as inflation spikes
June 9, 2022
Higher May inflation pushed the real value of wages to even lower levels and is making basic food and transport services even more unaffordable. Inflation far outpaces the outgoing Duterte administration’s wage hikes and wage earners are worse off now than six years ago.
