Philippine economy
Inflation burden heavier on millions amid lack of gov’t action
May 5, 2026
The burden of adjusting to the oil price shocks has been shifted onto over 21 million poor and vulnerable Filipino families. The government’s refusal to cut oil taxes and regulate prices reflects a policy failure that leaves the majority to fend for themselves amid a deepening crisis.
Jobs volatility under the Marcos administration
April 30, 2026
The uncertainty of employment is evident in the increasing volatility of the labor market, which cannot be explained by seasonality alone or by pandemic lockdowns. At the root of the jobs crisis is a sluggish and non-inclusive economy, weakened by the lack of strong domestic production sectors as engines for sustained economic growth.
Productivity rises, wages stay low, big business wins
April 30, 2026
Workers’ productivity surged, but wages barely increased. Corporations meanwhile reaped big profits.
It is time workers got their fair share of the wealth they created.
Watt a burden
April 26, 2026
What is the government doing? Despite President Marcos Jr’s Executive Order 110 declaring a “state of national energy emergency”, on March 24, it’s business as usual for oil, energy, and electricity firms. The government, meanwhile, just continues with the 12% value-added tax on electricity, adding to the burden of the majority who are already financially struggling, while power firms profit from the crisis.
Poverty due to weak engines of growth
April 2, 2026
Highest joblessness since 2022 due to economy’s structural defects
March 15, 2026
The Marcos Jr administration needs to acknowledge and urgently address these problems, which cannot be reduced to last year’s corruption controversies and will only worsen as global oil shocks bear down in the coming months.
Agriculture, the crisis the government won’t talk about
February 27, 2026
FEATURES
Philippine agriculture is suffering, but government planners barely talk about this now.
EDSA is Every Day, One Battle After Another
February 24, 2026
COMMENTARY
Forty years is a long time—long enough to reshape memory. Yet there is no doubting the enduring relevance of EDSA.
Why interest cuts won’t cut it
February 24, 2026
FEATURES
Until the Marcos Jr administration’s economic policies cut to the heart of the matter, interest rate cuts really just won’t cut it.