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Like a pop
star. Pope
Benedict XVI waves from his Pope Mobile on his arrival
for the final Mass at Randwick Racecourse during World
Youth Day in Sydney, Australia, Sunday.
--AP |
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TOP STORIES |
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RP team wins big in int’l math
marathon in Singapore |
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THE
Philippine team to the 4th International Mathematics
Competition (IMC) in Singapore last weekend bagged a total
of 14 gold, 24 silver and 34 bronze medals, continuing a
winning streak in three different global competitions in a
week supervised by the Mathematics Trainers Guild (MTG-Philippines). |
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P25-B CPS deficit seen in ’08 |
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THE
consolidated public sector, or CPS, eyed originally as a
surplus reaching P36 billion this year, should revert to a
deficit totaling more than P25 billion instead. |
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Oil firms cut by half P3/liter
hike; pricing, profits probed |
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BARELY 36
hours after raising the price of diesel by P3 a liter, major
oil players Petron and Shell are slashing P1.50 from that
increase, in response to a call by President Arroyo to
reduce the price of diesel products, which are
overwhelmingly used by the poorer sectors. |
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Fitch expects monetary policy
to stay tight |
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GLOBAL
ratings firm Fitch Ratings expects a continuous tightening
of monetary policy in the Philippines to address the
double-digit growth in June, which is threatening the
country’s credit ratings. |
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Officials’ absence in trade
talks in Geneva assailed |
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QUEZON Rep.
Lorenzo Taņada III assailed the absence of Trade Secretary
Peter Favila and Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap from the
World Trade Organization (WTO) mini-ministerial talks that
start in Geneva on Monday, saying they should attend then
use the country’s veto power should new modalities
disadvantageous to the Philippines emerge. |
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Neda, CSOs pitch ODA review |
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IF the
Philippines wants to make good its commitment to meet the
provisions set in the Paris Declaration on Aid
Effectiveness, the government must institute a review of the
Official Development Assistance (ODA) Act of 1996. |
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Budget plan breeds ‘perfect
econ storm |
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PRESIDENT
Arroyo’s Budget Call for 2009, which economic experts
claimed was a bit too late, is calling for “perfect economic
storm” because of the unrealistic assumptions on the budget
proposal.
In the view
of the Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI), the targeted GDP
growth for 2008, 2009 and 2010 is incredible; the inflation
rates are too low for three years; and the exchange rate is
estimated at P40-P43 to a dollar while the current exchange
rate is much higher. |
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‘KL’s deportation drive could
hurt its economy’ |
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A FILIPINO
diplomat said Malaysia’s economy could collapse if its
government pursues the deportation of undocumented Filipino
migrant workers, whose number has already reached 400,000.
He made the
statement amid the ongoing crackdown on illegal migrants,
mostly Filipinos and Indonesians working in plantations and
factories in Sabah. An initial 250 Filipinos were deported
last week to Zamboanga City, and Malaysian authorities had
indicated thousands more will be sent home. |
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CA upholds circulars on
billboards |
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THE Court of
Appeals (CA) has affirmed the legality of two circulars
issued by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)
imposing additional standards and regulations in the
construction and maintenance of advertising billboards as an
offshoot of Typhoon Milenyo’s onslaught two years ago. |
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Lift oil VAT, avoid subsidy lawsuits: Erap |
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FORMER
President Joseph Estrada on Sunday backed calls to suspend
imposition of the 12-percent value- added tax (VAT) on oil
and electricity, even for just one year, to provide some
relief to overburdened consumers reeling from the rapid rise
in food and fuel prices. |
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An
Affair with English |
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HOW did you
begin to write? And why in English?
Friends and
strangers alike would ask me that question. But the notion
of beginning still surprises me until now. |
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Ready and
ARMMed.
Employees of the Smartmatic-SAHI prepare to upload boxes
of modern machines at a warehouse in Old Panadero, Santa
Ana, Manila, that will be used for the Autonomous Region
in Muslim Mindanao 2008 elections in Mindanao. The
Commission on Elections has assured the quality of
automated voting and counting machines during a
briefing-tour conducted for mediamen.
--ROY DOMINGO |
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