The likelihood of holiday splurges

From Where We Sit

There are some things in life that you can rely on like clockwork. For example, being in the country with the world’s longest Christmas season, you can expect malls in the Philippines to start playing classic Christmas songs as early as September. Jokes about Jose Marie Chan’s inevitable holiday comeback will show up on social media as surely as his songs will play on the radio. And, just as surely, individuals would start worrying about the sheer expense of the holiday season, whether it comes in the form of gifts, outings, media noche and noche buena meals, or charitable donations.

5 min read | 14 Sep 2022

A fresh start for MSMEs

From Where We Sit

The year 2022 has so far had a rocky start, with the new year seemingly introducing new trials just as business owners and corporate leaders were getting steady on their feet in the “post-pandemic” climate. Including the recent surge, the total number of COVID-19 positive cases in the country has reached the 3 million mark. As a result, the government has placed more areas under Alert Level 3 classification, thereby placing operating capacity restrictions on more businesses across the country.

7 min read | 19 Jan 2022

Recovery of the Philippine retail industry: Softening the blow

From Where We Sit

In its latest Philippine Economic Update, the World Bank said the country’s economy could contract by as much as 8.1 percent this year. Although the figure was an unfortunate downward revision from its earlier projection in October, it was still better than the government’s forecast of a 8.5-percent to 9.5-percent GDP contraction. The latest forecast came on the back of expectations that the Covid-19 pandemic’s impact would worsen, lockdown measures, and the country’s first recession since 1991.

John Endel S. Mata
| 30 Dec 2020