Aquino to encourage more investments, renew ties on his first visit to Korea

 Entertainment
Oct 222013
 
Aquino to encourage more investments, renew ties on his first visit to Korea

President Benigno S. Aquino III answers questions from the media during the press briefing after gracing the 7th ASEAN Navy Chiefs Meeting (ANCM) at the Ballroom 2, Raffles and Fairmont Hotel in Makati Avenue, Makati City on Tuesday (September 10). With theme: “Partnership for Peace and Prosperity” to highlight the need for strengthened cooperation among the ASEAN Navies for peace, stability and progress in the ASEAN region. (MNS Photo). MANILA (Mabuhay) – President Benigno S. Aquino III on Thursday vowed to bring home more investments and forge stronger ties on his first state visit to South Korea. In his pre-departure speech, President Aquino underscored the importance of having renewed ties with South Korea whose nationals remain as one of the top tourists entering the country in recent years. “Tayo naman po ay tutungo ngayon sa South Korea, upang asikasuhin naman ang kinabukasan habang inaasikaso natin ang kasalukuyan. Alam po ng lahat na marami pong investors na galing sa Korea, layon po natin lalo pang dagdagan ang kanilang investments sa ating pong bansa,” President Aquino said. The President pushed through with his South Korea trip after visiting quake affected areas in the Central Visayas region. President Aquino said other key Cabinet members are now overseeing relief operations in devastated areas. “May mga nagtanong po kung dapat tayo tumuloy matapos ng nangyari na lindol sa Kabisayaan. Ang sagot po natin dito: Habang inaasikaso nga ho ang kasalukuyan, dapat naman ho siguro huwag natin pabayaan ang kinabukasan,” he added. The Chief Executive said Read More …

SKorea raises growth forecast after stimulus

 Economy
Jun 262013
 
SKorea raises growth forecast after stimulus

SEJONG, South Korea  — South Korea raised its growth forecast on Thursday to reflect the boost from government stimulus spending. The finance ministry said in a statement that South Korea’s economy will expand 2.7 percent this year, compared with its 2.3 percent estimate three months ago. South Korea’s parliament approved a $15 billion stimulus plan in May as companies are reluctant to step up investments amid an uncertain global economic outlook. In 2012, South Korea’s economic growth hit its lowest level in three years at just 2 percent. The ministry said the risks that could dent the country’s economy have been reduced compared with three months earlier. But the upward revision does not mean the export-reliant economy is set to enjoy a full-fledged recovery, the finance ministry said. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 “If you look at the speed of recovery, it is gradual and moderate,” ministry director general Choi Sang-mok told reporters. Exports have improved but continue to be weighed down by the weak yen which has reduced Japan’s demand for South Korean products. Big companies such as Samsung and Hyundai, which dominate South Korea’s economy, are yet to scale up their capital expenditures, indicating that the recovery still largely relies on government stimulus. Another worry for South Korea’s economy is the impending withdrawal of monetary stimulus in the U.S. But Choi said improvement in the U.S. economy could be a positive factor for South Korea’s economy even though financial markets had been rattled by Read More …

Gov't keeps targets despite surprising first-quarter growth

 Economy
May 302013
 
Gov't keeps targets despite surprising first-quarter growth

MANILA, Philippines – Growth targets will be retained while inflation forecasts will be revisited, officials said, after the first-quarter economic expansion both surprising  policymakers and becoming the fastest in Asia for the period. Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said the Aquino administration is “sticking” to its six- to seven-percent growth target for the year “at the moment,” even after the uptick for the first three months registered way beyond at 7.8 percent. “We periodically review assumptions. We will consider first quarter performance when we meet,” Balisacan told reporters on Thursday after the data’s announcement. The Development Budget Coordinating Committee (DBCC), the body setting macro-economic targets, has yet to set a meeting to review its assumptions, but Budget Secretary Florencio Abad acknowledged growth would be sustained in the coming months. “We intend to sustain or surpass the very standards we set over the succeeding quarters,” said Abad, who is also DBCC chairman, in a statement. He did not elaborate. The 7.8-percent growth last quarter surpassed all growth rates in Asia, notably in China (7.7 percent), Indonesia (six percent), Thailand (5.3 percent), Vietnam (4.9 percent), Malaysia (4.1 percent), Japan (3.5 percent), South Korea (1.5 percent). Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Strong consumption driven by election-spending, investments and government spending were tagged as the drivers for the growth, which was the fastest in three years. A stable inflation, averaging three percent as of March, was also noted. However, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said there is need to Read More …

PH embassy in South Korea preparing Filipino communities for possible conflict

 News
Apr 152013
 
PH embassy in South Korea preparing Filipino communities for possible conflict

By Tarra Quismundo Philippine Daily Inquirer 6:56 pm | Monday, April 15th, 2013 MANILA, Philippines – While the situation in the Korean Peninsula remains unchanged, the Philippine Embassy in Seoul has begun preparing Filipino communities for possible conflict scenarios amid tensions between North and South Korea, starting with those in vulnerable cities near the tense border between the Korean neighbors. The Department of Foreign Affairs on Monday said that officials from the Philippine mission in Seoul on Sunday met with Filipino area coordinators in four areas near the demilitarized zone (DMZ) at the North-South border, part of a series of meetings with some 150 Filipino community organizations across South Korea. This even as the Embassy reported to the Manila home office that the atmosphere in South Korea “remains calm and normal” despite Pyongyang’s persistent threats of a missile launch against Seoul and its ally, the United States. North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has been ratcheting up his war rhetoric against the South and its allies in protest of fresh international sanctions meted Pyongyang for nuclear tests earlier this year. “Nevertheless, the Filipinos in South have been well-advised to remain vigilant and alert and in the event of armed conflict to proceed immediately to the designated shelters closest to their homes or workplaces,” said DFA spokesperson Raul Hernandez in a press briefing. He said officials from the Philippine mission in South Korea on Sunday gathered Filipino community leaders in the cities of Incheon and Seoul and counties in the provinces of Read More …

BI deports Korean national facing drug case in his country

 News
Feb 042013
 
BI deports Korean national facing drug case in his country

By Tetch Torres INQUIRER.net 2:57 pm | Monday, February 4th, 2013 MANILA, Philippines—The Bureau of Immigration has ordered the deportation of a South Korean national allegedly wanted in his country for robbery, extortion and illegal drugs. Immigration Commissioner Ricardo David Jr. identified the Korean national as Bang Gi II, 49. He was picked up by immigration agents at the Manila City Jail last Jan. 29 after a local court dismissed the kidnapping case against him. A summary deportation was issued against Bang after the Korean government canceled his passport. Lawyer Jose Carlitos Licas, BI intelligence assistant chief, said Bang is the subject of two arrest warrants for violating South Korea’s narcotics control act. He said the fugitive was charged with consuming the illegal drug called Philopon and for asking a fellow Korean national to smuggle from Manila more than 35 grams of the drug into Korea on Oct. 13, 2010. Licas also cited a report from the Korean embassy stating that on Aug. 26, 2009, Bang was convicted and sentenced to one-year imprisonment by a district court in Incheon, South Korea, also for possession of illegal drugs.

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