Sunday, July 27, 2025

BWorld 803, 10 points about online gambling

10 points about online gambling


June 24, 2025 | 12:02 am

My Cup Of Liberty

By Bienvenido S. Oplas, Jr.

https://www.bworldonline.com/opinion/2025/06/24/680857/10-points-about-online-gambling/

 

Online gaming like online music, online food delivery, and online lectures and seminars, has become more popular in the Philippines. There are positive and negative effects of the proliferation of these online transactions. Here is my list of 10 important points about online gambling.

 

1. It has grown big in revenues. It reached P112 billion in 2024, with e-games and e-bingo accounting for P48.8 billion. And in the first quarter of 2025 alone, gross gaming revenues (GGR) reached P104.1 billion, with the e-games and e-bingo segment contributing P51.4 billion. This data comes from the Philippines Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor).

 

2. News about gambling addiction, dirty money, and calls for outright bans have surfaced at more pronounced levels. See these reports in BusinessWorld this year: “Filipinos battle addiction amid online gambling boom” (Jan. 14), “PHL urged to monitor dirty money risks from online gambling, crypto” (Feb. 25), “Pagcor warns BSP regulation could hold back e-gaming growth” (Feb. 27), “Proposed local online gambling ban to hurt NG revenues” (March 4), “Pacific Online weighs expansion amid PIGO uncertainty” (May 2), and, “E-games dislodge casinos as Pagcor’s top earners” (May 7).

 

3. What was previously casual digital entertainment has expanded into a wide ecosystem that includes among others: mobile gaming with in-app purchases, online betting and digital casinos, play-to-earn platforms and crypto-integrated games, and remote gambling services including e-sabong and international POGOs.

 

4. This evolution has driven innovation and economic activity but it also created new risks especially for less-mature members of the population. These include: lack of consumer awareness, with many users unable to distinguish between entertainment and gambling; financial risk and addiction that can lead to overspending, debt accumulation, and addictive behaviors, especially among low-income users or minors; and, fragmented regulation, with existing regulations being either outdated or inconsistent across sectors, leaving users exposed to predatory practices and non-compliant operators.

 

5. New regulations should include: clear distinctions made between entertainment and gaming and gambling so that distinct and not uniform regulations can apply; having age and identity verification, with mandatory user verification to protect and exclude minors and enforce age-appropriate access; and, consumer protection mechanisms like limits on spending, self-exclusion options, behavior monitoring tools, and transparency in digital game design.

 

6. Pagcor, which is at the same time the regulator and one of the gaming players seems to have a good cash flow. Among the dozens of government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs) and government financial institutions (GFIs), Pagcor was No. 4 in 2024 when it came to cash flow (see Table 1).

 


7. Proposals for outright prohibition or banning online gambling are not advisable as they will only lead to illegal gambling — underground, unregulated, and non-transparent so victims cannot complain. Government regulatory oversight on consumer safeguards would be gone, and government revenues would decline and approach zero. With regulatory oversight, licensing fees and taxes can be collected to support public infrastructure and public campaigns on digital literacy and responsible use.

 

Data on dividends remitted to the National Government show that Pagcor dividends are declining. I am not sure if this is an indicator of there being more illegal platforms and/or that other players are becoming more dominant (see Table 2).

 


8. Gambling is here to stay. It is part of human nature and is enjoyed by most people. This includes fun betting among friends, young kids betting on spider fighting and having fun in Timezone, the adult passion for cockfighting, and even deriving pleasure from potentially dangerous or risky behavior like drinking, smoking, vaping, downhill cycling, mountain climbing, sky jumping, etc.

 

9. Appropriate regulation is the middle ground between illegal and legal-but-unregulated gambling, one that recognizes the widening digital economy and ease of participation, respects people’s desire for entertainment or an itch for quick money. Regulation protects vulnerable and gullible players, and respects government regulatory authority. Cross-sector collaboration among regulators, fintech providers, gaming companies, civil society, and the players themselves can help attain ethical and safety standards.

 

10. Like taxation of “sin products” (alcohol, tobacco, sugary drinks, mining products), appropriate regulatory fees and tax rates should prevail over nanny-state taxation that goes through the roof and which tends to drive people to patronize underground or illegal, unregulated activities and players.

China industrialization

I googled the following, results from wiki, my summary and discussion:

1. Longest bridges in the world. Of the Top 10, 5 are in CN,  #1 is Danyang–Kunshan Grand Bridge in CN 164.8 kms long, #10 is Metro Manila Skyway system with 39.8 kms. #11 is US.

Longest sea-crossing bridge in the World is HK-Macau-Zuhai bridge, 55 kms. When the Cavite-Corregidor-Bataan bridge is finished with 32 kms, it will be the 2nd longest in the world.

2. Largest hydro power plants in the world. Of the top 10, 5 are in CN, #1 is Three Gorges Dam (3GD), 22.5 GW. 1 from US, #10 Grand Coulee in the US, 6.8 GW. There are 38 hydro plants that are 3.0 GW or larger, 17 of these from CN, 8 from BR, 4 from RU, 2 each from US and CA.



PH largest hydro plants are CBK in Laguna with 0.8 GW then San Roque in Pangasinan with 0.4 GW.

CN will build an even bigger hydro plant, the Yarlong Zangbo (YZ) project in Tibet, 60 GW or nearly 3x the 3GD which is currently the largest in the world. The YZ is projected to be finished by 2040, or 15 years construction. Construction of 3GD was 20 years, 1992-2012.

3. Longest road tunnels in the world. Of the top 10, 4 are in CN. #1 is Lærdal Tunnel in Norway, 24.5 kms. There are 443 tunnels that are 5.0 kms or longer, zero from the US, more than half from CN alone.


In terms of hard infra, CN is a powerhouse, US is far 2nd or 3rd. Which speaks of countries’  backward linkages – manufacturing and production of huge volume of cement, steel, cables, etc. US is good in services like Hollywood movies, NBA, Amazon deliveries etc. But US is far behind CN in industry and manufacturing.

Now Kennon road going to Baguio is closed again to vehicles after a week+ of rains, a number of landslides, rockslides that block the road or slice the road. If you build tunnels across hills and mountains, no danger of landslides. Only possibility of tunnel collapse during earthquakes but it's an eng'g problem with eng'g solution, the strength and stability of tunnels against strong earthquakes.

The longest tunnel I saw in Hebei province was 5+ kms. 2 tubes meaning the other side is separated by a wall, 1 tube is 2 lanes. Well paved, well lighted, and there is internet even in the middle of long tunnels, I could send messages and photos while our van was inside that tunnel.

Very mature eng'g skills, high prodn volume of cement, steel, electrical cables, etc needed to build long tunnels, and hundreds of long tunnels. CN has such capacity no other country can do, not even the US, JP, UK, DE, FR, etc.

BWorld 802, On oil price shocks and inflation, growth and wage coercion

On oil price shocks and inflation, growth and wage coercion

June 17, 2025 | 12:02 am

My Cup Of Liberty

By Bienvenido S. Oplas, Jr.

https://www.bworldonline.com/opinion/2025/06/17/679426/on-oil-price-shocks-and-inflation-growth-and-wage-coercion/

 

The Israel-Iran war is now five days old, and the immediate impact is a crude oil price hike. From an average of $61-$62 per barrel from early April to early June 2025, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude quickly jumped to $68-$73 per barrel from June 13 onwards. The war looks like it will last for several weeks or months, so elevated world oil prices will be with us.

 

I checked data on the previous wars in the Middle East, the oil price hikes that followed, and the inflation rates of G7 countries and selected Asian nations at the time. China and Vietnam do not have inflation data from the 1970s so I removed them from the list.

 

Four periods that had oil price shocks are covered: 1.) 1974, mainly as a result of the big Yom Kippur war in October 1973, which saw Israel fighting against Egypt and Syria; 2.) 1979-1980, mainly a result of the Iran civil war, and political instability in Saudi Arabia and Syria; 3.) 1999-2000, mainly due to the Palestinian intifada vs Israel, civil wars in Indonesia, Liberia, and Yugoslavia, the First Russo-Chechen War, and the India-Pakistan war; and, 4.), 2011, which saw civil wars in Libya (when Khadaffy was toppled), Syria, Lebanon, and the Iraq insurgency.

 

All G7 countries experienced high inflation during those four periods except Canada in 1979-1980, and Japan in 2000 and 2011. The Philippines and other Asian nations also experienced higher inflation on those periods except in 2000 (see Table 1).

 


So, if the current price of $68-$73 per barrel remains for several weeks and months, the Philippines’ inflation rate can quickly jump from 1.4% in April and 1.3% in May, to 1.8-2.5% in June-July onwards. The economic team should prepare contingency measures for this possibility.

 

LEGISLATED WAGE HIKE AND THE ECONOMIC TEAM

See these recent reports in BusinessWorld: “House approves P200 wage hike bill” (June 5), “Labor condemns failure of minimum wage bill despite willingness to compromise on P100 hike” (June 12), “Economic managers warn wage hike bill to slash GDP growth” (June 12).

 

I say “bravo” to the government’s economic team — Cabinet Secretaries Frederick Go, Ralph Recto, Arsenio Balisacan, Amenah Pangandaman, and Ma. Cristina Roque — for taking a clear position about the dangers of legislated wage hike, instead of going through the regional wage negotiations.

 

I checked recent data on wages in Asia and GDP growth over the past three years, and the simple comparison yielded a not-surprising result: economies with high wages — above $2,500/month at purchasing power parity (PPP) values — grew slowly, from 0.7% to 3.4%, while economies with lower wages — below $2,500/month — had higher average growth, from 4.5% to 7.8% with the exception of Thailand (see Table 2).

 


Here are six facts about wages and employment that socialist-leaning activists do not or cannot comprehend.

 

1. Employment in private enterprises is a private contract between employees and employers, not between employees and government or NGOs, media, and academics.

 

2. Wage is a function of productivity, not the number of kids a worker has, and not the number of legislators and NGOs making noise about wage intervention.

 

3. Productivity varies within the same corporation, so workers doing similar jobs in the same corporation have varying wages and benefits.

 

4. The most degrading experience for people is not being hired at all, and not being “exploited” by employers; so the real minimum wage is zero, not P600/day or so.

 

5. The most liberating environment for workers is having plenty of jobs available, including ease of hiring themselves and creating jobs for their friends via entrepreneurship.

 

6. “Easy to hire and easy to fire” is consistent with expanding jobs opportunities; “hard to fire” leads to hard to hire unless workers are highly productive and can use machines and robots to replace other workers.

 

The Philippines’ wage-setting at the regional wage boards and tripartite meetings among government, employers, and labor unions is itself a violation of wage as a function of productivity but it is a good compromise.

 

Congress has erred in attempting to legislate a big wage hike nationwide and ignoring the role of productivity as a determinant of wage adjustments. But Congress has redeemed itself by not passing the bill for bicameral approval and ratification.

 

The economic team is correct in opposing a legislated wage hike; the detractors and socialist-leaning activists are wrong. My unsolicited advice to the latter — they should try being entrepreneurs themselves and very likely they will behave and reason out as the current employers are. 

PhilStar 46, Energy security during rainy, stormy months

Energy security during rainy, stormy months

 

ENERGY, INFRA AND ECONOMICS - Bienvenido Oplas Jr. - The Philippine Star 

June 19, 2025 | 12:00am

https://www.philstar.com/business/2025/06/19/2451539/energy-security-during-rainy-stormy-months

 

Two weeks ago the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) declared the official rainy season for the country, normally June to November.

 

Rainy season means higher output for hydroelectric plants but lower output for solar plants as solar hates shade from clouds, rains and trees. Like last year, the share of hydro in total power generation rose from 3.3 percent in May to 5.4 percent in June 2024, while solar share declined from 3.5 percent in May to 3.2 percent in June. The share of wind also declined from 0.6 percent in May to 0.3 percent in June. For a combined share of 3.5 percent of total generation from wind-solar, they are dangerously unreliable to power the Philippines’ fast economic growth.

 

We also have frequent flooding as we do not have enough lakes, dams, weirs and other water catchments and storage. And there are more storms that can topple electrical posts and even towers, so grid stability and security are needed.

 

Last June 13, there was a press conference at the Department of Energy (DOE) with outgoing Secretary Raphael PM Lotilla and OIC Secretary Sharon Garin as speakers. I was not able to attend because I was out of town that day. But if I have to assess a performance in a grade of 1.0 to 5.0, one as excellent and five as failure, I will give Secretary Lotilla’s three years a 1.75, equivalent to cum laude honor in UP. Let me explain.

 

Almost perfect 1.0 grade because he laid a good legal and international preparations and foundation for the Philippines doing nuclear energy soon. And there was almost no blackout, at least in the Meralco area, just frequent yellow-red alerts in the grid. Nearly 3,000 MW of new capacities were added the last three years.

 

But I have to add 0.75, so 1.75 grade, because there are so many wind-solar coming in, especially the super-costly offshore wind, that he approved. I believe that when those birds-killing wind blades and wind plants become more rampant in our sea someday, both generation charge and transmission charge will shoot up, they are too far away from Metro Manila and other commercial-industrial zones where power demand is high.

 

Acting or OIC Secretary Sharon Garin has both legislative and executive experience in continuing the great work done by Mr. Lotilla, especially in preparing for nuclear energy. Ma’am, let us start with refurbishing and reviving the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant. That 620-MW plant if running at 85 percent capacity factor can produce about 4,600 GWh of electricity yearly, larger than the roughly 4,000 GWh combined output of wind-solar last year.

 

This week the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) inaugurated more Retail Aggregation Program (RAP) contracts. The RAP program helps smaller consumers like households and micro businesses enjoy lower electricity costs when they are aggregated and get direct retail electricity supply (RES) contracts with certain generation companies.

 

ERC chairperson Monalisa Dimalanta optimistically said that “through RAP, more Filipinos are taking charge of their energy destiny, bringing us closer to true energy democracy.”

 

Among the RAP participants that ERC inaugurated this week is the MPower-DMCI Homes partnership. MPower is Meralco’s local RES while DMCI Homes has several big residential condos and they also participated in the Competitive Retail Electricity Market (CREM) and RAP programs.

 

Speaking of stronger, reliable and resilient grid especially during the stormy months, the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) just finished its annual stakeholder consultations nationwide to discuss the Transmission Development Plan (TDP) 2025-2050.

 

NGCP president and CEO Anthony Almeda said that “the TDP is essential to NGCP. It outlines… ongoing projects and grid plans including indicative project timelines, regulatory updates, the proposed integration of renewable energy sources, and smart grid technologies to enhance efficiency.”

 

Also last week there was the APAC Energy Capital Assembly 2025 in Singapore. Among the speakers was Meralco PowerGen (MGen) president and CEO Emmanuel Rubio who discussed MGen’s evolving portfolio of big renewables like MTerra Solar and diversified energy sources. He emphasized that this will “ensure both profitability and sustainability as complementary goals, building an energy system that delivers both low-carbon future that remains affordable and reliable for all.”

 

Another energy company that similar to MGen has both large renewables and thermal plants is Aboitiz Power (AP). I chanced upon AP’s vice president for corporate affairs Suiee Suarez and he says that “for us in AP, energy security means reliability (power supply without interruption, current and future), resilience (capacity of the grid and power plants to withstand and recover from both anticipated and unforeseen disruptions in supply) and efficiency (keep continuous supply while minimizing energy consumption) in the energy system.”

 

Meanwhile I have two short greetings. One, congrats to Canada Embassy in Manila led by Ambassador David Hartman.They will hold the annual Canada Day this coming June 26. It is the anniversary of the Canadian Confederation which occurred on July 1, 1867.

 

Two, congrats to my batchmates from UP School of Economics (UPSE) Batch 1984, Lynette Ortiz and Gladys Cruz-Sta Rita. Lynette is the president of Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) and LBP has remitted to the National Treasury P32 billion in 2024 and P33 billion this year. Gladys is former president of National Power Corp. and now vice-president for investment management group (power) of the Maharlika Investment Corp.

 

Lynette and Gladys will be awardees of the 2025 UP Alumni Association (UPAA) Distinguished Alumni Awards. Lynette in Community Empowerment in Countryside Growth and Development, and Gladys in Good Governance in Public Utility Development and Hydraulic Resource Stewardship. 

BWorld 801, On trade expansion and fiscal consolidation

On trade expansion and fiscal consolidation

June 12, 2025 | 12:02 am

My Cup Of Liberty

By Bienvenido S. Oplas, Jr.

https://www.bworldonline.com/opinion/2025/06/12/678619/on-trade-expansion-and-fiscal-consolidation/

 

The US tariff escalation policy generated heavy public discussions and fears last April, but these have simmered down recently. There are winners and losers in the non-disruption in trade, and there are also winners and losers in trade disruption. In conventional economic trade theory, there is “net gain” (gainers and winners outnumber losers) in free trade which at the optimum implies zero tariffs and very few non-tariff barriers.

 

Last Tuesday, June 10, I attended a forum called “The US-China Tariff Trade War: Implications for the Philippines” at the AIM Conference Center in Makati, organized by Leverage International (Consultants), Inc. Among the panelists were Mike Toledo, Chair of the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines; Dr. Jess Arranza, Chair of the Federation of Philippine Industries; and Ruth Yu Owen, Chair of the Energy Committee of the Management Association of the Philippines. Jose Luis Yulo was the forum chairman and moderator.

 

I liked Mr. Toledo’s discussions on the mining export ban and the need for mining processing after a 10 year transition and preparation period, Metro Pacific Investments Corp.’s corporate farming, and Terra Solar projects; Mr. Arranza’s talk about the economic damage caused by smuggling and illicit trade on Philippines industries; and Ms. Owen’s talk on solar energy where she also recognized the need for coal and gas plants for baseload power generation.

 

Later in the afternoon, my former boss (and former Congressman, and former Finance Secretary) Gary Teves talked about macroeconomics and trade and he emphasized that we should focus on measures where we have control, like our own economic and trade policies, and not on events and policies abroad over which we have little control. I support that.

 

Then Congressman Joey Salceda talked about “Ruthless Ricardianism,” referring to David Ricardo’s theory of comparative advantage, but now in the context of the “ruthlessness” of a trade and tariff war. As usual he produced a lot of numbers and finance-related policy measures.

 

During the open forum, I briefly commented that when I checked the monthly trade data from the World Trade Organization (WTO), China, which is supposed to suffer a decline in exports actually experienced an expansion in exports.

 

Looking at the comparative January to April period, China’s exports increased from $1.084 trillion in 2023 to $1.10 trillion in 2024, and $1.169 trillion in 2025. In particular, their exports increased from $288.1 billion in April 2023, to $291.9 billion in April 2024, and $315.7 billion in April 2025.

 

In the accompanying table are the total exports for the first quarter of this year (many countries have not reported their April 2025 data yet). Like China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, and Singapore also experienced a sustained increase in exports, as did the Philippines but with a very small margin increase. The US, UK, and Mexico also showed marginal increases.

 

In contrast, many countries experienced a decline in exports, or remained steady, neither increasing or declining: Japan, South Korea, India, Malaysia, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Poland, Brazil, Canada, and Australia (see the table).

 


PHILIPPINES’ FISCAL CONSOLIDATION

Last Monday, June 9, the economic team held a big Investment Coordination Committee-Cabinet Committee (ICC-CC) meeting at the Department of Finance (DoF). Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto, as ICC-CC Chairperson, led the deliberations on the proposed and modified Official Development Assistance (ODA) and Public-Private Partnership (PPP) projects submitted for the committee’s approval.

 

Also present were Economics Secretary and ICC-CC Co-Chairperson Arsenio M. Balisacan, Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Secretary Amenah F. Pangandaman and Undersecretary Joselito R. Basilio, Trade Secretary Ma. Cristina A. Roque, Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, Jr., Public Works Secretary Manuel M. Bonoan, Monetary Board member Romeo L. Bernardo, and PPP Executive Director Ma. Cynthia C. Hernandez, among other government officials.

 

For me, fiscal consolidation implies a reduction in certain spending and an expansion in revenues, tax and non-tax revenues so that the annual budget deficit and public borrowings can be controlled. Having more PPP infrastructure projects and less ODA is a good way to attain fiscal discipline and consolidation.

 

Last week, on June 4, the Government Optimization Bill, formerly called National Government Rightsizing Program was passed and ratified by the Bicameral Committee and now awaits the President’s signature. DBM Secretary Pangandaman was understandably happy with this development as the soon-to-be law will create a more efficient and responsive government.

 

Three weeks ago, on May 21, I was one of several NGO leaders invited by the DBM for the “Macroeconomic Insights for National Action: An Economic Dialogue with Civil Society” held at Luxent Hotel in Quezon City. While one transport NGO leader proposed another oil tax to discourage car usage and to shift more people to using bicycles and the mass transport system, I spoke to disagree because of the inflationary impact of any energy tax hike. 

PhilStar 45, Provincial growth and industrialization

Provincial growth and industrialization

 

ENERGY, INFRA AND ECONOMICS - Bienvenido Oplas Jr. - The Philippine Star 

June 12, 2025 | 12:00am

https://www.philstar.com/business/2025/06/12/2449857/provincial-growth-and-industrialization

 

In 2024, the Philippines has a gross domestic product (GDP) of P26.45 trillion at current values or P22.24 trillion at constant values (2018 = 100). At constant values, the richest region of course is Metro Manila with P6.94 trillion regional GDP (RGDP), second is Calabarzon with RGDP of P3.27 trillion, third is Central Luzon with P2.47 trillion, fourth is Central Visayas  with P1.28 trillion, fifth is Davao Region with P1.08 trillion, based on data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

 

In manufacturing value-added in 2024, the Philippines has P3.92 trillion at constant prices of which the largest contributor is Calabarzon with P1.33 trillion, followed by Metro Manila with P0.81 trillion and Central Luzon with P0.65 trillion.

 

The PSA has further disaggregated the RGDP into provincial product accounts (PPA) but data is until 2023 only, the PPA for 2024 to be released maybe months from now.

 

For Metro Manila, the largest or richest city is Quezon City with PPA in 2023 at constant prices of P1,271 billion, followed by Makati City with P1.183 billion, Manila City with P988 billion, Taguig City with P566 billion and Pasig City with P482 billion.

 

For Calabarzon, the richest province is Laguna with PPA in 2023 at constant prices of P1,093 billion, followed by Cavite with P780 billion and Batangas with P646 billion. In terms of per capita income, the richest is still Laguna with P294,400 per person, followed by Batangas with P198,000 and Cavite with P174,000.

 

The RGDP value-added from electricity, steam, water and waste management (ESWWM) in 2023, Calabarzon has P130 billion and more than half of this came from Batangas with P62.6 billion. Credit goes to huge gas and coal power plants located in various municipalities of Batangas.

 

In the statement of receipts and expenditures by region and province for 2025, the largest spending region is Central Luzon with P31.3 billion, followed by Calabarzon with P26.4 billion and Western Visayas with P18.0 billion. (Source: DBM, Budget of Expenditures and Sources of Financing 2025, Table F.12)

 

Among provinces nationwide, the largest spenders (P6 billion and up) are Cebu with P10.2 billion, Bulacan with P8.5 billion, Laguna P7.5 billion, Palawan with P6.6 billion and Ilocos Sur with P6.1 billion.

 

Provinces with largest internal revenue mobilization are Rizal with P3.1 billion, Pampanga with P2.9 billion, Bulacan with P2.8 billion, Quezon with P2.6 billion, Bataan with P2.4 billion and Cebu with P2.0 billion.

 

Most local government units (LGUs) outside Metro Manila are still highly dependent on fiscal transfer from the national government via national tax allotment (NTA), previously called internal revenue allotment. This should change in favor of more internal revenue mobilization as LGUs assume more infrastructure and social services delivery to their constituents.

 

So in terms of Philippines industrialization, the most industrialized region is Calabarzon with huge manufacturing output and value-added. And within the region, the most prepared for faster industrialization is Batangas because of its existing infrastructure, like having the  largest value-added from ESWWM, with large international and domestic seaport.

 

But in terms of local revenue mobilization, Batangas is not among the majors, and so its expenditures leeway is not that big.

 

There is a change in provincial leadership in Batangas with actress Vilma Santos becoming governor again next month. She was governor from 2007-2016 or three terms. Her husband, Finance Secretary Ralph Recto, is focused on national fiscal consolidation, raising more revenues outside tax hike in order to reduce the budget deficit and reducing the financing or borrowings needed. Governor-elect Vilma Santos must do a similar provincial fiscal consolidation.

 

Before the lockdown dictatorship of 2020-2021, I used to drive yearly from Makati to Iloilo and back via Batangas-Mindoro-Aklan. The existing tollroads Skyway-SLEX-STAR by SMC allow for faster and safer travel to Batangas Port.

 

The largest gas plants using indigenous gas from Malampaya and imported LNG are in Batangas, plus huge coal plants also in the province. So it has the largest power generation per square kilometer of land nationwide and big industrial and commercial business locators should have less worry about power deficiency.

 

But the electric cooperatives that serve the province, Batelec 1 and Batelec 2, are far from being efficient and hence, power interruption is more frequent. Corporate distribution utilities should come in as business partners or take over their franchise area in the near future.

 

A few things that I wish to see in Batangas. Like more land reclamations and artificial island near Ilijan, a  bridge-tunnel connecting Batangas-Verde Island-Mindoro that also carry power transmission lines, a  tollroad from Ilijan to Lucena, petrochem and  big mining processing plants.

 

I wish returning Governor Vilma Santos and her team would push hard big infrastructure projects via public-private partnership (PPP) and attract more big business locators, more big manufacturing-processing plants that will help further expand the country’s manufacturing capability. Social services like more public health, public education can take care of itself once more businesses create more jobs, and more local revenues are raised. 

Saturday, July 26, 2025

BWorld 800, On declining inflation and the PhilAtom bill

On declining inflation and the PhilAtom bill

June 10, 2025 | 12:01 am

My Cup Of Liberty

By Bienvenido S. Oplas, Jr.

https://www.bworldonline.com/opinion/2025/06/10/678022/on-declining-inflation-and-the-philatom-bill/

 

Last week, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) released the country’s inflation rate for May and it was another piece of good news, it was only 1.3%, from 1.8% in March and 1.4% in April. Average inflation for January-May this year is only 1.9%, while that of Taiwan, South Korea, Vietnam, India, and Japan ranged from 2% to 3.7%.

 

Even the big economies of America and Europe have higher inflation rates this year than the Philippines, except Italy and France (see Table 1).

 


The persistent argument here that “high inflation contributed to the defeat of many administration candidates” in the last election is wrong for three reasons.

 

One, our inflation rate this year was low up to the month of the election itself.

 

Two, assuming that high inflation in 2023 and 2024 affected voters’ behavior, then it should have been reflected in various surveys like the SWS survey of May 6 but it did not. The survey showed that nine of 12 administration Senatorial candidates would win. It is not possible that between May 6 to May 12 the voters suddenly factored in the high inflation of the last two years and thus they voted against many administration candidates.

 

And three, elections are a political exercise with many political factors to consider, and many political actors and players that affect the political behavior of the voters and candidates themselves. Like the two senatorial candidates of the current administration who were belatedly endorsed by opposition leader Vice-President Sara Duterte and won. It is dishonest to downplay political factors just to hit the economic performance and secretaries of the administration.

 

NUCLEAR BILL

Meanwhile, the bill to establish a Philippine Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority (PhilAtom) was passed on second reading at the Senate last week. It was passed by the House of Representatives (HOR) in November 2023. If the Senate passes it on third and final reading on June 9, then the HOR adopts the Senate version and both Houses ratify it by Wednesday, then President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. can sign it into a law. Otherwise, it will be back to square one in the next Congress that will start next month.

 

A review of the Philippines’ nuclear energy development can be gleaned from these recent reports in 2025 in BusinessWorld, written by Sheldeen Joy Talavera: “Filipino engineers gearing up for nuclear-powered future” (Jan. 10), “KEPCO reaffirms plan to invest in PHL RE, nuclear, smart grid projects” (Feb. 27), “Meralco in talks with foreign firms for new nuclear energy partnership” (March 24), “PNRI says nuclear safety fears can be addressed via regulation” (April 29), “Meralco awaits Senate action on proposed nuclear regulatory body” (May 5), and, “Meralco to explore partnerships with South Korean power firms” (June 2).

 

In many countries, there is a modest correlation between the high use of nuclear energy with low inflation rate. I computed the share of nuclear generation to total power generation of several countries, then paired it with the average inflation rate over a similar period.

 

Countries or economies with declining nuclear to total generation ratio experienced rising inflation rates: France, Belgium, Germany, and Taiwan. Some countries with a slight decline in the ratio but which experienced a rise in their inflation rate were the US, Canada, and Japan.

 

Countries with a rising nuclear to total generation ratio that experienced declining inflation rates were South Korea, China, India, and the United Arab Emirates (see Table 2).

 


Nuclear power has the highest energy density among all energy sources, so it is the most efficient, with the highest electricity output per unit of input. Nuclear power is generally safe — the last major nuclear accident was in Chernobyl, Ukraine (then part of the USSR) in 1986. The Fukushima incident in Japan in 2011 has no deaths or direct casualties, only a large-scale evacuation of people as a precaution.

 

The refurbishing and revival of the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) is the easiest and fastest way to have nuclear energy in the country. BNPP has “sister” nuclear plants in Brazil, Slovenia, Spain, and South Korea — all built by Westinghouse in the 1970s, all of which experienced cost escalations during their construction periods as safety measures increased, all of which were commissioned in the 1980s, all of which are running until now and producing cheap and stable electricity.

 

We missed the train of nuclear power development since the 1980s. This decade we have a chance to revive the BNPP, which has the potential to generate about 4,600 gigawatts per hour per year, higher than the combined generation of solar and wind yearly. The enactment of the PhilAtom bill into law is a major part of this great opportunity. 

Macroecon 35, More on Degrowth Europe

European degrowth is self-inflicted, can never be blamed on anyone else but themselves. The Philippines  and other Asians should avoid the European malady. We know what they are doing that we should not do here - - save almost everything (planet, Ukraine, DEI, illegals, whales,...) except their own economies.

S. Korea is crawling like many Europeans, worse than Japan. Aside from their internal politics, I think S. Korea is embracing many woke policies of Europe. Data below from Trading Economics.