Business

A motorcycle rider refuels at a pumping station in Dumaguete City on Monday.* PNA/Mary Judaline Flores Partlow photoThe Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) in Negros Oriental said inflation in the province rose in February, compared to the previous month.PSA Negros Oriental provincial director and chief statistician officer Ariel Fortuito said on Monday, March 16, that the increase was also slightly higher compared to the same period last year.“The inflation rate in Negros Oriental for February 2026 is pegged at 1.8 percent versus the previous month, which was at 0.8 percent,” Fortuito said.Meanwhile, the inflation rate in February 2025 was 0.2 percent.The main drivers for the acceleration of last month’s inflation were the commodity groups: food and non-alcoholic be...

The fire at Barangay Biak-na-Bato, La Castellana town.*Mj Guardiano photo via PIA Negros Occidental.The moderately explosive eruption at Kanlaon Volcano on Sunday night triggered an estimated 65 hectares of forest and grassland fires, while ash and sulfuric odor hit 92 barangays across Negros.The eruption, which began at 6:07 p.m., lasted only a minute but emitted ash for 3 hours and 49 minutes, Mari Andylene Quintia, Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) resident volcanologist stationed in La Carlota City, said.Kanlaon also had moderately explosive eruptions on February 19 and 26, and remains under Alert Level 2.Quintia said the fires on the slopes of the volcano were triggered by ballistic projectiles or pyroclastic density currents from the erupt...

Vehicles formed long lines at Bacolod gasoline stations Monday night ahead of another round of fuel price hikes on Tuesday, March 17.* Richard Caballero Jr. photoDomestic oil prices will rise by as much as P23.90 per liter this week, with five companies implementing increases on a staggered basis starting Tuesday, Energy Secretary Sharon Garin said Monday, March 16.For gasoline products, the increase will be PHP12.90 to PHP16.60 per liter; for diesel, PHP20.40 to PHP23.90 per liter; and for kerosene, PHP6.90 to PHP8.90 per liter.This will bring gasoline prices to as much as PHP91.60 per liter, diesel to PHP114.90 per liter, and kerosene to PHP143.79 per liter.Department of Energy (DOE) data show that from March 10 to 16, gasoline prices ranged from PHP63.40 to PHP75 per li...

Vallacar Transit Inc. (VTI) announced on Monday, March 16, that it is implementing a fare increase per kilometer across all routes to sustain operations following recent spikes in global oil prices.This adjustment was approved by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) Friday, amid the unstable movement of fuel prices in the world market caused by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.This has affected the operating costs of public transportation, VTI said.As fuel remains one of the primary expenses in bus operations, the continuous oil price hikes have made it necessary for the company to follow the LTFRB adjustments in fares in order to sustain daily operations, VTI said.The grant of provisional increase was made by virtue of Sec. 16 of CA 146, ...

Rep. Javier Miguel “Javi” Benitez (Neg. Occ., 3rd District)*Rep. Javier Miguel “Javi” Benitez (Neg. Occ., 3rd District) has filed House Bill No. 6812, also known as the PROTECT (Prevention of Online Threats and Electronic Cruelty Toward Women and Children) Act, to address the growing landscape of digital violence.The measure seeks to modernize and expand the Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children Act (RA 9262) by explicitly covering electronic or ICT-related violence, Benitez said in a Facebook post Monday, March 16.This legislative move acknowledges that abuse is no longer confined to physical spaces, as social media, messaging apps, and online accounts have become frequent tools for harassment and intimidation.The bill points out that digital abuse is a source of...

Bago City Mayor Marina Javellana-Yao (3rd from right) leads the distribution of rice subsidy to tricycle drivers in the southern Negros city on Monday.*Bago City in Negros Occidental on Monday, March 16, started the distribution of rice subsidy to nearly 3,000 members of various tricycle operators and drivers associations (TODAs) to help cushion the impact of rising fuel prices on the local public transport sector.An initial 1,245 tricycle drivers from three TODAs in Barangay Poblacion received 5 kilograms of rice each.Mayor Marina Javellana-Yao said the city government is extending the assistance to public transport drivers on top of the cash aid and fuel subsidy they will soon receive from the national government.“We are now preparing the list of tricycle drivers. Anytime...

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. (right) meets with Sugar Regulatory Administration officials led by Administrator Pablo Luis Azcona (left) to discuss government’s interventions for the sugar industry.* DA photoThe government has launched a preemptive push to safeguard fuel and fertilizer stocks for the sugar industry to shield the sector from Middle East-related supply shocks during its most resource-intensive harvest window, Sugar Regulatory Administrator Pablo Luis Azcona said Friday, March 13.The Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) are coordinating with other government agencies to ensure stable access to key farm inputs for sugar producers amid concerns that the ongoing conflict in the Middle East could disrupt global pe...

One of the pre-highlight activities of the Sinigayan Festival.*The Sinigayan Festival schedule has been moved from March 15-19 to March 16–20 to give prominence to the feast of St. Joseph, the patron saint of Sagay City, Mayor Leo Rafael “Bebo” Cueva said.Cueva explained that the adjustment allows the church to fully celebrate March 19, which is the feast day of St. Joseph, while the city government will hold the festival highlight on March 20, a press release from Sagay City said Friday, March 13.“A fiesta is really a celebration of the Catholic Church, so this year we are giving March 19 to the church for whatever celebrations they have for St. Joseph,” Cueva said.He added that the local government intends to continue this arrangement in the coming years so that the relig...

NEPC Vice President and COO Engr. Joe-mel Zaporteza.* Richard Caballero Jr. PhotoConsumers should brace for higher electricity bills starting next month amid rising fuel costs driven by ongoing tensions in the Middle East, a Negros Electric and Power Corporation (NEPC) official warned Thursday, March. 12.Engr. Christian John Villena, NEPC Corporate Energy Sourcing and Regulatory Affairs Manager, said electricity charges could jump by as much as ₱2 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) if petroleum prices remain elevated.Villena noted that the surge in fuel prices is a broader economic concern, predicting that 45 percent to 65 percent of basic commodities may also see price hikes in the coming weeks.For March consumers are already facing an increase of 30 to 35 centavos per kWh, he said....

Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson (left) and San Juan City Mayor Francis Javier Zamora sign their sisterhood agreement.*San Juan City Mayor Francis Javier Zamora signed sisterhood agreements between his city and the province of Negros Occidental — including its 31 towns and cities and Bacolod City — at the Provincial Capitol Social Hall in Bacolod on Thursday, March 12.“This partnership creates an avenue for our local governments to work together in areas such as governance, economic development, tourism promotion, cultural exchange, and people-to-people engagement,” Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson said.He thanked the San Juan City government, led by Zamora, for the gesture of friendship and cooperation.“Your openness to building partnerships beyond your city is a testa...