THE squeeze is real, and it is being felt in every household ledger and every company budget in the country. Renewed hostilities between the United States and Iran have sent fuel and energy prices surging to levels we have not seen in years. Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea is disrupted, and everything that arrives on our shores by sea — which is to say, nearly everything — now costs more to bring here. Inflation remains stubbornly above target. Food pric

The Philippine Insurers and Reinsurers Association (PIRA) is proud to announce that its Executive Director, Michael Rellosa, has been re-elected as a member of the ARISE Philippines Board of Directors for the 2026–2029 term. The announcement follows the recently concluded ARISE Philippines Board of Directors Election, which saw strong participation from member organizations across various industries. Joining Mr. Rellosa on the newly elected Board are representatives from SM

The Philippine Insurers and Reinsurers Association (PIRA) took part in the Working-Level Consultations on Advancing Sustainable Communities through Public Finance Resilience, organized by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in partnership with the Office of the Presidential Adviser for Sustainable and Resilient Communities (OPASRC), held on 13–14 July 2026 at Centro de Turismo Intramuros, Manila. PIRA participated in the session for corporate and

Earthquake. Tremor. Upheaval. Metro Manila is a bustling megacity of over 14 million people that rests on a ticking geological time bomb. The West Valley Fault, which traverses the heart of the metropolis, is ripe for a major movement. Seismologists warn that this fault moves roughly every 400 to 500 years. The last major earthquake occurred in 1658. This means that the region is well within the window for a magnitude 7.2 earthquake, colloquially feared as the “Big One.” Acco

By Kristina Maralit , William B. Depasupil and Catherine S. Valente THE government on Thursday said the country’s reclassification by the World Bank as an upper-middle-income economy would create more jobs, attract investments and expand opportunities for Filipinos, but labor groups challenged it to show that the newly attained status would benefit ordinary Filipinos by supporting higher wages. The Philippines was among five economies that moved from lower-middle to upper-mi

The Philippine Insurers and Reinsurers Association (PIRA) is calling on insurers to overhaul war-risk underwriting, strengthen investment and currency hedging strategies, and introduce relief measures for policyholders as oil prices surge and geopolitical risks intensify following the Middle East conflict. The Philippines is one of the economies most vulnerable to conflict in the Middle East, as it imports 98% of its oil from the region, prompting it to be the first country i