BEIJING – China's Ministry of Commerce announced sanctions against Boeing and two other defense companies on Monday for arms sales to Taiwan on the day of Taiwan's presidential inauguration. The move is the latest in a series of sanctions Beijing has announced in recent years against defense companies for weapons …
Read More »Hong Kong facilitates use of digital yuan
HONG KONG – Hong Kong will facilitate the creation and the use of e-CNY (digital yuan) wallets in the latest progress of collaboration between the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and the People's Bank of China to expand an e-CNY pilot for cross-boundary payments, the HKMA said on Friday. Residents …
Read More »Is that Her? OpenAI halting ChatGPT voice after some say it sounds like Scarlett Johansson
Company said it had "heard questions" about how it selects the lifelike audio options available for its flagship artificial intelligence chatbot and wanted to address them. Actor played an AI assistant in Spike Jonze's dystopian 2013 romance film OpenAI says it plans to halt the use of one of its …
Read More »Higher education summit mirrors lofty aspirations for youth development
At the first-ever National Higher Education Summit held last week, President Marcos declared that “the most important service that government must provide to its people is a good education.” Noting that in the recent Times Higher Education’s 2024 Asia University Rankings, no Philippine university was among the top 100, he …
Read More »Sino snoops are legion
“Even advanced nations cannot keep up with the deluge of Chinese activity, as security services simply cannot investigate every case. The mysterious Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo, it is suggested, is a time traveler after no official records could be found of her life before the age of 17. As …
Read More »Zubiri steps down as Senate president, says he disobeyed ‘powers that be’
MANILA, Philippines — Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri on Monday stepped down from his post, ending his two-year term due to what he implied was dissatisfaction with him for breaking ranks. “I failed to follow instructions from the powers that be, simple as that,” Zubiri said during his privilege speech. The outgoing Senate …
Read More »OCTA: Marcos, Duterte’s trust, approval ratings decline in Q1 of 2024
President Marcos and Vice President Sara Duterte’s trust rating among Filipinos dropped slightly, according to the recent OCTA Research “Tugon ng Masa” (TNM) survey. Conducted from March 24 to 27, 2024, the survey revealed that 69 percent of Filipinos trust President Marcos, down six points compared to his 76 percent …
Read More »Escudero replaces Zubiri as Senate President
Photo from Senator Chiz Escudero’s Official FB Page The Senate of the Philippines undergoes a major leadership change with Senator Francis Escudero expected to replace Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri as Senate President within the day. Zubiri is scheduled to deliver a speech this afternoon at the plenary session. Senate Majority …
Read More »Recto: Align tax collection system with Korea, Singapore, Japan
In response to the shifting consumer preferences towards e-commerce, the Department of Finance (DOF) wants to bring the country’s tax collection system in line with the best practices of three leading Asian nations. Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto said the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Bureau of Customs …
Read More »Marcos expresses condolences for death of Iranian President Raisi
A handout picture provided by the Iranian presidency shows Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi during a meeting with his Azeri counterpart ahead of the inauguration ceremony of Qiz Qalasi, the third dam jointly built by Iran and Azerbaijan on the Aras River. A helicopter in the convoy of the Iranian president …
Read More »