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The Department of Agriculture (DA) is moving to tighten pork import rules after the government raised the country’s corn import quota, as it seeks to bring down livestock production costs and protect local hog raisers from declining farm-gate prices.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the department was pursuing higher tariffs on imported pork and a temporary suspension of import clearances for selected pork cuts to further ease the pressure on the livestock industry.

Both the planned pork import controls and higher corn import quota are part of the DA’s efforts to address problems hounding the livestock industry, particularly high input costs and weak farmgate prices, Tiu Laurel said.

Corn is a major ingredient in livestock and poultry feeds, so any increase in its prices could eventually translate to higher meat prices.

‘Ensuring a sufficient supply of low-priced corn is essential to supporting animal feed production, keeping production costs of meat affordable and protecting the country’s food security,’ he said in a statement.

‘We need to make sure our livestock and poultry industries have access to the feed ingredients they need without placing additional pressure on consumers,’ he added.

On Oct. 26, President Marcos signed Executive Order No. 129 increasing the minimum access volume (MAV) for corn by 280,000 metric tons (MT), from 220,000 MT to 500,000 MT.

Projected deficit

The higher quota is intended to address a projected yellow corn deficit of 1.42 million MT from March through December this year, amid rising agricultural input costs and production constraints.

Alongside the corn quota adjustment, the DA is proposing to restore pork import tariffs to 30 percent for shipments within the MAV and 40 percent for those outside the quota.

These would replace the reduced rates of 15 percent and 25 percent, respectively, which were extended through 2028 under EO 62.

Tiu Laurel also plans to suspend the issuance of sanitary and phytosanitary import clearances for selected pork cuts once legally permitted, potentially from mid-November through January 2027.

Weeks after severe dry spells and erratic weather prompted a provincial state of calamity, farmers and fisherfolk across Agusan del Sur are shifting from emergency response to active defense, applying new weather-informed techniques to safeguard their livelihoods.

After P3.5 billion in agricultural losses from the prolonged El Niño dry spell, communities in Bayugan City and Talacogon are using lessons from an intensive provincial training caravan organized by the Provincial Agriculture and Veterinary Office (PAVO).

Instead of relying on rigid, traditional planting schedules, trained farmers and fisherfolk are now actively tracking meteorological bulletins and recalibrating field routines against changing climate patterns.

The initiative covered high-risk barangays across Bayugan City-including Pinagalaan, Mt. Ararat, Sto. Niño, and Gethsemane-along with the flood- and drought-prone riverside communities of Labnig and La Flora in Talacogon.

Agriculture and fisheries remain the sectors hit hardest by shifting weather extremes.

Unseasonal rains, sudden gales, and prolonged dry spells frequently shatter traditional planting calendars, damage standing crops, and stall fishing operations.

To break the cycle, farmers and fisherfolk completed training in five subjects: weather fundamentals, localized forecast interpretation, climate risk assessment, weather-informed production planning, and climate-smart farm systems.

Local leaders and technicians trained under the program now served as frontline early-warning relays within their barangays, monitoring updates and cascading official weather advisories to neighboring households.

Experts from the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) stressed that sustained data use will dictate the success of the province’s agricultural rebound.

‘Weather information is more than just a forecast; it is an important tool for protecting livelihoods and reducing risks,’ said Engr. Heart Bompat of DOST-PAGASA. He said issuing timely advisories helps producers avoid preventable losses and optimize scarce resources.

Wenceslao Tianero Jr., a DOST senior science research specialist, emphasized that long-term recovery depends on turning scientific forecasts into daily habits on the ground.

‘Understanding weather forecasts is not simply about knowing whether it will rain or shine-it is about using that data to make better decisions,’ Tianero said, pointing to critical choices such as timing seed distribution, managing harvest dates, and adjusting fishing trips based on wind and marine advisories.

Provincial agriculture officials noted that embedding climate science directly into community-level routines remains central to stabilizing Agusan del Sur’s food supply, ensuring that the province rebuilds on a foundation far more resilient to the next climate shock.

The Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) on Thursday decided to send the names of five candidates aspiring for the chief justice post to Malacañang after extensive deliberation.

The names, which will be transmitted directly to the Office of the President, comes ahead of the mandatory retirement of incumbent Chief Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo on November 6.

Aspiring for the top judiciary posts are Senior Associate Justice Marvic M.V.F. Leonen, Associate Justices Alfredo Benjamin Caguioa, Rodil Zalameda, Japar Dimaampao, and Jose Midas Marquez.

JBC is constitutionally mandated to vet applicants for the judicial positions and top posts at the Office of the Ombudsman.

Once Malacañang formally receives the list, the President has a 90-day constitutional window from the vacancy date to select and appoint the nation’s 28th Chief Justice.

The total funds and assets held by Philippine financial institutions climbed to a fresh record high in August, climbing back to the P38-trillion level as lenders continued to expand credit and attract deposits despite challenges confronting the economy.

Excluding the funds and assets of the central bank, the total resources of the financial system rose 11 percent from a year earlier to P38.6 trillion, data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed. The amount was the highest on record, dating back to 1970.

The total reflects the financial sector’s available resources, including cash, loans, deposits, capital and investment securities, as well as reserves that regulated institutions maintain to absorb potential losses and safeguard financial stability.

The strong expansion suggests that financial institutions remain well-positioned to meet the needs of the growing economy, which is grappling with elevated inflation and lingering effects of a recent corruption scandal that had paralyzed government spending.

‘Growth was driven mainly by solid loan expansion, rising deposits, healthy bank earnings and continued balance sheet growth among major banks,’ said Jonathan Ravelas, senior adviser at Reyes Tacandong and Co.

‘Moving forward, resource growth will hinge on credit demand, interest rates, inflation and the strength of economic activity,’ he added.

Figures showed banks continued to corner the bulk of the total resources of the domestic financial system, holding over 83 percent of the pile. Total funds and assets held by banks amounted to P32.2 trillion as of August, up by 12.5 percent.

Broken down, the resources of big lenders went up by nearly 12 percent to P29.8 trillion, while thrift banks posted a growth rate of 12 percent to P1.5 trillion.

Digital banks saw their resources surge by over 51 percent to P225.2 billion. Funds and assets of rural and cooperative banks grew by 47 percent to P623.9 billion.

Lastly, resources of nonbank financial institutions like investment houses, pawnshops, insurance companies and state-run pension funds edged up by 5 percent to P6.4 trillion.

Regulators have said the war in the Middle East presents a meaningful but manageable risk to the Philippines’ financial stability, noting that the banking system has limited exposure to Gulf nations even as some Philippine companies could face mounting pressure from the economic fallout.

The main transmission channels, they said, run through imported inflation, a wider current account deficit, and tighter external financing conditions, which could weigh on growth and increase credit risks if sustained.

Taal Volcano in Batangas province continued to record volcanic earthquakes, logging eight in the past 24 hours, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) reported on Thursday (October 29).

The latest volcanic earthquakes was lower in number from 13 the previous day, Phivolcs said in its morning bulletin.

Phivolcs logged eight volcanic earthquakes and one tremor lasting 31 hours and 44 minutes on Oct. 26, followed by six earthquakes and one prolonged tremor on Oct. 25. Seven earthquakes were recorded on Oct. 24, while 29 earthquakes and 20 tremors were logged on Oct. 23.

The volcano has recorded seismic activity on most days this month, with no volcanic earthquakes reported on Oct. 1, 3, 4, 5, and 7.

According to Phivolcs, volcanic earthquakes are generated by magma-related processes beneath or near an active volcano. Unlike tectonic earthquakes, which result from movement along faults, volcanic earthquakes are associated with processes linked to volcanic activity.

The continuing seismic activity comes amid a series of phreatic and phreatomagmatic eruptions recorded at Taal Volcano in October.

Phivolcs reported two phreatic, or steam-driven, eruptions on Oct. 19 and another on Oct. 20. An additional phreatic eruption was included in the agency’s Oct. 21 morning bulletin.

The agency also recorded a phreatomagmatic eruption on Oct. 8, two more on Oct. 21, and another on Oct. 22.

Despite the recorded earthquakes and recent minor eruptions, Taal Volcano remains under Alert Level 1, indicating low-level volcanic unrest

Mindanao is on track to achieve a balance between renewable energy (RE) and ‘dirty’ and expensive fossil fuels – mostly coal – by 2030, with the Department of Energy (DOE) announcing the potential delivery of at least 1,000 megawatts (MW) of clean energy within the next three years.

Speaking during the 4th Mindanao Clean Energy Forum here last week, Energy Assistant Secretary Sabine Marie Romero acknowledged Mindanao’s ‘strong renewable energy foundation,’ citing the large combined capacity of state-owned hydroelectric power plants along the Agus and Pulangi rivers, which generate about 1,000 MW.

‘Mindanao is where RE can thrive,’ Romero said, noting that the region can lead the way for a clean energy future for the country.

Under the country’s nationally determined contribution to reducing global greenhouse gas emissions, Mindanao had set a target of making RE constitute half of the region’s energy mix by 2030, at par with fossil fuels, mainly coal.

The Mindanao target is more ambitious than the national goal of getting RE at 35 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040.

According to a study by the multistakeholder Mindanao Renewable Energy Acceleration and Coordination Hub, the region requires 1,400 MW of additional installed RE capacity to achieve the 50:50 goal by 2030.

Romero noted that as of July this year, the DOE had recorded 25 committed RE projects that have a total potential capacity of 1,026 MW, expected to be delivered between 2026 and 2029. Of these, the bulk-or some 675.96 MW-are solar capacities.

She said the DOE forecast RE to reach 56 percent of Mindanao’s energy mix by 2030 ‘if all committed and green energy auction projects come online as scheduled.’

Attracting investments

Based on DOE data, RE share in Mindanao’s total installed energy capacity is 32.5 percent in 2025, while 35 percent in gross power generation, 20 percent coming from hydro.

According to Romero, the agency had put in place policies and programs to further attract RE investments in the country, such as easing foreign ownership limit, preferential dispatch of all RE resources in the wholesale electricity spot market, and coming up with a framework for the development of offshore wind resources.

Throughout the country, the DOE set a 10-year green energy auction plan that will offer a cumulative total of 25 gigawatts (GW) of RE capacity that will deliver power from 2027 to 2035.

For Mindanao, Romero cited the 20 GW integrated renewable energy and energy storage system, 20 MW roof-mounted solar, and 175 MW run-of-river hydro, which will be offered in upcoming green energy auctions.

She emphasized that there is a need to ensure that the energy is ‘reliable, affordable and sustainable’ so that it can power Mindanao’s industrialization, agribusiness expansion, urbanization and the rise of micro, small and medium enterprises.

‘Every megawatt we build must answer’ the needs of the people, she said, adding the need for transmission and distribution assets in the region to be ready to handle the increased generation capacity.

Cheap option

Ben Cyrus Ellorin, project director of Consumers for Renewable Energy Action in Mindanao, welcomed the ‘DOE buy-in’ of the push to accelerate the building of RE capacities in Mindanao and throughout the country.

Ellorin noted that Mindanao became dependent on coal-fed capacities in 2016, when the aging Agus and Pulangi plants could no longer cater to the region’s expanding needs, prompting distribution utilities to forge long-term supply contracts with coal-fired plants that sidelined RE capacities.

The shift to RE acquired a backdrop of urgency as fossil fuel prices had steadily climbed, especially due to the ongoing crisis in the Middle East, raising electricity rates in the region, he added.

‘Renewable energy is the cheapest option today,’ said energy planner Alberto Dalusung III, energy transition adviser of the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities.

Dalusung said that moving forward, energy planning in the region must be sensitive to the needs of industries that support massive job creation, citing, for one, the planned expansion of a steel-making plant in Davao.

Assistant Secretary Romeo Montenegro, Mindanao Development Authority deputy executive director, emphasized the need for reliable and affordable energy to further drive Mindanao’s ‘phenomenal growth,’ inviting RE investors to locate on the island to help sustain its development

Dalusung noted that several path-breaking efforts for RE were started in Mindanao, such as the first solar power farm and a hydropower plant designed to run in tandem with a solar capacity, all in Misamis Oriental, and a biomass power facility in Maguindanao del Norte.

Vice President Sara Duterte’s camp on Thursday dismissed discussions about her possible replacement as ‘premature’ and called them a ‘distraction’ from the ‘serious issues’ surrounding her impeachment.

Duterte’s camp made the statement after several senators raised the issue, including Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano, who recently urged his colleagues to reject any offer from Malacañang to take over the country’s second-highest post should the vice president be convicted.

‘Discussions on possible replacements for the Vice President are not only premature, they are a distraction from the serious issues hounding the impeachment,’ Duterte’s spokesperson Atty. Paolo Panelo Jr. said in a statement.

Panelo said these issues include the Senate Impeachment Court’s alleged lack of fairness and impartiality, the supposed unconstitutionality of lowering the threshold for conviction, and other due process violations such as the alleged denial of Duterte’s fair opportunity to refute Articles I and IV, as well as what he described as the Senate majority’s lack of outrage over the time and public funds purportedly wasted when the prosecution withdrew the two articles.

‘These issues raise grave doubts as to whether a conviction by the Senate Impeachment Court, and any consequent attempt to install a replacement, would rest on any solid legal and moral foundation,’ the lawyer claimed.

Panelo, in the same statement, also reiterated that replacing the vice president would not solve the country’s most urgent crises such as the soaring inflation, the worsening effects of the Super El Niño and the sharp slowdown in economic growth.

According to Panelo, the impeachment proceedings have only made it clear how the current administration prioritizes political maneuvering over issues ‘that matter most to ordinary Filipinos: putting food on the table, keeping the economy afloat, and securing the nation’s future.’

Meanwhile, the Palace also earlier tagged discussions on who should replace Duterte ‘too premature.’

Tyrese Maxey scored 27 points, including two 3-pointers in the final 1 1/2 minutes, to lift the Philadelphia 76ers to a 114-109 victory over the Indiana Pacers in the NBA on Wednesday night.

Joel Embiid had 21 points and 11 rebounds for the 76ers, who rebounded from a dismal start to the second half. Jaylen Brown had 20 points and 10 boards, Anfernee Simons scored 20 points off the bench and LeBron James added 13 points and 10 assists.

Maxey’s second 3-pointer gave the 76ers a 112-106 lead with 46 seconds left.

Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton was sidelined with a left hamstring strain. Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said he expected Haliburton will be out at least two weeks.

Andrew Nembhard returned after missing Monday’s loss at Milwaukee with neck soreness and finished with 18 points and 14 assists. Pascal Siakam, who fouled out with 12 seconds left, led the Pacers with 26 points and 11 rebounds. Aaron Nesmith added 18 points.

Pacers center Ivica Zubac also missed his second consecutive game with a left ankle sprain

VJ Edgecombe’s halfcourt shot at the buzzer gave Philadelphia a 62-52 halftime lead. Indiana, which shot 39% in the first half, scored the first 17 points of the third quarter to take a 69-62 lead.

Indiana boosted its lead to 88-75 after three quarters. The Sixers were 5 of 21 from the field in the quarter while the Pacers sank 13 of 23 shots.

However, Philadelphia got hot to start the fourth quarter. The 76ers tied the game at 94-all on Maxey’s layup and regained the lead on Maxey’s two free throws with 96-94 with 5:15 remaining.

Carlisle said he will miss Friday’s game at Miami because he will be attending his father Preston Carlisle’s celebration of life service in Ogdensburg, New York. Assistant coach Lloyd Pierce will serve as head coach. Preston Carlisle died at age 96 on Oct. 3.

Up next

76ers: Hosts New York Knicks on Friday.

Pacers: At Miami on Friday.