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The low pressure area (LPA) inside the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR) will continue to bring rains over parts of Luzon, the state weather bureau said.

In the 5 p.m. weather forecast of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa), weather specialist Benison Estareja said that the LPA was last seen within the vicinity of Macalelon, Quezon as of 3 p.m.

It brought downpours in many parts of Luzon on Wednesday.

Estareja noted that the LPA is seen to move west-northwestward within the next 12 hours or on Wednesday evening.

He also said that it may emerge over the West Philippine Sea on Thursday morning before dissolving away from the landmass.

‘[The LPA] and the easterlies will still bring scattered rains and thunderstorms or at times heavy rains over Northern Luzon, Cagayan Valley, La Union, Benguet, Nueva Vizcaya, huge portion of Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Metro Manila, northern portion of Mimaropa and Bicol Region, as well as Panay Island over the next few hours,’ the weather forecaster mentioned.

Meanwhile, Estareja reported that Palawan, Visayas and Mindanao will experience partly cloudy to cloudy skies with chances of isolated rainshowers due to localized thunderstorms.

He also said that an LPA that was formed on Wednesday morning is unlikely to develop into a tropical depression like the one inside the PAR.

He noted that it was last located 1,755 kilometers east of southeastern Luzon as of 3 p.m.

The LPA is expected to affect eastern portions of Visayas and Mindanao in the next two days.

Estareja added that it will not enter the PAR.

Thursday weather forecast

Mainland Cagayan, Isabela, Quirino, Aurora and Northern Quezon will experience cloudy skies and light to moderate rains on Thursday.

The LPA will bring overcast skies and light to moderate rains over Zambales, Bataan, Tarlac, Pampanga and Pangasinan.

Meanwhile, Metro Manila, the rest of Central Luzon and Southern Luzon will see improving weather, as well as Palawan and huge portions of Visayas.

Caraga, Surigao, Davao de Oro and Davao Oriental may experience partly cloudy to cloudy skies due to thunderstorms from afternoon to evening.

Temperature forecast in the following areas:

Metro Manila: 24°C to 32°C

Laoag, Ilocos Norte: 25°C to 32°C

Tagaytay: 21°C to 29°C

Baguio: 18°C to 23°C

Tuguegarao: 25°C to 34°C

Legazpi: 24°C to 33°C

Kalayaan Islands: 26°C to 32°C

Puerto Princesa: 25°C to 32°C

Iloilo: 24°C to 32°C

Cebu: 26°C to 33°C

Tacloban: 25°C to 32°C

The Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) is pursuing a public-private partnership to develop a spaceport in the Philippines and ensure the long-term sustainability of commercial rocket launches in the country.

The agency made the announcement after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., in his State of the Nation Address on Monday, July 27, said the country would launch a rocket into space next year – the first liquid-fueled sounding rocket launch on Philippine soil.

The launch, set in Cagayan, is expected to advance the Philippines’ launch capabilities, develop Filipino expertise in rocket technology and prepare the country for future space launch activities.

PhilSA Director General Gay Jane Perez said existing spaceports cannot meet increasing demand as global launch rates continue to accelerate.

A spaceport in the Philippines is expected to reduce costs, improve launch efficiency and create opportunities for future launch services, she said.

With the Pacific Ocean to its east and its proximity to the equator, ‘the Philippines is well positioned for safe and secure rocket launch and recovery operation,’ Perez said.

Next year’s sounding rocket test launch will be a demonstration flight of a liquid-fueled rocket from the Philippines. It will carry a locally developed payload weighing up to 2 kilograms to an altitude of at least 5 kilometers.

The project will be implemented by PhilSA, the Department of Information and Communications Technology and the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority, together with Ascend International Gateway Inc. and South Korean company Perigee Aerospace Inc.

‘The Philippines possesses strong potential to become an important participant in the future global space economy,’ said Ji Hye Kwon, country director of Perigee Manila.

‘Our vision is for the Philippines to have a spaceport that serves as a gateway for safe, responsible and sustainable space access for the region and the world,’ Perez said.

‘It will be a commercially driven, government-enabled spaceport, with predictable timelines for launch licensing and authorization,’ she said.

‘Apart from location, launch companies also take into consideration the approval process: whether it is clear, whether the approvals arrive on a schedule they can plan around, and whether the country meets its international obligations.’

That reliability is where the Philippines intends to compete, and it marks a shift in the country’s role in the regional space economy, from a user of space services to one that helps provide them,’ Perez added

The Mabuhay Underpass Project here was officially opened for general public use on Wednesday.

Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon inspected the completed underpass before its opening and said the P700-million infrastructure project would provide motorists with a faster and more convenient route in the area.

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said the underpass is designed to improve traffic as General Santos City (GenSan) continues to experience more vehicle volume due to growing economic activities.

The project started in July 2022 and was originally targeted for completion in 2024.

Dizon, however, said its implementation took longer and cost more due to repeated changes in its design.

He said the frequent revisions delayed construction and resulted in additional expenses for the government.

Before its completion, the underpass would be submerged in floodwaters during heavy rainfall, causing delays, to the dismay of residents who complained of heavy traffic during rush hours.

The DPWH chief stressed the need for thorough planning and project design before construction to prevent delays, avoid unnecessary costs, and ensure major infrastructure projects are completed on time and within budget.

The Mabuhay Underpass is among the major infrastructure projects intended to address traffic concerns in GenSan, the ‘Tuna Capital of the Philippines’ and a key economic hub in the Soccsksargen region.

The shipping firm that owns MV Trisha Kerstin 3, which sank off Basilan, remains suspended and was fined P3 million, the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) said on Wednesday.

Marina Administrator Sonia Malaluan provided the update during the House committee on transportation’s inquiry into the capsizing of the passenger vessel off Baluk-Baluk Island in Hadji Muhtamad town, Basilan, in January.

To date, the tragedy has left 66 people dead and 13 missing, while 293 survived, according to the Philippine Coast Guard’s report to the panel.

‘Aleson Shipping Lines has been penalized and, as of now, remains suspended … and a penalty or fine of P3 million has already been paid,’ Malaluan told lawmakers.

Such penalties were imposed during hearings before Marina, a quasi-judicial body.

Malaluan said the suspension was supposed to lapse on June 7, but she noted that some of Aleson’s ships remain non-compliant with Marina’s ‘corrective’ measures.

Aleson filed for reconsideration of its suspension on June 18, which Malaluan said Marina denied.

The shipping firm also filed an appeal of its suspension on July 3, which she said was still ‘under consideration’ by Marina.

Meanwhile, Marina personnel who were under preventive suspension were found ‘not guilty’ by the body, Malaluan said.

‘They’re not found guilty of the charges; 66 have died, and 13 are missing, not guilty?’ Quezon City Rep. Franz Pumaren interjected during Malaluan’s presentation. ‘Okay, continue.’

Also during the hearing, Akbayan Partylist Rep. Dadah Kiram Ismula proposed several legislative measures to address the gaps that were noted in the aftermath of the tragedy.

Ismula manifested that the party-list will formally file these legislative measures: The Infant and Children Lifejacket Safety Bill, Digital Manifest System Bill, and the Verified Cargo, Weight and Stability Bill.

The lawmaker said that the tragic capsizing of M/V Trisha Kerstin 3 must serve as a turning point for policy reforms in maritime transport.

‘Through these measures, we affirm our collective resolve to protect lives at sea and to advance a safer, more accountable maritime transport system for all Filipinos,’ she also noted.

In January, Transportation Secretary Giovanni Lopez said overloading and the lack of a pre-departure safety audit were among the possible reasons for the sinking of the ferry.

According to Lopez, the combined weight of the passengers and cargo may have exceeded the vessel’s capacity, possibly causing a ‘cargo shift’ among the rolling cargo.

Authorities had also learned that the rolling cargo, including trucks and motorcycles, did not pass through the port’s weighing bridge, and of the 372 passengers, 112 are not listed in the passenger manifest

WASHINGTON-Second seed Ben Shelton dug deep to hold off qualifier Martin Damm in a rain-interrupted first-round match on Tuesday at the ATP and WTA Washington Open, while veteran Venus Williams was eliminated.

Shelton struggled when the match resumed after a delay of more than two hours, but came through 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 against his American compatriot in his first hardcourt match ahead of the US Open.

‘Happy that I was mentally stable and tough enough to get through that match,’ said the 23-year-old left-hander, who is seeking his fourth ATP tour title of the year after triumphing in Dallas, Munich and Stuttgart.

Shelton, the world number eight, next faces French left-hander Ugo Humbert for a quarter-final berth.

Shelton led 6-4, 4-3 when play was halted, then saw Damm hold, break on a long forehand and hold again to force a third set.

After trading breaks in the third and fourth games, Shelton broke on a backhand crosscourt volley winner at 5-4 to settle matters after 2hr 9min.

‘A tricky match to be in command, in the driver’s seat of the match and feel like playing really well, then have a rain delay and the guy come out on fire,’ Shelton said.

‘That was tough to swallow losing that second set the way I did, but happy with the way I fought.’

Seven-time Grand Slam singles champion Williams, 46, suffered her 12th consecutive defeat, 6-3, 6-3 to Austria’s Anastasia Potapova in a first-round match.

Williams has not won a WTA match since a first-round triumph over American Peyton Stearns in Washington last year.

Cruz Hewitt, the 17-year-old son of former world number one Lleyton Hewitt, captured his first ATP Tour victory.

The Aussie teen, ranked 612th in the world, ousted fellow qualifier Marcos Giron of the United States 6-3, 6-4 in 74 minutes in his ATP main draw debut.

Among his father’s 30 career ATP titles was the 2004 Washington crown.

‘It’s a pretty special moment,’ Hewitt said. ‘Seeing my dad play this tournament and to get my first tour win, it feels really cool.’

Hewitt will next play the winner of a match postponed to Wednesday between Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas and Australian newlywed Alex de Minaur, the top seed and defending champion.

Alexandra Eala, who made global headlines when beating Iga Swiatek at Wimbledon and becoming the first Philippines player to reach the last 16 of a Grand Slam, rallied to defeat China’s Zheng Qinwen 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 after 2hr 26min.

Eala, 21, will face defending champion and seventh seed Leylah Fernandez of Canada on Wednesday for a place in the last eight.

House of Representatives Speaker Faustino ‘Bojie’ Dy III and Majority Leader Ferdinand Alexander Marcos have filed a bill that seeks to increase the ceiling for income tax exemptions, from the previous P250,000 annual salary to P350,000.

In a statement on Wednesday, Marcos said that they filed House Bill (HB) No. 10345 in response to the call of his father, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., for greater relief for families and to strengthen their purchasing power.

The older Marcos, in his fifth State of the Nation Address (Sona), called on Congress to pursue a broader income tax exemption.

‘President Marcos’ Sona placed tax relief where families will feel it, in the pay they bring home after every cutoff, and Speaker Bojie Dy has made sure the House responds with a bill rather than applause alone,’ Majority Leader Marcos said.

‘Raising the tax-free ceiling to P350,000 gives workers more room for food, tuition, medicine and the bills that do not wait,’ he added.

HB No. 10345 seeks to amend Section 24 of the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC), or the provisions regarding income taxes. The last time that the income tax exemption was adjusted was when Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law was enacted, exempting those with annual salaries of P250,000.

Those with annual income above P350,000 but not exceeding P400,000 will have a 15 percent tax rate, while the other rates for higher annual wages are retained.

‘The President’s SONA gave us a clear standard: tax policy must remain responsible while recognizing how much the cost of living has changed, and Speaker Bojie Dy shares that practical approach,’ Marcos said.

‘This measure updates the brackets for workers, professionals and small entrepreneurs so the tax code reflects present realities,’ he added.

Several lawmakers have lauded President Marcos’ move to support the increase of the income tax exemption coverage, but labor groups said that this would not be enough.

Kamanggagawa party-list Rep. Elijah San Fernando on Tuesday said the Chief Executive did not present anything significant for the labor sector’s welfare aside from the income tax exemption.

In a separate statement, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines said that a higher range of income tax exemptions would not stop workers from airing grievances, especially since the proposed legislated wage hike was not discussed.

TUCP on Tuesday noted that while Marcos’ fifth Sona was his longest, there was no mention of pro-labor legislation being advocated by different sectors

Aside from the legislated wage hike, TUCP said they were waiting whether Marcos will bring up proposals to abolish regional wage boards. However, what the President mentioned, TUCP noted, was a broader income tax exemption that minimum wage earners would not benefit from.

President Marcos has urged lawmakers to urgently pass another set of priority legislation, which he mentioned in his fifth State of the Nation Address (Sona), as Congress resumed sessions on Monday.

According to the Presidential Communications Office, among the key pieces of legislation being pushed by the President are the amendments to the National Building Code, the Progress Bill to exempt employees earning up to P350,000 annually from paying income tax, the General Tax Amnesty and the ‘Sariling Kuryente’ Act.

Also part of Marcos’ priority bills are the amendments to the Electric Power Industry Reform law to stop system loss and value-added tax from being passed on to consumers, as well as amendments to the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act to support modern waste management practices, including waste-to-energy and waste treatment technologies.

Malacañang has yet to announce if any of these bills were certified urgent, which allows the House of Representatives and the Senate to approve a bill on second and third reading on the same day, bypassing the usual three-day waiting period.

Except for the Progress Bill and Sariling Kuryente Act, the four other pieces of legislation are part of the 52 priority measures approved by the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (Ledac) under the current 20th Congress.

Of the 52 Ledac priority bills, only two have been signed into law by Mr. Marcos: Republic Act No. 12316, which authorized him to suspend or reduce excise on petroleum products; and RA 12317, which reset the first regular elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

On the other hand, the bill amending the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act already hurdled the bicameral conference committee deliberations and is in the process of being enrolled into its final version followed by its submission to Malacañang

Proceeds worth P205 million from the negotiated sale of two seized luxury cars were turned over by the Bureau of Customs (BOC) and Department of Finance (DOF) to the Bureau of Treasury on Wednesday.

The BOC conducted a negotiated sale last March 26 for two forfeited Bugatti Chiron units, which were seized in February 2024 for lack of importation documents.

Elite Garage Corporation emerged as the sole offeror and bought the units for an offer of P101,508,000 for the blue Bugatti Chiron and P103,508,000 for the red model, or a total of P205,016,000.

‘The sale converts previously idle forfeited assets into public revenues while eliminating the government’s costs for storage and maintenance,’ the BOC said in a press release.

‘The proceeds will accrue to the National Government in accordance with existing laws and regulations,’ it noted.

The customs bureau also said the negotiated sale was held after five failed public auctions between September 2024 and February 2026.

It said the auctions failed due lack of qualified bidders and an instance of one negotiated sale with no offeror.

Regarding the turnover, Finance Secretary Frederick Go said the proceeds will benefit the Filipino people.

‘After nearly two years, we have finally completed the sale of these forfeited vehicles, ensuring that every asset under our stewardship is properly managed, and generates value for the Filipino people,’ Go said in the press release.

BOC Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno also said that the agency will continue to coordinate with other government agencies to ensure transparent ‘teamwork’ in turnover of forfeited assets.

‘The turnover of these forfeited assets shows that our work does not end with seizure or forfeiture. We will ensure that the forfeited smuggled goods are recovered and converted into public funds for public projects,’ Nepomuceno expressed in the same press release.

Last March 10, the BOC also turned over to the Bureau of Treasury over P102.4 million after successfully auctioning nine of 13 luxury cars of contractor couple Cezarah ‘Sarah’ and Pacifico ‘Curlee’ Discaya.

The couple’s remaining four vehicles were sold through a negotiated sale, generating P12.2 million in proceeds.

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr’s push for nuclear energy in his State of the Nation Address should no longer involve the four-decade old Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) in Morong town, which Bataan Vice Gov. Maria Cristina Garcia describes as an outmoded automobile that should be junked.

‘We have been struggling against this nuclear issue for decades and here comes the move to revive the ageing plant which is very costly at this time,’ explained the vice governor.

Garcia said the stance of the provincial government of Bataan on nuclear power facilities has remained a resounding ‘No to the revival of a monster’ in Morong town.

Last June, the municipal council of Morong passed a resolution declaring the town where BNPP is situated a non-nuclear area.

For decades since the end of Martial Law, the Bataan Nuclear-Free Movement had actively campaigned against the revival of BNPP for environmental concerns, more particularly the options for nuclear waste disposal.

The vice governor said many presidents have come and gone without dealing with BNPP issue because of cost and safety considerations.

The Bataan provincial government is currently promoting renewable energy sources like solar farms

Aftershocks were expected after a magnitude 5.6 earthquake hit off the waters of a Quezon town on Wednesday evening, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said.

In its earthquake bulletin, Phivolcs said the epicenter was located 93 kilometers east of Jomalig, Quezon at 10:11 p.m. It was tectonic in origin and had a depth of 10 kilometers.

With this, Phivolcs noted that Reported Intensity III was recorded over Quezon City while the following instrumental intensities were measured in the following areas:

Intensity III: Jose Panganiban and Mercedes, Camarines Norte; Guinayangan and Infanta, Quezon

Intensity II: Ragay, Iriga City, Pili, Sipocot, and Sagnay, Camarines Sur

It also said that no damage to property was expected from the earthquake.