April Tan

Maynilad set for PSEi entry as Converge, ACEN, DigiPlus battle to stay ------ The Philippines’ benchmark stock index is heading for its next reshuffle in August, with Maynilad Water Services Inc. (MYNLD) emerging as a near-certain entrant while three listed firms face a tight fight to avoid being dropped. READ: insiderph.com/maynilad-set-f…

April inflation significantly hotter than expected at 7.2% vs. 5.5% consensus estimate & 4.1% in March. This may cause to BSP to turn even more hawkish and raise rates further.

Inviting everyone to this mentor session where I’ll be talking with JC and John Dang. Register in the link below. eventsize.com/event/17755513…

BPI tightens lending standards as it braces for higher bad loans amid global turmoil Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), the oldest lender in Southeast Asia, is tightening credit standards as rising oil prices linked to Middle East tensions threaten to strain borrowers and weigh on economic activity. Read more: bilyonaryo.com/2026/04/20/bpi…

Sharing my discussion with Power Analyst George Ching on the impact of the Iran war on our power companies. youtube.com/watch?v=TUs7PL…

My weekly market wrap video is out. Here, I talk about latest earnings and what happened to oil and stocks during the past three wars and what it means for investors today. youtube.com/watch?v=ErOIaH…

Iran’s Supreme leader and some family members are confirmed dead. I hope this marks the end of the war. Otherwise, financial markets will turn volatile next week. aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/…

Sharing my latest market wrap where I also talk about the latest earnings results and whether the sell-off in SCC and DMC is a bargain hunting opportunity. youtube.com/watch?v=zdYNpO…

There’s an increasingly dystopian tone to commentary on AI. Fed Gov Waller today: “The thing with AI is it’s coming at us so fast….that it’s easy to start seeing jobs that may go away before you see the new jobs that are going to be created.”

Should SCC fail to win the bid, it is willing to act as the service contractor to the new winner. SCC is also prepared to look for potential new coal mines in the country given its experience in coal exploration.

While the DOE said that the bidding process would be more based on the technical qualification of the bidders and would not solely be determined by the bid price, SCC said it still has no indication as to the amount it needs to bid price in order to win.

In a briefing, SCC expressed confidence in winning the bid due to its technical capabilities & the short remaining life of Semirara coal mine w/c doesn’t justify the huge financial investment required for new entrants.

While the DoE said that the bidding process would be more based on the technical qualification of the bidders & would not solely be determined by the bid price, SCC said it still has no indication as to the amount it needs to bid to win.

DMC will also be negatively affected since SCC accounts for 49% of DMCI’s net income.

Bad news for SCC, hurting its profit & dividend outlook. Gov’t rejects extension of SCC’s coal mining operations. Instead, it will bid out a new operating contract. Huge blow for SCC. Coal mining accounts for 55% of profits & supplies fuel to its power plants (higher costs).

Sharing my weekly market wrap video. Here, I also share some stocks that can be more resilient in an environment of weak economic growth. youtube.com/watch?v=JKyz3O…

4Q GDP disappoints at 3.0% vs consensus estimate of 3.7%, and 3.9% in 3Q

Sharing why I agree with the government's move to allow Chinese tourists to enter the country visa free for up to 14 days. business.inquirer.net/570583/the-cas…

PSE announces changes among index members: PSEi index - RCR in, AGI out Shares of RCR could go up while those of AGI could drop as fund managers tracking the PSEi realign their portfolios to comply with the new index weightings. Changes will be effective Monday February 2.

In my column this week, I share my views on opportunities in the Philippine market. business.inquirer.net/569402/opportu…