Day: August 21, 2024

MANILA: Choco Mucho seeks to secure the last quarterfinal berth in the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Reinforced Conference when it battles PLDT at the FilOil EcoOil Center in San Juan City on Thursday. The Flying Titans take on the High Speed Hitters at 3 p.m. Choco Mucho is in ninth place with a 2-5 slate and seven points, half a game behind Farm Fresh (3-5) with eight points. A victory will send Choco Mucho to the knockout stage, setting up a duel with top seed Akari (8-0). If PLDT wins in five sets, Choco Mucho will get one point and

MANILA: The Department of Agriculture (DA) reported Wednesday the opening of a new quarantine office of the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) at the Subic Freeport Zone, which is expected to enhance the country’s agricultural biosecurity and address potential risks posed by plant pests and diseases. ‘The establishment of this new office holds significant importance due to its position as a prominent center for trade and logistics,” DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said in a statement, referring to the completion of the BPI’s PHP2-million project. He said the Subic Freeport office is also crucial to achieving the administration’s food

GENEVA: The World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended “targeted vaccination” instead of mass jab to fight mpox in areas where the virus has been detected. ‘It’s not recommended for mass vaccination; that’s very important. It really needs to be targeted vaccination where the virus is transmitting,’ WHO spokeswoman Margaret Harris said, adding that the virus is easier to deal with than Covid-19. Noting that the rapid spread of the virus has captured global attention, she said the mpox virus has two genetic types: Clade 1 and Clade 2. Harris expressed concern over the new strain of the virus, Clade 1b,

MANILA: The local stock market closed mid-week lower, snapping its three-day rally on profit-taking, while the Philippine peso ended almost unchanged. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) fell 0.64 percent to 6,900.62, with All Shares also declining by 0.13 percent to 3,724.38 level. Among sectoral indices, only the Industrial counter finished with gains, up by 0.14 percent to 9,207.97. Losers were led by Property, down by 1.53 percent; followed by Financials, down by 1.04 percent; Mining and Oil, down by 0.91 percent; Services, down by 0.23 percent; and Holding Firms, down by 0.20 percent. ‘Investors booked gains after three consecutive

LEGAZPI CITY: At least 500 farmers assisted by the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) in Bicol have been included and provided with additional livelihood through the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers or TUPAD, a program of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). In an interview on Wednesday, NIA-Bicol spokesperson Ma. Cleofe Baraera said the initiative is part of the convergence program of the NIA with other national government agencies. “Through this program, we look for interventions that can be done to assist our irrigators’ associations (IAs) in the six provinces to at least provide additional income,” Baraera said. The