Inquirer Breaking News

Margot Robbie is taking up the cudgels for her "Barbie" the movie director Greta Gerwig, who has not been nominated for the 96th Academy Awards, citing the latter's "once-in-a-career, once-in-a-lifetime" contribution to filmmaking, and their movie's impact to the world. Robbie herself received an Oscar snub for her role in "Barbie," but she said during a Q&A hosted by the Academy Museum on Tuesday, January 29 (Wednesday, Jan. 30 in the Philippines): "There's no way to feel sad when you know you're this blessed." She noted that Gerwig should have been recognized given the exceptional work she did directing one of the most critically acclaimed films of 2023. "Obviously, I ...

Keep on reading: Margot Robbie breaks silence on her, Greta Gerwig Oscars snubs

WASHINGTON - U.S.laborcostsrose less than expected in thefourthquarterand the annual increase was the smallest in two years, signs of moderating wage inflation that could give the Federal Reserve room to start cutting interest rates by June. Compensationcostsgrowthis slowing aslabormarket conditions ease in response to the U.S. central bank's tight monetary policy stance. Government data on Tuesday showed Americans were becoming less enthusiastic about job-hopping, with the number of people quitting their jobs near a three-year low in December, a trend that could further slow wage inflation. The Fed kept rates unchanged on Wednesday against the backdrop of a resilient economy, ...

Keep on reading: Slowing US labor cost gains brighten inflation picture

MANILA, Philippines --- The northeast monsoon is forecast to weaken in the coming days, resulting in fewer chances of rainfall over most parts of Luzon this coming weekend, state meteorologists said Thursday. Weather expert Benison Estareja, of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa), said in a report thatthe northeast monsoon, locally known as amihan, will only affect parts of Northern and Central Luzon in the next three days. "Unti-unting hihina po iyong ating northeast monsoon, so possible over the weekend, iyong Northern and Central Luzon na lamang po iyong makaka-experience ng amihan," Estareja explained. (Our northeast ...

Keep on reading: Northeast monsoon to wane, less rain likely this weekend – Pagasa

WASHINGTON - Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, in a sweeping endorsement of the U.S. economy's strength, said on Wednesday that interest rates had peaked and would move lower in coming months, with inflation continuing to fall and an expectation of sustained job and economic growth. Powell, speaking after the end of a two-day policy meeting, declined to declare victory in the U.S. central bank's two-year inflation fight, vouch that it had achieved a sought-after "soft landing" for the economy or promise that rate cuts would come as soon as the Fed's March 19-20 meeting, as investors had hoped in the run-up to this week's policy decision. "Inflation is still too high. Ongoing...

Keep on reading: Fed’s Powell sees lower rates on the horizon as inflation ebbs

MANILA, Philippines --- The operations of Light Rail Transit 1 (LRT-1) were halted for about an hour on Thursday morning due to a faulty light rail vehicle (LRV) at Libertad Station, the Light Rail Manila Corporation (LRMC) said. At 6:43 a.m., the LRMC issued an advisory saying it placed a 25-kilometer-per-hour restriction on LRT-1 from Baclaran Station to Fernando Poe Jr. Station. By 6:51 a.m., LRT-1's operations were completely put on hold. "As of 6:51 AM, February 1, 2024, a stop for safety has been put in place from Baclaran to Fernando Poe Jr. Station," the LRMC said in a post on X (formerly Twitter). "Technician is already on board working the fault of the affected ...

Keep on reading: LRT-1 operation stops for an hour due to faulty light rail vehicle

NEW YORK -The Federal Reserve on Wednesday announced changes to its nearly two-year-old ethics system, expanding who is covered by it as well as enhancing how the Fed can ensure its top workers are in compliance. In a press release issued by the Federal Open Market Committee at the close of the policy-setting panel's meeting on Wednesday, the Fed said it would subject more of its top central bank staff to tight limitations on how they can trade and invest for their personal accounts. This will include those "who regularly and materially advise FOMC participants on the conduct of monetary policy." Fed policy makers and top staff were already subject to those restrictions. "The up...

Keep on reading: Federal Reserve expands investing restrictions to more top staff

MANILA, Philippines ---February is not off to a good start for consumers as the price of cooking gas climbed for the second month in a row. In an advisory, Petron Corp. said it implemented an increase of P0.95 per kilogram in liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) prices on Thursday, Feb. 1. This is equivalent to an increase of P10.45 per 11-kilogram tank. "This reflects the international contract price of LPG for the month of February," Petron said in its advisory on Thursday morning. READ: DOE: LPG price freeze in Davao de Oro Last month, consumers welcomed the new year with a hefty price increase of up to P3.45 per kilo, or P37.95 per tank. Data from the Department of Energy ...

Keep on reading: LPG prices up P10.45 per 11-kg tank  in Feb

Actor Alec Baldwin on Wednesday pleaded not guilty to a charge of involuntary manslaughter over the 2021 on-set shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during filming of the Western "Rust" in New Mexico. Baldwin made the plea as he waived his right to an arraignment after he was indicted by a grand jury on January 19, court documents showed. READ: Alec Baldwin again charged with manslaughter in 'Rust' movie-set shooting The "30 Rock" actor was allowed to remain free without posting a bond under the arraignment waiver with the First Judicial District Court in Santa Fe. Baldwin was originally charged for the shooting in January 2023. Those charges were dropped a f...

Keep on reading: Alec Baldwin pleads not guilty to manslaughter charge in ‘Rust’ shooting

    NEW YORK -Treasury yields and a gauge of global equities fell sharply after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged as expected on Wednesday but indicated it would not reduce them until inflation was "moving sustainably" toward its 2-percent target. The Fed took a major step toward lowering rates in coming months in a policy statement that tempered inflation concerns with other risks to the U.S. economy and dropped a longstanding reference to possible further hikes in borrowing costs. The dollar rose against the euro and other major currencies after Fed Chair Jerome Powell at a press conference said that a rate cut in March was not the U.S. central...

Keep on reading: Stocks, yields slide as Fed signals no rate cut soon

A Homo sapiens bone fragment from excavations at a cave site in the German town of Ranis provides new insight into the arrival of Homo sapiens in the region thousands of years earlier than previously known, is seen in a composite image, in this undated handout picture obtained by Reuters. Tim Schuler/TLDA/Handout via REUTERS Bone fragments unearthed in a cave in central Germany show that our species ventured into Europe's cold higher latitudes more than 45,000 years ago -- much earlier than previously known -- in a finding that rewrites the early history of Homo sapiens on a continent still inhabited then by our cousins the Neanderthals. Scientists said Wednesday they identified t...

Keep on reading: Bones from German cave revise early history of Homo sapiens in Europe

WASHINGTON ---The US Federal Reserve voted Wednesday to leave interest rates unchanged for the fourth straight meeting, while indicating it was moving toward future cuts -- but probably not before May at the earliest. The Fed confirmed in a statement that it was holding its benchmark lending rate steady at its 23-year high, between 5.25 and 5.50 percent. The central bank has a dual mandate to keep both inflation and the unemployment rate low, and has been heavily focused at recent meetings on reining in inflation, with an eye on its long-term target of two percent. On Wednesday, it said the "risks to achieving its employment and inflation goals are moving into better balance...

Keep on reading: US Fed holds key rate steady as Powell says March cut unlikely

United States officials said Wednesday they disrupted a sweeping Chinese cyber-spying operation that targeted critical American infrastructure entities and could be used against the US in a future geopolitical crisis. The operation, conducted jointly by the US Department of Justice and the FBI, weeded out malicious Chinese software from a network or "botnet" of hundreds of compromised US routers, both agencies said in a statement. The US and its key allies disclosed the Chinese campaign, dubbed Volt Typhoon, in May 2023 when analysts at Microsoft found it had targeted everything from US telecommunication networks to transportation hubs. As state-sponsored hacking becomes an ...

Keep on reading: US disrupts China hacking drive vs vital infrastructure – officials

MEXICO CITY --- The theft of the personal data of hundreds of journalists in Mexico, including addresses and copies of voter ID cards and passports, has raised fresh safety concerns in one of the most dangerous countries in the world for media professionals. After media reports, Mexican authorities on Monday said government computers were hacked on January 22 and promised an investigation. Officials said the personal data of at least 263 journalists, whom they did not publicly identify, was illegally accessed and released. The officials said an individual, whom they did not name, used a former government employee's account to take the data. The individual had a Spanish IP addre...

Keep on reading: Leak of journalists’ personal data raises security worries in Mexico

WASHINGTON --- The United States is actively pursuing the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with security guarantees for Israel and exploring options with partners in the region, the State Department spokesperson said Wednesday. Matthew Miller declined to give details on the department's internal work on the issue but told a news briefing the effort has been an objective of President Joe Biden's administration. "We are actively pursuing the establishment as an independent Palestinian state, with real security guarantees for Israel, because we do believe that is the best way to bring about lasting peace and security for Israel, for Palestinians, and for the regio...

Keep on reading: US actively pursuing creation of a Palestinian state – State Department

  The number of Chinese vessels spotted near Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal during Philippine resupply missions has "increased substantially" since 2021, with more and more military ships joining the swarm, according to a Washington-based think tank. In a report published on Wednesday, the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (Amti) said that on average, just one Chinese ship was spotted at Ayungin during resupply missions in 2021, but this increased to about 14 ships in 2023. The Philippines, on the other hand, used only two to three vessels on average for resupply missions from 2021 to 2023, Amti said. Ayungin, an underwater feature about 195 kilometers off Palawan pro...

Keep on reading: Report notes increase in Sino vessels near Ayungin since 2021

The presence of Bennie Boatwright has allowed June Mar Fajardo to play a key secondary role in San Miguel Beer's march to the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Commissioner's Cup Finals. "I know what my role is within our team," Fajardo said in a short chat with The Inquirer while entertaining autograph seekers during the Philippine Sportswriters Association Awards Night last Monday at Diamond Hotel. Boatwright brought a different dimension to an already-deep Beermen lineup, forming a frontline tandem with the seven-time Most Valuable Player (MVP). San Miguel finally learned its opponent for the title series in Magnolia, which took care of business on Wednesday by stop...

Keep on reading: Magnolia will deal with San Miguel lethal big man duo in PBA finals duel

Trisha Tubu started her volleyball journey thinking it would only be for leisure. Little did she know that it would be the very thing that would help save her father's life. "It feels good that because of playing volleyball, I was able to help extend my father's life," Tubu said in Filipino in a video interview posted by Farm Fresh on its social media page. "And because of Farm Fresh, my family is now in a more [comfortable position] and I am happy that my father is now okay." "Actually, I never thought that I would be doing volleyball for a lifetime because this was just a hobby for me." After a promising rookie stint playing for Adamson, Tubu decided to forego her eligibil...

Keep on reading: In the name of her father: Tubu’s star rises with Farm Fresh

Manila Hustle 3x3 returns for a second season this weekend, looking to show the strides women's basketball has made thus far and show how much more the side of the sport could grow. A total of 16 teams duke it out at SM Mall of Asia Music Hall in Pasay City beginning this Saturday, with Gilas Pilipinas Women shaping up as an early favorite. "Last year was exciting. We had 12 teams, and there were a lot of points for improvement. This time, we said, [let's get] bigger and better," tournament director and Uratex owner Peachy Medina said in the kickoff presser at Microtel Mall of Asia in Pasay City on Tuesday. "We want everybody to be aware of how women's basketball has developed. ...

Keep on reading: ‘Hustle’ looks to showcase women’s hoops rise

  The national basketball program's road map for the next World Cup and Olympics cycle will be steeped in nostalgia. Erika Dy, the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas' (SBP) newly appointed executive director, said that the national federation picked the best practices from across eras of previous national coaches to determine the best course of action for the next four years. "We looked back at everything we tried to do before," she told the Inquirer on the sidelines of the Manila Hustle 3x3 kickoff presser on Tuesday. "If you remember with coach Norman (Black), we did a pool that stuck together for three years. We also had coach Chot (Reyes') style where he's got playe...

Keep on reading: Gilas program picking up lessons from the past, says Dy

MANILA, Philippines --- Party leaders and ranking members of the House of Representatives are set to file a resolution that would defend Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez from accusations hurled against him regarding Charter change (Cha-cha), noting that they support his leadership. During a press briefing on Wednesday, Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe said that the House had a party leaders' caucus and an all-members' assembly to get their sentiments after heated exchanges between the House and the Senate. Dalipe said that the House resolution, a proposal made after the meeting, would be filed on Monday, Feb. 6. "We just had an all-member caucus, because some members wou...

Keep on reading: House leaders to file resolution defending Romualdez amid Cha-cha discord