Philippine News

January 23 ------ The UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) has released its report into the death of a pilot while attempting to board Finnhawk from the pilot vessel Humber Saturn, in Humber Estuary on 8 January 2023. The Humber pilot fell from a pilot ladder after likely suffering a cardiac event while boarding the roll-on/roll-off cargo vessel Finnhawk from the pilot vessel Humber Saturn. The pilot hit the deck of Humber Saturn before falling into the water and lo

January 23 ------ This week’s maritime security report from Palaemon Maritime starts by saying: “Hello Shipmate, this week saw a sharp escalation in maritime security incidents across Europe, the Americas and Southeast Asia.” Key developments include: • Ballistic missile attack on Chornomorsk Port, Ukraine, causing container damage and an oil spill • Greek-managed oil tankers hit by drone strikes near the CPC terminal off Novorossiysk • A Panama-flagged vessel struck by a Rus

January 23 ------ In what is being billed as a new era of luxury expedition cruising, Atlas Ocean Voyages unveiled its designs for a new expedition cruise ship that will include three masts and large sails. The company is presenting the ship, which will be built in China, as a luxury expedition sailing yacht capable of accommodating up to 400 passengers. Named Atlas Adventure, the ship, which will be 26,000 gross tons, will measure 690 feet (210 meters) in length. It will hav

January 23 ------ French shipping and logistics giant CMA CGM Group has welcomed the arrival of the first in a series of six 15,000-TEU methanol container ships, as part of its decarbonization strategy, expanding its arsenal with the 400th owned vessel within a fleet of over 650 vessels worldwide. CMA CGM has taken delivery of the CMA CGM Monte Cristo methanol container ship, which is scheduled to enter commercial service on January 29, 2026, in Ningbo, on the BEX2 – Phoenici

MELBOURNE, Australia, January 23 ------ Novak Djokovic dropped a service game for the first time in this Australian Open and then didn't lose another point against Francesco Maestrelli, advancing to the third round with a 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 win. It was Djokovic's 399th win in a Grand Slam singles match, leaving the 24-time major just one more to be the first player ever to reach 400. The break of serve, in the sixth game of the third set Thursday, Jan. 22, was almost like Djokovic

January 23 ------ The New York Knicks snapped their four-game losing streak with a record-breaking 120-66 obliteration of the Brooklyn Nets the most lopsided victory in franchise history. Jalen Brunson scored 20 points as the Knicks romped to a 54-point margin of victory, eclipsing their previous biggest winning margin of 48, achieved in 1968, 1972 and 1994. The victory over their New York rivals at Madison Square Garden followed a dismal run of four straight losses that culm

January 23 ------ EARL 'The Pearl' Strickland and Ralf 'The Kaiser' Souquet struck back hard in the second day of WNT Legends at Gateway Mall 2. The American great played flawlessly this time out to trump Efren 'Bata' Reyes, 11-6, for his first taste of victory in this three-day showcase. Strickland pounced on Reyes missing the 9-ball on racks 5 and 6 to jump to a 5-1 lead. Though 'The Magician' still weaved his magic with an amazing fluke on rack 8, Strickland was just on-po

January 23 ------ ERNIE Gawilan broke an 18-year ASEAN Para Games record during his conquest of his second gold medal in the swimming competitions at the His Majesty 80th Birthday Aquatics Center in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand. The three-time Paralympian ruled the men’s 200m freestyle S7 at two minutes, 26.08 seconds, breaking the old mark of 2:52.11 owned by Thailand’s Sittichai Somyut set also in Nakhon Ratchasima but back in 2008. Gary Bejino also maintained his superb for

LONDON, United Kingdom January 23 ------ "Sinners" scored a whopping 16 nominations for this year's Academy Awards, including one for director of photography Autumn Durald Arkapaw, a historic nod on its own. The Filipino-American filmmaker is the first woman of color to be nominated for the Oscars' Best Cinematography category. Arkapaw is Filipino from her mother's side and African American Creole on her father's side. She is also just the fourth woman nominated for the cinem

January 23 ------ After two grueling “Head-to-Head” Challenge rounds of the 2026 Miss World Philippines pageant, two ladies from Luzon emerged on top — Ifugao’s Valerie West and Pampanga’s Gabrielle Galapia. The “fast-track” event is one of the most crucial pre-final competitions whose winner will gain a semifinal slot on the coronation night. The challenge concluded at the Southville International School and Colleges in Las Piñas City. Before the second round of the pre-fina

January 23 ------ A month since she was proclaimed as the lone runner-up of the 2025 Miss Cosmo pageant in Vietnam in December, Filipino queen Chelsea Fernandez waxed emotional and looked back on her journey. Saying “it all began with a butterfly,” the national pageant veteran said she was confronted by the thought of staging a comeback in February last year. Her best friend advised her to seek a sign, a butterfly. “Just minutes later. I glanced to my right and saw a painting

January 23 ------ After stepping away from television for a year, Snooky Serna is back on the small screen. The multi-awarded actress officially made her television comeback through GMA Afternoon Prime’s newest drama, “House of Lies,” which premiered on January 19. The return marks the end of her hiatus and highlights how Serna quietly reinvented herself during her time away from acting. “So far, I only have good things to say. Honestly, I’m thankful that GMA has always been

January 23 ------ China has summoned Philippine Ambassador to Beijing Jaime FlorCruz over what it believed were "inflammatory" remarks made by Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and West Philippine Sea spokesman Jay Tarriela. Tarriela has long been vocal in calling out China's aggression in the West Philippine Sea. But Beijing's move came specifically at a time when it took offense at the caricature image of Chinese President Xi Jinping that Tarriela displayed during a talk with Fi

MANILA, Philippines, January 23 ------ Domestic workers in the National Capital Region will receive an increase in their monthly salary in February. The Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) has approved an increase of P800 in the monthly wage of kasambahays. From P7,000, household workers in Metro Manila will receive P7,800 per month starting Feb. 7. “After a thorough evaluation of the existing socioeconomic conditions in the region, the needs of domestic

MANILA, January 23 ------ The Philippines resumed rice importation this month, after being suspended last year in a bid to help local farmers cope with falling prices. The rice importation ban started on September 1 last year and ended on the last day of 2025. Despite rice trade being liberalized, the Department of Agriculture made an agreement with key stakeholders to limit imports to 300,000 MT until February. "Yung case last year, ang pumasok na bigas 3.38 million metric t

MANILA, January 23 ------ Taxpayers will now have access to a digital calendar that will guide them on when to pay their taxes and the requirements they need to comply with, a Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) official said. BIR spokesperson and lawyer Brianna Kay delos Santos said in a Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon interview that the interactive digital tax calendar has been available on the BIR website since Jan. 1 this year. She explained that the digital calendar aims to provide

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, January 23 ------ Saudi Arabia and eight Muslim-majority countries, including Gaza mediators Qatar and Turkey, have agreed to join US President Donald Trump's "Board of Peace", the Saudi foreign ministry said. In a joint statement, Riyadh announced the "shared decision" of the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Indonesia, Pakistan, and the United Arab Emirates to join the body to be chaired by Trump, saying they supported hi

COPENHAGEN, Denmark, January 23 ------ Denmark’s prime minister insisted that her country can’t negotiate on its sovereignty after U.S. President Donald Trump said he agreed on a “framework of a future deal” on Arctic security with the head of NATO. Trump on Wednesday abruptly scrapped the tariffs he had threatened to impose on eight European nations to press for U.S. control over Greenland, a semiautonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark. It was a dramatic reversal hours aft

DAVOS, January 23 ------ President Volodymyr Zelensky said after talks with US President Donald Trump in Davos that the terms of security guarantees for Ukraine had been finalized, but that the vital issue of territory in its war with Russia remains unsolved. In what he said was a positive sign of progress in long-running peace talks to end the four-year conflict, Zelensky said negotiators from Russia, Ukraine, and the US would hold trilateral meetings for the first time in A

January 23 ------ Ukraine’s new Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said the priorities for the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) in coming months will be big increases in drone-operating combat units and attack weapons for them with the goal of inflicting at least 50,000 irrecoverable casualties, i.e., KIA (killed in action), on Kremlin forces every month those Russian solders remain on Ukrainian territory. Fedorov, an IT entrepreneur who formerly served as Deputy Prime Minister a