Business confidence falls to near-pessimism levels 

MANILA, Philippines — Business confidence in the Philippines faltered at the start of 2026 amid a widening anticorruption campaign that has exposed governance lapses and damped sentiment. Latest data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed the business confidence index (CI) in January stood at 0.9 percent. While the reading remained in positive territory—indicating