John Mangun, BusinessMirror

John Mangun

BusinessMirror

Philippines

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Recent:
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Past:
  • BusinessMirror

Past articles by John:

Where have all the nurses gone?

Filipino nurses are highly in demand all over the world, especially in developed nations. Hospitals prefer to hire our nurses because of their reputation as being incredibly compassionate and hardworking, which are sought-after qualities among healthcare workers. No wonder overseas opportunities abound for Filipino nurses. In her book Empire of Care: Nursing and Migration in → Read More

War continues as Putin wins

Ludwigshafen, a German city across the river Rhine from Mannheim, was founded in 1844. With a population of less than 200,000, it is home to the largest chemical plant in the world. The facility is owned by German multinational company BASF (founded in 1864), the largest chemical producer in the… → Read More

Farewell, Mr. President

AS President Duterte descends the stairs of Malacañang today after turning over the vast powers of the presidency to President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., he should be happy to realize that the biggest and hardest job in the country utterly failed to change him as a man. After winning the… → Read More

Preventing another Covid-19 outbreak

The country’s Covid cases surged 30 percent on Tuesday, eliciting fears that Alert Level 2 will be imposed anew in Metro Manila where almost half of the 386 new infections were reported. Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship and Go Negosyo founder Joey Concepcion said that higher alert levels may not be necessary if… → Read More

Time to be serious

WE have a global economic situation and the potential consequences cannot be ignored or underestimated. I have been through every “Black Monday (through Friday)” in the past 50 years, including the first oil shock in 1973. This time it is different. “Of course, it is different. There is a war… → Read More

Dark days ahead

The fires of inflation are growing bigger in many countries, and governments are scrambling to find the tools needed to douse the flames before they become catastrophic conflagrations. The lowest income households are disproportionally suffering from the scourge of inflation because their incomes are so low they can’t cope with skyrocketing prices. Another… → Read More

You make the economy

I keep saying it, no one wants to believe it, but I know that you know more about economics than the experts. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was playing the harpsichord at four years old. Pablo Picasso made his first oil painting when he was nine years old. At age six and… → Read More

Looming global food crises will affect PHL

Two UN food agencies on Monday issued stark warnings about multiple, looming food crises in the world, driven by conflict, climate shocks, the fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic, and exacerbated by the ripple effects of the war in Ukraine, which pushed food and fuel prices to record highs in many… → Read More

Dismal today, bright tomorrow?

It’s tough out there in the real world and getting depressed about the situation is perfectly justified. I go to the supermarket—Shopwise or SM—about three times a month and what I saw again last Saturday was dismal. I saw very ordinary carrots selling at P150 a kilo with the cheapest… → Read More

Looking for a perfect lover

The relationship between the Philippines and Foreign Direct Investment is complicated, maybe Johnny Depp/Amber Heard complicated. The Philippines and FDI have had trouble with each other going back decades. It is obviously not fair to look at numbers prior to 1990 because we all know the 1980 decade of political… → Read More

PHL is not the Titanic

WE have this idea that “we are all in the same boat” and usually that boat is the Titanic. The Titanic was designed and built badly. The watertight compartments did not reach high enough and were insufficient because higher compartments would have decreased first-class cabin space. It was built with… → Read More

RCEP now? | John Mangun

IF you want to be realistic about it, international trade has been a tale of misery. Shall we make it personal to the Philippines? Two words: Ferdinand Magellan. He was not in search of the healing waters of Binaliw Spring. The brave explorers went in search of adventure that was… → Read More

Can world leaders stop global fragmentation?

The World Economic Forum’s Chief Economists Outlook report warned on Monday of dire human consequences from the fragmentation of the global economy. Releasing their outlook at the WEF Annual Meeting 2022 in Davos, Switzerland, the World Economic Forum’s Community of Chief Economists said it expected lower economic activity, higher inflation,… → Read More

Global experts and elite

Words do not mean what they used to mean. For example, the word “awful” used to mean “worthy of awe” like “the awful majesty of God.” “Nice” used to mean “silly, foolish, simple.” “Silly” went in the opposite direction. In its earliest uses, it referred to things worthy or blessed… → Read More

Stay positive

I take a positive approach about the future. Perhaps I am genetically hard-wired that way. Maybe it is from my life experiences. When I was a child, medical treatment consisted of sulfa drugs, penicillin, aspirin, and iodine. Many parents back then—including my own—were told, “If he makes to morning, he will… → Read More

US mourns 1 million Covid-19 deaths

The United States of America, the richest country in the world that managed to hoard nearly 500 million excess doses of Covid-19 vaccines in 2021, reported one million Covid deaths on Monday, the highest death toll among nations. Observers said there are myriad reasons why this happened, including the inadequate initial… → Read More

Crypto crazy

Having a discussion about cryptocurrencies with some investors is like discussing polygamy with some followers of Islam or homosexuality with some Christians. It is a place that you do not want to go, especially if you are talking with a “religious fanatic.” And cryptocurrency is a religion for some. Again,… → Read More

It’s a horse race

Humans are a strange species. Soon after we stopped dragging our knuckles and started walking upright, we have found pleasure jumping on the back of some other animal and racing to victory. From elephants to ostriches, if the beast was large enough to carry a human, we used it for… → Read More

Post-election thoughts

There must be something in the DNA of all earthly animals—from penguins to people—that requires that we look for connections. Maybe it is a survival mechanism. Massive conspiracies surrounded the assassination of John F. Kennedy, including similarities with that of Abraham Lincoln. Both men were elected to the presidency in… → Read More

Pinoy ocean expert vies for CLCS post

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea was adopted in 1982 to define coastal and maritime boundaries and regulate seabed exploration not within territorial claims. The UNCLOS lays down a comprehensive regime of law and order in the world’s oceans and seas, establishing rules governing all uses… → Read More