<p><strong>Kevin Warsh has been formally confirmed by the US Senate as the next Federal Reserve chair,</strong> assuming leadership in a period of heightened inflation and partisan contention over monetary policy.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Gold prices fell for a second consecutive session on Wednesday as inflation pressures from the ongoing Middle East conflict dampened hopes for interest rate cuts.</strong> Meanwhile, markets are also looking for cues from the forthcoming Trump–Xi meeting.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Parts of Luzon and Visayas experienced power outages on Wednesday after the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines issued red and yellow alerts,</strong> triggered by the unexpected loss of more than 5,500 megawatts of electricity capacity.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Meralco slightly reduced electricity rates for May to PHP 14.3345 per kilowatt-hour, down PHP 0.0151 from April, </strong>marking the first cut after three straight monthly increases as regulatory measures helped offset higher generation costs.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. issued Executive Order No. 118 setting a PHP 50-per-kilo price cap on 5% broken imported rice for 30 days </strong>to stabilize costs and prevent market manipulation.&nbsp;</p>