Santiago maintains she can’t resign yet as senator

SENATOR Miriam Defensor-Santiago is not yet inclined to give up her seat following her election to the International Criminal Court (ICC).

In a letter to Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman Sixto Brillantes on Wednesday, Santiago said she will only quit from the Senate once the ICC based in The Hague, Netherlands calls her to duty.

Credit rating upgrade ‘nod to fiscal policy’

MANILA (Updated 11:32 a.m.) -- The Philippine government said Thursday that a credit rating upgrade by Standard & Poor's (S&Ps) will help the country carry out reforms without weakening its financial position.

The agency raised on Wednesday the Philippines' long-term foreign currency credit rating to BB+ from BB, one notch below investment grade. It kept the rating outlook at stable.

P.5-M worth of fake basketballs seized

POLICE recently seized over 200 pieces of counterfeit basketballs amounting to close to P500,000 from three sports boutiques last month, sports equipment provider Molten Corporation said Thursday.

The stores, Mix Sports, Jianwang and Plus Sports in Divisoria, Manila, were found engaged in marketing and selling imitations of Molten basketball models GL7 and GG7 at the retail prices of the original models.

Iran state TV accuses BBC of hacking website

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran's state TV charged Wednesday that the BBC hacked its website to change the results of a poll about Iran's nuclear program. The BBC denied the allegation.

The West suspects Iran may be aiming to produce nuclear weapons. Iran insists its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes like energy production.

Carmaker Volkswagen finalizes Porsche takeover

BERLIN — German carmaker Volkswagen said it is on track to finalize the full takeover of sports car manufacturer Porsche by the end of the month.

Volkswagen AG said in a statement late Wednesday Porsche AG will become another fully integrated brand of the Volkswagen group as of August 1.

'Habagat' brings rainshowers in most parts of country

MANILA -- Even if the low pressure area (LPA) already dissipates, the Western Visayas and Luzon including Metro Manila can expect rain due to southwest monsoon or “habagat,” the state weather bureau said on Thursday.

Weather forecaster Aldczar Aurelio said the LPA dissipated Wednesday night, thus the weather finally began to improve in Metro Manila and parts of Southern Luzon.

Lone winner hits P163-M Grand Lotto jackpot

A LONE lottery ticket hit the 163-million Grand Lotto 6/55 jackpot Wednesday night.

The winning combination was 36-26-10-49-32-37. It carried a prize of 163,921,759.20, according to the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).

Power outages, wildfires darken US holiday parties

WASHINGTON — Nearly a million Americans were preparing to spend the Independence Day holiday like the nation's founders did in 1776, without the conveniences of electricity and air conditioning after several Eastern and Midwestern states were suddenly hit by a summer storm. Out West, raging wildfires forced authorities to cancel fireworks displays.

Reps confirm actress Claire Danes is pregnant

NEW YORK — Claire Danes has some busy months ahead: Not only is her hit TV series "Homeland" returning for its second season in September, but she's pregnant as well.

Danes' rep, Jodi Gottlieb, confirms the actress is expecting her first child with husband Hugh Dancy.

3 quakes hit Eastern Samar

STATE seismologists recorded three tremors hitting two provinces in Eastern Visayas Wednesday night.

The first quake with magnitude 4.9 occurred at 7:09 p.m. Wednesday 15 kilometers southwest of Naval in Biliran province. It was tectonic in origin.