Tycoons stay optimistic amid Middle East conflictMANILA, Philippines — Tycoons Tessie Sy-Coson and Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala, leaders of two of the country’s biggest conglomerates, are keeping their optimism amid fears that the country’s economic growth will be derailed by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. So it may lengthen, but I guess right now it’s a time for us to prepare for another upswing,” she said. Despite the fear being instilled by the conflict in Middle East, however, Sy-Coson said life as well as business go on. “So I do remain optimistic for the kind of results and the leveling out of prices by the end of the year. But I think the way my mind works is, when you have a crisis of this magnitude, you have two frames of mind.

Source: Philippine Star March 17, 2026 16:41 UTC