Manila  - Nine suspected terrorists were arrested in the southern Philippines in separate operations earlier in the week, a military report said Thursday.

The suspects, believed to be members of the Indonesia-based Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) terrorist group, were arrested Monday and Tuesday just outside Cotabato City,
930 kilometres south of Manila.

The report did not give details about the identities of the suspects, who were undergoing tactical interrogation in a military camp in Cotabato.

Manila  - Six suspects in the kidnapping of a Pakistani businessman and his Filipino friend were arrested in the northern Philippines, a police spokesman said Monday.

The suspects were apprehended late Sunday shortly after releasing the victims in a remote highway in Hermosa town in Bataan province, 75 kilometres north of Manila, according to Chief Superintendent Nicanor Bartolome.

Bartolome said the suspects were positively identified by relatives of the victims who paid 400,000 pesos (8,421 dollars) for their safe release.

Manila  - A family of six were killed when a landslide buried their house in an eastern Philippine province, a government relief agency said Monday.

The National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) said two people were also injured in the landslide Saturday in Lavesares town in Northern Samar province, 495 kilometres south-east of Manila.

The accident was triggered by heavy rains in the area for several days, which loosened the soil and also caused flashfloods in several villages.

The NDCC said more than 10,000 people were adversely affected by the flooding and landslides.

Heavy rains have also hit several eastern and southern provinces, forcing thousands of people to flee their homes

Manila  - A domestic passenger plane crashed into a barrier in an airport runway in the central Philippines on Sunday, injuring three people, officials said.

The Zest Airways plane "undershot" the runway of the Caticlan airport in Aklan province, 330 kilometres south of Manila, as it was landing, said Ben Ciron, director general of the Civil Aviation Authority.

He said two children and one crew member suffered minor injuries in the accident.

Manila  - The Philippines' inflation rate increased to 9.3 per cent for 2008 as high oil and food prices battered the economy, the government said Tuesday.

The National Statistics Office said the annual rate shot up from 2.8 per cent in 2007, but stayed at the low end of the government's target of between 9 per cent and 11 per cent.

But December inflation eased to 8.0 per cent, the lowest monthly rate in nine months, down from 9.9 per cent in November as food and oil prices declined.

Manila  - Philippine share prices rose 5.43 per cent on Monday, the first trading day of the year, on expectations the US economy will finally start recovering.

The Philippine Stock Exchange's 30-share composite index gained 101.84 points to close at 1,974.69 from 1,872.85 points on December 24, the last trading day in 2008.

A total of 640.93 million shares valued at 1.44 billion pesos (30.44 million dollars) were traded.

Gainers outpaced losers 78 to 16, while 23 issues were unchanged.