PRESS DIGEST - Philippine newspapers - May 26

MANILA, May 26 (Reuters) - These are the leading stories in Manila newspapers on Tuesday. Reuters has not verified these stories.

- The Department of Health is trying to locate at least 50 people who have come in contact with two Taiwanese nationals infected with the H1N1 virus at a wedding two weeks ago. (THE PHILIPPINE STAR, MANILA STANDARD TODAY, MALAYA)

- Senator Juan Ponce Enrile has offered to resign as chairman of a Senate committee investigating the ethics complaint filed against Senator Manuel Villar. (MALAYA)

- The Philippine Coast Guard has ordered that five of its officers be relieved of their duties in connection with the sinking of an overloaded boat that killed 12 passengers, officials said. (ALL PAPERS)

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BUSINESS

- The government will allow exporters to retain tax perks even if they fail to ship out required volumes amid sluggish foreign demand, officials said. (BUSINESSWORLD)

- The Philippine economy may have expanded beyond the government's 1.8-2.8 percent growth estimate for the first quarter due to foreign exchange remittances and government pump priming activities, economists said. (THE MANILA TIMES)

- Aboitiz Power (AP.PS) said it may bid for the 600-megawatt Calaca coal plant and the 620-MW Limay diesel plant. (MANILA STANDARD TODAY)

($1 = 47.17 Philippine pesos)

(Reporting by Karen Lema)