Jollibee group sets record store expansion in 2023

by MIGUEL R. CAMUS Inquirer.net

JOLLIBEE Foods Corp. (JFC), the global fastfood conglomerate of billionaire Tony Tan Caktiong, is preparing its biggest store expansion push in 2023 after last year’s record openings helped fuel earnings past the prepandemic level.

JFC said in a stock exchange filing on Thursday, March 16 it was opening 550 to 600 new branches this year to sustain growth.

It launched 542 stores in 2022 — the company’s highest ever in its 45-year history.

This comes as the operator of some of the country’s biggest restaurant names such as Jollibee, Mang Inasal and Chowking as well as

Coffee Bean & Teal Leaf and Smashburger deepens its global and domestic presence.

On Thursday, JFC announced that net income last year jumped 26.4 percent to Php7.56 billion. This was 19.4 percent above its prepandemic net income of Php6.33 billion.

JFC, which ended 2022 with 6,480 stores, increased profitability amid a boom in restaurant sales after harsh pandemic restrictions were lifted and despite cost pressures and global supply chain disruptions that led to product shortages.

“Looking ahead, while we expect macroeconomic challenges to persist in 2023, we are confident that the JFC Group is resilient and wellpositioned to drive near- term growth,” company CEO Ernest Tanmantiong said in a statement on Thursday.

“We have clear priorities on profitability while we continue to invest strategically to deliver long-term growth and value for our shareholders,” he added.

In 2022, systemwide sales surged 40.2 percent to Php296.82 billion while revenues expanded by 38 percent to Php211.9 billion.

Same store sale last year also grew 27 percent.

“Dine-in sales improved significantly driven by increased mobility due to easing of restrictions in markets where we operate,” the company said.

“Off-premise channels, particularly delivery showed continued resilience and we expect sustained robust growth as we improve further our digital touchpoints,” it added.

Jollibee’s operating income last year grew 58.4 percent to Php9.9 billion. Margins also improved to 4.7 percent from 4.1 percent.

“Despite industry-wide headwinds, margins for the fourth quarter remained resilient due to pricing actions and cost management initiatives,” said JFC chief financial officer Richard Shin.

The company is expecting to sustain growth in 2023 with an added boost coming from the gradual reopening of China, where it maintains a significant presence.

It said on Thursday full-year systemwide sales this year

 PAGE A4 close to Camp Elias Angeles, is the 9th ID’s new mission.

The row between the Philippines and China over the South China Sea has been escalating, and Manila has filed numerous diplomatic protests against the intrusion of Chinese ships in its territorial waters.

Beijing claims about 80 percent of the strategic sea lane by virtue of “historical rights.”

In a meeting last January in Beijing, Marcos urged Chinese President Xi Jinping to establish a direct line with Manila to avoid “miscalculations and miscommunications” that could worsen the situation in the waterway.

 PAGE A2

MANILA — Filipino and American troops will sink a target vessel near Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal in the West Philippine Sea when the two allies carry out next month their largest joint military exercise to date, a military official told the Inquirer on Tuesday, March 14.

The Philippines and the United States have ramped up defense cooperation under President Marcos in the face of China’s increasing assertiveness in the South China Sea and its potential invasion of Taiwan and will put on their biggest exercise in history with the participation of 17,000 troops from both sides. This is nearly twice the 8,900 soldiers who joined last year.

The annual joint military exercises — called Balikatan” or “shoulder-to-shoulder” that will run from April 11 to 28 — will feature some 12,000 U.S. soldiers and 5,000 Filipino troops. Australia will send about a hundred soldiers, while like-minded countries will join as observers.

The activities will be held across Northern Luzon and the provinces of Palawan and Antique.

Philippines asks ICC to suspend ‘war on drugs’ probe

MANILA — The Philippine government has asked the International Criminal Court (ICC) to suspend its investigation into the killings under the Duterte administration’s bloody “war on drugs” and the alleged Davao Death Squad.

In its 51-page appeal, Manila, through the Office of the Solicitor General, also asked the tribunal’s Appeals Chamber to grant suspensive effect until the resolution of its latest submission and determine that the ICC prosecution is not authorized to resume its probe.

The Philippine government reiterated the argument that the Hague-based court has no jurisdiction over the country.

Although the Philippines no longer recognizes the ICC after pulling out of the court in 2019, the tribunal still has jurisdiction over crimes committed while the country was a state party.

“The prosecution’s activities in furtherance of its investigations would lack any legal foundation and encroach on the sovereignty