BusinessMirror April 22, 2020

Duterte undecided on fate of Covid ECQ A

FTER a five-hour meeting with former health secretaries, his top economic advisers and Congress leaders on Monday, President Duterte remains undecided on his next course of action on the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Luzon. While he received an almost unanimous recommendation from medical experts to “modify” its coverage when it lapses on April 30, Duterte is weighing all ramifications of a premature lifting or a needlessly sweeping extension.

Senators, meanwhile, weighed in on the increasing call for a more calibrated approach in order to balance the valid call to allow the economy to recover while avoiding a more damaging, deadly resurgence of the Covid-19 infections,

PRESIDENTIAL Spokesman Harry Roque gets a swab test during the ceremonial signing of the memorandum of agreement between the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) and the Metro Manila LGUs on Covid-19 emergency operations at the PRC Molecular Laboratory in Mandaluyong City. Standing behind Roque is PRC Chairman and Senator Richard J. Gordon. BERNARD TESTA

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which reached a total of 6,599 cases in the country, with 437 deaths and 654 recoveries as of Tuesday (April 21) afternoon.

Duterte deferred announcing if he will lift, extend, or relax the over monthlong ECQ until getting additional information from the members of the InterAgency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF).

“The President made no decision [after the meeting]. The President said his decision may come today or it may come on April 30,” Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque told reporters on Tuesday.

Roque said Duterte was particularly concerned with the possible fatalities as well as a second wave of Covid-19 cases if he opts to relax or totally lift the ECQ.

He said the President was interested in how the actions will benefit certain sectors of society.

Roque said all of the medical experts

and former health secretaries at the meeting did not recommend a total lockdown or maintaining the Luzon-wide ECQ.

Instead, they were pushing for the lifting of the community quarantine in areas where there were minimal numbers of Covid-19 cases—a similar position pushed by some members of the government economic team as well as business leaders.

Balanced interests

UNIVERSITY of the Philippines Resilience Institute (UPRI) Executive Director Mahar Lagmay, one of the participants, said while ideally, the ECQ should continue to ensure Covid-19 cases are contained, they understand the need to “reboot” businesses after being suspended for over a month because of the ECQ.

“We need to balance health with the economy. We don’t want the people to starve.... So what we are looking for is the

gradual relaxation of the ECQ,” Lagmay said.

A crucial factor in making a decision would be to ensure the current healthcare system can cope with the expected increase of Covid-19 cases, which would be almost unavoidable.

Roque said the government is still in the process of improving nationwide testing capacities for Covid samples and preparing quarantine facilities for the anticipated increase in Covid cases in the aftermath of the ECQ.

The chief implementer of the government’s national policy on Covid-19 Carlito Galvez struck an optimistic note about meeting the goal of having 2 million people tested for the virus, given the huge support from the Philippine Red Cross, which opened on Tuesday its “stateof-the-art molecular testing laboratory” in Mandaluyong City.

Continued on A2

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HOUSEHOLD SAVINGS SEEN DRAINED WITH 2ND ECQ EXTENSION

CHICKEN vendors at Trabajo Market in Sampaloc, Manila, sell their dressed chicken at lower prices due to lack of customers as the City Government of Manila announced a 48-hour lockdown after a vendor was infected by the Covid-19. ROY DOMINGO

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

W

A WOMAN does her cooking beside her shanty along the tracks of the Philippine National Railways in Sampaloc, Manila.

Sampaloc will be under a “hard lockdown” from 8 pm of April 23 (Thursday) until 8 pm of April 25 (Saturday). NONIE REYES

T

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

HE economic growth assumptions of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) for this year could settle at a low end of -1 percent to zero growth amid the Covid-19 crisis, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin Diokno said on Tuesday.

During the technical working group meeting of the House Defeat Covid-19 Sub-Committee on Economic Stimulus Package, Diokno, however, said this forecast is still

subject to change as these growth outlooks per quarter are still being computed.

“The Neda [National Economic and Development Authority] is

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 50.8800

still computing it by quarter. But I think, it’s tentatively close to Neda’s negative 1 to zero. The worst case is negative 1 percent and the best case is zero,” Diokno said.

Diokno’s outlook is a deep dive from the 6.5-percent to 7.5-percent economic growth target of the government for 2020. In 2019 the country recorded 6-percent gross domestic product growth.

The BSP forecast follows Fitch Solutions’s 4.0 percent, ING Bank Manila’s 3.5 percent, World Bank’s 3 percent, Moody’s Investors Services’ 2.5 percent, Asian Development Bank’s 2 percent, Nomura’s 1.6 percent, ANZ Research’s 1.2 percent, International Monetary Fund’s 0.6 per-

cent, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp.’s -1 to 1 percent, and S&P Global Ratings’ -0.2 percent.

Diokno has said the Covid-19 continues to worsen overseas, thus sharply reducing prospects for global economic growth for the rest of the year.

However, Neda Undersecretary Rosemarie G. Edillon earlier told the BusinessMirror that GDP could still post growth just below the country’s historical average of 5 percent to 6 percent in the first quarter.

The full impact of the Covid-19 was felt toward March as President Duterte placed Metro Manila on community quarantine, subsequently

ITH some government officials batting for a second extension of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ), analysts are worried that household savings of the vulnerable sector may be exhausted already as the Philippine economy hit pause due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

President Duterte, according to his spokesperson Harry Roque, is set to decide this week if the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) implemented in Luzon will be extended. The lockdown took effect midnight of March 17 and was initially set to conclude by April 14, but the government ordered a two-week extension, as mass testing—crucial to assessing the risks from unleashing anew out to the streets and the mass transportation systems millions of workers— was just about to begin.

A lawmaker has been pushing for another two-week extension after April 30 amid mounting cases, while others were for selective or modified quarantine in areas with low or no transmission.

“If the ECQ continues, household savings may start to be depleted as people who have lost their jobs start to use them up,” UnionBank Chief Economist Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion told the BusinessMirror.

ING Bank Manila Economist Nicholas Antonio Mapa said a significant portion of the population only relies on daily wages and tips, noting this sector can have a hard time coping with financial challenges amid the lockdown.

See “ECQ,” A2

See “Growth,” A2

n JAPAN 0.4728 n UK 63.3100 n HK 6.5650 n CHINA 7.1930 n SINGAPORE 35.8108 n AUSTRALIA 32.2070 n EU 55.3015 n SAUDI ARABIA 13.5644

Source: BSP (April 21, 2020)

News BusinessMirror

A2 Wednesday, April 22, 2020

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DepEd eyes August, not June class opening on Covid fears T

By Samuel P. Medenilla & Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

HE Department of Education (DepEd) is studying the possibility of moving the reopening of classes for public schools from June to August in order to minimize the risk of exposing students to the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

Education Secretary Leonor M. Briones said this was based on their consultations with experts, advisers in the business sector and even the teachers, all citing safety concerns for students amid the pandemic, which as of Tuesday (April 21) afternoon had infected 6,599 people in the country, with 437 deaths and 654 recoveries.

During the two months when students will remain under home quarantine, the DepEd will encourage the students to continue their studies by accessing their online learning platform DepEd Commons, Briones said.

“So it doesn’t mean, [if] we say August will be the reopening of school, students and teachers will do nothing [during June and July],” Briones said.

Briones said that most of

those who answered their survey, which was released on April 18, preferred the month of August.

Around 700,000 people have answered the survey.

Similar results emerged from their consultations with other stakeholders.

She, however, said that the recommendation of the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF- EID) will also play a big role in their final decision.

She said the survey includes different questions including the positions of respondents on having children physically returning to school and using online platforms for teaching.

The education chief said the decision of President Duterte regarding the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Luzon based

on the IATF recommendation will also significantly affect the date for the reopening of classes.

Up to December

UNIVERSITY of the Philippines Resilience Institute (UPRI) Executive Director Mahar Lagmay said they are recommending the suspension of classes up to December to cut the risk of Covid-19 transmission in the country by 56 percent.

“If there are no classes up to December, there will be a significant reduction in Covid-19 transmission,” Lagmay said in a separate online press briefing.

Based on the study of the UP Covid-19 Pandemic Response Team, he said the class suspension will also have a minimal effect on the economy.

Partnership with Globe

MEANWHILE, Briones encouraged students to visit online platform DepEd Commons, an alternative mode for teachinglearning process, during class suspensions and other similar circumstances.

Learners and teachers can now access the online learning platform DepEd Commons without incurring data charges on their Globe or TM-powered smartphones.

Briones spearheaded the call for support from the telcos in

providing free access to DepEd Commons.

“In this time of crisis, it is important that we make it possible to overcome this challenge with solid partnerships with the private sector. We are thankful for our partners’ generosity in support of the continuity of public education by providing us free data for DepEd Commons access amid the Covid-19 situation,” Briones said.

She also secured the support of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) in the initiative backing delivery of public education services through connectivity.

DepEd Commons contains online review materials and Open Educational Resources (OER) authored by public school teachers who are subject matter experts.

Teachers can retain, reuse, revise, remix and redistribute the content by blending it with a learning management system to deliver a distance learning modality.

Based on the latest data, DepEd Commons has 4,236,667 users accessing online learning materials at the height of the ECQ. The number of users is projected to continue to rise in the coming days.

Meanwhile, DepEd Undersecretary for Administration Alain

Del B. Pascua said DepEd faces many challenges in ensuring the continuity of education especially in “this extremely difficult situation that we are in.”

The platform also integrates the Globe eLibrary, an online platform which features age-appropriate and engaging e-books ranging from storybooks for children and young adults to textbooks on core subjects such as Math, Science, English, Filipino, Music, Arts, among others.

“Even in this time of crisis where most of us, including the teachers and students, have to stay at home, it is important that learning continues. We are happy to provide this service to DepEd in cooperation with the DICT and NTC,” Globe Chief Sustainability Officer and SVP for Corporate Communications Yoly Crisanto said.

However, Globe clarified that while access to the site using the Globe/TM network will not entail any data charges, it does not cover the links outside the DepEd Commons domain. Thus, all links clicked and visited will still incur standard data charges.

In a separate virtual press conference for reporters, Undersecretary and chief of staff Nepomuceno Malaluan said they are reviewing other means to use information communication technology platforms, television and radio.

Growth… Lack of PPEs flagged as PHL envoy rues Continued from A1

expanded to the entire Luzon island with a monthlong enhanced community quarantine (ECQ). The ECQ was then extended to April 30.

Ateneo Center for Economic Research and Development (ACERD) Director Alvin P. Ang, also in a BusinessMirror report, said the contraction in the second quarter may reach double digits if the ECQ is extended. This will be followed by another contraction in the third quarter, Ang said, marking a technical recession of the Philippine economy.

A technical recession occurs when GDP growth contracts in two quarters.

The only factor that could complicate GDP growth in the third quarter will be the impact of La Niña on the economy. The third quarter is also, historically, typhoon season in the Philippines.

However, first- and fourthquarter growths will be positive, with the fourth quarter allowing the economy to post its best GDP performance for the year.

In his 109-page Philippine National Stimulus Strategy report, House Committee on Ways and Means Chairman Joey Sarte Salceda urged the government to widen its budget deficit up to 7.8 percent of GDP as the government needs to implement fiscal programs to keep the economy afloat following the impact of Covid-19 pandemic.

Salceda said this would result in a 1.3-percent growth for the economy this year, apparently averting the first contraction of the economy in 18 years.

Allowing for a wider budget deficit is also supported by former Neda director general now Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto, saying “we can afford 10-percent GDP deficit for the next two to three years.”

Covid-19 deaths of 20 health-care workers

By Recto L. Mercene

T

HE Philippine Embassy in London expressed grave concern for the safety of Filipino nurses in UK hospitals following the death of some 20 Filipino healthcare workers in the fight against Covid-19.

“The Philippine Embassy in London has brought to the attention of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) the concerns of Filipino nurses in the UK such as the need for more personal protective equipment (PPE), especially for those who are assigned at the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) wards,” said Ambassador to the UK Antonio M. Lagdameo.

“We are deeply concerned about the deaths of Filipino health workers who sacrificed their lives as the world continues to fight this vicious disease. They put their lives on the line so that others may heal, live, and be reunited with their loved ones,” the ambassador lamented.

Ambassador Lagdameo said that

as of April 20, “no less than 20 Filipino healthcare workers have perished in the UK’s fight against the Covid-19, based on Covid-19 deaths reported to the Philippine Embassy in London.”

He said the figure represents nearly half of at least 50 Filipinos—by citizenship or ethnicity—who died of the disease, including three who are undocumented immigrants.

He said the deaths of the Filipino healthcare workers due to Covid-19 “have caused a stir among British society” since it is well known that Filipinos represent the third biggest group of National Health Service (NHS) staff after the British and Indians.

Lagdameo cited the March 2019 report on the NHS workplace diversity, which says “close to 19,000 Filipinos serve the UK’s public health system either as medical professionals such as nurses and allied health professionals or as support staff.”

He said various independent fund-

raisers have been organized by the friends and family of those who succumbed to the disease while other Filipino community organizations are contributing in different ways to support those still at the frontlines. “These efforts include the provision of face masks as well as hot meals.”

In what was seen as a measure of how the UK values Filipino nurses, Prince Philip, during one occasion in which he was introduced to a group of Filipino nurses some years back, quipped: “Your country must be half-empty, they are all here at the NHS.”

Earlier this month, Prince Charles awarded the OBE to Filipino nurse Joy Ongkachoy, during a ceremony at Buckingham Palace, “for services to health care.” OBE is the second highest-ranking Order of the British Empire award, behind CBE but ahead of MBE. It stands for Officer of the Order of the British Empire (as opposed to Commander for a CBE and Member for an MBE).

Despite the suspension of frontline

consular services, Lagdameo said “the Embassy’s consular section as well as the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) continue to coordinate closely with Filipino community organizations in extending assistance and monitoring the condition of those severely affected by the onslaught of the disease.”

Lagdameo said the embassy has also adopted measures to safeguard public health while at the same time “render critical assistance-to-nationals services to distressed Filipino citizens in light of the global pandemic.”

“Nurses from the Philippines and other developing countries have long made up for shortages in Western nations. They now find themselves risking their lives on the frontlines of a pandemic, thousands of miles from home,” said the New York Times, which devoted a long article about the Filipino health workers not only in the UK but also in the United States.

Duterte undecided on fate of Covid ECQ Continued from A1

The goal of the PRC is to have 12 polymerase chain reaction or PCR machines in Metro Manila. An expanded testing capacity “will provide the government critical data and analysis to help address the crisis brought about

by Covid-19,” said Galvez.

Senators’ views

MEANWHILE, majority and minority senators have yet to firm up a consensus on whether to support the options of a lockdown extension or a selective lockdown.

Senate President Vicente Sotto III favors a “modified geographical ECQ,” saying “it [ECQ] seems the way to go.”

In a text message to the BusinessMirror, Sotto acknowledged, however, that it “depends on the President,” adding that “he [Duterte] now has in his possession pertinent details to warrant” the best judgment on what he had described as one of his most difficult decisions.

Sen. Joel Villanueva pointed out there are still “several things that we have to consider in deciding on whether to lift or to extend the quarantine.”

“Based on the data presented by the University of the Philippines Covid Response Team, there are areas in Luzon where the quarantine can be lifted because they are far from having an outbreak,” Villanueva said, noting that “in areas like the National Capital Region, Cebu, Bulacan and Davao City, we can look at economic considerations in exempting some sectors from the quarantine but with the caveat that we practice the social distancing, hand washing and sanitizing protocols and, of course, conducting regular random testing in these sectors.”

Villanueva noted certain sectors have a “high impact on the economy but also have a high impact on spreading the disease. We can let them operate but on the condition that they will comply with very strict protocols,” citing for example the construction, logistics and food production sectors.

He said, “we can do micro area

quarantine like barangay or municipal level, but it will depend on the capacity of local government units to test and isolate infected individuals and the capacity of the health system in the area.”

For his part, Senate Minority Leader Frank Drilon favors a “selective lockdown.” Drilon earlier introduced an amendment in the Bayanihan bill that authorized the President to realign items in the national budget to aid Covid-19 victims.

Sen. Ronald de la Rosa opted to await signals from the IATF, which he described as “on top of the situation.”

Sen. Ramon Revilla Jr., on the other hand, wants to see “stricter enforcement of the ECQ in the remaining 10 days.”

“Come April 30th, the government should assess where and what sectors can start the normalization process,” Revilla added. “Those places that are not so affected, maybe they can slowly get back to normal routine.”

However, Revilla said, “the ar-

eas that have no improvement in the numbers, or even worsened, should continue to be in quarantine.”

Weeklong preparations

CABINET Secretary Karlo Nograles said members of the IATF will be working within the week to finalize recommendations to Duterte on the ECQ.

“We are trying to put in as much meat and details into the several options that the President has. Because ultimately...so that when we show the decision points to the President, he will also know its repercussions,” Nograles said.

This was confirmed by Roque, who said the Department of Health (DOH) as well as the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) have yet to submit their final recommendation to the President.

Nograles said the IATF recommendation will also be based on the guidelines of the World Health Organization for Covid response, which recommended against sudden lifting of lockdown.

ECQ…

Continued from A1

“This part of society may not have had much savings and will have likely dipped substantially into it once economic activity was halted abruptly,” he said.

Mapa said it was only imperative for the government to address the concerns over job opportunities once ECQ is lifted.

“Lost income/employment/ livelihood for some people could eventually be a drag on consumer savings especially on the most vulnerable sectors, unless there would be some modifications/ some lifting on the ECQ/lockdown in the coming weeks,” RCBC Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort added.

Other side of the coin

IT is a different—and better— narrative, however, for the sector with stable jobs. Analysts said that savings of those segments of society might increase as spending would be prioritized on necessities only amid the lockdown.

Ricafort said that “percentage of consumers with savings could still increase as consumers/households become more conservative and would tend to save more.”

This, as daily expenses—like transport fees—decrease due to work-from-home arrangements and the temporary closure of business establishments where consumers usually spend their money, he added.

Mapa said that spending is now focused only on the essentials like food and utilities, which account for 64 percent of the consumption sector in gross domestic products accounting. This leaves a gap where retail purchases and other services usually are, he explained, noting that it can be turned into savings instead.

“We also expect an increase in savings as people build up a ‘rainy day fund’ given that people now realize something as game changing such as an ECQ is possible, and with still no vaccine out there, we may have to contend with ECQ Part 2 down the line,” Mapa added.

Asuncion, for his part, said that he was expecting the increase in percentage of Filipinos with savings during the last half of March—or when the Luzon-wide lockdown began.

More Filipinos with savings

ACCORDING to the latest Consumer Expectations Survey by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the percentage of households with savings jumped to 37.8 percent in the first three months of 2020, which was higher than the 36.3 percent notched the previous quarter. The latest figure was also the highest since the first quarter of 2013.

“The higher number of savers was due to the increase in the number of households with savings in the middle-income group, which more than offset the decrease in the number of savers in the high- and low-income groups,” BSP explained.

Respondents identified emergencies, health and hospitalization, education, retirement, business capital and investment and purchase of real estate as the factors that impelled them to save.

The households with savings are keeping their money in different types of savings institutions— banks (73.9 percent); home (60.2 percent); and cooperatives, credit associations and investments (50.9 percent).

The survey was conducted from January 29 to February 10.

Majority or 40.8 percent of the respondents came from middleincome households, followed by high-income group and lowincome group at 29.9 percent and 29.2 percent, respectively.

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Lawmaker urges ‘reboot’ of ‘BBB’ infra program amid lockdown

Govt, funeral industry players agree on fixed P25,000 rate for cremation of virus fatalities

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

@joveemarie

A

LEADER of the House of Representatives on Tuesday asked for the inclusion of construction activities as among essential services exempted from whatever containment measures that may possibly remain in place beyond April 30.

Deputy Speaker for Finance Luis Raymund Villafuerte issued the statement following his call for a reboot of the Duterte administration’s flagship infrastructure projects even amid the extended lockdown.

Villafuerte said regular construction work can resume in major infrastructure projects for so long as social distancing measures and other health protocols are strictly imposed on job sites.

On, or near-site housing for workers should be in place, or if this not possible, point-to-point shuttle service should be made available to them, he said.

Villafuerte also cited the need for the regular disinfection of workplaces, as well as other hygienic measures to protect the health of workers in these infrastructure projects.

He said the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) is consulting experts and discussing the proposal by various quarters to resume public construction work on infrastructure projects.

The lawmaker said the IATFEID earlier approved the request of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to allow the resumption of utility relocation works and resume specified limited works on 13 rail projects.

The projects include the rail replacement of the MRT 3, but only limited mobilization and skeletal staffing for these projects were allowed.

Villafuerte has reiterated that the government’s “Build, Build, Build” (BBB) program must be put back on track at once as infrastructure investments offer the highest multiplier effects, including job generation, on the economy—and could thus stimulate high growth even while the coronavirus-induced health crisis is still raging across the globe.

“Rebooting Build, Build, Build projects even during the lockdown will spearhead the recovery of our economy and thus mitigate the adverse effects of what the International Monetary Fund [IMF] expects to be the worst global recession in almost a century since the Great Depression of the 1930s,” said Villafuerte.

Correspondent

T

HE Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) said on Tuesday that local government units (LGU), hospitals, and funeral and crematory services have agreed for a fixed rate of P25,000 for a point-to-point service of cadavers—from pickup to cremation—to properly handle and manage the disposal of Covid-19 fatalities.

“We identified the issues and potential risks concerning the management of the Covid-19 casualties and tried to come up with solutions for each one. I am grateful for the cooperation and coordination of everyone involved, from my fellow public servants to the members of the private sector. Us working as one shows our utmost goal to heal as one,” said MMDA Chairman Danilo D. Lim. He added that it is part of the

agency’s initial task as the designated chairman of the Regional Task Force in the National Capital Region, pursuant to Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging and Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) Resolution 23, Series of 2020 effective on April 15, 2020.

Lim said that after two online conference meetings last week with funeral and crematory services, along with representatives from the Department of Health (DOH), the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the Philippine National Police (PNP), and other concerned agencies, the group formulated several guidelines and procedures to address the delays in handling the remains of patients who died from the coronavirus disease.

He noted that essential among the measures put forth by MMDA is the fixed rate of P25,000 for a point-topoint service for Covid-19-related deaths of indigents.

T

The amount has been approved by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and Department of Budget and Management (DBM), and was agreed to be implemented by the largest-run crematorium companies in Metro Manila. Funeral companies with no crematoriums would have the option to partner with a crematory facility of their choice.

Lim added that it was also proposed that DSWD, or the corresponding LGU of the indigent, would provide funeral assistance of the same amount, P25,000. A memorandum of agreement between DSWD, LGUs, and crematoriums regarding the aforementioned matters, including validation of indigency, is set to be signed before implementation can take effect.

Lim said that the move is in line with the IATF-EID’s order to hospitals and LGUs to make sure that bodies of patients who died of the

virus are cremated within 12 hours to avoid further spread of infection.

The MMDA chief noted that funeral and crematory owners agreed to prioritize the cremation of those who died from Covid-19, ensuring the proper handling of the remains at the shortest possible time.

These companies assured to be in close coordination with the government through an official communication platform established by MMDA, he said.

It was also recommended that all crematoriums, whether public or private, would be required to accept bodies of deaths due to the disease irrespective of residence.

In the event that Covid-19 related deaths continue to rise, refrigerated vans can be used as temporary morgues. Ideal locations for these reefers were among the points of discussion at the meeting.

Meanwhile, major crematory owners offered to provide staging

areas for the queuing of cadavers provided that other major crematoriums comply and that the power and fuel expenses shall be shouldered by the government.

Likewise, for the protection of the attending mortuary staff from possible infection, the government will ensure the availability of personal protective equipment (PPE) sets and cadaver bags for the handling of the bodies infected by the disease, through the respective hospitals.

The Department of Trade and Industry-National Capital Region, for it past, pledged to link the concerned agencies with suppliers. DTI-NCR, likewise, committed to facilitate the entry of burial materials from other provinces to NCR to address the shortage of urns.

The Regional Task Force for Covid-19 for Metro Manila assured that they will continue to fulfill their responsibility on the health and safety of Filipinos.

Mayor probes ECQ violation HRW PHL takes up cudgels for Cebu writer inside Taguig condo complex

By Rene Acosta @reneacostaBM

T

AGUIG Mayor Lino Cayetano ordered an investigation on Tuesday into an incident where policemen reportedly barged into the grounds of a condominium complex in the city and threatened some of its tenants gathered in a “common area.”

Addressing the issue through his social-media account, Cayetano said that he would not allow any policeman, condominium owners or even any resident of Taguig City to violate the law amid the enforcement of enhanced community quarantine. He said takes any report of ECQ violation “very seriously.”

Earlier, a video has circulated showing policemen shouting at people in the pool area of the Pacific Plaza Towers condominium in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig, and threatening them with arrests for allegedly violating the quarantine.

The incident happened on Sunday afternoon.

One of the policemen was identified as Maj. Joseph Austria, the commander of the Police Community Precinct 7 in Taguig.

Cayetano said he had already seen the video, but he would not pass judgment until the investigation is completed, including the submission of written statements by the tenants involved, including the officials of the condominium.

He added he had also talked personally with the involved police officers whom he did not identify, but obviously, Austria among them, and had took their formal statements along with the official police report of the incident.

But the mayor implied that the presence of the officers at the condominium grounds was legal, including their actions as enforcers of the law.

Cayetano said Austria and his men were at the Pacific Plaza Towers after they were called to enforce the ECQ since, he said, the building officials could not enforce Covid-19 regulations.

Under the condition and directly referring to the incident where the threats of arrest were made, Cayetano said the police officers only have two options, and these are to enforce the ECQ or do whatever it takes to have the people leave the common area.

It is at the common area where the shouting and threats occurred.

Govt urged to freeze mining ops during quarantine period

By Jonathan L. Mayuga

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Wednesday, April 22, 2020 A3

@jonlmayuga

HE Philippine Misereor Partnership Inc. (PMPI) on Tuesday urged the Duterte administration to enforce the quarantine rules on mining companies, alleging that some mining firms committed quarantine violations in Luzon.

According to the PMPI, the DENR must rethink its framework of environmental protection that is more sustainable as it cited studies that revealed that most of the diseases induced by virus come from animals and the wild, and that the phenomenon of deforestation is largely due to mining and agribusiness companies.

A network of 250 nongovernment, peoples’ organizations, and social action centers across the Philippines, PMPI said a couple of Chinese vessels arrived at the country’s shores to load coal from mining communities allegedly with the approval of the Department of Energy (DOE).

Last week, PMPI protested the mineloading operation of a Chinese mining company, Techiron Resources Inc. on Homonhon Island in Guiuan, Eastern Samar, despite the prevailing general quarantine in the entire province.

According to PMPI, the Semirara Island in Caluya, Antique, another island community is again at risk of the spread of coronavirus 2019 as another Chinese vessel, this time by the Semirara Mining and Power Corp. (SMPC), docked to load coal from the island.

The hauling took place amid the issuance of the Antique Provincial Executive Order 40-A barring the use of its port for the transport of coal except for the collection of “cement to be used by contractors for DPWH [Department of Public Works and Highways] projects only and medical equipment, medicines and other essential goods.”

Bong Sanchez of Save Antique Movement (SAM) said despite the DOH confirmation that there are already persons who tested positive for Covid-19 in the island, the LGUCaluya and the Provincial Government of Antique failed to stop the entry of these vessels to service SMPC in the name of “energy security.”

This despite the standing issuances of the Municipality of Caluya, as well as the Province of Antique on social distancing and transport of essential goods in the island.

“These actions are clear subversion of the local government’s will and violation of the peoples’ right to health,” Sanchez added.

The mayor said policemen visited the area five times and another building of the condominium complex but found no one violating the quarantine rules. It was on the other building where the policemen saw a possible violation after their third visit.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Department of the Interior and Local Government have already ordered an investigation into the incident, but Lt. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar, commander of the Joint Task Force Corona Virus Shield, said they would take to task the administrator of the condominium for failing to work with the police in enforcing the ECQ. Meanwhile, PNP chief General Archie Gamboa said on Tuesday that the police will strictly enforce the ECQ in coordination with local government units, particularly in Metro Manila, Central Luzon and Calabarzon.

At the same time, he said, there would be no more warning for quarantine violations, “instead arrest and inquest procedures will be applied.”

Gamboa said that as of Tuesday, there are 136,517 violators of the ECQ. Of the number around 31,000 were arrested, 6,000 were fined and 98,986 were issued with warnings.

Makati City builds two negative pressure tents for coronavirus patients

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AKATI Mayor Abby Binay has announced that the city government will put up two negative pressure tents for patients with Covid-19 at the Ospital ng Makati (OsMak) this week.

“Makati is the first local government in Metro Manila to put up negative pressure tents. These tents, which will be set up at the ambulance bay, are important in protecting other people from contracting the viral disease,” the mayor said in a news statement.

Dr. Vergel Binay, OsMak medical director, said the tents, which passed international standards, can be easily assembled in car parks, warehouse spaces and open spaces.

Each tent can accommodate six intensive care unit beds, a power supply, pressure sensors and alarms, lighting, filtration systems, LCD monitors, UV/HEPA air purification, toilet and shower, decontamination rooms, changing rooms, storage, and air-conditioning system.

The negative pressure tents are among several facilities built by Makati in response to the pandemic. Earlier this month, the city built three emergency quarantine facilities at the Pembo Elementary School and one at the OsMak. Last February, the city converted the Makati Friendship Suites at Barangay Cembo into a quarantine facility to accommodate persons under investigation.

Barangay health centers have also put up their isolation areas for those with Covid-19 symptoms.

By Roderick L. Abad @rodrik_28

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UMAN Rights Watch Philippines (HRW Philippines) has expressed concern over the recent apprehension of Cebu City-based writer and actor Maria Victoria “Bambi” Beltran allegedly for spreading fake news regarding the local government’s response to the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

The controversial statement posted on Facebook on April 18 said, “9,000 + new cases (all from Zapatera) of Covid-19 in Cebu City in one day. We are now the epicenter in the whole Solar System.”

It was based on Cebu Mayor Edgardo Labella’s move on April 17 to put Barangay Luz under lockdown because of the increase in number of confirmed cases in the entire community of Zapatera, which has a population of over 9,000.

According to Beltran’s camp, her post was satirical in nature sans the intention to cause panic among the netizens.

The local chief executive, however, condemned it as an example of “fake news” violative of the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act. HRW Philippines sided with

Beltran, saying that “it is clearly commentary that was meant to be humorous.”

The group argued that her arrest on April 19 by the joint operation of Regional Intelligence Division 7 and Regional AntiCybercrime Unit 7 is an instance of misapplication of the law by government officials.

Even if public officials handling the Covid-19 pandemic are expected to feel stressed, overwhelmed, or aggrieved by criticism, it cited that “misusing the law to violate freedom of expression is a disproportionate and wrong response.”

Nothing in Beltran’s post, it added, can be lawfully interpreted as an obstacle to Cebu’s efforts to contain the spread of the virulent flu.

Local government officials should focus on defeating Covid-19 and provide truthful and accurate public information rather than arrest people on their opinions, HRW Philippines pointed out.

It added that citizens like Beltran have a right to express their thoughts on what’s happening in their surroundings and that state officials must not be tempted to act despotic in responding to those concerns.

Army men seize NPA arms cache in Masbate

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HE military reported on Tuesday that it had recovered additional high-powered firearms believed to be owned by New People’s Army (NPA) rebels in Masbate as government forces continued its pursuit operations following a clash in the province over the weekend.

Capt. John Paul Belleza, spokesman of the Army’s 9th Infantry Division, said the arms cache was recovered by elements of the 2nd Infantry Battalion (IB) at Sitio Diwata, Barangay Salvacion, San Fernando, Masbate.

He said the soldiers were conducting pursuit operations following encounter that transpired on Sunday in the same area when residents reported that suspected rebels left several firearms at a copra-drying shack.

When the soldiers scoured the area, they recovered seven M-16 rifles, an M-4A1, an M-653, a shotgun, 13 long magazines and assorted ammunitions.

Earlier, soldiers and rebels clashed for about an hour at Sitio Diwata.

“As of the moment, a total of 16 high powered firearms and other important equipment and documents were recovered from the CTG [communist

terrorist group],” Belleza said.

Joint Task Force Bicolandia and 9th Infantry Division (9th ID) commander Maj. Gen. Fernando Trinidad commended the 2nd IB under Lt. Col. Siegfried Awichen for the recoveries.

Army chief Lt. Gen. Gilbert Gapay also extended his congratulations to the 9th ID and the 4th Infantry Division (4th ID) for the Army’s successful combat operations against the rebels from April 19 to 21, 2020.

Army spokesman Col. Ramon Zagala said Gapay noted the operations of the 2nd IB against rebels in Masbate and the 29th Infantry Battalion under the 4th ID against the NPA in Agusan del Norte.

On Monday, the 29th IB led by Lt. Col. Isagani Criste carried out combat and pursuit operations against rebels at Barangay Bangayan, Kicharao, Agusan.

A series of three clashes resulted in the neutralization of one suspected high- ranking NPA leader, the capture of three rebels and the recovery of an M-4 rifle with attached M-203 grenade launcher, an AK-47 rifle and the discovery of the rebel group’s hideout. Rene Acosta

A4 Wednesday, April 22, 2020 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

Economy BusinessMirror

Palace can tap telcos for one-time cash aid

DOF chief eyes rollout of P1-B study now, pay later program for students and schools

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By Bernadette D. Nicolas

@BNicolasBM

INANCE Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III has revealed he is eyeing a P1-billion loan program for private schools—both high schools and colleges—to bankroll a study now, pay later plan program as part of measures to cushion the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In a Facebook live video of House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano late Monday night, Dominguez disclosed his proposed loan program to benefit students but admitted he is yet to determine the program’s exact amount.

Cayetano and Dominguez were among the government officials who attended President Duterte’s meeting with health experts in Malacañang on Monday.

“The other program that I am thinking about now is for private schools. If they have a program na [for] study now, pay later [program],

we will fund the school. We will lend them money to do that,” he said.

“We have another P120 billion for guarantee and I don’t know how much yet we can do for the loans to schools who are lending money to students.

This is for the private schools. At least ’yan P1 billion,” he said.

He said this would be on top of the P51 billion Small Business Wage Subsidy program and the P120 billion proposed credit guarantee to enable micro, small and medium enterprises to access bank financing more easily.

In a separate hearing at the House of

Representative on Tuesday, the country’s finance chief said Land Bank of the Philippines (LandBank) can lend money to the private schools to cover 70 percent to 75 percent of the students’ promissory notes.

“If private schools provide a study now, pay later program and get a promissory note from the student to the private school, LandBank can lend the private school against that promissory note, probably up to 70 to 75 percent of the promissory note,” he said.

“This is aimed for people especially for OFWs [overseas Filipino workers] who are coming back and will decide to upgrade their skills and go back to school. This program will be available soon to private schools kasi sa state-owned schools libre na ’yun. We want a program also for private schools,” he added.

While Dominguez said they have yet to discuss the payment terms with the private school, he said the interest rate for the loan will be “very affordable” considering the strong liquidity following the decision of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to cut the policy rate.

“We will negotiate that with the private school but essentially since the Central Bank has provided a lot of liquidity and has lowered the base

By Elijah Felice E. Rosales @alyasjah

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ERMAN firms in the Philippines will invest less, or perhaps none at all, over the next 12 months, as most of them struggle to manage the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic and the Luzonwide lockdown, according to a survey.

In the AHK World Business Outlook Survey 2020, 38 percent of German investors here bared that they will invest a lower amount over the next 12 months. Further, 18 percent disclosed that they terminated any plans of expanding at all due to an expected decline in sales attributed to the health crisis and its consequential quarantine.

In spite of this, 56 percent com-

mitted to maintain or even expand their labor force, although 44 percent admitted they might need to lay off workers.

Among risks and challenges, six in every 10 German firms are most worried about the demand, which is projected to decline with many individuals out of jobs now and, as a consequence, are without income.

Financing is also seen as a problem for over 44 percent of German investors, the survey reported.

Moreover, four in every 10 German firms in the country expressed concern over the economic policy framework being implemented by the government.

Due to the pandemic, nearly half of all German investors are expecting a sales drop of between 10 percent

and 50 percent. Worse, 13 percent are anticipating a contraction of over 50 percent, while at least 18 percent are forecasting no changes at all.

In terms of effect, four in every five German firms here agreed that the worst challenge in this health crisis is the travel restrictions imposed by authorities. Under the enhanced community quarantine placed on Luzon, all modes of public transport are suspended in a drastic move to force people to stay at home.

On top of the travel restrictions, the lockdown either canceled or postponed business plans of at least 60 percent of German investors.

Many of them are also encountering supply chain and logistics problems; missing goods and services; shortage in demand; and cancellation of

By Butch Fernandez

interest rates, those interest rates will be very affordable,” he said.

Aside from the proposed credit guarantee, the Department of Finance said the other component of Small Business Relief Program is the proposed legislation for a longer net operating loss carryover (NOLCO) of five years to help small businesses cope with their losses.

For the proposed NOLCO, Dominguez told lawmakers they estimate that this will cost the government almost P140 billion.

Asked by Cayetano on the country’s fiscal position and the state of the economy after Covid-19, the country’s finance chief expressed optimism that the country will pickup.

“I think the economy will really pick up kasi [because] may [there is] pentup demand, people will want to travel and buy things so I think the economy will pick up and of course, we still have the funds for the ‘BBB’ [Build, Build, Build] program,” he said.

Dominguez said earlier that the country’s gross domestic product would contract by 1 percent, or post zero growth this year due to the pandemic.

The National Economic and DevelopmentAuthorityandlocaleconomistsalso expect the economy to post a deep contraction in the second quarter this year.

Survey indicates lethargic investment flow from Germany in next 12 months trade fairs and events.

As such, Tristan Arwen G. Loveres, president of the GermanPhilippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GPCCI), called on the government to hasten the rollout of financing packages to ensure that firms will survive the pandemic and maintain their workers.

“The survey shows the urgent need for more governmental measures to assist the companies.

Furthermore, the instruments to permit companies to quickly access financial support should be deployed,” Loveres said.

The 45 respondents of the GPCCI survey are firms related to GermanPhilippine business ties, and 58 percent of them belong to the services sector, the rest are in trade and industry.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

@butchfBM

& Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

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EN. Francis Pangilinan prodded the Duterte administration Tuesday to tap telecommunication companies (telcos) for “quick release of one-time cash aid” amid the Covid-19 crisis.

“Cash should get into the hands of the poor at once,” Pangilinan said in pitching to “use telcos for mobile money transfers in distributing assistance amid the Covid-19 crisis.”

The senator conveyed his proposal in a letter to Health Secretary Francisco Duque, chairman of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, suggesting that the IATF can “tap the services of telecommunication companies that offer mobile money transfers to provide a one-time cash assistance in geographic pockets of poverty.”

In a news statement issued on Tuesday, Pangilinan pointed out that “in this time of pandemic that requires physical distancing, digital cash transfers have become widely used social assistance response for better, quicker cash payments.”

“We understand the difficulties the government is facing in the implementation of the emergency subsidy program. This is our suggestion of an alternative ways for the assistance to quickly reach the poor and hungry,” the senator said, adding there are “alternative ways for the assistance to quickly reach the poor and the hungry.”

‘Let telco workmen do their job’

LOCAL government units (LGUs) and homeowners associations (HOA) should consider allowing telco personnel to work on vital network repair and maintenance initiatives, as the need and demand for Internet connectivity during the Covid-19 outbreak have become more pronounced during the lockdowns.

National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) Commissioner

Gamaliel A. Cordoba said Filipinos are now using the Internet “extensively” and it has become “essential…to cope with the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.”

“Telecommunications now serve as one of our lifelines. Having Internet at home, or mobile data, allows us to keep updated with the current Covid-19 crisis and helps us get connected with our loved ones. Online grocery or food shopping, banking, study, consultation with medical experts, and entertainment are also some of the vital uses of the Internet today,” he said.

Internet service providers have reported “spikes” in their network data usage, as people turn to the Internet to find solace, continue productivity, and consume entertainment. Filipinos are also now using the Internet more often to keep themselves safer from risks of contracting the virus by leveraging mobile apps for basic and critical services.

Cordoba added that a good number of companies have already directed their employees to work from the comforts of their home, and thus “Internet access is needed now more than ever.”

“Having steady and efficient Internet access in the coming weeks is absolutely necessary. I appeal to LGUs and HOAs to allow telco personnel easy entry into their communities to ensure that we have dependable Internet connection in the coming days,” Cordoba said.

This appeal came after the regulator received reports from different telcos that their network personnel are “being prevented from entry by personnel of LGUs and gated villages due to the community quarantine.”

Under the guidelines, telco personnel are exempted from the quarantine to ensure that telco services like voice calls, text, and data services remain running.

“The telco personnel out in the field are also frontliners. They are doing their job so you can stay safe at home. We need to allow them access to your areas to either connect new homes to the Internet or fix technical issues. They need all our support and cooperation,” Cordoba said.

Report sees big drop in local Naia’s income loss Government imposes mandatory rapid at ₧200M/month testing, quarantine of repatriated OFWs sugar output this year and next due to land conversion since virus onset

By Samuel P. Medenilla

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

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HE country’s sugar output in crop year (CY) 2020-2021 may fall to an 11-year low of 2 million metric tons (MMT) as sugarcane areas continue to shrink due to land conversion, according to a Global Agricultural Information Network (GAIN) report.

The GAIN report said the projected output is relatively flat with the estimated production of 2.025 MMT in the current CY 2019-2020.

The report, prepared by the United States Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service in Manila, attributed the decline in output to erratic weather conditions.

The report added that the uncertainty of the economic managers’ proposal to liberalize the sugar industry would also play a factor in the planting intention of sugarcane farmers for the next CY. “Post forecasts CY 2020/21 raw sugar production to drop to 2.0 million MT, as sugarcane areas continue to shrink due to the conversion of sugarcane lands, particularly in Luzon,” the report read.

“Sugar producers also remain cautious about the impact of possible deregulation, as Philippine economics managers consider further trade liberalization beyond rice, such as the sugar and corn sectors,” it added.

The GAIN report estimated that total area planted to sugarcane in CY 2020-2021 would drop to 404,000 hectares from 406,500 hectares estimated in the current crop year.

Furthermore, the GAIN report said the country’s refined sugar imports in the next crop year may increase by 12.5 percent to 450,000 MT from 400,000 MT in the current CY to meet the higher local demand for the sweetener as businesses recover from the virus pandemic.

“CY 2020/21 sugar demand is expected to increase marginally to 2.35 million MT, as cane sugar consumption rises with the global economic recovery from Covid-19 and with food/beverage manufacturers expanding production,” the report read.

“Refined sugar imports in CY 2020/21 will likely increase to 450,000 MT to meet this growing demand,” it added.

In March, the BusinessMirror reported that the country’s raw sugar output could fall to 2.025 MMT, the lowest level in nearly a decade, as El Niño and rains battered plantations in key sugar-producing areas in the Philippines.

Erratic weather has been the Achilles heel of the sugar sector in recent years.

Sugar output declined for two consecutive crop years after the Philippines produced a record-high 2.5 MMT in CY 2016-2017.

Based on government documents obtained by the BusinessMirror, latest Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) forecast indicated that sugar output in CY 2019-2020 may be slightly lower from the previous crop year’s 2.072 MMT. The projected output is the lowest since CY 2009-2010, when it fell to 1.97 MMT due to the ill effects of El Niño, based on historical data from the SRA.

By Recto Mercene

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@rectomercene

HE premier aviation gateway’s income ledger is bleeding red to the tune of P200 million every month since the Covid-19 started.

The amount represents various airport charges to local and international carriers, including fees and rentals from hundreds of concessionaires and airline offices and counters, according to Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) General Manager Ed Monreal.

From a high of about 500 to 600 runway movements (landing and take-off) daily, the Naia today registers less than 10 flights daily, mostly from cargo and “sweeper,” or chartered flights.

“Since we declared a lockdown due to the enhanced community quarantine [ECQ], the Miaa has been losing around P200 million monthly since March 2020,” Monreal said.

“The Miaa is host to about 40 foreign and local air carriers flying out to international destinations,” Monreal said, adding these are operating at the four Naia passenger terminals. He said there are seven domestic carriers operating at Naia Terminals 2, 3 and 4.

In 2019, Media Affairs Division (MAD) chief Connie Bungag, recalled that the premier airport is host to 337 international flights and 424 domestic flights daily.

“With the Covid-19 pandemic followed by the ECQ most of our local carriers halted their operations while travelers, at the moment, are afraid to fly.”

Monreal, on the other hand, said most of the airports in the world have temporarily stopped operations “because passengers no longer wanted to travel.”

@sam_medenilla

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O minimize the risk of entry of new novel coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) cases into the country, the government is now requiring all arriving overseas Filipino workers (OFW) to undergo rapid antibody testing.

In an online news briefing on Tuesday, Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said the requirement will apply for both land-based and sea-based OFWs in accordance with Department Memorandum 2020-0180 of the Department of Health (DOH).

This will be on top of their mandatory 14-day quarantine to ensure they are free of the virus.

Nograles noted that the testing requirement will even apply to Filipino crew of cruise ships, who have been issued with a Clean Bill of Health by the Bureau of Quarantine upon presentation of a certificate of completion of 14-day quarantine issued at the point of origin.

Thousands of OFWs have been returning home as Covid-19 disrupted many business operations worldwide.

Nograles said the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) reported it has already repatriated 16,682 OFWs, of whom 13,213 are seafarers and 3,469 are land-based workers.

On Monday, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) started processing an initial 30,000 applications for its Abot Kamay ang Pagtulong (AKAP) program, wherein it will provide a one-time P10,000 cash aid for OFWs affected by Covid-19.

In a news statement, OWWA said it was already able to release P1,660,000 AKAP benefits to 166 stranded, or displaced, OFWs in Central Luzon.

OWWA is targeting to assist 150,000 OFWs with its AKAP program.

Mass testing for inmates

MEANWHILE, local government units (LGUs) in Central Luzon are being urged by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to include jails in mass testing as part of the national government’s efforts to contain the spread of the virus.

On Monday, DILG Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya assured the public that the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) has its own Covid-19 task force to ensure that there will be no outbreak in Central Luzon jails.

“If LGUs can help our jail wardens in ensuring the safety and well-being of the jail population, it would be good. If the jail warden reported a possible PUM [person under monitoring] or PUI [person under investigation] and they have conducted a contact tracing, I hope the LGUs and Department of Health can prioritize them for the mass testing,” he explained.

Malaya said the BJMP has developed its own system aiming to contain potential carriers of the disease even before they get tested positive to the infectious disease.

“These PUMs and PUIs, even before they are tested, are transferred to an isolation facility by the BJMP. Once they are transferred there, they should be prioritized for mass testing,” the DILG official said.

Malaya added that the DILG has already suspended jail visits in all facilities in the country and that jail officers are not allowed to go back to their respective homes.

“We have doctors and nurses assigned in every jail and the position of the department is they are there technically under quarantine already,” Malaya explained. With Ashley Manabat

www.businessmirror.com.ph • Editor: Angel R. Calso

The World

Indonesia hires tankers to store refined fuel while seeking bargains

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ndonesia is hiring tankers to store refined fuels at sea as it switches strategy to import more oil products to benefit from plunging prices.

State-owned PT Pertamina has provisionally chartered at least three long-range tankers to store clean fuels, said people with knowledge of the matter. The move comes as Indonesia, one of Asia’s biggest refined fuel importers, weighs the merits of processing its own crude or buying fuels from abroad, which is becoming more cost-effective amid a glut.

Vessels were booked from the end of April and early May for a minimum of six months with an added option for use as floating storage near Singapore or Malaysia’s Sungai Linggi, said the people who asked not to be identified as the information isn’t public. Earlier, Pertamina had been negotiating with its suppliers to defer April-arriving cargoes as demand crashed.

“Pertamina appears to have switched to a new strategy, rather quickly, and is now taking advantage of the low-price environment to stock up on products instead of producing them, ” said Grayson Lim, a senior oil market analyst at FGE. The demand loss for oil products in Indonesia will average 430,000 barrels a day this quarter due to the coronavirus, the energy consultant estimated.

Oil and fuel storage capacity is being stretched worldwide as the

coronavirus drives down consumption and tanks fill up in major hubs such as Cushing in the US, Singapore and South Africa’s Saldanha Bay. Indonesia and Australia are among the biggest importers of refined fuels in Asia with the Northeast Asian nations having enough processing capacity to meet their domestic needs.

Pertamina plans to add external storage when its internal capacity fills up, but doesn’t yet know how many ships it will need, spokeswoman Fajriyah Usman said in a text message. The company has also started early maintenance at its Sungai Pakning and Balikpapan refineries and will gradually reduce operations at Plaju refinery, she said.

The oil and gas company chartered SCF Prudencia, BW Zambesi and Nordvenus, according to shipbrokers and data compiled by Bloomberg. The vessels have a capacity of 500,000 barrels each. Pertamina, which manages Indonesia’s fuel imports as well as exports of crude from the country’s oil fields, has also sought a ship to store crude oil on a long-term timechartered basis.

It’s looking for an Aframax tanker with capacity of about 650,000 barrels for floating storage with ship-toship transfer capabilities, according to a tender document seen by Bloomberg. Delivery of the tanker, which can carry crude oil or fuel oil, is from May 20 to May 30, with the tender closing April 20. Bloomberg News

Southeast Asian nations struggle against Covid-19

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ew Southeast Asian nations enacted serious measures to contain the coronavirus until their own number of cases start climbing sharply. Indonesia, as the most populous country in the region, is the major concern, but all face challenges. Their limited capacity to do widespread testing means that official coronavirus counts are likely unrealistically low.

A look at the state of the coronavirus in Southeast Asia, with confirmed cases, deaths and recoveries through Monday:

Singapore n 8,014 cases n 11 deaths

n 801 recoveries.

The island nation’s small size and nanny state government quickly facilitated contact tracing and enforcement of restrictions. But its case totals exploded last week as the coronavirus rampaged through the tightly packed dormitories housing migrant workers who perform essential services.

Indonesia:

Malaysia’s cases started to spike in early March when hundreds linked to a mass religious gathering at a mosque outside Kuala Lumpur were diagnosed with Covid-19. The battle against the coronavirus was hindered by an unexpected change of government at the beginning of March, even though travel restrictions and closures of schools and nonessential businesses were ordered.

Thailand: n 2,792 cases n 47 deaths

n 1,999 recoveries

Thailand on January 13 announced the first confirmed coronavirus case outside of China, a Chinese visitor from Wuhan, the central Chinese city where the pandemic started late last year. But with marginal daily increases in cases through the end of February, the government failed to act until two coronavirus clusters—from a social gathering and a kickboxing match in Bangkok—rocketed the numbers up, finally forcing Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha to declare a national emergency.

n 6,760 cases

Vietnam:

n 590 deaths

n 268 cases

n 747 recoveries

n No deaths

The government did not confirm the first case until March 2, but Indonesia now has the most deaths from Covid-19 of any Asian country other than China. President Joko Widodo has acknowledged that the government kept the public misinformed about the state of the coronavirus in the countr y. He recently has stepped up measures to combat the virus, though a lack of testing in the country of more than 260 million people remains a major problem.

n 214 recoveries.

Philippines: n 6,459 cases n 428 deaths n 613 recoveries

President Rodrigo Duterte, known for his hardcore war on drugs, locked down the main northern island of Luzon by restricting travel to and from the region, which includes Manila, the capital.

A national emergency was declared with tough penalties for disobeying quarantine and curfew orders. But enforcement was lax, and Duterte is now threatening martial law-style actions.

Malaysia n 5,425 cases n 89 deaths

n 3,295 recoveries

Vietnam acted relatively early to shut down travel from neighboring China and concentrated its efforts on contact tracing. Its heavily centralized one-party Communist government mobilized down to the local level to ensure community observance of virus-fighting restrictions.

Others

The other four Southeast Asian countries—Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Myanmar and Lao PDR—each have fewer than 150 confirmed cases of the coronavirus.

Demographic and geographical factors minimize the threat in Brunei, a rich sultanate with a population of less than half a million, and Laos, a landlocked country with a widely dispersed population.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen expressed confidence that his countrymen held virtual immunity to the disease and even discouraged the wearing of facemasks until a flurry of cases among foreign tourists and the explosion of cases in Europe and the United States changed his mind.

There is little doubt that Myanmar’s poor health care system was responsible for its failure to report its first case until March 23, which inhibited earlier action to fight its spread.

Both Cambodia and Myanmar have since imposed travel and other restrictions, but remain ill-equipped to cope with any large coronavirus caseload. AP

BusinessMirror

Wednesday, April 22, 2020

A5

First time in history: Oil prices spiral below zero

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he day started like any other gloomy Monday in the oil market’s worst crisis in a generation. It ended with prices falling below zero, thrusting markets into a parallel universe where traders were willing to pay $40 a barrel just to get somebody to take crude off their hands.

The move was so violent and shocking that many traders struggled to explain it. They grasped wildly at possible causes all day long—had some big firm got caught wrong-footed? Or were inexperienced retail investors flummoxed by a market quirk?—but had no tangible evidence of anything to point to.

West Texas Intermediate futures have been the benchmark for America’s oil industry for decades, seeing the market through booms, busts, wars and financial crises, but no single event holds a candle to this.

By the end of trading, the contract had slumped from $17.85 a barrel to minus $37.63.

“Today was a devastating day for the global oil industry,” said Doug King, a hedge fund investor who cofounded the Merchant Commodity Fund. “US storage is full or committed and some unfortunate market participants were carried out.”

Prices rebounded back above zero on Tuesday, but still were trading at just $1.38 a barrel at 12:21 p.m. Singapore time.

In one way, the negative plunge was just an extreme glitch as traders prepared for the expiry of the contract for delivery in May. Elsewhere, the market proceeded as normal—Brent futures, the benchmark for Europe in London, ended the day down sharply, but still above $25 a barrel. WTI for June delivery changed hands at $20 a barrel.

But the negative prices also revealed a fundamental truth about the oil market in the age of coronavirus: The world’s most important commodity is quickly losing all value as chronic oversupply overwhelms the world’s crude tanks, pipelines and supertankers. Ultimately, traders were left desperate to avoid having to take delivery of actual oil because

nobody needs it and there are fewer and fewer places to put it.

Global accord

Despite the Opec+ deal to cut 10 percent of global production, lauded

by US President Donald Trump little more than a week ago, the oil market’s crisis is worsening. The rout will send a deflationary wave through the global economy, complicating the task facing central banks trying to keep economies afloat as the pandemic continues to paralyze business and travel worldwide.

The price collapse could redraw the global map of power as petrostates like Russia and Saudi Arabia, which enjoyed a resurgence over the last 20 years thanks to an oil windfall, see their influence diminished. Exxon Mobil Corp., Royal Dutch Shell Plc and other oil giants are ripping up business plans, desperate to preserve cash.

WTI is the world’s most traded financial oil contract, a benchmark followed from Zurich to New York to Tokyo. But when each month a futures contract nears expiry and traders roll their positions into further-out contracts, the real, physical world of WTI becomes very small—centered on Cushing, an oil town in Oklahoma where a massive hub of pipelines and storage tanks serves as the actual delivery point for barrels.

In the past three weeks, crude has been flowing into Cushing at a breakneck speed, averaging 745,000 barrels a day and taking in more oil than a medium-sized European nation like Belgium consumes. At that rate, the tanks there will be full before the end of May, something that has never happened before.

ETF fever

The days before expiry are often

volatile as traders make the shift from a paper to a physical market.

Until a few days ago, the May contract had been supported by huge financial flows by retail and institutional investors pouring money into oil through exchange-traded funds.

The largest crude ETF, known as the US Oil Fund, received billions of dollars in fresh funds in recent weeks, accumulating a fifth of all the outstanding contracts in the May futures contract.

But last week, it rolled its position into the June contract, and evaporated from May. Without the fund, the contract was abandoned to the forces of physical supply and demand.

As the market opened early in Asia’s Monday morning, the May contract traded at $17.85. As New York traders were firing up workstations in their makeshift home offices, it was below $15.

Then prices really started to slide, making history all the way down. By 8 a.m. New York time, the decline had reached 37 percent, the biggest intraday drop since the futures started trading in 1982. At around 11 a.m., it passed the low of $10.35 set in the oil bust of 1998. About an hour later, it took out $10 a barrel.

‘Not a single bid’

When CME Group Inc., which runs the exchange where WTI futures trade, said prices would be allowed to go negative, the selling accelerated. By 1:50 p.m. the contract was below $1 a barrel. Less than 20 minutes later, prices went below zero for the first time and just kept falling.

“No bids. Mental!,” said one trader at a top merchant in a vain attempt to explain the collapse as prices went negative. “No bids; not a single bid,” said another one in London. “Ridiculous,” said a third senior trader in Geneva.

Retail traders were likely sitting on long positions coming into the week and were forced to liquidate them, which would be consistent with the sell-off accelerating in the 30 minutes ahead of Monday’s close, Goldman Sachs analysts including Damien Courvalin theorized.

The contract settled at minus $37.63, a drop of $55.90. And there’s still another day of trading to come before it finally expires.

“The May crude oil contract is going out not with a whimper, but a primal scream,” said Daniel Yergin, a Pulitzer Prize-winning oil historian and vice

chairman of the research and information company IHS Markit Ltd. Even discounting the oddity of the May contract’s plunge into negative prices, the world of physical oil suggests widespread pain.

Many refineries and pipeline companies told producers on Monday that they would only take their oil if they were paid. The daily price bulletin from Enterprise Products Partners LP, one of America’s largest pipeline companies, showed negative prices for all of the crude it buys. Another giant, Plains All American Pipeline LP, told producers the same.

Bob McNally, a consultant and oil historian, said the energy market was getting “reacquainted with how the price mechanism for oil works”—and why “for most of oil history, the industry and governments strive to stabilize prices through supply control, be it a tolerated cartel, government regulation, or both.”

The Opec+ coalition of oil producing countries has failed to stop the rout. Saudi Arabia, Russia and other producers announced a week ago an historic deal to cut global production by nearly a tenth, or 9.7 million barrels a day, from May. The US, Canada, Brazil and others have said their own production is also falling as companies stop drilling new wells.

For Trump, who personally brokered the Opec+ deal, negative prices means more trouble in the US oil patch.

Pressure is building within the Republican party to use trade barriers to save the shale industry, including placing tariffs on foreign oil.

Trump responded to the negative prices at a White House press conference on Monday with plans to fill the spare space in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and by saying he would look into a proposal to stop shipments of Saudi Arabian oil that are currently en route to the US. But he shrugged off the larger impact, calling it “largely a financial squeeze” that would be over in the “very short term.”

But the market—negative prices and all—isn’t waiting for Opec to cut production, or for tariffs to slow imports. Rather than being an isolated event, Monday’s unprecedented oil market plunge serves as a warning of more pain to come.

“If global storage worsens more quickly,” veteran Citigroup oil analyst Ed Morse said, “Brent could chase WTI down to the bottom.” Bloomberg News

WHO warns rush to ease virus rules could cause resurgence

B

ANGKOK—The World Health Organization said on Tuesday that rushing to ease coronavirus restrictions will likely lead to a resurgence of the illness, a warning that comes as governments start rolling out plans to get their economies up and running again.

“This is not the time to be lax. Instead, we need to ready ourselves for a new way of living for the foreseeable future,” said Dr. Takeshi Kasai, the WHO regional director for the Western Pacific.

He said governments must remain vigilant to stop the spread of the virus and the lifting of lockdowns and other social distancing measures must be done gradually and strike the right balance between keeping people healthy and allowing economies to function.

Despite concerns from health officials, some US states on Monday announced aggressive reopening plans, while Boeing and at least one other US heavy-equipment manufacturer resumed production.

Elsewhere around the world, step-by-step reopenings were under way in Europe, where the crisis has begun to ebb in places such as Italy, Spain and Germany.

Australia said on Tuesday that it will allow the resumption of non-urgent surgeries from next week as health authorities grow more confident that hospitals there won’t be overwhelmed by Covid-19 patients.

The reopenings come as politicians grow weary of soaring unemployment numbers and the prospect of economic depression. Asian shares followed Wall

Street lower on Tuesday after US oil futures plunged below zero because of a worldwide glut as factories, automobiles and airplanes sit idled.

The cost to have a barrel of US crude delivered in May plummeted to negative $37.63 as traders run out of places to store it. It was at roughly $60 at the start of the year.

Businesses that start operating again in the US are likely to engender good will with President Donald Trump at a time when his administration is doling out billions in relief to companies. Trump has been agitating to restart the economy, singling out Democratic-led states and egging on protesters complaining that the shutdowns are destroying their livelihoods and trampling their rights.

In several states—most of them Republicanled—governors said they had seen signs that the coronavirus curve was flattening, making it possible to start reopening businesses and public spaces.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp announced plans to restart his state’s economy before the end of the week. Kemp said gyms, hair salons, bowling alleys and tattoo parlors could reopen on Friday, as long as owners followed strict social distancing and hygiene requirements.

Texas on Monday began a week of slow reopenings, starting off with state parks, while officials said that later in the week, stores would be allowed to offer curbside service. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee announced that businesses across most of the state would begin

reopening as early as next week, although the order did not cover counties with the largest cities, including Nashville, Memphis, Knoxville and Chattanooga. Both states are led by Republicans.

Republican West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice said on Monday that he would allow hospitals to begin performing elective procedures if the facilities met an unspecified set of criteria, while Democratic Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said on Monday that he would let his statewide stay-at-home order expire next week as long as strict social distancing and other individual protective measures continued.

But governors from many other states said they lacked the testing supplies they need and warned they could get hit by a second wave of infections, given how people with no symptoms can still spread the disease.

“Who in this great state actually believes that they care more about jet skiing than saving the lives of the elderly or the vulnerable?” Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer remarked, referring to restrictions in place in her state. “This action isn’t about our individual right to gather. It’s about our parents’ right to live.”

Boeing said it was putting about 27,000 people back to work this week building passenger jets at its Seattle-area plants, with virus-slowing precautions in place, including face masks and staggered shifts.

Boeing’s shutdown went into effect on March 25 after workers tested positive for the virus and an inspector for the company died. Washington was the first state to see

a spike in Covid-19 cases and enacted strict shutdown orders that helped tamp down the virus.

Doosan Bobcat, a farm equipment maker and North Dakota’s largest manufacturer, said about 2,200 workers at three factories around the state returned. Company spokeswoman Stacey Breuer said the reopening came after two weeks spent putting in safety measures.

“There is definitely still some concern and do we feel 100 percent safe? Obviously not,” said William Wilkinson, a Bobcat welder and president of a United Steelworkers union local. He said workers there were wearing facemasks and keeping their distance from one another.

Worldwide the virus has infected nearly 2.5 million people and caused more than 170,000 deaths, according to a Johns Hopkins University count. The US has been the hardest hit country with more than 787,000 infections and more than 42,000 deaths.

The true figures are believed to be much higher, in part because of limited testing and difficulties in counting the dead.

There have been encouraging signs in places like New York state, where hospitalizations have leveled off.

Monday’s death toll, at 478, was the lowest in three weeks, down from a peak of nearly 800.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectiousdisease expert, warned on ABC: “Unless we get the virus under control, the real recovery economically is not going to happen.” AP

A6 Wednesday, April 22, 2020 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

editorial

PHL needs to beef up R&D spending

T

he national government’s budget is a reflection of the spending priorities of administrations, and in recent years, the state has been increasing its allocation for social services and health.

To stimulate the economy, government raised spending for public infrastructure projects, which created more jobs and helped cut poverty. More funds were also given to the agriculture sector following the 2008 rice crisis, which saw people in some cities lining up for cheaper staple sold by the National Food Authority.

However, research and development continuously lag behind in terms of government’s spending priorities. In Southeast Asia, the Philippines remains a laggard in terms of R&D spending. Allocations for R&D and science and technology initiatives have not even reached 1 percent of gross domestic product even after experts have recommended to raise them to 2 percent of GDP—or P240 billion annually—to help the Philippines become an active player in the global-knowledge economy.

This oversight is lamentable, particularly at this time when the country is grappling with the Covid-19 pandemic. More R&D funding could have helped the Philippines better cope with this disastrous public health crisis, which is also now threatening to cripple the economy.

Investments in science and technology could have paved the way for many innovations that would have allowed frontliners, such as doctors and farmers, to better do their job.

The outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), which first emerged in Guangdong province in China in November 2002, gave governments a preview of the capability of coronaviruses to impair public health systems and threaten the economy. In a paper published in October 2019, the Asian Development Bank noted that the most significant losses occurred in China, Singapore and Taiwan. The same ADB paper revealed that international visitor arrivals declined steeply in these economies and caused an estimated GDP loss amounting to $13 billion.

Citing estimates made by the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation in 2004, the ADB paper noted that the overall economic cost of SARS ranged from 0.5 percent to 1 percent of annual GDP across economies in the Asia-Pacific region. Private consumption, particularly those involving face-to-face services, was severely impacted in the short run. The tourism, transportation, hospitality, and retail sectors were significantly harmed by the dramatic reductions in air traffic and hotel occupancy rates. Restaurants and entertainment venues also suffered income losses.

Some countries like South Korea have taken the lessons of the outbreak of coronaviruses to heart, allowing them to ride out the storm that is Covid-19. While the Philippines has also been able to avoid a disastrous public health crisis in 2003, it did not result in significant improvements in R&D spending and innovation in the medical field.

For one, doctors and other health-care workers continued to leave the country in droves, and public hospitals remained poorly equipped.

This pandemic should serve as a wake up call for policy-makers to start taking R&D seriously. Government should invest more in boosting sectors that proved vital at this time, and retool the skills of those who fought off the virus and ensured stable food supply. Innovation, such as telemedicine and artificial intelligence, should be top of mind and must be exploited to beef up the country’s arsenal against public health crises and threats to food security.

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SSS and PayMaya partnership: A fast and convenient way to pay your contributions Aurora C. Ignacio

All About Social Security

M

obile phones used to be just another form of communication tool. Over the years, however, we have witnessed their transformation from a communication device into a one-stop shop. For one, in the last 10 years, we saw the enormous growth of mobile-based payment options using smartphones. With our smartphones, we can now pay electric bills, credit-card bills, and insurance, among others.

Even your SSS contributions can now be paid through your smartphone.

Embracing mobile payment technology is inevitable. Individual SSS paying members such as self-employed, voluntary, and overseas Filipino workers (OFW), can now pay hassle-free their SSS obligations after SSS tapped the digital financial services firm, PayMaya, for this new payment scheme. This will ensure a faster, more convenient, and more secure method of paying SSS contributions without the need to queue in SSS branches or other accredited collecting partners.

To avail themselves of this new service, paying members must first

open a PayMaya account. They can download the PayMaya app on their mobile phones through Google Play and Huawei AppGallery for Android users, or the App Store for iPhone users. Then, they register and provide all the necessary information to create an account. They must use the mobile number associated with their account whenever they pay through the SSS Mobile App. To pay SSS contributions, they must log in to the SSS Mobile App using their existing My.SSS account’s user ID and password. They can download the SSS Mobile App on Google Play Store, Apple App Store, or Huawei App Gallery. They must log in using their existing My.SSS account’s user ID and password. They can also

generate their Payment Reference Number or Statement of Account in the SSS Mobile App by clicking the “Generate PRN/SOA” icon.

They can choose their membership type, applicable period, and amount of their contribution. Once members have provided all the details, they must click “Submit.” On the screen, a pop-up window containing all the details of their transaction will appear. They check all the information to ensure that everything is correct before clicking “OK.” They then wait for the confirmation on the screen that their PRN has been generated.

After generating the PRN, they need to click the “Pay” button next to the PRN. The screen will display the two options they can select from: “Pay with PayMaya Account” or “Credit/Debit Card.” From the two options, select “Pay with PayMaya Account.” Once they have checked the payment details, they need to click “OK.” Then, they must log in using their PayMaya account details. A one-time password will be sent to their mobile number. Next, enter the OTP and click “Proceed.”

Members must verify the payment details before clicking “OK.” Once the payment has been processed, a confirmation that their transaction is complete will appear on the screen.

Payments using PRN will be posted immediately.

Take oil’s plunge seriously, not literally

By Robert Burgess | Bloomberg Opinion

G

lobal market participants were fixed on the oil markets on Monday as West Texas Intermediate crude futures crashed to negative—yes, negative—$40.32 a barrel from $18.27 on Friday. What this means is that owners of those futures were willing to pay someone $40.32 a barrel to take those contracts off their hands. Don’t look for historical comparisons, because there are none. And while yes, the move was shocking, it can largely be explained by technical factors, with traders fleeing the May futures contract ahead of its expiration on Tuesday so as not to get stuck actually holding physical barrels of oil with no place to store it. The June contract was more in line with reality, trading at around $21.50 a barrel. Still, the episode speaks volumes about the current state of financial markets.

At the least, the craziness in oil— coming just a week after the historic deal between Opec, its allies and Russia to curb production—underscores how the problems facing the global economy from the coronavirus pandemic won’t soon go away despite the recent rebound in equities that pushed major indexes above their lows of 2019 set last June. After all, it was also just over a week ago that the International Monetary Fund forecast the worst global downturn since the Great Depression. If true,

demand for oil isn’t likely to make a comeback anytime soon, especially with lockdowns still in place in much of the world. The strategists at Morgan Stanley in their weekend research note made clear “sustainable reopening” of economies and business require four key components: 1) adequate surge capacity in hospitals, 2) public health infrastructure to support testing, 3) robust contact tracing to curtail “hot spots,” and 4) widespread access to serology testing to determine who

is already immune to the virus.

“Even then, however, the return to work will be slow, with our economists not expecting to see pre-recession levels of output for US or global growth” until the fourth quarter of 2021, Morgan Stanley strategist Ed Sheets wrote in the note.

There’s been a lot of optimism lately in markets that “the worst is behind us” when it comes to the pandemic. Even if true, it’s unlikely the economy will bounce back to “normal” with the flick of a switch. It’s not that the Morgan Stanley strategists are bearish. Rather, they are just noting that attempting to reopen the economy before their four key prerequisites are in place “would inject significantly more uncertainty” around whether the worst for the economy could be over as soon as the end of June. “Such a scenario would pose a clear risk to our positive bias towards current markets,” they added.

Bull market in name

Even with a 1.79 percent pullback on Monday, the S&P 500 Index is up 26.2 percent from its closing low on March 23, meaning it has met the technical definition of being in a bull market.

On the other hand, if members choose to pay using their credit/ debit card, the screen will display the monthly contribution, convenience charge and total amount. Members are required to input the following: First Name, Last Name, Card Number, and Expiry Date of the card.

They also must provide their e-mail address or mobile number where the payment acknowledgment/receipt will be sent, and then, they need to click “Pay Now.” A convenience fee of 1.75 percent of the total amount paid would be charged to members if they opted to pay using their debit/credit card.

Meanwhile, a P10 transaction fee will be charged for those who choose to use the e-wallet.

We, at SSS, have embarked on a massive project to shift all our transactions to all digital platforms. It will not happen overnight, but we are exerting all efforts to make it happen soonest. This contribution payment system through PayMaya is one step toward our aspiration to provide faster and better service to our members.

One of these days, all SSS transactions will be just one tap away.

Aurora C. Ignacio is SSS president and chief executive officer.

We welcome your questions and insights on the topics that we discuss. E-mail mediaaffairs@sss. gov.ph for topics that you might want us to discuss.

And although it’s still down for the year to the tune of about 12.6 percent, it’s up 2.87 percent from last year’s low on June 3, which is astonishing given that analysts have slashed their corporate profit estimates for this year by 23 percent already and first-quarter earnings seasons is only one week old.

“Keeping in mind that earnings drops in recessions average in a range of down 25 percent to 30 percent, we believe there are larger downward revisions to come,” Bloomberg News quoted Cantor Fitzgerald strategist Peter Cecchini as saying.

The smart money certainly seems to think estimates will be cut even more, dragging down stock prices with them. Hedge funds and other large speculators boosted their bearish bets on S&P 500 e-mini futures by 50 percent in the week ended April 14, to about 218,000, contracts, the most since February 2016, according to Bloomberg News’s Elena Popina.

At the same time, money fund assets have surged to $4.52 trillion from around $3.6 trillion at the end of January, according to the Investment Company Institute. Clearly, the See “Oil,” A7

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Don’t expect Boris Johnson to be the same prime minister

By Therese Raphael | Bloomberg Opinion

I

N his absence, Boris Johnson’s British government has mainly followed the lockdown strategy that was determined before the prime minister was infected with Covid-19. Many are hoping that he will soon return to work and change course; that he’ll celebrate signs of a flattening infection curve and reopen Britain for business. It’s unlikely to work out that way.

It’s true that you almost expect Johnson to bound up to the cameras and change the narrative. His modus operandi throughout his career has been Tiggerish enthusiasm. The politician who banished the “gloomsters and doomsters” on Brexit and championed the three-word campaign slogan (“Take Back Control” and “Get Brexit Done”) might well have been expected, before his illness struck, to make “Lift the Lockdown” his mantra.

Even if Johnson looks and sounds much the same when he returns to full-time work, the experience of serious illness and a forced leave of absence as thousands died must have affected his sense of mission.

Johnson had often used the country’s National Health Service as a prop when building his case for Brexit and his election campaign (leaving Europe, he argued speciously, would free money to spend on health care).

Will he not now do more to support an underfunded, overstretched and ill-equipped service that he credits with saving his life?

There will certainly be no immediate rush to relax the lockdown strictures. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, who has deputized for Johnson, has already extended the measures by another three weeks.

Still, as other nations begin to loosen controls, the clamor will grow louder in Britain too.

Last week Raab announced five tests that would determine the timing for a reopening of the UK. The first three are fairly straightforward: The government must be confident that the NHS can provide sufficient care across the country; there must be a sustained fall in the daily death rate; and there needs to be evidence that the infection rate is decreasing.

The fourth test—confidence that the supply of testing and personal protective equipment for medical workers can meet demand—is more vague. The UK is increasing testing, finally, but it’s a long way from the kind of regimes put in place in east Asian countries that quickly suppressed the spread of the virus, including contact tracing. Germany is well ahead on this too. PPE shortages, one of the unnecessary tragedies of this outbreak, persist, as the British Medical Association and doctors repeatedly note. And yet Raab’s fourth target doesn’t specify what levels of testing and PPE need to be delivered.

Even if the government fixes these problems, the fifth test is that there can be no risk of a second peak in infections from relaxing the lockdown. While Johnson is a political gambler who favors the bold stroke, he surely wouldn’t open the sluice

Oil. . .

continued from A6

recent rally isn’t convincing many people that the worst is over.

Havens remain in demand

What makes the rebound in equities even more of a head-scratcher is that the move hasn’t really been confirmed by other markets. Although the credit markets have firmed, with corporate-bond yield spreads tightening from Armageddon-like levels, haven assets such as US Treasuries, gold and the dollar remain in high demand. At 0.63 percent on Monday, yields on 10-year Treasury notes are hovering around their all-time lows despite the Federal Reserve having pulled back its support by reducing

gates and let a new wave of infections wash away the stability built through social distancing and curtailed activity. Indeed, Bloomberg News reported on Monday that in Johnson’s conversations with cabinet members, he emphasized caution.

Updated models based on more recent infection data will offer some basis for judgment, but a guarantee against a serious second wave of Covid-19 will require a vaccine or widespread testing and contact tracing.

Neither are certainties, suggesting that social distancing measures of some sort will be around for a while.

A report released on Monday by the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change argues that since a total lockdown isn’t sustainable, the government should use hard metrics for its five tests and phase in some liberalization. For example, it could specify that if there were fewer than 500 new daily cases, testing capacity had expanded to more than 100,000 people per day, and contact tracing was widespread, then conditions could be set for a return to the workplace for individuals not in a high-risk category and for schools to reopen. It’s not a bad suggestion, but where to put the thresholds and how to manage the complexities of restrictions are ultimately political decisions for Johnson and his cabinet.

The pressure is on to find some way to ease up. The Office of Budget Responsibility estimates a massive drop in national income during the second quarter if the lockdown persists through June. Unemployment is expected to rise by 2 million to 10 percent from historic lows. That damage might be temporary, but the longer the economic shutdown lasts, the greater the risk of lasting damage.

There’s also the impact on the business sectors that Johnson most wanted to “level up”—helping working-class communities—with new investment and infrastructure spending. The Institute for Fiscal Studies estimates that a third of employees in the lowest-earning part of the income distribution chart are in sectors that have been mostly or completely shut down.

If, as some have argued, restrictions are lifted by age group, there are questions about how that would be enforced. Johnson has set himself a unifying mission to keep the support of the ex-Labour Party voters who delivered him a handsome election victory. He’ll have to find ways to restart the economy that don’t ignore or further worsen inequalities. It’s hard to imagine Johnson releasing wealthier parts of the country from lockdown, while poorer areas languish under restrictions. But some phasing will be necessary. purchases over the last week.

“We had the great lockdown but it’s not going to be a great reopening,” Priya Misra, global head of interestrate strategy at TD Securities, told Bloomberg News. “The reopening will be phased and gradual and there might be sudden stops along the way.”

At $1,707 an ounce, gold is closer to its high for the year of $1,769 than its low of $1,478 in February. The same is true of the dollar, which rose on Monday to bring the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index’s gain for the year to 5.08 percent. That makes 2020 already the best year for the greenback since it strengthened 8.98 percent in 2015. Looking beyond oil in the credit markets, copper is still down 18 percent for the year even after gaining almost 10 percent from its low on March 23. The stock market

Digital is the new normal

By Ney Villasenor

L

et’s face it: The Covid-19 pandemic drastically changed how we define “normal.”

The Covid-19 took the world by force. Almost half of the global population has been forced to go into isolation. In the country, flattening the curve compelled Filipinos to stay at home for almost two months already under an enhanced community quarantine (ECQ). Limited mobility and fewer options pressured people to find new ways of going about their daily tasks. Thus, the quarantine period necessitated Filipinos to fashion a new normal.

Over the last few weeks, physical transactions have moved to the virtual realm due to the fear of contracting the virus. In fact, studies said that paper money increases the risk of coronavirus transmission since it can harbor harmful bacteria and viruses for several days. Indeed, the pandemic transformed the mundane tasks of grocery shopping, paying bills, and going to work into remote ventures you can do through a gadget.

According to a report by Oxford Business Group, the Philippines is seeing a rise in digital usage, as more and more people embrace basic and critical services served within the digital economy to help keep with physical distancing and health protocols, apart from the greater convenience they offer.

Digital has become the new normal for many, and this also entails managing finances through handheld devices such as smartphones.

Financial technology stepped up as a savior amid the global health crisis. Mobile wallets are not only convenient—they have almost become a necessity, since digital fund

transfers protect people from the perils of going outside, in line with the government’s initiative to keep people in their homes. In fact, banks and payment firms have reported a surge in online transactions during the implementation of the ECQ in Luzon.

In a way, fintech has helped the world in keeping quarantine initiatives by governments intact, which is true in the case of the Philippines.

Every industry imaginable has made use of fintech when Covid-19 cases began to increase. Although the quarantine has many downsides, digital finance has helped make it easier for those who have access to it.

Online marketplaces like Lazada and Shopee made it possible for Filipinos to conduct their shopping online. Not just for their weekly groceries, but for other products such as clothes and workout equipment as well. Lazada, in particular, has partnered with GCash, the leading mobile wallet in the country, to help people avoid contracting Covid-19 by opting for cashless transactions instead.

Wednesday, April 22, 2020 A7

Since big changes in social norms are also expected, online transactions are encouraged since avoiding touching money bills should be observed to prevent a second wave of coronavirus. Now that the ease of fintech has been realized, it is highly probable for digital fund transfers to be the new norm of circulating money in a post-pandemic world.

Restaurants and fast-food chains have also boosted their online presence and resorted to selling food through the Internet to satisfy the cravings of many Filipinos stuck in their homes. GrabFood, foodpanda, or the restaurants themselves would deliver food ordered online to their homebound customers. Many of these establishments have existing partnerships with mobile wallets such as GCash, which makes payment more convenient.

Although it has been the practice for some even prior to the lockdown, more and more people have discovered the benefits of paying bills online now that going outdoor is not an option. In under a minute, mobile wallet users can settle payments for their electricity, water, cable, Internet, telecoms, credit cards, loans, government dues, insurance, rent, and health-care providers, simply through their smartphones.

Aside from these, it seems like fintech also saved online business owners from the biggest economic blows brought about by the

pandemic. This is not only because they are convenient, but also because being based online means they are less susceptible to the dangers of the physical realm.

While fintech definitely made things easier for a number of Filipinos affected by Covid-19, accessibility still has a long way to go for a country like the Philippines. Smaller communities and lower-income earners can hardly access the Internet, which means that fintech in the country still has room for improvement as well. Given the important role that it plays in times of crisis such as the current pandemic, then it is high time that digital finance should be given much bigger space in national policies as well, since its aim is to make the lives of Filipinos more convenient and, in this context, safe.

Covid-19 surely made a huge impact on the national economy, an effect that will last even long after the lockdown is lifted and when the virus eventually dies down. Fintech served as a cushion, which saved businesses from taking the brunt of the economy’s downfall, and it will continue to do so even after the pandemic.

Since big changes in social norms are also expected, online transactions are encouraged still since avoiding touching money bills should be observed to prevent a second wave of coronavirus. Now that the ease of fintech has been realized, it is highly probable for digital fund transfers to be the new norm of circulating money in a post-pandemic world.

Maybe you can trust your iPhone with your virus data

By Alex Webb | Bloomberg Opinion

I

t’s confusing, I get it. For the past four years, the message has been: “Don’t trust Big Tech with your data!” Now, Apple Inc. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google are offering a tool to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic that needs you to surrender more information to your smartphone.

It’s sensitive information too. They want to know whether you’ve had the virus or have been exposed to it.

The two tech giants have announced a contact-tracing tool for their smartphone operating systems, which will be available to public health authorities everywhere. It’s no panacea, but if deployed effectively it could be crucial in tackling the outbreak. Perhaps counterintuitively, the Silicon Valley approach would protect privacy better than many government efforts. It doesn’t share any data with the authorities that they don’t have already—namely, who has tested positive for the virus.

If we hope to end the lockdowns before a vaccine is made available, then contact tracing—the identification of those who’ve been near infected people—will be essential.

The head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says so.

Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Health Security agrees, as do the governors of New York, Massachusetts, Maryland, Washington state and beyond. It’s central to Germany’s virus strategy.

The problem is scale. Right now, tends to grab the headlines and be viewed as the ultimate arbiter of risk appetite, but doing so risks missing the broader picture.

Credit ratings for Mexico

It’s well known that markets are much quicker to react to declining creditworthiness than the creditrating companies. This is why, by the time a borrower is actually downgraded, there often is little market reaction. Sometimes, though, markets do get surprised, which seems to be the case with Mexico. The nation’s stocks, bonds and currency all fell after Moody’s Investors Service downgraded its ratings for both the government and Petroleos Mexicanos late on Friday. Moody’s decision was somewhat expected, as it came on the heels of downgrades by S&P

contact tracing is largely analog, and involves someone asking a virus patient about their movements over the previous 14 days, and trying to work out who they might have crossed paths with. If you have more than 100,000 confirmed cases, as the UK does, that’s a lot of work. A report by public health researchers at Johns Hopkins and the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials said the US alone needs to hire at least 100,000 people to work as contact tracers. It has 2,200 currently.

Yet governments would need far fewer recruits if they had the right tech, and Google and Apple—which control the entire market for smartphone operating systems—seem to be well placed to provide it. Google built a $135 billion advertising business by cutting out the need for human monitoring, instead depending on automation to track and place millions of ads. Doing things at vast scale is its forte.

The two companies’ proposed system, which should be ready in mid-May, will rely on smartphones’ Bluetooth connections. Each phone will start generating anonymous, encrypted identifier keys (a coded series of numbers and letters), which change every 15 minutes, and which it will broadcast via Bluetooth to nearby handsets. If you’re within perhaps 10 feet of someone for 10 minutes—the parameters are still being worked out—the two phones will exchange their respective identifiers, logging the interaction.

If one of the smartphone owners tests positive for the virus subsequently, the clinic that carried out the test will give them a unique code to enter into an app. The app will then upload all of the identifiers that the phone has generated in the past 14 days to a central server. If you’re using the app, have had your Bluetooth switched on, and have been in proximity to the person who’s tested positive, you’ll get an alert to let you know.

Crucially, you won’t be told who the person was, nor where you met them. It’s as if Tinder told you someone liked you, but not who. Just as important, while your phone might flag the exposure to you, it doesn’t tell anyone else. It will be up to you to follow any self-isolating protocols. The health authorities won’t know, or at least that’s the theory.

Nor will they receive an itinerary of the infected person’s movements over the past 14 days, lessening the Big Brother implications of contact tracing.

Apple and Google are offering what looks like a smart solution, as my colleague Tae Kim has written.

An alternative technological solution, as tried by Singapore, has more ominous implications because it could mean all contacttracing data collected on your phone is sent to a central server, rather than only sending it if you’re identified as having been in contact with an infected person. This central database would be managed by

governments via their health services, and it could make it much easier to track everybody’s movements, or at least everybody using the app. Even if the data were made anonymous, citizens would be putting a lot of faith in politicians not to use the system for bad reasons.

The European Union has endorsed both this centralized approach, with strict guidelines, and the decentralized approach favored by the tech giants. In either case, it will only work if there’s widespread adoption.

The Apple and Google technology would still put the contact-tracing power in the hands of national authorities, but individuals would only be sharing the minimum data required with the state. The companies aren’t building an actual app; they’re providing a toolkit for health services to build their own. And if the latter abused the technology, Apple and Google can always veto apps from their online stores.

Have the two companies come up with a perfect solution? No. You might receive a flag that you were exposed to someone when there was a physical wall between you. But human contact tracing is also fallible.

Theoretically, it might be possible to discover people’s identities and whereabouts from the Google and Apple data. Yet the cost and effort of doing so would be prohibitive.

If we’re going to avoid being locked down for the next year, the benefits may outweigh the risks.

Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings, but the cuts still highlighted the relative weakness of Mexico, according to Bloomberg News’s Justin Villamil.

With a drop of 1.61 percent, the Mexican peso was the biggest loser against the dollar of 31 major currencies tracked by Bloomberg after the ruble, which fell 1.76 percent.

Moody’s cut Pemex, the world’s most indebted oil major, to junk, and cited the oil company as one of the reasons for a dim sovereign outlook.

There also is concern that Mexico has done too little to protect its economy from the coronavirus pandemic. The government so far has limited its response to public-works projects, low-interest loans to the poor and budget tightening, which helps to explain why the peso has depreciated some 22 percent this year.

Tea leaves

provides an update on existing home sales for March—which was when the lockdowns were just starting to be put in place.

The median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg is for a decline of 9 percent after February’s 6.5 percent jump. Bad, but not as extreme as the 20 percent declines we saw during the financial crisis a decade ago. But with all the data these days, the risk is to the downside. “Social distancing and bank-branch and legal-office closures made it nearly impossible for buyers, sellers and other agents to get together at the closing table in many heavily populated parts of the country,” Bloomberg Economics notes. “These real estate closures will be delayed until restrictions are lifted.”

The real-estate industry is built on optimism. For most Americans, buying a house is the biggest investment they will make in their lifetimes. So before shelling out $270,000 for the average US home, consumers better feel pretty secure in their employment and income stream. The problem is, the coronavirus pandemic has suddenly made many Americans feel less secure, with more than 20 million filing for unemployment insurance in recent weeks. Plus, with social-distancing rules in place most everywhere, it’s almost impossible to get out and actually buy a home.

We’ll get a glimpse of just how bad things are for the housing market, which accounts for a big chunk of the economy, on Tuesday when the National Association of Realtors

A8 Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Pending Palace version, House chews on ₧613-B stimulus bill T

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

@joveemarie

HE leadership of the House of Representatives on Tuesday vowed to fast-track the approval of the P613-billion stimulus package under the draft of the proposed Philippine Economic Recovery Act (PERA).

During the technical working group meeting of the House of Representatives Defeat Covid-19 SubCommittee on Economic Stimulus Package TWG, Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano said lawmakers will focus on deliberations of the proposed PERA. "While waiting for the administration version of the stimulus package, we are already hearing through this TWG the draft bill [on stimulus package] of Albay Rep. Joey Salceda, AAMBIS-OWA Rep. Sharon Garin, and Marikina Rep. Stella Luz Quimbo. We will fast-track all of this; much better if the Palace will certify this [as urgent] like the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act,” he said.

The draft consolidated bill seeks to provide a Philippine recovery strategy for the economic effects of Covid-19 crisis.

To finance the proposed stimulus package, the bill gives special

powers to the President to reallocate and realign the General Appropriations Act of 2020.

Salceda, chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means and cochairman of the House Economic Stimulus Cluster, said the bill aims to protect Filipino families and jobs, assist workers and business entities facing hardship due to the pandemic; and preserve the country’s trajectory to economic prosperity.

Interventions

Under the draft bill, there are three types of economic interventions: transitional interventions, sectoral interventions and structural interventions.

Under the transitional interventions, economic relief shall be implemented immediately after the community quarantine is lifted to mitigate permanent damage to the economy and maintain employ-

ment levels of the corresponding sector or industry.

Sectoral interventions, meanwhile, are economic relief intended for specific sector or industries such as micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), tourism, agriculture, and any other critical businesses.

Structural interventions are measures designed to accommodate any sector or industry through institutionalized mechanism or entity.

A structural intervention aims to reinforce resilience of the economy as well as the business entities in a future crisis or recession.

The bill said these economic interventions should reduce permanent damage to the economy, maintain employment levels and support economic output and preserve the country’s productive capacity. The bill said all these interventions shall be guided by the principles of continuity, compensatory, capacity-building, and proportionality.

Transitional interventions

Moreover, the transitional interventions will include wage subsidies with a funding of P110 billion, to be provided to critical businesses, freelancers, the selfemployed, and repatriated overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

For critical businesses, the wage subsidy shall amount to at least 25 percent but not more than 75 percent of actual payroll costs for two months for the purpose of employment retention.

Around 75 percent of the applicable minimum wage rate shall be provided to freelancers and self-employed, while 75 percent of the average foreign wage of OFWs shall be provided for a period of two months.

Also under this intervention, the Social Security System and Government Service Insurance System shall grant employee compensation, amounting to P120,000 per individual, in the form of paid sick leaves for workers who contracted Covid-19. The SSS and GSIS shall get P500 million each to fund the employee compensation.

Other transitional relief interventions include regulatory relief for business entities through the suspension, reduction, or waiving the imposition of fees and charges for licensing, registration, permitting, and inspection; as well as regulatory relief for MSMEs through the relaxing of revenue regulations and waiving of applicable registration and similar fees.

Sectoral interventions

Under sectoral intervention, the Department of Trade and Industry shall offer grants for the education, training, and advising of MSMEs on coping with the new norms amid the Covid-19 pandemic. A fund of P10 billion shall be appropriated to carry out these interventions.

Funding of P25 billion will go to loan programs for MSMEs, P10 billion for the loan programs for agrifishery enterprises; P43 billion for assistance to the tourism industry; P66 billion for assistance to trade industries.

For trade policy measures, an immediate adoption of zero tariff rates on essential imported raw materials and temporary suspension of the export percentage requirements for export enterprises is proposed to allow domestic sales of selected manufacture goods while export markets are in the process of recovery.

Structural measure

The proposed structural adjustment plans include a Zero Interest Loans plan, a P300-billion loan package granting loans at zero interest, in exchange for worker retention.

Under the proposal, the maximum

loanable amount shall be 50 percent of the company’s direct labor costs and the loan shall be payable for three to five years.

The economic cluster also proposes Credit Refinancing and Mediation Service (CRMS) worth P20 billion to ensure that MSMEs can fulfill obligations under more favorable terms of credit. Another P28 billion is for the Philippine Guarantee Corp. to guarantee loans of business entities.

With CRMS, the Small Business Corp. can provide an MSME Credit Mediation and Restructuring Service to help MSMEs negotiate better credit terms with banks, lending institutions, and financial intermediaries, provide technical advice and assistance with credit mediation and offer loan guarantees and direct loans with favorable terms for refinancing the obligations of MSMEs. Also proposed is the creation of a National Emergency Investment Corp. (NEIC), similar to the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM Corp.) and the Central Bank-Board of Liquidators (CB-BOL) to act as a consolidator of private-sector debts, service these debts in exchange for equity, and yield returns for the government.

Under the proposal, the NEIC, with P350-billion capitalization, will perform these functions: bail out firms going bankrupt and purchase equity and take over firms.

Sources of funding

The bill also authorized the President to reallocate and realign the General Appropriations Acts of 2019 and 2020.

The bill said the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) shall identify programs, projects, and activities which cannot be utilized effectively as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak, including items such as discretionary travel, and declare allotments for such items as forced savings. The DBM shall make a detailed report to the President and Congress on forced savings arising from Covid-19, not later than two weeks after the enactment of this Act. The bill gives the President the power to allocate cash, funds, and investments held by any government-owned or -controlled corporation (GOCC) or any national government agency.

PHL among top 20 Covid real-time info innovators

By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

T

HE Philippines landed in the Top 20 of the Global Coronavirus Innovation Map launched by StartupBlink on the back of innovative sites that show real-time information on the pandemic.

Based on the ranking, the Philippines was the only Southeast Asian country in the Top 20 with a score of 0.15. The United States topped the rankings with a score of 4.28.

The top 5 in the rankings, after the United States, were Canada which scored 1.73; Estonia with 1.31; Switzerland, 1.3; and Israel, 1.28.

The Philippines is ranked 20th. This shows the leading role the Philippines is taking in creating innovative solutions related to the coronavirus,” StartupBlink said.

Based on the results, there were five new web sites and one innovation that helped the Philippines become part of the top 20.

The web sites included ThingsPH; FightCOVID.app; Dashboard Philippines; Edukasyon.ph for institutions wanting to migrate to online learning; and the COVID19 Philippine Data and case Tracker.

The non-web site innovation was the University of the Philippines’s efforts to create the country’s own testing kits.

“For the top 20 countries ranking, we see that countries in Europe such as Estonia, Switzerland, Italy, and Ireland are surprisingly over-performing in Covid-19 related innovation compared to their general rankings in StartupBlink’s 2019 global ecosystem ranking report. StartupBlink’s next global ecosystem ranking and report will be published this May,” StartupBlink said in a statement.

ThingsPH is a web site that features a free online community map of real-time street activity made possible by CCTV networks and artificial intelligence video analytics.

FightCOVID.app is a telehealth diagnostics web site that helps in assessing Covid-19 risks for Filipinos. The web site was launched

by White Widget.

Dashboard Philippines mapped establishments that can be used by residents to move around during the enhanced community quarantine. The web site provides information for grocery runs and even shuttle services as well as a tracker for donations.

Edukasyon.ph, meanwhile, offers free accounts to traditional educational institutions to allow them to transition to online learning during the pandemic.

The COVID19 Philippine Data and case Tracker provides information about Covid-19 cases in the Philippines.

“We are mapping hundreds of innovations created in response to Covid-19 in categories such as treatment, diagnostics, lifestyle adaptation, prevention, and grants. The resource is crowdsourced by the public and is free to use,” StartupBlink said.

The project, StartupBlink said, was created together with the Health Innovation Exchange

by UNAIDS, Moscow Agency of Innovations, and global information partners such as Crunchbase, Meetup, and SEMrush.

DBM releases additional ₧2.5-B CAMP cash aid for formal labor

By Bernadette D. Nicolas

T

@BNicolasBM

HE Department of Budget and Management (DBM) released an additional P2.5 billion to fund the Covid-19 Adjustment Measures Program (CAMP), a one-time P5,000 cash aid for affected formal workers.

Both the Special Allotment Release Order (SARO) and Notice of Cash Allocation (NCA) were released to the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on Monday, April 20.

The money was sourced from the regular program funds of DOLE, according to Budget Secretary Wendel E. Avisado.

This, after the labor department requested for the additional amount as they stopped accepting applications for the program, citing lack of funds.

The additional P2.5 billion is on top of the P1.6 billion earlier allotted for the CAMP for affected formal workers.

However, the labor department said it still couldn’t provide the cash subsidy to all formal workers who applied for CAMP even with the additional funds. More than a million workers applied for CAMP. Budget Undersecretary Laura B. Pascua told the BusinessMirror that the labor department has cash resources of P4 billion now for CAMP and Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD).

“This should be okay for this period. Plus there is the Small Business Wage Subsidy which will be given next week with SSS as implementing agency. Duplication between these programs need to be avoided,” Pascua said in a text message.

Avisado also said DOLE has no pending budget request for CAMP. On April 8, the DBM also released the SARO and NCA for P1.5 billion alloted for CAMP AbotKamay at Pagtulong (AKAP) for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) following President Duterte’s approval on April 6.

An NCA worth P2.335 billion to cover the cash requirements for the release of financial assistance for the affected workers under DOLE’s CAMP and TUPAD was also released on April 15. As of press time, the DBM has yet to release the SARO for the same purpose.

The labor department earlier requested an additional P5 billion to DBM. Of this, P2.5 billion was requested to be provided to CAMP for affected formal workers, P1 billion for TUPAD, and P1.5 billion for CAMP AKAP for affected OFWs.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Companies BusinessMirror

Wednesday, April 22, 2020

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IRR of law reducing cost of electricity signed

By Lenie Lectura

T

@llectura

he Department of Energy (DOE) and the Department of Finance (DOF) have signed the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) for the Murang Kuryente Act (MKA), which mandates cheaper electricity.

The IRR for the MKA is in the DOE-DOF joint circular signed by Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III and Energy Secretary Alfon-

so G. Cusi. The circular was approved in consultation with the Department of Budget and Management, the Bureau of the Treasury, and the Power

Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM).

The MKA, which was signed by President Duterte on August 8, 2019, legislates the use of P208 billion from the Malampaya Fund for the payment of PSALM's stranded contract costs (SCC) and stranded debts (SD) that PSALM assumed from the National Power Corp.

The IRR shall take effect 15 days upon publication.

Sections 2.4 and 9.1 of the MKA’s IRR state that no new Universal Charges (UC) for SCC and SD shall be collected upon effectivity of the IRR, while Section 9.2 provides that, “PSALM shall not file with the Energy Regulatory Commission [ERC] any new

petition for UC stranded contract costs and stranded debts until the P208 billion allocated amount under this Act [MKA] is exhausted and no other allocations are made

by Congress.”

“We are glad that the IRR has finally been signed. This gives consumers relief from paying an estimated total additional amount of P0.86 per kilowatt-hour of UC SCC and UC SD covering up to year 2024,” said PSALM President Irene Besido-Garcia.

This P0.86/kWh is the estimated total UC for SCC and SD covering: the UC petitions of PSALM pending in the ERC at the rate of P0.3007/ kWh and the future UC petitions of PSALM that it will file with ERC with

impact of P0.5593/kWh. For a household consuming 200 kWh electricity, this translates to about P172 of monthly savings from reduced electricity rates, or an annual savings of P2,064.

The ERC-approved UC-SD of P0.0428/ kW h and UC-SCC of P0.0543/kWh or a total of P0.0971/ kWh were being collected from all electricity end-users. However, effective February, the collection of the UC-SCC ceased in view of the full recovery by PSALM of the ERC-approved amount for SCC. Thus, only the UC-SD at the rate of P0.0428/kWh is currently being collected from all electricity end-users.

PSALM said the IRR outlines the

documentary requirements, timeline, responsibilities and functions of concerned agencies tasked to implement the law.

In particular, it specifies the processes of determining the annual allocation from the Malampaya Fund through the General Appropriations Act, consistent with the fiscal program of the government, and the releases of approved amounts to PSALM for the payment of its SCC, SD, and corresponding anticipated shortfalls.

PSALM is tasked to ensure consistent record-keeping of disbursements and report the utilization of the fund to oversight agencies including the ERC and the Joint Congressional Energy Commission.

DOE gets bids for 3 oil exploration areas Andrew Tan donates ₧60M to Red Cross T B ject to counter-challenge by other prospective bidders. Deadline for the submission of documents by counter-proponents is set at 60 calendar days from date of publication by the nominating party.

The identity of the nominating party “cannot be disclosed to protect the integrity of the bidding process,” the DOE said.

The nominating parties published the existence of their applications last March 6 for Nominated Area no. 6 and last March 9 for Nominated Areas no. 7 and 8.

Challengers for areas 7 and 8 have until May 8 to make counter offers while those for area 6 have until May 5. The DOE has sched-

uled on the same days the opening of the bids.

The DOE earlier received six other bids for nominated areas.

These are in Mindoro-Cuyo basin, Sulu Sea Basin, Ragay Gulf and Northeast Palawan Basin. Two applications were filed to explore areas in Northeast Palawan. “ We ac t ive ly we lcome a l l PCECP applications, as each one has the potential to bring us closer to desire to maximize the exploration, development, and utilization of our indigenous energy resources to help us attain energy security and independence,” Energy Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi earlier said. Lenie Lectura

he Department of Energy (DOE) said it has received three bid nominations for oil and gas exploration area in waters disputed with China.

The nomination of an area for exploration is one of the two ways by which investors can participate in the DOE’s Philippine Conventional Energy Contracting Program (PCECP). The process for this option begins by requesting the DOE for an Area Clearance.

The other option is choosing an area from the 14 Pre-Determined Areas (PDAs) offered by the DOE. Nominated area no. 6 covers 1,432,000 hectares while nominated area no. 7 covers 1,500,000

hectares. The last nominated area, no. 8, is 1,412,000 hectares.

Areas 6 block falls North of Reed Bank area of South China Sea. Areas 7 and 8 blocks are also within the South China Sea. In the Philippines, Reed Bank is known as Recto Bank, while South China Sea is called West Philippine Sea. China, Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei are claiming parts of the South China Sea. However, the DOE had said that these are not disputed areas, as these are within the Philippines’s exclusive economic zone.

The nominated areas are sub-

SeedWorks extends aid to farmers

Damosa Land Cares gives farm products to community, frontliners

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

H

ybrid seed firm SeedWorks Philippines (SeedWorks) said it donated P1 million in cash and seeds to help corn farmers affected by the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) and the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

In a statement, SeedWorks said bulk of the donation would be in the form of high-quality sweet corn seeds as support to the Department of Agriculture's (DA) “Plant, Plant, Plant” program.

SeedWorks said the seeds would be turned over to targeted farmers in Calabarzon, Bicol, Bukidnon, Agusan del Sur, and Davao. “We are heeding the government’s call for modern technology and intensified use of high-quality seeds to bolster food productivity amidst the current threat of the Covid-19 pandemic,” said SeedWorks Philippines Vice President for Sales Remus Morandante.

“Our sweet corn seeds can easily grow even in one’s backyard with little or no farming skills required. The variety is also tolerant to major diseases, produces cobs with long ears, and yields very sweet kernels,” Morandante added.

SeedWorks said it decided to donate sweet corn seeds as the crop makes “an excellent staple food especially in times of crisis.” The company explained that sweet corn is a rich source of carbohydrates, dietary fiber, and contains vital minerals like copper, iron, magnesium, phosphorus and zinc.

“It also contains valuable B-complex group of vitamins—folates, niacin, pyridoxine, thiamin, and riboflavin—that pair with necessary enzymes during the body’s metabolism process,” the firm said.

“Furthermore, corn also provides vitamins C, E, and A [in the form of beta carotene] as well as antioxidants and other beneficial compounds that help protect the system against diseases. It even reduces the risks of Type 2 diabetes, colon cancer, and cardiovascular conditions,” it added.

SeedWorks also disclosed that it is donating P250,000 to GMA Kapuso Foundation’s fund-raising for health frontliners, border-quarantine personnel, and families that have lost income due to the Luzon-wide ECQ. “The amount is comprised of monetary donation from the company and voluntary dole-outs from our staff nationwide,” said SeedWorks Philippines Finance and Admin Manager Noriel Aviñante. “We hope these donations could help our fellowmen especially during these trying times.”

D

avao, Philippines—In an effort to boost the immunity of Mindanao’s frontliners and support the community in the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) health crisis, Damosa Land Inc. (DLI), through its corporate social responsibility arm Damosa Land Cares, links arms with mother company Anflo Management and Investment Corp. (Anflocor) as they extend their help by donating agricultural products.

Seeing the need for food and immunity boost for the region’s survival, DLI leveraged their agricultural strength to provide the people who are bearing the brunt of fighting this pandemic with food products that can bolster their bodies’ defences.

Similarly, the real-estate developer also supplied the families of these frontliners and the community with a nutritious addition to their food ration during the enhanced community quarantine.

“Agriculture has always played a significant role in our company and the economy of the region. But in this unfortunate time of crisis, we have come to realize how big the industry’s part in the survival and recovery of those who were affected,” said Ricardo Lagdameo, head of DLI. The company provided agricultural products rich in vitamins and minerals that boost the immune system, such as bananas and pomelos, to the frontliners of the battle against Covid-19.

DLI’s banana donations were sourced from one of its sister companies Tagum Agricultural Development Co. Inc. (Tadeco), which produces and exports world-class quality bananas. Apart from the bananas from Tadeco, the property developer will also be giving out harvested vegetables from Agriya Farm, located in their newly opened mixeduse property Agriya.

This donation program was

By VG Cabuag @villygc

usinessman Andrew Tan on Tuesday said he donated some P60 million for the purchase of test laboratories for the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) to the Philippine Red Cross.

The donation was used to purchase four brand-new sets of Covid-19 test laboratories. Each test laboratory has two RT-PCR (reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction) machines, one RNA machine that speeds up the test capability of the laboratory, a medical lab freezer and a bio-safety cabinet that protects samples from contamination.

“This will further strengthen our government’s efforts in detecting Covid-19 cases so we can really get to focus on them and prevent more people from being infected. The Philippine Red Cross has the experience and capability to operate these test-

ing laboratories, and we are confident that this project can greatly help in having more people tested fast,” said Kevin Andrew L. Tan, executive vice president of property developer Megaworld Corp.

The new testing laboratories are capable of conducting around 10,000 Covid-19 tests a day. Results of each test sample may be released within three hours.

“We continue to look for more projects and partnerships like this so we can further help government in saving lives and beat the virus,” Tan said.

During the past weeks, Megaworld, along with its subsidiaries, have been distributing food and grocery bags to health care and border security frontliners around Metro Manila and nearby provinces.

The company also dispatched its Citylink buses to provide free transport to medical personnel to and from hospitals in Metro Manila.

Manila Water builds shower facilities for Covid-19 patients

spearheaded by Damosa Land Cares including a few of DLI’s employees.

The team were involved in the picking up, packaging and the distribution of the food items. They made sure to practice the necessary safety protocols, such as social distancing and disinfection, to avoid the further spread of the virus.

The initial batch of food support was handed over to the frontliners in the military and the health-care workers such as the Davao City Task Force, Davao Central 911, and PNP Barracks, and the Southern Philippines Medical Center. On top of this, DLI has also donated boxes of bananas to the communities in Panabo, SPMC, Island Garden City of Samal, and DLI’s construction workers in its ongoing projects. DLI will also be extending this not only to the frontliners, but also to those who need food ration the most.

“As the country’s food basket, Mindanao is blessed with abundant agricultural supply that can equip the community during this trying time. Our company chose to utilize the region’s agricultural strength to

help those who are bravely fighting this pandemic. We want to provide our community with the necessary food items to boost their immune system, and hopefully aid in preventing the rising number of cases in the region,” he added.

DLI has also started its house-tohouse relief efforts for the communities in Panabo city. The company has provided them some healthcare supplies such as face masks and shields that can further arm them with protection during this pandemic. To date, Damosa Land Cares has distributed to the Davao and Panabo communities a total of 3,180 relief packs, 309 boxes of bananas, seven boxes of vegetables, nine boxes of pomelos and seven trays of duck eggs.

Apart from the agricultural products distributed by DLI, Anflocor has also donated personal protective equipment to the frontliners of the hospitals in Davao Region. A polymerase chain reaction machine, an apparatus that processes samples from Covid-19-suspected patients, was also given to the Southern Philippines Medical Center to aid them in conducting Covid-19 tests.

M

anila Water said it has joined partners in the Ayala Group and other companies in converting the World Trade Center (WTC) into a fully operational healthcare and quarantine facility for coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) patients.

When it opens this month, the facility, dubbed “WTC: We Heal As One Center,” will be able to accommodate more than 500 patients and health-care workers from the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Medical Team.

Manila Water built 27 shower facilities with hot and cold water for Covid-19 patients throughout the center while 10 more were constructed for use by frontliners and medical workers.

The company also provided three static water tanks to ensure continuous supply and adequate water pressure for the showers. A 10-cubic meter collapsible tank is connected to the shower facilities while another 5-cubic meter tank was also installed for drinking water. An additional 15-cubic meter tank was also provided for back-up water supply.

Meanwhile, Manila Water’s Healthy Family Purified Water and the Manila Water Foundation deployed 25 dispensers and 50 units of 5-gallon water bottles to address drinking water requirements in the facility.

Robert Baffrey, Manila Water’s group director for Corporate Project Management, said the team completed the task in 12 days, finishing on April 11, despite the enhanced community quarantine. “In close coordination with partners within and outside the Ayala Group, our colleagues worked roundthe-clock and stayed on-site, even during Holy Week, to complete construction.”

“Construction was monitored very closely to ensure that shower and drinking facilities were available to the health-care facility as early as possible,” Baffrey said.

“It was a privilege to have been a part of this unified interorganizational effort performed in the spirit of service and compassion for our fellow countrymen—both patients and frontliners—in the battle against Covid-19,” he added.

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PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

April 21, 2020

Net Foreign Stocks Bid Ask Open High Low Close Volume Value Trade (Peso) Buy (Sell) FINANCIALs

ASIA UNITED BDO UNIBANK BANK PH ISLANDS CHINABANK EAST WEST BANK METROBANK PB BANK PBCOM PHIL NATL BANK PSBANK PHILTRUST RCBC SECURITY BANK UNION BANK BRIGHT KINDLE COL FINANCIAL FERRONOUX HLDG MEDCO HLDG NTL REINSURANCE PHIL STOCK EXCH SUN LIFE VANTAGE

45.55 100.6 60 19.9 7.88 38.95 8.27 18 23.95 41.5 98 16.16 104 53.6 0.88 15.22 2.68 0.29 0.54 163 1515 0.96

48.5 100.8 60.1 19.92 7.9 39 8.79 18.86 24.2 42 126 17.28 104.5 54.85 0.89 15.5 3.03 0.305 0.66 165 1650 1.08

48.7 102.5 60.75 19.9 8.04 40.15 8.24 18 24.6 42.5 91 17.36 105 54.85 0.9 15.8 3.07 0.29 0.59 163 1510 0.96

48.7 102.5 61.45 19.92 8.04 40.5 8.26 18 24.6 42.5 91 17.36 106 54.85 0.9 15.8 3.08 0.29 0.59 165 1510 0.96

47 100.4 59.8 19.88 7.85 38.55 8.24 17 23.5 42 91 16.14 103 53.6 0.89 15.5 2.8 0.29 0.59 162.2 1510 0.96

48.5 100.6 60 19.9 7.88 38.95 8.26 18 24.2 42 91 16.14 104 54.85 0.89 15.5 3.08 0.29 0.59 163 1510 0.96

1600 2816050 2056500 161400 155000 6932100 3100 2100 486800 2000 20 27200 445290 1380 586000 2400 25000 230000 50000 1220 5 300000

76030 284565074 123494007.5 3,212,272( 1226405 271594940 25586 36800 11695140 84150 1820 469320 46194897 75403 527340 37630 71090 66700 29500 198760 7550 288000

INDUSTRIAL

AC ENERGY ALSONS CONS ABOITIZ POWER FIRST GEN FIRST PHIL HLDG MERALCO MANILA WATER PETRON PETROENERGY PHX PETROLEUM PILIPINAS SHELL SPC POWER AGRINURTURE AXELUM BOGO MEDELLIN CNTRL AZUCARERA CENTURY FOOD DEL MONTE DNL INDUS EMPERADOR SMC FOODANDBEV ALLIANCE SELECT FRUITAS HLDG GINEBRA JOLLIBEE MACAY HLDG MAXS GROUP PEPSI COLA SHAKEYS PIZZA ROXAS AND CO RFM CORP SWIFT FOODS UNIV ROBINA VITARICH VICTORIAS CEMEX HLDG EAGLE CEMENT EEI CORP HOLCIM MEGAWIDE PHINMA TKC METALS VULCAN INDL CHEMPHIL CROWN ASIA EUROMED LMG CHEMICALS MABUHAY VINYL PRYCE CORP CONCEPCION GREENERGY INTEGRATED MICR IONICS SFA SEMICON CIRTEK HLDG

2.34 0.93 26 18 56.2 257.6 10.88 3.08 2.3 10.04 17.92 7.98 7.76 2.59 75.15 12.66 14.42 3.5 5.68 7.95 57.8 0.51 1.34 32 136.1 5.51 6.1 1.82 5.84 1.44 4.45 0.108 119.4 0.84 2.35 1.04 8 5.4 11.22 7.17 8.8 0.73 0.7 140 1.83 2.76 4.45 3.4 4.03 24.5 1.06 6 1.17 1.02 9

2.37 1 26.2 18.1 56.85 261.2 11 3.1 2.57 10.48 17.94 8 7.78 2.6 86.3 13.28 14.5 3.8 5.7 7.97 58.1 0.52 1.35 32.9 136.3 6.1 6.16 1.84 5.86 1.46 4.5 0.115 119.7 0.85 2.55 1.05 8.2 5.43 11.48 7.19 8.9 0.75 0.71 155 1.89 2.78 4.6 3.45 4.22 25 1.07 6.1 1.18 1.04 9.07

2.25 0.95 26.8 18.04 58 264 11.08 3.11 2.37 10.86 18.5 8.01 7.8 2.66 75.05 12.68 14.42 3.6 5.85 7.97 59 0.51 1.39 32.5 142.5 6 6.48 1.83 6.14 1.41 4.35 0.105 121.9 0.87 2.35 1.08 8.25 5.62 11.44 7.5 8.9 0.76 0.73 157 1.89 2.85 4.6 3.45 4.24 25 1.1 6.36 1.17 1.1 9.64

2.44 0.95 26.8 18.18 58 266 11.12 3.21 2.57 10.86 18.5 8.01 7.85 2.74 86.5 13.28 14.42 3.85 5.85 7.98 59 0.52 1.39 32.6 142.5 6.2 6.48 1.84 6.18 1.46 4.51 0.115 121.9 0.87 2.49 1.08 8.25 5.72 11.62 7.5 8.9 0.77 0.73 157 1.89 2.85 4.6 3.45 4.24 25 1.11 6.36 1.2 1.1 9.7

2.11 0.93 26 17.74 56.1 257.6 10.84 2.89 2.26 10 17 7.9 7.46 2.59 75.05 12.68 14.38 3.25 5.62 7.91 57.75 0.5 1.35 32.5 133 6 6 1.82 5.75 1.41 4.35 0.105 118 0.82 2.35 1.04 7.95 5.38 11.22 7.1 8.9 0.73 0.7 156 1.89 2.5 4.45 3.45 4.03 24 1.02 5.8 1.13 1.01 8.78

2.34 0.93 26 18 56.2 257.6 10.88 3.1 2.57 10.48 17.92 7.98 7.78 2.6 86.3 13.28 14.42 3.5 5.68 7.97 58 0.51 1.35 32.6 136.1 6.2 6.1 1.84 5.84 1.45 4.5 0.115 119.4 0.85 2.49 1.05 8 5.4 11.48 7.17 8.9 0.73 0.7 156 1.89 2.76 4.6 3.45 4.22 25 1.07 6 1.18 1.04 9

46361000 100000 816600 2081800 98710 219600 2452200 8881000 74000 341500 1571200 144600 592200 31435000 190 1700 1562300 99000 1288600 3034700 641800 1753000 10719000 1400 3140890 6400 1345100 1109000 2676700 455000 9000 1990000 1056500 5621000 14000 6950000 1876600 2072900 143300 2194700 900 101000 624000 40 1000 3728000 9000 1000 85000 9000 3747000 881900 2026000 1591000 6626000

-96463871 -57782847 1,102,521.9996) -26073 -75242245 35000 -5806915 6554352 1620 -73189.9997 268800

107,268,260( 93280 21322580 37467384 5544779 57083348 26789824 27354150 177650 3579790 28,084,490( 1151698 4531517 81912160 16308.5 21856 22512550 350280 7305369 24216193 37196341.5 894170 14605490 45570 430326061 39261 8288563 2028530 15840614 644300 39770 217700 126293667 4751050 34660 7320420 15024536 11418698 1636934 15943218 8010 76620 440470 6250 1890 10053280 40600 3450 358250 224895 3960280 5306426 2382770 1648230 60939204

5,256,570.0002) -16016385 1423421.9996 -395082.5 -15367034 -5332946 505850 5,045,554.0001) -332830 -8419600 -34584 -133880 -2877021 -23940000 978150.5 -465250 46335800 19210 916600 5300041 8380 -106840 -46751546 -3350 -2974730 -11246760 75219 -114868 -7074340 -1780 3120 -169740 -283050 122495 -39020 198908 -45529.9998 44880 886110

HOLDING & FRIMS ABACORE CAPITAL 0.59 0.6 0.59 0.63 0.57 0.6 8567000 5127510 ASIABEST GROUP 7.37 7.5 7.85 7.86 7.31 7.37 22700 169175 574.5 575 600 600 574 575 470070 273172520 AYALA CORP ABOITIZ EQUITY 43 43.9 43.2 43.9 42 43.9 796400 34405710 6.65 6.69 7.01 7.02 6.61 6.65 11215600 75751737 ALLIANCE GLOBAL 1.6 1.63 1.72 1.72 1.59 1.6 5384000 8676170 AYALA LAND LOG ANGLO PHIL HLDG 0.52 0.55 0.55 0.55 0.53 0.55 168000 89340 0.445 0.45 0.47 0.47 0.45 0.45 1360000 615550 ATN HLDG A COSCO CAPITAL 4.83 4.88 5 5 4.78 4.88 4178000 20018100 4.19 4.2 4.4 4.4 4.2 4.2 9982000 42515210 DMCI HLDG FILINVEST DEV 9 9.5 9 9 8.7 9 3700 33180 FJ PRINCE A 3.36 3.59 2.89 3.35 2.89 3.35 6000 18690 473.2 475 492.8 494 467 475 201690 96097168 GT CAPITAL HOUSE OF INV 3.61 3.94 3.95 3.95 3.95 3.95 2000 7900 49.95 50 53.1 53.1 49.4 50 1666150 84199929.5 JG SUMMIT JOLLIVILLE HLDG 4.51 6.27 6.27 6.27 6.27 6.27 1300 8151 KEPPEL HLDG A 5.1 6.59 5.06 5.06 5.06 5.06 2000 10120 0.45 0.46 0.455 0.46 0.45 0.45 70000 31650 LODESTAR LOPEZ HLDG 2.77 2.78 2.8 2.82 2.77 2.77 490000 1363620 7.5 7.51 7.75 7.75 7.43 7.51 1176900 8848613 LT GROUP 0.465 0.495 0.5 0.5 0.495 0.495 140000 69600 MABUHAY HLDG METRO PAC INV 2.66 2.67 2.68 2.7 2.61 2.67 43409000 115195490 2.9 3.14 3.15 3.16 2.85 3.14 16000 49510 PACIFICA HLDG PRIME MEDIA 0.71 0.73 0.72 0.73 0.72 0.73 130000 94700 0.98 1 0.98 0.98 0.98 0.98 10000 9800 SOLID GROUP SYNERGY GRID 165.2 170 162.1 165 162.1 165 360 58965 SM INVESTMENTS 826 839 844.5 855 818 839 212370 176087535 97.9 98 100.5 100.6 98 98 361690 35619998 SAN MIGUEL CORP TOP FRONTIER 137 139 136.2 142 136.2 139 10030 1390254 0.175 0.195 0.19 0.206 0.19 0.195 830000 166010 WELLEX INDUS ZEUS HLDG 0.135 0.14 0.14 0.14 0.135 0.14 22370000 3130300

-19020.0001 -49255595 -6250580 -43732386 -4825600 -1481970 -10335970 -900 -25826288 -65185485 -726400 -3728866 9900 25590900 -60206780 4042062 -1097720 -

PROPERTY ARTHALAND CORP 0.56 0.57 0.54 0.57 0.54 0.57 1136000 631710 ANCHOR LAND 8.26 9 9.09 9.09 9.09 9.09 100 909 30.95 31 31 31.2 30.7 30.95 7213200 222968960 AYALA LAND ARANETA PROP 1.02 1.09 1.05 1.05 1.05 1.05 11000 11550 1.35 1.36 1.36 1.37 1.35 1.36 114000 154380 BELLE CORP 0.53 0.54 0.55 0.55 0.53 0.54 1865000 995930 A BROWN CITYLAND DEVT 0.74 0.75 0.73 0.74 0.73 0.74 33000 24400 0.121 0.13 0.121 0.132 0.121 0.13 120000 15100 CROWN EQUITIES CEBU HLDG 5.9 6 5.9 5.9 5.9 5.9 800 4720 3.92 4.01 4 4.09 3.91 4.01 437000 1735370 CEB LANDMASTERS CENTURY PROP 0.355 0.36 0.365 0.365 0.355 0.36 4030000 1447900 CYBER BAY 0.285 0.32 0.28 0.28 0.28 0.28 40000 11200 16 16.1 16.1 16.16 15.88 16 158200 2,526,084( DOUBLEDRAGON DM WENCESLAO 7 7.1 7.05 7.2 7.05 7.1 109300 785665 0.92 0.93 0.94 0.94 0.91 0.92 8411000 7744110 FILINVEST LAND GLOBAL ESTATE 0.8 0.81 0.8 0.81 0.8 0.81 432000 346930 8990 HLDG 11.56 11.6 11.58 11.7 11.58 11.6 42300 492968 0.81 0.82 0.85 0.85 0.79 0.82 1085000 877470 PHIL INFRADEV MEGAWORLD 2.74 2.78 2.78 2.79 2.7 2.78 15547000 42745330 0.158 0.159 0.145 0.165 0.143 0.158 60490000 9413780 MRC ALLIED 1.58 1.6 1.77 1.77 1.57 1.6 348000 558420 PRIMEX CORP ROBINSONS LAND 15.3 15.78 15.48 15.78 14.84 15.78 1550300 23919544 0.24 0.25 0.235 0.24 0.225 0.24 780000 181650 PHIL REALTY ROCKWELL 1.48 1.52 1.48 1.52 1.46 1.52 78000 117080 2.63 2.7 2.64 2.64 2.63 2.63 16000 42140 SHANG PROP STA LUCIA LAND 1.88 1.89 1.87 1.9 1.86 1.89 88000 164380 SM PRIME HLDG 30 30.1 30.95 30.95 30 30 12169600 369503490 3.73 3.79 3.9 3.9 3.63 3.73 84000 311260 VISTAMALLS SUNTRUST HOME 1.19 1.22 1.25 1.25 1.18 1.22 1927000 2318890 4.07 4.09 4.15 4.23 4.04 4.09 1037000 4252030 VISTA LAND

-9125530 -16440 54000 -865840 1,083,603.9997) 776436 -4122450 -36168 8800 11727240 18130 320000 1597346 4600 -126557890 -693560.0001

SERVICES ABS CBN 16.84 16.9 17.14 17.14 16.82 16.82 126600 2142036 GMA NETWORK 4.87 4.93 4.98 5 4.86 4.87 249000 1224760 2106 2132 2160 2176 2106 2106 49340 105536280 GLOBE TELECOM PLDT 1130 1137 1150 1170 1126 1130 285960 324790410 0.038 0.039 0.038 0.039 0.037 0.039 8400000 317800 APOLLO GLOBAL DFNN INC 2.85 3 2.89 2.89 2.89 2.89 1000 2890 DITO CME HLDG 2.3 2.32 2.35 2.37 2.16 2.32 100095000 228322910 1.21 1.44 1.45 1.45 1.45 1.45 13000 18850 IMPERIAL ISLAND INFO 0.082 0.086 0.086 0.086 0.086 0.086 20000 1720 1.89 1.9 1.83 1.93 1.81 1.9 4971000 9301270 NOW CORP 0.178 0.179 0.184 0.185 0.174 0.179 6590000 1178890 TRANSPACIFIC BR PHILWEB 2.6 2.61 2.8 2.82 2.45 2.61 4588000 12166540 6.15 6.23 6.15 6.25 6.12 6.24 23400 143629 2GO GROUP ASIAN TERMINALS 15.04 15.92 15.92 15.92 15.92 15.92 1800 28656 3.09 3.1 3.22 3.22 3 3.09 1979000 6097830 CHELSEA CEBU AIR 49.65 49.8 52.85 52.85 49.5 49.65 207390 10450057.5 INTL CONTAINER 77 77.05 79.4 79.4 77 77 2518510 194645480 12.9 13 12.98 13 12.6 12.9 3400 43578 LBC EXPRESS LORENZO SHIPPNG 0.78 0.83 0.86 0.86 0.86 0.86 10000 8600 4.74 4.75 5.2 5.3 4.7 4.75 13079800 65043557 MACROASIA 1.72 1.73 1.84 1.84 1.7 1.72 4667000 8169990 METROALLIANCE A METROALLIANCE B 1.71 1.86 1.67 1.89 1.66 1.89 10000 16980 6.76 7 7.2 7.2 6.76 7 6400 44820 PAL HLDG HARBOR STAR 0.86 0.88 0.92 0.92 0.85 0.85 1331000 1162590 0.03 0.031 0.032 0.033 0.031 0.031 11700000 374500 BOULEVARD HLDG DISCOVERY WORLD 1.62 1.85 1.61 1.61 1.6 1.6 7000 11250 WATERFRONT 0.43 0.45 0.43 0.45 0.43 0.45 20000 8800 0.37 0.375 0.38 0.38 0.37 0.375 13430000 5025400 STI HLDG BERJAYA 2.16 2.35 2.14 2.36 2.14 2.36 6000 13720 5.78 5.8 5.99 6 5.76 5.8 4501700 26460965 BLOOMBERRY 1.7 1.74 1.68 1.74 1.68 1.74 37000 62760 PACIFIC ONLINE LEISURE AND RES 1.51 1.53 1.44 1.63 1.44 1.53 1159000 1763570 2.91 3.27 3.14 3.14 2.9 2.91 379000 1119570 PH RESORTS GRP PREMIUM LEISURE 0.305 0.315 0.325 0.325 0.3 0.315 13900000 4330650 5.93 5.94 6.1 6.1 5.7 5.94 3058300 18192177 ALLHOME METRO RETAIL 1.68 1.7 1.55 1.7 1.51 1.68 4347000 6977520 PUREGOLD 46.4 46.5 46.5 46.9 45.7 46.5 4995500 232407585 60.75 60.8 61.1 61.1 60.2 60.8 376170 22862330 ROBINSONS RTL PHIL SEVEN CORP 134.1 135.5 132 135.5 132 135.5 100830 13610496 1.22 1.23 1.27 1.28 1.2 1.23 3131000 3851920 SSI GROUP 14.52 14.56 14.54 14.86 14.2 14.56 2661000 38678096 WILCON DEPOT APC GROUP 0.295 0.305 0.3 0.32 0.295 0.295 480000 145700 5.11 5.23 5.25 5.29 5.1 5.12 15100 77367 EASYCALL GOLDEN BRIA 325 330 330 330 320 330 210 68650 2.04 2.14 2.06 2.1 2.06 2.06 66000 136360 PAXYS PRMIERE HORIZON 0.214 0.219 0.225 0.225 0.211 0.217 1070000 229070 SBS PHIL CORP 5.41 5.78 5.79 5.84 5.79 5.79 2700 15658

-17645970 114594060 602520 -41150 -151910 -11380 7969 148150 -5594073 -35765841 -10213538 36100 -1693450 7411216 3360 -2230 63000 8908037 -782830 -36322940 -8074611 224054 -962990 5158318 -

MINING & OIL APEX MINING 0.93 0.94 0.9 0.98 0.9 0.93 2340000 2203830 -119380 0.001 0.0011 0.001 0.0011 0.001 0.0011 21000000 21300 ABRA MINING ATLAS MINING 1.77 1.9 1.94 1.94 1.94 1.94 1000 1940 0.2 0.205 0.2 0.214 0.2 0.2 750000 153110 COAL ASIA HLDG CENTURY PEAK 2.67 2.75 2.7 2.75 2.7 2.75 346000 941250 401250 DIZON MINES 6.69 6.85 6.84 6.97 6.7 6.85 3300 22350 0.75 0.76 0.78 0.78 0.74 0.76 2696000 2036320 FERRONICKEL GEOGRACE 0.192 0.198 0.195 0.198 0.192 0.195 300000 58560 -9750 0.078 0.08 0.08 0.08 0.079 0.08 4580000 362420 LEPANTO A LEPANTO B 0.074 0.085 0.08 0.085 0.08 0.085 2970000 238600 MANILA MINING A 0.0065 0.0066 0.007 0.007 0.0065 0.0066 11000000 72900 0.53 0.56 0.56 0.56 0.53 0.53 197000 106910 MARCVENTURES NIHAO 0.94 0.99 0.96 0.99 0.95 0.95 100000 95240 1.67 1.68 1.73 1.73 1.65 1.68 9689000 16237950 1287100 NICKEL ASIA 0.485 0.51 0.5 0.52 0.495 0.52 211000 105170 ORNTL PENINSULA PX MINING 2.14 2.19 2.22 2.22 2.13 2.19 233000 503580 -86600 12.1 12.2 12.66 12.66 12 12.2 894100 10924664 -2334654 SEMIRARA MINING ACE ENEXOR 7.1 7.14 6.31 7.19 6.24 7.1 711500 4870399 -35695 0.0084 0.0087 0.0087 0.0087 0.0087 0.0087 2000000 17400 ORNTL PETROL A ORNTL PETROL B 0.0085 0.01 0.0085 0.0095 0.0085 0.0095 18000000 162000 PXP ENERGY 4.5 4.52 4.21 4.59 4.07 4.5 5761000 25054820 113150

PREFFERED HOUSE PREF A 95.15 96.9 96.9 96.9 96.9 96.9 10 969 492 497 500 500 497 497 2030 1009000 AC PREF B1 ALCO PREF B 97.2 100 100 100 100 100 1480 148000 97.1 99.5 99.5 99.5 99.5 99.5 1770 176115 CPG PREF A DD PREF 100 100.1 97.5 101 97.5 100 1495510 149311004 GLO PREF P 500 510 500 500 500 500 100 50000 954 996 997 997 954 954 320 306140 GTCAP PREF A GTCAP PREF B 960 995 977 977 977 977 180 175860 99.5 100 100 100 100 100 1660 166000 MWIDE PREF PNX PREF 3B 102 104 103 103 103 103 2800 288400 PNX PREF 4 1000 1009 1000 1000 1000 1000 19255 19255000 1000 1005 1010 1010 1000 1000 4520 4530645 525200 PCOR PREF 3A PCOR PREF 3B 1010 1020 1010 1020 1010 1010 1095 1106250 76.2 76.3 76 76.2 76 76.2 22230 1693487 -56388 SMC PREF 2C SMC PREF 2D 73.85 74.2 73.85 74.2 73.85 74.2 130 9642.5 SMC PREF 2E 74.05 74.9 74.05 74.1 74 74 5440 402807 75 75.65 75 75 75 75 900 67500 SMC PREF 2F SMC PREF 2H 75 75.3 75 75 75 75 1000 75000 75 75.5 75 75 75 75 50000 3750000 SMC PREF 2I

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS ABS HLDG PDR 15.26 16.16 15.8 15.8 15.2 15.2 32900 509980

WARRANTS LR WARRANT 0.79 0.81 0.81 0.85 0.77 0.81 306000 251800

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES ITALPINAS 1.99 2 2.09 2.28 1.8 1.99 42849000 88771150 19260 6.7 6.74 6.3 6.75 6.2 6.7 165300 1084988 30150 KEPWEALTH XURPAS 0.58 0.59 0.6 0.6 0.57 0.59 1461000 848430

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS

FIRST METRO ETF 85.05 85.25 86 86.5 85 85 21280 1819990.5 98985

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Monster.com: Online hiring in PHL up by double digits

D

By Cai U. Ordinario & Samuel P. Medenilla

@caiordinario @sam_medenilla

espite the disruption caused by the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic, online hiring of employees in the Philippines recorded a double-digit growth in the first quarter, according to job-search site Monster.com.

Monster.com said the increase in online hiring averaged by an annualized 14 percent in January; 15 percent in February; and 10 percent in March. This means that online hiring in the Philippines averaged 13 percent in the January-to-March period.

“Although online hiring growth in the Philippines is steady for now, challenges may arise in the near future as the impact of Covid-19 begins to hit closer to home,” said Krish Se-

shadri, CEO of Monster.com-APAC and Middle East.

“These are some truly unprecedented times, and it’s more important than ever for employers—particularly in hard-hit industries such as travel and retail—to do what they can to support their employees through this storm,” Seshadri added.

Data showed the BPO/ITES industry continued to lead the way, with double-digit annual growth throughout the quarter. Hiring ex-

panded by an annualized 23 percent in January; 28 percent in February; and 25 percent in March.

Monster.com said hiring demand for the industry also increased by 5 percent on a three-month period and 16 percent on a six-month period in March.

The IT, Telecom/ISP industry followed closely behind with hiring expanding by an annualized 22 percent in January; 24 percent in February; and 23 percent in March.

Data also showed that online hiring in the Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance (BFSI) industry posted an average of 24 percent in January; 26 percent in February; and 20 percent in March.

However, the Hospitality and Retail industries have already begun seeing the negative effects of Covid-19 as online hiring in these industries have started to decline in the first quarter. Monster.com data showed that hiring in the Hospitality industry contracted by 8 percent in March, while the Retail industry saw a 5-percent decline.

“Now is the time for employers to

take a step back and think about how they can build agility and resilience in their teams, and ensure that their employees have the right skill- sets and support to navigate the changes that will be brought on by this adversity,” said Seshadri.

In terms of specific occupations, Software, Hardware, Telecom professionals witnessed significant demand growth for the quarter. This became evident in March when online hiring for these jobs witnessed the most notable annual growth among all 10 job roles monitored by the index.

Purchase/Logistics/Supply Chain talent witnessed the steepest yearon-year decline among job roles of -5 percent and -7 percent for January and February, respectively, and down by a staggering -19 percent for March.

The data was based on the Monster Employment Index, which is a gauge of online job posting activity compiled monthly by Monster. com. It records the industries and occupations that show the highest and lowest growth in local recruitment activity.

Deadline for Malaya plant bid submission extended

By Lenie Lectura @llectura

T

he Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp.

(PSALM) has extended the deadline of bid submission for the 650-megawatt (MW) Malaya Thermal Power Plant (MTPP) and its underlying land from May 19 to June 30, the state firm said Tuesday.

It also moved the dates of other bidding activities due to the enhanced community quarantine.

The new deadline for the filing of a request to bid as a consortium is on May 11.

The submission of documentary deliverables is rescheduled to May 15, while the release of Asset Purchase Agreement to qualified bidders is set to happen on June 16, or not later than 7 days prior to bid submission deadline.

PSALM will disclose the minimum bid price to qualified bidders immediately after securing the board’s decision on the matter. PSALM’s board is awaiting feedback from the Commission on Audit relative to the request of PSALM to allow a discounting mechanism that would lower the minimum bid price.

PSALM is continuously monitoring the coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak and will issue appropriate Supplemental Bid Bulletins to modify dates of the bidding process should circumstances warrant.

This is PSALM’s third attempt to privatize the Malaya asset.

PSALM has declared a failure of the second round of public bidding because there was only one bid. Pursuant to the bidding rules, PSALM then proceeded to go through the process of negotiated sale with the

Big firms distribute food to communities

C

onglomerate San Miguel Corp. on Tuesday said it has more than doubled the production of its Nutribun which it started baking a month ago for the sole purpose of donating it to the poor and communities affected by the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ).

From 10,000 buns per day, San Miguel Foods Inc. is now producing more than twice the initial capacity at 24,000 pieces daily.

“Right now, many of our fellow Filipinos, the least fortunate among us, continue to struggle from the crisis we face. What we hope to do is reach as many vulnerable families as possible and help make sure they do not go hungry. Apart from our food donations, our version of the Nutribun is another way for us to keep our citizens healthy and nourished,” said company president and COO Ramon S. Ang said.

He added that the company’s new ready-toeat food manufacturing facility in Sta. Rosa, Laguna and its Flour Development Center in Ugong, Pasig have already produced 284,171 pieces of its Nutribun to date. It has also produced and donated 177,808 pieces of pandesal.

Each bread weighs 85 grams and contains 250 calories, which the body uses for energy.

As such, total output for the period covered is 24,155 kilos of Nutribun bread providing 71 million calories.

Because of increased production, the company has been able to donate the bread to 46 communities in the Metro Manila and nearby provinces.

Recipients include the Philippine Red Cross, Caritas in Manila and Caloocan, the company's own food bank and feeding center, Better World Tondo, as well as parishes including Mayapa, Canlubang, the Diocese of Novaliches and Sacred Heart Parish in Alabang, among others.

SM’s aid

SM Foundation Inc. (SMFI), the corporate social responsibility arm of the SM group, said it was the first to respond to a depressed community in Payatas in Quezon City when the ECQ was implemented last month.

With the help of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and its partner, Uniqlo Philippines, SMFI said it conducted Operation Tulong Express and provided about 500 households in Brgy. Payatas, Quezon City with relief packs consisting of canned goods, cup noodles, water bottles and kilos of rice.

“They [DSWD workers] went to our community and listed our names. Good thing we have received food packs from SM Foundation, it’s really a great relief,” Josephine Casis, a 55-yearold mother, one of the recipients of the relief goods, said.

As schools shut down, non-essential businesses closed and public transportation remain prohibited, Casis also lost her job as a gardener, making it difficult to provide food for her five children who all rely on her meager income. VG Cabuag The first week of the lockdown was bearable

lone bidder, D.M. Wenceslao.

However, D.M. Wenceslao’s bid offer was below the minimum bid

mutual funds

price. Thus, PSALM was constrained to also declare a failure of the negotiated sale.

April 21, 2020

NAV One Year Three Year Five Year Y-T-D per share Return* Return Stock Funds ALFM Growth Fund, Inc. -a 188.92 -27.59% -10.48% -7.59% -25% ATRAM Alpha Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 0.9654 -39.37% -13.04% -8.3% -30.14% ATRAM Philippine Equity Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 2.538 -37.77% -15.31% -10.08% -31% Climbs Share Capital Equity Investment Fund Corp. -a 0.6548 -29.82% n.a. n.a.

-27.01% First Metro Consumer Fund on MSCI Phils. IMI, Inc. -a 0.6627 -23.18% n.a. n.a. -21.97% First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund,Inc. -a 4.0857 -24.96% -8.08% -6.64% -23.32% First Metro Save and Learn Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,6 0.6401 -26.23% -11.82% n.a.

-25.01% MBG Equity Investment Fund, Inc. -a

76.43 -39.87% n.a. n.a. -26.03% PAMI Equity Index Fund, Inc. -a 37.8497 -26.58% -8.99% n.a. -26.19% Philam Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 405.73 -24.66% -8.53% -6.72% -23.85% Philequity Alpha One Fund, Inc. -a,d,8 0.842 n.a. n.a. n.a. -18.26% Philequity Dividend Yield Fund, Inc. -a 0.9656 -25.93% -8.53% -5.95% -24.97% Philequity Fund, Inc. -a 28.3716 -26.11% -7.84% -5.87% -25.14% Philequity MSCI Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,1 0.7498 -27.1% n.a. n.a. -26.35% Philequity PSE Index Fund Inc. -a 3.854 -26.16% -8.48% -5.83% -26.22% Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a 644.17 -26.05% -8.43% -6.02% -26.13% Soldivo Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 0.5871 -36.33% -12.58% -9.9% -31.04% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Equity Fund, Inc. -a 3.0137 -29.48% -9.41% -7.04% -28.4% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Stock Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.7397 -26.16% -8.59% n.a. -26.09% United Fund, Inc. -a 2.7483 -25.78% -6.36% -4.61% -24.77% Exchange Traded Fund First Metro Phil. Equity Exchange Traded Fund, Inc. -a,c 86.4433 -25.83% -7.93% -5.18% -26.09% ATRAM AsiaPlus Equity Fund, Inc. -b $0.89 -14.41% -1.06% -3.79% -13.46% 3.65% n.a. -11.33% Sun Life Prosperity World Voyager Fund, Inc. -a $1.2225 -5.39% Balanced Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ATRAM Dynamic Allocation Fund, Inc. -a 1.4881 -12.93% -5.12% -5.11% -4.78% ATRAM Philippine Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 1.9577 -14.98% -5.43% -3.49% -10.24% First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund Inc. -a 2.3267 -11.28% -2.84% -4.26% -11.58% First Metro Save and Learn F.O.C.C.U.S. Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a,5 0.184 n.a. n.a. n.a.

-19.47% NCM Mutual Fund of the Phils., Inc. -a 1.7902 -6.18% -1.39% -1.64% -8.81% PAMI Horizon Fund, Inc. -a 3.318 -9.14% -3.31% -3.18% -12.43% Philam Fund, Inc. -a 14.8405 -10.01% -3.44% -3.26% -12.5% Solidaritas Fund, Inc. -a 1.846 -13.41% -2.87% -13.16% -4.35% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 3.1564 -17.34% -4.98% -4.22% -18.31% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2028, Inc. -a,d,2 0.8958 -9.42% n.a. n.a.

-11.8% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2038, Inc. -a,d,2 0.798 -19.24% n.a. n.a. -19.91% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2048, Inc. -a,d,2 0.7766 -21.25% n.a. n.a. -21.81% Sun Life Prosperity Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a 0.7729 -19.61% -6.33% -5.89% -20.71% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Cocolife Dollar Fund Builder, Inc. -a $0.03816 6% 2.38% 1.49% -0.18% PAMI Asia Balanced Fund, Inc. -a $0.9211 -8.11% -0.49% -2.34% -11.25% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Advantage Fund, Inc. -a $3.5495 -4.53% 2.65% 1.3% -9.24% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Wellspring Fund, Inc. -a,7 $1.0536 -3.04% 1.07% n.a.

-6.66% Bond Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 361.4 3.95% 2.92% 2.35% 1.01% ATRAM Corporate Bond Fund, Inc. -a 1.9248 2.27% 0.9% -0.31% 1.2% Cocolife Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a 3.1627 4.91% 5.17% 5.11% 1.49% Ekklesia Mutual Fund Inc. -a 2.2602 4.75% 2.62% 2.05% 1.58% First Metro Save and Learn Fixed Income Fund,Inc. -a 2.4043 6.69% 2.83% 1.57% 1.92% 2% 2.18% Philam Bond Fund, Inc. -a 4.4682 11.15% 3.3% Philequity Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.8372 6.7% 3.38% 1.67% 1.29% Soldivo Bond Fund, Inc. -a 1.0106 10.18% 3.04% 1.17% 4.8% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.1033 7.87% 4.4% 2.63% 0.89% Sun Life Prosperity GS Fund, Inc. -a 1.716 7.57% 3.93% 2.21% 0.88% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $467.36 2.97% 2.22% 2.35% -0.18% ALFM Euro Bond Fund, Inc. -a Є214 -0.87% 0.5% 0.53% -2.61% ATRAM Total Return Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -b $1.176 0.84% 1.73% 1.66% -2.58% 1.12% 0% First Metro Save and Learn Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $0.0258 2.38% 1.19% PAMI Global Bond Fund, Inc -a $1.0482 -1.07% -0.75% -0.85% -4.29% Philam Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $2.3842 5.85% 2.55% 2.14% -0.82% Philequity Dollar Income Fund Inc. -a $0.059497 2.4% 1.46% 1.37% -1.36% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Abundance Fund, Inc. -a $3.1552 6.41% 2.04% 2.1% -0.63% Money Market Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 127.22 3.96% 3.07% 2.32% 1.14% First Metro Save and Learn Money Market Fund, Inc. -a,3 1.036 2.79% n.a. n.a.

0.95% Philam Managed Income Fund, Inc. -a 1.2709 6.3% 3.46% 1.87% 1.13% 3.44% 2.99% 2.51% 0.93% Sun Life Prosperity Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.2763 Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Starter Fund, Inc. -a $1.0408 1.71% n.a. n.a.

0.35% Feeder Fund Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund Inc. -b,d,4 $0.91 n.a. n.a. n.a.

-8.08% a - NAVPS as of the previous banking day. b - NAVPS as of two banking days ago. c - Listed in the PSE. d - in Net Asset Value per Unit (NAVPU).

1 - Launch date is January 3, 2019. 2 - Launch date is January 28, 2019. 3 - Launch date is February 1, 2019. 4 - Launch date is November 15, 2019.

5 - Launch date is September 28, 2019. 6 - Renaming was approved by the SEC last October 12, 2018 (formerly, One Wealthy Nation Fund, Inc.).

7 - Adjusted due to stock dividend issuance last October 9, 2019.

8 - Launch date is December 09, 2019.

"While we endeavor to keep the information accurate, the Philippine Investment Funds Association (PIFA) and its members make no warranties as to the correctness of the newspaper’s publication and assume no liability or responsibility for any error or omissions. You may visit http://www. pifa. com.ph to see the latest NAVPS/NAVPU."

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Banking&Finance BusinessMirror

Sale of 35-day Treasury bills adds ₧15B to govt war chest

By Bernadette D. Nicolas @BNicolasBM

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he Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) raised P15 billion on its auction of 35-day Treasury bills (T-bills) as investors continued to flock to safe-haven assets as the number of Filipinos infected with the Covid-19 rose to 6,599 as of April 21.

Tuesday’s auction was oversubscribed by more than four times the P15-billion offering as tenders reached P62.2 billion.

The 35-day T-bills fetched an average rate of 2.714 percent.

National Treasurer Rosalia V. De Leon has since attributed the overwhelming demand to strong liquidity from the P120-billion maturity of bonds.

De Leon also credited the signaling by central bank Governor Benjamin E. Diokno on the hefty toolbox monetary authorities have against Covid-19’s effect on the economy.

“And of course, this is just 35-day tenor so might as well earn some interest while banks [are] still risk averse,” she said adding the risks hinged on uncertainties whether the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine would be lifted midnight of April 30 or “modified.”

Seeing strong demand for the

security, the Treasury decided to open again the tap facility window on Tuesday for an additional P10 billion for the 35-day debt papers.

Offerings through the tap facility window were opened to all eleven government securities-market makers.

For this week, the Treasury has so far raised P59 billion including the funds raised through the tap facility.

Tenders for the additional P10 billion offering through the facility reached P19.49 billion.

Meanwhile, De Leon said collections from Bureau of the Internal Revenue (BIR) and Bureau of Customs (BOC) since April 1 were so far lower compared to the same period last year.

She said the gap can be covered by other collections from dividends and contributions even from the BTr’s income and also borrowings.

The BIR and the BoC missed its respective collection targets for the first quarter with a combined revenue shortfall of P156.26 billion.

BIR and BOC’s actual collections in the January-March period settled only at P600.86 billion, falling short of the P757.12-billion revenue target for the period. The lockdown of the country’s largest island of Luzon began on March 17.

Japanese banks warned vs rising bad-loan costs, investment losses

Wednesday, April 22, 2020 B3

Moody’s: Pandemic puts banks’ profitability in peril

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By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

@Tyronepiad

he profitability of banks across the Asia-Pacific region is threatened by the protracted coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic, Moody’s Investor Service said; those in the Philippines are not an exception.

In a report on Tuesday, the debt watcher cited the following factors that may cut the earnings of the banking sector: higher provision for loan default; declining net interest margins on the back of lower policy rates; and, lower fee income due to fewer business activities.

“Weaker economic prospects and widespread financial market upheaval will translate into a more adverse credit landscape for Asian banks over the coming quarters,” Moody’s added.

The credit-rating agency recently revised its banking sector outlook for the Philippines from “stable” to “negative.” Other 15 countries were also rated “negative.” These include Bangladesh, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, Australia and New Zealand. Only Mongolia was given a “stable” banking sector outlook in the region.

While all the Asia-Pacific banks

have stable funding and liquidity, most have their operating environment capital, asset risk and profitability and efficiency labeled by Moody’s as “deteriorating.”

It was the same label that Moody’s tagged the Philippine banking industry’s operating environment, asset risk and profitability and efficiency. Still, the industry’s capital, funding and liquidity and government support was rated as “stable.”

“While the region’s banks generally have adequate capital and liquidity buffers to weather the crisis, reduced business activity, lower (or more volatile) asset prices and higher unemployment will weigh on debt affordability and loan repayment,” the debt watcher warned.

The credit-rating firm recently reported that the global speculativegrade default rate registered at 3.5 percent last month, higher from 3.2 percent in February and 2.1 percent a year ago for the same period.

Bank response

The debt watcher said that banks have been cutting policy rates to support funding and liquidity amid the pandemic.

“Furthermore, monetary authorities will rely on other policy tools such as relaxing reserve requirement ratios (RRRs) or providing liquidity injections,” it explained.

For example, Moody’s noted that the People’s Bank of China trimmed RRR on small banks by 50 basis points (bp) this month, with another 50-bp cut expected on May 15. This will release around RMB 400 billion in liquidity, the credit-rating agency said.

The credit-rating agency said that debt moratoriums on loans were also enacted in China, Australia and India, among others, to ease the burden of the businesses and households amid the economy-paralyzing pandemic.

“While repayment delays will provide temporary relief to borrowers, these directives will also constrain banks’ abilities to take proactive restructuring and recovery actions.

These measures also could lead to an even greater build-up of credit losses once the moratoriums are lifted,” Moody’s warned.

On the local front, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) slashed rates by 50 bp ahead of the policy meeting on May 21, bringing overnight repurchase rate to 2.75 percent.

BSP also trimmed RRR on reservable liabilities of universal and commercial banks by 200 bp to 12

percent, which is seen to release around P180-billion worth of liquidity into the banking system. The Monetary Board said that the RRR could be slashed by another 200 bp before the year ends.

Local banks have also been providing grace period for their borrowers amid the pandemic.

Access to banks

Moody’s said that companies, especially those from sectors with high exposure to pandemic-induced credit risk, should be able to always tap banks for funding.

“Continued access to bank funding will be crucial for companies undergoing severe earnings collapses or deteriorating liquidity, or both,” it said.

Among the sectors that will likely experience marked credit shocks are airlines, automotive and auto suppliers, gaming, retail and hospitality, oil and gas and global shipping, Moody’s enumerated.

The firm said that these sectors will have a hard time regaining consumer confidence even after the lock down, putting pressure on their credit quality.

“Larger companies with viable underlying businesses are better positioned because they tend to have stronger banking relationships that will help them weather more prohibitive conditions in debt capital markets,” Moody’s said, noting that smaller companies might suffer from deteriorating creditworthiness on the other hand.

‘Be more considerate,’ PHL LandBank says released credit registry begs lenders cash grants total ₧16.34B

A pedestrian wearing a protective mask walks past the Bank of Japan headquarters, in Tokyo, Japan. BLOOMBERG

J

apanese lenders must brace for rising bad-loan costs and investment losses even as the financial system shows resilience to the coronavirus-fueled economic slump, according to the central bank.

If the downturn is prolonged, more companies at home at abroad could face solvency problems, raising credit costs, the Bank of Japan said Tuesday in its semiannual Financial System Report. Losses on banks’ securities investment “could deteriorate” due to financial-market moves, and foreigncurrency funding may become destabilized, it said.

The central bank left unchanged its assessment that Japan’s financial system has been “maintaining stability on the whole.” Banks have “considerable resilience” in terms of capital and liquidity, and the government and central bank have implemented “swift and powerful” policy measures, it added.

The pandemic is adding to pressures on Japanese banks that have increased risk-taking to make up for declining profitability due to ultra-low interest rates and a shrinking population. To cushion the impact of the economic slump, the central bank has expanded asset purchases while the government has announced a record

stimulus package.

Lenders around the world are preparing for a wave of soured loans as businesses shut and workers lose their jobs. In Japan, banks have been increasing loans to firms that are vulnerable to economic cycles in areas such energy—a sector that’s now contending with an unprecedented oil slump.

Japanese banks, which have been investing abroad in search of returns, shifted their stance since the market turmoil intensified last month, with an increasing number taking a “more cautious” approach, the BOJ said.

Unrealized losses “deteriorated substantially” due to plunging stock prices and a spike in overseas credit spreads, the central bank said. While these were mostly offset by improvements on bond holdings thanks to falling interest rates, there may be less scope for additional gains, it added.

“Given that there is less room for further decline in overseas interest rates, the negative impact could surpass these improvements,” the BOJ said. “Should there be further adjustments in prices of stocks and credit assets overseas, sales losses and impairment losses from related investments could become large,” it said.

Bloomberg News

T

he country’s credit registry is asking lenders to be more considerate amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic, advising them not to tag missed or partial payments of loans as default or delinquent right away given the current situation.

In a statement on Tuesday, the state-run Credit Information Corp.

(CIC) said this was in accordance to the provisions of the “Bayanihan to Heal as One” Act, which requires implementation of 30-day grace period to all loans with principal and/or interest falling due during the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ).

The credit registry noted that the delayed payment will not incur interest, penalty and other charges.

“We are one with the national government in promoting and protecting the collective interest of our citizens during this unprecedented period,” CIC President and CEO Jaime Casto Jose P. Garchitorena was quoted in the statement as saying.

“Following the Bayanihan Act, lenders must not tag non-payments or missed payments as default when submitting data to the CIC,” CIC Senior Vice President for Business Development and Communications Aileen L. Amor-Bautista added. “Otherwise, it would mean that they have not given their borrowers a one-month extension to pay their obligation.”

Garchitorena said that non-payment of a borrower during the

lockdown should not be basis of one’s creditworthiness, encouraging lenders to analyze historical data as well to see the whole picture.

The CIC chief said should consider the ECQ in evaluating creditworthiness, comparing the payment behavior before and prior the lockdown.

Garchitorena said the credit registry ensures that the data submitted by the financial institutions should be accurate, which means it underwent fair review and assessment of credit history and financial condition of the borrowers.

Furthermore, Amor-Bautista said the CIC is consulting with accredited credit bureaus and other credit reporting experts to formulate best practices on how to use CIC data in assessing portfolio during and after ECQ. “We are exploring ways to include notations in the CIC Credit Report that will clearly indicate the period of ECQ to create proper context to any payment behaviors that may emerge from the same,” Garchitorena said.

The CIC currently has 483 members comprising credit card issuers, universal and commercial banks, thrift banks, rural banks, cooperatives and cooperative banks, savings and loan associations, private lending institutions, private leasing and financing companies, microfinance institutions, government-owned and controlled corporations with lending facilities and insurance companies.

Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

T

he Land Bank of the Philippines (LandBank) announced on Tuesday it has released cash grants totaling P16.34 billion to 3,721,833 Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) household-beneficiaries nationwide.

The amount of P3,650 to P6,650 per beneficiary was credited to their LandBank Cash Cards, it said in a statement.

The bank added, in coordination with other government agencies, it also started distributing to 18,602 Transport Network Vehicle Service (TNVS) drivers in the National Capital Region amounting to P148.816 million with each driver receiving P8,000 “to help tide them over in these difficult times.”

Under a Covid-19 support program of the labor department, a total of P1.2 billion in financial assistance will be released to an initial batch of 250,000 beneficiaries from 2,773 private companies at P5,000 per worker, the bank said. It added it has already started releasing to the workers from the National Capital Region. It is also working with the Department of Labor and Employment on the cash assistance for displaced land-based and sea-based overseas Filipino workers.

The LandBank added it has started releasing through a financial subsidy program of the agriculture department to 52,043 small rice farmer totaling P260.215 million at P5,000 per farmer.

It added it will continue releasing to the remaining farmers in the coming days.

Likewise, it said the social amelioration funds to local government units

(LGUs) have already been released through Landbank to the Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Bureau of Treasury Regional Offices for release to the LGUs. The Landbank clarified it is not charging or collecting any service or transaction fee in the delivery of these grants.

Aside from this, withdrawal in any LandBank Branch or ATM is free of charge, it added. Likewise, online fund transfers through InstaPay and PESONet are also free of charge during the ECQ period, according to the bank.

The bank said these programs were introduced in partnership with government agencies after it was designated as the disbursement arm of the Social Amelioration Program of the government for the implementation of Republic Act 11469. This is in compliance with Joint Memorandum Circular 1, Series of 2020, which specifies the guidelines for the provision of social amelioration measures.

LandBank said it rolled out relief packages to clients last month in the form of payment moratoriums. For credit cardholders and salary loan borrowers, as well as mortgage and housing loans, there is a 60-day grace period for payments falling due from March 18 to April 30, 2020, and a 30day grace period for business loans and project finance loans for the same period. Loan amortizations of agrarian reform beneficiaries were also granted a one-year moratorium, it added.

The Federal Reserve is buying $41 billion of assets daily and it’s not alone

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entral-bank balance sheets are expanding to record levels amid their latest buying spree, raising questions about how big they can get and whether those assets can ever be sold back to markets.

Policy-makers didn’t have much luck paring down much smaller portfolios in the decade since the financial crisis. And now they have to bankroll a coronavirus economy that’s putting government budgets under unprecedented strain and threatening

to drive companies everywhere out of business.

Assets pile up on central bank balance sheets in resurgent buying programs.

“The amounts being purchased are enormous, and it just tells you how much support is needed when the economy is closed down,” said Torsten Slok, Deutsche Bank’s chief economist.

“Just have a look at how long it took to unwind from the financial crisis of 2008 and 2009. Now we are adding at a pace

that is multiples faster.”

Central banks in Group of Seven countries purchased $1.4 trillion of financial assets in March, nearly five times as much as the previous monthly record set in April 2009, according to a Bloomberg Economics analysis.

Morgan Stanley analysts estimate that the Federal Reserve, European Central Bank, Bank of Japan and Bank of England will expand their balance sheets by a cumulative $6.8 trillion when all is said and done.

The Fed has led the charge, offering to buy unlimited amounts of US government bonds and mortgagebacked securities–and lend trillions more to corporations and municipalities through temporary purchases of their obligations–as global investors seek to unwind years worth of accumulated leverage in their own portfolios. In the week through April 15, it expanded its balance sheet at a pace of about $41 billion per day.

Central bankers in the euro area,

Japan and the UK–old hands at socalled quantitative easing programs by now–have all ramped up buying, while those in Canada, New Zealand and Australia have embarked on largescale purchases for the first time, joining Sweden among smaller economies to do so. There’s even talk that some emerging markets like Thailand may get in on the game.

“They’re all moving in the same direction,”said Aditya Bhave, an economist at Bank of America in New York. “At some

point, unconventional easing stops being unconventional.”

In the coming months, as market liquidity is replenished, monetary authorities will shift their focus to the long haul of keeping borrowing costs low to facilitate a recovery and make it easier for governments to fund their budgets.

While that may involve a slower pace of asset purchases, it certainly won’t mark a reversal, so the great balance-sheet expansion will roll ever onward.

Bloomberg News

B4

Show BusinessMirror

Wednesday, April 22, 2020

blind spot bruce c.

REACHING FOR HER DREAM WHEN the celebrity showed off her new home, everybody was shocked at how opulent it was. How were she and her husband able to afford to build a mansion? They have steady careers, yes, but never in a million years could they afford such a house.

What many don’t know is that the celebrity, once upon a time, was the apple of eye of a controversial public figure. Her then boyfriend (now husband) turned a blind eye to it because the celebrity is the dominant one in the relationship. She has the stronger personality and, most of the time, she is the one who works consistently. It was always been her dream to own a mansion and she vowed to do anything to fulfill that dream. She was never the mistress of the public figure and she technically did not cheat. She just allowed him certain liberties. We heard that the public figure even gave her a huge cash gift for their wedding.

POSITIVE

IS it true that a certain female personality contracted Covid-19 but kept it a secret? The personality got treated and self-quarantined after allegedly getting sick but she never told anyone what happened. Not her coworkers, not the people she came in contact with before she was diagnosed. What happened to the celebrity should be an eye-opener to Filipinos.

She is known to be a germophobe. She has always been careful, long before the pandemic. There’s even a story going around that she never blows her birthday candles on the cake. She removes them before blowing on them because she’s afraid of spreading her saliva everywhere. When she contracted the virus, she wanted to confront many people but she stopped herself because she did not want to cause a commotion.

INDEPENDENT...FINALLY?

THE rumor that an online sensation is dating a much older married man is said to be true. Now, the older man wants to slap himself in the face for allowing the girl to venture into show business. He was the one who encouraged her when she was having hesitations. He wanted her to have her own life and to be independent because they became a couple when she was very young. The guy thought it would be a good idea if she had her own life. It was OK at first but what irks the guy now is that the girl is being linked to other guys and she is flirty with them, being a normal young woman who enjoys attention. This is the first time that she’s actually flirting with guys other than her boyfriend. Will the illicit relationship stand this test? Let’s wait and see what happens.

MAKING NEW FRIENDS

SO the guy was caught cheating on his screen partner and very close friend. He and his screen partner were not really a couple officially but they have been acting like one. It is not true that they were forced to act sweet with each other. They really were close. The guy did not deliberately find another girl. After a couple of years, the novelty of the differences between him and his screen partner began to irk him. The things he found very charming about her before now irritated him. He realized that she hasn’t changed, which is not a bad thing, but he has. He realized he wanted to go out and meet other people. He wanted to make new friends. Did he think of his career when he was making new friends? Only he can answer that.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

‘Outlander’ star Sam Heughan speaks out against online abuse

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ONOLULU—Outlander star Sam Heughan spoke out on social media about what he calls “six years of constant bullying, harassment, stalking and false narratives”

By Eugenia Last

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Amber Heard, 34; Sherri Shepherd, 53; Jeffrey Dean Morgan, 54; Jack Nicholson, 83.

Happy Birthday: Make a decision, and follow through with your plans. If you stop prematurely or change direction abruptly, you will end up having to backtrack this year. Refuse to let a stubborn attitude take over or come between you and the success you desire. Keep your life simple, doable and without conflict, and you will bring about positive change. Your lucky numbers are 2, 14, 20, 28, 31, 43, 46.

a

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Organize your day, and leave no room for error. Precision will be your ticket to success. Physical activity will help ease stress and clear your mind. Sign up for what’s affordable, engaging and has the potential to transform into something lucrative or empowering. HHH

b

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): A change may be overdue, but don’t do something unnecessary. Stick to a plan that is userfriendly, affordable and without conflict. Don’t pull the plug on your current position or partnership before you have an alternative in place. HHH

about him.

The 39-year-old Scottish actor said in a lengthy post on his Instagram and Twitter accounts on Thursday that he’s been subjected to a range of claims that he has misled and tried to extort fans for money.

Heughan said the criticism has come to a head over his isolating in Hawaii during the coronavirus outbreak. He said he traveled to Hawaii before situation grew serious.

“I’m nervous to take three to five flights back to the UK, around 20 hours on several planes, exposing myself to more danger, to be stuck in a city,” he said.

“Upon the advice of everyone I trust, I decided to remain in a safe environment. It was a good decision.”

The posts inspired the devoted fans of Outlander to start the hashtag #IStandWithSam, and he’s received hundreds of tweets of support.

Heughan said he can not elaborate on most of the abuse he has received for legal reasons, but said people in his position should not have to tolerate the hate they get on social media.

“As an actor in these time, we feel impotent,” he said. “We can’t do much but I have tried to use what leverage I have to provide a voice to charities that need it and hopefully a little entertainment or light relief.

For those still unhappy I suggest you unfollow.” AP

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GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Pay attention to the way you look. Your appearance will make a difference in the way people treat you. A refined, classic image will attract people who want to contribute, not take advantage of you and what you are trying to accomplish. HHHH

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CANCER (June 21-July 22): Say less and do more. Refuse to get in to a debate with someone who will never see things your way.

Don’t waste time when you should be working toward something that will improve your life. A change is long overdue. HH

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LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Stop worrying about what everyone is doing, and focus on your responsibilities. Be aware of any regulations that could alter your course of action before you get involved in something apt to change your life. HHHHH

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VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): A change that doesn’t go over budget will give you the boost you need to take on a new challenge. An unexpected opening will turn out not to be as favorable as anticipated. HHH

Global leaders, activists, actors, musicians join unprecedented all-day digital Earth Day 2020 Earth Day Network has been overwhelmed with the outpouring of video messages from the global community to show their commitment to the planet as part of Earth Day 2020, happening today, April 22.

This new slate of content joins the already illustrious programming and individuals who are supporting the event. This unprecedented global event will be hosted by Ed Begley Jr. and his daughter, Hayden Begley, a musician and actress.

Messages, performances and calls-to-action will be part of Earth Day Network’s robust 11-hour (9 am ET to 9 pm ET) digital event on the homepage for the planet, www.earthday.org, as well as part of a comprehensive social media partnership with Twitter (#EarthDay2020).

The incredible lineup of personal video messages for Earth Day 2020, includes His Holiness Pope Francis; USAFacts Founder and former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer; Hayden Begley; Michelin Star Chef Dave Beran; musician Aloe Blacc; award-winning singer and songwriter Andrea Boccelli; governor of the state of Yucatán Mauricio Vila Dosal; actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt; musician Michael Franti; Maria Elena Freire, head of environmental education, state of São Paulo, Brazil; chef Kathy Freston; Unesco’s Stefania Giannini; Bernardo Goytacaces, secretary of education of the state of Rio de Janeiro.

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Today’s Horoscope

Also part of Earth Day 2020 supporters are 1 Million Women Founder and CEO Natalie Isaacs; Apple’s Lisa Jackson; former senior advisor to US President Barack Obama Valerie Jarrett; musician Jack Johnson; arch. Maya Lin; actor Josh Lucas; Massachusetts Sen. Edward Markey; musician Ziggy Marley; musician Dave Matthews; model Arizona Muse; musician Jason Mraz; musician Nahko; Future Africa and Rise Up Movement Founder Vanessa Nakate; swimmer Diana Nyad; Ambassador Javier Paulinich, general secretary of Latin American and Caribbean Economic System; Vice Minister of Environment of Peru Gabriel Quijandria; “We Don’t Have Time” Founder Ingmar Rentzhog; Najib Saab, secretary general, Arab Forum for Environment and Development; Kaddu Kiwe Sebunya, president of African Wildlife Foundation and Global Advisory committee member; actor Cody Simpson; Ashok Sridharan, president of ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability and Mayor of Bonn; EcoPeace Middle East Co-Director Yana Abu Taleb; Victor Manuel Toledo, minister for the Environment of Mexico; Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, musician Roger Waters, Jorge Munoz Wells, mayor of the City of Lima; Christine Todd Whitman, former governor of New Jersey and Global Advisory committee member; and chef Jason Wrobel.

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LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Don’t fold under pressure. Be smart about the promises you make. Pay more attention to someone you love or want to collaborate with moving forward. A personal pick-me-up will lift your spirits and encourage you to be increasingly active. HHH

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SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Take the plunge, and do something meaningful. Alter your space to make it easier to take on a new endeavor. Using the skills that bring you the most joy will encourage you to head into unfamiliar territory.

HHH

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SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Make plans with someone who shares your interests and desire for adventure. Someone who depends on you should be taken care of first. Having a clear conscience will ensure you enjoy whatever you pursue.

Romance is in the stars. HHH

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CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Go about your business. Don’t get in to emotional conversations.

If change is required, keep it simple as well as budget-friendly. Home improvements should make your life easier. Don’t complicate your life unnecessarily.

Leave the past behind you. HH

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AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Stick to what you know and do best. Honing your skills and taking care of unfinished business will put you in a good position. A job you can do from home looks promising. HHHH

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PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Lend a helping hand. The time you offer others is not a waste.

You will make a connection that can be helpful to you in the future. Keep your spending down and your focus on better health. HHH Birthday Baby: You are quick, stubborn and particular.

You are competitive and persistent.

‘odd jobs’ by zhouqin burnikel The Universal Crossword/Edited by David Steinberg

ACROSS 1 Squeaky pests 5 Org. that helps teens make good choices 9 Roe source 13 Business school subj.

14 Photographer Leibovitz 15 Batwoman or Wonder Woman 16 Blend together 17 Result of a hack job?

19 Like 2021 20 Deals with difficulties 21 First Greek letter 22 ___-cotta 24 Punxsutawney groundhog 26 What someone in a bank job manages?

29 They’re stored in jewel cases 32 Rids (of) 33 Murals or sculptures 34 Salad utensil 35 Covered in tattoos 36 Org. screening carry-ons 37 Plumber in video games 38 Lawyer’s charges

39 ___ tai 40 Walgreens location, often 41 Prepare, as tater tots 42 Rush job?

44 Lombardy lake resort 45 Despised 46 Malia Obama’s sister 49 Symbol repeated after http: 51 Snake that squeezes its prey 54 Part of a frame job?

56 Judo rank indicator 57 Laudatory poems 58 Oxidizes 59 Copier paper unit 60 Rubies and sapphires 61 Places for paraffin facials 62 Trade-___ (compromises) DOWN 1 Office note 2 Chilled with cubes 3 Abrupt way to break a habit 4 Put the kibosh on 5 Get testy with 6 Initial poker stake 7 Mass dispersion from a homeland

8 Rookie socialite 9 Oyster’s “home” 10 Big pile 11 Curved foot part 12 Home to the National Museum of Qatar 14 Decks out 18 Game delay cause 20 Guiding principle 23 Outer boundaries 25 Beret or boater 26 Spruce (up) 27 Piano technician 28 Vision-improving surgery 29 Reuben meat 30 Not as moist 31 Hybrid golf or tennis garment 34 Silly comedy 36 Bowlful with beef and beans 37 Cellphone billing period, often 39 Parent honored in May 40 Progresses with minimal effort 42 Shouts from a rowdy crowd, collectively 43 Shouts from a rowdy crowd

4 Game with queens 4 46 New Delhi air problem 47 Congressional worker 48 Cherry discard 50 One of Bart’s sisters 52 Minnesota’s St. ___ College 53 Mall conveniences 55 Many PSAT takers 56 Frat buddy Solution to yesterday’s puzzle:

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Image BusinessMirror

Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Stepping stones SUI GENERIS CARLO ATIENZA

biblisko@gmail.com

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NE of the things we hated doing in high school was the composition class where we had to write and rewrite essays after our teacher had already corrected them. We became painfully aware that we were only given one chance to redo our essays and we had to do it perfectly the second time around. While it was challenging, our teachers would always find something really good with what we wrote, and what used to be a tedious chore became an exciting challenge.

I never would have loved writing if it were not for my teachers who tirelessly corrected my essays and insightfully recommended suggestions which significantly improved my compositions. But what really struck me was their insistence that everything can be learned if you put your mind into it and give it your best effort. And just like what was once said

by Napoleon Hill, author of Think and Grow Rich, “Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve.” I am not saying I have already achieved what I want to achieve in my writing, but I do believe that attaining your desired goals require a growth mindset—the belief that success will depend on time and effort. This concept was first proposed by Carol Dweck in her book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success.

To develop a growth mindset, you need to understand that talent and brains can only get you so far. It is your effort and your determination to succeed which will keep you moving forward.

A cursory glance of the people we call geniuses are actually people who had not only the brains but also persevered and failed several times until they succeeded. Take the case of Thomas Edison, who famously said, “I didn’t fail. I just found 2,000 ways not to make a light bulb.” Every failure is an opportunity to learn, and a growth mindset is important if you want to develop yourself further.

One thing you need to understand is that people have different learning curves. Just because it was easy for someone to learn something does not mean that everybody will learn the same way. It takes time and effort for you to learn a new skill, let alone master it. Do not compare your growth to others because they may be a fast learner in one skill but extremely slow in another. Focus on yourself and how you are learning the new skill so you can think of better and creative ways of doing it. For all you know, you just might discover a new way of using the skill for another problem.

Look for the gems in criticisms and feedback. It is difficult accepting criticism, especially when you have invested so much time and effort on your work.

But like gems, you need to cut away the dirt and rock to expose the nugget of wisdom. You will be thankful later on for their criticism because in the end, you

to you later on. And even if an assignment proves to have been not all that beneficial, you would still have learned new ways of doing things from another’s perspective. Did you know that fail stands for first attempt in learning? Stop thinking of failure as an end in itself. Use the lessons from the experience to improve your ways of working and thinking of new ways to move forward.

Teach others because this will help you solidify your understanding of the skill. Teaching others is learning twice and helps you uncover opportunities for improvement. This also opens opportunities to learn from others because people are able to see it from their own perspective and possibly offer a better

way of doing it. This will help not only you but the entire team, as well.

To cultivate a growth mindset in the workplace, praise the effort rather than the natural ability of people. This avoids the mentality that some people are just born with it, or the thinking that whatever they do, they can never keep up with the model employee.

People need to understand that it is possible for them to excel with their effort.

And when you do give feedback, make it specific and constructive. Specific in the sense that the recipient of the feedback understands what is needed to improve in their work. Constructive in the sense that what you say and how you say it is geared toward making people want to change because they want to and not out of fear or repercussions later on.

In Ken Blanchard’s book One Minute Manager, he advises managers to catch people doing good. I recently watched an episode of 100 Humans on Netflix and one episode tackled the issue of whether praise actually helped people do better. The experiment showed that it did. People are more willing to try again and improve their skill when they are praised for their efforts.

Pearls are formed when a grain of sand inadvertently goes inside an oyster and irritates it.

The oyster defends itself by covering the speck of sand with nacre over and over again until it forms the pearl. Similarly, when we remain in our comfort zones and do not take risks because we do not want to feel aggrieved, we miss out on opportunities for developing something wonderful within ourselves.

But when we do discover we can do so much better, we need to pay it forward and help others find their own pearls. ■

with, Krueger says.

If you’re in or near retirement, you need to know how bear markets might affect your future spending and whether to tap other assets, such as home equity.

Even if you’re decades away from retirement, you may want reassurance that your plan is still on track.

Even if you don’t have a pressing financial need, it might be a good time to do a Roth conversion, sell losing stocks to offset gains from winners, rebalance your investments or even speed up your retirement contributions.

CFP Malcolm Ethridge, executive vice president of CIC Wealth in Rockville, Maryland, is encouraging his younger clients whose job prospects are good to

boost their 401(k) and individual retirement account contributions now.

“That way, you get those dollars in there while the market is selling at a discount and take full advantage of the buying opportunity,” Ethridge says.

Bad markets and trying economic times are an opportunity to see how seriously advisers take their responsibilities to their clients, says CFP Brett A. Koeppel, president of Eudaimonia Wealth in Buffalo, New York.

“Our character is often determined by how we show up at times of adversity,” Koeppel says. “Now is the time to lean into it, and step up for the families that count on us to do so.”

Pearls are formed when a grain of sand inadvertently goes inside an oyster and irritates it. The oyster defends itself by covering the speck of sand with nacre over and over again until it forms the pearl. Similarly, when we remain in our comfort zones and do not take risks because we do not want to feel aggrieved, we miss out on opportunities for developing something wonderful within ourselves. But when we do discover we can do so much better, we need to pay it forward and help others find their own pearls. would have benefited because their feedback could only have improved your work. Do not be afraid to ask for specifics on how to improve your work better because they can offer another perspective which you may not have thought of before.

Accept stretch assignments from your manager, or ask for one. One of the ways you can challenge your limitations and develop a growth mindset is by taking on new tasks. A person who wants to grow is willing to improve their craft so they can develop new skill sets or even develop the ones which will help them in their professional development. You have to be clear about your career goals so you can also filter which assignments would be more beneficial

Is your financial adviser really helping you?

BY LIZ WESTON NerdWallet STOCK market crashes don’t just test investors’ mettle. Abrupt downturns also can reveal what kind of financial adviser you have. Some people will discover, to their horror, that they’ve been dealing with outright crooks. Ponzi schemes are among the cons that fall apart when markets do, as investors try to pull their money out and discover it’s gone. More commonly, people learn that their advisers didn’t put the clients’ best interests first. The adviser may have recommended investments that were unsuitably risky or hard to sell, or failed to adequately diversify clients’ portfolios.

Even if you dodge the worst, your adviser may not deliver the value you expected. It’s reasonable to assume you’ll get some degree of hand-holding, reassurance and personal service when you choose a human adviser over less expensive options, such as a robo-adviser or investing on your own. The answers to the following questions could help you decide whether it’s time to look for an adviser willing to live up to those expectations.

HAVE YOU EVEN HEARD FROM YOUR ADVISER? DEMANDING instant responses isn’t realistic at a time when advisers, like the rest of us, are grappling with pandemic-wrought changes. They may be working from home, struggling with unfamiliar technologies, trying to keep their pantry filled and home-schooling their kids. Family members may be ill or at risk. Plus, they may be busy responding to clients who are a lot more freaked out than you

are, or at least more vocal about it. Still, by now your adviser should have checked in with you—and mass communications, such as e-mail newsletters don’t count. If you’ve called or e-mailed, you should be getting responses.

“We return e-mails and calls within 24 hours,” says Catherine S. Gearig, a certified financial planner with LifePlan Financial Advisory Group in Rochester Hills, Michigan. “We’re reaching out to every client on our roster via telephone to see how they are doing and talking through their concerns.”

IS YOUR ADVISER LISTENING? LET’S say you have heard from your adviser. Was it a pep talk, a lecture or a conversation? Good advisers remind clients of their goals, encourage them to stick with their strategy and reassure them that markets always bounce back eventually. But good advisers also ask plenty of questions and pay attention to the answers.

“This is the time for collaboration and listening to how you feel, how you see yourself being impacted by a recession, or even personal or medical health concerns you have,” says Pam Krueger, CEO of Wealthramp, an online service that connects consumers with vetted, independent fiduciary advisers. “It’s not about portfolios and investments and mutual funds all the time.”

IS YOUR ADVISER LEANING IN? IF you’ve lost your job, you may need to find health insurance, file for unemployment, evaluate a severance package and figure out how to make ends meet—all tasks that a good adviser should help you

B5

B6 Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Save the Children launches its biggest ever appeal to protect children from COVID-19 Valenzuela City implements 120-day rent suspension for Disiplina Village residents

As the country is still reeling from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, Valenzuela City announces a 4-month grace period for tenants of Disiplina Village Bignay and Disiplina Village Ugong through Ordinance No. 691, Series of 2020.

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HE moratorium, which was declared on April 13, 2020, seeks to alleviate the financial burden of residents who are experiencing the effects of the extended Luzon-wide Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ).

Ordinance No. 691, Series of 2020, otherwise known as the "Rental Payment Moratorium Ordinance for Disiplina Village Residents", grants the residents of the two (2) Disiplina Villages a temporary reprieve of one hundred twenty (120) days from their monthly rental dues covering the period of March 17 to July 15, 2020.

The rental fee accumulated during the 120-day moratorium period shall

then be divided into equal installments to be settled in four (4) months following the rent freeze period. The amortized amount shall be added to rental fee due in the next months with no interest, surcharge, or penalty. However, the City Government iterates that the tenants will still have to pay their water, electricity, Internet, and other utility bills during the moratorium period.

The Ordinance also gives authority to Mayor REX Gatchalian to stretch the moratorium period should the national government decide to further extend the ECQ. By issuing a rent moratorium, the City Government honors its commitment

to uphold the current living condition of the tenants and provide them with decent housing despite the challenges brought about by this global public health emergency.

Disiplina Village is the flagship incity resettlement site and public rental housing project for the informal settler families (ISFs) of Valenzuela City.

Currently, the Disiplina Village Bignay and Disiplina Vilage Ugong house 4,594 ISFs in 143 buildings. Built like mini cities, these villages have city hall annexes or Sentro ng Sama-Samang Serbisyo (3S Centers), daycare centers and schools, health stations and activity centers.

Hyundai boosts battle vs COVID with initial donation of PPEs to UP-PGH

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YUNDAI Asia Resources, Inc. (HARI), the official Philippine distributor of Hyundai passenger and commercial vehicles, reinforces ongoing containment efforts with a fresh supply of personal protective equipment to the heroic front liners at UP-Philippine General Hospital (PGH). UP-PGH is one the country’s COVID-19 designated hospitals.

Yesterday, HARI initially delivered 300 of 2,500 PPEs for front liners at the UP-PGH. The donation was channeled through #HyundaiSAGIP, the flagship disaster relief program of HARI's corporate social responsibility arm, H.A.R.I. Foundation, Inc. (HFI). Established in 2009 as a quick response to Hyundai car owners whose vehicles were damaged by the Ondoy floods, HyundaiSAGIP has since expanded into a response,

UP-PGH front liners receive the first batch of PPEs from HARI Foundation Inc.

recovery, and resilience program.

The country's premier state-run University Hospital and the largest government health facility and referral center is HFI's staunch partner in the flagship Alagang Breastfriend free breast cancer screening and information dissemination campaign.

"We cannot stop at this point. We need

to help flatten the curve. Our contribution will most certainly boost the morale of our heroic health workers in our united effort to contain the spread of the disease.

As partners in health, HARI and UP-PGH are committed to be in solidarity with every Filipino in these unsettling times,” said HARI and HFI President Maria Fe Perez-Agudo

Toyota Motor Philippines is one with the country in helping communities conquer COVID-19

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S the country undergoes enhanced community quarantine to “flatten the curve” in order to manage the COVID-19 pandemic, Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation (TMPC) continues to contribute to help communities move forward through mobility support and special assistance to its customers.

Keeping our customers' safety and convenience in mind, Toyota Financial Services Philippines extended the payment terms for their customers.

Likewise, expiring insurance policies under Toyota Insure and warranty coverages for Toyota vehicles have been extended. Toyota vehicles scheduled for Periodic Maintenance Services are also given a 30-day grace period.

With all kinds of public transportation suspended, it has become a challenge for most frontliners, especially healthcare workers to report for duty in their respective hospitals.

TMPC has coordinated with various local government units and hospitals to lend out its company vehicles to doctors and nurses serving in different healthcare institutions.

To date, 47 Toyota vehicles have been allocated to help bring urgent care to patients. Other units were also lent to volunteer groups who are distributing personal protective equipment to healthcare workers in various hospitals.

Toyota Motor Philippines Foundation (TMPF) meanwhile has handed out donations for health care workers and families who need support.

Some PPEs, such as isolation gowns, surgical gowns, and surgical gloves were donated to Santa Rosa Community hospital, while sacks of rice and grocery packages were distributed to hard to reach areas and certain communities including the Toyota Santa Rosa Gawad Kalinga Village which is home to more

than 150 families.

As Metrobank Card Corporation’s way of expressing gratitude to our to our frontliners' passion, commitment, and bravery, all frontliners who are Toyota Mastercard credit card holders will be given Petron fuel rebates from April 15-30,2020. Through this, we hope mobility is made lighter and more convenient for our frontliners.

In these challenging times, TMPC is one with our nation’s leaders, health care workers, frontliners and volunteer groups in fighting this pandemic. We continue to empower people through mobility and advocating for safety.

Toyota is here for you. Together, we look forward to better days ahead.

For more Toyota updates, visit www.toyota.com.ph or check out Toyota’s official social media pages at ToyotaMotorPhilippines (Facebook and Instagram), and @ToyotaMotorPH (Twitter).

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AVE the Children has launched a global appeal to raise US$100 Million to manage the spread of COVID-19 and support survival through food security among the most vulnerable families across 120 countries, including the Philippines.

The biggest appeal since the 1918-1920 Spanish Flu pandemic, Save the Children believes that “early action is critical because a delay will cost lives, and rob children of opportunities.”

Tagged as #ProtectAGeneration, the appeal coincides with the World Health Day celebration on April 7, where the roles of nurses and midwives are recognized to keep the world healthy amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Atty. Alberto Muyot, Chief Executive Officer of Save the Children Philippines says that the COVID-19 pandemic spares no one – both rich and poor, young and old, but those who have the least in life, and not able to cope will be hit first and hardest, including the vulnerable and deprived children and their families.

“Children suffer the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Atty. Muyot. The rising deaths of adults leave children without parents, and guardians, while the loss of income for families is causing widespread hunger and poverty.

The 100-years of Save the Children’s expertise in providing a humanitarian response to a pandemic dates back to the Spanish flu in 1918.

“We need to go back and remember at how we started as a humanitarian organization,” said Muyot. “We need to be where we are most needed by children and their families.”

In the Philippines, the funds will be used to support the most vulnerable children and their families with hygiene essentials to ward off diseases, cash assistance to help them recover from the unintended impact of the enhanced community quarantine, and educate families about the importance of physical distancing, proper hygiene and other behaviors needed to prevent and reduce transmission of the deadly virus.

Over half a million community health workers are currently providing support in 44 countries, including the Philippines. Save the Children Philippines support community health workers who attend to the health and nutrition needs of the most deprived children and families in Southern Mindanao, communities in Samar province, and in the cities of Navotas, Caloocan, and Malabon in Metro Manila.

Atty. Muyot also said the funds will support education personnel and government health agencies to equip local health workers with the required personal protective equipment and medical supplies, training, and mental health and psychosocial support.

He also raised concern that more children now experience hunger, poor health, and malnutrition as thousands of families face a loss of income, including those in the informal sector due to limited mobility during Enhanced Community Quarantine. “School closures also pose risks on children who will be forced to work to earn a living for their families while adolescent girls may end up in early marriage,” said Atty. Muyot.

Dr. Amado Parawan, Health and Nutrition Advisor of Save the Children Philippines said the loss of jobs and stable income of parents, guardians during quarantine is expected to increase the cases of malnutrition in the country.

He said families must ensure they have at least five (5) servings of fruits and vegetables every day, and drink 8-10 glasses of water to boost their immune system. Parents and guardians were also advised to serve healthy meals to children instead of junk foods.

Prior to COVID-19 pandemic, the country’s child malnutrition rate is one of the highest in the world, with one in three children under 5 years of age is stunted due to prolonged hunger resulting in chronic malnutrition.

At the same time, at least 48.2 per cent of babies six

A child wears her mask as protection from COVID-19. Photo by Lei Tapang/Save the Children

to 11 months have anemia due to poor feeding practices and inadequate food, according to the 2018 Expanded National Nutrition Survey by the Department of Science and Technology-Food and Nutrition Research Institute (DOST-FNRI).

“The loss of income to thousands of families immediately translates into not being able to put food on the table,” said Dr. Parawan.

He said vulnerable families need financial support to afford nutritious diets – particularly for pregnant and lactating mothers and children up to the age of two.

Save the Children’s #ProtectAGeneration global appeal aims to provide financial support to families in crisis through cash and voucher assistance in over 30 countries around the world.

Atty. Muyot said the funds will also support distance learning and interactive learning activities for millions of children missing out on school due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We will provide guidance and resources to help parents and caregivers to support children’s learning,” he said, adding that “the key to our support will be how to maintain structure and routine, and how to keep children engaged in play and learning activities at home.”

Save the Children Philippines has developed mobile apps like i-Mulat that is downloadable in the Google Play Store, to give parents a wealth of suggested family learning activities for children 0 to 6 years old that they can do at home.

The i-Mulat app contains key messages and videos on how parents can support their children to achieve their developmental milestones. Parents can also log the activities they do with their children as well as observations on their child’s development in the app.

The COVID-19 pandemic is a crisis that goes beyond health systems, said Atty. Muyot.

“Economic recession and the socio-economic disruption accompanying lockdowns have already inflicted immense human suffering even in high-income countries with strong safety nets. The risks now facing vulnerable populations in poorer countries with high levels of poverty and weak safety nets are even more serious and much greater,” he said Atty. Muyot is appealing to individuals and businesses to support #ProtectAGeneration through donations on https://donate.savethechildren.org.ph/campaign/covid19#donatearea or by calling: Candice dela Cruz at 0929754-3066 or supportercare.ph@savethechildren.org

Nutrition tips to boost immune system

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ONSUME fruits and vegetables especially those that are naturally rich in vitamin C (bell pepper, orange, limes, lemon, guava, pineapple, tomatoes, broccoli, etc.) Whether you have the flu or not, it is very vital that you naturally keep your immune system strong and healthy to prevent infections and diseases. Taking vitamin C in supplement form may also be recommended because your body doesn’t produce or store it. Don’t forget herbs and spices that have powerful antiviral and antimicrobial properties such as garlic and ginger to fight off infections.

Consider eating foods that naturally contain probiotics or prepared in bacterial fermentation such as yoghurt, kefir, kimchi, sauerkraut, miso, kombucha, etc.

You may also take probiotic supplements, if not available.

Just be sure to include non-digestible fiber in your diet to fuel the growth of good healthy bacteria. Having the right amount of gut bacteria in the body can lead to enhanced immune function.

Eat foods that are high in antioxidant levels.

Antioxidants help reduce free radicals in the body. Aside from vitamin C, it is also essentially important to get other sources of antioxidants like vitamins A, E and zinc to help reduce inflammation in the body and increase immunity.

You may also get them in plant-based sources like nuts, beans and seeds.

Drink enough water; at least 8-10 glasses per day. Water can do wonders to your body especially as an immune system booster. Aside from keeping you hydrated, it also carries oxygen to every single cell in our body and flushes out toxins from your body. Make sure that the water you ingest is free of harmful contaminants and chemicals.

Incorporate light to moderate exercises for 30-45 minutes on a regular basis. Exercise is not just for losing or maintaining weight. It also can help lower blood pressure levels, improve cardiovascular health, increase circulation and reduce stress. If you’ve been inactive for a long time, start slowly. Exercise can contribute to the overall health of an individual and therefore lead to a healthier immune system.

Get at least 7-8 hours of quality sleep per day for optimum health. Your body heals and regenerates while you sleep. Sleep deprivation or lack of sleep can elevate cortisol levels and may affect how fast you recover if ever you get sick.

Avoid foods and drinks that can compromise your immune system such as soda, processed foods, refined carbohydrates, refined sugar and alcoholic beverages.

Avoid smoking, as well. When your immune system is compromised, you are more likely to get sick.

Recommended Vitamins & Supplements: Probiotics upon waking up, Vit C, at least 1000mg preferably after a meal, Vit D, around 10000 IU. Alternately, expose yourself to sunlight for 15 minutes, nurture that quality connection with the lifegiving quality of the Sun. Zinc lozenge or probiotic lozenge especially when you need to go out to get food. Colloidal silver spray will also do.

Get warm salt water inhalation after your grocery trip.

Heat water. Dissolve 1 tsp of salt on a large bowl. Place towel over your head as you inhale. This should cleanse the nasal passages and prevent viral problems.

Visit www.thefarmatsanbenito.com for more information.

BusinessMirror

Editor: Tet Andolong

Wednesday, April 22, 2020 B7

Coworking spaces will continue to grow

By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes

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factor why they are moving into the coworking space. Since a lot of MNCs use office spaces as temporary or swing spaces, going into coworking spaces gives them the flexibility to move in and out of an office space at short notice and avoid complicated contract negotiations, fit out work, and dealings with brokers, landlords, and property managers.

Right now, coworking spaces have become part of the growth landscape of the local real-estate industry. “In fact, both foreign and local flexible space operators, as well as real-estate developers have recognized this opportunity and are developing all types of coworking spaces around Metro Manila,” LRG said.

Makati and BGC are currently the preferred locations for establishing coworking sites and have the largest number of coworking spaces because of the heavy concentration of businesses in these areas. Currently, the five companies handling the biggest chunk of the country’s coworking spaces have, more or less, 33,000 seats on the market.

LRG, for one, is currently handling Work Studios located at the Infinity Tower in BGC. With a total of 172 seats, it also boasts of 122 private studios, three meeting rooms, 31 dedicated desks, 19 hot desks, 18 breakout areas, and 27 lounges. LRG predicts that the property markets in Quezon City, Ortigas and Alabang will benefit next.

@brownindio

HE advancements in mobile technology and modern personal devices have changed the way people work. This enabled both employees and employers to work outside the confines of a traditional office space without compromising work product.

This development has led to the RT rise in popularity of the cowork ing space specia l ly in Metro Manila, according to the Lobien Realty Group (LRG).

The millennial generation who comprise the bulk of the metropolitan sector, is the main reason behind the growth of coworking space. “Coworking provides an alternative work environment that is conducive for work without the rigidity of a traditional office,” LRG said in a press statement.

LRG observed the demand for coworking spaces in Metro Manila is increasing from freelancers, entrepreneurs, start-ups, small corporations, IT firms, BPOs, and even multinational corporations.

Moreover, the benefits of cost, increased productivity and convenience are some of the main

reasons coworking has become a viable option for businesses.

LRG pointed out that cost is one of the premier reasons coworking has become popular. It has a strong appeal to firms looking for office space but need to conserve money. Aside from the lower costs, coworking spaces do not require long-term lease contracts; come equipped with fundamental amenities, furniture and equipment of modern offices.

Coworking spaces increases productivity, foster collaboration, cooperation, innovation, creativity and a spirit of community by exposing people to new business concepts and encouraging the exchange of ideas.

LRG mentioned that multinational corporations (MNCs) also consider convenience as a major

Workspace perspective

Meeting room perspective

Century Properties expands after-sales services to unit buyers O

WNING a condominium property in the Philippines can be one of the better investments out there for those who are looking to grow their passive income. With the rental property market on the upswing, one can enjoy a good return of investment from short or long term leasing. However, it can be a challenge to manage a rental property or a future retirement home if the owner is overseas or too busy to handle all the legwork personally.

Learning about the urgent need of its condo owners for professional asset and leasing management services, the listed Philippine realestate developer Century Properties Group established Siglo Suites in 2015. The goal of extending the after-sales service is to help Century clients realize the value of their investments by helping them lease out their units, handle day-to-day maintenance, and give the proper advice on what needs to be done to keep their units in excellent condition.

Siglo Suites can take care of one’s unit from the point of turnover. This includes setting up and furnishing the home, managing bills, and handling of unit repairs and other maintenance works. Further, Siglo Suites acts as a reliable

Milano Residences

partner of unit owners by offering effective marketing strategies for short-term, medium-term and long-term serviced stays for them.

“Century Properties’ commitment to its clients doesn’t end after the turnover of units. It is a long-term service that works to preserve the value of their homes and give good returns through Siglo Suites,” said Jaime Navarro,

Siglo Suite’s head of Sales, Unit Management and Marketing.

Siglo Suites currently handles over 1,500 units in Makati City (The Milano Residences, The Gramercy Residences, The Knightsbridge Residences); Mandaluyong City (Acqua Private Residences); Parañaque City (Azure Urban Resort Residences); and Quezon City (The Residences at Commonwealth).

ACqua Private Residences

Knightsbridge

Centur y received an overwhelming response from unit owners who availed of the asset and leasing management services. In 2019, Navarro reported that Siglo Suites has generated and remitted P448 million in rental income to condominium unit owners, a 23-percent increase compared to P365 million in 2018. Of the total generated rental income, P78 mil-

lion came from short and mid-term leases of units, while P370 million was generated through long-term lease of units (12 months and up).

Couple Caesar and Ju lieta Manacsa, unit owners of Century’s the Knightsbridge Residences and Siglo partners since 2015, said they have had a wonderful six years of experience with Century and three years with Siglo Suites: “The income created and managed by Siglo Suites is very satisfying. Repairs to my unit were done immediately and minimized lost time. My unit was back in the market to generate income for me and my family.

Very dependable company.”

Raymond Mendez and Aileen Jamoralin, unit owners of Century’s Azure Urban Resort Residences and Siglo Suites partners since 2017, said Siglo Suites’ services perfectly fit their needs as professionals working overseas. “My husband and I live overseas and tend to rely heavily on property management. We needed an efficient and cost-effective property manager to handle our properties 100 percent from unit preparations, maintenance, documentations and law compliance. This company has eliminated all our stress and worries. Staff professionalism and reliability have been outstanding from day 1. This gave us confidence that our property is really in great hands,” Jamoralin said in her customer testimonial.

Francisco Vytingco, unit owner of Century’s Acqua Private Residences and partner since 2017, said: “Siglo relieved me from the stress of worrying about whether or not my unit will be rented out. From day 1 of signing up with them, I can vouch that it is worth it. That experience of easily reaching out to your accounts specialist or anyone who is willing to answer your query with regards to your unit, and the fact that your unit is earning—these are some of the things that make me a very satisfied unit owner. I love Siglo!”

Valenzuela OKs deadline for payment of real property tax amid Covid-19

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By Roderick L. Abad

INCE the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) has been extended until end of this month, the Valenzuela City Council approved to prolong also the deadline for payments of the real property tax and transfer tax.

Greenlighted during the recent 34th regular session of the City Council, this is the local government’s initiative to provide temporary relief to communities, businesses, and individuals affected by the lockdown.

With the ongoing ECQ, only entities producing essential goods and delivering vital services are allowed to operate, thus, leaving a good number of companies and organizations with little or no income at all.

The extension aims to give real property owners ample time to come up with the payments for their dues.

Ordinance 689, Series of 2020 declares the extension of the deadline for the payment of real property tax for the first quarter of 2020 and transfer tax due during the ECQ period.

It grants an additional 30 days from the date of the lifting of the ECQ is given to taxpayers to settle their obligations.

This is the second deadline extension for the payment of real property and transfer taxes as the City Council had already passed similar ordinances last March 23.

Ordinance 677, Series of 2020 and Ordinance 678, Series of 2020 mandates the deferment of payment deadline of real property tax and transfer tax, respectively, until April 30 without any interest or penalty.

Such measure, coauthored and approved by the 8th City Council were also certified as urgent by Valenzuela City Mayor Rexlon Gatchalian.

Constituents are also encouraged to pay through the Valenzuela City Online Services or “Paspas Permit” at https:// online.valenzuela.gov.ph/.

Sports BusinessMirror

B8 Wednesday, April 22, 2020

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph / Editor: Jun Lomibao

NO CASINOS, NO FUNDING T PHILIPPINE Sports Commission Chairman William Ramirez says athletes will always be the agency’s priority.

By Jun Lomibao

HE Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) has tasked its finance department to draw a contingency plan aimed at sustaining the agency’s financial support to national athletes and coaches once the National Sports Development Fund (NSDF) is depleted.

And one potential option is to put national athletes and coaches and coordinators under an amelioration program as funds from government casinos are expected to go nil as a result of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ).

The PSC board addressed the impending crisis in a special online meeting on Tuesday where Chairman William Ramirez tasked the commissioners and department heads— specifically the Office of the Executive Director and Finance Bureau—to do a feasibility study on the program.

The PSC operates financially from two

sources—general appropriations (GA) and the NSDF. The budget from GA for day-to-day operations, utilities and salaries of organic personnel, among others, is pegged at P300 million. For 2020, the PSC got an additional P400 million from the GA for the country’s hosting of the Asean Para Games which were moved back thrice and are tentatively set for September.

The allowances of athletes and coaches— including their food, lodging and uniforms— plus the equally important domestic and foreign training and exposure and equipment are sourced from the NSDF. And here’s the problem.

Government casinos ran by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. are closed during the ECQ, which enters its sixth and final week before expiring on April 30. The average monthly remittance from Pagcor to the PSC coffers run up to P100 million representing 98 percent of the NSDF.

The NSDF also has the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (horseracing) and Bureau of Customs (taxes on sports equipment) as sources but their contribution are minimal, PSC Chief of Staff Marc Velasco told the BusinessMirror.

“The objective is to see to it that the athletes are well taken care of,” Velasco said.

“The amelioration program is a contingency measure [once the NSDF is depleted].”

There are at least 800 national athletes and officials who receive allowances of varying scales depending on their performances or medals won in global competitions.

The PSC have already released the February and March allowances to athlete and coaches and they are bound to receive their due in April next month.

“The PSC is stretching its available budget for the athletes and coaches. But with the closure of the casinos, we don’t expect the NSDF to be replenished, that is why there is a need for a contingency measure,” he said.

FIL-AM THROWER DOES A ‘MACGYVER’ AMID QUARANTINE

By Ramon Rafael Bonilla

PBA donates medical eqpt to frontliners

F

ILIPINO-AMERICAN William Morrison is not whiling his time away from training as lockdowns are enforced during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Philippine record holder in shot put, Morrison has never stopped training as he targets a ticket to the postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

“It has been a little slow the past two months,” Morrison told the BusinessMirror,

T

HE Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) donated PPEs (personal protective equipment) to hospitals in three cities that have regularly hosted the league’s games.

Besides PPEs, the PBA also gave face masks, gloves and other protective gear to hospitals in Pasig City, Antipolo City and Biñan City.

Pasig City Vice Mayor Iyo Bernardo went to the PBA office in Libis, Quezon City, to personally receive the donations that will benefit the Pasig City Children’s Hospital, Pasig City General Hospital and the Rizal Medical Center.

The league, meanwhile, coordinated with Antipolo City Mayor Andrea Ynares and her predecessor Casimiro “Jun” Ynares III, and Biñan City Rep. Len Alonte and Vice Mayor Angelo Alonte for their donations.

All three cities had been regularly holding PBA games at the PhilSports Arena (Pasig), Ynares Center (Antipolo) and the Alonte Sports Arena (Biñan).

The PBA board under Chairman Ricky Vargas and Gillette Philippines initiated the effort aimed at helping eradicate the Covid-19 pandemic.

PBA Commissioner Willie Marcial earlier announced that the PBA Board of Governors donated P1 million worth of PPEs and other medical supplies to support the country’s health-care workers.

The move was made during the Board’s online meeting last April 7 with all 12 member-teams— Rain or Shine, Alaska, Barangay Ginebra, NorthPort, TnT Katropa, Meralco, NLEX, San Miguel, Columbian Dyip, Blackwater, Phoenix and Magnolia— committing to the cause.

Marcial said more donations will be made by the PBA in the coming days and will include Pasay City under Mayor Imelda Calixto and the municipality of Talisay in Batangas.

He said a frontliner from Batangas, Michelle Padilla, requested for protective gears to be used by medical workers at the Talisay Health Center and Birthing Home.

The league will also support Veterans’ Hospital, National Center for Mental Health, Batangas Provincial Hospital, among others.

The PBA also provided financial assistance to its game-day personnel.

THROWER William Morrison continues training on an improvised facility.

who, like all other Americans, are struck hard by the new coronavirus close to 43,000 reported deaths and 800,000 confirmed cases across the country.

“I have found a nice open grass area with enough concrete and it has a circle and toe board,” said Morrison, who, like all other US NCAA athletes, are forbiden to hold team practices, more so engage collectively in sports activities.

The student athlete at Indiana University said he won’t stop until he gets that Olympic berth.

“I have been able to pick up all my normal training supplies and use them whenever I have training day,” said the Bloomington native whose 18.38 meters effort earned him the men’s shot put gold medal of the 30th Southeast Asian Games at the New Clark City Athletics Stadium last December.

Morrison went for a second gold but settled for silver in the discus.

Last February, Morrison went even further to rewrite his own Philippine record by heaving the sphere to 20.21m at the Meyo Invitational.

Those numbers came interestingly close to the Olympic qualifying standard of 21.10m— that’s unless World Athletics raises the bar

higher after the Games were moved next year from July 24 to August 9.

But Morrison stressed he could make the grade.

“During my training this year I was able to do things I haven’t done before. I felt I was at the top of my game this season,” he said. “To cut it short stings a little bit.”

“But I have been getting a lot of rest, and be able to ‘self-reflect’ and mentally prepare for the next Olympic year,” he added.

Staying in top condition is easier said than done and to while away quarantine time when he is off his improvised training facility, Morrison goes online to play Call of Duty, Fortnite and GTA. “We are not allowed to be outside [unless] we are alone or not within 6 feet from people,” he said.

“I am grateful to have the support of my friends and family, my coach here and all the staff of Patafa [Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association]. I have never lost sight of reaching the Olympic standard and never thought of not surpassing it,” he said.

“I typically do not get overwhelmed with big accomplishments. When I say I’m going to do something, I do it,” he added.

JAPANESE PROFESSOR ‘VERY PESSIMISTIC’

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OKYO—A Japanese professor of infectious disease says he is “very pessimistic” the postponed Tokyo Olympics can open in 15 months.

“To be honest with you, I don’t think the Olympics is likely to be held next year,” Kentaro Iwata, a professor of infectious disease at Kobe University, said Monday speaking in English on a teleconference. “Holding the Olympics needs two conditions—one, controlling Covid-19 in Japan, and controlling Covid-19 everywhere.”

Toshiro Muto, the CEO of the Tokyo organizing committee, expressed his own reservations 10 days ago. Since then, the organizing committee and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) have said there is no “Plan B’’ other than working for the Olympics to open on July 23, 2021.

“I am very pessimistic about holding the Olympic Games next summer unless you hold the Olympic Games in a totally different structure such as no audience, or a very limited participation,” Iwata said, speaking at a forum arranged by the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan in Tokyo.

“You have to invite so many athletes from many, many places, which is not very compatible with this Covid-19 infection that is causing a pandemic. Japan might

be able to control this disease by next summer. And I wish we could. But I don’t think that will happen everywhere on Earth.”

Japan was spared during the initial stage of the coronavirus outbreak. But cases are now spiking, particularly in Tokyo and other large cities.

As of Monday, there were about 12,000 detected infections in Japan and about 250 deaths.

Devi Sridhar, professor of Global Health at the University of Edinburgh, said holding the Olympics may hinge on finding a vaccine.

“I think it all depends on whether we have a vaccine,” Sridhar said late last week. “And so I think if you talk to some of the scientists, they’re saying we’ll have a vaccine by the fall and we can manufacture it quickly and we can get it out to people. If we do, then I’d say, actually, we have a great chance of going ahead with the Olympics.”

Sridhar said without a vaccine, the Olympics in 2021 were unlikely. This could also apply to the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, which are to open in China in February—just six months after the Summer Games are to close.

“If it looks in the next few months that a vaccine is proving difficult, that actually it has massive side effects or it’s not effective or we’re not actually building immunity in individuals, then I think it’ll

[Olympics] have to be delayed,” Sridhar said.

Dr. Ali S. Khan, the dean of the College of Public Health at the University of Nebraska, told The Associated Press in an e-mail that even without a vaccine it may be possible to go ahead.

“Fifteen months is plenty of time for public health to wrap around this problem even without a vaccine or drug,” Khan said, suggesting the creativity of the “medicoindustrial complex” would tackle the problem.

“Think handheld personal testing devices the way we test for blood sugar,” Khan said.

He also said it might take some “rethinking” of the Olympics in terms “venues, backend, athletes, and spectators.”

The Olympics draw 11,000 athletes, with 4,400 Paralympians also attending—all the athletes with large staffs of trainers, coaches and support teams. Athletes are to stay in a sprawling housing complex on Tokyo Bay. The Olympics draw thousands of foreign visitors, and depend on air travel and hundreds of hotels.

IOC member John Coates, who has overseen the preparations of the Tokyo Olympics, said last week the IOC believes it has given itself “as much time as possible.” But he acknowledged the possibility of unprecedented changes.

“It may be there is still an issue about the

Djokovic: No to vaccine B NOVAK DJOKOVIC is criticized for his comment on social media. AP

ELGRADE, Serbia—Novak Djokovic says if an anti-coronavirus vaccination is compulsory for tennis players to return to the world tours then he won’t take it.

Ranked No. 1 in the world, Djokovic

said in a live Facebook chat he wouldn’t “be forced by someone to take a vaccine in order to be able to travel.”

“Hypothetically, if the season was to resume in July, August or September, though unlikely, I understand that a vaccine will

JAPANESE Prof. Kentaro Iwata: Holding the Olympics needs two conditions—controlling Covid-19 in Japan and controlling Covid-19 everywhere. AP

number of people congregating and those things, testing on athletes,” Coates said. “It’s too early to say.”

Japan is officially spending $12.6 billion or organize the Olympics, although a government audit board put the figure at twice that. All but $5.6 billion is taxpayer money.

Local estimates say the postponement will cost between $2 billion and $6 billion with Japanese governments picking up almost all the bills. AP

become a requirement straight after we are out of strict quarantine and there is no vaccine yet.”

Djokovic spoke on Sunday. He and his wife Jelena, who have two children, have spoken previously against vaccinations.

Prominent Serbian virologist Predrag Kon, a member of the state team fighting the spread of Covid-19, replied to Djokovic on Facebook that he should not make such anti-vaccination statements because of his huge public influence

Al Mendoza alsol47@yahoo.com

THAT’S ALL

The Masters of Miñoza THERE is no Masters winner this year. Covid-19, the samanagun, had wiped out the one momentous major held hitherto every year that is considered the Vatican of golf.

April being the Masters month has sunk into a catharsis no one has ever imagined would happen in this era of Facebook, Instagram and Zoom. OK, include Netflix.

The cancellation culled Tiger Woods’s chance to defend his crown. A pity, indeed, as it would have afforded him an incredible aim to gun for a recordtying sixth Masters since he first won it in 1997.

Jack Nicklaus owns the most number of Masters trophies with six, winning his last in 1986 when he was already 46 years old. Now long retired, Nicklaus won his first Masters in 1963.

But if Woods is still sulking over the lost opportunity, I can’t blame him.

Who knows he might won it on Monday, the supposed final day of this year’s Masters.

As things stand, the Masters getting gouged out this year also wrecked Woods’s wish to nail a 16th major that would have moved him to within two of Nicklaus’s all-time best of 18 majors.

Thus, for the first time since World War II, Augusta National in Georgia fell deathly silent, the roars from a crowd that applaud lustily only once every decade muffled horribly by the pandemic virus that has infected millions already and killed thousands worldwide.

Bobby Jones, the eminent founder of the Masters in 1934, must be turning in his grave.

Do you know that the Masters is the most revered golf event in the world—by the Americans most especially?

I was there in Augusta National covering the 1991 Masters and I saw and heard people profess passionately about their love for the tournament.

I met one Augusta resident who confessed to me he had reserved a ticket to the Masters when he was still in high school.

“I am now a dentist and it is only now that I got my ticket to my first-ever Masters,” he said.

Frankie Miñoza was our bet that year, becoming only the third Filipino to be invited in the Masters after Bantam Ben Arda and Luis “Golem” Silverio (bless their souls).

Although Miñoza missed the cut after scoring 78-75, his stint at the most beautiful golf course in the world was something special if only because he played all 36 holes with only one good eye.

He suffered an eye allergy on the eve of the event caused by a pollen, aggravating the ailment by taking a medicine not prescribed by a physician.

Playing on sheer instinct and an undiminished patriotic courage, he groped, literally, his way into a bunker-riddled and lakeladen layout, flailed unforgivingly as though his life depended solely on every stroke he swung.

“Nothing to be ashamed of,” said the late Rod Feliciano, our head of delegation and then president of the National Golf Association of the Philippines. “He played wounded. His love for country carried him through.”

Aside from covering his Masters exploits, I also had the honor to chaperone Miñoza. We were together in the Manila to San Francisco flight. Just the two of us. In SanFo, we linked up with Rod and Ramon Ballesca on our flight from San Francisco to Atlanta, the Georgia capital, where we boarded a coaster for the two-hour ride to Augusta.

Coming home, it was also only Miñoza and myself on the PAL jet.

At SanFo airport’s duty free, he asked me for advice about his wish to buy his wife a bag and a pair of shoes.

“What’s her favorite color?”

“Brown,” Frankie said.

“So go for brown,” I said.

He chose Gucci over YSL. Adding a scarf.

Make that brown, too.

THAT’S IT Let’s continue praying for the virus to disappear. Fear not if we have Jesus leading the way. Heed the master of masters. Never waiver one bit. The shepherd knows best.

in his native Balkan country.

“As one of Djokovic’s most trusted fans, I would have liked to have had the opportunity to explain to him the importance of the immunology in public health,” Kon wrote on Monday. “Now it’s too late, you have assumed wrong beliefs.”

Djokovic won the Australian Open in January for his 17th grand slam singles title. AP