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Wednesday, April 28, 2021 Vol. 16 No. 196

P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 18 pages | 7 days a week

NG’S DEFICIT UP NEARLY 4-FOLD TO P321.5B in Q1 SCUTTLING TARIFF CUTS, MAV PLUS, WILL FUEL INFLATION–DOF

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inance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III on Tuesday warned that scuttling the pork tariff reduction and the increase in Minimum Access Volume (MAV) may lead to a further rise in inflation followed by higher interest rates which will affect everyone.

Dominguez, who heads the government’s e c o n o m i c t e a m , t o l d senators the President’s Executive Order 128 to allow more pork imports at lower tariffs for a temporary period is the way to

go, if only to prevent further price spikes that could fuel inflation and undermine the country’s economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Dominguez said EO 128 is a “temporary solution” to address supply-side issues that are causing the rise in pork prices. He said they hope to bring down pork prices to a range of P215 to P225 per kilogram.

See “Tariff,” A2

The commemoration fever goes on

To mark 500 Years of Christianity in the Philippines, the Liter of Light and SM light up the largest Sto. Niño de Cebu solar artwork at Seaside City Cebu. Each of the over 3,500 handbuilt solar lights that make up the installation, which pays homage to the patron saint of Cebu, were built by thousands of participants who signed on to Liter of Light’s “Light It Forward” Challenge. It invites Filipinos to a new way to connect for good by building solar lights for communities without electricity from the safety of their homes. After the event, the over 3,500 Liters of Light will be turned over to communities without power supply. PHOTO COURTESY OF SM

By Bernadette D. Nicolas

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@BNicolasBM

HE national government’s budget deficit for the first quarter of the year almost quadrupled to P321.5 billion from only P86.2 billion in the same period a year ago as government expenditures spent more despite collecting less revenues.

See “NG’s,” A2

PESO exchange rates

Senators flag legal question of when Mav Plus is in effect

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

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@jearcalas

ENATE Minor it y L eader Franklin M. Drilon on Tuesday raised concerns about the recommendation of President Duterte to increase the minimum

access volume (MAV) on pork, noting that it was submitted to Congress when it was in recess.

Dur ing t he Senate Comm it tee of t he W hole hea r ing , D r i lon a s k e d of f ic i a l s f rom See “Mav,” A2

n US 48.3470 n japan 0.4473 n UK 67.2023 n HK 6.2302 n CHINA 7.4535 n singapore 36.4828 n australia 37.7107 n EU 58.4515 n SAUDI arabia 12.8922

Source: BSP (27 April 2021)

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BusinessMirror

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

PCC probes possible price-fixing in shipping rates

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad @Tyronepiad

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HE surging freight charges amid shortage of container vessels has triggered an investigation by the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) on potential price-fixing among industry players.

PCC Chairman Arsenio M. Balisacan confirmed to the B u s i n e s s M i r r o r there is an ongoing investigation on the shipping service sector amid the heightened freight charges earlier flagged by the export industry.

“The PCC is looking into the allegations that there are anti-competitive practices in the provision of international shipping services,” he said. “Investigation is ongoing.”

Balisacan stressed that price -fixing by cartels is punishable by administrative fine and imprisonment under the Philippine Competition Act (PCA).

Price-fixing is an anti-competitive practice wherein competing businesses agree to control the prices, which usually result in higher rates for the consumers.

The B usiness M irror earlier reported that the local industry has been affected by shipment delays arising from the shortage of vessels amid container imbalances during this pandemic. The delays, which take about a month or so, have been a burden to the export-oriented manufacturers’ supply chain and even revenues.

In addition, the lack of container supply has led to the increase of freight charges.

Henry Basilio, chairman of the networking committee on transportation and logistics of the Export Development Council, earlier sounded the alarm on the surging freight rates amid imbalances of empty containers. He noted that the cargo handling cost has doubled with the cranage fee amounting to P1,587, in addition to the arrastre fee of P1,575.

Cranage fee is the price paid for the use of cranes when loading and unloading ships. Arrastre fee is charged for the handling, receiving and custody of shipments.

The competition authority cannot pinpoint yet when the investigation will conclude as it must secure enough proof of anti-competitive behavior first before filing charges.

“PCC is doing its best to conclude its investigation the soonest possible time, but could not provide a specific date,” Balisacan said. “Key is the presence of sufficient evidence to warrant filing of charges against violators of the PCA.”

Check cost validity

In conducting the probe, the Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. (Philexport) said the competition regulator should go over each of the freight costs and see if they are “valid.”

“We suggest for the PCC to unbundle the freight cost and check each item if valid. I know there are fees such as cleaning fee, congestion fee, container deposit fee, imbalance fee, etc.,” Philexport Assistant Vice President Flordeliza C. Leong told the B usiness M irror.

Leong added the brokers and freight forwarders have been complaining that their container deposit fees “have not been refunded or slow to be refunded.”

The deposit fees are estimated to have reached billions already, Philexport said.

“The issue of increasing freight rates by shipping lines has long been an issue and considered one of the impediments to export growth,” she said. “Addressing this will help lessen trade costs and make us more competitive.”

The Philexpor t official recently told this newspaper that shipment delays due to shortage of containers began in the last quarter of 2020 when production picked up anew.

In addition, she noted that irregular port operations and employees working in shortened hours amid the pandemic, among others, contributed to the delays.

Review competition

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad), in a recent policy brief, urged competition authorities to monitor both the freight rates and market behavior amid the container imbalance.

The international agency noted that shippers have complaints over no access to empty containers for exports; high freight rates; and blank sailings, which refer to skipped port calls resulting in mismatch of supply and demand for empty vessels.

“It remains important for policy-makers to continue to strengthen national competition authorities in the area of maritime transport and ensure that they are prepared to provide the requisite regulatory oversight,” Unctad said.

The UN agency noted that other competition regulators have been investigating as well if there is abusive behavior on the part of maritime transport providers.

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DOE, ERC told: Jointly follow policy to avert power outages

By Lenie Lectura @llectura

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HE Department of Energy (DOE) and the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) were told by the Joint Congressional Energy Commission to jointly enforce policies meant to ensure stable power supply and reserves in the country and, at the same time, impose sanctions on violators.

“It’s about time to push it forward.

We don’t need hearings to get things going. What we need is coordination between implementors. DOE is the policy-maker and the ERC implements. The power to penalize is with ERC,” said Senate Energ y Committee Chairman Sher win Gatchalian.

Two policies were raised during at Tuesday’s hearing. These are Department Circular DC2019-120018, entitled “Adopting a General Framework Governing the Provision and Utilization of Ancillary Services [AS] in the Grid” and ERC’s“Rules for the Interim Reliability Performance Indices and Equivalent Outage Days Per Year of Generating Units.”

The DOE circular requires the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) to procure AS through firm contracts. Ancillary services are necessary to support the transmission capacity, maintaining

reliable operation of the transmission system and electricity supply in the grid.

The ERC order, meanwhile, specifies the planned and unplanned power plant outage allowances in days per year.

Energ y Secretar y A lfonso Cusi said ancillar y ser v ices are crucial since these are power reser ves that could be tapped whenever supply is thin. Based on DOE data, a total of 2,604 megawatts are identified as required AS but only 727MW are deemed conf ir med anci l lar y reser ves to date.

“The policy is there. Why don’t they follow the policy? We’ve had exchange of letters in the past,” said Cusi, referring to NGCP. Attorney Ronald Dylan Concepcion, who represented NGCP during the hearing, said power reserves could only be procured if there is sufficient

supply of power.

“AS is not a remedy to supply. It is an excess of generation plants. For my personal knowledge, there is no available capacity right now to be contracted for AS. We’d like to submit a report on that,” he said.

Gatchalian acknowledged the importance of the DOE policy, saying this is “a very important feature” of the Epira law. “The policy here is to fully contract ancillary services but it is not happening,” the senator noted, adding that a separate hearing on AS will be scheduled.

Meanwhile, ERC’s Chairman Agnes Devanadera said her office is monitoring the compliance of the parties involved in the DOE policy. “Rest assured that penalties will be imposed whenever is due.”

The senator also asked the ERC why it has not sanctioned power generat ion compa n ies (GenCos) whose power pl a nt s u nder went extended outage despite the newly approved rules on power plant performance standards.

Older coal plants, for instance, are only allowed to have 27.9 days of planned outages and 16.8 days of unplanned outages; while for circulating fluidized bed (CFB) coal plants, it’s 15.4 days of planned and 16.9 days of unplanned shutdown.

Most of the power plants that were on unscheduled shutdown in past weeks and are still on extended forced outage are coal plants.

Devanadera said she could only provide initial data since the new rules took effect just in January this year.

“We have a task force that monitors

it. The final report is not ready yet. We just started in January 2021 and just four months to it. But we have some data. About 15 or 16 GenCos already, but we have to get the analysis. When we are done with this, the most logical thing to do is to implement and impose penalties when needed,” she said.

Gatchalian told Devanadera to make sure that all guidelines, rules and policies must be enforced “or else, accountability fails.”

“I strongly request DOE and ERC to talk about these issues. Both agencies formed a TWG to look into this. The policy w ill be laid out by DOE and ERC w ill follow suit in terms of enforcing those policies,” said Gatchalian.

During the hearing, the DOE also assured the public there won’t be any brownouts in the summer months.

However, the Luzon grid would have thin supply on weeks 15 to 18, and weeks 21 to 25 due to extended outages at several power plants.

The Luzon grid is expected to register a peak demand of 11,841 MW. However, the sustained communit y quarantine may depress actual demand. “ We a re not c lose enough to our projected demand,” said DOE Director Mario Marasigan during the hearing. “ We are not immediately seeing potential alert for the rest of the countr y primarily due to the parameters that we have not considered directly w ith ou r 2021 projec t ions —L a Ni ñ a a nd t he cur rent qu a ra nt ine sit u at ion.

R ather, we’re actua l ly focusing on supply,” sa id Ma ra siga n.

FITCH SLASHES 2021 PHL GROWTH FORECAST TO 6.3%

By Bianca Cuaresma @BcuaresmaBM

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NTERNATIONAL credit watcher Fitch Ratings slashed its growth forecast of the country this year to below the floor of the government’s target range for 2021.

In its Asia Pacific Sovereign Credit Overview for the second quarter of 2021, Fitch Ratings said the Philippines is expected to grow by 6.3 percent this year. This is lower than their January forecast of 6.9-percent growth for 2021.

The new forecast is also below the government’s 6.5- to 7.5-percent growth target for 2021, and Fitch Ratings’ average forecasted Asia Pacific growth average of 7.2

NG’s. . .

Continued from A1

The wider fiscal gap for January to March resulted as government spending posted a doubledigit growth of 19.86 percent year-on-year while revenues dropped by 8.73 percent.

Data from the Bureau of the Treasury showed government expenditures during the three-month period jumped to P1.018 trillion from last year’s P849.2 billion.

The surge in government expenditures was driven mainly by primary spending which grew by 22.3 percent year-on-year to P892.1 billion from only P729.3 billion in 2020.

Interest payments during the quarter also went up by 4.98 percent to P125.9 billion from P119.9 billion last year.

On the other hand, revenue collection for the first three months of the year slid to P696.5 billion from P763.1 billion in the same period a year ago.

Tax revenues inched up by only 0.87 percent to P626 billion from P620.7 billion in 2020.

Tariff. . .

Continued from A1

“The worse we could do in a situation like the one we are facing today is to let supply issues force food prices up even more. If food prices rise, the inflation rate also increases. If the inflation rate rises, interest rate increases will follow.

This unhealthy chain of events will make economic recovery even more difficult for all,” Dominguez said at the resumption of the Senate’s Committee of the Whole (COW) inquiry into the current pork supply

percent for the year.

“The economic impact of the Covid-19 shock for the Philippines in 2020 was far worse than we had previously expected due to the local infection rate and impact of lockdown measures on domestic activity,” Fitch Ratings said.

“Daily Covid-19 infections have again been on the rise recently, with lockdowns announced in the national capital regions and certain neighboring provinces,” it added.

M ove m e nt, t rave l a n d o p e rat i o n a l restrictions have been reimplemented in the National Capital Region (NCR) along with other neighboring provinces as Covid-19 cases continued to rise in the country.

On Tuesday, the Department of Health

However, non-tax revenues dragged the state’s revenue uptake. Non-tax revenues plunged by 50.56 percent to P70.4 billion from P142.4 billion in the first quarter last year.

For March alone, the budget deficit nearly tripled to P191.4 billion from P71.6 billion in the same month last year.

Government expenditures for the month climbed by 22.33 percent to P407.6 billion from P333.2 billion in March 2020.

Meanwhile, revenues in March declined by 17.37 percent to P216.2 billion from last year’s P261.6 billion.

(DOH) announced that the total number of cases in the country hit 1,013,618 after 7,204 cases were confirmed during the day.

For next year, Fitch Ratings upgraded its forecast growth for the country to 8.3 percent from the January forecast of 8 percent.

Despite the lower gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecast, Fitch Ratings still believes the current rating remains appropriate.

The credit watcher rates the country at BBB with a stable outlook.

“The Philippines entered the crisis with fiscal buffers, with a low general government debt-GDP ratio of 34.1 percent in 2019, against the ‘BBB’ median of 42 percent. These buffers have been eroded significantly by the pandemic shock,” Fitch Ratings said.

“We expect the general government debt-toGDP ratio to rise to 52.3 percent and 55 percent of GDP in 2021 and 2022, respectively, which would still be slightly below the projected peer median of 57.3 percent and 59.4 percent, respectively, although this is a substantial increase from the 2019 level,” it added.

Fitch Ratings said a sustained broadening of the government’s revenue base and stronger governance standards are positive for the country’s ratings.

Meanwhile, the ratings agency said a sustained rise in the debt-to-GDP ratio of the country, failure to resume growth rates after the pandemic shock and deterioration in economic indicators will be negative for the country’s rating.

Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said in an interview with CNBC on Tuesday he expects that by 2022, the country’s budget deficit-to-GDP ratio will “begin” returning to its normal deficit level of 3.5 percent to 4 percent. He also said he sees the country’s economic activity to return to pre-pandemic level by the first quarter of next year after the government achieves its target of vaccinating 70 million Filipinos this year.

To narrow the deficit, Dominguez told reporters they plan to achieve this through a “combination of

a reduction in the disruptions due to the contagion, increase in public and private investments, drop in unemployment, increase in consumption, increase in taxable profit, return to solid investments led growth of the economy.”

For this year, the government expects the budget deficit to reach a new record-high of P1.78 trillion or 8.9 percent of GDP, even higher than the P1.37 trillion or 7.6-percent deficit-to-GDP ratio it recorded last year.

For 2022, the government’s economic managers expect the country’s budget deficit to settle to 1.64 trillion or 7.3 percent of GDP. UnionBank Chief Economist Ruben Carlo Asuncion told the B usinessM irror his projection: the national government will likely achieve 3.5- to 4-percent deficit-to-GDP ratio by 2024.

To achieve this, Asuncion said the government has to be efficient and sharp in spending along with being creative in funding its planned economic or fiscal stimulus.

“We see the budget deficit rising this year and probably a manageable decline in 2022 when the economy hopefully experiences some sort of normalcy,” Asuncion said.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation Chief Economist Michael Ricafort said he sees wider budget deficits in the coming months given the reimposition of lockdowns in the National Capital Region (NCR) Plus.

“The hard lockdowns in NCR Plus since the latter part of March 2021 resulted and would still continue to lead to wider budget deficits in the coming months, in terms of reduced government tax collections with the significant reduction in business/economic activities due to ECQ/MECQ, as well as increased government spending on various Covid programs such as on social amelioration, vaccines, and pump-priming activities especially on infrastructure to further support the economic recovery program,” Ricafort said.

Wider budget deficits could result in more government borrowings and higher debt stock, he warned.

“Thus, there is a need to prudently use the government’s financial resources and ensure there would be enough in the coming months/years, given the uncertainties on how long Covid-19 pandemic would linger and would continue to have adverse effects on the economy, especially on the most vulnerable sectors,” he said.

shortfall in the country resulting from the prolonged outbreak of the African swine fever (ASF).

“Everyone will suffer from high interest rates— from those struggling to pay the amortization dues on their home loans, to those making monthly payments on their cars or motorcycles. High inflation erodes people’s confidence and their desire to save,” Dominguez added.

With pork prices reaching as high as P327 per kilogram in the National Capital Region (NCR) last month, meat inflation rose from 3.5 percent and 4.3 percent in 2019 and 2020, respectively, to 19.6 percent in the first quarter of 2021.

As meat inflation soared double-digit in the first quarter of 2021, it became the top contributor to overall inflation of 1.3 percentage points, which is even higher than the 1-percentage point

contribution to inflation of rice at the height of the 2018 rice crisis.

In the first quarter of the year, Dominguez, who was also a former agriculture secretary under the administration of former President Corazon Aquino, said meat contributed more than one fourth of the overall inflation, which is unprecedented. From 1995 to 2020, meat contributed only around 5 percent of overall inflation.

While Dominguez admitted that EO 128 is a “painful solution” that spells foregone state revenues of P13.68 billion, he said lowering the price of pork will save consumers P67.38 billion.

“These gains of consumers dwarf the foregone revenues by 53.7 billion pesos. Clearly, this is a tradeoff beneficial to the entire country,” he said.

Under EO 128, the tariff rate on pork imports

within the MAV quota is reduced to 5 percent, from the current rate of 30 percent, for the first three months after the effectivity of the order. The reduced rate will go up to 10 percent for the next nine months thereafter.

Pressed by Senate Pro Tempore Ralph Recto on why is there a need for a drastic reduction of tariffs on pork tariffs to 5 percent which he said might harm the local hog industry, Dominguez said: “It’s because we have an emergency.”

He added: “It’s taken us four months, four months to go through the process, and we did the process as exactly as required by law...And the prices have gone up from an increase of 12 percent over the previous year to an increase of 60 percent over the previous year. That is an emergency. Now we have to act as if it were an emergency and the EO that I recommended is

Dominguez’s outlook

Mav. . .

Continued from A1

the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Department of Finance (DOF) if the MAV Plus proposal of Duterte has been in effect.

Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said “he supposed” that MAV “has been increased” and immediately referred the question to the DA, which manages the pork MAV. Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar, in turn, responded that it is in his view that an executive order (EO) should be issued by Duterte in order for the MAV Plus to take effect.

“It has not been effective, until we receive the EO. Once there is an EO we will implement it,” Dar said during the hearing.

Drilon asked Dar a follow-up question: In your view, since 15 days have lapsed from the time we received it (MAV Plus proposal), can the MAV be increased today by an EO?” Dar replied: “I go for that view that once it lapsed for 15 days then the Executive department can issue an EO implementing the MAV plus.”

Drilon raised the matter since the MAV P l u s re c o m m e n d a t i o n w a s s u b m i t t e d b y Duterte to Congress on March 26, the day that both chambers adjourned their session for a scheduled recess until May 16. Duterte proposed to increase the pork MAV by 350,000 metric tons.

Drilon emphasized that Congress did not have the opportunity to review the President’s MAV Plus proposal since it was in recess. He pointed out that the existing law governing the MAV Plus assumes that Congress has the capacity to act on a recommendation made by the President.

“What is the use of giving the Congress 15 days to review the recommendation if after 15 days, even [if ] Congress is not in session, that proposal is approved? You are making a mockery of this rule,” he said.

Senate President Vicente Sotto III supported Drilon’s position on the legal issues surrounding the recent MAV Plus proposal, pointing out that the executive branch could face possible legal implications if they push through with the increase of MAV through an EO. “There is a big difference between ‘did not’ act and ‘cannot’ act. The law states that [the proposal is approved] if the Congress after receiving it [proposal] did not act on it. But that’s not the case here. The proposal was sent to us while we cannot act on it,” Sotto said.

“That’s the difficult thing about that. And that could be contested in court if you insist on increasing it. We cannot act on the proposal because the session was adjourned,” he added.

Due to this, Drilon said the 15-day deadline stipulated by Republic Act 8178 (RA) on MAV Plus mechanism would only start on May 17, when Congress resumes session.

“My position is that there shall be no increase in the MAV. It can only be effective until after 15 days of May 17, assuming we do not act on it. The law is very clear,” he added.

RA 8178 provision on MAV plus reads: “In case of shortages or abnormal price increases in agricultural products, whose quantitative restrictions are lifted under this Act, the President may propose to Congress, revisions, modifications or adjustments of the Minimum Access Volume [MAV]: Provided, however, That in the event Congress fails to act after fifteen [15] days from receipt of the proposal, the same shall be deemed approved.”

Former Agriculture Undersecretary Segfredo R. Serrano told the B usiness M irror that submitting a MAV plus proposal to Congress, when it is not in session could be considered “bad faith,” unless the President calls for a special session of Congress to act on the proposal.

Initial report likely

Senators suspended hearings of the Committee of the Whole on the pork crisis, with Senate President Sotto holding out hopes a compromise could be forged between the Executive and Congress, amid lawmakers’ objections to a Palace order lowering tariff on imported pork while expanding minimum access volume (MAV).

After presiding at a 6-hour hearing—the third by the Committee of the Whole while Congress is in recess—Sotto said the suspension of hearings is without prejudice to the possibility an initial committee report could already be drafted.

The inquiry was called on the basis of a resolution by Sen. Panfilo Lacson, amid senators’ concern over a looming food security crisis caused by the ASF, which ravaged a huge part of the P300billion pork sector, causing supply shortages and price spikes. With Butch Fernandez

precisely a balancing act. It is time-bound.”

President Duterte has also recommended to Congress increasing the MAV of pork imports by 350,000 metric tons.

This move will increase the MAV quota for pork from 54,210 metric tons to 404,210 MT. Dominguez told senators the increase in the MAV quota for pork factors in the estimated supply deficit for 2021 at up to 477,000 MT based on estimates by the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda).

Thus, the temporary increase in pork imports will not “kill” the local hog industry as feared by some quarters, given that imports would potentially account for only up to 22.8 percent of total consumption, Dominguez said.

Bernadette D. Nicolas

The Nation BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

DOH’s slow rollout of NICCA law slammed

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HE chairman of the House Committee on Social Services has called on the Department of Health (DOH) to explain why the council tasked to formulate the country’s policy response to cancer has still not been convened two years after the passage of the National Integrated Cancer Control Act. Quezon City Rep. Alfred Vargas expressed concern that the cancer control law could become a “dead letter,” or a law that exists but is not enforced, because of the failure to form the National Integrated Cancer Control Council (NICCA).

Under the NICCA, the council is mandated to be the policy-making, planning, and coordinating body on cancer control in the country.

“The law is there, and it is already funded. Yet, we cannot fully implement it because the body that should get the ball rolling has not yet been formed. I hope the DOH acts with urgency on this,” Vargas said.

According to Vargas, more than P700 million had been allocated for the cancer control program in the 2021 budget. Congress allotted P620 million during the bicameral conference committee of the General Appropriations bill, while P136 million comes from the regular allocation for cancer under the non-communicable diseases budget line item.

“The danger here is the fund reverting to the National Treasury because of their failure to utilize it,” said Vargas. Vargas, whose mother succumbed to cancer, said families of cancer patients are facing economic difficulties because of the pandemic.

Vargas also said cancer patients are also more at risk now because of their weak immunities.

“The NICCA should be able to help address these concerns but right now.

Despite the availability of funds, the law is still in limbo,” he said.

Last February, the lawmaker also urged the DOH to release the guidelines on how cancer patients and their families could avail of the cancer assistance fund, another requirement under the law.

According to the World Health Organization, the Philippines recorded 92,606 cancer deaths and 153,751 new cancer cases last year.

Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

Solgen asks SC to junk all petitions vs ATA ’20

By Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

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AYING that the government is not the enemy, Solicitor General Jose Calida has sought for the immediate dismissal of the petitions questioning the constitutionality of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) of 2020.

During the continuation of the oral argument on the 37 petitions questioning the constitutionality of ATA law, which was done virtually on Tuesday, Calida also vowed not to allow lawsuits to derail the implementation of ATA. The solicitor general cited several grounds for the dismissal of the petitions, such as supervening events and that political questions, which, he argued, are beyond the jurisdiction of the SC. He stressed that ATA is essential to the Philippines’s compliance to its international obligations.

Among the supervening events that the Solicitor General cited were the filing of charges against two Aetas—Junior Ramos and Jasper Gurung—before the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Olongapo City; three

cases against three individuals in Negros Occidental; filing of four criminal cases in Jolo, Sulu against 13 individuals and several unidentified persons led by Mudzrimar “Mundi” Sawadjaan for violation of Sections 4 (a) and 4 (d) of the Anti-Terrorism Act in connection with the August 24, 2020 Jolo bombings.

Another case is also pending before the RTC of Gubat, Sorsogon for violation of Section 4 (d).

Calida also cited as supervening event the recent decision of the Anti-Terrorism Council (ATC) to designate the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army as terrorist organizations.

“It is the duty of petitioners to demonstrate actual case and controversy worthy of judicial resolution.

Despite the braggadocio of the petitions, they did not do it. The persons now facing charges for violation of the Anti-Terrorism Act are now before this Honorable Court,” Calida noted.

“Instead, they are now litigating their cases before the regional trial courts. Ergo, any resolution in this case would be purely academic and hypothetical—a clear waste of this Honorable Court’s time and

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resources,” he added.

Calida also criticized the petitioners before the Court for not speaking against the recent atrocities committed by terrorists against the people, and instead, “unfairly stigmatized” ATA as a mere legal stunt by the administration to quell the opposition.

“The Anti-Terrorism Act is not an instrument of oppression. Neither is it a tool to suppress the vibrance of our democracy. No, it is the embodiment of the State’s policy to protect life, liberty, and property from terrorism—a commitment to peace in our day and the future of our children,” Calida said.

Furthermore, the solicitor general told the Court that the enactment of ATA was political in nature, thus, cannot be subject to judicial scrutiny.

“Our lawmakers enacted the AntiTerrorism Act primarily for the peace and security in our country. The ATA protects the economic and financial security of Filipinos against the adverse effects of grey listing, or worse, blacklisting by the Financial Action Task Force [FATF]. Questions on the propriety and timeliness of the law’s enactment as raised by petitioners are purely political questions, and,

as such, beyond the ambit of this Honorable Court’s power of judicial review,” the government chief counsel pointed out.

Calida said the Court should junk the petitions considering that the ATA is essential to the country’s compliance to international obligations under the United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1373 and the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing Terrorism.

He said Congress stressed the need for the ATA because the FATF has set a deadline for the enactment of an anti-terrorism law.

Calida said the country would be at risk of being included in the “high-risk” and non-cooperative jurisdictions of the Global Anti-Money Laundering Watchdog.

“Without such law the Philippines will be treated as a leper. FATF will see to it [that we would] either [be] blacklist[ed]…or [be] put on grey list.”

If the country is included in the grey list, Calida said this would result to a diminished investor and lender confidence, as well as limited access to banking and financial service.

He added that millions of overseas

Filipino workers and their families will also suffer due to higher cost of remittances and increase in loan interest to borrowers by Philippine banks.

“Clear, grey listing would seriously affect the country’s international trade, remittances, and humanitarian financial flows that support the country’s economic growth and development,” Calida said.

He added the petitions should be dismissed on the grounds of lack of legal standing by the petitions as they did not suffer any direct or indirect injury with the implementation of ATA. Calida said the parties with more direct and specific interest over the issues were those charged before the lower courts with violation of the provisions of ATA. Contrary to the claims of the petitioners, he stressed that the ATA maintains probable cause in warrantless arrest; ensures lawful data acquisition and handling; merely regulates conduct and speech; and does contravene the right to speedy trial and disposition of cases.

Calida also told the Court that the powers of the Anti-Terrorism Council are purely executive in nature.

Solon pitches for multi-nation coalition of coast guards, navies to secure Southeast Asia seas

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

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VACCINE-SUPPLY WOES

Local government units in Metro Manila have stepped up their vaccination information and registration drive down to the barangay level amid the continuous spike in Covid-19 cases. Photo shows the launch of a barangay vaccination registration center in Marikina City with Mayor Marcy Teodoro’s assurance that they are preparing to conduct house-to-house inoculation for the elderly and persons with disabilities as soon as more vaccines arrive. NONOY LACZA

Two House members set launch of ‘Ivermectin Pan-Three’ in QC WO legislators on Tuesday vowed to push through with a plan to distribute Ivermectin drug through an “Ivermectin Pan-Three” for those who are in dire need of the controversial drug.

To equate both the “sense of urgency and inherent trait of community sharing,” Sagip Rep. Rodante Marcoleta and Anakalusugan Rep. Mike Defensor said each beneficiary would get a minimum of three capsules/tablet free of charge.

The Ivermectin Pan-Three will be formally launched on Thursday at the Matandang Balara Hall Park.

“From the experts’ collective testimony, Ivermectin had been widely used to treat a variety of human parasites since its introduction in 1981 and since then, is being taken along with Vitamins C and D, melatonin, zinc, among others, including steroids for the elderly and asthmatic patients,” the lawmakers said in a joint statement.

According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the registered Ivermectin products in the country for human use are in topical formulations under prescription use only that is mainly used for the treatment of external parasites such as head lice and skin conditions such as rosacea.

The FDA said the registered oral and intravenous preparations of Ivermectin are veterinary prod-

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Wednesday, April 28, 2021 A3

ucts that are approved for use in animals for the prevention of heartworm disease and treatment of internal and external parasites in certain animal species.

It reiterated that the Ivermectin has not been approved by the FDA for treatment of any viral infection.

But the FDA said five hospitals have already secured compassionate special permit to use Ivermectin on its Covid-19 patients as of Tuesday, April 27.

Moreover, lawmakers said Ivermectin has undergone invitro studies effectively killing Covid-19 virus and was found to cure bacterial infection for pneumonia.

“It has anti-viral and anti-inflammatory properties; an estimated 3.5 billion doses have been administered to cure river blindness in Africa in the last 40 years with only 16 reported deaths; recent independent analysis of 26 randomized clinical trials and observational controlled trials showed that Ivermectin is remarkably effective for prophylaxis and treatment of Covid-19,” they said.

The two lawmakers also said the British Ivermectin Recommendation Board (BIRD) has now advised the rollout of Ivermectin for the prevention and early treatment of Covid-19.

“It is now recognized and widely used against Covid-19 in South Africa, Slovakia, Panama, Peru, in parts of India and Mexico, and

Czech Republic; it is now prescribed by doctors in the US, Australia, and Canada as off label use for Covid-19 patients; and it is now included in the WHO [World Health Organization] Model List of Essential Medicines,” they added.

According to the lawmakers, the Philippine American Academy of Science and Engineering (PAASE) has conducted an online survey on Ivermectin and that out of 553 medical doctors who participated, there were more medical doctors who favored the use of Ivermectin for prevention and treatment than those who opposed or are undecided.

“On the other hand, despite the declared policy to protect and promote the right to health of the people, we observed the complacency, if not indifference, of DOH [Department of Health] and FDA officials in regard to the potential use of Ivermectin as a preventive drug or early treatment for Covid-19 patients,” they said. “ Time and again, they are dismissive of the avalanche of clinical trials that have unfolded before their very eyes, unyielding to bend and improvise the guidelines and policies that apply only during normal times.

The have stonewalled and become too unw illing to compromise and be flexible in the face of the great necessity to save lives,” the lawmakers said. Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

LAWMAKER on Tuesday suggested the creation of a multination coalition of coast guards and navies to secure regional and global trade while ensuring freedom of navigation in Southeast Asia.

With piracy on the rise in Southeast Asia, Ako Bicol Rep. Alfredo Garbin said it may be prudent for the Department of Foreign Affairs to consider asking the international community to form a multi-nation coalition of coast guards and navies to ensure freedom of navigation in the region.

“As the maritime transport sectors recover from the global economic impact of the pandemic, ensuring freedom of navigation in the seas of Southeast Asia becomes all the more important, to securing regional and global trade, and of Filipino seafarers,” said Garbin,

chairman of the House Committee on Constitutional Amendments.

The lawmaker, citing a Bloomberg article, said “piracy and armed robberies in Asia have increased to the highest level in five years [amid] ongoing territorial disputes in the South China Sea.” According to the report, “a total of 51 incidents were reported in the region in the January to June [of 2020].”

Garbin said the ongoing maritime border issues may also be making navigation through the region’s sea lanes more difficult.

“The presence of a multi-nation coalition of ships to secure the sea lanes may become necessary,” he said.

“There are enough precedents and international laws upon which such a multi-nation coalition can be founded and made operational. The most famous of these is the anti-piracy coalition put in place to ensure the safety of ships against Somali pirates,” Garbin added.

Sandra Cam, son, 5 others Coordinate, streamline road face murder diggings on Edsa, other Metro allegations roads, Abalos tells utility firms

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MANILA regional trial court judge ordered the arrest on Tuesday of Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) board member Sandra Cam, her son and five others for their alleged involvement in the killing of Batuan, Masbate Vice Mayor Charlie Yuson III in Sampaloc, Manila, in 2019.

The arrest warrant issued by Regional Trial Court Branch 42 Presiding Judge Dinnah Aguila-Topacio was based on the complaint filed by the Department of Justice (DOJ) against the respondents following an investigation conducted by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).

“The Court after examining the information, the resolution of the Department of Justice Panel of Prosecutors, the complaint affidavit and other supporting documents, thereto finds probable cause to issue a warrant of arrests against the accused,” the judge said.

Cam, his son Marco Martin and coaccused, Nelson Cambaya, Junel Gomez, Juanito de Luna, Bradford Solis and Rigor dela Cruz are facing incarceration pending the resolution of the case, as the court recommended no bail for the murder charge. Joel R. San Juan

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco Correspondent

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HAIRMAN Benjamin “Benhur” Abalos Jr. of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) on Tuesday ordered utility companies to streamline and coordinate road diggings and excavation works on major thoroughfares in Metro Manila, particularly along Edsa.

In a meeting with representatives of utility companies, Abalos underscored the need for them to synchronize their road diggings, excavations, and repairs on major roads that cause inconvenience to motorists.

“The conduct of road diggings, excavations and other similar works should be done harmoniously,” said Abalos.

Abalos added that utility companies should conduct works on a particular area synchronously so that road diggings are not done repeatedly, “except for emergency repairs.”

To achieve this, the MMDA asked the private firms to submit an inventory of their respective

projects, as well as length of time of construction and closely coordinate with the agency to ensure that road works in Metro Manila are managed efficiently.

Moreover, they need to secure a permit from the concerned Metro Manila local government unit (LGU) and submit a traffic management plan before a road work project, starts to ensure minimal effect to traffic flow.

“We need to work together. If we can do our projects simultaneously on a certain area, we will execute a single traffic management plan,” Abalos told the private firms.

For his part, MMDA General Manager Jojo Garcia said the agency needs to be notified at least three days in advance so it can also inform the Department of Public Works and Highways.

At present, the government is fast-tracking the buildup of telecommunications infrastructure in the country.

ICT Service Providers are allowed to undertake excavations and restoration works for ICT infrastructure projects within allowable right-ofway limits of national roads.

A4 Wednesday, April 28, 2021 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

Economy BusinessMirror

PHL rice imports down by 6% to 575,242.93 MT in Q1 2021

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

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HE country’s rice imports in the first quarter declined by 6 percent to 575,242.93 metric tons from 614,091.36 MT in the same period of last year as higher global prices and higher domestic harvest dampened import demand.

Latest Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) data obtained and analyzed by the BusinessMirror showed that rice imports in the January-toMarch period was 38,848.43 lower than the 614,091.367 MT recorded in the same period of last year.

BPI data showed that rice imports in March fell to a four-month low at 112,669 MT, which was 56.85 percent lower than the 261,091.5 MT imported in the same month of last year.

BPI data showed that bulk of the rice imports in the first quarter or about 493,891.55 MT came from Vietnam. The figure was almost 4 percent lower than the 513,628.3 MT volume of rice imported from Vietnam in the January-to-March

period of 2020. ity and high priced aromatic rice.”

Monetary Board member V. “Myanmar is having problems Bruce J. Tolentino told the Busimeeting it’s supply contracts due to nessMirror that higher domestic domestic unrest. But the increases rice harvests, as well as increased have been moderated by the growinternational rice prices could be the ing role of India in the global rice reasons behind the decline market,” he said. in imports.

United Nations’ Food EXCLUSIVE Citing data from the and Agriculture OrganiPhilippine Statistics Auzation (FAO) data showed thority (PSA) and Department of that the average quotation for VietAgriculture (DA), Tolentino noted nam rice (5 percent broken) in the that the country is currently “enjoyfirst quarter reached $507.4 per MT ing record rice yields and harvests.” and $484.6 per MT for its 25 percent Latest PSA forecast, as of March broken variety. The figures were 36.9 1, indicated that the country’s rice percent and 38.3 percent higher than harvest in the first quarter could their respective quotations in the have increased by 7.27 percent to previous year, based on FAO data.

4.57 million MT from 4.26 million Likewise, Thai rice quotations MT recorded last year. have gone up by 17 percent to The DA is eyeing a record-high $529.6 per MT (25 percent broken) palay harvest this year of about 20.4 and 16.6 percent to $561.2 per MT MMT, which would allow the country for its 100 percent broken variety, to achieve a 93-percent sufficiency FAO data showed. level in rice.

However, Tolentino noted that Furthermore, Tolentino said inthe country doesn’t have “enough ternational rice prices have moved experience and data to be able to up “due to deliberate efforts by both estimate elasticities,” which means Thailand and especially Vietnam to “how much the Philippines’ demand dominate the market for high qualfor international rice responds to

price changes.”

“But we can at least now expect the domestic market to be more responsive to market trends with the shift from quotas to tariffs,” he said.

Federation of Free Farmers Inc. National Manager Raul Q. Montemayor said it seems rice importers cut their purchase abroad as their margins have been reduced given the higher world market prices of the staple.

Montemayor added that rice wholesale prices are now being influenced by domestic production, thus making importers to think twice if their landed costs would be able to compete with prevailing market prices.

“They are really looking at the prices. If they will not earn much from the landed cost then they will reduce their volume,” he told the BusinessMirror.

“Furthermore, what we are seeing is that local production is being able to dictate the wholesale rice prices.

Unlike before, importers dictate the wholesale prices then the local traders adjust accordingly,” he added.

Lawmakers, groups pitch for ‘alternative’ mining law in place of Palace moratorium

By Jonathan L. Mayuga @jonlmayuga

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AWMAKERS, NGOs, indigenous peoples groups, artists on Tuesday reiterated the call for an alternative mining law following the lifting of the moratorium on new mining agreements with the signing of President Duterte of Executive Order 130 early this month.

The President’s order set aside Section 4 of former President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino’s EO 79 signed in July 2012 pertaining to “Grant Mining Agreements Pending New Legislation,” which halted the processing of applications for new mining agreements, in the process stopping the flow of mining investments for almost a decade.

Saying the lifting of the moratorium on new mining agreements under EO 130 is premature, Sen. Risa Hontiveros, principal author of the alternative minerals management bill (AMMB) on Tuesday urged Congress to pass the proposed measure that will ultimately address issues confronting the mining sector.

“The issuance of Executive Order 130 is premature. The industry is hounded by environmental and human rights issues. The only way to reform the industry is to pass a

We Filipinos depend on natural resources for our survival; we must exhaust all means to protect these areas.

Rep. Lawrence Fortun

new law that will reconfigure how we treat minerals. This new law will provide a much more comprehensive policy framework that will strike a balance between allowing mining and promoting healthful ecology and the welfare of communities who will be impacted by mining,” Hontiveros said in a news statement.

AMMB seeks to repeal Republic Act 7942, or the 1995 Mining Act, and institutionalize new methods in managing the country’s minerals, including putting stronger environmental safeguards in place.

Lawrence Fortun, who has filed the AMMB in the House of Representatives, said that under the AMMB, critical environmental areas will be closed to mining.

BM

These areas include critical watersheds and critical habitats, key biodiversity areas, small island ecosystems, areas at risk to disaster and climate change impacts, traditional swidden farms, and hunting grounds, among others.

“We Filipinos depend on natural resources for our survival; we must exhaust all means to protect these areas,” he said.

Under the AMMB, minerals will only be mined if they are considered strategic for the country’s national industrialization. The AMMB also increases the current 4-percent tax on mining to 10 percent. The AMMB argues that this tax rate is a far more reasonable rate in view of the risks inherent in mining.

“The present mining law, Republic Act 7942, encourages mining almost purely for export. Foreigners, and not Filipinos, are benefiting from our minerals. What’s more, the contribution of mining to the country’s gross domestic product [GDP] has been averaging below 1 percent annually. Considering how destructive mining is, the numbers are not adding up. With AMMB, we would be able to transform the mining sector so it will aid, not undermine, nationbuilding,” Maya Quirino, coordinator of the SOS Yamang Bayan Network, a multi-sectoral alliance of indigenous peoples, nongovernment organizations, people’s organizations, youth and artists pushing for AMMB said.

Another salient feature of the AMMB is its section on penal provisions. The AMMB provides for stiffer penalties on mining companies that commit human rights or environmental violations. The present mining act, for example, only penalizes illegal mineral exploration with a fine of P50,000—a drop in the bucket for mining companies that earn millions in dollars.

“We hope more legislators support the AMMB and usher in a truly responsive legal framework for managing the country’s finite mineral resources,” Quirino added.

Inbound ‘tourist’ numbers plunge 98% on Covid curbs

DFA advisory for dual citizens

THE DOT, however, does not track the arrival of balikbayans (returning Filipinos) as these cannot be determined from the BI arrival cards.

Under Republic Act 9174, or the Balikbayan Law, “The term balikbayan shall mean a Filipino citizen

who has been continuously out of the Philippines for a period of at least one year, a Filipino overseas worker, or former Filipino citizen and his or her family, as this term is defined hereunder, who had been naturalized in a foreign country and comes or returns to the Philippines.”

Meanwhile, in an advisory last

April 21, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) advised Filipino dual citizens who wish to travel to the Philippines to secure a valid Philippine passport, identification certificate, or certificate of re-acquisition/retention of Philippine citizenship, “to prevent any inconvenience with airline companies

Neda insists: Severe pork shortage merits MAV hike continued from a10 “In fact last year, the deficit was [over] 170,000 but the inflation was nowhere that high. But now we are seeing the inflation very high and the advance data that I am seeing for the first quarter also [shows] a very high deficit,” he added.

Last week, Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III, as chairman of the government’s Economic Development Cluster (EDC) took responsibility for the twin proposals to reduce pork tariffs and increase MAV, measures facing opposition from lawmakers.

In a letter to Senate President Vicente Sotto III, Dominguez disclosed that the EDC has instructed the Departments of Agriculture, and Trade and Industry to “work towards” the abolition of the MAV system and “set an appropriate rate of a tariff to regulate the importation of agricultural products.”

Furthermore, Dominguez, a former agriculture secretary, assured Sotto that the importation of pork under the proposed MAV plus of 350,000 metric tons will enter the country “in batches,”

according to his letter, a copy of which was obtained by the BusinessMirror.

Earlier, Agriculture Secretary William Dar had given the House of Representatives similar assurance that import arrivals will be “calibrated” carefully to avoid the “flooding” of imports that the local hog sector fears will wipe out whatever is left from the impact of the ASF. Sotto earlier issued a statement asking Dar to name who are the brains behind the pork tariff reduction and hike in pork MAV.

continued from a10

and immigration authorities.”

DFA added, the same “documents should also be presented upon departure. Failure to present the necessary documents as required by the immigration authorities shall warrant the imposition of fines and penalties imposed on foreigners.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Philippines ventures to S. America for trade, investment opportunities

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad @TyronePiad

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HE Philippines made its first move to formally engage South America in trade and investment through the establishment of joint economic cooperation (JEC) with Chile, who also showed support for the country’s accession to the trans-Pacific deal.

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said on Tuesday the Philippines signed a memorandum of understanding with Chile to form a JEC. Both parties, represented by Philippine Trade Undersecretary Ceferino Rodolfo and Chilean Vice Minister for Trade Rodrigo Yáñez, agreed to convene within the year to keep the momentum of their bilateral discussions.

Rodolfo said that the JEC will enhance the current levels of trade and investments between the countries, allow discussion for cooperation in mutual interests and improve synergies among businesses.

“The JEC will serve as a confidence building measure to further intensify the bilateral economic linkages while addressing the challenges posed by geographic distance and generally low-level of awareness by businesses in each other’s markets,” Rodolfo added.

“It is of the utmost importance for our countries to define practical steps to foster open trade, enhance global value chains and support innovation and technology,” Yáñez said, highlighting the importance of international trade in facilitating economic recovery.

Chilean Ambassador to the Philippines Claudio Rojas, who believes that the JEC can deepen ties between the countries, said they should review the economic and trade issues

in trade facilitation, trade promotion and investment.

“This initiative comes at a time when our countries are facing serious challenges across different fronts and with varying intensities because of, and exacerbated by, the Covid pandemic that is far from over,” Philippine Ambassador to Chile Teresita Daza added.

Regional trade pact

YÁÑEZ said Chile is backing the Philippines’s bid to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

Chile is in the process of ratifying the trading agreement through its legislative body.

The Chilean trade official said their technical team would be available to help the Philippines in the process.

CPTPP is a free trade agreement (FTA) among Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, New Zealand, Singapore and Vietnam signed on March 8, 2018 in Santiago, Chile.

Rodolfo earlier disclosed that the Philippines wrote to New Zealand, the depository country of CPTPP, in February to inform the country’s interest in joining the mega trade pact.

He said previously that the five target export products the DTI would like to secure in the deal include automotive parts, garments, agricultural commodities, processed agricultural products and plant-based meat alternatives, and electronics.

Yáñez, notwithstanding the invitation to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, expressed Chile’s interest to be part of the Asean-Australia-New Zealand FTA (AANZFTA).

Rodolfo, in response, said that Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez is backingChile’saccessiontoAANZFTA.

Neda chief stresses role of population control, food adequacy for PHL growth

By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario

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OPULATION planning and the achievement of food security would allow the economy to maximize its growth potential, the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) said.

In a news statement, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua said the government commits to protect and advance the gains of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) Programme of Action.

Chua said the government would undertake efforts to ensure human development and food security across all levels of society, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Population planning and food security are key to unlocking the country’s growth potential and the health and welfare of all Filipinos.

Our goal is to give every Filipino access to quality health care, nutrition services, and family planning,” Chua said at the 54th Session of the United Nations (UN) Commission on Population and Development (CPD).

The Philippines resumes membership of the commission, starting with the 54th session. This year’s CPD theme centered on population, food security, nutrition, and sustainable development.

Chua, however, noted that while

malnutrition prevalence has been falling over the years, it remains high.

As of 2019, 5.8 percent or around 600,000 children under five years old are wasted.

Data also noted that around 19 percent or 2.1 million are underweight and 28.8 percent or 3.2 million children are stunted.

In order to address these concerns, Neda said the government passed the First 1,000 Days Act, which institutionalized a national feeding program in public day care, kindergarten, and elementary schools.

“Through this, we aim to further reduce the prevalence of stunting among children under five years old as we factor in the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic to food security and nutrition,” Chua said.

The Neda chief also highlighted that the government has undertaken several reforms to improve agricultural productivity and food security.

These include the enactment of the Rice Tariffication Law in 2019 to bring down rice prices for the benefit of all Filipinos, especially the poor, improve the country’s food security, and enhance the productivity and competitiveness of rice farmers.

Chua also noted that the government is taking a whole-of-government approach to eradicate hunger and achieve food security through the creation of the Inter-Agency Task Force on Zero Hunger.

2 OFWs among dead in India’s Covid surge continued from a10 “We will see how we could make arrangements with the airlines for the flights to bring back the remains back to the Philippines,” he added.

Lockdown impact

AS for the other infected Filipinos, Bagatsing said they are maintaining constant communication with them via social media or by mobile phone to help provide for their medical needs.

There are 2,000 Filipinos in India based on data of the Philippine Embassy. Most are married to Indian nationals and only less than 70 of them are OFWs. On Monday, India registered another 352,991additional Covid-19 cases. It is now the second country with the most number of Covid infections, with over 17 million cases.

In an attempt to slow down the

deadly surge, the Indian government imposed lockdowns.

Some medical experts attributed the influx of infections in India to the spread of the new more virulent variant of Covid-19, B1617.

The movement restrictions prompted the Philippines Embassy to stop its operations until May 17, 2021, according to Bagatsing, to ensure the safety of their clients and personnel . Samuel P. Medenilla

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

The World BusinessMirror

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

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SOS messages, panic as virus breaks India’s health system

Investment overtook exports in the first quarter as the country’s key growth driver. Bloomberg

South Korea growth accelerates as global recovery strengthens

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outh Korea’s strong economic growth last quarter led by investment and exports adds to evidence that the global recovery is gathering pace after a year pummeled by the coronavirus.

Gross domestic product grew 1.6 percent during January-March from the previous quarter, the Bank of Korea said Tuesday, easily beating the economists’ consensus for a 1.1 percent expansion. That pushed the level of GDP above its pre-pandemic peak at the end of 2019.

The third straight quarterly expansion consolidates the view that Korea’s economy will grow more than expected this year. Acting Prime Minister Hong Namki said Tuesday the country is on track to achieve mid-to-upper 3 percent growth, higher than the 3.2 percent earlier forecast.

The data also follows positive growth reports from China and Singapore, setting the stage for a global rebound. But whether momentum can carry over into the coming quarters hinges on the pandemic. While vaccinations have allowed the virus curve to flatten in some countries, the latest crisis in India suggests no country is immune to sudden flare-ups that puts the economy at risk.

Korea has been one of the better economic performers throughout the pandemic, thanks to strong overseas demand for its products ranging from chips to cars. Investment overtook exports in the first quarter as the key growth driver, with businesses pumping more money into production to take advantage of the accelerating rebound.

From the previous quarter, facilities investment jumped 6.6 percent while exports increased 1.9 percent. Government spending was up 1.7 percent and private consumption rebounded 1.1 percent.

From a year earlier, overall GDP increased 1.8 percent.

The first-quarter growth “proves the economy’s ability to recover is relatively solid,” Acting Prime Minister Hong said on Facebook following the GDP release. Still, jobs remain a concern for the economy,

with groups such as the young and women still facing difficulties, Hong said.

“The export sector continued to support the outlook, with robust external demand boosting capital expenditure. But a slower rebound in private consumption means policy makers will probably be inclined to remain accommodative to safeguard the recovery,” said Justin Jimenez, Bloomberg Asia economist.

Economists have an overall positive outlook, but see growing risks from local outbreaks. Korea has found it more difficult to peg back fresh infections this year and inoculations are yet to start for the broader public. A full recovery in the job market is a way off as social distancing rules are still restricting the services industry.

“Investment is picking up in sectors that didn’t do so well last year as well as in ones that did,” said economist Oh Jae-young at KB Securities. “If consumption stabilizes, the momentum could keep on going.”

The Bloomberg consensus for growth this year among private-sector economists is now 3.5 percent, up from 3.2 percent in early January.

Policies remain supportive, without a hint of tapering stimulus in official circles. The fifth extra budget since the start of the pandemic was passed in March and a ruling party lawmaker last week floated the idea of a universal cash handout to boost consumption. BOK’s Governor Lee Ju-yeol has repeatedly dismissed speculations of early tightening.

“Strong external demand has led Korean firms to invest in more capacity and exports went from strength to strength last quarter,” wrote Alex Holmes, an economist at Capital Economics who correctly forecast the GDP outcome. “The main weak point of the economy is private consumption,” Holmes said, adding that any consumer recovery will be partial until the virus is all but eliminated. Bloomberg News

Thailand rethinks vaccine strategy after new outbreak hits economy

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hailand is reworking its vaccine strategy as a month-long soft lockdown to contain its worst wave of Covid-19 infections deepens an economic crisis and risks plans for reopening the crucial tourism industry.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha will meet Wednesday with industry groups, including the Thai Chamber of Commerce and the Tourism Council of Thailand, to discuss ways to accelerate a vaccine rollout that so far has reached less than 1 percent of the population. The meeting may outline the private sector’s role in securing vaccines for its employees, after that was initially ruled out in a national plan to vaccinate half the population by the end of the year.

Prayuth is under pressure to tighten restrictions on businesses and travel as an outbreak that began from nightlife venues in Bangkok overwhelms hospitals and healthcare facilities. The flareup has forced the government to set up field hospitals and convert hotels into treatment facilities amid calls for accelerated vaccinations and a lockdown of at least the capital city.

Thailand’s bet on AstraZeneca Plc to meet the bulk of its vaccine needs, a move slammed by the opposition as a one-horse bet, is faltering, with officials now scrambling for supply from makers including Pfizer Inc., Russia’s Gamaleya Institute and Johnson & Johnson. While neighbors such as Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam haven’t fared much better in their vaccine rollouts, tourism-reliant Thailand’s plan to reopen its borders hinges on achieving herd immunity.

“The key to exit from this crisis is vaccines,” said Somprawin Manprasert, chief economist at Bangkok-based Bank of Ayudhya Pcl’s research unit.

“Slow vaccination will delay the reopening and cause further damage to the economy.”

Phuket plan

Until four months ago, Thailand had been relatively successful at containing the outbreak. Since midDecember, however, the country has seen two waves of outbreaks, the second one worse than the first.

Businesses have been demanding a faster vaccine

rollout, with the private sector funding a portion of the cost.

The tourism industry in Phuket, the nation’s most famous resort island, is pushing ahead with a plan to inoculate 70 percent of the local population by July so it can welcome back vaccinated tourists without requiring a quarantine. Business groups have been pushing for more vaccines from the government as the crisis devastates jobs and the economy.

The need to reopen for tourism stems from mounting unemployment and the threat to a nascent recovery that’s dependent on billions of dollars in revenue from foreign visitors. Thailand’s central bank has flagged a risk to its 3 percent economic growth forecast for this year and a number of economists have already trimmed estimates, citing the economic hit from the latest outbreak.

More stimulus

Prayuth has promised to inject an additional $12 billion to aid the economy. But continued stimulus measures will widen the fiscal deficit, and Moody’s Investors Service has said continued restrictions against the virus could constrain the recovery and a credit negative.

For now, Prayuth is focused on overhauling the vaccine strategy to counter criticism that his administration was too slow to lock in supplies and contain the outbreak. The Thai Chamber of Commerce on Monday began taking vaccine orders from members, at their own expense, as a way of speeding the recovery.

Thailand so far has administered only about 1.1 million doses, mainly to health workers and those at higher risk of infection. The government is seeking to boost vaccine procurement by 50 percent to 100 million doses for this year.

“The government has been facing criticism from the public in recent months, but what really forced them to pick up the pace in securing more vaccines is pressure from the private sector,” said Punchada Sirivunnabood, a visiting fellow at Singapore’s ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute. “This really shows how big businesses can influence the government in Thailand.” Bloomberg News

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EW DELHI—Dr. Gautam Singh dreads the daily advent of the ventilator beeps, signaling that oxygen levels are critically low, and hearing his desperately ill patients start gasping for air in the New Delhi emergency ward where he works.

Like other doctors across India, which on Monday set another record for new coronavirus infections for a fifth day in a row at more than 350,000, the cardiologist has taken to begging and borrowing cylinders of oxygen just to keep patients alive for one more day.

On Sunday evening, when the oxygen supplies of other nearby hospitals were also near empty, the desperate 43-year-old took to social media, posting an impassioned video plea on Twitter.

“Please send oxygen to us,” he said in a choked voice.

“My patients are dying.”

India was initially seen as a success story in weathering the pandemic, but the virus is now racing through its population of nearly 1.4 billion, and systems are beginning to collapse.

SOS messages like the one Singh sent reveal the extent of the panic.

In addition to oxygen running out, intensive care units are operating at full capacity and nearly all ventilators are in use. As the death toll mounts, the night skies in some Indian cities glow from the funeral pyres, as crematories are overwhelmed and bodies are burned in the open air.

On Monday, the country reported 2,812 more deaths, with roughly 117 Indians succumbing to the disease every hour—and experts say even those figures are probably an undercount. The new infections brought India’s total to more than 17.3 million, behind only the United States.

The deepening crisis stands in contrast to the improving picture in wealthier nations like the US, Britain and Israel, which have vaccinated relatively large shares of their population and have seen deaths and infections plummet since winter. India has four times the population of the US but on Monday had 11 times as many new infections.

Doctors like Singh are on the front lines, trying to get the supplies they need to keep their patients alive.

Singh received 20 oxygen cylinders on Monday, only enough to enable the hospital to limp through the day until the ventilators start sending out their warning beeps again.

“I feel helpless because my patients are surviving hour to hour,” Singh said in a telephone interview. “I will beg again and hope someone sends oxygen that will keep my patients alive for just another day.”

As bad as the situation is, experts warn it is likely to get worse.

Krishna Udayakumar, founding director of the Duke Global Health Innovation Center at Duke University, said it would be impossible for the country to keep up over the coming days as things stand.

“The situation in India is tragic and likely to get worse for some weeks to months,” he said, adding that a “concerted, global effort to help India at this time of crisis” is desperately needed.

The US said Monday that is working to relieve the suffering in India by supplying oxygen, diagnostic tests, treatments, ventilators and protective gear.

The White House has also said it would make available sources of raw materials urgently needed for India to manufacture the AstraZeneca vaccine.

“Just as India sent assistance to the United States as our hospitals were strained early in the pandemic, we are determined to help India in its time of need,” President Joe Biden tweeted on Sunday.

Help and support were also offered from archrival Pakistan, which said it could provide relief including ventilators, oxygen supply kits, digital X-ray machines, protective equipment and related items.

Germany’s Health Ministry said it is urgently working to put together an aid package for India consisting of ventilators, monoclonal antibodies, the drug remdesivir, as well as surgical and N95 protective masks.

But many say the aid is too late—the breakdown a stark failure for a country that boasted of being a model for other developing nations.

Only three months ago, India’s leaders were boisterous, delivering messages that the worst was over.

In January, Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared victory over the coronavirus, telling a virtual gathering of the World Economic Forum that India’s success couldn’t be compared with that of anywhere else.

A little less than a month later, his Bharatiya Janata Party passed a resolution hailing Modi as a “visionary leader” who had already “defeated” the virus.

By the second week of March, India’s health minister declared that the country was “in the endgame” of the pandemic.

At the same time, the patients arriving at India’s hospitals were far sicker and younger than previously seen, prompting warnings by health experts that India was

sitting on a ticking time bomb.

Millions of Hindu devotees celebrated the festival of Holi across the country at the end of March, disregarding social distancing guidelines and masks. Modi and other politicians spearheaded mammoth election rallies where tens of thousands participated without masks. And millions more gathered by the Ganges River for special Hindu prayers as recently as last week.

Now it’s suspected all these events might have accelerated the unprecedented surge India is seeing now. “ Ma ny people ac ross Ind i a a re pay i ng w it h t hei r l ives for t h at sh a mef u l be h av ior by pol it ic a l leaders,” Ud aya k u m a r sa id.

In a radio address on Sunday, Modi sought to deflect the criticism over what he called a “storm” of infections that had left the country “shaken.”

“It is true that many people are getting infected with corona,” he said. “But the number of

people recovering from corona is equally high.”

India’s government said last week it would expand its vaccination program to make all adults eligible, something long urged by health experts.

But vaccinations take time to show their effect on the numbers of new infections, and there are questions of whether manufacturers will be able to keep up with the demand.

The pace of vaccination across the country also appears to be struggling.

Ordinary citizens are taking matters into their own hands, doing what they say the government should have done a long time ago.

Volunteers, from students to technology professionals, nonprofit organizations and journalists, are circulating information on the availability of hospital beds, critical drugs and oxygen cylinders.

Like Dr. Singh, many have taken to social media, particularly Twitter, to crowdsource

lists of plasma donors and oxygen supplies.

The system is imperfect, but some are getting badly needed help.

Rashmi Kumar, a New Delhi homemaker, spent her Sunday scouring Twitter, posting desperate pleas for an oxygen cylinder for her critically ill father. At the same time, she made countless calls to hospitals and government help line numbers, to no avail.

By evening her 63-year-old father was gasping for breath.

“I was prepared for the worst,” Kumar said.

But out of nowhere, a fellow Twitter user reported an available oxygen cylinder some 60 kilometers (37 miles) away.

Kumar drove to the person’s house, where a man handed over the cylinder.

“I was helped by a stranger when my ow n gover nment continues to fail thousands like me,” she said. “Unfortunately, everyone is on their own now.” AP

BusinessMirror

A6 Wednesday, April 28, 2021

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS NO.

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS POSITION

24/7 BUSINESS PROCESSING INC. 14/f Capella Bldg. L-3&4 B2, Asean Drive Filinvest Alabang Muntinlupa City 1.

JASON Indonesian

BAHASA SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

8 STONE BUSINESS OUTSOURCING OPC 5/f To 10/f, Tower 4 Pitx #01 Kennedy Road Tambo Parañaque City JIANG, LINGYING Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE

LI, MING Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE

4.

LI, PAN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE

5.

LI, SHENGHAO Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE

LI, CHANGQING Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE

LIU, NA Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE

8.

LUO, BIN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE

9.

BI, SHUAI Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

10.

CAO, HUCHENG Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

DING, XIYUE Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

DU, PEIRU Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

13.

GONG, JIANCHENG Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

14.

CHEN, FEI Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING DATA ENTRY CLERK

15.

CHEN, HUI Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING DATA ENTRY CLERK

16.

XIU, HENGYING Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING DATA ENTRY CLERK

17.

FENG, JUNJUN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING GRAPHIC DESIGNER

18.

YANG, YING Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING GRAPHIC DESIGNER

19.

HU, CHUAN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING PROGRAM DESIGNER

20.

ZHENG, YAN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING PROGRAM DESIGNER

21.

ZHOU, SHUFENG Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING PROGRAM DESIGNER

22.

LI, RONGHUA Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

23.

CHEN, PI Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

24.

TAN VE LEE Malaysian

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

LIU, HAIYANG Chinese

MARKETING STAFF MANDARIN SPEAKING

WANG, XINXIN Chinese

MARKETING STAFF MANDARIN SPEAKING

2.

3.

6.

7.

11.

12.

25.

26.

ALFANET GLOBAL SOLUTIONS, INC. Flr. No. 4th & 5th W Mall Bldg. Diosdado Macapagal Ave. St. Zone 10.

Barangay 076, District 1 Pasay City 27.

28.

YEH, PO-SSU Taiwanese NGUYEN VAN DIEP Vietnamese

MANDARIN SPEAKING PRODUCT MARKETING SPECIALIST VIETNAMESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

ALTA RESOURCES (PHILIPPINES) CORPORATION 34th Floor Wynsum Corporate Plaza, F. Ortigas Jr. Road San Antonio Pasig City 29.

KOP JANSEN, JENS Dutch

BILINGUAL CUSTOMER CARE REPRESENTATIVE - DUTCH

AMAZON OPERATION SERVICES PHILIPPINES, INC. B21 Three E-com Moa Complex Harbour Drive Cor. Bay Shore Brgy. 076 Pasay City 30.

RAMSIRI, PATCHARAPORN Thai

SELLER SUPPORT ASSOCIATE

31.

SUYA, RUNGTIWA Thai

SELLER SUPPORT ASSOCIATE

AMUSETECH BUSINESS OUTSOURCING 2/f Rivergreen Residences 2217 Pedro Gil St. 096, Bgy 880 Santa Ana Manila 32.

33.

CHANG, TING-HAO Taiwanese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

WANG, PENG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

BIG EMPEROR TECHNOLOGY CORP. Eastfield Center Cbp1, Macapagal Blvd. Brgy. 076 Pasay City 5f-13f, Jiaxing Tower Building Aseana Avenue, Aseana Business Park Tambo Parañaque City

NO.

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS POSITION

CAPSLOCK INC. 7th & 8th Flr. Y Tower Bldg. Coral Way Drive Cor. Macapagal Ave. Brgy.

076 Pasay City

88.

XUE, FURONG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

130.

89.

ZENG, XIANXIAN Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

YI, QINGYANG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

90.

ZHANG, HEXIN Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

131.

YIN, CHENGMIN Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

91.

ZHAO, KAI Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

132.

ZHANG, QIANG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

133.

ZHENG, SHAOWEI Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

45.

PANG, HAICHAO Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

46.

SHEN, XIUXIU Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

47.

SUN, YUAN Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

48.

YU, KUIZHI Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

49.

ZHANG, LIYONG Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

50.

ZHANG, YUNYI Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

51.

ZHANG, JINHUI Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

52.

ZHENG, CONG Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

53.

ZHENG, ZHAODUO Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

54.

ZHU, LINGLING Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

55.

ZUO, CHANGJUN Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

ERNST & YOUNG GLOBAL SERVICES (PHILIPPINES) INC. 14th, 15th (unit A & D), 16th Floors Cyber Sigma Bng Lawton Ave. Mckinley West, Fort Bonifacio Taguig City

56.

CHUANG, SHENG-JIE Taiwanese

IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

100.

57.

DO THI QUYNH NGOC Vietnamese

IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

CHINA DONG FENG MOTOR DISTRIBUTORS, INC. 8-a Macapagal Blvd. Brgy. 076 Pasay City 58.

ZUO, RENJIE Chinese

MECHANIC SUPERVISOR

CHINA GEO-ENG’G (PHIL.) CORPORATION Unit No. 801-b, Flr. No. 8/f Biopolis Bldg. Macapagal Blvd. Brgy. 076 Pasay City 59.

HAN, JUN Chinese

PROJECT MANAGER

COGNIZANT TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS PHILIPPINES, INC. 5th And 6th Floors, 8/10 Upper Mckinley Building Mckinley Hill Cyberpark Fort Bonifacio Taguig City

EASTERN GOLD CORPORATION 503 Nueva St Binondo Manila MARKETING AND SALES AGENT

93.

JIN, XING Chinese

MARKETING AND SALES AGENT

94.

LI, XIAOHUA Chinese

MARKETING AND SALES AGENT

134.

95.

LIU, WANGLONG Chinese

MARKETING AND SALES AGENT

96.

NIE, YINGMEI Chinese

MARKETING AND SALES AGENT

HOPE-FOR-THE-CHILDREN INC. U 26 Ext-b 3f Bac. Bagong Mile F.b Harrison St. Brgy. 076 Pasay City

97.

SONG, XIAOCHEN Chinese

MARKETING AND SALES AGENT

98.

SUN, YANG Chinese

MARKETING AND SALES AGENT

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES PHILS. INC. U-5302, 53/f Pbcom Tower 6795 Ayala Ave., Cor., V.a. Rufino St. Bel-air Makati City

99.

ZHANG, XUEFEI Chinese

MARKETING AND SALES AGENT

136.

XU, PING Chinese

PROCUREMENT MANAGER FOR PLDT FOR SMART TELECOM PROJECT

137.

LI, YINGPU Chinese

PRODUCT MANAGER FOR FIBER TO THE HOME (FTTH) NETWORK PROJECT

101.

KUMAR, JATIN Indian

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR (63-1) MARKETS

RAZDAN, ARVIND Indian

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR DIGITAL MARKETING CENTER OF EXCELLENCE (COE), GLOBAL DELIVERY SERVICE (GDS)

FIRST GREAT COMPUTER TECHNOLOGIES INC. Lot 5 Sta. Agueda Cor. Queensway Pagcor Drive Sto. Niño Parañaque City

COLGATE-PALMOLIVE PHILIPPINES, INC. 11th Flr. Two World & Three World Square 22 Upper Mckinley Road Brgy. City Fort Bonifacio Taguig City 64.

SACHDEV, ARVIND KUMAR Indian

PRESIDENT & GENERAL MANAGER

DA SUCCESS BUSINESS TRADING INCORPORATED 2503 The Finance Centre 26th Street Corner 9th Avenue Fort Bonifacio Taguig City 65.

ZHAO, HONGMEI Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING MARKETING SPECIALIST

DAXIFA CORPORATION Mpire Center 93 West Avenue Project 7 Bungad 1 Quezon City 66.

LIN, HUAYANG Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

67.

TAO, CUIYUN Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

DYNA BINARY HOLDINGS INC. 18/f Tower 2 The Enterprise Center, 6766 Ayala Ave., Cor. Paseo De Roxas San Lorenzo Makati City 68.

69.

HONG, QUAN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

HUANG, YONGLONG Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

DYNAMIC STUDIO TECHNOLOGY INC. 5th To 10th/f Platinum Tower Building Aseana Ave. Cor. Fuentes Street Baclaran Parañaque City 70.

BI, QIANG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

71.

CHEN, HUADI Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

72.

GUO, XUESONG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

73.

HAO, JIAMENG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

JU, LIANG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

75.

LI, JIANAN Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

74.

35.

LIAO, JIAHUI Chinese

COMPUTER TECHNICAL SUPPORT SPECIALIST

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

77.

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

36.

ZHOU, YONG Chinese

LIU, HAIYAN Chinese

78.

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

37.

FENG, GUICHUAN Chinese

LUO, QIN Chinese

79.

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

38.

LI, LIWEN Chinese

MENG, JINGJING Chinese

80.

SHI, CHAOYONG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

39.

SUN, HUAJUN Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

81.

SUN, DI Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

40.

XIAO, LONG Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

82.

WEI, ZHONGYI Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

ZHENG, WEIQIANG Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

83.

WEN, CHENG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

84.

WU, MEI-RU Taiwanese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

85.

WU, WEIJIE Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

86.

XIONG, YAQIN Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

87.

XU, LIJIA Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

138.

GUO, QI Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

103.

SHAO, JIE Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

140.

HUANG, XIAOLONG Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

FREEMOVED INC. 40/f Pbcom Tower 6795 Ayala Ave. Cor. V.a Rufino St. Bel-air Makati City

141.

HUANG, YUSHENG Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

142.

LI, QIANG Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

143.

LONG, DAIZHU Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

144.

LYU, WENYA Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

PENG, HU Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING ADMIN ASSOCIATE

GATEWAYSOLUTIONS CORP. Unit 2306 Antel Global Corporate Center Julia Vargas Ave. Ortigas Center, San Antonio Pasig City

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

ITECHNO SPECIALIST INC. 9/f 100 West Building Sen. Gil Puyat Ave. Pio Del Pilar Makati City 7/f Aseana I Bldg. Bradco Avenue Aseana Business Park Tambo Parañaque City 10/f Aseana I Bldg. Bradco Avenue Aseana Business Park Tambo Parañaque City

HUANG, JINFA Chinese

TEAM LEADER

YAE LAWN Myanmari

INTERNATIONAL SPONSORSHIP COORDINATOR (DEUTSCH SPONSORS)

139.

PAINAIK, OMKAR Indian

63.

MARKARIAN, ZOHRAB MANUEL German

MANDARIN ADMIN OFFICER

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

61.

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

135.

XIANG, MENGYUAN Chinese

WEI, XIAOPING Chinese

104.

HO NGOC LAN Vietnamese

GOODYIELDS SERVICES INC. Unit Ug-08 Ug/f Cityland 10 Tower 2 154 H.v. Dela Costa Cor. Valero Sts. Bel-air Makati City

102.

GENERAL MANAGER

62.

POSITION

DU, GUOXIU Chinese

60.

COLDSTREAM MARKETING SOLUTION INC. 603-4 Eastfield Ctr. Moa Comp. Macapagal Ave. Brgy. 076 Pasay City

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

92.

BATLOO, OWAIS MAJEED Indian

LIN, XIAODI Chinese

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

NO.

LI, YUCHUN Chinese

76.

42.

POSITION

44.

43.

34.

FOURNIER, ENGUERRAND EDOUARD GUILLAUME French

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

COMPUTER TECHNICAL SUPPORT SPECIALIST

BL ASIA SUPPORT SERVICES INC. 3/f Pamcor Bldg. Pascor Drive Sto Nino Parañaque City

NO.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

LI, ZHIXIANG Chinese

HUANG, ZHITING Chinese

41.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

105.

HUANG, MINGBIAO Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

145.

LYU, YANG Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

106.

HUANG, SHAOQIANG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

146.

SUN, GUIHUA Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

107.

SHI, YUANYUAN Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

147.

WANG, NING Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

108.

TRUONG VINH XAM Vietnamese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

148.

WANG, XIN Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

109.

WU, HAIDA Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

149.

YU, CHAO Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

150.

ZHAO, XINGYU Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

151.

ZHONG, ZHIHAO Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

152.

ZHU, XIAOHUAN Chinese

CHINESE IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

153.

DAO THI NHI Vietnamese

IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

154.

HAN MIN HTUN Myanmari

IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

155.

LAU A SAM Vietnamese

IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

156.

NGUYEN THI THUAN Vietnamese

IT SUPPORT SPECIALIST

GLOBALLGA BUSINESS PROCESS OUTSOURCING 2nd, 3rd & 6th Flr. Ortigas Technopoint 2 Ortigas Home Depot Complex #1 Doña Julia Vargas Ave. Pasig City Ground Level, Level 2-5 Floor Silver City 4, Ortigas East Ugong Pasig City 110.

CHEN, JIAXI Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

111.

CUI, JIANWEI Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

112.

FAN, YABIN Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

113.

FANG, YE Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

114.

JULIANTO Indonesian

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

115.

KYAIN HONG KYAN Myanmari

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

116.

LIU, YUNLONG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

117.

QIN, ZHIPING Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

160.

118.

REN, JIANPING Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

119.

SHI, JIANZHAO Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

KONGANBUDDIES MARKETING INC. 48/f Lower Ground Pbcom Tower 6795 Ayala Ave. Cor. V.a. Rufino St. Bel-air Makati City

120.

TAN CHIN WEI Malaysian

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

121.

TAO, LINGLING Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

122.

TU, WEN Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

123.

WANG, QINGYU Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

124.

WU, MINGQIAN Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

125.

YAN, JUNRONG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

126.

YANG, RUIXIN Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

127.

YANG, LIGUI Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

128.

YAO, CHEN Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

129.

YE, XIONG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

JDB MANAGEMENT AND CONSULTANCY CORP. 107 T & D House Magallanes St. 069, Bgy. 655 Intramuros Manila 157.

RAN, YIWANG Chinese

STRATEGIC AND FACILITATION OFFICER

158.

YE, CHAO Chinese

STRATEGIC AND FACILITATION OFFICER

159.

ZHAO, YANG Chinese

STRATEGIC AND FACILITATION OFFICER

JIANGSU POWER DEVELOPMENT & CONSTRUCTION INCORPORATED Unit A&b U-8b 20/f Rufino Pacific Tower 6784 Ayala Ave. San Lorenzo Makati City YANG, JINJING Chinese

MANDARIN PROJECT MANAGER

161.

LIU, GUAN-HAN Taiwanese

BILINGUAL EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT

162.

SY MY NHU Vietnamese

MANDARIN SPEAKING ACCOUNT ASSOCIATE

163.

TANG, HUALIAN Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING ACCOUNT ASSOCIATE

164.

CHOW YI WEN Malaysian

MANDARIN SPEAKING FINANCE OFFICER

165.

FANG, NAN Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING HELP DESK SUPPORT

166.

WU, YIFENG Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING RISK CONTROL OFFICER

167.

WU, CHENG-FENG Taiwanese

MANDARIN SPEAKING SERVICE DESK SUPPORT

168.

ZHU, RENJIE Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING SERVICE DESK SUPPORT

169.

TAN WEN DICK Malaysian

MANDARIN SPEAKING SR. FINANCE ANALYST

170.

ZHANG, CHENGGANG Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING TECHNICAL SOLUTIONS SPECIALIST

KYMCO PHILIPPINES INC. Tpi Bldg. Mañalac Ave. Cor. Sta. Maria Industrial Estate Bagumbayan Taguig City 171.

CHEN, LE-SHENG Taiwanese

HR/ADMIN AND FINANCE GENERAL MANAGER

LOGICDOSE INC. 19f Marco Polo Ortigas, Sapphire Road Ortigas Center San Antonio Pasig City 172.

LIU, ZE Chinese

CHINESE INFORMATION SECURITY ANALYST

The World

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

A7

US sheds mask as 231-M shots given to Americans V

acc inat ed A mer ic a ns may get clearance to shed masks outdoors in one of the most significant changes to virus guidelines since the US first told people to don the face coverings to curb the spread of Covid-19.

P reside nt Joe Bide n i s e xpected to announce as early as Tuesday that the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention w ill issue the new guidance, according to a CNN report citing unidentified sources.

With the US averaging 2.74 million vaccine doses daily—with a total of 231 million given out overall—some public health experts have called for less strict guidelines as warmer weather arrives.

Anthony Fauci, President Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser, said Americans should begin to see a turning point in the pandemic “within a few weeks,” CNBC reported. If the US continues its vaccination pace, “literally within a few weeks, we’re going to start to see a turning around of the dynamics,” Fauci said Monday during a virtual event hosted by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

With infections falling to the lowest level since November, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said he is increasing allowable capacity to 33 percent from 20 percent at outdoor stadiums, to 50 percent from 25 percent at casinos, to 50 percent from 33 percent at gyms outside New York City, and to 75 percent from 50 percent at office buildings.

Cuomo spoke at a press conference at the state fairgrounds in Syracuse, where he announced that the fair, one of the biggest in the US, will resume this summer after last year’s cancellation. The fair begins on August 20, and runs for 18 days.

Starting on May 10, New Jersey will relax some gathering restrictions, allowing bigger crowds to attend high school proms and graduation ceremonies, Governor Phil Murphy said on Monday.

In all, 2.8 million people have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19, he said at a Trenton news conference. That’s 60 percent of the 4.7 million adults that the state wants fully protected by June 30.

Indoor events, including weddings, proms, memorial services, performances and political get-togethers, will increase to 50 percent capacity, from 35 percent, for a

maximum of 250 individuals. Dance floors at such events can open, but not those at bars and nightclubs.

Outdoors, 500 individuals will be able to gather, up from 200. At venues with 1,000 or more seats, capacity will grow to 50 percent, so long as 6 feet (1.8 meters) of distance can be maintained among groups.

Key developments:

US will share AstraZeneca vaccines The US will begin sharing its entire pipeline of vaccines from AstraZeneca once the vaccine clear federal safety reviews, the White House told The Associated Press on Monday, with as many as 60 million doses expected to be available for export in the coming months.

The AstraZeneca vaccine is widely in use around the world but not yet authorized by the US Food and Drug Administration.

Turkey imposes 3-week ockdown President Recep Tayyip Erdogan imposed an almost 3-week lockdown starting Thursday. All students will enroll in remote schooling during the lockdown period, which runs until May 17, Erdogan said in a press conference following Monday’s cabinet meeting in Ankara.

The daily number of cases should be lowered to below 5,000 so that Turkey can reopen economy along with the rest of Europe, Erdogan said. On Sunday, Turkey reported 38,553 new cases of Covid-19 and 347 deaths, bringing the death toll from the pandemic to 38,358.

Pakistan records deadliest week yet Pakistan reported 874 deaths in the week ended April 25, the worst week since the pandemic started more than a year ago. The South Asian nation that neighbors India is going through a new wave of infections and government officials are warning this one may be the worst yet.

Macron hints at reopening plans France’s Emmanuel Macron gave some hints about how the country will start to reopen some businesses from mid-May. During a school visit Monday, just as pupils were going back to class after an extended vacation to tackle the virus, Macron said restaurants

would reopen gradually between May and the end of June. He added that the timeline will be based on local virus circulations, potentially diverging from one region to another. Cultural venues would start to reopen from mid-May, with limited occupancy rates, and the current 7 p.m.-6 a.m. curfew might be pushed back, he told pupils.

EU sues AstraZeneca for breaching contract The EU filed a suit against AstraZeneca for breaching the advanced purchase agreement for vaccine doses, Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides said in a tweet.

The company failed to come up with a “reliable strategy” to ensure timely delivery of vaccine doses, Commission spokesman Stefan De Keersmaecker told reporters in Brussels. “We want to make sure that there’s a speedy delivery of a sufficient number of doses the European citizens are entitled to and which have been promised on the basis of this contract,” he said.

No talks of EU-UK free travel The EU isn’t currently in direct talks with the UK on free travel options for vaccinated individuals. The bloc would be open to start such talks, a spokesman said on Monday in Brussels. The comment comes after Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told the New York Times that such talks were taking place with the US. “On the UK side there are no such contacts yet,” the spokesman said.

“On the US side there are contacts on the technical level and there was also a call between Commissioner Reynders and US Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas last Wednesday where this issue was raised.”

Serbia starts walk-in vaccinations Seek ing to speed up inoculations, Serbia no longer requires patients to register online before receiving Covid-19 shots. With a relative abundance of vaccines from four suppliers, the Balkan nation first lifted the registration requirement for AstraZeneca vaccines earlier this month, and then for the rest. The nation of about 7 million people has inoculated almost 2 million, including 1.3 million with both doses.

Bloomberg News

Scientists say up to 25,000 barrels found at DDT dump site in Pacific

S

AN DIEGO—Marine scientists say they have found what they believe to be as many as 25,000 barrels that possibly contain DDT dumped off the Southern California coast near Catalina Island, where a massive underwater toxic waste site dating back to World War II has long been suspected.

The 27,345 “barrel-like” images were captured by researchers at the University of California San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography. They mapped more than 36,000 acres of seafloor bet ween Santa Catalina Island and the Los Angeles coast in a region previously found to contain high levels of the toxic chemical in sediments and in the ecosystem.

Historical shipping logs show that industrial companies in Southern California used the basin as a dumping ground until 1972, when the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act, also known as the Ocean Dumping Act, was enacted.

Resting deep in the ocean, the exact location and extent of the dumping was not known until now.

The territory covered was “staggering,” said Eric Terrill, chief scientist of the expedition and director of the Marine Physical Laboratory at Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

Underwater drones using sonar technology captured high-resolution images of barrels resting 3,000 feet (900 meters) below the surface all along the steep seafloor that was surveyed. They also were seen beyond the

dumpsite limits.

“It really was a surprise to everybody who’s worked with the data and who sailed at sea,” he told reporters Monday.

The survey provides “a wide-area map” of the barrels, though it will be up to others to confirm through sediment sampling that the containers hold DDT, Terrill said. It’s estimated between 350 and 700 tons of DDT were dumped in the area, 12 miles (20 kilometers) from Los Angeles, and 8 miles (12 kilometers) from Catalina Island.

The long-term impact on marine life and humans is still unknown, said Scripps chemical oceanographer and professor of geosciences Lihini Aluwihare, who in 2015 co-authored a study that found high amounts of DDT and other man-made chemicals in the blubber of bottlenose dolphins that died of natural causes.

“These results also raise questions about the continued exposure and potential impacts on marine mammal health, especially in light of how DDT has been shown to have multi-generational impacts in humans,” said Aluwhihare, who was not part of the survey expedition.

Diana Aga, a chemistr y professor at University at Buffalo who is not affiliated with the study, said the findings were shocking if the barrels are proven to contain the toxic chemical. “That’s a lot of DDT at the bottom of the ocean,” she said.

If the barrels haven’t leaked, they could be moved to a place where disposal is safer, Aga said. If they leaked, scientists could take samples

from the water, sediment and other marine life to gauge the damage.

Scientists conducted the survey from March 10-24 following a Los Angeles Times report last year about evidence that DDT was dumped into the ocean.

“Unfortunately, the basin offshore Los Angeles had been a dumping ground for industrial waste for several decades, beginning in the 1930s. We found an extensive debris field in the wide area survey,” Terrill said.

S cientists star ted the search where University of California Santa Barbara professor David Valentine had discovered concentrated accumulations of DDT in the sediments and spotted 60 barrels about a decade ago.

High levels of DDT have been detected in the area’s marine mammals, and the chemical has been linked to cancer in sea lions.

The Los Angeles Times reviewed shipping logs from a disposal company supporting Montrose Chemical Corp. of California, a DDTproducing company. The logs showed 2,000 barrels of DDT-laced sludge were dumped in the deep ocean each month from 1947 to 1961 off Catalina, and other companies also dumped there until 1972.

Scripps researchers say they hope their survey will support clean-up efforts.

The expedition on the Sally Ride research vessel included a team of 31 scientists, engineers, and crew conducting 24-hour operations and two autonomous underwater vehicles. AP

A8 Wednesday, April 28, 2021 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

editorial

Strong farm sector ensures food security

F

ollowing the accession of the Philippines to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in January 1995, Congress enacted a measure that converted quantitative import restrictions into tariffs. Republic Act (RA) 8178 or the Agricultural Tariffication Act was approved by Congress in March 1996. Apart from converting the quantitative import restrictions into tariffs, it also put in place the so-called minimum access volume (MAV) and created the Agricultural Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (ACEF).

The MAV scheme was a commitment made by the Philippines to the WTO under the Uruguay Round Final Act. RA 8178 mandated the Cabinet Committee including the National Economic and Development Authority to consult stakeholders in setting the MAV, or the specific agricultural product that is allowed to be imported with a lower tariff.

Tariffs collected from imports under the MAV scheme constituted ACEF, which was used for agriculture-related projects.

Initially, commodities covered by the MAV scheme—chicken, pork, potatoes and coffee beans—had two tariffs (See, “Moving On MAV,” in the BusinessMirror, April 24, 2021). Due to the commitments made by the Philippines to the WTO, agricultural products that once had two tariffs eventually carried a unitary rate. However, imported pork is one of the commodities that continues to have two tariff rates—30 percent within MAV and 40 percent outside of MAV. Traders who wish to import agricultural products under the MAV scheme must seek a license that will allow them to purchase the commodity at a lower tariff. Importers seeking allocation from the Department of Agriculture’s MAV Management Committee would have to submit a number of documents to the agency. These include certified true copies of their Department of Trade and Industry or Securities and Exchange Commission registration, certificate of good standing from the SEC for corporations, duly notarized sworn statement of importation, updated Mayor’s permit and accreditation from pertinent DA agencies.

The tedious process of securing a MAV allocation prompted calls for the abolition of the scheme following the government’s decision to raise the MAV for pork (See, “House Seeks Review Of Pork Imports MAV Hike, Tariff Cuts,” in the BusinessMirror, April 6, 2021).

However, only Congress can repeal this provision as mandated by RA 8178. And it has to carefully weigh the pros and cons of outright abolition given the implications, such as the elimination of the Agricultural Competitiveness Enhancement Fund.

Policy-makers must focus on the amendment of RA 8178 and make the necessary tweaks in the law that will allow agencies to make use of funds from tariffs on agricultural imports to assist distressed sectors. The livestock and poultry subsector, for one, is badly in need of assistance from the national government after it was struck by animal diseases. Avian influenza nearly decimated poultry farms in Central Luzon in 2017 while African swine fever, which reached our shores in 2019, has caused hog raisers to incur huge losses.

RA 8178, together with RA 8453 or the Agricultural Modernization Act, was intended to hasten the modernization of the Philippine farm sector. Nearly three decades after the Philippines joined the WTO, farmers and other food producers have yet to fully realize the benefits of these policies. Amending RA 8178 and revisiting RA 8453 will help strengthen the agriculture sector and enable the country to achieve food security.

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F

or some people, the first day of May is another day off for rest and relaxation. But for many, Labor Day is just another busy day as workers report for work, especially those who are paid on a daily basis.

Before the pandemic, this day is observed with festive celebrations as simultaneous job fairs were being conducted nationwide by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to offer jobs to new graduates or unemployed individuals. Labor groups also convene to push for various programs that help uplift members of their sector, while some establishments, malls included, offer special discount sales.

This is also the day when the labor sector looks forward to an announcement of wage increases. Presidents often approve wage hikes or declare benefit packages for workers on this day. We also see labor associations and their members out on the streets every May 1 to plead their causes.

For SSS, the celebration of Labor Day in 1997 is one of the unforgettable events in the institution’s history. That day, we witnessed the passage of Republic Act 8282 or the Social Security Act, which

amended Republic Act 1161 or the Social Security Act of 1957 that gave birth to the Social Security System (SSS).

SSS has been gearing towards universal coverage. From its inception in 1957, which mandated the coverage of all private sector employees and their respective employers including self-employed professionals such as lawyers, doctors, actors, actresses, among others, the pension fund has since extended membership to cover those who are in the voluntary informal sector since 1980.

In 1993, SSS covered all types of house helpers and then two years later in 1995, it started covering farmers and fisherfolks, overseas Filipino workers, and non-working spouses. Its increasing wide membership base encouraged the management to develop strategic partnership programs toward increasing SSS coverage among self-employed workers. As of end-2020, we have

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SSS never stops in its coverage expansion and collection efforts so as to increase its contributing members and contribution collections to be able to sustain its mandate of providing social security protection to those that are in need.

tied up with 3,310 Coverage & Collection Partners for coverage of Job Order workers in government, selfemployed professionals, members of cooperatives, and informal sector groups. SSS is not selective to those who need social security protection in times of contingencies brought by sickness, maternity, disability, unemployment, retirement, funeral and death.

As of March 2021, SSS has recorded 40.36 million members (30.54 million private sector employees including some 97,000 house helpers, 3.37 million self-employed workers, 5.11 million voluntary members, and 1.34 million OFW members). Of this number, 10.72 million are paying members from January to March 2021. In addition, there are 991,135 active employers registered with the SSS, and 1,305 informal sector groups and 81 partner agents are under our AlkanSSSya and Partner Accreditation Programs, respectively. Further, SSS has a workforce of 7,846 employees as of February 2021.

SSS never stops in its coverage expansion and collection efforts so

Saving the seas from plastic pollution Dennis Gorecho

Online Editor

MEMBER OF

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SSS honors the Filipino workers

T

he video of a marine biologist removing a plastic straw stuck in a sea turtle’s nose in August 2015 catalyzed a larger movement to eliminate single-use plastics, like plastic straws, from our day-to-day lives.

Marine litter, specifically plastic pollution, was discussed as part of Earth Day celebration during the recent episodes of Amigos Marino weekly online show by Von Hernandez of Break Free From Plastic movement and Chief Mate Aries Damian of Mariners Polytechnic Colleges of Bicol.

Marine litter is any persistent, manufactured or processed solid material discarded directly or indirectly into the sea, rivers or on beaches.

Marine litter poses threats to human health, food security, economy and environment, including degradation of marine and coastal habitats, ecosystems and biodiversity.

A major source of pollution are single-use disposable plastics that come in various forms such as straws, sachet packs, bags, cutleries, cups, and plastic bottles that are meant to be used only once, before being thrown away.

If there are no drastic interventions, by 2050 there will be more plastics than fish in the ocean.

Plastic bags take 10-20 years to decompose, while plastic bottles take 450 years.

These items tend to shrink into smaller pieces (called microplastics), which never achieve full decomposition and return to the food cycle through ingestion by fish and other

A major source of pollution are single-use disposable plastics that come in various forms such as straws, sachet packs, bags, cutleries, cups, and plastic bottles that are meant to be used only once, before being thrown away. If there are no drastic interventions, by 2050 there will be more plastics than fish in the ocean. animals as “false food,” causing digestive failure, suffocation, starvation, drowning and eventually death. Some animals become fatalities due to entanglement.

The Philippines, which disposes 2.7 million tons of plastics per year, is considered the third-largest global contributor to the 8 million tons of plastics that are estimated to flood our oceans each year.

More than 163 million plastic sachet packets, as well as 48 million shopping bags and 45 million thinfilm bags are used and disposed of daily in the country.

The more visible manifestations of the problem due to single-use plastics include the clogging up of waterways, drainage systems, and

as to increase its contributing members and contribution collections to be able to sustain its mandate of providing social security protection to those that are in need.

Throughout the agency’s 63 years of existence, it has gone a long way to uplift the lives of Filipinos and pensioners in current and future generations. Since SSS is generally a defined benefit pension scheme, every member is qualified to get benefits and privileges based on the pool of contributions that they contributed to the System while still working and earning.

Our members are composed of ordinary and hardworking individuals from laborers to corporate people. It makes no difference whatever ethnicity, race, position, or class they belong because we treat them all equally and they get the same benefits.

For me, this is the essence of Labor Day, that is, giving recognition to all our Filipino workers…the lifeblood of our pension fund.

I remember a quote from renowned civil rights advocate, Martin Luther King Jr., who once said: “All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.”

Maligayang Araw ng Paggawa sa lahat ng manggagawang Pilipino!

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.

therefore contributing to floods.

Hernandez echoed the call of environmental groups for the passage of a comprehensive Single-Use Plastic Ban as an essential policy tool to stop plastic pollution by shifting corporate dependence on throwaway packaging models to more sustainable reuse and refill systems.

They seek to apply pressure throughout each step along the plastic supply chain, from production to disposal.

Single-use plastic is not a cleanup problem but a pollution problem, Hernandez stressed, adding that the only way to prevent it is to stop its production and avoid using them in the first place.

This means looking at plastic at the different stages of the life-cycle, and not just treating it as a waste management or consumer responsibility issue, which is what the plastic industry wants.

Looking at it that way, Hernandez added, takes the industry off the hook and allows it to continue producing even more plastics.

On the other hand, CM Damian noted that the Annex V regulations of the International Convention for See “Gorecho,” A9

Opinion BusinessMirror

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In Africa, vaccine hesitancy adds to slow rollout of doses

Community pantries: Complementation not competition Dr. Jesus Lim Arranza

MAKE SENSE

By Rodney Muhumuza | Associated Press

K

AMPALA, Uganda—Some Africans are hesitating to get Covid-19 vaccines amid concerns about their safety, alarming public health officials as some countries start to destroy thousands of doses that expired before use.

Malawi and South Sudan in recent days have said they will destroy some of their doses, a concerning development on a continent where health officials have been outspoken about the need for vaccine equity as the world’s rich nations hold the bulk of shots.

Africa, whose 1.3 billion people represent 16 percent of the world’s population, has received less than 2 percent of the Covid-19 vaccine doses administered around the world, according to the World Health 0rganization.

The continent has confirmed more than 4.5 million Covid-19 cases, including 120,000 deaths, a tiny fraction of the global fatalities and caseload. But some experts worry that the 54-nation continent will suffer in the long term if it takes longer than expected to meet the threshold scientists believe is needed to stop uncontrolled spread of Covid-19—70 percent or higher of the population having immunity through vaccination or past infection.

Africa seeks to vaccinate up to 60 percent of its people by the end of 2022.

Achieving that goal will require about 1.5 billion vaccine doses for Africa if the two-shot AstraZeneca vaccine continues to be widely used.

But safety concerns relating to that vaccine, often the main shot available under the donor-backed COVAX program to ensure access for developing countries, have left some Africans worried.

Vaccine-related suspicions have been spread widely on social media, driven partly by a general lack of trust in authorities. Uganda’s health minister had to refute allegations she faked receiving a shot, even posting a video of herself getting the jab on Twitter, along with the admonition: “Please stop spreading fake news!”

Some have raised the untrue claim that the shots can cause infertility on sites such as WhatsApp. Others openly question the speed with which Covid-19 vaccines have been developed.

“The world has failed to find a vaccine for AIDS all these years, but they quickly found a vaccine for Covid? I am not going to go for that vaccine,” said Richard Bbale, an electrician in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, voicing fear that an experimental vaccine could be harmful. “Even if the government forces us to get the vaccine as if it’s a national ID, I will not go.”

Austin Demby, Sierra Leone’s health minister, told reporters last week that a third of the 96,000 doses the country received in March will likely not be used before they expire, citing a lack of urgency among some people who decided that Covid-19 is “not as bad as Ebola,” which ravaged the country several years ago.

“People are worried this is another public experiment they want to make on our people,” he said.

The World Health Organization and the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have urged African governments to continue rolling out the AstraZeneca vaccine, saying its benefits outweigh any risks after European countries limited its use over concerns about rare blood clots in a small number of recipients.

“Anything you take has a risk.

Any medication,” Africa CDC director John Nkengasong told a briefing last week, citing some essential drugs that can cause blood clots in rare cases. “That’s the way we should be looking at these vaccines.”

The Africa CDC said in a statement last week it had received guidance from the Serum Institute of India recommending a three-month

A few thousand people are inoculated daily at centers put up across the country, including inside regional hospitals. The local Daily Monitor newspaper recently reported that more than 280,000 doses will likely expire

by July at the current average of about 6,000 shots used each day. “shelf life extension” on the April 13 expiration date of at least a million AstraZeneca shots delivered to Africa.

Africa nations “don’t have a choice,” Nkengasong said, urging Malawi to use all its shots after authorities in the southern African nation said they would burn 16,000 AstraZeneca doses that expired earlier in April. It is unclear if Malawi will follow that advice.

The country has administered less than half of more than 500,000 doses it received via COVAX, leading Victor Mithi, head of the Society of Medical Doctors in Malawi, to blame vaccine misconceptions.

“We are continuously assuring Malawians that the vaccine is safe and that once they feel anything abnormal beyond the usual postvaccination symptoms, they can always come to the hospital and report,” he said.

An additional 1.26 million doses expected from COVAX at the end of May may be wasted if people continue shunning the vaccine, said Shouts Simeza, president of the National Organization of Nurses and Midwives in Malawi, adding that a possible solution is making vaccinations mandatory for all who are eligible.

Trying to increase coverage, Malawi’s government has relaxed vaccine eligibility rules to include everyone aged 18 and older after initially focusing on priority groups such as health workers.

The East African nation of Uganda, which also is struggling to increase vaccine rollout among priority groups, may soon act similarly, said Emmanuel Ainebyoona, spokesman for the Ministry of Health. Ugandans under age 50 have shown interest in getting vaccinated, raising hope that doses will not expire unused, he said.

Uganda has received 964,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, the only one available in the country. But just over 230,000 doses have been administered since March 10.

Health authorities had planned to give at least 500,000 people their first shot in a first round of vaccinations targeting front-line workers, people with underlying health conditions and those 50 and older.

But, amid a slow rollout, they are now reaching out to popular “influencers,” celebrities such as a kickboxer who was photographed getting a shot last week.

“The uptake is gradually improving,” Ainebyoona said, noting that “communications interventions” have proved necessary to get more Ugandans to embrace the vaccination campaign.

A few thousand people are inoculated daily at centers put up across the country, including inside regional hospitals. The local Daily Monitor newspaper recently reported that more than 280,000 doses will likely expire by July at the current average of about 6,000 shots used each day.

Vaccination teams, lacking official records of eligible residents, simply sit and wait for people who may not show up.

Gregory Gondwe in Blantyre, Malawi, and Jonathan Paye-Layleh in Monrovia, Liberia, and Cara Anna in Nairobi, Kenya, contributed.

Wednesday, April 28, 2021 A9

W condition.

ithout order and proper coordination, the organizers of the community pantries—even those with the best of intentions—are doomed to fail, especially in our current

The country is still under different levels of lockdown, with Metro Manila, Laguna, Bulacan, Cavite, and Rizal under modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ)— the second-strictest quarantine—as we try to contain the spread of the Covid-19 and give our health system a breather.

We all know that the most important aspect of this is the observance of health protocols, particularly the wearing of face mask and face shield and physical distancing.

This is also the main reason why those behind these community pantries need to coordinate with concerned local and national government agencies, so they can assist and ensure that health protocols are being followed.

This is where the government and private sector can work hand in hand in ensuring the success of these community pantries. The goal should not be just to give aid to the poor, but also to prevent people from being infected.

Let me say this again: Not all good deeds, no matter how sincere and noble the intention is, will bear good things, if they are not done properly.

Even the Bible says, (1Co 14:40) “Let all things be done decently and in order.”

Community pantries are being set up on the streets and oftentimes under the scorching heat of the sun.

Naturally, people will be drawn to these, which is why we are seeing long lines of people, even if they will only get a handful of food items.

If not coordinated properly with authorities, the organizers could just be putting people in a position where they would violate health protocols, and this definitely will not help contain the spread of the virus. You have distributed food but you also helped spread the virus. The negative outweighs the positive.

I can’t understand why some organizers wouldn’t want proper coordination with the barangays and the local governments just to ensure order and observance of health protocols.

Are they competing with the government?

Take, for instance, the case of the community pantry set up by actress Angel Locsin in Quezon City on April 23. The chairman of Barangay Holy Spirit and Mayor Joy Belmonte both said there was no proper coor-

The national and local governments have limited resources, but they are still trying their best to distribute aid in the form of cash and food packs to the indigents. We in the private sector also have limited resources, and we are also trying our best to provide relief to our neighbors. dination. An open invitation to the public was made on social media, so naturally, thousands of people lined up for several hours despite the heat.

It turned out that only 300 food packs would be given away. When the people learned about this, they became unruly and started to mass around or near Ms. Locsin and the organizers. So there goes social distancing. The saddest part was the death of a senior citizen, who collapsed as he tried to brave the heat and the long line of people just to get a few hundred pesos worth of food items.

Former Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile and I discussed this in our radio program over DZAR last Saturday morning. We shared the frustration on why this was announced via the social media of Ms. Locsin that has around 21 million followers all over the country when she would only distribute food packs to 300 people in a single area.

The lesson from this is glaring: proper coordination.

On the part of the government authorities, especially the Intelligence community, I believe that it would be better if they operate in a clandestine manner in determining which among these community pantries are being initiated as a propaganda

drive by leftist groups against the government.

Approaching the organizers directly, even if there is no strong evidence to pin them down as communist fronts, will only court criticisms and create animosity as what is happening now.

Also, if indeed there are subversive and anti-government materials being posted and distributed in some of these community pantries, the authorities should be able to catch them in flagrante.

If caught in the act, these people will no longer claim they are just being red-tagged. Assign secret agents to observe clandestinely and then catch them while doing the illegal acts. This will ensure the community pantries are not being infiltrated or used by communist groups.

The national and local governments have limited resources, but they are still trying their best to distribute aid in the form of cash and food packs to the indigents. We in the private sector also have limited resources, and we are also trying our best to provide relief to our neighbors.

But please, let’s not compete with the government.

In setting up these community pantries, the goal should be complementation and not competition.

If we do this, the limited resources of both the government and the private sector will serve more people.

Dr. Jesus Lim Arranza is the chairman of the Federation of Philippine Industries and Fight Illicit Trade; a broad-based, multisectoral movement intended to protect consumers, safeguard government revenues and shield legitimate industries from the ill effects of smuggling.

China widens Internet crackdown with Meituan monopoly probe

By Coco Liu | Bloomberg Opinion

C

hina’s government has expanded its antitrust crackdown beyond Jack Ma’s technology empire, launching an investigation into suspected monopolistic practices by food-delivery behemoth Meituan.

The State Administration for Market Regulation announced the investigation, which began recently, in a statement on Monday. The antitrust watchdog is looking into alleged abuses including forced exclusivity arrangements known as “pick one of two.” The company said it will actively cooperate with the probe and step up efforts to comply with regulations. Its businesses are currently operating normally, it added in a statement. Shares in China’s third largest Internet company slipped about 2.2 percent Tuesday, after the firm’s dollar bond spreads widened.

The investigation into Meituan extends Beijing’s crackdown beyond Ma’s Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Ant Group Co., and threatens to chill the ambitions of founder Wang Xing, one of China’s most aggressive entrepreneurs. The government has become increasingly concerned over the growing influence of titans like Alibaba, Tencent Holdings Ltd. and Meituan over every aspect of Chinese life as well as the vast amounts of data they’ve amassed through providing services like online shopping, chatting and ride-hailing.

The antitrust campaign has gathered pace in recent weeks, as regulators slapped a record fine on Alibaba, instructed affiliate Ant to overhaul its business and ordered

Gorecho. . .

continued from A8

the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL), as first drafted in 1973 and amended in 1978, address marine pollution including handling of garbage from ships.

MARPOL seeks to ensure that the marine environment is preserved by the elimination of pollution by all harmful substance that can be discharged from the ship.

The firm, founded by 42-year-old billionaire Wang, has long been criticized by rivals and merchants for alleged excesses like forced exclusive arrangements. Meituan— which competes against Alibaba’s Ele.me in food delivery—had previously been found guilty of unfair competition in at least two legal cases this year and ordered to pay compensation, local media has reported. The corporation had also rejected allegations that it charged onerous commissions to restaurants during the Covid-19 outbreak last year.

34 of its largest tech companies— including Meituan—to rectify any anti-competitive business practices within one month. Following the meeting with SAMR, the Beijing-based firm issued a pledge to abide by antitrust laws, saying it will maintain market order and won’t force merchants to “pick one of two”—forcing them to select between Meituan or a rival —through unreasonable methods.

Meituan is unlikely to face penalties any harsher than Alibaba’s recent $2.8 billion fine after being slapped with a monopoly probe, a sign that the regulatory dragnet is widening on the country’s tech behemoths. The interim period could be unnerving for its investors, but we think any penalty Meituan may pay will be commensurate with its smaller operational scale, said VeySern Ling and Tiffany Tam, Bloomberg analysts.

The firm, founded by 42-yearold billionaire Wang, has long been criticized by rivals and merchants for alleged excesses like forced exclusive arrangements. The firm—which competes against Alibaba’s Ele.me in food delivery—had previously been found guilty of unfair competition in at least two legal cases this year and ordered to pay compensation, local media has reported. The corporation had also rejected allegations

that it charged onerous commissions to restaurants during the Covid-19 outbreak last year.

Alongside Ele.me, Meituan also faced an online backlash after several delivery riders were killed or injured while trying to meet strict deadlines.

It was among a handful of operators fined by the antitrust watchdog in March for giving improper subsidies to expand in the red-hot arena of community e-commerce.

Ahead of the probe, Meituan said it will raise $10 billion in a record new share sale by a Hong Kong-listed firm as well as through an offering of convertible bonds. The firm had said it will use the funds to boost investments in new technologies like autonomous delivery as well as for general corporate purposes.

Under antitrust laws, Meituan could face a penalty of as much as 10 percent of its revenue if it’s

Annex V, which came into force on December 31, 1988, expressly prohibits all ships from discharging garbage, which includes all kinds of food, domestic and operational waste, all plastics, cargo residues, incinerator ashes, cooking oil, fishing gear, and animal carcasses generated during the normal operation of the ship and liable to be disposed of continuously or periodically.

The most important feature of the Annex is the complete ban imposed on the disposal into the sea of

all forms of plastics, including but not limited to synthetic ropes, synthetic fishing nets, plastic garbage bags and incinerator ashes from plastic products, which may contain toxic or heavy metal residues.

It specifies the distances from land in which materials may be disposed of and subdivides different types of garbage and marine debris.

The requirements are much stricter in a number of “special areas.”

There must be a garbage management plan which is a complete

found to have violated regulations.

Its 2020 revenue was about 114.8 billion yuan ($17.7 billion). In contrast, rival Alibaba was fined $2.8 billion, or about 4 percent of its 2019 domestic revenues.

Wang, a coding guru whose methodical obsession with data and algorithms proved instrumental in humbling Alibaba’s rival meal service Ele.me, has openly telegraphed his ambitions. In a 2017 interview with local media, he said Meituan could join Alibaba and Tencent as the third member of a Chinese Internet triumvirate in five to 10 years, due to the value it creates in food, travel and other services.

The billionaire last week described in a lengthy online post how he’ll funnel capital raised toward research into autonomous drones and delivery systems—which analysts expect to fuel Meituan’s foray into the red-hot community commerce arena, where buyers in a local neighborhood enjoy bulk discounts.

Meituan had been expected to wage a pitched battle of subsidies and sweeteners with Alibaba, JD.com Inc. and Pinduoduo Inc. for food and produce supply.

Meituan shares nearly tripled in 2020, making it one of the best-performing Chinese technology stocks.

It’s dropped roughly 32 percent from a February record, partly as China’s antitrust campaign accelerated and after the company flagged that it will incur more losses from its investments in newer businesses like online groceries.

Spreads on Meituan’s dollar bonds due 2025 widened nearly 13 basis points following the announcement. guideline that comprises of a written procedure for collecting, storing, processing, and disposing of garbage generated onboard ship.

Vessels are obliged to deposit plastic waste at reception facilities ashore as port state signatories are required to provide adequate and appropriate reception facilities.

Atty. Gorecho heads the seafarers’ division of the Sapalo Velez Bundang Bulilan law offices. For comments, e-mail info@sapalovelez.com, or call 0917-5025808 or 0908-8665786.

A10 Wednesday, April 28, 2021

2 OFWs among dead in India’s Covid surge

T

WO overseas Filipino workers (OFW) were among the thousands of fatalities in the staggering surge of Covid-19 cases in India, which has seen new daily cases in the hundreds of thousands and the health system collapsing as hospitals struggle to treat patients.

Another 20 more Filipinos are now also being closely monitored by the Philippine Embassy in New Delhi after being infected with Covid-19.

In an interview with PTV on Tuesday, Philippine Ambassador to India Ramon Bagatsing, Jr. disclosed they were informed of the deaths by the respective employers of the two deceased OFWs. He said they are coordinating with the families of the two OFWs to process their remains.

The repatriation of the remains, Bagatsing said, may take some time due to the existing ban imposed by Middle East countries for flights coming from India.

“That is something we have to figure out because as I said, no flights are coming from India. All fights via Middle East are suspended right now,” Bagatsing said.

Continued on A4

Neda insists: Severe pork shortage merits MAV hike

T

By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

HE recent spike in the price of pork already indicates a “severe pork shortage” in the Philippines, according to the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda).

The Neda also confirmed at the hearing of the Senate Committee of the Whole on Tuesday that the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) has cleared a resolution for approval by the President to declare a state of calamity with regard to the African Swine Fever (ASF).

During the hearing, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua said meat inflation in Metro Manila has already reached 59 percent in March from around one percent in 2020. This, coupled with the 26-percent decline in hog production in the first quarter of the year, already point to a shortage.

“The mere fact that the inflation

spiked so high suggests a severe shortage,” Chua said. “If the private sector statistics were correct, then [it should be] consistent when we compare the price and the quantity. [We should see] a consistent story. Unfortunately, we don’t. But with the official statistics, we see a consistent story of a severe supply shortage and a severe increase in the prices.”

Based on PSA data, hog production in the first quarter last year was at 571,259 MT. If the first quarter hog production declined by 26 percent, this would place the local hog industry’s production at around 422,731.66.

Chua told senators that for the past three years, the average pork consumption per cap-

ita was 15.9 kilograms (kg ) per person.

But the preliminary data of the PSA showed that per capita consumption of pork has gone down to 14.3 kg per person. This, he said, is far from the 10 kg per person estimated by the private sector.

Based on Neda’s estimates, this would lead to a pork deficit of around 411,000 MT or around 400,000 MT, if the per capita pork consumption used is 14.3 kg per person, which is the preliminary figure.

MAV increase

THESE estimates were the basis for the controversial recommendation to increase the Minimum Access Volume (MAV) by 350,000 MT to 404,210 MT from 54,210 MT. The increase in the MAV accounted for the projected deficit in pork production.

“The latest first quarter data.... are very consistent with the huge deficit we are seeing and the price is consistent also in showing that the deficit is that big. If the deficit were smaller at 100,000 or less than 200,000, we would not see the inflation of pork that high,” Chua explained.

Continued on A4

INBOUND ‘TOURIST’ NUMBERS PLUNGE 98% ON COVID CURBS

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo

@akosistellaBM Special to the BusinessMirror

T

RAVEL restrictions here and around the world continue to reduce the number of visitors to the Philippines.

In the first quarter of 2021, the country welcomed 29,383 visitors, a 97.9-percent fall from the 1.4-million arrivals in the same period last year, according to data provided by the Department of Tourism (DOT). The data was based on arrival cards from the Bureau of Immigration (BI).

Of the total arrivals, 3,823 were overseas Filipinos, i.e., Philippine passport holders permanently residing abroad, but not overseas Filipino workers, the DOT also said.

While the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases prohibits the entry of leisure tourists, the DOT based their visitors data on the BI arrival cards, where passengers filled up “pleasure” as their primary purpose. Also, starting March 17, inbound travelers included “foreign spouses, minor children including children with special needs, regardless of age, of Filipino nationals as well as foreign parents of minor.”

Sea travelers were also not included in DOT’s headcount as they arrived mainly for “foreign repatriation, change crew, or joining and bunkering.”

Top source markets

THE United States was the top source market for visitors from January to March, with 5,226 arrivals (down 97.4 percent); followed by Japan at 3,232 (-97.6 percent); China 1,866 (-99 percent); India 1,395 (-94.7 percent); and Turkey 1,080 (-56.5 percent).

Other foreigners arrived from South Korea 1,052 (-99.7 percent); Saudi Arabia 777 (-88 percent); the United Kingdom 679 (-98.2 percent); Canada 630 (-98.8 percent); United Arab Emirates 617 (-57.8 percent); Commonwealth of Independent States 407 (-87.8 percent); and Bahrain 380 (-37.09 percent).

Prior to the pandemic, in 2019, top source markets for foreign tourists were South Korea, China, the US, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, Canada, the UK, Singapore, Malaysia, and Germany.

(See, “Visitor Arrivals In 2019 Breach 8.2-M Goal–DOT,” in the BusinessMirror, February 18, 2020.)

Continued on A4

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Companies BusinessMirror

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

B1

MWSS: Govt, Maynilad to ink new concession deal soon

T

By Jonathan L. Mayuga

@jonlmayuga

he Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) on Tuesday expressed confidence that the government will soon reach a new concession agreement with Maynilad Water Services Inc. (Maynilad).

MWSS Chairman and Acting Administrator Reynaldo V. Velasco’s optimism stems from the recent approval and signing of the revised concession agreement between the government and Manila Water Services Inc. The concession agreement entered into by the government with Maynilad in 1997 is currently undergoing review by a government panel.

Velasco said he expects the new concession agreement will be, like that of Manila Water’s—“a win-win solution” that will benefit consumers, the government and the concessionaire.

The concession agreement with Maynilad was sealed during the term

Philweb returns to profitability in Jan-March

P

hilweb Corp. on Tuesday said it returned to profitability in the January-to-March period, when it posted a net income of P7.2 million from last year’s loss of P1.53 million.

Revenues rose 8 percent to P137.9 million from the previous year’s P127.24 million, as costs and expenses decreased by 1.5 percent to P121.6 million.

“These remarkable results were brought about by the revenue contribution of 19 additional eGames sites that converted back to Philweb’s electronic gaming system, as well as the acquisition of 16 eBingo venues and two accredited eBingo machine providers,” the company said in its report.

“These developments, in addition to the increase in the activities of the eGames and eBingo outlets to pre-quarantine levels, allowed Philweb to sustain its positive EBITDA [earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and appreciation] and net income for the second consecutive quarter, beginning in the fourth quarter of 2020,” it said.

The company’s EBITDA almost doubled during the period to P28.9 million from last year’s P14.6 million. VG Cabuag

of President Fidel V. Ramos between the government and the partnership of Benpres and Lyonnaise des Eaux of France and covers the west zone of the concession area.

In 2007, during the Arroyo administration, it was re-privatized and the west zone was placed under the consortium of DMCI and Metro Pacific Investments Corp.

The west zone concession area is composed of the cities of Manila (certain areas), Quezon City (certain areas), Makati (certain areas), Caloocan, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Valenzuela, Navotas and Malabon—all in Metro Manila; the cities of Cavite, Bacoor and Imus, and the towns of Kawit, Noveleta and

Rosario in Cavite province.

Reports quoting Justice Secretary Menardo I. Guevara said the government panel “will be proposing essentially the same terms and conditions as those that were contained in the revised agreement with Manila Water.”

The Manila Water concession agreement is patterned after the New Clark City Water and Wastewater joint venture agreement of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority that was developed with the advice of the Asian Development Bank. The agreement protects the interest of government and retains the economic viability of the concession.

“But of course, we recognize the fact Maynilad is differently situated compared to Manila Water so there will be probably a lot of discussions also with respect to possible modification of the terms and conditions,” Guevara was quoted as saying.

The signing of a new concession agreement with Maynilad is critical to the water security projects of MWSS, said Velasco.

Maynilad’s capital expenditure projects will rehabilitate and replace old pipelines, install new pipes in unserved areas, construct new pumping stations, reservoirs, and treatment facilities, among others.

Velasco added that a new concession agreement will boost investors’ confidence as many of the investors have adopted a wait-and-see attitude pending the signing of a new concession agreement.

Maynilad is the largest private water concessionaire in the Philippines serving over 1.4 million customers. It maintains and operates some 6,831 kilometers of primary, secondary, and tertiary pipelines. It has 35 pumping stations, 32 water reservoirs, and 28 in-line boosters across its service area.

Its reservoirs have a total holding capacity of over 700 million liters of potable water. Maynilad has 4 world-class water treatment plants: La Mesa Treatment Plants 1 & 2 and Putatan Water Treatment Plants 1 & 2 that produce water according to the Philippine National Standards for Drinking Water of the Department of Health.

To prevent the pollution of waterways and bodies of water, Maynilad processes wastewater and sludge through 19 sewage treatment plants, 2 joint sewage and septage treatment plants, and one septage plant.

The combined treatment capacity of these plants is around 664,000 cubic meters per day.

RP Energy drops Subic coal project

R

edondo Peninsula Energy Inc. (RP Energy) is no longer pursuing the development of a coal power facility in Subic, Zambales.

“Not anymore coal,” replied Meralco PowerGen Corp. President Rogelio Singson via text message when asked Tuesday if RP Energy will push through with the coal power plant.

RP Energy is joint venture among Meralco PowerGen Corp. (MGEN), Aboitiz Power Corp., and Taiwan Cogeneration Corp. Its original plan was to put up a 2x300-megawatt (MW) coalfired power plant.

However, project construction could not move forward because of geological issues, particularly stability of the site. Another reason is the delay in the approval of the PSA (Power Supply Agreement) by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

Instead, RP Energy is seriously considering converting the stalled coal project into a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project.

“The site in Redondo may not be for baseload, maliit. So, maybe for mid-merit LNG, which we are studying with our partners,” Singson added.

Meralco Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan said that the company would pursue investments in gas plants, saying the company

“should not be left behind with respect of the construction of gas plants.”

MGen is the power generation arm of distribution firm Meralco.

“Meralco is looking at a number of options in terms of gas plants. We are in active discussions with potential partners as we speak,” said Pangilinan.

AboitizPower President Emmanuel V. Rubio also said recently that the company has relayed to Meralco its intention to stay away from new coal plants, including the proposed coal project of RP Energy.

“We are partners with Meralco in RP Energy. We have communicated in RP Energy that we will not be building coal anymore, that we are actually reserving that site for possible gas option to supply as CSP [Competitive Selection Process] by Meralco or any other distribution utility that we have a CSP, say for mid-merit, and even for an NGCP provider for ancillary services,” said Rubio.

Singson shared the same view. “Agree, no more coal.”

The AboitizPower chief said gas investment is always on its list. “We already have a team looking at our gas option. We are doing, on a

very early stage, feasibility studies for gas on at least two locations.”

Earlier, Rubio identified possible LNG sites, including Pagbilao, Quezon and Mariveles, Bataan.

AboitizPower, through Therma Luzon, Inc. is the independent power producer (IPPA) of the Pagbilao coal-fired power plant.

“By February 2026, Pagbilao will be turned over to us. That site is a potential site for gas,” Rubio said.

The company is also exploring, together with partners in GN Power, if it can actually buy land in Mariveles for that possibility, as well.

Rubio had mentioned that the site where RP Energy was supposed to build a coal plant in Subic could be a site for a small LNG unit.

Their declaration not to build new coal plants is on offshoot of a Department of Energy (DOE) policy issued recently. The agency said it would no longer accept greenfield applications for coal plants.

“Will there be an opportunity for coal in the future? We are coming up with a definitive position in coal. You all know that DOE came up with a coal moratorium policy and still allowing brownfield coal in certain categories, especially super critical coal, moving forward and those with permits to proceed. Lenie Lectura

AEV to float ₧10B in fixed-rate bonds

By VG Cabuag @villygc

T

he board of conglomerate Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc. (AEV) on Tuesday said it approved the issuance of P10 billion in fixed-rate retail bonds, inclusive of an oversubscription option.

The said float is already the third tranche of the company’s P30 billion in shelf registration of fixed-rate retail bonds which it registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2019.

“Depending on market conditions, the third tranche bonds are expected to be offered to the general public during the third quarter of 2021,” the company said, adding that it will list the paper at the Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corp.

The board has appointed BDO Capital and Investment Corp., BPI Capital Corp., China Bank Capital Corp., SB Capital Investment Corp. and First Metro Investment Corp. as joint issue managers, joint bookrunners and joint lead underwriters for the bond float.

AEV President and CEO Sabin M. Abotiz, meanwhile, said the company is not looking to expand into other businesses at the moment, but the company has set its sights on airport operations and building more towers for mobile phone companies.

“So actually, our business stream is very wide. So we’re not looking at anything aside from the new businesses within the organization today.

Lots of countries to expand food; lots

of countries to expand renewable energy; in infrastructure, lots of different business that we are getting into.

Unionbank, lots of opportunities on digital and the millions of millions of unbanked Filipinos. That’s our focus in the next couple of years,” Aboitiz said.

The company has allotted some P48 billion in capital expenditures this year, some 69 percent higher than last year’s spending of P29 billion. Aboitiz said he is confident that the company will spend all its budgeted capex for the year.

Some P23 billion of the capex will be used to fund the power business, mainly for the completion of GNPower Dinginin as well as the battery energy storage projects. The company has set aside P15 billion for the infrastructure unit, of which P13 billion will be used to fund Aboitiz Infra Capital’s water businesses as well as its foray into the common tower business and other projects, with the remaining P2 billion to be earmarked for Republic Cement’s projects.

Some P4 billion will be utilized by the food group for the expansion of its feedmill business, while P3.1 billion will be given to its property development unit Aboitiz Land for landbanking and the completion of its residential projects.

Lender Union Bank has been allotted more than P2 billion in capex for continued enhancements on digital touch points, as well as constructing an innovation hub to support customer needs during the current health crisis.

‘Globe data service improving’

G

lobe Telecom Inc. said on Tuesday its network modernization program has resulted in a “narrowing gap” against its competition, citing data from Opensignal.

Ernest L. Cu, the company’s president, said Globe’s performance in 4G Availability, Download Speed Experience, and Video Experience “has been consistently improving” thanks to “aggressive site builds and efforts to migrate customers nationwide from 3G to 4G LTE.” Citing data from Opensignal’s April 2021 report, he said Globe’s 4G Availability increased by 2.2 points to 82.6 percent, a little lower than Smart Communications Inc.’s 86.1 percent availability score, but is a 5-point normalization from the gap the quarter prior.

Globe’s Video Experience score also advanced by 15.4 points, reducing Smart’s lead by more than half compared to the last report. The re-

port also noted Globe’s Download Speed Experience improvement of 16.4 percent from 7.4 Mbps to 8.6 Mbps.

“Our continuously improving performance in mobile and data services shows our strong commitment to deliver on our promise of a First World Network. The steady improvements significantly reduced the gaps in speed such that, from a user standpoint it is hardly noticeable. More than speed, customers want consistent, reliable connectivity that comes with an enriching digital experience,” Cu said.

Smart and PLDT clinched an impressive sweep in Opensignal’s April report, besting Globe and other competitors across all matrices.

Based on Opensignal’s Philippine Mobile Network Experience Awards, Smart won over competition in three aspects of service, namely coverage, speed, and experience. Lorenz S. Marasigan

B2

Companies BusinessMirror

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

April 27, 2021

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 PHIL NATL BANK PSBANK PHILTRUST RCBC SECURITY BANK UNION BANK BRIGHT KINDLE COL FINANCIAL FIRST ABACUS IREMIT MEDCO HLDG MANULIFE PHIL STOCK EXCH SUN LIFE

43.1 104 82.6 23.75 9.5 44.5 27.15 56.1 97.5 17.86 113.9 72.8 1.46 3.88 0.63 1.47 0.395 950 152 2,342

43.4 104.9 83 23.8 9.59 44.75 27.2 56.4 101 17.88 114.4 73 1.5 3.95 0.64 1.55 0.425 992 152.4 2,346

43.45 105.5 83.2 23.95 9.6 44.9 27 56.5 94.5 17.88 114.4 73 1.52 3.95 0.63 1.47 0.42 950 149.4 2,340

43.45 105.6 83.2 23.95 9.6 45 27.55 56.5 94.5 18.24 114.4 73.1 1.54 3.95 0.63 1.47 0.425 950 152.5 2,346

43.4 103.4 82.2 23.75 9.5 44.5 27 56 94.5 17.88 113 72.8 1.45 3.87 0.63 1.47 0.42 950 149.4 2,340

43.4 104 83 23.75 9.5 44.5 27.15 56.4 94.5 17.88 114.4 72.8 1.47 3.95 0.63 1.47 0.425 950 152 2,346

5,100 1,388,810 500,910 104,900 112,100 1,175,700 1,809,800 1,210 20 81,600 163,700 18,130 352,000 347,000 94,000 3,000 150,000 40 37,400 160

221,345 144,531,484 41,494,844.50 2,499,035 1,065,888 52,530,570 49,185,425 68,264 1,890 1,465,894 18,588,916 1,321,644 522,070 1,353,480 59,220 4,410 63,700 38,000 5,661,956 374,670

INDUSTRIAL

AC ENERGY ALSONS CONS ABOITIZ POWER BASIC ENERGY FIRST GEN FIRST PHIL HLDG MERALCO MANILA WATER PETRON PETROENERGY PHX PETROLEUM PILIPINAS SHELL SPC POWER VIVANT AGRINURTURE AXELUM CENTURY FOOD DEL MONTE DNL INDUS EMPERADOR SMC FOODANDBEV ALLIANCE SELECT FRUITAS HLDG GINEBRA JOLLIBEE LIBERTY FLOUR MAXS GROUP MG HLDG SHAKEYS PIZZA ROXAS AND CO ROXAS HLDG SWIFT FOODS UNIV ROBINA VITARICH CONCRETE A CONCRETE B CEMEX HLDG DAVINCI CAPITAL EAGLE CEMENT EEI CORP HOLCIM MEGAWIDE PHINMA TKC METALS VULCAN INDL CROWN ASIA EUROMED PRYCE CORP CONCEPCION GREENERGY INTEGRATED MICR IONICS SFA SEMICON CIRTEK HLDG

6.97 1.35 22.15 0.91 31.05 67.35 270.2 15 3.11 3.71 11.62 21.15 10.28 14.12 6.49 3.22 19.68 11.28 7.14 9.9 67.5 0.62 1.36 57.5 173.2 30.05 5.91 0.31 7.39 1.02 1.46 0.134 134.6 0.81 54.45 60.05 1.17 2.86 11.7 7.42 5.46 6.49 12 1.14 2.46 1.82 1.99 5.35 22.55 3.62 10.3 1.09 1.35 5.86

6.98 1.36 22.2 0.92 31.1 67.95 273 15.02 3.13 3.76 12.2 21.2 10.3 15.5 6.68 3.28 19.8 11.3 7.15 9.91 67.8 0.64 1.38 58 174.2 31.2 5.93 0.32 7.4 1.03 1.49 0.135 135.1 0.82 55 61 1.18 2.87 11.8 7.43 5.5 6.57 12.3 1.15 2.47 1.85 2.04 5.36 22.9 3.63 10.4 1.1 1.36 5.88

7.05 1.34 22.8 0.92 31.1 68 273 14.92 3.09 3.75 12.2 21.05 10.3 15.56 6.41 3.16 20 11 7.15 10 66.8 0.66 1.38 58.75 175.9 31.25 6 0.31 7.28 1.03 1.46 0.135 132 0.81 55 60 1.17 2.82 11.86 7.42 5.53 6.78 12.2 1.12 2.53 1.8 2 5.36 22.05 3.65 10.22 1.09 1.36 5.87

7.06 1.42 22.8 0.95 31.1 68 275 15.1 3.14 3.75 12.2 21.2 10.5 15.56 6.84 3.3 20 11.28 7.23 10 67.95 0.66 1.38 58.75 177 31.25 6 0.325 7.4 1.05 1.46 0.135 135.2 0.82 55 60.05 1.18 2.93 11.86 7.42 5.53 6.78 12.3 1.16 2.63 1.86 2.05 5.36 22.9 3.71 10.5 1.1 1.36 5.9

6.95 1.34 22.1 0.91 30.8 67.35 270.2 14.8 3.08 3.75 11.62 21.05 10.28 15.56 6.41 3.15 19.4 10.88 7.13 9.88 66 0.62 1.36 56.55 173.2 31.2 5.9 0.31 7.28 1.01 1.46 0.133 131.7 0.81 55 60 1.16 2.82 11.7 7.38 5.45 6.43 12.2 1.12 2.44 1.79 1.98 5.35 22.05 3.58 10.22 1.09 1.33 5.81

6.98 1.36 22.2 0.92 31.05 67.35 270.2 15 3.13 3.75 12.2 21.15 10.28 15.56 6.68 3.28 19.68 11.28 7.15 9.91 67.8 0.62 1.38 58 173.2 31.2 5.93 0.32 7.37 1.03 1.46 0.134 135.1 0.82 55 60.05 1.17 2.86 11.8 7.42 5.5 6.49 12.3 1.15 2.47 1.86 1.98 5.35 22.9 3.63 10.4 1.1 1.35 5.86

16,425,500 8,757,000 3,227,000 32,524,000 1,448,200 11,760 247,240 551,200 370,000 20,000 125,200 370,000 279,100 100 1,063,800 986,000 1,030,000 198,200 6,873,000 4,626,900 53,380 16,000 1,575,000 12,970 825,700 8,600 183,900 3,600,000 27,600 2,256,000 5,000 2,390,000 1,143,160 598,000 840 780 767,000 1,028,000 27,800 11,000 317,700 1,285,000 29,400 149,000 9,220,000 123,000 114,000 11,000 1,700 8,489,000 1,010,000 148,000 180,000 556,300

-41,903,553 -879,013.50 -1,078,015 19,912 -28,593,170 -19,070,085 -128,226.00 -8,746,752 -587,496 -118,500 38,000 5,041,063 316,020

114,883,386 12,104,110 71,940,950 30,331,170 44,864,980 792,676 67,130,888 8,225,274 1,155,480 75,000 1,522,602 7,812,120 2,875,434 1,556 7,245,986 3,180,810 20,247,992 2,215,102 49,140,593 45,839,658 3,580,354.50 10,370 2,161,800 743,691 144,177,519 268,700 1,091,619 1,131,200 203,619 2,308,280 7,300 320,730 153,970,152 488,450 46,200 46,836 896,740 2,949,200 328,130 81,580 1,745,689 8,465,971 359,620 170,830 23,333,450 226,400 227,630 58,950 38,845 31,174,180 10,349,632 161,580 242,100 3,248,615

22,380,612 -14,740 -5,963,685 85,960 -20,800,415 -627,144 -45,737,126 -2,661,472 -149,490 5,086,600 -670 -4,782,788 67,936 -26,743,523 -3,758,824 -1,947,507.00 315,959.50 -59,220,286 -664,116 -124,100 58,860 -120,970 17,861,646 -10,660 -66,850 -58,300 -47,150 -666,161 -1,928,679 -359,620 -66,250 92,890 -3,179,970 -1,129,934 -

HOLDING & FRIMS ABACORE CAPITAL 1.14 1.15 1.19 1.21 1.14 1.14 37,905,000 44,519,300 ASIABEST GROUP 7.1 7.3 7.34 7.34 7.01 7.3 3,300 23,558 AYALA CORP 755.5 760 768 768 750.5 760 171,220 129,902,450 ABOITIZ EQUITY 34 34.3 34.15 34.85 34 34 1,580,900 54,170,915 10.36 10.42 10.4 10.4 10.32 10.36 537,400 5,562,918 ALLIANCE GLOBAL 2.94 2.98 2.96 3.07 2.94 2.94 3,081,000 9,179,950 AYALA LAND LOG 6.8 6.9 6.8 6.8 6.8 6.8 23,000 156,400 ANSCOR ANGLO PHIL HLDG 0.82 0.83 0.83 0.86 0.8 0.83 7,041,000 5,836,850 ATN HLDG A 0.71 0.72 0.72 0.73 0.72 0.72 969,000 698,440 ATN HLDG B 0.72 0.74 0.72 0.72 0.72 0.72 120,000 86,400 COSCO CAPITAL 5.07 5.08 5.11 5.14 5.06 5.08 665,000 3,378,965 DMCI HLDG 5.3 5.31 5.28 5.32 5.25 5.31 5,617,400 29,783,777 8.22 8.23 8.23 8.24 8.22 8.23 31,300 257,679 FILINVEST DEV 0.265 0.285 0.29 0.29 0.265 0.265 450,000 120,500 FORUM PACIFIC 531 536 540 540 530 536 92,090 49,328,965 GT CAPITAL 3.7 3.73 3.7 3.7 3.7 3.7 1,000 3,700 HOUSE OF INV JG SUMMIT 51.3 51.6 52.4 52.9 51.3 51.3 2,710,390 140,187,272 JOLLIVILLE HLDG 4.65 4.91 4.52 4.94 4.51 4.92 3,700 17,057 LODESTAR 1.02 1.03 1.06 1.06 1 1.03 2,361,000 2,387,870 LOPEZ HLDG 3.39 3.47 3.43 3.51 3.39 3.39 509,000 1,744,720 13.46 13.52 13.58 13.7 13.44 13.52 1,367,100 18,573,498 LT GROUP 0.475 0.49 0.475 0.475 0.475 0.475 10,000 4,750 MABUHAY HLDG MJC INVESTMENTS 1.74 1.8 1.8 1.8 1.8 1.8 2,000 3,600 METRO PAC INV 4.01 4.04 4 4.04 3.97 4.04 4,562,000 18,354,700 PACIFICA HLDG 3.6 3.69 3.53 3.6 3.53 3.6 3,000 10,660 PRIME MEDIA 2.81 2.83 2.85 2.87 2.8 2.81 1,048,000 2,959,260 SOLID GROUP 1.23 1.3 1.29 1.3 1.24 1.3 84,000 105,670 361.4 389.6 374 392 361.2 389.6 430 157,814 SYNERGY GRID SM INVESTMENTS 958 959 953.5 967 953.5 959 144,870 138,970,785 114.2 114.9 115.1 115.1 114.2 114.9 165,220 18,971,371 SAN MIGUEL CORP 0.7 0.71 0.7 0.71 0.7 0.71 160,000 112,770 SOC RESOURCES TOP FRONTIER 133.2 133.9 133 134 133 133.9 451,420 60,264,932 WELLEX INDUS 0.25 0.255 0.25 0.255 0.25 0.255 340,000 85,750 ZEUS HLDG 0.226 0.233 0.224 0.234 0.224 0.23 1,170,000 268,350

-736,020 -14,887,815 15,859,430 -3,599,130 346,680 -142,290 -2,473,417 20,004,098 -227,229 2,650 -9,389,055 -29,964,121 -750,660 -18,060,954 5,700,510 1,433,000 11,016,220 -6,220,595 139,356 -2,250

PROPERTY

ARTHALAND CORP AYALA LAND ARANETA PROP AREIT RT BELLE CORP A BROWN CITYLAND DEVT CROWN EQUITIES CEBU HLDG CEB LANDMASTERS CENTURY PROP CYBER BAY DOUBLEDRAGON DDMP RT DM WENCESLAO EMPIRE EAST EVER GOTESCO FILINVEST LAND GLOBAL ESTATE 8990 HLDG PHIL INFRADEV CITY AND LAND MEGAWORLD MRC ALLIED PHIL ESTATES PRIMEX CORP ROBINSONS LAND PHIL REALTY ROCKWELL SHANG PROP STA LUCIA LAND SM PRIME HLDG VISTAMALLS SUNTRUST HOME VISTA LAND

0.63 32 1.2 34.4 1.52 0.97 0.92 0.132 6.62 5.88 0.39 0.33 12.8 2.12 6.86 0.28 0.15 1.11 0.81 7.15 1.35 2.02 3.12 0.45 0.61 3.16 16.76 0.248 1.51 2.63 2.25 34.65 3.72 1.46 3.59

0.65 32.15 1.26 34.45 1.53 0.98 0.94 0.134 6.74 5.92 0.4 0.34 12.9 2.13 6.9 0.29 0.151 1.12 0.83 7.34 1.38 2.04 3.13 0.455 0.62 3.17 16.78 0.25 1.53 2.69 2.34 34.7 3.9 1.48 3.6

0.64 32.7 1.27 34 1.53 0.98 0.93 0.136 6.74 5.95 0.395 0.33 13 2.13 6.86 0.29 0.149 1.11 0.82 7.07 1.35 2.1 3.21 0.415 0.63 3.29 17.28 0.26 1.49 2.64 2.35 34.5 3.71 1.49 3.6

0.64 33 1.27 34.65 1.54 1.04 0.96 0.136 6.74 5.95 0.4 0.33 13 2.14 6.9 0.29 0.15 1.12 0.82 7.35 1.38 2.12 3.23 0.45 0.63 3.29 17.28 0.26 1.54 2.64 2.35 34.85 3.9 1.5 3.63

0.63 32.05 1.27 34 1.53 0.96 0.91 0.132 6.74 5.81 0.38 0.33 12.8 2.11 6.86 0.29 0.14 1.1 0.81 7.07 1.34 2.01 3.13 0.415 0.6 3.06 16.68 0.25 1.48 2.6 2.21 34.35 3.71 1.46 3.54

0.63 32.05 1.27 34.4 1.53 0.98 0.91 0.134 6.74 5.92 0.4 0.33 12.9 2.12 6.9 0.29 0.15 1.12 0.81 7.35 1.38 2.02 3.13 0.45 0.62 3.17 16.76 0.25 1.54 2.62 2.33 34.65 3.9 1.48 3.6

433,000 16,710,900 2,000 813,200 133,000 24,018,000 560,000 300,000 200 643,400 7,160,000 130,000 450,600 10,173,000 80,800 50,000 17,050,000 3,818,000 88,000 1,100 1,248,000 2,048,000 48,776,000 88,380,000 10,073,000 4,958,000 1,560,700 1,370,000 402,000 153,000 244,000 2,601,900 5,000 1,503,000 654,000

274,630 539,065,525 2,540 27,814,880 204,490 23,889,680 524,340 39,820 1,348 3,793,658 2,825,350 42,900 5,816,578 21,568,480 557,416 14,500 2,491,450 4,257,150 71,870 7,805 1,685,180 4,177,400 153,871,690 38,801,600 6,163,210 15,625,190 26,186,662 343,350 600,230 399,420 567,400 90,222,560 19,310 2,217,470 2,347,050

SERVICES

ABS CBN GMA NETWORK MANILA BULLETIN GLOBE TELECOM PLDT APOLLO GLOBAL CONVERGE DFNN INC DITO CME HLDG IMPERIAL JACKSTONES NOW CORP TRANSPACIFIC BR PHILWEB 2GO GROUP ASIAN TERMINALS CHELSEA CEBU AIR INTL CONTAINER LBC EXPRESS LORENZO SHIPPNG MACROASIA METROALLIANCE A METROALLIANCE B PAL HLDG HARBOR STAR ACESITE HOTEL BOULEVARD HLDG DISCOVERY WORLD GRAND PLAZA WATERFRONT FAR EASTERN U STI HLDG BLOOMBERRY LEISURE AND RES MANILA JOCKEY PH RESORTS GRP PREMIUM LEISURE PHIL RACING ALLHOME METRO RETAIL PUREGOLD ROBINSONS RTL PHIL SEVEN CORP SSI GROUP WILCON DEPOT APC GROUP EASYCALL GOLDEN MV IPM HLDG PRMIERE HORIZON

11 7.7 0.46 1,898 1,279 0.21 18.26 3.97 9.96 1.51 2.21 2.74 0.42 2.68 8.44 15.7 2.99 46.85 127 15.38 0.99 4.65 2.26 2.3 6.03 1.2 1.74 0.115 3.28 9.68 0.57 580 0.37 6.17 1.74 2.02 2.09 0.415 6.05 7.7 1.29 36.55 51.45 106.6 1.19 17.12 0.385 6.22 406.2 5.05 2.09

11.02 7.73 0.485 1,900 1,287 0.211 18.4 3.98 9.97 1.8 2.26 2.76 0.425 2.7 8.45 15.8 3.01 47.8 127.4 16 1.04 4.68 2.31 2.68 6.14 1.22 1.88 0.116 3.29 10.64 0.58 598 0.38 6.35 1.76 2.09 2.1 0.42 6.2 7.76 1.3 36.6 51.5 108 1.2 17.54 0.39 6.5 413.6 5.1 2.1

11 7.85 0.465 1,914 1,280 0.21 18.5 4 10.02 1.8 2.22 2.76 0.43 2.65 8.2 15.7 3.02 46.15 127.5 15.38 0.99 4.77 2.26 2.4 6.02 1.2 1.88 0.109 3.3 10.3 0.59 599 0.38 6.45 1.78 2.02 2.09 0.415 6.2 7.7 1.3 36.9 52 105.5 1.21 17.22 0.39 6.22 415 5.1 2.1

11.08 7.85 0.465 1,915 1,289 0.214 18.98 4.1 10.14 1.8 2.32 2.78 0.435 2.72 8.48 15.8 3.02 47.8 129 15.38 1.04 4.77 2.31 2.4 6.15 1.23 1.88 0.118 3.42 10.3 0.6 599 0.38 6.49 1.79 2.02 2.11 0.42 6.2 7.79 1.33 36.9 52.1 107.5 1.21 17.54 0.39 6.22 426.4 5.1 2.12

11 7.7 0.46 1,896 1,271 0.207 18.1 3.89 9.83 1.8 2.18 2.72 0.415 2.55 8.2 15.7 2.96 46.15 126.2 15.38 0.99 4.64 2.25 2.4 6.02 1.18 1.7 0.108 3.24 10.3 0.58 580 0.375 6.17 1.73 2.02 2.09 0.41 6.2 7.7 1.29 36.5 51.35 105.5 1.19 16.98 0.39 6.22 413.6 5.1 2.07

11.06 7.7 0.46 1,900 1,279 0.211 18.26 3.98 9.96 1.8 2.21 2.74 0.425 2.68 8.45 15.7 3.01 47.8 127 15.38 1.04 4.65 2.31 2.4 6.14 1.2 1.88 0.116 3.29 10.3 0.58 580 0.375 6.17 1.73 2.02 2.09 0.415 6.2 7.75 1.3 36.55 51.5 106.6 1.2 17.54 0.39 6.22 413.6 5.1 2.09

7,900 1,090,100 130,000 33,155 52,135 171,220,000 2,175,800 981,000 8,849,300 6,000 222,000 729,000 10,040,000 1,131,000 36,800 20,000 1,494,000 221,400 1,318,530 400 9,000 1,994,000 80,000 10,000 10,700 218,000 70,000 458,440,000 558,000 800 2,976,000 30 720,000 34,893,300 1,248,000 4,000 1,050,000 1,730,000 62,500 514,100 608,000 948,700 1,263,390 11,390 643,000 1,537,100 230,000 1,500 3,520 3,000 7,748,000

86,978 8,426,701 60,050 63,177,765 66,692,245 35,994,870 40,082,360 3,850,910 88,179,485 10,800 492,500 2,006,370 4,209,600 3,010,120 307,612 314,200 4,461,860 10,510,930 167,479,627 6,152 8,960 9,317,840 180,970 24,000 64,656 261,220 126,220 52,116,190 1,826,000 8,240 1,733,290 17,590 273,550 217,641,424 2,188,410 8,080 2,203,910 719,150 387,500 3,983,611 788,900 34,770,590 65,285,405.50 1,213,894 770,110 26,935,914 89,700 9,330 1,485,310 15,300 16,205,840

-1,280 -201,090,435 467,410 -65,990 -162,460 -354,233 -106,800 -1,658,888 -1,912,220 -1,331,820 -44,610 19,590 -9,467,910 932,100 -69,200 7,148,930 -5,026,596 104,800 -22,543,250 -1,079,090 -14,954,980 -6,381,535 -99,410 -11,297,332 -2,927,330 -1,165,397.00 13,260 -190,110 159,500 -466,200 -780 -35,780 1,288,365 106,177 -6,845,310 -30,100.00 -88,860 2,257,550 294,640.00 -188,359,952 21,100 -3,700 6,200 3,680,330 -9,311,545 -15,489,945 2,440 -7,062,302 -1,110,086 -

MINING & OIL ATOK 9.1 9.29 9.07 9.39 9.07 9.1 664,900 6,121,003 -60,436 APEX MINING 1.61 1.62 1.62 1.64 1.58 1.62 2,494,000 4,009,180 -1,067,260.00 ATLAS MINING 8.47 8.48 8.13 8.49 7.83 8.48 7,899,800 64,989,333 1,452,122 3.18 3.2 3.29 3.29 3.15 3.2 176,000 558,660 BENGUET A BENGUET B 3.06 3.27 3.23 3.27 2.92 3.27 690,000 2,154,840 COAL ASIA HLDG 0.325 0.335 0.33 0.345 0.32 0.335 11,290,000 3,748,650 107,250 2.75 2.85 2.85 2.87 2.85 2.85 44,000 125,540 114,140 CENTURY PEAK DIZON MINES 8 8.39 8.1 8.43 8 8 7,300 60,033 23,200 FERRONICKEL 2.57 2.58 2.55 2.64 2.55 2.58 6,725,000 17,427,990 -11,373,740 GEOGRACE 0.345 0.36 0.365 0.365 0.35 0.365 1,260,000 442,250 LEPANTO A 0.174 0.175 0.172 0.177 0.168 0.174 96,460,000 16,700,430 0.173 0.178 0.174 0.18 0.168 0.179 5,670,000 985,310 -5,040 LEPANTO B 0.013 0.014 0.014 0.015 0.013 0.014 203,600,000 2,847,300 MANILA MINING A MANILA MINING B 0.013 0.014 0.014 0.014 0.013 0.014 125,700,000 1,751,400 MARCVENTURES 1.31 1.32 1.33 1.35 1.27 1.32 1,258,000 1,658,050 -41,720 NIHAO 1.71 1.72 1.72 1.79 1.71 1.72 461,000 795,910 10,410 NICKEL ASIA 5.43 5.44 5.45 5.56 5.41 5.44 3,061,900 16,788,347 -673,018 ORNTL PENINSULA 1.05 1.06 1.03 1.07 1.01 1.06 1,857,000 1,951,080 PX MINING 5.98 5.99 5.62 6.08 5.62 5.98 9,761,300 57,387,792 -260,357 12.06 12.08 12.04 12.1 12.02 12.06 497,600 6,002,522 -787,668.00 SEMIRARA MINING 0.0097 0.0098 0.0098 0.01 0.0093 0.0097 74,000,000 718,600 37,400 UNITED PARAGON 19.5 19.68 19.2 19.7 19.2 19.5 55,800 1,086,604 6,156 ACE ENEXOR 0.012 0.013 0.013 0.013 0.012 0.012 76,100,000 924,900 ORNTL PETROL A ORNTL PETROL B 0.012 0.013 0.013 0.013 0.012 0.012 6,600,000 80,500 PHILODRILL 0.012 0.013 0.012 0.012 0.012 0.012 51,600,000 619,200 140,400 PXP ENERGY 7.65 7.67 7.5 7.66 7.5 7.65 62,100 471,134 10,589

PREFFERED HOUSE PREF B 100 101 100.3 100.3 100.3 100.3 200 20,060 HOUSE PREF A 100.5 101.5 100.6 100.6 100.5 100.5 11,000 1,105,600 AC PREF B1 512 534.5 512 512 512 512 30,000 15,360,000 ALCO PREF B 101 102 101.1 101.1 100.5 101 50,020 5,029,670 512 530 515 515 515 515 1,100 566,500 AC PREF B2R CEB PREF 43.8 44 43.6 44.7 43.05 43.8 28,800 1,260,780 -367,670 101 102 102 102 102 102 4,900 499,800 DD PREF GLO PREF P 508 515 508 508 508 508 600 304,800 GTCAP PREF B 1,033 1,048 1,038 1,039 1,038 1,039 730 758,390 MWIDE PREF 100.7 101 100.8 101 100.8 101 9,840 991,992 MWIDE PREF 2B 100.6 101.5 101.5 101.5 101.5 101.5 10,300 1,045,450 PNX PREF 3B 103 104.5 103 104.5 103 104.5 70 7,285 -5,225 999.5 1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000 10 10,000 PNX PREF 4 PCOR PREF 2B 1,021 1,039 1,038 1,039 1,038 1,039 20 20,770 PCOR PREF 3A 1,080 1,117 1,080 1,080 1,080 1,080 245 264,600 SMC PREF 2C 79 79.8 79.65 79.65 79.65 79.65 3,160 251,694 -52,569 SMC PREF 2E 76.5 77.5 76.5 76.5 76.5 76.5 71,000 5,431,500 SMC PREF 2F 78.75 79.3 78.7 78.7 78.7 78.7 3,900 306,930 SMC PREF 2H 77 78.8 77 77.05 77 77 66,700 5,135,950 SMC PREF 2J 77 77.15 76.9 77 76.9 77 14,700 1,131,290 75.75 77 77.1 77.15 75.8 77 1,094,770 84,190,810 - SMC PREF 2K

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS ABS HLDG PDR 10.52 10.9 10.9 10.9 10.9 10.9 5,000 54,500 GMA HLDG PDR 7.35 7.38 7.38 7.39 7.35 7.35 144,000 1,059,321 -216,068

WARRANTS LR WARRANT 1.95 1.96 2 2.06 1.95 1.95 1,094,000 2,164,920 100,450

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES ALTUS PROP 18.44 18.5 18.2 19.16 18.2 18.46 9,600 177,954 -14,952 ITALPINAS 2.38 2.39 2.38 2.42 2.37 2.39 258,000 617,150 -70 KEPWEALTH 5.32 5.59 5.55 5.55 5.3 5.32 1,800 9,689 MAKATI FINANCE 2.53 2.69 2.53 2.53 2.53 2.53 1,000 2,530 4.93 4.94 5.05 5.14 4.9 4.94 12,010,000 59,748,531 2,824,029 MERRYMART

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS

FIRST METRO ETF 96.65 97.2 97.2 97.6 96.65 96.65 35,020 3,397,623 215,971

www.businessmirror.com.ph

AC Energy solar farm starts producing power for Luzon

O

By Lenie Lectura

@llectura

ne of the 5 solar power projects of AC Energy Corp. (ACEN) lined up for the year is now generating power for the Luzon grid.

ACEN announced Tuesday its 63megawatt (MW) GigaSol Palauig solar farm has now commenced operations. The P2.39-billion facility in Zambales will generate over 90-million kilowatt hours (kWh) of clean power to support the country’s demand.

“The Palauig solar farm is the first of AC Energy’s 5 new plants to begin operating in 2021, making it quite an exciting year for the company’s Phil-

ippine operations,” said Jose Maria P. Zabaleta, Chief Development Officer of AC Energy.

“This is all the more important as these new plants can help offset some supply shortfalls in recent months, and help to reduce the elevated prices seen in the market caused by these shortages.”

Moreover, AC Energy has started the construction of its next solar farm in Arayat-Mexico, Pampanga.

The 72-MW solar project is a 50-50 joint venture with Citicore Solar Energy Corp. (CREC).

The project is estimated to cost P2.75 billion and will be ready to begin its operations and supply power to the grid by the summer of 2022.

“We are also very excited about the Arayat-Mexico project, which is our first venture with CREC. Our collaboration over the past 18 months has been very successful, and we look forward to growing that in the years to come,” added Zabaleta.

The developments in Central Luzon are the latest in AC Energy’s renewables growth strategy as the company continues to embark on a transformation journey.

ACEN now has over 1,000 MW of attributable capacity in the Philippines, with almost half com-

ing from renewable sources. This is expected to increase with the planned infusion of AC Energy International, which has about 1,400 MW of attributable capacity.

Meanwhile, ACEN and AC Energy and Infrastructure Corp. (ACEIC) signed a share-swap deal valued at P86 billion.

Under a Deed of Assignment, ACEN will issue 16,685,800,533 shares to ACEIC for P5.15 per share, or an aggregate subscription price of P85,931,872,744.95, in exchange for ACEIC’s 1,701,284,345 common shares and 15,030,279,000 redeemable preferred shares in ACEIC’s share in AC Energy International, Inc. AC Energy International, formerly called Presage Corp., holds all ACEIC’s international renewable energy assets and investment.

‘Govt must collect ₧2.57B from telco’

By Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

A

think tank has appealed to the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to push for the immediate resolution by the Supreme Court of its case seeking to collect P126 million from a telecommunication firm which has ballooned to more than P2 billion.

Former representative and lawyer Terry Ridon, convenor of Infrawatch PH, said the NTC should “diligently pursue” the case considering the government’s need for more funds to address the problems caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Ridon said the NTC should file before the SC a motion for early resolution of the pending petition of Next Mobile Inc., previous corporate name

of NOW Telecom Company Inc., for a reversal of a Court of Appeals decision on the collection issue that the CA resolved over 10 years ago.

He recalled that the appellate court had affirmed NTC’s letterassessments for the payment of supervision and regulation fees and spectrum user’s fees that has reached P126,094,195.67 and P9,6574,190.00, respectively, by NOW Telecoms.

The amount has already ballooned to P2.57 billion based on the recent Commission on Audit report, according to Ridon.

“With the coronavirus crisis reaching unprecedented levels, every agency’s contribution to the public coffers is a paramount obligation. With an immediate resolution of NOW’s appeal, government stands to gain an additional

Converge has most consistent fixed Internet performance–Ookla

C

onverge ICT Solutions Inc. said on Tuesday it has the “most consistent fixed Internet performance” in key regions during the first quarter of 2021, citing data from Internet testing and analysis organization Ookla.

Dennis Anthony H. Uy, the company’s president, said his group garnered 72.78 percent in terms of consistency score, which “measures the percentage of a provider’s samples that equal or exceed both a download and upload fixed threshold of 25 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload.”

Converge had an average download speed of 42.93 Mbps, “which is representative of actual plans subscribed to by its subscribers.”

“Our network performance in the first quarter reflects our focus in providing reliable high-speed internet services to our customers in their standard packages, which subscribers of other providers only enjoy on a promotional basis via their speed boosts. Aside from performance, we work hard to provide a consistent online experience. What good is being the fastest if you only do it in spurts?

Service should be at a high level all the time,” Uy said.

Converge offered the “most consistent fixed Internet performance” in Metro Manila, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Ilocos, and the Cordillera Administrative Region last quarter.

“We’ve always had our customers’ needs in mind. From our free speed increase to all plans late last year to introducing new products like the Converge FiberX Time of Day, we are all about better experiences for our subscribers,” Uy said.

Converge is gearing up to slice a chunk of the highly-unsaturated home broadband market by 2025.

It is currently building a national backbone that will allow it to reach approximately 55 percent of the total households in the Philippines.

The company reported record profits in 2020, when it booked a net income of P3.39 billion, a 78-percent surge from P1.94 billion the year prior, as its revenues grew by 71 percent to P15.65 billion from P9.14 billion.

The performance of Converge is attributable to the huge jump that its residential subscriber base recorded—from 530,000 subscribers at end-2019 to 1.04 million subscribers at end-2020.

Converge’s consumer business contributed the largest to its revenues at P12.62 million, while its enterprise business contributed P3.02 billion.

“We will continue to work hard and ensure that we are able to uplift the Filipino quality of life through our fiber technology. We will continue to serve the connectivity needs of our people, especially during these trying times,” Uy said. Lorenz S. Marasigan

P2,566,410,944.99 [P2.566 billion] in fresh funds to address the pandemic,” Ridon said.

“This is based on NTC’s October 12, 2020 communication to NOW

mutual funds

Telecom which stated the company’s standing financial obligation to the regulator. For context, this amount can cover crisis subsidies benefiting at least 641,500 households.”

April 27, 2021

NAV One Year Three Year Five Year Y-T-D per share Return* Return Stock Funds ALFM Growth Fund, Inc. -a 205.76 13.74% -7.63% -4.02% -9.44% ATRAM Alpha Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 1.2569 33.78% -6.66% 0.92% -4.27% ATRAM Philippine Equity Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 2.8202 16.75% -12% -6.26% -9.98% Climbs Share Capital Equity Investment Fund Corp. -a 0.7258 15.94% -7.51% n.a.

-9.72% First Metro Consumer Fund on MSCI Phils. IMI, Inc. -a 0.6733 4.39% -7% n.a.

-9.21% First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund,Inc. -a 4.521 14.85% -5.27% -3.03% -8.51% 6.22% First Metro Save and Learn Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,4 0.6487 -9.31% -7.76% -14.62% MBG Equity Investment Fund, Inc. -a 95.56 27.77% -5.86% n.a.

-6.26% PAMI Equity Index Fund, Inc. -a 42.0924 16.61% -5.52% -2.8% -10.15% Philam Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 442.52 13.8% -5.5% -3.26% -9.5% Philequity Alpha One Fund, Inc. -a,d,5 1.0141 23% n.a. n.a.

-7.58% Philequity Dividend Yield Fund, Inc. -a 1.0847 16.48% -4.92% -2.07% -7.15% Philequity Fund, Inc. -a 31.6468 16.17% -5.19% -1.81% -8.98% Philequity MSCI Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.8193 14.96% n.a. n.a. -10.26% Philequity PSE Index Fund Inc. -a 4.3123 17.31% -5.2% -2.05% -10% -5.1% -2.2% -10.03% Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a 721.24 17.4% Soldivo Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 0.655 17.28% -9.22% -5.57% -8.89% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Equity Fund, Inc. -a 3.2724 13.35% -7.28% -3.56% -9.7% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Stock Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.8238 16.83% -5.47% -2.33% -10.23% United Fund, Inc. -a 3.0447 16.34% -4.65% -0.94% -8.26% Exchange Traded Fund First Metro Phil. Equity Exchange Traded Fund, Inc. -a,c 96.7721 17.47% -4.91% -1.53% -10.02% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ATRAM AsiaPlus Equity Fund, Inc. -b $1.2779 45.43% 5.6% 8.63% 6.23% Sun Life Prosperity World Voyager Fund, Inc. -a $1.7632 45.8% 11.84% n.a.

5.4% Balanced Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ATRAM Dynamic Allocation Fund, Inc. -a 1.6214 8.89% -1.63% -1.39% -2.83% ATRAM Philippine Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 2.1381 10.7% -2.41% -0.77% -6.45% First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund Inc. -a 2.4806 8.64% -1.14% -1.42% -5.57% First Metro Save and Learn F.O.C.C.U.S. Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a,1 0.1865 3.1% n.a. n.a. -6.09% NCM Mutual Fund of the Phils., Inc. -a 1.8835 6.67% 0.5% 0.49% -4.1% PAMI Horizon Fund, Inc. -a 3.5182 8.42% -0.76% -0.85% -7.12% Philam Fund, Inc. -a 15.7807 8.73% -0.65% -0.79% -6.82% Solidaritas Fund, Inc. -a 1.9727 9.13% -1.94% -0.63% -5.8% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 3.3428 8.92% -3.23% -1.9% -6.45% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2028, Inc. -a,d 0.9543 8.74% n.a. n.a.

-6.68% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2038, Inc. -a,d 0.8549 11.45% n.a. n.a.

-9.93% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2048, Inc. -a,d 0.838 12.54% n.a. n.a. -10.19% Sun Life Prosperity Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a 0.824 9.91% -4.32% -2.53% -7.18% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Cocolife Dollar Fund Builder, Inc. -a $0.03812 0.63% 2.98% 1.35% -2.56% PAMI Asia Balanced Fund, Inc. -b $1.1463 25.62% 3.24% 5.11% -0.34% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Advantage Fund, Inc. -a $4.6806 32.76% 8.85% 8.57% 3.72% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Wellspring Fund, Inc. -a,3 $1.2076 17.31% 4.69% n.a.

0.46% Bond Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 370.51 2.42% 3.09% 2.53% -0.15% ATRAM Corporate Bond Fund, Inc. -a 1.911 -0.84% 0.82% 0.17% 0.56% Cocolife Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a 3.2213 1.79% 3.97% 4.46% 0.21% Ekklesia Mutual Fund Inc. -a 2.256 -0.15% 2.26% 1.58% -1.74% First Metro Save and Learn Fixed Income Fund,Inc. -a 2.4311 1.09% 3.14% 1.76% -0.9% Philam Bond Fund, Inc. -a 4.4611 0.14% 4.09% 1.82% -3.74% Philam Managed Income Fund, Inc. -a,6 1.3186 3.71% 4.23% 2.7% -0.2% Philequity Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.9585 2.84% 4.23% 2.52% -1.06% Soldivo Bond Fund, Inc. -a 1.0266 1.53% 4.24% 1.82% -1.48% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.182 2.43% 4.98% 2.78% -0.75% Sun Life Prosperity GS Fund, Inc. -a

1.7357 0.99% 4.26% 2.1% -1.1% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $483.53 3.47% 3.07% 2.36% -0.07% ALFM Euro Bond Fund, Inc. -a Є219.85 2.92% 1.09% 1.19% 0.31% ATRAM Total Return Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -b $1.1764 0.2% 1.82% 1.14% -8.12% First Metro Save and Learn Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $0.0259 0.78% 1.59% 0.95% -2.63% PAMI Global Bond Fund, Inc -b $1.0565 1.21% 0.76% -0.46% -3.31% Philam Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $2.4849 4.31% 4.86% 2.19% -2% Philequity Dollar Income Fund Inc. -a $0.0626789 5.34% 3.46% 2.2% 0.58% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Abundance Fund, Inc. -a $3.1392 -0.27% 2.64% 1.02% -2.62% Money Market Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 129.96 2.12% 3.15% 2.52% 0.12% First Metro Save and Learn Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.0506 1.36% n.a. n.a.

0.24% Sun Life Prosperity Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.3023 2% 2.89% 2.57% 0.44% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Starter Fund, Inc. -a $1.0559 1.43% 1.72% n.a.

0.33% Feeder Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities Sun Life Prosperity World Equity Index Feeder Fund, Inc. -a,d,7 1.2383 n.a. n.a. n.a. 9.62% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund Inc. -b,d,2 $1 11.11% n.a. n.a.

2.04% 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 September 28, 2019. 2 - Launch date is November 15, 2019. 3 - Adjusted due to stock dividend issuance last October 9, 2019.

4 - Renaming was approved by the SEC last October 12, 2018 (formerly, One Wealthy Nation Fund, Inc.). 5 - Launch date is December 09, 2019.

6 - Re-classified into a Bond Fund starting February 21, 2020 (Formerly a Money Market Fund). 7 - Launch date is July 6, 2020.

"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

Entrepreneur BusinessMirror

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Wednesday, April 28, 2021 B3

Top-performing TBIs reap honors for elevating PHL start-up ecosystem

By Roderick L. Abad

O

@rodrik_28

Contributor

UTSTANDING technology business incubators (TBIs) in the country were recently feted in the first PH Startup Incubator Awards for their accomplishments in producing impactful programs and promising new entrepreneurial ventures.

During the awarding ceremony that was held last Friday via Zoom and Facebook Live, the tandem of UPSCALE Innovation Hub and partner-school University of the Philippines (UP)-Diliman was declared the grand champion, bringing home P100,000 in cash for besting other 11 participants in the TBI 4.0 Program of the Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development (DOST-PCIEERD) and QBO Innovation Hub. Elated by such recognition, they

looked back at their humble beginnings. The UPSCALE Innovation Hub representatives said: “When our TBI was established, the goal was to support spinoff companies resulting from innovations generated by the Engineering R&D for Technology consortium, which was composed of eight Philippine universities with graduate programs in engineering.

This continues to be part of our core mission and to date, we have helped launch nine spinoff companies with an additional six spinoff companies in the pipeline, on top of the other ventures that we have

helped launch.”

Bagging the other major awards with a prize of P80,000 each, on the other hand, were the iDEYAMindanao State University Iligan Institute of Technology (People’s Choice for Best Incubator Team and Rising Star Incubator) and Animo Labs-De La Salle University (Extra Mile Incubator).

Meanwhile, the honorees for the Operational Excellence categories (with P50,000 cash prize each) were: Best Incubator Infrastructure, Center for Technopreneurship and Innovation-Batangas State University; Best Incubator Community Program, SIBOL Labs-University of the Philippines-Los Baños; Best Incubator Startup Program, AIMDado Banatao Incubator-Asian Institute of Management (AIM); Best Incubator Governance & Operations, UPSCALE Innovation Hub-UP-Diliman; and Best Incubator Growth & Sustainability, Animo Labs-De La Salle University.

“During a time when it can sometimes be hard to find hope and inspiration, the first-ever Philippine Startup Incubator Awards gives us that and more,” noted QBO Innovation Hub and IdeaSpace President Rene “Butch” Meily. “I hope we’ll be doing them on a regular basis from

now on as it really recognizes the achievers in the Philippine start-up ecosystem.”

The event also marked the twoyear celebration and culmination of the TBI 4.0 Program and the journey of its 12 DOST-backed TBI-participants, comprised of the six awardees, plus the Navigatu-Caraga State University, Palawan International TBI-Palawan State University, QBO Innovation Hub, CDO B.I.T.E.S-University of Science and Technology of Southern Philippines, Cebu inITUniversity of the Philippines Cebu, and Green TBI-Western Visayas State University.

“To us they’re all winners. They’ve gone through two years of very difficult work, trimming out worksheets, trying to make improvements in all their incubators, and working over time on all the different things,” he pointed out.

Breeding ground

WITH the advent of Industry 4.0 in the past recent years, it has become clear that there’s an urgent need for incubators to adapt to the changing times, thus, giving birth to the TBI 4.0 program in 2019. Funded by the DOST-PCIEERD and led by QBO Innovation Hub, it aims to develop world-class TBIs and in-

cubator managers and increase the number of quality tech start-ups in the country.

This initiative encompassed four main strategies—Co-incubation, Internationalization, Co-development of Programs, and Leveling Up—all meant to further equip incubators with capabilities to develop Filipino tech start-ups.

“So the TBI 4.0 program is meant to help our TBIs grow, go out of their university-protected shell, and step up to become world-class facilities,” said Russel M. Pili, DOST-PCIEERD chief of Research Information and Technology Transfer Division.

In doing so, she cited that the DOST has supported 32 incubators and start-ups nationwide since 2016, with a total funding of P485 million.

As a result of the program, she added that they have recorded P535 million in private investments received and registered P533 million accumulated start-up revenues.

“So from our investment as DOST, the effect on the assistance of our technology business incubators was even bigger than what we have actually put in,” Pili noted.

Bright prospects

THE Philippines is on the right path towards cultivating innovative and

promising enterprises that could catalyze economic growth and uplift the lives of millions of Filipinos, according to QBO Innovation Hub Executive Director Katrina Rausa Chan.

In fact, she cited that the country now has around 500 to a thousand active start-ups (scalable, tech-driven disruptive companies) with under $400 million in total ecosystem value, based on the 2020 Startup Genome Survey.

“I hear sometimes that there’s no support for start-ups in the Philippines. I think that’s absolutely wrong. There are fantastic incubators all over the country where you can find that community, find that support, and experience this program,” she said.

Given the rise of new businesses and enablers amid the unprecedented times, she looks forward to the bullish prospects on the future of Filipino start-ups and incubators.

“I’m very excited about the developments in 2021 actually because it’s in the news like a lot of start-ups have been raising bigger and bigger fundraising rounds internationally as well. So I’m expecting an uptake actually and, obviously, once we get our unicorn, then that automatically kind of bumps us up in the billions category,” Chan stressed.

Grameen brings relief, recovery Sardine livelihood program bags Quill CSR award Distance learning is key to 3.5K entreps amid pandemic A

G

rameen Foundation has announced the results of its Covid-19 RELIEF (Response to Enhance Livelihoods of Individual Entrepreneurs and Families) initiative in the Philippines. Supported by J.P. Morgan, the two-phase program targeted individual microentrepreneurs or daily wage earners, especially women, who were severely affected by community lockdowns imposed in Metro Manila and Cebu.

In Phase I, Grameen and its microfinance institution (MFI) partners, Ahon sa Hirap Inc. (ASHI) and RAFI Micro-finance Inc., delivered food, medicine packages, vouchers, and Covid-19 crisis-related financial advice to 3,500 targeted microentrepreneurs and their households.

Beneficiaries with basic-feature phones received e-vouchers via SMS. For those with smartphones, Grameen partnered with Celo and BeamAndGo Pte Ltd. to design a solution using blockchain technology that allowed beneficiaries to download the Valora app, access various merchants or stores via a microsite and shop online for grocery and hygiene packages. The combination of these two digital methods enabled delivery of relief that was effective, safe, fast, and transparent.

“We were shocked and scared of the community quarantine…[We] were scared that we’ll die of hunger,” said Soledad Regis, a 72-year-old widow and microentrepreneur in Muntinlupa City.

“We were so happy when we received a call about the relief assistance. The assistance was really a big help to us.”

“We are grateful to J.P. Morgan for helping us make so many stories like Soledad’s possible. J.P. Morgan understood from the start that highly vulnerable microentrepreneurs would need both emer-

gency aid and guidance during recovery to make them more resilient to future crises,” said Steve Hollingworth, president and CEO of Grameen Foundation.

In Phase II of the program, Grameen Foundation supported its MFI partners in equipping microentrepreneurs with strategies to cope and respond to the Covid-19 crisis both professionally and in their personal lives.

Drawing on its Resilient Life, Resilient Business curriculum, Grameen designed learning modules to support women entrepreneurs holistically by addressing gender roles and the constant threat of shocks and stresses they face, and by providing them with tools to thrive as microentrepreneurs in an ever-changing environment. Beneficiaries were able to access modules through Grameen’s customized Learn with Grameen app, available on the Google Play store. Grameen trained MFI staff and loan officers as mentors to help cascade the RLRB curriculum content to members. These women also received one-on-one coaching to promote adoption of healthy financial behaviors and resilience during a crisis. Working with Grameen’s Bankers without Borders, J.P. Morgan staff also volunteered their time to mentor and provide training to support participating MFIs in their resiliency and recovery efforts.

“J.P. Morgan remains committed to helping individuals left most vulnerable by Covid-19 around the world,” said Carlos Ma. G. Mendoza, senior country officer—J.P. Morgan Philippines. “We are pleased to hear about the positive impact our program partnership with the Grameen Foundation has made and we are proud of our employee volunteers who have continued to make a difference in our communities during these challenging times.”

With the “Covid-19 RELIEF” program, women microentrepreneurs were given immediate relief and were trained to overcome the crisis to achieve long-term recovery through mentorship and access to digital modules with a crisis management approach. Photo courtesy of Grameen Foundation

timonan, Quezon—Loryann Condol, a 35-year-old wife of a fisherman from Barangay Poblacion Zone IV is not letting Covid-19 get her, or her family, down. She counts herself among the residents of this far-flung, seaside community who now earn a decent living turning the humble tamban (herring) into Spanish sardines, which is now being sold to customers living as far as Metro Manila and Zambales.

Through the Aplaya Sardines Enterprise, one of the projects of Atimonan One Energy, Inc. (A1E) under its Kaisa sa Kabuhayan program on livelihood and enterprise development, Condol has adignified shot to becoming self-sufficient, especially during the off-peak fishing season.

“I am happy that A1E gave us this opportunity,” said Condol. “Right now, I am making more than P350 every production cycle of Aplaya,” she said.

Last year alone, she earned an extra P5,000 which augmented her income.

“More importantly, this project helped me provide the needs of my family and be with them at the same time,” Condol added.

Shirley Balinsayo, a former overseas Filipino worker, only recently joined the group of small fisherfolks behind the Aplaya Spanish sardines called Atimonan Coastal Food Production Association (ACFPA).

“I am grateful for this kind of opportunity in my hometown which really is a huge help for us especially now that we’re still in the middle of a pandemic,” said Balinsayo.

Recognized at IABC Quill awards

A1E won an Excellence Award for this Aplaya Sardines livelihood project during the 18th Philippine Quill awards held virtually last March.

The award, given by the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC), fell under the communication management: corporate social responsibility (CSR) category.

The annual Philippine Quill awards give recognition to excellent communication research, programs, skills, and creative work by companies and agencies in the country.

With the help of A1E, which is developing a 1,200-megawatt (MW), highly efficient, low emission (HELE) coal plant in the area, residents in

Women of the Aplaya Sardines Enterprise gather at a neighborhood kitchen to prepare and bottle their tamban (herring) Spanish sardine food product for distribution and sale to Luzon consumers.

Photo courtesy of Atimonan One Energy Inc.

the seaside community underwent a fish processing training program which currently helps them eke out an alternative income amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

With the initiative of A1E and the guidance of Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) Region IV-A and Atimonan’s Office of Municipal Agriculture (OMA), ACFPA members will soon offer new products, including milkfish in oil, tinapa, deboned bangus and fish patty.

The Atimonan local government plans to open a community fish landing center and processing facility to accommodate the growing Spanish sardines industry in the municipality.

‘At the heart of what we do’

MGen President and Chief Executive Officer Rogelio L. Singson wants to transform the Atimonan into a progressive and “smart” community.

Among the efforts made by MGen and A1E was the facilitation of the development of a Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP) for the municipality.

“We put the local community at the heart of what we do and we want to ensure that as our projects progress, our communities grow and develop with us,” explained Singson.

A1E has also been undertaking social development projects for the municipality with focus on health, environment, livelihood and education.

While generating jobs and boosting local economy are expected from the multiplier effects of A1E’s power project, MGen ensures that these benefits are sustainable.

“While the country continues to battle the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, we are still fortunate to

be able to offer jobs to the people living in Atimonan and the adjacent municipalities,” said Litz ManuelSantana, MGen vice-president for external affairs.

Residents themselves believe that the power plant will not only help the town of Atimonan but also uplift the lives of the residents.

“We believe A1E project will provide more job opportunities, and improved health and educational facilities for our families and the future generation,” said Irene Dolindo, chairman of Samahan ng Maliliit na Manggagawa sa Lumang Pantalan.

Empowered community

Through its Kaisa sa Pagsulong CSR program, A1E hopes to build a self-reliant community in Atimonan.

The key beneficiary for this program are the 47 families who were relocated to a new community and were since organized into New Carinay Homeowners Association, Inc. (NCHAI).

NCHAI members undergo capacity-building and livelihood and enterprise development programs as part of A1E’s efforts to make the community self-reliant and sustainable.

Members now run various smallscale businesses on catering, boat rental services, and small-scale construction, property maintenance and repair.

Member-farmers also benefit from the Gulayan sa Bakuran project of A1E, which focuses on vegetable production to provide nutritious food and extra earnings for the residents.

“This is a great help for my family in this time of crisis because it is not only a source of food but also additional income for us,” said Roger Trapalgar, a farmer from NCHAI.

ON the education front, A1E’s Kaisa sa Edukasyon program focuses on various activities aimed at supporting students and teachers in the municipality.

Recently, A1E facilitated donation of P6.6 Million worth of books from Rex Bookstore as part of its efforts to support distance learning amid the pandemic. The project benefitted over 7,000 elementary and high school students from 28 public schools in Atimonan.

Environmental stewardship

Core to A1E’s CSR efforts is environment stewardship. Through tree-planting and coastal clean-up activities, all sectors from Atimonan—through volunteerism—help to protect and maintain a clean municipality. Along with its partners, A1E has so far planted 17,000 indigenous and fruit bearing trees across the municipality. The company also pledged to continue this activity by planting at least 1,000 trees every year under Project 1K. Over 2,000 mangrove propagules (stem cuttings) were recently planted by volunteers along the 2-hectare coastal area of Barangay Balugohin.

The company also does regular coastal clean-ups along the 12 kilometer stretch of Lamon Bay under Project 1Dagat. The company and its partners have so far completed 23 activities.

Closer to home, A1E implements a ban on single-use plastic in all its activities and offices.

Livelihood and skills training

Under Kaisa sa Kabuhayan, the company established various livelihood groups being run by Atimonanins, including: Heavenly Touch Therapeutic Massage, which provides professional massage services; Atimonan Haircutters Association, which offers basic haircutting and hair coloring services; and of course, ACFPA, which produces the homegrown Aplaya Spanish sardines.

A1E is closely working with Atimonan’s Public Employment Service Office (PESO) in hiring locals for the various positions needed by the company and its contractors. Currently, more than 361 Atimonanins, who represents 54 percent of the total work force are working on the site preparation activities. Hector Zabala

B4 Wednesday, April 28, 2021

Banking&Finance BusinessMirror

Treasury to borrow ₧170B from local debt mart in May

T

By Bernadette D. Nicolas

@BNicolasBM

HE Bureau of the Treasury is set to borrow a total of P170 billion from the local debt market in May, the same level it programmed to borrow in April.

The Treasury is scheduled to auction off next month a total of P100 billion in Treasury Bills (T-bills) and P70 billion in Treasury Bonds (Tbonds). It also retained the tenors of government securities it offered last month.

National Treasurer Rosalia V. De Leon told reporters last Tuesday they want to “build liquidity and make the curve more efficient.”

“Investors [are] biased on the belly for yield pick-up without long duration risk,” De Leon said.

In each of the four Mondays of May, the Treasury is set to offer P25 billion in 91-day, 182-day and 364day T-bills. On the other hand, it will be offering P35-billion in 5-year T-bonds on May 4 and another P35 billion in 7-year T-bonds on May 18.

The country aims to borrow a total of P3.03 trillion this year, roughly the same amount it borrowed in 2020.

The national government’s outstanding debt as of end-February this year soared to a new record high of P10.406 trillion as the government continued to borrow more money.

The government borrows to finance its spending requirements as well as to cover its budget deficit.

Budget deficits occur when expenditures exceed revenues.

Data from the Bureau of the Treasury released on Tuesday showed the government’s budget deficit for the first quarter of the year almost quadrupled to P321.5 billion from only P86.2 billion in the same period a year ago as government expenditures spent more despite collecting less revenues.

For this year, the government expects the budget deficit to reach a new record-high of P1.78 trillion or 8.9 percent of gross domestic product, even higher than the P1.37 trillion or 7.6 percent deficit-to-GDP ratio it recorded last year.

For 2022, the government’s economic managers expect the country’s budget deficit to settle to 1.64 trillion or 7.3 percent of GDP.

Digital bank Tonik records retail deposits at ₧1B

T

ONIK Digital Bank Inc. announced it has secured more than P1 billion in retail deposits only about a month after its launch in March this year.

“The response we got when we introduced the app last month was overwhelmingly positive,” Tonik CEO and Founder Greg Krasnov said.

“It’s a testament to the fact that Filipinos are thirsty for a financial enabler that cuts the red tape, makes banking less complicated and lets their hard-earned money work bet-

ter for their future.”

The new digital-only bank, upon its launch in March, announced their primary offer of a high-interest savings account to Filipino consumers.

As of this writing, deposit interest rates with Tonik can reach 6 percent per annum depending on the type of savings account.

Following this development, the bank announced that it has tied up with the Philippine Electronic Fund Transfer System and Operations Network (PesoNet) to enable its

customers to transfer funds to and from other banks.

“Tonik users are now able to transfer funds from a PESONet participating bank to their accounts,” the bank said in a statement. The bank said the service is initially available via several banks, with other PESONet member banks expected to add the service in the coming months.

Krasnov said allowing easier and bigger bank transfers is one of several features that they will be introducing

in their app such as new loan offers and new payment options.

He added more interbank transfer services via PESONet will be available with more banks in the coming weeks.

“By making in-demand banking transactions such as interbank transfers safer and more seamless with PESONet, we hope to encourage more Filipinos to manage and maximize their finances with Tonik in the ‘neo normal,’” Krasnov said.

Bianca Cuaresma

San Miguel files for ₧50B Fintech to offer ₧3.5M fixed-rate bond shelf offer for 1,000 entrepreneurs

By VG Cabuag

@villygc

S

AN Miguel Corp. has filed a P50billion shelf registration of its fixed-rate bonds at the Securities and Exchange Commission, some P30 billion of which will be immediately sold to the market.

The fixed-rate bonds, some P20 billion of which is its principal offer and P10 billion as its over-allotment option, will have a maturity of six years or will be due in 2027.

It will be offered at 100 percent of its face value but carries a put option or re-pricing on the third year and an optional redemption during the fourth or fifth year.

BDO Capital and Investment Corp., BPI Capital Corp., China Bank Capital Corp., ING Bank N.V., Manila Branch, Philippine Commercial Capital Inc., PNB Capital and Investment Corp., RCBC Capital Corp. and SB Capital Investment Corp. were picked as joint issue managers, joint lead underwriters and bookrunners.

The entire proceeds of the offer will be used for re-denominating the existing dollar denominated obligations of the company and expenses of this

shelf registration and offering of the offer bonds, the conglomerate said in its prospectus.

San Miguel’s board on March 11 authorized its management to redenominate its dollar denominated existing obligations of the company.

“The entire net proceeds of the Offer will be used to repay existing foreign denominated loan obligations of the company,” the company said.

Among these obligations is the US dollar-denominated bridge loan facility, the proceeds of which were used to redeem the $516 million notes. The said debt is the remaining balance of the $800 million notes due in 2023 that the company issued in 2013. The terms gave an option to the company to redeem it early on April 26, 2021. On April 8, 2021, the company disclosed with the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Ltd. a notice of redemption of the Notes where such notes were listed.

“Management may decide to use all or a portion of the net proceeds of the offer to repay other existing dollar denominated obligations of the company.

In any case, such repayment of said obligations will be made not later than six months from the issue date,” it said.

A

N Indonesia-based financial technology (fintech) player announced it will waive P3.5 million per business in free transactions for up to 1,000 entrepreneurs and businesses in Philippines and Indonesia to scale and level-up, “while embracing the digital transactions that are increasingly critical in the region.”

Xendit (PT Sinar Digital Terdepan) announced this is a part of its “Level Up” campaign. The first part is the launch of its “Business Pitch Challenge” where the company will select 50 to 100 startups who will get P3.5 million in waived fees to use their service.

“The selected SMEs [small-scale and medium-scale enterprises] will enjoy a secure, easy-to-integrate payment system and a seamless payment experience for their clients,” the company said in a statement. “The selected startups will also join a master class to learn how to maximize their payment gateway experience.”

The company added it will provide comprehensive payment options, quick set-up and instant

payment process “so they can be onboarded right away.”

The company said the campaign is part of their commitment to championing the growth of SMEs in the Philippines, “while making financial transactions safer and simpler in the digital age.”

“Xendit is also a product of a startup accelerator in Silicon Valley, which helped us build a fast, secure and seamless payment platform for Southeast Asia,” Xendit Philippines Inc. Managing Director Yang Yang Zhang was quoted in the statement as saying. “We recognized the importance of mentorship in a startup’s growth.

We hope to offer the same kind of support for local entrepreneurs and SMEs.” Yang Yang expressed “excitement” to “meet promising startups in the Philippines and see how we can work together so they can reach their idea’s economic potential.”

“We are confident that this program can nurture the businesses of tomorrow and in turn, continue building the country’s digital payments infrastructure,” he added.

Reluctant emerging Asia seen to delay rate hikes

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MERGING Asia’s central banks are expected to opt for supporting their economic recoveries rather than tackling volatile price swings this year.

All eight emerging Asian economies, including India and Indonesia, are seen holding benchmark interest rates steady through 2021, according to the median forecasts from Bloomberg surveys of economists.

Higher real interest rates will allow some of Asia’s central banks to stand pat, while for others a recent pick-up in inflation is set to moderate. Much depends on the path of global interest rates, and the Federal Reserve’s meeting this week will be keenly watched by the region’s policy makers.

“To support economic recoveries, Asian central banks are expected to maintain their accommodative

stance and avoid hinting at future rate hikes,” Duncan Tan, rates strategist at DBS Banking Group Ltd., said.

Considering that recent inflation prints have been elevated, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and Reserve Bank of India seem most likely to hike for inflation reasons, Tan added.

After cutting its key interest rate by 200 basis points last year, the Philippine central bank has held steady since November, even with inflation running above the bank’s 2-percent to 4-percent goal. The BSP has estimated that average price gains this year would be slightly above target, while Governor Benjamin Diokno has signaled the bank will keep policy on hold while its loose monetary settings work their way through the economy.

“The real policy rate will likely average close to -3 percent in 2021,

and as the economy gradually reopens, even marginal demand-side price momentum would call for a less accommodative policy stance,” said Joseph Incalcaterra, chief Asean economist at HSBC Holdings Plc in Hong Kong.

The differing growth and inflation expectations are playing out in markets. Foreign investors net invested a record 9.1 trillion won ($8.2 billion) in South Korean listed debt in March, with rate swaps already pricing in about 100 basis points of hikes over the next three years, making a selloff unlikely. India and Philippines, however, have seen a combined net outflow of more than $4 billion year-to-date in their bond markets, based on the data available.

Much of the emerging Asia policy track will depend on vaccination progress—with many economies

suffering from a dearth of supply—and on how quickly some of the region’s economies can damp a recent surges in cases. Meanwhile, their economies are generally better positioned than elsewhere in the emerging-market world, with hearty foreign reserves and thriving goods trade as two buffers that will give central bankers some room to consider normalizing rates.

Analysts are generally reluctant to pin their bets on any one economy as the first hiker in emerging Asia, given the multitude of uncertainties and the generally low-inflation atmosphere. It’s difficult to see Asian central banks being “gung-ho” about raising rates unless they’re battling rapid capital outflows, said Selena Ling, head of Treasury research and strategy at Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp. in Singapore. Bloomberg News

www.businessmirror.com.ph

CIMB’s PHL business posts 4M customers

By Bianca Cuaresma @BcuaresmaBM

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HE local operation of CIMB Group Holdings Berhad announced signing up close to 4 million customers within a little over two years after its launch.

In a statement on Tuesday, CIMB Bank Philippines Inc. said it has signed in over 600,000 new customers in the first three months of the year. This drove their deposits to grow by 460 percent in the first quarter despite the economic fall-out from government response against the pandemic.

The annual average balance per customer has also increased by 235 percent while the average cash-in per customer grew by 355 percent.

CIMB is a Malaysian banking giant that formally launched its presence in the Philippines in January 2019 through an all-digital platform.

CIMB Bank Philippines said that the growth in deposits was across all customer segments but noted a double digit increase in savings among its customers. The all-digital bank offers a 4-percent per annum interest rate for savings accounts.

The banks also noted that 20 percent of their new depositors have CIMB as their first banking relationship.

“Our vision is to promote inclusivity by providing Filipinos superior financial solutions and digital experience that they deserve,” CIMB Bank Philippines CEO Vijay Manoharan was quoted in the statement as saying. “Also we are committed to providing every consumer the same opportunity to attain financial freedom wherever they are in their financial journey.”

Apart from savings, the bank said personal loan applications have grown by 150 percent with loan disbursements increasing by 85 percent versus the same period last year.

According to CIMB Bank Philippines, more than half of their successful loan applicants have CIMB as their first bank loan.

Manoharan told the BusinessMirror in January they are banking on the tightening of lending standards among conventional financial institutions to beef up its loan portfolio. “If you look at industry statistics, most banks are tightening and reducing the lending facilities given the pandemic,” he said, noting there is an “unfulfilled” demand.

That month, CIMB said it aims to have five million customers this year.

In 2020, the bank saw its customer base doubled to over three million. Of these clients, 30 percent said CIMB was their first bank account.

Fudging the numbers

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NE million cases of the dreaded Covid-19 disease have been tallied in the Philippines as of this week, based on the latest statistics from the Department of Health (DOH). This horrific milestone was recorded amid the surge in infections concentrated mostly in the National Capital Region and its four neighboring provinces, collectively called the “NCR Plus” bubble.

As the country reels from the economic impact of the pandemic, academicians from the Octa Research Group urged the national government to maintain the modified enhanced community quarantine in NCR Plus.

They advised the authorities not to exit MECQ, the second strictest lockdown protocol, until the reproduction number of less than 0.9 has been sustained for several weeks.

Octa Research has been called out for making alarmist projections, pushing for stricter quarantine measures and fudging the numbers. For example, it reported that Covid-19 cases in Barangay Fort Bonifacio reached 342 between March 18 to 24, 2021. This was refuted by Taguig’s City Epidemiology and Disease Surveillance Unit (CEDSU), which analyzed the same data from DOH. According to the CEDSU, Octa’s figures includes positive cases that have already recovered; cases that turned out to be negative; presumptive positive cases; equivocal cases; inconclusive cases; and, those awaiting test results.

“If these cases are excluded–as they should be—Fort Bonifacio will only have 116 Covid-19 cases during the same period. At 42 cases per 100,000 population, the barangay is well below the national count of 83 active cases per 100,000 population and NCR’s ratio of 158 active cases per 100,000 population,” Taguig’s research team and CEDSU clarified in a joint statement.

It may be recalled that the country’s vaccine czar has lauded Taguig as a model city in terms of effective pandemic response. Secretary Carlito G. Galvez Jr. pointed out that Taguig was among the first cities in Metro Manila to launch a drive-thru Covid-19 testing facility and has one of the lowest active cases with a ratio of less than 20 for every 100,000 residents.

“This is a testament to the outstanding leadership shown by Mayor Lino [Edgardo S.] Cayetano and the proactive strategy of his local government unit to contain and mitigate the spread of the virus,” Galvez said. He

Finex free enterprise Joseph Araneta Gamboa cited the Taguig LGU’s acquisition of its own cold storage facility, establishment of a point-to-point logistics transport system and construction of four mega vaccination centers as well as 40 community centers in a bid to inoculate all its residents for free.

The city’s population is estimated to reach 1,055,000 by end-2021.

Cayetano also received the “Covid-19 Response Service Award” from the DOH for his exceptional commitment to the implementation of contagion response strategies and for ensuring quality health services in the community. He comes from a family of public servants who have consistently been elected by the Taguigueños since the 1980s—starting with his father, the late Senator Renato L. Cayetano.

In both good and bad times, the Cayetanos have proven themselves to be dedicated officials in the local and national fronts. No economic crisis or epidemic has stopped them from leading their hometown to success. At this time of Covid-19, Taguig’s glowing numbers are showing exactly what caliber of leadership they are capable of.

Today, Barangay Fort Bonifacio in Taguig is considered the country’s new financial district, with its centerpiece Bonifacio Global City as the 21st century version of Makati and BGC’s 5th Avenue as the Filipino equivalent of New York’s Wall Street.

There you can find the headquarters of the Philippine Stock Exchange and other leading business institutions.

Beyond the high-rise towers and retail malls of Fort Bonifacio, the 27 other barangays are populated

by Taguigueños who take pride in living within a—probinsyudad” or city with a provincial touch. Indeed, Taguig has risen to become a worldclass model for other cities to emulate—especially when it comes to addressing the Covid-19 pandemic.

Joseph Gamboa is the co-chairman of the Finex Annual Conferences for 2020-2021, chairman of the Finex Business Columns Subcommittee and director of Noble Asia Industrial Corp. The views expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the opinion of these institutions and the BusinessMirror.

Image BusinessMirror

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Wednesday, April 28, 2021

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Giving back to the community T PHOTO BY FRED MOON ON UNSPLASH

Why remembering matters for healing

By Nancy Berns Drake University HOLOCAUST Remembrance Day begins on the evening of April 7. Each year communities and schools plan various events such as reading the names of Holocaust victims and survivors, forums of Holocaust survivor speakers, or panel discussions with historians. These events run through an entire week of remembrance.

Such formal days of remembrance are important.

As a sociologist who studies grief and justice, I have seen how these events and permanent memorials can be both healing and inspirational. I will share four reasons why remembrance activities are important.

1. TELLING ONE’S STORY. An essential part of healing rests on the ability to tell one’s story—to have someone listen and acknowledge pain and suffering.

Scholars have explained how stories help people make sense of their experience. Stories can provide a release of emotion and help one connect to others when learning to live with loss.

How one grieves is dependent on social and cultural contexts. If one is surrounded, for example, by people who refuse to acknowledge someone’s loss, it will be a more traumatic experience than being in a culture that recognizes the loss.

2. PROVIDING PUBLIC BONDS. Research shows that many people develop continuing bonds with individuals who have died. Often people want to keep a deceased loved one’s memory in their lives.

Remembrance events can present opportunities and rituals to help in sustaining those connections.

A person establishes private bonds with the deceased, through internal conversations, private rituals, or holding on to symbolic objects. Public bonds, on the other hand, require more people to help make connections, such as telling their story to an audience and hearing others’ stories through films, books, speakers or museum exhibits.

3. DOCUMENTING HISTORY THROUGH STORIES. Storytelling does not just benefit survivors and victims’ families. Individual stories can help the world understand the human toll of mass tragedy.

When entering the Holocaust Memorial and Museum in Washington, D.C., for example, visitors are handed an ID card that describes an individual who lived, or died, in Europe during the Holocaust.

Seeing family pictures and knowing how their lives were devastated poignantly brings the tragedy home in a way that numbers alone cannot do. Such stories become the building blocks of history, for they are never simply individual. They are told in specific historical times and they help us understand the relationships between people and society.

4. INSPIRING OTHER MOVEMENTS. Stories can also help inspire healing movements for other mass tragedies. One example of this inspiration can be found in the work of Bryan Stevenson, founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative.

Stevenson and his team have been helping audiences hear the stories of people who have been victims of racial injustice in the United States.

Stevenson was inspired by the Holocaust memorials he visited when he went to Germany: “You can’t go anywhere in Germany without seeing reminders of the people’s commitment not to repeat the Holocaust.”

Conversations about a painful past are not something to be feared but rather remembered and shared. Healing does not come by closing the books and turning away from individual stories of trauma.

Healing starts when the devastating consequences of injustice and loss are seen and acknowledged.

THE CONVERSATION

HE last time I joined an outreach program was when I participated in a clean-up drive to clean a portion of the Pasig river, and making mud balls which we threw later in the river that supposedly would help improve the water quality. We never went back to the community again, leaving me to wonder whether our actions had any impact at all.

Many organizations today have a Corporate Social Responsibility program, the main purpose of which is to improve the organization’s impact on the social and environmental aspects of their communities.

Responsible organizations see CSR programs as a means to promote sustainability in their operations by ensuring their community also benefits from them. It makes sense considering that organizations are part of the larger community where they are located.

And though there are multiple causes organizations can support, the bottom line of any CSR program is the enrichment of the shared values between the organization and the community. This shared value creates a dynamic where consumers and organizations are mutually dependent on each other—one creates the goods and services that resonate with the values and aspirations of individuals in the community.

But for any CSR program to work, it needs to start as an internal motivation to employees as their own advocacy so that when they go beyond the walls of the organization, they take those values with them and disseminate it to their immediate spheres of influence. As Sir Richard Branson once said, “Clients do not come first. Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of your clients.” Understanding your employees’ motivations will help you determine the issues in your community that your employees will willingly endorse.

Next, find out what your customers support and the causes that are close to their hearts. Not only is it good business to understand what drives your customers, but it also helps you understand how to position yourself, so that you continue to be relevant to their needs. Much as organizations want to create profit, what better way to do so than echo customer sentiments with your products and services.

A word of caution though: Not all organizations have altruistic reasons for espousing a CSR program.

Some use it as a means of reducing cost or even as a publicity stunt for clout. Take the case of organizations who go paperless to reduce paper usage and to save the trees. I am all for green processes and reducing the carbon footprint, but when organizations use it to reduce cost without giving back to the community, it just becomes a cost-reduction program. But when the money saved from reducing paper usage is used for, say, building a community garden for employees, or

supporting a non-profit organization, or providing scholarships, it becomes a true CSR program because it gives back to the community.

But as mutually beneficial CSR program goes, organizations need to ensure that they maintain, or even improve, profit. It would be unwise to venture into a CSR program if they are financially unable to fund one, much less sustain it. And even if they do create a CSR program, they need to be prepared to let the money go as an expenditure and expect returns to come in the form of customer loyalty, and improved public relations and brand reputation. And while profits form a significant part of the CSR program agenda, it does not take away its value of becoming a significant contribution to the development of their communities.

Your CSR program should also align with your products and services. You do not expect a candy store to be advocating for diabetes awareness or proper dental hygiene. Your CSR program has to resonate with your customers in a way that will make them rethink how your products and services actually benefit them. I remember a soap brand who launched a beauty campaign before where they asked women on certain parameters of what it is to be beautiful. It increased brand recall and at the same time triggered discussions on what should be socially-accepted standards and norms of what it is to be beautiful and inspired countless women to be comfortable in their own skin—of course, by using their product.

But it worked. And they reached more customers and expanded their target market. When a CSR program is aligned with an organization’s product, it becomes more influential.

And talking of aligning with an organization’s products and services, what better way for those in

the supermarket and wholesale food distribution to be relevant to their communities today if they participate in the community pantries. Imagine if supermarket and grocery owners contribute a part of their products to the community pantries all around the Metro and in the provinces. I am sure they have their own CSR programs as well, but now is the best time for these companies to actively support and meaningfully participate by providing community pantries not only to their employees but also to their immediate vicinity.

There are measures and indicators to determine if your CSR program is effective. But one of the best indicators of the success of your program are the stories of how customers benefited not only from your products and services, but also from a change in mindset in how they view the world and others.

Effective CSR programs have a way of inspiring and enjoining others to do the same. Much like what Ana Patricia Non did with the community pantry she established which sparked other communities to do the same. I guess the need to take action was far greater than being just resilient, or, worse, apathetic.

And the best thing about it is that her work inspired others to do the same.

The passion and purpose behind your CSR program stem from shared values with your community. Your organization’s influence in the community helps you to not just make a profit, but also ensure both the sustainability of your operations and foster a mutually dependent relationship.

When you see your organization as more than just a means to an end, but a vital and enriching part of the community, you become more invested in its success and the community it belongs to. After all, we are all in this together. n

PHOTO BY BEN WHITE ON UNSPLASH

THIS octagonal sphere lights up at night and is equipped with a table, chairs, lamps and plant décor for guests to enjoy their favorite meal.

ENJOY morning or night dining under fresh air at the Pocket Park.

Little pockets of heaven ENJOY little pockets of heaven with friends and family with great food and a great view of Taguig City at SM Aura Premier.

In line with current health protocols, the mall has transformed its Skypark and The Courtyard to a more intimate garden setup overlooking BGC making it a new attraction in the mall. The Skypark has four octagonal spheres for you and your loved ones to enjoy at the lawn, each with with hanging lamps and

plants, tables and chairs. Dine in style and admire the sunset at the Skypark with your take-out food from Barcino, Prego, Tuan Tuan, Hummus Elijah and more.

These pods even light up at night.

The Courtyard, on the other hand, is designed with special gazebos where you can also enjoy the cool breeze and delicious take-out food from Mesa, Yabu, Ramen Nagi, Lugang and more. And it’s all about that chic outdoor dining where you can take your selfies.

The Skypark and The Courtyard are open every day from 10 am to 9 pm, and are located at the fifth level of SM Aura Premier.

The Pocket Park, on the other hand, is a special place for bikers where they can park their bikes and enjoy morning or night dining in fresh air. Choose from favorite restaurants, like Cibo, Providore and Starbucks. The Pocket Park is located at the UGF level of SM Aura Premier.

B6 Wednesday, April 28, 2021

GROWQC feeds nutritious food, supports urban farming and community gardening

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HE GrowQC Mobile Kitchen is up and running! Thanks to the efforts of Mayor Joy Belmonte, Barangay Captain Chito Valmocina, Councilor Star Valmocina, and Quezon City Police District (QCPD) Director General Antonio Yarra, the local government provided

“Super Lugaw”, or arroz caldo made with calabash squash and moringa for added nutritional value, to 1,000 beneficiaries in Brgy. Holy Spirit which is currently under a Special Concern Lockdown.

The GrowQC Mobile Kitchen Nutrition Feeding Program is a project

QUEZON City Mayor Joy Belmonte handed out ‘super lugaw’ to beneficiaries in Brgy. Holy Spirit, in cooperation with barangay officials who helped enforce social distancing and safety protocols.

by the City spearheaded by the QC Food Security Task Force (QCFSTF), a program chaired by Mayor Belmonte. It was also supported by the Council for the Development of Volunteer Leaders (CDVL) as well as the Barangay, ensuring utmost safety protocols and adherence to required health standards for the conduct of outreach and humanitarian efforts.

The CDVL is currently working with Brgy. Holy Spirit officials and purok leaders to ensure the safety of the beneficiaries, and help to remind the public of the importance of appropriate foot traffic and necessary social distancing. Arrangements were made before the feeding program with the QC-FSTF as well with the Office of the City Mayor.

The QC government recently acquired over 5.5 tons of kalabasa, sourced from farmers in Nueva Vizcaya.

Other ingredients used in the “Super Lugaw” were from urban farms in the city. The establishment of urban farms has been an on-going project of the QCFSTF for the past couple of years.

“In cooperation with the CDVL, we hope this program serves as an example of community-based humanitarian action,” shared Mayor Belmonte. “We are happy to announce that GrowQC shall be implementing a city-wide centralized feeding initiative for food security, as well as providing education and support for urban farms and community gardens.”

Solane and Electrolux partner for an exciting cooking combo promo

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ERE’S some good news for you this quarantine! The country’s most trusted LPG, Solane, has teamed up with global kitchen appliance company Electrolux to bring you an exciting Cooking Combo promo.

Upgrade your kitchen with your new cooking besties: a brand new Electrolux cooking ra nge partnered with safe and quality Verified Solane LPG. From April 1 until June 30, you can get a Php500 Solane e-voucher on an 11-kg LPG refill when you purchase an Electrolux cooking range. Participating home appliance retailers and Electrolux models for this promo can be viewed at the Electrolux website.

How to redeem your Solane e-voucher

SEND a private message to Solane’s Facebook page and select Electrolux

E-voucher in the chatbot to be redirected to a portal where you can claim the e-voucher. Make sure you have important details ready: your contact number, address, the invoice number of your Electrolux purchase, and the appliance store where it was bought.

Once verified, customers will receive their Solane e-voucher code via text to redeem the 11-kg de salpak or de roskas LPG refill. Click the link in the text to input your delivery address and the voucher code, and you’re good to go!

What are you waiting for? Avail the Cooking Combo promo and make your meals and kitchen duties even better this quarantine.

Need more details? Visit Solane’s Facebook page. You can also learn more about the Verified Solane products you can order in this promo in their website.

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and with Alert Level 2 hoisted since mid-March, people remain on high alert, and reliable and timely information about the volcano is needed now more than ever. With last year’s eruption still clear in everyone’s minds, it’s high time we gear up and be better prepared for anything that may happen.

Teralogix’s new app, TaALERT, gives real-time updates about Taal Volcano activities, including

FEU partners with global BPO for digital job fair

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HE Far Eastern University (FEU) held its very first university-wide virtual job fair entitled Online Recruitment Exclusive for Tamaraws (ORE Tams). Digitally attended by roughly 2,500 recently graduated and graduating students from the university, it was made possible by the Sitel Group through its learning and development program Sitel® Academy.

The global leader in end-to-end customer experience (CX) products and solutions also hosted over 30 top companies in the country for the student job fair “Participating in FEU’s virtual job fair was an exciting opportunity for us to meet the FEU graduates and students and present to them the wide pool of opportunities available at Sitel Group,” shared Eliane Therese Centeno, Learning Specialist and University Community Partner Ambassador-NCR, Sitel Academy. “We introduced them to the company, provided online tours, and with our digital recruitment solutions we were able to allow interested potential applicants to apply right then and there.”

Together with FEU and Prosple, a graduate recruitment service provider, Sitel Academy team members introduced interested FEU students to various employment opportunities, taken through the company’s

employee promise of “Learn, Lead & Grow with the Sitel Barkada”, and given a virtual tour of the different Sitel Philippines’ sites in Manila, Baguio, Tarlac, and Puerto Princesa.

To create an even more personalized experience, also invited were FEU alumni to share their personal experiences working for the company and their tips on starting a career in the fast-paced and growing ITBPM industry.

Interested participants then proceeded to the Sitel Philippines Candidate Engagement Platform and begin the streamlined online application, assessment, and selection process.

“The virtual job fair is an exciting new event we’ve launched to allow students to learn more about different companies through virtual booths with live presentations, question and answer sessions, webinars, interviews, and much more all from the safety and comfort of their homes,” shared Maria Carmencita Suva-Alfonso, Career and Placement Office Director, FEU. This event participation is another step in the company’s continued push to foster meaningful partnerships with learning institutions in the country, create innovative digital solutions, and bring job opportunities to even more Filipinos.

Twin Spin: A double treat this summer

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TaALERT app gives update on Taal Volcano

TAYING updated in times of crisis and disaster is a priority. With so much information circulating on the internet, it is often difficult to keep up with which ones are reliable, and more often than not, we are subjected to fake news from untrustworthy sources.

With recent bulletins from Phivolcs reporting consistent volcanic earthquakes in Taal Volcano,

RIDERS' LOUNGE AT SM OLONGAPO CENTRAL. SM City Olongapo Central has set up a special Rider’s Lounge for delivery riders waiting for their orders. It also has a charging station where delivery partners could charge their mobile phones.

The mall also have dedicated parking area for motorcycle and Food Panda bicycle delivery riders. Since the coronavirus outbreak, food delivery riders have become a key part of essential services, and the lounge is one way the mall, which is in a MGCQ area, has shown its appreciation for them.

information on disaster preparedness and risk areas. It’s an all-in-one platform that compiles all reliable information and news about the Taal Volcano from scientific resources. With easy to use features, TaALERT can help everyone prepare for disaster, communicate with their LGUs and family members, and also give aid to those in need.

TaALERT is equipped with a real-time updated map that shows the user’s location relative to confirmed volcanic activity. Reflecting Phivolcs’ published hazard zones, the in-app map allows users to see how far they are from a potential hazard, keeping users informed on what is happening at the moment, and helping them decide on whether evacuation is necessary.

The app also serves as an alert system that allows LGUs to send emergency alerts in the event of a disaster. The app can pinpoint user location, and can direct users to the nearest evacuation sites or pickup points during an emergency. Emergency hotlines are also easily accessible for everyone.

With the new app, LGUs have access to information regarding users’ updated safety status, aiding them in disaster response and management. Users may also join Safety Groups, where they can monitor the status of their family and friends, as well as facilitate possible group evacuations.

TaALERT is currently available for android users via the Google Play Store. For more information, follow facebook.com/TaALERTph on Facebook, @TaALERT.ph on Instagram and @ TaALERT1 on Twitter for updates.

HE summer months are going to be magical with the opening of a brandnew major ride at the country’s most loved theme park, Enchanted Kingdom. In its twenty-five year tradition of bringing only the finest world-class amusement to all its guests, EK unveils the much-awaited TWIN SPIN this May, a compact spinning coaster manufactured by world-renowned Mack Rides of Germany, the leading designer, manufacturer and supplier of rollercoasters, water rides and all kinds of leisure park attractions all over the globe. Following the launch of the EKaleidoscope last October, the TWIN SPIN is EK’s latest offering and third

rollercoaster to boot, to celebrate its silver anniversary culminating in October this year.

This May, be one of the first to experience double the rush and double the adrenaline that can only come from EK’s all-new TWIN SPIN—a totally innovative, spin-tastic attraction that will certainly be your ultimate double treat this summer!

For more information on promos and ticket reservations and bookings, please visit Enchanted Kingdom’s official website www.enchantedkingdom.ph, Online store https://shop.enchantedkingdom.ph/ or official Facebook page www.facebook.com/enchantedkingdom.ph.

BusinessMirror

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

Editor: Tet Andolong

B7

BRIA Homes deploys proptech platform to push its latest project M

By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes

: @brownindio

AJOR real-estate developers are quite aware that digital technology is an important tool in marketing and selling their projects to the market especially in the time of the pandemic.

Moreover, a new generation of buyers belonging to the digital age and new home buying trends are pervasive in the market. To entice the buyers, top local realestate developers are offering budget-friendly properties and flexible payment schemes to make it easy for Filipinos to acquire the ideal property for their loved ones, Moreover, developers such as BRIA Homes are using property technology (proptech) to reach out to more customers and at the same time ensure they are safe by tapping the digital platform.

BRIA Magalang, one of the projects of BRIA, has tapped the property technology (proptech) platform Ohmyhome.

Aside from digitalizing the realestate industry, JLL United Kingdom director of innovation Alex

Edds said the foundation of proptech is addressing “fundamental questions of how we experience and extract value from real estate.” https://www.raconteur.net/digital/ proptech-definition/ By tapping the proptech platform, interested buyers can just visit the Ohmyhome web site or downloading the Ohmyhome application. Ohmyhome also enables prospective buyers to look at the ready-for-occupancy (RFO) houseand-lot units in BRIA Homes Magalang. It can also help property seekers in Pampanga in purchasing a unit in BRIA Homes Magalang, among other BRIA properties.

After they have made their decision to buy, the homebuyers can go to the Ohmyhome app or web site and initiate the housing transaction process through the DIY option

All well-designed, ready-for-occupancy (RFO) units in BRIA Homes Magalang have one to two bedrooms, a service area, a dining area, a living area, and a toilet and bath. The Bettina and Alecza models have a carport.

which comes free. The company assured that even non-techie individuals will have an easier time surfing as both the platform’s app and web site feature simple and intuitive interfaces. Meanwhile, Ohmyhome can also provide clients with professional assistance throughout the transaction process as it also offers the services of their highly trained agents. In short, both options are beneficial to the clients in their reliable housing journey.

Because it values affordability and quality, BRIA Homes offer

Fortunately for Filipino couples with young children, BRIA Homes, a leader in affordable housing development in the country, offers budget-friendly properties to make it easy for them to acquire their own homes.

BFP, oil firm champion property protection with improved fire safety initiatives

By Roderick L. Abad @rodrik_28

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O help protect any property from fire incidents that usually increase at the onset of this summer season, the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) has revitalized its partnership with Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. in implementing fire security and emergency response initiatives within both organizations, while providing safety programs for external communities and groups.

This renewed collaborative effort, likewise, introduced “KAISA: Call to action against destructive fire campaign,” a BFP program that promotes the active participation of various societal sectors.

BFP Fire Director Jose S. Embang Jr., expressed his gratitude and lauded the energy company’s constant commitment to fire safety and the role it has taken in strengthening the national infrastructure in this area.

For Pilipinas Shell’s Vice President for External and Government Relations Sergio Bernal Jr., the renewal of their alliance shows the oil giant’s resolution to continue in its

UNITED as one in the fight against destructive fire incidents that cause damage or loss of properties and even lives, the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) has renewed its partnership with Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. in promoting fire safety and emergency response initiatives. Pilipinas Shell Vice President for External and Government Relations Sergio Bernal Jr. (second from left) holds a framed poster of “KAISA: Call to action against destructive fire campaign” together with BFP Chief Fire Director Jose Embang. Joining them are Pilipinas Shell Social Performance Adviser for Downstream Conrad Parizal (left) and BFP Fire Chief Supt. Roel Jeremy Diaz (right).

nation-building programs, and in this case, to ensure, promote, and grow fire safety practices in the country, whether at home, work spaces, industrial hubs, or in any property.

“Safety is paramount in our industry now, especially for Pilipinas Shell. Partnering with like-minded agencies is something that we re-

ally treasure. The Memorandum Of Agreement is one strong sign of this commitment,” he said.

The Pilipinas Shell-BFP partnership has been successful over the years in producing the most comprehensive, educational and empowering fire safety projects for various groups across different local sectors.

These include the Junior Fire Mar-

shal program, which trained over 8,600 students and 166 volunteer teachers on fire safety.

The partnership also led to continuous training both for internal and external stakeholders like the Disaster Response and Emergency Preparedness program that helped around 430 community volunteers learn more about the protocols to remember and implement during major calamities.

To further equip their employees in their different facilities, Pilipinas Shell also held Joint Fire Emergency Response Drills in 16 of its fuel terminals, as well as a Joint Oil Spill Response drill in the Tabangao site.

Also, it established a Community Satellite Fire Station in Batangas City, which the local BFP operates to respond to any fire emergency from surrounding homes and businesses in the area.

“Through the years, I think this is all about learning and sharing,” said Bernal, as he expressed his hopes to continue learning and sharing knowledge, capabilities, and practices on fire safety with the BFP for years to come.

Eton Properties records growth in 2020 despite global slowdown

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TON Properties Philippines Inc. (EPPI) reported a 2.9-percent growth in rental income of P1.76 billion in 2020, despite a global slowdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the company announced in its recent Annual Stockholders’ Meeting.

The growth in the company’s rental income was the result of office, commercial, and residential leasing revenue, as well as, hotel room sales. Together with other income segments, Eton Properties delivered a gross revenue of P2.6 billion.

“Eton has maintained a relatively

stable performance from adjustments in strategies and prudence in the deployment of resources,” according to Eton Properties President and Chief Executive Officer Ramon Pascual.

“We were able to mitigate the adverse impacts of the pandemic early on, reason why we still attained an improvement of 11 percent on our gross profit margin,” added Eton Properties Chief Operating Officer Karlu Tan Say. Eton Properties achieved an EBITDA of P1.8 billion and a net income of P802 million for the year 2020.

Af ter a respite due to quarantine restrictions, construction works for Eton Properties’ ongoing projects are now in full swing.

In 2020, the company was able to complete Blakes Tower, a 36-story office and residential building in Makati which will have 11,400 sq m of office space and 14,000 sq m of residential space.

More so, construction work has resumed for Eton City Square 1 in Sta. Rosa, Laguna. Once completed, it will add 7,200 sq m of gross leasable

area to Eton Properties’ commercial leasing portfolio.

“We project new rental revenues from these projects, as we engage with pandemic-resistant tenants that offer essentials and medical services to locate in our properties,” said Eton Properties Executive Vice President Engr. Charlie Carlos.

With its pipeline of projects, Eton Properties is confident that it is well positioned to capture business opportunities as the economy rebounds, according to Engr. Carlos.

affordable prices of these stylish house-and-lot units range from P520,000 to P1,436,000, available through different flexible payment methods. Purchasing a unit in BRIA Magalang will also entitle customers to the following perks: free move-in fee, loan charges, and water and electricity installation.

BRIA Homes Magalang is a 29-hectare community located at Barangay Santo Rosario in Magalang, Pampanga. Consistent with the housing developer’s promise to make well-designed homes accessible to Filipinos, BRIA Magalang features a variety of house models to choose from: row house Elena (22-sq-m floor area on a 36-sq-m lot area), two-story townhouse Bettina (44-sq-m floor area on a 36-sq-m lot area), and single firewall Alecza (36-sq-m floor area on an 81-sq-m lot area). All cozy and well-designed BRIA units have one to two bedrooms, service area, dining area, living area, and toilet and bath. The Bettina and Alecza units have a carport.

Aside from a prime location near Mabalacat, Pampanga, and Concepcion, Tarlac, BRIA Magalang also features recreational facilities for its residents, such as a basketball court, a covered court, jogging path, playground, guardhouse, 24/7 CCTV coverage, and a perimeter fence.

Co-living spaces The Crib reaches the top

An artist’s perspective of The Crib located in Filinvest City

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HE Crib, the new exciting coliving brand by Filinvest, has just reached a significant project milestone: a topping off achievement that signifies the property developer’s commitment to meeting the needs of the market today.

With this feat, it won’t be long before millennial real-estate customers experience the benefits of nestling in co-living spaces that bring live, work, and play together in one cozy yet affordable property development.

“The Crib’s topping off milestone reflects Filinvest’s commitment to delivering modern and comfortable yet budget-friendly housing accommodations to our customers. By meeting our construction schedule, we are one-step away to bringing what millennial tenants need today to enjoy a live+work+play balance,” related Daphne Sanchez, vice president of Filinvest Alabang Inc. The Crib, a three-tower development situated along Corporate Woods Avenue in Filinvest City, is a unique residential concept that offers the conveniences of a modern lifestyle in one hip and safe environment.

Catering to the needs of working millennials as well as students, The Crib is designed for those who want to live independently in a highly ur-

banized, carefully master-planned garden central business district like Filinvest City. It is meant to be a coliving space that offers hotel-like amenities, suited for young urban professionals who want to experience living on their own or for university students who want to reside near their schools in Metro Manila.

The Crib is Filinvest’s answer to the growing demand among millennials in the Metro South for a conveniently located living space that integrates live, work, and play in one modern community. The property is just a stone’s throw away from Far Eastern University and the Asian Hospital and Medical Center, and within walking distance from transport terminals and other establishments like Festival Mall and WestGate.

By offering a strategically located property development, Filinvest also aims to promote safe and healthy living in the new normal.

“With the pandemic still very much on, it is important to keep in mind where and how we live. The Crib caters to what residents prefer today: a safe living space where they can be near their schools and their workplace, as well as other essential establishments, to avoid the risk of exposure,” concluded Sanchez.

Sports

B8

BusinessMirror

| Wednesday, April 28, 2021 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph sports@businessmirror.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

DIAZ TOKYO PREPS SHIFT TO HIGH GEAR H IDILYN DIAZ stint in Tashkent—her first in more than a year during the pandemic—revealed weaknesses that need to be ironed out under three months before her fourth consecutive Olympics in Tokyo in July.

Diaz didn’t make the podium at the Asian Weightlifting Championships in the Uzbek capital earlier this month, and although that didn’t matter in her quest for a ticket to Tokyo, she discovered a major weakness in her system.

“I hesitated,” Diaz told BusinessMirror hours after completing the sixth and last International Weightlifting Federation-sanctioned tournament required for her to make it to Tokyo.

As a result, hear team—Chinese coach Kaiwan Gao and strength and conditioning coach Julius Naranjo—forged a program aimed at polishing Diaz’s strength, consistency in classical lift and mental preparation.

“I can fully focus now on the biggest thing,” said Diaz, who flew back to Malaysia, four days ago. “There are so many things to improve on.

So while in quarantine here in KL [Kuala Lumpur], I don’t like to waste time.”

Diaz, who finally won gold in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games and 2018 Jakarta Asian Games, said she wanted to be stronger, accurate and mentally well-prepared in the Olympics.

HIDILYN DIAZ strikes a pose after sweating it out on the treadmill at a Kuala Lumpur hotel where she and her team are on quarantine.

MANNY VS. MIKEY NATIONAL team mainstays Aby Maraño and Majoy Baron get their RT-PCR tests.

Volleyball, beach volleyball get going in Subic

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OACHES will put premium on skills, height and ethic in the selection of members of the national volleyball and beach volleyball teams as tryouts kick off in a bubble environment on Wednesday at the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority.

Volleyball coaches Odjie Mamon (women) and Dante Alinsunurin (men) set specific policies, guidelines and parameters when they pick from the 40 women and men aspirants who arrived in Subic on board quarantined buses and vans on Wednesday morning.

“We are looking at specific qualities for specific positions, and not the individual, but the aspirant’s qualities himself or herself,” Mamon said.

“We will be focusing on basic skills on offense and defense, as well as height, tactics or strategy, attitude, leadership and championship experience," Alinsunurin said.

Beach volleyball coaches Paul Jan Doloiras (women) and Rhovyl Verayo (men) set the

same policies and parameters in the selection of national athletes who will be focusing on the Hanoi 31st Southeast Asian Games in November.

The volleyball tryouts will be on Wednesday and Thursday at the Subic Gym, while the beach volleyball tryouts will be on Friday at the Subic Tennis Courts.

Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF) president Ramon “Tats” Suzara said everyone is clear to travel to Subic for the tryouts after the results of the RT-PCR tests conducted on Monday and Tuesday at the mega swabbing center at the MOA Arena were released to the participants.

The swab tests were made possible through the PNVF’s local government unit partner Taguig City under Rep. Alan Peter Cayetano.

Among those who were swab tested were national team mainstays Aby Maraño and Majoy Baron, along with invitees from colleges and universities.

Tryouts tinkering with disaster Al Mendoza alsol47@yahoo.com

THAT’S ALL

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HE Tats tryouts is meeting an opposition. Some quarters and stakeholders say it’s not yet time for such action to be undertaken.

With the pandemic still raging radically, it is unwise to gather athletes under one roof as it unnecessarily exposes them to the dreaded virus that has, horribly, already breached the one-million mark, infection-wise.

Surely, our officials should be the last to un-protect our sports personalities from the wrath of the Covid-19. A supreme irony, if not.

And what ’s the Tat s tr yout s again?

Tats Suzara, the newly-minted president of the country’s volleyball association, was in the news recently calling for tryouts to select members of the male and female teams to the November Southeast Asian Games in Vietnam.

If true—and there’s no reason to doubt it—Tats could be guilty of putting the lives of our volleyball players in extreme danger.

Even if, for the sake of argument, Tats will be able to get medical clearance from the Inter-Agency Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF for short) to stage his tryouts, there is always that danger that infections could occur and afflict the unwary.

The virus, with its new variants and all, is that vicious that one is never thoroughly shielded from its

virulence. Even experts say the vaccinated is not totally safe.

While Tats, being the volleyball chief, has the mandate to call everybody to join the tryouts, discretion dictates for him to be circumspect as the pandemic is no laughing matter.

I feel for the team owners, who could be pushed against the wall and, maybe, trembling in fear of reprisal should they try to restrain their players from joining the tryouts.

They merely want to help protect their wards from the SARS plague— only to irk Tats?

If I may suggest: Team owners must band together and talk it out with Tats.

Players just cannot do it themselves.

They need their bosses also in times of distress—and uncertainty.

And, as for Tats, may he re-think his position. Better yet is, he recalls, withdraws, his tryouts? To be cautious is to be luscious in thoughts toward prudence. As the saying goes, better safe than sorry.

THAT’S IT Congratulations to Eugene

Torre for being the first Asian male to be enshrined in the World Chess Hall of Fame, putting him in equal footing with the likes of the game’s legends Bobby Fischer, Garry Kasparov, Boris Spassky, Tigran Petrosian, Anatoly Karpov and Viktor Korchnoi.

Was I lucky that I had brushed elbows with all of them? What an honor— and a privilege. But my friendship with Eugene takes the cake. A priceless treasure.

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By Josef Ramos

IGHT-DIVISION champion Manny Pacquiao will fight former world titlist Mikey Garcia either in July or August in Dubai, the fighting senator’s financial and business manager Arnold Vegafria confirmed to B usinessM irror on Tuesday.

“It’s on 100 percent. Definitely in 2021, it’s Pacquiao versus Mikey Garcia in Dubai,” said Vegafria, adding the fighting senator was scheduled to sign the contract on Tuesday night or Wednesday morning. “We will announce the fight details and final date soon.”

B usinessM irror learned that Pacquiao (62-7-2 winloss-draw record with 39 knockouts) will be entitled to a $20 to $30 million guaranteed purse.

But Vegafria refused to confirm because of a confidentiality clause in the contract.

“It’s a lucrative amount but I don’t have the details,” he said.

Paradigm Sports Management (PSM) headed by President and CEO Audie Attar already offered the contract to Pacquiao early last month.

“This contract has been on the senator’s table for a long time. We have worked with Paradigm for this project since last year. We are just waiting for the final signing and the date,” added Vegafria, who also assured that the proposed fight between Pacquiao and Ultimate Fighting Championship superstar Conor McGregor is on the works.

Pacquiao, 42, started training two weeks ago in General Santos City under chief trainer Buboy Fernandez and assistant coach Nonoy Neri.

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THE Manny Pacquiao-Mikey Garcia promotion poster is out.

The 33-year-old Garcia (40-1 win-loss record with 30 knockouts) will be Pacquiao’s first fight since he booked a split decision victory over Keith Thurman in July 20, 2019, in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The PSM contract was left unsigned because of Pacquiao’s hectic schedule as a senator, fanning speculations he weighed in on fighting World Boxing Organization welterweight champion Terence Crawford on June 5 also in the United Arab Emirates.

Pacquiao wasn’t available for comment.

ter the first period, the wards of head coach Mike Reyes dug in on defense and made life tough for Bohol’s top guns Pari Llagas and Joseph Marquez.

With the Mariners’ reserves also unable to get their rhythm, Mandaue City took advantage and scored 34 points in the second and third periods to open up a huge 56-32 lead heading to the last quarter.

Shaq Imperial came off the bench and led Mandaue City with 15 points, seven rebounds, one assist and two steals while fellow guard Gileant Delator had 13 points and five assists.

Big man Michole Solera contributed 10 points, seven rebounds, two assists, one steal and one block.

Head coach Mike Reyes was pleased to see his players embrace

their identity as a defensive-minded squad.

“That’s getting to be our identity as a team ub VisMin Cup, limiting our opponents and playing good defense,” Reyes said. “We needed to find out our identity as a team and that is playing great defense.”

Llagas had 18 points and 20 rebounds and Marquez, the league’s leading scorer, finished with only 12 points for Tabogon, which dropped to a 1-7 win-loss card.

Marcial to meet Palace officials on PBA opening

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HILIPPINE Basketball Asso ciation (PBA) Commissioner Willie Marcial will meet with Malacañang officials on Wednesday to seek approval to open the league’s 46th season.

Marcial and Barangay Ginebra governor Alfrancis Chua will meet with Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea and Senator Bong Go, hoping to get a clearer picture on when and how to open the season.

“After our important meeting, we could perhaps see in a day or two a clearer picture on what direction to take,” Marcial told the online Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum on Tuesday.

Marcial will emphasize during the meeting how the PBA was able to mount a successful bubble season last year in Clark where it restarted the Philippine Cup.

Remote training does wonders for weightlifters

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Mandaue routs Tabogon with tough defense

CS Computer SpecialistMandaue City put the clamps on Tabogon Bohol for an 80-50 rout to clinch a spot in the semifinals of the Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup on Tuesday at the Alcantara Civic Center in Cebu.

Still smarting from its 73-81 loss to the MJAS Zenith-Talisay City Aquastars last Saturday, Mandaue City vented their ire on Bohol and limited the Mariners to a combined 17 points in the middle periods to snatch their sixth victory in eight games.

Mandaue City was tough on defense and held Bohol to the lowest number of points scored in the league, breaking the 53-point output of Tabogon in its 53-86 loss also to the same squad last April 16.

After leading by seven, 22-15, af-

“I need to be stronger than I was before, more consistent in classical lifts and most importantly invest more on my mental preparation,” said Diaz, who expects the Chinese weightlifters to dominate the Olympics.

“They [Chinese] are sure of winning gold in every weight class. They train intensively throughout the years,” she said.

While in quarantine, Diaz lifted weights and some dumbbells and sweat it out on a treadmill inside her room at the Impiana Hotel in Malaysia’s capital.

“We just can’t go out of our respective rooms. We have a Home Surveillance Order App here,” she said. “We are strictly monitored here by the government about our quarantine.

We will be out here on Thursday and proceed to Malacca.”

The 30-year-old Diaz said they are hoping to fly to Tokyo six weeks before the July 23 opening of the Olympics.

Diaz, who is attending online to her Business Management course at the College of Saint Benilde, is also hoping to be inoculated with an anti-Covid-19 vaccine in Malaysia before heading to Tokyo.

“We just registered and we’re still waiting for our turn,” she said. Josef Ramos

“We’ll explain how successful the bubble was, that we played the conference without a hitch,”Marcial told the public sports program presented by San Miguel Corp., Milo, Amelie Hotel Manila, Braska Restaurant, and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. “Hopefully, we’ll be rewarded with a job well done.”

The PBA vowed to have all the players, coaches and staff be vaccinated before starting the season, although holding another bubble would be a last recourse.

Marcial told the forum powered

by Smart that Ilocos Norte and Antipolo City are being considered as the bubble venue. He said there is a third option but refused to name the local government unit.

But Marcial stressed that if the league is allowed to start, stricter protocols will be enforced.

Shaq Imperial paces Mandaue City with 15 points.

RAINING remotely from one another did wonders for Filipino weightlifters who plucked medals—two of them golds—in the recent Asian championships in Tashkent.

“It’s been proven,” Samahang Weightlifting ng Pilipinas (SWP) president Monico Puentevella said referring to the training program the SWP coaches implemented during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Vanessa Sarno won two gold medals, Mary Flor Diaz pocketed three silvers, Erleen Ando took two silvers and a bronze and Kristel Macrohon added two bronze medals in Tashkent for perhaps one of the most productive Philippine campaign in the Asian championships.

“We’ll be fighting for gold medals in the SEA Games,” Ando said. “We can possibly win the overall championship there for as long as we work hard and cooperate with each other.”

“Credit goes to the kids for believing in themselves and for believing in us,” Nicholas Jaluag said.

“We just have to continue training once we go back to the country.”

Interestingly, all medalists trained in their respective provinces because collective training and travel was banned during the pandemic.

“What we did was the Philippine Sports Commission sent the equipment to our weightlifters in Cebu, Bohol and Zamboanga,” Puentevella told the forum presented

by San Miguel Corp. Milo, Amelie Hotel Manila, Braska Restaurant and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.

“That way, the athletes were able to focus more on their training during the pandemic and stay with their respective families than bring them in some training bubble and out of their comfort zones,” he added.

The 17-year-old Sarno hails from Bohol while the 22-year-old Ando is from Cebu. Diaz, 21, a cousin of Tokyo Olympics-bound Hidilyn Diaz, is from Zamboanga.

“The other NSAs (national sports associations) can study this,” Puentevella said.

Puentevella said he is confident that the new breed of weightlifters will make it to the Paris 2024 Olympics and beyond as he stressed all the medalists in Tashkent are trained by Filipino coaches.

“I also admire foreign coaches.

They are good and they can help.

But we cannot belittle the talent of our local coaches. And that was proven in Uzbekistan,” he said.

Nick Jaluag and Gary Hortelano coaches the team to Tashkent.

Margaret Colonia (59 kgs), Ellen Rose Perez (49 kgs), John Febuar Ceniza (men’s 61 kgs) and John Dexter Tabique (men’s 96 kgs) were also on the team but missed out on the podium.

Rio Olympics silver medalist Hidilyn Diaz did not make the podium in Tashkent but formalized her entry to Tokyo for her fourth consecutive Olympics.