Businessmirror August 17, 2019

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AU-GHOST MONTH n

AT THIS TIME OF YEAR, MARKETS ARE USUALLY DOWN OR FLAT, AND MANY BUSINESSMEN AVOID TAKING BIG RISKS; BIG EVENTS ARE HELD OFF. STILL, GOOD SENSE WILL ALWAYS TRUMP A MERE CALENDAR-BASED DECISION. BINONDO Chinatown Arch at the entrance from Jones Bridge in Manila, November 28, 2016. YOORAN PARK | DREAMSTIME.COM

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By VG Cabuag

NY seasoned trader knows the cyclicality of the market—it goes up and down. And at this time of the year, the Chinese ghost month, the markets will be down or flat at best.

“Our family pays close attention to ghost month because many of our clients hold many superstitious beliefs before and during the Ghost Festival. It thus becomes natural that we get influenced by these same practices as well,” Luis Limlingan, managing director at brokerage firm Regina Capital and Development Corp., said.

“Most common for us is to avoid taking huge investment risks during the said time period. There

is some irony as most people sell their portfolios aggressively in anticipation so the prices become depressed and quite attractive for us,” he said.

There’s no capital flight happening during this month— the time of the year dreaded by many—but there will also be no major activity in the market as investors and fund managers usually are on a holiday.

“If your birth falls in the ghost

month, avoid celebrating your birthday at night and blowing your cake. It will be better to celebrate during the daytime,” says a Feng Shui website.

This year, the ghost month falls on August 1 through 29, with its peak on the 15th. It is the seventh month of the Lunar calendar, a tradition observed not just by many Filipino-Chinese but also those in neighboring places—Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan and other Southeast

Asian nations.

During this month, it is believed that ghosts and spirits, including those of deceased ancestors, come out from the lower realm to wander and seek food on Earth.

There should be, as the general tradition goes, no major activity happening during the month, such as ground breaking of a facility, wedding, any major investments Continued on A2

Hong Kong hotels in crisis as protests deter Chinese tourists

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ONG Kong’s hotel industry is struggling with a collapse in bookings after thousands of protesters shut down flights from the territory’s airport last week in an escalation of months of clashes with police.

Revenue from room sales is set to plunge as much as 50 percent this month, according to Yiu Si-wing, a Hong Kong lawmaker representing the tourism industry who said visits from mainland China that usually account for 80 percent of arrivals are down most as people fear for their safety.

The slump will deal a further blow to an economy that’s already

contracting after months of unrest, as well as fallout from the USChina trade dispute. Yiu said hotel occupancy rates that averaged 90 percent in the first half will fall by a third or more and that arrivals from the mainland to Hong Kong—a key shopping destination for Chinese— could slow to a trickle.

“The impact on tourism is huge,” Yiu said in an interview,

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 52.5190

A PROTESTER shows a placard to stranded travelers during a demonstration at Hong Kong’s international airport, August 13, 2019. AP/KIN CHEUNG

estimating that half of mainland visitors due in August are likely to cancel or defer their plans. Yiu cited factors such as a reported attack by protesters on a man suspected of being a security agent from the nearby city of Shenzhen. The incident was the top-trending topic on Chinese social-media platform Weibo on Wednesday.

Mainland Chinese planning trips to Hong Kong expressed concern about the risks of traveling through the airport. Chinese officials and the state-run media are framing the protests as driven by violent extremists, highlighting instances in their coverage where protesters have allegedly attacked the police or civilians not involved in the demonstrations.

Grace Huang, a 20-year-old Wuhan University student, said she was reconsidering a one-day layover in the territory on her Continued on A2

n JAPAN 0.4949 n UK 63.4797 n HK 6.6983 n CHINA 7.4672 n SINGAPORE 37.8161 n AUSTRALIA 35.5816 n EU 58.3381 n SAUDI ARABIA 14.0028

Source: BSP (August 16, 2019 )

News

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A2 Saturday, August 17, 2019

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AU-GHOST MONTH Continued from a1

made, or even hiring a new employee.

It is also during this time of the year when a lot of fund managers go on vacation as well since a lot of holidays normally occur within the month of August. There was Eid al’Adha on August 12, Manuel L. Quezon Day (holiday in Quezon City) on August 19, Ninoy Aquino Day on August 21, Heroes Day on August 26.

“Perhaps that partially explains the drop in market activity,” Limlingan said.

As if on cue, the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index already fell early last week (Monday) to return to the 7,000-point level on huge selloffs.

“We had another situation, of foreign investors dumping Philippine equities while locals are scooping them up at low prices,” Christopher Mangun, research head at AAA Securities Inc., said.

It rebounded, however, days later.

“The main index recovered almost half of what it has lost in the last two days; however, we are still almost 100 points away from the 8,000 key level. The longer it stays below that level, the more bearish investors will become. I still believe that the improvement in economic fundamentals and corporate earnings growth should

offset most external concerns. The weaker currency, however, may be a concern for foreign investors,” he said.

Bargain hunting, or picking up stocks that were made cheaper as a result of a fall, is one of the opportunities that can be gained during the month.

COL Financial Inc.’s chief technical analyst Juanis Barredo said August may be a turbulent month, as it has historically shown seasonally weak performance.

“We think this seasonal weakness is something you should take advantage of, rather than fear. Decades of historical data have proven that stocks go up over time, so if you’re investing for the long term, this should be viewed as a great opportunity to buy good quality companies at lower prices,” Barredo said.

Alvin Lao, president and CEO of chemical firm D and L Industries Inc., believes that there’s opportunity after the ghost month since it should be a period of lull, as the Chinese tradition dictates.

“You just have to prepare for it during the ghost month period as activities will surely go up just after the period,” Lao said.

Lao, however, said work still continues even during this time.

DNL is currently doing construction works on its business expansion in Batangas, where it will sink some P8 billion in investments.

STREET performance for the Chinese Hungry Ghost festival (Por Tor) at old Phuket Town (Thailand, 2016). NOKHOOK | DREAMSTIME.COM

“We have already conducted the groundbreaking so our construction will continue,” he said.

That also goes for the Philippine economy as well since trading will continue despite a depressed market, including the secondquarter gross domestic product performance announcement and the announcement of earnings of firms, which they should announce

before deadline August 15, ironically the peak of the ghost month.

“A lot of market-making activity also coincides during this month, especially economic data, and this later on influences the direction of the market during the last quarter. Some of these include GDP, the result of BSP’s [Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas] meeting, inflation, quarter earnings and index

rebalancing, to name a few,” Limlingan said.

Whatever ghost month may hold to different people, it seems one thing is clear: it is not luck alone that dictates the fate of business, but a reasoned, deliberate, well-conceived strategy based on an objective clear-eyed analysis of the situation.

Hong Kong…

A DRAGONAIR plane flies past a road sign at the airport in Hong Kong, August 13, 2019. AP/KIN CHEUNG Continued from a1

return from a visit to Canada. “I fear I’m going to be beaten,” she told Bloomberg by telephone.

Beijing resident Jasmine Ji, 23, said she will delay a trip to Hong Kong to complete an application for permanent residency in a city where she previously graduated from university.

“I feel like my personal safety could be severely threatened if they find out I speak Mandarin or am a Chinese citizen,” she said.

“I won’t fly to Hong Kong airport until the situation and protests are settled there.”

The protests, which have raged since June, entered a new phase last week with one of Asia’s busiest air travel hubs shut down, forcing the cancellation of hundreds of flights. Demonstrators who initially hit the streets to oppose a bill

allowing extradition to the mainland now have a host of demands including the resignation of Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam. InterContinental Hotels Group Plc., the UK owner of the Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn chains, said the protests contributed to a slowdown in business travel in China.

The company’s stock is down almost 10 percent from a record reached at the end of July.

Other companies with exposure to Hong Kong are also getting hit. Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd., owner of the Four Seasons, and New World Development Co., which runs hotels including the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong, have seen their shares fall more than 20 percent from last month’s highs.

Room rates in Hong Kong are falling as a result of mounting safety concerns, according to the lawmaker, Yiu Si-wing.

A standard room this weekend at the upscale Conrad Hotel, owned by Hilton Worldwide and situated near a part of Hong Kong where protesters have tended to congregate, is priced at HK$1,530 ($195)—more than 40 percent cheaper than the same booking two months later, according to prices on its website. Conrad didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Websites for hotels owned by Marriott International Inc. and Shangri-La Asia Ltd. showed similar discounts.

“The recent travel advisories and warnings issued by several countries have caused some cancellations from our overseas leisure, group and corporate guests,” a Shangri-La Group spokesman said. “We have also seen a decline in the number of local patrons coming to our restaurants and outlets.” Bloomberg

Editor: Angel R. Calso

The World BusinessMirror

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Goldman cuts growth forecasts for Asia’s four ‘tiger’ economies

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OLDMAN Sachs Group Inc. slashed growth forecasts for the “Asian Tigers” as their exposure to the world economy­— once one of their greatest strengths—is now backfiring as global growth slows amid trade tensions.

“Besides their own domestic reforms, they all benefited enormously from the broader context of globalization and the rapid economic development of the Asia-Pacific region,” Goldman economists led by Andrew Tilton wrote in a report Thursday. “However, the same characteristics that helped them benefit on the upside have left them relatively more exposed to the recent slowdown in global growth.”

Analysts dubbed Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan the Asian Tigers for their rapid, tradedriven growth in the 1980s and 1990s. While some economies could potentially benefit from trade diversion as suppliers move out of China, the windfall would most likely go to Southeast Asian countries that are connected by land routes to China­— such as Vietnam —rather than to the tigers, according to Goldman.

Below is a summary of Goldman’s changes in economic growth and policy forecasts: Hong Kong: Goldman expects gross domestic product to shrink 0.5 percent in the third quarter from a year earlier, as opposed to its earlier projection of 2.1-percent expansion. For full-year 2019, Goldman sees just 0.2-percent expansion. In addition to a weak global growth and trade environment, ongoing political protests have affected domestic demand, the economists wrote.

Singapore: Goldman lowered its forecast for 2019 GDP growth to 0.4 percent from a previous 1.1-percent projection. The monetary authority of Singapore is likely to reduce the slope of its exchange-rate band— its primary monetary-policy tool—to 0.5 percent per year from the current 1 percent at its October meeting, and then to zero percent in April 2020, according to the economists.

HK cuts taxes to shore up economy amid protests

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ONG KONG­— Hong Kong’s government announced tax cuts and higher social spending Thursday to reverse a deepening economic slump aggravated by anti-government protests and the US-Chinese tariff war.

The territory’s financial secretary, Paul Chan, cut this year’s official growth forecast to zero to 1 percent, which could be the worst performance since 2009 during the global financial crisis. The previous forecast was 2 percent to 3 percent.

Hurt by the plunge in US-Chinese trade, growth already was declining before anti-government protests erupted this year over a proposed extradition law and other grievances.

“The recent social incidents have hit the retail trade, restaurants and tourism, adding a further blow to an already-weak economy,” said a statement issued by Chan’s agency.

It also cited the impact of slowing trade in Asia, global financial market volatility and the risk of disorder as Britain leaves the European Union.

The measures announced Thursday will “provide impetus for our economy” and “help cushion the enterprises and people of Hong Kong against challenges,” the statement said.

The changes will result in some 1.3 million taxpayers having their taxes waived, Chan said at a news conference. He added the government will increase payments for elderly and low-income residents and provide subsidies to small businesses and parents of schoolchildren.

The package will cost a total of 19.1 billion Hong Kong dollars ($2.4 billion), according to Chan.

Hong Kong’s economic growth held steady at 0.6 percent over a year earlier in the quarter ending in June but economists have cut forecasts as the US-China trade war and protests mounted.

Tourist arrivals fell 31 percent in the first week of August from a year ago, according to the territory’s secretary of economic development, Yau Tang-wah.

Business from mainland visitors, who account for 80 percent of Hong Kong’s tourists, fell 33 percent to 50 percent, according to the Hong Kong Tourism Association. Hotel operators say revenue could decline 10 percent to 20 percent.

Some 29 countries and regions including the United States and Australia have issued travel warnings about Hong Kong.

Retail sales slid 6.7 percent in June from a year earlier, according to the government. Retailers have told reporters they ex pect double-digit declines for July and August.

“There is a growing risk of an even worse outcome” if the confrontation between protesters and the government escalates, causing an outflow of capital, Julian Evans-Pritchard and Martin Lynge Rasmussen of Capital Economics said in a report.

The territory’s central bank has reserves to defend the Hong Kong dollar’s exchange rate, “but the city’s property market would be hit hard, resulting in a deep recession,” they said. AP

South Korea: Goldman sees t he economy g row ing 1.9 percent t his year, lower t han t he 2.2 percent it prev iously forecast. T he f ir m now e x pects anot her 25 -basis-point

cut to t he benchmark interest rate t his year—most li kely in October—in add ition to Ju ly’s cut.

Taiwan: Taiwan’s 2019 GDP forecast was

A3

lowered to 2.3 percent from 2.4 percent, as the hit from the trade war is somewhat offset by a US move to import more from Taiwan and less from China. Bloomberg News

A4 Saturday, August 17, 2019

ExportUnlimited BusinessMirror

PHL exports resilient amid global trade slowdown

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AKATI—Philippine merchandise exports continued to grow for the third consecutive month, increasing by 1.5 percent in June this year to $6 billion from $5.9 billion in the same month last year, preliminary Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) data showed.

The year-on-year increase also brings the growth rate for the second quarter of 2019 to 1.2 percent, compared to last year’s quar ter f ig ures. In add ition, Philippine merchandise exports also posted a 7.8-percent, rise quarter-on-quarter.

The Philippines is one of the three countries among major trade-oriented Asian economies, alongside Vietnam and Taiwan,

that recorded positive year-onyear export growth rate in June 2019.

The increase was caused by the higher demand from major trading partners, such as South Korea, whose imports from the Philippines rose by 59.9 percent or an increase of $113.4 million in exports value; US, 9.2 percent or $82.3 million; Canada, 122 percent or $52.7 million; China, 5.7

percent or $44.4 million; Vietnam, 26.1 percent or $21.5 million; and Japan, 2.0 percent or $17.3 million.

“The positive export performance shows that the Philippines continues to be resilient, despite the continuing concerns on the US-China trade war, a no-deal Brexit, and the negative business sentiment that could further weigh down on the growth of global trade,” Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said.

In addition, the good showing in June was due to the increases in export sales of the seven of the top 10 major export commodities, namely, cathodes and section of cathodes, of refined copper (41.7 percent); fresh bananas (24.4 percent); ignition wiring set and other wiring sets used in vehicles, aircrafts and ships (17.6 percent); gold (10.1 percent); electronic products (4.3 percent); machinery and transport equipment (3.0 percent) and other mineral products (1.1 percent).

Upsurge in exports of electronics were recorded for the Korea (up by $106.7 million), US ($96.9 million), China ($30.9 million), Vietnam ($27.4 million) and Indonesia ($12.1 million).

Meanwhile, Japan took in more ignition wiring imports from the Philippines (up by $29.5 million) and Canada, copper concentrates ($37.9 million), its first shipment in the six months from zero exports in the same period last year.

As long as export growth remains strong in the next months, the Philippines could reach its 2-percent growth target for 2019.

In this regard, the Department of Trade and Industry-Export Marketing Bureau (DTI-EMB) sees total Philippine merchandise exports increasing by 2.3 percent in July 2019. Exports of some selected sectors, that are projected to rise in July 2019, include ignition wiring, 10.6 percent and chemicals, 9.6 percent.

To sustain the projected growth,

the DTI intensifies its efforts at diversifying markets and products, as well as promoting the Philippine exports’ competitiveness through advancing the export development and promotion goals, and advocating the Inclusive Innovation Industrial Strategy.

Diversification of markets and products

IN 2018, the country’s top 10 export markets comprised 82 percent of total exports. These markets were China, Hong Kong, G er m a ny, Japa n , Si ngapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the Netherlands and the US. The DTI-EMB aims to further explore key emerging markets such as Africa, South Asia, Central Asia and Eastern Europe.

T he s e m a rk e t s we re c hos e n based on the country’s economic growth, gross domestic product per capita, population, ease of doing business, politica l c limate, and the Philippines’s trade

and foreign policy directives.

To this end, the DTI-EMB recently organized an outbound business matching mission to Mexico, and is currently setting its sights on other missions including India, Bangladesh, Russia, Egypt and Ethiopia.

During the consultation private sector representatives, it was recommended for the country to focus on strengthening retail and institutional packing of food products, Philippine brands and original equipment manufacturer.

Moreover, the DTI targets to expand the halal promotion and development by urging micro, small and medium enterprises to develop their products, and ex plore the oppor tunities in the growing demand for halalcertified products. The Philippine halal programs are being cascaded through the Negosyo Centers of the DTI and other regional offices.

FashionPhilippines unveils ‘Project Womens 2019’ in Las Vegas

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HE Philippines is targeting P2.53 million in revenue at the most comprehensive fashion marketplace in the United States.FashionPhilippines is preparing to showcase the diversity of materials and outstanding craftsmanship by Philippine companies, as it joins the Project Womens trade show in Las Vegas, from August 12 to 14, 2019.

The fashion showcase is organized by the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (Citem), the export promotions arm of the Department of Trade and Industry, in partnership with the Philippine Trade and Investment Center (PTIC) in Los Angeles and San Francisco in California, USA. Project Womens is one of the 12 trade shows included in the Men’s Apparel Guild in California (Magic) trade fair, considered to be the most comprehensive fashion marketplace in the United States. Project Womens features the best emerging and established brands that are noteworthy and cause-oriented.

“What is different with FashionPhilippines’s participation in Project Womens is that, the brands joining the show carry so many stories and a lot of potential with them,” said Citem Executive Director Pauline Suaco-Juan. “We have eight brands and they all use a diverse range of materials in their

pieces. They employ weavers, carvers and artisans, and these people show exceptional craftsmanship in their products.”

show precise attention to detail in its products. Beatriz and Ken Samudio make accessories that show their artisans’ capacity for executing intricate designs using a variety of materials, such as cotton threads, natural fibers and upcycled beads from glass and plastic.

Sourcing from nature

TWO brands joining Project Womens this year make notable use of what nature gives their hometowns in abundance. Agsam Fern makes use of the wild fern plant, agsam, which grows abundantly in its home base of Surigao del Sur, to create accessories that are intricate in design and detail. Lara, an initiative of the provincial government of Samar, makes use of tikog grass that grows abundantly in the province to turn the humble banig into high-end fashion pieces that are sturdy and long-lasting.

Making something new out of discarded items

LALAPATOS by Maco Custodio and Virtucio use foil packs and plastic—two items that would normally be thrown away after just one use—in their shoes and handbags, respectively. Lalapatos uses foil packs from pre-consumed items that are turned into strips and woven together by hand before, combining them with leather panels. Virtucio, on the other hand, collects single-use plastic bags that are cut, pressed and then melted to achieve a colorful, mosaic-like effect on its products.

PH seeks P2.53-M revenue in its first participation

UNUSUAL shapes but exquisite details from Vesti (left) and Calli (right)

Giving meaning to their hands’ work

MANY of the brands’ designers and owners work with communities of weavers, artisans and craftsmen to execute their designs and craft delightful pieces. Vesti works with indigenous tribes from Mindanao, taking inspiration from their weaving heritage, and combines their weaves with modern silhouettes to make one-of-a-

kind bags that can be used in any occasion. Calli’s bags feature textures and shapes that are carved masterfully by local carvers and artisans from wood, paired with other accents, such as handwoven rattan.

Lalapatos by Maco Custodio and Virtucio use foil packs and plastic—two items that would normally be thrown away after just one use—in their shoes and handbags, respectively. Lalapatos

uses foil packs from pre-consumed items that are turned into strips and woven together by hand before combining them with leather panels. Virtucio, on the other hand, collects single-use plastic bags that are cut, pressed and then melted to achieve a colorful, mosaic-like effect on its products.

Attention to detail

FROM simple to elaborate, the Philippine brands at Project Womens

THE Philippine participation is aiming to achieve $2.53 million in revenue and $790,000 in export sales at Project Womens this year along with 240 buyer inquiries. “I hope the buyers and visitors going to Magic and Project Womens will visit our booth and see for themselves how exquisite our products are,” added Suaco-Juan.

With 51,000 buyers from 122 countries visiting the Magic trade show in August 2018, Citem is optimistic that FashionPhilippines will capture a market on the strength of its products’ appeal and quality. Citem is eager to meet buyers from all over the United States and countries such as the United Kingdom, Japan, Canada, Mexico and Colombia.

To learn more about the brands participating in Project Womens, visit the Philippine exhibition at Booth No. 52135, North Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center or visit www.citem.com.ph/ project-womens.

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OurTime BusinessMirror

SM’s emergency preparedness for PWDs, elderly a success

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VER a thousand senior citizens and persons with disabilities (PWDs) were enlightened on the proper response to disasters during the 2019 Emergency Preparedness Forum, a series of talks held recently over a five-week period.

An initiative of SM Supermalls through SM Cares, the Emergency Preparedness Forum is held annually to support communities, especially the most vulnerable segment of the society like PWDs and the elderly, by training them to become more resilient and prepared in times of disasters, such as earthquakes and flooding. From what used to be a single venue, SM Cares has now brought the forum to five SM Malls nationwide.

A total of 1,375 PWDs and senior citizens participated in the forum series held in SM City Clark, SM City Marikina, SM City Dasmariñas, SM City Batangas and SM Center Muntinlupa.

The project supports the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 11: To make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. SM, together with government agencies and community members, are collectively engaged in pursuing

objectives to make cities safer, more resource-efficient, resilient and inclusive.

The series was facilitated by DOST Undersecretary and Phivolcs Director Dr. Renato Solidum Jr., and the Philippines’s leading survival and rescue expert, Dr. Ted Esguerra. Both highly regarded experts shared their knowledge about natural disasters and how to properly respond to them.

“Our senior citizens may face challenges during an emergency, especially if they are misinformed.

It is our goal to eliminate most, if not all, anticipated obstacles. And we will start with the proper orientation on how to properly respond to situations like earthquakes or flooding. This is one of the ways that we support the Filipino elderly in communities where our malls are present,” said Danilo Chavez, SM Cares program director for Senior Citizens.

The forum supports initiatives

60-year-old bizman is architect, sculptor and painter rhymer

ARCH. Fredi Agunoy (right) watches Roland Bay-an paint during a Salonpas painting session at the Fred’s Apartelle and Gallery on Saturday (July 27). Also in photo is Arch. Mars Calub, a new member of the arts group for elderly artists. PHOTO BY PIGEON LOBIEN/PNA

B

AGUIO CITY—Sixty-yearold Arch. Fredi Agunoy finds more time to pursue art, which means frequent exhibits for the group he practically founded, the Salonpas Group of Artists.

“I now have more time to pursue my arts,” Agunoy told the Philippine News Agency, during another session with fellow Salonpas artists at Fred’s Apartment and Art gallery located in Barangay Greenwater here.

Agunoy just arrived from Dingalan, Aurora, where his farm had been converted to an artist village. “That is my other group, here [Baguio] it is Salonpas,” he said.

His workload as an architect had gradually become lesser with his son, Alfie, taking most of it, especially after he suffered a mild stroke several years back.

In this city, Agunoy does painting with noted Ibaloy artist Roland Bayan, Salvador Cabrera and new recruit Mars Calub, an architect teaching at the Saint Louis University.

The night before their meet-up, Agunoy sent a message to the other artists, “Pinta tayo [Let’s paint].”

Over coffee breaks, they would just let their brush do the talking -- Bay-an, with his typical Ibaloy women of old, a paean of sorts to half of his root (his father is Chinese); Cabrera with his mother and

child, a patented family favorite made famous by his uncle Benedicto Cabrera, or BenCab the national artist, while Calub still has to find his expression, just barely a year since joining the group.

In his mid-50s, Calub was a Bay-an fan who would stick around while the latter would paint at the “Pasa-kalye” chapter house at Diego Silang Street in the city central. He would usually cough up a few thousand pesos, a bargain, upon seeing a completed Bay-an work.

The works of these artists would usually end up in an exhibit at the same place, although Bay-an and Cabrera’s would normally have their works bought after posting it on social media.

Agunoy was taking his time.

Seated when this writer arrived, his work was half complete as “inspiration won’t set in.”

“There are really times when it is difficult to paint or the words elude you,” Agunoy said.

After his bout with stroke, Agunoy needed to slow down with work, which gave him the chance to continue with his art.

Agunoy was into art the past 10 years, painting and even sculpting.

“I took up sculpture not knowing that I can do it. I got a blow torch and off I went to create something,” he said in the vernacular. Pigeon Lobien, PNA

Saturday, August 17, 2019 A5

People from my past (2)

By Nick Tayag

MY SIXTY-ZEN’S WORTH

P SM Cares’ Emergency Preparedness Forum facilitator, and international rescue and survival expert Dr. Ted Esguerra (left) instructs an elderly person and PWD attendees on proper evacuation protocols during an emergency. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

of ARISE Philippines of the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR). It aims to create risk-resilient societies by working with the private sector to incorporate DRR in the core of their business and stakeholder engagement. Hans Sy, SM Prime Holdings executive committee chairman, is the only Filipino Global Board Member of the UNDRR ARISE Private Sector Alliance for Resilient Societies.

“There are possibly a lot of unheard solutions that are appropriate for persons with disabilities.

Now that we have our subject experts, Dr. Solidum and Dr. Esguerra, closer to our communities, I

am certain that many things will be brought to clarity. And from there, we can better plan what’s best for us and our friends who may have physical or mental challenges,” said Engr.

Bien Mateo, SM Cares program director for Persons with Disabilities.

SM said it continues to promote a barrier-free and disability-inclusive environment to ensure that its malls become a place for all, and where everyone is cared for.

SM Cares advocacies include Programs on Environment Sustainability, Persons with Disabilities, Children and Youth, Women and Breastfeeding Mothers, Senior Citizens and Overseas Filipino Workers.

Pinoy veteran of three wars still strong at 97 M ANILA—At 97, retired Maj. Maximo Young, one of the few, if not the only living Filipino veteran of three wars—World War 2, Korea and Vietnam—remains strong and healthy despite nearing the century mark.

Young celebrated his 97th birthday with vigor by walking around, smiling and shaking hands with visitors who attended his natal day celebration at the Officers Clubhouse in Camp Aguinaldo on Saturday.

A thanksgiving mass preceded the grand birthday celebration.

During the singing of a birthday song for him, his wife, Mercedes, 68, hugged him to the delight of friends and visitors.

When World War 2 broke out on December 8, 1941, Young, a cadet at the Philippine Military Academy (PMA,) joined the Filipino forces to fight the Japanese, who invaded the Philippines. He was 19 at that time.

As a guerrilla fighter, Young demonstrated his bravery fighting the Japanese.

At one instance, Young almost got killed when a boat of the guerrillas carrying supplies was intercepted and sank by the Japanese in the Visayan Sea. He evaded being captured by swimming to the shoreline.

Following the surrender of Japanese forces in 1944, Young continued his military career as a lieutenant of the Philippine Army.

Six years later, when the Korean War broke out on June 25, 1950, Young volunteered to join the Philippine Expeditionary Forces to Korea (PEFTOK) to fight the Chinese and North Korean communist forces who invaded South Korea.

As a tank commander of the 10th Battalion Combat Team (BCT) of PEFTOK, Young and his troops fought the Chinese and North Korea troops in a two-day close-quarter fighting in what is now known as the Great Battle at Yultong, stopping the enemy from entering South Korea.

It was at Yultong that Young and

his troops showed the Filipino gallantry in combat against all odds.

For his heroic action, Young was awarded the “Taegeuk Medal,” the highest military award of South Korea given to a soldier for bravery in combat.

Another Filipino trooper who was awarded posthumously the same medal was Capt. Conrado Yap, who was killed during the Battle at Yultong, after he refused to leave his men and courageously fought singlehandedly against the Chinese and North Korean forces.

The fighting in Korea ended in 1953 with a divided Korea, with the South as a democratic country and North a communist-ruled nation to date.

The dividing line is called the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).

In 1966, when the Vietnam War erupted, Young found himself in South Vietnam as a military advisor of the South Vietnamese government.

Though he did not fight in Vietnam, he witnessed at close range the heavy fighting in that once war-torn country.

During his 97th birthday bash, Young thanked God for a long life, surviving World War 2, Korean War and the Vietnam War without injury.

At age 97, Young looks younger than 70 as he walks without a cane, reads without reading glasses and most of all, plays badminton regularly to keep him fit and young, connoting his family name. He and his wife are blessed with eight children with the same number of in-laws and 27 grandchildren.

In greeting Young, retired Lt. Gen. Nesty G. Carolina, administrator of the Philippine Veterans Affairs Office (PVAO), said that he will pray that Young would reach the age of not only 100 but 123 years old.

With his good health, Young may reach that age with God’s blessings, nothing is impossible. Ben Cal, PNA

“All good things come to those who wait.”

—Old Testament

EOPLE always want to be in total control of life. We want things to go our way. There’s nothing wrong with that. We feel more secure that way. We want things to go according to plan.

Real life, however, is a bit more complicated. So often, we get ourselves into all sorts of trouble because our priorities are upside down. What we believe is good for us is eating us up. We don’t know how to let go.

Or what Norman Vincent Peale calls, “cooperating with the inevitable.”

This is what happened to someone I know whom I will call Rex. At a very young age, Rex had it all planned out. After high school, he wanted to be financially independent. He fought with his parents for his freedom. And he got estranged from his brothers and sisters. He had a strong entrepreneurial drive, and dynamism and stamina. He worked in a law office by day and went to class after work. He paid for his own board and lodging. He finished college on his own. After graduation, he envisioned himself having his own business by age 25, getting rich and being a millionaire, and retiring at the age of 35 and move on to something else.

He did get to own his business at 25 and was able to make it flourish. But by the time he was 35, he couldn’t retire as planned because the business went awry. He used some of the earnings to cover some personal expenses. By that time he had become a health wreck. He was suffering from a defect in his spinal column, he was in constant pain and worse, he was diagnosed to have developed a rheumatic heart, which meant he could not do any stressful work. He eventually had to give up his business and sold it for a couple of a million pesos.

So with that, he became a millionaire. But that was not the end of it. The buyer eventually found out that he lied to them about the assets and they filed a case against him. So the money he got was spent to pay for his legal defense.

Indeed, Rex had it all worked out and he pushed himself to the limit to get what he wanted at a certain point in time. But at what cost? He worked 12 hours a day. His office was his home. He never was able to have a social life. In fact, he lost many friends because of his “greed “ for money and his obsession with business. He was afraid to go home because there was no family there to go home to. He had poor social skills and eventually, many of his top people left him because they never felt that he was interested in their welfare.

He and his best friend who was the chief accountant had a falling out. An unfair labor practice case was filed by his friend. To ease his conscience, he went to church on Sundays, alone, of course. During Christmas, he went to orphanages to give food and old clothes to the orphans. All by his lonesome self.

I am reminded of that Thomas à Kempis phrase about “the man who gains the whole world but loses his own soul.” That was Rex, the man who planned out everything about his “success.” He was too rigid about it. Too focused and obsessed in fact, he forgot everything else and everyone else. He never was able to experience the joy of life. And the tragedy about it, when I last talked to him, he didn’t know what hit him. He was blaming everybody else, calling them “traitors.” He felt betrayed by everyone.

Rex did not realize that life does not go exactly the way you plan it.

It is more complicated than that. And more fluid, more unexpected and more surprising. Sometimes, when we try too hard, we make a mess of the whole thing. We cannot make it all turn out perfectly.

Plan by all means. But make room for the unexpected and what cannot be controlled. Life has a way of working things out. Those who believe that there is an invisible hand at work in mysterious ways, those who have faith and who believe that there is a power that is moving events and people, they tend to flow more freely with what life gives them.

Someone named Benjamin Hoff wrote about this: “Things just happen in the right way, at the right time. At least they do when you let them, when you work with the circumstances instead of saying ‘this isn’t supposed to be happening this way,’ and trying hard to make it happen some other way.”

For everything in life is matter of pacing and rhythm. We wait for an idea to develop and evolve. We wait for a relationship to grow before we decide that it is right. We wait for children to grow and develop their inclinations and aptitude. We wait for the seasons to change. We wait for plants to grow. We wait to bring things to a fruition. Nothing bears fruit without a period of waiting.

And that’s the sad thing about Rex. He wanted to force the issue, so to speak. He wanted things to happen in his own time as per his plan, even when the moment was not right or due. But then the plan to set himself up for life take a precipitous unexpected turn in another direction when he is confronted by health and legal issues.

He never came to think that if things do not go as planned, it might just turn out to be a great blessing, a push in a new direction, or the beginning of an unexpected success. I believe this because it happened to me, many times.

Perhaps, I should have shared this to Rex as a friendly advice. But he was too obsessed about pursuing his plan to be independently rich.

He wouldn’t have listened anyway.

“The culture of the late ’90s was a gold rush mentality of greedy frenzy. People were certain they risked failure if they took time to eat dinner with their families, go for a leisurely Saturday bike ride or read a book just for fun. They were utterly focused on constant progress.

People in the ’90s worshipped the god of speed—anything worth doing was worth doing fast.”

The lure of progress, success, money and fame created a wave of contagion. You needed to get on board: don’t wait, don’t stop. Just like the alcoholic. Just like the “addictive mind.”

—Speed: Facing Our Addiction to Fast and Faster—and Overcoming Our Fear of Slowing Down, Stephanie Brown

A6

Saturday, August 17, 2019 | Editor: Mike Besa

TITLEIST INTRODUCES THE NEW T-SERIES IRONS T

HERE are few fans as loyal as Titleist iron fans. They sit on pins and needles as they wait with bated breath for Titleist’s new releases every other year. This year they’re in for a shock.

Titleist irons were getting predictable.

Every other year, new versions of their venerable AP, CB and MB irons made it to proshops around the country. Most are eagerly snapped up by the faithful, to be savored until the next release.

This year, Titleist upset the apple cart. The AP irons are no more. Finished. Kaput. In their place are the new T-Series irons; the T100, T200 and T300 are more than just AP iron replacements, they fit in the segments vacated by the AP1, AP2 and AP3 but have been born with the same lust for speed as the new Titleist TS series drivers and fairway metals.

Powered by breakthrough technology— including Max Impact for maximum speed and distance control across the face—the new T-Series T100, T200 and T300 models offer a combination of power, performance, playability and feel unlike anything Titleist has ever designed: n A true players’ iron, T100 offers confidence-inspiring looks and Tour-quality performance with signature Titleist feel. A new fully forged cavity construction is balanced by co-forged, dual-density tungsten for precise distance control with exceptional stability. n T200 delivers powerfully playable distance with a tour-inspired look and feel.

Max Impact technology spreads maximum speed and distance control evenly across T200’s thin, forged L-face—with high launch and stopping power—to convert near misses into nearly perfect. n T300 offers the most forgiving player’s experience possible with a modern shape that rewards with faster ball speeds and preferred feel. Max Impact technology extends maximum speed across an extremely forgiving mid-size face, powering a fast cavity-back design that delivers the best combination of high launch, long distance and forgiveness.

“The T-Series represents a revolutionary step forward in Titleist iron design and technology,” said Josh Talge, vice president, Titleist Golf Club Marketing. “Our Club R&D team is nearly six times the size it was when the first AP iron was introduced 11 years ago.

It’s because of that ongoing investment that we’ve been able to make such significant breakthroughs in materials and constructions and learn how to package those technologies into constructions that offer the look, sound and feel that players expect from a Titleist iron.”

“There are three key elements to hitting a great iron shot: distance, dispersion and angle of descent,” said Marni Ines, director, Titleist Irons Development, Golf Club R&D. “T-Series technology helps players carry the ball longer and hit their number more consistently, even when they don’t make a perfect strike.

Dispersion is tighter, so the ball stays on target.

And trajectory is optimized, so the ball not only lands on the green, but stays there. Length means nothing if you don’t have control.”

INTRODUCING MAX IMPACT TECHNOLOGY

T200 and T300 irons are powered by Max Impact technology, a striking innovation that extends maximum speed across the entire face of mid and long irons while preserving superior sound and feel. A super thin face is backed by a unique polymer core—developed in partnership with Titleist Golf Ball R&D—to provide consistently better distance from every swing.

“Max Impact allows us to make thinner, faster faces that push the limits of iron ball speed,” Ines said. “With this system in place, we’re able to take our materials and make them thinner and faster to maximize speed across the face and help give us the launch angle we need to deliver more consistent distances on every

NO more AP irons in 2020

higher, easy launch. n Progressive set design—with progressive blade lengths, sole widths and hosel lengths—delivers optimal CG positioning with preferred shaping through the set. n Available irons: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, P, W48, W53.

“T300 is the ultimate game improvement iron,” Talge said. “It goes high and far, it’s exceptionally playable and it looks great. T300 has a higher MOI than our prior generation game improvement model for even more distance and forgiveness. From address, you’d never believe how much technology is built into this iron.”

HIGH-PERFORMANCE STOCK SHAFT MATRIX

swing. In other words, you’ll end up with more shots that hit the green—and stop there.

“Being able to rely on the material expertise of our Golf Ball R&D team, we were able to build a polymer core with properties that not only deliver the resilience we needed for speed performance but also sound dampening that helps us dial in the preferred feel for each construction,” Ines said.

T100 PERFORMANCE & TECHNOLOGY

THE player’s iron, T100 is masterfully designed to achieve new heights of tour-level precision with signature Titleist feel. A result of direct tour player feedback—including Jordan Spieth, who put a full set in play at the Open Championship—the T100 is for the player who wants to play a true Tour iron. n New fully forged dual cavity construction provides precise distance and control. n Thinner, more responsive face increases ball speed across the face. n Co-forged dual-density tungsten (with an average of 66 grams placed in the heel and toe of the mid and long irons) delivers exceptional stability. n Tour-refined sole shape features a thin topline, minimal offset and enhanced camber for improved turf interaction. n Progressive set design—with progressive blade lengths, sole widths and

hosel lengths—delivers optimal CG positioning with preferred shaping through the set. n Available irons: 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, P, W50.

“With T100 we wanted to build an iron that delivers incredible performance and perfectly suits the player’s eye,” Ines said.

“This is a precision product. It’s not about hitting it the furthest, it’s about hitting it that exact distance each and every time, being able to work the ball when necessary and having that pure look and feel that the best players in the world demand.”

T200 PERFORMANCE & TECHNOLOGY

T200 is the player’s distance iron, with Max Impact technology subtly integrated into a shape that satisfies the discerning eye. With T200, players gain the distance they want without sacrificing looks, feel, trajectory or stopping power. n Max Impact technology delivers maximum speed and distance control across a forged SUP-10 LFace Insert. n High-density tungsten (with an average of 90 grams placed in the heel and toe of the mid and long irons) produces low CG for higher launch with stopping power. n Progressive set design—with progressive blade lengths, sole widths and hosel lengths—delivers optimal CG positioning with preferred shaping through the set.

n Tour-inspired look and feel with thinner topline and enhanced camber for improved turf interaction. n Available irons: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, P, W48.

“When you have a face technology like Max Impact, it becomes doubly important to balance the construction with high-density tungsten to achieve the high MOI you need to keep the club stable at impact,” Ines said.

“Having such high MOI properties at our blade lengths allows the iron face to return more energy to the golf ball on off center shots and produce more consistent distances. If you don’t have a high MOI, you’re not going to get the full benefits out of your face design.”

T300 PERFORMANCE & TECHNOLOGY THE player’s improvement iron, T300 is powered by Max Impact technology to extend maximum speed evenly across an extremely forgiving mid-sized face. T300 is designed for the player who wants high launch, long distance and forgiveness they can trust.

Mid-sized, fast cavity-back design is designed for maximum distance and forgiveness. n Max Impact technology delivers maximum speed and distance control. n High-density tungsten (with an average of 52 grams placed in the heel and toe of the mid and long irons) produces a low CG for a

‘ZACH CASTRO’S MARVELOUS SUMMER’

Z

ACHARY CASTRO put up an impressive two-week US summer stint as he placed second in the Boys 13 years old Division at the 2019 US Kids Golf Teen World Championship and winning the Boys 11-13 (Ernie Els) Division at Xingzhi Sports College Prep at Duke in the Hurricane Junior Golf Tour (HJGT).

Zach first made waves in Pinehurst, North Carolina, last July 25 to 27, 2019. He booked a three-day total 4 under par 212 to finish behind world champion Sihan Sandhu from Ashville, Virginia.

Castro started the tournament tied at fifth with a 70 on the par 72 Pinehurst No. 6. His 73 on the second day dropped him to a tie for sixth before a final day rally and a three-under 69 score propelled him to his best performance in the premiere age group world championship event.

His finish earned him a spot on the the Van Horn Cup international team where his team up with Leuan Jones of the UK produced a best five-under 67 card to win the Morrison Medal.

A week later, Zach booked his second win on the HJGT with a two-day total eight-under par 140 in the par 74 Duke University Golf Club. Last year he won at the Trump Wechester Classic in Briancliff, NY. The outstanding summer performance has established the incoming 8th grader from De La Salle-Zobel as one the rising under 14 stars in the country. His continuous development will be closely watched as he marches to a potential call up for national team duties.

This early, he is already planning for a full summer tour in the US in 2020 with the help of US College Sports Camps Asia and US College Sports Camps Philippines to include AJGA qualifiers and tournaments and USGA qualifier events. Bobbet Bruce

ZACH CASTRO had a great summer in the United States.

THE T-Series’ high-performance stock shaft matrix includes premium steel (True Temper AMT) and graphite (Mitsubishi MCA Tensei) aftermarket options designed with tour-proven ascending mass technology, which provides lighter long iron shafts for increased launch and speed and heavier short iron shafts for control in specific weight ranges matched to the target players for T100, T200 and T300.

T100: True Temper Project X LZ | Mid launch, low spin | 120g (6.0) • Nippon NS Pro 880 AMC Chrome (Regular/Stiff) | High launch, high spin | 93-105-105g (3g per club 4i to 8i, then constant); T200: True Temper Project X LZ | Mid launch, low spin | 115g (5.5) • Nippon NS Pro 880 AMC Chrome (Regular & Stiff) | High launch, high spin | 93-105-105g (3g per club 4i to 8i, then constant); T300: Steel: Nippon NS Pro 880 AMC Chrome (Regular & Stiff) | High launch, high spin | 93-105-105g (3g per club 4i to 8i, then constant) • Graphite: Mitsubishi MCA Tensei Red AM2 (Regular) | Low launch, low spin | 54-68g (2g per club).

In addition, Titleist offers an industry-leading number of custom shaft choices, many at no upcharge.

The new Titleist T-Series irons should be available for testing at the time this goes to press. Contact the nearest Empire Proshop for a fitting now.

www.pinoygolfer.com | Saturday, August 17, 2019

A7

Presidents Cup–Captain’s blog A

By Ernie Els, International Team Captain

S the International Team Captain and a proud South African, I was thrilled to see my countrymen Dylan Frittelli and Christiaan Bezuidenhout secure their maiden victories on the PGA Tour and European Tour recently.

I have gotten to know both players quite well and followed their golfing journey over the years, so it was a joy to see Dylan secure a wonderful victory at the John Deere Classic and Christiaan doing likewise with a great win at the Andalucia Masters.

Dylan’s breakthrough on the PGA Tour has given him a chance to play his way into the International MARC LEISHMAN

DYLAN FRITTELLI PHOTOS BY CREDIT GETTY IMAGES

Team where he is now ranked 24th on the points list. With three more weeks to go before the top 8 qualifiers are determined, he needs to play well in the FedExCup Playoffs to improve his chances and I’ll be interested to see how he responds to the challenge.

Since his amateur days, Dylan was rated among the top South African players. He won at junior level, international amateur level and also collegiate level in the United States where he studied at University of Texas and contributed the winning point in the team’s win in the 2012 NCAA Championship.

I wasn’t surprised at all to see him enjoy early success on the Sunshine Tour at home before subsequently establishing himself on the European Tour where he won twice in 2017. As you can see, his career has been trending nicely and culminating to his two-shot triumph at the John Deere Classic where he signed off with a final round 64.

Likewise, I have known Christian for some time. He went through a tough spell after receiving a drug suspension for testing positive for beta blockers in 2014 which he had used to treat anxiety and a stutter after accidentally drinking rat poison when he was a child.

I remember him joining us at the Ernie Els Fancourt Foundation, which we set up way back to help develop young golfers who are less privileged and to see him come of age with his Spanish win was quite a thrill for everyone associated with our foundation, including myself.

It might be tough for Christiaan to play his way into this year’s Presidents Cup as he’s a bit behind on the points list but I have no doubt he has the potential to become one of our team’s stalwarts in

the years to come.

Still on South African golf, it was tough to hear news that our four-time team member, Charl Schwartzel, was taking an enforced break from competitive golf until the end of the year to recover from a wrist injury. Charl has been one of the pillars in our team and we’ll miss his presence this December. I wish him a speedy recovery and I’m sure we’ll see him back in action very soon again.

As I mentioned earlier, our top 8 players will be determined on August 19 and I’m anticipating an intense fight especially among those players who are sitting on the bubble. I’ll be monitoring the FedExCup Playoffs very closely to see how our players perform and react under pressure.

It was great to see our current points leaders Marc Leishman enjoying a solid third-place finish at the recent World Golf Championships-FedEx St. Jude Invitational in Memphis. Since our team qualifying process began last August, Leish has truly been a model of consistency. He won the CIMB Classic in Malaysia in October and rode on the momentum to add three top-5 finishes at the start of the year.

His strong showing in Memphis is just another reminder of what he can do for our team at Royal Melbourne Golf Club in December.

My good friend, Louis Oosthuizen, is on course to make his fourth Presidents Cup team appearance where he currently sits in second place on our points list. With a T7 at the recent US Open, I’ll be counting on him to hit top form at the end of the year.

Adam Scott and Hideki Matsuyama have looked really solid all year, with Adam enjoying two top 10s in the US Open and PGA Championship and Hideki producing some really good stuff with five top 10s and have missed only one cut all year.

As the player with the most appearances for our team— Adam has been in eight previous teams—it is given that he will be one of the leaders of our pack when our guys are out on

the golf course battling for the International Team’s pride and honor.

In a competitive environment, we need players who will show up with courage and heart and I really liked how Cameron Smith has responded in recent weeks after he slipped out of the top 8 bracket. He acknowledged it as a timely wake-up call and subsequently dug deep to finish a commendable T20 at The Open Championship and T12 in Memphis over the past two weeks which have since pushed him back into sixth position on the points list.

As the reigning Australian PGA Championship winner, Cameron’s presence at Royal Melbourne can help ignite the home fans to truly get behind our team which can be a huge motivating factor in our attempt to wrest the Presidents Cup from the United States Team.

Haotong Li, Jason Day and CT Pan are currently within the top 8 and I’m sure those behind them on the rankings including players who have qualified for the FedExCup Playoffs such as Abraham Ancer, Sungjae Im, Sung Kang, Byeong Hun An, Emiliano Grillo, Si Woo Kim and Kiradech Aphibarnrat will be snapping at their heels.

I’ll be following the action very closely over the next few weeks as the top 8 will undoubtedly form the core of our International Team. And in early November, I’ll name

PUTTING REBOOT

A

Story by Mike Besa

FRIEND of mine who has really dedicated himself to the game called me and asked for help with his putting. Wanting to help, I agreed.

Before we got together, I audited my own putting fundamentals, comparing what I was doing to what the game’s best short game professionals teach their students. The process helped my putting almost as much as it did his. I’m sharing it with you today in the hopes that it will help you too.

Let’s start at the beginning—with the fundamentals.

GRIP: Place the putter grip in line with the lifelines on your palms. Position your thumbs on the flat part of your putter’s

n Note: This blog also appeared on

www.presidentscup.com

KIRADECH APHIBARNRAT

is to dissociate your lower body and head from your core during the stroke - the only real challenge to this feel.

With the mechanics squared away, it’s time to engage the creative side of your brain.

READ THE GREEN WITH YOUR FEET: Resist to just ask the caddy what to do. Walk the putt. Pay particular attention to inclination and the variations in the terrain on your way from the ball to the hole. Study the putt from behind the hole. Does the ball look like it’s going to break the same as it did from behind the hole? Walk to the low side of the putt and study it from there.

All this gives you background information on how the ball will roll on the green. Imagine tossing a bucket of water on the green toward the hole. Where is the water going to flow? The golf ball should follow the same contours.

grip or toward the outside corners of the flat. Having your palms facing outward lessens the amount of wrist that you can employ when stroking the putt.

ROLL A FEW BALLS FOR FEEL: If you have trouble with long putts, you need to work on feel for distance. The easiest way to do so is to go to the practice green and without a putter, roll balls to different areas of the green paying attention to the strength and feel with which you release them. Keep doing so until you have a feel of the speed and distance the ball rolls.

Now do the same thing with your putter.

Direction isn’t too important here. Distance control is your goal.

POSTURE is more bent from the waist, the ball is directly beneath the left eye.

THE finished grip—palms facing each other with thumbs on top of the grip.

THE grip should line up with the lifeline of both hands.

my four captain’s picks and in the 12 players, I will put my utmost trust on them to deliver a win for us.

For golf and sports fans in Australia, remember to buy your tickets on www.presidentscup. com and we are counting on your support and presence to cheer us at Royal Melbourne. Bye for now.

POSTURE: Stand upright when addressing the ball and bend from the waist until your left eye is over the golf ball.

This allows you to see down the line of your putt accurately.

If the ball is too far to the inside of your eyeline, you’ll wind up pulling putts and if it’s too far to the outside, the reverse will be true, and you’ll push your misses.

To check on your posture, address the ball. When you’ve settled into your address position, stand the putter up until

it’s vertical then lift it up to your face. If the golf ball is beneath your left eye, the butt of the putter should line up perfectly with the bridge of your nose.

Another way to check on your ball position is to have another golf ball in your pocket when you address the ball.

When you’ve settled into your address position, take the ball from your pocket, put it up to your left eye and let it go.

If you’ve set up properly, the falling golf ball should fall on the one you’ve addressed.

Your hands should be ahead of the ball. The putter shaft should be leaning forward—not too much, just enough to keep the putter square to the target. This will vary depending on your putter of choice. Find your putter’s ideal setup then work with it.

If you can’t work with it, replace it with one that works for you.

TO check ball position, address the ball then stand the putter on the toe and lift up to your face. The butt should line up with the bridge of your nose.

MECHANICS: Keep your elbows close to your torso throughout the putting stroke and putt with your core. I know common knowledge says to rock your shoulders when you putt, but in doing so, at some point your hands will become more active and cause inconsistency. Keep your arms relaxed and your hands quiet. Allow your elbows to stay close to your torso as it rotates. The visual of putting with your core will quiet the upper body and allow you to stroke the ball with your big muscles—just like your full swing. Downstream benefit is that you’ll be more consistent with your swing triggers through the bag.

It’s simple enough to adapt to your game. It’ll feel a bit weird at first but stick with it and you’ll become far more consistent with direction and distance control. The key here

MOLD THIS PROCESS INTO YOUR PRE-SHOT ROUTINE: This whole process becomes your pre-putt routine. Put it all together before you walk up to address the golf ball. Stick to it strictly until it becomes a habit. Then, all you need to do is start the process and your instincts will take over.

Start behind the ball. Gather your thoughts there (never over the ball), commit to your course of action, take your practice stokes then a deep breath. Walk up to the ball, thinking of nothing but alignment and target. Forget mechanics; try to feel your body aligning to the target.

Settle into your address position, focus your aim on your intended line, confirm your target, then make the putt.

DETACH YOURSELF FROM YOUR RESULTS: Remember that as much as we attach to it, golf is just a game. The world isn’t going to end if you miss that 4-footer. We’ll laugh about it, have a few drinks and life will go on. Relax and have fun. Be thankful. It’s why we play the game.

Sports BusinessMirror

A8 Saturday, August 17, 2019 CAN Tokyo’s efficient rail system handle the Olympic strain? AP

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph • Editor: Jun Lomibao

PETRON’S Angela Legacion tries to save the ball during Thursday’s game that saw the Blaze Spikers beating Marinerang Pilipina, 25-18, 25-13, 25-11.

DEMARCUS COUSINS’S injury that could sideline him for much—if not all—of this coming season. AP

BusinessMirror

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos • lifestylebusinessmirror@gmail.com

Saturday, August 17, 2019 A9

Vaping companies sue to delay US review of e-cigarettes

BY MATTHEW PERRONE The Associated Press WASHINGTON—A vaping industry group sued the US government on Wednesday to delay an upcoming review of thousands of e-cigarettes on the market.

The legal challenge by the Vapor Technology Association is the latest hurdle in the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) years-long effort to regulate the multibillion-dollar vaping industry, which includes makers and retailers of e-cigarette devices and flavored solutions.

The vaping group argued that the latest deadline of next May to submit products for review could wipe out many of the smaller companies. The lawsuit was filed in US District Court in Kentucky.

E-cigarettes first appeared in the US more than a decade ago and have grown in popularity despite little research on their long-term effects, including whether they can help smokers quit cigarettes.

In recent years, health authorities have warned of an epidemic of vaping by underage teenagers, particularly the leading brand Juul, known for its high nicotine content and easy-to-conceal device, which resembles a flash drive.

Nicotine is what makes both cigarettes and e-cigarettes addictive, and health experts say the chemical is harmful to developing brains.

San Francisco-based Juul is among 800 membercompanies of the vaping association.

The 2009 law that gave the FDA power over the traditional tobacco products did not mention e-cigarettes. And it wasn’t until 2016 that the agency expanded its own regulations to include the devices.

But since then FDA regulators have repeatedly pushed back the timeline, at one point until 2022, to begin review the legions of vaping products that have come to market.

Frustrated by the delays, anti-tobacco groups including the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids sued the FDA to speed up the process. In June a federal judge sided with the groups and set a deadline of next May for all companies to submit their products for federal review. The FDA has until next month to appeal the decision.

The vapor group’s lawsuit said the FDA has now set five different deadlines.

“It is time for FDA to stop moving the goalposts and changing the rules in the middle of the game to the detriment of our manufacturers and small businesses,” said Tony Abboud, the group’s executive director, in a statement.

Vaping executives have long said that most companies will not be able to afford to conduct large, expensive studies needed for FDA review.

Only products that meet FDA standards would be permitted to be sold.

The FDA declined to comment on the lawsuit.

Brand faceli�t happens this weekend for a good cause PRIMETIME

DINNA CHAN VASQUEZ @dinnachanvasquez luckydinna@gmail.com

T

HIS weekend, expect the social-media handles of your favorite consumer products from Unilever to change. Cream Silk is Cristine, Dove is Dianne and Surf is Steph.

Don’t worry, this is temporary and for a good cause as Unilever embarks on the second year of its #Shop2Give 24-hour shopping event on Lazada.

Last year, I wrote about the event and even shopped for hair conditioners, body lotions and icecream vouchers on Lazada. The deals are really good, trust me.

But more than the discounts, I love this campaign because it helps people, specifically children.

Unilever works with Unicef on this. Unicef works across almost 200 countries and territories,

including the Philippines, to provide relief and recovery support for children and families affected by disasters and armed conflict.

Unicef has also helped pass laws that protect and promote children’s rights in the last 70 years.

Among the laws it has advocated for are the Milk Code, Childhood Care and Development Act, and the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act. With the success of last year’s campaign, Unilever Philippines and Lazada are excited to launch the 2019 campaign with the added hashtag #AddDreamsToCart. Your shopping experience is no longer just for you on August 20 but it’s now going to a child in need. #Shop2Give is a collaborative effort of Unilever Philippines, Lazada, Unicef, and the Department of Education (DepEd) to turn a routine online shopping experience into an opportunity to fund the dreams and education of underprivileged children.

Over 2.8 million Filipino children are currently out-of-school and this is the anchor on which this year’s campaign is tethered. As you shop for your regular fix of Unilever products, each purchase will contribute a percentage to this cause. The online shopping event will be held on August 20, and with an accompanying Facebook Live event with digital creators Dani Barretto and Winnie Wong, you can

begin putting items in your cart as early as August 17.

For 24 hours, Unilever will give Lazada a fun and cute makeover, transforming the interface of the online shopping site into what looks like a kids’ art gallery. All participating Unilever product photos will be replaced by a quirky hand-drawn rendition of the product and the product names will be changed to names of children, making it impossible to miss out on which products are participating in this generous campaign. Unilever products will be available for up to 80-percent off with a collectible voucher. You can collect collectible vouchers of up to 30-percent discount on selected bundles. There will be all-day flash sales of up to 70-percent off. There will be free shipping for orders of P500 and above. Oh and my favorite deal is the #Shop2Give tote which will be given to the first 1,000 shoppers.

So what do I plan to buy? Love, Beauty and Planet hair conditioners, body wash and body lotion (my favorite is the one with the rose fragrance). I really plan to hoard these and some Dove products, as well as some vouchers for ice cream again.

With your help and your generosity, this program could benefit over 800,000 children. Be a part of the movement and join Unilever, Lazada, Unicef and DepEd as you #Shop2Give and #AddDreamsToCart on August 20. ■

Philips aims to develop smart hospitals

BY RIZAL RAOUL S. REYES MAJOR health technology company Philips plans to introduce state-ofthe-art health systems to Philippine hospitals that can improve health outcomes, patient and staff experiences, and reduce the cost of health care, according to its leading executive.

“Philips Connected Care provides care to the patient from point-ofcare at the hospital to the patient’s recovery at home, including continuous monitoring throughout the hospital stay, aggregating data into clinical decision insights, implementing smart alarms and improving patient’s recovery from home,” Philips Philippines General Manager Ashwin Chari told reporters at a recent press briefing held in Mandaluyong City.

By developing the digital infrastructure of local hospitals, Chari explained that the management and staff can manage enormous amount of

data in a more efficient manner, and put it in the right context leading to a study in a comprehensive manner of the patient’s condition. Aside from allowing the data to be integrated and more accessible, Chari pointed out that Philips can give hospitals the capability to perform the necessary tasks.

He said Philips’s scalable, secure and interoperable health information management portfolio is powered by artificial-intelligent (AI) smart enterprise systems, devices, software and services. Chari added the health systems are concentrated on patient care solutions, advanced analytics and patient and workflow optimization inside and outside the hospital, providing intelligent data that is filtered and presented at the right place and the right time.

Furthermore, Chari said the Philips health systems can increase efficiency to deliver better patient outcomes, reduce clinicians’ workload, and complement clinical decisions, such

as reducing alarm hazard hospital acquired infections and medical errors.

It will also complement the existing information technology infrastructure in hospitals for faster clinical decisions and workflow, remote consultancy and consolidation of decision-making across multiple hospitals.

“When we close the current gaps in patient monitoring with connected technology, we will experience more consistent patient care, seamless patient transitions, improved outcomes and one step closer to a value-based care ecosystem,” Chari added.

Chari said Philips is bullish on the local market emphasizing the connected care approach because it promotes seamless integration by bringing together monitoring and therapeutic devices, software and services to develop smart solutions.

He said Philips plans to work closely with the major hospitals such as the Philippine General Hospital for possible deployment of their solutions.

DURING the tour, Sen. Risa Hontiveros learns more about the connected care solutions of Philips.

BusinessMirror

A10 Saturday, August 17, 2019

UNDERSTANDING THE MODERN FILIPINO MAN WHAT exactly is a modern man?

Being a modern man today is different. Sure, fashion, technology and architecture change over time, as do standards of etiquette, not to mention ways of carrying oneself in the public sphere. The modern man today has options previous generations never had.

A global leader for male electric shaving tools, Philips ((www.philips. com.ph) continues to define what a com.ph modern man is.

It continues to design products for modern men who want to make their own choices, tools that give every man a chance to find the right look and put his best face forward, and these tools are smart and skin-safe. Philips knows how to bring out the best in every modern Filipino man.

Together with Rustan’s and Philippe Gadgets and Accessories Inc., Philips organized a social gathering that celebrates the modern man of today—real, bold, confident and intelligent, by showcasing their wide range of smart tools that can shape, shave and maintain any style of hair.

“When a modern man gets his daily grooming right—the right shave trim and style—he feels primed to use his power to make things happen, and use his confidence to seize the day. As an industry leader in male grooming, our forte is to deliver smart solutions to today’s modern man which offers a close comfortable shaving experience every day without compromising skin comfort,” said Maite Uy, business development manager for Philips Personal Health.

“Our tools are made with a lot of love and care, undergoing stringent quality assurance and performance testing. Consumers are assured of excellent performance and quality, always. With Philips, the decision is yours. Be the man you want to be,” she added.

The company offers a wide range of shavers to address the root cause of irritation—friction between grooming tool and the skin. All the tools are designed to relieve discomfort and allow men to look their best with maximum comfort, every single day.

Here are some of them: ■ PHILIPS WET AND DRY ELECTRIC SHAVER SERIES 7000. This shaver protects against skin irritation. The SkinGlide rings coated with antifriction enables the shaver to glide effortlessly across your face. Now you can easily shave and protect your skin—even with a three-day stubble.

■ PHILIPS MULTI-GROOM 9-IN-1 SERIES 5000. This multi-groom offers nine tools to trim and style your facial hair, clip your mane and groom your body to help men craft their personal look with just one tool.

Its DualCut technology includes 2x more blades and has self-sharpening blades with a battery life of up to 80 minutes ■ PHILIPS BEARD TRIMMER SERIES 3000. This Philips beard trimmer gives power and precision to trim, shape and shave facial hair. With the innovative Lift and Trim system, it could lift and capture more lowlying hairs for efficient trimming, giving you the look you want, be it the three-day stubble, short beard or long beard.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Amazon’s self-driving delivery robots head to California NEW YORK—Amazon’s selfdriving robots will be roaming the streets of another neighborhood.

The online shopping giant said last week that the six-wheeled robots, about the size of a smaller cooler, will begin delivering packages to customers in Irvine, California. It comes after Amazon began testing them in a suburb of Seattle at the beginning of the year.

Amazon said the robots, which are light blue and have the

Amazon smile logo stamped on its sides, are able to avoid crashing into trash cans or pedestrians.

Still, a worker will accompany the robots at first.

Other companies have been testing similar delivery robots on college campuses, delivering burgers or soda to students.

Amazon said its robots, which it calls Scout, will be delivering orders to doorsteps Monday to Friday and only during the day. AP

THE online shopping giant says the sixwheeled robots, about the size of a Labrador, will start delivering packages to customers in Irvine, California. AP

THE Samsung Galaxy Note 10 (left) and the Galaxy Note 10 Plus is shown in New York. Samsung’s newest smartphone doesn’t have a headphone jack. The Galaxy Note 10 loses that, even though Samsung executives have long poked fun at rivals for ditching it. AP

Samsung ditches headphone jack a�ter jabs at jackless rivals

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BY ANICK JESDANUN The Associated Press

EW YORK—Samsung executives have long poked fun at rivals for ditching the headphone jack in smartphones. With the new Galaxy Note 10, the company has now done exactly the same thing.

The Note 10, announced Wednesday, squeezes in more battery power and other goodies, but at the cost of the familiar old jack. So now the company is doing an about-face and declaring that many people use wireless headphones anyway.

Samsung, which for years has pushed bigger and bigger displays, is also introducing a smaller version of the Note for those who think phones have just gotten too big.

The new Note models will come out August 23.

The main model is being called the Note 10 Plus and will have a display measuring 6.8 inches diagonally.

Though the display is bigger, the overall size is about the same as last year’s 6.4-inch Note 9. To accomplish that, Samsung shrank down even more of the bezel surrounding the display.

The smaller, 6.3-inch version will be called the

Note 10 and will sell for almost $950, or $150 less than the Plus. It’s designed for those who want the Note’s signature stylus without its once-signature size.

“You hit a certain point where you can’t get much bigger without being physically too large to hold,” Technalysis Research analyst Bob O’Donnell said.

“That’s the challenge they are running into.”

Hardware innovation in mobile devices has been slowing for years. Samsung is addressing that with a foldable model, with twice the display when unfolded. The Samsung Fold is coming in September after Samsung made a few design changes to address problems with reviewers’ phones breaking.

Apple is expected to release new iPhones next month. A version that works with next-generation 5G cellular networks isn’t expected. Samsung will have a 5G version of the Note 10 Plus starting at almost $1300. The Note 10 Plus will have a 7.5 percent boost in battery capacity over the Note 9, though Samsung’s high-end phones have already been promising allday battery life. Samsung made no references to the headphone jack during its 70-minute announcement event in New York.

Samsung officials told reporters separately that while the 3.5-millimeter headphone jack might seem

small, every smidgeon of saved space can help extend battery life. Samsung is including wired headphones that plug into the phone’s USB-C data and charging port. An adapter for other wired headphones is sold separately for $10. Apple and Google also have ditched the standard headphone jack.

But O’Donnell noted the irony: “If you guys gave everybody else grief for doing it, why are you doing it?” Beyond that, the Note 10 phones introduce new stylus features, including the ability to flip through music and photo libraries by gesturing with the stylus in the air. The phones bring a wider-angle lens already found in the S10 and use software to make audio appear louder—and thus closer—in video recordings when zooming in. And by connecting a Note 10 to a Windows or Mac computer with a USB cable, users can interact with phone apps there, and drag and drop files between devices.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella appeared briefly to expand on a partnership with Samsung. The collaboration includes giving Note users the ability to receive and respond to text messages and take phone calls from a Windows computer. Apple has long offered similar features, but only for its own devices such as the iPhone and Mac. ■

Upstart Realme named world’s fastest-growing mobile brand REALME makes history as the world’s fastestgrowing smartphone brand, registering a global shipment of 4.7 million units in Q2 2019, or an increase of 848 percent year-on-year. With an established footprint in 20 countries, including China, Europe, India, Russia and countries in Southeast Asia, realme now has more than 10 million users globally.

The brand joins big smartphone big players Samsung, Huawei and Apple in the list of the top 10 mobile phone manufacturers in the world after just a year of operations, as published in the mobile phone shipment report for Q2 2019 by Counterpoint, an international authoritative analysis institution.

The brand‘s rapid market growth lies in its

firm understanding of its main market, the young consumer sector. Offering today’s youth an attainable, disruptive mobile experience drives Realme R&D and product innovations. The brand’s high-end technology and game-changing persona have become the benchmark for performance and design in every price segment it enters.

Sky Li, the founder and CEO of Realme, said: “Realme’s original intention was to create products that offer the young new and unique experiences. Our ‘Dare to Leap’ concept is based on and supports this mission. We hope to reach young consumers with products that exceed their expectations on design, performance and quality.”

To show gratitude to fans around the globe, Realme will offer more high-caliber devices, including the long-awaited camera smartphone with 64 million pixels, and a high-end flagship equipped with Snapdragon 855 Plus.

Realme Philippines (www.realme.com/ph) reflects the brand’s global growth with its recent string of wins: the monthlong celebration of its brand month, the opening of its first concept store and the launch of its 100th kiosk. Realme continues to strengthen its retail foothold in the Philippines. With a total of 3,500 stores and 110 kiosks nationwide, the company is on track to meet its target of 200 new stores in 2019. It is also available on major online shopping platforms

Lazada and Shopee, offering exclusive deals and freebies to further elevate the smartphone experience of every Filipino.

Realme’s online and offline touch points are a testament to the brand’s commitment to make its products easily available to more Filipinos.

“The recent global feat of the brand further impassioned every member of the Realme Philippines team to make more Filipinos experience the real value we offer. Now that we are present in multiple channels and able to communicate with our audience simultaneously, Realme is ready to be the smartphone for every Filipino,” shared Realme Marketing Lead Eason de Guzman Jr.

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Saturday, August 17, 2019 A11

Q&A

Ex-Googler on how tech ‘downgrades’ humans SCAMMERS INCREASINGLY DISTRIBUTE SPAM, PHISHING E-MAILS FROM LEGITIMATE COMPANY WEB SITES

MALICIOUS users are constantly looking for new methods to deliver their spam and phishing messages to recipients, while bypassing existing content filters. Ideally, they try to make letters come from a legitimate source with a good reputation so that users cannot ignore the unwanted e-mail.

This also creates a challenge for companies as this unwanted spam or even malicious content, seemingly sent on their behalf, could compromise their customers’ trust or even lead to personal data leaks.

The method is quite simple and effective. Today, almost every company is interested in receiving feedback from their clients to improve the quality of service, customer retention and reputation. To do this, companies ask customers to register a personal account, subscribe to newsletters or communicate with feedback forms on the web site, for example, to ask questions or leave suggestions. These are exactly the mechanisms that attackers are exploiting.

All three mechanisms require the customers’ name and e-mail address, so they can receive a confirmation e-mail or feedback. According to Kaspersky researchers, scammers are adding spam content and phishing links into this mail. They simply add the victim’s e-mail address into the registration or subscription form and type their message instead of the name. The web site will then send a modified confirmation letter to that address, containing an advertisement or phishing link at the beginning of the text instead of the recipient’s name.

“Most of these modified letters are linked to online surveys designed to obtain personal data from visitors.

Notifications from a reliable source usually pass through content filters with ease, as they are official messages from a reputable company. This is why this new method of unwanted, yet seemingly innocent, spam e-mailing is so effective and worrying,” notes Maria Vergelis, security expert at top security company Kaspersky.

To keep companies from possible reputational losses, we advise: ■ To check how the feedback forms work on your web site ■ To embed several verification rules that would cause an error when trying to register a name with inappropriate symbols ■ To conduct a vulnerability assessment of the web site, if possible.

Read the full text of the report on Kaspersky Daily (bit. ly/2OW3W7A).

The Apple credit card is here NEW YORK—The Apple credit card designed primarily for mobile use is here.

Some iPhone users who requested a notification about Apple Card will get invites on Tuesday to apply through Apple’s Wallet app. The company plans to expand sign ups more broadly in the coming weeks. The card, announced in March in partnership with Goldman Sachs, is available only in the US. Apple promises quick sign ups and the elimination of most fees. Customers typically get 2-percent cash back when using Apple’s app to pay. Industry experts say financial benefits of card mirror many of those already out there for consumers. What sets Apple Card apart from other cards is its reliance on the iPhone. Though customers can request a physical card for free, an iPhone is required to apply, check statements and pay balances. The app will offer tools to manage spending and suggest payment amounts based on past payments and spending. And cash back rewards return to customers through an Apple Cash account, which can be used for other purchases, credit-card payments and transfers to traditional bank accounts.

Goldman will be in charge of approving applications and monitoring transactions for fraud. Apple says it isn’t getting transaction data and has agreements that bar Goldman from using data for other purposes, such as advertising and marketing Goldman’s other services. AP

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RISTAN HARRIS wants to reverse the harmful effects he believes technology has had on all of us.

Harris, a former Google design ethicist, first rose to national awareness after a presentation he gave within Google in 2013 spread throughout the industry. In it, he argued that many tech products were designed to be addictive, causing people to spend too much time on them and distracting them from living their lives. He urged designers to alter their approach.

Harris spent more than two years pushing change within Google, but says he couldn’t get traction. So he quit and started a movement called Time Well Spent, which eventually pushed companies such as Apple and Google to build screen time usage metrics and tools into their phones.

He has since widened his focus, having decided that many issues facing society today are actually connected and can be traced, at least partly, to the design of technologies we use every day.

The goal of his organization, the Center for Humane Technology, is to reverse human “downgrading,” or the idea that technology is shortening our attention spans, pushing people toward more extreme views and making it harder to find common ground. In short: technology has caused humanity to worsen, and Harris wants to help fix it.

Harris recently spoke to The Associated Press about his work, the tech industry’s progress so far, and why all hope is not lost. This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.

Could you tell us the important ideas of your work?

This isn’t about addiction, it’s not about time.

It’s about what we call “human downgrading.” It’s a phrase that we came up with to describe something we don’t think people are acknowledging as a connected system.

Technology is causing a set of seemingly disconnected things—shortening of attention spans, polarization, outrage-ification of culture, mass narcissism, election engineering, addiction to technology. These seem like separate problems, and we’re actually saying that these are all predictable consequences of a race between technology companies to figure out how to scoop attention out of your brain.

Where is the central place to fight this multifaceted problem that you’ve outlined?

Much like you say, “How do you solve climate change?” Do you just get people to turn off their light bulbs? No. Do you pass some policy? Yes. But is that enough? No. Do you have to work collaboratively with the oil companies to change what they’re doing? Yes. Do you have to pass laws and mandates and bans?

You have to do all these things. You have to have a mass cultural awareness. You have to have everybody wake up. This is like the social climate change of culture. So working on internal advocacy and having people on the inside of tech companies feel, frankly, guilty, and ask, “what is my legacy in this thing that’s happening to society?”

We work on the internal advocacy. We work on public pressure and policy.

How do you work with companies, and how are they taking to your vision?

Doing it from the inside didn’t do anything when the cultural catch-up wasn’t there. But now in a world post-Cambridge Analytica, post the success of Time Well Spent, post more whistle-blowers coming out and talking about the problem, we do have conversations with people on the inside who I think begrudgingly accept or respect this perspective.

I think that there might be some frustration from some of the people who are at the YouTubes and Facebooks of the world whose business models are completely against the things we’re advocating for. But we’ve also gotten Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Apple and Android to launch Time Well Spent features through some kind of advocacy with them.

/

TRISTAN HARRIS, former design ethicist at Google and cofounder of the Center for Humane Technology, speaks to The Associated Press during a roundtable discussion on July 30 in New York.

Harris says he’s concerned about people’s addiction to technology, thanks to tools that major technology companies employ to persuade people to spend more time on their services. AP

BY RACHEL LERMAN The Associated Press

Is there a path that you try to help map out for these companies?

They’re not going to do it voluntarily. But with lots of outside pressure, shareholder activism, a public that realizes they’ve been lied to by the companies, that all starts to change.

There are multiple business models—subscription is one. Would you pay $8 a month to a Facebook that didn’t have any interest in manipulating your brain, basically making you as vulnerable as possible to advertisers, who are their true customers? I think people might pay for that.

So our policy agenda is to make the current business model more expensive, and to make the alternatives less expensive.

Washington is now in a huge debate about privacy, data and misinformation. Will that process deal with the causes that you care about by default?

I actually worry that we’re so mindlessly following the herd on privacy and data being the principle concerns when the actual things that are affecting the felt sense of your life and where your time goes, where your attention goes, where democracy goes, where teen mental health goes, where outrage goes.

Those things are so much more consequential to the outcomes of elections and what culture looks like.

Those issues connected together have to be named as an impact area of technology. There has to be regulation that addresses that.

My concern about how the policy debate is going is everyone is just angry at Big Tech. And that’s not actually productive, because it’s not just the bigness that is the problem. We have to name that the business model is the problem.

Don’t people have individual agency? Are we really in the thrall of tech companies and their software?

There’s this view that we should have more selfcontrol or that people are responsible for whatever they see. That hides an asymmetry of power. Like when you think, “I’m going to go to Facebook just to look at this one post from a friend,” and then you find yourself scrolling for two hours.

In that moment, Facebook wakes up a voodoo dolllike version of you in a supercomputer. The voodoo doll of you is based on all the clicks you’ve ever made, all the likes you’ve ever done, all the things you’ve ever watched. The idea is that as this becomes a better and more accurate model of you, I know you better than you know yourself. We always borrow this from E. O. Wilson, the sociobiologist: the problem of humans is that we have Paleolithic brains, medieval institutions and godlike technology. Our medieval institutions can only stay in control of what’s happening at a slow clock rate of every four years. Our primitive brains are getting hijacked and are super primitive compared to godlike tech.

Do you feel there’s awareness (within tech companies) that you wouldn’t have thought existed two years ago?

There has been a sea change. For four years, I was watching how no one was really accepting or working on or addressing any of these issues. And then suddenly in the last two years—because of the Cambridge Analytica scandal, because of 60 Minutes, because of Roger McNamee’s book Zucked. I would have never suspected that Chris Hughes, the cofounder of Facebook, would be saying it’s time to break up Facebook.

I’ve seen an enormous amount of change in the last three years and I can only bank on the fact that the clip at which things are starting to change is accelerating. I just want to give you hope that I would have never expected so much to start changing that is now changing. And we just need that pressure to continue. ■

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos • lifestylebusinessmirror@gmail.com

BusinessMirror

Saturday, August 17, 2019 A12

No Google, no problem?

Huawei unveils its own OS TECHNIVORE ED UY

whereiseduy@gmail.com

D

ONGGUAN, China—Ending months of speculations, Huawei finally revealed HarmonyOS, its muchrumored and talked-about operating system that could replace Android.

Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei Consumer Business Group, made the announcement last week at the Huawei Developer Conference (HDC 2019) and explained the company’s reason for developing its own OS. “We’re entering a day and age where people expect a holistic intelligent experience across all devices and scenarios. To support this, we felt it was important to have an operating system with improved cross-platform capabilities. We needed an OS that supports all scenarios, that can be used across a broad range of devices and platforms, and that can meet consumer demand for low latency and strong security.”

The company made it clear that HarmonyOS is not meant to replace Android on smartphones as they’d like to continue their partnership with Google, but if push comes to shove, Huawei said it can switch to HarmonyOS in about two days.

“If you’re asking when we will apply this to the smartphone, we can do it at any time,” said Yu, adding that Huawei still prioritizes Google’s Android operating system.

“However, if we cannot use it [Android] in the future, we can immediately switch to HarmonyOS.”

FROM HONGMENG TO HARMONY

PRIOR to the revelation of its global name, HarmonyOS was known as Hongmeng OS, which has an interesting translation and backstory in the Chinese language.

Hongmeng was named after a character from Chinese mythology that symbolizes primordial chaos or the world before creation. Other interpretations include vast mist or breaking free of the chaos and starting something new from scratch—something that Huawei is preparing for should the US trade ban prevents it from using Android on future phones.

As early as 10 years ago, the brand said it envisioned a future where intelligence would seamlessly integrate with all aspects of our lives, and it began exploring how it might deliver this experience—one that would transcend the boundaries of physical space and span different hardware and platforms.

HarmonyOS is completely different from Android and iOS. It is a microkernel-based operating system that is similar to the Fuschia OS that Google is working on. It delivers a smooth experience across all scenarios, and is a trustworthy

and secure architecture, supporting seamless collaboration across devices. This means you can develop your apps once, then flexibly deploy them across a range of different devices.

HarmonyOS is a lightweight, compact OS with powerful functionality, and it can be used in everything from smartphones to smart speakers, wearables, and in-vehicle systems to create a shared ecosystem across devices.

Through this implementation, Huawei aims to establish an integrated and shared ecosystem across devices, create a secure and reliable runtime environment, and deliver a holistic intelligent experience across every interaction with every device. The OS will also be released as an open-source platform worldwide to encourage adoption.

FOUR DISTINCT FEATURES

HARMONYOS was designed with four distinct technical features to deliver on its promise to consumers: seamless, smooth, secure and unified.

■ SEAMLESS: HarmonyOS is the first-ever device OS with distributed architecture, delivering a seamless experience across devices. By adopting distributed architecture and distributed virtual bus technology, the OS offers a shared communications platform, distributed data management, distributed task scheduling and virtual peripherals.

With HarmonyOS, app developers won’t have to deal with the underlying technology for distributed apps, allowing them to focus on their own individual service logic. Developing distributed apps will be easier than ever before. Apps built on HarmonyOS can run on different devices while delivering a seamless, collaborative experience across all scenarios.

■ SMOOTH: HarmonyOS will address underperformance challenges with a Deterministic Latency Engine and highperformance Inter Process Communication (IPC). The Deterministic Latency Engine sets task execution priorities and time limits for scheduling in advance. Resources will gravitate toward tasks with higher priorities, reducing the response latency of apps by 25.7 percent. The microkernel can make IPC performance up to five times more efficient than existing systems.

■ SECURE: HarmonyOS uses a brand-new microkernel design that features enhanced security and low latency.

This microkernel was designed to simplify kernel functions, implement as many system services as possible in user mode outside the kernel, and add mutual security protection. The microkernel itself provides only the most basic services like thread scheduling and IPC. The OS’s microkernel design uses formal verification methods to reshape security and trustworthiness from the ground up in a Trusted Execution Environment (TEE).

Formal verification methods are an effective mathematical approach to validate system correctness from the source, while traditional verification methods, such as functional verification and attack simulation, are confined to limited scenarios. Formal methods, by contrast, can use data models to verify all software running paths.

HarmonyOS is the first OS to use formal verification in device TEE, significantly improving security. In addition, because the HarmonyOS microkernel has much less code (roughly one-thousandth the amount of the Linux kernel), the probability of attack is greatly reduced.

■ UNIFIED: Powered by a multidevice IDE, multilanguage unified compilation, and a distributed architecture kit, HarmonyOS can automatically adapt to different screen layout controls and interactions, and support both dragand-drop control and preview-oriented visual programming.

This allows developers to more efficiently build apps that run on multiple devices. With a multidevice IDE, developers can code their apps once and deploy them across multiple devices, creating a tightly integrated ecosystem across all user devices.

The Huawei ARK Compiler is the first static compiler that can perform on par with Android’s virtual machine, enabling developers to compile a broad range of advanced languages into machine code in a single, unified environment.

By supporting unified compilation in multiple languages, the Huawei ARK Compiler will help developers greatly improve their productivity.

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?

PERHAPS the biggest difference is that unlike Android, HarmonyOS doesn’t include Linux at its core. For its futuristic OS, Huawei has developed an entirely new microkernel that essentially means it puts system components in different, segmented sections, instead of putting them into one big box as Android does.

Kernels are the core of an operating system, and they contain thousands of lines of code that controls everything on your device. A microkernel is smaller in size than a monolithic kernel (like Linux) and it only includes the bare minimum amount of code that’s required to run the operating system.

To make things a bit more simpler, think of it as Lego bricks forming a bigger set piece. Currently, Android developers have to customize and mess around with the entire set to make Android do a specific action for their app.

With HarmonyOS, they only need to tinker with that specific Lego brick that corresponds to the action they want to assign.

This makes the process faster as this reduces the amount of time a developer needs to creating an app since they don’t have to deal with a lot of unnecessary codes they don’t actually need.

It’s NOT an Android competitor (yet). As mentioned earlier, if given the choice, Huawei still wants to keep working with Google and the Android system, and instead wants to focus on bringing HarmonyOS to smart screens, smart speakers, car head units, and other AI, IoT and 5G-based technologies.

It is said to be theoretically faster than Android because the HarmonyOS uses distributed task scheduling and distributed data management to improve its performance.

Android, on the other hand, uses a lot of redundant code, outdated scheduling mechanism and has fragmentation issues. The HarmonyOS microkernel structure has a Deterministic Latency Engine that uses real-time load analysis, app characteristics matching, and forecasting to allocate system resources in a better way. This results in up to 25.7 percent improved response latency and 55.6 percent improvement in latency fluctuation.

The HarmonyOS is indeed shaping up to be something amazing and has gotten a lot of people excited, but at the end of the day, its success will be decided by the app ecosystem

it can build. Google and Apple have proven that the company who owns the app market owns the smartphone industry, and Huawei will be facing an “app-hill” battle to lure developers to port their apps to its Play Store alternative called AppGallery.

To encourage broader adoption, Huawei will release HarmonyOS as an open-source platform worldwide. The company will also establish an open-source foundation and an open-source community to support more in-depth collaboration with developers. HarmonyOS doesn’t support Android apps but Huawei says that doing so will be very easy for the developers as the company has released all the required SDKs and other tools that will help developers recompile their apps for HarmonyOS. Last, HarmonyOS will not have root access which Huawei believes should further improve the overall security of the microkernel and of the devices. Huawei is also using “formal verification methods” to boost the security of its microkernel.

These mathematical approaches are used in security-critical fields, such as aerospace and chipsets.

WILL THE MATE 30 RUN HARMONYOS?

WITH the US export ban reprieve ending next week, rumors have once again surfaced that the Huawei will be releasing a HarmonyOS-powered phone in the fourth quarter of the year along with the Huawei Mate 30 series. Reports point out to the Mate 30 Lite, but again the company said it will use Android as long as it can.

This will be a big deviation from the original evolution roadmap for HarmonyOS presented at the HDC 2019. Huawei said version 1.0 will be first adopted in its smart screen products, such as the Honor View which was also released last week.

Over the next three years, HarmonyOS will be optimized and gradually adopted across a broader range of smart devices, including wearables, Huawei Vision, and head units for cars.

China already has a strong app ecosystem and a massive user base; it just needs to have more apps for the rest of the international market. Moving forward, Huawei will lay the foundations for HarmonyOS in the Chinese market, and then expand it further to the global ecosystem. With a focus on providing new and unique value, Huawei will open up and share its core capabilities in areas like connectivity, cameras, and AI. HarmonyOS will bring incredible new benefits to consumers, equipment vendors and developers. For consumers, it will bring a cohesive and powerful intelligent experience across all aspects of their lives.

For equipment vendors, it will help them gain a firstmover advantage in the age of holistic intelligent experience, where 5G, AI and IoT will see explosive growth. At the same time, the OS will enable developers to win over more users with less investment, and rapidly innovate services across all scenarios.

“We believe HarmonyOS will revitalize the industry and enrich the ecosystem,” said Richard Yu. “Our goal is to bring people a truly engaging and diverse experience. We want to invite developers from around the world to join us as we build out this new ecosystem. Together, we will deliver an intelligent experience for consumers in all scenarios.” ■

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If you have any information / objection to the above mentioned application/s, please communicate with the Regional Director thru Employment Promotion and Workers Welfare (EPWW) Division with Telephone No. 400-6011.

ATTY. SARAH BUENA S. MIRASOL REGIONAL DIRECTOR

A26 Saturday, August 17, 2019

Latest innovations in personalized healthcare, health policy give hope to breast cancer patients

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T the forefront of the ever-changing landscape of breast cancer treatment, innovation and patient welfare were the primary focus of the Breast Cancer Summit held in April at the EDSA Shangri-La Hotel in Mandaluyong City.

Organized by Roche (Philippines) Inc. and the Philippine Society of Medical Oncology (PSMO), the summit gathered various distinguished speakers and doctors, who were witness to several case presentations, discussions on personalized healthcare, and the critical National Integrated Cancer Law. “The summit aims to bring both science and patient to the fore, realizing that it is through understanding both the patient journey and the science that produces the health outcomes, we will obtain our objective of raising the bar of breast cancer management,” remarked Dr. Jose Garcia Jr., FPCP, FPSMO, president of PSMO in his welcome note.

Dr. Dennis Tudtud contextualized the patient journey through the case of his

71-yearold patient, a school teacher from Cebu, who was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer. This patient was able to seek innovative treatment through enrollment in the phase III randomized control trial of Roche, CLEOPATRA, covering previously untreated patients with HER-2 positive metastatic breast cancer. Through this kind of innovation, the Philippines saw a continuous rise in the HER-2 positive breast cancer survival rate.

Further emphasis on optimizing outcomes for HER-2 positive breast cancer patients was discussed by Dr. Hassan Jaafar, a hematology and medical oncology specialist from the United Arab Emirates. His scientific key messages focused on the importance of multi-disciplinary team discussions, and the cost-effectiveness of treatment at the early setting for breast cancer.

The summit then explored the overarching themes of patient management.

The success of a patient’s journey relied

on four key points, according to Dr. Bill Ramos, Vice President of PSMO: “These include disease awareness, because disease and symptoms are essential for screening and early detection; healthcare capacity, since well-trained teams are needed to work together with the right equipment to provide the best chances for patients; diagnosis of the disease, as it can be complex, but is vital to ensuring the right treatment choice; and government intervention, since this is necessary to improve the provision of access and quality healthcare.”

The therapeutic approaches are now made more accessible in the Philippines through the groundbreaking National Integrated Cancer Control Act, also known as R.A. 11215, signed into law on February 14, 2019 by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte. Designed to institutionalize a national integrated cancer control program, the law strengthened the multidisciplinary approach for cancer patients in the Philippines.

Dr. Clarito Cairo Jr., FPSVI, FPCOM of the Philippine Cancer Prevention and Control described the law’s vision to provide optimized and comprehensive cancer care and an increase in cancer survival by 2025, aligned with the Universal Healthcare Law. Financial protection was vital in the program, therefore minimizing out-of-pocket expenses for Filipinos who seek cancer treatment and medication.

Bureau of Internal Revenues goes digital

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ith the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) going DIGITAL, that means compliance, reporting, filing of tax returns, payment of taxes for individuals and business enterprise, and auditing processes are now being automated and reengineered.

The Center for Global Best Practices launched a pioneering program entitled, Making Tax Digital held on August 14.

Former BIR Commissioner Joel L. Tan-Torres, CPA, shared valuable information on complying with various BIR eServices such as, but not limited to, eReg, eFPS, eBIRForms, TSP, e-CAR and how

these interconnects with other government agencies.

The program is highly recommended for business owners, board directors, C-level executives (CEOs, COOs, CFOs), accountants, and tax practitioners.

Learn how this digital transformation will affect you and your businesses. Visit www.cgbp.org for a complete list of best practices programs such as BIR Computerized Accounting System Compliance, LGU Taxation, How to Conduct Strategic Planning and Prepare Strategic Action Plans, Best Practices in Financial and Operational Budgeting, Strategy Execution and more.

Hyundai & Mutya Pilipinas Celebrate Beauty of the Filipina

MERALCO RATES DOWN FOR THE FOURTH STRAIGHT MONTH. The Manila Electric Company (Meralco) announced a Php 0.4176 per kilowatt hour (kWh) reduction in power rates this month.

The downward adjustment this month equates to Php 84 in total savings for a typical household consuming 200 kWh and represents a total net decrease of almost P1.00 per kWh since May 2019. Meralco Public Information Office Head Joe Zaldarriaga (in photo) explained that the overall rate reduction is primarily due to lower charges from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM), brought about by improved supply conditions in the Luzon grid. For more information, customers may visit Meralco’s website at www. meralco.com.ph or its social media accounts on Twitter (@meralco) and Facebook (www. facebook.com/meralco).

Ayala North Exchange: The new gateway to Makati CBD

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yala Land, Inc. (ALI) marked yet another milestone as it officially opened the Ayala North Exchange – the newest gateway to the Makati central business district which is seen to revitalize and strengthen Makati’s position as the premier business capital of the Philippines.

Located along the northern portion of Ayala Avenue, Ayala North Exchange is a twin tower, mixed-use development with a combined gross leasable area of approximately 96,000 square meters.

The two office towers stand above a three-level retail podium with approximately 8,000 square meters of restaurants and shopping spaces. Located in one office tower is the Seda Residences Makati, the first serviced apartment and the 10th property in the Philippines under the Seda Hotels brand.

The development also features a 2,600-square-meter civic space connected to Makati’s elevated walkway for increased connectivity and pedestrian mobility.

The Ayala North Exchange is one of the latest additions to the portfolio of

AyalaLand Offices, the country’s leader in the office real estate sector with over 1.1 million square meters of leasable space in key cities nationwide. AyalaLand Offices offers a comprehensive line of prime office real estate solutions found in strategic sites with large populations or central business districts.

“We take into account the varying needs of our clientele, among whom are leading multinational corporations and BPOs, and develop our properties according to global standards complemented by amenities and reliable facilities management,” said Ayala Land Offices head Carol Mills.

At the formal opening of Ayala North Exchange were, from left: Al Legaspi President & CEO, Ayala Land Hotels & Resorts Corporation; Carol Mills, Head, Ayala Land Offices; Junie Jalandoni, SVP & Commercial Business Group Head, Ayala Land; Makati Mayor Abby Binay; Bobby Dy, President & CEO, Ayala Land; Makati Vice Mayor Monique Lagdameo; Manny Blas, Makati & BGC Estate Head, Ayala Land; and Yeng Tupaz, Head, Ayala Malls.

Mr. Big Pillow Introduces the Healthy Way of Sleeping

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orty aspiring Mutya Pilipinas candidates strike a pose with Hyundai H350 vans during the candidates’ fitting and fashion shoot at BGC, Taguig City.

Leading automotive firm Hyundai Asia Resources, Inc. (HARI) has partnered with Mutya Pilipinas, Inc. (MPI) to be the official eco-tourism mobility provider of Mutya Pilipinas 2019 this August. A fleet of 14-seater Hyundai H350 luxury vans will transport the 40 Mutyas (“muse” or “darling” in Filipino) and organizers during the entire course of pageant activities. The Mutya Pilipinas Grand Coronation Night is scheduled on August 18 at SM MOA Arena to be broadcast via ABSCBN. Beautiful cars. Beautiful women.

Beautiful advocacies.

“Every day, Hyundai provides worldclass quality vehicles to ease the lives of thousands of Filipinos. It is only fitting that we provide the same comfort and safety for our Mutyas who are not just beautiful but also driven by their chosen causes. Hyundai and Mutya Pilipinas are proud to showcase strong and empowered women in particular, and the beauty of the Philippines in general,” said HARI

President & CEO Ma. Fe Perez-Agudo.

Since 1968, Mutya Pilipinas has empowered young Filipinas to be global ambassadors. Beauty Tourism is its main advocacy that promotes the core values of sustainable tourism, social responsibility, fashion, and beauty pageantry. The winners of Mutya Pilipinas are sent to prestigious international pageants namely Miss Asia Pacific International, Miss Tourism International, and World Top Model.

“We are grateful and excited to collaborate with Hyundai as our official ecotourism mobility partner. Mutya Pilipinas is one with Hyundai in empowering women and championing local tourism” said new Mutya Pilipinas President and National Director, TV personality and wellness guru Cory Quirino.

Under her stewardship, the 51st Mutya Pilipinas conducted a grassroots search across the country and overseas Filipino communities. The pageant has been known to launch the careers of women who have shined in their respective fields.

“Hyundai is deeply committed in ensuring a sustainable future. We recently rolled out the Alagang Breastfriend

Mobile Diagnostic Clinic, the very first of its kind in the country for breast cancer detection and prevention. This customized Hyundai H-350 luxury van is equipped with state-of the-art facilities and is being deployed in underserved communities,” Ms. Perez-Agudo added.

To support the Company recently introduced the first commerciallyavailable electric vehicle in the country – the Hyundai Kona Electric. In 2018, Hyundai launched the first mass-market hybrid – the Hyundai Ioniq – which currently retails at P1.5 million.

Hyundai has been driving the success of regional conferences, forums, and events such as the ASEAN Finance Ministers’ Investor Seminar (AFMIS) and the 23rd World Economic Forum East Media Release August 9, 2019 For publication and broadcast Page 3 of 3 Asia (WEF-EA) in 2014, ASEAN 50 Summit and the ASEAN Business and Investment Summit (ABIS) in 2017, ASEAN Biodiversity Heroes in 2018, and the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) Motorsports Conference also last year.

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OU may be sleeping for 6-8 hours every night, but are you really getting enough sleep? Medical science has put a stereotype on the amount of sleep a person should be getting but we fail to grasp that it should also equate to a good and healthy sleep.

Chawakit Kaoien, founder of Mr. Big Pillow is a physical therapist who spent years working in the ICU of a hospital’s respiratory unit and was in-charge of bedridden critical care patients and see to it that they are kept comfortable and could breathe properly. This led him to develop a brand of pillows that would benefit every individual.

Over the years, Chawakit hacked the right density of pillows as well as its best position to address your sleeping concerns. Every individual is different, thus, we cannot conform to just one type of pillow.

The 9 pillow named following its shape, the 9 pillow is an ergonomic solution for those who prefer to sleep on their sides. While the Jay and 7 Pillow are best for both side and back sleeper who requires leg support.

Chawakit also developed the Body Scale pillow to conform to each individual’s height

and weight as well as their usual sleep position.

Smaller people require thinner pillows that are softer. A pillow that is too thick and that has too much density may result to a stiff neck in the morning and can worsen with a chronic back pain.

While those on the heftier side will benefit from thicker pillow which has more density. A big person, particularly a “side sleeper” needs a thick pillow that provides a lot of support.

By using the appropriate pillow according to your height and weight as well as each individual’s condition, you can maintain a good quality of sleep and overall health. Use this test to assess which type of pillow is right for you: http://www.mrbigbestfit.com/phone/ index.html Mr. Big pillows are stuffed with Elasta Fiber, a material imported from the UK that provides optimum cushioning and will not clump over time. The finishing fabric are 100% cotton, hypo allergenic and dust mite resistant.

Mr. Big pillows and sleep essentials are available in selected SM Homes.

Visit https://www.facebook.com/ MrBigPillowPhilippines/ for more information.