BusinessMirror July 02, 2019

14TH-MONTH PAY, PUBLIC SERVICE ACT, ‘MEGA CEBU’ BODY AMONG EARLY BILLS

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz @joveemarie

& Butch Fernandez @butchfBM

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AWMAKERS started filing their pet bills on Monday, as the term of the 18th Congress began, with Senate President Vicente Sotto III listing measures he will personally push, including a law mandating the grant of 14th-month pay to workers.

In the House of Representatives, among the first bills filed were those increasing the minimum wage bill and repealing two key

LABORERS are seen busy at work in Clark economic zone in Pampanga in this BusinessMirror file photo. One of the first priority bills filed at the start of the term of the 18th Congress on Monday is a measure providing for a 14th-month pay for Filipino workers. NONOY LACZA

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2006 National Newspaper of the Year 2011 National Newspaper of the Year 2013 Business Newspaper of the Year 2017 Business Newspaper of the Year 2019 Business Newspaper of the Year

reforms enacted during the 17th Congress: the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law and the Rice Tariffication Law. The members of the 18th HOR also filed a divorce bill and another allowing medical marijuana.

In filing the enabling bill to be tackled soon as lawmakers convene the first regular session of the 18th Congress on July 22, Sotto invoked Article II, Section 18 of the Constitution, which specifically provides that “the State affirms labor as a primary social economic force” and mandating it to “protect the rights of workers

See “14th-month pay,” A12

BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business

www.businessmirror.com.ph

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Tuesday, July 2, 2019 Vol. 14 No. 265

‘6% Q2 growth doable with big-ticket projects’

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By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

HE resumption of the construction of the government’s big-ticket infrastructure projects will enable the economy to post a growth of 6 percent in the second quarter of the year, according to a local think tank.

In its latest Market Call report, First Metro Investment Corp. and University of Asia and the Pacific (FMIC-UA&P) Capital Markets Research said apart from higher infrastructure spending, the country still enjoys low inflation.

“Although we think the economy

will recover in Q2, [because of] the high base a year ago and the weak numbers for April, the pace may hover around 6.0 percent, good enough to revive positive sentiment in all economic players,” FMICUA&P said.

The report projected a recovery

in the second quarter despite the 5.7-percent decline in infrastructure spending in April to P59.7 billion due to the budget impasse and the election ban.

Inflation, FMIC-UA&P Capital Markets Research noted, increased to 3.2 percent in April. This has

₧59.7B The level of infrastructure spending in April, representing a decline of 5.7 percent due to the budget impasse and the election ban

brought the year-to-date or January to April 2019 inflation rate to 3.5 percent.

The think tank said inflation will likely return to the 3-percent level by June and will continue to slow in the coming months.

“Even more, the collapse in crude oil prices into bear market territory [low-$50 for West Texas Intermediate] supports a more fundamental See “Q2 growth,” A2

Oil prices increase by over ₧1

See “Oil prices,” A12

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JUNE MANUFACTURING INDEX SUBDUED AT 51.3

By Bianca Cuaresma @BcuaresmaBM

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LOWER demand hounded the manufacturing sector toward the end of 2019’s first half, leaving factories to stock up on inventories to yield a flat growth in June, a think tank said.

In its monthly release of the findings of the Philippines’s Purchasing Managers’ Index. IHS Markit said the country’s PMI rose slightly from 51.2 in May to 51.3 in June.

According to the think tank, the latest figure signaled a “still subdued picture” for the manufacturing sector, with the reading among the lowest in the three-and-a-halfyear history despite being highest since March.

The PMI is a composite index meant to gauge the health of the country’s manufacturing sector. It is calculated as a weighted average of five individual subcomponents.

Readings above the 50 threshold signal a growth in the manufacturing sector, while readings below 50 show deterioration in the industry.

By Rea Cu

@llectura

RICES of petroleum products are on the rise for the third consecutive week.

Oil companies on Monday announced a per-liter increase in gasoline products of more than a peso, and nearly a peso per liter in upward adjustment for diesel.

In separate advisories, oil firms said they would implement at 6 a.m. of Tuesday, July 2, a P1.20 per liter price increase in gasoline, P0.95 per liter in diesel and P1 per liter in kerosene.

The price increase was announced by Pilipinas Shell, Phoenix Petroleum Corp., Petro Gazz, PPT Philippines, Total Philippines and Seaoil Philippines. The adjustment in local pump prices reflects movements in the world oil market.

In particular, the Department of Energy (DOE) cited mixed reaction on the easing market concerns about the possibility of a US-Iran conflict and declining crude demand, especially in view of the trade conflict between the US and China.

Also, it said that some analysts see crude supply to remain tight as the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) and its

The Philippine manufacturing sector ranked third among seven countries in Southeast Asia being monitored by IHS Markit. It is, however, above the regional average of 49.7.

Myanmar’s manufacturing sector was the fastest-growing for the month, with a PMI of 53; followed

by Vietnam’s 52.5. Following the Philippines is Thailand at 50.6 and Indonesia also at 50.6.

Malaysia, meanwhile, recorded a successive month of deterioration in manufacturing conditions with a PMI of 47.8, while Singapore was the worst performing for the month at 42.9.

IHS Markit economist David Owen said certain factors suggest that Filipino manufacturers were facing a weakening growth environment in June.

“Output growth was solid, but new orders increased only modestly and at the slowest pace since last July. Instead, firms appeared to focus on stock-building; finished goods inventories grew for the See “Manufacturing,” A12

MICP to net ₧.4B from additional MDM tariff; traders fear bankruptcy

By Lenie Lectura

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and promote their welfare.”

The Senate leader told the BusinessMirror that a House counterpart bill mandating the 14th-month benefit is set to be filed by Reps.

Precious Hipolito and Kit Belmonte in order to fast-track simultaneous passage of the 14th-month-pay bill in the two chambers.

“We recognize the indispensable need to provide our Filipino laborers, both from the public and private sectors, additional 14th-month pay,” Sotto said, noting that “every now and then, various labor groups have been petitioning for the increase in minimum wage.”

@ReaCuBM

& Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

T LANCE GOKONGWEI (left), JG Summit Holdings CEO; Manuel V. Pangilinan, PLDT chairman and CEO; and Arthur Ty (right), chairman of Metrobank, share a light moment at the 2019 Pre-Sona Economic and Infrastructure Forum on “Game Changing Reforms for Sustainable Development” held at PICC on Monday. The forum affirmed the reformist direction of the economic thrusts in the last half of the Duterte administration. NONIE REYES

‘A’ credit rating for PHL in 18 months–Diwa

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HE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said on Monday receiving an “A” credit rating could take just 18 months for the Philippines.

In a press briefing at the PreState of the Nation Address (Sona) forum in Pasay City on Monday, outgoing BSP Deputy Governor Diwa C. Guinigundo said a technical working group has already been

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n

created to work toward this end of helping the Philippines attain the highest credit rating.

The group is cochaired by the Department of Finance (DOF), the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) and the BSP. “Probably we can expect some kind of an outbreak in the next 18 months. But we’re still talking of two other major credit-rating

agencies, Moody’s and Fitch Ratings. So it’s not only Standard & Poors but t he ot her t wo,” Guinigundo said.

“We need the support of all the other government agencies so that we can address all the outstanding issues raised by the different credit-rating agencies,” he added.

See “Credit rating,” A2

@jearcalas

HE Bureau of Customs (BOC) said it expects the Manila International Container Port (MICP) to net an additional P400 million from the collection of the 35-percent tariff difference from importers of mechanically deboned meat (MDM) of chicken.

BOC Spokesman Erastus Sandino B. Austria told the BusinessMirror via SMS that the collection of additional tariff is for MDM shipments that passed through the MICP from March 5 to May 16.

“This [collection of tariff difference] is an effort to boost MICP’s collection. My recommendation to the [BOC] commissioner is to require the other ports to do the same,” said Austria, who is also MICP’s district collector.

The BOC is not budging on its position that the collection of the 35-percent tariff difference is correct, saying it followed the law in demanding more money from traders who paid a lower tariff of 5 percent on MDM shipments after the rice trade liberalization took effect.

Austria cited Executive Order (EO) 23 issued by President Duterte in April 2017, particularly, Section 6, which pertained to the effectivity of the order.

“This Order…shall be applicable until June 30, 2020, or until such time that a law amending certain provisions to rice tariffication in RA 8178 is enacted, whichever comes first after which the MFN [Most Favored Nation] rates of duty as provided for in Columns 8 of Annexes A and B shall then apply,” the EO read.

Chicken MDM is a key component for processed-meat products, such as hot dogs and canned luncheon meat.

Bankruptcy

SMALL meat traders and processors could go bankrupt if the BOC pursues the collection of the 35-percent tariff difference on some imported MDM of chicken, an industry group said.

The Meat Importers and Traders Association (Mita) made this warning after the BOC stood pat on its decision to demand more money from traders who paid a lower tariff of 5 percent on chicken MDM. See “MICP,” A2

US 51.2330 n JAPAN 0.4734 n UK 65.0505 n HK 6.5577 n CHINA 7.4629 n SINGAPORE 37.9139 n AUSTRALIA 36.0270 n EU 58.2058 n SAUDI ARABIA 13.6625

Source: BSP (1 July 2019 )

News

BusinessMirror

A2 Tuesday, July 2, 2019

Hike in ecozone locators’ GIE to 8% to yield ₧30B

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By Elijah Felice E. Rosales

LOPEZ said current discussions between economic managers point to extending the transition period to 10 years, from five years, or allowing economic zone firms to keep paying tax on gross income but on a higher rate.

Once the GIE rate is raised to 8 percent, the government will generate an additional P30 billion to P40 billion yearly in tax collections.

This will put annual revenue from GIE to as much as P100 billion, from some P60 billion at present.

“This is what will happen under this proposal. If we permit the grandfathering and locators agree to pay higher GIE, at least we will have additional and immediate revenue. Those guys will add about P30 billion to P40 billion [to] our revenue,” the trade chief explained.

However, Lopez said the government will most likely stick to its plan of reducing CIT to 20 percent by 2029, from 30 percent at present, in a move rejecting the business sector’s plea to cut corporate tax within a span of five years.

“The bottom line of the Trabaho bill is it has to be revenue-neutral.

To me, the bigger part [of the measure] is the 30 percent to 20 percent reduction in CIT,” Lopez argued.

The Trabaho bill is the second package of the government’s comprehensive tax reform program aimed at rearranging the country’s fiscal structure.

It passed the House of Representative in the 17th Congress, but failed to get through the Senate.

Lawmakers from the upper chamber feared its passage could result in losses in investments and, in the

process, employment.

Economic zone firms earlier asked the government to allow them to keep paying tax on gross income instead of CIT, and suggested raising the GIE rate to 7 percent as a compromise.

However, finance officials insisted on pushing for drastic overhaul of the country’s corporate tax and incentives regime on the belief that investors will keep on coming in even if tax perks are rationalized. This created an uncertain investment environment that stalled expansion plans and scared off potential investors.

Investments registered with the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) slumped 40.97 percent to P140.24 billion, from P237.57 billion in 2019, which officials attributed to the uncertainties brought about by the Trabaho bill.

it is the Philippines’s performance in the panda bond market.

Guinigundo said the Philippines achieved a tight spread of 32 basis points above benchmark when it returned to the renminbi bond market in May 2019.

“If you recall, we raised funds through the panda bond market and they gave us 32 basis points. A bond that is given a 32 basis points above the benchmark is actually triple A. So, as far as China is concerned, the Philippines enjoys ‘AAA’ credit rating,” Guinigundo said.

Guinigundo said a credit-rating upgrade from the Japan Credit Rating Agency (JCRA) was also imminent given that the Philippines already enjoyed a “BBB” rating with a positive outlook from the ratings agency.

Earlier, the BSP said it is looking to finalize—along with the DOF— a road map to ensure a calibrated approach to the Philippines’s “active pursuit of an A level rating.”

In May, the Philippines received its highest credit rating from a major ratings agency to date, as S&P Global Ratings announced that it is assigning a “BBB+” rating on the country’s

long-term sovereign credit rating.

With just a notch away from the “A” level rating, Guinigundo said they are now embarking on an agenda called the “Road to A.” He said the BSP and the DOF are eyeing to organize an interagency committee that would formalize this road map.

Moving forward, Guinigundo said their goal is to sustain policy and structural reforms, which he said is one of the nonnegotiable keys to an upgrade aside from continuous engagement with the creditrating agencies. Cai U. Ordinario

@alyasjah

T least P30 billion will be added to government coffers under the economic team’s plan to increase to 8 percent the tax on gross income paid by economic zone firms, Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez disclosed on Monday.

Lopez said the government could re-file a version of the Tax Reform for Attracting Better and Highquality Opportunities (Trabaho) bill with changes on the component of tax perks rationalization. One of the changes, he revealed, is raising the tax rate on gross income earned (GIE) to 8 percent, from 5 percent at present.

“We are talking of [a longer] transition [period] or possible grandfathering through increasing the GIE rate, [as] a GIE rate hike will have immediate revenue improvement,” Lopez said in an interview with reporters.

Under the original version of the measure, existing economic zone firms will be provided with up to five years to relinquish their

Credit rating. . .

Continued from A1

Guinigundo earlier said the country needs to increase its per-capita income and address efforts to enhance its potential input.

The Philippines also needs to strengthen the external payments buffers, keep prices stable, fortify public finance and elevate governance standards.

However, he said on Monday that if there’s any indication that the country could make it,

incentives before shifting to paying corporate income tax (CIT). Locators, however, are opposed to this.

They said they might move out of the Philippines and relocate to another Southeast Asian economy if the government makes drastic changes in the incentives regime.

Transition

Palawan resort. . .

Continued from A12

In an e-mail to this paper, Banwa General Manager Rochelle Kilgariff said the resort’s owners are “committed to complying with all government requirements, applicable laws, rules and regulations,” adding that they have been able to secure “the relevant permits from the local government and an ECC [environmental clearance certificate] from the DENR.” The owner, Ecoresort Development Corp. (ERDC)—not the Aquos Foundation Inc., as an Aquos official earlier claimed—filed its application for accreditation with the DOT in February 2019, according to Kilgariff, and is readying for the task force inspection next week.

She stressed, “pending the actual issuance of the DOT accreditation, ERDC has not commenced actual operations and accepted any bookings from paying guests.” Industry sources, claimed, however, there have been a number of guests that had already stayed at the island resort, said to cost $100,000 (P5.2 million) a night, for a minimum of three nights or $300,000 (P15.6 million). The amount covers the nightly accommodations in villas, food and other amenities for 48 persons.

After its worldwide publicity promotion in a number of international publications, would-be guests were encouraged to call the resort’s private concierge and sales staff listed on its web site. The site now has notification saying,“Banwa Private Island will become wholly available for charter upon finalization of pending regulatory documentation, which is expected imminently.”

The Duterte administration, through the interagency task force, has tightened its regulations on the opening of hotels and resort establishments, after indiscriminate building on Boracay Island was partially blamed as the cause of overtourism on the island, leading to environmental pollution. The task force has been monitoring other island destinations in the country for possible pollution and easement issues, as well as accreditation problems. Among these are Panglao Island in Bohol, Siargao Island in Surigao del Norte, El Nido and Coron in Palawan.

DOT sources said Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat was incensed that the resort had opened sans accreditation, quickly instructing the agency’s TRCRG department to make sure Banwa’s papers were in order.

The DILG has also investigated why the local government of Roxas, Palawan, allowed Banwa to be issued a business permit to operate without the DOT accreditation.

(See, “‘Most expensive resort in the world’ under DILG probe, faces closure,” in the BusinessMirror, May 24, 2019.)

MICP. . .

Continued from A1

Mita President Jesus C. Cham said the BOC was remiss in its duty as it failed to immediately update its system to reflect the reversion of the chicken MDM tariff to 40 percent upon the effectivity of Republic Act 11203.

Mita has appealed anew to Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia to halt the collection of tariffs by the BOC to prevent small importers and processors from going out of business. “We note the Collector’s argument that the attempt to collect the difference retroactively is ‘in fact a prospective application of the law’. We are perplexed as to how something could be both retroactive and prospective at the same time,” Cham said in his letter to Pernia submitted on Monday.

“It was neither the fault nor the doing of importers that the E2M system did not reflect the increased duty rate. The importers were merely going about their business as usual,” said the letter, a copy of which was obtained by the BusinessMirror.

Citing the MICP, Cham said the 35-percent tariff difference to be collected from importers and processors could reach over P400 million.

This, Cham noted, doesn’t include yet figures from South Harbor, which he said could also be “substantial.”

“It will bankrupt small importers. Their imported products have been sold and consumed into the economy at the Landed Cost computed at 5 percent import duty,” he said.

“The economy and consumers have both benefited. To require the importers to pay the difference retroactively would be, to our minds, unjust,” he added.

But for small players that would remain in the business, they will be forced to hike their costs, which would result in higher prices of some processed-meat products just to recoup their losses, Cham added.

Sugar lib. . .

Continued from A12

In an earlier interview with the BusinessMirror, he pegged P2,000 per 50-kilogram bag for refined sugar as a reasonable price range that should keep food processors competitive. “I used to be pro-liberalization. However, my premise now is if producers and traders can commit to make prices of sugar competitive, then there is no need for liberalization. We just need that commitment from the suppliers,” Lopez said.

The average price of refined sugar in Metro Manila is P2,230 per 50-kilo bag, according to latest price monitoring of the Sugar Regulatory Administration. On the other hand, mill-site price declined 24.33 percent to P1,530 in the third week of June, from P2,022.54 during the same period last year.

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is working with

“If we permit the grandfathering and locators agree to pay higher GIE, at least we will have additional and immediate revenue.

Those guys will add about P30 billion to P40 billion [to] our revenue.”—Lopez

‘Unjust’

IN his letter, Cham said it was BOC’s own wrongdoing for not implementing the necessary tariff changes in its system.

Cham pointed out that BOC was “unsure” and “uncertain” on the imposition of 40 percent tariff “as it had to seek advice and guidance from the Tariff Commission.”

The BOC, he added, did not even inform importers that the 5-percent tariff on chicken MDM from March 5 to May 16 would be tentative pending the clarification on duties by higher government officials.

Cham also said the retroactive payment of duties due to the government’s “lapses” is “unprecedented.”

“Customs should have informed the importers that the 5-percent duty rate had become tentative, but it did not,” he said.

The Mita chief said importers entered their shipments in good faith and based the duties to be paid on BOC’s E2M system.

Due to this, Cham said the BOC could not treat the issue as a “post-clearance audit” case since the shipments underwent legal processes and customs officials collected the tariffs accordingly.

“The entries were deemed in order, the duties collected and shipments released. Hence, there can be no question over the declared values or the E2M duty rate at that time and thus, no justification to treat these as Post-Clearance Audit cases,” he said.

“It is quite obvious the importers are innocent bystanders and hapless victims of the ‘system’,” he added.

Citing Section 430 of the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act, Austria argued that the BOC is authorized to assess and collect revenues from imported goods even after the shipments were cleared and released.

“In the absence of fraud and when the goods have been finally assessed and released, the assessment shall be conclusive upon all parties three [3] years from the date of final payment of duties and taxes, or upon completion of the post clearance audit,” Section 430 of the CMTA read. the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in investigating possible involvement by traders in manipulation and overpricing.

“The DTI is also now looking into the issue on traders to make sure no manipulation or overpricing is happening. That is an effort [where] we are working with the NBI, as it requires intelligence work to help us in that aspect,” Lopez earlier said.

Food processors and exporters are claiming injury, especially among small firms, from the import restriction, as it makes them less competitive in Southeast Asia.

They said refined sugar in Thailand is priced between P31 and P34 per kilo, cheaper than the P60 to P65 per kilo range in the Philippines. However, the industry is missing out the point that is sugar production in Thailand is heavily subsidized.

Bangkok last year approved some $212.74 million of financial assistance to its sugar farmers for this year’s crop activities, as well as government subsidy of about $297.83 million.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Remove 300K cars from Edsa and traffic will improve–Villar E

DSA has become the country’s symbol of congestion, with bottlenecks and hours of delay becoming the new normal for the everyday Filipino in Metro Manila. The chief of the government’s infrastructure cluster, however, has vowed to change this by rerouting vehicular traffic from the metropolis’s main artery to new roads in the next three years.

Public Works Secretary Mark A. Villar said the key to smooth sailing on Edsa is the reduction of vehicles on the road. He estimates that as many as 300,000 cars have to be removed from Edsa to achieve an “acceptable level of traffic.”

“When you talk about Metro Manila, you don’t have to look further than Edsa as the symbol of congestion,” he said. “We need to take out 250,000 to 300,000 cars from Edsa to bring it back to capacity.”

It is estimated that almost 800,000 vehicles pass daily through Edsa, which has a rated capacity of only 280,000

vehicles per day.

Villar explained that to remove this number of vehicles from Edsa requires the government to deliver critical road infrastructure to serve as alternatives for motorists and commuters.

He listed the following facilities as well as their projected vehicular traffic as a means to reducing the number of cars on Edsa: Skyway Stage 3 (100,000 vehicles), Connector Road (50,000 vehicles), C-6 (50,000 vehicles), Pasig-Santa Monica Bridge and Estrella-Pantaleon Bridge (50,000 vehicles).

“When all these are finished, we will be able to bring back Edsa to its former state, which is acceptable traffic. Rest assured this dream of Edsa is not a dream.

It’s come from the point of inevitability.

We will decongest Edsa,” Villar said.

When all these have been completed, and vehicular traffic has been transposed to other roads, Villar said travel time from Edsa’s ending point in the north to the south would be around 15 minutes “at normal speed.” Lorenz S. Marasigan

AFP hosts 2nd Asean depot for disaster gear, supplies

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HE government officially put up a depot facility for goods and equipment that will manage and use jointly with other Asean members as the regional bloc agreed to respond to disasters as a single body.

The warehouse, which will stockpile emergency relief items and other logistical requirements, was put up at the compound of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Logistics Command in Quezon City.

The facility was inaugurated on Monday by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and Asean officials.

It is meant to ensure the timely provision of assistance to disasterstricken areas, both in the country and in other Asean members.

The warehouse will be jointly managed by the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) and the Asean Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Centre). It was supported by the government of Japan through the Japan-Asean Integration Fund (JAIF).

Executive Director Ricardo Jalad of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), who is also OCD administrator, said the facility forms part of the network of Asean satellite warehouses across the region.

The other satellite warehouse, recently launched during the 34th

Q2 growth. . .

Continued from A1

easing of the inflation rate for the third quarter,” FMIC-UA&P Capital Markets Research said.

Exports rebound

MEANWHILE, the think tank said exports are expected to rebound in the Japanese and Chinese markets in the coming months to counter any threats to the country’s export earnings.

The think tank added that the recovery of the United States economy would help improve the country’s export performance moving forward.

For his part, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia told reporters on Monday the recent announcement that the US and China have agreed to resume trade talks will be good for the economy.

Wire reports on Monday said US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping have reached a temporary agreement to

Asean Summit, is located in Chainat, Thailand.

The Department of National Defense (DND) provided the location for the warehouse in Camp Aguinaldo, converting a portion of the AFP Logcom depot for the store room.

“The venue to store such goods must be strong to withstand nature’s wrath, readily accessible to our disaster managers and responders, and allow the effective storage, as well as quick and easy bulk transport of these items to locations where they are most needed. The spot provided by the DND is helpful for this purpose,” Jalad said.

The inauguration was graced

by Thailand’s Ambassador to the Philippines H.E. Vasin Ruangprateepsaeng, Counsellor and Vice Consul of the Royal Thai Embassy Rathanand Vichaidit; Minister Makoto Iyori and Second Secretary Shintaro Ichichiri of the Embassy of Japan; AHA Centre Executive Director Adelina Kamal and Deputy Executive Director Arnel Capili.

It was also attended by representatives of the World Food Programme, USAID, EU and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Activities, and representatives from embassies of Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, Australia, Russia, the United Kingdom and Switzerland. Rene Acosta resume US-China trade talks at the recent Group of 20 (G-20) meeting in Japan over the weekend.

“At least for the meantime, there’s a lull so that will be better than no lull,” Pernia said at the sidelines of the Pre-State of the Nation Address (Sona) forum in Pasay City on Monday.

Meanwhile, FMIC-UA&P Capital Markets Research said the economy’s growth will also be supported by the growth in imports in capital goods.

In March, the think tank said imports, which grew double-digit in March, is expected to continue for the rest of the year.

It noted that big-ticket PPP projects are “in full steam, while infrastructure expenditures should renew their run after the approval of the NG budget by mid-April,” citing the MRT 7, Cavite-Laguna Expressway, Nlex-Slex Connector, and LRT Train Extension to Bacoor, Cavite” among the big-ticket projects.

Earlier, Pernia said growth in the import of capital goods could indicate that firms are making long-term investments.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

The Nation

briefs EDDIE GARCIA CASE, A WAKE-UP CALL TO BIZ OWNERS–GORDON PHILIPPINE Red Cross (PRC) Chairman Richard J. Gordon on Monday reminded all business establishments to employ trained first aiders who will be tasked to look after the safety of their employees following the incident involving the injury and subsequent death of veteran prized actor Eddie Garcia.

The senator expressed concern over the alleged absence of trained first aiders and ambulance during the shooting, adding that the incident is a wake-up call for business owners to follow the provisions under the Republic Act (RA) 11058, or the “Act Strengthening Compliance with Occupational, Safety and Health Standards,” which mandates business owners to have workers undertake first-aid training from PRC, or any recognized organization.

“There could have been a better chance of survival if Eddie’s case was handled properly. There should be a schooled way of saving lives whenever such preventable incidents happen. The Red Cross is calling on companies, regardless of size and industries, to have trained first aiders who will look after the safety of their employees,” Gordon said. Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

SC JUNKS PLEAS TO REVIEW V.C.M. SOURCE CODES THE Supreme Court on Monday announced the dismissal of the petitions for mandamus seeking to compel the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to allow groups to open and review the source code in the vote-counting machines (VCM) provided for under Republic Act 9369, or the Election Modernization Act of 1997.

In an en banc decision dated April 30 but was released to the media only yesterday, the Court also denied the motion of the petitioners—Sen. Richard J. Gordon, the Bagumbayan-NVP Movement Inc. and Tanggulang Demokrasya— to hold former Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. in contempt for his failure to comply with his commitments to the Court during the May 8, 2013, oral arguments to, among others, make the source code available for review and to grant more time to the parties to comply with the requirements to do so.

“In deciding that Chairman Brillantes is not liable for indirect contempt, the Court focuses solely on the undertakings that were directly promised to the Court, not those which the petitioner feels were promised,” the SC added. Joel R. San Juan

IMMIGRATION AUTHORITIES BAR ENTRY OF S. KOREAN FUGITIVE A SOUTH Korean fugitive was barred from entering the country on Saturday at the premier gateway and was sent back to Tokyo on the same plane he boarded.

Airport Immigration Operations Chief Grifton Medina said the 63-year-old Chung Chan-ik, who was recently convicted for high tech and intellectual-property crimes by the Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office in Korea, was immediately excluded hours after he arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3.

“It appears that he fled to Japan after he was convicted and intended to hide in the Philippines afterwards,” Medina said. According to Atty. Rommel Tacorda, head of immigration’s border control and intelligence unit, Chung was the subject of a red notice from Interpol issued on June 18. Recto Mercene

BusinessMirror

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Tuesday, July 2, 2019 A3

Defense chief says suicide bomber behind Sulu attack

By Rene Acosta @reneacostaBM

D

EFENSE Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana on Monday confirmed the blast that rocked a military camp in Sulu over the weekend was a case of suicide bombing, making it the third such incident in Mindanao in a span of three years that also raised the level of extremism in the country.

The defense chief issued the pronouncement as police and military officials worked to ascertain the nationalities of the suspects behind the successive explosions that hit the camp of the Army’s 1st Brigade Combat Team (1st BCT) at Barangay Kajatian in Indanan, Sulu, on Friday.

“That is evident [suicide bombing] from the report of the soldiers because this guy knocked on the gate so the guard went near to ask what the person need. When the guard was at the gate, the person exploded, so it is obviously a suicide bombing,” Lorenzana said.

“This has raised the level of extremism here and I think, we have a lot of work to do, to talk to the leaders on the ground, the traditional leaders, the sultans, the datus, and also the Barmm [Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao]. I think they do not want that happening in their area. They want a Barmm that is peaceful,” the defense chief added.

Three soldiers, three civilians and the two bombers were killed during the explosion using a still unknown type of explosive. A second blast, which followed minute later at the camp’s billeting area also wounded 22 others, including 12 soldiers.

National Police chief Director General Oscar Albayalde said police ordinance experts are working with the military in order to identify the type of bomb that was used during the successive bombings, which he also believed, were suicide bombings as had been claimed by the Islamic State (IS).

“I think these people have identities. I really don’t know if there was a Moroccan, but as per reports, they have been identified. I don’t know if the pictures were shown, but there are pictures in the Internet wherein the IS claimed they were the ones responsible for the twin bombings,” Albayalde said.

Over the weekend, newly installed Armed Forces Western Mindanao Command Commander Maj. General Cirilito Sobejana said that one of the suicide bombers was a son of a Moroccan, who was responsible for the July 2017 suicide bombing in Lamitan City, Basilan.

The Moroccan, driving a vehicle laden with explosives, was on its way to a ceremony marking the end of a feeding program for about 4,000 children when he was intercepted at a checkpoint by soldiers just outside

the city proper, blowing himself up.

“The likelihood that it was a suicide bombing was very high, but I wanted to confirm it properly, even with the nationalities of the bombers. One of the bombers had his head, he was Asian looking, but we could not ascertain if it was an Indonesian, Malaysian or Filipino,” Sobejana said.

“But the other one was young, he looked like the kid of the Moroccan, the one who detonated the bomb in Lamitan, Basilan,” he added.

Sobejana said they checked the boy’s profile and also compared it with the video that they have with the father and son, which was taken when he was still the commander of the military’s Joint Task Force Sulu.

“We were able to get a video of them in one of our encounters, we were able to recover their recorded CD inside. That time, he was only about 11 years old, so that was three years ago. So this time, he was already about 14 years old. So, the profile matched with that of the boy,” the local military commander said.

However, Albayalde said the possibility that the boy was a son of the Moroccan still needed to go through exhaustive investigation and validation, including on the nationalities of the two bombers.

He said that if one of them was a Filipino, then this would be their first report about a Filipino who may have took part in a suicide

bombing mission.

Sobejana said that one possibility that they were looking at was that the bombs, although carried in plastic bags by the suicide bombers, may have been remotely detonated.

Lorenzana dismissed insinuations that the twin bombings proved the failure of the existing martial rule in Mindanao, which had been in effect in the whole island since May 2017 following the siege of Marawi City by a mixture of local and foreign fighters identified with the IS. “Martial law actually is not the solution to all these because anybody, an individual or two individuals can just go anywhere because we have not controlled the movement of people in Mindanao. You can basically go anywhere you want without any checkpoints,” he said.

“Sometimes, you just go, let them go. We just have checkpoints in areas that are dangerous, from one island to another, but within the island, you can go anywhere,” he added.

The defense chief said the latest case of suicide bombings highlighted the situation of security in Mindanao.

“This is actually very important development in the south… this is the third one. The first one was in Lamitan, the second was the Cathedral in Jolo, and this is the third one.

So it’s becoming an occurrence and we are very much concerned about this,” Lorenzana said.

A4 Tuesday, July 2, 2019 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

Economy BusinessMirror

The economy must serve the people and not vice versa!

By Henry J. Schumacher

OLLOWING the F successful EITSC Advocacy Forum

on “Sustainable Development,” I would like to quote Harvard Prof. Dani Rodrik who said the other day: “The world economy must again serve the people and not vice versa.” He added: “The world economy has lost its anchor as we subordinate the goals of full employment and fair income distribution [or inclusive growth] more and more to the needs of large investors; we need to regain flexibility in achieving the economic and social targets.”

The era of globalization since the 1990s has been strongly influenced by the interests of powerful companies and industries. These special interests mostly served the very rich and the international elite. This leads to the paradoxical situation that the global economy has grown closer together, but the social and economic divisions within many economies have increased. That is the downside of globalization.

The fact that global supply chains are not spreading so rapidly today has less to do with political risks than that modern production technologies today are more likely to encourage a relocation of fac-

tories to the home countries of large companies. High training standards and high capital intensity are more important than cheap wages. This slows down the international division of labor. In addition, services are becoming increasingly important.

Here are the opportunities for the Philippines, to provide high training standards both for manufacturing and service industries. In this context, allow me to quote from a presentation, Doris Magsaysay-Ho made at the EITSC Forum on Sustainable Development on June 20: There is a need to search for effective ways to build inclusive institutions and business models that will break the cycle to achieve sustainable prosperity.

Toachieveproductiveknowledge,we need to identify and assemble a diverse group of persons, each with specific know-how to produce a physical good or service that can be consumed and tradedglobally.Themorepersonsthere are and more know-how there is, the higher the complexity of the product.

To move forward, the government and the private sector will have to decide: What manufacturing sectors can be truly competitive?

What action do we need to focus on to build scale?

Where can we develop clusters around the country to produce for domestic and global trade?

The presentations of Socioeconomic Planning Secretary and National Economic and Development Authority Director General Ernesto Pernia and Sen. Cynthia Villar echoed the need for government and the private sector to work together in creating inclusive growth and involve schools, colleges and universities to deliver adequate skills to prepare students for the future of work.

Internationally and locally, the initial efforts in sustainable development havebeenrecognized.Atthesametime, however, we all realize that much still needs to be done to achieve the vision of “inclusive growth” The Securities and Exhange Commission guidelines will help pushing the large companies in this direction; I am convinced, other companieswillfollow,usingsustainable developmentascompetitiveadvantage.

EITSC and its partners will continue to push for a business environment that takes care of the three pillars: profit, planet and people.

In other words, we will continue to cover this important journey toward sustainability and will assist in making the journey to succeed.

For comments, please e-mail me at schumacher@eitsc.com

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Passage of key economic reform bills to raise FDI by $40B/year–Neda chief

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By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

HE passage of key economic reform bills that would allow more foreigners to do business in the country would triple, or even quadruple, the Philippines’s foreign direct investments (FDI).

At the pre-State of the Nation Address forum in Pasay City on Monday, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia said the passage of the Foreign Investment Act, Retail Trade Act and the Public Service Act would boost the country’s FDI by as much as $40 billion a year.

In 2018, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) data showed that FDI reached $9.8 billion. In the first quarter or the year, FDI amounted to $1.94 billion, which represented a 15.14-percent contraction from $2.29 billion.

“Concerning FDI, the Philippines is the most restrictive country in the Asean,” Pernia said.

“Here in the Philippines there are so many areas where FDI is only partially open to foreigners. So the legislature really should pass many of these [reform] bills.”

Pernia said liberalizing the economy would boost the country’s FDI and the overall health and growth of the Philippine economy.

He said Asean countries like Vietnam are open to a lot of foreign investors, allowing even up to 100percent foreign participation.

In contrast, in the Philippines, it is enshrined in the 1987 Constitution that foreigners can only have a maximum of 40-percent participation in businesses in the country. In some sectors, zero foreign participation is the norm.

“We could really expect much more foreign investment, tripling or quadrupling what we have already achieved,” Pernia said.

Meanwhile, outgoing BSP Deputy Governor Diwa Guinigundo said in a news briefing on Monday that one legislation that could work toward the increase in FDI is the Islamic Banking bill.

Guinigundo said the House of

Representatives and the Senate have completed their work on the Islamic Banking bill. The bill is awaiting enrollment before it is submitted for the President’s signature.

He said having an Islamic Banking law would help the banking sector reach marginalized Filipinos who are still “outside the conventional banking framework.”

Guinigundo also said with an Islamic Banking law in place, the Philippines could attract Islamic investors who are looking for suitable investment destinations to build or expand their businesses.

“Even at the beginning of the Duterte administration there were already queries coming from jurisdictions whose population is mostly Muslim or Islamic and therefore, to the extent that some countries are interested in bringing their business here through Islamic means,” he stressed.

In November 2018, the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) said the approval of the 11th Regular Foreign Investment Negative List (RFINL) is expected to boost the country’s FDI starting this year.

Since there was still room to adjust foreign participation under the RFINL, Pernia said the government does not want to wait for another two years to start working on the liberalization of other sectors of the economy.

He said there are already a number of laws that are being amended to usher more FDI into the country. One such bill is the amendment to the Public Service Act of 1930, which seeks to redefine the meaning of public services. Once amended, the new law will allow greater participation in areas such

as telecommunication.

Under the 11th RFINL, the government now allows 100-percent foreign ownership in “Internet businesses,” which, Neda earlier said, included Internet service providers in the provinces; professions that foreigners are allowed to practice subject to reciprocity; and teaching at higher education level where passing the board or Bar is not required.

Foreigners are also allowed to fully own short-term high-level skills development that does not form part of the hierarchical structure of the formal educational system excluded from educational institutions and wellness centers.

However, no foreign participation is allowed in professions such as marine deck and engine officers.

Foreign participation in adjustment, lending, and financing companies, as well as investment houses have been deleted following RA 10881, or the amended Insurance Code.

The government also allowed more foreign ownership in contracts for the construction and repair of locally funded public works and private radio communications network.

The Neda is tasked to review and revise the country’s RFINL, which contains restrictions on foreign investments and the practice of professions based on the Constitution and Philippine laws.

The RFINL contains investment areas/activities where foreign equity participation is limited by mandate of the Constitution and specific laws. It also consists of investment areas/activities where foreign equity participation is limited for reasons of defense, security, risk to public health and morals, and protection of small- and medium-sized domestic market enterprises.

The amendment of the list is headed by the Neda secretariat, as provided for under Section 8 of RA 7042, or the Foreign Investments Act of 1991, which states that amendments may be made upon the recommendation of the secretary of national defense or the secretary of health, or the secretary of education, endorsed by the Neda, approved by the President, and promulgated by a Presidential proclamation.

ERC’s partnership exchange with NARUC seen boosting PHL’s natural gas industry

By Lenie Lectura @llectura

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HE Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has entered into a partnership exchange agreement with the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) in a bid to gain firsthand knowledge and insights from experts.

NARUC is a nonprofit organization dedicated to represent the state public service commissions that regulate the utilities that provide essential services, such as energy, telecommunications, power, water and transportation.

NA RUC ’s members include all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Most state commissioners are appointed to their positions by their governor or legislature, while commissioners in 14 states are elected.

According to ERC Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Agnes VST Devanadera, the partnership exchange aims to support the ERC in establishing regulatory framework governing the Philippines’s downstream natural gas sector and establishing procedures for expediting review and approval processes of power purchase agreements (PPA).

“The ERC supports the DOE (Department of Energy) as it promotes natural gas as an energy fuel with tremendous potential to meet the increasing local demand and ensure a sustainable electric power supply.”

—Devanadera

The exchange also provided a platform for NARUC to share regulatory expertise and strategies to promote gas market growth and adoption of best regulatory frameworks in order to ensure safe, reliable and affordable energy for Filipino consumers. “ The partnership exchange hosted by the NARUC and the USAID [United States Agency for International Development] is truly beneficial for the ERC considering the government’s thrust to provide a conducive environment through the issuance of policies, plans and programs geared toward the promotion and development of the Philippine Downstream Natural Gas Industry [PDNGI]. “ The ERC supports the DOE [Department of Energ y] as it promotes natural gas as an en-

ergy fuel with tremendous potential to meet the increasing local demand and ensure a sustainable electric power supply,” said Devanadera.

During the partnership workshop, the DOE made a presentation on the Policy and Regulatory Framework of the Philippine Downstream Natural Gas Industry. Meanwhile, the ERC discussed the PPA Review and Approval Processes, as well as the Current and Upcoming Independent Power Producers in the Philippines.

Resource Speakers of NARUC include former Commissioners of Idaho Public Utilities Commission and Hawaii Public Utilities Commission and Energ y Specialists from the Michigan Public Service Commission and Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities.

Aside from ERC, the attendees of the workshop were representatives from the Philippines’s DOE, Gas Policy Development Project, Papua New Guinea’s I nd e p e nd e nt C on s u me r a nd Competition Commission and USAID. T he pa r t nership e xc ha nge workshop was a collaborative effort between the NARUC and the USAID.

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Editor: Angel R. Calso • Tuesday, July 2, 2019 A9

Protests escalate as Hong Kong marks UK handover to China

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ONG KONG—Combative protesters tried to break into the Hong Kong legislature on Monday as a crowd of thousands were marching in that direction on the 22nd anniversary of the former British colony’s return to China.

With a crowd of a hundred or so people around them, a small group of people repeatedly rammed a cargo cart and poles into a glass panel.

After they managed to get the cart wedged into the damaged panel, police grabbed the cart away from them. They also posted a sign saying to the protesters, stop charging before we use force.

The unexpected disruption delayed the march, but the crowd of thousands soon began moving out of Victoria Park even as police asked the marchers to change their route or cancel the march.

Both the combative protesters and the marchers oppose a government attempt to change extradition laws to allow suspects to be sent to China to face trial. The proposal has increased fears of eroding freedoms in the territory that was returned to China in 1997.

The embattled leader of Hong Kong pledged to be more responsive to public sentiment in a speech at a flag-raising ceremony. Carrie Lam has come under withering criticism for trying to push through the legislation. She said a series of protests and marches that have attracted hundreds of thousands of students and other participants in recent weeks have taught her that she needs to listen better to the youth and people in general.

“This has made me fully realize that I, as a politician, have to remind myself all the time of the

need to grasp public sentiments accurately,” she said in a five-minute speech to the gathering in the city’s cavernous convention center.

She insisted her government has good intentions, but said “I will learn the lesson and ensure that the government’s future work will be closer and more responsive to the aspirations, sentiments and opinions of the community.”

Security guards pushed prodemocracy lawmaker Helena Wong out of the room as she walked backward shouting at Lam to resign and withdraw the “evil” legislation. She later told reporters she was voicing the grievances and opinions of the protesters, who could not get into the event.

The annual march starting in the afternoon was expected to be larger than usual because the proposed extradition bill has awakened broader fears that China is eroding the freedoms and rights guaranteed to Hong Kong for 50 years under a “one country, two systems” framework. Two marches in June against the legislation drew more than a million people, according to organizer estimates.

The government has suspended debate on the bill indefinitely, but protest leaders want it formally withdrawn and Lam’s resignation.

They also are demanding an independent inquiry into police actions during a June 12 protest, when officers used tear gas and rubber

PROTESTERS holding umbrellas face off police officers in antiriot gear in Hong Kong on Monday, July 1, 2019.

Protesters in Hong Kong pushed barriers and dumpsters into the streets early on Monday morning in an apparent bid to block access to a symbolically important ceremony marking the anniversary of the return of the former British colony to China. AP PHOTO/KIN CHEUNG

A PROTESTER tries to break the glass to get into the Legislative Council in Hong Kong on Monday, July 1, 2019. Combative protesters are staging a protest outside the Hong Kong legislature as a crowd of thousands prepares to start a march in that direction. JEFF CHENG/HK01 VIA AP

bullets to disperse protesters who blocked the legislature on the day debate on the bill had been scheduled to resume.

The police say the use of force was justified, but have largely since adopted softer tactics, even as protesters besieged police headquarters in recent days, pelting it with

eggs and spray-painting slogans on its outer walls.

The area around Golden Bauhinia Square, where the flag-raising ceremony took place, was blocked off from Saturday to prevent protesters from gathering to disrupt it. Before the morning ceremony, protesters trying to gain access

to the square were driven back by officers with plastic shields and batons, the retreating protesters pointing open umbrellas to ward off pepper spray.

“We are horrified, this is our obligation to do this, we are protecting our home,” said Jack, a 26-year-old office worker who would only give his first name. “I don’t know why the government is harming us. It’s harming the rule of law, the rule of law is the last firewall between us and the Chinese Communist Party.” AP

Japan sets restrictions on exports Global manufacturing to South Korea, citing trust decline slump puts reality check

on US-China trade truce

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OKYO—Japan is imposing restrictions on exports to South Korea, citing a decline in “relations of international trust” between the Asian neighbors.

The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said a review soliciting public comments starts on Monday on the move to effectively remove South Korea from a list of so called white nations, like the US and European nations, that have minimum restrictions on trade.

Starting on Thursday, Japanese manufacturers must apply for approval for each technology-related contract, such as sales of fluorinated polyimides used for displays, the ministry said.

The statement did not say what exactly was behind the decision. But relations have soured since South Korea’s Supreme Court ordered the seizure of local assets of a Japanese company after it refused to compensate forced laborers during World War II. South Korea’s trade ministry said on Monday it will “sternly” deal with the Japanese move, calling it an “unjust” action that violates rules of the World Trade Organization. The Trade Minister, Sung Yun-mo, said the government in Seoul planned to file a WTO complaint.

South Korea “thinks this Japanese measure is regrettable,” Park Tae-sung, a senior official at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, told reporters in South Korea.

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IN this May 10, 2012, file photo, a model poses with a 55-inch Samsung OLED, or organic light-emitting diode TV during a press conference in Seoul, South Korea. Japan is imposing restrictions on exports to South Korea, citing a decline in “relations of international trust” between the Asian neighbors. South Korea’s Samsung Electronics, the world’s biggest maker of memory chips and smartphones and a major producer of display panels, said it’s assessing how the Japanese restrictions could possibly influence its business. AP PHOTO/AHN YOUNG-JOON

He said a thorough analysis is required to study what impact the Japanese measure wou ld have on South Korean exports of semiconductors.

The change would mean the approval process will be delayed for such products, where Japan is a significant supplier.

South Korean technology companies including Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix say they are assessing how the Japanese import restrictions could possibly impact their business.

Before the latest move, the exports required only a single encompassing approval process. Now the ministry approval will be delayed on average by 90 days, a ministry official said, speaking on customary condition of anonymity.

In a landmark ruling in October, South Korea’s top court ordered Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp. to pay 100 million won ($88,000) each to four plaintiffs forced to work for the company when Japan colonized the Korean Peninsula from 1910 to 1945. AP

LOBA L ma nu fact u r ing took another knock at the end of the second quarter, signaling a worsening economic growth outlook as US-China trade tensions continue to simmer.

Across Asia and Europe, factory activity shrank in June, according to reports on Monday. China’s manufacturers saw sales, exports and production fall, while Germany suffered from weaker foreign demand. Exports from South Korea plunged almost 14 percent, and Japan’s Tankan confidence index dropped to a three-year low.

Global stocks rallied as investors took their cue from a trade truce announced by President Donald J. Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping at the Group of 20 meetings in Japan.

But broader gloom won’t be easy to dispel if the economic numbers continue to weaken. Morgan Stanley captured that view by downgrading its forecast for world growth, saying the truce wasn’t enough to remove the uncertainty around trade, which will weigh on the outlook.

For many, the situation is already poor enough—or soon will be—to force the world’s major central banks into action. Investors are pricing in a Federal Reserve interest-rate cut this month—figures

on Monday are forecast to show US manufacturing barely expanding—and Goldman Sachs says the European Central Bank will lower its deposit rate by 20 basis points and restart asset purchases in September.

“Focusing on trade, perhaps there’s been some easing in the tensions. But if we step back and look at the economic data, what do we see? Bad news from China, nasty news from the Tankan, and in South Korea another poor export number,” said Jane Foley, head of currency strategy at Rabobank. “All this is really quite worrying, it reasserts that picture of a slowdown in global growth.”

The weakness in the factory numbers from IHS Markit was w idespread. Sw it zerland saw manufacturing shrink the most in seven years, and Spain, long the euro area’s outperformer, registered its worst reading since 2013. Overall euro-zone manufacturing shrank for a fifth month, with the “challenging economic environment” leading to another drop in orders.

In the UK, the reading dropped to a six-year low. That’s partly an unwinding of Brexit stockpiling earlier in the year, but the report also showed a decline in business optimism. Bloomberg News

Oil jumps as Opec+ signals extended cuts

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IL surged to a five-week high in New York after Saudi Arabia and Russia signaled an extension of Opec+ output cuts and a US- China agreement to restart trade talks improved the demand outlook.

Futures rose as much as 3.1 percent after rallying 11 percent over the past two weeks.

Other Opec members have indicated their support for the agreement between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman to prolong the curbs by six to nine months as meetings on production policy start in Vienna. President Donald J. Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping declared a truce to their trade war and the US will hold off on imposing additional tariffs on China.

Oil rose by the most since January last month after escalating tensions in the Middle East spurred concerns over supply.

Iran, Saudi Arabia’s political adversary, became the latest Opec member to back extending the group’s output curbs for as long as nine months as ministers seek to counter a weak demand outlook and surging American production.

“A broad consensus around extension is forming without much opposition as the producer group recognizes it has two major issues to contend with,” said Harry Tchilinguirian, head of commodity-markets strategy at BNP Paribas SA. “The first being economic uncertainties tied to trade wars—despite this weekend’s positive TrumpXi meeting—that can weaken global oil demand growth, and the second more obvious one, which is strong US shale oil supply growth.”

West Texas Intermediate oil for August delivery climbed $1.64 to $60.11 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange as of 10:29 a.m. in London. The contract added 9.3 percent last month.

Brent for September settlement rose $1.84, or 2.8 percent, to $66.58 a barrel on the ICE Futures Europe Exchange. The August contract expired on Friday. The benchmark global crude traded at a premium of $6.43 to WTI. Nigeria, Venezuela, Iraq and Oman also expressed their conditional support for an extension of as long as nine months, which isn’t the Opec policy playbook as the oil-club has traditionally aimed for half-year deals.

The leaders of Russia and Saudi Arabia, the dominant members in the Opec+ alliance, settled on the idea of extending the cuts into next year during the G-20 meeting in Japan.

“The longer the horizon, the stronger the certainty to the market,” Opec Secretary-General Mohammad Barkindo said on Sunday in Vienna after meeting with Saudi Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih.

The resumption of US-China trade talks was a reprieve from a demand outlook that’s been hurt by the entrenched dispute. Still, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde warned that the global economy is in a “rough patch” with unresolved issues on trade posing the most serious risk for the future.

“What came out of the TrumpXi meeting was probably the minimum,” said Vandana Hari, founder of Vanda Insights in Singapore. “It appears a little more positive than it actually is. I don’t expect a deal to happen anytime soon.” Bloomberg News

A10 Tuesday, July 2, 2019 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

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editorial

Taxi troubles

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EPORTS of overcharging, outright robbery and other abuses being perpetrated by crooked taxi drivers destroy our country’s image and leave a bad impression on tourists.

One case does not make a crisis, but when there is a spate of abuses involving taxi drivers, then transport authorities must act accordingly. If the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) can crack down on TNVS (transport network vehicles service) drivers and operators who lack the necessary permits, then they should also be able to impose stricter regulations on regular taxi drivers and operators.

Taxi drivers are tourism front liners. They usually are the first persons that meet the tourists at the airports, bus terminals and piers. It simply is not “fun in the Philippines” with crooked taxi drivers around.

In March 2019, Ukrainian Ivan Brygar, on his first visit to the Philippines to attend a triathlon competition, complained of being victimized by a taxi scam at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) Terminal 3. Upon arrival, he was looking for a shuttle bus to take him to Terminal 4 for his connecting flight to Davao City when an accomplice of a crooked airport driver offered “to help.” The guy, according to Brygar, grabbed his boarding pass and led him to a taxi, with the assurance that he will be charged a regular fare. Instead, he was forced to pay P2,400 for the short trip between terminals.

In April 2019, a taxi driver was arrested for robbing an overseas Filipino worker (OFW) who arrived from Hong Kong. Karen Mitschel and a companion took a regular taxi from Naia Terminal 2 to a bus station along Edsa in Pasay City. Instead of the basic meter charge, they were also forced to pay P2,400.

Mitschel asked the driver to stop at a foreign-exchange shop so her friend could get pesos for her, but after her friend alighted the taxi, the driver drove off with her still inside. He then forcibly took her cell phone and dollars and left her along the C-5 extension in Las Piñas.

In May 2019, a taxi driver scammed an Austrian couple that hailed a ride from Naia Terminal 1. He was eventually apprehended, his license was revoked and his operator’s taxi fleet was banned from the airport.

You would think crooked taxi drivers would have learned their lesson by this time, and yet just a couple of weeks ago, a Korean lady tourist complained of being charged P1,500 by a taxi driver who took her from the airport to Bonifacio Global City. She insisted on a meter-based fare, to no avail. She paid the amount because she feared for her safety as she was alone and it was her first time in Manila.

These are just some of many taxi terror tales. Of course, not all taxi drivers are devious. Many of them are honest, courteous and competent. But how could a passenger know which taxi driver is good and which one is not?

The LTFRB should hold taxi operators accountable for screening their drivers and keeping a close watch on their performance. Just like Grab and other ridehailing services, regular taxis should have an efficient booking and feedback system for passengers, which effectively punishes errant drivers and rewards the good and honest ones.

The police and other government agencies should also help the taxi operators weed out crooked drivers by having a hot line for complaints, which must be acted upon fast, and by conducting spot checks and random drug tests.

For instance, the driver who robbed an OFW had already been arrested for threatening and overcharging a passenger in 2017. Why was he still driving a taxi?

Congress should also revive and pass House Bill 7774, which would establish a list of unassailable passenger rights, including the right to be picked up and transported to their destination “regardless of the length of the journey or traffic condition,” thereby prohibiting taxi drivers from refusing a trip once they have been flagged down by a passenger. The bill also mandates that passengers only “pay the rate or fare exactly posted in the meter or booking application.”

Hopefully, through these collaborative efforts, we can have more honest, courteous and competent taxi drivers who can give tourists a good impression and make visitors look forward to returning to the Philippines.

Since 2005

BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business

The prices move ‘because’ John Mangun

OUTSIDE THE BOX

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HERE is a constant unending stream of events and information so that it is hard to keep track of everything that is going on. The G-20 summit in Japan is a good example.

The general topics for discussion over two days are: food security, anti-corruption, climate, financial markets, employment and social policies. Of course, trade as well as North Korea is also on the agenda.

And the G-20 leaders summit is being held annually. Figure in all the daily stuff that comes down on a 24/7 basis. How did humanity survive 40 years ago—before CNN was launched—with just a morning newspaper and an evening television news program? With all of this information we are a globally “wired society.” We know that this news is “important” and we think that it should affect our daily lives.

Everything is personal, or at least the “news” wants you to believe it is.

This is particularly true for the financial and asset markets.

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Does the interest rate policy of the European Central Bank have an immediate impact on the Philippines? No. Could that interest rate policy have a long-term impact on the Philippines? Maybe. Then why should the interest rate policy have an effect on local stock-market prices? The answer is “because.”

The June 17, 2019, headline reads: “Stocks end lower ahead of Fed decision.” The June 18, 2019, headline was: “PSE index rises ahead of central bank reviews.”

The Federal Open Market Committee meeting took place on June

19, 2019. Therefore, both of those headlines were talking about the future. Does it make sense that prices went down on June 16th and up on June 17th based on the same future meeting?

These two headlines happened on the same day—“Sluggish demand squeeze oil-price gains” and “Oil prices rise more than 1 percent after Russia agrees to extend Opec.”

Maybe the first headline means that oil prices should have been higher than the 1 percent because of the Russia/Opec agreement.

But the fact is that the effects of either a demand decrease or a cut in production are factors that will impact future prices. But the price moved “today.”

You might say though that traders on both the Philippine Stock Exchange and in the global oil market were speculating on the outcome of the Fed meeting and the net price result of demand and production cuts in crude oil. The key word in that sentence is “speculating.”

The history of trading on the US commodity exchanges for literally the past 100 years reveals that 85 percent of all trading is done by speculators. While both producers—usually farmers—and

S

EVERAL student groups and nationalist organizations, such as the College Editors’ Guild of the Philippines, League of Filipino Students, Kabataan Party List, UP Student Council and Tanggol Wika condemned the recent Supreme Court decision upholding the constitutionality of the Commission on Higher Education memorandum removing the Filipino and Panitikan as required subjects in college. In effect, these two subjects will just become optional courses. The critics held the decision as anti-Filipino and runs counter to the government’s position of instilling love of country among our people. LFS was unmerciful in claiming that the new “policy is structured to push for a colonial orientation in education. It aims to create a generation that does not recognize its own literature and history….”

We have adopted Filipino long time ago as our national language but we have failed miserably to develop it as our mother tongue. It is hardly spoken in many parts of the country, particularly in regions where a strong ethnic pride prevails.

We should strive hard to develop our national language. Without a common language, national unity shall continue to evade us. We are building a Tower of Babel and sadly the SC served as its architect. nnn

THE Pinays’ killer in Cyprus, Army Captain Nicholas Metaxas, was meted out seven life terms after he

pleaded guilty to the kidnapping and premeditated murder of seven foreign women, including five Filipinas. This incident highlights the tragic fate of some women who leave their family in search of gainful work abroad. It also shows how defenseless our women folks are when they settle in a foreign land and work in an unfamiliar environment. The lack of immediate action by the authorities resulted in the resignation of the country’s Justice Minister and the dismissal of its police chief.

The Cypriot president said that lives would have been saved had the police intervened in time to investigate the

case of the reported missing women.

The arrest and prosecution of the offender is reassuring. At least, the victims were able to get justice in a foreign land. Our own government should extend our women the protection and respect they need. As Rizal had penned in his “Letters to the Women of Malolos” on February 22, 1889, that he sent from London, “This is our dream; this is the desire we cherish in our hearts; to restore the honor of woman, who is half of our heart, our companion in the joys and tribulations of life.” This should be the dream of every Filipino, and together let’s make it a living reality. nnn

THE ALC Media Group hosted the Canadian Ambassador to the Philippines, His Excellency John T. Holmes, on Thursday, June 27, where he discussed various issues of mutual interest to our two countries. His message was followed by lively exchanges between the envoy and our media group touching on domestic and international issues involving Canada. I came in late at the forum but I managed to raise three questions: the implications of the current Border Issue of US with Mexico and the other South American countries since up north US and Canada share the longest border in the world, the pending ratification of the US, Mexico and Canada Agreement, which shall replace the existing North American Free Trade Agreement among the three countries and the potential conflict in the

commodity users like meatpacking plants and bakeries do trade the physical commodity, short-term price movements are determined by speculators who never hold the commodity but gain profit or suffer loss from price movements.

Every weather report gets the commodity speculators to buy or sell the price in a particular direction.

While information is instant and 24/7, so is the trading today. Daily price fluctuations on the Philippine stock market are not based on you buying 1,000 shares of Ayala Corp. to help pay for your children’s education. The fluctuations are caused by traders buying today anticipating a favorable or unfavorable news story, which is going to affect the price tomorrow, next week or the following month.

Therefore, why should the interest rate policy of the European Central Bank have an effect on local stock-market prices? Because it might get more speculators to buy or sell local stocks.

E-mail me at mangun@gmail.com. Visit my web site at www.mangunonmarkets.com. Follow me on Twitter @mangunonmarkets. PSE stockmarket information and technical analysis tools provided by the COL Financial Group Inc.

Nordic Seas and Arctic Ocean between China and Canada + its allied countries given China’s intention to open up the region to navigation and exploration. I admire Ambassador Holmes for giving us honest answers, including his response to the return of the Canadian dumped to the Philippines. Definitely, we share strong economic, trade and cultural ties. With its warm and welcoming people, Canada is fast becoming the country of choice for Filipinos desiring to settle and work abroad. It embraces political and legal systems that are reassuring to foreign nationals. Filipinos are at home in Canada. nnn

WE have heard stories of OFWs’ sad plight in chasing their dreams. Pedro could not get a job until a gorilla in a zoo died from a sudden illness.

The gorilla, with all his antics, was a crowd-drawer, and the management could not immediately get a replacement. The enterprising manager offered Pedro to suit up in a gorilla costume and taught him all the moves and tricks. One day, with a jam-packed crowd before his huge cage, Pedro overdid his stunts and while jumping from one branch to another, he fell over to the adjacent cage of a ferocious lion. Pedro was immobilized by fear while the ferocious beast was pawing his body, and he was shouting and pleading for his dear life in Tagalog. Suddenly the lion whispered to him: “Tumigil ka.

Mabubuko tayong pareho.”

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Tuesday, July 2, 2019 A11

Trump-Xi deal may founder Why electric bills keep on increasing on a patent lack of trust

By David Fickling & Anjani Trivedi

Cecilio T. Arillo

Bloomberg Opinion

I

S there any hope that the fast-decoupling US and Chinese governments can resolve their trade dispute, and inject a bit of pep into the weakening global economy? Yes—but the path toward a deal is narrowing.

As we’ve argued in the past, intellectual property is one area where the interests of the US and China are surprisingly well aligned. Lax enforcement formed the core of US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer’s criticism of China under Washington’s Section 301 regulations, so a breakthrough at the G-20 summit in Osaka would represent a symbolic victory for the US. For his part, President Xi Jinping has made IP reform a signature issue, not least because Chinese businesses are growing more sophisticated and assembling their own portfolios of patents and trademarks they want to see protected.

China, moreover, has been quietly reforming in many of the ways that the US wants to see. It has progressively trimmed its negative list of industries where foreign investors are required to operate in joint ventures with local companies.

These are just one of the prime potential conduits for IP leakage, since the intangible assets must generally be vested in the local venture as a requirement for getting an operating license. By this point, though, most industries are open to wholly foreign-owned units.

China’s ranking in the US Chamber of Commerce’s IP Index stood still in 2019 after years of steady improvement, but it remains well ahead of the likes of Turkey, Chile, Brazil, Thailand and Vietnam. The new foreign investment law passed earlier this year contains a prohibition on forced technology transfer, although the proof of such measures will be how they’re enforced. The IP legal regime in China is improving, with courts becoming more consistent in handling technical issues, especially for local firms, according to analysts at Gavekal Dragonomics.

There are many reasons individual Chinese companies may want to steal technology from US counterparts, but Beijing has an even bigger reason to clamp down. Chinese leaders know that if they’re to become technologically independent, they will have to take the training wheels off and learn to walk on their own.

Take electric vehicles. One reason that so few foreign-branded electric cars are made in China, the world’s biggest market for such vehicles, is that the playing field is tilted against them. As a result, Chinese-made EVs remain technologically inferior to many models produced overseas. This month, the government scrapped a four-year-old policy of publishing an approved list of battery makers, which had effectively shut out industry leaders such as South Korea’s Samsung SDI Co. and LG Chem Ltd. Korean firms lead Chinese peers by six months to a year and a half in evolving battery chemistry and technology, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co. analysts. Allowing

There are ways that China and US could come to a stopgap agreement that would at least slow the darkening tide of protectionism—but that would depend on a level of trust between the two sides that seems to have all but vanished. There’s a slim hope that peace can still break out in this trade war. But the drumbeat from both sides has kept getting louder. equal participation earlier could have helped battery technology migrate faster. Instead, lagging technology has hurt demand for electric cars in China, with local manufacturers hit hardest.

While it would be hard to tie IP enforcement—a long, slow and technically difficult process—to the immediately measurable matters of trade and tariffs, some sort of announcement would provide great optics for both sides.

Reality would need to expend beyond a handshake and a photo op, however. The exact details of how China would implement stronger protection will make all the difference. It could include a set of new laws, or merely more attention to existing regulations. And with cases such as Micron Technology Inc. fresh in many Americans minds, there’s good reason for the US side to be wary of any promises Beijing might make.

There’s a further problem with extending an olive branch on this issue: Their value has fallen drastically in recent months thanks to the US administration’s chaotic approach to trade negotiations.

The last time a major US trade partner made a significant concession to Washington’s trade demands is when Mexico signed up to President Donald J. Trump’s reformed version of the North American Free Trade Agreement.

For all its relatively limited nature, that deal contained rules on auto worker minimum wages that would keep a large slice of carmaking supply chains north of the border. This trade-off counted for nothing, though, when Trump last month threatened rising tariffs on Mexico to force action on illegal immigration.

That’s the problem with the current situation. There are ways that China and US could come to a stopgap agreement that would at least slow the darkening tide of protectionism—but that would depend on a level of trust between the two sides that seems to have all but vanished.

There’s a slim hope that peace can still break out in this trade war. But the drumbeat from both sides has kept getting louder.

DATABASE

E

ARLY this month 33 years ago after the so-called Edsa revolution in February 1986, President Corazon Cojuangco Aquino abolished the Ministry of Energy (MOE) and placed all energy matters under the full control of her office.

After scoundrels in and outside of her office systematically plundered and depleted the MOE’s multibillionpeso assets, she issued Executive Order (EO) 215 on July 10, 1987, deregulating the energy industry and privatizing its money-making corporations and subsidiaries, including the Philippine National Oil Corp., a successful Philippine firm featured successively in Fortune’s 500 Best Corps., and the highly profitable Petron that served as a buffer against foreign oil production and distribution monopoly. Petron then controlled 40 percent of the country’s fuel distribution network.

Apart from abolishing the MOE, President Aquino hurriedly returned a much larger, more expensive and very profitable Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), gratis et amore, to the Lopezes and their business associates.

It can be recalled that aside from the transfer of all the electric power generating plants of Meralco to the National Power Corp. (NPC) before the Edsa Revolution, the Lopezes and their associates, for financial reasons, divested themselves of their interest in Meralco.

As a consequence, all the Meralco shares of stock were sold and

transferred to the Meralco Foundation, a non stock and non profit foundation, for P872,764,365.

The transaction subsequently gave every Meralco electric consumer a stock warrant from the Meralco Foundation. The stock warrants issued by the Meralco Foundation bore individual serial numbers, and these were to be exchanged with Meralco shares upon the fulfillment of certain conditions.

Worse, the EO introduced the injurious and much-hated Purchased Power Adjustment or PPA, which Meralco inordinately used to charge consumers higher electricity rates.

Before the issuance of the EO, the NPC, whose income from 1977 to 1985 rose from P0.4 billion to P18 billion in sales revenue, had total assets of P107.2 billion, almost 10 times of what it had in 1977. The Aquino administration systematically broke it up and privatized majority of its operations, including generations, transmissions and distribution under the guise of ridding government monopoly in the distribution of power.

Curiously, the Presidential Commission on Good Government subsequently charged the late Energy

Bloomberg Opinion

A

N unnecessary and misguided economic split at the heart of Europe, driven by populist politics and trade spats. Nope, this isn’t Brexit, it’s the bitter diplomatic standoff between Switzerland and the European Union.

The small Alpine republic is at diplomatic loggerheads with its biggest trading partner over how to renegotiate and repackage the swathe of bilateral agreements that binds the Swiss economy to the bloc without it being a member. Brussels wants clearer terms of how Switzerland

accesses the single market and for the country to offer more freedom of movement for EU citizens. Bern is trying to balance these demands against local anxieties about sovereignty, immigration and the related fear about the pressure on wages and social services that might come with more migrant workers. The Brexit parallels have not been lost on Brussels, which wants a speedy resolution above all.

After years of negotiations and foot-dragging by the Swiss, EU officials now want to get the talks wrapped up before the new European Commission is formed in November (indeed, before the next deadline for

to eliminate a rival. In my opinion, the abolition of the ministry showed Mrs. Aquino’s inexperience in proper governance. Buenaventura may have been a close friend of hers, but how could she, in conscience, consult someone like him whose interest was to protect his employer, a foreign oil company operating in the Philippines? On the mere say-so of Buenaventura, Mrs. Aquino dismantled the whole energy complex that took 12 years to build and which, in government annals, was unique for its successes despite numerous crises that the country faced at that time.

“Incidentally, the Queen of England knighted Buenaventura thereafter. Did that have anything to do with the ministry’s fate?

“From a policy perspective, there was no reason to privatize PNOC/ Petron even at the time. Why would a government in dire need of cash be willing to let go of a good source of income? PNOC was the biggest government corporation in terms of revenue.

“It was not until we operated Petron that I started to realize how critical an oil company is to a country.

The oil companies in the Philippines have been with us for almost a century. In fact, the phrase ‘old China hand’ emanated from the oil companies because some of those people assigned to the Philippines were ‘old China hands’ who had been previously employed in the oil companies’ pioneering ventures in China.”

The impact of Cory’s deliberate actions resulted in endless electric bill increases and a spate of brownouts that continue to hurt us up to this day.

To reach the writer, e-mail cecilio.arillo@ gmail.com.

Corporate term under the Revised Corporation Code Atty. Mabel L. Buted

TAX LAW FOR BUSINESS

O

NE of the significant changes introduced by the Revised Corporation Code of the Philippines in the corporation law is a modification on the provision on corporate term.

Under this RCC, a corporation shall have perpetual existence unless its articles of incorporation provides otherwise. This means that a corporation shall have unlimited life unless its articles of incorporation provides for a specific period of existence, in which case, its life can only be extended through an amendment of the articles of incorporation.

This is a sharp modification from the rule in the old Corporation Code (Batas Pambansa Bilang 68), which provided a corporate term of not exceeding 50 years from the date of incorporation unless said period is extended. Because of the term limit prior to the RCC, a corporation whose life is about to expire has to extend the same through an amendment of the articles of incorporation. Accordingly, when the corporate life as stated in the articles of incorporation expired, without a valid extension having been effected, the corporation was deemed dissolved by such

expiration without need of further action on the part of the corporation or the State. (GR 165887 and 165929, June 6, 2011) With the difference in the rules under the old Corporation Code and the RCC, a question now arises relative to the corporate term of corporations existing prior to the effectivity of the RCC. Which law should govern? Will the corporate life indicated in the articles apply, which would require an amendment to extend corporate life? Or should the perpetual existence be followed?

To date, no formal guideline has been issued to clarify the application

Switzerland’s stock market has been taken hostage

By Lionel Laurent

Secretary Geronimo Zamora Velasco with alleged corruption, only to be declared innocent by the Supreme Court.

Velasco died on July 17, 2007, but left behind a solid reputation of honesty and certitude as well as his own personal files, copies of which were made available to this writer who exposed in his book A Country Imperiled: Tragic Lessons of a Distorted History the unforgivable sins of the Aquino Regime in the energy sector.

Here’s an extract from Mr. Velasco’s explosive files: “…it appears that Mrs. Aquino abolished the ministry upon the advice of Cesar Buenaventura, who had claimed that the Ministry of Energy was ‘the most corrupt’ among the Marcos-era agencies. [Joker Arroyo, President Aquino’s executive secretary, who had witnessed how hard Buenaventura lobbied to have the Ministry abolished, confirmed Velasco’s statement in his book]: “…Cesar Buenaventura was one of Mrs. Aquino’s closest advisers, but he also happened to be the president of Pilipinas Shell at the time. I have no idea as to Buenaventura’s basis for claiming that the ministry was the ‘most corrupt,’ but I also have no doubt that he had Shell’s interest in mind when he recommended the ministry’s abolition. I could sense that the foreign oil companies were never happy with Philippine National Oil Co., not only because Petron led the pricing structure in the oil market, but also because PNOC’s energy development program, with its emphasis on tapping non-oil sources, threatened to erode the oil companies’ position in the energy market.

“Riding on the wave of antiMarcos sentiment was a good way

Britain’s departure on October 31st).

So they’re stepping up hostilities.

Brussels says that, given the snail’s pace of the negotiations, there’s no reason to keep recognizing Switzerland as an “equivalent” financial market to the EU, or one whose rules and supervision are deemed sufficiently close to the bloc’s. In a nutshell, this means it wants to force EU investors to trade Swiss stocks on EU soil only. Imagine the potential impact on shares in Nestle SA, where about 72 percent of its trading turnover is done on Zurich’s SIX market, according to data from Fidessa, a trading tech company.

Trying to take a stock market

hostage is never a good idea, although in this case it’s more likely to trigger confusion than widespread disruption. Switzerland on Thursday launched retaliatory measures, demanding that Swiss stocks be traded on Swiss soil. Law firms say this should create a kind of loophole, which should let EU banks and investment funds keep buying and selling shares in Zurich. Even if this works out, it will be a cumbersome fix. Longer term, investors may have doubts over liquidity and political risk on the Swiss stock market.

This sends a dismal signal on Brexit, too. Brussels recently threatened a similar punishment for the

of “perpetual existence” to already existing corporations. In an opinion, however, that was recently issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission in SEC-OGC Opinion No. 19-16, April 15, 2019, the SEC answered in the affirmative a query as to whether the corporate term of a company whose term was about to expire was deemed amended to that of perpetual existence. Quoting the new provision of the RCC, the SEC noted that the corporate term of a corporation existing prior to, and which continues to exist upon the effectivity of the RCC, shall be automatically deemed perpetual without any further act on the part of the corporation. In essence, the corporate term of the corporation is deemed amended to that of perpetual existence. This puts to rest the issue as to whether or not a corporation existing prior to the effectivity of the RCC and whose term is about to expire should be required to amend its articles to extend the life.

Even with the SEC opinion, I think it would still be better if the SEC will include in the formal guidelines specific statement about the “deemed” perpetual existence of these existing corporations, without any further action on their part. In the meantime, those entities whose corporate terms are about to expire may opt to secure a similar opinion

from the SEC. Note that in the said opinion, there is a notation that the same was rendered based solely on the facts and circumstances disclosed and relevant solely to the particular issue raised. It shall not be used in the nature of a standing rule binding upon the SEC in other cases or upon the courts whether of similar or dissimilar circumstances.

Prudence, therefore, dictates that corporations whose corporate lives are about to expire should secure opinion from the SEC confirming the automatic application of the perpetual existence.

Because of the automatic application of the perpetual existence, it also follows that if the corporation does not intend to extend its corporate life, majority of its shareholders should notify the SEC of the fact that it is retaining the corporate life stated in the articles. This will result in the dissolution of the corporation upon the expiration of such life.

UK if it crashed out of the bloc without a withdrawal deal, warning that EU investment firms would have to trade British giants like Vodafone Group Plc. on EU territory. Only the threat of tit-for-tat measures from UK regulators got the Commission to dial things down. By weaponizing this topic again just a few months before the next Brexit deadline, Brussels has sent a message to Westminster: The Swiss model so admired by Britain’s Brexiters is vulnerable to strong-arm tactics.

The fact that this is all politically driven makes it hard to guess what happens next. As bad as the EU’s behavior is, it’s possible that

the pressure tactics will shake the Swiss into finalizing a deal. But the injection of politics into issues like market access is becoming an all-too regular feature in Europe and won’t help the continent’s attractiveness to investors. Last year, the chairman of the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission threatened to cut off EU banks from US exchanges because of new regulations that he deemed overly intrusive. The Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker warned Switzerland last year that if a deal wasn’t wrapped up soon, things “might get rough.” He’s been true to his word. The net result feels like a loss for all concerned.

The article is for general information only and is not intended, nor should be construed as a substitute for tax, legal or financial advice on any specific matter. Applicability of this article to any actual or particular tax or legal issue should be supported therefore by a professional study or advice. If you have any comments or questions concerning the article, you may call 403-2001 local 170.

2nd Front Page BusinessMirror

A12 Tuesday, July 2, 2019

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Economic managers differ on sugar lib plan

T

By Elijah Felice E. Rosales

@alyasjah

HE standoff on the sugar trade liberalization has begun. Economic managers are headed for a collision course on whether or not to allow the open importation of sugar.

“What we have seen is that the domestic price is double the world market price.

As a result, our food processing industry, which uses a lot of sugar in its processes, has not really taken off as an industry.”—Dominguez

In a news briefing on Monday, Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III stood firm on the economic team’s position

Interagency task force to inspect $100,000/a night Palawan resort

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo

@akosistellaBM Special to the BusinessMirror

A

N interagency task force with representatives from the Departments of Tourism (DOT), Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), and the Interior and Local Government (DILG) will be inspecting Banwa Private Island in Roxas, Palawan, tagged as the “most expensive resort in the world.”

DOT Assistant Secretary for Tourism Regulation Coordination and Resource Generation (TRCRG) Ma. Rica C. Bueno said in a text

message to the BusinessMirror, “[Banwa] is still fixing their documentary requirements.”

The three agencies form the core task force that had recommended the closure of Boracay Island, another popular beach destination in the Philippines, for six months in 2018 from April 26. The inspection team for Banwa will come from the three agencies’ regional offices, said Bueno.

DOT Regional Director for Mimaropa (Southwestern Tagalog region) Daniel B. Intong, whose office covers the Palawan province, also explained: “Banwa submitted documents for accreditation a month or

LOW PRESSURE AREA 190 KM EAST NORTHEAST OF CALAYAN, CAGAYAN SOUTHWEST MONSOON AFFECTING LUZON AND VISAYAS as of 4:00 pm - July 1, 2019

so ago, but our office requested them to request for star rating so that it gets a premium accreditation.” The star-rating system is aligned with global hotel rating standards ranking tourism establishments from one to five stars.

After their global multimedia publicity splash announcing their opening and tagging it the most expensive resort in the world, Banwa abruptly stopped accepting bookings after it was discovered they had yet to secure accreditation from the DOT. (See, “No DOT accreditation for costliest resort,” in the BusinessMirror, May 21, 2019.)

See “Palawan resort,” A2

to push for the deregulation of sugar trade. Food processors, he argued, are experiencing difficulty competing with regional counterparts due to the higher cost of local sugar.

“What we have seen is that the domestic price is double the world market price,” Dominguez said.

“As a result, our food processing industry, which uses a lot of sugar in its processes, has not really taken off as an industry.

Compare it to, say, Thailand, they have a very, very healthy food and

fruit processing industry [there],” he added.

According to Dominguez, the government is investigating the sugar supply chain to identify if there are manipulations on the part of traders, resulting in higher prices of the staple.

“We are looking at this and, maybe, we should really closely look at who is benefiting from these restrictions here. Maybe some kind of liberalization will actually benefit more the country as a whole,” Dominguez said.

Govt interventions

HOWEVER, Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez, who changed his position on the matter, said government interventions on the production and trading of sugar must be implemented to pull down prices of the staple.

On the sidelines of the news briefing, Lopez said there is no need for liberalization for as long as producers and traders can commit competitive sugar pricing.

See “Sugar lib,” A2

Honasan takes oath as new DICT chief

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

S

EN. Gregorio “Gringo” Honasan finally assumed office on Monday as secretary of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), and attended the Cabinet meeting.

Eliseo M. Rio Jr., who sat as acting chief of the ICT department for almost two years, confirmed Honasan’s appointment, noting that the latter’s ascension to the helm of the agency is no surprise, as this has long been planned.

“I am still enthusiastic to work for the DICT. I hope that I will resume my post as undersecretary for special concerns,”Rio said.

Under Rio’s leadership, the government was able to award the third telco franchise to Mislatel Consortium, which is expected to receive its certificate of public convenience and necessity (CPCN) from the National Telecommunications Commission next Monday.

Rio also led the department in deploying free Internet connection in public places. Today, a total of 2,565 Wi-Fi sites, covering 17 regions, 58 provinces, and 394 municipalities, have been deployed, benefiting roughly 2.5 million unique users.

He was also instrumental in concretizing the national broadband plan and has secured key contracts with Facebook for a two-terabyte backbone, as well as with the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) and the National Transmission Corp. for the use of their dark fiber for Internet connectivity.

Through Rio’s leadership, the department crafted Vision 2020, an overarching goal for ICT development that aims to develop the industry and bring forth digital innovations and services that will greatly improve the daily lives of Filipinos.

Honasan was appointed in November 2018 by Duterte as he entered the last phase of his term as senator, but the implicit understanding was that he would serve out his term before joining the Cabinet.

A former Army colonel who rise to fame as the most trusted aide of thenDefense Chief Juan Ponce Enrile when the 1986 Edsa People Power revolt broke, he later achieved notoriety for leading several coup attempts against the post-Edsa Aquino presidency.

From being a fugitive rebel soldier who later obtained presidential pardon, he subsequently won a seat in the Senate.

With Samuel P. Medenilla

Manufacturing. . .

Continued from A1

second consecutive month, while input stocks also rose as some panelists hinted at risks of supply shortages,” Owen said.

“Altogether this suggests that there will be less incentive to raise output in the months ahead, unless firms see a strong inflow of new orders. Many companies may switch to using up their inventories, in which case activity could dry up. Firms also face notable labor market problems, as resignations were once again mentioned by a number of panelists,” he added.

Employment declined further in June, which IHS Markit linked to nonreplacement of leavers at manufacturing firms. This extended the manufacturing sector’s employment numbers’ deterioration to four months, although the latest drop was softer than in May.

PALAWAN’S DREAM Palawan Gov. Jose Alvarez unveils the province’s thrust to reduce poverty levels from 60 percent to 27 percent, mainly through a sustained, integrated tourism program. Alvarez bared his plans in his inaugural address at the weekend at Citystate Asturias Hotel in Puerto Princesa. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

14th-month pay. . .

Moreover, Sotto observed that “wages have invisibly decreased due to the rise in prices of basic commodities.”

Citing reports that “improved business earnings have not cascaded on its own,” the Senate leader, likewise, noted that the workers’ 13th-month pay is usually “gobbled up

by Christmas expenses.”

“We need extra earnings in the middle of the year to help in school and medical expenses,”Sotto stressed, adding: “Health and education needs of the ordinary Filipino must be assisted by our government.”

Sotto, meanwhile, started lining up priority bills to be tackled by the 24-member chamber as soon as Congress convenes regular session on July 22 Among the list of priority bills expected to be referred for Senate committee hearings before these are submitted for plenary consideration and approval are the proposed Anti-Terrorism Act, the Public Service Act, the Foreign Investment Act, Medical Scholarship and Lowering the Age of Criminal Liability, among other bills that need to be refiled after failing to get final approval in the previous Congress.

Sotto also listed other bills expected to be frontloaded for plenary deliberation and floor vote after getting committee endorsements: the proposed Medical Scholarship Act, Anti-Drug Penal Institution, Presidential Drug Enforcement Authority and the Dangerous Drugs Court bill.

Also in the senator’s priority list are the proposed SIM Card Registration Act, Anti-Fake News Act, Increasing the Penalty for Perjury, Prevention of Terrorism Act and the Hybrid Election Act.

Teachers’ pay hike

ALSO expected for early consideration is a separate bill filed by Sen. Juan Edgardo Angara increasing the salaries of public-school teachers, seen to fulfill the President’s pledge to 800,000 public-school teachers that “it will be their turn

Oil prices. . .

Continued from A1

allies, including Russia, are likely to extend a deal on curbing output when they meet in Vienna.

Meanwhile, the price of LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) and auto LPG went down over the weekend.

Continued from A1

to get salary increase following pay hikes for soldiers and policemen. The Angara bill adjusts the current Salary Grade (SG) 11 of entry-level teachers to SG 19. At present an SG 11 teacher gets P19,077 monthly salary, which the Angara bill will increase to P36,409.

Mega Cebu

IN the House, the first lawmaker who filed bills is Cebu Rep Raul del Mar. He pitched House Bill 11 for the creation of a Mega Cebu Development Authority, HB 12 to strengthen the rights of citizens to information held by the government or the freedom of information (FOI) bill, HB 13 to allow the use of motorcycles as public-utility vehicle and HB 14 to provide for Light Rail Transport or Metro Rail Transport in Cebu.

The bill allowing the use of motorcycles as PUVs is an offshoot of hearings conducted in both chambers of the 17th Congress, tackling the rise in usage of motorcycle-hailing apps as commuters in congested urban centers seek creative ways to travel despite heavy traffic. Regulators, invoking what Sen. Grace Poe had once described as anachronistic laws, had banned outright the motorcycle-hailing system, exemplified by the popular “Angkas,” but relented to public clamor and allowed a trial period pending passage of an amending legislation.

Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman, meanwhile, is pushing for the proposed Human Rights Defenders Protection Act or HB 15. House Bill 1 up to House Bill 10 are allotted to the bills that will be filed by the next speaker.

Another measure filed on the first day of the 18th Congress is one legalizing medical marijuana.

The bill was filed by Rep. Antonio Albano, brother of former congressman and now Gov. Rodito Albano, who was the principal author of the bill during the 17th Congress. The medical marijuana bill was approved on third and final reading by the House, but the Senate failed to approve it.

Petron Corp. implemented a P3.40 per kilogram price rollback in LPG prices and P1.90 per liter decrease in auto LPG prices.

“These reflect the international contract price of LPG for the month of July,” it said, Eastern Petroleum also slashed its EC Gas LPG by P3.40 per kilo or P37.40 for an 11-kilo cylinder at 6 a.m. of July 1.

Editor: Efleda P. Campos

Companies BusinessMirror

Tuesday, July 2, 2019

AGI sets aside ₧410 billion for capex in 2020-2024

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LLIANCE Global Group Inc. (AGI), the investment holding company of tycoon Dr. Andrew L. Tan, is allocating P410 billion for capital expenditures (capex) program from 2020 to 2024.

“Our five-year capital spending program signals our ongoing thrust to pursue an aggressive but organic growth strategy for our various businesses. It is our intention to continue to reinvest in these businesses to sustain our growth pace,” said Kevin L. Tan, AGI CEO. The planned capital expense is higher when compared to the P377-billion allocated in 20152019, inclusive of this year’s budget of P85 billion. It is even significantly bigger than the P218 billion set aside in 2010-2014, when AGI forayed into the international market.

The bulk, or around 73 percent of the group’s capex in the next five years, will be allocated for Megaworld Corp., AGI’s property arm and the country’s largest developer of integrated urban town-

ships. This will fund the company’s new and ongoing township development projects, planned residential launches and continued build-out of offices, lifestyle malls and hotels throughout the country. A portion of the budget will also be allocated for the company’s landbanking strategy in order to add to its current 4,700 hectares of developable land.

Travellers International Hotel Group Inc., owner and operator of Resorts World Manila (RWM), will account for another 15 percent of the Group’s five-year capex. The amount will fund largely the development of its next integrated resort, Westside City Resorts World, on a 30.5-hectare property within the Pagcor Entertainment City complex in Parañaque. Travellers will commence with the construction of

the casino and mall once piling works are completed.

About 5 percent of the Group’s capex will be allocated to Golden Arches Development Corp.

(GADC), which holds the exclusive franchise to operate quick-service restaurants (QSR) in the Philippines under the “McDonald ’s” brand. The company continues to undertake a store expansion program that will add about 5060 McDonald’s stores a year, from its current 633 stores. McDonald’s is also at the forefront of revolutionizing customer experience in the QSR segment with the rollout of Nxtgen stores which feature innovations, such as the self-ordering kiosks, modernized menu boards and card-payment acceptance. GADC plans to roll out more Nxtgen stores this year, from its current 62 stores throughout the country.

Emperador Inc., the world ’s l a rgest bra ndy compa ny a nd owner of the fifth largest Scotch whiskey manufacturer in the world, will account for 4 percent of the Group budget to fund its largely maintenance capex. After its heavy investments since 2014, Emperador is now pursuing an organic growth strategy by fortifying its global distribution system

DOE, NREB crafting new RE portfolio in 10 years

By Lenie Lectura @llectura

I

N a bid to spur the development and use of renewable energy (RE) in the country, the Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Renewable Energy Board (NREB) are crafting a new program that seeks to build an RE portfolio of 2,000 megawatts (MW) in 10 years.

“We want to build 2,000 MW of RE in 10 years. DOE has already asked NREB to review the concept of giving an allocation to RE. DOE will make a green energy tariff rate that will be auctioned among them. We will put a ceiling and then they will compete on the rates. The lowest rates will win. It’s not per technology, but rather per type of technology, if peaking or mid-merit,” explained Energy Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi.

NREB is the advisory body tasked by the law to recommend policies, rules and standards to govern the implementation of the law, which granted fiscal and nonfiscal incentives to RE projects.

Cusi said the NREB will further study this

Century Pacific to spend P2 billion in capex this year

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ANNER Century Pacific Food Inc. said it is setting aside P2 billion as its capital expenditures this year, aimed at starting to double its business in five years through expansion and acquisitions.

“Ouroutlookisoneofcautiousoptimism,andweareexcited to work with our team to implementourbusiness plan,” CNPF Executive Chairman Christopher Po said.

“Our plant accounts for almost one third of the total budget. After five years of double-digit growth, the business now requires us to invest again in a plant that will support the plans of our core business,” Po said.

The new factory in General Santos will be completed by the end of the year and will have a capacity to process about a hundred metric tons of tuna per day.

Po said the company is growing at a 17-percent compoundedannualgrowthrateduringthelastfour years.

“A growing middle class, urbanization, premiumization, and consumer preference for healthier lifestyles are some of the long-term trends that have provided the tailwinds for us to achieve this and will likely continue to do so over the next few years,” he said.

Aside from launch of new products, growth will also come from acquisitions, Po said. VG Cabuag

and is expected to submit a report. “We will finalize the policy after NREB has submitted its recommendation. Ang gagawin lang ng DOE is to allocate 2,000 MW in order to develop the RE industry.”

The proposed RE capacity auction veers away from the feed-in-tariff (FiT) program, a system that provides guaranteed payments in the form of power rates given to RE developers for 20 years.

“We are coming up with a green energy rate. This rate will be the present avoided cost of generation. How much is that, don’t ask me...

It shouldn’t be expensive than what we are paying right now,” said Cusi.

The FiT era is over and Cusi has openly expressed this in the past. “It is now a question of how we can foster a RE industry that is competitive and affordable,” he said.

FiT is basically an incentive in the form of fixed rate per kilowatt hour (kWh) for emerging power sources, such as solar, wind, biomass and hydro. It was meant to encourage RE developers to invest at the initial stage and hasten deploy-

ment of RE. The FiT rates are P9.68 per kWh and P8.69 per kWh under the FiT-Solar 1 and 2; P8.53 per kWh and P7.4 per kWh under the FiT-Wind 1 and 2; P6.63 per kWh for biomass; and P5.9 per kWh for ROR (run-of-river) hydro.

The ERC earlier issued a degressed FiT rate of P5.8705 per kWh and P6.5969 per kWh for hydro and biomass plants, respectively.

The assumption was that the dispatch of RE would result in lower costs for consumers.

The irony, however, is that consumers are the ones who shoulder the FiT rate via a uniform charge per kWh. At present, 22 centavos per kWh is being collected from consumers. However, the power generated from these technologies, particularly solar, now cost as low as P3 per kWh compared to the FiT rate of over P9 per kWh that was first offered in 2012. The P3/kw tariff is more than three times lower than the FiT rate that was considered under the past administrations. The agency wants to avoid providing subsidy when its thrust is to bring down electricity rates.

OPMC declares cash dividends as income improves

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INING firm Oriental Petroleum and Minerals Corp. (OPMC) said it declared cash dividends after oil prices improved last year, and its Galoc oilfield in Palawan generated modest revenues.

The company said its board declared a cash dividend of one twentieth of a centavo (P0.0005) per share.

“This year, we are celebrating five decades of being one of the country’s pioneers in oil and gas exploration and production. More important, we have been a significant participant in all the numerous offshore commercial oil discoveries in the country,” OPMC President Robert Coyiuto Jr. said during the company’s stockholders’ meeting.

Coyiuto said last year saw an improvement in the prices of the company’s Galoc oilfield in Palawan.

Overall, OPMC continued to generate modest levels of oil revenues and net income from its petroleum operations, closing at $7.7 million

and $855,000, respectively, it said. In 2018, the average price per barrel reached $71 per barrel, compared to $55 per barrel during the previous year. Revenue from petroleum operations for the first quarter of the year fell 41 percent $1.10 million, from $1.86 million last year caused by the decrease in crude oil production volume by 39 percent.

Petroleum production costs at the end of the three-month period, totaled $0.88 million, a decrease by 48 percent last year, as actual costs were incurred to plug and abandon the Libro and Tara wells. Apart from being a player in upstream petroleum energy exploration and production in the Philippines, OPMC is also exploring opportunities in renewable-energy projects, as well as upstream and downstream natural gas projects of the government through the Department of Energy. Its principal stockholders are Coyiuto, Consolidated Robina Capital Corp. and listed firm JG Summit Holdings Inc.

B1

for its premier whiskey products under Whyte and Mackay, as well as its Spanish brandy products under Bodegas Fundador. The company is also expanding its product mix in the domestic market with the recent introduction of The Bar Premium Gin, while it maintains market leadership in the brandy segment with its flagship Emperador Brandy.

The balance of 3 percent will be allocated for Infracorp Development Inc. largely to fund its infrastructure projects, the 2-kilometer Fort Bonifacio-Makati Skytrain monorail project, and the rehabilitation of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

Both are awaiting Neda’s approval and are looking to start project implementation soon.

CBRE, Leechiu Property Consultants amicably dissolve strategic alliance

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EECHIU Property Consultants (LPC) and CBRE announced their mutual decision to dissolve their strategic alliance in the Philippines.

The successful commercial real-estate partnership between LPC and CBRE began in late 2016 and ends amicably as both providers look to deepen their respective commitments to the evolving Philippine market.

According to LPC and CBRE, the Philippines commercial real-estate sector will continue to offer exceptional fundamentals to service providers and will benefit from a more diverse range of local and international firms operating in the market.

With rentals in both the office and residential markets continuing their upward projection in 2019, LPC foresees that the industry will continue to mark all-time highs across all sectors, allowing for enhanced opportunities for more independent players in the Philippines.

LPC Executive Director David Leechiu observed: “We are seeing the highest land

values in markets such as BGC where land now costs P1.3 million per square meter and condo prices are at P540,000/sq.m.

The projected trajectory in the Philippines’s commercial real-estate space combined with the evolving demands of clients will usher in more opportunities for key industry players including LPC and CBRE to propel their respective growth paths.”

Under the mutual dissolution of the strategic alliance, LPC will no longer provide leasing, capital markets and consulting services for CBRE. “We wish CBRE every success and thank them for our fruitful years of cooperation,“ Leechiu said. Additionally, Leechiu announced that LPC is currently marketing 46 projects covering a total of 1,105,361 sq.m. in BGC, Makati, Quezon City, Ortigas, Bay Area, Alabang and Cebu. Within its occupier solutions business, LPC has also closed deals covering 1,115,000 sq.m. of which 599,000 sq.m. are live deals. In the investment sales space, LPC is looking to transact P12 billion in the next 12 months.

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Companies BusinessMirror

Tuesday, July 2, 2019

PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

July 1, 2019

Net Foreign Stocks Bid Ask Open High Low Close Volume Value Trade (Peso) Buy (Sell) FINANCIALS ASIA UNITED BDO UNIBANK BANK PH ISLANDS CHINABANK EAST WEST BANK METROBANK PB BANK PHIL NATL BANK PSBANK PHILTRUST RCBC SECURITY BANK UNION BANK BRIGHT KINDLE BDO LEASING COL FINANCIAL FERRONOUX HLDG MEDCO HLDG NTL REINSURANCE PHIL STOCK EXCH SUN LIFE

58 139.4 78.75 27.45 11.66 72 13.2 49.7 57.85 112 27.1 168.5 61.7 1.18 2.4 18.72 4.91 0.485 0.97 188.1 1755

58.9 139.5 78.95 27.5 11.68 72.25 13.26 49.8 57.9 115 27.3 168.6 62 1.2 2.41 18.8 5 0.5 1 190.5 1800

58 140 79 27.45 11.68 72.45 13.22 49.25 58 115 28.1 171.1 61.25 1.18 2.41 18.64 5.01 0.49 0.97 190 1800

58.9 140.8 79.45 27.9 11.78 72.5 13.26 49.9 58 115 28.1 171.1 62 1.2 2.41 18.8 5.14 0.51 1 190.5 1800

58 139 78.1 27.4 11.64 71.9 13.22 49.2 57.9 115 27 168.5 61 1.18 2.4 18.64 4.89 0.48 0.96 187 1800

58.9 139.5 78.75 27.5 11.68 72 13.26 49.7 57.9 115 27.1 168.6 61.7 1.2 2.41 18.8 5 0.5 1 190 1800

5300 2250340 1480210 51300 373000 1942640 9800 316500 610 200 163400 155920 25600 43000 28000 28600 136000 1181000 448000 1710 25

311900 314231083 116737280 1410340 4361506 140326781 129576 15698140 35320 23000 4505820 26419588 1581141.5 50800 67270 536398 671280 574390 434470 324695 45000

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

1.36 35.55 0.26 27 83.05 381 24.8 5.83 4.53 2.44 11.96 39.15 6.5 15.96 15.02 89.25 16.7 15.04 6.07 10.48 7.63 105.1 0.85 62.75 284 9.35 13.84 0.186 1.79 13.86 1.37 4.9 2 0.128 165.1 1.25 2.6 128.8 147.2 3.02 5.25 15.58 11.16 13.7 19.1 9.18 1.19 1.63 100.1 2.04 1.59 3.24 4.91 41.65 2.54 10.08 1.69 1.16 18.8

ABACORE CAPITAL ASIABEST GROUP AYALA CORP ABOITIZ EQUITY ALLIANCE GLOBAL AYALA LAND LOG ANSCOR ANGLO PHIL HLDG ATN HLDG A ATN HLDG B COSCO CAPITAL DMCI HLDG FILINVEST DEV FJ PRINCE A FORUM PACIFIC GT CAPITAL HOUSE OF INV JG SUMMIT KEPPEL HLDG A LODESTAR LOPEZ HLDG LT GROUP MABUHAY HLDG MJC INVESTMENTS METRO PAC INV PACIFICA PRIME MEDIA SOLID GROUP SM INVESTMENTS SAN MIGUEL CORP SOC RESOURCES TOP FRONTIER WELLEX INDUS ZEUS HLDG

1 12.94 901 54.15 15.42 3.86 7 0.72 1.34 1.35 6.8 10.3 13.9 4 0.235 922 6.4 66.4 3.8 0.49 3.99 15.18 0.64 2.71 4.82 0.041 1.4 1.35 977 174.9 0.82 264.6 0.231 0.325

1.4 35.75 0.265 27.1 83.25 384.6 24.9 5.84 4.6 2.45 12.16 39.2 6.55 16.98 15.04 110 17.2 15.06 6.08 10.52 7.64 107 0.86 63.4 284.2 9.5 13.9 0.191 1.8 13.9 1.38 4.93 2.07 0.133 166 1.26 2.68 130 152.9 3.03 5.3 15.8 11.2 13.88 19.12 9.29 1.2 1.64 113.8 2.07 1.75 3.43 4.99 42 2.56 10.1 1.7 1.19 18.88

1.39 35 0.265 26.8 83.3 384.2 25 5.83 4.54 2.55 12.04 38.8 6.49 15.9 14.52 110 16.8 15.02 6.06 10.5 7.64 106.1 0.86 63 282.4 9.1 13.8 0.186 1.82 13.52 1.37 4.9 2 0.133 167 1.29 2.54 120.1 143 2.92 5.3 15.62 10.92 13.9 19.06 9.29 1.19 1.56 113 2.02 1.75 3.46 4.92 42 2.53 10.06 1.69 1.27 19.3

1.39 35.75 0.275 27.4 84.1 385 25.25 5.93 4.66 2.57 12.16 39.15 6.56 15.9 15.04 110 17.5 15.16 6.1 10.52 7.65 107 0.89 63.4 284.6 9.35 13.9 0.196 1.88 13.88 1.38 4.9 2 0.134 168.6 1.29 2.68 162 205 3.05 5.3 15.8 11.4 13.94 19.18 9.29 1.2 1.63 113 2.04 1.75 3.46 5.05 42 2.56 10.1 1.75 1.27 19.74

1.36 34.85 0.26 26.6 83 378.6 24.6 5.82 4.5 2.34 11.96 38.8 6.48 15.9 14.5 110 16.54 15 6.06 10.46 7.61 105 0.84 60.5 282.2 9.05 13.6 0.186 1.75 13.52 1.36 4.9 2 0.133 164.1 1.23 2.52 106.4 135 2.91 5.3 15.6 10.92 13.6 19.04 9.29 1.18 1.55 113 2.01 1.75 3.2 4.92 42 2.45 10 1.69 1.14 18.88

1.36 35.75 0.26 27 83.05 384.6 24.8 5.83 4.66 2.45 12.16 39.15 6.55 15.9 15.04 110 17.3 15.04 6.08 10.5 7.64 107 0.85 63.4 284 9.35 13.84 0.19 1.8 13.86 1.38 4.9 2 0.134 166 1.26 2.68 130 152.9 3.02 5.3 15.8 11.2 13.7 19.1 9.29 1.2 1.63 113 2.04 1.75 3.24 4.92 42 2.56 10.08 1.69 1.19 18.88

134000 974700 7880000 9739500 107830 60540 362600 742500 61000 52481000 83400 172400 77500 2300 1521000 90 6400 1736500 48200 3897700 2514600 290110 7710000 282890 258770 50000 560900 1070000 13693000 169100 246000 13000 1000 1730000 310330 4539000 51000 250230 73560 17217000 11500 144800 499000 951300 88100 10000 646000 30272000 10 109000 1000 41000 8100 1000 3741000 114600 581000 1367000 113000

185990 34569005 2063450 261889040 9002741.5 23123598 9064690 4347758 276020 127686940 1007990 6731085 505567 36570 22629570 9900 107056 26112400 293445 40927450 19210493 30606417 6655630 17459692.5 73428000 460285 7688452 201660 24826030 2327520 337300 63700 2000 231160 51344517 5686310 129660 35300719 11895120 51690170 60950 2260342 5596086 13045586 1682834 92900 769410 48451670 1130 220480 1750 134410 39875 42000 9410280 1149634 986380 1595550 2162170

HOLDING & FRIMS 1.02 12.96 902 54.8 15.5 3.87 7.13 0.73 1.35 1.38 6.85 10.4 14 4.59 0.246 940 6.43 67.3 5.3 0.5 4 15.2 0.65 2.99 4.84 0.042 1.41 1.38 981.5 175 0.83 267 0.238 0.33

1.09 14.2 894.5 55 15.44 3.76 6.77 0.73 1.39 1.37 6.9 10.32 14.08 3.91 0.247 940 6.4 67.05 5.3 0.49 4.13 15.22 0.67 2.71 4.8 0.042 1.38 1.38 970 175.2 0.83 264.6 0.231 0.33

1.11 14.2 902 55 15.6 3.87 7 0.73 1.39 1.38 6.9 10.4 14.12 3.91 0.247 946 6.44 67.3 5.3 0.51 4.13 15.24 0.67 2.71 4.87 0.042 1.45 1.38 981.5 176.2 0.83 267 0.232 0.33

0.95 12.8 894.5 53.9 15.38 3.67 6.77 0.72 1.33 1.35 6.7 10.24 13.88 3.91 0.246 922 6.4 65.2 5.3 0.49 3.92 15.18 0.63 2.71 4.8 0.04 1.33 1.36 965 174.9 0.8 264.6 0.231 0.32

1 12.96 902 54.75 15.42 3.87 7 0.73 1.35 1.35 6.8 10.3 14 3.91 0.246 922 6.4 67.3 5.3 0.49 3.99 15.2 0.64 2.71 4.84 0.041 1.41 1.36 981.5 175 0.82 267 0.232 0.33

171282000 205400 235080 385790 4111300 8739000 84200 760000 3589000 621000 427500 1196800 448400 1000 320000 44320 107900 486790 1300 196000 10915000 985700 3297000 2000 17133000 19600000 2852000 24000 112940 350020 701000 200 1130000 5110000

174852970 2695892 211600895 21039419 63620568 33039330 579134 554100 4853520 847780 2910758 12339124 6301244 3910 78900 41327035 690652 32525059 6890 97490 43398380 14980272 2113010 5420 82923800 816200 3985850 32880 110370745 61265551 571500 53016 261450 1652850

120156 -85037669 -69854814 401780 -169838 -402952.5 1243565 -34740 -2513290 -803261 -406188.5 3540 -4850 229945 -33360 10557715 135340 -2648374.5 3119724 678335 520102 652320 -43580.0002 4953990 472422 -23746 3753540 417355 -4551061 3231214 20741952 2338948 -204880 475154 11040 63700 -20545843 801104 6482760 60950 1687920 -250840 10758188 -974086 -92899.9999 1149220.0001 -1130 -278910 183742 10200 -1930 432420 -34539520 -9489544.5 -38330276 -186800 507811 629940 -581615 -4872950 -466044 -22546400 -506900 -1723783 50000 -9212800 -1915428 29261300 -25200 -1420 56536875 -251804 -74050

PROPERTY

ARTHALAND CORP 0.88 0.89 0.85 0.91 0.85 0.88 6904000 6148230 -89000 ANCHOR LAND 11 11.34 11.34 11.34 11.34 11.34 100 1134 AYALA LAND 51.5 51.7 50.95 51.7 50.7 51.7 5484330 280346505.5 27799576 ARANETA PROP 1.99 2.06 2.06 2.06 1.99 1.99 132000 264900 BELLE CORP 2.32 2.34 2.33 2.35 2.31 2.32 178000 413770 -20840 A BROWN 0.82 0.83 0.83 0.85 0.81 0.83 2430000 2019820 CITYLAND DEVT 0.92 0.95 0.92 0.97 0.92 0.95 310000 291210 12350 CROWN EQUITIES 0.237 0.24 0.237 0.24 0.237 0.24 1530000 366410 CEBU HLDG 6.03 6.08 6.1 6.11 6.02 6.08 138500 841957 -73148 CEB LANDMASTERS 5.04 5.05 4.82 5.06 4.77 5.04 4940000 24607590 10562230 CENTURY PROP 0.62 0.63 0.62 0.64 0.61 0.63 108176000 68292930 520170 CYBER BAY 0.455 0.46 0.45 0.46 0.445 0.46 1600000 719150 DOUBLEDRAGON 24.1 24.25 24.55 24.95 24.1 24.1 544800 13266715 1912615 DM WENCESLAO 9.81 9.87 9.85 9.87 9.75 9.84 24700 242972 -4925 EMPIRE EAST 0.475 0.49 0.47 0.495 0.47 0.49 1580000 763200 -72250 EVER GOTESCO 0.123 0.13 0.121 0.121 0.121 0.121 10000 1210 FILINVEST LAND 1.89 1.9 1.88 1.94 1.87 1.9 54729000 104409180 -67673090 GLOBAL ESTATE 1.39 1.4 1.41 1.41 1.36 1.39 2497000 3456060 -672970 8990 HLDG 15.46 15.48 15.6 15.6 15.3 15.46 1954000 30201896 -1077774 PHIL INFRADEV 1.85 1.86 1.87 1.87 1.83 1.85 2388000 4414260 448280 CITY AND LAND 0.81 0.82 0.82 0.82 0.81 0.82 82000 67220 MEGAWORLD 6.16 6.17 6.1 6.2 6.07 6.17 14281900 87854905 -18548208 MRC ALLIED 0.345 0.35 0.345 0.36 0.345 0.35 23060000 8125300 -864050 PHIL ESTATES 0.46 0.48 0.48 0.48 0.46 0.46 1510000 694800 PRIMEX CORP 2.19 2.2 2.13 2.2 2.1 2.19 1225000 2631520 -40250 ROBINSONS LAND 26.3 26.4 25.85 26.4 25.85 26.4 1171600 30784575 -1294480 PHIL REALTY 0.405 0.415 0.405 0.41 0.405 0.405 170000 69050 ROCKWELL 2.23 2.24 2.25 2.32 2.21 2.23 1170000 2645520 -124290 SHANG PROP 2.95 3 2.95 3.04 2.95 2.95 2083000 6231700 STA LUCIA LAND 1.94 1.97 1.96 1.98 1.88 1.97 1015000 1971190 95610 SM PRIME HLDG 38 38.05 37.3 38 37.3 38 6111400 231059785 36312810.0004 STARMALLS 6.38 6.4 6.41 6.41 6.36 6.4 74100 473333 SUNTRUST HOME 0.75 0.77 0.75 0.75 0.75 0.75 12000 9000 PTFC REDEV CORP 45 48.95 46.05 46.05 46 46 500 23010 VISTA LAND 7.12 7.14 7.13 7.14 7.1 7.14 2505900 17882202 -2689819

SERVICES ABS CBN 17.06 17.08 17.16 17.18 17.06 17.06 53300 911280 GMA NETWORK 5.33 5.37 5.37 5.4 5.33 5.33 205600 1102923 MANILA BULLETIN 0.52 0.53 0.54 0.54 0.51 0.52 439000 232760 GLOBE TELECOM 2224 2230 2262 2268 2224 2230 44705 100317700 17784340 PLDT 1272 1280 1290 1295 1266 1272 57175 72822425 24500145 APOLLO GLOBAL 0.046 0.047 0.045 0.048 0.045 0.047 60000000 2802000 -23500 DFNN INC 5.9 6.29 5.9 6.3 5.9 6.29 7900 49673 IMPERIAL 1.86 1.9 1.9 1.9 1.85 1.86 51000 95060 ISLAND INFO 0.116 0.118 0.115 0.119 0.115 0.116 1150000 133940 23800 ISM COMM 6.82 6.83 6.95 6.98 6.8 6.83 5966300 41126990 1258151 JACKSTONES 3.04 3.14 3.05 3.07 3.05 3.05 59000 180090 NOW CORP 2.68 2.69 2.54 2.72 2.54 2.69 6381000 16941980 746600 TRANSPACIFIC BR 0.39 0.395 0.39 0.405 0.385 0.39 12560000 4914100 PHILWEB 3.59 3.6 3.64 3.7 3.58 3.6 1522000 5516310 -186890 2GO GROUP 11.1 11.12 11.18 11.18 11.12 11.12 9700 108024 ASIAN TERMINALS 20.75 21.3 21.5 21.5 21.3 21.3 2500 53710 -53710 CHELSEA 8.63 8.64 8.41 8.68 8.33 8.64 4824900 41347495 1488930 CEBU AIR 89 89.4 91 91.2 87.5 89 562320 49988166 -13307156.5 INTL CONTAINER 144.4 144.5 146 146.4 143.5 144.5 671330 97015992 -26673472 LBC EXPRESS 14.5 14.9 14.9 14.9 14.9 14.9 600 8940 LORENZO SHIPPNG 0.83 0.84 0.81 0.83 0.81 0.83 551000 448820 -40500 MACROASIA 18.9 18.92 19 19.18 18.92 18.92 288500 5473042 -900746 METROALLIANCE A 1.57 1.64 1.56 1.57 1.54 1.57 64000 99310 PAL HLDG 9.14 9.15 9.2 9.3 9.1 9.15 50900 465787 15555 HARBOR STAR 2.22 2.23 2.24 2.26 2.22 2.22 947000 2114950 BOULEVARD HLDG 0.056 0.057 0.056 0.057 0.055 0.057 52370000 2957840 13540 WATERFRONT 0.72 0.74 0.75 0.76 0.72 0.74 7523000 5524630 FAR EASTERN U 890 895 890 890 890 890 12260 10911400 IPEOPLE 9.91 10.1 10.1 10.1 10.1 10.1 1200 12120 STI HLDG 0.73 0.74 0.74 0.74 0.72 0.74 1621000 1185250 346590 BERJAYA 2.73 2.75 2.81 2.81 2.73 2.73 276000 758670 8100 BLOOMBERRY 11.28 11.3 11.3 11.38 11.24 11.28 3620300 40861700 -4579476 PACIFIC ONLINE 3.1 3.12 3.12 3.14 3.06 3.12 149000 463500 -244530 LEISURE AND RES 3.81 3.84 4.09 4.11 3.79 3.81 6888000 26782430 2058729.9999 MANILA JOCKEY 3.1 3.2 3.26 3.26 3.15 3.15 27000 86200 PH RESORTS GRP 5.3 5.45 5.31 5.58 5.3 5.3 37000 197356 PREMIUM LEISURE 0.79 0.8 0.8 0.81 0.78 0.8 2792000 2225650 701340 PHIL RACING 8.25 9.49 8.25 8.25 8.25 8.25 627000 5172750 -5172750 TRAVELLERS 5.47 5.49 5.48 5.6 5.42 5.49 6705900 36780429 -21432478 METRO RETAIL 2.48 2.49 2.54 2.54 2.43 2.49 5907000 14660070 81240 PUREGOLD 44.8 44.85 45 45 44.7 44.8 180000 8063360 -3517425 ROBINSONS RTL 74.9 75.1 75.6 75.6 74.95 75.1 2461450 184822246.5 18566042.5 PHIL SEVEN CORP 136 140 140 140 140 140 620 86800 -37800 SSI GROUP 3.42 3.45 3.43 3.48 3.4 3.45 16223000 55380100 20728230 WILCON DEPOT 16.88 17.18 16.82 17.2 16.82 16.88 1302500 22207250 4069668 APC GROUP 0.49 0.495 0.5 0.52 0.485 0.495 3924000 1955935 -97500 EASYCALL 10.1 10.18 10.12 10.2 10.06 10.1 42100 425298 GOLDEN BRIA 400.8 407.8 400.6 407.8 400.6 407.8 2120 864464 IPM HLDG 5.9 6 5.85 5.9 5.85 5.9 2400 14140 PAXYS 2.92 3.03 3.03 3.03 3.03 3.03 5000 15150 -0 PRMIERE HORIZON 0.9 0.91 0.83 0.91 0.83 0.91 91278000 80523280 -1245410 SBS PHIL CORP 9.01 9.29 9.19 9.2 9 9.15 2195800 19,802,952( 18,344,069.9996)

MINING & OIL ATOK 11.12 12.5 12.6 12.6 12.6 12.6 200 2520 APEX MINING 1.21 1.23 1.24 1.24 1.2 1.23 4387000 5333610 743470 ABRA MINING 0.0018 0.0019 0.0018 0.0018 0.0018 0.0018 9000000 16200 BENGUET A 1.2 1.25 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 5000 6000 COAL ASIA HLDG 0.28 0.29 0.28 0.28 0.28 0.28 20000 5600 CENTURY PEAK 2.78 2.8 2.78 2.81 2.77 2.78 222000 620050 DIZON MINES 7.8 7.83 7.87 7.91 7.63 7.83 9700 75695 FERRONICKEL 1.53 1.54 1.51 1.54 1.5 1.53 7970000 12159700 756600 GEOGRACE 0.219 0.227 0.219 0.227 0.218 0.227 610000 134300 43800 LEPANTO A 0.115 0.12 0.119 0.12 0.113 0.115 4000000 469820 LEPANTO B 0.119 0.12 0.12 0.129 0.12 0.12 2440000 292980 96000 MANILA MINING A 0.0075 0.0079 0.0076 0.0076 0.0075 0.0075 37000000 278400 MARCVENTURES 1.03 1.04 1.03 1.04 1.03 1.04 147000 152070 44290 NIHAO 0.99 1.02 0.98 1.02 0.98 1.01 118000 119730 NICKEL ASIA 2.35 2.36 2.25 2.35 2.24 2.35 2944000 6775560 620029.9997 OMICO CORP 0.54 0.55 0.54 0.55 0.54 0.55 30000 16420 ORNTL PENINSULA 0.87 0.89 0.88 0.89 0.86 0.89 346000 304670 PX MINING 3.5 3.58 3.6 3.6 3.41 3.5 860000 3002210 -67160 SEMIRARA MINING 23.45 23.5 23.2 23.7 23.2 23.45 1201500 28118545 3090070 UNITED PARAGON 0.0064 0.0065 0.0062 0.0063 0.0062 0.0062 18000000 111800 ORNTL PETROL A 0.012 0.013 0.012 0.013 0.012 0.013 46000000 553700 ORNTL PETROL B 0.011 0.012 0.012 0.012 0.012 0.012 64300000 771600 PHILODRILL 0.01 0.011 0.01 0.011 0.01 0.011 6500000 68500 PHINMA PETRO 4.51 4.65 4.7 4.7 4.47 4.67 117000 526890 PXP ENERGY 7.37 7.38 7.64 7.64 7.35 7.38 2428700 18049301 -664077

PREFFERED

HOUSE PREF A 94.05 96.9 96.9 96.9 94 94 540 50818 AC PREF B2 485 496 486 497 486 497 60 29270 ALCO PREF B 100 101 100 100 100 100 4400 440000 ALCO PREF C 100.1 101.2 100.2 100.2 100.1 100.1 1550 155305 DD PREF 98 99 99.95 99.95 99.5 99.5 20 1994.5 SMC FB PREF 2 960 979.5 960.5 960.5 960 960 50 48010 LR PREF 0.99 1 0.99 0.99 0.99 0.99 50000 49500 PNX PREF 3A 99.2 99.5 99.9 99.9 99.5 99.5 12550 1251325 PCOR PREF 2A 990 995 986 995 986 995 550 543920 PCOR PREF 2B 993 1018 993 993 993 993 1000 993000 PCOR PREF 3A 1000 1010 1010 1010 1010 1010 7000 7070000 PCOR PREF 3B 1001 1002 1002 1004 1002 1002 540 541160 SMC PREF 2B 74.8 75.55 75.5 75.5 75.5 75.5 20 1510 SMC PREF 2C 76.1 76.2 76.5 76.8 76.5 76.8 2360 180546 15300 SMC PREF 2D 72.5 73.55 72.5 72.5 72.5 72.5 3200 232000 SMC PREF 2E 72.3 73 73 73 72 73 4970 362310 SMC PREF 2F 73.75 74.95 74.5 75 74.5 75 13250 991250 SMC PREF 2G 73.25 74.5 74.4 74.5 74.4 74.5 1540 114580 -111600 SMC PREF 2H 71.15 73.65 70.5 71.05 70.5 71.05 10010 705710.5 SMC PREF 2I 72.95 73 72.95 73 72.95 73 10620 775235 -

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS ABS HLDG PDR

16.8

16.82

16.84

16.84

16.8

16.82

31900

536776

WARRANTS LR WARRANT

1.88

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES ITALPINAS 4.85 MAKATI FINANCE 2.48 XURPAS 1.17

1.89

1.9

1.9

1.86

1.88

523000

980320

-131600

4.87 2.69 1.18

4.86 2.48 1.17

4.91 2.48 1.21

4.79 2.48 1.13

4.85 2.48 1.17

690000 1000 20275000

3324550 2480 23882320

-10900

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS FIRST METRO ETF

119.7

-452676

120.4

119.6

120.4

119.4

120.4

7490

899017

-

www.businessmirror.com.ph

DOE receives 365 EPNS applications in June

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By Lenie Lectura

@llectura

HE Department of Energy (DOE) has received a total of 365 Energy Projects of National Significance (EPNS) applications as of last month.

The bulk of the applications, or 181, were oil and gas power projects.

Renewable-energy (RE) projects with EPNS applications reached 83. EPNS

applications for transmission projects stood at 69; coal, 20; and hybrid power projects at 12.

Of the 365 EPNS applications,

294 were accepted while 71 did not comply with the necessary requirements.

Of the 294 accepted applications, 137 were certified as EPNS while 157 applications are still under evaluation.

The latest in the DOE’s EPNS list are the 20-megawatt (MW) Sablan 1 hydroelectric power project of Hedcor Benguet Inc., a unit of Aboitiz Power Corp.

The hydropower project in Sablan, Benguet province, is currently in its predevelopment phase.

The DOE also issued EPNS cer-

tificate to the 9.7-MW Mindoro Harvest Energy Power Block 1 on June 21. The power project is being undertaken by Mindoro Harvest Energy Co. Inc. The issuance of EPNS certificates are stipulated under Executive Order (EO) 30, which states that concerned government agencies shall act upon applications for permits not exceeding within a 30-day period. If no decision is made within the specified processing time frame, the application is deemed approved by the concerned agency.

Energy chief approves CEPNS to push completion of delayed 9.7-MW power project in Mindoro

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NERGY Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi has approved the issuance of a Certificate of Energy Project of National Significance (CEPNS) on June 21 to Mindoro Harvest Energy Corp. to expedite the construction and completion of the company’s 9.7-megawatt (MW) bunker C power project, which was intended to prevent power shortages and alleviate crippling brownouts in Southern Mindoro.

The Department of Energy certification would enable various government agencies to expedite the license-permit process for the urgently needed project that would serve eight growing, electricity-starved municipalities in Southern Mindoro.

CEPNS is issued in accordance with President Duterte’s Executive Order 30, Series of 2017 to enable the expeditious, rapid building and completion of vital infrastructure projects. The certification must be issued within 30 days after submission by applicants to any government agency, according to the President’s EO 30 and the DOE’s implementing guidelines.

Cristina Young, president of Power One Corp., the project proponent, thanked Energy Secretary Cusi for his swift response in the release of the CEPNS for the Mindoro Harvest Energy satellite plant, after he learned that the power project had been stuck for four months at the DOE’s Power Bureau.

Joy Najito, Mindoro Harvest Energy project liaison and licensing officer, said Cusi’s action resolved the impasse over the allowed installed capacity for the new power project that the DOE Power Bureau wanted to limit to 3 MW and not allow the reserve and standby engines that are needed to assure the power plants reliability and for which “we are not

charging extra capacity fees.”

Mindoro Harvest will be paid only for energy actually delivered and used by the local cooperative under its current power-supply agreement, Najito added.

Because of the delay, the local electric co-op Ormeco will have to continue buying the expected approximate 1.5 million kilowatt hour a month output of theMindoro Harvest Energy plant if it operated as originally planned, from more expensive temporary power generators at an estimated higher cost and missionary subsidy to the government of P4.5 million a month or P22.5 million for the five-month hold back, Najito said.

The Mindoro Harvest Energy Corp., applied for the CEPNS five months ago in January 2019 and, based on the mandate of President Duterte’s EO 30, had hoped to secure it last February to enable the company to start construction in April and meet its target completion of August or September this year, Najito said.

With the CEPNS, Brian Ani, Mindoro Harvest chief project engineer, said the company hopes to secure construction permits by the end of July, start construction in August; and complete the power plant

by January or February of 2020, weather permitting. We had hope to complete the critical civil works before the rainy season that normally starts in June.

The southern half of Oriental Mindoro consists of eight towns from Socorro to the progressive town of Pinamalayan, the Roro gateway of Roxas, and up to Bulalacao, have been suffering from continuous brownouts since a typhoon in December 2016 devastated the transmission lines that supply power to the south

Sunset Pacific Petroleum ventures into oil, gas deposits in Tunisia, Oman

S

UNSET Pacific Petroleum Ltd., a company organized in 1981, has ramped up its oil- and gas-exploration activities by concluding joint ventures with the Tunisian companies IMI-EAG and COTIF SICAR, Hoqool Petroleum Int’l WLL Co. of Bahrain and acquiring a oil and gas concession in the Sultanate of Oman.

The company has been earning from Bougie Trutch and Trutch East fields even as it targets new oil and gas deposits in the Middle East particularly Oman, and Tunisia in North Africa.

Sunset Pacific’s ventures in Tunisia, Bahrain and Oman are significant in the light of the continuing tensions between the United States and Iran, with Tunisia being safer source of crude oil.

Thirty percent of the world’s crude oil supplies pass the Straits of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman, where the US Navy is girding for action against

Iran after US President Donald Trump dumped the nuclear deal with Tehran, the only national leader to throw the accord under the bus.

Full-blown development of oil and gas in Tunisia will also hasten economic development in a country that has a large pool of college graduates seeking jobs and stabilize world crude oil prices.

In a statement, Sunset Pacific said “it intends to explore and develop prospective oil and gas fields that will provide it with the economic platform to pursue unconventional formations that have significant upside potentials.”

The company, which is present in the Philippines, has been working on the Ben Khedechef, previously known as El Hamra, a 3,972-squarekilometer onshore concession in Tunisia that geologists and petroleum experts believe could harbor 1 billion barrels of oil.

from Calapan City in the North where most of the province’s power plants are located.

Local electric co-op Ormeco had long wanted to protect the Southern Mindoro area from debilitating, ruinous power interruptions by building permanent power plants in its service area which until today is being served by small power generators and engines whose power-supply capability are unstable and expensive.

In addition to the 9.7-MW Mindoro Harvest Power project, the

MUTUAL FUNDS

Duterte administration is also seeking further permanent solutions to ensure reliable, uninterrupted power supply in the future. A competitive selection process or bidding is being planned for an additional 15 MW to 20 MW of power supply.

Cusi said “as long as the co-op and the consumers are paying only for 3 MW and power actually delivered and not being charged extra for the reserve engines, the 9.7 MW capacity is actually advantageous and welcome for the consumers.”

July 1, 2019

NAV ONE YEAR THREE YEAR FIVE YEAR Y-T-D

PER SHARE RETURN* RETURN STOCK FUNDS ALFM GROWTH FUND, INC. -A 266.94 9.65% -0.41% 1.12% 5.83% ATRAM ALPHA OPPORTUNITY FUND, INC. -A 1.6533 14.97% 7.87% 2.99% 14.75% ATRAM PHILIPPINE EQUITY OPPORTUNITY FUND, INC. -A 4.124 7.04% -0.56% 0.11% 5.66% CLIMBS SHARE CAPITAL EQUITY INVESTMENT FUND CORP. -A 0.9568 11.46% N.A. N.A. 7.45% FIRST METRO CONSUMER FUND ON MSCI PHILS. IMI, INC. -A 0.88 10.78% N.A. N.A. 7.23% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN EQUITY FUND,INC. -A 5.5085 10.5% 0.51% 0.82% 4.5% MBG EQUITY INVESTMENT FUND, INC. -A 121.77 12.81% N.A. N.A. 4.56% ONE WEALTHY NATION FUND, INC. -A 0.8861 8.74% -4.15% N.A. 6.45% PAMI EQUITY INDEX FUND, INC. -A 52.7746 12.71% 0.37% N.A. 7.25% PHILAM STRATEGIC GROWTH FUND, INC. -A 549.36 10.81% -0.54% 0.95% 6.73% PHILEQUITY DIVIDEND YIELD FUND, INC. -A 1.3382 12.52% 1.32% 3.25% 6.71% PHILEQUITY FUND, INC. -A 39.2225 12.89% 1.98% 2.78% 7.07% PHILEQUITY MSCI PHILIPPINE INDEX FUND, INC. -A,3 1.0579 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. PHILEQUITY PSE INDEX FUND INC. -A 5.3531 13.87% 1.29% 3.18% 7.95% PHILIPPINE STOCK INDEX FUND CORP. -A 894 13.87% 1.01% 3.14% 7.91% SOLDIVO STRATEGIC GROWTH FUND, INC. -A 0.9364 14.31% 0.51% N.A. 8.73% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY PHILIPPINE EQUITY FUND, INC. -A 4.3718 13.32% 1.2% 2.52% 7.71% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY PHILIPPINE STOCK INDEX FUND, INC. -A 1.0271 13.28% 0.96% N.A. 7.63% UNITED FUND, INC. -A 3.7641 11.94% 2.89% 3.18% 7.51% EXCHANGE TRADED FUND FIRST METRO PHIL. EQUITY EXCHANGE TRADED FUND, INC. -A,C,2 119.7176 14.37% 1.92% 4.21% 8.1% ATRAM ASIAPLUS EQUITY FUND, INC. -B $1.0023 -1.07% 6.64% 0.15% 7.88% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY WORLD VOYAGER FUND, INC. -A $1.2955 1.97% 9.52% N.A. 17.23% BALANCED FUNDS PRIMARILY INVESTED IN PESO SECURITIES ATRAM DYNAMIC ALLOCATION FUND, INC. -A 1.7464 8.67% -1.53% -1.2% 5.77% ATRAM PHILIPPINE BALANCED FUND, INC. -A 2.3275 5.8% -0.12% 0.75% 5.35% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN BALANCED FUND INC. -A 2.6722 8.12% -0.11% -1.28% 5.05% GREPALIFE BALANCED FUND CORPORATION -A 1.3614 5.33% N.A. N.A. 4.38% NCM MUTUAL FUND OF THE PHILS., INC. -A 1.948 8.08% 0.47% 1.47% 5.69% PAMI HORIZON FUND, INC. -A 3.7654 8.69% -0.69% 0.7% 6.69% PHILAM FUND, INC. -A 16.956 9.38% -0.5% 0.73% 6.59% SOLIDARITAS FUND, INC. -A 2.1593 7.39% 0.57% 1.91% 4.2% SUN LIFE OF CANADA PROSPERITY BALANCED FUND, INC. -A 3.9042 10.58% 0.5% 1.68% 6.92% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY ACHIEVER FUND 2028, INC. -A,D,4 1.0227 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. SUN LIFE PROSPERITY ACHIEVER FUND 2038, INC. -A,D,4 1.0218 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. SUN LIFE PROSPERITY ACHIEVER FUND 2048, INC. -A,D,4 1.0182 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DYNAMIC FUND, INC. -A 1.0011 10.7% 0.73% N.A. 8.61% PRIMARILY INVESTED IN FOREIGN CURRENCY SECURITIES COCOLIFE DOLLAR FUND BUILDER, INC. -A $0.03738 7.63% 1.51% 2.07% 6.04% PAMI ASIA BALANCED FUND, INC. -A $0.9948 -0.94% 4.06% -0.63% 6.26% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR ADVANTAGE FUND, INC. -A $3.7491 3.48% 6.71% 2.77% 13.32% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR WELLSPRING FUND, INC. -A $1.1088 4.32% 4.3% N.A. 9.78% BOND FUNDS PRIMARILY INVESTED IN PESO SECURITIES ALFM PESO BOND FUND, INC. -A 350.24 3.49% 1.99% 2.2% 2% ATRAM CORPORATE BOND FUND, INC. -A,1 1.8995 2.13% -0.25% -0.13% 2.17% COCOLIFE FIXED INCOME FUND, INC. -A 3.0497 5.61% 5.26% 5.27% 2.66% EKKLESIA MUTUAL FUND INC. -A 2.1859 3.24% 1.01% 1.89% 2.6% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN FIXED INCOME FUND,INC. -A 2.3117 4.37% 0.95% 1.37% 4.63% GREPALIFE FIXED INCOME FUND CORP. -A P 1.6058 2.29% -1.33% 0.05% 2.65% PHILAM BOND FUND, INC. -A 4.1812 5.88% -0.15% 1.23% 6.67% PHILEQUITY PESO BOND FUND, INC. -A 3.6816 6.01% 1.05% 1.45% 4.68% SOLDIVO BOND FUND, INC. -A 0.9402 4.03% -0.47% N.A. 5.33% SUN LIFE OF CANADA PROSPERITY BOND FUND, INC. -A 2.9591 8.12% 1.38% 2.13% 6.99% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY GS FUND, INC. -A 1.6447 8.14% 0.99% 1.67% 6.81% PRIMARILY INVESTED IN FOREIGN CURRENCY SECURITIES ALFM DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. -A $458.04 3.54% 1.72% 2.72% 2.18% ALFM EURO BOND FUND, INC. -A Є217.42 2.14% 1.44% 1.47% 2.24% ATRAM TOTAL RETURN DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. -B $1.1836 6.53% 1.78% 2.45% 5.13% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. -A $0.0256 3.64% 0.93% N.A. 3.23% GREPALIFE DOLLAR BOND FUND CORP. -A $1.715 1.34% -1.8% 0.65% 1.47% PAMI GLOBAL BOND FUND, INC -A $1.087 4.93% -0.28% -2.01% 4.76% PHILAM DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. -A $2.3422 9.57% 1.06% 3.2% 7.88% PHILEQUITY DOLLAR INCOME FUND INC. -A $0.0591139 4.23% 1.54% 1.8% 3.74% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR ABUNDANCE FUND, INC. -A $3.0836 7.05% 0.35% 2.7% 7.36% MONEY MARKET FUNDS PRIMARILY INVESTED IN PESO SECURITIES ALFM MONEY MARKET FUND, INC. -A 123.49 3.7% 2.4% 1.93% 2.19% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN MONEY MARKET FUND, INC. -A,5 1.0147 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. PHILAM MANAGED INCOME FUND, INC. -A 1.2141 3.9% 1.72% 1.05% 2.72% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY MONEY MARKET FUND, INC. -A 1.2445 3.71% 2.65% 2.03% 2.09% PRIMARILY INVESTED IN FOREIGN CURRENCY SECURITIES SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR STARTER FUND, INC. -A $1.028 2.14% N.A. N.A. 1.19%

A - NAVPS AS OF THE PREVIOUS BANKING DAY. B - NAVPS AS OF TWO BANKING DAYS AGO. C - LISTED IN THE PSE. D - IN NET ASSET VALUE PER UNIT (NAVPU).

1 - ADJUSTED DUE TO CASH DIVIDEND ISSUANCE LAST JANUARY 29, 2018. 2 - ADJUSTED DUE TO STOCK DIVIDEND ISSUANCE LAST JUNE 5, 2018.

3 - LAUNCH DATE IS JANUARY 3, 2019. 4 - LAUNCH DATE IS JANUARY 28, 2019. 5 - LAUNCH DATE IS FEBRUARY 1, 2019.

Banking&Finance BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Tuesday, July 2, 2019

B3

Strong-peso days may soon be over–report

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By Bianca Cuaresma @BcuaresmaBM

HE peso’s appreciation run in recent months could be coming to an end, a research group said, as improvements in advanced economies, as well as local “vulnerabilities” put the country in a position to shine among emerging market economies.

Tips on life insurance

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INANCIAL freedom can be broken down into three steps.

The first step is saving and this step is about building wealth. The second step is insuring and this is about protecting wealth. The third step is investing and this is about growing wealth.

Since the future is filled with risk and uncertainty, life insurance can be a good tool in hedging. Key questions have to be addressed to gain a better appreciation of the matter.

Why should one get life insurance?

If one is able to save but unfortunately encounters an adverse event like death or sickness in the future, the costs that will occur may possibly wipe out a big chunk of savings that can affect both the individual and the family. Not having life insurance could also potentially lead to huge opportunity costs in terms of not being in a capacity to pursue good investment opportunities.

Life insurance helps bring about peace of mind. It has death benefits.

If one dies, the loved ones get something. In the case of breadwinners, life insurance helps ensure that families are able to go on with their lives through the financial coverage indicated in the life insurance policy. Many goals set are comprised of family goals so life insurance helps the family continue in their quest to achieve goals.

Life insurance also has living benefits. If one gets disability or critical illness, a life insurance policy with the relevant riders can provide for the money needed to cover for the costs related to these unfortunate developments. It can also provide income replacement to a certain extent.

Meanwhile, if one reaches the age of retirement and lives beyond that, life insurance can also ensure life goes on during those years.

When should one get life insurance? In personal finance, time is a great ally. The best time to get life insurance is when we are young. Premiums are cheaper when policies are obtained in our younger years. Insuring early helps jump-start as well the right mindset on finances. Life insurance is also ideally obtained when we are in the prime of health. Having a healthy lifestyle goes a long way in getting good insurance.

What type of life insurance should one get? In any successful personal

Genesis Kelly S. Lontoc

PERSONAL FINANCE finance journey, having a clear goal determines the corresponding strategies and activities that follow suit. The insurance choice thus depends on the financial goal. In the Philippines, two of the popular life insurance options are term insurance and variable unitlinked life insurance or simply VUL. Heated debates often occur among financial literacy stakeholders regarding the right life insurance one must get. Both have advantages and disadvantages.

Term insurance provides benefit when one dies. This is an advantage but many argue that it is also a disadvantage because of the limited condition in obtaining the benefit. Term insurance is relatively cheaper in terms of premiums paid. The lower premiums can thus allow one to use the savings to pursue investment opportunities.

The lack of time and the lack of skill may be obstacles though in investing.

VUL can provide benefit when one dies, gets sick or lives too long given its host of death and living benefits.

The investment component and critical illness riders are examples of the living benefits. However, VUL is relatively more expensive than term insurance with respect to both premiums and charges. In choosing the VUL provider, one must conduct due diligence on aspects like brand heritage and financial strength.

Not all roads are smooth and easy.

Humps will most likely be encountered along the way. Having life insurance is like having a spare tire. We purchase the spare tire before we hit the humps to ensure that we are effectively and efficiently prepared. It will be there when we need it the most. Having the right type of life insurance thus helps keep us on track as we journey toward achieving financial freedom.

Gemmy Lontoc is a registered financial planner of RFP Philippines. To learn more about personal financial planning, attend the 77th RFP program in August 2019.

To inquire, e-mail info@rfp.ph or text <name><e-mail> <RFP> at 09179689774.

On Monday the local currency closed trade at 51.05 against the dollar, stronger than the previous close at 51.24 to a dollar. The total traded volume during the day was $870.2 million.

But this appreciation may soon revert back to a depreciation trend, Fitch Solutions said, given global investor sentiment on the Philippines.

“We expect the Philippine peso gains to slow over the near term, averaging P52.10 to a dollar in 2019, as the boost from dollar weakness and hopes of a cooling of trade tensions fade,” Fitch Solutions’s report read.

“The peso will neither significantly underperform nor outperform relative to its EM [emerging market] peers in bouts of risk-off sentiment over the longer term, given the trade-off between positive fundamentals and exposure to US-China trade tensions,” it added.

In particular, Fitch Solutions said the news that US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping had agreed to meet on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Japan raised hopes of a cooling of trade tensions. However, the potential for more positive trade dynamics has already been priced into the peso via the recent appreciation.

“As such, the G-20 meeting is unlikely to yield results that would provide immense support for the peso,” Fitch Solutions said.

The think tank also said several local “vulnerabilities” will mean the peso will not be an outperformer among emerging markets in a sell-off.

“Its current twin deficits risks and pro-growth tendencies of the government and central bank could contribute to investor concerns and add to depreciatory pressures,” Fitch Solutions said.

The research firm also said the dovish tone of the Federal Reserve could entice the Bangko Sentral ng

Executive sees PHL a ‘fertile ground’ for innovations in financial technology A N executive of Globe Fintech Innovations Inc. (GFII), the company behind the “GCash” brand, sees the Philippines as a “fertile ground” for innovations in financial technology (fintech), as both regulatory and market conditions set the environment for further growth in this sector.

GFII Vice President for Money Transfers Frederic Levy said emerging markets like the Philippines are rife with opportunities for the fintech sector, as gaps in the financial industry have thrown doors wide

open for mobile platforms like their company to leverage their technology and institutional partnerships in finding end-to-end solutions.

GFII, which promotes and calls itself “Mynt,” is a wholly owned subsidiary of Globe Capital Venture Holdings.

“There is more space for you to compete,” Levy said. “That’s why we talk about the unbanked and the underserved. That gives more opportunity. That, for me, is the big difference.”

Central Bank data show that around 65 percent of Filipinos do

not have bank accounts, while the remaining have no access to banks.

“Left out of the formal financial system, these citizens present a huge market for fintech innovations toward financial inclusion,” Levy said.

The official also said the sizable percentage of unbanked Filipinos, coupled with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’s (BSP) welcoming regulations for fintech innovations, is likely to spur growth of more digital solutions to banking in the coming years.

“The Philippines is supportive

DOF: Pinoys support tax reform package

By Rea Cu

@ReaCuBM

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INANCE Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III believes Filipinos support the taxreform package, citing the victory of pro-administration lawmakers in the midterm elections.

During the pre-State of the Nation Address (Sona) Economic and Infrastructure Forum on Monday, Dominguez said the victory of politicians who supported the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion law reflects his confidence the remaining tax packages will be passed.

“The confidence level is very high,” Dominguez said at the Philippine International Convention Center. “You have to remember, the last time the government attempted a tax reform was in 2001, when President [Gloria Macapagal] Arroyo and Ralph G. Recto increased the VAT [value-added tax] rate from 10 to 12 [percent], as a result of that Senator Recto lost the next election, but in this election all those

who supported the tax reform won.”

According to the chief of the Department of Finance (DOF), if Filipinos see tax increases benefit them, they will support legislators who made it happen.

“The story here, people see that the tax—whatever tax increases—are being spent for their benefit, it is going to be a plus for the legislator who supported. I’m very confident that given the lessons in this last election, where no one who supported the tax reform lost, will resonate in the minds of the legislators,” he added. “The message of the electorate is that the tax reform is fair and if the money is not stolen and is used for their benefit—infrastructure and education—they will win.”

T he rema ining ta x-refor m packages that have yet to be passed into law include: Package 1B, which includes increasing the motor vehicle users charge, lifting of the bank secrecy law and automatic exchange of information; Package 2, which focuses on lowering corporate income

tax and the rationalization of fiscal incentives; Package 3, on property valuation; Package 4, on financial taxes; and Package 2 Plus, which includes taxation on alcoholic beverages.

Economic and infrastructure officials emphasized to the investor community and other stakeholders that the critical reforms— both those that were implemented and are still in the pipeline—are meant to push the Philippines toward the next stage of economic development.

Dominguez, who heads the administration’s economic cluster, credits President Duterte’s instrumental role in implementing these tax-reform packages.

The event was one of the three fora meant to report on the government’s accomplishments under the Duterte administration, ahead of the President’s Sona on July 22.

The second forum will be held on July 10 in Cebu City, while the third forum will be held on July 17 in Davao City.

Government gets $300M for CCT program from WB

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HE Philippines secured a fresh $300-million-worth loan from the World Bank for the government’s Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) program.

In a statement on Friday, World Bank said the new funding will finance the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) for a period of two years.

The annual budget for the 4Ps is $1.7 billion. The additional funding from the World Bank will cover 9 percent of the 4Ps budget through June 2022. “ T his additional financing shows the World Bank’s continuing commitment to the country’s social protection program, as it grows with greater sophistication to tackle a broader array of development concerns, including child malnutrition,” said Mara K. Warwick, World Bank country director for Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia,

the Philippines and Thailand.

“Since 2008, the 4Ps has promoted safer birth deliveries and has improved poor children’s access to educational and health services.

We are proud to support programs such as this that help millions of families overcome poverty.”

The new loan will address malnutrition and promote early-childhood development. It will also help the government strengthen the implementation and impact, including more efficient payment systems, monitoring and evaluation, and family development sessions.

For his part, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia told the BusinessMirror that the loan will be used efficiently for the CCTs. Earlier, a study by the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) found that the leakage rate of the program is about 30 percent.

Pilipinas (BSP) to begin easing more aggressively, thus potentially weighing on the peso’s attractiveness.

“The BSP opted to hold its interest rates at its June meeting, contributing to the peso’s appreciation. However, we believe slowing Philippine economic growth, limited fiscal stimulus and the dovish shift by developed market central banks will create a window of opportunity for the BSP to cut further, from 4.5 percent to 4.25 percent by end-2019, alongside other easing measures,” Fitch Solutions said. “Thus, we expect the Philippine peso to appreciate less in the near term.”

The government’s budget for CCTs at that time was at P44 billion, which meant the government was wasting some P12 billion on those considered non-poor. The PIDS study said this can be used to cover the higher costs needed to support older children.

“The government has put in place additional controls and safeguards are being put in place [to address these leakages],” Pernia said on Friday.

The 4Ps is a conditional-cash transfer program currently benefiting 4.2 million families, including 8.7 million children. It provides cash grants to poor families to ensure that children stay healthy and in school, thus reducing school dropout rates, discouraging child labor and enabling them to break free from poverty in adulthood.

Further, pregnant mothers receiving grants are required to get

pre- and postnatal checks to help ensure safe motherhood. Parents attend “family development sessions” where they strengthen their knowledge of child care and are empowered to demand better and expanded social services from the government.

Implemented in 145 cities and 1,483 municipalities in the country, the 4Ps is responsible for a quarter of total poverty reduction in the country, according to the World Bank 2018 Poverty Assessment.

Other achievements include a 4.9-percent increase in enrollment among children 12-17 years old from a baseline of 80.4 percent and a 10-percent increase in enrollment among children 16-17 years old from a baseline of 60.8 percent.

The World Bank also said the program was responsible for the 30-percent reduction in the enrollment gap between boys and girls ages 6-14 and increased ac-

cess by poor women to maternal and child health services, such as antenatal care.

Of the total number of active beneficiary households, 41 percent are from Luzon, 21 percent from Visayas and 38 percent from Mindanao, with the largest number of beneficiaries coming from the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

Around 15 percent of the beneficiaries are members of indigenous communities.

Recently, Philippine President Duterte signed Republic Act 11310, institutionalizing the 4Ps and providing higher cash subsidies for all beneficiaries. The law aims to “break the intergenerational cycle of poverty through investment in human capital and improvement of delivery of basic services to the poor, particularly education, health and nutrition.” Cai U. Ordinario

and moving fast. If you check, for example, the BSP perspective; they have the 2020 program. They say that in 2020, 20 percent of the transactions should be cashless. They are really pushing for it,” Levy said.

In December 2015, the BSP launched the National Retail Payment System framework, which aims to increase electronic transactions exponentially in five years.

In a recent dialogue with the BusinessMirror, BSP Governor Benjamin E. Diokno expressed optimism that they will exceed this target in 2020. Bianca Cuaresma

Group gets deal with local bank for financial literacy devt of OFs

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ANK of the Philippine Islands (BPI) announced it has recently expanded its partnership with Atikha Overseas Workers and Communities Initiative Inc., a nongovernment organization that provides economic and social services to overseas Filipinos and their families in the Philippines.

However, BPI didn’t disclose the amount involved in the expanded partnership.

“In line with our commitment to look after the financial needs and management of overseas Filipinos (OFs), BPI supported Atikha’s first business and investment forum this year in Hong Kong,” the listed bank said.

BPI said the forum focused on financial education, investment and business opportunities in Hong Kong for OFs, who are members of an organization called “Pinoy Wise.”

BPI explained that Pinoy Wise is a program initiated and spearheaded by Atikha. The bank said the program aims to provide financial education to OFs and their families on both sides of the migration corridor. Furthermore, BPI said, the program also provides [OFs] links to concrete savings and investment programs for select cooperatives, microfinance institutions, social enterprises, insurance companies, banks and other agencies in the Philippines.

“We remain steadfast in our commitment to elevate the financial literacy and understanding of our kababayan [compatriots] abroad by sharing with them best financial options and practices,” BPI Head of Inward Remittance Melinda W. Dulay was quoted in the statement as saying.

B4 Tuesday, July 2, 2019

ODYSSEY FOUNDATION MARKS 15 YEARS OF NURTURING LIVES

O MERALCO IN FULL SUPPORT OF GOVERNMENT’S INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAMS In photo are the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) crew relocating poles and retiring electric facilities along A. Bonifacio, Quezon City, in a scheduled maintenance work done on June 5. This is a consolidated one time, big time effort by Meralco and San Miguel Corp.’s Citra Central Expressway Corp. to expedite the ongoing construction of the remaining portion of the Skyway Stage 3, a 14.82-kilometer six-lane elevated expressway that will connect the South Luzon Expressway from Alabang to the North Luzon Expressway in Balintawak, Quezon City, primarily to decongest major thoroughfares. For updates on maintenance schedules, follow the Meralco Facebook and Twitter pages, or call the Meralco 24/7 hotline 16211.

SM MALL OF ASIA CELEBRATES ALL KINDS OF LOVE The SM Mall of Asia supports diversity, accepts everyone’s uniqueness and celebrates all kinds of love for the month of June. The rainbow colors are seen on the iconic MOA globe to show strength, courage and inspiration for all.

INLIFE SHEROES SUPPORTS ‘DIGISKARTENG PINAY’ To help upskill Filipinas through informative videos, the Insular Life (InLife) Sheroes program supports “Digiskarteng Pinay”, an initiative of Google Philippines that uses YouTube as its platform. Digiskarteng Pinay’s launch at the recently held YouTube FanFest Moms’ Edition was attended by InLife Executive Vice President Noemi Azura (third from left), who talked about InLife Sheroes program’s advocacy to empower Filipinas to achieve a better life by educating them on financial management, health and wellness; providing women-specific solutions; and linking them to social and business networks. Joining her are her fellow Digiskarteng Pinay content contributors Dorothy Dee-Ching, Unilever vice president for beauty and personal care (second from left); and Lyqa Maravilla of Team Lyqa (fourth from left).

Also present at the launch are members of Digiskarteng Pinay’s advisory working group: Therese Fernandez, founder and chief executive officer of Rags2Riches (fifth from left); Nanette Medved-Po, founder of Generation Hope Inc. and Friends of Hope Inc. (sixth from left); and Gara Santos-Ontiveros, industry head of Google Philippines (right), with event host Cara Barretto (left).

TIM HORTONS LAUNCHES SPECIALTY SANDWICHES

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HE Philippines’s favorite breakfast staple, the sweet, soft and fluffy pandesal makes its way to Tim Hortons as it celebrated the country’s Independence Day on June 12.

Calling it “Timdesal”, the limited-

edition breakfast sandwich will be available in all Tim Hortons branches from June 11 until the end of July.

Guests will surely enjoy the smokey bacon with cheese and garlic aioli, served with chipotle sauce in panini-pressed pandesal.

“As our way of recognizing the significance of Independence Day, we, at Tim Hortons, wish to offer this breakfast favorite, reminiscent of its Filipino homey taste,” said Stephanie Guerrero, marketing director of Tim Hortons Philippines.

The warm Timdesal, with an SRP of P75, is best paired with the signature Tim Hortons iced coffee.

For more information and updates on Tim Hortons Philippines’s new products and offerings, visit www. timhortons.ph.

DYSSEY Foundation I nc. (OFI ), t he cor porate socia l responsibility (CSR) arm of CDO Foodsphere Inc., marked its 15th year of nurturing lives and helping underprivileged Filipinos in June.

“It is said that a journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step. Odyssey Foundation’s 15-year journey started with our desire to reach out to our communities. It is has been our commitment to support an organization that helps nourishing lives. Being a food company, nutrition has been the core program of Odyssey Foundation,” said OFI president Jerome D. Ong. Formally established on June 4, 2004, OFI celebrated its anniversary under the theme “15 years of Nurturing Lives”, in line with its vision to be a catalyst of social development for the benefit of the less privileged and marginalized members of Philippine society.

OFI cochairmen Jose J. Ong and Corazon D. Ong sa id t he fou nd at ion wa s launched in Valenzuela City in 2004 with nutrition as the maiden initiative. “We later expanded these CSR efforts to include NEELS, which refers to nutrition, education, environment, livelihood and service to humanity.

NEELS represents the commitment of OFI to help uplift the lives of those who are in need,” said the OFI founders. “ We duplicated and ex panded t he socia l endeavors in Ma lva r, Batangas, which is the site of our m o d e r n m a nu f a c t u r i n g p l a nt ,” Jerome Ong said.

OFI now focuses on developing prog rams concer ning chi ldren nourishment, education, livelihood enhancement and env ironmental advocacy. It is guided by the general framework of social development, firmly anchored on its principle of

giving back to the community. “ We env i sion seei ng hea lt hy and well-nourished children in our commu nit ies. T he supplement a l feeding program became our maiden way of sharing our resources by giving children a chance for a healthier and better life,” Ong added.

From that single step, Odyssey Found at ion sta r ted bu i ld ing partnerships over the years. “We shall continue to embrace the hallmarks of good values, best practices and good governance through transparency, accountabi lit y and high level of professionalism,” Ong said.

OFI has helped feed more than 25,000 hungry and undernourished

children, supplied learning mater ia ls to over 10,0 0 0 elementary and high-school students, planted hundreds of trees including vegetables for poor communities, provided livelihood training to over 3,000 individuals, donated 50 houses in Yolanda strickenareas and rendered medical missions to more than 5,000 poor people, mostly children. “ Fo o d s p h e r e I n c . h a s grown to become a leading food company because of the loyal support of our customers w ho b e c a me a c c u s tome d to ou r h i g h - qu a l it y, but affordable, products. As we become bigger as a company, we recognize the need to reach out to the segments of our society who have less in life and do not have enough access to proper nutrition,” Jose and Corazon Ong said. “ It h a s become ou r commitment to help t hese seg ments of ou r population, particularly the under nour ished chi ld ren.

Sharing and giving has, thus, been integ rated into ou r corporate values. We feel that as a food company, we should take the lead in sharing not only food, but also hope with less fortunate brothers, sisters and children,” they said.

T he fou nders of C DO Foodsphere and OFI agreed to sustain the operations of the foundation in order to help more people.

“We believe in the capacity of the people to take an active role toward their own development and success. We will strive to create avenues for them to be productive members of society.

“Sharing and giving is, indeed, a shared and social commitment that has become a core value of our company. In God’s hand we entrust the future of Odyssey Foundation as we continue to serve Him and the people,” the company and foundation founders said.

KMC KICKS OFF 10TH YEAR WITH BIG WIN AS BEST EMPLOYER

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PENING its 10th year, KMC once again proved that real, long-lasting success lies in the professional growth and development of its talented team. Recently the World HR D Congress recognized the Philippines’s leading real-estate consultancy firm as one of the Best Employers in the country.

Human resources manager Karen Lou Lagac received the award for Innovation in Career Development in an event held on June 7 at Dusit Thani Manila. Lagac represented the rest of KMC’s executive committee in upholding the importance of investing heavily in honing the career and skills of its talented real-estate professionals.

Known as a rather competitive

industry, KMC is keen on keeping its employees as competitive as possible. “We are the only real-estate firm that hires based on culture,” Lagac explains after receiving the award. “Time and again, KMC puts a lot of premium in the people we place inside the company as they are our greatest asset.”

Lagac also shared that the leaders of KMC themselves are the perfect example. Managing director Michael McCullough led his top executives and managers in attending the Harvard leadership training this year.

Moreover, executive director for tenant representation Cha Carbonell has been actively encouraging brokers to get a Master of Corporate Real Estate (MCR.w ) degree specializing

in workplace strategy to further their professional growth in the industry.

Carbonell herself has been an employee of KMC for ten years and has, at a very young age, rose to the ranks to achieve director level, based upon her own merit and the company’s willingness to ensure the correct people grow with the company.

“We, along with Rita Kash and Gerold Fernando, were the first three out of four in the Philippines who completed the MCR.w designation,” Carbonell shared.

“We are really thankful to CoreNet Global for giving us such a great opportunity.”

T he l a nd lord- a nd proper t ymanagement team have also been actively securing LEED, or Berde certification, to better the services they provide to their clients.

“The majority of our brokers are specializing in different aspects of the industry to improve our services,” she added with pride. “CoreNet Global, USGBC, PHILGBC, and Harvard have all been a reliable partner in giving our realestate professionals the competitive edge here in the Philippines.”

KMC adds this recent recognition to the company’s greatest milestones as they celebrate a decade in the industry.

Founded by proptech entrepreneurs Gregory Kittelson, Michael McCullough and lawyer Amanda Rufino-Carpo, KMC is now a full-service real-estate firm with over 200 employees involved in transactions for tenant representation, landlord representation, investments and residential services.

BROOKLYN NETS K.D. Sports BusinessMirror

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| Tuesday, July 2, 2019 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

The Nets agreed to deals with superstars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving as part of a sensational start to free agency, giving the longtime No. 2 team in New York top billing in the Big Apple.

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By Brian Mahoney

The Associated Press

EW YORK—Just three seasons ago, the Brooklyn Nets were the worst team in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

On Sunday, they were the story of the league.

They agreed to deals with superstars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving as part of a sensational start to free agency, giving the longtime No. 2 team in New York top billing in the Big Apple.

They landed two of the top players available, both perennial All-Stars and NBA champions, and they weren’t finished. They also added center DeAndre Jordan, who played with Durant and Irving on the 2016 US Olympic team that won the gold medal, and veteran swingman Garrett Temple.

It was such a powerful victory that the crosstown Knicks even put out a statement acknowledging their fans’ disappointment, just three hours after shopping season had started.

And it was even more remarkable given where the Nets were not long ago.

An ill-fated trade with Boston in 2013, when the Nets acquired Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce in hopes of competing for a championship but didn’t even get out of the second round, cost them years of high draft picks and contributed to them becoming the worst team in the league.

They bottomed out at 20-62 in 2016-17, when Durant won NBA Finals MVP in his first season with Golden State after

the Warriors beat Irving’s Cleveland Cavaliers for the title.

Now they will try to win one together.

They might have to wait a year, as Durant could miss next season while recovering from a ruptured Achilles tendon. But with Irving taking controls of the offense and a promising young core around him, the Nets should be a playoff team, even while Durant recovers.

The Nets got back to the playoffs last season after going 42-40, stamping themselves as a team on the rise.

Brooklyn might be able to keep rising all the way to the top after Sunday’s moves.

Even after winning titles in his first two seasons with the Warriors, there was seasonlong speculation that Durant might leave. But much of that speculation had been focused on the Knicks, who had more than $70 million and the ability to sign two top free agents after trading Kristaps Porzingis during the season.

Right city, but wrong team.

The Nets felt confident with what they could offer, from their roster, to their medical staff, to their facilities.

And when they made a cap-clearing trade last month, they became even more attractive by freeing up salary to bring in two stars.

Irving wasn’t expected to be one of them a few months ago, after he’d said last fall he planned to re-sign in Boston. But despite his good stats it was a bad season for him with the Celtics, who were considered an Eastern Conference favorite but instead lost in the second round.

Irving became frustrated and reconsidered his plans, deciding his future was not in Boston, but in Brooklyn.

Now he’ll play for the team he watched while growing up

THE Nets land two of the top players available—one of them Kevin Durant—both perennial All-Stars and National Basketball Association champions, and they aren’t finished yet.

in New Jersey, where the Nets played before moving to Barclays Center in 2012.

Even when the Nets had better teams, the Knicks still got more attention and it sometimes felt as if they would always be the marquee team in the city.

That changed Sunday in a New York minute.

The Nets were not only the talk of the town but of the whole league, and when the Knicks were shut out early on, they took the rare step of commenting about their situation.

“While we understand that some Knicks fans could be disappointed with tonight’s news, we continue to be upbeat and confident in our plans to rebuild the Knicks to compete for championships in the future, through the draft, targeted free agents and continuing to build around our core of young players,” Knicks President Steve Mills said in a statement.

The Knicks eventually agreed to deals with forwards Julius Randle, Taj Gibson and Bobby Portis, so they did get something.

Just nowhere near as much as the Nets.

Lillard gets supermax deal; NBA spending spree begins

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AMIAN LILLARD wasn’t a top-five pick. Tobias Harris wasn’t a lottery pick. Khris Middleton wasn’t even a firstrounder.

Their bank balances won’t know the difference soon.

Free agency opened Sunday with nearly $3 billion in deals getting struck in the opening hours—including Kyrie Irving officially picking Brooklyn, as has been expected, but without any word from Kawhi Leonard about his future plans to either stay with National Basketball Association (NBA) champion Toronto or move elsewhere.

Lillard agreed to a $196-million, four-year extension with Portland that will kick in for the 202122 season. Harris is staying in Philadelphia for $180 million over the next five years and Middleton gave Milwaukee a bit of a discount in agreeing to a $178-million, fiveyear deal—$12 million shy of what he could have commanded.

Even injuries couldn’t derail the spending.

Kevin Durant announced that he’s leaving Golden State and joining Brooklyn on a max deal— which would be worth $164 million over four years, even though he’ll miss next season with an Achilles injury and could have gotten $221 million for five years from the Warriors. And Kristaps Porzingis, who hasn’t appeared in an NBA game since February 6, 2018, because of a knee injury, will sign a $158-million, five-year contract to stay with Dallas.

All deals were confirmed to The Associated Press by people with knowledge of the agreements, all speaking on condition of anonymity because the NBA moratorium prevents new contracts from being signed until noon Eastern time on Saturday.

“From the trade to the Sixers

in February, through the regular season and playoffs and now on to free agency, this contract is a culmination of so much in my life and basketball career,” Harris wrote in an essay published on ESPN.com.

“It’s also a new beginning.”

There were a lot of new beginnings on Sunday.

Jimmy Butler agreed to a four-year, $142-million deal that will send him to Miami. Butler—a close friend of retired Miami guard Dwyane Wade—made clear to the Heat that he wanted to be in Miami, and over the next three hours the basic framework of a trade was worked out. Miami is sending Josh Richardson to Philadelphia and was still working on a package to Dallas to make the Butler move happen. Goran Dragic was considered at one time for inclusion in that trade, though by night’s end he was still with Miami and the

Mavs and Heat were still working through options.

At least 10 players agreed to contracts that will be worth $100 million or more. Lillard, Harris, Middleton, Durant, Porzingis, Butler, Kemba Walker (a $141-million, four-year deal with Boston), Irving, Al Horford ($109 million, four years from Philadelphia) and Nikola Vucevic ($100 million, four years with Orlando) were the big early winners, with more likely to come.

Point guards did particularly well, and will likely keep doing well.

Lillard, Irving and Walker guaranteed themselves nearly a half-billion dollars. Terry Rozier left Boston for Charlotte—essentially the swap for Walker—on what will be a $58-million, three-year deal that will

be completed via trade. Ricky Rubio also cashed in, getting $51 million for three years from the Phoenix Suns.

Meanwhile, the Leonard watch continued with no hints from his camp. The NBA Finals MVP and now two-time champion will meet with the Raptors in the coming days, Toronto coach Nick Nurse said.

Nurse didn’t say where the Raptors will be seeing Leonard, but said the NBA champs believe they “have a really good chance” to keep him.

In other key deals Sunday: n Indiana is set to acquire 2017 Rookie of the Year Malcolm Brogdon from Milwaukee and sign the shooting guard to a four-year, $85-million deal.

n Harrison Barnes, as expected, is remaining in Sacramento on what will be a four-year, $85-million contract. n The Pacers lost forward Bojan Bogdanovic to the Utah Jazz, which agreed to pay the forward $73.1 million over the next four years. n New York, with Knicks fans hoping for a shot at Durant, is signing Julius Randle to a $63-million deal. n Former NBA MVP Derrick Rose will sign a two-year, $15-million contract with the Detroit Pistons. n San Antonio kept Rudy Gay on a two-year, $32-million deal, and added veteran forward DeMarre Carroll on a two-year, $12-million deal. AP

DAMIAN LILLARD agrees to a $196-million, four-year extension with Portland that will kick in for the 2021-2022 season. AP

KAWHI LEONARD is the biggest domino yet to fall, and as would be expected, the Finals MVP offers no hints if he’s decided to stay with Toronto or leave.

WHERE TO, KAWHI? T

HE waiting for Kawhi Leonard’s decision continues.

And it might last for a few days.

Monday marks the first full day of National Basketball Association (NBA) free agency—roughly $2.5 billion in contract commitments were made in the first six hours that followed the official beginning at 6:01 p.m. EDT Sunday—and there’re still many unanswered questions. Leonard is the biggest domino yet to fall, and as would be expected, the NBA Finals MVP offered no hints if he’s decided to stay with Toronto or leave.

“We’ve got a visit with Kawhi here in the next day or so,” Raptors coach Nick Nurse said.

It’s believed that the Raptors will get the last meeting, with Leonard also likely to talk with the Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Lakers—possibly among others—before making up his mind.

Most of the other biggest-name free agents appear to have picked their new homes—or will be staying in their current ones. The biggest contract left, more than likely, is the $190-million, five-year pact that Klay Thompson is believed to be getting from the Golden State Warriors, although neither side indicated that the agreement was finalized Sunday night.

Even with Thompson staying, the five-time reigning Western Conference champion Warriors will be very different next season.

They lost Kevin Durant to Brooklyn, then reportedly traded Andre Iguodala to Memphis late Sunday night. Durant was the finals MVP when Golden State won its 2017 and 2018 titles. Iguodala was finals MVP when the Warriors were champs in 2015.

No deals can become final until Saturday, when the NBA’s annual moratorium ends. For some teams, the extra time to work through details seems necessary.

“Where da cheesesteaks?” asked Miami’s Josh Richardson, after the Heat agreed to send him to Philadelphia in what was shaping up as a complex three-team deal that also included Dallas—and is to bring Jimmy Butler to Miami.

The Heat and Mavericks discussed multiple permutations of a deal, and hours after thinking something was done were still unable to actually close on something. It doesn’t mean the Butler deal is dead, especially because of all the moves that were made in reaction to his joining Miami. But the Heat clearly still have some more work to do in order to make everything work.

The 76ers, with the belief they’ll be signing-and-trading Butler, moved quickly to add Al Horford on a four-year deal that could be worth as much as $109 million. His was one of at least 11 deals worth at least $100 million agreed to on Sunday, one of the wildest spending days in league history.

“From the trade to the Sixers in February, through the regular season and playoffs and now on to free agency, this contract is a culmination of so much in my life and basketball career,” Philadelphia’s Tobias Harris wrote in an essay published on ESPN. com after he agreed to a five-year, $180-million contract. “It’s also a new beginning.”

Plenty of new beginnings are still coming: There are still no fewer than 160 free agents available for the taking, which means the spending by the time this summer is over on new deals should easily top the $4-billion mark. AP

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‘QUITE A DIFFERENCE’ W

IMBLEDON, England—A year ago, Novak Djokovic arrived at Wimbledon in a rut.

Still working his way back from elbow surgery, still fine-tuning a new service motion, he was more than 24 months removed from his most recent Grand Slam title. His ranking had tumbled out of the top 20 for the first time in over a decade.

One fortnight later, Djokovic was all the way back to his best.

When he enjoys the defending male singles champion’s honor of being the first to play at Centre Court on Monday, facing unseeded Philipp Kohlschreiber, Djokovic will be ranked No. 1 and beginning his bid for a fifth title at the All England Club.

He’ll also be seeking a 16th major championship overall, and fourth in the past five Slam tournaments.

“Quite a difference,” Djokovic said. “Coming off from the surgery, being unable to have a consistency with the results, this was a huge springboard for me, the win at Wimbledon last year. That’s what kind of gave me that push—and also a huge relief.”

“One Grand Slam,” he said, “can definitely change anyone’s career in a few weeks. Even after winning 15 Slams, I still value these tournaments very much and understand the importance they have, importance of winning them on my entire career, my confidence, my future.”

After defeating Kevin Anderson in the Wimbledon final last July, Djokovic beat Juan Martin del Potro in the US Open final in September and Rafael Nadal in the Australian Open final in January.

He wound up running his Grand Slam winning streak to 26 matches before losing a five-set tussle against Dominic Thiem at the French Open in early June.

So now it’s time to start a new run. Djokovic does not hide the fact that he would love to catch the only two men with more major trophies: Roger Federer with 20, and Nadal with 18.

At 32, Djokovic is the youngest member of the Big Three that has ruled tennis for the past 15-plus years; Federer is 37, Nadal 33. They have

won 53 of the last 64 Grand Slam titles, including 10 in a row.

They also have won Wimbledon in 14 of the past 16 years; Andy Murray was the champion the other two times in that span.

“Funny enough, you always think somebody takes away something from the other. Probably we have. At the same time, we also pushed each other to greater heights,” Federer said. “We definitely became better because of one another.”

He is seeded No. 2, and Nadal is No. 3, and they could meet in the semifinals. They’re on the opposite side of the draw from Djokovic, so they play their first-rounders on Tuesday.

Others in Day 1 action include Venus Williams, at 39 the oldest woman in the draw, against Coco Gauff, at 15 the youngest; two-time major champion Naomi Osaka against Yulia Putintseva; Anderson against Pierre-Hugues Herbert; and 18-year-old Felix Auger-Aliassime, who is seeded 21st, against 2014 Wimbledon doubles champion Vasek Pospisil in an all-Canadian matchup.

While Federer has won a men’s-record eight Wimbledon titles and owns the best grass-court winning percentage in the Open era at .874, Djokovic is building an impressive résumé at the place.

The Serb has been to at least the semifinals eight of the past 12 years, and five of the last eight finals.

So what’s the most important thing he does well on grass?

“Everything,” three-time major champion Stan Wawrinka said on Sunday.

“I just believe that when Novak is at his best, on any surface,” Wawrinka said, “he’s really tough to beat.”

One key to Djokovic’s success at the All England Club— and, really, anywhere—is an ability to return even the most dangerous serves. Another is his relentless, body-contorting defense. His effortless groundstrokes help, too. Like many players, Djokovic didn’t play on grass until his late teens.

“I did struggle a little bit at the beginning, in the first couple

of years of my career, on the grass,” he said, “to really understand how I need to move on the court, how I need to adjust my swing and my game in general, tactically what I need to do.”

Now he does just fine on the turf and gets to keep enjoying his ritual of plucking a few blades to shove in his mouth after winning the Wimbledon final.

He’s been busy with more than just his game in the run-up to Monday’s tournament start, though, spending seven hours in a meeting on Friday night as president of the ATP Player Council.

Djokovic has been at the center of some messy internal politics that became public, including the decision not to renew the contract of ATP Chairman Chris Kermode and the resignations of four members of the council this weekend.

“I think it’s a system and a structure that keeps on failing us,” Djokovic said. “I did consider also stepping down. I think my team wants me to step down, honestly.” AP

Trump breathes life to possible joint Pyongyang-Seoul bid for ‘32 Olympics

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OPES of a joint North and South Korea bid for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games have been given a boost after Donald J. Trump over the weekend became the first sitting United States president to set foot in North Korea.

North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un agreed to meet Trump at the Korean Demilitarized Zone with just two days’ notice, after he issued an invitation for the summit over Twitter.

As they greeted each other over the border, both leaders said: “It is good to see you again.”

“I never thought I would meet you in this place,” Kim said. Officials from North and South Korea had presented their idea of hosting a joint Games in Pyongyang and Seoul in 2032 to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in February.

But the thaw in relations between North Korea and the US had appeared to have slowed down recently over the issue of denuclearization.

The historic handshake between Trump and Kim, however, could breathe new life into negotiations.

Lee Kee-heung, president of the Korean Sport and Olympic Committee, who was officially voted in as a new member of the IOC in Lausanne on Wednesday, vowed to make it his mission to make the joint bid between the two countries technically still at war a success.

Lee revealed upon his return to Seoul that he had met Kim Il-guk, president of the Olympic Committee of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the country’s Sports Minister, on

several occasions in Lausanne.

During the IOC Session, there was a major change to how future host cities are chosen.

A rule that they should be chosen seven years in advance was removed and multiple cities are set to be encouraged.

Lee claimed the changes “will provide a good opportunity for us” and urged the two Koreas to work together to achieve their target.

He wants to ride the momentum of the peace wave to try to encourage the IOC to award the Olympic and Paralympics to Korea more than 10 years ahead of when they are due to be staged.

“I told the North Korean side that we should try to win our bid in 2021,” Lee told South Korean agency Yonhap News. “Sports Minister Kim Il-guk asked that we deliver a formal request through our Unification Ministry.”

Lee and Kim also discussed fielding joint teams at next year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo, building upon Pyeongchang 2018 when the two Koreas played together in the women’s ice hockey tournament.

The two sides had agreed to bring their teams together during the Olympic qualifying stages in women’s hockey, women’s basketball, judo and rowing.

But the South Korean women’s hockey team participated in a qualifying tournament in Ireland alone earlier this month, since North Korea did not respond to repeated calls to organize joint training sessions. Insidethegames

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from Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe. “In a year from now, more than half of the world’s population will follow the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020,” Bach told delegates. “At the Olympic Games, the world will see athletes from all 206 National Olympic Committees and the IOC Refugee Olympic Team united.”

“The power of the Olympic Games is their universality. There is no discrimination, everyone respects the same rules, we are all equal,” he stressed.

“To make this possible, we need solidarity,” Bach, who was joined in Osaka by John Coates, the IOC Coordination Commission chairman for Tokyo 2020, continued.

VERSTAPPEN SNAPS

EUROPEAN GAMES

Israel’s Yarin Ovadia, Or Armony and Tzlil Hurvitz compete in the women’s group balance final of acrobatic gymnastics at the Second European Games in Minsk, Belarus, on Saturday. The Games ended on Sunday with Russia dominating the medal table in a tune-up for some of next year’s potential Olympic medal contenders.

Russia has 44 gold medals to finish ahead of host Belarus and third-placed Ukraine. AP

Mick to drive father’s F1 car at German GP

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Bach calls for solidarity in G-20 Summit address NTERNATIONAL Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach told world leaders at the G-20 Summit that the power of the Olympics could unite a fragile world as Tokyo prepares to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games next summer.

Addressing the Summit in Osaka, German Bach claimed the Olympics was unique in bringing the world together for a peaceful competition and called for solidarity following his invite

NOVAK DJOKOVIC is all the way back to his best. AP

Bach explained that in monetary terms it meant $5 billion in the four-year Olympic cycle, none of which was recouped through taxpayers’ money, but instead through exclusive sponsorship and media rights.

He praised the efforts of Tokyo 2020 in building a sustainable Games that would be a lesson for leaders around the world.

“Tokyo 2020 will be not only the greatest sporting event in the world, they will also be an inspiration for sustainable growth,” Bach, an Olympic gold medalist in fencing at Montreal 1976, said. “This approach is a perfect reflection of the IOC reforms to make sustainability central to all our activities. We walk the talk.” AP

PIELBERG, Austria—The car Michael Schumacher drove to win his record seventh Formula One championship in 2004 will make a return to the Hockenheim Ring next month—and his son will be driving it.

F1 organizers said on Sunday that Mick Schumacher will use his father’s Ferrari F2004 for demonstration runs during the German Grand Prix weekend on July 27 and 28.

Mick Schumacher, who is competing in Formula 2 for Prema Racing and is part of Ferrari’s driver academy, will drive the car prior to Saturday’s qualifying and again before the drivers’ parade ahead of Sunday’s race.

“I think it is mega driving this car in Hockenheim,” Mick Schumacher said. “I will be able to drive one of the strongest cars in Formula 1 history there. A big grin creeps into my face.”

Four of Michael Schumacher’s 91 F1 race wins came at Hockenheim, while his son won the FIA Formula 3 European Championship on the track in the Rhine valley last year.

“It will be an emotional moment seeing Mick at the wheel of a car linked to so many great memories,” F1’s Managing Director for motorsport Ross Brawn said. “The F2004 was a fantastic car, which took 15 wins and both championship titles in a season that can be seen as the culmination of a golden period.”

In 2013, Michael Schumacher hit his head on a rock while skiing with his son. He later emerged from an induced coma, but updates have been scarce since he left the hospital in 2014 to be cared for privately at his home in Switzerland. AP

MERCEDES STREAK S

PIELBERG, Austria—Max Verstappen showed off his risky racing style on Sunday to win the Austrian Grand Prix for a second straight year and end Mercedes’s unbeaten streak this season.

Chasing the leading trio, the Red Bull driver used all of his overtaking skills to get past Sebastian Vettel and Valtteri Bottas in the closing stages of the race before passing leader Charles Leclerc in a Ferrari with just two of the 71 laps to go.

However, Verstappen had to wait more than three hours after the race to get his win confirmed. Race stewards investigated the Dutchman’s pass of Leclerc as the wheels of both cars touched in a duel full of excitement which was often lacking in recent F1 races.

Leclerc held off an attempt by Verstappen in lap 68, but failed to do it again the next lap. The cars came out of Turn 3 side-by-side when their wheels bumped, with Verstappen on the inside pushing Leclerc off the track.

FIA considered it “a racing incident” and “in the totality of the circumstances, we did not consider that either driver was wholly or predominantly to blame for the incident.”

When still unaware of the verdict, Verstappen had denied any wrongdoing.

“The second time I braked a little bit deeper in the corner. From my side this is racing, it is just hard racing,” Verstappen said.

Leclerc, however, claimed “the second overtaking was not done correctly. There was contact and I had to go wide.”

The much-debated finish to the race came after Verstappen had to work his way up to the front of the pack after dropping down to eighth due to a difficult start.

“The start was disappointing but we never gave up and to come back like this is amazing,” Verstappen said.

“This is very important, also for the future and for Honda as well,” he added, referring to Red Bull’s engine supplier getting its first victory in the hybrid era, which started in 2014.

“I am happy that it happened today. Maybe a few doubts go away. At the moment it is an amazing feeling,” said Verstappen, who earned his sixth career victory.

Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas completed the podium, ahead of Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel and championship leader Lewis Hamilton,

who started fourth and lost time to replace the front wing of his Mercedes after 31 laps and finished fifth.

Hamilton posted the second-fastest time in Saturday’s qualifying but was given a three-place grid penalty for impeding Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Raikkonen. He started fourth as fifth-ranked Kevin Magnussen also lost five places for changing the gearbox in his Haas.

Starting from pole position for the second time in his career, Leclerc almost led the race from start to finish but ended up just missing his first career win.

He also looked set for victory leading in Bahrain in March, but he was hit by engine problems 10 laps from the finish and finished third.

Leclerc and Verstappen started the race 1-2 and, at an average age of 21 years, 265 days, they made for the youngest front row ever in a F1 race.

Verstappen seemed to lose hope of a repeat of last year’s triumph when his Red Bull barely moved as the lights at the start switched to green. He immediately lost six places and complained over the team radio about “clipping,” hinting at a lack of power likely due to a hydraulic issue.

Verstappen needed until the 10th lap to get back to fifth, behind both Mercedes cars and the Ferraris. Battling for victory with Leclerc at the end, Verstappen had the advantage of fresher and, thus, quicker tires.

In what was widely regarded as a risky strategy, Ferrari started on the soft tires while Red Bull and Mercedes opted for the medium compound.

While the tires helped Leclerc hold on to his lead at the start, they were affected more by the heat than the medium ones on the Red Bull cars.

While Leclerc switched to the hard tires in lap 22, Verstappen pitted 11 laps later and the newer tires gave him an edge in the final laps.

“We stayed out [on the mediums] quite long.

Once we came out again we had great pace,” Verstappen said. “One-by-one we were overtaking the cars ahead. The car really came to life.” AP

SEMENYA WANTS TO DEFEND WORLD TITLE

S CASTER SEMENYA wins 800 meters race at the Prefontaine Classic. AP

TANFORD, California—Caster Semenya easily won the women’s 800 at the Prefontaine Classic on Sunday, as an international court continues to debate her future in the event.

The reigning Olympic champion and embattled three-time world champion won in one minute and 55.70 seconds, nearly three seconds ahead of second-place Ajee Wilson, in the highly anticipated race at Cobb Track and Angell Field. It’s the fastesttime ever on American soil.

“We’re happy with the win but not how we ran the race,” Semenya said. “Obviously, when

you’re running 800 meters it’s all about the splits that you run. We’re not really calculated well but at the end of the day you have to execute, you have to rectify those mistakes when you’re running a race.”

It was the first time Semenya ran the 800 since a Swiss Supreme Court ruled her eligible while it considers her appeal against a new International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) rule capping testosterone levels in women’s events from the 400 to mile.

One of a handful of runners affected by the ruling, Semenya has been fighting back.

The 28-year-old South African refused to take medication to be in compliance and initially planned to side-step it at the Prefontaine by registering to run the 3,000. She was eventually cleared in time for the seventh stop on the Diamond League circuit.

“When I run I forget about everything. It’s just all about me,” Semenya said. “It’s all about me being free. It’s all about me doing what I love.

I treat people with respect and I appreciate them for who they are. I accept them. That’s what I do.

For me it’s all about inspiring the youth so they can be better.” AP

MAX VERSTAPPEN is doused with champagne during the awards ceremony. AP

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Cargo Movers stake unbeaten record vs Cignal volleybelles

U COACHES just couldn’t miss this one as (from left) San Beda’s Boyet Fernandez, Mapua’s Randy Alcantara, San Sebastian’s Egay Macaraya, Perpetual Help’s Frankie Lim, Emilio Aguinaldo College’s Oliver Bunyi, Arellano University’s Cholo Martin, Letran’s Bonnie Tan, College of Saint Benilde’s TY Tang, Jose Rizal University’s Louie Gonzales and Lyceum’s Topex Robinson make the traditional gesture of unity before photographers. STEPHANIE TUMAMPOS

RED LIONS TARGETS IN S95

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AN BEDA will be the hands down favorite in Season 95 of the National Collegiate Athletic Association men’s basketball tournament that unfurls on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

The Red Lions have won 11 of the last 13 senior titles—including the last three seasons. They won last year via a sweep of eliminations top-notcher Lyceum of the Philippines University.

But the competition may have gotten a little tougher after almost all of the nine teams

tweaked their roster with the superior goal of toppling the mighty Red Lions.

“All the teams beefed up their rosters. We’re out to defend the crown but it’s going to be hard against good coaches and players,” San Beda Head Coach Boyet Fernandez told a press conference on Monday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

San Beda boasts of a young core after its veterans, Robert Bolick and Javee Mocon, moved up to the pros.

Cameroonian big man Donald Tankoua

gets to play a heavier role, while guards James Canlas and Evan Nelle will man the backcourt for the Mendiola-based squad.

The Red Lions will open their campaign against the Letran Knights in the curtain-raiser on Sunday at 2 p.m.

Runners-up for the past two years, Lyceum was left with a tougher task to punch a return ticket to the Finals in the absence of CJ Perez.

Perez, the top pick in the Philippine Basketball Association Draft, made his mark as one of the school’s best products. Now up for

the challenge are Cameroonian Mike Nzeusseu and twins Jaycee and Jayvee Marcelino.

“Everyone is stepping up from their pre-season tournaments. This is going to be an exciting season,” Pirates Coach Topex Robinson said.

Jose Rizal University, Mapua, Arellano and Letran have new coaches, while College of Saint Benilde, San Sebastian and University of Perpetual Help added key players with hopes of going far to the playoffs.

Tonichi Pujante was named basketball commissioner. Ramon Rafael Bonilla

NBEATEN F2 Logistics stakes its immaculate card when it battles dangerous Cignal in the Philippine Superliga All-Filipino Conference on Tuesday at the Cadiz City Arena in Negros Occidental.

Action fires off at 7 p.m. with the Cargo Movers looking to sustain their fiery form against the HD Spikers, who are eager to bounce back after absorbing their first setback in the tournament.

Also shooting for its third win is GenerikaAyala, which clashes with listless Sta. Lucia in the first game at 4:15 p.m.

After securing the services of FilipinoAmerican spiker Kalei Mau, the Cargo Movers were unstoppable as they won their first four matches. Mau, the former Arizona star who joined the Cargo Movers following the disbandment of United VC, erupted for 21 attacks and two blocks in their 25-21, 17-25, 27-25, 25-19, creaming of bitter rival Petron last week.

“Kalei is really a huge addition for us as we finally have a go-to-guy in crunch time,” said F2 Logistics Coach Ramil de Jesus, who is also drawing inspired performance from the support crew of Ara Galang, Aby Maraño, Michelle Cobb and Dawn Macandili.

“But she still has more to learn,

especially in choosing when to attack,” de Jesus said. “She’s more of a power attacker and attacking smartly and wisely is something we can teach along the way.”

But plucking their fifth straight win will never be easy.

The HD Spikers also retooled their roster and added May Luna and Norielle Ipac, two of de Jesus’s vital cogs at De La Salle University, as well as Alohi Robins-Hardy, who played with Mau at United VC. Aside from Luna, Ipac and Robins-Hardy, the HD Spikers also have major weapons in veterans Rachel Anne Daquis and Jovelyn Gonzaga together with mainstays Jheck Dionela, Janine Marciano, Janine Navarro and national team member Mylene Paat.

The HD Spikers made instant impact in their first two matches, but ran out of steam against the seasoned Petron squad in their recent battle, 20-25, 25-18, 16-25, 25-16, 14-16.

“We fell short,” said Cignal Coach Edgar Barroga, vowing that they will do everything to bounce back against the Cargo Movers. “But the battle is still far from over. We can still bounce back against F2 Logistics. We have to double our effort because we know that they are a very talented team.”

I.O.C. TELLS P.O.C. IBF champ Ancajas main forum guest

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EIGNING International Boxing Federation (IBF) super flyweight champion Jerwin Ancajas will be the special guest in Tuesday’s session of the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) Forum at the Amelie Hotel-Manila.

Ancajas will be accompanied by trainermanager Joven Jimenez to provide an update about his next defense of his 115-lb title. The native of Panabo, Davao del Norte, retained his crown last May following a seventh-round knockout of Ryuichi Funai in Stockton, California.

Joining the champion in the session presented

by San Miguel Corp., Braska Restaurant, Amelie Hotel, and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. are officials and members of the Philippine Floorball Clubs Association.

Association President Ralph Ramos will lead the guests from the floorball federation along with Coach Noel Alm Johansson, player Ryan Hallden and team manager Peter Eriksson.

The session starts at 10 a.m.

UFC ace Tuivasa leads fight camp

TO FIX CRISIS

By Ramon Rafael Bonilla

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HE International Olympic Committee (IOC) has started to exercise its ascendancy over the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) damaged by a crisis among its leaders some of whom have reportedly changed their minds on resigning as members of the executive board.

The IOC letter—dated June 29 and addressed to the POC Executive Board—primarily sought for clarification on the status of the members of the Executive Board on whether they have resigned or are clinging to their positions.

The IOC also ordered for an Extraordinary General Assembly upon confirmation of the status of the executive board members, stressing that the membership has the supreme authority to decide over crucial issues, including an impending election that would determine who succeeds resigned President Ricky Vargas.

“The recurrent internal and personal disputed have been affecting the POC’s reputation in the country and internationally, and have also created a very unstable situation which has a negative impact on the Olympic Movement as a whole in the Philippines, and in particular on the preparations for the forthcoming international sports events, incuding the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020,” the IOC letter said.

James McLeod, IOC director of Olympic

Solidarity and National Olympic Committee Relations, and Husain Al-Musallam, Olympic Council of Asia director general and technical director, signed the letter.

The BusinessMirror learned that the IOC opinion was sought by the side of former First Vice President Jose Romasanta and archery head Clint Aranas.

Romasanta have verbally resigned while Aranas have done both—verbal and written resignation—during the POC general assemblyturned-caucus last Tuesday.

The IOC letter—curiously written in a manner that shifted abruptly from the traditional IOC way— was presented during Monday’s executive board meeting at the GSIS Building in Pasay City.

Joey Romasanta, Second Vice President Antonio Tamayo (soft tennis), Jose Cojuangco (equestrian), Jonne Go (canoe-kayak), Julian Camacho (wushu) and the IOC Representative to the Philippines Mikee Cojuangco attended the meeting.

Robert Manangquil (billiards) and Rep. Prospero Pichay (chess) were again absent but monitored the meeting through a videoconference, while former Chairman Rep. Abraham Tolentino skipped the meeting to attend to his constituents in Tagaytay City.

Netball’s Charlie Ho (netball) addressed a press conference after the executive board meeting as the POC secretary-general. It wasn’t clear, however, who appointed Ho to the post.

“The IOC and the OCA have noticed what is

Manila Bay run registration on

E TAI TUIVASA (standing, fourth from left) poses with aspiring Filipino fighters at the Tai Tuivasa Fight Clinic.

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IRASIA ambassador and UFC heavyweight Tai Tuivasa arrived in Manila this week for an exclusive fight camp with aspiring Filipino Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighters. The fight camp at the UFC Gym in Alabang brought together 30 fighters of mixed experience for one-on-one coaching and classroom sessions with the prolific striker.

Participants also underwent strength and body conditioning exercises, be taught about technique and be given the opportunity to ask questions of the MMA heavyweight.

The Tai Tuivasa Fight Camp is part of AirAsia’s #DARETODREAM campaign, which aims to grow talent and the local sports scene while giving back to the Asean community.

“AirAsia is committed to inspiring Asean talent to dream. Recognizing the Philippines passionate MMA community, we wanted to offer this once in a lifetime opportunity for Filipinos to train alongside the UFC’s best,” Rudy Khaw, head of Branding at AirAsia Group, said.

“I’m excited to be here in the Philippines, the home of MMA fighters and Filipinos Manny Pacquiao and Brandon Vera,” Tuivasa said. “By sharing more about my career, I hope to be able to change the perception of the MMA scene.”

AirAsia’s #DARETODREAM campaign has also supported Filipino volleyball star Alyssa Valdez, Pulilan swimmer Jessie Lacuna and long-jump athlete Marestella Torres-Sunang.

FFORTS to save Manila Bay continue to get a big boost as Olympic Village outlets at Robinsons Forum, Festival Mall and Farmers Plaza, as well as the registration center at the MBC-DZRH lobby in Pasay go full throttle to enlist runners for the Manila Bay Clean-Up Run set on Sunday.

Open to all interested participants in male and female divisions, the Manila Bay Clean-Up Run will feature races in the 3K, 5K, 10K and 21K divisions.

The event, which is a project of Manila Broadcasting Company and Star City, aims to support efforts to clean the country’s marine and coastal resources under the umbrella program of LandBank and various establishments along Manila Bay which comprise the Sunset Partnership.

Since 2011, funds generated by the fun run have been used to institute systematic longterm solutions to environmental sanitation problems that have beset the country’s coastal resources and tributaries.

For inquiries, log on to the official Facebook page of the Manila Bay Clean-Up Run, or call Runners Link at 0926-2052787.

happening,” said Ho, who said that this Friday’s elections couldn’t possibly push through following the IOC’s advise.

Tolentino agreed with the IOC and OCA position, particularly on the power of the general assembly to decide over sensitive issues.

But Tolentino stressed on the commitment of the executive members who have agreed to resign—Romasanta, Aranas, Cynthia Carrion (gymnastics), Go and Camacho.

“I call on all of them to honor their word which they gave in front of the POC General Assembly members last June 25,” said Tolentino adding that they committed to resign before 37 of 42 regular POC members and six of 12 associate and two of 10 recognized members.

“To those who were not present, I also urge them to heed the members call,” Tolentino said in a statement. “Resignations need not be in writing, a verbal contract is just as binding as a written one. POC officials are expected to live up to their word, guided by the tenets of Olympism.”

Tolentino said he was also amenable to a request for postponement of the election, but emphasized that the exercise should be held not later than July 18.

“Because the POC provisions mandate that the vacancy in the presidency must be filled within 30 days. Since President Vargas resigned on June 18, the latest that we can have an election is July 18,” he said.

CIGNAL’S Jeck Dionela dives for the ball during her team’s match last Saturday, which reigning champion Petron won, 25-20, 18-25, 25-16, 16-25, 16-14.

BASEBALL IN BASECO

Kids at Baseco Compound in Tondo, Manila, play baseball with an improvised bat and a miniature football after classes are suspended on Monday because of heavy rains brought by Typhoon Egay. NONIE REYES

ARGENTINA STAVES OFF PHL UPRISING P OWERHOUSE Argentina sent the Gilas Pilipinas Youth reeling to its second straight loss, 77-72, in the International Basketball Federation (Fiba) Under-19 World Cup on Monday in Heraklion, Greece.

But the Filipinos didn’t go down without a fight.

Missing the services of injured teammate AJ Edu, Sean Dave Ildefonso and Kai Sotto combined to carry the fight for Batang Gilas, which almost stole the thunder from No.9 ranked Argentina with a spirited comeback in the final quarter.

Ildefonso scored 10 of his game-high 22 points in the fourth quarter when the Gilas boys rallied from a 15-point deficit with

six minutes remaining.

The margin went down to only four points when Ildefonso sank two free throws, 71-75, with 22 seconds left.

But the game belonged to the Argentines—who were composed at endgame as the Filipinos miserably fell short in their uprising.

Ildefonso added 10 rebounds to give the 7-foot-2 Sotto the much needed lift after Edu was ruled out of the tournament after a potential ACL and meniscal tear in his right knee.

Sotto finished with his usual production of 17 points, eight boards and six blocks, while James Daniel Spencer and Gerry Abadiano each tallied nine points.

Unlike in its opening loss to host Greece last Sunday, Gilas was

in disarray as the Argentines raced to an 18-7 advantage midway in the first quarter.

Argentina kept the lead as Marco Giordano battered the Filipinos with his outside shooting for a 39-32 cushion for the South American team at half time.

Things got interesting in the fourth period when Gilas charged back, only to get doused at crunch time with Lucas Reyes hitting all his shots from the free-throw line.

Giordano led Argentina with 18 points, while Reyes and Francisco Farabello contributed 15 points each.

Gilas gets a one-day break and will see action against Russia on Wednesday at 1:30 a.m. (Manila time). Ramon Rafael Bonilla

Sports BusinessMirror

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| Tuesday, July 2, 2019

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

ALL HEART, ALL PASSION

ALEX MORGAN adjusts her game at the Women’s World Cup. AP

By Anne M. Peterson

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The Associated Press

YON, France—After collecting five goals in her first game, Alex Morgan is getting a lot of attention at the Women’s World Cup—from defenders.

The US forward has been shut down scoringwise ever since her splash in the opener, as opponents have honed in on her, often with physical play. But that’s just allowed her to emphasize other aspects of her game.

Morgan said each match in France has “presented itself in a different way.”

“Naturally as a No. 9 I’m going to be plowed through quite often. I understand that comes along with the job and it happens many times, in the NWSL and even in friendlies,” she said, referring to the US domestic league. “So I wouldn’t say it’s necessarily more physical in general at this World Cup, I would just say it just comes with the territory.”

Morgan and the top-ranked United States play No. 3 England on Tuesday in the semifinals. Sweden will play the Netherlands the next day to set up next Sunday’s title match.

Morgan’s five goals in a 13-0 victory over Thailand to open the tournament matched the record for most goals in a single game at the World Cup. She rested the team’s next match against Chile.

While she hasn’t scored since, she’s been vitally important to the United States. She helped set up both of Megan Rapinoe’s goals in the team’s 2-1 quarterfinal victory over France—drawing the foul for the free kick on the first, and setting up Tobin Heath’s sprint up field and cross that Rapinoe buried for the second.

Afterward, US coach Jill Ellis said Morgan put her “heart and soul” into the game.

“The kudos to Alex is I think she has a balance to her game, in terms of penetration, and being able, like she did in the France game, to be more of a player that can hold the ball up for us,” Ellis said. “And that’s tough.”

Both Sweden and Spain, the two opponents the Americans faced before France, targeted Morgan

relentlessly. She was kicked in the first half of the 2-0 victory over Sweden to close the group stage then menaced by Spain to open the round of 16.

Rapinoe stepped up and scored two goals against both Spain and France.

“Right now, Megan Rapinoe has put the team on her back, from Spain to France, and it’s going to take players like that, and a couple individuals each game, to step up and really help carry this team,” Morgan said.

Morgan was named US Soccer’s player of the year last year after leading the team with 18 goals in 19 games. It was the second time she earned the honor: She also won in 2012, when she had 28 goals and helped the team win an Olympic title.

She had seven of those goals during the Concacaf World Cup qualifying tournament last fall to earn the Golden Boot.

She’s in the running for the Golden Boot in France, too. With five goals, she’s atop the leaderboard along with Rapinoe, England’s Ellen White and Australia’s Sam Kerr.

“I would love someone on our team to win the Golden Boot. Of course, it would be a great accolade, but that’s not my goal. My goal is to help this team win a World Cup,” Morgan said.

Morgan first grabbed attention in the 2011 World Cup as the youngest player to make the US squad. She scored in the final, which Japan won on penalty kicks.

Morgan was injured during qualifying for the 2015 World Cup and she sat out of the tournament until the final match of the group stage. But she started for the decisive 5-2 victory in the final over Japan—highlighted by Carli Lloyd’s hat trick.

Overall, Morgan has 106 career goals in 167 matches for the United States. She’s scored 33 goals over her last 39 games. She has eight total World Cup goals.

In France, however, the goals don’t necessarily matter.

What does is winning the United States’s fourth World Cup. “I think there’s a single-mindedness right now in Alex and I see that in her play and off the field, as well,” Ellis said.

Bitter end to disappointing season

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ALVADOR, Brazil—Uruguay striker Luis Suárez left the pitch of the Arena Fonte Nova in tears on Saturday after his penalty shootout miss gave underdogs Peru a place at the Copa América semifinals. It was a bitter end to the 32-year-old’s disappointing season, and added yet another frustrating chapter to his international career in Brazil.

The veteran striker failed to score or perform well in both knockout stage matches he played in Brazil, the 0-0 draw with Peru in Salvador and the 2-1 semifinal defeat against the hosts of the 2013 Confederations Cup in Belo Horizonte.

The striker’s litany of missteps and bad luck associated with Brazil is such that Él País, one of Uruguay’s leading newspapers, was inspired to run a headline in its sports section on Sunday stating: “Brazil not even on vacations, Luis.”

The veteran often seemed aloof and slower than normal during the current edition of Copa América, in contrast to his always committed strike partner Edinson Cavani. Some of his poor play can be blamed on a recent right-knee surgery that risked Suárez’s participation in the tournament.

Fans at the Fonte Nova in Salvador cheered him after Uruguay’s elimination anyway, but critics wonder whether he should have come to Brazil at all since he didn’t seem to be completely fit.

Suárez left Copa América with only two goals, one in the 4-0 rout of tournament minnow Ecuador and another from the spot in the 2-2 draw against Japan’s young team. He did score once against Peru, but the goal was disallowed by STRIKER Luis Suárez frustrates Uruguay again after missing penalty. AP

Colombia player’s wife cites death threats after Copa exit

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OGOTÁ, Colombia—The wife of the Colombia defender who missed a penalty kick that led to the team’s elimination in the Copa América says he and his family have received death threats.

Daniela Mejía, wife of William Tesillo, says some of the threats alluded to former Colombian defender Andrés Escobar, who was murdered days after he scored an owngoal in the 1994 World Cup. Tesillo missed Colombia’s fifth penalty in the team’s 5-4 loss in a shootout against Chile in the quarterfinals of the South American competition on Friday.

The 26-year-old defender from Mexican club León had earned the support from his teammates but was heavily criticized by most Colombian fans.

Mejía said on her Instagram post she “could spend all morning publishing the threats” against her husband and

her family. She called the threats “a shame.”

The threats were denounced to local authorities, who said they were working to try to identify those behind them.

The Colombian squad traveled back home from Brazil on Saturday.

In the African Cup, Madagascar upset Nigeria and even upstaged Mohamed Salah on Sunday.

Madagascar made it an African Cup debut to remember by beating three-time champion Nigeria, 2-0, to win its group and qualify for the last 16.

The exploits of the underdog Madagascans at their first major tournament claimed the headlines despite Salah scoring his second goal of the cup for Egypt. Salah’s left-foot free kick was the first goal in a 2-0 win over Uganda and it helped ensure the host nation and favorite

for the title head to the knockout stage with three wins from three games.

Salah lit up Cairo International Stadium again by whipping his free kick over the wall and inside the near post in the 36th minute. Egypt captain Ahmed Elmohamady added a second 10 minutes later. Those two also scored when Egypt beat Congo 2-0 in its last game.

Egypt won Group A ahead of Uganda. Madagascar topped Group B, relegating Nigeria to second. Egypt and Nigeria had already qualified before their last group games. Uganda and Madagascar sealed their spots in the round of 16 on Sunday and Guinea and Congo will wait to see if they are among the four best third-place teams who will also go through.

The African Cup increased from 16 to 24 teams this year.

In Alexandria, Madagascar pounced on a defensive

error for its first goal against an uninspired Nigeria and got lucky for its second but won’t care one bit as it was created one of the biggest surprises in African Cup history.

Previously, Madagascan soccer’s biggest claim to fame was that the current head of African football hails from the Indian Ocean island. The Madagascan team, mostly made up of players plying their trade in the lower leagues in France, have their own stories to tell now. AP WILLIAM TESILLO misses Colombia’s fifth penalty in the team’s 5-4 loss in a shootout against Chile. AP

the referee because it was deemed offside.

The striker’s poorly taken penalty in the shootout was saved by Peru’s Pedro Gallese with his belly. All the other shooters scored, and Peru won 5-4 to face Chile on Wednesday for a place in the July 7 final. The match will take place in Porto Alegre, a city close to Brazil’s border with Uruguay.

Suárez’s troubles in Brazil began at the 2013 Confederations’ Cup semifinal against the hosts at the Mineirão Stadium. He was anonymous in Uruguay’s 2-1 defeat, while Cavani scored and led the team in chasing the game until the very end.

One year later, at a group stage match of the 2014 World Cup in Natal, Suárez bit the shoulder of Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini in Uruguay’s 1-0 win and was suspended by soccer governing body Fifa for nine matches. The incident at the Arena das Dunas meant he didn’t even witness the game at the Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro where his team was eliminated 2-0 by Colombia in the round of 16.

Copa América 2019 was a big chance for the veteran not only to turn around his fortunes in Brazil, but also rise above the criticism he has received at his club Barcelona.

Suárez scored just once in the latest edition of the Champions League, and was one of the most criticized players in the crushing 4-0 defeat against Liverpool at Anfield in the second leg of the semifinals. He was the second top goal scorer of the Spanish league in Barça’s title winning campaign, netting 21, but was largely outshone by Messi, who had 36 goals.

The Uruguayan striker didn’t say much after his team’s elimination, but thanked fans for their support.

“I have to stress the support after the moment I had to live,” Suárez said in a low voice.

“It was very sad for me and that support from the crowd and my teammates is fundamental.”AP

EAR God, be Yours, oh most blessed trinity. We rejoice in Your love and pray: Gracious God, hear our prayer.

Source of all Being, lead us to appreciate and honor the diversity of gifts among humankind. Eternal God, lead all creation to experience Your mercy and compassion. Spirit of life, grant wisdom, compassion and courage to Pope Francis, bishops and all the faithful. May our triune God bring wisdom to our hearts, show us the road to life and lead us to share in the trinity’s boundless joy forever. Amen.

GIVE US THIS DAY SHARED BY LUISA LACSON, HFL Word&Life Publications • teacherlouie1965@yahoo.com

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

Life

CIRCLES: THE JOURNEY OF AN INTUITIVE ARTIST AND HER CONTROLLED CHAOS D4

BusinessMirror

PRECISE, perfectly smooth edges and detailed fine knurling make Axor’s new Edge collection resemble the high-end perfume bottles that were part of the inspiration for Jean Marie Massoud, the collection’s famed Italian designer.

Tuesday, July 2, 2019

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All praise and thanksgiving

➜ FRENCH architect Xavier Cartron named his Nihal collection for THG after a star in the Lepus constellation that symbolizes spring water.

The porcelain taps come in sapphire, white, black or green.

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THE design inspiration for the Ikon faucet from Maestro Bath was a prism, and it comes in three metallic finishes, as well as uber-trendy white.

Bath hardware makes a stylish splash

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By KiM cOOK The Associated Press

TEP in the bathroom, turn on the tap. Step in the shower, turn on the faucet.

Just mundane parts of the daily routine, right? Yet for bathware designers, they’re anything but. These creative minds dive deep into what they call “the water delivery experience,” and once you’ve experimented with some of their creations, you’ll probably never take a tap for granted again.

For the bathroom sink, companies like THG, Axor and Drummonds are offering collections resembling fine jewelry, often at comparable prices.

And for the full-body cleanup, there’s shower hardware designed to elevate your senses.

Precise, perfectly smooth edges and detailed fine knurling make Axor’s new Edge collection resemble the high-end perfume bottles that were part of the inspiration for Jean Marie Massoud, the collection’s Italian designer. It was unveiled at this spring’s massive ISH European kitchen and bath industry show in Frankfurt and will be available in the fall.

“I’m interested in water’s energy and flow, how it’s both balanced and unbalanced at the same time,” says Massoud, who has designed for the German manufacturer before.

With the faucet design, he wanted something that looked effortless, refined and minimalist.

Axor has a stable of fashion-forward creatives

AMAIA Scapes Cabuyao offers a comfy and spacious pavilion where residents can spend time bonding with family and friends— or hold gatherings and get-togethers for special occasions.

who’ve designed faucet collections for them, including Philippe Starck, whose Organic faucet was inspired by the shape of a tree branch.

Kallista’s Grid collection was inspired by the Dutch De Stijl art movement, which was characterized by vertical and horizontal lines; Piet Mondrian was one of its founders. The taps and faucets were created with 3D technology as open-sided squares and rectangles, so the water seems to emerge from nowhere. They’re finished in buffed matte black, which gives them an architectural presence.

Black finishes are currently in demand for the bathroom, according to Hansgrohe US Product and Research Development Director Ryan Ramaker.

“Matte black, graphite and brushed black chrome finishes are all strong trends,” he says.

And there’s another big one to watch, Ramaker says: “Matte white is going to be the next big thing.” He says interior designers and homeowners are attracted by its clean crispness and the idea that, as with matte black, the finish can be integrated into any decorating style for a seamless look.

Hansgrohe’s Pura Vida faucet and tap set combines chrome and white finishes.

That metallic and white combination can also be found on Eisen Home’s Marella faucet, available at Wayfair.

Wayfair’s also got Vigo’s Niko faucet, which delivers the water in waterfall form via an elegant, crane-like, white, open-topped spout. Maestro Bath’s Ikon perches a sliver of a handle atop a faceted

geometric base, all clad in white.

Moen offers the Banbury Glacier showerhead in snowy white.

The ISH show included high-end maker THG Paris’s debut of French designer Xavier Cartron’s Nihal collection, with porcelain knobs inspired by the constellation drawings of early Egyptian astronomers. The knobs come in a range of colors including emerald, sapphire and black.

Home décor’s affection for rose gold and copper has gravitated to the bathroom as well, with retailers like Signature Hardware offering an array of faucets in pleasing buffed copper finishes.

The shower is also seeing its share of high style, in high-tech form.

Hansgrohe’s sizable PowderRain showerhead sends the water out in a soft, enveloping spray thanks to the five holes in each nozzle. The flow is angled so water doesn’t splash in all directions.

Moen’s U system lets you control your shower experience via an app to create presets for time and temperature, then use device buttons or your voice to command.

Kohler ’s DTV+ system allows you to preset six different “experiences.” Customize your dream shower with components like speakers, steam, body sprays and chromatherapy (colored) lighting.

SmarTap is a similar system, which works with any make of fixture. You can program temperature and flow levels for each shower session, set bathtub filling levels, and set controls for kids’ showers. n

KOHLER’S DTV+ system brings water, steam, sound and light to the bath for a multisensory shower experience that incorporates a touchscreen interface and six user preset options to customize all four elements.

A refreshing alternative to city-weary folk SEARCHING for a fresh start in life, away from the congested Metro’s traffic gridlock, smog and noise pollution? City-weary folk can leave all this behind and establish roots in Amaia Scapes Cabuyao, where spacious and affordable homes will soon rise to accommodate young Filipino professionals and their growing families.

With a growing number of Filipinos now opting to stay in their hometowns where their childhood friends and families are, a city like Cabuyao, where growth is progressive, substantial and sustainable, appears to be an option that offers longtime fulfillment. Indeed, the best of both worlds—metropolitan and rustic—awaits

aspiring homeowners at Amaia Scapes Cabuyao. The property developer’s new offering puts residents where they want to be: several kilometers South of Mega Manila, where the air is cleaner, the environment is greener and the community exudes an old hometown vibe that reminds them of what life used to be.

Prospective buyers may choose from a wide selection of modern and distinctive home designs that best define them and the lifestyle they aspire to have. A typical house at Amaia Scapes Cabuyao measures 60 square meter (floor area) with a minimum lot area of 80 sq m. With the opening of its newest sector, bigger and better

opportunities await future residents at Amaia Scapes Cabuyao. To date, a total of 45 house units are available with provisions for future home expansions.

Model units are now ready for viewing and preselling. For the enjoyment and relaxation of homeowners, available amenities include a swimming pool, a basketball court, and a pavilion for social gatherings and other events.

Amaia Land (www.amaialand.com) continues to serve prospective homeowners with affordable and sustainable developments that aim to elevate the Filipino living experience in a well-secured environment.

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Barron’s ‘Black Mountain’ stars his ex-mob enforcer

By Bruce DeSilva The Associated Press

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IKE a lyricist, Laird Barron excels at manipulating the tones and cadence of language. Like a Gothic novelist, the mood he creates is often bleak.

“You don’t teach a child to become a killer by rote lectures,” he writes. “To create a predatory machine, you foster an appreciation of the natural world and our minuteness upon its canvass... we are as nothing and that permits us to do anything.”

It comes as no surprise, then, that Barron wrote both poetry and horror before turning to crime fiction with 2018’s Blood Standard, a novel that introduced former mob enforcer Isaiah Coleridge. At the start of that violent book, Coleridge appeared to be a predatory machine; but, by its conclusion, he vowed that from then on he would kill only those who have it coming.

Barron’s new novel, Black Mountain (Putnam), finds Coleridge working as a private investigator in the Catskills mountains of upstate New York. There,

BIG Bad Wolf Book Sale goes to Pampanga: (from left) Narissa de la Peña, country manager of Big Bad Wolf Books Philippines; Luis Oquiñena, executive director of Gawad Kalinga; and Jacqueline Ng, cofounder of Big Bad Wolf Books.

Today’s Horoscope

By Eugenia Last

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Margot Robbie, 29; Alex Morgan, 30; Ashley Tisdale, 34; Larry David, 72.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Take a deep breath, and embrace whatever comes your way. If you make a fuss, it will slow you down, or even worse, cause you to miss opportunities that come your way this year. Go with the flow, participate and make decisions that will help you achieve greater security. It’s time to let go of whatever isn’t working for you anymore. Your lucky numbers are 4, 10, 18, 22, 29, 37, 46.

the local mob boss hires him to find out who brutally killed two organized crime strong arms—and why.

As Coleridge digs into the case, he learns that many other victims, mostly derelicts and prostitutes, have been murdered in a similar fashion. Soon, his suspicions focus on another retired hitman, a mysterious psychopath known as the Croatoan, the name of a Native American tribe to which he may or may not be related.

But the case proves to be far from straightforward. The Croatoan would be an old man now. Is he even still alive? Could he be killing with the help of an assistant? Could the murders be the work of a copycat?

Before long, it gets murkier with tendrils leading to a beautiful woman from a powerful family, her unscrupulous father, a team of mercenaries, a multinational corporation and a government cover up.

When he manages to sleep, Coleridge is terrorized by a black wolf in dream sequences that are evocative of early Stephen King. But unlike Barron’s first novel, most of the violent action occurs off stage. n

a

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Keep your emotions in check. Channel your energy into something constructive. Embrace a positive attitude and a fun-loving approach to life. Now is not the time to let anyone push you into a debate. Live, love and laugh. HH

b

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Participate, share your skills and make new friends.

Don’t let change anger you; embrace what’s new and exciting. You will discover something you didn’t realize you’d enjoy doing. HHHH

c

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Speak up, clear the air and make your decision known. If you don’t say anything, you’ll have no business complaining. Look for a way to backtrack if you have made too many promises. HHH

d

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Make the most with what you’ve got, and you will be surprised with what you come up with. Use your imagination, and deal with matters concerning others responsibly. Consider your motives before you make a commitment. Honesty is the best policy. HHH

e

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Aggressive behavior will meet with opposition and unwanted change. You’ll get better results if you are willing to compromise. Know what you want, and offer something of equal value. Personal improvements will encourage you to take better care of yourself. HHH

Celebrate National Children’s Book Day with the CCP THE BIG BAD WOLF BOOK SALE GOES TO PAMPANGA FOR THE FIRST TIME FOR the very first time, the Big Bad Wolf Book Sale will be held in Pampanga from July 12 to 22. Catch the 24-hour Book Sale at LausGroup Event Center in San Fernando. Cabalens can expect a wide selection of brand-new English books in various genres at 50-percent to 90-percent off. Entrance is free.

The sale will be bringing in best-selling titles, young adult fiction, romance, science fiction, crime thriller, business, self-help, architecture, design, cooking, children’s fiction and activity books, among others.

The Big Bad Wolf Book Sale will be introducing six new Magic Book or augmented reality titles in comparison to the Big Bad Wolf Book Sale Manila 2019 in February. With a total of 12 titles that are perfect for readers who wish to see their beloved children’s books come to life and tinker with their imagination and creativity, some of the new titles are Cinderella, Old Macdonalds and the Wheels on The Bus. “Learning from experience is more memorable for a child because of the fun moment they have while understanding the concepts. Through an attractive book, parents will also be able to instill reading habits on the young. This is what our Magic Books bring to their readers,” said Jacqueline Ng, cofounder of the Big Bad Wolf Book Sale. “As children work together with their favorite character to finish the story, they

will become more immersed, and have a more fun experience reading,” she added.

Through the Big Bad Wolf Books CSR arm, Red Readerhood, Big Bad Wolf Books strengthens their partnership with Gawad Kalinga (GK).

Currently, in 2019 a total of 6,838 books have been donated to GK partner communities through the Big Bad Wolf Book Sale Manila 2019. Book sale-goers can also pay it forward by purchasing a book from the designated Red Readerhood booth at the sale.

“Through our partnership with Big Bad Wolf Books, we are able to inspire and empower members of the GK communities by giving them an opportunity to learn through the platform of the Big Bad Wolf Book Sale,” said Luis Oquiñena, executive director of Gawad Kalinga. “At the same time, the Book Sale gives our communities a livelihood opportunity because they also serve as on-the-ground Book Sale staff,” he added.

On July 11, lucky wolfies can get a chance to participate in an exclusive VIP Day wherein they can get first dibs on the books, a day before the official start of the sale.

To snag tickets to this exclusive sale, visit www.facebook. com/bbwbooksphilippines.

THIS year’s much-anticipated National Children’s Book Day recognizes the best work of children’s book writers, illustrators and publishers. Additionally, the event celebrates the importance of nurturing our young readers’ curiosity and imagination. The event will be held on July 16, from 9 am to 5:30 pm, at the Little Theater Lobby of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP).

The CCP Intertextual Division continues to celebrate the National Children’s Book Day with the Philippine Board on Books for Young People (PBBY) every third Tuesday of July.

This is to commemorate the date of the publication of Jose Rizal’s The Monkey and the Turtle in Trubner’s Oriental Record in London.

The celebration is highlighted by the PBBY-Alcala and Salanga Awarding Ceremony, which will begin at 9 am at the Little Theater Lobby. This event will be recognizing the best creators and publishers in children’s literature. In addition, The PBBY holds the grand opening for their brand-new exhibit at the same location.

After lunch, the Mulat Sulat 2018 Group will commence the launching of five children’s books about Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender rights. The program in the Little Theater Lobby will feature the book launch, storytelling and reading of excerpts. Following the launch, Pinoy Kids Read Pinoy Books hosts their Pinoy Kids Celebration.

This celebration includes both storytelling and a musical performance, along with various talks.

To end, the Audience Development Division of the CCP will lead 20 kids in a tour of the building. The tour will include arts activities, talks, as well as showing off the most important parts of the Cultural Center of the Philippines and its various exhibits. This will conclude the National Children’s Book Day celebration.

f

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Selfevaluation will inspire positive change.

Your example will set a standard for others to follow. Be the one who represents goodness and practicality, and your reputation as the go-to person in your circle will put you in a dominant position. HHHH

g

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Concentrate on what you can accomplish instead of fighting a losing battle. Personal improvement will lead to better health and an understanding of who and what is right for you. HH

h

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Dream it, believe it and do it. Don’t sit on the sideline because someone refuses to join you. Go it alone, do your own thing and satisfy your needs. A trip or meeting will help initiate your plans. HHHHH

i j

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Take a step back, be reserved and live within your means. Taking better care of your health, money and meaningful relationships will help you bypass an argument. HHH CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Look for alternatives if you don’t like what’s happening. If someone close to you wants to make a change, it doesn’t mean you have to follow suit. Take the path that feels as though it will lead to a destination of choice.

HHH

k

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): You can paint a picture for someone, but that doesn’t mean he or she will like what you have to offer. Look inward, and do what is best for you. A personal change should be based on practicality, not to appease someone. HHH

l

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Participation will lead to new beginnings. What you learn about yourself and what you want will pave the way to less confusion and better choices. Walk away from conflict and those heading in a direction that doesn’t suit your lifestyle. HHHHH BIRTHDAY BABY: You are excitable, creative and unyielding.

You are insightful and appealing.

‘you can say that again’ BY KEN ALBRIGHT The Universal Crossword/Edited by David Steinberg

ACROSS 1 Cow chew 4 Toy boat’s place 8 Marvin of Motown 12 “The loneliest number” 13 Fibula neighbor 14 DJ’s softening knob 15 Direction-switching flow, redundantly 17 From Tibet, say 18 Like Dolly the sheep 19 Summer tops 21 Possessive contained in “theirs” 22 Nest egg, redundantly 25 “Full steam ___!”

27 “Dearie” 28 Von Trapp matriarch 31 Noncommittal reply 33 Irish ale color 36 Wall supports 37 Fall for a whoopee cushion prank 38 Church topper 40 Any birthstone 41 2008 candidate Bob 42 Jimmy Smith’s instrument 43 “I’d say,” to a texter

5 Narrow passage 4 47 Certain monitor, redundantly 51 Drinks like a cat 55 Shrinking body of water in Asia 56 Composer Shostakovich 58 Shows, as teeth 59 Car’s unique code, redundantly 62 Diary unit 63 Fix firmly 64 Ripen 65 “I couldn’t care ___!”

66 Neuter 67 Whole bunch DOWN 1 Do an after-school job 2 Aunt’s partner, often 3 Interior designer’s concern 4 Eagle plus one 5 1860s presidential nickname 6 Metal container 7 Kind of yoga 8 Beauty and the Beast villain 9 “Farewell, Francine” 10 Long (for) 11 Man’s name that ends with four

consonants 3 Three, in Torino 1 14 The Sopranos actress Edie 16 Implicit 20 Like sore muscles 23 Mikhail Gorbachev’s wife 24 Fleet leader 26 “The time ___ come” 28 Food additive initials 29 Ingested 30 Bacardi beverage 32 Open hotel lobbies 33 Outfit 34 Period of history 35 Hideaway 38 It shines in Cabo San Lucas 39 Early boxing match, informally 41 Upscale speaker brand 43 Lazy ones 44 Rap’s ___ Elliott 46 Australian opera house site 47 Professional organizer’s sticker 48 Origami bird 49 What bar-goers use to take shots 50 Covers, as a driveway

2 Chance to hit 5 53 Sauce brand that’s Italian for “You’re welcome” 54 Fire truck’s wail 57 Piglets play in it 60 Sprite 61 Hoops org.

Solution to yesterday’s puzzle:

Show BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Tuesday, July 2, 2019

D3

‘Toy Story 4’ repeats at No. 1 over ‘Annabelle,’ ‘Yesterday’

By Lindsey Bahr | The Associated Press

CCP OUTREACH BRINGS BALLET PHILIPPINES TO MINDANAO-VISAYAS TO celebrate three milestones, the 50th anniversary of the Cultural Center of the Philippines and Ballet Philippines, and the 40th year of CCP’s Outreach programs, the CCP through its Cultural Exchange Department (CED) brings BP on an outreach tour in selected communities in Mindanao-Visayas until July 10.

BP’s 50th Anniversary Outreach Tour is under the Lakbay Sining Program of the CCP CED in partnership with the CCP Kaisa sa Sining (KSS) Regional Arts Centers with support from the National Commission for Culture and the Arts.

The outreach performances are set on July 3, 4 pm, at the RDR Gym in Tagum City; on July 5 and 6, 8 pm, at the Luce Auditorium, Silliman University, in Dumaguete City; and on July 9, 3 and 7 pm, at the University of Saint La Salle Coliseum in Bacolod City.

BP Founder-Artistic Director and National Artist for Dance Alice Reyes crafted an exciting program for the outreach tour, which includes several masterpieces from BP’s dance repertoire.

These include “Valse Fantasie” restaged by Adam Sage after Muñeca Aponte, “Don Quixote Grand Pas de Deux after Petipa,” “Vision of Fire” by Edna Vida, “Moon” by Kun-Yang Lin, “Sama-sama”

by Ronelson Yadao, “Pasayawa Ko Day” by John Ababon, “Bungkos Suite” by Alice Reyes, and “After Whom” by Bam Damian III, plus excerpts from “Tales of the Manuvu” also by Alice Reyes.

Aside from the performances, BP, led by Associate Director Ronelson Yadao, will also conduct workshops and lecture demos in the cities of General Santos City, Tagum, Dumaguete and Bacolod. A live feed of the matinee shows will also be arranged exclusively for a chosen public school or underserved local community in each site. The BP’s 50th Anniversary Outreach Tour is copresented/organized by the Ramon Magsaysay Memorial Colleges General Santos and Marbel, Musikahan sa Tagum Foundation, Silliman University Culture and Arts Council-Dumaguete City, Negros Cultural Foundation, Negros Museum and University of Saint La Salle Bacolod City.

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OS ANGELES—Toy Story 4 hung onto the top spot in its second week in theaters and the horror sequel Annabelle Comes Home opened in line with expectations, but the Cinderella story of the weekend was actually the third place movie: Yesterday.

The Danny Boyle-directed musical romantic comedy featuring the music of the Beatles debuted well over industry expectations, earning an estimated $17 million from North American theaters. In a summer where most films have debuted either under or at industry tracking, which are often lowball projections, and original comedies have struggled to find audiences, Yesterday proved to be the exception.

Starring relative newcomer Himesh Patel, Yesterday imagines a world where only one man remembers the music of the Beatles and decides to present their catalog of hits as his own.

Although critics were mixed, audiences, who were mostly female (56 and over the age of 25 [75 percent]) have embraced the film with an “A-” CinemaScore and a 90 percent audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.

Universal’s President of Domestic Theatrical Distribution Jim Orr says he tries to use the word “thrilled” judiciously, but that it applies here.

“Among all of the sequels and all of the explosions of the summer, this is a very charming, original, whimsical musical romance with iconic music and amazing performances...[and direction],” Orr said.

“All of that adds up to a great, great run at the domestic box office.”

Even Warner Bros., which has the Bruce Springsteen-themed film Blinded by the Light coming later this summer, was heartened by Yesterday’s launch, which motivated a solidly adult demographic to trek out to the movie theater on opening weekend.

As comScore senior media analyst Paul Dergarabedian put it: “It’s not always the No. 1 film that’s the big story.” The No. 1 film was once again Toy Story 4, which added $57.9 million from domestic theaters, down 52 percent from its debut last weekend.

Globally the film has already netted $496.5 million.

Of the top grossing films of 2019, Disney now occupies the top 4 spots with Avengers: Endgame, Captain Marvel, Aladdin and Toy Story 4.

In second place was the third Annabelle film, Annabelle Comes Home, which debuted on over 3,500 screens on Wednesday. The Warner Bros. horror earned $20.4 million over the weekend and $31.2 million in its first five days.

Although it is a franchise low—the first two

opened over $35 million—with a budget of $27 million, it did well enough to justify its existence.

“This was a reasonable movie to make,” said Jeff Goldstein, Warner Bros.’ head of domestic distribution. “You don’t have to exceed on every one.”

He noted that the “Conjuring Universe” is the most successful horror franchise of all time with over $1.6 billion in ticket sales. And after a few back-to-back Conjuring spin-offs, the franchise is taking bit of a breather; The Conjuring 3 won’t hit theaters until after Labor Day next year.

Aladdin and The Secret Life of Pets 2 rounded out the top 5. Avengers: Endgame also made it back into the top 10 after Disney added over 1,000 screens this weekend. It added an estimated $5.5 million, bringing its domestic total to $841.3 million. Globally, it’s now at $2.76 billion.

While some have viewed the “bring back” campaign as a naked “cash grab” to try to beat the Avatar record ($2.79 billion worldwide), Dergarabedian thinks it has more to do with Spider-Man: Far From Home, which opens next weekend and picks up right after the events of Endgame. The weekend overall is down nearly 15 percent from last year and the year to date deficit is around 9.4 percent.

“We’ve been trying to dig our way out of this deficit for it seems like forever,” Dergarabedian said. “Some of the movies that were expected to be grand slam home runs were more like triples.”

But Sony and Marvel’s Spider-Man: Far From Home, which has already earned $111 million from China, Japan and Hong Kong, could help turn the year around. “There’s a lot riding on Spider-Man’s shoulders,” Dergarabedian said. “I think this will be a real shot in the arm to the industry both financially and emotionally.”

He added: “If Spidey can’t do it, no one can.”

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at US and Canadian theaters, according to comScore.

Where available, the latest international numbers for Friday through Sunday are also included.

1. Toy Story 4, $57.9 million ($80.6 million international) 2. Annabelle Comes Home, $20.4 million ($45 million international) 3. Yesterday, $17 million ($7.7 million international) 4. Aladdin, $9.3 million ($24.4 million international) 5. The Secret Life of Pets 2, $7.1 million ($11.8 million international) 6. Men In Black: International, $6.6 million ($11.5 million international) 7. Avengers: Endgame, $5.5 million ($2.3 million international) 8. Child’s Play, $4.3 million ($1.4 million international) 9. Rocketman, $3.9 million ($2.6 million international) 10. John Wick: Chapter 3-Parabellum, $3.2 million ($6.6 million international).

LILY JAMES (right) and Himesh Patel in a scene from Yesterday, the Danny Boyle-directed musical romantic comedy featuring the music of the Beatles. It debuted well over industry expectations opening at No. 3 in the North American box office.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at international theaters (excluding the US and Canada), according to comScore: 1. Spider-Man: Far From Home, $111 million 2. Toy Story 4, $80.6 million 3. Annabelle Comes Home, $45 million 4. Aladdin, $24.4 million 5. The Secret Life of Pets 2, $11.8 million 6. Spirited Away, $11.8 million 7. Men In Black: International, $11.5 million 8. Yesterday, $7.7 million 9. John Wick: Chapter 3-Parbabellum, $6.6 million 10. Parasite, $3.8 million. n

Cinemalaya receives Nikkei Asia prize CINEMALAYA Foundation Inc. received the prestigious Nikkei Asia Prize for Culture and Community for its valuable efforts “to shed a new light on the country’s film industry, which had been viewed as dead following a huge decline in production.”

Based on the Nikkei citation, “the name Cinemalaya is a portmanteau of Filipino words reflecting the founders’ belief that cinema, cine, could enliven consciousness, malay, by telling stories in a free and independent manner, malaya.”

Since 2004, the Cinemalaya Foundation has been supporting young filmmakers and promoting the best cinematic works to the world through the annual Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival, ushering the renaissance of the Philippine movie industry.

Before its foundation, the Philippine cinema industry faced despondency. By 2004 there were less and less movies being produced.

Most of those produced and screened were uninspired romantic comedies or action films that failed to bring in audiences to the theaters.

Looking at this grim picture prompted actress-director Laurice Guillen, who was then the chairman of the Film Development Council of the Philippines, and Nestor Jardin, former president of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP), to find a way to spark a cinematic resurgence and foster young filmmakers who could become the important

movers of the film industry.

They thought about launching a film festival that was different from the existing festival for commercial films. They partnered with businessman Antonio Cojuangco who, at the time, was looking for new content for his Dream Satellite TV but frustrated with the low quality of local films.

Cojuangco welcomed the idea that Guillen and Jardin presented to him. They proposed to establish a foundation that would help develop and support the Filipino independent filmmakers whose works would boldly articulate and freely interpret the Filipino experience with fresh insight and artistic integrity.

Its core project would be a competition and film festival, which would be instrumental to discover, encourage, support, train and recognize gifted Filipino independent filmmakers, while promoting Filipino independent films locally and internationally.

Cojuangco accepted the proposal, with the condition that the festival would only focus on young people who have produced only one or two films.

In 2005 the Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival made its debut through the partnership between the Cinemalaya Foundation and the CCP. With an initial budget of P11 million donated by Cojuangco, the foundation launched the film competition, granting P500,000 financial

support each for the 10 film projects they had selected among the applications submitted.

Since then, Cinemalaya has become the country’s biggest indie film festival, drawing over 50,000 people, mostly young film enthusiasts, eager to catch the latest indie films.

This year, the film festival celebrates its 15th year on August 2 to 11 at the CCP. Through the years, it has supported and promoted the production of 145 full-length feature independent films and 138 shortfeature films.

Many of these have won awards in local and international competitions and festivals. It has showcased over 1,000 works by independent filmmakers including full-length feature films,

shorts, documentaries, Filipino film classics, and art films, as well as award-winning international films.

The festival has expanded beyond the confines of the CCP. Partnering with local malls, the festival has reached more audiences and inspired the rise of different film festivals all over the country.

On its 24th edition, the Nikkei Asia Prizes recognized the foundation’s efforts and outstanding achievements.

“I was overjoyed to hear that the Nikkei Asia Prize was giving the Community and Culture Award to Cinemalaya Foundation. It is an honor, and I consider it an affirmation and reward for the vision and work of all the Cinemalaya

stakeholders these past 15 years,” said Guillen.

Every year, Nikkei Asia Prizes are given to individuals and groups in Asia that contribute to the region’s sustainable development and help create a better future for Asia.

In his acceptance speech during the awarding rites held in Japan on May 29, Cojuangco believed that the award “affirms the creative power that can be unleashed by the collaboration between private business, government agencies and cultural centers.”

The film festival is the result of good partnerships among public and private organizations, including Canon. During the awarding, Cojuangco met Canon CEO Fujio Mitarai, who learned that his company in the Philippines has been supporting the festival for the past years.

To understand the significance of Cinemalaya and its contribution to Philippine national cinema, Cojuangco enthused that one needs to situate it in the rise and decline of the film industry in the country.

“This recognition also helps to bring awareness of our movies to global audiences and since Cinemalaya includes the exhibition of films from other countries, it is our hope that this builds bridges of empathy across cultures. In this age of fake news and the weaponising of social media, we offer our festival as an alternative space for truth-telling,” Cojuangco concluded.

FROM left: Cinemalaya Foundation Inc. and Cultural Center of the Philippines representatives Mel Chionglo, Laurice Guillen, Antonio Cojuangco and Chris Millado with the Nikkei Asia Prize for Culture and Community.

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Art

BusinessMirror

Tuesday, July 2, 2019

www.businessmirror.com.ph

‘CURRENT’ SOLO EXHIBITION

BY POKLONG ANADING

1335MABINI Gallery features Current, the solo exhibition of 1335MABINI-represented artist Poklong Anading.

Anading’s spectrum of work ranges from video, installation, photography, drawing and painting. He studied art at the University of the Philippines and he graduated in 1999. His current show marks two decades of his practice, and it is timely that the show centers around a series he started during his final phase at art school: Line Drawing.

Line Drawing is a process-oriented project and each iteration starts as a series of horizontal lines drawn onto a surface. While walking and drawing the lines with one hand, the other hand records on video the lines being drawn. The camera thus records what is in effect a performance and, at the same time, functions as a drawing tool just like the pencil.

The resulting video becomes not only a video work but also a virtual drawing.

This doubling effect—of drawing by one hand and recording by the other of what the first hand draws— questions the power of the eye, naked or not, and the observable. Anading indicates that to be able to “see,” we need to come into direct contact and we need physical interaction to make contact. And for him, drawing is an elementary gesture to establish contact.

Walking, drawing and recording himself drawing is an immersive process. He walks and walks. Perhaps, he walks to find an answer to an itching question. Or, perhaps, he walks to find a question to an answer.

He pauses, ponders and sharpens his dulled pencil—the pencil shavings drop on the floor and gradually accumulate into a sculpture of sorts along the way where he traversed.

Through an embodied intimacy and self-reflexive presence, Anading responds to the contingencies of his body, place and time. The instability and fluidity of our current being in the world is signified by one constant: currents of change.

Anading takes part in the most important biennales in Asia and exhibitions worldwide. He is the recipient of the 12th Gawad CCP (Manila, Philippines) for Experimental Video in 2000; the Thirteen Artists Award (Manila, Philippines) in 2006; and the Ateneo Artists Award (Manila, Philippines) in 2006 and 2008. His works are included in the permanent collections of Singapore Art Museum, Mori Art Museum (Tokyo, Japan) and Guggenheim Museum (New York, USA).

Anading’s latest exhibition is on view until August 3 at 1335MABINI Gallery in Karrivin Plaza on Chino Roces Avenue, Makati.

JOURNEY, Sal Ponce Enrile, 2018, mixed media on canvas on playboard, 55” x 42”

BLUE GREEN/GOLD, Sal Ponce Enrile, 2018, acrylic on canvas, 36” x 28.5”

The journey of an intuitive artist and her controlled chaos CIRCLES

AG SAÑO, artivist (artist-activist); Yvette Go, SBC vice president and property management head; Nicole Liu, SBC vice president and corporate communications head; Wig Tysmans, renowned photographer; and partners from MACEA with event guests are all smiles at the Paseo de Roxas underpass.

SECURITY BANK TEAMS UP WITH FILIPINO MURALIST TO TRANSFORM MAKATI UNDERPASS

OUT with the old and in with the new. Ayala Avenue pedestrians have been surprised to find a new art canopy at the Paseo de Roxas underpass. The area that was once a space-themed mural to inspire the younger generation to reach for their dreams has been transformed into a sanctuary of Philippine terrestrial and marine creatures hoping to convey the same message of hope for a brighter future for Filipinos, this time through conserving Mother Nature.

Security Bank Corp. (SBC) has established a strong reputation for empowering businesses, as reflected by its recognitions as Bank of the Year and Best Retail Bank.

Through its corporate social responsibility arm, Security Bank Foundation Inc., it builds communities through education programs and classroom-building projects nationwide. The Security Bank commitment goes beyond providing excellent financial products and services; it also supports education, arts and culture, as all these aspects enrich the lives of the Filipino people.

“The theme for the Makati underpasses is Philippine nature, and since education is our corporate advocacy, we decided to take this opportunity educate the public about issues that are affecting nature, specifically Philippine biodiversity, through art,” explained Alfonso L. Salcedo Jr., SBC president and CEO. The bank invited multiawarded self-proclaimed artivist (artist-activist) AG Saño to redesign the Paseo de Roxas underpass mural. Saño has been traveling the world to work on murals that show his advocacy to protect Mother Nature.

“I said yes to the collaboration with Security Bank because of our shared values and mission. I learned about their deep engagement with communities through their education and livelihood programs because they are committed to making lives better. I found a partner who will help me get my message across. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that when I began the mural, I found out that my mother has been a Security Bank client for over three decades. This partnership was meant to be,” said Saño, now a Security Bank client himself.

With a large network all over the country, Security Bank is in a position to inspire change and rally support for various causes affecting local communities.

“The title of the mural is Art in Defense of Mother Nature.

The natural defense mechanisms of species are not enough anymore to cope with what humans have been doing to their habitats. I thought of equipping them with metal armors to signify the need to go beyond the status quo and exert more effort in helping the ecosystem thrive and the species survive,” Saño added.

JT NISAY

jtnisay@gmail.com

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S a sickly child, while her friends ran and skipped and jumped, Sal Ponce Enrile stayed mostly indoors. The threat of having an asthma attack often kept her in a room, without a sweat on her face but a pen in her hand, as she chose to while away time sketching, drawing and painting.

Taking shape was a future as an artist. But then, as Enrile put it, “life happened.”

The artistic girl grew up as an occupied adult.

Enrile became a wife, a mother and a two-term congresswoman. In 2016, after her time as a public servant ended, she sought avenues to continue supporting the causes of children’s health and education.

Enrile eventually came full circle and found her way back to the arts. She picked up the brush once again. This time, her childhood hobby was fueled by experience and advocacy.

Considering encounters with people as her artistic inspiration, Enrile’s background in criminology, psychology and business allowed for informed observation of human behavior, while her political experience exposed her to the daily challenges poverty presents to people. Meanwhile, she decided to donate proceeds from all her exhibits to her chosen beneficiaries.

In terms of style, Enrile is mostly an abstract expressionist who uses an explosion of vibrant colors with streaks of black strokes. She calls the aesthetic “controlled chaos,” being an “intuitive artist” who paints from within.

“My process requires that I don’t overthink or get too technical. Otherwise, this limits my creativity, which, in turn, controls me,” she said. “I want the full freedom to express myself and to purge what lies beneath the unconscious. I control the amount of chaos, and where I feel the focus of the energy and activity in certain parts of my work should be.”

Post-politics, Enrile committed to become an artist. She began sending portfolios to local galleries. However, the attempts were met with denials. Doubt grew.

“I was initially not taken seriously as an artist,” Enrile recalled. “Perhaps, because of my background, or worse, my art itself was not accepted.”

THE artist with her husband, Jack Ponce Enrile

Steadfast in her pursuit, she took the rejections as a challenge and continued to hone her skills. Marlyn Feliciano Lopez, the curator of her first exhibit titled Awakening, suggested that she try her luck outside the country and submit a portfolio to Agora Gallery in New York, which, according to its web site, was “established to provide opportunities to artists entering the global art market.”

“I told myself I had nothing to lose and I did not really expect to be accepted,” Enrile said.

“After all, I was a newcomer and didn’t have a list of exhibits to boot.”

What followed was a series of e-mail exchanges.

She just kept on responding without any assurances.

Then came a message from the director of the gallery, welcoming her to Agora as one of their artists.

Through Agora, Enrile found a place in ArtExpo New York 2019, the world’s largest fine art trade show held in April. Featured in the show, as well as on Agora Gallery’s expo invite, was Enrile’s textured painting, titled Retrospect.

The exposure opened a world of opportunities: On top of being launched by a UK-based online gallery in Marbella, Spain, as one of their artists, she has exhibits lined up this year in Barcelona, Switzerland, Miami and New York.

“I now use my art as a platform to voice the complexities of my experience,” she said. “From the colors to the composition, my approach and curiosity to mix one style or technique with another has

resulted in my unique identity, leaving my art with an intrigued and mysterious feel.”

In more ways than one, Enrile’s is an unconventional artistic journey much like her style. What seems to be chaotic and random actually holds a bigger, singular picture—a destination, a career as an artist.

The narrative is presented in Enrile’s ongoing second solo exhibit, simply titled Journey. The show opened in mid-June and is on view until July 4 at Art Cube Gallery, Karrivin Plaza, on Chino Roces Avenue, Makati City.

Displayed are 13 pieces that present to viewers the hopes, fears and struggles of Enrile’s path from public servant to artist. One piece is titled Endure, after her bouts with physical pain caused by a neurological disorder called Essential Tremor, or the uncontrollable shaking on her painting hand. Another is titled Stamina, which talks about her mustering of energy to complete large and complicated pieces.

The centerpiece of the exhibit, however, is a work of the same name, Journey. It is the lone semi figurative symbolist piece in the abstract expressionistdominated show. Among the symbols featured in the work is a kneeling saint, which represents prayers for guidance and hope, as well as flowers to symbolize beauty and gratitude, and a giant fish to stand for peace and contentment.

“This could be anyone’s journey through life,” Enrile said.

The artist added that for her second solo show, she was more certain of the story she wanted to convey and how.

“I am slowly discovering myself as an artist and the kind of styles I truly enjoy,” Enrile said, adding that her journey continues. “Of course I will never stop experimenting and exploring new materials and techniques because that’s part of the learning process.” n

Germany to return painting stolen by Nazis to Italy BERLIN—Germany says it will return to Italy a painting by Dutch artist Jan van Huysum that was stolen by Nazi troops during World War II. The government said in a statement on Saturday that Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and his Italian counterpart Enzo Moavero will travel to Florence soon to hand the still-life Vase of Flowers back to the Uffizi Gallery.

Its director, Eike Schmidt, had made a public appeal for the return of the painting earlier this year.

The oil painting had been part of the Pitti Palace collection in Florence from 1824 until the outbreak of World War II. It was stolen by German troops and didn’t surface again until after Germany’s reunification.

It wasn’t immediately clear whether the family that currently possesses the painting would be compensated. AP