Businessmirror June 07, 2019

DEPT. OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

PHILIPPINE STATISTICS AUTHORITY

2018 BANTOG DATA MEDIA AWARDS CHAMPION

BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business

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Friday, June 7, 2019 Vol. 14 No. 240

‘Infra, spending ramp-up to boost rebound in Q2’

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By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

STRONG rebound of the economy is seen in the second quarter on the back of election spending and higher consumption, according to First Metro Investment Corp.-University of Asia and the Pacific (FMIC-UA&P) Capital Market Research.

In its latest Market Call, FMICUA&P Capital Market Research said economic growth will also be boosted by consumption and the ramping up of public construction. Both will benefit from low inflation.

UA&P Senior Economist Victor A. Abola told the BusinessMirror

that the 3.2-percent inflation in May is “just temporary” and that inflation will likely post a growth of lower than 3 percent in July. FMIC-UA&P Capital Market Research expects inflation to average 3 to 3.5 percent this year.

“I expect inflation to go below 3

percent by July and lower still later on, especially considering that crude oil prices have fallen to bear market territory,” Abola said on Thursday.

FMIC-UA&P Capital Market Research said the decision of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to cut the reserve requirement

“I expect inflation to go below 3 percent by July and lower still later on, especially considering that crude oil prices have fallen to bear market territory.”

—Abola

ratio (RRR) by 200 basis points (bps) down to 16 percent starting end-May a week after cutting policy rates by 25 bps to 4.5 percent in mid-May would boost privatesector spending.

This, together with the government’s infrastructure construction efforts, bodes well for the economy and will offset the weakness in the first-quarter economic growth which only registered an increase of 5.6 percent.

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@alyasjah

N a first, Seoul has responded positively to Manila’s longstanding request to eliminate tariffs on agricultural products, particularly banana, in exchange for reduced import duties on South Korean industrial goods.

In the initial round of free-trade agreement (FTA) talks with South Korea, the Philippines wasted no time and tabled its demand to bring down tariffs on farm exports.

South Korean trade officials, in response, said they are amenable to it as long as the Philippines reduces import duties on industrial products, especially automotive parts. “[Response was] positive. They

will consider. Their interest mainly [are on] industrial products, like some automotive components and parts,” Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said in a text message to the BusinessMirror.

“Our initiative started with that as objective and now broadened to include other agricultural and industrial products, and even services. Technical negotiations started [so we can] discuss the product inclusions and tariff reduction schedules,” he added.

The Philippines and South Korea on Monday launched official negotiations toward forging a bilateral FTA with the aim of improving trade and investment activities between the two economies See “Trade swap,” A2

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 51.7580

BUSINESS NEWS SOURCE OF THE YEAR

P25.00 nationwide | 5 sections 32 pages | 7 DAYS A WEEK

Govt should give priority to teachers Manny F. Dooc

TELLTALES

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T’S too early, but we are now hearing certain names being dropped as possible “presidentiables” in 2022. Astute politicians who like to hitch their wagon to a star have now been heard endorsing names with the expectation that their bread would be buttered when the opportune time comes. For those who are truly serious in pursuing the Holy Grail, I suggest that they read the compelling book, All’s Fair: Love, War and Running for President, an insider account of the 1992 presidential campaign of incumbent President George H. W. Bush and Governor Bill Clinton written by the two foremost political operatives on opposite sides of the political divide, Democrat James Carville and Republican Mary Matalin. The book covers the political strategies, power plays and maneuvers by the competing camps to get their candidate elected. No book about the contest for presidency can provide more valuable insights and learning into the making of a president than this New York Times national best seller. Presidentiables and their political henchmen should now make a beeline for a copy of this book, but I believe it is no longer in circulation.

Continued on A14

See “Infra spending,” A2

Trade swap proposal: Tariff cuts on PHL fruits and Sokor indl goods

By Elijah Felice E. Rosales

2017 EJAP JOURNALISM AWARDS

Depreciation path seen for peso

By Bianca Cuaresma @BcuaresmaBM

T BEST BUSINESS PAPER Rotary Club of Manila officers Ner Lonzaga (left), Jose Policarpio Jr. (second from left) and Centennial President Jesus “Susing” Pineda (right) are seen with BusinessMirror publisher T. Anthony C. Cabangon after he accepts the trophy for “Business Newspaper of the Year” from the RCM on Thursday. It is BM’s fifth Rotary Club of Manila journalism award in 13 years of existence. It was named Newspaper of the Year in 2006 and 2010; and Business Newspaper of the Year in 2013 and 2017. ROY DOMINGO

HE local currency may have appreciated in the first quarter of the year as the dollar lost some luster among global investors, but it is projected to move toward a depreciation bias looking forward, a local think tank said.

In their monthly issue of the “Market Call,” economists from the First Metro Investment Corp.

(FMIC) and University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P) said the peso is expected to move further down the 52 territory toward the end of this month, despite its strength earlier in the second quarter this year.

Continued on A2

n JAPAN 0.4773 n UK 65.6706 n HK 6.6007 n CHINA 7.4914 n SINGAPORE 37.8819 n AUSTRALIA 36.0702 n EU 58.0880 n SAUDI ARABIA 13.8022

Source: BSP (6 June 2019 )

News

BusinessMirror

A2 Friday, June 7, 2019

Foreign investment pledges in 7 agencies triple in Q1 67% A

By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

MID the ongoing trade tensions between the US and China, as well as government efforts to rationalize incentives, foreign investment (FI) approvals in Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) tripled in the first quarter of 2019, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

In the latest PSA report, foreign investment pledges with the seven IPAs grew 233.6 percent to P45.98 billion from only P14.21 billion in the same period last year.

The data was obtained from the seven IPAs—Board of Investments (BOI), Clark Development Corp. (CDC), Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) and Subic B ay Met ropol it a n Aut hor it y (SBMA), as well as the Authority of the Freeport Area of Bataan (A fab), BOI-Autonomous Re gion in Muslim Mindanao (BOIARMM) and Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (Ceza).

The data showed that the highest foreign investment approvals came from the BOI, growing over 1,000 percent to P30.82 billion in the first quarter of the year from

P792.8 million in 2018. Approvals from the BOI accounted for 67 percent of foreign investment pledges in the first quarter this year.

This was followed by approvals made by the Peza, which grew only 0.1 percent to P12.97 billion in the first quarter of the year from P12.96 billion in the same period in 2018. Approvals from Peza accounted for 28.2 percent of the total during the period.

Most of the approved foreign investments came from the Netherlands and Japan which accounted for 22 percent and 20.5 percent, respectively, of total foreign investment approvals in the first quarter.

Approved investments from the Netherlands grew over 1,000 per-

Share of approvals from the BOI in the total foreign investment pledges with seven IPAs in the first quarter of this year

cent to P10.097 billion in the first quarter in 2019 from only P878.5 million in the same period last year, while approvals of investments from Japan grew 19.9 percent to P9.43 billion this year from P7.86 billion in 2018.

Following the Netherlands and Japan was Thailand which accounted for 18.4 percent of total approved foreign investments during the period and reached P8.5 billion in 2019. There were no approved investments from Thailand in the first quarter of last year.

By sector, location

MEANWHILE, in terms of sector, manufacturing accounted for 76.1 percent of the total FI pledges or P35 billion. Administrative and Support Service Activities came in second with investment commitments valued at P3.5 billion or

Depreciation path seen for peso

Data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP) showed the local currency closed trade on Thursday at 51.74 to a dollar, moving sideways from June 4’s close of 51.78 to a dollar. The total traded volume for the day was at $714.4 million.

The peso’s value in the first few days of this month is already stronger than May’s average of 52.262 to a dollar.

The Market Call report attributed the stronger value of the peso against the US dollar to the observed increase in investors’ appetite in the local financial markets.

Lower international prices of crude oil and the approval of the 2019 national government budget, according to the economists, also triggered gains in the Philippine currency. The peso’s mild appreciation could also be traced to the narrower trade deficit in February, the think tank said.

However, the economists said they see a reversal of this appreciation toward the end of the second half of the year, as the markets digest the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’s (BSP) reserve requirement ratio (RRR) cut as well as its moves to rebuild the country’s gross inter-

7.7 percent of the total, followed

by Accommodation and Food Service Activities with P2.9 billion or a share of 6.4 percent.

In terms of location, majority of the approved foreign investments in the first quarter of 2019 were intended to finance projects in Central Luzon amounting to P22.1 billion or 48.1 percent.

This was followed by Region 4A —Calabarzon with P15.7 billion or 34.1 percent and National Capital Region with P6.3 billion or 13.7 percent.

Meanwhile, approved investments of foreign and Filipino nationals in the first quarter of 2019 grew by 48.1 percent to P274.2 billion from P185.1 billion investment pledges in the same period a year ago.

Filipino nationals shared P228.2 billion worth of investment pledges or 83.2 percent of the total approved investments during the quarter.

Foreign and Filipino projects approved by the seven IPAs in the first quarter of 2019 are expected to generate 41,837 jobs. This is 24 percent higher than the previous year’s projected employment.

However, out of these anticipated jobs, 76.4 percent or 31,979 jobs would come from projects with foreign interest.

Continued from A1

national reserves.

“The peso, which benefitted from narrower trade deficits in February to April, may move to a slight depreciation bias as trade deficits regain elevated levels and as the BSP allows more money growth,” the Market Call read.

“Lower interest rates, together with the wide trade deficits spawned by ‘Build, Build, Build’s’ gaining traction, will renew the pressure on the peso also starting this quarter,” it added.

Just last month, the BSP started to ease its monetary-policy stance, with a 25-basis-point cut to the overnight reverse repurchase rate effective on May 10.

BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno told reporters that their deci-

sion to cut after several months of unchanged monetary-policy stance and aggressive rate hikes in 2018 was based on their assessment that the inflation outlook continues to be manageable, with easing price pressures owing to the decline in food prices and improved supply conditions.

Diokno also said the decision was a made in a “right policy point” environment, with considerations of the country’s disappointing growth numbers in the first quarter of the year. The monetary board also decided to cut its RRR down by 200 basis points.

The implementation of the cut will be in three stages: the first 100-basis-point cut will be effective on May 31; another 50-basis-point cut will be implemented June 28; and the last 50-basis-point cut will be effective on July 26.

Trade swap. . .

Continued from A1

The Philippines hopes the FTA will translate to improved market access for its agricultural products—such as banana, pineapple and mangoes—industrial goods and services. Its trade negotiators are assessing different tariff rate proposals aimed at erasing or at least narrowing the trade deficit with South Korea.

Exports of tropical fruits to Seoul, particularly banana and mangoes, are taxed 30 percent, and Manila has been insisting on bringing it down to 5 percent, if not zero.

Although merchandise trade with South Korea last year went up 7.11 percent to $13.7 billion from $12.79 billion in 2017, it was largely brought about by the higher volume of imports from the East Asian country. Exports to South Korea even crashed 41.33 percent to $2.54 billion, from $4.33 billion, according to data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

PSA data also reported imports from South Korea last year grew 31.91 percent to $11.16 billion, from $8.46 billion in 2017.

In spite of a decline in exports, banana shipments to South Korea jumped to 420,344 metric tons ($203.69 million), from 379,144 MT ($176.55 million). However, local banana growers are worried they might soon lose their share in the South Korean market, as Central American economies secured trade deals with Seoul that eliminated tariff on their banana.

Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama can ship banana to South Korea duty free by 2021.

“Our objective is to at least be [on a] par with what we give to their products [as a] reciprocity principle. [We also want a] level playing field to what they give to [their] other trading partners,” Lopez added.

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Inflation uptick in May ‘does not toll the alarm bells,’ Palace insists

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

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@jearcalas

ALACAÑANG assured the public that the recent uptick in the prices of goods is not a “cause for alarm” as the drivers behind the 3.2-percent May inflation rate were “beyond the control” of the government.

“We assure our countrymen that the minimal increase in the inflation rate is a circumstance that does not toll the alarm bells,” Presidential Spokesperson Salvador S. Panelo said in a statement on Thursday.

“The rise is within the 2.8 percent to 3.6 percent range estimated by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas [BSP]; hence, there is no cause for alarm,” Panelo added.

Citing the economic managers, Panelo noted that the faster inflation in May was attributed to the slight increase in some agricultural food products and housing, water and utilities.

Panelo added that the rise in international prices of food is “beyond” the government’s “control,” which was also aggravated by the ill-effects of El Niño on local food output which resulted in higher

prices of of fish and vegetables.

Nonetheless, Malacañang remained confident that the inflation would take a downward trend in the succeeding months due to effects of various economic measures in placed.

“When the full impact of rice liberalization is felt, with rice prices falling down further, there will be a downtrend in the inflation rate,” Panelo said.

“Current rice and corn price index already showed a decline of 0.7 percent and 2.8 percent, respectively,” he added.

However local economists interviewed by the BusinessMirror noted that high commodity prices may continue for the rest of the year given the expected increase in consumption demand and other factors that will make various food and nonfood items more expensive.

The impact of higher consumption has already affected inflation in May, which averaged 3.2 percent from 3 percent in April, as reported by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). This is the first time inflation increased since the August-to-September period last year.

Palace declares June 24 special nonworking day in City of Manila

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A L AC A ÑA NG on T hu rsd ay dec l a red Mond ay, Ju ne 24 , 2019, a special nonworking day in the City of Manila to commemorate the capital’s 448th foundation anniversary.

Proclamation 731 signed by

Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea said, “It is but fitting and proper that the people of the City of Manila be given full opportunity to celebrate and participate in the occasion with appropriate ceremony.”

Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

Infra, spending. . .

The think tank also said consumers will be encouraged to spend given that inflation could fall below 2 percent in September on the back of base effects. It can be noted that inflation peaked in September and October 2018 at 6.7 percent.

“Investment spending should continue to lead GDP growth, as durable equipment investments have kept a steady growth pace [even prior to the BSP moves], which we expect to accelerate starting the second quarter not only with election spending, but also with a higher bounce in infrastructure and other government spending,” the think tank said.

FMIC-UA&P Capital Market Research said the BSP’s decision to cut the RRR, as well as interest rates will increase the monetary authority’s Gross International Reserve (GIR) holdings. This will further insulate the economy from external shocks.

External trade

IN terms of external trade, the think tank expects exports to start recovering by the second quarter on the back of strong growth in the United States economy.

Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that exports posted a 2.5-percent contraction in March 2019 and a decline of 3.1 percent in the first quarter of this year.

Imports, meanwhile, posted better growth at 7.8 percent in March and 4.7 percent in the January-toMarch period.

“Despite the weak print in February, we are inclined to believe that export growth this year will lodge in the positive territory, albeit unremarkable, in anticipation of a weak rebound

Continued from A1

in Japan and China’s economies, while the US economy’s unflagging growth confounds skeptics,” FMIC-UA&P Capital Market Research said.

In a briefing on the National Income Accounts on May 9, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia said that while the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) still needs to make the necessary computations, the country’s GDP growth prospects may not be as rosy this year.

In the first quarter, the economy only grew 5.6 percent, slower than the 6.5 percent posted in the same period in 2018. The growth is also the slowest in 16 quarters or since the first quarter of 2015 when growth was at 5.1 percent.

Pernia said the impact of the delay in the passage of the 2019 national budget, which is already being blamed for the lackluster economic growth performance in the first quarter, is one of the many external headwinds to be faced by the economy this year.

The President’s economic team said in a joint statement that were it not for the delay in the passage of the budget, the country’s GDP growth would have been at least one percentage point higher, at 6.6 to 7.2 percent in the first quarter.

Comparing the 2018 and 2019 first-quarter performance of the government, Government Final Consumption Expenditure weakened, growing only by 7.4 percent versus 13.6 percent in 2018.

Public construction contracted by 8.6 percent. This, the economic team said, affected projects such as the Department of Education’s repair and rehabilitation of school buildings.

The Nation BusinessMirror

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Pinoy diplomats posted abroad can do better, economical job–Locsin

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By Recto Mercene @rectomercene & Jonathan L. Mayuga @jonlmayuga

OREIGN Affairs Secretary Teodoro L. Locsin Jr. clarified on Thursday that the Philippines will still have a voice in climate-change forums abroad but will stop sending delegates from Manila, as diplomats posted in foreign embassies could do the job, and save on airfare.

He stressed that NGOs are not being barred from attending these forums, as long as they do so at their own expense.

“In my watch, we will depend mostly on our foreign posts. They are in situ and must know more than home office. If they don’t know more they will be recalled,” the chief of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) tweeted.

He likewise corrected a story that appeared on a local tabloid, which said “Philippines tigil na sa pagdalo sa mga climate change conference.”

[Philippines has stopped attending climate change conference].

Locsin corrected the impression that the Philippines no longer in-

tends to participate in the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP 21).

COP 21 is the 21st yearly session of the Conference of the Parties to the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the 11th session of the Meeting of the Parties (CMP) to the 1997 Kyoto Protocol.

The Convention aims to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions to limit the global temperature increase.

Since COP 17 this increase is set at 2 °C (3.6 °F) above preindustrial levels.

“Hindi po pagdalo whatever that means but hindi tayo pagpapadala ng mga chitchat na tao

ulit [No, it’s not that we are not attending, but we will not send people who are engaged in mere chit chat again].

“We just vote without talking. A Nauru UN conference in New York said that using air travel to talk about climate change makes the climate worse. Internet na lang. Clean communication,” Locsin tweeted.

He said the government could save millions of pesos in taxpayers’ money on air fare “when officials could use Skype or other similar apps for web conferences.”

“So, who will make and propose them now? We will—on the Internet as UN Conference urged,” Locsin said. He added that there would no longer be foreign travels, “but NGOs are free to come and go at their own expense.”

Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu earlier said that in previous COP, “the Philippines needs to take an even more active role in navigating the complex web of climate negotiations and push for the proper implementation of the Paris agreement.”

Hook, line and sinker

APPARENTLY taking the erroneous tabloid report hook, line and sinker, two environmental groups —the Center for Energy, Ecology and Development (CEED) and Aksyon Klima Pilipinas (AKP)—

expressed their frustrations over the DFA chief’s stance in separate statements.

“While we welcome the DFA secretary’s openness to agree on progressive solutions, refusing attendance to climate negotiations denies the Filipino people to participate in crafting those solutions, and clarify how those solutions will affect them,” CEED said.

According to CEED, the country’s presence in climate talks presents the country an opportunity to echo the voice of vulnerable nations in the global discussion on climate action and to urge other countries to raise their level of commitment to solving the crisis.

On the other hand, refusing to engage means that the discussions will be dominated by rich, industrialized economies and give them further license to escape accountability, CEED stressed.

For its part AKP, underscored that radical action on climate is needed both in the global and local arena.

A net work of civ i l-societ y groups working for a robust climate policy for the country, AKP is taking up the challenge of President Duterte and Locsin to the international community to take “radical action” on climate change while urging Malacañang to walk the talk.

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Friday, June 7, 2019 A3

Party-list group calls for probe into ‘ghost’ kidney treatments

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz @joveemarie

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PARTY-LIST group on Thursday urged the national government to investigate the alleged “ghost” kidney treatments by PhiHealth.

Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate said the reported anomalies and corruption surrounding the PhilHealth-supported dialysis treatments must be investigated.

Zarate said the 18th Congress must undertake the probe at the soonest possible time, saying that lives hang in the balance in the matter of dialysis treatments.

“We filed a resolution to investigate the issues surrounding dialysis for poor patients in the 16th and 17th Congress, such as its high cost, poor quality and limited number of sessions. We are glad that that the free dialysis bill was finally approved by the Lower House,” Zarate said.

However, he added that with issues like these plus these so-called “ghost” patients raise the question on the implementation of the PhilHealth-sponsored dialysis.

“We are going to push for 156 free dialysis treatment for the poor in the 18th Congress as opposed to the current 90, which corresponds to the real needs of dialysis patients. In the same line, we must also look into the possible removal of PhilHealth from the equation and let the funds go straight to public hospitals that would expedite treatments,” said Zarate.

Bayan Muna Chairman Neri Colmenares also expressed concern on the reported ghost treatments.

“We are concerned with reports of opportunism in the dialysis treatments supported by PhilHealth. According to reports, some dialysis centers continue to ask Philhealth for payments even when the patients have already passed away,”Colmenares said. “‘Ghost” dialysis patients have been

draining money from PhilHealth, which bodes ill also for patients, primarily. The funds meant for them goes to the pockets of some shady business owners. This should not continue to happen as we push for free dialysis for poor patients,” he added.

Last week, the lower chamber approved on final reading House Bill (HB) 9156 or the the proposed “Comprehensive Renal Replacement Therapy [RRT] Act.” The bill seeks to provide a Comprehensive RRT for patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) in national, regional, and provincial government hospitals and increase the PhilHealth package rate for RRT. The measure emphasizes support for kidney transplantation as the best treatment option that provides the highest quality of life for ESRD patients and ensures return of the patient to full rehabilitation.

The bill mandates all national, regional, and provincial government hospitals and stand-alone dialysis facilities to establish operate, and maintain a dialysis service facility for peritoneal dialysis and hemodialysis within five years from the effectivity of the measure.

HB 9156 also ensures that indigent patients receive the care they require. Dialysis in all national, regional and provincial hospitals shall be provided free of charge to indigent patients as identified by the Department of Social Welfare and Development using the National Household Targeting System for Poverty reduction.

A Peritoneal Dialysis First Policy shall be established for all indigent patients, unless there is a contraindication to its use to a particular patient. To provide optimal financial risk protection to indigent patients, they are also provided the “No Balance Billing Policy” of the government.

The 17th Congress, however, failed to transmit the measure to President Duterte due to lack of time.

Economy BusinessMirror

A4 Friday, June 7, 2019 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

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Power rates decline in June despite rise in electricity demand–Meralco

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By Lenie Lectura

@llectura

ESPITE higher demand for power, electricity rates this month went down by P0.1948 per kilowatt hour to P10.0918 per kWh, which translates to a decrease of around P39 in the total bill of typical household consuming 200 kWh. This is the second consecutive month of electricity-rate decrease totaling to around P0.47 per kWh since May. The Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) said on Thursday that lower spot

market prices brought down the generation charge that comprises the bulk of an electricity bill. From P5.5508 per kWh last month, generation charge for June went down to P5.4158 per kWh, a decrease of

Tourism’s revenue share in economy falls to 5-year low amid Boracay closure

By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario

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MID the six-month closure of Boracay and other challenges, the tourism sector posted its lowest total contribution to the economy in five years, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

Based on the Tourism Satellite Accounts, the total direct gross value added (TDGVA) of the tourism sector grew 14.3 percent, the slowest growth posted by the sector since 2013 when its contribution grew 12.6 percent.

The TDGVA of the tourism sector posted its highest growth in 2017 at 24.2 percent and in 2014 at 20.1 percent. The TDGVA grew 19.4 percent in 2015 and 15 percent in 2016.

“TDGVA serves as the indicator to measure the value added of different industries in relation to tourism activities of both inbound and domestic visitors in the country,” PSA said in the latest Philippine Tourism Satellite Accounts (PTSA) report.

The industry that contributed the most to the TDGVA of the tourism sector was accommodation services for visitors, which accounted for 18.1 percent in 2018.

However, the accommodation and services for visitors posted a growth of 19.6 percent in 2018, the slowest in the past five years when the growth of the industry was at 19.2 percent.

The food and beverage serving services posted the lowest contribution of 4.1 percent in 2018. This industry also posted the slowest growth in the past five years at only 9.2 percent in 2018.

Prior to last year, the growth of the food and beverage serving services was at 37.1 percent in 2017; 15.2 percent in 2016; 21.9 percent in 2015; 20.3 percent in 2014; and 20.2 percent in 2013.

PSA data also showed that employment in tourism characteristic industries was estimated at 5.4 million in 2018, higher by 1.8 percent compared to 5.3 million in the previous year.

This was faster than the 0.8-percent

growth in 2017 but was nowhere near the growth of 5.1 percent posted in 2016.

Prior to 2016, employment in tourism grew 3.2 percent in 2015 and 2013 as well as 2.3 percent in 2014.

Share of employment in tourism industries to total employment in the country was recorded at 13 percent in 2018, slightly lower than the 13.1-percent share of the sector in 2017.

In terms of its share, PSA data showed that the TDGVA contributed 12.7 percent to the country’s GDP, the highest in the past six years.

Data showed the TDGVA of the tourism sector contributed 12.1 percent in 2017; 10.7 percent in 2016; 10.1 percent in 2015; 9 percent in 2014; 8.2 percent in 2013; and 7.9 percent in 2012.

Inbound tourism expenditure, which refers to the expenditure of nonresident visitors (foreign visitors and Filipinos permanently residing abroad) within the Philippines, declined by 1.6 percent in 2018, amounting to P441.4 billion from P448.6 billion in 2017.

Compared to the country’s total exports, the share of inbound tourism expenditure was 8 percent. Inbound tourism ranked third among the biggest export items in 2018, after miscellaneous services at 31.5 percent and semiconductors at 22.8 percent.

Domestic tourism expenditure, which includes expenditure of resident visitors within the country either as domestic trip or part of an international trip, grew by 21 percent, to P3.2 trillion in 2018 from P2.6 trillion in 2017.

Domestic tourism expenditure represents 24.9 percent of the household final consumption expenditure (HFCE) in 2018.

The TDGVA estimate is based on the latest results of the PTSA which also provides information on tourism expenditure and employment in 2018.

The PTSA is compiled by the PSA based on the international recommendations for tourism statistics and tourism satellite accounts of the United Nations World Tourism Organization.

P0.1350 per kWh. “ The generation-charge decrease is primarily due to lower charges from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market [WESM], despite increases in the charges of independent power producers [IPPs] and power-supply agreements [PSAs],” Meralco said.

Purchases from the WESM decreased by P0.3100 per kWh despite continued tightness of supply conditions in the Luzon grid. There were two red-alert warnings issued by the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) last month from seven in April. But the number of days on yellow alert increased from seven in April to 13 in May due to higher demand for power.

WESM provided 9 percent of Meralco’s supply needs.

₧39

The estimated decrease in the monthly power bill of a typical household consuming an average of P200 kWh On the other hand, cost of power from IPPs and PSAs increased by P0.0556 per kWh and P0.0717 per kWh, respectively, partly due to the weakening of peso against the greenback.

Dollar-denominated costs of IPPs and PSAs account for 97 percent and 68 percent of their charges, respectively. IPPs and PSAs provided 41

percent and 50 percent of Meralco’s supply needs, respectively.

Meanwhile, transmission charge for residential customers decreased

by P0.0427 per kWh, primarily due to lower ancillary service charges. Taxes and other charges also decreased by P0.0171 per kWh. Meralco’s distribution, supply and metering charges, meanwhile, have remained unchanged for 47 months, after these registered reductions in July 2015. The utility firm said that it does not earn from the pass-through charges, such as the generation and transmission charges. Payment for the generation charge goes to the power suppliers, while payment for the transmission charge goes to the NGCP. Taxes and other public policy charges like the FiT-All rate are remitted to the government.

House OKs bill for ‘independent’ Neda on third and final reading

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz @joveemarie

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HE House of Representatives has approved a measure institutionalizing the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) as the independent economic planning agency of the government.

The lower chamber approved on third and final reading House Bill 9204, principally authored by Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, that seeks to institutionalize a new and truly department that will implement long term, continuing, integrated and coordinated programs and policies for national development.

The bill failed to become a law in this 17th Congress due to lack of time, even as it still may be filed again next Congress. One of the authors of the bill is reelected Albay Rep. Joey Salceda.

According to Arroyo, the measure is needed to enhance decentralization and strengthen the autonomy of units within the various regions of the country to accelerate their economic and social growth and development.

The House Speaker said the measure empowers distressed communities to revitalize, expand, and upgrade their physical infrastructures to attract new industries.

She said the measure also encourages business expansion in the countryside, diversify local economics, and generate or retain long-term private-sector jobs and investments.

The bill also institutionalizes the Neda as a lead integrator of economic development programs and policies

to achieve the following objectives: n Facilitate the planning, collaboration and coordination among the relevant government agencies. n Improve access to national program information, data and funding opportunities, support research of leading edge, world-class economic development practices and information discrimination efforts. n Ensure that economic resources are aligned and invested in support of identified and well defined timely strategies and projects in non-duplicative activities. n Encourage strategic investments that strengthen competitiveness and foster job creation. n Promote energy independence, help fight poverty and build prosperity for the greatest number of Filipinos. n Produce transformational economic diversification and work force development outcomes for our country’s long term sustainable economic future.

Under the measure, the Neda shall generate and provide impartial, objective, and evidence-based analyses and recommendations for the socioeconomic betterment of the nation, particularly to the President, the Congress and Filipinos in general.

The bill said the Neda Board shall be composed of the following: President of the Philippines as chairman, the secretary of Neda as vice chairman, the secretaries of Department of Finance, Department of Budget and Management, Department of the Interior and Local Government, Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Transportation, Department Social Welfare and Development, Department of Education,

Department of Health, Department of Agriculture, and Department of Public Works and Highways, and the governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

The bill also includes the Senate President and Speaker of the House as members of the Development Budget Coordination Committee, Infrastructure Committee, Regional Development Committee, National Land Use Committee, Economic Development Committee, Science, Technology and Innovation Committee, Sustainable and Resilient Development Committee, and Governance Committee.

The measure also creates the Resource Mobilization and Other Fiscal Matters Committee (RMFM), which will be composed of secretaries of Finance, Neda, DBM, DILG, DTI, governor of Board of Investments, chairman of the Governance Commission for GOCCs, the Executive Secretary, the governor of the BSP, the Senate President and Speaker of the House.

The RMFM shall review and recommend to the Neda Board a domestic and foreign borrowing program and pursue and recommend public private partnerships, privatization, and other funding options to augment government’s financing capacity.

The RMFM shall propose and recommend tax reform measures and review and recommend modalities of development financing and capital market development in support of long term programs and projects for both national and local government, and GOCCs. The bill added the Neda shall continue to serve as the principal secretariat of the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council.

Govt urged to intensify crackdown vs oil smuggling

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HE government should intensify its efforts against the rampant smuggling of petroleum products in order to generate revenues for infrastructure projects under the “Build, Build, Build” program as well as the implementation of the Universal Health Care (UHC) program.

Federation of Philippine Industries (FPI) Chairman Jesus Arranza urged various government agencies such as the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), Bureau of Customs (BOC) and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) to monitor oil shipments that are being surreptitiously being brought into the country through the ports of the country.

“Almost hundred percent of our oil supply is being imported. The government must keep watch of oil shipments through the installation of CCTV cameras in our ports,” said Arranza said.

“Fines must be imposed and smuggled goods be confiscated,” he added.

Arranza particularly urged the BIR and BOC to be on alert on technical smuggling wherein importers underdeclare the value of goods being entered into the country in order to pay lesser import duties.

“These agencies must check the inward foreign manifest submitted by importers to determine the value of their imports. At the end of the day, they will submit the income tax returns lalagyan mo ng cost of goods and cost of fuel. Eh di huli mo [At the end of the day, they will submit the income tax returns where they will indicate the cost of goods and cost of fuel. Thus, you will be able to detect smuggling],” he explained.

Cargo manifest or inward foreign manifest contains the detailed list of cargo on board the vessel, or aircraft, including information on the goods such as transport document numbers, consignors, consignees, marks and numbers, number and kind of packages, weight, description, quantity of the goods, and the destination. The FPI has earlier said that the country loses around P200 billion in revenues annually due to increasingly sophisticated forms of smuggling, with petroleum being among the top products.

The business group asked the government to strictly implement the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act and the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling to deter illicit trading.

“The government must focus on plugging revenue leakages to complement the tax reforms being implemented by the Duterte administration,” said Arranza.

The Congress has recently passed a measure seeking to increase the excise taxes on tobacco products in a bid to reduce smoking prevalence among Filipinos and to generate additional funding for the government’s Universal Health Care program. PNA

FFW sees improving demand for construction workers with ‘BBB’ implementation

By Rea Cu

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@ReaCuBM

HE Federation of Free Workers (FFW) is expecting a notable increase in the demand for construction workers as the Duterte administration embarks on its “Build, Build, Build” (BBB) infrastructure program.

FFW Vice President Julius H. Cainglet said that despite the increase to 94.9 percent of the employment rate of the country in April this year, the expected increase in the number of jobs generated through the BBB has not been fully realized, adding that one factor is the number of Chinese workers in the country.

“The expected increase in employment in construction as a result of the BBB has not been fully realized despite the slight increase [reported in the LFS (Labor Force Survey) for April]. This is reflective of the problems arising from the influx of Chinese workers who take on local jobs without the mandatory Labor Market Test,” Cainglet said.

The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Wednesday that the country’s employment rate for April

this year reached 94.9 percent coming from the 94.5 percent in the same month for 2018.

During a news briefing on the same day, National Statistician Claire Dennis S. Mapa reported that there was a decline in the number of Filipinos looking for jobs and better employment opportunities, with a 74,000 decrease in the number of unemployed and 1.226 million in the number of the underemployed Filipinos.

Cainglet said that the employment figures in the country would yield better results if the government stops corrupt officials from conniving with Chinese employers to facilitate the entry of Chinese workers in the Philippines.

“Chinese officials, Chinese employers, and corrupt government officials have certainly connived to facilitate the entry of Chinese workers,” he added.

He pointed out that the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and Bureau of Immigration (BI) must strictly implement the country’s laws and regulations in line with the foreign nationals working in the country.

“The Labor Market Test should be implemented and Filipino workers should always be afforded the right of first refusal when it comes to available jobs.

WORKERS put a final touch to the steel bar assembly at one of the government’s “Build, Build, Build” projects. NONOY LACZA

Work offers for foreign nationals, and not just Chinese nationals, should be only opened if it can be proven that the skills and competencies required of

a job is not available locally,” he said.

Cainglet also said that the apart from the lackluster employment under the construction sector, jobs in the agriculture sector is also seen to decrease as an effect of the implementation of the Rice Tariffication Law. “We see agriculture losing more workers as the effects of the Rice Tariffication Law impacting farmers and agricultural workers. Manufacturing continues to underperform,” he added.

Based on the April LFS, workers in the services sector comprised the largest proportion of the employed population comprising 58.5 percent of the total employed in April 2019, workers in the agriculture sector comprised the second largest group making up 22.3 percent, and workers in the industry sector made up the smallest group registering 19.2 percent of the total employed.

In March this year, the Department of Finance (DOF) dispelled claims that a large number of Chinese nationals are working on government infrastructure projects, pointing out that there are only 173 highly technical Chinese workers in the country who are working on government infrastructure projects.

The World BusinessMirror

Editor: Angel R. Calso

SAUDIS, RUSSIA MEET WITH FUTURE OF OPEC+ OUTPUT CUTS UNRESOLVED

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YEAR ago, in the enduring twilight of one of Saint Petersburg’s famous “white nights” of summer, Saudi Arabia and Russia reached an agreement that set a new direction for the oil market.

This week, when Energy Ministers Alexander Novak and Khalid Al-Falih meet again in the northerly city that’s President Vladimir Putin’s hometown, resolving their differences may not be so easy for the two architects of the Opec+ agreement. The Saudis clearly want to extend the group’s production curbs beyond their expiry at the end of this month, but Russia has been at best noncommittal.

Right now, they can’t even persuade the rest of the group to agree on a date for the group’s usual midyear meeting in Vienna.

Diverging interests and surging market volatility are making their decisions more difficult. Oil is torn between the bearish influence of US-instigated trade wars and the bullish threat of supply disruptions from Iran to Venezuela. While Saudi Arabia needs higher prices and has enthusiastically reduced production, the benefits for Russia aren’t so clear and it was slower to make the cuts.

“I would expect a stronger message from Al-Falih” on extending the cuts, said Giovanni Staunovo, an oil analyst at UBS Group AG in Zurich. “Novak will keep all options open.”

Focus on forum

N O VA K and Al-Falih will come to Saint Pe t e r s b u r g , R u s s i a ’s s e c o n d - l a r g e s t cit y, to par ticipate in the International Economic Forum hosted by Putin. That will be the first face -to -face meeting between the two ministers since Jeddah in May, when the gap bet ween their interests became visible.

Putin, who has the final word on Russia’s policy of cooperation with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec), will make a keynote speech at the forum on Friday, according to the official program. Most recently, in April, he was vague on whether the nation would support an extension, saying that a lot will “depend on the market situation.”

The president so far has no plans for bilateral talks with the Saudi delegation, his aide Yuri Ushakov told repor ters on Tuesday. He didn’t rule out “a contac t” with Al-Falih on the sidelines of the f o r u m a s t h e r e m a y b e “u n p l a n n e d meetings.” In any case, Al-Falih may have a chance to talk to Putin at a Thursday

evening meeting that the Russian leader traditionally holds for foreign investors.

Diverging views

P U T I N’S closest oil ally, Rosneft PJSC Chief Executive Officer Igor Sechin, has long been skeptical of the benefits of Opec cooperation and renewed his criticism this week. Russia’s share of the global oil market is already under threat due to interruptions in exports to Europe after the Druzhba pipeline became contaminated with chemicals, Sechin said. If Russia continues to cap its oil output, rival US producers will “fill the void and take up the market share,” he said.

Last month, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said Russia will need to weigh all the pros and cons of extending the pact.

The nation’s official statistics show the deal hurting the nation’s economy in the first quarter.

Still, in his most recent interview to Saudi Press Agency, Al-Falih said he sees “an emerging consensus among Opec+ countries” on cooperation in the second half of this year.

Economic fears

U S oil prices fell back into a bear market o n We d n e s d a y a s f e a r s o f a g l o b a l trade war overrode any concerns about supply disruption. Just minutes after B re nt c r u d e f e l l b e l ow $ 6 0 a b a r re l for the first time since Januar y, Opec ’s top official said the group will take “e co n o m i c b e a r i s h n e s s” i nto a cco u nt when they meet in the coming weeks, and are committed to keeping oil markets balanced this year and beyond. “ There has also been a significant change in market sentiment, in both equity and financial markets” that has wo r s e n e d m a ny i n s t i t u t i o n s’ o u t l o o k for oil demand growth, Opec Secretar yGeneral Mohammad B arkindo said in re m a r k s d e l i v e re d v i a v i d e o l i n k a t a c o n f e re n c e h o s t e d b y R B C C a p i t a l Markets in New York. “ This will all play into our calculations in the upcoming ministerial meetings.”

Concerns about a slowing economy may bring the group together again in time for the meeting in Vienna, said Dmitry Marinchenko, senior director at Fitch Ratings.

“If Opec+ shifts to production ramp-ups as the global economic growth is potentially slowing, this may bring the oil prices further down,” he said. “Nobody wants it, including Russia.” Bloomberg News

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Foreign Affairs committees were present at the gathering, Politico said.

Pelosi told repor ters on Wednesday that House Democrats were on a path after the release of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report, and “we know what action we will take.” She said many voters wrongly equated impeachment with removal from the presidency, adding that Trump was “not worth” it.

Polls show that most Americans do not support impeachment and Pelosi and her deputies in the House have been proceeding cautiously. At the same time, however, several Democratic presidential candidates have been turning the issue into a campaign theme, add ing to the pressure on congressional leaders.

T he he at e d d eb at e a nd the divisions it’s causing was evident as 14 of the 23 presidential hopefuls addressed a California Democratic Party convention in San Francisco last weekend.

Home-state Sen. K amala Harris drew the loudest applause during her speech on Saturday when she lit into the

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Fed says economic gains tempered by trade worries

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ASHINGTON—Most areas of the country saw a slight improvement in economic activity in the spring, but those gains were tempered by concerns over rising trade tensions, the Federal Reserve said on Wednesday.

In its latest report on economic conditions nationwide, the Fed said businesses reported solid hiring in a number of sectors ranging from retail to manufacturing and construction. However, in many areas employment growth was being constrained by tight labor markets, forcing some companies to boost wages to attract workers.

The Fed report, known as the and BeigeBook, will be used for discussion when the central bank meets to set interest rate policy on June 18 and 19. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said on Tuesday that the Fed was prepared to “act as appropriate” to protect the economy from any fallout from a widening trade war.

Powell’s comments triggered a huge stock-market rally as investors viewed the remarks as a signal that the Fed, which raised interest rates four times last year, would consider cutting rates in coming months if needed. Investors are now revising their expectations this year from steady interest rates to at least one rate cut.

Powell spoke at a two-day Fed conference in Chicago that is examining ways to improve Fed operations. Lael Brainard, a Fed board member, said on Wednesday in an interview with Yahoo Finance that “trade policy is definitely a downside risk to the economy.... Our job is to sustain

Pelosi tells Democrats she wants Trump in prison, Politico says .S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told a meeting of senior Democratic leaders that she’d prefer to see President Donald J. Trump “in prison” rather than pursue impeachment, Politico reported late on Wednesday.

Pelosi rebuffed House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler of New York, who again asked the speaker’s permission to launch an impeachment inquiry, according to the Politico report, which cited unnamed “multiple Democratic sources familiar with” the Tuesday meeting.

The speaker told the leaders that she would rather see Trump defeated for reelection in 2020 and face prosecution after he leaves office, Politico said.

“I don’t want to see him impeached, I want to see him in prison,” Politico reported Pelosi as saying to Nadler.

Pelosi Spokesman Ashley Etienne told Politico that Pelosi and several House chairmen “ had a productive meeting about the state of play with the Mueller report.”

Along with Nadler, the chairmen of the Intelligence, Oversight, Ways and Means and

Friday, June 7, 2019

president.

“He obstructed justice and hired an attorney general to clean up the crime scene,” Harris said.

“We need to begin impeachment proceedings and we need a new commander in chief.”

Former Vice President Joe Biden, the clear early frontrunner in the campaign, has not embraced the impeachment fer vor and skipped the California event.

At a Wednesday night town hall in Fort Wayne, Indiana, that was broadcast on MSNBC, Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts said she came to believe that impeachment proceedings were necessary after reading “all 448 pages” of Mueller’s report on his investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

“I get that this is politically tough. I get it. But some things are bigger than politics, and this matters for our democracy, not just now, but under the next president and the next president and the next president,” Warren said.

“We have a constitutional responsibility here, and that’s to start this impeachment proceedings.” Bloomberg News

the expansion and we’ll need to see going forward what that means for policy.”

Trump in early May announced he was raising tariffs on China from 10 percent to 25 percent to pressure on Beijing to agree to administration demands to reform its trade practices and reduce America’s huge trade deficit with China.

The president has also opened another front in the trade war by announcing he would impose a 5-percent tariff on Mexican goods beginning on Monday and will raise that tariff as high as 25 percent unless Mexico agrees to do more to stop the flow of illegal immigrants into the United States.

IN this April 23, 2019, file photo, building cranes are seen at the construction site of a condominium complex with the Lower Manhattan skyline seen in the background in Weehawken, New Jersey. The Federal Reserve released its latest Beige Book survey of economic conditions on Wednesday, June 5. The Beige Book is based on anecdotal reports from businesses and will be considered along with other data when Fed policy-makers meet next. AP/JULIO CORTEZ

The beige book found business contacts in some districts expressing fears about the rising level of tariffs even before the Mexican tariffs were proposed.

The Fed’s Philadelphia regional bank said that “tariffs remained a key concern for many manufacturers.” The Philadelphia Fed said that the much of the impact from the initial 10-percent tariffs on Chinese goods had been absorbed

along the supply chain. But manufacturers worried that much more of the higher 25-percent tariffs would have to be passed on to consumers.

The Fed’s Dallas regional bank said that contacts in various service industries were expressing increased worries about the trade dispute with China with “numerous mentions of uncertainty surrounding trade policy.” AP

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Cuba expects major economic damage from Trump measures

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WORLD War II reenactors gather at dawn on Omaha Beach, in Normandy, France, on Thursday, June 6, 2019, during commemorations of the 75th anniversary of D-Day. AP/THIBAULT CAMUS

World marks 75 years since D-Day in solemn observances

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MAHA BEACH, France—The five beaches are silent at dawn but forever haunted.

As the sun rose on Thursday over the Normandy coastline where thousands of men bled and died 75 years ago, a fast-diminishing number of World War II veterans remembered D-Day and hoped the world never forgets the sacrifices made to dismantle Nazi tyranny.

T he s e a o f me rc u r y b lu e couldn’t have been more peaceful as day broke over Omaha Beach, the f irst of f ive code-named beaches where the waters ran red the morning of June 6, 1944, when Allied forces came ashore to push the Nazis out of France.

Hundreds of people, civilians and military alike, hailing from around the world, gathered at the water’s edge, awash in emotion.

On the western edge of Omaha, dense crowds formed a human chain and tossed red and white Chrysanthemums into the gently lapping waves, remembering. At a statue of an infantryman clutching a rifle and hauling a fallen comrade that overlooks the sand, veterans’ descendants spoke about their family members who fought on the beach and laid red roses at the feet of the statue.

A lone piper played in Mulberry Harbor, exactly 75 years after British troops came ashore at Gold Beach.

“It is sobering, surreal to be able to stand here on this beach and admire the beautiful sunrise where they came ashore, being shot at, facing unspeakable atrocities,” said 44-year-old former US paratrooper Richard Clapp, of Julian, North Carolina.

After Britain’s spirited anniversary tribute on Wednesday to the derring-do of the Allied forces that set off from England to defend democracy, France is hosting a series of solemn ceremonies on Thursday in the country where so many young lives ended in sand and sea.

Leaders from the United States, Britain, Canada, France—and thenfoe and now-ally Germany—will once again laud the troops who stormed the fortified Normandy beaches to help turn the tide of the war and give birth to a new Europe, since at peace.

Dick Jansen, 60, from the Netherlands, drank Canadian whisky

from an enamel cup on the water’s edge, where people held moments of silence and some saluted.

“Every time we come here, we drink at the moment they came onto the beach, a whisky for the guys who came no further,” he said.

Norwegian Sigrid Flaata drove from Oslo in a 1942 restored jeep to honor the soldiers who died on D-Day. Belgian Filip Van Hecke called his journey a “small effort to pay homage.”

Remembrances are taking place throughout the day at the military cemeteries where countries buried their fallen citizens.

Passing on memories is especially urgent, with hundreds of World War II veterans now dying every day.

A group of five Americans parachuted into Normandy on Wednesday as part of a commemorative jump, and showed up on the beach on Thursday mor n i ng st i l l we a r i ng t he i r jumpsuits, all World War II-era uniforms, and held an American f lag. A ll five said they fear that the feats and sacrifices of D-Day are being forgotten.

French President Emmanuel Macron and President Donald J. Trump will look out over Omaha Beach, the scene of the bloodiest fighting, from the cemeter y

w it h g rave markers for over 9,000 Americans, ser vicemen who established a blood bond between the US and its transAtlantic allies.

“I have all kinds of friends buried,” said William Tymchuk, 98, who ser ved with the 4th Canadian Armored Division during some of the deadliest fighting of the brutal campaign after the Normandy landings. “ T hey were young. T hey got killed. They couldn’t come home,” Tymchuk, who was back in Normandy, continued.

“Sorry,” he said, tearing up.

“They couldn’t even know what life is all about.”

The biggest-ever air and seaborne invasion took place on DDay, involving more than 150,000 troops that day itself and many more in the ensuing Battle of Normandy. Troops started landing overnight from the air, then were joined by a massive force by sea on the beaches code-named Omaha, Utah, Juno, Sword and Gold, carried by 7,000 boats.

In that defining moment of military strategy confounded by unpredictable weather and human chaos, soldiers from the US, Britain, Canada and other Allied nations applied relentless bravery to carve out a beachhead on ground that Nazi Germany had occupied for four years. “ T he tide has turned! T he free men of the world are marching together to Victor y,” Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower predicted in his order of the day.

FLORAL tributes are placed at the National Guard Monument Memorial as members of the USAREUR band plays in the background near Omaha Beach, in Normandy, France, on Thursday during commemorations of the 75th anniversary of D-Day. AP/THIBAULT CAMUS

The Battle of Normandy, codenamed Operation Overlord, hastened Germany’s defeat less than a year later.

Still, that single day cost the lives of 4,414 Allied troops, 2,501 of them Americans. More than 5,000 were injured. On the German side, several thousand were killed or wounded.

From there, Allied troops would advance their fight, take Paris in late summer and march in a race against the Soviet Red Army to control as much German territory as possible by the time Adolf Hitler died in his Berlin bunker and Germany surrendered in May 1945.

The Soviet Union also fought valiantly against the Nazis—and lost more people than any other nation in World War II—but those final battles would divide Europe for decades between the West and the Soviet-controlled East, the face-off line of the Cold War. Queen Elizabeth, who was an army mechanic during World War II while her father George was king, said that when she attended a 60th anniversary commemoration 15 years ago, many thought it might be the last such event. “ But t he w a r t i me generat ion— my generat ion— i s re si l ient,” she sa id, st r i k ing a n u nusu a l ly persona l note.

“The heroism, courage and sacrifice of those who lost their lives will never be forgotten,” Elizabeth said.

“It is with humility and pleasure, on behalf of the entire country—indeed the whole free world—that I say to you all, thank you.” AP

AVA N A — D r i v e r s o f c l a s s i c cars, restaurateurs, tour guides and owners of bed-andbreakfasts are all saying the Trump administration’s new restrictions on US travel to Cuba will be a severe blow to their businesses.

The restrictions announced on Tu e s d ay e l i m i n ate U S c ru i s e t rave l to Cuba. They also wipe out the most popular categor y of legal travel to the island, the group educational trips known as people -to -people travel.

An expert on Cuban tourism says the Cuban state stands to lose $130 million per peak cruising season, which runs from November to June. No figures were available on the expected losses to private businesses, which serve many people-topeople groups. But Cuban entrepreneurs say they expected major damage.

“We’re about to enter a terrible period,” said Enrique Nuñez, owner of La Guarida, one of the Havana’s bestknown private restaurants.

Just before 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Royal Caribbean’s Empress of the Seas pulled out of Havana harbor, blowing its horn in farewell as it became what could be the last US cruise ship to visit Havana during the Trump administration.

“I wasn’t aware this would be the last cruise,” passenger Garr y Lemar said before boarding.

In Nassau in the Bahamas, hundreds of angr y passengers disembarked from Nor wegian Cruise Line’s Nor wegian S u n a f te r i t wa s re ro u te d f ro m i t s path to Cuba.

Cruise ships were offering discounts and refunds to passengers diver ted from Cuba, but many weren’t placated.

“I have been to the Bahamas several times and I’m not ver y happy,” said Gigi Starks, a teacher and realtor from Atlanta. “I really wanted to go to Cuba.”

O u t s i d e H a v a n a ’s c r u i s e d o c k , drivers of classic cars said they were bracing for the worst. “ Th e re p e rc u s s i o n s w i l l b e ve r y big because nobody will be working,” said Yosbell Figueroa, who has been suppor ting two children and his parents with income earned from driving cruise passengers around in his ‘51 Chevrolet. “It won’t just be classic conver tibles but hotels and people in general. It’s going to affect ever yone.”

Cuba has about 500,000 private b u s i n e s s p e o p l e w h o o p e rate a b o u t 24,000 rooms in bed-and-breakfasts, and hundreds of private restaurants.

With a drop in aid from Venezuela, Cuba has been counting on tourism to l i f t i t s s t a g n a n t e c o n o m i c f o r t u n e s.

It imposed food rationing last month.

Tourism exper t José Luis Perelló said Trump’s latest measures would keep Cuba from reaching its objec tive of 5 million tourists in 2019, 200,000 more than in 2018. In just the first four months of 2019, 142,000 Americans came to Cuba by cruise ship, more than half of all American visitors. That figure is now set to plummet. “ Tough times are coming for my business,” said David Pajón, who rents an apar tment in Old Havana. He said h e h a d a m e s s a g e f ro m t h e Tru m p administration. “ I f yo u wa nt p ro s p e r i t y f o r t h e private sec tor in Cuba and the Cuban people in general, no more sanc tions please!” AP

EU commission urges legal action against Italy over debt

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RUSSELS—The European Co m m i s s i o n re co m m e n d e d o n Wednesday that legal action be launched against Italy because it failed to respect EU debt rules last year and is likely to do so again in 2019 and 2020, setting up a new confrontation with the populist government in Rome.

In coming weeks, EU member-states must assess whether an “excessive deficit procedure” should be opened against Italy and the extent of any penalties. It could face billions of euros (dollars) in fines.

According to a new commission report, Italy’s public debt stood at 132.2 percent of GDP in 2018, far above the EU’s 60 percent limit.

“Moreover, Italy is not projec ted to comply with the debt reduc tion benchmark in either 2019 or 2020 based on both the government plans and the commission 2019 spring f o re c a s t,” t h e re p o r t s a i d. D e b t i s forecast to rise to 135 percent.

EU Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis told reporters that “Italy pays as much in debt servicing as for the entire education system. In 2018, Italy’s debt represented an average burden of €38,400 ($43,251) per inhabitant, and in addition the average debt servicing cost was around €1,000 ($1,126).”

He added that Italian economic “growth has come to almost a halt.”

The action comes at a time of rising tensions between Brussels and the Italian government, in particular Deputy Premier Matteo Salvini, who has been emboldened by his right-wing League party’s strong gains in last month’s EU elections.

The Italian government only won commission approval for its 2019 budget plan late last year. After some early defiance from Salvini, Rome agreed to reduce the deficit to acceptable levels.

Salvini wasted little time on Wednesday in suggesting that he would soon put the commission in its place.

“I’m sure that in Brussels they will respect our will,” he said. “The only way to cut the debt created in the past is to reduce taxes and allow Italians to work more and better.”

“Cuts, sanctions and austerity have only produced more debt, pover t y,

precariousness and unemployment. We need to do the opposite,” Salvini said.

Taking to Facebook, the leader of Italy’s other ruling party, the populist 5-Star Movement, complained that some EU countries have been getting away with high debt for years.

“We are going to take this seriously, but we can’t pretend not to know that there are European countries that, in these past years, have used much more debt than what is allowed by the [EU] treaties to relaunch their economies.

And they didn’t face any sanction!” Luigi Di Maio wrote.

Italy ’s debt load is the secondhighest in Europe, after Greece. Many are concerned about new financial turmoil in Europe should Italy lose control of spending, but the government in Rome says more spending is needed to jumpstart growth after years of austerity.

Italy has one of Europe’s biggest economies. Saving Greece was hard enough; bailing out Rome would be all but impossible.

Dombrovskis noted on Wednesday that EU member-states have to give their views before any legal action is taken.

He said the EU’s economic and finance committee has two weeks to draw its conclusions based on the report.

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, on an official trip in Vietnam said: “I’ll do everything to avoid an excessive deficit procedure.”

But he also fired a warning shot, saying: “We’re determined to give a critical contribution, to modify the existing rules.”

Sanctions can be launched when EU countries breach, or are in risk of breaching, the deficit threshold of 3 percent of GDP or when they violate the debt rule by having a government debt level above 60 percent.

EU Economy Commissioner Pierre Moscovici extended a hand to Rome and urged it to provide any additional information it might have to change the assessment.

“We are ready to look at new data that might change this analysis, so my door is open. We can always discuss and listen,” Moscovici said. AP

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

ATTY. ANA C. DIONE, CPA REGIONAL DIRECTOR

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Marina: Seafarers’ remittances to rise 30% R

By Lorenz S. Marasigan

@lorenzmarasigan

EMITTANCES from overseas Filipino seafarers are expected to increase by a third annually through 2022, the chief of the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) said on Wednesday, as the government buttresses efforts to further improve the skills and education of the current and future pool of marine professionals in the coming years.

Marina Officer in Charge Narciso Vingson Jr. said there is an uptrend in the value of remittances of Filipinos seafarers abroad, with 2018 seeing a 20-percent

increase in remittances—from $5 billion in 2017 to $6 billion at end-December.

“Our seafarers have their fair share of contribution to the indus-

try, trekking $6 billion in foreign remittances last year compared to only $3 billion in 2010,” he said. “[We expect that figure to grow] at 30 percent yearly.”

In a chance interview, he added: “So far, last 2017, we have $5 billion in remittances. Now we are at $6 billion, so [we expect a growth rate of] 30 percent yearly.”

This, as Marina pushes for the further development of the skills sets of the over 500,000 Filipino seafarers stationed around the globe today through its different programs to maintain its standing in the International Maritime Organisation’s (IMO) whitelist. The official list is expected to come out in October.

“Our seafarers have their fair share of contribution to the industry, trekking $6 billion in foreign remittances last year compared to only $3 billion in 2010,” he said. “[We expect that figure to grow] at 30 percent yearly.”

—Vingson

Neda Board to approve MIDP

LIKEWISE, Vingson said his group is working toward the implementation of the Maritime Industry Development Plan (MIDP), a 10-year blueprint that spells out the needs, goals and challenges of the whole

Senators await Comelec report on 2019 election glitches

By Butch Fernandez

PPOSITION senators are still keen on getting the report of the Commission on Elections on the “sevenhour glitch” that marred the operations at the transparency server hub during the automated May 13 midterm elections.

“We continue to await a response from the Commission on Elections on several issues that it still has not been able to adequately explain, mainly the seven -hour glitch,” opposition Senator Francis Pangilinan, Liberal Party stalwart, said on Thursday.

Pangilinan complained that the Comelec “has yet to officially turn over its technical report and findings on the reason behind the glitch and has yet to release all logs of the transparency server for examination and scrutiny.”

The senator added: “Until these are submitted we withhold drawing conclusions as to the overall conduct of the elections.”

Moreover, he complained that Comelec has “also not provided us with the LP’s official requests

BUSINESSMIRROR FILE PHOTO

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@butchfBM

[made at least twice] for the complete list of corrupted SD [secure digital] cards and malfunctioning VCM [vote-counting machines] in four regions that affected over 3 million votes.”

According to Pangilinan, the requested poll documents “have yet to be turned over and the reasons for the defects and malfunc-

tion remain unclear.”

The senator stressed on Thursday that identifying these corrupted SD cards and malfunctioning VCM are critical as over 3 million votes were affected and in the Senate race, the difference between 9th (15,510,026 votes, final official tally) and 14th place (14,117,528, official tally as

Restroom. . .

Senators. . .

“A certain teacher then videotaped and photographed the toilet cum faculty room, wrote that they have been forced to transfer to that messy place, and voila! The national media took the post hook line and sinker. That my friends, is the propaganda,” the DepEd official stressed.

He said that since the teacher and the other 10 who followed her are members of the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT), “comes now the ACT Party-list Congressmen giving support and saying that this incident is happening in most of the 47,000 schools nationwide!”

He also accused ACT of launching a media blitz thereafter, “...and flooded social media with posts, reposts, tweets, retweets, interviews and press releases one after another... so the propaganda eventually drowned the truth.”

the leadership to discuss committee preferences of incumbents and incoming senators in advance of the opening session of the new Congress next month.

Asked if the senators were able to resolve conf licting claims on committee chairmanships, the Senate President said it appeared to have been resolved by the senators themselves.

“Well, it seems it might be resolved on its own, because what happened is, after dinner, I gave each a piece of paper with their names, and I asked them to write their preferences. I told them that in a matter of days, we will sit down with our leaders, i.e., the majority leader, etc.,” Sotto said, even as he did not give details on the initial committee preference of the senators during the dinner.

He indicated the leadership is likely to finalize the committee assignments in advance of the opening session as there appears to be no conflicting claims on chairmanships. “The way I look at it, when I was looking at what they wrote, everything seemed clear.

The outcome was good; at least now they know the notion of equity of the incumbent, so I see a good resolution,” Sotto said in a mix of English and Filipino.

Sotto said former Senate President Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel is sure to get the Committee on Foreign Relations, while Senator Panfilo Lacson will chair the Committee on Defense and National Security, now held by outgoing Senator Gregorio Honasan.

The Senate President disclosed that “the way it is shaping up right now,” Lacson has already told Dela

Continued from A16

Briones not heartless

THE DepEd official also defended Briones after she was labeled by critics as “heartless.”

“When Secretary Briones said that the move of the 11 teachers who separated from the 236 other teachers was seemingly intentional to make it more ‘dramatic’ or ‘touchy,’ everybody ganged up on her and lambasted her as heartless, insensitive, plus all other remarks that are unbelievably coming from supposed teachers who have been taught, and are teaching good manners and right conduct,” he said.

This, he cited, is actually “the target of the propaganda—show something quite truthful, twist it, rally your friends and the media, and then blame the secretary for it!”

He added that he would not even be surprised if the issue will be escalated alongside calls for teachers’ salary increase, including Briones’s statement on the teaching profession being not all about the money “and be further twisted into bullets against her honest statements and service to the country,”Pascua continued: “Everybody now concludes that the secretary opposes a salary hike for teachers, when, in fact, she not only supports salary increase for public-school teachers but for all government employees. That is a Fact!”

ACT’s alleged propaganda, he said, is apparently meant to show that “this government led by President Duterte and his alter ego Education Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones are not caring but insincere, “sinungaling [liars],’ heartless and all those usual slogans and labels they shout at the streets, and the only solution is for the secretary to resign and for the President to be ousted!”

“But now, more than ever, is the time to take the side of truth and not fall victim to propaganda and twisted facts, and not further fan the flames of negativity and falsehood,” he concluded.

Continued from A16

of May 20) is below 3 million at 1,392,498 votes.

At the same time, Pangilinan pointed out that the issue of the certifying agency giving its thumbs-up to the readiness of the AES (automated election system) with these glitches happening on election day has to be thoroughly explained.

“Why did they certify that the marking pens were good—only for the pens to be recalled? Why did they certify to the efficacy of the VCM and the SD cards, only for the machines to bog down and the SD cards being of poor quality in unprecedented numbers?,” the senator asked.

He recalled that after the elections, one issue raised during the hearing, and which needs further investigation, is that of the election management staff, comprising Comelec and Smartmatic personnel, with the capacity to have “rogue” VCM send bogus or altered ER (election return) results. “Did it happen in the May 2019 elections? A thorough investigation conducted by the incoming JCOC [joint congressional oversight committee] must be pursued,” the senator said.

Rosa that if he is interested in the Lacson-chaired Public Order committee, he [dela Rosa] “can have it.”

Both Lacson and Dela Rosa are former National Police chiefs.

“As for Senator Bong Go, his two preferences are both vacant—Health and Urban Planning, and Housing Committee,” Sotto added, while Tolentino expressed interest in chairing the local government committee.

Sotto said the preferred committee chairmanships for Senators Imee Marcos and Pia Cayetano have yet to be finalized. Marcos expressed interest in “social welfare and rural development, as well as agrarian reform, so, we will talk about it probably by next week.”

The Senate President added that “as soon as I get the matrix, I will then talk to the people concerned... like, I’ll talk to Senator Cynthia Villar and ask her if she’s willing to give agrarian reform to Imee [Marcos]....

As you know, there’s equity of the incumbent.”

He indicated that comebacking Senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. had expressed interest in chairing the committee on civil service and public information and mass media, which is also being eyed by Marcos.

Sotto said Poe, the incumbent chairman of public Information and mass media, had already indicated she was giving it up, and expressed interest to take over the chairmanship of the banks and financial Institutions committee, previously chaired by Francis Escudero.

Comebacking Senator Lito Lapid is likely to chair the Committee on Games and Amusements.

The new committee chairmanshipsares expected to be finalized soon as the new Congress opens plenary sessions in July.

maritime industry.

“We are looking at the intensified implementation of the MIDP especially with the impending approval of the plan in the interagency technical committee on transportation planning of the National Economic and Development Authority or Neda. With a signed Neda Board resolution, we shall gear toward the realization of the MIDP’s goals and objectives,” he said.

The Neda Board is expected to discuss and approve the blueprint in June.

Under the plan, the government and the private sector will jointly invest roughly P95 billion to develop the industry through 2028.

The amount is broken down into eight components, namely: upgrading of domestic shipping in support of the nautical highway development (P45.15 billion); development of shipping services for maritime tourism (P147 million); development of coastal and inland waterways transport system (P2.64 billion); strengthening of safety operations of registered fishing vessels (P75 million); development of a global maritime hub (P45.73 billion); enhancement of maritime safety in the Philippines (P149 million); modernization of maritime security in the Philippines (P83 million); and establishment of maritime innovation and knowledge center (P599 million).

DOJ panel to handle probe of ₧1.8-B drugs in tapioca shipment

By Joel R. San Juan

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@jrsanjuan1573

HE Department of Justice (DOJ) has formed a threeman panel of prosecutors to handle the preliminary investigation on the drug complaint filed by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) in connection with the smuggling of P1.8 billion worth of illegal drugs concealed in a tapioca shipment last March.

Senior Deputy State Prosecutor Theodore Villanueva has assigned the preliminary investigation to Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Clarisa Kuong as panel chairman and Assistant State Prosecutors Rodan Parrocha and Noel Antay Jr. as members.

The panel is expected to issue summons to the respondents in the complaint soon and require them to submit their counteraffidavits to the complaint.

Named respondents in the complaint were Dong-An Dong, Julie Hao Gamboa, Fe Tamayosa, Alvin Bautista, Jane Abello Castillo, Carlo Dale Zueta, Abraham Torecampo, Arwin Caparros, Leonardo Sucaldito, Mark Leo Magpayo, Brian Pabilona, Meldy Sayson, Rhea Tolosa,

Manual audit. . .

He said the Comelec is investigating what happened to the four clustered precincts excluded from the RMA. Guia said the RMAC concluded its manual audit on June 5, 2019, with the 711 clustered precincts audited already representative of the whole population. The audit began on May 15.

“Seven hundred eleven samples that were audited are already representative of the whole population...

The audit is intended to determine whether there are systemic errors in the way the VCM read the vote shades on the ballots,” Guia said.

He emphasized that the results reported were the initial findings of the RMAC, and that it will come out with a final book report including assessments and analysis of figures after two to three weeks.

“This is just the initial report because in three weeks’ time we will have finalized the book report.

After this, Lente will start its assessment and will be submitting its report; same thing with the PSA, and after two weeks we will meet for the common finding,” he added.

For the 2019 midterm polls, 715 clustered precincts were randomly drawn through the automated random selection program coming from the 85,769 clustered precincts in the country. PSA Chief Statistical Specialist Florante C. Varona said that the accuracy rate for 2019 of 99.9953 percent is the highest reported during the four national

Edgardo Dominado, Jerry Siguenza and Debbie Joy Aceron.

They are officers and/or directors of Wealth Lotus Empire Corp. and Fortuneyield Cargo Services Corp. which facilitated the shipment.

They are facing charges of violation of Section 4 (Importation of Dangerous Drugs), in relation to Section 31 (Additional Penalty if Offender is an Alien) of Republic Act 9165, the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, as amended by RA 0640.

The shabu shipment was intercepted on March 22 by PDEA operatives and other law enforcers at the Manila International Container Terminal following a tip from Vietnamese authorities.

DOJ Acting Prosecutor General Richard Anthony Fadullon earlier said he will meet with the panel of prosecutors assigned to the case for the purpose of filing the PHDO. “We will confer with the panel created and give instructions to file for PHDO,” Fadullon said.

The precautionary hold departure orders, according to Fadullon, were needed to prevent the suspects from evading prosecution following reports that Jacky Co had already left the country.

Continued from A16

and local elections conducted in the country using an automated election system (AES).

According to the PSA, the 2016 elections recorded an accuracy rate of 99.9027 percent, the 2013 elections with 99.9747 percent and the 2010 elections with a 99.5980 percent accuracy rate.

The higher accuracy rate for the midterm elections this year was attributed to better processes implemented by the RMAC by applying its learnings from previous election years. This includes centralizing in one place the manual audit instead of implementing it in different precincts, as well as providing extensive training to those who were tapped to audit the votes, among others.

The RMAC is composed of representatives from Civil Society Organizations accredited as a citizen’s arm, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), as well as the Comelec.

The CSO chairs the committee. The poll body had 60 teams, with three teacher-volunteers each, assigned to counter-check votes in the ballots with the results of the AES. Guia said the PSA made sure that processes implemented during the RMA are statistically sound and acceptable, while the Legal Network for Truthful Elections (Lente) and the Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants (Picpa) made sure that rules and processes were followed and the manual audit was observed.

Regions BusinessMirror

Friday, June 7, 2019 A11

DENR to plant 3,500 Benguet pine trees on President’s summer palace

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By Jonathan L. Mayuga @jonlmayuga

HE Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) announced on Thursday the planting of 3,500 Benguet pine trees within the compound of “The Mansion,” the official summer palace of the President situated in Baguio City.

The tree-planting initiative aims to increase the number of tree species that the mountain resort city is famous for.

Known as the “City of Pines,” Baguio City is also the summer capital of the Philippines. During summer, Baguio City is flocked by local and foreign tourists to beat the extreme summer heat usually experienced in many parts of Luzon.

DENR-Cordillera Administrative Region Executive Director Ralph C. Pablo said in a statement that the move was in line with the directive of Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu, who earlier expressed concern over the declining number of pine trees in the city.

“Cimatu’s order was to saturate Baguio with the smell of pine trees again and restore the city’s claim to being the City of Pines,” Pablo said.

Close to 350 members of the Presidential Security Group took part in the tree-planting activity, which covered some 2 hectares of The Mansion’s open grounds.

The mansion is in the eastern part of Baguio City, along Leonard Wood Road and across Wright Park.

Some 11 hectares, or around 74 percent of The Mansion’s 14.7-hectare area, is partially forested or classified as “open forest.”

The state of Baguio’s dwindling number of Benguet pine trees caught Cimatu’s attention when he attended the Philippine Military Academy (PMA), alumni homecoming in February.

Cimatu subsequently ordered Pablo to conduct an inventory on the city’s number of trees and think of solutions on how to address the dwindling number of the iconic Benguet pine trees, so the DENR could take steps to preserve and protect them.

The inventory showed that the city’s trees number 2,498,019 within its 5,750-hectare territory.

Benguet pine trees, some measuring up to 124 centimeters in diameter, number around 351,493 or 14 percent of the total count.

Of the total Benguet pine trees, 79 percent or 277,148 are concentrated in areas classified as “closed forest” or “closed canopy” like Camp John Hay reservation, and forest parks near the Teachers’ Camp and the PMA. The city’s open forest, such as the area where the 3,500 saplings where planted, has 70,735 Benguet pine trees with 3,610 others found in residential areas.

Other trees account for half of the inventory of Baguio’s tree cover at around 1.2 million which include alnus, eucalyptus and calliandra trees.

Also included in the inventory are 885,268 young trees of all types, naturally growing under matured trees.

Called “regenerants,” these young trees measure less than 5 centimeters in diameter and at least 1 meter in height.

The construction boom and expanding urban sprawl have been identified as the reasons for the decline of pine trees in the nation’s summer capital.

To address this, Pablo said one of the strategies the DENR regional office has adopted was to discourage lot owners applying for cutting permits to spare the pine trees.

The regional office, he said, has been promoting the benefits of having the trees in their area instead of cutting them down to give way for either construction or expansion of their houses.

“Sadly, the conventional mindset is that trees should go to maximize the floor space of a house. We explain to them the direct and indirect benefits of keeping these trees both to them and to the city, and the added value they give to their houses as an investment,” he explained.

Out of Baguio’s 5,750-hectare land area, 1,339 hectares or 23 percent are identified and mapped as closed forest or closed canopy; 1,474 hectares or 26 percent are in open forest or “open canopy”; while 2,937 hectares or 51 percent are made up of residential, commercial and built-up areas including roads and highways.

Agriculture/Commodities

A12 Friday, June 7, 2019 • Editor: Jennifer A. Ng

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Japanese firm to buy PHL’s excess mango

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By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

JAPANESE firm has expressed interest in ramping up its purchases of mangoes from the Philippines, which has an excess supply of around 2 million kilograms, according to the Department of Agriculture (DA).

Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol said Diamond Star Agro Products Inc. (DSAPI) is keen on importing some 100 metric tons (MT) of mangoes from the Philippines this harvest season.

DSAPI is a Philippine-based Japanese firm that has been

exporting locally roduced mango, papaya, saba, pineapple and durian to Japan since 1987. According to its web site, DSAPI is under Japanese firms Starlanes Corp. and Diamond Star Corp.

“The Japanese company, Diamond Star, which has been importing

papayas, pineapple, mango, bananas and even turnips from the Philippines, signified the intent to buy a huge volume of mangoes through Philippine agriculture attaché to Japan, Dr. Samuel Animas, this week,” Piñol said in a Facebook post.

Piñol added that DSAPI is expected to join and participate in the launch of the DA’s Metro Mango Marketing Program on June 10, which seeks to attract buyers of mangoes produced in Luzon.

“The DA will arrange a meeting between the Japanese importers and the mango farmers of Luzon,” he said.

Luzon has an estimated surplus of at least 2 million kg of mango, or 2,000 MT, which is sufficient to feed 514,271 Filipinos at a per capita consumption of 3.889 kg, based on the latest government figures.

The oversupply caused by the prolonged El Niño phenomenon

has prompted the DA to undertake a massive marketing campaign to help farmers who saw earnings decline due to falling farm-gate prices.

Piñol also said some local processes have agreed to ramp up their purchases of mango from Filipino farmers to cut the surplus in domestic supply.

The DA-Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Service is now encouraging interested businessmen and private entities to reach out to local mango planters. Amas had offered to link up interested parties with potential suppliers.

The government is offering to sell mangoes at P25 per kg if the buyer will purchase at least 4 MT. Export grade mangoes are also available at P50/kg for every 4-MT order.

Farmers are now producing 100 MT per week of mangoes for processing and for export, the DA-Amas said.

The average farm-gate price of

mango in the first quarter dropped by 17.5 percent to P48.45/kg due to poor quality, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said.

A kilo of mango was priced P58.73/kg in the January-to-March period of 2018, the PSA added.

The country’s mango exports in the first quarter declined by 11.6 percent to $3.898 million, from $4.407 million recorded amount in the same period of 2018, PSA data showed.

Fresh mangoes from the Philippines are exported to 33 countries, including Australia, Canada, China, England, France, Germany, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Singapore and South Korea.

The Philippines also ships dried mangoes to 21 countries, including Australia, Canada, China, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Russia, South Korea, Taiwan and the United States.

Rice, meat prices in many regions remain steady–report

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OOD prices, including rice and meat, were generally stable in the last week of May, according to a report published by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on Thursday.

In its “Price Situationer of Selected Agricultural Commodities,” the PSA noted that there were no dramatic increases in the price of rice—the country’s staple food— during the period.

Of the 17 regional centers being monitored by the PSA, the agency said five regional centers posted changes in the prices of rice ranging from P1 to P2 per kilogram.

“Meat and poultry maintained their previous week’s price levels in many regional centers,” the report read.

But in Cabanatuan City, the PSA noted an increase of P10/kg for beef with bones. A mark up of P30/kg lean beef was also observed in the area.

There was also little movement in the price of dressed chicken, except in the National Capital Region (NCR) where the average price of poultry rose by P5/kg.

The PSA observed that the fish species, such as milkfish, was more expensive in some areas. “Prices of bangus moved by P10/kg and P20/ kg in several regional centers.”

Round scad, the report noted, went up by P10/kg in Cabanatuan City and Cebu City, and by P20/kg in Naga City and Butuan City. However, it was priced lower by P10/kg and P20/kg in four regional centers.

As for vegetables, the PSA said selected vegetables were cheaper in

FISHERMEN in Barangay Sabagan, Ilocos Sur, sold some of their catch to their neighbors and other interested buyers so they can have enough money to buy rice, the staple food of the Philippines. The Philippine Statistics Authority said prices of rice and other basic commodities in the last week of May were generally steady. LAILA D. AUSTRIA

some regions. In four regional centers, the PSA said cabbage dropped by P10/kg and P20/kg. But it was more expensive by P5/kg in Cabanatuan City, by P10/kg in Batangas City and

by P15/kg in Cebu City.

“Price decreases from P10/kg to P40/kg of habichuelas were registered in six regional centers. Meanwhile, it was priced higher by P10/kg in Tacloban City, Zamboanga City,” the report read.

“Prices of tomato dropped by P5/ kg to P20/kg in four regional centers.

It climbed by P10/kg in Cabanatuan City, Iloilo City and Zamboanga City,” it added.

The PSA said price movements of

condiments in the regional centers during the period varied. Price markups from P10/kg to P30/kg for imported garlic were observed in seven regional centers. But it was lower by P20/kg in Batangas City.

The report noted that a kilogram of Hawaiian ginger fell by P10/kg to P30/kg in seven regional centers. But it was more expensive by P10/kg in Cabanatuan City and by P20/kg in Tuguegarao City and Naga City.

As for fruits, the PSA said the price movements were mixed. Calamansi was cheaper by P8/kg to P20/kg in five regional centers. Price cuts of P10/kg to P50/kg for carabao mango were seen in seven regional centers.

But mango was more expensive by P10/kg in the NCR. Sugar prices were also stable during the last week of May, according to the PSA. “A kilogram of brown sugar declined by P1/kg in Batangas City,

by P2/kg in Naga City and by P3/kg in Cabanatuan City. But it picked up

by P4/kg in Cebu City.”

The PSA also reported that refined sugar in the NCR and Cabanatuan City declined by P5/kg but went up by P2/kg in Cebu City and Butuan City.

The agency provides weekly updates on the prevailing retail prices of indicator agricultural commodities via the price situationer. The prices are gathered from designated trading centers in the key city of each region, including NCR. The PSA said the price update is a weekly report generated from the Retail Price Surveys which is one of the services provided by the Agricultural Marketing Information System.

Authorities investigate alleged animal abuse at famous farm

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AIR OAKS, Indiana—Retailers began pulling Fairlife products from their shelves on Wednesday as police investigated alleged animal abuse after an animal-rights group released graphic video showing workers kicking and throwing young calves at an Indiana dairy farm that’s a popular destination for school field trips.

Animal Recovery Mission said that an investigator for the Miamibased animal-rights group secretly recorded the disturbing footage last year while working for several months at Fair Oaks Farms, which Food & Wine magazine has called the “Disneyland of agricultural tourism.”

The group said that the footage shows the “daily mistreatment of the resident farm animals” at the farm’s dairies about 70 miles (113 kilometers) south of Chicago.

“Due to the many years Fair Oaks Farms has been in business, it is impossible to number the amount of calves and cows that have inhumanely died at the hands of this company,” said Rachel Taylor, a spokesman for

Animal Recovery Mission.

Fair Oaks Farms is the flagship farm for Fairlife, a national brand of higher protein, higher calcium and lower fat milk. At least three retailers—Strack & Van Til, JewelOsco and Family Express—began pulling Fairlife products from their shelves on Wednesday in response to the video, The (Northwest Indiana) Times reported.

Valparaiso, Indiana-based Family Express operates convenience stores across Indiana. The company said in a statement that it’s pulling Fairlife products, saying “the exposé of animal abuse in the Fair Oaks Farm network is chilling.”

The video shows newborn calves being thrown in and out of their huts by employees, young calves being kicked in the head and the carcasses of dead calves piled together in the dirt. The footage additionally shows employees striking calves with their hands and steel rods, and being burnt with branding irons.

Fair Oaks Farms Founder Mike McCloskey said in a statement Tuesday that four employees seen

FAIRLIFE milk products WWW.PRNEWSWIRE.COM

in the video have been fired and actions have been taken to prevent further abuse. A fifth person shown in the video was a third-party truck driver who was transporting calves, he said.

“As a veterinarian whose life and

work is dedicated to the care, comfort and safety of all animals, this has affected me deeply,” McCloskey said. “I am disappointed for not being aware of this kind of awful treatment occurring, and I take full responsibility for what has happened.

I also take full responsibility to correct and ensure that every employee understands, embraces and practices the core values on which our organization stands.”

A portion of the video also showed what appeared to be an employee using cocaine in a work vehicle on site, while other footage showed what appeared to be marijuana plants being grown on the property.

McCloskey described the plants in his statement as an invasive perennial species.

The Newton County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement on Wednesday that it’s requested the names of the now-fired workers and the person who shot the footage.

The agency said it would work with the county prosecutor’s office to determine if any criminal charges will be filed.

“We acknowledge the need for humane treatment of animals and the need to hold individuals that have gone beyond an acceptable farm management practice accountable for their actions,” the department said in its statement. AP

NFHFI urges raisers to explore new technologies

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HE National Federation of Hog Farmers Inc. (NFHFI) urged local raisers to adopt modern ways to manage their livestock and do away with swill feeding as this could cause foot and mouth disease (FMD) and other animal diseases.

The NFHFI made the call amid the outbreak of the deadly African swine fever (ASF) in China and other Southeast Asian countries, where hog populations have been decimated by the disease.

According to the group, the Philippines is a major player in the Asean region, being the largest producer of pigs next only to Vietnam.

“The Philippine swine production is considered one of the best in the region. As of January 2019, the population is at 12.71 million heads and is 0.83 [percent] higher than the previous year. It is growing albeit at a slower pace because of high production costs brought about by high feed and medication costs,” the NFHFI said in a statement.

Small-scale hog farms, which include backyard livestock raisers (tending at least one head of a livestock animal and below the descriptions of commercial farms), compose 65 percent of all swine production in the Philippines, but they are the most vulnerable to an outbreak of disease, as a number still practice swill feeding.

In 2018, the Department of Agriculture imposed Memorandum Order 22, which prohibits the use of catering food, leftovers from airports for use as swill feed; this regulation is on top of a ban against imported pork from several certain countries amid fears of ASF breaking out in the country.

The NFHFI proposed several measures to mitigate the practice of swill feeding, and reducing the risk of an outbreak of disease to millions of pigs in the country.

“The Canadian Veterinary Ministry has a ‘3Cs’ system— Communication of Information to all stakeholders and consumers through media and backyard education, Cooperation from allied industries like feed manufacturers, veterinary companies and practitioners to come up with common strategies and measures to prevent entry and control the spread [of a disease], and Collaboration between the government and the private sector,” the NFHFI said.

The NFHFI said raisers will have a chance to learn new technologies in livestock raising during the Livestock Philippines Expo 2019 which will be held at the World Trade Center in Pasay City from June 26 to June 28.

The group said small and medium-scale raisers who are constantly looking for feed formulation, will largely benefit from the discussions and the showcased technologies, among them, enhanced feeds, and improving piglet weight, health and growth.

“Hog raisers are also looking for vaccines or antibiotics to decrease mortality and promote healthier pigs, or for probiotics that promote growth overall health care,” the NFHFI said.

Livestock Philippines Expo 2019 will bring more than 280 exhibitors from over 30 countries which will offer business and networking opportunities, and will also feature seminars and talks from many leaders of the industry.

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Banking&Finance BusinessMirror

Regulator calls out himself over Taiwan’s obsession on insurance

Tourism stakeholders welcome new Tieza tax incentives law

T TAIWAN’S Financial Supervisory Commission Chairman Wellington Koo calls out himself over the Island’s insurance obsession. BLOOMBERG

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AIWAN’S chief financial regulator is urging people to stop using life insurance as a way to make money, and he points to his own family as part of the problem.

The widespread use of life insurance as a wealth-management product has made Taiwan into the most insured market in the world. But it has also created a level of competition and reckless offers that threaten the stability of an industry with $876 billion in assets, the Financial Supervisory Commission Chairman Wellington Koo said in an interview on Monday.

“Insurance isn’t the same as savings. It’s not a wealth management product,” Koo said. “You shouldn’t take out an insurance policy instead of a wealth management product just because your bank only offers 1 percent on your savings.”

The problem is one Koo is personally aware of. The 60-year-old readily admits he and his wife, Taiwan’s deputy economics minister Wang Mei-hua, have nine high-return fixed term insurance policies between them. He says they were taken out on his behalf by his mother on the advice of staff at her local bank.

Taiwan’s insurers have seen huge success attracting new customers with fixed-term policies offering attractive returns, turning the economy into the most insured market in the world measured by total premiums to GDP, according to reinsurer Swiss Re AG. But slowing revenue growth, new international financial reporting standards and increasingly volatile currency markets could potentially put some companies at risk.

Taiwan’s life insurance companies controlled NT$27.5 trillion ($876 billion) in assets as of the end of March, according to the Taiwan

Insurance Institute, dwarfing the island’s $567-billion economy. And while they raked in a record NT$3.5 trillion in premiums last year the rate of growth is slowing. After increasing as much as 13 percent in 2012, premium r evenue grew only 1.4 percent in Q1 this year.

Koo is trying to persuade lifeinsurance companies to shift away from attracting customers with highinterest returns in favor of stronger insurance protections to minimize the companies’ risk from high payouts to clients and volatile currency markets.

“Financial markets are not calm and predictable every single day,” Koo said. “When there is some volatility, you have to be able to deal with it.

You have to be able to absorb a certain amount of losses.”

The FSC has already requested insurers to ensure protection-focused insurance policies make up at least 60 percent of their products. Next, Koo said, the regulator will start paying closer attention to the stability of insurers’ operations.

The shift in how insurers market their products to customers comes as the industry is preparing for the implementation of IFRS 17. The FSC aims to have Taiwan’s insurers in line with the new international accounting standards by 2025. Moody’s pointed to Taiwan’s insurance industry, alongside Germany’s and South Korea’s, as those most likely to be affected by IFRS 17 in a report in May. Asked whether any insurers might need government assistance in order to adapt to the new regime, Koo said he was confident companies would manage the transition.

“I don’t think any insurers will be unable to respond in time.”

Bloomberg News

FrIday, June 7, 2019 A13

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo

@akosistellaBM Special to the BusinessMirror

OURISM stakeholders were gratified by the enactment of Republic Act 11262, which extends the mandate of the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (Tieza) to grant fiscal incentives to tourism enterprise zones (TEZs) for another 10 years.

“The extended incentives [package] is a welcome development,” Tourism Congress of the Philippines President Jose C. Clemente III said.

“That said, we should now go out and look for those investors that would be interested to enter the Philippine tourism industry so we can take full advantage of those incentives.

“We need to be aggressive in searching those investors,” Clemente added. “Aside from the incentives, we need to make the process of setting up business here easier.

Tieza is the infrastructure arm of the Department of Tourism and is tasked to oversee the development of TEZs. Clemente, who is also president of Rajah Tours Philippines Inc., one

of the oldest destination management companies in the country, also averred.

“By having these incentives extended, we hope that other undeveloped destinations can benefit, thereby dispersing the tourists to other areas and alleviating overtourism in the established destinations,” Clemente said. “By doing so the benefits of tourism become broader and trickles down to more people.”

The TCP has also batted for the review and improvement of RA 9353, or the Tourism Act of 2009, especially in the area of promotions and implementation of marketing strategies. (See, “Tourism stakeholders bat for more independent industry promo board,” in the

BusinessMirror, February 8, 2019.)

While the incentives law was warmly embraced by the tourism sector, the Department of Finance has said these tax perks were unnecessary, adding that investments would have been poured into the tourism industry even without them.

Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez said while the Tieza tax incentives law was “minor,” and will likely see a smaller amount of foregone revenues from it, “it’s another spigot, another faucet where money is going to flow out of. And I’ll have to raise money elsewhere, I don’t know much, to cover whatever we lose there.” (See, “DOF insists: Investors will come sans tax perks,” in the BusinessMirror, June 5, 2019.)

In its cost-benefit analysis, Tieza estimates foregone revenues from the new law to be only P46 billion against the P791 billion in economic benefits projected from the development of private TEZs. An official of the DOF who declined to be identified said the agency is studying the new law very closely to find ways to mitigate tax losses from with the grant of numerous fiscal incentives to TEZ locators.

“We’ll see what can be done,” the official said. “We will be thinking hard about that Tieza law.”

Meanwhile, Tieza Chief Operating Officer Pocholo D. Paragas said

the agency is “already coordinating with the BIR [Bureau of Internal Revenue]” on the drafting of the RA 11262’s implementing rules and regulations.

He said no details were available as yet, which will “come out upon further review.”

Fiscal incentives available under to TEZ locators until 2029 include a six-year income tax holiday (ITH), a 5-percent preferential tax on gross income in lieu of ITH, tax-free imports on capital goods and services, tax deduction of up to 50 percent of cost on environmental protection and cultural heritage preservation activities, to name a few.

Tieza’s flagship projects are: San Vicente, Palawan; Rizal Park Complex, Manila; Mount Samat Shrine, Bataan; Panglao Bay, Bohol; and Bucas Grande, Surigao del Norte.

It also has designated TEZs, which were developed by the private sector such as: Ciudad de Victoria, Bulacan; Bravo Golf Resort, Dumaguete; Hijo Plantation, Davao; Queen’s Castle, Cebu; and Resorts World, Manila.

Tieza also recently awarded certificates of registration to Magikland in side the Aton Land and Leisure TEZ in Silay City, Negros Occidental; Kingdom Stadium inside the Kingdom Global City TEZ in Davao; Lazuli Resort and Kabote Beach Resort in San Vicente, Palawan; and the Signature Suites in Boracay.

DOF: CTRP lauded by WB as ‘forward-looking’

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TOP official of the World Bank last month cited the Duterte administration’s comprehensive tax reform program (CTRP) as “proactive and forward-looking,” according to the Department of Finance (DOF).

The DOF quoted World Bank Director of Macroeconomics, Trade and Investment Lalita Moorty as having been “quite impressed” by the CTRP. “It is actually quite a change to see a country that is taking a very forward-looking approach to reforms. [It is] very interesting to see.

The Philippines is posting really fast growth rates, about three times of what we see in Europe and Central Asia. I think this is a good time to do

these tax reforms. It is a good time and you have seized it. That is quite impressive,” Moorty was quoted as having said during a forum on the Philippine economy held in Washington, D.C., in April this year.

The DOF said Moorty also described the implementation of the Duterte administration’s tax reform program as absent a crisis and having a pro-active and forward-looking approach to carrying out such reforms.

Furthermore, the DOF said Moorty pointed out that the Philippines’s recent accomplishments on the economic front, especially in implementing a tax reform program to enable the government to aggressively increase its investments on

infrastructure and social services, has been impressive.

She also lauded the tax reform program’s clear priorities of earmarking spending for infrastructure and social services, which she said, “are two critical elements when you are laying foundations for long-term growth.”

“All in all, I think this is such a strong and wonderful start when I look at the Philippines in comparison to other countries in the world and I do hope that this continues to progress and accelerate in the near future,” Moorty was also quoted by the DOF as saying.

According to Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III, in the first

10 quarters—or first two-and-ahalf years under the leadership of President Duterte—actual disbursements for infrastructure and capital outlays totaling P1.64 trillion had already outpaced similar investments of P1.57 trillion made by the previous administration in all of its six years. He said that in the same first 10 quarters on the Duterte watch, economic expansion averaged 6.5 percent.

The country’s debt to gross domestic product (GDP) ratio, meanwhile, continued its downward trend at 41.9 percent in 2018 from 68.5 percent in 2005, and is expected to further decrease to 38.6 percent by 2022. Rea Cu

Christchurch: Community and connection Citigroup, Barclays among banks fined $91 million by Swiss regulator T

C

ITIGROUP Inc. and Barclays Plc. are among global banks fined a total of 90 million Swiss francs ($91 million) by Switzerland’s competition regulator for their roles in colluding on foreignexchange rates.

Barclays was fined 27 million francs, Citigroup 28.5 million francs, and JPMorgan Chase & Co. was hit with a 9.5-million-franc penalty, Switzerland’s Competition Commission said on Thursday. UBS Group AG avoided a fine because it helped reveal the existence of the cartel.

The Swiss sanctions come after years of investigation by regulators on both sides of the Atlantic into how traders used chatrooms to fix leading currency-exchange rates.

Five of the banks agreed last month to pay €1.07 billion ($1.2 billion) to resolve a European Union probe into forex collusion.

Traders at Barclays, Citigroup, JPMorgan, Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc and UBS ran online chatrooms to share sensitive information over six years in a cartel that was known as the “Three-way banana split,” according to Comco. Traders at Barclays, MUFG Bank, RBS and UBS operated the so-called Essex Express, named for the commuter train they all took, to fix trades in a similar manner between 2009 and 2012, according to the Swiss regulator.

A MAN stands at a foreign currency-exchange booth at a Commonwealth Bank of Australia branch in the central business district of Sydney, Australia, on June 21, 2018. BLOOMBERG

Comco fined RBS 22.5 million francs and MUFG Bank Ltd. 1.5 million francs. An investigation into Credit Suisse Group AG’s role is continuing. Bank Julius Bär & Co. AG and Zürcher Kantonalbank have been cleared of wrongdoing, according to Olivier Schaller, Comco’s deputy director.

The Swiss sanctions bring a wave of regulatory probes one step closer to conclusion after traders’ manipulation of benchmark foreign-exchange rates was exposed in 2013, triggering investigations in the US and the UK. To date, more than a dozen financial institutions have paid about $11.8 billion in fines and penalties globally, with another $2.3 billion spent to compensate customers and investors.

Switzerland’s Comco avoided the damning language of its counterparts, saying only that the sanctioned banks “have committed not to conclude such agreements in the future.” EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said last month that its fines “send a clear message that the commission will not tolerate collusive behavior in any sector of the financial markets.”

Comco’s decision can be appealed to the Switzerland’s Federal Administrative Court, but it wasn’t immediately clear if any of the banks would do so. Some of the banks had benefited from a leniency program that led to a reduction of the fine, the regulator said.

MUFG said in an e-mail that the fine relates to “one individual’s conduct” at the bank, and that it’s “taken a number of measures to prevent this occurring again.” Officials at other lenders fined on Thursday declined to comment or couldn’t be immediately reached.

Credit Suisse is cooperating fully with Comco’s probe and “intends to vigorously contest the substance of the allegations,” the bank said in an e-mail. “A number of other regulators have concluded their FX-related inquiries without taking any enforcement action against Credit Suisse,” the bank added. Bloomberg News

OURISM New Zealand, the tourism marketing body of New Zealand, played host to an eight-person Asian association familiarization tour from May 25 to May 30. The “family,” as the program was called for short, took us to Christchurch and Auckland and nearby surrounding areas to visit conference venues, accommodation options and tourist attractions. The aim was to showcase these facilities and sites as potential destinations of international association MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) events.

The insights and experiences I had during the trip will not fit in this column, so I intend to cover this in three parts and weave these “takeaways” into a narrative that I hope will benefit association executives, event managers and tourism policymakers in our country.

Our first stop was Christchurch, which suffered a 6.2-magnitude earthquake on February 22, 2011, killing 185 people and causing widespread damage. What I witnessed, however, was not the devastation, but a new vibrant and modern city, reshaped by a welcoming people.

Wherever we went, I would hear “Kia ora,” a Maori language greeting that literally means “be well or healthy” and is translated as an informal “hello.”

On our first morning tour, we visited the “Gondola” situated atop Mount Cavendish to get a spectacular

Association World Octavio B. Peralta view of the city. We then moved to a boutique retail and arts emporium called “The Tannery,” a repurposed Victorian leather-making place with a stylish atrium. There we got a short education on chocolate making by the “SHE Universe” (SHE for “Sweet Human Evolution”). After lunch, we went “punting,” i.e., riding on a flat-bottomed boat, along the scenic Avon River, rowed by an Edwardianstyled boatman. We also rode on the iconic Christchurch tram, a restored rail transport that circles around the inner city streets.

The following morning, we visited another restored venue formally known as the Christchurch Town Hall of the Performing Arts, one of the city’s most recognizable pieces of architecture and one of New Zealand’s premier performance venues. We headed back to our hotel, the Crown Plaza, for a presentation on the Te Pae (gathering place), an ultra-modern, world-class purpose-built convention center to be opened in October 2020. Our last stop was at the stunning Peppers Clearwater Resort next to the crystal-blue waters of Lake Kaikainui and overlooking

the New Zealand PGA Clearwater golf course where we had a putting tournament and lunch.

Oh, and the food! Our hosts treated us to a diverse set of menus from breakfast through lunches and dinners at places such as the King of Snake, the Miro, the She Universe, the George’s 50 Bistro, the Town Hall and the Peppers Clearwater.

Christchurch is really about community and connection. To me, this meant that to build a thriving community, there’s a need for people, institutions, and ideas to connect and interact, which in the same vein, is also what associations should do all the time. In Christchurch, I saw a pleasant and dynamic community with its people connecting, not only among themselves, but with us specifically, and with others around the world. So go check out Christchurch to believe what I have just said and see it for yourself!

The contributor, Octavio “Bobby” Peralta, is concurrently the secretary-general of the Association of Development Financing Institutions in Asia and the Pacific, founder and CEO of the Philippine Council of Associations and Association Executives, and president of the Asia-Pacific Federation of Association Organizations. The purpose of PCAAE— the “association of associations” is to advance the association management profession and to make associations well-governed and sustainable. PCAAE enjoys the support of Adfiap, the Tourism Promotions Board and the Philippine International Convention Center. E-mail: obp@adfiap.org.

A14 Friday, June 7, 2019 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

editorial

Analyzing the inflation rate

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APITAL Economics is one of the few economic research consultancy companies that provides information as if it was investing its own money based on its analysis. That is probably not the case as—from our experience—they call it as they see it, not pushing a “traders” agenda.

Considering that all the economic experts and think tanks get the same data at the same time, when we want professional, unbiased, and concise analysis, this is where we turn. Capital has been in business since 1999 and maintains five global offices.

Philippine inflation rose to 3.2 percent in May, the Philippine Statistics Authority announced on Wednesday. This is the first time that the inflation rate increased from the previous month after six months of going lower. However, after suffering through last year’s steady jump in prices, 2019 is turning out much more favorable.

While we take issue with the target range of a 2 to 4 percent inflation rate offered by the government, the administration can take some satisfaction that their target is being achieved. The press and media dutifully and responsibly report the internal inflation rate numbers. The pundits and other “self-proclaimed” experts prefer to cast at least in some small measure a political shade to virtually anything to do with the Philippine economy.

However, we would rather look at an analysis of the economic data from an outside source whose clients pay real money to get pragmatic, nonpolitical research.

There are two considerations that Capital looked at in their “Emerging Asia Data Response” of June 5, 2019, regarding the May Philippine inflation numbers. The first concern is what caused the 3.2-percent increase and second, what the effect will be on Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) policy actions going forward.

National Statistician Dennis Mapa said the uptrend was primarily brought about by higher annual rates posted in the heavily weighted food inflation index at 3.2 percent, previously increasing at a 2.9 percent rate in April.

Capital Economics agrees: “The breakdown showed that a rebound in food inflation was the main driver. We doubt the pickup in food price inflation will continue. For one thing, the pickup was mainly due to base effects from the falls in fish and vegetable prices in May of last year, which will disappear next month. Encouragingly, rice prices continued to decline, and should carry on doing so as the boost to supply from import liberalization feeds through further.”

In other words, the year-on-year increase in food prices is primarily due to prices being much lower in May 2018. And for all Filipinos, the outlook that rice prices will continue to go down is great news.

Here is where Capital’s forecast gets very interesting. “Even if the decline in food and fuel prices were to stall for the rest of the year, the large spikes in both price categories last year mean that year-on-year inflation is likely to turn negative in the second half of 2019.” The inflation future is that “we still expect headline inflation to average just 1.7 percent year-on-year over the remaining months of the year.” That would be a boon to the Philippine economy.

Supporting a potential better than expected economic growth rate, the research firm sees both further reductions in the banks’ Reserve Requirements and an interest rate reduction at the BSP meeting on June 24th and yet another one later on this year. The future looks increasingly brighter.

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Govt should give priority to teachers Manny F. Dooc

TELLTALES Continued from A1

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FTER a grueling electoral bout, Clinton won over Bush but the couple, Carville and Matalin, emerged the real winners— they fell in love and they were married on Thanksgiving Day of 1993. nnn

NO one has said it better than our Ambassador to Japan, Jose Laurel V, who stressed the strategic importance of the Philippines in the movement of ships and commerce in the region, particularly to Japan and South Korea. The West Philippine Sea is a critical sea lane that opens up to the South and East Asia, the Indian Continent, Africa, the Middle East and Europe. The volume of trade that passes through it is worth trillions of US dollars a year, which will be jeopardized if free and safe passage is restricted. The broiling

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CLASSES in basic education officially opened on Monday and an estimated 23 million students from kindergarten to secondary levels in public schools alone trooped to their classes.

The school opening highlights once more the need to improve the plight of our public-school teachers. They should receive a salary that is commensurate to the value of their contributions to our society. The government should honor its commitment to increase the pay of our teachers after it had upgraded significantly the pay of soldiers and policemen last year. The current monthly base pay for teachers of P20,179 is hardly enough to meet the basic expenses of a family with five members. If we want to raise the quality of education, the government should give priority to our teachers. No public servant has sacrificed so much to serve our people.

Aside from teaching our children, teachers are also tasked to do other

community services, such as serving as poll officials, census enumerators, civic leaders and coordinators of various government programs. I was once a public-school teacher in a far-flung barrio handling multigrade classes being a solo teacher in a community school five decades ago. I walked 7 kilometers, crossing rivers and creeks, just to reach my teaching assignment. It’s not the pay that motivates a teacher to report to her classroom everyday of her life. The greatest reward is hearing a seven-year-old child read a sentence correctly for the first time.

Mr. President, your beloved mother was a teacher herself. Increasing our teachers’ pay now is the greatest way to honor her memory. nnn

IT’S sad to note that some sectors claim that we cannot afford to hike the teachers’ compensation. Education accounts for the biggest share in our national budget. Last year, the DepEd’s appropriation was P527 billion, of which P350 billion went to teachers’ pay. Let’s not count the cost when the welfare of our youth is at stake. As one educator has said: “If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.”

Southeast Asia should keep taking the world’s junk

✝ Ambassador Antonio L. Cabangon Chua Publisher

maritime disputes between China and some countries in the region, as well as the threat of piracy, present a disconcerting outlook. In light of this, Japan has given us the assurance that it is ready to provide our country with its security needs to keep the South China Sea open to navigation and ensure the free passage of goods and commerce. I hope we can also count on the US to support us in securing this valuable sea lane against any unlawful incursion.

Foreign military assistance to be extended to us by friendly countries coupled by our own efforts to build

up our naval assets and defense capability should also embolden us to deal with any external threat with dignity. Thus, we have every right to ask China and demand from it an immediate answer: “Why claim the whole South China Sea?”

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OUTHEAST Asian nations no longer want your trash. Last week, Malaysia announced it was sending 3,300 tons of scrap plastics, including CDs, insulated electric cables and milk jugs back to countries ranging from Australia to Bangladesh, Canada, China, Japan and Saudi Arabia. Days later, the Philippines shipped back 69 containers of dirty Canadian diapers and other refuse brought into the country between 2013 and 2014.

It’s easy to see why: Smaller countries don’t want to become dumping grounds for trash that looks like it belongs in a hazardous-waste bin rather than a recycling facility. What’s ironic is that some of the countries forced to take back their scrap plastics don’t necessarily mind. In China, Japan and especially Europe, there’s growing momentum behind the idea that economies should strive to be more “circular”—in other words, that any waste they generate should be processed, recycled and reused at or close to home. Europe has set ambitious targets to achieve a continentwide circular economy over the next three decades.

It’s an attractive idea. Unfortunately, it won’t work. A true circular economy can’t be national or even regional. It has to be global.

For the most part, that’s what the

world had until quite recently. In the 19th century, an up-and-coming US imported scrap clothing from Europe to feed its paper mills and scrap steel from the UK to help build its railways.

After World War II, Japan and Taiwan rebuilt their economies by importing vast quantities of low-cost scrap metal and paper from around the world.

Beginning in the early 1980s, China surpassed all predecessors by becoming the world’s largest importer of recyclables. Everybody won.

Countries that might otherwise have sent recyclables to a dump for lack of proper processing facilities found a huge customer willing to pay a premium for it. Meanwhile, China was able to integrate recyclables into its manufacturing supply chain on a mass scale. To take just one example, in 2016, China made as much as half

of its copper from recycled resources, half of which were imported.

Of course, there were costs. Just as Chinese manufacturers often failed to meet the health and safety standards of developed countries, so did Chinese recyclers. Meanwhile, it proved cheaper to import recyclables —even the worst—from the developed world than to collect and manage China’s own waste. In January 2018 China severely restricted the import of scrap recyclables.

That decision has since warped the global recycling trade. Unscrupulous Chinese scrap importers quickly shifted operations to countries such as Malaysia, where they cut corners in recycling materials for export to factories back in China. Recent accounts of so-called waste dumping in Malaysia largely document these Chinese operations, not those of traditional Malaysian recyclers, who had previously generated few complaints.

The distinction is important.

Restricting the global trade in recyclable plastics because of the actions of some bad actors won’t suddenly encourage rich nations to reuse more of their own trash. The manufacturers who need that recycled material will remain in the developing world, especially since consumption, too, is growing in those regions. Meanwhile, recycled raw materials generated in developed regions like Europe will be more expensive—and less competitive—than what developing countries can make at home (a

problem familiar to manufacturers of finished goods).

Rather than trying to create closed recycling loops in each country or each region, environmental activists would do better to make the global recycling trade cleaner and more efficient. The first step is for the World Customs Organization to establish harmonized custom codes that accurately classify waste and recyclable raw materials. Currently, no such system exists, which allows importers to bring in low-quality recyclables that can only be processed using unsafe and environmentally unsound means.

Countries could also make the flow of recyclables smoother by lowering or eliminating tariffs on recyclable materials. These only raise the costs of recycling and incentivize smuggling.

Meanwhile, if activists in rich countries are concerned with the ability of poorer nations to recycle trash properly, they could do more to help them establish modern waste management systems. The US government is taking small steps in this direction already and China, in particular, could be a leader in this effort. If it diverted a mere 3 percent of all Belt and Road financing to establishing modern landfills and recycling facilities in recipient countries, it would expand the supply of sustainable raw materials while blunting the negative environmental consequences of letting poorer countries process imported trash.

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When good economics makes good politics

Friday, June 7, 2019 A15

Teachers Tito Genova Valiente

ANNOTATIONS

Ser Percival K. Peña-Reyes, Ph.D.

EAGLE WATCH

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RINCETON economist Alan Blinder provides an interesting description of what he calls the Lamppost Theory: Politicians typically use economics the way a drunk person uses a lamppost—for support, not illumination. This means that politicians, for better or worse, decide their positions on political criteria, and then they sometimes seek economists to bless those positions.

That decisions are made politically in a democracy is hardly shocking, and neither is it inherently wrong.

The real problem, though, as Blinder argues, is that good economics often makes bad politics, and good politics often makes bad economics.

It is because politicians have a different—and well-known—objective: getting elected and reelected.

Thus, politicians often strive to appeal to ordinary people who feel that their concerns are disregarded by established elite groups—the very meaning of populism.

By contrast, economists, particularly those who are not employed by special interest groups, generally support policies they deem to be in the national interest. They realize that virtually every policy change creates some losers, but they instinctively favor the ones likely to create the most benefits for the most people.

Of course, since politics rules, economic policy often goes astray, and Blinder cites some examples in the US context. Most US economists would align strongly behind using congestion tolls to ease traffic burdens on crowded bridges, tunnels and city streets, and yet almost all US politicians would shun them. In 2007, Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York recommended such fees, but the idea died in the state legislature.

Blinder goes on to mention that most US economists think that a carbon tax is, by far, the best way to fight global climate change, and yet it is difficult to find a single US politician who would advocate such a tax. In 2009, an effort to implement a cap-and-trade system, the first cousin of carbon tax, crashed and burned in the US Senate.

While it might be hard to refute Blinder’s generally cynical view of policy-making, at least here in the Philippines, there appears to be a promising exception from the recent elections. In a campaign likened to the biblical story of David and Goliath, first-term city councilor Victor Ma. Regis Nubla Sotto—more popularly known as Vico Sotto—was able to defeat reelectionist Pasig City Mayor Robert Eusebio, whose political clan’s decades-long hold on the city has finally come to an end.

Vico, who turns 30 on June 17, graduated from Ateneo de Manila University with a bachelor’s degree in political science and a master’s degree in public management. After college, Vico worked as a legislative staff officer at the Sangguniang Panlungsod of Quezon City from 2013 to 2015, and then as a project associate at the Ateneo School of Government. In 2016, he garnered the highest number of votes when he ran for councilor of Pasig City.

Despite being the son of popular

In assessing the current state of Pasig City, Vico acknowledges the existence of two starkly different realities: a more affluent side of Pasig that includes Ortigas and Kapitolyo, and an impoverished side right across the river. He envisions a city where the benefits of income growth are more widely shared. celebrities Vic Sotto and Coney Reyes, Vico ran a no-frills campaign that focused on issues. Eager to apply his knowledge, Vico organized his plan of action into three basic questions: Where is Pasig City now? Where should it be? How can it get there?

In answering these, Vico has demonstrated a keen understanding of scarcity, choice and opportunity cost in the handling of public resources.

In assessing the current state of Pasig City, Vico acknowledges the existence of two starkly different realities: a more affluent side of Pasig that includes Ortigas and Kapitolyo, and an impoverished side right across the river. He envisions a city where the benefits of income growth are more widely shared.

Although Pasig has a hefty budget of about P10.7 billion, wasteful spending is evident. Vico cites examples in extravagant celebrations, fireworks displays, pricey elevated walkways and repairs of roads that are not even damaged. To achieve his vision, the newly elected mayor would rather spend on projects with lasting impact, such as health care (human capital investment) and livelihood programs (multiplier effects).

As he sharply notes, “What use does a fancy-looking hospital have when it cannot even provide basic stuff like medicines?”

Vico also appears to have no hesitation in trading off goals. He cites the handling of Pasig traffic enforcers as an example. Under the previous leadership, the main thrust was income generation, which meant that traffic enforcers would aggressively hand out traffic tickets. Generating income may not be bad in and of itself, but ensuring the smoother flow of people, goods and services seems to be a more important goal.

Income generation can be given up for better mobility management.

Ultimately, better mobility management unleashes more income, which eventually increases the tax base.

Longing for change, Pasigueños have clearly bought into their young mayor’s simple yet compelling use of economic logic. This goes to show that good economics and good politics need not be mutually exclusive.

Dr. Ser Percival K. Peña-Reyes teaches economics at the Ateneo de Manila University.

M

Y mother was a public-school teacher, and I am mighty proud of her.

I have known teachers, most of them in public-school education, all of my life. I will always celebrate them and be thankful for their generosity, their wisdom, their selflessness.

Of course, there are rotten teachers, but I doubt if the number of bad teachers will ever surpass the number of bad politicians and local government leaders. I doubt if that number of ill-willed teachers will ever reach a significant number compared to those in higher offices and in more well-paying jobs whose sense of self is considered to be good and admirable.

Most of them have worked as teachers because that is what they are good at. A significant majority of them do not work for the money.

Teachers have always been there to teach, to open the eyes and mind of young children to the most basic of literacy—reading, writing and thinking. Remove these and the nation is free to commit any injustice to people. Remove the teachers and you remove the beginning of knowledge of any form.

And yet, we are never kind to our teachers.

Some weeks back, an arrogant post surfaced online celebrating the failure of many would-be teachers in passing the Licensure Exam for Teachers or LET. The exam must be tough, one must say to oneself, but this person proceeded to berate the examinees, scolding them for being dumb and irresponsible enough to try to be teachers.

I checked the web site of PRC containing the information about LET and the exam coverage. Here is what I got. For General Education, the exam shall encompass the following: 1. English (Study and Thinking Skills; Writing in the Discipline; Speech and Oral Communication; Philippine Literature; Master Works of the World);

2. Filipino (Komunikasyon sa Akademikong Pilipino; Pagbasa at Pagsulat sa Panananaliksik; Masining na Pagpapahayag); 3. Mathematics (Fundamentals of Math; Plane Geometry; Elementary Algebra; Statistics and Probability); 4. Science (Biological Science, General Biology; Physical Science with Earth Science); and 5. Social Sciences (Philippine Government New Constitution with Human Rights; Philippine History; Basic Economics, Taxation, Agrarian Reform; Society, Culture with Family Planning; Rizal and other Heroes; Philosophy of Man; Arts; General Psychology; Information and Communication Technology).

And that is just for General Education!

Imagine the person who passes the LET. Where does he or she teach?

What kind of classrooms will he or she be using? Who are the pupils or students in the public educational system? What educational devices are there for him or her to use?

I grew up watching my father make the so-called “devices” for my mother when the periodic evaluation comes to her school in San Fernando, Ticao Island.

Later, the smart and witty teachers of the town concocted a new name for Evaluation. They called it “Evaleat,” the reference being the use of the occasion for education officials from the regional and central office to partake of the sumptuous feasts prepared by teachers. The funds all came from the teachers’ pockets.

Have you heard of the Teacher’s Pavilion in the Quezon Institute (QI) , which is the institution that manages the detection, control and treatment

Church in action Rev. Fr. Antonio Cecilio T. Pascual

SERVANT LEADER

“All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had.”—Acts 4:32

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ROTHERS and sisters, we must strengthen our program in providing help and charity. Since the beginning, Christian communities proved their faith through engaging in prayer, attending Masses, reflecting in the words of God, and ultimately helping our fellowmen overcome poverty and even destitution.

In the recent years, great misfortune has wrought its way into society, as calamities, illnesses, cruelty and other evils that deprived the people from reaching and achieving peace, especially the poor and less fortunate. This is why the Catholic faithful, and the entirety of the people in general, must strengthen this trait of

stewardship among all by helping those in need, in both spiritual and material.

Radio Veritas 846 offers a public service program called Good Samaritan, that helps the Catholic Church and its foundations to gather information and connections from different organizations, individuals and institutions, that

Traffic jams are a sign of income inequality

By Leonid Bershidsky Bloomberg Opinion

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HE Dutch-based navigation company TomTom NV has discovered in the course of research for its 2018 traffic congestion index that the German cities with the highest and fastest-growing apartment rents are also the most congested. This finding contains an important message for city planners: Instead of trying to fight cars, perhaps it’s worth putting effort into

building more housing and decentralizing the business infrastructure to put people closer to their jobs.

TomTom found that Hamburg, the ninth-most expensive German city for renters, is the most congested; Berlin and Stuttgart are in the top 5 in both rent levels and congestion; Munich, where apartments are the priciest, is the sixth-most congested. The company did this exercise only for Germany, but the trend is obvious in the US, too. There, seven of the 10 cities with the highest

rents and six of the 10 most expensive cities to live in are among the 10 with the worst traffic problems.

TomTom’s explanation is that in more expensive cities, people tend to move to the suburbs, where they can afford the rents—but they still travel downtown for work. “The disconnection of place of residence and workplace” plays an important role in German cities’ traffic problems, the company wrote. Congestion, in other words, is at least to some extent rooted in inequality.

From a city planner or mayor’s point of view, the obvious way to reduce congestion (and the emissions it produces) is to get rid of cars, especially those that use fossil fuels. Amsterdam, for example, intends to get all gasoline- and dieselpowered cars off its streets by 2030, long before such vehicles are entirely out of the Dutch car fleet, which is, on average, more than nine years old today. The measure looks progressive—but, especially in an old city like Amsterdam with a lot of activity in a single center, it effectively

of tuberculosis in the Philippines?

Many cases have been written about teachers who are confined in the Teacher’s Pavilion. Years back, I encountered a story about a teacher who contracted pulmonary disease because of her being a teacher. The story was how, one day, during the height of a strong typhoon, this teacher had to rush back to her classroom to save the books and educational materials there. Days after she felt weak, had a fever and never recovered from the affliction. Many years ago, I was told she was there in that Pavilion in QI, that special hallway for teachers.

My introductory class in sociology and anthropology in the old Jesuit school had the privilege of having Soxie Topacio, the theatre and film actor and director, as a lecturer.

He told us of a school somewhere in the Visayas that was located in an island. There were only four classes in that school: Grades 1, 2, 3 and 4. There was only one teacher.

She would teach in one class in the morning while one class was doing seatwork, and the remaining two would have activities in the school garden. She would do this in rotation. When she got sick, she asked the boatman to bring to the school tasks and seatwork so that the pupils would not miss a day.

I have written about this story of Soxie, but I will be forever writing about this just to remind us about the teachers we love to criticize in our correct English.

Online again, a teacher posted how the lack of spaces in their school

have pushed them to use the toilet area for lounge. If we are to believe what appeared online, the teacher has been reprimanded.

I have written this many years ago, but let me write about this again: During the late ’80s, when martial law was losing steam and vile power, teachers finally staged a strike. For decades, it was always impressed upon them that, as teachers, they did not have the right to go on a strike or demonstration. But one day, it did happen, for the first time.

It was raining then. As a nonactivist, I thought to be around them would be my simplest way to show my support of teachers. Perhaps, I was thinking of my mother and all the other teachers I knew— Tita Ampy, Tita Ely, Mama Pening, Mama Toying, Manang Sue, Manang Letty, Manay Doring, Tia Enta, Mrs. Antonio…

I remember it rained hard that afternoon. The teachers were huddled in front of the old Congress. Many were sharing umbrellas. Under one tiny umbrella, three female teachers stood. I remember looking at them, their uniforms partly wet and seeing their shoes. The shoes were also wet but, more than that, they were wornout, the heels almost scraped out.

The rain was strong. I tried not to cry but I just found myself in tears.

I was angry. As I am angry now because no one has the right to tell the teachers of this nation that teaching is not all about the money. No one, no one at all.

altogether help those in need, particularly those in poverty. Good Samaritan also serves as a haven for the people asking for help from the charitable public overcome their illnesses and other needs through interviews, phone patches and text messaging.

In the past year, the Good Samaritan Program has reached out to 6,071 areas nationwide in helping communities, individuals and parishes that have faced dire endeavors. GSP, through the help of good-hearted individuals, institutions and organizations, were able to provide medical assistance such as medicine and equipment, laboratory services, food-crisis prevention and preparation equipment, burial/wake assistance, and clothing, institution referrals regarding concerns, and medical and dental checkups and missions, livelihood assistance, and crises responses.

Good Samaritan was able to garner donations of around P5,896,551 in both cash and in-kind donations from these various individuals, in-

stitutions and organizations.

Brothers and sisters, during these times, there are still great threats to life especially for the poor, and as true faithful Christians, we must urge ourselves to be with Christ not only in prayer, but in action. And helping one another, especially the less fortunate ones, indeed is a great service to God. For those who wish to reach out and those in need of help, you may contact the Good Samaritan Program through Veritas 846 hot line (632)925-7931 to 40. You may also reach us at our mobile lines Globe: 09175401189 Sun: 09233336454, and e-mail us at gspcaritasmanila@yahoo.com.

You may also check our facebook page at Good Samaritan ProgramCaritas Manila.

penalizes the poorer residents, who have had to move to the periphery, away from their jobs, and who can hardly afford new electric cars.

Congestion pricing in cities and its extreme form—a ban on older, cheaper cars—deliver the not-too-subtle message that urban centers aren’t for the poor. If you can’t afford to live there, try not to come at all. Or use often inconvenient, overcrowded and underfunded public transportation, further lowering your living standards.

There are less painful ways of delivering the same message, such as trying to provide more employment opportunities closer to where those forced out of downtown live. Although an academic debate about the effectiveness of job and housing “co-location” has raged for years, some recent work shows that trying to make cities more polycentric works to cut commuting times and reduce congestion. (So, of course, does improving public transportation links to and from the multiple centers).

E-mail: titovaliente@yahoo.com

Make it a habit to listen to Radio Veritas 846 Ang Radyo ng Simbahan in the AM band, or through live streaming at www.veritas846.ph and follow its Twitter and Instagram accounts @veritasph and YouTube at veritas846.ph. For your comments, e-mail veritas846pr@gmail.com.

2nd Front Page BusinessMirror

A16 Friday, June 7, 2019

‘Tokyo to fast-track action on PHL farm goods issues’

www.businessmirror.com.ph

WAS ‘RESTROOM’ VIDEO PROPAGANDA STUNT OF TEACHERS VS. DEPED?

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

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@jearcalas

OKYO has vowed to fast-track the concerns raised

by Manila over certain agricultural issues, including the latter’s bid to have expanded market access for its farm goods, Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol said.

Piñol added that he observed a “softening” among Japanese officials over long-standing issues on banana tariffs and other agricultural concerns during their recent bilateral talks.

This softening, Piñol said, could be attributed to the recent visit of President Duterte to Tokyo last week.

“The meeting, coming only one week after President Duterte’s visit, was a surprise development as Japan is known for its stringent protocols on official engagements and it normally takes months before meetings could be arranged,” he said in a Facebook post on Thursday morning. “[Japanese Minister for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries] Yoshikawa [Takamori] promised to fast-track the processing of documents and requirements related to the issues raised by the Philippine government during President Duterte’s visit,” he added.

Piñol, who is currently in Tokyo for a series of bilateral talks with his Japanese counterparts, said he

EDUCATION Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones poses with outstanding teachers in this 2018 file photo. The lifelong educator was bashed in social media by netizens apparently affected by what a DepEd official tagged as “propaganda” to make the DepEd chief look heartless in the case of Cavite teachers who turned their restroom into a faculty room. BUSINESSMIRROR

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco Correspondent

T A MAN tends to his banana stall somewhere in Manila in this 2018 file photo. BUSINESSMIRROR

raised anew the Philippines’s request to reduce to zero Japan’s tariff on Philippine cavendish—which currently ranges from 8 percent to 18 percent.

Local banana planters and exporters have been pitching for years the reduction of Japanese tariffs of Philippine cavendish to remain competitive against Latin American producers. The agriculture chief also sought the lifting of the mandatory inspection on Philippine banana exports, particularly companies that are

INTERTROPICAL CONVERGENCE ZONE AFFECTING PALAWAN AND MINDANAO as of 4:00 pm - June 6, 2019

compliant with pesticide residue standards of Japan.

The country’s banana exports to Japan in the first quarter nearly tripled to 3008,627.278 metric ton, from the 121,963.649 MT recorded volume in the same period of 2018, Philippine Stat ist ics Aut hor it y (PSA) d at a showed.

Total shipments to Japan in the first quarter were valued at $154.509 million, or 146.6 percent over $58.376 million recorded last year.

China dethroned Japan last year

“The meeting, coming only one week after President Duterte’s visit, was a surprise development as Japan is known for its stringent protocols on official engagements and it normally takes months before meetings could be arranged.”—Piñol

as the top buyer of Philippine bananas as Filipino growers took advantage of the expanding Chinese economy and population.

Piñol also proposed that Japan recognize the Philippines as a foot-and-mouth disease free country so it could export meat products in the future to the East Asian country. He also sought the immediate market access for Philippine avocado to Japan.

99.9953% accuracy in random manual audit

By Rea Cu

@ReaCuBM

T

HE Random Manual Audit Committee (RMAC) has reported that it is already finished with the manual audit of ballots from its sample size of 715 clustered precincts for the 2019 midterm elections, reporting an overall accuracy rate of 99.9953 percent.

Commission on Elections (Comelec) Commissioner Luie Tito F. Guia said that the random manual audit (RMA) originally slated for 715 cluster precincts was narrowed down to 711 cluster precincts, as four cluster precincts failed to be included in the audit.

He said that one clustered precinct in Quezon City was excluded from the manual audit as excess ballots were found in their respective votecounting machines (VCM), one clustered precinct from Lanao del Sur was reported to have missing ballots, one clustered precinct in Quezon province was reported to have all ballots torn in half, while a clustered precinct in Cebu was reported to have ballots from a different cluster precinct in its ballot box.

See “Manual audit,” A10

EACHERS at the Bacoor National High School-Molino Main were given other options, but decided to convert a restroom into their faculty room, the Department of Education (DepEd) said on Thursday.

Education Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones added that they are exerting all efforts to “facilitate a solution acceptable to all officials and teachers” of the school and that concrete steps “have been undertaken to resolve any conflict, in the interest of orderly operations of the school.”

The issue arose from the school’s implementation of its decision to move to single-shift classes this school year.

The school has an enrollment of more than 7,000 learners.

As a result of the single-shift decision, faculty rooms that were intended originally as classrooms had to be converted back into additional classrooms.

To address the displacement of teachers from the faculty rooms, the DepEd explained, the principal met with the teachers on May 27.

Minutes of the meeting indicate that the principal offered the library, the guidance center and the advisory classrooms to serve as temporary faculty rooms.

“However, 11 of the school’s 236 teachers opted to convert a restroom into a faculty room. It must be emphasized that the use of restroom is the choice of the 11 teachers themselves who then complained about it in social media,” DepEd said in a statement.

The principal has issued a memorandum for them to vacate the comfort room.

“The Department would like to ensure that the resulting temporary

arrangement will be acceptable to all concerned,” the statement added.

Meanwhile, DepEd said it also seeks to address the Bacoor issue and similar concerns strategically, over the long term, by including in its programs the construction of administration buildings.

“DepEd has included in its 2020 budget request to the Department of Budget and Management [DBM] the funding for an initial batch of such buildings that will have space for principal’s office, faculty room, guidance room, library and school supplies, and equipment storage in times of calamities.”

Likewise, the DepEd reminded its teachers and personnel that “there are appropriate administrative procedures in addressing welfare concerns,” an apparent reference to the teachers’ resort to social media.

Propaganda MEANWHILE, Undersecretary for Administration and Election Task Force Chairman Alain Pascua used his Facebook Page to clear the air.

In his post, “Balita Nga Ba o Propaganda?,” Pascual pointed out that in this time of the digital age, “it is important that we distinguish not only fake news from real ones, but we should all the more be able to pinpoint propaganda against truth.”

“Let us take for example the recent brouhaha over the use of a toilet room as a faculty room that erupted as striking news during the opening of classes.

Many people picked up on the socialmedia post of a teacher in Bacoor National High School and lambasted the school principal, the Department of Education, and eventually Education Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones,” Pascua said.

Pascua urged the public to focus on the “solid facts about the matter”.

See “Restroom,” A10

Old, new senators move to resolve row over committee posts

By Butch Fernandez

I

@butchfBM

NCUMBENTS and incoming senators inched closer to firming up new Senate committee chairmanships to be formalized when the next Congress convenes on July 22.

Senate President Vicente Sotto III, in a phone-patch interview on Thursday, confirmed the initial consensus on committee assignments emerged in the course of the “introductory welcome dinner” he hosted for incoming senators on Tuesday night.

“Maganda, mabuti, sapagkat parang ginawa naming introductory welcome dinner doon sa mga incoming. Yung incoming na dumating ay lima—senators-elect Bong Go,

Ronald dela Rosa, Francis Tolentino, Imee Marcos, Pia Cayetano.

[It was good, because we made it an introductory welcome dinners for the incoming. Those who came to dinner were senators-elect Bong Go, Ronald dela Rosa, Francis Tolentino, Imee Marcos and Pia Cayetano],” Sotto said.

Absent was senator-elect Francis Tolentino, who was initially reported as being keen on getting the chairmanship of several key committees, such as the Blue Ribbon, Justice and Human Rights and Public Services. These are now chaired by incumbents: Richard Gordon for Blue Ribbon and Justice, and Grace Poe for Public Services.

Sotto said the occasion enabled See “Senators,” A10

Companies BusinessMirror

Editor: Efleda P. Campos

Friday, June 7, 2019

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SMC eyes 1,200 MW more of RE in 5 years

By Lenie Lectura

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@llectura

HE power business of conglomerate San Miguel Corp. (SMC) targets to add 1,200 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy (RE) to its portfolio in five years.

“About 1,200 MW to be finished by 2024, comprised of solar, wind and pump hydro,” SMC President Ramon S. Ang said.

He said “70 percent” of the 1,200-

MW RE projects “have started” and that the company will be able to meet the target completion date. The company will pursue the completion of these power projects on its own.

Ang refused to divulge more details of the company’s RE plans, citing stiff competition in the power industry. “Ang power business ngayon ay mababa na at ang dami pang issues so dapat may element of surprise…nakabili na kami ng equipment, ginagawa na yung foundation. Mga Environmental Compliance Certificate ang kulang; ginagawa na mga iyon.”

The best locations for SMC’s RE projects, Ang said, are Mariveles, Bataan and Ilocos Norte for wind power.

SMC’s push for RE will help address the country’s growing power

needs. The government is projecting that by 2040, the country needs up to 43,765 MW of new power capacity.

Also, the conglomerate said it would pursue to replace coal with rice husks as fuel for its power plants that run on Circulating Fluidized Bed (CFB) technology to help boost farmers’ income while it transitions to renewable and sustainable energy generation.

Instead of burning or dumping rice husks, Ang said the company wants to fully utilize this agricultural waste product both as energy source for power plants and

DMCI Homes land bank reaches ₧10.2B in Q1

By VG Cabuag @villygc

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EVELOPER DMCI Homes Inc. continues to grow its land bank, reaching 150 hectares as of end March from last year’s 125 hectares.

The property arm of listed firm DMCI Holdings Inc. currently has a total land value of P10.2 billion, up by 71 percent from P6 billion from last year.

“We have to continue building our land bank as we continue to

strengthen our presence in and outside Metro Manila, such as in Davao and Cebu,” DMCI Homes President Alfredo Austria said.

“Every year, thousands of new households across different market segments are created all over the country, providing more opportunities for the industry,” he said.

Driven by lower costs of development, DMCI Homes posted a net income of P481 million in the first quarter of 2019, a 5-percent increase from P460 million last year.

For this year alone, DMCI Homes is eyeing to launch 10 projects worth P104 billion, including its initial venture into the Cebu property market.

Also lined up for launch are new projects in Davao, Quezon City, Las Piñas, Pasig, Mandaluyong and Manila.

Meanwhile, two more condo buildings are set to be delivered by the company before year-end after completing six other residential structures early this year.

Set for turnover in the second

half of 2019 are the Surya and Raja buildings of Alea Residences, the company’s midrise condominium development in Bacoor City.

Known for its track record of delivering condominium projects on or ahead of time, DMCI Homes already completed six other buildings in the first four months of 2019.

These include Zebrina building of Calathea Place in Parañaque City; Bluebird building of Bristle Ridge in Baguio City; Fairway Terraces in Pasay City; and Alea Residences’s Darma building.

income source for rice farmers.

“Rice husk is also used for CFB. Pwede i-replace ang coal ng pure rice husk and pwede patakbuhin ito on pure waste. Ang tawag dito ay multi-fuel design. CFB is designed to run on multi-fuel. Lahat ng plant na binibili namin ganun ang design. Anytime uumpisahan na namin basta may rice husk available,” Ang said.

He earlier explained that emissions from rice husk-based fuel are expected be even lower and that this move will also boost rice farming in the country.

“This way, we reduce our emis-

sion further, encourage more farmers to increase rice production, make their lives better and help address a perennial food-security challenge. If we encourage more farmers to plant rice by providing them additional sources of income, our rice sufficiency and food security improves. At the same time, we use palay husks to generate more environment-friendly energy,” Ang had said.

The company is also willing to put up the necessary infrastructure and facilities needed to support rice farmers to collect husks that will be bought from them.

AC Industrials to sell Maxus autos

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YALA Group’s AC Industrials has added Chinese automotive brand Maxus to its roster of vehicle products, and is eyeing to sell at least 500 units this year on competitive advantage in seating capacity.

AC Industrials on Wednesday introduced the Maxus brand to the Philippines with two models listed under its lineup. Maxus thus became the sixth automotive brand partner under the Ayala Group’s industrial technology arm, along with Honda, Isuzu, Volkswagen, Kia and KTM motorcycles. In an interview with reporters, Maxus Philippines General Manager Reginald G. See said the car firm is targeting to sell a modest 500 units this year, but is planning to double, it not triple, sales next year. “We have a modest target this year because

it has only six months to come out. We are looking at about 500 units to 600 units, but we plan to double or triple that next year with new product offerings,” See said. “We start off with two products first—the G10 and the V80—but next year, we will be coming out with more, [as] we will try to double or triple our target by then,” he added.

During the launch, Maxus Philippines introduced its flagship model G10 family multipurpose vehicle and the V80 Comfort, Flex and Transport vans. The G10 is a nine-seater minivan, while the V80 Comfort is a 13-seater family van.

The V80 Flex is a three-seater vehicle with spacious interior ideal for cargo transport, while the V80 Transport is an 18-seater variant perfect for shuttle service business. Elijah Felice E. Rosales

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Companies BusinessMirror

Friday, June 7, 2019

PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

June 6, 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 RCBC SECURITY BANK UNION BANK BRIGHT KINDLE BDO LEASING COL FINANCIAL FIRST ABACUS FERRONOUX HLDG FILIPINO FUND IREMIT MEDCO HLDG MANULIFE NTL REINSURANCE PHIL STOCK EXCH VANTAGE

59 138 81 26.85 11.5 70.45 13.4 57.35 57.3 27.5 170 60 1.18 2.21 18.74 0.52 4.41 7.83 1.36 0.47 775 0.97 183.2 1.12

59.45 138.1 81.3 26.9 11.52 70.65 13.98 57.8 57.75 27.95 172.1 60.3 1.2 2.25 18.78 0.58 4.49 8.6 1.37 0.49 780 0.99 184.5 1.22

59 137.5 81.25 26.8 11.62 71 13.98 57.95 57.75 26.75 172 60.8 1.18 2.23 18.74 0.52 4.42 7.87 1.37 0.49 780 0.99 184.9 1.12

59 139.2 82.5 26.85 11.64 71.3 14 57.95 57.75 28 173.8 60.8 1.18 2.23 18.74 0.52 4.49 7.87 1.37 0.495 780 0.99 184.9 1.12

59 135.5 81 26.65 11.5 70.3 13.22 57.35 57.75 26.5 167.9 59.85 1.18 2.23 18.74 0.52 4.4 7.87 1.37 0.47 780 0.97 184.5 1.12

59 138 81 26.85 11.5 70.45 13.22 57.8 57.75 27.5 172.1 60 1.18 2.23 18.74 0.52 4.49 7.87 1.37 0.495 780 0.99 184.5 1.12

1050 2252790 2846360 127000 191400 4116590 2900 68670 660 100100 2183820 4590 45000 4000 5900 25000 37000 600 80000 340000 180 123000 110 1000

61950 310434793 232165129 3405125 2211894 291002953 40352 3958072 38115 2731860 369068990 276442 53100 8920 110566 13000 163210 4722 109600 166950 140400 119920 20315 1120

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 AGRINURTURE 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 CEMEX HLDG EAGLE CEMENT EEI CORP HOLCIM MEGAWIDE PHINMA TKC METALS VULCAN INDL CHEMPHIL CROWN ASIA LMG CHEMICALS MABUHAY VINYL PRYCE CORP GREENERGY INTEGRATED MICR IONICS PANASONIC SFA SEMICON CIRTEK HLDG

1.39 35.45 0.285 24 76.6 386.6 23.5 6.04 4.58 2.54 12 41.1 6.51 14.3 16.12 14.54 5.6 10.1 7.6 106.2 0.72 42.5 275 9.5 12.34 0.19 1.22 14.12 1.52 5 1.9 0.127 168 1.24 2.5 2.44 15.94 10.24 13.54 20 9.06 1.39 1.32 110 2 4.2 3.3 4.9 2.54 10.42 1.66 5.43 1.17 24.8

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 GT CAPITAL HOUSE OF INV JG SUMMIT LODESTAR LOPEZ HLDG LT GROUP MABUHAY HLDG METRO PAC INV PACIFICA PRIME MEDIA SOLID GROUP SM INVESTMENTS SAN MIGUEL CORP SOC RESOURCES TOP FRONTIER WELLEX INDUS ZEUS HLDG

0.61 13.84 927.5 54.55 15.58 3.7 6.5 0.76 1.26 1.26 6.89 10.38 13.8 861 6.2 62.6 0.47 4.61 15.1 0.56 4.42 0.038 1.08 1.36 952.5 185 0.94 266 0.232 0.3

1.4 35.5 0.29 24.05 76.95 389 24.3 6.05 4.59 2.55 12.22 41.2 6.53 14.48 16.96 14.88 5.75 10.12 7.64 106.8 0.73 42.55 278.4 9.6 12.38 0.198 1.23 14.14 1.54 5.08 1.92 0.132 168.2 1.25 2.71 2.45 16 10.36 13.6 20.05 9.39 1.42 1.33 116 2.03 4.44 3.5 4.92 2.58 10.5 1.68 5.7 1.19 24.9

1.39 35.8 0.295 23.5 77 390 23.4 6.11 4.62 2.47 12.28 41.95 6.55 14.5 16.4 14.5 5.6 10.14 7.63 108.9 0.76 42.5 279 9.9 12.54 0.19 1.24 13.9 1.55 5 1.91 0.127 167.9 1.29 2.5 2.49 15.92 10.3 13.6 20.4 9.2 1.46 1.3 111 2.03 4.22 3.5 4.9 2.56 10.58 1.7 5.43 1.22 25.5

1.4 36 0.295 24.35 77.35 390.2 24.3 6.11 4.62 2.57 12.28 42.3 6.6 14.5 16.4 14.62 5.77 10.2 7.64 108.9 0.76 42.9 281 9.9 12.54 0.19 1.24 14.12 1.57 5.08 1.92 0.127 168.7 1.29 2.54 2.51 16.16 10.36 13.62 20.4 9.2 1.51 1.37 111 2.03 4.22 3.5 4.9 2.58 10.6 1.7 5.43 1.22 25.5

1.38 35.5 0.28 23.3 76.5 386.4 23.25 6.05 4.58 2.46 12 41.2 6.5 14.3 16.4 14.5 5.6 10.02 7.5 106.2 0.72 42.5 275 9.4 12.24 0.19 1.21 13.9 1.52 5 1.91 0.127 165.2 1.24 2.5 2.32 15.92 10.16 13.5 20 9.06 1.39 1.28 110 1.99 4.22 3.5 4.9 2.48 10.38 1.67 5.4 1.18 24.9

1.4 35.5 0.285 24 76.6 389 24.3 6.05 4.59 2.54 12.28 41.2 6.53 14.48 16.4 14.54 5.75 10.12 7.6 106.2 0.73 42.5 275 9.5 12.34 0.19 1.23 14.12 1.52 5 1.92 0.127 168 1.25 2.5 2.45 16 10.36 13.54 20 9.06 1.39 1.33 110 2 4.22 3.5 4.9 2.58 10.5 1.68 5.43 1.18 24.9

218000 1388600 5340000 6233200 52870 110010 1594500 912400 58000 30269000 54200 168500 107100 1943200 1800 640600 8700 5874800 306700 312150 1668000 312800 1161490 11800 670100 20000 1645000 892800 1060000 90800 59000 230000 893400 5021000 1087000 17619000 244800 302800 388200 3502100 12000 7451000 7145000 170 137000 500000 1000 29000 7745000 122400 246000 10500 153000 91400

302760 49,337,535( 1529750 148892090 4072959.5 42674332 37359315 5536273 266600 76,609,160( 656706 7021730 700846 28125888 29520 9311100 49748 59302840 2323590 33215599 1218200 13295715 323871910 111500 8309904 3800 2013640 12548084 1629000 454024 112750 29210 149712188 6313960 2722360 42556670 3918932 3105692 5257510 70225280 109260 10743840 9519220 18730 274520 2110000 3500 142100 19693210 1284942 412610 56778 181030 2285050

HOLDING & FRIMS 0.62 13.88 928.5 54.65 15.6 3.71 6.83 0.78 1.27 1.27 6.93 10.42 14 868 6.3 63.2 0.49 4.67 15.2 0.57 4.43 0.039 1.15 1.37 965 185.4 0.96 269 0.236 0.305

0.6 14 931 54.4 15.8 3.65 6.71 0.78 1.29 1.27 6.83 10.48 14 870 6.21 62.5 0.5 4.69 15.1 0.53 4.49 0.039 1.08 1.37 952 185.5 0.95 265.2 0.233 0.3

0.62 14.4 931.5 54.75 15.84 3.73 6.87 0.79 1.3 1.27 6.93 10.48 14 870 6.3 63.45 0.5 4.69 15.24 0.57 4.55 0.039 1.08 1.37 965 187 0.98 269 0.236 0.31

0.58 13.84 921 54.15 15.46 3.65 6.7 0.76 1.25 1.26 6.83 10.26 13.8 850 6.2 61.5 0.475 4.61 15.08 0.53 4.36 0.038 1.08 1.37 940.5 183.1 0.94 265 0.232 0.295

0.61 13.84 927.5 54.55 15.6 3.71 6.87 0.76 1.27 1.27 6.89 10.38 14 861 6.2 62.65 0.495 4.61 15.1 0.57 4.43 0.039 1.08 1.37 965 185 0.96 269 0.232 0.3

26751000 136600 655020 554140 5048200 6505000 24900 851000 1239000 277000 164800 2907400 12300 77310 71300 1705640 55000 4096000 4720300 305000 33470000 10100000 12000 8000 263610 546930 1259000 6950 410000 15740000

16201170 1896822 607528695 30185115.5 78567902 24104140 166879 652060 1562720 349610 1131016 30117658 171482 66454700 443627 106693512.5 26195 19007030 71283808 168000 148328580 388500 12960 10960 251270140 101218008 1201690 1855978 95270 4775950

56050 47458017.9999 -7809507 -187645 -769000 -162055198 1397458.5 -30030 27750 -31177121 -125842.5 -4410 -140400 -18430 -42800 6,513,984.9997) 13306890 -2080014.5 -2045112 4248825 -919643 2,280,399.9997) -3888580 15807226 1559554 -19487590 -789392 -750145 73000 6846750 -102568412 -1820820 60900 328762 459000 -74492319 109270 2170000 -5484400 1430768 491844 1120446 -56128400 -120000 26000 -569239.9997 -475706 8400 17500 -197120 97520 23233815 -9320906.5 -12620226 -5276550 163480 39000 -37073 -2248034 -18162 -22642925 -24623529 -919650 -16259114 3640120 51862790 6828459 34200 690328 -420950

PROPERTY

ARTHALAND CORP 0.79 0.8 0.78 0.79 0.78 0.79 345000 270880 31200 AYALA LAND 50 50.4 51 51.25 50 50 22,628,230 1 ,143,095,672.5 30523893.5 ARANETA PROP 2.09 2.1 2.1 2.11 2.09 2.1 387000 812780 21000 BELLE CORP 2.33 2.35 2.34 2.35 2.32 2.33 439000 1024830 -53520 A BROWN 0.8 0.81 0.79 0.81 0.78 0.81 307000 244000 11850 CITYLAND DEVT 0.95 0.97 0.96 0.98 0.95 0.95 98000 93990 CROWN EQUITIES 0.227 0.228 0.225 0.227 0.225 0.227 160000 36110 6780 CEBU HLDG 6.14 6.35 6.12 6.4 6.12 6.4 9600 61012 CEB LANDMASTERS 4.85 4.88 4.82 4.92 4.82 4.85 612000 2985930 -299510 CENTURY PROP 0.57 0.58 0.63 0.63 0.58 0.58 60640000 36361520 -448960 CYBER BAY 0.38 0.385 0.375 0.38 0.37 0.38 150000 56300 DOUBLEDRAGON 25.95 26 26 26.35 25.5 26 683800 17752985 6538205 DM WENCESLAO 10.04 10.08 9.84 10.08 9.8 10.08 43600 437408 EMPIRE EAST 0.47 0.475 0.47 0.475 0.47 0.47 870000 409000 EVER GOTESCO 0.125 0.133 0.125 0.125 0.125 0.125 500000 62500 FILINVEST LAND 1.78 1.79 1.76 1.8 1.74 1.78 51095000 90682820 -21118480 GLOBAL ESTATE 1.41 1.43 1.43 1.44 1.41 1.43 1797000 2543400 8990 HLDG 16.2 16.24 16.28 16.3 16.1 16.24 285500 4622586 -253258 PHIL INFRADEV 2 2.01 1.91 2.05 1.91 2 20688000 41403760 -534000 CITY AND LAND 0.82 0.84 0.81 0.84 0.79 0.84 157000 125180 MEGAWORLD 6.12 6.15 6.15 6.16 6.1 6.15 12017400 73656008 42193349 MRC ALLIED 0.31 0.315 0.31 0.32 0.305 0.315 6230000 1957650 28350 PHIL ESTATES 0.47 0.48 0.47 0.49 0.47 0.49 60000 29200 PRIMEX CORP 2.17 2.18 2.63 2.63 2.14 2.18 7431000 17377260 -93670 ROBINSONS LAND 26.05 26.1 26.55 26.55 25.9 26.05 2574600 67227840 119380 PHIL REALTY 0.41 0.42 0.405 0.41 0.405 0.41 180000 73550 ROCKWELL 2.07 2.08 2.12 2.12 2.07 2.08 29000 60630 4240 SHANG PROP 2.96 2.99 2.99 2.99 2.99 2.99 3000 8970 STA LUCIA LAND 1.89 1.93 1.9 1.93 1.88 1.93 80000 151590 SM PRIME HLDG 39.15 39.2 39.35 39.35 39 39.15 8494100 333379835 -47857810 STARMALLS 6.33 6.34 6.38 6.38 6.34 6.34 54600 347089 19110 VISTA LAND 7.08 7.12 7.15 7.15 7.07 7.12 3974700 28279795 -7555553

SERVICES ABS CBN 18.46 18.48 18.36 18.5 18.36 18.46 74800 1377288 GMA NETWORK 5.38 5.4 5.41 5.41 5.38 5.4 68700 370652 MANILA BULLETIN 0.55 0.56 0.56 0.56 0.55 0.56 873000 480810 MLA BRDCASTING 14.8 15.48 14.3 14.3 14.3 14.3 500 7150 GLOBE TELECOM 2274 2280 2294 2308 2250 2274 50600 115050490 39263440 PLDT 1230 1231 1246 1268 1230 1230 269330 334776855 -108686080 APOLLO GLOBAL 0.044 0.045 0.044 0.044 0.044 0.044 4100000 180400 DFNN INC 5.8 5.88 5.88 5.88 5.88 5.88 10000 58800 -58800 IMPERIAL 1.77 1.9 1.76 1.86 1.76 1.86 5000 9200 ISLAND INFO 0.121 0.122 0.122 0.125 0.121 0.122 870000 105570 ISM COMM 5.98 6 6.09 6.1 5.9 6 4916900 29467785 1328852.0002 NOW CORP 2.49 2.5 2.8 2.83 2.5 2.5 9608000 25186190 -360810 TRANSPACIFIC BR 0.37 0.38 0.36 0.38 0.355 0.375 13230000 4898650 44400 PHILWEB 3.36 3.37 3.3 3.44 3.26 3.36 1331000 4441500 -653000 2GO GROUP 11.38 11.4 11.6 11.6 11.4 11.4 64400 745600 47140 ASIAN TERMINALS 21 21.45 20.25 21.45 20.25 21.45 900 18870 CHELSEA 6.4 6.45 6.59 6.59 6.4 6.4 1700900 10974734 782413.9998 CEBU AIR 91.4 91.5 91.3 91.95 91.2 91.5 251480 23012855.5 -3265015 INTL CONTAINER 135 136 136 137 134.9 136 1483460 201825712 29256118 LBC EXPRESS 14.1 15 14 14 13.9 14 3100 43370 -14000 LORENZO SHIPPNG 0.88 0.9 0.88 0.94 0.88 0.88 2551000 2318220 -119130 MACROASIA 20.6 20.75 21.2 21.2 20.4 20.75 312100 6473695 -847025 METROALLIANCE A 1.55 1.67 1.58 1.58 1.55 1.55 40000 62900 PAL HLDG 9.7 9.75 9.4 9.75 9.4 9.75 20300 193412 47500 HARBOR STAR 2.21 2.22 2.28 2.28 2.18 2.22 1193000 2645170 154000 ACESITE HOTEL 1.33 1.38 1.31 1.38 1.31 1.38 16000 21650 BOULEVARD HLDG 0.057 0.058 0.06 0.06 0.056 0.057 59740000 3427280 -29640 GRAND PLAZA 9.88 10.48 10.08 10.08 10.02 10.02 800 8022 WATERFRONT 0.71 0.72 0.7 0.73 0.68 0.71 5000000 3593540 CENTRO ESCOLAR 7.05 7.3 7.05 7.05 7.05 7.05 500 3525 IPEOPLE 10.26 10.5 10.5 10.5 10.26 10.5 1200 12360 STI HLDG 0.72 0.73 0.73 0.74 0.72 0.72 4689000 3383570 284550 BERJAYA 2.82 2.83 2.8 2.83 2.72 2.82 567000 1573670 BLOOMBERRY 11.94 11.96 11.98 11.98 11.82 11.94 1512900 18029314 1748744 PACIFIC ONLINE 3.16 3.2 3.18 3.2 3.16 3.2 31000 98780 3190 LEISURE AND RES 4.11 4.12 4.28 4.28 4.06 4.11 4076000 16809020 -516730 MANILA JOCKEY 3.68 3.82 3.68 3.72 3.68 3.68 15000 55600 PH RESORTS GRP 4.66 4.87 4.9 4.9 4.66 4.87 17000 81330 PREMIUM LEISURE 0.77 0.78 0.78 0.79 0.77 0.78 3737000 2901950 254280 PHIL RACING 8.11 9 9 9 8.9 9 2400 21569 TRAVELLERS 5.23 5.25 5.25 5.25 5.18 5.25 1670900 8705927 -4774884 METRO RETAIL 2.65 2.66 2.7 2.7 2.66 2.66 1900000 5073560 2660 PUREGOLD 45.8 45.9 45.5 45.8 44.95 45.8 1310100 59774985 30386170 ROBINSONS RTL 72.6 72.95 73 73.5 72.2 72.95 215360 15710397 -11535197 PHIL SEVEN CORP 124 125.8 123.9 124 118.1 124 46740 5793646 61091 SSI GROUP 3.34 3.38 3.2 3.41 3.2 3.38 18166000 59881600 30519480 WILCON DEPOT 17.04 17.12 17.1 17.2 17 17.04 1865600 31892354 1394950 APC GROUP 0.44 0.445 0.43 0.445 0.43 0.445 2060000 899450 EASYCALL 10.4 10.48 10.34 10.6 10.34 10.48 17000 177000 GOLDEN BRIA 401.8 413 414.6 414.6 413 413 800 330452 IPM HLDG 5.5 6 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.7 10000 57000 PAXYS 2.95 3.04 3.05 3.05 3.05 3.05 24000 73200 -73199.9999 PRMIERE HORIZON 0.83 0.84 0.83 0.85 0.82 0.84 12867000 10812480 -470400 SBS PHIL CORP 9.2 9.49 9.32 9.5 9.22 9.49 65600 612201 -266070

MINING & OIL ATOK 12 12.38 12.38 12.38 12.38 12.38 1800 22284 APEX MINING 1.14 1.15 1.18 1.18 1.12 1.15 1577000 1813740 -128900.0001 ABRA MINING 0.0018 0.0019 0.0019 0.0019 0.0019 0.0019 2000000 3800 COAL ASIA HLDG 0.28 0.295 0.28 0.28 0.28 0.28 240000 67200 CENTURY PEAK 2.79 2.83 2.8 2.8 2.79 2.79 49000 136960 DIZON MINES 7.69 7.7 7.71 7.76 7.7 7.7 13700 105630 FERRONICKEL 1.47 1.48 1.48 1.48 1.47 1.48 4289000 6342220 622020 GEOGRACE 0.23 0.239 0.244 0.244 0.226 0.24 250000 58230 LEPANTO A 0.111 0.113 0.109 0.113 0.108 0.112 4800000 527260 LEPANTO B 0.109 0.13 0.115 0.13 0.115 0.13 1800000 218030 MANILA MINING A 0.0075 0.0079 0.0075 0.0075 0.0075 0.0075 1000000 7500 MANILA MINING B 0.0077 0.0079 0.0076 0.0077 0.0076 0.0077 2000000 15300 MARCVENTURES 1.03 1.05 1.03 1.03 1.03 1.03 5000 5150 NIHAO 0.96 1.01 1 1.01 1 1.01 16000 16030 NICKEL ASIA 2.3 2.31 2.31 2.33 2.26 2.3 759000 1747300 -244570.0001 OMICO CORP 0.54 0.58 0.55 0.55 0.55 0.55 258000 141900 ORNTL PENINSULA 0.87 0.88 0.88 0.89 0.87 0.89 108000 94690 PX MINING 3.33 3.36 3.24 3.36 3.24 3.34 2765000 9194800 -39910 SEMIRARA MINING 21.8 21.85 21.6 21.9 21.55 21.8 1954400 42445795 -8473295 ORNTL PETROL A 0.011 0.012 0.011 0.012 0.011 0.011 4800000 54300 ORNTL PETROL B 0.011 0.012 0.011 0.011 0.011 0.011 1900000 20900 PHILODRILL 0.01 0.011 0.011 0.011 0.01 0.01 4400000 46400 PHINMA PETRO 3.76 3.84 3.65 3.85 3.65 3.84 309000 1154460 PXP ENERGY 7.88 7.92 8.29 8.29 7.8 7.88 5144300 40805782 -3522276

PREFFERED

AC PREF B2 497 498 487 498 487 497 3020 1500850 DD PREF 97 98.5 97.55 98.5 97.55 98.5 66810 6579808 SMC FB PREF 2 963.5 974.5 975 975 974.5 974.5 20 19495 FGEN PREF G 104.4 104.8 104.8 104.8 104.8 104.8 4000 419200 FPH PREF C 456 457.8 456 456 456 456 20 9120 GLO PREF P 486 493 487 487 487 487 230 112010 LR PREF 0.99 1.01 1 1 1 1 542000 542000 MWIDE PREF 102.4 102.5 102.5 102.5 102.4 102.4 120 12290 -2050 PNX PREF 3A 99 101.5 99.8 99.8 99 99 5940 588930 9910 PNX PREF 3B 102.4 107 105.5 105.5 102 102 510 53070 PCOR PREF 2A 985 995 995 995 985 985 20 19800 PCOR PREF 2B 990 1025 990 990 990 990 10 9900 SMC PREF 2B 75.1 75.45 75.4 75.5 75.4 75.4 13490 1017153 SMC PREF 2C 77 77.9 77 77 77 77 1830 140910 SMC PREF 2D 72.1 73 72.1 72.1 72.1 72.1 2700 194670 SMC PREF 2E 72.1 74 72.7 73.95 72 72.1 45700 3338305 SMC PREF 2F 74.75 77.95 74 74.75 73.9 74.75 15060 1120835 SMC PREF 2G 73.1 74.35 74.35 74.35 74.35 74.35 5000 371750 SMC PREF 2H 72.5 73.8 73 73 73 73 13400 978200 SMC PREF 2I 73 73.5 73.7 73.7 73.7 73.7 2800 206360 -

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS GMA HLDG PDR

5.12

5.2

5.2

5.2

5.2

5.2

8900

46280

WARRANTS LR WARRANT

1.96

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES ITALPINAS 4.7 XURPAS 1.01

2.06

2.06

1.96

1.96

464000

927520

-

4.74 1.02

4.8 1.03

4.8 1.03

4.67 1

4.7 1.02

133000 2282000

626150 2310320

94200 6060

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS FIRST METRO ETF

118.7

-46280

1.99

119

117.1

119.3

117.1

119

5290

629581

119000

www.businessmirror.com.ph

AboitizPower supplies 18.8 MW to 13 local WalterMart outlets

A

BOITIZ Power Corp. (Aboitiz Power is now supplying 18.8 megawatts (MW) of power to 13 outlets of community shopping leader WalterMart.

Under the third contract, AboitizPower will supply WalterMart an additional 9.1 MW of electricity to four more of its facilities in Luzon.

The WalterMart Group first tapped AboitizPower in 2017 to deliver 4.7 MW of power supply to four facilities. A second contract was signed in 2018 to deliver another 5 MW to five more facilities.

The contract extension signed on May 31 allows AboitizPower to deliver around 19 MW of electricity to 13 of WalterMart’s 25 outlets all over Luzon until 2021.

“We have been partners with AboitizPower for more than two years now, and we have seen their expertise and capacity to meet our

requirements and help us deliver on our promise of convenient shopping for our valued customers every day,” WM Shopping Center Management Inc. (WMSCMI) Chairman Abraham Uy said.

AboitizPower currently supplies energy to WalterMart facilities in Makati, Dasmariñas, Carmona, Tanauan, Balayan, Bel-Air Santa Rosa, Santa Rosa, Makati 2, San Fernando, North Edsa, Santa Maria, Ascott BGC and WMall.

The chain currently has 29 community malls strategically located in Batangas, Laguna, Cavite, Metro Manila, Bulacan, Pampanga and Nueva Ecija.

“What we offer our customers is

not just reliable and cost-efficient power supply. We also ensure the quality of service remains consistent long after the contract has been signed. In support of WalterMart’s desire to continue providing Filipino families a convenient shopping experience, AboitizPower “promises to provide reliable, reasonable and responsible power supply to most of their facilities in Luzon,” said Sandro A. Aboitiz, AboitizPower first vice president for Energy Trading and Sales.

Meanwhile, SN Aboitiz Power (SNAP) and the municipal government of Lamut signed a framework agreement for the proposed Alimit Hydropower Complex.

The agreement outlines the cooperation, collaboration and obligations between and among SNAP as project proponent and the municipalities as hosts during the development and operation phase of the project.

The first phase of the project

entails the construction of the 120-megawatt Alimit plant and the 20-MW Olilicon plant. The capital outlay for this phase is expected to be between $450 million to $550 million. The second phase of the complex includes the 250-MW Alimit pumped storage facility.

“We believe that meaningful collaboration with our stakeholders and communities can help propel our country toward a more energy-secure future,” SN Aboitiz Power President and CEO Joseph S. Yu said. “We are thankful for the support and trust that the concerned local government units of Ifugao have extended to SNAP and the Alimit Project.”

SNAP is a joint venture of SN Power of Norway and AboitizPower.

It owns and operates the 360-MW to 388-MW Magat hydro on the border of Isabela and Ifugao; the 8.5-MW Maris hydro in Isabela; the 105MW Ambuklao hydro in Benguet; and the 140-MW Binga hydro also in Benguet.

DMW sells 90% of condo units 6 months after launch

P

ROPERT Y developer DM Wenceslao and Associates Inc. on Thursday said it already sold 278 units of MidPark Towers, a 90-percent take-up of 309 units since it was launched in November last year.

It achieved more than P4.3 billion in presales over the last six months, with an average transacted price of P250,500 per square meter.

“The overwhelming response from homebuyers of MidPark Towers exceeded our expectations,” said Delfin Angelo C. Wenceslao, the company’s CEO. “This reflects strong demand for quality homes and real-estate investment opportunities among Filipinos and foreigners,” he said.

Following the success of the first two towers, the third tower will be released and available for purchase beginning June 2019.

It will house 204 residential units with base prices starting at P10.8 million or P275,000 per square meter for the smallest 40-squaremeter studio units, which is 25 percent higher from the launch price of P220,000 per square meter for the first two towers. MidPark Towers is a four-tower freehold property slated for completion in 2023.

“By then, Aseana City will feature new landmarks, even more recreational and entertainment venues, vibrant public spaces and well-developed transportation links,” Wenceslao said. VG Cabuag

Ascott to open serviced residence in Cebu in July

L

EADING international lodging owner-operator The Ascott Ltd. (Ascott) announced on Thursday it is set to open the Citadines Cebu City next month, ushering its expansion plan in the domestic market, particularly in the Visayas and Mindanao (VisMin) regions.

The Ascott Ltd. Deputy Country General Manager Philip Barnes said this is the Group’s first property outside of Metro Manila, joining the three of their Apart’hotel properties, namely Citadines Salcedo Makati, Citadines Millennium Ortigas Manila and Citadines Bay City Manila.

“Cebu has been a destination we’ve always wanted to get into. It’s a fascinating destination. The city is great. The corporate world is really booming [here],” he told reporters during their media briefing held at the Rambla restaurant in Makati City.

In partnership with leading developer Cebu Landmasters Inc. (CLI), Citadines Cebu offers 180 rooms (mixed of studio and onebedroom), with all the conveniences of a modern home and the services of a hotel.

Each unit boasts of its own serviced kitchen, wireless Internet access, and even a built-in-washer and dryer. Also, it offers concierge and housekeeping services, while a 24-hour reception and guestservice team guarantees safety and security.

Topnotch amenities include a

pool, a gym and a launderette. The property’s food and beverage partner is Abaca, a premier food establishment in Cebu. It also has conference and meeting facilities catered specifically to business travelers.

Ascott sees a great interest in the Queen City of the South, especially among young professionals and business travelers, who combine their business and leisure goals at the same time.

“Citadines is like Armani Exchange,” Ascott City Manager Susan Salcedo said. “It’s our young or youthful brand.”

She said this up-and-coming serviced residence forms part of a whole complex that also includes their own hotel brand called lyf, a residential building, offices and retail establishments.

This latest development will soon pave the way for Ascott’s footprint growth as it plans to also penetrate further the VisMin areas, particularly Bacolod, Iloilo and Davao in the next few years.

“We actually feel the need to expand rapidly in the Visayas and Mindanao. There’s such an untapped area in that aspect,” Barnes said.

In Iloilo, Ascott’s redevelopment project with the 120-room Amigo Hotel is scheduled to open by end of the year. Tied up with Cebu Landmasters Inc., it will manage two Citadines brands in Bacolod (180 rooms) and Davao (200 rooms) as they open in 2021. Roderick L. Abad

MUTUAL FUNDS

June 6, 2019

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

PER SHARE RETURN* RETURN STOCK FUNDS ALFM GROWTH FUND, INC. -A 265.01 0.7% 0.32% 0.89% 5.07% ATRAM ALPHA OPPORTUNITY FUND, INC. -A 1.6452 7.61% 9.43% 3.31% 14.19% ATRAM PHILIPPINE EQUITY OPPORTUNITY FUND, INC. -A 4.1366 -1.09% 0.62% 0.16% 5.99% CLIMBS SHARE CAPITAL EQUITY INVESTMENT FUND CORP. -A 0.9436 2.98% N.A. N.A. 5.96% FIRST METRO CONSUMER FUND ON MSCI PHILS. IMI, INC. -A 0.8803 3.61% N.A. N.A. 7.26% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN EQUITY FUND,INC. -A 5.4972 1.61% 0.87% 0.9% 4.29% MBG EQUITY INVESTMENT FUND, INC. -A 121.97 8.52% N.A. N.A. 4.73% ONE WEALTHY NATION FUND, INC. -A 0.881 -0.03% -3.91% N.A. 5.84% PAMI EQUITY INDEX FUND, INC. -A 52.4287 3.1% 1.25% N.A. 6.55% PHILAM STRATEGIC GROWTH FUND, INC. -A 545.71 2.28% 0.28% 0.92% 6.02% PHILEQUITY DIVIDEND YIELD FUND, INC. -A 1.3312 4.44% 2.17% 3.39% 6.16% PHILEQUITY FUND, INC. -A 39.0829 4.46% 2.9% 2.96% 6.69% PHILEQUITY MSCI PHILIPPINE INDEX FUND, INC. -A,3 1.0511 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. PHILEQUITY PSE INDEX FUND INC. -A 5.3156 3.99% 2.22% 3.24% 7.2% PHILIPPINE STOCK INDEX FUND CORP. -A 887.54 4.07% 1.94% 3.2% 7.13% SOLDIVO STRATEGIC GROWTH FUND, INC. -A 0.9416 6.55% 1.54% N.A. 9.34% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY PHILIPPINE EQUITY FUND, INC. -A 4.3575 4.62% 2.21% 2.38% 7.36% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY PHILIPPINE STOCK INDEX FUND, INC. -A 1.0201 3.56% 1.88% N.A. 6.9% UNITED FUND, INC. -A 3.7617 4.7% 3.91% 3.15% 7.45% EXCHANGE TRADED FUND FIRST METRO PHIL. EQUITY EXCHANGE TRADED FUND, INC. -A,C,2 118.8362 4.52% 2.92% 4.27% 7.3% ATRAM ASIAPLUS EQUITY FUND, INC. -B $0.9589 -13.29% 5.01% -0.45% 3.21% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY WORLD VOYAGER FUND, INC. -A $1.2303 -5.56% 6.61% N.A. 11.33% BALANCED FUNDS PRIMARILY INVESTED IN PESO SECURITIES ATRAM DYNAMIC ALLOCATION FUND, INC. -A 1.7345 1.07% -0.95% -1.34% 5.04% ATRAM PHILIPPINE BALANCED FUND, INC. -A 2.3253 0.52% 0.61% 0.69% 5.26% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN BALANCED FUND INC. -A 2.656 1.58% -0.21% -1.47% 4.41% GREPALIFE BALANCED FUND CORPORATION -A 1.3582 0.53% N.A. N.A. 4.13% NCM MUTUAL FUND OF THE PHILS., INC. -A 1.9344 3.62% 0.94% 1.38% 4.95% PAMI HORIZON FUND, INC. -A 3.7192 1.68% -0.27% 0.49% 5.38% PHILAM FUND, INC. -A 16.7753 2.83% -0.08% 0.56% 5.45% SOLIDARITAS FUND, INC. -A 2.1525 2.41% 1.1% 1.88% 3.87% SUN LIFE OF CANADA PROSPERITY BALANCED FUND, INC. -A 3.8816 4.34% 1.08% 1.48% 6.3% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY ACHIEVER FUND 2028, INC. -A,D,4 1.0136 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. SUN LIFE PROSPERITY ACHIEVER FUND 2038, INC. -A,D,4 1.0119 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. SUN LIFE PROSPERITY ACHIEVER FUND 2048, INC. -A,D,4 1.0092 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DYNAMIC FUND, INC. -A 0.998 5.37% 1.48% N.A. 8.28% PRIMARILY INVESTED IN FOREIGN CURRENCY SECURITIES COCOLIFE DOLLAR FUND BUILDER, INC. -A $0.03672 5.61% 1% 1.56% 4.17% PAMI ASIA BALANCED FUND, INC. -A $0.9535 -9.76% 2.94% -1.29% 1.85% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR ADVANTAGE FUND, INC. -A $3.6127 -1.95% 5.04% 2.12% 9.2% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR WELLSPRING FUND, INC. -A $1.0808 0.35% 3.25% N.A. 7.01% BOND FUNDS PRIMARILY INVESTED IN PESO SECURITIES ALFM PESO BOND FUND, INC. -A 349.38 3.2% 2.04% 2.14% 1.75% ATRAM CORPORATE BOND FUND, INC. -A,1 1.8886 1.92% -0.27% -0.28% 1.58% COCOLIFE FIXED INCOME FUND, INC. -A 3.0411 5.53% 5.29% 5.27% 2.37% EKKLESIA MUTUAL FUND INC. -A 2.1734 2.83% 1.16% 1.71% 2.01% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN FIXED INCOME FUND,INC. -A 2.2927 3.41% 0.83% 1.18% 3.77% GREPALIFE FIXED INCOME FUND CORP. -A P 1.6055 1.8% -0.77% -0.07% 2.63% PHILAM BOND FUND, INC. -A 4.1123 3.39% -0.12% 0.75% 4.91% PHILEQUITY PESO BOND FUND, INC. -A 3.6416 4.25% 1.19% 1.13% 3.54% SOLDIVO BOND FUND, INC. -A 0.9325 2.39% -0.33% N.A. 4.47% SUN LIFE OF CANADA PROSPERITY BOND FUND, INC. -A 2.928 6.73% 1.72% 1.81% 5.86% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY GS FUND, INC. -A

1.6267 6.59% 1.24% 1.36% 5.64% PRIMARILY INVESTED IN FOREIGN CURRENCY SECURITIES ALFM DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. -A $456.66 3.32% 1.84% 2.7% 1.87% ALFM EURO BOND FUND, INC. -A Є216.23 1.64% 1.41% 1.45% 1.68% ATRAM TOTAL RETURN DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. -B $1.1738 5.61% 1.75% 2.14% 4.26% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. -A $0.0254 2.83% 0.94% N.A. 2.42% GREPALIFE DOLLAR BOND FUND CORP. -A $1.7144 1.19% -1.3% 0.6% 1.43% PAMI GLOBAL BOND FUND, INC -A $1.0798 4.32% -0.09% -1.94% 4.07% PHILAM DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. -A $2.3017 7.37% 1% 2.78% 6.01% PHILEQUITY DOLLAR INCOME FUND INC. -A $0.0587392 3.55% 1.43% 1.72% 3.09% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR ABUNDANCE FUND, INC. -A $3.0348 5.22% 0.46% 2.24% 5.66% MONEY MARKET FUNDS PRIMARILY INVESTED IN PESO SECURITIES ALFM MONEY MARKET FUND, INC. -A 123.09 3.57% 2.32% 1.86% 1.86% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN MONEY MARKET FUND, INC. -A,5 1.0129 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. PHILAM MANAGED INCOME FUND, INC. -A 1.2072 3.41% 1.51% 0.95% 2.14% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY MONEY MARKET FUND, INC. -A 1.2406 3.55% 2.59% 1.96% 1.77% PRIMARILY INVESTED IN FOREIGN CURRENCY SECURITIES SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR STARTER FUND, INC. -A $1.0264 2.09% N.A. N.A. 1.03%

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.

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World Companies BusinessMirror

Friday, June 7, 2019

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Fiat Chrysler ends Renault merger talks

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ARIS—Fiat Chrysler abruptly withdrew an offer to merge with French automaker Renault late Wednesday, a shocking reversal of a deal that could have reshaped the global auto industry.

The Italian-American automaker blamed its move on France’s government, saying the country’s political climate would stop the tie-up from being successful. The government owns 15 percent of Renault and would have had to approve the merger.

“It has become clear that the political conditions in France do not currently exist for such a combination to proceed successfully,” Fiat Chrysler said in a statement. “FCA

will continue to deliver on its commitments through the implementation of its independent strategy.”

Officials on each side blamed the other for making demands that caused the deal to fall apart with little hope of revival. The moves came on a tumultuous day in which FCA and the government reached a tentative deal on merger terms but it was scuttled later as Groupe Renault’s board met for six hours outside of Paris. The board postponed any action on the

merger at the government’s request, Renault said.

Fiat Chrysler proposed the 50-50 merger in late May, saying it would save more than €5 billion ($5.62 billion) per year in purchasing expenses and costs developing autonomous and electric vehicles. The combined company would have produced 8.7 million vehicles a year, more than General Motors and trailing only Volkswagen and Toyota. The merger would have created the world’s thirdlargest automaker worth almost $40 billion.

Nissan, which has a longtime alliance with Renault, expressed reservations about the deal. But if it had gone along, it would have created the world’s biggest auto company.

Most analysts praised the combination, saying each side bought strengths that covered up the other’s weaknesses. Now, the two companies apparently must find a new way to

address any shortcomings at a time when the auto industry is in the midst of a global sales slowdown and facing enormous expenses to develop future technologies.

“FCA clearly saw too many obstacles, primarily Nissan’s reluctance,” said Kelley Blue Book Executive Publisher Karl Brauer. “Given the longstanding relationship between Renault and Nissan, it’s hard to imagine the merger working without Nissan’s full support.”

The scuttled deal won’t stop consolidation talks from continuing in the auto industry, Brauer said.

A person with ties to Fiat Chrysler said the talks were going great until the government got involved, continuing to push job security and other demands even after the initial deal was reached. The person didn’t want to be identified because details were not included in the company’s official statement. The person said

China steps up vigilance on companies as market opens

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HINA’S stock exchanges have stepped up scrutiny of listed companies to address corporate governance concern, amid a push to further open up the nation’s capital markets.

The Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges sent out a total of at least 1,149 queries to listed companies in the first five months of this year, up 23 percent from the year-earlier period and 62 percent more than the 2017 tally, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The questions mainly focused on irregularities in the firms’ financial results, inadequate information disclosure and relations with controlling shareholders.

The number of regulator queries on company disclosures have risen as the nation further opens up it’s capital markets to foreign investors, for whom corporate governance concerns have been a sore spot. Yi Huiman, chairman of China’s securities regulator, last month warned listed companies and managers not to release fake information or harm the

interests of these firms. The moves precede the expected opening of the new board for technology companies.

“While in the short-term investors may have concerns that this increased scrutiny is indicative of a deterioration in corporate governance, in the longer term this should enhance corporate governance and the reliability of financial reporting in China, and encourage investors,” said Keith Williamson, managing director of Alvarez & Marsal in Hong Kong.

The queries are aimed at boosting transparency in information disclosure at listed companies and they don’t necessarily mean those firms have violated laws or rules, the Shanghai exchange said in an email when contacted by Bloomberg. Calls to the Shenzhen bourse went unanswered. China Securities Regulatory Commission will continue to step up law enforcement on disclosure of false information, and urge listed companies and major shareholders to “tell the truth,” according to a press release from the securities watchdog

dated Wednesday.

As China is internationalizing its capital markets, the regulators would like to be seen to be more proactive and supportive of the reforms in the country, according to Cimi Leung, risk assurance China and Hong Kong markets leader, PwC China.

The increased scrutiny has helped bring accounting inaccuracies to the fore. Following a regulator probe, one of China’s largest listed drugmakers, Kangmei Pharmaceutical Co., admitted to have overstated its 2017 cash holdings by 29.9 billion yuan ($4.3 billion). The amount was unprecedented in China, according to a securities lawyer.

The list of companies being probed has grown in the past few weeks to include the likes of Tahoe Group Co., Tunghsu Optoelectronic Technology Co. and Dr Peng Telecom & Media Group Co. They received queries from the two stock exchanges over their debt size, business operations and capital transfers. ”Particularly after recent cases reported on companies, investors will

get more cautious especially when cash balances go missing in Chinese names,” said Raymond Chia, head of credit research for Asia excluding Japan at Schroder Investment Management Ltd. “Chinese regulators are increasing their efforts to scrutinize companies and punishment can help improve governance over the long term.”

While regulations are improving, the penalties are too low to be deterrent, according to a report from S&P Global Ratings this week. Under China’s securities law, companies can be fined up to 600,000 yuan for providing false or materially insufficient information, which is “minuscule compared with potential gains from overstating financial performance,” S&P said.

“We believe tougher regulations and consistent enforcement will be crucial to improve the credibility of China’s capital markets for international investors, and the sustainability of domestic financial markets,” the ratings firm said in the note. Bloomberg News

Sanders rips ‘grotesque’ greed as Wal-Mart rejects his board plan

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ERNIE SANDERS took his presidential campaign to the shareholder meeting of the nation’s largest employer, demanding that directors of Wal-Mart Inc. give a seat on their board to an hourly worker.

The self-described democratic socialist on Wednesday also called on the company to “do the right thing” to end “grotesque” greed and income inequality by boosting minimum pay for its workers to $15 an hour, although that measure wasn’t the formal proposal put before the board.

The senator spoke for only a few minutes and then the Wal-Mart board rejected the plan.

“Despite the incredible wealth of its owners, Wal-Mart pays many of its employees starvation wages,” even though the Waltons, who own the giant retailer, are “the wealthiest family in the world,” he said.

Americans, he added, are outraged by the “level of income and wealth inequality, as demonstrated by the CEO of Wal-Mart making 1,000 times more than the average Walmart employee.”

Wal-Mart CEO Doug McMillon thanked Sanders and defended the company’s pay practices, saying the company increased starting wages by 50 percent over the last four years.

But, for the first time, he also urged Congress to raise the federal minimum wage. He didn’t endorse the $15 an hour demanded by Sanders or specify a level the US should

adopt.

“It’s clear by our actions and those of other companies that the federal minimum wage is lagging behind. $7.25 is too low,” he said. “It’s time for Congress to put a thoughtful plan in place to increase the minimum wage.”

The appearance before the gathered in Rogers, Arkansas, gave Sanders a platform to take on President Donald Trump over the state of the economy. The Vermont senator argues that the growth the president boasts about still leaves behind rural and Rust Belt voters whose disillusion over job losses and low wages helped power the Republican into the White House three years ago.

The intervention could also give Sanders some traction when the two dozen Democratic contenders begin to compete for endorsements from the nation’s biggest labor unions.

Hillary Clinton reaped the lion’s share when she and Sanders vied for the 2016 party nod, but this time unions could split as they weigh a group of mostly progressive candidates who are embracing their agenda, analysts said.

With his frequent attacks on WalMart, Amazon and other major employers, Sanders has been contrasting himself with former Vice President Joe Biden, the front-runner in the race for the Democratic nomination, who also is making a pitch to working-class and union voters.

He also faces competition from Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who’s built a reputation as a

champion for consumers and workers and last year introduced legislation that would let employees pick 40 percent of a company’s board members.

Sanders has been pulling some of his other 2020 Democratic competitors to the left on labor policy, said Democratic strategist Steve Rosenthal, who was political director of the AFL-CIO from 1996 to 2002.

“What Sanders has done is really raised the bar on the other candidates,” Rosenthal said, adding that there is a “sea change” among Democratic candidates who are embracing employee rights and promoting unions as a way to boost worker income.

After the meeting, Sanders spoke to a crowd of supporters, reprising some of the themes he brought up earlier. He contrasted the challenges facing Walmart workers paid $11 an hour and “living paycheck to paycheck” to what he said was the $175-billion fortune amassed by the Waltons.

“All we are saying to Walmart and the Walton family is to pay your workers a living wage.” he said, “and that living wage is $15 an hour.”

Both Sanders and Warren in particular have put taking on individual companies and their executives at the center of their campaigns.

“Part of the audition during the Democratic primary is about figuring out who can really prosecute the case well on Trump being a fraud when it comes to standing up for the little guy economically,” said Brian Fallon, who

was Hillary Clinton’s national press secretary in 2016 and isn’t affiliated with any of the current campaigns.

“To do that, you have to be able to speak in very stark terms and identify villains by name,” which “both Sanders and Warren are very good at.” Among other things, Sanders is campaigning for a $15-an-hour minimum wage across the nation, equal pay for women, and guaranteed paid vacations and family leave. He has also sponsored legislation that would make it easier for workers to form unions at their companies.

Wal-Mart is a frequent topic for Sanders when he’s out in early primary states greeting voters. At an ice cream social last week in Laconia, New Hampshire, Sanders said the mammoth retailer embodies what he calls the “rigged economy,” pointing out that the Walton family is worth about $175 billion, making them the wealthiest family in the US. Wal-Mart employees—with job titles ranging including forklift driver, cashier and cake decorator—contributed at least $127,588 to Sanders’s 2016 campaign. Among this year’s Democratic candidates, he was the top recipient of donations from Wal-Mart employees in the first quarter, taking in $2,096. The latter figure does not include donations of $200 or less, which won’t be publicly available until July 31.

Sanders’s call for Wal-Mart to add employee representatives to its board comes as the retailer’s corporate governance practices face scrutiny. Bloomberg News

Renault and its alliance partners Nissan and Mitsubishi, were “all in” on the deal.

But a French government official gave a different take, saying its demands were made public early on and did not change. The government sought guarantees that no French factories would be closed and no jobs would be lost. It also wanted support from Nissan and parity in corporate governance between Fiat Chrysler and Renault, said the person, who also requested anonymity because the government had yet to make an official statement.

Fiat Chrysler abruptly yanked its offer after the government said it wanted to wait until Tuesday to make a decision so it could meet in Japan with Nissan representatives, the person said.

The French government had said previously that it also wanted investment assurances, a seat on

the merged entity’s board, and for the operational headquarters of the merged company to be in France.

Earlier Wednesday, France’s finance minister said the car companies shouldn’t rush into a merger.

“Let’s take the time to do things well,” Bruno Le Maire said on BFM television. “We want this merger, but we don’t want it under just any conditions.” The negotiations come as the French government is struggling to contain fallout from new job cuts announced by General Electric in France.

Renault’s powerful CGT union is against a Fiat Chrysler merger, fearing the loss of jobs and arguing the proposal undervalues Renault and bails out Fiat.

The merger could have also threatened Renault’s troubled alliance with Nissan and Mitsubishi. Nissan had no comment on Wednesday on the collapsed deal. AP

Companies make progress, but not enough, gauging climate risk

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OMPANIES too often make the mistake of thinking climate change is a long-term issue, but it’s actually affecting decisions today, according to a report by a global commission set to evaluate transparency into financial climate risks and opportunities.

More companies are discovering and disclosing the risks they face related to climate change, but need to do so in greater numbers and provide more transparency, according to an analysis of more than 1,100 company reports by the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures, or TCFD. The number of items that each company shares information about rose to 3.6 on average in 2018 from 2.8 in 2016, the group found.

Bigger companies were more transparent about their assessments of climate risk. The number of companies that showed data on at least

one metric suggested by the TCFD increased to 78 percent last year, from 70 percent in 2016.

Corporate responses to climate change are seen by the group as increasingly urgent, as extreme weather events, along with death, damage and disruption around the world, have brought to the fore scientists’ warnings over the last three decades.

Insurers led by Munich Re paid out $160 billion for disasters last year and are concerned that figure will grow as the climate warms and makes storms more powerful. The TCFD highlighted a 2018 report by the United Nations’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that assessed the possibility of keeping global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 °Fahrenheit).

The world has warmed about 1 °C on average since the end of the 19th century. Bloomberg News

B4 Friday, June 7, 2019

CONRAD MANILA SALUTES DADS WITH WELL-CURATED DINING, WELLNESS POINTS

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ONRAD Manila salutes all dads this Father’s Day weekend, from June 14 to 16, with well-curated dining and wellness points fit for a king.

Treat the man of the house with an opulent lunch- and dinner-buffet spread at Brasserie on 3. Executive Chef Daniel Patterson whips up a culinary showcase featuring seasonal and sustainably sourced ingredients delicately presented in the allday dining outlet’s vibrant theater kitchens.

Dad and the whole family may take pleasure in premium carving offerings, fresh seafood choices and timeless Filipino recipes, among other indulgences.

Dad’s Day Off at Brasserie on 3 is priced at P2,700 net per person for lunch and P2,100 net for dinner on Father’s Day, June 16.

“China Blue” by Jereme Leung Executive Chinese Chef Eng Yew Khor creates masterful interpretations of authentic Chinese cuisine to celebrate all fathers. The household “emperor” gets to feast on a festive set menu that includes golden-roasted US duck with barbecue gravy, steamed sea garoupa with cordyceps flower, wild mushroom soya sauce, and braised abalone, sea cucumber and black mushroom, among other luxurious delicacies. The Feast for Fathers is priced at P33,888 net for a table of 10 persons, available from June 14 to 16.

Share three cheers or more with all dads

with a free-flow of Engkanto draft beer and a one-for-one on all imported brews this whole month of June at C Lounge. Delight in to the well-balanced and smooth flavors of the famed local craft beer best enjoyed over light bites and cocktails, skillfully prepared

by Chef Daniel and his team. Slowly drift into a more relaxed state of mind amid pristine views of Manila Bay, as the day turns into night while being treated to live renditions of musical hits performed by guest artists

from 8:30 p.m. onward. A Round for Pops is priced at P945 net per person.

Make Dad feel as good as he looks with an invigorating 90-minute treatment at Conrad Spa Manila, which begins with a 45-minute back massage, followed by a revitalizing foot-reflexology treatment. The Father’s Day Escape is priced at P3,300 net.

For Father’s Day weekend room and dining reservations and inquiries, e-mail at conradmanila@conradhotels.com.

PAG-IBIG FUND, NHMFC LOAN AGREEMENT MARKED Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) chairman Eduardo D. del Rosario led the signing of the loan-sale and purchase agreement between Home Development Mutual Fund (Pag-IBIG) President and Chief Executive Officer Acmad Rizaldy P. Moti (third from left) and National Home Mortgage Finance Corp. President Felixberto U. Bustos Jr. (second from right), for the purchase of a portion of Pag-IBIG Fund’s socialized housing-loan portfolio for NHMFC’s issuance of asset-backed securities. Also in photo are (from left) National Housing Authority assistant general manager Froilan R. Kampitan, Social Housing Finance Corp. President Arnolfo Ricardo B. Cabling and Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board commissioner Lloyd Christoper A. Lao.

KIDNEY-DIALYSIS CLINICS IN MANILA RECEIVE PRESTIGIOUS INTERNATIONAL ACCREDITATION

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HE kidneys filter the blood, remove harmful waste products and excess fluid, and turn these into urine to be excreted. However, in patients with chronic kidney failure, their kidneys are unable to properly clean the blood resulting in accumulation of waste products internally.

Data from the 2017 Philippine Renal Disease Registry (PRDR) show that 21,535 Filipino patients underwent dialysis treatment due to kidney failure in 2016, a huge jump from 9,716 cases recorded in 2010, with 8-percent to 18-percent increase per year. This figure does not include patients suffering from kidney failure but who were not able to undergo dialysis treatment due costs or inaccessibility, especially in rural areas. In 2013 kidney disease was the sixth leading cause of death in the Philippines.

According to the National Kidney Institute, one Filipino develops chronic kidney failure every hour. Poorly controlled diabetes and hypertension are among the leading causes of chronic kidney failure.

Helping our kababayans with kidney failure is

Fresenius Kidney Care with branches in Alabang, Shaw Boulevard, Fairview and North Edsa. Owned by Fresenius Medical Care, it is accredited by the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards International (ACHSI), a renowned independent, nonprofit organization for health-care quality improvement. To maintain ACHSI accreditation over the three-year program, each clinic must complete annual assessments. This will serve further as an assurance to the patients, as well as the medical community, in which Fresenius Medical Care continually upholds a management model of international standard in quality management, clinical operation and infrastructure.

“Beginning dialysis is a big step for patients with chronic kidney failure. Most of them will experience changes in their physical condition, diet and lifestyle.

The standardized high-quality medical services in our dialysis clinics will help patients and provide support in their journeys while still leading a fulfilling life,” said Mabel Callera, general manager for provider’s business, Fresenius Medical Care Philippines.

PRRC SAYS RAPPLER POST ON WATERWAYS REHABILITATION INACCURATE

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T the “Tapatan sa Aristrocat” press conference held in Manila, the Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission (PRRC) reviewed the misleading post by Rappler on June 2, on the utilization of the funds for the rehabilitation of waterways in Metro Manila. PRRC executive director Jose Antonio E. Goitia said that the article was inaccurate as it may lead the reading public to think that around P107.57 million was spent in 2018 for the rehabilitation and development of six waterways in the cities of Manila and San Juan, and now left incomplete by the commission.

“The truth was that, as of December 2018, only P29.63 million was spent for the rehabilitation of the San Juan River and five other esteros in Manila as these are still ongoing,” Goitia emphasized.

He added that the commission has been strict in monitoring the progress of its rehabilitation projects, and that the delay was caused by factors beyond the control of PRRC. “As early as 2016, PRRC already resettled informal settlers and dismantled structures occupying the legal easements of Estero de Magdalena to pave way for the construction of a linear park-development project. As soon as we finished the relocation and easement recovery, the linear park project was put up for bidding and awarded according to procurement laws. However, [by] the last quarter of 2017, barangay officials in the area allowed families who were left homeless by a fire incident in

Manila to occupy the already recovered easements of Estero de Magdalena.”

Said families have been demanding for relocation houses from PRRC for them to leave Estero de Magdalena, and PRRC is already in coordination with other agencies, such as the National Housing Authority, to address the problem.

Goitia said that the commission has also encountered problems with erring barangay officials threatening its field engineers, as well as project contractors, to stop its project at Estero de la Reina and Estero de Pandacan.

Last year the PRRC was recognized by the International RiverPrize Foundation as the Inaugural Asia RiverPrize for high level of response to the massive scale of problems faced by the Pasig River, despite its limited resources and mandate, making it possible for the return of life fishes, birds, trees and other aquatic plants to the once biologically dead river.

“We have no intention of slowing down as there is so much work to be done, to keep the Pasig River System clean and alive. More important, I will never let government funds to be wasted on incomplete projects,” he concluded.

To date PRRC built 41.15 kilometers of linear parks, resettled almost 19,000 informal settlers, dismantled 508 privately owned structures at no cost to the government, dredged 3-million cubic meters of contaminated silts and sediments, and removed 30 million kilograms of solid waste from the Pasig River and its tributaries.

NURSE MAKES RIGHT MOVES AKLAND, California—Toronto Coach Nick Nurse plays to the beats to his own drum.

And that’s not even one of the instruments that he’s messing around with these days.

Nurse’s office in Toronto has a guitar stand on one side of his desk and a piano on the other. He’s trying to master both—the guitar travels with him on the road and he’s been known to strum it while studying film. The piano doesn’t exactly fit in the overhead storage bin of the plane so it stays behind.

Nurse says he’s not any good, yet.

His team, however, is making plenty of beautiful music so far in these National Basketball Association (NBA) Finals.

The moment has not been too big for Nurse or the Raptors. They lead the title series 2-1 after a 123-109 win over injury-depleted Golden State on Wednesday night, an outcome that puts the two-time defending NBA champions in trouble. The maestro of the best season in Toronto history is a 51-year-old NBA coaching rookie, one who’s making plenty of right moves.

“He looks young,” Raptors guard Kyle Lowry said. “But he’s pretty old.”

Nurse might have been an unknown to casual NBA fans

when he got the job a year ago following the firing of his former boss in Toronto, Dwane Casey. Nurse was an assistant on Casey’s staff, largely credited with running things on the offensive side of the ball. He had good relationships with players, but the task of replacing someone who was the NBA’s coach of the year and got fired anyway was daunting nonetheless.

He has handled it with ease.

“Each game’s critical, and the next one will be as critical as [Game Three] was,” Nurse said. “So it’s been like that all through the playoffs, and we just got to guard and play who is out there. That’s all we can do.”

The guy he’s going against has eight rings already. Steve Kerr won five as a player, has three more from his first four seasons as coach of the Warriors and still very much has a chance at a fourth in five seasons.

But this is no coaching mismatch.

“I’ve watched Nick closely,” Dallas Coach Rick Carlisle, the president of the National Basketball Coaches Association, said earlier in the series. “We played against him twice this year. He’s terrific in making adjustments and I love the way he’s approached the entire season. They have set up the entire season to work to get to this point and for a first-time

NBA head coach, that’s not easy to do.”

For a first-timer, no, it wouldn’t be easy.

Thing is, Nurse is no ordinary rookie.

He’s won championships—four of them, two in the British league, two more in what’s now called the G League.

That’s not the NBA, of course, but there’s a progression that he’s followed, a long slow path that saw him coaching teams most people have never heard of like the NAIA’s Grand View University, Telindus Oostende in Belgium, the Oklahoma Storm of the USBL. “Some pretty remote places,” Nurse said.

He got tons of attention for throwing a box-and-one on Warriors star Stephen Curry late in Game Two of this series.

Some would say that’s an unconventional move. Not for Nurse. He spent one season basically full-court pressing the whole time so he could collect the data. He’s been known to count certain shots in practice as 4-pointers, to emphasize the need for proper spacing.

He’s part-coach, part-chemist.

“Like a laboratory,” Nurse said.

The lab on Wednesday night was Oracle Arena. The Raptors survived a 47-point night from Curry and prevailed over a Golden State team without Kevin Durant, Kevon Looney and Klay Thompson. Looney’s season is over. Durant may be back for Game Four. Thompson figures to be back.

The Warriors are almost certainly going to get boosts. AP

By Janie Mccauley

Lowry contributed 23 with five 3-pointers and Green had 18 points with six threes after Pascal Siakam got the Raptors rolling early. Toronto shot 52.4 percent and made 17 from deep.

“I give our guys a lot of credit. I thought we answered a lot of runs,” Raptors Coach Nick Nurse said. “Each time they chipped, we kind of answered back. And that’s kind of what you got to do if you’re going to keep your lead.”

The Warriors trailed 96-83 going into the final quarter.

Curry’s three free throws at 10:37 made it a seven-point game before back-to-back baskets by Serge Ibaka.

Siakam scored 18 points and established the momentum for Toronto from the tip, hitting his first three shots and setting a tone for a defensive effort that stayed solid without the foul problems that plagued the Raptors in Game Two. “Every time we made a run or got the crowd into it they either made a tough three or there was a tough foul call and they slowed the tempo down or something went their way,” Curry said. “You have to tip your cap to all the guys who made pivotal plays in the right times.”

Golden State greatly missed not only Thompson’s touch from outside but also his stifling defense.

Nurse challenged his team to produce more defensive stops in order to get out in transition—”make them miss more,” he said.

The Raptors rewatched the costly 18-0 run by Golden State in Game Two, then got six blocked shots from Ibaka.

“We know that they’re going to make good runs and make shots but we watched that third quarter in Game Two and we’ve just got to continue to play with pace,” Lowry said. “That was the one thing about it, we played with pace, half-court, full-court, and that was a big thing for us.”

Curry shot 14 for 31 including six of 14 on threes, while

making 13 of 14 free throws in his sixth career 40-point playoff performance.

Nurse pulled out a box-and-one to try to stymie Curry in Golden State’s 109-104 Game Two win, then the Raptors made Curry’s short-handed supporting cast try to beat them this time—and it sure worked.

A fan seated courtside for Game Three, meanwhile, was ejected after shoving Lowry when the Raptors star crashed into a row of seats while trying to save a ball from going out of bounds.

There was as much buzz about Lowry’s dust-up with the fan as his offense.

Lowry was visibly upset.

“There’s no place for that,” Lowry said. “He had no reason to touch me. He had no reason to reach over two seats and then say some vulgar language to me. There’s no place for people like that in our league.”

Early in the fourth quarter Lowry ran down a loose ball and jumped in the air as it was going out of bounds, not far from where Warriors owner Joe Lacob was sitting. Lowry knocked the ball into a referee and landed in the lap of one male fan who appeared to grab Lowry’s jersey with two hands.

A female who was standing nearby patted the veteran guard on his back. At the same time, a man wearing a blue shirt who was sitting down extended his left arm and gave Lowry a hard shove in his left shoulder.

Lowry got up and complained to officials, although nothing further happened. He told The Associated Press the fan repeatedly cursed at him and said he had spoken to the NBA about the incident before leaving the arena.

Warriors Spokesman Raymond Ridder and security officials confirmed the fan who shoved Lowry was ejected and escorted from Oracle Arena.

“Hopefully he never comes back to an NBA game,”Lowry said.

It was evident from the outset that if the Warriors were going to somehow win without both Thompson and Durant in the lineup, it would be Curry carrying the load.

He darn near made it happen.

“Not that he’s not amazing pretty often,” Warriors forward Draymond Green said, “but tonight was a special performance by him.”

Curry scored Golden State’s first five field goals. He had 25 points and eight rebounds by halftime, the first time in his 803-game career that he put up those numbers in the first 24 minutes of a game. Midway through the third quarter, he was outscoring all of his teammates combined. He had his entire arsenal working—3-pointers, lay-ups, free throws. He was diving for loose balls. He even won a jump ball.

He conceded nothing.

Curry just didn’t have enough help. Or, maybe more accurately, the Raptors had too many answers.

“We tried to up our presence on him a little bit with some double teams, but it doesn’t really matter,” Raptors Coach Nick Nurse said. “All that matters is...my dad used to tell me the stats don’t matter, just the final score. So we’ll just take the win and be thankful for that.”

All five Toronto starters scored somewhere between 17 and 30 points. The Raptors made 17 3-pointers, Fred VanVleet’s desperation three with just under two minutes left put Toronto up by 13, and that’s when Kerr decided to empty the bench.

Curry’s night ended there, with the eighth-highest single-game scoring performance in NBA Finals history. He also had eight rebounds and seven assists, ending with a stat line that only James has done in a finals game.

“We fought, but we lost,” Curry said. “So we’ve got to go back to the drawing board and just recalibrate for Game Four.” AP

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Sports ‘LET IT RIP!’

NICK NURSE’S team is making plenty of beautiful music so far in the Finals. AP

BusinessMirror

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| Friday, June 7, 2019 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

KAWHI LEONARD scores 30 points as the Raptors beat the banged-up Warriors for a 2-1 series lead. AP

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STEPHEN CURRY scores 47 points—a playoff career-high for the three-time champion—but the Warriors still find themselves in some postseason trouble. AP

The Associated Press

AKLAND, California—For every amazing shot in a career night by Stephen Curry on his home court, Kawhi Leonard, Kyle Lowry and Danny Green kept finding dazzling answers of their own.

The Toronto Raptors decided to “let it rip,” and now they have the momentum again in these back-and-forth National Basketball Association (NBA) Finals.

Leonard scored 30 points on a night Curry went off for a playoff-best 47, and the Raptors beat the banged-up Golden State Warriors, 123-109, on Wednesday for a 2-1 series lead.

Curry also had eight rebounds and seven assists but couldn’t do it all for the two-time defending champions, down starters Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson, and key backup big man Kevon Looney because of injuries.

“They outplayed us. They deserved it,” Warriors Coach Steve Kerr said. “I’m very proud of our effort, and now we’ve just got to bounce back and hopefully get back in here on Friday night, and hopefully get a little healthier and get some guys back.”

Splash Brother Thompson missed his first career playoff game after straining his left hamstring late in Game Two, while Looney is out the rest of the series after a cartilage fracture on his right side near the collarbone that also happened on Sunday. Durant, a two-time reigning NBA Finals Most Valuable Player, has been sidelined nearly a month because of a strained right calf.

Game Four is on Friday at Oracle Arena, where Warriors fans will be rooting for the returns of Durant and Thompson.

Before the game, one of the Raptors wrote “let it rip” on the locker room board.

Curry’s heroics not enough to save Warriors in Game 3

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AKLAND, California—Stephen Curry did all he could to lead the injury-depleted Golden State Warriors.

It wasn’t enough.

Curry scored 47 points—a playoff career-high for the three-time champion—but the Warriors still find themselves in some postseason trouble. Missing Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant and Kevon Looney with injuries, the Warriors fell 123-109 to the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night and now trail these NBA Finals 2-1.

“Steph was incredible,” Warriors Coach Steve Kerr said.

“The stuff he does is, he does things that honestly I don’t think anybody has ever done before. The way he plays the game, the way he shoots it and the combination of his ball

handling and shooting skills, it’s incredible to watch. He was amazing.”

Though it’s no consolation to Curry, his 47 points were the second-most ever by a player in a finals game loss. The only time someone scored more and wasn’t on the winning team that night was LeBron James, who scored 51 points on this same Oracle Arena floor in Game One of last year’s title series. Golden State wound up sweeping Cleveland.

Thompson didn’t play because of his strained left hamstring, Looney’s season is over because of an upperbody injury sustained in Game Two and Durant sat out for the eighth consecutive game with a calf injury. Game Four of this series is on Friday, and it wouldn’t be surprising to

see both Durant and Thompson back in the lineup for the two-time defending National Basketball Association (NBA) champions. Thompson was lobbying to play on Wednesday, and Durant has been ramping up toward a return.

The Warriors need them.

Or else their reign might end, no matter how great Curry is the rest of the way.

“The moment is now,” Curry said. “You’ve got to try to have a next-man-up mentality, like we always say, and just go out and fight. We did that tonight. We can play better, obviously better on the defensive end. But I liked the competitiveness that we had, understanding that we’re missing 50 points pretty much between KD and Klay.”

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IAAF SEEKS REVERSION

Saldivar, Ramirez face tough foes in Kidapawan tennis tourney

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ABACAN’S Reymon Saldivar and Jairo Ramirez gear up for a tougher challenge as they go all out to reassert their might at the Kidapawan Tennis Club in the Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala (PPS-PEPP) Dir. Alberto Aton national juniors tennis tournament I that opens on Thursday in Cotabato.

Saldivar topped the boys’ 14-under play while Ramirez dominated the 10-under unisex when the country’s longest, biggest talent-search made its first stop here last February for the Pres. R. Barrios Cup. But the duo will be hard-pressed to score a repeat with Saldivar bracing for a clash with the likes of Jason Flores, Charles Jumawan and sibling Armando Saldivar and Ramirez facing Iñigo Barrios, Erick Bation and Wilfred Florida, among others, in the Group 2 tournament sponsored by Director Alfredo Aton of Department of Agriculture.

Fierce duel is also expected in the other age categories with Zykla Cervantes, Coleen Carvajal, Juliana Carvajal and Pauline Binoya tipped to dispute the girls’ 18-U plum and Brent Magno, Bruce Hurtado, JV Comendador and Eric Comendador heading the cast in the boys’ premier division of the tournament sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop headed by President and CEO Bobby Castro.

The Carvajals also banner the 16-under field along with Faith Anito and Mae Torrecarion with Reyman Saldivar, Steve Aton, Gene Espinosa and JV Comendador seen to slug it out in the boys’ category of the event that also features the 12-under section in both sides.

Also on tap is the doubles competition in the boys’ and girls’ 14- and 18-U divisions and the 10-unisex in the event sanctioned by the Unified Tennis Philippines made up of PPS-PEPP, Cebuana Lhuillier, Wilson, Toby’s, Dunlop, Slazenger and B-MEG.

CASTER SEMENYA can compete without taking medication to lower her testosterone while her appeal is pending.

HE International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) will seek a “swift reversion” to a decision from the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland which allows Caster Semenya to compete without taking medication to lower her testosterone while her appeal is pending.

The Supreme Court on Monday ordered the rules which force athletes with differences in sexual development (DSD) to take drugs to medically reduce their naturally occurring testosterone if they want to compete at

2 PHL TEAMS VIE IN MOSCOW 3X3

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WO Philippine-based squads are set to take on the world’s best teams as world No. 24 Pasig and upstart Balanga compete in the Fiba 3X3 Moscow Tinkoff Challenger in Moscow.

At stake in the tournament are two tickets to level 10 tournament Prague Masters and a total pot money of $32,000.

The topflight tournaments are a must in order to keep the country’s hopes to join an Olympic Qualifying Tournament in the budding sport.

“We need to rack up more points as

we recently fell to No. 32 in the men’s rankings,” Go Pilipinas 3x3 league owner Ronald Mascariñas said. “That is why we are sending two teams to Russia.”

Pasig was invited to the tourney set on Friday and Saturday by virtue of its ranking. Balanga, on the other hand, needed to buy-in for the tournament to make the wild card phase.

Pasig, a team composed of world No. 89 Joshua Munzon, No. 90 Nikola Pavlovic, No. 91 Taylor Statham and Dylan Ababou, are eyeing redemption from their disappointing

events ranging from 400 meters to a mile be put on hold with immediate effect.

The court said its “super provisional order,” considered a major boost for Semenya in her challenge against a Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) decision which ruled in the IAAF’s favor, would be in place until June 25.

In response, the IAAF said it would “seek a swift reversion of the super provisional order moving forwards so that the DSD Regulations apply to all affected athletes in order (among other things) to avoid serious confusion among athletes and event organizers and to protect the integrity of the sport.”

The worldwide governing body also confirmed the court’s ruling only applied to the South African double Olympic and three-times world champion over 800m.

The IAAF said it had only been informed of the Supreme Court’s decision yesterday afternoon, almost 24 hours after it was made public by Semenya’s legal team.

This meant the IAAF had not been able

0-2 campaign during the Kunshan Challenger last month.

“I think that was the worst tournament we participated in. We left Kunshan with no wins.

That’s behind us now and the most important thing is that we learned a lot,” Mascariñas said.

“This time around, we need to start winning because we are running out of time in the race to the OQT.” Balanga—made up of the country’s No. 2 Alvin Pasaol, No. 5 Karl Dehesa, import Travis Franklin and newcomer Chris De Chavez (No. 14), will have to go through the gauntlet, needing to top a qualifying stage to advance to the main draw.

Balanga will face Ukraine’s Odessa Basket

to “explain why the DSD Regulations should remain in force and applicable to all affected athletes while the appeal is pending.” the body claimed.

“The IAAF fully respects each individual’s personal dignity and supports the social movement to have people accepted in society based on their chosen legal sex and/or gender identity,” the statement added.

“However, the IAAF is convinced there are some contexts, sport being one of them, where biology has to trump identity.

“The IAAF also believes the right to participate in sport does not translate to a right to self-identify into a competition category or an event, or to insist on inclusion in a preferred event, or to win in a particular event, without regard to the legitimate rules of the sport or the criteria for entry.”

The rules, which came into force on May 8, mean DSD athletes with naturally high levels of testosterone who wish

at 7:40 p.m. before facing a familiar foe in Moscow Inanomo—the same team Balanga defeated in the Doha Masters, 20-19 in overtime—at 8:20 p.m.

Pasig will face Belgium’s Antwerp at 11 p.m. before taking on world No. 3 Riga Ghetto of Latvia at 12:25 a.m. in Pool B. The top 2 teams in the pool with advance to the knockout playoffs that begin on Saturday.

DYLAN ABABOU brings his act to Russia.

to participate in events between 400m and a mile must medically limit that level to under 5 nmol/L, double the normal female range of below 2 nmol/L. They were described as “discriminatory” by the CAS when it ruled in favor of the IAAF and against Semenya but also said the policy was “necessary, reasonable and proportionate” to protect the fairness of women’s sport. Insidethegames

orts

sMirror

Friday, June 7, 2019

VAN DER VALK SETS RECORD

GUIDO VAN DER VALK pads lead to six shots after carding a record 65 in the second round. NONIE REYES

ROOKIES RISE TO OCCASION

Chan in control in golf qualifier

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HE rookies are making their mark in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).

A week after Bobby Ray Parks made his impressive league debut, CJ Perez erupted for a new career high of 39 points in steering Columbian Dyip to its breakthrough win in the Commissioner’s Cup. PEREZ Last year’s top rookie pick shot the lights out of the Mall of Asia Arena by going 7-of-8 from three-point range in a 120-105 victory over NLEX. Overall, Perez went 15-of-21 from the field and had nine rebounds, three assists, three steals, and just a single turnover in 35 minutes of play as the Dyip finally made the win column after losing their first three outings.

Perez’s career-best made him the hands down choice as the PBA Press Corps-Cignal Player of the Week from May 29 to June 2.

The 25-year-old Perez became the second rookie in a row to win the weekly honor after Parks, who was recipient of the award on the first week of the mid-season conference.

Incidentally, Parks of Blackwater was among the several players edged out by Perez for the honor, along with Anjo Caram of Meralco, the Barangay Ginebra pair of Greg Slaughter and Scottie Thompson, Alaska’s Jeron Teng, Roger Pogoy of TnT Katropa, Mat-

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IDRIC CHAN dished out the form expected from a player of his caliber, banking on a solid frontside charge to take solo control with a four-under 68 for a three-stroke lead over erstwhile frontrunner Sean Ramos in the third round of Stage 1 of the Southeast Asian Games men’s team qualifier at the Luisita Golf and Country Club in Tarlac on Thursday.

After back-to-back 73s to force a four-way tie at the top, the reigning national junior champion finally got his long game and iron play going, producing three birdies in the first nine holes then bucking two backside bogeys with a three-birdie string from No. 14.

With a 214 total, Chan built some cushion heading to the final 18 holes of the two-part qualifiers that will select the three players who will banner the national team in the SEA Games the country is hosting from November 30 to December 10.

Ramos, who surged ahead of the field with a 70 on Wednesday, recovered from a disastrous opening 40 with a sizzling backside rally, hitting five birdies for a closing 31 that kept the young shotmaker in the hunt for one of the coveted spots in the PHL squad.

The 15-year-old Ramos saved a 71 for a 217 while first-round coleader Luis Castro also bounced back from a second round 78 with a 71 to get back into the thick of things in the grueling event organized and conducted by the National Golf Association of the Philippines. He assembled a 218 for third.

But a host of others stood within sight of the three berths with Carl Corpus pooling a 219 despite a 73 and Kristoffer Arevalo rebounding from a 79 with a 70 to move to joint fifth at 221 with Gab Manotoc, who coled in the first round but slipped with a second round 77 and a 75.

Ivan Monsalve also rallied with a 70 for a share of seventh at 223 with Edward Dy, who hobbled with a 75, while Alexander Bisera carded a 74 and Lanz Uy and Paolo Wong shot identical 75s for 224s in the event sponsored by the MVP Sports Foundation, the PLDT Group, Cignal and Metro Pacific and hosted by Luisita.

The top 12 players plus ties and those within 10 strokes of the leading scorer after Stage I will move to Stage 2 on June 10-13, also at Luisita, which will host the SEAG golf competitions, making this two-stage elims a sort of training for those who will make the team.

thew Wright of Phoenix, and the NorthPort tandem of Mo Tautuaa and Sean Anthony.

Perez was on beast mode in the game against NLEX that deputy mentor Jojo Lastimosa, calling the shots for the team in the absence of Coach Yeng Guiao, admitted the Road Warriors had no answer against the former NCAA MVP from

Lyceum.

In the end, Lastimosa, a member of the league’s 25 Greatest Players, gave Perez the ultimate compliment by referring to him as “a star in the making.”

Barangay Ginebra, meanwhile, tries to sustain a rolling start when it takes on Rain or Shine at 7 p.m. on Friday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Meralco (2-2) tries to make it two in a row against Phoenix (1-1) at 4:30 p.m.

The Gin Kings, behind workhorse Justin Brownlee, try to keep their momentum and extend their win streak to three after a paltry conference debut against the Blackwater Elite.

After a painful 107-108 loss to Blackwater on May 24, Barangay Ginebra immediately found its groove and recorded two straights wins—Meralco, 110-95, and NorthPort, 73-70.

Brownlee, the Gin Kings’ resident import,

RAMIREZ VOWS SUPPORT FOR DIAZ

Rio de Janeiro Olympics silver medalist Hidilyn Diaz is guaranteed full support from the government in her bid to qualify for the Tokyo 2020 weightlifting competition.

On Thursday, two days after asking for financial support from the private sector that invited criticism, Diaz is shown with Philippine Sports Commission Chairman William Ramirez after their meeting on Thursday at the sports agency’s PhilSports office in Pasig City.

Red Lions eye 5th straight win in game vs Green Archers

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AN Beda University tries to extend its unbeaten streak when it takes on heavy favorite De La Salle in the main game on Friday of the Filoil Flying V Preseason Cup on Friday at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan. The Red Lions will put their 4-0 won-lost record on the line against the Green Archers (4-1) for the Group A lead with the elimination round fast coming to a close.

San Beda will be led by James Kuwekuteye and Clint Doliguez, while La Salle will be relying on Andrei Caracut, Aljun Melecio and Justine Baltazar.

In other seniors matches, University of the Philippines (4-2) tries to solidify its spot in the next stage of the tournament when they battle University of Santo Tomas (1-3) at 2 p.m.

The Fighting Maroons have been dealt injuries to Kobe Paras, Ricci Rivero, Juan Gomez de Liaño and Bright Akhuetie, and they have yet to field a complete lineup in this tournament. According to UP Head Coach Bo Perasol, he isn’t sure if any of his stars will be able to suit up in this crucial tiff.

“Knowing my boys, short-handed or not, we

will try to go for the win,” Perasol said.

San Sebastian College (3-1) tries to get back on the winning track when the Stags clash with the Centro Escolar University Scorpions (2-3) i at 7:30 p.m.

In the lone high school match, UST battles La Salle Greenhills at 5:45 p.m., while in the 11-Under Division, San Beda and Claret open hostilities at 8 a.m., followed by the San Sebastian-Colegio de San Benildo duel at 9 a.m. and the La Salle Greenhills-La Salle Zobel clash at 10 a.m. Rick Olivares

delivered the goods in their romp of the Batang Pier.

The 6-foot-5 Brownlee scattered 32 points, eight rebounds, six assists and five steals. His biggest contributions came with 1:30 left in the game when he drilled a 3-pointer and stole the ball in the next possession to seal their victory.

Greg Slaughter added 16 points and four rebounds, while Scottie Thompson had a huge haul of 11 points, 15 rebounds, five

assists and two steals.

Head Coach Tim Cone addressed the need to work on their turnovers before it comes to worst in the next games.

“We barely survived on our defense. We were turnover prone,” Cone said after the NorthPort game.

Newly acquired forward Jared Dillinger has yet to suit up for the team. He was picked from the free agency but is still recovering from a quad injury.

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UIDO VAN DER VALK pounded the Club Filipino de Cebu course for the second straight day and came away with a new course record of six-under 65 to turn a shaky one-stroke edge into a whopping six-shot bulge halfway through the International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) Club Filipino de Cebu Invitational in Danao City on Thursday.

While the rest of the pack could not seem to master the short but tricky par-71 layout softened by overnight rain, the Dutchman kept his romp with another superb all-around game, shooting eight birdies against two bogeys as he bettered his lead-grabbing opening 66 to post a huge lead at 11-under 131.

Jhonnel Ababa, who ruled the rain-shortened inaugurals of this event last year, did card an under-par round in overcast skies but his 69 could only net him a 36-hole aggregate of 137 for second but six shots behind heading to the last 36 holes of the P3-million event sponsored by ICTSI. “There was nothing special, but I’ve got good swing, and the ball carried real well,” said van der Valk, who birdied Nos. 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11 and 15 inside 10 feet to negate his bogeys on the two par 3s (Nos. 8 and 11) on his way to posting a new course mark and moving 36 holes from scoring a follow-up to his breakthrough win at Eagle Ridge last year.

Lloyd Go actually looked headed to challenging van der Valk when he went four-under after 11 holes, but the rookie pro drove out-of-bounds twice on the par-four 14th and limped with a quadruple bogey. He, however, birdied two of the last four to submit a second 69 for joint third with Elmer Salvador, who turned in a 70, and Jay Bayron, who matched par 71, at 138.

“It’s okay, still two rounds left. Hopefully, I can still catch up,” said the local ace and former national amateur champion.

Michael Bibat, who started the round in joint second with Bayron and Aussie Jack Sullivan, just one stroke off van der Valk, failed to recover from a bogey-bogey start, finishing with two more bogeys against three birdies for a one-over 72. He slipped to joint sixth at 139 with Rufino Bayron, who birdied the last two holes at the front for a 68, and Albin Engino, who also rallied with a 69.

Forty-three players advanced to the final 36 holes of the Pilipinas Golf Tournaments Inc.-organized event with Sullivan and four others barely making the cut at four-over 147 with a horrible 80 after a fine start of 67.

The Gold Coast native, who rallied with three birdies at the front to get into the first round mix Wednesday, fumbled with seven bogeys and a double bogey with no birdie to show in a 40-40 round.

The other five-over total scorers were Korean Kim Young Hyun (73), Japanese Kei Matsuoka (74) and England’s George Twyman, who fought back with a 69.

Former PGT Asia leg champion Justin Quiban fired a 69 for solo ninth at 140 while American Lexus Keoninh, who opened with an impressive 68, groped for a 74 and tumbled to joint 10th at 142 with Mhark Fernando (70), Reymon Jaraula (71), Japanese Ryo Nishimura (73) and Dino Villanueva (71).

But no one emerged more rock-solid than van der Valk.

The 39-year-old PGT veteran from Lelystad, the Netherlands, kept his mastery of the course’s three par 5s, which he eagled (No. 11) and birdied (Nos. 15 and 6) in the first round. Though he missed a birdie chance on the sixth, van der Valk more than made for the slip with birdies on two of the last three holes.

Sports

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| Friday, June 7, 2019 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

BusinessMirror

STADIUM workers remove water from the court cover as spectators with umbrellas stroll as rain delayed the start of quarterfinal matches on Wednesday. AP

‘BULLRING’ GIVES WAY TO...ESPORTS EVENT

By Howard Fendrich

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The Associated Press

ARIS—When the French Open ends, its Court No. 1 will bid adieu, too, demolished to make way for a grassy gathering place at Roland Garros.

In a sign of the times, the arena’s final event Sunday will not be a tennis match, but an eSports competition.

Court No. 1 is famous for its concrete oval— prompting, among English-speakers, the nickname “Bullring”—and its intimate dimensions, with seating for fewer than 4,000. Spectators cram wherever they can, sitting on staircases or standing in aisles.

“You feel everyone on top of you. You don’t have much space,” said Madison Keys, a semifinalist at Roland Garros last year and into the quarterfinals so far this year. “But I actually like that. It’s really good energy.

I’ll be sad to see it go.”

Me, too. More than the shape or size, though, I’ll miss the place’s sounds, which made watching, and listening to, a match there unique, especially from the courtside media seats.

Players’ inhales and exhales. Sighs. Swear words. (So many swear words.) The scrape of sneakers’ grooved soles against the court’s crushed red brick. The twang of a racket’s strings against a tennis ball’s fuzz. The foot stomp accompanying a volley. The slap of a ball against the white net tape. The clicks from the cameras of professional photographers whose

lens hoods peered through squares cut from the green wall behind a baseline.

The “Sorry!” just before an errant server’s toss was caught instead of struck. The “No!” that let you realize, as soon as a player did, a shot would land out. The “Merci!” to a ballkid handing over a towel between points. The two-note wail of a Parisian siren—distinct from the whirl of a US siren—when an emergency vehicle sped past on an adjacent street.

Reporters and spectators were not the only ones who got the chance to eavesdrop, of course. Players could hear everything going on in the stands. Often, more than they wanted to.

One example: During a third-round match in 2006 between James Blake of the US and a 19-year-old Gael Monfils of France, the locals kept giving the American a hard time. They yelled when Blake volleyed or before his second serves.

When Monfils put one shot near a line, someone in the front row said something to Blake. Instead of letting it go, Blake motioned for the guy to come see for himself.

Wednesday’s.

The Bullring was the site of Rafael Nadal’s French Open debut on May 23, 2005, a 6-1, 7-6 (4), 6-1 victory over Lars Burgsmuller. Roger Federer won a match there in 2001, before he started accumulating major trophies.

John McEnroe beat a 16-year-old Michael Chang there in 1988, a year before Chang would become the youngest men’s singles champion at any Grand Slam tournament.

“The noise echoes in there. Usually, the court’s full: 99 percent of the time there, we played to packed houses, no matter what round it was,” said Mike Bryan, who teamed with twin brother Bob to win two French Open doubles titles. “Sometimes for the final, you’re in the main stadium, and it’s only a third full, and you just hear a smattering of claps.”

Maybe I’ll long for Court No. 1, which sat in the shadow of Chatrier, because it felt like a relic of a bygone age.

Or maybe I’m like the child in Gerard Manley Hopkins’s poem “Spring and Fall,” mourning something other than the court itself.

After all, in the scheme of things, the Bullring is not that old, is it?

It hosted its first match in 1980. That makes it a decade younger than me.

Neymar accuser: I was victim of rape

Djokovic aiming to extend streak, rain delays matches in quarterfinals

B

RASILIA, Brazil—A woman who has accused Brazilian soccer star Neymar of raping her in a Paris hotel went on television in an interview aired on Wednesday to reaffirm her allegation against him in her first public comments on the case.

Talking to Brazilian station SBT, the woman described herself as an “ordinary person who works, studies; I’m a model and a student of interior design who likes sports, training and dancing,” as well as being “a daughter and mother.”

“I was the victim of rape,” she said.

When the interviewer asked if what happened on May 15 was rape or an “aggression”—an apparent reference to what her original lawyers say was the woman’s original complaint—she responded that it

P

ARIS—After an entire day’s play was washed out, organizers at the French Open are optimistic that the four remaining quarterfinal matches will finally be played.

Top-ranked Novak Djokovic carries a 25-match Grand Slam winning streak into his meeting with No. 5 Alexander Zverev on Thursday, while 2018 French Open finalist Dominic Thiem faces No. 10 Karen Khachanov.

If he takes the trophy, Djokovic would become only the second man in history to hold all four major titles at the same time on two separate occasions, joining Rod Laver.

Djokovic already accomplished the feat in 2015-2016.

The second full-day washout at the French Open since 2000 made a mess of the schedule on Wednesday and raised the possibility that the Grand Slam tournament will not finish on time.

Tournament director Guy Forget said there is a chance that the women’s singles final could be delayed from Saturday to Sunday.

“It’s not what we hope,” Forget said, “but if we have no other choice, then that’s what we will do.”

Roland Garros is the only Grand Slam site without a covered court—a retractable roof is expected to be added to the main stadium before next year’s tournament at the facility in western Paris.

As things stand now, with the last two women’s quarterfinals—defending champion Simona Halep of Romania vs. 17-year-old Amanda Anisimova of the US, and No. 8 Ash Barty of Australia vs. No. 14 Madison

Hard to believe, maybe, but the heckler did just that, hopping over the short wall and ambling right out there onto the court to inspect the mark.

“I wish I would have won that match, but it was still a fun atmosphere,” Blake recalled this week. “I love partisan crowds.”

The Bullring joins other cozy Grand Slam courts razed in recent years. The difference: The US Open’s Grandstand and Wimbledon’s No. 2 Court (known as “The Graveyard of Champions,” because of notable upsets, including George Bastl over Pete Sampras, and Jill Craybas over Serena Williams) were reimagined and reconstructed.

The Bullring won’t return, supplanted by 5,290-capacity Court Simonne-Mathieu, which is surrounded by greenhouses.

All part of a renovation that, in 2020, is expected to finally usher the French Open into modernity with a retractable roof at the main stadium, Court Philippe Chatrier. That way, the tournament can avoid total washouts like

NOVAK DJOKOVIC could become only the second man in history to hold all four major titles at the same time on two separate occasions. AP

Keys of the US—moved from Wednesday to Thursday, whoever emerges from that half of the draw could end up playing on three consecutive days.

The semifinals that were supposed to be on Thursday are now scheduled for Friday. But, as Forget noted, while Thursday’s forecast looks OK, Friday’s calls for more showers.

“Friday,” he said, “is kind of complicated.”

That would mean the women’s semifinals could end up on Saturday.

Also moved from Wednesday to Thursday were the last two men’s quarterfinals: No. 1 Novak Djokovic of Serbia, who is attempting to win a fourth consecutive Grand Slam title, against No. 5 Alexander Zverev of Germany, and No. 4 Dominic Thiem of Austria vs. No. 10 Karen Khachanov of Russia.

Instead of beginning at 2 p.m. local time (1200 GMT, 8 a.m. EDT) on Thursday, play will start at noon (1000 GMT, 6 a.m. EDT).

One semifinal in each singles draw already was set on Tuesday, so those players can sit back, relax and prepare. On

the men’s side, Rafael Nadal faces Roger Federer, meeting on Friday for sixth time at Roland Garros and 39th time overall.

They own a combined 37 Grand Slam titles.

“The one,” Forget called it, “that a lot of people are waiting for, of course.”

On the women’s side, it’s No. 26 Johanna Konta of Britain against unseeded 19-year-old Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic. Neither has reached a major final.

Play was wiped out by rain at the French Open for a full day in 2016. Before that, it hadn’t happened since 2000.

In 2012, the men’s final between Nadal and Djokovic began on Sunday but was suspended in the fourth set and resumed on Monday. That was the first time since 1973 that the clay-court major tournament lasted past its originally scheduled final on Sunday.

“When we have uncertain weather, of course, it’s very hard to predict scheduling,” Forget said. “But we have to always study the worse-case scenario, knowing that ideally we want to try to finish on Sunday.” AP

NEYMAR

was “aggression together with rape.”

Neymar, who has said he had two encounters with the accuser in France, denies any wrongdoing. He is also being investigated by Rio de Janeiro’s cybercrime division for posting on social-media images of the woman without her authorization.

A spokesman for Neymar, Day Crespo, has said that “because of the secrecy [of the investigation] we cannot comment.”

But on Wednesday, the player’s lawyers disputed a statement from the woman’s initial legal team saying his representatives had asked for a meeting to discuss a settlement with the accuser. The player’s attorneys issued a statement saying it was the woman’s lawyers who sought the May 29 meeting, at which no agreement was reached.

The first complaint presented by the woman’s legal team cited “aggression,” or “physical violence,” by Neymar.

She filed a more serious rape complaint against Neymar on Friday with police in São Paulo. The woman later changed lawyers.

The Associated Press generally does not name people who say they are victims of sex crimes.

The TV station broadcast her comments as the soccer star played with Brazil’s national team in a friendly match with Qatar in Brasilia while it prepares for the Copa America tournament.

Neymar left the match with an apparent injury.

Brazil’s soccer confederation later said its doctor examined him and found that he had twisted his ankle.

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who attended the game in Brasilia, told journalists earlier in the day that he believes in Neymar. “He is a kid. He is in a difficult moment, but I believe in him,” the president said.

Bolsonaro, a far-right former army captain, was elected in October after a campaign in which he promised to attack corruption and crime but also drew criticism for frequent anti-LGBT, misogynistic and racist remarks. AP

Saint Joseph in charge

D

EAR God, You placed Saint Joseph in charge of Your household, in which Jesus was born. We rejoice to celebrate this holy man and pray: Remember us in Your love, oh God. Help us to discern our words and actions with prayer. Support mothers, fathers and guardians who are challenged by difficult decisions. Make the Holy Family with Jesus, Mary and Joseph be our model to bring out peace and unity in our respective homes. Guide the Church in the preferential option for the poor especially to striving poor families to have better lives. May God strengthen us in our vocation to love, through the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. Amen.

GIVE US THIS DAY SHARED BY LUISA LACSON, HFL Word&Life Publications • teacherlouie1965@yahoo.com

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

‘X’ MICHAEL FASSBENDER

Life BusinessMirror

GAB FAB: BIANCA NOW COMFORTABLE IN THE SPOTLIGHT D4

Friday, June 7, 2019

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AGAIN MARKS THE SPOT

I

N Dark Phoenix, which is now in Philippine theaters everywhere from 20th Century Fox, the X-Men face one of their gravest and most personal challenges to date. It’s the 1990s, and even as the team attempts to embrace a newfound heroic status and acceptance within society, their close bond is about to be shattered when Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) merges with a strange, extraterrestrial force, one that boosts her already strong abilities to previously unknown levels. Years of repression are torn asunder as Jean begins to find herself and master her new powers, even as those around her start to wonder if she’ll be a threat to the world, and a mysterious alien with an agenda (Jessica Chastain) exerts influence.

Michael Fassbender has been playing Erik Lensherr, the troubled, driven mutant also known as Magneto, since 2011’s X-Men: First Class. In that time, he’s seen the character develop as a leader in his own right, and struggle with the treatment of mutants by society in general. Fassbender, nominated for two Oscars in his career to date, has appeared in such films as Macbeth, 12 Years A Slave and the more recent Alien entries.

Here, he talks about the character-based focus of the film, Erik’s development through the years and the comfort level between the actors on set.

What brought you back to the film series?

I loved the journey up to Dark Phoenix and specifically wanted to come back because Simon (Kinberg) was directing. I wanted to lend whatever I could bring to the table for him. He was such a fantastic collaborator and engineer of First Class, Days of Future Past and Apocalypse, and to see him get in the director’s chair, I was really excited for him.

This is Simon’s directorial debut. How was he as a director?

He was very relaxed, very confident; it seemed like he’d been doing it for years. He’s been on so many massive films and been an integral part in so many of them. He’s also a very smart man, he’s the kind of guy that doesn’t speak unless he’s educated

on something or has knowledge on it. He observes, he listens—all the ingredients to make a great director.

I think he bided his time and felt like he was ready to have a go at it.

Where do we find Erik in the new movie?

He’s finally become the cult leader that was always alive in him! (Laughs) He’s formed Genosha, so he’s managed to create this community, independent state/nation where mutants can live in harmony and without attack, and anyone who agrees to pitch in and do their part are welcome there. It’s selfsufficient, it’s off the grid, and it’s his struggles through the series, certainly when I was playing it, culminating in this physical place. Since his family has been ripped away from him, from what happened to him as a child and then, of course, with his wife and child later, well, that sense of death is always with him. But this is a mature Erik; he’s more at peace, and he only leaves this haven out of loyalty. It’s like an old Western, he’s got to go on his mission.

This feels like Simon driving it to be more character-based. Was that your feeling?

I think he wanted to strip everything down, boil it down to the bones...even visually, the way he shot it, a lot of it is handheld, and I’m not wearing any Magneto costumes. The helmet is there, but everything is pared down to be a character exploration.

Did the others look enviously at you in your turtleneck and jeans?

I don’t know! I certainly was very thankful that it was an easy in-and-out for me, especially if you look at what Nicholas [Hoult] goes through each day as Beast!

Compared to him, I definitely got an easier route.

There’s a line in the film about there always being a speech from Xavier. Did it feel like Simon playing with the tropes of the genre?

Exactly. We’ve all heard the ideology, whether they’re playing chess together or Charles is talking to him telepathically, there’s this back and forth. It was a nice little tongue-in-cheek moment in the

script, which is kind of like the Indiana Jones moment where he just pulls the pistol and shoots a guy instead of getting into hand-to-hand combat. That was fun!

Jessica (Chastain) joined the cast this time. Did you get to act with her at all?

It was great to have her join us. We didn’t really have a lot of scenes together; just a few moments together in the final act of the movie. She’s present with Jean, and so to be fair it mainly was acting beats that I had any interaction with her character. There’s a very technical aspect to it, you’ve got to make sure that the timings are right and knowing that a lot of things are going to be added in later, it’s making sure those rhythms are correct. It’s a very technical exercise, more than anything else.

Is it something that you’re used to these days?

Absolutely. When I started doing effects movies, you had to imagine what they were going to put in later, there was some storyboarding stuff, but now they’ve got pre-visualization stuff that they show you on a laptop, to see what it’s going to look like and the geographical elements. Of course, you know it’s going to be a lot more fantastical when the team has spent some time on it. I enjoy the technical challenges; it’s another thing that needs to be learned, and it’s something that is fun to explore. It’s not only being in time with the actors. It’s also being in time with the stunt team; if you’re on wires, it’s the riggers… everybody is communicating in the same rhythm. It’s like a dance and I enjoy that.

How is the feeling on set? Still having fun? But is there more focus these days?

At the beginning you’re really trying to bond with everyone, you’re getting to know each other and those sorts of silly games. I know they can be a little annoying if people are trying to gather order on set, but they’re also very important for the actors to get to a personal level with one another, to be comfortable with one another, and to have that camaraderie. We trust each other, we depend on each other, and we all like each other. So, it’s just the

maturation of that relationship, I think.

Are you ever tempted to separate yourself, to go Method with Magneto’s feeling of isolation?

It depends what my mood is on the day.

Absolutely there are times where I’ll just go away and find a corner where I can just be by myself if I need to be in more of a meditative state. We’re all at ease with one another; we all know each other very well, and it’s whatever each of us needs to do. There’s always a respect there about whatever the other person’s process is and if anyone is ever struggling on camera, or in a moment, we’re all there for each other 100 percent and we want everyone to be the best on these sets.

What is the overriding theme of the movie this time?

I think the seed of talking about female characters and power was there from the beginning. Simon had unfinished business after The Last Stand, and you could tell from Apocalypse that he was putting this story in place, setting it up. So, the germ of that was there and the timing, as it happens at the moment, just seems to be in sync with what’s going on in the real world. But Simon’s always been of that mindset, the equality across the board for both the female and male characters.

Were you glad not to be the threat this time?

I was a little bit jealous, to be honest. “What?

Somebody else is causing trouble?” Of course Apocalypse already stole that from me in the movie before, so I was getting used to it!

Do you see this as a potential swan song for the current team? Would you come back again if asked?

I have no idea! It’s not my issue to deal with, I’ll leave it in the hands of people who’ve got it. I’m not spending much time thinking about it, I’ve had a great journey on these four films, I’m happy. If something comes up that looks interesting, I’m always willing to read and take a look, but I’m perfectly happy. n

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Friday, June 7, 2019

Society BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

z

Today’s Horoscope

By Eugenia Last

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Iggy Azalea, 28; Michael Cera, 30; Bill Hader, 40; Liam Neeson, 66.

SSI Head of Marketing Communications Mitch Suarez, SSI Group Inc. President Anton Huang, Jj Yulo, HSBC SVP and Head of Retail Banking and Wealth Management Peter Faulhaber, HSBC SVP and Head of Retail Banking and Wealth Management Marketing Anya Katigbak-Cajucom, and HSBC SVP and Head of RBWM Customer Value Management Jasmine Alansalon-Gonzales

VINA GUERRERO and David Guison

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Plan to make a change this year that will help propagate new beginnings, learning something that will help you advance or encourage a healthier and more self-sufficient lifestyle. Make choices based on facts, figures and health concerns. Don’t give in to someone trying to lead you astray using emotional manipulation. Do what’s best for you. Make choices based on truth. Your lucky numbers are 3, 11, 16, 20, 29, 36, 49.

a

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Be secretive about any personal changes you want to make. The less people know about what you are doing, the easier it will be to complete your mission without someone meddling in your affairs. Choose intelligence over sentiment. HHH

b

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): The changes you make should be thought out before you begin. A mistake can end up costing you your position or your assets. Weigh the pros and cons before you leverage what you’ve worked so hard to obtain. HHHH

c PERFORMERS from Stages gave snippets of their upcoming scheduled shows in June.

PATTY LAUREL FILART

JANICE VILLANUEVA

Escape from the big city S HAKE off the summer heat in the Metro with an awesome New York experience at Central Square, the trendiest hangout in Bonifacio Global City.

Ongoing until June 30, the SSI Group presents the vibrant, eclectic styles of the city that never sleeps through an array of fashion and travel, food and musical performances that will have you living the excitement of the Big Apple.

Central Square recently launched “Big City Escape,” its ongoing raffle promotion in partnership with HSBC, one of the world’s largest banking and financial services institutions.

Until June 30, each shopper is entitled to one raffle entry for every P3,000 single or accumulated receipt purchase from participating Central Square and

Bonifacio High Street stores. HSBC card holders can get three raffle entries per purchase requirement.

Shoppers also stand a chance to win three great prizes: the grand prize brings a lucky winner and one companion to New York City—inclusive of airfare from Philippine Airlines, accommodation, a complete New York experience and a P100,000 shopping spree at Central Square; the second prize grants a complete Central Square experience with a dining treat for 10 persons plus a P100,000-shopping spree at the mall; and the third prize entitles the winner to P50,000 shopping spree and dining treat for four at Central Square.

Joining the revelry of the launch of Big City Escape were not a few prominent names and faces in society. n

d

CANCER (June 21-July 22): An unusual partnership or connection you have with someone will develop into something you didn’t expect. Don’t be afraid to see where it leads.

What you discover will help you bring about positive change, which will do you good. HHHHH

e

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Make changes for the right reason. Doing something out of spite or to hide something you probably shouldn’t be doing from someone who cares about you will lead to regret. Think twice before you make an untimely choice. HHH

f

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Stick to what you know, and do what you can to maintain balance and to forge ahead with integrity.

Refuse to let anyone take advantage of you or to take credit for your hard work. HHH

BEA FABREGAS, the event host, and Patty Laurel Filart

g

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Get out and explore new possibilities. Avoid what’s going on at home or work that could label you or lump you in with people who do not share your beliefs or standards. HHH

h

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Be creative, but don’t go overboard. Know your limitations and refuse to let anyone put pressure on you to take part in something risky. Focus on good health and looking your very best. HHHHH

Another successful staging of NXTFood Asia THE 13th edition of Ifex Philippines NXTFood Asia recorded a successful opening on May 24 at the World Trade Center in Pasay City. Inaugurated by top government officials and diplomats, the event is considered as the biggest gathering of delectable and export quality food finds.

Philippine food exporters are now enjoying the encouraging response of local and foreign trade buyers, foodies and consumers as the event continues to attract thousands of visitors.

Beyond efforts to expand food exports, Ifex Philippines NXTFood Asia also aims to pique the interest of local consumers to appreciate the exquisite quality of Filipino offerings on a par with the world’s standards.

The event featured the Islands on a Plate special setting that served mouthwatering dishes prepared

by Chef Bea Nitard of Via Mare, who lent her expertise in curating the use of premium seven ingredients, such as cacao, coffee, mango, tuna, banana, pineapple and coconuts.

Chef Helmut Holzer, award-winning culinary master and certified European and American Master Chef, graced Ifex Philippines NXTFood Asia as a special guest.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Don’t fold under pressure. Someone will try to persuade you to take on the impossible. Share your concerns and offer advice, but don’t sign up for something you can’t manage. Choose to go it alone and do things your way. HH

i

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Live and learn. Don’t let someone who has let you down in the past do so again. Question anything that sounds dubious or that might jeopardize your relationship with someone who matters to you.

Protect a personal relationship and your integrity. HHH

j

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): You may need a change, but before you get started, it’s best to have a budget in place. It’s OK to think big, but don’t let ego or someone else talk you into taking on something you cannot handle. HH

k

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Time is precious and must be designated wisely.

Don’t disappoint someone you love because something that sounds like more fun comes along. Live up to your promises and make family and domestic situations priorities to avoid discord. HHH

l FROM left: Embassy of Malaysia Chargé d’Affaires a.i. Rizany Irwan bin Muhamad Mazlan; Department of Agriculture Program Director Bernadette San Juan; Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Capaya Rodriguez Gonzales; Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions Executive Director Pauline Suaco-Juan; Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez; Cabinet Spouses Association Inc. Executive Secretary Atty. Betty Medialdea; Trade Undersecretary Abdulgani Macatoman; Philippine Food Processors and Exporters Organization Inc. President Roberto Amores; and Embassy of Hungary Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Dr. Jozsef Bencze

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Emotions will be difficult to control. Avoid getting into a discussion with someone who is never going to agree with you. Do your own thing and pay close attention to where you put your possessions or how you handle your assets. HHH BIRTHDAY BABY: You are imaginative, animated and reflective.

You are captivating and willful.

‘easy as 1-2-3’ BY MARYELLEN UTHLAUT The Universal Crossword/Edited by David Steinberg

ACROSS 1 Bureaucratic holdup 8 Insomniacs 13 Dieters 14 Faunae complements 15 By surprise 16 Fight back 17 Yearned (for) 18 Census takers 20 Jeans brand 22 “For ___ a jolly good fellow...”

23 NBA game VIP 26 Ice containers 29 One feeling pier pressure?

33 Copier insert 36 Schwarzenegger nickname 37 Umpires 40 Muhammad Ali’s religion 41 Property right 42 Food is a basic one 43 Sealy rival 45 “That’s great news!”

46 Guitar relative, briefly 47 Dreamer’s sleep stage: Abbr.

0 Thankful souls 5 56 Political ad target 60 Walked unevenly 61 In excess of 63 Basketry willows 64 Serving surfaces...or, in another sense, what the starred clues are for their answers 65 Blackjack players 66 Hat worn by Bo Diddley DOWN 1 Hindu queen 2 Style 3 Round peg 4 Many a Monopoly deal 5 Word before “current” or “wave” 6 Ibsen’s Gynt 7 To be, in Rome 8 Flexible Flyers, e.g.

9 Garden tube 10 Environmentalist Brockovich 11 Near ___ (Turkey’s region) 12 Hotel room no-nos, often 13 Beer pong target

4 Makes chicken crispy 1 19 Unlikely to ask someone out 21 Sicilian peak 23 Milne’s Christopher 24 Delete 25 French girl 27 Did one-third of a triathlon 28 Tree in the birch family 29 Stiffly formal 30 Not sharp or flat 31 City in Tuscany 32 Easily annoyed 34 Very willing (to) 35 Doctrine suffix 36 “Facts ___ stubborn things”: John Adams 38 Held a session 39 Russian emperor, once 43 Brakes too hard, perhaps 44 Cant finish?

46 App’s audience 48 Happening 49 Applesauce brand 50 Like-minded political group

1 Mona ___ 5 52 Arabian chieftain 53 Zoomed along 54 Yukon and Sierra 55 It makes smoke darker 57 Nickname related to Teddy 58 Make, as money 59 Hosp. workers hidden in “internship” 62 Feel remorse Solution to yesterday’s puzzle:

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Relationships BusinessMirror

Friday, June 7, 2019

Smart shopping SOMETHING LIKE LIFE

MA. STELLA F. ARNALDO

@akosistellaBM

B

UYING a new appliance always causes me so much grief. And I’m guessing others who keep home also experience the same amount of trepidation when purchasing a new kitchen gadget, personal computer or even mobile phone. My latest trip to the appliance store involved a microwave oven. I had inherited my last unit from my late mother, so since she’s been gone for five years already, I assume the oven is about five to six years old. So I guess it having given up the ghost after all those years shouldn’t have surprised me.

I already had it repaired last January when it first conked out, and spent P2,050 to replace its magnetron (the hell I know what that is!), and a second repair, just four months after, was rebuffed by my wallet. (I was being charged P2,900 this time, to replace a capacitor and other doodads in it. No thanks!)

I don’t use the microwave oven for anything except to reheat food. Usually when I cook my meals at home, there will be leftovers. So those are what get torched in the unit.

But like I said, it’s difficult to select a new appliance. Or maybe I’m just more anal than the average consumer or shopper...I need to study the specs of each gadget candidate to death. How much is the power output? What are the unit’s dimensions?

Will it fit in the tiny space on my kitchen counter?

How much food can I load in it for reheating in microwaveable containers? And so on and so forth.

Of course, there are also price considerations.

I wasn’t after anything complicated because, as I said, I just use the microwave oven for reheating food. So definitely, digital units were out. I visited about five appliance centers in my neighborhood, and after having studying a number of brands and their specs, I opted for one of the cheaper ones, which was fully manual.

Inputs from Big Sis and her family regarding this particular brand had been encouraging; this was also a significant factor in my decision to choose it. Despite the low price tag, for instance, my niece said she has been using her microwave oven from that particular brand for the past six years already.

Also, it was important to me that it was orangetagged by Meralco. This is one of the services most consumers overlook when dealing with the power utility. An orange tag usually means the appliance has been rated by Meralco, and advises consumers how much money they would be spending with every use of the electronic product.

If the tag isn’t visible immediately on the unit’s façade or body, consumers can always check the Meralco web site for a list of appliances and other electronic gadgets it has rated. In my case, the unit I bought would cost me an estimated 79 centavos per use, when placed on maximum setting for five minutes. The unit had a 20-liter capacity with a power output of 700 watts. And after comparing all the brands in the category, I safely concluded that not all mircrowave ovens are created equal.

For sure, the smart consumers among us would rather save on additional expenses when using kitchen gadgets, appliances and other consumer electronics. If we can have these repaired, so much the

better. (I, for one, will use the same old mobile phone until it conks out, or a new unit under my retention plan becomes available. My TV, for instance, is more than six years old and my Macbook, 11 years old. I am not one to ride on the latest consumer product just because everyone has it, or it’s trendy.)

But when one realizes the cost of repairs far outweigh the purchase of a new unit, then it’s time to haul oneself to the appliance store and study one’s options. There are a lot of factors to consider before making a final purchase. And unless one’s financial resources are limitless, it’s better to be a smart shopper and get your money’s worth on an appliance you purchase.

TRANSFORMING ENERGIES SPEAKING of Meralco, May 31 marked the last day of Oscar S. Reyes as president and CEO of Meralco.

Lawyer Ray C. Espinosa, who was power utility’s general counsel and Meralco deputy CEO since January this year, assumed his post. Espinosa has been with the Manuel V. Pangilinan (MVP) Group for over 20 years.

Reyes has had a sterling career in the private sector—I met him when he was still with Pilipinas Shell—and spent the last nine years at Meralco, first as its chief operating officer, then as president in 2012. In all that time, he worked at improving the power utility’s services and whipping it into a better financial shape.

“I think from 2009, our core net income was a little over P7 billion. We have since grown that core

income to P22.4 billion; so we tripled the profitability of [Meralco] in a period of less than 10 years,” he said in an interview.

Under Reyes’s leadership also, Meralco is now back into the power generating business, and has expanded its services to other countries.

The most pressing issue he encountered, said Reyes, was trying to get the best out of people.

“You have excellent people, but you know people’s capability to create, deliver is significantly more than what you can see.... You can stretch the productivity, the ability, the competence of people [and] make them better than what they are.”

He managed to achieve this, he said, by fostering

the right environment for the employees to be motivated and work together.

Asked if he had any advice for his successor, Reyes averred: “Mr. Espinosa doesn’t need any advice. He was right there from the start.

He knows Meralco very well; he’s been chairman of the finance committee, and he’s had extensive experience. So I think, throughout the whole history of Meralco under MVP’s leadership, he’s been at the core of the organization. I think he has a full grasp and I can only be extremely confident that he will bring Meralco to greater heights under his leadership.”

Cheers and best of luck to the two gentlemen. n

For brides from MyDiamond IN this lovely month of vows and promises of forever and happily ever after, MyDiamond (www. mydiamond.com.ph) presents an exclusive bridal promotion on its Devotion Collection of engagement rings and matching wedding bands for those tying the knot.

Discover the brand’s exquisite bridal jewelry pieces of exceptional craftsmanship, design and quality at the most attractive prices—up to 45-percent discount until June 30.

Wellness discussion tackles heart attacks, flu, diabetes

BY DINNA CHAN VASQUEZ PEOPLE die from heart attacks during the holidays.

Other causes of heart attacks could include traffic, gum disease and even “third-hand” smoke.

At the Watsons World of Wellness discussion at the SM City Trade Hall in Cebu City, Dr. Celine Aquino and Dr. Marivic Vestal talked about “Inane Things That Can Kill You” or not-so-well-known risk factors for a heart attack. The two doctors said the association of these factors to heart attack have been the subject of much research.

“According to Google, Filipinos are becoming more health conscious. The health sector is growing in terms of demand for online content because most people now search online before buying almost anything,” said Watsons Health Trading Director Rafael Lim. The discussion was attended exclusively

by Watsons Card members.

Another trend we’re seeing is lifestyle diseases like hypertension and diabetes affecting younger people in the 25 to 35 age range. The speakers also included Dr. Kevin Bautista (on being a flu fighter across generations and the basics of asthma) and Dr. Albert Chu (diabetes).

Influenza is the most common VPD (vaccine

WATSONS Health Trading Director Rafael Lim

FROM left: Dr. Kevin Bautista, Dr. Marissa Garcia, Dr. Celine Aquino and Dr. Marivic Vestal at the World of Wellness in Cebu

preventable disease) that affect different age groups, said Bautista. The flu impacts a person’s productivity and overall well-being. Prevention and treatment include vaccination, and practice of good health habits such as handwashing, and covering your mouth and nose when sick.

About 10.7 million Filipinos suffer from asthma, a condition wherein the muscles around the airways tighten, making them narrower and harder to get air in and out of the lungs.

Triggers can include animal hair, dust, pollen, pollution and exercise. Symptoms are shortness of

breath, coughing, wheezing and chest tightness.

Bautista said those who suffer from asthma should always consult their doctor.

Meanwhile, diabetes is one of the top 7 leading causes of death in the Philippines with one out of five adults having diabetes or prediabetes. Chu said the symptoms of diabetes include extreme thirst, blurry vision, chronic fatigue, very dry skin and sores that take long to heal.

“The health symposium is only one of Watsons’s initiatives to help improve the lives of Filipinos. By gaining more knowledge on health and wellness, Filipinos become more empowered,” said Lim. Exclusive invites to events like World of Wellness is only one of the perks of being a Watsons Card member. Other perks include value-added instore services such as doctor consultations and vaccinations.

As of May, there are 1.2 million member of Watsons Card, which was launched in September 2018. Wellness, said Lim, is a fast-growing component at Watsons.

“How big is the wellness component? It’s nearly at the same level as the beauty category. The best sellers in this category are vitamins and supplements, with women among our biggest customers.”

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Bianca now comfortable in the spotlight BIANCA GONZALEZ

GAB FAB JET VALLE

@jetvalle

STAN LEE (left) and Keya Morgan arrive at the world premiere of Avengers: Infinity War in Los Angeles in April 2018. AP

Man charged with elder abuse of Stan Lee pleads not guilty

BY KATIE CAMPIONE The Associated Press LOS ANGELES—A former business manager to Stan Lee pleaded not guilty to elder-abuse charges that allege he stole from the late Marvel Comics legend and held him against his will.

Keya Morgan, 43, entered the plea in Los Angeles after authorities transported him from Arizona, where he was arrested last month.

Morgan was charged in May with five counts of elder abuse involving the late Marvel Comics mastermind, including theft, embezzlement, forgery or fraud against an elder adult, and false imprisonment of an elder adult.

The charges date to June 2018, when Morgan was working closely with Lee. The comics legend, who cocreated Spider-Man, the Incredible Hulk and Black Panther, died in November at age 95.

Alex Kessel, an attorney for Morgan, has said his client has never abused or taken advantage of Lee. Los Angeles County prosecutors say Morgan sought to capitalize on Lee’s wealth and exert influence over him even though he had no authority to act on his behalf.

Prosecutors say Morgan pocketed more than $262,000 from autograph-signing sessions Lee did in May 2018.

Morgan at one point also took Lee from his Hollywood Hills home to a Beverly Hills condominium “where Morgan had more control over Lee,” according to California authorities.

Lee’s daughter, Joan, said in a request for a restraining order last year that Morgan was manipulating the mentally declining Lee, preventing him from seeing family and friends, and trying to take control of his money and business affairs. A restraining order was granted last June that barred Morgan from contact with Lee and revealed a police elder abuse investigation.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Francis Bennett set a hearing for Thursday morning to determine the source of money offered to secure Morgan’s release. His bail is set at $300,000.

Kessel said Morgan’s mother would be providing the bail money.

Lee was the public face of Marvel Comics and beloved for his appearances at comic book conventions and his cameos in Marvel movies, including a posthumous one in April’s Avengers: Endgame.

I

MET Bianca Gonzalez more than 10 years ago back when she was just a commercial model.

What struck me then was her gift of gab, and how she broke the model stereotype as she effortlessly combined style and substance. Another thing that struck me was that she was so down-toearth and unassuming. Diyos ko, mas maarte pa ako sa kanya!

But in front of the camera, Bianca is a woman transformed. She possesses this earthly beauty with doe eyes that pierce through you.

Back then, Bianca was still uncomfortable getting all the attention. Many times, I would remind her about that. She regarded herself as only a commercial model/endorser and only a host, therefore not as “showbiz” as the rest of them. I kept telling her that she was pretty much, whether she liked it.

I am so glad that Bianca is now more comfortable and has even settled with her status. She deftly balances her public and private life, and despite having a hectic schedule with her stint as a host in Pinoy Big Brother and Cinema One, she is now mom to two beautiful children with her husband, basketball star JC Intal.

Maybe we can learn a thing or two from Bianca.

Ten years ago, she was reluctant celebrity. Now she uses this to push forward a number of causes, such as education, breastfeeding and more.

She also became outspoken on those whitening product ads that she thinks is very discriminatory, often shouting to the highest of the heavens that she is proud of her morena skin.

Bianca is a testament of what you think is maybe not meant for you, is really is and you can use it for your own and the world’s own good. nnn KIDZANIA Manila marks its third year of participation in the Department of Education’s (DepEd) National Schools Maintenance Week, known as Brigada Eskwela, which is part of the play city’s commitment to help maintain a healthy learning environment for public-school children.

“KidZania aspires to be the best learning partner in child care and education through the

transformational edutainment experience we offer. This is the reason why we are fully committed to the Brigada Eskewala program.

We are firm believers that creating a conducive, fun learning environment helps build a better world for our students,” said KidZania Manila governor and CEO Cookie Bartolome.

KidZania Manila volunteers also participated in its neighboring school, Palar Elementary School in Taguig City. They joined school teachers, parents and other volunteers in the cleanup, and assisted in the sprucing up of classrooms.

The KidZania Manila team also donated sanitary

GMA keeps TV ratings dominance in Urban Luzon KMJS was followed by Sahaya, Magpakailanman, 24 Oras, Kara Mia, Daddy’s Gurl, Pepito Manaloto, Love You Two, Studio 7 and Daig Kayo ng Lola Ko. Completing the list were Eat Bulaga, Amazing Earth, The Crown Princess, The Boobay and Tekla Show, Dragon Lady, Bubble Gang, Wowowin, Bihag, Are You Human? and 24 Oras Weekend. GMA also maintained its dominance in Mega Manila, which accounts for 60 percent of all urban viewers in the country.

Based on official data from May 1 to 25, GMA registered an average total day people audience share of 38 percent outscoring ABS-CBN’s 27.8 percent. In the list of toprating programs in Mega Manila, 22 out of the top 30 shows were from GMA. Nielsen TV Audience Measurement’s client pool covers a total of 32 clients/subscribers consisting of six local TV networks, including ABS-CBN, TV5, Aksyon TV and CNN Philippines, among others; three regional clients; two blocktimers; and 21 agencies (17 media agencies, three consulting agencies and one digital agency).

THE latest news in the network wars has GMA continuing to be the viewers’ preferred channel in Urban Luzon, according to the latest data from ratings service provider Nielsen TV Audience Measurement.

For the month of May (with May 26 to 31 based on overnight data), GMA registered an average total day people audience share of 36.3 percent, beating ABS-CBN’s 30.7 percent in Urban Luzon, which accounts for 72 percent of all urban TV viewers in the country.

Per day part, GMA posted a 29.3-percent audience share in the morning block while its rival network only got 23.8 percent. The network continued to lead in the afternoon block with a 36.2-percent audience share, versus ABS-CBN’s 32.7 percent. GMA won in the evening block, as well, with 39.5 percent as against competition’s 32.2 percent.

The network’s shows, likewise, ruled the list of top-rating programs in Urban Luzon for the month of May with Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho (KMJS) again securing the No. 1 spot. The award-winning magazine show similarly remained as the most watched program in National Urban Philippines.

HBO drama series ‘Gentleman Jack’ renewed for second season FOLLOWING the show’s April debut, the HBO drama series Gentleman Jack has been renewed for a second season.

Created, written and codirected by Sally Wainwright (Happy Valley, Last Tango in Halifax), and starring Bafta Award winner Suranne Jones, Gentleman Jack premieres same time as the US every Tuesday at 10 am, exclusively on HBO GO, and concludes its eight-episode first season on June 11.

The series tells the story of Anne Lister, a woman who had a passion for life and a mind for business, and bucked society’s expectations at every turn.

“We’re thrilled that Anne Lister’s story has resonated so powerfully with audiences in the US and abroad, and we’re grateful to Sally Wainwright and the entire Gentleman Jack family for bringing her story to life,” says Francesca Orsi, executive vice president, HBO Drama Programming. “Anne’s

and school supplies for the students, as well as gallons of paint and Philippine flags with the aid of their sponsors Ayala Foundation, Green Cross, First Balfour and National Book Stores.

Through its External Partnerships Service, DepEd implemented the 16th Annual Brigada Eskwela, gearing up for the opening of classes this month.

Focusing on the theme “Matatag na Bayan Para sa Maunlad na Paaralan,” the project continues to improve one school after another with weeklong cleanups and minor repairs of facilities.

KidZania is at Park Triangle, Bonifacio Global City.

For more details, visit manila.kidzania.com. n

journey is an important and courageous one, and we can’t wait to share this next season with the world.”

“It’s so exciting that so many people have had such a positive response to Suranne’s exuberant performance as the brilliant, life-affirming Anne Lister, and to Sophie Rundle’s beautiful performance as her courageous partner, Ann Walker,” says Sally Wainwright. “I’m utterly delighted that we’ve been recommissioned, because there are so many more big, bold stories to tell about Anne Lister and Ann Walker. A massive thank you to the BBC and HBO and to everyone at Lookout Point.”

Set in the complex, changing world of 1832 Halifax, West Yorkshire—the cradle of the evolving Industrial Revolution—Gentleman Jack follows Anne Lister, who is determined to transform the fate of her faded ancestral home, Shibden Hall, by reopening the coal mines and marrying well. But

the charismatic, single-minded, swashbuckling Lister—who dresses head-to-toe in black and charms her way into high society—has no intention of marrying a man.

Based on historical fact, the show examines Lister’s relationships with her family, servants, tenants and industrial rivals and, most important, would-be wife. The real-life Anne Lister’s story was recorded in the 5 million words of her diaries, and the most intimate details of her life, once hidden in a secret code, have been decoded and revealed for the series.

Among the critical praise for the first season, The Hollywood Reporter hailed the show as “funny, smart and touching,” while the Wall Street Journal called it “utterly seductive” and The New York Times described Suranne Jones’s performance as “a marvel, exuding vitality, charisma and sexual confidence.”

Motoring BusinessMirror

Henry Ford Awards Best Motoring Section 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 2011 Hall of Fame

Editor: Tet Andolong

CUT-AWAY Prius HEV model on display

PRIUS HEV cut-away engine on display

TDEM Vice President Yukio Yoshida (from left), TMP Vice Chairman Dr. David Go, DTI Undersecretary for Competitiveness and Innovation Dr. Rafaelita Aldaba, TMP President Satoru Suzuki, TMAP Executive Vice President Vince Socco, and Clean Air Asia Deputy Executive Director Atty. Glynda Bathan-Baterina

HEV battery pack cut away unit on display

Friday, June 7, 2019

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Seaoil offers double treats this June

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EAOIL Philippines Inc. (Seaoil), the country’s leading independent fuel player is treating its customers with a one-day special flash sale on Tuesday, June 11.

The sale is a one-time deal that can only be availed for that entire day. Customers can get a P5 discount for every liter of diesel or gasoline, up to a maximum purchase of P10,000. The promo is available at the following Seaoil branches: Del Monte and G. Araneta Avenue in Quezon City; Cuasay in Taguig, Las Piñas, Lawang Bato in Valenzuela, Alijis, Roxas Lacson and Tangub in Bacolod; Iba Basak, Maximo Patalinghug and Plaridel in Cebu; Calinan, Insular Lanang, Ma-a and Lemente Central in Davao.

The company also joins ride hailing app, Grab, as it celebrates its seventh anniversary by giving away free radiator coolants to its drivers. The free radiator coolants can be claimed from June 6 until June 24.

“Seaoil congratulates Grab on its seventh year of operation.

Not only do we want to celebrate this momentous occasion with them, we’d also like to thank their drivers who are also Seaoil users for their continued support,” Seaoil CEO Glenn Yu said.

Grab drivers will receive a free radiator coolant for a minimum P500 single receipt or accumulated fuel purchase.

To claim it, drivers just need to present their Grab driver app, their Seaoil-GRAB VIP card and the receipts. Non-VIP cardholders can also avail themselves of this giveaway by registering for a Seaoil-GRAB VIP card. Seaoil stations participating in the promo are Anabu 1-E in Imus, Cavite; E. Rodriguez Sr. Avenue and P. Tuazon in Quezon City, Karuhatan in Valenzuela, Legarda and Santa Cruz in Manila, Maybunga in Pasig, Nangka in Marikina, Potrero in Malabon and Ususan in Taguig.

The Seaoil-GRAB VIP card features a special set of rewards and incentives for all Grab drivers. Drivers may register at any participating Seaoil branch.

NISSAN ELECTRIFIES UEFA IN MADRID N

ISSAN is powering t he U EFA C h a mpion s League Final by providing 363 Nissan LEAF vehicles and e-NV200 vans to transport officials and visitors to Madrid, creating a mega-fleet that will cover more than 220,000 all-electric kilometers (km).

Now in its fifth season as Official Automotive Sponsor of the world’s largest annual sporting event, Nissan aims to improve air quality and reduce the environmental impact on the host city during this high-traffic weekend, with the largest zero-emissions fleet in the history of the competition.

This year, the Nissan fleet also includes a Nissan LEAF NISMO RC 2.0 race car, which will be used by Brazilian football legend Roberto Carlos as he delivers the UEFA Champions League Trophy from the UEFA Champions Festival in Puerta del Sol to the Estadio Metropolitano.

With dual electric motors, all-wheel drive and an aggressive body shape—as well as a custom-desig ned aerody namic trophy display case for this event—the LEAF NISMO RC 2.0 demonstrates the latest in the performance side of Nissan Intelligent Mobility technology. It has double the maximum power and torque output of its predecessor, containing advanced electric battery technology and drivetrain components sourced from the Nissan LEAF, the world’s best-selling electric car.

The final comes as Nissan prepares to begin deliveries of the new LEAF e+ to European customers, introducing a new 62-kilowatthour battery with a range of 385 km, new personalization options and equipped with Nissan’s e-

IPC TURNS OVER PUVS TO M

Pedal and ProPILOT technologies.

Gareth Dunsmore, divisional general manager of Marketing Communications, Connected Car Services, Customer Experience, at Nissan Europe said: “The Champions League Final and Nissan’s electric vehicles are a perfect match because they are both exciting and at the top of their game.

We are thrilled to offer attendees the experience of zero emissions transportation on the streets of Madrid, a city that is already at the forefront of the electric vehicle revolution.”

The city of Madrid has banned old diesel and petrol cars from some parts of the city center as part of a move to reduce congestion and pollution. A new low-emissions zone covers 472 hectares (1,166 acres) and means that all petrol vehicles registered before 2000 and diesel ones registered before 2006 are banned from the area unless they are used by residents of the area or meet other exemptions. Only vehicles with zero emissions are permitted in downtown Madrid and the city has installed more than 110 car chargers to encourage further electrification.

To bolster that infrastructure over the course of the UEFA Champions League Final weekend, Nissan has added an additional 36 chargers around the city which will all be deployed in Spain after the event.

The Nissan LEAF is made at Nissan’s award-winning plant in Sunderland, the United Kingdom, for export to markets across Europe, including Spain. The LEAF remains the world’s best-selling electric vehicle, with global sales of more than 410,000 and sales in Europe leading the competition with 41,589 units in 2018.

THE QKR-77 based Class 3 PUV is bigger, taller and wider than its Class 2 counterpart.

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Story & Photos by Patrick P. Tulfo

T the rate things are going, it seems that Isuzu is now at the forefront of the government’s public-utility vehicle modernization program based on the number of PUV’s that it’s turning over to local cooperatives all over the country.

On May 18, Isuzu Philippines Corp. handed 15 units QKR based PUV’s under the Class 3 of the current modernization program at Rodriguez, Rizal.

According to Joseph Bautista, head of IPC Sales Division, the initial 15 units represents the first batch of the 60 units ordered by the Metro Comet transport cooperative that plies the Rodriguez to Cubao route and vice-versa.

Bautista said, “The people of Rodriguez, Rizal, should be proud of Metro Comet as they will have the first taste riding the bigger Class 3 PUV in the country.”

Bautista explained that the Class 3 is bigger than the Class 2 PUV, which

is slated to replace the archaic publicutility jeepneys (PUJs) on the road. He said, “Class 3 will soon be the standard for UV Express segment in the country.”

Meanwhile, Shojiro Sakoda, EVP of Isuzu Philippines Corp. said in an interview that they are proud to turn over to Metro Comet their first batch of modern PUVs. The distinction between the Class 2 and 3 can be glean on the seating arrangement as the latter features a front seating setup just like a regular bus. It can easily accommodate 23 sitting passengers in a trip and enjoy the features of the Class 2 segment as mandated by

PORSCHE LAUNCHES IDEAS COMPETITION FOR S P

ORSCHE has launched the ideas competition “Mobility for a Better World.” Together with its partners, the sports car manufacturer from Stuttgart, Germany, is looking for fresh ideas and technology for the sustainable future of mobility. Start-ups, students and developers can now submit their projects. A total of €20,000 in prize money, educational packages and development support in cooperation with the Porsche Digital Lab and the APX accelerator await the participants. The deadline for submitting ideas is August 30, 2019. The winners will be announced during Porsche Sustainability Week in October this year.

“We, at Porsche, are actively shaping the future of the sports car. This means that we combine our traditions and the company’s values with innovative technology and new products in a sustainable manner,” said Oliver Blume, CEO of Porsche AG. “Our goal is to be the most sustainable sports car manufacturer in the premium segment and to decisively shape sporting mobility for the environment, people and their living spaces. We are thinking above all of future generations.”

Focus on technology, mobility and sustainability

“MOBILITY for a Better World” is an ideas competition at the intersection of technology, mobility and sustainability asking how visions for a sustainable

future could look. Creative ideas and solutions, regardless of their degree of maturity, can now be submitted in the four categories of “People,” “Wheels,” “Cities” and “Trust” via an application form on Porsche’s technology blog: www.medium.com/next-level-germanengineering.

The projects submitted will be evaluated by a jury of experts. This consists of Daniela Rathe (head of Policy and External Relations at Porsche), Anja Hendel (head of the Porsche Digital Lab), Thomas Bachem (founder and chancellor of CODE University of Applied Sciences), Robert Martin (Porsche Digital/APX), Franz W. Rother (editor in chief Edison) and Patrick Bungard (director of Center for Advanced Sustainable Management at Cologne Business School and managing director of M3TRIX).

The prizes for the four winners include €5,000 per category, a comprehensive educational package focusing on artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain, as well as specific support from the Porsche Digital Lab and the Berlin Accelerator APX. Participants aged 18 and over can apply, either as a team or as an individual and the ideas competition is being pitched internationally. Further information on the categories, partners and ideas will be published by Porsche in the coming weeks on its “Next Level German Engineering” technology blog

ROBERT MARTIN (Porsche Digital / APX) (from left), Anja Hendel (Head of Porsche Digital Lab), Thomas Ba Applied Sciences), Daniela Rathe (Head of Politics, External Relations and Sustainability Porsche AG)

and on the Porsche Newsroom.

Strong Partners: CODE, APX, EDISON and the Porsche Digital Lab For the “Mobility for a Better World” competition, the Stuttgartbased sports car manufacturer has won renowned support. The university partner is CODE Berlin, a pri-

vate and completely new university for the digital pioneers of tomorrow.

APX, the accelerator of Porsche and Axel Springer, represents founder and growth expertise, supporting start-ups in the early stages of their company foundation and accelerating their development. The Porsche

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Friday, June 7, 2019

METRO COMET

IPC Head of Sales Division Joseph Bautista and IPC EVP Shojiro Sakoda together with the officers of Metro Comet Transport Cooperative

Drive your new Colorado for as low as P48K all-in low DP

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ISCOVER unfamiliar places and enjoy every journey in your brand new Chevrolet as The Covenant Car Company, Inc. (TCCCI), exclusive importer and distributor of Chevrolet automobiles and parts in the country, offers exciting all-in low down payment options on the Chevrolet Colorado, Chevrolet Trailblazer, Chevrolet Trax, Chevrolet Sail, and Chevrolet Spark through its “Find New Adventures” promo.

The all-in low down payment options are available on the following Chevrolet models: Chevrolet Colorado n Chevrolet Colorado 4x2 LT AT– P48,000 all-in low down payment n Chevrolet Colorado 4x2 LTX AT–P118,000 all-in low down payment n Chevrolet Colorado 4x4 LTZ MT–P128,000 all-in low down payment n Chevrolet Colorado 4x4 LTZ AT– P138,000 all-in low down payment Chevrolet Trailblazer n Chevrolet Trailblazer 4x2 LT MT–P88,000 all-in low down payment n Chevrolet Trailblazer 4x2 LT AT–P118,000 all-in low down payment n Chevrolet Trailblazer 4x2 LTX AT–P128,000 all-in low down payment n Chevrolet Trailblazer 4x2 Phoenix AT–P158,000 all-in low down payment n Chevrolet Trailblazer 4x4 Z71 AT–P98,000 all-in low down payment

IT features a forward seating arrangement that is similar to minibus.

Department of Transportation (DOTr) like free Wi-fi and air-conditioned interior. It also has cameras distributed throughout its bus-like body, an automatic door and tap card feature like the ones used in MRT and LRT. Sakoda-san summarized what their new offering in the PUV modernization is all about when he said, “the modern PUVs are assembled using the Isuzu QKR-77 platform, which has been modified especially for PUV use.

Its body was developed by one of the country’s leading bodybuilder Almazora motors. These PUVs are environment-friendly as they comply with

the Euro 4 standards. They are safe, as they comply with safety standards and are equipped with speed limiters, auto fare-collection system, CCTV, GPS and dashboard camera, and comfortable and convenient generous seat space, headroom and legroom with door entry on the right side.

The QKR-77, which the PUV was built on, is powered by the reliable 4JH1-TC, four-cylinder diesel engine that pumps out a maximum of 106 hp at 3200 rpm and 230 N-m of torque that is delivered between 1,400 and 3200 rpm.

These numbers promise to deliver good fuel economy even in traffic.

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Chevrolet Trax n Chevrolet Trax LS AT – P58,000 all-in low down payment n Chevrolet Trax LT AT – P38,000 all-in low down payment Chevrolet Sail n Chevrolet Sail 1.3L LT MT – P58,000 all-in low down payment n Chevrolet Sail 1.5L LT AT – P68,000 all-in low down payment n Chevrolet Sail 1.5L LTZ AT – P58,000 all-in low down payment Chevrolet Spark Chevrolet Spark 1.4L LT MT –

P38,000 all-in low down payment Chevrolet Spark Premier CVT – P58,000 all-in low down payment Find New Adventures WITH Chevrolet’s diverse lineup of powerful and dependable trucks, refined and smart SUVs, and stylish and versatile cars, you can choose your perfect road companion for that exciting road trip ahead. Whatever the adventure demands, the Chevrolet Colorado delivers. The pickup truck provides superb engine performance with its signature Duramax 2.8-L VGT diesel engine that produces up to 200 horsepower (hp) and 500 Nm of torque. Built to endure thrilling adventures, the Colorado can wade up to 800mm of water, haul up to 1 ton of weight, and tow up to 3.5 tons of weight.

Take your whole family in your next adventure with the Chevrolet Trailblazer midsize SUV. The Trailblazer offers theater-style seating for up to seven passengers and provides generous space for all your road trip needs. Under its hood is the 2.8-L Duramax turbo-diesel engine that delivers best-in-class 200 hp and 500 Nm of torque. Packed with safety features, seamless integrated technology, and soft-ride suspension, you can hit the road in comfort and style in the Chevrolet Trailblazer.

The Chevrolet Trax city-smart crossover SUV is a stylish and powerful ride for urban and outof-town drives. Its 1.4-liter turbocharged ECOTEC engine, matched with a 6-speed Automatic Transmission, gives you efficiency in city driving and power on the open road.

It is loaded with safety features including Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD), Straight Line Stability, Hill Start Assist (HSA), and Hill Descent Control and convenient features, including Push Start/Stop button and Chevrolet MyLink seven-inch color touchscreen infotainment system with Siri Eyes Free.

The Chevrolet Sail subcompact sedan provides a comfortable and smooth driving experience when venturing out of exciting road adventures. The dynamic top-of-theline Sail LTZ variant with Automatic Transmission is powered by a 1.5L DOHC-VVT engine and is fitted with 15-inch gunmetal alloy wheels, sunroof and advanced safety features such as Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD) and driver and passenger airbags.

The Chevrolet Spark mini passenger car has a lightweight DOHC 16-valve 1.4-L Ecotec four-cylinder engine in all-aluminum frame

that delivers superb performance and maximum fuel efficiency so you can easily explore the city. It comes in eight fun colors, including new paints Caribbean Blue Metallic, Burning Hot Metallic, and Merry Berry Me Metallic. The peppy mini pc is fitted with the latest seveninch touchscreen MyLink Infotainment System with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Chevrolet Complete Care CHEVROLET vehicles come with the Chevrolet Complete Care Program to give you a worry-free drive.

The Chevrolet Colorado and Chevrolet Trailblazer come with a special five-year warranty coverage: three-year bumper-to-bumper warranty plus a two-year warranty on the Power Train or 100,000 kilometers, whichever comes first. The Chevrolet Trax, Chevrolet Sail and Chevrolet Spark come with a fiveyear warranty program, which offers coverage of five years or 100,000 km, whichever comes first.

Chevrolet vehicles also come with automatic enrollment to the 24/7 Chevrolet Emergency Roadside Support for three years, access to 24/7 Customer Care Hotline, guaranteed one-hour express service for select services, and non-stop service for the always on-the-go Chevy owner. www.chevrolet.com.ph

WAZE YOUR WAY OUT OF THE NUMBER CODING SCHEME

SUSTAINABLE MOBILITY Porsche and sustainability

A RESPONSIBLE approach to people, the environment and society along the value chain, from suppliers to product recycling, is fundamental for Porsche and anchored in its corporate strategy. The aim is to introduce measures over the entire product lifecycle that will increase the company’s added value, while taking ecological and social responsibility into account. It is important for Porsche to continuously reduce the negative environmental impact of its business processes and products. Detailed information on sustainability management and the company’s strategy, as well as on the aspects of stakeholder dialogue and key figures, can be found in the current Annual Report and Sustainability Report of Porsche AG and on the Porsche Newsroom.

Porsche at re:publica

achem (Founder & Chancellor of CODE University of

Digital Lab focuses on testing new technology with a focus on artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain and the “Internet of Things.” The media partner of the ideas competition for sustainable mobility is EDISON, the platform for new mobility and smart living.

FOR the first time, Porsche is the main partner of re:publica in Berlin— one of the most important conferences for the digital society. Together with the Porsche Digital Lab Berlin, the APX accelerator, CODE University, HABA Digitalwerkstatt, the start-up Robonetica and the Porsche competition for developers “Porsche NEXT OI Competition,” the sportscar manufacturer is seeking dialogue to shape the future.

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AVE you seen or heard of Waze’s newest feature? This much-requested Number Coding feature of the Filipino Waze Community has finally arrived.

If you have been driving around with Waze, you may have noticed that it now asks you to input your plate number. This is to help drivers navigate through Metro Manila’s number coding scheme and avoid possible traffic violations. This new feature will allow you to input your vehicle’s plate numbers so you can get reminders when your vehicle is restricted from the road and find alternative routes.

Huge thanks to the Community’s amazing pool of volunteer map editors just recently finished

incorporating the number coding scheme into the maps of Metro Manila, Cavite and Baguio. This new feature will help Wazers get to their destination while avoiding restricted roads during their coding day. Drivers simply need to key in the last two digits of their car’s license plates into the app in order to receive routes that they are allowed to drive on based on the day’s restrictions.

car’s license plate. n You’re all set! Waze will guide you around the Metro’s number coding scheme.

Here’s how to add or change a plate number on Waze: n Tap the Menu, then Settings. n Tap Car details / Vehicle details. n Tap License plate/Number plate. n Enter the last two digits of your

n Tap on the ETA bar at the bottom of your screen. n Tap Routes on the bottom left corner to view alternate routes. n To view turn-by-turn directions, tap List view. n To view as a map, tap Map view.

You will receive several routes, and Waze will indicate which ones pass through restricted roads. You can choose which one to follow. It is highly advised that you check this at the beginning of every trip.

Here’s how:

Own multiple cars? No problem.

You can change the license plate number anytime on the app.

The power of Waze is in your hands. As a crowd-sourced traffic and navigation app, Waze is driven by our data. By simply driving around with Waze open on your device, you share real-time information related to traffic conditions, road structure and other reports such as accidents, police traps, blocked roads, weather conditions and more. Waze collects this information and immediately analyzes it in order to provide other Wazers with the most optimal route to their destination, 24 hours a day.

Let’s be responsible citizens and drivers, and let’s work together to outsmart traffic.

Motoring BusinessMirror

E4 Friday, June 7, 2019

Toyota unfurling its hybrid platform a big hit management and the sustainable coexistence of man with nature.

“In September last year, we also announced the 2030 interim milestone targets towards achieving the Toyota Environmental Challenge 2050.

“These targets are being pursued through our Toyota Environmental Action Plan that sets the specific action plans and targets for every five-year period.

I

T would be an understatement if I say that the speech of Vince Socco during the recent Toyota Hybrid Electric Technology Conference before a jam-packed audience was one of the best thus far delivered in public about Toyota’s ambitious but achievable platform to rid the world of CarbonDioxide (CO2) emissions. It was the best, period.

If only for the record, I had promised to attend the one-day conference to Tini Arevalo, one of the revered top guns of Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP), for one compelling reason: I only wanted to listen live to Socco’s muchawaited discourse on tomorrow’s landscape of sustainable mobility anchored on a clean, pollutionfree, environment worldwide.

My plan did not go in vain.

Although I arrived late—ah, no use blaming traffic, ma-stress ka lang—I was more than satisfied even if I caught just the tail end of Socco’s historic blast.

Suffice it to say, too, that during the press conference of the milestone May 29 affair at one of the swanky rooms of the Grand

Hyatt Manila at BGC Taguig, Socco made another outstanding performance in answering question upon question fired at him by the ever inquisitive, indefatigable pack from the motoring media.

I was just simply glad, awed to the hilt, watching everything unfold right before my eyes. Mabuhay ka, Sir Vince!

Here’s part one of the speech aptly titled, “Toyota Environmental Challenge 2050,” by Vince S. Socco, the executive vice president of Toyota Motors Asia-Pacific based in Singapore.

“Magandang umaga po sa inyong lahat. Good morning.

“ TODAY, I have t he pleasu re

Zero CO2 emissions

SOCCO

of sha r ing w it h you Toyot a’s globa l and reg iona l init iat ives towa rd s sust a inable mobi l it y for a l l.

“Toyota takes sustainability seriously. It has always been, and will continue, to be a core commitment of our organization, at every level.

“In fact, we have elevated our commitment to address new environmental challenges into the next two to three decades.

“Toyota’s environmental philosophy was formulated in 1992 as the Toyota Earth Charter where Toyota identified environmental issues as a priority.

“A lthough we are proud to be a pioneer of environmental technologies, we are convinced that there is still much more to achieve through our own efforts, but, more importantly, in partnership with all of you—government, academia, the media and business partners.

TEC2050

“IN 2015, Toyota announced the Toyota Environmental Challenges 2050 or TEC2050. We aim to go beyond zero CO 2 emissions and achieve a net positive contribution to the reduction of harmful greenhouse gases.

“Our TEC2050 identifies 6 challenges that we believe are essential to achieving our sustainability goals as well as our vision of helping build an ever better world for all. “ The first three challenges target to reduce CO 2 emissions to zero by focusing on electrification and adoption of green technologies and processes throughout the life-cycle and production of every vehicle we build.

“The next three challenges aim to realize a net positive impact on the environment by focusing on other key environmental risks areas such as water, waste

“LET me introduce each of the challenges and milestones for 2050 and 2030, respectively, with some examples of the progress we have made so far.

“Under the first key env ironmental challenge, we aim to achieve New Vehicle zero CO 2 emissions by 2050.

“Electrified vehicles, including hybrid electric vehicles, have proven their value in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

“We aim to reduce with our new vehicles CO 2 emissions by 90 percent by 2050. Towards this, vehicle electrification is essential.

“As an interim goal, we aim to reduce CO 2 emissions from Toyota’s new vehicles by 35 percent by 2030. Towards this, we set an annual global sales target of 5.5 million electrified vehicles—including 1 million zero-emission vehicles—by the end of the next decade.

“In fact, Toyota is the leader in the electrified-vehicle market space.

Prius in 1997

“TOYOTA’s cumulative sales of electrified vehicles have already crossed 13 million units over the 21 years since the launch of the Prius in Japan in 1997. As a result, we have reduced CO 2 emissions by 103 million tons globally. This amount of CO 2 can fill over 50,000

Empire State buildings and will, otherwise, take 50 million hectares of forests to absorb.

“In addition, our hybrid electric vehicles have resulted to savings of 38 million kiloliters of gasoline, enough to power over 10 million homes in one year, or nearly 2 million trips to the moon and back!

“The purpose of electrification is to reduce the negative impact on the environment. Therefore, the real value comes only when these vehicles are popularized, as we have done with our self-charging hybrid electric vehicles.

“We are also glad to report that while we set a challenging target of putting 1.5 million electrified vehicles on the road by 2020, we have, in fact, achieved this goal three years ahead of plan in 2017.

We welcome all those who wish to join us in our journey to 5.5 million electrified vehicles on the road by 2030.” To be continued.

PEE STOP Vios Cup buffs troop to Clark anew on Saturday (June 8) for the thrill of watching again our grizzled rubber-burners aching to outwit each other in the nation’s most popular motorsports battle. On my end, I also hope to see again industry bigwigs gracing the occasion, like Toyota President Satoru Suzuki and his Chief Deputy, Kei Mizuguchi, as well as Rommel “Barry Gibb” Gutierrez, Rene So of Dagupan City and a host of others, not to mention the Toyota troika of Jing Atienza, Shawin ChuaLim and Carlo Ablaza—plus lady hot shots Tini Arevalo and the back-to-form Elijah-won Marcial. Of course, a Toyota event wouldn’t be complete without the SWAT (Sugod Walang Awat Toyota) Team of Elvin Luciano, Carlo Nemo, Jeane Sangalang, Nadinne Capistrano, Rick Ramos and Jaemy Mejia. Cheers!