Businessmirror march 10, 2015

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Prayer for forgiveness

EAR Lord, just as You so generously forgive us, help us also to forgive others and not keep any form of hate, anger, disgust or revenge within our mind and heart. Bestow the power of love, hope and charity upon us all and just as we forgive, so too would everyone. May forgiveness be easy to do at any time in our life. Amen.

JENNIE REYES AND LOUIE M. LACSON

Word&Life Publications • teacherlouie1965@yahoo.com

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

Life

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

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he Philippines will stay outside of Washington’s radar of notorious markets in terms of piracy and counterfeiting activities, based on the new intellectual property rights (IPR) watch list released by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR).

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❸ ❶ MURILLO Export ❷ KISH ❸

FILIPINO Creazione de Mano Inc.

❹ PADI Outdoor

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Spotlight on Filipino creativity and excellence

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T might as well be the Mobile World Congress (MWC) transplanted from Barcelona to the Philippines, but instead of the latest in mobile communications goodness, the spotlight is furniture, furnishings and just everything that makes those chunks of space in your home or office a delight to the senses.

Yes, we’re talking about the Philippine International Furniture Show (PIFS), the 2015 edition of which will take place from March 13 to 16 at the SMX Convention Center, Manila.

However, unlike the annual Barcelona spectacle that plays out like a parade of nations of IT powerhouses, PIFS is dedicated to putting the focus solely on the country’s premier names in furniture, lighting, home accessories and design showcasing their best and latest

offerings. Its raison d’être is to give testament to Filipino craftsmanship, ingenuity, design and manufacturing talent, and this year some 200 exhibitors go front and center before an audience of local and foreign buyers.

“PIFS is the Filipino collection. It is our opportunity to show the world, and our colleagues at home, how we interpret world trends and, in many cases, take the lead in design innovation,” said Christina Gaston, overall event chairman. This dedication to creativity and craftsmanship has seen an international interest in Philippine-made furniture, from Hollywood to the global hospitality industry. Because of this, PIFS has become the one-stop shop for local and foreign decorators, retailers, buyers and famous personalities, like the Campana brothers, Gaetano Pesce and Karim Rashid, to discover the growth and development of

Filipino design. Visitors from the US, Japan, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, China, Germany, Turkey and India are expected to visit and take part in the success of the show. Leading architect and interior designer J. Antonio Mendoza resumes his position as creative director. Like last year, he is tasked to design an exciting design landscape that highlights Filipino talent and ingenuity in a global market.

Of course, while the event is dedicated to giving props to Filipino creativity and excellence in furniture design and manufacturing, PIFS will have as its highlight the appearance of Mary McDonald and Nathan Turner of the hit TV show Million Dollar Decorators, an American reality program following a group of interior designers. Together, the two renowned decorators will tour the exhibits, and personally tag

their favorite items. They will also give a talk on the latest design trends.

Another highlight is the Interior Lifestyle Vignettes, curated by Mendoza, which artfully combines elements from the past with contemporary furniture. This, along with the 200 exhibitors from across the Philippines, is expected to shine an even brighter spotlight on the growing design scene in the country.

The Philippine International Furniture Show is organized in partnership with Cebu Furniture Industries Foundation Inc., the Chamber of Furniture Industries of the Philippines and the Pampanga Furniture Industries of the Philippines.

To get a preview, along with information about the various events and participating exhibitors, visit www. pifs.ph or e-mail info@pifs.ph. ■

How to create a child-friendly indoor play space A LOWER level divided in areas dedicated to children’s sporting activities.

B C H Tribune News Service

can be used for anything from train sets to dramatic play and puppetry to arcade-style games or even a pool table.

Creating different zones not only helps to create a floor plan that will help to best utilize your space, but will also help to ensure multiple children will be able to enjoy and be engaged for long periods of time.

CREATING an indoor environment for your child or children will go a long way to help keep them happy and entertained.

WHERE DO YOU START? LET’S face it, for kids, it’s all about having fun. Children need an engaging environment in which to play, enjoy themselves and be a kid. First and foremost, I suggest you divide your proposed children’s area into various activity zones.

Begin by creating a movie or videogame zone that works as an area for gaming and movie watching. Then, create a separate board-game zone for traditional board games. And, finally, designate a flexible activity zone. This is an area that

to use neutral colors as your base palette.

This way you can transform or renew the same space as children grow up simply by swapping in different colors.

ADDED TOUCHES LAST, playrooms don’t necessarily have to be expensive. Invest in some key games, sturdy furniture and a quality television for viewing.

From there, some of your other pieces can be less expensive, such as items that are repainted or refurbished or repurposed from another area of the home.

CHILD-FRIENDLY COLORS AS far as color, a mix of warm, cozy colors, such as brown and deep orange with colors that are bright and cheery like mustard yellow or a crisp green, works well. Dark colors will go a long way as far as concealing spills and stains, while bright, friendly colors will serve as a great contrast and help create a bright, friendly and inviting environment for a child. Be sure

life

■ Cathy Hobbs, based in New York City, is an Emmy Award-winning television host and a nationally known interior design and home staging expert. Visit her web site at www.cathyhobbs.com.

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bloody sunday 50th anniversary BusinessMirror

World The

B3-1 | Tuesday, March 10, 2015 • Editor: Lyn Resurreccion

The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) said in the USTR’s Special 301 Out-of-Cycle Review of Notorious Markets for 2014, the Philippines again managed to stay out of the list of markets that have week IPR regime, which encourages unscrupulous groups to counterfeit American products.

The Philippines first made it out of the watch list last year.

The IPOPHL, in a statement, said this is proof of the continuing success in IPR enforcement in the country.

“We are pleased to know that

our hard work is being recognized.

We see this as another positive enforcement in our relentless drive to reduce piracy and counterfeiting not only in the physical markets, but also online,” said Allan B. Gepty, deputy director general of IPOPHL. He added: “Supporting our enforcement mandate is the recent implementation of the amendments in the IP law, which include, among others, the grant of enforcement functions to IPOPHL and the introduction of vicarious liability in Continued on A2

merCeDes BiNNs, who has been to selma 17 times because of its civil-rights history, walks on the edmund Pettus Bridge, on march 8 in selma, alabama. AP

Bloody Sunday 50th anniversary: Thousands crowd Selma bridge

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ELMA, Alabama–Thousands of people crowded an Alabama bridge on Sunday to commemorate a bloody confrontation 50 years ago between police and peaceful protesters that was a landmark in the civil-rights movement and helped bring about the 1965 Voting Rights Act.

Selma to Montgomery is set to begin on Monday morning and culminate with a rally at the Alabama Capitol on Friday afternoon.

On Saturday Obama joined civil-rights leaders and others at the bridge and talked about progress in race relations since the 1960s.

He mentioned recent high-profile clashes between citizens and law enforcement on the circumstances leading to police killings of unarmed black men and law-enforcement tactics toward minorities.

“We just need to open our eyes, and ears and hearts, to know that this nation’s racial history still casts its long shadow upon us,” Obama said. “We know the march is not yet over, the race is not yet won, and that reaching that blessed destination where we are judged by the content of our character requires admitting as much.”

Obama was joined by others, including US Rep. John Lewis of Georgia—an Alabama native who was among the demonstrators attacked by law officers on the March 7, 1965, march for equal voting rights.

Bishop Dennis Proctor of the Alabama-Florida Episcopal District said his group brought five buses to

the anniversary commemoration.

But he told members not to come to Selma if they couldn’t commit to fighting to restore protections in the Voting Rights Act that were recently eliminated.

The US Supreme Court in 2013 struck down Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act, which required states with a history of minority voter suppression to get permission from the Justice Department before changing voting laws.

The Rev. Al Sharpton, a prominent civil-rights activist who spoke at Sunday’s unity breakfast, said recent changes in state voting laws threatened to push minority voters backward down the bridge.

“While we are celebrating, there are those that are trying to dismantle what we are celebrating,” Sharpton said.

Groups traveled to Selma from across the US, including five busloads from Nashville, Tennessee.

Gloria Haugabook McKissack, a retired college history teacher who participated in lunch counter sitins in Nashville, was the main organizer of the trip from Nashville.

“It just grew as people began to hear that we were going to make this journey,” McKissack said. AP

New York CitY marks iNterNatioNal womeN’s DaY with marCh

ObAmA:U.S. wOUld‘wAlk AwAy’ if nO gOOd nUke deAl iS mAde with irAn

A day after President Barack Obama had walked atop the Edmund Pettus Bridge, many jammed shoulder to shoulder, many unable to move, as they recalled the civilrights struggle.

Police said at least 15,000 to 20,000 people had joined the crush on and around the small bridge.

Many came from around the country for several events commemorating the event.

William Baldwin, 69, of Montgomery, Alabama, brought his two

grandsons, ages 11 and 15, to the bridge on Sunday so they could grasp the importance of the historic march he took part in a half century earlier.

“They’re going to take this struggle on, and we have to understand the price that was paid for them to have what they have now,” Baldwin said. “It wasn’t granted to them, it was earned by blood, sweat and tears.”

Some sang hymns and others held signs, such as “Black lives mat-

ter, all lives matter.” The crowd was so large that many appeared barely able to move as they peacefully sought to make their way across.

On March 7, 1965, police beat and tear-gassed marchers at the foot of the bridge in Selma in a spasm of violence that shocked the nation. The attack help build momentum for Congress to pass the Voting Rights Act later that year.

Earlier Sunday Selma officials paid tribute to the late President Lyndon B. Johnson for the Voting Rights Act. The attack on demonstrators preceded a Selma-toMontgomery march, which occurred two weeks later in 1965.

Luci Baines Johnson accepted the award on behalf of her father, saying it meant so much to see him honored.

“You remember how deeply Daddy cared about social justice and how hard he worked to make it happen,” she told a crowd on Sunday morning. Several hundred people gave her a standing ovation and some chanted, “L.B.J., L.B.J.” She said what happened in Selma changed the world, adding that she witnessed the painful injustice of segregation as a child in Texas.

An anniversary march from

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EW YORK—Thousands of men and women from around the world gathered on Sunday outside the United Nations (UN) to mark International Women’s Day with a march to Times Square, joining voices globally demanding gender equity.

They convened to speak up for the gender that traditionally is paid less for work and often has a smaller voice in policy decisions.

UN officials say much has been achieved under the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, signed by 189 governments in 1995 as a pledge for realizing women’s rights. But UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the marchers that in the 20 years since the Beijing Declaration, “progress has been too slow, uneven.”

“We have to fully respect and use the potential of all of our women,” Ban said.

He has said the most urgent issue is rape being used as a war weapon, from Nigeria and Somalia to Iraq and Syria.

Speakers at the UN gathering before

W

PeoPle walk in the international women’s Day march for gender equality and women’s rights from the United Nations to times square on march 8 in New York. AP tury ago, but we still have a long way to go when thousands of women marched the march included Nobel Prize winner before we get to equality.” through the city demanding shorter workLeymah Roberta Gbowee, a peace activist In November New York joined the ing hours, better pay and voting rights. from Liberia.

UN’s Safe Global Cities Initiative, which “Today you are marching in the footNew York City’s first lady, Chirlane Mcworks to combat sexual harassment and steps of generations of feminists,” she Cray, noted that International Women’s sexual violence in public places. AP said. “This march started more than a cenDay commemorates the day in 1908,

ASHINGTON—President Barack Obama says the United States would “walk away” from nuclear talks with Iran if there’s no acceptable deal.

Obama says any agreement must allow Western powers to verify that Tehran isn’t going to obtain an atomic weapon, and that even if Iran “cheated,” the US and others would have “enough time to take action.”

The president tells CBS’s Sunday Morning that “if we don’t have that kind of deal, then we’re not going to take it.”

Big gaps remain to be bridged if the sides are to reach a deal by the end of March deadline set by negotiators. The next round of talks is set to begin on March 15.

Iran says its nuclear program is peaceful and exists only to produce energy for civilian use.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is insisting that Congress has a chance to review and vote on any deal, but acknowledges that he doesn’t have the support yet to override a threatened veto by Obama. AP

ImmIgratIon rulIng shows lawyers playIng venue-shoppIng odds

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AN ANTONIO–A federal judge’s ruling last month blocking President Barack Obama’s immigration executive action lays bare a pervasive practice in federal district courts: venue shopping.

It is a game of odds in which lawyers pick a court to file their case where a judge or case law is likely to be more favorable. Law experts say venue shopping is commonplace in politically sensitive cases as a way to advance a case toward the ultimate goal of a hearing before the US Supreme Court.

“Everybody does this to the extent they can,” said Stephen Yale-Loehr, an immigration professor at Cornell Law School in Ithaca, New York.

When lawyers for Texas filed suit in Brownsville to block the president’s executive action on immigration, they knew they had a 50-percent chance the case would be given to US District Judge Andrew Hanen, an appointee of President George W. Bush who had previously spoken scathingly of Obama’s immigration policies.

Hanen, who was assigned the case through an automated system, is one of only two judges in that division of the Southern District of Texas, so he hears half of all civil cases. The other is US District Judge Hilda Tagle, an appointee of Democratic President Bill Clinton. Not all district courts have just two judges.

“They knew they would strike gold if they got in front of Judge Hanen,” said Kica Matos, spokesman for the Fair Immigration Reform Movement, a national advocacy organization for immigrants. “This is a judge who has gone out of his way to express his antiimmigrant sentiments.”

On February 16 Texas and 25 other states opposed to Obama’s action got exactly what they wanted. Hanen issued a preliminary injunction halting the orders, which would have spared as many as 5 million people who are in the US illegally from deportation.

Venue selection has long been used by the American Civil Liberties Union and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in cases seeking wide-ranging reforms, said Georgene Vairo, a professor of law at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles.

More recently the tactic has been adopted by conservative groups, she said.

It was probably a factor in the mammoth job-discrimination lawsuit filed against Wal-Mart by 1.5 million women claiming unfair pay and promotion practices, Vairo said. That case was pursued in the California courts, where it would be heard by the liberal-leaning 9th Circuit on appeal. The 9th Circuit ruled in favor of the women, though the Supreme Court in 2011 did not. AP

world

On “Kasangga Mo ang Langit sa DWIZ” “THE number of explosives seized from their camp shows that, if we do not launch our offensive, they will use the bombs they make to sow terror.”—Brig.

Gen. Joselito Kakilala, AFP spokesman www.dwiz882.com

P25.00 nationwide | 8 sections 36 pages | 7 days a week

US clears PHL in latest IPR review

HOW K-POP STAR LEE MIN HO LIKES HIS CHICKEN »D4

BusinessMirror

TfridayNovember 18, 2015 2014 Vol. 10 No. 152 40 Tuesday, March 10,

nn

WASHINGTON COMMENDS MANILA FOR I.P. ENFORCEMENT IN BOTH PHYSICAL AND DIGITAL SPACE

spotlight on filipino creativity and excellence D

A broader look at today’s business

OIL IMBALANCE WILL EVEN OUT LATER THIS YEAR–OPEC HEAD

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he global crude-oil market will return to balance in the second half of this year, from an oversupply of 2 million barrels a day that has caused prices to plummet, Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) Secretary-General Abdalla El-Badri said.

Speaking on Sunday at a conference in Manama, Bahrain, ElBadri said demand growth in 2014 was weaker than expected “at just below 1 million barrels a day” and usage will rise by 1.2 million barrels a day this year.

Crude has lost half its value since June, as US producers pumped oil at the fastest pace since 1983. Prices collapsed after Opec’s decision last November 27 to maintain produc-

PESO exchange rates n US 44.1180

tion, rather than sacrifice market share, in the face of a glut.

Non-Opec supply has grown by 6 million barrels a day since 2008, while production by Opec members has remained at about 30 million barrels, he said. Brent oil futures, a benchmark for more than half of the world’s crude, dropped 0.6 percent on Monday to $59.39.

Opec pumped 30.6 million barrels a day in February, an increase of 163,000 a day that was led by gains from Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest crude-oil exporter. It was the ninth straight month that the 12-member group has produced more than its collective target of 30 million barrels, the data show.

See “Oil imbalance,” A2

‘TECHNICAL’ SMUGGLING Bureau of Customs (BOC) agents reveal on Monday hundreds of used bicycles, a Subaru WRX sports car and motorcycles from one of the container vans at the Manila International Container Terminal. The BOC has seized the smuggled goods, including more than 600 brand-new personal computers, which were allegedly falsely undervalued in what they termed as “technical” smuggling. The shipment was valued at P11 million, or $250,000. AP/Bullit Marquez

Malampaya shutdown to hike April-May rates

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By Lenie Lectura

he Manila Electr ic Co. (Meralco) on Monday said consumers should expect an increase in their electricity bills in April and May, in the wake of the 30-day Malampaya deepwater gasto-power facility shutdown, coupled with higher demand.

The Malampaya facility will not run from March 15 to April 14. Power plants that use natural gas supplied by Malampaya will need to shift to more expensive liquid fuel. As a result of the use of liquid fuel, rates are expected to increase in the billing months affected by the shutdown and the impact of higher energy demand during the summer months. These

months include April and May 2015, Meralco said.

At present, the Malampaya gas field fuels three power plants: Santa Rita, San Lorenzo and Ilija in Batangas, with a total capacity of 2,700 megawatts (MW). It also fuels around 40 percent to 50 percent of Luzon’s power requirements.

The three plants are currently running as baseload, or 24 hours a day, seven days a week, except during forced outages and maintenance shutdown.

Given the high probability of higher rates in the coming months, Meralco reminded the public to observe energy-efficiency tips.

These include setting the air conditioner’s thermostat from high cool (18°C) to midcool (25°C). By

doing so, customers may save up to P280 per month.

Electric fans should also be regularly cleaned from dust accumulation on the fan blades and motor housing. This saves around 3 percent in electricity costs. Likewise, adjusting fan settings to low speed can save 12 percent to 23 percent of consumption.

Ironing large batch of clothing at one time can also save on energy costs. Thus, it would be advisable to schedule ironing on morning of weekends, when the demand for electricity is low. Switch the iron off in the last few minutes of ironing. The remaining heat will be enough to press lighter materials, Meralco said.

See “Malampaya,” A2

n japan 0.3655 n UK 66.3799 n HK 5.6884 n CHINA 7.0443 n singapore 32.0369 n australia 34.2744 n EU 47.8504 n SAUDI arabia 11.7645 Source: BSP (9 March 2015)

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Tuesday, March 10, 2015

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news@businessmirror.com.ph

US clears PHL in latest IPR review and facilitate substantial copyright piracy and trademark counterfeiting.

According to the USTR, it selects markets that exemplify global concerns about counterfeiting and piracy, and whose infringing activities pose substantial economic harm to the US. Quiapo Shopping District, Greenhills, Binondo, Makati Cinema Square and 168 Malls were included

Continued from A1

copyright infringement.”

The Special 301 Out-of-Cycle Review of Notorious Markets for 2014, an annual publication that started in 2011 to complement the broader USTR Special 301 Report, identifies select online and physical marketplaces that reportedly engage in

Malampaya. . .

on the list before 2012.

Notable in this year’s report, however, is the recognition of Philippine IPR enforcement, as the USTR noted the effort of the country to block out a popular torrent site that hosts pirated media. The site attempted to use the domain registry of the country (.ph). Local enforcement’s efforts resulted in the web site’s shifting to

Continued from A1

hand, went down from 47 percent to 40.5 percent due mainly to the QPPL outage. Despite the lower rates charged

by Santa Rita and San Lorenzo, the average IPP rate was pulled up by QPPL. The balance of Meralco’s power requirements was accounted for by the Interim Power Supply Agreements (Ipsas). Transmission charge, meanwhile, went down by P0.045 per kWh due to lower ancillary charges. Other charges, which include system loss charge and subsidies, registered a decrease of P0.010 per kWh. These reductions resulted in corresponding decreases in taxes (value-added tax and local franchise tax) of P0.011 per kWh. Meralco’s distribution charge, however, remained unchanged and had been at the same level since July 2014.

Meralco reiterated 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 such as the plants selling to Meralco through the WESM and under the PSAs, IPPs and Ipsas.

Payment for the transmission charge goes to the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines. Of the total bill, only the distribution, supply and metering charges accrue to Meralco.

For t h i s mo nt h , ho w e v e r, power rates went down by P0.085 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) from last month due to lower generation and transmission charges. The decrease translates to roughly P19 for a typical household consumption of 200 kWh, Meralco also announced.

The utility firm reported that generation charge, or the portion of the bill that goes to the generation companies or power producers, decreased by P0.029 per kWh, from P5.238 to P5.209. This was driven by the 30-centavo reduction in the average rate of Meralco’s Power Supply Agreements (PSAs) for the February supply month owing to higher dispatch of the plants under the PSAs. PSAs’ share in Meralco’s total power requirements went up from 49 percent to 54 percent. This reduction, however, was dampened by an increase of P1.14 per kWh in the average price of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) and P0.18 per kWh in the case of Independent Power Producers (IPPs).

WESM’s share in Meralco’s total power requirements went up from 4 percent to 4.5 percent due to Quezon Power Philippines Ltd.’s (QPPL’s) maintenance outage. The share of IPPs, on the other

other countries’ registry.

“The site originally operated as ‘kat.ph,’ until Philippine authorities took enforcement action,” according to the report. The IPOPHL issued a restraining order against the web site in 2013, after receiving a complaint from the industry group Philippine Association of Recording Industry Inc. Catherine N. Pillas

Emergency powers. . .

short supply, and can sell any excess power they generate to distributors. Through the ILP, the aggregate demand for power from the system will be reduced to a more manageable level, helping ensure the availability of supply during the summer season.

of the minds,” Osmeña said.

In a news report, Osmeña said that there is a possibility that the bicameral committee will not be able to pass President Aquino’s special powers.

“We will have to conduct another meeting if we agree. If we don’t agree, then there will be no resolution. There’s a possibility we won’t but believe me the ILP is working anyway,” he said in the report. According to the DOE the projected power shortfall from March to July is 782 megawatts (MW).

House Committee on Energy data showed that 955 MW have been committed for the ILP. Based on established protocols, the ILP is implemented during a red-alert status (minimal power reserve) upon the notice of the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines and the power utilities informing ILP participants to deload from the grid.

The ILP is a voluntary program whereby businesses such as malls and factories that have their own generators can be disconnected from the power grid in times of

Environmental laws

Meanwhile, Umali said the suspension of environmental laws such as the Clean Air Act and the Biofuels Act will no longer be an option under the joint resolution.

Umali said the members of the bicameral committee have agreed not to include the provision on the suspension of environmental laws.

Under the House version of the joint resolution all relevant laws, rules and regulations including the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market law, the Biofuels Act, the Clean Air Act, the Philippine Grid Code, the Philippine Distribution Code, and other “environmental and labor laws that may affect the operation and transmission of the contracted generation capacities” will be suspended for the period of March to July 2015.

3-DAY EXTENDED FORECAST MARCH 10, 2015 | TUESDAY

TODAY’S WEATHER

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Oil imbalance. . .

Shale output

Opec shouldn’t subsidize the high-cost shale oil producers and that’s why the group decided to keep its output target at 30 million barrels a day at its last meeting, El-Badri said.

“If we made a cut in the November meeting, then we would have needed to make another cut in January, and then we would need another cut in June as supply will keep increasing from nonOpec,” he said.

For shale oil production to be sustainable, prices need to be at least $100 a barrel, El-Badri said. Shale oil “is not a challenge for us” and the market should be left alone now to determine the prices that will decide what source of oil can survive.

El-Badri urged Opec nations to continue investments and diversify their economies, many of which rely mostly on oil revenue. “The current lower price environment is a test for all producers and investors. Low oil prices means less revenues, and less revenues means tighter budgets.”Opec made more than $1 trillion in revenue from 2010 to 2014 with oil at $100 a barrel, he said.

Kuwait is in a “critical situation” because crude oil accounts for 94 percent of the Persian Gulf nation’s gross domestic product, Oil Minister Ali al-Omair said at the conference.

Over the next 25 years, the oil industry will need to invest $10 trillion to meet a forecasted 60-percent increase in energy demand, El-Badri said. “Fossil fuel will remain central to the energy mix,” he said.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said its forecast for oil to trade at $40 a barrel for two quarters may be too low while its outlook through 2016 remains bearish because supply is set to increase.

Prices are “skewed to the upside” in the near term as gains in global crude inventories have stalled amid weather

MAR 13 FRIDAY

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TUGUEGARAO CITY 18 – 32°C

BAGUIO CITY 13 – 22°C

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LEGAZPI ILOILO/ BACOLOD 23 – 32°C METRO CEBU 23 – 30°C

TACLOBAN CITY 21 – 30°C

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CELEBES SEA

7:25 AM

0.11 METER 2:05 AM 1:48 AM Partly cloudy to at times cloudy with rain showers and/or thunderstorms Partly cloudy to at times cloudy with rainshowers

Partly cloudy skies Light rains

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LOW TIDEMANILA HIGH TIDE SOUTH HARBOR

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Watch PANAHON.TV everyday at 5:00 AM on PTV (Channel 4).

METRO DAVAO 23 – 33°C

SUNRISE 19 – 28°C

LEGAZPI CITY 22 – 30°C

PHILIPPINE AREA OF RESPONSIBILITY (PAR)

disruptions and stronger-than-expected demand, Goldman said in an e-mailed report dated March 8. Still, US companies are raising equity and reducing debt, signaling that they plan to boost exploration and production activity later this year, it predicted.

“While we reiterate our out-of-consensus view that demand growth will be strong in 2015, on the back of better economic growth and low oil prices, we did not expect demand to be so strong this soon,” Goldman analysts including Damien Courvalin in New York said in the report. “Net, we reiterate our view that prices need to decline relative to the current forward curve.”

Brent crude, a global benchmark grade, has risen 3.6 percent this year after losing almost half in 2014 as US production surged to the most in more than three decades. More than 3,000 drilled wells in the nation have yet to be tapped, according to Wood Mackenzie Ltd. and RBC Capital Markets Llc. Initial new output could be as much as 3 million barrels a day, estimates compiled by Bloomberg Intelligence showed.

Futures rose in February for the first time in eight months as sandstorms disrupted Iraqi exports, while cold weather in the US and a drought in Brazil bolstered consumption, according to Goldman. Global oil demand will expand by 1.35 million barrels a day this year amid stronger economic growth, it said.

Oil may not reach Goldman’s forecast of $65 a barrel in 2016 as US producers have showed a faster-than-expected focus on financial discipline and “building an uncompleted well war chest,” according to the report.

“Producers will be better positioned to deliver strong production growth later this year and into 2016, undermining the market rebalancing,” it said.

WEAK NORTHEAST MONSOON AFFECTING EXTREME NORTHERN LUZON (AS OF MARCH 9, 5:00 PM)

Northeast Monsoon locally known as “Amihan”.

It affects the eastern portions of the country. It is cold and dry; characterized by widespread cloudiness with rain showers.

PUERTO PRINCESA CITY 24 – 31°C

3-DAY EXTENDED FORECAST

Continued from A1

@PanahonTV

12:52 PM

0.70 METER

ARCA SOUTH: THE NEW GATEWAY TO MODERN LIVING

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GATEWAY promises probabilities, the start of great things in the future. Beyond the passage lie the components that elevate the probable to the possible.

Artist perspective of the hotel and work spaces at Arca South which will be stacked on top of retail shops, providing ease to residents and office employees.

Avida Towers One Union Place is an investment that offers high property value appreciation over time. Leasing Services by Avida can assist clients rent out their unit.

Artist perspective of Arca South: The City in Sync

Increased access, through a world-class road infrastructure and transport channels, furthers the land’s business potential. The efficiency of every system: communications, traffic, environment and more, works to harmonize the hundreds who live, work and pass through the area. The addition of work, living and recreational spaces, created to maximize the human potential, transforms the area to the richness it was meant to achieve.

This is the kind of city once envisioned for the far-off future, with all systems integrated to work in sync, and open to all the growth opportunities the gateway represents.

Through Ayala Land, whose track record supports a long-term vision for every development, that passageway has been thrown wide open.

Ayala Land is harnessing the potential for a better quality of life south of the metro, with a 74-hectare development that transforms the former Food Terminal Inc. into an exciting mixed-use district for the contemporary lifestyle. This dynamic central business and lifestyle district will be punctuated by residential developments, retail centers, offices, a hotel, and a hospital, and recreational green spaces to breathe.

This is Arca South, rightfully referred to as the gateway to life’s abundance.

Making Connections

Arca South will be made more accessible with the completion of the Skyway and C5/C6 connector road project. The government infrastructure projects will also connect the property to the central business districts of Makati and Bonifacio Global City.

The Ninoy Aquino International Airport, at a mere 7 kms away, becomes a 10-minute drive.

Artist perspective of the Canopy Pool Villa's pool deck in Arbor Lanes.

Southern Living

Putting Ayala Land’s expertise into play, Arca South will be about living and working in the realm of great possibilities. Imagine refreshing streetscapes of lush and open green spaces throughout. Through efficient urban planning, Arca South will have an integrated basement parking to free the streets. This is a district where both pedestrians and motorists will find a haven, and a home from among Ayala Land’s three residential brands.

Ayala Land Premier presents Arbor Lanes, a sprawling garden community comprised of five blocks of 13-15 storey condominiums. With the buildings arranged with North South orientation, the development maximizes breezeways and minimizes exposure to the afternoon sun.

Each elegant home welcomes nature in with natural light and ventilation,

landscaped courtyards, pocket gardens, tree wells, outdoor seating and more green features.

Alveo Land contributes to the development with The Veranda, a four-tower residential condominium that will introduce a proprietary design and building technology known as the Aeroflux System. From the Latin words aero (air), flux (fluidity), and lux (light), the system revolutionizes condo living in the city as it creates breathable and naturally illuminated spaces by maximizing air circulation and natural light dispersion.

The Veranda also features an atrium and central landscaped garden with a variety of lifestyle retail rows on the ground floors.

Avida brings the Avida Towers One Union Place to the mix. This three-tower condominium will be

at the southeast residential enclave of Arca South. With a central courtyard for a refreshing and open atmosphere, One Union Place will also offer a clubhouse, swimming pool, indoor gym, game room, play area and retail units.

Working in Life Spaces

The Arca South Corporate Center will be the first mid-rise office project in the area, opening its first two towers by 2017. Designed to accommodate 24/7 tenant operations, the center will be comprised of six mid-rise buildings stacked above retail areas. Office workers and tenants will have easy access to these commercial establishments.

With Arca South’s strategic location and increased transportation options, employees are expected to have higher productivity and efficiency in

Artist perspective of The Veranda from Central Garden

these work spaces.

Qualimed, a 250-bed quaternary care hospital, is also slated to open by 2019. Healthcare for the district will be within immediate reach.

And for business and pleasure, visitors to Arca South will have the impeccable option of staying in the 265-room Seda Arca South. Like the office spaces, Seda Arca South will lie atop retail centers and allow hotel guests to simply come down to enjoy this convenience.

Shopping Ease

Expect only the best in local and global brands as retail powerhouse Ayala Malls builds a regional mall, a lifestyle mall and a transit-oriented mall for Arca South.

The district will have a lifestyle mall slated to open by 2017 with an open green space flanked by retail developments on both sides. The development will also have a regional mall that will be offering diverse shopping, dining and entertainment choices’ and a transit-oriented mall catering to the commuters coming into Arca South.

As the development of Arca South goes into full swing, better access to life’s abundance has begun.

Arca South will be transforming spaces, changing commutes and ushering in a lifestyle of productive work and great recreation.

For more information on Arca South, visit http://Arcasouth.ph/.

Economy A4

BusinessMirror

Luzon power supply ‘normal’ despite plants shutdown–DOE

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By Lenie Lectura

ower supply in Luzon remained “normal” on Monday despite the unexpected shutdown of power plants with a total capacity of 681 megawatts (MW), an official of the Department of Energy (DOE) said on Monday.

MONSADA: “We have adequate supply to fill up the demand. Hopefully, this can be sustained in the coming weeks when the Malampaya facility goes offline. Some of the power plants that are on planned maintenance schedule will run before or during the Malampaya shutdown. This could help provided that no big power plants tripped or encounter technical problems.”

“Our power reserves remained sufficient despite forced and planned outages of power plants in Luzon,” Energy Undersecretary Zenaida Monsada said on Monday, adding that reserves stood at more than 1,500 MW. The DOE said the 300-MW Unit 2 of Calaca and 20-MW Unit 3 of tripped on March 8 and 5, respectively.

The 53-MW Unit 3 of Tiwi, 6-MW Unit 2 of Lafarge power facilities also went on unplanned shutdown since December 2014 and March 3, respectively. GN Power’s 302MW Unit1 power facility is also not yet operational, though, it is expected to be back online on March 19.

Publicly listed Energy Development Corp. said in a disclosure on Monday that the Bacman Unit 3 tripped due to a minor lubrication oil leak. The unit is expected to be back in service in time for the peak energy demand in the summer months.

Aside from these, six more power facilities are on planned outage as of March 9.

These include Unit 3 [90-MW] Magat; Unit 1 250-MW Santa Rita; Unit 2 302-MW GN Power; A2 60-MW Limay; Unit 4 90-MW Magat; and Units 4 and 9 of Makban (63 and 17 M, respectively).

“We have adequate supply to fill up the demand. Hopefully, this can be sustained in the coming weeks when the Malampaya facility goes offline. Some of the power plants that are on planned maintenance schedule [PMS] will run before or during the Malampaya shutdown. This could help provided that no big power plants tripped or encounter technical problems,” Monsada said.

Santa Rita’s Unit 1 and Limay’s A2 unit will run on March 12 and 13, respectively.

Magat’s Unit 3 will run on March 22, while GN Power’s Unit 2 will be back online on March 26.

The PMS of Makban’s two units and Magat’s Unit 4 will end on March 31 and April 19, respectively.

“The danger here is when power plants shutdown all at the same time during summer when demand is high and when Malampaya goes offline. Consumers are, thus, advised to save on electricity consumption,” the DOE official added.

Meanwhile, Monsada said local pump prices are on the rise because of ongoing conflict in Libya.

“There is a basis for the oil companies here to adjust their prices. The oil-price hike is within the range of our computation,” she said.

Oil firms separately announced on Monday that the price of gasoline will go up by P0.95 per liter and P0.55 per liter for diesel effective on Tuesday. The price adjustment, they said, reflects the upward movements in the prices of refined petroleum products in the world market.

“There is still oversupply, but the impact of ongoing tension in Libya has taken a toll.

This is the triggering factor why oil prices are up,” the DOE official said.

Economy BusinessMirror

news@businessmirror.com.ph

briefs 4 Filipinos among 9 foreigners abducted from libya oil field Foreign Affairs officials on Monday said four Filipinos are among nine foreigners abducted by stillunidentified armed men from an oil field in central Libya, and their abductors have yet to communicate any demand.

Department of Foreign Affairs Spokesman Charles Jose said that the Philippines is working with the Filipinos’ employers, Austrianowned VAOS Oil Service, the Libyan government and embassies of the others abducted.

Austria’s Foreign Ministry believes the attackers are Islamic State-allied militants. AP

customs seizes p11.1-m smuggled sports car, motorcycles, computers

THE Bureau of Customs (BOC) has announced the seizure of P11.1million worth of smuggled goods including a sports car, motorcycles, and computer sets at the Manila International Container Port (MICP). See related photo on A1.

Customs Deputy Commissioner for Enforcement Ariel Nepomuceno said the shipment which arrived at the MICP from Japan last month was consigned to Panda Vine International Trading.

The shipment was misdeclared as 873 units of used bicycles. A subsequent examination, however, showed that the shipment contained a right-hand drive Subaru WRX 2000 cc sports car; 13 units Honda and two units Yamaha scooters; motorcycle parts; and other used car parts. Joel R. San Juan

pag-ibig targets p5.22-b housing loan in the visayas this year

CEBU CITY—State-owned Home Development Mutual Fund, or the Pag-ibig Fund, has set a target of P5.22 billion in housing loans in the Visayas this year, an official said.

Pag-ibig Visayas Business Development Manager Rio Teves said the amount is equivalent to 8,126 housing units.

Of the amount, P2.3 billion will be for Cebu at 3,022 units; P1.25 billion for Tacloban at 2,761 units; P865 million for Iloilo at 1,262 units; and P790 million for Bacolod at 1,081 units.

Teves said the interest rate for regular housing loan is 6.985 percent, similar to last year’s rate. PNA

Editors: Vittorio V. Vitug and Max V. de Leon • Tuesday, March 10, 2015 A5

Stable power supply for General Santos City seen this summer

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By Manuel T. Cayon | Mindanao Bureau Chief

AVAO CITY—For the first time in many past episodes of electricity shortage, the country’s tuna capital would not reel down on deep cuts in power supply from the Mindanao grid this summer.

This is because General Santos City (GenSan) has diversified its power-supply contracts, offsetting the single contract supply arrangement from the ailing coal-fired Steag State Power Inc. that is now sending a huge part of Mindanao into another

episode of power crisis.

Crisanto Sotelo, acting chief of the South Cotabato II Electric Cooperative Inc. (Socoteco II) told the city government last Wednesday that “GenSan has enough power supply for 2015 that would put rotational

brownouts, common during the summer period, a thing of the past.”

Sotelo said the current maximum load needed by GenSan is 130 megawatts (MW). “Through contracts [Socoteco II has] with different power distributors, the city would not experience power shortages.

“Even with the closure of the two power plants of the Steag State Power Inc. last month, the power supply of the city remains stable largely because of Socoteco II’s venture with other energy companies.”

Steag supplies GenSan with 25 MW, and major consumers include canning companies and tuna-landing operations of both Filipino and foreign deep-sea fishing boats.

The shortage is easily compensated by the 15 MW of SoEnergy In-

ternational and the 20-MW output of Peakpower Inc. Aside from the two suppliers, the Socoteco II has contract supply agreement with Mapalad Power Corp., formerly the Iligan Dieselfired Power Plant of Iligan City, the Aboitiz-owned Therma Marine Inc. and the National Power Corp.

Both the SoEnergy and PeakPower are based in GenSan. Sotelo also bared that the Socoteco II has entered into a supply contract with the coal-fired Sarangani Energy Corp. (SEC) currently being constructed in Maasim, Sarangani Province.

Sotelo said SEC would be fully operational by late 2015 or early 2016.

“When that time comes, GenSan will secure 70 megawatts of power

from the said power distributor,” he added.

Only last year and covering the same months, the Socoteco II has been announcing the daily schedule of two to three hours of brownouts.

“Right now, the biggest threat in our power supply not only for GenSan but in the entire country as well, is the El Niño. We have to prepare for it and mitigate its effects,” Sotelo said.

“We cannot attract investors if we cannot guarantee sufficient power supply from them. Businesses cannot smoothly operate with the presence of energy shortages. This is the reason why we work hand-in-hand with Socoteco II to find solutions to the problems, to have a sustainable energy here in GenSan,” Mayor Ronnel Rivera of GenSan said.

EU extends P31-M grant to support Mindanao Lumads

By Cai U. Ordinario

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he European Union (EU) is extending a P31 million worth of grant to support indigenous communities in Mindanao.

The grant was extended to the Rural Missionaries of the PhilippinesNorthern Mindanao Sub-Region (RMP-NMR) for its Healing the Hurt Project to be launched today.

“The project will contribute to the protection and strengthening of indigenous peoples’ traditional structures and community-based organizations. These organizations are at the forefront of the IP’s fight for access to ancestral domain and resources,” the RMP-NMR said in a news statement.

The grant will benefit some 17,000 Lumads from 43 communities in the provinces of Misamis Oriental, Bukidnon, Agusan del Norte and Agusan del Sur. The project will be launched at the grounds of the RGS-abandoned hospital in the center of Barangay Balit, San Luis, Agusan del Sur. “The village of Balit is seen as the most appropriate setting for the start of the activities as it recently witnessed the killing of its leader, Datu Angis,” RMP-NMR stated.

RMP-NMR Head Sis. Ma. Famita Somogod, MSM, said aggressive industrialization in Mindanao led to

intrusions by corporations into the IPs’ ancestral domains.

This has rendered many IPs victims of discrimination and sometimes outright violence.

In less than a decade, RMPNMR, together with other human-rights institutions, has documented several cases of extrajudicial killings of indigenous leaders.

Of the more than 30 Lumads killed since June 2010, at least five of them are datus, the traditional leaders of indigenous communities. The killings have consequently led to the insecurity of thousands of indigenous families.

“The killing of a datu is a big blow to an indigenous community because the community depends on him on almost every aspect of the community life, from personal conflicts within families to feuds between clans,” said Jomorito Goaynon (Datu Imbanwag), chairman of the action-partner Kalumbay Regional Lumad Organization.

RMP-NMR also said that over 100 Lumad leaders are currently facing fabricated and malicious charges that prevent them from carrying out their human-rights work.

Moreover, RMP-NMR said

SMC to boost road safety in 4 expressways with addl high-tech gadgets

By Lorenz S. Marasigan

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he infrastructure arm of San Miguel Corp. is deploying additional radio detection and ranging (radar) speed detectors along the road networks it operates to enhance road safety.

San Miguel Holdings Corp. will install a combination of radar and light detection and ranging (lidar) speed detectors along the South Luzon Expressway, the Skyway System, the Star Tollways and the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway to measure vehicle speed in various conditions.

The company’s chairman and chief executive, Ramon S. Ang, said the radar detectors are expected to enhance ongoing traffic and road-safety efforts as it can provide accurate speed and traffic analysis even during nighttime and poor driving conditions.

“This is just part of our continuing effort to invest in improvements and technology to provide a much safer environment for motorists plying the road networks we operate. Of course, to truly ensure safety, we all need to do our share in following the rules of the road,” he said.

He added that his firm has opened more exact-toll lanes at toll plazas on its road networks to further improve the flow of traffic and help reduce long waiting times at cash toll booths especially during peaks hours and months.

Dedicated lanes for exact-toll payments have been installed at the following toll gates: Nichols A, Nichols B, Skyway A and Skyway B. The exact-toll booth scheme is expected to complement the existing e-pass toll-collection system and the more efficient, soon-to-be-introduced radio frequency identification system which are aimed at modernizing and improving the toll-payment system

and making travel on the expressway more efficient for motorists.

The most diversified conglomerate in the Philippines will also operate the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) Expressway, which is expected to be completed by October 2015.

The P15.52-billion project involves the construction of a four-lane, 7.15-kilometer elevated expressway that aims to provide easy access to and from the three Naia terminals and link the Skyway System and the Manila-Cavite Toll Expressway.

Initially planned to pass through the Domestic Road, the expressway will now start from Sales Avenue, cross Andrews Avenue, Parañaque Riverside, and Naia Road and end at Macapagal Boulevard or the Pagcor Entertainment City.

About 80,000 travelers per day will benefit from reduced travel time once the elevated road opens in this year.

the insensitivity of institutions that promote chauvinism and discrimination causes a majority Filipinos to have xenophobia against Lumads.

Currently, more than a thousand individuals have sought sanctuary since they felt the insecurity of their areas after his death.

The launching will double as a solidarity action with the evacuees and the bereaved family of Datu Angis.

A6 Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Opinion BusinessMirror

editorial

Pay for it yourself

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he National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) recently announced the approval of the 653-kilometer Manila-Legazpi City South Railway (MLSR) project at a cost of some P120 billion, which will be implemented under the public-private partnership scheme. While an exact timetable has been given for the completion of this project, it is exactly this kind of development that the Philippines has been missing for decades.

Too often, the government and, to a lesser extent, the people are willing to settle for national government infrastructure programs that will look good on paper, satisfy the needs of a relatively small area and garner a few extra votes at the next election.

But when you are speaking of big-ticket items like the MLSR or the Laguna Lakeshore Expressway-Dike Project, also at P120 billion, then we have a regional and sustainable economic impact.

Albay Gov. Joey Salceda said of the project, “The Manila-Bicol railway is critical in the promotion of rural tourism. It will further empower Bicol labor to compete in Metro Manila’s market and elsewhere in Luzon, and provide a multimodal transport means to bring Bicol’s agricultural products and manufactured goods to the rest of Luzon.” Further, Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio A. Abaya, Neda Director General and Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan, and Presidential Management Staff Secretary Jose Rene Almendras cited Salceda for pushing the project.

Putting together a project like this requires hard work and a vision for the future, both of which are often lacking in the government, which, ultimately, is led by political leaders who are only looking forward to the next election. Even though government agencies are permanent, the heads of those agencies are too often political appointees with a limited time frame to make their mark.

US President Harry S. Truman once wrote, “It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.” Sometimes our government seems to only care about who gets the credit. When problems occur, you can be sure that past administrations, national or local, will get blamed. When there are successes, it is only because of the “current administration.”

Elected officials want to leave a legacy. But their legacies are personal, rather than for the community. A quickly built covered basketball court or a market named after the incumbent is more important than a multibillion-peso, multiyear project named after the community it serves.

Maybe it is time for a law that requires that no project paid for with public funds can be in anyway named for a living person or even a deceased relative of any current office holder.

If you want your name on the latest farm-to-market road or senior citizens center, pay for it with your own money, not the taxpayers’.

Taking the Philippines to the global stage Manny B. Villar

THE Entrepreneur Second of a series

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HE slow growth in foreign tourist arrivals in 2014 is worrisome, but there’s an upside to the country’s tourism industry—domestic tourism.

Filipinos are now beginning to appreciate local destinations, which are among the most beautiful spots in the world. The underground river in Palawan, for instance, is now recognized as one of the Seven New Wonders of the World. Boracay, of course, still enjoys the reputation of having the most beautiful beach resorts, particularly with its unique, powdery white sand.

The Department of Tourism (DOT), according to published reports, estimates domestic tourists at more than 47 million in 2014, up 8 percent than the 44.1 million posted in 2013. That’s a faster growth rate than the 3.25 percent for foreign tourist arrivals.

The DOT also estimates revenues from domestic tourism at P1.4 trillion last year, up 8.6 percent from P1.29 trillion in 2013. On the other hand, the 4.83 million foreign tourists that visited the country in 2014 generated total revenues of $4.84 billion, or P214.88 billion.

Thus, in peso terms domestic tourism far outweighs inbound tourism. Based on the 2014 results, domestic tourism is booming while inbound tourism is lagging.

I attribute the robust domestic tourism to the changing mind-set of Filipinos. In the past, tourism was generally associated by Filipinos with traveling abroad. Visiting places in the Philippines was not regarded as “tourism.”

This meant that Filipinos did not become tourists until they travel to another country, not within their own country.

Today, Filipinos are beginning to appreciate local destinations as among the most beautiful spots in the world.

Instead of going to Hong Kong, Filipino travelers now prefer to go to Cebu, Davao, Cagayan de Oro and Iloilo, among other local destinations.

In addition to popular tourist destinations like Boracay, Palawan, Siargao and other places that have made it to the

international travel lists, local festivals are attracting more domestic tourists.

These include Cebu’s Sinulog and Baguio’s Panagbenga.

Kudos should be given to the local government units and local executives who promote local festivals as tourist attractions. These festivals even promote local products, like the bangus festival in Pangasinan, home of the famous “Bonoan bangus.” Baguio’s “Panagbenga” is also known as a flower festival, which highlights not only Baguio but the Mountain Province as the flower capital of the Philippines.

These festivals attract both foreign and local tourists, but it is fair to say that local visitors outnumber foreigners. Almost all provinces now have their own festivals and other attractions for tourists.

Infrastructure development is also contributing to the growth of domestic tourism. For instance, I expect the opening of the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway (TPLEx) to result in the revival of Baguio as one of the country’s top destinations, especially for Metro Manila residents. The TPLEx has cut travel time between Manila and Baguio about seven or more to about four hours.

Baguio, known as “The City of Pines,” can now be a weekend getaway place for Metro Manila residents, who in the past had to wait for long-holiday weekends or summer vacation to travel to Baguio.

Another positive development for domestic tourism is cheaper air fare,

Lock the gates and man the walls John Mangun

OUTSIDE THE BOX

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he Philippines is a fertile oasis in a global financial desert.

The barbarians are at the gates. The patients have taken over the mental asylum.

If you read some local and foreign commentators who have been spouting the same dire warnings about the Philippines for the last years, you might notice that they are saying the same negative things that they did in 2010. The sky is going to fall at any moment and it is time to panic.

But every day the sun comes up and every night the stars twinkle in the dark sky. Meanwhile in the rest of the world, life is “normal” unlike in the Philippines.

Here is some of the new normal.

How about going down to your local bank, ask about taking out a loan to buy a car and then you ask the bank manager how much the bank is going to pay you to take out the loan? Probably you would be surrounded by the bank security guards as they escort you through the front door. That is what would happen in the Philippines but not in Europe.

In Europe banks are effectively paying people to borrow money.

The Swiss, Swedish and Danish governments and the global food company Nestlé are now borrowing money from lenders who are happy to pay them for the privilege. The Swiss government will borrow your money and you have to pay them, not the other way around.

The corporate bonds of Nestlé S.A., the Swiss multinational food and beverage company, the international petroleum company Royal Dutch Shell, and British natural gas and electric consumer supply company EDF Energy are all paying negative interest. In other words, the lenders are paying to loan money to these companies. And we are told that the sky is falling in the Philippines.

A few weeks ago I wrote about the possibility that the US might also go into negative interest rates on lending and

bank deposits. The immediate response I received was that I had no idea what I was talking about and that it could never happen. Except, since then global banking giant JPMorgan has started charging some of their very large corporate clients for depositing money with the bank.

However, we know that the US economy is in great shape with the latest employment report. In fact, your balikbayan classmate visiting the Philippines probably told you all is well and the US is the land of milk and honey. It’s the Philippines that has a jobs problem; not the US. From February 2008 to February 2015 the US population grew by 16.8 million persons, and on a net basis, not a single one of those 16.8 million persons got a full-time job. What did happen was that a net 2.7 million part-time jobs have been created since 2008. According to the US government agency, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, not a single net full-time job has been created since February 2008.

Those that say the US employment picture is just fine turn to data that shows there is a growing number of people that are no longer interested in working and have dropped out of the labor force. They point to the olds guys like me that have supposedly reached retirement age. But in 2009 the number of the over 55 age group who were still working was 26 million. Now it is 33 million.

Put another way, since 2007, the

which is the result of more competition brought about by the entry of new airlines like Air Asia/Zest to compete with Air Philippines of Philippine Airlines and Cebu Pacific.

The increasing number of domestic travelers is also creating more demand for accommodations in the provinces.

Thus, we see more hotels coming up, with foreign brands like Microtel competing with local players like Robinsons Land’s Go Hotels.

In its fourth quarter 2014 report, property consultant Colliers International said a total of 2,038 hotel rooms opened in Metro Manila in 2014, bringing the total room inventory to 19,373 rooms. According to the report, some 3,580 rooms will be delivered annually over the next four years.

Colliers noted that investors were upbeat in the hotel sector because of improving economic conditions in the country. It cited Accor, a hotel-management company based in France, which aims to open six hotel projects in Metro Manila in the next two years.

Hotel development is one of the many sectors of the real-estate industry, which is enjoying the longest boom in the Philippines and moving like the strong current of a river that, in turn, is driving the economy.

To be continued

For comments, e-mail mbv.secretariat@gmail.com or visit www.mannyvillar.com.ph.

55-plus-year-old group population has increased by 17 million and the number of that age working has increased by 7 million. The 25- to 54-year-old working core population is down by 1 million but those working have decreased by 5 million. An economy is in great trouble with a dismal future when the job market is increasing for the old and not for the young as it is here in the Philippines.

However, we are told that the Philippines should be very cautious and perhaps worried if the US Federal Reserve raises interest rates and things go back to “normal.” Yes, there might be a small rate hike in a few months, perhaps as early as June. But it will mean little to the Philippines.

What a rate would mean is that the US government debt service could easily double and they cannot afford that.

A return to historical average interest rates would make it absolutely impossible to pay the interest.

With all the problems the Philippines and its economy might have, they are nothing to the chaos going on outside our little gated village.

E-mail me at mangun@gmail.com.

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

Opinion BusinessMirror

opinion@businessmirror.com.ph

Getting disaster resilience right

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Bridging the gender gap

Dr. Shamshad Akhtar

ORLD leaders and decision-makers from more than 100 countries will gather later this month in Sendai, Japan, to finalize a new global framework for disaster risk reduction which will replace the 2005 Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA). The stakes could not be higher, especially for the countries of Asia and the Pacific—by far the most disasterprone region in the world.

The year 2014 was a time without a single large-scale Asia-Pacific earthquake or tsunami, yet, 119 disasters still caused more than 6,000 fatalities and economic losses of almost $60 billion, as storms, floods and landslides wreaked havoc.

Many developing and smaller economies remain highly vulnerable to natural disasters, and climate dynamics add to the risk. With the growing frequency and intensity of disasters, enhancing resilience calls for effective pre- and postdisaster frameworks that include supportive regulations, risk-based preparedness and mitigation approaches, as well as innovative risk financing mechanisms.

Ten years of HFA implementation have seen major investments and many successes, but new research by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (Escap) points to five important lessons.

First, disaster risk reduction fails in a policy vacuum. Tackling disasters is most effective in countries where disaster risk reduction is integrated with wider development and financial planning and poverty-reduction strategies. Getting the right political momentum, coupled with the right expertise within economic and finance ministries, helps effective execution.

By 2011, the midpoint of HFA implementation, fewer than one AsiaPacific country in five had fixed allocations for disaster risk management in national budgets, indicating significant gaps in achieving the right blend of financing.

This needs to change, as the growing impact of disasters threatens to roll back development gains and undermine sustainable development. With multiple overlapping shocks and crises, countries ignore this lesson at great peril.

Second, innovative risk financing mechanisms, such as catastrophic bonds and index-based parametric insurance, must be seriously considered to overcome the challenges of traditional insurance systems. It is time to scale up such initiatives with support from governments and private insurance companies.

Third, evidence-based policymaking will be key to successful implementation of the successor to the HFA. To support this, Escap is developing a regionally agreed core set of disaster statistics.

Once implemented, these will strengthen diagnostics, national planning and policy-making, allowing for better baselines and regional analysis.

Fourth, science and technology is a powerful enabler of disaster risk reduction. Our ability to monitor and track storms has increased considerably over the past 20 years with advanced tools and instruments mounted on satellites which can now measure seasonal weather patterns, ocean currents and temperature—all of which support disaster preparedness. Greater investments to promote further enhancement in technology and cross-border coordination will be critical moving forward.

One of the promising areas is the struggle against drought. Advances in space technologies, being promoted through our regional cooperative framework, give us hope for rolling back this silent killer.

Escap offers satellite-generated data to high-risk countries, which, combined with ground observations, enables effective early warning. Droughts can now be detected much earlier than before, and ac-

Regional cooperation, publicprivate and other wider partnerships are essential. With the implementation phase of the new framework on disasterrisk reduction about to begin, Escap will be working further with the Asia and the Pacific region, drawing on our long experience as the convener of regional cooperation. The real challenge begins the morning after the Sendai Conference.

Successfully implementing the new framework will require longterm vision and great political leadership, knowing that the fruits of investments in resilience may sometimes be harvested only years after a government has left office. tion can be taken, for example, by adapting agricultural practices to conserve water.

Fifth, disaster early-warning systems are increasingly effective in saving lives. These systems work best when they incorporate the full spectrum of activities from risk assessment and monitoring, to community preparedness and response.

Over the past 10 years, there has been a significant expansion of observation networks. When the Indian Ocean Tsunami struck in 2004, there were only 13 broadband seismometers and four coastal sealevel gauges sharing data in nearreal time for warning purposes.

Today there are more than 140 broadband seismometers and more than 100 sea-level gauges, all sharing data via the Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning System, which became fully operational in 2011.

Missing, however, are the right types of investments in community-based risk reduction. At this “last mile” of early-warning systems, the provision of more timely and clearer warnings, effective guidance and more frequent drills for vulnerable and at-risk communities will go a long way in minimizing casualties and damage in times of crisis.

No government can tackle these challenges alone. Regional cooperation, public-private and other wider partnerships are essential.

With the implementation phase of the new framework on disaster-risk reduction about to begin, Escap will be working further with the Asia and the Pacific region, drawing on our long experience as the convener of regional cooperation.

The real challenge begins the morning after the Sendai Conference. Successfully implementing the new framework will require long-term vision and great political leadership, knowing that the fruits of investments in resilience may sometimes be harvested only years after a government has left office.

With new global frameworks for disaster risk reduction, climatechange action and the sustainable development goals all scheduled for finalization in 2015, there has never been a more important time for this visionary leadership.

Dr. Shamshad Akhtar is the United Nations undersecretary-general and executive secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. She is also the UN’s sherpa for the Group of 20 and previously served as governor of the Central Bank of Pakistan and vice president of the Mena Region of the World Bank.

Edgardo J. Angara

I

N 1937 the Philippines became among the first nations in the Asia-Pacific region to usher in universal suffrage, affirming via plebiscite a woman’s right to vote and run for public office.

Seventy-eight years later, women continue to play a vital role in the country’s politics. There were 893,418 more female voters than male voters during the May 2013 elections.

Their continued presence and

participation explains why the Philippines is among the most gender-equal nations in Asia. We ranked ninth out of 142 countries in the 2014 Global Gender Gap Report of the World Economic Forum—the only Asia-Pacific

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

nation to rank in the top 10.

The 2015 Mastercard Index of Women’s Advancement describes the Philippines among the best countries for woman workers, being one of only two countries in the Asia-Pacific region (the other being New Zealand) to have more than 50 female business or government leaders for every 100 males in equivalent leadership positions.

To illustrate, Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno was the only female Chief Justice at the recent third Asean Chief Justices Meeting. In fact, she has been the only female top judge in Asean since 2012.

Women seem to be breaking through the glass ceiling here in the

10 criteria for the next president Ernesto M. Hilario

W

ABOUT TOWN

ITH the 2016 presidential elections just around the corner, coffeeshop talk naturally veers toward who are likely to make a run for the presidency.

If we’re to go by the results of the latest survey by Pulse Asia conducted between November 14 and 20 last year, Vice President Jejomar C. Binay stays on top of possible presidential contenders, with 26 percent of some 1,200 respondents. The second placer, Sen. Grace Poe, a newcomer in politics, obtained 18 percent. Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago placed third, with 12 percent, followed by Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada with 10 percent.

Others in the top 10 were Sen. Chiz Escudero, 7 percent; Interior Secretary Manuel Roxas II, 6 percent; Sen. Bongbong Marcos Jr., 4 percent; Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, 3 percent; former Senator and resigned Presidential Assistant for Rehabilitation and Recovery Ping Lacson, 2 percent; and Senate President Franklin M. Drilon, 2 percent.

The results of that survey, of course, reflect public sentiment if elections were held at that particular juncture. The political situation has certainly changed since then, especially with the Mamasapano massacre, which is likely to affect the electoral chances of whoever is fielded by the ruling Liberal Party in 2016.

In other words, the names mentioned in the November survey might not be there anymore, since the situation is very fluid at this point. Or new names might emerge who could give the familiar names a run for their money come election day. It would be better, therefore, to deal not with personalities but with the qualities that the next president should possess.

First of all, the next president should have a sterling reputation.

That means he should be honest and untainted by any allegations of graft and corruption, or any involvement at all in overprice of contracts or bribery.

Second, the next president should be genuine reformer and not a traditional politician who uses political patronage to make others do his bidding or agree even to wrong or unpopular policies and programs.

The era of guns, goons and gold to get elected or to retain public office is over. Corollary to this, he should have a clear vision for the country.

This vision could take the form of achieving “tiger economy” status in Asia, or eradicating absolute poverty by the end of his six-year term.

Third, the next president should not compromise his principles for either short- or long-term gain. He should be someone who knows what is wrong and what is right, and is able to defend his beliefs and stand on issues without resorting to subterfuge or outright falsehoods.

Fourth, the next president should respect and uphold human rights and should not tolerate human-rights abuses by persons in authority.

Fifth, the next president should command the trust, respect and confidence of the armed forces who are responsible for defending the country from both internal and external threats. By the same token, he should be able to instill iron discipline among the ranks of the police and crack the whip on the undesirables, rogues and scalawags in uniform.

Sixth, the next president should

pursue the peace process with rebel groups with legitimate demands, even as the government that he leads must wage all-out war against those who engage in terrorism and outright criminal activities, such as kidnapping for ransom.

Seventh, the next president should take a direct hand in sustaining economic growth through prudent fiscal policies and comprehensive infrastructure development.Eighth, the next president should accelerate social development through a broad antipoverty program. The short-term goal should be eradication of absolute poverty within his six-year term.

Ninth, the next president should defend Philippine sovereignty and territorial integrity amid Chinese intrusions within the country’s 200mile exclusive economic zone under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. And 10th, the next president should actively work toward enhancing the country’s standing in the international community, through active participation in international forums where the discussions center on global issues, such as climate change, peace and disarmament, among others.

We have outlined 10 requirements for the next president. And you may well ask, “Are we being too idealistic or asking for the impossible?” Not at all.

We simply ask for someone who is capable of making a difference in the life of the nation and our people, and solving the problems that we face as a nation and as a people.

From the 10 criteria that we have set, perhaps, only a handful could probably meet many of these. Former Sen. Ping Lacson, for instance, may be lagging behind in popularity surveys at this point, but his political stock could rise in the coming months, if some of the front runners drop out, or even self-destruct. After all, he is considered one of the most principled politicians we have at present, a non-trapo who is untainted by corruption and with strong leadership qualities.

Philippines, but there is still a need to narrow the gender gap. We may be among a small number of countries that have had female heads-of-state.

But the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism recently noted that only 18 percent of the candidates in the recent elections were women.

The world celebrates International Women’s Day on March 8 of every year. The Philippines has good cause for celebration, as we continue to be blessed with dynamic and well-educated female leaders. The continuing challenge is to provide them broad opportunity and sufficient resources.

E-mail: angara.ed@gmail.com.

The fog of politics IF there’s such a thing as the “fog of war”—the uncertainty in situational awareness experienced by participants in military operations—we can probably also speak of the “fog of politics,” which we may define as the uncertainty in situational awareness when we dabble in politics.

The fog of politics is at work when people color their perceptions of events with their political biases.

Take, for instance, the case of the current Philippine National Police (PNP) deputy chief for logistics, Police Director Juanito B. Vaño Jr. A recent news report claimed that if he is appointed as the next PNP chief, then this could trigger mass resignation within the institution.

The high-ranking police general is rumored to have been recommended to the highest PNP post by ex-PNP chief Alan L. Purisima, whose resignation was accepted

by P-Noy in the aftermath of the Mamasapano incident.

Whoever is spreading such rumor is obviously banking on the current lack of trust in the President’s recent decisions, the besmirched name of Purisima, and the prevailing suspicion of people that the padrino system still plays a big role in our government. But casting doubt on the integrity of a senior officer of the PNP is tantamount to character assassination, particularly since it is based on something that never happened (Purisima’s recommendation for Vaño’s appointment).

Police Director Vaño wants to clear his name from undeserved brickbats, as he believes his track record in the PNP can withstand close scrutiny. Besides, it is the President himself who will make the decision on who should be the PNP chief.

Reports of mass resignation in the PNP based on mere speculation reflect a blatant lack of respect not only for the President’s decision, but also for the legal system that confers such authority only to the Chief Executive.

E-mail: ernhil@yahoo.com.

We’ve transitioned from ‘Bond Girl’ to ‘Bond Woman’

By Gina Barreca The Hartford Courant/TNS

W

ITH the casting of 50-yearold Monica Bellucci as the female lead opposite 47-yearold Daniel Craig in the forthcoming Spectre, we’ve officially transitioned from “Bond Girls” to “Bond Women.”

Does that mean our culture is growing up—or just aging out?

Our beloved James Bond has always been a thing of beauty and a boy forever, despite the fact that Roger Moore played the role until he was approximately 117.

The women in the Bond films, from Honey Ryder to Pussy Galore, have always offered a screen for the projection of our fantasies. And while it’s not that I believe we should inevitably funnel all the aspirations, aesthetics and desires of mankind exclusively through the narrow medium of Bond movies, right now I will.

I hesitate to attribute the success or failure of every film, song, series or commercial to a sudden and seismic shift in cultural mores, and yet imaginative playtime is necessary for all of us. What we

choose matters.

We like fantasy and thrillers; we like action movies, and we enjoy familiar, engaging characters. James Bond might be more plastic figurine than intellectual icon but he’s, nevertheless, an enduring one and, oddly enough—given his license to kill—a respectable one, as well.

Perhaps, this is why many of us have grown up cheering 007: We’re enthralled by his gadgets, his charm, his daring and his attraction to—and for—strong women.

Frankly, if the choice is between the Bond franchise and the 50 Shades of Bondage franchise, I’d rather play in 007’s sandbox than in Christian Grey’s room of pain any day—or night. Bond needs no apologist; his adroit use of sexual innuendo and his adept volleying of sarcastic rejoinders are delectable parts of his personality. He has unflinchingly been paired with powerful women.

Yes, most of them were trying to kill him—but some have actually been of help. Certainly, Judi Dench, in her role as M in the last several films, has been an intrepid and unflinchingly admira-

ble woman of the Bond world (albeit a mother figure rather than a love interest). Dench was still an enlightening and provocative choice for the role of Bond’s boss. So what if Bond is as spiritually nuanced as a Lego figure? At least, Daniel Craig is choosing an age-appropriate playmate. (I use the term playmate deliberately, so stop giggling.)

Every movie screen is presented within a certain framework, and with the casting of a woman who is on the AARP mailing list as Bond’s erotic focus, we are moving into a whole new demographic.

For one thing, Spectre will prove that 50-year-old Italian women are not what they used to be. Because when I say, “Picture an Italian woman over 50,” you probably see one of the following: You see Sophia Loren or you see my Aunt Clara.

Sophia Loren is to my Aunt Clara what Marcello Mastroianni is to Danny DeVito. Sharing the same ethnic background is pretty much where the similarity ends.

My friend, Anne Bagamery, a journalist who has lived in Paris for 26 years,

A7

tells me that Belucci has long been a sex symbol in Europe. Living in the woods as I do, I hadn’t heard of her. Anne says Bellucci has been compared to Loren and other bombshells for years. So it’s not as if Bellucci suddenly became a knockout as she got close to menopause or anything.

She began life gorgeous.

It reminds me of an exchange I had with my husband about 15 years ago, when we were watching a special on Tina Turner. Turner looked amazing. I asked my husband if he thought I’d look like Tina Turner at 60. He said, and I quote, “Sweetie, you didn’t look like Tina Turner at 33.”

Fair enough. My only worry is about those invidious comparisons. What we want to do is celebrate Bellucci’s beauty— her stamina and the astonishing genes awarded to her through her ancestors— without thinking that we, too, should be able to look how she looks. Bellucci’s been quoted as saying, “Beauty without brains is boring.” Let’s hope she’ll have lines in the script commensurate with what she brings into our line of sight—and to her 50 years of experience.

2nd Front Page BusinessMirror

A8 Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Only 1/3 Still no meeting of the minds of PHL in emergency-powers bicam firms use he Senate and the House FTAs of Representatives on Monday again failed to reconcile their different versions of the measure seeking to adO dress the projected power shortBy Cai U. Ordinario

nly one-third of Filipino firms surveyed by the government make use of the country’s free-trade agreements (FTAs), according to a study released by state-owned think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS).

The study, titled “How Are Firms Responding to Philippine Free Trade Agreements?,” authors led by PIDS Senior Research Fellow and Trade Assistant Secretary Rafaelita M. Aldaba, said that, out of 108 firms surveyed, only 33, or 30.6 percent, are FTA users. “This utilization rate may be considered to show a weak inclination to use FTAs in trade transactions, especially since exporters and importers, together, constitute a huge bulk of the sample,” the study stated.

Data showed that most of the FTA users were medium-sized firms that employ 51 to 300 workers. Most of the FTA users were also firms with foreign equity.

The study also stated that over 75 percent, or 25 out of the 33 FTA users, are firms fully or partially owned by foreigners, while only 7 of the 26 domestic firms state that they use FTAs. “A majority of firms [70 percent] currently do not use FTAs,” the study stated.

“Topping the list [of reasons for nonuse of FTA among firms] is lack of information, followed closely by using another scheme.”

The study stated that small- and medium-sized firms said they lacked information in using FTAs. Large firms, on the other hand, said they are already located in economic zones.

The large firms said the privileges granted to firms in economic zones include duty- and tax-free importation of raw materials, supplies, capital equipment and spare parts.

The study noted that 24 percent of the large firms and 33 percent of the mediumsized sample firms are located in economic zones. “Small trade volume and, to some extent, complicated COO [Certificate of Origin] requirements are also identified as constraints to using FTAs,” the study stated.

“Preparing all the documents entails work that creates fixed costs, so that only those that can afford to cover the costs are inclined to use an FTA scheme. In the Philippines it was noted that, despite the government efforts to streamline customs processes, some procedural lapses persist,” it added.

The study recommended the government, through the trade department, to initiate promotional campaigns and technical trainings live and online.

The information to be disseminated must be targeted toward manufacturing firms in export-processing and special-economic zones to educate them on the increased benefits of using FTAs beyond the zone-specific benefits that they already receive.

The study also urged the government to conduct a review of the COO access procedure to simplify the process. This will negate apprehensions that first-time FTA users may have.

Further, computerizing the COO issuances must also be pursued and integrated in the National Single Window.

T

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

fall this summer.

During the bicameral committee meeting, Liberal Party Rep. Reynaldo Umali of Oriental Mindoro, chairman of the House Committee on Energy, said no agreement was reached on the pass-on cost and timeframe provisions of their re-

spective versions of the resolution giving President Aquino special powers to solve the imminent power crisis. “[We failed to approve it.]

Because we have not reached an agreement with our Senate counterparts,” Umali said.

The two chambers want the government to mainly use the Interruptible Load Program (ILP) in generating additional power capacity.

But the Senate said the adoption of the ILP scheme would cost consumers P7 to P8 per kilowatt-hour under its version of the emergency powers.

On the other hand, the lower chamber is strongly pushing for the no-pass-on scheme in using the ILP, as it is eyeing to tap the Malampaya Funds as subsidy.

On the time frame, the Senate still wants the special powers to be extended until July 2016, while the House only wants it from March to July.

Umali said the House version of the proposed emergency powers with no-pass-on provision has been supported

by President Aquino and the Department of Energy.

Sen. Sergio Osmeña III, chairman of the Senate Committee on Energy, said he believes consumers should shoulder the cost for ILP to encourage them to be prudent in using electricity.

“We have not agreed on that [pass-on provision,] yet. When you have a bicam, you have extended debates, so I move to defer to avoid longer debates,” he said, adding, “however, we already resolved many things under the resolution, but there are about eight small issues that have to be resolved.”

Asked when they will resume the bicameral meeting, the two lawmakers said they do not know.

“This requires the meeting See “Emergency powers,” A2

PHILIPPINES TRAILS ASIAN PEERS IN DIGITAL-BANKING PENETRATION

By Bianca Cuaresma

T

he Philippines proved the count r y w it h t he lowe st d i g it a l banking penetration among emerging economies in Asia, indicative of Filipinos’ conservative and traditional temperament when handling finance matters, according to a survey conducted by a global managementconsulting company.

A McKinsey & Company study on digital banking in Asia showed that the Philippines has the lowest digital- banking footprint as percentage of its population.

In particular, among 13 countries in the region, the Philippines registered last, with only 13 percent of the population reporting the use of digital banking as of end-2014. The Philippines trailed behind India—with 18 percent of digital-banking consumers, and Thailand, with 19 percent.

South Korea has the highest percentage of digital banking in Asia, followed by Singapore, at 94 percent, and Hong Kong, with 93 percent, of the population using digital banking.

Digital banking, otherwise known as electronic or Internet banking, is the access of one’s financial accounts and operation of transactions via a mobile platform or the Internet. Most universal and commercial banks in the country already offer their own brand of electronic banking.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has put in place several measures, starting in 2006, to protect the banking system and its consumers from risks associated with electronic- banking operations.

Also, more recently, the central bank issued several statements promoting the use of digital banking, also known as cashless transactions, especially in the wake of advancements in the realm of financial inclusion in the country.

While McKinsey & Company did not cite any countr y-specific issues as to why significant parts of the population refuse to take advantage of the digital-banking platforms, the global consultants said their findings indicate that the primary deterrent was that the products or procedures in digital-banking are so complicated that they need a person to explain t o them the details.

Likewise, security concerns also stopped other consumers from making full use of digital-banking products or services, according to the management-consulting firm.

But, on the whole, people across the region are shifting to so-called e-commerce channels, and are increasingly more open to use Internet or mobile platforms when making financial transactions.

In the more developed markets of Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan, the bulk, or more than 80 percent, of those surveyed engaged in consumption activities using online commercial outlets.

Likewise, the McKinsey and Company survey found that 90 percent of consumers in the developed markets in Asia routinely take advantage of the various digital channels for their needs but that only 20 percent to 50 percent of their counterparts in emerging Asia do so.

This means the upside for sale transactions via digital channels in Asia is huge, the management-consulting firm said.

Aviation industry boom showing signs of strain A

irline growth is faltering outside of North America and should be a concern to planemakers, lessors and advisers with a stake in the aerospace industry, said John Luth, founder and CEO of Seabury Group.

The aviation industry has amassed $86 billion in profit over the past five years, but warning signs are flashing, Luth said in an interview before the start of the International Societyof Transport Aircraft Trading’s annual conference in Phoenix. Globalization is slowing, and economic recovery

faltering in regions except China, India and the US, Luth said. “ The conf luence of these events, plus likely higher interest rates, all beg for caution,” said Luth, whose New York-based firm advises aviation, aerospace and defense firms. He has advised on aircraft orders worth more than $200 billion, $80 billion of financings and $90 billion of debt restructurings, according to Seabury.

Airbus Group NV and Boeing Co. are reaping the rewards of an unprecedented aircraft order spree, spurred by low interest rates and

upgrades to newer models as airlines seek to pare fuel and maintenance costs. Planemakers globally have amassed a record $1.14-trillion order backlog, up 78 percent from 2008, according to data compiled by Bloomberg Intelligence.

Still, risks for aerospace companies are growing. Cheap oil could slow aircraft retirements, orders are tilted toward China and other emerging markets with volatile economies, and production-rate increases could leave Boeing and Airbus with a glut of jetliners, according to Noah Poponak, a Goldman Sachs

Group Inc. analyst in New York. He recently downgraded his view of the aerospace industry to “neutral,” after six years at “attractive.”

Output doubled

Boeing and Airbus’s collective output this year will be almost double their 2008 total, and an analysis of demand suggests the companies are oversupplying the market, Poponak said in a February 23 report.

“After nearly a decade of undersupplying the market, Boeing and Airbus have caught up,” Poponak

wrote. “The traffic growth and replacement demand required to sustain medium-term planned production may prove tough to achieve.”

The current boom in aerospace has lasted 13 years, longer than the typical growth spurt of seven years, Luth said. Prudent management and capacity discipline by airlines—under the watchful eye of manufacturers, lessors and advisers—could help ensure that an eventual downturn is gradual rather than sudden, Luth said.

“Why not have a 20-year cycle?” he said. Bloomberg News

www.businessmirror.com.ph

DTI junks Puyat plea for import restrictions

DOMINGO: “There was no indication that the domestic Gl and PPGI industry suffered serious injury. The perceived serious injury allegedly caused by increased imports does not merit affirmative findings.”

By Catherine N. Pillas

T

he Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has junked the request of Puyat Steel Corp. for the imposition of restrictions or higher duty on imported galvanized iron (GI) and prepainted galvanized iron (PPGI) sheets and coils.

This, after an initial investigation showed that the imports of the said commodity have not damaged the local GI industry. “There was no indication that the domestic Gl and PPGI industry suffered serious injury. The perceived serious injury, allegedly caused by increased imports, does not merit affirmative findings,” said Trade Secretary Gregory L. Domingo in a decision dated in February on the petition of Puyat Steel.

In 2013 Puyat Steel claimed that imports of the same product have led to a decrease in market share, production, sales, capacity utilization, productivity and profitability, and submitted its petition to the trade department. The trade office then officially launched its official safeguard investigation.

A safeguard measure is among trade remedies that may be exercised by a domestic industry player if it finds that the increase in the importation of a product that it competes with is damaging to the domestic industry. A safeguard measure is not directed toward any particular import partner, but to all countries exporting the product in question to the complainant-country.

Safeguard measures come in different forms, as determined by the implementing authority: increased tariffs (including tariff quotas), surcharges, quantitative restrictions and import authorizations. An import ban is not included in these measures.

However, in the preliminary investigation of the DTI, which covered imports from 2007 to August 2013, although there was an increase in imports of GI and PPGI, the causal link to serious damage in the domestic industry cannot be established.

“The local industry’s production, capacity-utilization rate, employment and productivity increased. Inventory was maintained at reasonable levels relative to production and sales. Moreover, the selling prices were kept at levels which allowed the local industry to fully recover their costs of production,” Domingo explained in the order.

“The petitioner has shown robust operations during the period of increased imports. Specifically, their raw-material importations continuously increased.

Their combined sales volume has been on an upward trend. Their gross profits in 2011 and 2012 and the Januaryto-August 2013 level, is almost 82 percent of 2012. Net profits were also recorded. Since the existence of serious injury to the domestic industry during the period of investigation has not been established, the petition does not merit the conduct of a formal investigation by the Tariff Commission,” Domingo added in the letter.

According to the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Safeguards Agreement, there must be a clear determination that increase in imports has caused serious injury on the level of sales, production, productivity, capacity utilization, profits and losses and employment of the domestic industry.

The DTI submitted the notice of termination of investigation to the WTO on February 27.