BusinessMirror March 23, 2020

‘MSMEs, import/export bloc need ₧33.2B’ T

O cope with the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) as well as large firms that export and/or import would require a bailout of P33.2 billion this year, according to estimates by economists from the University of the Philippines.

In a discussion paper titled “Vulnerable to the Virus: Globally Oriented Manufacturing Firms at Risk From the Spread of Covid-19,” UP School of Economics assistant professor Karl Jandoc; UP Center for Integrative and Development Studies Research Associate Adrian Mendoza; and Representative of the 2nd District of Marikina Stella Luz Quimbo said this estimate assumes that government will shoulder 12 percent of firm revenues (as profit) for a month.

NO DISTANCING?

As the government strictly enforced the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine to fight Covid-19, riders in tandem seem unwary of the risk from contacts between persons as they continue their daily grind. They always stay at home, though, during curfew hours from 8 pm to 4 am. BERNARD TESTA

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By Cai U. Ordinario

The package covers P693 million for purely exporting MSMEs; P8.7 billion for purely importing MSMEs; and P23.8 billion for large firms that simultaneously export and import.

“While large firms are able to withstand, to some extent, the Covid-19 shock, SMEs do not have such capability,” the economists said. “These SMEs export food and food products which are highly perishable and more sensitive even to short-term vicissitudes in global demand.”

The economists said they examined firms that export or import from countries with the greatest number of detected cases. These countries are China, Italy, Iran, Republic of Korea, France, Spain, Germany, Japan, the US and Switzerland.

These countries comprise nearly 95 percent of the 181,493 detected Covid-19 cases globally. With this, economists said this increases the probability of lockdowns,

travel bans and other policies that could slow down economic activity.

The economists found that export revenues from Covid-19 countries reached $39.3 billion in 2019, accounting for 55 percent of total exports. The value of imports from Covid-19 countries reached $56.4 billion or 53 percent of total import value in 2019.

With this, they estimated the economic fallout from Covid-19 may affect 494,679 workers from globally oriented manufacturing sector (GOMS) firms.

The 345 MSMEs that are pure exporters employ 19,216 workers, while the 1,473 purely importing MSMEs employ 103,855 workers.

The 1,451 large firms that export and import employ 371,608 workers, or 75 percent of the potentially affected total number of workers.

“For SMEs, it is possible that a lockdown on Covid-19 countries will affect

these firms even in the short run. Compounding the problem is that these SMEs may not have the capability of large firms, e.g., access to credit, to withstand an economic shock such as that engendered by Covid-19,” the economists said.

In order to finance the bailout, the economists said policy measures implemented by other Covid-19 affected countries may be adopted by the Philippines.

These include loan and credit guarantee to ensure credit availability to firms done in Canada and Thailand; temporary wage/payroll subsidy to prevent layoffs implemented in New Zealand; and deferment of income-tax payments without penalties or interest, which is also being implemented in Canada.

The measures also include special credit window/facility for business through

Continued on A2

BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business Monday, March 23, 2020 Vol. 15 No. 165

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SPECIAL SESSION ON VIRUS: www.businessmirror.com.ph

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JUST FUNDS OR POWERS? ‘REVIVING VIRUS-HIT BIZ WORTH HIKING DEFICIT-GDP RATIO’

WHAT used to be a busy departure area of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 1 is now almost empty of passengers, as the last few ones try to beat the government deadline to exit the country as the enhanced community quarantine was imposed to prevent the spread of Covid-19. NONIE REYES

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SCIENCE FOR LIFE Polytechnic University of the Philippines Institute for Science and Technology Research Director Dr. Armin S. Coronado and his team create locally produced ethyl alcohol in their laboratory amid the shortage of alcohol and sanitizers as Covid-19 spreads in the country. The alcohol will be donated to frontliners and health workers. NONIE REYES

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz, Butch Fernandez & Samuel P. Medenilla

B

OTH chambers of Congress convene for separate special sessions on Monday, to arm the government with enough spending power to deal with the coronavirus pandemic (Covid-19) that has placed the entire Luzon island on lockdown and is gouging businesses big and small while impacting millions of daily-wage earners and straining the health-care system.

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 51.2150

The disclosure of a document embodying Malacañang Palace’s request to Congress for the special session caused a stir on Sunday, however, amid fears that President Duterte might use it to ask lawmakers for emergency powers, including measures as the takeover of private business.

Senate President Vicente Sotto III flatly denied they will tackle an emergency powers bill, saying he had made this clear in marathon meetings over the weekend at Malacañang between the President’s men and Congress leaders.

He stressed that lawmakers committed to grant spending authority, not emergency powers.

The Palace, however, later on

Sunday admitted that President Duterte will be seeking not just an additional budget but also additional powers, including taking over private companies, from Congress to combat the spread of Covid-19.

In a radio interview, Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said Duterte will be requesting for “flexibility” in using the 2020 General Appropriations Act (GAA) for government programs related to Covid-19.

He, however, confirmed that Duterte has also asked for powers to take over business.

Nograles said it will be up to Congress and the Senate to grant Duterte the power as well as thresh out guidelines, on how Continued on A2

By Elijah Felice Rosales

HE government should take the risk of a ballooning deficit-to-GDP ratio that is close to 5 percent, as it crafts a fiscal stimulus package of as much as P281 billion to alleviate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on various sectors, industry groups have said.

They called on policy-makers to take maximum fiscal response to the health crisis challenging the Philippines at the moment. In particular, they want the government to adopt a war chest that will increase the deficit-to-GDP ratio to about 5 percent that would allow the generation of a mitigation fund between P277 billion and P281 billion.

“We believe the government can and should adopt a fiscal stimulus program that will raise our deficit-to-GDP ratio to close to 5 percent, which is a usual red flag for credit watchers, though they will probably relax as an unprecedented number of countries buttress their economies,” a coalition of 32 industry groups said in a statement on Friday.

Should GDP growth slow to 4.5 percent, equivalent to a GDP of P20 trillion, they said a deficit of 5 percent will be P1 trillion. Reduce the programmed deficit of 3.6 percent, or P720 billion, and the government can make space for a P281-billion fiscal stimulus program.

The coronavirus outbreak in the Philippines is seen to cut GDP growth by 1 percentage point if it infects the economy for the entire year, making it plausible for the full-year figure to go as low as 5.5 percent, according to the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda).

On the other hand, should GDP growth contract to 3 percent, which will translate to a GDP of P19.7 trillion, the industries computed that a 5-percent deficit will be P987.5 billion. Take away the programmed deficit of P3.6 percent, or P711.3 billion, there will be room for a P277-billion war chest.

The proposed fiscal stimulus package of the industry groups is 10 times larger than the P27.1-billion mitigation fund announced by the Department of Finance last week.

See “Reviving,” A2

n JAPAN 0.4618 n UK 58.7282 n HK 6.5991 n CHINA 7.2013 n SINGAPORE 35.2720 n AUSTRALIA 29.3616 n EU 54.6106 n SAUDI ARABIA 13.6246

Source: BSP (March 20, 2020)

News BusinessMirror

A2 Monday, March 23, 2020

‘MSMEs, import/ export bloc need ₧33.2B’ Continued from A1

the banking system implemented in India; loan repayment holidays/loan restructuring from government financial institutions and private banks in the United Kingdom; and providing employment maintenance where the government partially covers the cost to pay workers allowances from leave of absences, implemented in South Korea.

The economists said another policy option is to reduce tariffs to cut the cost of imported inputs.

“We note that HB 6606 provides for a separate fund for displaced workers amounting to P15 billion. Based on rough estimates, providing displaced workers in GOMS an amount equivalent to minimum wages for a month can be financed through this proposed P15-billion fund,” the economists said.

In House Bill 6606 or Economic Rescue Plan for Covid-19, Quimbo said the stimulus package will be the main economic measure to address the current public health emergency.

She said the monies shall be appropriated out of any funds in the National Treasury, as additional funding and budgetary requirements for the fiscal year 2020.

The bill provides for the government to allocate P108 billion for a fiscal stimulus package, broken down into: P43 billion for assistance and promotion of the tourism sector; P15 billion for unemployment assistance; and P50 billion for assistance for business, particularly MSMEs, which includes loan packages and subsidies.

The bill also creates the Inter-Agency Task Force for the 2020 Fiscal Stimulus Package to manage the use of the fund. On the task force are the National Economic and Development Authority, Department of Tourism, Department of Labor and Employment, Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Finance, and Department of Budget and Management.

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Duque negative for virus; PHL cases at 380 as more tests done T

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

HE total number of persons infected with the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) in the country reached 380 on Sunday with 25 deaths and 17 recoveries, the Department of Health (DOH) reported, but it noted that more cases are surfacing as more test kits and laboratories become available.

This, as Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III tested negative for coronavirus disease (Covid-19), ending days of anxiety about the status of the health chief, who has been at the frontlines since Day 1, but is a septuagenarian with asthma and hypertension.

Undersecretary Ma. Rosario Vergeire said that Duque is “in good condition” right now.

Duque has been on home quarantine since Wednesday after he underwent testing for Covid-19.

Duque was tested after it was confirmed that one DOH director tested positive.

The DOH chief was asymptomatic.

“Offices have been disinfected and close contacts informed so that they can immediately un-

dergo home quarantine and strict monitoring,” the DOH said in a statement earlier.

73 new cases

VERGEIRE said that from 307 on Saturday, there are new 73 new cases (designated PH308-PH380) of Covid-19, with four new recoveries and six new deaths.

One recovery is an elderly, hypertensive Filipino male from Quezon City. The 73-year-old recovery, an asymptomatic, was exposed to a known Covid-19 case.

Onset of symptoms began on March 11 and he was confirmed positive for the virus on March 16.

He was discharged after his result turned negative.

PH22 (15th PH recovery) is a 51-year-old Filipino female from

San Juan City with exposure to a known Covid-19 case. Onset of symptoms began on March 4 and was confirmed positive for Covid-19 on March 9. She was discharged on March 18, asymptomatic with 1 negative result. She was a known hypertensive.

A 38-year-old Taiwanese is the 16th recovery. He is from Makati City, with no travel history but with exposure to a known Covid-19 case. Onset of symptoms began on March 3 and confirmed positive for

Covid-19 on March 8. He was discharged on March 21, asymptomatic with 1 negative result.

The 26-year-old Filipino male from Quezon City is the 17th PH recovery. He had no travel history; with exposure to known Covid-19 cases. Onset of symptoms began on February 28; he was confirmed positive for the virus on March 11 and was discharged on March 16, asymptomatic with 1 negative result.

Meanwhile, Vergeire expressed condolences to the families

of six patients who were the latest fatalities: • 81-year-old Filipino male (PH210 ) from San Juan • 34-year-old Filipino male (PH200) from Quezon City • 60-year-old Filipino female (PH310) from Quezon City • 56-year-old Filipino male (PH351) from San Juan City • 79-year-old Filipino female (PH52) from Batangas • 69-year-old Filipino male (PH226) from Quezon City.

SPECIAL SESSION ON VIRUS:

JUST FUNDS OR POWERS? Continued from A1

the government will determine which companies it can take over for its Covid-19 operations.

“This will be subject of the debate in Congress and the Senate. Let us just wait for the outcome,” Nograles said.

“For us in the Executive [department], we will follow whatever law will be passed

by Congress,” he added.

P200-B realignment

THE House of Representatives is eyeing to approve in a special session on Monday a measure empowering President Duterte to realign funds under the 2020 General Appropriations Act.

Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano said more than P200 billion will be realigned to ensure the availability of food and medicines in the next two months.

The House, with over 300 members, will meet in “virtual session” as lawmakers have been on break since March 14 and some were caught by the lockdown while out of town; while the Senate, per Sotto, will likely shoot for getting a simply majority at least of 13 to physically come to the Senate building for a roll call and to confirm a quorum, before proceeding to virtual sessions.

The enhanced community quarantine, which Duterte has also called a lockdown, was declared midnight of March 17 and will be in effect until April 13, 2020.

Most modes of movement have been restricted, including domestic travel and mass transport. The public has also been advised to remain at home except for essential activities, such as the purchase of food and necessary supplies. Local governments were directed by the President to be on top of the local situation and provide for the needs of their constituents.

Senate quorum

IN a separate interview, Sen. Panfilo Lacson Jr. does not see Sotto having problems mustering a quorum for the Senate’s special session in the middle of the scheduled congressional recess from March 14 to May 3.

“First of all, the guidance given by Senate President Sotto is for the senators to be physically present in the first roll call,” Lacson said, adding this was conveyed when Sotto “virtually conducted a roll call in our online chat group.”

He said senators were advised to be ready by Monday 10 am, so they can tackle data needed for their plenary deliberations, even while awaiting the House to finish its business.

He, however, could not say for sure if the special session called by Malacañang to pass a supplemental budget could be done in one session day. “We don’t know, but

Reviving...

we want to finish it as much as possible in one day, also to protect our Senate staff… especially our legislative staff” who might be exposed to the Covid virus.

Lacson said Sotto is not inclined to follow the House example of a virtual session. “He [Sotto] said, we’re only 24 and I don’t want the next generation of senators to criticize us and say we violated Senate rules. The rules are basic—we adjourned March 11 so when we resume we are obliged to do a roll call.”

The senator aired hopes there would be no “disagreeing provisions” in the Senate and House versions to obviate convening a bicameral conference committee to hammer out a reconciled version to be submitted to the President for signing into law.

“This budget is not a supplemental budget. The first information we got was that we’re being asked to authorize the President to realign the 2020 budget or whatever is carried over from the 2019 budget,” Lacson said in a mix of English and Filipino.

He reported that per data he got, still not updated, “as of Q3 2019 Statement of Appropriation, Allotment, Obligations and Balances, the unused appropriation was so huge,” though this is not yet final and they must ask the DBM for the yearend data.

No impact on taxes, infra

IN approving the supplemental budget, Cayetano, citing Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III, said the amount will come from nonbudgetary sources and this will not impact taxes as well as the Build, Build, Build program of the government.

Majority Leader Martin Romualdez said the special session will be conducted to mobilize government resources needed by the Executive Department to help contain Covid-19.

“Congress will be granting President Rodrigo Duterte the authority to specifically realign government funds for food, allowances to help the affected families, boost the medical requirements of the people and protection of those who are in the frontline, especially our doctors, nurses and all medical personnel,” he said.

Deputy Speaker for Finance Luis Raymund Villafuerte, meanwhile, assured the public that Monday’s session is in line with health and safety protocols at a time of enhanced quarantine and national public health emergency.

“We all have to adjust, including Congress, on how best we can function but keeping in mind protocols set by the Inter-Agency Task Force. If we do the normal session, we will not be able to fit in the plenary as per social-distancing guidelines,” he said.

In an advisory to lawmakers, the lower chamber said it will limit to 20 the number of lawmakers who would be physically

present at the special session on Monday, March 23, at 10 a.m.

“We endeavored to ensure that all the major parties, including party-lists, Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, and the Minority Bloc are represented,” the chamber said.

It also said there will be options for members to log in their attendance, cast their vote, and even speak during the special session.

“We will use a videoconferencing application called Zoom Cloud Meetings. This application is capable of hosting all House Members with a camera phone, tablet, or webcam, in a videoconference,” it added.

To implement social distancing, the leadership prohibited some members of the secretariat and the media from the session.

Full powers

HOUSE Committee on Ways and Means Chairman Joey S. Salceda proposed a measure providing the President with full powers over the 2019 and 2020 budget and allocating P300 billion or 1.5 percent of gross domestic product for response and recovery efforts.

Salceda said the President “must not be restrained in his response by the provisions that we have made for ordinary times.”

“This is a matter of national survival.

Every day counts here—whether in keeping infections low, or in keeping public order and safety. By our estimates based on the Family Income and Expenditure Survey, the savings of the poorest 12 million people in Luzon have been wiped out because of this lockdown—which was necessary but painful,” he said.

“The problem is immediate. The response needed is immediate. But the budget is restrained and the bureaucracy is intractable. We will lose under these conditions,” Salceda added.

Salceda’s proposal authorizes the President “to reallocate and realign any appropriation in the General Appropriations Act of 2019 and the General Appropriations Act of 2020” as well as funds and collections by national government agencies and government-owned corporations.

During a press briefing on Sunday, Salceda disclosed over half or P144 billion of the requested fund will provide assistance to workers affected by the community quarantine imposed for the entire Luzon and some parts of the Visayas and Mindanao.

Essentially, he said the amount will provide P8,000 to at least 17.9 million families affected by the quarantine and also incentive pay to frontliners in the government’s campaign to contain the spread of Covid-19 .

Among its expected beneficiaries are minimum-wage earners as well as daily paid workers such as tricycle and jeepney drivers.

Continued from A1

More than half of that war chest, to be utilized to bankroll measures that would alleviate the economic chills caused by the pandemic, will go to tourism stakeholders.

Tourism is one of the hardest-hit sectors under the health crisis, as guest arrivals could drop by at least 1.4 million this year, the Neda estimated.

The Department of Trade and Industry, tasked to assist micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) recover from the pandemic, received the smallest allocation from the war chest of P1 billion, which it will use to tender loans to injured firms.

The industry groups told the government to provide an additional budget for the conditional cash transfer (CCT) program to benefit its recipients.

CCT beneficiaries, they added, are by definition the most vulnerable to lose their livelihood in trying times like this.

They also called for increased funding for labor programs to support workers hit by the community quarantine, first placed on Metro Manila and later expanded to the whole of Luzon, that suspended the operations of many businesses.

Further, they favor creating programs that would transfer cash or food to lowincome households, as well as allocating additional funds for temporary hospitals and quarantine sites, to ensure the health system can cope with the surge of patients.

The industries are also requesting for money to help MSMEs hire workers once the outbreak is contained.

Likewise, they seek targeted

subsidies to the health, tourism and transport industries, as in Malaysia and Italy; increased public investment spending as in Germany; and deferment of penalties related to interest payments.

They explained that their proposed war chest will not trigger alarm bells in the credit rating and global investment communities, claiming it will only put the debt-to-GDP ratio at 44.2 percent, from 41.5 percent last year. They added it was 70 percent about 15 years ago.

The call for maximum fiscal response in the time of Covid-19 was signed by 32 business groups, including the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Management Association of the Philippines, Makati Business Club and the Joint Foreign Chambers of the Philippines.

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Monday, March 23, 2020 A3

NATURETAINMENT–AGRIYA’S FUN WAY OF SHOWCASING AGRICULTURE

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AMOSA Land Inc. (DLI), Davao’s leading home-grown real-estate company, recently launched its multibillion mixeduse development project - Agriya. Envisioned to be the agricultural metropolis or “agropolis” of the Davao Region, Agriya will soon flourish in the fertile land of Davao.

Agriya is an 88-hectare agritourism development located in Panabo City, Davao del Norte. With progressive agriculture at the center of this modern agropolis, Agriya helps enhance the quality of life of the community with its innovative amenities that are first of its kind.

Agriya will have four different zones—residential, commercial, institutional and agritourism. What’s unique about Agriya’s agritourism component is Naturetainment.

“We are calling this feature Naturetainment, to be entertained by nature and by agriculture,” says Ricardo “Cary” Lagdameo, Head of DLI. Naturetainment will highlight different kinds of agriculture, but the main highlight will be on the country’s top exporting crop - banana.

“We are showing different kinds of bananas here. We’ve planted about 67 varieties out of the 300+ varieties available worldwide,” Lagdameo states. He reiter-

ated further that Naturetainment will also showcase how bananas are grown and packed and exported, through its “mini banana plantation”.

Whether you’re looking for adventure, a breather, an educational tour, or just simple family fun, Naturetainment is the right place to be. With a diverse mix of interactive farming, agri adventures, and a picturesque landscape, Naturetainment is a learning playground for all ages.

Exploring this side of Agriya will help give a real sense of what agricultural life is, and stimulate a different kind of thrill while encouraging the guests especially children to take care of Mother Nature.

“Everything that we do and what we’re going to put in this project has some kind of connection to agriculture,” Lagdameo said.

Naturetainment will open to the public this March.

News

BusinessMirror

A4 Monday, March 23, 2020

Govt to unleash more funds to support informal sector

T

By Bernadette D. Nicolas

@BNicolasBM

HE Philippine government will soon be unleashing more funds on top of the P27.1 billion package it announced earlier but this time this would be intended to support those in the informal sector that are feeling the brunt of the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).

The move comes amid the call from Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (Finex) to “support and rescue” the most vulnerable sectors of the society—the poor, jobless, and disadvantaged—through putting up an emergency calamity amelioration program. (See story on B3) Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III told reporters the Department of Finance is working on such program together with utilizing

the funds of government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs).

Dominguez said this would form part of the additional package they are working right now.

Asked how could funds from GOCCs be released to support the emergency program, Dominguez said this would “be determined by the DSWD [Department of Social Welfare and Development], DILG [Department of the Interior and Lo-

cal Government] and the DOH [Department of Health] in consultation with LGUs [local government units], which could result in combination of providing food, and, or cash subsidies for food, normal, health care and other necessities.”

Dominguez also said there has also been a suggestion for additional aid to be extended even beyond beneficiaries of Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).

In a statement on Friday, Finex urged Congress to give President Duterte the authority to augment funds in the budget with those of GOCCs to be utilized during the national health emergency. Congress is expected to hold a special session on Monday for that agendum.

Budget Secretary Wendel E. Avisado said the government’s focus right now is attending to the basic needs of the informal sector, the poor, and the vulnerable sectors of the society.

“We still do not have a stimulus package. This is just in response to the basic necessities and food for the informal sector. The formal

sector still [have] their salaries and wages to sustain them. This is for now the focus of the government,” Avisado in a text message to the BusinessMirror.

In a related development, National Treasurer Rosalia V. de Leon told reporters in a message the government still has enough money despite the monthlong extension of filing of annual Income Tax Return granted

by Bureau of Internal Revenue.

DOF said the revenue shortfall resulting from the deadline extension is around P145 billion.

But de Leon said they have “hoarded cash already.”

She said the government can still afford to postpone the revenue collection.

“It is only one month; [we] have cash stashed from RTB [retail treasury bonds] and full-award auctions,” de Leon said.

The Bureau of the Treasury will proceed with its auction for Treasury Bills worth P20 billion on offer and the seven-year Treasury Bond auction on Monday and Tuesday, respectively.

DAR freezes agrarian case proceedings due to lockdown

By Jonathan L. Mayuga @jonlmayuga

A

GRARIAN Reform Secretary John R. Castriciones has ordered a freeze on legal proceedings involving agrarian cases in light of the public health emergency.

The order covers the “suspension of the running of the reglementary periods for the commencement of actions and the filing of pleadings as well as the cancellation of all hearings, inspections and meetings of all cases” involving agrarian law implementation (ALI) and adjudication of tenurial and other disputes from March 15, 2020, to April 13, 2020, in Luzon and some areas in

Mindanao and Visayas affected by the pandemic.

Castriciones was quoted in a statement as saying the measures were adopted in compliance with Proclamation 929 and Proclamation 922 (Series 2020) and the various memoranda issued from March 16 to 18 by the Executive Secretary mandating the enhanced community quarantine over the entire Luzon.

“This, as a result of the health emergency brought about by the need to control and eradicate the Covid-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] and the similar measures adopted by certain local government units outside Luzon,” he added.

The suspension of ALI and

Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) Adjudication Board (Darab) case proceedings will apply in Luzon as well as in areas outside Luzon with related health emergency measures.

DAR Memorandum Circular 01 pertaining to all ALI cases and Memorandum Circular Number 02 pertaining to proceedings and processes on Darab cases were both signed by the DAR secretary last March 18.

Castriciones issued the memorandum circulars upon the recommendation of Legal Affairs Office Undersecretary Luis Meinrado C. Pangulayan and in consultation with the Darab members and the Bureau of Legal Assistance (Bala)

leadership, he said.

“The Agrarian Legal Sector has reported a zero backlog of all Darab and ALI cases last February of this year. The preparation, review and formulation of the recommendations for the actions to be taken on pending incidents in both ALI and Darab cases will continue. This is based on the alternative work arrangements adopted by the Agrarian Legal Sector,” Pangulayan noted.

The regional and provincial adjudicators as well as the divisions under the Bala in the quarantined areas are preparing their case resolutions and decisions from home, the DAR said.

LACSON CHIDES JOMA FOR REJECTING TRUCE

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EN. Panfilo M. Lacson chided exiled communist leader Jose Maria C. Sison for rejecting the unilateral cease-fire declared by the Philippine government as a Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) was imposed to arrest the spread of the deadly coronavirus disease (Covid-19). “’Yan ang nakakapagtaka. Problema ng buong bansa ito. Kung claim nila mahal nila ang bayan natin, bakit hindi sila nakisama?

Bakit ayaw nila makipag-ceasefire? Ano, mag-a-ambush sila ng pulis at sundalong nagche-checkpoint para ma-prevent ang pagkalat ng virus? [That—his rejection of a ceasefire—is puzzling. This is a problem of the entire nation. If, as they say, they love their countrymen, why can’t they cooperate on this? Why do they reject the cease-fire?

Are they going to ambush policemen and soldiers manning quarantine checkpoints

to stop the spread of the virus]?” Lacson wondered aloud in an interview with radio DWIZ. “At least 70,000 members of the AFP [Armed Forces of the Philippines] and the PNP [Philippine National Police] have been mobilized. What is cause for worry here is if the CPP-NPA takes advantage of the troops’ redeployment to do something in their areas of influence,” he said in Filipino.

“If you notice, Sison doesn’t like to agree to a cease-fire. Why? Are they planning anything? I am sure our AFP and PNP, and security forces are ready just the same. Whatever the CPP-NPA may be planning, and if they wish to destabilize, I think our security forces can respond to it,” Lacson added.

Asked if the rejection of the ceasefire for such a life-and-death measure as curbing the deadly Covid’s spread runs counter to

PRC-issued identification card’s validity extended

T

HE Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) has extended the validity of the Professional Identification Cards (PIC) in all areas with the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine due to the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).

In a public advisory, the commission said the PICs in affected communities will remain valid until the lifting of the community quarantine period in their areas.

The extension will cover professionals in Luzon, which is under the ECQ, and areas in Visayas and Mindanao, wherein the local government units implemented their own community quarantine.

PRC noted that professionals who are covered by the extension should file their applications online for PIC renewal within 30 days after the lifting so they will not accrue any surcharges or penalties.

Those with confirmed renewal appointments for their PIC will be accommodated once the ECQ in their area is lifted, according to the PRC. The PIC serves as proof that a person is a registered professional, who could practice their profession. Samuel P. Medenilla

the communist rebels’ avowed pro-people principles, Lacson replied, “everyone has principles, but if that’s their way of dealing…. I just hope my suspicion isn’t true, but then again, why can’t they agree to a cease-fire?”

Tens of thousands of police and soldiers were deployed since midnight of March 17 to prevent people from moving from Metro Manila to other places in Luzon and vice versa, as the government ramped up its earlier community quarantine to an “enhanced community quarantine” or a lockdown.

They set up checkpoints to enforce the total ban on all forms of public transportation, and in some cases, to help barangay officials enforce strict quarantine protocols in areas designated as hot zones because at least two Covid-positive cases were confirmed there. Butch Fernandez

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Angara lists ₧108-B 4Ps, doles in lockdown aid

By Butch Fernandez @butchfBM

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HERE are provisions in the 2020 national budget, as well as already established social amelioration programs that government may resort to in order to help the sectors most impacted by the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) forced by the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), Sen. Juan Edgardo “Sonny” M. Angara said.

These options to ease the unprecedented public pain as a result of the harsh but necessary lockdown are topped by the over P108-billion allocation to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), Angara added.

At the weekend, Angara called on agencies such as the DSWD to find ways to get the cash grants and other aid to families affected by the ECQ immediately.

At a time when almost all businesses have closed and movement of people is restricted by the Luzonwide lockdown, imposed last March 17 to combat the spread of Covid-19, Angara noted that “people are becoming desperate and in need of assurance from its government that they will be taken care of.”

The “uninterrupted implementation of programs such as the 4Ps, which are even more critical to marginalized families at this time when most likely some, if not all, of their members are not being paid any wages,” is crucial, Angara said.

Under the 2020 General Appropriations Act, the DSWD was given P108.765 billion for the 4Ps, which involves providing cash grants to the poorest of the poor, amounting to P1,350 (health and nutrition, and rice subsidy) per family per month plus P300/month/child attending day care or primary school; P500/ month/child for junior high school; and P700/month/child attending senior high school. This will serve 4.4 million households nationwide.

Apart from the 4Ps, the DSWD also provides social pension to indigent seniors (P23.184 billion under the 2020 GAA) and unconditional

The “uninterrupted implementation of programs such as the 4Ps, which are even more critical to marginalized families at this time when most likely some, if not all, of their members are not being paid any wages” is crucial.—Angara

cash transfer (P36.488 billion), Angara noted.

Under the social pension to indigent seniors program, indigent senior citizens receive a monthly stipend of P500.

With the unconditional cash transfer (UCT) program, poor households are provided with P300 per month in cash grants to cope with the impacts of rising prices of goods and commodities.

Noting the challenges in the delivery of these benefits to beneficiaries during the quarantine period, Angara urged the DSWD to coordinate closely with the local government units, who have been undertaking their own initiatives to deliver food and other assistance to their constituents while they are stuck inside their homes.

“Many LGUs are going door-todoor to deliver food and other benefits to our countrymen in dire need of help these days. The DSWD can tap them to bring the assistance to the family beneficiaries, especially those who still don’t have the EMV [Europay, Mastercard, Visa] cards,” Angara said, in a mix of English and Filipino.

The drivers of jeepneys, tricycles and taxis are also reeling from the quarantine and have no other means to earning to feed their family, he added.

Under Section 87 of the general provisions of the 2020 GAA on the implementation of nationally-funded projects, “the national government may designate LGUs as implementing agencies” for projects, services and other programs appropriated in this Act of agencies, including the DSWD.

Tent put up at NKTI for Covid-19 patients

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HE Philippine Red Cross (PRC) put up a medical field tent at the National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKTI) in Quezon City as part of its efforts to provide assistance to hospitals that cater to patients afflicted with the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).

“The NKTI has requested us to provide a tent that will serve as an isolation ward for suspected carriers of the virus,” PRC Chairman and Sen. Richard J. Gordon was quoted in a statement as saying. “With this, the medical staff can receive those patients at the tent and they no longer have to bring them inside the emergency room.”

Gordon noted that the NKTI caters to patients with kidney problems, mostly elderly patients who are having dialysis treatment and they are one of those who are most susceptible to the disease.

“We want to ensure that they will not get infected and we want to help prevent further

spread of the virus,” Gordon said.

The facility at the NKTI is the first medical tent being set-up by the PRC as part of its response to Covid-19.

It will serve as an additional ward for persons under investigation (PUI). Aside from the tent, the PRC has also provided 9,700 pieces of face masks for frontliners and health-care workers in Quezon City.

With 34 confirmed cases, the city is now considered the epicenter of Covid-19 in the country.

Earlier, the Department of Health has requested the PRC for tents so that the Covid patients will be isolated from patients who are not carrier of the virus.

“The Red Cross is actively participating in the nation’s fight against Covid-19. We want to assure the public that we will never get tired of helping our people especially in times of crisis,” Gordon said. “We are one with the hospitals in catering to the needs of our people.” Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

Cebu Co-op rolls out units in PUV modernization tack

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CO-OPERATIVE in Cebu City announced the roll out of 55 units as its support to the country’s public-utility vehicle modernization program.

The Cebu People’s Multi-Purpose Co-operative (CPMPC) said in a statement these units will ply key routes around Metro Cebu. The units are Durabus Zhongtong Class 2, which the co-operative said is compliant with the Philippine National Standards of the Department of Trade and Industry.

The rollout is by far the biggest launch in line with the implementation of the nationwide transport modernization program, according to CPMPC. Each unit features a global positioning system device, speed limiter, front and rear cameras, indoor TV,

PHOTO courtesy of the Cebu City Tourism Office shows units the Cebu People’s Multi-Purpose Co-operative launched as part of the country’s public-utility vehicle modernization program.

air-conditioning, foam seats and security close-circuit TV (CCTV), “and will be a cheaper public conveyance in Cebu and neighboring cities, which is the hub of commerce and tourism in southern Philippines.”

Each unit is powered by environmentally-compliant Euro 4/5 diesel engines, which significantly reduces carbon and sulfur emissions. Fare payment is through the automatic fare collection system required under the PUV modernization program. The co-operative said it has partnered with AF Payments Inc., the country’s leading AFCS provider known for the Beep Card.

There are currently 12 units plying Route Number 13C which runs from Colon Street in downtown Cebu City to the outer barangay of Talamban.

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

There’s plenty of food in the world, just not where it’s needed

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lobal warehouses are stuffed with frozen cuts of pork, wheels of cheese and bags of rice. But as the coronavirus snarls logistical operations, the question becomes: How does all that food actually get to people?

Despite the inventories, grocery stores are looking almost apocalyptic with aisles of empty shelves. Panic buying has made it nearly impossible for retailers and suppliers to keep up with the unprecedented spike in demand.

In just one example of the constraints, there’s a finite number of trucks that can load up at warehouses to bring in the chicken or ice cream, or toilet paper that people want to buy.

There are limits on how much time can be spent stocking shelves or filling rail cars. Then there’s this weird knock-on from the outbreak in China: Fewer goods were shipped out of Asia last month, and now there aren’t enough empty containers in countries like Canada to send peas out to the world.

“There’s a complicated web of interactions we don’t often think about that’s all part of the food-supply chain: truckers, rail cars, shipping, plant workers,” said Jayson Lusk, head of the department of agricultural economics at Purdue University. There are “big buckets of possible disruption,” and it’s possible the whole thing “is more fragile than we think it is,” he said.

That’s just the start of it. As the virus spreads and cases mount, there are seemingly countless ways the food system will be tested and strained in the coming weeks and months.

There’s the possibility of worker shortages as employees are forced to stay home because they’re ill or they’ve come into contact with someone who is. As schools close, plants may slow production because parents need to prioritize child care. Restrictions on migrant labor are increasing all over the world, stifling workers who are key to making sure tomatoes get picked and slaughterhouses run efficiently.

Port closures and limits on trade could end up disrupting the flow of supplies and ingredients.

“We do not see a supply shock in the sense of the availability,” said Abdolreza Abbassian, a senior economist at the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization.

“But there could be a supply shock in terms of logistics, not being able to move it from point A to point B. This is something new and very difficult to predict. It’s that uncertainty that right now is the biggest danger.”

Farmer, retail and trucker groups in countries including Brazil, the US and France are ringing the alarm over major disruptions that can develop from quarantine and lockdown conditions, along with the possibility of a labor crunch. Government officials in Australia, Germany and Kazakhstan are worried about strains amid panic buying and logistical hurdles.

A drawn-out crisis could lead to “real shortages” starting with fruit and vegetables before impacting staples, German Agriculture Minister Julia Kloeckner said.

Bloomberg News

With 20,000 cases, Iran says sanctions blocked delivery of U.K.-made masks

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ran says US sanctions have prevented millions of masks bought from the UK from arriving in the Islamic Republic, the semi-official Fars News reported, citing a deputy health minister.

“Before this all started, we had bought many millions of masks from Britain, but because of the sanctions, this country didn’t deliver the masks,” Alireza Raisi said in an interview with Fars published on Saturday.

Raisi didn’t give further details about the shipment or how sanctions blocked the delivery, which he said was meant for the Pasteur Institute in Tehran.

While humanitarian goods are exempt from direct US sanctions, other, wider sanctions imposed by Washington on Iran’s banking system have scared off most foreign banks from facilitating financial transactions for imports.

Some 1,556 people have so far died from the coronavirus in Iran, since the country reported its first cases on February 19.

The total number of confirmed cases in the country currently stands at 20,610, according to the latest figures announced by the health ministry on Saturday.

Bloomberg News

The World BusinessMirror

Monday, March 23, 2020

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Factories pivot to fight coronavirus, but repurposing challenges abound

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ETROIT—Factories that crank out cars and trucks looking into making much-needed ventilators. Distilleries intended for whiskey and rum to instead turn out hand sanitizers and disinfectants. And an electronics maker that builds display screens repurposed for surgical masks.

All are answering the call of duty amid a pandemic that has so far claimed more than 11,000 lives and sickened 260,000 people globally.

But redirecting plants to make completely different products will take a long time and a huge effort—possibly too long for some companies to help with medical gear shortages that are becoming more acute every day.

“When you are repurposing a factory, it really depends on how similar the new product is to the existing products in your product line,” said Kaitlin Wowak, a professor at the University of Notre Dame who focuses on industrial supply chains. “It’s going to be a substantial pivot to start producing an entirely different item.”

On Fr iday, President Dona ld J. Trump said he invoked the

Korean War-era Defense Production Act, which allows the government to marshal the private sector to fight the Covid-19 pandemic. But he did not give examples as to how he was using it.

At a news conference on Saturday, Trump singled out GM and Ford as among the many businesses that have asked to start making medical gear like ventilators, the need for which he said has grown into the hundreds of thousands.

“Nobody’s ever heard of a thing like that. With that being said, General Motors, Ford, so many companies—I had three calls yesterday directly, without having to institute like “You will do this’— these companies are making them right now,” Trump said.

Neither automaker, however, is building ventilators at present.

GM announced on Friday that it

is working with ventilator maker Ventec Life Systems to ramp up production. The automaker said it would help with logistics, purchasing and manufacturing, but stopped short of saying it would make ventilators in its own factories, which have been idled for two weeks after workers who’d been fearful of contagion put pressure on the company.

Crosstown rival Ford, which also suspended factory production along with other automakers with operations in North America, confirmed that it too was in discussions with the Trump administration about helping. “ We’re look ing at feasibi lity,” Ford spokesman T.R. Reid said. “It may be possible, but it’s not you go from R angers [small pickups] one day to ventilators the next. We’re f ig ur ing out what is possible now.”

Ford and Rolls-Royce Plc. also are working with the British government to see if they can switch over their factories.

“We are keen to do whatever we can to help the government and the country at this time and will look to provide any practical help we can,” Rolls-Royce said in a statement.

Although the government can steer factories to overcome shortages, makers of heavy goods, such as cars and trucks can’t just flip a switch and produce something else.

It would be difficult to get ventilator or even surgical mask designs, line up parts supplies and train workers to make them in a short period, said Jorge Alvarado, a professor in the Engineering Technology and Industrial Distribution Department at Texas A&M University. And auto plants generally aren’t clean enough to make medical equipment.

Companies also would have to find mask or ventilator manufacturers willing to share knowledge, expertise and even factory workers to transfer production elsewhere, Alvarado said.

During World War II, automakers were more easily able to shift to making tanks and planes because they are close relatives to cars and tr ucks, A lv a rado s a id . Auto f ac tor y equipment, such as robots and assembly lines aren’t really compatible with smaller items such as ventilators, he said.

Other industries may be better equipped to help with the virus. Rum producer Bacardi, for example, said its distillery in Puerto Rico has shifted to making ethanol needed to produce hand sanitizer. Small US distilleries such as Eight Oaks Farm in Pennsylvania are converting operations to make alcohol-based disinfectant. It will charge whatever people want to donate.

Germany-based Beiersdorf,

known for skin care products such as the Nivea and Coppertone brands, and Luxury giant LVMH are preparing to make medical disinfectants in Europe for hospitals, police and firefighters. French cosmetics giant L’Oreal says it is making sanitizer gel.

E lec t ron ic s m a ker Sh a r p Corp. said it will start making surgical masks by using a plant in central Japan that usually makes displays. And Michigan-based office furniture company Steelcase is exploring ways to use its factories to make health-care items, studying whether it can make masks and protective equipment or partitions for hospitals.

“This is an extraordinary crisis that necessitates extraordinary measures and actions from both the public and private sectors,” the company said in a statement.

Even though it may take time and a monumenta l ef for t to switch factories to medical products, that may have to be done if the virus outbreak lasts for several months or longer, said Notre Dame’s Wowak.

“I think given the circumstance and how critical it is for these surgical masks, ventilators and gloves, I think there is going to be a lot of organizations, government, private, trying to increase [factory] capacity,” she said. “Maybe the government recognizes how critical of an issue this is.” AP

Despite lockdowns Covid-19 cases keep increasing, straining hospitals

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ERLIN—Streets, squares and highways were deserted in large parts of the world on Saturday as curfews and lockdowns multiplied in the face of a rapidly advancing virus that is severely straining many health systems.

Three American states with a combined population of 70 million are moving to restrict residents to their homes to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus. California started on Friday, and New York and Illinois were to follow this weekend. Connecticut and Oregon were preparing to do the same.

Almost a week into tight restrictions on free movement and the closure of most shops in Spain, police intensified their efforts to enforce confinement rules with fines and extra patrols to stop city-dwellers with second homes in the country from leaving town for the weekend.

Spain now has the third-highest number of infections worldwide. On Saturday it reported almost 5,000 new cases in the past day, bringing the total to nearly 25,000.

The death toll rose to 1,326, up from 1,002 on Friday.

As hospitals and nursing homes buckled under the burden of the virus outbreak, Spanish health authorities have acknowledged that some intensive care units in the hardest-hit areas are close to their limit, and warned that they expect infections to continue to rise before measures to reverse the trend have an effect.

The army was building a field hospital with 5,500 beds in a convention center in Madrid, where hotels are also being turned into wards for virus patients without serious breathing problems.

In Germany, once-bustling outdoor plazas fell quiet in Bavaria after it became the first of the country’s states to tell people to stay home, except to go to work, buy food, visit the doctor or exercise. Police reported fewer people breaching the curfew than in previous nights.

Colombia became the latest South American country to announce a lockdown, and Sri Lanka closed all expressways for a weekend curfew.

The number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 recorded in Africa rose above 1,000 on Saturday, according to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. At least

Leipziger Strasse is free of people and cars at Potsdamer Platz in Berlin on Saturday morning, March 21. The senate announces further measures to stop the spread of the coronavirus in Berlin.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms. For some it can cause more severe illness. Paul Zinken/dpa via AP

40 of Africa’s 54 countries now have cases.

More than 275,000 cases have been confirmed globally, including over 11,000 deaths, according to a running tally by Johns Hopkins University. At least 88,000 people have recovered.

For most people, the new virus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. The vast majority recovers.

Officials in many countries are desperate to prevent—or at least limit—a repeat of what has happened in China and southern Europe. The coronavirus outbreak overwhelmed medical services in the central Chinese city of Wuhan earlier this year and now is pushing them to the limit in Italy, Spain and France.

Italy’s surging case numbers have frustrated health officials. Statements by authorities earlier on in the outbreak had raised hopes that new infections might soon start dropping off. But on Friday, officials reported further record increases,

with 5,986 new cases and 627 new deaths.

The country, which has Europe’s largest outbreak, now has at least 47,021 cases and 4,032 dead.

On Saturday, tighter rules closing down parks and playgrounds nationwide took effect, in a desperate bid to discourage Italians from congregating outdoors.

Germany ’s southwestern state of B a d e n - Wu e r t t e m b e r g o n S a t u r d a y offered to take in patients from the neighboring French region of Alsace t h a t ’s s t r u g g l i n g w i t h a s u r g e o f infections over whelming hospitals.

Britain still lags behind Italy, Spain and France in the spread of the virus, but the country’s overstretched health system is creaking. The state-funded National Health Service has about 4,000 criticalcare beds and some 5,000 ventilators, and officials say that’s far fewer than will be needed as the number of cases spikes in the coming weeks. Britain, which has recorded 3,983 confirmed cases of Covid-19 and 177 deaths, has already asked 65,000 retired nurses and doctors to return to work.

Workers near Moscow are rushing to build a clinic to treat hundreds of coronavirus patients as Russia prepares for a wave of infections. Placards in the style of Soviet propaganda posters have been erected near the site, with one showing Mayor Sergei Sobyanin pointing at the viewer and the slogan “Builders—Minutes count!”

China has been sending aid to several European countries, promoting its exper tise and experience gained from fighting the outbreak at home.

An Air China flight carr ying 18 tons of medical supplies including hundreds of thousands of surgical and protection masks landed in the Greek capital, Athens, on Saturday morning.

As the pandemic has eased in Asia, China and other parts of the region are now trying to avoid importing cases from Europe, the US, and elsewhere.

China reported on Saturday that its mainland had no new home-grown cases of the disease for the third straight day, but 41 imported ones in the previous 24hour period.

Restrictions on movement are being eased gradually in China as it tries to restart the economy without bringing back the disease. Officials in Wuhan are permitting supermarkets, convenience stores and some other retail businesses to reopen from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. if they are in areas with no confirmed or suspected cases.

In the US, the restrictions on movement take effect on Saturday in Illinois and on Sunday in New York. All workers in nonessential businesses will be required to stay home and gatherings of any size are banned in New York. Exceptions will be made for important errands, such as buying groceries and medicine, and for exercise.

The lockdowns in California and other states sent stock markets tumbling again.

Wall Street had its worst week since the 2008 financial crisis, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling more than 900 points and down 17 percent for the week.

Carmaker BMW said it would shut down a huge manufacturing complex in South Carolina from April 3 to 19 and Nissan said it would suspend vehicle production at its two Mexican assembly plants from next Wednesday through April 14. Auto production has resumed in China, but only partially.

Colombian President Iván Duque announced on Friday night that everyone would be required to isolate in their homes for three weeks starting Tuesday. The capital, Bogota, began its own lockdown on Friday, leaving the city’s usually trafficfilled streets largely empty.

Colombia has 158 confirmed cases, and officials are hoping that drastic measures now will limit the number of new cases in the weeks ahead. Peru, Ecuador and Venezuela already are in lockdown.

But there was concern about the possible unwanted side - effects that ex tended cur fews around the world m i g ht h ave, i n c l u d i n g i s o l at i o n o f elderly persons and increased instances of domestic violence.

“The authorities know or should know that confinement measures will also cause casualties, among women and children,” Agnes Callamard, a UN appointed humanrights expert, said on Twitter.

“An emergency plan to protect them is needed.” AP

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Monday, March 23, 2020 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

editorial

Life in the time of lockdown

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E took a vote and we hate it. Maybe hate is too strong a word. Perhaps “intensely dislike with a fierce passion” sounds better. We are speaking about “The Quarantine/Lockdown/Community Social Distancing.” “Lockdown” seems more appropriate and accurate.

“Quarantine” raises visions of being in a room surrounded by medical professionals wearing Hazmat suits. “Community Social Distancing” feels more like the boys on one side of the room and the girls on the other during the Junior/Senior Prom. Lockdown is what the prison warden does to keep the inmates under control and in their cells.

Being under lockdown is annoying. Obviously, you cannot be spontaneous and say to someone, “I’m bored. Let’s go see a movie.” Our normal routines have been disrupted. No more having a few drinks with your barkada after work on Friday. In fact, no more work.

Those that are working in “ordinary jobs” like at the supermarket, palengke, bank or—dare we say—press/media—are having difficulties if we cannot work from home. For all of us, birthdays, weddings, and fiestas are all cancelled until further notice.

We are forced to plan what used to be simple things, like buying food and other necessities. It is burdensome to even venture down the road for supplies, but we do not want to stock up too much and be a hoarder. Yet, there is that fear that on our next trip, what we need or want will not be available. And what happens if you get a serious toothache or need a haircut?

The lockdown is grossly unfair and unequal to the lower economic groups and to people that have limited mobility and access to goods.

There are many opportunities to donate goods and cash to help these people. The national and local governments are doing what they can to help. Nonetheless, there is not one of us who would not be even just a little (maybe a lot) angry being worried about how to get food for the next meal and how to pay for it.

Psychologically, the lockdown will take its toll on some people.

Until it ends, today will be the same as yesterday and tomorrow. Psychologists say that if you can endure most situations—go on a diet, stop smoking, give up social media—for five days, it gets easier in the long run. However, these same psychologists came up with this: “Cabin fever refers to the distressing claustrophobic irritability or restlessness experienced when a person is stuck in confined quarters for an extended period of time.” They never quantified “extended period of time.”

Many Americans are sports fanatics and all professional sports have been shut down. Now “Day 2 without sports. I was wandering around the living room and found a young lady sitting on my couch.

Apparently, she is my wife. She seems nice.” Family time is good time.

There are those that say the best solution is mass testing. However, this is the reality that overrules simple ideas. The Philippines has the capability of “reading” about 2,000 tests per day. So, shall we stay in lockdown for the next 50 days until 100,000 people are “mass tested”?

Under the current situation, lockdown is the most sensible thing to do to help prevent transmission of Covid-19. It is not the best or the only solution, but is one that we can all do. Be safe.

Let’s do our share to save our country Atty. Jose Ferdinand M. Rojas II

RISING SUN

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ne good thing that is coming out of the Covid-19 crisis is the emergence of the bayanihan spirit, which is inherent in every Filipino. We would go out of our way to help our kababayan when we are called to the task.

Many people are criticizing the government for its shortcomings as far as providing adequate support to those who can’t feed their families because they can’t work.

But there are other groups and individuals who have chosen to act and fill the gaps.

Thus, we call on those who have something to share, those who are lucky enough to be covered, as far as food and basic necessities are con-

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PAGASA (People for Accountable Governance and Sustainable Action) is asking for a cash donation of P700 to be able to give one family a week’s worth of food. The pack contains 6 kilos of rice, four cans of sardines, four cans of corned beef, one medium size instant coffee, one medium size powdered milk, 1/2 kg sugar, two loaves of bread, and some fresh vegetables.

You can send your cash donations through BDO (006930015996), BPI (3919188943), or GCash (09088631192). The food packs will be given to poor families in various communities in Quezon City (Tatalon, Talayan, Payatas A, NIA Road, Bagong Silangan) and in Katuparan, Tondo.

As in the past, the power of the people will see us through these dark times. Let’s help each other survive and overcome the challenges brought about by Covid-19.

The decline and fall of the Gulf’s oil empire is looming David Fickling

Since 2005

BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business

cerned, during this trying period.

This is only a partial list of opportunities we can consider to be able to extend help to our fellow Filipinos.

The Philippine General Hospital (PGH) needs surgical masks, N95 masks, gloves, surgical gowns or Daiso raincoats, 60 percent to 80 percent ethyl alcohol, hand sanitizers, goggles or face shields, surgical caps and shoe covers. You can direct your donations to Dr. Mia Tabunar

(Coordinator for Resource Generation) through (02) 8554 8400 local 2004, or 0919-3506917.

You can also send your donations (N95 masks and alcohol for PGH interns) through the UP Medicine Student Council at the Office of the Deputy Director for Health Operations located near the entrance of the PGH. Monetary donations may be deposited to BPI (Habagat Rene Farrales, 3509 0160 96) or send via GCash (0908-2111437).

Rock Ed Philippines is mobilizing groups and individuals to be able to provide nutritious and freshly cooked meals to our frontliners. You can send ingredients, vegetables, fruits or cash. Just leave a message on the group’s social-media account, or deposit your donation to BPI (Rock Ed Philippines, 3080 0073 44).

If you can send ready-to-consume products, PPEs, alcohol, soap, and hand sanitizers to hospitals in need, you can give your donations through

BLOOMBERG

F

or much of the world, oil wealth is a curse. Endowed with ample reserves of hydrocarbons, the likes of Nigeria, Angola, Kazakhstan, Mexico and Venezuela frittered the benefits away.

Only in the Persian Gulf has oil been a nation-building blessing.

The discoveries of petroleum in the mid-20th century turned an anarchic, desperately poor region into one of the most affluent places on the planet. Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates are all richer than Switzerland. Even Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Oman are on a par with Japan or the UK. The transformation has been so complete that it’s easy to believe the wealth derives from some eternal law of nature. That’s not true, though.

The current price war in oil markets will only hasten the moment when the unsustainable nature of Gulf economies faces a brutal reckoning.

Right now, all six monarchies are joining with Russia in opening the taps to flood the crude market and flush out higher-cost producers.

While the planned 2.5 million barrels per day increase from Saudi Arabia is by far the biggest wave in this tsunami, its neighbors aren’t holding back. The UAE will daily add about 200,000 barrels or more, according to consultancy Rystad Energy, while Kuwait will lift output by 110,000 barrels. Russia will raise daily pro-

duction by 200,000 barrels.

That splurge of supply isn’t due to geopolitics. Instead, it’s a mathematical result of the decline in the oil price. With fewer dollars coming in for each barrel of crude, Gulf monarchies need to pump much more to maintain something resembling current revenues.

In principle, there’s ample firepower to fight this war. It costs about as much to pump a barrel of oil from a Gulf oil field as it does to buy a bottle of fancy mineral water.

Even in an extreme scenario where crude prices fall as low as $10 a barrel and almost the entire global oil industry loses money, Gulf producers would remain in the black. The problem, as we wrote last week, comes for their economies, which need a far higher price to balance their budgets and support dollarlinked currencies.

The region’s central banks and sovereign wealth funds have assembled vast sums to see them through such a crisis, as well as the longerterm risk of declining demand. Faced with lower prices, however, these buffers could disintegrate quickly.

Take the net financial assets held

Right now, all six monarchies are joining with Russia in opening the taps to flood the crude market and flush out higher-cost producers. While the planned 2.5 million barrels per day increase from Saudi Arabia is by far the biggest wave in this tsunami, its neighbors aren’t holding back.

by Saudi Arabia’s government—central bank reserves, plus sovereign wealth fund assets, minus government debt. These declined to just 0.1 percent of gross domestic product from 50 percent over the four years through 2018 as crude plunged from levels of around $100 a barrel at the end of 2014. The kingdom is now likely to be a net debtor for the foreseeable future, even if prices rise back above $80.

Over the same four years, net financial assets held by the six Gulf monarchies fell by around half a trillion dollars, to around $2 trillion, according to a study last month by the International Monetary Fund. Even if peak oil demand doesn’t hit until 2040, that remaining sum could be depleted by 2034, according to the Fund. Oil at $20 a barrel would run it down even faster, emptying the coffers as soon as 2027.

With oil prices in the range of $50 to $55 a barrel, Saudi Arabia’s international reserves would fall to about five months of import coverage as soon as 2024, according to an IMF report last year. That should be a deeply alarming prospect, bringing the kingdom within months of an unthinkable balance-of-payments crisis and the abandonment of the

dollar peg, which has underpinned the global oil trade for a generation.

Yet, the prices we’re now seeing make this look almost like an optimistic scenario.

There’s still time to avert this future, but it will involve major changes to our ideas about the Gulf and its the role in the global economy.

Governments in the region enacted vicious budget cuts in the wake of the 2014 price decline, removing subsidies and adding sales taxes in a way that’s fraying the edges of their sumptuous welfare states. If they fall to an even-lower ledge, there will be pressure to add further taxes and shrink bloated civil services. Neither will be popular with citizens who have never been allowed a democratic vote. Lavish defense and security spending, which accounts for nearly a third of Saudi Arabia’s budget, may have to shrink.

The era when the Gulf nations and their sovereign wealth funds were magic cash machines prepared to pay top dollar for assets on every continent may be coming to an end.

They may even have to turn into net sellers. That will affect institutions from the US Treasury market, where Saudi Arabia holds about $183 billion of securities; to Softbank Group Corp., which may find Riyadh a less generous partner for funding Masayoshi Son’s expansive visions.

The monarchies have surfed a remarkable tide of wealth over the past half-century or so, but every wave eventually crashes. Future generations will never again see the wealth that current subjects enjoy.

Perhaps the Gulf wasn’t spared from oil’s curse, after all. That moment was only deferred.

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Monday, March 23, 2020

Coronavirus uncertainty Trench warfare in World War C In the Philippines, people plagues the experts, too generally seem to be as calm as expected, considering that

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By Faye Flam | Bloomberg Opinion

hat scientists know about Covid-19 is changing fast.

And people—from the public to politicians to the press—are confusing the possible with the probable. It’s causing a lot of undue guilt and fear. In times like these, we turn to experts—but what are we supposed to think when the experts themselves are so uncertain?

We’re faced with a torrent of new data, much of which is noise, but the pace of genuine scientific understanding can only go so fast.

Journals have loosened their standard for papers on Covid-19 to help scientists share information. But not every new finding is going to hold up.

One respected group thought they had evidence the novel coronavirus had mutated into two strains, one more dangerous than the other.

Other scientists reexamined the data and disagreed, showing how the original research over-interpreted the data. This kind of thing happens, but the original finding got instant, undeserved press.

Journalists are under pressure to get stories out faster, which means reporting on these flimsier journal articles with little or no context or cross checks by outside experts.

And with the best experts becoming more in demand and harder to reach, some are lowering their standards for what constitutes a relevant expert. Just being a doctor, in any field, now qualifies people to talk about Covid-19 on television, but it shouldn’t.

“People are grasping at straws,” says virologist David Sanders, who has some experience with public straw-grasping: He’s done lab experiments on the antiviral potential of the malaria drug chloroquine— now itself a big news item because President Donald J. Trump told Americans it would be a “game changer” in the fight against Covid-19. The reality is a big question mark. “We’re talking about one unpublished trial in France with 26 patients…and the President of the United States starts talking about it…. That’s insane.”

Nonetheless, some drugmakers are planning to ramp up production.

People understandably crave certainty, and so admitting something is not known, or is plausible but unlikely, won’t get as many clicks as a story that promises answers.

That sets up a bad selection process in which the public hears from the most confident experts over the most competent. Those who couch things in uncertainty get misinterpreted. “If we tell people x, they will report x squared,” said Sanders.

For instance, will ibuprofen interfere with the body’s natural immune response to Covid-19, or help tamp patients fight it? This is still unknown. Ibuprofen went from recommended to discouraged, but this new recommendation is based on a Lancet paper that expresses due uncertainty. Sanders explains that the confusion stems from a longstanding debate about such drugs, which work by suppressing inflammation. Chronic inflammation in diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis is debilitating, but inflammation during an infection is part of the body’s so-called innate immune response. As I learned from Yale University immunologist Akiko Iwasaki, the innate immune system is what keeps you alive in the days it takes your body to create antibodies to a novel virus. Could it cause more harm than good? Maybe.

The Federation of American Scientists, a 75-year-old nonprofit think tank, has stepped into the information gap, gathering relevant experts to field questions from the public. When I first heard about it through a physicist friend, I suggested he ask them how long we’re likely to have to keep up with our currently rather drastic social distancing measures. The future of the world economy hinges on this, as does the mental health of millions of people.

I asked this not because I thought

People understandably crave certainty, and so admitting something is not known, or is plausible but unlikely, won’t get as many clicks as a story that promises answers. That sets up a bad selection process in which the public hears from the most confident experts over the most competent. Those who couch things in uncertainty get misinterpreted. “If we tell people x, they will report x squared,” said Sanders. For instance, will ibuprofen interfere with the body’s natural immune response to Covid-19, or help tamp patients fight it? This is still unknown. they had the answer, but because I wanted to see how they handled the fact that nobody knows the answer to this one. The answer they sent was indeed a wordier version of the admission that we have no idea.

FAS President Ali Nouri says the “ask a scientist” effort comes out of their earlier attempts to handle misinformation—much of which came from the newly looser standards of science communication. Nouri told me the anti-disinformation project led to the creation of a database of good information, and then the question-answering service which could get the good information to people on demand. The answerers are volunteers made up of experts in epidemiology and infectious diseases.

Some questions are easy enough, he says. One person wanted to know how long she should keep produce in the refrigerator before it was safe from viral contamination. The answer is the tried and true: Better to wash it thoroughly than to try to wait out the virus.

“There are times when we have definitive answers, but science works in a probabilistic realm,” he says.

This applies to good as well as bad news, like the paper showing the virus clings to surfaces for several days. The virus will be down to very low levels by then, Sanders says, so it’s much more probable to get infected from something a person touched recently, and very unlikely you’ll pick it up from something touched or coughed near days ago.

Models showing how fast the virus might spread are getting much press, but many, he says, are done hastily without incorporating the known physics, chemistry and biology of virus transmission and replication. Reports of the number of cases can be alarming, but they, too, don’t give the full picture, since only a tiny fraction of Americans, even sick ones, have been able to get a test for Covid-19.

The pace of data acquisition has accelerated, but the ability to disseminate information is still much faster; we can share false certainty faster than we can create useful knowledge.

Encouraging more scientific work is smart. Grasping at straws is wasted energy.

What we do know from data gathered during this pandemic, and a broader understanding of the way coronaviruses spread, is that staying six feet from other people will reduce rate of spread to those likely to need scarce hospital beds. And wash your hands before and after going to the supermarket or public place. Too bad the most important facts are not very exciting. By their very nature they are not likely to change.

Siegfred Bueno Mison, Esq.

THE PATRIOT

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he term trench perhaps came from the Persian word kandak, meaning “that which has been dug.” In military history, there was one Battle of the Trench where 3,000 Muslim defenders of Medina managed to fend off a 10,000 confederate Army. Widely used during World War I, trench warfare entails defending one’s own position strongly while trying to achieve a breakthrough into the enemy’s rear. It is more of an attrition campaign where one tries to outlast the other. Perhaps due to impatience, the British forces during most of World War I constantly sought breakthroughs against the German trenches as they kept going on the offensive. The most infamous one was in the Somme in 1916, one of the bloodiest battles in human history as it claimed more than a million lives. These days, trench warfare has become synonymous with attrition.

Currently, the world is at war again, yet this time, against a deadly and invisible enemy. Dubbed coronavirus, this enemy wants to crown itself as supreme over mankind as it has killed thousands and sown fear and panic in people’s hearts. The enemy has crippled and even overwhelmed health systems in many countries. Businesses will struggle staying afloat while employees will lose their wages during this war.

More lives will be lost. People all over the world have agreed that the best strategy in this World War “C” (Covid-19) is trench warfare cloaked in such terms like lockdown or community quarantine, which may have biblical basis as found in Isaiah 26:20 which says, “Go, my people, enter your rooms and shut the doors behind you; hide yourselves for a little while until his wrath has passed by.”

The worldwide strategy is for people, especially those in infected countries, to stay at home (as if staying in the trenches) to minimize the spread of the lethal virus. Save for a few critical personnel manning the hospitals, checkpoints, pharmacies, food stores, etc., the rest of society is encouraged, required, and practically admonished to stay put. Such a strategy has proven effective as shown in Macau, which has managed to contain the enemy by way of an early lockdown, where streets were practically deserted as people movement was restricted. Establishments such as hotels, restaurants, shops, banks and schools were closed. But, despite these trench warfare-like solutions, the people remained calm and followed the rules.

In the Philippines, people generally seem to be as calm as expected,

a large majority of our people are believers. Their faith in God appears to be stronger now more than ever. In lieu of church gatherings, which are discouraged during this lockdown, online prayer groups have mushroomed. I noticed that more people have been praying for the benefit of other people. considering that a large majority of our people are believers. Their faith in God appears to be stronger now more than ever. In lieu of church gatherings, which are discouraged during this lockdown, online prayer groups have mushroomed. I noticed that more people have been praying for other people: (1) for the marginalized and underprivileged to endure hunger pangs as government strategy restricts movement, (2) for the over-fatigued frontliners, especially those in the hospitals, to have the strength and courage to face the most critical coming days, (3) for the families, whose loved ones became the victims of the initial onslaught, to have greater faith in Him, (4) for government leaders, amid criticisms, to find creative, ingenious and reasonable ways to soften the harsh impacts of World War C, and (5) for scientists to come up soon with a vaccine against Covid-19.

We are going to win this World War C, pitting C against C—Chaotic Contagion vs. Compassionate Community. Amid the chaos, people all over the world have become more compassionate, willing to help others. Fighting as one community,

Transport in a post-Covid scenario Thomas M. Orbos

STREET TALK

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o, we now find ourselves in a lockdown—finally. This is exactly what we need to basically flatten the Covid-19 curve.

We could have done it earlier. And I have voiced such an opinion as early as February, seeing what was then happening to Wuhan. We could have saved more lives and avoided such number of infections. But that is water under the bridge and what is important is that now we are doing it and the government is serious in implementing it.

Completing the one-month lockdown will not, however, resolve the numbers. It will contain it— hopefully, but experts say it will take several more months before we see normalcy in our daily lives.

The truth is, it will never go back to being normal like we knew it.

Our lifestyle will definitely change.

There will be a review of policies and priorities. Some businesses will close while new businesses will evolve. Vital industries will be prioritized, while others will disappear. We will be finding ourselves in a new world; a new normal where the lives we led before will never be the same again.

One such heavily affected industry that will definitely see drastic adjustments is the transportation industry—be it air, sea, rail and land. This is for the simple reason that transport efficiencies will be challenged over protocols to ensure the health and well-being of populations. In the pre-Covid-19 world, transport planners programmed efficiencies based on the number of commuters transported conveniently and safely, meaning the more people transported, the better the mode of transport. That is why, rails and public transport, such as buses are definitely on a higher level than private vehicles. It will

still do—public mass transport will still be prioritized, but now with a heavy consideration on public health and safety.

In an ideal post Covid-19 transportation world, several considerations will be in place that may make travel more tedious, lengthier and costlier but in turn, safer. As the exponential transmission of the virus was greatly aided by the ease and convenience of modern travel, the way we know travel will dramatically change in order for such transmission to be curtailed. Overall, the reason for people to travel will also change. Majority of business transactions will be done online. Offices will operate this way. Schools as well.

The leisure travel will see initially a substantial drop as customers will opt to remain at home.

Also, new practices that were only enforced during this global pandemic will become normal in the post Covid-19 world. More accurate thermal scanning will become a given, prior to entry in all modes of public transport. Social distancing will reconfigure space efficiencies. And this will be true to all forms of transport, particularly in airplanes, rails and buses, but even to the level of our jeepneys and trikes. Requirements on a more detailed passenger information will be in place to aid potential contact tracing. And disinfection during

families, regardless of faith, have rediscovered strength together as they are more connected both physically and psychologically. More important, during this trench warfare, our faith in Him will eventually flourish, realizing that we have become more wired to the Spirit within us.

We should rejoice, for it is written in the Bible in 1 Peter 1:6-7, “In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

In the middle of this war, my good friend Danny Gruta from California reminded me “to keep your head on the swivel and keep your powder dry,” perhaps paraphrasing the battle cry attributed to English statesman Oliver Cromwell. On one occasion, when his troops were about to attack the enemy, Cromwell fanatically told his men to “put your trust in God; but mind to keep your powder dry.” The important part of the message is to trust that our God is the great general who will help us prevail in this World War C. The part of “keep your powder dry,” which means to save one’s resources until it is needed, is just an additional insurance for victory. It is another way of saying, be patient yet remain alert to act, when the time comes.

In our own homes, we can win this World War C knowing that our breakthrough will just be a matter of time! After all, coronavirus v. Christ Jesus is a mismatch!

For questions and comments, please e-mail me at sbmison@gmail.com.

pre- and post-travel will be required in most modes of transport, thus lengthening travel time. For those entering other countries, a proof of one’s health history, beyond the present requirement of list of previous countries visited, will be most likely required. Plus, there will be countries that will become more stringent in accepting foreign entries. Changes in how cargo is handled and transported will also materialize. Decontamination of cargoes will become mandatory. Food products, though essential, will undergo strict quarantine measures. Modern technology such as artificial intelligence will evolve to ensure that the needed efficiencies, while guaranteeing safety for everyone, will be there.

Travel and transport as we know it will indeed change. But it is for the good. We have taken a hint, a harsh reminder that life as we know it cannot go on. We will adapt and we will continue as a species traveling in this world. But it will be in a more cautious, less carefree manner and more considerate to our fellow travelers in this place we call Earth.

Thomas “Tim” Orbos was former DOTr undersecretary for roads and general manager of the MMDA. He is currently undertaking further studies at the McCourt School of Public Policy of Georgetown University. He can be reached via e-mail at thomas_orbos@sloan.mit.edu

The most realistic economic forecast is awful

By Narayana Kocherlakota Bloomberg Opinion

M

any forecasters are predicting that there will be a strong economic recovery in the second half of this year after the worst of the coronavirus outbreak has passed. But to have such an economic rebound in the third and fourth quarters, one of five events must have occurred. The first four of these are positive but don’t seem sufficiently likely to serve as the basis of an economic forecast: n First, scientists discover an effective treatment or vaccine. That would be great, but neither seems

likely to happen in the next three to six months. n Second, the virus mutates and becomes less harmful. This might happen, but hoping for a beneficial mutation doesn’t seem like a good basis for an economic forecast. n Third, warmer summer weather in the Northern Hemisphere might dampen the rate of transmission of the virus. This outcome may happen, but it won’t help in the fourth quarter. n Fourth, the government implements the kind of extensive track-andtrace approach used by South Korea.

This would help to keep Covid-19 under control without the draconian social-distancing restrictions that are

crushing the economy. But given what we’ve seen so far, this outcome seems like a long shot.

There is one much more likely— but deeply undesirable—way that we could achieve a strong economic recovery: governments relax socialdistancing mandates because enough Americans have become infected so that society achieves herd immunity.

This outcome is, unfortunately, far from an impossibility. Officially, about 15,000 people in the US have been infected. Epidemiologists estimate that we would achieve herd immunity if about 60 percent of the population, or a little more than 200 million people, become infected. Even if the number

A7

of cases grows by only 10 percent per day, which is much slower than what we’ve seen so far in Europe and in the US, the 15,000 cases would grow to 200 million before the end of June.

In this scenario, there would be no reason for further social-distancing strictures. And it is true that the economy would begin to grow again in the second half of the year, as has been predicted by many forecasters. But the costs of this scenario would be enormous. About 20 percent of those 200 million cases would require intensive care. Literally millions would die— both from Covid-19 and from other ailments that an overwhelmed healthcare system would be unable to treat.

2nd Front Page BusinessMirror

A8 Monday, March 23, 2020

www.businessmirror.com.ph

POEA restricts deployment of health workers A

By Samuel P. Medenilla

MID the public health crisis in the country due to the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19), the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) has “strictly regulated” the deployment of Filipino health-care workers abroad.

POEA issued Memorandum Circular (MC) 07 A-2020 last Friday (March 20) implementing the policy, on orders of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF).

“The deployment of Filipino health-care workers shall be strictly regulated to prioritize and provide support to the health-care needs of the country during the Covid-19 pandemic,” POEA administrator Bernard P. Olalia said in MC 07 A-2020.

He said the measure will be lifted once the government declares the Covid-19 under control.

Additional manpower

OLALIA said they are now coordinating with the Department of Health (DOH) to issue the guidelines for the strict regulated deployment of Filipino health-care workers.

“Regulated means that the deployment will be limited in number, and selective in skills category depending on our present stock of health workers, and taking into

consideration the swift need of our government to effectively respond to the Covid-19 pandemic,” Olalia explained.

As of March 22, the DOH has already registered 380 confirmed cases of Covid-19 since January.

Health officials said the number of cases is still expected to rise as they increase the number of laboratories that could process Covid-19 samples.

The Philippine Medical Association (PMA) called on the DOH to start getting volunteer health-care workers to man its Covid-19 hospitals in anticipation of the surge in the cases of the pandemic.

It said the lack of manpower could undermine government efforts to contain the spread of the virus, which is easily transmissible but has a lower mortality rate than previous coronavirus strains like SARS and MersCov.

Extended validity

ASIDE from health-care workers, MC 07 A-2020 also contained a provision automatically extending by 30 days the validity of licenses

of Landbased Recruitment Agencies (LRAs) and Seabased Manning Agencies (SMAs), expiring from March 15, 2020, to April 14, 2020—which is the duration of the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon.

Olalia said they shall be allowed to file their application for renewal, upgrading or extension upon the lifting of the total lockdown and enhanced community quarantine orders.

He said the extension of accreditation “shall not be interpreted as exemption from existing or subsequent issuances relevant to restrictions for deployment in the Philippines or restrictions of entry in countries of destination.”

Specifically for SMAs, Olalia said pending applications for renewal, upgrading and extension of their principal accreditation will be acted upon on the next working day following the lifting of the total lockdown and enhanced community quarantine orders.

Last, Olalia said seafarers, who are barred from being repatriated or disembarking due to the Covid-19 pandemic, will have their consummated contract extended for a maximum of 60 days if they fall under four conditions.

The conditions, he said, is that the seafarer is asymptomatic of Covid-19; the extension is mutually agreed upon by the seafarer and the principal; requirements for exemptions set by international seafaring authorities are complied with, if applicable; and SMAs with seafarers whose employment contracts are extended are duly reported to POEA.

DPWH readies 125 evacuation centers to be Covid-19 facilities

Nueva Ecija, and Tabuk in Kalinga.

“In Dalaguete in Cebu, the evacuation center is already being used as a health facility for Persons Under Investigation or Persons Under Monitoring. The DOH Resident Epidemiologist recommended bed arrangement with appropriate distancing of 10.26 sqm,” Villar said.

Likewise, these centers may be used as camps for humanitarian efforts. So far, four evacuation facilities are now being used as food hubs by the Department of Social Welfare and Development and another nine are being used as an emergency op-

T

HE Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has prepared a total of 125 evacuation centers that may be converted to facilities hosting patients of the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

Public Works Secretary Mark A. Villar said the facilities— spread across the country—can augment the heath centers that are at the frontline of the fight against the dreaded virus.

“One hundred ten evacuation centers have been completed with access to both power and water.

We are now facilitating power and water connection to an additional 15 evacuation centers,” he said.

For instance, the evacuation center in Butuan has already been converted as a Covid-19 health facility. This specific center now complements the treatment efforts at the

BUTUAN City Covid-19 health facility

Butuan City Medical Center.

Villar said the Department of Health (DOH) has mapped out with the public works agency the possible sites of facilities to be converted. They include San Gabriel in Tuguegarao, San Pablo in Isabela, Mexico and Lubao in Pampanga, Botolan in Zambales, Talavera in

erations center by the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office.

The government is working round-the-clock to stop the spread of the dreaded virus, which has claimed thousands of lives across the world.

Government initiatives are also being complemented by private-ector endeavors. Lorenz S. Marasigan

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Companies BusinessMirror

Monday, March 23, 2020

B1

PSE tightens trading band to address market volatility

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By VG Cabuag

@villygc

he Philippine Stock Exchange Inc. (PSE) said it has been allowed to reduce the lower static threshold of individual stock prices to 30 percent, from 50 percent based from its previous closing price to address volatility during trading.

The PSE said it secured the nod of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to narrow the trading band.

According to rules, the price of a listed firm will be capped before the threshold that the regulator set for a listed company is hit. Previously, a price of a listed firm, for instance, cannot go higher or lower than 50 percent in one day of trading. In this case, the PSE is reducing the lower static threshold, or the fall in prices, at just 30 percent.

“We are looking at measures to address the present volatility in the stock market due to uncertainties from Covid-19 [coronavirus disease].

One of the measures we decided to adopt is to tighten the trading band for securities,” said PSE President

and CEO Ramon S. Monzon.

“We benchmarked the adjusted lower static threshold level with what other exchanges in the region currently implement, which is between 10 percent and 30 percent,” Monzon added.

The adjusted lower static threshold will be in effect starting Tuesday, March 24, the PSE said.

“We already configured our trading system to recognize a 30-percent decline in share price as the floor price of a security,” said Monzon.

The upper static threshold of securities will remain at 50 percent, the PSE said.

The move came after share prices sunk to its lowest in eight years when trading resumed on Thursday, still on lingering fears on Covid-19,

This BusinessMirror file photo shows brokers at the trading floor of the Philippine Stock Exchange at the Bonifacio Global City, Taguig. NONIE REYES

as analysts are now talking about the possibility of a global recession caused by the pandemic.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index fell 711.95 points or 13 percent to close at 4,623.42 points, as all other subindices ended on the red. The last time the main index was at this level was on January 26, 2012, when it closed at 4,611.68 points.

The market started weak, plummeting 12 percent at the start of the trade, triggering again the circuit breaker, which will be activated when prices fall 10 percent and will result to a 15-minute trading halt. It sunk deeper when trading resumed, falling 1,296.22 points or 24 percent to 4,039.15, it then recovered gradually

at midday. The last time the main index was at that range was on October 7, 2011, when it closed at 4,009.26.

Thursday was the PSE’s worst intraday fall on record since the introduction of PSE at 13.34 percent.

It recovered only a fraction of that losses on Friday.

“The numbers show us the intensity of the pessimism in the volatile market today as the fears over the Covid-19 and its socioeconomic impact both here and abroad continue to weigh on investor sentiment.

Onshore, investors are discounting the economic disruptions of the enhanced community quarantine in mainland Luzon,” said Japhet Louis O. Tantiangco, senior research analyst at Philstocks Financials Inc.

SM assures workers of salaries, benefits

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he SM Group, one of the largest employers in the country, said all of its employees will receive their regular compensation, as well as the extension of an emergency financial assistance to its frontliners, security guards and janitorial staff during the enhanced community quarantine during March 16 to April 14.

“In these trying times, we are in unchartered territories. Let’s be one with each other, united in the spirit of service. Let’s be mindful of our front liners and help with their need to be alert so they can continue to do their best in working for the safety and health of our communities,” Hans T. Sy said in a statement on behalf of the Sy family.

It said all employees will receive their regularly scheduled salaries during the quarantine period without deductions made against their vacation and sick leaves.

The company’s frontliners, who comprise the skeletal work force, will be provided with premium pay,

while all of its security guards and janitorial staff will receive financial assistance of P5,000 for the period.

Since the quarantine, SM said it has been undertaking measures to protect the safety and welfare of its frontline personnel with protective gear, meals, and transportation whenever possible.

SM continues to assess the health crisis with vigilance; enjoining its employees and the public to follow guidelines and precautions to help combat the virus.

SM Supermalls, meanwhile, also announced it will waive rentals to all tenants nationwide from March 16 to April 14. This is to offer tenants some relief during this trying time, so that they can, in turn, lend more assistance to their employees during the period of community quarantine.

“We share our tenants partners’ concerns at the unfortunate situation and will waive rental charges for those affected and unable to operate during this period,” company President Steven T. Tan, said. VG Cabuag

URC and GBF provide food, beverage for frontline heroes

LT Group income up 43% in 2019 L

T Group Inc., the holding firm of most businesses of tycoon Lucio Tan, said its attributable net income grew 43 percent last year to P23.12 billion, from P16.19 billion reported for 2018, on the back of its tobacco business.

This is the highest income the company has achieved since its reIPO (initial public offering) in April 2013, the company said.

The tobacco business accounted for P15.5 billion, or 67 percent, of total attributable income, while Philippine National Bank contributed P5.57 billion or 24 percent.

Property developer Eton Properties Philippines Inc. added P896 million or 4 percent, while Tanduay Distillers Inc. accounted for P676 million or 3 percent and Asia Brewery Inc. provided P398 million or 2 percent.

The company’s 30.9-percent stake

in Victorias Milling Co. Inc. accounted for P251 million, or 1 percent of its income.

The company's tobacco business reported a net income of P15.56 billion last year, or 78 percent higher than the P8.75 billion it reported in 2018.

Equity in net earnings from LT Group’s 49.6-percent stake in PMFTC Inc., the combined operation of Philip Morris Philippines and Tan's Fortune Tobacco Corp., was P15.4 billion, 82 percent higher than the previous P8.46 billion, due to the higher share of premium Marlboro as well as the price increases implemented in late August 2019. Volume declined by 3 percent in 2019.

Meanwhile, PNB’s net income under the pooling method was P9.94 billion in 2019, or 2 percent lower than the previous year with

the absence of large gains from the sale of Real and Other Properties Acquired. Excluding the ROPA gains, the bank’s core income was at P9.51 billion in 2019, 61 percent higher than P5.92 billion in the previous year.

Eton, meanwhile, reported a net income P900 million, 88 percent higher than the previous P479 million. “Total revenues were lower by 2-percent, but higher margins on real estate sales resulted in the higher income.”

Eton Properties has a leasing portfolio of approximately 181,000 square meters of office space and over 43,500 square meters of retail space.

LT Group also reported that Tanduay's net income for the year fell 26 percent to P676 million, from the previous P909 million, due to slightly lower margins from higher alcohol

costs and higher interest expenses.

Revenues from liquor were 3 percent higher with the 2-percent increase in volume and an average price increase of P14 per case. Meanwhile, revenues from bioethanol were 30 percent higher as volume increased by 18 percent and selling prices by an average of 12 percent.

As of end-2019, Tanduay's nationwide market share for distilled spirits was at 27.8 percent, slightly lower than end-2018’s 29 percent.

Income of Asia Brewery, meanwhile, fell 5 percent to P398 million from the previous P421 million. Revenues rose 9 percent due to higher volumes of energy drinks, bottled water and soymilk.

However, its operating expenses were 10 percent higher as the company spent more on advertising and promotions. VG Cabuag

Grab joins PHL fight against Covid-19

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rab is assisting in the country's effort to fight the deadly novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19), via a program that will help provide mobility for health-care workers and safeguard the livelihood of its partners.

“More than a public health crisis, the Covid-19 outbreak has been a call for all sectors to band together for the common goal of providing meaningful services to the Filipino people. For us at Grab, the last few weeks have been a testament to our innate ability to innovate for all and to use our platform to help our community endure this period of uncertainty and disruption,” said Grab Philippines President Brian P. Cu. Through it’s community-driven initiative called "GrabBayanihan," Grab is sponsoring transport services for health workers. These frontline men and women have two choices: GrabCar or GrabWheels.

Volunteer GrabCar drivers may ferry at most two health-care workers at a time. The vehicles, which are to keep with hygiene protocols, will be properly marked to help officials distinguish them from private vehicles. Grab will be paying the minimum daily income of drivers, while partners Unioil, Phoenix Petroleum, Seaoil, and Caltex will be shouldering P300 in daily gas vouchers. Smart and Globe are also providing load credits to the drivers.

Initially, 100 drivers have volunteered for the program.

The service will be exclusive to health-care workers, hence hospital administrators are required to fill up a form to participate in the program.

Another option for them is to make use of the 50 GrabWheels escooters deployed in Manila, Quezon City, San Juan, Muntinlupa, Navotas, Marikina, and Pasig.

Grab also said it intends to safe-

guard the livelihood of its driverpartners, who are now without work due to the strict provisions of the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon, as well as local lockdowns in other parts of the country.

Grab will soon host “a virtual training sessions to onboard driverpartners onto GrabFood and GrabExpress, which will immediately connect them to consumers who are increasingly relying on food and parcel delivery services.”

It has also partnered with PSBank, EastWest Bank, BDO, Security Bank, BPI, RCBC, UnionBank, Robinsons Bank, Metrobank, UCPB and Toyota Financial Services, to allow loan payment breaks for driver-partners. Grab has likewise implemented preliminary assistance programs in the form of financial and medical assistance, and an emergency loan fund for GrabCar driver-partners.

“We hope that now more than

ever, other players will help carry out this vision of bayanihan while preventing the spread of Covid-19,” said Cu. Lorenz S. Marasigan

Universal Robina Corp. donates products to health workers at various hospitals in the Metro. URC Photo

U

niversal Robina Corp.

(URC) and the Gokongwei Brothers Foundation (GBF) have been distributing products such as Great Taste Coffee, Magic Crackers, Nissin Noodles and C2 to several checkpoints and hospitals dealing with suspected and confirmed cases of Covid-19.

URC products are currently being delivered to the Philippine Lung Center, East Avenue Medical Center, the Philippine Heart Center, Research Institute for Tropical Medicine, and the Department of Health’s Regional Epidemiology Surveillance Units in the National Capital Region and Region 4A. Policemen, soldiers, health workers and barangay officials manning checkpoints in Pasig, Pampanga, Laguna, Cavite, Cagayan de Oro, Davao,

Cebu, Bulacan and Butuan have also been receiving boxes of food and beverage items to help tide them over, as they face long hours under the searing sun.

The Gokongwei Brothers Foundation earlier created a P100-million fund to support the government’s efforts to contain the virus.

The foundation has committed to provide surgical masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE) for frontline health workers.

It has initially identified University of the Philippines Medical Foundation Inc. and PGH (Philippine General Hospital) Medical Foundation for these PPEs possible ventilator purchases and other arising needed support for health workers.

Other priority hospitals are in the process of being shortlisted in the coming days.

Scooter giant Lime preparing layoffs as rider numbers collapse

S

cooter-sharing service Lime is considering further cuts to its work force in the United States as sales and scooter trips plummeted with the coronavirus pandemic.

The management is considering cutting between 50 to 70 people, primarily at its San Francisco headquarters, according to a person with direct knowledge of the situation who didn’t want to be named discussing sensitive information. No decision has yet been made and discussions are still ongoing, the person said.

As recently as January, Lime had about $50 million of cash. But with a monthly burn rate of about $22.5 million, and factoring in

revenue generation for the year to date, the person estimated Lime had about 12 weeks left before running out of money.

A spokesman for Lime declined to comment. CEO Brad Bao said in a blog that the company will wind down and pause services in a number of markets across Europe, the US, Israel, Brazil and Sydney. It’s also monitoring markets including New Zealand, South Korea, calling the outbreak “an unprecedented challenge” for the cities and communities it serves.

The impact of global self-isolation measures and government bans on travel have decimated Lime’s ability to make money from the hundreds of thousands

of scooters it has around the world.

On March 14, for instance, the company recorded about 147,000 scooter trips being made globally, according to internal documents seen

by Bloomberg. As cities across Europe started going into lockdown, those trips shrunk by almost two-thirds to about 52,000 three days later. During that time, Paris, its biggest single market at the time, plunged 98 percent to just over 300, making it a smaller market than locations such as Wrocław in Poland and Corpus Christi, Texas.

That took a toll on revenue. Within those three days, daily global gross revenue for scooter rides slumped to just $192,593, down 69 percent from $617,383. Bloomberg News

B2

Companies BusinessMirror

Monday, March 23, 2020

PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

March 20, 2020

Net Foreign Stocks Bid Ask Open High Low Close Volume Value Trade (Peso) Buy (Sell) FINANCIALs

ASIA UNITED BDO UNIBANK BANK PH ISLANDS CHINABANK EAST WEST BANK METROBANK PB BANK PHIL NATL BANK PSBANK RCBC SECURITY BANK UNION BANK COL FINANCIAL MEDCO HLDG MANULIFE PHIL STOCK EXCH SUN LIFE VANTAGE

40.05 97 55 20 7.5 39.05 8 20 36.5 15 107.1 54.2 12.5 0.3 600 133 1350 0.98

44 97.3 55.65 21.8 7.53 39.1 8.2 20.2 39.65 17 115 54.4 15.9 0.33 800 138.9 1449 1

41.75 91 56.5 19 7.01 40 8.2 24.7 36.55 15.62 104.7 52.1 15.9 0.3 650 145.8 1400 1

44 97 59 20 7.9 40.15 8.2 24.7 39 17 124.9 55 15.9 0.3 650 148.5 1420 1

41.75 88.2 52 19 7.01 38.7 8 19 36 14 103 52.1 15 0.3 650 132 1400 1

44 97 55 20 7.5 39.1 8 20 36 17 115 54.1 15.9 0.3 650 132.1 1420 1

2700 5081010 3893850 47700 287700 5897600 15000 416500 8600 15700 429470 4090 8800 200000 90 2300 35 12000

117225 470636099 214445825 928930 2136447 231825860 122206 8338353 315095 243514 46526796 219543.5 139560 60000 58500 310259 49200 12000

6233516.5 -62407655 19000 518583 -73669075 -1520708 3900 39500 -3676254 -

INDUSTRIAL AC ENERGY 1.53 1.54 1.56 1.64 1.48 1.54 7088000 10767130 ALSONS CONS 0.73 1.01 1.01 1.01 1.01 1.01 201000 203010 23.9 24 24.2 24.8 22.9 24 2030700 48283700 ABOITIZ POWER BASIC ENERGY 0.156 0.16 0.165 0.165 0.16 0.16 320000 52250 14.76 14.88 15 15 14.52 14.76 6767900 99842954 FIRST GEN FIRST PHIL HLDG 46.05 46.4 46.5 46.85 46 46.05 41200 1898735 MERALCO 200 209.8 220 226 196.1 200 712850 145049251 8.76 9.2 8.62 9.29 8.55 8.76 9874800 85746549 MANILA WATER PETRON 2.09 2.11 2.1 2.31 2.08 2.1 3926000 8415130 2.7 3.15 2.7 3.28 2.7 3.15 24000 66460 PETROENERGY PHX PETROLEUM 9.6 9.7 9 9.7 9 9.7 396300 3675416 PILIPINAS SHELL 18.5 18.52 17.7 19 17.7 18.5 136400 2526012 6.8 6.9 6.8 6.9 6.71 6.9 107000 728718 SPC POWER AGRINURTURE 6.25 6.31 6.22 6.85 6.22 6.49 98000 627009 1.94 1.96 1.9 1.98 1.9 1.95 440000 843680 AXELUM CENTURY FOOD 10.8 10.86 10.3 10.98 10.3 10.8 6211100 66677692 DEL MONTE 2.52 3.2 2.8 3.2 2.5 2.5 199000 501460 4.07 4.08 4.01 4.5 4.01 4.07 11364000 46752420 DNL INDUS EMPERADOR 7.45 7.5 7.69 7.69 6.76 7.5 1995400 14243374 45.7 46 44.5 49 44.5 46 581200 26665265 SMC FOODANDBEV ALLIANCE SELECT 0.45 0.55 0.46 0.48 0.45 0.45 400000 184300 FRUITAS HLDG 1.04 1.05 1.01 1.09 1.01 1.05 9922000 10301670 32.8 32.9 32.8 32.9 32 32.8 9700 318100 GINEBRA JOLLIBEE 100 101.8 97.5 103.7 95.65 100 1994100 198180334.5 5.23 6.2 5.22 5.22 5.22 5.22 600 3132 MACAY HLDG MAXS GROUP 4.45 4.66 4.54 4.68 4.41 4.45 343000 1554760 MG HLDG 0.11 0.13 0.105 0.105 0.105 0.105 10000 1050 1.22 1.3 1.38 1.38 1.26 1.3 455000 586100 PEPSI COLA SHAKEYS PIZZA 5.2 5.24 6 6 5.2 5.24 153600 818002 1.32 1.34 1.22 1.38 1.22 1.35 804000 1026450 ROXAS AND CO RFM CORP 4.35 4.6 4.5 4.6 4 4.6 26000 113290 UNIV ROBINA 108.7 109.5 112 118 105 108.7 1987850 217175134 0.72 0.73 0.71 0.74 0.71 0.72 1776000 1288970 VITARICH VICTORIAS 2.2 2.5 2.2 2.2 2.2 2.2 108000 237600 32.15 61.6 56 61.6 56 61.6 30 1736 CONCRETE B CEMEX HLDG 0.98 0.99 0.93 1 0.93 0.99 8568000 8215160 EAGLE CEMENT 6.41 6.48 6.7 7.09 6.4 6.48 632300 4207469 5.5 5.68 5.6 5.8 5.5 5.68 106800 600071 EEI CORP HOLCIM 10.5 12.4 11.2 12.4 10.08 12.4 454100 5250636 6.81 6.82 7.7 7.9 6.56 6.82 882100 6158599 MEGAWIDE PHINMA 8.6 8.9 8 9.38 8 9.38 3200 27338 TKC METALS 0.73 0.74 0.55 0.8 0.55 0.73 78000 55200 0.5 0.52 0.48 0.53 0.48 0.52 60000 30100 VULCAN INDL CROWN ASIA 1.89 1.92 1.75 1.92 1.75 1.92 180000 341260 1.72 1.74 1.86 2.19 1.61 1.72 5834000 10442220 EUROMED MABUHAY VINYL 3.15 3.25 3.33 3.33 3.33 3.33 1000 3330 PRYCE CORP 3.85 4.3 3.82 3.82 3.82 3.82 2000 7640 27 29 29.95 29.95 29 29 200 5895 CONCEPCION GREENERGY 0.69 0.7 0.66 0.75 0.66 0.7 1189000 861990 3.52 3.94 3.42 3.52 3.38 3.52 38000 131050 INTEGRATED MICR IONICS 0.86 0.96 0.89 0.96 0.86 0.96 567000 531170 PANASONIC 2.62 4.95 4.95 4.95 4.95 4.95 1000 4950 0.55 0.57 0.57 0.58 0.55 0.55 133000 75300 SFA SEMICON CIRTEK HLDG 3.79 3.86 4.2 4.2 3.71 3.85 398000 1524170

-510850 -18532345 46290976 -1170625 -40991856 2040677.0003 -2861380 -345908 2070 108757 -97710 31722 -433450 -37706910 -429004 17721405 147440 278760 -51633969.5 -92250 -65070 -391822 -6860 -31390 -29904487 237600 3744330 459680 -259790 -1403034 -4735645 211580 16800 -118379.9998 -24230 -154560 27440

HOLDING & FRIMS

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

0.47 5.5 410 30.95 6.23 1.45 6 0.4 0.49 0.48 4.54 3.65 7.2 407 43.35 5 0.375 2.89 6.03 0.3 2.68 2.65 0.77 721 82.5 0.6 140 0.159 0.117

0.48 5.85 415 31.2 6.25 1.5 6.54 0.54 0.51 - 4.75 3.69 7.6 422 43.7 5.5 0.38 2.95 6.13 0.49 2.69 2.75 0.8 721.5 83 0.68 141 0.188 0.133

0.45 5.99 430 32.15 5.99 1.5 6.6 0.54 0.41 0.49 4.51 3.35 7.5 475.8 46 5 0.38 3 5.72 0.45 2.6 2.75 0.8 700 74 0.65 141 0.156 0.141

0.49 5.99 460 33.95 6.3 1.5 6.68 0.54 0.51 0.495 4.75 3.71 7.6 496.4 48.9 5 0.38 3.01 6.95 0.45 2.84 2.75 0.8 740 84 0.7 141 0.188 0.141

0.45 5.11 402 30.5 5.3 1.4 6 0.54 0.41 0.48 4.51 3.28 7.5 407 43 5 0.375 2.9 5.72 0.4 2.6 2.75 0.76 689.5 73.5 0.65 140 0.156 0.114

0.47 5.5 410 30.95 6.23 1.5 6.54 0.54 0.5 0.48 4.75 3.69 7.6 407 43.35 5 0.375 2.9 6.03 0.44 2.68 2.75 0.8 721.5 83 0.7 140 0.188 0.133

2380000 5700 889270 1896100 8247400 1374000 14100 26000 1015000 2220000 486000 18271000 34100 186740 2263600 11200 670000 1071000 13274900 50000 35312000 1000 59000 1030380 616550 17000 100 230000 390000

1113350 31495 370440570 59572405 49434754 1991310 90386 14040 491475 1089600 2225210 64215510 259000 79791400 99715140 56000 251300 3120580 80400833 21300 95293650 2750 47010 742360165 50711265.5 11120 14020 36370 51330

-95227904 -15066805 -14273322 18600 835500 360810 -22317650 -18220 -50665706 -19508260 1171500 -21373430 -16859440 8000 3750870 -5003668.5 -

PROPERTY ARTHALAND CORP 0.48 0.53 0.51 0.55 0.4 0.47 2565000 1289310 AYALA LAND 26.3 26.4 23.6 26.5 23.6 26.3 27880600 709888590 1.05 1.29 1.05 1.42 1.03 1.3 782000 952420 ARANETA PROP BELLE CORP 1.15 1.2 1.12 1.2 1.12 1.2 99000 117040 0.51 0.53 0.5 0.53 0.49 0.51 2080000 1048100 A BROWN 0.65 0.75 0.65 0.75 0.65 0.75 16000 10500 CITYLAND DEVT CROWN EQUITIES 0.119 0.12 0.121 0.121 0.12 0.12 80000 9640 3.88 3.94 3.92 4.04 3.8 3.94 1146000 4432170 CEB LANDMASTERS CENTURY PROP 0.345 0.35 0.355 0.365 0.345 0.35 2910000 1028450 0.21 0.23 0.21 0.23 0.21 0.23 150000 31700 CYBER BAY 16.22 16.3 16 16.74 16 16.3 1227600 20152152 DOUBLEDRAGON DM WENCESLAO 6.11 6.55 6.4 6.6 6 6.55 55500 358225 0.25 0.325 0.205 0.325 0.205 0.325 620000 197350 EMPIRE EAST FILINVEST LAND 0.82 0.83 0.83 0.88 0.82 0.82 14240000 11828290 0.67 0.68 0.66 0.68 0.66 0.67 592000 395440 GLOBAL ESTATE 8990 HLDG 13.4 14 13.5 14 13.4 14 1405300 19003878 PHIL INFRADEV 0.62 0.63 0.59 0.68 0.59 0.63 536000 344710 0.51 0.69 0.69 0.69 0.69 0.69 20000 13800 CITY AND LAND MEGAWORLD 2.09 2.11 2.21 2.4 2.06 2.09 39344000 84445450 0.121 0.125 0.12 0.127 0.12 0.125 2010000 246780 MRC ALLIED PHIL ESTATES 0.305 0.31 0.3 0.32 0.3 0.32 130000 39600 PRIMEX CORP 1.5 1.62 1.63 1.65 1.5 1.62 14000 22850 11.74 11.94 12.36 13.4 11.06 11.74 3724600 44744734 ROBINSONS LAND PHIL REALTY 0.225 0.24 0.225 0.225 0.225 0.225 40000 9000 1.52 1.62 1.51 1.62 1.51 1.55 3000 4680 ROCKWELL SHANG PROP 2.48 2.6 2.6 2.6 2.45 2.6 55000 140110 STA LUCIA LAND 1.85 2.03 2.06 2.06 1.85 2.04 225000 429510 25.95 26 27 28.4 25 26 22492800 587372150 SM PRIME HLDG VISTAMALLS 3.5 3.61 3.62 3.71 3.55 3.55 71000 258480 0.92 0.95 0.93 1.04 0.9 0.95 519000 489930 SUNTRUST HOME VISTA LAND 3.4 3.55 3.63 4.19 3.2 3.4 2725000 9609610

22750 67908660 -5600 -151000 6500 -23820 2300 -5170354 -246164 -5149770 2499564 13109.9999 -36367410 -11580590 13260 -318600 -84879930 -3601480

SERVICES ABS CBN 15.62 15.8 15.04 16.2 15 15.8 213000 3326386 GMA NETWORK 4.66 4.72 4.65 4.73 4.35 4.73 344000 1539430 0.315 0.34 0.305 0.31 0.305 0.31 140000 43200 MANILA BULLETIN GLOBE TELECOM 1658 1693 1745 1769 1650 1658 102600 174422950 860.5 875 924 930 849 860.5 272890 236787235 PLDT 0.035 0.04 0.034 0.04 0.034 0.04 3000000 102600 APOLLO GLOBAL DFNN INC 1.6 2.82 2.83 2.83 2.82 2.82 31000 87430 1 1.49 1.09 1.09 1 1 26000 26460 IMPERIAL ISLAND INFO 0.06 0.065 0.057 0.062 0.057 0.058 910000 52880 1.14 1.15 1.04 1.14 1.03 1.14 16830000 18511120 ISM COMM 1.13 1.14 1.11 1.21 1.11 1.13 1412000 1614600 NOW CORP TRANSPACIFIC BR 0.134 0.15 0.14 0.15 0.13 0.145 450000 62220 1.28 1.3 1.26 1.48 1.26 1.3 1132000 1502360 PHILWEB 2GO GROUP 4.35 4.45 4.1 4.5 4.1 4.35 16000 69290 12.3 15.98 12.22 15.98 12.22 15.98 20700 259126 ASIAN TERMINALS CHELSEA 2.07 2.08 2 2.15 1.96 2.08 651000 1321860 CEBU AIR 39.8 39.9 40 41.5 39.15 39.9 346800 13850670 75.85 76 71.65 77 71.65 76 3455390 255917415 INTL CONTAINER LBC EXPRESS 11.08 12.48 7.51 12.74 7.51 11.08 3200 39265 0.61 0.75 0.61 0.61 0.61 0.61 23000 14030 LORENZO SHIPPNG MACROASIA 4.17 4.18 4.19 4.75 4.16 4.18 427000 1861570 METROALLIANCE A 1.17 1.2 1.23 1.42 1.1 1.17 1485000 1859230 1.11 1.22 1.12 1.34 1 1.22 154000 174950 METROALLIANCE B PAL HLDG 6 6.05 5 6.05 5 6.05 18700 99455 0.6 0.62 0.56 0.62 0.56 0.62 649000 378990 HARBOR STAR 0.025 0.027 0.025 0.026 0.025 0.025 6900000 173000 BOULEVARD HLDG WATERFRONT 0.38 0.405 0.38 0.41 0.38 0.41 280000 107300 5.5 6.99 6.66 6.66 5.6 5.6 800 4798 CENTRO ESCOLAR FAR EASTERN U 800.5 820 800.5 800.5 800 800 200 160055 0.39 0.41 0.4 0.44 0.39 0.395 2550000 1001800 STI HLDG 1.9 2.1 1.9 2.1 1.9 2.1 44000 85700 BERJAYA BLOOMBERRY 4.59 4.6 4.5 5.3 4.4 4.59 4363000 19657580 1.52 1.56 1.58 1.58 1.53 1.54 20000 31000 PACIFIC ONLINE LEISURE AND RES 1.05 1.15 1.15 1.2 1.15 1.15 32000 37050 3.22 4 3.1 3.22 3.1 3.22 4000 12640 PH RESORTS GRP PREMIUM LEISURE 0.3 0.305 0.315 0.315 0.29 0.3 1550000 465750 PHIL RACING 7.6 8.95 7.6 7.6 7.6 7.6 800 6080 5.04 5.05 5.42 5.99 5 5.05 2097400 10954727 ALLHOME METRO RETAIL 1.25 1.3 1.25 1.4 1.25 1.25 5169000 6565550 32 32.5 30 32 29.65 32 1971800 61963500 PUREGOLD 49.95 50 45.05 50 45.05 49.95 345800 16558040 ROBINSONS RTL PHIL SEVEN CORP 126 131.4 135 135 120 131.4 2635590 342472816 0.95 0.96 0.97 1 0.88 0.95 3563000 3330660 SSI GROUP WILCON DEPOT 12.34 12.46 11.04 12.98 11.04 12.34 2091600 25799588 0.29 0.31 0.29 0.34 0.29 0.31 480000 145700 APC GROUP EASYCALL 3.01 4.75 4.75 4.75 4.75 4.75 5000 23750 GOLDEN BRIA 320 335 338 338 335 335 110 37150 0.18 0.19 0.196 0.196 0.185 0.19 1920000 369530 PRMIERE HORIZON SBS PHIL CORP 6 6.2 7 7 6 6.2 14900 91000

-48492665 -37978980 21010 -29000 -1256160 -54849.9998 -372190 8600 144628 154309.9997 -2088625 -2154583.5 329250 -66080 500 620 -105300 -38200 2800 88055 -866500 -2709260 1540 -14800 -827788 -866360 3317555 -346245 1650993 173500 328350 -50300 -

MINING & OIL ATOK 9.5 10.3 10.38 10.38 10.1 10.3 5500 56386 0.58 0.59 0.58 0.65 0.58 0.58 1124000 682730 -0 APEX MINING ABRA MINING 0.001 0.0011 0.001 0.0011 0.001 0.001 163000000 163200 0.71 1.09 1.09 1.09 1.09 1.09 38000 41420 BENGUET B COAL ASIA HLDG 0.2 0.25 0.25 0.25 0.23 0.25 150000 36700 CENTURY PEAK 2.43 2.48 2.46 2.48 2.43 2.43 208000 510240 49450 5.76 6.18 6.15 6.15 5.75 5.76 4900 29900 DIZON MINES FERRONICKEL 0.465 0.47 0.46 0.5 0.46 0.47 7610000 3632600 -2217950 0.177 0.185 0.18 0.181 0.177 0.177 2210000 395210 -357700 GEOGRACE LEPANTO A 0.067 0.075 0.066 0.068 0.066 0.066 2860000 190640 LEPANTO B 0.061 0.075 0.084 0.084 0.081 0.081 20000 1650 0.49 0.5 0.57 0.57 0.485 0.5 170000 84960 MARCVENTURES NIHAO 0.78 0.79 0.79 0.79 0.77 0.78 113000 87690 1.55 1.57 1.55 1.6 1.47 1.57 2594000 3957100 491080 NICKEL ASIA PX MINING 1.9 1.96 1.98 1.98 1.89 1.9 877000 1702140 -123110 SEMIRARA MINING 8.97 9.1 9.99 9.99 8.3 9.1 3194700 28332526 -9925639 4.72 5.19 5 5.5 4.65 5.19 39000 195600 -5000 ACE ENEXOR ORNTL PETROL A 0.0081 0.0082 0.0082 0.0082 0.008 0.0082 61000000 498200 0.0081 0.01 0.0081 0.0091 0.0081 0.0091 6000000 51600 ORNTL PETROL B PHILODRILL 0.0067 0.0087 0.0067 0.0067 0.0067 0.0067 7000000 46900 PXP ENERGY 3.95 4.28 3.95 4.5 3.95 3.95 362000 1484710 -60500

PREFFERED HOUSE PREF A 90.15 95 96.5 96.5 95 95 12060 1155305 48250 506 508 506 506 506 506 260 131560 AC PREF B1 ALCO PREF B 100.2 100.4 100.4 100.4 100.2 100.2 6070 608352 496 499 496 500 496 500 290 144080 -99200 AC PREF B2R CPG PREF A 100.5 101 100.5 100.5 100.5 100.5 2000 201000 DD PREF 98.5 99.5 98 99.8 98 98 57720 5722380 107 107.4 107 107 107 107 2100 224700 FGEN PREF G FPH PREF C 246 490 490 490 490 490 1000 490000 480.6 498 499.8 499.8 498 498 2090 1044528 GLO PREF P GTCAP PREF B 903 989 902.5 990 902.5 990 960 871650 MWIDE PREF 98.1 100 99.9 100 96.6 98.5 39050 3903980 99.1 99.5 99.1 99.1 99.1 99.1 140 13874 PNX PREF 3A PNX PREF 3B 100 102 102 102 102 102 1610 164220 950 998 1000 1000 990 990 2370 2350500 PNX PREF 4 PCOR PREF 2B 1010 1044 1010 1010 1010 1010 1305 1318050 PCOR PREF 3A 1006 1010 1005 1006 1005 1006 10265 10326540 1009 1030 1005 1006 1004 1006 1700 1707410 PCOR PREF 3B SMC PREF 2C 75.7 76.2 76 76.5 75.05 76.2 129940 9878146 75 76.7 75 75 75 75 13570 1017750 SMC PREF 2D SMC PREF 2E 74.1 75.5 75.5 75.5 75 75 10800 815000 SMC PREF 2F 75 75.2 75.2 75.2 75.2 75.2 70400 5294080 74.55 75.5 75 75 74 74 82400 6176048 SMC PREF 2H

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS ABS HLDG PDR 14 14.48 14.98 14.98 14 14 23000 322490 7000 4.05 4.89 4.9 4.9 4.9 4.9 2000000 9800000 -9800000 GMA HLDG PDR

WARRANTS LR WARRANT 0.63 0.66 0.63 0.65 0.6 0.63 40000 24940

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES ITALPINAS 1.71 1.8 1.8 1.9 1.6 1.71 136000 226690 5.51 5.7 5.8 5.99 5.65 5.7 58200 336150 -46722 KEPWEALTH XURPAS 0.46 0.48 0.49 0.54 0.46 0.48 760000 373100 9700

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS

FIRST METRO ETF 73.5 76 74.95 77.95 73 73.5 52860 3949692.5 186300

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Petron assures steady fuel supply amid crisis in Luzon

T

By Lenie Lectura

@llectura

he country’s largest oil refiner assured consumers of continuous supply of its petroleum products while Luzon is under enhanced community quarantine, which affects more than 50 million people.

Petron Corp. also said it would make sure that there is enough fuel for vital industries while Luzon is grappling with Covid-19.

“So far, our entire supply chain is working overtime to ensure that enough products are produced at our refinery. Vessels are continuously loaded so that our terminals are filled, and tank truck operations remain consistent," said Petron President and CEO Ramon S. Ang. “We are also trying our best to keep as many of our stations open and filled as possible while putting the safety and well-being of our em-

ployees first,” Ang added.

Petron provides nearly 30 percent of the country’s petroleum requirements through its 180,000 barrel-per-day Bataan refinery, 30 terminals, and over 2,400 stations nationwide.

“Let me reiterate that there is no need to panic. We will step up and we will get through this together. In these critical times, rest assured that basic necessities will be delivered and our brave frontliners will reach their destinations,” added Ang. He emphasized that the health and safety of its people remain its

STOCK-MARKET OUTLOOK Last week

Share prices continued its free fall last week on lingering fears over the effects of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) on the global economy, as the main index is now only at the 4,000-point level—the lowest in more than eight years.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index fell 1,015.18 point, or 17 percent, to close at 4,778.76 points. It was only a three-day trading week, as there were no trade on Tuesday and Wednesday after the government declared a Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine.

The market already started the week at a loss, declining 8 percent on Monday and when trading resumed on Thursday, it fell 711.95 points, or 13 percent, to close at 4,623.42 points. The last time the main index was at this level was on January 26, 2012, when it closed at 4,611.68 points.

It sunk deeper during the day falling 1,296.22 points or 24 percent to 4,039.15, its lowest since October 2011.

Thursday was the PSE's worst intraday fall on record since the introduction of PSE at 13.34 percent.

It then recovered 155.34 points on Friday, mainly on bargain hunting.

Foreign investors continued to dump local shares and were net sellers at P3.79 billion.

Average value of shares traded for the week was at P7.25 billion.

All other subindices ended on the red, all of them incurring double digit losses.

The broader All Shares index fell 544.99 points to close at 2,948.65 points, the Financials index lost 251.97 to 1,163.69, the Industrial index plummeted 1,048.46 to 6,022.65, the Holding Firms index plunged 1,071.59 to 4,602.06, the Property index retreated 517.07 to 2,468.33, the Services index was down 149.90 to 1,037.71 and the Mining and Oil index shed 982.34 to 3,745.47.

For the week only 26 shares managed to notch gains while 193 were losers, and 14 were unchanged.

Top gainers were Ever-Gotesco Resources and Holdings Inc., Keppel Philippines Holdings Inc. B, Benguet Corp. B, Concepcion Industrial Corp., Acesite (Philippines) Hotel Corp. and Concrete Aggregates Corp. B. Top losers were Villar-led firms Vista Land and Lifescapes Inc. and All Home Corp., as well as Megawide Construction Corp., Omico Corp., Alliance Global Group Inc., Metro Alliance Holdings and Equities Corp. A and B shares and Robinsons Land Corp.

This week

Trading at the local stock market may remain volatile this week, and prices may fall again despite the main index already reaching historic lows and trillions of pesos of market capitalization being wiped out.

“A dead cat bounce was what we saw last Friday and we expect another volatility week ahead in the market, and bias on the downside as Covid-19 cases in the Philippines are mounting and showing no sign of subsiding yet. Many investors will still rush to have cash on hand due to the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon, which can drag the bourse further,” said Claire T. Alviar of Philstocks Financials Inc. She said that the Central Bank’s forecast of a Philippine economic growth of between 5 percent to 5.5 percent for the year would dent investors' sentiment since before the Covid-19 “many investors were expecting a better year and faster economic growth for the Philippines in 2020, and some already priced that in, so this revised outlook would drag investors sentiment.”

Meanwhile, broker 2TradeAsia said there's still opportunity in the market since the main index is now down to 9.89 times of its price versus earnings ratio, or nearing the 2008 low-level of 9.6 times.

“Ride out intraday volatility for quick returns, minding selling pressure on rallies,” it said, placing an immediate support for the main index at 4,000 points and resistance at 5,000 points.

Stock picks

Broker Regina Capital Development Corp. gave a "buy" recommendation on the stock of Globe Telecom Inc. but only when its support price of P1,590 per share holds.

“Surprisingly, Globe was one of the few stocks that managed to maintain its sideways consolidation range as others fell to a continued breakdown the past couple of days. Indicators show momentum posting a steep decline, coupled with possible convergence and reversal into selling pressure,” it said.

Shares of Globe closed last Friday at P1,658 apiece.

Meanwhile, it gave a "cut loss" advise on the stock of Globe's parent firm Ayala Corp. which was one of the biggest losers in last week's trade. Ayala shares closed last week at P410 apiece.

“All indicators point to strong selling pressure with climbing momentum. Strongest support that we see right now is a far ways off at P380,” the broker said. VG Cabuag

top priority. Petron has widely implemented a work-from-home set-up for its Luzon-based offices. Meanwhile, those working on the frontline—its office-based skeletal force, service station personnel, tank truck drivers and helpers—are guided by the necessary protocols to ensure their health and safety.

The oil industry is among those granted exemption by the government from the Luzon-wide community quarantine. At this point, Petron has fully activated its Business Continuity Plan, taking into consideration all possible scenarios.

The company’s net income last year plunged 67 percent to P2.3 billion from P7.1 billion in 2018 on account of lower sales as a result of its refinery shutdown in April last year.

Revenue in 2019 was 8 percent lower at P514.4 billion from a year ago as sales volume was slightly lower at 107 million barrels from the previous year’s 108.5 million barrels.

The oil firm’s Bataan refinery underwent emergency shutdown as a result of the earthquake. During the shutdown, Petron saw a 5-percent decline in Philippine volumes. However, Petron Malaysia’s domestic volumes grew by 3 percent. This helped offset the decline in Philippine volumes.

mutual funds

The company’s Philippine operations posted a net loss of P1.4 billion compared to the net income of P2.8 billion last year.

“The company’s refining business in the Philippines incurred losses due to low production, as well as start-up and stabilization activities in August to September last year. The financial results were also affected by the weak refining margins,” Petron said.

The market was volatile during the year due to political tensions in the Middle East and uncertainties in the global economy. As average Dubai crude fell to $63 per barrel in 2019 from $69 per barrel in 2018, regional prices of finished petroleum products and petrochemicals also dropped amid an oversupply but slowdown in demand. Average crude premiums in 2019 rose by almost threefold from the previous year, further depressing the margins.

Still, Petron continued to enjoy strong brand preference. Likewise, its market share was steady for about a third of the country’s domestic demand. Petron also remained the market leader in the major segments of Retail, Industrial, and LPG.

March 20, 2020

NAV One Year Three Year Five Year Y-T-D per share Return* Return Stock Funds ALFM Growth Fund, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. ATRAM Alpha Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 0.8046 -49.71% -17.11% -12.35% -41.78% ATRAM Philippine Equity Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 2.0981 -48.79% -19.9% -13.92% -42.96% Climbs Share Capital Equity Investment Fund Corp. -a 0.5487 -41.3% n.a. n.a. -38.84% First Metro Consumer Fund on MSCI Phils. IMI, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund,Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. First Metro Save and Learn Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,6 N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. MBG Equity Investment Fund, Inc. -a

64.82 -49.03% n.a. n.a. -37.27% PAMI Equity Index Fund, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. Philam Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. Philequity Alpha One Fund, Inc. -a,d,8 0.7185 n.a. n.a. n.a. -30.25% Philequity Dividend Yield Fund, Inc. -a 0.8132 -37.75% -13.09% -9.42% -36.81% Philequity Fund, Inc. -a 23.808 -38.18% -12.37% -9.33% -37.18% Philequity MSCI Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,1 0.6127 -40.46% n.a. n.a. -39.82% Philequity PSE Index Fund Inc. -a 3.1304 -40.11% -13.75% -9.56% -40.07% N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a Soldivo Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 0.4899 -46.31% -17.04% -13.22% -42.46% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Equity Fund, Inc. -a 2.4692 -42.48% -14.5% -10.63% -41.34% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Stock Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.5987 -40.33% -13.96% n.a. -40.18% United Fund, Inc. -a 2.2563 -38.73% -11.47% -8.6% -38.24% Exchange Traded Fund First Metro Phil. Equity Exchange Traded Fund, Inc. -a,c N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. ATRAM AsiaPlus Equity Fund, Inc. -b $0.7837 -23.36% -5.6% -4.75% -23.79% Sun Life Prosperity World Voyager Fund, Inc. -a $1.0326 -18.32% -2.26% n.a.

-25.1% Balanced Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ATRAM Dynamic Allocation Fund, Inc. -a 1.3618 -20.4% -7.6% -6.95% -12.86% ATRAM Philippine Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 1.7908 -22.09% -7.87% -5.53% -17.89% First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. First Metro Save and Learn F.O.C.C.U.S. Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a,5 N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. NCM Mutual Fund of the Phils., Inc. -a 1.6671 -12.49% -3.24% -3.02% -15.08% PAMI Horizon Fund, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. Philam Fund, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. Solidaritas Fund, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. -7.93% -6.28% -26.91% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 2.8239 -26.24% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2028, Inc. -a,d,2 0.7895 -20.25% n.a. n.a. -22.27% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2038, Inc. -a,d,2 0.6622 -33.02% n.a. n.a. -33.54% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2048, Inc. -a,d,2 0.6403 -35.11% n.a. n.a. -35.53% Sun Life Prosperity Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a 0.6595 -32.36% -10.73% -8.83% -32.35% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Cocolife Dollar Fund Builder, Inc. -a $0.03733 4.24% 2.06% 1.24% -2.35% PAMI Asia Balanced Fund, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Advantage Fund, Inc. -a $3.1623 -13.48% -1.17% -0.72% -19.14% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Wellspring Fund, Inc. -a,7 $0.983 -8.48% -1.04% n.a. -12.92% Bond Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. ATRAM Corporate Bond Fund, Inc. -a 1.9146 2.38% 0.53% -0.49% 0.66% Cocolife Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a 3.1441 4.84% 5.11% 5.1% 0.89% Ekklesia Mutual Fund Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. First Metro Save and Learn Fixed Income Fund,Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. Philam Bond Fund, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. 3.7499 4.7% 2.5% 1.21% -1.01% Philequity Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a Soldivo Bond Fund, Inc. -a 0.951 4.18% 0.99% -0.15% -1.38% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.0705 7.7% 4.14% 2.48% -0.18% Sun Life Prosperity GS Fund, Inc. -a 1.6903 6.88% 3.54% 1.92% -0.63% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. ALFM Euro Bond Fund, Inc. -a ЄN.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. ATRAM Total Return Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -b $1.1019 -4.98% -0.32% 0.48% -8.72% First Metro Save and Learn Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. PAMI Global Bond Fund, Inc -a N.S. N.S. Philam Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. Philequity Dollar Income Fund Inc. -a $0.059061 2.21% 1.29% 1.25% -2.08% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Abundance Fund, Inc. -a $2.9512 0.32% 0.4% 0.84% -7.06% Money Market Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 126.65 3.67% 2.97% 2.25% 0.69% First Metro Save and Learn Money Market Fund, Inc. -a,3 N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. Philam Managed Income Fund, Inc. -a 1.2513 5.07% 2.92% 1.57% -0.43% Sun Life Prosperity Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.273 3.53% 2.97% 2.48% 0.66% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Starter Fund, Inc. -a $1.0392 1.74% n.a. n.a.

0.19% Feeder Fund Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund Inc. -b,d,4 N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. a - NAVPS as of the previous banking day. b - NAVPS as of two banking days ago. c - Listed in the PSE. d - in Net Asset Value per Unit (NAVPU).

1 - Launch date is January 3, 2019. 2 - Launch date is January 28, 2019. 3 - Launch date is February 1, 2019. 4 - Launch date is November 15, 2019.

5 - Launch date is September 28, 2019. 6 - Renaming was approved by the SEC last October 12, 2018 (formerly, One Wealthy Nation Fund, Inc.).

7 - Adjusted due to stock dividend issuance last October 9, 2019. 8 - Launch date is December 09, 2019.

"While we endeavor to keep the information accurate, the Philippine Investment Funds Association (PIFA) and its members make no warranties as to the correctness of the newspaper’s publication and assume no liability or responsibility for any error or omissions. You may visit http://www. pifa. com.ph to see the latest NAVPS/NAVPU."

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Banking&Finance BusinessMirror

Banks warn versus fraud, scams

B

anks are warning the public of possible schemes for fraud and scam arising amid the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

In separate advisories, local banks said that fraudsters were asking the customers their one-time password (OTP) and other account details via mobile message and e-mail, among others.

“Cybercriminals are using the Covid-19 deferred payment programs of banks in text scams,” the Bank of Philippine Islands (BPI) said.

“BPI will never ask for your OTP and other personal information via SMS [short message sending], call, e-mail or other messaging app,” it added.

BPI advised customers to ignore

phishing e-mail, never click embedded links attached to the mail and report to the bank should a customer receives one.

BDO Unibank Inc. told customers to stay vigilant amid scammers asking for account details and OTP, adding there were even individuals pretending to be representatives of the company.

“Do not entertain texts or calls asking for your account details and OTP, offering a 60-day loan payment extension. BDO will never ask for these details,” the bank said.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp.

(RCBC) also stressed that the bank will never request for account details via e-mail.

“Fraudsters are exploiting the spread of Covid-19 to facilitate various types of fraud and cybercrime,” RCBC said.

“Please continue to be vigilant with phishing e-mails received or suspicious e-mails with attachments that may contain malware,” it added.

Following the announcement of monthlong lockdown in Luzon, banks earlier ensured that they will remain operational to serve their customers, implementing business continuity plans.

The local banks’ physical branches are still open—for shortened working hours—but they have urged customers to transact via online digital platforms at home to lessen exposure to the virus.

The Bankers Association of the Philippines, meanwhile, earlier assured that banks will always make cash available through automated teller machines and digital platforms for payments of goods and services.

Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

Sy-led bank limits branch transactions

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DO Unibank Inc. announced it is temporarily suspending some of its branch transactions beginning March 23 to minimize physical interactions and transmission of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), urging its customers to opt for online banking instead.

In an advisory, the listed bank said that this was to “reduce our customers’ need to leave the safety of their homes and to lessen face-to-face interactions.”

“We encourage everyone to bank safely from home through online banking and mobile application,” it added.

Bill payments will only be accomplished through online banking and automated teller machines (ATMs).

Cash pickup of remittances is also suspended at the moment, with the

bank noting that “only remittances to BDO Unibank accounts are accepted.”

The rollover of investment maturities, meanwhile, will be done automatically, the bank added.

Earlier, BDO announced it was providing 60-day payment extension for its credit card, auto, home, SME (small and medium enterprises) and personal loan customers whose transactions were due until April 15.

Amid the lockdown in Luzon, BDO said that it has 128 branches open for operations while its branches in Visayas and Mindanao are all open.

The bank said it is “intensifying efforts to mobilize cash across the country” to make sure cash is available in ATMs and branches.

“Given the enhanced quarantine

procedures and the limited transportation available, we have taken steps to ensure continuity of service and ease of adjustment on your part during this difficult period,” BDO President and CEO Nestor V. Tan was quoted in a statement as saying.

BDO reported last week that an employee from one of its operational offices in San Juan tested positive for Covid-19. Other workers who were exposed are currently on selfquarantine.

Driven by its core recurringincome channels, BDO saw its net earnings climb by 35.17 percent to P44.2 billion last year from P32.7 billion in 2018.

The listed bank’s shares surged by P12 or 14.12 percent to finish at P97 each on Friday amid the 3.36-percent rise for the benchmark index.

Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

PSBank bares status of services delivery amid enhanced quarantine

P

hilippine Savings Bank announced its branches nationwide would continue to operate even as Luzon is under enhanced community quarantine.

In a statement, the bank said there are 234 of its 250 branches are open nationwide as of March 20.

“PSBank continues to operate with its shortened banking hours on select branches,” the bank said.

“Meanwhile, PSBank ATMs are operational and are ensured to have cash to be dispensed.”

The bank said there are regular sanitation and disinfection of branches, premises, and ATMs against the possible spread of the coronavirus disease 2019.

“In support of the government’s mandate on the enhance community quarantine, PSBank strongly encourages its clients to make use of their mobile application in doing transactions at home.”

As a show of solidarity, PSBank has also waived fund transfer fees to any bank accounts via

InstaPay and PESONet effective March 18, and further removed a service fee of P25 and its corresponding P7.50 ATM transaction fee starting March 20 until further notice.

The Metrobank Group’s consumer-banking arm said it has also imposed a 30-day grace period on loan payments for its qualified auto, home, and personal loan clients, who will be notified through an official e-mail sent by PSBank.

Rizal Raoul S. Reyes

Bank of Thailand vows market stability after jump in bond yields

T

he Bank of Thailand is seeking to backstop market stability after a jump in bond yields stoked concerns that stresses are building up.

The monetary authority pledged last Friday to ensure sufficient liquidity for markets to function well as it unveiled an emergency interestrate cut to counter the economic shock of the coronavirus outbreak.

Governor Veerathai Santiprabhob and other key guardians of the financial system are due hold a briefing Sunday on coping with the impact of the disease.

“We have been running down international reserves and providing baht liquidity to facilitate the normal functioning of the financial market,” Bank of Thailand Assistant Governor Chantavarn Sucharitakul said in an e-mail.

The coronavirus crisis has created funding stresses across the world after upending a range of investments and sparking a dash for cash. There are indications high net-worth investors in Thailand have been making mutual fund redemptions, according to Maybank Kim Eng Securities (Thailand) Pcl. In a sign of the challenging conditions, asset manager TMBAM Eastspring said on its website that trades involving units in two bond funds will be settled five days after

A worker cleans part of a temple in Thailand. Last Friday, the Bank of Thailand announced measures to support its financial system as a pandemic threatens its economy. Bloomberg News

the transactions, from between one and two days before. That’s to avoid being forced to sell bond holdings at inappropriate prices amid market turbulence and redemption pressure, the company said.

The reduction in the policy rate to 0.75 percent from 1 percent takes effect on March 23. In its statement, the central bank said the overall financial system is stable but added the coronavirus outbreak had affected the functioning of Thai markets.

“Interbank borrowing typically takes one to two hours to clear but currently takes about half a day,” Maria Lapiz, head of research at Maybank Kim Eng Securities (Thailand), wrote in a note Friday.

The Thai stock market has plunged 29 percent this year and the baht is Asia’s second-worst performing major currency. The yield on the 10-year Thai government bond jumped to 1.68 percent on March 20 from 0.83 percent on March 9.

Foreign investors have pulled out a net $4.6 billion from stocks and bonds so far in March, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The central bank has said that it spent more than 100 billion baht ($3.1 billion) from March 13 to March 19 to buy government bonds.

Foreign reserves were $229.2 billion on March 13, down $7.1 billion from a week earlier, the biggest such drop since 2008. Bloomberg News

Monday, March 23, 2020 B3

Finex to govt: Prioritize the poor amid pandemic

T

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

@Tyronepiad

he government should focus on helping the most vulnerable sectors of the society amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic, a business group said, urging the release of emergency calamity fund.

The Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines Inc. (Finex), in a recent statement, said that an emergency calamity amelioration program is needed to “rescue” the “millions of poor, jobless and disadvantaged, who are feeling the brunt of this national calamity.”

“We call on Congress to immediately authorize, in an enabling measure, President Rodrigo Duterte, to realign unspent or unobligated appropriations already embodied in this year’s General Appropriations Act for emergency calamity amelioration, as the President may deem necessary and appropriate under the circumstances and during the pendency of this public health and economic emergency,” Finex said in a statement.

The nonstock, nonprofit, nonpolitical association said that the

government could boost the calamity budget with the aid of governmentowned and -controlled corporations—which also set aside funds for emergency purposes.

The funds should be allocated to money and food for the poor, and small and medium enterprises, both of which were significantly affected by the ongoing Luzon lockdown, Finex said.

“These measures will provide more robust and meaningful social safety nets to cushion the effects of the present quarantine measures on the most vulnerable sectors who comprise the vast majority of our citizenry,” Finex said.

War to be won

THE 52-year-old organization of financial executives said that the country is now facing a crisis—both

economic and of survival—as Covid-19 cases continue to erupt in numbers.

“We are now in a war for the survival of our nation and its economy, and fiscal policy and programs must be realigned as we propose during the exigency of this national emergency,” the group said.

Last week, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’s overnight reverse repurchase facility was reduced by 50 basis points to 3.25 percent in a bid to boost liquidity in the economy amid the pandemic. Lending and deposit rates, meanwhile, were brought down to 3.75 percent and 2.75 percent, respectively.

“We are heartened by the initiative demonstrated by proactive local government units in providing immediate assistance to the neediest and express solidarity with stimulus measures called for by other private groups, although we caution against supplemental budgetary appropriations that would strain the fiscal position of the government,” Finex added.

The administration announced last week that P27.1-billion stimulus package to fight Covid-19 was approved, bulk or 14 billion of which is allocated for tourism industry.

Confirmed cases of Covid-19 have risen to 307, according to the Department of Health, with death toll at 18.

Eight patients have recovered.

Credit registry makes info services available to lenders amid lockdown

C

redit Information Corp. (CIC)—the country’s central credit registry and repository of credit information—assured its accredited credit bureaus and accessing financial institutions that its services would still be available nationwide despite the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine.

The CIC made the assurance in response to concerns from its users that the services may be suspended due to the current global pandemic.

“Their access to the CIC database remains available 24/7 and will not be disrupted,” CIC President and CEO Jaime Casto Jose P. Garchitorena was quoted in a statements as saying.

“Accessing entities refer to any submitting entity— institutions with credit facilities such as banks, quasi-banks, trust entities, investment houses, financing companies, cooperatives, nongovernmental and micro-financing organizations, credit card and insurance companies, and government lending institutions mandated to submit basic credit data of their borrowers to the CIC database— or any other entity authorized to access basic credit data from the CIC pursuant to Republic Act 9510 or the Cisa [Credit Information System Act],” the CIC explained.

In line with its mandate under Cisa and its commitment to the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act implemented by the Anti-Red Tape Authority (Arta), the CIC said it uses technology whenever it can to support online transactions and minimize face-to-face interactions.

“Following the directives from the Office of the President and the Civil Service Commission, the CIC activated its business continuity plan to ensure the unhampered delivery of services to its primary clients despite a work-from-home arrangement among its employees,” Garchitorena said.

“Continuity, safety and security All groups of the CIC—Business Development and Communications (BDC), Credit Information Management System (CIMS), and Finance and Administration Group (FAG)—implemented their respective plans to guarantee business continuity while ensuring the safety of everyone amid the ongoing spread of Covid-19.

Meanwhile, in-house technical trainings and walk-in client services have been suspended following the implementation of social distancing measures.

“The CIC has become such a critical part of its clients’ operations but we cannot afford to take the risk and expose our staff,” Garchitorena said. “It was a tough choice but the health and well-being of our staff and clients come first.”

To manage this, the CIC said it is working with its accredited credit bureaus to create online facilities for its face-to-face frontline service in providing CIC Credit Reports.

“As to providing services remotely, because we are handling critical and sensitive personal data, we are implementing the appropriate security measures that support the work-from-home arrangement while retaining the security and integrity of the system during the enhanced community quarantine,” Garchitorena explained.

Since the CIC opened its registration for access in July 2019, there has been an increasing number of requests from financial institutions to become accessing entities of the country’s credit registry. By the first quarter of 2020, the CIC has been experiencing a constant growth of transaction attributable to its growing coverage and depth of credit data available in its system. The CIC said that as of February 11, its database contains 9.9 million unique individuals and 82,000 companies/proprietors, with 64.9 million contract data—45 million of which are installment transactions, 19.3 million are credit cards, and 661,000 are non-installment.

“This is why security remains our topmost priority,” Garchitorena said. Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

B4

Monday, March 23, 2020

Show BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Spread the love CLOCKWISE: Anjo Resurreccion, Bela Padilla, Julio de Leon, Cherry Pie Picache, Robert Alejandro and Pokwang

Today’s Horoscope

By Eugenia Last

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Michelle Monaghan, 44; Keri Russell, 44; Catherine Keener, 61; Chaka Khan, 67.

ALL ACCESS

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Hash over the possibilities and how best to approach the goals you set. Make sure you understand what’s entailed and the time involved before you agree to begin something new. Realism, coupled with practicality, will be required. Too much of anything will be your downfall. Be innovative and think big, but when it comes time to move forward, be moderate. Your lucky numbers are 6, 18, 23, 25, 33, 39, 43.

RICKY GALLARDO

rickygallardoTFI@gmail.com

D

ESPITE the continuous barrage of negative news, we are glad that there is still a lot of love going on during these very uncertain times.

In their own special ways, and mostly through social media, many of our celebrities are cheering people up and inspiring others to make the most of their being home-quarantined.

Model, host and new actor Julio de Leon, who is also a licensed physical therapist, posted that he will give free assistance and send out home exercise programs through online consultation. He writes: “If you have a relative or friend who is in need of physical therapy with the following conditions: stroke/Parkinson’s disease/other neurological conditions, osteoarthritis neck/back/knees/hands, neck/back radiculopathies, rotator cuff tears and tendinopathies, s/p knee/hip/shoulder surgery of any kind, fractures/dislocations, other musculoskeleta, pediatric, cardiopulmonary, and medical conditions that can be treated with physical therapy—I’ll be happy to help in any way I can.�

De Leon just finished working on the film Kid Alpha One with director Richard Somes, and will be launched in the Cignal cable series Afterlife, where he plays the son of Jett Pangan and Eula Valdes.

Cherry Pie Picache, whose afternoon drama series Sandugo just ended, made a special appeal to the authorities, specifically to the Philippine National Police, to refrain from making any arrest to the homeless, street vendors and the “least of our brethren,� as she described it, citing that jails and cells are too crowded already. Picache suggested that if they need to gather the homeless, they should put them in a safe place where they will be quarantined and provide for their survival needs. She then mobilized a small group of her friends to go around the city to give these

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Question whatever eludes you. Sum up whatever situation you face, and reflect. Your options are better than you think. Believe in your abilities, and refuse to make a shortsighted decision. Preparation is essential if you want to get concrete results. ★★★

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): If you’re going to bring about a change, you will have to submit a plan. Take a closer look at your finances, and make changes to your spending habits and monthly expenses. ★★★★

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Don’t fold under pressure. Take on responsibilities that are doable. Trust your instincts, not what someone with lofty ideas wants you to support. Don’t limit what you can do, but stop others from taking advantage of you. ★★★★★

homeless people and street vendors some food and daily essentials.

Like Picache, actress Bela Padilla also set her sights on these people who have to take to the streets to make a living. She organized a fund raiser, called “Pagkain Para Sa Pinoy,� and in just three days after she posted her target of P1 million cash donations, she was able to raise a whopping P3.3 million. She said she will personally make sure that the food items will reach the target beneficiaries.

Comedienne-actress Pokwang, who is known in showbiz circles as the queen of her kitchen, initially made sandwiches to be distributed to the frontliners of the current crises. She then went on to add relief items that she personally distributed to those she felt needed these most.

Anjo Resurreccion, former boy band member turned actor and fitness specialist, also went online to offer free workout coaching sessions. “It’s my small way of sharing what I know best during these

JOHNNY DEPP’S LIBEL CASE AGAINST U.K. TABLOID STALLED BY VIRUS LONDON—Johnny Depp’s libel suit against British tabloid The Sun was put on hold on Friday as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Depp is suing the newspaper’s parent company, News Group Newspapers, and executive editor Dan Wootton over a 2018 article claiming he was violent and abusive to his ex-wife Amber Heard.

A trial had been due to start on Monday at the High Court in London, with Depp, Heard and other celebrities due to give evidence. But judge Andrew Nicol said Friday that he had “reached the reluctant conclusion that the trial does have to be adjourned.�

The judge said two of Depp’s legal representatives had already had to self-isolate because of the virus, and added that “no-one can predict whether others involved in the case, and I do not exclude myself, will either become infected or need to self-isolate.�

Depp’s lawyer, Jennifer Afia, told a preliminary hearing this week that the actor was at a “remote location� in the south of France and could not travel because of restrictions imposed to fight the pandemic. But the newspaper’s attorney, Adam Wolanski, alleged Depp wanted to delay the trial

“because he’s a coward and because he knows he’s going to lose.� He said that despite the pandemic, Heard was willing to travel from Los Angeles to London to testify, or to give evidence by video.

Depp, 56, and Heard, 33, met on the set of 2011 comedy The Rum Diary and married in Los Angeles in February 2015. They divorced in 2017. Depp is also suing Heard for libel in the United States. AP

uncertain and stressful times. Health is wealth and while most of the workout places are closed, it does not mean that we should stop exercising,� he said.

Celebrities, like actress Max Eigenmann, singer Nicole Asensio, and director Cholo Laurel have joined Resurreccion in his online fitness classes.

There are also ongoing free concerts on Facebook Live, like the one spearheaded by National Artist for Music Ryan Cayabyab with special guest performers making time and lending their gift of voice and music.

Former TV host, artist and cancer survivor Robert Alejandro also went online to conduct free art sessions for those who want to learn to draw and be creative. “I am very happy that a lot of people have been drawing, creating and having fun in my classes, most especially the children,� he enthused.

There is so much love to give and things to share during these uncertain times. Let us continue to be kind, generous, safe and healthy. It does not take too much to spread the love. â–

GMA CONTINUES COVERAGE OF COVID-19

ACCORDING to media giant GMA Network, it remains committed to providing the public with reliable information about the global pandemic that is Covid-19. In a statement, the company said: “GMA Network reaffirms its commitment to ‘Serbisyong Totoo’ as it continues to deliver the latest news and information across all its platforms amid the Covid-19 pandemic. “In compliance, however, to the government’s Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine and as part of the network’s ongoing measures to ensure the safety and well-being of its personnel, GMA is currently operating on a skeletal work force and has adapted special work arrangements, including work from home, for its employees. This is in addition to the earlier announced temporary suspension of production of all networkproduced entertainment programs. “But the network understands that during these times, reliable news and information is greatly needed by the public.

As such, viewers could stay up-to-date by watching newscasts and other breaking news on GMA, which is now airing a new programming lineup. Beginning March 21, GMA News TV will air DZBB programs and simulcast GMA primetime newscast 24 Oras. “Listeners can still tune in via Super Radyo DZBB 594khz, Barangay LS 97.1 and the rest of Radio GMA stations across the country. Netizens, on the other hand, will still be updated via GMA News Online together with the network’s official social-media accounts.�

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Keep everything moving along. If you waffle or become inconsistent, you will have to make up for lost time. Don’t overanalyze when all that’s required is putting one foot in front of the other. ★★★★★

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Be receptive, but don’t let anyone take advantage of you.

Concentrate on what you do best and how to get ahead. Don’t sit back if someone tries to steal your thunder. ★★★

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Spend more time fleshing out your plans with someone who shares your sentiments. A couple of changes implemented now can ward off a problem later on. A kind gesture will encourage others to open up to you regarding sensitive issues. ★★★

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Don’t rely on anyone except yourself if you want things done correctly. Make an innovative decision that will help you get your point across. Say what’s on your mind, and commit to someone willing to meet you halfway. ★★★

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Get ready to execute your plan. Change is overdue, and it’s up to you to make it happen. Ask for what you want, and go after your dreams. There are plenty of opportunities waiting for you to scoop up and get started. ★★★

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Words and truth matter. Conversations will be challenging to decipher, and the truth is likely to be exaggerated. You can’t control what others do, but you can make sure that you don’t contribute to giving people the wrong impression. ★★

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): What goes around comes around. What you’ve experienced can help you make a better decision now. The element of surprise will work in your favor. A last-minute change will give you the edge you need when faced with competition. Romance is favored. ★★★★

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Let go of the past. Refuse to let temptation get the better of you. Investing in something risky or unhealthy because someone is coaxing you to get involved will bring you down. Show discipline and courage. ★★★

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Consider what brings you joy, and head in that direction. If you need to pick up additional skills, do so; if reconnecting with someone you have worked alongside in the past will help you move forward now, make the call. ★★★ BIRTHDAY BABY: You are impulsive, original and persuasive.

You are aggressive and respectful.

‘chopping block’ BY MIRA MARTIN-GRAY & NIAMH GIRLING The Universal Crossword/Edited by David Steinberg

ACROSS 1 Gulp (down) 5 “___ cheer captain and I’m on the bleachers� (Taylor Swift) 9 Org. opposed to factory farming 13 Inkling 14 Condemns 15 Iridescent gem 16 Tender cut of meat 17 Concur 18 Singer Lopes dubbed “Left Eye�

19 London public square (last 3 letters +...)

21 Dog’s “kisses� (...first 3) 22 “___, old chap!�

23 Nanny or billy 25 National dish of South Korea (last 3 +...)

28 Remnants (...first 3) 32 Suffix for “expert�

33 Kind of haircut that’s usually cheaper 34 Male foal 35 Pastry often filled with fruit 37 Chew toy retailer 38 Tend to a pot 39 Per person

40 “Better ___ than never�

41 Two days after Tue. 42 Pencil in, perhaps (last 2 +...)

44 Barely make, like a living (...first 2) 47 “Oktober� follower 48 Radio switch 49 Zested fruit (last 2 +...)

52 The linkage in NaCl, for one (...first 3) 57 Above 58 Draft in a window?

59 Vicinity 60 DJ’s opener?

61 Los Angeles museum, with “The�

62 Peruse, as the news 63 Otherwise 64 Workplace safety org.

65 Nut containing caffeine DOWN 1 What unwatered flowers do 2 Gym bag smell 3 Princess of Alderaan 4 Amateur’s noncanonical story, for short 5 Like neglected cereal 6 Jewish wedding dance 7 Act of coming into view

8 9 10 11 12 14 20 21 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 33 36 37 43 44 45 46 48 49 50

Juneau-to-Vancouver dir.

Risky first-date topic Grand tale Job “Woe is me!� ___ Lama Volcano output Long.’s partner, on a GPS ___ buco Diamonds in the sky, e.g.?

Son of Abraham Band T-shirts, posters, etc.

Sporty Chevy “What’s Love ___ Do With It�

Yale in Yale history Showy gait 8, 12 and 6, say Energy field in a galaxy far, far away “Also...�

Bear’s home Innovative poet Dickinson Chain with Popcorn Nuggets Set out Songwriter Baker Mother ___ Wickedness

51 53 54 55 56 58

Clutter Swear word, or swearing-in words Cookies and cream cookie Hud actress Patricia Anti-war anti-art movement Swelled head

Solution to Friday’s puzzle:

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Style

BusinessMirror

Monday, March 23, 2020

B5

CLOCKWISE: June Samson Pugat, Batac City, Ilocos Norte; Alma Mae Roa, Cagayan de Oro City; Domz Ramos, Taguig City; Bo Parcon, Iloilo City; and Renan Jay Pacson, San Antonio, Nueva Ecija

‘Caremongering’ TOTA PULCHRA MISS CHARLIZE

@misscharlize

F

IRST, our gratitude to the heath workers and all those in the frontlines of fighting Covid-19. Almost half of my family and a number of my friends are in the medical field, so the mental torture brought about by this crisis can be agonizing.

We worry about the informal settlers who live in cramped spaces, negating the “social distancing” directive. We worry about the soldiers who sleep in cardboard boxes after manning checkpoints overnight. We worry about the elderly who are the most vulnerable to Covid-19. We worry about the health professionals who suffer from insufficient medical supplies.

But, as always, there’s hope. In times of anxiety, people rise and help each other. In Canada, the land said to be with the kindest people, a goodwill movement called “caremongering” sprouted in social media. “Scaremongering is a big problem,” Valentina Harper tells the BBC. She set up the first “caremongering” group with Mita Hans in Toronto.

“We wanted to switch that around and get people to connect on a positive level, to connect with each other.

It’s spread the opposite of panic in people, brought out community and camaraderie, and allowed us to tackle the needs of those who are at-risk all the time—now more than ever.”

The acts of kindness has spread worldwide, like delivering soup to the elderly in the UK, teaching an exercise class to quarantined residents in Spain, or providing transportation to construction workers

who were about to continue walking home from Parañaque to Tarlac.

Also, hereabouts even the different levels of community quarantine can’t contain the creativity of designers. Add to this their kindheartedness, and they channeled this energy to create masks for free for our frontliners against Covid-19, following the standard and safety designs of medical masks. The masks are all washable. And fashionable.

Yes, caremongering has always been alive and well in our country. We call it bayanihan.

JUNE SAMSON PUGAT BATAC CITY, ILOCOS NORTE “I WAS in Manila for fabric sourcing the same day that President Duterte announced the community quarantine which became effective March 15. I traveled back to Ilocos evening of March 13. I had to follow the directive to self-quarantine as soon as I got home. Fourteen days was recommended but I’m extending just to be sure,” said June, a finalist at the recent Ternocon 2020.

In isolation, June created a prototype of a face mask which he intends to produce more of, to be donated to the Mariano Marcos Memorial Hospital and possibly some rural health centers in several barangays. He is also reserving a few for some of his regular clients in Laoag. “I made an inabel face mask with cotton voile lining and cotton voile-covered garter for added comfort, thanks to [fellow designers] Ulysses King for that tip, and to Lhenvil Paneda for the pattern,” June said. “The lining is an overlap pocket where tissue/ paper towel could be inserted. A kiss of butterflies for added whimsy [some will have floral lace appliqué] to hopefully brighten up the day of whoever wears or sees it. I’ll be giving them to our local medical frontliners through my clients who are mostly doctors.”

RENAN JAY PACSON, SAN ANTONIO, NUEVA ECIJA RENAN is the in-house designer of Art Personas, a design collective based in Makati City. But being a

“promdi ghorl at heart,” he never stays long in the metro and goes home to Nueva Ecjia, where his production house is, after meetings and fittings.

The first 250 masks he is making, with the help of two in-house sewers, are made from thick neoprene.

The materials are a surplus from his “Madame X” collection, inspired by Madonna but more by the John Singer Sargent painting. It was shown at the last Panasonic Manila Fashion Festival, the holiday staging of which was slated on April 21 to 24 but will be moved to a later date.

“My sister works in a bank, so I started with giving out masks to her workmates. Then to our immediate neighbors because when they are safe, we are safe also. The next batch will be for our neighboring barangay,” Renan explained. “Since there are no readily available filter or nonwoven material, we are putting dried wet wipes in the masks, because that’s more available in our province.”

DOMZ RAMOS, TAGUIG CITY AFTER Taal Volcano erupted in January, stylistturned-designer Domz Ramos donated face masks to people affected by the ash emissions. And when face masks became scarce as Covid-19 struck, he again spurred his team to produce more to donate to those most at risk of infection.

The masks are made of cotton fabric. To date, Domz has donated about a thousand masks to the National Kidney and Transplant Institute, Qualimed Hospital (Santa Rosa, Laguna), Children’s Hospital and the Philippine General Hospital. With the help of his staff and relatives, he has also made masks for his neighbors and frontliners at Barangay Bagumbayan, Taguig City. Domz is the official swimwear designer of Binibining Pilipinas 2020. Before the lockdown and the suspension of pageant activities, he was able to finish the swimwear of the candidates for their press presentation and photo shoots. But what he is most proud of at the moment is being able to give masks to the elderly nuns of the Daughters of Saint Francis in Better Living, Parañaque.

“I’m so touched because they sent me a thank-you

note and a rosary,” Domz said.

BO PARCON, ILOILO CITY BO, the city’s most famous designer, spearheaded Vestido Ilongga 2020, a competition and fashion show with special emphasis on the region’s indigenous hablon. After the successful staging of the event in late February, Bo is encouraging his fellow designers to create masks for frontliners against Covid-19.

With his assistants Anilyn and Ginalyn, he began making masks even before the city registered its first confirmed case. “The material that I use is doublelayered stretch cotton that you can put filter on the center,” Bo said. “The beneficiaries for the masks are Don Benito Hospital, Iloilo Provincial Hospital, Western Visayas Medical Hospital, and Mission Hospital. The others are individual persons.”

ALMA MAE ROA, CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY JUST like when she was the point person for fashion donors during the fund-raising and relief operations when the city was ravaged by Typhoon Sendong in 2011, Alma Mae is once again leading the efforts to produce more masks for Covid-19 frontliners.

“We made around 600 pieces at my shop, Cameron, before the lockdown. We gave them to doctors and nurses at the Northern Mindanao Medical Center, Capitol University Medical Center and JR Borja General Hospital. We also gave to the Department of Foreign Affairs, PhilHealth, one department at city hall, and some close friends who came to me personally,” Alma Mae said.

Her masks are made of cotton printed material, designed to have a hole at the center where a filter can be inserted. She laments, though, that she can’t cope with the increasing need for more masks. So she asked help from people who have sewing machines at home.

“I gave all the neoprene materials I have in the shop to those who responded to my call for help in producing the masks. They were able to make 400 pieces so far. The masks will be distributed to the elderly, to church mates, military men, and many more frontliners and health-care workers.” ■

Beauty community pauses for coronavirus pandemic AND THEN SOME DINNA CHAN VASQUEZ @dinnachanvasquez luckydinna@gmail.com

AS I write this, I have been on quarantine for eight days and I have no reason to complain. But cabin fever seems to have hit so many rich people that they are spouting stuff like “The Earth will reset” and “We are the virus. Covid-19 is the cure.”

However, I’m not here to talk about that.

I haven’t applied anything on my face except my skin-care products, sunscreen and lip balm. I have been asked what lipstick I wear under a mask when I go out. One, I don’t go out and I am beyond grateful that at my age, I don’t have to paint my face to do the simplest tasks. Two, even before the lockdown I didn’t care what lipstick or other makeup I wore under my mask. My mask looks disgusting after I have taken it off but I don’t care.

Anyway, on to worthier news. In Her Element, a brand created by Liz Lanuzo, is donating 100 percent of the proceeds from sales of its lip product Butterlips from March 19 to April to the Philippine General Hospital. “The money

will go to funding more PPEs for the medical staff; they need to purchase more N95 masks, surgical masks, face shields, surgical gowns and alcohol,” according to the brand’s web site.

Liz is also the founder of beauty resource web site Project Vanity. Butterlips is “a balm lipstick hybrid that delivers a juicy wash of moisturizing color on the lips.” It’s kind of like Dior Lip Glow but less expensive at P345. Get yours at www. inherelement.ph.

Rhea Tan of Beautederm Corp. has been very active on the Covid-19 front with donations of gallons of ethyl alcohol 70 percent solution to frontliners in Pampanga. The solution, which isn’t for sale and only for donation, is manufactured by Beautederm.

In France, the factories that produce perfume and makeup for brands like Christian Dior and Givenchy are now manufacturing hand sanitizers.

The French luxury conglomerate LVMH will deliver the free disinfectant to French authorities and the Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, the largest hospital system in Europe. “Through this initiative, LVMH intends to help address the risk of a lack of product in France and enable a greater number of people to continue to take the right action to protect themselves from the spread of the virus. LVMH will continue to honor this commitment for as long as necessary, in connection with the French health authorities,” the company said in a statement.

Dior is dedicating its production site Saint-Jean-De-Braye to produce large quantities of hydroalcoholic gel for free delivery to the French health authorities as priority to Paris’s

PARFUMS GIVENCHY, Dior and Guerlain are making huge quantities of hydroalcoholic gel to be distributed for free to French authorities and the Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, the largest hospital system in Europe. @GIVENCHYBEAUTY ON INSTAGRAM

public hospital network.

“We are proud to take part of this initiative, launched

by LVMH, alongside those of Givenchy and Guerlain.

LVMH will continue to honor this commitment for as long as necessary. We all stand united in this fight against Covid-19,” said @diormakeup on Instagram.

Also, so many people have asked me what to apply to their hands, which have been left dry (and sometimes itchy) by handwashing and alcohol application. By chance, I got to watch the IGTV video of aesthetician Joanna Czech, who pointed out that the skin is the body’s largest organ. Thus, healthy skin means a strong immune system.

To keep the hands clean, Joanna suggests bringing a foldable travel toothbrush and using this to brush under the fingernails.

She pointed out that all the things we have been using to keep our hands clean lately—alcohol, bleach, wipes and others—are making the skin very dry.

Joanna suggests rubbing a bit of Neosporin over the cuticles and nail bed after washing and/or disinfecting, and following this with a rich moisturizing cream. For that, she recommends something I have been telling a lot of people to use—face creams that don’t work for their faces. Face creams are normally richer than body creams so they could work.

I don’t know how long we’d be on quarantine. I am honestly thinking it could last up to three months but whatever happens, the first two things I’m going to do following this lockdown are have my brows waxed and get a mani-pedi.

B6 Monday, March 23, 2020 B8

Metrobank and GT Capital Holdings Group pledge over PhP 200M for COVID-19 crisis response

Save the Children Philippines urges health support for vulnerable groups who face more risks to COVID-19

S

AVE the Children Philippines is calling on health and local government authorities to prioritize deprived and marginalized families and their children who are more at risk to Coronavirus acute respiratory disease 2019 (COVID-19) due to their lack of access to health services.

The call was made after President Duterte announced on Monday the implementation of Luzon-wide Enhanced Community Quarantine. The order imposes a strict home quarantine and suspension of mass transportation for one month from March 17 to April 17, 2020 to prevent further spread of COVID-19. There are now 142 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the Philippines as of Wednesday (March 17, 2020) with 12 deaths.

The Child Rights-based group also raised concern on the first case of COVID-19 transmission to a 13-year-old girl in Quezon City. The girl, who is the country’s 135th confirmed case has no history of travel to other countries affected by COVID-19.

Atty. Alberto Muyot, Chief Executive Officer of Save the Children Philippines, said while COVID-19 threatens the general public, there are communities more vulnerable to suffer further socioeconomic marginalization due to the impact of the viral disease that has been declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization.

There are more than 15 million (DOLE, 2018) parents and caregivers who rely

heavily on the informal economy or whose earnings require them to use public transport, sell items and render services in crowded places or streets.

The elderly, particularly those with preexisting conditions, along with children and adults with disabilities, indigenous people, and the urban poor are also vulnerable to the COVID-19 spread. The conditions of these vulnerable communities such as food insecurity, malnutrition and inadequate delivery of basic service compromise their resistance to diseases and predispose them further more serious health conditions.

“Children whose parents need to stay in high density areas to earn a living, or those living in hard to reach areas with no access to clean water are among the most vulnerable to the COVID-19,” said Atty. Muyot.

Children and families who belong to indigenous peoples are vulnerable to the COVID-19 spread due to their limited access to health and other social services, facilities, technologies, and do not have enough opportunities to cope also need urgent support from the local government units and health authorities.

“We call on the government to give these vulnerable groups priority assistance, and also engage them in decision-making processes for their response, recovery, and preparedness,” said Atty. Muyot.

T

T

HE Metrobank and GT Capital Holdings group stand with all Filipinos in facing the challenges brought on by COVID-19. The Ty family-led companies are pledging support to manage the disruption and provide meaningful assistance to customers, employees, and partners who most need help in these difficult times. Aside from the assistance already being extended to impacted customers and displaced employees, a pledge of a P200M fund will go towards

initiatives that directly support the fight against the virus. These initiatives will be managed by the respective Foundations of the Group and will start with efforts to produce the test kits developed by the University of the Philippines-National Institutes of Health (UPNIH) and the purchase of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for frontline health workers.

The Group will continuously monitor the evolving situation and will implement further measures as needed.

Egg consumption drive goes digital

T

HE Philippine Association of Breeders and Layers Inc. (PABLI) and the Department of Agriculture - Livestock (DA) have initiated the launch of the official website and social media pages to boost the campaign in increasing egg consumption in

the country on March 11, 2020 at Quezon City Circle. These organizations find it viable to promote egg consumption online by sharing useful tips and information on how to prepare and cook various nutritious egg dishes for everyone.

Seated L-R Edwin . Chen of Bounty, Ms. Ellen Samano of Sparks Manila; Mr. Pol Mendoza- Pres. PABLI,. Dr. William Medrano - DA-Asst.

Secretary for Livestock; Dr. Ronnie Domingo- Director, Bureau of Animal Industry. Standing - L-R: Tux Siddayao, PABLI Secretariat, Mr. Paul Yu of Welissa Farm, Dr. Herman Cruz Jr. Technical Director PABLI, Mr. Arthur Baron - Director PABLI; Dr. Dante Palabrica - Director PABLI; Mr. Juanito Ho; Vice-Pres. PABLI; Mr. William Belo; Directro PABLI; Mr. Lary Neil Abao - Representative DA AMAS.

Creba calls off business meet amidst covid threats

HE Chamber of Real Estate and Builders’ Associations, Inc. (CREBA) has postponed its March 26, 2020 monthly business meeting in Makati City in support of government efforts towards social distancing and safe spaces following the rise of COVID-19 cases in the country.

This was announced by Charlie A. V. Gorayeb, CREBA national chairman and Noel Toti M. Carino, national president.

Gorayeb said the CREBA national gathering will be put off to a later date to ensure the health and safety of its members, composed mainly of business leaders in the

real estate and housing development sector.

Only last month, the group called for clean, safe and healthy buildings and communities as fear of the fast-spreading and fatal corona virus disease gripped populations worldwide.

The World Health Organization said reported cases of COVID-19 affliction has crossed 100,000 cases in 100 countries across the globe, with over 100 in the Philippines.

Cariño said that CREBA believes all sectors must share in a collective and organized bid to shield people from all walks of life, regardless of nationality, from the corona virus outbreak

while ensuring that business activities can proceed as usual without putting the public’s health and lives at risk.

And while the group strongly supports global disease prevention and control, the two CREBA leaders also called for restraint and warns against irresponsible sharing of fake news and unverified information which would breed more panic and racist discrimination that will only jeopardize government and public efforts to contain the COVID-19 outbreak which the WHO has declared to have reached the status of a global pandemic.

GSIS implements measures for the safety of its employees and pensioners

P

URSUANT to Republic Act No. 11332, Presidential Proclamation Nos. 929 and 922 (series 2020), and Civil Service Commission (CSC) Announcement No. 13, s. 2020 directing government agencies to adopt measures to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus, the Management of the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) is hereby implementing the following measures in order to ensure the safety of its members, pensioners and employees.

The GSIS Head Office, Quezon City Branch Office (QCBO) and all GSIS branch/extension offices located in Luzon shall be closed to the public from 16 March 2020 to 12 April 2020.

All senior executives, department heads and branch managers in the aforementioned areas are instructed to implement “work-from-home” and/or rotational duty assignments (skeleton workforce) for their respective personnel at their own

discretion, in line with the GSIS Business Continuity Plan (BCP) and the guidelines set by the CSC on alternative working arrangements.

Despite the lockdown, GSIS shall continue to accept loan applications via GWAPS. Pension payments shall likewise be credited to old-age and survivorship pensioners during the first week of the month, as usual.

Effective 17 March 2020, however, the following GSIS operations shall be temporarily suspended (applicable only to NCR and Luzon): Filing and processing of retirement/separation benefit claims; Filing and processing of nonlife insurance claims. For renewal of property insurance policies requested on or before 17 March 2020, a cover note will be issued for a period of 60 days to provide continuity of cover; Filing and processing of GSIS Financial Assistance Loan (GFAL) applications nationwide is suspended for two (2) months starting 14 March

2020. Consequently, GFAL program will be extended to 30 September 2020; Processing of requests for renewal of active status (APIR) of pensioners residing locally and abroad; Enrollment of members and releasing of GSIS UMID eCards; A one-month extension is hereby granted on all premium remittances and loan payments due this March.

Premium remittances and loan payments due on March and April may be settled on or before 10 May 2020, without penalty; and A one-month extension is also granted on all housing loan amortization payments and rental payments for GSIS investment properties falling due on March 2020.

Rental and amortization payments due for the months of March and April 2020 may be settled on or before 10 May 2020, without penalty; and All other GSIS programs and corporate events are likewise suspended.

PhilHealth to release P30 billion to hospitals to fight CoViD-19

T

HE Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) is releasing an initial P30 billion to accredited hospitals to help them respond to the onslaught of CoViD-19 in the country. The move utilizes its interim reimbursement mechanism (IRM) which will provide health care providers with the much needed liquidity to adequately respond to the pandemic.

PhilHealth said that the amount is equivalent to three months’ worth of claims based on historical data, which will be charged to their future claims. Hospitals will be asked to submit a letter of intent to avail of the mechanism. This will include

including those facing sanctions for various violations of their contracts with the national health insurer.

The arrangement is also part of PhilHealth’s efforts to reduce returnto-hospital payables filed in 2019 and earlier, and to further increase payments to hospitals.

“PhilHealth rests on solid ground and with sufficient liquidity to support Government’s efforts to fight the CoVid-19 threat. These are extraordinary times that require extraordinary measures, and this arrangement will surely be of help in President Rodrigo Duterte’s resolve to avert the spread of the virus.”

PhilHealth President and CEO Ricardo C. Morales said.

Further, the state health insurer will also provide its members and service partners with additional relief in view of the recent declaration of a state of public health emergency in the country by extending the deadline of payment of contributions for its self-paying direct contributors.

They can now pay their first quarter contributions on or before April 30, 2020 instead of March 31, 2020 without interest.

Moreover, its policy on single period of confinement and 45-days coverage are also waived in favor of the member, while the filing period for claims is also extended from the usual 60 days to at least 120 days in favor of the health care providers.

Marketing BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Monday, March 23, 2020 B7

Coronavirus updates:

By Millie F. Dizon

INCE news of the coronavirus broke out early this year, the media has been in overdrive keeping up with news of outbreaks, lockdowns, and lives forever changed in what the World Health Organization recently termed as a “pandemic.”

Seeing how the virus story has become a PR story, we earlier came up with two columns on this. The first, Communications in the Age of Coronavirus by the undersigned, talked about how PR pros will need to provide clarity about what is a rapidly evolving situation. As early as its publication on February 10, 2020, it showed how iconic global brands were letting the public know about their safety precautions, which in a sense is PR. The following week, my colleague Karen Villanueva, who has worked in the health industry for many years, reiterated the importance of Communicating in the Midst of a Health Emergency: Lessons Being Learned from the Covid-19 Crisis.

She emphasized the importance of communicating with clarity, authority, and empathy in the midst of misinformation; and offered some observations and suggestions from the health and PR point of view.

Today, as the situation unfolds, and with governments all over the world doing their best to keep their people healthy and protected, we have come to realize how the outbreak is impacting business—dramatic stock market drops, largescale postponements or travel cancellations.

In the article “Five Ways PR Pros Can Deal with the Coronavirus Fallout,” on prnewsonline.com, Nicole Schuman says that “organizations need to assess what’s most important to communicate to a concerned public.”

She adds that “whatever the type of brand, reacting and preparing for a coronavirus outbreaks should follow the rules of a typical PR crisis.

Looking at crisis strategy can help brands get a headstart on how to communicate with their audiences.”

n Digital: Free Access to G Suite for Education Helps Schools in the Philippines Facilitate Virtual Classes

MANILA, PHILIPPINES—As many educational institutions are facing or planning for temporary campus closures due to Covid-19, Google is providing distance learning tools, training, and resources to help them stay connected through G Suite for Education.

G Suite for Education is a set of free productivity tools built for teaching and learning which includes Hangouts (for video and voice conferencing), Gmail, Docs, Slides, Sheets, Forms and Google Classroom. With this, schools that need to continue with their curriculum can conduct distance learning where teachers and students can remain productive and make valuable learning time despite not being in one physical classroom together.

Student engagement and social emotional learning

Keeping students engaged and sustaining their emotional health are possible in the distance learning setup.

For a more engaging virtual class, teachers can ask students to join a discussion in Google Classroom (using the Stream) to share their thoughts on a certain topic. They can also use comments in Google Docs and Classroom to continue the two-

Scaliger | Dreamstime.com

PR Matters

Travel, communications, best practices S

Since the travel industry has been one of those most affected by the crisis, we will discuss how some brands have dealt with it, and at the same time highlight some of the best practices airlines, travel agencies, and cruise ships have shown so far.

ment is at the top, or in a central location, where consumers do not have to scroll far down the page. If information is too hard to find, it won’t be found. Put yourself in the shoes of a consumer who may not see the web site everyday as you do.”

Tips for travel communicators

With the coronavirus whirling the travel industry in a tailspin, companies are stepping forward to embrace the consumer and communicate decisions made in their best interests.

Schuman notes that, “to help travelers, airlines and cruise companies are introducing temporary beneficial cancellation policies. Jetblue is waiving change and cancellation fees on new flights booked between February 27 and Mach 11; cancellations will result in a credit.”

On the other hand, “Norwegian Cruise Lines is extending the time passengers can make final payments for its June and July sailings, as well as allowing them to change to another cruise time on or before June 30. Crystal Cruises is offering sick travelers the opportunity to cancel their cruise within the next seven days in exchange for a 100-percent refund or future credit of 125 percent.”

In Schuman’s article, Sara Joseph, SVP of lifestyle and hospitality at Berlin Rosen advises companies to treat outbreaks similarly as other unexpected crises.

Joseph, who has worked with travel clients during outbreaks of Zika and SARS, adds that it is important “to ensure that updated travel information is readily available. It’s important for people to understand, in real-time, what health organizations are advising, and how this affects a company’s travel policies.”

And if you are looking to distribute information, Schuman stresses that we should “make it easy for people to find.” The best place to post urgent policy news is “on the homepage of your web site, with a link to more information. In addition, you should e-mail constituents.”

When communicating, “use bold colors. Make sure your announce-

way discussion.

For social emotional learning, teachers can have mood check-ins for students to share their emotional state on a daily basis using Google Forms, Within the Form, students can request a conference with the teacher if they need extra support.

Educators can also set up a private blog for students to reflect on the experience by journaling or video recording.

“We’re committed to supporting our users, partners, and the broader local community during this challenging time. We hope that our distance learning tools, such as G Suite for Education, training, and resources can help our teachers and students stay connected at home and continue with their curriculum as needed,” said Bernadette Nacario, country director, Google Philippines.

To learn more, visit Google for Education hub and The Keyword blog. Check this YouTube webinar from the University of the Philippines on how to convert classes online using Google Classroom.

Schools interested to set up a G Suite for Education account may write an e-mail to education@qsr.com.ph.

n Music: 6cyclemind and Sony Music PHL Thank the Band’s Fans with an AllCovers Record Featuring Fan Submissions

MANILA, PHILIPPINES—In an effort to show appreciation to the fans who have been through their musical journey, 6cyclemind recently teamed up with Sony Music Philippines for “Sige I-Cover Mo Lang Project.” The initiative, which was supposed to be an independent project, encouraged

fans to submit covers of their favorite songs from the band’s catalog.

“Throughout our career, we have been touring different parts of the country,” vocalist Tutti Caringal said. “We are lucky to witness how our audience, even from far-flung areas, sing our songs with us. This is indeed a very magical feeling.

Online, we can also view our fans cover our songs. This makes us feel that, somehow, through our music, we have touched their lives. This is the reason why we have decided to do this project.”

With No. 1 singles, best-selling albums, and sold-out shows, 6cyclemind continues to gain foothold in the local music industry. Their latest project is a testament to their growing and respectable discography, a proof of their legacy as a band known for their heartfelt and rousing anthems.

Fan involvement

The five-piece pop-rock act did not set some specific criteria for the fan submissions, and accepted all entries—whether phone recordings, changed tempo or genre.

6cyclemind lead guitarist Herbert Hernandez added, “We gave them the freedom to interpret the song of their choice. While screening the entries, we followed our gut feel and looked for the cover that will move us. There were many entries that we really liked. It was difficult for the band to eliminate the other submissions because we had to limit it to just 3. Part 2, perhaps?”

2020 version of “Biglaan”

From the pool of submissions, Bianca’s stripped-down version

Best practices

of “Biglaan” stood out the most.

It earned a spot as one of the first among the three winners of the all-covers record. “Whenever I want to cover songs, I usually just search for the chords and let myself feel the music,” the budding artist said. “I was pretty melancholic during these times so my general approach was to make the song softer and downcast which is what I usually do to songs I usually sing.”

According to Bianca, the project “was such a great platform to thank the band’s fans and also give opportunities to artists” like her.

The 16-year-old singer-songwriter recorded the song at Backdoor Recording Studio, and it was produced by 6cyclemind.

n Insight: KUMU Community Head James Rumohr Shares His Thoughts on Building Positive Online Communities MANILA, PHILIPPINES—Most military men are disciplined and driven to success. People look up to these dedicated individuals who personify community leadership and strategic troubleshooting. All these positives and more are what can also be said about KUMU partner James Rumohr, a seven-year military police officer of the United States Air Force (USAF) who now busies himself these days as the chief of staff and head of Kumunity for the mobile app.

A soldier and everyday hero

James’s service in the USAF has equipped him of the necessary tools to hold various top management roles in his storied career. Testament to that is his Air Force Achievement

Airline assurances

More recently airlines have stepped up, reaching out to their stakeholders, including mileage holders, in a very personal way.

Turkish Airlines Miles and Smiles members, for example, received a personally addressed letter from its Chairman of the Board and the Executive Committee M. llker Ayci, saying “We Care About You.” The letter, among other things, details how the aircraft undergoes a thorough cleaning process; and how during flights, the air in the cabin is constantly refreshed, “completely changed 15 to 30 times per hour.”

Qatar Airways and Emirates have, likewise, sent our similar letters to their stakeholders, and have included Covid -19 Updates in their web sites. Qatar Airways updates has information on flight alerts, service alternations, and entry to Qatar; while Emirates travel updates include a news flash, flight suspension information, security alerts, and operational changes.

Such gestures generate a lot of goodwill for the airlines during these difficult times.

Hotel hospitality

Hotels are similarly taking that extra mile to reach out to their

and Air Force Commendation medals for his operational leadership skills.

But the trait that most of his colleagues instantly detect in James is his innate passion for people and Kumunity. He has worked in various California public school districts and in nonprofit organizations for a good 10 years as a senior program manager, a teacher, and dean of students, while also serving as a sports coach to the disadvantaged youth of Northern California.

This year, James has shifted his passion online and puts on his everyday hero hat and study what Kumu users need to blossom into a “Kumunity” of storytellers and content creators that can inspire more people all over the world. “Fostering good Kumunity support begins with listening to the stories of our user community and acknowledging their unique experiences,” he explains.

“Encouraging the Kumunity to be their authentic selves eliminates false narratives and allows support toward each other on a more personal level,” he adds.

A safe space for every Filipino online

James’s vision for these Kumunities is to create a transparent culture of support and genuine care among users which has now been quite evident to many since the mobile app’s launch in August 2018. “Creating a positive Kumunity culture starts with a committed intention to provide users a positive, safe and welcoming environment,” he shares emphasizing how Kumu has become the number one platform for Filipinos all over the world because it places importance on how many of its users

stakeholders. Hilton President & CEO Chris Nassetta wrote a letter to Hilton Honors members saying he “wanted to reach out to you personally about what we are doing here at Hilton to support you and your travel plans.”

He added that the company is doing everything to ensure their travel safety and provide maximum flexibility, including maintaining the highest standards of safety and hygiene, offering flexible travel options, and pausing the expiration of all points scheduled to expire between now and May 31, 2020.

Marriot International President and CEO Arne Sorenson, on the other hand, shared how “our hearts and thoughts go out to the people who have been affected by this unprecedented event,” expressing appreciation for “health-care workers, local communities, and governments around the world who are on the frontline working to contain this virus.”

He also gave an update on what they are doing for the safety and well-being of their guests. These include hygiene and health measures, flexibility in reservations, and close coordination with the World Health Organization, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and local health agencies for the latest developments related to Covid-19.

All these steps show extra care for keeping passengers and guests healthy, as well as working with the latest facts around the crisis. And that is good PR. PR Matters is a roundtable column by members of the local chapter of the United Kingdom-based International Public Relations Association (Ipra), the world’s premier association for senior professionals around the world. Millie F. Dizon, the senior vice president for Marketing and Communications of SM, is the former local chairman.

We are devoting a special column each month to answer the reader’s questions about public relations.

Please send your comments and questions to askipraphil@gmail.com.

voice out their ideas, interests, beliefs and views.

“We encourarge our Kumunity to support each other in everything they do via the app,” says James. This strategic outlook has led Kumu to be the premier social-media app for Filipinos who are looking for a positive and welcoming culture both on and offline.

For James, there are mainly three things to build an online positive community.

By cultivating and activating user groups to offer their mutual support, Kumunizens experience a spirit of camaraderie and belongingness.

By offering online activities that are accessible and available for all user groups, the platform fosters a culture of inclusivity—a safe space for users to be who they want to be and be accepted into a community of like-minded people. Kumu somehow helps in breaking the barriers and fears that seclude some users into online anonymity and out into a welcoming platform where they can be themselves.

Kumu ensures that users’ voices are heard in decision-making for their events.

With James’s expertise, Kumu remains successful in allowing users to break bread with peers on a broader scale via the app, and establish a Kumunity that keeps on getting stronger. It’s not that hard to expect how it may be just a matter of time when more Filipinos from all over the world go online via Kumu, create bigger Kumunities, and get the strength in numbers that can someday make impactful social differences whether at scale or globally.

And all salute will go to none other than James.

Sports BusinessMirror

B8 Monday, March 23, 2020

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

BMX CHAMP DANNY CALUAG

AT THE FRONTLINE

By Jun Lomibao

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DANIEL CALUAG (left) and wife Stephanie are at the frontline in US hospitals working as nurses and going home every day to daughters Sydney (second from left) and Kailani.

Olympics that never were: 1916, ‘40 and ‘44

W

ITH more and more calls to postpone the Tokyo Olympics because of the coronavirus outbreak, it’s worth noting that this every-four-years spectacle has been rocked before by traumatic events.

Three other times, the games were canceled altogether because of World War I (1916) and World War II (1940 and 1944)—and in those latter two quadrennials, both the Summer and Winter Games were shelved.

A look at the Olympic Games that never were:

winter events going to 1928 host Saint Moritz, Switzerland. A dispute with Swiss organizers led to one more change, as the Winter Games were shifted a second time to Garmisch-Partenkirchen, the German host in 1936 alongside Berlin.

Of course, after World War II erupted in September 1939 with Germany’s invasion of Poland, the Olympics were canceled altogether.

Tokyo would eventually get a chance to host the Summer Games in 1964—still the first Asian city to receive the honor—while Sapporo landed the 1972 Winter Games.

BERLIN was set to host the 1916 Summer Olympics (the Winter Games weren’t founded until 1924), beating bids from Alexandria, Amsterdam, Brussels, Budapest and Cleveland, according to GamesBids.com.

The German Empire even constructed a dazzling new facility to serve as the centerpiece of the Games. Known as Deutsches Stadion, it opened well ahead of the games in 1913.

After the World War !erupted in July 1914, preparations carried on for a while since no one expected the hostilities to last another two years. But the horrific war lasted until 1918, eventually forcing the Olympics to be canceled.

The Berlin stadium was demolished some two decades later and replaced by a new structure that would serve as the main stadium for the 1936 Summer Games, when the German capital finally got another chance to host.

Of course, Adolf Hitler had risen to power by then, leaving those Games to be remembered ominously for promoting the Nazi regime that would eventually lead the world into an even more catastrophic war.

Shortly before the outbreak of World War II, and after all that scrambling to find replacement hosts for 1940, the IOC awarded London the 1944 Summer Games in balloting that also included Athens, Budapest, Detroit, Helsinki, Lausanne, Montreal and Rome.

With England not a feasible host for the Winter Games, that event was awarded to Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.

The 1944 Olympics never had a chance.

World War II dragged on until the following year.

London would then be awarded the 1948 Summer Games, the first in a dozen years and staged in austere conditions as the city continued to recover from the war. In 2012, the British capital became the first three-time host.

Saint Moritz hosted the Winter Games for a second time in 1948, while Cortina eventually got another shot with the 1956 Winter Olympics. AP

1916

1944

HILE Danny Caluag was prepping for the London 2012 Olympics and winning gold medals at the Asian Games and Southeast Asian Games, the BMX star had his head dug deep into his desire to earn a degree in Nursing.

Caluag, whose parents—Daniel Ramos and Isabelita Manabat hail from Malolos (Bulacan) and Licab (Nueva Ecija), respectively—juggled time for training and competition at the world, continental and regional stage. Imagine how difficult it was for the elite BMXer to do both at the same time in the US. He earned his degree at Lindsey Wilson College in Lexington, Kentucky—simultaneously with his fellow world-class BMX rider, wife and personal coach Stephanie—in 2014, the same year he won the Philippines’s only gold medal at the Incheon Asian Games.

With the degree clinched, Caluag then focused on becoming a Registered Nurse. He did.

Caluag, 33, works at two hospitals, City of Hope and a local Urgent Care, and as a nurse, his services are badly needed during this new coronavirus pandemic that is hitting the US real hard.

“I work 12-hour shifts both for cancer research and for Urgent Care,” Caluag told the BusinessMirror over the weekend. “But being in Urgent Care, it is the frontline and you have to screen patient for any symptoms that walk through the door.”

At the City of Hope, which is a cancer

D

A GROUP of students from Uruguay pose for a souvenir picture on the Olympic Rings outside the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo as former Japanese swimmer Imoto Naoko holds the Olympic torch during the flame handover ceremony in Athens. AP

Virus won’t stop One fights

O

NE Championship will go on with its schedule but the fights will be held in empty

arenas.

The fights—according to One Founder, Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong—will go on at least until end-May. Emphasizing the health and safety of fighters, coaches and fans as the company’s top priority,

Sityodtong assured the public they will get nothing less than top-notch entertainment with the new format.

“For the millions of fans at home around the world, the show will go on from the comfort and safety of your living room,” Sityodtong said.

“One Championship will continue to thrill you with the greatest martial artists on the planet and inspire you with their incredible stories.”

postponed, putting at risk Caluag, and that of MTB rider Ariana Dormitorio’s campaign.

But according to PhilCycling Vice President Oscar “Boying” Rodriguez, both riders still have the chance of qualifying for the Olympics—if the Games are not postponed.

“If they are to base qualifying on nation’s ranking, Danny [the Philippines] is fourth behind Japan, Indonesia and China. But he is No. 2 in the individual ranking,” Rodriguez explained to BusinessMirror. “The host country [Japan] has an automatic slot so the next two [nations] will make it.”

“If by any unforeseen reason they cannot make it, then the next country will qualify,” he said. “We were invited to the Olympics test event in Tokyo last year.”

As for Dormitorio in women’s cross country, Rodriguez said: “Ariana also has a good chance because she [Philippines] is third in nation’s ranking behind Japan and Iran. Considering Japan has an automatic slot then the next two countries qualify.”

Only four Filipinos have so far qualified for Tokyo 2020—world champion gymnast Carlos Yulo, pole vaulter EJ Obiena and boxers Eumir Felix Marcial and Irish Magno.

Caluag stressed he is ready for any eventuality.

“I focus on what I can control and I have no control if the worlds gets canceled or postponed,” he said. “But one thing I can do is to be ready for battle and ready to race.”

“Times are scary, focus on what you can control and believe in the process. Everyone stay safe and stay home,” he added.

CALLS FOR POSTPONEMENT OF TOKYO 2020 MOUNTS

1940

IN an era when the selected nation got the option of hosting both the Summer and Winter Games in the same year, Japan was a surprising choice as the first non-Western country to be awarded the Olympics.

Tokyo was to be the summer host, with Sapporo getting the winter version.

Again, war got in the way.

Japan invaded China in 1937, prompting the Asian country to surrender its hosting duties the next year after some military leaders reportedly demanded that venues be constructed from wood because metals were needed for the war effort.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) hastily named Helsinki, runner-up in the initial bidding, to serve as summer city, with the

research hospital, Caluag helps on all aspect from bone marrow transplant to surgical oncology.

But he is also a triage nurse that require emergency room duties.

Taking a break from hospital work during the pandemic carries all the risks, especially with Danny and Stephanie going home to two daughters—Sydney, five, and Kailani, three.

“In the US, testing has been limited.

Fortunately at this moment, the area I live in has limited spread of the virus—two individuals turned out positive,” he said. “At the facilities I work at, I protect my health and family with the current recommendation of the CDC [Center for Disease Control].”

“Unfortunately not everyone is able to undergo a test to get an accurate number of positives or negatives,” he added.

And while the pandemic persists, Caluag’s hopes for a second Olympic appearance at Tokyo 2020 had to take a sidestep.

“With my schedule, I got my training in my family and work life. Sometimes before work I will go to the gym or sprint work, on days off I go to the track and do skill work,” said Caluag, whose brother CJ also is with the Philippine BMX team.

“At the moment, the Asian Championships were postponed. The Worlds which is the Olympic qualifier is still on at the moment but with this pandemic, there is a lot of uncertainty,” he said. “A lot of people are scared and worried, all we can do is hope for the best and prepare for the worst.”

The Olympic qualifiers—Asian championships in Jakarta in April and BMX world championships in Houston in May—have been

In addition to streaming exclusive audience-free events, the company has partnered with American reality TV show The Apprentice for the future launch of The Apprentice: One Championship Edition under license from MGM. Global broadcast shows behind closed doors will commence in Singapore with an initial schedule of April 17 and 24, and May 1 and May 8, with the format of an end-May fight scheduled in Manila still to be determined based on developments.

ENVER—US Olympic leaders are facing a growing rebellion inside their ranks about holding the Tokyo Games.

A board member of the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee countered leadership by criticizing the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the USA Track and Field (USATF) chief added to the call for a postponement because of the mushrooming coronavirus crisis.

USATF CEO Max Siegel sent a two-page note to his counterpart at the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee, Sarah Hirshland, asking the federation to advocate for a delay.

It came late Friday, only a few hours after USA Swimming’s CEO sent a similar letter.

Now, the sports that accounted for 65 of America’s 121 medals and 175 of its 554 athletes at the last Summer Games are on record in urging, in Siegel’s words, “the USOPC, as a leader within the Olympic Movement, to use its voice and speak up for the athletes.”

Also focused on leadership was Steve Mesler, a USOPC board member and Olympic champion bobsledder. In a blog post Friday, Mesler leveled much much more criticism toward the IOC than Hirshland or the board chairman, Susanne Lyons, did in earlier statements and interviews.

“The [IOC]...has not shown the leadership we Olympians desire out of those who are in charge,” Mesler wrote, while careful to emphasize that these were his thoughts “as an Olympian and not those of the USOPC, its Board of Directors, or its leaders.”

Other national committees are also calling on the IOC to act. The federations in Norway and Brazil went public with requests to postpone.

“Our clear recommendation is that the Olympic Games in Tokyo shall not take place before the Covid-19 situation is under firm control on a global scale,” Norway’s federation wrote in a letter to IOC President Thomas Bach.

It’s the US, though, that brings the largest contingent to every Summer Games and wins the most medals—both factors that lead have led NBC to pay billions to televise the games through 2032. It would seem to give the USOPC leverage in talks about almost any subject with the IOC, but the federation has been reluctant to use its power. It spent years, in fact, trying to smooth over tense relations with its international partners.

And since Hirshland took over as CEO in 2018, the focus has been inward, as the sex-abuse scandals that have consumed American sports have shifted the focus to athlete welfare and safety.

No more badminton meets

T

HE Badminton Asia Championships 2020 has been suspended by the sports’ governing body because of the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic. The tournament, which was initially set in Wuhan, China, but was moved to Manila, was supposed to be played from April 21 to 26. But the rapid spread of the virus has forced the

Badminton World Federation (BWF) to suspend all its remaining tournaments for the next two months.

“The health, safety, and well-being of all athletes, their entourage, officials and the greater badminton community remain as the top priority,” BWF’s statement read.

Also postponed were the Thomas and

Rick Olivares bleachersbrew@gmail.com

Bleachers’ Brew

The Olympic question I was reading into the International Olympic Committee’s stand on their not yet postponing the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and they were saying that it is four months away and they will wait for further developments into the war against the coronavirus.

The Olympics are scheduled to take place from July 24 to August 9.

IOC President Thomas Bach told The New York Times that a postponement at this time would not be responsible now and premature given the data available to them and the entire world.

This despite calls from various sports associations for the postponement given the uncertain situation. Yet World Athletics Association President and former Olympian himself Sebastian Coe bared that a decision will be coming soon.

This pandemic has almost shut down the world from travel to social gatherings to various events to even work. All sporting events have been shut down as well. How the world recovers from this is anyone’s guess at this point.

Moving non-laterally, it is in my opinion that if Great Britain’s departure from the European Union did not affect the Old Continent much, the virus will seal those borders not just for now, but for good.

Even prior to Brexit, I always thought that those porous borders were also bad (just as there is good).

And this will affect travel and even migration.

I recall a time as a kid that one needed shots before one went abroad. Will we see a return to this?

To the premise, I see nothing wrong with a postponement. It is better than a cancellation.

To date, only three Olympics have been canceled and that was due to world wars. Not even the deadly flu pandemic of 1918 or various financial crises have forced the Olympics to be cancelled.

How does one train given this environment of uncertainty? A lot of the sports are contact sports.

Aside from the martial arts or boxing, football and basketball have athletes bumping into one another. Swimming can be frightening as many are immersed in water.

You will have people—athletes, officials, media, and fans—flying in from every part of the globe including some nations that have been hard hit by the virus. That is dangerous. It won’t take but one positive identification to shut it down and why waste time, money, and effort? Not to mention health.

Given the quarantines of various countries and state of health, it is prudent to postpone because to quote Coe, “a spirit of fairness is needed.” And that is so right. Right now, that focus and training has certainly been affected. It will take at least two months for everyone to get their strength and conditioning right.

I figure that the IOC will make its decision come sometime before mid-April and I foresee a postponement that is best for everyone concerned.

Hirshland and Lyons were insistent that the USOPC won’t sacrifice athlete safety in the current crisis. But they stopped well short of pushing the IOC toward a postponement.

“The decision about the Games does not lie directly with us,” Lyons said in a conference call with reporters Friday. “It lies with [the World Health Organization], the Japanese government and the IOC. Under no circumstance would the USOPC send atheltes into harm’s way if didn’t think it was safe.”

Leaders of the track and swimming teams don’t appear willing to take that risk, either, though whether they’ll act on their own—without the sign-off from the USOPC—remains in question. The leader of the third sport that makes up the backbone of the Olympics—gymnastics—has sent a survey to athletes, asking for their thoughts on what the USA Gymnastics stance should be.

USA Track and Field already had its answer, thanks in part to online conversations led by their athlete representatives.

“If you go there and spread the virus and you go back home and kill one child, one grandmother, father, or even an athlete, is it worth it? The answer to us was no,” said Wallace Spearmon, the vice president of the USATF athletes council. AP Uber Cup, European Championships, Pan Am Individual Championships, Croatian International, and Peru International—all pivotal tournaments for players trying to qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

The Philippine Badminton Association was awarded the hosting of the singles Asian Championships after successfully hosting the 2020 Badminton Asia Team Championships in Manila last month.