BusinessMirror March 24, 2020

Pandemic impacts airlines’ credit quality

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

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S the economy continues to grapple with the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic, the airlines’ credit quality is put at risk due to substantial passenger capacity cut and declining fuel prices, Moody’s Investors Service said in a recent report.

Moody’s noted that it has downgraded the credit rating of 21 out of 22 airlines in its recent monitoring last week. “We expect credit quality around the world will continue to deteriorate, especially for companies in the most vulnerable sectors that are most affected by prospectively reduced revenues, margins and disrupted supply chains,” it said.

“Global airlines are one of the most stressed sectors by the coronavirus crisis given its exposure to travel restrictions

AIRPORT taxis wait for passengers at Naia Terminal 1 on Monday as only a few international flights were allowed to operate because of the implementation of the enhanced community quarantine. ROY DOMINGO

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and sensitivity of consumer demand and sentiment,” the debt watcher added.

For one, airline capacity across the world is seen to be reduced by as much as 75 percent during the second quarter of the year, the report noted.

“We believe capacity will be cut by 40 percent to 60 percent or more for the second quarter of 2020, and in some instances, more than 75 percent compared with the second quarter of 2019,” said Moody’s Senior Vice President Jonathan Root.

Assuming that there would be a slowdown in Covid-19 cases by end-June and passenger demand became normal again, global industry capacity might decline by 25 percent to 35 percent in 2020, Root added.

Airlines—basing on the credit rating firm’s sensitivity analysis—are anticipating

huge losses this year as revenue passenger miles may fall by around 20 percent to 25 percent, which can be partially tempered by lower costs. The sector may only see recovery to as much as 90 percent of 2019 levels by next year.

“The key drivers of how significantly credit quality will ultimately be affected are the duration of the demand trough and whether airlines have sufficient liquidity to cope until schedules start to return to normal,” Moody’s Senior Vice President Martin Hallmark said.

Large airlines could weather the storm, Moody’s said, because they have enough liquidity to cushion shortterm losses until third quarter. But modest-sized and/or less liquid airlines could “collapse within a short period” should they not receive support from shareholders and government.

Lower oil prices, meanwhile, could be a double-edged sword given the different fuel hedging strategies being adopted by airlines, Moody’s said.

“Different hedging strategies mean that US carriers will almost universally feel an immediate benefit from lower oil prices, while their European peers that hedge more extensively will generally be burdened with higher-priced hedges based on forecast flight schedules,” the debt watcher explained.

Fuel hedging refers to a futures contract being entered into by large fuel-consuming firms, including airlines, to minimize exposure to price volatility in the market.

Moody’s also called on the governments to be “aggressive” in containing the virus while ensuring financial aid to airlines amid the pandemic.

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Tuesday, March 24, 2020 Vol. 15 No. 166

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SPLITS HOUSE, SENATE BSP BUYS P300-B GOVT SECURITIES FOR VIRUS FUNDS

OVERSEAS Filipino workers who recently arrived from Bahrain wait for transport assistance from the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) at the Naia Terminal 1 on Monday. According to them, the plane they rode in was almost empty, with mostly only Filipino passengers on board. NONIE REYES A LONE motorcyclist waits for the light to go green at an empty intersection in Binondo, Manila on Monday, as Luzon island entered the second week of a lockdown in a bid to control Covid-19 from spreading. BERNARD TESTA

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz & Butch Fernandez

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HE House of Representatives has already moved to grant President Duterte enormous special powers, including direct operations of private businesses, a move seen by critics as “more dangerous” than the 2019 coronavirus pandemic.

SENATE President Vicente Sotto III talks during a break in a special session to tackle a bill that would authorize President Duterte to appropriate a budget for measures addressing the new coronavirus situation in the country, March 23, 2020. LOUIE SAURO MILLANG/ SENATE PRIB VIA AP

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 50.9470

The swift assent of the House, in contrast to the cautious stance of the Senate as it held its own special session on Monday, could dim hopes for a more unified final version by the two chambers in order to avert calling a bicameral conference panel to reconcile their respective bills.

Senate leaders earlier indicated they would readily grant spending authority for the President to have leeway to realign at least P200 billion—to as high as, in some estimates, P650 billion—in order to meet all urgent concerns arising from the spread of the Covid-19, which forced a Luzon-wide lockdown since March 17.

Earlier, both the Executive and Congress said funding would be needed as stimulus for the economy, support for affected business sectors, and immediate response to help millions of daily-wage earners by way of outright cash grants and food subsidies.

The Palace already certified as urgent House Bill 6616 or “An Act to declare the existence of a national emergency arising from the Covid-19 situation, and a national policy in connection therewith and authorizing the President of the Republic of the Philippines for a

limited period and subject to restrictions, to exercise powers necessary and proper to carry out the declared national policy and for other purposes.”

It has been dubbed the “Bayanihan Act of 2020.”

With this, the approval of the bill on second reading and third reading in the House was expected within Monday.

No rush to give extra powers

SENATORS were not inclined to readily grant Malacañang an option to give President Duterte emergency powers to take over privately owned utilities.

“That is not how it will be approved in the Senate version,” Senate President Vicente Sotto III said Monday, adding: “Better wait for the final version.”

The Senate leader declined to elaborate on the scope of extra powers seen to facilitate acquisition of urgently needed supplies, saying only that it involves “Presidential authority to address the emergency crisis.”

On Sunday, Sotto had flatly stated they made no commitment to grant emergency powers to the President when Congress leaders

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UST days after its decision to cut its interest rates by 50 basis points, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) decided to inject more stimulus into the Philippines’s aching economy—this time by buying P300 billion worth of government securities from the Bureau of Treasury (BTr).

On Monday, BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno announced that the monetary board authorized a P300-billion purchase of government securities from the BTr under a repurchase agreement, with a maximum repayment period of six months.

BSP’s single purchase from the BTr approximates about 7.3 percent of the government’s budget for the entire year of 2020.

The fund generated from the agreement shall be used to support the National Government’s (NG) programs to manage the spread of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid-19) and to counter its impact on the local economy.

“We continue to support the government’s initiatives and objectives during the enhanced community quarantine [ECQ]. This additional amount is intended to provide support for those most affected by the ECQ, especially in Luzon, for the next 60 to 90 days,” Diokno said.

On March 16 President Duterte placed the entire island of Luzon under an ECQ, restricting the movement and economic activity of the country’s main island. ING Bank Manila economist Nicholas Mapa said Luzon accounts for 74 percent of the country’s economic activity.

Three days after Duterte’s announcement, the BSP moved to cut its monetary policy rates in a scheduled policy meeting by 50 basis points. This move, Diokno said, is a “follow-on monetary policy response to address the adverse spillovers associated with the ongoing pandemic.” The BSP, in the same meeting, also authorized the timebound and temporary relaxation of BSP regulations on compliance reporting by banks, calculation of penalties on required reserves, and single borrower limits as well as a temporary reduction in the term spread on rediscounting loans relative to the overnight lending rate to zero.

On the fiscal side, the legislative department is said to be working on a proposed rescue package amounting to about P200 billion.

See “BSP,” A2

Continued on A2

n JAPAN 0.4599 n UK 59.5265 n HK 6.5679 n CHINA 7.1787 n SINGAPORE 35.1383 n AUSTRALIA 29.5493 n EU 54.5388 n SAUDI ARABIA 13.5580

Source: BSP (March 23, 2020)

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A2 Tuesday, March 24, 2020

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Fitch unit: Another 50-bp rate cut likely amid pandemic woes

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HE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is likely to trim key policy rates by another 50 basis points (bps) before the year ends to further shield the economy amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic, Fitch Solutions said.

The Central Bank’s overnight reverse repurchase facility last week 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.

In a report on Monday, Fitch Solutions said a dovish stance could entice foreign inflows and protect the peso given the current situation filled with uncertainties due to the virus.

“The peso has performed well despite the broad emerging market sell-off and collapse in external demand for the currency, falling 0.6 percent against the greenback year-to-date [March 20],” it noted.

On Monday the peso weakened to P51.33 from P50.97 on previous trading day, according to data by the Bankers Association of the Philippines. “...[W]ith a sharp drop in export demand expected and government stimulus likely to ramp up, the Philippines will need to attract foreign inflows or at least stem the outflows due to its lack of domestic savings,” it added. Last week, the government reported that a P27.1billion stimulus package to fight Covid-19 was approved, of which the bulk or P14 billion is allocated

BSP...

Continued from A1

Mapa said BSP’s repurchase agreement with the BTr may be used to help fund the planned fiscal rescue package that hopefully covers income replacement, tax forbearance and liquidity/loan support.

Other tools “BSP has done much of the heavy lifting in terms of stimulus efforts to combat the economy fallout from Covid-19 and after all these moves they continue to have ample monetary space with the policy rate at 3.25 percent and reserve requirements at 14 percent,” Mapa said.

Asked what tools the BSP could still tap if liquidity tightness will persist in the economy due to the Covid-19 fallout, Mapa said the BSP still has space to reduce its rates further to 3 percent and to cut its reserve requirement ratios (RRR).

“We expect BSP to remain open to further easing via further rate cuts and possible reductions to the reserve requirements to keep businesses and individuals afloat during the ongoing Covid-19 episode,” Mapa said.

Diokno is scheduled to lead the monetary board into its next policy meeting on May 21.

For the time being, the BSP vowed to ensure ample liquidity in the market and will likely continue to keep the term deposit facility (TDF) window closed until further notice.

Free pass for bank workers THE queue to a drug store in Parañaque City stretches to the parking lot as people buy medicines and other household needs. The National Capital Region, and the entire Luzon island, was placed under an enhanced community quarantine starting March 17. ROY DOMINGO

for the tourism industry. It was later clarified, however, that the P14 billion is already in the Department of Tourism’s 2020 budget, under the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority.

Inflation revised

FITCH Solutions, meanwhile, shaved its average inflation forecast for the Philippines to 2.1 per-

cent this year, lower than the previous 3.1-percent projection, due to declining oil prices.

This was within government’s target band of 2.0 percent to 4.0 percent but lower than the average forecast of 2.2 percent this year.

In February inflation decelerated to 2.6 percent from 2.9 percent a month ago due to lower transport and utility costs, the Philippine

Statistics Authority reported. Average inflation stood at 2.8 percent in the first two months.

“We expect the relaxing of reserve requirements and other macroprudential tools to provide liquidity to the domestic market over the coming weeks, with the onus on the government to use fiscal stimulus to boost the economy instead,” Fitch Solutions added.

The central bank trimmed its reserve requirement ratio by 4 percentage points to 14 percent last year to free up liquidity.

Apart from the government’s stimulus package, banks allowing their customers to delay payments amid the ongoing enhanced community quarantine in Luzon could help the financial sector recover, it explained. Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

IN a separate memorandum on Monday, the BSP guaranteed to all bank personnel they will be allowed to pass through checkpoints and report for work in their head offices and branches upon presentation of their bank-issued IDs during the implementation of the ECQ.

“BSP Memorandum M-2020-10 recognizes identification cards issued by BSFIs as sufficient compliance with the requirements of the Memorandum of the Executive Secretary on guidelines governing the implementation of the ECQ in the whole of Luzon. This is in line with the BSP’s multisector efforts to provide continuous banking services during the ECQ,” Diokno said in a statement.

Antivirus funding bill splits House, Senate Continued from A1

met with Palace officials at the weekend to flesh out the agenda for the special session requested by the President. He said they will readily give spending authority, but not emergency powers.

Senator Imee Marcos replied with a capital “No” when asked if the Senate will promptly grant the President’s wish for extra powers.

For his part, Senate Minority Leader Frank Drilon admitted that the minority bloc had yet to firm up a final position on the issue.

“I have not seen how the bill will look like,” said Drilon, adding he submitted amendments but had yet to know if these had been adopted. “I will wait for the committee report,” Drilon said but did not elaborate. None of the minority senators were able to attend, but Drilon insisted there was no boycott, just a coincidence.

Drilon was advised by doctors to stay away; Senators Risa Hontiveros and Francis Pangilinan are on quarantine, and Leila de Lima is under detention.

Finance committee chairman Sen. Pia Cayetano had been asked to sponsor the bill in the absence of Sen. Juan Edgardo Angara, the ways and means panel chief.

Angara is on quarantine.

At least 12 senators attended Monday morning’s special session at the Senate.

Besides Senate President Sotto, senators in attendance were: Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto and Senators Emmanuel Pacquiao, Panfilo Lacson, Richard Gordon, Christopher “Bong” Go, Lito Lapid, Bong Revilla, Francis Tolentino, Sherwin Gatchalian, Grace Poe and Cayetano.

Effect for 2 months UNDER the House bill, the special powers will be in “effect only for two months or longer if the calamity will persist, as may be determined by the President.”

The bill seeks to adopt a unified national policy to address the public health emergency situation by minimizing the further spread of Covid-19; mobilizing assistance in the provision of basic necessities to affected individuals; providing health care such as medical tests and

treatments; and undertaking a program for recovery and rehabilitation, including a social amelioration program and provision of safety nets to all affected sectors.

When the public interest so requires, the bill grants the President the power to direct the operation of any privately owned hospitals and medical and health facilities, hotels and other similar establishments to house health workers or serve as quarantine areas or temporary medical facilities. Also, public transportation can also be directed to ferry health workers to hospitals.

It also ensures that all local governments are acting in line with the rules and regulations and directives issued by the national government.

The measure allows the President to reprogram, reallocate and realign any appropriation in the 2020 national budget to fund measures to address and respond to the Covid-19 emergency, including social amelioration for affected communities, as well as recovery and rehabilitation of affected areas.

Under the bill, the Chief Executive can also allocate cash, funds and investments held by any government-owned or -controlled corporation (GOCC) or any national government agency for whatever purpose deemed necessary and desirable to address the Covid-19 crisis.

It said government programs, projects and activities in the 2019 and 2020 budgets can be canceled to generate savings and augment allocations for the Covid-19 response.

‘No abuse’ DURING the House Committee of the Whole hearing, Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, meanwhile, assured the public that the special powers granted to the President will not be abused.

Medialdea said the special powers “would last only as long as Covid-19 crisis would last.”

He said the bill would equip the President and the Executive Branch with the legal authorities necessary to address the Covid-19 crisis while assuring that the Constitution remains in place amid this emergency.

“We assure Congress and our countrymen that this administration has no in-

personal movement in the hope of containing Covid-19,” he said.

Villafuerte said the lockdowns in Luzon and elsewhere have brought the national and local economies almost to a standstill, thereby dislocating an estimated 18 million Filipino families who live by the no-work, no-pay system.

Procurement

IN this handout photo provided by the Senate Public Relations and Information Bureau, some senators and government officials wearing protective masks place their hands on their chest during the national anthem at the start of a special session on a bill that would authorize President Duterte to appropriate a budget for measures addressing the new coronavirus situation in the country on Monday in Manila. Congress is holding an emergency session to deliberate on a government request to declare a national emergency and allow the President to swiftly punish local officials who defy orders and grant him a standby power to take over private companies amid the coronavirus crisis. HENZBERG AUSTRIA/ SENATE PRIB VIA AP tent to abuse the powers we are asking of you today,” Medialdea said.

The executive secretary said part of the legal authority asked from Congress is the ability to purchase equipment for health workers expeditiously without being restricted by existing procurement laws.

He said the President also sought a special power to “freely reallocate” funds in the General Appropriations Act and augment allocations to address the coronavirus outbreak.

Medialdea, meanwhile, said that the provision, which grants the President the authority to direct operations of private establishments, is only a “standby power” that would not necessarily be exercised at all times.

“The power to take over is intended merely as a standby power in the event the crisis reaches its worst, when our most critical institutions are nearing a total

shutdown and government is left with no choice but to take over these establishments,” he added.

Before approving the bill, Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano, citing the World Health Organization (WHO), said if the government did not do anything, around 35 million Filipinos would have been infected by the Covid-19.

Of this number, Cayetano warned that 700,000 would have died.

Breakdown ACCORDING to Deputy Speaker for Finance Luis Raymund Villafuerte, of the P275 billion available funds for Covid-19 response, P200 billion will be allotted for the emergency subsidy program, while the remaining P75 billion will be used to fund health and other services.

Villafuerte said the government’s emergency subsidy program will provide

relief to some 18 million Filipino households most affected by the coronavirus pandemic and for the treatment of persons infected with this lethal pathogen known as Covid-19.

“A major casualty of this virus is our resurgent economy, as the pandemic threatens to stop dead on its tracks the growth momentum that our country has been experiencing,” said Villafuerte in his sponsorship speech during Monday’s special session of the House of Representatives.

“But other than the infected persons themselves and more than the domestic economy, the biggest casualty from the pandemic are, collectively, the poor and low-income Filipinos who have lost their jobs or sources of livelihood as a result of the lockdown in Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon, as well as in other communities elsewhere where local government units have likewise restricted

MOREOVER, the bill shall authorize the President to procure, in the most expeditious manner, essential goods and services such as medical supplies, rented venues for quarantine centers, temporary medical facilities, and other services needed by the public healthcare system during the health emergency as exceptions to the Procurement Law.

The medical testing and observation of patients under investigation and persons under monitoring shall be expedited, as well as the immediate treatment of patients suffering from Covid-19.

The bill also said the President can adopt measures to protect the people from hoarding, profiteering, injurious speculations, manipulation of prices, product deceptions, and cartels, monopolies and other unscrupulous business practices.

The bill also extends credit to productive sectors of the economy; liberalizes the grant of incentives for the manufacture and importation of necessary goods and equipment; requires businesses to prioritize and accept contracts for goods and services necessary to deal with the health emergency; and authorizes working alternative working arrangements for employees in the executive branch and in the private sector.

In terms of regulatory powers, the President can regulate the operation of public and private transportation; traffic on all roads and thoroughfares; the use of the country’s energy supply.

Under the penalty provision of the proposed measure, any person who violates the rules, regulations and directives of the national government will be imposed the punishment of two months in jail and a fine in the amount of P10,000 to P1 million.

The bill also creates a congressional oversight committee and mandates the President to submit a monthly report to Congress of all acts performed during this emergency.

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QUARANTINE, TRAVEL RESTRICTION AFFECT 100,000 WORKERS–DOLE

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V ER 10 0,0 0 0 workers are now affected by the large-scale quarantine and travel restriction imposed by the government to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

This was significantly higher compared to the 11,000 affected workers reported by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) last week, when President Duterte placed Luzon under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ ).

With imposition of the ECQ, all classes and business operations in Luzon remain suspended. It will end on April 13, 2020.

Flexible work arrangements

IN its latest Job Displacement Monitoring Report, a total of 108,620 workers, who are employed by 2,317 companies, are now under flexible work arrangements (FWA) and temporary closure.

Out of the 41,331 employees engaged in FWAs, most or 15,556 now have a reduction in their workdays.

The others under were required to practice rotation of workers (2,699); forced leave (9,491); and other forms of FWA like telecommuting (3,655).

The establishments, which practice FWAs, were manufacturers, and hotel and restaurants and tourismrelated companies in Regions 3, 4A, 4B, 6, 7, 9, 11, 12, and the National Capital Region.

Closure and travel ban

A TOTAL of 30,796 workers were affected by the temporary closure of their companies due to Covid-19.

There is still no permanent displacement related to Covid-19.

DOLE also registered a total of 3,089 overseas Filipino workers (OFW), who were repatriated, displaced, or stranded, because of Covid-19.

The affected OFWs came from Macau, Qatar, Japan, Italy, Hong Kong, Bahrain, Norway, Spain, Taiwan, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Singapore, Qatar, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.

Increase in demand

THE surge in the number of Covidaffected establishments led to a sudden spike in the number of workers seeking assistance from DOLE. In an SMS, Labor Assistant Secretary Officer in Charge Dominique R. Tutay told the BusinessMirror that close to 50,000 workers have already applied for their Covid-19 Adjustment Measures Program (CAMP).

CAMP, DOLE will provide a P5,000 cash aid to employers to pay for the unpaid days of workers affected by 30-day ECQ. “We will start releasing the fund for this week. Most [of the beneficiaries] are from NCR,” Tutay said.

Likewise, Bureau of Workers with Special Concerns (BWSC) Director Ma. Karina Perida-Trayvilla also reported they already started their Tulong Panghanapbuhay Sa Ating Displaced/Disadvantaged Workers Program (TUPAD) for Covid-affected workers.

TUPAD beneficiaries will be tapped by the government to disinfect homes around their area in exchange for a minimum wage.

“The initial batch [for TUPAD] benefited more than 2,000 beneficiaries,” Trayvilla told the BusinessMirror in an SMS. The beneficiaries are from Quezon City, Manila and San Juan City.

Samuel P. Medenilla

CIDG arrests father and son for selling coronavirus ‘medicine’

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FATHER and his son were arrested on Sunday by policemen for allegedly selling fake coronavirus 2019 (Covid-19) “medicine” in Navotas, even as the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) apprehend more traders selling overpriced medical supplies.

Ismael Aviso, a local inventor, and his son, Ismael Aviso Jr., were apprehended by a joint team from Philippine National Police-AntiCybercrime Group (ACG), Police Regional Office 4A and Northern Police District.

The two were apprehended after they reportedly received P7,500 in marked money in exchange of a supposed medicine for the Covid-19, which has already infected hundreds of thousands of people around the world.

Brig. Gen. Dennis Agustin, director of the ACG, said the operation against the father and son team was launched after they received a report about medicinal products that can purportedly cure, or counter, coronavirus infection which are being marketed online.

The supposed anti-Covid-19

medicine was reportedly discovered and devised by the elder Aviso, who is known for investing the Motionless Electric Generator (MEG) in 2011.

Agustin said that in August and September 2019, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had already issued two public health warnings against Aviso’s products for being falsely advertised as cure to viral diseases, including Dengue.

The father-and-son team faces various charges in relation to the manufacture, marketing and selling online of purported anti-coronavirus medicine.

Meanwhile, the CIDG arrested several suspects, including a businessmen for allegedly selling overpriced medical supplies, the latest of whom was a 59-yesr-old man from Quezon City.

Huansing Chan was nabbed during an entrapment operation by the CIDG along Kitanglad Street, Barangay Doña Josefa for selling online overpriced and unlabeled rubbing alcohol product.

Confiscated from his possession were 350 bottles of 1 liter unlabeled alcohol. Rene Acosta

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Tuesday, March 24, 2020 A3

Army unleashes CBRN units in govt’s all-out bid to control Covid-19 spread

By Rene Acosta

@reneacostaBM

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HE Philippine Army deployed its elite chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) units in the fight to contain the spread of the coronavirus 2019 (Covid-19).

In what is considered as their first full-scale deployment, the CBRN troops would bring with them their knowledge and training in dealing with biological and nuclear attacks, along with their special suits and other equipment.

This time, however, they will have to deal with the control and neutralization of a virulent virus that has infected hundreds of Filipinos across various parts of the country.

The deployment of the units, just one among the two specialized services of the Army tapped to deal with the Covid-19, was disclosed on Monday by Army chief Lt. Gen. Gilbert Gapay during the Army’s celebration of its 123rd foundation at Fort Bonifacio in Taguig City.

“We live in dangerous times. The current novel coronavirus, or Covid-19, has taken the world and our country by storm. This is a new threat being confronted by the Army, and along with the might of our government, we are already deployed—nationwide—to contain the virus and protect our people,” Gapay said.

“Our Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear arm, along with the rest of our capabilities, is being fully utilized 24/7 to arrest the spread of the virus, and restore normalcy,” he added.

AN Army CBRN trooper sharpens his skills in chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear warfare at a local camp. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE PHILIPPINE ARMY

Soldiers who have been tasked to enforce the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon, especially those units manning checkpoints in Metro Manila go through the CBRN units for disinfec-

tion and quarantine in order to ensure their safety.

In leading the celebration of the Army’s anniversary, Gapay recalled the patriotism of its members.

“From our fight for freedom, which birthed our then Revolutionary Army in 1897, to the Second World War, Korean War, and Vietnam War, where we fought alongside our allies of the Free World; to our battles against the secessionist groups in Mindanao and the Communist terrorist group, until this day against hybrid threats, and manmade and natural calamities. In all these battles of the past 123 years, the Philippine Army has been at the forefront and the embodiment of patriotism,” Gapay said.

The Army chief said that for the past 100 days, the Army has neutralized 44 rebel high-value targets, including Julius Giron, head of the NPA’s Military Commission, and 836 other NPA members.

Meanwhile, the Navy has continued to conduct maritime patrols along with the Coast Guard off the coast of Manila to intercept and deny entry and exit of commercial passenger watercraft to and from the vicinity of Manila Bay in line with the Luzon-wide enforced quarantine.

“This to ensure that people from outside NCR [National Capital Region] do not enter NCR by sea and vice versa, preventing people coming in or going out thereby risking the spread of the virus,” said Navy Captain Lemuel Espartinez, the designated commander of Naval Task Group-NCR.

Palace lifts checkpoint accreditation requirement for health workers; death of three doctors due to Covid-19 mourned

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

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EDICAL workers, who will be on duty during the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Luzon, would no longer need to secure an accreditation from the Department of Health (DOH) to be exempted from the mandatory home quarantine.

Cabinet Secretar y Karlo B. Nograles said medical workers are no longer included in the March 26, 2020 deadline set by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) for the accreditation of persons who would like to avail of the exemption.

He explained they would only have to present their ID from the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC), or their hospital or medical facility, where they are employed, to pass through ECQ checkpoints.

Nograles said their exemption from the requirement is the government’s recognition of their valuable contribution in its campaign to contain the spread of novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

As of March 23, 2020, the DOH reported there were 396 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the country.

“We know how hard you [work]... so we will no longer burden you with accreditation IDs,” Nograles said during a news briefing on Monday.

The deadline for the accreditation application was initially set on March 21, 2020 but was extended up to March 26, 2020.

Among those who could apply for exemption are workers in the manufacturing and delivery of food, medicine, and other “essential hy-

giene products;” banks and capital markets; basic utilities; businessprocess outsourcing; airlines; media; hotels and related establishments; and religious ministers conducting necrological, or funeral rites.

Prayer

M A L AC A Ñ A NG o n Mo nd ay mourned the passing of three doctors who contracted the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) while treating infected patients.

In a news statement, Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo urged the public to pray for all health workers who risk their lives fighting the pandemic which has affected a total of 380 Filipinos, including 25 deaths.

“Let us join hands in solemn prayers for our health frontliners who daily put their lives on the line as they treat those who have the virus,” he said.

He also reminded health workers to look after themselves, as it was the only way they would be able to fulfill their duties.

“We must all take care of ourselves because in doing so we take care of others,” he said.

Cardiologist Israel Bactol from the Philippine Heart Center, anesthesiologist Gregorio Macasaet III of Manila Doctors Hospital, and oncologist Rose Pulido of the San Juan de Dios Hospital succumbed to Covid-19 in the last two days.

The Philippine Heart Association (PHA), in a separate news statement on Sunday, announced Bactol’s passing, describing him as “a young, brilliant, promising doctor” and a “casualty of this war.”

“It is a sad day for the whole association as we have lost one of our own

in the fight against Covid-19. He is a casualty of this war. We honor him as he lost his young life while fulfilling his duties as a doctor, a young cardiologist, and a dedicated member of PHA,” the PHA said.

Manila Doctors Hospital, in a separate statement, confirmed Macasaet’s passing, who was dubbed as “one of the best anesthesiologists in our country.”

“No words can convey the depth of our sadness as we lost not just a doctor but a friend, colleague, coworker, father, and husband. He had impacted the lives of his patients at Manila Doctors and his fellow doctors and the nurses who worked beside him,” the Manila Doctors Hospital said.

The Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM) also issued a statement on the death of a College of Medicine alumnus, who was a doctor to the barrio.

“He was a scholar whose humble beginnings guided his future. He was a doctor to the barrio and a hero,” the PLM statement read.

It is not clear if the PHA member and the PLM alumnus were the same persons.

Reports showed that there were also several doctors are in critical condition while health workers and medical staff were made to undergo quarantine after exposure to infected patients.

The Medical City President and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Eugenio Jose Ramos said almost 150 health workers of the hospital exposed to Covid-19 were also made to undergo quarantine.

A total of 530 medical staff of the University of Santo Tomas Hospital were also asked to undergo quarantine

after being exposed to patients being treated for Covid-19, or persons under investigation (PUIs), according to a news statement issued to university’s official publication, The Varsitarian.

Hea lt h Secretar y Franciso Duque III earlier said the department needs some P2.35 billion to procure personal protective equipment (PPE) including gowns, helmets, goggles, and other garments or equipment designed to protect the wearer from infection.

President Duterte earlier issued Proclamation 933, urging Congress to grant him additional powers to carry out urgent measures to meet the Covid-19 national emergency.

If enacted, the proposed bill will allow Duterte to immediately procure PPEs; lab and medical equipment; testing kits; lease of property or venue for use to house health workers or serve as quarantine centers, medical relief, and aid distribution locations, or temporary medical facilities.

It also allows him to temporarily take over operations of hotels and other similar establishments to house health workers; serve as quarantine areas, quarantine centers; medical relief and aid distribution locations or other temporary medical facilities among others.

Panelo, for his part, clarified that Duterte was not seeking emergency powers but “powers necessary to carry out urgent measures to implement the national emergency.”

The country is currently under a state of public health emergency and a state of calamity due to the highly infectious disease which has infected 335,000 people worldwide with 14,000 fatalities. With PNA

Davao’s first Covid-19 positive patient ready for discharge after hospital treatment

By Manuel T. Cayon @awimailbox Mindanao Bureau Chief

D

AVAO CITY—This region’s first positive case of coronavirus-2019 (Covid-19) is now ready to be discharged anytime, the Department of Health announced on Monday, adding to the list of recoveries from the infection and injecting a shot of hope, amid national anxiety over the national health emergency.

The patient who recovered from the Covid-19 was a 21-year-old mi-

grant worker who arrived here on February 29, 2020, from her workplace in Great Britain and whose flight passed through Doha, Qatar. Doctors at the Davao Regional Medical Center in Tagum said the patient showed the symptoms on March 3 before she was confined for isolation on March 10 at the DRMC. Tagged PH130, she is a resident of Pantukan, a town in Davao de Oro. She was the first positive case in Mindanao to have recovered. Two other positive cases have died, however.

PH201 died in a hospital in Marawi

City and the other one, PH40 died at a hospital in Cagayan de Oro City. Both were confirmed positive cases, the latter of which attended the controversial meeting in Kuala Lumpur on late February among Islamic preachers. The other one has a travel history in Kuala Lumpur but authorities are still conforming if PH201 attended the preachers’ gathering.

Dr. Annabelle P. Yumang, regional director of the DOH here, said the recovered Covid-19 case here may be discharged anytime following the new DOH guideline issued on Thursday

last week, which states that it would need only one more test on her state of health to allow the discharge from hospital confinement. Since last week, doctors have reported her to be on stable condition and she has not shown any symptoms anymore.

Yumang said the two other positive cases in the region remained confined at the Southern Philippines Medical Center (SPMC) and were monitored to be on stable condition.

The region has a current total of 113 persons under investigation, 31 of them already admitted at the SPMC

and 21 others at the DRMC. “Contact tracing are continuing now on the three positive cases here,” she said.

No VIP testing

YUMANG said there had been no reported intervention by local politicians to prioritize them on Covid-19 testing. “It’s not possible given the few resources we have and the available kits allotted for us.”

She said only 65 samples were taken from the available test kits and they included samples from the

other regions.

Some 200 test kits have arrived here on Saturday but she said these kits have to be tested yet before being used for the next tests.

Health Assistant Secretary Dr. Roy B. Ferrer disclosed that the interagency body on the Covid-19 was discussing a proposal from an undisclosed party who informed them about the party’s plan to establish a laboratory in the region.

He did not discuss the matter any further and said details would be provided only if the talks would progress.

A4 Tuesday, March 24, 2020 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

STATE WORKERS WHO ‘PHYSICALLY’ REPORT FOR WORK DURING ECQ ENTITLED TO HAZARD PAY–PALACE

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

G

OVERNMENT employees, who report physically for work within the duration of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Luzon due to the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19), will be getting hazard pay.

This, after President Duterte issued on Monday Administrative Order (AO) 26, granting qualified workers an additional pay of not exceeding P500 per day for the duration of the ECQ. “The rate of Covid-19 Hazard Pay shall be based on the number of days an employee physically reports for work,” Duterte said.

“The grant of the Covid-19 Hazard Pay shall be effective beginning 17 March 2020,” he added.

Those who are already entitled to hazard pay such as public health workers, social workers, science and technology personnel, and uniformed personnel will continue receiving the said benefit, or the Covid-19 Hazard Pay, whichever is higher.

To qualify for the hazard pay, a worker must be occupying regular, contractual or casual positions, or engaged in contract of service, or

job order schemes; and authorized to physically report for work during the ECQ. The Covid-19 Hazard Pay will apply to employees of the national government agencies (NGA); state universities and colleges (SUC); government- owned and -controlled corporations (GOCC); local government units (LGU); local water districts (LWD), and even those from the Legislative and Judicial branches of government and other offices vested with fiscal autonomy.

The funding for the hazard pay from personnel services (PS) allotments, maintenance and other operating expenses (MOOE), corporate operating budgets depending on the employment status of a qualified worker.

“As may be necessary, the DBM [Department of Budget and Management] shall issue supplemental guidelines for the effective implementation of this order,” Duterte said.

He also “strongly encouraged” private hospitals and other health facilities to also grant similar hazard pay for their employees, who are exposed to Covid-19.

AO 26 will take effect after being published in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.

Another ‘big time’ fuel-price slash today, fourth rollback in March

By Lenie Lectura @llectura

A

NOTHER oil price rollback takes effect today, Tuesday.

Oil companies announced a P3.50 per liter price cut on gasoline products, P3.50 per liter for kerosene and P2 per liter for diesel.

Petron Corp., Pilipinas Shell, Petro Gazz, PTT Philippines, Seaoil, Chevron Philippines said their price adjustments will take effect on Tuesday at 6 a.m.

Other oil firms are expected to follow suit.

This is the fourth consecutive oil price rollback for this month. Gasoline prices have been reduced by a total of P10.35 per liter, kerosene prices by P10.55 per liter and diesel by P8.60 per liter since the month started.

The Department of Energy (DOE) earlier assured the public of continuous and sufficient fuel supply in the National Capital Region (NCR) during the enhanced community quarantine imposed by the government.

“During this most challenging time, it is imperative to ensure the continued supply of fuel products, especially in areas under quarantine.

Having sufficient petroleum supply is vital, making it a critical concern amid this crisis. The entire energy family is working 24/7 to make sure that energy services remain unimpeded,” said DOE Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi.

The DOE is closely coordinating with stakeholders to ensure the unhin-

dered entry of fuel supply to affected retail outlets. It already requested oil companies to submit a status report on depots supplying Metro Manila.

Petron’s assurance

PETRON Corp., the country’s largest oil refiner, also assured consumers of continuous supply of its petroleum products while the enhanced community quarantine remains in Luzon island, affecting more than 50 million people.

Petron Corp. also said it would ensure enough fuel for vital industries.

“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. 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 employees first,” President and Chief Executive Officer Ramon S. Ang said.

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

Petron has widely implemented a work-from-home set-up for its Luzonbased 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.

Fate of motorcycle taxi program hangs in balance until Luzon lockdown ends

T

HE fate of the motorcycle taxi pilot program hangs in the balance now, as the technical working group will only decide on its next steps after mid-April and while the government grapples with the spread of the dreaded novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

March 23, 2020 marked the official end of the trial run on paper, but Department of Transportation (DOTr) Assistant Secretary Goddes Hope O. Libiran said the technical working group will convene once the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon has ended.

“We will discuss that after the enhanced community quarantine,” she said.

All government efforts are directed toward the implementa-

tion of lockdowns. The transport department has grounded public transport and limited private vehicles on the road, as it discourages close contact among people to stop the virus from spreading.

“The technical working group will meet right after the enhanced community quarantine to discuss what will happen [to motorcycle taxis],” Libiran said.

Motorcycle taxis operate under a pilot study, which aims to test whether, or not, motorcycles are a safe means of public transport. First launched in June 2019, the program was due to end in December, but was since extended for three months until March 23, 2020 with the addition of two new players to test out market viability. Lorenz S. Marasigan

Economy BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Ateneo economists: Fight vs virus may entail P500-B budget in next 6 months

F

By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

IGHTING the novel coronavirus 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic in the country would require a larger budget of as much as P500 billion for a period of six months, according to 23 economists from the Ateneo de Manila University.

In a news statement on Arresting the Impact of Covid-19 on the PH Economy, 23 economists from the Ateneo Center for Economic Research and Development (ACERD) and AdMU Economics Department said the amount can be covered by realigning the unspent P1.1 trillion in the 2019 budget.

The funds can also be augmented by a P1-billion donation from the country’s top 30 corporations, the economists said. The amount, they added could easily be sourced given that these firms earned at least P5 billion in 2019.

“I was not able to provide a total but our first estimate is around P250 billion for three months.

[This means] for six months, that’s P500 billion. There’s still room [given the P1.1 trillion unused 2019 budget],” ACERD Director Alvin P. Ang told the BusinessMirror on Monday.

The economists outlined the costs led by the P70 billion, which they proposed, should be allocated to 3.52 million households to ration them food supplies for at least four months.

This means each household will receive P5,000 per month.

Customs waives FDA clearance for PPEs, masks, gloves, gowns

By Bernadette D. Nicolas @BNicolasBM

F

OREIGN donations of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), including masks, shoe covers, gloves, head covers and gowns are exempted from securing clearance from Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The Bureau of Customs (BOC) issued the clarification on Monday, citing that FDA had coordinated with BOC on the exemption of these foreign donations from securing FDA clearance.

Moreover, BOC said, FDA mentioned that companies other than medical device establishments, who use face masks in the performance of their jobs and are strictly for company use are allowed to directly import these donated items without any certification from the FDA. As a general rule, securing marketing authorization from FDA, either in the form of a certificate of product notification (CPN), or certificate of product registration (CPR), is required from all importers of all products depending on the health risk of these products prior to Customs release.

“As to PPEs intended to enter the local market for commercial purposes, the FDA clarified that importers of PPEs for commercial purposes are exempt from presentation of a CPN/ CPR prior Customs release provided that they are able to provide a copy of License to Operate [LTO] and proof of application for product notification with the FDA,” BOC said in a news statement on Monday.

The list also includes the frontloading of the funds for Universal Healthcare, which was estimated to cost P67 billion from the 2020 national budget.

The economists also recommended that the government pour in P50 billion, or a fourth of the country’s annual agriculture output, to subsidize food production and another P50 billion to

cated for the second half of the year to the first half of the year.

The government, the economists said, should allocate P10 billion to hire logistics and movers, as well as Transportation Network Vehicle Service (TNVS) to move food, medicines, and frontline medical staff.

Another P3.5 billion should also be allocated to commission the production of personal protective equipment (PPEs), needed hospital equipment, and medicines. The economists also said the government should also conduct trials for potential Covid-19 vaccines, the cost of which is yet to be estimated.

On top of these efforts, the economists recommended to defer income tax deadlines to July 31 and waive penalties; provide debt relief to small and medium enterprises (SMEs), bank loans, housing mortgages, consumer loans without penalties until July

I was not able to provide a total but our first estimate is around P250 billion for three months. [This means] for six months, that’s P500 billion. There’s still room [given the P1.1 trillion unused 2019 budget].”—Ang pay the utilities of households.

Each household should receive a utilities subsidy of P500 a month or P2,000 between March and June.

Further, the budget for the Unconditional Cash Transfer (UCT) should be front-loaded. This means front-loading the P36.5 billion allo-

2020; and provide tax credits to firms who continue to pay staff, even if businesses are closed.

“Government should take the lead in protecting economic assets particularly our human resources, our capacities and our structures.

Having said this, it can work with the private sector through coor-

dination and partnership in ensuring delivery of critical health, social and economic services,” the economists said.

The economists also said the government should “set aside its growth targets” and private firms should also set aside their profit targets for the year.

The priority at this time should be to ensure adequate health/medical services, as well as the full protection of health workers.

There is also a need to prioritize the provision of social protection to vulnerable households and individuals, as well as address the economic and social costs of enhanced community quarantine.

The economists also said an economic stimulus to boost the economy would not be useful given the current state of the pandemic.

“It is therefore clear that the Philippine government will need sufficient funds to do the stated tasks,” they said. “There is still a large unused budget for 2019 with an unobligated P1.1 trillion and based on RA 11464, funds in 2019 are allowed to be used in 2020 hence this can also be reallocated to fund these tasks.”

Apart from Ang, the economists who released the statement included Fernando Aldaba; Cristina Bautista; Edsel Beja; Tristan Canare; Jerome Patrick Cruz; Geoffrey Ducanes; Noel de Guzman; Cielito Habito; Leonardo Lanzona; and Rodolfo Ledesma.

The economists also included Joseph Lim; Genesis Kelly Lontoc; Marjorie Muyrong; Gerald Pascua; Ser Percival Pena-Reyes; Marilou Perez; Majah Ravago; Dino Saplala; Joselito Sescon; Patrick SimonKing; Philip Arnold Tuano; and Victor Venida.

Let’s embrace the future C

By Michael K. Raeuber

HALLENGES are always opportunities, and…

Crises as big as the present ones always contain messages and lessons about past failures and future possibilities.

Why not regard the Covid-19 crisis as a kind of involuntary social experiment that may change society?

In my view, it has the potential to change society for the better!

Can we accept that there is life beyond the death toll live ticker? Maybe it is time to focus on those who have recovered. I am certain the number is much higher than the 8 listed by the Department of Health.

Beyond the endless dismay reports, can we develop more focus on opportunities in the economic environment we are faced with? I promise you, there are opportunities.

Let us all fully support the government’s decision to reduce or avoid the spread of infection of Covid-19 and flatten the infection curve to be better equipped to cope with the infection and be enabled to give more attention, and help as needed, to risk persons, the very young, the very old and the ones that are suffering from health problems already.

Having said this, it is essential that we learn from those countries that are transparent in their approaches to bring the virus under control. We need to learn from South Korea and copy their successful test procedures. We need testing kits badly; the Food and Drug Administration should urgently speed up their approval system! And we need a more adequate health infrastructure, living up to the potentially serious challenges posed.

It is good to see that local, as well as international scientists are looking at virus patterns that will hopefully yield data on transmission dynamics. But I would like everybody to understand that in real life, most, actually almost all people eventually recover. At lot of scientists believe that, a recovered person can neither transmit to a healthy person, nor become sick again after coming into contact with a sick person. Other scientists are not convinced of this yet; it is trusted that immunity after recovery of the virus will be scientifically established soonest.

More important, research already shows that many young people in the 20s and 30s get the virus and recover from the infection like they do when they have a mild flu, some of them even without any symptoms.

A recovered person is the ideal partner to help

medical research to find antidotes/antibodies fast.

The Philippines is an extremely young society with an average age in the lower 20s. I promise you that if we would start asking young people who had flu-like symptoms during the last few weeks to come forward and be tested, we will raise the number of recovered persons substantially.

As soon as immunity after recovery of the virus is scientifically established, the growing number of “recovered” persons need to be identified with a clear ID so that he or she can be employed, live as normal and with that get our economy recovering from the threat of and already experienced decline faster.

Let me be more specific:

MY idea is to connect government with the suppliers of tamper proof ID’s, to be issued to recovered Covid -19 patients; Bearers of these IDs would then be completely exempted from any and all restrictions of movements, enabling them to help in any ways they can, consume and work unhampered, preventing further contacts between yet uninfected person with persons possibly infected and in that way return to normalcy and commercial activities much faster, not only flattening the curve of effected persons but also the negative impact to our economy.

The pilfer-proof IDs can be made available on short notice and it may well be possible to instrumentalize the equipment used for issuing licenses, as equipment spread out throughout the country is available. Possibly it makes sense to have the option to change drivers’ license ID’s themselves, with respective marks, to issue the “Covid-19” licenses, in all LTO offices throughout the country.

In conclusion, let’s embrace the future.

Government, the private sector and civil society can work together and get the Philippine economy going again, keep and get even more people employed and focus on opportunities.

Michael Raeuber is the chairman and Group CEO of Royal Cargo Inc., deeply involved in transport and cold storage, including food and pharmaceuticals. He is also the chairman of EITSC, the vice chairman of the Integrity Initiative, head of the Infrastructure and Logistics Committee of the ECCP and a member of the MSGC of the Bureau of Customs.

Michael Raeuber can be reached at michael.raeuber@ royalcargo.com

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

The World

Top economists see some echoes of depression in US sudden stop

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he US is entering a recession. The ultimate fear is that could turn into a protracted malaise that has some flavor of a depression.

That’s far from the base case, with many analysts and investors taking heart from signs of revival in the original epicenter of the coronavirus—China—and predicting a second-half upturn in the US after the contagion hopefully subsides.

But as business ac tivity halts and layoffs surge, some prominent economy watchers—including former White House chief economists Glenn Hubbard and Kevin Hassett and former Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Alan Blinder—have drawn comparisons to the Great Depression, though they’ve stopped well short of forecasting another one.

Former International Monetary Fund chief economist Maury Obstfeld said the world hasn’t seen a synchronized interruption in economic output in decades. The best example the University of California, Berkeley, professor can think of: “Well, maybe the Great Depression.”

Th e U S u n d o u b te d l y will suffer a huge economic contraction as businesses close and Americans stay home. By some estimates, the economy is headed toward its worst quarter in records since 1947.

J P M o rg a n Ch a s e & Co. ex p e c t s g ro s s domestic product to shrink at an annualized rate of 14 percent in the April-to-June period while Bank of America Corp. and Oxford Economics both see a 12-percent drop. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. sees a 24-percent plunge.

While that’s an enormous wallop, it’s only one quarter. In the Great Depression of 1929-1933, the entire economy shriveled by roughly a quarter as unemployment neared 25 percent.

Recessions, which refer to periods of significant, broad-based declines in economic activity, vary in length. Depressions, of which there is only one since 1900, require the downturn to last for a long time, perhaps years.

Whether the coming contraction proves to be prolonged depends a lot on how long it takes to check the contagion.

“Unless this virus miraculously disappears from the population over the course of the next few months, it is a reasonable scenario that we might be in this lockdown setting for quite a while, measured in quarters,” said Harvard University professor James Stock, who is a member of the National Bureau of Economic Research panel that dates the timings of recessions. If everybody stays home for six months, “it is going to be like the Great Depression,” Hassett, who’s returning to the White House to advise on economic matters, told CNN on Thursday.

The downturn’s depth and duration will depend on the economic policy response. It was policy mistakes—particularly by the Fed—that turned the contraction nearly a century ago into a depression.

“I am fearful of that if we don’t do the right policy,” said Hubbard, now at Columbia Business School.

A big concern: The sudden stop leads to widespread firings and bankruptcies that scar the economy for years, as in the Great Depression.

Goldman Sachs sees jobless claims surging to a record 2.25 million in the week ended March 21, while Bank of America projects 3 million and Citigroup 4 million.

That compares with 281,000 in the prior week and would be more than triple the record 695,000 during one week in 1982.

Greg Brown, finance professor at the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School, said unemployment will rise as high as 9 percent in two months, from February’s 50-year low of 3.5 percent.

With such job loss, “spending is not going to be as easy to restart because you just can’t see the same level of spending if you have people that have lost that income,” said Andrew Hollenhorst, chief US economist at Citigroup Inc. In addition, if companies can’t make planning and investment commitments now, “that can have impacts on spending today but also on potential innovation in the future,” said Tara Sinclair, an economist at job web site Indeed and professor at George Washington University.

Unlike nearly a century ago, the Fed has acted fast, cutting interest rates effectively to zero, restarting quantitative easing and resurrecting emergency financing facilities it used during the financial crisis.

President Donald Trump has now also recognized the enormity of the coming economic hit. He said on Saturday that negotiators in Congress and his administration are “very close” to agreement on a plan that an adviser said will aim to boost the US economy by about $2 trillion. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was aiming for a final vote on the measure on Monday.

“The economic hit could be sharp and deep,” said Harvard University professor Jeffrey Frankel. But assuming that infections peak in 2020, “there is no reason why economic activity should stay depressed for a period of years, which I take to be the definition of a depression.”

Some analysts trying to project the economy’s path cite the 1918 influenza pandemic that claimed an estimated 50 million lives worldwide.

In a recent presentation to a virtual Brookings Institution conference, economist Robert Barro said that countries back then typically suffered a 6 percent reduction in GDP, about in line with that of the last recession but far smaller than in the Great Depression.

He described his findings as an upperbound estimate of the economic impact from the coronavirus. Global health systems are better equipped to handle contagion now, but the world is more interconnected, Barro said.

“We think of a depression as a recession that is very, very deep and very, very long,” said Blinder, now a Princeton University professor.

“That’s the kind of thing that could happen” should infections peak only temporarily then return in the fall. Bloomberg News

BusinessMirror

Tuesday, March 24, 2020

A5

Sen. Rand Paul tests positive for virus, forcing quarantines

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ASHINGTON—Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky has tested positive for the coronavirus disease 2019, becoming the first case of Covid-19 in the US Senate and raising fears about the further transmission of the virus among Republicans at the Capitol.

Paul, an eye surgeon, went into quarantine on Sunday after learning his results. He said he has not had symptoms and was tested out of an abundance of caution due to his extensive travel and events. He said he was not aware of any direct contact with any infected person.

His announcement led Utah’s two GOP senators—Mike Lee and Mitt Romney—to place themselves into quarantine, stepping away from negotiations as the Senate worked on a $1.4 trillion economic rescue package for the coronavirus crisis. At least five senators, including Paul, were in self-quarantine on Sunday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said.

“The coronavirus has hit the Senate today,’’ said McConnell, Republican-Kentucky. “It’s not just back in our states but right here in the Senate.’’

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, a Democrat from Arizona elected in 2018, chastised Paul on Twitter, saying his decision to return to the Capitol after he was tested—but before he learned the results—was “absolutely irresponsible.’’

Sinema said she has “never commented about a fellow Senator’s choices/actions. Never once.’’

But she added: “This, America, is absolutely irresponsible. You cannot be near other people while waiting for coronavirus test results. It endangers others and likely increases the spread of the virus.’’

Other senators, including Ted Cruz of Texas and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, had gone into self-quarantine while they awaited the results of a coronavirus test.

Both were negative.

Responding to criticism on Twitter, Paul’s office said, “We want to be clear, Senator Paul left the Senate immediately upon learning of his diagnosis. He had zero contact with anyone & went into quarantine. Insinuations...that he went to the gym after learning of his results are just completely false & irresponsible!’’

Paul’s office did not say when he was tested. Representatives of his office could not immediately be reached for comment.

President Donald J. Trump called Paul “a great friend” and said he’s “always there when we needed him.’’

Paul’s diagnosis came after two House members, Reps. Mario Diaz Balart, Republican-Florida, and Ben McAdams, Democratic-Utah, tested positive for the virus. Trump said the positive test results showed the virus was “hitting quite close to home. It’s a terrible thing that’s going on.’’

Paul and other lawmakers “are going to be fine,’’ Trump said. “I hope they’ll be fine.’’

Paul, a deficit hawk, was among eight Senate Republ ica ns who voted against a House-passed bill last week that provided more than $100 billion to boost testing for the coronavirus and guarantee paid sick leave for millions of workers. He also was the only Republican senator who opposed an earlier bill authorizing $8.3 billion for the initial response to the coronavirus.

The senator was on Capitol Hill this past week, including at a luncheon on Friday among GOP senators. He spoke on the Senate floor on Wednesday afternoon, addressing the coronavirus and a failed amendment he sponsored that

Sen. Rand Paul, Republican-Kentucky, arrives for a Republican policy lunch on Capitol Hill in Washington last Friday. Paul tested positive for the coronavirus. AP/Susan Walsh

would have paid for virus relief efforts by withdrawing US forces from Afghanistan.

A spokesman for Sen. Jerry Moran, Republican-Kansas, said Moran briefly saw Paul at the Senate gym on Sunday morning and that he shared that information with GOP colleagues at a policy meeting.

Moran “followed CDC guidelines and kept a safe distance between him and Sen. Paul,’’ spokesman Tom Brandt said. Moran has spoken with the attending physician at the Capitol and has been told he does not need to self-quarantine, Brandt said.

South Dakota Sen. John Thune, the second-ranking Republican senator, said on the Senate floor that lawmakers will consult with the attending physician about all senators who have been in contact with Paul.

Romney said he was praying for Paul and noted that Paul’s health is compromised. Paul, 57, broke several ribs in 2017 when a neighbor assaulted him over a long-standing landscaping dispute. Paul, who was later awarded $580,000 in damages and medical expenses, had surgery last year to remove part of a lung damaged by the assault.

The Senate was in session on Sunday seeking a bipartisan response to the pandemic. If approved, the bill

would be the third measure Congress has approved in response to the coronavirus this month.

T he W hite House has increasingly emphasized t hat testing shou ld pr ior itize t hew elderly a nd he a lt h - c a re work e r s w ho h ave s y mptom s of t he v i r u s.

W hi le most cases of Cov id-19 are mild and tens of thousands of people have recovered, older people and those w ith underlying health problems are at higher r isk for more ser ious problems, such as pneumonia.

“We don’t want everyone to go out and get a test because there’s no reason for it,” Trump told reporters on Friday.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tells people to seek testing if they have certain symptoms of the flu-like illness caused by the coronavirus—fever, cough and trouble breathing—and if they have traveled recently to an outbreak area or have been in close contact with someone who is infected. They should first be tested for the flu and other routine infections.

The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. According to the World Health Organization, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness may take three to six weeks to recover. AP

German gloom deepens with recession, lockdown looming

G

ermany’s economic and social crisis deepened as the government forecast that the coronavirus pandemic would lead to the biggest output contraction in more than a decade while it grappled with how to prevent containment efforts tearing at the social fabric.

The finance ministry estimates that the economy will shrink by at least 5 percent this year, according to people familiar with the figures. That compares with the current official forecast of 1.1-percent growth and would represent the biggest contraction

since the financial crisis hammered Europe’s largest economy.

The internal forecast was used to calculate a €156 billion ($167 billion) supplementary budget that Finance Minister Olaf Scholz plans to present this week. The spending plan foresees lower intake of €33.5 billion and €122.8 billion in more expenditures from measures from company loans to social benefits to cushion the blow, Bild newspaper reported.

Economy Minister Peter Altmaier is due to speak with Germany’s leading economists in the coming days to assess the impact of the

virus on growth. The government originally planned to update its expectations at the end of April but accelerated the discussions.

Amid the deepening fallout from the crisis, Angela Merkel is at odds with some German states about how best to contain the spread of the virus. The chancellor is against a rigid lockdown, fearing that such a measure could backfire, according to a person familiar with her thinking.

Merkel is holding a video conference with leaders of Germany’s 16 states on Sunday afternoon to hammer out a more coordinated

approach. Berlin and Hamburg have more relaxed restrictions on residents than Bavaria and Saarland. The German leader is worried that the disjointed measures will cause confusion and lead to people migrating from one state to another to take advantage of looser rules.

In a meeting with government officials this week, Merkel voiced skepticism that a full lockdown could revive memories of the former East German dictatorship, said the person who asked not to be identified because the deliberations are confidential.

Bloomberg news

Virus marches on in Italy, Iran, U.S. as medical supplies shrink S

OAVE, Italy—Italy, Iran and the United States reported soaring new death tolls as the coronavirus pandemic marched relentlessly across the globe on Sunday, prompting a scramble in hard-hit regions to set up more hospital beds and replenish the dwindling medical supplies needed to keep health workers safe.

Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte went on TV near midnight, announcing that he was tightening the country’s lockdown and shutting down all production facilities except those providing essential goods and services. ‘’We are facing the most serious crisis that the country has experienced since World War II,’’ Conte told Italians during a live broadcast.

He cautioned citizens to be calm and patient, insisting there was “no alternative” t h a n to i m p o s e f u r t h e r re s t r i c t i o n s.

S cientists have argued that avoiding even one infection means scores more are prevented down the line.

In the US, where several states have ordered residents to stay indoors, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the government is “literally scouring the globe looking for medical supplies.” Health-care workers

from Oklahoma City to Minneapolis sought donations of protective equipment. Staff at a Detroit hospital began creating homemade face masks for workers.

Negotiators from Congress and the White House resumed top-level talks on a ballooning $1 trillion-plus economic rescue package, urged by President Donald Trump to strike a deal to steady a nation upended by the coronavirus pandemic. Trump appeared confident about the nation’s ability to defeat the pandemic soon even as health leaders acknowledged that the US was nowhere near the peak of the pandemic.

At least 38 people tested positive at New York City’s Rikers Island jail complex—more than half of them inmates. Another inmate became the first in the US to test positive in a federal jail.

Italy announced its biggest day-to-day increase of infections, which rose to 53,000 people, with nearly 800 new deaths. As bodies pile up in Italian hospitals, morgues and churches, and as medical workers plead for more help, there is no sign yet that Italy is taming its arc of contagion. Italy now has 4,825 deaths, more than all of China, where the virus first emerged late last year.

I n B r i t a i n , w h e re o n S u n d ay wa s Mother’s Day, the government had a stark message for millions: Visiting your mother could kill her. Prime Minister Boris Johnson implored Britons to forego traditional family visits, parties and Sunday lunches.

“If your mother is elderly or vulnerable, then I am afraid all the statistics show that she is much more likely to die from coronavirus,” Johnson said. “This time the best thing is to ring her, video call her, Skype her, but to avoid any unnecessary physical contact or proximity.”

Iran’s supreme leader refused US assistance on Sunday to fight the new coronavirus, citing an unfounded conspiracy theory that the virus could be made by America. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s comments came as Iran faces crushing US sanctions over its nuclear actions.

Iran says it has 1,685 deaths and 21,638 confirmed cases of the virus—a toll that experts from the World Health Organization say is almost certainly underreported.

Worldwide, more than 308,000 people have been infected and over 13,000 have died, according to Johns Hopkins University.

About 150 countries now have confirmed cases, and deaths have been reported in

more than 30 American states.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever or coughing. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. Some 93,000 people have recovered, mostly in China.

In Spain, Europe’s hardest-hit country behind Italy, intensive care units in some areas were close to their limits even before Sunday’s new tally of 28,572 infections and 1,720 deaths. 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 the US, New Jersey and St. Louis were added to a growing list of areas where residents were ordered to stay home. Hawaii’s governor instituted a mandatory 14-day self-quarantine starting Thursday for both returning residents and visitors and urged people to delay planned vacations to the Pacific archipelago.

Milan, the capital of Italy’s prosperous Lombardy region, appeared more deserted than ever. The square in front of the Duomo

was empty except for one older couple walking a dog.

Lombardy has raised the fines for people out without a good reason from €207 ($222) to €5,000 ($5,380). Officials lamented last week that the number of people on the streets was still too high to break the pandemic. The number of buses, trams and metros were cut—but that only caused more Italians to go out in their cars and was revoked.

The first of nine hulking Russian Il-76 cargo planes left Chkalovsky military airport in Moscow on Sunday, bringing Russian medical personnel and supplies to Italy, including eight mobile medical teams.

The Chinese city of Wuhan—where the global pandemic was first detected and the first city to be locked down—went a fourth consecutive day on Sunday without reporting any new or suspected cases. Wuhan must go 14 straight days without a new case in order for draconian travel restrictions to be lifted, but a special train brought in more than 1,000 car factory employees for the first time since the outbreak.

Parks and other public gathering places are reopening in China as people return to work and businesses resume. However, the

country has placed increasing restrictions on those coming from overseas.

All arrivals to Beijing from abroad must quarantine themselves for two weeks in a hotel at their own expense. And beginning on Monday, flights into the capital will be diverted to airports in other cities, where passengers will have to pass a health inspection.

China’s first recent case of community infection was reported on Sunday in the southern province of Guangzhou, reportedly caught from a Turkish arrival. As the outbreak has died down domestically, an influx of people coming into China has stoked fears of a resurgence.

Borders kept closing and airlines kept slashing flights. The long-haul carrier Emirates, a crucial East-West link that has now cut 70 percent of its routes, had been flying into Beijing despite the virus outbreak. Its Beijing flights, however, will end on Monday.

After recording its first two deaths, Singapore said it will fully shut its borders beginning Tuesday. All short-term visitors will be barred while returning locals will face a 14-day quarantine. Sri Lanka blocked all passenger flights and ships from entering. AP

A6 Tuesday, March 24, 2020 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

editorial

Distance learning

M

any students of both private and public schools, universities and colleges saw their facilities close due to the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) that President Duterte enforced from March 13 until April 15 to combat the Covid-19 pandemic.

Classes in Metro Manila have been suspended until April 14, while other provinces and towns have followed suit.

After the ECQ was declared, a lot of teachers, faculty members and school administrators had to race against the clock to prepare home-learning kits and online lessons for students, which both the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) asked them to do.

There were reports that some faculty members even broke quarantine to sneak over to their schools to get their unchecked exams, syllabi, record books and other important files and documents.

Some of them also realized, however, that giving online lessons, homework and exams would put pressure on kids without Internet access at home to go somewhere in order to access school requirements, causing them to break quarantine.

Hence, many schools and teachers were reluctant to do these.

Education Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones had already canceled the final exams of public schools, which were previously scheduled from March 16 to 20.

The DepEd, in a memorandum, said further academic requirements should be done as home-based assignments, and the existing class standings of students will be used as basis in computing their final grades.

The DepEd said teachers were no longer required to report to school unless ordered by their division superintendent. They were also encouraged to use online portals identified by DepEd to continue lectures with students and perform their tasks while school is out.

Many private schools have adopted the same strategy, more or less.

The school year is supposed to end in April for many schools, but graduation and moving up ceremonies would likely be postponed or canceled altogether because of the ECQ and social distancing measures brought about by this public health crisis.

Usually, a break from school comes with a bit of rejoicing but this early summer break is bleak.

Many people are hoping for the epidemic to subside by the end of June, at the soonest, but health experts are recommending social distancing and self-quarantine measures even well after that, if the number of infections are not mitigated.

Even if the infections subside, going back to normal work and school schedules when there is yet no vaccine available for the new coronavirus will likely just drive up the number of infections again.

Hence, both public and private schools should probably prepare for the worstcase scenario where the vast majority of children in the country would not be able to go to school for some time, perhaps until the third quarter of 2020.

Again, we wish to stress: No official statement has been made in this regard.

However, it would not hurt for schools to prepare as if the current closures could last far longer than initially anticipated.

The interregnum should not be used as an excuse for both teachers and students alike to slack off.

Schools should prepare contingency plans to conduct distance learning, which should also take into account students who don’t have Internet access at home, or those who only have low-bandwidth access.

Perhaps our telcos and IT experts can help in this regard by ensuring Internet access or by helping teachers set up offline access for students using available tools and applications.

There are many technologies nowadays that can operate even when online access is slow or not available, providing flexible learning options.

The important thing is to encourage all students to keep learning and progressing despite their current homebound situation or quarantined predicament.

This is a stressful and unprecedented time for students and their families. Our people need to come together and find ways to continue to provide educational opportunities for our children, to give some measure of hope and normalcy in these very abnormal times.

We thank the dedicated teachers out there who are still doing their job.

Even simple things like homework and learning modules can give our kids something to look forward to, a sense of achievement, which can help raise happiness levels and relieve stress.

Since 2005

BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business

03242020

The PSE bottom John Mangun

OUTSIDE THE BOX

R

ead these headlines from mid to late December 2019.

“Global stock markets post best year since financial crisis.”

“Every major stock index around the world climbed in 2019.”

“Global stocks end 2019 close to record highs.” “World stocks on track for 24 percent gain in 2019.”

The numbers were wonderful, especially with a strong December close as the US and China were getting—this time—really, really, and even more really, close to a trade deal. The Greek stock market was up 40 percent. Italy, Brazil and the US posted 28 percent gains. Other markets in Europe—Germany, France, Sweden and Switzerland—all went up 25 percent or more.

China’s CSI 300 was up 29 percent.

On the other side, the tenth worst market was India with a 12-percent increase along with London. Korea

Stephen L. Carter

Founder

Editor in Chief Associate Editor News Editor

Jennifer A. Ng Vittorio V. Vitug

Senior Editors

Lorenzo M. Lomibao Jr., Gerard S. Ramos Lyn B. Resurreccion, Dennis D. Estopace Angel R. Calso

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Creative Director Chief Photographer Chairman of the Board & Ombudsman President VP-Finance VP Advertising Sales Advertising Sales Manager Group Circulation Manager

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BLOOMBERG VIEW

T. Anthony C. Cabangon Lourdes M. Fernandez

there were many PSE investors who were bloodied and lying in a ditch by the side of the road. And the PSEi is back to 2012 levels, while the Dow Jones is at its 2016 level.

But here is another way to look at it that I think supports my idea, suggested a couple of weeks ago, that we will recover first.

Through everything that has happened in the past decade, all markets measure from the high in 2007 from when the Global Financial Crisis started. For us, that is PSEi 3,900 and we are now only about 19 percent above. The Dow is about 30 percent above its 2007 high.

Of course, it is no comfort that we may have to go down another 20 percent to bottom out. But the low already for this month is PSEi 4,040.

Stock markets are the destroyers of hopes and dreams. And they also build fantastic fortunes if you know what you are doing. Stay safe.

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

Is delivery still OK? The ethics of shopping in a pandemic

✝ Ambassador Antonio L. Cabangon Chua Publisher

was a “disaster area” with only 8 percent move higher, and Japan was disappointing by going up only 18 percent. Of course, the Philippine Stock Exchange did not show up on anyone’s list with its 4.68 percent gain because, after all, what is a “Philippines”?

Unfortunately, the world’s investors should have listened to the Philippine Stock Exchange Composite Index. They would have saved a lot of money. As I wrote at the time, by the end of December, the PSEi monthly chart flashed a major warning

signal. Then in January when both the Dow Jones Industrial Index and the MSCI World Index were basically unchanged, the PSEi broke down a year-long support level.

There are basically two types of illness categories—acute and chronic. The first is usually short-term and often very severe, which comes quickly; while chronic is a slow burn over time that also takes time to develop. Another way to put it is that ‘acute’ is event-driven while ‘chronic’ is a systemic problem.

The PSEi suffered an acute failure with the 1989 coup attempt that ended some six months later. The opposite was true when the PSEi peaked out in January 1997 before anyone realized Asia was in a financial crisis.

The PSE may be an insignificant “Old Boy’s Club” but the old and young boys and girls of the PSE are usually very smart in forecasting the future.

While the whole world—as evidence by the stock markets—was content and looking excitedly to a peaceful and prosperous 2020, PSE investors were cautious and watchful. Of course, in the past two months

W

hen my local supermarket opened for business at 6 a.m. the other day, I had my plan of action in place. The instant the door was unlocked, I hurried to the pharmacy aisle, where I found, to my surprise and delight, three bottles of rubbing alcohol.

But now I faced a puzzle. Should I play homo economicus and buy them all? Should I follow the Lockean proviso and leave as much and as good in common for others? Torn by competing priorities, I bought two of the three bottles, leaving the third for the next customer. Did I do wrong? I’m not sure. Shopping is tricky these days.

The question of how much to take and how much to leave is only one obvious ethical challenge we face as we navigate shopping during the present crisis. There are plenty of others.

For example, many consumers who are sheltering in place have come to start depending on deliveries for food and other household items. Experts are of the view that having food delivered is safer than risking a trip to the store—safer, that is, for the person placing the order. But the buyer’s safety is earned

by transferring the risk to the person making the delivery. Earlier this month, an article in Wired asked why it’s right for us to protect ourselves while allowing poorly paid delivery people to risk illness or worse. Intriguing online arguments ensued.

I understand the concern, but I also believe that in an emergency it’s okay to prioritize your safety and your family’s. It’s true that people who bring to our doors the food or cleaning products we want are taking risks we ourselves are trying to avoid.

They’re also trying to keep their paying jobs. If you think they’re being insufficiently compensated, tip as lavishly as you can. If you can’t afford to tip lavishly, at least communicate your appreciation.

On a related point, a number of US businesses have committed to paying their vendors immediately rather than waiting the usual 30 to 45 days,

in order to help smaller businesses stay afloat and pay their employees.

If you employ household labor, even a guy who trims your hedges or plows your driveway—and if your household balance sheet permits – consider doing the same.

Now let’s get back to my recent shopping trip. In addition to the two bottles of alcohol, I was able to buy three containers of disinfectant wipes (the limit per customer), along with several other useful items the store had restocked during the night.

Apparently, this makes me a hoarder, although I was already the sort who believed that anything worth buying is worth buying four of. Now our cupboards and closets and countertops overflow with the fruits of my many hours spent roaming from store to store.

Am I overdoing it? Maybe. Or maybe I’m just responding rationally to the increasingly hysterical “news” about the coronavirus. Television talking heads keep telling us that the emergency could continue for months. It’s hard to then fault people for responding to such dire predictions by buying everything in sight.

If, on the other hand, you think I should be forbidden to buy as much as I can find of the goods my family needs, you’re not alone. President Trump recently yielded to bipartisan urging and invoked the Defense Production Act. As I’ve pointed out recently in this space, that statute can be used to limit the amount of a

needed product people are allowed to keep in their homes. Yes, that could literally mean federal agents bursting into people’s homes to count bottles of hand sanitizer. I don’t think it will come to that, but the point is that the law allows the government to impose limits.

Finally, let’s remember why shelves are so empty. It’s not because people are buying too much. It’s because the goods that are in demand are too cheap. If you’re upset that your local store is sold out of all the things you want, don’t blame your fellow consumers. Blame our aversion to letting prices rise to meet demand.

The attorney general of Connecticut, the state where I live and work, is furious that “bad actors” are selling hand sanitizer and toilet paper at prices he thinks are too high. But as I’ve been arguing since the crisis was young, at higher prices we’d see fuller shelves. People would buy smaller quantities; and new sellers would be enticed into the market.

If you’re worried that disinfectant wipes will be too expensive for the poor, I’m all for subsidizing their purchases. But let’s by all means let the prices rise to help keep more goods on the shelves. Even if you think the main problem is not production but distribution, higher prices would mean an incentive to clean up those channels fast.

Even in an emergency, incentives matter.

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Nuances of Covid-19 deadline extensions

The worst of times brings out the best in us Manny F. Dooc

TELLTALES

Atty. Irwin C. Nidea Jr.

Tax law for business

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mid the Covid-19 pandemic that has disrupted our daily lives, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) extended the deadline of filing and payment of different types of tax.

The courts also extended the filing of petitions and other pleadings. But these extensions have nuances, which taxpayers must be aware of.

We all know that the BIR was reluctantly forced to move the filing and payment of Annual Income Tax Returns from April 15, 2020 to May 15, 2020. This means delay in the collection of funds necessary to finance emergency assistance to many Filipinos who are in need. But everyone is encouraged to still pay to any Authorized Agent Banks or to any Revenue Collection Officer, and not wait for the extended deadline to do so.

Due dates in the filing and payment of all other types of tax were also moved to one month after its original due date. This includes value-added tax (VAT), and withholding tax payments. The government, according to the Department of Finance, has no choice but to look for other sources, like borrowing money, to fill in the gap.

It is a welcome development that the filing of VAT refund applications covering the quarter ending March 31, 2018 can still be accepted until April 30, 2020. Also, the 90-day period to process VAT refund claims for claims currently being evaluated and for those that may be received from March 16, 2020 to April 14, 2020 are suspended and that the counting shall resume after the lifting of the “community quarantine.” But there are other refund claims that are not given a 30-day extension.

First, creditable withholding tax refunds are due within two years from the filing of the Annual Income Tax Return. For 2017 CWT refund of taxpayers that observe calendar year in recording their books, the due date will fall on April 14, 2020.

Since the quarantine period ends on April 12, 2020, then taxpayers are still required to file the administrative claim for refund with the BIR not later than April 14, 2020 (note that 2020 is a leap year).

Second, excise tax refunds are due within two years from the date of payment. If the two-year period has lapsed during the quarantine period, the taxpayer must also immediately file the administrative claim on April 13, 2020, which is the first working day after the quarantine.

But what about appeals to the Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) and other courts? The SC issued a Resolution suspending work in all courts. It also resolved that Petitions and other court submissions that fall due from the period March 15, 2020 to April 15, 2020 is extended for 30 days,

counted from April 16, 2020.

In the case of VAT refund where the expiration of the 30-day period after the 90-day period for the BIR to decide, falling from March 15, 2020 to April 15, 2020, the taxpayer can still file an appeal to the CTA until May 15, 2020. As regards CWT refunds for 2017 (where the ITR was filed on April 15, 2018 or earlier), as discussed above, the taxpayer must still file the administrative claim for refund with the BIR within two years from the filing of the Annual Income Tax Return, or not later than April 14, 2020. But the Judicial claim for refund may still be filed with the CTA until May 15, 2020. Almost the same predicament applies to excise tax refunds. Administrative claims must be filed on April 13 to April 14 if they fall due on such dates. But petition with the CTA may still be filed until May 15, 2020 to beat the two-year prescriptive period.

The BIR officers are still required to work from home especially on assessments that are prescribing. Why is this so? The prescriptive period for the BIR to issue a Final Assessment Notice is not suspended by this pandemic. So, if an assessment is going to prescribe on April 10, 2020, the BIR must issue a FAN on April 13, 2020, which is the first working day after the lifting of the quarantine period. Failure by the BIR to issue the said FAN would mean that the BIR loses its right to assess. The taxpayer should find creative ways to submit supporting documents to the examiners so that these will be considered in the preparation of the FAN. It is understandable that tax deadlines are far from everybody’s mind amid this existential threat.

But it is important that taxpayers take note of these nuances to protect their rights. When the dust settles (hopefully very soon), nobody wants to face any more tragedy because of a missed deadline.

The author is a senior partner of Du-Baladad and Associates Law Offices (BDB Law), a memberfirm of WTS Global.

The article is for general information only and is not intended, nor should be construed as a substitute for tax, legal or financial advice on any specific matter. Applicability of this article to any actual or particular tax or legal issue should be supported therefore by a professional study or advice. If you have any comments or questions concerning the article, you may e-mail the author at irwin.c.nideajr@ bdblaw.com.ph or call 8403-2001 local 330.

Tuesday, March 24, 2020 A7

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here’s something wrong in a society that hoards toilet papers. A news report a week ago showed that Americans are panic-buying toilet paper by the tons. This was triggered by rumors that the commodity will be in short supply. To us Filipinos, the lack of toilet paper will not cause us loss of sleep, as long as we have our ever reliable tabo. I know a couple who does not leave our country without it when they travel abroad. It’s indispensable like credit cards for some people. Years ago, before the advent of the toilet paper, it was reported that sailors used the frayed end of the rope dipped in sea water to clean themselves. Many households in the rural areas used corn cobs or dry grass. It’s not uncommon for one to use newspaper pages, which makes him a literate ass.

People, however, preferred the yellow pages since they were softer and finer. You have to be choosy to avoid piles. It was a New Yorker, Joseph Gayetty, who invented the first commercial toilet paper.

Its soft and gentle feel earned the patronage of customers. But Irvin and Clarence Scott revolutionized it when they manufactured toilet papers on rolls, now a leading brand called Scott paper. Many Americans cannot live without toilet paper, which has become a basic necessity for them. In fact, some politicians had placed their political ads on the roll wrappers, like what President Donald Trump did in 2016. Ever wonder why he has toilet-humor and his administration stinks to high heavens? Let’s hope that the $1 trillion financial package, which

the Republicans have crafted to deodorize the Trump rule, will work wonders. nnn

Headlines read: “SM Supermalls to waive tenant rentals nationwide;” “Gokongwei sets P100M Covid-19 relief fund, waives mall rental;” “Banks offer grace period for loans during Luzon quarantine;” “Jollibee gives P100M food for Covid-19 front-liners;” “MetroBank and GT pledge P200M for Covid-19 response efforts;” “Alliance Global donates 1M liters of disinfectant ethyl alcohol to hospitals;” “Jollibee Group Foundation gives P100M worth of food to frontline health workers and checkpoint personnel;” “Ayala Group of Companies allots emergency response package of P2.4B;” “MVP Group donates disinfectant

alcohol, face masks, PPE and multiple benefits to employees;” “SMC revives Nutribun for communities in need (this is in addition to hundred million worth of donation packages earlier made);” “Pag-IBIG offers 3-month moratorium on all loans;” “SSS and GSIS grant loans to members in billions;” “SSS will extend unemployment benefits to displaced workers.” On of of these, many more responsible private companies and nongovernment organizations are helping out to help Filipinos suffering from economic difficulties. This is corporate social responsibility in action. The worst of times brings out the best in us. nnn

We should thank our brave and selfless health workers—the doctors, nurses, and the PRC volunteers who fight the frontline battles daily against the coronavirus. Many of them do not even have their own means of transportation to take them to their places of work. Their heroic work to contain and prevent the spread of the virus exposes them to grave risks. They put their lives on the line serving the public. They even lack the basic protection gadgets like surgical masks, sanitizers, personal protective equipment and body shields to minimize the dangers that they face. Unfortunately, they have no hazard pay to justly compensate them for their risky jobs. I am glad that both the public and the private sectors are now recognizing their miserable plight. Among others, there are now vehicles provided to transport them to and from their work. Many private companies have donated the wherewithal to prepare

J

ournalism, it’s been said, is the first rough draft of history, to which I’d add that opinion columns are the first draft of journalism. So, let me venture a prediction. One long-term effect of the Covid-19 pandemic will be to leave many children behind, perhaps permanently limiting their opportunities in life. At the same time, the disruption will barely affect others and even let a few pull ahead. In short, it will exacerbate inequality.

I’m talking of course about the school closures in many countries, from Europe and Asia to North America. And I’m not interested in relitigating whether those shutdowns are necessary; let’s assume they are. But depending on how long schools stay closed, these ruptures will derail some youngsters, while spurring others to excel.

Three groups of people will determine together how this situation turns out for the kids: Their teachers, their

parents, and of course the children themselves.

Let’s start with the teachers. There are huge differences in how schools intend to keep teaching remotely during the crisis with the digital tools now available. And it’s not simply down to whether the schools happen to be in poor or rich areas.

Looking at my own children’s school after a couple of days of remote learning, for example, I’m cautiously optimistic.

nnn

With social distancing becoming de rigueur, we cannot be thankful enough to anyone “who touches our life.” This commonly used phrase will banish in our speech and writing during this age of pandemic. nnn

Have you heard of the latest joke about Trump? Trump’s brain has two parts, “left” and “right”. On the left side, there’s nothing right. On the right side, there’s nothing left.”

Virus outbreak means (mis)information overload: How to cope

By Barbara Ortutay & David Klepper The Associated Press

T

he coronavirus pandemic is leading to information overload for many people, often making it difficult to separate fact from fiction and rumor from deliberate efforts to mislead.

In the US, text messages predicting a nationwide lockdown have circulated, along with social-media posts telling people that one way to get tested for the virus is by donating blood or warning that mosquitoes can carry it. All are untrue.

Such falsehoods can endanger public health, sow confusion and fear, and prevent important information from reaching people during a crisis. The Associated Press has debunked many such claims, including one about bananas supposedly preventing people from catching the virus and another on “Harry Potter” actor Daniel Radcliffe testing positive.

Covid-19, the illness caused by the virus, has stricken thousands across the globe but usually presents only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For older adults and people with other health problems, it can cause complications or sometimes death. Most people recover.

Here are some things you can do to

separate fact from misinformation:

Look for the source

WE are more likely to believe things our friends tell us—that’s human nature. It’s why rumors spread and why misinformation travels on social media. It’s also why the chain text message warning of a nationwide lockdown worked so well: Everyone heard it from a friend of a friend who “knows someone.” Be wary of important-sounding information that is not coming from a clear, authoritative source, such as local government agencies and health departments, or national and international public health institutes, such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization.

Posts may also claim that a politician said or did something. You can check that information through legitimate news outlets or the candidates’ own verified social-media accounts.

Cdc and the who

The top public health institutes in the United States and other countries, along with the WHO, are some of the most trusted sources of information about the outbreak. They provide the latest statistics, advisories and guides on everything from sanitizing your home to managing stress.

Dr. Jessica Justman, an infec-

tious disease expert at Columbia University, said the sheer amount of information online about the coronavirus pandemic can quickly become overwhelming. That’s one reason she encourages people to check the web sites of the CDC and the WHO. “It’s not just misinformation, it’s also a lack of good information,” Justman said. “There’s so much information out there that many people are just saying ‘I can’t read it, it makes me too anxious.’”

“Go straight to the source,” she said. “The CDC has been putting out great information.” At the same time, be mindful of scammers taking advantage of the CDC’s and other organizations’ trusted names.

Act like a journalist

“Everyone right now is trying to figure out: What is going on? What do I need to know? Who can I trust?” said John Silva, director of education at the News Literacy Project, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that works with educators to teach students how to navigate the news.

Silva said anyone searching for accurate information about the virus needs to act a little like a journalist by verifying suspicious claims.

Be wary of information from groups or news organizations you don’t know—in some cases the

Closing school may cause some kids a lifetime of harm

By Andreas Kluth | Bloomberg Opinion

and equip them properly in discharging their hazardous duties. Authorities are now discussing giving them hazard pay.

What is laudable is the recent action by brewers and distillers across Europe and America in switching part of their production facilities from manufacturing liquors and alcoholic drinks to hand sanitizers and alcohol. Some companies even temporarily stopped their production of spirits and intoxicating products in favor of hand sanitizer. Now, many famous brands like Absolut Vodka, Texas Whiskey and Rabbit Hole have joined the efforts. Locally, Ginebra San Miguel has adopted this move and switched some of their production to alcohol.

With this move, I shall now switch my allegiance to its PBA team, Barangay Ginebra. Not to be outdone, LVMH, the world’s largest manufacturer of luxury goods, has started manufacturing hand sanitizer and distributed them free of charge. I just hope LVMH does not commit the mistake of putting alcohol in the perfume and cosmetic bottles under the brand of Christian Dior, Guerlain and Givenchy.

It had already set up Google Classroom, SeeSaw and a few other online tools, and the teachers appear joyfully flexible in trying out ways to keep the kids engaged.

But many other schools in Berlin, the worst of Germany’s 16 school systems, either aren’t set up yet or don’t even have a viable plan to keep teaching during the closure.

Now for the parents. Here the differences are at least as big. In some families, mom and dad have white-collar jobs that let them work from home, keeping an eye on the kids. They probably also have good Wi-fi, at least one laptop or iPad per kid and shelves of books in the background.

They may also have a sense of discipline and balance, setting strict time tables but making room for playtime and exercise.

And they’ll probably have a bowl of fruit waiting before the next lesson.

In other families, the parents—or the single mom or dad—may have none of

this. If the school doesn’t structure the children’s learning, the parents don’t know where to find teaching tools, and wouldn’t be confident in this role anyway. Maybe they need to hold down a job in the gig economy and will therefore be absent much of the time. Their kids will end up spending “school hours” with junk food and Fortnite.

Last but not least, the kids. Even within one family, the individual differences can be huge. Some children thrive in the social and structured setting of a school, but fall apart without that discipline and stimulation. For others, it may be the reverse. Without the usual distractions, they may benefit from a time of deep and immersive study.

Whatever a student’s purely academic skills may have been so far, “noncognitive” factors such as selfdiscipline, organization and time management will increasingly make the

difference during a prolonged school closure. That’s what some educators fashionably call “grit.” As a result, some children will fall behind or stop learning altogether, while others will keep learning at the same rate or even build the organizational and motivational skills for lasting success.

At some point, whenever the pandemic recedes, these cohorts will rejoin in a classroom. But one group may never catch up again, whereas the other will pull ahead—and keep pulling ahead in school, university and career.

What will be the relative weight of teachers, parents and children in determining the outcome? Perhaps the individual traits of each child are most important. That was the conclusion of the famous marshmallow test, a study that began in the 1960s and was published in 1990.

The researchers offered four-year-old

groups behind misinformation create web sites and social-media accounts that look like a legitimate news organization. Remember that there’s a difference between news stories and opinion pieces. News stories should include the source of the information. If there’s no source or attribution, be suspicious.

In addition to seeking authoritative sources, journalists also seek to confirm information from multiple sources. Even if a news outlet is at first alone in reporting a big development, others will soon follow. If this doesn’t happen, it could be a red flag.

Pause, take a breath

A 2018 study by MIT researchers found that false news travels faster than real news—often much faster.

That’s because it’s often designed to grab people’s attention by connecting with their emotions, such as fear or outrage. The researchers, who studied how false news travels on Twitter, also found that misinformation spreads quickly because people retweet it, not due to bot activity. It’s easy to get caught up in the moment and retweet a terrifying headline before reading the accompanying article. But pausing before reposting can save you from embarrassment and prevent falsehoods from spreading farther.

a marshmallow but promised them even more candy if they waited before chomping. Then they left and came back after 15 minutes. The kids who were able to delay gratification later went on to do better in life in almost every way, from test scores to body mass indices.

But a more recent study published in 2018 came to a different conclusion.

Trying to replicate the original marshmallow test, it looked at 10 times as many children and controlled for social class. And it found that family background, not the willpower implied by delayed gratification, was the biggest factor in subsequent life success. In fact, it even found that family background pretty well predicted whether a given child will eat a marshmallow or wait.

A poor child, for example, may simply not believe the promise of a second marshmallow.

A8 Tuesday, March 24, 2020

Under strict rules, DOT permits 33 hotels to operate during ECQ T

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo

@akosistellaBM Special to the BusinessMirror

HIRTY-THREE hotels and other accommodation establishments have been allowed by the Department of Tourism (DOT) to remain open during the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) ordered by Malacañang, meant to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

Hotel and Sales Marketing Association Inc. (HSMA) President Christine Ann U. Ibarreta told the BusinessMirror, these hotels account for about 30,000 rooms.

Many of them are accommodating not just long-term guests, but also frontliners, employees of businessprocess outsourcing (BPO) companies, and the like.

As this developed, the DOT on Monday released an amended implementing rules and regulations

(IRR) on the operation of hotels and other accommodation establishments during the Luzon-wide lockdown, as contained in its Administrative Order 2020-001.

The amended IRR signed by Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat, a copy of which was obtained by this paper, now allows hotels to accept new bookings from foreigners “who are in transit to leave the country.”

Also allowed to check into the

■ Luxent Hotel (Quezon City) ■ The Bellevue Manila (Alabang,

Muntinlupa) ■ B Hotel Alabang and Quezon City ■ Crowne Plaza Manila Galleria (Ortigas CBD) ■ Seda Hotel (BGC, Vertis North QC, Nuvali) ■ Seda Residences Makati ■ Park Inn by Radisson (North Edsa, QC and Clark, Pampanga) ■ Astoria Plaza Ortigas ■ Sheraton Manila Hotel (Pasay) ■ Crimson Hotel (Filinvest, Muntinlupa) ■ Dusit Thani Manila (Makati) ■ Conrad Manila (Pasay) ■ Berjaya Makati Hotel ■ Sheraton Manila Bay Hotel (Malate, Manila) ■ Discovery Primea (Makati) and Discover Suites (Ortigas CBD) ■ Acacia Hotel (Alabang) ■ Edsa Shangri-La, Manila (Ortigas CBD) ■ Novotel Manila Araneta City (QC) ■ Valero Grand Suites by Swiss Belhotel (Makati) ■ Sofitel Philippine Plaza (Pasay) The hotels allowed to operate are required to report details of their operations every Friday to the Standard Monitoring and Enforcement Division of the DOT through smed@ tourism.gov.ph, such as the number of skeleton work force, names of nearby establishments whose employees are checked in, number and names of nationalities booked and length of stay, among others.

The DOT has estimated the Covid-19 outbreak will cut tourism receipts by some P40 billion in the first quarter of the year. Prior to the Luzon-wide lockdown, tourism stakeholders were already reporting severe losses from the lack of inbound guests, forcing many to resort to layoffs. (See, “The Broader Look: PHL travel, tourism industry turns local as Covid-19 wreaks havoc,” in the BusinessMirror, March 12, 2020.)

At least 69 homeless individuals from all over Metro Manila are now housed at the Arnold Janssen Kalinga Center of the DLSU Campus in Manila where they are quarantined, fed and given hope in the midst of the Covid-19 scare. Social distancing is strictly enforced, the center officials said . CONTRIBUTED PHOTO BY NORMAN ARAGA

covered accommodation establishments are arriving overseas Filipino workers.

The amended IRR now strictly requires hotels to book guests in

single-occupancy rooms, as a way of complying with the national government’s directive for social distancing.

The hotels are also “strongly encouraged to provide the lowest possible rates to guests, especially to OFWs and employees from neighboring basic establishments. Those reported to be engaging in opportunistic pricing may be subject to the relevant penalties under applicable laws, rules, and regulations.”

Neighboring basic establishments are defined as “private establishments providing basic necessities and such activities related to food and medicine production, i.e., public markets, supermarkets, groceries, convenience stores, hospitals, medical clinics, pharmacies and drug stores, food preparation and delivery services, water-refilling stations, manufacturing and processing plants of basic food products

and medicines, banks, money transfer services, power, energy, water and telecommunications supplies and facilities, and BPOs.” Ibarreta said, however, while many hotels heeded Romulo Puyat’s request to lower their room rates especially for frontliners, “[The latter] still can’t afford the lower rates as their budget is usually below P1,000 per night.”

Among the hotels allowed to operate as of March 23 are: ■ Golden Phoenix Manila (Pasay—Open, but does not accept new bookings) Hilton Manila (Pasay) ■ New Coast Hotel Manila (Malate, Manila) ■ Ace Hotel and Suites (Pasig) ■ New World Makati ■ Solaire Resort and Casino (Parañaque) ■ Holiday Inn and Suites Makati ■ The Linden Suites (Pasig)

As power use dips, plants urged to scale down to save on costs

By Lenie Lectura @llectura

W

ITH the decline in power consumption, particularly in the commercial and industrial sectors, conglomerate San Miguel Corp.

(SMC) on Monday proposed that power plants scale down their production in order to save on cost.

SMC President Ramon Ang, who also leads power subsidiary SMC Global Power Holdings Corp., pointed out that it makes sense to produce only what is necessary in order to save on fuel, among others.

“The Covid-19 crisis is a worldwide issue, and while we all hope for a resolution soon, it’s better if we are prepared if it extends. If there is excess capacity today, particularly since major business and commercial centers and industries are practically shut down, then perhaps government can require power plants to only produce what is needed in order to save on fuel,” Ang said.

Ang said that while there is no issue with power supply today, it would be prudent for power facilities to save as much fuel to ensure continuous operation.

Demand plunged The Department of Energy (DOE) earlier observed that electricity demand plunged by about 30 percent because of

the enhanced community quarantine to contain the spread of Covid-19.

Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said in an earlier text message that residential demand increased but commercial demand decreased. “For instance, March 16. The actual available supply was 13,000 megawatts while demand was 9,500 MW. The net effect is that the reduction in commercial is greater than the increase in residential demand,” explained Cusi.

Some power players said“the practical thing is that plant production should be commensurate to the demand.” Besides, they added, there is difficulty in procuring imported raw materials and supplies given the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon. Ang pointed out there is sufficient power to supply the requirements of the country for the duration of the enhanced community quarantine, but given the slowdown in economic activity, power facilities would have to scale down production to save on fuel and further secure supply for the next coming months.

“We will continue to operate all our power facilities safely despite the challenges we face and make sure that we supply power where it’s needed. We have prepared for these types of situations and we are ready,” Ang said.

SMC Global Power owns and operates a multi-fuel portfolio of baseload

power plants around the country. Its power generation facilities are located in Bataan, Bulacan, Zambales, and Davao Occidental. It also administers some 2,500 MW of capacity from the Sual, Ilijan, and San Roque plants.

“As far as our facilities are concerned, we can assure sufficient and uninterrupted capacity supplied to the Luzon and Mindanao grids,” Ang said.

With the declaration of Covid-19 as a global pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO), SMC Global Power activated its Business Continuity Plan, designed to ensure constant supply, employee safety, and operational reliability.

“Our plants are equipped to handle the demand for reliability. Protocols have been activated in our power plants as a response to crises such as pandemics.

This enables our people to operate our facilities with the necessary guidance that ensures their health and safety during such times,” Ang said.

Considered as part of basic services, SMC Global Power has been working with the DOE, the IATF, local government units, and law enforcement agencies on properly navigating through the enhanced community quarantine.

This includes close coordination on the movement of critical people and supplies needed for the continuity of its power plant operations.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Companies BusinessMirror

Tuesday, March 24, 2020

B1

DNL to continue producing food ingredients

D

By VG Cabuag

@villygc

and L Industries Inc., a local company engaged in the manufacturing of customized food ingredients and other chemicals, on Monday said it will remain operational to prevent any disruption in the supply of raw materials in the food and sanitation chemicals industry.

“We’re working in less than ideal operating conditions right now, facing challenges in logistics, supply disruptions and reduced manpower. But as of now, we’re still able to maintain selected manufacturing capabilities, and I hope will continue to do so until the outbreak has been permanently contained,” said DNL President and CEO Alvin Lao. While the company sources some of its raw materials from China and some delays are expected, it has already been able to find alternative suppliers. It said has ample inventory lasting for over 100 days.

DNL said that the company remains free from the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).

“The food ingredients that we manufacture go into canned goods, noodles, biscuits and other shelfstable snacks. We also manufacture sanitation chemicals such as alcohol, disinfectant spray and sanitizer which are much needed due to current conditions,” Lao said, adding that it is aligning resources to serve the increase in demand for immunity-boosting food supplements, cleaning solutions, alcohol and disinfectants.

“While there are a lot of uncertainties at this point, and the food ingredients business will likely take a hit with slower demand from the hotel/restaurant/catering sector, we are optimistic that we can weather this storm given our strong balance sheet,” he added.

The company said it has instituted strict precautionary measures to address employee health risks, including the work-from-home policy and staggered attendance scheme.

The company has already released half of the 13th-month pay to employees last week, and will be paying

salaries in full to all of its employees, until the end of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in April.

The national government placed the entire island of Luzon under ECQ to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

The Philippines has recorded 462 cases, 33 deaths and 18 recoveries as of March 23, according to the Department of Health.

DNL is a Filipino company that manufactures various products, ranging from food ingredients, chemicals for personal and home care use, raw materials for plastic, and aerosol products.

‘Telecommuting boosts data usage’ Firms extend lifeline

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

W

ith the enhanced community quarantine of Luzon and the local lockdowns imposed by provincial and city governments, Filipinos have found themselves working at the comfort of their own homes.

For some, working at home was a gift. They get to be more productive with less chatter and banter with co-employees. Others consider it a bane, as they have to juggle their daily grind, attending to their kids and caring for their elderly parents.

Working from home, or telecommuting, has become a new normal, albeit temporarily, for Filipinos due to strict social distancing protocols and the paralyzation of the transport systems to stop the further spread of the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

Telco titans Smart and Globe have both seen “spikes” in data us-

age coming from the homes due to telecommuting.

“After a week of life under enhanced community quarantine, we continue to provide regular communications services to our customers and the public. Data traffic has grown—by around 15 percent to 20 percent,” said Smart Spokesman Ramon R. Isberto.

Smart's parent company, PLDT, has already provided a speed boost for its fiber customers in the Greater Manila area to cope with the increasing demand.

“There is a certain amount of substitution taking place. Some of the traffic that used to originate from offices are now coming from homes.

In any case, the fixed and mobile networks of PLDT and Smart as whole have the capacity to handle the increased traffic in data, as well as in calls and SMS,” said Isberto.

He noted that his group is “taking steps” to further increase the group’s network capacity to be able to meet the future demand for data.

“We are for example increasing the capacity of our international cable networks which will improve our ability to carry Internet traffic which comes mainly from overseas.

We are also significantly increasing the capacity of our domestic transport network by utilizing our newly installed transformed transport fiber network,” said Isberto.

For his part, Globe SVP Peter Maquera said the “sudden rise of Covid-19 cases…has jump-started the adoption of telecommuting among businesses…thereby, further raising the demand for mobile data and broadband connectivity.”

“Given the present-day realities with enterprises deciding to adopt flexible work arrangements, employees need to be able to collaborate and be productive anywhere they may be and in real-time, for businesses to continue to operate efficiently.

That is why we are doing our best to provide our clients with the tools to help them optimize the way they do business,” he said.

Globe Spokesman Yolanda C. Crisanto noted that the telco is currently reviewing its networks and is addressing requirements for telecommuting.

“At the moment, Globe is focusing its efforts on helping address the connectivity requirements of our customers especially as more people are now working from home,” she said. “Perhaps this is a time for all stakeholders to assess how we can proceed to build the kind of ICT infrastructure we really need to be as inclusive as possible, and be able to provide the much needed support that our people need.”

Republic Act 11165, or the Telecommuting Act, was enacted in 2019. It aims to ease traffic congestion by reducing the number of workers using the roads through work-from-home arrangements using ICT tools.

Companies started mandating their employees to practice telecommuting when Covid-19 became a global pandemic.

Manila Water assures ample water supply

M

anila Water made an assurance to its customers in the East Zone that it has taken the necessary steps to ensure that water supply is sufficient even amid the threat of the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

The company said the augmentation sources it has started putting in place beginning last year, such as the Cardona Water Treatment Plant in Rizal and deep wells, will help boost water supply.

“Skeleton work forces are also on duty at every water supply and wastewater facility to ensure that service delivery remains unhampered,” it said in a statement on Monday.

Manila Water also said it continues to implement operational adjustments to equitably distribute water to all its customers despite the enforcement of enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Luzon.

“While demand for water among residential customers is expected to rise, this may be offset by the decrease in consumption in commercial establishments and business offices that are currently closed due to the quarantine,” the company said.

It also ensured its support for East Zone hospitals’ requirement for clean and safe water by installing line boosters and constructing deepwells in some of these health facilities.

Manila Water said the Cardona Water Treatment Plant now yields 100 million liters per day (MLD) of potable treated water drawn from the Laguna Lake. Additional deep wells are still being constructed

across the East Zone, from which we expect to draw up to another 100 MLD by the second quarter of this year.

Currently, the company said there are 36 deep wells in operation, contributing up to 44 MLD. It also continues to aggressively recover nonrevenue water or systems loss through regular maintenance of our pipe network as well as prompt repairs of leaks. Booster pumps are likewise strategically placed at key points along the distribution lines to help drive water to elevated communities.

The company provides water

treatment, water distribution, sewerage and sanitation services to more than 6 million people in the East Zone, comprising a broad range of residential, semi-business, commercial and industrial customers.

The East Zone encompasses 23 cities and municipalities spanning a 1,400-square kilometer area that includes Makati, Mandaluyong, Pasig, Pateros, San Juan, Taguig, Marikina, most parts of Quezon City, portions of Manila, as well as the following towns of Rizal: Angono, Antipolo, Baras, Binangonan, Cainta, Cardona, Jala-Jala, Morong, Pililia,Rodriguez, San

Mateo, Tanay, Taytay, and Teresa.

The company issued the statement after the national government placed Luzon under ECQ to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Experts had recommended frequent washing and to practice good hygiene to kill the virus that causes the disease.

As of March 23, the Department of Health reported that the Philippines had recorded 462 positive cases, 33 deaths and 18 recoveries. The government is seeking to “flatten the curve” via the epidemic control measures it has put in place.

to clients, customers

I

T’s business as usual for the Aboitiz Group as it continues to extend a lifeline to the clients and customers of its subsidiaries to cope up with the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic as well as implement ways to guarantee unhampered delivery of service.

This initiative is a follow-through to its call for public-private partnership to minimize the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) by keeping the economy afloat.

“We in Aboitiz fully recognize the impact of the current situation on our clients and customers—and we are doing our best to help them cope until things return to normal. We are with you as we beat the odds together during this challenging time,” said Sabin M. Aboitiz, president and chief executive officer of Aboitiz Group.

AboitizPower distribution units Visayan Electric, Davao Light, Cotabato Light, and Subic EnerZone give clients a 30-day payment extension for bills due on March 15 to April 14 of this year.

Scheduled power interruptions will also be limited to customer requests and vital line maintenance.

An extension for one month with no late fees, plus waived online Instapay transfer fees until April 14 are also offered by Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) to qualified credit cards, housing loans, auto loans, and quick loans customers.

Its subsidiary, City Savings Bank, provided a 30-day loan payment moratorium for motorcycle loan borrowers in good standing. Its 52 branches in Visayas and Mindanao and 38 in Luzon are still open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Real-estate arm AboitizLand is waiving a month's rent to all the occupants of its malls in Luzon and Visayas. It, likewise, extended payment deadlines for bills issued during the previous month.

It prolonged equity payment for its residential accounts with due dates from March 16 to April 15.

Also, penalties and fees related with transactions for this period are waived.

The microstudio rental apartments operated

by AboitizLand with Point Blue also reduced the required three-month minimum lease term for all units to one month.

Aboitiz said the operation of Pilmico Foods Corp. will continue to ensure unimpeded production in its flour, feeds, and farm facilities to guarantee food supply stability in areas affected by the quarantine. It also uses its digital platforms to keep serving its partners and customers via online consultations for baking, livestock raising, and nutrition.

For industrial locators and commercial establishments of LiMA Park in Batangas that are still operating, potable water and industrial wastewater treatment from Lima Water Corp., a subsidiary of Aboitiz InfraCapital, are available 24/7.

Aboitiz said Apo Agua Infrastructura, another

business unit behind the Davao City Bulk Water Supply Project, is working with its partners and stakeholders to guarantee minimal disruption to the ongoing construction of its facility.

The company said it is committed to full transparency on challenges of the Covid-19 crisis and constantly inspects active worksites in the city to comply to precautionary measures taken by the local government unit.

Bloomberry donation

Bloomberry Cultural Foundation Inc., the corporate social responsibility arm of Solaire Resort and Casino said it is donating P60 million worth of personal protective equipment and N95 masks to the Department of Health (DOH).

Shipment of these equipment are due to arrive late next week, and shall be distributed to medical front liners in various hospitals dealing with Covid-19 patients.

“BCFI has also applied with the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) for the necessary permits for three different covid-19 testing kits currently available in China and South Korea. As soon as the clearances and permits are issued, BCFI will procure 100,000 test kits to augment the much needed supply of the government for testing Covid-19,” the company said.

FedEx delivers

FedEx Express, the world’s largest express transportation company and a subsidiary of FedEx Corp., said it is handling the delivery of relief aid donated by international nongovernment organizations to the DOH to help Covid-19 patients and Taal victims.

The International Medical Corps (IMC) and Heart to Heart International (HHI) turned to FedEx to deliver a total of 53 pallets of household essentials and medical items from Europe and the United States to the Philippines.

To aid in the Covid-19 situation in the Philippines, IMC, which tags itself as a “global first responder”, shipped thousands of surgical masks and gloves, protective face shields and aprons, and medical equipment.

In response to the eruption of the Taal Volcano in Batangas, which displaced over 38,000 families, FedEx helped deliver 40 pallets, also donated by IMC, containing nearly 1,000 individual wound care kits and over 1,050 household hygiene kits to benefit over 6,000 earthquake victims. In addition, FedEx assisted HHI, a humanitarian NGO with a global reach, to deliver 3,600 hygiene kits and 900 children’s blankets for Taal victims. FedEx employees also collected and donated groceries, diapers, children’s medicines, clothes, shoes, purified water, toys, and N95 masks to evacuees in Brgy. Cabuco, Trece Martires, Cavite. FedEx also brought nurses in the relocation area to provide medical checkups. VG Cabuag and Roderick L. Abad

B2

Companies BusinessMirror

Tuesday, March 24, 2020

PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

March 23, 2020

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

ASIA UNITED BDO UNIBANK BANK PH ISLANDS CHINABANK EAST WEST BANK METROBANK PB BANK PHIL NATL BANK RCBC SECURITY BANK UNION BANK BRIGHT KINDLE COL FINANCIAL FIRST ABACUS MANULIFE PHIL STOCK EXCH SUN LIFE

40 91 51.4 19.86 7 36.1 8 18.5 16.5 102 52 0.57 10 0.3 510 142 1353

43.95 94.7 52.1 20 7.1 36.5 8.2 18.6 16.9 103 52.5 0.66 15.9 0.65 750 145 1390

41.75 90 50 18.4 7.01 37.5 8 20 17 108.4 54.95 0.51 15.9 0.5 600 133 1395

43.95 95.3 54.2 21 7.49 38.5 8.2 20 17 108.4 54.95 0.66 15.9 0.5 600 145 1399

40 88 49.7 18.4 7 35 8 18.5 16.5 101.5 52 0.51 15.9 0.5 600 133 1351

40 94.7 51.4 19.86 7 36.1 8.2 18.6 16.5 103 52 0.66 15.9 0.5 600 145 1390

5700 4040550 4152890 168700 304600 3253600 23000 748700 2400 601720 16800 52000 1800 89000 50 420 110

244305 368471799.5 215175638 3350828 2146493 119562095 186002 14047296 39780 62560030 889304 28290 28620 44500 30000 57403 150905

-4000 -36979826.5 -49845833.5 -168656 -370780 -66188615 376554 -23269884 1590 -44500 13300 -

INDUSTRIAL AC ENERGY 1.51 1.53 1.48 1.57 1.45 1.51 3428000 5223010 0.74 1 1.01 1.01 1 1 2000 2010 ALSONS CONS ABOITIZ POWER 23.75 25.55 23.9 25.1 20.5 25.1 2651200 62200250 0.106 0.165 0.16 0.171 0.15 0.171 2850000 450280 BASIC ENERGY FIRST GEN 14.7 14.86 14.7 14.98 14.4 14.7 1909900 28286226 43.6 44.4 46 46 43 43.6 81500 3635480 FIRST PHIL HLDG 210 218 200 218 199 218 551470 112345506 MERALCO MANILA WATER 8.52 8.67 8.55 8.83 8.23 8.52 2191300 18784973 2.03 2.04 2.09 2.09 2 2.04 5081000 10388580 PETRON PETROENERGY 2.7 3.1 3.28 3.28 3.28 3.28 2000 6560 9 9.5 9.66 9.66 9 9.5 130300 1237953 PHX PETROLEUM 17.8 18 18.8 18.9 17.5 17.8 261700 4671530 PILIPINAS SHELL SPC POWER 6.85 6.99 6.9 7.02 6.85 6.85 78000 543231 12.06 15.1 15.08 15.1 15.08 15.1 700 10568 VIVANT AGRINURTURE 5.82 6 5.94 6.34 5.6 6.31 243500 1524127 1.88 1.89 1.94 1.94 1.88 1.89 647000 1232270 AXELUM 10.56 10.6 10.96 10.96 10.5 10.56 3204100 33773352 CENTURY FOOD DEL MONTE 2.52 3 2.52 2.52 2.52 2.52 14000 35280 4.07 4.12 4.2 4.2 4.05 4.07 2913000 11,834,420( DNL INDUS EMPERADOR 6.99 7 7.5 7.5 6 7 257200 1735733 46.6 46.95 46.5 47 45.95 46.6 767900 35901955 SMC FOODANDBEV 0.46 0.54 0.46 0.465 0.46 0.46 390000 179500 ALLIANCE SELECT FRUITAS HLDG 1.01 1.02 1 1.05 0.98 1.01 7609000 7718330 27.7 29.95 32.8 32.8 25 29.95 46300 1351380 GINEBRA JOLLIBEE 95 95.05 98 99.9 91.5 95 2580240 247233692 4.75 5.2 4.75 5.2 4.75 5.2 200 995 MACAY HLDG MAXS GROUP 4.25 4.49 4.65 4.65 4.2 4.25 523000 2227740 MG HLDG 0.103 0.15 0.103 0.106 0.103 0.106 100000 10450 1.26 1.34 1.34 1.34 1.3 1.34 29000 38380 PEPSI COLA SHAKEYS PIZZA 5 5.15 5.24 5.24 4.55 5 360100 1799513 1.29 1.33 1.32 1.32 1.22 1.31 620000 775590 ROXAS AND CO RFM CORP 4.38 4.6 4.3 4.6 4 4.6 23000 97050 1.35 1.38 1.42 1.42 1.38 1.38 58000 80800 ROXAS HLDG 103 103.3 100 105.4 98.2 103.3 1470340 151300900 UNIV ROBINA VITARICH 0.71 0.73 0.7 0.75 0.66 0.73 8019000 5843300 0.95 0.96 0.94 0.98 0.93 0.96 3587000 3402220 CEMEX HLDG EAGLE CEMENT 6.69 6.7 6.48 7.08 6.48 6.7 763700 5121363 EEI CORP 5.34 5.6 5.69 5.69 5.3 5.6 15000 83988 10.7 12.36 10.7 12.36 10.7 12.36 1100 13430 HOLCIM MEGAWIDE 6.33 6.38 6.82 6.82 6.1 6.33 236700 1511030 0.66 0.74 0.75 0.75 0.75 0.75 3000 2250 TKC METALS VULCAN INDL 0.5 0.51 0.52 0.54 0.49 0.51 510000 264610 CROWN ASIA 1.77 1.9 1.75 1.9 1.75 1.9 50000 93370 1.79 1.81 1.75 1.96 1.75 1.8 6796000 12658000 EUROMED MABUHAY VINYL 3.02 3.24 3.1 3.25 3.09 3.25 10000 31070 3.82 4 3.85 3.85 3.82 3.82 27000 103380 PRYCE CORP GREENERGY 0.61 0.65 0.7 0.7 0.65 0.65 74000 49840 INTEGRATED MICR 3.34 3.54 3.52 3.54 3.3 3.31 84000 281840 0.91 0.96 0.9 0.97 0.9 0.96 260000 243250 IONICS SFA SEMICON 0.6 0.63 0.56 0.63 0.56 0.63 358000 213570 3.76 3.84 3.82 3.82 3.65 3.8 216000 810810 CIRTEK HLDG

-821090 -1243705 3705116 -3103320 3906583 -2717121 -5567800 409036 12600 -9060 -1411598 -31960 686512 -2520 3,087,629.9997) 422133 33655430 -633030 290890 -56893818 -1000830 -17420 774094 49300 -105732428.5 872420 1955921 -464495 -24500 -14740 -3250 -26409.9999 -3560 20

HOLDING & FRIMS ABACORE CAPITAL 0.445 0.465 0.46 0.47 0.44 0.45 2780000 1252400 5.22 5.5 5.6 5.96 5.2 5.5 4600 25406 ASIABEST GROUP AYALA CORP 415 418 400 420 390 415 538600 219797538 30 30.75 30.05 30.8 28.2 30 1228100 36309750 ABOITIZ EQUITY ALLIANCE GLOBAL 5.94 5.98 5.75 6.1 5.75 5.98 2391700 14112321 1.4 1.43 1.44 1.44 1.4 1.43 554000 777890 AYALA LAND LOG 6 6.45 6.3 6.3 6 6 12200 73824 ANSCOR ANGLO PHIL HLDG 0.36 0.54 0.54 0.54 0.54 0.54 23000 12420 0.495 0.52 0.53 0.53 0.52 0.52 30000 15770 ATN HLDG A COSCO CAPITAL 4.29 4.3 5 5 4.25 4.29 1525000 6597180 3.35 3.37 3.5 3.51 3.19 3.35 14845000 49755760 DMCI HLDG 6.6 6.7 7.22 7.25 6.5 6.7 70100 478095 FILINVEST DEV GT CAPITAL 387 390 400 410 381 390 186600 74111708 44.2 45 42 45 38.5 45 2349800 98268560 JG SUMMIT KEPPEL HLDG A 4.22 5.7 4 4 4 4 200 800 5.2 6.8 6.8 6.8 6.8 6.8 45900 312120 KEPPEL HLDG B 0.375 0.385 0.39 0.39 0.37 0.375 30000 11350 LODESTAR LOPEZ HLDG 2.79 2.92 3 3 2.76 2.79 633000 1801060 6.06 6.14 6 6.6 6 6.14 3514500 21594723 LT GROUP METRO PAC INV 2.28 2.3 2.6 2.64 2.28 2.28 63955000 154418850 2.25 2.7 2.7 2.7 2.7 2.7 3000 8100 PACIFICA HLDG 0.68 0.7 0.9 0.9 0.68 0.7 139000 107280 PRIME MEDIA REPUBLIC GLASS 2.4 2.95 2.4 2.4 2.4 2.4 75000 180000 0.76 0.83 0.76 0.83 0.75 0.83 222000 176750 SOLID GROUP SM INVESTMENTS 721.5 746 670 748 670 746 431110 306851110 83 83.15 83 83.15 80.55 83.15 258280 21411275.5 SAN MIGUEL CORP SOC RESOURCES 0.6 0.69 0.65 0.69 0.6 0.69 59000 35870 120 140 140 140 139.9 140 600 83990 TOP FRONTIER 0.165 0.18 0.18 0.18 0.162 0.18 60000 10210 WELLEX INDUS ZEUS HLDG 0.12 0.13 0.112 0.133 0.112 0.13 340000 43340

-100 2844140 -4936680 958511 -558560 21075 -166140 -14036300 -359744 -8280286 -2860650 204450 -9414041 -27227740 6000 -11041735 -75974.5 -32200 -

PROPERTY ARTHALAND CORP 0.47 0.51 0.47 0.5 0.47 0.5 1050000 522100 27.3 27.5 25 28.2 25 27.5 28629500 762822470 AYALA LAND ARANETA PROP 1.04 1.3 1.44 1.44 1.36 1.36 2000 2800 1.05 1.18 1.12 1.21 1.03 1.18 178000 196690 BELLE CORP A BROWN 0.47 0.475 0.5 0.5 0.455 0.475 757000 353455 0.65 0.74 0.74 0.74 0.74 0.74 1000 740 CITYLAND DEVT 0.109 0.115 0.12 0.12 0.115 0.115 570000 65700 CROWN EQUITIES CEBU HLDG 5.52 5.8 5.02 5.8 5.02 5.8 16700 91690 3.85 3.89 3.92 3.92 3.6 3.89 393000 1475110 CEB LANDMASTERS CENTURY PROP 0.33 0.34 0.35 0.35 0.335 0.335 2880000 978200 0.23 0.26 0.23 0.23 0.23 0.23 410000 94300 CYBER BAY 16.06 16.1 16.3 16.34 16 16.1 558300 9025132 DOUBLEDRAGON DM WENCESLAO 6.12 6.3 6.13 7 6.12 7 2300 14737 0.77 0.78 0.82 0.82 0.77 0.77 10000000 7963500 FILINVEST LAND GLOBAL ESTATE 0.65 0.66 0.66 0.67 0.65 0.65 1040000 684320 13.5 13.6 13.5 13.5 13.5 13.5 705600 9525600 8990 HLDG 0.58 0.6 0.63 0.63 0.55 0.6 949000 536150 PHIL INFRADEV MEGAWORLD 1.89 1.95 2.06 2.09 1.86 1.89 45301000 89316780 0.12 0.123 0.125 0.125 0.116 0.123 1510000 182120 MRC ALLIED PRIMEX CORP 1.4 1.6 1.5 1.62 1.45 1.6 45000 67200 12 12.5 11.74 13 11.12 12.5 6493400 77666594 ROBINSONS LAND 0.21 0.22 0.225 0.225 0.211 0.211 360000 78960 PHIL REALTY ROCKWELL 1.44 1.45 1.53 1.54 1.44 1.45 651000 964310 2.5 2.7 2.79 2.79 2.55 2.7 8000 21660 SHANG PROP STA LUCIA LAND 1.85 2 2.03 2.03 1.83 2.02 58000 113100 24.7 24.85 23.5 25 23.4 24.7 14121300 343947720 SM PRIME HLDG VISTAMALLS 3.03 3.39 3.4 3.59 3.39 3.39 63000 218570 0.91 0.92 0.95 0.98 0.89 0.92 197000 180020 SUNTRUST HOME 3.07 3.1 3.4 3.4 3.07 3.07 2928000 9191460 VISTA LAND

113830010 -1360 -1150 12930 2300 -2283792 -3724820 -37065970 -19914184 -411700 -2320 -42327260 -39060 -4062710

SERVICES

ABS CBN GMA NETWORK MANILA BULLETIN MLA BRDCASTING GLOBE TELECOM PLDT APOLLO GLOBAL IMPERIAL ISM COMM NOW CORP TRANSPACIFIC BR PHILWEB 2GO GROUP CHELSEA CEBU AIR INTL CONTAINER LBC EXPRESS LORENZO SHIPPNG MACROASIA METROALLIANCE A METROALLIANCE B PAL HLDG HARBOR STAR ACESITE HOTEL BOULEVARD HLDG GRAND PLAZA WATERFRONT CENTRO ESCOLAR STI HLDG BERJAYA BLOOMBERRY PACIFIC ONLINE LEISURE AND RES MANILA JOCKEY PH RESORTS GRP PREMIUM LEISURE ALLHOME METRO RETAIL PUREGOLD ROBINSONS RTL PHIL SEVEN CORP SSI GROUP WILCON DEPOT APC GROUP EASYCALL GOLDEN BRIA PRMIERE HORIZON

15.4 4.4 0.32 12 1780 896.5 0.032 1 1.11 1.12 0.14 1.22 5 1.99 36.7 69.5 10.62 0.61 4.25 1.22 1.2 5.5 0.57 1.2 0.025 7.1 0.36 6.01 0.39 1.8 4.29 1.01 1.15 1.7 2.56 0.255 4.27 1.16 30.65 49.5 127 0.93 12.5 0.275 4.5 280.2 0.176

15.42 4.5 0.35 13.74 1850 920 0.038 1.49 1.12 1.13 0.149 1.25 5.45 2 37.2 70 11.9 0.72 4.75 1.26 1.38 6 0.61 1.36 0.028 12.8 0.37 6.5 0.395 2 4.3 1.5 1.3 2.28 4.5 0.26 4.5 1.2 31.4 49.9 131.9 0.94 12.54 0.28 4.79 335 0.18

15.56 4.71 0.315 11.9 1650 857.5 0.04 1 1.1 1.14 0.13 1.3 4.35 2.04 39.95 72.5 12.48 0.62 4.17 1.13 1.22 6 0.61 1.36 0.024 12.8 0.38 6.9 0.38 1.8 4.4 1.52 1.19 2 3.22 0.3 5.04 1.24 30.5 49.8 132 0.99 12.34 0.31 4 334 0.19

15.6 4.71 0.32 13.74 1850 930 0.04 1 1.14 1.15 0.143 1.35 5.5 2.07 40 73 12.48 0.62 4.75 1.35 1.46 6 0.61 1.36 0.026 12.8 0.4 6.9 0.39 2 4.59 1.52 1.3 2 4.5 0.3 5.16 1.25 31.7 50 132 0.99 12.54 0.31 4.5 335 0.19

15.1 4.28 0.315 11.9 1650 839 0.039 1 1.05 1.09 0.13 1.2 4.3 1.98 35 66.1 11.9 0.62 4 1.05 1.05 5.5 0.58 1.36 0.024 12.8 0.37 6.5 0.36 1.8 4.26 1.49 1.15 2 3.22 0.255 4.5 1.16 30.5 48 126 0.9 12.3 0.28 4 334 0.173

15.42 4.5 0.32 13.74 1850 920 0.039 1 1.11 1.12 0.14 1.25 5.45 2 36.7 69.5 11.9 0.62 4.75 1.22 1.38 5.5 0.61 1.36 0.026 12.8 0.38 6.5 0.39 2 4.3 1.5 1.3 2 4.5 0.26 4.5 1.16 30.65 49.9 129.5 0.93 12.5 0.28 4.5 335 0.176

162400 145000 60000 2100 85175 210820 4300000 15000 11351000 412000 70000 642000 46000 806000 270000 1556420 2400 30000 1446000 2951000 10000 17500 313000 1000 3500000 100 240000 200 1440000 59000 5900000 57000 182000 20000 5000 12140000 704100 1868000 880700 252000 303850 1641000 1532100 250000 8000 520 1630000

2493570 644350 19050 25588 150570980 188027735 171900 15000 12534950 461370 9730 817900 224000 1614870 10100895 108757830.5 29374 18600 6521750 3681380 12870 101889 185470 1360 88100 1280 90700 1340 557650 107400 25478110 85540 219090 40000 19720 3,287,550( 3256923 2295070 27266920 12357885 39348755 1516330 18982572 74000 33800 174180 291340

MINING & OIL

25387575 53102755 790180 14510 -132520 -16500 17910 -4151675 -32942430.5 -18600 2936479.9997 -8210 -252100 -9910410 1,937,049.9997) -201526 -360340 -6952410 -8901955 -0 -36450 5304594 -25600 -33440

ATOK 9.5 10.3 10.3 10.3 10.2 10.3 5500 56480 APEX MINING 0.57 0.58 0.59 0.59 0.57 0.57 434000 252760 0.0009 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 9000000 9000 ABRA MINING ATLAS MINING 1.75 1.8 1.75 1.76 1.75 1.75 51000 89260 2.43 2.46 2.43 2.46 2.41 2.46 345000 839510 -95900 CENTURY PEAK 5.85 6 6 6 5.71 6 1200 6963 DIZON MINES FERRONICKEL 0.47 0.475 0.475 0.48 0.46 0.475 3760000 1774400 -108950 0.176 0.185 0.177 0.177 0.176 0.176 100000 17690 GEOGRACE LEPANTO A 0.062 0.07 0.066 0.07 0.06 0.07 4440000 286650 0.06 0.068 0.062 0.07 0.06 0.068 220000 13680 LEPANTO B 0.006 0.0061 0.006 0.006 0.006 0.006 5000000 30000 MANILA MINING A MARCVENTURES 0.405 0.5 0.52 0.56 0.45 0.5 303000 146035 0.77 0.78 0.77 0.78 0.77 0.78 154000 119090 2340 NIHAO NICKEL ASIA 1.49 1.5 1.57 1.57 1.49 1.5 2574000 3901350 -599870 0.41 0.45 0.435 0.445 0.4 0.445 90000 37850 ORNTL PENINSULA 1.86 1.9 1.9 1.93 1.85 1.85 350000 664890 514870 PX MINING SEMIRARA MINING 9.9 10.6 8.64 11 8.43 10.6 3469200 32531692 4710511.9997 4.46 4.98 5.18 5.18 4.45 5 56200 254846 ACE ENEXOR ORNTL PETROL B 0.0081 0.01 0.0081 0.0091 0.0081 0.0091 6000000 51600 0.0067 0.0087 0.0067 0.0067 0.0067 0.0067 11000000 73700 PHILODRILL 3.68 3.7 3.94 3.94 3.65 3.7 318000 1183230 34360 PXP ENERGY

PREFFERED HOUSE PREF A 92.1 95 95 95 95 95 2210 209950 AC PREF B1 500 506 506 506 506 506 10 5060 100.2 100.4 100.2 100.2 100.2 100.2 16780 1681356 ALCO PREF B AC PREF B2R 496 500 496 496 496 496 3110 1542560 4960 - 100 101 101 100 100 20290 2036655 CPG PREF A 97.85 98 98 98 97.7 98 84060 8224826 DD PREF FGEN PREF G 107 107.4 107 107 107 107 3500 374500 98.8 99 99.1 99.1 99 99 7190 711896 PNX PREF 3A PNX PREF 3B 102 103 103 103 103 103 20 2060 985 990 981 990 981 990 1650 1633050 -49050 PNX PREF 4 1000 1044 1010 1010 1010 1010 500 505000 PCOR PREF 2B PCOR PREF 3A 1004 1006 1006 1006 1006 1006 25 25150 1004 1007 1004 1006 1004 1004 1410 1416345 PCOR PREF 3B SMC PREF 2C 75.15 76 76 76 75 76 99700 7498149 16533 74.05 75 75 75 74 75 21830 1633900 SMC PREF 2D 74.05 75 74 74 74 74 17000 1258000 SMC PREF 2E SMC PREF 2F 74.55 75 75 75 74 75 86100 6456900 74.5 75.3 75 75 75 75 34970 2622750 SMC PREF 2G SMC PREF 2H 74 75 75 75 75 75 87940 6595500 74.9 75 75.5 75.5 75 75 97220 7292500 SMC PREF 2I

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS ABS HLDG PDR 13.3 14 14 14 13.5 14 38800 530862 GMA HLDG PDR 4.21 4.8 4.8 4.8 4.8 4.8 3000000 14400000 -14400000

WARRANTS LR WARRANT 0.65 0.68 0.65 0.65 0.65 0.65 41000 26650

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES ITALPINAS 1.58 1.72 1.65 1.72 1.65 1.72 85000 142740 KEPWEALTH 5.13 5.2 5.7 5.7 5.1 5.13 27900 151694 0.47 0.49 0.49 0.49 0.47 0.47 270000 129500 XURPAS

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS

FIRST METRO ETF 71.75 73 72 73 70 71.75 72630 5213506 205002.5

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Biz groups, Church to give groceries to urban poor

T

By VG Cabuag

@villygc

op business groups and Church leaders on Monday said it raised over P1.5 billion to fund the distribution of grocery vouchers to urban poor residents in the Metro Manila area.

In a statement posted online, the project dubbed Project Damayan targets to distribute P1,000 gift certificates to over 1 million households in the poor communities of the greater manila area.

Groups will use Project Damayan of Caritas Manila, supported by the Philippine Disaster Resilience Foundation and the business

community, and then partner with ABS-CBN Corp.’s Pantawid ng Pagibig program for the door-to-door distribution of grocery vouchers redeemable for food items from accessible groceries and supermarkets. Distribution is ongoing in four pilot areas and will scale-up in cooperation with project partners, they said.

The business groups supporting Project Ugnayan are Aboitiz Group, ABS-CBN/Lopez Group, Andrew Tan’s Alliance Global Group, AY Foundation and RCBC, Ayala Corp., Caritas Manila, Century Pacific, Concepcion Industrial Corp, Consunji group, Gokongwei Group, Enrique Razon Jr., Jollibee Foods Corp, Leonio Group, Mercury Drug, Metrobank/GT Capital, Nutri-Asia, Oishi/Liwayway Marketing Group PDRF, PLDT/Metro Pacific Investments Corp, Puregold, San Miguel Corp., SM Group, Sunlife of Canada and Suyen Corp.

The group said that there are ongoing talks with more companies that have signified their intention to contribute more resources to expand the reach of this project.

“We are grateful for the support of the business community and hope that this initiative will inspire

more acts of kindness in this time of crisis. Now is the time for our communities to help as one,” said Fr. Anton C. Pascual, executive director of Caritas Manila.

“The national health crisis that confronts us is instructive of the need to adopt a holistic perspective that enjoins every sector of society to partake in mitigating the adverse effects of this health debacle. We believe that the current national emergency needs pro-active and harmonized intervention of all sectors of society.

An inclusive approach that taps all available resources and talents,” he added.

The initiative was launched after the national government placed Luzon under enhanced community quarantine to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).

Airbus builds buffer to contain virus fallout

A

irbus SE extended credit lines and clamped down on cash outlays to give it access to 30 billion euros ($32 billion), taking steps to protect liquidity after the coronavirus pandemic pushed its airline customers to halt flights and stop ordering planes.

The European manufacturer also withheld its dividend and tore up earnings guidance for the year on Monday, while pushing governments to support carriers and its vast supplier network. The company itself isn’t at the moment seeking a bailout, but is open to aid as a fallback, its CEO said.

Airbus is erecting a credit safety net as the virus leaves the aviation industry struggling for viability following a collapse in travel. CEO Guillaume Faury said the company entered the crisis in better shape than rivals, and held out the prospect of boosting market share if it survives intact, especially in the narrow-body plane sector where it has left Boeing Co. trailing.

“These are indeed exceptional times,” Faury said in a telephone briefing, adding that the fortification of funding is aimed at “safeguarding our business to protect the future of Airbus and to ensure we can return to efficient operations once the situation recovers.”

Airlines are pushing back against taking existing deliveries, let alone purchasing extra jets. The CEO said that Airbus plans to continue production for the moment but that the wide-body market in particular will be depressed and that “operational scenarios” could be activated depending on the spread and duration of the virus.

The company is meanwhile looking at possibilities for storing finished aircraft, according to Faury, who said there should be a return to a higher number of handovers sometime in the second half, while sidestepping questions on whether build rates will be cut in the near term.

Airbus shares fell as much as 14 percent and were trading 7.4 percent lower at 59.05 euros as of 10:08 a.m. in Paris, taking the stock’s decline this year to 55 percent and valuing the company at 46 billion euros.

As part of the drive to boost liquidity, or cash available, by 50 percent, Airbus canned a shareholder dividend that would have cost it 1.4 billion euros and has converted a credit facility of about 5 billion euros into a new line amounting to 15 billion euros.

Belt and braces

The Toulouse, France-based company, which has an existing 3 billioneuro credit and a further 12 billion euros in financial assets, will also suspend a top-up in pension funding.

Jefferies International analyst Sandy Morris said the measures were as anticipated and provide the “belt” of efforts to stabilize Airbus, while suggesting the company will still likely need “the braces” of government support.

Airbus fell into line with most other businesses in dropping outlook guidance. The group had aimed to hand over about 880 jets this year, up from 863 in 2019, which was already a record, and had targeted free cash flow of 4 billion euros, a 500 million-euro increase.

Boeing crunch

Airbus moved to shore up its finances without immediate recourse to state support as arch-rival Boeing edges closer to a government bailout. The American company was in crisis even before the coronavirus outbreak, with its 737 Max plane grounded for a year after two fatal crashes, leading to a dearth in orders and billions of dollars in charges.

Airbus could still be among the first firms to receive French state support, according to people familiar with the matter, and the company said it “highly welcomes” governmental efforts to stabilize the industry. Both the French and the German states already hold stakes in the manufacturer.

Facilities in France and Spain that were shuttered last week for cleaning and to separate workers into smaller groups were due to reopen Monday, while the same measures are being implemented at a Hamburg site, which closed on Friday. The company said it’s taking all practical steps to ensure the safety of staff, and that workstations will close where that can’t be 100-percent guaranteed.

Faury said managers are “very actively” speaking with airline customers, and that the wide-body jet market in particular may be badly impacted as the pandemic hurts demand. At the same time an extensive single-aisle backlog should help protect the business.

China may provide the best guide to the speed industry will recover, the CEO said, adding that the Asian nation, where the virus is now receding, has kept supply chains running and that 99 percent of people involved are now back working. Bloomberg News

mutual funds

March 23, 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 0.8186 -49.7% -16.32% -12.09% -40.77% ATRAM Philippine Equity Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 2.191 -47.13% -18.35% -13.21% -40.43% Climbs Share Capital Equity Investment Fund Corp. -a 0.5608 -40.66% n.a. n.a. -37.49% First Metro Consumer Fund on MSCI Phils. IMI, Inc. -a 0.5766 -33.88% n.a. n.a. -32.11% First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund,Inc. -a 3.5138 -36.55% -11.69% -10% -34.05% First Metro Save and Learn Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,6 0.5436 -38.4% -15.76% n.a.

-36.32% MBG Equity Investment Fund, Inc. -a 64.89 -49.29% n.a. n.a.

-37.2% 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 0.7245 n.a. n.a. n.a. -29.67% Philequity Dividend Yield Fund, Inc. -a 0.8338 -36.81% -11.93% -9.03% -35.21% Philequity Fund, Inc. -a 24.4648 -37.14% -11.21% -8.87% -35.44% Philequity MSCI Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,1 0.6268 -39.89% n.a. n.a. -38.43% Philequity PSE Index Fund Inc. -a 3.2317 -39.03% -12.48% -9% -38.13% Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a 538.17 -39.16% -12.55% -9.24% -38.29% Soldivo Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 0.511 -44.89% -15.46% -12.53% -39.98% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Equity Fund, Inc. -a 2.5797 -40.65% -12.86% -9.87% -38.71% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Stock Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.6181 -39.25% -12.7% n.a. -38.24% United Fund, Inc. -a 2.3291 -37.42% -10.16% -8.02% -36.25% Exchange Traded Fund First Metro Phil. Equity Exchange Traded Fund, Inc. -a,c 72.1051 -39.06% -12.07% -8.98% -38.35% ATRAM AsiaPlus Equity Fund, Inc. -b

$0.7755 -24.23% -6.07% -5.05% -24.59% Sun Life Prosperity World Voyager Fund, Inc. -a $1.031 -18.54% -2.19% n.a. -25.22% Balanced Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ATRAM Dynamic Allocation Fund, Inc. -a 1.3675 -20.59% -7.27% -6.88% -12.5% ATRAM Philippine Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 1.7994 -22.27% -7.49% -5.44% -17.5% First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund Inc. -a 2.1328 -19.7% -4.81% -6.29% -18.95% First Metro Save and Learn F.O.C.C.U.S. Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a,5 0.1647 n.a. n.a. n.a.

-27.92% NCM Mutual Fund of the Phils., Inc. -a 1.6823 -12.28% -2.8% -2.88% -14.3% 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. N.S. Solidaritas Fund, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 2.8773 -25.51% -7.13% -5.96% -25.53% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2028, Inc. -a,d,2 0.7971 -20.37% n.a. n.a. -21.52% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2038, Inc. -a,d,2 0.6783 -32.31% n.a. n.a. -31.92% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2048, Inc. -a,d,2 0.6575 -34.26% n.a. n.a.

-33.8% Sun Life Prosperity Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a 0.6793 -30.95% -9.64% -8.36% -30.31% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Cocolife Dollar Fund Builder, Inc. -a $0.03623 1% 0.87% 0.64% -5.23% N.S. PAMI Asia Balanced Fund, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Advantage Fund, Inc. -a $3.1231 -14.61% -1.53% -1.01% -20.14% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Wellspring Fund, Inc. -a,7 $0.9628 -10.42% -1.76% n.a. -14.71% 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 1.9144 1.87% 0.49% -0.45% 0.65% Cocolife Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a 3.1431 4.75% 5.08% 5.09% 0.86% 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 2.3505 4.3% 2.06% 1.21% -0.36% Philam Bond Fund, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. Philequity Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.7677 5.03% 2.68% 1.32% -0.54% Soldivo Bond Fund, Inc. -a 0.9481 3.65% 0.81% -0.2% -1.68% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.0557 6.83% 3.94% 2.35% -0.66% Sun Life Prosperity GS Fund, Inc. -a 1.6884 6.3% 3.46% 1.89% -0.75% 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 $1.0614 -8.52% -1.61% -0.32% -12.08% First Metro Save and Learn Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $0.0244 -2.79% -0.67% n.a.

-5.43% PAMI Global Bond Fund, Inc -a N.S. N.S. N.S. 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 $0.0594145 2.68% 1.46% 1.38% -1.49% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Abundance Fund, Inc. -a $2.9746 0.78% 0.46% 0.98% -6.32% Money Market Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 126.65 3.75% 2.96% 2.25% 0.69% First Metro Save and Learn Money Market Fund, Inc. -a,3 1.0331 2.76% n.a. n.a.

0.66% Philam Managed Income Fund, Inc. -a 1.2512 5.04% 2.92% 1.57% -0.44% Sun Life Prosperity Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.2731 3.5% 2.96% 2.48% 0.67% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Starter Fund, Inc. -a $1.0393 1.74% n.a. n.a.

0.2% 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

Financial institutions sought for inclusion of deaf persons

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

F

ilipino deaf persons should not be excluded from participating in the financial landscape, a member of the academic community of the College of Saint Benilde (CSB) urges.

“There is a need for us to integrate FSL [Filipino sign language] in our financial institutions. The Filipino Deaf have long been limited by societal inequalities; let us help ensure that they are more allowed to unlock the benefits of being financially included,” CSB School of Deaf Education and Applied Studies Dean Ma. Giselle M. Montero said.

“The deaf also need savings, credit, insurance, and even investments.”

Aside from the various inequalities that they had to deal with every day of their lives, Filipino deaf is, more often than not, also excluded from participating in the financial landscape,” Montero added.

Financial institutions in the Philippines are ill-equipped in accommodating a deaf person who wants to open a bank account in order to avail of finan-

cial services such as savings, credit, investments and insurance, she alleged.

Likewise, financial institutions fail to properly explain and accommodate the questions of the deaf because they do not have staff that knows basic FSL, Montero added.

Thus, instead of providing the Filipino deaf with the means to participate in the financial landscape, they are often excluded from availing financial services that could help them become more financially stable, according to Montero.

Citing government data, she explained there are over a thousand deaf living in the Philippines; “and allowing each one of them to be part of the financial system provides them with a wealth of opportunities that can help them in life.”

Savings, for instance, provides them with the opportunity to be financially secured for the future, Montero said.

Access to credit allows them to buy properties or build businesses and investments afford them with new earning opportunities, she added.

Likewise, Monteros said she believes providing the Filipino

deaf insurance ensures that they have safeguards in place during times of need.

“We cannot talk of inclusivity without including persons with disability. The need for a more inclusive Philippines is there; and while we are making strides in other initiatives that champion the rights and welfare of the Filipino deaf, we believe that financial inclusion should also be a priority,” Montero said.

Aside from educating CSB students, the School of Deaf Education and Applied Studies also partners with various institutions to champion the rights and welfare of the Filipino deaf.

One of its most successful programs involves the incorporation of the FSL in the financial education campaign of a telecommunications company.

This program recently won an Anvil Award for including the Filipino Deaf in its financial education programs.

“We have a long way to go, and we are excited for what’s ahead,” Montero said. “We will continue to partner with likeminded institutions and organizations to further advocate for a more inclusive Philippines for the Filipino deaf.”

RCBC taps bond market amid pandemic, lockdown

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By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

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Congressional wrangling

The comments preceded Sunday’s vote by Senate Democrats to block Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s attempt to advance a coronavirus economic rescue package, putting in question McConnell’s plan for the Senate to pass the bill Monday. US stock futures plummeted as leaders in both chambers failed to reach agreement on how to spend nearly $2 trillion.

The bill already envisions a more expansive

role for the Fed. It would authorize the Treasury to use $425 billion “to make loans, loan guarantees, and other investments in support of programs or facilities established by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System for the purpose of providing liquidity to the financial system that supports lending to eligible businesses, states or municipalities.”

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Mike Crapo told Bloomberg News that the legislation would let the Fed lend to, and buy debt from, state and local governments.

“There is more that we can do if necessary” with existing emergency authority, Bullard said. “There is probably much more in the months ahead depending on where Congress wants to go.”

Bullard said the Fed has “unlimited” potential to buy government debt following a commitment to purchase at least $500 billion in Treasuries.

Careful approach

The Fed could look at buying other corporate debt, as well as some types of municipal debt.

At the same time, he said the Fed would need to be careful with such a program, and it could be problematic to pick and choose which debt to buy, just as European authorities have struggled with purchasing sovereign debt.

The Saint Louis Fed’s view of the virusrelated shutdowns on the economy is more dire than Wall Street. JPMorgan Chase & Co. expects gross domestic product to shrink at

In a disclosure on Monday, the Yuchengco-led bank said that the issuance has a minimum size of P3 billion, with an overallotment option.

Each bond carries a fixed interest rate of 4.848 percent per annum.

RCBC tapped Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corp. Ltd. (HSBC) as the sole lead arranger and bookrunner, with RCBC Capital Corp. as the financial advisor. Both banks also are serving as selling agents for the bonds.

The bank is expecting the bonds will be listed on the Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corp. by April 7.

“The Bank acknowledges the logistical

an annualized rate of 14 percent in the AprilJune period while Bank of America Corp. and Oxford Economics both see a 12 percent drop.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. sees a 24 percent plunge. Morgan Stanley economists said in a report to clients on Sunday that they now expect the economy to shrink a record 30.1 percent in the second quarter, driving up unemployment to an average of 12.8 percent over the period.

More support

The Fed and other bank regulators said in a statement late Sunday that they were encouraging banks to modify loan terms for customers affected by the coronavirus, such as by offering payment deferrals and extensions.

Kashkari said “there is a range of things the Federal Reserve could do” now.

“Some people have suggested that we should be providing more support directly to the corporate bond market–and I’m sympathetic with those views–and also the municipal market, making sure that states and cities are able to access the capital markets as well,” he said in an interview on CBS’s “60 Minutes,” recorded last Thursday and aired last Sunday evening.

Kashkari said the key lessons from the 2008 experience were that policy makers “should all be erring on the side of overreacting to try to avoid the worst economic outcomes,” which means going big with the relief package and not worrying about how targeted the measures are. Bloomberg News

Dire dollar shortage shows failure to fix key crisis flaw

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he global rush for dollars that’s been roiling the $6.6 trillion a day foreign-exchange market has showcased a missing piece of financial-safety architecture that world policy makers never addressed in the aftermath of the 2008 crisis.

The financial system’s reliance on one keystone currency proved to be an amplifier of shocks more than a decade ago. Yet since then, the greenback’s role has climbed even further as borrowers outside of America ramped up dollar-denominated debt. That’s again adding an enormous layer of stress on markets.

“It’s precisely what the global economy does not need at this moment,” Alexander Wolf, head of Asia investment strategy at JPMorgan Private Bank and a former US diplomat in China, said of a strong dollar. “It tightens financial conditions, make servicing dollar debt more expensive, and can cause pass-through inflation just when that is not needed.”

As often occurs during bouts of extreme currency fluctuation, there’s been speculation about something akin to the 1985 Plaza Accord that sought to rein in a runaway dollar. Observers discount that possibility now. But one of the key takeaways from the current episode may be that one important currency finds itself burnished: China’s yuan.

The salve for emergency dollar demand that the Federal Reserve came up with during

the global financial crisis–giving other central banks the power to deploy greenbacks abroad via swaps with the US–has been applied again.

The Fed broadened the group of counterparts on Thursday, including some emerging economies, though not China or India.

from a dollar-centric global financial system,” said Eswar Prasad, who once led the International Monetary Fund’s China team, and is now at Cornell University. “But the pandemic has also fractured global governance, making it harder to envision the G-20 devising a viable alternative.”

Mass liquidation

Plaza Accord

That decision came after an explosion in volatility in the foreign-exchange market.

Traders stampeded into the dollar this month in a mass liquidation of positions triggered by the intensifying economic shutdowns associated with battling the coronavirus.

Some moves have hinted at markets veering toward dysfunction: At one point last Thursday, Britain’s pound registered its deepest eight-day slide since 1992, when it was infamously ejected from the European exchange rate mechanism.

Australia’s dollar hit its weakest since 2002, suffering its biggest two-week decline since the aftermath of Lehman.

The Japanese yen, Swiss franc and gold, which usually gain when fear grips markets–and did so until recently–have been sliding the past two weeks as the dollar stood alone as a haven.

Mexico’s peso and India’s rupee hit record lows. The Korean won slid the most in a decade on Thursday.

“The dollar’s surge will renew calls for a shift

@Tyronepiad

espite the ongoing enhanced community quarantine in Luzon against the coronavirus pandemic, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) sets the issuance of its two-year fixed rate bond offering this week to finance asset growth and maturing obligations.

Fed officials: More moves amid dire outlook

wo crisis-veteran Federal Reserve officials said the central bank has plenty of room for more moves following a flurry of action last week to cushion the economic wallop from coronavirus-related shutdowns, flagging corporate bonds and state and local governments as two areas for potential assistance.

“Everything is on the table” for the Fed as far as additional lending programs, St. Louis Fed President James Bullard, who took office in April 2008, said in a telephone interview Sunday. He warned US unemployment may hit 30 percent in the second quarter, with an unprecedented drop in gross domestic product that he said could halve to $2.5 trillion during the three-month period.

Neel Kashkari, the Minneapolis Fed president who helped oversee the government’s response to the financial crisis as a Treasury official in 2008, told CBS that “we’re far from out of ammunition.”

Tuesday, March 24, 2020 B3

A similar surge in the dollar occurred back in 2008, prompting China’s then-central bank chief, Zhou Xiaochuan, to call for a super-sovereign reserve currency in early 2009. The following year, South Korean officials tried to get the Group of 20 to consider permanent exchange-market architecture to address vulnerabilities.

All of that was to no avail: even before the advent of the America-first Trump administration, the US government and Federal Reserve weren’t prepared either for a broad pledge to supply of dollars in an emergency or to abandon having the dollar as the world’s main currency.

While the euro has increasingly become a funding currency in its own right, the dollar’s outsized role continues. Total dollar credit extended to borrowers, excluding banks, climbed to a record $12.1 trillion by last September, Bank for International Settlements data show. That’s more than double the level a decade before. It amounted to almost 14 percent of global gross domestic product; the ratio back in 2009 was under 10 percent. Bloomberg News

and execution challenges given current conditions around Covid-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] and it is grateful to the parties involved in being able to set up its program documentation last March 17, 2020,” RCBC said.

“By proceeding with the Program documentation set up and with the Bonds issuance, the Bank works towards conveying to the public that capital markets remain open to support business activity,” it added.

The bond offering is the fourth issuance from RCBC’s P100-billion bond and commercial paper program, appointing HSBC and RCBC Capital as the joint

arrangers of the transaction.

The Yuchengco-owned lender first participated in the local bond market through its P15-billion Association of Southeast Asian (Asean) green bond issuance last year. This was followed by two more Asean sustainability bonds amounting to a total of P15.5 billion in the same year.

Recently, RCBC announced that it has been boosting its digital platforms to expand presence in the country and to promote financial inclusion.

The bank, earlier this year, rebranded Cash Express mobile point-of-sale device into ATM Go. It allows BancNet cardholders to make basic banking transactions like withdrawals, inquiry and fund transfers through any partner rural bank, drug stores, microfinance firms and even sari-sari stores.

It also developed an application to tap the unbanked and underserved Filipinos in the countryside.

RCBC saw its net earnings grow by 25 percent to P5.4 billion in 2019 on the back of robust core business and high margins and trading gains.

Its shares fell 50 centavos or 2.94 percent to finish at P16.50 each on Monday amid the 0.74-percent drop for the main index.

GSIS advances release of pension

G

overnment Service Insurance System (GSIS) President and General Manager Rolando L. Macasaet on Monday assured the public that the state pension fund will extend all the necessary assistance to its members and pensioners amid the national public health emergency.

Macasaet issued the statement after a lawmaker asked the GSIS to waive penalties for delayed remittances, release pensions early and grant emergency loans.

The GSIS president said that the state pension fund has already given an extension or “grace period” for all premium remittances and loan payments due March.

GSIS likewise extended the due date for housing loan payments and rental payment for investment properties falling due this March.

Macasaet said in Filipino these obligations could be paid on May 10 sans penalty.

The GSIS chief added they will release pensions due next month before April 8.

Macasaet, meanwhile, asked for time

so that the GSIS could prepare its system for the nationwide implementation of its provision of emergency loan to its members and pensioners.

GSIS offers a P20,000 emergency loan to active members and pensioners with an interest rate of 6 percent, payable in three years.

At present, all GSIS offices nationwide are closed to the public until April 12.

However, GSIS said it continues to accept loan applications for “Conso-loan,” policy loan and pension loan through its kiosks. GSIS has nearly 1,000 kiosks installed in government agencies, GSIS branch offices, provincial capitols, city halls and municipal offices as well as selected shopping malls all over the country.

Loan applications of active members require prior approval by agency authorized officers or liaison officers before GSIS can credit the loan amount to the individual borrower’s account, the pension fund manager said.

Central banks at full throttle buying bonds to control markets

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entral banks have started the new week right where they left off Friday–in the thick of the action pledging to boost liquidity in bond markets as risks to the global financial system loom larger.

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) and the Bank of Japan (BOJ) offered to buy the equivalent of almost $10 billion in debt on Monday, while New Zealand embraced quantitative easing. At 2.5 trillion yen ($22.7 billion), unscheduled bond purchases by the BOJ this month are already the highest since it introduced the yield-curve control in 2016.

Markets are in tumult, with 10 year US Treasury yields swinging in a range of more than 50 basis points in each of the past three weeks, something that hasn’t been seen in decades, and Australia seeing a flash crash in its debt market. Investors are dumping the safest of assets in favor of cash, which has forced the Federal Reserve and many of its peers into coordinated action to bolster dollar swap lines.

“Central banks just have to keep providing liquidity since nobody knows the extent of dollar funding shortage,” said Masafumi Yamamoto, chief currency strategist at Mizuho Securities Co. in Tokyo. “So far, their efforts haven’t calmed market sentiment but they should eventually.”

Australia’s central bank said Monday it would spend as much as A$4 billion ($2.3 billion) on government debt, sending 10-year yields down as much as 25

basis points. The RBA and BOJ also continue to pour in funds through repurchase operations.

The RBA pumped in more than A$40 billion so far this month through repurchase agreements, pushing liquidity in the system to records. As a result, the spread between repo rates and overnight index swaps has compressed to the tightest levels of the year.

The Bank of Thailand said Sunday it is stepping in to arrest slumps in fixed-income mutual funds and corporate bonds.

‘More effective’

The yield on New Zealand’s 10-year bonds plunged as much as 54 basis points. The Reserve Bank said it would purchase up to NZ$30 billion ($17 billion) of sovereign bonds over the next 12 months. The program will begin this week with NZ$500 million of purchases.

Japan’s benchmark 10-year yield was down 2.5 basis points at 0.05 percent after the BOJ offered to take in 800 billion yen of three-to-10 year securities in an unscheduled operation on Monday. That was in addition to scheduled buying worth about 150 billion yen in longer maturities.

“Central banks around the world see the provision of funds as more effective right now than cutting rates,” said Shuichi Ohsaki, chief rates strategist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in Tokyo. “The BOJ on its part is conducting funding operations to ensure yields will not rise.” Bloomberg News

B4 Tuesday, March 24, 2020

DFPC closes temporarily in compliance with new quarantine guideline

How to set work-from-home employees for success

W

ORKING from home has turned from a simple working option for some to a necessity for most as a result of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and government-mandated quarantine. To help companies with this setup, Paul Rivera, ex-Googler, Kalibrr CEO and Co-founder recommends these easyto-implement tips to ensure employee well-being, accountability, and productivity as they work remotely.

Everyone should have access to the same set of tools - in our case, laptops, company email addresses, phones/SIM cards for our sales team, access to cloud storage, access to the company-wide project management tool, and in some

cases, subsidized access to the internet.

Here are the ecommended Free Tools: Video conferencing: Zoom / Google Hangouts / Skype / Discord, Project management: Trello / Notion, Communication: Viber / WhatsApp / Telegram / Messenger / Google Hangouts Chat, and Whiteboard: Jamboard, Miro, Whimsical. Whatever you choose, make sure that you clearly and deliberately assign specific channels that you’ll be using to talk to your employees.

Once you’ve identified the right channels, you’ll need to have guidelines that will accompany these. Objectives and their milestones should be communicated using the channels and methods above. It's also easy to overdue work from home - work from home shouldn’t mean that your team is always working.

Set processes for “reporting to work."

Regular work hours should be followed.

However, if you’re new to this, asking your employees to send in an email message or message to your group that they’re already

online and working can quickly ease this administrative burden.

Assign a skeletal workforce responsible for continuing day-to-day business operations will be helpful to minimize both health risks and business losses.

Communicate your work arrangement to your clients Make sure to set expectations with your clients and partners in line with the work arrangement you’ll be implementing.

Working remotely should not reduce your overall business productivity.

Asking your team to send in an end-ofday report that outlines what they’ve accomplished for the day helps you keep track of company goals but at the same time helps employees manage their own responsibilities better.

Invest in building a shared remote culture, with norms, values and ceremonies as if you were all together in the office. If it is someone’s birthday, it should still be celebrated, albeit on a video chat with a virtual birthday cake, for example.

Trust that people will get their work done and understand if they need help. This is probably going to be the hardest part for many companies but engendering trust can go a long way to making this work for your company.

Pandemic or not, being open and trusting of employees will also encourage them to be more accountable for their business contributions as they work from home.

"With the amount of technology available, the future of work isn’t necessarily everyone in one office from 9-6 pm, watching the clock. The future of work is an empowered team, who you trust and who hold each other accountable, with the right tools to be productive, regardless of where they may be," Rivera recommends.

Lenovo awards tech grant to Bedan group for efforts in aiding Manila detainees

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UTY Free Philippines Corporation (DFPC) has temporarily closed its doors effective March 17, 2020 until further notice.

This is in compliance to President Rodrigo Duterte’s declaration of “enhanced community quarantine” over the entire Luzon, including Metro Manila.

We decided to close all downtown and

airport stores nationwide, including our online store to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

This decision has been done with a focus on the safety and well-being of our customers, employees, and the local community, which is our top priority during these unprecedented times.

We will asses the situation accordingly on the appropriate time to reopen our stores.

Fake news spread like a pandemic

A

S the Philippines turns its eyes to the COVID-19 outbreak, misinformation about the coronavirus spreads like a pandemic disease on social media.

Irresponsible tips on how to stop the coronavirus have gone viral on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social media platforms. And like any other fake news, it sounds too good to be true.

With the community quarantine in place in affected cities, Filipinos need to get the right

information from the right experts. When social media is wrought with harmful and dangerous misinformation, credible sources of pertinent news is needed more than ever.

For the latest, factual information about the COVID-19 outbreak, tune in to Cignal's slew of most trusted and reputable international and local news channels.

Load anytime, anywhere nationwide at Bayad Centers, malls (SM Supermalls & Robinsons Mall), loading stations (7-Eleven, ECPAY & Touchpay), load retailers (Load Central, Muenchen, Telepreneur Corp. & Posible), and through online (Lazada, Shopee & Payload).

Not yet on Cignal? Subscribe now by calling (02) 8888-5555 or via our mobile lines 0949 997 7600 up to 7603 for SMART users and 0917 658 5555 for GLOBE users. Cignal Prepaid HD Kits are also available nationwide through Lazada and Shopee on-line stores.

DOT announces the guidelines on hotels and other accommodation establishments

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HE Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) on Operations of Accommodation Establishments During the Enhanced Community Quarantine issued on 18 March 2020 states that no hotels, resorts, tourist inns, motels, and the like are allowed to operate, except those with the following: Foreign guests with existing bookings under any accommodation establishment in the Philippines as of 17 March 2020; 2. Long staying guests with existing bookings as of 17 March 2020; and 3. Guests who are employees of neighboring basic establishments (e.g. supermarkets, hospitals, medical facilities, utility companies, BPOs, and the like). New bookings of only these guests are allowed.

Moreover, all accommodation

establishments that are allowed to operate must report on a regular basis to the DOT the number of their staff comprising its skeletal workforce, as well as details about the guests booked with them.

Said hotels are also expected to maintain limited operations and staff, ensure proper sanitation and disinfection, and implement social distancing measures.

The DOT appeals to accommodation establishments to significantly reduce their rates for health workers and other frontliners who are affected by the shutdown of mass transportation.

“Everyone’s cooperation is needed at this time to help flatten the curve. Let us help those who cannot stay at home, those who work at the front lines every day,” said Sec. Bernadette Romulo-Puyat.

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HE recently concluded 17th TAYO (Ten Accomplished Youth Organizations) Awards ceremony saw the Junior Bedan Law Circle being awarded a technology grant from global technology and innovation leader Lenovo for its project dubbed Lingkod Laya. The said initiative aims to restore the dignity and liberty of Manila City Jail’s prisoners by helping them maintain good health while in detention and assisting in the processing of their release.

“As a global leader in innovation, our mission at Lenovo is to provide everyone with smarter technology that can solve problems and create opportunities. We are proud to recognize the contributions of the Junior Bedan Law Circle and to play a critical role in enhancing the crucial points of our correctional systems.

As a people-centric organization, Lenovo hopes to give back to society by aiding and empowering former detainees in their attempt to attain a second chance in life,” said Michael Ngan, President and General Manager, Lenovo Philippines.

To recognize the efforts of the Junior Bedan Law Circle, Lenovo — the official technology partner of the annual TAYO Awards since 2011 — bestowed to them a technology grant in the form of a brand-new Lenovo S145 laptop. The company believes that with this, the organization can more efficiently and effectively help digitize the Manila City Jail’s database of records.

With Lenovo’s grant, the Junior

Indonesian Consul General Dicky Fabrian recently paid a courtesy visit to Sarangani governor Steve Chiongbian Solon to pursue the continued bilateral relations, cooperation and partnership in the areas of investment, trade, education, scholarship, and the presence of Indonesian and Filipino nationals in both countries. The Davao City-based consulate and the Sarangani provincial government has collaborated in many instances, the most visible of which is the participation of Indonesians in the cultural events of the annual Munato Festival. Sarangani also hosts a community of second-generation Indonesians from the Sulawesi provinces in the municipality of Glan. In photo are assistant provincial administrator Engr. Gerald Faciol, Solon, Fabrian, his wife Madam Fera Adriani Fabrian, Indonesian consul for social, cultural and information affairs Henny Mulyani, and consulate staff Marian Ela Ebillo and Chandra Nuresa.

Bedan Law Circle can now properly store the records of every inmate, which will help them address health-related matters and speed up the inmates’ release process.

The grant has also facilitated the Junior Bedan Law Circle’s plans to expand the project to the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa City and in their next venture of developing an employment system for former convicts. The Junior Bedan Law Circle also seeks to use the grant in their upcoming Project Ligaya, a well-being program that seeks to support children in conflict with the law at the Manila Youth Rehabilitation Center.

The Junior Bedan Law Circle is the student organization of the Legal Management Department of the San Beda University College of Arts and Sciences. Its Lingkod Laya project unclogs the court dockets involved in processing the release of Manila City Jail inmates as the current proceedings have become

detrimental due to congestion.

“Our organization believes that inmates are still humans despite having committed crimes, and just like everybody else, they deserve love, care, and compassion, and are entitled to rights. We also believe that they deserve a chance to redeem themselves because, at the end of the day, they still have the right to live. This is why we are committed to helping inmates attain liberty and live a healthier life despite being behind bars,” said Christine Yvonne Balinas, Community Involvement Chairperson of the Junior Bedan Law Circle.

To date, the Manila City Jail houses over 6,400 inmates despite its ideal capacity of only 1,100 people and it only has two paralegals processing their release. In addition, the jail lacks a centralized database of records, thus requiring the need to process all releases manually.

SM assures employee compensation; gives financial assistance for guards and janitors

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ITH the unprecedented global health crisis, companies under SM today stand in solidarity with the nation and the citizenry in the battle against COVID-19.

SM today assured all of its employees their regular compensation as well as the extension of an Emergency Financial Assistance to its front liners, security guards and janitorial staff during the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) period from March 16 to April 14, 2020. The extent of this assistance includes the following: All employees will receive their regularly scheduled salaries during the ECQ period without deductions made against their Vacation and Sick Leaves; The company’s front liners, who comprise the skeletal workforce, will, in addition, be provided with premium pay; All Security Guards and Janitorial staff will receive financial assistance of PHP5,000 for the period.

It is focused on helping these key resources so that they in turn can be of service to others.

On a daily basis since the ECQ, SM has also been undertaking measures to protect the safety and welfare of its front line personnel with protective gear, meals, and transportation whenever possible.

“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,” said Hans T. Sy on behalf of the Sy family.

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.

This financial assistance is another commitment to fighting the negative effects of COVID-19. Earlier, SM made separate announcements to waive tenant rentals nationwide as well as to support health workers as they actively fight the spread of COVID-19 with PHP100 million worth of protective equipment, testing kits and supplies.

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This is the day

HIS is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice in it and be glad. We beseech You, oh Lord, grant salvation; We beseech You, oh Lord, grant success. Blest is he who comes in the name of the Lord; the Lord is God and has given us light. Go forward in procession with branches, as far as the horns of the altar. You are my God, I thank You. My God, I praise You. Give thanks to the Lord, who is good, whose faihful love endures forever, Psalm 118:24-29. We continue to praise You, oh God. Amen.

GIVE US THIS DAY SHARED BY LUISA LACSON, HFL Word&Life Publications • teacherlouie1965@yahoo.com

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

Life BusinessMirror

Bravo’s Andy Cohen, ‘Bachelor’ Colton Underwood have virus

THE host of the long-running Bravo late-night show Watch What Happens Live, Andy Cohen revealed in his social-media accounts that he tested positive for coronavirus and is self-isolating from home. AP

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ROM finding ways to help others cope to sheltering in place to canceling events, here’s a look at some of the ways the entertainment industry is reacting to the spread of the coronavirus, which most people recover from but can cause severe illness in the elderly, and those with preexisting medical conditions.

COLTON, COHEN TEST POSITIVE FORMER star of The Bachelor Colton Underwood and talk-show host Andy Cohen have joined the growing group of celebrities who have tested positive for coronavirus.

Underwood posted a video on his social-media pages saying he has been following all social distancing rules for a week, but tested positive on Friday. The 28-year-old former football player who appeared as The Bachelor in 2019 says he began having symptoms, primarily exhaustion, a few days ago.

“The main thing is I can’t even walk up a flight of stairs without being out of breath or going to the bathroom without having to sit down because I’m exhausted,” he said. Underwood says he is recovering and self-isolating at his girlfriend’s family home in Huntington Beach, California.

Cohen the 51-year-old host of the long-running Bravo late-night show Watch What Happens Live said on Instagram and Twitter on Friday afternoon that he has also tested positive, and will not do shows from home as he had planned.

“As much as I felt like I could push through whatever I was feeling to do #WWHL from home, we’re putting a pin in that for now so I can focus on getting better,” Cohen wrote.

Underwood and Cohen join other entertainers including Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson, Idris Elba and Daniel Dae Kim who have tested positive for the virus amid the global pandemic.

BROADWAY PRODUCERS AND UNIONS COME TOGETHER BROADWAY’S unions and producers have agreed on emergency relief agreement that will provide Broadway employees with pay and health insurance during the current suspension of all Broadway shows.

Both sides issued statements late Friday applauding the agreement. The deal includes pay for the week that was cut short and then two additional weeks pay, including pension and 401 (k) benefits.

Health benefits are guaranteed through April 12 and there is a commitment to discuss health care again the week of April 6.

Members of the Coalition of Broadway Unions and Guilds said, “We are grateful to be able to tell our members that the industry came together to provide some compensation during this terrible time.”

Charlotte St. Martin, president of the Broadway League, echoed the positive vibe: “We are a community that cares about each other, and we are pleased that we can offer some relief.”

The news came just hours before it was revealed that Martin McDonagh’s dark comedy Hangmen will suffer an early death and will not reopen on Broadway, the first casualty of the coronavirus on the Great White Way. Hangmen was one of 16 shows that were scheduled

Tuesday, March 24, 2020

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BLIND SPOT BRUCE C.

NOT GAY

THE young singer has long been rumored to be gay but is he really? It appears the singer had a girlfriend in the past and she wasn’t just a beard.

Their relationship, according to the girl, was real and passionate for their age because they were very young then. Eventually, the pressures of show business (the girl is an actress) tore them apart and they went their separate ways. The girl transferred to another network where she is doing well, and the singer continues to be successful in his career. They haven’t met again or hooked-up but they reportedly both are not averse to someday maybe being friends at least.

They parted on good terms. It’s just that they were so busy and the actress had to transfer to another network so they really didn’t have any time to talk and thresh out things. So, yes, maybe someday.

EXPOSED

to open this spring that were suspended when Broadway went dark on March 12. It was to officially open on March 19. The play won the Olivier Award in London for best new play but only managed 13 previews in New York.

McDonagh’s ferocious comedy centers on an executioner facing forced retirement as Britain abolishes capital punishment during the 1960s.

NETFLIX STREAMING FUNDS TO THE UNEMPLOYED NETFLIX is establishing a $100 million relief fund for workers whose jobs in TV and film production have been brought to a halt by coronavirus.

The streaming service said on Friday the majority of the fund will support the hardest-hit workers on Netflix’s own productions around the world, especially crew members.

In an effort to support the broader film and TV industry, Netflix says $15 million of the fund will be distributed to organizations providing emergency relief to out-of-work crew and cast in the countries where it has a large production base, including three nonprofits in the United States.

‘ONWARD’ SHUFFLE PIXAR’S Onward will go from the top movie at the box office straight to digital release, as Hollywood

continued to shuffle its recent releases from theaters into the home due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Walt Disney Co. said on Friday that Onward will be available for purchase on digital platforms for $19.99 beginning Friday at 8 pm Eastern. It will land on the studio’s streaming platform, Disney Plus, on April 3. Onward had been the top movie at the domestic box office the last two weekends. But the wide majority of cinemas have closed in recent days to help limit large gatherings as the virus spreads.

Other recently released films have also moved to ondemand or other home-viewing platforms, including Sony Pictures’s Bloodshot and Universal Pictures releases The Hunt, Emma and The Invisible Man. LATIN STARS SING FROM HOME TERLEMUNDO offered a first-of-its-kind virtual music special on Spanish-language media, featuring stars, such as J Balvin, Luis Fonsi, Alejandro Sanz and Gloria Estefan.

Concierto en Casa aired on Saturday on Telemundo Network, Universo and across all its platforms.

The star-studded lineup also included Farruko, Prince Royce, Reik, Sofía Reyes, Carlos Vives, Wisin, Jesse and Joy, Alejandra Guzmán, Mau y Ricky, Camila, Emilia, Angela and Pepe Aguilar, Paulina Rubio, Raymix, Franco de Vita, Calibre 50, among others. All appeared from their homes or studios. AP

Netflix confirms casting of Lee Jung-jae, Park Hae-soo for new original series THE world’s leading streaming entertainment service, Netflix has confirmed the casting of Lee Jung-jae and Park Hae-soo in lead roles for Round Six, an original series to be directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk, whose other works include The Fortress, Miss Granny and Silenced.

Round Six depicts a story of people who decide to become the players of a mysterious survival game that has a whopping $40-million prize at stake.

Gi-hun, played by Lee Jung-jae, seems defeated by life after being fired from his job. He decides to join the survival game to win prize money. Sang-woo, played

by Park Hae-soo, is Gi-hun’s childhood friend and he also joins the game as he gets in trouble at work despite all the hard work he has done to be where he is at now.

Lee Jung-jae is one of Korea’s most well-known film and television actors. He

CIRCLES KAIDA CONTEMPORARY CELEBRATES WOMEN ARTISTS IN ONLINE EXHIBITION C4

has performed in such popular films and TV dramas as Along with the Gods series, Assassination, The Thieves, Svaha: The Sixth Finger, New World and Chief of Staff.

Park Hae-soo who made a name for himself in Prison Playbook, is also well-known for his recent film Time to Hunt and the Netflix original anthology series Persona.

The literal translation of Round Six’s Korean title is Squid Game, which is the street game Gi-hun and Sang-woo played together when they were young. It’s quite a physical game that only ends when there’s a final winner, much like the survival game they play now. It’s named as such because players are to draw different geometric shapes on the ground, which as a whole looks like a squid.

Round Six will premiere globally only on Netflix.

AMID all the panic over the coronavirus, this celebrity and her family have secretly had themselves tested for Covid-19 because they reportedly were exposed to it during a recent trip abroad. This in itself is admirable. What is not is the secrecy surrounding said trip. The celebrity and her family were accompanied by another celebrity during the trip and they were not even quarantined when they came back. They resumed all activities like nothing happened. The celebrity even threw a party for one of her closest friends and her family was present there as well. So, to be blunt about it, this celebrity got away with everything just because she is rich and no one pointed out the obvious. In fact, there were talks about the celebrity she was with, but none about her and her family. We do hope they all test negative because they did come in contact with so many people.

ONCE A CHEATER...

THE actor has long been out of the limelight and is, to put it simply, a professional kept man. He used to be the companion of a rich medical practitioner until he moved on to an heiress, who reportedly caught him stealing from her. Eventually, he hooked up with a very rich gay entrepreneur who gave him everything he wanted and kept him in style. But what do you know? The actor doesn’t seem to be happy or contented. He’s been flirting with another rich businessman, one who’s richer than his boyfriend.

The rich businessman even reportedly gave him a car and this was what tipped the entrepreneur off that the actor was cheating on him. The actor has been forgiven, for now, but we hope he realizes that the rich businessman only sees him as a man to have an affair with while the entrepreneur has more “noble” intentions.

MORE CHANCES

LEE JUNG-JAE

PARK HAE-SOO

THIS girl is very lucky because her network gave her a second chance after she got involved in a scandal.

But really, the young actress is very beautiful and talented, it would be a shame if she wasn’t able to work because of something that happened because she was young and foolish. This is actually her third career life because there was also some boy trouble in connection with a past project she did. Her network chose her over the boy. The thing is, there is some boy issue again in her highly successful project. This time, she got her female costar involved in it. It’s not really surprising that this young actress gets into trouble a lot of times as her mother doesn’t guide her properly on some matters.

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TOKYO 2

Coe: July opening neither ‘feasible nor desirable’

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coe

HE World Athletics has called on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to postpone this year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo because of the coronavirus crisis.

In a letter to IOC President Thomas Bach, World Athletics President Sebastian Coe said Tokyo 2020 taking place as planned in July and August is “neither feasible nor desirable” amid growing international concern over the

pandemic.

“I write to you to request that the Games be moved,” Coe said in the letter.

Coe cited competition fairness, the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak on training and the increased risk of athletes suffering injuries as the three main reasons why the organization believes the Olympics should be postponed.

World Athletics, the first international federation to urge the IOC to move the event, “remains available and ready to help secure a new date for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games,” according to Coe. The double Olympic 1,500 meters champion said postponing Tokyo 2020 would put an end to the “real anguish” and “uncertainty” being felt by athletes due to the pandemic and its impact on their training and qualification for the Games.

“No one wants to see the Olympic Games postponed but as I have said publicly, we cannot hold the event at all costs, certainly not at the cost of athlete safety, and a decision on the Olympic Games must become very obvious

very quickly,” Coe said. “I believe that time has come and we owe it to our athletes to give them respite where we can.”

The significant intervention from a top-tier Olympic sport came prior to an emergency meeting of the IOC Executive Board, where the organization publicly admitted for the first time it was considering postponing Tokyo 2020.

The IOC also said it would make a decision on the Games, set to open on July 24, within the next four weeks and repeated its insistence that a cancellation was not being considered.

Among the options are scaling down the event, holding the Games later this year or postponing until 2021.

Several competitors and National Olympic Committees have called for a postponement because of the impact the outbreak has had on athletes’ training programmes and qualification for Tokyo 2020.

A growing number of countries have imposed nationwide lockdowns, travel restrictions and bans on events. Insidethegames

BIG CROWD VIEWS FLAME H

UGE crowds turned out to see the Olympic Flame when it was put on display at Sendai railway station in the Japanese prefecture of Miyagi in spite of advice not to congregate.

Local reports estimated that as many as 50,000 had gathered. Many wore face masks as they reportedly queued for hours to take photographs of the flame burning in a cauldron at the station.

One unnamed 70-year-old woman told the Japanese national broadcaster NHK: “I queued for three hours but watching the Olympic Flame was

greatly encouraging,” Sendai was devastated by the 2011 tsunami and earthquake.

The epicenter had been only 130 kilometers east of the city and the display had been arranged as part of the “Flame of Recovery” program lasting almost a week.

It was to have traveled on the restored SL Ginga steam locomotive known as the “Joyful Express” but this has been canceled.

The Flame was due to be displayed across the region for the next week before the Torch Relay formally begins on March 26 when

Japan’s 2011 Fifa Women’s World Cup winners will be Torchbearers at J-Village, a football training facility in Fukushima used as an operations base for workers who battled the 2011 nuclear crisis.

The official web site of Tokyo 2020 still features a video posted before the coronavirus crisis, showing a suggested pose for torchbearers called “Connecting with each other.” It shows Paralympian Aki Taguchi and actress Satomi Ishihara demonstrating a move which ends with them very close, with their arms around one another. Insidethegames

PEOPLE gather to take a look at Olympic Flame on display in Sendai in Miyagi prefecture in Tokyo on Saturday. AP

The International Olympic C inevitable for a week with p all quarters—athletes, spo more than 200 national Oly international sports federat

JAPAN Prime Minister Shinzo Abe tells a parliamentary session that a postponement of the Olympics would be unavoidable if the Games cannot be held in a complete way because of the coronavirus pandemic. AP

Worldwide athletes group wants to move Games sked

A

WORLDWIDE group representing Olympic hopefuls is calling on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to postpone the Tokyo Olympics until the coronavirus pandemic is under control—a decision the IOC says could be as much as four weeks away.

“As the world unites to limit the spread of Covid-19 virus, the IOC...must do the same,” Global Athlete said in a news release Sunday.

The statement came out a few hours before an IOC announcement that said the committee was considering several scenarios and would finalize a decision within four weeks. The Games are scheduled to start July 24.

The group’s director general, Rob Koehler, reacted to that news, saying it was “unacceptable, irresponsible, and once again ignores athletes’ rights.”

He was echoing what some athletes in the group are saying, along with others who have spoken up on social media and elsewhere.

“It’s bizarre the IOC hasn’t shown any real leadership,” said Caradh O’Donovan, a Global Athlete founder from Ireland whose karate training has been put on hold due to restrictions in her country. “They’re acting as though it’s business as usual and it just seems very strange.”

O’Donovan said the unevenness around the globe regarding training, doping control and qualifying standards are among her key concerns.

“Without a clear answer, athletes are being indirectly asked to train,” Koehler said. “If anyone knows how competitive athletes work, they will stop at nothing to achieve their goals. We understand it’s a difficult decision but the IOC has a duty of care toward athletes which they have not exercised.”

The group also called on broadcasters, specifically NBC, and sponsors to support the IOC and International Paralympic Committee “with flexibility and understanding during these uncharted times.”

Final Four stardom doesn’t automatically equate to long NBA career

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eff Sheppard works as a financial planner now, more than two decades removed from the time he helped Kentucky win the NCAA Tournament.

Yet, he still gets asked regularly about his role in the Wildcats’ 1998 national championship.

“They remember where they were when they watched the championship game and that kind of thing,” said Sheppard, who works in Lexington and lives about an hour away in London, Kentucky. “It’s definitely a lot of fun.”

Sheppard went undrafted after that glorious run and played part of one National Basketball Association (NBA) season with the Atlanta Hawks in 1998-99 before playing a few years in Italy. He is not the only most outstanding player from a Final Four to play fewer than 20 games in the NBA. In Sheppard’s case, he decided to redshirt the 1996-97 season as a senior at the prompting of Rick Pitino, Kentucky’s coach at the time. Sheppard was stuck behind future NBA lottery picks Derek Anderson and Ron Mercer at shooting guard.

“I had a choice,” Sheppard said. “I could battle it out for playing time with those guys or redshirt, let them be the featured players in ’97 and go on to the pros, and then it was my spot to lose in ’98.’’

The wait proved worthwhile. As a fifth-year senior, Sheppard helped that 1997-98 team win a national title for Tubby Smith, who took over when Pitino left for the Boston Celtics job.

Sheppard scored 27 points in an 86-85 overtime semifinal victory over Stanford and 16 more in the 78-69 championship game triumph over Utah.

Staying in school an extra year meant Sheppard entered the draft at the relatively advanced age of 23, though he doesn’t think that played much of a factor in his short pro career.

“A 23-year-old going into the draft [now], it’s almost a disadvantage,” said Sheppard, who also was part of Kentucky’s 1996 championship team.

“It wasn’t quite that way back then. You had a lot of guys who were four-year guys going into the NBA. I was a 6-3, 185-pound shooting guard. I was good in a lot of areas. I don’t know if I was great in any area.”

Some other former Final Four most outstanding players without long NBA track records:

JOEL BERRY, NORTH CAROLINA (2017)

JOEL BERRY still has time to play his way off this list because he doesn’t turn 25 until April 1, but he hasn’t yet appeared in a single NBA game.

The 6-footer scored 20 points when North Carolina lost 77-74 to Villanova in the 2016 championship game, and he followed that with a 22-point performance when the Tar Heels beat Gonzaga 71-65 in the 2018 NCAA Tournament final.

Berry was the first player to score at least 20 points in consecutive NCAA championship games since Bill Walton did it for UCLA in 1972-73.

He played one more season at North Carolina

but went undrafted as his lack of height worked against him. Berry then tore his meniscus and fractured his tibia during his rookie season in the NBA G League.

He now plays for the G League’s Greensboro (North Carolina) Swarm. He was averaging 7.9 points but had a 44-point game just a couple of weeks ago before the season was put on hold because of the pandemic.

“All things happen for a reason,” Berry said. “I was just happy that I was able to show that it wasn’t just a college thing for me. I can do this at the pros. I just need the opportunity and a place to do it.”

IRWIN DAMBROT, CITY COLLEGE OF NEW YORK (1950)

IRWIN DAMBROT helped CCNY go on one of the more remarkable postseason runs ever when it won both the NCAA Tournament and the NIT in the same year. The New York Knicks made Dambrot the seventh overall pick in the 1950 draft, but he attended Columbia’s dental school instead.

Then his life took a dramatic turn.

Dambrot and the entire starting lineup of that 1950 CCNY team were arrested in 1951 as part of a point-shaving scandal. Dambrot pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor conspiracy charge and didn’t get any jail time.

“They were kings of the town one day, and the next day they were the bums of the town, really,

because of the scandal,” said Dambrot’s nephew, Duquesne Coach Keith Dambrot. Keith Dambrot said his uncle went on to a dental career. Irwin Dambrot died at the age of 81 in 2010.

MILES SIMON, ARIZONA (1997)

MILES SIMON was an All-America guard who played for Arizona from 1994-98 and averaged 22 points in the 1997 NCAA Tournament. Simon scored 30 points as Arizona edged Kentucky 8479 in the championship game.

The 6-foot-5 Simon went to Orlando in the second round of the 1998 draft but appeared in just five games with the Magic. He spent a handful of seasons playing overseas and in the Continental Basketball Association.

He is now an assistant coach with the Los Angeles Lakers.

KEITH SMART, INDIANA (1987)

KEITH SMART made one of the most memorable shots in NCAA Tournament history when he sank a 16-footer with five seconds remaining to give Indiana a 74-73 victory over Syracuse in the 1987 championship game.

Smart played one

By Stephen Wade & Mari Yamaguchi

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The Associated Press

OKYO—The Tokyo Olympics are going to happen—but almost surely in 2021 rather than in four months as planned.

This became clear after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Sunday announced it was considering a postponement. Major Olympic nations like Canada and Australia have added pressure by saying they

will not go if the Games are staged this year.

IOC President Thomas Bach sent a letter to athletes explaining the decision and why it might take so long, while also acknowledging the extended time line might not be popular.

“I know that this unprecedented situation leaves many of your questions open,” he wrote. “I also know that this rational approach may not be in line with the emotions many of you have to go through.”

The IOC’s move seemed inevitable for a week with pressure mounting from all quarters—athletes, sponsors, broadcasters and more than 200 national Olympic committees, and international sports federations.

Shortly after Bach’s statement, the Canadian Olympic Committee said it won’t send teams to the Olympics unless the Games are postponed by a year.

Australia issued a statement saying it was advising its athletes to prepare for an Olympics in 2021.

The Australian committee’s executive board agreed unanimously that“an Australian Team could not be assembled in the changing circumstances at home and abroad.”

World Athletics President Sebastian Coe sent a letter to Bach saying that holding the Olympics in July “is neither feasible nor desirable.” He outlined a number of reasons, including competitive fairness, the likelihood athletes would overtrain if given a compressed schedule and the uncertainty caused by orders in many countries barring

A WOMAN pauses for photos next to the Olympic rings near the New National Stadium in Tokyo. AP

Kentucky’s Jeff Sheppard celebrates after cutting down the net following the Wildcats’ 78-69 win over Utah in the 1998 men’s Final Four championship game in San Antonio. AP

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HE Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) has ordered teams to still refrain from training at least for the next two weeks. PBA Commissioner Willie Marcial said in a memo sent to all 12 memberteams the league is extending the break from practices, scrimmages and other related activities for two weeks.

“In light of the country’s current situation, the Office of the Commissioner is extending all its memberteams’ two-week break from practices, scrimmages and other related activities which was supposed to end March 27—Friday, until further notice,” Marcial said in the memo dated on Monday.

“Declaration No. 929 places the whole country under state of calamity and the nation’s capital under more year at Indiana. He was drafted in the second round by the Golden State Warriors in 1988, but his only NBA playing time was a two-game stint with San Antonio in 1988-89.

He continued to play several seasons internationally and in the CBA. He followed that with a long coaching career that has included head coaching stops with the Cleveland Cavaliers (2002-03), Golden State (2010-11) and Sacramento Kings (2011-13).

DONALD WILLIAMS, NORTH CAROLINA (1993)

DONALD WILLIAMS scored 25 points each in North Carolina’s semifinal victory over Kansas and its championship game triumph over Michigan.

He played two more seasons at North Carolina after that, though a shoulder injury hindered him his junior year. Williams went undrafted and never played a game in the NBA. But he did play professionally in several different countries and also had stints in the CBA and with the Harlem Globetrotters.

Williams now runs basketball camps and coaches the girls basketball team at Wakefield High School in Raleigh, North Carolina. AP

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Tuesday, March 24, 2020

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2021 BECKONS

Committee’s move seemed pressure mounting from onsors, broadcasters and ympic committees, and tions.

people from gyms and other workout venues.

National Olympic committees in Brazil and Slovenia had also called for postponement until 2021. Norway’s Olympic body said it did not want athletes going to Tokyo until the global health crisis is under control.

The United States governing bodies of swimming and track—two of the three top-tier Summer Games sports—had called on their national Olympic officials to push for a postponement.

Japan’s politicians fell in line quickly on Monday as they awakened to Bach’s move.

Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, speaking at a parliamentary session, said a postponement of the Tokyo Olympics would be unavoidable if the Games cannot be held in a complete way because of the coronavirus pandemic.

“If it is difficult to hold [the Games] in a complete way, a decision of postponement would be unavoidable,” he said.

Abe said he hoped the IOC would make a decision early if it is postponed, because the process would involve a lot of work and should start as soon as possible.

Tokyo Governor Yurko Koike echoed Abe. “The IOC will fully examine what to do over the next four weeks, and in that process that word [postponement] may be included,” she said.

The IOC holds most of the cards in any rescheduling, spelled out in a Host City Contract signed

in 2013 between the IOC, the Japanese Olympic Committee and the city of Tokyo.

Japan is officially spending $12.6 billion to organize the Olympics, but a national audit put the figure at more than twice that much. The bill is sure to increase with any postponement, and the vast majority of the spending if from the public treasury.

The IOC has a reserve fund of about $2 billion to tide itself over, and also has insurance against postponement or cancellation.

“The public is expecting and supports postponement, so it won’t be a big deal,” Jeff Kingston, who studies Japanese politics at Temple University in Tokyo, said in an e-mail to The Associated Press. “People are way more worried about the economic consequences and their jobs and if the number of cases ramps.”

Former IOC Marketing Director Michael Payne said the delay might work to the advantage of the IOC and Japan.

“What better platform is there going to be than the Olympic Games when the world has pulled through the virus,” Payne told AP in an interview Sunday, just before the IOC announcement. “You’ve got a dynamic that will be even more powerful for Japan and the rest of the world. But you are going to have a tough road getting there.”

The Olympic torch arrived Friday in northern Japan. The torch relay it set to begin on Thursday from that area but is in doubt. On Sunday, thousands crowed one northern city to view the flame.

Organizers have asked spectators to show restraint, threatening to delay the relay or change plans.

As of Sunday, Japan had 1,719 confirmed cases of the virus, including 712 from a cruise ship, with 43 deaths. While Japan has so far managed to slow the acceleration of the outbreak, experts say they have found a growing number of clusters in urban areas with untraceable infections.

JUICO

PSL Grand Prix canceled

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HE Philippine Superliga (PSL) formally canceled the Grand Prix following the decision of President Duterte to place the entire Luzon under enhanced community quarantine due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

PSL Chairman Philip Ella Juico said that they had no choice but to call off the import-laced conference to guarantee the health and safety of the athletes, coaches, officials and stakeholders.

Juico said they encouraged both local and foreign players to go home and obey government protocol. He said the league will continue to monitor and assess the situation in a bid to set the Grand Prix to a later date, or once the window for international transfer formally opens around October.

“We are putting the welfare of our fans and players above anything else,” said Juico, a seasoned sport executive who is also the president of the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association.

Competition was fever-pitch before the Grand Prix, like all other events in the country, was stopped.

Australian leagues face virus fallout

S

Marcial: No practice for two more weeks ‘enhanced quarantine.’ We ask for your full cooperation and compliance, and encourage everyone to stay fit and healthy in the confines and safety of their homes,” the memo added.

The PBA suspended action in the Philippine Cup only inside a week after it opened because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

With the enforcement of the enhanced community quarantine, the PBA—like all other leagues in the country— are dependent on announcements from Malacañang and the Department of Health on how to deal with their situations. The PBA has not reported any Covid-19 case.

N

EW ORLEANS—As Wells Bayou completed a wire-to-wire victory in the $1 million Louisiana Derby, there was hardly a cheer to be heard— Brad Cox and his stable crew.

In the 107th running of the qualifying points race for the Kentucky Derby, the clubhouse and grandstand at Fair Grounds Race Course were empty and eerily quiet because of crowd restrictions related to the coronavirus pandemic. There was no crowd noise to rival the echoing voice of track announcer John G. Dooley—just the sound of 56 hooves clopping down the stretch.

Winning jockey Florent Geroux had noted the bizarre scene during earlier races on what is normally the busiest day of the year at the Fair Grounds, drawing crowds approaching 10,000.

“It’s funny because it’s the biggest day of the meet here and its completely empty,” Geroux said.

“It’s like playing football in the Super Bowl with an empty stadium.”

Kind of like New Orleans without open bars or live music clubs, which has been the case since early last week.

On Saturday, the Louisiana Derby was one of the

MARCIAL

YDNEY—Australia’s major football codes have begun to bow to the inevitable and suspend competitions in the face of increasingly stringent restrictions on travel and social contact due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The uniquely Australian sport of Australian Rules football on Sunday shut down its Australian Football League (AFL) until May 31 as federal and state governments imposed stringent restrictions on travel and public gatherings.

The first round of the AFL season was still in progress when league Chief Executive Gillon McLachlan announced the suspension.

Sunday began with Australia prime minister Scott Morrison announcing in an address to the nation his government’s recommendation that all nonessential travel over long distances or between states should cease.

Morrison still threw a lifeline to the AFL, the National Rugby League and soccer’s A-League, saying sport should not necessary have to immediately cease.

“I would say it’s not the end of sport,” Morrison said. “We will work closely with them about those arrangements.

“In terms of the NRL and the AFL and those types of arrangements, I think the principle is important.

“I’m sure we can work with both of those agencies, with their respective states and chief medical officers at a federal level. If there are new arrangements that need to be put in place to protect the health and safety of everyone they may be possible. But I’m not going to preempt those outcomes.”

But the New South Wales and Victoria state governments began Sunday to impose restrictions on nonessential gatherings and the AFL, based in Victoria state, accepted the inevitable. The AFL was suspended and the AFL women’s league canceled for 2020.

“We will review the situation by the end of April to determine whether a further suspension period would be required,” McLachlan said. “The decision by various state governments to close their borders, travel bans and other measures meant it was time for the AFL to immediately stop the AFLW and AFL competitions.” AP

SOUTHEAST Asian cycling queen Jermyn Prado is reporting for duty.

PRADO AND CO. ON STANDBY C

YCLING star Jermyn Prado and her Navy national teammates are on standby for enhanced community quarantine duty as the Tokyo 2020 campaigns of four taekwondo jins remained stalled amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) Chairman William Ramirez, meanwhile, said he is relieved that no athlete, coach or PSC personnel has contracted the new coronavirus during the first week of Malacanang’s enforcement of the quarantine.

Road Coach Reinhardt Gorantes told the BusinessMirror on Tuesday that the national riders from the Navy, including himself, were ordered to report to the nearest Naval facility from their homes—at 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. everyday.

“Headquarters have recalled all of us on the team and are on standby,” Gorantes said. “And the Navy men and women on the team are aware of their duty in the event that they are called to the frontlines.”

Gorantes coaches the national riders for the Standard Insurance team whose members are enlisted in the Navy, including Prado, the 30th Southeast Asian Games women’s individual time trial gold medalist.

“My duty as national athlete stops in these kind of crisis. We are all aware of the situation [pandemic] and we know that anytime we will be called to duty for countrymen,” Prado said.

Prado is assigned at the Bonifacio Naval Station

in Taguig, while Gorantes and longtime national team member Jan Paul Morales are tasked to report to the Phil Fleet in Sangley Point, Cavite.

Former Le Tour de Filipinas champion El Joshua Cariño and John Mark Camingao are assigned at the Naval Base Cavite, while Ronald Lomotos and Junrey Navarra are at the Naval Instillation Command-Bonifacio Naval Station.

Gorantes said that with the prevailing red alert in the Armed Forces of the Philippines, national athletes who are also enlisted personnel are all on standby status.

“We are at the third layer [of defense] during these enhanced community quarantine. In the event that the first and second layers contract the virus, we will be manning the frontline,” Gorantes said.

PSC: SAFETY, HEALTH PRIORITY

PHILIPPINE Sports Commission (PSC) Chairman William Ramirez reiterated the agency continues to prioritize the safety and health of athletes, coaches and stakeholders.

“We are on lockdown, but we try our best to keep updated of our athletes’ and employees’ status,” Ramirez said. “And I am thankful that no athlete, coach or employee has reported positive of the Covid-19. We hope it stays that way.”

The PSC is running a “virtual office” to check on national team members and operations at its facilities.

Ramirez said national athletes have been training within the confines of their homes.

Wells Bayou triumphs at eerie Louisiana Derby at empty track

Wells Bayou (left), ridden by jockey Florent Geroux, takes an early lead and holds off NY Traffic to win the 107th running of the $1,000,000 Grade II Louisiana Derby on Saturday at a crowd-less Fair Grounds course in New Orleans. AP

few US sporting events to continue as scheduled, one day after New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell had issued a “stay home” mandate to residents in an effort to curb the spread of the virus. Shortly after the race, officials announced that the rest of the meet, which was scheduled to run until March 29, was canceled.

For the overwhelming majority of race fans and bettors, the only option was to bet online and watch on television.

Some die-hards just couldn’t be kept away, though. A couple dozen people parked along a chain-link fence with a view of the front stretch, watching tailgate-style, with drinks in hand. Some stood in the beds of pickup trucks for a better view while others peered through the fence.

“I’ve only been coming to this for about 50 years,” said 65-year-old Ken Carson, who lives near the track. “I’ve never really bet online but this is the first time I ever opened up an account for at least

JINS TRAIN AT HOME

FOUR Tokyo Olympics hopefuls in taekwondo could only wait for the turn of events as they continue training at home because of the enhanced community quarantine.

Hoping to qualify for Tokyo 2020—which teeters on whether or not to open on July 29—are 30th Southeast Asian Games gold medalists Pauline Lopez, Kurt Barbosa, Samuel Morrison and Arven Alcantara and Rio 2016 campaigner Kirstie Elaine Alora. They are all confined to their homes.

Philippine Taekwondo Association Regional Affairs Chief Stephen Fernandez said on Monday that the five jins are keeping to their respective regimen as they prepare for the qualifying tournaments for Tokyo 2020. “[Team] training was canceled since last week, but for sure they have their own preparations to keep themselves sharp,” said Fernandez, a Barcelona 1992 bronze medalist when taekwondo was introduced to the Olympics as a demonstration.

The Asian championships set for this month in Lebanon was postponed until further notice, while the Asian qualifying tournament in China on April 10 and 11 was also suspended.

The Olympic qualifying tournament are from June 5 to 7 in Amman but that also remains doubtful as Jordan has been impacted by the virus and imposed a lockdown.

With Ramon Rafael Bonilla one day to come out and enjoy the spectacle and, you know, make a little bet here or there.

“It’s a pleasant day,” Carson added, a can of beer in one hand and his racing form in the other.

“We’re just enjoying ourselves out here.”

Carson said the horse he liked was Ny Traffic, who went off at 26-1 but fin ished second, staying close to the leader throughout.

Modernist finished third while morning-line favorite Enforceable, who went off at 7-2, finished fifth.

Wells Bayou earned 100 points toward qualification for the Kentucky Derby, which has been delayed until early September from its usual running on the first Saturday in May. “He’s very great leaving the gate. He broke super sharp,” Geroux said. “After that, when he makes the lead, he relaxes very nice. I let him take a few breathers around the turns. He did perfectly. And when the competition came next to him down the lane, he has another gear.”

Wells Bayou finished the new 1 3/8-mile race distance in 1:56.47. He paid $8.40, $5.80 and $4.60. AP

Art

BusinessMirror

Tuesday, March 24, 2020

C4

Today’s Horoscope

By Eugenia Last

www.businessmirror.com.ph

AGENTS for Cantharophily, etc.

by Lui Gonzales (left) and Fertile by Nina Garibay

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Peyton Manning, 44; Alyson Hannigan, 46; Jim Parsons, 47; Louie Anderson, 67.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Slow down, and enjoy what life has to offer. You don’t have to be superhuman. Impulsive actions will lead to trouble. Strategize first and act later.

Look inward, ask yourself hard questions and formulate what you truly want to pursue. Refuse to let anyone stand in your way, and reassure the people you love how much you care. Your lucky numbers are 5, 13, 20, 24, 38, 44, 46.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Idle time will make you anxious. Sign up for something that requires physical exertion or is mentally challenging. If you share secrets with others, they will be made public.

Self-improvement is favored, and adjustments you make physically or emotionally will enhance your life. ★★★

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Keep your life simple and your thoughts to yourself, and put in the maximum time to reach your goal. A disciplined attitude will help you bypass getting tied up in someone’s drama. Stick to your game plan. ★★★

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Put your skills to work. Offer to help someone who has something you want in return. A sensitive approach to situations of an emotional nature will help you gain acceptance. Charm, along with compassion, will convince others to see things your way. ★★★★

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Don’t take on a responsibility that will push you past your comfort zone. Avoid interfering in other people’s affairs or letting someone meddle in yours. Do what you can to keep the peace. Focus on personal improvements, love and happiness. ★★

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): A commitment will show someone how much you care and what you are willing to do. Plan a trip, set up a meeting or discuss your long-term intentions. Take affirmative action, and get involved in competitive activities that will boost your ego. ★★★★★

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Say no to someone looking for a handout. Taking on someone’s misfortune will not solve the problem, but it will cause stress. Make suggestions, and go about your business. Don’t fall for unrealistic or false advertising. ★★★

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Emotions will surface, causing relationship problems. Gather facts, and put a plan in place before you get involved in a discussion that can determine your fate.

Put your energy into something that motivates you or a job that can bring high returns. ★★★

Onscreen viewing—for now: Kaida Contemporary celebrates women artists in online exhibition CIRCLES JT NISAY

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Finish what you start. Share your ideas with someone who is well-connected, and it will help you put together a package that highlights your skills. Good fortune is heading in your direction. ★★★

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Stick to your plan, use your skills and don’t get involved with people who talk big and do little. Feeling apologetic or being overindulgent will not help you get things done. Property enhancement or a geographical move look favorable. ★★★★★

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Present what you have to offer. Your intent should be to separate yourself from the competition. Stifle emotional matters that might get in your way. Rely on experience and knowledge when faced with opposition.

Bigger doesn’t always mean better. ★★

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Find a way to contribute to something you believe in or that you want to change. An adjustment will be necessary; do your homework, and you’ll discover what’s required. ★★★★

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Look at all sides of a situation, but when it comes down to making a decision, follow your intuition. A realistic budget will ease stress and help you save for something you want. ★★★ BIRTHDAY BABY: You are energetic, cooperative and helpful.

You are unique and tolerant.

jtnisay@gmail.com

I

N what feels like a millennium over the past week, the calendar suggests that we are still in March, which is, of course, National Women’s Month. One that recognizes empowered women as active contributors of development is Kaida Contemporary, which on Sunday opened two shows that highlight women in the arts. “For much of history, the idea of the ‘artist’ has always been associated with man,� Kaida gallery assistant Elle Lucena said in an e-mail interview. “Reading through the stories of the first women artists in history [Artemisia Gentileschi, Elisabeth Vigee-Le Brun, etc.], their careers as artists flourished because they happened to have fathers who were artists themselves, and who served to be their teachers and mentors.�

The case has been much different in recent years, Lucena added, saying women are finally being allowed to carve out their own spaces in the art scene.

Educational institutions have welcomed more female students who want to study art, while galleries display more works by women artists.

Conceptualized to contribute to the momentum

are Kaida’s two shows that feature the works of some of the most active Filipina artists today.

One of the exhibitions is titled Entomophily.

Inspired by the process of pollination of flowers and plants carried out by insects, the two-woman show presents the works of young artists Lui Gonzales and Jezzel Wee. On the one hand, Gonzales works her magic on paper with an intricate reimagination of an insect’s anatomy, from the corners of the tarsus to the mosaic patterns on the wings. Meanwhile, Wee captures the rather extraterrestrial oddity of microscopic plant life through ceramic sculptures.

The second show is Wombvox, which is Kaida’s annual all-female group exhibition. Lucena describes the initiative as the gallery’s way of providing upand-coming women artists the stage on which they may begin exhibiting their works at a local contemporary gallery. The participating artists for this year’s edition are Nina Garibay, Diwa Abueva, Babylyn Fajilagutan, Paola Germar, Shalimar Gonzaga and Arco Iris. Also included are Genavee Lazaro, Pam Quinto, Maia San Diego, Marilou Solano, Tekla Tamoria and Janelle Tang.

Lucena said it is important for Kaida to support new and talented artists by reminding them that there are spaces like theirs that are “willing to help them grow in talent and in name.�

Founded in 2006 by Aida dela PeĂąa, Kaida began as an art space where artist friends would exhibit their recent works, and has since expanded to a fully operational gallery that scouts promising artists from different parts of the country and, in some cases, the world. Lucena said that helping budding talents is even reflected on the gallery’s name, as “Kaidaâ€? can be

attributed to the Spanish word caĂ­da, which refers to a part of a Spanish colonial house. “It’s at the very top of the staircase, where women often ‘dropped’ the hems of their dresses after lifting them on the way up,â€? Lucena said. “Figuratively, we like to think that it symbolizes our role as a gallery that supports artists in their ‘first steps’ as they enter the daunting and often fast-paced art scene, akin to the first steps taken at the very top of the staircase in old Spanish houses.â€?

Kaida’s ongoing shows, Entomophily and Wombvox, which both run until April 6, are presented as online exhibitions due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Lucena said the gallery’s calendar is often booked for at least a year in advance, leaving no room for delays or postponements. But with the recent government-imposed quarantine, they decided to host the online exhibitions instead so the works may still be viewed by the public. “We want viewers to be able to access the works easily and conveniently, wherever they are, and with whatever resources they have,� she said. “So for the two shows, we have created a PDF link [available on our Facebook page] with high-resolution images of the works, displayed as they would have had they been hanging in the gallery.�

Lucena added that Kaida’s future shows will be presented in the same format, “at least until further announcement is made regarding the quarantine.�

She said: “Considering the breadth of reach that technology and the Internet have on the world, we think that hosting online exhibitions would further our connection to artists, art collectors, institutions and art enthusiasts all over the country and the world.â€? â–

‘missing the train’ BY MARYELLEN UTHLAUT The Universal Crossword/Edited by David Steinberg

ACROSS 1 Voice above tenor 5 ___ Forces Day 10 Treaties may end them 14 Jug plug 15 Polynesian people 16 Frequently 17 Possible result of microwaving fast food without unpacking it?

19 Revere took a famous one 20 Naughty child 21 Prefix for “verse�

22 “For ___ waves of grain�

23 Cookware breakout session in culinary school?

28 Word before “branch� or “bread�

30 Little pitchers have big ones 31 Dog biscuit shape, often 32 Join forces 33 Robust energy 36 Deeply impress?

39 Go back over 41 Agreeable response 42 Absorbent cloth 44 Mars, to the Greeks 45 Frilly fabric

46 Pennsylvania sect 47 Song about summer in the Golden State?

53 Products of the mind 54 Question of identity 55 Frat member 58 Christmas carol...or, read as two parts, a theme hint 59 Retriever serving as a guard dog?

63 Instrument with a head 64 Extraterrestrial 65 Vehicle at a weigh station 66 Org. that ships boxes 67 Reproductive plant body 68 Egyptian cobras DOWN 1 Opening at the opera?

2 Appear as a threat 3 Outward signs 4 Green-lights 5 Modify, as the Constitution 6 Forearm bones 7 Unruly crowd 8 Stretch with a name 9 Play in a sandbox 10 Reheats

11 12 13 18 22 24 25 26 27 28 29 32 33 34 35 37 38 40 43 46 47 48 49 50 51

Excuse of the accused Cowboy contest Ship’s rear end Something to hum Good memory, e.g., for a crossword solver State as true “O say can you ___...?�

Keep in stock Impulse Do as directed ___ wolf (independent person) Thanks, in Tours X and Y, commonly Chills, as crab legs Fabric with holes Uplifting mythological figure?

Calf meat Malek of Bohemian Rhapsody NBA official Shortly, poetically Like the goddess Lakshmi Litter box emanations Start a round of golf Says “There, there� to, say One with a title

52 56 57 59 60 61 62

German wine valley Way off the highway Japanese sashes Used to be Mont Blanc, e.g.

Summer Olympics site after London Fed. property manager

Solution to yesterday’s puzzle: