BusinessMirror March 30, 2020

Beyond rate cut, what can ease virus impact?

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HE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) policy rate cut and a frontloading of the government’s infrastructure spending will ease the pain caused by the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19) on the economy, according to a local think tank.

In its latest Market Call report, First Metro Investment Corp. (FMIC)University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P) Capital Markets Research acknowledged that the virus will significantly affect the first semester of the year.

However, FMIC-UA&P Capital Markets Research said the extent of the impact of the virus on the economy could be determined at this time.

“Positive prints in employment and

IT’S not a usual lazy Sunday morning: the medical staff of a hospital in Parañaque City, donning their personal protective equipment (PPE), man the frontlines for possible Covid-19 cases that will be brought to their hospital for evaluation. NONIE REYES

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inflation, and a 50-bps [basis points] cut in policy rates by the BSP should offset some of the output loss,” FMIC-UA&P Capital Markets Research said.

“In addition, front-loading of infrastructure and government spending should also ease the pain. We see a V-type of recovery as soon as the spread and fatality rates of the virus clearly decelerate,” it added.

The local think tank also said part of the economy’s palliative care is the government’s efforts to closely monitor the country’s supply sources.

The government, it added, must extend incentives to develop alternative supply sources needed to help firms secure supplies needed for the fight against Covid-19.

FMIC-UA&P Capital Markets Research fear that without these efforts

and the deaths of more Filipinos due to Covid-19, the negative impact of the virus on the second semester would be worse.

“While we feel more optimistic for H2 [second semester], this may vanish if the virus’s spread and death toll do not significantly ease,” the think tank said.

“The drag of Covid-19 on Philippine GDP growth is certain, especially in H1 [first semester]. But the extent of output and employment loss is extremely difficult to quantify as this would depend on how long and how devastating the pandemic would terrorize people, countries and governments,” it added.

Oil-price declines

THE think tank also said inflation could slow down further given the 33-percent plunge in crude oil prices, particularly

for West Texas Intermediate and Brent crude in March.

FMIC-UA&P Capital Markets Research said the US Energy Information Administration expects further oil price declines until June 2020.

These, the local think tank said, would compensate for higher inflation caused by supply chain disruptions owed to the spread of Covid-19.

“With the input supply disruptions, it seems fairly unclear if exports can sustain the good performance experienced in January. Nonetheless, with the sharper drop in imports, net exports of goods and services will be a bit more positive than in past quarters,” it added.

Earlier, the Department of Finance announced a P27.1-billion package to finance efforts to fight Covid-19.

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Monday, March 30, 2020 Vol. 15 No. 172

P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 16 pages | 7 DAYS A WEEK

D.O.H. SAYS SORRY: 100K CHINESE GOVT TEST KITS ARE OKAY

THE once-bustling national highway in Barangay Talisay, the gateway to Taal Volcano in Batangas, is a ghost town. The town has endured two lockdowns this year—the first, because of Taal’s January 12 eruption, and now, the Covid-induced Enhanced Community Quarantine in Luzon. ROY DOMINGO

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco & Recto L. Mercene

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MAGGIE, a familiar fixture in a community in Cainta, Rizal, continues to sell her vegetables on Sunday. She tries to practice social distancing while providing fresh produce during the lockdown. Her bottom line is even thinner these days, as she gets her produce from the Pasig market, where prices are high these days, but she is one of the unsung heroes. BERNARD TESTA

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad & Bernadette D. Nicolas

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UBLIC and private fund managers are keenly monitoring the impact of Washington’s actions against the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) on the local tender and the Philippines’s financial health.

“Watching US dollar market closely especially after bazooka interventions,” National Treasurer Rosalia V. De Leon told reporters in response to queries on the ripples of the recent $2-trillion stimulus package by American authorities.

On the other hand, analysts see the peso getting a boost with the package.

RCBC Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said in an e-mail that one of the “major catalysts will be the final approval of the US

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 51.0740

Congress and the signing into law

by US President [Donald] Trump” of the stimulus package.

Last week, the US Senate approved the relief package to boost the embattled economy as the pandemic forced trade and businesses to slow down.

The emergency aid package is now up for US Congress approval this week.

Market watchers would also be on the lookout for the latest US jobs and labor data, especially after 3.28 million Americans recently filed for unemployment due to lockdown amid the pandemic, Ricafort added. This figure surpassed the record of 695,000 in October 1982, he said.

“More people in the US stayed

at home and some businesses shut down as part of the measures to prevent the coronavirus from spreading,” he explained.

Market sentiment

RICAFORT explained that any stimulus package allocated to fight the pandemic could uplift market sentiment.

The Philippine government earlier this month announced a P27.1-billion stimulus package, the bulk or P14 billion of which is allocated for the tourism industry.

UnionBank Chief Economist Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion, however, emphasized that the Covid-19 pandemic would continue to weigh on peso trading this week.

HE 100,000 Sansure RT-PCR test kits donated by the Chinese government have been assessed by the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) to be “on a par” with the test kits provided by the World Health Organization (WHO) after parallel testing was done, the Department of Health (DOH) clarified on Sunday.

A separate assertion was made by the Chinese Embassy in Manila.

DOH made the clarification after one of its officials said that some Covid-19 test kits from China were only “40-percent accurate,” a remark that social-media posts tied to reports of thousands of kits returned by some European countries to Chinese suppliers for being defective.

The DOH noted, though, that the test kits referred to by Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire during Sunday’s press briefing by the DOH referred to another brand of test kit that was proposed to be donated by a private foundation, not Beijing’s official donation.

“Moreover, Sansure test kits [the Chinese government donation] contain all required reagents to run the test successfully. This means that no other reagents will need to be separately procured by the Philippine government to use the test kits,” the DOH said in a statement.

Upon preliminary review of documents by RITM, the DOH said, subsequent validation was necessary and such was done.

“To minimize this extra step, parties agreed to use BGI and Sansure RT-PCR test kits for subsequent donations,” the DOH added as the DOH apologized for any confusion that previously issued statements may have caused.

The Beijing government-donated test kits arrived last week and were received

by Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro L. Locsin Jr., who has been actively networking with the Philippines’s allies for assistance in sourcing test kits and personal protective equipment (PPE), which are in short supply and are being pointed to as one cause for the high casualty rate of Filipino medical workers in the fight against Covid-19.

Vergeire was quoted as saying on Saturday, March 28: “Sa mga naunang ipinadala sa amin na test kits from China na nakapagpakita ng 40-percent accuracy, hindi po natin ito ginamit dahil nakita na nga po mababa po ang accuracy natin dito, kaya ito na lang po ay ating itinago [Those test kits sent earlier by China have shown

See “DOH,” A2

See “Fund Managers,” A2

n JAPAN 0.4669 n UK 62.1162 n HK 6.5885 n CHINA 7.2241 n SINGAPORE 35.6986 n AUSTRALIA 30.8436 n EU 56.3448 n SAUDI ARABIA 13.6016

Source: BSP (March 27, 2020)

News BusinessMirror

A2 Monday, March 30, 2020

PHL studying AIIB’s offer to fund health infra reboot

By Bernadette D. Nicolas

FINANCE Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said the government will look into the offer of China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) to scale up its public-health infrastructure investment for its members to reduce the countries’ vulnerability to outbreaks.

Dominguez took positively AIIB’s initiative to announce a number of public-health infrastructure financing options for its members “in the coming days and weeks” to help build economic resilience and mitigate the impact of future health crises.

“Together with the DOH [Department of Health] we will evaluate AIIB’s offer, as future-proofing our health-care system is definitely a key element in our program,” he told reporters in a message.

To better serve its members hit by Covid-19, AIIB said in a statement last week that it is working on increased infrastructure investment in public health, health care and information and communications technology.

This comes as the number of confirmed cases and deaths continues to rise in the Philippines—where cases breached the 1,000 mark on Saturday—and worldwide.

AIIB said in its analysis that a country’s readiness to cope with epidemics is correlated with its quality of infrastructure, as infrastructure development is a key part of health security and epidemic preparedness.

“Firstly, developing economies will need to increase investments in health care and public-health infrastructure.

This is especially crucial in the contexts of megatrends such as urbanization and increased trade connectivity,” it said.

“Without proper public-health infrastructure such as clean water and sanitation, developing economies will remain vulnerable to such outbreaks.”

Moreover, the expected rise in the number of senior citizens in Asia from 412 million in 2020 to 802 million within a short span of 20 years also underscores the need to expand health-care infrastructure, AIIB said.

On top of public-health infrastructure, the bank noted that this needs to be supported by robust information and communications technology (ICT) which will improve the efficiency in health care and epidemic control.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

DPWH eyes more buildings for Covid-19 isolation sites

By Lorenz S. Marasigan & Butch Fernandez

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ITH hospitals and healthcare facilities struggling to accommodate more persons under monitoring and investigation (PUIs and PUMs), the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) will soon convert public buildings and open spaces into makeshift health facilities and isolation sites to address the hospital shortage amid the spreading novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

Public Works Secretary Mark A. Villar said at the weekend the proposal involves the conversion of the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC), World Trade Center (WTC), Rizal Memorial Coliseum, and Philippine Institute of Sports Multipurpose (Philsport) Arena into isolation facilities for almost 3,000 patients.

Some quarters, notably Sen. Nancy Binay, had earlier called for the conversion of sites like the Rizal Memorial into quarantine areas, noting that a government guarantee of suitable isolation sites is the best motivation for people to strictly fol-

low quarantine protocols.

The open spaces of the WTC, Philsport Area, Rizal Coliseum, Quezon Memorial Circle, University of the Philippines-Diliman Campus, Veterans Memorial Medical Center, and the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) may also be used for prototype tents, the DPWH said.

A total of 747 tents may be deployed in such areas, which can accommodate up to 7,470 patients.

“In coordination with the Department of Health, the DPWH… has drawn up the conversion of wide open spaces into isolation

THIS is the PGH ward retrofitted to function as one of three Covid-19 referral centers. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

sites, where prototype tents can be installed. Tents will have proper ventilation and appurtenances, and toilets and bathrooms,” Villar said.

The DPWH is eyeing the old Casino Filipino building near the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) Terminal 1 as an isolation facility.

It also sent a team of construction workers and electricians to fix four identified spaces at the Philippine General Hospital that will be used to accommodate Covid-19 patients starting this week.

Referral center ready

PRIVATE construction group D.M. Consunji Inc. (DMCI) completed last week the retrofitting of two wards inside the University of the Philippines-PGH into a Covid-19 referral center. The medical facility, to house confirmed Covid-19 patients and high-risk PUIs, was formally turned over to UP-PGH on Thursday.

To fast-track the construction process and control the exposure of its workers, DMCI prefabricated offsite the partition walls, exhaust frames and stairs needed to isolate the Covid-19 facility from the rest of the hospital. A dedicated team of DMCI workers handled the installation of the prefabricated materials.

The UP-PGH Covid-19 referral center is one of three governmentdesignated coronavirus referral hospitals in the National Capital Region.

It has “negative pressure” rooms that suck in contaminated air, ventilators

Fund managers...

“Downward pressure may be expected [this] week as the number of Covid-19 infections worldwide continues to rise, bringing lingering uncertainties to global markets,” he said.

Across the globe, there have been over 664,000 Covid-19 cases already, with more than 142,000 recovery and death toll of around 30,800.

Confirmed cases in the US, meanwhile, have already exceeded 120,000, while death toll has reached 2,010, according to a tally by the Johns Hopkins University.

The Philippines’s health department has confirmed 1,075 cases; and recorded death and recovery of 68 and 35, respectively.

On Friday, the local tender strengthened to P51 from P51.07 on the previous day as market risk appetite improved following the initial approval of the US stimulus package, Ricafort noted.

“Momentary strengthening may not mean long-term strength, and this seems currently true in a lot of markets around the world right now,” Asuncion added.

Dollar bond

THE Bureau of the Treasury (BTr), meanwhile, is keeping an eye on the dollar bond market as these interventions could either give the Philippine economy hiccups or opportunities for fund-raising; the latter to further strengthen its own battle against the Covid-19 pandemic.

Last week, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) continued to flush the ailing local economy with liquidity, especially through a 200-basis-point cut in banks’ reserve requirement ratio.

The BSP also earlier decided to cut the main policy rate by 50 basis points as a response to the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon.

and separate access points for patients and medical staff.

DMCI workers rushed to complete the project in five days in response to the PGH’s tight deadline. Earlier, UP-PGH Director Dr. Gerardo “Gap” Legaspi said they needed a week to fully prepare the hospital for its role as a coronavirus referral center.

“Much of the credit goes to our workers who rose to the challenge of delivering this project on time and in accordance with social distancing and sanitation protocols.

We also commend the management of UP-PGH, Architect Dan Lichauco and Bloomberry Foundation for supporting our workers throughout the construction work,” said DMCI President and CEO Jorge A. Consunji.

Sherwin: Isolation tents

EARLIER, the DPWH allowed the use of 110 evacuation centers as health-care facilities and emergency operations centers. So far, 29 facilities are now being used by different groups in various regions in the country.

On Sunday, local government officials were asked to set up makeshift mini-hospitals and “isolation tents” where patients with mild symptoms of Covid-19 can be quickly isolated to avert spreading the virus in their localities.

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian proposed the alternative option over the weekend, citing the “increasing number of Filipinos contracting

Continued from A1

Governor Benjamin E. Diokno also recently announced that the BSP is buying P300 billion worth of government securities from the BTr to finance the government’s Covid-19 rescue package.

Moreover, De Leon added they have already “finalized” a memorandum of agreement with the BSP on 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 programs to manage the spread of the Covid-19 and to counter its impact on the local economy.

Borrowing mix

DE LEON also said this year’s 75-25 borrowing mix in favor of domestic sources may change, considering the possible $1 billion to $2 billion in additional loans or grants Manila may get from multilateral agencies to boost the government’s bid to contain the virus.

While she did not give the new specific borrowing mix—this has yet to be approved by the Development Budget Coordination Committee—she said the government will now be sourcing “lower than 75” percent of the borrowing mix from local sources.

Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III hopes to secure up to $2-billion funding support soon as the state expects foregone revenues of as much as P318.9 billion should the economy contract by 1 percent this year due to the quarantine.

The money, Dominguez said, will also be spent to support people who lost their livelihood, boost the government’s capacity to combat the virus, and protect the country’s frontliners.

the deadly coronavirus.”

He said local government units (LGUs) on their own can promptly put up the temporary quarters “in wide, well-ventilated, and covered spaces like gymnasia, where tents can serve as isolation areas for persons under investigation and those who are recovering from the disease.”

Schools, dormitories and hotels can also be utilized as isolation areas, he said, airing concern that hospitals are “now overwhelmed with the spike in Covid-19 cases straining medical facilities and triggering some to turn away patients.”

He noted that at least three patients, tested positive in Quezon City, were sent home as “the facilities they were supposed to be confined in did not have enough space.”

Gatchalian recalled that Wuhan, China, “former epicenter” of the coronavirus pandemic, had 16 makeshift hospitals treating 13,000 patients. These facilities eventually closed as Wuhan’s cases plunged. South Korea solved its bed shortage by reserving hospital beds for the acutely ill while putting less sick patients in dormitories.

He cited Valenzuela’s centralized isolation facilities at the Balai Banyuhay and Valenzuela Astrodome’s modular tents and military cots for patient use, apart from Balai Banyuhay, the city’s unused drug rehabilitation and treatment facility, with 100 beds.

DOH...

Continued from A1

40-percent accuracy and so we did not use them].”

She said these failed to meet the standards of WHO.

Embassy denial

THE DOH immediately released a clarification after the Chinese Embassy in Manila demanded that the agency clear the matter.

The embassy issued the denial as the reports circulated on social media about “defective” kits donated by China.

“According to the clarification of the DOH, the two batches of 2,000 BGI PCR-type test kits and 100,000 Sansure PCR-type test kits donated by the Chinese government have been assessed by the RITM to be on a par with World Health Organizationprovided kits,” read the statement.

The embassy added, “those test kits are of high quality and standards and have no accuracy problems, which are being used in Philippine test laboratories and have helped accelerate the testing process.”

The statement continued: “The test kits mentioned by the DOH official on 28 March 2020 during the press briefing were neither tested by RITM which did not receive any kit sample for lab validation, nor donated by the Chinese government.”

China said since the outbreak of the Covid-19 epidemic, “China has continually provided assistance as needed to support the Philippines’s battle against the epidemic.”

“At this moment of crisis, we should fight in solidarity to overcome the epidemic at the earliest date. The Chinese Embassy firmly rejects any irresponsible remarks and any attempts to undermine our cooperation in this regard.”

The Nation BusinessMirror

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DOTr taking over OFW transport needs, OWWA to focus on shelter

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By Samuel P. Medenilla

@sam_medenilla

he Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) will temporarily suspend on Monday its handling of transportation services for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) from Luzon, who will be travelling in and out of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

OWWA Administrator Hans J. Cacdac said the suspension will provide their team of drivers, nurses, bus monitors, dispatchers, luggage handlers, airport coordinators,

and repatriation personnel much needed rest.

“I thank them for their on-hand service to our dear OFWS since March 16,” Cacdac said in a statement.

He said the Department of Transportation (DoTr) will be taking over the bus services for OFWs until they could resume with their “Hatid-Sundo” program (HSP), which was officially launched on March 19.

For the duration of its run, the HSP benefited nearly 3,000 stranded arriving and departing OFWs. Cacdac, however, said OW WA will continue giving airport assistance and accommod ation aid w ithin Metro Manila for returning OFWs, who will be affected by the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon due to the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

Labor and Employment Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III said that

among OFWs assisted by OWWA were the 250 Filipino crew of cruise ship Costa Luminosa.

Passengers of the cruise ship were forced to disembark in Savona, Italy, after some of its passengers were infected with Covid-19.

Citing a report from the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO), Bello said the Filipino seafarers flew from Malpensa airport via a chartered flight last Friday and arrived at the Naia Terminal 1 the following day.

The crew is composed of 245 seafarers deployed by Magsaysay Maritime Corp. and five deployed by another agency, Bello told the BusinessMirror.

After their arrival, they were brought to a hotel in Manila to undergo the 14-day quarantine.

Preparedness at heart of Zambales action plan I BA, Zambales–The Zambales provincial government has put in place a six-point action plan that emphasized preparedness and capabilitybuilding rather than isolation to combat the spread of the new coronavirus (Covid-19).

Governor Hermogenes E. Ebdane Jr. ordered what he called an intensified strategy of emergency response following confirmation by the Department of Health of two positive cases of Covid-19 infection here late last week.

“We will be prepared. That is the most sensible direction we have to take in this situation. This is going to be a long battle and we are arming ourselves for it,” Ebdane said in a statement on Sunday.

The governor said he met with the provincial inter-agency task force the other day and gave orders to implement the six-point strategy to manage the current crisis.

Under Ebdane’s directives, the provincial government will establish quarantine facilities at the two provincial borders—Santa Cruz town in the north, and Subic in the south, where all new arrivals will be quarantined for 14 days.

This is in anticipation of more Zambaleños coming back to their hometowns to weather the pandemic, he said.

Ebdane said he has received “hundreds” of requests from residents wanting to return, most are students and workers in Manila who are running out of money to last the expected monthlong quarantine.

He also ordered extending the quarantine of persons under monitoring (PUMs) in the province from 14 days to 20-30 days and to set up quarantine facilities in each municipality for this purpose.

Ebdane said the provincial govern-

Members of the Zambales IATF deliver food supplies for frontline offices and health facilities to beef up emergency response capability in the province. ment will also strengthen checkpoint capability at the borders to supply members of the task force there with complete personal protection equipment (PPEs) and supplies, and enable the disinfection of both incoming and outgoing vehicles and cargo.

Another measure that Ebdane or-

dered is the stocking of sufficient supplies of food, medicine, and other essentials in the province. He said that an inventory of staples showed the province can support residents for up to three months under the current condition.

“Funds have been allotted for importations of other needs, but home

or backyard food production program will nevertheless be initiated through the barangays, and price monitoring and control will also be implemented stringently,” he added.

Meanwhile, Ebdane also ordered a census of all private medical professionals to come up with a list of “reservists” in the event that Covid-19 cases increased and the current medical staff fell short.

He also designated the President Ramon Magsaysay Memorial Hospital in Iba as exclusive for the treatment of Covid-19 positives and PUIs. All other regular and non-Covid cases will be moved to the two district hospitals in the province or to any hospital chosen by the patients.

“We will also be anticipating problems stemming from the above proposed solutions and we must be quick to determine and implement adjustments,” the governor added.

Ebdane said that just last week, nine residents of Masinloc were intercepted in Botolan town after walking the length of the Capas-Botolan road from Tarlac.

“While we have encouraged everyone that it would be safer to stay put in their current location, we could not really turn them away if they arrive,” the governor said. Thus measures to prevent further local transmission must be in place at once, he added.

At the same time, Ebdane encouraged his constituents to deal with the Covid-19 emergency as a community, stressing that the more affluent sectors should provide others with food and other necessities, as well as funds to “adopt” poor communities.

Henry Empeño

On NPA anniversary, Joma claims guerilla ranks widened

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he New People’s Army has managed to build up its ranks despite government’s operations and is present in nearly all of the provinces of the country, Communist founder Jose Maria Sison said, even as the military reported the surrender of 54 rebels and their supporters in Central and Southern Luzon.

Sison’s projection of the rebel group’s strength was made on the occasion of the 51st founding anniversary of the NPA on Sunday. He issued the statement three days after the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP)declared a cease-fire with the government following the call of the United Nations for warring groups around the world to stop their operations and joined in the effort to combat coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-29).

“It [NPA] has thousands of Red fighters well-trained and battle-tested in more than 100 guerilla fronts in 73 provinces out of the 81 Philippine provinces,”Sison said.“It coordinates with the people’s militia and the self-defense units of mass organizations as auxiliary and reserve forces.”

Sison, also the chief political consultant of the National Democratic Front of the

Philippines, said the NPA, which is the CPP’s armed wing, is determined to build the “revolutionary bases and accumulate armed political strength” until it can seize cities of the country.

‘Annihilative’

According to the communist leader, the rebels were able to carry out last year at least 710 “big and small” military actions against the government wherein at least 651 “enemy troops” were killed and more than 466 were wounded, both casualties of which, were equivalent to “around 30 platoons or two battalions” of soldiers.

The actions were in the form of “ambuscades and raids” of military detachments, “harassments, disarming, demolition, sapper and partisan operations and punitive actions.”

“The people’s war is now in the process of moving from the middle to the advanced phase of the strategic defensive,” Sison said. “The NPA can win tactical offensives in order to further increase its arms and debilitate its enemy… all the guerilla fronts can be directed to carry out a monthly minimum quota of annihilative

battles to increase arms.”

He further claims the NPA has 14 regional commands under its national operational command and conduct movement and maneuvers “freely” in more than 80 percent of the country’s areas as it carries intensive and extensive guerilla warfare on a deepening mass base.

“In every guerilla front, one third of the NPA is relatively concentrated and ever ready for waging battles that it can win. Two-thirds are relatively dispersed for mass work,” Sison said.

‘Treachery’

Malacañang condemned the “treachery” of communist rebels for attacking government soldiers in Rizal last Saturday.

In a statement, Presidential Spokesman Salvador S. Panelo said the incident exposed the “insincerity” of the NPA in supporting the government efforts against Covid-19.

Panelo said the incident endangered not only members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) but also of the community in the area.

The attack killed a solider and injured two others. The incident occurred after the observance of a cease-fire that was supposed to

lapse on April 15, two days after the lifting of the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine on April 13, 2020.

Panelo assured the AFP will be ready to continue repulsing more of its attacks from the NPA for the duration of the quarantine.

“Let this be a warning to the enemies of the state that the constituted authorities are equipped and ready to repel any and all transgressions of law and crush any armed attack against our soldiers and civilians with ferocity and might,” Panelo said.

The Federation of Free Workers (FFW) lamented the apparent short-lived truce between the government the NPA. Despite the attack, FFW President Sonny Matula appealed to both parties to reconsider more clashes, especially for the duration of the Covid crisis.

“If we may be allow to suggest, FFW urges both parties instead of killing each other and buying arms and bullets—to use their funds to save lives and, at the same time, refocus efforts and resources to save more civilians and non-combatants in the fight against the coronavirus disease,” Matula said in a statement.

Rene Acosta and Sam Medenilla

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Monday, March 30, 2020 A3

IATF enforcement arm grapples with increasing curfew violators

By Rene Acosta

T

@reneacostaBM

he increasing number of curfew violators and the activation of the online inquest proceedings of the Department of Justice have prompted the Joint Task Force Corona Virus Shield (JTF CV Shield) to reconsider its decision to arrest and detain violators of home quarantine rules.

The JTF CV Shield is the enforcement arm of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases. It is composed of the Philippine National Police, Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine Coast Guard and the Bureau of Fire Protection.

Lt. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar, JTF CV Shield commander and the PNP Deputy Chief for Operations, said they also received appeals from local government units (LGUs) through the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) not to be lenient on curfew violators, citing their own hardships in convincing their constituents to follow the enhanced community quarantine guidelines.

During the “Laging Handa” briefing on March 28, Eleazar said they decided to be a little lenient against curfew violators by allowing them to go home after booking them instead of detaining them until they posted bail, out of compassion and the lack of suitable jail facilities as well as government prosecutors that would attend to the cases that would be filed since the DOJ is only manned by limited number of personnel.

The agreement was that the names and circumstances of the arrest would be documented and that the charges would later be pursued after the enhanced community quarantine is lifted and the situation normalizes.

But following the appeals and reports of the LGUs, the JTF CV Shield verified the information from police commanders on the ground and found out that there were a total of 42,826 apprehended curfew violators in the first 11 days of the enhanced community quarantine, or from March 17 up to March 27.

Of the figure, 12,094 of them were from Metro Manila.

It was recalled that while the enhanced community quarantine is only in Luzon, a number of LGUs in the Visayas and Mindanao have already implemented their own lockdowns to protect their constituents from the spread of the coronavirus disease.

“Just imagine if, shall we say a quarter of these violators are already virus carriers, they will not

only endanger the health and the lives of our policemen and other people manning the quarantine control points but also the health workers and other frontliners who are exempted from the quarantine,” Eleazar said.

“Based on our assessment, the number of curfew violators will just continue to rise if we become lenient on them. This will definitely defeat the purpose of the declaration of the enhanced community quarantine, which President Duterte approved purposely to contain the Covid-19,” he added.

As such, Eleazar said that the arrest and filing of cases against curfew violators would continue.

He said all the arrested violators will be taken to the nearest police stations for investigation and filing of cases.

As to the filing of the charges against curfew violators, Eleazar said that the consultation with Justice Secretary Menardo I. Guevarra through DILG Secretary Eduardo M. Año revealed the existence of the “e-inquest” project of the Justice Department, which allows the conduct of a virtual inquest proceedings using any online platform for video calls and conferences and all available electronic communications.

Eleazar said that the DOJ has already issued general rules on procedures for the conduct of e-inquest to the government prosecutors across the country.

In the absence of Internet connections or online facilities in the police stations, Eleazar said the regular direct filing will be accomplished by police investigators.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Air Force ferried off via a C-130 cargo plane on Saturday the second batch of medical supplies into the country from Fuzhou, China.

A Filipino-Chinese donated the supplies to the Philippine government, which consist of Covid-19 test-kit PCR (polymerase chain reaction) real time quantitative thermal cycler, protective suit (sterile and non-sterile), camsterile gloves, face masks, protective goggles, face shield, diagnostic kit, cell preservation fluid, tube strip, swap and S1014 kit.

The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) has also began distributing personal protective equipment suits, face masks, and boxes of bottled water it had procured to assist various hospitals amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

The agency provided 5,000 surgical masks each to the East Avenue Medical Center and the Philippine Children’s Medical Center, while 500 n95 masks were delivered to the Dr. Jose N. Rodriguez Memorial Hospital and Sanitarium.

BI downsizes work force to minimize Covid-19 risks

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HE Bureau of Immigration on Sunday announced that it has downsized its work force at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) due to flight cancellations by airlines and travel restrictions as the Philippines grapples with the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).

BI Commissioner Jaime H. Morente said the agency has started relocating its offices and operations at Naia Terminal 2 and Naia Terminal 3 to Terminal 1 where all flights to and from Naia will take place.

The Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) was the first to move to Naia’s Terminal 1.

Morente assured that a skeletal work force at the Naia would remain to ensure the uninterrupted delivery of immigration services to the travelling public.

“This would enable our personnel to lessen the risk of getting infected by

this virus,” the BI chief said.

The move, according to Morente, is aimed at minimizing the risk of being infected by the virus considering that BI officers continued to report as frontliners at the airport amid the community quarantine.

BI Port Operations Division Chief Grifton Sp. Medina said all of the immigration officers assigned at Naia’s three terminals have been instructed to report for duty at Terminal 1 until the resumption of normal flight operations.

Medina said that, as a result of the downsizing of operations, a skeletal force man Naia’s immigration counters.

“We are now fully compliant with the requirements of the enhanced community quarantine wherein government employees are enjoined to maintain a minimal number of employees without compromising the delivery of services to the public,” Medina added.

Joel R. San Juan

A4 Monday, March 30, 2020 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

Economy BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

‘Use public schools as shelter for ecozone workers’

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By Elijah Felice E. Rosales

@alyasjah

he Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) is asking the national government to transform public schools near industrial parks as temporary housing units for workers, saying it is difficult to shelter employees of locators while Luzon is under enhanced community quarantine.

In a letter to President Duterte on Friday, Peza Director General Charito B. Plaza recommended that public schools be retrofitted as quarantine area to help in the fight against coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). She

said this could spell the difference in containing the virus at a time hospitals are reporting overcapacity and, therefore, are turning down patients.

If not, public schools can be utilized as temporary houses of

economic zone workers, who are having a difficult time traveling to site due to the restriction on movement of people under the enhanced community quarantine placed on the whole of Luzon.

“For economic purposes, some of them may be utilized to temporarily house ecozone workers who are challenged by the IATF [Interagency Task Force] restriction on movement of ecozone personnel,” said Plaza.

“The idle buildings and warehouses, whether public or private, may also serve as logistics facilities, particularly for food products to ensure food security.”

Plaza is also appealing to the President to instruct the IATF to assist manufacturers in providing housing and shuttle facilities to workers, as well to ensure the safe passage of cargoes carrying export goods and service buses ferrying personnel.

According to Plaza, economic zones can be compared to cities and

municipalities, as they host sizable population, linkages and communities. The 406 industrial parks nationwide employ over 1.6 million direct workers and they are connected with service providers that have a manpower total of about 6.5 million.

As such, the Peza chief said it’s imperative for the President to strike a balance between combatting the spread of the virus and making sure the economy is well and healthy.

“The Covid-19 pandemic as a global crisis will certainly end sooner or later,” Plaza said. “But the inflicted toll on the affected countries with the resulting socioeconomic impacts will be felt for several years even after regaining normalcy.”

“Thus, it becomes imperative for the country under your able leadership to strike a balance between protecting public health and safety, and keeping the economy afloat and the critical institutions running to ensure our victory in this fight against

the Covid-19 crisis,” she added.

To minimize the pandemic’s impact on the economy, the government permitted manufacturers and business process outsourcing firms to operate even as a lockdown is imposed on Luzon. However, they were required to provide near site temporary housing units for their workers to steer them clear of scrutiny in checkpoints.

In an assessment made by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, the country is expected to suffer $300.4 million worth of losses due to the Covid-19 pandemic. While the figure is significant, the Philippines will suffer the least damage among Southeast Nations.

As of Sunday morning, there are nearly 665,000 confirmed cases of the deadly virus across the world.

The Philippines has 1,075 confirmed cases, of which 68 resulted in deaths while just 35 succeeded in recovery.

Average farm-gate price of rice up for 3rd consecutive week

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

T

he average farm-gate price of dry palay rose to P16.26 per kilogram in mid-March and one farmers’ group said this upward trend is expected to continue following reports that Vietnam is stockpiling rice.

Latest preliminary report by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that the average farm-gate price of dry palay increased for the third straight week to P16.26 per kg.

This is now the the highest average price level for dry palay in the past six months since P16.28-per-kg quotation recorded in the first week of September 2019, historical PSA data showed.

Farmers groups and organizations said the farm-gate price of palay could still rise due to ”a confluence of events.”

Free Farmers Federation (FFF) President Raul Q. Montemayor said the buying prices for palay during the dry harvest season are usually high in anticipation of the lean months.

This was fueled further by the difficulties in transporting rice due to the check points and lockdowns imposed by local government units due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) outbreak in the country, Montemayor said.

He said traders, particularly those that are able to get through checkpoints and transport goods, have been buying rice at a higher rate.

Citing reports from the ground, Montemayor said the buying price for palay in certain rice-producing areas, like Isabela, has gone up to P19 per kg.

The buying price for palay, Montemayor pointed out, could continue

A farmer in Bayambang, Pangasinan collects unhusked rice grains in this BusinessMirror file photo. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the farm-gate price of rice rose for the third consecutive week in mid-March. LAILA AUSTRIA

to increase in light of reports that Vietnam, the country’s top source of imported rice, will stockpile tons of rice and may halt exports. ”Nagkakaagawan na. Nakikita na ng traders na pamahal na iyong imports. Nakikita ko na lalo pang tataas [ang presyo ng palay] kapag nakita na ng traders na tumumal ang imports,” he said via phone call.

[Traders are outbidding each other as they are seeing the increase in the price of imports. As I see it, farmgate prices will rise further once traders observe a decline in imports.]

’Silver lining’

A coalition of farmers groups and non-government organizations (NGOs) said in a statement over the weekend that one of the good things that may arise from Vietnam’s proposed export ban is the increase in local palay farm-gate prices.

“If there is anything good that has come out of Covid-19, it is that palay prices is slowly picking up.

It is possible that traders are also anticipating supply tightness,” said

Maning Rosario of Pambansang Katipunan ng mga Samahan sa Kanayunan. ”We expect that with Vietnam’s temporary export [halt], local palay prices will continue to increase. This maybe good news since we have yet to recover from our income losses since RTL [rice trade liberalization law] was implemented last year,” Rosario added.

Nonetheless, the industr y groups called on the government to strengthen the country’s food security and remember the lessons of the

2008 rice crisis.

“This is what the group has been fearing all along. We become very vulnerable as global shocks like today’s global pandemic and the 2008 rice crisis can raise international rice prices to the roof as supply becomes tight, and/or countries hold on to their food supply for their own needs.

Food security will be at risk and this could further magnify the impacts of Covid-19,” said Rice Watch and Action Network Executive Director Hazel Tanchuling.

Last week, the government’s Inter-agency Task-force on Re-emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) has endorsed the P31-billion food security enhancement program of the Department of Agriculture (DA) to ensure sufficient domestic supply of food.

Furthermore, the IATF—the government’s highest policy-making body for Covid-19 containment efforts--also approved the DA’s proposal of importing 300,000 metric tons (MT) of rice in case there’s a need to augment supply.

The DA has assured the public that the country has enough rice for at least the next four months.

Citing latest figures from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar said the country’s rice inventory is expected to settle at around 2.661 million metric tons (MMT) by end of the month, which is enough for 75 days.

Dar added that nationwide rice stocks by end-June are projected to reach 2.3 MMT, equivalent to 67 days of consumption at a daily consumption rate of 35,369 MT. In a radio interview few days ago, Dar said the country has imported about 500,000 MT of rice as of March 27.

PHL culls more hogs to prevent spread of deadly pig disease

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he Philippines has culled over 250,000 pigs to control the spread of the dreaded African Swine Fever (ASF), which has managed to finds its way to provinces in Northern Luzon and Southern Luzon.

In its eight follow-up report to the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), the Philippines said it culled 41,953 hogs in 69 additional confirmed outbreaks from January to February in Luzon.

This now brings the country’s total cull count to 250,877 pigs, about 2 percent of the estimated 12 million local hog population.

The number of hogs that were susceptible to ASF, as reported by the Philippines to the OIE as of March 26, has risen to 246,918 heads.

The additional outbreaks reported by the Philippines to the OIE were recorded in backyard farms in Cavite, Nueva Ecija, Tarlac, Rizal, Bataan, Aurora, Quezon, Pangasinan, Isabela, Batangas, Benguet, Ifugao, Camarines Sur, Nueva Vizcaya, and Laguna.

The report, which was submitted by Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) OIC-Director and country’s Chief Veterinarian Ronnie D. Domingo, indicated that at least 824 pigs were infected by ASF in the 69 outbreaks, while 76 died from the fatal disease. The Philippine report explained that the source of the outbreaks include illegal movements of animals, swill feeding and fomites, such as vehicles and animal feeds.

In the latest national zoning map released by the BAI, Visayas remains free from ASF as of March 23.

Industry sources noted that the figures being reported and disclosed by the government is “underestimated” as it doesn’t include pigs depopulated or culled by large commercial pig farms.

In a separate report to the OIE on March 26, Domingo said the Philippines has not recorded new bird flu outbreaks following the confirmation of an outbreak in a one quail farm in Nueva Ecija two weeks ago.

Domingo’s report indicated that the the source of the bird flu outbreak in the Nueva Ecija quail farm remains “unknown or inconclusive” but he noted the presence of wild birds in the area.

“The event is continuing.

Weekly follow-up reports will be submitted,” the Philippine report read. Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

Senator, Mindanao officials unveil strategies to fight virus, ensure steady food supply

By Butch Fernandez @butchfBM & Manuel T. Cayon @awimailbox Mindanao Bureau Chief

S

enator Imee Marcos gave full credit Sunday to “Diskarteng Pinoy” innovation that quickly solved the shortage of personal protective equipment (PPEs) for medical personnel tasked to stop the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).

“The Filipino ability to adapt and survive amid adversity, colloquially known as ‘diskarte,’ is solving the lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) for medical frontliners fighting to stop the spread of Covid-19,” Marcos said over the weekend.

In a statement, the Senator prodded the Department of Health and the Department of Trade and Industry to speed up approval of a PPE

prototype submitted by the garment exports industry. Marcos added its 300,000 workers are ready to augment the country’s short supply of PPEs amid a global shortage in medical equipment.

According to her, the PPE prototype’s prompt approval will mean continued employment for garment workers in Taytay and give hope to more sewers in Cavite and other garment-producing communities in the country.

The Senator expressed confidence that Filipinos’ talent for innovation (“Diskarteng Pinoy”) is the key to surmounting the threat posed by the deadly virus.

Marcos, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Economic Affairs, pointed out that funding industries badly hit by the Covid-19 pandemic and helping them adapt their production to crucially needed goods

is part of the coping mechanisms of the P750-billion “Pag-ASA: Alaga, Sustento, Angat” program that she proposed via Senate Bill 1414.

Mindanao food supply

Provincial governors in Mindanao have agreed to make an inventory of existing food stocks and identify production areas where supplies can be sourced, the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) said.

The MinDA said engaging the governors is part of the Self-Sustaining Food Security Strategy (SSFSS), a MinDA program to link the provincial governments with one another to ensure stable food supply for their constituents.

MinDA crafted the SSFSS earlier this week in the face of the threat that uncoordinated food supply distribution in Mindanao could create artificial shortages.

The SSFSS aims to ensure that the local government units (LGUs) were able to quantify their current food supply inventory of basic food commodities like rice, eggs, poultry, meat and fruits like banana and identify individuals or groups which could undertake sustained food production.

The SSFSS would identify neighboring LGUs which would have excess production of any food commodity. This would enable LGUs to forge an alliance with two or more LGUs to establish a symbiotic food supply relationship and establish a marketing and distribution system.

In a Facebook post on Thursday, MinDA Chairman Emmanuel F. Piñol said Davao Oriental Governor Nelson Dayanghirang earlier said his province would need additional rice supply and he was told that the neighboring province of Davao de Oro under Governor Jayvee Tyron

Uy may have excess production.

North Cotabato Governor Nancy Catamco informed MinDA she was ready to implement the SSFSS in her province which she said would include the distribution of upland rice seeds to complement production in lowland areas.

MinDA said that under SSFSS, the provincial government would also distribute vegetable seeds and backyard chicken breeders to encourage farmers to produce more food. The LGUs would buy the farmers chicken, hog, egg and vegetable products for distribution to residents as food assistance.

“We don’t know how long the problem would last that is why we have to be prepared,” Catamco said.

Sulu Governor Sakur Tan, reported that his province has sufficient food supply, especially cassava, a staple food for the Tausug residents.

MinDA is also helping neighboring Tawi-Tawi Governor Ysmael Sali transport some 2,000 metric tons of rice from Iloilo Province to Bongao, according to Piñol.

MinDA has also appealed to families, especially those in farms, to undertake simple food production activities like vegetable growing and raising chicken.

“This leads to creating a localized market for farmers’ and fishermen’s produce whose distribution is impaired by the existing lockdowns,” Pinol added.

“The lockdowns implemented by the different local government units due to the Covid-19 pandemic could also affect food supply distribution,” he added.

The SSFSS is expected to ensure sufficient food production and sound distribution method in the different areas in Mindanao, he said.

The World BusinessMirror

Editor: Angel R. Calso

Monday, March 30, 2020

A5

2nd Cabinet member joins British PM in having Covid-19 symptoms

In this November 22, 2019 file photo, Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson (right) and Health Minister Matt Hancock visit Bassetlaw District General Hospital on their General Election campaign in Worksop, England. Matt Hancock has tested positive for the new coronavirus on Friday, March 27, 2020, the same day as Johnson was confirmed to have Covid-19. Christopher Furlong/Pool via AP

L

ONDON—Another member of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Cabinet has developed symptoms of Covid-19, as the number of people with the coronavirus to die in the United Kingdom passed the 1,000 mark on Saturday.

Scottish Secretary Alister Jack said he had symptoms of the disease and was self-isolating a day after the prime minister and Britain’s health secretary revealed they tested positive for the virus and were experiencing mild symptoms.

Johnson, 55, is the highestprofile political leader to have contracted the virus. Jack sat beside him in the House of Commons on Wednesday before Parliament shut down until at least April 21 to re-

The world could be running out of condoms because of pandemic

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he world’s biggest maker of condoms warned of a global shortage as supply falls by almost 50 percent while its stockpile is set to last for just another two months.

Malaysia-based Karex Bhd., which makes one out of every five condoms worldwide, only restarted its factories on Friday after a weeklong closure, working with just half its work force to comply with a lockdown that the country imposed to contain the spread of the coronavirus. The company said condoms are mainly made in China and India, which are both heavily impacted by the pandemic.

Meanwhile, demand is growing at “double digits” as governments around the world issue stay-at-home notices and many people abstain from having children due to the uncertain future, said Goh Miah Kiat, group chief executive officer at Karex.

The company produces for brands like Durex as well as its own line of specialty condoms such as Durian-flavored ones. It churns out more than 5 billion condoms a year and exports them to more than 140 countries. That has become more challenging as governments shut borders and airlines cancel flights.

“I would definitely say this is an unprecedented stage, we have never seen such a disruption,” Goh said in an interview on Friday.

Condoms could also get much more expensive, he warned. “We are still paying all our workers full salaries but workers only come in half the time so generally there will be a cost increase,” he said.

Bloomberg News

duce the risk of infections.

Business Secretrary Alok Sharma said Johnson continues to show only "mild symptoms” of coronavirus.

“He continues to lead the government’s effort in combating Covid-19,” Sharma told reporters.

“This morning he held a video conference call and he will continue to lead right from the front on this.”

“What this has reminded us is that no one is immune and that is

precisely why we ask people to follow the government advice in terms of staying at home where they are able to do that,” Sharma said.

Johnson has been accused of failing to follow the British government’s distancing measures after he, Health Secretary Matt Hancock, 41, and the chief medical officer of England began self-isolating with symptoms on Friday.

The medical officer, Dr. Chris Whitty, has been advising the prime minister during the virus pandemic.

The editor of the respected British medical journal The Lancet published a scathing editorial on Saturday that criticized the government for doing too little, too late to protect public health and leaving the UK’s public health system “wholly unprepared for this pandemic.”

Lancet editor Richard Horton wrote that despite numerous warnings, Britain’s strategy for containing the virus failed, “in part,

because ministers didn’t follow WHO’s advice to ‘test, test, test’ every suspected case. They didn’t isolate and quarantine. They didn’t contact trace.

“These basic principles of public health and infectious disease control were ignored, for reasons that remain opaque,” Horton said.

Keith Willett, the National Health Service’s strategic incident director for Covid-19, disputed the editorial’s conclusions.

He said the NHS freed up 33,000 beds for virus patients—a third of all hospital capacity—and enabled 18,000 nurses and doctors to return to practice. Three new makeshift hospitals are being built.

“In respect of our NHS responsibilities and response, the facts clearly speak for themselves,” Willett said.

NHS employees have begun getting tested for the virus, a move seen as helping get self-isolating staff members back on the job.

The issue of health workers going into self-isolation has proved to be a big problem for the NHS because workers are sometimes in that position because they have an ill family member, not because they themselves are infected.

Meanwhile, authorities released photos of the inside of the ExCel center, an exhibition space that is being converted into a makeshift hospital. It will have two wards, and ultimately have a capacity of 4,000.

Initially, however, it will house some 500 beds with ventilators and oxygen.

The UK had 17,300 confirmed virus cases as of Saturday, according to a Johns Hopkins University tally. British officials reported that the number of deaths increased by 260 from a day earlier, bringing the country’s total for virus-related deaths to 1,019.

The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people, but for some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death. AP

Europe’s Covid-19 carnage has Italy, Spain grasping for answers

I

taly’s coronavirus death toll topped 10,000 and Spain reported its deadliest day yet, leaving leaders of both countries groping for ways to tackle the crisis with Europe split along economic fault lines.

While the data suggest the pace of infections may be leveling off, the human carnage and economic damage aren’t letting up. Spain recorded 832 deaths on Saturday, though Italy’s fatal cases slowed to 889 from a Friday record of 969.

With the goal of “flattening the curve” at stake, Italy’s Giuseppe Conte and Spain’s Pedro Sanchez took to the national airwaves with comments that raised the level of unease.

Conte stopped short of an expected extension of Italy’s nationwide lockdown, a step that seems unavoidable given the suffering. Sanchez muddied the waters by saying non-essential workers would be kept home over the Easter period, sowing doubt on what kind of lockdown Spain has been in for two weeks. Instead, both leaders amped up their criticism of the European Union for being slow and failing its hardest-hit members in the hour of their greatest economic need. Both were at pains to remind the EU of its responsibilities.

“Look, we have an appointment with history and everyone must rise to the occasion,” Conte said at a news conference. His proposal to the EU, specifically for the issuance of so-called corona bonds, was met with German and Dutch opposition. In an interview with Il Sole 24 Ore, he openly questioned the “raison d’etre” of the bloc if it cannot handle this crisis appropriately.

Sanchez repeated his call for a European “Marshall Plan,” a reference to the US aid program credited with pulling Western Europe out of its post-World War II economic devastation.

‘European solidarity’

Almost 15,000 coronavirus victims — more

than half the world’s total—have been reported in Italy and Spain, which officially are in almost total lockdown except for essential errands such as buying food and medicine.

While Italian Deputy Finance Minister Laura Castelli told La Stampa that the government’s crisis aid package could increase to as much as €100 billion ($111 billion), that compares with €750 billion mobilized by Germany and €300 billion in France.

Conte and Sanchez joined French President Emmanuel Macron in advocating a hefty joint EU response, exposing an EU rift dating back to the euro-area debt crisis.

“We won’t overcome this crisis without strong European solidarity, both on the health front and on the budget front,” Macron said in an interview with Italian newspapers. “The amount is secondary. It’s the signal that matters, be it via joint debt or a common budget.”

Such proposals fly in the face of German-led resistance after Chancellor Angela Merkel said this week she prefers to deploy the European Stability Mechanism, a rescue fund set up during the debt crisis.

Shortage threat

Sanchez didn’t spell out what is new about his latest containment policy, saying only that the measures “are of an extraordinary toughness” and require “social behavior very different” from what Spaniards are used to.

French officials, already facing criticism for a lack of protective gear for health workers, warned of possible shortages of medication and coronavirus test equipment. Paper and clothing manufacturers are being asked to make face masks since France produces only about a fifth of the amount it needs, Health Minister Olivier Veran told reporters on Saturday.

“The whole world is facing shortages and demand for intensive care equipment is exploding,” Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said.

As countries such as the US deploy extraordinary restrictions to fight the spread of the virus, the question for Europe’s leaders is how to hold the line.

There are suggestions in Spain and Italy that containment measures are working as the pace of infections stabilizes.

“The number of deaths, very high even today, reasonably refers to people who contracted the infection at least 10 or 15 days ago,” Lorenzo Pregliasco, cofounder of Italian pollster YouTrend, said in an interview.

Johnson’s appeal

Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who’s under quarantine at his Downing Street apartment after testing positive for the virus, is writing to UK households to urge people to save lives by staying home. The mail drop next week will include a leaflet of medical advice.

“We know things will get worse before they get better,” the letter says, according to his office.

“But we are making the right preparations, and the more we all follow the rules, the fewer lives will be lost and the sooner life can return to normal.”

It’s the latest test of Johnson’s approach to the crisis, which delayed restrictions on public life and kept schools open. Now, London’s Excel convention center is being converted into a hospital and new treatment hubs are planned for Birmingham and Manchester.

In Spain, Madrid set up a temporary hospital in the capital’s main conference center and is using an ice rink as a temporary morgue. Police began patrolling outside supermarkets in Palermo, Sicily, after a store was raided by people who refused to pay for their shopping. Bloomberg News

In this February 14, 2020 file photo, Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, attends a session on the first day of the Munich Security Conference in Munich, Germany.

Georgieva said on Friday, March 27, it is clear that the global economy has now entered a recession that could be as bad or worse than the 2009 downturn. AP Photo/Jens Meyer

I.M.F. head says global economy now in recession

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ASHINGTON—The head of t he Inter n at ion a l Monetary Fund said on Friday it is clear that the global economy has now entered a recession that could be as bad or worse than the 2009 downturn.

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said the 189-nation lending agency was forecasting a recovery in 2021, saying it could be a “sizable rebound.” But she said this would only occur if nations succeed in containing the coronavirus and limiting the economic damage.

“A key concern about a longlasting impact of the sudden stop of the world economy is the risk of a wave of bankruptcies and layoffs that not only can undermine the recovery but erode the fabric of our societies,” she told reporters at a news conference following a telephone conference with finance officials from the 24 nations that make up the IMF’s policy-setting panel.

She said the IMF was updating its economic outlook now and it would be released in a few weeks, allowing the agency more time to assess the economic impacts of the virus.

Asked if the United States was now in recession, she noted that Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell had said on Thursday that America “may well be in a recession.” She said she believed not only the United States but many other advanced economies and a number of developing countries had already entered downturns.

Georgieva said lower income countries were being hit hard by the spreading coronavirus, with 81 nations now seeking support from an IMF emergency financing program being used to provide aid.

She announced that Kyrgyzstan would receive the first IMF support package of $120.9 million to deal with adverse effects of the virus.

She repeated a pledge that the IMF stood ready to make all $1 trillion of its lending resources available to countries being hit by the virus.

“We have seen an extraordinary spike in requests for IMF emergency financing,” Georgieva said. “We are being asked by our members to do more, do it better and do it faster than ever before.”

She said to meet the increased demand she would seek to double the emergency financing program and simplify the procedures countries will have to go through to obtain IMF support. She said the IMF was also looking for ways to expand its current lending facilities to provide more help to countries.

Georgieva said the IMF also wanted to find ways to provide more debt relief to the poorest countries.

She said she planned to discuss these issues with the IMF’s executive board with the goal of putting together a package of reforms that could be presented at the IMF’s spring meetings in mid-April.

Because of the virus, the spring meetings of both the IMF and its sister lending organization, the World Bank, will be done virtual this year instead of meetings in Washington.

“IMF efforts that start to offer debt relief to the poorest countries and that increase financing to help prevent a global financial crisis are really positive and needed steps,” said Eric LeCompte, the executive director Jubilee USA, a group that campaigns for increased assistance for low income countries.

AP

Russia to close borders as virus crisis escalates

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ussia, the largest country by area, will temporarily shut all its borders starting March 30 after the number of coronavirus infections increased sharply over the last week. Health officials on Saturday reported 228 new cases of coronavirus overnight, bringing the total to 1,264, with four deaths attributed to the illness.

The order, posted on the government web site, followed increasingly harsh restrictions of movements around the country.

Moscow’s mayor shut all non-essential business on Saturday and recommended everyone remain at home to reduce contagion. The government halted all international flights on Friday and Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin called on regions to close most businesses, while stopping short of ordering them to do so.

Cherepovets, a city of 300,000 that’s 250 miles north of Moscow, is planning to declare a state of emergency after seven new cases were diagnosed in the last 24 hours,

the region’s governor said on Saturday. Chechnya halted movement around the region and closed access to its capital, Grozny, Interfax reported on Saturday, citing the speaker of the local parliament, Magomed Daudov.

President Vladimir Putin didn’t commit to any drastic measures during a national address this week, instead ordering a week of paid holiday from March 28 and promising benefits to get companies and individuals through the crisis.

On Friday, however, the Kremlin wa l ked back the decision amid reports that some Russians planned to travel to the country’s vacation spots or visit relatives, taking advantage of reduced domestic airfares offered by the state airline Aeroflot. Mishustin ordered all Russia’s parks and resorts to shut down.

The government is considering a temporary halt of domestic flights and trains, Interfax reported, citing an unidentified official.

Bloomberg News

A6

Monday, March 30, 2020 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

editorial

For the greater good?

E

very time there is a situation, an event such as we are living through right now, some enterprising fellow will get creative and make some money. T-shirts with “I made it through Pinatubo 1991” or “Survivor: Ondoy 2009” made some money for some people in the past.

Already you can buy online “I survived the Toilet Paper Crisis of 2020.”

When the current Covid-19 crisis ends—and it will—there will be elected and appointed public officials who will need to buy shirts that read “I did not survive the 2020 lockdown,” and it has nothing to do with their health.

The word is that a crisis brings out the best and the worst in people. That may or may not be true, but it is not important and nobody really cares. The occasional abuse of power by some “officer” at a checkpoint is obviously the exception, regardless of the momentary eruption about the incident on social media. Likewise, acts of charity and kindness happen every day and are not front-page news then or now. The vast majority of humanity is good and kind most of the time.

What will be lasting, especially in the minds of the people and particularly when the next election comes around, is whether or not competent decisions were made in time of crisis.

Eighteenth century English author Samuel Johnson wrote, “Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.” He was not speaking of genuine love of country and striving for the best the nation can be and can offer. Johnson was referring to William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham who was Prime Minister from 1766 to 1768. However, when out of power and in the opposition, he framed his views and himself as being more “patriotic.” His opposition party was called the “Patriot Party.”

While the patriots of the Philippines speak long and loudly about which national and local elected and appointed official is the most “patriotic,” their words are like smoke in the wind to the average Filipino. Of much greater concern is the availability and access to bread, vegetables and eggs.

It is only the “long and loud” that care whether decisions are being made on the national level or in the local council chambers. The people want clear policies that are beneficial. Oscar Wilde, the Irish poet, wrote: “Patriotism is the virtue of the vicious.” He also was referring to the “patriotism” that Johnson was talking about.

People of all economic classes are infused with enough common sense to accept the “greatest good for the greatest number” idea.

However, we all expect to be included in the “greatest number” and to get part of that “greatest good.”

For example, several cities have imposed a total liquor ban. That is all well and good with the rationale that this will prevent “drinking sprees.” “The City Council passed a liquor ban to prevent gathering opportunities for city residents.”

Only a complete fool would believe that ordinance is directed to the gentleman of Ayala-Alabang who has a couple of cases of Australian wine and several bottles of fine single-malt whisky. No, this is for the gentleman in “Purok 6” who would be so foolish to have a shot or two to ease the boredom of being out of work for weeks.

Some officials, in an effort to show that “we’re doing something” and maybe a front-page picture, may find themselves wearing that “I did not survive the 2020 lockdown” shirt come the next election.

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BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business

The Pope’s message Atty. Jose Ferdinand M. Rojas II

RISING SUN

O

N March 27, Pope Francis gave the Urbi et Orbi blessing from Saint Peter’s Basilica on an extraordinary occasion as a response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The Urbi et Orbi is the most solemn form of blessing in the Catholic Church and is reserved for the most solemn occasions, including Easter, Christmas, the proclamation of a new pope, and on very special occasions like what happened on Friday.

I would like to dedicate this column (and next week’s) to a summary of a few points that the Pope made in his homily.

“Like the disciples in the Gospel we were caught off guard by an unexpected, turbulent storm. We have realized that we are on the same boat, all of us fragile and disoriented, but at the same time important and needed, all of us called to row together, each of us in need of comforting the other.

On this boat…are all of us. Just like those disciples, who spoke anxiously with one voice, saying “We are per-

Thomas M. Orbos

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STREET TALK

T. Anthony C. Cabangon Lourdes M. Fernandez

“Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?” (v. 40).

“The storm exposes our vulnerability and uncovers those false and superfluous certainties around which we have constructed our daily schedules, our projects, our habits and priorities. It shows us how we have allowed to become dull and feeble the very things that nourish, sustain and strengthen our lives and our communities. The tempest lays bare all our prepackaged ideas and

Resiliency in these uncertain times

✝ Ambassador Antonio L. Cabangon Chua Publisher

ishing” (v. 38), so we too have realized that we cannot go on thinking of ourselves, but only together can we do this.

“While His [Jesus’] disciples are quite naturally alarmed and desperate, He stands in the stern, in the part of the boat that sinks first. And what does He do? In spite of the tempest, He sleeps on soundly, trusting in the Father; this is the only time in the Gospels we see Jesus sleeping.

When He wakes up, after calming the wind and the waters, He turns to the disciples in a reproaching voice:

“The storm exposes our vulnerability and uncovers those false and superfluous certainties around which we have constructed our daily schedules, our projects, our habits and priorities. It shows us how we have allowed to become dull and feeble the very things that nourish, sustain and strengthen our lives and our communities. The tempest lays bare all our prepackaged ideas and forgetfulness of what nourishes our people’s souls; all those attempts that anesthetize us with ways of thinking and acting that supposedly ‘save’ us.”

O

ne thing certain in these uncertain times is that for us to survive this plague that brought the world to its knees, we need to be resilient. This applies to the community of nations, and down to our own local community.

We need to realize that there is no handbook, so to speak, to guide us in solving our current dilemma.

As far as humanity is concerned, this is new territory, uncharted waters as they say. Just think about it—we cannot see our enemy; we don’t know how it started; so far all our conclusions, as soon as we reach them, are suddenly irrelevant. What we know now is so drastically different from what we concluded just a few months ago.

Covid-19 can last up to 17 days in certain conditions. Hot weather does not eradicate it. It is technically not airborne, but it can stay floating for hours. It may survive in water. And it can recur, mutating into new strains. Right now, there are more than 10 strains to contend with, and they can possibly mutate into more. Indeed, fighting the virus is daunting. Noting the speed of its infection, not to

mention the burst of news left and right of people we know succumbing to the disease, feeling helpless is becoming normal.

But this shouldn’t be the case.

The human race is a resilient lot.

Humankind has been through worse situations; worse conditions for generations, if I may say so, considering that in those times we were bereft of the knowledge that we now have. We need to face this fight head-on, but we need to be resilient in order for us to survive.

And resiliency means first and foremost admitting that we are part of a community—global, national and local. We can’t do it alone. We need to act together—as countries, and as communities. Woe to those billionaires that shuttled to the safety of their far-flung islands and bunkers. They may survive the virus, but their humanity will not.

Fortunately, we are seeing so

In the end, humanity will see this through, and there will be a post-Covid-19 world. But only resiliency strengthened by the realization that a community of people helping each other ensures much greater chance of success. Resiliency is community.

We cannot do it alone. And being together is what makes us human and what will help us survive.

many good things happening. Scientists with cultural and lingual differences are leading the race, selflessly exchanging notes to combat a common enemy. We hear of doctors and health workers from affected warzones that managed to recover, and from other countries offering themselves to serve in current hot spots. we see on the net some possible remedies and practices, proven or otherwise, being shared with others—all with good intentions. And no matter how we view it, China has given us a playbook—the Wuhan playbook—for us to learn from their trial and error experience in combatting this virus.

In our home front, resiliency means not waiting for the national government to move. The government has its hands full, and for us to survive this we need to act on our own. Local governments can very well help one another. We see

forgetfulness of what nourishes our people’s souls; all those attempts that anesthetize us with ways of thinking and acting that supposedly ‘save’ us, but instead prove incapable of putting us in touch with our roots and keeping alive the memory of those who have gone before us. We deprive ourselves of the antibodies we need to confront adversity.

“In this storm, the façade of those stereotypes with which we camouflaged our egos, always worrying about our image, has fallen away, uncovering once more that [blessed] common belonging, of which we cannot be deprived: our belonging as brothers and sisters.

“In this world, that you love more than we do, we have gone ahead at breakneck speed, feeling powerful and able to do anything. Greedy for profit, we let ourselves get caught up in things, and lured away by haste. We did not stop at your reproach to us, we were not shaken awake by wars or injustice across the world, nor did we listen to the cry of the poor or of our ailing planet. We carried on regardless, thinking we would stay healthy in a world that was sick.”

(To be continued)

the food and supply chains being disrupted because of the lockdown.

Arrangements can be made for reciprocal supply. Food from the provinces in exchange for medical supply from the cities. Among towns and cities, we can organize the infrastructure beyond food aids. For example, homebound families can be converted into instant cottage industries, sewing masks and protective suits that can be sold to those who direly need them. Tricycles can do food deliveries, rather than relying on traditional politicians going house to house for a photo op.

Housewives can be organized to do community cook ins. We need not wait for deliverance from our national government. We have to embrace the challenge, act on our own, but as communities relating with other communities.

In the end, humanity will see this through, and there will be a postCovid-19 world. But only resiliency strengthened by the realization that a community of people helping each other ensures much greater chance of success. Resiliency is community.

We cannot do it alone. And being together is what makes us human and what will help us survive.

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

Opinion BusinessMirror

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The lives-or-dollars debate is a waste of time

Frontliners and elite troopers Siegfred Bueno Mison, Esq.

THE PATRIOT

Ramesh Ponnuru

BLOOMBERG

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mong the critical shortages the coronavirus has revealed is one of a sophisticated vocabulary with which to discuss basic moral questions. It is not as urgent as the shortages of masks and ventilators but it has been just as evident in the news media.

How else to explain the bizarre debate now taking place about whether we should sacrifice our economy to our health, or vice-versa? Those who want to reopen the economy now say that we are putting livelihoods at risk to save a small part of the population, and a part that has disproportionately seen most of its years already. Sometimes they find a class angle: People who can easily work from home, such as pundits, are protecting themselves from tiny risks by forcing real harms on those who can’t. A few people, like Texas’s lieutenant governor, Dan Patrick, have volunteered that they would sacrifice their lives for their countrymen: a stance that might be heroic if it weren’t theoretical.

Those on the other side angrily insist that we shouldn’t abandon grandma for a few points on the Dow. “If everything we do saves just one life, I’ll be happy,” says New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. They say that the conservatives who are itching to resume normal life are betraying their allegedly pro-life values.

From the heat of the debate, you might think this question—lives or dollars?—was actually before us. It isn’t. For the time being, at least, there isn’t much of a trade-off. If everyone went to work now, the virus would spread faster and more of us would die or suffer severe and longlasting bodily damage. (Among the stricken would be people in the prime of life, by the way.) That wouldn’t be good for the S&P 500. Under these circumstances, a lot of us wouldn’t go into work, or ask our colleagues to do it, even if government allowed us.

What makes the debate even more foolish is that nobody actually acts as though they believe that health and other goods can be ranked in some global fashion. Cuomo does not actually believe that any cost is worth paying to save just one life. No health system is or could be designed with that principle in mind, and no government sets speed limits that way.

The Catholic Church, well-known for its teaching about the sanctity of life, does not hold that all means to prolong life must be pursued in all situations.

Patrick may be a blowhard, but the idea that he wants to see old people die to his zeal for higher corporate profits is a straw man. When people

From the heat of the debate, you might think this question—lives or dollars?—was actually before us.

It isn’t. For the time being, at least, there isn’t much of a trade-off. If everyone went to work now, the virus would spread faster and more of us would die or suffer severe and long-lasting bodily damage.

(Among the stricken would be people in the prime of life, by the way.) That wouldn’t be good for the S&P 500. refer to “the Dow” in this context, it’s not about actual stocks but shorthand for real human goods like the ability to provide for our families and do useful work.

The pro-lifers who want to end the lockdowns are making a mistaken prudential judgment. They’re not hypocrites about being pro-life.

There’s no logical conflict between letting people try to climb Mount Everest, even knowing some of them will die, and wanting abortion to be illegal.

Very occasionally one runs into a maximalism that is the mirrorimage of Cuomo’s. RR Reno, the editor of the religious-conservative journal First Things, suggested that we are showing a faithless fear of death by canceling football games and dinner parties. The error, again, is to insist that various goods—including health, play, friendship, and religion—need to be ranked in order of importance. But this is impossible to do wholesale, and we shouldn’t try.

All of us, Reno and Cuomo included, have to make retail judgments about trade-offs all the time. When a hurricane is bearing down on a city, it will postpone its games. It’s not thereby saying that life must be preserved at all costs, and its Christians need not hang their heads in shame.

So too now. The dinner party can wait.

The vast majority of us understand perfectly well how to make judgments in concrete situations that call for choice without thinking in terms of grand abstractions. The argument we are currently having is so pointless that it seems more like a psychological than an intellectual response to quarantine. We should find better ways to keep ourselves occupied.

Monday, March 30, 2020

W

ars are won through good leadership, for the most part. But any war front can collapse, regardless of how good the leaders are, if supply lines are not sustained.

As used in the military, a front line can be defined as an area of potential or actual conflict or struggle or the most advanced, responsible, or visible position in the field. Prior to World War II, the French built the Maginot Line, a concrete-fortified and massive front line built to deter German aggression, hoping that it would slow a German invasion long enough for French forces to counterattack. History tells us that the Maginot Line eventually failed, due to its weakness in the Ardennes Forest, inevitably exploited by the German Blitzkrieg.

Near the end of World War II, the Battle of the Bulge proved to be crucial to the Allied victory in Europe.

General Patton gained fame, with audacious leadership and some support from a little-known logistical unit, known as the Red Ball Express. Considered as one of the unsung heroes of the War, this all African-American logistical unit reportedly brought Patton the fuel, the ammunition and the other essential supplies to enable his tank army to maneuver and repulse the surprise Nazi German attack. Logistics win wars, too!

In relation to the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, the National Action Plan (NAP) intends to harness and integrate the whole gamut of government’s logistical network, resources and manpower, reportedly anchored on a “Whole-

Of-Government” approach divided into four Task Groups, one of which is Resource Management and Logistics. It has been repeatedly said, “Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” In the context of helping others, such phrase means helping people once is not as good as helping them learn how to help themselves. But what is not often said or heard is that, if you take a fish from someone, you leave him hungry for a day; but if you seize the water source from him, he will starve, dehydrate, and lose the will to fight. In the context of a war, logistical support, although often relegated to the background, plays a critical role to ensure victory.

The real front line, the first line of defense against the virus in this

country, is not found in the quarantine checkpoints nor in the currently overwhelmed health facilities. The front line can be found in our own homes as the invisible enemy tries to propagate itself through others.

During this lockdown or quarantine period, all of us serve as the first line of defense against this virus. Unfortunately, a substantial number of Filipinos cannot hold the line without enough logistical support. Staying in place for them entails a tremendous logistical challenge that needs as much attention in the National Action Plan (NAP). Our first line of defense is only as strong as its weakest link. The strength of our front line depends on those who would need the greatest logistical support from our government.

In terms of logistical support from the private sector, I noticed there have been numerous Samaritan companies that were very generous, in the true spirit of bayanihan. One small group launched a Home Quarantine Pack Project, which can be a meaningful version of the Red Ball Express in the Battle of the Bulge.

Mostly spending their own funds and a bit of financial support from donors, Atty. Catherine Rojo and her friends have tirelessly provided the basic necessities (milk, biscuits, canned goods and rice) to those who are in greater need in the front line (the homeless, pedicab and tricycle drivers, and security guards). This small group has already helped thousands in a span of one week.

All of us can be a Red Ball Express, not necessarily by providing food to those in the front line like Atty. Rojo. We can provide logistical

Bloomberg Opinion

I

n response to the coronavirus pandemic, many state and local governments have shut down restaurants and other businesses, and some have issued orders for people to stay home. These measures will eventually suppress the virus but come at a huge cost to the economy.

Forecasters expect gross domestic product to fall by as much as 30 percent in the second quarter, a much steeper drop than ever happened during the Great Recession. Jobless claims will be in the millions.

President Donald J. Trump, seeing these economic costs, has declared that he wants the shutdowns ended by Easter (April 12). In a recent briefing, Trump declared that the US “will be back in business pretty soon,” and that the country “wasn’t built to be shut down.”

A small handful of commentators have expressed similar sentiments.

Former Goldman Sachs Chief Executive Officer Lloyd Blankfein has called for many workers to return to their jobs after “a very few weeks.”

Longtime Republican policy advisers Arthur Laffer and Stephen Moore have made similar recommendations. Trump, obviously, is taking these calls seriously. But his plan to reopen by Easter would only make matters worse.

True, Trump doesn’t have the authority to rescind the shutdowns and shelter-in-place orders that state and local government have issued, but he could push the Centers for Disease Control to advise reopening businesses by Easter. Some Republican governors, mayors and state legislatures might follow Trump’s advice and reopen.

This not only would be a huge mistake, it probably would be ineffective. As my colleague Michael Strain points out, letting people go back to work now wouldn’t simply restore the economy to its former

support to others by providing prayers of healing, courage and protection. In the Bible, Ephesians 6:18 tells us, “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.” I noticed a lot of prayer brigades online, praying for those who are staying put and holding the line, those in the Red Ball Express (the logistics sector such as food manufacturing and distribution and transportation), and, most important, the health workers.

Philippine media has portrayed and considered health personnel taking care of the virus-infected patients as well as the military and police personnel enforcing the community quarantine as “frontliners.” After all, the battle against the virus appears to be most visible in their respective areas. For me, these health workers during this crisis are not just frontliners but are elite troopers, in military parlance! I consider our health personnel of today equivalent to the Army Rangers, the Navy SEALS, the British Commando in military operations. But they suffer casualties like any other unit. Owing to their limited number and due to their importance in battle, these elite troopers need to preserve their fighting stamina at all times.

All of us on the front line can help limit the engagement of our elite troops amid the presence of an invisible enemy, by simply holding the front line—staying at home, eating healthy and praying.

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

Managing business risks in times of high volatility Filbert Tsai

DEBIT CREDIT Part One

‘C

ode Red” was raised by the Department of Health (DOH) on March 7, 2020 as the country’s risk of local transmission of the Covid-19 heightened with local cases in key cities of the country. While the number of confirmed cases remains around 10 as of this writing, managing employee hysteria amid expected rise in number confirmed cases of patients will prove challenging for start-up founders and micro, smal and medium-sized enterprises (MSME) business owners in the coming days.

While the immediate business risks have not impacted start-ups and MSMEs much over the past four months since the virus was announced in December 2019, the proclamation of local cases and the raising of code red by the DOH over the weekend are expected to be a big game changer for the smaller players

in the economy.

This series of articles aims to address some of the key issues expected to arise and how founders and business owners need to prepare for them over the coming weeks. This is not aimed as a complete business continuity plan for start-ups and MSMEs and is limited to key

Start-ups and MSMEs are likely the most economically vulnerable businesses in these volatile times, and founders need to be highly strategic at this point to avoid losing control of the business before the tide goes down.

My column next week will focus on a few key business risks that companies have to prepare for in the coming days and weeks.

business risk areas.

The proclamation of Code Red does not carry a direct impact to businesses but is addressed to concerned government agencies to prepare and be ready to implement planned response measures in line with DOH guidelines.

As part of this, the DOH has also recommended that the Office of the President will declare a State of Public Health Emergency, which will allow concerned government agencies to mobilize government funds with lesser bureaucracy for faster action to address any funding gaps needed to address and contain the local trans-

Trump wants the lockdown to end by Easter. Big mistake

By Noah Smith

A7

health. The disease would come roaring right back. Infections would soar in city after city, overwhelming the health-care system. Mass panic would be enough to keep people huddled in their homes, possibly for months, causing restaurants, stores and other businesses to go bankrupt anyway. The economy would still take a huge hit, but now many more people would die.

How many people? It’s hard to say, but the numbers might be large. The web site covidactnow.org, which has been endorsed by a number of public-health experts, suggests that the death toll without shelter-in-place orders will be in the millions. That’s in line with the predictions made by a group of British experts at Imperial College London. The reasoning is that as caseloads rise and hospitals are swamped, access to crucial lifesaving therapies such as mechanical ventilators and antibiotics (to fight secondary infections) will halt, sending the death rate—which with

proper treatment is probably about 1.3 percent—soaring.

Some have attempted to put a price tag on this death toll, using figures of as much as $10 million per life.

There have also been suggestions to use quality-adjusted life years, which would reduce the cost estimate because most of the people who die of coronavirus tend to be older. But this sort of cold calculation—which in a twist resembles the “death panels” that conservatives have warned would be a result of socialized medicine—leaves out a number of important aspects of the question.

First, it’s not clear that societies actually value lives at a certain dollar amount when making decisions.

The sweeping response to terrorism, or the strict safety regulations for air travel, have garnered substantial public support despite probably not being able to pass this sort of cost-benefit calculation in terms of lives saved.

Second, these calculations tend to

be very good at estimating economic numbers but bad at anticipating human costs. Even if coronavirus doesn’t kill you, it can do lasting damage to your lungs. This sort of permanent injury could be incorporated into cost-benefit models, but it often isn’t. And then there’s the small but real possibility that if left unchecked, the virus could mutate into a much deadlier form, as the Spanish flu of 1918-1919 may have during its catastrophic second wave.

Economists have long known that socalled tail risks such as these should loom large in cost-benefit analyses, but somehow this fact rarely makes it into pundits’ back-of-the-envelope calculations.

For all of these reasons, most economists themselves have not been recommending an end to shutdowns. Instead, they have urged the federal government to broaden its economic support for businesses and households.

So how long will shutdowns last?

mission of the virus.

This said, while the declaration of Code Red and a recommendation to declare a state of emergency will not have a direct business impact, the indirect business impact is expected to be highly unfavorable considering the growing hysteria over contagion of the disease in workplaces and key locations in the country.

Start-ups and MSMEs are likely the most economically vulnerable businesses in these volatile times, and founders need to be highly strategic at this point to avoid losing control of the business before the tide goes down. My column next week will focus on a few key business risks that companies have to prepare for in the coming days and weeks.

(To be continued) Filbert Tsai is a Certified Public Accountant and is the chief strategist at UpSmart Strategy Consulting Inc. This column accepts contributions from the business community dealing on the various aspects of relevant concerns of the community..

These can be e-mailed to boa.secretariat.@ gmail.com.

China’s lockdowns began reducing new infections after a few days and cut infections to a relatively low level after about three weeks. But confirmed cases tended to lag true infections by one to two weeks. So, it will probably be almost two more weeks before the US can know if its much less restrictive shutdowns are having a similar effect, and a month or more before Americans can start coming out of their houses. Because shelter-in-place orders have only been in effect for a few days, this means Easter is probably at least two weeks too soon.

Furthermore, Americans won’t be able to come out of their houses safely until their cities and states have test-and-trace programs in place. These are the systems successfully used by South Korea and other countries to suppress viral outbreaks quickly. They require a big investment in widespread symptom screening, large-scale rapid testing, contact tracing and strict isolation of infected individuals.

A8 Monday, March 30, 2020

4,000 cruise ship OFWs losing jobs; 1st batch arrives

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By Recto Mercene

@rectomercene

LOSE to 400 Filipino seamen were flown in by two chartered planes from Italy to the premier airport Saturday afternoon, the first batch of an estimated 4,000 Filipino seafarers rendered jobless by the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.

FlightsNEOS384andNEOS362, both B787 planes, landed at past 4 p.m. Saturday and representatives from several government agencies welcomed the group at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia).

“The repatriation of Filipino crew on cruise ships has been ongoing ever since the Diamond Princess,” the DFA said in a statement, referring to the cruise liner that was marooned off Yokohama for two weeks.

The DFA said it “coordinates with the manning agencies, the crew and foreign authorities to quickly repatriate once there is a quarantine area identified and checked by the responsible agencies here. We expect several more such repatriations in the coming weeks.”

The 370 seamen who arrived Saturday were crewmen if three different cruise ships from Italy, preceded by a small batch of 13 seamen from Spain.

Of the seafarers, 348 are from MV Costa Luminosa and a combined 22 from MV Grandiosa and MV Opera. These ships docked in Rome after they were recalled by their mother company in the wake of the pandemic that threatened

to close all major ports to returning cruise ships.

The DFA explained that the global freeze on international travels forced the Philippine government to resort to chartered flights, which in this case “was made possible through the efforts of the Philippine Embassy in Rome, the Philippine Consulate General in Milan, and the DFAOffice of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs.”

The DFA worked closely with the Department of Health, Department of Labor and Employment and the Office of Overseas Workers Welfare Administration, Department of Transportation, Department of the Interior and Local Government, and the local manning agencies in the Philippines for the seamless repatriation of the Filipino crew.

BusinessMirror gathered that the 370 seafarers were brought to a hotel in Pasig City.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro L. Locsin Jr., had fretted on Saturday about the still-uncertain quarantine quarters for some of the expected total of 4,000 returning seafarers.

Earlier, Vivencio Dizon, pres-

ident-CEO and vice-chairman of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) had offered to receive the returning seafarers at the Athletes’ Village, former site of the 2019 SEA Games.

Earlier this month, the same venue was used to quarantine over 400 OFWs from the Diamond Princess. Locsin praised Dizon’s offer, saying; “There’s hope they will be treated well. Vince Dizon, one of the handful of intelligent people extant—has offered first-class facilities.”

Last week, the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) authorized the OWWA to issue the certifications “it may deem appropriate to the concerned OFWs.” Task force spokesman, Karlo Nograles in a televised speech on state-run PTV-4 said: “It means distressed OFWs could be accommodated in hotels or similar establishments.”

Besides Costa Magica and Costa Favolosa, the MS Zaandam is on its way to Florida, coming from South America, with 203 Filipino crew members.

133 Luzon hotels host aliens, OFWs, medical frontliners

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo

@akosistellaBM Special to the BusinessMirror

O

VER 10,500 guests—both foreign and local—are currently booked in 133 hotels in Luzon, the main focus of the national government’s enhanced community quarantine (ECQ).

A list of hotels and other accommodations from the Department of Tourism (DOT ) as of March 25, a copy of which was obtained by the B usi ness M irror, showed the largest bulk of guests were located in the National Capital Region (NCR) at 8,914. Seventy hotels have been allowed to operate in the NCR, and are still hosting 689 foreign and 6,815 domestic guests, with 1,410 persons not identified by nationality.

Of the total number of guests staying in 133 Luzon hotels, 1,019 were foreigners, 7,885 were domestic guests, while 1,619 persons had unspecified nationalities.

The ECQ, implemented on March 17, was meant to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19), a highly contagious respiratory infection that originated in Wuhan, China.

The total number of cases of Covid-19 in the country rose to 1,418 on Sunday, with 42 recoveries and 71 deaths, the Department of Health reported.

As of March 25, there were 11,009 inhouse guests booked in 203 hotels all over the country, with some provinces having already imposed their respective

lockdowns. Of the total guests, 1,330 were foreigners, 8,058 were locals, and 1,621 had unspecified nationalities.

The DOT said it remained committed in helping the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (Owwa) find accommodations for repatriated overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

In the agency’s Administrative Order (AO) 2020-001-B or amended guidelines for accommodation establishments during the ECQ, signed by Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat: ■ OFWs and health workers shall be accommodated in single occupancy rooms. Only one person shall be accommodated in each room; ■ Other guests may be accommodated in double occupancy rooms, provided that 1) The distance between the beds should be at least 2 meters; 2) A divider is placed between the beds; 3) A bathroom schedule must be observed. Only one person shall be permitted to use the bathroom at any given time; 4) Guests shall disinfect the bathroom after every use using the provided sanitation kit; 5) No sharing of food or any personal or nonpersonal belongings; and 6) All trash, food and non-food, shall be separated; ■ Each room shall be provided with a sanitation kit which guests shall use to regularly disinfect commonly accessed surfaces and items such as door knobs, light switches, the bathroom sink, etc.; ■ Guests are confined to their rooms, mingling with occupants of other rooms shall not be allowed; and

■ Guests shall use the same bed and the same room they are billeted in throughout the entire period of their stay.

Many of the hotels now hosting a large number of domestic guests include OFWs and their families, medical frontliners, and business-process outsourcing employees.

Romulo Puyat also praised the family of the late Ambassador Antonio L. Cabangon Chua for allowing the use of their hotels for medical frontliners. “I’m so happy they offered their hotels for free for our frontliners,” she told this paper. The Cabangons own, among others, the Citystate hotels now housing workers from the Philippine General Hospital.

The BusinessMirror is under the ALC Group of Companies, which owns the hotel interests.

The DOT chief is currently under self-quarantine, having been exposed to Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief Felimon Santos Jr. who had tested positive for Covid-19. “I will be undergoing self-quarantine as I was exposed to him in a meeting last March 20,” Romulo Puyat said in a news statement.

“Since I do not show any signs nor symptoms, I will not be having myself tested in order to save the limited supply of testing kits to people who truly need it. By staying at home, I will not put anyone I come in contact with at risk. The safety of those around me is my priority,” she added.

She stressed that she will continue to do her job while at home. As of March 26, the DOT has assisted 11,863 stranded travelers all over the country.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Companies BusinessMirror

Monday, March 30, 2020

B1

SEC tells Payasian to stop promoting, selling Paya coins

By VG cabuag

T

@villygc

he Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has ordered Payasian Pte. Ltd. Corp. to stop asking the public to invest in a cryptocurrency called Paya without the necessary license.

In an order issued March 20, the SEC directed Payasian to “immediately cease and desist under pain of contempt from further engaging in, promoting and facilitating selling and/or offering for sale securities in the form of investment contracts and/or other activities/ transactions.”

The SEC also prohibited Payasian from transacting any business involving funds in its depository banks, and from transferring, disposing, or conveying in any manner all related assets for the benefit of the investors.

The cease and desist order cov-

ers the corporation’s partners, operators, directors, officers, salesmen agents, representatives, promoters, and all persons, conduit entities and subsidiaries claiming and acting for and on its behalf.

Payasian registered as a corporation in August 2019. Its certificate of registration, however, did not include an authority for the corporation to sell or offer securities to the public, an activity that requires a secondary license from the SEC. The SEC’s Markets and Securities Regulation Department and Corporate Governance and Finance

Department certified that Payasian has not registered or applied for registration as issuer of securities and for a permit to sell securities.

Evidence gathered by the SEC’s Enforcement and Investor Protection Department showed that Payasian has engaged in the sale and offering of securities in the form of investment contracts without a license.

The SEC issued an advisory as early as November 14, 2019, to warn the public on Payasian's activities.

Under its investment scheme, Payasian enticed investors to buy Paya Coins and hold them for six months in order to receive 30 percent additional Paya Rewards. It also offered referral rewards.

Payasian offered “sharer packages” starting at P8,145 for 1,040 Paya tokens with a maximum commission of P500 a day. One may invest as much P5.8 million to buy 740,749 Paya tokens and receive a maximum commission of P10,000 a day.

The SEC found Payasian’s investment scheme to have entailed the sale or offer for sale of securities in the form of investment contracts,

as it actively enticed members of the public to invest their hard-earned money, with the expectation of receiving passive income from the pooling of investments and mining of Paya tokens, while earning active income from recruitment bonuses.

Th company’s action of publishing and making actual presentations about the investment scheme online and of inviting investors have constituted a public offering, the SEC said.

The Securities Regulation Code indicated that securities such as investment contracts shall not be sold or offered for sale or distribution in the Philippines without a registration statement duly filed and approved by the SEC. “Without the registration statement duly filed with and approved by this Commission, Payasian’s act of selling/offering ‘Sharer Packages’ which are securities in the form of investment contracts constitutes a clear violation of Section 8 of the SRC. This warrants and justifies the immediate issuance of a cease and desist order,” the agency said.

Solar power facility rises in Romblon

By Lenie Lectura @llectura

T

he Romblon Electric Cooperative Inc. (Romelco) has put up a P12-million 200-kilowatt (kW) solar photovoltaic power system in four barangays as part of its Grid-Tied Solar Roof Mounted Project, which aims to provide clean, sustainable, and reliable energy to its consumers.

The solar power facility is composed of four solar panels installed on the rooftops of the four covered courts in Barangays Lunas, Macalas, Mapula, and Ilauran in Romblon.

Each has a capacity of 50 kilowatt, or a total installed capacity of 200 kW, which already generates electricity for the consumers.

“This is more efficient than a single big installation. Since this is distributed, the installation is fast.

It only took us less than a week to set up the panels for each rooftop,” said Romelco General Manager Rene Fajilagutan.

Romelco plans to expand the project throughout its entire coverage area. “This is our test-bed for the bigger distributed solar power plant. This year, our target installation is a 2-megawatt solar energy system,” he said.

The solar energy project was conceived in partnership with the local governments of Romblon.

Fajilagutan said Romelco will pay lease to the four barangays for the use of rooftop spaces for a period of 20 years.

The project is also part of Romelco’s commitment to generate 90 percent of its electricity supply from renewable-energy (RE) sources, such as solar, wind, hydro, and biomass, by the end of the year.

Its other RE projects include 900kW wind turbines on the hills of Barangays Agnay, Bagacay, and Lonos; 1,350-kW mini hydro power plant in Cantingas, San Fernando, Sibuyan Island; 30-kW solar diesel hybrid generation system in Cobrador Island; and 18-kW biomass gasifier in Barangay Alad, Romblon.

The Office of Renewable Energy Development (ORED) of the National Electrification Administration’s (NEA), meanwhile, said more electric cooperatives (ECs) are venturing into

renewable-energy projects.

NEA will subsidize the feasibility study on the development of hybrid mini-grid system using renewable energy and battery system for four ECs. A separate feasibility study on hybridization of existing diesel power plants with renewable energy and battery system for three ECs in Eastern Visayas is also ongoing, funded through subsidy from the National Economic and Development Authority.

Meanwhile, 10 ECs are also planning to develop microgrid projects in their respective franchise areas.

However, the Association of Isolated Electric Cooperatives Inc. (AIEC) said these planned projects have no funding yet.

DNL aid to workers, donation at ₧100M

T

he D and L (DNL) group of companies said it has committed over P100 million in financial support to employees and donation to various communities and institutions fighting the coronavirus disease 2019.

“Despite the various challenges due to the enhanced community quarantine, our plants remain operational in order to prevent any disruption in the supply of much needed raw materials in the food and sanitation chemicals industry,” said DNL President and CEO Alvin Lao. “This is only possible as our people remain committed in fulfilling their various roles in the organization. Likewise, we are equally committed in taking care of them and providing adequate assistance when they are most vulnerable,” added Lao. The company has earlier committed to pay full salaries until the end of the quarantine on April 13 to all its employees whether they are physically present in the office or are working from home. In addition, the company has already released half of the 13th-month pay to employees last March 17.

“We have said many times before that our people are our most important asset. This is especially true for a manufacturing company like us wherein people are the backbone of the entire production process,” said Lao. “In our 57-year history, we’ve faced several adversities, may it be a natural calamity, political disruption, or a financial crisis.

And through and through, it’s our people that have helped the company survive and thrive,” he added.

The company is providing further compensation to rank and file

PayMaya, GCash raise ₧13M to fight Covid-19

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

F Binalot delivers free food to frontliners F

ilipino fast-food chain Binalot said it will continue to distribute free meals to hospitals and medical facilities in Metro Manila for health-care workers serving as frontliners in the country's fight against coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).

The company said it has sent free food to frontliners since the enhanced community quarantine was implemented in Luzon last March 17.

“For these modern-day heroes [frontliners], Binalot can do no less,” Binalot Operations Manager Judee Morente said in a statement.

In times of crisis when ready-toeat meals are needed, Binalot Marketing Manager Cristina Martinez said the company is always ready to help.

“This is not the first time Binalot has done this. When Supertyphoon Ondoy struck in September 2009 and many distressed areas were isolated and devastated by floodwaters, Binalot was able to come up with relief meals delivered to those in need,” said Martinez.

“Then in many monsoon floods that followed, Binalot was always ready to lend a helping hand,” she added.

Binalot said doctors, nurses and

other medical practitioners are the ones who need support the most.

“These modern-day heroes work tirelessly to care for and heal those infected or might be infected with [Covid-10],” said Martinez.

For emergency situations like this, Morente said Binalot has come up with special ready-to-eat meal packages that are portable and easy to handle and deliver, making them ideal for relief operations. And being environment-friendly with its biodegradable banana leaf packaging,

it is cleaner and easier to dispose of afterwards. She added that Binalot has chosen five strategic outlets out of its 34 outlets in its network chain to remain open to service the needs of this endeavor.

“These are Binalot Mall of Asia in Pasay City, Binalot McKinley in BGC Taguig City, Binalot Hanston in Ortigas Pasig City, Binalot RCBC in Makati City and Binalot Amaia in Sun Valley Parañaque City,” said Morente.

“We have maintained a skeletal

work force that churn out hundreds of Binalot meals per day to be delivered to hospitals. We make sure our personnel practice proper hygiene, wear protective gear such as masks and gloves and practice social distancing,” she added.

Binalot said has partnered with various institutions and individuals who sponsored food packages for the frontliners including the Lucio Tan Group, PMFTC, Auto88, Senate President Vicente Sotto III and the Electric Vehicle Association of the Philippines.

“Binalot prepares the meals, packs them then distributes the ready-to-eat meals to various Metro Manila hospitals chosen by the sponsors,” said Martinez.

The company sources banana leaves through its corporate social initiative dubbed Dahon Program, which was launched in 2006. The program has adopted a community in Nagcarlan, Laguna, to supply its banana leaves with which to wrap its products for serving and recently even trained them on doable livelihood projects like the production of salted eggs, another Binalot staple food.

To donate please call Vida Malapajo at 09328761352.

employees included in the company's skeletal workforce. This comes in the form of a 30-percent increase in regular rate, 60-percent increase in overtime rate, meal stubs and provision for disinfecting and sanitation chemicals for their households.

Moreover, in order to prevent employees from unnecessary exposure during their commute to work, the company has provided temporary shelter with enough space for a comfortable stay and Internet access to production employees who live far from the office.

Through the group’s Lao Foundation Inc., the company has given P15,000 financial assistance to each of the 99 families in communities where DNL operations are located.

On top of that, the foundation has approved an initial budget of P5 million to extend various forms of assistance to institutions that are in most need. Personal protective equipment such as masks, goggles, as well as alcohol and other sanitation chemicals have also been donated by the group to various hospitals. “ T hings have drastica l ly changed over a short period of time and guidelines as to how businesses may operate might continue to change and evolve as we deal with containing the virus. Nonetheless, we will remain steadfast in our genuine commitment to keep our people safe and to fulfill our crucial role in the Philippine manufacturing sector,” said Lao. DNL manufactures various products, ranging from food ingredients, chemicals for personal and home care use, raw materials for plastic, and aerosol products.

VG Cabuag

inancial technology (fintech) platforms PayMaya and GCash have raised a total of nearly P13 million in donations to help curb the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) in the country.

In separate statements, PayMaya said it raised about P7.8 mi l lion for 16 organizations while GCash raised P4.5 million for its seven partner groups. The amounts were used either to provide assistance to those who are struggling to make ends meet during the enhanced community lockdown or to fund the purchase of medical gears for frontline health workers.

“The response we have gotten just a week after launch has been tremendous, which only highlights not just the magnanimity but also the creativity of Filipinos in responding to this crisis, aided by technology,” said PayMaya CEO Orlando B. Vea. For his part, GCash President Anthony Thomas said the early success of the digital donation drives shows that fintech is now more than just mobile wallets and digital currencies, but is also a channel for social initiatives.

“It’s heartwarming to see first hand how the uniquely Filipino Spirit of Bayanihan works. Since day one, we have envisioned the GCash platform to be a channel of good, and now we are seeing

individuals and organizations maximizing the GCash app to efficiently facilitate donations for noble causes. We hope that as we further develop our platform, we continue to make a meaningful impact in the lives of those in need,” he said.

PayMaya has partnered with 16 organizations for its #OneAgainstCOVID19 initiative. They are: Philippine Red Cross, Unicef, PGH Medical Foundation, Caritas Manila, OXFAM Pilipinas, Philippine Business for Social Progress, Philippine Disaster Resilience Foundation, Kaya Natin!

Movement for Good Governance & Ethical Leadership, Ronald McDonald House of Charities Philippines, YesPinoy Foundation, Alagang Kapatid Foundation, PLDT-Smart Foundation, Rock Ed Philippines, UTownPen Foundation, #nowheretogobutUP Foundation, and the #UniTENTweStandPH initiative of actress Angel Locsin.

GCash is supporting seven organizations namely: the Philippine Disaster Resilience Foundation (PDRF), the Philippine Red Cross (PRC), World Vision, UP Medical Foundation, PGH Foundation Inc., ABS-CBN Lingkod Kapamilya Foundation, and Ayala Foundation.

Individuals, nongovernment organizations, and sociociv ic groups are also utilizing the two mobile wallets to collect donations for their own Covid-19 response drives.

B2

Companies BusinessMirror

Monday, March 30, 2020

PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

March 27, 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 PSBANK RCBC SECURITY BANK UNION BANK BRIGHT KINDLE COL FINANCIAL IREMIT MEDCO HLDG NTL REINSURANCE PHIL STOCK EXCH SUN LIFE

44.5 102.1 62.85 20.2 7.96 37.75 8.45 20 39.3 17.3 106.8 52 0.58 15.5 0.92 0.28 0.5 158.1 1390

45 103.8 63.95 20.7 8 37.9 8.9 20.5 45.75 17.7 108 52.8 0.6 15.8 0.93 0.3 0.68 175 1660

44 110 62.9 21 7.71 37.9 8.1 20 38.5 17 115 52 0.61 15.5 0.93 0.275 0.67 176 1450

44.5 115.7 64.95 21 8.21 39.85 9 21.5 46.15 17.5 115.5 54 0.61 15.6 0.93 0.3 0.68 176.9 1450

44 102.1 60.9 20 7.71 37.2 8.1 19.82 38.5 17 106.3 51.4 0.56 15.5 0.92 0.275 0.67 171 1450

44.5 102.1 63.95 20.1 8 37.9 8.9 20 45.75 17.5 106.8 52 0.6 15.6 0.93 0.28 0.68 172 1450

4300 3967720 7848780 269600 770400 7849600 7100 699100 600 10500 1048220 28620 68000 1300 48000 350000 174000 2870 25

190750 428807807 497157303.5 5480660 6147745 300253110 59257 14316815 26095 181164 113765663 1501673 40130 20210 44470 100900 116620 499750 36250

INDUSTRIAL

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

1.95 0.86 26 0.16 17 48.05 220 9.28 2.39 2.99 9.45 18.66 7.92 12 6.23 2.01 13.24 3.21 4.8 8.4 49 0.53 1.16 30.5 106.9 29.65 3.51 4.72 0.11 1.3 5.1 1.34 4.3 1.38 0.1 98 0.87 2.2 42 42 1.08 7.5 5.32 11.62 5.84 8.2 0.67 0.55 1.85 1.95 3.02 0.79 4.52 0.94 0.77 6.27

1.96 1.18 26.5 0.169 17.02 49.9 223.4 9.34 2.4 3 9.98 18.7 8 14.3 6.45 2.03 13.3 3.45 4.94 8.5 51 0.54 1.17 31.85 107 40 4.8 4.75 0.144 1.34 5.11 1.42 4.59 1.6 0.11 99.5 0.88 2.51 64 59.85 1.09 7.6 5.34 12.36 5.89 9.08 0.72 0.6 1.9 1.98 3.18 0.8 4.54 1.01 0.79 6.3

2.01 0.8 30 0.157 16.94 47.1 225 9.5 2.29 3 9.5 19 8.28 12 6.83 2.13 13 3.45 4.95 7.23 49.5 0.51 1.29 31.95 107.4 41 4.8 4.91 0.144 1.35 5.21 1.32 4.3 1.36 0.11 103.1 0.87 2.51 60 59.85 1.07 7.6 5.7 12 6.69 9.1 0.76 0.62 1.91 2.1 3.2 0.83 4.5 1 0.86 7.04

2.1 0.8 30 0.17 17.34 49.95 230 9.65 2.69 3 9.98 19 8.28 12 6.83 2.24 13.98 3.6 5.1 8.5 53 0.56 1.29 31.95 111 41 4.8 5.06 0.144 1.35 5.3 1.44 4.3 1.38 0.11 105 0.92 2.51 60 59.85 1.12 7.8 5.7 12.36 6.89 9.1 0.76 0.63 1.91 2.16 3.2 0.85 4.57 1.01 0.88 7.2

1.92 0.8 26 0.156 16.5 47.1 218.2 9.26 2.29 3 9.4 18.66 7.88 12 6.15 2 13 3.2 4.8 7.22 46.5 0.51 1.15 31.85 103 40 4.8 4.61 0.144 1.3 5 1.24 4.3 1.36 0.1 95.5 0.86 2.51 60 59.85 1.04 7.36 5.3 11.8 5.35 9.1 0.67 0.57 1.85 1.88 3.2 0.77 4.4 0.93 0.76 6.1

1.96 0.8 26 0.169 17.02 48.05 220 9.28 2.4 3 9.98 18.7 8 12 6.45 2.03 13.24 3.2 4.8 8.5 51 0.53 1.17 31.85 107 40 4.8 4.72 0.144 1.3 5.11 1.42 4.3 1.38 0.11 98 0.88 2.51 60 59.85 1.09 7.6 5.34 12.36 5.84 9.1 0.72 0.6 1.85 1.98 3.2 0.8 4.55 1.01 0.78 6.3

8503000 10000 4575800 120000 3525800 40600 385350 4337200 10306000 47000 185600 892400 66300 500 150300 1328000 147900 51000 6081000 983500 543500 211000 18074000 500 3592270 600 1000 1368000 30000 150000 1351300 2098000 5000 4000 310000 3241590 23110000 2000 200 10 9986000 561200 374000 362600 2447300 1000 68000 585000 11000 2904000 15000 1756000 512000 1245000 1015000 4533900

177500 -97280431 -15153517 -2257330 196177 33034325.0001 -3127980 -7934598 -997162 -14010 -22900 -

16923540 8000 124484080 19600 59794728 1938885 86168524 41047948 25913970 141000 1816118 16725590 535121 6000 951420 2789560 1948062 169650 30,008,280( 7663173 26878160 112290 21799130 15935 384761090 24200 4800 6650930 4320 197410 6906985 2786400 21500 5460 31300 324287059 20719650 5020 12000 598.5 10814420 4262051 2039939 4423930 14438652 9100 45920 344630 20850 5903870 48000 1410910 2308600 1219100 842210 29914640

-705009.9997 -40574205 21688088 270425 -3514086 -947008 -165120 -630504 -5912200 -538217 -549560 2702 -23400 7,083,809.9996) -3146310 89990 -95480 1533281 -4800 -1113390 -47250 -2429229 50220 -117488080.5 -20470 3394330 -2848100 -163800 -1143324 -2870092 2320 12240 -48000 231770 859950 -12650 619960

HOLDING & FRIMS ABACORE CAPITAL 0.51 0.52 0.53 0.56 0.5 0.52 7768000 4073620 5.7 5.92 6.44 6.44 5.71 5.71 65600 382100 ASIABEST GROUP AYALA CORP 493 493.8 505 510 480 493 1477170 728759337 32.5 33.1 32.5 34.2 31.25 32.5 1368600 44855015 ABOITIZ EQUITY ALLIANCE GLOBAL 6.86 6.87 6.8 7.08 6.7 6.87 4944400 33841546 1.78 1.81 1.75 1.94 1.68 1.78 885000 1564410 AYALA LAND LOG ANSCOR 6 6.24 6.24 6.24 5.92 6 49100 294229 0.52 0.55 0.52 0.55 0.51 0.55 178000 93930 ANGLO PHIL HLDG ATN HLDG A 0.51 0.53 0.55 0.55 0.5 0.53 1653000 840000 0.52 0.62 0.55 0.62 0.55 0.62 1000000 585000 ATN HLDG B 4.93 5 4.95 5.3 4.84 5 2982000 14736990 COSCO CAPITAL DMCI HLDG 3.59 3.6 3.62 3.79 3.58 3.6 11982000 43855070 8.6 8.99 8.55 9 8.55 8.99 130200 1166839 FILINVEST DEV GT CAPITAL 409 418 429 440 401.2 409 307630 128217236 3.6 3.8 3.6 3.8 3.6 3.6 238000 873500 HOUSE OF INV JG SUMMIT 51.2 52 53.8 57.9 50.3 51.2 1683440 87937625.5 0.41 0.46 0.455 0.455 0.415 0.415 60000 25500 LODESTAR 2.84 2.98 2.92 3.1 2.82 2.98 112000 320290 LOPEZ HLDG LT GROUP 6.95 7.24 7 7.24 6.88 7.24 5078400 35836176 0.47 0.54 0.59 0.59 0.55 0.55 125000 68910 MABUHAY HLDG METRO PAC INV 2.59 2.6 2.76 2.85 2.54 2.6 76482000 203032810 2.76 2.99 2.76 2.77 2.76 2.76 15000 41410 PACIFICA HLDG PRIME MEDIA 0.74 0.75 0.75 0.76 0.75 0.75 9000 6770 0.82 0.83 0.83 0.83 0.81 0.82 26000 21360 SOLID GROUP SYNERGY GRID 139 150 150 150 150 150 60 9000 805 810 846 870 802 805 667120 549237360 SM INVESTMENTS 89.95 90 90 96 89 90 305510 27901106 SAN MIGUEL CORP SOC RESOURCES 0.62 0.63 0.7 0.7 0.62 0.63 93000 58770 152 152.2 149 152 140 152 2380 345563 TOP FRONTIER WELLEX INDUS 0.174 0.185 0.187 0.187 0.187 0.187 10000 1870 0.126 0.133 0.138 0.139 0.124 0.133 760000 97790 ZEUS HLDG

73310 54485837 9227905 7746337 -85000 179928 585000 -582790 2800500 -50945376 -765400 4649252 -202220 -616558 25898740 1620 -88095 -4255051.5 -300924 -1260

PROPERTY

ARTHALAND CORP ANCHOR LAND AYALA LAND ARANETA PROP BELLE CORP A BROWN CITYLAND DEVT CROWN EQUITIES CEB LANDMASTERS CENTURY PROP DOUBLEDRAGON DM WENCESLAO EMPIRE EAST FILINVEST LAND GLOBAL ESTATE 8990 HLDG PHIL INFRADEV MEGAWORLD MRC ALLIED PHIL ESTATES ROBINSONS LAND PHIL REALTY ROCKWELL SHANG PROP STA LUCIA LAND SM PRIME HLDG VISTAMALLS SUNTRUST HOME VISTA LAND

0.56 6.3 31 1.08 1.31 0.52 0.73 0.127 3.91 0.365 16.2 6.9 0.285 0.91 0.74 12.5 0.67 2.39 0.14 0.315 14.84 0.226 1.49 2.7 2.01 28.5 3.38 1.15 4.12

0.57 9 31.95 1.14 1.34 0.54 0.74 0.138 3.93 0.375 16.3 7.45 0.295 0.92 0.75 12.6 0.68 2.41 0.142 0.385 14.86 0.26 1.51 2.74 2.15 28.9 3.45 1.16 4.28

0.57 8.99 33.65 1.05 1.32 0.56 0.72 0.118 4 0.37 16.5 7.1 0.325 0.91 0.79 12.9 0.69 2.46 0.141 0.315 15 0.249 1.57 2.75 2.15 31.1 3.26 1.22 3.51

0.58 8.99 34.35 1.1 1.34 0.58 0.79 0.14 4 0.38 16.54 7.5 0.325 0.96 0.8 12.9 0.71 2.52 0.144 0.315 15.86 0.25 1.57 2.76 2.2 32.45 3.45 1.25 4.32

0.56 8.99 30.65 1.04 1.3 0.52 0.71 0.118 3.9 0.365 16.04 6.9 0.295 0.88 0.75 12.5 0.67 2.32 0.135 0.315 14.54 0.249 1.5 2.74 2 28.5 3.26 1.11 3.51

0.56 8.99 31 1.08 1.31 0.54 0.74 0.131 3.93 0.37 16.3 6.9 0.295 0.91 0.75 12.5 0.67 2.39 0.142 0.315 14.86 0.25 1.5 2.74 2.15 28.5 3.45 1.15 4.28

283000 100 18120900 88000 3651000 3349000 202000 17070000 328000 1770000 385300 109300 490000 20426000 97000 441200 1610000 77931000 13500000 220000 3372400 410000 333000 57000 59000 14406400 123000 2007000 6766000

162170 899 580766395 95840 4780880 1850540 145010 2212930 1299900 654850 6264124 765325 148050 18921590 74700 5654442 1117890 187834710 1889060 69300 50595634 102380 510260 156730 121760 430607955 416760 2349180 26764430

60634010 -55000 3064580 -32750 -471680 -75000 -896424 483000 -1900 -2404920 16536 179720 8047590 8930786 -137930 55000 -41405460 -660930

SERVICES ABS CBN 16 16.1 16.88 16.88 16 16.06 229500 3696436 5.15 5.18 4.9 5.18 4.88 5.18 630300 3195241 GMA NETWORK MANILA BULLETIN 0.36 0.37 0.36 0.38 0.36 0.37 150000 54400 11.3 12 11.8 12 11.34 11.34 1300 14900 MLA BRDCASTING GLOBE TELECOM 1949 1950 1950 1976 1908 1949 95365 186327185 1069 1070 1075 1095 1050 1070 421165 449649360 PLDT APOLLO GLOBAL 0.038 0.039 0.039 0.039 0.037 0.039 7600000 291800 0.075 0.078 0.08 0.08 0.078 0.078 410000 32080 ISLAND INFO ISM COMM 1.53 1.54 1.49 1.67 1.33 1.53 74392000 113298290 NOW CORP 1.38 1.39 1.44 1.45 1.34 1.39 2676000 3734410 0.15 0.156 0.159 0.165 0.14 0.154 4160000 626250 TRANSPACIFIC BR PHILWEB 1.57 1.6 1.65 1.77 1.54 1.6 2200000 3628460 5.9 6 6.5 6.5 6 6 57400 347463 2GO GROUP ASIAN TERMINALS 14.38 15.88 15.78 15.78 15.78 15.78 600 9468 2.65 2.68 2.79 2.95 2.41 2.65 4745000 12594580 CHELSEA CEBU AIR 43.4 43.45 41.9 44.5 41.5 43.45 598600 25536335 74.25 76.85 76.2 78.5 74.2 74.25 2108460 160694580 INTL CONTAINER 11 11.5 11.64 11.64 11 11.5 14600 168396 LBC EXPRESS MACROASIA 4.88 4.9 4.67 5.2 4.67 4.9 2576000 12594090 1.54 1.55 1.7 1.75 1.5 1.55 3273000 5301520 METROALLIANCE A METROALLIANCE B 1.51 1.62 1.64 1.75 1.5 1.51 39000 62320 6.5 6.55 6.78 6.78 6.31 6.6 18600 124079 PAL HLDG HARBOR STAR 0.75 0.76 0.82 0.82 0.7 0.76 681000 507890 1.04 1.25 1.25 1.25 1.25 1.25 7000 8750 ACESITE HOTEL BOULEVARD HLDG 0.027 0.028 0.028 0.028 0.027 0.027 7700000 214800 1.31 1.9 1.95 1.95 1.95 1.95 1000 1950 DISCOVERY WORLD 0.375 0.395 0.375 0.38 0.375 0.375 290000 109150 WATERFRONT CENTRO ESCOLAR 6.03 6.79 6.03 6.03 6.03 6.03 200 1206 0.4 0.405 0.41 0.43 0.4 0.405 3220000 1316500 STI HLDG BERJAYA 1.95 2.23 2.3 2.3 2.1 2.3 60000 136600 5.62 5.7 5.75 6.48 5.31 5.7 7966600 46402340 BLOOMBERRY PACIFIC ONLINE 1.52 1.7 1.6 1.6 1.6 1.6 7000 11200 1.37 1.38 1.37 1.5 1.28 1.38 1267000 1746580 LEISURE AND RES PH RESORTS GRP 3.51 3.92 3.93 3.93 3.8 3.8 13000 50420 0.3 0.31 0.31 0.325 0.295 0.31 9120000 2817600 PREMIUM LEISURE 7.6 8 7.6 7.6 7.6 7.6 500 3800 PHIL RACING ALLHOME 4.51 4.6 4.68 4.85 4.25 4.6 3408000 15,593,430( 1.43 1.44 1.36 1.54 1.36 1.44 3225000 4684540 METRO RETAIL PUREGOLD 37.85 39 35.4 39 35.4 39 6862700 253345820 54.5 54.7 52.5 55.8 52.5 54.5 924700 50093900.5 ROBINSONS RTL PHIL SEVEN CORP 130 131.9 125 130.5 125 130 178150 23159480 1.2 1.22 1.26 1.29 1.15 1.2 2722000 3309470 SSI GROUP 13.24 13.5 13 13.5 12.98 13.5 5284300 69383050 WILCON DEPOT APC GROUP 0.245 0.26 0.265 0.27 0.245 0.245 3910000 980150 5 5.2 5.01 5.4 5 5.05 49000 247861 EASYCALL GOLDEN BRIA 336 355 341 371 341 371 280 103580 0.202 0.207 0.22 0.22 0.195 0.202 3700000 763950 PRMIERE HORIZON SBS PHIL CORP 5.51 6 6.5 6.5 6 6 1600 10060

1030795 151575105 7333160 -60820 -428710 -264850 2510 -2183495 -15647943 -2455620 7600 -1096900 12978614 -49600 1,405,290.0002) -312790.0003 -5554270 9853070 2323100 -477740 2392908 -494000 -

MINING & OIL ATOK 9.7 10.82 10.7 10.92 10 10.86 22800 239858 APEX MINING 0.72 0.73 0.75 0.77 0.71 0.72 980000 723770 29200 0.001 0.0011 0.001 0.0011 0.001 0.0011 23000000 23200 ABRA MINING ATLAS MINING 1.82 1.86 1.82 1.82 1.82 1.82 80000 145600 6.23 6.5 6.5 6.67 6.23 6.5 2500 16117 DIZON MINES FERRONICKEL 0.56 0.58 0.63 0.64 0.54 0.56 9809000 5647450 -1880050 0.185 0.196 0.195 0.195 0.186 0.186 220000 41920 GEOGRACE LEPANTO A 0.068 0.074 0.07 0.074 0.068 0.074 1240000 88440 0.075 0.079 0.083 0.083 0.075 0.075 440000 33810 LEPANTO B 0.53 0.54 0.53 0.55 0.52 0.54 77000 40240 MARCVENTURES NIHAO 0.83 0.86 0.91 0.91 0.85 0.85 104000 89100 1.56 1.57 1.67 1.79 1.55 1.56 8433000 13719780 -1826650 NICKEL ASIA OMICO CORP 0.33 0.39 0.39 0.39 0.39 0.39 10000 3900 0.43 0.445 0.48 0.48 0.44 0.44 150000 68850 ORNTL PENINSULA PX MINING 2 2.04 2.07 2.08 2 2.02 548000 1099440 10.58 10.6 11 11.48 10.6 10.6 2556000 27808458 -8294734 SEMIRARA MINING 5.24 5.45 5.6 5.8 5.24 5.45 69600 377766 2170 ACE ENEXOR ORNTL PETROL B 0.0084 0.01 0.0084 0.0094 0.0084 0.0094 10000000 89000 0.0067 0.0076 0.007 0.007 0.007 0.007 1000000 7000 PHILODRILL PXP ENERGY 4.23 4.24 4.29 4.3 3.88 4.24 952000 3940780 587650

PREFFERED HOUSE PREF A 93 93.5 94 94 93 93 3000 279080 AC PREF B1 498 506 499 499 498 498 30 14950 98.1 100.2 98 98 98 98 2000 196000 ALCO PREF B AC PREF B2R 492 496 496 496 496 496 610 302560 84320 97.7 97.8 97.7 97.8 97.6 97.8 28440 2779717 DD PREF FGEN PREF G 102 107 108 108 101 102 5930 605040 980 989 989 989 980 989 560 553390 9890 GTCAP PREF B MWIDE PREF 99 99.5 99 99 99 99 690 68310 98.8 99 99 99 98.8 99 14400 1425500 PNX PREF 3A 102 107 107 107 105 105 190 20130 PNX PREF 3B PNX PREF 4 993 998 991 998 990 998 2940 2914970 1002 1030 1001 1020 1001 1020 4540 4625950 PCOR PREF 3A PCOR PREF 3B 1001 1040 1005 1005 1000 1000 805 805700 10020 75.75 76 76.2 76.2 75.65 76 1970 149251.5 SMC PREF 2C SMC PREF 2F 74.3 74.9 74.9 74.9 74.3 74.3 37500 2802750 74.3 74.8 74.8 74.8 74.2 74.8 2660 198962 742 SMC PREF 2I

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS ABS HLDG PDR 14 14.4 14.48 14.48 14 14 96600 1356230 -1039690 GMA HLDG PDR 4.91 5 4.99 5 4.9 5 5606400 27489979 -26750079

WARRANTS LR WARRANT 0.68 0.75 0.81 0.81 0.68 0.68 236000 164530

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES ITALPINAS 2 2.04 2.07 2.08 1.86 2.04 475000 942430 KEPWEALTH 5.85 5.9 6.4 6.4 5.8 5.85 54100 325880 0.5 0.5 0.52 0.54 0.49 0.5 1704000 872035 -26500 XURPAS

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS

FIRST METRO ETF 81.6 83 83.1 86.5 81.6 81.6 516120 43830965.5 109880

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Triconti bags offshore wind power service contracts

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By Lenie Lectura

@llectura

he Department of Energy (DOE) has awarded offshore wind power service contracts to the Triconti Windkraft Group of Cos., a partnership between Filipino-SwissGerman companies.

These offshore wind energy contracts are composed of two projects located in Aparri Bay, Northern Philippines and Guimaras Strait, Central Philippines.

According to the group, both projects have a combined potential output of over 1.2 gigawatt (GW).

“We are excited to bring the

benefits that offshore wind power promises to the Philippines,” said Stefan Simon, Joint Venture partner and managing director of Stream Invest Holding, Switzerland. “With its scale and efficiencies, we believe that it offers a cost-competitive and greener alternative to conventional fuel power plants,” he added.

These are the first offshore wind power contracts awarded by the DOE. Offshore wind energy utilizes wind farms constructed in bodies of water, usually in ocean.

The Triconti Windkraft Group is optimistic about the country’s wind potential. The group's president, Lila Rosenberger, said Guimaras Strait and Aparri Bay “showcase excellent, consistent wind speeds and are very accessible from the foreshore in terms of grid connectivity and maintenance.”

“With the quickly evolving wind turbine and offshore technology, it is quite realistic to expect that these projects can bring more than 1.2 GW of much needed clean and affordable power into the market,” she added.

The Triconti Windkraft Group also has 500megawatts of onshore wind under development, bringing

its portfolio to over to 1.7GW in various areas around Visayas and Luzon.

These projects are in different stages of predevelopment, with the first project in Nabas, Aklan, scheduled to come online by 2022.

Triconti is a member of Corporate Energies, a European renewableenergy group that offers the whole range of expertise to fulfill customer needs for planning, financing, construction, operation or optimization of clean energy power plants.

In the Philippines, Triconti focuses on wind energy. Over recent years it has grown steadily to become one of the largest independent project development companies in the country.

It is a member of the Asia Wind Energy Association, the Wind Energy Development Association of the Philippines, and the German-Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

WeWork cuts another 250 jobs to trim costs

W

eWork continued to cut more staff as part of a months-long effort to lower expenses after its failed initial public offering last year, the company said.

The New York-based co-working company axed about 250 jobs in its development department on Thursday, according to two people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified

discussing personnel details.

The reductions aren’t related to the impact of the coronavirus, one of the people said. Last fall, as WeWork looked to dramatically cut its expenses after the fumbled IPO, it stopped leasing as many locations, which lowered its need for construction and remodeling. “WeWork is continuing to execute its new strategic plan,” a spokesman wrote in a statement. “As a result, we are realigning certain

STOCK-MARKET OUTLOOK Last week

SHARE prices gained last week, snapping four straight weeks of decline, as markets calmed down with the Central Bank announcement of more monetary policy changes in a move to pour in more money into the system.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index gained 487.66 points, or more than 10 percent, to close at 5,266.62 points.

“We saw calmer trading as investors reassessed the situation after the country’s Central Bank announced several monetary policy changes to fight the economic consequences.

The trend has been the same all week: we would see a selldown at the open as buyers would not be present, and then, as prices would stop going lower, bargain hunters would come in and scoop up everything they could, causing sellers to walk away—which would then drive prices higher,” Christopher Mangun, research head at AAA Securities Inc., said.

Foreign investors were still net sellers at P3.86 billion, while average trading value for the week was at P6.29 billion.

All other subindices ended on the green led by the All Shares index that rose 270.85 points to 3,219.50 points. The Financials index gained 53.59 to close at 1,217.26, the Industrial index added 181.89 to 6,204.54, the Holding Firms index surged 540.05 to 5,142.11, the Property index was up 312.82 to 2,781.15, the Services index climbed 139.56 to 1,177.27 and the Mining and Oil index hiked 357 to 4,102.47.

For the week, gainers led losers 161 to 59 and 14 shares were unchanged.

Top gainers for the week were Cirtek Holdings Philippines Corp., Manila Mining Corp. B, Liberty Flour Mills Inc., Omico Corp., SFA Semicon Philippines Corp. and 2Go Group Inc. Top losers, on the other hand, were Bright Kindle Resources and Investments Inc., APC Group Inc., Alsons Consolidated Resources Inc., Keppel Philippines Holdings Inc. and Araneta Properties Inc.

This week

VOLATILE trading is set to remain this week at the market as many investors are still rattled by fear brought about by the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

“With all sectors alike joining the Bayanihan Spirit as the nation goes through this challenge, the same should prevail in equities, in support of listed firms’ expansion undertakings,” broker 2TradeAsia said.

It sees immediate support for the main index between 4,800 and 5,000 points, and resistance at 5,500 and 5,900 points.

Meanwhile, Mangun said investors are asking themselves if the worst is over or if there is more downside for stock markets.

“Some investors refuse to agree that this is a crisis and are treating it like one massive dip that can be turned into an opportunity. On the other hand, some see it worse than a crisis as human lives are at stake as well as economies. The result is wild swings and colossal reversals which have ignored any rationality and confused most investors,” he said, adding that this week’s prices may end lower as most investors are not convinced that we have seen the worse.

Stock picks

BROKER 2TradeAsia said telcos Globe Telecom Inc. and PLDT Inc. are set to benefit from the Luzon-wide lockdown, as many people stayed at home with nothing to do and just use the Internet.

Both Globe and PLDT separately noted sharp rise in data traffic of between 15 percent and 20 percent this month, the broker said.

“Of the two, Globe should enjoy better windfall, as mobile data contributes 48 percent of top-line versus PLDT's 34 percent, plus having limited exposure to enterprise at 9 percent versus PLDT’s 25 percent,” the broker said.

It said valuations may improve in the near term.

“Finally, we underscore that Globe and PLDT have been go-to dividend plays prior to the pandemic. There is enough reason to believe that payout will remain at least unchanged, and the recent rout should materially offer higher yields,” it said.

Globe closed Friday at P1,949 and PLDT was at P1,070. VG Cabuag

functions and teams to reflect our business priorities.” Employees affected by the cuts received the same severance package offered to the 2,400 WeWork staff who had their jobs eliminated in November: four months of salary and benefits, or six months for employees who had been with the company for more than four years. WeWork also quietly cut dozens more jobs in February.

WeWork still faces a rough road

mutual funds

ahead as the global pandemic is likely to make its members, more than a quarter of which were on month-tomonth leases last year, hesitant to renew contracts or likely to default if they have lost income. The company also is facing a public battle with its majority owner SoftBank Group Corp. as the investor threatened last week to unravel part of a $3 billion deal to buy back shares from investors and employees. Bloomberg News March 27, 2020

NAV One Year Three Year Five Year Y-T-D per share Return* Return Stock Funds ALFM Growth Fund, Inc. -a 180.35 -31.92% -10.69% -8.84% -28.4% ATRAM Alpha Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 0.8492 -47.19% -15.43% -11.34% -38.55% ATRAM Philippine Equity Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 2.476 -39.86% -14.93% -11.05% -32.68% Climbs Share Capital Equity Investment Fund Corp. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. First Metro Consumer Fund on MSCI Phils. IMI, Inc. -a 0.6064 -30.16% n.a. n.a.

-28.6% First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund,Inc. -a 3.9039 -28.98% -8.48% -8.14% -26.73% First Metro Save and Learn Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,6 0.6035 -31.17% -12.76% n.a.

-29.3% MBG Equity Investment Fund, Inc. -a 66.66 -47.77% n.a. n.a. -35.49% PAMI Equity Index Fund, Inc. -a 35.6845 -31.43% -9.62% n.a. -30.41% Philam Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 383.23 -29.64% -9.19% -7.97% -28.07% Philequity Alpha One Fund, Inc. -a,d,8 0.8068 n.a. n.a. n.a. -21.68% Philequity Dividend Yield Fund, Inc. -a 0.9243 -29.6% -8.88% -7.21% -28.18% Philequity Fund, Inc. -a 27.0009 -30.32% -8.29% -7.14% -28.75% Philequity MSCI Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,1 0.7099 -31.62% n.a. n.a. -30.27% Philequity PSE Index Fund Inc. -a 3.6335 -31.02% -9.06% -6.96% -30.44% Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a 606.97 -30.96% -9.04% -7.16% -30.4% Soldivo Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 0.5724 -37.78% -12.24% -10.56% -32.77% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Equity Fund, Inc. -a 2.8909 -33.15% -9.53% -7.91% -31.32% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Stock Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.6976 -31% -9.17% n.a.

-30.3% United Fund, Inc. -a 2.6006 -29.85% -6.75% -6.09% -28.82% Exchange Traded Fund First Metro Phil. Equity Exchange Traded Fund, Inc. -a,c 81.3667 -30.81% -8.53% -6.33% -30.43% ATRAM AsiaPlus Equity Fund, Inc. -b

$0.8387 -16.52% -3.65% -3.61% -18.45% Sun Life Prosperity World Voyager Fund, Inc. -a $1.0844 -13.23% -0.41% n.a. -21.35% Balanced Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ATRAM Dynamic Allocation Fund, Inc. -a 1.4127 -17.78% -6.25% -6.29% -9.6% ATRAM Philippine Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 1.872 -19.03% -6.19% -4.67% -14.17% First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund Inc. -a 2.2438 -15.13% -3.17% -5.4% -14.73% First Metro Save and Learn F.O.C.C.U.S. Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a,5 0.1752 n.a. n.a. n.a.

-23.33% NCM Mutual Fund of the Phils., Inc. -a 1.74 -9.05% -1.71% -2.22% -11.36% PAMI Horizon Fund, Inc. -a 3.1563 -13.77% -4.26% -4.24% -16.7% Philam Fund, Inc. -a 14.1944 -14.26% -4.17% -4.2% -16.31% Solidaritas Fund, Inc. -a N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. -5.2% -4.79% -20.73% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 3.0627 -20.49% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2028, Inc. -a,d,2 0.8473 -15.1% n.a. n.a. -16.58% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2038, Inc. -a,d,2 0.75 -24.88% n.a. n.a. -24.73% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2048, Inc. -a,d,2 0.7316 -26.57% n.a. n.a. -26.34% Sun Life Prosperity Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a 0.7385 -24.75% -7.1% -6.88% -24.24% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Cocolife Dollar Fund Builder, Inc. -a $0.03697 2.72% 1.54% 0.99% -3.3% PAMI Asia Balanced Fund, Inc. -a $0.8604 -12.39% -2.85% -2.94% -17.1% -0.49% -0.46% -17.73% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Advantage Fund, Inc. -a $3.2176 -11.39% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Wellspring Fund, Inc. -a,7 $0.9732 - 9.27% -1.36% n.a. -13.78% 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 1.9153 2.25% 0.56% -0.38% 0.7% Cocolife Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a

3.1435 4.7% 5.08% 5.06% 0.87% 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 2.3561 4.4% 2.16% 1.2% -0.13% Philam Bond Fund, Inc. -a 4.3536 9.02% 2.46% 1.65% -0.44% Philequity Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a

3.7667 4.87% 2.72% 1.47% -0.57% Soldivo Bond Fund, Inc. -a 0.9589 4.76% 1.27% 0.09% -0.56% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.0496 6.35% 3.86% 2.41% -0.86% Sun Life Prosperity GS Fund, Inc. -a 1.692 6.41% 3.54% 2.01% -0.53% 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 $1.1242 -3.29% 0.27% 0.73% -6.88% -1.94% First Metro Save and Learn Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $0.0253 0.4% 0.53% 0.64% PAMI Global Bond Fund, Inc -a $1.0414 -2.21% -0.77% -1.16% -4.91% Philam Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $2.3107 2.57% 1.74% 1.6% -3.87% Philequity Dollar Income Fund Inc. -a $0.059447 2.51% 1.48% 1.36% -1.44% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Abundance Fund, Inc. -a $3.0986 4.37% 1.84% 1.8% -2.42% Money Market Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 126.71 3.74% 2.98% 2.25% 0.74% First Metro Save and Learn Money Market Fund, Inc. -a,3 1.0334 2.74% n.a. n.a.

0.69% Philam Managed Income Fund, Inc. -a 1.2522 5.04% 2.95% 1.58% -0.36% Sun Life Prosperity Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.2736 3.48% 2.97% 2.48% 0.71% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Starter Fund, Inc. -a $1.0395 1.72% n.a. n.a.

0.22% Feeder Fund Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund Inc. -b,d,4 $0.83 n.a. n.a. n.a.

-16.16% 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."

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Banking&Finance BusinessMirror

Credit registry alerts public on scams in collecting payment from borrowers

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he country’s central credit registry warned the public of collection scam and individuals falsely claiming to be employees of Credit Information Corp. (CIC) with the intent of harassing borrowers to pay their account despite the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine.

In a recent statement, the CIC ensured that the firm never employed such scheme in collecting payment from the borrowers.

According to CIC President and CEO Jaime Casto Jose P. Garchitorena they have been receiving numerous complaints from borrowers who are allegedly being harassed by lenders and debt collectors.

“Some even go to the extent of disguising themselves as representatives or employees of the CIC to scare distressed borrowers to pay their loans despite the lockdown,”

Garchitorena was quoted in the statement as saying.

“The CIC will never be part of any direct collection effort, nor will CIC employees contact borrowers directy,” he added.

Garchitorena said the CIC is working with law enforcement and other government agencies in addressing the matter.

“While the CIC has no direct supervision over lending corporations, it joins the SEC [Securities and Exchange Commission] in helping consumers avoid over-indebtedness and calling out abusive lending practices and exorbitant interest rates,” the credit registry added.

Meanwhile, CIC expressed support toward the SEC’s call urging all financial and lending companies to employ measures seen to ease the burden of the borrowers amid the lockdown.

“We extend our unwavering support to the SEC in strongly encouraging these companies to develop and implement schemes to provide financial relief to their borrowers during these trying times,” the CIC chief said.

The SEC released a notice on March 23 outlining the debt relief measures the financing and lending companies may employ including lowering of interest rates, waiver or reduction of penalties and other fees, extension of loan term, suspension of collection, payment holiday and debt consolidation.

Banks had announced that they were providing a grace period for qualified borrowers. While they were encouraging online and mobile banking, banks remain operational with limited capacity and shortened working hours.

Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

Fed lifeline shields bond funds teetering on brink of ETF ‘hell’

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he Federal Reserve’s unprecedented step into US corporate bonds helped cure many of the massive dislocations in exchange-traded funds–and may have saved mutual funds from a similar fate.

After prices for the biggest fixedincome funds held in a kind of dazed stillness during the worst of the selloff–presumably because the bonds they owned simply weren’t trading–netasset values on some of them dropped precipitously earlier in the week as their outflows forced sales on a frozen market.

The $215 billion Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Fund and the $51 billion Fidelity US Bond Index each saw the value of their holdings drop as much as 4.1 percent in the week through March 20, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Meanwhile, the $137 billion PIMCO Income Fund posted a net-asset value plunge of roughly 6.6 percent in the span–after largely trading sideways for the past five years.

The steep declines were beginning to mirror prices reached in fixed-income ETFs, which were already trading at deep discounts to their underlying securities. Faced with $149 billion of redemptions so far in March–after not seeing a monthly outflow since January 2019–mutual funds were forced to sell their holdings into a market caught in a cash crunch.

However, the Fed’s pledge last Monday to buy investment-grade credit and certain ETFs helped halt the slide in mutual fund net-asset values and sparked a rally in higher-rated debt. That’s largely due to the fact that fund managers now have a willing buyer on the other side of the trade, according to Bloomberg Intelligence.

“Mutual funds dodged a big bullet by not having to unload bonds into a market with no buyers,” said Eric

Investors shun equities; troop to bond market

I

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

@Tyronepiad

nvestors were shifting funds from the local bourse to the bond market given the uncertainties in equity securities amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

“The blood bath in equities and commodity market, which continued until mid-March, has investors turning to local bonds for safety and best returns,” a report by First Metro Investment Corp. and University of Asia and the Pacific said.

The study titled “The Market Call” noted there has been an uptick in trading volume for secondary government securities, registering at P720.7 billion in February, which is 34-percent higher than P538 billion the previous month. Trading turnover last month skyrocketed by 230.1 percent year-on-year.

Corporate bonds market, meanwhile, booked record volume of P6.9 billion last month, which is 22-percent better than P5.6 billion

in January. Year-on-year, it rose by 195.9 percent.

Earlier, Philippine Savings Bank and BDO Unibank Inc. listed their fixed rate bonds amounting P4.65 billion and P40.1 billion, respectively, on the Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corp.

East West Banking Corp. issued last month its 3-year fixed rate bonds worth P3.7 billion, which came from the bank’s P10-billion bond program.

Ayala Land Inc. earned P10 billion from the issuance of its retail bonds last month, the proceeds of which are allocated to finance maturing loans and general corporate matters.

Just last week, the Bank of the Philippine Islands raised P33.9

billion—surpassing the initial target size of P5 billion by over sixfold—from bond issuance. Each bond carries interest rate of 4.05 percent per annum and has a tenor of 1.5 years.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. also announced last week that its P3billion bond issuance was subscribed by over two times after three-day offer period.

Meanwhile, BDO decided to delay its P5-billion fixed rate bonds issuance due to the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine amid the Covid-19 pandemic. The bank has not yet disclosed when it will push through with the offering.

On Friday, the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange Index (PSEi) fell by 2.50 percent or 134.96 points to settle at 5,266.62 from previous trading day. The wider All-shares, meanwhile, shed 0.96 percent or 31.32 points to close at 3,219.50.

The PSEi has wiped off 2,475.91 points since the first day of trading of this year, falling by nearly 32 percent year-to-date.

For this week brokerage firm 2TradeAsia pegged the immediate support at 4,800-5,000 range and resistance at 5,500 to 5,900 level.

PHL urged to strengthen fiscal, monetary policies amid pandemic

T

The image shows the coronavirus at the foreground of a roller-coaster ride. The Federal Reserve’s intervention in the US corporate bonds market may have saved mutual funds from a massive dislocation. Bloomberg News Balchunas, senior ETF analyst. “The Fed has now brought liquidity, and so they will get to avoid the ‘hell’ we saw ETFs in for the past month.”

The US central bank said last Monday that it would create a Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility, one of several new measures aimed at cushioning the economic blow from the coronavirus.

The terms of the facility allow for the purchase of up to 10 percent of an issuer’s outstanding bonds and up to 20 percent of the assets of any ETF “whose investment objective is to provide broad exposure to the market for US investment-grade corporate bonds,” a primer accompanying the Fed action said.

That Fed’s move quickly stemmed the bleeding in high-grade bond markets, where investors were shedding even their highest-quality holdings in an effort to raise cash. The carnage quickly appeared in ETFs, which trade on exchanges and behave like stocks,

as the funds sold off much more quickly than the underlying bonds.

The pain had just started to spread to mutual funds, which were initially able to satisfy redemptions by burning through cash and their more liquid securities, according to Kingsview Wealth Management’s Paul Nolte. The net-asset values began to drop as the fund managers were forced to try and liquidate harder-to-unload holdings into a market with few buyers–but the Fed announcement broke the cycle, he said.

“They’ve stepped in, and we’re now finally starting to see a little bit more of a normal bidding process in the market,” said Nolte, a portfolio manager at Kingsview Wealth Management. “We’re probably a week away from a normally functioning market. It’s going to take some of these funds a while to work their way back to where they used to be.”

The impact was immediate for many fixed-income ETFs. Bloomberg News

Finex call to realign Congress budget

I

was pleasantly surprised last week that the call by the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (Finex) for “Congress to realign the unspent and unobligated appropriations already embodied in the General Appropriations Acts (GAA) as emergency calamity appropriations and to augment such funds in the budget with those of government-owned and -controlled corporations for the same purpose” had already been passed.

A House Bill 6616, which was amended by Senate Bill 1418 was passed on March 23 authorizing President Duterte to allocate such funds necessary in order to address the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) problem. However, the emergency powers to give authority to the President “to temporarily take over privately-owned public utilities and businesses,” which is the subject of much controversy, was removed.

This is an extremely difficult crisis we are facing since the country has to address so many concerns while the Covid-19 cases are rising and so are

Monday, March 30, 2020 B3

Finex free enterprise Wilma Inventor-Miranda the deaths. We need those funds to procure more testing kits, to establish more testing laboratories, cover the cost of treatment for the victims and other related measures.

It is so heartbreaking to read a story by a nurse who witness the death of a patient who was considered a Covid-19 patient even before the test results arrives. They have to wait until the results comes before they can suction since the patient had profound secretions and a normal suction would turn the droplets into aerosol which can prove very risky for the health workers attending. So she was left drowning in her own secretions.

And since the protocol for suspected Covid-19 patients is to do monitoring every four hours only (and wear personal protective equipment or PPE), the patient died alone. The results arrived only a week after and it shows “Negative.” That means the health workers could have performed the normal routine and save the life of the patient had the results been known at a sooner time.

There are so many similar stories recounting the deaths not only of patients but also of health workers attending to them and it can be depressing due to lack of testing kits and the turnaround time to know the results.

Hopefully, with this measure taken by the government, more testing kits will be made available, more laboratories to perform the testing, more hospitals and places to accommodate the patients, more PPEs and health care treatments not only for those who were tested positive but also those who are suffering from similar symptoms but are still PUIs (persons

he government should step up efforts in implementing fiscal and monetary policies to save the Philippine economy, whose growth is being paralyzed by the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

With some analysts worrying that the current pandemic might be worse than the global financial crisis a decade ago, UnionBank chief economist Ruben Carlo Asuncion said in a recent report that “the response...should be stronger and the scope, bigger.”

The country’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth dropped to 4.2 percent in 2008 from 6.6 percent previous year and slumped further to 1.1 percent in 2009.

This year, the National Economic and Development Authority said that GDP growth might slow down to 5.5 percent to 6.5 percent from the target band of 6.5 percent to 7.5 percent due to Covid-19. Economic growth settled at 5.9 percent last year; lower than 6.2 percent in 2018.

Asuncion explained that most of the macroeconomic factors—including exports, imports, consumption, tourist arrivals and overseas Filipino worker (OFW) remittances—have more than doubled from pre-global

financial crisis years of 2007 to 2019, the year before the pandemic slaughtered global economy. This also meant that further policy support was needed to make sure these would not be wiped out, he added.

Within the 2007-2019 period, exports spiked from P2.66 trillion to P5.78 trillion; imports rose from P2.52 trillion to P6.70 trillion; consumption climbed from P3.60 trillion to P6.67 trillion; tourist arrivals advanced from 3.09 million to 8.26 million; and OFW remittances grew more than twofold from $14.45 billion to $30.13 billion.

“An estimated deeper impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the bigger real macroeconomy, compared to the economic losses caused by the GFC, warrants wider and more encompassing policies,” Asuncion said.

“By mere optics, the current crop of policies may have to be augmented further and a more targeted policy support is very much needed,” he added. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), for its part, has been freeing up liquidity to support the economy.

The Monetary Board (MB) has reduced BSP’s overnight reverse repurchase facility by a total of 75 basis points (bp) to 3.25 percent,

bringing the lending and deposit rates to 3.75 percent and 2.75 percent, respectively. Fitch Solutions, in an earlier report, said that another 50-bp rate cut is possible to further aid the economy.

BSP also slashed reserve requirement ratio (RRR) on reservable liabilities of universal and commercial banks by 200 bp to 12 percent.

This is anticipated to release around P180-billion worth of liquidity into the banking system. MB, meanwhile, said that the RRR could be trimmed by another 200 bp before the year ends.

The BSP advanced the remittance of its dividends worth P20 billion to the government in support of the battle against the pandemic, in addition to approving P300-billion Covid-19 relief funds.

Earlier this month, the government approved a P27.1-billion antiCovid-19 stimulus package, the bulk (P14 billion) of which is allocated for tourism industry.

The World Bank and Asian Development Bank have also extended loans amounting to $100 million and $200 million to help the country counter the ill effects of the pandemic. Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

under investigation) or PUMs (persons under monitoring). Hazard pay should also be given to the health workers for they are not only risking their lives to save other people but also the lives of their families.

We also need subsidies for the poor to tide them over during the crisis since the private sector is also suffering from financial difficulties. With the available funds, they can trust the government to address their needs. The private sector can only help to a certain extent because they are also reeling from the financial effects of this crisis.

There are P275 billion off-budget funds on top of the funds from the 2020 GAA that can also be used to address Covid-19 according to Deputy Speaker Luis Raymund F. Villafuerte who sponsored the measure. If these funds are properly implemented, we can mitigate the risk if we cannot totally eradicate it yet.

As the World Health Organization (WHO) Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a news conference, we can

change the trajectory of this pandemic instead of being helpless bystanders.

Physical distancing, which can be a defensive measure is not enough but, in order to win, according to him, “we need to attack the virus with aggressive and targeted tactics.”

With the measure to be implemented, this will enable us to have testing for many if not all suspected victims, proper treatment, isolation and care for confirmed cases and contract tracing and quarantine for close contacts, which are the steps the WHO would like every country to undertake in order not just to defend ourselves but to attack the virus. As of the present, there are not enough hospitals to treat the patients, many of our health workers are quarantined, no blood testing for most of the suspected victims.

In the US, the turnaround time for the results to be known is 45 minutes made by Cepheid, a biotechnology company and approved by FDA (source: theverge.com). Here in the Philippines as of the present, the

average turnaround is a week or even a few more days. By the time the results are known, the patient is dead.

The testing kits should be made available to all walks of life and to all suspected victims. And it is not cheap to be admitted in a private hospital for Covid-19 victims, that is, if you are even lucky to be admitted. With the takeover of the hospitals and medical facilities by the government if needed, the cost of being admitted hopefully will be drastically brought down if not totally eliminated.

With the measures to be undertaken by the government plus private sector cooperation coupled with the discipline observed by the citizenry we can surely overcome the drastic negative effect of this pandemic.

Wilma Miranda is the Managing Partner of Inventor, Miranda & Associates, and CPAs, Board of Director Member of KPS Outsourcing Inc. and Treasurer of Negros Outsourcing Service Inc. The views expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the opinion of these institutions and the BusinessMirror.

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Monday, March 30, 2020

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Like love, music heals CLOCKWISE: Sheila Francisco, Joaquin Garcia, John Legend and Ice Seguerra

Today’s Horoscope

By Eugenia Last

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Katy Mixon, 39; Celine Dion, 52; Eric Clapton, 75; Warren Beatty, 83.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: It’s time to get serious about what you want to do next. Making a move that will help you parlay what you have experienced and learned into a new direction will boost your enthusiasm and encourage you to branch out and meet people. A physical activity incorporated into your schedule will lead to better health and personal confidence. Your lucky numbers are 2, 13, 21, 24, 28, 35, 49.

ALL ACCESS RICKY GALLARDO

rickygallardoTFI@gmail.com

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Discuss your plans with someone close to you, and the feedback you receive will help you make a decision.

Consider the changes necessary to achieve your dreams, and get the ball rolling. Revamp your wardrobe to suit your new lifestyle. ★★★★

S

O many things have been written about the healing power of music.

Elton John was quoted to have said that “music has healing power. It has the ability to take people out of themselves for a few hours.� And Victor Hugo has also been quoted for this: “Music expresses that which cannot be put into words.�

At these most uncertain times when fear, worry and paranoia may have started to set in, what a wonderful respite to see artists from all over the world share their gift of voice and music to calm the nerves, soothe the soul, and contribute to the healing—even just for a few hours. Because of the strict home quarantine order from governments worldwide, many musical artists are streaming private concerts online. Concerts, shows and events have been put on hold or canceled but these artists are determined to still connect with their audiences through music.

Music icon John Legend has been posting live concerts on social media. Together with Coldplay’s Chris Martin, they have launched a series of online concerts, called Together at Home. Pink posted a video of her playing the guitar and singing “To Make You Feel My Love,� and wrote this on her Instagram: “Free concert slash piano lessons from my heart to yours.�

We have also seen a video of the key players of the world’s best orchestras who are all at home, selfisolating to keep others safe, getting together to make music, and creating virtual symphonies to remind every one that we are all in this together.

Music great David Foster and his wife Katherine McPhee have started to livestream a daily afternoon joint performance on Instagram. Keith Urban performed for half an hour in his Nashville warehouse and streamed it live also on Instagram, with a brief participation by his award-winning actress-wife Nicole Kidman.

Local celebrity couple Ogie Alcasid and Regine Velasquez also took their collaboration to social media with a song that reminds the listeners to continue trusting the higher forces and pray for God’s help when nothing seems to be working right.

Thespian Sheila Francisco sang her hauntingly beautiful version of the classic “You’ll Never Walk Alone,� breaking into tears as she dedicated the song

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Change begins with you. Consider what will make you happy, and start making the adjustments that will help you achieve your goal. Check out the possibilities, ask an expert and make a decision based on practicality, not emotions. ★★★

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Stick to what you do best. Don’t share your ideas, or someone will take advantage of you and steal credit for your insight. Trust is best earned, so don’t give in or let someone manipulate you. Discipline and patience will be required. ★★★

CANCER (June 21-July 22): When in doubt, ask. Don’t let your emotions lead you down the wrong path. Ask questions to avoid making a mistake. Don’t feel you have to overspend to make an impression. ★★★

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Learn by watching others. If you make a premature decision, you will end up paying for your mistake. Pay more attention to doing your best and finishing what you start.

Take care of your responsibilities before you offer to help others. ★★★★

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Expect someone to use emotional manipulation to get his or her way. Don’t let anyone take advantage of you or what you have to offer. Draw the line, and you’ll gain respect. A personal victory is within reach. ★★

to all the families of the frontliners who died in their service to humanity. “I don’t even know if you can gather to mourn the loss of your loved ones. I just offer you my prayers. Hindi kayo nag-iisa and we are all thinking of you. We are praying for you, and we thank you for the service of your loved ones.�

The good-looking Joaquin Garcia also shared his gift of voice in a special sing-at-home session, which uplifted many who joined his live performance. He said that he hopes his songs can affect those who find it quite challenging to cope with the times—especially those who are worried about their family members doing frontline work—the vendors, grocery people, food delivery men and women, drivers, and many more who continue to serve us all. Garcia also made

special mention to those who live alone and are battling sadness and depression by themselves.

Some music artists also put together “Bayanihan Musikahan,� with the theme “Love in the Time of Covid,� where they performed live one at a time on their respective social-media accounts. Take Ice Seguerra, who rendered a beautiful inspirational song, titled “I See You, Lord.� Jett Pangan and his son Rafi also participated, as did Johnoy Danao, Chito Miranda and Martin Nievera.

These lyrics from a Van Morrison’s song continue to be timeless: “When you hear the music ringing in your soul, and you feel it in your heart, and it grows and grows...you know the healing has begun.�

Thank you for the music. â–

GMA shows now available in 58 countries via Amazon Prime Video FILIPINOS all over the world can now watch their favorite GMA shows and artists via Amazon Prime Video.

Now available to Prime Video customers are some of the leading network’s successful shows The One That Got Away, Super Ma’am, Juan Happy Love Story, Beautiful Justice and The Gift.

Starring Lovi Poe, Rhian Ramos and Max Collins, The One That Got Away is a story about these women who formed an unlikely friendship after discovering that in different times of their lives, they were romantically linked with the same guy, played by Dennis Trillo.

Super Ma’am is bannered by Marian Rivera-Dantes as Minerva Henerala, a high-school teacher who lost her mother and sister to an archaeological accident many years ago. She had an encounter with winged creatures and shape-shifters called Tamawo, who abduct children to feed on their energy.

Minerva becomes Super Ma’am, a Tamawo hunter that saves the human world from them.

In Juan Happy Love Story, Heart Evangelista plays the role of Happy while Dennis Trillo is Juan dela Costa. The two meet when Juan rescues Happy from a thief. Their romance leads to a wedding. Their respective families are opposed to their union and the couple can’t have children on their own, so they decide to adopt instead.

Featuring the heart-pounding stories of the unsung heroes of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, Beautiful Justice is an action-drama series starring Gabbi Garcia, Bea Binene and Yasmien Kurdi.

Finally, Alden Richards once again showcases his acting chops in The Gift, playing a visually impaired vendor in Divisoria who discovers his ability to see the past and the future. It centers on hope, transformation and inspiration.

All these GMA shows and more are available in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand, as well as in Latin America, Asia Pacific/Oceania and Africa.

More information is available at bit.ly/3aqfq9H.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): High energy, coupled with dedication and determination, will help you accomplish what you set out to do. You’ll impress people with the way you handle your responsibilities and the solutions you offer. ★★★★★

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Observe the changes going on around you. If you don’t agree with what someone is doing, say so and opt to do your own thing. Follow your intuition, and learn from mistakes when dealing with friends, lovers and relatives. ★★★

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Inconsistency will lead to problems when dealing with people who are close to you.

Uncertainty regarding someone from your past will surface, causing emotional turmoil. Stick to the facts to avoid a conflict that could disrupt your personal life. ★★★

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Someone you work alongside will use emotional tactics to confuse you. An opportunity will have stipulations you may not like. Read the fine print before you commit to anything. Go about your business, and focus on doing the best job possible. ★★★

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Follow through with your plans. It’s when you second-guess what you are doing that you fall behind or make a mistake. Someone will want to spend more time with you. Question motives before you decide to lend a helping hand. ★★★★★

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Can you keep a secret? Your integrity will be in question if you are too forthcoming with information about someone. If you feel like talking, share positive statistics, and you’ll gain respect instead of disapproval. ★★ BIRTHDAY BABY: You are dynamic, ingenious and original.

You are compassionate and proactive.

‘taking things literally’ BY PENELOPE WILLIAMS The Universal Crossword/Edited by David Steinberg

ACROSS 1 Bit of information 6 She can have an Irish voice in iOS 12 10 Place in the overhead bin, say 14 Belittle 15 Possible major for a future CPA 16 Thus 17 Opinion I give, visually?

19 Steak order 20 Tire gauge meas.

21 Settled on a settee 22 Is jealous of 24 What a good idea can do 26 Neighbor of Jordan 28 What you are after a bad breakup, visually?

32 Old horses 35 Nickname hidden in “get in on�

36 Separated 37 “Who ___ to judge?�

38 Common San Francisco forecast 39 It doesn’t naturally mix with water 41 Cause of sleepless nights, in a fairy tale

42 44 46 47

App for paying people Participated in a choir NBA game channel Make an upsetting situation worse, visually?

50 Haley Joel of The Sixth Sense 51 Reach across the ___ 54 Hang around 56 Explosive letters 57 Palindromic PC file extension 59 Large coffee holders 60 Like a rookie, visually?

64 Give five stars to, say 65 What the floor is, in an improv game 66 “Iliad� and “Odyssey�

67 If not 68 Retinas’ organs 69 Smart-alecky DOWN 1 Moist 2 Deep hole 3 Wordlessly implied 4 Function 5 Person of integrity 6 The Quakers, for one

7 8 9 10 11 12 13 18 23 25 26 27 29 30 31 32 33 34 38 40 43 45 46 48 49

Word before “cream� or “cube�

Swanson in Parks and Recreation Often-unpaid worker Present, as food They’ll show you the path Shrek, e.g.

Troubles Become fond of 2019 French Open winner Rafael “___ a date!�

What’s never free of charge?

Faints from emotion Starts eating with gusto Get ready, briefly Pal of Kenny and Kyle Avatar�people “You said it!�

Speak easies, e.g. “None ___, thanks�

Galapagos lizard Movie you shouldn’t miss One may crawl through an outlet UFO crew Dr. Seuss’s turtle Petrol units

52 53 54 55 56 58 61 62 63

Clark’s partner Corp. higher-ups Item in a tackle box Type of history Rooibos and Earl Grey Popular craft site It may be baled Killing ___ (Sandra Oh show) Place for a massage

Solution to Friday’s puzzle:

Style

BusinessMirror

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Monday, March 30, 2020

B5

TERNOCON 2020 winners and their winning designs: Dinnes Obusan, bronze medal; Hannah Adrias, gold medal; and Jaggy Galrino, silver medal.

CHARLES VILLARUZ

TernoCon 2020: Revitalizing the Terno revitalized interest in the national dress.”

TOTA PULCHRA MISS CHARLIZE

@misscharlize

A

TER the Taal Volcano eruption but before the Covid-19 quarantine, there was TernoCon. Like the first edition in 2018, the “terno-making convention and competition for emerging Filipino designers and a showcase of new ternos by professional/senior designers” was a spectacular fashion and cultural showcase.

A brainchild of stage designer and author Gino Gonzales, TernoCon was underwritten by the Cultural Center of the Philippines and Bench/Suyen Corp. It started with preparatory workshops and mentoring in May 2019 and culminated in a finals night on January 26 at the CCP. Music was arranged

by National Artist for Music Ryan Cayabyab and performed by the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra, styling by Noel Manapat and direction by Dexter Santos.

TernoCon aims “to encourage the use of the terno as a popular form of formal dress; and to inspire and motivate emerging designers to create ternos that are at par with the construction skills of senior designers.

It is also, as CCP Chairman Margie Moran-Floirendo emphasized in her welcome remarks, “to sustain the

BENCHCARES BEHIND this undertaking is Bench. It is the retail empire’s deeper foray into high fashion, complementing its support for the annual Red Charity Gala and its own Bench Fashion Week. “The terno brings out the best of the Filipino designer,” said Ben Chan. “Bench is fully committed to preserving Filipino culture.”

Through the Philippine Red Cross, the brand donated P1 million for relief efforts for the victims of the Taal Volcano eruption. Consequently, through its BenchCares program, it is donating alcogel and alcohol to the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine General Hospital to help in the fight against Covid-19.

Its food brands, Paul and Manugame, distributed meals for our frontliners at St. Luke’s BGC, Makati Medical Center, and Bacoor District Hospital. It is also giving financial aid to all its employees in the form of full salaries, without deductions against leave balances for the duration of the lockdown.

THE FINALISTS “I’LL always be a proud advocate of #LoveLocal. It will always be an honor to help in promoting and paying tribute to our Philippine culture and ensure the preservation of the Philippine Terno—after all, that’s the least we can do for our motherland,” Chan said. “Let’s impart the skills and knowledge involved in crafting the terno to the next generation.”

The 13 TernoCon finalists were: Abdul Gaffar A. Dianalan (Iligan City), Christian Jay P. Martin (Nueva Vizcaya), Rogelio Samson Pugat Jr. (Ilocos Norte), Renz Edward L. Reyes (Cavite), Hanz Herzl Pableo (Cebu

City), Christopher L. Zamora (Davao City), Hannah Francesca L. Adrias (Pasay City), Jennifer Jean A. Dee (Manila), Jayson “Jaggy” A. Glarino (General Santos City), Krizia Kaita A. Jimenez (Quezon City), Windell B. Madis (Ilocos Norte), Dinnes Obusan (Camarines Sur), and John Gavin B. Ruffy (Las Pinas City).

Each finalist was required to design and execute a capsule collection of three ternos. And each of the finalists delivered, each piece a construction marvel, all imbued with youthful vigor. But there can only be three winners. The gold medal went to Adrias, a bespoke tailoring scholar at Slim’s Fashion and Arts School; the silver to Glarino, a registered nurse and self-taught designer who previously won at the Bench Design Awards (BDA) 2017; and the bronze medal to Obusan, a former sacristan and descendant of National Artist for Dance Ramon Obusan.

The finalists were assigned to mentors Ivarluski Aseron, Philip Rodriguez and Lesley Mobo, with Inno Sotto as head mentor. “Hannah has sharp technical and tailoring skills so we thought it would be great if she can use those skills to her advantage because that is quite rare nowadays, espcially for a female young designer,” Mobo, a London-based Aklan native said.

THE WINNERS WITH their triumphs at TernoCon, the three propelled themselves to the frontline of Filipino fashion.

■ HANNAH ADRIAS, 24, PASAY CITY. “The vision and inspiration behind my collection is a strong Filipina.

One who is confident enough to wear menswear pieces. First, I already have a color palette in mind.

Our initial designs changed throughout the entire production of the pieces. My mentor was Lesley Mobo.

He helped me conceptualize the silhouette, make it

look more loose fitting, for a much comfortable and laidback look. He helped me hone my aesthetic, and use my tailoring skills. Winning at TernoCon 2020 is a blessing. I never expected it. It showed on my face when I won. I’ve been having a lot of inquiries and opportunities lately and I’m forever grateful for it.”

■ JAGGY GLARINO, 32, GENERAL SANTOS CITY. “TernoCon is very different. In the Bench Design Awards, judges criticized our works during prejudging. In TernoCon, there are assigned mentors.

I was assigned to Ivarluski Aseron. It’s always good to challenge your limits as a designer. Competitions, they always keep me on my toes. I don’t intend to rest on my laurels ever. Having said that, I think this win has been very significant in a way that it has allowed me to know more about myself, my way of thinking and my creative process. I think that is very important. It equips you. It somehow makes you ready to be an effective collaborator, an effective designer for your clients.”

■ DINNES OBUSAN, 37, CAMARINES SUR. “Ang collection ko po ay galing sa final exam ko sa dressmaking sa Slim’s Fashion and Arts School. Nung 2018 ang Slim’s exhibit ay may theme na ‘Laro’ at ang naging final exam kong terno ang naging inspiration ko ay Chinese garter. Doon galing ’yong naging collection ko dito sa TernoCon. Ang naging mentor ko ay si Lesley Mobo. Magaling siya, very hands-on siya sa amin. Weekly kami naga-update sa development ng mga collection namin. Malaki ang naitulong sa ’kin ng pagkapanalo. Marami nakakilala sa akin at nagbukas ito para sa mga future clients and nakatulong din para madagdagan ang self-confidence ko. Dahil dati takot akong humarap sa client pero ngayon medyo OK na kahit may konti pang pag-aalangan sa kadahilanang di ako masyado marunong mag-English.” ■

Current state: Manufacturing hand sanitizers instead of perfumes IT’S been 16 days since I have been quarantined, the second time in two months. After I came back from a trip in February, I was also quarantined for 14 days.

I’m used to it, really. I mostly work from home and this is nothing new to me.

What is new to me is the lack of news about the beauty industry. Normally, by this time, all the spring makeup collections would already be out and there would be so many launches and press events.

But these are not normal times and it’s so quiet and we’re all home. I’m not complaining though. I am privileged to be able to work from home under these circumstances.

Whatever news from fashion and beauty conglomerates these days are humanitarian in nature.

Last week, I talked about how LVMH is manufacturing hand sanitizers to be given away for free to the French hospital system.

This time, Bulgari, which is also part of LVMH, is joining the fight against the coronavirus. A month after donating a 3D high-definition microscope to the Spallanzani Hospital, the Roman jeweler has announced that it will manufacture, together with its historical fragrances partner ICR (Industrie Cosmetiche Riunite, Lodi), several hundred thousand hand gel bottles to be supplied in priority to all medical facilities through the Italian Civil Protection Department.

“Thanks to our fragrances expertise, we have been able to develop together with ICR a ‘hand cleansing gel with sanitizer,’ which will be

AND THEN SOME DINNA CHAN VASQUEZ @dinnachanvasquez luckydinna@gmail.com

manufactured in our Lodi Factory already making our high-end perfumes and hotels amenities. Aware of the difficult situation we are experiencing, we believe it is our duty to contribute with our know-how and production facilities and we thank the Italian Civil Protection Department who will take care of the collection and distribution,” said Bulgari CEO JeanChristophe Babin.

The hand gel, contained in recyclable 75ml bottles, will be distributed to Italian hospitals and medical facilities via the Protezione Civile. Bulgari plans to manufacture hundreds of thousands of bottles in the coming two months.

Estée Lauder, meanwhile, is reopening its Melville, New York, manufacturing facility to produce hand sanitizers for high-need groups and populations, including frontline medical staff.

Hair care brand Amika (I love their curling and straightening wands) has put in place an online

affiliate program to help hairstylists capture commissions on client sales, which they would normally get in salons.

The hairstylists are asked to register at Amika’s web site to get a custom vanity link which will allow them to receive a 40-percent commission from orders that their clients place.

These will be fulfilled through Amika’s warehouse and sent directly to the stylists’ clients. Amika will also facilitate digital master classes to help stylists continue their education on their Instagram account (@amikapro).

Deciem, the parent company of the popular skincare brand The Ordinary, has closed all retail locations worldwide. The company also said in a statement issued on Instagram that all their employees will still be paid during this time.

Bath & Body Works also closed all of its North American retail locations.

The company said employees would still be paid and the company was looking for “other

ways to support those in need in our home office community.”

On the home front, Filipino brand Colourette Cosmetics rolled out a bundle of five of its mini tints for P699 with 100 percent of sales benefiting frontliners and those in need during the enhanced community quarantine. From this endeavor, Colourette raised P307,139 and of this amount, P20,000 went to Golden Gays, P142,139 to the Kaya Natin! Movement, P50,000 to Caritas Manila, P45,000 to the Face Shield Drive, P20,000 to the Coalition of Services of the Elderly, P20,000 to Kapit Cabalen, P20,000 to Poets and Friends, P30,000 to The Digital Architect, and P50,000 to Help Thru.

Once this lockdown is over, Colourette is one of the brands that I will try. A friend, who’s not a tint person like me, said their tints are some of the best she has tried.

But I honestly think the community quarantine will last longer than a month and it’s scary.

My friend and I were talking via WhatsApp a few days ago and we agreed that a vaccine might just be the answer to the pandemic.

BULGARI will supply several hundred thousand hand gel bottles to medical facilities in Italy. @BULGARI ON INSTAGRAM

B6 Monday, March 30, 2020

Globe turns over P14M in cash donation to PGH for purchase of medical supplies and personal protective equipment

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LOBE successfully raised and turned over P14M to the PGH Medical Foundation, Inc. (PGHMFI). The amount was gathered through the joint efforts of loyal Globe customers who donated over P9M via their Rewards points, and the company’s initial pledge of P5M in cash donation.

This is part of the telco’s comprehensive efforts in providing

immediate aid to medical frontliners at PGH, which is now a designated exclusive COVID-19 hospital by the Department of Health (DOH). The funds were utilized by PGH-MFI to purchase much-needed test kits, alcohol, and complete sets of personal protective equipment (PPEs) such as surgical masks, face shields, and surgical gowns.

Globe also turned over 50 mobile phones

preloaded with unlimited calls and texts to all networks valid for 30 days to serve the communication needs of healthcare workers and frontliners at PGH. “We are overwhelmed with gratitude to all customers who stand together with us in our ongoing fight against the pandemic,” said Ernest Cu, President and CEO at Globe. “We also hope that this can show our kababayans that in times like these, doing simple acts of kindness even within the safety of our homes can truly make a difference.”

Last March 5, Globe also donated P5M worth of surgical masks to the Philippine Red Cross. Further, it has provided free unli internet connection via its GoWiFi services since March 13 to 68 public and private hospitals across the country. Mobile and broadband customers are also encouraged to stay updated on the developments on COVID-19 with access to the official sites of DOH, NDRRMC and PIA free of data charges.

Download the Globe Rewards app to donate to PGH Medical Foundation and other partner medical institutions.

Learn more about how you can help in the fight against COVID-19 via https:// www.facebook.com/globeph/.

Genting Cruise Lines invites guests to ‘cruise as you wish’ with dream cruises and star cruises

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ENTING Cruise Lines announces its ‘Cruise As You Wish’ assurance via its flexible and convenient booking options for Dream Cruises and Star Cruises to assist guests in their decisions to cruise and most importantly to provide peace of mind in view of the unfolding COVID-19 situation.

With the ‘Cruise As You Wish’ assurance and booking option, all new and existing bookings made for any Dream Cruises or Star Cruises sailings prior to or on 31 July 2020 will have the flexibility to cancel up to 48 hours prior to sailing and receive 100% future cruise credit to be redeemed of any Dream Cruises or Star Cruises sailing embarking on or before 31st December 2020.

“On behalf of Dream Cruises and Star Cruises under Genting Cruise Lines, we thank our guests for their continued support and we understand the concerns of traveling and taking a vacation in light of the COVID-19

global pandemic. We hope with introduction of the ‘Cruise As You Wish’ assurance, it will help minimise booking concerns among our guests and at the same time provide them with the much needed flexibility and cruise option,” said Mr Michael Goh, President of Dream Cruises and Head of International Sales, Genting Cruise Lines.

The health and safety of guests and crew remains Genting Cruise Lines’ top priority and from the onset of the COVID-19 situation, the company has been working closely with the local and regional authorities in implementing precautionary measures with stringent health screening processes and enhanced sanitization and disinfection protocols across its fleet and in accordance with the various government policies. As a result, there have been no reported cases of COVID-19 among guests or crew while on board or transmitted via any of Genting Cruise Lines’ ships.

DLSU serves as a sanctuary to the homeless during enhanced community quarantine

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E La Salle University serves as a temporary sanctuary to the homeless in Manila during the enhanced community quarantine.

Sixty-one individuals, among them women and elderly, are currently staying at the 2nd floor of the Enrique Razon Sports Center until the Luzon-wide lockdown is lifted.

The initiative is in partnership with the Divine Word Missionaries (SVD) through their KAin, LIgo NG ayos (KALINGA) Program. SVD volunteers are looking after the basic needs of those who are taking shelter at the Sports Center.

Financial donations to buy food, medicines, and health kits are accepted through: AJ KALINGA FOUNDATION, INC. Asia United Bank (AUB) AUB Peso Savings Account no.: 082-11-000496-2

Conti’s brings delight to ‘Modern-Day Heroes’ in clinics and hospitals

Conti’s Bakeshop and Restaurant staff awaiting patiently for the boxes to board delivery vehicles

Conti’s Bakeshop and Restaurant staff packing water bottles and assembling food boxes

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ONTI’S Bakeshop and Restaurant is in the frontlines serving Filipino modern-day heroes in the field in this time of need.

Conti’s allocated boxes of bestselling puff pastries, pies and other baked goods to health front-liners and community officers who in these troubled times, provide dedicated service to those in need of medical assistance and emergency services due to enhanced community quarantine as a result of COVID-19.

Most in the private and even public sector have exercised the work from home arrangement enforced by the National Government as a way of minimizing the spread of the virus. However, this set-up is not for everyone.

A good number of our countrymen need to provide necessary services, especially professionals in the medical field, police and military officers, and countless men and women who are taking great pains and sacrifice as they perform their duties to the country and the people. They are the modernday heroes and their dedication and compassion inspire.

For those in the field, one of the many obstacles they face is where to have their next meal. In an effort to alleviate the sacrifice of our modernday heroes, Conti’s Bakeshop and Restaurant, has decided to extend a helping hand by providing delight to these heroic members of the community. This effort concretizes the sole purpose of the Udenna Foundation as it drives CommUnity Care, a pioneering initiative that unites all the companies under the Udenna Group to serve the Filipino people and face these challenging times as one.

Joey Garcia, Conti’s Bakeshop and Restaurant President and CEO said, “These are the times where the company’s values are evident, Godcenteredness, Creativity, Quality

Conti’s Bakeshop and Restaurant staff prepare their famously baked goods for delivery to our ModernDay Heroes, front liners of today

Focus, Accountability, Teamwork, and Guest Orientation.”

“These modern-day heroes are our guests. We anticipate their needs in the way Conti’s is known for, which is bringing delightful experiences.

We hope that amidst this challenging time, our modern-day heroes are honored, acknowledged, and very much appreciated for their acts of mercy and sacrifice for the good of the Filipino,” Garcia further said.

Conti’s Bakeshop and Restaurant staff packing water bottles and assembling food boxes Conti’s Bakeshop and Restaurant has reached hospitals including the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) Alabang Molecular Biology Lab, Taguig Pateros District Hospital (TPDH), Recuenco General Hospital (RGH), Medical Center Taguig, St. Dominic Medical Center, and Pampanga Premier Medical center with over 200 medical professionals, hospital staff, community personnel PNP officers served and has pledged to continue in the coming weeks. Conti’s Bakeshop and Restaurant believes Modern Day Heroes are not just found in hospitals or clinics, but they are also front liners as Supermarket Clerks at SM Supermarket, Watsons, and as Bankers from MetroBank, and BDO

to make sure that necessities are met even during these trying times, reason why they made sure that they are able to bring delight to their stations as they extend a helping hand through donation of goodies to retail servicing workers.

Conti’s Bakeshop and Restaurant staff awaiting patiently for the boxes to board delivery vehicles.

The Delightful History of Conti’s Bakeshop and Restaurant The family business was established by three sisters, Cecille Maranon, Carolle Sumulong, and Angie Martinez in 1997 which started in BF Homes, Parañaque catering to only within the neighborhood until realizing that there was a growing following that came with the brand, which called for a need for expansion.

Today, Conti’s Holdings Corp. has been bringing families and friends together in one table over good food and conversations for over twentytwo years. The delicious stories that customers spoke of about their signature Baked Salmon, Chicken Pie, and Mango Bravo cake helped the history of Conti’s paint a beautiful picture of the bakeshop and restaurant that reminded loyal customers of the goodness and comfort of having home-cooked meals in generous portions.

Marketing BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Monday, March 30, 2020 B7

Coronavirus updates:

By Millie F. Dizon

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N the past few days, the inevitable has happened. Taking a page from what other countries have done, the government has declared the whole of Luzon on enhanced community quarantine for a month. And most of us find ourselves having to stay home and work from home (WFH).

We are not alone. In an Elle interview, no less than the famous J.Lo herself says, “We’re all stuck at home right now. I am! Everybody’s quarantined and the world is upside down and crazy. So, we gotta make lemonades out of lemons right now, don’t we?”

She adds, “We have to find ways to focus and work from home, but also finding ways to keep our spirits high.”

But what can PR Pros do? In an article in PR News, “How PR Pros Can Trick Their Senses into Thinking a Home Office is The Office,” Seth Arenstein suggests to attempt to make your home office feel relatively close to your company’s office. He recommends that PR pros: n Set up regular work hours; n Have a pre-work routine (wash, make the bed, drink coffee, put on shoes and socks, etc.); n Designate a workspace at home that’s separate from your living space; n Carve out a regular lunch period; n Take periodic breaks; and n Avoid doing personal, nonrelated work tasks during work hours.

In Vogue.com, Michelle Ruiz shares with us 11 Tips for Working from Home, for the Uninitiated.

Ruiz, a freelance writer, has been working remotely for the past six years because of her job, and has picked up a few best practices along the way, which we could use at this time.

1. Exercise during your would-be commute.

“Working from home is a gravitational pull toward sloth-like be-

Digital: Meet the MultiFaceted Female Executives Behind the KUMU Livestreaming App

MANILA, PHILIPPINES—For Women’s Month, it’s only fitting to honor the beautiful and talented women in its executive roster who have helped grow Kumu, the country’s fastestgrowing social-media app in the country. Kumu provides Filipinos from all over the world an online platform that gives them a safe space and prioritizes their voices.

With inspiring profiles that spell “Girl Power” in bold and uppercase letters, we introduce to you some of the most talented and empowered women of Kumu.

1. Clare Ros

If there’s one woman who knows how branding works, it’s Clare (who is also considered by many to be Kumu mascot Karlito’s mom). Taking off from a career with Red Antler where she held designer and director of communication roles, Clare’s architecture background certainly helped in her ability to grow agencies by cultivating community, establishing social-media strategies, and creating brand experiences. Her unique eye for detail and continuing pursuit for new knowledge soon pivoted her toward production design and independent consulting. By 2015, Clare has made her mark as a creative

director for multiple start-up industries in tech, fashion, wellness and social impact.

In 2017, this rising star creative pursued her own venture by cofounding Kumu where she continues her passion for building brands and designing products that shape authentic experiences, connect and inspire people, and empower communities. Clare is currently based in New York with her fiancé and dog Pippa, but this doesn’t stop her from making a difference in KUMU’s central office in Manila.

2. Deanne Dalisay

As Kumu’s lead in business intelligence and operations, Deanne is a veteran when it comes to keeping up with today’s rapid pace of technology. Her expertise dates back to when Viber and WhatsApp were merely start-up ideas, particularly in making significant contributions to keep the prominent PinoyExchange message boards alive at the time when Facebook was on the brink of hogging the social-media spotlight. During her 14 years of being a digital professional, Deanne has also developed celebrity-branded online games, such as Anne Curtis’s Anne Galing, ABS-CBN’s Ang Probinsyano, Aldub’s Kalyeserye, and Voltes V, and was one of founders of Project Athena-a small mentoring community platform for women in Makati.

What keeps Deanne waking up every morning? We’re pretty sure the thirst to provide solutions for every pressing tech problem at the office is one of them. And with her innate ability to keep her Kumu team engaged and empowered no matter what challenges lay ahead, she

Ruiz who says she “likes to do a quick straightening up in the morning...but not try to let too much housework seep into work-work hours.” This she calls a “noble form of distraction and procrastination.”

8. Set boundaries

WFH certainly does not mean not working at all, so set a time schedule for your working hours, and a separate workspace.

9. Beware idle snacking

Mariia Boiko | Dreamstime.com

PR Matters

WFH tips for PR pros

havior, but getting a sweat in, even if briefly, starts the day on a more energetic note,” Ruiz says.

She recommends that we “seize the time in the morning that you’d normally spend getting to the office and do a home workout class (the Peloton app has yoga, strength, and boot camp classes that you could stream to your TV), or take a jog or walk in your yard.

2. Exile any family members if possible. Or simply space out

Ruiz suggests that if “children/ careg ivers/spouses/roommates will be home when you work, delineate a space that is yours and discuss the hours you’ll need space and privacy. Locked doors are sometimes necessary.”

3. Shower and change your clothes

Dress the part, as this will be helpful in getting you into a work mode. Of course, we can’t wear office clothes at home, but something you wear during weekends can probably can sleep soundly at night as well.

3. Ella Cualbar

Many would arguably say that an HR job is perfect for the ladies because it requires that innate people person quality. If that’s true, Kumu hired the right person in Ella and got way more than they were expecting. As the current boss handling the team’s Human Resources and Admin functions, Ella has over 10 years of relative experience under her belt working with companies that provide e-commerce, maritime and accounting services.

With Ella’s leadership skills and vast knowledge of compliance strategies, best practices, employee relations, policy and procedure development, and people management, Kumu is able to come up with relevant developmental training sessions for its employees and a more feasible organizational structure that works wonders for its operations.

Needless to say that Ella is definitely the right woman for the job!

4. Michiko Soriano

When it comes to women empowerment, Michiko remains at the forefront of local groups despite her relatively young age. From her advocacies with the Morena Movement, a community that highlights and empowers all women of every color, to being one of the founding members of Girls Got Game, a nonprofit organization that aims to empower women through sports, Michiko embodies the typical power woman that today’s young girls will surely look up to as their perfect role model.

Prior to assuming her Kumu post as vice president of Brand and Strategic

make you feel like a functioning adult and get you to start working.

No PJs or house clothes, please.

4. Embrace podcasts

Ruiz says that, “with no work friends around, and the thick sound of silence in the air, podcast hosts have become my faux friends.” She feels less lonely with “Michael Barbara explaining the news to me to The Daily; Bobby Finger and Lindsey Weber reporting what Rita Ora is up to on Who? Weekly for providing the weekly pop culture/politics download.”

Here, you can do your own research while at home. YouTube has a treasure trove of information on different subjects.

5. But also: Make fellow WFH friends

These days, these would be your officemates or business colleagues who are similarly homebound. Create your own Facebook messenger or viber accounts to keep in touch.

Ruiz has made many WFH Partnerships, Michiko founded an incubation program and co-working space called WeCube which paved the way for her to expand her network in the start-up and tech space industries both here and abroad.

Perhaps what keeps Michiko’s perfect personal and professional balance is her practice of ThetaHealing which is a spiritual modality designed by American naturopath Vianna Stibal that helps her clear her limiting beliefs. Based on what she has achieved so far, we’re certainly tempted to try it out as well!

5. Mica Pineda

Mica is your textbook definition of “it” girl and saying it’s easy to be enamored by this brains and beauty powerhouse is an understatement.

For Kumu, Mica is Head of Campaigns who is in charge of all those great inapp projects that users avidly join in which makes the whole app experience more exciting.

Wearing her other colorful hats as TV and events host, commercial model, actress, vlogger, and entrepreneur, many might wonder where she finds the time to be a Jane of all trades! Well, as they say, you manage time more efficiently if you know what you’re doing. Mica earned her Theater Arts degree from the University of the Philippines and her masters in musical theater from the Royal Central School for Speech and Drama, University of London then taught as an assistant professor in UP’s Department of Speech Communication and Theater Arts. Currently, Mica also runs a bed and breakfast café in Tagaytay called The Nest and for five years now, serves as a producer for the One Night Stand Cabaret

friends over the years, who have given her “structure, accountability, and inspiring aforementioned showers.” She also gets a boost from “old-school phone chats with friends or relatives who have flexible schedules.”

6. Log out of Twitter or your preferred social media

Ruiz shares a tip with us: “There’s nothing and no one stopping you from near constant media scanning while WFH, but signing out has a chastening effect.”

Instead of “clicking right in to an endless stream of content, you’re greeted with a log-on screen, and reminded you’re supposed to be doing work, not looking at your third-grade best friend’s gender reveal on Instagram.”

7. Don’t become Cinderella

Working at home comes with the realization that many chores and projects await. How to balance the two?

We may follow the example of which performs at 12 Monkeys every first Tuesday of the month.

6. Victoria Herrera

KUMU’s Director of Communications has been a household name over the years when it comes to multimedia.

This stunning professional is a writer, brand and content strategist, and entrepreneur with extensive expertise in the development of creative content for TV, radio, print, and diverse digital platforms. Her work has led her to Singapore and Hong Kong where she launched her own consulting company Next Theory in 2015 which focuses on helping brands develop their identities through novel marketing strategies. Her current role in Kumu has helped the brand garner traction in user engagement and media pickups catapulting it to become one of the most downloadable apps in the Philippines.

As if those are not enough to impress you, Victoria also takes on the role of social influencer and cofounder of She Talks Asia, an allfemale media and retail organization that curates conferences that focus on women’s empowerment. At this point, we’re pretty sure that when Victoria talks, everyone listens.

7. Steffanie Lyn Smetham

Many say that teachers are naturalborn marketers with how they use techniques in continual improvement and better communication to connect with their audiences which are the students. For Steffanie, who is currently managing Kumu’s marketing, having a teaching degree from Lewisham College in the UK certainly helped in how she made her mark as a professional marketer upon

Overeating is an occupational hazard of working from home. While Ruiz endorses eating and snacking, this should not be for eight hours straight. Instead “stocking healthy food like fruits, chopped vegetables, and peanut butter—helps.”

10. Make yourself a decadent lunch

From her experience, Ruiz says that the work from home vortex “can mean coming to at pm, and realizing you never ate lunch, only to grab a granola bar or a container of leftovers and call it a day.”

Of course, we will tire of fast food takeouts and leftovers, so this may be a good time to practice new recipes and make a delicious lunch you and your family will love.

Ruiz’s 11th tip is “Or better yet, go out to lunch!” which is not possible during this time. Nevertheless, embrace your WFH status, and as Beyonce and J.Lo would say, turn lemons into lemonade.

PR Matters is a roundtable column by members of the local chapter of the United Kingdom-based International Public Relations Association (Ipra), the world’s premier association for senior professionals around the world.

Millie Dizon, the senior vice president for Marketing and Communications of SM, is the former local chairman.

We are devoting a special column each month to answer the reader’s questions about public relations. Please send your comments and questions to askipraphil@gmail.com. returning to the country. But there’s a lot more we can learn from this nononsense and committed lady.

Prior to taking on the world of marketing by storm, Steffanie taught refugees in London’s Entry to Employment Programme, owned a call center called e-Leverage, finished an entrepreneurial course at the University of Maryland University College, played in a goth band, and was a Worship Leader for the Cornerstone Christian Church. Her driven nature eventually landed her significant roles as a marketing expert for several local and international companies after her teaching career and there’s no doubt her marketing leadership at Kumu makes her feel right at home.

It’s a fact that strong women like these Kumu ladies who are all beautiful inside and out are out to save the world. In this age of social media, gone are the times when Mad Men dominated the bigger desks. In their place are more woke women who are out to straighten out most people’s mistaken perspectives about how things should work by sheer action and passion. So to women everywhere, cheers to knowing you, being with you, and raising you!

Kumu is a powerful social-media platform that brings the voices of Filipinos from all over the globe at the forefront. Aside from presenting users real-time earning opportunities as a live streamer, chances to win cash in various game shows, and engagement in campaigns, Kumu also fosters communities that ignite relevant discussions among Filipinos.

Be part of the Kumunity now and download the app for free at Google Play or the App Store.

Sports TOKYO 2020 IN 2021 SPRING OR SUMMER? BusinessMirror

B8 Monday, March 30, 2020

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DECISION on when the postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games will be held is expected to be made within the next three weeks, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) told countries on a conference call on Friday.

International federations (IFs) were given a similar time line during a call with the IOC. The IOC discussed the new dates for the Games, postponed until no later than the summer of 2021 amid growing international concern over the coronavirus pandemic, with national Olympic committees (NOCs).

The timing of the Games is the most pressing issue for a taskforce established by the IOC and Tokyo 2020 to navigate the complicated challenges stemming from the postponement.

Confirming the exact dates for the first Olympic Games to be postponed in history will also pave the way for other key areas to be addressed, including venues and qualification.

IOC President Thomas Bach said earlier this week that there are “thousands” of questions following the decision to delay the Games, none of which can be answered until the new dates are set.

Majority of the 33 IFs on the Tokyo 2020 program prefer the rearranged Games to be staged between July and August, although some suggested dates in April and May. The prospect of a spring Olympics in Japan has been mooted and while this would require rescheduling of other sporting events, it potentially could avoid the high summer temperatures in Tokyo, which had forced organizers to invest in heat

Lockdown Games aid UP frontliners

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INESKI Global kicked off its online eSports fund-raiser tournament, Lockdown Games, starting Tuesday until April 13.

The first three days had high enthusiasm from viewers at MineskiTV’s Facebook channel, reaching approximately P250,000 in donations to aid medical frontliners, particularly beneficiaries at the University of the Philippines Medical Foundation.

It featured Marvel Super War where Mineski Global CEO and founder Ronald Robins duked it out with his fellow gamers.

Call of Duty will follow on Monday to April 2.

The schedule for Mobile Legends: Bang Bang has yet to be announced.

“We are thankful for the generosity and kindness of the eSports community to the Philippine General Hospital [PGH]. Your donation will go a long way in empowering our frontliners against Covid-19,” said Dr. Jonas del Rosario, spokesman and public affairs coordinator of PGH. Interested parties may donate any amount via an e-mail pledge sent to mineskitv2@mineski. net, via text at 0927-2798615, or through Mineski Global’s GCash, via 0917-8747768.

“I am humbly calling our entire community, especially those who will take part in the Lockdown Games and our partners, to lend us their hand in what we think is the bigger battle: that of providing immediate help to our friends in the health sector who are manning the frontlines against this pandemic through your donations,” Robins said.

To spice up the Lockdown Games, Philippine Basketball Association superstars and avid gamers—June Mar Fajardo, Marc Pingris, Japeth Aguilar and Kiefer Ravena—are battling in a DOTA 2 showmatch.

MAJORITY of the 33 international federations on the Tokyo 2020 program prefer the rearranged Games to be staged between July and August, although some suggested dates in April and May.

countermeasures for the Games.

Some IFs raised concern over high temperatures in the Japanese capital when discussing the possibility of rescheduling the Games for a similar window as had been planned this year.

IOC member John Coates, head of the Coordination Commission for Tokyo 2020, has suggested the organization is working with federations to potentially find a window in July and August next year.

Coates told insidethegames that he expected a recommendation on the precise timing of the Games to be put to the IOC Executive Board by the end of April.

New Zealand Olympic Committee Chief Executive Kereyn Smith said the organization “looks forward to learning the exact date of the Games.”

“Our athletes have reacted extremely well to the postponement of the Games and having a date to work toward will allow them to carry out the meticulous planning and the training required for an Olympic Games performance,” Smith said.

Bach also held a conference call with IOC members on Friday. He had previously sent a letter to the entire IOC membership, detailing the process which led to the announcement of a delay until 2021 because of the Covid-19 outbreak last Tuesday.

“In light of this situation, the IOC had to take decisions quickly, sometimes even every day, responding to a constantly evolving environment,” Bach wrote.

“I hope I can count on your understanding that because of the fast-moving developments, we could not always give you all the background information on a timely basis.” Insidethegames

PSC FACILITIES READY TO ACCEPT PATIENTS F

ACILITIES supervices and managed by the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) will be transformed into temporary medical facilities to help decongest hospitals in the fight against Covid-19.

This was confirmed on Sunday by PSC Chairman William Ramirez, who added that the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex in Manila and the PhilSports Complex in Pasig City will be at the disposal of the Department of Health.

The rising number of Covid-19 positives have packed hospitals and the DOH has started to scout for temporary facilities to care for the patients.

The Department of Public Works and Highways, according to Ramirez, and the DOH are already surveying the facilities and are close to implementing plans to convert them into temporary hospitals.

Ramirez said that in the light of President Duterte’s Executive Orders in the fight against Covid-19, the PSC has volunteered its facilities as options.

“These are government facilities and we already anticipated that it would come to that point,” said Ramirez, added that he has already discussed the matter with Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea.

Some 30 athletes and coaches, medical and administrative staff and security personnel are still at the facilities. The rest, Ramirez said, has gone home before the implementation of the enhanced community quarantine.

PSC Senior Executive Assistant and National Training Director Marc Velasco assured that the agency’s management committee would guarantee and health and safety of the athletes and coaches

stranded at the facilities.

“Thorough disinfection of the venues will be undertaken regularly and after their use,” Velasco assured. “These times call for unselfish patriotism.

These times call for everyone to be heroes, even.

Let us step up to the plate, so to speak. This is us, the sporting community stepping up to bat,” said Ramirez in the PSC’s official social-media accounts.

The PhilSports Multipurpose Arena and track oval and the Rizal Memorial Coliseum, Ninoy Aquino Stadium and Rizal Baseball Stadium at the RMSC are specifically targeted as temporary hospitals.

The Athletes’ Village at the New Clark City has been used as a quarantine center at the onset of the pandemic, while the Manila and Pasig facilities were used as emergency venues for calamities in Metro Manila.

T

RAMIREZ

Juventus, Ronaldo agree to forgo €90M in wages; Barcelona chips in

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OME—Cristiano Ronaldo and his Juventus teammates along with Coach Maurizio Sarri agreed to forgo €90 million ($100 million) in wages on Saturday to help the club during the coronavirus crisis.

The club said the money amounted to four months worth of wages, a third of players’ salaries.

The first agreement of its kind in Serie A since play was halted three weeks ago means Ronaldo, the highest-paid player in the Italian league, will give up €10 million (more than $11 million).

Juventus captain Giorgio Chiellini, who has an economics degree, led the negotiations with the club and fellow players.

“Should the current season’s matches be rescheduled, the club will negotiate in good faith with the players and the coach conditional increases of compensations according to the actual resumption and finalization of official competitions,” Juventus said.

Aiming for a record-extending ninth straight Serie A title, Juventus leads the standings by one point from Lazio.

“Juventus would like to thank the players and the coach for their commitment at a difficult time for everyone,” the club concluded.

All sports in Italy have been suspended under a nationwide lockdown through April

3 but health experts have said the need to try to contain the Covid-19 will likely last weeks beyond that. League officials have discussed resuming Serie A in May. Three Juventus players—Daniele Rugani, Blaise Matuidi and Paulo Dybala—have tested positive for Covid-19.

Earlier this month, the Agnelli family that controls Juventus donated €10 million in relief funds to Italy’s civil protection agency.

BARCA DONATES 30K MASKS

BARCELONA has delivered 30,000 masks to the Catalonia government to help fight the

necessarily change.

“I know there are some athletes that might not be in the same position,”Willoughby continued, “whether it’s physically or financially—hanging on another year could be difficult for some, and the qualifying processes are basically suspended and some have been finished. It’s a mess of uncertainty for a lot of people.”

Not just cyclists, of course, but for swimmers and gymnasts and a myriad other athletes for whom the Olympics is the once-every-four-year pinnacle of their sport. But those who ride bikes for a living are somewhat unique in that their schedules are often honed to the day, hour and minute. They adhere to strict diets, meticulously plan training rides, build strength at certain points of the season only to shift their workouts to those that build endurance. AP

coronavirus pandemic, the club said Saturday.

The masks were made in China and donated by insurance company Taiping, a regional partner of the club. Barcelona said the “daily use” masks will be distributed to nursing homes.

The club added it is working through its foundation “to do as much as possible to help with this crisis, both locally and internationally.”

“The club has put itself at the service of the health authorities to help to fulfill and enforce all its instructions, recommendations and orders to combat contagion of the virus and alleviate its effects as much as possible,” it said in a statement. AP

Rick Olivare100s bleachersbrew@gmail.com

Bleachers’ Brew

A chance in a billion I HAVE followed the career of Indian basketball player Satnam Singh ever since he was selected 52nd overall by the Dallas Mavericks in the 2015 National Basketball Association (NBA) Draft. He played two uneventful seasons with Dallas’ D-League affiliate the Texas Legends before being released. He played for St. John’s Edge in Canada but that was it. At 24, his career is definitely at a crossroads. More so now that he was busted late last year for doping.

I just rewatched One in a Billion (on Netflix) that film the NBA did on following Singh’s journey from Baloke, Punjab, India, to the NBA. While I laud the efforts of others to get Singh into tip-top basketball shape, the bigger picture, of course, was capturing India’s market.

Money. And more money.

Truthfully, I was really worried about Singh.

I didn’t think that he was mentally, physically, or even emotionally ready for the NBA. After all, he was just a kid out of high school. Granted that the SAT’s did not allow him to go to an American college, but I think that his handlers should have sent him to college where he would have really benefit him in more ways than one.

High school to the NBA is such a massive jump especially for a teenager. Your body isn’t fully developed what more your mind and way of thinking? And then there’s basketball. Five years of basketball isn’t enough against others who have been playing the game at a high level for most of their lives. Now image going against—at that time—DeAndre Jordan and Dwight Howard. Even others in the Dallas roster might not look at him as a teammate but a person who could potentially take away his livelihood if he does get better as a hoopster.

Furthermore, there is the weight of expectations.

From a nation of over a billion people to the people who helped him along the way.

I think all over the world, people overlook the adjustment phase. I have even chided my own alma mater when we lost seven basketball stalwarts to academics. You do not just uproot anyone from their environment and tell them to make the grade. You need to provide mentors as much as tutors. It is a responsibility.

The same way with Singh.

I remember when the Indian national team took part in the 2013 Fiba Asia Championships. Their team were crowd favorites among Filipinos. It was there I got to see 6-foot-11 Amritpal Singh, 6-foot-8 Amyjot Singh, and 6-foot-4 Vishesh Bhriguvanshi. And since that tournament, their team has gotten better. They aren’t just a bunch of tall players who have been cobbled together. No, they are better skills-wise. Much better. And they are fun to watch.

I remember talking to an NBA scout that Tim Cone introduced to me and he remarked that basketball was in its infancy in India. “Wait until they learn the game,” he said.

And boy, do we know that. Time was the tough teams in Asia were China, Japan, Korea and the Philippines. Now you have to add Iran, Jordan, Lebanon, Qatar, UAE and the Oceania countries Australia and New Zealand to the mix. Even the Thais and the Indonesians are getting better.

Granted that India hasn’t really won in recent times, but one can hope there is a silver lining for their own Golden Generation.

And that brings me back to Satnam Singh.

It hasn’t really worked put for Satnam in basketball. But he is still young. Hopefully, he uses these setbacks as motivation to get better. It would be nice to see him maybe here in the Asean Basketball League where there is good competition.

Am just rooting for the Big Fella. And that nation of cricket players.

Knicks owner has Covid-19

US riders face another year of training for Tokyo HE decision to postpone the Tokyo Olympics until next year because of the coronavirus pandemic has left American cyclists with an abundance of mixed feelings.

Relief that a move had been finally made.

Disappointment that a lifetime ambition will be delayed. Frustration that months and even years of planning have been thrown in the blender. And still more uncertainty over when the Summer Games will take place, what the qualification criteria will look like and even if they will still be on the US team.

“As tough as the news is to hear when obviously the planning that goes into the four-year cycle of it all, and obviously now we’re only a few months out and on the homestretch of that path, it does stink to hear,” BMX rider and Olympic silver medalist Alise Willoughby said. “But, at the same time, the plan doesn’t

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph / Editor: Jun Lomibao

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MEMBERS of Team USA—(from left) Lily Williams, Emma White, Chloe Dygert and Jennifer Valente—celebrate their women’s pursuit gold medal at the World Championships in Berlin late last month. AP

AMES DOLAN, the executive chairman of Madison Square Garden Co. and owner of the New York Knicks, has tested positive for the coronavirus.

The Knicks announced Dolan’s diagnosis Saturday night. It is not clear when he was tested or when he received the diagnosis.

Dolan is the first US major pro sports owner known to have tested positive for the virus. He also owns the National Hockey Leagues’ New York Rangers, along with other venues like Radio City Music Hall, The Hulu Theatre and The Chicago Theatre.

“The Madison Square Garden Company Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Jim Dolan has tested positive for coronavirus,” the Knicks’ statement said. “He has been in self-isolation and is experiencing little to no symptoms. He continues to

oversee business operations.”

New York has been the hot spot for the pandemic in the US. The National Basketball Association has been shut down since March 11, the night that Utah center Rudy Gobert became the first player in the league to have a positive diagnosis for the vrus revealed. The Knicks played host to Utah— which later had Gobert and Donovan Mitchell test positive—on March 4 and played host to Detroit on March 8. Pistons center Christian Wood also later tested positive for the virus.

Gobert, Mitchell and Wood have all since recovered.

In Sydney, an A-League soccer player has become the first Australian professional footballer to test positive for the new coronavirus. AP