BusinessMirror May 14, 2020

Cut CIT rate now–biz groups

By Elijah Felice Rosales

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FINANCIAL SECTOR RUSHES TO FIND MIDDLE GROUND IN PANDEMIC BATTLEFIELD

OREIGN investors on Wednesday asked the government to speed up plans to reduce corporate income tax (CIT) rate to 25 percent, as the Philippines has to catch up with its Asian neighbors that implemented tax cuts lately to attract investors.

Leaders of the American and European business chambers said that it is the best time to rush the reduction of CIT rate to 25 percent, from 30 percent at present—the highest among Southeast Asian states. They argued that tax cuts would help firms manage the economic toll of the coronavirus pandemic and its consequential lockdown.

They also reminded the government that the country’s rivals for foreign direct investments are making moves to attract capital, especially at a time that many multinationals are moving out of China to

transfer operations elsewhere in Asia.

Government economists are now proposing the legislation of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act (CREATE) bill. The measure will serve as the repackaged version of the Corporate Income Tax and Incentives Rationalization Act (Citira), which got stuck in the Senate after its passage in the House of Representatives last year.

Now deemed the second package of the comprehensive tax reform program, the CREATE bill seeks to lower the CIT rate at a faster pace to lure investors to the Philippines.

CREATE lowers CIT to 25 percent on the first year of implementation, a radical change compared to the Citira’s provision of gradual reduction by 1 percent annually until the corporate tax rate hits 20 percent by 2029.

John D. Forbes, senior advisor of the

American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, told the BusinessMirror that “this is a very welcome proposal,” especially at a time of the pandemic that forced Asian rivals to roll out tax cuts in order to keep their investors.

He cited the case of Indonesia. In April Jakarta announced that it is accelerating its tax reforms by reducing CIT to 22 percent for this year and next year, and to 20 percent by 2022, as part of its financial playbook against Covid-19.

In exchange, it is imposing an electronic transaction tax on digital firms now having a field day generating sales, as individuals around the world are ordered to stay at home and are left with no choice but to buy things online.

Forbes also cited the case of India, which is offering 15 percent corporate tax rate to 1,000 foreign firms that are willing

Continued on A2

BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business

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DBCC REVISES OUTLOOK, SEES 35-YR GROWTH LOW www.businessmirror.com.ph

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Thursday, May 14, 2020 Vol. 15 No. 217

METRO Manila Mayors Abigail Binay of Makati, Carmelita Abalos of Mandaluyong, Francisco Moreno Domagoso of Manila, Imelda Calixto Rubiano of Pasay and Francis Zamora of San Juan attend on Wednesday a Mass on the Consecration of the Archdiocese of Manila to the Blessed Virgin Mary, at Manila Cathedral officiated by Father Broderick Pabillo, Apostolic Administrator of the Archdiocese of Manila. Pabillo has urged the government to include church services on the list of essential services allowed in the easing of quarantine rules. ROY DOMINGO

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BANKS CAN HANDLE FIRMS’ LOAN PAYMENT RELIEF PLEAS–BAP

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

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By Bernadette D. Nicolas

HE government now expects the economy to contract by 2 percent to 3.4 percent this year—deeper than its initial expectations—in what could be the worst GDP growth rate of the country since the 6.9-percent GDP contraction in 1985 based on 2018 prices.

This, as the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) estimated that the Covid-19 impact on the economy could reach P2 trillion or about 9.4 percent of GDP this year, way beyond initial estimates of P1 trillion.

In a special meeting on Tuesday, the Cabinet-level Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) revisited the country’s macroeconomic indicators and fiscal program for this year until 2022, considering the Covid-19 impact.

“The revised assumptions will

also allow the government to operate with a more realistic and prudent fiscal stance as it flags the downside risks to the economy and the fiscal program for the rest of the year,” DBCC said in a statement on Wednesday.

The new GDP growth outlook adopted by DBCC is also worse than the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’s (BSP) earlier projection of 0 to -1 percent for this year given the Covid-19 impact. Prior to the pandemic, the economic managers had

HE Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP) is optimistic that banks will be able to handle concerns over loan payment deadlines as businesses’ ability to pay declines amid the pandemic-induced lock down.

“We are confident that creditor banks have various options and alternative schemes to assist borrowers during these unusual times,” BAP told the BusinessMirror.

Addressing the appeal to extend loan payment deadlines by a year, BAP said: “We recommend that matters such as these are best handled by the creditor and debtor directly.”

The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) recently asked the banks and other non-bank financial institutions to delay payment deadlines for loans maturing between March 16 and December 31 for at least one year. The organization argued that businesses are currently in slump due to ECQ, which was recently extended until May 31 and in varying degree.

PCCI lamented that borrowers were now dealing with liquidity concerns and some businesses were forced to lay off employees amid the financial stress due to the pandemic.

Its president, Benedicto V. Yujuico, said that creditors’ “willingness to restructure loans maturing in 2020” could help the clients get back on their feet.

Among the sectors that were greatly at risk, as enumerated by PCCI, are transportation, automobile, arts and entertainment, hospitality, real estate, mining, manufacturing, construction, finance and insurance.

BAP President Cezar P. Consing earlier said that banks have been gearing up amid the pandemic by increasing the buffer for potential loan loss, adding that nonperforming loans (NPLs) are seen peaking by end of next year.

According to the group’s estimates, NPLs may surge to approximately P240 billion to P300 billion in the coming months. It expects that 50 percent to 80 percent, or P120 billion to P240 billion, will be written off.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), meanwhile, set its estimate for bad loans at P556.6 billion this year or 5 percent in NPL ratio. Gross NPL and gross NPL ratio stood at P172.38 billion and 1.74 percent, respectively, as of February.

The government earlier announced that banks and financial institutions are mandated to implement 30-day grace period to all loans with principal and/ or interest falling due during the enhanced community quarantine.

Earlier, BAP pledged to maintain liquidity and help economic recovery amid the pandemic as it remains committed to offering services to the public.

See “GDP,” A2

Neda chief still sees V-shaped recovery in H1 D

CHUA: “V-shape most likely.”

ESPITE projecting that the country’s full-year GDP growth to contract by 2 to 3.4 percent this year, the government said it is “most likely” that the economy would recover in the second half of the year after a contraction in the second quarter.

Acting Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua said on Wednesday they are still pinning their hopes on a V-shaped recovery.

“V-shape most likely,” he said in a message to the BusinessMirror, adding that they are still “hopeful” that the country would have a positive growth for the third and

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 50.3540

fourth quarters.

Asked on the Development Budget Coordination Committee’s (DBCC) quarterly GDP growth estimates that will lead to the full-year contraction of 2 to 3.4 percent this year, Chua said: “We do not project quarterly.”

The DBCC’s projection of GDP contracting by 2 to 3.4 percent this year could be the country’s worst GDP growth rate since 1985 when the economy contracted by 6.9 percent.

In 1985, the economy contracted by 6.9 percent due in part to the debt crisis the country experienced that year. In De-

cember 1985, former President Ferdinand E. Marcos called for a snap election.

The economy contracted by 0.2 percent in the first quarter of 2020, its steepest decline in over two decades.

However, Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC) Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort expects a U-shaped recovery as he sees negative GDP growth for the second and third quarters before the country’s economy posts a positive growth in the fourth quarter.

Ricafort sees the economy contracting by 5 percent for the second quarter

Continued on A2

PEDICABS, or bike taxis, ply the streets of Barangay Pinagbuhatan in Pasig City. The city’s transportation department has declared biking as an essential mode of transportation, and is now constructing more bike lanes and sidewalk extensions to make the streets safer for the riding public. Bicycle shops and businesses primarily engaged in the repair and maintenance of bicycles are also classified as essential, and thus allowed to operate amid the lockdown. NONIE REYES

n JAPAN 0.4698 n UK 61.7844 n HK 6.4968 n CHINA 7.1086 n SINGAPORE 35.5206 n AUSTRALIA 32.6042 n EU 54.6240 n SAUDI ARABIA 13.4099

Source: BSP (May 13, 2020)

News BusinessMirror

A2 Thursday, May 14, 2020

Malls, servicerelated entities may operate in MECQ sites–IATF Continued from A1

Work protocols

ROQUE said the aforementioned businesses, which were previously not allowed under ECQ, will be allowed to operate in MECQ areas, but on the condition that only 50 percent of their employees will be on site, while the rest must work from home.

Government offices operating in MECQ areas should also have a skeletal workforce only.

Since public transportation will remain suspended in MECQ areas, Interior Secretary Eduardo Año said the employers should provide shuttle services to their employees, who will be required to do onsite duty.

“They should also carry with them their [office] ID and certification of employment so they will have less hassle in checkpoints,” Año said.

The shuttles should be registered with the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) and only have 50 percent of their passenger capacity occupied.

The use of private vehicles will be allowed for workers going to work in MECQ areas provided the passengers comply with certain protocols.

For cars, there should only be 2 passengers per row; and for bicycles, motorcycles and e-scooters, a maximum of one passenger only is allowed.

Currently, the IATF said the National Capital Region (NCR); province of Laguna; and the City of Cebu will be placed under MECQ up to May 31, 2020.

Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III said employees will also be required to comply with the mandatory wearing of face masks, social-distancing rules, as well as frequent hand washing to minimize their risk from being infected with novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19) when they go to work.

Sustainable quarantine

CHIEF implementer of the government’s national policy on Covid-19 Carlito Galvez explained the government opted to shift areas from ECQ to MECQ to make the community quarantine measures sustainable.

“We cannot have extended ECQ because it will kill the economy. And we have seen Covid will be a long battle until we have any vaccine [for it] so we need the economy to sustain this,” Galvez said.

But aside from business considerations, he said their decision to implement MECQ was also guided by the Covid-19 trends nationwide.

“One of our basis for the opening [of more business] is for the past few days the death ratio [for Covid] was lower compared to other countries,” Galvez said.

He attributed this to the country’s improving healthcare capacity for Covid patients.

Treasury raises ₧15B in T-bonds

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By Bernadette D. Nicolas

to relocate their plants to available industrial lands of more than 400,000 hectares.

Europeans, too

EUROPEAN Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines Executive Director Florian Gottein said his group also favors the proposed tax cut under the CREATE bill, saying such fiscal move will benefit mostly micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

Further, reducing the CIT rate to 25 percent immediately will ease cash flow pressures on firms and allow them to reallocate financial resources for their rebuilding, Gottein argued. Most business operations, particularly in Metro Manila, are bleeding for revenue after lockdowns halted two months of operations.

“ECCP believes that reducing the corporate income tax from the present rate of 30 percent to 25 percent will provide immediate relief to businesses—especially MSMEs—as they recuperate from the economic toll from Covid-19,” Gottein told the BusinessMirror.

The Duterte administration has been pushing for the passage of a fiscal measure slashing CIT rate to make the Philippines competitive with those of its Asian rivals.

raised through tap facility auction.

For the whole month of May, the Treasury aims to borrow P170 billion from the local debt market through auctioning off government securities.

The national government’s outstanding debt surged to P8.177 trillion as of end of first quarter of the year, up by 4.8 percent from P7.802 trillion in the same period in 2019.

As of end-March, the national government’s debt stock is also slightly up by 0.1 percent, from P8.166 trillion as of end-February this year.

Year-to-date, the outstanding debt of the government has increased by 5.8 percent or P446.125 billion from the end-2019 level of P7.731 trillion.

Of the total debt stock, 33 percent was sourced externally while 67 percent represents domestic debt.

HE Bureau of the Treasury raised an additional P15 billion in 3-year Treasury bonds (T-bonds) through the tap facility auction on Tuesday.

The auction was oversubscribed as tenders reached P24.815 billion, exceeding the P15-billion offering.

The T-bonds had a remaining term of 2 years and 11 months and are set to mature on April 21, 2023. The offering also had an average rate of 2.946 percent and a coupon rate of 3.500 percent.

The tap facility window is open to all 11 government securities eli-

gible dealers-market markers.

For this week, the Treasury borrowed a total of P71 billion.

Broken down, P22 billion in Treasury bills were auctioned off on Monday followed by an additional P4 billion in 364-day Treasury bills raised through the tap facility auction.

On Tuesday, the Treasury sold P30 billion in 3-year T-bonds and an additional P15 billion was also

Broken down, domestic debt reached P5.513 trillion as of endMarch, growing by 6.1 percent from P5.197 trillion a year ago.

It is also slightly up by 1.2 percent compared to the end-February 2020 level of P5.45 trillion.

Government securities accounted for the bulk in domestic borrowings as of end-March at P5.512 trillion, posting a 6.1-percent growth year-on-year from P5.196 trillion in 2019 and a 1.2-percent month-on-month increase compared to P5.449 trillion as of end-February.

On the other hand, government offshore debt as of end of the first quarter expanded by 2.3 percent year on year to P2.665 trillion, up from P2.605 trillion in 2019.

However, the end-March external debt figure slid by 1.89 percent from the end-February level of P2.716 trillion.

DOH admits data errors, but insists it didn’t jeopardize Covid decision-making B RUSHING aside doubts on its data collection and reporting systems, the Department of Health (DOH) on Wednesday said the issues raised by the University of the Philippines Covid-19 Pandemic Response Team pertain to just a “nominal percentage of the whole data set, and does not prejudice the overall interpretation of data and decision-making.”

The DOH statement read, “We assure the public that the issues raised are a nominal percentage of the whole data set, and does not prejudice the overall interpretation of data and decision making.

Data is continuously rectified the moment we identify any issue, including but not limited to date formatting inconsistencies, case classification, and proper identification of residence.”

The observed discrepancies, the DOH stressed, have been resolved as early as April 26, as well as other inconsistencies communicated by private citizens through covidtracker@doh.gov.ph.

“We very much appreciate the UP Resilience Institute for raising their concerns,” the DOH added, referring to the UP Covid-19 Pandemic Response Team in its Policy Note No. 6, dated May 8, 2020.

The DOH said it had already taken note of the data errors found in the April 24 and 25 data drops.

The statement of DOH came after a Facebook post by the UP Resilience Institute on Tuesday showed discrepancies in the agency’s official data on infected pa-

Cut CIT rate now–biz groups Continued from A1

www.businessmirror.com.ph

However, it is facing difficulty getting such reform past Congress, as lawmakers are wary of the tradeoffs that may come with it.

The Citira bill hurdled the House last year but failed to slip past the Senate, as senators worried that the measure’s component on rationalization of fiscal incentives will lead to capital flight and job losses.

Besides trimming CIT rate to 20 percent by 2029, the Citira bill overhauls incentives granted to firms in economic zones.

The rationalization will remove even the 5 percent tax on gross income earned paid in lieu of all local and national taxes, a tax perk that many investors say is crucial to their operations here.

Last year, the JFC warned that the lifting of incentives as laid out under Citira bill could displace more than 700,000 workers, as economic zone locators, mostly multinationals, will be compelled to move to another Southeast Asian country.

Industry groups have been telling the government that incentives are what keep the Philippines competitive with its counterparts in the region. They said this is the best tradeoff that they can get for investing here in spite of the country’s having the highest logistics cost in Southeast Asia and one of the highest energy costs in Asia.

tients. Its comparison data drops on April 24 and 25, 2020, showed that: Cases have changed sex from male to female or vice-versa; Patients become either older or younger overnight; Cases were reclassified either to another city or a completely imaginary city and; a patient who reportedly died on April 24 is no longer dead the following day.

Nevertheless, the DOH assured that they remain committed to transparency, and welcomes feedback from the expert community.

Moving forward, the DOH said they will include more details on the specific rows that have changed from the previous day due to corrections.

The agency stressed that building and using high-quality data systems normally takes months of effort, while the crisis has demanded that the existing systems be improved and scaled out in real time.

“We are collaborating with a wide range of institutions, and we welcome other data engineers, data scientists and specialists willing to contribute to this effort, as this is a matter of national importance,” the statement said, adding that the DOH is grateful to the World Health Organization (WHO), epidemiologists of the University of the Philippines Manila College of Public Health, and Thinking Machines Data Science for their immense support in data validation and analysis.

The daily data drops, the DOH said, would not be possible without their guidance and expertise.

MEMBERS of the Manila Police District man checkpoints along Plaza Dilao in Manila as the capital region prepares the shift to a modified enhanced community quarantine. ROY DOMINGO

“We acknowledge that the system is not perfect but we continue to improve our data collection and reporting systems. DOH welcomes feedback as we respond to the information needs and the call for transparency from our fellow Filipinos in this national response against the Covid-19 pandemic,” the DOH added.

The DOH is currently rolling out a new digital epidemiological surveillance information system “COVIDKAYA” developed with the WHO Country Office.

This new system automates several data collection processes— something that is expected to minimize encoding errors.

Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

Neda chief still sees V-shaped recovery in H1 Continued from A1 and the GDP growth to remain in the negative territory in the third quarter at -1 to -3 percent.

For the fourth quarter, Ricafort said the economy would start recovering to 1 to 3 percent growth on the back of stimulus measures as well as Christmas season spending.

With this, he is estimating that the country’s full-year GDP this year to contract by 2 to 4 percent, which he said would still be “better” compared to other Asian countries that are projected to contract by 5 to 10 percent and other developed countries around the world, with estimated 10 to 15 percent GDP contraction for some big European countries.

For 2021, Ricafort said he sees a strong GDP growth for 2021 at 7 to 8 percent “largely due to low base/denominator effects.”

“The economy could recover gradually in about 1 to 2 years [U-shaped recovery], largely depending and as a function of how long the lockdowns would last and how the Covid-19 pandemic would be controlled/contained, as any sustained

economic recovery/rebound would also partly depend on any successful development of a cure/vaccine,” he said in a message to the BusinessMirror.

For UnionBank Chief Economist Ruben Carlo Asuncion, the government’s GDP estimates of up to -3.4 percent contraction this year is also in line with their projection under the worst scenario.

Under this scenario, Asuncion said he expects more of a check-mark type of recovery as there could be more of a “sluggish recovery” without the discovery of the vaccine before achieving positive growth back in 2021.

“For this worst-case scenario, there is a slight uptick in H2 (second half) [of] 2020. What’s really critical, as mentioned, is the discovery, availability and administration of a vaccine for growth to start inching into pre-Covid-19 territory,” he told the BusinessMirror.

For 2021, he is projecting a 1.7-percent GDP growth.

Deficit spending

THE DBCC also said it projects deficit spending this year to increase to P1.56 trillion or 8.1 percent of GDP, 2.8 percent-

age points higher than the estimate of 5.3 percent of GDP announced in March.

The DBCC attributed the increased deficit spending to the revised revenue and disbursement program.

Expected revenue collection for this year has been revised downward to P2.61 trillion or 13.6 percent, posting a P560.5billion drop or 17.7 percent compared with the P3.17-trillion program approved by the DBCC on March 27, 2020.

On the other hand, disbursements for this year are estimated at P4.18 trillion (equivalent to 21.7 percent of GDP), slightly exceeding the program approved in March by P12 billion or 0.3 percent of GDP. The disbursement program was revised due to the releases for Covid-19 initiatives charged to savings.

Sought for comment, Asuncion said he expected the deficit to be a little lower at around 7 percent of GDP, although he said the government’s target is still “doable and manageable.”

“Doing too much to save jobs and safeguarding the general welfare of the Filipino people, most especially health, is way better than doing too little,” he said.

Bernadette D. Nicolas

GDP… Continued from A1

set a GDP growth target of 6.5 to 7.5 percent this year.

In 1985, the economy contracted by 6.9 percent due in part to the debt crisis the country experienced that year. In December 1985, then President Ferdinand E. Marcos called for a snap election, a move that in months would end his absolute rule of 14 years.

Despite the lower GDP outlook for this year, the DBCC expects the country to recover by 2021, with GDP growth of 7.1 to 8.1 percent, as the economic team aims for the timely implementation of a well-targeted recovery program, alongside efforts of the private sector, to mitigate the economic fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic.

The DBCC also adopted the BSP’s recommendation to revise downward the government’s growth assumptions for goods exports and imports to -4 percent and -5.5 percent, respectively.

“This is in anticipation of the global economy’s sharp contraction as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic,” DBCC said.

For next year until 2022, goods exports is seen to bounce back and grow by 5 percent, while growth in goods imports is projected to recover to 8 percent.

Oil, forex, inflation

THE BSP also recommended a lower price assumption for Dubai crude of between $23.0 and $38.0 per barrel following substantive weakness in global oil consumption amid the Covid-19 crisis. For FY 2021 to 2022, the assumption is that the per barrel price will increase to between $35.0 and $50.0 per barrel.

The DBCC also kept its 2020 to 2022 assumptions for foreign exchange rate of P50 to P54 against the US dollar and its current inflation target range of 2 to 4 percent.

However, average inflation rate for this year is projected to range from 1.75 percent to 3.75 percent “due to subdued demand.”

Meanwhile, deficit spending is also seen to reach P1.56 trillion or 8.1 percent of GDP, 2.8 percentage points higher than the estimate of 5.3 percent of GDP announced last March.

The DBCC attributed the increased deficit spending to the revised revenue and disbursement program.

Expected revenue collection for this year has been revised downward to P2.61 trillion or 13.6 percent, posting a P560.5-billion drop or 17.7 percent, compared with the P3.17-trillion program approved by the DBCC on March 27, 2020.

Disbursements for this year are estimated at P4.18 trillion (equivalent to 21.7 percent of GDP), slightly exceeding the program approved in March by P12 billion or 0.3 percent of GDP.

“The emerging disbursement program takes into account the releases for Covid-19 initiatives charged to savings coming from austerity measures, among others,” it said.

Deficit to GDP

DESPITE increased deficit spending, the national government’s deficit-toGDP ratio will remain in the median of comparable countries in Southeast Asia and East Asia, among peers with similar credit ratings, and among other emerging market economies, DBCC said. This, as long as the ratio does not exceed 9 percent.

Below this threshold, the DBCC said the debt-to-GDP ratio will be around 50 percent, far lower than the most recent peak of 71.6 percent in 2004.

Aside from these, the DBCC also approved a lower 2021 cash budget to P4.18 trillion or 19.6 percent of GDP. This is around P460 billion less when compared to the earlier projection of P4.64 trillion in December 2019 following the reduction in revenue estimates for 2021.

However, this is still slightly higher than the P4.10-trillion cash budget this year.

“The DBCC noted that the Philippines has strong economic fundamentals and sound fiscal health. At the same time, the DBCC reiterated its commitment to work with the whole of government in responding to challenges brought about by Covid-19 while helping drive a rapid economic recovery for the country,” it added.

News BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Thursday, May 14, 2020 A3

NHA bares plan to move 1-M Metro residents to regions in next 6 months

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By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

HE National Housing Authority (NHA) is expecting to catch the interest of about a million Metro Manila residents in going back to their provinces in the next six months.

In a Laging Handa briefing on Tuesday, NHA General Manager Marcelino P. Escalada Jr. said the housing agency has gathered 5,000 enrollees for the Balik Probinsya program in a span of only five days.

Escalada assured that the government will facilitate the return of Metro Manila residents to their

provinces even in the next two to 10 years embodied under the government’s long-term plan to move back city dwellers to the regions.

“Basic to this is that this [program] is voluntary in nature, willing, and you are informed,” Escalada said. “In short this is a voluntary action by anybody living in Metro Manila right now [who] after a year,

or two, or even 10 years [would like to return to their provinces]. So we will facilitate the return of our kababayan to the regional urban centers, or rural centers they would like to choose.”

Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) Secretary Eduardo del Rosario said in the same briefing that those who would like to return immediately to their respective provinces may avail of over 3,000 housing units that have yet to be claimed.

Del Rosario said the housing units are located nationwide and may increase given that Escalada assured the NHA’s work of building houses to plug the country’s housing backlog continues.

Escalada said the NHA has sufficient funds to cover the housing needs of returnees. He said apart

DA seeks P66B to bankroll agri stimulus package

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

& Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

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HE Department of Agriculture (DA) on Wednesday asked the House of Representatives to include a P66-billion agriculture stimulus plan in the proposed economic stimulus package.

During the virtual meeting of the House Committee on Agriculture and Food, Agriculture Secretary William Dar said a stimulus package is needed in the agriculture sector to increase the country’s food production as well as to survive.

Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food Inc. (PCAFI) President Danilo V. Fausto, for his part, expressed support to the DA’s push for the inclusion of funds for agriculture sector in the government’s economic stimulus bill.

PCAFI is one of the industry groups that pushed for the inclusion of agriculture in the proposed Philippine Economic Stimulus Act (PESA) bill, which some experts noted was “too focused” on small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

“I hope this will be approved and the Senate hopefully would also support this proposal.

Immediately, we want the stimulus package be released before third quarter so that we will have something to harvest in time for the Christmas season when we expect increased in demand and food consumption

following easing down enhanced community quarantine [ECQ] in some areas,” Fausto told the BusinessMirror.

Fausto said they expect food demand to return as soon as lockdowns ease up since food is an “inelastic demand.”

According to Dar, the P66billion stimulus package for agriculture sector will include P31 billion for Alpas Kontra sa Covid-19, P20 billion for food logistic/food markets and other interventions and P15 billion for the cash for work program in the agriculture sector.

Of the P31 billion for Alpas Kontra sa Covid-19, Dar said P8billion rice buffer stocking will be allotted to the National Food Authority (NFA), P8.24 billion for rice resiliency program, P1.75 billion for integrated livestock and corn resiliency, P1 billion for expanded coconut based diversification project, P1.2 billion for fisheries resiliency project, P2 billion for expanded SURE Aid and Recovery Project, and P2 billion for expanded agriculture insurance project.

Also, as part of the Alpas Kontra sa Covid-19, he also pushed for P1-billion allocation for upscaling of Kadiwa in Ani at Kita Program, P1 billion for expanded small ruminants and poultry, P300 million for enhanced white corn production for food resiliency, P500 million for urban agriculture project, P1 billion for revitalized gulayan project, P500 million for sustained information, education and

communication project, P3 billion for social amelioration program for farmers and fishers.

For proper distribution and for farmers being able to bring their produce to the food market, Dar said the agency is pushing for a P20-billion food logistics/food markets and other intervention projects.

Of this P20 billion, Dar said P15 billon will be allocated for food logistics/ food market project, P1 billion for strengthening of price monitoring and enforcement system, P200 million for communication support to Agri 4Ps, P1.8 billion for expanding extension support to the provincial local government units, P1 billion for agricultural and fisheries commodity exchange system and P1 billion for digital agriculture.

Dar is also pushing for cash for work program in the agriculture sector amounting to P15 billion.

“The goal of this cash for work program is to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 by ensuring basic food requirements of poor farming families,” he said.

He said this program seeks to provide jobs to 1 million agrifishery workers.

Dar added this program will be included in the Balik Probinsya Program of the government.

“The DA will be actively involved in the Balik Probinsya, Bagong Pag-asa Program. We are also aligning the department to the program for 2021,” he said.

‘Proactive’ mayor keeps Butuan safe from virus

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HE mayor of Butuan City in Caraga Region has been leading a fairly successful fight to keep the coronavirus 2019 (Covid-19) at bay by implementing what the local official termed as “pre-emptive measures” to keep the city safe from the crutches of the deadly virus.

Butuan City Mayor Ronnie “Action Man” Lagnada, adhering to the war-time principles of foresight and action, said preemptive actions can save lives.

And the mayor said that’s what he did exactly for his city.

Foreseeing the ripples and effects of lockdowns governments were imposing all over the world and bearing in mind the critical supply chains logistics, Lagnada quick ly planned and ordered essential equipment to contain and conquer the contagion that has claimed the lives of more than 290,000 around the world as of Wednesday.

Mayor Lagnada fortified the cit y’s defense from Cov id-19

initially with regular briefings with his constituents, arresting public confusion he had anticipated would occur once the virus hit any part of the country.

He was the earliest mayor to suspend land, air, and sea travel to and from Butuan City and ordered an early on a lockdown in the city.

“Mandatory home quarantine shall also be obser ved in all households and residents here will also be required to wear a face mask,” he ordered.

Since Butuan City received its required medical supplies and equipment ahead of time like d i ag nost ics tests, m ac h i nes, equ ipment, protect ive gears, a lcohol , g loves, f ace m a sk s, medicines and v itamins, Lagnada was able to promptly orga ni ze a nd d ist r ibute a id, relief goods and personal protective gears to his constituents and frontliners.

“Together, with discipline and adherence to protocols like self-

quarantine, social distancing and healthy practices like frequent handwashing and reporting of symptoms, we can help contain the spread of the virus and save ourselves, our loved ones, and our community,” he said.

W hile other local officials were scrambling in reacting to their loca l situation, Butuan remained under control with early planning to avoid logistical delays that allowed the city to secure medical supplies early. Additional equipment ordered a month ago have started to arrive in the city recently.

Refusing to be caught offguard not only for his city but for the entire province as well, Lagnada ordered thousands of IgG/IgM anti-body tests, PCR tests, U T Ms, PCR mac hines, hospita l venti lators, and numerous other laboratory and hospital equipment currently being set-up to upgrade and to be ready for whatever may come with the growing pandemic.

from its budget, the agency can also tap into a still to be determined “cash back up” for the construction of housing units.

DHSUD noted that it has opted to turn over to the national government P261 million of its budget to increase resources for the Covid-19 response.

Del Rosario told the BusinessMirror that the funds were initially allocated from his agency’s maintenance and other operating expenses, as well as purchase for new vehicles.

“Of course, the housing projects of NHA will continue,” Escalada told the BusinessMirror. “We are allowed to use and realign funds under the EO [Executive Order 114]. We don’t have a figure but we need to determine first the [number of] enrollees,” he added.

Based on date obtained from the

Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), migration has reversed in recent years. Regions like the Metro Manila have experienced the highest out migration based in 2018 data.

In 2018, there were 509,000 Filipinos who out-migrated from Metro Manila, outpacing the 388,000 in-migrants in the region. This led to a contraction of 121,000 net number of migrants.

Other regions that also account for a big chunk of the Philippine economy, such as Central Luzon also saw more out-migrants at 109,000 in 2018, outpacing the 41,000 in-migrants.

In terms of regions outside the National Capital Region (NCR) with higher in-migrants than outmigrants were Calabarzon, Eastern Visayas, Bicol region, Davao and Ilocos region.

“It would also be worth note that in recent years, migration has been showing a reversal of direction, i.e., the subject regions while maintaining status as in-migrant areas are also becoming more like out-migrant areas. NCR and Central Luzon are now among the top net-migrant losing regions,” PSA reported.

Escalada expressed confidence that the Balik Probinsya program has a high chance of success since the program is being done in close coordination with other government agencies, as well as local government units (LGUs).

He said the Departments of Agriculture, Trade and Industry, Labor and Employment, Social Welfare and Development, and Agrarian Reform, among other are also onboard in implementing the program.

TheBroa

Business

A4 Thursday, May 14, 2020 | www.businessmirror.com.ph

Financial sector rushes to find mid

N

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

UMBERS are heartless; but are scary sometimes. P2 trillion and 30 million. The former is the estimated cost to the economy of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic. The latter is the number of Filipinos that government officials said could be out of jobs.

Think about it: the total labor force is pegged at between 40 million to 45 million. The jobless figures could mean more than half of Filipinos aged 15 years old to 65 years old would be unemployed after a 75-day lockdown.

These are not just merely statistics; these figures illustrate the gravity of the pandemic and its impact on businesses and households as the country faces an economic downturn.

For smaller firms, this can mean scaled-down operations—filing for bankruptcy at worst. For low-income households, this can mean drained savings, which ultimately puts stress on their cash flows.

They, along with big businesses, are seeking relief as the flow has been constricted.

The government’s response was the “Bayanihan to Heal as One” Act. The law mandates banks and financial institutions to implement 30-day grace period for all loans with principal and/or interest falling due during the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ). The ECQ, which began mid-March, was extended until May 31.

Government’s move is, however, a double-edged sword: providing relief for the borrowers while constricting the liquidity of banks and financial institutions.

In a battle between showing compassion and staying afloat, the banking industry is trying to find a middle ground to not lose the war.

Delayed payments

THE law, nonetheless, leaves banks to deal w ith potential impairment loss.

This means a reduction in the carrying amount of an asset— which is loan receivable in this circumstance—due to extension of debt payments, Isla Lipana & Co. Assurance Partner Zaldy D. Aguirre told the BusinessMirror.

“Delayed loan payments can give rise to an impairment loss unless the bank is compensated for the time value of money during the extended payment period,” he said.

“Postponing the collection also distorts the cash flows in duration.”

The Isla Lipana official explained that the delay in loan payments can give rise to asset-liability mismatch, leading to concerns over liquidity and adverse impact on income statement.

“Delays in receiving payments for amortization from customers will constrain banks to find funds to offset these obligations as cash flows remain frozen,” ING Bank Manila Economist Nicholas Antonio T. Mapa said in an email to the BusinessMirror.

Along with this, banks will be on the lookout as well for spikes in nonperforming loans (NPLs) as these can burn the bottomline.

The Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP) has warned that NPLs may surge to approximately P240 billion to P300 billion in the coming months. The BAP also expects that 50 percent to 80 percent, or P120 billion to P240 billion, will be written off.

Expanding NPLs

THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), meanwhile, recently forecast that bad loans may reach P556.6 billion this year, or 5 percent in NPL ratio.

According to data from the BSP, gross NPLs of the Philippine banking system stood at P172.38 billion as of February, which is 2.93 percent higher than the P167.48 billion recorded in January.

Gross NPLs, in the past three years, have been growing on the back of increasing loans, averaging at P122.53 billion.

In 2019, gross NPLs rose by 37.89 percent to P156.53 billion from P113.52 billion the previous year. Gross NPLs, meanwhile, stood at P97.53 billion in 2017.

It is more noteworthy, however, that NPL ratio—portion of gross NPL in the total loans—of the local banks has been stable during the period, Aguirre said. This means that the sector has a low exposure to default loans.

He noted that NPL ratio has been below 2 percent for the past three years, among the lowest in the region.

RCBC Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort noted this was an improvement from 20 percent registered nearly two decades ago.

As of latest data, NPL ratio stood at 1.74 percent in February.

Framework alignment

WITH bad loans on the rise, experts advised banks to be more discerning of the situation.

Mapa said that even borrowers with good credit standing can be cash-strapped due to the pandemic, which obligates the bank to carefully assess the clients’ profiles before tagging a borrowing as NPL or default.

“Banks now have the difficult task of gauging which creditors can remain to be good credit after the lockdown and which ones will truly struggle to make payments,” Mapa said.

Effective communication is key to managing NPLs and maintaining good customer experience during this pandemic, said Alden Basbas, country manager for the local unit of California-based analytics firm Fair Isaac Corp. (Fico), in an email to the BusinessMirror.

This means that banks will be dealing with numerous inbound customer calls, Basbas said, suggesting that automating the process can ease the burden. The Fico country head said that the firm has an artificial intelligence (AI)driven digital collections system that allows banks to manage the volume and complexity of inbound communications.

He stressed the need to identify “which consumers will catch up with payments and which ones will default.”

Ricafort expressed confidence that local banks are equipped to evaluate credit standing, noting that regulators are requiring them to “have credit risk weights on various loans, depending on the risk profile of borrowers, under

the risk-based capital adequacy frameworks that are aligned with global best practices.”

Expanding buffers

PREPARING for the inevitable, banks have been gearing up by increasing buffer for potential loan losses.

“In 2020, due to the pandemic, the banking industry is bracing for a dramatic surge in past due accounts after the moratorium period. This could cause a spike in the NPL ratio as well as sharp increase in loan loss provisions,” Aguirre warned.

Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) recently reported that its loan loss provision was increased by more than twofold to P1.8 billion.

Security Bank Corp. set its loan loss buffer at P5.7 billion—already surpassing its 2019 full-year provision of P4.2 billion—in the first three months.

Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co. (Metrobank) allocated P5-billion reserves in the first three months, significantly higher than P2.4 billion for the same period in 2019.

Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) accrued P1.3 billion for potential loan losses in January-March period, up by over sevenfold from P174.6 million the previous year.

BDO Unibank Inc. allocated P2.3 billion for potential loan loss in the same period. BDO Leasing and Finance Inc., meanwhile, earmarked P29-million provision for credit and impairment losses.

The Philippine National Bank (PNB) said its loan provisions reached P3.4 billion during the period, higher by P3.0 billion compared to the P346 million during the same period last year.

As of writing, other listed banks have not yet disclosed the recent figures of their loan loss reserves.

BSP data show that loan loss provision of the local banking sector reached P181.14 billion as of end-February, higher than January’s P178.42 billion. Provision for potential default rose by nearly 15 percent to P170.52 billion last year from P148.34 billion in 2018. Loan loss buffer was earmarked at P145.84 billion in 2017.

Not last resort

BANKS may opt to facilitate debt restructuring to cut losses from loan defaults.

“Debt restructuring is a strategy to improve the chances of collection, thus, mitigating the risk of the loan defaulting and becoming completely worthless,” Aguirre explained.

He said this process allows extending the terms of the debt and even reducing original interest rate.

Aguirre warned, though, that debt restructuring could drag a bank’s bottomline.

“Accounting-wise, debt restructuring can result in undesirable P&L [profit and loss] effects due to changes in cash flows between the original debt and renegotiated debt unless there is proper compensation for the time value of money,” he said.

UnionBank Chief Economist Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion, in an email to the BusinessMirror, agreed that debt restructuring could ease the consequences of NPLs. Asuncion added that debt restructuring “may potentially help both private companies and financial institutions if done correctly.”

Demand for borrowings

PRIOR to the Luzon-wide lock down, demand for borrowings registered an uptick.

The Central Bank reported that outstanding loans of universal and commercial banks, net of reverse repurchase placements, picked

Members of a youth group in Star Wars costumes entertain locals along a road in Malabon, Metro Manila, Philippines, Thursday, April 30, 2020. The youth group walks along streets to give residents some form of entertainment as they endure the continued community quarantine and to remind them to stay at home to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus. AP/Aaron Favila

up pace to 12 percent in February from 11.6-percent expansion the previous month.

Majority of the loans—which comprised 86.4 percent of the total—were for production activities, registering 9.4 percent in February from the 8.8 percent notched in January.

The growth was driven by activities from real estate; financial and insurance; electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply; information and communication; and construction.

Household loans, meanwhile, slid to 37.7 percent in February from 40.1 percent the previous month, recently adjusted BSP figures showed.

Bank lending even further grew in March at 12.9 percent, according to recent BSP data, driven by loans for production activities.

As of February, total outstanding loans provided by universal and commercial banks stood at P9.88 trillion, a little higher compared to P9.87 trillion a month ago, according to preliminary report by the BSP.

Positive effects

LOOKING at a three-year history, borrowings rendered by the banks have been on an uptrend, averaging at P8.95 trillion, per calculations by the BusinessMirror based on BSP data.

BusinessMir ror computations revealed that total loans grew

by 14.63 percent to P9.02 trillion in 2018 from P7.87 trillion in 2017. In 2019, this further rose by 10.38 percent to P9.95 trillion year-on-year.

Asuncion attributed the increasing loans in recent years to robust economic growth which encourages and allows businesses to borrow and fund expansion.

“The consequent increase of economic activities does not assure the success of all these expansions.

Some make it; and some do not,” he pointed out.

Gross domestic product (GDP) growth last year registered at 6 percent—from 5.9 percent previously—after revising calculations using 2018 as base year instead of 2000. This means that the country’s economic growth has been growing by at least 6 percent since 2012.

Rising demand

ASUNCION said that demand for loans would only surge in the next few months amid lower policy rates.

“With interest rates declining, the expectation is for loans to increase,” he said. “Demand may simply come from the fact that rates are ultra-low.”

The Central Bank recently cut rates by 50 basis points (bp), bringing overnight repurchase rate to 2.75 percent ahead of the May 21 policy meeting. It has also brought

down the reserve requirement ratio on reservable liabilities of universal and commercial banks by 200 bp to 12 percent.

Aguirre said that demand for new loans in the coming months are likely to be driven by the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to acquire immediate liquidity and address concern on cash flows.

“Due to the ongoing lockdown, most companies are not able to sell their goods and services and collect their receivables, yet they continue to shell out cash for some important bills,” he said. “This condition results in depletion of cash reserves and tightening of liquidity of businesses.”

Expecting improvement ACCORDING to the BSP’s Senior Bank Loan Officers’ Survey, most respondents were expecting a steady demand for loans coming from firms and household in the second quarter.

Using d if f usion inde x ap proach—or a condition where there is net tightening of overall credit standards for loans—the BSP revealed a disparity.

Loan demand coming from businesses is expected to improve in the second quarter due to higher working capital requirements, a decrease in internally generated funds and more inventory financing needs.

aderLook

sMirror

Editor: Dennis D. Estopace | Thursday, May 14, 2020

A5

ddle ground in pandemic battlefield Financial stocks, prior March 19 were averaging at 1,715.05 while the PSEi was at 7,221.11.

For the rest of the quarter, the average daily posting of the financials counter and the PSEi went down to 1,165.99 and 5,007.57, respectively.

Tracking earlier movement in the first quarter, financial stocks closed at 1,649.56 on February 26 when the PSEi broke below 7,000 for the first time this year. The shares in the financial sector further declined to 1,364.01 when the index slid beneath the 6,000 territory for the first time on March 12.

To recall, financial stocks finished at 1,832.01 while the PSEi ended at 7,742.53 at the first day of trading this year.

Year-to-date, financial stocks and PSEi have gone down by 36.53 percent and 27.33 percent, respectively.

Engaged in tech

Demand for household loans, meanwhile, is traversing the opposite path this quarter because of “less attractive financing terms” and availability of other fund sources, the survey noted.

In the first quarter, loan demand for enterprise increased due to higher investment in plant or equipment, lower interest rates and inventory financing needs.

Household consumption and housing investment, meanwhile, drove the demand for household loans during the period.

The BSP conducted the survey from February 28 to April 7.

Stable to negative

ULTIMATELY, the pandemic-induced market volatility, coupled with delayed loan payments, can drag the profits of the banks, Aguirre said.

“The grim economic outlook on account of the pandemic is currently rattling the market. Many economies (including the Philippines) are projected to shrink due to reduced consumer spending and slowdown in business activities,” he explained.

GDP contracted 0.2 percent in the first quarter, the first time since 1998, due to the pandemic.

Banks increasing their loan loss reserves did not help either as the move pulled earnings, which is the case for many banks during the first quarter.

Philstocks Financial Inc. Analyst

Piper Chaucer E. Tan, meanwhile, noted that he was expecting a Ushaped recovery for banks’ earnings, noting that those with good digital banking and online presence are likely to better weather the storm.

In the first quarter, total earnings of local banks rose by 9.29 percent to P59.66 billion from P54.59 billion the previous year for the same period, according to BSP data.

T he banking sector’s profits climbed by 28.35 percent to P230.67 billion last year from P179.71 billion in 2018. The bottom-line of local banks reached P168.07 billion in 2017.

Nonetheless, debt watcher Moody’s Investors Service revised its outlook for the Philippine banking system to “negative” from “stable” in April due to possible decline in profits amid the pandemic.

While it believes most large companies could withstand the disruptions, the prolonged lockdown, however, would be a bane for smaller firms’ debt payment capacity.

Saving on costs

STILL, analysts say robust capitalization can cushion the hits from Covid-19 as well as government measures to contain its spread.

Data from the Central Bank showed that the capitalization of local banks rose by 8.3 percent to P2.32 trillion in March from P2.14 trillion the previous year for same

month. Moody’s, meanwhile, said that capitalization of the industry will remain stable given that rated local banks have an average common equity Tier 1 capital ratio of 13.7 percent as of end-2019.

Still, Aguirre said that banks should focus on cutting costs to improve profitability because they are likely to miss revenue targets this year.

“Potential cost savings can also be derived via simplification of products and services and the underlying processes,” he said, noting that digitalization is one such measure.

“While the digitization program may require sizable initial investments, huge cost savings in the long run can be achieved through reduced manpower requirement in back-office and support functions,” Aguirre explained.

Banks can also rethink their dividend distribution plans for the year to increase capital buffer, he added.

Apart from the banks’ financial position, their share performance has also been affected by the pandemic.

First-quarter bloodbath

THE first quarter was undoubtedly a bloodbath for the local bourse, registering a whopping 32.15-percent drop as the coronavirus pandemic prompted investors to stay

at the sidelines.

“As Covid-19 pandemic disrupts our healthcare system, it also [wreaks] havoc [on] our economy not just for the Philippines, but as the global economy actually goes into a recession, ending the economic prosperity and bull run for the market for the past 11 years,” Philstocks’ Tan told this newspaper.

Financial stocks were no exception, he added, noting that this sector was one of the worst performers in the counter during the first quarter.

Tan noted that financial stocks recorded a 34.34-percent drop in shares, the sharpest next to the mining and oil sector at 48.57 percent.

Shares in the industrial sector fell by 33.97 percent; property, 33.85 percent; holding firms, 31.07 percent; and, services, 21.99 percent.

In the first quarter, shares in the financial sector bottomed on March 19 when it settled at 1,090.95—just a few days after the lockdown was announced—showing a 15.48-percent plunge from previous trading day.

Reduced strength

THE Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi), that day, slipped by 13.34 percent to 4,623.42—its lowest as well for the January-to-March period. The main index was able to inch up to 5,000 after a few days of bargain-hunting.

WHILE all the financial stocks were in the red during the first quarter, one was able to distance itself from the pack, showing the least decline for the period.

UnionBank was the best-performing in the said counter given the situation, Tan said. It only declined by 7.97 percent in the first quarter, lowest among the financial stocks.

He attributed this to the bank’s “business transformation that has started [in] 2018 by strengthening its online banking presence and rebranding of its banking service.”

“Transformation of its branches, tapping the digital banking and focusing the target market of UnionBank—which is, in the retails side— [are] what I think [account for] why the Q1 [first quarter] performance of UnionBank shot up,” Tan added.

The Aboitiz-led bank’s net income soared by 22 percent to P2.6 billion in the first quarter on the back of robust revenue growth.

Meanwhile, Tan said that Security Bank had the steepest decline among financial stocks in the first quarter, falling by 45.13 percent, which he blamed on the massive foreign fund outflows.

“The global sell-off occurred on February 21 when the market went to a free fall, breaking the 7,000-psychological support for the market as Covid-19 cases outside China rose and, weeks later, Philippines reported its first case,” he recalled.

In the first quarter, shares in BDO slid 37.22 percent; BPI, 31.63 percent; China Banking Corp., 19.56 percent; East West Banking Corp., 36.15 percent; Metrobank, 39.67 percent; PNB, 41.88 percent; and, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., 25.65 percent.

Expect the worse

INVESTORS have become worried over the increase in NPLs as borrowers become cash-strapped since the lockdown was enforced amid the pandemic, Axiory Global Ltd. Director of Research and Education Tomasz Wisniewski said, noting that this weighed on market sentiment in the first quarter.

“Let’s not forget the lack of spending and decreased amounts of loans due to the lockdown. In addition, the pandemic [and the actions of government against it have] caused a huge rise in unemployment, which means individuals and companies are behind on their payments, creating bad loans and that spooks investors out,” Wisniewski told the BusinessMirror in an email.

Tan pointed out that higher NPL is likely should the pandemic linger until the third quarter. However, he emphasized that banks’ balance sheets have remained strong to face the downturn.

Wisniewski noted that interest cuts made by the Central Bank

were also a bane for the investors given these could drag banks’ bottom-line figures.

The lower policy rates “will put pressure on [the banks’] NIM [net interest margin] since lower rates, meaning interest payments from loans, will crunch, thus giving narrower NIM’s for the banks,” Tan explained.

Discounted impact

THE Axiory analyst is optimistic that the investors were able to discount already the adverse impact of the pandemic on the financial stocks and local bourse in general.

The shares in financial sector were already battered and it could not get any worse than that, Wisniewski said.

“When the dust settles, many countries will see that the impact of Covid-19 is not as significant as previously assumed,” he added.

In addition, he said that banking and financial institutions could ride the wave once the economy begins recovering.

“Unlimited printing and purchasing programs from major central banks all over the world lead us to believe that the stock exchange has many bullish days ahead.”

For the second half, Tan is seeing a V-shaped recovery for the share price performance as market remains volatile, with any lead about Covid-19 drug or vaccine as a potential positive catalyst.

Optimistic anchors

TA N and Wisniewsk i both agreed that finding the cure for the virus would be the main catalyst for recovery of the local bourse, including financial stocks. “[H]aving a vaccine [or] cure for Covid-19 will be a game-changer not just for the economy but for the health care system as well,” the Philstocks analyst said.

Tan added that developments in Wall Street should also be considered because majority of the funds in the local bourse come from foreign inflows. The Philippine stock exchange is taking cues from the US markets, he said, noting that the latter’s market rally could spill over locally through extended investor confidence.

Wisniewski said it would also be helpful if the interest rates would not go any lower.

“For banks and financial institutions this is the ultimate bullish sign that they need,” he said.

This, in addition to borrowers starting to pay back their loans could aid in improving market sentiment, he said.

Monitor liquidity

RCBC’s Ricafort said that banks should continue improving their management of market risks, credit risks and other risks as part of their business continuity plans.

“Thereby ensuring the readiness/preparedness of the banking industry at all times and for different economic conditions,” he added.

The FICO country head said that AI-enabled solutions could help businesses, including banks, to operate more efficiently during the pandemic.

“Businesses will benefit from being able to ramp up quickly, especially while many call centers are disrupted by the lockdown, technology and privacy issues around remote workers and sick staff,” Basbas explained.

Aguirre advised banks to regularly monitor liquidity to ensure there are enough funds to finance both depositors and borrowers.

While banks play a major part in recovery, Mapa is calling for a multisectoral approach to recover from the current economic atrophy.

Only then could the numbers, heartless at times, offer a glint that could lift market confidence.

A6 Thursday, May 14, 2020 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

editorial

‘A poor sailor blames the wind’

A

wise man said the lack of personal accountability is a problem that has resulted in an epidemic of blame. Pointing fingers and blaming others can solve nothing. No institution or organization can achieve its vision or reach its goal without personal accountability. This reminds us of a saying, “A poor sailor blames the wind.”

Members of the 18th Congress who blame the National Telecommunications Commission for the shutdown of ABS-CBN are showing to us the wisdom in the maxim—“the easiest thing to spot is the gap of integrity in others.” They can’t see their own shortcomings, their own inaction that prompted the NTC to issue a cease and desist order.

NTC’s commitment to issue a provisional authority extending the life of the franchise is contingent on the passage of a joint resolution by members of the House and the Senate, so it will have a legal basis to do so. Instead of a joint resolution, the regulator got a letter signed by Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano and Legislative Franchises Committee Chair Rep. Franz Alvarez ordering the NTC to issue a PA. The Senate, meanwhile, has passed a resolution for the issuance of a provisional authority.

The NTC’s course of action became apparent when the Solicitor General made it clear that NTC officials could face graft charges should they issue a PA to ABS-CBN absent a Congress-approved franchise.

Lawmakers have no one but themselves to blame for putting ABS-CBN in limbo. Consider: In 2014, ABS-CBN submitted an application for franchise renewal during the Aquino administration. Two bills were filed in the 16th Congress: one by Isabela Rep. Giorgidi Aggabao, filed in September 2014, and another by Baguio Rep. Nicasio M. Aliping Jr., filed in December 2014. Lawmakers failed to act on these measures, prompting the network to withdraw the application, citing time constraints.

Surprisingly, during Aquino’s term, Congress enacted bills granting franchises to 18 TV and/or radio networks, including those given to Radio Mindanao Network, Aliw Broadcasting (DWIZ), Christian Era Broadcasting, and Zoe Broadcasting. What happened to ABS-CBN’s franchise? If the others were determined to have a new franchise, what made the giant network too complacent to work for its franchise renewal?

Before the arrival of the Covid-19 pandemic, the 18th Congress had all the time to extend the expiring franchise of ABS-CBN. Why hasn’t Congress acted on it? Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said: “They [House and Senate] are expressing a sentiment that NTC may allow ABS-CBN to continue operating, but they’re not giving the franchise. What is actually needed on the part of Congress is the franchise itself.”

Politicians will say and do things to cover up their own failures. Some members of Congress now want to abolish the NTC and transfer its functions and powers to the Department of Information and Communications Technology.

They said the NTC has become “one of the most inept and useless agencies whose only relevance lies in being another model for sheer wastage of taxpayer money.” The last time we checked, however, NTC was doing its job, while some legislators refused to take responsibility for their actions, or, in the case of ABS-CBN, inaction.

Is there a statesman in Congress, one who can rise above politics and demonstrate personal accountability?

We respect Buhay Party-list Rep. Lito Atienza Jr. for being forthright when he admitted the “failure of Congress to do its job” in the franchise renewal of ABS-CBN. “I would like to apologize for the failure of Congress to do its job.

This is our fault. This is the fault of Congress. But more importantly, I would like to say squarely, this is the fault of Speaker Cayetano,” he said.

Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman shared this opinion: “The NTC must not be used as the scapegoat for the patent failure of the leadership of the House of Representatives to resolutely push for the seasonable renewal of ABS-CBN’s franchise.”

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here is a certain comfort in thinking that we still have about two years to go before the national and local elections. It may not be realistic to think that we’ll be completely rid of the coronavirus by then, but at least, we’ll have enough time to adequately prepare for the unique challenges posed by holding elections while the coronavirus is running rampant.

Giving the government time to build up the health-care infrastructure needed for inevitable prolonged coexistence with the coronavirus was always one of the main objectives of the enhanced community quarantine. In the same way, the Comelec should look at the two-year period between now and the coming elections as the opportunity to build up the voter-care infrastructure necessary to ensure the health and safety of voters, while still preserving our core democratic ideals and practices.

Considering that election day as we know it—with people standing close to each other in queue, touching writing desks in the polling place, and handling ballots—

is a perfect place for community transmission, the most important step toward preparing a safer election environment is to ensure that election day processes are overlaid with health precautions, such the promotion of hand hygiene in the polling place, the incorporation of appropriate physical distancing measures, and the routine disinfection of all voting equipment and paraphernalia.

However, these measures will most likely prove to be inadequate considering that, last elections, we had 46,937,139 voters who went to 85,769 clustered precincts, located in 36,830 voting centers, situated in 1,634 cities and municipalities

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the end those who actually availed themselves of these methods accounted for less than 1 percent of the total voter turnout.

This is not very surprising, considering that these voter subpopulations—local absentee voters, members of the media, and overseas voters—have always seen low voter turn-outs. With Covid-19 spooking everyone, however, there is every reason to believe that if these alternatives were to be made available to the general voting population, we would see more people taking advantage of them.

So, if absentee voting and votingby-mail are going to be significant alternatives in 2022—and they should be, unless we’re willing to risk low voter turn-outs or high Covid-19 transmission rates—it would be ideal if Congress and Comelec were to start working on legislation that would make absentee voting and postal voting available to all registered voters. By extending the scope of these alternatives beyond the sub-populations of voters currently enjoying them, Congress would be laying down robust foundations for the kind of voter-centric elections infrastructure that will instill confidence in the minds of voters, while safeguarding our sacred right to vote, even in the time of pandemic.

The economy: It’s going to get worse, much worse

Founder Publisher

nationwide. A better solution, therefore, would be to combine health precautions with measures designed to bring down even further the number of people going to polling places to cast their ballots. In other words, we need alternatives to in-person voting.

Admittedly, when alternatives to in-person voting are discussed, talk often turns to online or Internet voting. Done correctly, and with appropriate safeguards in place, online voting does promise much. However, with only two years to go before the elections—a Presidential race, no less—online voting might be a bridge too far. On the other hand, there are existing alternatives that have been in use for quite some time now: absentee voting and voting-by-mail.

If you haven’t heard much of these alternatives before, that’s probably because both serve only well-defined voter subpopulations rather than the general voting population of 61 million plus voters. Absentee voting is allowed only for government employees assigned to election-day work and members of the media; similarly, voting-by-mail is available to just a little more than a million registered overseas voters. All told, fewer than 2 million voters had access to these alternative means of voting in the 2019 elections, and in

OUTSIDE THE BOX

A

fter 60 days in lockdown, I look like Lon Chaney Jr. as the Wolfman in his 1941 film. Google the picture, except my fur is white.

It has been a little boring and I do miss my “Jollibee Seniors Meal” of creamy macaroni soup with a side of mashed potatoes. However, there has been a lot to learn from local Press, Media and, of course, Social Media.

For example, because of its genuine success in handling the Covid-19 pandemic, Vietnam is definitely the go to place, while the Philippines is “no go” according to some. Vietnam has tuned out some great results and that cannot be denied. But if you are going to make comparisons, at least also compare conditions.

The National Capital Region has a population of about 13 million. By comparison, Hanoi’s population is 8 million and Ho Chi Minh City has 9 million citizens. But the population density of the NCR is 20,785 people per square kilometer while Hanoi

has 2,300 per square kilometer and Ho Chi Minh has 4,097 individuals residing per square kilometer. I am not an epidemiologist like so many I read on Facebook and Twitter, but maybe population density has something to do with a disease spreading.

Only 36 percent of Vietnamese live in cities while 48 percent of Filipinos are urban dwellers. That too may have had an effect on the spread of the virus. There is no question that Hanoi acted quickly as soon as the first cases were recorded on January 23.

On February 1, when the country only recorded six confirmed cases, the government declared a national epidemic. Foreigners were not allowed to enter on March 22 and the country was put on limited lockdown on April 1. Vietnam does

Capital gives some magnitude to the lockdown. The percentage change of people working has dropped 60 percent from the month of January, the lowest in Asia and perhaps the world. As a result, we are looking at a change in growth rate from 2019 to 2020 of a 12-percent decrease, again the worst in Asia. Stay safe and keep a tight hold on your money.

have an advantage with a military and police force three times as large as the Philippines. Villages and city areas were completely shut down and totally quarantined as soon as a case was discovered. Further, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc does not have to explain the rationale for, or justify and defend, the government’s policies to anyone, least of all a “political opposition.”

However, being a greedy capitalist (according to some people) and only concerned about money, I am jealous of Vietnam’s ability to strategically shut down infected areas quickly. With 1,710 barangays and 17 mayors—some very concerned about front-page coverage—that kind of precision surgical strike against Covid-19 was not possible.

While Vietnam’s exports fell 70 percent in April, their economy is still expected to grow slightly in 2020.

Now that the NCR lockdown has been extended—only god truly knows for sure—until May 31, the Philippine economic situation is worse.

Capital Economics wrote: “With its lockdown being extended again today, the Philippines faces at least two more weeks before the economic recovery will begin. We think GDP will contract by 6 percent this year, which would make it one of the hardest-hit countries in the region from the crisis. The restrictions on economic activity, which are among the toughest in Asia, are having a severe impact on economic activity.”

Capital Economics gives some magnitude to the lockdown. The percentage change of people working has dropped 60 percent from the month of January, the lowest in Asia and perhaps the world. As a result, we are looking at a change in growth rate from 2019 to 2020 of a 12-percent decrease, again the worst in Asia. Stay safe and keep a tight hold on your money.

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

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Opinion

The pandemic diaries

You in me and me in you

BusinessMirror

Msgr. Sabino A. Vengco Jr.

Val A. Villanueva

Businesswise

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nless things turn out for the worse, it looks like the country is about to face the new normal after May 31. The government has approved the recommendations of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on Emerging Infectious Diseases that would put many areas in the country under general community quarantine (GCQ) with eased restrictions after May 15, while some “pandemic hot spots” will be put under modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) up to the end of the month.

Metro Manila, Laguna province, and Cebu City are still considered “high-risk.” MECQ will be implemented in these areas, but restrictions will be gradually “modified” to allow the easing of people movement and reigniting of commerce to stimulate the economy, according to Malacañang.

The May 31 extension has put the Philippines among countries worldwide with the longest community quarantines in an effort to contain the pandemic. President Duterte said the “loosening of quarantine restrictions did not mean the health crisis was over, but that the measures were being eased slowly to prevent a resurgence of the disease.”

Based on the pandemic graph recently made public online, I observed that the curve hasn’t flattened out yet, but noticed that the number of infected individuals reflected in the graph has plateaued. The highest recorded new cases was at 538 on April 1, going down to 227 on April 2, before spiking anew on April 7 at 414. The number of new Covid-19 cases hasn’t gone up past that number since. As of Wednesday, there were only 292 recorded cases, down from 339 on May 8. As of May 12, the total number of Covid-19 cases was at 11,350, with 2,106 recoveries and 751 fatalities. It should be noted that the number of recoveries is higher than the number of people who have perished.

With the modified quarantine extension in NCR, Laguna and Cebu, the government is expected to continue its social amelioration program in these areas. Does the government still have the funds for such an undertaking?

Finance Secretary Sonny Dominguez assures the public that the funds are there, even if President Duterte continues to whine about the funds having considerably thinned out.

Unfortunately, this pandemic has exposed how many people have adopted a mendicant state of mind, feeling unable to fend for themselves and merely relying on government doleouts to pull them through.

Former Quezon governor and good friend Eduardo “Eddie” Rodriguez lamented in a recent telephone conversation the absence of self-reliance during these critical times. He bewails that there are pockets of idle backyards in most houses, especially in the provinces, which if cultivated could be a viable and readily available source of household sustenance.

He said, “Maybe the agriculture department, under the new normal, would make this a doable project. If not, I’m going to do this as a personal crusade. There had been similar projects before, but the lack of government follow-through doomed them.”

The former Quezon governor cited how the song “Bahay Kubo” should be used to guide our way of life in the new normal, and food security should be at the top of our to-do list.

When the ECQ is lifted, Eddie will leave his Makati home to go back to Quezon to start his “Tanim LikodBahay” project: “I believe that it is not only in our province where there are idle lands, be they private or government-owned.” He plans to solicit the help of the private sector, and hopes that other regions would follow suit.

He predicts that the proposed “Balik Probinsya” project being pushed by some in government “won’t fly”: “Decongesting Metro Manila only to shift the burden to the provinces is unsound. Under the new normal, we have to be creative in coping with new challenges. Cleaning your backyard only to toss the trash into an empty lot or creek or into your neighbor’s property is not the way to do it.”

Dalisay rice

Speaking of self-reliance, maybe we can take a cue from Dalisay Rice, the only white rice brand that is 100

percent produced in the Philippines.

A week or so ago, a frantic Rachel Renucci Tan started messaging her Facebook friends last week, including yours truly, about the move of FB to take down the Renucci Rice page. Renucci Rice is the producer of Dalisay Rice that Rachel co-owns.

The Renucci Rice page, she said, was being threatened for deletion by FB. There is absolutely nothing controversial about the page. It only highlights the company’s profile and redirects people to a site where they can order the commodity. It also shows the relief operations Rachel and her company are conducting to help our frontliners in the fight against Covid-19.

Thankfully, the Renucci Rice page was restored after three days. Rachel never found out who reported her page, and why. Personally, I think it may have to do with how the Dalisay brand has been making a deeper dent on the market shares of both local rice brands and rice hoarders. They may have reported the Renucci’s page to FB. The phenomenal rise in popularity of the Dalisay brand may be threatening to them.

Renucci Rice is a partnership between rice farmers in Alangalang, Leyte, and the Renucci company. The farmers plant high-quality local seeds grown with fertilizers from Norway.

The freshly harvested palay is quickly transported from the fields to a stateof-the-art rice processing complex. Relying on end-to-end Japanese technology and an industrial process adapted to local taste, Rachel says, makes Renucci Rice the only brand to have “fresh, whole, robust grains packed with all the essential nutrients [because] each step of the process is closely monitored, and rice production is fully automated to avoid human errors.” The Renucci Rice packaging is the first and only in the country to use technology and not chemicals to keep out pests.

According to Rachel, the venture is more of a movement and a vision: “It is the rice of the Filipinos.” It all started with a noble cause: helping the victims of Typhoon Yolanda. She and her husband Patrick uprooted themselves from their Paris home; divested their business holdings in Paris, London, and Hong Kong, and relocated to the Philippines to devote everything to building the first large-scale, sustainable rice production company in the country. They were propelled by their unwavering belief that the Philippines has the capability and power to take back world domination of the rice market. The couple’s first step was to help uplift Filipino farmers from poverty.

“Our goal was to transform the Philippine rice Industry,” Rachel says.

“Our brand is a game-changer, the first of its kind in the Philippine market.

While most rice brands are mixed with imported grains, stale and laced with artificial fragrance and pesticides, Renucci Rice is 100 percent produced in Leyte, 100 percent traceable, and 100 percent safe. Now, Filipinos know exactly where their rice comes from.

Only Renucci Rice is from the source.

Renucci Rice is pure, unmixed, clean and delicious.”

Perhaps, this is why Renucci has become the target of long-established syndicates, which have been plaguing the rice market.

While Eddie Rodriguez is pushing the right buttons to help us rely more on our capacity to help ourselves, Patrick and Rachel’s Renucci Rice has started a blueprint for self-sufficiency in rice. I just hope that the government takes heed and begins building a clear path to a yet-uncharted future. The new normal beckons.

For comments and suggestions, e-mail me at mvala.v@gmail.com

Alálaong Bagá

G

oing deeper into the meaning of our life of faith in the risen Jesus, we are next led to reflect that our communion with the Lord is based on a Trinitarian interrelationship that we must share in and live by and bear witness to in our fidelity to His commandments (John 14:15-21).

Keep my commandments Our gospel text is bracketed by two parallel declarations Jesus made to His disciples: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments” and, “Whoever has my commandments and observes them is the one who loves me.” In order not to be an empty word, love demands to be translated into deed, into actions pleasing to the beloved. Faithfulness to the wishes of Jesus is the measure of our love for Him. Keeping His commands as the expression of communion with Jesus is repeated six times in the so-called Last Discourse of Jesus before his passion and death (John 14:15.21.23; 15:10.12.17).

Jesus is “the way, the truth and the life” (14:6), as we meditated upon last week. Communion with

Him is our salvation; He is our life and rule of life. In fellowship with him we shall at any given time and in every situation know what is in accord with His will and faithful to His teaching, what is for us therefore fitting and proper and pleasing to God. His commandments reveal what is in His heart and His diwa, His interiority, and keeping them makes us His kadiwa, His kindred in the Spirit, and His kapuso, of one heart with Him. Loving Jesus and staying in communion with Him provide us the inspiration and the energy to imitate Him and live as he lived. Being united to him is the key to faithful Christian life.

In the Holy Spirit

TO observe Jesus’ commandments amid our human frailty and in the

Thursday, May 14, 2020 A7

context of the sufferings and trials in the world, to follow His footsteps so that we can come with Him to the Father, will clearly be not just on our own. We need someone to help us, someone we can call upon anytime—another Paraclete. The first Paraclete we have been given

by God is Jesus Himself as our Advocate with the Father (1 John 2:1).

Now in his return to the Father, Jesus is asking the Father to give us another One who will be with us always. Already our life of faith on earth clearly is in the intimacy of the Holy Trinity. We are destined to have a place in the “Father’s house” in eternity; the Son is the one to take us home with him in reconciliation; the Holy Spirit, sent by the Father and requested by the Son, is the Paraclete to assist us to remain one with Jesus.

The Spirit is the Spirit of truth, who will teach us everything and remind us of all that Jesus told us (John 14:26). In the power of this Spirit we are one with Jesus sharing His life and keeping his commandments. So, Jesus does not leave us orphans; He comes to dwell in us and remain with us in the sending of the Spirit. That is how Jesus said we see Him: He lives and we live one with Him in His Spirit as we grow in virtues, keeping His commandments in on-going conversion and configuration. The Spirit that the

world does not see we do see and know because the Spirit remains with us and is at work in us. In this Spirit of truth we realize that Jesus is in the Father and that we are in Jesus and that He is in us.

Alálaong bagá, Jesus is manifest in us in the life we are graced to live in the power of the Holy Spirit, the life of love for Jesus, the life of observing his commandments.

The Holy Spirit becomes manifest and visible in every Christian life, in the whole Church as the Spirit-filled community, and even in the world as the playing field for the outpouring of the gifts of the Spirit. We experience a supreme instance of this vivifying power of the Spirit in our continuing communion with Jesus in the Eucharist.

In the vision of the Trinity reaching out to us, the Father sends the Holy Spirit upon our bread and wine to transform them into the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ for our salvation and continuing sanctification.

The celebration of the Eucharist is in observance of the command of Jesus who thus becomes present as our life in the Spirit to the glory of the Father.

Join me in meditating on the Word of God every Sunday, from 5 to 6 a.m. on DWIZ 882, or by audio streaming on www.dwiz882.com.

Rebuilding the economy requires policy rebalancing Dr. Rene E. Ofreneo

LABOREM EXERCENS

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he Covid-19 pandemic is giving countries around the world a golden opportunity to correct the social and economic “discontents” that aimless and unregulated globalization has generated—environmental degradation and ozone-busting GHG emissions, labor precarity and informality, overt and covert wars for resources and markets, and social and economic inequality that is a direct outcome of trickle-down neoliberal growth economics.

These “discontents” are amply documented by scores of development economists led by Joseph Stiglitz, former Chief Economist of the World Bank, and Robert Reid, former US Labor Secretary.

Even the International Monetary Fund, seen by many CSOs as the world’s devil incarnate, has been writing lately about globalization “discontents”, describing them as “macro-critical” concerns that should guide the IMF in its lending operations. In a recent IMF dialogue with the CSOs, Chang Yong Rhee, IMF Asia Director, told the CSOs that IMF today is not like its “IMF parent” of the 1980s nor of its “IMF grandparent” of the 1960s. But what is the IMF’s alternative development policy in these pandemic times? More lending to bail out the big private corporations? More lending in support of big-ticket projects that ignore the urgent needs of the poor and the vulnerables? More lending that traps developing countries into Sisyphuslike debt-servicing situation?

But back to the pandemic, how should governments make their respective economies resilient and robust in these uncertain times?

The answer of those pushing for the UN SDG agenda (zero hunger, zero poverty, etc. by 2030) is for UN member-states to intensify efforts to address in a coherent, integrated and sustained manner the five Ps of development: People, Planet, Prosperity, Peace and Partnership. Jeffrey Sachs, the chief ideologue of the UN’s SDG development framework, has been moving increasingly toward the left, berating America for its misplaced “exceptionalism” and criminal negativism toward climate change mitigation. Sachs, now aligned with Keynesian economics, is even conducting courses on “post-capitalist order,” courses on how the world should get out of the neoliberal laissez faire development framework.

Can our own DOF and Neda, after citing Keyne’s famous criticism on

the penchant of some economists to focus on imaginary long-term growth, prepare to overhaul the existing neoliberal development framework based on the triple structural adjustment programs: trade and investment liberalization, deregulation of various areas of the economy, and privatization of government corporations, assets and services?

Can they focus on the critical issues raised by the UN SDG program, which include the following questions: how to eliminate widespread poverty and hunger, how to address the needs of the poorest and most vulnerable, how to assert the rights and dignity of all (especially of women and the disadvantaged sectors), how to heal and secure the planet, how to take decisive action on climate change, and how to promote peaceful and inclusive social arrangement? And can these questions be answered in the context of today’s Covid-19 reality?

As it is, the pandemic is compounding an already multifaceted planetary crisis buffeted by environmental crisis, huge economic divides between the 99 percent and the 1 percent of society, and socio-political conflicts everywhere. Covid-19 has revealed a broken public health system in both developed and developing countries.

At the country level, the multisided planetary crisis is illustrated by what is happening in the Philippines: health-care crisis, surge in joblessness and hunger in society’s laylayan, fragile environment, precarious employment and uncertain economic future amid a crumbling neoliberal economic order.

So what can be done? The quick answer: the policy-makers should consider the Covid-19 crisis as an opportunity to do some rebalancing

in the development framework that the government has been adhering to. They include the following: First, there is a need to rebuild the public sector’s capacity to deliver the public services needed by the people, foremost among which are health care and social protection in these pandemic times. As we wrote in an earlier column, the Covid-19 pandemic has reaffirmed—in all continents—the central role of the State in emergency survival situations. Rebuilding the public sector capacity includes the building up of the public distribution system for the delivery of essential goods, such as relief materials for the displaced and vulnerables. It is time that we put a stop to the mindless obsession by some policy-makers on making privatization and foreign investment liberalization as the end-all and beall of growth promotion.

Two, there is a need to shift government attention and spending away from big-ticket infra projects in favor of an alternative build-buildbuild infra development in support of poor communities (urban, rural, peri-urban, upland, coastal poor communities). The possible BBB projects for the poor are numerous, e.g., better housing projects for all, multipurpose community centers, fortification systems against disasters, community health centers, and so on. And the multiplier impact is enormous: stable and productive communities. But one necessary proviso should be in place: full engagement of the poor as workerbuilders of the BBB projects for the poor communities.

Third and relatedly, government should develop better mechanisms to extend social protection to all the poor and near poor. The common complaint in the last two months of ECQ and GCQ is that many have been excluded. The use by the DSWD of the 4P or CCT list of beneficiaries is patently exclusionary because the list has not been updated, migrant workers and families have not been registered in the different barangays they are temporarily residing, and political patronage is omnipresent in any system of listing of who will benefit and who will not. The solution: cover all the families in depressed communities sans the usual mean testing and time-exhausting verification by DSWD personnel.

And don’t forget, spending for social protection for the many, as correctly pointed out by the Keynesians, is a good and proven economic stimulus.

It even becomes stronger as an stimulus if it is linked to productive job

creation, no matter how temporary.

Fourth, there is a need to overhaul the architecture of Philippine integration in the global market. As pointed out in an earlier column, Factory Asia and the global value chains that some economic technocrats love to promote are being disrupted by the technology revolution, trade wars and now by the Covid-19 pandemic.

No, the Philippines need not de-link or withdraw from the global market.

But why put all our economic eggs in the export market where demand is on the decline? And why maintain a one-sided trade liberalization program when the trade data show that our trade deficits in industrial and agricultural products keep rising every year while industrial and agricultural jobs at home continue to plummet? Were it not for the remittances of over 10 million OFWs, these trade deficits would have been unsustainable and would have led to a repeat of the crisis of the 1980s.

So it is high time that the trade policy regime based on false neoliberal assumptions be overhauled or rebalanced. Such rebalancing should be accompanied by the revival of Philippine manufacturing that can be sustained by a huge domestic market of 110 million Filipinos. Why indeed can’t the Philippines duplicate South Korea, which has succeeded in producing needed PPEs for their health workers and millions of test kits and face masks for their population in a relatively short time, thus enabling Korea to contain the virus spread more quickly?

Of course, trade policy reform should also be accompanied by reforms on the agricultural front. At the moment, there are controversial debates on whether it is timely for the Philippines to import once more around 3 million tons of rice when some studies indicate that production at home this year is enough. The DA has been mouthing the slogan “plant, plant, plant.”

But is it able to walk the talk? Is it succeeding in nudging our farming sector to become more productive and capable of meeting the food requirements of the nation? Is it prepared to junk the neoliberal agricultural deregulation policy, a policy that dates back to the 1980s?

This policy has not delivered the food security promise propounded by the IMF-WB then.

Overall, Covid-19 times are times for reflection on what is the best way forward to the nation.

For inquiries, please e-mail reneofreneo@ gmail.com.

A8 Thursday, May 14, 2020

Malls, service-related entities may operate in MECQ sites–IATF

By Samuel P. Medenilla

M

@sam_medenilla

ALLS, commercial centers, ser vices-related establishments and additional manufacturing firms will now be allowed to operated in areas under modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ), subject to certain restrictions on the number of employees they will deploy onsite.

On Wednesday, Presidential spokesman Harry Roque revealed in an online press briefing that the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) has opted to relax its restrictions for business operations in MECQ areas.

He said manufacturers of beverages (e.g., alcoholic drinks), electrical machinery; wood products; nonmetallic products; textiles; tobacco products; paper and paper products; rubber and plastic products; coke and refined petroleum products; computer, electronic and optical products; electrical equipment; machinery and equipment; motor vehicles, trailers, semi-trailers; and other transport equipment will be given permission to operate in MECQ areas.

Also allowed in MECQ are es-

sential and priority construction projects; office and administrative and office support; other financial services such as money exchange and insurance; legal and accounting; management and consultancy activities; architecture and engineering activities; scientific and research development; advertising and market research; computer programming and information service activities; publishing and printing activities; film, music, and TV production; photography, fashion, graphic, and interior design; wholesale and retail trade of motor vehicles. motorcycles and bicycles including their parts and components; and repair of motor vehicles motorcycles and bicycles.

The government also allowed malls and commercial centers (nonleisure only) to operate along with following establishments within their premises: hardware stores; clothing and accessories; mallbased government frontline services; bookstores as well as school and office supplies stores; baby care supplies stores; pet food and pet care supplies; retailers of information technology, communications, and electronic equipment; flower, jewelry, novelty, antique, and perfume shops; and toy stores.

Continued on A2

Govt eyes ₧6-B oil tariff proceeds for Covid response T

By Lenie Lectura

@llectura

HE Department of Energy (DOE) said Wednesday the imposition of a 10-percent duty on crude oil and refined petroleum products will raise P6 billion in additional funds for government’s fight against Covid-19.

DOE Undersecretary Felix William Fuentebella said during a virtual press briefing Wednesday the additional tariffs on petroleum products reflect an upward adjustment of P0.60 per liter for gasoline, P0.80 per liter for diesel and kerosene, P0.55 per liter for Jet A-1, and P0.56 per liter for fuel oil.

“If that is imposed...that will raise around P6 billion. Estimated income for government, if it’s implemented until December 2020, is around P6 billion. This is usually used for DOH [Department

of Health] and for equipment and support services,” said Fuentebella, in a mix of English and Filipino.

Based on DOE data, the estimated revenue from the additional 10-percent duty for May will reach P508,612,61; P718,275,701for June; P884,031,632 for July; P934,428,670 each for the months of August up to December this year. In all, proceeds could reach P6,783,063,293.

DOE Director for Energy Resources Development Rino Abad said the additional tariffs would be reflected in local pump prices 15 to 30 days after the Executive Order was released last May 4.

In the same virtual press briefing, Abad said the window period before the tariff is implemented would be “20 to 30 days...at the very least 15 days.”

The agency reminded oil firms not to impose yet the additional taxes until its current inventory is fully utilized. Abad said oil companies were told to submit their inventory report.

“Yesterday, we already issued them the requirement. They committed to submit in three to four days. We will question them if they impose next week. We were told that by next week, no one would

impose yet,” said Abad.

Local pump prices increased gasoline prices by P2 per liter, diesel

by P1.90 per liter and kerosene by P1.25 per liter last Tuesday.

The price adjustment reflects movements in the world market in which global oil prices climbed for the second consecutive week. Global oil prices have started to recover following production cuts from US oil producers.

Abad said local fuel prices could further go up next week. However, next week’s price adjustment would still not reflect the additional 10-percent duty. He said the trend being seen is “for prices to rise next week,” adding that, “it seems the Opec [Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries] plus allied producing countries have all agreed that the price of Brent should be 50 to 60 dollars per barrel,” said the DOE official.

Executive Order 113 was signed by the President on May 2 and released on May 4.

“There is an urgent need to augment the government’s resources to sufficiently finance the programs and measures to mitigate the effects of the Covid-19 situation and launch the country towards recovery and rehabilitation,” the order said.

“This Order shall take effect immediately after its publication, and shall remain enforceable until such time that RA No. 11469 ceases to take effect, or upon the reversion of the modified rates of import duty to zero percent,” it added.

The Bayanihan to Heal as One law granted President Duterte temporary special powers, among them the power to realign funds within the national budget for the government’s Covid-19 response.

‘Cutting SAP beneficiaries breaks Heal As One Act’

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EDUCING the number of Filipino families who will receive subsidies under the social amelioration program (SAP) would be a violation of the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, according to the Action for Economic Reforms (AER).

In a statement, AER said removing the P5,000 to P8,000 subsidy from households living in areas where the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) was eased would be illegal under the law.

AER said under Section 4(c) of the law, the government is mandated to provide a subsidy ranging from P5,000 to P8,000 to 18 million lowincome households for the next two months.

“Section 4 of the law gives the President the option to adopt the emergency powers enumerated in the section.

Since the President has adopted these, he is mandated to follow Congress’ prescriptions regarding the scope of these powers,”AER said.“The Executive has no authority to amend this, unless a new law is passed.”

AER added that Joint Memorandum Circular 1, s. 2020 provides that in case programs encounter insufficient funding, the national government shall augment the fund to ensure that each family receives the prescribed assistance of P5,000 to P8,000 in cash or in kind, depending on the minimum wage in that area.

In light of the existing situation, recipients and non-recipients of the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) program still need the assistance from the government even if they live in an area where the ECQ will be lifted, said the group.

“The pandemic has caused massive economic disruption and job loss all over the country, and its effects will persist beyond the time where any form of quarantine is relaxed or lifted,” AER said.

The group also said giving cash to the poorest households nationwide would be a good stimulus that will allow the economy recover.

Cai U. Ordinario

With projected rise in ’21 imports, PHL seen to remain top rice buyer

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

T

HE Philippines’s rice imports next year may rise by a third to a record 3.3 million metric tons (MMT), making it the world’s top rice buyer for the third straight year ahead of China, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) said.

In its monthly global grain situation report, the USDA forecast that the country’s rice purchase next year will increase by 800,000 MT from the 2.5 MMT estimated volume this year.

USDA attributed the increase to “tighter” stocks coupled by lower production, which it projected to fall by 3.5 percent to 11 MMT next year. USDA estimated the local rice milled production this year could decline by almost 3 percent to 11.4 MMT from 11.732 MMT last year.

“With lower production and tighter stocks, larger imports are expected to enable consumption to rise marginally,” it said in the report.

“The 2019 rice tariffication law has made imports more available in the market, depressing overall milled rice prices,” it added.

This is the first projection by USDA for global rice trade for 2021.

Based on USDA’s projections, the Philippines’s rice imports next year could eclipse its previous record

high of 2.9 MMT recorded in 2019, when the rice trade liberalization (RTL) law was enacted.

Republic Act 11203 or the RTL law deregulated the rice industry and eased import rules for eligible traders and importers.

USDA said total world rice imports next year may reach a threeyear high of 45.21 MMT, which is 5.4 percent over 42.88 MMT estimated volume this year due to higher purchase from Sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia.

“The greatest import demand growth is forecast in Sub-Saharan Africa,” USDA said.

“Southeast Asia is also expected to have a large increase in imports.

This is mostly driven by the Philippines, which is forecast to be the top global importer, displacing China.

The Middle East is also set to expand its imports,” the USDA added.

Federation of Free Farmers (FFF) said it is too early to speculate or even assess possible total rice imports by the country for next year.

“It would really depend on the volume of rice that traders and importers will bring in this year.

It depends on their appetite,” FFF National Manager Raul Q. Montemayor told the BusinessMirror.

The Philippines started and ended the previous decade as the world’s top rice importer, with the

country formally overtaking China as the top buyer of the staple last year, based on USDA data.

Data from the USDA showed that the Philippines’s rice imports in 2019 rose to an all-time high of 2.9 MMT, making the country the top buyer of imported rice last year.

The last time the Philippines was regarded as the world’s top buyer of rice was in 2010, when it imported 2.4 MMT, historical USDA data showed.

The country has imported over 700,000 MT of rice from January to April, with private traders and corporations cornering bulk of the volume, latest Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) data showed.

About139eligiblericeimporters,86 of which are private traders, corporations and firms, brought in 728,979.07 MT of rice during the four-month period, latest BPI data analyzed by the BusinessMirror showed.

The rice imports were sourced from Cambodia, India, Italy, Myanmar, Pakistan, Spain, Thailand and Vietnam, based on BPI data.

The 86 private traders imported about 60 percent or 442,998.38 MT of the total volume, with Sodatrade Corp. leading the list with a total volume imported of 34,759.5 MT. The remaining volume of 285,981 MT of rice was imported by cooperatives and associations, mostly led by farmers, BPI data showed

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Companies BusinessMirror

Thursday, May 14, 2020

B1

Ayala Corp. Q1 income falls as virus weakens core units

By VG Cabuag

C

@villygc

onglomerate Ayala Corp. said its net income in the January-to-March period fell 17 percent to P6.7 billion, from last year’s P8.3 billion, as the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) crisis affected the performance of most of its business units.

Revenues fell 11 percent to P61.72 billion, from last year’s P69.5 billion as its core businesses—Ayala Land and Bank of the Philippine Islands— recorded weak results on the impact of government-mandated enhanced community quarantine protocols, which took effect last March 16.

Isolating the estimated impact

of the health crisis, Ayala’s net income was flat from last year, which included the P1-billion divestment gains from the merger of AC Education with iPeople.

AC Industrials, meanwhile, registered a net loss of P564 million due to the impact of governmentmandated shutdown of its facili-

ties in China and market disruptions in the global supply chain in manufacturing.

Globe Telecom Inc. reported a profit decline of 2 percent to P6.6 billion during the period, but its power business recorded a turnaround, booking profits of P1.96 billion, from P2 million a year ago.

Manila Water’s first quarter net profits grew 4 percent year-on-year to P1.3 billion mainly due to the impact of the P534-million penalty from the regulator and P353million bill waiver from the water crisis last year.

“This unprecedented health crisis has resulted in a radical transformation of societies, economies, and businesses, including the Ayala group. At the onset of the crisis, the Ayala group has prioritized the welfare of our workforce and our many stakeholders across our ecosystem. We have likewise continuously done our part in assisting the government, healthcare

sector, and economically vulnerable Filipinos who have been most affected by the crisis,” said Ayala president and COO Fernando Zobel de Ayala.

“While the outlook for the business environment has fundamentally changed as a result of this crisis, we take comfort in the fact that we have always maintained a strong balance sheet that provides us with flexibility as we navigate the uncertainties,” Zobel added.

Ayala chairman and CEO Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala said as the company anticipates the reopening of business operations, the company has put in place a health protocol to ensure the safety of employees.

“Our AC Health and HR teams have developed a protocol for workplace Covid-19 testing to help assess and protect our employees based on their individual risk profiles. We believe this is a critical step as our businesses readjust to this new environment,” he said.

House okays bill granting ABS-CBN provisional franchise on 2nd reading

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

T

he House of Representatives on Wednesday approved on second reading a measure that seeks to grant ABS-CBN Corp., the country's biggest broadcaster, a provisional franchise to operate until October 31.

House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano together with seven other lawmakers filed also on Wednesday House Bill (HB) 6732, or an act granting the ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp. a franchise to construct, install, operate and maintain television and radio broadcasting stations in the Philippines until October.

After the filing, the House plenary immediately constituted as Committee of the Whole and approved the bill.

Under the bill, the franchise shall be in effect until October 31, unless sooner revoked or cancelled.

"Providing ABS-CBN with a provisional franchise valid until October 31, 2020 will give both the House

of Representatives and the Senate time to hear the issues being raised for and against the renewal, and assess, with complete impartiality and fairness, whether or not the network shall be granted a franchise for another 25 years," the bill's explanatory note read.

Last May 5, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) ordered ABS-CBN to stop the operations of its television and radio stations since the broadcast firm no longer has a franchise. ABS-CBN Convergence’s franchise expired last March 17, while ABS-CBN Corp.’s franchise ended on May 4.

Under the bill, a special right is reserved to the President of the Philippines, in times of war, rebellion, public peril, calamity, emergency, disaster or disturbance of peace and order to temporarily take over and operate the stations or facilities of the grantee.

It also noted that the President has the right to temporarily suspend the operation of any station or facility in the interest of public safety, se-

China Bank secures PRS Aaa rating

C

hina Banking Corp. announced on Wednesday that it was able to secure the highest credit rating with a stable outlook from Philippine Rating Services Corp. (PhilRatings).

In a disclosure, the listed bank said PhilRatings gave the PRS Aaa ratings, which means it has a very strong capacity to meet financial obligations.

A stable outlook, meanwhile, signifies that the rating is likely to be the same in the next 12 months.

“The rating takes into account China Bank’s established track record in the banking industry, and strong and experienced owners who have navigated the bank through various changes in the economic environment; its sound funding profile; its solid franchise which is expected to support the bank’s profit performance; and its historically sound asset quality backed by sufficient capital,” the ratings firm said.

In the first quarter, China Bank saw its net profits surge by 19 percent to P2.2 billion, registering return on equity of 9.15 percent and return on assets of 0.92 percent for the period. Net operating income increased by 26 percent year-on-year to P9.1 billion.

Nonperforming loan (NPL) ratio was stable at 1.7 percent while NPL coverage stood at 109 percent. Provision for potential loan loss was increased by 51 percent due to anticipated credit risk amid the pandemic.

As of end-March, total capital registered at P97 billion. China Bank, moving forward, is expecting fee-based earnings to decline amid payment relief options and fee waivers following the implementation of the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act. Still, the bank sees its interest margins to remain stable due to the policy rate cuts imposed by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

"The expected decline in fee-based income is not seen to put a significant dent on China Bank’s solid business franchise, which serves as a strong base for the bank’s growth post-COVID-19 [coronavirus disease 2019]," PhilRatings said.

Shares in China Bank slid 4 centavos, or 0.20 percent, to end at P19.68 each amid the 0.45-percent drop for the benchmark index on Wednesday.

TyroneJasperC.Piad

curity and public welfare; or to authorize the temporary use and operation thereof by any agency of the government, upon due compensation to the grantee, for the use of said stations or facilities during the period when they shall be so operated.

Also, the bill said the grantee shall secure from the NTC, the appropriate permits and licenses for the operation of its stations and facilities and shall not use any frequency in the radio/television spectrum without authorization from the NTC. The NTC, however, shall not unreasonably withhold or delay the grant of such authority.

‘Betrayal’

Through HB 6732, Cayetano said the lower chamber seeks to strike a balance between the immediate needs of the people amid the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) crisis and the duty of Congress to ensure accountability to the country’s laws.

In a sponsorship speech, Cayetano said the “sudden turnaround“ of the NTC from its earlier commitment

during a March 10 House hearing to provide a provisional authority allowing ABS-CBN to continue operations has distracted Congress from focusing on the Covid-19 pandemic.

“This distraction is the reason why we must not allow the betrayal of NTC and the unconstitutional meddling of the Solicitor General in this exclusive power of Congress to go unchallenged,” he said.

“Their actions are not only an upfront to this institution, it also delays the discussion and passage of crucial legislation that our people sorely need,” he added.

The lower chamber is expected to approve the bill on third and final reading next week. It will be immediately transmitted to the Senate for its own deliberations.

Under Section 24, Article VI of the 1987 Constitution “all appropriation, revenue or tariff bills, bills authorizing increase of the public debt, bills of local application, and private bills shall originate exclusively in the House of Representatives.” A franchise bill is considered a local bill.

RFM income declines by 4% in Q1

F

ood and beverage company RFM Corp. said its income in the Januaryto-March period fell 4 percent to P212 million, from last year’s P221 million, despite higher sales as the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) dampened demand for some of its products.

The company said sales grew 3 percent to P3.2 billion, from last year’s P3.11 billion.

“RFM saw mixed results for its ice cream, milk, pasta and institutional bread and flour units. Prior to the lockdown, we saw strong growth across most units. However, the lockdown affected our ice cream sales, especially in the out-of-home segments as consumers were restricted to their homes,” said RFM President and CEO Jose Ma. A. Concepcion III. “Institutional bread and flour sales were hit by closures of fastfood outlets,” Concepcion added. The increased demand for RFM’s packaged pasta and milk also highlighted challenges in production and supply chain as well as in plant safety and health of workers under the ECQ, he said.

“Our manpower and delivery personnel were limited by the ECQ even as we housed some staff in our sites to ensure steady production of our food products,” said Concepcion.

He said the ales and income outlook for

the second quarter is expected to be more subdued than 2019.

“The limited mobility and spending power of consumers will bear down on the sales of ice cream and institutional sales to fastfood outlets even as milk and pasta will see sustained demand,” he said.

RFM said that it had no debts and over P3 billion in cash.

Concepcion said he company has scaled back capital expenditures and reconfigured expenses to the new normal.

RFM said it paid 30 percent of its P1.2billion 2019 net income last March as dividends, and despite the hit on income, there is still “more than enough” company liquidity and retained earnings to look forward to the second tranche dividends, but at lower amounts.

“We continue to observe and adapt to the new reality. The gradual opening of the economy balanced with measures to contain the virus is crucial to every company’s and entrepreneur’s long term survival,” said Concepcion.

“We would need to continue the collaboration of the private and public sectors in ensuring our workers have food on their table and have work to come back to when more economic activities are allowed,” he added. VG Cabuag

Cebu Pacific extends flight cancellations

By Recto Mercene @rectomercene

D

ue to the modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) in Metro Manila, all Cebu Pacific (CEB) and Cebgo domestic and international flights remain cancelled from May 16 to 31.

CEB said it encourages passengers on cancelled flights to manage their bookings online via its website before their scheduled dates.

The company said passengers may select any of the following options: n Free rebooking—Rebook to any other travel date within three months. Change (rebooking) fees and fare difference are waived; n Full travel fund—Place the full cost of the ticket in a Travel Fund valid for one year. Use the Travel Fund within one year—either book a flight up to one year ahead, or pay for add-ons.

If the Travel Fund is not used

within one year, passengers can apply for a full refund; and n Full refund—Processing of refunds will start after the community quarantine is lifted and regular work schedules resume. However, due to the unprecedented volume of requests for refunds, the process will take as long as three to four billing cycles.

For flights booked through a travel agent, the company urged passengers to coordinate with their agents to manage the booking.

According to CEB, passengers with booked flights from June 1 to September 30 who wish to change their travel plans may rebook to any other travel date within one year (the rebooking fees are waived, but fare difference may apply); and place the full cost of the ticket in a travel fund valid for one year.

Metro Manila was placed under MECQ until the end of the month to stop the spread of coronavirus disease 2019.

‘Expect delays in grant of cash aid’

T

he Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) said beneficiaries of government cash aid should expect delays in the processing of the grant due to the surge in transaction volume.

“The DBP system is currently experiencing intermittent connection complicated by a surge in volume of payout transactions nationwide,” the bank said in a notice, extending its apologies for the inconvenience to the public.

The bank said its information technology department is addressing the matter to facilitate the cash pick up transaction.

M Lhuillier Financial Services Inc., DBP's cash remittance partner for the cash aid, said it is doing its part to speed up the distribution of the money.

“In as much as we want to provide the fastest and most efficient service to our customers, our operations are affected by the difficulties experienced by our partner DBP since our transactions are dependent on their inputs,” it said.

The government announced that it would distribute wage subsidies to 3.4 million employees who are not able to work following the lockdown.

The amount, ranging from P5,000 to P8,000 per month, will be given for two months.

The Finance department recently reported that 1.26 million workers received P10.1 billion under the wage subsidy program as of May 6.

The government allotted P50.8 billion for the program. Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

B2

Companies BusinessMirror

Thursday, May 14, 2020

PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

May 13, 2020

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

ASIA UNITED BDO UNIBANK BANK PH ISLANDS CHINABANK EAST WEST BANK METROBANK PB BANK PHIL NATL BANK RCBC SECURITY BANK UNION BANK COL FINANCIAL FERRONOUX HLDG MEDCO HLDG MANULIFE NTL REINSURANCE PHIL STOCK EXCH

47.5 97.2 60.55 19.68 7.5 36.2 9.1 21.8 16.4 92 53.8 15.48 2.54 0.3 636 0.59 168

48.2 99 60.8 19.7 7.55 36.25 9.94 22.15 16.6 92.45 54 16 2.62 0.305 650 0.62 169.2

47.9 99 61 19.7 7.72 36.7 10 23 16.6 90.5 54.6 16 2.67 0.3 650 0.6 168.5

48 99 61 19.72 7.72 36.75 10 23 16.6 95 54.6 16 2.67 0.305 650 0.64 168.5

47.9 97.1 60.45 19.66 7.5 36.2 9.94 21.7 16.4 90.5 54 16 2.64 0.28 640 0.6 168.5

48 99 60.8 19.68 7.55 36.2 9.94 21.75 16.4 92 54 16 2.64 0.305 640 0.64 168.5

2500 581400 1256170 93600 371500 1543100 1200 216700 22900 2313590 3710 1200 5000 810000 40 502000 90

119900 57012273.5 76245871.5 1842880 2815254 56078135 11988 4780415 375822 216292980.5 200483.5 19200 13260 238400 25700 301280 15165

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 BOGO MEDELLIN CENTURY FOOD DEL MONTE DNL INDUS EMPERADOR SMC FOODANDBEV ALLIANCE SELECT FRUITAS HLDG GINEBRA JOLLIBEE MAXS GROUP MG HLDG PEPSI COLA SHAKEYS PIZZA ROXAS AND CO RFM CORP ROXAS HLDG SWIFT FOODS UNIV ROBINA VITARICH VICTORIAS CONCRETE A CEMEX HLDG EAGLE CEMENT EEI CORP HOLCIM MEGAWIDE PHINMA TKC METALS VULCAN INDL CHEMPHIL CROWN ASIA EUROMED LMG CHEMICALS MABUHAY VINYL PRYCE CORP GREENERGY INTEGRATED MICR IONICS PANASONIC SFA SEMICON CIRTEK HLDG

2.26 0.92 26.2 0.161 17.8 56 266.8 12.48 3.09 2.33 11.22 18.54 8.13 12.52 7.42 2.91 73.35 15.24 3.97 5.05 7.73 63 0.54 1.31 30 137.6 6.13 0.13 1.91 6.5 1.56 4.23 1.36 0.108 131 0.8 2.25 43.95 1.15 8.39 5.19 7.83 6.03 8.3 0.77 0.66 142.2 1.71 2.52 4.5 3.34 4.23 1.23 5.26 1.14 4.04 1.17 8.26

2.27 0.97 26.25 0.169 17.84 56.45 270 12.5 3.1 2.44 11.32 18.58 8.14 15.06 7.48 2.92 84.95 15.26 4.04 5.13 7.75 63.5 0.55 1.32 30.9 138 6.15 0.139 1.92 6.52 1.6 4.49 1.47 0.11 131.2 0.81 2.4 57.9 1.16 8.4 5.2 7.84 6.05 8.45 0.79 0.68 170 1.76 2.53 4.59 3.5 4.74 1.24 5.35 1.18 4.8 1.18 8.3

2.26 0.97 26.8 0.169 18.32 57.2 264 12.64 3.12 2.62 11.54 18.8 8.36 15.06 7.43 2.9 73.35 15.28 4.05 5.1 7.79 64 0.56 1.31 30.2 140.6 6.3 0.14 1.92 6.5 1.63 4.26 1.4 0.113 130 0.81 2.3 57.9 1.18 8.5 5.38 7.69 6.25 8.3 0.8 0.65 142 1.74 2.45 4.5 3.4 4.41 1.26 5.45 1.19 4.89 1.2 8.6

2.31 0.97 26.8 0.169 18.48 57.2 270 12.8 3.12 2.62 11.58 18.8 8.36 15.06 7.69 2.93 73.35 15.28 4.05 5.2 7.8 64 0.56 1.33 30.9 141 6.3 0.14 1.92 6.54 1.65 4.26 1.4 0.113 131.4 0.81 2.3 57.9 1.22 8.5 5.38 8.21 6.3 8.32 0.8 0.68 142.1 1.76 2.55 4.59 3.5 4.41 1.27 5.45 1.19 4.89 1.2 8.9

2.25 0.97 26.2 0.169 17.8 56.45 259.2 12.5 3.08 2.12 11.54 18.54 8.11 15.06 7.36 2.9 73.35 15 3.97 5.05 7.7 61.95 0.54 1.3 30 137.1 6.11 0.14 1.91 6.4 1.52 4.21 1.32 0.107 129.1 0.8 2.3 57.9 1.15 8.35 5.2 7.55 6 8.3 0.77 0.65 142 1.7 2.4 4.5 3.4 4.23 1.23 5.26 1.14 4.8 1.15 8.11

2.27 0.97 26.2 0.169 17.8 56.45 270 12.5 3.1 2.32 11.54 18.54 8.14 15.06 7.48 2.91 73.35 15.26 3.97 5.05 7.73 63.5 0.55 1.31 30.9 138 6.15 0.14 1.92 6.52 1.62 4.21 1.32 0.11 131 0.8 2.3 57.9 1.16 8.4 5.2 7.84 6.03 8.3 0.79 0.68 142.1 1.76 2.52 4.59 3.5 4.23 1.24 5.26 1.18 4.8 1.18 8.26

2432000 10000 890300 30000 534000 4700 1726630 2368000 944000 124000 31300 309800 270300 600 405000 1172000 90 743100 14000 1089400 2809900 74240 185000 4243000 34000 398280 716500 10000 206000 409600 853000 10000 22000 800000 1193790 3077000 20000 20 26252000 116000 3191300 3470100 4499900 3600 15000 291000 20 101000 812000 2000 21000 27000 1232000 49500 46000 2000 1135000 10056800

119900 -21781503.5 2959583.5 -594940 -20555 -27273835 -1918050 296840 -64666642 -

5522930 9700 23404100 5070 9604136 265523 452252372 29717988 2924700 280250 361894 5769884 2220615 9036 3042230 3401760 6601.5 11291402 55990 5,570,105( 21843814 4671624.5 101890 5579990 1035215 55039424 4409563 1400 393820 2637113 1380890 42280 29320 87790 155497321 2466840 46000 1158 30,897,780( 974798 16696684 27707512 27450925 29882 11920 189760 2841 172920 2006970 9090 71500 116730 1543920 261702 52970 9690 1323100 85863503

-27589.9999 -13563965 -2944790 -47505 -7586188 -5349824 474640 12250 -17310 -3061510 65680 178636 2395460 1347774 1,166,278.0003) -19218642 280092.5 1156780 -6917879 -555014 -1400 342000 159600 155000 -48326419 -28000 1,581,369.9997) 8480 -104667 -883142 -752939 -4150 -14960 -38450 13530 -45999.9998 687875

HOLDING & FRIMS ABACORE CAPITAL 0.51 0.53 0.53 0.54 0.51 0.51 9442000 4862820 ASIABEST GROUP 8.08 8.29 8.3 8.3 8.01 8.08 14400 117113 AYALA CORP 691 693 704 704 682.5 691 419340 290032370 ABOITIZ EQUITY 40.9 41.2 41.2 41.3 40.8 40.9 379800 15566745 6.21 6.22 6.2 6.24 6.2 6.21 1597300 9923481 ALLIANCE GLOBAL 1.79 1.8 1.79 1.85 1.78 1.8 2502000 4520590 AYALA LAND LOG 6.1 6.22 6.1 6.1 6.1 6.1 26700 162870 ANSCOR 0.53 0.54 0.54 0.54 0.52 0.52 169000 89220 ANGLO PHIL HLDG ATN HLDG A 0.52 0.53 0.54 0.54 0.51 0.53 976000 514240 ATN HLDG B 0.53 0.54 0.54 0.54 0.54 0.54 101000 54540 COSCO CAPITAL 5.11 5.13 5.19 5.19 5.11 5.13 778100 3999132 DMCI HLDG 4.24 4.25 4.37 4.48 4.25 4.25 13279000 57738460 8.2 8.7 8.2 8.2 8.2 8.2 1000 8200 FILINVEST DEV GT CAPITAL 419.8 420 424 424.6 415.2 420 105390 44299054 3.51 3.78 3.8 3.8 3.8 3.8 20000 76000 HOUSE OF INV JG SUMMIT 48.4 48.6 48.8 49.4 48.1 48.4 2167600 105068485 KEPPEL HLDG A 5.2 5.49 5.14 5.2 5.14 5.2 212000 1094720 LODESTAR 0.53 0.55 0.54 0.56 0.53 0.55 217000 117270 LOPEZ HLDG 2.57 2.58 2.61 2.63 2.56 2.57 1752000 4543130 7.36 7.38 7.6 7.6 7.32 7.38 4652700 34453933 LT GROUP 2.79 2.8 2.9 2.9 2.75 2.8 50412000 141450200 METRO PAC INV 3.05 3.1 3 3.1 3 3.1 11000 33250 PACIFICA HLDG SM INVESTMENTS 821 826 815 826 814 826 72280 59428255 SAN MIGUEL CORP 96.85 96.9 97.5 97.5 96.6 96.9 142600 13831608 TOP FRONTIER 137.3 138 138 138 138 138 410 56580 ZEUS HLDG 0.145 0.15 0.151 0.151 0.145 0.15 990000 144360

-382540 79998310 -1646125 -2913263 148300 118340 540 654321 4656030 5605342 -76000 -92658670 -38840 -4158585 -36442250 -902560 4124697 -

PROPERTY

ARTHALAND CORP ANCHOR LAND AYALA LAND ARANETA PROP BELLE CORP A BROWN CITYLAND DEVT CEBU HLDG CEB LANDMASTERS CENTURY PROP CYBER BAY DOUBLEDRAGON DM WENCESLAO EVER GOTESCO FILINVEST LAND GLOBAL ESTATE 8990 HLDG PHIL INFRADEV CITY AND LAND MEGAWORLD MRC ALLIED PHIL ESTATES PRIMEX CORP ROBINSONS LAND PHIL REALTY ROCKWELL SHANG PROP STA LUCIA LAND SM PRIME HLDG VISTAMALLS SUNTRUST HOME VISTA LAND

0.55 8.4 32.5 1.03 1.35 0.54 0.74 5.5 4.06 0.35 0.29 16.06 6.63 0.069 0.91 0.79 10.24 0.8 0.72 2.57 0.152 0.3 1.45 14.64 0.23 1.5 2.68 1.89 28.55 3.8 1.21 3.81

0.56 8.89 32.65 1.06 1.37 0.55 0.75 5.7 4.13 0.355 0.3 16.08 6.7 0.078 0.92 0.8 10.26 0.81 0.74 2.58 0.153 0.315 1.49 14.68 0.236 1.53 2.7 1.93 28.9 3.84 1.22 3.82

0.55 8.9 32.2 1.07 1.39 0.57 0.75 5.7 4.04 0.35 0.3 16.08 6.8 0.073 0.94 0.8 10.3 0.8 0.72 2.57 0.154 0.3 1.46 14.48 0.231 1.54 2.69 1.93 29.55 3.78 1.2 3.87

0.55 8.9 32.9 1.07 1.4 0.57 0.75 5.7 4.14 0.35 0.3 16.08 6.8 0.073 0.94 0.8 10.3 0.81 0.72 2.58 0.155 0.315 1.49 14.7 0.238 1.54 2.7 1.93 30 3.89 1.22 3.87

0.54 8 32.15 1.07 1.35 0.54 0.74 5.7 4.04 0.345 0.29 16 6.6 0.069 0.91 0.79 10.26 0.8 0.72 2.53 0.151 0.3 1.46 14.36 0.231 1.5 2.68 1.9 28.4 3.73 1.2 3.8

0.55 8.9 32.5 1.07 1.35 0.55 0.75 5.7 4.13 0.35 0.29 16.08 6.63 0.069 0.92 0.79 10.26 0.8 0.72 2.57 0.153 0.315 1.49 14.64 0.236 1.5 2.7 1.93 28.55 3.75 1.22 3.82

456000 1700 20788500 20000 201000 865000 30000 3000 194000 3960000 1120000 85900 3247600 300000 11741000 541000 25700 36000 18000 8108000 1900000 1350000 11000 2691200 140000 69000 121000 30000 8265700 47000 483000 475000

250780 14681 675887220 21400 276300 474600 22420 17100 794920 1383400 325100 1377074 22080560 21400 10822340 431320 264022 28950 12960 20757840 290180 405550 16090 39304246 32880 104440 324460 57760 239217015 179970 582950 1822240

182024745 2700 5500 -17100 154060 -1089550 -27242 -21490915 -6058130 -52402 810 7323860 15732114 -110758440 -869910

SERVICES GMA NETWORK 5.03 5.04 5.07 5.2 5 5.03 1137900 5771249 MANILA BULLETIN 0.365 0.375 0.375 0.39 0.365 0.365 350000 129050 MLA BRDCASTING 14.8 16.5 14.8 16.5 14.8 16.5 500 7740 GLOBE TELECOM 2104 2120 2128 2150 2104 2104 63965 136116740 1189 1204 1186 1218 1186 1189 73430 88029510 PLDT 0.039 0.041 0.04 0.041 0.04 0.041 13700000 548300 APOLLO GLOBAL DITO CME HLDG 2.14 2.15 2.15 2.17 2.1 2.14 10329000 22104720 1.21 1.44 1.25 1.25 1.25 1.25 10000 12500 IMPERIAL ISLAND INFO 0.08 0.081 0.08 0.08 0.08 0.08 410000 32800 NOW CORP 1.79 1.81 1.81 1.85 1.78 1.79 420000 758030 TRANSPACIFIC BR 0.182 0.184 0.184 0.184 0.182 0.182 770000 141340 PHILWEB 2.34 2.37 2.38 2.42 2.32 2.34 1563000 3689640 9.88 10 10.46 10.46 9.86 9.88 66300 663656 2GO GROUP 17 17.36 17 17 17 17 20100 341700 ASIAN TERMINALS CHELSEA 3.18 3.2 3.2 3.22 3.17 3.18 193000 614870 CEBU AIR 43.35 43.45 43.7 43.7 43.2 43.35 92500 4011600 INTL CONTAINER 82.85 83 84.4 84.4 82.5 83 615110 51011757 LBC EXPRESS 13 13.98 13.96 13.98 12.12 13.98 1100 14674 LORENZO SHIPPNG 0.73 0.8 0.71 0.8 0.71 0.78 100000 78670 4.19 4.2 4.2 4.3 4.11 4.2 7260000 30594730 MACROASIA 2.6 2.61 2.44 2.7 2.35 2.6 4302000 11030340 METROALLIANCE A METROALLIANCE B 2.3 2.74 2.57 2.74 2.3 2.74 20000 49860 PAL HLDG 6.91 6.92 6.95 7 6.91 6.92 9800 68461 HARBOR STAR 0.83 0.87 0.85 0.87 0.83 0.85 200000 169190 ACESITE HOTEL 1.13 1.15 1.16 1.16 1.15 1.15 5000 5760 BOULEVARD HLDG 0.025 0.026 0.026 0.026 0.025 0.026 11700000 297500 1.65 1.77 1.79 1.79 1.79 1.79 1000 1790 DISCOVERY WORLD WATERFRONT 0.395 0.4 0.405 0.405 0.39 0.4 90000 35700 STI HLDG 0.32 0.33 0.33 0.335 0.32 0.32 3590000 1174600 2.13 2.17 2.16 2.17 2.15 2.17 46000 99510 BERJAYA BLOOMBERRY 5.35 5.36 5.48 5.48 5.32 5.35 7958000 42642208 PACIFIC ONLINE 1.93 1.95 1.94 1.95 1.93 1.95 40000 77540 LEISURE AND RES 1.45 1.51 1.47 1.51 1.45 1.51 34000 49600 MANILA JOCKEY 2.11 2.15 2.15 2.15 2.15 2.15 10000 21500 2.56 2.65 2.69 2.69 2.54 2.65 14000 35970 PH RESORTS GRP PREMIUM LEISURE 0.3 0.305 0.305 0.31 0.3 0.305 3060000 937800 ALLHOME 6.03 6.05 6.1 6.45 5.95 6.05 10160300 62730395 METRO RETAIL 1.78 1.79 1.78 1.8 1.78 1.78 405000 724320 PUREGOLD 47.95 48 49.4 50 47.7 48 9797200 472004430 ROBINSONS RTL 67.05 67.1 66.95 67.95 66.6 67.05 1265990 84890952.5 PHIL SEVEN CORP 125 129.7 125 129.6 125 125 151260 18908082 1.19 1.2 1.2 1.22 1.18 1.19 979000 1173640 SSI GROUP 15.24 15.26 15.5 15.7 15.24 15.24 3940700 61286294 WILCON DEPOT 0.29 0.295 0.295 0.3 0.29 0.295 330000 97100 APC GROUP EASYCALL 7.45 7.62 7.89 7.89 7.25 7.62 48300 362157 PRMIERE HORIZON 0.213 0.216 0.224 0.224 0.213 0.213 2650000 574460 SBS PHIL CORP 5.61 5.94 5.61 5.61 5.61 5.61 4000 22440

-81797240 -3245820 1829630 -1820 -161840 200330 -2124320 -13758577 -4077390 -292100 -989786 -12983676 28800 -55330410 -70922147.5 -91510 -371620 2391184 -

MINING & OIL

ATOK 9.72 10.64 10.7 10.7 10.7 10.7 500 5350 APEX MINING 0.91 0.93 0.94 0.95 0.91 0.93 1058000 972540 ABRA MINING 0.001 0.0011 0.001 0.0011 0.001 0.0011 14000000 14700 1.9 1.91 1.9 1.91 1.9 1.91 326000 619430 -321100 ATLAS MINING 2.69 2.73 2.69 2.73 2.69 2.73 25000 67790 40890 CENTURY PEAK 7.14 7.28 7.28 7.28 7.09 7.28 600 4301 DIZON MINES FERRONICKEL 0.78 0.79 0.84 0.84 0.77 0.78 5791000 4662680 240000 GEOGRACE 0.202 0.204 0.205 0.209 0.202 0.203 370000 75570 LEPANTO A 0.075 0.078 0.079 0.079 0.076 0.077 2700000 208550 LEPANTO B 0.088 0.089 0.082 0.083 0.082 0.083 60000 4930 MANILA MINING A 0.0064 0.0065 0.0064 0.0065 0.0064 0.0065 32000000 205000 1 1.03 1.03 1.05 1 1 101000 102910 NIHAO NICKEL ASIA 1.59 1.6 1.61 1.61 1.55 1.6 5409000 8516680 296380 2.29 2.3 2.32 2.33 2.29 2.29 56000 129280 -87520 PX MINING SEMIRARA MINING 11.7 11.88 12 12.02 11.7 11.7 918600 10941526 472280 UNITED PARAGON 0.0041 0.0043 0.0043 0.0043 0.0043 0.0043 1000000 4300 ACE ENEXOR 6.55 6.74 6.7 6.75 6.55 6.74 48300 322455 PXP ENERGY 4.54 4.55 4.6 4.6 4.37 4.54 1208000 5416420

PREFFERED AC PREF B1 499 507 500 500 500 500 4240 2120000 ALCO PREF B 100 101 101 101 101 101 30 3030 AC PREF B2R 499 501 502 502 502 502 60 30120 99 99.6 99.5 99.5 99.5 99.5 6000 597000 CPG PREF A DD PREF 99.25 99.5 99.5 99.5 99.25 99.25 6500 646250 FGEN PREF G 103.2 107.2 103.5 103.5 103.5 103.5 1910 197685 FPH PREF C 490 500 500 500 500 500 20 10000 GTCAP PREF A 975 1000 998 999 998 999 1330 1327490 GTCAP PREF B 981.5 998.5 995 998 995 998 550 548780 -9980 MWIDE PREF 100 100.3 100.3 100.3 100 100.3 33630 3363084 PNX PREF 4 997 999 1000 1000 996 999 6885 6859065 1016 1018 1018 1018 1018 1018 600 610800 PCOR PREF 3A SMC PREF 2C 77 77.4 77.4 77.4 77 77.4 730 56490 SMC PREF 2F 75.85 77.85 75.9 76 75.9 76 10400 789769 SMC PREF 2G 75.4 75.8 75.3 75.4 75.3 75.4 250 18837 9048 SMC PREF 2H 75.25 75.3 75.2 75.3 75.2 75.25 6400 481600 SMC PREF 2I 76 76.5 76 76.5 76 76.5 119540 9117490

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS GMA HLDG PDR 4.86 4.95 4.82 4.95 4.82 4.86 66000 319950

WARRANTS LR WARRANT 0.71 0.76 0.78 0.78 0.7 0.77 116000 84720

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES ITALPINAS 2.04 2.05 1.95 2.06 1.88 2.04 4937000 9858400 -36500 KEPWEALTH 6.5 6.99 6.94 7.13 6.5 6.5 96800 668737 XURPAS 0.63 0.64 0.69 0.69 0.63 0.63 6354000 4115990

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS

FIRST METRO ETF 85.3 86 85.5 86.2 85.3 85.3 15230 1303924 19630

www.businessmirror.com.ph

PSE grants final approval for IPO of Sia’s retail unit

T

By VG Cabuag

@villygc

he Philippine Stock Exchange Inc. (PSE) has given its final approval to start the book building process for the initial public offering (IPO) of Merry Mart Consumer Corp., the start-up grocery chain led by businessman Edgar “Injap” J. Sia II. PSE President and CEO Ramon S. Monzon said it has asked the company to make a “very very prominent” disclosure on the acquisition of one of its controlling shareholder last month who bought shares of the company at 5 centavos per share versus its IPO price of up to P1 apiece.

“So we wanted to make sure that the disclosure was prominently done [on the acquisition] in the prospectus and they agreed to it,” Monzon said during an online forum.

“We asked them to take out some things with their final prospectus especially on their very optimistic targets on store openings,” he added.

In a listing notice, the company said will start its offer period on May 27 through June 5. It will be listed at the small, medium and emerging board of the PSE on June 15.

The PSE has approved its listing on April 29, while the Securities and Exchange Commission approved its registration papers in early March, before the government’s implementation of the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon.

The company will have 7.59 billion in outstanding common shares, out of which some 1.59 billion common shares will be sold to the public at a maximum price of P1 per share.

After its IPO, the company’s public float will be at 21 percent.

PNB Capital and Investment Corp. has been picked as the sole issue manager, lead underwriter and sole bookrunner.

The company expects to raise P1.47 billion in net proceeds, which it said will be used for capital expenditures and initial working capital for store network expansion at P1.03 billion; investments in distribution centers, P220.9 million; and general corporate purposes, P220.1 million.

April Lynn C. Tan, COL Financial Inc.’s vice president and head of research, said the company pushing through with its IPO amid the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has its advantages. For one, grocery stores are in the essentials category which will outperform other businesses, such as drug products.

“It’s also a small IPO. Last year we saw the small IPO outperforming those of the bigger IPO,” she said.

According to Monzon, the company’s IPO is the first of the PSE for the year. The PSE will also do one stock rights offer and one follow on offering. He said the PSE is not sticking to its earlier target of six listing for the year, plus two or three offerings of real estate invest-

ment trust (REIT), a new product offering of the PSE. “We would be dreaming if we stick to our original target. We have application for one REIT listing. For the rest of the year we would be lucky if we get two or three additional companies to list. We have brought down the target of capital listing [done] in the exchange,” he said.

Monzon added that the bourse already had problems getting firms to list more shares in the equities market even before the start of the pandemic as it only had a share of just a fifth, or 20.2 percent, of all the securities issued in 2019.

Local companies prefer the issuance of fixed-income securities as against shares of stock due to the liberalization of some rules by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

IPOs are also not very attractive to investors now because prices of listed stocks have fallen and priceto-earnings ratios are very low even for blue chip companies.

“It would be very difficult for a company to undertake an IPO now because it will be competing with some well-established companies that have been in the market for so many years so they will be more careful where the equity market is concerned,” said Monzon said.

Aboitiz unit vows to back govt infra push

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

A

boitiz InfraCapital Inc. has strengthened its commitment to support the government’s flagship infrastructure thrust, as the government called for greater private sector participation in the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) recovery plan, which includes the “Build, Build, Build” (BBB) program.

Cosette V. Canilao, the company’s president, said increasing infrastructure spending, whether by government or the private sector, will play a significant role in helping rebuild the Philippine economy, which is expected to contract by as much as 3.4 percent this year due to the Covid-19 outbreak.

“We stand ready to support the government by investing in the development of key infrastructure projects,” said Canilao.

Aboitiz Group President Sabin M. Aboitiz added that infrastructure development is “one way to keep the economy stimulated.”

Canilao noted that her group sees publicprivate partnership (PPP) deals can “help fill in any gaps brought about by funding reallocations” due to the Covid-19 crisis. Canilao is the former executive director of the PPP Center.

“We understand that the government earmarked funding from other programs, including infrastructure projects, to address the Covid-19

impact. The private sector through PPP, could take up the void that the reallocation from infrastructure projects has created,” she said.

Her group is now engaged in several projects such as the common telco tower program of the Department of Information and Communications Technology, and the Apo Agua Bulk Water Supply Project of the Davao City Water District.

“The current crisis has clearly proven the urgent need for digital infrastructure to support better telecommunication services, and the Aboitiz Group is ready to provide this through our common tower project,” she said.

Canilao said she hopes that the government will resume the auction for the regional airport projects of the Department of Transportation, as well as the rehabilitation of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

She added that her group remains open to discussing with the government its unsolicited proposal along with the Ayala Group and Unisys, for a National Identification Card (ID) system previously submitted to the Philippine Statistics Authority in 2018.

Canilao said there is an urgent need for a National ID system due to the present conditions to help hasten Covid-19 aid distribution.

“We believe in the project and would be happy to discuss with the government should they consider our proposal,” she said.

EMPG acquires Lamudi to expand into SE Asia

I

NTERNATIONAL online classifieds provider EMPG announced that it acquired Lamudi Global at an undisclosed amount to strengthen further its presence in Southeast Asia.

Established in 2013, Lamudi is now a popular brand and well-established player in the Philippines, Indonesia and Mexico.

The portal’s estimated consolidated real estate transactions in these three markets, with a combined population of nearly half a billion people, is $55.1 billion annually.

Together, they have a potential commission pool of over $2.3 billion for real estate professionals.

EMPG had already bought Lamudi’s Middle East, Pakistan and Bangladesh businesses last year.

It first penetrated Southeast Asia when it purchased Thailand’s top marketplace Kaidee in February of this year.

Just recently, the group disclosed last week that it merged with OLX Group’s businesses in Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and South Asia, raising its valuation to $1 billion.

EMPG CEO Imran Ali Khan welcomed the

Lamudi Global teams, who have “vast experience and domain knowledge.”

“We value the people who have been with the business since the beginning. We look forward to working with the team to continue growing the business, and EMPG will provide strategic, technological and financial support as needed,” he said.

The CEO pointed out that the new acquisition signaled their intent to focus on Southeast Asia in addition to their core territories.

“Our aim is to build a strong presence in the region with these acquisitions. Southeast Asia is a bustling, happening market with tremendous potential, and we look forward to providing the best experience to both professionals and consumers,” said Khan.

For Lamudi CEO Kian Moini, EMPG’s expansion into the region would raise the bar for online marketplaces.

“EMPG has built highly successful businesses in all of its geographies, and the group’s strategic depth and advanced tech are two major assets Lamudi looks forward to as we begin this next phase of our journey,” he said. Roderick L. Abad

mutual funds

May 13, 2020

NAV One Year Three Year Five Year Y-T-D per share Return* Return Stock Funds ALFM Growth Fund, Inc. -a 186.9 -27.73% -11.75% -7.83% -25.8% ATRAM Alpha Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 0.9721 -38.98% -14.17% -8.77% -29.66% ATRAM Philippine Equity Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 2.5157 -37.54% -16.34% -10.67% -31.61% Climbs Share Capital Equity Investment Fund Corp. -a 0.6532 -29.29% n.a. n.a.

-27.19% First Metro Consumer Fund on MSCI Phils. IMI, Inc. -a 0.6749 -21.38% n.a. n.a. -20.53% First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund,Inc. -a 4.0601 -24.69% -8.93% -7.15% -23.8% First Metro Save and Learn Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,4 0.63 -26.88% -12.88% n.a.

-26.19% MBG Equity Investment Fund, Inc. -a

75.4 -39.03% n.a. n.a.

-27.03% PAMI Equity Index Fund, Inc. -a 37.2828 -27.24% -10.43% n.a.

-27.3% Philam Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 402.22 -24.73% -9.61% -6.88% -24.51% Philequity Alpha One Fund, Inc. -a,d,5 0.8533 n.a. n.a. n.a.

-17.16% Philequity Dividend Yield Fund, Inc. -a 0.9589 -26.27% -9.58% -6.18% -25.49% Philequity Fund, Inc. -a 28.1208 -26.38% -9.08% -6.06% -25.8% Philequity MSCI Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.7402 -27.43% n.a. n.a.

-27.3% -5.95% Philequity PSE Index Fund Inc. -a 3.7973 -26.84% -9.95% -27.3% Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a 634.83 -26.72% -9.93% -6.15% -27.2% Soldivo Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 0.5866 -36.04% -13.4% -9.87% -31.1% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Equity Fund, Inc. -a 2.9894 -29.94% -10.73% -7.04% -28.98% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Stock Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.7285 -26.87% -10.08% -6.1% -27.21% United Fund, Inc. -a 2.7305 -25.65% -7.83% -4.89% -25.26% Exchange Traded Fund First Metro Phil. Equity Exchange Traded Fund, Inc. -a,c 85.1378 -26.61% -9.45% -5.33% -27.2% ATRAM AsiaPlus Equity Fund, Inc. -b

$0.8973 -10.07% -2.28% -3.53% -12.75% -0.43% Sun Life Prosperity World Voyager Fund, Inc. -a $1.2728 3.77% n.a.

-7.68% Balanced Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ATRAM Dynamic Allocation Fund, Inc. -a 1.4941 -12.16% -5.61% -5.07% -4.4% ATRAM Philippine Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 1.9668 -13.88% -5.83% -3.63% -9.83% First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund Inc. -a 2.3323 -10.8% -3.35% -4.53% -11.37% First Metro Save and Learn F.O.C.C.U.S. Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a,1 0.1838 n.a. n.a. n.a.

-19.56% NCM Mutual Fund of the Phils., Inc. -a 1.789 -6.32% -1.92% -1.61% -8.87% PAMI Horizon Fund, Inc. -a 3.3292 -8.7% -3.66% -3.07% -12.14% Philam Fund, Inc. -a 14.8755 -9.74% -3.85% -3.18% -12.29% -4.83% -2.86% -13.19% Solidaritas Fund, Inc. -a 1.8455 -13.07% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 3.1365 -17.91% -5.86% -4.19% -18.82% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2028, Inc. -a,d 0.899 -9.38% n.a. n.a. -11.49% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2038, Inc. -a,d 0.7935 -19.73% n.a. n.a. -20.36% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2048, Inc. -a,d 0.7693 -21.96% n.a. n.a. -22.54% Sun Life Prosperity Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a 0.7747 -20.95% -6.89% -5.71% -20.53% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Cocolife Dollar Fund Builder, Inc. -a $0.03794 4.4% 2.29% 1.35% -0.76% PAMI Asia Balanced Fund, Inc. -b $0.9354 -4.31% -0.41% -9.88% -1.71% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Advantage Fund, Inc. -a $3.6361 -1.54% 2.62% 1.81% -7.02% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Wellspring Fund, Inc. -a,3 $1.066 -1.63% 1.08% n.a.

-5.56% Bond Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 363.07 4.24% 3.02% 2.43% 1.47% ATRAM Corporate Bond Fund, Inc. -a

1.9308 2.31% 1.03% -0.13% 1.51% Cocolife Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a 3.1731 4.78% 5.17% 5.12% 1.82% Ekklesia Mutual Fund Inc. -a 2.2764 5.19% 2.87% 2.23% 2.31% First Metro Save and Learn Fixed Income Fund,Inc. -a 2.4217 6.65% 3.04% 1.84% 2.65% 3.7% Philam Bond Fund, Inc. -a 4.5146 11.08% 2.27% 3.24% Philam Managed Income Fund, Inc. -a, 6 1.2824 6.85% 3.76% 2.04% 2.05% Philequity Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.8759 7.21% 3.66% 1.95% 2.32% Soldivo Bond Fund, Inc. -a 1.0203 10.6% 3.38% 1.58% 5.81% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.1247 7.73% 4.59% 2.82% 1.59% Sun Life Prosperity GS Fund, Inc. -a

1.7268 7.32% 4.08% 2.34% 1.51% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $468.97 3.07% 2.35% 2.46% 0.16% ALFM Euro Bond Fund, Inc. -a Є214.25 -0.83% 0.54% 0.69% -2.49% ATRAM Total Return Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -b $1.1961 2.28% 2.27% 2.05% -0.92% First Metro Save and Learn Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $0.0257 1.58% 1.06% 0.96% -0.39% PAMI Global Bond Fund, Inc -b $1.0537 -1.14% -0.4% -0.58% -3.79% Philam Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $2.3991 5.66% 2.89% 2.49% -0.2% Philequity Dollar Income Fund Inc. -a $0.0595959 2.25% 1.48% 1.45% -1.19% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Abundance Fund, Inc. -a $3.1471 5.09% 2.11% 1.96% -0.89% Money Market Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 127.47 3.81% 3.11% 2.35% 1.34% First Metro Save and Learn Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.0379 2.72% n.a. n.a.

1.13% Sun Life Prosperity Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.2788 3.36% 3.01% 2.54% 1.12% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Starter Fund, Inc. -a $1.0419 1.66% n.a. n.a.

0.45% Feeder Fund Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund Inc. -b,d,2 $0.91 n.a. n.a. n.a.

-8.08% 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 September 28, 2019. 2 - Launch date is November 15, 2019. 3 - Adjusted due to stock dividend issuance last October 9, 2019.

4 - Renaming was approved by the SEC last October 12, 2018 (formerly, One Wealthy Nation Fund, Inc.). 5 - Launch date is December 09, 2019.

6 - Re-classified into a Bond Fund starting February 21, 2020 (Formerly a Money Market Fund).

"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."

Editor: Eleanor Leyco-Chua

Health&Fitness BusinessMirror

Thursday, May 14, 2020 B3

Potassium and your body

HMO’s profit reaches P130.6 million

P

otassium has become synonymous with bananas since the latter is commonly known as the best source of potassium, which plays a big role in different functions of our body—from muscle strength, heart health to nerve functions.

By Roderick L. Abad Contributor

H

Helps your heart and other muscles

Doctors urge public to adapt ‘new normal’

SMHCC pays tribute to hospitality work force T

A

s the country braces for the general community quarantine (GCQ) or the ‘new normal’ status to be implemented amid the Covid-19 pandemic, doctors call on the public to observe postquarantine measures to avoid the further spread of the disease.

The Philippine College of Physicians (PCP), the umbrella organization of over 10,000 internists and subspecialists in the country, says that the key rule to prevent Covid-19 is to have that mindset to be constantly guarded. PCP Vice President and infectious disease specialist Dr. Mario M. Panaligan stresses that in this health crisis, being familiar with preventive measures is vital to stay safe.

“Avoid complacency in infection control,” he said. “Putting it bluntly, treat everybody and everything as potentially infectious.”

Dr. Panaligan added that this should be strictly done as some parts of the country slowly shift from enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) to GCQ. The ‘new normal’ status now allows several nonessential businesses to open. However, strict observance of preventive measures against Covid-19 shall still be implemented.

For workers who are going back to their offices, PCP lays out these preventive measures to keep in mind: n Regular face mask must be used when going; n Avoid unnecessary touching of the eyes, nose and; n Keep your hands clean by frequently performing hand hygiene. Use soap and water and alcoholbased gel when cleaning the hands; n Observe social distancing. Avoid close contact with sick people; n Make sure that the workplace is clean. Disinfect frequently touched surfaces such as tables, computer and laptop keyboards, elevator buttons, and doorknobs; n Bring your own food and utensils and avoid eating in crowded places; n Perform cough etiquette. Cover your cough and sneezes; and dispose used tissue properly; and/or n Update your immunization status. Talk to your doctor on how to boost your immune system.

Dr. Panaligan added that as Filipinos enter this new phase of fighting COVID-19, there is no choice but to adapt to these changes. These must all continue until the pandemic is over.

“Welcome to the new normal. All of us must be ready to adapt to the marked change on how we should behave. Always take care of yourself,” Dr. Panaligan said. For its part, PCP released the “A Message from the PCP Frontliners” video, the College’s call for solidarity and cooperation in these times as part of its public awareness advocacy campaign.

In the video, the PCP Board of Regents led by its President Dr. Gina Nazareth, underscores that until a cure is introduced, the fight is far from over. Doctors also remind the general public to take care of themselves and their families in these trying times through responsible health practices.

For more information about PCP, visit www. pcp.org.ph.

Your muscles need the right balance of potassium inside their cells and sodium outside of them. When that balance gets out of whack, it makes it harder for your muscles to work.

Potassium is involved in the electrical signals sent by muscles. It lets them contract properly. If you’re low on potassium, you can get muscle weakness and cramps.

Your most important muscle, your heart, needs potassium. It helps cells send the right electrical signals so that the heart pumps correctly.

Helps prevent kidney stones These hard “stones” are often made from calcium in your urine. They can hurt a lot. One form of potassium, potassium citrate, binds up that calcium.

This helps prevent crystals from form-

he novel coronavirus or Covid-19 has posed incredible and unrelenting challenges for our country. More significantly, unprecedented obstacles are being faced by essential key workers, including not only the dedicated frontline staff at retail, hospitality, and service work forces, but also those at the helm of healthcare institutions.

Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, the SM Hotels and Conventions Corp.’s (SMHCC) properties have taken decisive steps to show appreciation for the brave men and women at the forefront of our battle against this pandemic.

Conrad Manila joined forces with a partner-hotel to deliver 500 packed meals to the frontliners of the Philippine General Hospital (PGH). Conrad Manila also recognized its skeletal workforce for their continuous ardor during the hotel’s ECQ Recognition Day. To help them assimilate to the new normal, Park Inn by Radisson Clark offered free haircuts for their team members, vitamin C, face masks, and merienda as a token of their deep appreciation for their consistent hard work.

Park Inn by Radisson Davao has placed emphasis on maintaining a physically active lifestyle during the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) by conducting various sports events indoors. Personalized thank you letters from the Park Inn by Radisson Davao general manager were also given to each member of the hotel’s skeletal work force, showing the appreciation deeply felt not only by the management, but also by every other employee.

Kimkim1971 | Dreamstime.com

Potassium deficiency (hypokalemia) can lead to muscle cramps, palpitation, dizzy spell and fatigue.

According to webmd.com, potassium helps your whole body to work right, including your brain, nerves, kidneys, heart, and other muscles. “It’s an electrolyte, like calcium, sodium, and others. They manage how much water is in your body, help keep up your body’s electrical system, and move nutrients into your cells and take waste out.

Potassium also puts sodium in check, which can benefit your blood pressure, among other things.”

To understand better how potassium work s in our body, the webmd.com shares in its websites some of the important functions of this mineral and the magic it does in our body.

ing that could become kidney stones.

Helps with osteoporosis With this condition, bones become less dense, making them more likely to break. Foods rich in potassium— mostly fruits and vegetables—can slow it down. Potassium does this by cutting down on how much calcium

Park Inn by Radisson Iloilo continued to put significance in social responsibility through this year’s Earth Hour event. Celebrating with a video dedication, the hotel turned off the lights for our environment. In line with their community support efforts, the hotel also contributed shower caps to a local hospital, delivered 200 packed meals to six hospitals, and 500 food packs to Iloilo City Police Office (ICPO), border patrols, and other frontline personnel. The hotel likewise joined and supports the Iloilo MICE Alliance’s frontliners-to-frontliners donation program.

In a genuine expression of Park Inn by Radisson North Edsa’s pride toward its frontliners, an Employee Appreciation Board was launched, where everyone can write down positive, hopeful messages to help uplift each other. Additionally, the hotel was able to donate 1,000 pieces of disposable shower caps to the Lung Center of the Philippines.

Radisson Blu Cebu launched wellness and recreational programs to engage hotel employees currently staying in-house. Furthermore, each employee has been empowered by embodying the hotel’s “YES I CAN” spirit.

One way they are able to do this is through Pagpakabana, a customized term they use in reference to their scheduled Clean-Up Drive happening every weekend.

Over at SMHCC’s convention center arm, the SMX spirit remains high and hopeful, with some of the employees contributing to their communities by helping to provide frontliners

leaves your body in your urine. And keeping calcium around helps to keep bones strong.

Potassium and your brain and nerves Here again, potassium is key in your inner electrical system. It helps your nerves fire properly when stimulated.

with food and personal protective equipment.

Notably, they helped raise funds through donations to purchase 30,000 pieces of PPEs, including masks, gloves, and protective suits.

“For SMHCC, hospitality surpasses the confines of the walls of a hotel. Exceptional service has never just been limited to the corners of a convention center,” Peggy E. Angeles, SMHCC’s executive vice president, said. “We have always believed in the nation’s undying spirit. Our vision and mission are deeply founded upon the unique brand of Filipino hospitality, resilience, and passion.

Certainly, we take pride in the fact that our properties have imbibed this to the very core of their service culture. This is why we have confidence in our united healing, both as a community and as one of the Philippines’s foremost hotel and convention companies.”

In each of its properties, SMHCC goes above and beyond, more so in these trying times. On top of the best practices they have continuously performed, additional proactive and precautionary actions crucial to the safety and security of each guest and staff have been implemented. These points, along with prospective innovations and applications in operations, encompass and comprise the goals of SMHCC’s SustainablySafe initiative, the ultimate goal of which is to provide guests with the utmost safety and quality of experience. n Temperature reading and hand sanitation at the entrance; n Disinfection of reception desks before

This happens by way of electrical signals that go from cell to cell.

As part of the nervous system, your brain needs potassium. The mineral helps brain cells communicate with each other and with cells farther away in your body.

Source: www.webmd.com

attending to each guest; n Staff wears masks, gloves, face shields, and other PPEs at all times when on-duty; n Fill-up of health and travel history forms upon check-in or registration; n Sanitation of room keys and disinfection of hotel vehicles before the use of each guest; n Periodic disinfection and deep cleaning of high traffic (like lobbies, facilities, function rooms, and food outlets) and touch areas (like handles and handrails, elevator panes, remote controls, light switches, and toilet fixtures); n Laundry is cleaned by DOH-accredited providers, where linen is processed at 83°C to kill microbial life that causes disease or the fermentation of bacteria; n Conducting 24-hour continuous fresh air intake in all guest rooms and corridors to ensure the best possible air ventilation to deter contamination and transmission; n Tableware are sanitized through dishwashing machines as opposed to the typical practice using sinks to avoid contact and ensure complete cleanliness; and n Firm execution of social distancing among staff, who will also assist, enable, and ensure that guests are able to practice social distancing in all areas of the property.

Undoubtedly, strategic measures to ensure business continuity have been put in place. Clearly, SMHCC’s properties will be more than equipped to bounce back after the lifting of the ECQ.

Shell Philippines Exploration helps national gov’t in testing efforts

S

ince March 24, Shell Philippines Exploration BV (SPEx) has also been transporting swab samples for coronavirus disease (C) testing as requested by the Provincial Government thru the Palawan Provincial Health Office.

It’s not just men working at the Malampaya offshore platform that’s on-board chartered flights between Manila and Puerto Princesa City in Palawan.

There are no testing facilities for Covid-19 in Palawan.

SPEx operates the Malampaya Deep Water Gas-to-Power project, which fuels natural gas power plants that provide about 40 percent of Luzon’s power generation requirements.

When Luzon was declared under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) last March 17, air travel was suspended, requiring SPEx to seek the help of the Department of Energy and the local government of Puerto Princesa for an exemption so that Malampaya crew could travel from their homes in Manila to Puerto Princesa City, their jump-off point to the platform located 50kms. offshore northwest Palawan, and vice versa every two weeks.

This paved the way for the Palawan Provin-

cial Health Office together with the Provincial Department of Health Office (PDOHO), which had been unable to send swab samples for Covid-19 testing to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) in Manila with the suspension of commercial flights under the lockdown.

Palawan health officials sought the help of the Pilipinas Shell Foundation Inc. (PSFI), which implements “Movement against Malaria,” a partnership between SPEx and the Department of Health to ensure the elimination of malaria in the province.

PSFI, which had coordinated with SPEx to have its Rapid Diagnostic Test (RDT) kits for malaria accommodated, readily saw to the Palawan Provincial Government’s request.

On March 24, the chartered flight for Malampaya crew also carried malaria RDTs, personal protective equipment (PPE) for Palawan health personnel that had been stranded in Manila under the lockdown and cancer medicine needed by a patient. That same day, the chartered flight was back in Manila with seven swab samples for Covid-19 testing.

Tirso Lagrosa of DoH-Mimaropa (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan) is happy

to report that all seven samples from persons under investigation (PUI) for Covid-19 came back negative. The work, however, continues.

“We had one come in at the Ospital ng Palawan; we might have to take a sample and send it to Manila,” he said.

The chartered Malampaya flights have also carried free of charge, samples of blood for testing in Manila at the request of the Philippine Red Cross-Palawan. There are no facilities to test and clear donated blood in Palawan, which needs to build up its blood bank.

Other cargo that have been accommodated are PPEs and face masks for health frontliners as well as a set of reagents for bacteriology and test kits for other respiratory diseases.

“We were down to three, four N95 face masks yesterday before the boxes came.

Shell really saved us. Malaking tulong po sa amin [This really helps us], to help keep our frontliners safe. Thank you again po and God bless,” said Joe Dapo, who works at the Infection Prevention department of Adventist Hospital in Puerto Princesa City.

Not only is Cardiologist Butch Gemarino grateful to PSFI for facilitating the donation of PPEs to Adventist Hospital as well as Pala-

wan Baptist Hospital in Roxas, Palawan, he also hopes it will be sustained.

“We have a second batch of donations ready for transport,” he said. “We are again asking for your help kung puwede po namin ipasabay ang [to accommodate the] boxes of PPEs sa next trip ng Shell Foundation.

Thanks po ng marami [a lot].”

Val Ventura of Victus Healthcare Corporation credits PSFI for facilitating the transport of test kits for other respiratory diseases such as influenza. He says Adventist Hospital needs the test kits to rule out other respiratory illnesses before getting patients tested for Covid-19.

PSFI with DOH-Palawan, makes sure that in coordinating the accommodation of small cargo critical to Covid-19 service and testing, and those needed by Palawan health frontliners on SPEx-chartered flights, the guidelines on packaging and handling the samples, including social distancing and minimal contact are followed.

Health and Red Cross officials make sure that swab and blood samples are properly packed and sanitized for transport, with their counterparts in Manila ready to pick them up at the airport, and vice versa.

EALTH maintenance organization (HMO) Philhealthcare Inc. (PhilCare) reported an increase of 20.9 percent in net income to P130.6 million in 2019 from P108 million in 2018 on the back of strong market reception, improved transactions and introduction of new sales instruments.

The company’s annual financial statement, likewise, showed growth in revenues at 15.8 percent from P2.31 billion to P2.68 billion year-on-year.

“We are really happy that our efforts in 2019 bore fruit, from the aggressive sales of our innovative products like our prepaid health cards to the new partnerships we formed and the new sales channels that we have opened. All these have contributed significantly to the increase of our bottom line,” said PhilCare President and Chief Executive Officer Jaeger L. Tanco.

According to him, the health maintenance organization has blazed a trail the use of prepaid health cards in the market.

“This was the result of our first Wellness Index done back in 2014. We learned back then a lot of Filipinos did not have access to health-care coverage because they didn’t have corporate health benefits.

We, then, decided to develop sachet-type products that are more accessible and affordable, and it truly made a difference,” he explained.

Currently, the firm is taking on new innovations by leveraging on technology that enhance the delivery of quality health care to the public.

DigiMed service, for instance, is a kind of medical teleconsult that will make a more pronounced impact as the country now embraces the new normal amid the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.

To date, this offering on the HeyPhil application has received around 1,500 digital consultations a month.

It has also recently launched DigiMed PLUS, a web-based telemedicine app that allows members’ access to numerous specialists via video call.

“It is with great confidence that we assure our members, partners, and stakeholders that regardless of the present economic condition, PhilCare has remained resilient and we continue to be steadfast in our commitment to provide the quality of health care and service that we have been known to deliver,” Tanco said.

“PhilCare has always been a company that takes pride in being at the helm of innovation. As the nation gradually prepares itself for the new normal, we continue to gain momentum, seeking for opportune possibilities to leverage change to our advantage, as we dedicate ourselves in fulfilling our mission of making quality health-care services available to every Filipino,” he added.

D.O.S.T. Responds to NMMC’s Request for Studies on PPE Disinfection

T

he Department of Science and Technology Region 10 nodded in agreement to Northern Mindanao Medical Center’s (NMMC) request for further studies on Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) disinfection.

Dr. Art Surdilla, Liaison Officer of NMMC Incident Command System, sought the agency’s expert assistance in finding possible ways for disinfection of the cover-all suits used by health-care workers.

The request is to respond to the shortage of PPE as the hospital continually caters patients suspect for coronavirus disease and those referred from other hospitals throughout the region. The NMMC started to handle Covid-19 related cases since February of this year.

DOST-10 through its Regional Science and Testing Laboratory’s Microbiology Unit, researched on the possible ways to disinfect PPE which may include the use of ultraviolet (UV) light, humid heat, hydrogen peroxide vapor, and ozone.

Also being studied was the possible disinfection methods for surgical and N95 masks. “Anecdotal evidence from facilities in other countries shows that the average number of times masks have been able to be reused is three times before fit testing failures are observed, whereas masks were run through the UVGI disinfection protocol 50 times before significant degradation of seal integrity was observed,” Mechler S. (2020).

DOST-10 Microbiology Research Analyst Freann Faith Lagahit collated all gathered data and researches from different certified health agencies (i.e., CDC, FDA, and EPA). The report in a table format that included summary of the procedures of each method, some recommendations and considerations for the use of each method, and the measure of effectiveness of some methods, gave NMMC better options in choosing what is applicable and efficient for them. Alloena Marie O. Neri, DOST-X

B4

Thursday, May 14, 2020

Parentlife BusinessMirror

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Today’s Horoscope

Snaps from our last holiday trip in Europe, with my sister Joan and my kids Meagan and Marcus.

By Eugenia Last

z

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Miranda Cosgrove, 27; Cate Blanchett, 51; Tim Roth, 59; George Lucas, 76.

Happy Birthday: Look for the positive aspects in life, and you’ll encounter opportunities that will encourage you to try something new. Life is what you make it, and you are the one responsible for your happiness. Focus on personal growth, health and overall day-to-day maintenance. Make a point to expand your mind and your interests, and to associate with people who enhance your life. Your lucky numbers are 7, 13, 21, 24, 33, 42, 46.

a

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Share your thoughts and feelings. Look at every angle, and contribute something positive. Extend warmth and compassion toward those in need of a pick-me-up, and you will feel good. Strengthen your relationship with someone you love. Romance is encouraged. HHHH

The ‘J’ in my nurture H

ERE is another addition to my series, “Diary of a Mom With No Limits.” Last Sunday was Mother’s Day, and for some reason it made me suddenly reflect on the word “nurture.” It made me realize how I have always wanted to be a mother. More than that, it made me think of my unique “firstborn.”

Her name is Joan. I am almost 10 years her senior.

Although at first I dreamt of having a baby brother, she was truly a gift to me from the day she was born.

I remember loving her so much that I volunteered to wash her diapers in the afternoons just so her nanny could properly watch over her. It’s quite normal that everyone was there when she was laughing and playing, but when it came to changing the diapers, it seemed I was always the one designated to do the task.

I think this excerpt from her Mother’s Day post in 2017 sums it all up: “I didn’t grow up with a ‘mom’, or at least what the truest sense of the word means which for me was a person who gave unconditional love and sacrifice for her children, someone who fits the phrase ‘with all thy faults, I love thee still,’ and someone who would be the first person a child would call for in times of need....

“As I grew older, from my teens and all the way

to my early 20s, the universe had its own magical way of correcting things and gifted me with the courage and humility to see myself for who I truly was—a damaged, traumatized, ugly being who had the opportunity to admit fault and change. It was painful, it was hard, and boy was it agonizing and psychologically tiring. But throughout all of the complications, the universe had my back because every step of the way: I had a mother-figure who gave me strength and hope....

“In this journey of practice, empathy and loving the universe, I would not have been able to get out of my slump and escape... without the help of a strong ‘mother’ who was my sister, Maye Yao. “I grew up with Maye as my ‘disciplinarian,’ this kontrabida would KJ her way into my curfew, allowance and punishments. But growing up, I would tell peopl, ‘She raised me,’ but really, it was still that little sister talking, that same little sister who would just copy whatever Maye liked from the favorite color purple, to liking Matchbox 20 and Sugar Ray, because in my eyes, it was the ‘cool’ thing, because I always thought she was the coolest sister to have.

“But each year that I get older, I see more and more how much my sister is really an incredible mom to me, my niece, my nephew, and even to my dad. In all my years of growing up... it’s only in the past 15 years that I truly agreed with the mama-themed songs...I have never met a person who will slice herself in as many ways needed just so she can help all of us even to the point of putting our well-being ahead of hers.

She knows the importance of being psychologically healthy—that this is the only way to continue being selfless, sane and ‘whole’ despite everyone wanting a piece of you. It’s one of the most valuable lessons I continuously learn from her.

“We are 10 years apart, and now that I am 30, I still have miles and miles of dirt I need to work on myself.

b

Today, Maye and I don’t share the same views on everything about life, but I know she loves me despite all my faults, despite our conflicts, and despite how different we really are as individuals on this planet....

In many ways, I guess that is what a mother does: they don’t force you to conform to what they want you to be, they allow you and support you to who YOU want to be, and making sure you know that they have your backs every step of the way.

“So to my sister Maye Yao, thank you for rescuing me from the downward spiral of where I was headed, and making me believe that being a mom is really a beautiful and priceless job to have. I would like to think that I am now ‘the cool one,’ but you will always still be the greatest person to have in my life.”

With her kind words, I want to say to Joan: I feel luckier because you paved my way of loving motherhood. Our memories both stern and sweet, have been my pillars of strength. In our darkest days as a family, it was never a question nor a sacrifice to have been there for you. I did it because my love for you would not have allowed it any other way.

And as much as you tested my patience when you were growing up, you also showed me that my love as a mom is strongest not when you are winning or on my side, but in knowing who you are, your weaknesses, and choosing to root for your happiness and fulfillment no matter what. Thank you for being a great motivator to Meagan and Marcus. Thank you for making me love life more like throwing me that surprise birthday/congratulatory party after I passed the teacher’s exam.

So for this Mother’s Day, Joan, for all the years you have given me such nice messages, I want to pass the toast to you and my two kids, as thanks for allowing me to be the best source of nurture I can be for the three of you. Thank you for being my “firstborn.”

Thank you for being the “J” in my nurture. n

LPG brand remains committed to continued operations WITH the recent extension of the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon due to Covid-19, Solane reassures all customers that their hotlines and online platforms will remain operational to address everyone’s LPG needs.

According to the brand, consumers can address their needs via m.me/solane.ph or Facebook Messenger, and provide the following information: name of customer, delivery address, nearby landmarks, and amount of payment. Alternatively, consumers can leverage Solane’s official mobile app, available on the App Store or Google Play Store.

These simple ways allow homes to readily address their LPG needs despite the Covid-19 lockdown. More information is available at www. solane.com.ph.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Do your due diligence, find out whatever you can about everyone and everything. The more information you gather, the better prepared you will be when it’s time to negotiate. Keep an open mind; anger will not help you get ahead. HHH

c

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): A romantic connection looks promising but challenging due to misunderstandings. Be honest, upfront and consistent, and you’ll avoid sending the wrong message. Take an opportunity to do more talking, and find out what makes others tick. HHHHH

d

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Be inventive; it will help you take advantage of the lifestyle changes that are in place. Don’t let what you’ve done in the past deter you from adopting the new norm.

Activity, fitness, learning and exploring new possibilities are favored. HHH

e

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): You’ll get a lucky break if you retrace your steps and set up a conference call with someone you’ve worked with before. What you have to offer will draw interest and can set the pace for what’s to come. HHH

f

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Settle down, and ease into the necessary changes and the economic adjustments that are required.

You’ll make progress if you are sensitive to what others need or want. Compensations, along with incentives, will help prompt others to do things your way. HHH

g

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Concentrate on personal growth, not meddling in someone else’s business. A positive direction will make you a better person. Stick to your plan, but don’t rely on others to help. A kind gesture or word will enhance your relationship with someone special. HHHHH

h i

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Stop worrying about everyone else, and do the things you enjoy. The people who want to share with you will ask to be a part of the challenges you face. HH SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Enjoy spending more time with someone you love.

Conversations will help you get to know each other better. Refuse to let outsiders disrupt your life.

Truth matters; verify information offered before you take action. Speak from the heart. HHHH

j

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): You won’t get away with anything. Someone who cares about you will want to step in and take over. Listen to advice offered, but make it clear that it’s you who must make a decision. HHH

k

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): You’ll face opposition and manipulative people. Don’t feel pressured to decide if you aren’t ready.

Seeing a pressure tactic used should be a warning sign not to give in to manipulation. HHH

l

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Get rid of any negative thoughts, and look for the positive in whatever situation you find yourself facing.

Look at the big picture, and you’ll know what changes you need to put in place to keep your life moving forward. HHH Birthday Baby: You are unique, charming and free-spirited.

You are kind and mindful.

SOLANE distributors are ready to deliver Solane LPG

‘golf goods’ by zhouqin burnikel The Universal Crossword/Edited by David Steinberg

ACROSS 1 ___ New Guinea 6 Had dumplings, say 9 (I’m so shocked!)

13 Some Taiwanese tablets 14 Particle such as H+ 15 ___ Ricans 16 Seder plate item that isn’t for eating 18 Center of power 19 Cargo measures 20 Comedian Wong 21 Major uncertainties 22 Second person 23 Realistically representing everyday events 25 Miffed, with “off” 27 Beyoncé, to Jay-Z 28 Island with a lagoon 30 Game console hidden in “Genesis” 31 Many a CEO’s degree 34 You might open a window for one 39 Fish never served raw 40 Pen brand 41 Fails to include 42 Massage venues

4 Selena Gomez, for Selenators 4 45 *ign flashed at a University of Texas game 50 Tallahassee sch.

53 Woolly pack animal 54 Lard, e.g.

55 “I don’t give ___!”

56 “Same here!”

57 Shots one may take after the starred answers’ starts 59 Wall-climbing plants 60 Subj. for some immigrants 61 Uncouth type 62 Perfect scores for gymnasts 63 “Psst!”

64 Furious with DOWN 1 Pale-looking 2 “Bless you!” elicitor 3 Staple in Chinese cooking 4 Coffeehouse dispensers 5 Make inquiries 6 Garlicky spread 7 Gin mixer 8 Arizona-to-Kansas dir.

9 Company that owns Blogger 10 ___ art (computer character images) 11 Jam-pack 12 No longer trendy 15 Steep face 17 Like Mr. Clean and Captain Picard 21 Gem State capital 23 ___-control 24 Wide-mouthed jug 26 Polar present producer 28 Leave wide-eyed 29 Start of many titles 30 Org. for Lions and Vikings 31 Postal crime 32 Small amount 33 ___ Poetica 35 Michelle who led the Let’s Move! campaign 36 Perch or sole 37 Does some lawn repair 38 Grp. with co-pays 42 Roller derby needs 43 Rio Grande feeder 44 Not domestic: Abbr.

45 “I’ve ___!” (“Enough is enough!”)

6 Greek salad tidbit 4 47 Elect to participate 48 Good to have around 49 Surge on Wall Street 51 Unpaid seasonal deliveryman?

52 Surprising win 55 Taj Express destination 57 “Not a big fan” 58 Deep Blue’s creator Solution to yesterday’s puzzle:

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Thursday, May 14, 2020

Telethonraises $115M for New Yorkers impacted

by Covid-19

CHRISTIAN BABLES

ENCHONG DEE

Unlocking poems and poets and actors A

LLOW me some vulgarity: How much do we spend for each production of an actor reading a poem, with music and landscape?

There’s the two of us: Kristian Sendon Cordero and I. Fr. Wilmer S. Tria of the Ateneo de Naga University Press is a consultant. We talk about the actor and what kind of poems we would ask him to read. There is no discussion because there is no time. We find the contact person—the manager or a friend, usually a filmmaker also—and get the contact number or e-mail address or Facebook account of the actor. Then we start the conversation.

The most common trail we follow is to create a group chat through Messenger. Everything begins with the awkward “Hi” and “Hello,” as if we are meeting in a party or at a street corner.

The technologies may have created applications that conjure social relations but, caught in that site, we resort to time-tested human gestures and expressions.

So, if you are privy to our first meetings, you would see this line from me: “Christian [Bables], meet Kristian Cordero.” Then I begin the short introduction of Kristian as if he is not there. In the case of Lui Manansala, Kristian initiated the contact.

By the time I got to the chat, Lui Manansala was there, active already. I entered the chat and wrote in Bikol: “Giromdom mo pa man ako, Lui? [You still remember me, Lui]” with the words “pa man” adding an embarrassed endearment in the line.

It helped that we began the project with Jaime Fabregas. With Jimmy, we gave the shortest explanation and that was it.

In most situations, there were not much time to decide which poet or poem fits who, with reference to the reader. If there is a lesson learned in this project that has an added value to the enterprise of filmmaking, it is that typecasting must be most unfair to actors. It is good to producers who are afraid to take risks; it is a dead-end to actors whose creativity remains alive despite the economics of cinema. What we have discovered has been known all these years: The idea of a one-to-one correspondence between a role (assuming the actor giving voice to a poet and his composed poem is a “character”) and the poem (which is part of a screenplay) is a tired approach to performance. It is good to think of the actor with no organic attachment to any role. It is good to try. It is good to be surprised. It is good to uncover, unlock and discover. To enjoy the process.

With all candor, we—Kristian and I—must accept one thing: we were learning about the project as we went along. All throughout, we were enablers and project persons. The wellspring of emotion and

presence, however, the kind that our audience said “calmed them” or caused them to tear up a bit, came mostly from the readers.

The readers were the actors who allowed the lines to be material elements. They locked with the verse forms or in rhythms that were as old as their fear and fantasies. The shock of recognition was always there when the actor/reader recognized a metaphor and transformed it into a guttural sound or a whisper that was terrific and terrified. The commas and periods became pauses with tones because the reader knew how to dance with the verbs and modifiers.

Their approaches were different. Jimmy Fabregas known lately for his more outward acting in commercial films and TV, perhaps surprised his fans when he produced readings that were little gems of subtlety and intimations. Jimmy, as we fondly address him, set the bar high not only for the readers but also for us organizers.

Favoring the quiet technique was another actor: Enchong Dee. He made us aware that he was reading but it was in that going in and out of the scenes in the poem that he created inflections barely lifting itself from the pages. Enchong reminded many of the power of reading aloud the poems instead of following the images with one’s eyes. One fan said Enchong was a joy to behold as he fleshed out the sound of the verse. Among the lines he read were the conversation of the Fox and the Prince in the Bikol adaptation made by Fr. Wilmer S. Tria of Antoine Exupery’s popular The Little Prince.

Christian Bables and Sandino Martin were contacted at almost the same time. Each night, even long before the airing of their readings, the two would contact us separately. There were times when we would ask them for updates. Christian did not ask for the meaning of the poems; what he did was to do a reading and to send us the video. He was asking us to judge his understanding of the poem by viewing how he enacted, in a sense, the poem. The raw performances he sent in were beautiful exercises in acting that he could always go back to as he works on his craft.

Sandino Martin early on used the word “experiment” when we gave him the poems. The first time he sent his first “experimentation,” Kristian and I could not find the words to describe his accomplishment. We never thought the poem could be done that way. As we have not shown yet his readings, let the description of Sandino’s works remain with that expressed awe.

Lui Manansala had very practical concerns about the poems we sent her: how to navigate through those Bikol words that had become difficult after being away from Albay for a long time. Sure, she could speak and understand the language but poetry was different. She contacted her cousins but they, too, were candid enough to admit that the words being used were “old” and “deep.” Kristian then worked with Lui. Here is how she did the reading: “video recording was done during the wee hours of the morning...had to do the set-up myself...no cameraman, no DOP [Director of Photography], no soundman, no production designer or art dept [departrment], no director, and no make-up...Lighted ceiling lights, a table lamp with warm light for added lighting effect...the phone camera on an octopus tripod....”

Lui would produce very intense and dramatic performances using the poems assigned to her.

Sue Prado, a Bikolana with roots in Libmanan, found in the poem sent to her a way home. Kansyon ni Oryol (The Song of Oryol), composed by Dr. Jaya Jacobo, was Sue’s task. In the actor’s reading, Oryol, a half-woman, half-serpent being in the Bikol epic Handyong, was not anymore the wily and cunning enchantress but this female ready to embrace her reincarnations through histories. Allure for allure, Sue Prado was kin to Jaya Jacobo’s goal to enthrall and engage societies about the politics of gender.

As to the question of the amount we used to fund this project: nothing. We spent nothing. But if the reception to the readings is to be considered, it looks like we have a precious legacy project that will remind us that once upon a lockdown, artists read lines that comforted people in isolation.

In the first installment of this topic, I neglected to cite the proper credit to the photo of Sandino Martin. That photo was courtesy of JL Javier and CNN Philippines Life. My apologies and thanks.

Enchong Dee’s photo is from Star Magic. n

NEW YORK—Tina Fey shed tears after announcing that more than $115 million was raised toward supporting New Yorkers impacted by Covid-19 during a virtual telethon.

“Thank you, thank you,” said a tearful Fey, the host of the Rise Up New York! event Monday evening. The Emmywinning actress along with other A-list celebrities from Barbra Streisand, Jennifer Lopez and Michael Strahan asked for donations to help relief and recovery efforts.

“Our city is under attack, but we’ve been here before,” Robert de Niro said. “In the last 20 years, both 9/11 and Hurricane Sandy. You can take your best shot but you cannot break our spirit.” The one-hour benefit was presented by the New York-based poverty fighting organization, Robin Hood, and iHeartMedia. Robin Hood said all the donations will provide support for food, shelter, cash assistance, mental health, legal services and education.

“If you had breakfast today, you are better off than 2 million of your neighbors who woke up hungry,” Fey said.

Mariah Carey performed her 1992 song “Make It Happen.”

She sang while her backup singers and pianist performed on separate screens to the upbeat tune.

“We can make it through this together,” Carey said.

Lin-Manuel Miranda, Cynthia Erivo, Idina Menzel, Ben Platt and others performed a rendition of Frank Sinatra’s classic song “New York, New York.” Lopez introduced PS22 Chorus, a collection of New York elementary school students who sang Andra Day’s “Rise Up.” “New York, I know your strength,” said Lopez, a New York native. Spike Lee shared encouraging words that sports would return someday soon. Streisand and Audra McDonald showed the same optimism about New York City’s Theater District coming back “stronger than ever” after being closed due to the pandemic lockdown. New York Giants greats including Strahan, Eli Manning, Phil Simms and Justin Tuck announced an opportunity through a sweepstakes for one fan to play a game of touch football with the players in their own backyard and get a Super Bowl ring. The winner of the sweepstakes and three friends will have a chance to play against the players. Other musical performances included Sting’s “Message in a Bottle” and Bon Jovi’s “It’s My Life.”

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death. The vast majority of people recover. AP

GMA Pinoy TV honors fallen heroes of pandemic GMA Pinoy TV pays tribute to Filipino heroes who have fallen in the battle against the Covid-19 pandemic, honoring their passion and sacrifice while serving at the frontlines in the Philippines and abroad.

Through “Memorials,” a series of videos and posts on its Facebook page (www.faceboook.com/gmapinoytv), GMA Pinoy TV honors the deceased, as well as extends its deepest sympathy to their loved ones. The fallen include doctors, nurses, health workers, leaders in Filipino communities abroad, volunteers, teachers, and overseas Filipinos.

Netizens, including relatives of these modern heroes, also lauded the video series and expressed how touched they were by the tribute. Maria Teresa Mateo, wife of one of the frontliners honored in the video, writes: “Thank you, GMA, for this tribute. Thank you for honoring all frontliners. For all the prayers, sympathy, comforting messages posted. May the Lord Jesus be glorified in our midsts.”

US-based Fely Perez also expressed her deepest sympathy, writing: “We honor those who are risking their lives

to save others to fight against this virulent enemy. We will never forget! Praying for all of you. Thank you, GMA Pinoy TV, for this tribute to our heroes.”

Malou Francisco also commented the loss of their beloved Raymond Abear (her frontliner relative) is heartbreaking for all of them in New York, as they lost a dedicated and hardworking employee, a very responsible husband to his wife, a good father to his two young kids. She also shared a few touching anecdotes of him from their last meeting at a family reunion. “Slowly with God’s care, may we all come to the point of accepting his death. We love him so much and he will be in our hearts forever. May God bless his soul, rest in peace, and may God bless all of them who died too and may they rest in peace,” Francisco concluded.

As GMA Pinoy TV believes that “heroes are ordinary people who do extraordinary things in extraordinary times,” the names mentioned in its videos are only few of the many heroes all over the world who have given their lives in the fight against what has been called the unseen enemy.

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More than 155,000 tourism sector workers receive first tranche of DOF wage subsidy program

Manila City government provides job for displaced tricycle drivers with pandaTODA

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TOTAL of 155,672 employees from 4,290 tourism-related enterprises received their cash grants under the joint program of the Department of Finance (DOF), Social Security System (SSS), and Bureau of Internal Revenue, called the Small Business Wage Subsidy (SBSW) program as of May 4.

Since March, the Department of Tourism (DOT) has been seeking the assistance of various national government agencies to extend their services to the tourism sector, one of the hardest hit industries of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are grateful to the DOF, SSS and BIR for providing our affected tourism workers with a monthly wage subsidy for 2 months.

With tourism hampered, and eventually closed during the first 5 months of the year, these cash grants will go a long way in helping them weather this period while travel restrictions are still in effect,” said Tourism Secretary

Bernadette Romulo-Puyat.

As of May 4, the SSS, through its partnership with the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) has uploaded to PESOnet or DBP Pera Padala, through MLhuillier Financial Services, the partner-remittance center of the SSS, the following beneficiaries: 155,126 employees of 4,723 employers in the Hotel and Restaurant industry and 546 employees of 17 employers in the Air Transport industry.

According to a recent press release by the DOF, the SBWS aims to provide a monthly wage subsidy of P5,000 to P8,000 for two months to around 3.4 million eligible employees of small businesses affected by the economic standstill after separate quarantine measures were imposed nationwide in March to stop the further spread of the COVID-19.

The subsidy ranges from P5,000 to P8,000 per tranche for every beneficiary, depending on the minimum wage levels in their respective regions.

SM provides support to Cebu hospitals Foodpanda provides assistance to 500 out-of-work tricycle drivers since the enhanced community quarantine in the city of Manila. Left photo shows Manila Mayor Isko Moreno with foodpanda Philippines Managing Director Daniel Marogy and foodpanda Legal Advisor Cuaya Juico during the partnership signing.

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OODPANDA, an on-demand food delivery app in the Philippines, and the City Government of Manila signed on Monday a Partnership Agreement for a project that will provide jobs to the City’s 500 tricycle drivers who were affected by the government’s imposition of the enhanced community quarantine to fight the spread of COVID-19 virus.

Dubbed as pandaTODA, the initiative will recruit and train 500 tricycle drivers from Manila City to become foodpanda partner riders for two months - during the enhanced community quarantine and beyond. They will, however, have the choice of continuing their engagement with foodpanda beyond this period.

“All of the tricycle drivers who will be recruited will officially begin training this week at the Manila City Hall and will be provided with pink uniforms and thermo bags. We’re all

excited to welcome the new riders in the foodpanda family. We hope that with this initiative, we are able to help ease their burden of providing for their families during this difficult time,” said Daniel Marogy, foodpanda Philippines’ Managing Director.

“Dahil sa serbisyong hatid ng foodpanda, ang mga Manileño ay mas nahihikayat na manatili sa kanilang mga tahanan. Hindi na nila kailangang lumabas dahil maaari na silang magpadeliver ng kanilang pagkain. Ngayon, ang serbisyong ito ay maghahatid na rin ng makakain sa hapag ng ating mga trike drivers sa Maynila. Maraming salamat po, foodpanda. Ito ang simula ng mabuting pakikipagugnayan para sa ang ating Lungsod at sa mga Manileño,” said Manila City Mayor Francisco “Isko” Moreno Domagoso..

“We are honored to take part in the initiatives of the Manila City government

to provide a secure, safe, and sustainable livelihood for its constituents, especially the highly vulnerable ones. What we provide are freelance jobs, which will allow them with both opportunity and flexibility on the job,” said Marogy.

All newly-boarded riders will go through rigorous training to ensure the highest standards of safety protocol and contactless delivery system, during the ECQ, are followed.

To support the local businesses and the community, foodpanda currently offers free delivery throughout the month of May. Well-loved favorites around Manila City from Jollibee, Subway, Denny’s, Teriyaki Boy, to Army Navy and other local businesses such as Clouds Coffee, Steakgasm, SwetTea, Incredible India Food and Product Depot, among others, are open to ensure customers are able to order all the food they love during this period.

Set yourself free during the lockdown

Life coach Myke Celis

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MAGINE suddenly people find themselves locked up inside their homes, stripped off from their work titles, their roles in the outside world, and basically everything else that people thought defined them for the longest time.

Now, people could no longer grab coffee outside out of whim and can’t go out without a mask. And socializing outside, if any, involves physical distancing and a whole lot of paranoia in between.

Yes, the COVID-19 pandemic has redefined the way everyone lives now. This leads to the feeling of imprisonment in one’s home.

But what’s more alarming is when one becomes imprisoned by his/her own thoughts which often times result to negative emotions and memories, aggressive behavior, anger or depression.

This can be prevented from happening by focusing on setting ourselves free, according to Celebrity Life Coach Myke Celis.

Celis, one of the most sought-after life coaches at present in the Philippines and as the the personal coach of some celebrities and top executives globally, says that being free

during this time is a choice.

“I always believed that freedom is a matter of choice. We may be physically locked inside our homes but our spirit and thoughts can remain free if we focus on letting go of the things that weigh us down. Those are the least that we need right now,” he said.

Also a book author (www.bestmeever. com), Celis has come up with this list to help everyone who might be having difficulties coping with the present enhanced community quarantine: Self-Doubt. “Come to think of it, you’ve made it this far. Compare yourself to the person that you were let’s say 5 years ago. Most probably you’ll realize that you’re in a much better space now. Take to heart that you have everything you need within you to survive… and eventually thrive thereafter. Give yourself a pat on the back. You deserve it.”

What Could Have Been’s. “Crappy decisions that have brought about regrets and failures. We all made those, once in our lives.

Know that all the decisions that you made led you to become the person that you are right now. They might not have resulted to something pleasant, but hey what’s important

is you grew from the experience. And trust me, those learnings are necessary as you keep moving on and forward. What if you focus on what can still be instead? Maybe it’s time for you to set new goals. Or even lead a new life.”

Guilt. “As you spend this time to reconnect with yourself, how about closing some unfinished chapters also in your life?

Stop the blame game. Reach out. Say sorry.

Forgive. Give yourself the kind of peace that you want and deserve. That’s priceless.

Plus, that’s also vital as you finally allow yourself to open a new chapter in your life.

One that’s far even better than before.”

Present Worries. “Appreciating what you have now is one of the best ways to combat stress and depression. Try to look around you and realize how blessed you are: you are still safe inside your home, with your loved ones perhaps, while watching Netflix and playing with your pets. Those are precious moments which you should cherish because as we get disconnected from the outside world, we are given that wonderful opportunity to reconnect with ourselves and our loved ones. And I totally believe that’s far better than being in the hospital, fighting for your life. Live one day at a time. You don’t have to resolve everything at once. And that’s ok.”

Anxiety About The Future. “I think one of the best lessons the COVID19 lockdown is teaching us is how to live in the now and appreciate what really matters. On that note, we have to free ourselves from the things we can’t control, like the future for example. Overthinking can wreck havoc to any person who’s not mentally fit, especially if the concern revolves around something beyond one’s control. Just let things be. Ask yourself this: what can you do here and now that will allow you to grow in harmony with the present? That’s one thing you can definitely control, by choice.”

“At the end of the day, always remember that you have a choice. The choice to be free from everything that’s preventing us from becoming the person we are meant to be after the lockdown is over, simply because you deserve it," Coach Myke concluded.

Vicente Sotto Memorial

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HE SM Group, through its social good arm SM Foundation (SMFI), responded quickly to the needs of frontliners in Cebu City by donating several personal protective equipment (PPEs) and boxes of other critical medical supplies.

With the rising number of confirmed Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases in the country, with almost 1,300 cases in Cebu as of May 7 (based on DOH reports), SM ensures that its social good efforts reach hospitals who are in great need of medical supplies that are needed to battle the spread of the said disease.

By collaborating with SM City, SM Seaside City Cebu, and SM City Consolacion, SMFI was able to reach several hospitals in the said city namely: Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center, Cebu City Medical Center, Bayanihan

Quarantine Center in IEC [International Eucharistic Congress], Brgy. Alaska Mambaling Health Center, St. Anthony Mother and Child Hospital, and Cebu District Hospitals, among others.

"Access can oftentimes be difficult and pose challenges to COVID-19 related aid, but it should never be a reason for us to stop trying from reaching communities in the Visayas region. With the rise of COVID-19 related cases in Cebu, they definitely need to augment their medical supplies and have additional medical equipment," said SMFI in a statement.

This effort is part of SM’s Php 270 million contribution worth of medical supplies to several hospitals and medical institutions in the country which augments our frontliners’ defense against COVID-19.

Mining companies donate P30M worth of rice for Palaweños

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INING companies - Rio Tuba Mining Corp. (RTN), a subsidiary of Nickel Asia Corp., and Coral Bay Nickel Corp. (CBNC) – have stepped up to the plate and donated a combined amount of P30 Million to purchase sacks of rice intended for the Palaweños. This is in response to the call of Gov. Jose Ch. Alvarez for a joint public-private sector effort to address the threat posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Palawan with its 1.3 million population was among the first provinces to close its borders on March 17 to adhere to the Enhance Community Quarantine (ECQ) directive of the national government. The closure is particularly hurting the tourism industry of the province which, according to reports, brought in an income of some 83 billion pesos ($1.6 billion) in 2018 alone.

On March 20, Governor Alvarez declared Palawan under a state of calamity.

Earlier, RTN downloaded to the communities in Bataraza a total of P5.5 Million pesos from its realigned Social Development and Management Program (SDMP) funds, with an additional P560,000 from its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds, for relief operations conducted in the mining communities during the ECQ. The SDMP is a five-year budgeted

plan for development programs in the mining communities, which the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) has allowed to be realigned during this pandemic in order to assist the mining companies’ host communities and neighboring barangays.

Aside from tourism, mining is another industry in Palawan that brings about economic progress to the communities.

Bataraza Municipal Treasurer, Romana Bermudez, was quoted in a news report saying that RTN and CBNC taxes have a huge impact on the economic growth of Bataraza, a firstclass municipality in Southern Palawan where the two companies are based.

According to the municipal treasurer’s record for 2019, RTN has paid P10 million in real property taxes and P33 million in business taxes while CBNC paid P31 million for real property tax and P86 million for business tax.

Gov. Alvarez personally accepted the RTN and CBNC donation and expressed his appreciation on behalf of the people of Palawan.

“This will help feed a lot of people in the province,” he said.

RTN Resident Mine Manager, Eng. Cynthia E. Rosero and CBNC Community Relations Manager, Ernesto Llacuna presented the cheque to Gov. Alvarez.

Envoys&Expats BusinessMirror

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Filipinos’ blood drive bolsters Italy’s Covid-19 response

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OME—Some 30 Filipinos took part in a blood drive on May 3, organized by the Associazione di Donatori Volontari di Sangue La Rete di Tutti, an Italian nonprofit association of blood-donor organizations.

“The blood donation is a huge effort to help in the [coronavirus disease 2019] Covid-19 emergency,” La Rete di Tutti President Felice Di Iorio said, as he expressed his appreciation to the members of the Filipino community in Italy through Ambassador Domingo P. Nolasco.

Di Iorio confirmed that, “Since the start of the Covid-19 outbreak, Italian health authorities have been calling for blood donors, as blood banks are experiencing [a]

US provides fresh aid to counter Covid-19

low supply…caused by the health crisis.”

The blood drive was organized in partnership with iPARAMEDICI, an organization founded by Filipino Dindo Malanyaon and mainly composed of his compatriots in Rome focused on civil protection, health and safety. It has been collaborating with La Rete di Tutti for almost nine years. About 300 of its members had participated in the blood donation drives.

FILIPINOS sign up to donate blood during the Blood Donation Day organized by the Associazione di Donatori Volontari di Sangue La Rete di Tutti. ROME PE/DFA

China, UAE add more test kits, PPEs to PHL arsenal S

THE USAID has partnered with the Lanao del Sur Provincial Health Office to train the latter’s health-care workers and frontline responders. US EMBASSY

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HE Embassy of the United States announced on May 7 that its government will provide an additional P298 million ($5.9 million) to the Philippines to help support its fight against the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) outbreak, bringing the total amount of the US’s local pandemic assistance to more than P768 million ($15.2 million).

As part of this new assistance, the US Agency for International Development (USAID) will partner with 18 local governments in some of the Philippines’s hardest-hit areas to promote effective crisis management and implement response plans. Funding will support local governments to rapidly disburse emergency funding and supplies, as well as strengthen the capacity of local crisis response centers to disseminate accurate and timely crisis response information, manage quarantine measures, set up public handwashing facilities, ensure food supply and support local business recovery.

Ambassador Sung Y. Kim welcomed this new tranche of support to the country: “This latest assistance builds on our long-standing relationships with local government units across the Philippines. [It] represents our continued commitment to our Filipino friends, partners and allies in this time of crisis.”

Other activities funded through this new set of assistance will provide supply chain analytics and promote a regulatory environment that facilitates logistics and transportation for food, medical products and other essential goods. To assist with small and microenterprise recovery, USAID will facilitate access to credit, as well as provide grants and skills training to heavily affected sectors and communities.

This new financial aid also includes P44 million ($875,000) from the US Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration for the International Committee of the Red Cross to support Covid-19 response in the Philippines, including increasing stocks of essential medical supplies and expanding hospital capacity and preventing the spread of disease in detention centers, including supporting resilience for vulnerable people and communities.

The US has provided more than P228 billion ($4.5 billion) in development assistance to the Philippines over the past 20 years, including over P29 billion ($582 million) in health assistance.

ECRETARY of Foreign Affairs Teodoro L. Locsin Jr. as well as National Task Force Against Covid-19 Chief Implementer and Secretary Carlito G. Galvez Jr. received from Ambassador Huang Xilian the Chinese government’s additional donation of 150,000 testing kits and 18,000 disposable overalls to support the Philippines’s fight against the ongoing pandemic.

The Embassy of the People’s Republic of China said the donations are being delivered via two chartered flights. The testing kits and some of the disposable overalls arrived on May 9, while the remaining overalls were scheduled to arrive on the evening of the said date.

Also present at the turnover of donations from China were Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Civilian Security and Consular Concerns Atty. Brigido J. Dulay, Health Undersecretary Mario C. Villaverde, Chief of Presidential Protocol and Presidential Assistant on Foreign Affairs Robert Eric A. Borje, Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary for Asian and Pacific Affairs Mey nardo LB. Montealegre and Department of Health Director Ariel I. Valencia.

Meanwhile, the government of the United Arab Emirates also provided a total of 4 metric tons of assorted personal protective equipment in the form of face masks, gloves and shoe covers, as well as 3 metric tons of medical supplies such as sanitizers and wipes.

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Baltic states, US issue statement on 75th year of WWII’s end

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HE United States and the satellite republics of the former Soviet Union paid tribute on May 7 to the victims and soldiers who brought defeat to Nazi Germany, which signaled the end of World War II 75 years ago.

“While May 1945 brought the end of the Second World War in Europe, it did not bring freedom to [the entire continent],” the joint statement by the foreign ministers of Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and the US said.

“The central and eastern part of the continent remained under the rule of Communist regimes for almost 50 years,” the statement said. “The Baltic states were illegally occupied and annexed, and the iron grip over the other captive nations was enforced by the Soviet Union using overwhelming military force, repression and ideological control.”

The group said for many decades, “numerous Europeans from the central and eastern part...sacrificed their lives striving for freedom, as millions were deprived of their rights and fundamental freedoms, subjected to torture and forced displacement. Societies behind the Iron Curtain desperately sought a path to democracy and independence.”

The events of 1956, the creation and activities of Charter 77, the Solidarity move-

ment, the Baltic Way, the Autumn of Nations of 1989, as well as the collapse of the Berlin Wall were considered important milestones that contributed decisively to the recreation of freedom and democracy in Europe.

“Today, we are working together toward a strong and free Europe, where human rights, democracy and the rule of law prevail. The future should be based on the facts of history and justice for the victims of totalitarian regimes. We are ready for dialogue with all those interested in pursuing these principles. Manipulating the historical events that led to the Second World War and to the division of Europe in the aftermath of the war constitutes a regrettable effort to falsify history,” the statement continued.

It went on to say, “We would like to remind all members of the international community that lasting international security, stability and peace [require] genuine and continuous adherence to international law and norms—including the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states.

“By learning the cruel lessons of the Second World War, we call on the international community to join us in firmly rejecting the concept of spheres of influence and insisting on equality of all sovereign nations,” the statement concluded. Recto L. Mercene

Remember the day of the ‘Great Victory’

By Igor Anatolyevich Khovaev

Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the Philippines

M NATIONAL Task Force Against Covid-19 Chief Implementer and Secretary Carlito G. Galvez Jr. (from left), Secretary of Foreign Affairs Teodoro L. Locsin Jr. and Ambassador Huang Xilian of China NILO PALAYA/DFA

LOCSIN (from left), Galvez, Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III and Ambassador Hamad AlZaabi of the UAE NILO PALAYA/DFA

Locsin, Galvez, Dulay, Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III and Foreign Affairs Assistant Sec-

retary Leslie J. Baja were on-hand to receive the donations from Ambassador Hamad Al-Zaabi. DFA

Taiwan orgs send face masks to frontliners, policemen HE Taiwanese Chamber of the South Philippines, through its president Yen Chen and former leaders, donated on May 11 medical supplies comprising 100 units of disposable medical-isolation coveralls, 130 pieces of anti-dust face shields, 800 sets of surgical gloves and 3,000 pieces of surgical masks to Carmona City in Cavite.

According to Mayor Roy Loyola, all the supplies will be distributed to hospitals in the city. Directors Jeffrey Yu and Hank Liu of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (Teco) in the Philippines witnessed the turnover ceremony.

Meanwhile, the Taiwan Association Inc. Philippines, led by its president Huang Ya-hui and other leaders, donated 6,000 units of medical face masks to the Quirino Memorial Hospital on May 8.

The said association also donated 3,000

www.businessmirror.com.ph

medical face masks to the World Citi Hospital.

Manila Economic and Cultural Office Director Ranjit Shahani, who received the items, will transfer half of that number to the Pangasinan Provincial Hospital.

On May 5, the Taiwan Association in Cebu and the Taiwanese Compatriot Association in the Philippines, led by Wang Yao-I as the former’s secretary-general, jointly donated 10,000 face masks to the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center.

A day prior, the Taiwan Association Inc. Philippines donated 1,500 units of personal protective gowns to the Philippine National Police, the Chinese General Hospital and Medical Center, as well as the National Kidney and Transplant Institute.

Teco in the Philippines Deputy Representative Dr. Joy Yen witnessed the above-mentioned

turnover ceremonies. It expressed hopes that the medical equipment will assist local medical frontliners and policemen in helping contain the ongoing pandemic.

According to Teco, it was predicted that, other than China, Taiwan would be one of the most affected by the coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak, given its geographic proximity to and close people-to-people exchanges with the mainland. However, as the disease continues to spread around the globe, Taiwan has been able to contain the pandemic and minimize the impact on its people’s daily lives.

“The transparency and honesty with which Taiwan has implemented prevention measures is a democratic model of excellence in fighting diseases,” Teco said in a statement. Recto L. Mercene

AY 2020 marks the 75th anniversary of the victory in the “Great Patriotic War.” The fight against Nazi Germany and its numerous satellites during World War II went down in our country’s history with this name.

No family in Russia and any other former constituents of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics remained untouched by the war. In June 1941, the Soviet Union took the main brunt of Third Reich’s war machine that managed to take almost the entire Europe under its control.

Therefore, it was not just the German army that the USSR was forced to fend off, but all the military and economic might of Europe.

Countless soldiers from various European countries joined the Wehrmacht as it marched East to bring the USSR to its knees and to eradicate the Slavic people in accordance with Hitler’s plan as laid down in his infamous manifesto, Mein Kampf. In that book, he called the Slavs “Untermenschen” (inferior people), which allowed them to justify their extermination. Despite all the burdens and hardships, the Soviet people not only defended the independence of their motherland, but also liberated many countries of Central and Eastern Europe from Nazi oppression making a decisive contribution to the victory over Nazism.

It was the Red Army that freed prisoners from concentration camps during this war, thereby putting an end to the Holocaust. Hundreds of thousands of innocent people were saved from perishing in Hitler’s conveyor of death. However, that victory came at an immense price: The aggressors wiped out over 27 million of our compatriots—two-thirds of them were civilians—the memory of whom we will be treasured forever.

Today, 75 years later, it is regrettable to see the attempts by a number of countries to glorify the Nazis and their accomplices. The efforts to place the Nazi regime on the same footing as the Soviet Union in the eyes of the international community causes sincere confusion and resentment. Persistent attempts to equate aggressors and liberators—those who unleashed the Holocaust, and those who put an end to the genocide of entire nations—are crimes against historical objectivity.

To equate: The only explanation for this is that the efforts to undermine the heroic feats and sacrifice of the Red Army and the Soviet people are made by those who supported Hitler and are now trying to erase their misdeeds from history.

They do it by cowardly fighting historic monuments and records, and even inventing myths that the invasion of their countries by Nazis was, in fact, a blessing. Such rewriting of history for biased political purposes defiles the memory of all who fought against Hitler’s hateful machine.

For diplomats and politicians, May 9 is also a

Khovaev PNA good occasion to recall that the Allies referred to themselves as the United Nations (UN) in 1945.

They stood shoulder-to-shoulder during the war, organized Arctic convoys and fraternized on the Elbe. French pilots in the Normandy-Neman fighter regiment fought the enemy on the SovietGerman front. Awareness of the common threat in the face of the inhuman ideology of National Socialism had helped the states with different political and socioeconomic models to overcome their differences. The belief that the defeat of Nazi Germany will mark the triumph of justice and the victory of light over darkness was the unifying factor.

After the war, the Allies built a new architecture of international relations based on the ideal of equal cooperation between sovereign states.

The creation of the UN was supposed to warrant that the sad fate of its predecessor, the League of Nations, will not be repeated. The founders of this organization learned the lessons of history well, and knew that there can be no stability without a constructive dialogue between the leading nations of the world. Their legacy is relevant today more than ever.

It is our common, sacred duty to preserve the memory of the great and tragic events of that time. We must remember the millions of heroes of the Great Generation who often, at the cost of their lives, stopped and defeated Nazism, defending freedom for future generations.

The day of the Great Victory, May 9, was bestowed on us by the destiny of our nation so that our memory, consciousness and vigilance never fail. We celebrate this holiday warmly, solemnly, with the pride of sons and with such profound gratitude that words cannot describe.

We will forever cherish the memory of the Victory’s brave soldiers and modest laborers. We keep the memory alive in our hearts, in family albums, in our national archives and museums, WWII songs, the eternal flames that burn in our cities, and in the never ending of the Immortal Regiment. All the people of Russia and other former constituents of the Soviet Union pay tribute to the generation of victors. We are proud and grateful to be their descendants.

As for the other countries, their attitude towards this Victory is nothing but a touchstone of their honesty, conscience and responsibility to future generations.

Sports

OUTDOOR TRAINING BECKONS

BusinessMirror

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| Thursday, May 14, 2020 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

Athletes in cycling and triathlon could now see the silver lining after training at home for almost two months during the Covid-19 pandemic.

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By Jun Lomibao

HE silver lining that athletes longed for during the Covid-19 pandemic has finally appeared in the horizon as government announced it would relax restrictions on outdoor sports once the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) shifts to a modified ECQ (MECQ).

The Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on Emerging Infectious Diseases announced through Presidential Spokesman Atty. Harry Roque on Wednesday that under the MECQ, limited outdoor exercises would be allowed.

These includes walking, jogging, running and cycling.

However, the IATF said protocols such as the wearing of face masks and physical distancing of at least 2 meters would still be enforced.

First to react were members of the national cycling team—road, mountain bike and BMX—who grinded each day of the ECQ on rollers, pedaling no less than two hours a day and joining a global online cycling activity via Zwift.

“Is this true?” 7-Eleven Roadbike Philippines Cliqq Air21’s Marcelo Felipe as he expressed excitement over going back to the road after almost two months of riding his roller in his hometown of Llanera, Nueva Ecija.

Jan Paul Morales of the Philippine Navy-Standard Insurance Team also anticipated their return to the road, as well as MTB star Ariana Dormitorio.

“That’s true,” Morales told Felipe. “We can be on the road again.”

“Oh my God!” was Dormitorio’s reaction.

But the cyclists may have to wait, although awhile.

PSC: Better safe than sorry

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HE Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) procured more personal protective equipment (PPE) and sanitation supplies to usher the transition from the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) to the modified ECQ (MECQ) from May 15 to 31.

The Inter-Agency Task Forced on Emerging Infectious Diseases announced it would put the National Capital Region, Laguna and Cebu City under MECQ starting on Friday. It will facilitate a shift to lighter restrictions on quarantined zones, with manufacturing companies and essential services gradually returning back to operation.

But the PSC still prioritized the welfare of the athletes, coaches and its employees and created a health and safety committee that will oversee the transition. Executive Director (ED) Merly Ibay heads the committee, which is also composed of Deputy EDs Dennis Rivera and Atty.

Guillermo Iroy and PSC Chief of Staff Marc Velasco.

“These are trying time and I worry about you,” PSC Chairman William Ramirez said in his message to the athletes.

“I always pray that you are safe wherever the ECQ found you.”

The PSC assured that the allowances of athletes and coaches will continue despite the agency’s belt-tightening measures. Ramirez asked for patience and added that training facilities will open in due time.

“I look forward to the day when I can see you all again in our training centers and the playing fields, continuing to chase your dreams in sports,” he said.

The IATF said on Wednesday that noncontact sports, such as biking, tennis and golf, would be allowed during the MECQ. Boxing and basketball, sports that involve close contact among athletes, are not yet allowed. Ramon Rafael Bonilla

By Doug Ferguson The Associated Press

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HE next few weeks might resemble a return to the silly season.

Except this is serious business.

Besides, this isn’t the cash grab from the old “silly season” days of the Skins Game, the Skills Challenge, the Diner’s Club Matches. In two notable events, there’s no prize money at all.

Televised golf returns Sunday in South Florida with an exhibition match at Seminole to fund Covid-19 relief efforts.

Two of golf’s biggest talents, Rory McIlroy and Dustin Johnson, take on Rickie Fowler and Matthew Wolff, who are linked by their time spent a decade apart at Oklahoma State (all four of them are linked by endorsement deals with TaylorMade, the title sponsor of the match).

The following Sunday, some of the biggest names in golf and in the NFL get together for a $10 million charity match. Tiger Woods will have Peyton Manning as a partner against Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady.

It doesn’t really matter who wins.

This is about bringing entertainment to a sporting world devoid of live golf for the last two months and raising no small sum of money for coronavirus relief funds.

Their coaches preferred to secure the permission of PhilCycling, the national association for the sport, before they get back on the road.

“We need to seek approval first. It’s for everybody’s safety,” said Ednalyn Hualda, a member of the national coaching staff for cycling that includes Reinhardt Gorantes, Eboy Quinones and Eboy Farr.

Triathon, another purely outdoor sport, could also benefit from the MECQ. But Triathlon Association of the Philippines (TRAP) President Tom Carrasco told BusinessMirror their would still be restrictions.

“Our athletes based outside Metro Manila, hopefully, could already go outdoor to train,” Carrasco said. “But swimming would still be a challenge for us.”

Triathlon involves swimming, cycling and running.

“But it’s better that a total lockdown,” he said.

Carrasco said a working group within the TRAP would address the situation through a virtual meeting on Friday.

“There is a proposed protocol set for review. This covers athletes, coaches and organizers,” Carrasco said.

Cycling went into hibernation all over the world because of the pandemic but renowned cyclists including four-time Tour de France champion Chris Froome trained at home via Zwift, a massively multiplayer online cycling and running physical training program that enables users to interact, train and compete in a virtual world.

The Filipino cyclists also used Zwift during ECQ while riding on traditional rollers and refrained from going outdoors to comply with strict protocols set by the IATF and the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC).

The PSC has yet to modify its guidelines for national coaches and athletes for the MECQ.

Kobe Bryant’s sports academy retires ‘Mamba’ nickname

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OS ANGELES—The Southern California sports academy previously co-owned by Kobe Bryant has retired his “Mamba” nickname and rebranded itself nearly four months after the basketball icon’s death in a helicopter crash.

Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven other people were killed January 26 as they flew to a basketball tournament at the Mamba Sports Academy.

The Thousand Oaks-based facility said it would return to its original name of Sports Academy. It was founded in 2016.

Bryant, who spent 20 seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers and helped the franchise win five National Basketball Association (NBA) championships, joined in 2018.

Games were being played at the academy when the news broke of Bryant’s death. Players immediately stopped and many people in the gym burst into tears when told that Bryant was aboard the helicopter that crashed.

The academy is under consideration as a home base for an NBA minor league program that will provide one year of preparation, on and off the court, for some elite players who chose to bypass college but are not yet

eligible for the NBA draft.

Bryant is the only NBA player to have his team retire two numbers in his honor. He was selected last month for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. A ceremony is scheduled for late August though it may be delayed until at least October because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Bryant’s production company, Granity Studios, has remained active since his death. The latest children’s book released by Bryant’s company last month—“The Wizenard Series: Season One” —became his fifth book to reach No. 1 on The New York Times’ best-seller lists.

The helicopter crash remains under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board.

In February, Bryant’s widow, Vanessa Bryant, sued the estate of pilot Ara Zobayan and the charter company that owned the helicopter, Island Express. She claimed Zobayan failed “to use ordinary care in piloting the subject aircraft” and alleged negligence.

On Friday, Zobayan’s brother, Berge Zobayan, said in a court filing that Kobe Bryant knew the risks of helicopter flying and his survivors aren’t entitled to damages from

Golf soft opening unfurls in Arizona with made-for-television matches And in some respects, it’s a glimpse into golf not looking exactly the same when the real thing returns.

For the matches, there will be no caddies, no spectators and no media outside a very limited number to provide still photos and live commentary for a television production that will have fewer cameras.

Some of the commentary Sunday will be done off property. Mike Tirico will be home in Michigan.

With no caddies for the Seminole match, laser measuring devices are likely. There won’t be any rakes alongside bunkers, though the sand will be raked by someone, perhaps a rules official.

All state and local mandates are to be followed—to what degree remains to be seen. This is an exhibition, sure, but it’s not quite the same as four players booking tee times online. This is more about the show than recreation.

These are made-for-TV exhibitions. Another test began Tuesday at the Scottsdale Open in Arizona, which in some respects is even more intriguing.

the pilot’s estate, t he Los Angeles Times reported.

Island Express responded in court papers Monday saying they are not responsible for damages, calling the crash, among other things, “an act of God” and “an unavoidable accident” that was beyond their control. The charter company also said the Bryants knew of the risks and dangers of flying in a helicopter and “voluntarily assume [d] the risk of the accident, injury, and damages” when they got on the chopper.

Vanessa Bryant separately last week filed a claim—a precursor to a lawsuit—against the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department after deputies were accused of sharing unauthorized photos of the crash site. The claim was first reported by PEOPLE; the investigation into the deputies’ photos was initially published by the Times.

The sheriff has declined to comment, citing the ongoing litigation The survivors of crash victims Sarah Chester and her daughter Payton filed a complaint Monday against the helicopter company and the pilot’s estate. Families of other victims previously filed lawsuits. AP

Poll shows NBA players’ desire to play—if safe

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A WOMAN pulls her clubs at the Imperatrice course in Biarritz, France, on Tuesday. As part of France’s gradual re-opening process, the government is allowing the resumption this week of a few select sports that don’t involve close physical contact— including golf, tennis and horse racing. AP

IAMI—A person familiar with the results of poll of National Basketball Association (NBA) players taken by their union says there would be “overwhelming” support for any plan that has this season resuming in a safe way amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The poll conducted by the National Basketball Players Association was informal but gave a clear sense that players would like to not only get to the playoffs but also resume at least some of the regular season, according to the person who shared details with The Associated Press on Tuesday on condition of anonymity because it was not to be detailed publicly.

The exact results of the poll were unknown, and the methodology behind the poll—including how many players participated—was unclear.

The NBPA sent a letter to agents Tuesday discussing, among other things, the results of the player polling and some details of the call the union and its membership had late last week with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. In that call, Silver talked about the possibility of resuming a season without fans and potentially playing at a centralized site— notions that have been discussed for some time.

There are numerous hurdles to clear to get games back, the need for testing of players and staff when play resumes among them, and what could be viewed as positive signs Tuesday were

NATIONAL ATHLETES FRONTLINERS, TOO

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By Dr. Celso L. Dayrit

MID the Covid-19 pandemic when most countries are on different levels of lockdown and quarantine controls, we must not forget that national athletes have more to lose while in hibernation.

It is best to remember that athletes need to be in their Dayrit peak when in competition and preparing for this requires uninterrupted training, both physical and mental. It is no surprise that in other countries, elite athletes are given special arrangements to continue training in their respective sports. And proof of this are Tokyo Olympic qualifiers Ernest Obiena and Carlos Yulo, who are now in deep training while in hard-hit Covid-19 countries Italy and Japan, respectively.

These athletes who do battle for the country during international competitions after all, are our sports “heroes” and “frontliners” in the battlefront. The Philippine Olympic Committee and the Philippine Sports Commission in consultation with the concerned national sports associations must therefore plot plans for the approval of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on Emerging Infectious Diseases which is in charge of coordinating our response to the pandemic.

Among the steps to be taken are the following: n Identify and select sports whose athletes could train individually observing all required protocols of proper hygiene, no body contact (physical distancing), and daily temperature screening. n Identify and select the deserving national athletes and coaches who will be allowed to undergo special training and physical conditioning on specific days, alternatively with other athletes to minimize crowding in the venues. They should be given special IATF passes to travel to their training venues which are secured, regularly sanitized and exclusively for their use. n Guidelines must be formulated and approved to ensure safety while conversing during instructions/ briefing, eating, and use of comfort and dressing rooms.

Use of personal sports equipment and uniforms must be encouraged, and not shared with others.

Indeed, national athletes are also our sports “frontliners” who serve our country in their own battleground.

(Celso Dayrit was a former president of the Philippine Olympic Committee and commissioner of the Philippine Sports Commission. He was accepted into the FIE (International Fencing Federation) Hall of Fame in 2015 for his contributions towards the development of fencing in Asia. He is currently the head of the Fencing Confederation of Asia and is the only Filipino International Olympic Committee Family member being a certified International course Director of the Olympic Solidarity School for Sports Leaders.) just that—signs, not absolute indicators that there is a path for a return to play this season.

Golden State Coach Steve Kerr, whose team wouldn’t be headed to the playoffs and was preparing to play home games in an empty arena because of the virus threat before the league suspended the season, told radio station 95.7 The Game in the Bay Area on Tuesday that he believes the Warriors’ season is over.

“We’ll be good soldiers. If the league asks us to play more games, we’ll play,” Kerr said. “I don’t anticipate that happening, but we’ll be ready if it does. And in the meantime, you know, it’s not my decision, it’s not our decision—it’s the NBA’s decision, what to do, when to do it.”

NBA players had somewhat different reactions. Memphis’ Ja Morant, the likely frontrunner for rookie of the year, tweeted that he wants to play. And Orlando guard Evan Fournier said international soccer inching toward a return “gives me hope” that the NBA can do the same.

“Everybody in the league, we want to finish this year,” Cleveland’s Larry Nance Jr. said earlier Tuesday. “One, obviously because we love the game, but at the same time there’s a serious chance of us missing out on, what, 20-plus percent of our contracts, which is for a lot of guys pretty significant.” AP