BusinessMirror November 14, 2018

DEPT. OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

PHILIPPINE STATISTICS AUTHORITY

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A broader look at today’s business

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Wednesday, November 14, 2018 Vol. 14 No. 35

9-month tax effort hits 15.2% on TRAIN law

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By Rea Cu

@ReaCuBM

HE country’s tax effort from January to September this year reached 15.2 percent, with the growth attributed mostly to the implementation of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law, the Department of Finance (DOF) has reported.

₧1.897 trillion The government’s total tax revenue collections for January-September 2018, rising by 15.7 percent from last year’s P1.639 trillion

T his was descr ibed as the highest tax effort ever achieved by the government for a three-quarter period.

A DOF economic bulletin said the nine-month tax effort represented modest growth of 0.7 percentage points compared to the reported 14.5 percent in the same period in 2017.

“More than a half or 0.4 percentage point is due to TRAIN and the rest or 0.3 percentage point to tax administration improvements,” the DOF said.

Of the total, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) reported a contribution of 11.6 percent coming from 11.5 percent last year, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) at 3.5 percent from 2.9 percent, and other government offices remaining unchanged at 0.1 percent.

For the same period, the government’s total tax revenue col lect ions reac hed P1.897 trillion, rising by 15.7 percent compared to last year’s P1.639 trillion.

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Weak US equities market drags PHL stocks to lowest in 23 mos

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By VG Cabuag

@villygc

HARE prices sank at their lowest in almost two years on Tuesday after a weak US equities market dragged the entire regional market.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) fell 82.37 points to close at 6,843.83 points, as foreign

investors dumped local shares.

The last time the main index visited this level was on December 29, 2016.

“Sentiment from US markets dropping last night, with the Dow Jones even falling by 600 points, dragged regional markets,” Gabriel Jose F. Perez, analyst at Papa Securities Inc., said.

See “PHL stocks,” A2

Continued on A6

See “Tax effort,” A2

DOUBLE-DIGIT DIP IN ALL TYPES OF VEHICLES PULLS DOWN JAN-OCT CAR SALES

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By Elijah Felice E. Rosales

@alyasjah

ALES of local car manufacturers in a 10-month period fell 13.3 percent largely due to double-digit declines in the passenger car, Asian utility vehicle (AUV) and light truck segments.

The Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (Campi) and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA) reported a 9.2-percent slowdown in sales in October compared to the same period last year. Sales for the month contracted to 33,150 units, from 36,511 units in October 2017.

On the other hand, October sales was 6.5 percent higher than the September 2018 sales. “This positive growth was largely due to aggressive market promotions and availability of new model units in line with the recently concluded 7th Philippine International Motor Show [PIMS],” said Rommel R. Gutierrez, president of Campi.

He added this trend will most likely be preserved, as Campi and TMA expect sales from the automobile show to reflect this month. “We remain optimistic that sales growth will be sustained in November, as we expect more sales from PIMS will be delivered this month,” Gutierrez said.

See “Car sales,” A2

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 53.2030

GOOD NEWS FOR OFWs Israel’s Ambassador to the Philippines Rafael Harpaz gestures as he shares his views on a wide range of issues on the bilateral relations of the Philippines and Israel, as he guests at the BusinessMirror Coffee Club on Tuesday, November 13. Harpaz disclosed that, following successful negotiations this week, Israel has agreed to reduce the recruitment fees for Filipino caregivers by at least 85 percent. Story on page A8. NONIE REYES

Asean concludes accord on services

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By Bernadette D. Nicolas

@BNicolasBM

INGAPORE—Southeast Asian Nations have concluded a landmark agreement on bolstering trade in services in the region, including commitments to reduce discriminatory regulatory barriers and creating a more transparent regime for the services suppliers in the 10 member-state regional bloc.

See “Asean,” A2

n JAPAN 0.4677 n UK 68.3925 n HK 6.7909 n CHINA 7.6393 n SINGAPORE 38.4387 n AUSTRALIA 38.1944 n EU 59.7789 n SAUDI ARABIA 14.1837

Source: BSP (13 November 2018 )

News

BusinessMirror

A2 Wednesday, November 14, 2018

www.businessmirror.com.ph

House approves measure updating Corporation Code

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By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

@joveemarie

HE House of Representatives has approved on final reading the proposed Revised Corporation Code of the Philippines, a bill reforming real property valuation, and a measure redefining the crime of game-fixing.

Voting 165-0, members of the lower chamber passed on third and final reading last Monday House Bill (HB) 8374, which seeks to “incorporate international best standards and practices into Philippine commerce and business as well as to address present-day realities.”

HB 8374 encourages the creation of new businesses, contribute to the ease of doing business, strengthen corporate governance and better protect the rights of stockholders.

It also minimizes or deters corporate abuses and fraud, and strengthens anti-corruption measures and fortifies the regulatory authority of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The measure allows the perpetual existence of a corporation and the formation of one-person corpora-

tions and removes the minimum number of incorporators.

It removes the requirement of subscribed and paid-up capital stock for purposes of incorporation.

The measure expands the right of stockholders to inspect corporate books, permits stockholders and directors to remotely participate in meetings and vote, and strengthens the SEC through additional powers to enforce the code and investigate and penalize violations thereof.

House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability Chairman Xavier Jesus D. Romualdo, also principal author and sponsor of the measure, said the proposal will allow corporations in the Philippines to address present-day realities.

“Our current Corporation Code

was enacted in 1980. Obviously, much has changed in how the world does business, communicates and undertakes commercial transactions over the last 38 years,” said Romualdo.

The Senate approved its version of the Revised Corporation Code in August of this year.

“We hope to immediately convene a bicameral conference committee to reconcile the House and Senate versions. Our targets then are to have the conference committee report approved by both chambers in November, have the bill signed into law by the President in December, and for the Revised Corporation Code to take effect by January 2019,” Romualdo said.

Real property valuation

Also last Monday, voting 155-0, the House of Representatives approved on third reading HB 8453, principally authored by Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, instituting reforms in real property valuation and assessment in the country, and reorganizing the Bureau of Local Government Finance (BLGF).

The bill will allow the country to move toward a more rational administration and management system that fully taps the potential of the

PCC warns draft two-tower rule hurts telco competition

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real property sector.

“In turn, the capacity of the government to generate more revenues is enhanced, without necessarily imposing new tax measures or increasing existing tax rates,” said Arroyo.

“The bill will enable the local government units to achieve a more stable fiscal wherewithal and a strengthened local real property tax base to fund service delivery requirements of the LGUs, thereby achieving good and transparent governance, and increased public performance,” she added.

The Speaker cited a World Bank that 50 percent to 75 percent of the country’s wealth is contained in land.

Ironically, the land marketing is contributing only 6 percent to the gross national product.

She said at least 23 national government agencies (NGAs) and more than 1,700 LGUs perform or require valuation functions and services using varied systems and methodologies for different purposes, thus, resulting in multiple, confusing, unrealistic or outdated values for the same property.

“The discrepancies in real property values have had considerable cost to the government. Conflicting land values resulted in rightof-way compensation problems; lengthy court litigations arising from valuation disputes, project delays, and unrealized revenues and socioeconomic benefits,” Arroyo said.

Car sales. . .

Continued from A1

In spite of the month-on-month growth, total industry sales from January to October is still down double digits at 13.3 percent. Campi and TMA sold 294,207 units after 10 months, lower than the 339,380 units, during the same stretch last year.

Sales of AUVs from January to October slowed 37.5 percent to 41,590 units, from 66,582 units during the same period last year.

Further, sales of light trucks declined 25.6 percent to 6,185 units from the previous year’s 8,311. The passenger car segment was the thirdmost hit bracket at 90,522 units sold, 20.1 percent lower against last year’s 113,341 units sold.

Sales of commercial vehicles and trucks and buses (category 5) from January to October also contracted 9.9 percent and 2.5 percent, respectively. Trucks and buses (category 4) and light commercial vehicles, on the other hand, recorded 10.7 percent and 3-percent growth in sales, accordingly, during the same period.

Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. still holds the lion’s share of total industry sales at 42.2 percent, trailed by Mitsubishi Motor Philippines Corp. (19.2 percent) and Nissan Philippines Inc. (9.6 percent).

Ford Motor Co. Philippines Inc. and Honda Cars Philippines Inc. have 6.7-percent and 6.6-percent market shares, respectively.

Local car manufacturers are trying to survive the year, as they face the challenges of excise taxes on automobile, rising inflation and unstable global crude prices. These factors, they argued, made consumers prioritize buying basic goods over big-ticket items, such as vehicles.

PHL stocks . . .

HE country’s antitrust regulator on Tuesday said the draft common tower policy, if approved in its current version, could spell a further deterioration of the state of competition in the telecommunications industry.

In a statement, the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) said it supports the government in its objective of developing a comprehensive policy for the sharing of telecommunication infrastructure in the country. However, it warned that the proposed common tower policy could undermine competition in the market.

“The PCC respectfully expressed its objection to Section 1.5 of the common tower policy, which limits the maximum number of common tower companies to two during the first four years of operation. [The] PCC is of the view that the business of constructing towers does not require economies of scale or economies of scope to ensure financial viability,” the statement read.

The PCC argued that tower companies can build individual towers and earn from rental payments of telco firms that make use of the tower. It called on relevant government agencies to review Section 1.5, where the purpose for the restriction is to supposedly ensure the financial viability of the operators by granting them exclusive rights.

“The PCC emphasizes that entry or potential entry to the market ensures the existence of competitive pressure, which drives the business to be more efficient, aggressive and innovative for the benefit of consumers. Thus, imposing an entry barrier by limiting the number of players in the market would have adverse effects on market competition,” the statement read.

Further, the PCC called a bluff the argument that limiting the number of players will address the issue raised by mobile network operators on wasteful duplication of resources and multiplicity of permits.

Tax effort. . .

Continued from A1

The BIR contributed P1.444 trillion to the total tax collections, rising by 11.2 percent from 1.299 trillion; the BOC with P434.6 billion, growing by 34.2 percent from P323.8 billion; and other offices at P18.7 billion, expanding by 14.5 percent from the P16.3 billion recorded last year.

“Tax revenues grew by 15.7 percent, with BIR collections rising by 11.2 percent and BOC collections rising by 34.2 percent, both exceeding the 10.0-percent nominal GDP [gross domestic product] growth.

This is due to TRAIN 1 and improved tax administration,” it added.

The government also registered a 16.9-percent revenue effort for the nine-month period, rising by one percentage point from 15.9 percent last year. The DOF again pointed out that this is “the highest ever achieved for the first three quarters of the year.”

Total revenues for the period grew 17.2 percent, reaching P2.111 trillion coming from P1.801 trillion last year. Nontax revenues amounted to P214 billion, expanding by 32 percent coming from P162.2 billion last year.

Asean . . .

The DOF pointed out that the increase in nontax revenues came from higher collections of dividend remittances on national government shares of stocks, guarantee fees, and share in the profit of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.

“Higher collections from other offices also contributed to the increase, which included the one-off transfer of P13.5 billion in bond proceeds from the United Coconut Planters Bank [UCPB] for the Coconut Industry Investment Fund,” the DOF said.

Furthermore, expenditure effort rose by 2.2 percentage points to 20.0 percent from 17.8 percent last year, which boosts its contribution to GDP growth.

Total expenditures for the nine-month period amounted to P2.489 trillion, expanding by 23.6 percent compared to last year’s P2.014 trillion.

“Strong macroeconomic fundamentals backed by tax reforms and the ‘Build, Build, Build ’ program will continue to boost economic growth as the competitiveness of the economy rises and more jobs are created,” it added.

Continued from A1

When implemented, the Association Trade in Services Agreement (Atisa) will make up the third and final part of the “troika” of Association of Southeast Asian Nations agreements that improve the region’s economic and sectoral integration, along with the Asean Trade in Goods Agreement (Atiga) and the Asean Comprehensive Investment Agreement (Acia).

On Tuesday the 17th Asean Economic Community Council held the meeting, chaired by Singaporean Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Sun Sing.

Chan said the conclusion of Atisa is timely as there is a need for Asean to pay more attention to trade in services, a critical driver growth of economies in the region.

“It is thus imperative the Asean press ahead with the liberalization in services, in tandem with facilitating the seamless movement of goods. The Atisa will broaden and deepen the integration of services sector within Asean and introduce disciplines related to services trade, thereby creating a more liberal, stable and predictable environment for service suppliers of the Asean,” he said in a statement.

More than 50 percent of Asean’s gross domestic product, is accounted for by services.

Continued from A1

“We look forward to how US markets perform tonight. MSCI’s index review announcement tomorrow morning [November 14] should also be something to watch out for,” he said, adding that speculation on the index review may have driven the performance of some of the blue-chip stocks.

MSCI is a basket of stocks—including local shares—that are handpicked based on

“Increasing the number of tower companies in the market could mean additional network infrastructure, resulting in less data traffic congestion. The issue on multiplicity of permits would be better addressed by not capping the number of tower companies, but by streamlining government processes in granting permits,” the statement read.

Incumbent telcos have themselves opposed the draft common tower policy limiting the players to two, as advocated by presidential adviser Ramon Jacinto.

The telecommunication companies had earlier complained that the numerous layers of red tape involved in getting permits to build cell sites had hampered their efforts to speed up their services.

This spurred reforms—pushed by some legislators—in the manner that local governments approve permits. Limiting the cell site tower builders to two, after the LGUs were forced to improve the ease of doing business, is a step backward, the telcos explained.

The PCC, meanwhile, also wants the definition of tower company clarified since the two existing telco firms also own and operate cellular towers.

It took note that the proposed common tower policy prohibits certain entities from owning any equity in the tower companies.

The antitrust body said “approving the draft common tower policy in its current form, with its limitation on the number of players that can participate, and the lack of a clear definition of a tower company, may raise competition concerns and be in direct contravention to the open access regime that the government is advocating for.”

It concluded a “strong and effective” open access regime will complement the common tower policy in achieving the government’s goal of better telecommunications services. The PCC’s comments were transmitted to the Department of Information and Communications Technology. Elijah Felice E. Rosales

profitability and tradability. The main index fell by as much as 105 points at its intraday low, while foreign investors were net sellers at P1.26 billion.

Many of the actively traded shares on Tuesday ended in the red but ISM Communications Corp. managed to gain P0.60 to close at P8.10.

JG Summit Holdings Inc. was the day’s biggest loser and fell P3.10 to P41.90.

For the Philippines, the services sector recorded a 6.8-percent growth last year as the Philippine economy grew by 6.7 percent.

The Atisa also builds upon and enhances the Asean Framework Agreement on Services (Afas) by further reducing “beyond-the-border” barriers for service suppliers, creating a more stable and predictable environment for trade in services and setting the stage for future services integration and liberalization in the Asean.

Afas is a legally binding guarantee of the widest preferential services market access into Asean markets to date.

Moreover, the Atisa includes a built-in agenda for Asean member-states to convert their Afas commitments into a negative list approach. This means that all services sectors are considered as liberalized by default.

A state would then list only those sectors or subsectors in which it has taken measures that it considers to run counter to the obligations of agreement. The eventual negative listing approach under the Atisa thus fosters transparency and can potentially improve market access for business and service suppliers.

Metro Pacific Investments Corp. lost P0.22 to P4.33, Chelsea Logistics Holdings Corp. declined P0.29 to P7.82, Aboitiz Power Corp. gave up P0.80 to P31.20 and SM Prime Holdings Inc. was down P0.75 to P31.80.

All of the subindices also ended in the red, led by the broader All Shares index that fell 41.84 points to 4,211.13. The Financials index declined 16.63 to 1,544.88, while the Industrial index gave up 66.25 to 10,397.67. The Holding Firms index plunged 111.34 to 6,737.03.

Economy

A4 Wednesday, November 14, 2018 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Senators keen on legislation to lure investors, raise FDI

By Butch Fernandez

@butchfBM

S

ENATORS signaled on Tuesday that they are open to address concerns raised by foreign businessmen that it will take more than presidential edict to liberalize the economy, indicating readiness to do their part in relaxing foreign ownership restrictions, among other remedial legislations, to attract more investors to do business in the Philippines.

This is expected to include an upcoming review of the 82-year-old Public Service Act, the Telecommunications Act, the Foreign Investments Act and the Retail Trade Liberalization Act. On Monday, the Joint Foreign Chambers said a lot remains to be done to liberalize the Philippine economy, even after President Duterte issued in October the 11th Foreign Investment Negative List (FINL). “The JFC welcome the 11th FINL promulgated in Executive Order 65 by President Rodrigo R. Duterte on October 31.

However, we expect only modest gains in foreign direct investment [FDI] to result from the changes made in the new FINL,” the statement read.

Asked if senators would consider

remedial legislation relaxing existing foreign ownership restrictions, Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III, however, clarified this will require Congress passage of an enabling law leading to “a Constitutional amendment.”

Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel F. Zubiri, in a text message to the BusinessMirror, confirmed that senators have already agreed to frontload passage of the Public Service Act, adding, “it is a priority agenda everyday for floor deliberations, with Sen. Grace Poe as main sponsor.”

Senate Minority Leader Franklin M. Drilon, in a separate text message to the BusinessMirror, also assured he will not stand in the way and will, in fact, help facilitate its early approval.

“I support any move or legislative action that will bring improvements to our overall economic policies and increase the country’s foreign direct investments,” Drilon said.

He recalled that during his term as Senate president, “I led the Senate in shepherding various economic measures, one of which is Republic Act 10641 or the Full Entry of Foreign Banks in the country.”

Drilon added: “It was also during

my time where senators amended the 50-year-old Cabotage law to allow foreign-flagged vessels to call at multiple ports and enable importers and exporters to co-load cargoes in foreign ships going in and out of the Philippines.”

The senate minority leader asserted that “there is a need for these policy shifts in order to make the country more competitive.”

Sen. Emmanuel Joel J. Villanueva also assured support for legislation relaxing entry of foreign investors. “Yes. There are sectors that can be liberalized through legislation,” Villanueva told the BusinessMirror. “We need to bring in foreign investments to create competition in the economy.”

Villanueva voiced confidence this will “create more jobs,” as well as “better and cheaper services.” At the same time, the senator suggested that public utilities also need to be “redefined.”

“The technology when the Constitution was framed is different now,” Villanueva noted, citing telecoms as an example. “At that time, we have a single provider. Now, we can have many players.”

Villanueva acknowledged that telecoms will still require huge capitalization. “Opening it up to foreign investment will allow better competition,” he said. “Bidding and development of infrastructure should also be included so that we can subject the construction sector to more competition.”

According to Villanueva, this will also boost the Duterte administration’s ‘Build, Build, Build’ program “if we will engage the private sector more through the PPP [publicprivate partnership].”

Moreover, the senator stressed the need to review and update existing rules, citing for instance that ice plants are included as public utilities and limits foreign ownership. “As we can see, in this day and age, it does not make sense anymore to be protectionist about ice plants.”

This developed as Poe, chairman of the Senate Committee on Public Services, moved to endorse remedial legislation amending the 82-year-old Public Service Act to relax existing restrictions in the economic environment in order to “provide more jobs and ensure reasonable rates of services.”

Caap chief: PHL biz aviation policy ripe for modernization

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

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OLICIES governing the business aviation sector is ripe for modernization, the chief of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines

(Caap) said on Tuesday, noting that the government is now studying the possibility of adopting two global codes to further improve landside and airside operations in Philippine airports.

Caap Director General for Operations Donaldo A. Mendoza said the

development and rationalization of new regulations and policies will help the business aviation industry “cope with the changes in the sector,” which can help “improve procedures” to better serve stakeholders.

Two of the policies that he mentioned that his group is looking at adopting are the International Standard for Business Aircraft Operations (IS-BAO) and International Standard for Business Aircraft Handlers (IS-BAH).

“We have to consider how we would approach this, make some recommendations, and adopt them as necessary within the bounds of the Icao’s [International Civil Aviation Organization] standards and recommended practices,” he said on the sidelines of the Asian Business Aviation Association’s (AsBAA) Philippine Aviation Safety Day on Tuesday.

R ight now, business aviation is governed by policies on commercial aviation or the Philippine Civil

Aviation Regulations.

“Adopting a new set of regulations is a development that will not only modernize our policies but also ensure that organizations are meeting highly professional codes of safety practices,” Mendoza said.

He added that rationalizing polices will allow the industry to “cope with changes in the sector, create a standard guide for operations,” and help the government craft better procedures to serve stakeholders.

“Continuous refinement of our policies and regulations is a necessary step in evolving as an industry,” Mendoza said.

“I believe that adopting a separate set of regulations for business and general aviation operations is a measure that will support this growth.”

The two policies that he mentioned— the IS-BAO and the IS-BAH—are international codes developed by the International Business Aviation Council.

IS-BAO is a recommended set of best practices on aviation safety and professionalism, including frameworks for effective operational procedures, tools on gap analyses and safety management systems.

On the other hand, IS-BAH is a code that spells out best practices in ground handling.

“Both seek to promote safety, aligned with Icao safety practices and standards,” Kurt Edwards, the director general of IBAC said.

NFA’s G2G rice bid fails anew over reference price

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

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@jearcalas

HE National Food Authority’s (NFA) 203,000-metric ton (MT) government-to-government (G2G) rice tender failed anew on Tuesday after the offers of Bangkok and Hanoi were rejected by the food agency as they were over its reference price.

The NFA declared a failure of bidding after both Thailand and Vietnam’s offers were higher than the agency’s $447.88-per-MT reference price. This was also the NFA’s reference price in the previous G2G, where Thailand and Vietnam did not participate due to concerns over the terms of reference.

Initial offer made by Thailand before 10 a.m. was at $480.5 per MT for the supply of 100,000 MT, while Vietnam’s bid was at $483 per MT for the 203,000 MT volume.

The two Southeast Asian nations made a reoffer before 12 noon, which were still way above the government’s reference price.

Vietnam slashed their initial $481.50 per MT bid with the same volume, while Bangkok maintained its earlier offer of $480.5 per MT. NFA Assistant Administrator Mercedes G. Yacapin, who chairs the agency’s G2G committee, did not want to “speculate” or “preempt” why the bidders made such high bids during the second G2G tender held by the agency.

A6 Wednesday, November 14, 2018 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

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editorial

Propping up PHL food production

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OUNTRIES in Southeast Asia could grow food all year round because they are in a region that is “blessed with the right environmental conditions,” according to Ateneo de Manila University Eagle Watch Senior Fellow Leonardo Lanzona Jr. In an interview with the BusinessMirror, Lanzona said the region also has the land resources needed to grow not only rice, but also other kinds of farm products. (See, “Asean can cut poverty as world’s food bowl, in the BusinessMirror on line, April 26, 2017.) These factors have allowed the region to earn the reputation of being the world’s food bowl.

Two Asean members—Vietnam and Thailand—are the world’s top exporters of rice. Apart from rice, Thailand also ships sugar, an important commodity used by food processors all over the world. Thailand is the world’s second biggest exporter of the sweetener. Two of the world’s top exporters of palm oil—Malaysia and Indonesia—are also in Southeast Asia. The Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia are regarded as three of the biggest exporters of coconut oil in the world.

The climatic condition in the Philippines is also suitable for growing other food crops, aside from coconut. Despite this, the Philippines is a laggard in the region in terms of food exports. Local farm production is not even enough to meet the needs of the country’s growing population, prompting the government to allow the importation of food items, such as rice, meat products and fruits. In some cases, agricultural products in the Philippines become more expensive because of the cost of moving these food items to urban areas (See “PHL navigates rough waters of Asean logistics industry,” in the BusinessMirror, November 8, 2018).

Unfortunately, the government has yet to make significant inroads to prop up agriculture production. While the President and his economic managers are cognizant of the importance of agriculture to boosting GDP, many of the programs aimed at improving output and farmers’ income have not been implemented. These are programs and strategies outlined in the economic blueprint of the Duterte administration, dubbed as the Philippine Development Plan (PDP).

For one, the PDP calls for an increase in investments in research and development (R&D) activities. This is a crucial strategy that would not only expand food production, but also help Philippine food products more competitive in the international market. Also, climate change now makes it imperative for the government to assist farmers and the private sector to produce food even in the harshest weather conditions.

Aside from R&D activities, the government must also seriously consider the suggestions of experts, such as economist Pablito M. Villegas, to cluster small land holdings and turn these into strategic production zones and aquaculture zones. Republic Act 8435, or the “Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act of 1997,” allows the government to do this. RA 8435 mandates the setting up of Strategic Agriculture and Fisheries Development Zones. Villegas said such a strategy will fast-track the development of agro-processing in the country and allow the Philippines to catch up with food-exporting countries like Thailand.

The government must look at other solutions to increase agricultural production and help expand the country’s food exports. A business-as-usual stance will only put the farm sector at a disadvantage and make it more difficult for the government to make good on its promise to fight poverty, especially in rural areas.

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Take the men out of law enforcement for sex crimes (they’re sick) Teddy Locsin Jr.

FREE FIRE

Statement prepared by Roseny Fangco, delivered by H.E. Teodoro L. Locsin Jr. Permanent Representative, Item 29: Advancement of Women, Third Committee, 73rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly, October 8, 2018, Conference Room 1, UN Headquarters, New York.

‘T

HANK you, Mr. Chair.

“To the victor belong the spoils is a war cry that has resounded for millennia, and women are part of the spoils— for sex, for slavery, for both. War rape had been downplayed as regrettable but inevitable when men go to war. But that is not true: the Duke of Wellington whipped or hanged soldiers for pillage and rape; which is how he got the Spanish population to help him defeat Napoleon in the Peninsula. Indeed, the more severe the discipline outside the battlefield; the greater the fire discipline on it. The strength of the disciplined Chinese Red Army, in contrast to the rampaging Kuomintang, lay in the contrast. Behavior before battle prefigures behavior after victory; and so people incline to the victory of disciplined as opposed to rowdy, rampaging and raping forces.

“It has been argued1 that war provided men with the perfect psychological backdrop to give vent to their misogyny. We are not slaves to our psychology; the greater proof is that men do respond to discipline.

“The problem is between the basic and the right. The basic desire to violate, to pick on the vulnerable; and the deeper desire to avoid being hurt for picking on the weak. It

is the same with the trafficking of women and girls, and small boys, for sex and commerce. There must be a marker for full grown men, but the traffickers know better, and so do their customers. The strong can take it out on you when you are taking your pleasure from them.

“Repulsive as it is, trafficking exists in all societies whether developed or developing; in good and bad

“The Philippines supports the proposal that achieving the SDGs addresses sex trafficking; we sponsored a side event with this title last September 20. But eradicating poverty will not solve trafficking; there will only be more money for the commodity. Isn’t there a study done by the EU that shows that the wealthier people are, the more prone they are to sexually exploiting women and girls?”

economic times—because the demand is constant, and the profit is great. But this is not a demand and supply problem. No significant number of women and girls, let alone boys, would willingly supply themselves to the slave trade. But in conflict and humanitarian crisis, women and girls have no choice: either starve or be murdered, or take your chance in the sex trade. But in good times, women are simply abducted, sold and kept in curtained cages.

“The Philippines supports the proposal that achieving the SDGs addresses sex trafficking; we sponsored a side event with this title last September 20. But eradicating poverty will not solve trafficking; there will only be more money for the commodity. Isn’t there a study done by the EU that shows that the wealthier people are, the more prone they are to sexually exploiting women and girls?

“Reaching the SDGs is only half the solution. Yes, educating imparts greater sense of self-worth in vulnerable women and girls. But when the

situation is dire, education is useless: either go with your abductors or die; either stay in captivity or be tortured if you try to escape.

“It is a puzzle why the solution to this awful problem is still addressed to men. They are the culprits. No progress will be made unless the power to solve the problem of the trafficking of women and girls is devolved entirely to women. Women qualified in police and law-enforcement work. As city mayor, my President had the common sense to turn over sex-related crimes and their victims to women police officers.

Cases moved faster, and chances of revictimization were reduced. In our culture, as I cannot speak for others, women offer a unique perspective— a comfort that victims need in order to confide; and a rage, an imperative rage impelling the wheels of justice to turn.

“The other half of the solution is the criminal justice response. Get the traffickers, I forbear to call them what I am tempted, after a part of the human anatomy. And their customers, who should be called by the same body part. Get them by any means sufficient, bearing in mind human rights and international laws, of course; but get them so they can harm no more. We prefer that they be put in small cages similar to where they’ve kept their victims for years—until they disposed of them. Thank you.”

1By Susan Brownmiller in her book Against Our Will: Men, Women and Rape (1975)

Who are involved in the STL ‘lock-in’ racket?

HERE are reports reaching the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) that some individuals or groups are using the Small Town Lottery (STL) to entice aspiring businessmen who want to enter the operations because they know it’s legal and it will help many people.

Allegedly, these “lock-in racketeers” approach a businessman or a certain corporation interested to bid for STL. Then they offer to lock them in by asking them to “invest” from P50 million up to the amount of the Presumptive Monthly Retain Receipts of one province or chartered city, and these racketeers will find a way inside the PCSO to secure the businessman’s or corporation’s authority to operate.

I heard from certain individuals that there are people coming to them, offering help to secure an STL franchise, but it should be a “lock-in,” and they will be the ones to work it out with their alleged contacts inside PCSO. First and foremost, the PCSO does not call it a “franchise,” but the agency gives authorization or privilege to a corporation to

being perpetrated by people using the STL of PCSO? Allegedly, these “lock-in racketeers” approach a businessman or a certain corporation interested to bid for STL. Then they offer to lock them in by asking them to “invest” from P50 million up to the amount of the Presumptive Monthly Retain Receipts of one province or chartered city, and these racketeers will find a way inside the PCSO to secure the

Florante S. Solmerin

FACT IS MIGHT!

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operate STL in a certain province or chartered city.

A company given the privilege to operate is called Authorized Agent Corporation or AAC (or Authorized STL Agent or ASA in the new implementing rules and regulations of STL). In every province or chartered city, only one STL agent can operate.

Second, what is this lock-in scam

businessman’s or corporation’s authority to operate.

Now that we know how these racketeers operate, the PCSO Board under Chairman Anselmo Simeon P. Pinili should conduct an investigation to identify the alleged perpetrators. Otherwise, the reputation of Board members will be tarnished. Why? Because the Board decides when it comes to the public bidding of applicants who want to operate an STL. As for PCSO General Manager Alexander F. Balutan, I’m sure he won’t take this sitting down. He should stop these people who are using the PCSO to advance their own vested interests.

Do you know who these people are? I’m pretty sure, President Duterte will publicly humiliate these people in front of PCSO officials and employees if there is truth to these reports.

E-mail: fetad@yahoo.com

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

‘Tell your boss’: Recording seen linking Saudi Crown Prince more strongly to Khashoggi killing

By Julian E. Barnes, Eric Schmitt & David D. Kirkpatrick New York Times News Service

W

ASHINGTON—Shortly after journalist Jamal Khashoggi was assassinated last month, a member of the kill team instructed a superior over the phone to “tell your boss,” believed to be Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia, that the operatives had carried out their mission, according to three people familiar with a recording of Khashoggi’s killing collected by Turkish intelligence.

The recording, shared last month with CIA Director Gina Haspel, is seen by intelligence officials as some of the strongest evidence linking Crown Prince Mohammed to the killing of Khashoggi, a Virginia resident and Washington Post columnist whose death prompted an international outcry.

While he was not mentioned by name, US intelligence officials believe “your boss” was a reference to Crown Prince Mohammed. Maher Abdulaziz Mutreb, one of 15 Saudis dispatched to Istanbul to confront Khashoggi at the Saudi Consolate there, made the phone call and spoke in Arabic, the people said.

Turkish intelligence officers have told US officials they believe that Mutreb, a security officer who frequently traveled with Crown Prince Mohammed, was speaking to one of the crown prince’s aides. While translations of the Arabic may differ, the people briefed on the call said Mutreb also said to the aide words to the effect of “the deed was done.”

“A phone call like that is about as close to a smoking gun as you are going to get,” said Bruce O. Riedel, a former CIA officer now at the Brookings Institution. “It is pretty incriminating evidence.”

Turkish officials have said that the audio does not conclusively implicate Crown Prince Mohammed, and US intelligence and other government officials have cautioned that however compelling the recording may be, it is still not irrefutable evidence of his involvement in the death of Khashoggi.

Even if Mutreb believed the killing was ordered by the crown prince, for example, he may have had an inaccurate understanding of the origins of the order. Crown Prince Mohammed is not specifically named on the recording, and intelligence officials do not have ironclad certainty that Mutreb was referring to him.

In a statement on Monday, Saudi officials denied that the crown prince “had any knowledge whatsoever” of Khashoggi’s killing. Referring to Mutreb’s instructions to “tell your boss,” the Saudi statement said that Turkey had “allowed our intelligence services to hear recordings, and at no moment was there any reference to the mentioned phrase in the recordings.”

The Turks may possess multiple recordings, including surveillance of

telephone calls, and Turkish authorities may have shared the audio only selectively. A CIA spokesman declined to comment.

The call was part of a recording that Turkish officials played for Haspel during her visit in October to Ankara, Turkey’s capital, but they did not allow her to bring it back to the United States.

On Saturday President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey announced that his government had shared the audio with Saudi Arabia, the United States and other Western allies.

But while Turkish officials have played the recording for US and other intelligence agencies and provided transcripts, the Turks have not handed over the recording for independent analysis, according to Turkish officials.

Turkey shared evidence from the case with “a large number of friendly nations,” a spokesman for Erdogan, Fahrettin Altun, said on Monday. Reacting to French criticism of Turkey’s handling of the case, Altun said that the Turkish government had played an audio recording for French intelligence officials and given them transcripts.

“Let us not forget that this case would have been already covered up had it not been for Turkey’s determined efforts,” Altun said.

The growing evidence that Crown Prince Mohammed was involved in the killing of Khashoggi is certain to intensify pressure on the White House, which appeared intent on relying on a lack of concrete proof of his involvement to preserve its relationship with him. The crown prince has fostered a close relationship with the president’s son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, and the Trump administration has turned Saudi Arabia into Washington’s most crucial Arab partner.

Some Trump advisers have argued that they would need indisputable evidence of Crown Prince Mohammed’s involvement in Khashoggi’s killing before they would punish him or the kingdom more harshly. Turkish officials have said the recording contains evidence of a premeditated killing, in which Saudi agents quickly strangled Khashoggi and methodically dismembered his body with a bone saw.

The administration, according to current and former officials, is hoping that making some modest moves on sanctions and curtailing support for the Saudi war effort in Yemen will satisfy critics, including those on Capitol Hill.

But the shift in power in Congress, where Democrats take control of the House in January, is also increasing pressure on the administration to take more punitive action. The CIA and other intelligence officials were set to brief Congress this week, and congressional leaders will press Haspel for her assessment of Crown Prince Mohammed’s culpability.

Trump himself has suggested more information would be coming out. “I’ll

have a much stronger opinion on that subject over the next week,” he told reporters Wednesday at the White House.

“I am forming a very strong opinion.”

Signs of a hardening stance within the administration are emerging. The State Department issued a tough statement on Sunday saying that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had told Crown Prince Mohammed in a phone call that “the United States will hold all of those involved in the killing of Jamal Khashoggi accountable.”

Saudi officials planned to release their own inquiry in the coming days, but Turkey’s revelation that they and Western officials also have the transcripts of the recordings could force the Saudis to scramble before any presentation they planned to make.

Even without definitive proof, intelligence agencies had already concluded that only Crown Prince Mohammed could have ordered the operation to kill Khashoggi, given the personal character of his governance and the depth of his control over the kingdom. Evidence from the tape also showed that Khashoggi was killed soon after he entered the room of the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul where the security team was waiting for him, further proof that the killing was planned, according to people briefed on the intelligence.

Current and former intelligence officials insisted that it is rare that all of the pieces of a complex puzzle like Khashoggi’s killing would ever be available. Intelligence, according to a former official, simply does not work like a spy thriller or television cop show where a case turns on a crystal-clear recording.

Investigators were unlikely to collect a piece of evidence that incontrovertibly links the crown prince to the killing, said Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., who is set to lead the House Intelligence Committee next year.

“You are not going to have any of the people who carried out the murder speak openly about who they got their orders from or who is in the loop on it,” Schiff said in an interview. “That is not realistic to expect.”

The absence of direct evidence does not prevent the intelligence community from laying responsibility at Crown Prince Mohammed’s feet. An intelligence assessment includes an agency’s best judgment on what happened based on the available facts and experience of officials.

Schiff promised that when he takes charge of the Intelligence Committee, he will investigate Khashoggi’s killing and examine Saudi Arabia’s actions more broadly in the Middle East, including its military campaign in Yemen, which has prompted a humanitarian crisis.

“We need to do our own due diligence, we need to make sure we are getting good intelligence, and we need to make sure the administration doesn’t misrepresent to the country what foreign actors are doing,” Schiff said.

Don’t put Trump’s fox in bank regulation henhouse

By Melvyn Krauss Bloomberg Opinion

I

T seemed like good news for the global economy when Randall Quarles, the Federal Reserve’s vice chairman for supervision, was put up by the United States to chairman the Financial Stability Board (FSB), the watchdog that insures that international financial institutions keep to the reforms they promised after the 2008 financial crisis.

Quarles is a well-regarded moderate Republican with a strong international orientation, who clearly understands the value of multilateralism.

But the case for Quarles is not as clear as it might appear.

Quarles’s appointment is being pushed hard by two loyalists of President Donald J. Trump at the US Treasury Department—Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, a Trump friend from New York City, and David Malpass, the undersecretary for international affairs.

From his writings and speeches, Malpass is known for defending his boss’s “America First” agenda in

his approach to international bank regulation, which is to say, a deregulation agenda.

The danger that Quarles—as competent as he is—will be a front man for a Trump-Malpass deregulation agenda is not negligible. Trump is not the type of person who is tolerant of independent voices from the people he appoints to top jobs.

Luckily for the global economy, Europe has a top alternative candidate for the FSB chairman in Klaas Knot, the hawkish president of the Dutch central bank. Unlike Quarles, Knot promises to be a watchdog with teeth, which is precisely what the global community needs to prevent another 2008-style financial meltdown.

At first, Quarles was reported to be the favorite in the race for the FSB chair. But then Trump started to misbehave on the international stage, first at the G-7 summit in June in Canada and again at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit in July in Brussels.

This cost Quarles support, but after the US offered carrots and sticks to voting members, some of the G-7

countries, including Canada and the United Kingdom, switched back to Quarles. My reporting indicates that it’s now about 50-50.

It also indicates that a compromise to split the chair’s position between the two is in the works, in which Quarles would go first as chairman and Knot would be vice chairman.

Then, after a certain amount of time (still being negotiated), they would switch positions. That would be a big win for Trump because it would probably ensure that his man pulls the deregulation strings for the rest of his term in office. If Knot ever does get the chair—and with Trump there is always doubt—he will have a lot of deregulation to make up for.

To be fair, there’s really not that much difference between the reform agendas of the two competing candidates. The issue is more one of trust, that the US Treasury will not allow Quarles to do his job of safeguarding the global financial system from another financial meltdown because of its deregulation obsession.

Ordinary savers and households would sleep less soundly as a result.

Wednesday, November 14, 2018 A7

Aviation insurance Dennis B. Funa

INSURANCE FORUM

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HE first cross-country flight in the Philippines was made on February 27, 1911, when Captain Thomas Baldwin flew 10 miles out of Manila on board a “Red Devil” biplane powered by a 60-horsepower Hall-Scott engine. A few years later, the Philippines became the pioneer in commercial aviation in Asia.

Today, there are about 39 active aviation schools in the country offering courses such as pilot training, aviation or aeronautical engineering, avionics, and aircraft technician. As of 2018, there are more than 6,000 licensed pilots and 4,000 student-license holders in the Philippines. Globally, it was projected that the world needed 255,000 new airline pilots in 2017 alone. By that year also, global commercial fleet is seen growing by 12,000 to about 37,000 aircraft. A total of 440,000 active pilots will be needed. Worldwide, there are 290,000 active pilots, of which 85,000 are in the AsiaPacific region.

Applicable laws for domestic aviation

DOMESTIC aviation is regulated by the Civil Code provisions on common carriers, the Civil Aeronautics Board law and the Civil Aviation Authority Act, as well as by the regulations issued by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (Caap).

For international air transport, the relevant international agreements covering liability are the Warsaw Convention, and the Montreal Convention of 1999. It is interesting to note that in the United States, passengers flying domestically benefit from unlimited liability on the part of their air carriers for damages of personal injury and death. With

respect to passengers, the Warsaw regime and the Montreal Convention 1999 provide that “the carrier is liable for damage sustained in the case of death and bodily injury of a passenger upon condition only that the accident which caused the death or injury took place on board the aircraft or in the course of any of the operations of embarking or disembarking.”

Insurance requirements

AVIATION insurance is highly specialized with several peculiarities differentiating it from a regular insurance. What is unique in aviation insurance is that there are no large numbers to provide a large premium base. Indeed, “the aviation insurance market has always differed from most other insurance markets in that both the premium base and the customer base are very narrow, with just a small number of insured.” Insurers would then usually only underwrite a small portion of the risk.

While the occurrence of accidents is very low, such occurrence, when it happens, can be catastrophic.

An Airbus A380 aircraft, for instance, with full passenger load and exceeding a weight of 500 tons, crashing into a major city has a potential exposure of approximately $3.25 billion.

T here are var ious entities

exposed to various aviation-related risks. These entities would include aircraft owners and operators, airport owners and operators, and aircraft product manufacturers.

The 2011 Revised Philippine Civil Aviation Regulations, promulgated by the Caap, requires, under Section 8.2.1.8 thereof, that “no person may operate a civil aircraft in general aviation operations unless it has within it the following current and approved documents: x x x (20) Aircraft insurance coverage.” Thus, in applying for a certificate of registration of an aircraft with the Caap, a certified true copy of the aircraft’s certificate of insurance must be attached to the application form. Section 8.2.1.8 requires among the documents that must be carried on the aircraft (all operations) “27) Aircraft insurance coverage.”

Finally, as a mandatory requirement, under Section 8.2.1.9, “No person may operate an aircraft unless it has a valid insurance guarantee covering aircraft hull, each person, freight and mail onboard aircraft and third parties liability, as prescribed by the Authority.” For leased aircrafts, the lessee is generally the party liable for the operation, maintenance and insurance of the aircraft. Hence, AIG, for example, offers the Caap required aircraft third-party liability insurance.

There are, however, other aviation risks, of which insurance cover is optional, such as: aircraft manufacturer insurance, air charter insurance, aerobatic or experimental aircraft insurance, airline insurance, airport or ground handler insurance, crew insurance, operator insurance, flight training insurance, hanger-keepers’ liability, hull war insurance, aviation personal accident and many more.

Dennis B. Funa is the current insurance commissioner. Funa was appointed by President Duterte as the new insurance commissioner in December 2016. E-mail: dennisfuna@yahoo.com.

Facebook failed to police how its partners handled user data

By Nicholas Confessore, Michael LaForgia & Gabriel J.X. Dance New York Times News Service

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ACEBOOK failed to closely monitor device-makers after granting them access to the personal data of hundreds of millions of people, according to a previously unreported disclosure to Congress last month.

Facebook’s loose oversight of the partnerships was detected by the company’s government-approved privacy monitor in 2013. But it was never revealed to Facebook users, most of whom had not explicitly given the company permission to share their information. Details of those oversight practices were revealed in a letter Facebook sent last month to Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., a privacy advocate and frequent critic of the socialmedia giant.

In the letter, a copy of which Wyden provided to The New York Times, Facebook wrote that, by early 2013, it had entered into data-sharing agreements with seven device-makers to provide what it called the “Facebook experience”—custom-built software, typically, that gave those manufacturers’ customers access to Facebook on their phones. Those partnerships, some of which date to at least 2010, fall under a consent decree with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) drafted in 2011 and intended to oversee the company’s privacy practices.

Facebook ultimately entered into dozens of similar data-sharing partnerships, most of which the company began winding down this spring after revelations that it had allowed Cambridge Analytica, a political data firm, to acquire the personal information of tens of millions of people. The firm used some of that information in efforts to aid President Donald J. Trump’s 2016 campaign.

When a team from the auditing firm PwC conducted the initial

FTC-mandated assessment in 2013, it tested Facebook’s partnerships with Microsoft and Research in Motion, maker of the BlackBerry handset. In both cases, PwC found only “limited evidence” that Facebook had monitored or checked its partners’ compliance with its data use policies. That finding was redacted from a public version of PwC’s report released by the FTC in June.

“Facebook claimed that its datasharing partnerships with smartphone manufacturers were on the up and up,” Wyden said. “But Facebook’s own, handpicked auditors said the company wasn’t monitoring what smartphone manufacturers did with Americans’ personal information, or making sure these manufacturers were following Facebook’s own policies.” He added, “It’s not good enough to just take the word of Facebook—or any major corporation—that they’re safeguarding our personal information.”

In a statement, a Facebook spokesman said, “We take the FTC consent order incredibly seriously and have for years submitted to extensive assessments of our systems.” She added, “We remain strongly committed to the consent order and to protecting people’s information.”

Facebook, like other companies under FTC consent decree, largely dictates the scope of each assessment. In two subsequent assessments, Facebook’s October letter suggests, the company was graded on a seemingly less stringent policy with data partners. On those two, Facebook had to show that

its partners had agreed to its data-use policies. A Wyden aide who reviewed the unredacted assessments said they contained no evidence that Facebook had ever addressed the original problem. The Facebook spokesman did not directly address the 2013 test failure, or the company’s apparent decision to change the test in question.

Because the United States has no general consumer privacy law, FTC consent decrees have emerged as the federal government’s chief means of regulating privacy practices at Facebook, Google and other companies that amass huge amounts of personal data about people who use their products.

In letters and congressional testimony, FTC officials have pointed to the decrees as evidence of robust consumer privacy protection in the US. A spokesman for PwC acknowledged in a statement that Facebook defines the privacy procedures, known as “controls,” that are tested during the assessments. “Changes to controls may occur as platforms evolve, such that a control tested in one period may not be identical in a subsequent period,” the spokesman said.

Facebook’s letter disclosing the assessors’ findings came in response to questions Wyden raised during an intelligence hearing in September.

The hearing was held just weeks after The Times reported that Facebook had struck data-sharing deals with dozens of phone and tablet manufacturers, including Microsoft, BlackBerry and Amazon. While the assessment reports were publicly released by the FTC in June, they included significant redactions, which Facebook and PwC said were necessary to protect trade secrets.

Wyden, whose staff had viewed the full assessments, said at the hearing that he found parts of the unredacted reports “very troubling” and pressed Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook’s chief operating officer, to release them in their entirety.

2nd Front Page BusinessMirror

A8 Wednesday, November 14, 2018

CTRP Package 4 to deepen capital markets, says DOF

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By Rea Cu

@ReaCuBM

HE fourth package of the Comprehensive Tax Reform Program (CTRP) of the Duterte administration will deepen capital markets in the country and enlarge avenues for funding the massive infrastructure needs and key privatesector initiatives, a Department of Finance (DOF) official said.

Spea k ing at the Ways and Means Committee hearing at the House of Representatives on Tuesday, DOF Undersecretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua pointed out that Package 4 will collapse financial tax rates from the current 80 to at least 41, and repeal 32 out of the 41 special laws that have been granting special rates and exemptions.

“Package 4 is really about harmonizing 80 rates in the financial and capital system and by doing so, deepening the financial or capital markets in the country,

so that we can leverage this to fund the massive infrastructure needs and also the programs of the private sector,” Chua said.

In line with capital income taxes, Chua explained that the rates diverge widely because of different issuers, currencies, instruments and maturity, among others. The proposal is to keep it at a single rate of 15 percent.

A rationalization of the gross receipt tax of the banking system is also proposed at a flat 5 percent instead of 0, 1, 5, or 7 percent, aimed to make bank transactions easier.

“We propose to repeal some of the 32 out of the 41 special laws that have been granting special rates and exemptions. In the end, we hope to reduce all the rates from 80 to just 41 [rates] so that we can have a system that is more simpler, fairer and more efficient.”—Chua

The documentary stamp tax rate is also being eyed for a reduction, a move seen to benefit the nonlife insurance industry, among others, by promoting more insurance as the country faces more disasters.

“We propose to repeal some of the 32 out of the 41 special laws that have been granting special rates and exemptions. In the end, we hope to reduce all the rates from 80 to just 41 [rates] so that we can have a system that is more simpler, fairer and more efficient,” Chua told legislators.

The DOF official stressed that Package 4 of the CTRP is being crafted to be mainly revenue-neutral.

“By adjusting some of the taxes, some instruments will be higher, such as dividends from 10 to 15

percent, but there are also many instruments, such as debt securities, time deposits and savings accounts, that will see a lower rate from 20 to 15 percent,” he said.

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Estrellita B. Suansing approved the motion for the creation of a technical working group to further simplify the proposed measure on capital income taxation.

When asked about the plan of the House of Representatives on Package 4 of the CTRP, House Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo reiterated that the committee will do its job and legislate.

“That’s our plan, to legislate. Our agenda is to carry out the agenda of President Duterte, so he has his 15 measures that he enumerated in the Sona [State of the Nation Address]. We already passed 11 of them,” Arroyo said.

At the sidelines of the committee hearing, Arroyo pointed out that rumors on her being appointed as finance secretary is “so hypothetical.” On the other hand, Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III also dispelled rumors that he will be appointed as Executive Secretary, telling reporters in a text message, “I’m not qualified.”

PESO STRONG DESPITE UNCERTAINTY ON NEXT MOVE OF CENTRAL BANK

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HE local currency on Tuesday appreciated to near the P52 territory anew ahead of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’s (BSP) Monetary Board meeting this week.

Data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP) showed the peso gaining value against the US dollar during the day, to end the day’s trade at 53.1 to a dollar, from the 53.295 to a dollar in the previous day.

The total traded volume was also larger on Tuesday at $738.7 million, from the $666.1 million in the previous day’s trade.

The peso has been steadily recovering since trading in the high 54 territory in September to midOctober this year, when it hit fresh 12-year lows.

This is despite uncertainty surrounding the BSP upcoming move on Thursday; markets are guessing on whether the Monetary Board will pull another rate hike or pause its cycle to support growth.

Economists, in earlier forecasts, had expressed mixed views on the

@sam_medenilla

F

OLLOWING successful negotiations this week, Israel has agreed to reduce the recruitment fees for Filipino caregivers by at least 85 percent.

Speaking at the B usiness M irror ’s

Coffee Club Forum, Israel Ambassador to the Philippines Rafael Harpaz disclosed their position to lower the recruitment fees to just $800 from the existing range of $8,000 to $12,000 in their recently concluded talks with the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA).

LOW PRESSURE AREA 195 KM EAST NORTHEAST OF DAVAO CITY, DAVAO DEL SUR as of 4:00 pm - November 13, 2018

“But they [caregiver applicants] would have to shoulder their plane fare [to Israel],” Harpaz clarified.

Labor Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III said Filipino caregivers would have to pay an average of US$1,200 or around P63,600 (US$1=P53) under Israel’s proposed fees.

This was significantly lower than

the $2,000 target recruitment fee of the DOLE during the negotiation.

In an ambush interview, POEA Administrator Bernard B. Olalia, however, stressed that Israel’s proposed recruitment fees, which will be included in the drafted standard employment contract (SEC) for Filipino caregivers, is still subject to change.

He said they are targeting to complete “as soon as possible” the SEC and implementing rules and regulation (IRR) of the Philippine-Israel memorandum of understanding (MOU).

The MOU, signed by President Duterte in September, aims to boost the protection of Filipino caregivers in Israel under a government-to-government deployment arrangement.

Booming tourism ANOTHER breakthrough in the talks with the POEA this week, Harpaz said, was the completion of their proposed general agreement for the deployment of Filipino hotel workers to Israel.

“This is new, we agreed on this yesterday [Monday] here in Manila,”Harpaz told the BusinessMirror Coffee Club.

Tourism HARPAZ said the Israel government decided to open its tourism industry to foreigners, amid its growing tourist arrivals, which has now reached the 3-million mark from just a million in previous years.

He attributed the surge in their number of foreign tourists to the increasing number of places with direct flights to Israel like China, India, Thailand and Dubai.

“It is the government’s decision to open it gradually. [The] Philippines, I think, is the first country which we negotiated. This is also a sign of a very intimate [diplomatic] relationship,” Harpaz said.

The Israeli ambassador expressed hope the agreement could be signed soon so the first batch of Filipino hotel workers could start being processed by 2019.

“This will depend on Israel since they will be the one to determine when their concerned ministers will be available for the signing,” Olalia said.

According to government data, there are currently 29,000 Filipinos in Israel. Most or 24,000 of them work as caregivers.

upcoming meeting.

In particular, in its latest commentary on the Philippine economic dynamics, Fitch Solutions —the research arm of Fitch Group —believes the BSP will continue to hike rates at the next meeting despite the risks of rising interest rates dampening consumer spending.

This move, Fitch Solutions said, will also be crucial to keeping the peso strong, particularly at a time when risk aversion is rising globally.

On the other hand, ING Bank shared contrasting views for the BSP’s next move, saying it will likely halt any movement off the table to prop up its growth numbers.

“Until the Philippines GDP [gross domestic product] release, our house view had been for a 25 basispoint BSP rate hike at the meeting next week. That’s now been revised to no change, probably through the rest of the year,”ING Bank economist Prakash Sakpal said in the ING’s most recent review of central banks in the region. Bianca Cuaresma

NFA’s licensing power to protect us–farmers

Israel cutting OFW recruitment fees 85%–envoy A

By Samuel P. Medenilla

www.businessmirror.com.ph

FARMERS’ group is urging senators to keep the licensing power of the National Food Authority (NFA) by all means to protect local rice farmers from an import surge even if it costs the country a trade dispute.

The Federation of Free Farmers (FFF) made the pitch to senators last week, arguing that the government must retain some of its policy tools “to address problematic situations that may arise in the future as a result of rice imports from Asean.”

FFF explained that the Philippines could no longer raise its 35-percent applied tariff on rice imports coming from Asean countries due to the prevailing regional trade agreement.

This, FFF noted, is the case even if the Philippines opts to impose a higher bound rate than the applied tariffs after it converts its quantitative restriction (QR) on rice into ordinary custom duties.

Citing the experiences of Indonesia and Malaysia, FFF said these countries converted their rice QRs but adopted more “innovative” and “ingenuous” ways to protect their local farmers through nontariff measures.

“Indonesia has given their NFA counterpart, called BULOG, the exclusive authority to import rice.

Malaysia has a strict accreditation system for private-sector rice importers, which it uses to discretely control the volume of rice that is brought into their country,” the FFF said in its letter to senators, a copy of which was obtained by the BusinessMirror.

Under Senate Bill (SB) 1998, which seeks to convert the country’s rice QR into tariffs, the NFA would lose its regulatory power, which includes licensing traders and importers, and would only focus on maintaining its buffer stocking role.

The FFF took note of the purpose of removing the NFA’s regulatory power, i.e., to ensure “free competition among importers” and “obviate the possibility of corruption” in the issuance of licenses.

However, the group argued that licensing remains to be one of the most effective measure to control the entry of imports, thus protecting local rice farmers from glut and drastic price drops.

“The government may try to prop up domestic prices for palay

through the NFA, but this will require massive funding and logistics, and will exacerbate the NFA’s debt problems. Before the problem gets out of hand, the government will have to find a way to stem the inflow of imports,” it said.

“Licensing of imports is one, and a common way to do this, since only importers who are issued licenses will be able to legally bring in rice into the country,” it added.

Furthermore, FFF argued that licensing is not illegal under Word Trade Organization (WTO) rules and is even considered as a “legitimate” nontariff measure and “is allowed for as long as it does not unduly and unfairly restrict trade.”

The group continued: “We could decide, for example, to be lenient with the issuance of licenses as a general rule, while keeping the option to be stricter in anticipation of market disturbances arising from excessive imports.”

It would not be impossible, it added, “to adopt rules and procedures so that the issuance of licenses is not arbitrary and prone to corruption, is done promptly and easily, but can be calibrated so as to keep imports within a manageable level.”

The FFF even urged lawmakers to let the Philippines face possible trade disputes if it would opt to retain the NFA’s licensing regime even after removing its rice QR, just to protect local farmers.

Filing a dispute against a country before the WTO usually entails a tedious process and would not even result in hefty consequences, the FFF noted. “If a WTO membercountry questions this, it has to take the initiative of filing a case against the Philippines and proving that our licensing system violates WTO rules,” it said.

“It will take years to resolve such a dispute and we will simply have to change our rules to conform to WTO regulations if and when we lose the case. In the meantime, the government will be able to preserve a tool to address import surges when necessary,” it added.

Citing the case of Indonesia, which has been using import licensing and import monopolies through state enterprises, FFF said it is only recently that WTO member-countries questioned the Southeast Asian nation’s rice trade policies. Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

Editor: Efleda P. Campos

Companies BusinessMirror

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

B1

Govt nixes Sear Telecom, PT&T appeal

F

By Lorenz S. Marasigan

@lorenzmarasigan

INDING no merit to their appeal, the selection committee for the third telco search has denied the motions for reconsideration filed separately by the two disqualified bidders, who still has more legal options to overturn the regulator’s decision for their disqualification.

Sear Telecommunications Inc. and Philippine Telegraph and Telephone Corp.

(PT&T) confirmed that they both received the notices from the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) for their disqualification for being noncompliant with the auction rules.

They now have three days to file for an appeal before the regulator on a regular session, a costly appeal that amounts to P10 million.

“They are given three days to appeal, and the regulator will have three days to resolve the appeal. If they do not receive any appeal, then they can proceed with the post qualification process for the winning bidder,” Acting Secretary Eliseo M. Rio Jr. of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) said via phone interview.

Should their appeals be denied, they can avail themselves another legal relief—bringing their cases to the courts.

“Disqualified bidders also have the option to bring this to court, but it will not stop the NTC from proceeding with the post qualification proceedings. Only a court decision can do that,” Rio explained.

To recall, Sear was disqualified from

the bidding for failing to include the P700-million participation security requirement in its bid. PT&T, on the other hand, was out of the running for the third telco license after it failed submit its certificate of technical capability, which is a document that only telco regulators in any territory can issue.

Sear sought for the consideration of the letter of credit that was not included in its bid due to “clarifications made by the issuing bank,” claiming that this has no substantial affect in the proposal submitted by the consortium.

It also asked the selection committee to declare the bid of Mislatel Consortium—the only compliant party in the bidding—for committing alleged “fraudulent and obstructive practices” of Mindanao Islamic Telephone Corp., the franchise holder of the group.

However, the selection committee denied this, citing provisions on the terms of reference pertaining to the bid security provisions, which required parties to submit a participation bond that should be in the form of “cash, check, draft, or irrevocable letter of credit issued by a universal or commercial bank in the Philippines.”

Malaya plant privatization bid entices more investors

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HE privatization of Malaya Thermal Power Plant (MTPP) has attracted additional investors, according to Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management (PSALM) Corp. President Irene Joy B. Garcia.

“For Malaya, we now have 10 registered bidders because of the addition of Phinma Energy Corp., STX Marine Service Co. Ltd, AC Energy Inc. and SMC Global,” Garcia said.

The other six interested bidders are Panasia Energy Inc., Quezon Power (Philippines) Ltd. Co., Crown Investment Holdings Inc., Energy World Power Operations Philippines Inc., Pan Pacific Renewable Power Philippines Corp. and FGEN Reliable Energy Holdings Inc. These companies participated in a prebid conference for the privatization of MTPP and the land underlying the facility and all other assets associated with the plant’s structures.

Held on October 17 in PSALM’s new office at Vertis North Corporate Center 1, the conference clarified to interested bidders the process and provisions for the sale of the Malaya assets.

PSALM has set on December 14 the bidding for the privatization of the 650-megawatt (MW) MTPP, including the land underlying the facility, located at Barangay Malaya, Pililla, Rizal.

The state firm will accept letters of inter-

est from interested parties until November 19. Only interested parties who submitted LOIs would be allowed to participate in the privatization of the MTPP. The plant consists of a 300-MW unit with a once-through type boiler and a 350-MW unit fitted with a conventional boiler. The MTPP is a “must-run unit” (MRU) that provides backup power in instances when supply is deficient or unavailable in the Luzon grid.

Garcia said the Department of Energy (DOE) recently allowed the privatization without the MRU requirement.

“We were looking at the general condition of the plant and the value, and the supply and demand,” she added. “We are looking at all these factors and we figured that it might not be very attractive to bidders if you impose that requirement that they have to run for three years.”

The PSALM will tap a third-party evaluator to assess the power plant.

“We are still in talks with several groups.

We have not yet finalized that. We might procure the services of GFIs [government financial institutions] like the DBP [Development Bank of the Philippines]. We are considering them. Alternatively, we have a budget for third-party valuation. We can bid it out, as well,” Garcia said. Lenie Lectura

Batangas port hits record volume

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HE Batangas Container Terminal (BCT), managed by listed Asian Terminals Inc. (ATI), achieved a new operations milestone in November as it broke through the 200,000-TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit) cargo volume mark for the first time in a single year since its start-up in 2010.

With this achievement and still a month to go before 2018 ends, BCT already surpassed its full-year cargo throughput of over 197,000 TEU in 2017. This meant reducing over 100,000 truck trips along Metro Manila roads, with more consignees routing containerized cargoes via South Luzon’s preferred international gateway port.

A press statement from ATI said it has continuously stepped up its role as international trade facilitator in Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon), effectively helping decongest metro roads.

BCT’s 200,000th TEU cargo was delivered over the weekend by MV Balthasar Schulte, operated by Sealand-

a Maersk Co. (formerly MCC Transport).

Sealand-a Maersk Co. operates three weekly services via BCT, which directly connect Calabarzon shippers to Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia and other key regional and global markets.

BCT’s cargo have substantially grown over the past three years as more shippers patronize Batangas Port. BCT is strategically located near Calabarzon’s major manufacturing zones and is seamlessly connected to modern road infrastructure, thus, delivering greater advantages to the supply chain.

In preparation for future growth, massive expansion projects at BCT are nearing completion. By year-end, BCT will take delivery of two additional quay cranes and four more rubber-tired gantry cranes along with other operationscritical equipment in line with its investment commitment with the Philippine Ports Authority. This effectively increases BCT’s capacity to over 450,000 TEU by 2019, in support of Calabarzon’s growing industries.

The committee, likewise, denied Sear’s motion against Mislatel, as it, as a body created under the terms of reference for the third telco, has no jurisdiction over business agreements.

Mislatel, according to Sear, has an outstanding exclusive agreement with Digiphil Technology Inc., an affiliate of TierOne Communications International Inc., a member of Sear.

The congressional franchise of Mislatel was used by Udenna Corp., Chelsea Logistics Holdings Corp. and China Telecom Corp. Ltd. to clinch for the third telco license.

PT&T’s motion, on the other hand, sought for the reconsideration of its bid, claiming that the selection committee “erred” in its interoperation of the term “regional operations”

in the terms of reference for the this telco.

According to the listed company’s motion, “regional operations” should also apply to Filipino companies, not just foreign telcos.

It also sought for the disqualification of Mislatel for having a “revoked” franchise.

In denying its motion, the selection committee said PT&T was the one who misinterpreted the provision on “regional operations,” as it was already clarified in a bid bulletin that regional operations only apply to foreign telcos.

Having a 10-year experience in the telco space in a national scale is a requirement for a party to qualify as a participant to the bidding process. However, it allowed for the participation of telco groups with regional operations “as geographically designated

by the telecommunications authority of that country.”

On the issue of the revoked franchise, the selection committee ruled that reviewing the franchise is part of the “document verification phase after its deflation as the provisional new major player.”

“It is a matter that should not be resolved in a motion for reconsideration filed by any of the participants in the just concluded new major player selection process,” the decision read.

According to Raoul C. Creencia, the legal counsel of Sear, the consortium will be studying its legal options, but noted that the decision of the selection committee was a “rushed resolution,” accusing it of “washing its hands and simplistically regarding our grounds as a private dispute.”

B2

Companies BusinessMirror

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

November 13, 2018

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

ASIA UNITED 59 59.45 59 59 58.6 59 6220 366948 362260 BDO UNIBANK 113.9 114.8 116 116.5 113.9 113.9 1713640 196342146 -117141695 BANK PH ISLANDS 79.8 80 79.95 80 79.05 79.8 1262210 100628137.5 3541966 CHINABANK 27.85 28 28 28.05 27.8 27.85 124200 3470480 653240 CITYSTATE BANK 4.55 7.45 7.59 7.59 7.59 7.59 200 1518 EAST WEST BANK 10.3 10.32 10.5 10.5 10.28 10.3 447200 4620770 -1182158 METROBANK 64.8 64.9 65.35 65.4 64 64.8 3022470 195074860 -86287568 PHIL NATL BANK 39.15 39.85 39.15 39.2 39.15 39.15 70800 2772170 1146755 PSBANK 73 77.3 72.05 72.05 72.05 72.05 20 1441 PHILTRUST 104.4 110 104.2 104.2 104.2 104.2 60 6252 RCBC 28 28.2 28.2 28.2 27.9 27.95 60900 1705480 156765 SECURITY BANK 137.5 140.5 142 142 135.6 138 541330 74893832 -18795344 UNION BANK 65.85 65.95 65.95 65.95 65.85 65.85 25530 1683071 -305660 BRIGHT KINDLE 1.57 1.6 1.45 1.6 1.45 1.58 2247000 3392470 458360 BDO LEASING 2.4 2.56 2.52 2.56 2.4 2.56 71000 174800 FERRONOUX HLDG 3.86 3.97 3.87 3.97 3.87 3.97 12000 46840 MEDCO HLDG 0.42 0.43 0.43 0.43 0.42 0.42 90000 38100 NTL REINSURANCE 0.76 0.77 0.78 0.78 0.76 0.76 338000 259650 PHIL STOCK EXCH 176 184.5 177 188.5 176 176 1210 213590 36992 VANTAGE 1.14 1.22 1.14 1.14 1.14 1.14 301000 343140

INDUSTRIAL ALSONS CONS 1.23 1.29 1.26 1.29 1.23 1.29 957000 1189690 ABOITIZ POWER 31.2 31.65 32 32.45 31.2 31.2 24499000 771577720 -220095050 BASIC ENERGY 0.205 0.208 0.203 0.213 0.203 0.208 930000 189960 FIRST GEN 16.38 16.4 16.6 16.62 16.3 16.4 1611700 26440348 1352028.0001 FIRST PHIL HLDG 64.3 64.35 64.2 64.3 64 64.3 60700 3894017.5 220242 PHIL H2O 4.32 4.4 4.18 4.54 4.18 4.4 183000 802590 -8980 MERALCO 376.4 378.6 378 380 374.6 378.6 173590 65557266 19208676 MANILA WATER 25 25.2 25 25.4 24.95 25 1701400 42634140 17668870 PETRON 8.08 8.14 8.14 8.14 8.02 8.14 929200 7513273 -1250513 PETROENERGY 3.53 3.6 3.98 3.98 3.6 3.6 104000 379740 PHINMA ENERGY 0.99 1 1.01 1.03 0.99 1 427000 426690 PHX PETROLEUM 10.58 10.86 10.7 10.88 10.52 10.88 50500 539608 PILIPINAS SHELL 48.5 48.55 48.6 48.95 48.3 48.5 307500 14906880 -4507200 SPC POWER 5.2 5.24 5.2 5.24 5.18 5.2 336400 1750339 520000 AGRINURTURE 17.4 17.68 17.6 17.7 17.02 17.7 792900 13687476 -2615298 CNTRL AZUCARERA 14.52 15.88 14.5 15.88 14.5 15.88 3800 58128 CENTURY FOOD 13 13.1 13 13 13 13 3290400 42775200 26657800 DEL MONTE 6.8 7 7.07 7.08 6.8 7 20000 140147 DNL INDUS 10.88 10.9 10.6 10.88 10.5 10.88 1125800 12072382 7584548 EMPERADOR 6.91 6.92 6.9 6.92 6.89 6.92 874300 6041761 -2107087 SMC FOODANDBEV 84.9 84.95 84.95 85 84.85 84.95 4544740 386058925 60236275.5 ALLIANCE SELECT 0.99 1.01 0.98 1.01 0.94 1 5279000 5170220 -26510 GINEBRA 23.6 24 23.6 24 23.6 24 21800 514720 JOLLIBEE 272 272.8 273.2 274.4 265.2 272.8 899670 243707040 -113237376 MACAY HLDG 7 11.98 6.75 12.48 6.75 12.48 82400 561251 MAXS GROUP 10.58 10.62 10.78 10.86 10.58 10.58 104400 1119930 -251478 MG HLDG 0.165 0.174 0.162 0.163 0.162 0.163 2920000 473060 PEPSI COLA 1.56 1.63 1.53 1.57 1.53 1.56 31000 47810 -16960 SHAKEYS PIZZA 9.84 10 10.2 10.2 9.8 9.84 2040800 20032726 -18573068 ROXAS AND CO 1.95 2.03 2 2.03 1.94 2.03 92000 183410 RFM CORP 4.74 4.75 4.75 4.75 4.7 4.75 31000 145950 -4700 ROXAS HLDG 2.62 2.99 2.62 2.62 2.61 2.61 8000 20930 UNIV ROBINA 121.6 121.8 123 124 121.2 121.8 1133000 137994821 -54010121 VITARICH 1.38 1.39 1.44 1.46 1.35 1.39 7798000 10928070 427870 VICTORIAS 2.33 2.38 2.33 2.33 2.33 2.33 20000 46600 CONCRETE A 60.75 66.6 60.8 60.8 60.8 60.8 140 8512 CEMEX HLDG 2 2.01 2.04 2.04 1.98 2 3884000 7759150 585070.0003 EAGLE CEMENT 14.72 15.34 14.78 15.34 14.7 15.34 292400 4418468 -1666242 EEI CORP 8.55 8.6 8.05 8.68 8.05 8.6 966000 8298714 -4360 HOLCIM 6.25 6.3 6.25 6.25 6.25 6.25 50600 316250 MEGAWIDE 17.48 17.5 17.82 17.82 17.42 17.5 5071100 88,882,806( 25,170,559.9997) PHINMA 8.9 8.98 8.98 8.98 8.98 8.98 100 898 TKC METALS 0.84 0.87 0.84 0.88 0.83 0.88 323000 268660 VULCAN INDL 1.53 1.54 1.59 1.6 1.5 1.53 19043000 29426680 797210 CROWN ASIA 1.49 1.5 1.57 1.57 1.5 1.5 243000 366380 23400 EUROMED 1.46 1.69 1.46 1.46 1.46 1.46 4000 5840 LMG CHEMICALS 4.7 4.97 4.7 4.71 4.7 4.71 54000 253850 MABUHAY VINYL 3.2 3.3 3.3 3.3 3.3 3.3 1000 3300 PRYCE CORP 5.36 5.38 5.38 5.38 5.38 5.38 4000 21520 -5380 CONCEPCION 33.95 37.35 35 35 33.75 35 6300 215935 37250 GREENERGY 1.59 1.6 1.59 1.62 1.57 1.6 21082000 33595660 2032470 INTEGRATED MICR 8.8 8.85 9.3 9.43 8.61 8.85 5510000 49048537 -1555885 IONICS 1.48 1.5 1.51 1.52 1.47 1.5 513000 767190 -30000 PANASONIC 5.7 6 5.86 5.86 5.7 5.7 5900 34113 SFA SEMICON 1.34 1.38 1.36 1.4 1.32 1.38 2044000 2718820 4080 CIRTEK HLDG 36.35 36.75 36.95 36.95 36.35 36.75 490500 17880690 160380

HOLDING & FRIMS ABACORE CAPITAL 0.42 0.425 0.415 0.425 0.405 0.42 17250000 7140900 -200650 ASIABEST GROUP 22.55 22.65 23.25 24.05 22.5 22.65 85800 1961205 -190625 AYALA CORP 895 896 900 909 893.5 895 415680 372919365 -69346155 ABOITIZ EQUITY 44.7 45.35 45 45.35 44 45.35 1930500 85734365 -55548275 ALLIANCE GLOBAL 10.5 10.56 10.6 10.62 10.36 10.5 7897100 82331012 -17740052 ANSCOR 6.2 6.22 6.2 6.2 6.2 6.2 3100 19220 ANGLO PHIL HLDG 0.79 0.87 0.78 0.79 0.78 0.78 20000 15610 ATN HLDG A 1.37 1.38 1.4 1.44 1.36 1.37 13240000 18380690 ATN HLDG B 1.36 1.39 1.43 1.45 1.38 1.39 2808000 3957130 695000 COSCO CAPITAL 7 7.02 7.01 7.02 6.96 7 600000 4199323 1331990 DMCI HLDG 12.24 12.5 12.44 12.5 12.18 12.24 2670100 32748030 -4471726 FILINVEST DEV 7.34 7.37 7.39 7.4 7.35 7.39 13000 95673 FJ PRINCE A 2.91 5.45 5.99 5.99 5.45 5.45 300 1689 FORUM PACIFIC 0.196 0.23 0.229 0.23 0.229 0.23 350000 80370 GT CAPITAL 706 715 718 721.5 695 715 34330 24297710 -213585 JG SUMMIT 41.9 42.1 44.7 44.8 41.3 41.9 2564000 109046330 -21288720 KEPPEL HLDG A 3.61 4.96 3.51 3.51 3.51 3.51 1000 3510 LODESTAR 0.49 0.51 0.53 0.53 0.5 0.5 90000 45900 LOPEZ HLDG 3.85 3.86 4.05 4.05 3.82 3.86 2319000 8956470 -1276660 LT GROUP 15.2 15.3 15.08 15.3 15 15.3 5090300 76964694 19690226 MABUHAY HLDG 0.51 0.52 0.51 0.52 0.5 0.51 1279000 647770 196850 METRO PAC INV 4.32 4.33 4.54 4.54 4.33 4.33 53154000 232365920 -124129820 PACIFICA 0.033 0.034 0.034 0.034 0.033 0.033 4400000 148600 PRIME ORION 2.51 2.52 2.54 2.57 2.51 2.51 2455000 6216520 -50800 PRIME MEDIA 1.12 1.19 1.12 1.19 1.12 1.19 105000 122590 REPUBLIC GLASS 2.56 2.69 2.59 2.59 2.59 2.59 3000 7770 SOLID GROUP 1.3 1.35 1.35 1.39 1.29 1.39 1040000 1382460 145400 SYNERGY GRID 288 290 290.2 290.2 290 290 160 46412 SM INVESTMENTS 878 889 889 890 870 878 431720 380908900 -124176815 SAN MIGUEL CORP 172 172.5 174.6 174.6 170 172.5 205350 35397263 3772030 SOC RESOURCES 0.71 0.75 0.71 0.71 0.71 0.71 5000 3550 TOP FRONTIER 262.2 279 270 279 262 279 7480 2046924 -745040 WELLEX INDUS 0.204 0.208 0.201 0.208 0.198 0.208 4060000 817440 52000 ZEUS HLDG 0.195 0.212 0.195 0.195 0.194 0.195 310000 60440

PROPERTY ARTHALAND CORP 0.53 0.56 0.55 0.56 0.54 0.54 971000 531670 10800 ANCHOR LAND 10.8 11.96 11.02 11.02 10.8 11 32000 348016 AYALA LAND 38.5 38.8 38.55 38.95 38.05 38.5 9065100 347263015 -21702725 ARANETA PROP 1.81 1.85 1.81 1.81 1.81 1.81 32000 57920 BELLE CORP 2.18 2.19 2.25 2.26 2.19 2.19 2073000 4585630 -677340 A BROWN 0.68 0.69 0.7 0.71 0.63 0.69 1874000 1247730 -32260 CITYLAND DEVT 0.86 0.88 0.88 0.88 0.86 0.87 58000 50890 CROWN EQUITIES 0.207 0.21 0.211 0.211 0.205 0.21 3730000 766960 16480 CEBU HLDG 5.72 5.99 5.64 5.99 5.64 5.99 19700 111519 CEB LANDMASTERS 4.16 4.3 4.26 4.37 4.15 4.3 1462000 6216170 39210 CENTURY PROP 0.39 0.395 0.395 0.4 0.39 0.395 5200000 2032250 78000 CYBER BAY 0.365 0.385 0.385 0.385 0.385 0.385 10000 3850 DOUBLEDRAGON 17.48 17.5 18 18 17.48 17.48 622900 11000628 -178777.9999 DM WENCESLAO 7.7 7.71 7.76 7.76 7.7 7.71 701600 5414223 -2160680 EMPIRE EAST 0.5 0.51 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 29000 14500 EVER GOTESCO 0.104 0.108 0.104 0.104 0.104 0.104 720000 74880 FILINVEST LAND 1.42 1.43 1.4 1.42 1.4 1.42 7226000 10150780 -7526230 GLOBAL ESTATE 1 1.01 1.03 1.03 1 1 1023000 1023080 8990 HLDG 7.18 7.2 7.08 7.32 7 7.2 405300 2889424 IRC PROP 2.37 2.38 2.26 2.38 2.2 2.38 17338000 39413550 -95760 MEGAWORLD 4.5 4.51 4.44 4.52 4.4 4.5 18389000 82460710 21218080 MRC ALLIED 0.325 0.33 0.34 0.34 0.32 0.33 64310000 20934850 420450 PHIL ESTATES 0.42 0.425 0.415 0.43 0.415 0.425 920000 390450 PRIMEX CORP 3.57 3.58 3.65 3.65 3.58 3.58 1298000 4692910 307850 ROBINSONS LAND 19.5 19.74 20 20 19.48 19.5 3003900 58772420 1094872 PHIL REALTY 0.355 0.375 0.375 0.375 0.365 0.375 370000 137150 ROCKWELL 1.9 1.93 1.95 2 1.9 1.93 191000 372680 131160 SHANG PROP 3.11 3.17 3.17 3.18 3.12 3.12 117000 367650 -34640 STA LUCIA LAND 1.12 1.14 1.15 1.15 1.12 1.14 163000 183330 SM PRIME HLDG 31.75 31.8 32.45 32.45 31.45 31.8 12893200 410915050 -217505675 STARMALLS 4.02 4.09 4.19 4.19 3.91 4.09 423000 1698960 80000 SUNTRUST HOME 0.7 0.72 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 1000 700 VISTA LAND 5.15 5.2 5.18 5.2 5.12 5.2 2789900 14414648 -321908

SERVICES ABS CBN 20.3 20.35 20.5 20.5 20 20.3 46300 931805 GMA NETWORK 5.25 5.27 5.27 5.29 5.25 5.25 381000 2001577 MLA BRDCASTING 16 16.44 16 17 15.1 16 7700 124594 GLOBE TELECOM 1825 1830 1754 1840 1754 1830 78510 142465025 49083495 PLDT 1180 1188 1200 1221 1178 1180 86345 102888395 -30101760 APOLLO GLOBAL 0.037 0.038 0.037 0.037 0.037 0.037 8800000 325600 DFNN INC 7.9 7.98 7.52 7.97 7.51 7.9 26100 197343 ISLAND INFO 0.092 0.093 0.095 0.095 0.093 0.093 3160000 297110 -7520 ISM COMM 8.1 8.11 7.84 8.26 7.58 8.1 152236600 1219178620 -13538465 JACKSTONES 3.53 3.54 3.36 3.59 3.3 3.54 124000 426770 NOW CORP 2.94 2.95 3.19 3.19 2.86 2.94 10001000 29612580 -507890 TRANSPACIFIC BR 0.335 0.34 0.335 0.34 0.32 0.34 34930000 11515500 239400 PHILWEB 3.13 3.17 3.24 3.25 3.1 3.17 339000 1071180 2GO GROUP 9.7 9.8 9.88 9.88 9.52 9.7 159500 1528343 4790 CEBU AIR 61.4 61.7 63.05 63.1 61.25 61.4 1318050 81627461 8498239 CHELSEA 7.81 7.82 8.4 8.5 7.55 7.82 14004500 112496745 65390 INTL CONTAINER 91.5 92.9 91 92.9 91 92.9 1072300 98612679 21164020.5 LBC EXPRESS 13.74 14.4 14.38 14.4 14.38 14.4 2200 31650 LORENZO SHIPPNG 0.7 0.71 0.71 0.72 0.71 0.71 132000 93780 -28400 MACROASIA 14.6 14.7 16.14 16.14 14.16 14.7 3515800 52681882 -16020806 METROALLIANCE A 0.99 1.1 1.01 1.1 0.97 1.1 202000 207850 METROALLIANCE B 1.06 1.39 1.06 1.38 1.05 1.38 47000 52060 -38100 PAL HLDG 7.62 7.63 7.63 7.63 7.63 7.63 3200 24416 HARBOR STAR 3.39 3.4 3.55 3.61 3.33 3.39 3963000 13698630 -199830 ACESITE HOTEL 1.31 1.44 1.3 1.31 1.3 1.31 606000 793800 DISCOVERY WORLD 2.13 2.36 2.27 2.4 2.27 2.36 13000 30270 WATERFRONT 0.47 0.475 0.48 0.48 0.455 0.46 1620000 750450 -4650 CENTRO ESCOLAR 7.8 7.99 7.8 7.99 7.8 7.99 20100 156799 IPEOPLE 11.02 11.18 11.04 11.04 11.02 11.02 42200 465144 STI HLDG 0.57 0.58 0.59 0.6 0.55 0.57 5925000 3356530 -747050 BERJAYA 1.57 1.61 1.45 1.63 1.44 1.61 4378000 6765740 -37580 BLOOMBERRY 7.64 7.65 7.8 7.85 7.53 7.65 8797700 67794596 -8520863 PACIFIC ONLINE 10.5 10.9 10.52 10.52 10.5 10.5 12200 128296 LEISURE AND RES 2.49 2.54 2.85 2.85 2.49 2.49 2269000 5842090 253470 MANILA JOCKEY 5.35 5.4 5.36 5.65 5.35 5.4 51600 276435 MELCO RESORTS 7.12 7.13 7.12 7.13 7.12 7.12 4437800 31597918 932720 PREMIUM LEISURE 0.63 0.64 0.66 0.66 0.63 0.64 3153000 2027980 143740 TRAVELLERS 5.13 5.14 5.13 5.14 5.09 5.14 32546800 166463577 -98082494 METRO RETAIL 1.96 1.98 1.96 2 1.95 1.96 746000 1461880 -21600 PUREGOLD 41.9 42 42 42.35 41.8 42 804400 33779915 -7063560 ROBINSONS RTL 75.2 76.5 75 76.8 74.5 76.5 540330 40587725.5 -2326969 PHIL SEVEN CORP 108 108.9 105 109 105 108 4600 496030 21800 SSI GROUP 2.66 2.67 2.8 2.8 2.66 2.66 8983000 24219830 1694040 WILCON DEPOT 11.72 11.74 11.7 11.8 11.56 11.74 1919200 22445508 5206410 APC GROUP 0.345 0.36 0.34 0.345 0.34 0.345 98950000 33644300 -61200 EASYCALL 5.83 5.99 6.5 6.5 5.1 5.83 650300 3788005 -54697 GOLDEN BRIA 310 318 313 318 307.4 318 8950 2828806 IPM HLDG 7 7.05 7.55 7.55 7.05 7.05 36800 268007 PAXYS 3.03 3.36 3.38 3.38 3.3 3.3 17000 57020 PRMIERE HORIZON 0.315 0.32 0.315 0.32 0.31 0.32 1820000 567000 SBS PHIL CORP 6.94 7 6.78 7 6.78 7 5500 37603

MINING & OIL ATOK 13.26 13.3 12.52 13.46 12.5 13.26 5800 75972 APEX MINING 1.72 1.74 1.76 1.76 1.71 1.72 5946000 10270060 1400000 ABRA MINING 0.0021 0.0022 0.0021 0.0022 0.0021 0.0021 332000000 697300 ATLAS MINING 2.4 2.95 2.46 2.5 2.4 2.4 4410000 10754840 -358920 BENGUET A 1.12 1.29 1.04 1.12 1.04 1.12 2082000 2167830 BENGUET B 1.1 1.28 1.09 1.09 1.09 1.09 64000 69760 COAL ASIA HLDG 0.285 0.295 0.285 0.285 0.285 0.285 630000 179550 CENTURY PEAK 1.91 1.92 1.93 1.93 1.91 1.92 120000 231210 DIZON MINES 6.91 7.07 7.1 7.19 6.9 7.07 1900 13359 FERRONICKEL 1.73 1.74 1.71 1.74 1.7 1.74 418000 719240 -42980 GEOGRACE 0.198 0.202 0.197 0.201 0.197 0.201 41800000 8234890 LEPANTO A 0.098 0.102 0.098 0.104 0.096 0.103 510810000 50064570 LEPANTO B 0.096 0.1 0.1 0.108 0.098 0.1 17050000 1703840 -12060 MANILA MINING A 0.0067 0.0069 0.0066 0.0067 0.0066 0.0067 944000000 6244900 MANILA MINING B 0.0067 0.0079 0.0061 0.0067 0.0061 0.0067 37000000 228100 MARCVENTURES 1.1 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.08 1.09 233000 254090 NIHAO 0.99 1.02 1.03 1.03 0.97 1.01 8000 7930 NICKEL ASIA 2.36 2.37 2.36 2.4 2.31 2.37 22516000 53173830 -270000 OMICO CORP 0.51 0.52 0.52 0.52 0.52 0.52 92000 47840 ORNTL PENINSULA 0.84 0.85 0.84 0.85 0.82 0.85 1043000 860750 PX MINING 3.05 3.08 3.18 3.18 3.03 3.08 5884000 18207160 -1694290 SEMIRARA MINING 26 26.05 26.15 26.6 26.05 26.05 841500 22011315 -1854950 UNITED PARAGON 0.006 0.0062 0.006 0.006 0.006 0.006 1000000 6000 ORNTL PETROL A 0.012 0.013 0.013 0.013 0.012 0.012 1000000 12600 ORNTL PETROL B 0.012 0.013 0.013 0.013 0.013 0.013 126200000 1640600 -1640600 PHILODRILL 0.011 0.012 0.012 0.012 0.011 0.011 41700000 487100 PHINMA PETRO 3.85 4 3.75 3.9 3.75 3.85 60000 229350 PXP ENERGY 18.34 18.4 18.5 18.7 18.12 18.4 3049900 55818616 4982968

PREFFERED HOUSE PREF A AC PREF B2 ALCO PREF B DD PREF SMC FB PREF 2 LR PREF MWIDE PREF PNX PREF 3B PCOR PREF 2B SMC PREF 2B SMC PREF 2C SMC PREF 2D SMC PREF 2F SMC PREF 2G SMC PREF 2H SMC PREF 2I

96 488.2 95.5 96 971.5 1.01 99.05 103 1000 75.1 76 71.2 75 74 72.4 73.1

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS ABS HLDG PDR GMA HLDG PDR

19.48 5.06

96.8 492 99.95 96.8 997 1.02 101 103.1 1005 75.2 76.6 72.8 75.05 74.5 73.8 73.5

96 488.2 95.6 97.7 970.5 1.02 99 103.1 1006 75.1 76 73 75 74.5 72.4 73

96 488.2 95.6 97.7 970.5 1.02 99 103.1 1006 75.2 76 73 75.05 74.5 73.8 73.5

96 488.2 95.5 95.5 970 1.02 99 103.1 1005 75.1 76 71.5 75 74.5 72.4 72.65

96 488.2 95.5 96.8 970 1.02 99 103.1 1005 75.2 76 72.8 75.05 74.5 73.8 73.5

660 830 9400 10240 980 11000 200 100 200 3260 2000 525900 65950 33000 5090 400620

63360 405206 897809 983209 950700 11220 19800 10310 201050 245052 152000 38385650 4947297.5 2458500 374706 29245489

-

19.9 5.2

20.15 5.18

20.15 5.18

19.2 5.18

19.2 5.18

16500 8500

331268 44030

-290967.9999 -

WARRANTS LR WARRANT

1.53

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES ITALPINAS 3.51 XURPAS 1.2

1.6

1.74

1.74

1.53

1.54

1366000

2180070

-

3.6 1.26

3.78 1.35

3.78 1.35

3.5 1.2

3.51 1.2

585000 5555000

2101520 6872200

-18720 -632380

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS FIRST METRO ETF

103.1

103.2

104.6

104.6

103

103.2

40340

4180615

14524

Editor: Efleda P. Campos

DMCI’s 9-month profit slips on power plant shutdown

E

By VG Cabuag

@villygc

NGINEERING conglomerate DMCI Holdings Inc. said its net income slipped in the first three quarters of the year due to the continued shutdown of its coal-fired power plant for the entire third quarter.

The company said its income was down 2 percent from January to June to P11.5 billion, from P11.7 billion last year due to weak contributions from its coal energy business.

For the third quarter alone, DMCI saw a 44-percent decline in net income to P2.3 billion, from P4.1 billion in the same period last year.

Excluding a P715-million onetime gain on sale of an undeveloped lot by DMCI Homes and P66-million refinancing and other one-time costs

of Maynilad, core net income from January to September contracted 8 percent to P10.8 billion, from P11.8 billion year-on-year.

“Aside from Semirara, our construction, real estate and nickel mining businesses also slowed down in the third quarter. But we still expect single-digit growth in our full-year results,” company Chairman and President Isidro A. Consunji said.

Net income contributions from Semirara Mining and Power Corp.

dropped 22 percent to P5.1 billion, from P6.5 billion last year due to the prolonged shutdown of Southwest Luzon Power Generation Corp.

(Unit 1), reduced coal production in Semirara Island because of continuous rains in July and August and higher strip ratio.

DMCI Homes contributed P3.4 billion for the period, a 29-percent improvement from P2.65 billion last year, mainly due to the one-time gain on sale of an undeveloped lot to the SBS group of the Sytengco family.

There was also a 2-percent growth in revenue and 7-percent rise in reservation sales.

Net income contributions from affiliate Maynilad Water Services Inc. grew 11 percent to P1.5 billion, from P1.3 billion primarily due to a 2.8-percent increase in billed volume, 2.8-percent inflationary tariff adjustment and improved customer mix.

Construction arm DM Consunji Inc. delivered a 12-percent growth

in net income share—to P952 million, from P851 million on the back of higher accomplishment in building projects and the realization of variation orders from projects nearing completion.

Off-grid energy business DMCI Power Corp. contributed P337 million, a 4-percent upturn from P324 million last year. The lower-thanexpected provisional tariff for its Aborlan bunker plant in Palawan muted the effect of the 25-percent increase in electricity sales volume on the bottom line.

DMCI Mining Corp., meanwhile, recorded a 14-percent increase in net income contributions from P117 million to P133 million in the first nine months of the year, following the shipment of 482,762 wet metric tons of higher grade nickel ore from its old stockpile.

Other income during the first nine months more than doubled to P171 million, from P50 million due to higher interest income.

AC Energy buys into Singapore’s TBC for 1,500-MW power project

A

C Energy International Holdings Pte. Ltd., a subsidiary of AC Energy Inc., has acquired around 25 percent of Singapore-based The Blue Circle Pte. Ltd. (TBC), the leading developer of wind-energy projects in Southeast Asia.

The acquisition will lead to a joint development, construction, ownership and operation of TBC’s pipeline of wind projects estimated to reach 1,500 megawatts across Southeast Asia, of which 700 MW of wind-power projects will be located in Vietnam. AC Energy and TBC will start with the construction of around 200 MW of wind farms in 2019.

AC Energy CEO Eric Francia said the company’s equity in the initial 200 MW of wind-farm projects is equivalent to $100 million. The initial projects, he said, are expected to be operational by 2020.

“We are excited to partner with The Blue Circle as we expand rapidly across the region,” Francia said.

“Our strategic partnership builds on our combined expertise, strong financing capabilities and robust development pipeline.”

TBC focuses on developing and

investing in utility scale wind projects in Southeast Asia with pipeline in Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand and Cambodia, among others. It was founded in 2013 and has a management team with 79 years of combined renewable-energy experience.

“We are now [focused on] Vietnam. We have three partners in Vietnam; all of them have windpower components,” Francia said.

AC Energy Inc. and AMI Renewables Energy Joint Stock Co. will jointly develop up to 80 MW of solar-power capacity in Vietnam.

Both signed engineering, procurement and construction contract and financing documents for the development of solar plants in the provinces of Khanh Hoa and Dak Lak, to be commissioned in time for the June 2019 solar feedin-tariff deadline. The projects are estimated to cost $83 million, financed with debt and equity. AC Energy will participate with at least 50 percent economic share.

AC Energy formed a platform company with AMI Renewables last year to build renewable energy plants in Vietnam, including the 352 MW Quang Binh wind project. Lenie Lectura

Income of Resorts World operator continues to recover in 3 quarters

T

RAVELLERS International Hotel Group Inc., the gambling arm of businessman Andrew Tan, said its income for the three quarters of the year came in at P1.8 billion, a reversal of the previous year’s loss of P34.12 million.

The increase from the owner of Resorts World Manila is coming from a low-base year since the company suffered losses last year due to a hotel incident that paralyzed some of its operations.

Revenues were up 8 percent to P16.98 billion from last year’s P15.7 billion. Gross gaming revenues for the period rose by 7.5 percent to P13.8 billion while nongaming revenues rose by 11 percent to P3.2 billion.

Property visitation averaged 27,500 per day in the third quar-

ter and average occupancy rate for the three hotels-- Marriott Hotel Manila, Maxims Hotel and Holiday Inn Express Manila Newport City-- was 79 percent.

“We will continue to invest in the property to be able to provide thrilling and unique experiences for our customers,” Kingson Sian, the company’s president and CEO, said.

He said the company is working to complete its Phase 3 development called the Grand Wing, which will have three international luxury hotels—Hilton Manila, Sheraton Manila Hotel and Hotel Okura Manila - adding approximately 940 rooms. It will include new gaming, entertainment, and retail spaces, as well as six basement parking decks. VG Cabuag

MUTUAL FUNDS

November 13, 2018

NAV ONE YEAR THREE YEAR FIVE YEAR Y-T-D

PER SHARE RETURN* RETURN STOCK FUNDS ALFM GROWTH FUND, INC * 236.41 -18.33% -1.4% -0.01% -19.37% ATRAM ALPHA OPPORTUNITY FUND, INC.* 1.3541 -16.72% 3.16% 1.57% -15.2% ATRAM PHILIPPINE EQUITY OPPORTUNITY FUND, INC.* 3.6555 -19.28% -0.93% -1.14% -20.41% CLIMBS SHARE CAPITAL EQUITY INVESTMENT FUND CORP.* 0.838 -17.27% N.A. N.A. -17.6% FIRST METRO CONSUMER FUND ON MSCI PHILS. IMI, INC. * ********* 0.7724 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN EQUITY FUND,INC.* 4.8758 -17.62% -3.3% -0.55% -18.91% MBG EQUITY INVESTMENT FUND, INC. * ****** 108.33 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. ONE WEALTHY NATION FUND, INC.* 0.78 -19.33% N.A. N.A. -21.43% PAMI EQUITY INDEX FUND, INC.* 45.7848 -17.8% -0.59% N.A. -18.81% PHILAM STRATEGIC GROWTH FUND, INC.* 479.58 -17.66% -1.83% -0.76% -18.5% PHILEQUITY DIVIDEND YIELD FUND, INC.* 1.1828 -15.31% 0.24% N.A. -15.77% PHILEQUITY FUND, INC.* 34.4859 -15.09% 0.72% 2.18% -16.08% PHILEQUITY PSE INDEX FUND INC.* 4.6035 -17.72% 0.1% 1.92% -18.87% PHILIPPINE STOCK INDEX FUND CORP.* 768.61 -17.61% -0.11% 1.77% -18.73% SOLDIVO STRATEGIC GROWTH FUND, INC. * 0.8048 -16.11% -2.28% N.A. -16.78% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY PHILIPPINE EQUITY FUND, INC.* 3.8409 -15.12% 0.26% 0.47% -16.14% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY PHILIPPINE STOCK INDEX FUND, INC.* 0.8862 -17.83% -0.08% N.A. -18.94% UNITED FUND, INC.* 3.2953 -13.6% 1.47% 1.05% -15.38% EXCHANGE TRADED FUND FIRST METRO PHIL. EQUITY EXCHANGE TRADED FUND, INC.* ***102.7326 -17.23% 1.04% N.A. -18.44% ATRAM ASIAPLUS EQUITY FUND, INC.** $0.9338 -15.22% 1.18% -0.59% -15.74% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY WORLD VOYAGER FUND, INC.* $1.2182 -1.29% N.A. N.A. -3.71% BALANCED FUNDS PRIMARILY INVESTED IN PESO SECURITIES ATRAM DYNAMIC ALLOCATION FUND, INC.* 1.5906 -13.59% -2.77% -2.49% -14.64% ATRAM PHILIPPINE BALANCED FUND, INC.* 2.1266 -12.72% -0.64% -0.39% -13.45% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN BALANCED FUND INC.* 2.4042 -12.52% -4.21% -2.86% -13.2% GREPALIFE BALANCED FUND CORPORATION* **** 1.2574 -13.32% N.A. N.A. -13.57% NCM MUTUAL FUND OF THE PHILS., INC* 1.7779 -9.69% -0.11% 0.09% -10.77% PAMI HORIZON FUND, INC.* 3.3557 -13.74% -1.98% -1.06% -14.35% PHILAM FUND, INC.* 15.1797 -13.06% -1.77% -1.03% -13.54% SOLIDARITAS FUND, INC.* ******** 1.9783 -11.34% -0.37% 1.13% -11.77% SUN LIFE OF CANADA PROSPERITY BALANCED FUND, INC.* 3.5135 -11.31% -0.67% -0.38% -12.08% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DYNAMIC FUND, INC.* 0.8964 -11.08% -1.06% N.A. -12.14% PRIMARILY INVESTED IN FOREIGN CURRENCY SECURITIES COCOLIFE DOLLAR FUND BUILDER, INC.* $0.0347 -3.9% -0.72% 1.66% -3.88% PAMI ASIA BALANCED FUND, INC.* $0.9393 -10.74% 1.62% -1.39% -10.29% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR ADVANTAGE FUND, INC.* $3.5282 -1.45% 3.86% 2.42% -3.4% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR WELLSPRING FUND, INC.* $1.045 -5.08% N.A. N.A. -6.04% BOND FUNDS PRIMARILY INVESTED IN PESO SECURITIES ALFM PESO BOND FUND, INC.* 341.98 1.86% 1.97% 1.65% 1.44% ATRAM CORPORATE BOND FUND, INC.* ******* 1.8507 -2.75% -0.86% -0.75% -2.2% COCOLIFE FIXED INCOME FUND, INC.* 2.9531 5.54% 5.35% 5.24% 4.65% EKKLESIA MUTUAL FUND INC.* 2.1221 0.87% 1.38% 1.05% 0.95% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN FIXED INCOME FUND,INC.* 2.2026 - 0.45% -0.1% 0.15% -0.61% GREPALIFE FIXED INCOME FUND CORP.* P 1.5617 -3.1% -0.72% -1.44% -2.97% PHILAM BOND FUND, INC.* 3.8364 -5.37% -1.24% -1.01% -5.27% PHILEQUITY PESO BOND FUND, INC.* 3.4681 -0.62% -0.01% -0.23% -1.05% SOLDIVO BOND FUND, INC. * 0.8793 -4.73% -1.32% N.A. -4.76% SUN LIFE OF CANADA PROSPERITY BOND FUND, INC.* 2.7463 -1.1% 0.69% 0.11% -1.11% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY GS FUND, INC.*

1.5235 -1.7% 0.12% -0.31% -1.69% PRIMARILY INVESTED IN FOREIGN CURRENCY SECURITIES ALFM DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. * $446.33 0.38% 2.26% 2.99% 0.09% ALFM EURO BOND FUND, INC. * Є213.2 -0.09% 1.16% 1.55% -0.24% ATRAM TOTAL RETURN DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC.** $1.1213 -1.18% 0.78% 1.71% -1.13% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC.* $0.0248 - 0.8% 0.54% N.A. -0.8% GREPALIFE DOLLAR BOND FUND CORP.* $1.6885 -4.62% -0.46% 1.15% -4.69% MAA PRIVILEGE DOLLAR FIXED INCOME FUND, INC. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. MAA PRIVILEGE EURO FIXED INCOME FUND, INC. ЄN.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. PAMI GLOBAL BOND FUND, INC* $1.0211 -5.56% -0.74% -2.67% -4.88% PHILAM DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC.* $2.133 -4.58% 0.28% 2.44% -5.24% PHILEQUITY DOLLAR INCOME FUND INC.* $0.056899 -1.04% 0.86% 1.83% -0.53% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR ABUNDANCE FUND, INC.* $2.8741 -4.52% 0.55% 1.7% -4.6% MONEY MARKET FUNDS PRIMARILY INVESTED IN PESO SECURITIES ALFM MONEY MARKET FUND, INC.* 120.25 2.56% 1.74% 1.49% 2.24% PHILAM MANAGED INCOME FUND, INC.* 1.1759 1.77% 0.42% 0.4% 1.6% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY MONEY MARKET FUND, INC.* 1.2133 2.52% 2.19% 1.47% 2.35% PRIMARILY INVESTED IN FOREIGN CURRENCY SECURITIES SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR STARTER FUND, INC.* ***** $1.0136 1.46% N.A. N.A. 1.49%

* - NAVPS AS OF THE PREVIOUS BANKING DAY ** - NAVPS AS OF TWO BANKING DAYS AGO *** - LISTED IN THE PSE.

**** - RE-CLASSIFIED INTO A BALANCED FUND STARTING JANUARY 1, 2017 (FORMERLY GREPALIFE BOND FUND CORP.).

***** - LAUNCH DATE IS NOVEMBER 6, 2017 ****** - LAUNCH DATE IS JANUARY 08, 2018 ******** - RENAMING OF THE FUND WAS APPROVED BY THE SEC LAST APRIL 13, 2018. ********* - BECAME A MEMBER SINCE APRIL 20, 2018. ******* - ADJUSTED DUE TO CASH DIVIDEND ISSUANCE LAST JANUARY 29, 2018

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

The World

OIL EXTENDS RECORD LOSING STREAK AS TRUMP BLASTS SAUDI PLAN

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IL fell for a 12th consecutive session in its longest losing streak on record after US President Donald J. Trump criticized top Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) producer Saudi Arabia’s plan to cut output.

Futures in New York fell as much as 1.8 percent, extending a drop of over 11 percent since October 26. Prices “should be much lower based on supply,” Trump said in a tweet, after Saudi Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih said producers need to cut about 1 million barrels a day from October production levels. A slump in US equity markets and the dollar’s climb to an 18-month high also weighed on crude, which slid into a bear market last week.

Oil has retreated from a four-high reached in early October as fears of a supply glut deepened after the US gave some nations waivers from its sanctions to continue buying Iranian crude while American output and inventories climbed. With a trade war between the US and China stoking concerns over the global economy, investors are watching if the Opec and its allies will pump less.

“Trump’s message was intended to keep Opec in check” after the group signaled they may agree to cut production, Makiko Tsugata, a senior analyst at Mizuho Securities Co., said by phone from Tokyo. “There is not a lot of time left before the Opec meeting in December, and the group may not be able to build consensus by then. It remains to be seen whether Opec will agree” on cuts, Tsugata said.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for December delivery declined as much as $1.08 to $58.85 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange and traded at $59.20 at 4:59 p.m. in Tokyo. The contract fell 26 cents to $59.93 on Monday, the lowest close since February 13. Total volume

traded was 18 percent above the 100-day average.

Brent futures for January settlement fell 59 cents to $69.53 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. The contract dropped 6 cents to end at $70.12 on Monday, the lowest close since April 9. The global benchmark crude traded at a $10.16 premium to WTI for the same month.

Producer meeting

A CLOSELY watched meeting between Opec and allied producers including Russia on Sunday yielded no formal change in output policy, but the producers warned that they may need “new strategies.” Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia unveiled a plan over the weekend to reduce its shipments by about 500,000 barrels a day next month. Oil chiefs from Venezuela and Oman indicated they may side with the kingdom on the issue of output cuts.

The meeting in Abu Dhabi over the weekend raised the odds of an output cut next month to “fairly high,” and the reduction may be in the 1 million-barrels-aday range, according to RBC Capital Markets.

UBS Group AG., which also predicts a similar decrease, said the size of curbs will likely depend on demand growth, Iranian supply and US production.

In wider financial markets, S&P 500 Index futures fell, while the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed after increasing 0.6 percent on Monday to the highest in 18 months. The strength in the greenback—which reduces the appeal of commodities priced in the US currency— may persist if the Federal Reserve raises interest rates again next month as expected, Mizuho’s Tsugata said. Bloomberg News

BusinessMirror

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

B3

Southeast Asian summit puts focus on trade tensions, trends

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INGAPORE—The potential damage to global trade brought on by President Donald J. Trump’s tariffs battle with Beijing is looming as leaders of Southeast Asian nations, China, the United States and other regional economies meet in Singapore this week.

Countries across the region, many of which have relied heavily on trade to grow their economies, are responding with strong talk about free trade.

“All countries are linked in the same industrial chain in the world today and China and the US are an important part of it. No one wants or expects to see an interruption of it,” Premier Li Keqiang said on Tuesday in a lecture on the sidelines of the summit.

It’s unclear if this week’s summit meetings of the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations will yield progress on a new trade pact that would commit

member-countries and others in the Asia-Pacific region to opening markets further. Participants say India, for one, is balking at opening its markets wider to imports from China under the accord, dubbed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, or RCEP. Expectations are modest. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Tuesday in a statement that he would be joining leaders in Singapore to just “review progress” toward an agreement.

But the momentum is in the direction of more, not less, open trade.

“Against the backdrop of rising

anti-globalization sentiments and trade tensions, Asean will need to continue to stay open and connected and leverage our collective strength to navigate disruptive trends and anchor our relevance to the global economy,” Singapore’s minister for trade and industry, Chan Chun Sing, told fellow economic ministers on Monday.

The ministers approved statements on facilitating more open trade, cooperation on developing renewable energy and e-commerce.

He noted that as a region of 630 million people, Asean is destined to become the world’s fourth-biggest economy by 2030, after the US, China and the European Union.

The globalization of manufacturing has been a key factor driving dynamic growth in Southeast Asia, where the regional economy’s size more than doubled to $2.8 trillion as of 2017.

Speaking at a business conference on the sidelines of the Asean summit, Li, the Chinese premier, compared “rising unilateralism and protectionism,” uncertainties and other destabilizing factors to harmful contaminants in an ocean.

“No country can effectively

deal with these challenges on its own,” he said.

During Li’s visit, Singapore and China signed an upgraded free trade agreement that gives each better access to markets in services industries.

As discussions over the RCEP trade pact drag on, another rival accord, the dozen-nation TransPacific Partnership, has been making headway despite Trump withdrawing the US from the Pacific Rim free trade initiative three days after he took office.

The remaining 11 countries are preparing to inaugurate the revised trade deal, the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership, following Australia’s ratification earlier this month.

The deal is due to take effect on December 30.

Several other economies are preparing to try to join the panPacific accord, including the Philippines and South Korea.

Japanese media reported that Taiwan’s representative to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, former chairman of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Morris Chang, plans to ask Japan to back the island’s

ISRAEL, HAMAS TRADE HEAVY FIRE AFTER DEADLY INCURSION

ISRAELI firefighters work at the scene where a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip hit in Sderot, Israel, on Monday. Israel’s military says it is prepared to step up its efforts against Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip if rocket fire at Israel continues. AP/TSAFRIR ABAYOV

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AZA CITY, Gaza Strip—Palestinian militants bombarded Israel with dozens of rockets and mortar shells on Monday, while Israeli warplanes struck targets throughout the Gaza Strip in what appeared to be the most intense exchange of fire since a 2014 war.

Palestinian officials said at least three people, including two militants, were killed by Israeli fire and nine were wounded, and an Israeli air strike destroyed the ruling Hamas group’s TV station. In Israel, the national rescue service said at least 20 people were wounded, including a 19-year-old soldier and a 60-year-old woman who were in critical condition.

Early Tuesday, Israeli media reported that a man was found dead under the rubble of a building in the southern coastal city of Ashkelon hit by Gaza rockets.

Gaza’s health ministry, meanwhile, said a 22-year-old Palestinian who was wounded in an earlier air strike died, putting the Palestinian death toll since the current flare-up started late Sunday to 11, the majority of them militants.

Th e f i g h t i n g c a s t d o u b t o ve r re c e n t understandings brokered by Egypt and UN officials to reduce tensions. Just a day earlier, Israel’s prime minister had defended those understandings, saying he was doing everything possible to avoid another war.

The United Nations said it was working with Egypt to broker a halt in the violence. “Rockets must STOP, restraint must be shown by all!” the UN Mideast envoy’s office tweeted.

UN Secretar y-General Antonio Guterres, meanwhile, urged Israel and the Palestinians “to exercise maximum restraint,” according to a statement. The rocket fire was triggered by a botched Israeli military raid in Gaza on Sunday. Undercover troops, apparently on a reconnaissance mission, were discovered inside Gaza on Sunday, setting off a battle that left seven militants, including a Hamas commander, and an Israeli military officer dead.

Around sundown on Monday, militants launched some 100 rockets in less than an hour, the most intense barrage since the 50-day war four years ago. The outgoing rockets, which continued into the evening, lit up the skies of Gaza and set off air raid sirens throughout southern Israel.

By early Tuesday, at least 300 rockets had been launched from Gaza, the Israeli military said, adding that up to 70 of them were intercepted by the antimissile defense system Iron Dome.

The military said warplanes, helicopters and tanks had struck over 70 militant targets, including militar y compounds, obser vation posts and weapons facilities. It also said it targeted a squad that was launching rockets.

The air strikes and rocket barrages resumed at dawn after nearly two hours of calm.

Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesman, said the army had sent additional infantry troops, rocket defense systems and intelligence units to the Gaza frontier.

Malaysia ups pressure on Goldman with calls for return of fees

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ALAYSIA is stepping up pressure against Goldman Sachs Group Inc. as leader-in-waiting Anwar Ibrahim called for “more aggressive” claims against the bank, after the finance minister said the country is seeking a full refund of all the fees it paid for 1MDB deals.

The Southeast Asian nation should also seek compensation from the bank for ruining Malaysia’s image, Anwar said in parliament on Tuesday. Malaysia has been “cheated” by Goldman, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said in a CNBC interview, adding that he’s not ruling out a ban against the bank’s local operations as he observes the ongoing investigations.

Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng said on Monday that he’s banking on the firm’s “indirect” admission of wrongdoing and US law against kleptocracy, to help Malaysia recoup fees that include nearly $600 million that it paid Goldman for three 1MDB bond deals.

Goldman Sachs hasn’t publicly admitted any wrongdoing and has said it’s cooperating with authorities. Its shares plunged 7.5 percent on Monday in the steepest drop since 2011.

The bank has been under scrutiny for years for its role in raising $6.5 billion for 1MDB and for the fees and commissions it earned from the bonds. 1MDB is at

the center of a global investigation involving claims of embezzlement and money laundering, which have triggered probes in the US, Singapore, Switzerland and beyond. Goldman has “admitted culpability” after former banker Tim Leissner entered a guilty plea for his role in the scandal, Lim said in a Monday interview with radio station BFM. “I would be happy if we can get around 30-percent net after all the expenses incurred” from the entire 1MDB scandal, he said, referring to the overall amount of funds thought to be lost through the troubled state fund.

Mahathir has set a goal of bringing back $4.5 billion.

It’s unclear how Malaysia plans to regain the fees that Goldman got, and Mahathir said in June that the government would pursue legal action if there is a case.

There are ongoing discussions about recovering money from financial institutions including Goldman, Anwar told Bloomberg last week. The decision will be made

by Malaysia’s attorney general, Lim said.

1MDB’s bonds were sold at a “much higher” yield than what was the market rate at that time, and Malaysia will also seek from Goldman losses that stemmed from the interest-rate differential, Lim told BFM radio station.

Leissner plea

Jho Low

GOLDMAN has consistently said that it believed proceeds of the debt it under wrote were for development projects and that Leissner, its former Southeast Asia chairman, withheld information from the firm. Leissner said in his guilty plea unveiled on Friday that others at the bank helped him conceal bribes used to retain business in Malaysia.

Michael DuVally, a Goldman spokesman in New York, declined to comment. The firm said in a quarterly filing earlier this month that it couldn’t predict the outcome of the US Justice Department’s investigation, but said it could face “significant fines.”

RECOUPING the 1MDB funds would require tracing assets bought using the money, with Malaysian authorities focused on locating Low Taek Jho, or Jho Low, who has been described by investigators as a central figure in the 1MDB transactions.

Records show that Low, who remains at large, isn’t in China on a Malaysian passport as previously thought, Lim told the BFM radio station. It is unclear if Low entered the country using different travel documents, he said. Chinese authorities have been cooperative, with Lim adding that he hoped they would help if Low had managed to slip into the country. Bloomberg News

“We continue to strike and retaliate against the military targets belonging to terrorist organizations in Gaza, and as for our intentions we will enhance these efforts as needed,” he told reporters.

Late Monday, an air strike destroyed the Gaza City headquarters of Hamas’s Al Aqsa TV station. Israel had fired warning shots ahead of the air strike, prompting the station to halt programming and replace it with a logo. Minutes later, the air strike flattened the three-

story building and the station went black.

Workers had evacuated the building after the warning shots, and there were no immediate reports of casualties.

Israel said the station “broadcasts violent propaganda” and provides “operational messaging” to militants. A five-story office building that housed Hamas media offices and another building used by Hamas’s internal security service were also destroyed.

No casualties were reported. AP

B4 Wednesday, November 14, 2018

NEW FLAVORS TO SAVOR AT HOTEL JEN MANILA

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UESTS will get to enjoy new f lavors and enticing dishes from the Lobby Lounge’s and Windows by the Bay’s new menu.

Showcasing over 10 new dishes using the best ingredients, the Lobby Lounge and Windows by the Bay aims to satisfy

visitors with classic favorites.

A fun and intimate celebration, titled “Mic Challenge with a Twist”, was hosted for Hotel Jen Manila’s valued media partners at the Lobby Lounge to formally launch the new offering.

The Mic Challenge with a Twist is an experiential program under one of Hotel Jen’s passion points “After Hours”, which celebrates after-dark activities that guests can do.

Get an appetizing gettogether with your friends at the Lobby Lounge. The new menu highlights popular dishes, such as beef shawarma, sriracha wings, spicy gambas, baby back ribs, pork sisig, fries and Nachos Frescas. The sandwich board has also been included in the menu featuring the three bestsellers: Ambassador’s Burger, Jen’s Club and Toasties. Pair it with your go-to drink and you’re in for a smashing night out with your buddies.

Enjoy a relaxing time with the view of Manila Bay as Windows by the Bay offers a short selection of perfectly curated menu. Grab a bite of mouthwatering signature dishes, such as house-cured salmon crostini, tenderloin tips salpicao and chicken-rollup

quesadilla that will leave you asking for more. Complement it with Jen’s signature cocktails Tea Time in Tanglin and China Lady.

Executive Chef Sonny Almandres explains that, “The new menu offers cuisine, which goes back to the basics.

It highlights not only the use of great flavors, but also the brand’s promise to let our diners sample only the best.”

Hotel Jen Manila introduces its new menu items this month. The Lobby Lounge is open daily from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., while Windows by the Bay is open daily from 7:30 p.m. to 11 p.m.

For inquiries and reservations, visit Hotel Jen Manila’s Web site www.hoteljen. com/manila, and Like them on Facebook and follow them on Instagram and Twitter @HotelJenManila for updates and promotions.

Hotel Jen Manila is along Roxas Boulevard with a direct and easy access to the newly constructed Naia Expressway.

The international and domestic airports are just 20 minutes away from the hotel, and the Makati City Central Business District is only 30 minutes away from the area. Hotel Jen Manila is also adjacent to the country’s premier conference and exhibition facilities—the Cultural Center of the Philippines, Philippine International Convention Center, World Trade Center and SMX Convention Center, and is 10 minutes away from the SM Mall of Asia.

ROSITA VICTIMS IN ISABELA RECEIVE RELIEF GOODS FROM SM FOUNDATION In the wake of devastation brought by Typhoon Rosita (international code name Yutu) in Northern Luzon, SM Foundation and its team rushed to the municipalities of Isabela to distribute the kalinga packs through its Operation: Tulong Express (OPTE). The kalinga packs containing bottled water, noodles, rice and ready-to-eat food were distributed to residents who were affected by the flash flood. The emergency response program of SM Foundation also provided basic needs, such as blankets and clothes, when necessary; and conducted medical missions to provide first-aid treatment. Over 2,066 relief packs were distributed to beneficiaries in the municipalities of Alicia, Aurora, Cordon, Echague, Jones, Roxas, San Agustin and Santiago. In September SM Foundation also mounted its OPTE in Isabela province to distribute relief goods to those affected by Typhoon Ompong (international code name Mangkut).

DLSU HOSTS INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP ON WATER MANAGEMENT, RESOURCE RECOVERY

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N ongoing efforts to support and develop sustainable cities around the globe, De La Salle University recently held the NexCities annual workshop, funded by the Philippine Council for Industry, Energy, and Emerging Technology Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology, in partnership with the University of Surrey, University of Nottingham, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Paul Scherrer Institut and Maynilad.

Now on its second year, the workshop aims to strengthen the network among members of the academe, government, and private and civil sectors. In addition, it also serves as a platform for exchange of ideas on the state-of-the-

art science, technology and innovation on resource recovery.

It envisions to develop a joint research program on the area of water, energy, food and environment nexus that will be particularly relevant to the cities of the future.

In order to foster a dialogue on the practice, policy options, risks and opportunities for resource recovery from wastewater, the Nexcities workshop also delves on the management of municipal wastewater by transforming sewage, or septage-treatment plants, into resource-recovery facilities. The workshop focuses on the water management and resource recovery systems of the Philippines, United Kingdom and Switzerland.

BANKERS’, TRADERS’GUIDE TO REVISED BUSINESS CODE

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HE Center for Global Best Practices (CGBP), in collaboration with the International Chamber of Commerce, will host a two-day seminar, titled “Revised ISBP on LC Transactions for Bankers, Importers and Exporters, Lawyers, Insurers and Transporters”, on November 28 and 29 at Marriott Hotel.

The International Standard Banking Practice (ISBP), which needs to be understood by stakeholders involved in international trading of imported and exported goods, provides details on how to apply banking practices under uniform customs and practice for documentary credits (UCP 600) to various trade documents (invoices, transport documents, bills of lading, certificates of origin); and feature documents including packing list, weight list, beneficiary certificate, nonnegotiable sea waybills, analysis, inspection, health, phytosanitary, quantity and quality certificate, among other considerations.

The revised ISBP addresses a range of subjects, for example, typing errors, mathematical calculations, drafts and how these are drawn, description of the goods in invoices and signing of bills of lading, among others.

This two-day training program will teach you basic principles, different types of transport documents, drafts and calculation of maturity date, invoices, documents and coverage, insurance, certificates and many more. Learn and

relearn the key terms of the ISBP. Be guided on the Frequently Asked Questions.

This will feature Singapore-based expert Victor Tan, who is an authority in the field of international trade. He has 15 years of banking experience in Europe covering areas of international trade finance, remittances, guarantees, and import and export. He has worked with various international banks, such as Standard Chartered Bank, Amsterdam-Rotterdam Bank, Bangkok Bank, Royal Trust Merchant Bank and Barclays Bank, the last of which he served as deputy head of the trade finance department. He conducts highly specialized training programs for clients in Jakarta, Bangkok and Singapore.

Registration is open to the general public. This program is highly recommended for those in the banking, insurance, logistics and forwarding industries, and in the business of import and export. Public officials and government employees attending to this program are exempted from the P2,000 limit set by the Commission on Audit, based on the Department of Budget and Management Circular 563 dated April 22, 2016.

Interested participants are encouraged to avail themselves of the early-bird and group discounts for three or more registrants. Seats are limited and preregistration is required.

Visit www.cgbp.org for details and a complete list of international trade training programs.

Sports

NFL players reprising some old, costly celebrations

BusinessMirror

C1

| Wednesday, November 14, 2018 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

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CARIS LEVERT spends several minutes on the court being attended by medical personnel. AP

GRUESOME INJURY

By Tyler Mason The Associated Press

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INNEAPOLIS—Jimmy Butler is gone and so is Minnesota’s losing streak, after a victory over a Nets team devastated by a gruesome injury to leading scorer Caris LeVert.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 25 points and a season-high 21 rebounds, and the Timberwolves beat Brooklyn, 120-113, on Monday after finally trading Butler.

Jeff Teague returned from a six-game absence to score 24 points for Minnesota, which snapped a five-game losing streak.

“It’s good to get a win after the slide we’ve been having,” Towns said. “It doesn’t matter how it comes, pretty or ugly. As long as it ends up being a win, we’re good with that.”

The Nets lost LeVert to what appeared to be a severe right leg injury late in the first half that brought the entire crowd at Target Center to a silence.

LeVert spent several minutes on the court being attended by medical personnel. Nets players surrounded their injured teammate before he was wheeled off the court.

“I just think it’s a devastating blow for us, for him. That’s all I really want to say about this,” Brooklyn Coach Kenny Atkinson said. “Our thoughts should be with him and his recovery. And I really don’t want to talk about the game or anything else.”

The Timberwolves officially dealt Butler to the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday, along with big man Justin Patton. The Wolves received Robert Covington, Dario Saric, Jerryd Bayless and a 2022 secondround pick in the trade.

Butler had asked for a trade earlier in the season but Coach and President of Basketball Operations Tom Thibodeau said on Monday that the team tried to remain patient in waiting for the right deal for the All-Star. Thibodeau refuted a report that Butler’s trade demand included sending him to only a handful of teams.

In the first game of the post-Butler era, Minnesota used a strong effort from the backcourt duo of Teague and Derrick Rose, who had 23 points in 39 minutes. Teague was aggressive on offense for Minnesota in his first game since October 29.

“We needed the downhill play and the attack,” Thibodeau said. “I thought he and Derrick put a lot of pressure on them.”

A former first-round pick in his third season, LeVert was averaging a team-high 19 points entering the game. He had 10 points, five rebounds and four assists before suffering the injury with just a few seconds remaining before halftime.

LeVert was taken to a hospital for further evaluation. Players from around the league tweeted out their support for LeVert shortly after the injury occurred.

“There were really just no words,” said Nets forward Joe Harris. “We didn’t talk even when we came in at halftime. There’s nothing really to be said. You could just feel it, the emotions from everybody. Guys were crying coming in, it was really that horrific just to see.”

NBA RESULTS

Washington 117, Orlando 109 New Orleans 126, Toronto 110 Philadelphia 124, Miami 114 Dallas 103, Chicago 98 Minnesota 120, Brooklyn 113 Oklahoma City 118, Phoenix 101 Utah 96, Memphis 88 Sacramento 104, San Antonio 99 LA Clippers 121, Golden State 116, OT D’Angelo Russell made a career-high nine three-pointers and scored 31 points for the Nets, who shot a season-worst 39.6 percent from the field.

Neither team led by more than five points until late in the third quarter, when Gorgui Dieng’s three-pointer and a pair of free throws by Teague extended Minnesota’s advantage to 10 points.

Brooklyn cut it to, 97-96, early in the fourth before the Wolves pulled away.

Minnesota overcame a season-high 23 turnovers.

WARRIORS FALL IN O.T.

The Los Angeles Clippers wouldn’t have it any other way.

Williams scored the Clippers’ final 10 points in overtime after they blew a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter, and they hung on Monday night to beat the Golden State Warriors at home for the first time in nearly four years, 121-116.

Williams recovered after shooting three of 16 in regulation, when the Clippers were scoreless over the final 5:15, while the Warriors ran off 11 straight points to force overtime tied at 106-all.

“There would be no point for me to be on the floor if I didn’t have confidence,” said Williams, who finished with 25 points.

Montrezl Harrell added 23 points off the bench and rookie Shai GilgeousAlexander had 18.

“It’s not about the run they go on,” Harrell said. “It’s about how we handle it.

We stayed after it and kept going after them.”

The Clippers snapped a sevengame skid against the Warriors at Staples Center, where they last won on December 25, 2014.

“Unfortunately we lost, but we’ll see them again at least three more times and that’ll be different,” Klay Thompson said.

Kevin Durant

had 33 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists for the Warriors before fouling out with 3:46 left in the extra session. Thompson added 31 points, but was just five of 16 on three-pointers on a night without injured fellow Splash Brother Stephen Curry.

“Everything changes without Steph,” Warriors Coach Steve Kerr said. “He’s one of the best offensive players in the history of the game so you take him out and they don’t have to worry about as much.”

Golden State lost for just the third time in 14 games.

The starless Clippers improved to 6-1 at home.

Thompson’s three-pointer tied it 116-all in overtime, interrupting Williams’s run of 10 straight points for the Clippers.

IN Los Angeles Lou Williams couldn’t hit a lick in regulation, so of course he had the ball in crunch time.

ATIONAL Football League (NFL) players seem to have run out of creative ways to celebrate.

Either that, or they’ve decided to pay homage to the players they grew up watching, even if it costs them some funds for injecting fun into the game.

Chiefs receiver Tyreek Hill was the latest to go old school when he commemorated his second touchdown in Week 10 by commandeering the CBS camera like Cincinnati’s Chad Ochocinco once did.

“The celebration just came into my head,” said Hill, whose actions netted an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and a Coach Andy Reid’s ire.

“That was too much,” Reid said.

The NFL, which has relaxed celebration rules, might agree.

Hill’s stunt came days after Saints receiver Michael Thomas was fined $30,000 for using a phone as a prop, a la Joe Horn, and Titans safety Kevin Byard was dinged $10,026 for celebrating an end zone interception on the Cowboys’ midfield star logo, just like Terrell Owens did in 2000.

Saints tight end Ben Watson added a little twist to his celebration when he stuffed the football under his jersey to signal his wife’s pregnancy just like...Ben Watson did, back in 2009.

When Watson, 37, scored against the Rams last Sunday, he let the world know he and his wife, Kristen, are expecting twins by stuffing the ball under the front of his jersey and holding up five fingers on one hand as he often does to honor his five children.

Then he held up two more fingers on his other hand in honor of the twins on the way.

Nine years ago, Watson similarly stuffed the ball under his jersey after scoring as Kristen was close to full term with their first child, Grace. He was fined shortly thereafter for using the ball as a prop.

“So the cool thing is I will be able to say [to his twins] that, ‘When I did it for Grace, I had to pay. When I did it for you all, the league had changed,’” Watson said. “What a difference nine years make.”

Not for everyone.

Hill was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct in Kansas City for taking over the TV camera, just as Thomas was for pulling a flip phone out from under the goal post padding after his fourth-quarter score against LA. “Where did he get a flip phone?” Watson said. “I said [to Thomas], ‘Do you even know who Joe Horn is? You must have been in elementary school back then.’ But that was pretty good. I’ve got to give him props on that one.”

No pun intended, of course.

Byard said on Friday his $10,026 fine was worth it because his interception denied the Cowboys a touchdown and sparked a 28-7 run in Tennessee’s 28-14 win in Dallas on Monday night.

Byard said he expected the Cowboys to take offense when he sprinted to the 50-yard line to pose on the star, then began a sort of Irish jig when teammates joined him at midfield.

“I was actually expecting someone to knock my head off,” Byard said. “I was like, if we get enough guys to the 50, we are just going to start dancing on the star.”

Cowboys running back Byron Jones quickly shoved Byard away, playing the part of George Teague, who blasted Owens when he did the same thing while with the 49ers 18 years ago.

“You don’t do that,” Jones said.

Byard met with his coach, Mike Vrabel, who had a big problem with his DB’s actions.

Vrabel said he wants players to celebrate with each other and not stand up an opponent.

“It’s not what we want to do,” Vrabel said.

Byard said his over-the-top celebrations are history.

Other takeaways from Week 10 included a stumbling, bumbling Tom Brady, a shoutout from the Rams to Halle Berry and Sean McVay’s decision to train at altitude in preparation for Monday night’s showdown between the Rams and Chiefs, who are both 9-1. AP

JAPAN’S William Tupou is tackled by New Zealand’s Angus Ta’avao during their rugby test at the Ajinomoto Stadium in Tokyo. AP

JAPAN $18/DAY, ENGLAND $32K/DAY L

ONDON—Japan is playing England this weekend for the first time since the so-called amateur era.

And being paid like it.

Coach Jamie Joseph says his team of “amateurs” receives less than $18 a day on tour.

Meanwhile, England’s players will receive $32,000 each after the test on Saturday at Twickenham in their first matchup since the 1987 Rugby World Cup. “Our home-based players are amateurs, they are employees of companies, and receive ¥2,000 a day,” Joseph said on Monday. “To be here and play a team

like England is a great opportunity for a footy team and a footy player.

“Our professional players, the foreign-based players, don’t get paid for playing for Japan. If you put that all together, we have got different motivators and we just want to get out and leave our footprint behind.”

Japan will be covered in footprints if England Coach Eddie Jones has his way.

Joseph laughed off advice from his predecessor Jones that Japan should seek divine intervention for their test against England.

Jones warned Japan that England will be “absolutely ruthless” at Twickenham, eager to “physically smash” the Japanese in response to losing to New Zealand, 16-15, last weekend.

Jones, who coached Japan from 2012 to 2015, quipped that Japan finds a temple and “pray, pray, pray,” but Joseph wasn’t fazed.

Joseph said he won’t be going to any temples, but will be praying for a game without rain.

“In tough conditions it’s tough to get our game going, so we’re hoping and praying for a bit of [good]

weather,” Joseph said.

“When we’ve got the ball and guys are really excited about playing, we’ve got a different style of play; we’re not as big as others, but we’re quick.”

The Japan team watched the England-New Zealand test on Saturday, while Joseph went to the test at Twickenham, where the former All Blacks loose forward enjoyed the cut and thrust in the rain.

“Those types of games are exactly what rugby’s all about in my view. But I suspect the game that we play, how the All Blacks play, and the fact England have had a few matches, it could be a little bit different this weekend.

“We don’t want rain come kickoff time, and we’ve shown over the last couple of years if we can get our game going we can push teams hard.” AP

Spo

Business

C2 Wednesday, November 14, 2018

ATHLETES GRACE CAREER PROGRAMS T

HIRTY-SIX athletes from different national sports associations attended the “IOC Athletes Career Programs” symposium that was supervised by the Athletes Commission of the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) at the Highlands Steakhouse in Pasig City.

The symposium was held under the aegis of the International Olympic Committee Olympic Solidarity Program.

It aimed to empower national athletes in managing their lives and careers during and after their stint in the national team.

Speakers endorsed by the IOC were both from Singapore—former Olympian sailor Jovina Choo, who is the Asian representative to the World Olympians Association, and Ren Cai Yip, who is also a former Singaporean

Olympian for water polo.

The Athletes Commission is chaired by Niko Huelgas (triathlon) with Hidilyn Diaz (weightlifting), James de los Santos (karate) and Cheska Altomonte (softball) as members.

POC Deputy Secretary-General Karen Caballero assisted the athletes in putting the event together.

POC Secretary-General Patrick Gregorio gave a pep talk to the participants, as well as Philippine Olympians president and former Olympic swimmer Akiko Thomson-Guevara.

Huelgas lauded the POC for actively pursuing programs for the national athletes.

“It means so much to us athletes that the POC shows their concern for our welfare.

It makes us feel more worthy as national

CRUCIAL U.P.-LA SALLE CLASH

U

NIVERSITY of the Philippines (UP) and De La Salle clash in a crucial matchup of Final Four hopefuls in Season 81 University Athletic Association of the Philippines men’s basketball action on Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

The Fighting Maroons, looming to make the semifinals in 20 years, could secure at least a playoff with a victory over the Green Archers in the game set at 4 p.m.

UP bolstered its Final Four campaign when

it showed University of Santo Tomas (UST) the door, 83-69, last Sunday.

With the victory, UP shared fourth spot with Far Eastern University on a 7-7 won-lost record.

Head Coach Bo Perasol wants nothing but a sustained run that could send the state university to the semifinals after two decades of frustration.

“We have to put that win [over UST] behind,” Perasol said. “We cannot [overthink] because there’s a more crucial game coming.”

De La Salle, at 8-5, is looking to solidify its

Lady Bulldogs near sweep of elims

N

ATIONAL University made quick work of University of the Philippines (UP), 97-41, to zero in on another outright Finals berth on Tuesday in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 81 women’s basketball tournament at the Blue Eagle Gym. Melody Cac had 17 points as a starter while reigning Most Valuable Player Jack Danielle Animam had 15 points, 12 boards and two assists as the “five-

peat” seeking Lady Bulldogs improved to 13-0 won-lost overall.

NU goes for the sweep when it battles Far Eastern University at 1 p.m. on Friday at the Filoil Flying V Centre.

De La Salle and Adamson University made the semifinals more exciting after beating separate foes.

Khate Castillo fired 13 points while Bettina

athletes,” Huelgas said. “Thank you for the added motivation of your presence here.”

“The POC is conscious of such basic responsibilities as helping and motivating our athletes. POC President [Ricky] Vargas is also making sure we will have more of these activities to help our athletes, coaches, trainers and everyone else involved in our national teams,” Gregorio said.

PHILIPPINE Olympic Committee SecretaryGeneral Patrick Gregorio (foreground, with glasses) joins national athletes at the “International Olympic Committee Athletes Career Programs” symposium last Saturday.

position in the magic four after a 62-71 loss to Ateneo three days ago.

UP is expected to bank on reliables Bright Akhuetie, Paul Desiderio and sophomore guard Juan Gomez de Liaño.

Aljun Melecio, Justin Baltazar and Kiwi center Tanne Samuel will lead the Green Archers side mentored by Louie Gonzales.

Defending champion Ateneo (11-2) battles UST (5-8) at 2 p.m. The Blue Eagles have secured the top seeding and a twiceto-beat advantage in the semifinals.

Ramon Rafael Bonilla Binaohan chipped in 11 points and six rebounds as the Lady Archers routed alsoran Ateneo, 57-39.

Jamie Alcoy had 18 points while Nathalie Prado contributed 16 points, 21 rebounds and four assists for the Lady Falcons, who rallied from 11 points down in regulation to beat the Lady Tamaraws in overtime, 73-69.

But University of Santo Tomas failed to forge at three-way tie at 8-5 after an out-of-it-all University of the East frustrated the Tigress, 66-64.

Aussie star leads bicycle enthusiasts’ fun ride

T

HREE-TIME Tour de France green jersey winner Robbie McEwen sets out for another fun ride with beginners and bike enthusiasts as he leads the Sun Life Cycle PH at the 30th Avenue at Bonifacio Global City in Taguig on Saturday.

The Australian cycling legend has graced the noncompetitive event aimed at promoting awareness on keeping a healthy lifestyle the last five years, getting quite impressed on the improvements on the local cycling scene after riding alongside a former junior national

cycling team member and a number of celebrities in the long ride (40 kms) last year.

“Looking at them at times riding along at 40 km an hour and they look completely comfortable, it’s obvious to me that the level of Filipino riders over the last few years has really improved. I can see them more at ease with the bike and riding faster, looking stronger,” McEwen said.

He is again expected to inspire the young riders from among the thousands of participants set see action in three categories—Kids Ride, Short Ride (20K)

and Long Ride (40K) around Taguig, Makati, Manila and Pasay.

The event, also aimed at promoting family bonding and encouraging people to live healthier lives, will be launched on Friday simultaneous with the Expo Open and press conference and the ride kit claiming at Seda BGC Hotel.

Six hundred three riders have so far registered for the 40-km ride of the event organized by Sunrise Events Inc., while the 20 km and kids categories have lured 392 and 100 participants, respectively.

CRUISE FOR DJOKOVIC L

NOVAK DJOKOVIC makes an impressive start to his campaign for a sixth title at the Association of Tennis Professionals Finals. AP

Looking back one decade to title thriller

S

ÃO PAULO—Ten years ago at the Brazilian Grand Prix, Felipe Massa thought he was Formula One (F1) world champion—for 23 seconds at least.

After winning his home race at Interlagos, Ferrari driver Massa appeared to have done enough to become the first Brazilian to win the title since Ayrton Senna in 1991.

But premature celebrations by Ferrari and Massa in his cockpit suddenly ended when Hamilton, then a McLaren driver, climbed to fifth place on the last turn of the race. That proved sufficient for Hamilton to secure his first title in São Paulo in 2008 and overcome his disappointing performance at Interlagos a year earlier, which saw the title going to Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen.

A decade later, Hamilton is the newly crowned five-time champion and was in pole position en route to winning the Brazilian GP anew. Massa is a TV pundit preparing for the Formula E season. The two former adversaries talked about the old days in the paddock and roamed around the track with other drivers in a truck.

“I didn’t lose the 2008 title in Brazil,” Massa said.

“I won it [the race], but nothing else depended on me 10 years ago. Winning actually made me less frustrated because I did all I could. Hamilton won the title because of his great season, not because of his fifth place at Interlagos.”

Hamilton remembers that Brazilian fans “were a bit difficult” after that race, with the British driver clinching the title after a lastminute overtake of Toyota’s Timo Glock.

ONDON—The opening matches at the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Finals led to a debate over whether conditions at the O2 Arena were trickier than in past years.

Novak Djokovic ended it.

The Wimbledon and US Open champion made an impressive start to his campaign for a sixth title by dismissing John Isner, 6-4, 6-3, on Monday.

Roger Federer, who lost on Sunday, and Alexander Zverev described conditions as challenging following their error-strewn opening matches at the season-ending tournament, but Djokovic dropped just six points on his serve and made six unforced errors.

“My results here have been pretty good in the last 10 years, so I can’t complain too much,” said Djokovic, who has won four titles at the London venue. “It takes a little bit of time really to get yourself adjusted to the surface because the surface is a good surface.”

A day after a ceremony to mark ending the season as No. 1, Djokovic underlined his status by nullifying Isner’s usually destructive serve.

Isner, who at 33 became the season-ending tournament’s oldest debutant since 1972, applied himself admirably but barely avoided being broken more than once in the first set, and was broken twice more in the second set.

“It was amazing,” Isner said of the atmosphere. “I wish I could have given them a bit more to cheer for.”

The one break Djokovic converted in the first set, at 2-2, was a cross-court forehand return winner which stranded Isner.

Cristiano Ronaldo was in attendance, with Djokovic perhaps spurred on even more by the Juventus forward’s presence.

“It’s great to have big football star, sports star like him, courtside watching tennis,” Djokovic said.

“The relationship with Brazil had ups and downs, but now it is just great,” Hamilton said.

The 37-year-old Massa, who retired from F1 last year without ever winning the title, says personal and team mistakes a decade ago made all the difference at the end of one of the most exciting seasons of the series.

“In Singapore I didn’t get any points, finished 13th. In Hungary I was leading and my engine broke just two laps before the checkered flag. So at Interlagos it wasn’t really that likely I could be champion in the end,” the Brazilian said.

Asked whether he would like to be competing still, Massa joked “if that meant running for Williams once again, I think it is best not to be racing.”

Massa’s former team is 10th in the constructors’ championship with only seven points. AP LEWIS HAMILTON (right) poses with former Brazilian driver Felipe Massa. AP

At 3-3, 15-30 in the second set, Isner sent down a second serve at 126 mph (203 kph). Djokovic sent it straight back at his feet and a shocked Isner hit his backhand long to concede two more break points.

A forehand error from Isner confirmed the break, and the end of the contest. The merciless Djokovic held serve before breaking Isner once more with an inch-perfect backhand passing shot on match point.

“That was pretty comprehensive out there,” Isner conceded.

Earlier, Zverev came from a break down in both sets to defeat Marin Cilic, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (1).

Facing each other in their opening match for a second straight year, Zverev produced the slightly steadier tennis in an attritional contest to extend his record against Cilic to 2-0 at the O2 Arena and 6-1 overall.

Cilic, who made 46 unforced errors, dropped to 1-9 across his four appearances at the tournament.

“The win, that’s the most important thing,” said Zverev, who failed to advance from the round-robin stage on his debut last year.

Richard Gasquet, meanwhile, has withdrawn from the Davis Cup final against Croatia later this month because of injury.

Gasquet, the No. 1 French player, wrote on Twitter on Monday about his withdrawal but did not specify his injury. According to L’Equipe newspaper, Gasquet, ranked No. 26, is hampered by a groin problem.

Gasquet said he is “extremely disappointed” not to be able to play for France, which is bidding to win back-to-back titles in the team competition. The final will be held at the Pierre Mauroy Stadium in Lille from November 23 to 25 under a retractable roof.

In the absence of Gasquet, France captain Yannick Noah can still count on Lucas Pouille, Jeremy Chardy and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga for the singles matches. AP

orts

sMirror

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

HOTSHOTS TARGET SWEEP OF GIN KINGS M

AGNOLIA goes for the kill as it tries to sweep Barangay Ginebra San Miguel in Game Three of the Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup semifinals on Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Fresh from hacking out a 101-97 escape last Monday to go 2-0 in the best-of-five affair, the Hotshots try to punctuate the series and take an easy route to the Finals when they go head to head against the crowd favorites at 7 p.m.

Magnolia Head Coach Chito Victolero could only look back to the pain of losing a big advantage in a series against Barangay Ginebra last year in the Philippine Cup. Up 2-0 in the best-of-seven semifinals, the Gin Kings clawed back to turn their fortunes around and win the ticket to the Finals.

“We still remember in the All-Filipino last year, we’re up but we lost the series. That’s our inspiration, that we had experienced it before, so we’ll try our best to get the third win,” Victolero said.

Although the Finals looks clear on the horizon, he dismissed any air of complacency to maintain the hunger of the players. “’One game at a time. I’m not thinking about the sweep,” he said.

In Game Two, Romeo Travis again took the

lead role with his 25 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists, while Ian Sangalang and Paul Lee added 17 and 14 points, respectively.

Barangay Ginebra stayed close until the very end, but the Hotshots kept their composure with Lee and Travis sinking all-important free throws to seal the win.

Justin Brownlee had 31 points for the Gin Kings, on top of his 12 rebounds and seven assists.

AMER PLAYER OF THE WEEK

MERALCO third-year guard Baser Amer’s leadership and clutch shooting didn’t go unnoticed after being named the Cignal-PBA Press Corps Player of the Week for the period of November 5 to 11 in the 2018 Governors’ Cup. After serving as an understudy of former PBA Most Valuable Player Jimmy Alapag in 2016, Amer has spread his wings this season, sparking Meralco to the semifinals after a woeful start in the season-ending conference.

The 26-year-old former San Beda Red Lion averaged 18 points, 4.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.6 steals in the Bolts’ last three games on the way to capturing the weekly citation.

Given up for dead after Meralco’s 1-6 record, Amer played a key role in his team resurgence.

Meralco won five straight games to close

the elims en route to making the playoffs as the seventh seed.

From there, Amer showed his readiness for battle in the playoffs, firing 14 points, grabbing four rebounds, issuing six assists and adding two steals as the Bolts shocked the No. 2 seed Phoenix, 90-74, to force the winner-take-all match in their quarterfinal duel.

The 6-foot Amer took his game a notch higher in the knockout match, banging in 26 points, including back-to-back triples in the extra period that broke the backs of the Fuel Masters en route to a 108-103 win to advance to the semifinals.

Last Sunday Meralco played its third game in five days, but that hardly mattered as Amer sustained his form, tallying 14 points, four boards, three assists and a steal to lead Meralco past Alaska, 97-92, and draw first blood in their best-of-five semifinal showdown.

Meralco has won its last seven games, a franchise record. But for Amer, the job isn’t done yet, especially since the Bolts need two more wins to make a return trip to the Governors’Cup Finals—its third straight if ever, as they try to win the title this time.

Amer beat teammate Chris Newsome, Magnolia’s Paul Lee, Ginebra forward Japeth Aguilar and Alaska’s Vic Manuel for the weekly citation.

Ramon Rafael Bonilla

AL MENDOZA alsol47@yahoo.com

THAT’S ALL

Where are Blatche, Romeo?

BASER AMER is delivering the tangibles that are keeping the Bolts hot.

P

Lady Warriors vs Perlas Spikers, Cool Smashers face Oragon gals

OCARI-AIR Force braces for another grueling, protracted battle in a must-win stand against BanKoPerlas on Wednesday, as Creamline guns for the second semifinal seat against Iriga-Navy in the Premier Volleyball League Season 2 Open Conference at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan.

The Lady Warriors nipped the Perlas Spikers in five in their first-round clash last October 21 in a rare win by the former when forced to go the full distance, having dropped four five-setters in the last seven matches for a 5-6 won-lost card.

They remained at fifth behind No. 4 PetroGazz (6-5) with Tacloban also staying in the race at 5-7, making the three teams’ remaining matches must-win games.

Skipper Myla Pablo, the league-leading scorer with an 18.5-hit norm, tries to carry the Lady Warriors to the all-important win, although she would need to draw the best from the likes of Del Palomata, Jeanette Panaga, May Ann Pantino and Iari Yongco to keep the team in the semis race.

LIFESAVERS SCORE UPSET G

ENERIKA-AYALA scored a major upset by beating F2 Logistics, 19-25, 25-22, 25-16, 28-26, to notch its first win in the Philippine Superliga All-Filipino Conference on Tuesday at the Filoil Flying V Centre.

Patty Orendain led the attack for the Lifesavers, who bravely turned a 21-24 disadvantage in the fourth set into a shocking win over a fluid and very disciplined Cargo Movers squad.

Orendain tallied 18 points and 10 receptions, while skipper Angeli Araneta added 15 points to

hand Generika-Ayala its first win in four matches.

“Our hard work really paid off,” said GenerikaAyala Head Coach Sherwin Meneses, who drew impressive performance from Mika Lopez, Fiola Ceballos and Marivic Meneses.

“After three losses, we still kept going. I told the team to just be patient and continue working hard.”

He said he kept on telling his wards that they are capable of making a strong run if they will keep on working hard.

“We know that we will have our time so we didn’t give up,” he said, adding that their

strong services threw the Cargo Movers off their comfort zone.

“We’re happy that we stuck to our game plan.”

Michelle Morente delivered14 points, while Cha Cruz-Behag had 11 markers and Aby Maraño, Ara Galang and Majoy Baron each had 10 markers for the Cargo Movers, who suffered a rare back-to-back setback.

F2 Logistics also surrendered to reigning champion Petron in a thrilling four-set encounter over the weekend to fall to a 3-2 win-loss card.

T

HE National Golf Association of the Philippines (NGAP) will conduct a workshop and seminar on the Rules of Golf on Wednesday and Thursday at the Alabang Country Club.

The workshop and seminar aim to improve the rules knowledge among club players of all abilities.

The country’s governing golf body has invited representatives of the various golf clubs to the two-day session to be facilitated

by Jin-Woo Kim, Cc Boo, Eddy Putra, Henry Arabelo and Francis Montaliana, with KP Ling of Singapore as observer.

The seminar, which starts at 9:15 a.m., will delve on various rules from the tee shot

Plaridel stages successful golfest

J

OMZ GOMEZ of Manila Water Co. carded an 81 to romp away with the Low Gross crown at the recent Fourth Plaridel Golf Cup at the Villamor Air Base Golf Club.

The other winners were Gen. Conrad Capa (Low Net, 70), Jet Villacorte (Class A), Alex Magno (Class A runner-up), Rey Bancod Class B), Conrad Banal (Class B runner-up), Nilo Paurom (Class C) and Col. Vince Batac (Class C runner-up).

Special awards also went to Gomez for longest drive, Capt. Willy Rigor for most accurate drive, and Ding Marcelo for nearest to the pin.

Samahang Plaridel President Rolando Estabillo and director Carmelita Valdez presented the trophies to the winners.

“We would like to thank the participants

and sponsors of this year’s Plaridel Golf Cup tournament. The support we got will enable us to pursue various projects designed to build professionalism among Filipino journalists,” Estabillo said.

This year’s Plaridel Cup was sponsored by San Miguel Corp., Oriental Group, FFCruz Corp., Philippine Airlines, Liwayway Marketing Corp., Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp., SM Retail, GMA Network, Steel Asia, Ayala Land Inc., Agila ng Bayan, Rep. . Edgar Erice, Manila Water Co. and Asia Brewery.

All participants went home with an assortment of gifts from the sponsors, including round-trip Hong Kong tickets from Philippine Airlines.

The four actually turned in solid games the last time out but the Lady Warriors lost steam in the stretch and yielded a 25-23, 21-25, 20-25, 25-22, 9-15 result to the Cool Smashers in Legazpi City last Saturday.

But BanKo-Perlas is also itching to rebound from a shutout loss to PetroGazz last Sunday in a setback that stymied the Perlas Spikers’ own march to the Final Four. Though assured of at least a playoff for a semis slot at 8-3, BanKoPerlas wants to advance trouble-free with a victory in their 4 p.m. clash with the embattled Pocari-Air Force side.

Creamline, meanwhile, is expected to cruise to the semis against Iriga-Navy in the 6 p.m. main dish with the Cool Smashers shooting for their ninth win against two losses.

The Alyssa Valdez-led Cool Smashers crushed the Lady Oragons in three last October 7, with the former tipped to dominate the latter again and join the league-leading Ateneo-Motolite Lady Eagles (10-3) in the Final Four of the season-ending conference of the league organized by Sports Vision and backed by Mikasa and Ascis.

NGAP conducts seminar, workshop on new rules

GENERIKA-AYALA’S Patty Orendain eludes the defense put up by F2 Logistics’s Majoy Maron and Mich Morente.

C3

THE winners of the Fourth Plaridel Golf Cup—(from left) Col. Vince Batac, Capt. Willy Rigor, Jomz Gomez, Rey Bancod, Alex Magno, Conrad Banal and Nilo Paurom—pose with their trophies.

to playing the ball, the putting green, lifting and returning the ball to play to the free relief and relief with penalty, and disputes and doubtful points before participants take on an R&A Level I examination.

Day 2 of the R&A Rules School will feature practical on-course demonstrations and running a competition starting at 9 a.m.

All the Rule Changes for 2019 will also be taken up, according to NGAP, headed by President Martin Lorenzo and SecretaryGeneral Bones Floro with Caloy Coscolluela and Pepot Iñigo as cochairmen of the Rules Committee.

Among those participating are memberclubs Anvaya Cove, Apo, Ayala Greenfield, Bacolod, Beverly Place, Britannika, Calatagan, Caliraya, Camp Aguinaldo, Camp Evangelista, Camp John Hay, Canlubang, Club Filipino de Cebu, Club Intramuros, Eagle Ridge, Eastridge, Fernando Air Base, Forest Hills, Haciendas de Naga Sports Club Inc., Illana Bay, Iloilo; Isabela, KC Filipinas, Luisita, Manila Golf Club, Mimosa, Mt. Malarayat, Negros Occidental, Paraiso, Navy, Pueblo de Oro, Rancho Palos Verdes, Sherwood, Summit Point, Tagaytay Highlands, Midlands, The Cliffs, Manila Southwoods, Orchard, Riviera, Royal Northwoods, Valley, Veterans, Victories, Villamor and Wack Wack and host Alabang Country Club.

Also in the roster are associate members Federation of Philippine Seniors Golfers, GolfPH, Junior Golf Foundation, Nomads Golf Club, Shell Kabibi, Southlinks and Zamboanga, along with nonmembers Splendido, South Pacific, Pradera Verde and Sahara Golf Club-Kuwait.

KAZAKHSTAN has become our suki (whipping boy) that’s why I’m confident we will beat the Kazakhs again on November 30 at the MOA Arena in Pasay City.

It is Iran that I’m worried about the most.

Like many of our non-basketballloving countries many years back, Iran has enormously improved since it started to treat the sport seriously starting some two decade or so ago.

Back in 1975, when Iran played here for the Asian Youth Championship, its players were like kindergartens clumsily playing against the region’s best.

I covered that when I was a Bulletin sportswriter and, if memory serves, our team then led by Bogs Adornado, Yoyong Martirez and Manny Paner, among others, ripped the Iranians into shreds en route to a winning margin of not less than 50 points.

And Iran was then already giantladen, its players virtually all 6-footers from the point guard up to the center.

Obviously, Iran would soon finally recognize its built-in edge in height that’s why, through the years, it has invested so much on the game with an eye on its man-mountains. Naturally.

Today, Iran has become a basketball power in the region that we just couldn’t beat easily anymore.

In our 20-man pool are listed virtual giants, too. Not just guys nearing 7 feet but others who are actually standing 7 feet and beyond.

Both Greg Slaughter and Kai Sotto are 7-foot-1s. Ceiling-wise, the duo is tailor-fit to man the Philippine slot.

But that’s easier said than done.

Whether we like it or not, Slaughter is still recovering from a leg injury. We can only hope that he will be 100 percent by the time the next Fiba World Cup window is played on November 30.

But while Slaughter no doubt has the height, his quickness—let alone his shiftiness—remains suspect as usual.

Because he is a bit slow—I just pray and hope he’d overcome that soonest— his counterparts could usually run rings around him.

That’s where the likes of June Mar Fajardo, Japeth Aguilar and JP Erram are badly needed to lend support to Slaughter in the middle.

Coach Yeng Guiao is fortunate to have the 6-foot-10 Fajardo, 6-foot-9 Aguilar and 6-foot-8 Erram as pillars for Gilas Pilipinas, as all three are shoo-ins for the team.

They are our version of “The Triple Towers,” with Slaughter acting out the role as, hopefully, “Gregzilla” in our mission to topple Kazakhstan and Iran (December 3).

My bets, aside from Slaughter, Fajardo, Aguilar and Erram, to make it to the 12-man Gilas squad are Marcio Lassiter, Alex Cabagnot, Arwind Santos, Christian Standhardinger, Stanley Pringle, Matthew Wright, Paul Lee and Gabe Norwood.

I didn’t include Sotto as his 7-foot-1 ceiling is simply not enough to make a difference once the going got rough.

Now, if we want to feed Sotto with experience, go ahead, draft him. But if we want Gilas to have a fighting chance, make every player matter every step of the way.

Definitely, Sotto, at 16, is still a project in the making. Not a war material. N’yet.

Now, this is the bigger puzzle: Why were 7-foot-1 Andray Blatche and spitfire Terrence Romeo not in the pool?

My probe on the matter has just begun.

THAT’S IT Manny Pacquiao did the country proud once more with the brilliant speech he delivered as guest of honor and speaker at the Student Union Council ceremonies at the prestigious Oxford University in London recently. His speechwriter sure did his homework. He deserves a bonus. Cheers!

CMMA CELEBRATES 40TH YEAR

Spirit of Cardinal Sin inspires communicators to heed call for values-filled mass media projects

T

he Catholic Mass Media Awards (CMMA) celebrates this year the 40th anniversary of its establishment by His Eminence Jaime L. Cardinal Sin in 1978 as “a tribute to those who are serving God through the media.”

In marking this milestone, the CMMA commemorates and pays tribute to the man who started it on its noble mission and who remains its guiding spirit in inspiring mass media practitioners to promote and uphold the highest human and Christian values in their works.

Through its four decades of existence, the CMMA remains the most prestigious awards giving body for the media, owing to the greatness of its founder and his firm belief in the power of the media to effect social transformation.

For their part, communication and mass media practitioners have shown total support and dedication to the Cardinal’s ideals for the CMMA by sending in their entries by the hundreds year after year.

For this year, the CMMA Secretariat received 677 entries from mass media workers aspiring for their awards in the fields of print, television, radio, advertising, music, cinema,

online media and the Student CMMA. Of these entries, 289 submissions from professional and student mass media categories made it as finalists. The winners will be known during the awards program on November 14, Wednesday, 5 p.m., at the Star Theater, Star City, CCP Complex, Pasay City.

A special message will be given by His Eminence Luis Antonio G. Cardinal Tagle, Archbishop of Manila and Honorary Chairman of the CMMA, on the celebration’s theme of “The truth will set you free” (John 8:32).

Since its establishment in 1978, the CMMA had been given out yearly except for a two-year interruption in 1997 and 1998. It was revived in 1999 by Cardinal Sin, who asked Ambassador Antonio L. Cabangon Chua to be its chairman and president. The first awards night was held in 2000 under the leadership of the Ambassador, who held the post until he passed away in March 2016.

The CMMA is now headed by D. Edgard A. Cabangon as Chairman of the Board of Trustees. He will be joining Cardinal Tagle in welcoming guests to the awards night, along with other officers including Antonio A. Henson, Vice Chairman/Trustee; Juan P. Dayang, Secretary/Trustee; Philip E.

Juico, Treasurer/Trustee; Rosie Lovely T. Romulo, Trustee; Evelina I. Atienza, Trustee; J. Antonio A. Cabangon, Jr., Trustee; Engr. Feorelio M. Bote, Trustee; Atty. Patricia O. Bunye, Trustee; Fr. Joselito L. Buenafe, Trustee and Chairman of CMMA Production; Fr. Rufino C. Sescon Jr., Executive Director and Trustee; and Benjamin V. Ramos, Asst. to the Chairman. Fr. Hans Magdurulang is Coordinator of the CMMA Panels of Judges.

CMMA winners are passed upon by the panels of judges in the various categories whose members are chosen by the CMMA board of trustees and confirmed by the Archbishop of Manila.

Named for their integrity, competence and impartiality, they include communication professionals, academicians, civic and religious leaders and members of the clergy.

Also to be presented on CMMA Night are the Hall of Fame Awardees, or those who have been winners for at least five years; the Serviam Award for groups and individuals who transmit Christian values in media-based programs; and the St. John Paul II Award for a group or individual who use media creatively to uphold values.

Following is the list of finalists to the 40th CMMA:

2018 cmma finalists INTERNET BEST WEBSITE n www.familyisagift.com—COUPLES FOR CHRIST n www.lightfam.com—LIGHT OF JESUS FAMILY n www.phjesuits.org—PHILIPPINE PROVINCE OF SOCIETY OF JESUS

television Best News Magazine n BRIGADA—GMA NEWS TV 11 n I JUANDER—GMA NEWS TV 11 n KAPUSO MO, JESSICA SOHO—GMA 7 n KEEPING THE FAITH—ABS-CBN NEWS CHANNEL (ANC) n TAPATAN NI TUNYING (TNT)—ABS-CBN 2

Best Blog n http://fielsvd.wordpress.com—REV. FR. FELMAR C. FIEL, SVD n www.handsonparentwhileearning.com—MARIA TERESA G. DUMADAG MUSIC Best Inspirational Album n “FAITH ALBUM” VOICES OF PRAISE—VARIOUS ARTISTS / PRAISE INCORPORATED n LEAD ME ON—INGGO 1587 / OPMUSIK n VESPERS 6: SA DAPIT-HAPON—EDUARDO P. HONTIVEROS, S.J. & JAY GOMEZ JESUIT COMMUNICATIONS Best Inspirational Song

n BAGO MATULOG—IDEASXMACHINA ADVERTISING, INC. n DI KA PABABAYAAN— OGIE ALCASID WITH PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA / STAR MUSIC n SKYBOUND—REGINE VELASQUEZ-ALCASID / VIVA RECORDS CORPORATION n THANK YOU—JAMIE RIVERA / STAR MUSIC

Best Music Video

n ANAK (COVER)—CHILDREN OF THE OFW / TBWA\ SANTIAGO MANGADA PUNO n ITO ANG AMING PANGARAP—KZ TANDINGAN, BUGOY DRILON, EBE DANCEL &

STAR MUSIC n NAKAKALOKAL—OGIE ALCASID / STAR MUSIC n TAGPUAN—MOIRA DELA TORRE / STAR MUSIC

GLOC 9

Best Secular Album n HEY ITS ME JAMIE—JAMIE RIVERA & VARIOUS ARTISTS / STAR MUSIC n NAKAKALOKAL—OGIE ALCASID & VARIOUS ARTISTS / STAR MUSIC n R3.0—REGINE VELASQUEZ-ALCASID / VIVA RECORDS CORPORATION Best Secular Song

n DUYAN—SARAH GERONIMO / VIVA RECORDS CORPORATION n GANITO—SARAH GERONIMO / VIVA RECORDS CORPORATION n HUGOT—REGINE VELASQUEZ-ALCASID / VIVA RECORDS CORPORATION n JUST LOVE NGAYONG CHRISTMAS—VARIOUS KAPAMILYA ARTISTS / STAR MUSIC n PAGKA’T NARIYAN KA—SAM MANGUBAT / STAR MUSIC n TAGPUAN—MOIRA DELA TORRE / STAR MUSIC

student cmma Best Literary Publication n JUKEBOX: THE GUILDS LITERARY FOLIO—BATAAN PENINSULA STATE UNIVERSITY MAIN CAMPUS n MIRAGE “ABRAKADABRA”—LYCEUM OF THE PHIL. UNIVERSITY BATANGAS n MORPHEME—DE LA SALLE UNIVERSITY-DASMARINAS n SHADES OF GRAY: CONVALESCENCE—DE LA SALLE-COLLEGE OF SAINT BENILDE n THE LATHE ART COMPILATION—BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY Best Student Organ – College n CVSU- R NEXUS TABLOID—CAVITE STATE UNIVERSITY CCAT CAMPUS n FIXED MAGAZINE—LYCEUM OF THE PHIL. UNIVERSITY BATANGAS n PHOENIX TABLOID—LYCEUM OF THE PHIL. UNIVERSITY BATANGAS n SENSUS COMMUNIS: THE LATHE JOURNAL—BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY n THE BENILDEAN: PRESERVATION ISSUE—DE LA SALLE-COLLEGE OF SAINT BENILDE Best Student Public Service TV Ad

n ALMOST HUMAN—OUR LADY OF CAYSASAY ACADEMY n FILIPINOS FIRST—DE LA SALLE UNIVERSITY-DASMARINAS n OOTD—UST ANGELICUM COLLEGE INC.

Best Student Public Service Print Ad

n KARAPATAN SEARCH—UST ANGELICUM COLLEGE INC. n NUTRITION FACTS—UST ANGELICUM COLLEGE INC. n LENTE—FAITH COLLEGES n FAKE REALITY—FAITH COLLEGES n BURNING TRUTH—FAITH COLLEGES

Best Student Short Film

n COMFORT ROOM—UST ANGELICUM COLLEGE INC. n DALAHIN—UST ANGELICUM COLLEGE INC. n DANA JUNG—COLEGIO DE SAN JUAN DE LETRAN MANILA n ENGKUWENTRO—UST ANGELICUM COLLEGE INC. n SARANGGOLA—DE LA SALLE-COLLEGE OF SAINT BENILDE n SEGUNDO—OUR LADY OF PEACE SCHOOL

Best Student Organ – High School n LA NOUVELLE—DE LA SALLE UNIVERSITY LAGUNA CAMPUS n SAPIENTIA ET VIRTUS—SCHOOL OF SAINT ANTHONY n THE ECHOES—CASIMIRO A. YNARES, SR. MEMORIAL NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL n THE GLIMPSE—DASMARIÑAS INTEGRATED HIGH SCHOOL n THE MARTYRS­—TRECE MARTIRES CITY NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL n THE WESTERNIAN PIONEER—UNIVERSITY OF BATANGAS Best Student Public Service Radio Ad

n BEDTIME STORY—UST ANGELICUM COLLEGE INC. n BIBLE IN CONVERSATIONAL FILIPINO—OUR LADY OF CAYSASAY ACADEMY n DASAL—UST ANGELICUM COLLEGE INC. n KUYA—UST ANGELICUM COLLEGE INC. n LINGGO—COLEGIO DE SAN JUAN DE LETRAN MANILA n MALING AKALA—UST ANGELICUM COLLEGE INC. n TIYAN KO AY LUMOBO—UST ANGELICUM COLLEGE INC.

Best Student Organ – Grade School

n HASIK—LA SALLE GREEN HILLS n LITTLE BLUESTOCKINGS—ST. SCHOLASTICA’S COLLEGE n LUNTIANG PANULAT—LA SALLE GREEN HILLS n PASLIT SA BAGONG HENERASYON—SAN MIGUEL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL n PATHFINDER—DON BOSCO COLLEGE- CANLUBANG n THE DIALOGUE—FR. LUIGI CABURLOTTO SCHOOL n THE ESTOILE—ST. EDWARD INTEGRATED SCHOOL

Best Student TV Production

n GAPANG—UST ANGELICUM COLLEGE INC. n GINTO SA BASURA—UST ANGELICUM COLLEGE INC. n KANLUNGAN—TARLAC STATE UNIVERSITY n KATHA—TARLAC STATE UNIVERSITY n KLORO—COLUMBAN COLLEGE BARRETTO n LAANG ARAW—COLEGIO DE SAN JUAN DE LETRAN MANILA n SI BASTE—COLEGIO DE SAN JUAN DE LETRAN MANILA n YAMAN NG KALIKASAN—TARLAC STATE UNIVERSITY

SPONSORED BY:

Best TV Ad – Public Service

n EARTH DAY 2018 —GMA NETWORK, INC. n LOVE THY NEIGHBOR FILM—KAPISANAN NG BROADKASTER NG PILIPINAS

TBWA\SANTIAGO MANGADA PUNO n SA LAHAT NG PANAHON—ABS-CBN NEWS/ABS-CBN CREATIVE COMMUNICATIONS MANAGEMENT n WHO WILL TAKE CARE OF ME—HERO FOUNDATION, INC. / TBWA\SANTIAGO MANGADA PUNO Best TV Ad – Branded

Best Station ID n BUONG PUSO NGAYONG PASKO STATION ID—GMA NETWORK, INC. n BUONG PUSO PARA SA KAPUSO STATION ID—GMA NETWORK, INC.

n PAANO MAGMAHAL ANG KAPAMILYA—ABS-CBN CORPORATION

Best Talk Show n ISKOOLMATES—PTV 4 n MAGANDANG BUHAY—ABS-CBN 2 n ONE ASEAN—PTV 4 n THE BOSS—ABS-CBN NEWS CHANNEL (ANC) n TONIGHT WITH ARNOLD CLAVIO—GMA NEWS TV 11

n ANDENG—THE PHILIPPINE STAR / IDEASXMACHINA ADVERTISING, INC. n CREDO—SOUTHSTAR DRUG / ESTIMA, INCORPORATED n DADDY’S GIRL—SM SUPERMALLS / DDB GROUP PHILS n LITTLE THINGS—SM SUPERMALLS / DDB GROUP PHILS n PITAKA—MCJIM / INSIGHT 360 CONSULTANCY SERVICES, INC. n STAND UP—MANULIFE PHILIPPINES / J. WALTER THOMPSON PHILIPPINES n TRADITION—SM SUPERMALLS / DDB GROUP PHILS

Best TV Special

n ‘DI KA PASISIIL—ABS-CBN 2 n FAILON NGAYON “KALAMIDAD SA PABAHAY”—ABS-CBN 2 n MGA BAKAS NG SIGWA: A MARAWI SPECIAL—PTV 4 n MGA BOSES NG CLASSROOM—ABS-CBN 2 n PAGLAYANG MINAMAHAL—ABS-CBN 2 n PHILIPPINE SEAS—GMA 7 n SA LANDAS NI HESUS: MAGLAKBAY, MAGNILAY—DZMM TELERADYO / ABS-CBN CORPORATION n SA SERBISYONG TOTOO, NAGBAGO ANG BUHAY KO—GMA 7 n SANGANDAAN, PAGHAHANAP KAY HESUS SA CAMINO IGNACIANO—JESUIT

COMMUNICATIONS FOUNDATION, INC. / ABS-CBN 2 n SIETE PALABRAS 2018—DOMINICAN PROVINCE OF THE PHILIPPINES / GMA 7 Best Drama Series / Program

n BAGANI—ABS-CBN 2 n FPJ’S ANG PROBINSYANO—ABS-CBN 2 n MAYNILA—MAYNILAD GOLDEN PRODUCTIONS, INC. / GMA 7 n SANA DALAWA ANG PUSO—ABS-CBN 2 n THE GOOD SON—ABS-CBN 2 n WAGAS—GMA NEWS TV 11

Best Comedy Program

n DEAR UGE—GMA 7 n HOME SWEETIE HOME—ABS-CBN 2

Best Children and Youth Program n AHA!—GMA 7 n FRONT ROW—GMA 7 n ISKOOLMATES—PTV 4 n PANALO KA, ‘NAY—TV5 NETWORK, INC n PUBLIC EYE—PTV 4 Best Entertainment Program

n ASAP—ABS-CBN 2 n I CAN SEE YOUR VOICE—ABS-CBN 2 n PILIPINAS GOT TALENT 6—ABS-CBN 2 n TASTE BUDDIES—GMA NEWS TV 11

Best News Program

n 24 ORAS WEEKEND—GMA 7 n BALITANG AMIANAN—REGIONAL TV, GMA NETWORK, INC. n BALITANG BISDAK—REGIONAL TV, GMA NETWORK, INC. n SAKSI—GMA 7 n STATE OF THE NATION WITH JESSICA SOHO—GMA NEWS TV 11

Best Religious Program

n KERYGMA TV “OFW TALK 1”—SHEPHERD’S VOICE RADIO & TV FOUNDATION, INC.

IBC 13, ANC & TV MARIA n PLUMA: ITO ANG ATING ISTORYA—COUPLES FOR CHRIST GLOBAL MISSION FOUNDATION, INC. / ABS-CBN 2 n STORIES FOR THE SOUL—GMA 7 n WHO’S CALLING—TV MARIA Best Adult Educational / Cultural Program

n ANG PINAKA—GMA NEWS TV 11 n BUHAY NA BUHAY—GMA NEWS TV 11 n DAYAW—ABS-CBN NEWS CHANNEL (ANC) n G DIARIES—ABS-CBN 2 n MOMBIZ—COLOURS HD / CIGNAL TV, INC. n TAHUM WESTERN VISAYAS—SKYCABLE ILOILO CHANNEL 35 n THE ATOM ARAULLO SPECIALS—GMA 7

ABS-CBN CREATIVE COMMUNICATIONS MANAGEMENT Best Digital Ad - Branded

Best Digital Ad - Public Service

n BE FULLY INFORMED STORIES - MT. PINATUBO—MANILA BULLETIN PUBLISHING CORPORATION n DISGUSTING STORIES—BAHAY TULUYAN / TBWA\SANTIAGO MANGADA PUNO n FAKE NEWS - REVERSE—MANILA BULLETIN PUBLISHING CORPORATION n I-KWENTO MO KAY GOD—MALAKING MUNTI FOUNDATION / IDEASXMACHINA ADVERTISING, INC. n LOVE THY NEIGHBOR CAMPAIGN—KAPISANAN NG BROADKASTER NG PILIPINAS

Best Investigative Report

n BORACAY SPECIAL REPORT—NESTOR P. BURGOS, JR. / PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER n CRUSHING DRUGS: BATTLE ON MANY FRONTS—CHERRY ANN T. LIM / SUNSTAR CEBU n MARTIAL LAW—JHESSET O. ENANO / PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER n MONEY TRAIL OF THE MARAWI SIEGE SURGE IN REMITTANCES PRECEDED IS ATTACK

ON MARAWI CITY—DREI TOLEDO AND MIMI FABE / THE MANILA TIMES Best News Photograph

n CLEARING THE ROUTE—JEOFREY MAITEM / PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER n FISTFUL OF PANIC—LYN RILLON / PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER n GRIM REUNION—LYN RILLON / PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER n HOPE IN THE MIDDLE—RIO LEONELLE DELUVIO / MANILA BULLETIN n LOLO TORING—ALEX BADAYOS / SUNSTAR CEBU n LUNETA RALLY—LYN RILLON / PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER n MOTHER’S GRIEF—LYN RILLON / PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER n SISTERHOOD—NIÑO JESUS ORBETA / PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER

Best Opinion Column

n FIRST THINGS FIRST—FRANCISCO “KIT” TATAD / THE MANILA TIMES n FLEA MARKET OF IDEAS—JOEL RUIZ BUTUYAN PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER

Best Youth Magazine

n CROSSROADS—REX BOOK STORE, INC. / CMN-ASIA, INC. n FISH MAGAZINE, THE ZANY SIDE OF LOVING GOD—SHEPHERD’S VOICE PUBLICATIONS, INC. n GOSPEL K MAGAZINE FOR HIGH SCHOOL—COMMUNICATION FOUNDATION FOR ASIA n GOSPEL NOW —COMMUNICATION FOUNDATION FOR ASIA n YOUNGSTER—ST. PAULS PHILIPPINES

TBWA/ SANTIAGO MANGADA PUNO n LOVE THY NEIGHBOR FILM—KAPISANAN NG BROADKASTER NG PILIPINAS TBWA/ SANTIAGO MANGADA PUNO radio n PRAY MUNA BAGO MATULOG—MALAKING MUNTI FOUNDATION / IDEASXMACHINA ADVERTISING, INC. Best Business Program n BIDA SPECIALS “VERMICOMPOSTING SA URBAN HOUSEHOLD”—DXND-AM print NOTRE DAME BROADCASTING CORPORATION Best Children’s Magazine n NEGOSYO AT EMPLEYO SA BOMBO—DZGR 891 KHZ - BOMBO RADYO TUGUEGARAO n BACKPACK—REX BOOK STORE, INC. / CMN-ASIA, INC. PEOPLE’S BROADCASTING SERVICE, INC. n GOSPEL NOTEBOOK—COMMUNICATION FOUNDATION FOR ASIA n NEGOSYO AT EMPLEYO SA BOMBO—DZWX - BOMBO RADYO BAGUIO n MUSTARD: SOWING SEEDS OF FUN AND FAITH—SHEPHERD’S VOICE PUBLICATIONS n UNLAD PINOY—DYMF 963 KHZ / BOMBO RADYO CEBU Best Comic Story

n “90” —ORLY AQUINO/ THE BREAD BASKET n ANG HARI NG KOMYUT: ANG PAGKILALA—LIZETTE DALUZ / ANINO COMICS n HIDILYN DIAZ: GAYA NG KAYAMANANG NAKABAON SA BUKID—ORLY AQUINO

THE BREAD BASKET n MARAWI—BEN GREGORY AQUINO/ THE BREAD BASKET n TATA PRUDING: TATAY NG SAGRADA PAMILYA—BEN GREGORY AQUINO/ THE BREAD BASKET n THE BREATHTAKING STORY OF FATIMA IN COMIC STRIPS—FR. SAL PUTZU, SDB., ALDEN C. SARMIENTO & DONDY S. DAGUIO / WORD & LIFE PUBLICATIONS n THE ENCOURAGER—JERICHO M. NATIVIDAD / COMMUNICATION FOUNDATION FOR ASIA Best Editorial Cartoon

n IMPACT OF OIL PRICES HIKES—GILBERT DAROY / PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER n PRAYERS TO HEAL OUR BROKEN LAND—PAUL ERIC ROCA / MANILA BULLETIN n PRO-CHINA POLICY—GILBERT DAROY / PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER n REBUILDING MARAWI—JOSUA CABRERA / SUNSTAR CEBU n THE RED CROSS’ “AMAZING GRACE”—PAUL ERIC ROCA / MANILA BULLETIN

Best Family-Oriented Magazine

n FAMILY MATTERS—DON BOSCO PRESS, INC. n KERYGMA MAGAZINE—SHEPHERD’S VOICE PUBLICATIONS, INC. n MY JOURNEY—ABS-CBN PUBLISHING, INC. n WORLD MISSION—COMBONI MISSIONARIES OF THE HEART OF JESUS

Best Local Community / Parish Newspaper ST. JOHN BOSCO TODAY—SALESIAN SOCIETY OF ST. JOHN BOSCO THE BOW AND ARROW—LA SALLE GREEN HILLS

n n

Best Educational Program

n BOMBO SUCCESS STORY—DZNC 801 KHZ / BOMBO RADYO CAUAYAN n EASY EASY LANG —SUPER RADYO DZBB 594 / GMA NETWORK, INC. n GOOD MORNING PHILIPPINES—DYWB - BOMBO RADYO BACOLOD n GOOD MORNING PHILIPPINES—DXBR - BOMBO RADYO BUTUAN n KATUMBAS AY BIYAYA “ENSURING FOOD SAFETY”—DZRH 666 KHZ

MANILA BROADCASTING COMPANY n RADYO BALINTATAW (POETRY & MUSIC “TABAK AT SAMPAGUITA”)—DZRH 666 MANILA BROADCASTING COMPANY n SOCO SA DZMM—DZMM RADYO PATROL 630 / ABS-CBN CORPORATION n TURO-TURO—DZMM RADYO PATROL 630 / ABS-CBN CORPORATION Best Drama Program

n DEAR MOR—MOR 101.9 MANILA / ABS-CBN CORPORATION n MAY PANGAKO ANG BUKAS—DZRH 666 / MANILA BROADCASTING COMPANY n RADYO BALINTATAW—DZRH 666 / MANILA BROADCASTING COMPANY n RECUERDOS DELA VIDA—DZWX - BOMBO RADYO BAGUIO n RECUERDOS DELA VIDA—DZVV - BOMBO RADYO VIGAN / PEOPLE’S BROADCASTING SERVICE, INC. n SA KANYANG PANAHON—DZRH 666 / MANILA BROADCASTING COMPANY n TLC: THE DRAMA SPECIAL INTERACTIVE “STORY OF CHERRY”—LOVE RADIO

MANILA BROADCASTING COMPANY Best Counseling Program

n KAHAPON LAMANG—BOMBO RADYO LA UNION DZSO 720 KHZ n KAHAPON LAMANG—BOMBO RADYO DZNG NAGA / NEWSOUNDS BROADCASTING n LANGIT SA LUPA—RADYO INQUIRER DZIQ 990 KHZ

Best Public Service Program Best News Coverage n BISERBISYONG LENI—DZXL 558 - RADYO MINDANAO NETWORK n ELUSIVE JUSTICE, UNPROVEN JUSTICE, STOP THE KILLINGS—ADOR VINCENT MAYOL n DOCTOR BOMBO—DZGR 891 KHZ - BOMBO RADYO TUGUEGARAO & JOSE SANTINO S. BUNACHITA / CEBU DAILY NEWS PEOPLE’S BROADCASTING SERVICE, INC. n FAITH MANIFESTED; SINGULAR DEVOTION; 2 MILLION REASONS—ADOR VINCENT MAYOL, n KATUMBAS AY BIYAYA—DZRH 666 / MANILA BROADCASTING COMPANY NESTLE L. SEMILLA, JOSE SANTINO S. BUNACHITA, MOREXETTE MARIE B. ERRAM, JESSA O. SOTTO, n KWENTUHANG PETS ATBP.—DZUP 1602 AM NORMAN V. MENDOZA & BENJIE B. TALISIC / CEBU DAILY NEWS n LINGKOD KAPAMILYA —DZMM RADYO PATROL 630 / ABS-CBN CORPORATION n MORE ON EXTRA JUDICIAL KILLINGS—AIE BALAGTAS SEE / PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER n RADYO MO SA NUTRISYON—DZXL 558 - RADYO MINDANAO NETWORK n RICARDO CARDINAL VIDAL, HIS LIFE WAS A GIFT, A SEND-OFF LIKE NO OTHER— n SAGOT KO ‘YAN!—DZMM RADYO PATROL 630 / ABS-CBN CORPORATION ADOR VINCENT MAYOL, JOSE SANTINO S. BUNACHITA, ROSALIE P. ABATAYO, NESTLE L. SEMILLA n SEARCH FOR THE MONSTER SCHOLAR—MONSTER RX93.1 & FE MARIE DUMABOC / CEBU DAILY NEWS AUDIOVISUAL COMMUNICATORS, INC. Best Special Feature

n BARING ALL: RAPE VICTIM, EX-’ESCORT’ NOW ON RESCUE MISSION FOR YOUTHS—

JODEE A. AGONCILLO / PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER

n EVERYDAY IMPUNITY: HOW DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHERS ARE TELLING

Best News Program

n ACS BALITA —DZRH 666 / MANILA BROADCASTING COMPANY n BOMBO NEWS & VIEWS MORNING EDITION—BOMBO RADYO DAGUPAN CITY

PEOPLE’S BROADCASTING SERVICE, INC. A SECRET HISTORY—ERIC S. CARUNCHO / PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER n BOMBO NEWS & VIEWS MORNING EDITION —DZGR 891 KHZ - BOMBO RADYO Best Public Service Program n LIFE BEHIND BARS, LIFE WITHIN WALLS—FR. ELI ROWDY Y. LUMBO, SJ / THE WINDHOVER TUGUEGARAO / PEOPLE’S BROADCASTING SERVICE, INC. n AKSYON SA TANGHALI—TV 5 NETWORK, INC. n MORIONES: SOLEMN TRADITION NOT FESTIVE OCCASION—MARICAR CINCO n BOMBO NEWS AND VIEWS MORNING EDITION—DYFM - BOMBO RADYO ILOILO n ALAGANG KAPATID SA TV—TV 5 NETWORK, INC. PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER n ON THE SPOT —DZMM RADYO PATROL 630 / ABS-CBN CORPORATION n DAMAYAN NGAYON—PTV 4 n TAGSIBOL—SENATOR FRANCISCO PANGILINAN / ABS-CBN PUBLISHING, INC. n RADYO PATROL BALITA ALAS-SIYETE—DZMM RADYO PATROL 630 / ABS-CBN CORPORATION n INVESTIGATIVE DOCUMENTARIES—GMA NEWS TV 11 n TRUTH VS DECEIT: SIFTING THROUGH THE LIES ( A 5-PART SERIES)— n MISSION POSSIBLE—ABS-CBN 2 ADOR VINCENT S. MAYOL / CEBU DAILY NEWS Best Entertainment Program n MY PUHUNAN—ABS-CBN 2 n WASTED CHILDREN—CHERRY ANN T. LIM / SUNSTAR CEBU n BOMBO MUSIC FESTIVAL—DYMF 963 / BOMBO RADYO CEBU n SALAMAT DOK—ABS-CBN 2 n WHERE HEROES AND KIN USED TO TREAD—PHILIP M. LUSTRE, JR. / PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER n COUNTDOWN TOP SEVEN—MONSTER RX93.1 / AUDIOVISUAL COMMUNICATORS, INC. n RADYO BALINTATAW (OBRA NI JUAN - MUSICAL)—DZRH 666 / MANILA BROADCASTING COMPANY Best Special Event Coverage Best Business Column n THE CONCERT SERIES—MONSTER RX93.1 / AUDIOVISUAL COMMUNICATORS, INC. n BALITANG BISDAK “CARDINAL VIDAL BURIAL”—REGIONAL TV, GMA NETWORK, INC. n AS EASY AS ABC —ATTY. ALEXANDER B. CABRERA / THE PHILIPPINE STAR n KAPUSO SA PANAGBENGA: THE BALITANG AMIANAN SPECIAL LIVE COVERAGE— n MANAGING FOR SOCIETY—PATRICK ADRIEL H. AURE / THE MANILA TIMES Best News Commentary REGIONAL TV, GMA NETWORK, INC. n MONEY MATTERS—HENRY ONG, EFREN CRUZ & RANDELL TIONGSON / PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER n BOMBOHANAY BIGTIME—DYMF 963 KHZ / BOMBO RADYO CEBU n PIT SENYOR: THE BALITANG BISDAK SPECIAL LIVE COVERAGE—REGIONAL TV, n DOBOL A SA DOBOL B—SUPER RADYO DZBB 594 / GMA NETWORK, INC. GMA NETWORK, INC. Best Short Story n DOS POR DOS—DZMM RADYO PATROL 630 / ABS-CBN CORPORATION n UNANG HIRIT “HOLY LAND COVERAGE”—GMA 7 n ISANG BASKET SA DIGMAAN —MARY ANN A. ORDINARIO / ABC EDUCATIONAL n REVIEW—DZRH 666 / MANILA BROADCASTING COMPANY DEVELOPMENT CENTER CHILDREN’S BOOKS, INC./ THE WHIZ KIDS n SAKSI SA DOBOL B—SUPER RADYO DZBB 594 / GMA NETWORK, INC. advertising n SIYAP NG ISANG SISIW—EUGENE Y. EVASCO / LIWAYWAY Best Radio Ad – Public Service Best News Feature n MOR NANAY KAKILALA—MOR 101.9 FOR LIFE / ABS-CBN CREATIVE Best Children’s Short Story n BIDA SPECIALS “SI MADAM ROSAL AT KANYANG MGA ALAGA”—DXND-AM COMMUNICATIONS MANAGEMENT n ANG ESPESYAL NA PASKO NI IBAY—CHRISTINA N. MERCURIO NOTRE DAME BROADCASTING CORP. n THE HOMILY ON MUSLIMS—KAPISANAN NG BROADKASTER NG PILIPINAS COMMUNICATION FOUNDATION FOR ASIA n BOMBO SPECIAL REPORT “WORLD COMMUNICATIONS DAY 2018”—DYMF 963 KHZ TBWA\SANTIAGO MANGADA PUNO n ANG TATLONG PRINSIPE NG KALINAW—EUGENE Y. EVASCO / LAMPARA BOOKS BOMBO RADYO CEBU n DEAREST PAPA—MARY ANN A. ORDINARIO / ABC EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT n SINO/ JENG JENG / BALITAWIT—SUPER RADYO DZBB 594 / GMA NETWORK, INC. Best Print Ad – Branded CENTER CHILDREN’S BOOKS, INC. n ZONA LIBRE—DZGR 891 KHZ - BOMBO RADYO TUGUEGARAO / PEOPLE’S BROADCASTING SERVICE, INC. n CURING, CARING—MANILAMED / COMM & SENSE n DIEGO MEETS THE POPE—MEANNE MABESA MIJARES & GASPAR A. VIBAL / VIBAL GROUP n WHAT WILL YOU RESURRECT TODAY?—THE PHILIPPINE STAR / IDEASXMACHINA ADVERTISING, INC. n THE DAY MAX FLEW AWAY—ZARAH GAGATIGA & JOMIKE PEJIDO cinema LAMPARA PUBLISHING HOUSE, INC. Student’s Choice Award for Best Film Best Print Ad – Public Service n FINALLY FOUND SOMEONE—VIVA FILMS / STAR CINEMA n FAMILY IS A GIFT—COUPLES FOR CHRIST Best Comic Strip n KITA KITA—VIVA FILMS / SPRING FILMS n FATHER’S DAY 2017—MANILA BULLETIN PUBLISHING CORPORATION n KWARESMA NG PAMILYANG PINOY—AMMI SOLMERIN / THE BREAD BASKET n SEVEN SUNDAYS—ABS-CBN FILM PRODUCTIONS, INC. / STAR CINEMA n LIFE IMPRISONMENT—EDUNASYON FOUNDATION / IDEASXMACHINA ADVERTISING, INC. n MOTHER’S DAY 2017—MANILA BULLETIN PUBLISHING CORPORATION Best Entertainment Column n HEALING HEART—ILSA B. REYES / CROSSROADS n WORD AND LIFE BARKADA—GLADY V. RAMOS / WORD & LIFE

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Dear God

EAR God, forgive us for sinning against You. It pains us to know that we have failed You, the One who has given us the gift of new life. When others wound us, may we extend to them the same forgiveness that You grant to us. Give us the gift of understanding and willingness to accept our faults and promise to sin no more. Amen.

GIVE US THIS DAY SHARED BY LUISA LACSON, HFL Word&Life Publications • teacherlouie1965@yahoo.com

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

Life BusinessMirror

Smartphone makers bet on foldable screens as next big thing A FLEXPAI smartphone with a flexible screen displayed in San Francisco.

Royole Corp. recently unveiled what it is billing to be the world’s first smartphone with a flexible screen so the device can be folded like a billfold. The phone will go on sale next month in China only, but Royole hopes to release it in the US next year. AP

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BY MICHAEL LIEDTKE The Associated Press

AN FRANCISCO—For the past few years, the smartphone industry has been searching for a breakthrough to revive a market mired in an innovation lull and a sales slump. A potential catalyst is on the horizon in the form of flexible screens that can be folded in half without breaking.

Samsung and several rivals are preparing to roll out such screens to make devices more versatile for work and pleasure.

The foldable screens could increase display space to the size of a mini-tablet, but fold like a wallet so they revert to the size of regular phones. But there are questions about price and durability.

If the new phones fulfill their makers’ ambitions, they will become a leap ahead for an industry whose origins can be traced to the old flip phones that consumers once embraced as cool and convenient.

Foldable-screen phones, though, won’t need hinges because they have continuous displays that can bend.

In an indication of how difficult it is to make a flexible screen that’s also durable, Samsung first announced plans to build a folding-screen phone five years ago. It wasn’t until Wednesday, though, that Samsung finally provided a glimpse at what it’s been working on.

“We have been living in a world where the size of a screen could only be as large as the device itself,” said Justin Denison, Samsung’s senior vice president of mobile product marketing. “We have just entered a new dimension.”

Except for a fleeting look at a device he held in a hand, Denison provided scant information about the phone. Samsung says it will be ready to hit the market at some point next year.

Smartphone makers are looking for something to excite consumers as they replace phones less often because new models are pricey and aren’t that much different from their predecessors beyond slightly better cameras and batteries.

That’s the main reason worldwide smartphone sales have fallen from the previous year for four consecutive quarters, according to IDC. Add it all up, and smartphone sales declined by 4 percent during 12 months ending in September. Samsung, the world’s leading seller of smartphones, suffered a 7-percent decline in shipments during that period, based on IDC’s calculations.

But it’s not clear whether flexible-screen phones will have mass appeal, especially when the bendy devices are expected to cost more than $1,000. Royole Corp., a small Silicon Valley company, is hoping to sell early versions of its FlexPai foldable-screen phone for $1,300 to $1,500 once it comes to the US—something that won’t happen until next year, at the earliest.

For now, it will be available in China starting next

JUST THAT: HONORING SILVER LININGS D4

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

Facebook ends forced arbitration of sexual misconduct claims FACEBOOK is dropping a requirement for mandatory arbitration of sexual-misconduct allegations, acceding to a demand recently pressed by other Silicon Valley tech workers.

Google made a similar change on Thursday, a week after thousands of employees briefly walked off their jobs to protest how the company handled sexualmisconduct allegations against prominent executives.

The move at Facebook, first reported by The Wall Street Journal, means that employees no longer have to submit to private arbitration, which kept misconduct allegations secret and sometimes allowed abusers to continue their behavior. Employees can now press their claims in court instead. Other tech companies such as Microsoft and Uber have previously dropped mandatory arbitration.

Facebook will now also require executives at director level and above to disclose any dating relationships with company employees. AP

OPPO SMARTPHONE PIONEERS 5G INTERNET CONNECTION

month, at a price equivalent to about $1,300.

While the idea of a device being able to bend into different shapes may sound good, IDC analyst Ramon Llamas is skeptical about how practical and durable they will be. One of the biggest questions is whether the quality of the screens will degrade as they get repeatedly folded.

“Are people really going to want to watch a Netflix show on these devices if there is a crease down the middle of it?” Llamas said.

Royole said its FlexPai can be bent more than

200,000 times without deteriorating.

Other foldable-screen phones running Google’s Android software are expected to be available, too.

Huawei confirmed last month that it is working on a phone with a flexible screen.

LG Electronics is widely expected to unveil one at the CES gadget show in Las Vegas in January. LG didn’t respond to a request for comment.

“Everyone has been thinking about the same question: ‘What’s next? Is there nothing more from a smartphone?’” Royole CEO Bill Liu said. ■

BRAIN SHEN, Oppo Global vice president and president of China Business Department, claimed on Sina Weibo, one of the most popular social-media platforms in China, that an Oppo mobile phone successfully completed 5G Internet access for the first time. In the research and development of 5G, Oppo has once again taken the lead in the industry and has laid a solid foundation for commercially launching 5G phones next year.

Shen’s Weibo post detailed how Oppo made the connection successfully between an R15 smartphone terminal and the 5G network in their 5G communication protocol laboratory environment. It is said the connection was carried out on a precommercially available 5G smartphone developed on the basis of Oppo R15. It was customized with fully integrated 5G components, including system board, RF, RFFE and antenna. The “5G” logo also appeared in the top right corner of the screen.

As a pioneer of 5G, Oppo committed to be one of the key contributors to the 5G standard and has become an important promoter of 5G product development and commercialization.

Shen stated they would strive to become the first brand to release real commercial 5G smartphones, as well.

Recently at the Beijing 2018 Qualcomm China Technology and Cooperation Summit, Oppo announced the partnership with the Qualcomm Technologies, also known as “5G Pilot” program, to jointly explore mobile technology innovations in the 5G network. After then, the Oppo Research Institute was unveiled to comprehensively enhance the company’s technological innovation and research capabilities.

This will facilitate the preresearch of core technology based on the user’s needs or even more, to create a technical qualification for the company’s future product competitiveness. The Oppo Research Institute is headquartered in Shenzhen with other R&D centers in Beijing, Shanghai, Yokohama and Silicon Valley.

The company will accelerate the development of 5G smartphones and lay a solid foundation for the release of commercially available 5G smartphones in 2019.

Leading Philippine ICT solutions provider strengthens services portfolio CONVERGE ICT (CICT) Solutions, the leading provider of pure fiber Internet solutions in the Philippines, announced it has further strengthened its Carrier Ethernet services capabilities with the successful completion of MEF CE 2.0 Certification which augments the company’s core solutions competencies.

The rigorous CE 2.0 testing included certification of E-Line EPL/EVPL, E-Access EPL/EVPL and E-LAN/EPLAN service configurations, and was performed across CICT’s deployed metro core and regional transport infrastructure leveraging the Coriant 7090 Packet Transport Platform and Coriant Transcend Chorus network management solution.

“This important milestone reinforces our ability to meet our customers’ stringent performance requirements with a portfolio of best-in-class Ethernet

services,” said Jesus Romero, chief operating officer of Converge.

“Our advanced Carrier Ethernet capabilities also provide the reliable foundation for enhanced service interoperability and interconnection leveraging standards-based CE 2.0 interworking.”

Currently in the middle of a massive nationwide fiber network rollout, CICT has taken a holistic approach to the company’s expansion efforts. As a result, the company’s strategy includes ensuring its portfolio of product offerings is fully reinforced to better serve its target markets and customers.

That is the primary reason behind its engagement with industry-leading packet optical transport provider Coriant, which provided support during the certification process.

The MEF CE 2.0 Services Certification

Program enables service providers to certify that their connectivity services comply with the relevant MEF specifications. The program has been a driving force behind the successful deployment of Carrier Ethernet services worldwide. The Converge CE 2.0 services certification testing was administered by MEF’s approved third-party testing entity Iometrix, and was conducted in July.

MEF President Nan Chen said, “MEF congratulates Converge upon the successful completion of the rigorous testing associated with MEF CE 2.0 services certification, our widely recognized standard of excellence for service performance in the global marketplace. This achievement demonstrates the company’s commitment to developing and delivering innovative Ethernet services that meet demanding application requirements.”

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Wednesday, November 14, 2018

Pet Corner BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

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Today’s Horoscope

DR. Charles Schabacker shows what a typical box looks like for pet cremations at Sawtooth Veterinary Hospital in Jerome, Idaho.

By Eugenia Last

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Travis Barker, 43; Josh Duhamel, 46; Patrick Warburton, 54; Harland Williams, 56.

Happy Birthday: You’ll have a lot to think about this year. The changes that come your way will not turn out as expected. Practice moderation and avoid getting involved in ventures that you cannot afford emotionally, physically or financially. Question any offer that requires you to trust someone else to handle your personal or professional affairs. Your lucky numbers are 8, 14, 22, 28, 31, 33, 42.

DREW NASH/THE TIMESNEWS VIA AP

a

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Look over documents carefully before you sign. Dealing with institutions will put you in a vulnerable position if you don’t have expert advice. Evaluate every aspect of whatever situation you face before you make a commitment. Personal changes are apparent. HHHH

b

Finding the proper send-off for your four-legged friend

T

By Heather Kennison The Associated Press

WIN FALLS, Idaho—For many people, pets are family. And for Charles Schabacker, that connection doesn’t stop upon their death.

Schabacker has had his pets cremated, and when he dies, he wants his ashes to be mixed with theirs. With the growing popularity of cremation over the past decade, it isn’t an unusual request; Schabacker, a veterinarian and owner of Sawtooth Veterinary Services in Jerome, says he knows several other clients with those same wishes.

Heidi Heil of Twin Falls didn’t have the option of cremation when her cat died while she was attending mortuary school in 2001. Nor did she own any property for a burial. So Heil had her 14-year-old cat stuffed and made to look like she’s curled up asleep.

“I consider her my first child,” Heil told The TimesNews. “It really helped me with losing her, to have her there.” And she intends to be buried with her.

Cremation has made it easier for humans to have memorial keepsakes of their pets, and there’s a big demand for those services in the Magic Valley. Heil, owner of Serenity Funeral Chapel Life Celebration Center & Cremation Services of Idaho, says she gets calls every week from people wanting to know if she can cremate their animals. It was for this reason she requested permission to cremate both humans and pets from her center in Twin Falls.

The Idaho Board of Morticians this month denied her request, stating state code prohibits humans and animals from being cremated in the same facilities— even though Heil intended to use a separate container for the pets to prevent co-mingling of remains.

“Apparently, they really frown upon it,” she said.

She refers interested callers to Green Acres Pet Center in Twin Falls. Sawtooth Veterinary Hospital in Jerome also offers cremation services.

There are some who would still prefer a traditional burial or even a small service. And it appears that there is nothing in state or local codes that prohibits small animal burials on private property in town.

OPTIONS FOR CREMATION BEHIND Sawtooth Veterinary Hospital, an old incinerator is running almost every day, reaching temperatures of 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Your past experience will pay off when it comes to your work and your relationship with your peers. Taking charge and making sure that things get done on time will result in an unexpected opportunity or unusual proposition. HH

c

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): An emotional situation will have an impact on your relationship with someone. Take the time to listen to what’s being said and you’ll be able to bring about the changes that will enhance your relationship and enrich your life. HHHHH

d

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Don’t feel you have to conform to the way other people do things. Use your imagination to come up with an idea that will take others by surprise and help you stand out from your peers. HHH

e

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): If you can dream it, you can become it. Change begins within and can turn your day into an exciting new start. Trust your instincts and believe in your ability to conquer your fears and achieve your goals. HHH

f

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Don’t let what other people do bother you. If someone overreacts, give them space. Concentrate on the things you can accomplish. Get together with people who share common interests. Gathering information will help you improve your position. HHH

g

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Expand your mind; you’ll learn something that will help you get ahead. Short trips will lead to engaging conversations with people who can motivate you to try something new. A physical activity will lead to selfimprovement. Romance is encouraged. HHHHH

h

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Emotions will take over if you get into a conversation with someone regarding your responsibilities. Look for an innovative way to deal with anyone questioning your abilities or what you are doing.

HH

“It generally takes about six hours to cremate a dog,” Schabacker said.

His business offers both private and communal cremations, but it’s only with the private cremations that owners get cremated remains—or cremains— back. “We are really conscientious about making sure people get their dog back,” he said.

During cremation, the soft tissues and even some bone is burned off. For a private cremation, the bones are then ground up into a powder, bagged and placed in a decorative wooden box that’s included in the price. Schabacker has some nicer urns for $35 to $40, but “most people are just happy with the box.”

The remains from communal cremations are spread over the lawns behind the veterinary clinic, he said. Sawtooth Veterinary Hospital has cremated cats, dogs, rats, snakes and guinea pigs, Schabacker said.

And it also contracts with other vet clinics in the area.

Schabacker has been offering crematory services for 10 years, but says it’s time he get a new incinerator.

He’s running the machine even on weekends just to stay caught up. And it isn’t inexpensive.

“It’s not a big profit center,” he said. “This is more of a service.”

He typically charges $37 to $133 for communal cremations, depending on the size of the animal.

Private cremations range from $110 to $234.

Green Acres Pet Center offers another type of cremation using an alkaline hydrolysis system, Manager Bob Davis said. Unlike a burn facility, this one uses chemical reactions to remove the soft tissues.

The bones are then dehydrated and ground into dust, he said. “It takes seven to 10 days to get through the process,” Davis said.

Green Acres offers both communal and private cremations, which range from $40 to $270 depending on which option you want and how large the animal is. Pet owners also get a carved box and a complimentary paw imprint.

Davis said Green Acres Pet Center plans to set up a separate mortuary space for people to bring in their deceased pets.

Heil said she has some urns for pet cremains in stock, and she can also order jewelry that has their paw print on it for a memorial keepsake. If you’re planning an at-home burial, both Valley View Veterinary Clinic and Sawtooth Veterinary Hospital offer boxes for taking pets home. n

i

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Get together with old friends or relatives and share memories. You’ll discover something about your past that will change your point of view. An affectionate gesture will surprise you. HHHH

j

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Accept inevitable changes. Don’t give someone the wrong impression. Be willing to look at new data, concepts and suggestions and figure out a way to incorporate what you are offered into your plans. HHH

k

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Put your heart into whatever you are working toward; an opportunity will come your way. A physical change will encourage better health, greater confidence and compliments. Romance will enrich your life and lead to positive lifestyle changes. HHH

l

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Emotional manipulation will get you into trouble. Stick to the truth and question any information you are given that appears to be incomplete or unlikely.

Don’t share information that may be used against you or to take advantage of you. Protect passwords. HHH Birthday Baby: You are inventive, outgoing and colorful.

You are determined and assertive.

‘move on’ by timothy e. parker The Universal Crossword/Edited by Timothy E. Parker

ACROSS 1 Be a truck driver 5 Ear section 9 Be useful 14 It’s bear-ly visible up there 16 Utter gall 17 Inching-along result 19 Big pig 20 Like most kits (abbr.)

21 Youngster 22 Welts relatives 24 Ivory tinklers 29 Daisy of comics 30 Georgetown student 31 Pampered creature 32 Intense feeling of love 35 Bag that holds a lot 36 “What ___ you thinking?”

37 “I appreciate you doing this,” e.g.

40 Type of division 41 Mayberry boozehound 42 Like days past 43 Mandela’s org.

44 Lake of ballet

5 Cool quantity?

4 46 Super young plant 48 Money not in a wallet 51 Nightfall, in poetry 52 Employ 53 Fermented taro root 55 Honest direction?

61 Regretting 62 Tub hooch 63 Boffo show 64 Private dinner?

65 Eatery tips DOWN 1 Grant of films 2 Common pointer 3 Grammatical subject 4 Little boy 5 Be a go-between 6 Word on some turn signs 7 Jazz type 8 Do wrong things?

9 Painful heart condition 10 Don Carlo writer 11 “___ you there?”

2 ER drips 1 13 Paul of guitar fame 15 Dirty bird?

18 Greenlit 23 Surrounded by 24 Using a cell 25 Very minute bits 26 Break in a charge card 27 Third canonical hour 28 Noted painter Jan 32 Provider of worldly views 33 Major French river 34 Not just feel the music 35 Tennessee cheer solicitor 36 Washington city, when repeated 38 Some farm work 39 Vocally assertive people 44 Cold-weather vehicle 45 Particles with strong interactions 47 Campus decision-makers 49 Place with a rainy plain?

50 “’Deed I Do” singer Lena 52 Sci-fi ships 54 Caesar’s fatal day

5 Some high schoolers, briefly 5 56 Stomach, cutely 57 Creek of 49-Down 58 “I’m thinking...”

59 Certain digit 60 “Never heard of ‘em”

Solution to yesterday’s puzzle:

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Show BusinessMirror

Stan Lee, creator of a galaxy of Marvel superheroes, dies

By Andrew Dalton & Dave Zelio The Associated Press

blind spot bruce c.

No apology

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OS ANGELES—Stan Lee, the creative dynamo who revolutionized the comic book and helped make billions for Hollywood by introducing human frailties in Marvel superheroes, such as Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four and the Incredible Hulk, died on Monday. He was 95.

Lee was declared dead at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, according to Kirk Schenck, an attorney for Lee’s daughter, J.C. Lee. As the top writer at Marvel Comics and later as its publisher, Lee was widely considered the architect of the contemporary comic book. He revived the industry in the 1960s by offering the costumes and action craved by younger readers while insisting on sophisticated plots, college-level dialogue, satire, science fiction, even philosophy.

Millions responded to the unlikely mix of realistic fantasy, and many of his characters, including Spider-Man, the Hulk and X-Men went on to become stars of blockbuster films. He won the National Medal of Arts in 2008.

Recent projects Lee helped make possible range from the films Avengers: Infinity War, Black Panther and Guardians of the Galaxy, to such TV series as Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D and Daredevil. Lee was recognizable to his fans, having had cameos in many Marvel films and TV projects, often delivering his trademark motto, “Excelsior!”

Captain America actor Chris Evans mourned the loss on Twitter: “There will never be another Stan Lee. For decades he provided both young and old with adventure, escape, comfort, confidence, inspiration, strength, friendship and joy.

He exuded love and kindness and will leave an indelible mark on so, so, so many lives. Excelsior!!”

Lee considered the comic-book medium an art form and he was prolific: By some accounts, he came up with a new comic book every day for 10 years. “I wrote so many I don’t even know. I wrote either hundreds or thousands of them,” he told The Associated Press in 2006.

He hit his stride in the 1960s when he brought the Fantastic Four, the Hulk, Spider-Man, Iron Man and numerous others to life. “It was like there was something in the air. I couldn’t do anything wrong,” he said.

His heroes, meanwhile, were a far cry from virtuous dogooders, such as rival DC Comics’s Superman.

The Fantastic Four fought with each other. Spider-Man was goaded into superhero work by his alter ego, Peter Parker, who suffered from unrequited crushes, money problems and dandruff. The Silver Surfer, an alien doomed to wander Earth’s atmosphere, waxed about the woeful nature of man. The Hulk was marked by self-loathing. Daredevil was blind and Iron Man had a weak heart.

“The beauty of Stan Lee’s characters is that they were characters first and superheroes next,” Jeff Kline, executive producer of the Men in Black animated television series, told The Blade of Toledo, Ohio, in 1998.

Some of Lee’s creations became symbols of social change—the inner turmoil of Spider-Man represented 1960s America, for example, while The Black Panther and The Savage She-Hulk mirrored the travails of minorities and women. “I think of them as fairy tales for grown-ups,” he told The AP in 2006. “We all grew up with giants and ogres and witches. Well, you get a little bit older and you’re too old to read fairy tales. But I don’t think you ever outgrow your love for those kind of things, things that are bigger than life and magical and very imaginative.”

Lee scripted most of Marvel’s superhero comics himself during the 1960s, including the Avengers and the X-Men, two of the most enduring. In 1972, he became Marvel’s publisher and editorial director; four years later, 72 million copies of Spider-Man were sold.

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

THOSE who know what happened between the young actress and her former screen partner are waiting for the latter’s public apology regarding their issue. The actor has reportedly apologized to the girl’s family but part of their agreement is that he will make a public apology about the whole thing. In fact, the deadline for the apology has passed and according to an agreement they reached, the actress will file a case in court against the actor. Everybody’s guess is that the excouple’s home network is interfering in the case and wants everything hushed-up.

Depressed

BECAUSE of what happened to the young actor recently, everybody assumes that he is a drug user but he really is not. He is said to be suffering from depression and anxiety, which causes him to have thoughts about wanting to end his life. This is allegedly not the first time this has happened. Family problems have resulted in the actor’s depression being triggered easily.

So many families “He’s become our Mickey Mouse,” he once said of the masked, Web-crawling crusader.

Lee also published several books, including The Superhero Women in 1977 and How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way the following year, when he was named publisher of the year by the Periodical and Book Association of America.

CBS turned the Hulk into a successful TV series, with Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno portraying the doomed scientist from 1978-1982. A Spider-Man series ran briefly in 1978. Both characters were featured in animated TV series, as well.

The first big-budget movie based on Lee’s characters, X-Men, was a smash in 2000, earning more than $130 million at North American theaters. Spider-Man did even better, taking in more than $400 million in 2002. A Marvel movie empire would emerge after that, one of the most lucrative mega-franchises in cinema history, with the recent Avengers: Infinity War grossing more than $2 billion worldwide. In 10 years, the Marvel Cinematic Universe film shave netted over $17.6 billion in worldwide grosses.

Black Panther actor Winston Duke took to Twitter to pay his respects to Lee: “You gave us characters that continue to stand the test of time and evolve with our consciousness. You taught us that there are no limits to our future as long as we have access to our imagination. Rest in power!”

Stanley Martin Lieber was born on December 28, 1922, in New York. He grew up a fan of Hardy Boys adventure books and Errol Flynn movies, and got a job at Timely Comics after graduating from high school.

Within a few months, the editor and art director quit, leaving the 17-year-old Lee with creative control over the company, which grew and was renamed Atlas Comics and, finally, Marvel. Lieber changed his name, thinking Lee would be used for “silly little comics” and his real name would be reserved for novels.

His early work largely reflected popular movies— westerns, crime dramas, romance, whatever was the rage at the time. He worked for about 50 cents per page.

After a stint in the Army during World War II, writing for training films, he was back at Marvel to begin a long

and admittedly boring run of assembly line comic-book production. Comics in the 1950s were the subject of Senate hearings pushed by the Comics Code Authority, which frowned on gore and characters that questioned authority.

Major comic-book companies adopted the code as a form of self-regulation to avoid sanctions.

Lee said he was also working for a publisher who considered comics as fare only for children.

“One day I said, ‘This is insane,’” Lee told The Guardian in 1979. “I’m just doing the same type of stories as everybody else. I wasn’t taking pride in my work and I wanted to quit. But my wife said, ‘Look, why don’t you do the kind of comics you want for a change?’”

The result was the first issue of The Fantastic Four, in 1960, with the characters, plot and text from Lee and the illustrations by famed Marvel artist Jack Kirby.

The characters were normal people changed into reluctant superheroes through no fault of their own.

The Amazing Spider-Man followed in 1962 and before long, Marvel Comics was an industry behemoth.

In the late 1990s, he looked to capitalize on the Internet craze, offering animated “Webisodes” of comic-like action.

Stan Lee Media also sought to reach out to Web-savvy youth through deals with pop artists the Backstreet Boys and Mary J. Blige. The company went bankrupt, and three men were indicted for allegedly defrauding the business in a check kiting scam. Lee wasn’t implicated.

After that initial failure, Lee formed the successful Pow! Entertainment company to launch animated Internet-based projects. Lee’s wife and partner in nearly everything, Joan Lee, died on July 6, 2017, leaving a void that made her husband, by then in mental and physical decline, vulnerable to hangers-on who began to surround him. Lawsuits, court fights and an elder abuse investigation all emerged in the fight over who spoke for the elderly Lee. Lee is survived by his daughter, Joanie and a younger brother who also worked in comics, Larry Lieber.

SO the reason the actor hasn’t acknowledged the beauty queen and their child is not because of his ex-wife, who is also in show business. It is because he also has a common-law wife, who he shacked up with at the same time as his wife. It’s actually amazing how he got so many women to be with him because his reputation isn’t too good, and he has a history of being physically abusive. One of these women is another beauty queen, who is well-educated and is quite beautiful. Thankfully, the said beauty queen is now happily married.

So the rumors are true

THANKS to an anonymous Twitter account, we are updated about drama involving local YouTubers. Well, we saw this recently at an event where YouTuber #1 snubbed YouTuber #2 to her face. YouTuber #1 is said to be the one to blame for most of the drama, as she’s been sharing stories that she should just have kept to herself. Aside from that, she also likes to embellish so what happened was that people who used to consider her as their friend have turned away from her.

n The Associated Press writer John Rogers contributed to this story.

THE kids of Toppstar TV

‘Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch’ makes off with $66M at box office

By Andrew Dalton | The Associated Press LOS ANGELES—You’re a mean one—and you’re No. 1—Mr. Grinch.

Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch sledded past mixed reviews and made off with $66 million for Universal Pictures to top the weekend North American box office, according to studio estimates on Sunday.

Last week’s top film, the Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody, drops to second for 20th Century Fox with a $30.8-million weekend that brings its overall take to $100 million.

Illumination, the Universal-owned animators behind The Minions and Despicable Me, produced the latest interpretation of Seuss’s 1957 book that led to a 1966 TV special and first came to the big screen as a

live-action feature starring Jim Carrey in 2000.

Pictures’s war-horror hybrid Overlord was third in its first weekend with $10.1 million. Disney’s The Nutcracker and the Four Realms brought in $9.5 million and finished fourth in its second week. The weekend’s other major debut, The Girl in the Spider’s Web, made just $8 million and finished fifth.

Illumination’s Grinch, narrated by Pharrell Williams, gives the title character, voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch, a backstory in an orphanage and fills out the story of his foil Cindy Lou Who. It’s the second Seuss adaptation for Illumination.

Its version of The Lorax opened with a comparable $70 million weekend and went on to gross $348.8 million worldwide. The Grinch was widely expected to be No. 1 with few other major openings this weekend, but it surpassed projections that had it bringing in closer to $60 million, continuing what’s become a trend in 2018.

“The Grinch is just the latest in a string of overperformers,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for comScore. “Bohemian Rhapsody was bigger than expected, A Star Is Born was bigger than expected.

It’s fueling a box-office surge.”

The industry has reached a cumulative box office total of $10 billion faster than in any other year, Dergarabedian said.

The Christmas theme of The Grinch could sustain it through the holidays and Universal hopes it has a longer life than that.

“With Thanksgiving coming, we’re poised to have a great run through that,” said Jim Orr, president of domestic distribution for Universal. “Illumination’s created such a classic take on this beloved character that audiences will be enjoying it for a really long time.” But big rivals loom soon, including Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald next week and Ralph Breaks The Internet on November 21.

“We’ve got a lot of competition coming up for family audiences,” Dergarabedian said.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at US and Canadian theaters, according to comScore.

Where available, the latest international numbers for Friday through Sunday also are included.

1. Dr Seuss’ The Grinch, $66 million ($12.7 million international) 2. Bohemian Rhapsody, $30.8 million ($63 million international) 3. Overlord, $10.1 million, ($9.2 million international) 4. The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, $9.5 million, ($13.5 million international) 5. The Girl in the Spider’s Web, $8 million, ($6.2 million international) 6. A Star Is Born, $8 million ($9 million international) 7. Nobody’s Fool, $6.5 million 8. Venom, $4.8 million ($118.2 million international) 9. Halloween, $3.8 million ($5.9 million) 10. The Hate U Give, $2 million.

GMA, Rebisco Topps Sarap introduce new breed of talents GMA fans are set to experience exciting Saturday mornings like no other as the network and Rebisco Topps Sarap feature a new roster of talented kids in its newest musical-variety program, Toppstar TV, which debuted on November 10.

The 30-minute program showcases the talents of the ToppStar kids as they show off their singing, dancing, hosting and acting skills.

These kids were chosen from Rebisco’s on-ground talent search all over the Philippines, which started in 2016 as part of the brand’s commitment to celebrating the “topps” in each kid.

Every episode will feature segments such as “Toppstar Performance,” where the kids will sing/ dance to latest craze; “Toppstar Spotlight,” where they will be able to interact with celebrity guests via fun interviews, unboxing videos and showdown; and “Toppstar Laughs,” where they can show their comedic talent as they deliver Topp Topp jokes. In some episodes, the kids will also play Pinoy-inspired games. There will also be interactive activity bumpers in select segments and “Topps Sarap” product review by the kids to highlight the values that they will learn at the end of the show.

Toppstar TV airs every Saturday on GMA at 9:15 am, with replays every Sunday at 5 pm on GMA News TV.

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Image BusinessMirror

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

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www.businessmirror.com.ph

THE GIFT OF A HEALTHY VISION

ARE you looking for a perfect gift to give for a friend or a loved one? Why not give a gift of healthy eyesight? It’s practical and it will also give them clearer vision to live a better life.

The world’s leading ophthalmic optics company, Essilor (www.essilor.com.ph) lets you give the gift of vision with this valuable offer: buy a pair of Crizal lenses and enjoy a 50-percent off on the second pair. You can save as much as P1,950. The promo is ongoing until November 30 and valid in all participating optical stores nationwide. It covers Crizal Prevencia, Crizal Forte UV and Crizal Alize.

Crizal Prevencia offers the most complete protection from harmful blue light, while Crizal Forte UV shields the eyes from damaging ultra violet rays. Crizal Alize reduces glare from computer screens, tablets and smartphones, reducing eye fatigue. Crizal is one of the flagship brands of Essilor.

Honoring silver linings JUST THAT JT NISAY

jtnisay@gmail.com

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WO separate events early last week recognized people who don’t break into public consciousness as often as they should.

Last week, onstage and under the spotlight were role models.

Honored in one gathering were local environment champions at the second annual Climate Reality Leadership Awards, and on the other, Filipinos from all sectors who shine in the global stage at the third annual Flare Awards.

The climate crisis a pressing global issue that could ultimately spell the end of mankind as we know it, and there are at least two crazy things about that sentence: first is that in no means was that an exaggeration; and, second, the issue’s current media presence doesn’t translate the urgency of action needed. Alas, the public gets fed more about the yawn of a superstar couple’s firstborn than, say, the fact that human civilization has only until 2030 to avert the catastrophic effects of climate change, according to the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change landmark report issued early last month.

It’s easy to lose hope, especially when one doesn’t know where to look for it, or when none seems to exist at all. To remind people that all is not lost on this environmental battle, that this current course toward doom can still be corrected, is the very foundation of the Climate Reality Leadership Awards.

Now on its second year, the advocacy program recognizes important movers in climate-change mitigation efforts in the Philippines.

The event is spearheaded by The Climate Reality Project Philippines, the pioneering nonprofit organization established by world-renowned climate advocate, Nobel Laureate and former US Vice President Al Gore. The group is composed of more than 700 Filipino climate reality leaders, from climate scientists to communicators, from policy-makers to academicians, all personally trained by Gore.

“We are going to win this [battle against the climate crisis]. We have to, and we will. But we have to win it in time,” Gore said in a video message delivered at the event, which, down to the smallest detail, kept true to the advocacy it supports. Held at the National Museum of Natural History, the gathering handed out trophies made of recycled materials and lined up buffet tables that served vegetarian-friendly food, as studies show that half of greenhouse gases come from livestock.

According to Rodne Galicha, head of the Climate Reality Project Philippines, they saw the need to drumbeat the efforts of people from all sectors who are doing their job to address the climate crisis to encourage more people to do the same.

This year, the Climate Reality Leadership Awards recognized 36 awardees. The highest honor of the Luntiang Kapawa Award was given to Victoria TauliCorpuz of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, for advancing the stewardship role of IPs, especially with regard to natural resources found in ancestral domains.

Another special category is the Luntiang Aligato Award for Journalism, handed to media personalities who shed light on critical environmental issues. Among the awardees were Atom Araullo, Howie Severino, Voltair Tupaz, Imelda Abano and BUSINESSMIRROR’s Jonathan Mayuga.

The focus for the event’s second iteration, according to Galicia, is to send the message that nothing can be used as an excuse for inaction over the issue.

“We need to show developed nations that while our carbon emission is minimal, we’re doing something; although we are vulnerable and faced by a lot of

typhoons, we are doing something,” he said.

The Climate Reality Project Philippines head added that the trophies handed were more than just a token for past works, but a challenge to continue the battle moving forward.

“It’s a commitment,” Galicha said. “Once they accept the award, it’s their commitment to sustain the cause.”

Meanwhile, Filipinos who continue to make their mark at the world stage got the nod at the third annual Flare Awards.

Organized by the Information Technology and Business Process Association of the Philippines, or Ibpap, the event traditionally pays homage to the standouts of Philippine information technology and business process management industry (IT-BPM).

This year, the Flare Awards extended its reach to celebrate Filipino ingenuity showcased through art, music and fashion, with the theme “Global Filipinos Powering Global Industries.”

“The arts and IT-BPM industries embody Filipino excellence, being both exceptional and internationally recognized,” said Cathy SalcedaIleto, Ibpap vice chairman and chairman of the Flare Awards. “Our country brand Innovative Human + Tech highlights how the creativity of the global Filipino is invaluable to the global industry, especially amid emerging technologies.”

The Flare Awards meted special honors to Filipino designers Ann Ong and Kenneth Cobonpue.

Recognitions were also given to the Cebu IT-BPM Organization for its role in spearheading the improvement of the IT-BPM work force in Cebu for the past 17 years with the Globe Sapphire Flare for Brilliance Award, while the Department of Information and Communications Technology’s Rural Impact Sourcing Program bagged the Ibpap Crystal Flare for Sparkler Award.

Moreover, the late former Senate President Edgardo J. Angara received posthumous honors for his contributions to the IT-BPM industry.

Proceeds from the event will support Ibpap’s various initiatives for country competitiveness. ■

SEAFARERS’ MENTAL HEALTH TAKES CENTER STAGE AT SM

OVER 25 percent of the world’s seafarers show signs of depression, according to the International Maritime Charity Sailor’s Society. Stress, harassment, bullying, fatigue, loneliness and isolation from family can easily impact their mental health, which makes seafaring the second-most atrisk profession worldwide when it comes to suicide.

To shine light on the issue, Gregorio Oca Leadership and Development (Gold) Foundation, in partnership with SM Global Pinoy, the Associated Marine Officers and Seamen’s Union of the Philippines (Amosup), and International Seafarers Welfare and Assistance Network, held the “Kumusta, Kabaro?” Day at the SM Mall of Asia Music Hall in Pasay City.

Kumusta, Kabaro? is a comprehensive mental-health program launched by Gold Foundation to raise awareness of the maritime community and the general public about the struggles seafarers face during their repeated departures from home. With the theme “The Seafarer Community for Global Mental Wellness,” the project aims to deliver hope and to promote mental wellness among Filipino seafarers. The event was also held in celebration of World Mental Health Day and was attended by over 500 members from the maritime industry and their families.

“Ang issue ng mental health ay kailangan nating pagtuunan. Hindi na ’to isang bagay na kailangan natin i-deny [The issue on mental health needs attention and we can no longer ignore this],” said Marissa Oca, chairman of the Gold Foundation. Atty. Noli Partido, Amosup Legal Department head, also pointed out that the issue on mental health is something we need to look at closely. “We need to act on the issue and come up with preventive and relevant steps to take care of our seafarers’ mental health,” Partido said.

The event consisted of various talks and inspirational messages from different maritime groups, the Department of Health and the University of Santo Tomas Psychotrauma Clinic. It also included Zumba exercises and other wellness activities. “SM believes that the seafarers’ mental health is a serious concern that we need to focus on. We fully support the maritime industry’s advocacy in raising awareness about the issue,” said SM Global Pinoy Program Director Glenn Ang. SM Global Pinoy (www.smglobalpinoy.com) is the program of SM Prime Holdings that supports the welfare of overseas Filipino workers and their families. It aims to give back and honor OFWs and their families through exclusive services, perks and privileges in its 31 SM Global Pinoy Centers nationwide.

HUNDREDS of Filipino seafarers attended “Kumusta, Kabaro?,” a comprehensive mental-health program launched by Gold Foundation and SM Global Pinoy.

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LUXE, one of Duty Free’s world-class outlet stores, is now open at SM Mall of Asia Complex

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INDULGE with beauty products and fragrance from Estée Lauder and Chanel

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Luxe Duty Free at SM Mall of Asia DUTY Free Philippines Corp. (DFPC) recently opened its newest downtown outlet, Luxe Duty Free at the SM Mall of Asia Complex, a 3,600-sq-m multilevel facility which houses some of the world’s finest high-end retail brands.

“We are pleased to launch the Luxe, one of Duty Free’s world-class outlet stores in the Philippines that will cater to our balikbayan, tourists and frequent travelers,” says Tourism Secretary Bernadette Fatima Romulo Puyat. “Aside from our wide selection of imported products, Duty Free Philippines showcases the country’s finest products together with

Trade and Industry’s Go Lokal shop, offering every Pinoy’s favorite pasalubong. “Duty Free Philippines’s Luxe supports our overall objective of boosting Philippine tourism and will contribute to economic growth. We invite everyone to visit Luxe for its world-class items at an affordable price,” adds Duty Free Philippines Chief Operating Officer Vicente Angala.

International travelers, especially foreign tourists and tour groups who will be visiting the MOA complex, will enjoy the store’s extensive lineup of popular luxury fashion labels like Coach, Bally, Longchamp, Kate Spade, Michael Kors, as well

as famous fragrance and cosmetic brands, such as Chanel, Estee Lauder, La Mer, La Prairie, Clarins, Mac, Dior, Lancome, Laneige, Bobbi Brown, Tom Ford, Jo Malone, Sulwhasoo, Shiseido and Korean label K Beauty, among others. Tourists will also enjoy shopping locally made jewelries and bags made of pearls from SM’s Kultura. Through the years, DFPC has carved a unique niche in the travel retail industry. When it comes to homecoming gifts or pasalubong, Duty Free Philippines strives to still be the place to shop.

The agency remains true to its mandate of catering to

the shopping needs of international travelers despite the proliferation of other retailers carrying imported goods and the growth of online shopping. Store development and brand expansion are endeavors perennially on DFPC’s priorities.

Just recently, DFPC also opened a bigger and grander arrival shop at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3.

All these efforts are geared to further enhance the tourism-attached agency’s retail presence to augment revenues and continually contribute to government’s tourism programs and projects.

LUXE Duty Free, the 3,000sq-m multilevel facility, brings world-class duty-free shopping to balikbayan, tourists and frequent travelers.

BusinessMirror E1 | Wednesday, November 14, 2018 • Editor : Tet Andolong

THE uniquely styled tiered pools at Botanika Nature Residences are set amid lush greeneries.

Crown jewel of Botanika Nature Residences

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FTER a long, busy day, when all you want to do is unwind in a quiet place, coming home to your garden resort-inspired place is a dream not everyone can have.

Filigree’s Botanika Nature Residences is a fresh new address for the privileged few. However, its impressive list of luxurious features and amenities that assures residents a life of leisure and gentility is not what makes it a home, but rather the experience this architectural masterpiece gives.

The crown jewel of this remarkable modern, green-oriented beauty—the uniquely styled tiered pools nestled in a lush space that occupies 70 percent of the property—takes your relaxation to a whole new level.

The feel

The look

THE pool and the whole resort-style landscape architecture—a serene escape from the hustle and bustle of city life—is the handiwork of Botanika’s landscape consultant, the world-class Aecom of Singapore, the same team behind some of the world’s iconic designs such as Marina Bay and Greater Southern Waterfront.

In executing the tiered pool area, Aecom’s signature attention to detail—a quality that they share with the development firm Filigree—is evident. “We studied closely how to

THE canopied section at Botanika’s pool area provides residents shade from the sun.

plan the levels of the pool, its distance to the units, even the lapping distance,” said Aecom’s Armando Casibang. “The result is this beautifully crafted onion-shaped pool inspired by a bud. It came out naturally.”

Aecom also set out to create a more open and sweeping living experience for Botanika residents, a rarity among condominium developments. It is all about engaging with space.

“BEYOND just creating pretty things, what’s important is the sensation or the feeling people have when they step into a space—the emotion and the perception—which is what we aimed to do at Botanika,” said Casibang.

You do not need to go all the way to the beach or premium resorts to get your feet wet with Botanika’s crown jewel that takes into consideration each family member’s need—for an active lifestyle, socials, relaxation and even a staycation.

You can get a tan while sipping tea at the sunbathing deck or you can enjoy the sunshine in peace in the veranda. You can refresh when it is scorching hot, or you can do your morning laps while your kids frolic in the kiddie pool area.

Regardless if it is day or night in Botanika, every angle in this distinctive amenity makes it look like you have stepped into a postcard—making you more excited to arrive home

and to splash around. With soon-torise amenities, such as a spa and a fully fitted gym, Botanika will make staying in feel better than going out.

With Tower 1 of Botanika Nature Residences ready for occupancy, homeowners affirm how this crown jewel brings serenity to them and how this tiered pool has become part of their fitness routines. Future residents can also start enjoying the premium lifestyle that luxury real-estate brand Filigree brings.

Botanika Nature Residences is the flagship project of Filigree, a realestate brand that offers masterfully crafted living spaces. Designed by Leandro V. Locsin Partners, its architect of record, and Architecture International, Botanika offers authentic green living in a luxurious enclave nestled in the quietest and most exclusive portion of the premier garden central business district in the Metro South, Filinvest City. www.botanika.com.ph.

JLL appoints new Proptech head

By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes

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@brownindio Contributor

LL recently announced the appointment of Jordan Kostelac as the director of Proptech in Asia Pacific. Based in Hong Kong, Kostelac’s appointment is part of the firm’s global strategic vision to drive digital innovation in real estate. He will report to Albert Ovidi, chief operating officer, JLL Asia Pacific.

The company said Kostelac will work with internal and external stakeholders in pushing continuous innovation within and beyond the company. He will focus on exploring emerging technologies, leading the firm’s tech-based incubator programs and showcases, as well as creating and deploying tech-enabled business models and products for clients.

“With Proptech start-ups in Asia Pacific receiving $4.8 billion of investments from 2013 to 2017, it is clear that the real-estate industry presents tremendous potential to nurture innovation. There is no better time to embrace this digital transformation, as Proptech has opportunities to gain momentum across the region,” Ovidi said in a press statement.

“With Jordan leading this initiative, we are confident that we can quickly anticipate and meet our cli-

JORDAN KOSTELAC

ents’ needs by offering comprehensive and integrated solutions to help them maximize the value of their real-estate assets,” Ovidi added.

Since joining JLL, Kostelac has spent three years as a workplace strategy and change management consultant. He has helped many of the firm’s largest global clients, including HSBC, Johnson & Johnson, Standard Chartered Bank and AIA, to navigate and better understand

the evolving nature of work.

With nearly 20 years of interdisciplinary experience from FMCG operations management and process improvement consulting, Kostelac has proven track record in leveraging multinational corporations’ operational requirements with technology partners. He holds a degree in Communication Technology Management and a master’s in business administration.

EUGENE EM LOZANO

Megaworld introduces Chelsea Parkplace

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EGAWORLD formally launched Chelsea Parkplace, the first residential development in its 35.6-hectare Capital Town in the city of San Fernando, Pampanga, which is its first and only township in the North. Aside from residential develop-

ments, Capital Town will also be home to a shophouse district, malls and commercial centers, office towers, green and open parks, and a museum. Leading the launch was Eugene Em Lozano, first vice president for sales and marketing, Megaworld Pampanga.

Business

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Let’s talk bedding and bed accessories

By Rodel Ambas

Photos by Bryan Barredo

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QUICK stroll down any department store’s home section aisle and one would find a wide range of brands that manufacture bedding, towels, pillows, and bed and bath accessories.

Although most of these brands may not be considered as household names the same way that brands like McDonald’s or Apple are, it is safe to say that these makers of bed linens and bath accessories do have a loyal customer base. One of these companies is Canadian Manufacturing.

Founded in 1959 as New Creation Manufacturing, Canadian Manufacturing has been a leading maker of high-quality bed linens and bath accessories in the Philippines. Although many Filipinos may not recognize the company, most of us surely have already purchased and used any of their products at any point. In fact, Canadian Manufacturing is the official local licensee of such beloved brands as Marvel, Disney, Warner Bros, NBA, Hot Wheels and Barbie, which definitely bolstered its brand recognition among young consumers. In addition, the company also manufactures products exclusively for several big names in retail, such as The SM Store and Our Home, many Filipinos’ go-to stores when it comes to bedding and bed accessories.

Having served the Philippine market for nearly six decades now, Canadian Manufacturing clearly understands its business and target market. In fact, the company’s product portfolio is as diverse as the different market segments it caters to. For instance, Canadian is the ex-

SAMPLE products under the company's Boutique brand for Our Home outlets.

A BED linen under the company’s Canadian brand, which is available at SM Store outlets

A SAMPLE offering from Canadian Manufacturing’s 2018 Lifestyle collection

CANADIAN Manufacturing’s bed and bath accessories

clusive brand for all SM Stores across the Philippines, while Boutique is the brand that Our Home branches carry.

Looking at the product lines, there is a clear delineation between the two, which reflects the target markets of the two retailers.

“When you look at the Boutique line, you will know right away that it caters to a very specific market—the colors and design are more subdued and they have to suit their theme for the year,” said Angeli Hemandas, design consultant at Canadian Manufacturing. “But when you go to the Canadian side [which is available at SM Stores],

the product designs are a little bit more playful and adventurous.”

According to Hemandas, one of the innovations of Canadian brand for SM is that the company experimented with different finishes and yarns. “Under Canadian, we have a product structure that’s very highend, then we have the mid-range, and then we have the low-end.”

For its premium line under Canadian brand, the company uses 300 thread count Australian cotton for its printed sheets and 500 thread count Egyptian cotton for its plain sheets.

Its most high-end offerings under the Canadian brand are the 500 and

1,000 thread count Supima cotton.

“Supima cotton is very popular right now. It feels slightly softer than Egyptian cotton,” said Hemandas. “It has its own trademark, which makes it different from regular USA Cotton.”

To service the other market segments, the company also has the Easy Care and Youth lines. “The Youth line was conceptualized to attract the millennial market, with designs that are playful, and the fabric thread count is lower than 300,” said Hemandas. “Our Easy Care line, which is lower than Youth and caters to the mass market, uses Cotton Rich fabric.”

2018 collection

LED by a young and dynamic team of designers, Canadian Manufacturing’s 2018 collection, dubbed “Lifestyle,” features designs that will not only entice its fervent customers, it will also create a whole new customer base, especially those coming from the young millennial market. Lifestyle has five sub-collections, namely, Lifestyle Premium, Basics, Mood, Pick ’n Go and Color Series.

Aside from bedding, the company also carries must-have bed and bath accessories, most of which are products that most homes do not nor-

Citi Plaza wins LEED Platinum certification

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ITI Plaza, Citi’s largest site in Asia Pacific, has been awarded a double Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification. The 24-story office tower is the largest building in the Philippines to achieve this recognition for its Core and Shell design.

LEED is a green building certification program developed by the US Green Building Council, which sets standards to promote green design, construction and operations practices in buildings worldwide.

Aside from its LEED Platinum certificate for Core and Shell, Citi Plaza achieved a Platinum certificate for LEED for Commercial Interiors.

Platinum is the highest LEED certification level.

Citi Plaza, located at Bonifacio Global City, accommodates more than 6,000 Citi employees. It is recognized for efficient use of energy and water, maintenance of high indoor air quality and proper waste disposal. The state-of-the-art facilities not only protect the environment, but also provide employees

CITI Plaza is the corporate home to more than 6,000 Citi employees.

with an exceptional work setting.

The facility saves more than 23 million liters of water annually, which is 48 percent better than the required LEED benchmark. This is

achieved by using water-efficient low flow fixtures in toilets, pantries and cafeteria, saving the equivalent of the daily water requirement of more than 50,000 households or

9.23 Olympic-size pools.

The overall lighting design, which includes installation of a “daylight harvesting system,” saves more than 1 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually. The saving is equivalent to the daily power requirement of more than half-amillion households. This is accomplished through the use of lowwattage LED fixtures and lighting control systems that are able to dim or switch off electric lighting in response to available daylight.

Office interiors also use low volatile organic compound paints, coatings and adhesives, which improve indoor air quality.

Citi Philippines CEO Aftab Ahmed said, “Citi Plaza represents a major commitment we have made in the Philippines and the double LEED Platinum awards recognize our ongoing efforts to have a positive impact on our community and the environment. Energy saving and other innovative solutions allow us to operate efficiently while providing a world-class collaborative space for our employees.”

CITI Plaza achieves LEED Platinum certification for its efficient use of resources like water and electricity

mally have but are very innovative and useful. For instance, Canadian Manufacturing’s pillow offerings feature the perfect balance between the right amount of softness and firm neck and head support. These products use 100-percent cotton Fiberfill Pillow, Down Alternative Pillow and Anatomic Gumma Pillow.

Other bed accessories carried by Canadian include the Down Alternative Duvet Filler, which is similar to a comforter; Mattress Topper; and the waterproof Mattress and Pillow Protector, which prevent bugs and mites, as well as stains, from ruining the bed and pillows.

sMirror

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Signify prepares homes for Internet of Things

By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes @brownindio

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Contributor

LOBAL leader in lighting Signify raised the bar in innovation when it recently introduced in the local market the Light Fidelity (LiFi), a technology using high-quality light-emitting diode (LED) lighting to obtain a broadband Internet connection through light waves.

Jagan Srinivasan, country leader of Philips Electronics and Lighting Inc. Philippines, said the company plans to put a strategic meaning on light as the new intelligent language in the digital age, especially with the arrival of the Internet of Things (IoT). “We want to aspire to be the leader in IoT,” he said.

He said the current property boom in the country is a window of opportunity for Signify because this will allow them to bring leading-edge technologies, such as LiFi, to the market—especially to the high-end segment.

“With the ‘Build, Build, Build’ program being implemented by the government, the stars are aligned for Signify as efforts to push digitalization to a higher level is being pushed by the Duterte administration,” Srinivasan pointed out during

the press briefing.

Ed Huibers, head of business development of LiFi, concurred with Srinivasan, stressing LiFi has an important part to make Signify to be the global leader in IoT. At present, Huibers said LiFi is undergoing testing in 20 countries around the world to determine its performance and capability.

As the lighting company for IoT, he said Signify is the first global lighting company to offer LiFi-enabled luminaires from its existing office lighting portfolio.

Huibers said the entry of LiFi is just appropriate as issues on cyber security have become a bigger concern in the different sectors of society, such as business, defense and security. Under a LiFi network, access is only given to users within

LIGHT Fidelity (LiFi) provides an alternative connection to users who value security.

a room of a building. “LiFi offers a strict definition of your commercial area,” he said.

“It is a reliable network that gives stability to the data for the users despite the number of users. It is an alternative solution that gives stable connection despite the presence of radio frequency-sensitive areas with poor or no wireless fidelity [Wi-Fi]

Creba pushes for housing department bill

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HE largest group of the country’s housing and real-estate industry stakeholders lauded the imminent creation of the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development or DHSUD after the bicameral conference committee tasked to iron out conflicts between proposed bills from the Lower House and the Senate concluded talks before the closing of sessions last month.

According to national chairman Charlie A. V. Gorayeb of the Chamber of Real Estate and Builders’ Associations Inc. (Creba), their group has long pressed the government for a full-fledged department that will enable it to address the perennial and ever-increasing housing backlog estimated by the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) to have reached at least 6.57 million units as of 2017.

Creba, he said, has always believed that only such a department can consolidate government efforts to attain the country’s housing goals with a housing secretary clothed with ample powers, functions and corresponding

administrative accountabilities implementing a clear and sustainable housing vision.

The bicam panels were headed by Sen. JV Ejercito and Rep. Albee Benitez, counterpart chairmen of the Committee on Housing in both houses of Congress.

“The industry’s jubilation should come as no surprise as the bill has been pending in Congress for more than two decades. After all, the Constitution itself underscores the importance of housing as a basic human need and a barometer of people’s quality of life,” Gorayeb stated.

Creba National President Noel Toti M. Cariño said that housing and urban development is not just about the creation of residences and communities. He explained that it involves planning, finance, regulation, resource allocation, administration, production, and many other activities to ensure a highly beneficial, cost-efficient, growth-oriented and sustainable national housing program.

If passed into law, the new DHSUD will

reconstitute the present Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB) as the Human Settlements Adjudication Commission (HSAC). It will also centralize the processing and issuance of all housing-related permits by putting up Housing One-stop Processing Centers (HOPC) covering all housing packages all over the country.

Creating the department is part of Creba’s five-point agenda for housing discussed comprehensively at its last national convention held recently in La Union. With the vision of “A Home for Every Filipino,” it aims to help address the country’s growing housing backlog and turn the industry into a powerful growth engine for the national economy.

With the objective of raising housing production to the highest possible level to match the shortage and compounding annual demand, Ceba envisions that the creation of a full-fledged department will finally provide the national housing program the keen attention and priority it deserves at the highest levels of government.

COMMUNITY

QCN and BeepXtra support Ayala Foundation

LESTER CODOG (CEO of Codog Enterprise) with Teach for the Philippines’s Vice Chairman Margarita LiboroDelgado, Chairman Lizzie Eder Zobel de Ayala and Pia Llamas (Agile Project director of Codog Enterprise)

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HE successful staging of the Tony Award-winning play M Butterfly not just highlighted the talent of the Filipino thespians, but also the loving heart of the organizers.

In a generous show of support to charity groups, Quintessential

Communicartions Network (QCN) and BeepXtra PH recently donated to further uplift the cause of Teach for the Philippines, a charity group headed by its Chairman Lizzie Eder Zobel de Ayala and Vice Chairman Marissa Liboro-Delgado. With the theme “Education is everyone’s re-

sponsibility,” Teach for the Philippines promotes the importance of education playing a key role in reducing proverty by improving the lives of individuals, families and communities. “We believe that within our lifetime, all Filipino children can have access to relevant and excellent education. We can achieve this by enlisting the country’s young leaders to teach for two years in public schools,” explained Liboro-Delgado.

Proceeds from ticket sales during the gala night of M Butterfly were part of the donation that was handed over to the Teach for the Philippines charity. QCN is a subsidiary of Codog Enterprise, which includes Foilacar, Foilafly, La Deco and Vipe Studios.

BeepXtra is a revolutionary Loyalty Program that focuses on building stronger customer relationships with stores’ existing clientele, as well as giving incentives to customers to buy more.

connection,” he explained.

Olivia Qiu, chief innovation Officer at Signify, said the company is bullish on LiFi technology because it is a relevant product in the digital age.

“While radio frequencies are becoming congested, the visible light spectrum is an untapped resource with a large bandwidth suitable for the stable simultaneous connection

of a vast array of Internet of Things devices. Being a lighting company, we ensure that our customers benefit from the finest-quality, energyefficient light along with state-ofthe-art connectivity,” she said in a press statement.

Although it is similar to Wi-Fi, LiFi technology is a two-way, highspeed wireless technology that uses

light waves instead of radio waves to transmit data. Signify’s office luminaires enabled with LiFi technology from Signify provide broadband connection with a speed of 30 Megabits per second without compromising lighting quality. With 30 Mbps a user can stream simultaneously several HD quality videos while having video calls.

Huibers said LiFi technology can be utilized in places where radio frequencies may interfere with equipment, such as in hospitals, or where Wi-Fi signals cannot reach or are weak, such as underground. Other user cases include environments demanding high security; for example, the back office of a financial institution or government service.

Moreover, Signify’s LiFi technology offers an enhanced security as light cannot pass through solid walls and a line-of-sight to the light is needed to access the network.

Each luminaire is equipped with a built-in modem that adjusts the light at speeds imperceptible to the human eye. The light is detected by a LiFi USB key/dongle plugged into the socket of a laptop or tablet (in the future such technology will be built into laptops and devices).

The LiFi USB dongle returns data to the luminaire through an infrared link. With Philips LiFi-enabled luminaires, customers get the double benefit of quality, energy-efficient LED light and a highly secure, stable and robust connection as LiFi has 10,000 times the spectrum of Wi-Fi.

First Georgetown Ventures Inc. and SKF introduce The GRID co-living space concept

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EADING property consultant and real-estate service provider Santos Knight Frank and prime real-estate developer First Georgetown Ventures Inc. recently led the launch of a new co-living space/dormitel concept at the Makati Central Business District (CBD) with the groundbreaking ceremony of The GRID, which is owned and developed by First Georgetown Ventures Inc., a wholly owned corporation founded

by George Yang, also the founder and chairman of McDonald’s Philippines.

The GRID is a 10-story co-living space and commercial center that is targeted toward young professionals and students who are looking for a more affordable alternative to renting condominium units within the vicinity of Makati City.

“This landmark development arrives at no better time at the CBD, where key demand drivers such as BPOs, financial services, universities and many other industries are expected to grow and expand throughout Metro Manila,” said Rick Santos, chairman and CEO of Santos Knight Frank, which is entrusted as sole leasing agent and project manager of The GRID. The project is a result of First Georgetown Ventures Inc.’s vision to cater to the growing demand for co-living spaces by those who want to relocate in the city for convenience. The GRID features hotel-like amenities and offers 560 beds spread across 200 units, which are configured in solo, triple and quadruple product offerings. Seven commercial units are situated in the first two floors of the building.

“Our concept for The GRID is to provide something familiar but new. We achieved this by integrating hotel-like amenities in a dormitory setting. We are confident in the co-living space mar-

ARCH. Dong Abesamis (from left), owner of Abesamis + Guerrero Architects; Alvin Fernandez, senior director of Investments and capital markets at Santos Knight Frank; Arch. Allan Napoles, managing director for project management at Santos Knight Frank; Leni Arcadio, general manager of First Georgetown Ventures Inc.; Kris Yang, president of First Georgetown Ventures Inc.; George Yang and Kristine Yang, founder and owners of First Georgetown Ventures Inc.; and Rick Santos, chairman and CEO of Santos Knight Frank

ket trend because it is the next viable option serving as middle ground between the traditional dormitory and condominium,” said Kris Yang, president of First Georgetown Ventures Inc. The GRID offers ample room space and privacy for the self, as well as dedicated spaces for social interaction. The hotel-like amenities include a lobby, study area and a lounge, a fitness gym, lap pool, an al fresco area and an open deck.

Alvin Fernandez, senior director of investments and capital markets at Santos Knight Frank shared good prospects for the coliving space market according to a market study that the global consultancy firm has conducted in the property landscape of Makati City. “Right now this scheme is medium scale, with more or less 200 to 300 units [translated to

about 600 to 700 beds] per development. We are forecasting this number to triple in the next two to three years. Many investors are actually eyeing their own coliving space concept,” explained Fernandez.

Abesamis + Guerrero Architects led the design of The GRID which is distinctly young, hip, and urban—imbibing the qualities of its future tenants. The GRID’s structural steel framework is exposed, enveloping the tower’s podium and this will serve as the building’s sun shading, while creating an interesting and unique façade. A light well runs through the building’s central core, providing natural light and ventilation for the residential units, which will all have their own window. Steel, brick and wood are introduced as the main materials for the project.

Entrepreneur BusinessMirror

E4 Wednesday, November 14, 2018

Lazada calls on SMEs to be part of growing PHL e-commerce

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By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes

@brownindio

Contributor

ORE and more Filipinos are getting the hang of online shopping these days over the traditional in-store shopping, owing to the former’s advantages and benefits that include convenience and wider choices, among others.

Because of the increasing popularity of buying or selling of products and services over the Internet, Lazada, the No. 1 online shopping and selling destination in Southeast Asia, is encouraging more Filipino entrepreneurs, especially small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to be more active instruments in the development of e-commerce in the country.

To get a bigger share in the market, Juan Pavez Spencer, Lazada Philippines chief executive officer for logistics, said it is important that SMEs navigate through e-commerce.

“SMEs need help to be onboard and scale up quickly. [And] Lazada empowers and educates sellers, and helps them to grow their business online. Lazada is empowering and extending the reach of entrepreneurs and big brands with its expansive ecosystem of warehouses and logistics partners,” Spencer said during a news briefing over the weekend at Lazada’s main warehouse in Cabuyao City, Laguna.

“Lazada creates next-level partnerships with brands that build their e-commerce capabilities holistically,” he added.

Spencer said SMEs must harness the

advantages offered by online shopping, especially for consumers living in Metro Manila who regularly experience the horrendous road traffic situation.

“Online shopping allows Filipinos to enjoy the convenience of browsing through millions of products at their fingertips and receiving their purchase right at their doorstep without enduring the heavy traffic and crowded malls during the Christmas rush,” he said.

He noted that the numbers show a great potential since the Philippines has 47 million e-commerce users in 2018, posting a 4-percent year-on-year increase. On the same year, commerce in the Philippines reached $6 billion in transaction value, posting a 17-percent year-on-year surge.

“We can expect an exponential growth in the next three years. We also see e-commerce to grow 6 percent to 7 percent in the next three years,” Spencer said.

As part of their expansion, Spencer said, Lazada storage facilities, which the company calls fifth-generation facilities, have a double capacity compared to the current storage facilities. “It will not only have a double capacity but will it will be

Online shopping allows Filipinos to enjoy the convenience of browsing through millions of products at their fingertips and receiving their purchase right at their doorstep without enduring the heavy traffic and crowded malls during the Christmas rush.”—Spencer

WORKERS at the packaging section of the sprawling Lazada warehouse in Cabuyao, Laguna, pack consumer items for shipment to various destinations across the country. Lazada, reputed to be the No. 1 e-commerce market in the Philippines, is gearing up for holiday shopping with the approach of the Christmas season.

STEPHANIE TUMAMPOS

equipped with the latest technologies and equipment,” he said.

As the leading e-commerce store in Southeast Asia, Spencer said, Lazada enables seamless interactions between sellers and customers, and gigantic online assortment of merchandise.

Lazada carries around 30,000 listed sellers, offering more than 80 million products in the Philippines. It also offers a thousand of authentic brands, including Apple, Samsung, Xiaomi, JBL, Philipps, Mac, L’Oreal, Dove, Olay and Levi’s, under the recently launched LazMall.

Moreover, online shoppers can avail themselves of the same-day/next-day delivery. The shipping option called premium service is available in certain parts of Greater Manila Area, Metro Cebu and Davao City.

“Our team is prepared for the high volume of orders and deliveries, thanks to the continuous expansion of our ecosystem of warehouses and logistics partners,” said Spencer.

“As millions of orders come in during the gift-giving season, Lazada takes its operations into high gear, from picking up products from sellers or warehousing and packing items offered on its online mar-

ketplace to delivering orders to shoppers on the same day or the next day,” he added.

Spencer said online shoppers in the Philippines enjoy more than 50 million deals, including discounts of as much as 99 percent, P1 deals and vouchers, during the annual shopping event held every 11th of November, popularly among the Chinese as “singles’ day.”

Launched in 2012, Lazada is the No. 1 online shopping and selling destination in Southeast Asia with presence in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. With 300 million stock keeping units available, Lazada offers the widest range of products in categories from beauty, fashion and consumer electronics to household goods, toys, sports equipment and groceries.

Areas of coverage are Makati, Taguig, Parañaque, Pasay, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Quezon City; Laguna: Biñan City, Cabuyao City, Calamba City, San Pedro, Santa Rosa City and Los Baños; Cavite: Carmona, Alfonso, Amadeo, Bacoor, Dasmariñas, General Trias, Imus, Indang, Mendez, Silang and Tagaytay City and, Metro Cebu: Cebu City, Mandaue City and Lapu-Lapu City.

How one family built $8-billion start-up far from Silicon Valley

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HE tech industry’s newest billionaires are a pair of brothers who started a software company in their parents’ basement in Utah. Now Ryan and Jared Smith are selling Qualtrics International Inc. to European giant SAP SE for $8 billion—and they’ll get to keep running the business.

Ryan, 40, is the chief executive and public face of a start-up that—unusually —resisted taking venture money for over a decade before finally agreeing to deals with Accel and Sequoia Capital. Last valued at $2.5 billion, Qualtrics makes customer-survey software used by the likes of Microsoft Corp. to General Electric Co., helping boost its revenue more than eightfold over the past seven years.

Smith is something of a fixture in a Utah start-up scene that encompasses Ancestry.com, Insidesales.com and recently listed Domo Inc. His ardor for the Beehive State means Qualtrics is a supporter of such events as the Silicon Slopes Utah conference, which showcases local companies as well as the region’s snowboarding and skiing. Ryan, who reportedly once turned down a $500million offer for his company, his family members and other major shareholders are now poised to get about $7 billion for their shares. Not bad for a chief executive officer (CEO) who got paid $100,000 in salary last year. “You do not forget your first meeting with Ryan Smith,” Sequoia Capital partner Bryan Schreier wrote in a blog post. “A go-to-market savant, Ryan complements his brother’s understatedengineer mindset. But they, their father Scott, and their co-founder Stuart, clearly have a shared set of values.”

Qualtrics had filed for an initial public offering in the US and was planning to

RYAN SMITH, founder of Qualtrics, discusses “Basement to a Billion: Bootstrapping the Enterprise” on the enterprise stage during Day 3 of the 2014 Web Summit in the RDS on November 6, 2014, in Dublin, Ireland.

STEPHEN MCCARTHY/SPORTSFILE/GETTY IMAGES

raise about $500 million. SAP CEO Bill McDermott preempted the IPO with an all-cash offer that was more than 75 percent higher than the company’s projected valuation. McDermott said in a conference call that SAP had to pay up because Qualtrics road show was going well.

Ryan is known as the more gregarious and outgoing in a family of brainiacs— both his parents held doctorates and his father lectured about market research at the University of Oregon. The Smiths moved to Utah around the time Ryan’s father opted to work at Brigham Young University, and in 2002, the pair started Qualtrics, originally targeting academics that needed to conduct field research. “We figured that if you could serve them, you could serve anybody,” Ryan told Bloomberg News in a 2013 interview.

As the company grew, Ryan eventually convinced his brother to quit a product director’s job at Google and run the tech-

nical side of things. Jared, now 43, is the company’s president. The Smith patriarch —a cancer survivor—came up with the idea to serve his fellow academics, while Jared wrote the code and Ryan sold it to customers. “We just said, hey, there’s no rules. There’s no playbook,” Ryan said in an interview conducted for an Accel series profiling entrepreneurs.

Qualtrics’s approach is based on what it calls “experience management” or XM, according to Sequoia’s Schreier. That involves analyzing every aspect of the customer experience to drive loyalty and referrals, which it deems crucial at a time when social media gives individuals more power than ever to speak out.

That approach worked. Qualtrics expects 2018 revenue in excess of $400 million and forecast a forward growth rate of more than 40 percent. Ryan and his family hold 87.6 percent of Qualtrics through a holding company managed by

the two siblings and father Scott. That’s worth about $7 billion based on SAP’s purchase price—though it’s possible other family members own shares, as well.

Ryan will continue to run the company as an entity within SAP’s larger cloud business group, maintaining headquarters in Utah’s Provo as well as Seattle. That allows the Smith family to retain a formula that’s served it well. Sequoia singled out the company for running on its own money at the start, eschewing the cash-burning common to Silicon Valley’s hottest outfits—a phenomenon that often requires multiple rounds of outsized funding.

After college, Ryan said he wanted adventure and went to South Korea to teach English. One of his early lessons in entrepreneurship came there. While most foreign tutors were scraping by on next to nothing, he decided to try private tutoring by putting flyers offering his teaching services in mail boxes. “I put those in, like, 5,000 apartments within a couple week period. I ended up making a lot of money,” he said in the video. “That was one of my early, better actions. Hey wait, there’s another way of doing this and it worked.”

Qualtrics’s other unusual element is its home base, far from a Bay Area regarded as the cradle of the American tech industry. The family-owned business has become deeply involved in everything from sponsoring the Utah Jazz to local philanthropic initiatives. Ryan, a Mormon, has often spoken publicly about his state’s potential.

“It’s awkward for a lot of people here,” Ryan said, citing a lack of diversity and lifestyle quirks. “We need to make it easier for people to be here, because we have all the makings to make this a major tech hub.”

Bloomberg News

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Cordillera MSME product hub opens in Baguio City

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AGUIO CITY—The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the Baguio City government and the Association of the Barangay Councils (ABC) launched the first Cordillera Crafts and Productivity Center (CPC) to help Cordillera region’s micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) market their products.

“This is ours, this is for the city, and for the region, best of the best products. Since we have world-class products and skilled people, we should be proud of it. We have to showcase the creativity, the artistic skills of our people,” DTI Regional Director Myrna Pablo said last Monday.

The CPC was formally opened on October 10.

Pablo said the CPC is the seventh One Town, One Product (Otop) hub established in the country. Two each are in the Visayas and in Mindanao, one in Malacañang, and one in Bulacan.

“This Otop hub shall serve as an incubation and market testing facility for new products and innovations of our local MSMEs,” Pablo said.

Among the items sold at the Otop hub are fruit wines, hand-woven items, souvenir items, traditional garments, preserved food, traditional handicrafts, sweets, native organic tea, chocolates and coffee products.

The hub responds to DTI’s strategic goal of growing more competitive and innovative MSMEs with strong brands that contribute significantly to the regional economy.

“As you can see, its not just food. We, Cordillerans, are world-class producers of crafts. That is why we have artistic products here, as well,” Pablo said.

The DTI official explained that the Otop in Baguio was launched to bolster the city’s creative city tag from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

“Foremost among the features is the creative city hub, befitting the recognition bestowed on the city.

The hub also showcases the artistic products of the region’s visual artists,” she said.

Pablo emphasized that for the hub to sustain a world-class standard product tag, the products sold at the CPC undergo a selection process, assuring that products bought at the CPC are of high quality.

Cordillera coffee brand

ANOTHER feature of the center is the DTI-Branded “Kapetirya CAR,” which sells freshly brewed Cordillera produced specialty coffee.

Pablo said promoting local coffee at the Kapetirya will encourage local coffee farmers to increase production and businessmen to venture into coffee processing, thereby assuring the public of abundant supply of green coffee beans.

At present, she said, there are 11,000 MSMEs in the Cordillera, which the DTI hopes to assist, together with the other government agencies.

“Currently we are prioritizing 5,000 MSMEs, to whom training, seminars are provided, to equip them with the basic knowledge that will improve their businesses,” Pablo said.

She said 80 percent of the MSMEs are from Baguio and Benguet, while the 20 percent are spread out in other provinces in the region.

Pablo said it is not only the product quality that the DTI and its partner agencies want to hone with the CPC, but also the packaging and labeling of the items, so these would look world class.

“We want to make an impression that whatever the tourists will be looking for will be available in our Cordillera Crafts and Productivity Center and that they would come back to it, whenever they are in the city because of their being satisfied customers,” she said. PNA

THIS One Town, One Product hub in Baguio City will serve as an incubation and market testing facility for food, weaving and other products of micro, small and medium enterprises in the Cordillera to better market their produce, according to the Department of Trade and Industry in the region. Called Crafts and Productivity Center, the hub also serves as souvenir store or “pasalubong center” for tourists. CARLITO DAR/PIA-CAR