BusinessMirror November 17, 2020

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A2 Tuesday, November 17, 2020

Travel…

Continued from A1

had one of the biggest growth rates [15 percent] in terms of visitor arrivals last year. The travelers just don’t forget that. When a vaccine is finally discovered, we’d have a big rebound for sure. We just keep pushing on.”

His group was able to meet with key producers of European tourists for the Philippines such as Hotel Beds, Kuoni Travel UK, Dive Worldwide/Regal Dive Holidays, Logitravel Spain, Viatges Traveljess Spain, and the International Wedding Planners Association (IWPA) based in Italy. Hotel Beds, for instance, sent 440,000 customers to the Philippines in 2019 and discussed expansion plans for the Philippines; Kuoni created a new program for Asia focusing on immersive travel itineraries including the Philippines to be reactivated in 2021; and Viatges, with the Filipino community in Spain as clients, has an ongoing promo with Qatar Airways to promote Christmas in the Philippines.

Another key meeting was with the BBC UK’s Travel Show “with 80 million viewers worldwide. It wants to cover the Philippines in 2021,” he said.

The UK market has been growing by 9 percent in the last five years, despite the market slowdown effects of the Brexit, said Panga.

“The Philippines is the second top performing destination in terms of Brits’ travel to Southeast Asia in 2019, after Vietnam,” he stressed.

He also cited the recent consumer survey of Wanderlust travel magazine, which showed, outside of Europe, 30 percent of the UK respondents would be headed to Asia.

Other buyers interested in the Philippines, Panga added, were from Northern and Southern Europe, as well as India, the US, among others.

For his part, Allan Santos, general manager of the Bohol Beach Club, said most of the WTM meetings were with existing clients and partners. “They were made of regular bookers and top producers as well as those that booked seldom but have a market specifically geared towards our resort. Most were European agents coming from UK, France, Italy and Germany,” he said.

He updated these clients on the new health and safety protocols practiced at the resort, “and what we plan to do once the borders open for leisure travel….

Questions regarding when the country and the destination would open were common as they wanted to make sure that they were part of the programs when this happens.

Although it was agreed that traveling would not immediately recover once Philippine borders open for leisure, agreements were for longterm arrangements.”

Eighteen private tourism and travel companies and 30 delegates joined this year’s WTM.

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‘Tax perks loss plus Covid to deal jobs a deadly blow’

By Elijah Felice Rosales

I

NDUSTRY leaders on Monday warned the earlier projection of 700,000 job losses resulting from the lifting of fiscal incentives may further go up now that world business is disrupted by the ill effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In a virtual briefing, business leaders whose industries operate mostly in economic zones said the country may suffer additional and heavy job losses if lawmakers choose to ignore the call to allow investors to keep their incentives.

Danilo C. Lachica, president of the Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines Foundation Inc., reminded lawmakers the country is projected to lose more than 700,000 jobs as a result of capital flight should they pass the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act

(CREATE) as is.

Worse, he cautioned this number could blow up now, especially that the country is dealing with the social and economic impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“It may have gotten worse already. I have seen the tip of the iceberg when two semiconductor firms decided to shut down their plants due to the pandemic’s impact,” Lachica said.

“This situation of job losses is already happening even without the passage of the CREATE bill, and it may just worsen once it is legislated

without changes,” he added.

Based on the July Labor Force Survey, the country’s unemployment rate swelled to 10 percent, from 5.4 percent in the same period last year. This translated to around 4.6 million jobless Filipinos at a time the economy is in recession.

John D. Forbes, senior advisor for the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, also said this computation does not count missed opportunities during the three years lawmakers, finance officials and industries have been debating about CREATE bill.

“We forgot to count the missed opportunities that could have come in had we not been so busy arguing over this measure. I’m sure they number to the tens of thousands,” Forbes said.

Rey E. Untal, president and CEO of the IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines, added there is an expected demand upswing, both for jobs and orders, next year. For him, the country is in a better position to secure these

capital investments if its fiscal regime is stable.

“The conversation should also shift from how much jobs are we looking at losing to what we can do as all industries would be able to increase our ability to recover and generate the job opportunities,” Untal explained.

“There are pent-up demands that will manifest themselves in second quarter of 2021. If we have an incentive regime that is favorable to investments, then we are in a position to take advantage of that pent-up demand,” he added.

The CREATE bill has long been delayed at the hands of lawmakers who cannot decide whether to follow the administration’s thrust to lift incentives granted to investors or allow economic zone firms to keep their tax perks.

The CREATE bill seeks to reduce the corporate income tax rate to 25 percent, from 30 percent, on one end. On the other, it will remove the incentives being enjoyed by investors to introduce a set of new ones.

AMID VIRUS WOES, FIRST CIRCLE EYES MORE MSME LOANS

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

F

IRST Circle Growth Finance Corp. is eyeing to provide loans to more micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) following its renewed partnership with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

First Circle Managing Director Moritz Gastl, in a press briefing on Monday, said the firm continues to extend support to the MSME sector amid the economic slowdown due to the coronavirus pandemic by extending loans.

“Personally, I would find it very rewarding to bring that in the same time frame to at least 10,000 customers. The most important thing is to affect as many customers,” he said.

First Circle and DTI signed their first memorandum of understanding back in 2018 in a bid to promote financial literacy and access to the said industry.

Since October 2018 to July this year, the finance firm had extended borrowings to 6,000 SMEs and disbursed over 16,000 loans. In terms of amount, First Circle has provided P4.5 billion worth of loans to the MSME in-

dustry since the contract signing a few years ago.

Apart from this, Gastl said that First Circle is also focused on educating and onboarding the microenterprises to its platform.

With this, the finance firm said that it can connect the MSMEs to potential suppliers and buyers.

The First Circle official noted that there is a “huge potential” for it to reach the mass MSME market in the country, given that the business-tobusiness (B2B) firms remain untapped. In addition, only 6 percent of the total loans in the country are MSME borrowings.

He noted that B2B MSMEs are still operating in “dark ages” as they still rely on traditional providers for the acquisition of its working capital, executing business processes, and establishing trading partner network.

With this, Gastl said that “First Circle’s business model creates a competitive advantage from market deficiencies, delivers unparalleled customer value and reaches the mass market.”

Among its offerings are proprietary, full-stack technology and infrastructure; and offline distribution and centralized support.

GASTL: “The most important thing is to affect as many customers.” FIRSTCIRCLE.PH

₧3.6-T economic loss seen from Covid, storms Continued from A1

earlier anticipated as consumption spending remained subdued following the release of third-quarter National Income Accounts (NIA).

On Tuesday, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) disclosed that GDP contracted 11.5 percent in the third quarter. With this, GDP in the last three quarters contracted an average of 10 percent.

Based on PSA data, even rich

Filipinos or those with the means are holding on to their cash as indicated by the steep decline in spending for valuables, which include heirloom jewelry, antiques, and other similar luxury items.

Ang earlier said recovering economic losses caused by the pandemic may take three years. This is due to weak demand that remains a problem for the economy. Ang said many Filipinos are still hesitant to spend while others may not

have enough to spend.

Household Final Consumption Expenditure (HFCE) contracted 9.3 percent in the third quarter. Last quarter, HFCE contracted 15.3 percent, while it grew 6 percent in the third quarter of last year.

Under HFCE, only food and nonalcoholic beverages; housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels; and communication posted positive growth of 4.6 percent, 6.7 percent, and 5.7 percent in the

third quarter, respectively.

The largest decline in household consumption was on recreation and culture with a contraction of 59.3 percent; restaurants and hotels, 49.9 percent; and transportation, 33.4 percent.

On the expenditure side, valuables posted the largest contraction at 53.2 percent, a significant reversal from its year-on-year growth of 182.9 percent in the third quarter last year.

OFWs… Continued from A1

“defy expectations”, with the September print being the latest surprise to their forecasts.

The September inflow of remittances pushed the nine-month total money sent home to $21.89 billion. This is 1.4 percent lower than the total money they sent in January to September last year.

This is significantly better than the BSP’s forecast of a 5-percent decline in remittances on average by the end of the year.

By country source, Filipino migrant workers from the United States, Singapore, Qatar, Hong Kong and Taiwan sent more money in the first nine months of this year compared to the same period last year. Their higher remittances compensated for the declines in remittances from Filipinos in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Germany, Kuwait and the United Kingdom.

The US posted the highest share to total remittances at 40.1 percent, followed by Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Japan, the UK, the UAE, Canada, Hong Kong, Qatar and Taiwan. The combined remittances from these countries accounted for 78.8 percent of total cash remittances.

Last hurrah?

MAPA said while September remittances spell a positive surprise for the country, this does not mean that it is on its way to trend upwards in the coming months.

The economist said that in the face of job losses and muted economic activity abroad, Filipino migrant workers likely sent money from their life savings.

“Overseas Filipino remittances managed to expand 9.3 percent with the rise in migrant flows likely tagged to Filipinos sending home their savings prior to repatriation and the temporary reopening of economies post lockdown,” he said.

“We’ve noted the practice carried out by overseas Filipinos set for repatriation to send home their life savings ahead of their return, which may have caused a one-off surge in remittances in the past few months,” he added.

Mapa still believes that remittance flows may end up still about 5 percent lower than what was seen in the previous year, as up to 300,000 Filipino workers are repatriated to the Philippines after job losses in their host countries.

“Meanwhile, renewed lockdowns in parts of Europe and the US will likely delay the economic and trade recovery, which will in turn have an adverse impact on remittance flows in the near term,” Mapa said.

‘Sluggish loans growth amid ₧1.9-T BSP infusion shows need for reform’ Continued from A1

conservative. While it has been a careful steward of existing wealth, it has not been very effective in creating new wealth in underserved segments of the population,” he added.

While part of this decline in loans for productive activity is due to limited overall economic activity largely because of lockdowns, Salceda also said that “blunted monetary policy transmission is to be expected where only 30 percent

of businesses have been able to access bank loans, despite almost all of these businesses having a bank account.”

“Clearly, this is not merely a financial inclusion problem. Even if people get banked, they do not necessarily get lent to,” Salceda said, citing a World Bank Enterprise Survey that found that while 93 percent of formal businesses have bank accounts, only 30 percent of them have accessed loans.

Last week, the BSP, citing preliminary data, said that growth in outstanding loans of universal and commercial banks, net of reverse repurchase placements with the BSP, eased to 2.8 percent in September from 4.7 percent in August.

The BSP said the general decline in bank growth partly reflects banks’ reduced tolerance for risk, decline in loan demand due, in turn, to weak business and income prospects and ob-

served shift by nonfinancial corporates to alternative sources of funds.

In his report, Salceda said, “Covid-19 has exposed some of the risks of a very conservative banking sector: low monetary policy transmission, investment in inert but appreciating assets as opposed to high-risk but productive assets such as small businesses, decline in service quality and accessibility of traditional physical banking, and a tendency to provision excessively in times of crisis, as opposed to expanding services in sectors in heightened need.”

“One of the most evident indicators of capital going to productive assets instead of, say, inert assets like provisions, is stock market performance. We have underperformed the region for several months. Loan growth figures also show very little actual transmission of monetary policy,” Salceda added.

According to the solon, many countries doing worse than the Philippines have seen better market returns and better loan growth.

“Low conversion of monetary policy into loans for the real economy is an unmistakable sign of structural flaws in our banking system. Our banks are systemically too conservative, during a time when we need a little boldness,” Salceda added.

Salceda also cited the success of microfinance in developing countries as a model that the banking sector can learn from.

“Microfinance achieved much success in wealth creation. Access to capital is an important anti-poverty and economic growth measure. Add financial technology to the mix, and there is great potential in making credit more accessible,” Salceda said.

“The reforms promoted by this representation will also ensure that, in the age of easy monetary policy, gains from the financial sector will also be shared with the most vulnerable and excluded segments of the real sector. The changes promoted by the reforms discussed are specifically geared toward making credit

access and financial services fairer and more accessible. Where access to capital can lift people out of poverty, banking sector reform is a matter of social equity and justice,” he added.

Reforms

WITH this, Salceda pushed for four reforms that will help encourage a “creative disruption” of the banking sector, which he described as “stable, but also deeply conservative.”

He added: “Without reforms in the banking sector and without a policy environment conducive to innovation in the sector, we will continue to see financial sector gains redound only those who are already served by the sector. This will result in wider socioeconomic inequality.”

These reforms include the Virtual Banking Act (HB 5913), which will encourage new virtual banking players and provide a framework that will encourage traditional players to participate; and the Financial Technology Industry Act (HB 7760), which seeks to help encourage the

development of new financial technologies in the country.

The reforms also include the Blockchain Technology Development Act (HB 7864) to help encourage the study and application of distributed ledger technology, which could make services cheaper and more efficient, and the Fair and Inclusive Credit Reporting Act (HB 7863) to encourage credit transmission to previously underserved sectors, by encouraging the use of “big data” to improve credit risk assessment and relationship management.

“The reforms constitute a ‘creative disruption’ of a highly traditional sector. While much of the banking sector has been content to preserve existing wealth, we aim to establish a policy environment that encourages the sector to create new wealth, among sectors of society that have the willingness, the industry, and the potential but not yet the capital to lift themselves out of poverty and stagnation,” Salceda wrote.

₧3.6-T economic loss seen from Covid, storms

By Cai U. Ordinario

T

HE Philippine economy may have lost P3.6 trillion this year due to the ongoing pandemic and the three recent typhoons, according to a former socioeconomic planning secretary.

In a hearing on Monday, Sen. Ralph G. Recto, a former National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) Director General, said this includes the P1.8-trillion losses due to Covid-19 and around P1 trillion to P1.8 trillion in opportunities lost due to the typhoons.

Recto added that this makes it difficult to believe that the government’s economic growth expectations would be within reach this year and even next year.

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“Ergo, we lost P3.6 trillion,” Recto said in the budget hearing.

“In fact, [given these] numbers, it will take about two more years to get back to 2019. And that assumes that their projections are correct.”

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Sonny Angara said the Neda agreed, assuming that the country was experiencing a “normal” year.

Recto explained that if the country did not experience a pandemic, the economy would have grown to around P20 trillion to P21 trillion from the estimate of P19 trillion this year.

Taking into consideration just the pandemic this year, Recto estimated that the cost to the economy could mean 10 million minimumwage jobs this year.

Given these dismal estimates, Recto said keeping the GDP’s losses to a contraction of just around 6.6 percent this year would prove to be difficult, to say the least. “[The losses could reach] P2 trillion, if you divide it by 200,000 minimum wage, that’s 10 million jobs—let me put that on the record—potentially that we are probably losing today. And I’m not even factoring yet the last three typhoons. So this year has been a very challenging year for the Philippines,” Recto said.

Acerd estimate: 11% contraction

ATENEO Center for Economic Research and Development (Acerd) Director Alvin P. Ang said the country’s full-year GDP could contract by 11

percent by the end of the year.

Ang said in the fourth quarter, GDP could contract by around 12 percent. This takes into account typhoon losses which could equal 5 percent to 8 percent of the fourthquarter GDP. While the Office of Civil Defense estimated that only P82 billion was lost from the typhoons, Ang said the amount could be higher at around P200 billion to P300 billion.

This accounts for the damage as well as other lost economic opportunities. “I hope I am wrong and that the total losses in the fourth quarter is lower,” Ang said.

Last week, local economists said the recovery of the Philippine economy may take longer than Continued on A2

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Tuesday, November 17, 2020 Vol. 16 No. 40

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MONEY DESPITE CRISIS

IN this handout photo provided by the Malacañang Presidential Photographers Division, floodwaters brought about by Typhoon Ulysses inundate Cagayan valley region in northern Philippines on Sunday. Ulysses swelled rivers and flooded low-lying areas as it passed over the storm-battered northeast Philippines, where rescuers were deployed early Thursday to help people flee the rising waters.

ACE MORANDANTE/ MALACAÑANG PRESIDENTIAL PHOTOGRAPHERS DIVISION VIA AP

D

By Bianca Cuaresma

ESPITE dismal economic activity and thousands of layoffs all over the world, overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) still managed to send more money back home in September, latest data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed.

The BSP reported on Monday that cash remittances from OFWs hit $2.6 billion in September, growing by 9.3 percent from the $2.34 billion they sent in September 2019 last year. The 9.3-percent growth was the strongest monthly data seen for remittances since April 2018. The 9.3-percent growth in September also comes at the heels of a 4.1-percent contraction in the money OFWs sent in August.

BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno has earlier acknowledged that remittances may not necessarily reflect the state of the global economy, as OFWs usually have an “altruistic character” and they tend to find ways to send money to their family back home, crisis or no crisis.

ING Bank economist Nicholas Mapa also said that remittances to the Philippines have continued to See “OFWs,” A2

PHL pins hopes on ‘revenge travel’ in 2021

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo Special to the BusinessMirror

W

ITH people around the world feeling cooped up, unable to enjoy new vistas due to Covid-19 international border restrictions, a demand for travel and tourism is simmering and may eventually boil over next year.

Government tourism officials and local destination management companies are hoping the Philippines will benefit from these “revenge trav-

el” plans of foreign tourists.

“Everyone believes that travel will start in the second half of next year [2021], that people will do ‘revenge travel’ after all the restrictions,” said Sonia Lazo, managing director of Intas Destination Management Inc., who participated in online meetings with new buyers in last week’s virtual World Travel Market (WTM). “Meetings were very good…a lot were curious about how things are in the Philippines, Covid-wise, and asking

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the million-dollar question: when do you think the Philippines will open?” Intas specializes in tours to the Cordillera Administrative Region, El Nido and boat expeditions to Linapacan Island in Palawan, Bohol, Siquijor and Dumaguete.

She expressed optimism, however, and underscored the forwardlooking attitude of many participants. “We all have gone past the dark early days when we couldn’t even make a forecast. Now, there’s a sense of planning and preparation

for the bounce back.” Her meetings online were less, “about 6 to 8,” than the physical meetings she usually had in the past WTMs, but clients were from “all over”—the United Kingdom, Spain, Ukraine, the US, Australia and Italy.

Tourism Attaché for the UK Gerard Panga underscored the need to maintain the Philippines’s presence in travel trade events such as WTM, one of the leading travel shows in Europe. “The Philippines

‘SLUGGISH LOANS GROWTH AMID P1.9-T BSP INFUSION SHOWS NEED FOR REFORM’

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

T

HE chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means on Monday called for comprehensive banking reforms as he flagged the low growth in credit released despite the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) making monetary policy adjustments that have introduced P1.9 trillion in liquidity into the economy.

In a report titled “Creative Disruption: Reforms for the Modernization of the Philippine Banking System,” Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda said Covid-19 has made the systematic problems of the banking sector more evident. While the BSP has released money in liquidity due to monetary policy adjustment in response to Covid-19, lending growth among the country’s largest banks has actually continued to slow down, he noted.

“The BSP released P1.9 trillion essentially in new money, but there has been almost no credit growth. So, it’s all going towards provisioning, and very little of it is going towards productive sectors,” Salceda said, citing BSP figures for credit growth.

Salceda said the infusion of liquidity amounting to around 10 percent of the GDP appears to have had limited credit transmission in the real economy.

“The Philippine banking sector is stable, but also deeply Continued on A2

See “Travel,” A2

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Source: BSP (November 16, 2020)

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Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Tuesday, November 17, 2020 A3

DA to traders, retailers: No price hike in calamity areas

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

T

HE Department of Agriculture (DA) has warned traders and retailers that they will be penalized if they raise the price of their commodities, reminding them a price freeze is in place following the declaration of state of calamity in typhoon-struck provinces.

“The price freeze on basic agricultural and fishery products forms part of the government’s continuing efforts to ensure availability of basic commodities at reasonable prices,

particularly in areas severely affected by the recent typhoons,” Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar said in a statement on Monday.

A price control on basic food commodities and basic necessities is automatically implemented in areas declared under a state of calamity for a period of not more than 60 days based on the Republic Act 7581, or Price Act, according to the DA. Dar said the DA will not hesitate to file cases against unscrupulous traders if “they engage in manipulating supply, hoarding, and jacking up prices, to the disadvantage

of consumers” in areas under state of calamity.

“Any person or entity violating the Price Act shall be charged accordingly, with fines ranging from P5,000 to P2 million, and imprisonment of not less than five years but not more than 15 years,” he added.

The list of basic agri-fishery commodities per kilogram (kg) covered by the price freeze includes: Milkfish (cage-cultured)—P169; Tilapia (pond-cultured, freshchilled)—P120; Round scad or galunggong (imported)—P180; Round scad or galunggong (local)—

P140; pork (pigue/kasim)—P260; Pork (liempo)—P280; Chicken (whole) P130; Sugar (refined)—P50; Sugar (brown)—P45; Red onion (fresh)—P100; Garlic (fresh, imported)—P100; Rice (imported): special—P52; premium— P43; well-milled—P38; Rice (local): special—P53; premium— P45; well-milled—P40; Chicken egg (medium)—P6.50 per piece; Cooking oil (30 ml)—P25; and Cooking oil (1 liter)—P50.

Dar also ordered all DA and Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) regional directors to moni-

tor unaffected production areas and assess the viability of transporting farm and fishery commodities to Metro Manila and other major consumption centers.

He also instructed the DA’s Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Service (AMAS) to deploy Kadiwa stores to augment food supply and ensure accessibility of affordable, nutritious food in typhoon-stricken areas.

“We are committed to provide adequate access to affordable, safe, and nutritious food to our kababayans, who were adversely affected by

the recent calamities,” Dar said.

“The entire DA family is allotting more than P6 billion worth of agricultural and fishery inputs, seeds, fertilizers, and implements, financial aid and zero-interest emergency and livelihood loans, and crop insurance to assist farmers and fishers severely affected by typhoons Quinta, Rolly, and Ulysses,” he added.

The Philippine agriculture sector has so far incurred a combined P10.5 billion worth of damage and losses due to the three successive typhoons that ravaged Luzon and parts of the Visayas, according to DA.

House probe into Cagayan, Isabela flooding sought

IN this photo provided by the Coast Guard, residents wade along a flooded road during rescue operations in the Cagayan Valley region, northern Philippines on Friday, November 13, 2020. Thick mud and debris coated many villages around the Philippine capital Friday after Typhoon Ulysses (international code name Vamco) caused extensive flooding that sent residents fleeing to their roofs and killing dozens of people. PHILIPPINE COAST GUARD VIA AP

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

& Rene Acosta

@reneacostaBM

T

HE House of Representatives on Monday said it will investigate, in aid of legislation, the cause of massive flooding that submerged the provinces of Cagayan and Isabela during the onslaught of Typhoon Ulysses.

In a news statement, Speaker Lord Allan Velasco, along with Majority Leader Ferdinand Martin Romualdez and Minority Leader Joseph Stephen Paduano, said they filed House Resolution 1348 to immediately conduct the probe.

“As the death toll continues to rise, and the extent of damage is slowly being revealed, there is an urgent need to examine the actions that were taken during, before and

after the onslaught of Typhoon Ulysses,” Velasco said.

To date, the death toll from Typhoon Ulysses has reached 67, with over 20 people missing, and the damage to agriculture and infrastructure estimated to be at least P1.5 billion.

In calling for a legislative inquiry, the leadership of the lower chamber cited the “gravity and unprecedented nature of the situation, the geographic propensity of the country to natural calamities, and the need to prevent similar situations from occurring.”

Velasco said they wanted to probe the circumstances surrounding the rapid inflow of water into the reservoir, as well as any non-compliance with laws, rules or regulations that may have had a contributory effect to the swelling of the Cagayan River.

He added they also wanted the chamber to look into the decision of the National Irrigation Administration to open the spillway gates of Magat Dam, and if such action was done in accordance with duly established guidelines and protocols.

Given the circumstances and the predicted Category-4 strength of the typhoon, the House leaders said, the forecast should have prompted concerned government agencies and local government units

to take necessary preemptive action to mitigate possible adverse effects on local communities.

Ulysses made the expected landfall, heavy winds and torrential rains battered parts of Metro Manila, Bicol region, Central Luzon, Cordillera Administrative Region and Calabarzon, causing power failures, extreme flooding and heavy damage to infrastructure and property, and threatened the lives and livelihood of many Filipinos.

The effects of the typhoon also caused massive destruction in Cagayan Valley, particularly in the provinces of Cagayan and Isabela, as the region experienced unprecedented f looding in the wake of the typhoon.

SRR ops report

THE military reported on Monday that it has already rescued total of 265,339 individuals in typhoonaffected provinces through its continuous search, rescue and retrieval (SRR) operations.

The figure w a s sh a re d b y the Armed Forces of the Philippines (A FP) as ot her responders, inc lud ing t he Ph i l ip pi ne Coast Guard and

Ramped-up govt spending could have blunted Q3 contraction

S

OCIOECONOMIC Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick Chua conceded that the government could have ramped up its spending to arrest the double-digit economic contraction in the third quarter.

“I think Secretary Chua admits that we could have done a bit more with government spending…,” Senate Committee on Finance Chairman Sonny Angara said during the interpellation of Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto on the proposed 2021 national budget.

Following this, Recto noted that government’s “underspending” contributed to the country’s economic slump amid the pandemic.

During Recto’s interpellation on the proposed 2021 national budget, it was revealed that only P3.022 trillion has been released out of the P4.1 trillion spending program for the year.

“So no wonder we contracted 11.5 percent in the third quarter; we are underspending,” Recto said.

In response, Angara said: “Yes, your honor. I have heard many commentaries, saying we should have ramped up spending more.”

During the interpellation, it was also pointed out that the P3.022 trillion re-

leased under this year’s national budget already included the P386.1 billion released under Bayanihan 1.

Recto said there was also “underspending” under Bayanihan 2 given that Angara said P82.4 billion has been released out of the P140 billion in programmed appropriations and P25 billion in unprogrammed appropriations.

Asked by Recto if the government has put in place a catch-up plan for the fourth quarter to avert a double-digit economic contraction this year, Angara said: “The Secretary [Chua], your honors, foresee some reversal in spending for quarter 4 because like, for instance, the Bayanihan 2 is intended for the third quarter but because of some delays it would be factored in the fourth quarter so that would help ramp up government response and government spending.”

In the same hearing, Recto stressed the need to extend the validity of the 2020 national budget or at least the unspent funds of some departments, as well as the validity of the appropriations under Bayanihan 2 to help the country recover from the economic crisis.

Recto has already filed a bill extending

the validity of Bayanihan 2 funds until March next year.

Bayanihan 2 is only effective until December 19 this year.

Bayanihan 3

GIVEN the impact of the recent typhoons, Recto also pushed for the passage of a supplemental budget or Bayanihan 3.

“I am one with the chairman to pass this budget by Friday, second and third reading Mr. President, so there should be enough time to pass a supplemental budget if necessary or Bayanihan 3 not only for the pandemic but also for those affected by the most recent typhoons,” he said.

Sought to comment on Bayanihan 3, Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III on Monday said in a message: “We are in the process of evaluating the damage of the series of typhoons and the amounts required to address these, and will determine whether or not the current budget will be sufficient.”

For his part, Development Budget Coordination Committee Chairman and Budget Secretary Wendel E. Avisado told the BusinessMirror that they are not against the proposal to have Bayanihan 3. Bernadette D. Nicolas

PHL may risk losing MCC fund access–solon

MCC explained that in terms of percentile ranking, a zero percent rating is the worst; a 50 percent rating is the median; and a 100 percent rating is the best.

“I think we need to face this right now and we should not take this lightly because their assessment may serve as a challenge for us to do better, especially in governance,” Villanueva said.

In 2010, the Philippines received a five-year economic development compact granting $434 million to the Philippines for investments in roads, community

development projects, and improvements to the country’s Bureau of Internal Revenue.

The MCC compact provided funding for three major projects. First, the compact provides $214.4 million to construct and repair 220 kilometers of Samar road.

This road, which passes through 15 municipalities, will improve access to markets and services for farmers, fishermen, and small businesses in some of the poorest provinces in the Philippines.

The compact also included $120 million to expand Kalahi-

continued from a8

CIDSS, a development project that empowers communities by encouraging their participation in poverty-reducing activities.

The project will provide community grants to support the building of critical infrastructure such as water systems, clinics, and schools.

The compact also included $54.3 million in investments to computerize and streamline business processes in the Bureau of Internal Revenue. This project will bolster the effectiveness of revenue collection and reduce opportunities for corruption. Cai U. Ordinario

the Bureau of Fire Protection also undertake similar operations in flood-stricken areas in Region 2.

On Monday, two Coast Guard helicopters carried three sorties to Cagayan to deliver relief supplies to residents while its personnel on the ground involved in SRR pluck out residents from flooded areas.

The Coast Guard is also undertaking relief operations in the provinces of Albay and Catanduanes.

The military said that soldiers had saved 1,078 people from flooding in Northern Luzon, including in Cagayan, while 263,444 individuals were rescued in Southern Luzon. SRR teams also helped 817 persons in the National Capital Region, which was also affected by Typhoon Ulysses.

The military is leading the SRR cluster of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDR R MC).

Among its members are the Bureau of Fire Protection, Philippine Coast Guard, Philippine

National Police, Department of Health-Health Emergency Management Staff, Department of the Interior and Local Government, Office of Civil Defense and Philippine Red Cross.

The military said it has since deployed a total of 83 SRR teams nationwide to help local government units in their disaster response efforts. The AFP also deployed 83 land assets, nine aircraft and 18 water assets.

An additional 145 teams remain on standby for possible deployment and augmentation, along with 268 land assets, nine aircraft, two vessels and 25 rubber boats.

“W hile the AFP has started to shift to relief efforts in some areas, our respond ing teams continue to brave heavily f loode d c o m mu n it ie s t o c o ndu c t search, rescue and retrieval operations in the hopes of rescuing more individuals,” said Armed Forces Chief of Staff General Gilbert Gapay.

A4 Tuesday, November 17, 2020 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

Economy BusinessMirror

DOLE braces for more joblessness after typhoons; 180K govt vacancies flagged

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

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HE Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is now bracing for a possible worsening of local unemployment woes following the recent typhoons which hit the country, compounding the record joblessness that had hit the workers’ sector as a result of pandemic-induced lockdowns that disrupted businesses.

However, the DOLE said it still has sufficient funding to provide aid to the additional workers, who may be displaced before the end of the year due to more natural calamities.

In a separate but related development, the head of the Senate Labor committee lamented the irony: that amid the rising unemployment, the government keeps failing to fill up hundreds of thousands of positions.

There’s an average of one for every 10 positions remaining unfilled the past several years, Sen. Joel Villanueva pointed out at a Senate budget hearing.

During an online briefing on Monday, Labor Assistant Secretary Dominique Tutay said devastation caused by typhoons Quinta (international code name Molave), Rolly (international code name Goni) and Ulysses (international code name Vamco) “definitely affect” the employment situation in the country.

Citing initial data from the Office of Civil Defense (OCD), said the recent typhoons have affected 300,000 to 400,000 individuals in the Bicol region alone.

“We will need to wait for the update in terms of how many were affected by the typhoons,” Tutay said.

Based on its latest displacement report, DOLE registered 285,650 permanently displaced workers as of October 26, 2020.

In same period, it was also able to record 3.4 million temporarily displaced workers. These include those engaged in flexible work arrangements or were affected by the temporary closure of their companies.

Sufficient funding

TUTAY assured the DOLE still has sufficient budget to provide assistance to typhoon-affected workers through the programs, funded by the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act (Bayanihan 2).

“Our advise to our regional directors is to first exhaust the funds already downloaded to them and if they will need additional funding, we can still download more since we still have available funds,” Tutay said.

Since the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) released the P13.1-billion funding of DOLE under Bayanihan 2, Tutay said they were already able to provide aid to 80,000 workers, who were affected by the novel coronavirus disease and the typhoons.

Of the said beneficiaries, 40,000 got cash aid through the Covid-19 Adjustment Measures Program (CAMP) of DOLE. The remaining 40,000 received emergency employment through DOLE’s Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Worker (Tupad).

These include the beneficiaries in Cagayan and Isabela, which were recently hit by heavy flooding caused

by Typhoon Ulysses.

DOLE earlier said targets to com-

plete the implementation of CAMP and Tupad using Bayanihan 2 funding before the end of the month.

‘Jobs amid unemployment’

MEANWHILE, Sen. Joel Villanueva on Monday took issue with the government’s unfilled plantilla positions, pointing out that urgent need to fill vacant roles given the need to generate jobs amid the record-high unemployment caused by the ongoing pandemic and the recent natural calamities.

Villanueva said nearly 180,000 jobs in authorized plantilla positions in government remains unfilled, while it has allowed nearly 670,000 workers to be under the job order system.

He lamented that even some job order workers continue to work under the arrangement for years.

“Government should always be part of the solution, not the problem. People need jobs, and we have nearly 180,000 available jobs in our own backyard,” Villanueva said. He likened the situation to “allowing rice to rot in a warehouse instead of giving it to those who need it.”

For the past years, Villanueva estimated, “roughly 1 out of 10 authorized positions in the government is unfilled. For 2021, of the 1.8 million plantilla positions in government, some 178,009 authorized positions are unfilled. I raised this during the Commission on Appointments confirmation of the secretary of the DBM and was told that he will work on it. But if you look at the figures, nothing has changed,” the senator said at plenary deliberations of the proposed national budget for 2021 in the Senate.

Villanueva, who chairs the Senate committee on labor, pointed out the

“staggering number of vacancies” in the Department of Public Works and Highways despite the high demand of construction and public works in the government’s Build, Build, Build flagship program. At present, the DPWH has only filled 17,739 positions out of its 22,479 authorized regular positions.

He flagged the 4,588 job order personnel hired by the Department of Agriculture (DA), even when it has 3,511 vacancies. The agency also employs 1,206 through contract of service.

The 2021 National Expenditure Program also showed 43,780 vacancies in the Office of the Secretary of the Department of Education (DepEd) and 14,553 vacant positions in the Office of the Secretary of the Department of Health (DOH).

“It’s sad to think of so many vacancies in the national government in the face of such high unemployment rate,” said the senator.

Villanueva filed SBN 709 which provides permanent appointment to all casual and contractual government employees who rendered the prescribed number of years of service.

Under the bill, all incumbent casual and contractual government employees who have rendered at least five years of exemplary and continuous service in the national government and six years of service in the case of local government units, shall be entitled to permanent appointment, subject to the requirements of the Constitution, relevant civil service laws and the Merit Selection Plan of the concerned agency.

The bill, which is on first reading, has been referred to the Senate civil service committee. With Butch Fernandez

Vehicle sales slides 27.3% to 25,023 units in October

By Elijah Felice E. Rosales @alyasjah

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HE automotive industry showed no signs of recovery in the opening of the holiday season, as sales declined by more than a fourth to the dismay of vehicle assemblers.

In a report by the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) and the Truck Manufacturers Association, sales in

October fell by 27.3 percent to 25,023 units, from 34,397 units during the same month last year. As usual, both passenger car and commercial vehicle segments posted double-digit declines to bring down industry sales.

Sales of passenger cars slumped nearly 11 percent to 8,988 units, from 10,083 units, as well as of commercial vehicles by 34.1 percent to 16,035 units, from 24,314 units.

As such, industry sales of passenger

cars from January to October remained on the negative, by 41.3 percent, to 53,067 units, from 90,400 units. Likewise, sales of commercial vehicles for the period crashed 43.2 percent to 119,968 units, from 211,361 units.

Overall, sales of vehicles between January and October decreased 42.7 percent to 173,035 units, from 301,761 units during the same period last year.

CAMPI President Rommel R. Gutierrez said in spite of the decline, it is still progress for the industry whose sales nearly zeroed in April due to the pandemic and the lockdown.

He added CAMPI achieved its highest volume of sales since the start of the Covid-19 health crisis, and this was despite the negative

consumer and business outlook for the fourth quarter.

Further, he argued this puts the industry in a position to hit its compromised target for the year to sell 240,000 units.

“We are on track to achieve our revised sales forecast of 240,000 units, the baseline for our medium-term recovery plan,” Gutierrez said.

However, he warned the industry may soon see confidence gone if the Department of Trade and Industry decides to apply safeguard measures on automobile imports. The DTI is studying the option of imposing safeguard on vehicle products in response to the petition of automotive workers who said they lost jobs due to an import surge.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Sustainability challenges to be addressed NOW tomers to influence their behavior regarding sustainability issues from recycling schemes to less wasteful products or services. This will only be possible if we have developed a level of trust with our clients that allows both parties to become winners in a joint innovation approach.

Better packaging and reduced energy consumption

By Henry J. Schumacher

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ESPITE all the difficulties the pandemic has delivered in 2020, we have no choice but to plan ahead for 2021 and beyond.

Just having experienced a series of devastating typhoons, climate change has to be on our future agenda. Climate change is somewhat connected with another important change to be added to our “future agenda”: sustainability.

As you are aware, the SEC expects “sustainability reports” from the large organizations starting now; but let’s be clear that the future of all organizations hinges on its ability to look at sustainability (and climate change) to stay ahead of the competition and to be loved by the millennials and the centennials, inside and outside our organization—and by our customers, of course.

Let’s look at the most common pain points regarding sustainability:

Incorporating sustainability goals within each department AS mentioned above, companies are feeling the pressure from society to mitigate the environmental impacts of doing business.

Some companies are claiming to be “carbon-neutral” by 2030. What about us? There is no question that top management, brand managers and product leaders need to scramble to spot opportunities and translate those into actions. We need to show progress already next year.

Where to start? Energy consumption, waste reduction, packaging, redesigning the product?

How to influence consumers?

What role do customers play?

WHILE some sustainability challenges can be solved within the organization, in most cases we, however, need the involvement of our stakeholders, such as suppliers of energy, water, raw materials and intermediates, packaging materials, etc. And we have to work closely with our cus-

LET’S look at two areas within the sustainability challenge. The first pressure point is our idea of a single-use packaging. Times have changed. When products are sold and delivered by e-commerce channels that are growing by the minute, they don’t require the same packaging as in the old days. Requirements for these products are shifting, making today the right moment to create better solutions.

The re-use of containers, lighter materials and fewer steps in production can lead to lower costs and higher competitiveness.

Add to this the option of using less energy; both steps would be a strong incentive to improve the packaging performance and the energy consumption.

Set and measure sustainability objectives

IN a strategic development like this, it is essential to create priorities.

Business—as we all know—is driven by people and these people need to understand the goals very well and will have to become intrapreneurs in creating the solutions. They will also have to be given authority to express their views of what works and what doesn’t, also looking at examples of other organizations they are dealing with. Aligning all stakeholders to the vision and its success may not be easy but the strategy—if successful—can be replicated when solving the next disruptive challenges the company is facing.

Sustainability evaluation

GIVEN the ever-changing world in which we live today, we will certainly have to review our sustainability strategy continuously and optimize it. Again, working closely with stakeholders—from suppliers to consumers, from feedback of our production and marketing/sales staff to competitor behavior—is essential.

And again, this will only work if management and staff are trusting each other and work as teams.

I wish you luck in this process.

Feedback is more than welcome; contact me at hjschumacher59@ gmail.com

NREB sticks to 35% RE goal in power generation mix by ’30

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HE advisory body tasked to effectively implement renewable-energy (RE) projects in the country said on Monday that the country could still hit the 35-percent RE target in the power generation mix by 2030 despite declining numbers for the past years.

“Yes, we can still get to 35-percent RE share by 2030. It’s still achievable and what do we have as a tool to get there? We have a program that’s been mandated in the RE Act and already implemented, actually this is the first year that we are implementing the RPS [Renewable Portfolio Standards], so we will use the RPS to get there,” said National Renewable Energy Board (NREB) Chairman Monalisa Dimalanta during “The Future Energy Show Philippines” in which she talked about the RE adoption in the country.

RPS requires distribution utilities (DUs) to source 1 percent of their power supply from eligible RE sources such as biomass, waste-to-energy technology,windenergy,solarenergy,run-of-river hydroelectricpowersystems,hydroelectricpower systems, ocean energy, and geothermal energy.

The RPS level is currently set at a 1 percent level. The strategy of NREB is to keep that level at 1 percent for 2020 to 2022 and then increased to 2.52 percent moving forward.

“Butafter2022,wehavetostartincreasingthat level to what we have computed. If we increase it

to 2.52 percent all the way to 2023 to 2040, it will take us to a 37.3-percent RE share by 2030 and by 2040 that share is actually going to be almost 56 percent of our supply mix,” she said.

In 2019, the share of RE in the country’s generation mix stood at 20.8 percent from 23.38 percent in 2018. Coal continues to dominate the mix at 54.6 percent, followed by gas at 21.1 percent and oil at 3.5 percent.

In 2014 and 2015, RE’s share in the mix stood at the 25 percent level. It fell to 24.21 percent in 2016 and slightly increased to 24.57 percent in 2017.

By 2030, NREB is expecting that the share of RE in the generation mix would be at 37.3 percent.

Coal would still be on the top at 41 percent, gas at 21.3 percent while oil at less than 1 percent.

RE would soon lead the mix at 55.8 percent by 2040, overtaking coal at 29.7 percent, gas at 14.2 percent and oil at 0.3 percent.

“If we are still committed to getting an increased RE share by 2030, and having that trajectory continue to increase forward, this is what we need to do with what we have. Again the idea is, if we will not ask for any more legislation, if we are not to ask for additional incentives, this is what we have and this what we need to do. This will get us to more than 37 percent by 2030 and almost 56 percent by 2040,” Dimalanta pointed out. Lenie Lectura

Editor: Angel R. Calso

The World BusinessMirror

Tuesday, November 17, 2020

A5

US exceeds 11 million infections as world counts on vaccine data

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resh Covid-19 vaccine reports are on the horizon, with drugmakers including Pfizer Inc. expecting to obtain more trial data as early as this week. The updates are eagerly awaited as the pandemic accelerates, with US infections hitting a new record high.

US cases surpassed 11 million on Sunday after increasing by more than 1 million in a week, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University and Bloomberg. Covid-19 has claimed more than 246,000 lives in the US, which has the most deaths of any country.

California reported 10,968 new cases on Sunday, a three-month high. Along with Saturday’s 9,875 infections, this makes it the worst weekend in months after the state surpassed 1 million cases last week. The number of deaths, at 35, however, brings the 14-day average to the lowest level since April.

Cases in Florida rose the most since July, when the last virus surge peaked.

Sunday’s 10,105 reported infections compare with a seven-day trailing average of 5,900. Hospitalizations have risen by a third, to more than 3,000, since the beginning of October but are nowhere near the summer peak of almost 10,000.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer imposed a three-week partial lockdown in the state starting Wednesday, closing in-person dining at restaurants, limiting bars and temporarily closing

high schools. Retailers and gyms are among the services that can stay open with reduced capacity, said state health department head Robert Gordon, who’s a member of President-elect Joe Biden’s broader transition team.

Nations across the globe moved toward tougher measures, though two of US President-elect Joe Biden’s advisers said they oppose a nationwide lockdown. Michigan announced a three-week partial lockdown, with the governor urging residents to refrain from Thanksgiving gatherings.

Hong Kong is tightening social-distancing rules after a rise in locally transmitted cases, while Austria plans mass testing of its entire population.

Key developments:

Germany eyes tougher measures: Reuters

Germany is considering additional measures including limiting gatherings and completely halting private parties until Christmas to limit the spread of coronavirus, Reuters reported, citing a draft document it has seen.

Under new measures, people from

one household will be allowed to meet with two people from another household, down from a maximum of 10 people from two households now. Measures include mandatory mask wearing for school students.

Economy Minister Peter Altmaier said over the weekend that Germany will have to live with “considerable restrictions” against the spread of the coronavirus for at least the next four to five months.

South Korea has most cases in 11 weeks

South Korea reported 223 new cases in 24 hours, up from 208 a day earlier, according to data from the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency.

The number is the biggest increase in 11 weeks.

South Australia hit by growing cluster

South Australia state is battling a growing number of Covid-19 infections, with 17 cases now linked to a family cluster in the capital, Adelaide.

“It is a very, very dangerous situation we’re in,” state Premier Steven Marshall said on Monday. He said his government would consider tougher social-distancing restrictions if necessary, adding “we will do whatever it takes to get on top of this cluster.”

The state’s Chief Public Health Officer Nicola Spurrier said the cases were linked to a “medi-hotel” where one of the infected people worked, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported. Such facilities are used by incoming travelers and local residents who can’t safely quarantine at home.

UK’s Johnson isolates after Covid contact

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to deliver the vaccine end of this year, beginning next year,” Sahin said. “Our goal is to deliver more than 300 million of vaccine doses until April next year, which could allow us to already start to make an impact.”

“I’m very confident that transmission between people will be reduced by such a highly effective vaccine— maybe not 90 percent but maybe 50 percent,” he said.

Pfizer and BioNTech said last week that interim results showed the vaccine was 90 percent effective in preventing people from getting ill from Covid-19,

though they don’t yet have enough information on safety and manufacturing quality.

“What is absolutely essential is that we get a high vaccination rate before autumn/winter next year, so that means all the immunization, vaccination approaches must be accomplished before next autumn,” Sahin said.

The vaccine’s developers looked at 94 infections recorded so far in a study that has enrolled nearly 44,000 people in the US and five other countries. AP

Trump seems to acknowledge Biden win, but he won’t concede

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ASHINGTON—President Donald Trump on Sunday appeared to acknowledge for the first time that Joe Biden won the White House, but made clear he would not concede and would keep trying to overturn the election result. Trump’s statements came in tweets that included several baseless claims about the November 3 vote, which state and federal officials say was safe and secure.

Trump, without using Biden’s name, tweeted that “He won,”something Trump had not said before publicly, though he said the Democrat’s victory was only “in the eyes” of the media. Biden defeated Trump by winning back a trio of battleground states that switched from the Democratic column in 2016—Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania—and topped the 270 electoral vote threshold to clinch the presidency. Biden so far has 78.8 million votes, the most ever by a winning candidate, to Trump’s total—more than 73 million.

“If the president’s prepared to begin to recognize that reality, that’s positive,” Biden’s incoming chief of staff, Ron Klain told NBC’s “Meet the Press.” Still, Klain said, “Donald Trump’s Twitter feed doesn’t make Joe Biden president or not president. The American people did that.”

A Republican governor said “it was good actually” to see Trump’s tweet that Biden won. “I think that’s the start of an acknowledgment. ... We want to make sure that there is a smooth transition,” said Arkansas’ Asa Hutchinson on NBC. The president has previously refused to accept the results of the election and, in a later tweet Sunday, he dug in again, saying, “I concede NOTHING! We have a long way to go.” Even while seemingly acknowledging Biden’s victory, he also argued without evidence that the former vice president only won because the election was “rigged.” Trump then made unsubstantiated complaints about access for poll watchers and about vote tabulations and asserted, “WE WILL WIN!” Twitter soon posted warning labels about the tweets.

There has been no widespread fraud in the 2020 election. In fact, election officials from both political parties have stated publicly that the election went well and international observers confirmed there were no serious irregularities.

Trump’s campaign has tried to mount legal challenges across the country, but many of the lawsuits have been thrown out and none has included any evidence that the outcome might be reversed.

Former President Barack Obama, in an interview conducted and aired Sunday on CBS’“60 Minutes,” said he would remind Trump that, as president, he is a public servant and a temporary occupant of the office.

“And when your time is up then it is your job to put the country first and think beyond your own ego, and your own interests, and your own disappointments,” Obama said. “My advice to President Trump is, if you want at this late stage in the game to be remembered as somebody who put country first, it’s time for you to do the same thing.”

Obama also criticized those Republicans going along with Trump’s false claims of widespread voter fraud.

“I’m more troubled by the fact that other Republican officials who clearly know better are going along with this, are humoring him in this fashion. It is one more step in delegitimizing not just the incoming Biden administration, but democracy generally. And that’s a dangerous path,” he said.

Nearly two weeks after Election Day, Trump has neither called Biden nor made a formal concession, and White House officials have insisted that they are preparing for a second term.

In recent days, Trump appeared to be inching closer to acknowledging the reality of his loss.

In comments Friday in the Rose Garden about a coronavirus vaccine, Trump said his administration would “not be going to a lockdown” to slow the spread of Covid-19, and added that “whatever happens in the future, who knows which administration it will be?

I guess time will tell.”

France infections decline

France reported 27,228 new coronavirus cases on Sunday. The seven-day average, which smooths out fluctuations in the data, shrank by 5.5 percent to 27,786, showing a continued decline over the past week. Deaths rose by 302 to 44,548 since the beginning of the pandemic.

The pressure on France’s intensivecare wards has been stabilizing in the last days, as seriously ill patients now occupy 96.5 percent of the country’s initial I.C.U. capacity, French health authorities reported. That rate rose sharply in the last weeks to reach 96.6 percent on Thursday.

Italy infections slow

Italy reported 33,979 new coronavirus cases and 546 new deaths on Sunday as regions including Florence and Naples adapted to new restrictions, including closed shops and restaurants.

Cases remain close to recent highs but have declined from a record 40,902 cases on Friday.

Sporadic protests erupted in cities including Rome and Turin against the measures taken by the government.

Bloomberg News

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson will

BioNTech scientist says vaccine could halve virus transmission ONDON—One of the scientists behind the experimental coronavirus vaccine developed by BioNTech and Pfizer said on Sunday that he was confident that it could halve the transmission of the virus, resulting in a “dramatic” curb of the virus’ spread.

Professor Ugur Sahin, chief executive of Germany’s BioNTech, said it was “absolutely essential” to have a high vaccination rate before next autumn to ensure a return to normal life next winter.

“If everything continues to go well, we will start

self-isolate after coming into contact with someone who tested positive for Covid-19, his spokesman said.

Johnson, 56, is well, isn’t showing symptoms and “will carry on working from Downing Street,” the spokesman said in a statement on Sunday.

Johnson met with members of Parliament at 10 Downing Street on Thursday and one of them, Lee Anderson, later tested positive. The prime minister overcame a bout of Covid-19 in late March and April that had him in intensive care for three nights.

Trump on Sunday renewed his groundless attacks on an election technology firm, Dominion Voting Systems, without evidence of any serious irregularities. Dominion has said it “denies claims about any vote switching or alleged software issues with our voting systems.”

The Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency, a federal agency that oversees US election security, said in a statement last week that the “November 3rd election was the most secure in American history.” The agency said, “There is no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes, changed votes, or was in any way compromised.”

In his latest fundraising e-mail, Trump told supporters that “we are fighting to ensure EVERY SINGLE LEGAL ballot is counted” and that he had “legal teams on the ground in every critical state.”

John Bolton, a former Trump national security adviser, said it was important for party leaders to explain to voters that Trump did lose and that his claims of election fraud are baseless. Bolton left the administration last year. He says he resigned; Trump says he fired Bolton.

“I think as every day goes by, it’s clearer and clearer there isn’t any evidence. But if the Republican voters are only hearing Donald Trump’s misrepresentations, it’s not surprising that they believe it,” Bolton said on ABC’s “This Week.” “It’s critical for other Republican leaders to stand up and explain what actually happened. Donald Trump lost what by any evidence we have so far was a free and fair election.”

Having none of that was Rudy Giuliani, the president’s personal attorney who is helping lead Trump’s national legal front on the election challenge.

In a television appearance that Trump previewed on Twitter after his morning tweets, Giuliani denied Trump was conceding—“No, no, no, far from it.”

“I guess,’’Giuliani told Fox News Channel’s“Sunday Morning Futures,” “you would call it sarcastic.” AP

SpaceX speeds four astronauts to space station in milestone trip

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our astronauts are cruising to the International Space Station aboard a SpaceX capsule in the company’s first regular NASA mission to the International Space Station.

The Dragon capsule is scheduled to arrive at about 11 p.m. Eastern time on Monday, more than 27 hours after blasting off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Dragon was performing as expected in orbit and would approach the station and dock automatically as programmed, said Kathy Lueders, the NASA associate administrator who oversees human spaceflight.

“It was a beautiful launch,” she said at a news conference late Sunday after the launch, adding that she was “a little bit shook up” with excitement.

The Crew-1 mission marks a crucial milestone in the development of a space industry in which private-sector companies provide business and tourism services in low-earth orbit. Following the retirement of the Space Shuttle in 2011, NASA awarded Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Boeing Co. nearly $7 billion in contracts to build new transport systems to the space station as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew program.

“A great launch!” said President Donald Trump in a tweet. President-elect Joe Biden called it “a testament to the power of science and what we can accomplish by harnessing our innovation, ingenuity, and determination.”

SpaceX’s first operational trip to the orbital lab followed a test flight with a two-person crew that returned to the planet three months ago. The latest launch occurred 18 years after Musk founded Space Exploration Technologies Corp. with the ultimate goal of populating other planets.

The company has seven additional crewed missions for NASA plus a private flight to the station in late 2021 for Houston-based Axiom Space Inc.

Musk symptoms

The Crew-1 mission launched two days after officials at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration determined that Musk, who may be infected with coronavirus, had no physical interactions with key personnel.

Musk tweeted Sunday morning that he had “no symptoms right now,” after saying a day earlier that he “most likely” has a moderate case of Covid-19.

He said late Thursday that he’d tested positive and also negative for Covid-19 in four tests, and was experiencing mild cold symptoms.

SpaceX sent its president, Gwynne Shotwell, to Florida to observe the launch. US Vice President Mike Pence also attended.

“Elon was tied in very closely to the launch,” Shotwell said at the news conference. “I have a series of texts to prove it. Regardless of where he is on the planet he is watching closely and supplying guidance and support.”

Beyond becoming the US space agency’s first regular commercial launch, the Crew-1 mission is also the first human orbital flight licensed by the Federal Aviation Administration. The regulator is assuming responsibility for public safety because the flight will be conducted by a commercial company. Bloomberg News

A6 Tuesday, November 17, 2020 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

editorial

Best and brightest

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he civil service has a crucial role in the nation’s success. But this can only be true if it is efficient and professional. If the bureaucracy has grown so unnecessarily big and overly complicated, then it only becomes a heavy burden on government budgets and facilities; a huge detriment to the communication, coordination and implementation of public policies.

Government has to be sorted, its work force counted and accounted for, a task that includes hiring the right number of people, as well as the right people for the right jobs, and paying them well so they can deliver the highest performance with full accountability.

In a recent CNN Philippines story on the Senate’s plenary debates on the budget bill, Senate President Tito Sotto III said he wants to remove redundant positions and government offices first before passing bills that will create new agencies.

It was noted in the same session that salaries and benefits of government workers already take up about 33 percent or P1.3 trillion of the proposed P4.5-trillion national budget for 2021.

Sotto has a pending bill (Senate Bill 244) that seeks to “right-size” government operations by reviewing roles and removing “redundancies, overlaps, and duplications” among employees. Covered are national agencies and their units, as well as the Legislative, Judiciary, constitutional offices, local governments, state universities and colleges, and state-run corporations.

He noted that while his bill has been languishing in the Senate, eight other bills have been filed seeking to add to the long list of government departments, including the creation of a Department for Overseas Filipino Workers, a Department for Disaster Resilience, a Department of Economic Planning and Development, a Department of Water Resources Management Act, and a Department of Fisheries.

We believe that the government must first right-size and rationalize the bureaucracy before seeking to create a bigger one. This means professionalizing it too.

Many government officials do not have career executive service officer (CESO) eligibility, despite the fact that civil service rules require it for those currently occupying career positions like department heads, Cabinet positions such as secretary, assistant secretary, deputy secretary, commission head and other third to fifth level positions in government.

CESO eligibility also covers managerial and executive positions above division chief level regardless of the appointing authority, as per Resolution 799 of the Career Executive Service Board, issued on May 19, 2009.

In contrast, those who pass the professional and subprofessional examinations of the Civil Service Commission (CSC) are qualified for appointment only to first and second level posts in the government.

The Supreme Court upheld the requirement of CESO eligibility for appointees to 3rd level or CESO classified positions to obtain security of tenure or permanence in government service.

There is a lot of merit in requiring CESO eligibility in the effort to truly professionalize the bureaucracy, make it more efficient, and ensure that those with security of tenure have truly earned it.

The CESO exam is a tough exam to pass. The passing mark is 80 percent. But there is a need for it; in the same way the CSC administers the professional and subprofessional exams for those wanting to work in government. The requirements are part of good governance and civil service reform.

Too often we complain of poorly motivated, underskilled and ill-equipped public servants. Too often we complain of government officials that are loyal to the politicians that appointed them rather than to the public they are supposed to serve.

Enlightened policymaking and implementation and good public service are not possible without building institutions such as our civil service system.

Strict implementation of CESO eligibility is a safeguard against the politicization of the bureaucracy. Of course, the selection, tenure and promotion processes can never be absolutely insulated from politics, but at least the presence of a process and requirement that must and should be followed is a deterrent.

We would like to get the best and the brightest people to work in government, to make government service not just a repository of those who have been rejected in the corporate world. Civil service exams, including the CESO exam, help ensure that the government gets good talent. Such standards can also justify the increases in emoluments and perks we give civil servants, so they can compare favorably with what the private sector pays.

Other countries like Singapore and Japan also have tough admissions criteria for their civil service.

If we want competent and honest public servants, we must have the highest standards for entry into public service.

Since 2005

BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business

The worst may be over for the Philippine economy Manny B. Villar

THE Entrepreneur

The latest report on the economy showing a contraction of 11.5 percent in the third quarter is not at all surprising. Rather, the gross domestic product (GDP) figures simply tell us that the economy has bottomed out in the second quarter and that it has slowed down its descent in the succeeding three months.

More interestingly, the slower GDP decline proves the reopening of the economy is spurring more activities compared with the second quarter and despite the challenges in the public transportation sector.

I agree with the assessment of our economic managers. As I have been writing in this column before, restrictions in public transportation are preventing many Filipino workers from rejoining the labor force, even if the government has allowed more industries to operate.

The Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases issued guidelines that effectively permitted close to 60 percent of workers in Metro Manila to resume work in September. But public transportation could only accommodate nearly 36 percent of the volume because

of social distancing rules and lower turnout of operators. This meant some 22.7 percent of workers in the capital region were unable to work even if they want to.

The GDP data recently released by the Philippine Statistics Authority seems to confirm the effect of the limited public transportation on the mobility of our workers. Among the industries that stunted the economic performance in the July-September quarter were construction, which shrank 39.8 percent; real estate and ownership of dwellings, -22.5 percent; and manufacturing, -9.7 percent.

The top 3 industries that posted positive growth, presumably because of less stringent social distancing rules involved (compared with those in the public transportation) were fi-

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I

T is always best to make nice-nice to an incoming US president regardless of who it is or what the new administration’s future policies might be. It is like greeting an uncle you do not know well but who just won the big lotto prize. Maybe he will include you in his will when he dies.

It always is and should be about the money.

If you read the domestic newspapers around Asean, for example, you get “Biden win forecast to benefit Thailand.” And of course “benefit” means “mo’money” one way or another. Here are others. “Joe Biden will further the momentum in cooperation with Vietnam.” “Biden is preferred over Trump for Indonesia’s economy growth.” “Biden may boost Malaysia-US ties.”

The reality, though, is that Trump was effectively a “third-party candidate” who happened to run under the Republican Party. He won the nomination while beating the most traditional core of Republican Party politicians; Senators Ted Cruz and

Marco Rubio, as well as Governors John Kasich, Jeb Bush, George Pataki, Scott Walker, Bobby Jindal, and Rick Perry.

What no one really wants to talk about is that for the past three or four decades, US foreign policy has been predictable. Both the Republican and Democratic parties have consistently and continuously involved the US in combat operations but for different purposes.

Simply put, Republicans go to war for profit. Dwight Eisenhower said this in his final speech as president. “Our toil, resources, and livelihood are all involved. So is the very structure of our society.

In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition

There is reason to be more upbeat in the fourth quarter. New guidelines from the Department of Trade and Industry allow more sectors to expand capacity to between 75 and 100 percent starting in October. The Department of Transportation also issued rules increasing the public transport capacity using a combination of faster turnaround, service contracting and adequate social distancing.

nancial and insurance activities, 6.2 percent; public administration and defense and compulsory social activities, 4.5 percent; and agriculture, forestry and fishing, 1.2 percent.

The economy, nonetheless, has begun to show signs of recovery. Our economic managers in a joint statement agreed that the economy on a quarter-on-quarter basis grew 8 percent in the third quarter, “reflecting the return of economic activities as the quarantine was eased.”

There is reason to be more upbeat in the fourth quarter. New guidelines from the Department of Trade and Industry allow more sectors to expand capacity to between 75 and 100 percent starting in October. The Department of Transportation also

Henry Kissinger made the US foreign policy crystal clear: “America has no permanent friends or enemies, only interests.” Combine that with the Republican “nation building” and the Democrats “supporting freedom” and what could be better for the world? of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the militaryindustrial complex.”

Simply put, Democrats go to war for domestic image. When George W. Bush was president, he was a “warmonger.” When Barrack Obama went to war—and the US was engaged in active combat every single day of his two terms—he was stopping “dictators.” Anti-war protests virtually disappeared when Obama was elected because he was supporting and defending “freedom fighters.”

Henry Kissinger made the US foreign policy crystal clear: “America has no permanent friends or enemies, only interests.” Combine that with the Republican “nation building” and the Democrats “supporting freedom” and what could be better for the world?

Obama was lauded for his “Pivot to Asia.” But note that this came after the catastrophe of the Arab Spring,

issued rules increasing the public transport capacity using a combination of faster turnaround, service contracting and adequate social distancing.

The smaller GDP contraction in the third quarter, while not ideal, may be an indication that the recovery phase is not that far and we should be prepared for it, especially now that the Covid-19 infection rate in the Philippines is declining. Our coronavirus data is encouraging and should convince foreign investors about the efforts of the government in containing the spread of the pandemic.

The Philippines, according to a Covid-19 update on November 13, 2020, now ranks outside of the top 25 nations with the most virus cases.

The Philippines is on the 26th place with 404,713 total cases and the daily infection rate down to 1,902.

Our total active cases are down to just 34,058.

Indonesia, by comparison in Southeast Asia, registered a total of 457,735 cases, ranked 21st in the world, and with total active cases of 57,604.

I believe the Philippines has managed the risks attendant to the reopening of the economy. Our workers are also responsible enough and have learned how to live with the virus.

See “Villar,” A7

which ended in mid-2012. By then North Africa was completely destabilized and the Islamic State filled that gap and by 2014, controlled a large swath from Syria to the Iranian border with Iraq. In January 2012, since all the problems of the Middle East have been solved, Obama pivots to Asia. “The key areas of action are strengthening bilateral security alliances; deepening our working relationships with emerging powers, including with China; engaging with regional multilateral institutions; expanding trade and investment; forging a broad-based military presence; and advancing democracy and human rights.”

That focus on Asia was an “amazing success”. From December 2013 to October 2015, China built artificial islands with a total area of close to 3,000 acres on seven coral reefs.

When it comes to great future trade deals with the US, that was just cut off at the knees with the final signing of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership or RCEP, led by China. 2021 is guaranteed to be even more interesting than 2020.

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

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Revisiting taxability of donations

Georgia on my mind Manny F. Dooc

TELLTALES

Atty. Rodel C. Unciano

Tax Law for Business

I

N times of calamity, donations from our kind-hearted countrymen are certainly a big help not only in giving temporary aid to the victims of calamities but in giving them as well a hope to start a new life and a hope for them to see again the light of day. This, too, is a big help to the government that is primarily responsible in seeing to it that the affected citizens are afforded the full assistance they truly deserve.

Based on our Tax Code, donations made during the calendar year in excess of P250,000 shall be subject to 6 percent donor’s tax, which the donor is required to pay to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) within 30 days from the date of donation.

Recall that under the Train Law, the uniform rate of 6 percent donor’s tax shall now apply whether the recipient of the donations are relatives of the donor or strangers.

If the donations made during the calendar year do not exceed P250,000, the donations are exempt from the imposition of donor’s tax.

But even if the amount of donations during the year exceed P250,000, the donations may still be exempt from donor’s tax if the same is given to qualified government institution or to qualified non-government donee institution.

To qualify for exemption from donor’s tax, the donations to the government must be made to or for the use of the National Government and qualified government institutions and any entity created by any of its agencies, which is not conducted for profit, or to any political subdivision of the said Government.

The exemptions shall also apply if the donations are made in favor of an educational and/or charitable, religious, cultural or social welfare corporation, institution, accredited nongovernment organization, trust or philanthropic organization or research institution or organization, provided that not more than 30 percent of said gifts shall be used by such donee for administration purposes.

Donations made to certain institutions are likewise exempt from the imposition of donor’s tax by virtue of express provision provided under the charter creating such institutions such as the Philippine Red Cross, International Rice Research Institute and the People’s Survival Fund, among others.

Villar. . .

Continued from A6

Managing risks, instead of avoiding them, according to our economic managers, will allow us to safely open more of the economy and help Filipinos recover their sources of income.

I remain optimistic about the Philippine economic recovery despite the GDP contraction that persisted in the third quarter. We are not out of the woods yet, but our strong fundamentals (stable inflation rate, gross international reserves of close

As the law provides, the exemption from donor’s tax is dependent on the status of the donee or the recipient of the donation. Hence, to determine whether the donation is exempt from donor’s tax or not, it is necessary to take into consideration the status of the donee. If the donee falls under any of the qualified exempt donee institutions as enumerated in the Tax Code or under special laws, then, the donation shall be exempt from donor’s tax.

Thus, if the donation intended to be given, whether in the form of cash or in kind, exceeds P250,000, it would be best to course said donation through a qualified donee institution in order to qualify for exemption from donor’s tax. If the donations are directly given by the donor to the victims, the exemption may not apply, no matter how noble the donor’s intention may be.

More so, if the donations are coursed through an accredited donee institution, the donor shall likewise be entitled to the full deductibility of the donations made, subject only to certain conditions.

True, the government recognizes the liberality of donors by way of giving tax benefits. However, certain conditions must be taken into consideration in order for the donor to avail herself of the full tax benefits provided under the law.

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

The article is for general information only and is not intended, nor should be construed as a substitute for tax, legal or financial advice on any specific matter. Applicability of this article to any actual or particular tax or legal issue should be supported therefore by a professional study or advice. If you have any comments or questions concerning the article, you may e-mail the author at rodel.unciano@bdblaw.com.ph or call 84032001 local 140.

to $104 billion at the end of October and a stable exchange rate) are preparing the economy toward the recovery phase.

Our young population, meanwhile, will serve as our insurance when the global economy eventually recovers and when the vaccine becomes widely available. Our young demographic, as opposed to Japan and Singapore, and our highly skilled pool of workers will certainly be a major asset in turning around the Philippine economy.

For comments, e-mail mbv.secretariat@gmail. com or visit www.mannyvillar.com.ph.

W

ho would have thought that the deep-red state in America, Georgia, would help deliver the presidency to Joe Biden? Georgia has not voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since Bill Clinton won it in 1992. That’s 28 years ago, and Bill Clinton led George H.W. Bush by a measly .59 percent of votes. Bush lost because a third-party candidate, Ross Perot, got 13.34 percent of the votes, which changed the equation. Prior to Clinton’s win, the last time Georgia voted Democratic was in 1980 when it voted for Jimmy Carter, a former Georgia governor and favorite native son, for president.

The state has voted Republican 8 times in the last 9 presidential elections. From 1992, Georgia has gradually become a Republican bastion and it is more Republican than most red states in the US. Flipping Georgia to the Democratic column has become an obsession of every Democratic candidate seeking the presidency. Recognizing that it is a top hurdle for Biden, no less than Biden’s top surrogate, former President Barack Obama, led the charge in Georgia and held campaign rallies in the state on the eve of the election. No one can doubt Obama’s influence on the black voters that have become a demographic force in Georgia politics. It is generally believed that if Trump loses Georgia, his path to the White House gets narrower since the other battleground states like Michigan, Wisconsin and even Pennsylvania were slightly in Biden’s favor. As borne out by later events, this was the case when these 3 states were called in Biden’s favor ahead of Georgia and

in wider margins of victory. Winning Georgia for Biden highlighted the critical role of Georgia in his effort to win the US presidency. With Kamala Harris and Stacey Abrams, both respected colored politicians and two of the hardest-hitting campaigners for the Democratic Party also endorsing the Democratic bet, Biden received a formidable boost in his campaign.

Watching the vote counts as the partial results from the various counties of Georgia trickled in was a nail-biting experience. During the first couple of days as the day-in votes on election day heavily favoring Trump were initially counted, Trump garnered a commanding lead over the challenger. This was also the case in other battleground states of Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania where the initial results were overwhelmingly in Trump’s favor. During the election night party held at the White House, President Trump had declared victory citing the huge margin he was enjoying

Bloomberg Opinion

G

oing by sales and stock prices, is everyone buying and making cars in China again? Not quite.

A quick review of the numbers: Passenger vehicle sales rose 9.5 percent in October from a year earlier, and have grown every month since May. Green cars, like hybrids and pure electrics, are standouts: Sales are up more than 50 percent. Stock prices for companies like BYD Co. and NIO Inc. have more than doubled this year. New model launches have boosted sentiment as local auto-

makers incline toward carbon-free.

Beijing wants such cars to account for 20 percent of all sales by 2025.

There’s no doubt that the path is toward a greener future, where electric cars and even more expensive hydrogen-powered vehicles dominate. But here’s the reality right now.

Gasoline-powered auto sales are rising, too, around 6 percent, with 1.9 million manufactured domestically sold in September. This segment accounts for around 90 percent of passenger cars sold monthly in the world’s largest market, where over 20 million autos were sold last year. Sport utility

With the big efforts shown by the Georgians to make Biden’s dream of becoming a president come true, Biden as he takes his oath of office on January 20, 2021 as the 46th president of the US will definitely have Georgia on his mind, with this sweet refrain: “Other arms will reach out to me, other eyes smile tenderly, still... the road leads back to you, yeah, Georgia!” based on the initial and partial returns to the great delight of his 250 guests that crowded the place. The following days saw that lead evaporate and even overtaken by the avalanche of Biden votes coming from the mailed-in and absentee ballots, which were counted later. Trump assumed that his early lead was insurmountable, but he knew even before the election that over 100 million voters have availed themselves of early voting by mail or in person and that such votes would be counted later after the day-in votes were dealt with. Thus, Trump knew that the early counts would be skewed in his favor. It was totally unfounded for him and preposterous to accuse the Democrats of election fraud and stealing the election. The political structures in Georgia and in other contested states are heavily Republicans with incumbent Republican governors and secretaries of state.

The US does not have a Commission on Elections similar to the Philippines’, which administers the conduct of the elections. The secretary of state supervises their elections.

If the recent election is rigged and fraudulent, how come the state officials of Georgia and other battleground states have not questioned

or challenged the conduct of the elections or its results? How come the winning candidates in the Republican slate in all these states have not denounced the results?

Georgia, like other growing states, has a diverse and expanding population, which drastically changed its demographics. This evolving population offers a changing electorate that presents ample opportunities for a progressive politician to take advantage of. Its largest city, Atlanta, has become a democratic stronghold influencing the political orientation of its sprawling suburbs.

The change of the political landscape in Georgia was due to the determined efforts of Stacey Abrams, a black female who finished her law in Yale and the 2018 Democratic senatorial bet in 2018. She narrowly lost to Brian Kemp of the Republican Party in an election marred by alleged voters’ suppression. After that heartbreaking loss, Abrams worked harder to expand voters’ turnout particularly from the minorities. Biden’s victory in Georgia is a testament that her hard work has paid off. As Abrams has commented after the election, “we have seen dramatic turnout among communities that typically are not at the top of attention for candidates.

We have seen them be engaged, be encouraged and we have seen them turn out.”

With the big efforts shown by the Georgians to make Biden’s dream of becoming a president come true, Biden as he takes his oath of office on January 20, 2021 as the 46th president of the US will definitely have Georgia on his mind, with this sweet refrain: “Other arms will reach out to me, other eyes smile tenderly, still...the road leads back to you, yeah, Georgia!”

Welcome to the might-is-right global trade era David Fickling

BLOOMBERG

I

F you wanted a demonstration of how the world’s largest free trade area is likely to fall short of expectations, you could do worse than look at the customs sheds at Shanghai’s Pudong airport.

As final preparations for signing the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership pact, or RCEP, were being made earlier this month, several metric tons of Australian lobster were being delayed at the Chinese border for several days — far longer than the six-hour time frame for perishable goods under RCEP rules. That was owing to an unofficial order from Beijing to hold up seven categories of products from the country. Diplomatic relations between the two have been fraying and China’s foreign ministry this month told Australians to “reflect upon their deeds” if they wanted a better economic relationship.

To engage in economic coercion of your trading partners while simultaneously joining them in a new trading bloc is an appropriate emblem of our times. Attempts to build a rules-based global order after the

fall of the Soviet Union have given way to a new era of might-is-right diplomacy. The trend is so pervasive that even touted free-trade deals are being shaped in its image.

To be sure, the final texts to emerge from the RCEP look surprisingly positive. India’s decision to pull out last year probably made it easier for the remaining countries to come to agreement. Possibly as a result, the wording on sticky issues like investment, services and agriculture looks stronger than anticipated, according to an analysis by Deborah Elms, executive director of the Singaporebased Asian Trade Centre.

Even so, the bloc will fall short of the sort of comprehensive agreement seen in the European Economic Area or even the reformed Trans-Pacific Partnership, known as the CPTPP, which now binds key RCEP members including Australia, Japan and

Is everyone back to buying cars? Think again

By Anjani Trivedi

Tuesday, November 17, 2020 A7

vehicles and other traditional-engine models that were beginning to find favor pre-slowdown aren’t seeing a big rebound yet.

Electric car sales—though surging—are rising from a low base and the numbers are small relative to the size of the market, with around 160,000 green autos sold in October.

Commercial and passenger new energy vehicles more than doubled last month from a year earlier. However, for the 10-month period, they fell 7.6 percent to around 875,000. That’s partly because some government subsidies were withdrawn or made harder to get

last year. Penetration remains low, at around 6 percent, according to Jefferies Group Llc. analysts.

In recent months, Beijing has released incentives to ease the purchase and financing of electric vehicles for fleets, leading to a faster uptake. Production volumes are up—70 percent or 167,000 cars in October, but that’s still down 9 percent for the whole year, according to Daiwa Capital Markets Hong Kong Ltd. analysts. Battery installations tell a similar story.

The top-line numbers and optimism shouldn’t give the illusion that the issues clouding the green dream

Vietnam after the US dropped out.

From one perspective, that doesn’t really matter. The agreement will lift China’s gross domestic product by 0.5% over the period to 2030, according to Bloomberg Intelligence economist Yuki Masujima. South Korea, which hasn’t hitherto joined a major trade bloc, will see a 1.4% benefit, while the uplift for Japan will be 1.3%.

The trouble is that those gains, while real, are so modest. The vision that drove the founding of the World Trade Organization saw nations across the world reducing their tariffs, harmonizing their rules and agreeing to a common dispute and enforcement mechanism to encourage more commerce and investment across borders.

The RCEP and CPTPP revert to an older vision of trading blocs, where deepening integration within the zone is matched by fraying ties with outsiders. An outgrowth of the Association of Southeast Asian nations, the RCEP is increasingly now seen as a sort of Pax Sinica, binding the region into a China-led global order. CPTPP, for its part, was explicitly sold as an American attempt to restrain China’s global ambitions before Washington itself quit the grouping.

That feels less like free trade and more like imperial preference, which prevailed across much of the world in the late 19th and early 20th cen-

turies. Under that system, Europe’s powers ran trade surpluses with their empires while erecting barriers externally. The withering of intraEuropean economic ties ultimately contributed to the disaster of the First World War. As authors Matthew Klein and Michael Pettis have written, the uneven balance of payments also impoverished the colonies on which the system depended. That pattern is being repeated now, as inequality within major trading nations and the imbalances between them feed off each other in a deepening spiral that’s driving dissatisfaction, unrest and nationalist populism.

On their own, neither the RCEP nor CPTPP are going to take us down that road. As we’ve written, four years of fiery rhetoric between Beijing and Washington haven’t stopped China from becoming ever more integrated with the world economy. Still, the World Trade Organization has been turned into a toothless tiger, and even its current diminished form is under attack, with the US vetoing Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala’s bid to take over as director-general. Despite a recovery from the depths of coronavirus, world trade volumes are still running at their lowest levels in four years. We shouldn’t let the signing of a new deal blind us to the parlous state of global commerce.

are gone. For now, the ownership and charging infrastructure costs remain huge barriers. Investors should probably take their enthusiasm down a notch, consider that we’re not there yet, and temper future expectations.

The companies that succeed will be those that were conservative and realistic all along.

In a recent Toyota Motor Corp. earnings call, President Akio Toyoda responded to a question about Tesla Inc. by opining that Elon Musk’s company hasn’t yet created a real business in the real world, “but they’re trying to trade the recipes, and the chef is

saying that, well, our recipe is going to become the standard of the world in the future.” Toyota, he continued, has “a real kitchen, and we have a real chef, too” serving actual dishes to picky customers. Not to be a complete Debbie Downer, but think about these facts: Top-end automakers with incomparable manufacturing prowess like BMW AG are grappling with battery fires.

Tesla recalled 30,000 cars in China.

While electric vehicles and consumers need government incentives—which are increasingly being given—there’s something to be said about safe, reliable cars that people want to drive.

A8 Tuesday, November 17, 2020

RCEP won’t lead to surge in alien labor, says DOLE

T

HE recent signing of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) will not lead to a surge of foreign nationals (FN) working in the country, according to the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).

Labor Assistant Secretary Dominique Tutay issued the clarification when she discussed the labor-related provision of the RCEP. She noted this includes the country’s commitment to allowing “movement of natural persons” related to intra-corporate transferring and business visitors.

“We opened that up so they [foreign investors] could see the good climate to invest here in the Philippines,” Tutay said.

Status quo

But she noted that even before the free trade agreement (FTA) was signed on Sunday, the country was already exempting FN, who are classified as intra-corporate transfers or business visitors, from getting an Alien Employment Permit (AEP).

Instead they would only have to get a certificate of exclusion (COE) from DOLE based from its Department Order No. 186, Series of 2017.

“So our rule for foreign nationals is still the same,” Tutay said.

Tutay reiterated the government position that the signing of RCEP will translate to more employment opportunities for local workers by

making it easier for companies to export their products to countries, which signed RCEP. The pact was signed by the 10 Association of Southeast Asian Nation (Asean) members—Brunei, Myanmar, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Philippines— together with China, Japan, New Zealand and Australia.

Negative impact

Members of the Trade Justice Pilipinas (TJP) opposed the signing of RCEP since they claim it could overwhelm Asean countries with imports from bigger countries.

“For the Philippines, we would see the cost of imports rise by as much as US$908 million, with sharp increases in imports from South Korea, China and Vietnam,” TJP said in a statement.

“On the other hand, the value exports to RCEP countries is only expected to increase by around US$4.4 million. Trace balance with RCEP countries will worsen by US$904 million per year,” it added.

TJP also criticized the governments which negotiated the RCEP for unilaterally finalizing the document without consulting stakeholders.

Another negative impact of the FTA, it said, was its restrictions on the “policy space” of the countries which signed it and are now bound to comply with its provisions.

Samuel P. Medenilla

CDA goes full blast on probe of dummies of rice importers

T

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

@jearcalas

HE Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) said it will conduct a thorough investigation of erring cooperatives that are being used as dummies or fronts by unscrupulous traders to take advantage of tax incentives in importing rice.

CDA Chairman Orlando R. Ravanera told the BusinessMirror that he has instructed his legal team to kick-start the investigation as the dummy-for-traders scheme taints the reputation of legitimate cooperatives in the country.

Ravanera said their investigation also seeks to unmask the backers and financiers of the cooperatives, whom he tagged as the ultimate culprits in the dummy scheme.

The CDA will also investigate the participation of the external auditors in the issue, he added.

He said CDA will engage the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) to get

the list of cooperatives suspected of being dummies of unscrupulous traders and start the investigation from there.

Ravanera said they had conducted an investigation before and have issued cease-and-desist orders to erring cooperatives involved in the dummy scheme for rice importation.

“As a regulatory agency, it behooves upon us to really investigate errant cooperatives and sanction them. We will focus on this issue and we will investigate even the participation of the auditors,” he said.

“We will leave no stone un-

turned,” he added.

Ravanera said the blanket ban is discriminatory against legitimate cooperatives, particularly those that have the financial and technical capacity to really engage in the rice importation business. (Related story: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2020/10/23/ consensus-reached-on-rice-imports-reforms/) “Cooperativism is a liberative force against poverty. And if they use this for unscrupulous dealings —that is for me a very big crime, a black eye to the cooperative movement; hence they should be made accountable,” he said.

On October 30, Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar issued Ad m i n ist rat ive Order 34, S. 2020 order ing the suspension of sanitary and phytosanitary impor t clearance (SPS -IC) to cooperatives and associations, including ir r igators’ associations, for commercial purposes until further notice.

“It has been noted that contrary to the purpose of farmers’ cooperatives and associations a nd i r r igators’ a ssoc i at ions, many FCAs and IAs have been engaged in importing rice instead of procuring local rice from local farmers. FCAs and IAs imported

’21 budget must fund rehab of Luzon agri power houses

By Butch Fernandez

T

@butchfBM

HE proposed P4.5 trillion 2021 national budget must have provisions for the rehabilitation of agriculture “power houses” feeding the nation which were devasted by the series of ty phoons that hit the countr y, Senate Preside nt P ro Te mp ore R a lph Recto asserted Monday.

Recto said the rehabilitation of farms damaged by the typhoons should be “expressed explicitly” in the 2021 national budget, “or hunger looms.”

Recto pointed out that the affected provinces, including Isabela, Cagayan, Bulacan, Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Pangasinan account for 38 percent of the country’s palay harvest, 37 percent of chicken production, and almost one-fifth of swine output.

The initiative of funding these areas’ rehabilitation “is like buying a vaccine against hunger, which is more lethal than the virus,” said Recto, recalling that the affected farmers “fed us during this pandemic. It is time to return the favor.”

At the same time, Senate Major it y Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri suggested to Sen ate P resident V icente Sotto III to convene an allsenators’ caucus to firm up the lawmakers’ position to “right-size agencies for prior it y response and merge agencies on disaster resilience, saying “there should be a go-to agency” to ensure prompt reaction.

In a statement, Recto pointed out that “in a country that sits atop the earthquake corridor and is the doormat to the typhoon alley, it is but inevitable that disasters become

macroeconomic assumptions of the national budget.”

He noted that typhoons, floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions “do not only rearrange the lay of the land, they can also reconfigure budgetary priorities.”

“So, when a trio of typhoons blew houses away, it also knocked down a few of the scaffoldings upon which this budget is made,” said Recto, adding: “And when they f looded the country’s food basket, a great part of the budget became waterdamaged too.”

The Senate President Pro Tempore likened the wrath of the latest typhoon to hit the country as “a punch to the gut,” saying partly in Filipino: “Typhoon Ulysses hit the country’s food basket – the fertile plains of Cagayan Valley and Central Luzon. The typhoons overturned a huge cauldron of food.”

He noted that the affected regions are also major poultry and livestock producers, adding: “They combine into one contiguous agricultural powerhouse, a major contributor to the only sector which by posting growth over the past three quarters has proved itself to be pandemic-proof.”

“Urgently rehabilitating Ulysses-hit farmlands is a must if we want to eat tomorrow,” the senator stressed, adding: “Helping the farmers in these areas helps us more than it helps them. Covid kills by hunger. We should not allow typhoons to make a pandemic more brutal.”

At the same time, Recto reminded his peers that “a proposed budget cannot ignore disasters. It cannot be immune to changes required to fix the destruction disasters have wrought.”

almost half of the volume imported rice in 2019,” Dar said in the order.

“Adding insult to injury, there have been numerous reports that the SPS-ICs issued for importing rice have been misused or abused by unscrupulous traders and businesses using farmers’ cooperatives and irrigators associations as fronts. Taking advantage of the privileges provided by the law to the cooperatives to avoid their legal responsibilities and evade taxes,” he added.

Dar also ordered the BPI to investigate the situation and consult with affected stakeholders to come up with new policies and rules “to avoid circumvention of the laws” that would protect both farmers and their cooperatives from exploitation and abuse.

The BusinessMirror broke t he stor y l ast yea r t hat unscrupulous traders continue to use farmers cooperatives’ and a ssoc i at ion s a s t he i r f ront s and dummies even after the rice industr y was liberalized.

(Read the award-winning story here: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2019/1 0/31/ pre-and-post-rice-trade-liberalization-law-big-tradersgaming-farmer–groups/).

PHL may risk losing MCC fund access–solon

T

HE Philippines may no longer be able to access funding from the Washington-based Millennium Challenge Corp. (MCC) given the country's very low ratings in the institution's scorecard for 2021.

In a plenary hearing on Monday, Senator Joel Villanueva said the assessment made by the MCC should not be taken lightly.

In 2017, the Philippines withdrew its application from the MCC to focus its efforts on rebuilding Marawi.

CNN reports earlier quoted Malacañang as saying that the withdrawal was not linked with the country's failure to meet the MCC's standards on rule of law and curbing corruption. "[The] Washington-based MCAccount has given the Philippines a failing mark for its inability to curb corruption, [increase] health expenditures, [improve] immunization rates, access to credit, among others and thus ineligible for grants," Villanueva said. "I hope that we will be able to discuss some of the issues here while we tackle this very, very important measure, which is the national budget."

Based on the 2021 scorecard of the MCC for the Philippines, the country did not meet the MCC's standards on access to credit which is only 36 percent and Business Start-Up at 29 percent.

The country also failed in meeting MCC standards for control of corruption, which is at 39 percent; Rule of Law at 46 percent; and Freedom of Information, 32 percent.

The data also showed that the Philippines did not meet MCC standards in health expenditures which is currently at 21 percent; primary education expenditures where there is no data; and immunization rates, 11 percent.

The country's percentile ranking was the highest in Regulatory Quality at 93 percent; Government Effectiveness, 89 percent; and Land Rights and Access, 80 percent.

Continued on A3

News BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Surigao OFW turned entrep reaps success in her ventures

Conservation group slams ‘encroachment’ of firm into Marikina protected landscape

By Jonathan L. Mayuga @jonlmayuga

C

LILIBETH shares her inspiring story and words of encouragement during DTI SDN OIC Provincial Director Elmer M. Natad’s visit to Memorada Farm.

S

URIGAO City meet Lilibeth Arce, an all-around entrepreneur who used to be an overseas Filipina worker who has embarked into entrepreneurship with many ventures.

From being the chairman of Trinidad Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Cooperative (TARBECO), a food processing cooperative located at Barangay Trinidad, to managing her own carinderia and the local bagsakan outlet for farmer’s crops, Casa de Verdura, she is also the president of Marajaw Karajaw Local Producers and Exhibitors Association, cooperator of OTOP (one town one product) Hub Surigao City, a pasalubong center located at the Luneta Park, this city.

Just recently, she added another feather to her cap when she put up the Memorada Farm, a 1.7-hectare agritourism haven. It is a vegetation site for ginger, eggplant, okra (lady finger), string beans, chili and bell peppers, among others, amid flowering and beautiful shrubs lined by several mango trees. It also has pigpens and chicken coops for fighting and freerange native chickens.

But what draws us into her world

even more and prompted a visit from the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Surigao del Norte Officer in Charge Provincial Director Elmer M. Natad was her recently opened egglayer machine for 1,000 chickens.

Nestled almost at the edge of her land bordered by the Surigao River was a structure built to supply the egg requirement not only within Trinidad but also for Surigao City and nearby municipalities such as Placer.

Although it opened last March 2020 when Covid-19 pandemic had just started to be felt in the country, she was not daunted by its effect but instead gave her an additional drive to work on the venture. She became hands on in the operations (procuring feeds and tending to the chickens) and meticulously keeps track on how the egg business works.

She first started by selling eggs around the neighborhood and tap agencies such as the Department of Trade and Industry to help her market her eggs. Not long after, she started harvesting an average of 900 eggs daily. Pretty soon, egg dealers started stopping by at her farm to buy all her eggs.

Tuesday, November 17, 2020 A9

ONSERVATION advocates on Monday questioned the alleged encroachment by a private company of a vast portion of the Upper Marikina River Basin Protected Landscape (UMRBPL) amid clamor to stop the further degradation of the Marikina Watershed following the massive flood caused by Typhoon Ulysses early this month.

The Masungi Georeserve Foundation (Masungi) has called for the immediate removal of the private security guards of Rublou Inc. and its subsidiary Green Atom, a renewable energy firm, after a supervising security guard threatened one of its Board of Trustees with bodily harm during a verbal confrontation on Sunday, November 15.

The security guard was caught on video in a verbal tussle with Masungi Trustee Ann Dumaliang and even suggested that the company is working with the Provincial Environment and Natural Resource Office (PENRO) in Rizal province.

This even as the PENRO-Rizal has already issued Rublou and Green Atom a “show-cause” order last October 26.

PENRO Rizal Isidro Mercado, in a telephone interview with the BusinessMirror belied taking sides with Rublou against Masungi over the issue. He confirmed that a show-cause order has in fact been issued directing Rublou to show proof of their legal stay, or occupation of the area.

“It’s not true that I am taking sides on this issue. We have already issued a show-cause order against Rublou and it is now with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources

Central Office,” he said.

Mercado said that the DENR Central Office has now taken cognizance of Rublou’s case. Led by a certain Mr. Luizo Ticman, reportedly a retired military general, and member of Philippine Military Army Class of 1976, Green Atom is allegedly planning to establish a solar energy farm in the Marikina Watershed, an area already devastated by quarry operations in the towns of Montalban and Angono.

The devastation of the Marikina Watershed is being blamed for the massive flooding in Metro Manila.

The UMRBPL and the entire Marikina Watershed has been described by Masungi as already in “Stage 4 Cancer” because of environmental degradation. The UMRBPL was established after the 2009 flash flood caused by Ondoy that submerged Marikina City and other parts of Metro Manila, including some low-lying Rizal towns. The DENR was supposed to ensure the massive rehabilitation of the UMRBPL and prevent the further denudation and degradation of what remains of its forest cover.

According to Dumaliang, since the dismantling of Rublou and Atom’s steel fences and structures by the DENR and Masungi park rangers on October 25, the company’s security guards inside the protected area have more than doubled.

The guards reportedly continue to patrol at least 500 hectares of the watershed.

“We are very disturbed by this latest development right on the heels of the devastation of Ulysses, which is brought about by the denudation and abuse of the upper Marikina watershed,” Dumaliang said in a news statement.

Dumaliang reported that on November 9, 2020, suspicious movements by unidentified and unauthorized individuals prompted a pursuit with Philippine Army personnel army deployed in the area.

Rublou and Atom are claiming to have the authority from an Indigenous People’s group in Antipolo, which has a Certificate of Ancestral Domain Claim in the area.

But Dumaliang said upon verification by their group, indigenous groups from Antipolo deny involvement with Rublou.

Tribal leaders even issued a statement dated October 30, 2020, signed by 24 tribal elders, chieftains, and officers, the Tribong DumagatRemontados ng Antipolo, denying involvement in the deployment of armed guards by Rublou Inc. Rublou’s has issued an official statement dated October 26, 2020, where the company allegedly claimed that the tribe asked for “help in the deployment of security guards.

Rublou also released another statement entitled “Official Statement of the Dumagat-Remontados” signed by an Atty. Juancho Botor, who claimed to be the tribe’s “legal counsel.”

The statement alleged that the tribe asked Mr. Ticman, owner of Rublou, for “funding to buy arms to protect themselves.”

But Dumaliang said that instead of buying arms, Mr. Ticman allegedly engaged the services of licensed security guards since 2018.

The Tribong Dumagat-Remontados ng Antipolo also denied that Atty.

Juancho Botor is their legal counsel, Dumaliang said.

Despite repeated requests, Rublou and Green Atom still could not present any legal document or

permit to justify their occupation and actions within the watershed, Dumaliang said.

The Masungi Geopark, the joint reforestation project of Masungi and the DENR, the UMRBPL has been declared a protected area in 2011 and occupation, sale, disposition, and other destructive activities therein have been prohibited since 1904 due to its importance as a watershed reservation.

“We call on our President Duterte and our partners at the DENR led

by Secretary [Roy] Cimatu to protect the integrity of this critical watershed by immediately causing Rublou to vacate the protected area, including the patch of Benguet pine trees grown by the government in the 1970’s,” said Dumaliang.

“A show-cause order was reportedly issued on October 26, 2020, by the PENRO Rizal. The DENR mandated that Rublou would only be given three days to present their documents. It is now more than two weeks from that deadline,” Dumaliang said.

Dumaliang is urging the National Bureau of Investigation and the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission to assist the DENR and help investigate and address what it describes as “wholesale buying and selling of forest land and land scams” in a protected area as a matter of national interest and welfare.

“This shall be made in conjunction with the President’s renewed drive against corruption. We believe it is in the interest of the Department of Energy [DOE] and the entire Philippine renewable-energy industry to review the integrity of Green Atom’s renewable-energy projects given the business practices and ethics it displays,” Dumaliang said.

Lawmaker says DBM ordered to expedite release of addl calamity funds to LGUs Red Cross steps up rescue, relief efforts in flood-stricken Cagayan and Isabela towns

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

P

RESIDENT Duterte has ordered the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to expedite the release of additional calamity assistance to typhoon-hit provinces, a senior lawmaker said on Monday.

Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Raymund Villafuerte said the President has instructed budget officials to fast-track the release of additional calamity assistance to CamSur and other provinces devastated by the three successive powerful typhoons.

Villafuerte also said the President has approved the Bicol river dredging project, which the congressman had proposed to the Chief Executive along with his request to augment the depleted calamity funds of local government units (LGUs) reeling from the four-fold blow by typhoons Quinta, Rolly and Ulysses along with the prolonged Covid-19 pandemic.

The lawmaker said the President gave the go-signal for the dredging of the heavily silted Bicol River to spare CamSur and its surrounding areas from massive flooding during the typhoon season. But the President thumbed down a proposal for a committee to oversee the project and said he prefers only one person to lead it to ensure the project’s

swift implementation.

“The people of CamSur thank our President for approving our request to augment the calamity assistance funds of all LGUs whose outlays have probably been exhausted already because of the three strong typhoons in succession—Quinta, Rolly and Ulysses— along with their Covid-19 response efforts,” Villafuerte said.

The President ordered the DBM to expedite the release of the additional calamity assistance to typhoon-hit provinces during a situation briefing with local executives led by Villafuerte and son, Governor Migz Villafuerte, and several Cabinet officials in CamSur. For his part, Gov. Villafuerte informed the President about a 2013 World Bank study that underscored the importance of dredging the Bicol River, which can be implemented in phases starting next year.

“We would be glad to accommodate you, whatever it is. If the World Bank is doing the project study. Sige kung may pera [go ahead if there’s money],” President Duterte told the CamSur governor.

Villafuerte recalled that during a DBM situation briefing in the capital town of Pili following the year-ago Supertyphoon Usman, President Duterte bared his plan to abolish the graftridden Road Board and put its

multibillion-peso fund to better use, particularly for flood-control projects in Bicol.

As regards the calamity fund augmentation, DBM Assistant Secretary Kim Robert de Leon told Mr. Duterte that once a formal request for additional calamity assistance is submitted to the Office of the President, it would take only about a week’s time for the Department to release the funds to the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr), which will then download the money to the concerned LGUs.

NDRRMC recommendation

THE National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) will recommend to President Duterte the placing of Luzon under a state of calamity due to the massive and widespread damages brought by successive Typhoons Quinta, Rolly and Ulysses.

The decision was made during an emergency full council meeting led by NDRRMC Chairman and Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, wherein other matters were also discussed, including the impacts of the three typhoons and early recovery responses.

“It was approved during the meeting the recommendation for President Rodrigo Duterte to place under state of calamity the entire Luzon to address the impacts of the latest

typhoons that hit the country,” the NDRRMC said in a news statement.

“It was also agreed during the meeting to convene a technical working group of the joint prevention, mitigation, and preparedness clusters of the NDRRMC to assess the current dam management,” it added as the council apparently took the issues raised by local officials and residents who blamed the massive flooding in Cagayan Valley on the release of waters from dam.

Mayor Marcy Teodoro of Marikina City had also earlier blamed the release of waters from the Angat Dam over the city’s massive flooding, even threatening to file charges against dam officials.

D u r i ng t he meet i ng , t he NDRRMC also instructed PAGASA to “revisit its historical data to strengthen warnings beforehand.”

The NDRRMC through its outgoing spokesman Mark Timbal reported that Ulysses had already affected at least 523,871 families or 2,074, 301 individuals in Regions 1, 2, 3, 4A, 4B and 5 and in the Cordillera Administrative Region and National Capital Region.

At least 69 people have also been killed while 21 were injured and another 13 still missing.

The typhoon has also damaged nearly P2.5 billion worth of agriculture products and government projects.

P

RC Humanitarian Caravan for Cagayan and Isabela flood affected areas.

As the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) continues its response to Typhoon Ulysses (international code name Vamco) in different parts of Luzon, the country’s foremost humanitarian organization sent an augmentation support to Cagayan Valley after many houses in various towns in the region were submerged due to heavy rains brought by the typhoon.

On Saturday, PRC Chairman and CEO Sen. Richard J. Gordon immediately ordered the deployment of staff and volunteers to conduct rescue and relief operations in the area.

“Cagayan needs our help badly, so, we immediately sent our teams there with rescue vehicles and boats. Our volunteers from Subic and Nueva Vizcaya also went there to support our rescue operations in flooded areas, while the Red Cross Cagayan chapter started distributing hot meals and provide the needed assistance to the residents at the evacuation centers,” said Gordon.

On Sunday afternoon, another

team of Red Cross staff and volunteers were deployed to Cagayan including volunteers from Water, Search and Rescue (WASAR) team from Cavite.

The PRC also sent a 10,000-liter water tanker, one food truck, one ambulance, one rescue boat, one Land Cruiser that will be used for assessing the situation in the area, and two 10-wheeler trucks that carry non-food items to be distributed to the residents.

The non-food items include 500 sets of sleeping kits, jerry cans, hygiene kits and tarpaulins.

“We have mobilized all our available resources to meet this new challenge, supporting communities that are getting back on their feet after being hit hard by multiple storms on top of the relentless physical, emotional and economic toll of Covid-19,” Gordon said.

Typhoon Ulysses is the 13th big storm that hit the country this year. Aside from Cagayan Valley, it also affected the National Capital Region, various parts of Central Luzon, the province of Rizal and some areas in Bicol.

Filipino homegrown companies assert dominance in 2020 Asean Business Awards in Vietnam

By Roderick L. Abad Contributor

T

HE Philippines dominated the 2020 Asean Business Awards (ABA) held at the Hanoi Daewoo Hotel in Vietnam, with homegrown companies clinching 13 out of the 53 accolades given to the most outstanding and successful firms

and entrepreneurs that have made significant contributions to the economy of the Asean block.

Of the country’s 98 entries, 12 finalists made it to the shortlist. Together with one nominated winner from Asean Coordinating Committee on Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise (ACCMSME), the 13 winning Filipino enterprises all received

recognition at the Asean level.

“I am pleasantly surprised by the turnout indicating the strong interest of the business community to participate in the awards,” said Joey Concepcion, chairman of Asean Business Advisory Council.

“ABA is an excellent platform to bring local companies up to a regional standard, increase their competitive-

ness, and strengthen cross-border collaboration,” he added.

The winning local firms and their respective awards are as follows: Potato Corner, SME Excellence-Growth; Stylist in Pocket Technologies Inc., SME ExcellenceInnovation; Foodsphere Inc., Family Business Award; and Halo-Halo de Iloko, Inclusive Business, Knowledge

Partner-ACCMSME. Motorline Trading Inc., 3D Container & Packaging Philippines Corp., and Titan Barong of Lumban all claimed the SME Excellence-Employment award.

Wellmade Motors and Development Corp. brought home two citations: SME Excellence-CSR and Family Business Awards.

For outstanding individual category, Rossana Ladaga-Llenado of AHEAD Learning Systems Inc. bagged the Woman Entrepreneur title.

This year, the ABA judging panel launched a new award category, Combating Covid-19, to honor outstanding businesses and enterprises in the region that have contributed to the prevention of the pandemic.

BusinessMirror

A10 Tuesday, November 17, 2020

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS NO.

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

POSITION

8 STONE BUSINESS OUTSOURCING OPC 5-10/f Tower 1 Pitx Kennedy Road Tambo Parañaque City 1.

CHEN, HELONG, Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

2.

LI, TAO, Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

3.

QIN, MAOFA, Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

4.

TONG, LIN, Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

NO.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS POSITION

NO.

39.

WANG, LIUSHUAI Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

FUXINGYING CAIYUN HENTONG, CORP. 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th Floor Eton Ewestpod Chino Roces Avenue Cor. Yakal & Malugay Streets San Antonio Makati City

40.

WU, WENQIANG Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

79.

HE, GUAN Chinese

KORGUSTOFIL CORP. Pb-g015 Ortigas Technopoint Bldg. Ortigas Home Depot, Julia Vargas Ave. Ugong Pasig City

41.

WU, JIE Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

42.

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

HE, JIHUA Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

113.

ZHANG, LINGLINGs Chinese

80.

LIU, XIAOBIN Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

82.

LUO, DIYONG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

83.

MAO, NING Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

84.

PEK HUI JIAN Malaysian

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

85.

WANG, GUANGFEI Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

86.

WU, HAO Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

87.

YONG JUN KAI Malaysian

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

88.

YU CHEK HENG Malaysian

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

89.

DENG, YUANCHENG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE-MANDARIN SPEAKING

90.

FENG, LONG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE-MANDARIN SPEAKING

91.

HUANG, YUBING Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE-MANDARIN SPEAKING

92.

JING, JIANJUN Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE-MANDARIN SPEAKING

93.

ZHOU, HAITAO Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE-MANDARIN SPEAKING

94.

ZHOU, GUOJIANG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE-MANDARIN SPEAKING

95.

ZUO, YONGXING Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE-MANDARIN SPEAKING

BRIGHTLEISURE MANAGEMENT INC. 10/f Newport Entertainment & C Newport City Manlunas Brgy. 183 Pasay City 43.

WONG MENG CHYI Malaysian

VIP MARKETING SENIOR MANAGER

WANG, XUELAN, Chinese

WU, JIXIANG, Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

44.

7.

YE, XIAORONG, Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

CCK CITY NETWORKS, INC. Unit 3401-08, 34/f One San Miguel Avenue Condo. San Miguel Ave. Cor. Shaw Blvd. Ortigas Center Pasig City

8.

CHEN, HELONG, Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

45.

6.

ACQUIRE ASIA PACIFIC PHILIPPINES INC. Lg-c Worldwide Corporate Center Edsa Cor. Shaw Blvd.

Mandaluyong City 9.

MOUANDJO ASSOUGA, CAROLINE, Cameroonian

TECHNICAL SUPPORT REPRESENTATIVE

AICE BRANDS ICE CREAM PHILIPPINES INC. U-204, Armal Bldg. C. Raymundo Avenue Maybunga Pasig City 10.

ZHA, ZHIXIN, Chinese

OPERATING DIRECTOR

11.

BAI, DONGSHENG, Chinese

SALES DIRECTOR

ANOC99 CORPORATION 5/f Ayala Malls Manila Bay Building D. Macapagal Blvd. Cor. Aseana Street Tambo Parañaque City

CAPGEMINI PHILIPPINES CORP. 12f, Ten West Campus Bldg. Le Grand Avenue, Mckinley West Fort Bonifacio Taguig City LI, JIANGZHOU Chinese

SAITO, KEISHI, Japanese

46.

ALVAREZ GARCIA, JORGE LUIS, Venezuelan

47.

AMOROCHO PEDRAZA, OSCAR DANIEL, Colombian

48.

HSIEH, CHING-CHANG Taiwanese

50.

HUANG, XIULING Chinese

MARKETING AND SALES AGENT MARKETING AND SALES AGENT MARKETING AND SALES AGENT

49.

LE THAI VINH Vietnamese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

51.

HUANG, WENBO Chinese

14.

NGUYEN HUU TUAN Vietnamese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

52.

HUO, PENGCHAO Chinese

ASIAN TECHNOLOGY SERVICES, INC. 11/f Tower 2 Double Dragon, Macapagal Blvd. Brgy. 076 Pasay 16.

KIM, HYUNPYO South Korean

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

ADVISOR I, SALES

MARKETING AND SALES AGENT

13.

OPERATIONS MANAGER

SENIOR PROCESS EXECUTIVE

HUANG, MEILING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

KABIR, HUMAIUN Bangladeshi

SENIOR PROCESS EXECUTIVE

EASTERN GOLD CORPORATION 503 Nueva St Binondo Manila

CAO VAN TRONG Vietnamese

15.

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT OFFICER

COGNIZANT TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS PHILIPPINES, INC. 5th And 6th Floors, 8/10 Upper Mckinley Building Mckinley Hill Cyberpark Fort Bonifacio Taguig City

12.

ARKA FASHION WEAR INC. 2b-14 999 Shopping Mall Bldg. 1 Soler St., Binondo 028, Brgy. 293 Binondo Manila

SENIOR ASSOCIATE (A4)

FIRST GREAT COMPUTER TECHNOLOGIES INC. Lot 5 Sta. Agueda Cor. Queensway Pagcor Drive Sto. Niño Parañaque City 53.

HOU, ZHIQIANG, Chinese

IT TECHNICAL MANDARIN

54.

LUO, HONGLI, Chinese

IT TECHNICAL MANDARIN

FLYING DRAGON NETWORK PHILIPPINES INC. 4th-11th Floor Aseana 3 Building Aseana Avenue Corner Diosdado Macapagal Tambo Parañaque City

AVANTICE CORPORATION 19/f Pbcom Tower Ayala Ave. Bel-air Makati City

55.

CHANG, ZHIFAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

17.

JIANG, LI, Chinese

OPERATIONS EXECUTIVE

LI, HAITING Chinese

18.

KIEWKAEW, SONGKLOD, Thai

56.

OPERATIONS EXECUTIVE

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

LIN, CHUN-TA, Taiwanese

57.

19.

OPERATIONS EXECUTIVE

LI, CANHUA Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

58.

MA, XUAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

59.

PENG, YING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

60.

SU, SHIPING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

61.

TANG, CHENWEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

20.

PHAM THI KIM LUYEN Vietnamese

21.

TRAN THUY DIEM PHUONG Vietnamese

22.

ZHAO, LING, Chinese

OPERATIONS EXECUTIVE OPERATIONS EXECUTIVE WEB DESIGN ASSOCIATE

BETCONSULT INTERNATIONAL CONSULTING, INC. Office #01 20a/b Rufino Pacific Tower 6784 Ayala Ave. San Lorenzo Makati City 23.

ZHANG, SHAN, Chinese

MARKETING SPECIALIST (MANDARIN SPEAKING)

BIG EMPEROR TECHNOLOGY CORP. 5f-13f, Jiaxing Tower Building Aseana Avenue, Aseana Business Park Tambo Parañaque City

62.

63.

WANG, NAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

WANG, SANFENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

24.

THIEN JEE CHUNG Malaysian

COMPUTER SYSTEM ANALYST

64.

WANG, NAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

25.

HUANG, CANHUANG Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

65.

WANG, ZHEHAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

26.

LIANG, YINGFA Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

66.

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

27.

WANG, ZIMIN Chinese

XIA, JI Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

67.

28.

CAI, PENG Chinese

XIA, WENPEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

CHEN, JIAXIONG Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

68.

XIAO, BO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

69.

CHEN, KUIREN Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

XIAO, YU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

70.

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

31.

CHEN, YINGJIE Chinese

YANG, YUSEN Chinese

71.

YIN, XU Chinese

32.

CHEN, ZHENZHEN Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

72.

33.

CHIN KAI LUN Malaysian

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

34.

FU, YU Chinese

35.

KYIN HWAY Myanmari

29.

30.

36.

37.

38.

LIU, XUAN Chinese SIM SU MEI Malaysian WANG, GUOQIN Chinese

81.

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKING

5.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

POSITION

HAMMERTIME CONSTRUCTION INC. Unit 203-s3 2nd Flr. Fbr Arcade Bldg. #317 Katipunan Ave. Loyola Heights 3 Quezon City 96.

SHA, SHUO, Chinese

SHIN, JUNG HOON South Korean

ASSISTANT PLANNING MANAGER

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES PHILS. INC. U-5302, 53/f Pbcom Tower 6795 Ayala Ave., Cor., V.a. Rufino St. Bel-air Makati City 98.

CHEN, WEI, Chinese

FINANCIAL ANALYST FOR PLDT LONG TERM EVOLUTION (LTE) PROJECT

INFINILAND DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION Units A&b 20/f Rufino Pacific Tower 6784 Ayala Ave. Cor. V.a.

Rufino St. San Lorenzo Makati City 99.

MA, LIANJIE, Chinese

EXECUTIVE MANDARIN TRANSLATOR

100.

XU, YUNFEI, Chinese

EXECUTIVE MANDARIN TRANSLATOR

101.

XU, YANGYANG, Chinese

EXECUTIVE MANDARIN TRANSLATOR

INTEGRITY GLOBAL GROUP, INC. 2/f-3/f Ayala Malls Circuit A.p. Reyes Ave. Carmona Makati City 102.

LU, WENGUANG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

KILTON INVESTMENTS HOLDING CO. INC 1106 P. Binay St. San Isidro Makati City 103.

KIKUCHI, AKIHIRO Japanese

HEAD OF ENGINEERING DEPARTMENTMAINTENANCE AND SERVICE

KONGANBUDDIES MARKETING INC. 12/f Pbcom Tower 6795 Ayala Ave. Cor. V.a. Rufino St. Bel-air Makati City 104.

LIM CHIA LIAN Malaysian

FINANCE DIRECTOR

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

105.

DANNY WOON TAI HIEN Malaysian

HEAD OF OPERATIONS

ZHANG, QIUYUE Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

106.

SAW YI LOON Malaysian

IT BUSINESS ANALYST

73.

ZHANG, HAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

107.

LIM CHIA HUAN Malaysian

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

74.

ZHANG, RUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

PAYMENT AND FRAUD RISK DIRECTOR

108.

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

ZHANG, WAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

THAI CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

75.

JANTAWIMOL, THANAWAN Thai

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

109.

76.

ZHAO, YUZE Chinese

KHIAOMANEE, VINAI Thai

THAI CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

77.

FUNG JIE SIN Malaysian

MALAYSIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

110.

LONSIW, THANAWUT Thai

THAI CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

111.

DINH QUOC DIEP Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

78.

NGUYEN NGOC DOANH Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

112.

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

POSITION

TRAN THI THANH TRUC Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

PARK, DEOKSU South Korean

TRADING OFFICER

MARKETROLE ASIA PACIFIC SERVICES, INC. 26/f, 27/f, 28/f The Enterprise Center Tower 1 6766 Ayala Ave. Cor. Paseo De Roxas San Lorenzo Makati City 114.

LIU, LIYANG Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE STAFF

MEGA FORTRIS PHILS., INC. 5/f The Peninsula Court 8735 Makati Ave. Cor. Paseo 115.

KOH LEAN HOON Malaysian

MARKETING DIRECTOR

MEGA-WEB TECHNOLOGIES INC. 6,7,8,9,10,11/f Met Live Bldg. Edsa Cor. Macapagal Blvd. Brgy. 076 Pasay City 116.

117.

118.

119.

120.

121.

122.

123.

124.

125.

126.

127.

128.

PROJECT MANAGER

HANJIN HEAVY INDUSTRIES & CONSTRUCTION CO., LTD. 1128 University Parkway North Bonifacio Fort Bonifacio Taguig City 97.

NO.

129.

130.

131.

132.

133.

YANG, XIAOLONG Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

LEONG VOON JUN Malaysian

MALAYSIAN SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

CHENG, TIEZHU Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

DENG, PENG Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

LI, WEIJIE Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

LIU, DANDAN Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

LONG, YUE Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

OUYANG, GUIFANG Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

SHEN, SHANRU Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

WANG, JIANLIANG Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

WANG, ZHAOJUN Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

WEI, JIALI Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

WU, MINMIN Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

YU, SIHAN Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

ZHANG, YUJUN Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

ZHENG, CHUANGWEI Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

LAI, JIA-HONG Taiwanese

TAIWANESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

HAU KHA PHUONG Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER RELATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER

MITSUI & CO. (ASIA PACIFIC) PTE. LTD. MANILA BRANCH 36/f Gt Tower International 6813 Ayala Avenue Bel-air Makati City 134.

KAWABE, NAOTO Japanese

DEPUTY GENERAL MANAGER - PROJECT & MACHINERY DIVISION

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. 4th-11th Flr. Nexgen Tower C4 Rd. Edsa Ext. Brgy. 076 Pasay City 135.

ANDY Indonesian

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

136.

CHEN, JIANMING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

137.

HUANG, BINBIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

138.

JIANG, WEN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

139.

LAI, DINGCAI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

140.

LEI, ZHONGHAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

141.

LI, HAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

142.

LI, ZHU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

143.

LI, YONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

144.

LI, JIAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

145.

LI, HUIXIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

146.

LI, TAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

147.

LI, JUNFENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

148.

LIANG, NINGSHENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

149.

LIAO, YING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

150.

LIU, ZHENHUA Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS NO.

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS POSITION

NO.

151.

SHENG, CHONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

152.

SUN, HONGMIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

153.

WANG, DING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

154.

WANG, SHUAI Chinese

155.

YANG, JILIN Chinese

156.

YANG, XIANGJUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

157.

YEE YEE KHAING Myanmari

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

158.

ZENG, DEMENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

159.

ZHANG, KUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

160.

ZHAO, FEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

161.

CAI, JIANGWEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

162.

CHAI, XUEJUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

163.

CHEN, YANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

164.

CHEN, JIALIANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

165.

CHEN, HU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

166.

CHEN, XIANZONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

167.

FAN, GUOHUI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

168.

FANG, BO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

169.

FU, SIYU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

170.

GU, XIPENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

171.

HE, WEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

172.

HUANG, WENZHOU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

173.

JIANG, YICHENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

174.

LAN, TONGHUA Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

175.

LEI, LING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

176.

LI, HESHAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

177.

LI, LIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

178.

LI, PING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

179.

LI, GAOLI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

180.

LI, CHUNNAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

181.

LI, JIAHAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

182.

LI, YUNKUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

183.

LIU, LEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

184.

LIU, WANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

185.

LIU, QI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

186.

LU, FENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

187.

LU, XIAOCHUANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

188.

LYU, YANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

189.

MA, DINGDING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

190.

MAO, JINLONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

191.

MU, FUJUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

192.

NIE, FEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

193.

PENG, QI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

194.

QIN, FANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

195.

QIN, XIAOQIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

196.

QIU, XURUI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

197.

QU, DONGYU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

198.

QU, QIUYANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

199.

RAN, ZHIQIANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

Tuesday, November 17, 2020 A11

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

POSITION

NO.

200.

SONG, YANHUI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

201.

SU, SHUIFA Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

202.

SUN, MING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

203.

SUN, XUEDONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

204.

SUN, JINGSI Chinese

205.

TANG, DAYI Chinese

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

POSITION

NO.

248.

NGUYEN XUAN HANH Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

308.

LI, HUI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

249.

TRAN THI HA Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

309.

LI, SHILIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

310.

LI, QINGZHENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

311.

LI, XU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

312.

LI, ZHE Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

313.

LI, JIANXIANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

314.

LIANG, YIBO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

315.

LIANG, JIA Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

316.

LIAO, XIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

317.

LIAO, HUI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

NEW ORIENTAL CLUB88 CORPORATION Sky Garage Bldg. Aseana Avenue, Entertainment City Tambo Parañaque City 250.

BIAN, BAOGANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

251.

CAI, WEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

252.

CHANG, JUANLI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

253.

CHEN, YAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

254.

CHEN, LI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

255.

CHEN, JIAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

256.

CHEN, ZHANTAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

257.

CHEN, KUNCHENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

258.

CHEN, XIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

POSITION

206.

WANG, WEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

207.

WANG, BINGFA Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

208.

WANG, SIYU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

209.

WANG, XINLONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

210.

WEI, DONGMEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

259.

CHEN, QINGSHAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

318.

LIN, LIUJIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

211.

WEI, YUKE Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

260.

CHEN, MENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

319.

LIN, HUAJIAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

212.

XIA, JIANXIANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

261.

CHEN, ZHIBIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

320.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

LIN, JINCAI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

262.

213.

XIE, YANTENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

CHEN, FENG Chinese

263.

CHEN, JUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

321.

LIU, LIRONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

214.

XIE, ENGUANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

264.

CHEN, SHIPING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

322.

LIU, YANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

215.

XU, XIAOYUE Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

265.

CHENG, MEIJING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

323.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

266.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

216.

YANG, TAOTAO Chinese

CHENG, LEI Chinese

LIU, BING Chinese

267.

CHI, YUNYUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

324.

LIU, ZENGYUAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

217.

YE, JUNLIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

268.

DAN, ZHAOXIA Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

325.

LIU, ZHIMING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

218.

YE, YANGYANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

269.

DANG, LE Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

326.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

YU, YANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

270.

DENG, XIAOJIE Chinese

LIU, ZEHONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE 327.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

LIU, LULU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

271.

220.

ZHANG, RUI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

DENG, SHENGYANG Chinese

272.

DONG, CANGCANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

328.

LIU, QINGMEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

221.

ZHANG, RENHAI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

273.

DOU, TAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

329.

LIU, RUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

222.

ZHANG, YAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

274.

DUAN, QIU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

330.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

LIU, QIAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

275.

223.

ZHANG, YING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

FANG, SHIPENG Chinese

276.

FENG, PENGGUANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

331.

LIU, CONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

224.

ZHANG, JIANCHENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

277.

FU, XIAODONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

332.

LIU, YANAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

225.

ZHANG, TONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

278.

FU, CHAOYANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

333.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

ZHANG, XIAOLONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

279.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

226.

GAO, CHONG Chinese

LIU, YUANSEN Chinese

280.

GAO, JIAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

334.

LIU, ZILIANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

227.

ZHAO, HAOSEN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

281.

GAO, JIAWEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

335.

LIU, JIAJIU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

228.

ZHAO, LINGMIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

282.

GONG, FUBO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

336.

LU, JIABO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

283.

HAN, YONGGUANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

337.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

LU, SHANLIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

284.

HAN, YANAN Chinese

285.

HE, CHONGZHEN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

338.

LYU, CHANGLU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

339.

LYU, XIANGYANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

340.

LYU, BIAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

341.

MA, SHUANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

342.

MA, ZHIDUO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

343.

MAO, HONGYA Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

344.

MENG, XIANDONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

345.

MENG, SIYU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

346.

PAN, YUXUAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

347.

QIN, JIALING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

348.

QIN, ZHENGYUAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

349.

QIN, YONGJUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

350.

REN, YIMING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

351.

SHAO, XIAOLAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

352.

SHAO, LIANGHUI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

353.

SHEN, HONGYAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

354.

SHI, PEIPENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

355.

SHI, ZILI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

219.

ZHAO, GUOCAI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

230.

ZHAO, YANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

231.

ZHAO, CHUNYU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

286.

HE, ZEBIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

232.

ZHAO, WEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

287.

HOU, YUNLONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

CELINE LIM SZE LING Malaysian

MALAYSIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

288.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

233.

HUANG, SHIYING Chinese

289.

HUANG, XIAOQIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

234.

CHAN ZI LING Malaysian

MALAYSIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

290.

HUANG, XIAOFANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

235.

FANNY KOU PING YEE Malaysian

MALAYSIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

291.

HUANG, XIA Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

LIN KAH SENG Malaysian

MALAYSIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

292.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

236.

HUANG, DEQIANG Chinese

293.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

237.

LYE KOK JIN Malaysian

MALAYSIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

HUANG, CAILI Chinese

294.

HUANG, QIAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

238.

VUN HUI HUI Malaysian

MALAYSIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

295.

HUANG, HUI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

239.

KYI HTAY Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

296.

JIA, XINFENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

297.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

240.

LI YWEE CHWIN Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

JIANG, TAO Chinese

298.

JIANG, QIANXI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

241.

MAW HWAR SU Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

299.

KONG, XIANGXUE Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

242.

NANG MWE LAO Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

300.

KONG, WEIDA Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

NAUNG LATT Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

301.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

243.

LAI, JINGLONG Chinese

302.

LENG, SHANHAI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

244.

THAW TAR WIN Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

303.

LI, CONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

245.

YAN SHIN KAI Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

304.

LI, YANSHUANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

DANG THI THANH HUYEN Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

305.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

246.

LI, JING Chinese

306.

LI, CHENGYI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

247.

HOANG VAN DIEP Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

307.

LI, JINYUAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

229.

BusinessMirror

A12 Tuesday, November 17, 2020 ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS NO.

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS POSITION

NO.

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

www.businessmirror.com.ph

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS POSITION

NO.

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS POSITION

356.

SHI, MENGYAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

407.

YU, BIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

PERDANA HOTEL PHILIPPINES INC. (BERJAYA MAKATI HOTELPHILIPPINES) 7835 Eduque Cor. Makati Ave. Poblacion Makati City

357.

SHI, LIWEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

408.

YUAN, ZHAOHUI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

455.

358.

SONG, JIPING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

409.

YUAN, XIAOLONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

359.

SU, CHENGWU Chinese

410.

ZHA, WENXIU Chinese

360.

SU, JINJIE Chinese

411.

ZHAN, XUYANG Chinese

361.

SU, SHANGJIE Chinese

412.

ZHANG, CHENGCHANGCHUAN Chinese

362.

SUN, JIE Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

413.

ZHANG, JIAXIAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

363.

SUN, YONGQIANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

414.

ZHANG, QIANQIAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

364.

TAN, GANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

415.

ZHANG, TAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

365.

TU, CHONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

416.

ZHANG, GUOQIANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

366.

WANG, QINGFENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

417.

ZHANG, YIYAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

367.

WANG, SHUO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

418.

ZHANG, LIANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

WANG, CHENFEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

WANG, CHEN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

370.

WANG, ENLIE Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

371.

WANG, QIFENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

372.

WANG, YUXI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

373.

WANG, QINXIANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

374.

WANG, LEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

375.

WANG, YING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

376.

WANG, WENGANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

377.

WANG, XINGYI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

378.

WEN, RUIPING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

379.

WENG, ZHONGWU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

380.

WU, DONGDONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

381.

WU, JINKUI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

382.

WU, JIANGBEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

383.

XIA, PENGFEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

384.

XIA, JUNBEI Chinese

368.

369.

385.

XIA, LEZHUANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

388.

XU, MEIGUI Chinese

389.

XU, JING Chinese

391.

392.

393.

XU, CHAO Chinese

YAN, XU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

396.

YANG, SHENGBO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

398.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

ZHAO, ZHICHENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

458.

FANG, CAN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

496.

MU, GUIXIANG Chinese

MANDARIN TRANSCRIBER - ACCOUNTS, FINANCE AND BUDGETING CONSULTANT

459.

LIN, WEIJIAN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

460.

MING, HUI Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

461.

PAN, KANG Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

462.

WEN, ZHENGYUN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

463.

XU, HAOHUI Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

464.

YANG, FENGYING Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

465.

ZHANG, QINLIANG Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

466.

ZHOU, JIWEN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

ZHU, PENG Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

PRIME GREAT COMPUTER TECHNOLOGIES INC. 3/f To 8/f, Nissan Sucat Zentrum Building 8390 Dr. A Santos Avenue Bf Homes Parañaque City 468.

LAN, YUNLU, Chinese

IT TECHNICAL MANDARIN

469.

LIAO, WEIFENG, Chinese

IT TECHNICAL MANDARIN

470.

QIN, YAOFU, Chinese

IT TECHNICAL MANDARIN

YOU, MIAOMIAO, Chinese

IT TECHNICAL MANDARIN

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

471.

427.

ZHU, BAOYU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

RED DOT MARKETING AND BRANDING INC. Unit 1514 Burgundy Transpacific Place Taft Ave. 079, Bgy. 727 Malate Manila

428.

ZHU, XUDONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

429.

SWANDI Indonesian

INDONESIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE

430.

CHIA CHENG YEE Malaysian

MALAYSIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE

CHONG MIN XIAN Malaysian

MALAYSIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE

AUNG PHYO WAI Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE

435.

KHIN KHIN WIN Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE

KYAN KWAN PHU Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE

437.

KYAW NAING Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE

438.

KYAW WAI YAN OO Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE

439.

LAW YIN SHWIN Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE

440.

MAUNG MAUNG HTWE Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE

MAW MAW AUNG Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE

442.

NANG MWE PHAUNG Myanmari

443.

TOWER EDGE BUSINESS SUPPORT SERVICES INC. Units 1405-1406 14/f Cityland 10 Tower 2 154 H.v. Dela Costa St. Bel-air Makati City

457.

ZHOU, JIANBING Chinese

434.

ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT

MANDARIN TRANSCRIBER - ACCOUNTS, FINANCE AND BUDGETING CONSULTANT

426.

MYANMAR CUSTOMER SERVICE

TIAN, SHANSHAN, Chinese

CUI, XUEXUE Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

NANG AUNG KHAM Myanmari

494.

495.

ZHOU, ZENGYAN Chinese

433.

THIRTY ONE DIGITAL MEDIA SOLUTIONS INC. 8-m Cyberzone Plaza Bldg. Eastwood Avenue Bagumbayan 3 Quezon City

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

425.

MALAYSIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE

SALES CONVEYANCER

BU, XIANGPENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

GOH YOUN CHIAN Malaysian

LEWIS, WARREN DENNIS South African

456.

467.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

POSITION

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

ZHOU, JIANNENG Chinese

472.

FANG, RONGHUAN Chinese

MANDARIN TECHNICAL SUPPORT

REDSHIELD SERVICES INC. Rm. 127 12/f Times Plaza Bldg. Un. Cor . Taft Ave. 072, Bgy. 666 Ermita Manila 473.

GOU, GANG Chinese

FIELD MARKETING OFFICER MANDARIN

474.

HUANG, JIAOJIAO Chinese

FIELD MARKETING OFFICER MANDARIN

475.

WANG, MINYU Chinese

FIELD MARKETING OFFICER MANDARIN

476.

YAO, PING Chinese

FIELD MARKETING OFFICER MANDARIN

477.

ZHANG, WENFANG Chinese

FIELD MARKETING OFFICER MANDARIN

TRIVES TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION Tower 4, Bayfort West Naia Garden Residence, Naia Road Tambo Parañaque City 497.

CHEN, BINGGUI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

498.

CHEN, HAIBIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

499.

CHEN, ZHAOYI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

500.

CHEN, ZHUJIAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

501.

CHENG, KAI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

502.

HE, JIEGUO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

503.

JIN, YANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

504.

LI, GUANGXIONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

505.

LIAO, XIANHAI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

506.

LIU, AI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

507.

LU, HONGXI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

508.

SUN, LEI, Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

509.

SUN, XIDONG, Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

510.

WANG, HUAN, Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

511.

WANG, CHENG, Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

512.

WANG, KUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

513.

WANG, LEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

514.

XU, ZHIYUAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

515.

ZHANG, ZHIHANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

516.

ZHOU, XIANQI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

VAN GOGH BUSINESS PROCESS OUTSOURCING INC. 5th To 8th Flr. Sm Southmall Tower 2 Alabang Zapote Rd. Almanza Uno Las Piñas City 517.

YU, XIAOFENG Chinese

INFORMATION SECURITY ANALYST

VISSIONARIES INC. 16/f Tower 6789 6789 Ayala Ave. Bel-air Makati City 518.

ZHOU, XUAN Chinese

CHINESE MARKETING CONSULTANT

519.

DUONG TAM NHI Vietnamese

CUSTOMER SUPPORT TRAINOR

520.

HOANG THI NGOC ANH Vietnamese

CUSTOMER SUPPORT TRAINOR

521.

AUNG MYINT AYE Myanmari

RECRUITMENT CONSULTANT (MULTI-LINGUAL)

522.

NAN SU NAING Myanmari

RECRUITMENT CONSULTANT (MULTI-LINGUAL)

523.

THAN THI NHAT QUYNH Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE MARKETING CONSULTANT

524.

BUI THI NON Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE RECRUITMENT SPECIALIST

SALES ASSOCIATE, GLOBAL ACCOUNTS- SPANISH

525.

TRINH THONG Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE RECRUITMENT SPECIALIST

SHOPPING CENTER MANAGEMENT CORPORATION Moa Arena Annex Bldg. Cbp 1-a Coral Way Cor. J.w. Diokno Blvd.

Brgy. 076 Pasay City

526.

TRUONG PHI NHAT Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE RECRUITMENT SPECIALIST

SA RIVENDELL GLOBAL SUPPORT, INC. 9-11 Flr., The Biopolis Bldg. Macapagal Blvd. Brgy. 076 Pasay City 478.

DAO THI THU HA Vietnamese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

479.

LIM ZHEN HONG Malaysian

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

480.

TRAN THI TAM Vietnamese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

SC RESERVATIONS (PHILIPPINES), INC. 27/f, 28/f & 29/f Tower Ii Rcbc Plaza 6819 Ayala Avenue Bel-air Makati City 481.

482.

GONZALEZ CASTAÑO, LUISA FERNANDA, Colombian

SIU DEWAR, KIMMI KIM MING, Australian

CONSULTANT

SKY DRAGON GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES CORP. 2f-5f Unit 710 Shaw Blvd. Global Link Center Mandaluyong City

VPC CORPORATE SOLUTIONS INCORPORATED 11/f 100 West, Sen Gil Puyat Ave. Cor. Washington St. Pio Del Pilar Makati City 527.

LE VAN HUNG Vietnamese

VIETNAM-SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE OFFICER

528.

NGUYEN THI HUYEN Vietnamese

VIETNAM-SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE OFFICER

483.

CHENG, LONG, Chinese

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

484.

GAO, YOU Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

NAY MYO SAT Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE

485.

LI, XIANGYUN Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

529.

CAO, JIE Chinese

CHINESE LANGUAGE MARKETING STAFF

444.

NYI LIN THU Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE

486.

WANG, JUN Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

530.

GAO, JING Chinese

CHINESE LANGUAGE MARKETING STAFF

445.

XI CHYANG Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE

531.

TAN, SUNLIANG Chinese

CHINESE LANGUAGE MARKETING STAFF

446.

YAE POUNG Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE

SURJOBAN FASHION BOUTIQUE INC. Unit No. 1h-1 Flr. No. G/f, Two Shopping Center Bldg. Taft Ave. Ext. St., Zone 10 Barangay 078, District 1 Pasay City

532.

WU, DONGMEI Chinese

CHINESE LANGUAGE MARKETING STAFF

447.

YIN MYA Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE

448.

ZAW MIN OO Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE

449.

BUI VAN TRUONG Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

450.

DANG DINH HUY Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

451.

HOANG THI NGUYET Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

452.

NGUYEN VAN TAM Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

YANG, YANG Chinese

ZHAO, KAI Chinese

493.

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

AIDEN TEO FATT KWONG Malaysian

424.

441.

395.

YANG, QIANHUI Chinese

423.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

YANG, ZHENNING Chinese

422.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

397.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

YANG, SHOUCAI Chinese

394.

421.

ZHANG, JIALE Chinese

436.

XU, YUANYUAN Chinese

YAN, BOXIANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

XIE, HONGLIANG Chinese

390.

ZHANG, YU Chinese

SALES MANAGER FOR CHINESE MARKET

POWERPORT DATA SYSTEM TECHNOLOGY INC. 16/f, 17/f, 18/f & 19/f Corporate Tower Alphaland, Makati Place, 7232 Ayala Avenue Extn. Bel-air Makati City

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

420.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

387.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

432.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

ZHANG, GUOWEI Chinese

419.

431.

XIAO, CHEN Chinese

386.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

TANG, XIUTAO, Chinese

NO.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

399.

YANG, CUIMING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

400.

YANG, GUANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

401.

YANG, XIAOBO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

402.

YANG, LONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

403.

YAO, LICHAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

404.

YE, XIAOWEN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

405.

YI, HAILUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

OKKDA ASIA TECHNOLOGY INC. Unit 5b 5/f Marvin Plaza 2153 C. Roces Ave. Pio Del Pilar Makati City

406.

YU, LANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

454.

487.

SHEAK, AKASH RAHAMAN, Bangladeshi

OPERATIONS MANAGER

TDCX (PH) INC. 21/f-24/f Robinsons Cyberscape Gamma Ruby & Topaz Rds. Ortigas Center San Antonio Pasig City 488.

ARROLIGA MONGE, JEAN PIERRE, Costa Rican

ONLINE ADVERTISING SPECIALIST-SPANISH

TDH INTERNATIONAL INC. 5/f Cambridge Center Bldg. 108 Tordesillas Cor. Gallardo Sts. Bel-air Makati City 489.

JASON NATHANEIL LIWIDJAJA , Indonesian

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR

THE 13TH BUREAU OF CHINA CITY CONSTRUCTION PHILIPPINES CORPORATION Unit 1602 20th Drive Corp. Center Mckinley Business Park Fort Bonifacio Taguig City

OCIC CONSULTING INT’L. INC. U-1004 10/f Rufino Building 6784 Ayala Ave. Cor. V.a. Rufino St. San Lorenzo Makati City

490.

CAI, JIE, Chinese

DEPUTY SENIOR MANAGER/ BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT HEAD

453.

491.

CHEN, HUIZHEN, Chinese

FINANCE OFFICER

GUO, CHENXI, Chinese

LI, SISI, Chinese

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

MANDARIN SPEAKING WEB SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT CONSULTANT

THINK SUPPORT SERVICES, INC. Rm. 602 6/f Vicente Madrigal Bldg. 6793 Ayala Ave. Bel-air Makati City 492.

AYRES, KIERAN LEE British

SALES CONCIERGE

WISHLAND SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGY INC. 28/f Techzone Condo Corp. 213 Buendia Ave. San Antonio Makati City

*Date Generated: Nov 16, 2020 In the ad material of Notice of Filing of Application for Alien Employment Permits published on November 12, 2020, the position of Meng, Fankai under GLOBAL B2B CONSULTANCY, INC., should have been read as CUSTOMER SERVICE CHINESE SPEAKING and not as published.

Any person in the Philippines who is competent, able and willing to perform the services for which the foreign national is desired may file an objection at DOLE-NCR Regional Office located at DOLE-NCR Building, 967 Maligaya St., Malate Manila, within 30 days after this publication.

Please inform DOLE-NCR if you have any information on criminal offense committed by the foreign nationals.

ATTY. SARAH BUENA S. MIRASOL REGIONAL DIRECTOR

Companies BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Vista Land Q3 reservation sales signal recovery–exec

V

By VG Cabuag

@villygc

ista Land and Lifescapes Inc., the property development firm of the Villar Group, said its income in January to September fell 39 percent to P5.5 billion from last year’s P9.06 billion, but its reservation sales improved in the third quarter.

Revenues reached P25.7 billion, down by 25 percent from the previous year's P34.35 billion, it said.

“This pandemic continues to impact our performance, both on our leasing and residential businesses. However, as mentioned before, we are glad to have seen encouraging signs of recovery

when the economy started to reopen last June. The upward trend of our reservation sales were sustained, registering a 35-percent jump from the previous quarter,” Manuel B. Villar Jr., the company's chairman, said.

“We are also happy to have witnessed the resiliency of the real es-

tate sector through the sustained demand for residential market especially for the house and lot products in the provincial areas."

For the nine months of the year, over 80 percent of the company’s sales revenue came from its residential products outside Metro Manila. Operational gross floor area of its leasing business has increased to about 95 percent as government-imposed restrictions started to ease, he said.

Manuel Paolo A. Villar, the company's president and CEO, said the company is “seriously” looking at the possibility of having its own real estate investment trust with its 1.5 million square meters gross floor area (GFA) leasing portfolio.

About 15 percent of its leasing portfolio is composed of business process office space, which has proven to be the sector’s most resilient market during the time of

the pandemic, while the rest of its GFA consists of malls.

“Most of our mall tenants are offering essential services,” he said.

He said the company launched 5 residential projects with an estimated value of P5 billion for the 9 months of the year and are looking at launching more towards the last quarter as the upward trajectory of its sales persist.

The company also spent about 71 percent of its revised P25-billion capital expenditure budget for the year, which was mostly utilized for the construction of its residential products.

“Rest assured that Vista Land is continuously making the necessary adjustments to operate effectively in the new normal and is strengthening our financial and operational positions to be able to address the needs of all our stakeholders,” he said.

GT Capital core income plummets

G

level, since the imposition of community quarantines, in September at 10,657 units.

The car company also held virtual launches of the all-new Hiace Cargo and Vios in July, Corolla Cross in August and Hilux in September. Toyota remained as the country’s top automotive brand with a 39.2-percent overall market share from January to September.

“The automotive sector continues to show signs of recovery, as the government reopens the economy.

Alongside an updated product lineup, TMP’s initiatives to keep dealerships safe to visit have become key tools to encourage prospective customers," GT Capital Auto Dealership Holdings Inc.'s (GTCAD) Chairman Vince S. Socco said.

“With the country gradually shifting to the new normal, we remain cautiously optimistic about the prospects for the rest of the year, as consumer confidence begins to recover.”

The company said it resumed two-shift operations for the Vios and Innova at its Santa Rosa factory, while augmenting imports of

completely built-up models.

In October, government agencies approved the full acquisition of Toyota Santa Rosa Inc. by GTCAD and Toyota Corolla Sapporo Philippines Holding Inc. Following the transaction, GTCAD will own 60 percent of Toyota Santa Rosa while Toyota Corolla Sapporo will own 40 percent. This initiative allows GT Capital to further diversify the geographical reach of its dealership portfolio, while tapping new strategic alliances in automotive retail, the company said.

Federal Land Inc. reported a consolidated net income of P172 million, down 77 percent from P769 million last year due to the stoppage and slowdown of construction activities during the quarantine periods.

It booked total revenues of P6.2 billion during the period, down by a third from P9.4 billion in 2019.

Reservation sales reached P11.3 billion from P16.4 billion in the previous year. Lease revenues rose by 7 percent to P1.1 billion during the period, driven by new tenants in the developer’s commercial properties. VG Cabuag

T Capital Holdings Inc. on Monday said its core income in January to September fell 69 percent to P3.7 billion from last year’s P12 billion, as income from its main businesses of banking and automotive declined.

GT Capital’s consolidated revenues reached P85.6 billion for the period, a 46-percent fall from P159.3 billion recorded a year ago.

The conglomerate’s consolidated net income for the 9-month period fell 78 percent to P3.2 billion from P15.1 billion last year.

“While the July results showed early signs of recovery, the return to modified enhanced community quarantine in August abruptly reversed the growth momentum.

Nevertheless, we continue to push our way back to pre-Covid-19 performance levels, while astutely managing our operating costs across all lines of business,” GT Capital President Carmelo Maria Luza Bautista said.

“We are confident that with the flattening of the curve in new Covid-19 cases, and the reopening of more sectors under the existing

general community quarantine environment, the last quarter of 2020 will result in a strong finish for our group, paving the way for an even stronger recovery in 2021.”

For the third quarter, GT Capital’s consolidated net income reached P489 million or just a fraction of the P9.5 billion it earned last year.

Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. registered a net income of P11 billion in January to September, down by half from last year's P21.6 billion.

The bank has set aside P35.4 billion in provisions for bad loans, almost 5 times more than the P7.8 billion in provisions booked last year. As a result, its non-performing loan cover went up to 174 percent, the highest among its peers.

Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP) realized a net income of P2.2 billion, 70 percent lower than last year's P7.5 billion. Revenues reached P63.3 billion for the period, or just half of P121.4 billion last year.

Retail vehicle sales reached 63,182 units for January to September, 44 percent lower from 114,117 units last year. The company said it achieved its highest monthly sales

PSALM seeks buyers for land assets

‘Consortium on track to complete Davao mixed-use condo in 2024’

T

he Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) will hold a pre-bid conference on November 17 to showcase its smallvalue real estate assets located in Bohol, General Santos City and Camalaniugan, Cagayan.

“PSALM is calling on all interested bidders to attend the pre-bid conference scheduled on November 17, 2020. This conference aims to address inquiries from interested parties and clarify concerns on the sale provisions of said land assets,” the state firm said Monday.

One of the assets that will be bid out is the Loboc property in the Province of Bohol, consisting of 4 lots with a total land area of 13,204 square meters. The property is located near the scenic Loboc River which is a bustling tourist site in the province. The minimum bid price of for the Loboc property is P12,139,000.

Near the shoreline and in proximity to an industrial zone, the 1,868-square-meter Calumpang property in General Santos City is another asset that will be subject of the bidding. It is ideal for setting up small warehouses to cater to businesses in need of storage facilities for their goods. The minimum bid price for the Calumpang property is P10,974,500.

The lot in Camalaniugan in Cagayan province, measures 2,148 square meters. This property is currently a substation of a distribution utility and located in an area where land development is of mixed use for residential and agricultural purposes. The minimum bid price for the Camalaniugan property is P3,222,000. Lenie Lectura

By Manuel T. Cayon Mindanao Bureau Chief @awimailbox

D

avao City—A P4-billion mixed-use condominium project, considered the biggest construction project being undertaken by a local contractors’ group, remains on schedule despite the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Legacy Leisure Residences of the consortium of the Yap and Bangayan families assured its investors it will be able to deliver the project on its target date.

“We are adhering to the construction timeline and can deliver on target date. There is no delay on the construction timeline,” said Wesley Bangayan, vice president for marketing of Legacy Leisure Residences.

The project’s contractor has resumed working on the foundation of Tower 2, the first building being erected, he said. The ground has been cleared, flattened, and mapped out.

“At this stage of the construction, much of the workload is machinery

reliant and we are maximizing its usage. The work force is fewer which means health protocols, like social distancing, is not an issue. Once the 7:00 pm curfew is lifted, construction hours can be extended,” he added.

The resort-type condominium project along Ma-a Road, some 7 kilometers west of downtown, broke ground on January 30 of this year. A month after, in March, Malacañang placed the country on nationwide lockdown and stopped all economic activities, including construction.

In May, the restrictions were eased, which allowed construction to resume, but with strict adherence to safety protocols.

“The temporary halt did not cause any disruption to our construction schedule. If there was, it was minor.

It’s something we can address immediately. We are confident that we will meet the deadline of Legacy Leisure’s first deliverables in the second quarter of 2024,” Bangayan said.

The Legacy Leisure Residences is a P4-billion project by CrisRon Holiday Inc., a joint venture by the Bangayan and Yap families here. The

2.8-hectare project would feature four buildings with 15 stories each.

It will house spacious units measuring 37.35 square meters for a typical one-bedroom unit, 76.35 sqm for a 2-bedroom unit and 136.5 sqm for a 3-bedroom unit.

Of the total area, 70 percent would be allotted to open space to include the resort and sports facilities like an Olympic-size pool, water theme park, spray park, jogging track, tennis court, basketball court, pitch and putting green.

Included in this space allotment are the green spaces and community facilities like the parks and playground, barbecue area, the club house, function halls and a commercial strip with curated retail shops to cater to its residents, Bangayan said.

“In terms of investment, real estate is always a wise decision no matter the economic situation. Today will be a good time to reserve your units at Legacy Leisure Residences and avail of the easy payment scheme at the opening price offering. By November 15, we are scheduled for a price increase.”

Tuesday, November 17, 2020

B1

AirAsia holds another round of Super Sale

Photo from www.airasia.com

By Recto L. Mercene @rectomercene

L

ow-cost carrier AirAsia on Monday said shoppers and bargain hunters can expect bigger and better discounts across the whole airasia.com super app as it runs another round of Super Sale from November 16 to 22.

Ricky Isla, CEO of AirAsia Philippines said, “We are pleased to announce another Super Sale in the Philippines, providing our guests with more affordable deals as air travel is picking up. We continue to provide low fares and flexible options for those that wish to travel soon or in the future. There is plenty to look forward to as we work towards expanding our Super Sale offerings and as we continue to expand our network in the near future.”

The airasia.com Super Sale made its debut last month, superseding the hugely popular AirAsia Red Hot sale, the airline said. "With a wide range of travel and lifestyle products, the airasia.com super app, has something for everyone."

The airline said shoppers can enjoy up to 50-percent off on all seats and all flights. Travel period is between November 23 and October 30, 2021.

Karen Chan, CEO of airasia.com said, “Since the launch of airasia. com as an Asean super app in October, we have continued to expand our market reach and diversify our product range across the region. We have recently launched the AirAsia Unlimited Pass in the Philippines, Thailand and Indonesia, and introduced airasia Health in Malaysia—a platform that provides end-to-end medical services. We are also working on expanding our e-commerce presence within Asean through strategic partnerships and collaborations with technology providers, merchants and vendors.”

“The airasia.com Super Sale this time offers even more exciting deals as we have included more products and merchants. Through the Super Sale we are able to help further revive the many businesses that have been affected by the effects of the pandemic. We hope everyone will have an enjoyable time shopping and finding the best deals for travel, activities, food, rewards and more."

On top of the discounts, the airline said shoppers can also earn 3x BIG Points when they pay with the AirAsia credit card during the airasia.com Super Sale. Meanwhile, BIG members also have the option of paying using BIG Points.

B2

Companies BusinessMirror

Tuesday, November 17, 2020

PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

November 16, 2020

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

ASIA UNITED BDO UNIBANK BANK PH ISLANDS CHINABANK EAST WEST BANK METROBANK PB BANK PBCOM PHIL NATL BANK PSBANK RCBC SECURITY BANK UNION BANK COL FINANCIAL FIRST ABACUS FERRONOUX HLDG IREMIT MEDCO HLDG MANULIFE NTL REINSURANCE PHIL STOCK EXCH SUN LIFE

44.2 92.6 82.9 24.2 10.7 44.35 9.57 17.24 28.85 53.05 17.38 103.7 61 27.2 0.56 3.39 1.28 0.3 800 0.64 161 2000

44.5 92.65 83 24.25 10.72 44.5 9.79 19.9 28.95 53.35 17.4 103.9 61.5 28.1 0.63 3.57 1.29 0.315 829.5 0.65 162 2450

44.8 94.3 81.05 24.5 10.5 44.9 9.55 17.56 29.1 52.5 17.8 106 61 27.8 0.63 3.4 1.25 0.3 800 0.62 162 2080

44.8 94.35 84 24.5 10.7 44.9 9.6 20.5 29.4 53.5 17.96 106 62 28.1 0.63 3.57 1.32 0.3 840 0.65 162 2080

44.15 92.25 79.5 24.05 10.5 44.3 9.55 17.56 28.55 52.5 17.3 102.8 60.2 27.15 0.63 3.38 1.25 0.295 800 0.6 159 2000

44.15 92.6 83 24.2 10.7 44.35 9.56 19.9 28.85 53.35 17.4 103.9 61.5 27.15 0.63 3.57 1.28 0.295 800 0.64 162 2000

2400 5100720 5948510 96400 1210300 2262600 14200 16000 627500 2230 338300 1281280 19800 11400 3000 11000 762000 570000 100 975000 450 45

106555 473880522.5 482535418 2336920 12863242 100731790 135979 310980 18173120 118554.5 5898980 133172457 1207842.5 311780 1890 37490 969660 168650 81600 614860 72820 91100

INDUSTRIAL

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

4.28 1.47 27 0.215 29.05 65.55 314.4 15.18 3.17 3.4 12.88 16.78 10.4 13.46 8.3 2.92 20.45 17.34 5.19 6.9 10 63.4 0.66 1.41 50.15 190.2 50 7.71 6.64 8.05 1.22 4.76 1.81 0.111 150 0.85 2.26 51.7 52.45 1.73 4.6 15.98 7.44 6.79 9.43 8.3 0.8 0.87 1.9 2.14 4.25 21.35 2.67 7.16 1.09 5.12 1.63 6.69

4.29 1.48 27.05 0.216 29.1 65.75 315 15.2 3.18 3.49 12.98 16.8 10.56 13.96 8.31 2.94 21 17.38 5.2 6.91 10.02 63.45 0.67 1.44 50.2 190.3 57 7.99 6.65 8.08 1.23 4.78 1.87 0.118 150.2 0.86 2.4 54.45 55.5 1.74 4.7 16 7.5 6.8 9.44 8.45 0.81 0.88 1.94 2.15 4.34 21.4 2.68 7.19 1.11 5.49 1.64 6.7

4.19 1.48 27.45 0.216 29.35 66 305 15.2 3.17 3.5 13 16.6 10.8 13.96 8.33 2.95 23 17.2 5.1 7.08 9.9 64 0.66 1.45 49 193.3 49 8 6.75 8.4 1.21 4.81 1.83 0.12 153.9 0.88 2.34 53 52.05 1.65 4.8 16 7.65 6.23 9.05 8.29 0.82 0.86 1.94 2.15 4.35 21.5 2.62 7.16 1.08 5.08 1.65 6.6

4.3 1.49 27.75 0.22 29.35 66 315 15.62 3.2 3.5 13.14 16.92 10.8 13.96 8.35 2.95 24.1 17.68 5.25 7.12 10 64.5 0.67 1.48 50.95 195.7 51 8 6.75 8.4 1.23 4.82 1.83 0.12 154 0.88 2.36 54.8 55.7 1.74 4.8 16.06 7.66 6.79 9.9 8.45 0.82 0.89 1.99 2.24 4.39 21.5 2.71 7.24 1.13 5.5 1.66 6.73

4.08 1.44 27.05 0.214 28.6 65.3 300.4 15.1 3.16 3.35 12.88 16.54 10.32 13.96 8.2 2.91 19.6 17.2 5.1 6.89 9.9 63.2 0.66 1.4 48.5 189 49 8 6.59 7.9 1.21 4.74 1.81 0.118 148.1 0.83 2.34 53 52.05 1.63 4.6 15.94 7.4 6.23 9.05 8.29 0.79 0.86 1.9 2.12 4.3 21.2 2.58 7.1 1.07 5.08 1.58 6.45

4.29 1.47 27.05 0.216 29.1 65.55 315 15.2 3.17 3.49 12.88 16.8 10.4 13.96 8.3 2.92 20.45 17.38 5.2 6.9 10 63.45 0.67 1.44 50.15 190.2 50 8 6.64 8.08 1.23 4.76 1.81 0.118 150 0.86 2.35 54.8 55.5 1.74 4.7 16 7.44 6.79 9.44 8.45 0.81 0.88 1.9 2.14 4.3 21.4 2.68 7.19 1.11 5.5 1.63 6.7

33273000 3590000 1335700 2660000 532300 25140 132210 2603700 1572000 96000 296400 583400 552400 900 492600 974000 275100 2299000 277100 6688100 1844300 45040 685000 22268000 199300 1039390 3000 1300 923100 1375300 4440000 27000 16000 280000 985170 13479000 42000 1420 320 49570000 29000 1351700 521900 9461000 16150600 18700 319000 2263000 228000 4247000 97000 496600 11567000 819500 3314000 1000 5917000 5361600

-4415 -222013332 -80645059.5 -556800 -285260 -50078095 199420 -6876030 -3081644 -45804234 63786 -2715 58750 8000 56100 1620 60000

139072680 5284390 36469895 574370 15446965 1651928 40784834 40105426 4988150 323970 3850590 9,782,326( 5795210 12564 4071788 2846740 6055543 40091446 1434478 46652274 18414714 2862033.5 455400 31960860 9955770 198279915 149800 10400 6120592 11070598 5391720 129700 29110 33060 147815681 11487400 98770 75296 17165 84127550 135950 21623168 3905777 62461829 153134207 156573 256940 1978010 441840 9251240 420160 10606705 30661560 5879932 3651480 5122 9622410 35492575

-10400900 -29200 -1552500 43200 4069970 -1035375 -2597452 -1544322 -304410 2,907,832.0003) 1138 -2008690 5900 2235 -6710526 -390343.9999 -992001 129963 -802139.5 515910 538730 -57419699 -582960 -5201594 405260 -96159.9999 -11800 15481370 -0 -1332140 -11787040 -140399 119043 -8526905 20250 -92460 -39330 -3689370 1485810 21510 -120200 1070615

HOLDING & FRIMS ABACORE CAPITAL 0.54 0.55 0.55 0.55 0.52 0.55 23745000 12723630 ASIABEST GROUP 8.62 8.89 8.87 8.87 8.5 8.87 14000 122396 826 834 844 849.5 823.5 834 243780 202729815 AYALA CORP ABOITIZ EQUITY 47.8 48.05 47.3 48.05 46.45 48.05 1757500 83118800 ALLIANCE GLOBAL 9.2 9.21 8.98 9.3 8.94 9.21 19543500 179566409 2.79 2.8 2.76 2.81 2.76 2.8 3815000 10670000 AYALA LAND LOG ANSCOR 6.28 6.3 6.3 6.3 6.3 6.3 14800 93240 ANGLO PHIL HLDG 0.67 0.68 0.66 0.69 0.66 0.68 536000 360250 0.89 0.9 0.91 0.91 0.89 0.9 2863000 2573110 ATN HLDG A ATN HLDG B 0.9 0.91 0.91 0.91 0.9 0.91 33000 29800 COSCO CAPITAL 5.3 5.31 5.38 5.39 5.28 5.3 3094400 16443729 5.39 5.4 5.31 5.45 5.31 5.4 9352400 50532790 DMCI HLDG FILINVEST DEV 9.21 9.5 9.5 9.6 9.5 9.57 38200 365766 GT CAPITAL 525 527.5 554 554 525 525 448330 238623365 3.42 3.45 3.41 3.45 3.4 3.45 205000 703540 HOUSE OF INV JG SUMMIT 70.85 71.45 72.7 73.7 70.7 71.45 1598810 114138558 LODESTAR 0.81 0.83 0.84 0.85 0.82 0.82 315000 259710 2.69 2.7 2.71 2.73 2.69 2.69 3488000 9435550 LOPEZ HLDG LT GROUP 12.38 12.4 12.6 12.88 12.1 12.4 6079400 75808960 MABUHAY HLDG 0.52 0.55 0.52 0.56 0.495 0.55 1894000 993180 1.75 1.88 1.88 1.88 1.88 1.88 1000 1880 MJC INVESTMENTS METRO PAC INV 4.18 4.2 4.17 4.21 4.12 4.2 28406000 118513850 PACIFICA HLDG 4.25 4.35 4.18 4.35 4.18 4.35 50000 210260 1.09 1.12 1.06 1.18 1.06 1.12 363000 410470 SOLID GROUP SYNERGY GRID 214 215 212 215 200 214 2580 544280 SM INVESTMENTS 1015 1025 1038 1050 1006 1015 434820 443692205 108.1 108.2 108.4 108.5 107.9 108.1 320460 34633393 SAN MIGUEL CORP SOC RESOURCES 0.7 0.73 0.75 0.75 0.7 0.7 1229000 872070 TOP FRONTIER 134 134.8 132.7 135 132.7 133.3 11160 1489001 0.225 0.24 0.23 0.241 0.23 0.235 1280000 302480 WELLEX INDUS ZEUS HLDG 0.144 0.149 0.147 0.149 0.142 0.149 2290000 328590

-1461460 -8700 -29907135 -29838730 23509036 124780 -93240 -11560 -5683426 3434617.9997 38180 -52838415 -463050 -3570509.5 -5234880 -38585010 -1170 -1880 -3967730 4240 -148146895 -15686919 -591621 -

PROPERTY ARTHALAND CORP 0.63 0.64 0.64 0.65 0.62 0.63 2565000 1617450 18900 ANCHOR LAND 7.73 8.19 8 8.28 8 8.28 800 6466 39.1 39.15 39.3 39.3 38 39.1 12386800 477,935,375( 14,468,205.0004) AYALA LAND ARANETA PROP 1.05 1.07 1.09 1.09 1.05 1.05 304000 320110 -17440 AREIT RT 26.2 26.25 26 26.25 25.95 26.2 876400 22886160 -2736750 1.6 1.61 1.6 1.62 1.6 1.61 968000 1553070 -8030 BELLE CORP A BROWN 0.86 0.87 0.88 0.89 0.86 0.86 6425000 5598940 -201620 CITYLAND DEVT 0.79 0.8 0.82 0.82 0.8 0.8 17000 13640 0.151 0.152 0.146 0.155 0.146 0.152 7150000 1081050 75000 CROWN EQUITIES CEBU HLDG 5.82 5.89 5.8 5.89 5.8 5.89 30100 174589 -589 CEB LANDMASTERS 4.7 4.72 4.71 4.75 4.7 4.7 647000 3047680 18820 0.38 0.385 0.39 0.39 0.38 0.38 26710000 10239550 347550 CENTURY PROP CYBER BAY 0.41 0.42 0.415 0.415 0.41 0.41 630000 259550 DOUBLEDRAGON 14.58 14.6 14.46 14.9 14.4 14.6 3879600 56877002 -42549742 5.65 5.69 5.7 5.78 5.64 5.65 866100 4940100 -3148472 DM WENCESLAO EMPIRE EAST 0.295 0.3 0.295 0.3 0.29 0.3 2850000 832650 -318999.9999 FILINVEST LAND 1.02 1.03 1.02 1.04 1.01 1.03 18711000 19260130 -851370 0.87 0.88 0.86 0.88 0.86 0.87 672000 583930 GLOBAL ESTATE 8990 HLDG 8.22 8.23 8.2 8.23 8.19 8.22 88200 723766 PHIL INFRADEV 1.58 1.59 1.62 1.62 1.57 1.59 6516000 10348880 -44830 0.7 0.72 0.71 0.71 0.71 0.71 10000 7100 CITY AND LAND MEGAWORLD 3.56 3.6 3.55 3.63 3.5 3.6 37431000 133688400 -15092120 MRC ALLIED 0.475 0.48 0.475 0.51 0.475 0.48 313060000 153898650 1683100 0.39 0.4 0.39 0.4 0.39 0.4 440000 173750 7800 PHIL ESTATES PRIMEX CORP 1.37 1.38 1.2 1.49 1.2 1.38 9781000 12983900 -548960 ROBINSONS LAND 15.2 15.24 15.78 15.94 15.2 15.2 10035600 154699538 -108766226 0.255 0.265 0.255 0.26 0.25 0.26 710000 183200 PHIL REALTY ROCKWELL 1.52 1.55 1.55 1.57 1.52 1.55 187000 288220 -184000 SHANG PROP 2.68 2.7 2.7 2.7 2.68 2.7 726000 1958540 1448180 1.89 1.92 1.89 1.92 1.87 1.92 195000 366900 STA LUCIA LAND SM PRIME HLDG 37.6 37.8 38.55 38.65 37.25 37.8 12749900 479916935 -3422380 VISTAMALLS 4.23 4.3 4.25 4.3 4.22 4.25 171000 728900 740.0001 1.39 1.4 1.39 1.43 1.36 1.39 8293000 11598540 -1718080 SUNTRUST HOME PTFC REDEV CORP 39 49.75 40.15 40.15 40 40 4000 160050 VISTA LAND 3.82 3.84 3.79 3.87 3.79 3.82 2994000 11475890 -3106430

SERVICES ABS CBN 11.62 11.64 11.7 11.9 11.5 11.62 517000 6032610 GMA NETWORK 5.1 5.11 5.15 5.16 5.09 5.11 354800 1815168 0.405 0.415 0.405 0.415 0.4 0.41 200000 81200 MANILA BULLETIN MLA BRDCASTING 10.8 11.14 11.18 11.18 11.14 11.14 2700 30146 GLOBE TELECOM 2010 2020 2012 2030 1992 2020 57170 114922885 1380 1388 1381 1397 1368 1380 181355 250461230 PLDT APOLLO GLOBAL 0.051 0.052 0.052 0.052 0.051 0.051 14850000 758590 CONVERGE 15.24 15.26 15.12 15.32 15.1 15.24 12299000 187460412 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.5 4.3 4.3 2530000 10905290 DFNN INC ISLAND INFO 0.108 0.111 0.109 0.112 0.106 0.111 12700000 1382380 JACKSTONES 1.67 1.68 1.67 1.71 1.63 1.67 84000 139120 4.15 4.16 4.25 4.25 4.09 4.15 10306000 42928790 NOW CORP TRANSPACIFIC BR 0.26 0.265 0.26 0.265 0.25 0.265 10020000 2588050 PHILWEB 2.9 2.91 2.94 2.98 2.88 2.91 1641000 4803110 9.11 9.2 9.33 9.49 9.2 9.2 98800 912033 2GO GROUP ASIAN TERMINALS 15.46 15.98 15.98 15.98 15.98 15.98 1000 15980 CHELSEA 5.48 5.49 5.6 5.7 5.44 5.49 23407000 129862910 43.3 43.45 42.75 43.8 42.7 43.3 975500 42234065 CEBU AIR INTL CONTAINER 126.9 127 128 128 126.5 127 1153970 146811168 LBC EXPRESS 16.28 16.3 16.26 16.3 16.26 16.3 10700 174090 1.03 1.05 1.03 1.05 1 1.05 83000 85150 LORENZO SHIPPNG MACROASIA 7.23 7.24 7.04 7.29 7.04 7.24 7596700 54864042 METROALLIANCE A 2.11 2.12 2.07 2.13 2.02 2.11 2335000 4863360 7.06 7.1 7.1 7.1 7.02 7.06 72500 511880 PAL HLDG HARBOR STAR 1.45 1.46 1.42 1.47 1.42 1.46 4865000 7055790 BOULEVARD HLDG 0.028 0.029 0.028 0.029 0.028 0.029 12700000 356800 1.7 1.74 1.7 1.75 1.7 1.74 54000 94010 DISCOVERY WORLD GRAND PLAZA 11.16 11.82 11 11.84 11 11.82 8000 93184 WATERFRONT 0.68 0.69 0.66 0.74 0.65 0.69 32048000 21993860 6.88 7 7 7 6.51 6.51 800 5502 CENTRO ESCOLAR FAR EASTERN U 560 570 560 560 560 560 60 33600 STI HLDG 0.355 0.365 0.355 0.365 0.35 0.36 5280000 1890250 4.03 4.04 4 4.1 3.93 4.04 283000 1133110 BERJAYA BLOOMBERRY 8.07 8.24 8.44 8.44 8.07 8.07 4575200 37826451 PACIFIC ONLINE 1.93 1.96 1.94 1.95 1.94 1.95 29000 56390 1.61 1.62 1.63 1.63 1.61 1.62 453000 733010 LEISURE AND RES MANILA JOCKEY 2.32 2.43 2.34 2.34 2.34 2.34 1000 2340 PH RESORTS GRP 3.11 3.12 2.94 3.13 2.85 3.12 84748000 255944180 0.41 0.415 0.385 0.42 0.385 0.415 52780000 21258600 PREMIUM LEISURE PHIL RACING 6.76 7.2 7.24 7.24 6.7 6.75 14500 101230 ALLHOME 7.96 8 7.75 8 7.75 8 3348900 26649192 1.54 1.55 1.56 1.57 1.51 1.55 3894000 6002210 METRO RETAIL PUREGOLD 43.5 43.9 43.25 44.7 43.2 43.9 6101000 267846080 ROBINSONS RTL 65.9 66 67 67.5 66 66 800940 53643705 110.9 111 111 113 111 111 880 98080 PHIL SEVEN CORP SSI GROUP 1.67 1.68 1.65 1.71 1.62 1.68 11858000 19857410 WILCON DEPOT 15.94 15.96 15.6 15.98 15.58 15.94 2780800 44206036 0.365 0.375 0.37 0.375 0.36 0.375 1550000 565400 APC GROUP EASYCALL 7.3 7.4 7.3 7.3 7.14 7.3 46300 335874 GOLDEN BRIA 378 395 393 395 375 395 830 327610 0.53 - 0.53 0.53 0.45 0.53 218770000 111948900 PRMIERE HORIZON SBS PHIL CORP 4.32 4.35 4.35 4.35 4.35 4.35 19000 82650

790565 -7246625 33405960 9167600 449260 -551810 -26000 158350 154559.9997 1591568.0003 -14210140 -7198620 6625344 151300 -72000 -32400 -3930 -24322505 21060 2316940 262150 4060586 -146700 129461590 -21018752 -36630 520950 12089970 -312900 -

Exec: Megawide has enough funds to undertake Naia rehab

By Lorenz S. Marasigan

M

@lorenzmarasigan

egawide Construction Corp. will submit within the week the revised proof of its financial capability to undertake its P109-billion unsolicited proposal for the redevelopment of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia).

Edgar B. Saavedra, the company’s chairman, explained that the revised proof of financial capability will now include GMR Infrastructures Ltd., its partner for its airport development projects, to meet the requirements set by the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) for project funding.

“The total capital expenditures of P109 billion is programmed for 7 to 10 years—60 percent of that will be shouldered by Megawide and 40 percent by GMR,” he said in a press

briefing Monday.

Saavedra said it will be funded through a mix of 70 percent debt and 30 percent equity.

He noted that his group will implement the project in three phases, wherein the first two phases will cost roughly P32 billion: P12 billion for the first phase and another P20 billion for the second phase.

“For that, we have enough financial capability to fund the project even if Megawide finances it alone,” Saavedra said. “Within the week,

we will be submitting the financial requirements with GMR’s participation.”

To recall, the Neda Investment Coordination Committee has sought to clarify the group’s financial capacity to fund the multibillion-peso project.

This has resulted in several groups and individuals casting doubt on the unsolicited proposal, raising other issues, such as the employment of current Naia staff.

“We can comply with the financial requirements. We have a strong balance sheet,” Saavedra said.

Megawide’s proposal for the redevelopment of Naia replaced Naia Consortium’s unsolicited proposal, after the latter withdrew its offer due to the economic viability of the project. It received the original proponent status for the project in July.

Megawide has proposed to implement the project between 5 to 7 years in 3 phases.

The first phase includes the immediate improvement of the airside and landside segments of Naia through the improvements of the existing terminal and the optimization of

the existing runways.

The second phase involves the construction of a new passenger terminal building and the improvements of the apron and taxi lane to provide access to the new terminal.

The group will also relocate the cargo terminal and the fuel farm to accommodate the new terminal building.

The last phase will see the group building a rail-people mover system that will allow passengers to move from one terminal to another through an overhead railway system.

“Hopefully this gets elevated to the Cabinet Committee and after which is the Swiss Challenge so hopefully, we can wrap up the whole thing by hopefully first quarter of next year,” Megawide Managing Director Louie B. Ferrer said.

Megawide is an engineering and construction company that is engaged in several government and private projects. It built, redeveloped, and is now operating the MactanCebu International Airport. Most recently, it took on the enhancement project for the Clark International Airport.

ATI 9-mo profit falls by nearly a third A sian Terminals Inc. (ATI) saw its profits in January to September dropping by almost a third, as the pandemic resulted in lower container volumes during the period.

Based on a regulatory filing, the company booked P1.96 billion in net profits for period, a 31.1-percent plunge from P2.86 billion it netted the year prior. The decline in net income was mostly blamed on “lower container volumes resulting from the negative economic impact of Covid-19.”

“With the lifting of government restrictions and the calibrated opening up of the economy, we have seen an encouraging uptick in Philippine trade as reflected in the volumes we handled during the third quarter,” ATI EVP William Khoury said in a statement.

Its revenues from port operations sank by 21.6 percent to P7.97 billion from P10.17 billion.

Meanwhile, the company was able to reduce costs and expenses by 11.9 percent to 3.70 billion from

mutual funds

4.20 billion, cushioning the effect of lower revenues to its bottomline.

According to the filing, container volumes at the Manila South Harbor and the Batangas Container Terminal “ declined by 22.6 percent and 23.9 percent respectively.”

While Covid-19 has created a negative impact on the company’s financial health, K houry said his group is still bullish that the group will end 2020 on a positive note.

“Despite the global pandemic, we are optimistic of finishing the year on a respectable note driven by our company’s resilience as we continue fulfilling our important mandate of enabling trade in the Philippines,” Khoury added. Lorenz S. Marasigan

CLI income declines by 9% in Jan-Sept

By VG Cabuag

MINING & OIL

ATOK 9.57 9.9 9.93 9.93 9.56 9.91 117400 1141096 1.94 1.95 2 2.02 1.93 1.94 11860000 23311240 804880 APEX MINING ABRA MINING 0.0011 0.0012 0.0011 0.0012 0.0011 0.0012 713000000 788900 100100 ATLAS MINING 5.2 5.21 5.01 5.21 5.01 5.2 872500 4494954 64060 3.26 3.38 3.37 3.5 3.2 3.38 310000 1033570 BENGUET A BENGUET B 3.15 3.3 3.22 3.3 3.2 3.2 207000 669100 COAL ASIA HLDG 0.255 0.265 0.255 0.265 0.255 0.265 20000 5200 8.07 8.3 8.34 8.34 8.08 8.3 2300 18872 DIZON MINES FERRONICKEL 1.65 1.66 1.66 1.67 1.61 1.65 9772000 16063500 1224190 GEOGRACE 0.243 0.247 0.245 0.246 0.243 0.246 160000 39290 0.159 0.16 0.161 0.161 0.157 0.159 43450000 6919840 LEPANTO A LEPANTO B 0.158 0.16 0.158 0.16 0.158 0.16 2280000 363610 224490 MANILA MINING A 0.0098 0.0099 0.0098 0.0098 0.0098 0.0098 5000000 49000 0.01 0.011 0.01 0.011 0.01 0.011 37200000 386000 MANILA MINING B MARCVENTURES 1.17 1.18 1.16 1.17 1.11 1.17 8439000 9620710 -18560 NIHAO 2.62 2.63 2.61 2.63 2.61 2.62 205000 537150 4.32 4.38 4.4 4.43 4.24 4.38 13940000 60355330 2940100 NICKEL ASIA OMICO CORP 0.33 0.34 0.335 0.34 0.335 0.34 430000 145550 ORNTL PENINSULA 0.68 0.7 0.69 0.7 0.67 0.69 407000 280500 5.35 5.38 5.52 5.53 5.35 5.35 1750500 9520217 259804.9999 PX MINING SEMIRARA MINING 11.58 11.66 11.72 11.82 11.32 11.6 1871300 21763028 -1119456 UNITED PARAGON 0.0053 0.0054 0.0054 0.0054 0.0054 0.0054 4000000 21600 6.44 6.48 6.42 6.48 6.42 6.44 164900 1063246 ACE ENEXOR ORNTL PETROL A 0.01 0.011 0.0099 0.011 0.0099 0.011 1800000 18500 ORNTL PETROL B 0.01 0.011 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 500000 5000 -5000 0.0086 0.0087 0.0085 0.0087 0.0085 0.0086 19000000 162700 PHILODRILL PXP ENERGY 11.5 11.52 11.64 11.98 11.5 11.5 1718300 19991704 -33560

PREFFERED HOUSE PREF A 100.2 101.3 100.2 100.2 100.2 100.2 500 50100 AC PREF B1 512 520 511 512 511 512 17660 9026560 100.2 103 101.2 101.2 100.1 100.1 200 20130 ALCO PREF B ALCO PREF C 101.5 107.9 107.9 107.9 107.9 107.9 30 3237 AC PREF B2R 506 510 510 510 510 510 1990 1014900 101.2 101.5 101.5 101.5 101.5 101.5 20 2030 CPG PREF A DD PREF 100.6 101.5 101.5 101.5 100.5 100.5 41500 4173583 300314 FGEN PREF G 110 110.5 110 110 110 110 2030 223300 500 530 525 525 500 500 3000 1513000 FPH PREF C GTCAP PREF B 1029 1037 1037 1037 1029 1037 185 190880 MWIDE PREF 100.5 101 101 101 100.5 101 36960 3715030 100 101.5 100.5 101 98 101 30180 2993065 PNX PREF 3A PNX PREF 3B 104 105 105 105 104 104 8050 838300 PNX PREF 4 984.5 995 999 999 990 990 330 327575 1025 1038 1025 1025 1025 1025 410 420250 PCOR PREF 2B PCOR PREF 3A 1052 1067 1065 1067 1065 1067 255 271985 PCOR PREF 3B 1095 1100 1104 1104 1095 1095 800 876135 78.15 78.4 78.4 78.4 78.4 78.4 5100 399840 SMC PREF 2C SMC PREF 2E 76 76.2 76.2 76.2 76.2 76.2 15460 1178052 SMC PREF 2F 78 78.2 78.2 78.2 78.2 78.2 100 7820 -7820 76.2 77.45 77.45 77.45 77.45 77.45 50 3872.5 SMC PREF 2G SMC PREF 2H 76.25 76.85 76.25 76.25 76.25 76.25 128570 9803462.5 SMC PREF 2I 76.6 76.95 77 77 76.1 76.5 81100 6180700 76.2 76.4 76.05 76.2 76 76.2 1070 81445 SMC PREF 2J

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS ABS HLDG PDR 11.2 11.36 11.2 11.2 11.1 11.2 145600 1628180 -0 GMA HLDG PDR 4.9 5.09 5.01 5.09 4.9 5.09 689400 3398859 -3391837

WARRANTS LR WARRANT 0.83 0.84 0.82 0.84 0.82 0.84 23000 19040

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES ALTUS PROP 13.28 13.3 13.62 13.8 13.3 13.3 1052900 14284858 252964 ITALPINAS 3.24 3.25 3.28 3.29 3.08 3.25 6397000 20502140 -4005540 5.88 5.9 6.1 6.1 5.83 5.86 74100 440472 KEPWEALTH MAKATI FINANCE 2.2 2.29 2.17 2.17 2.17 2.17 4000 8680 MERRYMART 4.83 4.84 4.46 4.93 4.46 4.83 53894000 256272830 5897330

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS

FIRST METRO ETF 104 104.5 105.2 105.6 103.5 104.5 24180 2531906 242868

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@villygc

C

ebu Landmasters Inc. (CLI), a property developer in the Visayas and Mindanao, said its income in January to September dropped 9 percent to P1.5 billion from P1.65 billion in the same period last year.

Consolidated revenues for the period fell 4 percent to P5.7 billion from almost P5.99 billion last year, but said it outperformed the total industry decline after it managed to post real estate sales of P5.56 billion for the period.

Revenues for the third quarter declined 10 percent to P2.47 billion from last year’s P2.21 billion, but it grew by more than half compared with the second quarter.

“We are pleased to serve new residential homeseekers in VisMin, where demand for residential housing has proven to be a bright spot in the VisMin economy,” CLI Executive Vice President Franco Soberano.

“The housing backlog has never

been more pronounced than now due to the pandemic, and it’s our shared responsibility to address this backlog as best we can.”

He said sales from overseas Filipino workers (OFW) declined during the period but local buyers picked up the slack.

Soberano said they expect OFW inflows to return during the last quarter of the year and general consumer outlook in the region to bounce back as local businesses reboot operations. He also expects business process outsourcing firms to continue expanding in the region as the global economic crisis deepens.

Collections also improved with 500 more accounts qualifying for higher revenue recognition. Earlier in the year, CLI launched 5 residential projects valued at P5.5 billion while expanding to new areas in the Visayas Mindanao area despite the pandemic.

Expansion areas include Iloilo, and the underserved areas of Bohol and Ormoc.

November 16, 2020

NAV One Year Three Year Five Year Y-T-D per share Return* Return Stock Funds ALFM Growth Fund, Inc. -a 225.25 -11.95% -7.51% -1.78% -10.56% ATRAM Alpha Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 1.1894 -21.28% -9.59% -0.42% -13.94% ATRAM Philippine Equity Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 3.0946 -19.97% -11.38% -3.66% -15.87% Climbs Share Capital Equity Investment Fund Corp. -a 0.7746 -15.69% -8.57% n.a. -13.74% First Metro Consumer Fund on MSCI Phils. IMI, Inc. -a 0.7305 -15.36% n.a. n.a. -13.99% First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund,Inc. -a 4.8626 -10.03% -6.04% -1.88% -8.74% First Metro Save and Learn Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,4 0.7573 -12.81% -7.82% n.a.

-11.28% MBG Equity Investment Fund, Inc. -a 91.57 -18.68% n.a. n.a. -11.29% PAMI Equity Index Fund, Inc. -a 45.8123 -12.09% -5.68% -0.23% -10.67% Philam Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 484.65 -10.53% -5.38% -0.79% -9.03% Philequity Alpha One Fund, Inc. -a,d,5 1.0475 n.a. n.a. n.a.

1.69% Philequity Dividend Yield Fund, Inc. -a 1.137 -13.39% -6.15% -0.55% -11.65% Philequity Fund, Inc. -a 33.7722 -12.47% -5.57% 0.09% -10.88% Philequity MSCI Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.904 -12.39% n.a. n.a. -11.21% Philequity PSE Index Fund Inc. -a 4.6822 -11.67% -5.17% 0.44% -10.36% Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a 783.22 -11.51% -5.06% 0.34% -10.18% Soldivo Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 0.7093 -20.62% -9.05% -3.72% -16.69% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Equity Fund, Inc. -a 3.556 -16.93% -7.14% -1.34% -15.52% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Stock Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.8969 -11.76% -5.37% 0.23% -10.38% United Fund, Inc. -a 3.2492 -12.46% -4.65% 0.67% -11.06% Exchange Traded Fund First Metro Phil. Equity Exchange Traded Fund, Inc. -a,c 105.2924 -11.25% -4.74% 1.15% -9.97% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ATRAM AsiaPlus Equity Fund, Inc. -b $1.1348 15.64% 1.18% 4.62% 10.35% Sun Life Prosperity World Voyager Fund, Inc. -a $1.5796 19.55% 8.65% n.a.

14.57% Balanced Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ATRAM Dynamic Allocation Fund, Inc. -a 1.6228 2.34% -3.76% -1.26% 3.84% ATRAM Philippine Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 2.2224 -1.63% -2.67% 0.6% 1.89% First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund Inc. -a 2.5961 -1.95% -1.6% -0.9% -1.35% First Metro Save and Learn F.O.C.C.U.S. Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a,1 0.1968 -16.08% n.a. n.a.

-13.87% NCM Mutual Fund of the Phils., Inc. -a 1.9468 -1.13% 0.01% 1.78% -0.75% PAMI Horizon Fund, Inc. -a 3.7548 -1.52% -0.79% 1.11% -0.91% Philam Fund, Inc. -a 16.797 -1.54% -0.89% 1.03% -0.96% 2.0799 Solidaritas Fund, Inc. -a -3.32% -1.97% 0.79% -1.99% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 3.5268 -9.41% -3.41% -0.3% -8.71% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2028, Inc. -a,d 1.0074 -1.54% n.a. n.a.

-0.82% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2038, Inc. -a,d 0.9336 -7.4% n.a. n.a.

-6.3% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2048, Inc. -a,d 0.9168 -8.82% n.a. n.a.

-7.69% Sun Life Prosperity Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a 0.8725 -11.58% -4.25% -1.16% -10.49% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Cocolife Dollar Fund Builder, Inc. -a $0.03919 3.62% 2.84% 2.02% 2.59% PAMI Asia Balanced Fund, Inc. -b $1.0959 9.47% 4.03% 8.29% 1.65% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Advantage Fund, Inc. -a $4.2897 13.1% 6.28% 6.5% 9.69% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Wellspring Fund, Inc. -a,3 $1.1858 7.16% 3.43% n.a.

5.06% Bond Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 369.63 3.82% 3.25% 2.75% 3.27% ATRAM Corporate Bond Fund, Inc. -a 1.8957 -1.54% -0.11% -0.05% -0.33% Cocolife Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a 3.2074 3.34% 4.62% 4.89% 2.87% Ekklesia Mutual Fund Inc. -a 2.2888 3.45% 2.86% 2.38% 2.94% First Metro Save and Learn Fixed Income Fund,Inc. -a 2.4437 4.26% 3.37% 2.04% 3.59% 4.6167 Philam Bond Fund, Inc. -a 6.49% 4.41% 2.99% 5.58% Philam Managed Income Fund, Inc. -a,6 1.314 5.33% 4.37% 2.51% 4.56% Philequity Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.9607 5.5% 4.26% 2.78% 4.55% Soldivo Bond Fund, Inc. -a 1.0352 8.5% 3.87% 2.42% 7.35% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.1818 4.54% 4.64% 3.39% 3.45% Sun Life Prosperity GS Fund, Inc. -a

1.7403 3.56% 3.94% 2.8% 2.3% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $481.23 3.24% 2.67% 2.88% 2.75% ALFM Euro Bond Fund, Inc. -a Є218.25 -0.57% 0.79% 1.16% -0.7% 3.96% ATRAM Total Return Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -b $1.255 4.39% 3.4% 2.76% First Metro Save and Learn Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $0.0265 3.11% 1.96% 1.66% 2.71% PAMI Global Bond Fund, Inc -b $1.0884 -0.23% 0.3% 0.81% -0.48% Philam Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $2.5148 5.53% 3.98% 3.51% 4.63% Philequity Dollar Income Fund Inc. -a $0.0619581 2.9% 2.53% 2.24% 2.75% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Abundance Fund, Inc. -a $3.2149 2.31% 2.27% 2.6% 1.25% Money Market Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 129.45 3.35% 3.34% 2.54% 2.88% First Metro Save and Learn Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.0465 1.82% n.a. n.a.

1.97% 2.67% 3% 2.61% 2.25% Sun Life Prosperity Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.2935 Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Starter Fund, Inc. -a $1.0512 1.56% 1.74% n.a.

1.24% Feeder Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities Sun Life Prosperity World Equity Index Feeder Fund, Inc. -a,d,7 1.0677 n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund Inc. -b,d,2 $0.96 n.a. n.a. n.a.

-3.03%

a - NAVPS as of the previous banking day. b - NAVPS as of two banking days ago. c - Listed in the PSE. d - in Net Asset Value per Unit (NAVPU).

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

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

6 - Re-classified into a Bond Fund starting February 21, 2020 (Formerly a Money Market Fund). 7 - Launch date is July 6, 2020.

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

latest NAVPS/NAVPU."

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Banking&Finance BusinessMirror

RCBC keen to maintain digital customer base

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad @Tyronepiad

R

izal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) plans to maintain its digital customer base through improving user experience on online platforms, its Treasurer said.

We “aim to maintain this position, to be at the forefront in responding to the needs of the customers via digital solutions, making it efficient for both the bank and the clients,” Horacio E. Cebrero 3rd said in a recent news briefing.

In his presentation, Cebrero said the Yuchengco-led bank’s digital transactions registered record growth amid the pandemic.

He said that during the enhanced community quarantine, RCBC’s digital banking enrollment soared by 196 percent while the daily transaction count of send cash feature and cardless automated teller machine withdrawal surged by 521 percent and 3535 percent, respectively. InstaPay transactions, meanwhile, ballooned by 494 percent, Cebrero said.

Corporate online payments and clearing climbed by 268 percent year-on-year in September, he added.

RCBC shares fell 1.81 percent, or 32 centavos, to end at P17.40 each amid the 0.74-percent slide for the benchmark index on Monday.

Cebrero said that RCBC is maximizing the opportunities as demand for the digital products increases amid the lockdown measures due to the pandemic.

“We have taken advantage of the

growing opportunities in the transformation of our marketplace into digital-savvy transactors,” the RCBC treasurer said. “And we continue to enhance the positive customer experience that we have been known in providing both our borrowers, depositors, and investors.”

RCBC Corporate Planning Head Maria Christina P. Alvarez said that the bank’s spending on technology and digital initiatives is earmarked in its budget.

“We reallocated our budget, but we have a long-term strategic plan to really invest in the digital initiative,” she said, noting that RCBC invested in work-from-home capabilities during the pandemic.

Asked if RCBC is pursuing to open a digital bank subsidiary, Alvarez said that is on the back burner as they continue to study a circular released by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

“For now, operating the digital strategy in the bank is how we will proceed to grow our digital customers,” she explained.

Last week, RCBC reported its net income from January to September dropped by 11.3 percent to P4 billion from P4.5 billion year-on-year due to increasing provisions for potential credit losses.

As of end-September, the bank recorded provisions for nonperforming loans amounting to P7.22 billion, which is 38.6 percent higher than last year’s P5.21 billion. This, as its loan portfolio—net of interbank loans—rose by 8.6 percent year-onyear to P445.23 billion in the first nine months.

CIMB records booking 600% growth in deposits

C

IMB Bank Philippines announced on Monday that it recorded a 600-percent growth in its total deposits in the past 10 months.

This is already beyond its 500-percent increase target for the year that it shared in July.

The digital bank earlier reported that its average cash-in per customer rose by 160 percent in the second quarter. It also recorded growth in savings account openings and personal loan applications during the first three months of lockdown in the country.

CIMB also said that its personal loan portfolio grew by 500 percent in the past 10 months.

Amid growing deposits, the bank is encouraging the youth to begin saving money early by launching its Savings Starter Pack.

With P500-worth of deposit on UpSave or GSave account every month, CIMB said that customers in the age of 18 to 25 can enjoy 4-percent interest rate annually, with free personal accident insurance coverage of P50,000.

“We believe that anyone, especially the youth segment, can achieve financial freedom and reach their life goals,” CIMB Philippines CEO Vijay Manoharan said in a statement. “And the key is to start their savings journey early and this is why we are encouraging all youths to start their saving journey early, as it really makes a huge difference.”

The bank explained that customers above 25 years old can also avail of the 4-percent annual interest by increasing their average daily balance by P1,000 every month, or by maintaining P100,000 in their UpSave or GSave Account.

“With our unique digital and platform banking model allows us to provide real value by changing the banking experience of every Filipino through an all-digital experience coupled with market-leading savings product features all enabled digitally via smartphone,” Manoharan added.

To date, CIMB has over 3 million customers. The bank earlier said it was eyeing to reach five million within the next year. Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

Insular Life rolls out new bundled-insurance plan

T

he Insular Life Assurance Co. Ltd. announced it recently launched a new product bundled with an investment plan.

Insular Life said for a minimum monthly premium of P2,500 or annual premium of P30,000, its product called “Guaranteed Issue Offer,” or GIO, “enables Filipinos to set up a life protection and investment plan.”

Insular Life Chief Marketing Officer Gae L. Martinez was quoted in a statement that—applying for a life insurance for the first time may sound intimidating to some Filipinos.”

“We are offering an affordable and hassle-free way to provide insurance coverage and investment opportunity to young professionals, breadwinners and entrepre-

neurs,” Martinez said. “ T here is no need to go through a medical examination and fill-out lengthy forms since the application for GIO will be through our pioneering automated underwriting system,” she added. “We hope that more Filipinos will engage in life insurance which is a crucial part of financial planning.”

The insurer said that GIO provides life insurance coverage equivalent to five times the annual premium. This product’s investment component boosts insurance coverage by putting premiums in a diversified portfolio of stocks and bonds, the company added.

Filipinos aged 18 to 60 years old may avail of GIO until December 18, Insular Life said.

Tuesday, November 17, 2020 B3

Short-term govt IOU papers still ‘magnetic’ for investors

T

By Bernadette D. Nicolas

@BNicolasBM

he Bureau of the Treasury awarded a total of P22 billion in Treasury Bills (T-bills), P2billion more than its initial offering.

Average rates were flat compared to the previous auction as the market continues to be flushed with liquidity.

The auction was oversubscribed by more than 4x as total tenders reached P80.4 billion.

National Treasurer Rosalia V. De Leon told reporters on Monday they fully awarded bids and doubled the accepted non-competitive bids for 91-day T-bills.

“Hefty liquidity prevails with magnetic appeal of short tenors,” De Leon said.

The 91-day T-bills fetched an average rate of 1.019 percent, 0.5 basis point lower than the previous average rate of 1.024 percent. Total bids

for the security amounted to P24.631 billion, nearly five-times the initial P5-billion offer.

The average rate for the 182-day Tbills settled at 1.443 percent, 1-basis point down from 1.453 percent. Tenders for the tenor reached P22.246 billion, more than four-times the P5-billion offer.

Lastly, the average rate for 364day T-bills remained unchanged from the previous auction at 1.745 percent. Bids for the tenor amounted to P33.53 billion, equivalent to threetimes the P10-billion offer.

For this month, the Treasury programmed to borrow P140 billion from the local debt market.

The Treasury launched last week

LandBank approves loan for 12 schools

L

and Bank of the Philippines Inc. (LandBank) said it has approved P500 million in loans to help a dozen schools implement their respective “Study now, pay later” scheme for students amid the economic recession.

According to a report by LandBank President and CEO Cecilia C. Borromeo, the state-run financial intermediary is still waiting as of October 27 for 12 other schools to complete their necessary documents for processing of their applications for LandBank’s lending program for educational institutions.

Borromeo also noted 14 other schools still need to submit their loan requirements to qualify for the program. She said the outstanding balance of the bank’s lending program is at P8.805 million.

“Lending units nationwide continue to work closely with applicant-schools to complete their requirements as we process a pipeline of loan applications with approvals at various levels based on amount,” Borromeo was quoted as saying in her report to the Department of Finance.

On top of those who have yet to complete or submit their requirements, another 29 schools across the country have likewise expressed interest in availing of the lending facility, she said.

“Lending units continue to monitor the eligibility of these schools through regular calls and visits,” she said.

In May, LandBank launched the P3-billion lending program it dubbed “Academe” to extend credit to private high schools, private technical-vocational education training institutions, colleges and universities.

The bank said the program aims to encourage students to enroll under a “study now, pay later” scheme by allowing their parents to issue promissory notes for the academic fees.

Under the lending program, which is available until June 30, 2021, promissory notes will then be refinanced or rediscounted. Schools are allowed to borrow as much as 70 percent of the sub-promissory note per semester and subject.

However, schools can only borrow up to a certain maximum amount based on the net borrowing capacity of the institution.

Loans under the program carry an interest rate of 3 percent per annum and are payable based on the maturity of the sub-promissory notes but not to exceed three years.

Institutions eligible under LandBank’s lending program include private junior and senior high schools with permits to operate from the Department of Education and private technical-vocational education training institutions regulated by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority. Private colleges and universities can also avail of the program if they offer undergraduate programs authorized by the Commission on Higher Education.

Borromeo said the LandBank also continues to offer a direct lending program that aims to provide financial assistance to parents, guardians, or benefactors to enable them to send their students to schools.

This lending program also assists private schools and downstream industries to sustain and continue their operations.

Borromeo said LandBank will continue to promote these two lending programs “as a vital contribution of the bank in assisting students and the schools” under Republic Act 11494. Bernadette D. Nicolas

its second tranche of 1-year Premyo Bonds offering, which had an interest rate of 1.25 percent per annum.

De Leon told reporters the second Premyo Bonds offering is “doing well” so far.

For a minimum investment of P500 in Premyo Bonds, investors have a chance to win special cash rewards to be drawn every quarter.

The reward is on top of the main cash prizes via raffle draw of P1 million, P100,000 and P20,000 every quarter.

Grand prize winners will also get an additional P3 million, P6 million or 2 brand-new compact multi-purpose vehicles courtesy of the Bureau’s private sector partners.

Investors may purchase the Premyo Bonds offering through overthe-counter transactions with any of the selling agents, online through the BTr’s online ordering facility and mobile applications via Bonds.PH and the overseas Filipino bank mobile banking application.

The public offer period runs for one month from November 11 to December 11 this year with an issue date on December 16.

De Leon earlier said they are hoping to raise as much as P6 billion from this offering. De Leon said they are expecting to generate P3 billion in new money and another P3 billion from the switch tender offer.

The Treasurer said the proceeds from the second tranche of Premyo Bonds would be used to fund the country’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic as well as help the country clamber up from an economic recession.

Under the switch tender offer, the Treasury said eligible bondholders of the previous tranche of Premyo Bonds maturing on December 18, 2020 may exchange their bondholdings to the second tranche of Premyo Bonds without the need to go through the entire application process.

The joint issue managers and/ or their parent banks will act as the selling agents from whom interested investors may order their Premyo Bonds 2.

Last year, the government generated P4.961 billion from the maiden sale of Premyo Bonds.

B4

Tuesday, November 17, 2020 • Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

Art

BusinessMirror

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Today’s Horoscope

Katinko Artbox collaborator to donate proceeds to typhoon victims Launched to promote Philippine art and help local artists amid the pandemic, the limited-edition Katinko Artbox features artworks of 11 artists. Kenneth Montegrande, one of the featured artists, will donate all of his proceeds from the project to the victims of Typhoon Ulysses.

With him in the photo is Melissa Yeung Yap, president and CEO of Greenstone Pharmaceutical, the company behind Katinko.

A

By Eugenia Last

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Rachel McAdams, 42; David Ramsey, 49; Danny DeVito, 76; Martin Scorsese, 78.

Happy Birthday: Be secretive about the changes you make. Go about your business, and put your plans in place. Have faith in yourself and what you do, and feel optimistic that everything else will fall into place and lead to the success you desire. Planning, perfecting and perseverance will be your tickets to a better future.

Poor health decisions will be your downfall. Your numbers are 8, 17, 22, 26, 33, 38, 42.

a

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Digest what’s happening. Choose reason, not reaction, to avoid jeopardizing your position, health or a meaningful relationship. Excess will lead to uncertainty and upset your ability to do what’s best for you. Slow down; savor what you have. HH

b

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): A change of heart will lead to a new direction. Look at the possibilities. Don’t waste time; put your plans in motion. A chance to improve your position and status is reachable. Be receptive to suggestions from friends and family. HHHHH

c

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Keep moving. If you dawdle or let someone interfere with your plans, you will miss out on a chance to do something that will lead to self-improvement and motivation to be the best that you can be. HHH

N artist-collaborator for the hit project of pain relief brand Katinko has pledged to devote his royalties to the victims of Typhoon Ulysses which battered Luzon

last week.

Abstract expressionist Kenneth Montegrande dedicates 100 percent of his proceeds from Katinko Artbox—a project that in itself was launched last month to help artists in this time of pandemic—to purchase relief items for the benefit of typhoon victims.

“Much like how Katinko wants to help artists, this is my way para makatulong sa mga kababayan nating nangangailangan,” Montegrande said, who also handed relief goods to the victims of the Taal Volcano eruption in January.

While not many people associate the arts with Katinko, a household name in topical ointments for pain relief, the brand actually conducts regular artrelated projects nationwide.

“Katinko has been supporting a lot of art therapy workshops through the years,” said Melissa Yeung Yap, president and CEO of Greenstone Pharmaceutical, the company behind Katinko. “We just don’t usually publicize it, but we were in Leyte after Yolanda and in Marawi after the war, giving art workshops to kids.”

An artist herself who renders a modern take on anthropological elements, Yap drew the simple alignment between the pain relief brand and the visual arts. She said that while Katinko provides physical relief, art, too, presents a form of therapy.

The Katinko Artbox is just the latest of the brand’s art projects during a year when everyone could use some sort of healing. The product is a limited-edition packaging of the brand’s various offerings in a wooden box, featuring the artworks of local artists on the cover.

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The idea for the project is to promote Philippine art and help local artists affected by the pandemic, given the cancellation of several exhibitions in the past months due to Covid-19 restrictions. The participating artists stand to receive royalties from each box sold that features their work.

The Katinko Artbox is available online for P1,500 on Katinko’s Facebook page, and on the project’s dedicated and curated Instagram account with the handle katinko.artbox. Each design is limited to 500 serialized pieces that come with a certificate of authenticity.

“It’s like a numbered print of an artwork,” Yap said.

Katinko conducted several test prints to ensure that the wood print would serve justice to the quality of artworks. The final product captures the images in great detail and accurate orientation.

There are currently eleven artist-collaborators for the Katinkno Artbox, with plans to invite more soon. The list includes Francis Nacion, Kublai Millan, Ariosto Dale Bagtas and Emmanuel Sia, as well as Rishab Tibon, Rene Robles, Dhennis Sigua, Carlo Ongchangco and Yap herself.

Montegrande is the most recent artist to join the project. The fast-rising collector’s favorite burst onto the art scene a couple of years ago with his vigorous abstracts and poetic cloudscapes.

Montegrande enjoys the distinction of being the

first Southeast Asian artist whose works are part of the prestigious collection of Japanese tycoon Yusaku Maezawa. He is also the youngest artist to be included in the Malacañang Palace collection.

For Katinkno Artbox, which stands as Montegrande’s first collaboration with a commercial brand, the artist has chosen to present three of his artworks.

One is an abstract piece, the original of which is under a private collection and measures 48”x72.”

Meanwhile, the other two are sunset paintings that are part of the artist’s collection. One is titled Safe in God’s Arms (18”x24”) and the other is Another Sunset with You (12”x18”). “’Yung sunset kasi represents resting and relief,” said Montegrande, who is set to showcase works in Manila Art next month under Artes Orientes, following a sold-out exhibition last year.

As for his decision to donate his proceeds, the artist said that it was his way to give back and help those in need.

Meanwhile, Yap added that they did not require the artists to donate their proceeds. “We know that they are affected by the global health crisis, as well,” Yap said. “Our goal was really to continue promoting art, at least in our own way. Even during the pandemic, we wanted art to thrive.” n

As virus mutes Dubai nightlife, Filipino bands feel the pain Continued from B5 As the virus continues to surge in the UAE, many expect the hard times to last. Dubai’s live shows and big conventions, including its Expo 2020, have been pushed back. S&P Global, a ratings agency, predicts the city-state’s economy will shrink 11 percent this year, recovering only by 2023.

Roman, with a voice like Journey’s former frontman Steve Perry, said the new reality means fewer tips and meager pay—not enough to cover the bills for his aging mother and four kids in the Philippines. Still, he feels he has “no choice” but to hope.

“This is the worst time of my life,” he said. “I have to believe at some point it will end.” n

d

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Don’t disregard an offer or chance to bring about change. You may not relish learning or trying something new, but patience and tolerance will lead to benefits by the end of the day. HHH

e

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Concentrate on fitness, health and getting along with others.

Give people the freedom to do as they please. The option to do what’s important to you will become available. Romance is on the rise. HHH

f

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Problems will arise if someone uses emotional manipulation to get their way. Be open and honest regarding your plans, and if someone doesn’t want to join in, don’t apply pressure. It’s important to do your own thing to the best of your ability. HH

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LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Don’t take sides; opt to do your own thing. The people who love you will stand behind you no matter what you decide. Take time to enforce better health decisions.

Implement a fitness routine; focus on diet, downtime and personal happiness. HHHH

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SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Abide by the rules and avoid trouble. Use common sense when dealing with options that might put your health, finances or reputation at risk. Make adjustments based on what is no longer working for you. Moderation will be your saving grace. HHH

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SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Making home improvements, helping others, and watching for personal gains look promising.

Consider what you want, and do your best to make it happen. An intimate relationship will require open, honest discussions about likes and dislikes to avoid drifting apart. HHH

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CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Impulsiveness is the enemy. Take your time, verify facts, talk to experts and focus on practicality. Keep life simple, moderate and peaceful, and you will ward off a confrontation over beliefs. Offer others the same freedom you want for yourself. HHH

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AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Don’t let a change of plans disrupt your world. Work with what others choose to do, and continue to do your own thing. Happiness is the perquisite of doing what you enjoy to the best of your ability. HHH

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PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): You’re on a roll.

Rev up your game plan and proceed with passion. You can accomplish whatever you set out to do as long as you give your all and you do your research. HHHH Birthday Baby: You are flexible, inquiring and unique.

You are intuitive and dynamic.

‘internal contradictions’ by lee taylor The Universal Crossword/Edited by David Steinberg

ACROSS 1 Throw in the microwave 4 Most Saharan 10 Guy with a roving eye 13 “Bravo!” in Bogota 14 Once in a blue moon 15 Farmland unit 17 Rowboat propeller 18 Arctic jacket 19 Lose your footing 20 Wishy-washy RSVP 23 Like the Leaning Tower of Pisa 25 Observe 26 “Fancy that!”

27 Fuel for a classic car, maybe 29 Holy objects of knightly quests 30 Six of one, half dozen of the other 34 Mislead 35 Urban train with a view 44 Pretty as a postcard 45 7UP alternative 46 “___ when that happens!”

47 Sunscreen letters 50 He goes down chimneys

1 Video of a concert, for instance 5 54 Yemeni port 55 Completely lose power 56 Nationals pitcher Scherzer 59 Irritated mood 60 Wear black, perhaps 61 Grow older 62 Had a snack 63 Traps 64 Indicate agreement DOWN 1 San Diego attraction 2 ___ mode 3 Daily bread?

4 Selected for military service 5 Raja’s wife 6 Removes wrinkles 7 Spine-chilling 8 Old-fashioned chalkboard material 9 Tiny tot 10 Language spoken in Andorra 11 Paint type 12 Avoid traveling?

16 Fencing weapons

1 “What ___ is new?”

2 22 Bog down 23 Expensive Super Bowl spots 24 Madre’s sister 28 Shrub that may be light purple 29 “Eww!” 31 In good shape 32 Service charge 33 LAX posting 35 Spiny anteater 36 “Drop that bone!”

37 Cordial understanding between nations 38 Zwei + zwei 39 Positive aspects 40 Muffin variety 41 Certain sidekick at a bar 42 Part of D.A.: Abbr.

43 Pro vote 44 George Eliot’s “___ Marner” 47 Open contempt 48 Lecterns 49 Less inhibited 52 Some are scrambled

3 Stand-up comedian Chappelle 5 57 Earlier 58 Crossed (out)

Solution to yesterday’s puzzle:

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Show BusinessMirror

Catherine Gallano, dancer and lead choreographer (left), prays with her group before they start their livestream performance on social media for followers who send them money, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on November 5. PHOTOS: AP

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

• Tuesday, November 17, 2020

From left: Eric Roman, vocalist, Jeff Zacarias, AJ, president of the Dubai Filipino performers’ union, and Rommel Cuison, guitarist, cross the creek water on a boat in Dubai last October 28.

As virus mutes Dubai nightlife, Filipino bands feel the pain D

By Isabel Debre The Associated Press

UBAI, United Arab Emirates—Eric Roman struts onstage in his torn jeans and grasps the microphone.

It’s midnight on a Friday and in normal times, he’d hear wild applause from this tightly packed hotel bar in one of the old neighborhoods alongside the Dubai Creek. Sweaty throngs of fellow Filipinos, Arab businessmen and mall employees fresh from their shifts would hit the dance floor as he belted out Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” with his nine-piece Filipino band.

But now the crowds, along with his bandmates, have vanished—in compliance with coronavirus restrictions that ban dancing and cap the number of musicians onstage. Roman took a 65 percent pay cut when his club reopened after the lockdown.

Guitarists, bassists and drummers weren’t so lucky.

“Dubai is dead,” said Roman, 40. “Every day we’re wondering where we’re going to get our next meal, our next glass of water, how we’re going to survive in this city.” Show bands from the Philippines have long animated Dubai’s nightlife, satisfying an appetite for rock, R&B and pop that has grown with the emirate’s expat population.

Now, as the pandemic mutes the city’s live-music scene and clobbers its economy, hundreds of Filipino performers are struggling to survive.

Traveling Filipino house bands burst into prominence in the early 1900s during the US

‘Ang Huling El Bimbo’ musical now available worldwide GET ready to take a trip down memory lane while watching the hit Filipino musical Ang Huling El Bimbo, which is now streaming in countries outside the Philippines via TFC IPTV and iWantTFC. Ang Huling El Bimbo is a musical set in the 1990s that features some of the hit songs of the iconic original Pilipino music (OPM) band Eraserheads.

It is a story of a group of friends: college students Hector, Emman, and Anthony who meet and become friends with Joy, who is working in a food place they frequent. They are full of hopes and dreams both for themselves and the people they value until an unfortunate event tests their friendship and changes their lives. During its Philippine staging, Ang Huling El Bimbo received good reviews. Broadway star Lea Salonga wrote in her March 2019 column for a national newspaper: “Truth be told, it doesn’t take being a fan of the Eraserheads, and thus desiring of 1990s nostalgia, to appreciate all that this fantastic musical is.”

Don’t miss the nostalgic musical Ang Huling El Bimbo, which can be rented until December 22 via TFC IPTV and iWantTFC for only $7.99 (CAD 7.99, AUD 10.99, JPY 900, SGD 10, SAR 34.50, ED 31.50, EUR 7.95, GBP 6.95). The musical can be viewed within for 48 hours upon rental. iWantTFC subscribers can also watch two versions of Ang Huling El Bimbo, which features two different sets of actors, by paying only for a price of one which can be rented via iWantTFC online (www.iwanttfc.com). The musical is only available for subscribers outside the Philippines. More information is available on www.iWantTFC.com, www.mytfc.com, or emea.kapamilya.com.

occupation of the archipelago. Already well-versed in Western church music and military anthems from three centuries of Spanish imperialism, Filipinos deftly picked up on the latest American music trends, from jazz to rock ‘n’ roll, said Mary Lacanlale, an assistant professor of Asian-Pacific Studies at California State University Dominguez Hills.

By the century’s end, karaoke was a national pastime. Filipino performers—with an uncanny ability to imitate Western music legends—became a mainstay in the nightclubs of emerging entrepôts throughout Asia and the Persian Gulf. Dubai drew legions of Filipino cover bands to fuel its rapid transformation from a desert pearling port into regional party capital.

“Our music builds Dubai’s reputation as a place that transcends political, racial and geographical divides,” said Paul Cortes, the Philippine consul general in Dubai, who also happens to be a singer.

An uncertain fate now awaits the musicians, plucked from impoverished provinces to work in smoky lounges and hotel bars overseas.

“Agents promise you heaven and give you hell,” said AJ Zacarias, a singer-keyboardist and president of the UAE’s Filipino Bands Alliance, an advocacy group.

“We’re some of the world’s most sought-after artists, and they treat us like garbage here.”

British vocalists can earn close to what Filipinos make in a month, Zacarias said. Managers reserve “the good hotel suites” for traveling Indian dancers, while Filipinos are often packed eight to a room in unsanitary accommodations, he added.

“It’s unfortunately the reality of the market. It’s cheaper to hire a band from the Philippines,” said Ricardo Trimillos, expert in Asian performance at the University of Hawaii.

When clubs closed in Dubai, dozens of Filipino musicians living in dormitories at the mercy of their employers were kicked out with nowhere to go.

According to the band association, 70 percent never received their promised gratuity to buy food and other basics. Some are selling their clothes to survive. Out-of-work dancers, like 33-year-old Catherine Gallano, have taken to livestreaming their routines—gyrating, backflipping and blowing kisses to followers who send them money.

The UAE’s Filipino Bands Alliance said some 80 percent of Filipino artists have had their visas canceled by their employers, a consequence of the UAE’s “kafala” labor system that links expatriates’ residency to their jobs.

For the millions of low-paid migrant workers from Asia, Africa and elsewhere that have built up the UAE as a hub of the global economy, the virus has magnified decades-old abuses like wage theft, delayed salaries and dire living conditions, said Hiba Zayadin, a Gulf researcher at Human Rights Watch. That’s especially true for domestic laborers, she added—another precarious job that Filipinos dominate.

When the virus struck in March, Jhune Neri, a 38-year-old singer and stand-up comedian, was trapped—literally. As a “public health precaution,” he said, his manager bolted all the doors and shut down

the elevator of his crowded dormitory, locking the 11 performers inside for months. Living off just weekly deliveries of rice and red sauce, the bands pressed on, cranking out renditions of Whitney Houston’s hits.

“I was thinking, at least I’m still singing, at least still I’m alive,” Neri said.

Weeks later, he was jolted awake by the landlord cutting the electricity and evicting everyone. He’s still determined to make it in Dubai, though he said most of his friends have “given up hope” and gone home.

But quitting the city isn’t so simple. Like thousands of other Filipinos, Rommel Cuison, a 30-year-old guitarist at a hotel bar, has languished for months on a repatriation waiting list, his employer unable to pay his way and the Philippines unable to quarantine masses of returnees. When Cuison’s cash-strapped club brought back only solo singers from lockdown, he sold his cherished guitar to afford food.

For performers fortunate enough to have a gig these days, Dubai’s newly resumed music scene looks very different. Hotels struggle to fill rooms.

Partygoers are dwindling as the pandemic hits everyone in their pocketbooks. Undercover health inspectors patrol clubs and threaten $13,600 fines for violations. No more reveling into the wee hours—the speakers switch off at 1 am.

Marino Raboy, a rock singer in Dubai’s workingclass district of Deira, said his club feels desolate.

Some nights, he performs only for the hostesses lined up at the bar waiting to serve pitchers of Heineken.

Continued on B4

Korean girl group’s panda stunt prompts anger in China BEIJING—A publicity stunt involving South Korean girl group Blackpink and a cuddly baby panda has prompted outraged comments and calls for an apology from some in China.

The endangered animals are native only to China, which claims ownership over all pandas loaned to foreign zoos, including those born abroad. Many Chinese are particularly sensitive about representations of what they view as a national symbol, sentiments fed by rising nationalism that often takes its most virulent form on the Internet.

The outrage over a video of group members cuddling the baby panda in Everland Zoo near Seoul may also reflect a growing awareness of animal welfare, with the China Wildlife Conservation Association among those raising their voices.

The stunt “violated the professional requirements for protection of the giant panda,” the group said, adding that the zoo should improve its management to ensure such incidents do not happen again.

In comments under a posting of national broadcaster CCTV’s report on the controversy, users called for apologies from the band and their management and some form of

explanation from the zoo itself.

“If it’s all about the money and you cannot or don’t wish to take proper care of [the pandas], then give them back to us,” wrote one person, using the name Jenea_y.

“K-pop” bands such as Blackpink are hugely popular in China, as well as in South Korea, Japan and elsewhere. But politics poses a particular challenge for those seeking fame and fortune in the vast Chinese market.

Any hint of criticism of China’s ruling Communist Party— and its take on major historical events—or support for an independent Taiwanese identity or for the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong can bring a major fan backlash, egged on by state media and Chinese diplomats. South Koreans tend to be the biggest targets of such attacks, along with Americans and Japanese.

Last month, Chinese nationalists unloaded on South Korean boy band BTS after its leader thanked Korean War veterans for their sacrifices. Chinese Internet users and state media took RM’s comments as a slap at China, whose soldiers fought alongside North Korean forces during their

failed attempt to annex South Korea in the 1950-53 war. The force of the outburst prompted South Korean companies to drop the use of BTS in their Chinese promotional materials, although the long-term effects appear to have been relatively mild. In comparison, China completely destroyed the Chinese business of South Korean retail and entertainment giant Lotte after it provided land in South Korea for a US anti-missile system opposed by Beijing.

In Blackpink’s case, the effects appear to be even more fleeting, and by Friday the level of invective had fallen considerably. The band’s management removed the video and scrapped plans to use it in its reality TV show, although no formal apology has been offered.

Some Chinese fans even sought to defend their idols, pointing out that the photo-op had obviously received approval from the zoo and the band members were wearing personal protective equipment when holding the cub. n AP researcher Chen Si in Shanghai contributed to this report.

MUÑOZ STRING QUARTET AT SUNSHINE PLACE ONLINE THE Sunshine Place completes this year’s Sunshine Classics online concert series with Sentimentale, which recently together the magic of music from the flute and the piano; now followed by the Muñoz String Quartet from November 16 to 30 via the Sunshine Place: Senior Recreation Center’s YouTube Channel.

The Muñoz String Quartet will be performing selections from Dvorak’s “American String Quartet,” as well as Carlos Gardel’s “Por una cabeza [a tango]” and Verdi’s “Brindisi” from La Traviata from November 16 to 30. With violinists Juan Muñoz and Gian Barayuga, violist Mhaze Lim and cellist Paul Natividad, the quartet will serenade you with its intimate, fascinating performance.

Tickets can be reserved via Mariel Ilusorio at 09177092255 or marielilusorio@hotmail.com. Ticket prices

per concert are P250 senior rate and P350 regular rate. Ticket purchases are accepted until 12 noon of November 15 for Sentimentale and November 30 for Muñoz String Quartet.

Once registered, an email will be sent to registrant containing the program’s link. The link will be valid respective to the duration of each concert. With one click, registrant can access the concert video as many times as they want.

A senior recreation center under the Felicidad Tan Sy Foundation, The Sunshine Place is a venue for adults to live actively through engaging in recreational classes and age-appropriate physical training programs. It is the venue to be entertained, socialize and reflect; a place of happiness and wellness for one’s mind, body and soul.

MUÑOZ String Quartet

B5

B6 Tuesday, November 17, 2020

BPI offers enhanced financial program for OFWs

Sec. Villar opens mega quarantine facility in Calamba City, Laguna

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HE Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) is augmenting its program for Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) with BPI Pinoy Abroad, a complete financial program for OFWs that addresses their varying needs based on their career stages.

BPI Pinoy Abroad introduces a package of solutions for OFWs who may be in the recruitment stage, wealth building stage, or retirement stage.

“Through this program, OFWs and their families can reap the benefits of overseas employment through our package of solutions based on their career stages.

Throughout their journey, BPI Pinoy Abroad helps them achieve their financial goals,” said BPI Head of Retail Segments Aileen Lamasuta.

For newly acquired OFW clients who are about to be deployed or newly deployed, BPI offers the “Baon Pack: Gabay sa Pag-alis” which covers services such as entry-level protection through BPI-Philam, Automatic Savings, Remittance, Online and Mobile banking, and Allotment Account.

For established, wealth-building OFWs and their families, the bank provides those with four to 10 years of job tenure with the “Pundar Pack: Gabay sa Pagpundar.”The products and services included are Build-up Deposit (Maxi Saver and Pamana Savings), Wallet Extension (Credit Cards), Car and Housing Loan, Income protection thru BPI-Philam, and Asset protection.

JAZA and CPC - Euromoney Award

BPI also offers wise investment options for retiring and high-value OFWs and their families. The bank has its “Invest Pack: Gabay sa Pagbalik”, which includes Preferred Banking account, Investments: AMTC/BIMI/Capital, and Business Loans.

“We recognize the fact that overseas employment is a unique opportunity for many Filipinos. With our offerings, we help our OFs and their families work together to reap the benefits of overseas employment,” Ms. Lamasuta added.

The BPI Pinoy Abroad program is part of BPI’s aim to become a trusted source of financial advice for Overseas Filipinos can benefit from a holistic program that addresses their needs as they journey towards a better life.

How to use Lark as a simplified digital tool Villar opens Mega Quarantine Facility in Calamba City, Laguna

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HE biggest “We Heal As One” quarantine facility of Southern Tagalog Region for COVID-19 patients opened in Calamba City, Laguna on Saturday, November 14.

Department of Public Works and Highways Secretary and Isolation Czar Mark A. Villar led the ceremonial blessing and turnover of Calabarzon Regional Government Center, considered as the mega quarantine facility of Region 4A with 600 bed capacity.

Secretary Villar said that of the total 600 beds, 550 are intended to accommodate patients who have tested positive and categorized as mild and asymptomatic patients with the remaining 50 for medical frontliners

who will be deployed in the facility.

Also in attendance are Secretary Carlito G. Galvez Jr., Chief Implementer of the Philippines’ Declared National Policy Against COVID-19; Interior Secretary Eduardo Año; and DPWH Undersecretary Emil K. Sadain, head of DPWH Task Force to Facilitate Augmentation of Local and National Health Facilities organized to handle the construction of quarantine facilities all over the country that made up for the shortage of hospital beds because of COVID-19 outbreak.

DPWH Task Force technical working members namely Bureau of Design OIC Director Aristarco Doroy, Bureau of Construction Director Eric Ayapana and

OIC Asst Director Edgardo Garces, and Regional Office 4A OIC Asst. Regional Director Jovel Mendoza were also present.

The DPWH Task Force together with the Regional Office 4A was responsible in the repurposing of the Regional Government Center into a mega quarantine facility by constructing cubicles and nurse stations, quarters for the healthcare workers, and toilet and shower rooms for the patients, and installing air-conditioning units.

The facility was turned over to Calamba City Mayor Justin Marc S. Chipeco as this will be manage by the city government jointly with the Department of Health and Office of Civil Defense.

Central Luzon’s CLTV36 drives regional TV-based distance learning via DepEd’s TeleSkwela program

CLTV36, together with the Provincial Government of Pampanga, the City Government of San Fernando, and the local school boards of DepEd Pampanga and DepEd San Fernando, forged an agreement to air the TeleSkwela program free-of-charge for all participating parents, teachers, and students in Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Tarlac, Bulacan, and Bataan. The show will also be available nationwide through Cignal TV Channel 115.

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S classes reopen for the new school year, students in Central Luzon can access TV-based learning by watching the Department of Education’s (DepEd) “TeleSkwela” Program on CLTV36. The station, which is also the only regional TV station in Central Luzon, has officially begun airing K-12 programs from 8 am to 7 pm daily to students in Region 3.

As a free-to-air television network, CLTV36 has the potential to reach an estimated 98% of students in Pampanga. Furthermore, the program’s telecast is estimated to reach over 1.3 million students, parents, and teachers within regions under CLTV36’s coverage. “The most important element to this partnership is that TeleSkwela will be totally free - both for the DepEd to air their programs on our station, and for the students and families who wish to participate in the new learning process. For learners, all you really need is an antenna and a television, which most Filipino households have,” shared Sonia Soto, CLTV36 President and General Manager.

The TeleSkwela program encompasses the entire K-12 curriculum, with each K-12 level assigned a 45-minute time slot per day. Drawing from its expertise of televising current affairs, CLTV36 will also air locally-oriented news stories

between lessons, which will allow students to keep abreast of current events and to connect these stories with their studies.

CLTV36’s partnership with the DepEd is the latest among a string of efforts made by the station to relay important news, developments, and updates to the people of Central Luzon and its neighboring regions - a responsibility that it has further embraced as the pandemic forced the nation into a lockdown. In fact, CLTV36 kept its operations running during the initial stages of Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) even as other stations were shutting down, knowing that the citizenry was heavily dependent on the station for information and announcements.

“We recognize our responsibility to the people of the region. Despite the risk and the cost, we kept CLTV’s operations running even during ECQ. Now, we are proud to further this responsibility, by serving as a conduit for the programs of the DepEd. We are excited to support the DepEd, especially in creating learning opportunities for students through safe and effective methods,” said Sonia Soto, CLTV36 President and General Manager.

As a subsidiary unit of the Laus Group of Companies, CLTV36 advances the LausGroup’s corporate goal to usher

regional development by serving the educational needs of students amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

Lisset Laus-Velasco, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Laus Group of Companies, reiterated the company’s commitment to supporting countryside development. “LausGroup has over four decades of experience when it comes to regional development.

In that time, we’ve learned that the best way to generate a positive impact is to consult with all sectors, especially the government to learn and address the people’s needs. In a time when the media is vital to transitioning hybrid learning for students, we’re grateful to be able to position our media arm, CLTV36, to deliver them their modules every day. It’s an exciting start, and through TeleSkwela CLTV36, we’re happy to help DepEd prepare our youth as they become valued members of our societies in the future,” she concluded.

CLTV’s support for the DepEd’s TeleSkwela program complements the broader efforts of the Laus Group, a Pampanga-based conglomerate that has been a longstanding partner in the economic development of Central Luzon through its involvement in the automotive industry, insurance, multimedia, and other ancillary businesses.

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N order for remote teams to collaborate successfully, it is important to lay a solid work foundation. This begins with a digital productivity tool that allows them to get work done, seamlessly and effectively. The simpler the tool, the greater the output. This is especially true for digital tools that are easy to use, complete, and efficient, such as Lark.

Lark is an all-in-one collaboration app, which means that everything you need for work is together in one place.

No time or effort is wasted switching between apps for communication, file sharing, and document creation. And, with Lark's time-saving smart search bar, you can quickly find colleagues, messages, calendar events, documents, sheets and folders with just one click.

Scheduling meetings and events between team members from anywhere around the world is simple, too, using Lark Calendar.

Its multi-time zone view ensures that everyone's non-working hours are taken into consideration, helping you find an optimal schedule that's best for all.

Lark offers several different ways for you to stay in touch with your team.

Lark Mail gives you a redefined email experience, integrated with other work

tools. Quick discussions can be done with ease over Lark Messenger. For longer conversations, meetings, and online conferences, there's Lark Video Call, which offers unlimited call minutes for up to 100 participants.

During video calls, Lark's advanced screen sharing capabilities allow all meeting participants to view, and edit shared documents simultaneously, in real-time. Collaborating on files is simple with Lark Docs, which also allows multiple users to work on one file, at the same time.

When something needs the immediate attention of a co-worker, you can easily tag this person within a document, and he or she will receive a notification on Lark Messenger regarding this.

Remote workers benefit from a flexible and agile work environment, where they can make the most out of their productive hours. With Lark as a cloud-based online office, work can happen anytime, anywhere, and on any device. Continue to work on the go using Lark's mobile version, without losing any of the essential functions found on the desktop app.

Lark is simple to learn, easy to use, and ideal for remote workers across various industries. Whenever a third party app is needed to get work done, it can easily be integrated into Lark through Lark Workplace. Plus, teams and data are guaranteed to be safe and secure within Lark through an AWS certification that complies with the strictest rules in cloud computing. This way, you can worry less, and focus more on growing your business.

Lark is available on Mac, PC, iOS, and Android. Click here to start using Lark. To learn more, visit www.larksuite.com.

Sagip Kapamilya treks to the provinces to help typhoon survivors via relief packs

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BS-CBN Foundation’s Sagip Kapamilya has gone to different provinces hit by Typhoon Rolly to bring comfort to families through food and relief packs.

Through the support of donors and partners, 1,000 food packs have been brought to Brgy. Puro and Penaranda in Legazpi, Albay while 533 families received relief bags in Brgy. Gapo in Camalig, Albay.

Sagip Kapamilya has also visited Brgy.

Travesia in Guinobatan, Albay to distribute food packs to 265 families that evacuated at Travesia Elementary School and to turnover medicine to the Barangay Health Center.

Aside from areas in the Bicol Region including Catanduanes, Sagip Kapamilya has also conducted relief operations in Southern Tagalog, which also suffered tremendous damage due to the typhoon.

In Aurora, 494 families were given food packs while 1,990 individuals received hot meals to nourish them while they remained at Dingalan National High School and Mega evacuation centers. Even before the landfall of Rolly, Sagip Kapamilya was already there to provide food to evacuees. It is also bound for Batangas and Oriental Mindoro.

As families are expected to stay longer in evacuation centers while they rebuild

their homes, more donations are needed to support them.

Jen Santos, ABS-CBN Foundation’s director for operations told ABS-CBN News that so far, many have shown interest to help and donate.

“So many have donated and many said they want to help, asking us how they could provide assistance. She said that it is usually the staff from the regional stations that are first to respond to affected areas to distribute relief goods.

For more information, visit abscbnfoundation.com, or follow ABS-CBN Foundation (@abscbnfoundationinc) on Facebook.

Sports BusinessMirror

Editor: Jun Lomibao

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph | Tuesday, November 17, 2020

B7

GOLF BACK IN ACTION Tolentino

TOLENTINO: P.O.C. ELECTIONS TURNING UGLY P

HILIPPINE Olympic Committee (POC) President Rep. Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino branded as “provocative and dirty” an election protest filed by his rival Clint Aranas that calls for his disqualification along with four of his allies.

“These are mere allegations, provocation and part of their dirty tactics,” Tolentino told BusinessMirror in a texted message on Monday.

The group of Aranas, who is also running for the POC presidency, accused Tolentino, Tom Carrasco (triathlon) and Cynthia Carrion (gymnastics) of having received salaries while exercising their duties for the Philippines Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee when the country hosted the Games last year.

Aranas’s group also sought for the disqualification of Dr. Raul Canlas, who they said only served as surfing association president for two years and not the prescribed four years as mandated by the POC charter for an individual seeking an elective post.

The group included Dave Carter in the protest list, saying the judo association that he heads has issues with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

“They are

trying to make us look bad in the eyes of the people, we will just have to wait for November 27 and see who are the better candidates and who possess true leadership,” Tolentino said.

POC election committee chairman Atty.

Teddy Kalaw IV confirmed the protest was filed last Friday and set an online clarificatory hearing on Thursday to decide on the complaint.

Aranas’s group insist POC officials are forbidden from receiving any salary or emolument in the exercise of their functions.

Wushu’s Julian Camacho, who is running for treasurer in Aranas’s ticket, said they are leaving the decision to the election body.

“It’s really up to the election committee on what to do with our protests. If they are allowed to run, then so be it and that’s it,” Camacho said.

Carrasco is a candidate for chairman in Tolentino’s ticket while Carrion is seeking the treasurer’s post. Canlas and Carter are eyeing seats in the POC executive board. Josef Ramos

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HREE former Philippine Open champions, three Order of Merit (OOM) winners, a slew of title-hungry young guns and the winner of the only Philippine Golf Tour (PGT) event held in this pandemic-hit season headline the stellar field in Tuesday’s tour restart at Riviera’s Couples course in Silang, Cavite.

Miguel Tabuena, who won the Philippine Open in 2015 and 2018 at Luisita and The Country Club (TCC), respectively, and Angelo Que, who reigned at Wack Wack in 2008, get the top billing in the P2-million event marking the first time that the Tour pros will gather since Dutch Guido Van der Valk humbled the local aces to clinch the TCC Invitational crown first week of March before the organizing Pilipinas Golf Tournaments Inc. (PGTI) suspended its scheduled 11th season due to coronavirus outbreak the following week.

But the Games and Amusements Board and the

Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases recently gave the PGTI the green light to resume operations, paving the way for a twotournament offering, simultaneous with the Ladies PGT. The other PGT and Ladies PGT events put up by International Container Terminal Services Inc. will be held December 8 to 11 at the Langer’s course, also at Riviera.

For details, visit www.pgt.ph.

The likes of Tony Lascuña, Jay Bayron and Jobim Carlos, all former OOM titlists, and PGT Asia leg winners Jhonnel Ababa, Justin Quiban, Joenard Rates and James Ryan Lam, Michael Bibat, Zanieboy Gialon and Gerald Rosales, who also won the Phl Open at Langer in 2000, are all primed up for golf’s return in new normal under strict health and safety protocols with the pros excited to just be back playing competitively.

An equally talent-laden cast also braces for fierce battle in the Ladies PGT, which kicks off its 54-hole chase also Tuesday with defending OOM champion Princess Superal and former winners Pauline del Rosario, Chihiro Ikeda and Cyna Rodriguez bannering the field that also features former leg winner Sarah Ababa, Daniella Uy, Marvi

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Manila Chooks team arrive in Doha

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HE Manila Chooks TM arrived in Doha in earnest on Monday morning to undergo quarantine procedures as they gear up for the International Basketball Federation 3X3 World Tour Doha Masters.

The country’s No. 1 Joshua Munzon, No. 2 Alvin Pasaol, No. 5 Troy Rike and No. 6 Santi Santillan left the Ninoy Aquino International Airport on Sunday night aboard Qatar Airways flight QR929.

The team were immediately administered RT-PCR tests before heading to the Marriott Marquis City Center Doha Hotel where they would be quarantined in their rooms until the results come out.

The Level 10 tournament that offers a top prize of $40,000 is set on Friday and Saturday the Al Gharafa Sports Complex.

Also competing are Liman and UB of Serbia,

Riga of Latvia, NY Harlem and Princeton of the US, Lausanne of Switzerland, Jeddah and Riyadh of Saudi Arabia, Kamakura and Yoyogi of Japan, Bielefeld of Germany, Utana of Lithuania and home team Lusail.

“We are born-ready kami,” team captain Pasaol said. “We’re confident of our chances here, thanks to the preparation we had back home, including the Chooks 3x3 tournament series in Calamba.”

The team, however, teetered on Sunday as they secured their Qatar visas six hours before their flight.

Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3x3 league owner Ronald Mascariñas was relieved and thanked everyone who worked on the team members’ visas.

“The spirit of bayanihan was truly alive,” Mascariñas said.

By Josef Ramos

ERALCO is plunging into its first Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup semifinals appearance against Barangay Ginebra San Miguel with Game 1 of the best-of-five series set for Wednesday inside the Clark bubble at the Angeles University Foundation Gym. The Bolts, particularly Head Coach Norman Black, know they have their hands full—their opponents beat them in three championship showdowns of the Governors’ Cup, an importlaced conference.

But Black would be formulating a different brew for the all-Filipino tournament.

“The new goal we have is to try to get into the Finals. And there’s only one way to do that—and that’s to beat Ginebra,” Black, 63, told BusinessMirror on Monday.

Matchups, Black stressed, are tops on his agenda especially on how to defend the 6-foot9 high-leaping Japeth Aguilar.

“We haven’t had too much success against them in the last few years in playoff series and our objective would be just try to change that to win the series. We’ll take the first game and take it from there,” Black said.

“The size and athleticism of Japeth [Aguilar] is certainly a concern and his dominance in the paint,” he added.

Aguilar, the Finals Most Valuable Player in

COACH Norman Black and the Bolts have their hands full.

the last Governors’s Cup, has dominant averages of 14.7 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 11 games this season.

Black also has his eyes on Stanley Pringle— not to mention Earl Scottie Thompson’s versatility and LA Tenorio’s leadership—and is hopeful a shorter semifinals series would benefit his wards.

“It is a shorter series which would hopefully benefit us a little bit because they do have that little more depth than we do,” he said. “Shorter series really benefits a team that has less depth. But at the same time, we understand who we are really playing against.”

“We are going up against a really good coach [Ginebra Coach Tim Cone] who is well prepared every game,” he added.

Raymond Almazan’s return from a knee injury early this year and Aaron Black’s resurgence in the eliminations up to the quarterfinals helped led the Bolts in dethroning San Miguel Beer—in the process toppling the Beermen’s twice-to-beat advantage with a modest 78-71 win and a 90-68 blowout in the do-or-die encounter on Sunday night.

That Meralco victory snapped San Miguel Beer’s string of five Philippine Cup titles.

“All respect to the San Miguel Beer team.

They did something that has never been done before which is to win five straight Philippine Cup titles,” said Black, who won nine championships as coach of the Beermen, including the 1989 grand slam.

“They deserve a lot of credits for accomplishing that,” he said.

The other half of the semifinals series between TNT Tropang Giga and Phoenix Super LPG is also set on Wednesday at 3:45 p.m.

Tokyo Olympic participants may need vaccinations–Bach

JAPAN Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga (right) greets International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach.

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OKYO—Olympic participants and fans arriving for next year’s postponed Tokyo Olympics are likely to face requirements to be vaccinated to protect the Japanese

public, International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach said Monday after meeting with new Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.

Mhark Fernando, Raymund Gonzales Jr., Cookie La’O, Rolando Marabe Jr., Rey Pagunsan, Richard Sinfuego, Orlan Sumcad, Arnold Villacencio and Dino Villanueva.

The twin tournaments generated so much interest and enthusiasm among the men and women of the tour, all eager and raring to return to work and resume their hunt for fame and fortune in the country’s long-running circuit at Riviera’s twin courses spruced up to championship condition for a true test of golf.

A number of Mindanao-based aces, however, failed to make it to the tournament, opting to call off the rest of the season, including Del Monte’s Clyde Mondilla and Reymon Jaraula and Davao’s Elmer Salvador.

At least four foreign players residing in the country, however, bolsters the cast, including regular campaigners American Lexus Keoninh and Korean Park Jun Sung.

THE ladies, led

by Order of Merit champion Princess Superal and former winner Chihiro Ikeda, are also returning to the greens.

Bolts make first-ever PHL Cup semis against familiar tormentor Gin Kings

Joshua Munzon, Alvin Pasaol, Troy Rike and Santi Santillan undergo quarantine in Doha.

Monsalve and Gretchen Villacencio.

Focus will also be on brand-new pros Abby Arevalo and Chanelle Avaricio with the former, who dominated the Philippine Ladies Open early in the season, raring to return to the venue where she scored a pro victory as an amateur in 2017, edging Del Rosario no less with a last-hole birdie at Langer.

Avaricio, on the other hand, took the low amateur honors in an LPGT event last year to earn a pro card. After a stellar collegiate career that saw her win four consecutive Southwestern Athletic Conference low medal honors, the former Alabama State ace hopes to hold her ground against the veteran campaigners.

Also vying in the men’s side are Ira Alido, Dan Cruz, Fidel Concepcion, Sean Talmadge and Rupert Zaragosa and regular campaigners Tonlits Asistio, Ferdie Aunzo, Jun Bernis, Marvin Dumandan, Belem Arancon, Art Arbole, Albin Engino, Rico Depilo, Paul Echavez,

It was Bach’s first meeting with Suga and his first trip to Japan since the Olympics were postponed almost eight months ago.

“In order to protect the Japanese people and out of respect for the Japanese people, the IOC will undertake great effort so that as many [people] as possible—Olympic participants and visitors will arrive here [with a] vaccine if by then a vaccine is available,” Bach said.

“This makes us all very confident that we can have spectators in the Olympics stadium next year and that spectators will enjoy a safe environment.”

Bach has two days of non-stop meetings and photo opportunities with politicians and organizers in Tokyo, aimed at persuading the Japanese public that it’s safe to hold the Olympics during a pandemic.

The Olympics are to open on July 23, 2021.

A possible vaccine was announced last week

by Pfizer Inc., which could greatly help the IOC

and local organizers stage the Olympics. There have also been advances in rapid testing.

All of this is taking place as cases around the world surge heading into the Northern Hemisphere winter. Bach traveled to Tokyo on a chartered flight, He called off a trip last month to South Korea because of the virus’ spread in Europe.

Some athletes and fans from abroad are almost certain to oppose any requirement to take the vaccine, which Bach has hinted previously could be almost mandatory for Olympic “solidarity.”

Japan has held baseball games recently with near-capacity crowds of 30,000 fans at some stadiums. It has also held an exhibition gymnastic meet with 22 athletes entering from abroad, attended by several thousand fans.

Japan has been largely spared during the pandemic with about 1,900 deaths attributed to Covid-19. It has also largely sealed off its borders, and

has almost 100 percent mask-wearing by the public.

Several polls have shown the Japanese public is ambivalent to the games, facing larger concerns like a slumping economy.

“Our determination is to realize the Tokyo Games next summer as proof that humanity has defeated the virus.” Suga said.

The Olympics and Paralympics are gigantic.

They involve 15,400 Olympic and Paralympic athletes, and tens of thousands of coaches, officials, judges, VIPs, sponsors, media and broadcasters entering Japan.

The IOC gets 73 percent of its income from television, which is a critical factor in its drive to hold the Olympics. American network NBC pays well over $1 billion for every Olympics.

Costs are also an issue with the Japanese public. A government audit report last year said the bill for preparing the Olympics could reach $25 billion. All but $5.6 billion is public money. AP

MPBL, PSL keeping amateur status

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HE Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) and Philippine Superliga (PSL) have no intention to turn professional despite calls from the Games and Amusements Board (GAB) for the two leagues to change their status.

Commissioner Kenneth Duremdes said MPBL officials believe it is not ideal to turn pro at this time when the country already has three professional basketball leagues—the Philippine Basketball Association, Chooks 3x3 Pilipinas and National Basketball League.

“Besides, we at the MPBL are a grassroots league. Our players are not getting salaries but allowances,” said Duremdes, a former PBA Most Valuable Player.

PSL Chairman Dr. Philip Ella Juico said the volleyball league is happy to keep its amateur status.

“We are happy where we are at right now.

The teams and the players are enjoying the league as it is. We don’t have any plans of going pro just yet,” Juico said.

The Premiere Volleyball League announced last week that it has turned professional, ending 16 years of being an amateur competition among club teams.

GAB Chairman Abraham Khalil Mitra, meanwhile, consistently suggested to the leagues to turn pro, although he admitted the MPBL and PSL should be validating their desire to remain as amateur leagues.

“I don’t think it is a valid reason [Duremdes’s]. But of course GAB is not imposing,” Mitra said.

Mitra said he met with Duremdes and his fellow MPBL officials once to discuss his proposal for the basketball league owned by boxing icon Senator Manny Pacquiao but nothing concrete came out in their discussion. Annie Abad

Forum on PVL

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HE newly turned pro Premier Volleyball League (PVL) will take centerstage in Tuesday’s webcast session of the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) Forum.

Ricky Palou of Sports Vision and star Alyssa Valdez will talk about the PVL’s transition as a professional league.

The 10:30 a.m. session is powered by Smart and presented by San Miguel Corp., Go For Gold, Milo, Amelie Hotel Manila, Braska Restaurant and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. with Upstream Media as the official webcast partner.

The weekly Forum is livestreamed via the PSA Facebook page fb.com/ PhilippineSportswritersAssociation and also shared by Radyo Pilipinas 2 Facebook page.

Sports BusinessMirror

B8 Tuesday, November 17, 2020

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph / Editor: Jun Lomibao

GREEN JACKET FITS JOHNSON WELL Dustin Johnson overcame a nervous start that conjured memories of past majors he failed to finish off, and then delivered a command performance that added his own touch to a Masters unlike another.

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UGUSTA, Georgia—In this oneof-a-kind Masters that had no fans and no roars, Dustin Johnson made sure it had no drama. And when he polished off his fiveshot victory Sunday with lowest score in tournament history, he had no words.

Only tears.

Looking smart in his Masters green jacket he dreamed his whole life of winning, Johnson spoke to a small gathering on the putting green in absence of the official ceremony, but only briefly. In control of every aspect of his game on a course that never allows anyone to relax, he couldn’t speak when it was over. Instead, he turned to wipe his eyes.

“I’ve never had this much trouble gathering myself,” Johnson finally said. “On the golf course, I’m pretty good at it.”

No one was better. Not even close.

Johnson overcame a nervous start that conjured memories of past majors he failed to finish off, and then delivered a command performance that added his own touch to a Masters unlike another.

Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, it was the first played in November. It was the first without ropes and without roars because patrons were not allowed, only one guest for each player, coaches, Augusta National members and officials.

Leading by two shots heading into Amen Corner, the world’s No. 1 player got through the 12th hole—where Tiger Woods earlier hit three balls in Rae’s Creek and made 10—and then ran off three straight birdies to pull away from Cameron Smith and Sungjae Im, the only players who had a chance.

Johnson closed with a four-under 68 and finished at 20-under 268, breaking by two shots the record set by Tiger Woods in 1997 and

matched by Jordan Spieth in 2015.

He had only four bogeys in 72 holes, another record, this one held by Jack Nicklaus and Jimmy Demaret. He missed only 12 greens all week, a record last set by Woods.

All that mattered was that green jacket.

Nothing ever comes easily for Johnson in the majors. Nothing looked so natural as seeing Woods, the defending champion, help him into that size 42 long in Butler Cabin.

“Having Tiger put it on was awesome. You wouldn’t want it any other way,” Johnson said.

And then he smiled before adding, “But any guy could put it on me and I’d be just fine.”

His five-shot victory was the largest at the Masters since Woods won by 12 in 1997. All that was missing were the roars from a crowd for any of his pivotal putts early and his birdie putts on the back nine that put it away.

It wasn’t the loneliest walk up the hill to the 18th green. About 250 people offering warm applause and partner Paulina Gretzky rushed onto the green to celebrate with Johnson and his brother, caddie Austin Johnson.

Johnson now has two majors to go along with his 25 victories worldwide, a combination that validates him as one of the greats of his generation.

Gone are the doubts that he could hold a lead in the major on the final day. Four times he had gone into the final round with at least a share of the lead without winning. Johnson had questions, too. His only major was the US Open at Oakmont in 2016 when he rallied from four shots behind.

“I’m sure a lot of you all think...there were doubts in my mind, just because I had been there. I’m in this position a lot of times,” Johnson said. “When am I going to have the lead and finishing off a major? It definitely proved that I can do it.”

There were some nervous moments early.

Johnson’s four-shot lead was reduced to one after five holes, and then he quickly restored control with an 8-iron to 6 feet on the top shelf on the right corner of the green at the par-3 sixth for birdie. That restored his lead to three shots when Im missed a 3-foot par putt. Smith was the only one who was closer than two the rest of the way.

Smith got quite the consolation. He became the first player in Masters history to post all four rounds in the 60s, and all it got him was a silver medal.

“I thought I’d have a decent shot if I got to Dustin’s original score at the start of the day, 16 under,” Smith said. “I knew I had to put the pressure on early. Got out of the gates pretty good and DJ was just too good at the end.”

Johnson became the 12th Masters champion to never trail after any round, and his closing 68 broke another record held by Woods—it was his 11th consecutive subpar round at Augusta National.

No one had a better finish than Woods, but only after the five-time Masters champion posted the highest score of his career on the 12th hole. He finished with five birdies over the last six holes to salvage a 76.

The betting favorite and biggest basher in golf, Bryson DeChambeau, couldn’t even beat 63-year-old Bernhard Langer, who shot 71 and wound up one shot ahead of the US Open champion.

These were only sideshows on a quiet Sunday at Augusta National.

Johnson, the first No. 1 player in the world to win the Masters since Woods in 2002, was the main event.

But even a record score, and the widest margin of victory since 1997, didn’t mean it was easy. This is Johnson, after all, who for all his talent has dealt with more than his share of misfortune, not all his own doing.

“I knew it wasn’t going to be easy,” he said.

After the big turning point at No. 6, and his nifty par save from a bunker on the seventh, Johnson didn’t bother looking at a leaderboard until his brother asked if he knew where he

HORRIBLE 10 KILLS WOODS’S MASTERS A

DUSTIN JOHNSON buries some major memories and wins the Masters. AP

stood on the 18th green. Johnson knew only that he was in control and it was up to everyone else to catch him.

“I took what the course gave me and hit the shots I felt I could hit,” he said.

And so ended the Masters in November, so strange in so many ways. No roars from Amen Corner. Soft conditions—not only from rain that delayed the start but an autumn date that affected the grass—led to record scoring. The average score for the week was 71.75, the lowest ever, breaking the record from last year.

Gone were the white and pink blooms of azaleas and dogwoods, replaced by autumn hues of brown and gold.

The Masters, though, in any month is defined by green. And the jacket fit Johnson well. AP

Hamilton lets tears flow as he clinches record 7th F1 title

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FTER winning a difficult race to equal Michael Schumacher’s record of seven Formula One championships on Sunday, the hardest thing for Lewis Hamilton was containing his emotions.

His voice could be heard breaking as he thanked his team over the radio moments after crossing the line at the Turkish Grand Prix, while underneath the helmet the tears were LEWIS HAMILTON: Dream the impossible. You have got to chase it and never give up. AP

starting to build up.

“All these emotions were running through me and I was trying to stop it,” Hamilton said in his post-race news conference. “I was thinking

about my whole career, from when I was five when I drove in a go-kart, from when we won the British championship, driving home with my dad and singing ‘We Are The Champions’ and dreaming of being here.”

Moments after victory No. 94 and title No. 7, he sat in his car with his head in his hands.

“It really hit me and I just burst into tears. I couldn’t get out of the car because I just couldn’t believe it,” Hamilton said. ”I didn’t want the visor to come up and people to see tears flowing, because I had always said I would never let you see me cry. I remember watching drivers in the past crying and I was like ‘I’m not going to do that.’ But it was too much.”

Speaking a short time after his win, Hamilton was wiping away those tears as he prepared to mount the podium.

“I’m definitely a bit lost for words,” he said, thanking his family. “I dreamed of this as a kid.

This is way, way beyond our dreams.”

Hamilton only had one title, with McLaren in 2008, when he replaced Schumacher at Mercedes in 2013.

“Dream the impossible. You have got to

chase it and never give up,” Hamilton said.

“That’s for all the kids out there who dream the impossible. You can do it.”

Hamilton only needed to finish ahead of his teammate Valtteri Bottas to seal his sixth title for Mercedes, and Bottas placed a lowly 14th after making a poor start.

The British driver started from sixth place but still won a fourth straight race and 10th of another hugely dominant season.

“I know I often I say it is beyond wildest dreams but my whole life secretly I have dreamt as high as this,” said Hamilton. “It felt so far-fetched. I remember watching Michael win those world championships. To get one or two or even three is so hard.

“Seven is unimaginable. There is no end to what we can do together, me and this team.”

Hamilton placed about 30 seconds ahead of Racing Point’s Sergio Perez and Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel, who overtook teammate Charles Leclerc for his first podium of a difficult season.

“It is a bit of a surprise to snatch the podium, but I am certainly very happy,” Vettel said. “It was quite intense but good fun.”

It was also Perez’s first podium of the campaign, while teammate Lance Stroll finished only ninth despite leading from pole position for much of the 58-lap race.

Vettel, a four-time F1 champion, was quick to congratulate his longtime rival, crouching by his cockpit and shaking his hand as he spoke.

Hamilton won his first title with Mercedes in 2014, and every one since except for 2016 when then-teammate Nico Rosberg beat him in an acrimonious battle that saw the teenage karting friends fall out.

“Surely one of the greatest achievements in the history of sports,” Rosberg said on Twitter. “Congratulations Lewis and enjoy the celebrations with your family and friends.”

Former England and Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand tweeted that

Hamilton is “the greatest sportsman this country has ever produced.”

Stroll started from pole ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen on a resurfaced and skiddy circuit not used in F1 since 2011.

“This was a big test for me,” Hamilton said.

“I don’t remember having an ice race before.”

A chaotic start saw Verstappen stall while Hamilton moved up to third only to lose grip and get overtaken by Red Bull’s Alexander Albon and Verstappen. Vettel made a great move from 11th to third, but Bottas spun and dropped right down.

The virtual safety car was activated on Lap 13 after Alfa Romeo’s Antonio Giovinazzi pulled over on the side of the track.

The impatient Verstappen pushed too hard behind secondplace Perez and lost control to spin twice on the track. He boxed for new tires again on Lap 19.

Halfway through the race, Stroll and Perez were ahead of Hamilton but losing ground.

Stroll came in for new tires on Lap 37 and Hamilton used DRS to get past Perez one lap later and take the lead.

Stroll’s tire change backfired and he was soon passed by both Ferraris, while Bottas spun for the fourth time at the back of the pack.

On a humiliating day for the Finnish driver, he was lapped by Hamilton near the end.

The next step for Hamilton is signing a new contract, and he hinted contract talks will start soon.

“Definitely is something we do need to get onto,” he said. “I wanted to put it aside and wait until the job is done. Probably over the next weeks.... But we will get it done, I’m sure.” AP

UGUSTA, Georgia—This was a very imperfect 10 for Tiger Woods.

The defending Masters champion recorded a septuple-bogey 10 on No. 12 in the final round on Sunday, plunking three balls into Rae’s Creek in front of the green on Augusta National’s signature par 3.

It was the highest score on any hole in his professional career. And the carnage at Amen Corner dropped him from 3 under to 4 over for the tournament, with only a late string of birdies saving him from his matching his worst Masters round ever.

“This sport is awfully lonely sometimes,” Woods said. “No one is going to bring you off the mound or call in a sub. You have to fight through it.

“You just have to turn around and figure out the next shot,” said Woods, who followed the debacle at No. 12 with birdies on five of the last six holes to shoot a 76 and finish at 1-under 287 for the tournament, tied for 38th. “And I was able to do that coming home.”

Woods has been especially

alone this year.

The 15-time major champion usually draws the biggest galleries in golf, but only a few dozen people were watching Sunday due to the coronavirus pandemic that delayed the tournament from the spring and limited crowds to Augusta National members, coaches and players’ significant others.

They were left counting on their fingers, trying to keep track of all of his shots at the par 3 known as Golden Bell.

Entering the final round 11 strokes behind leader Dustin Johnson, Woods had all but seen his pursuit of a sixth green jacket end by the time he arrived at No. 12 following bogeys on the fifth, seventh and 10th holes that left him 2 over for the day.

His tee shot landed on the far bank of the creek and rolled back into the water. Woods said he misread the wind on that shot when it shifted after his two playing partners already had hit.

“That just started the problem,” he conceded. “From there, I hit a lot more shots and had a lot more experiences there in Rae’s Creek.”

After a drop, he hit his third shot a little farther but it, too, rolled back into the water. His third attempt to clear the creek—shot No. 5— went into a bunker behind the green.

Left with an awkward uphill stance— his right leg extended and his left almost completely bent—Woods flew the green on his sixth shot and plunked it into the water. He went back to the bunker, bounced up and down a couple of times to get comfortable in the same crooked stance and put shot No. 8 on the green, about 12 feet from the pin.

His first putt slid by the left edge of the hole, leaving him a tap-in for 10. All that was left for Woods was to finish the round and head to Butler Cabin to slip the green jacket onto his successor’s shoulders.

“I’ve hit a few too many shots [more] than I wanted to today, and I will not have the chairman be putting the green jacket on me,” he conceded while Johnson and the rest of the leaders were still on the course. “I’ll be passing it on.”

Last year at No. 12, Woods was propelled to his fifth Masters title when four contenders dumped their shots into Rae’s Creek. In the four rounds of his 2019 victory, he needed only 12 strokes to par the 12th on four straight days.

In fact, Woods needed only eight strokes combined to play the hole in his first three rounds this year. But Sunday’s misadventures erased what had been a respectable title defense and set Woods on course for what could have matched his worst score ever at the Masters: a third-round 77 as a 19-year-old amateur making his first appearance in 1995.

“That’s what makes this game so unique and so difficult mentally,” he said. “We’ve all been there, unfortunately. Unfortunately, I’ve been there.”

The good news: Woods probably needs to wait only five months to try again. The last major in 2020 is scheduled to be the first major of ‘21 if the pandemic allows it to return to its usual spring slot.

“Hopefully if everything continues the way it is going right now, then we’re able to have this event in April,” Woods said. AP TIGER WOODS records a septuple-bogey 10 on No. 12 in the final round, plunking three balls into Rae’s Creek in front of the green on Augusta National’s signature par 3. AP