POEA: OFW deployment will continue By Samuel P. Medenilla sam_medenilla
D
ESPITE border closures in some countries due to the potential public health threat of the Omicron variant of Covid-19, the deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFW) will remain uninterrupted for now. On Monday, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) said it has yet to receive news of any country which barred the entry of OFWs amid international concerns over the Omicron variant. “If we have not received any formal communication from the particular destination country to
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“If we have not received any formal communication from the particular destination country to stop the deployment, then that means our deployment should continue.”— POEA Administrator Bernard P. Olalia
stop the deployment, then that means our deployment should continue,” POEA Administrator Bernard P. Olalia said in a virtual press briefing. POEA issued the clarification after several countries like Israel and Japan announced they will ban all foreign visitors from entering their jurisdiction due to Omicron. As of press time, Olalia said both countries are still allowing the entry of OFWs. In the case of Israel, he said Filipino caregivers are still expected to be deployed in the coming weeks. “Our recruitment is still ongoing. Once our caregivers are ready, meaning, complied with protocols
such as a negative Covid test and they have all necessary papers, we will deploy them,” Olalia said. He noted they have already deployed around 600 caregivers to Israel as part of a government-togovernment hiring arrangement with POEA. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the Omicron, first detected in South Africa, as a variant of concern since it is more infectious compared to other SARS-CoV-2 variants, due to its numerous mutations. Health experts also warned that the Omicron variant may be resistant to existing Covid-19 vaccines. See “POEA,” A2
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BSP: INFLATION LIKELY DOWN, BELOW 4% IN NOV
Tweak food for better health–poll
By Bianca Cuaresma
I
@BcuaresmaBM
NFL AT ION likely tamed down to below 4 percent for the first time this year in November, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) chief told reporters on Monday.
“Higher electricity and LPG prices...and the uptick in the prices of meat, fish, fruits and vegetables are the primary sources of inflationary pressures . . These could be offset in part by rollbacks in domestic petroleum prices and the appreciation of the peso.”— BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno
In a Viber message to local reporters, BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno said their latest forecasting exercise showed that inflation likely hit 3.7 percent in November this year, with a range of 3.3 percent to 4.1 percent during the month. This means that the BSP expects inflation to fall within the 2 to 4 percent annual inflation target for the first time since December 2020 when it hit 3.5 percent. “Higher electricity and LPG prices along with the uptick in the prices of meat, fish, fruits and vegetables are the primary sources of inflationary pressures during the month,” Diokno said. “These could be offset in part by rollbacks in domestic petroleum prices and the appreciation of the peso,” he added.
By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas
A
(CLOCKWISE, from top) Would-be vaccinees, including children, line up at Santa Ana Hospital in Manila at the start of the three-day national vaccination drive, as the government targets to inoculate 9 million Filipinos even as a new, apparently more contagious Covid-19 variant emerges. (Above) Health Secretary Francisco Duque III and Marikina Mayor Marcy Teodoro preside over the ceremonial national kick-off at the Marikina Sports Center. Story on page A2. ROY DOMINGO/NONOY LACZA
REGIONAL EXPORT GROWTH SEEN RISING FURTHER
R
EGIONAL export growth is expected to rise further in the coming months, as more countries in Southeast Asia open up and ease restrictions, according to an international think tank. Oxford Economics said in a recent research note that regional export growth nudged higher in October, led by an improvement in South and Southeast Asia (SEA). “We expect the recent easing in Covid restrictions in SEA will boost sequential growth in SEA exports over the coming months. We also expect the sup-
See “BSP,” A2
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 50.4580
ply-side problems, such as shortages of key parts and logistics bottlenecks, to ease over next year. With demand continuing to rise, Asia goods exports should steadily increase through 2022,” the think tank said. Oxford Economics covers India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and Vietnam as part of the SEA economic bloc. The boost came from Singapore’s exports in October as well as Indonesia’s strong export momentum aided by still rising coal prices. The think tank, however, also
warned of potential threats in the recovery of exports in the region, particularly due to the emergence of the new variant. “...Challenges remain. The pandemic is not yet over, as highlighted by the Omicron variant. There is also the danger of a sharper slowdown in China. And if the global supply-side problems prove more persistent than expected, regional export performance would also likely fail to gather momentum,” Oxford Economics said. In the Philippines, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Gover-
nor Benjamin Diokno earlier this month said goods exports are likely to sustain the “better-thanexpected” performance towards the end of 2021. In their latest balance of payments (BOP) projections in September, the BSP expects exports to grow by 14 percent from a 9.8 percent contraction in 2020. “Goods exports for the first half of the year have already reached prepandemic levels, driven mainly by manufactures, headlined by electronics and mineral products, among others,” the governor said.
Bianca Cuaresma
T least 7 out of 10 Filipinos believe that food companies must reformulate their product offerings into healthier ones as they are now more aware of the importance of a healthy and balanced diet amid the Covid-19 pandemic, according to an industry report. A report from the Food Industry Asia (FIA) revealed that about three-quarters of Filipino consumers have shown interest towards the addition or removal of ingredients and the use of alternatives to make a product healthier. The report, released on Monday, pointed out that the majority of Filipino consumers believe that food companies must voluntarily change their product formulations to help consumers choose and stick to healthier choices. “Although a majority of Filipinos [81 percent] believe that following a healthy, balanced diet is their own responsibility, they also want more support from the industry,” the report titled, “Healthier Product Reformulation in the Philippines,” said. As part of this support, “they want more visibility of reformulated food and beverage products, increased communications that outline the benefits of these products, and clearer nutrition labels,” the report added. The FIA said the report was meant to better understand behavioral trends and perceptions of solutions geared toward delivering improved nutrition such as reformulation and product labeling. “Health consciousness among Filipino consumers is increasing, with 56 percent of those surveyed claiming that they mostly maintain a healthy diet,” the FIA said. “While most consumers [99 percent] have shown some interest in adopting healthier eating habits, See “Tweak,” A2
n JAPAN 0.4438 n UK 67.3261 n HK 6.4702 n CHINA 7.8927 n SINGAPORE 36.8172 n AUSTRALIA 36.0119 n EU 57.0377 n SAUDI ARABIA 13.4511
Source: BSP (November 29, 2021)