BusinessWeek Mindanao (January 8, 2014)

BusinessWeek MINDANAO

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Volume IV, No. 47

Market Indicators As of 6:03 pm jan. 7, 2014 (Tuesday)

FOREX

PHISIX

US$1 = P44.80

5,947.44 points

10 cents

X

X Briefly 38.37 points

Warning signs THE Cagayan de Oro City Council here on Monday passed a resolution urging the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to put traffic and warning signs of ongoing construction along the national highways here.

City Councilor Ramon G. Tabor, chair of the city council’s committees on public utilities and on laws, took into consideration the report on the absence of early warning signs and devices on DPWH’s ongoing construction on the national highway that cut across the city’s downtown district here.

In a special report last week, Councilor Roger Abaday, chair of the city council’s committee on public utilities, asked the city council to take necessary steps that would require the DPWH to adopt safety and protective measures for the public on the streets.

Abaday said that the DPWH has not installed traffic signs and reflectorized markings along the Kauswagan-Bulua, C.M. Recto-Lapasan Highway while the construction of the center island along the area was ongoing.

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P15.00

Foreign investors target palm industry in M’nao A

By Philippine News Agency

T least six foreign companies have expressed keen interest to invest in several palm-oil ventures jointly with Filipino partners in Mindanao.

In a report presented to consultants of Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica), palm-oil cluster industry Chairman Raul Nuevas said most of these foreign investors are looking for “big contiguous area” of 100,000 hectares that they can lease for 100 years.

“It’s not possible to find big whole areas of 100,000 hectares in Mindanao that they can lease for a hundred years. We can’t find these kind of areas for them,” Nuevas said.

The palm-oil industry

cluster based in Caraga Region, according to Nuevas, had been receiving several serious inquiries from many foreign investors in the AsiaPacific region, like Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan and the Middle East, after a recent industry conference they held in Cagayan de Oro. Nu e v a s s ai d t he s e foreign inquiries came from the New Britain Palm Oil Ltd., Pertamina Indonesia, Pe r ke bu r a s Na s u nt ar a , Univanich, Bali Palm Oil and Marubeni Corp. All these palm/PAGE 7

PALM OIL. A worker operates water spray for the newly grown palm trees in North Cotabato. The vast palm plantations in Mindanao have attracted foreign investors, a palm oil industry stakeholder says. (www.northcotabato.net)

Fil-Chinese bizmen in Butuan eyes renewed ties with China

By ERWIN MASCARIÑAS, MindaNews

Bio-mass plant DAVAO City -- About 23 wood processors based in Panabo City, Davao del Norte are planning to set up a “bio-mass fuel project” that will turn saw dust, wood cuttings and other wood wastes into fuel for various consumer and industrial uses.

In a recent industry cluster report to consultants of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), cluster coordinator Leonil Floresta said the wood cluster will soon get assistance from the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) for a P10-million joint project that will make use of tons of wood wastes like saw dust, cuttings, etc. and turn them into bio-mass fuel in the form of charcoal pellets. ”There’s just too much wastes in the wood industry, so we plan to turn all these wastes into additional income for all wood processors in Davao participating in this joint project with DOST,” Foresta said.

12:30 PM - 1:00 PM

HIGH INFLATION. A consumer buys fish in Cogon market in Cagayan de Oro City. With inflation getting higher, food security is among the major issues that beset workers in the country. mindanews file photo by froilan gallardo

BUTUAN City – Filipino Chinese businessmen here expressed hopes of renewing historical as well as trade relations with China during the visit of the Chinese consul general Sunday afternoon.

Consul General of the People’s Republic of China Zhang Weiguo together with Madame Chen Lianning and Consular Attaché Zhang Ran arrived in Butuan City Sunday afternoon for a three-day visit to meet with Filipino Chinese businessmen and organizations.

“I am very happy with this visit.

The people of this city together with the local Chinese community and the government unit have been very kind and warm in welcoming our arrival. With this visit we hope that this will be a way of strengthening our friendship and ties,” said Weiguo.

The Chinese official declined to comment on the business opportunity his visit would create, saying he will still sit down with local business leaders.

Anicleto Bonpin Jr., president of the Filipino Chinese Chamber renewed/PAGE 7

Inflation jumps to two-year high 4 Mindanao DUs seek okay for power deals CONSUMER prices rose to a twoyear high in December 2013 as most commodity groups posted higher price increases brought about by Typhoon ‘Yolanda’ and a power rate hike, the government reported Tuesday.

The National Statistics Office (NSO) said inflation went up to 4.1 percent in December from 3.3 percent in November, still within the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) forecast range of 3.8-4.7 percent.

Inflation a year ago was 3 percent December’s inflation figure was the the highest inflation since December 2011 at 4.2 percent.

Despite the uptick, the country’s annual average headline inflation for the year 2013 slowed to 3 percent from 3.2 percent in 2012. BSP’s fullyear inflation target for 2013 was between 3 percent and 5 percent.

“The heavily-weighted food items such as rice, shrimps, crabs, selected inflation/PAGE 7

F OU R p owe r d ist r ibutors i n Mindanao have sought contracts with Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) for continued power supply within their respective franchise areas.

In its petition before the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) dated Nov. 25 and released to the media on Friday, PSALM has asked ERC’s approval for the extension of its power supply contracts with Davao del Norte Electric Cooperative, Inc.

Mindanao Daily NEWS

(DANECO); Lanao del Sur Electric Cooperative, Inc. (LASURECO); Maguindanao Electric Cooperative, In c . ( M AG E LC O ) ; an d S out h Cotabato I Electric Cooperative, Inc. (SOCOTECO I).

Details on the specific contracted capacities and cost of power provided under their contracts were not immediately available.

PSALM emphasized that its contracts with the DUs have already power/PAGE 7

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BSP open to working with private entities for Al Amanah Charter amendment MANILA -- The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is willing to work with some groups in proposing for the amendment of the AlAmanah Islamic Investment Bank of the Philippines

(AAIIBP) charter in a bid to promote Islamic banking in the country.

“There are groups that are interested in pushing Islamic banking in the Philippines. bsp/PAGE 6

No.: 09161714813 (GLOBE)

Economy

Advertising and Editorial E-mail : businessweekmindanao@gmail.com Contact nos. : 0917-7121424 • 0947-8935776 Editor: Cheng Ordoñez

PHL GDP to grow 7-7.5% in 2014 -FMIC MANILA -- The country’s gross domestic product (GDP) is projected to grow 7 to 7.5 percent in 2014 buoyed by infrastructure and added reconstruction work in areas devastated by super typhoon “Yolanda,” according to the investment banking arm of the Metrobank Group.

“All domestic sectors will be humming,” said economist Dr. Victor Abola of the University of Asia and the Pacific, partner of First Metro

Investment Corp. (FMIC) in macroeconomic research.

Abola said growth of the industr y sector will remain robust, bolstered by

manufacturing, construction and electricity, gas and water (EGW) subsectors.

He said the services sector will post steady growth, fueled by the business process outsourcing (BPO) and tourism; while agriculture will experience sub-par recovery.

“This positive forecast is despite a possible two-percent drop in agricultural output caused by natural calamities

in 2013,” said FMIC. Abola noted that consumption, government and investment spending will also support the economy’s growth.

“The robust reconstruction and rehabilitation work in typhoon and earthquake stricken Visayas will further spur public and private s p e n d i n g ,” a d d e d t h e investment bank. gdp/PAGE 6

Swindling, theft among local jewelry industry’s challenges MANIL A -- C as es of swindling and theft have b e e n ch a l l e ng i ng t h e country’s jewelry industry aside from the unhealthy local environment of the sector, Guild of Philippine Jewellers, Inc. past president Renato Florencio told reporters in an interview Monday.

Florencio said swindling has been a growing concern in the industry as many individuals are getting engaged into the crime, victimizing both big and small industry players.

Florencio disclosed a

recent case of swindling which allegedly involved Ofelia Quiazon Benavidez and some members of her family who allegedly took advantage of several jewelry companies in Metro Manila.

The industry group asked other jewelry companies who were also victimized

by Benavidez and her family to show up in order for the industry to file a stronger case against the suspects. ”Please report to 7281726 if you know of anyone else victimized by her and her family so we can theft/PAGE 6

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THE Energy Regulator y Commission (ERC) has given its go-signal for the long-term loan procurement applied for

by Visayan Electric Company Inc. (VECO), proceeds of which shall bankroll its capital expenditures for 2014 and 2015.

In its filing with the regulator, VECO noted that it has already been offered “a 10-year term loan of up to P2.0 billion from the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) at an indicative interest rate based on the corresponding Philippine Dealing System Tre a s u r y F i x i n g R at e s (PDST-F) plus a spread of 110 basis points.”

The utility firm listed various major projects, as well as “residual” and “significant residual” projects which are due for implementation this 2014 and next year. The required funding hovers around P2.430 billion.

The ERC emphasized that some of the projects were already approved in VECO’s previous filing for annual revenue requirement (ARR) under performance based regulation.

But two are still pending for approval, namely : A force majeure project which necessitated the repair and installation of a 100-megavolt amp ere t ransfor mer at a Cebu substation of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) amounting to P28.159 million; and the capex projects for 2014-2015 costing P402.091 million.

In the application, the Cebu utility firm similarly sought that it be permitted “to mortgage, pledge or encumber any of its property to any creditor in connection with its authority to secure a long term-loan,” and such loan/PAGE 6

CRISP said it considered the company’s dominant market leadership--with over 60 percent share in the wireless, fixed line and broadband segments--in assigning the triple “A” rating.

It also cited PLDT’s welltimed implementation of its capital investment program as major factor in its dominant share in telecommunications market.

In 2011 and 2012, PLDT undertook a P67 billion network transformation program that upgraded its access network and made it more efficient and capable of more advanced generations of the long term evolution pldt/PAGE 6

wednesday - january 8, 2014

Ayala unit sells BPO stake to giant Convergys Corp.

THE business process outsourcing (BPO) arm of Ayala Corp announced on Tuesday that it has agreed to sell its stake in Stream Global Services Inc to customer management service giant Convergys Corp.

In a st ate me nt , t he conglomerate said its unit, LiveIt, together with its two private equity partners Ares Management and Providence Equity Partners, will sell 100 percent of their respective holdings in Stream, with LiveIt earning around a net of $145 million or P6.2 billion (43:$1).

Stream is 29 percent owned

by LiveIt and Convergys. This

would yield Ayala Corp, which owns 100 percent of LiveIt, a net gain of about $46 million or P2 billion.

Following the transaction, Converg y’s--the biggest private employer in the Philippines today--will become the second largest c u s t om e r m an a g e m e nt services provider in the world. It is projected to have a combined revenues of at least

$3 billion, employing 125,000 people, of which 53,000 are in the Philippines. It serves clients in 35 languages from over 135 contact centers in 25 countries.

Ayala Corp said the deal would be closed within this quarter, subject to conditions and regulatory approvals.

“Our partners and we are sells/PAGE 6

Weather Forecast

Local firm assigns highest credit rating to PLDT A LOCAL firm has assigned its highest issuer credit rating on Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co., (PLDT) which will be raising funds from selling debt papers.

In a statement, Credit Rating and and Investors Services Philippines Inc. (CRISP) said it has given an “AAA” issuer rating with stable outlook on PLDT. The countr y’s largest telco had said that it plans to issue fixed-rate bonds amounting to P10 billion with an oversubscription option of up to P5 billion.

The proceeds will be used to fund this year’s capital expenditures amounting to P29 billion.

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Opinion

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T

The Big Deadline THINK

h i n k a m i nut e … Yo u might have heard of the A Minute Parkinson’s Law. It says that By Jhan Tiafau Hurst people will take as long as you give them to finish a job.

So if you give someone a day to do something, then at the end of the day it will probably be done. But if you give them 3 days to do that same job, then they will usually take all 3 days to do it. You see, most of us will take all the time we’re given to do something and won’t finish it until we’re forced to—whether it’s a school paper or letter we need to write, paying our bills and taxes, or cutting the grass.

We often put off doing things until the last minute, until our deadline! Then we relax again for awhile until our next deadline.

It’s hard for some of us to understand people who work and plan many years ahead. A famous French leader asked his gardener to plant a tree, but the gardener didn’t want to because he said that kind of tree takes almost 100 years to grow big to full maturity. So the French leader said to the gardener: “Then there’s no time to lose. Plant it right now!”

The fact is that if we didn’t have deadlines, most of us wouldn’t get much done in life. Deadlines force us to do something before it’s too late and we pay a painful price by suffering the consequences. But think about it, what is the biggest deadline you will ever face? Isn’t it your death? Whether you’re ready or not. The problem is that none of us knows for sure when it’s coming. We might live another 40 years, or we might just have 2-3 weeks to live. So the only way to live with real peace and happiness is to know for sure that you’re ready to die today. But how can you be ready to die every day?

Jesus Christ said the only way is if you know that you’re living every day in a right relationship with your Maker whom you must face at the end of your life. That’s why God Himself, Jesus Christ, came to show us how to live that way. Your decision to love and obey Jesus Christ every day is not just so you can live with peace hurst/PAGE 6

THE local economy was forecast to grow by 6.5 percent next y e a r i n te r m s of the gross domestic product (GDP), with the peso relatively stable on the back of resilient remittance, single-digit inflation and barely changed interest rates.

Former Finance Secretary Roberto de Ocampo, OBE, chairman of the RFO Center for Public Finance and Regional Cooperation, said forecast growth for 2014 should prove w it h i n t h e government target.

He said on Friday he was “guardedly optimistic” on where the economy would likely be next year.

H e s a i d Supertyphoon Yolanda presented

SPECIAL FEATURE an opportunity for the remittances to be strong and will help open up opportunities for infrastructure that will have a positive impact on investments.

“The advice to the government is that this is the opportunity to start over again and put all the infrastructure projects at the right position,” de Ocampo said.

The International Monetary Fund previously saw GDP averaging 6 percent in 2014, the Manila-based Asian Development Bank projecting 6.1 percent, the World Bank forecast growth of 6.7 percent, Standard

and Poor’s of up to 6.5 percent and Moody’s by up to 7 percent.

De Ocampo said unemployment rate was seen to hit 7 percent to 7.3 percent.

Inflation would likely be between 3 percent and 5 percent and the exchange rate above P43 per $1.

Overseas Filipino worker remittances were seen hitting $22 billion next year.

The local economy was seen slowing next year in part because of the economic impact of the devastation wrought by Yolanda.

First Metro Investment Corp., the investment arm of the Metrobank Group, said third-quar ter GDP could hit 7.3 percent but would slow down to below 6 percent in the fourth quarter.

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3 4 th QU AR TER 201

Janet Yellen, President Barack Obama’s nominee to lead the U.S. Federal Reserve addresses the 29th National Association for Business Economics Policy Conference in Washington in this file photo taken March 4, 2013. Janet Yellen won confirmation from the U.S. Senate on January 6, 2014 to take the reins at the Federal Reserve as it seeks to delicately wind down its crisis-era stimulus. Photo by Gary Cameron, Reuters

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P

S E M I T N A Y A Lifestyle CAG T he

DE OR O

Yellen punches through ‘glass ceiling’ at US Fed

WASHINGTON - Janet Yellen - a skilled economist who likes to hike and cook - made history on Monday as the U.S. Senate confirmed her to be the first woman to lead the Federal Reserve in its 100-year history. one of the 11 Republicans who voted for Yellen, expressed the same hope.

“I wish that we had more senior women in these financial circles,” she said. “And perhaps with her leadership that will act as a motivator to young women to get into the field.”

In a 1995 inter view, Yellen noted that women were under-represented at the highest levels of most groups and said she thought it would likely take a long time for that to change. “ I ’v e h a d a l o t o f opportunities in my life,” Yellen told the Minneapolis Fed. “I don’t feel that I’ve faced discrimination. I’ve had every chance to succeed and more, and I think that’s what all women should have.”

Prior to becoming the Fed’s vice chair, Yellen served as president of the San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank. She also had served a stint on the Fed’s board in the 1990s and was a top economic adviser to President Bill Clinton.

She is married and has

Davao dad opposes SSS premium hike DAVAO City -- D avao Cit y C ounci lor D ani lo Dayanghirang is poised to sponsor a resolution expressing strong opposition to the increase in monthly contributions to the Social Security System (SSS).

Effective this month, SSS contributions will rise to 11 percent from 10.4 percent.

Based on the agency’s website the increase is about 0.6 percent.

Dayanghirang, who is also the chair of the committee on finance ways and means, said the SSS proceeded with the increase without due process.

“In the name of t r a n s p a r e n c y, p e o p l e should be consulted before implementing such increase.

In Davao City or in Mindanao

there was no consultation, maybe they have consultation only in Manila,” he said.

He added that the people have the right to know also their (SSS) expenditures including the huge Christmas bonuses that SSS officials recently received . It is their obligation to explain to the people their expenditures, including their huge bonuses when these officials are just sitting down, “ Dayanghirang said.

On its Tuesday’s regular session at the City Council, Dayanghirang said he will raise the matter to his fellow councilors and subsequently file a resolution expressing the citizens’ sentiments against the increase. sss/PAGE 6

BSP open to entering forex market if needed THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is prepared to intervene in the foreign exchange market to smoothen excessive swings, its governor said on Tuesday, as the peso hovered near 4-month lows.

The weakness in the peso was mainly due to the looming tapering of the US Federal Reserve’s stimulus program, market uncertainty, and rebalancing of investors’ portfolios, Amando Tetangco told reporters, adding authorities were watching markets to see Forex/PAGE 6

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P 4th QUARTER 2013

k e e W s s e n i s u B MINDANAO PHO TO BY S.UY

Yellen, 67, the central bank’s No. 2 since 2010, will take over as chair of the Fed after Ben Bernanke’s term comes to a close at the end of this month. In doing so, she will take the reins of the world’s largest economy and become the most powerful person in the world of finance. “ He r w e l l - d e s e r v e d ascension to the chair knocks a notable hole in the glass ceiling that has for far too long kept women from the most powerful jobs in the country,” AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka said in a statement.

Terry O’Neill, president of the National Organization for Women, a liberal advocacy group, told Reuters she hoped Yellen’s confirmation would pave the way for other women to climb to the top rungs of finance.

“The financial industry is a place where women have been aggressively excluded from the top, top management,” O’Neill said. “Janet Yellen can make a difference.”

Senator Lisa Murkowski,

an adult son, holds degrees from two Ivy League colleges -- Brown and Yale -- and taught at a third, Harvard.

She has written e x te ns ive ly on a w i d e variety of economic issues, particularly those involving the causes and implications of unemployment.

“The confirmation of Janet Yellen to lead the Federal Reserve should be celebrated as a monumental step forward for our nation,” said Neera Tanden, president of the liberal policy group Center for American Progress.

Yellen will take the helm at the Fed just as most of the central bank’s other female Fed policymakers leave or prepare to depart: Fed Governor Elizabeth Duke left in August, Sarah Bloom Raskin is expected to vacate her board seat soon, and Cleveland Fed President Sandra Pianalto has announced plans to retire.

Those departures leave just one woman besides Yellen in the top ranks at the Fed: Esther George, the chief of the Kansas City Fed, whose opposition to the central bank’s massive monetary stimulus puts her at odds with the incoming Fed chief.

-- Reuters

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We can work with those groups,” said BSP Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. The central bank chief, however, declined to name these groups.

AAIIBP is the only Islamic bank in the country.

It was established in 1973 as Philippine Amanah Bank by virtue of Presidential Decree No. 264 wit h an initial capital of P100 million.

It was initially mandated to open branches in Basilan, Cotabato, Lanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, Palawan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga del Norte, and Zamboanga del Sur. Its charter was amended in 1974 enabling it to also operate in Maguindanao and Sultan Kudarat.

It was re-chartered and recapitalized in 1989 paving for the change of its name to AAIIBP and the increase of its capital to P1 billion.

In 2008, it was acquired by government-owned Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) in line with the latter’s bid to widen share in the micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) market.

It has been on pr iv at i z at i on bl o ck for some years but nothing has transpired yet.

Tetangco said they are studying several modes on how to operate the bank without violating Sharia law.

Under the Sharia law, Islamic banks should extend interest-free loans but the banks earn by buying what a customer wants such as a house and lot and selling this to the customer at a higher price.

Funds deposited to the bank do not earn interest but instead the depositors get a share of the banks’ earnings by the end of the year. (PNA)

GDP... from page 2

The country’s economy grew 7.4 percent in the first nine months of 2013, making it the fastest growing country in Southeast Asia.

“The country has shown resilience, we are still the best performing economy in ASEAN with a 7.4 percent GDP growth in the first nine months of 2013.

Our fundamentals remain intact and will be able to withstand volatilities in 2014, be it domestic or global,” said FMIC chairman Francisco Sebastian.

The FMIC said consumption and foreign direct investments will also support this year’s growth.

Meanwhile, the equities market is seen to perform at 6,300 to 6,500 level and price earnings ratio at 17 to 18 times in the first half of 2014.

Key growth industr y d r ive rs are p owe r an d utilities, properties, consumers, infrastructure and manufacturing. (PNA)

Theft...

PLDT...

Hurst...

can consolidate the filing of a syndicated estafa case against her and her family,” the industry group said.

Florencio cited that the swindling case of Benavidez and her family has recorded a loss of P200 million among victims.

He asked jewelry owners to report to the Guild or the Confederation of Philippine Jewellers, Inc. or to any jewelers association if they had experienced swindling case. ”They also need to be participative. Our action to those swindlers is to report them through media para naman mahiya sila at hindi na ulitin ‘yung ginawa nila (Our action to those swindlers is to report them through media for them to be disgraced so they will not repeat what they have done). Then, of course we will file case against them,” he added.

Moreover, aside from swindling, cases of theft among goldsmit hs a ls o challenged the local jewelry sector.

Florencio told that one of the reasons that pulling the industry’s revenue is the dishonesty of some goldsmiths who steal pieces of materials such as gold, silver, and diamonds, among others.

He said goldsmiths should refrain from those acts as their wages are above minimum.

Wages of goldsmiths plays around P500 to P1,000 per day, Florencio said, noting that most of these workers have not attained high school and college diplomas.

He now asked the industry players not to accept those goldsmiths to work and he also encouraged the jewelry manufacturing owners to file cases against them. (PNA)

technology.

PLDT’s investment also expanded the company’s digital fiber optic transmission network, spanning 75,000 kilometers.

In addition, CRSIP said PLDT has generated strong cashflow from operations. In the last three years, PLDT’s net cash flow from operations amounted to P80.4 billion last year from P79.2 billion in 2011 and P77.3 billion in 2010.

P L D T ’s n i n e - m o nt h e a r n i n g s a m o u nt e d t o P28.95 billion, a two percent increment from last year’s P28.38 billion.

Nine-month core profit, which excludes foreign exchange transactions and other non-recurring income, grew by a faster four percent to P28.8 billion from last year’s P27.7 billion.

C onsolidated ser vice revenues grew two percent to P121.6 billion in the first nine months from last year’s P119.05 billion.

happiness now; it decides where you’re going to live forever after you die: in Heaven or Hell. In complete happiness and peace with your Creator and Christian family, or in total pain and suffering without Him. Jesus Himself said it’s that simple and serious. So for your own sake, today, won’t you ask Jesus to forgive you and take complete charge of your life everyday? Before it’s too late and you’ve missed the biggest deadline of your life.

Just Think a Minute…

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Sells... from page 3

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SSS...

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In his resolution, Dayanghirang will also call for a review on the SSS premium increase.

“Hoping they will listen to us because they should also consider the plight of the workers,” he said.

Dayanghirang said the increase is untimely because all are increasing while the salaries of workers are not.

SSS has maintained that the increase in contribution rate is part of the SSS Reform Agenda that seeks to lengthen gradually the actuarial life of the Social Security Fund. It said that the 0.6 percent increase will be divided equally between employees and employers.

Thus, the employees will shoulder the 3.63.

On the other hand, selfemployed and voluntary members will shoulder the entire 11-percent contribution.

(PNA)

pleased with this transaction, which we believe has strong strategic rationale. We are very proud of the Stream team, and grateful to the thousands of individuals who helped build it from an industry pioneer into a global leader,” Fred Ayala, LiveIt chief executive, said.

“We believe that the global IT-BPO industry will continue to expand, particularly in the Philippines, where we expect it to remain one of the country’s top generators of from page 5 new jobs. Consequently, we if policy adjustments were are continuing to build our necessary. investee companies in the “We follow a flexible high growth segments of the exchange rate policy. We industry, and starting to invest have the option to participate in the Education space, which to prevent excessive sharp we see as a critical enabler of movements in the rate,” from page 3 the IT-BPO industry, given its Tetangco said, adding the shall be done without adverse ever increasing demand for central bank was prepared to effect or be detrimental to the well-trained Filipino talent.” enter the market if needed. provision of electric service to its customers.

In its ruling, the ERC directed the utility firm to submit “breakdown of the actual amount of drawdowns received from the lender, including the dates of receipt thereof.”

VEC O was similarly CAGAYAN DE ORO MAIN BRANCH required to provide P & J Lim Bldg., Tiano Brothers “amor t izat ion s che du le Kalambagohan Sts., showing the principal and Tel. # (08822) 727-829 * interest payments of the loan Telefax # (088) 856-1947 and exchange rates at the time of the payment.”

CAMIGUIN BRANCH “Upon completion of the B. Aranas St., Poblacion, Mambajao, Camiguin Tel. # (088) 387-0491 projects, VECO is further directed to prepare a validation CORRALES BRANCH of the recording of the said Corrales Ave., Cagayan de Oro City assets and corresponding expenditures in its book of DIVISORIA BRANCH accounts,” the ERC order has Atty. Erasmo B. Damasing Bldg., #61 Don A. noted.

Velez St., Cagayan de Oro City Fu r t h e r, t h e u t i l i t y Tel. # (088) 857-3631 firm has been ordered to “ensure that the contracting LAPASAN BRANCH and procurement of the Lapasan Hi-way, Cagayan de Oro City equipment, assets and services Tel. # (088) 231-6739 have been subjected to CARMEN BRANCH transparent and accepted Vamenta Blvd., Cagayan de Oro City industry procurement and Tel. # (088) 231-2011 purchasing practices to protect public interest.”

Loan...

Forex...

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PSALM seeks OK for power deals THE POWER SECTOR Assets and Liabilities Management Corp.

(PSALM) has sought regulator y approval for its power contracts with four distributors in Mindanao, which will allow the company to continue supplying the electricity needs of the utilities.

In a petition dated Nov. 25 and released to the media on Friday, PSALM asked t he Ene rg y R egu l ator y Commission to approve the the extension of its power supply contracts with the distribution utilities (DUs).

The DUs were identified

as Davao del Norte Electric Cooperative, Inc. (DANEC O); L anao del Sur Electric Cooperative, Inc. (LASURECO); Ma g u i n d a n a o E l e c t r i c Cooperative, Inc. (MAGELCO); and South Cotabato I Electric Cooperative, Inc. (SOCOTECO I).

Details on the specific contracted capacities and cost of power provided under their contracts were not immediately available.

PSALM emphasized that its contracts with the DUs have already expired. That of DANECO lapsed on Dec.

25, 2012; LASURECO and MAGELCO on June 25, 2013; and SOCOTECO 1 on Aug. 25, 2013.

Hence, PSALM executed letters of agreement with these DUs to extend their power supply contracts up to Dec. 25, 2016. It asked for provisional authority to implement the agreements.

“PSALM acknowledges that the continued operation of the distribution utilities is indisp ensable to the economic efficiency of the franchise area they serve, not to mention the ripple effect of that efficiency to the economic growth of the

entire country,” the petition read.

“In ord e r f or t h e s e distribution utilities to continue lawfully drawing electricity from the grid, it is imperative that they enter into agreement with PSALM as supplier...”

P S A L M w as for me d under The Republic Act 9136, or the Electric Power Industr y Reform Act of 2001, to assume ownership of and manage a l l o f Nat i o n a l Pow e r Corp’s assets, liabilities, real estate, and contracts with independent power producers.

Palm...

Year’s celebrations saw increases in the prices of fresh meat such as chicken, beef, pork and meat products.

“Almost all food items in the average consumer basket increased, which can be mainly attributed to the impact of Typhoon ‘Yolanda’ that hit the central Philippines in November 2 0 1 3 ,” S o c i o e c o n o m i c Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said in a statement.

He added that some food items even reached doubledigit inflation in the areas hardest hit by the typhoon.

In Eastern Visayas, prices of vegetables went up by 11.3 percent in December from 5.8 percent in November.

In Central Visayas, prices of rice increased by 12.2 percent from 9.4 percent, 11.2 percent from 7.8 percent for fruits, and 11.3 percent from 6.6 percent for vegetables.

Also, in Western Visayas, vegetable prices surged by 11.8 percent from 2.3 percent in November 2013.

Prices in the National C apit a l R e g i on ( NC R ) accelerated to 2.6 percent in December from 1.9 percent in November. Areas outside NCR (AONCR), annual inf lation picked up 4.6 percent in December from 3.8 percent in November.

In addition, power hikes contributed significantly to the acceleration of overall inflation in December 2013.

The Manila Elec tric C o m p a n y ’s ( M e r a l c o ) generation charge spiked by 40 percent, or PhP2.19/kWh, year-on-year in December 2013 due to the scheduled and unscheduled power outages in major power plants. However, the power distributor deferred to further implement the electricity rate increase following a 60-day temporary restraining order (TRO) issued by the Supreme Court.

Furthermore, domestic prices of petroleum products rose as world oil prices jumped (1.4 percent yearon-year from -1.2 percent in November for Dubai crude oil).

“This is while the peso depre ciate d f ur t her by 7.6 percent in December 2013 from 5.9 percent in the previous month,” said Balisacan.

O v e r a l l , am on g t h e Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-5 countries, headline inflation in December 2013 picked up in the Philippines and Indonesia, except for Thailand.

Earlier, University of Asia and the Pacific economist Victor A. Abola said inflation this year would be at four percent, still within the government target of 3.5-5.5 percent, as the initial effect of the destruction caused

by Typhoon ‘Yolanda’ on agriculture in the first quarter would still be felt.

Sharp rise in food prices, however, would be mitigated since rice would remain cheap, with abundant harvests from Vietnam, Thailand and India, he said. --InterAksyon

SOCOTECO 1 on Aug. 25, 2013.

Hence, PSALM executed letters of agreement with these DUs to extend their power supply contracts up to Dec. 25, 2016. It asked for provisional authority to implement the agreements.

“PSALM acknowledges that the continued operation of the distribution utilities is indispensable to the economic efficiency of the franchise area they serve, not to mention the ripple effect of that efficiency to the economic growth of the entire country,” the petition read.

“In ord e r for t h e s e distribution utilities to continue lawfully drawing electricity from the grid, it is imperative that they enter into agreement with PSALM as supplier...”

P S A L M w as for me d under The Republic Act 9136, or the Electric Power Industr y Reform Act of 2001, to assume ownership of and manage all of National Power Corp’s assets, liabilities, real estate, and contracts with independent power producers.

from page 1

companies expressed keen interest to invest in palm-oil ventures in Mindanao.

There are currently 75 palm oil investors in Caraga who are mostly local farmers and big-time growers of oil palms. The Philippines’s biggest investors today are two Caraga-based companies: Filipinas Palm Oil Plantations that runs huge tracts of farmland planted to oil palms; and the Caraga Oil Refinery Inc. which processes and refines the palm-oil to meet the huge demand of the domestic market.

Due to this huge demand and very limited supply, the palm-oil industry can only supply 30 percent of the domestic market, while the balance of 70 percent is imported by industrial users of this commodity in the Philippines, according to Nuevas.

To reduce imports of palmoil and boost the production output of the country’s palmoil industry, total investment to make this possible is set at P212 billion and allocated as follows: plantations, P62 billion; oil mills, P20 billion; infrastructure, P100 billion; and refineries, P30 billion.

Nuevas said this is part of the Palm Oil Industry Road Map that was prepared and developed by the Philippine Coconut Authority, which has given its full support and funding to develop the industry in the coming years.

Inflation... from page 1

selected fresh fish species, fruits, vegetables, cooking oil and common condiments and seasonings were priced higher during the month.

These primarily pushed up the Philippines consumer prices by 0.7 percent in December from 0.4 percent in November,” NSO said.

“Increments in the prices of LPG, kerosene, gasoline and diesel and higher charges in electricity rates in selected regions also contributed to the overall mark-up in the month-on-month inflation rate,” it added.

The agency further said that the season of preparing for the Christmas and New

7

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Renewed...

from page 1 of Agusan, Inc. (FCCCI) expressed optimism the visit of the Chinese diplomat will contribute to the city’s business growth.

He said the visit has offered a chance to present Butuan as “a new business project” and renew preHispanic trade ties between the city and China.

He added the FCCCI wants to establish a sisterhood status with a city in China for a mutually beneficial business relationship.

“The business investment that would come in would hopefully in turn create more jobs and even create other windows of business opportunity such as in tourism,” Bonin explained.

City Mayor Ferdinand Amante Jr. said he was looking forward to building friendly relations with China.

“This city established trade and commerce with China through the Balangay boats. We hope to renew that business relationship that was established thousands of years ago. In the duration of his visit, I will present the city business opportunity and discuss options for trade growth,” said Amante.

Power...

from page 1 expired. That of DANECO lapsed on Dec. 25, 2012; LASURECO and MAGELCO on June 25, 2013; and

Republic of the Philippines REGIONAL TRIAL COURT OF MISAMIS ORIENTAL 10TH Judicial Region Branch 22 Cagayan de Oro City IN THE MATTER OF THE ADOPTION OF DOMIRQ DANES ENRIQUEZ CABILLAR,

SPOUSES PHOEBE RAE ENRIQUEZ AND JOKSHAN R. AMADOR,

Petitioners,

x------------------------------------------------/

FC SPEC. PROC NO. 2013-083 FOR: ADOPTION WITH CHANGE OF SURNAME OF ADOPTEE DOMIRQ DANES ENRIQUEZ CABILLAR TO DOMIRQ DANES ENRIQUEZ AMADOR

ORDER

Th e r e a r e no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure.

This petition seeks for the adoption of minor child, DOMIRQ DANES ENRIQUEZ CABILLAR by the petitioners, Spouses PHOEBE RAE ENRIQUEZ and JOKSHAN R. AMADOR and for the change of the name of the child to be adopted to DOMIRQ DANES ENRIQUEZ AMADOR. Finding the petition to be sufficient in form and substance, the same is hereby given due course. Let the hearing set on JANUARY 22, 2014 at 8:30 in the morning before this Court at Rm 102, Hall of Justice, Cagayan de Oro City.

At the expense of the petitioners, let this order be published once a week for three (3) consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in Cagayan de Oro City and in Misamis Oriental.

The RTC Social Welfare Officer assigned to this Court is hereby directed to conduct to conduct a home and child study on the adopting parent, the natural parents and the child to be adopted. She is also directed to conduct counseling sessions with the biological father of the child to be adopted. The reports thereof shall be submitted to this Court SIXTY (60) DAYS from the receipt of this order.

Petitioners are directed to make arrangements with the Court Social Worker for the scheduling and incidental expenses in conducting the case study.

Let a copy of this order and the petition be furnished upon the Local Civil Registrar of Cagayan de Oro City, the Solicitor General and the City Prosecutor of Cagayan de Oro City for their appearance in behalf of the state.

SO ORDERED. Given this 6th day of November, 2013 at Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines.

-- Colin Powell

(Sgd.) RICHARD D. MORDENO Presiding Judge

BWM: Jan. 8, 15 & 21, 2014

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