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SUNDAY, JUNE 25, 2017
Business
Ray S. Eñano, Editor / Roderick dela Cruz, Issue Editor business@manilastandard.net
ERICSSON PREDICTS EXPLOSION OF 5G By Kristin Mae Cortez and Aletha Jasmine Dela Cruz GLOBAL communications company Ericsson expects 5G to drive mobile data traffic 10 times faster by 2022. Ericsson Philippines and Pacific Islands president and country manager Sean Gowran, in an Ericsson Mobility Report briefing at Shangri La Makati Hotel, said 5G, an advancement from today’s LTE technology, would redefine experience in terms of enhanced mobile broadband, automotive, manufacturing, healthcare, energy and utilities. He said download speeds of up to 1 Gigabit per second that are now commercially available in Australia and have been tested in Singapore enable the possibility for high-definition or real-time video streaming from consumers almost anywhere.
PROTECTOR.
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. Bloomberg Scan this icon to view the PDF
PRICE STABILITY, TETANGCO’S LEGACY
H
E HAS protected the value of Filipino money from fluctuation amid political upheavals and external challenges over the past 12 years. Amando Tetangco Jr., the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas governor who made three presidents look good because of the thriving economy, is retiring on July 3 after accomplishing his mission—price stability that supports economic growth. Under Tetangco’s watch, Bangko Sentral helped the country achieve a period of rapid economic growth that nearly trebled the gross domestic product, pushed up gross international reserves above foreign debt, expanded the Filipino middle class with car and home buying capacity, enlarged the assets of banks to trillions and saw the rise of shopping districts and modern cities such as Fort Bonifacio. The stability in the value of the peso in terms of foreign exchange and purchasing power encouraged companies to invest, helping the economy grow and create more jobs. The record low interest rates, initiated by Bangko Sentral through its policy rates, also boosted consumer spending that supported the growth of automotive and real estate markets. As Bangko Sentral governor, Tetangco led the Monetary Board in exercising its vast powers such as setting the right bank interest rates, controlling the amount of money that circulates in the market, hoarding foreign exchange reserves and defending the peso against foreign exchange fluctuations. In taking
these decisions, the Monetary Board finds the delicate balance between taming prices and supporting economic growth. Tetangco achieved both, when he discovered the formula that is right for the Philippines. Tetangco, who started his career in central banking in 1974, rose from the ranks until being appointed governor in 2005. He was reappointed for another six-year term in 2011, becoming the first Bangko Sentral governor to serve for two terms. To help the Philippine economy sustain its growth, while taming consumer prices, Bangko Sentral set an inflation target of 3 percent to 5 percent, apparently the ideal formula for an emerging economy. This target range was later reduced to 2 percent to 4 percent, as the economy attained a greater level of stability. Beyond taking those decisions, Tetangco made another milestone in central banking— predictability of policy. His words are carefully selected to convey BSP’s monetary stance and offer hints of future actions. “Communication is now a major instrument or tool in modern central banking,” Tetangco told a group of business editors from different publications. “The policies have got to be communicated properly to the public real time. This is important because you also have a new channel of transmission of policy and that is expectations,” he said. Expectations or outlook on the economy help companies plan on their next steps, such as raising more funds to support expansion. “Before, you had interest rate channels or credit channels, now you have expectation
channels. In order to manage expectations, you need to have the right communication, real time and accurate,” Tetangco said, while acknowledging the role of journalists in communicating the policies of Bangko Sentral over the last 12 years. “That has helped us. The progress that we have achieved is due in part to the accurate and timely dissemination of information, communication of the policy of the BSP,” he said. Tetangco has been recognized by New Yorkbased Global Finance magazine as one of the best central bankers in the world, giving him a grade of “A” for eight years. He also received the ‘Lifetime Leadership Achievement Award’ from The Asian Banker on July 2. The Singapore-based financial publication cited the remarkable contributions of Bangko Sentral to the country’s financial services industry and the economy under Tetangco’s leadership. The Asian Banker recognized Bangko Sentral as a pillar of strength for the Philippine economy and the ‘Best Macroeconomic Regulator in Asia-Pacific.’ The Asian Banker said Tetangco was instrumental in helping the Philippines transform from a speculative- to an investmentgrade economy. “[He] made a huge difference... lifting his country to becoming investment grade and stepping high and tall in the league of nations,” The Asian Banker chairman Emmanuel Daniel said. Tetangco, 64, will be replaced by Nestor Espenilla Jr., who is currently deputy governor in charge of bank examination and supervision. Roderick T. dela Cruz
Sean Gowran, president and country manager of Ericsson Philippines and Pacific Islands, discusses data on LTE dominant access technology.
Regional app coverage data show that the minimum required network speed increased in many countries, including the Philippines. “Our analysis of mobile broadband app coverage across the region shows that the Philippines has improved year-on-year,” said Gowran. However, the challenge for the company in connecting the unconnected lies in affordability literacy, and provision of relevant services – rather than the availability of technology. The use of old branded cellphones will still be relevant when 5G subscription expands in 2022, but without the access to its new features. GSM users would more likely have more difficulty on accessing the new features of 5G in 2022, according to Gowran. “Life would not be really fantastic for the GSM users for 2022,” he said. Gorwan said concerns on network optimization through analytics, massive IoT coverage in the city, and remote operation of vehicles with 5G. Ericsson, a leader in communications technology and services, foresees “driverless buses on city streets” along with the 5G, which will develop remote monitoring, control capabilities and safety assurance. Its focus is to build a testbed to study and demonstrate feasibility of remote supervision and teleportation of connected vehicles using cellular networks on Vehicle to Infrastructure (V2I) communication. Gowran said Asia Pacific will lead the global rollout of 5G with its 28 million subscriptions and 180 million cellular IoT subscriptions, along with North America, which will account for around 10 percent of the region’s subscription by 2022. Countries that are expected to be among the early adopters of 5G are South Korea in 2018, and Japan and China by 2020.
WOLFGANG’S STEAKHOUSE REOPENS AT RESORTS WORLD By Kristin Mae Cortez WOLFGANG’S Steakhouse, a US restaurant brand brought to the Philippines by Excello Restaurant Management Group of Marvin Agustin and his two partners, reopened at the Newport Mall inside the Resorts World Manila complex, after a two-week hiatus following an unfortunate incident on June 2. The famous steakhouse is back in business after the RWM attack by a lone gun man that resulted in the loss of 37 lives, including employees and guests. Excello Restaurant Management Group head Raymund Magdaluyo says Wolfgang
Steakhouse is keeping its original location at the second floor of Newport Mall, while adding two outlets at The Podium in Ortigas and Bonifacio Global City in Taguig. Magdaluyo says while the attack may have hurt sales initially, the RWM location is expected to recover in the coming months. “We’re hurting business-wise but I think Resorts World could come up with something, because it is the strongest casino, complex-wise [compared to other casinos in the Philippines],” he says. “Do we feel that the Resorts World is responsible for the gross-negligence? Definitely no, but there are some things
Excello Restaurant Management Group partners (from left) Marvin Agustin, Leina Bolinas and Raymund Magdaluyo lead the reopening of Wolfgang’s Steakhouse at Resorts World Manila.
that could have been done better,” says Magdaluyo. He says what happened with Resorts World was a tragedy for the entire industry but everybody had something to learn from the incident. Magdaluyo says the New York-theme restaurant remains loyal to RWM which has been its partner since 2009. RWM would “come out stronger,” he says. “We have not even talked to other casinos. We are not planning on putting up any concept other than in Resorts World. [That is] 100 percent sure,” he says. Excello managing partner Leina Bolinas says the plan is to be “more
operationally efficient” and renovate the restaurant that has its own dry-aging room and wine cellar. The company expects sales to improve by 50 percent in the next four to six months, following the drop related to the June 2 incident. “After that, everything will not just normalize. It [ Wolfgang’s] will also become stronger,” says Magdulo. Bolinas says to attract more diners, Wolfgang will host some events in the coming months. The restaurant is open from 12 noon to 10 p.m. With Aletha Jasmine Dela Cruz, Katrina Delos Santos and Jamie Andrea Turalba