BSP likely to stay hawkish despite slower inflation, says Moody’s unit

By Julito G. Rada

THE slight slowdown of February infla- tion to 8.6 percent a 14-year high of 8.7 percent in January may not be enough to convince the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to abandon its hawkish stance, which favors monetary tightening, in the succeeding policy meetings, a unit of Moody’s Corp. said Monday.

Inflation averaged 8.6 percent in the first two months, above the target range of 2 percent to 4 percent.

“Despite the slight easing of the headline figure, core inflation, which excludes selected food and energy items, rose to 7.8 percent from 7.4 percent in January,” Moody’s Analytics said in a report.

“Inflation in the Philippines is uncomfortably strong and has likely not yet peaked; the odds are high that the country’s monetary policy tightening cycle is not over,” it said.

National statistician and civil registrar general Dennis Mapa said earlier that among the 13 commodity groups, transport was the sole driver of the downtrend of the overall inflation in February.

Nine commodity groups showed higher inflation rates which included food and non-alcoholic beverages at

10.8 percent; alcoholic beverages and tobacco, 11.0 percent; clothing and footwear, 4.8 percent; furnishings, household equipment and routine household maintenance, 6.2 percent; health, 4.0 percent; information and communication, 0.8 percent; recreation, sport and culture, 4.4 percent; restaurants and accommodation services, 8.1 percent; and personal care, and miscellaneous goods and services, 5.3 percent.

Moody’s Analytics earlier said the Bangko Sentral would be aggressive in tackling inflation early in 2023, adding that monetary policy tightening cycle “will run for longer in the Philippines than elsewhere in Asia given stubbornly elevated inflation.”

BSP Governor Felipe Medalla said in a previous interview monetary authorities were ready to act accordingly if inflation in February would remain high.

“We are still hawkish… If the February inflation is bad we will act… but we are hawkish for a reason…It is the data,” Medalla said.

“The most likely scenario is maybe one more [hike]… But if I see a negative month on month [inflation], I may change my mind… We are hoping that non-monetary measures will reduce inflation,” he said.

ERC starts review of secondary price cap at electricity spot market

By Alena Mae S. Flores

THE Energy Regulatory Commission said Monday it started the review of the secondary price cap imposed at the spot market, but conceded that its removal may have an impact on consumer protection.

It said in a statement it began conducting a review of the SPC which was first implemented a decade ago to protect consumers from the unwarranted increase in electricity prices brought about by inherent volatile market price movements at the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market.

The regulator said Republic Act No. 9136 states that generation prices should be market-driven or dictated by market forces.

It said its initial analysis showed that with SPC in place, price signals are distorted and actual market results do not necessarily reflect the true cost of generation. This blurs planning exercises on energy security and dampens investors’ interest to in the Philippine power generation sector, it said.

“The ERC needs to do a balancing act, as is the role of the regulator in our system. We need to ensure that the regulatory framework incentivizes investors to pour in more capital by building additional power plants to bolster the country’s supply requirements,” ERC chairperson Monalisa Dimalanta said.

“At the same time, we cannot discount the fact that the price cap is a preventive measure to protect the consumers from the immediate impact of high market prices,” Dimalanta said.

The SPC removal is one of the proposals of the Private Sector Advisory Council, which met with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on March 9, 2023.

Energy Secretary Raphael Lotilla earlier said DOE was also studying removing the SPC imposed in 2013 “but this has been difficult to lift at this time because of the impact on prices but we will have to deal with this if we want to get more investments down the

San Miguel plans P20.25-billion preferred shares offering in third quarter this year

By Jenniffer B. Austria

CONGLOMERATE third quarter at an indicative price of P75 per share. The group said it would use the proceeds for general corporate purposes, including but not limited to repayment of debt. The Series 2 preferred shares, which could be issued in tranches, are perpetual, cumulative and non-voting and redeemable at the option of the company. It will have a fixed coupon rate.

The preferred shares, equivalent to less than 5 percent of the total outstanding capital stock of the company, will be listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange.

SMC’s major subsidiaries including Ginebra San Miguel Inc., Petron Corp. and San Miguel Food and Beverage Inc. reported positive earnings in 2022.

GSMI said net income in 2022 jumped 9 percent to P4.5 billion from a year ago despite the challenging headwinds caused by global supply chain disruptions, high inflation and the weak peso.

GSMI said in a statement consolidated sales rose 11 percent year-on-year to P47.3 billion, boosted by growth in sales volume and higher selling prices.

Income from operations reached P6 billion, up 13 percent from previous year’s level.

“GSMI is one of the few companies that continued to grow despite the challenges of the past years. This is genuine proof of the company’s strength and true resiliency,” said GSMI president and chief executive Ramon Ang.

”AirAsia’s competitive pricing is still seen as among the top motivators for guests choosing to fly with us. Our effort of mounting different online and on-ground travel promos is our way of providing the best value for our guests’ hard-earned money,” said AirAsia Philippines communications and public affairs head Steve Dailisan.

He said to sustain the growth momentum and excite more travelers to book their flights earlier, AirAsia Philippines is offering another round of P1SO Sale. Available for booking from March 13 to 19, guests can enjoy a P1 one-way base fare to Boracay, Bohol, Puerto Princesa, Bacolod, Davao, Kalibo, Cagayan de Oro and Roxas from Manila; and Boracay, Puerto Princesa, Davao and Cagayan de Oro from Cebu-Mactan International Airport. Darwin G. Amojelar

Higher container volume lifted ATI’s 2022 profit to P3b

By Darwin G. Amojelar

ASIAN Terminals Inc. said Monday net income grew 35.3 percent last year on the back of higher cargo and passenger volume handled by its ports in Manila and Batangas.

The port operator said it posted a net income of P3.03 billion in 2022, up from P2.24 billion in 2021, as revenues went up 22 percent to P13.62 billion from P11.16 billion.

Revenues from international container port operations in Manila and Batangas increased 19.2 percent and 12.7 percent, respectively, on account of higher boxed cargoes compared to the previous year.

It said revenues from non-container port operations in Batangas grew 65.9 percent, led by record volume of international rolling cargo and robust increase of passengers transiting through the modern Batangas Passenger Terminal.

ATI’s Manila South Harbor and Batangas Port handled over 1.4 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) in 2022, or 4.5 percent higher than in 2021.

It said that in the non-containerized segment, Batangas Port’s car carrier terminal set new operations milestone, as it ended the year handling over 230,000 completely-built car units, up by 73 percent from 2021 and eclipsing the previous record of 201,000 CBUs in 2016.

The Batangas Passenger Terminal, the country’s biggest and most modern interisland transport hub, facilitated the safe transit of over 2.2 million outbound passengers and nearly 360,000 domestic roll-on/roll-off vehicles, with the continued easing of travel restrictions.

California Precision, De La Salle top PNVF tilt

CALIFORNIA Precision Sports was a class act while De La Salle Lipa had to go the extra mile to rule the Philippine National Volleyball Federation Under-18 Championships at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum on Sunday.

CPS made Antipolo City proud by winning the girls’ crown of the tournament revived by the PNVF at the expense of Gracel Christian College Foundation of Taguig City, 25-14, 25-16, 25-18.

De La Salle Lipa, on the other hand, was extended to a fourth set before booking a 23-25, 25-20, 25-13, 25-15 victory over Laguna team Santa Rosa City, which has started to establish itself as one of the county’s volleyball hotbeds.

Middle blocker Jenalyn Umayam had 18 kills, two service aces and a block for 21 points, while Most Valuable Player and Best Outside Hitter Casiey Monique Dongallo peppered GCC’s porous defense with 15 hits and Joyce Soliven contributed nine points on marked with three service aces for CPS.

But CPS coach Obet Vital made special mention to his team’s veteran Kizzie Madriaga—named the tournament’s Best Setter—for providing stability when it mattered most.

“She [Madriaga] is the quarterback of our team, she knows where to give the ball,” Vital said. “She delivers and scores well. Definitely, she did an outstanding job whoever was in the floor with her, she’s a playmaker.”

The CPS girls won the crown undefeated in seven matches beginning from the pool play. They also didn’t give up a set in their title run.

PNVF Ramon “Tats” Suzara was impressed on how the teams played in the three-weekend tournament supported by the Philippine Olympic Committee, Philippine Sports Commission, PLDT, Rebisco and Akari.

“It proves that volleyball is very much alive in the grassroots and the way these boys and girls played, Philippine volleyball has a big mass base for future members of the national team,” said Suzara, who also congratulated technical director Yul Benosa and competition director Oliver Mora for successfully organizing the tournament.

A total of 36 teams—20 girls and 16 boys—played in the tournament, which will be preceded by the PNVF Under-23 Championships in August also at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.

Young guns out to stir up golf battle in PGT Bacolod

A CREW of young turks, including locals who could well represent the future of Philippine pro golf, sets out for an early impact in their first foray in the big league as they vie in the ICTSI Negros Occidental Classic presented by MORE Power beginning Wednesday at the Marapara Golf and Country Club in Bacolod.

Former national team standouts

Gab Manotoc, Kristoffer Arevalo and Jonas Magcalayo, along with Russell Bautista, Josh Jorge, Leandro Bagtas and Elee Bisera expect a rocky start to their pro debuts but all hope to rise to the challenge and give their respective new careers a shot in the arm.

Hyun Ho Rho actually heads a mix of young and seasoned campaigners who made the grade in the recent Philippine Golf Tour Q-School in this week’s P2.25 million championship with the 18-year-old Korean also to be sized up by the elite field after bagging the medal honors in the four-day elims at Splendido Taal.

But while these new kids on the block pack the power and skills needed to pose a threat, the veterans – with their experience and sheer talent – are still tipped to dominate the 72-hole championship put up by ICTSI, which ushers in the new PGT season.

They include multi-titled Tony Lascuña, Clyde Mondilla, Jhonnel Ababa and Jay Bayron with former Order of Merit champion Jobim Carlos and leg winners Reymon Jaraula, Michael Bibat, Zanieboy Gialon and Ira Alido and legend Frankie Miñoza beefing up the cast.