BUSINESS

By Julito G. Rada

BANGKO Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Eli Remolona said Friday there is still room for local monetary authorities to increase the prevailing interest rates, if needed, without leading to economic contraction.

Remolona said in an interview with CNBC the third pause of the Monetary Board on Thursday was a “prudent” move, but the BSP remained ready to hike if the upside risks materialized.

He said the softness in the second-

ATI booked 89% rise in first-half income

ASIAN Terminals Inc. said Friday net income rose 89 percent in the first half of 2023 from a year ago, on the back of higher container volume.

The port operator said net profit amounted to P2.15 billion from January to June, higher than P1.14 billion it earned in the same period last year.

Revenues reached P7.4 billion, up 22 percent from P6.1 billion last year on higher container volume at the Manila South Harbor and Batangas Container Terminal.

Revenues from international containerized cargo at SH and BCT went up 17 percent and 62.8 percent, respectively, on account of higher container volumes.

Revenues from ATI Batangas grew 5.7 percent because of higher domestic roll-on and roll-off volumes and more passengers.

ATI said the government’s share in revenues in the first half increased 15.5 percent to P1.28 billion from P1.11 billion a result of higher revenues, subject to port authorities’ share.

Darwin G. Amojelar

PLDT to help expedite Cebu digital program

THE corporate business arm of PLDT Inc. teamed up with the provincial government of Cebu to expedite its digital transformation for the benefit of constituents and thriving business communities.

The collaboration will provide advanced digital solutions and reliable connectivity with the initial roll-out of free, unlimited public Wi-Fi in 50 barangays, including prominent areas like Guadalupe, Tisa, Basak San Nicholas and Talamban.

Wi-Fi access points will be strategically deployed in barangay halls, gyms and key areas of each barangay to ensure wide coverage and connection of about 30 to 40 meters from every access point.

PLDT Enterprise supplies fiber broadband internet access with a robust bandwidth of 100 mbps to enable seamless connectivity. Acloud-managed access point is installed to monitor real-time alerts and ensure uninterrupted internet.

“Digital access has become the lifeblood of modern cities. A digital city—facilitated by widespread broadband – is one precursor into becoming a smart city. This certainly benefits all stakeholders,” said Kent De La Calzada, assistant vice president and head of customer relationship management at PLDT Enterprise.

Darwin G. Amojelar

SM Investments wins

Stevie Award for annual report

SM Investments Corp., one of the leading conglomerates in the Philippines, was awarded by Stevie Award as Bronze Winner for the Best Annual Report-PrivatelyOwned Companies category in The 20th Annual International Business Awards.

“We are pleased to receive this award for our 2022 Integrated Report that reflects how we continue to serve communities. We are mindful that with transparent reporting, we can demonstrate that our business performance and sustainability efforts continue to create value for all our stakeholders,” said SM Investments president and chief executive Frederic DyBuncio.

The International Business Awards are the world’s premier business awards program. All individuals and organizations worldwide – public and private, for-profit and non-profit, large and small—are eligible to submit nominations. The 2023 IBAs received entries from organizations in 61 nations and territories.

The judges of the award-giving body said: “The report encompasses a good survey and gives a great overview on the Philippine economy.” quarter GDP growth of 4.3 percent, a slowdown from 6.4 percent in the second quarter, could be brought about by several factors, but he expected some recovery in the third quarter.

“But I think we have room to hike without contracting the economy… The neutral rate of interest is closer to 4 percent in real terms. If our projections are right, we will be at 3.25 percent in real terms for neutral interest rates .. but we have room to hike,” he said. “We think we will be within the striking distance of the target range. We think we will be within the target range by the end of this year and certainly by 2024 and 2025. That is the way we are looking at this,” he said. Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed that from a peak of 8.7 percent in January 2023, inflation eased to a 16-month low of 4.7 percent in July.

The BSP has so far raised the policy rates by 425 basis points to 6.25 percent from May 2022 until March 2023, before taking a prudent pause in the last three Monetary Board meetings, including Thursday’s, amid the sustained easing of inflation. Remolona said earlier the latest baseline projections continued to show a return to inflation target in the fourth quarter of 2023 despite a generally higher path for inflation relative to the previous forecast from the monetary policy meeting in June, reflecting mainly the impact