BusinessMirror December 2, 2014 by BusinessMirror

BusinessMirror

three-time rotary club of manila journalism awardee 2006, 2010, 2012

U.N. Media Award 2008

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Life

compendium of the catechism of the catholic church, fr. sal putzu, sdb and louie m. lacson Word&Life Publications • teacherlouie1965@yahoo.com

‘House of Magic’ in local cineMas

BusinessMirror

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos • lifestylebusinessmirror@gmail.com

>> d4

Tuesday, December 2, 2014 D1

❶

❷

The powerful, single-tone interior ❶

A two- or three-tone color scheme may be more practical than the single-tone. PHOTOS BY A. GOLDEN

❷

one can simply start with a neutral background, then add small touches of color.

By Samito Jalbuena

For the purpose of sourcing interior elements in watermelon, we took a random search for furnishings, paints and textiles available in that color. Needless to say, the options were very limited. For this reason alone, the implementation of a condo’s transformation to a watermelon paradise will be met with challenges. Why not water down the idea to something more realistic? an interior designer in the West Coast once complained that her client was asking the impossible. It turns out that the client wanted her old, metal kitchen oven to be repainted in a hard-to-find shade of green. Finally, after weeks of frantic search, the designer was able to track down the contact details of a company that would provide cans of paint in that rare color. If one cannot hunt down sources, such as the latter, one should be brave enough to contract a master painter with the job of mixing the desired color from scratch. Good luck in your search for a paint mixer with enormous capabilities. From here, the road to achieving the single-tone interior may seem

HE proposal may seem a bit farfetched for a place to live in. The powerful single-tone interior strictly uses only one color to saturate the senses from floor to ceiling, wall to wall, and everything else in between. oftentimes an experimental notion and also a designer’s cliché, the idea can be brought down to earth and into the realm of the practical, or so it seems. Interior designers are very familiar with organizing space by using color contrasts, which the single-tone interior strips away. recently, an exhibition at the Salone del Mobile in Milan, an eagerly awaited furnishings and design trade show, presented once again the possibility for such an aesthetic. There were many rooms in singular shades, namely, yellow, red, blue,

white, and so on. But the onlooker can be flabbergasted with such proposals. obviously, the singe-tone apartment presents more problems than possibilities. First is the question of sourcing. any unique interior-design idea may seem, at first, feasible, but the designer has to figure out if there are indeed sources and manufacturers, who can provide furnishings in the single shade of, let’s say, watermelon. There are many different shades of red, and watermelon happens to be just one of the peculiarities that a client requests.

like scratch. It’s only a matter of repainting and re-dyeing all interior elements in the desired hue. however, if one cannot find a master painter or a company that would color one’s world singularly, one must consider the next best thing, and that is to pick an interior color scheme that would highlight a certain preference. Injecting color in a condominium doesn’t have to mean a long-term relationship with a chosen hue, or that all things in the condo must be colored in that hue. The most important thing to remember is to resist the temptation to select a paint color first. This may mean going against instinct, but in the end this will prove to be more practical. In this regard, start your color search by identifying room elements that are less flexible to repaint, such as furniture, fabrics, tile, or wallpaper. Then base the final color scheme on these. as you choose colors, don’t forget to consider their tonal values. a mix of values within your color scheme helps to keep a palette with multiple hues from becoming chaotic. That said, choose one dark

color, one light color and one bright color as a guide. Finally, the color that becomes the dominant hue in the room will depend on personal preference. of course, one can simply prefer a neutral background, such as white, then add small touches or even bursts of a selected color scheme. This seems to be the easier route. Introducing color into an apartment can be done through a selection of fabrics and textiles, such as rugs, pillows, throws and window treatments. artwork also brings in color and a touch of personality at the same time. accessories and personal collections can act as colorful accents in a room. The powerful single-tone interior can often be the ideal starting place from which we can base a more realistic scheme for our living spaces. If you’re up for the challenge, go ahead and produce your single-tone interior despite the challenges. Most likely, you will end up with a more practical color scheme that considers the limitations, and yet is as powerful as the statement made by the singular idea.

add sparkle to your holiday décor By Cathy Hobbs

your holiday shine.

Tribune News Service

and a classic look as you create your décor this holiday season. From checkerboard and diamond-shaped patterns to pure white, pure black or a combination of the two, when it comes to creating the perfect color palette, there is nothing quite as pure, timeless and versatile as decorating using black and white. Some ideas for how to incorporate pure white into your décor include use of white feathers to embellish a table, pure white on white linens and place settings, white sugared fruits, white faux snow-dusted branches as centerpieces, white faux snow-dusted pinecones as table accessories, as well as white bedded napkin ring holders and white lacquered enamel napkin rings.

TACTILE MATERIALS MaTerIalS that engage the senses are especially important for the holidays. Consider materials such as feathers, pure white shag, felt, velvet and wools to bring texture into your holiday.

he holiday season is truly about entertaining and going all out. So why not add a little bit of sparkle and bling while still being true to the traditional spirit often associated with the holiday décor? When it comes to being creative, I suggest experimenting with some new materials this holiday season, such as those that have high sheen, tactile materials, reflective surfaces and nontraditional color palettes, such as black and white.

REFLECTIVE SURFACES MIrrorS, mirrors and more mirrors should be used in creating a signature bling look this holiday season. From using unique mirrors as plate chargers to a menagerie of ornaments on a Christmas tree, mirrors can add a definite sense of sparkle.

HIGH SHEEN The holidays are a great time to bring in high sheen materials such as lacquer or surfaces with high gloss. From table items such as placemats, trays and runners to serving ware and tabletop accessories, consider items such as patent leather, lacquer and other high-gloss materials to help make

life

USE OF BLACK AND WHITE YeS! Black and white are colors! From Dorothy Draper to today’s modern décor, black and white is actually one of those timeless color combinations that I believe will always be in style and is even making a comeback. It is also a foundation for what can be timeless,

n Cathy Hobbs, based in New York City, is an Emmy Award-winning television host and a nationally known interior design and home staging expert. Visit her web site at www. cathyhobbs.com.

black friday weekend slows down as allure fades

World Companies BusinessMirror

Editor: Dionisio L. Pelayo• corp@businessmirror.com.ph

Tuesday, December 2, 2014

Black Friday weekend slows down as allure fades

EW YORK—Black Friday fatigue is setting in. Early discounting, more online shopping and a mixed economy meant fewer people shopped over Thanksgiving weekend, the National Retail Federation said on Sunday. Overall, 133.7 million people shopped in stores and online over the four-day weekend, down 5.2 percent from last year, according to a survey of 4,631 people conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics for the trade group. Total spending for the weekend is expected to fall 11 percent to $50.9 billion from an estimated $57.4 billion last year, the trade group estimated. Part of the reason is that Target, J.C. Penney, Macy’s, Wal-Mart and other major retailers pushed fat discounts as early as Halloween. Some opened stores even earlier on Thanksgiving. All that stole some thunder from Black Friday and the rest of the weekend. Still, the preliminar y data makes retailers worried that shoppers remain frugal despite improving employment and falling gas prices. Matt Shay, the trade group’s CEO, said he thinks people benefiting from the recovery may not feel the need to fight crowds to get the deepest discount on a TV or toaster. And those who feel like the recession never ended may not have the money and will stretch out what they spend through Christmas. And shoppers are still feeling the effects of high food prices and stagnant wages. “While they’re more optimistic, they’re very cautious,” Shay said. “If the deals are not right for them, they’re not going to spend.” Bottom line: Expect more deep discounts, all season long. “Every day will be Black Friday. Every minute will be Cyber Monday,” he said. That could be what it takes to get shoppers to open their wallets for the holiday-shopping season, which accounts for about 20 percent of annual retail sales. Besides economic factors, people are becoming more discerning when they shop. Armed with smartphones and price-comparison apps,

Monday. Some who went shopping on Thanksgiving felt they were doing it against their will. Cathyliz Lopez of New York City said she felt forced to shop on the holiday. “It ’s r u ining t he spir it of Thanksgiving,” the 20-year-old said on Thursday. “But I was checking all the ads, and the best deals were today.” The National Retail Federation is still predicting a 4.1-percent increase in sales for the season. That would be the highest increase since the 4.8-percent gain in 2011. Some stores and malls had reason to be optimistic. Dan Jasper, a spokesman at Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, said customer counts are up 5 percent to 6 percent for the fourday weekend. One plus: Shoppers were buying more for themselves, a sign of optimism. “They felt confident in the economy,” he said. CEOs at Target and Toys R Us said they saw shoppers not just focusing on the doorbuster deals but throwing extra items in their carts. Macy’s CEO Terry Lundgren told the Associated Press on Friday that

they know what’s a good deal—and what is not. Kimani Brown, 39, of New York City, was among the Black Friday defectors. After four years of braving the crowds, the sales failed to lure him out this year. “I consider myself a smart shopper. And it’s not as alluring as it used to be,” Brown said. “It’s a marketing tool, and I don’t want to be pulled into it.” He also said the frenzy pushed him to overspend, and he paid the price in January on his credit-card statement. Instead, he said he will look online on Monday, the online shopping day often called Cyber

he is hoping lower gas prices will help spending. “There’s reason to believe that confidence should continue to grow. That should be good for discretionary spending,” he said. Some of those discretionary dollars are migrating online. Target said Thanksgiving saw a 40-percent surge in online sales and was its biggest online sales day ever. And Wal-Mart reported Thanksgiving was its second-highest online day ever, topped only by Cyber Monday last year. From November 1 through Friday, $22.7 billion has been spent online, a 15-percent increase from last year, according to research firm comScore. On Thanksgiving, online sales surged 32 percent, while Black Friday online sales jumped 26 percent. In stores, shoppers spent $9.1 billion on Black Friday, according to research firm ShopperTrak, down 7 percent from last year. That was partly due to a 24-percent surge in Thanksgiving sales, to $3.2 billion. ShopperTrak estimated that in-store sales for the two days combined slipped half a percent to $12.29 billion. AP

PPLE had an eventful year in 2011. The first iPad was flying off the shelves, the company unveiled its new iPhone 4S, and founder Steve Jobs died. It also was the year Apple launched its worldwide courtroom blitzkrieg against archrival Samsung, accusing the South Korean tech giant of copying the secret ingredients from the iPhone and iPad for its smartphones and tablets. Now, nearly four years later, that legal offensive is about to hit arguably its most crucial stage. A federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., will hear arguments on Thursday in Samsung’s bid to unravel a losing jury verdict and nearly $1 billion in damages for violating Apple’s patents —possibly defining new legal boundaries for powerful tech companies increasingly reliant on the courts to settle feuds over the rights to new innovations. For Apple, a win in the influential appeals court, which reviews patent cases from around the country, would vindicate the Silicon Valley power’s claim that Samsung’s popular tablets and smartphones relied on “shameful” copying of the iPad and iPhone. For Samsung, a favorable ruling overturning the verdicts would neutralize Apple’s patent war, which the maker of the Galaxy line of smartphones

B2-3

Cyber Monday gears up to get online shoppers hyped

EW YOR K—A f ter a busy holiday weekend in shopping malls, millions of Americans are expected to log on and keep shopping on the day dubbed Cyber Monday. That day, the Monday after Thanksgiving, has been the biggest online shopping day of the year since 2010. The day could take on added importance after a Thanksgiving weekend that saw fewer shoppers and lower spending than last year, according to some estimates. Retailers have been pushing deals all month and particularly the past week, hoping to spur customers to spend. That may have taken away some spending from Thanksgiving weekend. Research firm comScore expects people to spend about $2.5 billion on Cyber Monday. There’s reason to think a lot of dollars are migrating online. PayPal said its global mobile payment volume jumped 47 percent on Thanksgiving Day compared with last year. Wal-Mart said it had more than 500 million page views on Thanksgiving, and eBay says it sold 2,000 iPad Air 2 tablets for $399 at a rate of one a second. Amazon has been offering special deals since November 21, adding new discounts as often as every 10 minutes for eight days straight. Deals include up to 45-percent off some Samsung television sets and 28-percent off Beats by Dre headphones, selling for $275. Wal-Mart said it has doubled its Cyber Week deals to 500 compared with last year, including up to half off some TVs, tablets and toys with free-shipping offers. Toys R Us is offering online deals for 11 days that began the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, and also has free-shipping offers. Cyberdeals include $15 off Disney Frozen Princess dolls that are regularly $50 and $20 off a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles “Battroborg Electronic Battle

Game” that is usually $80. The name “Cyber Monday” was coined in 2005 by the National Retail Federation’s online arm, Shop.org, to encourage people to shop online. After retailers revved up deals for the day, it became the busiest online shopping day in 2010. The name was also a nod to online shopping being done at work, where faster connections made it easier to browse, less of a factor now. Cyber Monday comes after a weekend that saw 5.3 percent fewer shoppers and 11 percent less spending, according to estimates by the National Retail Federation. “Online is nowhere near its maturity, so Cyber Monday should be big, with a lot of strength in the days leading up to it,” Forester Research analyst Sucharita Mulpuru said. “More consumers are spending more shopping dollars online.” She expects two spikes in online shopping: one during the long Thanksgiving weekend, including Cyber Monday, and one later in December when shipping deadlines to get items by Christmas start to hit. Research firm comScore expects online sales to rise 16 percent to $61 billion during the November and December shopping season, up 16 percent from last year. ComScore tracks US online sales based on observed behavior of a representative US consumer panel of 2million Web users. The National Retail Federation has forecast overall holiday sales will increase 4.1 percent to $616.9 billion in 2014. Even shoppers who braved the stores over the weekend weren’t shy about how much they like shopping online. Je n n i fe r D on a ld son , a 47-year-old property manager, dropped in at Macy’s at New York City’s Fulton Street Mall on Sunday, although she usually does her shopping online. “It’s crowded, and people are rude,” she said of stores. AP

Samsung keeps mobile chief despite profit drop TARGET shoppers Kelly Foley (from left), Debbie Winslow, and Ann Rich use a smartphone to look at a competitor’s prices while shopping shortly after midnight on Black Friday, in South Portland, Maine. The Black Friday shopping weekend may be losing its mojo. A survey of shoppers released on Sunday by the National Retail Federation shows how early discounting, more online shopping and an improving economy have fewer people shopping on the weekend that kicks off the holiday shopping season. AP

Apple vs Samsung: Patent war reaches key appeals court S

and tablets has insisted all along has been a heavy-handed public relations campaign to stifle competition. The products involved in this particular case, such as the iPhone 4, are now near-relics in the tech market, flooded these days with Apple’s iPhone 6 and Samsung’s Galaxy S5. But the outcome nevertheless is considered pivotal. “Many of the legal issues in the case aren’t all that new, but the fact there is $1 billion—and possibly the way smartphones are designed—at stake makes it an important case,” said Mark Lemley, director of Stanford’s law, science and technology program. The US Federal Circuit Court of Appeals is reviewing a San Jose jury’s August 2012 finding that Samsung violated Apple’s patent or trademark rights in 23 products, such as the Galaxy S2 smartphone, as well as about $930 million in damages awarded to the iPhone maker. The case, known as “Apple I,” was the first of two trials between the feuding tech titans. Another federal jury earlier this year found Samsung copied iPhone technology in more recent products, but awarded $120 million in damages, a fraction of what Apple sought. Samsung just this week appealed that verdict to the Federal Circuit and legal experts say a ruling in the first case is

likely to resolve many, if not all, of the same issues. It also could trigger a settlement, which has eluded Apple’s and Samsung’s CEOs for years, although some experts say the losing side may first want to hear from the US Supreme Court. “A case that touches on numerous hot buttons in patent law and has been called the ‘trial of century’ is likely to get the justices’ attention,”said Robin Feldman, a Hastings College of the Law professor. Apple and Samsung declined to comment. But in court papers, the two sides set out their competing arguments. In seeking to overturn the jury verdict, Samsung focuses on key issues, notably the fact that most of the patent violations centered on iPhone and iPad designs, not operating technologies. As Samsung put it in its legal papers, “The eye-popping judgment here thus resulted overwhelmingly from the supposed protection of mere appearances in complex, technological devices.” Samsung’s legal team also argues that Apple’s damages award is excessive, contending the company failed to prove that Samsung’s products had any meaningful bearing on iPhone or iPad sales—the backbone of the jury’s damages

calculations. Apple, meanwhile, is relying on the Federal Circuit Court’s general reluctance to tamper with jury verdicts. Apple’s lawyers emphasize that the jury and US District Judge Lucy Koh, who has handled the case, had “unusually extensive evidence of copying.” “Samsung and Apple are fierce competitors,” Apple told the appeals court. “But rather than compete through innovation, Samsung opted to copy Apple’s iPhone and iPad in a calculated and meticulous way.” Each side has some support. Twenty-seven law professors sided with Samsung, arguing that the design claims take patent rights too far. But a number of companies, including traditional manufacturers such as Oakley and Kohler, urged the court to reinforce the importance of design rights. Legal experts say it is hard to predict the outcome, although the appeals court is already familiar with the case, having refused Apple’s attempts thus far to block Samsung from selling the phones and tablets branded copycats by juries. “The societal context is important as well,” said Hastings’s Feldman. “When the [first] trial began, nobody on the street had heard of smartphone wars or patent trolling. Now, everyone has an opinion on what’s wrong with the patent system.” San Jose Mercury News-TNS

EOUL—Samsung retained the chief of its mobile business in an annual executive reshuffle announced on Monday despite a steep decline in mobile profit. The extent of this year’s reshuffle was the smallest in recent years, showing how Samsung is opting for stability in its executive ranks in the absence of chairman Lee Kun-hee who was hospitalized in May after a heart attack. Samsung Spokesman Lee June said that Shin Jong-kyun, president of mobile communications at Samsung Electronics Co., has made a significant contribution to Samsung’s rise to world’s top mobilephone maker. Some analysts expected Shin to step down to take responsibility for Samsung’s failure to respond quickly enough to the rise of Chinese smartphone makers and Apple’s new iPhones. Samsung’s third-quarter mobile profit fell to just one quarter of the previous year’s level. But the size of the mobile team that Shin will continue to lead is likely to become much smaller than before. The company is scheduled to

announce next week a reorganization of its business divisions. Samsung is South Korea’s most valuable company with businesses in semiconductor, television sets and home appliances, as well as mobile telephones. The mobile-phone business once contributed more than 60 percent of Samsung Electronics’ overall profit but that proportion fell to less than half in the latest quarter as Galaxy smartphones lost popularity to the iPhone 6 series and Xiaomi’s cheap phones in China. Samsung said Hong Won-pyo, who was president and head of the Media Solution Center within Samsung’s mobile business, will now lead Samsung’s global marketing. Hong’s departure from Samsung’s mobile business signals a shift in the Media Solution Center, a group that was set up to lead development and partnerships for apps for Galaxy phones. Three executives in the Samsung group were promoted to president level including one from Samsung’s TV business and one from Samsung’s memory chip business. AP

World companies

B2-3

OPEC INACTION SPURS SURVIVAL OF FITTEST AS OIL BELOW $65 BusinessMirror

In this June 2014 aerial photo, an oil well is drilled near Williston, north Dakota. A decision by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries not to cut oil production is hammering major energy companies in the US and abroad. Chevron, ConocoPhillips and ExxonMobil are down more than 4 percent. Britain’s BP is down 6 percent. natural gas producers are getting hit, as well. Chesapeake Energy is down almost 12 percent. Benchmark US crude prices plunged almost 7 percent to $68.81 on november 28. AP

est texas Intermediate tumbled below $65 a barrel to the lowest level since July 2009 amid speculation prices have further to drop before the Organization of Petroleum exporting Countries’ (Opec) decision to maintain output slows Us shale supply.

Benchmark futures in New York and London slumped more than 3 percent after capping their biggest monthly loss in about six years as the Opec signalled the group will leave it to the market to reduce a global glut. Current prices are no guarantee of a significant decline in US shale output, Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said in an interview on November 28. Oil has collapsed into a bear market as the US pumps crude at the fastest rate in three decades while global demand growth slows. Opec last week resisted calls from members including Venezuela, Iran and Iraq to reduce its production target of 30 million barrels a day at a meeting in Vienna. “It’s clear that a production war is on and it will be survival of the fittest,” Phil Flynn, a senior market analyst at the Price Futures Group in Chicago, said by e-mail. WTI “will see a test of $60 soon,” he said. WTI for January delivery fell as much as $2.05, or 3.1 percent, to $64.10 a barrel in electronic trading on the New

York Mercantile Exchange and was at $64.66 at 2:33 p.m. Singapore time. The volume of all futures traded was more than four times the 100-day average. Prices, which decreased 18 percent in November, are down 34 percent this year. Brent for January settlement dropped as much as $2.33, or 3.3 percent, to $67.82 a barrel on the ICE Futures Europe exchange, the lowest intraday price since October 2009. Prices declined 18 percent last month and are 38 percent lower in 2014. Most of Opec’s 12 members intended to trim 1.5 million barrels, or 5 percent, from their collective quota, with non-member producers contributing an additional 500,000 barrels in reductions, according to Zanganeh’s account of the group’s meeting in the Austrian capital. Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Ali Al-Naimi cited the threat from US shale as the main justification for maintaining the output limit, Zanganeh said. “It’s likely that this pressure will remain on prices until there are signs of some shutdowns,” Michael McCar-

Vietnam delays plan to ease restrictions on foreign stakes

ways to cut next year’s proposed budget deficit to a “realistic level,” according to a cabinet statement released over the weekend. The current spending draft is based on oil prices at $70 a barrel, Obaid Mahal, a government official, said by phone. Russia will cope with the price fall and doesn’t see “anything so extraordinary in what is happening,” President Vladimir Putin said on November 28. The world’s secondlargest oil exporter, which relies on crude for almost half its income, is revising down estimates after basing next year’s budget on oil at $100 a barrel, Economy Minister Alexei Ulyukayev told reporters in Moscow the same day. “It’s essentially being left up to demand and supply fundamentals, which could mean it’s going to take a while before the market is ultimately more balanced,” Daniel Hynes, a senior commodity strategist at Australia and New Zealand Banking Group in Sydney, said by phone. “We’ve seen the emergence of some opportunistic buying by the Chinese. If that’s ongoing, that could be supportive.” China’s efforts to boost emergency stockpiles may boost its imports by as much as 700,000 barrels a day in 2015, according to Energy Aspects Ltd., a London-based consultant. That’s more than half the global glut forecast by Citigroup Inc. US production expanded to 9.08 million barrels a day through November 21, the most in weekly records that started in January 1983, data from the Energy Information Administration show. Crude inventories climbed to 383 million, according to the Energy Department’s statistical arm. Bloomberg News

Japan’s manufacturers boost investment amid weak consumption

APANESE companies increased investment more than forecast in the third quarter, even as slumping consumption pushed the economy into a recession. Manufacturers led a 5.5-percent gain in capital spending in the three months through September from a year earlier, beating the 1.8-percent median in a Bloomberg News survey. Corporate profits climbed 7.6 percent and sales increased 2.9 percent, according to finance ministry data released on Monday. The unexpectedly strong gain in domestic investment is a boost for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe as he campaigns for re-election on his economic growth strategy after Japan

slipped into its fourth recession since 2008. Abe’s been calling on companies to spend their cash hoards on investment and wages to pull the economy out of two decades of stagnation. “Capital investment is gradually growing, with the level much higher than before the Abe government, but it’s just not that resilient yet,” said Takeshi Minami, chief economist at Norinchukin Research Institute. “The public still doesn’t rate Abenomics positively because most people aren’t better off as prices are rising faster than wages.” Japanese stocks rose, with the Topix index extending a six-year high as the slumping yen boosted exporters. The currency traded at 118.85

per dollar at 10:59 a.m. in Tokyo, after earlier touching 119.03, the weakest since August 2007. Manufacturing investment advanced 11 percent, with the metal industry boosting spending 85 percent. Machinery makers showed a 15-percent gain and information-technology equipment producers increased investment by 26 percent. Investment by nonmanufacturers, which was 64 percent of the total, climbed 2.7 percent. Spending by realestate companies rose 56 percent and investment by wholesalers and retailers climbed 11 percent. Metals manufacturers increased purchases of construction materials

and other equipment while electronics companies boosted spending for production of smartphone parts. Investment by electrical machinery makers rose as manufacturers, including car companies, spent more on factory automation. Companies invested ¥9.4 trillion in the period, 47 percent less than the highpoint in the first quarter of 2007, based on comparable data back to 2001. Today’s figures will be used to revise third-quarter gross domestic product data, which showed the economy contracted 1.6 percent after shrinking 7.3 percent in the April to June period. The revised data is due on December 8. Bloomberg News

POlICy-MAkErS must revise a Ministry of Finance plan that recommended lifting the foreign cap on voting shares in some industries to 60 percent from 49 percent, Vu Bang, chairman of the State Securities Commission, said in an interview on november 28.

NTERNATIONAL investors will have to wait at least 10 months for Vietnam to ease curbs on foreign shareholders after a 2013 proposal to increase ownership limits was shelved. Policy-makers must revise a Ministry of Finance plan that recommended lifting the foreign cap on voting shares in some industries to 60 percent from 49 percent, Vu Bang, chairman of the State Securities Commission (SSC), said in an interview on November 28. Bang, who had said in February that the government was in the “last stage” of making a decision on the proposal, now says a new version will be submitted in October. Speculation that ownership limits for the $56-billion stock market would be raised helped boost the benchmark VN Index by 22 percent in 2013 and another 13 percent this year. Money managers, including Templeton Asset Management and Dragon Capital Group Ltd., have said they’re unable to buy as many shares as they want because of the caps

“This is disappointing as the market has been rallying because investors were expecting the increase in the limit this year,” Attila Vajda, managing director at Project Asia Research & Consulting Pte., said from Ho Chi Minh City on November 28. It will probably take until 2016 at the earliest for a revised plan to get final approval, Vajda said. The gauge rose 0.6 percent as of 9:35 a.m. local time, poised to snap threeday declines. The SSC will work with relevant ministries to revise the plan and address inconsistencies with existing laws, Bang said. He said an increase in foreign limits will be implemented “eventually” while declining to provide details of the new proposal. The plan will need approval from Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung. Vietnam is building its case for an upgrade to emerging-market status from frontier classification by index provider MSCI Inc., the SSC said in October. An emerging-market ranking, which would increase the pool of eligible investors for Vietnam, requires “significant” openness to foreign ownership and ease of capital flows, as well as minimum levels of liquidity and market value, according to MSCI’s web site. Foreign investors have added a net $131.9 million to their Vietnam holdings in 2014, set for the ninth straight year of inflows. The government is forecasting the fastest economic growth since 2011 amid accelerating exports, a widening trade surplus and slowing inflation. Lawmakers approved legislation last week that allows broader foreign ownership of property, stepping up efforts to reach a 5.8-percent target for economic expansion this year and clear up bad debts tied to real estate. Despite the delay in new foreign ownership rules, Bang said Vietnam’s stock market will probably keep rallying next year amid a stable economy. Bloomberg News

Widodo, known as Jokowi, raised fuel prices last month to reduce state energy subsidies, acting on an election pledge to free funds for development spending and boosting optimism he’s taking steps to overhaul Southeast Asia’s largest economy. Indonesia’s inflation probably accelerated to more than 6 percent in november, while exports probably shrank in October, according to Bloomberg surveys before data due on Monday. “Manufacturing sector conditions are likely to remain soft in the coming months, even after the effects of the fuelprice hike are absorbed,”Lim said.“Rupiah weakness and higher fuel prices resulted in another increase in input prices, but cooler demand conditions prevented manufacturers from passing on these gains to consumers.” Bloomberg News

World

B3-1

Kobe. bryant. C1

Sports

| Tuesday, deCember 2, 2014 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph sports@businessmirror.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

FédéRATION Internationale de Football Association President Sepp Blatter assures that the 2022 World Cup will be held in Qatar. ALYSA SALEN

BLATTER: BELIEVE ME

édération internationale de Football association (Fifa) President Sepp Blatter responded to the latest criticism of the World Cup bidding process by assuring asian football delegates that the tournament will go ahead in Qatar in 2022. “Believe me, with all what has been said, what is told around the world, by whom? By those... not involved exactly [with] what has happened or what happens in football,” he said. “the World Cup 2022 will be played in Qatar.” Blatter made his latest remarks about the World Cup during a speech at the asian Football Confederation’s (aFC) 60th anniversary celebrations at the Makati Shangri-La in Makati City late Sunday. allegations of bribery and favorseeking have engulfed world football in the four years since russia was awarded the 2018 World Cup and Qatar was selected as host for 2022. the Swiss attorney general has already received a criminal complaint from Fifa against possible law-breaking by unnamed individuals mentioned in american lawyer Michael Garcia’s investigation into the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bidding process, and the British government is considering launching a criminal investigation. although the Swiss authorities have a full copy of the bid probe, the 430page report into impropriety remains secret, with only a 42-page summary judgment from Fifa ethics judge Joachim Eckert having been published. Eckert said there is not enough evidence to strip russia of the 2018 World Cup or Qatar of the 2022 tournament, which were both awarded in a december 2010 vote by Fifa’s executive committee. the sense of disarray at Fifa heightened when Garcia objected to Eckert’s interpretation of his investigative work, appealing to Fifa citing “numerous materially incomplete and erroneous representations” of his work. the aFC handed the hosting chores of the federation’s 60th anniversary to Manila, one of 12 founding members of the continental body. Philippine Football Federation President Mariano “nonong” araneta and General-Secretary lawyer Edwin Gastanes organized the hosting. AP

BusinessMirror

KOBE. BRYANT. Kobe Bryant’s nearly flawless, his numbers show a triple-double and he becomes the first player in National Basketball Association history with 30,000 career points and 6,000 assists, gliding over the latter plateau with a third-quarter pass to Wesley Johnson that leads to a successful 12-footer.

By Mike Bresnahan Los Angeles Times

OS ANGELES—There are always two ways for the Los Angeles Lakers to momentarily wash away an otherwise dour season. Kobe. Bryant. There have been so many critiques—shot selection continually attacked, accuracy analyzed ad nauseam and even his missed free throws under siege after a late-game collapse against Minnesota. There could be nothing short of praise for Bryant after the Lakers’ 129-122 overtime victory on Sunday against the Toronto Raptors. His game was nearly flawless, his numbers showed a triple-double and he became the first player in National Basketball Association (NBA) history with 30,000 career points and 6,000 assists, gliding over the latter plateau with a thirdquarter pass to Wesley Johnson that led to a successful 12-footer. “It’s a huge honor. It means I pass more than people say,” Bryant said after accumulating 31 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds at Staples Center. The most important number could not be overlooked amid the backdrop: 36 years old. Bryant shoved the momentum firmly toward the Lakers with a three-point play, making a 15-footer, while moving left and getting fouled by James Johnson with 2:23 left in overtime. Before shooting the free throw, Bryant took a long walk toward the other basket and pounded his chest with his right fist before heading back to the freethrow line. “It’s crazy,” said Wesley Johnson, who had 13 points. “Especially seeing how he’s doing it. He’s still going at it. It’s not like he’s slow-footed or he still can’t get to the rim. He’s starting to play like his old self. This is definitely going to be something to tell my kids.” Bryant made 11 of 24 shots (45.8 percent), an upgrade from the 38.8 percent he showed coming into the game. He also had a highlight play in the fourth quarter, losing Terrence Ross with a crossover on the baseline, stepping back and draining a 17-footer while drawing a foul on Ross. “There’s a lot left in that tank. It’s obvious,” Lakers coach Byron Scott said. The Lakers [4-13] are now 1-13 against the Western Conference and 3-0 against the considerably weaker East. They start a three-game East trip on Tuesday in Detroit. Back to Bryant, as usual. Despite the convergence of points and assists on Sunday, Bryant’s career will

certainly be known more for scoring than passing. “One’s more in your control than the other. I prefer things to be under my control,” he said. At the same time, he acknowledged the importance of passing to teammates. “It means guys are playing with confidence. They’re more involved,” he said. “They emotionally feel better. They get more excited and more into the game. It makes the game more enjoyable.” There hasn’t been a lot of joy for the Lakers. Or Bryant on a team that was 1-8 at home before Sunday and still stuck at the bottom of the West. “You know the saying, ‘Happy wife, happy life?’“ Bryant said. “If I’m upset, everybody is going to have a bad day.” For once, the Lakers weren’t dealing with injury fallout, something Toronto (13-4) had to bear after DeMar DeRozan’s serious groin tear two days earlier. Kyle Lowry tried to cover the loss of DeRozan’s 19.4 points a game by contributing 29 points and nine assists. The Lakers were incredibly efficient in the first half, Bryant in particular. He made all four of his shots and handed out eight assists as the Lakers shot 57.1 percent and took a 58-49 edge into the locker room. “I loved the way he played the first half,” Scott said. “I thought he made a conscious effort to get everybody involved.” Danny Green scored 18 points for San Antonio and Coach Gregg Popovich returned from a two-game absence to lead the Spurs over the Boston Celtics, 111-89, for their seventh straight victory. Popovich returned for the opener of a four-game trip after missing two games following an undisclosed minor medical procedure. Leading 80-77 with 10 minutes left, the Spurs went on a 14-2 run to take a 94-79 lead with 6:11 left on a layup by Cory Joseph. After Jeff Green made a free throw for Boston, cutting the lead to 94-80, Aron Baynes beat the 24-second clock with a three-pointer then made a layup for a 99-80 lead with 4:36 to go. Boris Diaw had 15 points and Tim Duncan added 14 for the Spurs. Chicago’s Jimmy Butler had 26 points and Pau Gasol had 25 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Bulla past the Brooklyn Nets 102-84. Rookie Bojan Bogdanovic led the Nets with 13 points and reserve Jarret Jack added 12. Derrick Rose had 14 points and reserve Nikola Mirotic chipped in 12 points and 12 rebounds for the Bulls. The Golden State Warriors downed the Detroit Pistons, 104-93, for their ninth straight victory after Draymond Green scored 20 points and Stephen Curry added 16 points and 10 assists, while Zach Randolph had 22 points and 12 rebounds, and Marc Gasol added 18 points and six rebounds as the Memphis Grizzlies beat the Sacramento Kings, 97-85. In other games, Dwyane Wade returned from a seven-game absence to score 27 points as the Miami Heat beat the New York Knicks, 86-79; the Orlando Magic defeated the Phoenix Suns, 93-90; and the Portland Trail Blazers were 107-93 winners over the Minnesota Timberwolves. With AP

sports »

KOBE BRYANT 31 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds for his 20th career triple-double as the Lakers end a four-game losing streak with a 129122 overtime victory over the Raptors. AP

Brent crude, the benchmark for more than half of the world’s oil, lost 13 percent last week to $70.15 a barrel, the lowest since May 2010, according to Bloomberg. University of Asia and the Pacific School of Economics Vice Dean Cid Terosa said this would not immediately translate into lower fuel prices. “We can expect the impact to be immediate but, since prices are sticky downward and business can take advantage of seasonal demand, the impact of lower oil prices may not be felt soon,” Terosa said. “Also, the market is waiting for signs of sustained decrease in petroleum prices before cutting back prices of goods and services,” he added. But lower fuel prices would not automatically mean lower transport costs as fares are regulated by the government, according to University of the Philippines economist and former Budget Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno. Diokno also said the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board adjusts transport fares based on Dubai crude oil prices, not Brent crude. In the meantime, Diokno said the “biggest loser” in the decline in oil prices will be the government, because taxes on oil and oil products will

By VG Cabuag

Indonesia factory gauge at record low on fuel-price increase

n Indonesian manufacturing gauge fell to a record low in november after President Joko Widodo raised fuel prices, pushing up production costs as

export demand faltered. The HSBC Purchasing Managers’ Index for Indonesia fell to 48 last month from 49.2 in October, the lowest level since the measure was introduced in 2011. A number below 50 indicates a contraction. Output contracted at the fastest pace since January 2012, and new orders fell to the weakest since the series began, according to the report released on December 1. “The fuel-price hike in november was a factor behind the record-low PMI reading,” Su Sian Lim, Southeast Asian economist at HSBC, said in a statement accompanying the report. “Weak external demand was also a key driver.”

espite the decline in oil prices to $70 per barrel, economists said local fuel prices and transport fares may not go down anytime soon.

8990 Holdings taps Megawide Corp. for condo projects

The

B3-1 | Tuesday, December 2, 2014 • Editor: Lyn Resurreccion

thy, a chief strategist at CMC Markets in Sydney, said by phone. Opec’s decision not to cut output is “aimed at shaking out high-cost producers, particularly shale,” he said. The US oil boom has been driven by a combination of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, which has unlocked supplies from shale formations including the Bakken in North Dakota and the Eagle Ford in Texas. The technique is typically more expensive than pumping from conventional reservoirs. Only about 4 percent of US shale output needs $80 a barrel or more to be profitable, according to the International Energy Agency. Most production in the Bakken formation, one of the main drivers of shale oil output, remains commercially viable at or below $42, the Paris-based agency estimates. It expects US supply to rise by almost 1 million barrels a day next year, with increasing flows to international markets. Opec, which supplies about 40 percent of the world’s oil, exceeded its official target for a sixth straight month in November, even after reducing output. The group pumped 30.56 million barrels a day, 424,000 barrels a day less than in October, a Bloomberg News survey of oil companies, producers and analysts showed. Crude’s slump has roiled markets from Nigeria’s naira to Venezuelan bonds and the Russian ruble as it threatens the revenue of producing countries. Prices have dropped below the level needed by at least nine Opec member-states to balance their budgets, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Iraq, Opec’s second-biggest producer, formed a panel to look into

By Cai U. Ordinario

See “Fuel prices,” A2

World Opec inaction spurs survival of fittest as oil below $65

P25.00 nationwide | 7 sections 32 pages | 7 days a week

‘Expect no cut in fuel prices, fares’

the powerful, single-tone interior es, Lord, knowing the four last things prepares us to be watchful on how we lead our life on earth. First, death; every body dies whether we like it or not. On the manner of our death nobody knows, “It is like a thief that comes in the night.” second, judgment; the best judge to determine where we go is the Lord. Third, hell; in this generation, it becomes an expression, “to hell with you!” The truth, there is really hell, but sorry to say some religions do not believe in hell. What is important is to avoid going to hell. Fourth, Heaven, “for heaven’s sake,” “for goodness sake.” Make it so, live the true meaning of heaven and we are all sure we will go to heaven. Amen!

Tuesday, 40 Tuesday,November December18, 2, 2014 Vol. 10 No. 54

Crude oil prices fall to $70 a barrel amid global oil-supply glut

INSIDE

The four last things

A broader look at today’s business

ass-housing developer 8990 Holdings on Monday said it has tapped construction firm Megawide Corp. to build its mid- and high-rise development worth about P53 billion that will be built over the next four years. The developer said in a statement that Megawide will build a total of 39 condominium buildings on 8990’s two major projects in Pasig City and in Tondo, Manila, with a combined total of about 40,000 of mostly smaller units marketed for the average workers. Januario Jesus Atencio, 8990 president and CEO, said Megawide will complete the projects within four years, a year earlier than the usua l five-year per iod required to finish a condominium project. “We share the vision to have both quality and value homes. Low cost need not be low value, so we are partnering with Megawide. Low cost can be high value,” Atencio told reporters. See “Holdings,” A2

PESO exchange rates n US 44.9050

lantern MAKER A parol, or lantern, maker arranges his products inside a Christmas lantern store along a street in Makati City. The owner, who lives in Tanay, Rizal, chooses to display his lanterns in Makati City because, like many others, he feels the demand for his product is higher in Metro Manila than where he lives. The owner also said a month before Christmas is when the lanterns sell the fastest. ALYSA SALEN

reforms will make growth possible–rfo By David Cagahastian

recent forum, organized by the Center for Philippine Futuristic Studies and Management Inc., has focused on how the economy can rebound from a dismal 5.3percent growth in terms of the gross domestic product (GDP) in the third quarter. Former Finance Secretary Roberto F. de Ocampo, now the chairman of the Philippine Veterans Bank, told the forum that the Philippines can still achieve 6.5-percent to 8-percent economic growth in 2015 if the government can address the problems on power and infrastructure, achieve peace in Mindanao and come up with a stable tax structure for the mining sector. “First, lawmakers should address the maximum projected shortfall in electricity supply in the Luzon grid from March to July 2015,” de Ocampo said. He explained that the Interruptible Load Program of the Manila Electric Co. should hopefully allow business establishments that use their own standby generation facilities to cope with the projected shortfall, but emphasized that the government should avoid repeating the mistakes made in the past energy crisis in early 1990s. He added that energy security is critical to sustain the growth of industries that would generate jobs, and to maintain the country’s upper-middle tile in competitiveness ranking by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization. See “Growth,” A2

China factory gauge drops as shutdowns add to slowdown

Chinese manufacturing gauge fell as factory shutdowns aggravated a pullback in the economy, raising pressure on the central bank to ease policy further after it lowered interest rates for the first time in two years. The government’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell to match an eight-month low of 50.3 in November, compared with the 50.5 median estimate of analysts in a Bloomberg survey and October’s 50.8. Readings above 50 indicate expansion. The government ordered factories in Beijing and surrounding regions to shut down during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum to curb pollution. China’s central bank cut interest rates last month as the economy heads for its slowest fullyear expansion since 1990. “Today’s official PMI reading

points to continued downward pressure on manufacturing activity,” said Julian Evans-Pritchard, China analyst in Singapore at Capital Economics Ltd. “The recent cut in the benchmark rate will do little to boost economic activity unless followed by a loosening of quantitative controls on lending, which policy-makers will remain cautious about given concerns over mounting credit risk.” The official PMI is released by the National Bureau of Statistics and China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing in Beijing. The index is based on responses to surveys sent to purchasing executives at 3,000 companies. The final reading of another manufacturing PMI for November from HSBC Holdings Plc. and Markit Economics was 50.0. It was unchanged Continued on A2

n japan 0.3784 n UK 70.2449 n HK 5.7905 n CHINA 7.3076 n singapore 34.4601 n australia 38.2985 n EU 55.8933 n SAUDI arabia 11.9657 Source: BSP (1 December 2014)

News BusinessMirror

Tuesday, December 2, 2014

news@businessmirror.com.ph

Rome formation house in disrepair

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

he “Home in Rome” of Filipino diocesan priests who have been sent abroad by their bishops to pursue higher ecclesiastical studies is due for repair and rehabilitation. This was revealed by Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle during the launch of “Isang Tugon”, a fund-raising drive of the Catholic Church for the rehabilitation and renovation of the Pontificio Collegio Filippino, the home of Filipino priests-scholars undertaking further ecclesiastical studies at the heart of the Universal Church in Rome. Dubbed as Isang Tugon, the campaig n aims to reach and involve Filipino Catholics nationwide and abroad to raise public awareness and rally support for the Collegio, Isang Tugon is organized by the Pontifico Collegio Filippino Foundation Inc. “The Collegio is not only home to priests, but serves as an international gateway for Filipino pilgrims, Filipino residents in Italy, and many

other people who find the Filipino culture and the Filipino faith a source of inspiration,” Tagle, who is the chairman of the foundation, said. Proceeds from Isang Tugon will help rebuild and strengthen the Collegio as it continues its mission of fostering the ecclesiastical formation of Filipino priests, benefiting the entire Catholic community. Tagle also said the fund that will be collected will also help “provide scholarships for the priests” and “refresher courses for priests, who have been ordained 10 years ago.” Winston Pecson, director of Pontifico Collegio Filippino Foundation Inc., meanwhile, said that at least P120 million is needed to start with the renovation. “For the scholarships we need P200 million,” Pecson said. For 53 years, the Collegio has

played a significant role in renewing the Philippine Church. Contributions can be made through the branches and online banking facilities of the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), Banco de Oro and Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. (Metrobank). Mobile subscribers can also contribute through their mobile devices. Smart and Sun subscribers can type PCF <space> amount and send to 4438 to remit a maximum of P1,000 per donation. Globe and TM subscribers can dial *143#, choose GCash, select “More” in the menu, choose “Donate” and select Pontificio Collegio Filippino Foundation. Donations through MasterCard and Visa credit cards are also available online. For more information on the Collegio and on details on how you can send your support, visit the Collegio web site at www.pcfroma.org. Isang Tugon is supported by BPI, BDO, Metrobank, Metrobank Card, Smart Communications, Globe Telecom, GMA Network Group, Robinsons Movieworld, Ayala Malls Cinemas, Philippine Daily Inquirer, Malaya Business Insight, the BusinessMirror, the Business World, Investor Relations Global, ADsystems International and First Metro Investment Corp. In January of 1959 the Catholic Hierarchy of the Philippines

approved a resolution authored by the late Rufino Cardinal Santos, then- archbishop of Manila, calling for the establishment of the Pontifical Filipino College. Pope John X XIII instituted the Pontificio Collegio Filippino through an Apostolic Letter, and on October 7, 1961, officiated at its inauguration in Rome. As of June 30, 1995, the Collegio has produced 367 alumni, 28 of whom have already been ordained bishops in the years 1993 and 1994, eight “students” have earned their doctorates, while 16 have obtained their licentiates. In the years 1994 and 1995, three have attained doctorates and seven their licentiates. The PCF is the home of Filipino diocesan priests in Rome who have been sent abroad by their bishops to pursue higher ecclesiastical studies. It is thus a community that provides a special type of ongoing priestly formation that is significantly influenced by a proximity to the Holy Father and the cultural diversity that only Rome provides. The typical composition of the PCF community is something like 40 or more priests, at any given time, enrolled in pontifical universities, institutes and academies in Rome; seven members of a religious congregation, Religiosas Mision-

eras de Santo Domingo attending to food, laundry, bookkeeping, chapel, sacristy and library and five lay personnel assigned to more specific tasks. Heading the group is a rector, a vice rector/oeconomus and a spiritual director. The resident priests are often invited to celebrate the Eucharist in Filipino migrant centers in Rome and its environs during weekends. This offers them a perfect opportunity to minister to Filipino migrant workers, of which there are many in Rome and to initiate the building of Christian communities among them. The Pontificio Collegio Filippino gets its subsidy from board and lodging fees of the residents, and from donations of guests (bishops, priests, or friends passing through Rome). The principal benefactor, however, is the archdiocese of Manila through the late His Eminence, Jaime Cardinal Sin, who has consistently supported the Collegio. Within the last two years the PCF, while doing repairs on the building, has managed to upgrade its electrical system and printing facilities. It has also started to computerize its library, this for easier access to the pontifical libraries and other databanks in Rome. A Filipinana Section housed in the building has also seen much improvement.

Growth. . .

continued from a1

“Now, we have to maintain a good ranking in the competitive index, but then that can all be dampened by the energy crisis, thus, in fact, rear its ugly head in full force,” he said. He said Congress should also help the Executive branch pass the Bangsamoro basic law in the first three months next year to allow the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao to realize its huge potential for economic growth estimated at 6 percent to 8 percent. Growth in the region averaged only 2.7 percent from 2009 to 2013. De Ocampo said the government should also make good on its plan to increase infrastructure spending to attract more foreign direct investments in the Philippines, which he said only amounted to about 44 percent of what Vietnam gets in a year. Finally, he said Congress needs to pass the bill that will set a competitive and equitable tax structure in mining so that more investments in the industry may be forthcoming. “This positive development, if it happens, can drive investments into the mining sector an,d therefore, again add another sector into the GDP that is right now in the doldrums. It is projected that mining has the potential of contributing an additional 2 percent to the country’s GDP and probably they are just talking about the extraction and export type and certainly mining is a basic industry if you want to move toward serious industrial manufacturing,” he added.

Holdings. . .

continued from a1

The partnership will start with two projects having a combined gross area of 22 hectares, covering 39,732 units. These are the 13-hectare Urban Deca Homes along Ortigas Avenue Extension in Pasig that will have 26 buildings and a total of 24,720 residential units. Megawide will build the same type of project on an 8.4-hectare Urban Deca Homes in Vitas Tondo that will have 13 buildings and a total of 15,012 residential units. Both projects will have parks and playgrounds, basketball courts and a fullservice mall, which will feature shopping, dining, recreational and institutional establishments that will cater primarily to residents, estimated to reach 120,000 once completed. “We’re building for high-end projects and now we are building for 8990. This is what we want. We have the capacity to build their projects and we share their vision of building quality mass housing projects,” Michael Cosiquien, Megawide’s CEO, told reporters.

China factory gauge drops as shutdowns add to slowdown Continued from A1

from a preliminary reading. Beijing and five surrounding provinces and municipalities imposed production and construction restrictions in early November to reduce emissions for the Apec summit. “The major drag was the Apec summit last month when the government suspended many industrial and construction activities in northern China,” said Lu Ting, Bank of America Corp.’s head of Greater China economics in Hong Kong. “We expect a rebound this month as those activities resume and after recent government easing measures.” Most components of the official Purchasing Managers Index declined from a month earlier, with small enterprises showing the biggest drop. The People’s Bank of China reduced the one-year lending rate by 0.4 percentage point to 5.6 percent last month, while the one-year deposit rate was lowered by 0.25 percentage point to 2.75 percent. Economists at banks including JPMorgan Chase & Co., Barclays Plc. and UBS Group AG all said the central bank will act again to shore-up demand. To keep 2014 growth at around 7.5 percent, authorities will intensify easing efforts in December, said LiGang Liu, chief economist for Greater China at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. in Hong Kong. “On the monetary policy front, we see that the central bank is likely to add more liquidity into the market and to encourage commercial banks to extend more credits to the real economy,” Liu wrote in a note. Bloomberg News

Fuel prices. . . continued from a1

A police officer scuffles with a protester as they try to disperse them outside government headquarters in Hong Kong on Monday. Pro-democracy protesters clashed with police as they tried to surround Hong Kong government headquarters late Sunday, stepping up their movement for genuine democratic reforms after camping out on the city’s streets for more than two months. AP Photo/Kin Cheung

Hong Kong protesters, police clash; 40 arrested

ro-democracy protesters clashed with police on Monday as they tried to surround Hong Kong government headquarters in an attempt to revitalize their flagging movement for democratic reforms after camping out on the city’s streets for more than two months. Repeating scenes that have become familiar since the movement began in late September, protesters carrying umbrellas—which have become symbols of the pro-democracy movement —battled police armed with pepper spray, batons and riot shields. After student leaders told a big crowd rallying on Sunday evening at the main protest site outside government headquarters that they would escalate their campaign, hundreds of protesters pushed past police lines on the other side of the complex from the protest site. They blocked traffic

on a main road, but were stopped by police barricades from going down a side road to Chief Executive Leung Chun-Ying’s office. The protesters, many wearing surgical masks, hard hats and safety goggles and chanting, “I want true democracy,” said they wanted to occupy the road to prevent Leung and other government officials from getting to work in the morning. At one point, police charged the crowd, aggressively pushing demonstrators back with pepper spray and batons, after some protesters started pelting them with water bottles and other objects. Police later fell back, letting demonstrators re-occupy the road. At dawn, police charged again and cleared the protesters from some areas around the government headquarters. Police Sr. Supt. Tsui Wai-hung said

40 protesters had been arrested, adding that authorities would not let the road, a major thoroughfare, remain blocked. “We will open up this road,” he told reporters. Protesters said they were taking action to force a response from Hong Kong’s government, which has made little effort to address their demands that it scrap a plan by China’s Communist leaders to use a panel of Beijing-friendly elites to screen candidates for Hong Kong’s leader in inaugural 2017 elections. Hundreds remain entrenched in the main downtown protest site, building tents, work tables and other infrastructure, even as energy has diminished on the streets since the first surge of demonstrations in late September. Numbers typically dwindle in the daytime, with many protesters going to work or school before returning in the evenings. Authorities last week used an

aggressive operation to clear out the protest camp on the busy streets of Hong Kong’s crowded Mong Kok district, one of three protest zones around the semiautonomous city. “The action was aimed at paralyzing the government’s operation,” said Alex Chow, secretary general of the Hong Kong Federation of Students. “The government has been stalling...and we believe we need to focus pressure on the government headquarters, the symbol of the government’s power.” The federation is one of two student groups that have played important roles in organizing the protest movement in the former British colony. “I really want to have real elections for Hong Kong because I don’t want the Chinese government to control us, our minds, anything,” said protester Ernie Kwok, 21, a maintenance worker and part-time student. AP

also decline. The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) collects excise taxes from oil importers. An excise tax is imposed on the production, sale or consumption of a commodity in a country. The highest excise tax on petroleum products that is collected by the government is for lead premium gasoline at P5.35 per liter. Excise tax collected from the sale of unleaded premium gasoline is at “Transport fares have to decline soon. Sadly, it would need the approval from government regulators. We should have a system where transport fares adjust automatically with oil price adjustments,” Diokno said. L a s t we e k S o c io e conom ic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said the downward trend in international prices mineral fuels and lubricants presents a “unique opportunity” to acquire future oil contracts. Balisacan said low prices allowed the country to increase its fuel imports by 33 percent, to $1.3 billion in September, from $978.1 million posted in the same month last year. Between January to September 2014, the country’s import of petroleum products grew 6.1 percent, to $10.61 billion in 2014, from $10 billion recorded a year ago. Half of this amount or around $5.1 billion were allocated for petroleum crude imports in the nine months to September. This is 3 percent higher than the $4.95 billion posted in the same period last year.

Traffic woes translate to P6B worth of productivity losses Continued from A8

Through mobile apps and systemwide digital signage, commuters can see when buses arrive, plan the most efficient way to reach their destination and receive real-time updates. In addition to reducing congestion

in the city, the satisfaction rate of public transportation services increased from under 50 percent to over 85 percent. Likewise, in Nice, France, the Connected Boulevard project incorporated a common architecture platform to sup-

port a variety of innovative services in the central district. “Here, Cisco provided the network architecture and context-aware sensors that enabled visitors to central Nice see where parking is available and access real-time information on public

transportation and bike or car-sharing opportunities through a mobile application. As a result, Nice has seen a reduction in traffic congestion by 30 percent and improvement in air quality by 25 percent,” he said. “Cisco is committed to share its ex-

pertise and provide solutions that can make a difference in the way people live and work. Our smart solutions enhance city living as they improve safety, guarantee better commuter experience, and drastically decrease travel time,” Castañeda added.

The Nation BusinessMirror

news@businessmirror.com.ph

No legal basis for clinical trial of anti-dengue drug–Garin By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco Correspondent

CTING Health Secretary Janette Garin on Monday reiterated that the clinical trial of the controversial ActRx TriAct anti-dengue drug has no legal basis. The Department of Health (DOH) suspended the clinical trials after the agency suspended the implementation of the national program studying of the drug for the treatment of dengue on November 14. ActRx TriAct is a herb-based multidrug combination of artemether, artesunate and berberine. Under the supervision of the Philippine Institute for Traditional and Alternative Health Care, the efficacy of this drug combination for dengue treatment was studied through a multicenter, prospective study in six DOH-retained hospitals. The suspension was made to allow the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to evaluate within 15 days the compliance of the study with established scientific and ethical standards, as well as the safety and efficacy of the preparation for dengue treatment. As one of the standing protocols, the evaluation and recommendations by the FDA shall guide the DOH in determining whether to continue or finally terminate this program, Garin said. On November 14 Garin ordered the suspension of the clinical trial. Health Secretary on-leave Enrique Ona approved the clinial trial on September 24. Ona at the time ordered the clinical trial of 2,000 units of ActRx TriAct in at least six government hospitals. ActRx TriAct was first used in a clinical study for malaria treatment in Palawan in

2012, but the DOH said that this study did not comply with the “International Conference on Harmonization Guidelines for Good Clinical Practice.” “The 2012 malaria study lacks strong scientific merit and study participants were not afforded their due protection,” Garin said in a statement read by her spokesman, Lyndon Lee Suy. Luy added that the 2013 dengue clinical study was noted by the Philippine Council for Health Research and Development to have the following deficiencies: Missing baseline characteristics of study participants; Lack of scientific justification for the use of artemether and artesunate for dengue treatment; and Absence of pre-clinical studies on each of the three drugs (berberine, artemether and artesunate) as to which drug has antidengue properties. “Thus, the 2013 dengue study did not comply with the basic steps of a sound scientific research using people as subjects. In addition to all these, to date, ActRx TriAct has not been registered with the FDA whether as a drug or as a food or a supplement.” “Thus, it has no legal basis to be present in the Philippines, especially for clinical trials,” Luy added. In addition, upon further review, it has been found that no other studies on ActRx TriAct have been or are being conducted in other parts of the world. “This is highly irregular and dangerous because in not following and complying with the basic protocol of scientific experiments using human subjects, the researchers are endangering the lives of the Filipino people who were given ActRx TriAct without any accountability and transparency.”

SC set to rule on Pcos case, Palace reconsideration plea on DAP By Joel R. San Juan

The petition was filed by former Assemblyman Homobono Adaza, who also asked the Court to stop Smartmatic from participating in any public bidding for new Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines. The Court will hold its regular en banc session on Tuesday. The justices are expected to tackle several important cases during the session. In his petition, Adaza argued that the appropriation of billions of pesos to procure additional Pcos machines, without first conducting an inventory and technical and forensic tests of the more than 80,000 Pcos machines, constitutes grave abuse of discretion and violates the provisions of the Constitution. “Without making the inventory desired tests, it is absolutely a grave abuse of power

DECEMBER 2, 2014 | TUESDAY

DEC 3

WEDNESDAY

for respondent Comelec to disburse billions of pesos and conduct public bidding for acquisition of voting machines which may not be necessary and will involve wastage of billions of pesos,” he added. Adaza also said the Comelec should exclude Smartmatic from participating in the bidding process for its “glaring” violations of election laws. Aside from the petition against the Comelec bidding of Pcos machines, the Court is also likely to tackle on the motion for reconsideration (MR) filed by Malacañang seeking the reversal of its ruling which declared certain acts and practices under the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) of President Aquino unconstitutional. Earlier, the Court ordered the nine groups of petitioners in the DAP case to comment on the MR filed by the Palace through the Office

DEC 4

THURSDAY

DEC 5

FRIDAY

THURSDAY

DEC 4

DEC 5

24 – 30°C

25 – 31°C

DEC 3

FRIDAY

24 – 31°C

25 – 31°C

25 – 32°C

METRO CEBU

TUGUEGARAO

22 – 30°C

21 –29°C

21 – 29°C

TACLOBAN

24 – 31°C

25 – 31°C

23 – 30°C

CAGAYAN DE ORO

24 – 30°C

25 – 30°C

25 – 31°C

METRO DAVAO

25 – 32°C

25 – 33°C

24 – 31°C

25 – 32°C

(AS OF DECEMBER 1, 5:00 PM)

LAOAG CITY 24 – 31°C

SBMA/CLARK 24 – 30°C TAGAYTAY CITY 22 – 29°C

24 – 31°C

23 – 30°C

BAGUIO

15 – 23°C

14 – 22°C

SBMA/ CLARK

25 – 30°C

25 – 31°C

TUGUEGARAO CITY 22 – 30°C BAGUIO CITY 15 – 23°C

TAGAYTAY

22 – 30°C

14 – 22°C

25 – 31°C

LEGAZPI ILOILO/ BACOLOD 25 – 30°C

TACLOBAN CITY 24 – 31°C

METRO CEBU 24 – 30°C

ZAMBOANGA CITY 24 – 31°C

PUERTO PRINCESA

25 – 30°C

ZAMBOANGA SUNRISE

SUNSET

MOONSET

MOONRISE

6:05 AM

5:25 PM

1:52 AM

2:07 PM

23 – 30°C

LEGAZPI CITY 25 – 30°C

PHILIPPINE AREA OF RESPONSIBILITY (PAR)

WEDNESDAY

METRO MANILA

LAOAG

PUERTO PRINCESA CITY 24 – 30°C

3-DAY EXTENDED FORECAST

NORTHEAST MONSOON AFFECTING NORTHERN LUZON.

eastern portions of the country. It is cold and dry; characterized by widespread cloudiness with rains and showers.

METRO MANILA 24 – 30°C

of the Solicitor General. The SC declared unconstitutional acts and practices under the DAP that violated the constitutional doctrine of separation of powers and the provision prohibiting interbranch transfer of appropriations. In its MR, Malacañang noted that even the Court exercised cross-border transfer of funds, which is among the practices under DAP that it declared illegal. The Palace argued that the DAP, an economic stimulus facility designed to accelerate public spending, should be afforded the presumption of constitutionality and good faith. Apart from the presumption of constitutionality and good faith, the Executive Department wanted the SC to apply other “fundamental norms of constitutional litigation and basic fairness” in resolving the government’s appeal, such as the recognition of institutional competence and the value of bureaucratic practices, the understanding of the constitutional role of the Executive department in managing the economy, the acknowledgment of the constitutional authority of Congress to define savings, the shared role of the political departments in preparing the budget and the constitutionally designed minimal role of the SC on these matters. It added that the use of savings and unused funds that were pooled under the disbursement mechanism was legal and within President Aquino’s authority to augment funds or appropriation under Article VI, Section 25(5) of the Constitution.

HE Supreme Court (SC) is likely to rule today on whether to stop or allow the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to push through with the public bidding for the supply, lease or purchase of new counting machines scheduled on December 4 for the 2016 elections.

3-DAY EXTENDED FORECAST

TODAY’S WEATHER Northeast Monsoon locally known as “Amihan”. It affects the

Editor: Dionisio L. Pelayo • Tuesday, December 2, 2014 A3

24 – 30°C

HALF MOON

FULL MOON

SOUTH HARBOR

DEC 06

NOV 29

6:06 PM

24– 30°C

24 – 30°C

24 – 31°C

LOW TIDE MANILA HIGH TIDE

8:27 PM

12:19 AM

0.08 METER

7:21 PM

0.76 METER

Partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rain showers and/or thunderstorms Cloudy skies with rain showers and/or thunderstorms.

ILOILO/ BACOLOD CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY 24 – 30°C METRO DAVAO 24 – 32°C

25 – 30°C

25 – 31°C

Light rains

Watch PANAHON.TV everyday at 5:00 AM on PTV (Channel 4). Weekday hourly updates: 6:00 AM on Balitaan, 7:00 AM & 8:00 AM on Good Morning Boss!, 9:00 AM, 10:00 AM, 11:00 AM, 12:00 PM, 1:00 PM on News@1, 3:00 PM, 4:30 PM, and 6:00 PM on News@6

www.panahon.tv

SABAH CELEBES SEA

@PanahonTV

Economy

A4 Tuesday, December 2, 2014 • Editors: Vittorio V. Vitug and Max V. de Leon

briefs tesda’s star program launched in mandaluyong city

THE Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda), CocaCola Philippines Inc. and the local government of Mandaluyong City have inked a memorandum of agreement to hone the entrepreneurship of women in the city. Tesda Secretary Joel Villanueva said that the skills training will be under the Sari-Sari Store Training and Access to Resources or Star Program, which targets to provide economic empowerment to 200,000 women traditional retailer store owners, operators and carinderia owners by 2020. This gender-sensitive entrepreneurship program in the country is part of Coca-Cola Co.’s global initiative to economically empower 5 million women by the year 2020, dubbed globally as the 5by20 program. “Part of scaling nationally is embedding the Star Program to the local government units,” Villanueva, Tesda director general, said. “Mandaluyong is among Tesda’s active partners in promoting technicalvocational education, and we are glad that along with Coca-Cola, another endeavor is in the works that will improve the condition of our women,” Villanueva said. With Coca-Cola Philippines and Tesda as the national level partners, the local partnerships were forged with local government agencies, civil-society groups, nongovernmental organizations and microfinance institutions. “At Coca-Cola, we recognize the significant role of women as potential engines of economic and social development of a community. Together with equally passionate program partners, we are providing that enabling environment to womanmicroentrepreneurs through the Star Program,” said Adel Tamano, Coca-Cola Philippines vice president for public affairs and communications. Economic empowerment of woman-owners of sari-sari store and carinderia is the main goal of the program by giving women businessand life-skills trainings; access to financing and assets; and access to peer mentoring support. Apart from gender-sensitive entrepreneurship training, another important component of the Star Program is the provision of access to business resources. For the whole of Metro Manila, the Star Program is in partnership with ASA Philippines Foundation, which is providing the opportunity for women to apply for the much-needed additional business capital so they can grow their sari-sari stores and carinderia. PNA

picpa eyes to establish tax, accounting clinics in barangays The Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants (Picpa) will establish tax and accounting clinics in different barangays nationwide to help the business operations of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), an official said. Picpa National President Tita Caluya said these projects will strengthen Picpa’s contribution to the country’s economic growth. Caluya said the organization will also implement projects to help the country attain its economic goals. He said the organization will also conduct accounting and tax workshops with barangay officials, including the captains, treasurers and bookkeepers. Caluya also announced the development of membership community portal system to optimize the processing of membership renewals and expand membership of the organization, among other services. Picpa held its three-day 69th Annual National Convention at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino starting Thursday last week. Caluya said the more than 3,000 delegates who attended the convention will also initiate a project together with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to help the blind identify money through Braille. PNA

BusinessMirror

news@businessmirror.com.ph

WWF sees P1-billion investment in Palawan, Mindoro RE projects

By Genevie Factao

he World Wide Fund for Nature Philippines (WWF-Philippines) is eyeing investments amounting to at least P1 billion for energy projects in Palawan and Mindoro.

Chris Ng of the WWF-Philippines, said the group campaigned for a major shift of investments in the energy sector by increasing investments in renewable-energy (RE) generation and phasing out financing for power plants using fossil fuels for low-carbon growth. “We have identified potential projects in Palawan—the 120-megawatt [MW] hydroelectric plant and 40-MW biomass plant. All in all, the costs of energy projects in Palawan would be around P1 billion,” Ng told the BusinessMirror. He added that there are other projects being eyed in Mindoro, among which are geothermal and

hydropower plants. The WWF-Philippines has entered into small island grid local alliances in Palawan and Mindoro. The WWF-Philippines has convened key interest groups for formalization into multistakeholder small island grid power-development planning groups composed of local civilsociety organizations, government and academe for inclusive, locally responsive, long-term, affordable, sustainable power solutions that maximize indigenous renewable resources in aid of local and national development objectives. Those groups will take a workshop series on various energy-plan-

ning aspects, such as demand-side load curve forecasting, technology screening curve, resource assessment of RE, technical report writing, to empower them to technically and financially assess proposals by power-development proponents. The WWF-Philippine and Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) Foundation have completed Business Risk Assessment and the Management of Climate Impacts, a four-year, 16-city study to prepare the largest Philippine cities for escalating climatechange effects. Initiated in 2011, the study’s first phase covered the cities of Baguio, Cebu, Davao and Iloilo. Its second assessed Cagayan de Oro, Dagupan, Laoag and Zamboanga. The cities of Angeles, Batangas, Naga and Tacloban were evaluated in 2013. For 2014 Butuan, General Santos, Puerto Princesa and Santiago were covered. The WWF-Philippine and BPI believe that lifelines such as seaports and airports must be “climateproofed” to minimize climate vulnerabilities and maximize business opportunities.

Puerto Princesa is the gateway for all of Palawan’s attractions. However, most of its development is concentrated on its eastern seaboard, where storms blow. One of the recommendations is to diffuse risk and spread opportunity to the western coastline. The future of Butuan City is inextricably linked to the future of the Agusan River. Santiago City links the vast rice and corn farms of Isabela with the markets in southern Luzon. There is a need to manage water resources in the area—too little or too much water erodes agricultural productivity. BPI Foundation encouraged local leaders and business groups to make use of the study to bolster economic competitiveness and provide social safety nets in gearing up for the impacts of climate change. “We can climate-proof our cities if we act decisively. By gearing up for climate change, we can protect businesses and save lives,” said BPI Senior Vice President and BPI Foundation Executive Director Faye Corcuera.

DBM files P22-B supplemental-budget proposal By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

HE Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has recently submitted to the House of Representatives the P22-billion supplemental budget, which is P1.3 billion lower than the P23.34 billion originally reported. House Majority Leader and Liberal Party (LP) Rep. Neptali “Boyet” Gonzales II of Mandaluyong City said that the decrease in the supplemental budget is due to the DBM’s removal of the proposed budget for the country’s preparations for the 2015 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit. “It [supplemental budget] was submitted to the House Committee on Appropriations, but lower by P1.3 billion after the additional budget for Apec was removed. Perhaps they [DBM officials could] find other sources for that purpose,” Gonzales said. The DBM had already included in the 2015’s P2.606-trillion General Appropriations bill, the P3.3 billion for the Apec Summit preparations. Gonzales said that the lower chamber will pass the P22-billion supplemental budget before the year ends to continue all the projects halted by the abolition of the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) and the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP). The supplemental budget will also fund infrastructure projects for postYolanda rehabilitation. Earlier, House Senior Deputy Minority Leader and Party-list Rep. Neri Colmenares of Bayan Muna criticized the supplemental budget proposal, fearing it may just be used for the campaign of administration politicians in the 2016 elections. Colmenares questioned such items as the P423-billion fund for the Department of Interior and Local Government, the P8-billion contingent fund for the Bangsamoro, and the P3.281 billion for the country’s hosting of the Apec Summit in 2015. LP Rep. Isidro Ungab of Davao, chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, said that the lower chamber will immediately act on the passage of the supplemental budget after the approval of the 2015 national budget in the bicameral conference committee. “We already received the proposed supplemental budget and we will immediately act on it after we finish the bicameral conference committee for the 2015 budget,” he said. “It [supplemental budget bill] will be filed anytime this week. We have not studied the details yet since the committee is focusing on and prioritizing the GAA [General Appropriations Act] for 2015,” he added. The proposed P22-billion supple-

Infra upgrade project A team of construction workers rush the completion of a drainage upgrading project along the Elliptical Road in Quezon City as part of the city administration’s infrastructure rehabilitation project. Nonoy Lacza

mental budget will be allocated for previously approved projects, but were stopped due to Supreme Court (SC) rulings against the PDAF and DAP. The DBM said parts of the budget will go for the infrastructure projects of the Department of Public Works and Highways. According to Budget Secretary Florencio B. Abad, “The funds will account for the budgetary requirements of priority projects that were partially implemented or previously approved for implementation this year.” “Most of these projects have already been completed, are ongoing, or are urgently needed to sustain our socioeconomic development. The passage of the proposed supplemental budget will allow us to allocate funds accordingly so we can complete these projects right away,” Abad added.

2015 bicam hearing

Ungab, meanwhile, said that several House members will meet their Senate counterparts on Tuesday or Wednesday for the bicameral conference committee to reconcile their different versions of the proposed P2.606-trillion national budget. The lower chamber approved the P2.606-trillion proposed national budget for 2015 on October 29, while the Senate approved next year’s budget on November 26.

“Bicam hearings will depend on how fast the Senate and House panels can reconcile the conflicting items in the budget,” Ungab said. Congress will take a one-month break from December 20, 2014 to January 18, 2015. Moreover, Gonzales said Congress should approve the 2015 budget before its Christmas break. According to Gonzales, members of the bicameral committee in the lower house are Ungab, and appropriations committee vice chairmen LP Rep. Joaquin Carlos Rahman Nava of Guimaras, Lakas Rep. Rolando Andaya of Camarines Sur, LP Rep. Eric Singson of Ilocos Sur, LP Rep. Dakila Carlo Cua of Quirino, Lakas Rep. Thelma Almario of Davao, Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) Rep. Zenaida Angping of Manila, LP Rep. Miro Quimbo of Marikina, Nacionalista Party Rep. Eleandro Jesus F. Madrona of Romblon and Lakas Rep. Magtanggol Gunigundo of Valenzuela City; and for the minority, Party-list Rep. Carol Jayne Lopez of Yacap and NPC Rep. Rodolfo Albano III of Isabela. The 2015 budget is 15.1 percent higher from the current year’s P2.265trillion budget, representing 18.4 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and reflecting the jump in the administration’s growth assumption of 7.0 percent to 8.0 percent for 2015. Per sectoral allocation, social services continue to take the lion’s share

of the proposed 2015 budget, attesting to the administration’s continuing pursuit of its antipoverty goals. Social protection and welfare services—which include the provision of basic education and universal health care—account for 37.1 percent of the proposed expenditure program, with P967.9 billion now devoted to the sector. The social services budget is 15 percent higher than the P841.8 billion that currently supports social services under the 2014 national budget, and will allow the Administration to strengthen its K to 12 Program, as well as the Universal Health and Conditional Cash Transfer programs. Meanwhile, economic services are still a major mover in the President’s inclusive growth campaign, with the 2015 proposed budget directing P700.2 billion toward this sector. This comprises 4.9 percent of the country’s GDP and accounts for 27 percent of the expenditure program for the next fiscal year. At least P339.4 billion in funds will go toward various infrastructure programs, including the construction of national roads and integrated transport systems nationwide. Meanwhile, of all the government agencies, the Department of Education (DepED) will get the lion’s share of the 2015 budget with the DepEd’s proposed P364.95 billion budget for next year.

Marginalized sectors benefit most from ‘sin’ tax collection

illions from the marginalized sectors of society, such as senior citizens, persons with disabilities, informal workers and urban poor families, are now covered under the government’s universal health care as a result of the amended “sin” tax law approved in 2012. New Vois Association of the Philippines (NVAP) President and Global Cancer Ambassador Emer Rojas said millions of Filipinos from various sectors of society can now enjoy the benefits of free health-care services as they receive coverage under the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth). Rojas is also the Persons with Disabilities sector representative at the National Anti-Poverty Commission. Rojas noted the country’s more than 6 million senior citizens are the current beneficiaries of the sin tax after President Aquino signed into law Republic Act 10645, which now makes Filipinos aged 60 and above become automatic members of PhilHealth. “The gains we are now reaping in terms of providing insurance coverage for more Filipinos in such a short period of time proved what we have been saying all these years: that having a sin-tax law is a winwin solution. By taxing tobacco we are increasing financing for health care and, at the same time, we are discouraging smoking because prices of cigarettes will automatically go up,” said Rojas in a news statement. Under the law, all senior citizens, whether indigent or not, will now be covered by PhilHealth through government subsidy. As of December last year, PhilHealth has 31.27 million registered members and 45.63 million dependents or a total of 76.9 million Filipinos with government health insurance. It is expected to cover 90 percent of the population by the end of 2014. “The sin tax radically increased the budget for health financing. In the 2014 budget of the Department of Health [DOH], PhilHealth has received P35.7 billion to enroll 14.7 million Filipinos who belong to the poorest of the poor,” Rojas said. When President Aquino took office in 2010, the DOH budget was about P25 billion. A year after the sin-tax law was implemented, it more than doubled to P53 billion. This year the DOH’s budget is almost P90 billion. Aside from senior citizens, Rojas said the sin tax also paved the way for improving PhilHealth’s benefit package for persons with disabilities and increased enrollment of millions of indigent families through the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program. “We always say that health is a right but it becomes a privilege when only a few has the means to pay for hospital treatment. With universal health coverage now becoming accessible to more Filipinos, medical services are now within reach by anyone, thanks to sin-tax revenues,” Rojas said. Signed into law in December 2012, the sin tax is considered as a landmark legislation after 30 years of intense battle between health advocates and the powerful tobacco industry that often involved intense lobbying by the latter in the legislature. High tobacco taxes and graphic health warnings are considered as the best tandem to discourage people against smoking and increase healthcare financing. In July this year the Philippine government passed the graphic health-warning law ordering cigarette companies to place actual images of diseases attributed to smoking, including the dreaded cancer. PNA with Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

Economy BusinessMirror

news@businessmirror.com.ph

Tuesday, December 2, 2014 A5

Abad confident of early Congress passage of 2015 budget bill briefs By Estrella Torres

espite concerns on the redefinition of the term “savings” on the budget book and the embedded lump sums in the allocation of various government agencies, Budget Secretary Florencio B. Abad is confident on the early passage of the P2.606-trillion proposed budget. He stressed the Aquino administration welcomes the passage last week of the Senate version of the proposed P2.606-trillion national budget for 2015 and hopes that the bicameral conference committee will pass the General Appropriations Act of 2015 before the year ends. The budget chief also lauded leaders of both the lower and upper chambers in the “swift and appropriate action on the administration’s budget proposal.” “The DBM has emphasized the importance of passing the budget law on time. After all, the prompt release of funds will allow our agencies to spring to action as soon as the next fiscal year begins,” Abad said. He added that the prompt passage of the budget will respond to the preprocurement of government activities conducted by departments and agencies since August 1 this year. The pre-procurement measure, along with the new regime of the General Appropriations Act-as-ReleaseDocument, means that the early passage of the budget will kick-start the fast, high-quality and cost-effective implementation of the 2015 budget. Such measure “will then translate to the more efficient delivery of public goods and social services to the people, without compromising quality or raising costs.” “We mustn’t forget what an essential role the 2015 budget plays in our campaign for rapid, sustained and inclusive growth in the country,” Abad said. The proposed budget for 2015 comprises an allocation of 37 percent on social services and 27 percent of the total program already

‘Substantial amendments’

The bicameral conference committee meeting for the disagreeing provisions of the proposed P2.606trillion national budget for 2015 has been set for Wednesday, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Francis Escudero said on Monday. Escudero, in his media advisory, said the bicam meeting would be held at the Andaya Hall in the House of Representatives beginning 9:30 a.m. The Senate passed on third and final reading the proposed national budget last week with “substantial amendments” introduced by the upper chamber of Congress. Meanwhile, the Senate approved on Monday the appointment of Escudero and six other senators, including two from minority bloc, as the Senate representatives to the bicam panel. Aside from Escudero, the other senators appointed as representatives to the bicam included Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto, Sergio Osmeña III, Loren Legarda and Teofisto Guingona III from majority group, and acting minority leader Vicente Sotto III and minority member Joseph Victor Ejercito. Based on its approved version, the Senate realigned a total of P96.58billion from programmed and unprogrammed appropriations within and between agencies. The Senate’s realigned fund is far higher compared to the House of Representatives’ P19 billion realignments. Escudero also said the Senate redefined the savings in accordance with the Supreme Court rulings on the Disbursement Acceleration Fund and Priority Development Assistance Fund. Escudero hopes that both the Senate and the House will ratify bicamapproved version and submit it to Malacañang before Congress takes Christmas break on December 17. With PNA

DOE sets award of coal contracts under PECR 5 to winning bidders By Lenie Lectura

HE Department of Energy (DOE) is set to award coal contracts to the winning bidders of this year’s Philippine Energy Contracting Round 5 (PECR 5). “As far as the coal [contracts are] concerned, I think I’m about to sign the winning bidders,” Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho L. Petilla said. PECR aims to showcase the exploration of potential coal and petroleum areas in the country. The Department of Energ y (DOE) was earlier evaluating the technical and financial aspects of the eight bidders. According to the DOE, the PECR 5 offered 11 blocks covering a total area of 47,840 square kilometers (sq m). The blocks are mainly in frontier regions and cover an average size of 4,350 sq km per block, with the largest covering 5,760 sq km in the East Palawan region. The PECR5 also offers 11 areas for petroleum exploration, mostly in Luzon. These include Area 1 in Southeast Luzon; areas 2 and 3 in Masbate-Iloilo; areas 4 and 5 in Northeast Palawan; Area 6 in Southeast Palawan; 7 in West Palawan; areas 8 to 11 in West Luzon. “For petroleum, the deadline was supposedly on March 31,2015. Bur we’re looking at extending it by about two months. This is to give everybody a chance to come up with own data packs,” Petilla said. To date, there are already six companies that secured bid documents, Petilla added. “They’re very upbeat about the Philippines, not only because we have abundant resources,

sss open on weekends for ‘kasambahay’ registration

channeled to economic services.

but also because the fiscal policies here are advantageous.” The deadline for the submission of petroleum-contract applications is end-May of next year. Petilla earlier said ExxonMobil Corp. and the Turkish Petroleum International Co. (TPIC) could be interested to explore and possibly invest in the country’s rich-petroleum areas. The DOE has recently concluded two PECR roadshows in Australia and Turkey. The PECR 5 delegation, headed by DOE Officer in Charge Undersecretary Zenaida Monsada joined the more than 200 exhibitors in the conference and exhibitions hosted by the Resource Information Unit (RIU) Good Oil Conference in Perth, Australia and the AAPG International Conference and Exhibition in Istanbul, Turkey. “This is an opportunity for the country to present to the international community its potentials in energy development and exploration. Hopefully, through exhibitions, we can find prospective developers that can be our partner in achieving energy security in the nation and essentially convert interests to bids,” Monsada said. The RIU Good Oil Conference brought interests among companies through the country’s fiscal policies that create traction and interest among international investors. During the exhibitions, the delegation promoted this licensure round’s 11 petroleum blocks on offer with the largest located east of Palawan Island and covers 576,000 hectares.

Carry-all cart A colorful horse-drawn cart, loaded to the brim with handicrafts and small household furniture, still roam around the back roads of Pangasinan to continue an age-old tradition of retail merchandise. Mau Victa

House plenary debates on emergency powers expected to start on Tuesday

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

he House of Representatives is expected to start on Tuesday its deliberations on the grant of emergency powers to President Aquino to address the projected power shortfall next year. House Majority Leader and Liberal Party (LP) Rep. Neptali “Boyet” Gonzales II of Mandaluyong City said the committee report on the House Joint Resolution 21 will be presented in the plenary by Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and LP Rep. Reynaldo Umali of Oriental Mindoro. “We already included the joint resolution in our [Tuesday] Order of Business,” he said. “The plenary debates on the joint resolution will begin tomorrow [Tuesday]. Congressman Umali, who was hospitalized recently will sponsor the measure,” Gonzales said. He added that the joint resolution will no longer be discussed in the House committee on appropriations, saying an amendment to cover the budgetary requirement will be done in the plenary. “The budgetary component will be introduced in the plenary, which is allowed by our rules,” he said. Energy Secretary Jericho L. Petilla has said the government will spend an estimated P450 million to sustain the Interruptible Load Program (ILP) in the summer months of next year. Earlier, the majority leader said President Aquino is ready to certify as urgent the House Joint Resolution 21 to expedite the passage of the resolution in the lower chamber.

On September 12 President Aquino, requested Congress for authority to establish additional power-generating capacity to ensure the energy requirements of the country during periods of very tight energy supply as a strategic response to the need for specific, focused and targeted acquisition of additional energy capacities to meet the imminent power shortage in the Luzon grid due to the Malampaya turnaround, increased levels of forced outages of power plants and delays in the commissioning of committed power projects. Pursuant to Section 71 of Republic Act (RA) 9136, also known as the “Electric Power Industry Reform Act [Epira],” the Congress may, upon the determination by the President of an imminent shortage of the supply of electricity, authorize the President, through a joint resolution, to provide for the establishment of additional generating capacity. The House Committee on Energy approved the joint resolution that would mainly use the Interruptible Load Program (ILP) scheme in generating additional power capacity. Besides the ILP, the resolution said additional generating capacity shall be sourced from the fast-tracking of new committed projects; plants for interconnection and rehabilitation; and adoption and execution of

energy-efficiency and conservation measures shall be pursued vigorously in both public and private sectors. “In the course of congressional hearings conducted, it was revealed that, in Week 14 [April] of 2015, a maximum projected shortfall of 1,004 megawatts [MW] of which 600 MW is needed to meet the required dispatchable reserve, and 404 MW is needed to meet the required contingency reserve. Corollary, a total of four weeks of yellow alert is projected for the critical period,” the resolution said. The resolution was principally authored by Umali, House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. and Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales II. According to the resolution the authority granted to the President shall be valid from the effectivity of the Joint Resolution from March 1, 2015, to July 31, 2015, to cover additional generating capacity required for the period of the critical power shortage, unless sooner withdrawn by the President upon the recommendation of the Joint Congressional Power Commission. Based on established protocols, ILP is implemented during a red-alert status (minimal power reserve) upon the notice of the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines and the distribution utilities informing ILP participants to deload from the grid. The ILP is a voluntary program where businesses such as malls and factories that have their own generators can be disconnected from the power grid in times of short supply, and can sell any excess power they generate to distributors. Through the ILP, the aggregate demand for power from the system will be reduced to a more manageable level, helping ensure the availability of supply during the summer season.

7 oil firms roll back diesel pump price

even oil companies will rollback prices of their diesel product on Tuesday. Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. (PSPC), Phoenix Petroleum Philippines, Eastern Petroleum, Petron Corp., Seaoil, Chevron Philippines Inc. (CPI) and PTT Philippines will cut diesel prices by P0.50. Shell, Eastern Petroleum, Petron, Seaoil, CPI and PTT Philippines will reduce rates at 12:01 a.m., while Phoenix Petroleum will decrease prices at 6 a.m. Moreover, PSPC, Petron Corp. and CPI said they will reduce prices

of kerosene products by P0.75 per liter, while citing no change on their gas products. On the other hand, Eastern Petroleum said it will lower its LPG price by P11 on its 11-kilogram cylinder. Energy Undersecretary Zenaida Monsada said diesel prices have decreased by P15.08 for the last 11 months. Also, she has hinted that gasoline prices might increase due to its increasing trend in the global markets. Monsada explained that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries decision to global trading

would affect the Philippine market, as the local prices of fuel products are projected to move in sync with international trends due to the country’s huge reliance on imported fuel. “What happened in the early part last week, traders were expecting an agreement to cut production because the price of oil is low. So, the price was high in the beginning of the week and then as the indications toward the consensus for no supply cut, the prices decreased.... The current indications are, it will further decrease because there is no reason for it to increase,” Monsada said. PNA

The Social Security System (SSS) is inviting all household employers and domestic workers to take advantage of the special schedule for SSS, PhilHealth and Pag-IBIG registration on all weekends in select SM malls. According to SSS, the weekend schedule will help facilitate the SSS, PhilHealth and PagIBIG registration of household employers and their kasambahay in compliance with Republic Act 10361, or better known as the “Kasambahay Law.” The kasambahay registrations opens on weekends at SM Center Molino, SM City Rosales and SM City Santa Mesa on December 6 and 7; SM City Lucena and SM City Bacoor (December 13 and 14). The SSS is leading the implementation of the Kasambahay Law, which mandates social-security protection of domestic workers. With SSS membership, they will have access to benefits for sickness, maternity, disability, retirement and death, and various SSS loan privileges. PNA

mmda to open ‘christmas loops’ leading to naia The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) will implement the use of “Christmas loops” leading to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) to ease traffic congestion this holiday season as soon as the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) completes its road repairs in Metro Manila. MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino said heavy traffic is expected this holiday season at roads going to the airport due to the construction of the Naia elevated expressway. Tolentino said the agency is expecting thousands of people to go to the airport this season since most of them will fly to the provinces. The P15.52-billion Naia Expressway Phase 2 project, from Sales Road in Pasay City to Macapagal Avenue in Parañaque City, covers a 7.75 kilometer, four-lane elevated expressway and a 2.22-kilometer feeder road that will provide easier access to terminals 1, 2 and 3 and link the airport to the Skyway and the Manila-Cavite Toll Expressway. Neomie Recio, MMDA traffic engineering head, said the designated alternate routes under the “Christmas loops” are as follows: Motorists coming from Makati going to terminals 1 and 2 must avoid Andrews Avenue because of heavy traffic. Instead, they have to use the Skyway (South Luzon Expressway), then transverse the Sucat Road (Doña Soledad) going to Naia terminals 1 and 2; motorists also have the option to take Armstrong, then Kaingin Road. For those going to SM MOA (Mall of Asia), motorists must take the Kabihasnan Road, exit at Coastal Road, then take a left turn to Pacific Avenue, straight to Macapagal Avenue. Recio said these routes were previously used during the All Souls’ Day for motorists to avoid traffic and flight delays. PNA

pasay city marks 151st foundation day Classes in all levels are suspended on Tuesday in Pasay City in celebration of the city’s 151st founding anniversary. December 2 has been declared as a special nonworking day in the city through Proclamation 911 issued by President Aquino, which was signed by Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa Jr. on November 13. The declaration gives the people of the City of Pasay the full opportunity to celebrate and participate in the said occasion. The city known as “The Premier Gateway to the Philippines,” quickly became an urban town during the American occupation on December 2, 1863. PNA

Opinion BusinessMirror

A6 Tuesday, December 2, 2014

Editor: Alvin I. Dacanay

editorial

Time for the oil depot in Pandacan to move

HE Pandacan oil depot in the city of Manila is the primary storage facility and distribution terminal of the three major petroleum companies in the country: Caltex Philippines, Petron Corp. and Shell Philippines. The 33-hectare compound is surrounded by tens of thousands of people, their homes and their businesses.

The oil depot was first established by the Shell Oil Co. 100 years ago, when Pandacan was a major industrial zone. The first “modern” Filipino manufacturing plant, the Compañia General de Tabacos de Filipinas, was built in that district in 1882. As expected, those who worked at the industrial estate also lived there. But over time, all manufacturing activities moved to other locations, and Pandacan became a residential and commercial area, bridging Makati City and Manila. The oil depot remains to be a major employer in the area. During his second term as mayor of Manila, Jose L. Atienza Jr. led the effort to have the oil depot removed from Pandacan and the area converted into a commercial zone. The oil depot has been controversial for some time, because of several incidents that endangered properties and the people in the area. In 1997 two Shell oil tankers exploded inside the oil-depot complex. Environmental mishaps have occurred several times. Concerns about the health of the residents have been raised by studies from the College of Medicine of the University of the Philippines Manila. Furthermore, the oil depot does not conform to international standards for the location of a facility, since it is within a populated area. After several years of litigation, the Supreme Court has now ordered the Manila city government to oversee the relocation of the oil depot within six months. It’s about time. After 100 years of massive growth around the oil depot, the facility is too dangerous to remain in Pandacan. Unfortunately, it would appear that anti-relocation scare tactics have already surfaced from someone who should be more concerned about protecting the public interest. Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho L. Petilla said the transfer of the oil depot could lead to higher fuel prices, due to increased transportation and delivery costs. That may be true in the short term, but the long-term advantages offered to the area and, in fact, the oil companies, far outweigh the few centavos added to the price of fuel, if ever. Even Petron Chairman and CEO Ramon S. Ang said in May the company had already built other depots in Navotas City, Rosario town in Cavite province, and Limay town in Bataan province. Using that large parcel of land as an oil depot in a heavily populated urban area is nothing but a misallocation of resources. It is time for the Pandacan oil depot to move.

BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business Ambassador Antonio L. Cabangon Chua Founder Publisher Editor in Chief

T. Anthony C. Cabangon Jun B. Vallecera

Associate Editor News Editor City & Assignments Editor Special Projects Editor

Jennifer A. Ng Dionisio L. Pelayo Vittorio V. Vitug Max V. de Leon

Online Editor

Ruben M. Cruz Jr.

Research Bureau Head Creative Director Chief Photographer Editorial Consultant Chairman of the Board & Ombudsman President VP-Finance VP-Corporate Affairs VP Advertising Sales Advertising Sales Manager Circulation Manager

Dennis D. Estopace Eduardo A. Davad Nonilon G. Reyes Romeo M. del Castillo Judge Pedro T. Santiago (Ret.) Benjamin V. Ramos Adebelo D. Gasmin Frederick M. Alegre Marvin Nisperos Estigoy Aldwin Maralit Tolosa Rolando M. Manangan

An invitation to the nation’s tycoons and CEOs Manny B. Villar

THE Entrepreneur Conclusion

Two-pronged approach to recovery

AST week’s column was focused on “Bangon Camella”, which I initiated to help homebuyers in Camella Homes’ projects in Leyte province (Camella Leyte Phases 1 and 2, Camella Ormoc and Camella Palo), whose houses were damaged by Supertyphoon Yolanda (international code name Haiyan) last November.

I sent about 300 masons, carpenters and other workers from Manila, Cebu City in Cebu province, Davao City, Cagayan de Oro City in Misamis Oriental province and Bacolod City in Negros Occidental province, who, together with Camella’s workers in Leyte, replaced or repaired the roofs that were blown away by the super typhoon. They also undertook other home repairs, cleaned up debris and engaged in other rehabilitation activities. These activities, which were undertaken through Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc., were one part of my two-pronged approach to the recovery of the areas devastated by Yolanda. The other part was undertaken by the Villar Foundation, and continues to do so. The foundation, which my family established in 1995, has since expanded and diversified its advocacies

www.businessmirror.com.ph

REGIONAL OFFICES n DXQR - 93dot5 HOME RADIO CAGAYAN DE ORO STATION MANAGER: JENNIFER B. YTING E-MAIL ADDRESS: homecdo@yahoo.com ADDRESS: Archbishop Hayes corner Velez Street, Cagayan de Oro City CONTACT NOs.: (088) 227-2104/ 857-9350/ 0922-811-3997 n DYQC - 106dot7 HOME RADIO CEBU STATION MANAGER: JULIUS A. MANAHAN E-MAIL ADDRESS: homecebu@yahoo.com ADDRESS: Ground Floor, Fortune Life Building, Jones Avenue, Cebu City CONTACT NOs.: (032) 253-2973/ 234-4252/ 416-1067/ 0922-811-3994 n DWQT - 89dot3 HOME RADIO DAGUPAN STATION MANAGER: RAMIR C. DE GUZMAN E-MAIL ADDRESS: homeradiodagupan@ yahoo.com ADDRESS: 4th Floor, Orchids Hotel Building, Rizal Street, Dagupan City

CONTACT NOs.: (075) 522-8209/ 515-4663/ 0922-811-4001 n DXQM – 98dot7 HOME RADIO DAVAO STATION MANAGER: RYAN C. RODRIGUEZ E-MAIL ADDRESS: home98dot7@gmail.com ADDRESS: 4D 3rd Floor, ATU Plaza, Duterte Street, Davao City CONTACT NOs.: (082) 222-2337/ 221-7537/ 0922-811-3996 n DXQS - 98dot3 HOME RADIO GENERAL SANTOS STATION MANAGER: AILYM C. MATANGUIHAN E-MAIL ADDRESS: homegensan@yahoo.com ADDRESS: Ground Floor, Dimalanta Building, Pioneer Avenue, General Santos City CONTACT NOs.: (083) 301-2769/ 553-6137/ 0922-811-3998 n DYQN - 89dot5 HOME RADIO ILOILO STATION MANAGER: MARIPAZ U. SONG E-MAIL ADDRESS: homeiloilo@yahoo.com ADDRESS: 3rd Floor, Eternal Plans Building,

Ortiz Street, Iloilo City CONTACT NOs.: (033) 337-2698/ 508-8102/ 0922-811-3995 n DWQA - 92dot3 HOME RADIO LEGAZPI STATION MANAGER: CLETO PIO D. ABOGADO E-MAIL ADDRESS: homeradiolegazpi@ yahoo.com ADDRESS: 4th Floor, Fortune Building, Rizal St., Brgy. Pigcale, Legazpi City CONTACT NOs.: (052) 480-4858/ 820-6880/ 0922-811-3992 n DWQJ - 95dot1 HOME RADIO NAGA STATION MANAGER: JUSTO MANUEL P. VILLANTE JR. EMAIL ADDRESS: homenaga@yahoo.com ADDRESS: Eternal Garden Compound, Balatas Road, Naga City CONTACT NOs.: (054) 473-3818/ 811-2951/ 0922-811-3993

Printed by BROWN MADONNA Press, Inc.–San Valley Drive KM-15, South Superhighway, Parañaque, Metro Manila

million for the initiatives in response to Yolanda. Last December I decided to celebrate my birthday in a more meaningful way by donating another P8 million for the victims’ recovery from the super storm. We have to accept that other calamities, especially destructive typhoons that result from climate change, will come our way. We’re not just on the Pacific Rim of Fire, which exposes us to dangerous volcanic eruptions and earthquakes; we’re also on the so-called typhoon belt of the Pacific. Faced with these huge threats, readiness is the top priority. Coping with disasters and their aftermath will require the participation of all sectors of society. In the wake of Yolanda we saw governments and private organizations working together to help the victims and restore normalcy. When the next typhoon comes, however, I hope the business sector will contribute more, not in terms of distributing emergency relief goods, which, while necessary and commendable, is only for short-term relief. We still see many of the Yolanda survivors trying to rebuild their lives more than a year after the disaster claimed more than 6,000 of their loved ones. As I noted in previous columns, big business could make the rebuilding process for the survivors easier and faster by keeping their shops and offices open, and investing in new projects in the disaster areas. For comments, send an e-mail to mbv.secretariat@gmail.com or visit www.mannyvillar.com.ph.

The West Philippine Sea: Oil just got real John Mangun

BusinessMirror is published daily by the Philippine Business Daily Mirror Publishing, Inc., with offices on the 3rd floor of Dominga Building III, 2113 Chino Roces Avenue corner De La Rosa Street, Makati City, Philippines. Tel. Nos. (Editorial) 817-9467; 813-0725. Fax line: 813-7025. (Advertising Sales) 893-2019; 817-1351, 817-2807. (Circulation) 893-1662; 814-0134 to 36. E-mail: news@businessmirror.com.ph.

to reach more people and sectors of our society. These include the poor and underprivileged; overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and their families; young people; women; the Church; and the environment. Ongoing projects of the foundation include nutrition caravans (regular feeding programs for schoolchildren); medical and dental missions; river rehabilitation; the construction of churches; the repatriation of distressed OFWs; and livelihood and entrepreneurship. At the same time, as Vista Land was attending to the needs of the Camella Homes communities, the Villar Foundation was conducting relief and assistance activities in many areas hit by the super storm, which affected more than 4 million people. The foundation launched these activities right after

Yolanda struck. The cancellation of flights to Tacloban City made the delivery of much-needed relief goods— like food, water and medicine—from Manila impossible, so I mobilized the staff of Camella Homes in Cebu to send relief goods to the city, which was the hardest-hit area. In addition to the relief goods, we distributed galvanized iron (GI) sheets and nails to the municipalities hit by Yolanda. I felt that the most immediate thing at that time was roofing, because the super typhoon blew away most of the roofs, preventing people from going back to their homes. The best thing to do was to distribute roofing materials that homeowners could install on their own, so that they could go back to their homes as a first step to recovery. We distributed the roofing materials to as far as Panay and Samar islands. Based on the Villar Foundation’s records, GI sheets and nails were distributed to 100 families in each of the 20 towns of Iloilo, Aklan and Capiz provinces in Region 6 (Western Visayas), four towns of Cebu in Region 7 (Central Visayas) and 19 towns of Leyte, Eastern Samar and Western Samar provinces in Region 8 (Eastern Visayas). In Tacloban the foundation donated 7-meter-long roofing sheets for the repair of the roof of the Philippine Science High School building, so that its students could go back to their classes as early as possible. The foundation also distributed organic fertilizers, which were produced under its waste-recycling program. Together, Vista Land and the Villar Foundation spent an estimated P20

OUTSIDE THE BOX

S recently as June, the headline of a report on the website of the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. read, “Days of cheap energy over”. The report was based on a study by the International Energy Agency that was released that month. The study talked about the massive capital costs of the world’s estimated $1.6 trillion of investments in energy. The report predicted that “we’ll also be paying at least $15 more a barrel for most oil.” But a funny thing happened since then: Global crude-oil prices have dropped by 40 percent. I wrote in mid-October that the game was changing with regard to crude-oil prices, as the United States and Saudi Arabia were doing everything they could to squeeze Vladimir Putin and Russia by forcing oil prices to go lower. But once you start trying to manipulate the markets, they may take on a life of their own. Sometimes you eat the bear; other times the bear eats you. Falling demand, with China as a good example, combined with increasing production in the US, has combined with the price manipulation to put oil prices in freefall. At the recent meet-

ing of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec), Saudi Arabia would not allow a decrease in Opec production, guaranteeing that prices will go lower. While the conventional wisdom is that this drop in oil prices substantially hurts Russia, you will notice that the response from Moscow has been that Russia can survive low prices. Russia’s debt-to-gross domestic product ratio is the lowest among the Group of 20 countries. Russia can continue to pay its debts; Opec member Venezuela cannot. Furthermore, Russia has a “rich uncle” that everyone is afraid to mention, because, otherwise, the West would have to acknowledge that Putin

has them in a corner. China will do whatever is necessary to help Russia as a slap to both the US and to Europe. All the comments about the Philippines’ economic growth going forward are not taking into account the major positive effect of cheap oil on this economy. Oil is now trading below $70 a barrel, and could drop to $50, $40 or even lower. No one knows. Imagine the increase in your excess personal cash if gasoline prices go back to P30 a liter. But here is where it gets very interesting for the Philippines in the future. A recent study from an analyst at global financial institution Citigroup plotted the breakeven oil price to meet production costs of every oil field on the planet. Costs range from the Kashagan Ph1 field in Kazakhstan, which needs to have oil priced at $108 a barrel, to the KG-D6 project in India, which has its barrels priced at $25 each. These estimates are projected through 2020. While proven reserve numbers are sketchy, at best, we know that there is oil and natural gas in the West Philippine Sea (WPS, or South China Sea). The estimated breakeven price for oil and natural gas found in this area is $48 and $55 a barrel, respectively. Those prices make WPS oil some of the cheapest to produce in the world. Sometimes the Philippine government’s reaction to global situations and

events is similar to that of a schoolboy who is always two or three lessons behind his classmates. The Chinese government has expressed a desire for bilateral talks with the Philippines. China appeared to offer a hand of possible cooperation at the recent Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Beijing. Perhaps, this might be a case of what Sun Tzu wrote: “When envoys are sent with compliments in their mouths, it is a sign that the enemy wishes for a truce.” If the Philippine government becomes more proactive in pursuing cooperation with China, it might bring Beijing to the negotiating table. But one thing is certain: Without formal bilateral talks, China is going to continue encroaching on the Philippines’ territory—and the natural resources found in it—and there is nothing that Manila can effectively do about it. The policy that the government has followed in the last couple of years has accomplished little. The stakes in the WPS are increasing rapidly, even as the Philippines’ strength is diminishing.

Send me an e-mail at mangun @gmail.com. Visit my website at www. mangunonmarkets.com. Follow me on Twitter at @mangunonmarkets. PSE stock-market information and technical analysis tools provided by the COL Financial Group Inc.

opinion@businessmirror.com.ph

Opinion

Taiwan needs a reboot

Greenpeace’s ‘war’ vs Asian farmers

BusinessMirror

Ernesto M. Hilario

William Pesek

ABOUT TOWN

BLOOMBERG VIEW

AIWANESE President Ma Ying-jeou’s pro-China strategy took a harsh rap over the weekend. In island-wide local elections, young voters came out in force to reject Ma’s efforts to develop closer ties with the mainland. His ruling Kuomintang, or KMT party, lost nine of its 15 city-mayor and county-chief positions—and Ma himself lost much of his mandate to promote cross-strait ties in his last two years in office. The most stinging defeat came in the Taipei mayoral race. Every president since 1996 has been a former Taipei leader. The victory of Ko Wen-je, backed by the opposition Democratic Progressive Party, was “like Republicans losing Texas,” Sean King of Park Strategies told Bloomberg News. The loss was damning enough to prompt Taiwanese Prime Minister Jiang Yihuah to resign and pundits to label Ma a lame duck. “I have received the message sent by the people,” Ma said amid calls to step down from his party’s chairmanship. “Now my responsibility is to propose reforms as soon as possible to respond to the people’s demands.” What should those changes be? First and most obviously, Ma must recalibrate his China policy. That much should have been clear back in March, when Taiwanese students occupied the legislature for 24 days to protest Ma’s attempt to enact a trade pact with China without public debate. Since then, Beijing’s callous handling of Hong Kong’s student protests has further soured the Taiwanese on the idea of adopting their own “one country, two systems” framework for reunification. KMT politicians went into the elections arguing that their stewardship of the economy—based, in large part, on greater trade and integration with the mainland—justified their reelection. Yet, for all of Ma’s efforts, Taiwan’s economy has grown an average 3.3 percent in the five years since the 2008 global crisis, compared with close to 5 percent growth in the previous five. At the same time, wages, adjusted for inflation, fell below 1998 levels in 2013. Home prices have surged 82 percent since Ma took office in 2008; so has Taiwan’s income gap. Clearly, China’s boom has not benefited ordinary Taiwanese as much as Ma claims. They fear that even closer ties with the mainland will hollow out Taiwanese industry and increase the island’s dependence on Beijing. A trade deal with China isn’t comparable to the ones Ma negotiated with New Zealand and Singapore. Taiwan wouldn’t just be competing with mainland companies, but state-supported behemoths carrying out the Communist Party’s agenda, which includes

reunification, by force if necessary. Ma needs to diversify Taiwan’s growth engines. Before the elections, he warned that the island risked being left behind as China signed its own free-trade agreements with countries such as South Korea. In fact, Ma would be wise to use the next two years emulating South Korean President Park Geun-hye’s efforts to build a more creative economy. Given the wage disparities between Taiwan and China, there’s reason to fear that closer ties will actually reduce wages on the island. As per-capita income approaches $40,000, Taiwan must innovate its way to higher living standards. That means harnessing its financial resources, human capital and rule of law to move up the technology value chain. Taiwan simply cannot compete with China on price. Its only hope lies in creating the new products, ideas and disruptive business processes that generate new jobs and wealth. The economy’s strength is a services sector that employs nearly 60 percent of Taiwanese and generates almost 70 percent of gross domestic product. Its backbone is a vibrant ecosystem of small-and-medium-size companies, both in the island’s biggest cities and rural areas. Nurturing their growth, inventiveness and productivity with greater investment, tax incentives and training would pay off more than helping companies like Foxconn open more plants on the mainland. Ma should create new safety nets to protect Taiwan’s citizens as China’s scale and low costs encroach on their livelihoods. There’s a role for the West here, too. The US should welcome Taiwan into its Trans-Pacific Partnership. The 12 governments currently negotiating the trade pact—including Japan, Australia and Singapore—represent about 35 percent of Taiwan’s trade. If the Republicans now taking control of Congress really want to increase US influence in Asia and temper China’s, they would give President Barack Obama the fast-track authority he needs to rejuvenate the talks and conclude them soon. Adding Taiwan to the mix would give Ma even less incentive to cozy up to Beijing. And it would give Taiwan’s economy what it really needs: options.

Ejap reacts to Gagni’s Gleanings MAIL

Please e-mail your letters to the editor to opinion@businessmirror.com. ph. Letters chosen for publication in this section are edited for brevity and clarity. THE board of directors of the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines (Ejap) strongly objects to the column of Mr. Lito U. Gagni, titled “MVP group owes Ejap P0.2M” and published in the November 29 issue of the BusinessMirror, which casts the practices of the MVP Group of Companies in a bad light. We take issue, in particular, with Mr. Gagni’s portrayal of the MVP group as having “overlooked its obligation to pay P200,000” to the Ejap, when, in fact, these so-called

obligations—which are not debts in the traditional sense, but commitments for donations—are already in the process of being settled. The check from Philex Mining Corp. covering its portion of this amount, has already been issued, while another from the Manila Electric Co. is already being processed. Clearly, Mr. Gagni based his column on the contents of an internal Ejap board memorandum made a few weeks ago, without caring to validate these details and provide his readers with a more accurate context. The Ejap has always appreciated the help the MVP group has given it and, as such, would never resort to cheap shots to force the group to make good on its commitments. We hope our partnership with them will continue in the years to come. We hope this letter finds a prominent space in your print and online editions to help mitigate the damage caused by Mr. Gagni’s column. Darwin Amojelar President Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines

T looks like the well-funded Amsterdam-based environmental group Greenpeace is at war, not only with Filipino farmers, but also with food producers from other Asian countries.

This is what we can deduce from a recent news item in the local media that said the Supreme Administrative Court of Thailand had junked a lawsuit that the powerful organization filed against that country’s Department of Agriculture. We are in the same boat as our neighbor, Thailand. Filipino scientists, led by researchers from the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB), have also been sued by Greenpeace. As what happened in Thailand, Greenpeace’s lawsuit is related to its unrelenting bid to stop our government from introducing the benefits of modern agricultural biotechnology to farmers. As in Thailand’s case, the legal battle has also reached our own Supreme Court. This development gives a new perspective to the war that Greenpeace has been waging against efforts by Asian countries to improve their respective food-production sectors by tapping the benefits of crop biotechnology. It is now clear that

Greenpeace’s war is continent-wide. Given its vast arsenal of political and financial weapons, it is in a very good position to wage that war. Until today, many are puzzled both by the determination and the viciousness with which Greenpeace’s operatives are waging this war. In the Philippines—and, we presume, the rest of Asia—Greenpeace has used both propaganda and legal tactics to prevent the propagation of biotech crop varieties. Interestingly, many see this effort by Greenpeace as more political, rather than environmental, in nature. This is because biotech crop varieties, which Greenpeace has consistently maligned, are actually environment-friendly, as attested to by certified scientists. These varieties have built-in resistance to pests and, therefore, do not require the application of chemical pesticides. That Greenpeace is preventing the wider use of chemical pesticide-free crop varieties has merely

Tuesday, December 2, 2014

aggravated suspicions that its true agenda is not really the preservation of the environment. The growing anger toward Greenpeace’s war against farmers is also evident in India. Friends from the media have shared with us some of the backlash that Greenpeace has been reaping in that country, which has one of the world’s biggest—and hungriest—populations. In India Greenpeace has been labeled as a “manufacturer of dissent”, and that country’s intelligence bureau has reportedly placed it in the category of “threats to India’s economic security.” An Indian opinion-maker, Vivian Fernandes, wrote the following online: “Are NGOs [non-governmental organizations] like Greenpeace people’s movements? No. They are multinational organizations with multimillion dollar budgets, in the business of manufacturing dissent. Their agendas are imported. They are vexatiously persistent. Compromise is alien to them. They will stubbornly agitate an issue, even when facts do not support their stand.” Then, he asks: “Are Indian farmers fools? Do they need NGOs like Greenpeace to tell them what is good for them?” Perhaps, this same question should be asked by our own farmers. And the answer is obvious: We do not need Greenpeace to tell us what is good for us. We would

The new geopolitical hot spot Edgardo J. Angara

HILE in Myanmar for the recent East Asia Summit, United States President Barack Obama said “[t]he US is committed to strengthening [the] Asean [Association of Southeast Asian Nations], both as an institution and as a community of nations,” reiterating an earlier pledge for more investments in the region under an Enhanced Economic Engagement initiative. Obama’s statements came at a time when US confidence and optimism in the Asean are running high. The 2015 Asean Business Survey Outlook of the US Chamber of Commerce revealed that six out of 10 US companies it interviewed believe that Southeast Asian markets have become more important to their worldwide revenues in the past two years. More than seven out of 10 reported increased trade and investment in the region during the same period, while nine out of

10 expected even higher increases within the next five years. Similarly, also in Myanmar, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang emphasized that the Chinese government will firmly support the building of the Asean Community, calling on China and Asean members to upgrade their standing partnership within the coming “diamond decade.” While discussing a six-point proposal for achieving closer China-Asean ties, Li announced that

China will offer some $20 billion in special loans—half of which are for preferential arrangements with Asean members—for infrastructure and connectivity projects across the region. Clearly, the world’s largest economies have their eyes trained on Southeast Asia, especially now that it is preparing for economic integration in 2015. With much of the developed world still struggling to recover from the global financial crisis, the consolidation of a 600 million-strong market and a $2.5-trillion production base makes the region a bright area for future global economic growth. And as the US and China position themselves to capitalize on Asean 2015—through regional free-trade initiatives, such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Free-Trade Area for Asia-Pacific, respectively—their allies are moving to solidify spheres of influence over the region through not-so-subtle displays of military power. Japan, for instance, said it wou ld prov ide Vietnam w ith vessels, equipment and training

Is Europe too rigid to survive? Mark Buchanan

BLOOMBERG VIEW

HE European Union (EU) is suffering from a democracy problem: Too many Europeans feel that integration is being forced upon them. What’s worse, they may be right.

New research from a group of economists—Luigi Guiso, Paola Sapienza and Luigi Zingales—paints a grim picture of the European project from the perspective of its participants. Analyzing four decades of data from the Eurobarometer opinion survey, they find that three events—the 1992 Maastricht treaty, the 2004 enlargement to Eastern Europe and the 2010 euro-zone crisis—had the most negative effect on voters’ perceptions of the EU. In each case, the survey results suggest that Europeans perceived the events as driving further integration and didn’t like what they saw. Meanwhile, European leaders kept preparing for more integration, despite the growing dissatisfaction. Amaz-

ingly, their obliviousness to public sentiment appears to be precisely what the early architects of European integration desired. The history, as Guiso and his colleagues present it, is mind-boggling. The French political scientist and diplomat Jean Monnet, widely viewed as a founding father of the EU, envisioned that integration would be directed by an elite group of pro-European bureaucrats. The project was designed to be immune to voter concerns and virtually irreversible. Problems would serve only to propel it forward, by revealing the need for the further expansion of European political power. Ultimately, voters would see the wisdom. “Europe will be forged in crises,” Monnet wrote in 1976, “and will be

the sum of the solutions adopted for those crises.” Supporters of European integration talked about creating an unstoppable “chain reaction.” Turning back, even temporarily, would never be an option. The great strength of the euro, as former German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt saw it, was that “nobody can leave it without damaging his own country and his own economy in a severe way.” Unfortunately, the chain-reaction theory hasn’t worked out in practice. The result is a paradoxical impasse. European voters, the economists note, like the euro and want to keep it. At the same time, they don’t like the way current European institutions are managed, and they’re opposed to the further integration that, economists say, is needed to make the currency union viable. In other words, European voters don’t want to go forward or backward, and they also don’t want to stay where they are. So is this, as Guiso and colleagues wonder, “Monnet’s Error?” Have the European elites miscalculated? This seems very possible, and potentially disastrous. European leaders desiring further integration may despair of peoples’ in-

rather rely on and believe our own scientists from the UPLB to show us how we can produce better food at less cost and with less damage to the environment. The Indian opinion-maker called attention to Greenpeace’s “imported agenda.” He did not specify what that imported agenda is. Based on our experience with Greenpeace, we can only surmise that this “imported agenda” has nothing to do with helping our country feed its growing population. Given that this is a mammoth European organization, it is more likely that its “imported agenda” has been exported by the Western European interest it represents. There is no hunger in Greenpeace’s home base. In that part of Europe, people eat in style and gorge only on the best. It is a fact that the demigods in the pressure group’s Olympus in Amsterdam are not hungry. In fact, one of its top executives has been known to take weekly trips from his posh office in the Dutch capital to his villa somewhere in Luxembourg via a private jet. So, the people of Asia cannot expect these high-living, high-flying Greenpeace executives to understand the urgency of finding ways to improve the harvest of our land, while preserving our environment. Their imported agenda serves foreign interests, not ours. E-mail: ernhil@yahoo.com.

to boost the latter’s maritime lawenforcement capability, months after the standoff over the Chinese oil rig deployed near the disputed Paracel Islands. Earlier last month the Russian Ministry of Defense announced the arrival at the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) of its 11,500-ton Slava-class cruiser Moscow, the flagship of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, reportedly to conduct air-defense and weapons drills in an undisclosed part of that sea. At stake are vital shipping lanes, through which one-third of the world’s commodities, up to onethird of global crude oil, and more than half of global liquefied natural gas pass. These vital maritime routes—and the immense trade they carry—form the backdrop to the Asean’s rise as one of the future drivers of global economic growth. They have been historically open to free navigation, but are now fast becoming geopolitical flashpoints. E-mail: angara.ed@gmail.com.

consistent views, and dismiss the rise of anti-EU parties across Europe as a reaction to economic malaise. They may see this crisis as yet another opportunity to seek more integration. They say the costs of taking any step back are almost unimaginable, that we cannot go back. Yet, inflexibility is what you get in the moments before something breaks. For every hour they spend calculating how to keep the union together, European leaders ought to be spending another trying to engineer pathways for letting it come apart—at least, partially and, perhaps, temporarily, to release pressure and anxiety. That might mean, for example, allowing greater national autonomy in the application of European regulations, especially in controlling the flow of immigrants. There may be some wisdom in European voters’ ambivalence. At the very least, their loss of trust in the European project is an ominous sign. Uncompromising attempts to bind Europe together may, instead, hasten its abrupt and unmanageable dissolution, with unknown consequences. Making it easier for nations to take small steps away from European integration may be the best way to save the benefits of union in the long run.

2nd Front Page BusinessMirror

A8 Tuesday, December 2, 2014

I.M.I. only raised P1.6 billion after not exercising overallotment option By VG Cabuag

yala-led Integrated Micro-Electronics Inc. (IMI) said it raised some P1.61 billion from a public offer that ended on Monday. The company said it only sold 215 million primary common shares, at P7.50 apiece, and did not exercise its overallotment option of about 85 million more shares. “The offer was oversubscribed, having received very strong support from retail investors,” it said in a statement. The company originally wanted to sell as much as P2.2 billion from the exercise. The subject shares will be listed at the Philippine Stock Exchange later this week. BPI Capital Corp. was designated issue manager, bookrunner and lead underwriter of the offer, with Investment and Capital Corp. of the Philippines and SB Capital acting as participating underwriters. Proceeds will be used for capital expenditure, business expansion, refinancing of debt and general corporate purposes. Capital expenditure and business expansion, which constitute around 70 percent of the proceeds, will be focused on the company’s global operations in Bulgaria, China, the Czech Republic, Mexico and the Philippines, the company said. IMI said in its registration statement that some P1.1 billion of the total share-sale proceeds will go to capital expenditure and a substantial portion of which will be allocated for maintenance of plants and machinery. “The funds will also be used in building the expansion of the company’s facilities in Jixiang [in China], and Bulgaria, and the machinery expansion in the Philippines,” the company said. About 91 percent of the planned capital expenditure was intended as investments in IMI’s electronics manufacturing services business line and the rest going to IMI’s power semiconductor assembly and test services business line, it said. IMI listed by way of introduction in 2010. According to rules, companies listed by way of introduction should sell shares to the public within a year after the listing date. The company deliberately delayed to offer shares to the public and opted to pay instead the necessary fines as it said the business environment then was not conducive for the company.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Traffic woes translate to ₧6B worth of productivity losses

By Lorenz S. Marasigan

he Philippines could alleviate, if not eradicate, the P6-billion projected daily losses in traffic costs by 2030 through innovative solutions that use technology to transform the way Filipinos travel, a global technology giant said on Monday.

Cisco Philippines Country Manager Louie Castañeda said the nation’s economic growth has made worse the current congested state of Metro Manila’s major road arteries. Thus, he said, smart and connected transport solutions should be deployed to address these city-wide transportation problems. Unmanageable traffic flow can be resolved quickly and effectively with real-time traffic-management solutions using connected networks. Cameras connected to the Internet, sensors, applications, and Wi-Fi infrastructure will let traffic authorities see and solve traffic conditions in real time, Castañeda said. “Guided by timely and relevant data from these solutions, roads, stop-

Castañeda said the nation’s economic growth has made worse the current congested state of Metro Manila’s major road arteries.

lights, U-turn slots, and other road equipment can be properly placed and utilized to decongest and ease traffic. In the long term, data analytics can further provide insight to traffic patterns for urban planners and traffic authorities,” he added. Connected transport solutions,

Castañeda said, can also manage large crowds and manage the breaks that occur in the country’s mass railway train system. “Connected transport solutions can determine a train’s location and speed, while augmenting safety measures. If warnings are ignored or cannot be addressed with human input, the system will automatically apply the brakes to slow down or stop the train,” he stressed. Connections to video analytics, the Cisco executive said, can also count commuters present in stations and in trains. These can alert train operators and engineers to address growing crowds within the railway system. “ T he Ph i l ippi nes h a s been experiencing sustained economic growth and as a consequence, more people commuting to work and traveling for leisure, given the increased employment and disposable income. For our transport infrastructure to handle this surge in commuters, connecting the previously unconnected transport nodes will provide the transport authorities, urban planning councils, and even the emergency services, with the knowledge and data to make critical decisions,” Castañeda said. “These decisions and traffic-management outcomes will increase the competitiveness of the Philippines by

reducing travel delays and increasing the efficiency and safety of our commute so we can work better, enjoy our trips more, and be truly at ease when traveling and commuting via road, rail and other means of transport,” he added. The “Internet of Everything” is no longer a technological aspiration of the future, he said, citing, for example, a private car with an attached sensor connected to the Internet, which provides data on the driving time and patterns, route, fuel consumption, engine temperature and even driver fatigue. The data from the sensors, he explained, can alert the driver, through an application on the smartphone, with real-time information on traffic congestion, availability of parking spots in the vicinity, accident updates and even hazard reports. “For example, the city of Seoul in Korea analyzes data from a variety of sources in the city, including road and video sensors, GPS, citizen reports, Wi-Fi networks and closed-circuit television [CCTV]. By providing the system architecture and design, Cisco empowers Seoul’s City Transportation Information Center [Topis] to leverage this data to reduce traffic congestion and enhance the efficiency of public transportation services.” Continued on A2

House ratifies bill raising tax cap for 13th-month pay By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

he House of Representatives on Monday ratified a measure seeking to raise the tax-exemption ceiling of 13th-month pay and other bonuses from P30,000 to P82,000. Liberal Party Rep. Romero Quimbo of Marikina City, chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means, said the lower chamber has adopted the Senate version of the bill. The original bill pegged the ceiling for tax-exempt bonuses at P75,000 but it was raised to P82,000, as proposed by Sen. Ralph Recto during plenary deliberations in the Senate. The House version of the bill seeks to increase the cap to P70,000 from the current P30,000. “We have consolidated the House and Senate bills on the

higher exemption for tax on bonuses so the people can immediately benefit from it,” Quimbo said. He said he expects the tax-exemptioncapmeasuretobeenacted into law before the year ends. Quimbo, one of the authors of the bill in the lower chamber, said employees from both the private and public sector can expect bigger bonuses next year. “Its envisioned benefits will be felt by the people as early as June 2015, when the first half of the 13th-month pay is received by employees,” he said. Sen. Juan Edgardo Angara, co-author and sponsor of the measure in the Senate, earlier said that once the bill is enacted into law, employees receiving 13th-month pay and other benefits, including Christmas and productivity bonuses

not exceeding P82,000, will be tax-exempt. Under the measure, lawmakers seek to increase the tax-exemption cap for 13th-month pay and other bonuses to P82,000 from the current P30,000 by amending the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997, as amended. The bill seeks to exclude 13thmonth pay and other Christmas bonus from the computation of the gross income for the purposes of income taxation of all employees in both the private and public sectors. It also mandates the finance department and the Bureau of Internal Revenue to increase the threshold every three years based on the consumer price index and inflation. The said measure will be submitted soon to President Aquino for his approval.

Palace expects tighter laws on accountability from Malampaya inquiry By Butch Fernandez

alacañang expects to see early enactment of remedial legislation tightening laws mandating “transparency and accountability” in the disbursement of public funds ensuing from the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee’s inquiry into the alleged misuse of Malampaya gas field royalties. This, even as Communications Secretary Herminio B. Coloma Jr. said the Palace was leaving it up to the legislators conducting the probe to decide whom to summon as resource persons needed to testify

at the ongoing Senate hearings on Malampaya. Coloma said, however, that what is important is for the probe to result in greater public awareness on how the billions of pesos in public funds from Malampaya royalties are being disbursed. He said appropriate cases have already been filed before the Office of the Ombudsman, which is already looking into the alleged irregularities involving billions of pesos of Malampaya royalties. Still, Coloma said the Palace would welcome the passage of adequate reform measures arising from

the Malampaya hearings to prevent future anomalies in the disbursement and use of gas field royalties. The Senate Blue Ribbon Committee on Monday began its inquiry into the alleged misuse of royalties from the Malampaya gas fund. The inquiry focused on the findings of the Commission on Audit that P900 million in royalties from the Malampaya fund released to the Department of Agrarian Reform ended up in 12 dubious non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The 12 NGOs were linked to businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles, the alleged mastermind of the pork-barrel scam.