BusinessMirror November 10, 2023 by BusinessMirror

Amid job loss, factory capacity utilization rises

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MID the reduction in manufacturing jobs, Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) data showed average capacity utilization of factories improved in September. In September, the PSA reported that the manufacturing sector shed 888,000 jobs. (Full story here: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2023/11/09/manufacturing-sheds-888000-jobs-in-september-psa/) However, the latest Monthly Integrated Survey of Selected Industries (MISSI) data showed average capacity utilization of factors was at 74.3 percent, the highest since November 2020 when it was at 75.6 percent.

“Based on responding establishments, the average capacity utilization rate for the manufacturing sector in September 2023 was reported at 74.3 percent from 74 percent in the previous month,” PSA said. However, National Statistician Claire Dennis S. Mapa told BusinessMirror that while the sector saw a reduction in jobs, most of these were observed in different industries that increased the average capacity utilization rate in September. Mapa said the drop in employment year-on-year was accounted for by manufacture of Cocoa Chocolate and Sugar Confectionary; manufac-

ture of Prepared Animal Feeds; and manufacture of Veneer Sheets and Plywood. Meanwhile, Mapa said, the VoPI increased on the back of contributions from the manufacture of Refined Petroleum; manufacture of Basic Metals; and manufacture of Electrical Equipment. Mapa also said the list includes the manufacture of Beverages; Transport Equipment; and Printing and Reproduction of Recorded Media and others. “So there were more industry groups with improved capacity,” Mapa pointed out to BusinessMir-

ror on Thursday. The MISSI data also showed industry divisions reported capacity utilization rates of more than 50 percent during the month. The top three industry divisions in terms of reported capacity utilization rate were led by the manufacture of machinery and equipment except electrical, at 81 percent. The other top industry divisions were the manufacture of rubber and plastic products at 80.1 percent; and manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products at 79.4 percent.

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Q3 CONSUMPTION SLOWS By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

ILIPINOS trying their best to keep up with rising prices led to the slowest consumption growth in two years, according to local economists.

NATIVITY SCENE Belenismo, Tarlac’s renowned Christmas festival, commenced on November 6, Monday, with the AFP mechanized division and the Tarlac Heritage Foundation, co-founded by Doña Isabel Suntay and Dr. Isa Suntay, unveiling a bamboo-themed Nativity scene outside the Northern Luzon Command HQ in Camp Servillano Aquino, Tarlac City. Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro emphasized the significance of the Army’s current theme in the lives of Filipinos, connecting it to Tarlac's historical role as a military cantonment during the Spanish era. The kawayan, or bamboo, chosen for the display symbolizes the authentic Filipino spirit of creativity, resilience, and grace under pressure. BERNARD TESTA

On Thursday, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) announced that the country’s GDP grew 5.9 percent in the third quarter. This was faster than the 4.3 percent growth in the second quarter but slower than the 7.7 percent posted in the third quarter of last year. (Full story here: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2023/11/09/gdp-up-5-9-in-q3/) While government consumption improved to 6.7 percent, household consumption slowed to 5 percent, the lowest since the 4.8-percent contraction recorded in the first quarter of 2021. “Inflation is key to the revival of the robust growth in consumption spending. And so the focus is ensuring that that reduction, that decrease in inflation reported for October 2023 will be sustained in the coming months,” Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said in a briefing on Thursday. See “Inflation,” A2

IMPROVED STATE SPENDING BOOSTED Q3 GROWTH–DBM By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

@jearcalas

HE Department of Budget and Management (DBM) on Thursday said the improved spending by state agencies contributed to the country’s 5.9-percent economic growth in the third quarter. Budget Secretary Amenah F. Pangandaman said the state agencies' catch-up plans are working in boosting their spending which has been quite anemic in the previous quarters. (Related story: (Related story: https://businessmirror.com. ph/2023/08/11/government-units-firms-

told-to-hasten-spending/) “This proves that with effective budget utilization, we can meet our economic targets,” Pangandaman said in a statement on Thursday. The DBM said the government’s “accelerated” spending contributed 36 percent or about 2.1 percentage points of the country’s GDP growth in the third quarter. “From a negative 0.7 percent during the second quarter of the year, the Government Final Consumption Expenditure rose to 6.7 percent in the July-to-September period,” it said. See “Improved,” A2

TRO delays CNP3, crucial to Vis-Min interconnection By Lenie Lectura

@llectura

HE completion of the CebuNegros-Panay Stage 3 Backbone Project (CNP3), which is crucial to the full operation of the P51.3-billion Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection Project (MVIP), is delayed because of a temporary restraining order (TRO) sought by the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (Tieza), the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) said Thursday. The CNP3 was supposed to be completed in October this year. However, the construction of the Cebu-Magdugo 230kilovolt (kV) line—a component of the CNP3— was halted due to the TRO issued by the Supreme Court.

The NGCP said there are two tower sites that fall under Tieza’s property, which they intend to develop into a golf course. NGCP was already issued a Writ of Possession for the property as early as October 2022. Upon receiving the TRO, NGCP ceased all project-related operations near Tower 111 and the associated sections of Towers 110-112. NGCP submitted its response to the Petition for Certiorari to the SC last September 26, 2023, and it is currently awaiting a resolution. The completion of the CebuMagdugo 230kV line is also crucial to fully utilize the 450MW transfer of power from the MVIP on the Visayas side. See “TRO,” A2

PESO exchange rates n US 56.0310 n japan 0.3711 n UK 68.8397 n HK 7.1698 n CHINA 7.7021 n singapore 41.3147 n australia 35.8654 n EU 59.9980 n KOREA 0.0429 n SAUDI arabia 14.9372 Source: BSP (November 9, 2023)

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A2 Friday, November 10, 2023

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‘Growth must be 7-8% in next 10 yrs’ Inflation… Continued from A1

joy the kind of life they deserve and more and more of our neighbors are achieving.” Alcuaz said the government has “great plans and great public-private dialogue.” However, he underscored the need for leadership to “turn talk into actual

door opening,” such as attracting jobcreating investments, getting power plants and transport infrastructure built, implementing reforms and initiatives that will produce or upskill the country’s workforce for these jobs, and “getting road blocks out of the way” of each investment. On Thursday, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported that the country’s economic growth posted a growth of 5.9 percent in the July to September period. This is faster than the 4.3-percent GDP growth in the second quarter, the slowest in two years. The PSA said the main contributors to the third quarter 2023 growth were Wholesale and retail trade; repair of

motor vehicles and motorcycles, 5 percent; Financial and insurance activities, 9.5 percent; and Construction, 14 percent. In terms of major economic sectors, Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, Industry, and Services all posted positive growth in the third quarter of 2023 with 0.9 percent, 5.5 percent, and 6.8 percent, respectively. On the demand side, Household final consumption expenditure (HFCE) grew by 5 percent in the third quarter of 2023. This is the slowest growth since the first quarter of 2021 when HFCE contracted 4.8 percent. Andrea E. San Juan

erated its performance in the third quarter,” Pangandaman said. “As we can see from this, the catch-up plans have already contributed to the improvement in GDP. We hope that we can sustain this momentum to stay on track with our MediumTerm Fiscal Framework,” she added. In a separate statement, the DBM said it will “strictly” direct state agencies to undertake Early Procurement Activities (EPA) to further boost their spending measures. The DBM will also capacitate state employees on procurement and encourage agencies to use digital payments. The DBM would also digitalize the public financial management process through the implementation of the Budget and Treasury Management System (BTMS), which allows it to monitor real-time transactions of state entities. The DBM said government agencies have vowed to further ramp up their budget utilization to address underspending and contribute

to the country’s economic growth. The DBM said Senate Committee on Finance Chairperson Sen. Juan Edgardo Angara had emphasized during the plenary debate on the 2024 national budget that state agencies with lowest budget utilization rates have committed hike to their expenditure rates. Angara said four executive departments outlined concrete steps to speed up their spending for the rest of the year. The low utilization of budgets by government agencies has been identified as one of the reasons behind the economy’s slower than anticipated expansion. (Related story: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2023/08/17/ dict-dmw-flagged-by-dbm-for-low-budgetoptimization/) Angara said the Department of Information and Communications Technology [DICT] will take administrative interventions to improve its absorptive capacity and procurement process. The Department of Migrant Workers [DMW]

will strengthen its Migrant Workers Office and enhance the full-cycle reintegration program for OFWs, Angara added. The DMW will also facilitate the immediate hiring of newly created positions for OFW hospitals. “The Department of Social Welfare and Development [DSWD] also committed to improving the implementation of its major social protection programs by fast-tracking the validation process for the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program [4Ps] and the social preparation process for the Supplementary Feeding Program [SFP], among others,” the DBM said. “The Department of Energy [DOE] will organize nationwide Information and Education Campaigns [IECs] on the Philippine Energy Plan [PEP] and conduct Focus Group Discussions [FGDs] on energy projects of national significance,” the DBM added.

HE Makati Business Club (MBC) said the growth goal of the country should be 7 to 8 percent not just for this year but in the next 10 years, as this is the “only way” Filipinos can enjoy the life they deserve.

While not much can be done to improve the country’s economic performance in the fourth quarter, MBC Executive Director Francisco Alcuaz Jr. told the BusinessMirror, “The goal isn’t just 7.2 percent in Q4, but 7 percent to 8 percent over 10 years. That’s the only way Filipinos can en-

Improved… Continued from A1

“Meanwhile, the Government Fixed Capital Formation made a huge leap from 0.7 percent in the second quarter to 6.7 percent in the third quarter,” it added. Pangandaman also cited the increase in the Government Final Consumption Expenditure by 6.7 percent, indicating the improved state spending in the third quarter. Furthermore, she pointed out that the government contributed to the 7.1 percent year-on-year increase in the gross value added in human health and social work activities. “We also note that public infrastructure spending made significant contributions to the double-digit growth in overall construction of 12.4 percent, and public construction grew by an impressive 26.9 percent year-onyear, as the Build-Better-More program accel-

TRO… Continued from A1

“NGCP’s projects are all critical for improving the power grid and boosting economic development. Hindering the completion of these critical infrastructures will not just affect NGCP, but the communities and businesses affected by these delays. We are appealing to our stakeholders we share the same goal of pushing for progress. Energy stability is critical to economic progress. We need your support to expedite and make it happen,” NGCP said. The MVIP, which unites the Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao grids, and the CNP3 are both identified as Energy Projects of National Significance (EPNS), as these are integral to economic development through the delivery of stable power transmission services and enabling of energy resource sharing. The interconnection was conceptualized as early as the 1980s but was abandoned by the government due to challenges in implementation. It was only in 2011, with NGCP taking over the operation of the transmission network, that studies were revived for the feasibility of such undertaking. In April 2017, NGCP filed its application with the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to commence implementation of the MVIP. The project was approved in July 2017. The MVIP comprises a 184 circuit-kilometer (ckm) High-Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) submarine transmission line connecting the power grids of Mindanao and Visayas with a transfer capacity of 450MW, expandable to as much as 900MW. The project also includes converter stations in both regions, and more than 500ckm of overhead lines to facilitate the flow of electricity. To date, MVIP’s transfer capacity is at 270MW.

Amid… Continued from A1

“The proportion of establishments that operated at full capacity (90 percent to 100 percent) was 25 percent of the total number of responding establishments. Meanwhile, 40 percent operated at 70 to 89 percent capacity, and 35 percent operated below 70 percent capacity,” PSA said.

Output improved

The country’s manufacturing output in September also improved to 9.1 percent, faster than the 6.8 percent in the previous month and the 4.5 percent posted in September last year. This was the fastest growth rate recorded by the Volume of Production Index (VoPI) since March 2022 when it posted a

Apart from high inflation, the decline in Labor Force participation could also be blamed for the slowdown in consumption. Based on data obtained by BusinessMirror from the PSA, there were 49.04 million Filipinos in the labor force in the third quarter of the year, a 2.33-percent reduction from the 50.21 million in the labor force in the third quarter of 2022. The country’s Labor Force Participation Rate also slowed to 62.9 percent in the third quarter of 2023 from the 65.5 percent in the third quarter of 2022. In September alone, the Labor Force Participation level was at 49.929 million and the rate is at 64.1 percent. This was lower than the 50.08 million posted in September 2022 with a rate of 65.2 percent. National Statistician Claire Dennis S. Mapa said survey respondents identified schooling as the top reason for quitting the labor force. He quoted 355,000 respondents saying they are not part of the labor force because they are in school. There were also 124,000 workers who said they tried looking for jobs and couldn’t find one, so they opted out. Some 140,000 workers opted out of the labor force because they believed no jobs were available for them. “Consumption did not kick off that much because goods are more expensove so people are doing a lot of saving. That means, they are looking for other means to earn so they are finding this in the informal sector,” De La Salle University economist Maria Ella Oplas told BusinessMirror, speaking partly in Filipino. “Consumption is very minimal as in super basic precisely because goods are costlier, plus income is hard to earn.” Former Neda Secretary Dante B. Canlas agreed that both inflation and the decline in the labor force are factors for the slowdown in household consumption, a key driver of the economy. Canlas said a number of factors are at play such as lower personal disposable income due to unemployment and declining LFPR. In the long run, he added, households may expect further slowdown in income, especially in the context of high interest rates. The recent off-cycle rate increase, the Monetary Board raised key policy rates by 25 basis points to 6.5 percent. This, Canlas said, would likely motivate households to delay their consumption. He said efforts to prop up consumption and the country’s economic performance require certain interventions. “Job creation (is needed) to raise real wages. Fight inflation through more supply interventions, and less use of interest rate hikes,” Canlas said. Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort also said lower labor force participation levels and rates contribute to lower consumption. This is why the government must take strides to “protect the poorest of the poor and those with limited incomes/budgets by nipping inflation in the bud [to] prevent it from spiraling.” “Given the data in the third quarter, it’s hard to recover with the way things are,” Oplas, however, said. “Christmas is really short this year.” Nonetheless, Ricafort said the fourth quarter may see better household consumption growth on the back of the upcoming holiday season. This is the same outlook of Balisacan, who said the economic team is confident that household consumption will improve in the fourth quarter. Government spending, which improved in the third quarter, also has room to improve, he said. “In the longer haul what we want to happen is the investment must increase substantially. And so that's why the economic team is so focused on seeing the economy attracting more investors, domestic or foreign, because the only way you can continually improve the quality of employment is that investment is increasing because we need more factories... all these kinds of things that will complement labor,” Balisacan stressed. growth of 346 percent. Meanwhile, the Value of Production Index (VaPI) for manufacturing continued to increase at an annual rate of 8.9 percent in September 2023. This was faster compared with its annual growth of 7.5 percent in the previous month. In September 2022, VaPI recorded a double-digit annual increment of 12.6 percent. The growth of the VaPI was the highest since April 2023 when it recorded a growth of 9.7 percent. “The expansion in the annual growth of the VaPI in September 2023 was mainly attributed by the higher annual increase in the manufacture of coke and refined petroleum products industry division at 66.9 percent in September 2023 from 39.2 percent annual increase in the previous month,” PSA said. The data showed the manufacture of coke and refined petroleum products contributed 49.7 percent to the annual uptrend of VaPI for the manufacturing sector in September 2023.

Polarizing

Ateneo de Manila University economist Leonardo Lanzona said the third quarter economic growth has led to the conclusion that revenge spending or pent-up demand has been spent. Lanzona lamented that the government’s spending, which offset the shortfall in consumption, did not lead to multiplier effects. This suggests the growth only went to owners of capital. Valuables, based on the data, was the fastestgrowing in terms of the consumption side of GDP, posting growth of 94.9 percent. Valuables include the purchase of antiques, jewelries, and other high-value items that only the rich can afford. “Gains in growth were mostly going to owners of capital, as production may have become more capital intensive. Thus, this type of growth is more polarizing than inclusive,” Lanzona told B usinessM irror . Ibon Foundation Inc. raised the same concern, especially employment contracting 1.7 percent or 825,000 jobs to 46.8 million in the September Labor Force data. “The reported 5.9-percent growth in the third quarter from the year before isn't just jobless but job-destroying. Real national industrialization replacing old neoliberal free market thinking is long overdue,” Ibon Foundation Inc. Executive Director Sonny Africa said.

Outlook

In his statement on Thursday, Balisacan said the economy needs to grow by 7.2 percent year-onyear for the fourth quarter of 2023 to attain the low end of the government’s target of 6 percent to 7 percent for 2023. GDP growth in the first to third quarters or between January to September this year was pegged at 5.5 percent. Balisacan said the growth in the third quarter and the January to September period was also made possible by government's spending catch-up. “These plans aim to expedite the implementation of government programs and projects and improve the delivery of public services under the 2023 public expenditure program,” Balisacan said. “These actions addressed the contraction in government spending in the previous quarter. We hope to maintain this momentum for the remainder of the year and the years to come,” he added. To contain inflation, Balisacan said the government aims to provide support for agricultural production in the provinces that can still grow food during the worst of the El Niño. The government will also provide emergency employment opportunities for farmers in provinces who cannot produce during this period through the help of the interagency El Niño Task Force.

PPP Act signing

The National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) said the expected signing of the Public Private Partnership (PPP) Act will help keep the momentum for growth. The growth data reported on Thursday puts the Philippines as having the fastest economic growth among emerging economies in Asia during the third quarter beating Vietnam (5.3 percent), Indonesia (4.9 percent), China (4.9 percent) and Malaysia (3.3 percent). Neda chief Balisacan said he is hopeful the country can sustain the growth rate that will encourage more investments in the country such as the PPP Act. “Moving forward, we will continue to leverage the full implementation of liberalization reforms to intensify investment promotion in the country and boost growth, thereby generating higher-quality employment opportunities for our growing labor force,” Balisacan. He said Congress already completed the consolidated version of the legislation, which is expected to be signed by President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. within the year. Once implemented, the PPP Act “would promote greater private sector participation in the country’s infrastructure development,” according to Balisacan. With a report by Samuel P. Medenilla

Out of the 22 industry divisions for the manufacturing section, manufacture of coke and refined petroleum products was the fifth industry division with the highest weight in the computation of VaPI. The PSA also said other main contributors to the higher year-on-year growth of VaPI in September 2023 were manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products with an annual growth rate of 2.9 percent during the period. This came from an annual decline of 2.4 percent in the previous month, and manufacture of basic metals with a higher annual increase of 9.4 percent in September 2023 from 1.3 percent in the previous month. Of the remaining 19 industry divisions, seven exhibited annual upturns during the period. Meanwhile, 12 industry divisions posted annual declines in September 2023. The manufacture of wearing apparel posted the fastest annual drop of 36.4 percent during the period. Cai U. Ordinario

Friday, November 10, 2023

www.businessmirror.com.ph • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

‘Kamandag’ exercise highlights strong PHL and US military ties

his year’s “K amandag” bilateral exercise between the Philippine and US Marine Corps units highlight the strong military ties between the two nations. This was stressed by Philippine Navy (PN) chief Vice Admiral Toribio Adaci in his speech as the “Kamandag” formally opened Thursday at Fort Bonifacio in Taguig City. T he exercise w ill last until November 17. “Kamandag” is short for “Kaagapay ng mga Mandirigma mula sa Dagat,” which translates to “Cooperation of the Warriors of the Sea.” Around 1,732 personnel from the Philippine Marine Corps will be participating in “Kamandag,” while 902 will be coming from the US Marine Corps. Meanwhile, 57 personnel will be coming from the Republic of Korea Marine Corps and along with another 50 from the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force. Eight military personnel from the United Kingdom (UK) will act as observers. “Now on its 7th iteration, this annual bilateral exercise between the Philippine Marine Corps and the United States Marine Corps is more than just a routine military exercise; this is a demonstration of the strength and resilience of

the partnership between the Philippines and the US, as well as our alliance with Japan, the Republic of Korea, and the UK,” Adaci said. “Kamandag”, the PN chief said, is designed to enhance bilateral cooperation and interoperability among participating forces. The exercise also aimed to improve the capabilities of the participants in special operations, coastal defense, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief missions, and CBRN support. Adaci said all these drills are in-line with operationalizing the A rchipelagic Coastal Defense Concept. Joint training will be conducted in various locations from Northern Luzon to Tawi-Tawi. “For the PN, it is imperative that our forces actively participate in such training endeavors to upgrade and develop our capabilities toward fully realizing our vision to become a modern and multi-capable naval force. By actively engaging in military-tomilitary training, we also reaffirm our commitment to achieving the highest levels of proficiency and operational readiness of our forces so we can contribute significantly to our maritime nation’s overall defense posture,” Adaci said. Rex Anthony Naval

Four Filipino seafarers hurt after Russian missile attack in Ukraine

he Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) on Thursday confirmed that the four Filipino seafarers, who were injured in Ukraine following missile attack, are now safe. In a television interview, DMW Officer-in-Charge Hans J. Cacdac said the seafarers were at the bridge of the Liberian-f lagged ship, the Kmax Ruler, when the incident happened. “ Thankfully, they were far enough from the point of impact and suffered non-fatal injuries. They are all out of danger,” Cacdac said. The most serious of the reported injuries was a fractured left hand from ship’s Filipino electrician (ETR), who was on the bridge of a ship when the attack happened. Cacdac said the ETR was already brought to the hospital for treatment. The Filipino Captain, Able Sea-

man, and Deck Cadet of Kmax Ruler also suffered minor injuries. “Their respective families have already been notified that they are out of harm’s way,” Cacdac said. DMW is already coordinating with the manning agency and ship owner of the affected Filipino seafarers to determine if they will be repatriated. “As soon as we received the report of the incident, we instructed their manning agency and ship owner to determine what else can be done for them,” Cacdac said. Kmax Ruler was docked at the port of Pivdennyi near Odesa, Ukraine, when the missile attack happened. The incident resulted in one fatality and injured the four Filipino sailors. Ukraine has been under renewed attacks from Russian forces since February 2022. Samuel P. Medenilla

140 foreign convicted sex offenders tried to enter PHL this year, says BI By Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

HE Bureau of Immigration (BI) on Thursday said a total of 140 foreign nationals who were previously convicted of sex crimes had attempted to enter the country this year. C o m m i s s io ne r Nor m a n Tansingco said these foreign nationals were all intercepted and returned from where they came from pursuant to the provisions of the Philippine Immigration Act prohibiting the entry into the country of aliens previously convicted of crimes involving moral turpitude. The latest to be denied entry was American national Terry Lynn Spies, 60, who was intercepted last November 3 upon arriving aboard an Eva Air flight from Taiwan. He was sent back to the US last November 4 via an Eva Air flight to Taipei en route to the US.

Earlier, Tansingco issued an alert order directing BI officers at the airports to prevent the entry of Spies if he is encountered and immediately book him on the first available flight to his port of origin. The BI chief issued the order after receiving information from the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that Spies was convicted in November 2012 by a court in Texas for engaging in online solicitation of a minor. He allegedly enticed a 14-yearold girl to meet him for “indecent purposes via telecommunications” in violation of Texas’ penal code. In light of this, Tansingco again warned foreign sex convicts to avoid traveling to the Philippines. “As gatekeepers of the country we are duty-bound as immigration officers to prevent the entry of aliens whose presence here poses a serious risk to our women and children,” Tansingco said.

Crime rate down by 8.24% from Jan to Oct 2023–PNP

By Rex Anthony Naval

n intensive anti-crime campaign resulted in a lower crime rate in the first 10 months of 2023 compared to the same period last year, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said on Wednesday. Citing figures from its Crime Information Reporting and Analysis System (CIRAS), the PNP noted a “remarkable reduction in various crime indices,” confirming the “resounding success” of its efforts. From January 1 to October 31 this year, it recorded 32,031 index crimes—2,877 fewer than the 34,908 recorded in the same period in 2022. The PNP also recorded 31,864 focus crimes in the first 10 months of 2023, 2,838, fewer than the 34,702 in the same period last year.

According to the PNP, this was an 8.24 percent decrease in Index Crime Volume and an overall 8.18 percent drop in focus crimes such as murder, robbery, theft, rape, and carjacking. “ T hese astound ing f ig ures serve as undeniable proof of the effectiveness of the PNP’s law enforcement initiatives,” it said. “These promising outcomes stand as a clear testament to the tireless and coordinated efforts of the PNP. Contrary to popular narratives, the statistics undeniably

demonstrate a noteworthy decline in the overall crime rate during the 10 months of 2023. This success reflects the PNP’s commitment to ‘Serbisyong Nagkakaisa’ and our unwavering vow to decisively suppress criminal activities, ensuring the safety and security of our communities,” PNP chief Gen. Benjamin Acorda Jr. said. Also, the PNP pointed out its proactive approach in its key campaigns against cybercrimes, carjacking, wanted individuals, and loose firearms. It said the campaign against carjacking involved a total of 482,963 operations, leading to the recovery of 973 vehicles, including 245 motor vehicles and 728 motorcycles, boasting an impressive recovery efficiency of 71.76 percent. Additionally, 972 suspects were arrested, and 542 cases have been filed in court. Efforts against wanted persons resulted in the voluntary surrender of 341 individuals, along with an impressive 63,486 arrests.

Environment groups to probe reported lead pollution in Pampanga, other areas

wo environmental groups will conduct a new round of le ad pol lut ion contamination tests in San Simon, Pampanga, and other areas to look into the reported pollution caused by the illegal operation of used lead-acid battery (ULAB) recyclers and lead smelters. T he yout h-ba sed env i ronmental advocate group SEED PH is partnering with Pure Earth Philippines in conducting a site inspection and investigation in the area. San Simon has been identified as an area where recyclers of ULAB and lead smelters are operating without necessary permits from concerned government agencies, including the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). In a letter to Pure Ear th, SEEDS PH Executive Director Dhel Pulanco noted a report made by Dr. Jesus L. Arranza, chairman of the Federation of Philippines Industries (FPI), stating that ULAB recyclers and smelters have been operating illegally in several areas in the country,

including Valenzuela, Bulacan, Pampanga, Tarlac, Cavite, Cebu, Bacolod, and Davao. The groups noted that barangay chairman Ramil Mangay of Barangay Dela Paz, San Simon, Pampanga reported to Mr. Arranza during an interview over SMNI Radio that chemicals are being dumped into the river near the Global Aseana Business Park in San Simon. He showed a video to prove this claim. Mangay said he was surprised that lead smelters are operating inside Global Aseana Business Park since the permits obtained by these companies were only for warehousing. Last September 2, the DENR initiated its crackdown against lead smelters upon orders from Ma l ac a ñ a ng. It h a s a l so i nst r uc ted its reg ion a l of f ices to conduc t su r vei l l a nce a nd monitoring of illegal smelters, with DENR Assistant Secretar y Gilbert Gonzales emphasizing the need for complete environmental permits for a smelter to operate as a facility to recycle and treat these UL ABs.

“ W hi le we commend the prompt response from the DENR, we believe that continuous and proactive engagement with them, and other stakeholders is necessary to ensure that ULABs are well regulated. This is an opportunity to initiate a nationw ide campaig n to work w ith communities and organizations in crafting a national policy on the treatment and recycling of radioactive wastes, and the creation of occupational safety and health standards for ULAB recycling facilities that will protect both workers and its surrounding communities,” SEEDS PH said. T he e nv i ron me nt a l g roup invited Pure Earth to a “coordinated site visit to all of the reported smelting facilities to determine their status and to assess, if any, the radioactive wastes present.” Dr. Monet Concepcion Maguyon-Detras, who heads Pure Earth’s campaign in the Philippines, has accepted the invitation of SEEDS PH for a joint undertaking. According to its website, Pure

DA warns on sale of ‘hazardous’ frozen meat in wet markets, adverse effect on industry

he Department of Agriculture (DA) has warned against the sale of frozen meat in the wet market as this can put human health at risk due to the absence of refrigeration facilities and a lack of know-how of vendors in handling the frozen commodity. DA Undersecretary Deogracias Victor B. Savellano said DA is collaborating with Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to weed off public wet markets of health hazardous frozen products. DA also advised consumers to look for the seal of the National Meat Inspection Service (NMIS) to ensure food safety. “This [type of meat] is dangerous to health. Look for the NMIS food safety seal and of LGU’s [local government units]

slaughterhouse documents. Imported frozen meat is not the problem, but their handling as fresh food in wet markets,” the DA said. DA A d m i n i st r at ive O rde r 6-2012 prohibits frozen meat from being sold in the wet market. Frozen meat should only be confined to hotels, restaurants, and supermarkets, which have the refrigeration facilities and handling expertise. Savellano said DA is also examining the price difference of poultry being sold in the market compared to farm-gate prices. While poultry’s price sold in the wet market has been increasing, farm-gate price has actually been decreasing. “Poultry farmers have been complaining against the low price

at which traders buy their produce,” he said. DA bel ieves t he e xcessive dumping of frozen meat in the wet market may be the cause why farm-gate price of poultry has been decreasing to the detriment of farmers. Also, Savellano expressed fears that poultry farmers might have been cutting maturity days for harvesting poultry—down to 27 or 28 days instead of 30 days. This, as they try to meet poultry demand in time for the Christmas holidays. However, instead of increasing their income from increased production, they may be suffering from low farm-gate price due to excessive frozen meat in the wet market. Savellano said DA’s objective is

Moreover, in the campaign against loose firearms, 7,914 individuals were arrested, and 25,174 firearms were recovered, surrendered, or confiscated due to violations of Republic Act 10591. An additional 15,191 firearms were voluntarily turned in for safekeeping, and 5,049 cases were filed in court. Mea nwh i le, t he c a mpa ig n against illegal drugs witnessed 37,801 operations, leading to the arrest of 48,454 individuals and a significant seizure of illegal drugs estimated at P9,731,467,292.96. On the other hand, the PNP Anti-Cybercrime Group arrested 732 persons and rescued 4,096 victims in 12 search warrant operations, 23 implementations of warrants to search, seize, and examine computer data, 238 serving of warrants of arrest, and 170 entrapment operations. The PNP said such a successful track record showcases its commitment to safeguarding public safety and maintaining the overall security of the nation.

Earth has been identifying and tackling toxic pollutants in the Philippines since 2008 through a ssessment of cont a m i n ated sites; pilot remediation’s, multistakeholder coordination, education, and industrial process reviews. To date, over 150 toxic sites have been assessed, and more than 25 percent were leadcontaminated. In addition to these assessments, Pure Earth has worked on the ground in priority areas, such as areas where ULAB recycling is prevalent—developing plans and implementing cleanup projects. Pulanco said they will initially test the water and soil in Global Aseana and its surrounding areas for lead pollution. “It is our position that we must take aggressive action towards the promotion of the proper recycling and treatment of UL ABs. There are existing state-ofthe-art technologies that can [be]recycled…into new car batteries that can reduce costs for consumers and vehicle owners. It can also protect the environment because the regulation of these smelters can prevent radioactive wastes from polluting our surroundings and causing health problems in our communities,” Pulanco said. Jonathan L. Mayuga

three-pronged, not just raise supply but also to raise production, bring down price for consumers, and raise farmers’ income. DA’s strateg y to meet these objectives is to increase feed production to lower price, repor ted Heaven Tor res of DA Livestock. “DA is now expanding planting of corn so as to bring down feed costs of poultry farmers. This should lead to lower price of chicken for Filipino consumers. Filipinos should be able to feel the low price of chicken,” she said. DA has also asked Malacañang to grant it the authority to manage and administer African swine fever and avian flu vaccine. DA said as soon as it is granted this jurisdiction (with which it has conflict with Food and Drug Administration), it can help hasten the processing of access of vaccines to the industries, which is critical in preventing the fast spread of the diseases.

Friday, November 10, 2023

Economy

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • www.businessmirror.com.ph

Microgrids eyed to frontload Neda Board okays ₧57-B agri supply chain, maritime security, TPLEX extension projects full electrification nationwide By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

HE National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) Board on Thursday approved over P57 billion worth of projects, which are expected to improve the country’s agriculture supply chain and maritime security. During its 11th Board meeting led by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., the Neda Board approved the PangAgraryong Tulay Para sa Bagong Bayanihan ng mga Magsasaka or the PBBM Bridges Project of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR). Under the project, 350 modular steel bridges with an estimated total length of 10,500 linear meters, will be constructed to enhance access and connectivity for agrarian reform communities. “The approved project aims to increase the productivity and income of at least 350,000 households,” Neda Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said at

a news briefing in Malacañang. He said the project will improve mobility and access in the affected communities providing them with more employment opportunities and access to social services and market outlets.

Maritime security TO help boost the capability of the Philippine Coast Guard, the Neda Board approved the agency’s Phase 3 of its Maritime Safety Capability Improvement Project. The P29.3-billion project will be financed through an Official Development Assistance (ODA) loan from Japan. As part of the condition of the ODA, Japan will select the firm, which will design, construct, and deliver the five units of multi- role response vessels (MRRVs), which will be turned over to the PCG. T he PCG project also includes a f ive -yea r i nteg rated log i st ic s support.

“The project will enable the Coast Guard to secure important sea lines of communication in the West Philippine Sea, Sulu-Celebes Seas, and the Philippine Sea,” Balisacan said. “It will also help the PCG combat illegal activities and enforce maritime laws in the Philippine waters,” he added.

Revised parameters UPON the recommendation of its Investment Coordination Committee, the Neda Board approved the revised parameters, terms, and conditions of the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway (TPLEX) Extension Project. “Follow ing this approva l, the DPWH [Department of Public Works and Highways] will proceed with the publication of the invitation for comparative proposals in accordance with the Revised 2022 BuildOperate-Transfer Law Implementing Rules and Regulations, as well as the ICC Guidelines on Processing PPP

Salceda calls for implementation of forward looking policies, priorities after Q3 growth

ITH third-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) growth figures, an economist-lawmaker on Thursday said the nation’s economic performance in this period offers “promising opportunities” for the future, and the government should now capitalize on these favorable conditions to implement forwardlooking policies and priorities. With inflation back under control and growth back on track, House Committee on Ways and Means Chairman Joey Sarte Salceda said President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has the space and the opportunity to work on policies and priorities that are forward-looking.

6% growth target doable– Romualdez HOUSE Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, for his part, said he is confident that the nation can achieve its 6-percent target with collaboration between the Marcos administration and the private sector. Romualdez made the statement in reaction to the Philippine Statistics Authority’s (PSA) report that the

economy grew by 5.9 percent in the third quarter of this year. Romualdez said two factors would result in faster economic expansion in the last quarter—increased consumer spending during the Christmas season, yearend disbursements, and project completion by government agencies. “The government is the principal driver of growth. We expect state offices to ramp up project and program implementation and activities. Funds released to them are meant to be spent, not saved, though expenditures should comply with relevant accounting, auditing, transparency, and accountability regulations,” Romualdez pointed out. He said the House would not hesitate to exercise its oversight power to check on the spending of agencies.

‘Position of strength’ “PBBM is bac k in a posit ion of strength, and that is leverage for more long-term reforms,” Salceda added. After a challenging second quarter marked by a negative 7.1 percent year-on-year contraction in government spending, the third quarter saw a remarkable turnaround with

a positive 6.7 percent growth, said the lawmaker. He said this uptick in government spending has had a ripple effect on various sectors of the economy, particularly in the construction industry, which recorded a robust 12.4 percent growth on the expenditure side and a remarkable 14.0 percent growth on the industry side. “We have to sustain the government’s spending catch up plan, especially at the local government unit level. Budgeted programs and plans that were put on hold because of the barangay and SK [Sangguniang Kabataan] election spending ban should be pursued vigorously to completion this year,” he said. Salceda emphasized the importance of maintaining the momentum in government spending, especially at the local government unit level. “Mining is also back in the green at 4.5 percent growth, its best performance since Q3 of 2022, PBBM’s first quarter in office,” he added. Despite these positive developments, Sa lced a underscored t he need to address challenges in the agricultural sector.

[public private partnership] proposals,” Balisacan said. The TPLEX Extension Project, which was approved last June, involves a 59.4-kilometer toll road, which will connect from the last exit of TPLEX in Rosario, La Union and terminate in San Juan, La Union. “This is expected to stimulate economic activity, alleviate road congestion, provide better and safer road access, and promote the development of new growth centers in nearby regions,” Balisacan said. The Neda chief said they are currently making studies on the further extension of the TPLEX so it will reach Ilocos provinces and other agricultural areas in North Luzon. Neda currently has 197 Infrastructure Flagship Projects (IFP) under the Build-Better-More Program of the Marcos administration. One of the said IFPs, particularly the Samar Pacific Coastal Road Project, was already completed, according to Balisacan.

“We need to keep working on agricultural growth, however. For the sector to maintain its peso-level contribution to GDP per capita, it should grow by at least 2 percent every year. Average growth so far this year has been 1.1 percent. The appointment of a DA [Department of Agriculture] Secretary who comes from the leading investment drivers of the agriculture sector should bolster the effort to meet this target,” Salceda said. In a global context, Salceda said the figures also reveal signs of weakness in global trade, saying imports of goods experienced a significant decline, dropping from -5.0 percent in the previous quarter to -8.1 percent. Likewise, he said exports of goods decelerated from -0.9 percent to -2.6 percent, indicating subdued global demand partly due to high Federal Reserve (Fed) interest rates. “In the absence of a strong global trade environment, we must strengthen our fundamental domestic industries, especially agriculture and domestic manufacturing,” he said. “Moving forward, Filipinos can expect that while global conditions will remain volatile and uncertain, the President has more tools to work with, thanks to good growth numbers for the past quarter,” Salceda added.

Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

ENATOR Sherwin Gatchalian, citing microgrids to boost full electrification nationwide, commended the Department of Energy’s (DOE) launch of its competitive selection process (CSP) for microgrid systems providers (MGSP), citing the move as “a substantial leap towards full electrification across the nation.” “We are confident that the development of microgrid systems in the country would significantly boost electrification efforts in rural communities that, in turn would hopefully alleviate economic conditions in those areas,” said Gatchalian, author of Republic Act 11646 or the Microgrid Systems Act, which signed into law in January last year. The senator, presiding chairman of the Senate energy panel, cited the current status of electrification in the country stands at 96.17 percent, noting that as of December 2022, a total of 879,232 households are still without electricity, based on a 2015 census report released by the DOE. In Luzon, electrification stands at 98.89 percent as 148,435 families or households are still without electricity. In the Visayas, electrification stands at 97.61 percent and 105,110 households still do not have electricity, while in Mindanao, household electrification is at 88.12 percent with 625,687 households still lacking access to electricity, he added.

To initiate the development of microgrid systems in the country, the senator noted the energy department already published an invitation for prospective investors to participate in the CSP. Gatchalian noted that the Microgrid Systems Ac t mandates the energy department to declare the unserved and underserved areas for electrification and service by prospective microgrid systems. It is expected to pave the way for the entry of private sector investors to be accredited as microgrid service providers “as they won’t be required to obtain waivers from incumbent distribution utilities.” “The government has under taken various electrification programs over the past decades and yet, many communities still don’t get to enjoy the benefits and advantages of having electricity. With the imminent development of microgrid systems, we may see sooner than later the electrification of the entire country,” Gatchalian said. The senator, at the same time, took note that “according to the energy department, the winning MGSPs will be in charge of the construction, installation, maintenance, and operations of microgrid systems to provide electricity services around the clock for all existing and projected households in selected remote areas.” Butch Fernandez

New DA chief’s proposal to reactivate BAS hits snag

HE Department of Agriculture (DA) may find it difficult to reactivate the Bureau of Agriculture Statistics (BAS) as its return would require the amendment of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) charter. This was according to Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan who said it might be more advantageous for the DA to create a statistics unit within the agency to generate data. On his first day in office, newly appointed Department of Agriculture Secretary (DA) Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said he is planning to reactivate the BAS to manage data on production and demand amid over-importation issues on agricultural products. (https://businessmirror.com. ph/2023/11/07/tiu-laurel-bares-planto-reactivate-das-bas/). “Kung yung agency na nag -iimplement ng sariling program, yan na din ang gagamitin mong data for your income accounts, how sure are you that [the data is above board]? Kailangan independent, there is science to follow,” Balisacan said. “Yung pag -collect ng data ng agency, depende sa requirements kung ano ang gusto nila makita. Yung pag - collect ng data ng statistics agency, iba yun. Gusto mo representative nationally, kung may regional breakdown, gusto mo representative at the regional level, not necessarily na nagtutugma yun sa interes ng agency at statistical system,” he explained.

The BAS is one of the four agencies that were merged to create the PSA. The three other agencies include the Bureau of Labor and Employment Statistics (BLES), which was under the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). The two other agencies, former attached agencies of the Neda, were the National Statistics Office (NSO) and the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB). Part of the reasons for the creation of the PSA through the merger of the four agencies aimed to give rise to an independent statistical agency not directly involved in the management and implementation of certain agency-related projects. Nonetheless, Balisacan said strengthening the data capacity of agencies like the DA through the creation of a unit within the agency would be beneficial and would help improve the country’s data ecosystem. “I don’t see any conflict because in the first place any organization, any department should have strong data for their administrative and management purposes. The data that we collect in PSA are very different data. They are the data that we need to compile the National Income Accounts, not sensitive to the requirements of DA,” Balisacan said. On Monday, Tiu Laurel was asked how he would address the issue of over-importation of meats and poultr y products. The Agriculture chief said he would have to look at the data of production versus demand. Cai U. Ordinario

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Friday, November 10, 2023

G7 reaffirms vow to support 2016 arbitral ruling in SCS By Malou Talosig-Bartolome

@maloutalosig

OREIGN ministers from the Group of Seven, the leading industrialized democracies in the world, reiterated their support to the 2016 arbitration ruling that invalidates China’s expansive claim over the South China Sea (SCS).

Top diplomats from G7 countries—the United Kingdom, France, Japan, Canada, Germany, Italy and the United States—as well as from the European Union met for two days in Tokyo in part to try to contain the humanitarian crisis in Gaza Strip. They also discussed other world and regional security and economic issues. “We reiterate that the award rendered by the Arbitral Tribunal on July 12, 2016, is a significant milestone, which is legally binding upon the parties to those proceedings, and a useful basis for peacefully resolving disputes between the parties,” the ministers said in a joint By Henry Empeño

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT—Authorities in this Freeport are keeping an eagle-eyed watch for attempts by unscrupulous traders to smuggle agricultural products through Subic, as imported vegetables begin flooding the local market in time for the Christmas season. On Wednesday, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) Port of Subic apprehended nine 40-foot container trucks containing fresh potatoes, carrots, These technologies are developed and funded by DOST and its attached agencies, as well as in collaboration with local government units and the private sector.

Heart and soul of ‘Handa’

SCIENCE Secretary Dr. Renato Solidum Jr. said in his opening message that collaboration is the heart and soul of Handa Pilipinas, with the aim of the exhibit to increase public awareness of preventable and solvable prob-

communiqué released Thursday. This is the seventh year of G7’s reiteration of support to the Philippine challenge before a United Nations-backed tribunal on China’s ownership claim over the entire SCS based on maps which drew nine broken lines around it. China neither joined the arbitration hearings, nor it recognized the validity of the tribunal ruling. Foreign ministers said they remain “seriously concerned ” about the situation in the East China Sea and South China Sea and “strongly” opposed any “unilateral attempts to change the status quo

by force or coercion.” “We reemphasize the universal and unified character of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea [UNCLOS] and reaffirm UNCLOS’s important role in setting out the legal framework that governs all activities in the oceans and the seas,” it added. The G7 and the EU, however, said they “stand prepared” to build constructive and stable relations with China. “ We a c t i n ou r n at ion a l interests,” they said. The ministers said their policies on China “are not designed to harm China” and do not seek to stop the Asian superpower’s economic progress and development. “We are not decoupling or turning inwards. At the same time, we recognize the resilience requires de-risking and diversifying,” they explained. Their approach is to engage China “candidly,” express their concerns “directly to China,” and “work together with China on global challenges” and other common interests. G7 and EU countries, however, accused China of distorting the global economy using “nonmarket policies and practices.” “We will counter malign practices, such as illegitimate technol-

ogy transfer or data disclosure. We will foster resilience to economic coercion,” the ministers said. A report to the US Congress said Chinese companies were able to access advanced technology from US companies such as artificial intelligence, biotechnology and virtual reality through foreign direct investments, venture capital investments, joint ventures, licensing agreements, cyber espionage and talent acquisition programs. These modern technologies, the Americans feared, could also have military uses. “We also recognize the necessity of protecting certain advanced technologies that could be used to threaten our national security without unduly limiting trade and investment,” they added.

China told: Stop assisting Russia in war vs Ukraine

G7 ministers called on China to “act as a responsible member” of the international community and welcome China’s participation in the Ukraine-led peace process. “We further call on China not to assist Russia in its war against Ukraine, to press Russia to stop its military aggression, and to support a just and lasting peace in Ukraine,” they stressed.

trict Customs Collector Ciriaco Ugay and officials from the Bureau of Plant Industry, said the seized cargo arrived on November 3. Authorities flagged the shipment, he added, as the declaration stated that it contained at least 40,000 cartons of frozen lobster balls. Tan lauded the vigilance of Subic port officials, adding that both the SBMA and the Subic BOC

“are very much serious in implementing the President’s mandate to go after agricultural smugglers and end illicit trade in the country.” Port authorities, however, are expected to heighten monitoring of shipments as more smuggling attempts occur before and during the Christmas season. In December last year, the BOC seized P171 million worth

PBBM: SCIENCE, INNOVATION KEY TO LOWER DISASTER RISK lems that the country faces today through Filipino-made technologies—Filipino brand of resilience. “Although Filipinos are often branded as victims of disasters, with science, technology, and innovat ion, w it h ou r mu lt istakeholder collaboration, and the Filipino bayanihan spirit, we can be victors over disasters and

not victims,” he said. Solidum viewed the word “handa” from two perspectives: both an aspiration to become a community and country prepared against hazards and risks, and a call to action to empower citizens and all stakeholders to be resilient and “handa” [prepared]. The opening ceremony was also attended by Interior and Local

GovernmentSecretary Benhur Abalos, SpeakerFerdinandMartinRomualdez, and Leyte Governor Jericho Petilla. Abalos noted that while the DILG’s disaster risk reduction management efforts have been “relentless,” much more need to be accomplished, “not only in the Visayas but the whole country.” Petilla, meanwhile, shared that

NGCP tags ERC review unfair, justifies expenses Alabanza said employees’ bonuses are legitimate business expenses as they are part of operational expenses that are usually included in the cost of a product being charged by a business for a particular service or product. “This was done by TransCo, during the government period but it was not questionable,” she emphasized. ERC chairperson Monalisa Dimalanta told reporters on Thursday morning that her office would have to verify this claim, while noting that the Commission on Audit (CoA) checks on TransCo’s operational and financial performance. “We still have to take another look if indeed these were allowed for TransCo, but it may not be reasonable to compare TransCo and NGCP because one is a government company and another is a government concessionaire. If you recall, the government privatized the transmission operations not to simply continue doing what TransCo has been doing but to improve on it, be more efficient and cost-effective and pass on to consumers the benefits of privatization,” said the ERC chief. As for the public relations and advertising expenses, Alabanza said that is not a

JSCC launches first-ever ‘green justice’ zone in Palawan today THE Justice Sector Coordinating Council (JSCC) will officially open today, Friday, the Puerto Princesa City Justice Zone (PPCJZ), the first Green Justice Zone in the country that will tackle pressing environmental issues within its jurisdiction. The launch will be led by Supreme Court Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla, Interior and Local Government Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr., and Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga. Associate Justice Maria Filomena D. Singh, chairperson of the JSCC Technical Working Group on Processes and Capacity Building, Palawan Governor Victorino Dennis Socrates, Puerto Princesa City Mayor Lucito Bayron and other key government officials are also expected to attend the launch program. The project aims to showcase the national-local government collaboration for efficient and effective delivery of justice in environmental protection and natural resources management. “With the Green Justice Zone, it would enhance capacity and coordination among justice sectors to come up with solutions and strategies on how to best address concerns on the handling and adjudication of environmental cases, among others,” the JSCC explained. The justice zone is the flagship program of the JSCC that is intended to establish better coordination among justice sector stakeholders

Subic port keeps tight watch for ‘hot’ agriculture products radish, and broccoli amounting to millions of pesos. SBMA Chairman and Administrator Jonathan D. Tan said the nine containers were all declared to be filled with frozen lobster balls, which were consigned to Rianne Food Products, a food importer-exporter and wholesaler based in Pasay City. Tan, who inspected the misdeclared goods with Subic Dis-

marketing initiative, but cover information campaigns, including safety and rightof-way clearance. “We often air ads on local and national radio and newspaper outlets to warn the public of the dangers surrounding our transmission lines, because it is our obligation to the people,” she said. Alabanza said ERC rules also mandate the NGCP to conduct corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts to give back to the communities affected by the transmission lines and towers. “During the time of TransCo, apart from the fact that they did not have CSR, their lands were also not paid for. Taking care of relationships with people was not focused, so that became our mandate,” she explained. The ERC said it will consider NGCP’s comments, if meritorious, in the final determination for the 4th RP, whichthe ERC will issue after the evaluation and review of Phase 2 targeted for completion before yearend. On the basis of the final determination, adjustments will be made, as necessary, to NGCP’s allowed revenues for 2016-2022 and the corresponding transmission rates. Dimalanta acknowledged ERC’s failure to conduct a regulatory reset, as required every five years. “This happened because the

revision every five years did not happen. Now we’re crammed. We are now chasing what is needed for us to move forward. Because we will not move forward if we do not fix those things that should have been fixed before,” Dimalanta said in a radio interview. In response, Alabanza said the matter stemmed from the ERC’s failure to address its two requests for a regulatory reset. “Before you play, you should know the rules, so to apply this retroactively, we think that decision like that lacks fairness,” she said, insisting that rules should be forwardlooking to have a level playing field. Dimalanta said putting the blame on the commission is not going to help NGCP address the issues raised by her office. “Even if we were to keep arguing on who is to blame, we cannot ignore the fact this Commission is now doing the reset and NGCP is given all opportunity to participate in the process and justify expenses. We want to complete this reset and fulfill our mandate,” the ERC chief said.

CSR spending

NGCP on Thursday defended its expenses for CSR and public relations (PR) as bonafide transactions part and parcel of the expenses

of smuggled onions and other agricultural products from China in a series of investigations in Subic and at the Manila International Container Port (MICP). Customs officials said most of the shipments were declared as frozen products like prawn balls, lobsters and crabsticks, as well as udon noodles. Closer inspection, however, yielded red and white onions, along with other agricultural

Continued from A18 when he was interviewed asking how the region is after 10 years, he was quick to answer: “We’re okay,” with hardly any signs of the disaster. “We can never prepare enough because we don’t know what kind of disasters will hit, however, we have to be prepared at the maximum, not enough but at the maximum,” he said.

Continued from A18

applied, reviewed, and approved by the ERC. An article published by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism alleged that the NGCP billed P2.4 billion worth of CSR and PR expenses to consumers. NGCP explained that these expenses are part of the business expenses applied and approved by the ERC. “Like any other business, all legitimate business expenses are included to determine pricing. NGCP is a highly regulated entity where our revenue is capped, margins are determined by regulators, expenses reviewed and rationalized, and our recoveries regulated. Whatever we bill our customers is only what the regulator allows us to,” said NGCP. NGCP clarified the legitimacy and need for these expenses, especially in consideration of communities affected by transmission projects. “NGCP allocates a certain amount of allowed revenue to CSR projects. Transmission line projects, to some extent, become a burden to project-affected persons living in areas traversed by these lines. To alleviate these communities hosting our projects, NGCP implements

CSR projects to help these communities thrive and develop. These expenses were found to be in order by the ERC after careful calibration and were duly approved. These are all legitimate business expenses to ensure reliable and efficient transmission services,” NGCP explained. The PCIJ article also pointed to salaries and employee benefits, totaling P20.9 billion from 2016 to 2020. Based on the article, NGCP employs about 4,700 employees, which means each employee earned P4.4 million a year on average, or about P371,000 a month. NGCP, however, clarified that this is inaccurate, and that the amount covers a five-year period, from 2016-2020. “When divided by 4,700 employees, on a five-year period, this would result in P889,000 per year or roughly PhP68,000 per month for 13 months [including Christmas bonus]. This already includes overtime, night shift differential, and other performance-based bonuses,” NGCP said. NGCP reiterated that it comprises only 3.5 percent of what consumers pay for in their monthly electricity bill. This means, for every P100, only P3.5 goes to NGCP as transmission charge.

at the local level, including police, prosecutors, public attorneys, judges and prison staff. Justice Singh earlier said justice zones “are areas or localities where several inter-agency coordinative reforms are present based on preidentified elements, which cover the entire lifetime of a case—from start-up, to case adjudication, and post judgment incidents.” Prior to this, the JSCC launched last June 2023 the first Economic Development and Tourism Justice Zone in Tagaytay and the first ever Trafficking-Free Justice Zone in Zamboanga last February 2023. The JSCC said the Tagaytay City Justice Zone will focus on economic development and tourism, with the objective of ushering in a more speedy, efficient, and effective administration of Justice in Tagaytay City that is accessible to all. It also expressed optimism that the project will “attract tourists and investors and further improve the city’s economic viability. CJ Gesmundo earlier said that in establishing the Zamboanga City Justice Zone, “the Judicial and the Executive Branches of government are standing together and taking a zero-tolerance policy against all forms of human trafficking in our country.” Justice Zones have also been launched in Quezon City, Cebu City, Davao City, Angeles City, Bacolod City, Naga City, Calamba City, Balanga City and Baguio City. Joel R. San Juan

products from China. Some P15 million worth of “hot” vegetables illegally shipped from China were also seized by the BOC in Subic in December 2021 after five 40-footer container vans declared to contain frozen assorted vegetables were flagged for non-compliance with the approved sanitary and phytosanitary import clearance on temperature requirement. The shipment, however, contained chilled water bamboo, mushrooms, broccoli, and other vegetables that were considered illegal for importation into the country.

ALC Group head advocates Pinoy tradition at peace gab Continued from A18 “This Filipino tradition is more than a greeting. It speaks of honor. It conveys love. It transmits hope. It echoes respect. With all these ingrained in that singular act, peace will be in our hearts,” he stated. The keynote address was delivered by Mr. Youngjun Kim, vice chairman of United Press International. Aside from Cabangon, the event saw the participation of media industry personalities who offered their valuable perspectives on promoting peace through media: Herminio “Sonny” B. Coloma Jr., Executive Vice-President of The Manila Bulletin Publishing Corporation; Michael Alexander M. Ang, Director of the Manila Times and Honorary Consul to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan; Atty. Dominador D. Buhain Jr., Chairman of the Rex Group of Companies and Rex Education; Francia Camacho Conrado, President of FAMAS; Joseph R. Bejerano, Director & Press Relations Officer of FICTAP; Noel C. Galvez, Executive Vice President of Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas; broadcaster and social media journalist Jing Castañeda and vlogger and columnist Bianca S. Valerio.

Friday, November 10, 2023

BusinessMirror

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Friday, November 10, 2023

A6 A8

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Friday, November 10, 2023

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

7 PRIME TECH, INC. 10/f Ewestpod, Eton Westend Square, Yakal St. Cor. Don Chino Roces Ave., San Antonio, City Of Makati AYU WAHYUNI Indonesian Speaking Customer Service Officer 1.

Brief Job Description: Manage a large amount of calls, handle customers concerns. JODY Indonesian Speaking Customer Service Officer

Brief Job Description: Manage a large amount of calls, handle customers concerns. RUT VALENSIA SIHITE Indonesian Speaking Customer Service Officer

Brief Job Description: Manage a large amount of calls, handle customers concerns. YOHANES WINATA Indonesian Speaking Customer Service Officer

Brief Job Description: Manage a large amount of calls, handle customers concerns.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: To monitor incoming and outgoing job orders from client.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Develop a strategy.

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

Brief Job Description: Exercise general management, supervision, control and direction over the business and affairs of the Company.

Basic Qualification: College graduate. With extensive background and experience in sales & marketing of pharmaceutical products.

10.

EDDY SUGIANTO Indonesian Speaking Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Identify and assess customers need to achieve satisfaction. CHEN, PO-CHIH Mandarin Speaking Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Identify and assess customers need to achieve satisfaction. CAO HOAI VAN PHAT Vietnamese Speaking Customer Service Representative

11.

12.

13.

14.

Brief Job Description: Manage incoming and outgoing calls, chats, and emails.

TRAN THI HIEN Vietnamese Speaking Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Manage incoming and outgoing calls, chats and emails. TRAN TUAN VINH Vietnamese Speaking Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Manage incoming and outgoing calls, chats, and emails.

TRAN, VAN DUC Vietnamese Speaking Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Manage incoming and outgoing calls, chats, and emails.

18.

Basic Qualification: Excellent in Indonesian language. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

19.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Vietnamese. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking reading and writing in Vietnamese.

20.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Vietnamese. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

No.

Brief Job Description: Responding to Vietnamese customer queries via email, live chat, video, phone, and social media channels.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

TOOHEY, MARK EDMUND Senior Vice President - Special Projects 21.

Brief Job Description: Report to the Chief Operating Officer (COO) with a focus on roll-out related sites, co-location activities.

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with cross-functional teams to translate digital strategies.

DANIEL Indonesian Quality Control 29.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Mandarin. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Track main industry trends in Indonesian through blogs, micro blogs and forums.

DEFFA AMRU AFAN RANGKUTI Indonesian Quality Control 30.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Mandarin. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Track main industry trends in Indonesian through blogs, micro blogs and forums.

HANDIKA Indonesian Quality Control 31.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Mandarin. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 32. Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Mandarin. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Vietnamese speaking

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION WILLIS LIMIANTO Indonesian It Support Specialist

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Mandarin.

Brief Job Description: Track main industry trends in Indonesian through blogs, micro blogs and forums.

DEDE LESMANA Indonesian Retention Specialist Brief Job Description: Manage large amount of incoming calls.

SUBHAN PANCA RISKY Indonesian Retention Specialist 33.

Brief Job Description: Create and manage products in conjunction with marketing strategies to Indonesian retention specialist.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

FRONTIER TOWER ASSOCIATES PHILIPPINES INC. Unit E-3rd Floor Active Fun Building, 9th Avenue 28th Street Bonifacio Global City, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig Basic Qualification: College graduate. With at least 20+ years of experience in executive leadership position focusing on project management of telecommunication projects. Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

22.

23.

HERY Indonesian Account Specialist Brief Job Description: Maintaining hardware and software installations.

JUANDA Indonesian Account Specialist Brief Job Description: Maintaining hardware and software installations.

LEONARDO CAHYAWIRA Indonesian Finance Officer 24.

Brief Job Description: Evaluating reporting system in place and developing new ones. RACHMADI PUTRA Indonesian Finance Officer

25.

Brief Job Description: Evaluating reporting system in place and developing new ones.

Basic Qualification: Exceptional ability to provide technical support and resolve queries

LIU, RENHUA Machine Feeder 34.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for the unloading of the finished goods from machine.

SUNDIN, MATS HÅKAN Technical Consultant 35.

26.

Brief Job Description: Maintaining hardware and software installations.

VANESSA CLARENCE Indonesian Financial System Manager 27.

Brief Job Description: Collaborate with top mgt., to develop compelling content to publish through corporate & media.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Foreign language speaking. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Foreign language speaking. Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

Basic Qualification: Must be 4 years’ college graduate in any related field. Fluent in both Indonesian and English languages. Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

Basic Qualification: With good oral and written communication skills. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Technical consultant is responsible for troubleshooting of the devices and tools which they developed.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable on vertical transport systems. Knowledgeable on elevator parts, trouble shooting and equipment’s. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES PHILS. INC. 53/f Pbcom Tower, 6795 Ayala Ave., Cor., V.a. Rufino St., Bel-air, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: Foreign language speaking. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Foreign language speaking.

LIU, KANGZHAO Commercial Manager for Huawei Philippines Digital Power Business

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Will serve as the commercial & contract manager, contract design and writing, commercial & legal reviewer, data center business contract management, design and optimization of business rules and structure, routinely analyze global annual transaction data, identify transaction risks and release proactive operation reports, participate in the digital transformation of it system, organize and participate in the review and decision-making of sales projects and design various transaction models and commercial solutions.

36. JEFFREY Indonesian Financial System Consultant

Basic Qualification: Foreign language speaking.

HD METROSUMMIT HOLDINGS INC. 129, Congressional Ave., Bahay Toro, Quezon City

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: Exceptional ability to provide technical support and resolve queries.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

GREAT EARTH FOOD INDUSTRIAL INCORPORATED Rm 1212 State Center Bldg., 333 Juan Luna St., 027, Barangay 287, Binondo, City Of Manila

GIGA INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT INC. 31/f Pbcom Tower 6795 Ayala Ave., Cor. V.a. Rufino St.,, Bel-air, City Of Makati 2/f Lipam’s Building, 40 Presidents Avenue, B. F. Homes, City Of Parañaque

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Vietnamese.

Brief Job Description: Recommends potential products or services to management by collecting information and analyzing computer needs. NGO THI MO Vietnamese Speaking Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Mandarin. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Recommends potential products or services to management by collecting information and analyzing computer needs. YUAN, QIHAO Mandarin Speaking Customer Service Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

DIGICHROM INC. Unit 2001-a, 2602 & 2603 20/f & 26/f Pbcom Tower, 6795 Ayala Ave. Cor. V.a. Rufino St., Bel-air, City Of Makati

Brief Job Description: Recommends potential products or services to management by collecting information and analyzing computer needs.

WEN, ZHONGQUAN Mandarin Speaking Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: Can speak Mandarin.

BROWN & BURK PHILIPPINES, INC. U-501 5/f Seddco I Bldg., Rada Cor. Legaspi Sts., San Lorenzo, City Of Makati SHARMA, KRISHAN DUTT President and Director, Sales & Marketing, Philippines

17.

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

Brief Job Description: Maintain accurate sales record.

Brief Job Description: Recommends potential products or services to management by collecting information and analyzing computer needs. LIU, JUNYUAN Mandarin Speaking Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: To help in the transaction with Arabic speaking customer and clients.

Basic Qualification: Can speak Mandarin.

HUA, XIAOJING Mandarin Operations Team Leader

16.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

LIU, ZHANGRUI Mandarin Operations Specialist

Brief Job Description: Recommends potential products or services to management by collecting information and analyzing computer needs. JU, YUE Mandarin Speaking Customer Service Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

AB LEISURE EXPONENT, INC. 5/f Sm Megamall Bldg. D, J Vargas, Wack-wack Greenhills, City Of Mandaluyong

15.

Basic Qualification: Foreign language speaking.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

28. CHEN, SIHUA Mandarin Speaking Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: Foreign language speaking. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

EASYTECH SUPPORT INC. 9-11/f, 14/f Capella Bldg., Asean Drive Filinvest, Alabang, City Of Muntinlupa

Basic Qualification: Foreign language speaking.

AAV TALENT TRAINING AND MANAGEMENT, INC. R. Salas St. Rm 201-202 , 203-204, Jalandoni Bldg. 1444, Barangay 669, Ermita, City Of Manila MOHAMED EZZAT MOHAMED TAHA Marketing Manager

No.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Basic Qualification: Exceptional ability to provide technical support and resolve queries. Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

Basic Qualification: Fluent in both Indonesian & English languages. Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

Basic Qualification: Has at least 3-year work experience holding a senior managerial role for contract design and fulfillment management, has ability to design various transaction models and commercial solutions, with extensive training on product, financial, commercial and law management, must have passed the topic English test, with technical skills in python programming, data analytics, business negotiation, must have a bachelor’s degree in management or any other related courses. Preferably with master’s degree an advantage and highly proficient in Chinese and English language. Salary Range: Php 90,000 - Php 149,999

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

LAI, TONGLONG Solution Manager For Huawei Intelligent Collaboration Product Sales

37.

Brief Job Description: To promote the sales of Huawei intelligent collaboration products in the Philippines, in charge with intelligent collaboration project support, to oversee intelligent collaboration partner development, manage intelligent collaboration partner capability improvement, participate in intelligent collaboration marketing activity planning and participate intelligent collaboration market insight.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Has at least 3-year work experience holding a senior managerial role for contract design and fulfillment management, has ability to design various transaction models and commercial solutions, with extensive training on product, financial, commercial and law management, must have passed the topic English test, with technical skills in python programming, data analytics, business negotiation, must have a bachelor’s degree in management or any other related courses. Preferably with master’s degree an advantage and highly proficient in Chinese and English language.

No.

MERRY CHRISTINA Indonesian Customer Support Specialist 52.

WONG WEN JIE Malaysian Project Manager

38.

Brief Job Description: Planning, monitoring and documenting tasks throughout a project.

53.

LIU, LIN Mandarin Customer Service Representative 39.

Brief Job Description: Maintain proper records of all transactions / complaints that have taken place.

54.

MA, WENLONG Mandarin Customer Service Representative 40.

Brief Job Description: Maintain proper records of all transactions / complaints that have taken place. HU, JIAN Mandarin Speaking Helpdesk Support

41.

Brief Job Description: Provides answer to clients by identifying problems, researching and guiding the clients. HU, ZHONGYAO Mandarin Speaking Helpdesk Support

42.

Brief Job Description: Provides answer to clients by identifying problems, researching and guiding the clients. LIANG, JIANQIANG Mandarin Speaking Project Manager

43.

Brief Job Description: Planning, monitoring and documenting tasks throughout a project. INMEE, TANAPORN Thai Finance Manager

44.

Brief Job Description: Collecting, interpreting and reviewing financial information. PATCHARIN, PA-OR Thai Finance Manager

45.

Brief Job Description: Collecting, interpreting and reviewing financial information. TRAN NGOC LINH Vietnamese Finance Specialist

46.

Brief Job Description: Collecting, interpreting and reviewing financial information.

47.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

SUSANDY Indonesian Customer Support Representative 48.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

CRISTINA LIE Indonesian Customer Support Specialist 49.

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

HOKKY BUDIMAN Indonesian Customer Support Specialist 50.

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

LAINA WAHYUNI Indonesian Customer Support Specialist 51.

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

56.

57.

58.

59.

60.

61.

62.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

HA DUY HUNG Vietnamese Customer Support Specialist 63.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Indonesian and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

LY NGOC THANH Vietnamese Customer Support Specialist 64.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Indonesian and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

NGUYEN LE CHI THANH CONG Vietnamese Customer Support Specialist 65.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Indonesian and at least college level with related BPO experience. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in INDONESIAN and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

CHU, XUAN DUY Vietnamese Customer Support Representative

Basic Qualification: Excellent in Mandarin language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

NING, LIANGBING Mandarin Customer Support Specialist

Basic Qualification: Excellent in Mandarin language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

LIU, QIANG Mandarin Customer Support Specialist

Basic Qualification: Excellent in Mandarin language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

CHEN, ZHIHAO Mandarin Customer Support Specialist

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

YOU, XINGLONG Mandarin Customer Support Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent in Mandarin language.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

WANG, YUGUANG Mandarin Customer Support Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent in Mandarin language.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

LIN, XUEJING Mandarin Customer Support Representative

Basic Qualification: Excellent in Mandarin language.

INVECH TREASURE PROCESSING CORPORATION 2nd, 3rd, 4th & 5th Floor Building E, Six West Campus, Le Grand Avenue, Mckinley Hill, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig SAMSUAR Indonesian Customer Support Representative

55.

Basic Qualification: Excellent in Mandarin language. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

LI, HAOYI Mandarin Customer Support Representative

Basic Qualification: Excellent in Mandarin language. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

LAN, CHENGQIANG Mandarin Customer Support Representative

Basic Qualification: Excellent in Mandarin language. Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

NELISA Indonesian Customer Support Specialist

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999 IDEAL FOCUS SERVICES INC. 24/f Pbcom Tower, 6795 Ayala Ave. Cor. V.a. Rufino, Bel-air, City Of Makati

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

NGUYEN NGOC HOANG Vietnamese Customer Support Specialist 66.

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Indonesian and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

No.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Indonesian and at least college level with related BPO experience.

68.

69.

70.

71.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in MANDARIN and at least college level with related BPO experience. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in MANDARIN and at least college level with related BPO experience. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin and at least college level with related BPO experience.

MATSUMOTO, GORO General Manager (building) 72.

73.

67.

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in VIETNAMESE and at least college level with related BPO experience. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Vietnamese and at least college level with related BPO experience. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Vietnamese and at least college level with related BPO experience. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: College graduate. With at least 15 years of work experience in building and industrial plants construction field. Good and efficient verbal and written communication skills. Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

Brief Job Description: Specializes in installing, maintaining and upgrading internal computer hardware and software systems used for designing and developing products;

Basic Qualification: Strong knowledge in All AIX version when it comes to administration and troubleshooting. VIOS provisioning. AIX tuning. Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

MARKETROLE ASIA PACIFIC SERVICES, INC. 27/f & 28/f The Enterprise Center Tower 1, 6766 Ayala Ave. Cor. Paseo De Roxas, San Lorenzo, City Of Makati CAO DUC CUONG Customer Service Representative 74.

Brief Job Description: Provide outstanding and exceptional customer service.

LA, THI KIM PHUONG Customer Service Representative 75.

Brief Job Description: Provide outstanding and exceptional customer service.

TAO, HONGTAO Customer Service Representative 76.

Brief Job Description: Provide outstanding and exceptional customer service.

Basic Qualification: Can speak Chinese / Fluent in Mandarin. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Vietnamese and at least college level with related BPO experience.

VAN KIM PHUNG Customer Service Representative 77.

78.

79.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in VIETNAMESE and at least college level with related BPO experience.

80.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Vietnamese and at least college level with related BPO experience. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Provide outstanding and exceptional customer service.

Basic Qualification: Can speak Chinese / Fluent in Mandarin. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. 4th-11th Flr. Nexgen Tower, C4 Rd. Edsa Ext., Barangay 76, Pasay City

81.

SY THUC DUNG Vietnamese Customer Support Specialist

Brief Job Description: Direct & manage the work plan, day to day operations of all Project Sites. Interface with client, consultant, architect, sub-contractors, suppliers and project site offices.

MANTURGI, PRASHANT SHIVAJI Lead Ii, Systems Administration

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in VIETNAMESE and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Vietnamese and at least college level with related BPO experience.

KYNDRYL PHILIPPINES, INCORPORATED 9th Floor 1800 Eastwood Avenue Bldg., Eastwood City Cyberpark 188 E. Rodriguez Jr., Bagumbayan, Quezon City

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in MANDARIN and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

KAJIMA PHILIPPINES INCORPORATED 12/f, Makati Sky Plaza 6788 Ayala Avenue, San Lorenzo, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

TRUONG TUYEN TIEN Vietnamese Customer Support Specialist

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

TRUONG THI KIM DUYEN Vietnamese Customer Support Specialist

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

TRIEU, MAI ANH Vietnamese Customer Support Specialist

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin and at least college level with related BPO experience.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION TRAN THI HOAI Vietnamese Customer Support Specialist

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Indonesian and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Friday, November 10, 2023

82.

DOAN HAI DANG Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service.

FAN, YAN Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service.

LE THI MEN Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service.

LI, YONGZHI Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service.

NGUYEN QUANG MUNG Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service.

Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English. Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate/level and fluent in mandarin/ basic English. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate/level and fluent in Mandarin/ basic English. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate/level and fluent in mandarin/ basic English. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

BusinessMirror

A10 A6 Friday, November 10, 2023

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

83.

84.

85.

86.

87.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION REN, KAI Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service.

VO TAN LUC Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service.

ZHAO, BONAN Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service.

ZHAO, YONG Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service.

TRAN DUN LIN Chinese Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Customer service.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: College graduate/level and fluent in mandarin/ basic English.

No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

Basic Qualification: College graduate/level and fluent in Mandarin/ basic English

99.

HU, DONGBAO Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer Support and Database Services.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate/level and fluent in mandarin/ basic English.

MA, XUHE Chinese Customer Service 100.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate/level and fluent in mandarin/ basic English. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

101.

Basic Qualification: College graduate/level and fluent in mandarin/ basic English. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Manage incoming calls and inquiries, handling complaints, provide solutions, process customer accounts and file documents.

ALBERT AGUNG ANDREYAN Indonesian Customer Service Representative 88.

Brief Job Description: Provide product/services, and information, answer questions, and resolve emerging problem.

ANI FATUN MUSYAROFAH Indonesian Customer Service Representative

102.

89.

Brief Job Description: Provide product/services, and information, answer questions, and resolve emerging problem.

BELLA KOLOTOSA MOSKWA KARDI Indonesian Customer Service Representative 90.

Brief Job Description: Provide product/services, and information, answer questions, and resolve emerging problem.

ERWIN WIJAYA Indonesian Customer Service Representative 91.

Brief Job Description: Provide product/services, and information, answer questions, and resolve emerging problem.

103.

104.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Graduate 4 years’ bachelor’s degree with critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

105.

107. JANHUAT THIAN KASNA Indonesian Customer Service Representative 92.

Brief Job Description: Provide product/services, and information, answer questions, and resolve emerging problem.

ONGAH WINARTO Indonesian Customer Service Representative 93.

Brief Job Description: Provide product/services, and information, answer questions, and resolve emerging problem.

RICKY PRATAMA Indonesian Customer Service Representative 94.

Brief Job Description: Provide product/services, and information, answer questions, and resolve emerging problem.

RIZA INTANI Indonesian Customer Service Representative 95.

Brief Job Description: Provide product/services, and information, answer questions, and resolve emerging problem.

RUBEN HARJANTO Indonesian Customer Service Representative 96.

Brief Job Description: Provide product/services, and information, answer questions, and resolve emerging problem.

TRISNO HANDOKO Indonesian Customer Service Representative 97.

Brief Job Description: Provide product/services, and information, answer questions, and resolve emerging problem.

Basic Qualification: Graduate 4 years’ bachelor’s degree with critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Graduate 4 years’ bachelor’s degree with critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

108.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

YANG, YITONG Chinese Customer Service

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills.

Basic Qualification: College graduate.

Brief Job Description: managing incoming calls and inquiries

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: managing incoming calls and inquiries.

ZANINOVICH, JUAN AGUSTIN Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

BENNY MULYO Indonesian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer Support and Data Base Services.

109.

110.

EDDY SARTONO Indonesian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer Support and Database Services.

EDISON CIA Indonesian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer Support and Database Services.

111.

Basic Qualification: Graduate 4 years’ bachelor’s degree with critical thinking and problem-solving skills. 112.

ELLEN Indonesian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer Support and Database Services.

HENDI RIANTO Indonesian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

MULTI AVANCE SOLUTIONS INC. 11/f Insular Life Makati Bldg., 6781 Ayala Ave. Cor. Paseo De Roxas, Bel-air, City Of Makati

TIAN, YU Mandarin Software Specialist 98.

Brief Job Description: To engage in the business of software development, technical consulting services.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Mandarin. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

117.

118.

119.

120.

Basic Qualification: College graduate. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills.

121.

122.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Knowledge in Computer applications with good oral and written communication skills.

123.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in Computer applications with good oral and written communication skills. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in Computer applications with good oral and written communications skills.

125.

126.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 127.

Basic Qualification: Graduate 4 years’ bachelor’s degree with critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

116.

124.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

115.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

TU, MING Chinese Customer Service

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Graduate 4 years’ bachelor’s degree with critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

114.

Basic Qualification: College Graduate, preferably 1-year experience in the similar field, Speaks and write fluently (Native Language).

Basic Qualification: College graduate.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Graduate 4 years’ bachelor’s degree with critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

XU, KE Chinese Customer Service

Basic Qualification: Graduate 4 years’ bachelor’s degree with critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: College Graduate, preferably 1-year experience in the similar field, Speaks and write fluently (Native Language).

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

HAINGOTIANA BIJOUX GAGNEUX, RAOELINA Customer Service Representative 106.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Brief Job Description: Manage incoming calls and inquiries, handling complaints, provide solutions, process customer accounts and file documents.

No.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in Computer applications with good oral and written communication skills.

Basic Qualification: College graduate.

XIAO, TIANYU Chinese Customer Service

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Graduate 4 years’ bachelor’s degree with critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

WEI, YANLING Chinese Customer Service

MPOTECH DIGITAL SYSTEM INC. 2/f 331 Bldg., Sen. Gil Puyat Ave., Bel-air, City Of Makati Basic Qualification: Graduate 4 years’ bachelor’s degree with critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

NEW ORIENTAL CLUB88 CORPORATION 1331 Pearl Plaza Bldg., 133 Quirino Ave., Tambo, City Of Parañaque 3rd, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th & 10th/f Sapphire Seaview Park, Pacific Avenue, Don Galo, City Of Parañaque

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

www.businessmirror.com.ph

113.

JANURMARDI CHAI Indonesian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in Computer applications with good oral and written communications skills.

128.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

129.

130.

131.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

JUSTIN LEONARD Indonesian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

LIM SU TJAN Indonesian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer Support and Database Services.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer applications with good oral and written communications skills. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in Computer applications with good oral and written communication skills. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

MALVIN Indonesian Customer Service

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

MARK ANTHONY Indonesian Customer Service

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in Computer applications with good oral and written communication skills.

Brief Job Description: Customer Support and Database Services.

MELISA Indonesian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

PHILIPUS YOSEF Indonesian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer Support and Database Services.

RISNIWATI Indonesian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

SELLY Indonesian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer Support and Database Services.

TIGA IRAWAN Indonesian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer applications with good oral and written communications skills. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in Computer applications with good oral and written communication skills. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer applications with good oral and written communication skills. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in Computer applications with good oral and written communication skills. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer applications with good oral and written communication skills. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

WILLI SANJAYA Indonesian Customer Service

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

YOHAN WIJAYA Indonesian Customer Service

Basic Qualification: College Graduate

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

YOSUA SUSANTO Indonesian Customer Service

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer applications with good oral and written communications skills.

Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

OOI TEIK LEE Malaysian Customer Service

Basic Qualification: College graduate.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

YONG MUN KIN Malaysian Customer Service

Basic Qualification: College Graduate

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

PYAE PHYO AUNG Myanmar Customer Service

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

THAE WADI HLAING Myanmar Customer Service

Basic Qualification: college graduate

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

TU JA Myanmar Customer Service

Basic Qualification: college graduate

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

JOSEPH BONE MYINT WAI Myanmari Customer Service

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in Computer applications with good oral and written communication skills.

Brief Job Description: Customer Support and Database Services.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

132.

133.

134.

135.

136.

137.

138.

139.

140.

141.

142.

143.

144.

145.

146.

147.

148.

149.

150.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

HA NGOC PHAP Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

LE QUOC HUYNH Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer applications with good oral and written communication skills

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

LUONG, THI HANG Vietnamese Customer Service

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquires.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

LY, THI HAI YEN Vietnamese Customer Service

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

LY, VAN TUYEN Vietnamese Customer Service

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NGUYEN BICH TRAM Vietnamese Customer Service

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NGUYEN CHI HUU Vietnamese Customer Service

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills.

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NGUYEN QUYET THANG Vietnamese Customer Service

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NGUYEN THI HANG Vietnamese Customer Service

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills.

NGUYEN VAN HIEU Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

NGUYEN, BA HUNG Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

152.

153.

154.

155.

156.

157.

158.

Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

TONG, THI KIM DUNG Vietnamese Customer Service

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

TRAN NGOC HIEN Vietnamese Customer Service

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer applications with good oral and written communication skills.

Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

TRAN VAN LINH Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

VAN BA THUC Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

159.

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

Brief Job Description: managing incoming calls and inquiries

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Resolve issues utilizing excellent customer service skills, problem-solving skills, technical thinking/ reasoning skills, and a high level of individual judgment to ensure outcomes of customer satisfaction.

160.

161.

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NGUYEN, VAN MY Vietnamese Customer Service

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NGUYEN, VIET LAM Vietnamese Customer Service

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

LIN, WEILIN Multilingual Business Process Development Consultant

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

162.

163.

164.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer applications with good oral and written communications skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

VONG TAU CHAN Vietnamese Customer Service

NGUYEN, THI HUYEN Vietnamese Customer Service

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and inquiries.

PHAM THI LY Vietnamese Customer Service

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer applications with good oral and written communication skills.

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

DU, JIANPING Multilingual Business Process Development Consultant

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

VU HONG MEN Vietnamese Customer Service

Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

No.

165.

Basic Qualification: With relative work experience. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

166.

Basic Qualification: With relative work experience. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: With relative work experience

Brief Job Description: Responsible for optimizing business processes and increasing revenue.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin. Preferably with 2 years’ experience in business development. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

RIDGE OUTSOURCING SERVICES INC. 46/f Pbcom Tower, 6795 Ayala Ave. Cor. V.a. Rufino St., Bel-air, City Of Makati YANG, SHI Chinese Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Manage large amount of incoming phone calls.

Basic Qualification: Foreign language speaking. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

SHANG PROPERTY MANAGEMENT SERVICES, INC. Level 5 Shangri-la Plaza, Edsa Cor Shaw Boulevard, Wack-wack Greenhills, City Of Mandaluyong

LEE JOON FAH Project Head 168.

Brief Job Description: Provide leadership and direction to the project team and review and evaluate.

BENNY TAN YI FAN Quantity Surveying Head 169.

Brief Job Description: Manage all project costs; proactive involvement in procurement and reporting.

HENG BOON EE Quantity Surveying Head 170.

Brief Job Description: Manage all project costs; proactive involvement in procurement and reporting.

THIEN JIAN LUEN Quantity Surveying Head 171.

Brief Job Description: Manage all project costs; proactive involvement in procurement and reporting.

Basic Qualification: At least 15 years of relevant experience and 8 years in a management role. Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999 Basic Qualification: At least 15 years of relevant experience and 8 years in a management role. Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999 Basic Qualification: At least 15 years of relevant experience and 8 years in a management role. Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999 Basic Qualification: At least 15 years of relevant experience and 8 years in a management role. Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

SHEARWATER HEALTH ADVISORS, INC. 35th Flr. Net Park, Bonifacio Global City, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig MOHAMED BASHEER, ZABEEL Vice President for Business Excellence 172.

Brief Job Description: Define longer term strategy to ensure continued competitiveness of organization’s businesses through operational readiness. Drives advanced customer analytics, as well as the management of cross-organizational operational departments.

Basic Qualification: College graduate. With at least 12 years of work related experience, including 7 years of senior management post. Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

SMC SHIPPING AND LIGHTERAGE CORPORATION Blk 9 Lot 4-6 Manila Harbour Centre, Fernando Cor. Francisco Siero Sts., 010, Barangay 128, Tondo I/ii, City Of Manila

Basic Qualification: With relative work experience. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION CAI, CONGMING Mandarin Business Development Analyst

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate.

NGUYEN, HONG HA Vietnamese Customer Service

NONG QUOC LONG Vietnamese Customer Service

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills.

PHAN CUONG Vietnamese Customer Service

CHEN, JINGJING Multilingual Business Process Development Consultant

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills.

PHAM, THI KIEU KHANH Vietnamese Customer Service

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

OKKDA ASIA TECHNOLOGY INC. Unit 5b 5/f Marvin Plaza, 2153 C. Roces Ave., Pio Del Pilar, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer applications with good oral and written communications skills.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

A11

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

167.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NGUYEN DINH DUC Vietnamese Customer Service

Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

151.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

LE, THU THAO Vietnamese Customer Service

Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services.

No.

Friday, November 10, 2023

SCHOT, NICOLAAS PIETER Dredge Master Consultant 173.

Brief Job Description: Operate the dredger and booster optimally and safely according to HSE requirements.

Basic Qualification: Vocational dredging degree or an equivalent professional qualification. With at least 5 years of experience in planning, costing and priority setting of dredging operations. Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

THE SKYLINE ABYSS INTERNATIONAL INC. Unit 116 G/f The Manila Residences Tower 1, Taft Ave., Barangay 725, Malate, City Of Manila

174.

CAI, JINXIONG Chinese Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos-1year customer service experience.

Brief Job Description: Contact potential customers, answer questions.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

LU, YU Chinese Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos-1year customer service experience.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: With relative work experience.

175.

Brief Job Description: Contact potential customers, answer questions.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

176. Basic Qualification: With relative work experience. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 177.

Basic Qualification: With relative work experience.

Brief Job Description: Contact potential customers, answer questions.

VANG, JUN Marketing Consultant Brief Job Description: Study company profile, conduct market research.

Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos-1year customer service experience. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos-1year customer service experience. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

UNLAD SILANGAN CORP. P2 4f 24 Diosdado Macapagal Ave., Mall Of Asia, Barangay 76, Pasay City

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

PAILI HOLDINGS CORPORATION 18th Floor Ore Central Building 9th Avenue Corner 31st., Bonifacio Global City, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

XU, JIEHUA Chinese Customer Service Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

CHEN, HUI Customer Service Representative 178.

Brief Job Description: Provide outstanding and exceptional customer service.

Basic Qualification: Can speak Chinese / mandarin fluently. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

UPCMC RESOURCES INC. 28th Floor Menarco Tower, 32nd Street, Bonifacio Global City, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

BusinessMirror

A12 A6 Friday, November 10, 2023

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION YANG, YUSHENG Chinese Consultant

179.

Brief Job Description: Monitor performance to proactively identify efficiency issues propose solutions. Confer with staff to discuss issues, coordinate activities or resolve procedures.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: College graduate. With at least 2 years of work experience in a similar role.

180.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services.

PHAM, VAN PHU Vietnamese Customer Service Representative 181.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in English and their respective native language for the position applied for, Fluent in Chinese Mandarin is an advantage.

198.

199.

200.

182.

Brief Job Description: Provide administrative support to ensure efficient operation. GWEE HUI FEN Bilingual Administrative Support

201.

183.

Brief Job Description: Provides administrative support to ensure efficient operation. JOHAN EFENDI Bilingual Administrative Support

202.

184.

Brief Job Description: Provides administrative support to ensure efficient operation. LIM CHI WEI Bilingual Human Resource Officer

185.

Brief Job Description: Providing administrative support in recruitment by preparing job description. HO LAM MY CHAU Bilingual Marketing Staff

186.

Brief Job Description: Conduct marketing activities, Create promotion of products and services offered by the company and tracks their success. SAN NGOC ANH Bilingual Marketing Staff

187.

Brief Job Description: Conduct marketing activities, create promotion of products and services offered by the company and track their success.

YENCHAM, KRITSANASAK Bilingual Marketing Staff 188.

Brief Job Description: Conduct marketing activities create promotion of product and service. CHEN JIA XIANG (ZHENG JIAXIANG) Bilingual Support Service

189.

Brief Job Description: Provide support services across technology programs and projects. PORMSILA, RATCHADAPORN Bilingual Support Service

190.

Brief Job Description: Provide support services across technology programs and projects. SOO SIEW MUN Bilingual Support Service

191.

Brief Job Description: Provide support services across technology programs and projects. CHEN, MEI Chinese Language Research Analyst

192.

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on products and services as specified. DING, HAIYANG Chinese Language Research Analyst

193.

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on products and services as specified. HAN, LU Chinese Language Research Analyst

194.

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on product and services as specified. HU, HSIN-FANG Chinese Language Research Analyst

195.

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on product and services as specified. HUANG, QIUQIAN Chinese Language Research Analyst

196.

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on products and services as specified. HUNG, YI-HSUAN Chinese Language Research Analyst

197.

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on products and services as specified.

203.

204.

205.

206.

208. Basic Qualification: Proficient in English and Vietnamese language. 209.

210.

211.

212.

213.

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on product and services as specified. CHIENG VENH SENH Vietnamese Language - Marketing Staff

214.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Chinese.

Brief Job Description: Providing details to clients relative to services being offered.

LAM MY YEN Vietnamese Language - Marketing Staff

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 215. Basic Qualification: Proficient in Chinese language. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Providing details to clients relative to services being offered.

LOC KIM LIEN Vietnamese Language - Marketing Staff 216.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Providing details to clients relative to services being offered.

NGUYEN, XUAN ANH Vietnamese Language - Marketing Staff 217.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on products and services as specified. PHILIP ARBERT Indonesian Language Research Analyst

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Chinese.

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on product and services as specified. MENAH Indonesian Language Research Analyst

Basic Qualification: Proficient in English and mandarin

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Chinese.

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on product and services as specified. HERWIN SUDHARWIN Indonesian Language Research Analyst

Basic Qualification: Proficient in bilingual language.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Indonesian language.

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on products and services as specified ZHANG, DAN Chinese Language Research Analyst

Basic Qualification: Proficient in English and mandarin language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on products and services as specified.. YU, HSIAO-CHIEN Chinese Language Research Analyst

Basic Qualification: Proficient in bilingual language.

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on product and services as specified. YU, CHANG-YAO Chinese Language Research Analyst

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on products and services as specified. YEH, HUAN-CHI Chinese Language Research Analyst

Basic Qualification: Proficient in English and Vietnamese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on product and services as specified YANG, LIANGYU Chinese Language Research Analyst

207.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on product and services as specified WANG, JIN Chinese Language Research Analyst

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on product and services as specified. TAO, WUKAI Chinese Language Research Analyst

Salary Range: Php 90,000 - Php 149,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in bilingual language.

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on product and services as specified. SHANG, DONGXU Chinese Language Research Analyst

Salary Range: Php 90,000 - Php 149,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in English and Indonesian language.

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on product and services as specified. PAN, ZHENGBING Chinese Language Research Analyst

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in English and mandarin language.

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on product and services as specified. LIU, ZHAOYUAN Chinese Language Research Analyst

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficient in English and Chinese language.

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on product and services as specified. LIN, JIA-YONG Chinese Language Research Analyst

WISHLAND SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGY INC. 28/f Techzone Condo Corp., 213 Buendia Ave., San Antonio, City Of Makati BOONPUN, ONANONG Bilingual Administrative Support

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on product and services as specified. LI, YOU-XU a.k.a. LEE, HAO-YI Chinese Language Research Analyst

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in English and their respective native language for the position applied for, Fluent in Chinese Mandarin is an advantage.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION LI, FUCHENG Chinese Language Research Analyst

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

WANFANG TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT, INC. 6-9/f Tower 2 Double Dragon Plaza, Edsa Cor. Macapagal Ave., Barangay 76, Pasay City

LEE, MAO-CHUAN Chinese Technical Support Representative

No.

Brief Job Description: Providing details to clients relative to services being offered.

VAN PHU CAM Vietnamese Language - Marketing Staff 218.

Brief Job Description: Providing details to clients relative to services being offered.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Proficient in Chinese language.

No.

219.

220.

221.

222.

223.

224.

225.

226.

227.

228.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

229.

230.

231.

232.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Vietnamese. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Vietnamese. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Vietnamese. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Vietnamese. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Vietnamese language. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Provide support services across technology programs and projects.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Vietnamese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in Vietnamese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Fluent in Mandarin and English language both verbal and written.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing technical issues on projects.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in Mandarin & English language both verbal and written.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing technical issues on projects.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in Mandarin & English language both verbal and written.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing technical issues on projects.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in Mandarin & English language both verbal and written.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing technical issues on projects.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in Mandarin and English language both verbal and written.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing technical issues on projects.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in Mandarin and English language both verbal and written.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing technical issues on projects.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

BETONBAU PHIL., INC. U-410 4/F DHI BLDG. 2, LAPU LAPU AVE., MAGALLANES, CITY OF MAKATI

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Vietnamese. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

ZHAO, LIUGEN Project Manager

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Indonesian language. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Support services across technology programs and projects.

YANG, ZHOU Project Manager

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Bahasa language. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Vietnamese language.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Vietnamese language

YANG, CHENG Project Manager

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Indonesian language. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Provide support services across technology programs and projects.

WU, ZHIBIN Project Manager

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in Chinese language.

Brief Job Description: Provide support services across technology programs and projects.

LUO, BIN Project Manager

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Chinese.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

JIANG, JIAN Project Manager

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in Chinese.

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on products and services as specified.

XIDIAN ENERGY CONSTRUCTION CORP. Unit 1207 The Trade And Financial Tower, 32nd St. Cor. 7th Avenue, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in Chinese language.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Vietnamese language.

TRUONG VIET ANH Vietnamese Language Support Service

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in Chinese.

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

TRINH HONG HANH Vietnamese Language Support Service

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in Chinese language

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on products and services as specified.

TRAN NGOC BAO TRAM Vietnamese Language Support Service

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in Chinese language

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Vietnamese language

NGUYEN VAN VO Vietnamese Language Support Service

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in Indonesian language.

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

LE THE HIEN Vietnamese Language Support Service

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in Chinese language.

Brief Job Description: Conduct research on products and services as specified.

PHAM TRUNG DUC Vietnamese Language Research Analyst

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in Chinese language.

Basic Qualification: Excellent in Vietnamese language.

NGUYEN THI NGOC THU Vietnamese Language Research Analyst

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in Chinese language.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

BUI LE QUANG THIEN Vietnamese Language Research Analyst

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in Chinese language.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

233.

KUMTONGLANG, SANPOL Construction Heavy Equipment Technician Brief Job Description: Responsible for the procurement and negotiation of machinery of square parts and maintenance/repair services particularly in Thailand.

Basic Qualification: College graduate. With at least 5 years of work experience in a related field. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

*Date Generated: Nov 9, 2023 In the ad material of Notice of Filing of Application for Alien Employment Permits published on October 28, 2023, The Salary Grade 30,000-59,999, of GU, DINGMING under TPLINK PHILIPPINES LTD. CORPORATION should have been read as 150,000-499,999 and not as published. In the ad material of Notice of Filing of Application for Alien Employment Permits published on October 26, 2023, the Name of MAI THIEN HOA under NEW ORIENTAL CLUB8 CORPORATION, should have been read as MAI TIEN HOA and not as published. In the ad material of Notice of Filing of Application for Alien Employment Permits published on November 1, 2023, the Name of LECOMPTE, CHRISTOPHE PRANCOIS PIERRE under 3O BPO CORPORATION, should have been read as LECOMPTE, CHRISTOPHE FRANCOIS PIERRE and not as published. Any person in the Philippines who is competent, able and willing to perform the services for which the foreign national is desired may file an objection at DOLE National Capital Region located at DOLE-NCR Building, 967 Maligaya St., Malate Manila, within 30 days after this publication. Please inform DOLE National Capital Region if you have any information on criminal offense committed by the foreign nationals.

www.businessmirror.com.ph • Editor: Angel R. Calso

TheWorld BusinessMirror

Friday, November 10, 2023 A13

Israel-Hamas fighting heats up in Gaza City, accelerating exodus of Palestinians to south By Wafaa Shurafa, Jack Jeffery & Lee Keath The Associated Press

EIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip— Palestinians living in the heart of Gaza’s largest city said Wednesday they could see and hear Israeli ground forces closing in from multiple directions, accelerating the exodus of thousands of civilians as food and water become scarce and urban fighting between Israel and Hamas heats up. The Israeli army has not given specifics on troop movements as it presses its ground assault, vowing to crush Hamas after its deadly October 7 assault inside Israel. But residents said Israeli forces had moved into inner neighborhoods of Gaza City amid intense bombardment all around the surrounding north. Clashes took place within a kilometer (0.6 miles) of the territory’s largest hospital, Shifa, which has become a focal point in the war. The Israeli military says Hamas’ main command center is located in and under the hospital complex and that senior leaders of the group are hiding there, using the facility as a shield. Hamas and hospital staff deny the claim and say the military is making a pretext to strike it. For Palestinians in Gaza, the hospital is a symbol of civilian suffering in the war. Like others, it has been overwhelmed by a constant stream of wounded and struggling as electricity and medical supplies run out. Tens of thousands of displaced people have been sheltering in and around the complex. The Group of Seven wealthy industrial nations issued a statement Wednesday condemning Hamas and supporting Israel’s right to self-defense. But the group also called for the “unimpeded” delivery of food, water, medicine and fuel, and for “humanitarian pauses” in the fighting. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin

Netanyahu has left open the possibility of small pauses to deliver aid, but has ruled out a broader cease-fire unless some 240 hostages taken by Hamas are freed. “There are no limitations” on how long the war will last, Benny Gantz, a member of Israel’s decision-making War Cabinet, said Wednesday. Gantz acknowledged that Israel does not yet have a vision for the Gaza Strip should it succeed in destroying Hamas rule, but said it will include an Israeli security presence in the territory after the war—a point that echoed comments earlier in the week by Netanyahu, who said Israel would likely maintain security control of Gaza for an “indefinite period.” The prime minister’s comments appear to have heightened US concerns. On Wednesday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken called for a united and Palestinian-led government for Gaza and the West Bank after the war ends, as a move toward Palestinian statehood. The US and Israel agree that the Hamas militant group cannot return to its rule of the Gaza Strip. But none of the ideas that Israeli officials have raised for Gaza’s governance after the war have included independent Palestinian rule as a credible possibility. Support for the war remains strong inside Israel, where the focus has been on the fate of the hostages.

Escaping the north OVER 70 percent of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million have already left their homes since the war began but the number fleeing the north has dramatically accelerated. Throngs of people filled Salah al-Din Street, Gaza’s main highway leading south. They appeared to be in greater numbers than Tuesday, when the United Nations said about 15,000 people streamed southward— which in turn was triple the number the day before. Families walked together, with men and women carrying young children

Ukraine claims responsibility for killing Russia-backed official in Luhansk region By Illia Novikov

The Associated Press

YIV, Ukraine—Ukraine’s intelligence agency claimed responsibility for a car bombing Wednesday that killed a member of the Russia-backed authority in the illegally annexed Luhansk region. Mikhail Filiponenko was a member of the local legislature and previously served as police chief. He had survived a car bombing on February 21, 2022, three days before Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Local officials announced Filiponenko’s death. Filiponenko had organized and participated in the torture of prisoners of war and civilians, the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense said on Telegram. It said that the killing was a warning that “traitors to Ukraine and collaborators with terrorist Russia in temporarily occupied territories...will receive just retribution! The

hunt continues!” The agency said that members of the resistance movement helped carry out the killing. Russia-backed insurgents declared a separatist Luhansk People’s Republic in 2014 and fought Ukrainian forces relying on Moscow’s military and political support. Russia illegally annexed it in 2022 along with three other eastern Ukrainian regions after invading Ukraine. Ukraine received good news, meanwhile, on its bid to join the European Union. The EU’s executive branch recommended it should be permitted to open membership talks once it has addressed shortfalls that include corruption. In a setback that had been anticipated, Slovakia’s new government of populist Prime Minister Robert Fico rejected a proposal by its predecessor to send Ukraine another package of weapons aid as it fights Russia’s invasion. Fico had vowed to end his country’s

it were bombed, and has had to shut down most of its operations to ration fuel use. A convoy trying to bring medical supplies came under fire by Israeli forces and couldn’t reach it, the Palestinian Red Crescent said. More than 14,000 displaced people are sheltering at the hospital, and bread supplies have run out, it said. Majed Haroun, a teacher who remains in Gaza City, said women and children who lost families go door to door begging for food. “No words can describe what we are experiencing,” he said.

ISRAELI army troops are seen next to a destroyed building during a ground operation in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, November 8, 2023. Israeli ground forces entered the Gaza Strip as they press ahead with their war against Hamas militants in retaliation for the group’s unprecedented October 7 attack on Israel. AP/OHAD ZWIGENBERG or pushing older people on makeshift carts. Most had only a few belongings in backpacks. A few families rode on donkey carts, holding white flags as they approached Israeli tanks. Israel extended the daily window for them to use the road to five hours. Israeli forces advancing from the northwest along the Mediterranean coast have been clashing with fighters inside Shati refugee camp, a dense neighborhood adjacent to Gaza City’s center, two residents told The Associated Press. The past nights saw heavy bombardment of Shati, which houses Palestinian families who fled from, or were driven out of, what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its establishment. Other troops entered Gaza City’s Zeitoun district. One resident living near Shifa Hospital said he saw Israeli troops battling fighters on a street about 600 meters (yards) from the hospital. “I’m hearing all kinds of horrible sounds. It is terrifying. There are intense airstrikes,” he said. Both residents spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals. The Israeli army’s chief spokesperson, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, said Wednesday the ground forces were

military aid for Ukraine. The rejection of a package worth more than 40 million euros ($42.7 million) would have included ammunition and air defense missiles. The previous government was a staunch supporter of Ukraine, sending it arms worth 671 million euros ($717 million). Fighting, shelling and airstrikes continued in the southern and eastern regions, where five civilians were killed and five were wounded in the past day, the presidential office reported. In the Donetsk region, three residents in the village of Bahatyr were killed in shelling. In the neighboring Kharkiv region, a man was killed in the city of Kupiansk-Vuzlovyi, where fighting is taking place. In the southern Kherson region, near Beryslav, a tractor driver was killed by a mine and another resident was wounded in a drone attack. A drone attack around the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant wounded a woman and damaged 27 houses and power lines. Karel Janicek in Prague, and Yuras Karmanau in Tallinn, Estonia, contributed to this report.

It can now cost $4 million to skip the queue at the Panama Canal By Ruth Liao, Anna Shiryaevskaya & Serene Cheong

SHIPPER has paid nearly $4 million to jump to the front of the line at the congested Panama Canal waterway, a record high. Japan’s Eneos Group paid $3.975 million in an auction Wednesday to secure the crossing, bidding documents show. That comes on top of the regular transit fees

companies pay, which can be hundreds of thousands of dollars more. “You are getting close to $4.5 million to use the canal, so that is pricing out a lot of ships,” Oystein Kalleklev, chief executive officer of Flex LNG Ltd. and Avance Gas Holding Ltd., said during a conference call Wednesday when asked about the state of the canal. The Panama Canal Authority confirmed a new record was set in the November 8 auction but didn’t name the auction winner.

The vessel will carry liquefied petroleum gas northbound on November 15, the canal’s managing authority said. Eneos didn’t respond to a request for comment outside of normal business hours. A queue of ships waiting to use the canal has been growing in recent months amid a deep drought. To manage the situation, the canal’s authority has announced increasingly drastic restrictions for the depleted thoroughfare. With assistance from Alex Longley/Bloomberg

deepening the offensive into Gaza City. The army said it killed one of Hamas’ leading developers of rockets and other weapons, without saying where he was killed. Israel is focusing its operations on the city, which was home to some 650,000 people before the war and where the military says Hamas has its central command and a labyrinth of tunnels. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have heeded Israeli orders in recent weeks to flee south to get out of the way of the ground assault. For tens of thousands believed to remain, desperation was increasing. “We didn’t have food or drinking water.… They struck the bakeries. There is no life in Gaza,” said Abeer Akila, a woman fleeing south with her family. The trickle of aid entering Gaza from the south is largely barred from going north, which has been without running water for weeks. The U.N. aid office said the last functioning bakeries shut down Tuesday for lack of fuel, water and flour. Hospitals running low on supplies are performing surgeries without anesthesia. Al-Quds Hospital has become completely cut off after all roads around

Conditions in the south THE new arrivals from the north are squeezing into homes with extended family or in UN schools-turned-shelters where hundreds of thousands are taking refuge. At one, 600 people must share a single toilet, according to the UN office. Israeli strikes have continued in the southern zone. On Wednesday, one hit a family house in the Nuseirat refugee camp, killing at least 18 people and wounding dozens of others, according to Iyad Abu Zaher, director of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, where the dead and wounded were brought. He said the toll could rise as medics and first responders searched the rubble. Hundreds of trucks carrying aid have been allowed to enter Gaza from Egypt since October 21. But “there is an ocean of needs in Gaza right now, and what’s been getting in is a drop in the ocean. We need fuel, we need water, we need food, and we need medical supplies,” said Dominic Allen of the United Nations Population Fund, speaking from the West Bank. A month of relentless bombardment in Gaza since the Hamas attack has killed more than 10,500 Palestinians— two-thirds of them women and minors, according to the Health Ministry in the Hamas-run territory. More than 2,300 others are believed to have been buried by strikes that in some cases have demolished entire city blocks. Israeli officials say thousands of

Palestinian militants have been killed, and blame civilian deaths on Hamas, accusing it of operating in residential areas. Gaza’s Health Ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its casualty reports. More than 1,400 people have died in Israel since the start of the war, most of them civilians killed by Hamas militants during their incursion. Israel says 32 of its soldiers have been killed in Gaza since the ground offensive began, and Palestinian militants have continued to fire rockets into Israel on a daily basis. The war has stoked wider tensions. Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group have been trading fire along the border, and over 160 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli-occupied West Bank since the war began, mainly during violent protests and gunbattles with Israeli forces during arrest raids. Some 250,000 Israelis have been forced to evacuate from communities along the borders with Gaza and Lebanon. The US launched an airstrike Wednesday on a weapons warehouse in eastern Syria used by Iranian-backed militias, the Pentagon said, in retaliation for what has been a growing number of attacks on bases housing US troops in the region. This is the second time in less than two weeks that the US has bombed facilities used by the militant groups. US officials say the groups, many operating under the umbrella of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, have carried out at least 40 attacks since October 17, the day a powerful explosion rocked a Gaza hospital, killing hundreds and triggering protests in a number of Muslim nations. Israel denied responsibility for the al-Ahli Hospital blast, and the US has said its intelligence assessment found that Israel was not to blame. Jeffery and Keath reported from Cairo. Associated Press writers Najib Jobain in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip; Samy Magdy in Cairo; and Amy Teibel in Jerusalem contributed to this report.

US, Chinese finance ministers opening talks to lay the groundwork for Biden-Xi meeting By Fatima Hussein The Associated Press

ASHINGTON—Treasury Secretar y Janet Yellen and her Chinese counterpart will meet in San Francisco on Thursday for two days of talks aimed at making progress on a slew of economic issues at a time when competition has markedly intensified between the two countries. Yellen’s talks with Vice Premier He Lifeng are designed to help lay the groundwork for an expected meeting between President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping next week on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco, which would be their first engagement in nearly a year. The White House is not expecting the face-to-face meeting to result in major changes to the relationship between the two nations, according to a person familiar with the planning, although it hopes to see some signs of progress. Analysts say expectations should be kept low, given the competitive nature of the countries’ relationship. Nicholas Szechenyi, deputy director for Asia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said at a preview event for the APEC summit that “it seems difficult for the United States to credibly emphasize themes such as inclusiveness, interconnect-

edness—the themes of this year’s APEC summit—when the primary driver for US economic strategy in the Indo-Pacific is not economic cooperation, necessarily, but rather economic competition.” “US strategy is very much focused on economic competition with China,” he said. In August, Biden signed an executive order designed to regulate and block high-tech US-based investments going toward China, a move the administration said is based on protecting national security. And last year, the US moved to block exports of advanced computer chips to China. Earlier this year, US lawmakers held hearings over data security and harmful content with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew, contemplating whether to ban the hugely popular app due to its Chinese connections. And tensions between the countries heightened earlier this year when a Chinese surveillance balloon was spotted traveling over sensitive US airspace. The US military shot down the balloon off the Carolina coast after it traversed sensitive military sites across North America. China insisted the flyover was an accident involving a civilian aircraft and threatened repercussions. With all of the tensions, the two nations have worked to smooth economic ties. Biden spoke with Chinese Foreign

Minister Wang Yi at the White House for about an hour late last month, when Beijing’s top diplomat came to Washington for talks with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan. Xi similarly met with Blinken in June when the secretary of state traveled to Beijing for talks with Wang. Yellen has met with a host of Chinese officials throughout this year. In January, she had her first face-to-face meeting with former Vice Premier Liu He in Zurich. She traveled to China in July to discuss economic policies between the nations and urged Chinese government officials to cooperate on climate change and other global challenges and not let sharp disagreements about trade and other irritants derail relations. She said at a July 8 news conference, “I do not see the relationship between the US and China through the frame of great power conflict. We believe that the world is big enough for both of our countries to thrive.” In September, the US Treasury Department and China’s Ministry of Finance launched a pair of economic working groups in an effort to ease tensions and deepen ties between the nations. The Associated Press writers Colleen Long and Aamer Madhani contributed to this report.

A14

BusinessMirror

Friday, November 10, 2023 Republic of the Philippines

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT Regional Office No. IV-A 4th Flr. Andenson Bldg. II, Brgy. Parian, Calamba City Telefax No.: (049) 545-7362

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

November 10, 2023

NOTICE OF FILING OF APPLICATION/S FOR ALIEN EMPLOYMENT PERMIT/S (AEP/S)

Notice is hereby given that the following companies/employers have filed with this Regional Office application/s for Alien Employment Permit/s:

NO.

ESTABLISHMENT

D AND S INDUSTRIES (PHILIPPINES) CORPORATION Unit 1-5 Orient Goldcrest, Suntrust Ecotown Bldg. 2, Lot 8, Blk. 8, Sahud Ulan, Tanza, Cavite

H.R.D. SINGAPORE PTE LTD Block 3, Cavite Economic Zone II, Bacao II, City of General Trias, Cavite

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL, POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

WANG, FENGJUN

Basic Qualification:

General Manager

Must be Chinese or Filipino-Chinese and with expertise in manufacturing field

Brief Job Description: Formulate overall strategy, manage people and establishing policies and ensuring security

Salary Range:

Basic Qualification:

Technical Adviser-electrical

Must be able to speak Japanese language and possess managerial and supervisory skills

Manage and direct the technical quality within the electrical and mechanical aspects of the machines

HUAYI USED CAR TRADING CENTER CORP.

14 Salary Range:

0305, C. Tramo Street, Zapote III, City of Bacoor, Cavite

CHEN, JIANGHONG

Basic Qualification:

Field Marketing Officer

Must have experience in the same field and can speak, write and type Mandarin language

Brief Job Description: Responsible for driving brand awareness through on-site, face to face interaction with consumers

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Php90,000 Php149,999 3

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Php60,000 Php89,999

KUIDA, HIROSHI

Brief Job Description:

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Salary Range: Php30,000 Php59,999

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

MA THI NHIEN

Basic Qualification:

Chinese Customer Service

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Brief Job Description: Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Salary Range:

NGUYEN THANH BINH

Basic Qualification:

Chinese Customer Service

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language.

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Salary Range:

NGUYEN THI BICH LOAN

Basic Qualification:

Chinese Customer Service

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Php30,000 Php59,999 18

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Brief Job Description:

Chinese Customer Service

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Brief Job Description: Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Salary Range:

PHAM THI MEN

Basic Qualification:

Chinese Customer Service

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Salary Range:

PHAM VIET BINH

Basic Qualification:

Chinese Customer Service

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Brief Job Description:

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Salary Range:

PHAM XUAN DUNG

Basic Qualification:

Chinese Customer Service

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Salary Range:

PHAN THI THANH TAM

Basic Qualification:

Chinese Customer Service

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Salary Range:

PHUNG VAN QUAN

Basic Qualification:

Chinese Customer Service

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Brief Job Description:

Salary Range:

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Php30,000 Php59,999

TRAN VAN HA

Basic Qualification:

Chinese Customer Service

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Salary Range:

JIANG, XIAOGANG

Basic Qualification:

Chinese Customer Service Representative

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Chinese Customer Service

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Brief Job Description: Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Salary Range:

NGUYEN VAN TUAN

Basic Qualification:

Chinese Customer Service

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Php30,000 Php59,999

Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Brief Job Description:

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Php30,000 Php59,999 Basic Qualification:

Chinese Customer Service

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Brief Job Description:

Salary Range: Php30,000 Php59,999

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Php30,000 Php59,999 Basic Qualification:

Chinese Customer Service Representative

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language Salary Range: Php30,000 Php59,999

LIU, YICONG

Basic Qualification:

Chinese Customer Service Representative

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries 22

Salary Range:

LIU, XIAOYUN

Brief Job Description: Salary Range:

Php30,000 Php59,999

Chinese Customer Service Representative

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries MOA CLOUDZONE CORP.

Salary Range:

Basic Qualification:

Brief Job Description:

Php30,000 Php59,999

LIU, FENGTING

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries MOA CLOUDZONE CORP.

Php30,000 Php59,999

Brief Job Description:

Php30,000 Php59,999 20

Php30,000 Php59,999

Brief Job Description:

Basic Qualification:

Php30,000 Php59,999

Brief Job Description:

Salary Range:

NGUYEN VAN QUY

Php30,000 Php59,999

Brief Job Description:

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Php30,000 Php59,999

Brief Job Description:

Php30,000 Php59,999

Chinese Customer Service

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Basic Qualification:

Brief Job Description:

Basic Qualification:

PHAM HUU TIEN

PHAM THI HUYEN

Salary Range:

NGUYEN VAN DUC

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries 10

Php30,000 Php59,999

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Brief Job Description:

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries 7

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Salary Range: Php30,000 Php59,999

SONG, XILIN

Basic Qualification:

Chinese Customer Service Representative

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Brief Job Description: Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Salary Range: Php30,000 Php59,999

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph 23

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

TAN, XIAOLONG

Basic Qualification:

Chinese Customer Service Representative

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Brief Job Description: Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries 24

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Chinese Customer Service Representative

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Chinese Customer Service Representative

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries 26

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Chinese Customer Service Representative

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries 27

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Chinese Customer Service Representative

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP.

DAS CHAGAS NASCIMENTO, CAIO VINICIUS

Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Customer Service Representative

Brief Job Description: Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries 29

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP.

FERREIRA DA SILVA OLIVEIRA, LIARA MARA

Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Customer Service Representative

Brief Job Description: Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries 30

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Able to speak, read and write Chinese and Vietnamese language

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Able to speak, read and write Chinese and Vietnamese language

R & D Building, Filsyn Plant, Don Jose, City of Santa Rosa, Laguna

Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Able to speak, read and write Chinese and Vietnamese language

Salary Range: Php30,000 Php59,999

HO DINH NHAT

Basic Qualification:

Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Able to speak, read and write Chinese and Vietnamese language

Basic Qualification:

Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Able to speak, read and write Chinese and Vietnamese language

HOANG, HAI YEN

Basic Qualification:

Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Able to speak, read and write Chinese and Vietnamese language

Salary Range: Php30,000 Php59,999

NAKANISHI, AKIHIRO

Basic Qualification:

Technical Assistant Manager

Must be a Licensed Engineer and able to write, speak and understand Japanese language (Nihongo)

Brief Job Description:

SUPER FLEX LOGISTIC INC.

Salary Range:

Lot 6, Block 1, Phase 7A, Laguna Technopark, Mamplasan, City of Biñan, Laguna

ISHIKAWA, NAOKO

Basic Qualification:

Technical Adviser

College graduate preferably Business Administration or relevant, able to solve problems quickly and efficiently

Brief Job Description: Assist current customers with workflows and technical assistance, aide in the development of sales leads and business development

Salary Range: Php60,000 Php89,999

TOPS OCEAN PHILIPPINES, INC. Lot 21B, Phase 1A, First Philippine Industrial Park, Santa Anastacia, City of Sto. Tomas, Batangas

YANASE, HITOSHI

Basic Qualification:

Production Supervisor

Must be able to speak and write Japanese language, technical knowledge on application of raw materials in toy manufacturing

Brief Job Description: Assist the company’s President in managing technical operations

Salary Range: Php90,000 Php149,999 42

YOUNG JI INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL INC. S1 B1 L2, Sunny Brooke II, San Francisco, City of General Trias, Cavite

KIM, NAGSHIN

Basic Qualification:

Chief-Operating Officer

Bachelor degree from a recognized university with a post graduate studies

Brief Job Description: Oversee all the activities of the DepEd program and initiate the designing & implementing of plans to increase participation

Salary Range: Php30,000 Php59,999

Php30,000 Php59,999

Php150,000 Php499,999

Php30,000 Php59,999 Able to speak, read and write Chinese and Vietnamese language

Salary Range:

VI, KY ANH

Assist in planning, organizing and coordinating technical projects

Salary Range:

Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Php30,000 Php59,999 Basic Qualification:

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE TECHNOLOGY PHILS. INC.

Salary Range:

TRAN THUY LINH

Brief Job Description:

Php30,000 Php59,999 Basic Qualification:

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries 38

Salary Range:

PHAM XUAN DUONG

Brief Job Description:

Php30,000 Php59,999

Basic Qualification:

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Salary Range:

DANG THUY TRANG

Brief Job Description:

Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification:

Brief Job Description:

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP.

Php30,000 Php59,999

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Brief Job Description:

Php30,000 Php59,999 Basic Qualification:

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

A15

Salary Range:

NONG HONG UYEN

Brief Job Description:

Salary Range:

Customer Service Representative

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Able to speak, read and write Chinese language

Basic Qualification:

Brief Job Description:

Php30,000 Php59,999

MORETE, RENATA

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Able to speak, read and write Chinese and Vietnamese language

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Salary Range:

Basic Qualification:

Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Brief Job Description:

Php30,000 Php59,999 Basic Qualification:

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Salary Range:

ZHOU, JIE

Brief Job Description:

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP.

Php30,000 Php59,999 Basic Qualification:

Brief Job Description:

Salary Range:

ZHANG, CHUNFENG

Basic Qualification:

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Php30,000 Php59,999 Basic Qualification:

NGUYEN MAI ANH

Brief Job Description:

Salary Range:

XU, CHANGYUN

Brief Job Description:

Island Cove II, Covelandia Road, Pulvorista, Kawit, Cavite

Php30,000 Php59,999 Basic Qualification:

Manage incoming calls and customer service inquiries

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP.

Salary Range:

WU, XIUMU

Brief Job Description:

Friday, November 10, 2023

Salary Range: Php30,000 Php59,999

Any person in the Philippines who is competent, able and willing to perform the services for which the foreign national is desired may file an objection at DOLE Regional Office IV-A located at 3rd and 4th Floors, Andenson Building II, Parian, Calamba City, Laguna, within 30 days after this publication. Please inform DOLE Regional Office IV-A if you have any information on criminal offense committed by the foreign nationals.

Salary Range: Php30,000 Php59,999 To avail of free job referral, placement, and employment guidance services, visit the nearest Public Employment Service Offices (PESO) or log on at http://www.philjobnet.gov.ph

A16 Friday, November 10, 2023 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.news.businessmirror@gmail.com

editorial

Pope Francis: ‘War is always a defeat’

ope Francis on Wednesday again urged people to pray for peace as the wars, violence and deaths continue in Ukraine and in the Holy Land. “Let us think about and pray for populations suffering from war,” he said at the end of his weekly general audience. “Do not forget the tormented in Ukraine and think of the Palestinian and Israeli people. May the Lord bring about a just peace.” The day before the Pope’s weekly general audience on November 8 in St. Peter’s Square, the Vatican News and the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano published an interview with Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem. “The war will end sooner or later, but the consequences of this war will be terrible,” the cardinal said. “You see, there are two issues that seem particularly worrisome to me. The first is that both sides seem to lack a strategic vision that goes beyond the annihilation of the other. Even the land itself appears to have taken a back seat in respect to the desire for mutual destruction. There is no exit strategy.” The second issue, he said, is the difficulty Israelis and Palestinians have of “distancing themselves, even emotionally, from the heavy past of both peoples, the Holocaust and the Nakba, which was evoked on October 7th,” when Hamas militants entered Israel and went on their killing and kidnapping rampage. “Nakba” refers to the mass displacement of Palestinians during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. “Something has broken. I hope not irreparably. But it will take a long time and a lot of effort to rebuild,” the cardinal said, according to Vatican News. “The scaffolding was certainly shaky” before October 7, “and we worked on it with great difficulty. Every now and then, a plank would fall. Now the entire scaffolding has come down. We will have to start all over again.” At the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in Singapore on Wednesday, war, geopolitical tension and inflation were among the litany of risks identified by political and business leaders. Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said: “The world is facing a ‘moment of danger’ with wars in Ukraine and Gaza, conflict ‘tripwires’ in Taiwan and the South China Sea, and the same ‘cast of characters’ on either side of those territorial disputes. I’m very uncomfortable,” the minister said. “I don’t want to be excessively alarmist, but the last time that happened globally was the First World War. So this is a moment of danger.” Khalid Al-Falih, Saudi Arabia’s minister of investment, said talks toward the normalization of ties with Israel remain on the table but have always been contingent on a pathway to a peaceful resolution of the Palestinian question. “That was on the table—it remains on the table and obviously the setback over the last month has clarified why Saudi Arabia was so adamant that resolution of the Palestinian conflict has to be part of a broader normalization in the Middle East,” he said. “The Palestinian people have had their basic rights taken away and the right for statehood and peaceful existence unfulfilled, and it’s time to use this awful situation to bring that to the fore and to resolve it,” Al-Falih said. The October attack on Israel by the Hamas, which is designated a terrorist group by the US and European Union, and Israel’s response has fueled concerns of a broader conflict in the region. Al-Falih told Bloomberg that in coming days, Saudi Arabia will convene separate summits with Arab nations, African countries and Islamic nations. In the short term, the objective of these three summits and other gatherings, under the leadership of Saudi Arabia, is to drive toward peaceful resolution of the conflict. “What’s beyond it is an imperative for countries in the Middle East to work toward prosperity of the people and the economy,” he said. The United Nations has been working in the Middle East around the clock to de-escalate the Israeli-Hamas war by engaging key actors and providing emergency assistance to trapped civilians in Gaza. It would do well for the community of nations to provide the support required to create any hope of moving beyond this apparently hopeless situation. As Pope Francis said, “War is always a defeat.”

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Addressing the needs and aspirations of our people through the national budget Sonny M. Angara

Better Days

he Senate has started its plenary debates on the 2024 national budget. The P5.768 trillion proposed budget is the first expenditure plan to be fully developed under the leadership of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. Similar to this year’s General Appropriations Act, the 2024 budget measure was crafted to stimulate growth, slash poverty, narrow the budget deficit and reduce debt, jumpstart the economy’s transformation and finally cement our status as an upper-middle income nation.

It aims to foster the development of our people through education, health and human capital development. It will fund items such as the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), our longstanding social amelioration program that is keeping millions of Filipino families from falling into abject poverty; the Build Better More program, the comprehensive infrastructure development program that will allow our country to become more connected, more efficient, and more productive; and the implementation of the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act and the Tulong Trabaho Act to make higher education opportunities more accessible to our people. In sponsoring the committee report on the 2024 budget, I

took note of how the budget is a toolbox for development. In the first six months of the year, our economy performed well, posting a growth rate of 5.3 percent. Among emerging economies, the Philippines ranks next only to China, which registered a growth rate of 5.4 percent. We must work on sustaining this growth by intensifying the things that are working and improving on what needs to be corrected. As prescribed in our Constitution, education continues to be the top priority, getting a total of P963 billion. The Senate provided increases in the budgets of the Department of Education, the Commission on Higher Education, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority and the State Universities

and Colleges to ensure that every child is able to go to school, acquire new skills and become productive members of society. Considering how our country is frequently hit by calamities, the budget measure allocates P21 billion to the National Disaster and Risk Reduction Management Fund to bring relief to people hit by misfortunes, repairs places devastated by calamities and rebuilds livelihood wrecked by disaster. The fund will not only be for disaster response but also to bolster resilience and preparedness to calamities. Food security remains a concern and challenge for the government so the budget also makes sure that our people will have access to affordable food. We hope that the appointment of a secretary of Agriculture will help in this endeavor and address the continued increases in the price of our agricultural products. One of the factors that contribute to the price of goods is the cost of transportation and logistics, which is why significant funding will be provided to the Department of Transportation for the improvement of infrastructure for all modes of transport. The transport sector will also continue to receive support through subsidies in order to cope with the constantly fluctuating prices of fuel. Improving the country’s healthcare system to address the health and medical requirements of our citizens remains a priority. Par-

US orders opioid overdose antidote to defend against Fentanyl terrorism By Cailley LaPara and Riley Griffin

rugmaker Indivior Plc clinched a US contract worth up to $111 million for its opioid antidote—part of the government’s preparation for a potential bioterrorism attack with drugs such as fentanyl that can be released into the air. The contract will secure US supplies of Opvee, an opioid reversal medication that stays in the body longer than naloxone nasal spray, the standard treatment for opioid overdose which was approved for overthe-counter use earlier this year. The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority ordered an initial 200,000 doses of Opvee for 2024 and has the option to purchase another 200,000 doses annually for the Strategic National Stockpile over the next nine years for as much as $87 million. The agreement, which was disclosed to Bloomberg News by the company, also includes $24 million for Indivior

to continue studying the product, including for potential use in children. The power of airborne opioids became apparent in Moscow in 2002, when Russian rescuers pumped a toxic mixture of fentanyl-like drugs into a theater where Chechen militants were holding hundreds of hostages. Intended to help subdue the captors, the gas also killed more than 100 hostages. Many countries now classify one of the ingredients in that combination, carfentanil, as a chemical weapon. The US has already spent nearly $20 million to develop Opvee over the last five years years through a partnership with its original de-

veloper, Opiant Pharmaceuticals Inc., which Virginia-based Indivior bought in March. Indivior has said that Opvee had the potential to deliver as much as $250 million in annual revenue, with most purchases coming from community health groups and municipalities for use by emergency responders. Opvee is a nasal spray version of nalmefene, an emergency treatment for opioid overdoses that US regulators approved in May for those 12 and older. It remains in the bloodstream longer than Emergent BioSolutions Inc.’s Narcan, a brand version of naloxone, and Indivior says it can treat overdoses of more potent synthetic opioids. The Department of Health and Human Services confirmed the details of the agreement, which was reached at the end of September. It may take some time for Opvee to become available at pharmacies and community centers,

ticular focus will be given to the improvement of our regional health facilities and for the establishment of regional specialty centers, pursuant to the enactment of Republic Act 11959. Quality health care should not be available only in the metropolitan areas, but in every region across the country to ensure accessibility for every Filipino. On top of the 4Ps and fuel subsidies, the proposed budget will address the needs of our most vulnerable sectors such as our indigent senior citizens, who were able to enjoy a hundred percent increase in their social pensions as a result of the implementation of RA 11916, which we pushed for in the last Congress. The Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations, the Sustainable Livelihood Program, Cash-forWork and Supplementary Feeding Programs will continue to provide relief to the disadvantaged sectors and ensure very young children are well nourished. We also recognize the need to enhance connectivity, digitalization and digital transformation, as well as the capabilities of our people so that more opportunities could open up for them and in order for them to secure higher paying jobs. It is also worth noting that the objectives of the Tatak Pinoy or Proudly Filipino advocacy are incorporated in the budget. While we are still waiting for the House of Representatives See “Angara,” A17

since local governments need to issue standing orders allowing pharmacists to provide Opvee when it’s requested, Indivior Chief Executive Officer Mark Crossley said in an interview. The company said Opvee is available by standing order in 25 states. Overdoses involving synthetic opioids like fentanyl increased more than seven-fold between 2015 and 2021, according to the National Center on Health Statistics. These now account for two-thirds of all overdose deaths, which totaled nearly 107,000 in 2021. Because of fentanyl’s strength, multiple doses of naloxone may be needed to reverse an overdose, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. “Unfortunately, today you must assume that synthetic opioids are involved” in overdoses, said Christian Heidbreder, chief scientific officer at Indivior. With assistance from John Lauerman/Bloomberg

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Opinion BusinessMirror

Friday, November 10, 2023 A17

Why the US can’t stop Iran’s lucrative oil trade with China

From this window, this hour

But fresh measures and tougher enforcement will struggle to curtail the Islamic Republic’s key source of income—thanks to China’s appetite for discounted crude, and what traders, analysts and oil industry executives describe as expanded payment and transport networks that the US cannot reach. Following former President Donald Trump’s departure from a key nuclear deal in 2018, Tehran had to contend with a US campaign of “maximum pressure,” which sought to force it to abandon uranium enrichment and cut off aid for proxy militias. Washington threatened sanctions against countries that did not reduce Iranian oil to “zero.” But over the last three years, even accounting for some underreporting after 2018, oil shipments have steadily climbed, thanks to easing US pressure and Chinese demand. Iran is once again closing in on the number-three spot among producers in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, and the vast majority of its barrels—well over 90 percent—are heading to the world’s second-largest economy. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said early in the war that new measures against Iran were possible. Despite the inflationary risks that would come with squeezing Russia and Iran simultaneously while heading into an election, Biden may well have to crank up the heat. What’s less clear is whether Washington can actually do much to counter the effect of China’s support. “The trade is very sophisticated, with multiple middlemen, which makes it a lot more difficult for the US to sanction. The US can hit companies that are more public or obvious in their Iranian dealings, but many of these middlemen are small entities,” said Homayoun Falakshahi, senior oil analyst at data and analytics group Kpler. “It’s hard to know who to go after. The US can sanction teapot refiners and even national oil companies like Sinopec, but that’d create more of a political issue amid already tense relations.” Financial and trade sanctions have become an increasingly important foreign policy tool as countries seek to influence opponents without military force. Yet both Iran and Russia have provided fodder for critics who argue that even unprecedented measures have failed to change behavior, as oil revenue continues to flow to the very top. Targets adapt too. The problem is to some extent time—the impact of sanctions is rarely immediate—and the difficulty in influencing autocratic regimes. It’s also about enforcement. Over the past weeks, US authorities have blacklisted several UAE companies over their dealings with Russia, and sanctioned two tankers and shipowners over the violation of the oil price cap imposed by the Group of Seven nations. Yet while these measures have caused unease across the oil community, traders

Angara . . .

continued from A16

to approve the Tatak Pinoy bill, we wanted to lay the foundation for the implementation of the soon-to-be law, particularly the establishment of the Tatak Pinoy strategy. Despite its many limitations, we believe the budget will serve several purposes: to prevent hunger, keep our people healthy, to educate and

“The trade is very sophisticated, with multiple middlemen, which makes it a lot more difficult for the US to sanction. The US can hit companies that are more public or obvious in their Iranian dealings, but many of these middlemen are small entities,” said Homayoun Falakshahi, senior oil analyst at data and analytics group Kpler. say they will not derail crude trades as other players—including dozens, even hundreds in the so-called “dark fleet”—remain in business, illustrating the limits of Washington’s reach. So too when it comes to Iran and China—and with years of additional experience. Sanctions on firms in Singapore and Malaysia earlier this year for their roles in allegedly facilitating the sale and shipment of millions of dollars worth of petroleum and petrochemicals on behalf of a company with known connections to Iran did little to dent trade with the ultimate destination, China—which only rose. “The trade with China is probably something the US would struggle to entirely shut down,” said Raffaello Pantucci, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore. “They could put more pressure on Chinese companies if they focus investigations, determine links and extend the range of sanctions. But they’ve extended quite a few sanctions to various Chinese entities already.” Beijing has long used smaller financial institutions like Bank of Kunlun—a key Chinese conduit for transactions with Iran—to facilitate this commerce and limit the exposure of larger entities with international business links. More recently, Chinese importers have benefited from the development of a yuan-based alternative to Western clearinghouses—a platform known as CIPS, Cross-Border Interbank Payments System, launched by the central bank to settle international claims. On the logistical front, there is the expansion of the dark fleet of often-older vessels carrying oil from sanctioned regimes to global customers, leaving buyers like China with options. Today, including Russian tankers and those willing to load Urals and other grades, it has expanded to about 600 ships. “If you find a middleman and decide to go harsh, they’ll go out of business. But many of these firms are shell companies with fake offices,” said Kpler’s Falakshahi. “The same people can easily set up another new company in one or two months. The impact will be temporary.” Michal Meidan, director of the China Energy Program at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, points to China’s use of tools like the digital yuan and the dark fleet as a “lifeline to producers.” With assistance from Sarah Chen / Bloomberg

empower, to provide shelter, to cease the deprivation of property or opportunity and ultimately, to inject our people with hope. Senator Sonny Angara has been in public service for 19 years—9 years as Representative of the Lone District of Aurora, and 10 as Senator. He has authored, co-authored, and sponsored more than 330 laws. He is currently serving his second term in the Senate. E-mail: sensonnyangara@yahoo.com| Facebook, Twitter & Instagram: @sonnyangara

For Edgar Allan Poe, midnight could be, once upon, dreary. Remember the dire warning of Mary Shelley about how a specter haunted her midnight pillow? Bombs, however brave or misdirected, are stopped at midnight. Truces have been declared at mid-

night, and yet peace has also been paused at midnight. In this city of my sleepless hours, midnight has lost its magic. The wands of wakefulness have taken over so that men and women can indulge in themselves, so that young writers can go on crafting sentences about myths, and old men can trick spaces from becoming time and seconds from vanishing quickly.

The hard fact: I do not hear crowing anywhere. I hear cars—they never sleep. And one vehicle that should never sleep—the ambulances. They seem to be everywhere at any time but you hear them more at 1 or 2 in the morning. You do not listen to them unless you are alone contemplating the death of time. As morning nears, you feel good about whoever is being rushed to safety

Tito Genova Valiente

annotations

By Serene Cheong

ashington’s hawks are demanding that President Joe Biden’s administration tighten US sanctions on Iran as punishment for its support of Hamas, the militant group behind the attacks that triggered the current conflict with Israel. Tehran, they argue, has been exporting more oil over recent months than it has in years.

And now this morning. The four o’clock that I densely contemplate is a morning. It should be the beginning of a day. Somewhere far away, in farms and villages, at this time, the world is waking up. The crowing of roosters must be incessant. The hearths in distant homes are stirring already: water is heated in an old kettle; the cat has been shooed off from the stones guarding the fire. In other towns, the bakeries have opened long ago. And new breads have been sold. Or, are these memories still right? What about poverty and needs? Why must my memories of these hours be about the calmness in unknown places of people so unknown that I do not even have a fair idea what they think of midnight, and hours and moments?

t’s four in the morning from this window. The watch has defined the time; otherwise, what I am seeing is a nothing hour. Time undefined.

I have been in the big city for almost a week now. This hotel window has served me the hours when the television stops showing a world gripped by crisis in politics and economics. Or, when I am not staring at the white screen of the laptop, where I create scenarios with texts. Four or five hours back, the landscape of lights before me was alive. Awake. Presently, as morning comes back, the lights from most of the buildings have gone off. It is not true cities do not fall asleep; they still do. A great part of her dozes off, rests and allows the shadows to take over. Where before walls of mostly red blistering lamps blasted flat a square below me, and the saddest of blues and warm yellows guarded posts and crowns of trees, presently, I can make out in the distance blackened fortress-like facades, noticeable only because behind them taller buildings are garnished with white bulbs framing windows and more windows. This is new: a city flattened by the shadows of early morning. What to call this hour? Midnight—now that is a deadline hour. It cuts what could have been a day that goes on and on till it is night. Works could be submitted till midnight. Things can be stopped by midnight. Even the most ardent thinkers tell their brains to pause by midnight.

because, like Senlin, more humans are possibly saying: “It is morning, I awake from a bed of silence, Shining I rise from the starless waters of sleep.” That is good. A sleep that is so divine and pure it has locked out the brightest of stars from intruding into one’s dream, or rest. It is almost five now. I, too, have my special hours caught between four and five. I am seventeen years old, my brother, Manong Pempe, twenty. We had traveled one summer to San Fernando, in Ticao Island. Was it in April? We stayed in our grandfather’s sister’s rambling home. Leaving the island was tough for young people: we needed to wake up at 2 in the morning. There was no 24-hour electricity then and the town was shrouded in darkness. The feisty grandmother woke up way ahead of us and placed an oil lamp in front of the gate near the dark pool where a huge turtle swam. The tiny light was a signal that the man calling for passengers for the boat that would take us to Bulan, in Sorsogon, would stop by and fetch us. It also meant a reserved seat for us in the kumpit, a motorized boat. At four we were in the middle of the sea, at Ticao Pass, with the timonero or helmsman, looking up at the huge star above us, the Kagbubuwas, the Star-of-the-Morningbecoming. It was the only guide, the best, the most ancient. My brother would pass on young. Even up to now, at four or five in the morning—anywhere—I think of that Star and think of him, thinking somewhere where light and darkness do not matter. E-mail: titovaliente@yahoo.com

Sequoia China rebranding is high-stakes leadership test By Sarah McBride

he venture capital giant formerly known as Sequoia China is slated to host a major gathering of investors this month. The annual meeting is a kind of coming out party for HongShan, which formally split with Sequoia in June, and has $56 billion under management. But a dismal climate for startups and ratcheting geopolitical tensions mean that the stakes are unusually high as HongShan rolls out its new brand. The firm’s early returns on some funds are weaker than when China’s tech scene was booming, according to reports from existing investors with Sequoia China. It’s also under fresh scrutiny from the US government, which is cracking down on American involvement in Chinese companies. And some past investors are no longer with the firm, even as new ones sign on. A spokesperson for HongShan said the November meeting is routine for the firm, and pointed to a long history of returns for limited partners (LPs), the firms’ investors. “We communicate regularly with our limited partners. This includes in-person meetings,” the spokesperson said. “HongShan has a strong track record of performance over numerous fund cycles, which is why LPs continue to invest with us.” It’s still too soon to judge the recent performance of the firm’s newer funds—venture funds typically operate on a decade-long lifecycle and often show initial losses because of their fee structure. But some of its early results reflect the larger weakness in the VC markets. One Sequoia China fund raised in 2020—the flagship Sequoia Capital China Venture Fund VIII—is down 3.6 percent on an annual basis through June 30, according to returns posted online by the University of California, an investor. Another fund also raised in 2020, Sequoia Capital China Growth Fund VI, is up 0.6 percent on an annual basis, the university’s website shows. Sequoia China funds raised in 2018 are better, with one fund rising

about 18% annually, and two others posting annual returns of 4.9 percent and 2 percent. From the beginning of 2018 through June 30, annual returns for the Nasdaq Composite Index were about 14 percent. The weakness is part of a larger startup slump. After a long stretch of outperforming the market, an index tracking VC returns fell 10 percent in the 12 months ending June 30, according to research firm Cambridge Associates. That contrasts with a comparable rally of about 27 percent for the Nasdaq, Cambridge Associates found. The investing climate is particularly difficult in China, where HongShan operates. The country has seen only $44.09 billion in deals so far this year, according to PitchBook data, down 65 percent from the full year in 2018. For deals that involved US-based venture firms, the pullback was even starker—deals fell 95 percent in that period to just $2.21 billion. At the same time as HongShan contends with startup market tumult, it’s also subject to increasing scrutiny from the US government around Chinese technology investments. In August, President Joe Biden issued a long-anticipated executive order imposing screening for US investments in Chinese companies in some sectors. And in October, a US congressional committee sent Sequoia Capital a letter asking for information about its China investments, calling out several as “problematic” for security or human rights reasons. The letter reflected a long-running rift between the US and China that has dissuaded some investors from investing in the country more broadly. Disclosures for the Alaska

It’s still too soon to judge the recent performance of the firm’s newer funds—venture funds typically operate on a decade-long lifecycle and often show initial losses because of their fee structure. But some of its early results reflect the larger weakness in the VC markets.

Public Fund show it has not invested in Sequoia China funds since around 2020, when it committed about $42 million to two different vehicles. Reached for comment, Allen Waldrop, the director of private equity for the Alaska Permanent Fund Corp., said that the organization did not discuss its investment strategies. But “if you are reviewing our website, you will note that we haven’t invested in any China-focused investment funds in several years,” he added. Despite political tensions and mixed returns, several new investors have signed on with the firm. The California Public Employees’ Retirement System, the pension fund run by the state of California, committed to Sequoia China for the first time last year—agreeing to invest in all four of the latest China funds the firm was then raising, according to its reports. CalPERS recently boosted its allocation to private equity to 13 percent from 8 percent, a category that includes VC. Other new investors include the pension manager for the state of Massachusetts, which committed as much as $150 million to Sequoia China’s four latest funds last year. Also in 2022, the University of Washington Investment Management Co. dedicated a total of $50 million to three Sequoia China funds, according to publicly available reports. And the Canadian Pension Plan, an existing investor, has continued to add to its commitments, including $257 million in three of Sequoia China’s latest funds. Representatives for the organizations did not answer more detailed

questions about their investments. The University of California Regents, which invests on behalf of the university system’s endowments, has also continued to invest in with Sequoia China. The university holds investments in nine Sequoia China funds, according to its list of holdings as of June 30. Those include the most recently raised seed, venture and growth funds. A university spokesperson declined to comment on its holdings. During the boom times, Sequoia China had awe-inspiring returns. Created in 2005 by Sequoia Capital partners Doug Leone and Michael Moritz, plus entrepreneur and former investment banker Neil Shen, who still leads the firm, it quickly ascended to a dominant position. Sequoia China was an early investor in companies like JD.com Inc., Meituan and Pinduoduo Inc., which soared as China’s tech scene exploded. Since then, Chinese investors have been forced to contend with new regulations on tech enacted by the Chinese government, limiting the once sky-high upside for investors—although the restrictions now appear to be easing. “It’s shaping up to be a more challenging environment,” compared with the earlier heyday, said Donna Hitscherich, director of the private equity program at Columbia Business School. “There are more challenges when you’re looking at international, and there are more challenges when you’re looking at international markets with the specter of Washington.” Partly in response to the growing geopolitical chasm between the two superpowers, Sequoia split into three brands in a surprise announcement in June. The firm in Silicon Valley is still called Sequoia Capital. Another in Southeast Asia now called Peak XV Partners. And Sequoia China is now HongShan. The three units had long made independent investment decisions while sharing many investors and some back office functions. Effective by March 31, they’ll operate completely independently. Bloomberg

A18 Friday, November 10, 2023

NGCP tags ERC review unfair, justifies expenses T

PBBM: SCIENCE, INNOVATION KEY TO LOWER DISASTER RISK By Reine Juvierre S. Alberto

By Lenie Lectura

@llectura

HE National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) said the results of the partial review of its performance and operations conducted by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) were unfair and traced the situation to ERC’s failure to conduct a regulatory reset. “It’s not fair to us. It was partial and initial, so why rush?” NCGP Assistant Vice President Cynthia Alabanza said at a news briefing Thursday afternoon. The ERC released on Wednesday a partial determination on its ongoing review of the performance and operations of NGCP for the regulatory period 2016-2022. The grid operator’s total allowable revenues for Phase 1, or from 20162020, of the fourth regulatory period (4th RP) should only be P183.491 billion, or an average of P36.7 billion annually.

This amount is significantly lower than NGCP’s claims of P387.803 billion for Phase 1, or an annual average of P77.56 billion–higher than the interim Maximum Annual Revenue (iMAR) of P51.47 billion for 2020 initially granted by ERC to NGCP in a previous March 2022 issuance. Maximum Allowable Revenue (MAR) refers to the maximum amount that NGCP is allowed to earn annually to recover its operational expenses like OPEX (operating expenditures) and CAPEX (capital expenditures), as approved

by the ERC in accordance with the rules. The NGCP was given 15 days to file a comment. “We will take full advantage of that process. We will be commenting on these findings. A lot of these are speculative, which is why the ERC gives us time to comment,” said Alabanza.

Impact is long-term

THE ERC’s pronouncement will have a long-term impact not only on NGCP but on consumers and other businesses as well, Alabanza added. “At the end of the day, what must be balanced here is the consumer’s concerns and his right to good and good service at the right price,” Alabanza said. “It is also necessary to weigh the concern of a businessman or investor to get proper returns on his investment.”The ERC disalowed NGCP’s claims that it said were not properly supported by the audited financial statements. These include, for instance, certain employees’ benefits sought to be recovered by NGCP that were not appropriately itemized and suppor ted in its audited financial state-

ment, as well as non-mandatory employee benefits that should be sourced from the company’s savings or profits instead of recovered from rates charged to consumers. Network and non-network related operational and maintenance costs, such as advertising expenses or Covid-19 donations, that were not proven to redound to the benefit of consumers were likewise disallowed by ERC.

Legitimate business costs

ALABANZA said NGCP’s expenses cited by ERC are legitimate business costs under the same rules applied to the National Transmission Corporation (TransCo). The NGCP took over the operations and management of the national transmission system from TransCo in 2009 due to the privatization of the power grid operations and maintenance. “When you say that it was passed on to the people but it is a legitimate business expense, that should not be bad, especially if that is contained in the policy that was laid down when we entered the business she added. Continued on A5

ACLOBAN, Leyte—“Let us ensure that science and innovation [continue] to guide us in our endeavors. These are crucial to addressing the challenges in disaster risk reduction and staying ahead of the curve in disaster management.” This was underscored by President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. during the Handa Pilipinas Visayas Leg opening ceremony held at Summit Hotel in Tacloban City on November 8, 2023. The event coincided with the 10th-year commemoration since Super Typhoon Yolanda, the most powerful typhoon that struck the Philippines, which particularly destroyed Tacloban City. It claimed the lives of more than 5,000 people and left 1,613 missing through a storm surge or the abnormal rise of seawater level caused by the storm’s winds pushing water onshore. Its total damage was put at $13 billion or around P650 billion, making it one of the most expensive disasters in the country. The trail of destruction that Typhoon Yolanda left, “serves as a poignant reminder of the power of nature and our vulnerability to that power,” but most importantly, highlights “the importance of disaster risk reduction and management in

the Philippines,” said the President.

Resilience through science, tech

AS of 2023, however, the Philippines was tagged most vulnerable to disaster risks, ranking first out of 193 countries in the Risk Rating of the World Resources Institute. To mitigate the impacts of natural hazards, resilience building through science, technology, and innovation is seen to address various challenges in disaster risk reduction and disaster preparedness and response. Marcos Jr. recognized the role of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) in developing technologies for disaster risk prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. In the Handa Pilipinas Visayas Leg, over 60 technologies developed for different kinds of natural disasters and hazards are featured in the exhibit. Some of the technologies are search and rescue boats and lifesaving supplies, portable power stations, disaster simulators, mobile technologies and applications, simulation-based learning laboratory, telemedicine devices, ready-to-eat relief foods, unsinkable porta boat, and emergency disinfection system, among others. Continued on A5

From left: Dr. Nona Saldana-Ricafort, Global Peace Convenor; D. Edgard A. Cabangon, ALC Group Chairman; and Prof. Ingill Ra, President of Global Peace-Asia Pacific.

ALC Group head advocates Pinoy tradition at peace gab T HE broadcast media plays a critical role in nurturing a culture of peace, but this journey must begin within the family and the home, ALC Group Chairman D. Edgard A. Cabangon said in a speech at the Global Peace Media Forum on November 7, 2023, at the Manila Prince Hotel. The event, hosted by the Global Peace Foundation, brought together leaders and media experts to discuss the role of broadcast media on promoting a culture of peace. In his speech, Cabangon stressed the importance of creating an environment of love, respect, and empathy, free from the culture of violence and impunity that has permeated society. He articulated a proposal for promoting peace through a campaign called “Nagmano ka na ba? ” This campaign aims to reintroduce and revitalize the Filipino tradition of “Pagmamano,” where the youth show respect and

love for their elders by placing their hands on their foreheads. “We Filipinos have a distinct culture where we take the hands of our parents, our elders and our leaders and place them on our foreheads as a sign of respect and love. We have a term for this: ‘Pagmamano.’ This is part of our culture, and unfortunately, this sign of respect and love has been forgotten together with the millennial generation that the young have been accustomed to,” Cabangon said. To revive this tradition, Cabangon said they will begin a campaign within his Aliw Channel 23 media network, featuring the youth performing “Pagmamano” and posing the question, “Nagmano ka na ba?” on television screens. This campaign aims to inspire a sense of love and respect among citizens, encouraging a culture of peace and dissuading the spread of violent content online. Cabangon expressed his grati-

tude to Justice Raoul Victorino for drawing attention to this Filipino tradition. He believes that by asking children, “Nagmano ka na ba?,” a society “filled with empathy and concern for their fellow men” can be developed, leading to a significant reduction in violence and road rage incidents. He said the Global Peace Foundation could play a vital role in initiating and sustaining this initiative, with the catchphrase “Nagmano ka na ba?” echoing within homes, communities, provinces, and regions, “ultimately contributing to a culture of peace and even transforming weapons of war into implements for peace.” Cabangon also shared fond memories of his father, the late Ambassador Antonio Cabangon Chua, who exemplified the “Pagmamano” tradition and its implications for love, respect, and peace. Continued on A5

Companies BusinessMirror

Editor: Jennifer A. Ng

Friday, November 10, 2023

Meralco power rates in Nov Globe’s mobile revenue market to rise on transmission cost share up in Q3 By Lenie Lectura

@llectura

lectricity rates for this month will go up by P0.2347 per kilowatt hour (kWh) to P12.0545 per kWh, the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) announced Thursday. The upward adjustment will result in an increase of around P47 in the total electricity bill of residential customers consuming 200 kWh. Driving this month’s overall rate increase is the uptick in the transmission charge, which went up by P0.1211 per kWh for residential customers due to higher ancillary service (AS) charges. The ancillary service charge of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) for regulating reserves went up almost fourfold, to P91.35 per kW from P23.17 per kW. The cost of regulating reserves accounted for around 76.5 percent of

total ancillary service charges. As of October this year, the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has approved an additional 257.78 MW for regulating reserve under new ancillary service procurement agreements. When sought for comment, the NGCP said the upward adjustment in AS charge was brought about by a policy direction from the Department of Energy (DOE) for NGCP to renegotiate its non-firm AS contracts to firm AS contracts. “We raised this concern that this may have an impact on cost. Although the DOE has the right

to set the policy, we ask that they study rate impact…This is something we expected. Unfortunately, it has resulted in an increase in the cost to be borne by consumers,” said NGCP Spokesperson Cynthia Alabanza. Aside from a higher transmission charge, Meralco also reported an increase in generation charge for November by P0.0671 to P7.1938 per kWh from P7.1267 per kWh last month due to higher charges from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) and Independent Power Producers (IPPs). WESM charges rose by P1.0933 per kWh due to tight supply conditions in the Luzon grid. Average capacity on outage increased by around 956 megawatt (MW) and persistent high spot market prices triggered the imposition of the secondary price cap 7.22 percent of the time. Charges from IPPs also went up by P0.1093 per kWh mainly due to lower IPP dispatch. Meanwhile, the P0.2980 per kWh decrease in Power

Supply Agreement (PSA) charges mitigated the increase in the generation charge. Lower international coal prices, higher PSA dispatch, and higher excess energy deliveries, which are price-discounted, contributed to lower the PSA rate. WESM, IPPs and PSAs accounted for 14.3 percent, 32.5 percent, and 53.2 percent, respectively, of Meralco’s total energy requirement for the October supply month. Other charges also registered a P0.0465 per kWh total increase. The collection of the Feed-In Tariff Allowance (FIT-All), at the rate of P0.0364 per kWh, remains suspended as directed by the ERC. Pass-through charges for generation and transmission are paid by Meralco to the power suppliers and the grid operator, respectively, while taxes, universal charges, and FIT-All are all remitted to the government. Meralco’s distribution charge, meanwhile, has not moved since the P0.0360 per kWh reduction for a typical residential customer beginning August 2022.

SMIC profit hits ₧55.9B in Jan-Sept By VG Cabuag @villygc

onglomerate SM Investments Corp. (SMIC) said it had a consolidated net income of P55.9 billion in January to September, higher by 30 percent from P42.9 billion last year. Consolidated revenues rose 15 percent to P440.4 billion from P382.0 billion in the same period last year, the company said. “Our ongoing healthy growth reflects buoyant consumer activity in malls and sustained spending in discretionary retail categories,” SMIC President and CEO Frederic

C. DyBuncio said. “We look forward to the fourth quarter, while continuing to monitor the impact of food prices and interest rates on consumer wallets.” Of total net earnings, retail accounted for 18 percent, banking accounted for the largest share at 47 percent while property contributed 26 percent and portfolio investments pitched in 9 percent. SM Retail reported that its net income reached P13.7 billion, up 19 percent from P11.5 billion last year. Retail revenues grew 12 percent to P290.6 billion from P258.4 billion last year.

Same-store sales for the department store and specialty retail businesses grew 18 percent and 9 percent, respectively, reflective of strong consumer spending in key categories, while store expansion also buoyed growth. “Food retail performance remained positive, supported by volume growth and expansion.” BDO Unibank Inc. said its net income reached P53.9 billion, more than a third higher compared with P40 billion last year. China Banking Corp. posted a consolidated net income of P16.2 billion during the period, 10 percent higher compared to same period last

year on the back of robust growth from core businesses and lower loan loss provisions. SM Prime Holdings Inc., the shopping mall operator, reported P30.1 billion in net income in January to September, 37 percent higher than P22 billion in the same period last year. Portfolio investments continued to sustain growth, contributing 9 percent to the group’s consolidated net income. Philippine Geothermal Production Co. and NEO, SM Investments’ office portfolio, contributed significantly to net income, the company said.

A Brown Monde Nissin posts flat 9-mo. income to issue M preferred shares

indanao-based real estate developer and listed firm A Brown Co. Inc. is seeking the approval of regulators for the second tranche of its preferred shares offering worth some P1.5 billion. The proceeds of the offering will be used for the development of pipeline residential projects. The company said it will offer shares in two series—B and C. It is targeted to be listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange in January 2024. The company said it has filed an updated registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission for the issuance of the said shares. “Among our high-priority developments are Coral Bay Suites and Alexandrite Columns, both of which are condominiums with resort amenities and scenic views,” A Brown president and CEO Robertino E. Pizarro said. T he sa id projec t s m a rk A Brown’s first foray into vertical development. VG Cabuag

onde Nissin Corp. said its income in January to September reached P5.68 billion, flat from a year ago, as it was weighed down mostly by its veggie meat business. As a result of the continuing losses, the controlling shareholders have promised to infuse financial support into its Singapore unit Monde Nissin Singapore Pte. Ltd. The financial support aims to significantly reduce the net cumulative impairment of its meat alternative business led by Quorn Foods starting December 31 this year and every year thereafter up to calendar year ending December 31, 2032, the company said. The cash infusion by the controlling family shareholders will be capped by the value of up to approximately 12 percent of outstanding shares or about 2.15 billion shares of Monde Nissin based on the weighted average stock price for the last five trading days of calendar year 2032. “This financial support by myself and the family shareholders comes after listening to and reflecting on the concerns that some of our shareholders have expressed about the current challenges in the meat alternative category which are impacting our business in the United Kingdom,” Henry Soesanto, the company’s CEO, said. “Despite our long-term view that

Photo from www.quorn.ph

the category has a bright future, we cannot ignore the headwinds we are facing. We have previously announced significant operational and strategic changes and now we wish to extend this significant personal financial support to help alleviate investors’ concern while we navigate through the current macroeconomic environment.” During the period, revenues rose by more than 10 percent to P59.64 billion from the previous year’s P53.99 billion. Its Asia-Pacific branded food and beverage division, where Lucky Me! Noodles and Fita biscuits belong, rose 14 percent to P48.95 billion from the previous year’s P42.76 billion. Its meat alternative business, meanwhile, fell by almost 5 percent to P10.69 billion from the previous P11.22 billion. For the third quarter alone, its meat alternative’s revenue declined by 9.5 percent on a constant currency

basis due to the continued category headwinds. The UK declined by 9.5 percent on a constant currency basis in the third quarter due to the challenging retail market. The foodservice revenue grew by 1 percent on a reported basis, the company said. “We continue to evaluate the situation while the category challenges [of the meat alternative business] persist. Without underplaying these challenges, I am encouraged that the major UK retailers tell us they remain committed to the category and that we are gaining market share. The previously implemented restructuring of our meat alternative business has enabled us to maintain EBITDA breakeven for the second consecutive quarter. Looking ahead, while it is hard to predict volumes in the near-term, I am hopeful that generally lowering commodity prices will provide some respite from the cost inflation we have not yet passed on,” Soesanto said. VG Cabuag

Pedestrians walk past a Globe Telecom Inc. Iconic store in Manila, the Philippines, October 23, 2017. Bloomberg News By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

lobe Telecom Inc. said on Thursday it “consistently” held the revenue leadership in the mobile market with 54.9 percent at end-September. Darius Delgado, Head of Globe’s Consumer Mobile Business, said Globe’s mobile revenue market share (RMS) at the close of September represents a 0.3-percent rise from the second quarter, “increasing on the back of higher data use and ARPU [average revenue per user], as Globe’s subscriber base showed more consistent activity following SIM Registration.” “Globe continues to lead where it matters. This year, our revenue market share has been consistently growing quarter on quarter, and Mobile continues to gain with higher quality acquisitions and more active loaders using our services for longer periods,” he said. Currently, Globe has 54.7 million subscribers, a million more since the deadline for the registration of existing SIMs. It had deactivated 30 million inactive SIMs following the SIM registration process. “We have always looked at RMS as the most important metric of Mobile leadership. As we near the close of 2023, we are proud to have sustained our edge in the last seven years,” Globe Group President and CEO Ernest Cu said. Based on its financial report, Globe’s mobile service revenues in July to September was at P28.4 billion, a 7-percent increase from the same period in 2022 at P26.5 billion.

In January to September, Globe booked a 3-percent increase in mobile revenues to P83.2 billion from P80.6 billion. Delgado attributed this to “consistently rising demand for mobile data usage, with its diverse and affordable offerings keeping the prepaid market vigorous.” Post the SIM registration, ARPU also improved for Globe’s Prepaid and TM brands. For Globe Prepaid, it registered a 25-percent increase by the third quarter 2023 compared to the same period last year, and the same level of increase compared to the last quarter. TM, meanwhile, logged a 35-percent growth in ARPU year-on-year by end September 2023. “We are encouraged by these consistently improving numbers to drive harder and provide best-inclass value-for-money services for our customers,” Delgado said. Globe reported that its profits in January to September plunged by more than a quarter despite posting all-time high consolidated service revenues due to higher depreciation costs and a non-operate charge versus last year. The company said in a statement that its net income during the period dropped by 27 percent “due to the increased depreciation expense as well as this period’s non-operating charges versus last year’s non-operating income which included the partial sale of Globe’s data center business.” “Excluding this one-time gain, normalized net income would have been P14.8 billion, or down by 11 percent compared to the previous year,” the company said.

Toki sets sights on collectibles market

oki, a Filipino-founded social commerce platform in the Philippines, sees a huge opportunity in the $5-billion collectibles market, as almost half of Filipinos are considered collectors. Just launched recently, Toki was founded by former executives of GCash Zoe Ocampo, Jules Jurado, Prabh Singh, and Frederic Levy. The company is backed by angel investors and venture capital firms such as Kaya Founders, Foxmont Capital, Bigboy Cheng, Ernest Cu, and Brian Cu, among others. According to Ocampo, Toki’s market research found that the Philippine collectibles market is currently valued at $5 billion. However, collectors are burdened with “navigating an unsecured and convoluted trading journey, without a dedicated marketplace to seamlessly facilitate transactions.”

“For so long, the process of searching for collectibles and purchasing an item hasn’t been ideal. Usually, we start the journey with social networks or messaging applications, and from there, one has to sift through at least 10 different sellers, unsure of the credibility and authenticity of their products. It has been consistently tedious and filled with unnecessary friction,” Ocampo said. For its launch, Toki featured four categories: Sneakers, Lego, NBA Cards, and Funko Pops. Using the platform, sellers can list their items for the said categories, while buyers can purchase the items similar to other online marketplaces. It also has a livestream auction feature. Apart from streamlining the purchasing process, Toki also aims to “fully secure” the customer experience. Lorenz S. Marasigan

Companies BusinessMirror

Friday, November 10, 2023

Megaworld: Property sales, hotels boost 9-mo. income

By VG Cabuag

@villygc

roperty developer Megaworld Corp. on Thursday said its income in January to September rose 39 percent to P13.5 billion from P9.7 billion last year. Consolidated revenues during the period also went up by 14 percent to P48.6 billion, driven by robust real estate bookings, leasing, and hotel operations. “We are optimistic that we will reach our record revenues by the end of the year across our businesses as we continue to capture opportunities

within and beyond Metro Manila,” Kevin Andrew L. Tan, the company’s EVP and chief strategy officer, said. Real estate sales for the period increased by 11 percent year-on-year to P29 billion due to higher project completion rates. The company said it is poised to exceed its yearend reservation sales

target of P130. billion, as reservation sales in January to September have already reached P109.5 billion, a growth of 28 percent. The company launched P69.3billion worth of projects this year, with three big projects being rolled out in the third quarter alone. These include Uptown Modern in Uptown Bonifacio, Taguig City with P29 billion worth of inventory; Laurent Park in Manhattan Garden City, Quezon City with P6.5 billion worth of inventory; and Kensington Sky Garden in Upper East, Bacolod City with P2.5billion worth of inventory. “We still have projects to be launched before the year ends,” Tan said. Leasing revenues from its shopping malls and office divisions grew

17 percent to P13.3 billion in January to September. Megaworld Lifestyle Malls grew its revenues by 70 percent to P3.9 billion during the period driven by higher rental collections, while Megaworld Premier Offices grew 3 percent to P9.4 billion. Meanwhile, Megaworld Hotels and Resorts has surpassed its fullyear 2019 revenues in January to September, when it reached P2.6 billion or an increase of 51 percent from the same period last year. This was largely driven by the promising growth of MICE activities and local tourism. During the period, its hotels also saw improved average occupancy and higher room rates compared to last year, the company said.

ACEN profit surges to ₧6.6B in Jan-Sept

CEN Corp. reported a net income of P6.6 billion at end-September this year, up by 59 percent from the same period a year ago, boosted by gains from the sale of its stake in geothermal power plants in Indonesia. Revenues for January to September rose 13 percent year-onyear to P28.6 billion on the back of higher retail customer tariffs and the ramp-up of New England solar in Australia and Pagudpud wind in the Philippines. Core operating earnings, which represents ACEN’s attributable share of income from operating units, doubled with new operating capacity across the global portfolio and the shift to a net selling mer-

chant position in 2023. This offset higher overhead and development expenses for the period as ACEN continues to ramp up its renewables expansion in the Philippines and in Australia. Attributable earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA), which includes ACEN’s share of EBITDA from non-consolidated operating projects, and other cash earnings, rose 21 percent to P14.1 billion in January to September, as value realization gains from the sale of a stake in the Salak and Darajat geothermal plants in Indonesia offset the decline in guarantee fees and other pre-operating income items. Lenie Lectura

MUTUAL FUNDS

November 9, 2023

NAV One Year Three Year Five Year Y-T-D per share Return* Return Stock Funds ALFM Growth Fund, Inc. -a 200.66 -0.5% -2.49% -3.51% -1.76% -3.77% ATRAM Alpha Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 1.4043 10.47% 7.32% 0.6% 0.98% 4.47% ATRAM Philippine Equity Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 2.7615 -0.82% -2.29% -5.73% -3.41% -5.27% Climbs Share Capital Equity Investment Fund Corp. -a 0.6641 -0.23% -3.94% -4.85% n.a -5.03% First Metro Consumer Fund, Inc. -a 0.6095 -3.5% -5.28% -4.9% n.a -6.03% First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund, Inc. -a 4.4144 -1.34% -1.82% -2.17% -1.43% -5.07% First Metro Save and Learn Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.6584 -2.34% -3.34% n.a n.a -6.09% MBG Equity Investment Fund, Inc. -a 84.36 11.12% -1.82% -5% n.a 12.01% PAMI Equity Index Fund, Inc. -a 40.8648 -1.24% -2.41% -2.55% n.a -5.38% Philam Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 425.9 -0.78% -2.92% -2.58% -1.73% -4.16% Philequity Dividend Yield Fund, Inc. -a 1.1597 0.16% 1.9% -0.63% n.a -1.31% Philequity Fund, Inc. -a 32.1865 0.4% -0.31% -1.6% 0.19% -3.33% Philequity MSCI Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.819 0.18% -1.8% n.a n.a -3.51% Philequity PSE Index Fund, Inc. -a 4.297 -0.2% -1.47% -1.68% 0.12% -4.42% Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a 714.88 -0.32% -1.65% -1.75% -0.03% -4.55% Soldivo Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 0.6439 0.64% -1.66% -4.59% n.a -4.48% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Equity Fund, Inc. -a 3.1934 -1.16% -2.18% -3.81% -1.69% -5.33% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Stock Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.8108 -0.66% -1.97% -2.07% n.a -4.82% United Fund, Inc. -a 2.9839 -0.3% -1.33% -2.1% -0.73% -3.56% Primarily invested in Peso securities (units) COL Equity Index Unitized Mutual Fund, Inc. -a 1.0063 -0.79% n.a n.a n.a -4.72% COL Strategic Growth Equity Unitized Mutual Fund, Inc. -a,20.9937 n.a n.a n.a n.a n.a Philequity Alpha One Fund, Inc. -a 0.9803 -0.23% -0.9% n.a n.a -6.32% Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a 867.63 -0.48% n.a n.a n.a -4.61% Exchange Traded Fund (shares) First Metro Phil. Equity Exchange Traded Fund, Inc. -a,c97.0195 0.27% -1.33% -1.45% n.a -4.05% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities (shares) ATRAM AsiaPlus Equity Fund, Inc. -b $0.8033 1.54% -10.87% -3.67% -1.92% -5.72% Sun Life Prosperity World Voyager Fund, Inc. -a $1.5284 9.53% -1.14% 4.46% n.a 7.33% Balanced Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities (shares) ATRAM Dynamic Allocation Fund, Inc. -a 1.4285 -4.23% -3.86% -2.31% -2.36% -3.79% ATRAM Philippine Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 2.0937 4.16% -1.12% -0.46% -0.4% -0.55% First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 2.4114 -1.06% -1.63% -0.13% -1.59% -3.75% First Metro Save and Learn F.O.C.C.U.S. Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a 0.1849 -1.18% -1.27% n.a n.a -4.44% NCM Mutual Fund of the Phils., Inc. -a 1.8734 1.13% -0.72% 0.93% 0.4% -0.72% PAMI Horizon Fund, Inc. -a 3.4072 1.24% -2.38% 0.14% -0.56% -0.95% Philam Fund, Inc. -a 14.9351 0.42% -3.06% -0.43% -0.84% -1.35% Solidaritas Fund, Inc. -a 1.9713 0.99% -0.91% -0.32% 0.45% -0.77% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 3.268 1.03% -1.71% -1.55% -1% -1.85% Sun Life Prosperity Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a 0.8575 0.98% 0.42% -0.94% n.a -2.43% Primarily invested in Peso securities (units) Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2028, Inc. -a 0.9119 2.96% -2.56% n.a n.a -0.36% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2038, Inc. -a 0.8045 0.58% -3.77% n.a n.a -3.72% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2048, Inc. -a 0.7852 -0.14% -3.89% n.a n.a -4.53% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities (shares) Cocolife Dollar Fund Builder, Inc. -a $0.03163 1.77% -6.93% -1.8% -0.09% -2.38% PAMI Asia Balanced Fund, Inc. -b $0.865 5.99% -7.42% -1.82% -1.66% 2.98% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Advantage Fund, Inc. -a $3.9652 5.93% -2.58% 2.26% 2.36% 3.1% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Wellspring Fund, Inc. -a $0.9681 2.9% -5.04% -0.53% n.a -0.36% Bond Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities (shares) ALFM Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 387.45 3.13% 1.63% 2.53% 2.05% 2.5% ATRAM Corporate Bond Fund, Inc. -a 1.8962 1.65% 0.03% 0.5% -0.14% 1.14% Cocolife Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a 3.2826 2.27% 0.78% 2.15% 3.68% 2.3% Ekklesia Mutual Fund, Inc. -a 2.2281 3.7% -0.89% 0.98% 0.98% 1.95% First Metro Save and Learn Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a 2.4071 1.1% -0.52% 1.69% 0.95% 0.67% Philam Bond Fund, Inc. -a 4.1569 0.92% -3.45% 1.68% 0.23% 0.41% Philam Managed Income Fund, Inc. -a 1.3579 3.18% 1.12% 2.93% 1.65% 2.91% Philequity Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.9611 3.59% -0.03% 2.68% 1.16% 2.39% Soldivo Bond Fund, Inc. -a 1.0396 3.09% 0.14% 3.43% n.a 2.26% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.2274 4.03% 0.49% 3.31% 1.62% 2.6% Sun Life Prosperity GS Fund, Inc. -a 1.7275 3.1% -0.27% 2.57% 1.05% 1.88% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities (shares) ALFM Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $490.16 2.8% 0.64% 1.89% 2.41% 2.09% ALFM Euro Bond Fund, Inc. -a Є211.59 1.79% -1% -0.13% 0.71% 0.92% ATRAM Total Return Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -b $1.0115 2.67% -6.97% -2.04% -0.18% 0.21% First Metro Save and Learn Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $0.0241 1.69% -3.11% -0.57% n.a 1.69% PAMI Global Bond Fund, Inc -b $0.8324 -0.34% -8.68% -3.98% -3.41% -7.51% Philam Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $2.1662 4.46% -4.92% 0.33% 1.3% -0.63% Philequity Dollar Income Fund, Inc. -a $0.0607062 2.08% -0.66% 1.31% 1.55% 1.69% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Abundance Fund, Inc. -a $2.6051 1.35% -6.81% -1.94% -0.17% -4.28% Money Market Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities (shares) ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 136.17 2.38% 1.71% 2.53% 2% 2.19% First Metro Save and Learn Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.1028 3.08% 1.77% n.a n.a 2.72% Sun Life Prosperity Peso Starter Fund, Inc. -a 1.3697 2.68% 1.94% 2.46% 1.96% 2.34% Primarily invested in Peso securities (units) ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 103.92 3.89% n.a n.a n.a 3.43% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities (shares) Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Starter Fund, Inc. -a $1.091 2.18% 1.25% 1.49% n.a 2.04% Feeder Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities (units) ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund, Inc. -a 41.2815 -6.45% n.a n.a n.a -3.28% Sun Life Prosperity World Equity Index Feeder Fund, Inc. -a 1.3579 9.13% 9.01% n.a n.a 10.21% Sun Life Prosperity World Income Fund, Inc. -a,1 0.9556 n.a n.a n.a n.a n.a Primarily invested in foreign currency securities (Units) ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund, Inc. -a $0.7595 -2.57% -7.19% n.a n.a -3.86%

a - NAVPS as of the previous banking day. b - NAVPS as of two banking days ago. c - Listed in the PSE. 1 - Renaming was approved by the SEC last July 8, 2021 (formerly, Sun Life Prosperity Money Market Fund, Inc.). 2 - Adjusted due to stock dividend issuance last November 25, 2022. 3 - Re-classified into a Index Fund starting December 5, 2019 (formerly an Equity Fund) 4 - Renaming was approved by the SEC last October 14, 2021 (formerly, First Metro Consumer Fund on MSCI Phils. IMI, Inc.). 5 - Launch date is October 4, 2022. 6 - Launch date is August 22, 2023. “While we endeavor to keep the information accurate, the Philippine Investment Funds Association (PIFA) and its members make no warranties as to the correctness of the newspaper’s publication and assume no liability or responsibility for any error or omissions. You may visit http://www.

pifa.com.ph to see the latest NAVPS/NAVPU.”

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PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

November 9, 2023

Net Foreign Stocks Bid Ask Open High Low Close Volume Value Trade (Peso) Buy (Sell) FINANCIALs

BDO UNIBANK BANK COMMERCE BANK PH ISLANDS CHINABANK EAST WEST BANK METROBANK PB BANK PHIL NATL BANK PSBANK RCBC SECURITY BANK UNION BANK BRIGHT KINDLE COL FINANCIAL FERRONOUX HLDG MANULIFE PHIL STOCK EXCH SUN LIFE

397,109,907 16,569 115,005,284 2,723,315 333,362 50,398,334 51,000 449,028 11,759 599,150 20,608,047 278,870.50 1,470 267,200 217,140 15,555 1,740 12,750

75,814,273 4,914 -9,083,876 -842,055 4,836,133.50 -423,210 -6,720 -594,400 -11,857,616 34,723.50 12,750

INDUSTRIAL ACEN CORP 5.18 5.19 5.29 5.32 5.14 5.19 12,319,700 64,121,002 ALSONS CONS 0.54 0.55 0.54 0.55 0.54 0.55 666,000 366,290 ALTERNERGY HLDG 0.93 0.94 0.89 0.94 0.88 0.93 3,998,000 3,680,940 ABOITIZ POWER 36.7 36.8 36.25 36.85 36.15 36.8 1,424,700 52,402,390 RASLAG 1.23 1.27 1.26 1.28 1.23 1.27 25,000 31,570 BASIC ENERGY 0.189 0.19 0.193 0.193 0.189 0.189 320,000 60,770 FIRST GEN 18.14 18.2 18.5 18.5 18.1 18.2 210,500 3,826,066 FIRST PHIL HLDG 61 61.9 60.3 61 60.3 61 3,330 202,983 MERALCO 368 369 372 373 354 369 165,500 61,022,590 MANILA WATER 17.14 17.3 17.12 17.3 17.08 17.3 534,000 9,188,310 PETRON 3.28 3.29 3.25 3.29 3.25 3.29 586,000 1,917,920 PHX PETROLEUM 5.5 5.98 5.02 5.98 5.02 5.98 10,700 63,121 REPOWER ENERGY 7.14 7.24 7.1 7.3 7.1 7.24 18,900 137,273 SYNERGY GRID 7.18 7.19 7.32 7.4 7.16 7.19 1,278,000 9,227,626 SHELL PILIPINAS 12.7 12.8 12.9 12.9 12.78 12.8 32,700 418,880 SPC POWER 7.51 7.9 7.9 7.9 7.6 7.9 55,400 430,940 VIVANT 14.64 15.94 15 15 15 15 9,900 148,500 AGRINURTURE 1.97 2.01 2 2.05 1.95 2.01 1,281,000 2,586,350 AXELUM 1.85 1.89 1.86 1.88 1.86 1.88 18,000 33,680 CENTURY FOOD 28.75 28.8 29 29 28.3 28.75 318,000 9,148,700 DEL MONTE 7.2 7.48 7.35 7.35 7.2 7.2 25,200 182,152 DNL INDUS 6.28 6.29 6.35 6.36 6.29 6.29 523,200 3,295,682 EMPERADOR 20.85 20.9 20.85 21 20.8 20.85 1,088,000 22,719,230 SMC FOODANDBEV 49.9 50 50.75 50.75 49.8 50 130,210 6,520,339 FIGARO COFFEE 0.65 0.66 0.66 0.68 0.66 0.66 4,343,000 2,883,330 ALLIANCE SELECT 0.48 0.53 0.48 0.48 0.48 0.48 10,000 4,800 FRUITAS HLDG 1.14 1.15 1.09 1.17 1.08 1.15 11,081,000 12,510,450 GINEBRA 171.1 171.4 170 171.4 170 171.4 69,770 11,958,024 JOLLIBEE 218.4 219 220 221 217.2 218.4 636,360 139,280,720 KEEPERS HLDG 1.45 1.46 1.42 1.45 1.41 1.45 1,532,000 2,204,590 MACAY HLDG 6.41 7.24 6.8 6.8 6.4 6.4 1,000 6,445 MAXS GROUP 3.93 4 4 4 3.94 3.94 85,000 335,310 MONDE NISSIN 8.22 8.27 7.91 8.27 7.9 8.27 10,531,900 86,192,218 SHAKEYS PIZZA 9.35 9.42 9.21 9.5 9.21 9.35 1,051,300 9,867,190 ROXAS AND CO 0.48 0.5 0.48 0.5 0.48 0.5 17,000 8,300 RFM CORP 2.99 3 3 3 3 3 1,795,000 5,385,000 ROXAS HLDG 0.56 0.66 0.64 0.64 0.58 0.58 32,000 18,850 SWIFT FOODS 0.053 0.061 0.053 0.053 0.053 0.053 320,000 16,960 UNIV ROBINA 112.1 112.2 112 114.1 112 112.2 1,368,850 154,325,783 VITARICH 0.51 0.52 0.53 0.53 0.52 0.52 106,000 55,180 VICTORIAS 3.42 3.68 3.42 3.42 3.42 3.42 2,000 6,840 CEMEX HLDG 0.86 0.87 0.82 0.89 0.82 0.86 66,000 56,070 EC VULCAN CORP 0.81 0.83 0.83 0.83 0.81 0.83 865,000 702,230 EEI CORP 5.31 5.39 5.49 5.49 5.3 5.31 459,600 2,448,490 MEGAWIDE 3.16 3.18 3.19 3.19 3.15 3.16 62,000 196,330 PHINMA 19.5 20.4 19.5 19.5 19.5 19.5 100 1,950 TKC METALS 0.44 0.46 0.485 0.485 0.44 0.46 150,000 68,550 CROWN ASIA 1.55 1.59 1.59 1.59 1.59 1.59 9,000 14,310 EUROMED 0.83 0.86 0.86 0.86 0.86 0.86 6,000 5,160 MABUHAY VINYL 5.6 5.75 5.6 5.75 5.6 5.75 4,700 26,800 PRYCE CORP 5.33 5.4 5.3 5.4 5.3 5.4 7,300 39,386 GREENERGY 0.305 0.31 0.31 0.325 0.31 0.31 19,580,000 6,141,650 INTEGRATED MICR 3.65 3.7 3.4 3.75 3.4 3.7 57,000 206,920 IONICS 1.23 1.25 1.26 1.26 1.17 1.25 1,696,000 2,052,130 SFA SEMICON 2.12 2.19 2.18 2.19 2.12 2.12 488,000 1,056,100 CIRTEK HLDG 1.78 1.8 1.77 1.82 1.75 1.8 71,000 125,960

-24,686,048 165,000 3,619,670.00 -20,900 -3,343,568 -190,320 -1,911,626 -1,050,542.00 -52,060 -48,195 2,417,507 -52,530 -393,990 39,800.00 4,987,245 -1,773,971 -17,367,255 -4,791,802 -39,660 0 97,220 -4,732,354 21,038,482 -295,910 -38,168,501 -2,555,541 -270,000 -57,510,252 -2,540 19,764 -750 -25,900 -625,300 -

ABACORE CAPITAL AYALA CORP ABOITIZ EQUITY ALLIANCE GLOBAL ANSCOR ANGLO PHIL HLDG COSCO CAPITAL DMCI HLDG FILINVEST DEV FJ PRINCE A GT CAPITAL JG SUMMIT KEPPEL HLDG A LODESTAR LOPEZ HLDG LT GROUP PACIFICA HLDG PRIME MEDIA REPUBLIC GLASS SM INVESTMENTS SAN MIGUEL CORP SEAFRONT RES WELLEX INDUS

37,646,500 12,076,705 1,319,132 21,840 -22,420 -3,408,341 2,608,710 16,732,610.00 21,000 9,605,683 -91,489,695 -1,668,772 1,970 -

HOLDING & FRIMS

134.5 7.02 103.7 30.35 8.97 53.25 8.4 18.24 55.95 23.4 74.2 60.45 1.44 2.83 2.71 900 174 2,550

1.05 629 48 10.76 10.9 0.47 4.65 9.1 5.06 1.6 550 38.95 5.22 0.41 4.4 9.04 1 2.87 2.71 817 102.9 1.51 0.248

135 7.4 103.8 30.4 9 53.5 8.6 18.5 56 23.75 74.5 60.7 1.47 2.84 2.89 1,029 175 2,650

1.07 630.5 48.8 10.78 11 0.5 4.7 9.18 5.29 2.24 552 39 5.4 0.435 4.49 9.05 1.25 2.92 3.07 818.5 103 1.97 0.25

134.9 7.5 104.3 30.35 9.16 52.9 8.6 18.42 56 23.75 75 60.4 1.47 2.85 2.73 1,037 174 2,550

1.08 622.5 47.55 10.66 10.94 0.47 4.71 9.25 5.06 1.6 538 38.3 5.6 0.42 4.4 8.85 1 2.97 3.06 816 103.9 1.97 0.248

135.7 7.5 104.3 30.4 9.16 53.85 8.6 18.52 56 23.75 75 60.85 1.47 2.85 2.73 1,037 174 2,550

1.08 630.5 48.8 10.76 11 0.47 4.71 9.25 5.06 1.6 557 39.4 5.6 0.44 4.4 9.07 1 2.97 3.07 828.5 103.9 1.97 0.248

134 7.01 102.8 30.35 8.9 52.9 8.4 18.4 55.95 23.4 74.05 60.4 1.47 2.84 2.7 1,037 174 2,550

1.04 620 47.3 10.62 10.9 0.47 4.6 9.1 5.06 1.6 538 37.9 5.6 0.41 4.4 8.82 1 2.92 3.06 816 102.3 1.97 0.248

135 7.02 103.8 30.4 9 53.25 8.4 18.5 56 23.75 74.2 60.45 1.47 2.84 2.7 1,037 174 2,550

1.07 630.5 48.8 10.76 10.9 0.47 4.65 9.1 5.06 1.6 552 39 5.6 0.44 4.4 9.05 1 2.92 3.07 817 103 1.97 0.248

2,943,700 2,300 1,109,900 89,600 36,900 943,770 6,000 24,400 210 25,600 276,800 4,600 1,000 94,000 80,000 15 10 5

1,886,000 213,040 608,000 1,044,100 26,700 20,000 94,000 3,715,300 100 10,000 150,710 1,753,600 100 170,000 70,000 5,801,700 1,000 20,000 11,000 284,460 23,290 1,000 50,000

1,989,480 133,904,225 29,491,505 11,223,280 291,262 9,400 438,860 34,037,918 506 16,000 83,094,120 68,420,290 560 70,500 308,000 52,218,081 1,000 58,900 33,760 233,230,540 2,394,132 1,970 12,400

PROPERTY ARTHALAND CORP 0.425 0.455 0.45 0.465 0.45 0.465 50,000 22,750 AYALA LAND 29.45 29.5 29.4 29.95 29.35 29.5 20,215,600 598,013,225 AYALA LAND LOG 1.68 1.7 1.71 1.71 1.68 1.7 453,000 772,430 ALTUS PROP 8.95 9.39 8.94 8.94 8.94 8.94 500 4,470 ARANETA PROP 1.02 1.03 1.07 1.07 1.02 1.02 1,090,000 1,128,050 AREIT RT 32.7 33 33 33.25 32.65 32.7 489,200 16,082,660 A BROWN 0.68 0.71 0.69 0.71 0.69 0.71 48,000 33,140 CITYLAND DEVT 0.72 0.73 0.73 0.73 0.73 0.73 1,091,000 796,430 CEB LANDMASTERS 2.55 2.58 2.58 2.58 2.57 2.58 199,000 513,370 CENTURY PROP 0.305 0.31 0.31 0.31 0.3 0.305 620,000 187,450 CITICORE RT 2.53 2.54 2.54 2.54 2.51 2.54 854,000 2,160,660 DOUBLEDRAGON 6.98 6.99 6.95 6.98 6.81 6.98 103,900 723,766 DDMP RT 1.24 1.25 1.24 1.24 1.23 1.24 821,000 1,014,150 DM WENCESLAO 6.28 6.3 6.3 6.3 6.3 6.3 12,500 78,750 EMPIRE EAST 0.143 0.145 0.146 0.147 0.143 0.145 4,240,000 614,980 EVER GOTESCO 0.285 0.295 0.29 0.295 0.29 0.295 310,000 91,300 FILINVEST RT 2.98 2.99 3 3 2.98 2.99 4,081,000 12,213,940 FILINVEST LAND 0.58 0.59 0.62 0.62 0.57 0.59 77,331,000 45,658,120 PHIL INFRADEV 0.5 0.55 0.5 0.59 0.5 0.5 200,000 107,800 CITY AND LAND 0.77 0.78 0.78 0.78 0.77 0.78 419,000 324,030 MEGAWORLD 1.98 1.99 1.97 2.02 1.97 1.99 10,144,000 20,219,350 MRC ALLIED 1.63 1.65 1.69 1.8 1.58 1.63 1,378,000 2,268,470 MREIT RT 12.18 12.2 12.28 12.34 12.18 12.2 700,300 8,571,692 OMICO CORP 0.228 0.25 0.228 0.228 0.228 0.228 20,000 4,560 PREMIERE RT 1.51 1.53 1.52 1.53 1.51 1.53 44,000 67,000 PRIMEX CORP 2.55 2.77 2.54 2.77 2.54 2.77 5,000 12,930 RL COMM RT 4.86 4.88 4.87 4.9 4.86 4.88 429,000 2,091,790 ROBINSONS LAND 14.32 14.4 14.16 14.48 14.16 14.4 355,400 5,104,142 PHIL REALTY 0.151 0.163 0.165 0.165 0.151 0.151 240,000 37,060 ROCKWELL 1.4 1.44 1.33 1.43 1.33 1.43 161,000 227,550 SHANG PROP 3.5 3.52 3.5 3.58 3.5 3.51 88,000 308,620 SM PRIME HLDG 31.45 31.8 30.9 31.8 30.65 31.8 7,321,900 231,434,395 VISTAMALLS 2.32 2.45 2.44 2.44 2.44 2.44 2,000 4,880 VISTA LAND 1.62 1.63 1.6 1.63 1.6 1.63 204,000 330,870 VISTAREIT RT 1.67 1.7 1.69 1.7 1.67 1.7 364,000 615,480 SERVICES ABS CBN 3.5 3.6 3.65 3.65 3.5 3.5 105,000 376,830 GMA NETWORK 8.29 8.3 8.3 8.31 8.29 8.3 180,200 1,495,863 MANILA BULLETIN 0.2 0.244 0.22 0.22 0.22 0.22 20,000 4,400 GLOBE TELECOM 1,772 1,775 1,775 1,794 1,772 1,772 21,790 38,685,080 PLDT 1,237 1,238 1,240 1,242 1,231 1,238 37,250 46,100,020 APOLLO GLOBAL 0.015 0.016 0.016 0.016 0.015 0.015 60,600,000 913,100 CONVERGE 8.8 8.9 9 9.03 8.8 8.8 4,167,700 37,141,949 DFNN INC 3.09 3.15 3.09 3.09 3.09 3.09 20,000 61,800 DITO CME HLDG 2.86 2.87 2.85 2.91 2.81 2.87 3,639,000 10,425,860 IMPERIAL 0.58 0.68 0.58 0.58 0.58 0.58 7,000 4,060 NOW CORP 1.37 1.39 1.36 1.38 1.34 1.38 663,000 906,240 TRANSPACIFIC BR 0.135 0.14 0.142 0.142 0.142 0.142 260,000 36,920 ASIAN TERMINALS 15.44 15.78 15.6 15.78 15.6 15.78 3,100 48,582 CHELSEA 1.27 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.28 1.28 26,000 33,480 CEBU AIR 32.4 32.65 32.5 32.75 32.5 32.5 136,000 4,423,205 INTL CONTAINER 207 208 207.8 210 207 207 435,470 90,459,916 LBC EXPRESS 18.94 18.96 16.94 18.94 16.94 18.94 3,000 54,838 MACROASIA 3.9 3.99 3.95 4 3.9 3.99 404,000 1,581,780 PAL HLDG 5.16 5.29 5.29 5.29 5.08 5.12 2,700 13,807 HARBOR STAR 0.8 0.83 0.8 0.88 0.8 0.8 459,000 370,460 ACESITE HOTEL 1.82 1.89 1.82 1.82 1.82 1.82 100,000 182,000 WATERFRONT 0.42 0.43 0.42 0.42 0.42 0.42 500,000 210,000 CENTRO ESCOLAR 8.21 8.99 9.04 9.04 8.2 8.2 1,600 13,204 FAR EASTERN U 580 630 580 630 580 630 50 30,000 IPEOPLE 7.3 7.45 7.29 7.45 7.29 7.45 8,600 63,507 STI HLDG 0.435 0.445 0.45 0.45 0.435 0.445 1,010,000 443,100 BELLE CORP 1.17 1.19 1.21 1.21 1.17 1.19 58,000 68,520 BLOOMBERRY 9.66 9.69 9.45 9.83 9.45 9.69 3,678,300 35,658,509 PACIFIC ONLINE 3.4 3.41 3.34 3.63 3.34 3.41 1,629,000 5,704,620 PH RESORTS GRP 0.93 0.94 0.91 0.93 0.89 0.93 3,121,000 2,860,730 PREMIUM LEISURE 0.61 0.62 0.62 0.62 0.6 0.62 4,790,000 2,924,970 DIGIPLUS 6.95 6.98 6.98 7.08 6.97 6.98 3,315,000 23,267,778 PHILWEB 1.77 1.78 1.78 1.78 1.77 1.77 80,000 142,220 ALLDAY 0.17 0.174 0.175 0.175 0.17 0.174 790,000 135,780 ALLHOME 1.45 1.46 1.44 1.48 1.44 1.46 1,081,000 1,570,550 METRO RETAIL 1.21 1.23 1.2 1.23 1.2 1.23 33,000 39,750 PUREGOLD 27.95 28 28.25 28.25 27.9 28 554,400 15,527,105 ROBINSONS RTL 39.55 39.95 38.85 40.25 38.85 39.95 150,600 5,973,860 PHIL SEVEN CORP 75.95 76 71.05 72 71 72 1,900 136,409 SSI GROUP 2.75 2.85 2.8 2.85 2.75 2.75 722,000 2,008,530 UPSON INTL CORP 1.59 1.63 1.6 1.63 1.6 1.63 64,000 102,460 WILCON DEPOT 20.1 20.15 20.1 20.1 19.9 20.1 548,900 10,995,841 EASYCALL 2.66 3.2 2.88 2.89 2.88 2.89 4,000 11,530 MEDILINES 0.375 0.39 0.38 0.38 0.375 0.375 360,000 135,350 PRMIERE HORIZON 0.186 0.187 0.187 0.187 0.187 0.187 210,000 39,270 SBS PHIL CORP 3.86 3.98 3.81 3.98 3.81 3.98 8,000 31,650 MINING & OIL ATOK 4.84 5.13 5 5.14 5 5.14 17,200 86,174 APEX MINING 2.57 2.58 2.6 2.6 2.58 2.58 2,140,000 5,541,020 ATLAS MINING 3 3.08 3.07 3.07 3 3 60,000 180,070 BENGUET A 4.96 4.97 4.98 5.02 4.97 4.97 105,000 522,860 BENGUET B 4.9 5.06 5.02 5.02 5.02 5.02 15,000 75,300 CENTURY PEAK 3.11 3.2 3.15 3.2 3.11 3.11 324,000 1,019,390 FERRONICKEL 2.41 2.45 2.45 2.45 2.38 2.41 998,000 2,397,860 GEOGRACE 0.032 0.033 0.034 0.034 0.033 0.033 1,100,000 37,000 MANILA MINING A 0.0046 0.0048 0.0047 0.0048 0.0047 0.0048 10,000,000 47,600 MARCVENTURES 1.08 1.09 1.1 1.11 1.09 1.09 817,000 897,880 NICKEL ASIA 5.41 5.45 5.45 5.47 5.39 5.45 1,619,500 8,795,429 ORNTL PENINSULA 0.67 0.69 0.66 0.67 0.66 0.67 154,000 102,390 PX MINING 2.78 2.8 2.76 2.82 2.76 2.78 666,000 1,852,280 SEMIRARA MINING 29.25 29.3 30 30 29.15 29.3 2,157,400 63,687,660 ENEX ENERGY 5.85 5.97 5.96 5.96 5.96 5.96 2,000 11,920 PHILODRILL 0.0082 0.0087 0.0082 0.0082 0.0082 0.0082 5,000,000 41,000 PXP ENERGY 3.64 3.65 3.5 3.76 3.4 3.64 503,000 1,830,500 PREFFERED HOUSE PREF B 94 96 96 96 96 96 500 48,000 ACEN PREF A 1,030 1,040 1,030 1,040 1,030 1,040 1,500 1,547,000 ACEN PREF B 1,040 1,045 1,046 1,046 1,039 1,045 245 256,000 AC PREF AR 2,470 2,490 2,498 2,500 2,496 2,500 1,205 3,011,460 AC PREF B2R 487 490 487 487 487 487 190 92,530 BRN PREF A 96.05 99.45 99.45 99.45 99.45 99.45 400 39,780 CEB PREF 31.4 32 31.5 31.5 31.5 31.5 46,000 1,449,000 DD PREF 89.95 90 90.85 90.85 89.95 90 5,670 510,412.50 EEI PREF B 88.5 95.45 95.45 95.45 92 95.45 620 57,109 JFC PREF A 931.5 958.5 931 931 931 931 70 65,170 JFC PREF B 915 925 925 925 925 925 10 9,250 MWIDE PREF 2B 89.05 93.95 93 93 93 93 470 43,710 MWIDE PREF 4 90 94 93 93 90 90 1,890 174,270 PNX PREF 3B 26.4 31.05 26.55 31.3 26.55 31.3 1,100 31,960 PNX PREF 4 255.2 273.4 261.2 274.8 253 274.8 210 54,716 PCOR PREF 3A 968.5 970 970 970 970 970 20 19,400 PCOR PREF 3B 979 1,009 982 982 979 979 200 196,070 PCOR PREF 4B 955 1,010 1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000 200 200,000 PCOR PREF 4C 990 1,000 999 1,000 999 1,000 1,000 999,985 SMC PREF 2F 72.8 73 73 73 73 73 3,160 230,680 SMC PREF 2I 70.75 72.7 72.8 72.8 72.7 72.7 1,150 83,620 SMC PREF 2J 65.2 68.85 68.85 68.85 65 65 27,020 1,788,087 SMC PREF 2K 65 66.95 65.55 65.55 65 65 13,400 873,505

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS

ABS HLDG PDR GMA HLDG PDR

WARRANTS

TECH WARRANT

3.26 7.51

3.55 8 8.1 8.1 8 8 2,700

0.335

0.375

294,375,930 -2,386,590 -9,650 -156,260 -30,257 -24,470 -9,450 466,130 -30,016,880 10,010 -7,377,850 16,000 137,550 -720,720 -117,928 42,360 46,128,280 -56,630 -5,695,645 11,758,840 -4,500 -7,746,844 833,180 -48 -501,975 12,921,788 -105,440 -9,490 -17,500 2,410 6,043,609 -372,610 -9,990 -3,050 1,707,738 3,400 -1,216,660 -6,382,670 -3,784,575 127,883 -1,518,100 -67,230 199,687 1,294,370 12,440 -2,067,780 -13,200 -6,639,367 -709,220 -13,878,030 -1,449,000 43,710 2,610 -

21,850

20,250

SMALL, MEDIUM & EMERGING

0.47 0.47 0.455 0.46 300,000 137,900 0.79 0.81 0.79 0.81 72,000 57,520 0.86 0.9 0.86 0.9 392,000 337,520 0.73 0.73 0.69 0.73 156,000 111,290 1.55 1.55 1.54 1.54 10,000 15,450 -15,450 1.06 1.08 1.06 1.08 543,000 581,960 214,000 0.225 0.225 0.224 0.224 890,000 200,090 -

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS

96.8 97.8 96.8 97.8 7,060 687,069 -72,360

BALAI FRUITAS CTS GLOBAL HAUS TALK ITALPINAS KEPWEALTH MERRYMART XURPAS

FIRST METRO ETF

0.45 0.78 0.86 0.69 1.54 1.07 0.225

97.4

0.47 0.81 0.9 0.73 1.79 1.08 0.238 97.8

www.news.businessmirror@gmail.com

Neda: PHL can’t afford to wait for China ODA By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

HE chief of the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) said the Philippines cannot afford to wait for Chinese Official Development Assistance (ODA) to finance three railway projects. The ODA from China has been eyed to bankroll the Philippine National Railways (PNR) South LongHaul Project, the Mindanao Railway Project and the Subic-Clark Railway Project. However, Neda Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said the government has yet to receive any commitment from the Chinese government regarding the status of Beijing’s pledge. Manila has not even received documents pertaining to these ODA, added Balisacan. “Those projects that were initially committed for funding by the Chinese government are not moving. We cannot wait forever,” Balisacan told reporters on the sidelines of a briefing last Thursday on the National Income Accounts. “We have to find ways to get those projects completed at the soonest.” The NEDA chief also emphasized that the Philippines “cannot delay the completion of these projects” because of the economic impact these projects can contribute to Mindanao or the Bicol region, home to a number of poor Filipinos. Balisacan said these railways can spur regional development in the countryside that would be crucial not just in economic growth but also for poverty reduction. Based on the 2021 poverty statistics data, the poverty incidence among the population in the Bicol region was at 29.3 percent while places in Mindanao such as Northern Mindanao and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) were at 26.1 percent and 37.2 percent, respectively. “We want a commitment. Of course, when they say they will fund (these projects), (they have to) give us the time frame. Kailan? [But when?] Kung hindi ka [If they can’t] magdeliver, then we can look now for (another) partner,” Balisacan said. “It’s in the best interest of the government and the Filipino people. We look, of course, at the cost, we look at the time frame,” he added. Balisacan also stressed that the country had other bilateral and multilateral options to finance these projects. The PNR South Long-Haul Project is a 560-kilometer rail system consisting of 35 stations. It will run from Manila through Laguna, Quezon and Camarines Sur to Albay, with an extension line in Sorsogon. The Mindanao Railway Project was originally planned to be constructed in 10 phases, with a total of 2,278 kilometers of track to be built for the system. Phase 1 was supposed to be partially opened between Panabo and Carmen, Davao del Norte in 2022 and full operations were planned by 2024. The Subic-Clark Railway Project aimed to transform Central Luzon into the next global destination of industrial investments in the country. It was supposed to begin construction by the first half of 2020. In terms of development partners, Asian Development Bank (ADB) emerged as the leading provider of ODA in the country in 2022, surpassing Japan which was the country’s top creditor for the preceding seven consecutive years. The ODA provided by ADB accounts for a 33.47 percent share or $10.85 billion of the active ODA portfolio in 2022. ADB has also taken the lead in terms of new commitments in 2022, with a total of $2.51 billion composed of $2.5 billion for four loans and $10.2 million for seven grants. Meanwhile, Japan secured the second spot with 30.75 percent worth $9.96 billion, followed by WB with $6.86 billion; China, $0.98 billion; and Korea, $0.91 billion.

Banking&Finance BusinessMirror

Editor: Dennis D. Estopace • Friday, November 10, 2023

Better debt-to-GDP ratio seen by end-’23

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

@jearcalas

HE national government could end the year with a debt-toGDP ratio lower than its 61.4 percent target as its outstanding debt in relation to economic output eased to 60.2 percent in the third quarter, the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) said. In a report, the BTr said the country’s debt-to-GDP ratio, which it noted indicates the state’s debt sustainability, fell in the third quarter from 61 percent in the second quarter. Furthermore, the national government’s (NG) third quarter debt-toGDP ratio was 3.4 percentage points

lower than the 63.6 percent recorded in the third quarter of last year. “With the latest development, NG’s end of year debt ratio is likely to be lower than the 2023 Medium Term Fiscal Framework (MTFF) target of 61.4 percent,” the Treasury said on Thursday.

Don’t Chase, Attract.

have a knack for picking up idiomatic expressions and colloquial phrases and relating these to associations. One phrase I have encountered lately is “don’t chase, attract.” In the world of associations, success often hinges on the ability to attract and retain members. While many associations employ active recruitment efforts, a different approach could be a more compelling strategy: “don’t chase, attract.” Traditionally, associations have often taken a “chasing” approach such as active recruitment, marketing campaigns, and outreach efforts to secure new members. While this approach can yield results, it can also have its downsides such as: 1. High costs: Aggressive recruitment campaigns can be expensive, with marketing and advertising budgets quickly adding up. 2. Short-term gains: Chasing may lead to a surge in new members, but these individuals might not be as committed or engaged for the long term. 3. Member burnout: Intense recruitment efforts can exhaust association members, focusing too much on the quantity rather than the quality of members. 4. Inauthenticity: Chasing members can sometimes feel pushy or insincere, which may drive potential members away. A “don’t chase, attract” approach centers on creating an association environment that naturally draws in members due to the value it provides. Here’s how it works:

Association World Octavio Peralta 1. Value-centric: Prioritize value creation for members by understanding their needs, challenges, and aspirations, and by developing programs, resources, and events that directly address and benefit them. 2. Engagement: Foster meaningful engagement within your association by encouraging members to actively participate, collaborate, and contribute to the community. 3. Quality over quantity: Shift the focus from quantity to quality. Instead of pursuing a large, disengaged membership, cultivate a smaller but highly engaged and committed group. 4. Word of mouth: When members experience the benefits of the association, they become natural advocates and ambassadors. Wordof-mouth referrals from satisfied members can be more effective than any marketing campaign. 5. Authenticity: Authenticity in your association’s interactions and communications builds trust and rapport, attracting those who resonate with your mission and values. Embracing a “don’t chase, attract” approach can yield numerous benefits for your association: 1. Sustainable growth: Attraction fosters sustainable growth, as members who are drawn in are more

“Moreover, the NG debt-to-GDP ratio is on pace to fall below 60 percent earlier than the 2025 MTFF commitment,” the Treasury added. Treasury OIC Sharon P. Almanza attributed the better debt-to-GDP ratio to a “combination” of both lower borrowings by the national government and better economic performance by the country. “Combination of lower borrowing due to lower deficit relative to the program for [third quarter] and higher GDP,” Almanza told reporters last Thursday. The country posted a 5.9 percent economic growth in the July to September period, faster than the 4.3 percent recorded in the second quarter, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). The national government’s outstanding debt as of end-September stood at P14.268 trillion, lower than

likely to stay engaged and renew their memberships. 2. Highly engaged members: By focusing on engagement and value delivery, you can create a community of passionate and committed members who actively contribute to the association’s goals. 3. Cost-effective: Attraction reduces the need for costly recruitment efforts, leading to cost savings. 4. Enhanced reputation: Associations known for their authenticity, value, and engaged membership are more likely to enjoy a strong reputation in their industry or profession. In today’s association landscape, the “don’t chase, attract” approach can be a powerful paradigm shift. By focusing on providing value, fostering meaningful engagement, and being authentic, associations can create communities that naturally draw in members who align with their mission and values. This approach not only leads to sustainable growth, but also ensures that the association remains relevant and vibrant in a competitive and ever-changing environment. In the end, it’s the value and authenticity that will attract members, and this approach can help associations thrive for years to come. Octavio Peralta is currently the executive director of the Global Compact Network Philippines and founder and volunteer CEO of the Philippine Council of Associations and Association Executives (PCAAE), the “association of associations.” The PCAAE will hold its 11th Associations Summit at the PICC on December 20, 2023. E-mail: bobby@pcaae.org.

Digital fraud attempt rate in PHL insurance at 7.1% By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes @brownindio

S suspected global digital fraud was seen higher in the first half of 2023, a recently issued analysis by TransUnion LLC revealed that the insurance industry’s attempt rate was lower compared to its retail and video gaming industries. “When the consumer is located in the Philippines during the transaction, among all industries, the suspected digital fraud rate stood at 8.2 percent in H1 [first half] 2023,” read a statement issued by TransUnion’s local business. “For transactions coming from the Philippines, the video gaming industry had the highest suspected digital fraud attempt rate among all industries in H1 2023 at 15.2 percent.” Nonetheless, TransUnion Information Solutions Inc. (TISI) said that the number of digital transactions coming from the Philippines in the video gaming industry decreased when comparing first half 2022 to the same period this year, or down 19.4 percent year-on-year (YoY). TISI added that while the insurance industry saw the largest increase in digital transactions coming from the Philippines YoY at 160.3 percent, the suspected digital fraud

rate for that industry for transactions coming from the Philippines was 7.1 percent.” According to the Chicago, Illinois-headquartered firm, the retail and video gaming industries saw the highest rates of suspected digital fraud globally in the first half of 2023 at 10.6 percent and 7.0 percent, respectively, followed by telecommunications at 5.3 percent. “Globally, insurance and logistics were the industries with the lowest suspected digital fraud attempt rate in H1 2023,” the firm’s statement read. “Among all industries, the suspected digital fraud rate stood at 5.3 percent, up from 4.5 percent one year ago.” “If left unchecked, fraud results in an erosion of trust between consumers and industries. When attempting to measure the impact of digital fraud on any one particular industry or another, it’s not enough to look at fraud rates alone,” TISI Sales Manager Yogesh Daware was quoted in the statement as saying. “There are other factors that need to be taken into consideration. These include the overall size of the industry in question, whether the industry is growing and if so, how quickly. Only then can one endeavor to develop a more comprehensive perspective on how digital fraud is impacting these

industries. In addition, this can help project where fraudsters may be focusing their efforts moving forward, and help industries take the necessary steps to stay ahead of any developing threats.” TransUnion’s analysis comes on the heels of the firm’s recent “Q3 Philippines Consumer Pulse Study.” The latter explored, among other things, consumer awareness of being targeted by any online, email, phone call or text messaging fraud attempt in the last three months. The TransUnion survey of 1,000 Filipino adults was conducted from July 6 to July 24, 2023. The survey found that 62 percent of survey respondents indicated that they had been targeted by fraud but did not become a victim of it, and 9 percent had been targeted and fell victim. Among those targeted, the most frequent fraud schemes by which they reported being attacked were phishing (51 percent), followed by smishing (45 percent) and money/ gift card scam (34 percent). The rate or percentage of suspected digital fraud attempts reflect interactions which TransUnion customers either denied in real time due to fraudulent indicators or determined to be fraudulent after a manual review process—compared to all transactions it assessed for fraud.

the P14.349 trillion recorded at the end of August. Meanwhile, the Treasury estimated that full-year real GDP this year would hit P23.685 trillion, about 7.54 percent over the P22.024 trillion real GDP recorded last year. The Treasury said domestic debt, which amounted to P9.734 trillion, was 41.1 percent of the country’s GDP while external debt, which stood at P4.534 trillion as of endSeptember, was equivalent to 19.1 percent of GDP. Furthermore, the Treasury said the national government’s deficitto-GDP ratio eased to 5.71 percent in the third quarter from 6.45 percent in the same period of last year. The year-on-year (YoY) 5.9 percent GDP growth in the third quarter of 2023 is a marked improvement from the 4.3 percent growth in the second quarter, Socioeconomic Plan-

ning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said through a statement issued last Thursday. “This performance makes our economy the fastest among the major emerging economies in Asia that have released their third-quarter 2023 GDP growth: Vietnam at 5.3 percent, Indonesia and China at 4.9 percent, and Malaysia at 3.3 percent,” Balisacan added. The chief of the National Economic and Development Authority said that the “growth acceleration puts the GDP growth rate for the first three quarters—January to September—of 2023 at 5.5 percent.” Balisacan added that the Philippine economy will need to grow by 7.2 percent YoY for the fourth quarter of 2023 to attain at least the low end of the government’s target of 6 percent to 7 percent for the entire year of 2023.

BIR padlocks 103 stores for tampering with tills

HE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) announced last Thursday its personnel shut down 103 stores of a shopping center chain it didn’t name for “underreporting” its sales by tampering with point of sales (POS) machines. According to the BIR, its investigation discovered the unnamed shopping center chain is using unregistered POS. Furthermore, some of the POS were equipped with sales suppression devices while others were using a software not approved by the bureau, the BIR added. The BIR also conducted a test-buy operation with the POS machines, which showed that the machines only reported about 25 percent of its sales. This nationwide closure of a chain of shopping centers is a reminder to all businessmen to register and not tamper with the POS machines, BIR Commissioner Romeo D. Lumagui Jr. said. Lumagui added he has tasked the

BIR to intensify efforts in investigating unscrupulous business entities engaged in such tax fraud schemes. “This is a scheme for sales suppression. I have ordered the BIR to investigate all businesses that engage in this kind of tax fraud because it involves under-declaration of sales. We will not hesitate to close down all your stores in the country,” he said. The BIR said these stores are located in Manila, Quezon City, Laguna, Batangas, Bulacan, Rizal and Tarlac. The stores also had branches in Nueva Ecija, Bataan, Cavite, Pangasinan, South Cotabato, Iloilo, Leyte and Lanao Del Norte. The BIR said the shopping-center chain violated Section 115 of the National Internal Revenue Code and Revenue Memorandum Circular 3-2009. The shopping center chain was involved in the sale of appliances, clothing, household wares, furniture and groceries. Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

Insurtech alerts consumers to secure online purchases

NSURANCE technology (insurtech) provider Axinan Pte. Ltd. (DBA Igloo) on Thursday reminded consumers to “celebrate the shopping season” with confidence by taking proactive steps to ensure that their online purchases are safe and secure, amid a swathe of cyberthreats. Igloo CEO Raunak Mehta said amid the burgeoning online market, forecasted fraud instances in Asia Pacific—which saw an estimated $700 million late last year—underscore the critical need for such measures. “With the increase in the number of online sales comes the heightened risk of fraud. In the fourth quarter of last year, Asia Pacific saw an estimated $700 million of fraudulent sales. Consumers expect businesses to protect them while shopping online.” Filipinos have become more and more attuned to online shopping, a practice that became popular because of the pandemic. This week, online marketplaces will start their annual big sale dubbed 11.11 and millions of Pinoys are expected to join the celebration. And with the increasing cyberthreats—many of which became full-fledged attacks in recent months—Mehta said Filipinos should consider getting Igloo’s Online Shopping Insurance product, which at P15 per month, provides policyholders with up to P150,000 in coverage “against online shopping fraud and scams such as undelivered goods, uncontactable sellers, partial delivery,

and fake goods.” “As we celebrate during the shopping season, we hope to provide shoppers with peace of mind, knowing that their mobile phones and gifts purchased for their loved ones are protected,” Mehta said. “With the goal of making microinsurance accessible in Southeast Asia, we will continue to find the right partners and extend our offering to more customers.” To date, the Insurance Commission has not yet issued regulations specifically on fintech activities of insurance companies and insurance intermediaries, according to Baker & McKenzie International BV. “With respect to the insurance sector, the buying, selling, or providing of insurance products and services online or via the Internet are subject to the Guidelines on Electronic Commerce of Insurance Products issued by the Insurance Commissioner in 2014,” the company wrote on its website. Six years after that, then Insurance Commissioner Dennis B. Funa signed Circular Letter 202073 providing for the “Guidelines on the Adoption of a Regulatory Sandbox Framework for Insurance Technology (insurtech) Innovations.” “The applicability of such insurtech breakthroughs must first be evaluated by means of a framework that will ensure that the protection of the interests of the insuring public will not be compromised,” Funa was quoted in a statement issued in June 2020. Lorenz S. Marasigan

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Friday, November 10, 2023 • Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

BusinessMirror

Little miracles

HE Miracle Club is a heartwarming story of friendship, forgiveness, and reconciliation, set in Ballygar, a very-Catholic remote village in Ireland, and relatively untouched by the rock and roll lifestyle of the 1960s. It stars the great Dame Maggie Smith (Lily Fox), Laura Linney (Chrissie)—so memorable for her brilliant work in Ozark—the unforgettable Kathy Bates (Eileen Dunne), and a relatively unknown (to me anyway) Agnes O’Casey (Dolly Hennessy). Lily, Eileen, and Dolly—from different age groups—come together to perform at a local contest, hoping to win a trip to Lourdes, France. Meanwhile, a fashionable Chrissie comes home from America after the death of her mother, Maureen, and it’s clear from the way her mouth is set in a permanent downturn, she isn’t happy to be back. Neither were Lily, Maureen’s friend, and Eileen, who used to be Chrissie’s best friend. Both wonder why Chrissie had bothered to return when she had already missed her mother’s funeral. Only Dolly is warm and welcoming, not really understanding the older women’s spite. Through a kind turn of events, the three women, who had actually come in second, eventually get to go to Lourdes, not an easy task. Their respective husbands doubt the miracles in Lourdes, and firmly believe a woman’s place is at home. This was the 1960s after all. George, husband to the young mother Dolly, has even warned her not to come home at all if she pushes through with her trip, the latter hoping the Virgin Mary heals their mute boy Daniel. On suggestion from the parish priest, Father Dermot (Mark O’Halloran), Chrissie eventually joins the road trip her late mother had planned for, but Lily and Eileen are not pleased. There are eventual revelations of a relationship between Lily’s son Declan and Chrissie, and the latter’s unintended

TODAY’S HOROSCOPE By Eugenia Last

pregnancy, and Chrissie’s flight to Boston. There are insinuations that Chrissie caused Declan to drown (who is remembered with a plaque on a cliff, which Lily regularly visits), that Chrissie is flirting with the parish priest, while Dolly, as it is later revealed, has her own secrets as well. There are scenes of the various reactions of the women as they go into the supposed healing waters of Lourdes. But Eileen, who has a lump on her breast, finds out just how many miracles have actually occurred after people have bathed in the waters, a fact which crushes her spirit and leads her to berate Father Dermot in public, describing the trip as a scam. (According to a website dedicated to St. Bernadette, only 70 have been officially recognized as miraclulous healings by the Catholic Church, since the apparitions in 1858.) Back in Ballygar, the husbands are shown in various stages of incompetence or befuddlement dealing with life at home with their wives away, providing the most comedic scenes in the film. Lily’s husband Tommy (Niall Buggy) is in bed, happily enjoying his sweet treats. Eileen’s Frank (the evercompetent Stephen Rea) bumbles and stumbles trying to carry bags of groceries, and later cooks up a mystery stew for his children (now that’s a miracle!). George, meanhile, is shown unable to properly fasten a nappy on the baby. But as expected, by the end of the trip, the main characters all come together after a few more tearful personal revelations lead to forgiveness and reconciliation between Lily, Eileen and Chrissie. The same happy resolution occurs when the three married women come home to their husbands, along with a delightful surprise. Interestingly enough, Jimmy Smallhorne, the cowriter of The Miracle Club, has never been to Lourdes, yet he has accurately captured the spirituality and experiences of many of those who have. (The production never went to Lourdes as well, with the sets actually built in Ireland.) The film also authentically depicts the crucial engagements between spouses, and the possibility of repairing friendships, while not being afraid of exploring delicate themes of abortion and suicide. The Miracle Club shows that, yes, we don’t need to go to Lourdes or other pilgrimage sites to experience miracles in our lives. Perhaps many of them happen often enough and regularly, and are not huge events that need an official stamp of approval from the

Vatican. Maybe, sometimes, we just don’t notice them. ■■■ LIKE the women in The Miracle Club, I’ve been fortunate to visit Lourdes, a side trip of a press tour in 2014. I wouldn’t really describe myself as religious, but I do have a healthy appreciation of Catholic beliefs and practices. But I wasn’t personally looking for any miracles. If at all, I wanted to be just an objective observer of the goings-on at the sanctuary and of the people who had crossed the oceans to visit. I was lucky enough to be able to attend a proper Mass in English at the Basilica of Our Lady of Immaculate Conception, even though our group arrived at a time when no regular Masses had been scheduled there. After Mass, I explored the property, passed the grotto and saw the long queue of people as they waited their turn before a statue of Our Lady. I breathed in the cool air as I stopped by the gurgling stream that ran through the property, before heading off to the bathing area. There were even more lines of people, assisted by nuns, waiting to bathe in Lourdes’ waters. Among them were a few of my companions (mostly jaded journalists like myself), while others, I later found out, brought empty plastic water bottles which they filled with Lourdes’ waters, and drank. (One described the drink as bubbling in her tummy.) On my way back to the area where we were all supposed to meet up before boarding our bus, I passed the grotto area again. This time, I stopped in my tracks as my nostrils picked up a strong scent of roses! It was as if Our Lady called to me to be more involved in the pilgrim experience like the rest of her visitors. So I turned my attention toward her direction, prayed for my Mama who had, by then, had a medical condition that made her weak, and proceeded to line up to touch the cold damp walls of the grotto. I stopped in front of the statue of Our Lady and again prayed for my Mama, and the health and security of the rest of the family. Back in Manila, as I visited Mama at the hospital, I brought with me a blessed bronze medallion from Lourdes, not sure what it was supposed to do really. Maybe I just wanted her to get a bit of strength from touching the medallion, as she battled with her condition. A month later, Mama passed away in her sleep, while my sister-in-law, who she had a somewhat discordant relationship with, was visiting. There were no momentous miracles of Mama’s healing. But she was now at peace, having quietly joined her Maker. ■

WWF-PHILIPPINES RECOGNIZES INDIVIDUALS, PROJECT PARTNERS IN ANNUAL PARTNERS’ NIGHT 2023 WWF-Philippines celebrated its annual Partners’ Night together with staff, project partners, awardees, and a guest of honor.

THE World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Philippines awarded groups and individuals for their contributions to conserving nature well as project partners from the private sector who supported WWF’s projects and advocacies. WWF-Philippines held its annual Partners’ Night at the Raffles Fairmont Hotel in Makati City on October 24, with the 2023 theme “Web of Change,” underscoring the interdependent roles of every group and individual in the fight against climate change and biodiversity loss. Guests, staff and partners graced the occasion, with Environment Secretary Ma. Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga as the guest of honor. “We all have a role to play in conservation as we are all tenants who temporarily live and share a common home,” the secretary said in a speech. “We should strengthen and reinforce these connections for positive change and be a voice for biodiversity conservation to

encourage everyone to be part of simple and concrete solutions.” WWF-Philippines also introduced its newly elected chairman of the board of trustees Atty. Anthony Charlemagne Yu. “This year’s partners’ night celebrates our strength in diversity—of individuals

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who commit to changing the ending for the planet, of ideas and solutions, of actions and roles that we play in addressing the twin challenges of nature loss and climate change,” said Yu in his remarks. “We thrive in diversity and in our intricate interconnectedness.”

The highlight of the night was the awarding of the Force of Nature awards to groups and individuals whose contributions made a significant impact in promoting and scaling the advocacy of nature conservation and promoting sustainability. The awardees included San Jose Sico Landfill Multipurpose Cooperative, Association of Young Environmental Journalists, and Rodel Cadigal, president of United Ilijan Agricultural Workers for Sustainable Development in Negros Occidental, who was the final Force of Nature awardee, and was honored for his involvement in addressing deforestation and agricultural land degradation issues. WWF-Philippines also honored BPI and BPI Foundation, Coca-Cola Foundation Philippines Inc., Globe Telecom, HSBC Philippines, Mynt, and the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines for consistently supporting the organization’s projects and advocacies.

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Miranda Lambert, 40; Ellen Pompeo, 54; Tracy Morgan, 55; Michael Jai White, 56. HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Take the high road and do what you do best. Structure your time to ensure your success. Use your charm, experience and connections to help you go the distance. Opportunities are yours to make and discover. Be in control, and don’t let up until you are satisfied with the results. Make change a part of your plan, and relish in events as they unfold. Your numbers are 8, 13, 21, 28, 32, 36, 40.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): A joint venture may tempt you, but read the fine print. Know your rights and obligations before you agree. Assess your relationship with others and what and who is advantageous. Take care of your interests and build a future that makes you happy. ★★★

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Change begins with you. Come up with ideas that suit you best, and refuse to let anyone interfere. It’s up to you to create opportunities that lead to the life you want to live. A partnership requires common interests and goals to work. ★★★

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Pay attention to your needs, and don’t let anyone interfere with your plans. Speak up for yourself and make your position clear. Transparency is your best choice if you want to come out ahead. Learn from experience, and you’ll ward off a mistake. ★★★★★

CANCER (June 21-July 22): A networking event, physical activity or honing skills you can use to pursue your dream are a priority if you want to get ahead and be happy. Create your scenario instead of letting others get in your way. Do what makes you feel good. ★★

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Arguing wastes time. You are better off putting your efforts into selfimprovement, sprucing up your home and paying more attention to what makes you happy. Use your time wisely and surround yourself with people who are supportive, not critical. ★★★★

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Fix any situation that needs attention. Speak up, and you’ll convince others to see things your way. Participate in functions that allow you to spread your ideas and drum up support. Avoid emotional spending or paying for someone else’s mistake. ★★★

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Control situations before they spin out of control. Use your charm and positive attitude to get others to see things your way. A gentle nudge will make the difference regarding personal and domestic affairs. Don’t let an outsider hold you back. ★★★

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Let your charm lead the way. How you deal with others will determine how much help you receive. Make positive change a priority, and everything else will fall into place. Don’t hold back when saying and doing all you can could lead to success. ★★★

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Pay attention to detail and be unique, and you will stand out amongst your peers. Getting the upper hand before someone can outmaneuver you will be your ticket to success. Be humble and gracious; you’ll gain popularity and raise your profile. ★★★★

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Don’t let frustration set in when patience and perfection are necessary to reach your destination. Look for a unique way to separate yourself from anyone competing with you. Make your presence felt, and positive results will come your way. ★★

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Use your charm, a kind gesture or emotional understanding to gain popularity and support to help you reach your dream. Spending time with someone you love or participating in a joint venture will encourage a positive lifestyle change. Romance is present. ★★★★★

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Don’t let anyone outshine you, and don’t be afraid to speak up and follow your intuition. Protect your assets from those encouraging or tempting you to be generous to a fault. Choose to take better care of yourself using fitness to reach your objective. ★★★ BIRTHDAY BABY: You are supportive, proactive and spontaneous. You are appealing and influential.

‘stated otherwise’ BY GARY CEE

The Universal Crossword • Edited by David Steinberg/Anna Gundlach/Jared Goudsmit ACROSS 1 Pancake syrup flavor 6 Unfriendly mutt 9 In the style of, on menus 12 Parcel out 13 Word after “Bay” or “gray” 15 Ad ___ committee 16 Ruler, e.g. 19 Followed, as a tip 20 Rugged four-wheeler, briefly 21 Muscles above the beltline 23 Worry 24 Doritos company 26 August 1 births, astrologically 28 Ancient 29 The ___ (Discovery series about camper owners) 30 Signal strength measure 31 Chauffeur-driven sedan 33 Squeezing snake 34 Springboard 40 Jeopardy! Masters network 41 Overflowing (with) 42 Hunk of a trunk 43 Bone of contention

46 Spare ___ (piece of barbecue) 47 No easy task 48 Repertoire on a resume 50 One gets hammered 52 Song that everyone’s singing 53 Female sheep 54 Army enlistee 57 In other words...or a hint to the ends of 16-, 24-, 34- and 48-Across 60 Gibbon or gorilla 61 “A ___ technicality!” 62 Find a new function for 63 It ends on the first Sunday of Nov. 64 Angler’s apparatus 65 Works at a keyboard DOWN 1 Cry from a doll 2 Bon Jovi bassist ___ John Such 3 Party line 4 They never win 5 Piano practice piece 6 Abel’s slayer 7 Ornamental vase 8 Take into consideration 9 Bigeye tuna

10 Site 11 Star Wars admiral who says, “It’s a trap! 14 Italian wine mecca 17 Wood deck concern 18 Cliche on shows 22 Part of CBS: Abbr. 24 “Hit the gas!” 25 This shape: 0 26 Pres. sworn in aboard Air Force One 27 Water, en francais 28 “Gasp,” in a text 31 Defamed in writing 32 Business magazine 33 One to share deep secrets with, informally 35 Harlem Renaissance figure Robeson 36 Unimportant lie 37 Like Times Square at night 38 Whisper affectionately 39 It has a yolk 43 “Kinda” 44 YouTube button for the impatient 45 Core exercises 46 Marijuana cigarette

47 Poitier who was the first Black man to win an Oscar 49 Skinny-dip, say 50 Neither rhyme ___ reason 51 Notify 54 Ranked competitor 55 “You and who ___?” 56 Certain whiskeys 58 Vietnamese New Year 59 To’s counterpart Solution to today’s puzzle:

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Editor: Gerard S. Ramos • Friday, November 10, 2023

Jansen Magpusao and Ronnie Lazaro in the film The Gospel of the Beast.

DROPPED

WHO is the young actress who was reportedly dropped by a prestigious medical clinic as its endorser? The medical clinic allegedly discovered that the actress had some work done in another clinic. What’s worse is that the said clinic botched the job and the actress requested the prestigious medical clinic to fix it. If this is true, it’s a pity because the actress got her big break after being an unknown starlet and her network really went all the way to get juicy and lucrative endorsements for her. Not everyone is invited to endorse this medical clinic and it’s sad that the actress did what has been alleged. Even sadder is that her big project flopped so when the endorsements that she got would expire, it is doubtful if she could get new ones.

POWER MOVE

THE recent “reconciliation” online of two powerhouse celebrities was reportedly arranged by an older guy who is close to one of the actresses. So why did it happen? Allegedly, one of the two actresses believes that her star has somehow dimmed in her area of expertise. She thought the best way to improve her image was to reach out to her ex-mentor for advice. Meanwhile, the ex-mentor said the best way to boost one’s image was to mend broken fences. We have yet to see whether this reconciliation extends to real life but it’s been years since their fight and so many things have happened then, so maybe this is the perfect time.

NO THIRD PARTY

THE alleged separation of the beautiful couple is not, contrary to speculations, due to cheating. Nor is the separation due to in-law problems. The wife reportedly has no problems with her in-laws. According to unconfirmed reports, the wife just “grew up” and realized that she wanted more out of her life than just being a trophy. What many people don’t know is that in showbiz circles, the husband is known to be a controlling partner. One of his exes has told stories of how he used to tell her how to dress. He also allegedly asked her to lie low in her career, until it got to the point where she didn’t get job offers anymore. The husband, when he was still single, had a thing for younger women. In fact, there are rumors that his wife was not yet an adult when they met and fell in love.

MORE BREAK-UP RUMORS

SPEAKING of break-ups, there are persistent rumors that a power showbiz couple have broken up. It reportedly can’t be made public because the couple has endorsements together. But if you look at the girl’s social media posts recently, they could be corroborating the rumors. In the last, the guy didn’t even allow the girl to wear shorts in public. This isn’t the first time that the couple has been hounded by break-up rumors. Their relationship seems solid too. They’ve been rocked by a scandal once in the past but they’ve stayed together.

Patrick Dempsey named Sexiest Man Alive by ‘People’ magazine LOS ANGELES—He’s not just “McDreamy” anymore—Patrick Dempsey is now also People magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive. The Grey’s Anatomy star and race car driver takes the mantle from Captain America star Chris Evans, who was 2022’s selection. The pick was revealed on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Tuesday night. “I’ve always been the bridesmaid!” Dempsey, 57, told the magazine about his initial reaction. “I’d completely forgotten about it and never even contemplated being in this position. So my ego is good.” The actor stars in the upcoming Michael Mann film Ferrari. He told The Associated Press last year that he did all the driving himself, calling it “the best role I’ve ever had.” Dempsey has driven in several professional races, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and is part of the Wright Motorsports racing team, according to its website. Dempsey said his three children are bound to tease him about his People magazine selection and “pick on me and figure out every reason why I shouldn’t be.” The People edition with Dempsey’s cover story will be out Friday. In addition to racing and acting, he founded the Dempsey Center, a Maine-based organization that provides care and resources for cancer patients, in honor of his late mother. Dempsey achieved heartthrob status as Dr. Derek Shepherd—nicknamed “McDreamy”—on Grey’s Anatomy, appearing in more than 250 episodes. He plays Italian race car driver Piero Taruffi in Ferrari, which arrives in theaters later this year. The film has received a waiver so that its stars can promote it without breaking rules in the ongoing actors strike. Other Sexiest Man Alive recipients include Michael B. Jordan, John Legend, Paul Rudd, Brad Pitt, Harrison Ford and Mel Gibson, who was the magazine’s first recipient in 1985. AP

Breaking news: ‘The Gospel of the Beast’ W

HERE casual sex seems to be a feature of amoral amorousness, casual violence is a new pastime for ruminating in the film The Gospel of the Beast. The series of images in The Gospel, rebutted by another set of pictures—each one more discordant than the other—plays out with such disdain, one feels the filmmakers have thrown caution to the four winds to say: “Just watch and witness what evil is.” What to do with a film filled with mindless violence? Or is violence that has become mindless means we are confronting a highly moral work? Sheron Dayoc, directing from the screenplay he cowrote with Jeko Aguado, brings us into the world of a man-boy, Mateo. The story follows a coming-of-age arc but when you have a boy who works with blood and carcasses, you skip the part where the protagonist loses his innocence. No one remains clean—both in the soul and the body—in a place where you kill animals with such dexterity. The film thus opens with the white bodies of pigs, their guts spilling out, the stench apparent even in a medium where the sense of smell is not as strong as our sense of sight and hearing. In this gospel of Mateo, revulsion is our immediate response. In that site of gore, Mateo finds connection with an older man, Berto, who treats him in a special way, if shoving a big amount of money to his palm is proof

of caring. Berto is important to Mateo because the former must know the whereabouts of his father. Mateo goes to school, looking more mature than his cohorts. He is not so much bullied as he is repulsed almost with ease by classmates who need not work with dead pigs. Mateo, however, has siblings, where together he appears to be happy. It is from him that the sister and the youngest brother receive support, a protection from the mean world Mateo easily navigates. At home, Mateo reverts to who he is— tender, human, with a frailty we never thought is still in him. As the story goes, Mateo gets into a fight. He is not a troublemaker but he does not back down from any taunting and hits back. This uneasy kinship with his classmates escalates until one challenges him to a swimming contest, which takes place in what appears to be a forest, in a swimming hole one associates with the magic and memories of childhood. The two are in a place where friends make memories that would last a lifetime, not a moment for violence and accidents, homicide and hopelessness. Mateo accidentally kills his classmate. He goes to Berto, runs away, and evades the police. Well, the police are never there anyway. As the mother of Mateo’s classmate laments, the police would not listen to her. But who listens to us really when we cry for justice? Mateo escapes and becomes part of a gang who butchers men for the money. And yet his work at the abattoir has not prepared him for the new job: killing men, contrary to what the metaphor may excitingly propose for us, is not the same as killing pigs. A new cruelty is necessary; conscience must be re-studied and thrown away. When a film displays so much mindless violence, we should stop treating this as a cautionary tale. There is no space for caution in this film, for evil is here: in our sons, in fathers who leave or are lost, in communities that do not see what is happening to our children. What we can wish from the film is for it to present a parable, the latter a good source of lessons

that we deem moral. But when does an act become amoral and not im-moral? That caveat is nowhere present in this comeback film of Sheron Dayoc. In this filmmaker’s gospel, there is also no good news until the people you tell it to are dead. As Berto, Ronnie Lazaro terrifies us because he portrays what moral decay is all about—a bit of love there, a kind of tenderness, that self-questioning seemingly leading to a change of heart but, finally, pursuing what evil is all about—a destruction of anything recognizably human. As Mateo, Jansen Magpusao finally convinces us his “Denver” was not a fluke. Tears fall from those fierce eyes but they are not from sorrow but from questions he has been forced to ask by the world of adults. And when he fires that gun at this man whose love for him harbors hate, we applaud him, you know, the comeuppance for the villain because our boy, evil as well, becomes by default our leading man, the bida. And there lies the boon of this gospel—portraying evil not through tropes but by way of incidents as regular as our lives. But what is a good film without the majesty of the referential? As The Gospel of the Beast draws to a close, we think of the last scene in Dayoc’s award-winning Women of the Weeping River, where two women, after all the killings, are left standing. Will they kill each other and continue the bloodbath? Or will they be instruments of peace? In this film, a young boy, not yet a man, has killed another man. In the language of cinema, he is our hero; in the vocabulary of morality, where lies goodness then? Providing a contrast to the stark realities portrayed on screen, the cinematography of Rommel Andres Sales is a counterpoint with its pastoral scenes and homes and streets cozy, familiar, even reeking of nostalgia. The Gospel of the Beast is produced by Southern Lantern Studios and was a recipient of the Film Development Council of the Philippines’ International Coproduction fund. It competed in the recently completed 36th Tokyo International Film Festival. n

‘Tadhana’ continues to inspire viewers as it marks 6th year GMA Public Affairs’ award-winning drama anthology Tadhana, hosted by Marian Rivera, continues to inspire viewers as it celebrates its 6th anniversary with a special threepart episode which began airing on November 4. The special episode, titled “Secrets,” features Sparkle artists Lexi Gonzales and Gil Cuerva, together with Annalyn Barro, Jelai Andres, Ella Cristofani, Jackie Lou Blanco and Jean Garcia. Marian is grateful and honored to inspire viewers with each episode of Tadhana. “’Yung anim na taon ng Tadhana, hindi siya magiging posible kung hindi rin dahil sa viewers na walang sawang sumusuporta sa programa,” shared Marian. “At hindi lang manunuod ang naiinspire sa mga kuwento; ako mismo, talagang nai-inspire ako sa mga kuwento ng ating kababayan na kahit mahirap ang buhay, puno ng pagsubok, ay di sumusuko. Sana ay patuloy n’yo kaming samahan tuwing Sabado, at sabay-sabay nating pagtagumpayan ang hamon ng buhay,” she

added. “Sa loob ng anim na taon, nanatili pa rin ang mensaheng ipinapaabot ng Tadhana— na sa huli, ang kabutihan ay nakatadhanang masuklian. Kaya naman pinapangako namin na mas marami pang mga kwentong malapit sa puso at kapupulutan ng aral ang ihahandag namin sa inyo,” said Tadhana’s supervising producer Carlo Balaquiot.

Since 2017, Tadhana has been championing Filipinos’ triumphs over seemingly insurmountable adversities. The show not only imparts lessons to viewers but inspires them as well. It comes not as a surprise that Tadhana remains one of the highest rating shows on weekends. It is also one of the country’s most followed TV shows on

Facebook, with 9.3 million followers. Each episode is bannered by some of the country’s biggest stars. The awardwinning program has recently secured the title of National Winner for Best Single Drama/Telemovie/Anthology Episode at the 2023 Asian Academy Creative Awards in Singapore. A story about love, friendship, and disguise—the anniversary episode “Secrets” narrates the story of the smart senior high student Ayen (Lexi) and campus heartthrob Rave (Gil), who develop a mutual like for one another. However, things get complicated in their relationship as the campus bully and Rave’s No.1 fan girl Olivia (Annalyn) and his childhood sweetheart Valerie (Ella) enter the picture. Catch Tadhana’s special anniversary episode “Secrets” on November 4, 11, and 18, 3:15 pm on GMA Network, with live streaming on GMA Public Affairs’ social-media accounts. Global Pinoys can watch it as well via GMA Pinoy TV.

Friday, November 10, 2023

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PCPPI WINS BIG WITH MAJOR CLIENT ACQUISITIONS

EPSI-COLA Products Philippines, Inc. (PCPPI), the exclusive manufacturer of PepsiCo beverages in the country, continues to gain ground with significant business wins that bring its beloved brands closer to more Filipino consumers. PCPPI recently announced major client acquisitions, which include Vikings Luxury Buffet Restaurant (Vikings), the Philippines’ largest buffet-style dining destination; Tong Yang, the premium unlimited grill and shabu-shabu restaurant; Tom’s World, the country’s fastest-growing chain of family entertainment and amusement centers; and Angel’s Pizza and Tien Ma, which are part of the Figaro Group. Multi-awarded restaurants Vikings and Tong Yang will serve well-loved beverages like Pepsi, 7-Up, Mountain Dew, Mug, and

Lipton Iced Tea in all its branches for the next three years. By bringing the dining experience to the next level, more foodies can pair their favorites from Vikings’ and Tong Yang’s wide array of culinary specialties with PCPPI’s drinks in all their restaurants’ locations. Tom’s World strengthened its partnership with PCPPI as it will exclusively serve its beverages to all patrons for three more years. Tom’s World is renowned for setting up family-friendly recreational centers in key cities nationwide. From arcade games to party venues, these centers feature remarkable areas for both entertainment and learning. The Figaro Group’s Angel’s Pizza and Tien Ma will make PCPPI beverages available in all their branches across the Philippines. Angel’s Pizza creates and delivers

tasty, freshly-baked pizzas at customerfriendly prices, while Tien Ma features authentic Taiwanese culinary staples. These restaurants bring customers delight through their quality food and service. “The manner in which our clients and customers continue to support us reflects our heart and passion for service,” said PCPPI Area Commercial Head Red Israel. “Our teams are dedicated to look after our clients the same way our clients cater to their customers. We look forward to bringing more Filipinos together in honor of great food and drinks no matter the occasion,” he added. Present in contract signing between PCPPI and Tom’s World were, 1st photo from left, Tom’s World Area Marketing Officer Precy Lacson, PCPPI Key Account Manager Henson Ardon, PCPPI Area Commercial Head Red Israel, Tom’s World Vice President and Head of Corporate Management Oliver Ryan Co, PCPPI NKA - Food Service Director Alex Catindig, Tom’s World Digital Content Project Officer Armadith Teodoro, and PCPPI Customer Development Manager Joel Javier. For the contract signing between PCPPI, Vikings, and Tong Yang, present were, 2nd photo; seated on the front row, PCPPI National Key Accounts (NK A) Food Service Director A lex Catindig, PCPPI Area Commercial Head Red Israel, Vikings Group President Jackson Go, PCPPI Region Commercial Head Mayette Guro, and Vikings Group Sr. Supply Chain Manager Luzvie Sityar-Villanueva. Also shown in the photo are Vikings Operation Directors Mia Bernardo and Hazel Rodriguez, PCPPI Key Account Manager Henson Ardon and Customer Development Manager Joel Javier, and other members of the PCPPI, Vikings, and Tong Yang team. For Angel’s Pizza, in this photo are the following: The Figaro Group Chief Operations Officer Michael Barret, The Figaro Group President and Chief Executive Officer Divine Cabuloy, PCPPI President and Chief Executive Officer Frederick Ong, and PCPPI Chief Commercial Officer Lyndon Cuadra are joined by other members of PCPPI and The Figaro Group team. PCPPI distributes well-known brands such as Pepsi-Cola, Mountain Dew, 7-Up, Mirinda, Mug, Gatorade, Tropicana, Sting, Milkis, Lipton, Chum Churum Soonhari, and Premier. More information is available via www.pepsiphilippines.com.

MPIC Celebrates MPH’s Nursing Excellence with ‘Soledad Velez-Pangilinan: The MPH Nursing Excellence Awards’

METRO Pacific Health (MPH) Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan (4th from left) with other MPH key executives, along with the winners of the “Soledad Velez-Pangilinan: The MPH Nursing Excellence Awards.”

ETRO Pacific Investments Corporation (MPIC) recently celebrated the success of Project Nightingale, an initiative by its healthcare company, Metro Pacific Health (MPH). This recently concluded event aimed to empower Filipino nursing students and current nurses in the country. This three-part event took place during National Nurses Week, commemorating the outstanding achievements of Filipino nurses and their unwavering commitment to embodying the Heart of Filipino Healthcare. The highlight of this celebration was the inaugural “Soledad Velez-Pangilinan: The MPH Nursing Excellence Awards,” an event designed to recognize and honor outstanding nurses. This prestigious award is named after the esteemed

Soledad Velez-Pangilinan, mother of MPH Chairman Manny Velez Pangilinan, who was a devoted advocate of the Philippine healthcare system and a proponent of patient and familycentered care. Dr. Annabelle R. Borromeo, Chief Nursing Officer of Metro Pacific Health, stated, “We are thrilled to have introduced the ‘Soledad VelezPangilinan: The MPH Nursing Excellence Awards,’ a homage to Mrs. Soledad Velez-Pangilinan’s enduring legacy in championing patient and family-centered care in the Philippines. We wish to express our deep gratitude not only to the winners today but truly and sincerely, to all nurses around the Philippines for their unwavering commitment. Here at MPH, we definitely plan to continue this

program in the coming years to sustain our full support for our local nurses.” The award, which recognizes outstanding nurses in three categories: Excellence in Clinical Nursing, Excellence in Nursing Leadership, and Excellence in Nurse Education, garnered significant attention. Among the 47 nominees from 18 MPH hospitals, 15 exceptional finalists were identified for the finals. A distinguished panel of renowned nursing and health leaders served as the jury to select the winners in each category. Manuel V. Pangilinan, Chairman of MPH, expressed his appreciation for The MPH Nursing Excellence Awards’ stating, “We are immensely proud of the achievements of our healthcare company, Metro Pacific Health, and the dedicated nurses who make the heart of Filipino healthcare beat stronger. I am deeply appreciative of these awards, which carry the name of my beloved mother, Mrs. Soledad Velez-Pangilinan. Her legacy in healthcare is something I hold dear, and it’s heartening to see her values reflected in this recognition. We will continue to support our local nurses and invest in healthcare excellence in the years to come.” Metro Pacific Health is dedicated to further strengthening its commitment to excellence through plans for more recruitment and talent development programs, expansion, groundbreaking medical research, and community outreach programs. MPH remains firmly committed to its position as the cornerstone of healthcare in the Philippines.

Radenta, Oracle Offer Free Trial on Oracle Database Security Assessment Tool

ADENTA Technologies, one of the country’s leading solutions integrators and a member of Oracle PartnerNetwork (OPN), is introducing Oracle Database Security Assessment Tool (DBSAT) with a onetime free assessment valid until December 15, 2023. DBSAT is a command-line tool that helps identify areas where database configuration, operation or implementation introduces risks and recommends changes and controls to mitigate those risks. Applicable for databases on premise or in the cloud, DBSAT helps assess how securely the database is configured, determines who the users and their entitlements are, and identifies where sensitive data resides within the database. DBSAT also considers existing regulator y compliance to Republic Act 10173 or the Data P r i v a c y A c t ( h t t p s : / / p r i v a c y. g o v. p h / d a t a privac y-ac t/ ) protec ting individual personal information and communications systems in the government and the private sector; and Cyber Securit y Philippines CERT® ( https://cer t.ph/ about ) recognized as the first registered Computer Response Team in the Philippines. The team is under the Division of the Software Engineering I n s t i t u te i n Ca r n e g i e M e l l o n U n i ve r s i t y i n Pennsylvania, United States. How does an enterprise determine the strength of its data security? Oracle says, “think like a hacker.” If the data is encrypted, someone needs to get into the database as an authorized user. Are there users using default passwords? Can someone escalate privileges? Is auditing on? Who has DBA-lie privileges? What are the known vulnerabilities of this database version? Have those been patched? Which packaged applications are running? Are they running with powerful system privileges? What type of sensitive data do they process? These are the questions running inside a hacker’s

mind. Owners, controllers or processors of data and organizations need to think similarly, that is, way before hackers target their databases. The process does not stop here. Maintaining a solid security posture is not easy. Organizations struggle to assess the security of their databases due to lack of database security expertise, shortage of time, lack of proper prioritization, and misunderstanding of the risks. Database security knowledge may also be scattered between the database administrators and the IT security team. DBSAT accelerates the assessment process by providing a view on how securely the database is configured, who are the users and what are their entitlements, what security policies are in place, what security controls are implemented, and where sensitive data resides. DBSAT then produces a series of findings that provides high-level status, risk levels, summary details and references. The findings are provided in multiple formats such as HTML, Microsoft Excel, JSON, and text file so that organizations can incorporate the data as part of their configuration and risk management tools. DBSAT can discover sensitive data. It scans the database metadata for sensitive data using customizable regular expression patterns. This provides organizations with an insight on how much data they have and where it resides, enabling them to apply appropriate access controls, auditing, masking, and encryption. To summarize, Oracle Database Security Assessment Tool (DBSAT) provides sensitive data recovery, robust security and compliance reporting, simplifies and accelerates compliance and comes with flexible deployment options. Ask Radenta how Oracle DBSAT can best secure your databases. Call 0908-812-4891, email info@radenta. com or log on to www.radenta.com.

PBIDC inaugurates office, shared service facility

ENATOR Cynthia Villar, Chair of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Food and Agrarian Reform, led the launch and inauguration of the Philippine Bamboo Industry Development Council’s Shared Service Facility (PBIDC-SSF) and its office. Located within the Center for Innovation and Technology for Enterprise (CITE) in Marikina City, the office is equipped with training machines, tools, and training and meeting rooms. The CITE also has a Bambusetum which houses various bamboo seedlings and species. Mandated to implement the Philippines’ vision for bamboo industrialization, the PBIDC provides

comprehensive training on bamboo propagule production and bamboo product processing. This initiative aims to take advantage of opportunities in the global bamboo industry which generates $70 billion in annual revenue and is projected to reach $100 billion by the end of 2030. Also present at the ribbon-cutting ceremony were EDC Vice Chair and Philippine Exporters Confederation, Inc. (PHILEXPORT) President Sergio Ortiz Luis Jr., Undersecretary Deogracias Victor Savellano of the Department of Agriculture (DA), Undersecretar y Blesila Lantayona of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), and DTI Regional Director Leah Pulido Ocampo.

CRAFTITAS: Crafts-Themed Makers’ Market Heading to Alabang this November

EADS up, crafters of the South! The CRAFTITAS Maker’s Market, a crafts-themed weekend of workshops and pop-up shops, is heading to Alabang on November 11 to 12, 2023. The crafty two-day gathering will take place at NOOK Coworking Studio, Molito Lifestyle Center, from 11 am to 7 pm.

Event Details:

Date: November 11-12, 2023 Time: 11:00 AM - 7:00 PM Location: NOOK Coworking Studio, Molito Lifestyle Center, Ayala Alabang, Muntinlupa City Celebrate arts and crafts, connect with local creators, and explore your creative side! Here’s what’s in store for the weekend:

Crafting Workshops:

Wool Needle Felting by the Waldorf Moms (Saturday, November 11, 1 pm to 3 pm) Learn to “paint” with wool, guided by artists Molly Young and Ina de Vera. You’ll learn felting, wool blending, and sculpting felted shapes and objects in this beginner-friendly workshop. Scent Mixology with Mia Rocha Lauchengco (Saturday, November 11, 3:30 pm to 5:30 pm) Join Mia, founder of So True Naturals, to learn the principles of the fragrance wheel and create your signature eau de parfum. Christmas Crochet with Nina Blanch Prats (Sunday, November 12, 11:00am to 12:30 pm) Discover the delight of creating art and practical pieces with crochet, guided by crochet artist Nina Blanch Prats. Natural Body Scrubs with Mia Rocha Lauchengco (Sunday, November 12, 1 pm to 3 pm) Learn to make three different sugar-based scrubs for your own use or to give away as gifts. Glass Art with Toots Magsino (Sunday, November 12, 3:30 pm to 5:30 pm)

Collaborate with mixed-media collage artist Toots Magsino to upcycle ordinary glass bottles and jars into beautiful, functional pieces of art.

Interactive booths:

Candle Bar by So True Naturals: Pick a scent and hand-pour your own candles. Shop or have a bite to eat while your candles cool! Create-Your-Own Jewelry by Russet Accessories: Choose your chains and curate your charms to create unique jewelry pieces. On-the-Spot Name Art by Ina de Vera: Choose a name to illustrate! Artist Ina de Vera will create whimsical alphabet art that makes a wonderful gift for kids. Clean and natural beauty product kits from The Oilbularyo: Make them there or buy kits to make your beauty products at home!

Homemade & Handmade Finds. Other pop-up booths include:

n Rebel Bakehouse from Baguio n The Dark Side: Sinfully Decadent Cookies n Find Jane Dough n Urban Farmer Manila n From Beans Crocheted Bags n Crafts and Dips by Miss Cris n Homemade Heirlooms by Gem n The Waldorf Moms n Soyoung Studios n Le Lila Crafts n Happy2Help Charity Group n Helping Bayong n Museo Pambata

Admission to the CRAFTITAS Maker’s Market is free. For information and updates, follow @ thecraftitas on Instagram. For media inquiries or additional information, please contact: Chinie Diaz: chd.copy@gmail. com/0918 859 9959

Sports BusinessMirror

Editor: Jun Lomibao

Adidas giving up on Yeezy

PAULINE DEL ROSARIO couldn’t keep her momentum going.

Del Rosario’s rally in 2nd rd falls short, trails Taiwanese leaders by 4 shots

AULINE DEL ROSARO flipped things around with a birdiespree at the turn until a bogeybogey windup foiled the Filipina’s bid in the second round of the Party Golfers Ladies Open in Hsinchu county Thursday in Chinese Taipei. Del Rosario mounted a stirring fightback from a one-over card after four holes with a six-birdie binge in an eight-hole stretch from No. 9 that moved her within two shots off local ace Ling-Jie Chen at joint second heading to the par-four 17th. But she lost her momentum in the last two holes and failed to rescue pars after missing both greens, ending up with a second straight 69 for a 138 that kept the International Container Terminal Services Inc.backed shotmaker at joint sixth, four shots behind a hot-charging Babe Liu and Chen heading to the last 18 holes of the NT$4 million championship. Thai Mim Sangkapong carded a 69, Ching Huang of Chinese-Taipei shot a 71 and erstwhile joint leader Jessica Peng wound up with a 72 as they tied del Rosario at sixth. Two flights behind, Chen dropped Peng with a frontside 32 then made up for a miscue on No. 12 with three birdies in the next four although she had to settle for a 68 after a bogey on No. 17, enabling a Liu, who produced the tournament-best seven-under 65 spiked by closing back-to-back birdies, to force a tie at 134.

“I hit a lot of good second shots that set a lot of birdie chances and I’m very happy to have made almost all my putts,” said Liu, who birdied Nos. 2, 4, 5, 9, 10 14, 17 and 18 against a bogey on No. 12. “My goal is to shoot four-under for every round, so let’s see how it goes,” she added when asked of her final round game plan. Chen also banked on her superb approach shots to hit six birdies but rued her bad second shot on No. 17 that saw her overshoot the green and end up with her second bogey. But she remained upbeat of her chances for a breakthrough win although she expressed surprise after seeing Liu turn in a 65, saying: “I’m shocked that some players just find the course so easy.”

Cargo Movers go back-to-back at Defenders’ expense in PVL

2 LOGISTICS dominated embattled Gerflor, 25-10, 25-16, 25-14, for its second consecutive victory in the Premier Volleyball League Second All-Filipino Conference at the PhilSports Arena on Thursday. Coming off a tight five-set win over Farm Fresh, the Cargo Movers were in full control against the Defenders, who are currently dealing with internal issues. F2 Logistics moved into a tie for the sixth spot with Cignal on similar 4-2 win-loss records. “It’s a good boost for the team for the next game with the defending champions [Creamline], but I told them that this is good preparation for the next game, and we cannot be complacent,” F2 Logistics head coach Regine Diego said. “It is essential to respect the opponent, not just react based on who you’re playing against,” Diego said. “I told them that if they get too close to their opponents, it means they are not respecting them.” After breezing through the first two sets, F2 Logistics elevated their game in the third set with Jolina Dela Cruz, Jovelyn Fernandez, and Mars Alba collaborating to establish a 14-point lead at 21-7, which demoralized the Defenders. “Against all teams, if we can create a significant lead in the score, not just against Gerflor but also against other teams, I want to see how others will perform because, of course, they are also part of the team,” Diego said. Ara Galang led the Cargo Movers with 11 points, including three blocks, along with 11 excellent digs and three excellent receptions after an hour and 19 minutes of play. Aby Marano contributed 10 points with six attacks, two blocks, and two rejections, while Ivy Lacsina also scored 10 points with 10 successful attacks. Alba delivered 14 excellent sets and Dawn Macandili registered 12 excellent digs. F2 Logistics face Creamline on Tuesday at 6 p.m. at the Smart

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph | Friday, November 10, 2023 B7

Araneta Coliseum. On the other hand, the Defenders, who are currently under investigation due to the management’s mishandling of the team, were led by Danika Gendrauli with 11 points, including nine attacks and two aces. Gerflor has now suffered its sixth consecutive loss in as many games.

DAWN MACANDILI does what she does best for the Cargo Movers.

RANKFURT, Germany— Adidas said it might have to write off the remaining €300 million ($320 million) worth of Yeezy shoes left unsold after it cut ties with rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West. The company will decide in the coming weeks whether or not to do a third release of the shoes next year to generate more donations to groups fighting antisemitism. The shoe and sports clothing company, which cut ties with Ye in October 2022 after he made antisemitic remarks online, has sold 750 million euros worth of the shoes in two stages earlier this year through Adidas smartphone apps and its website. Part of the profits went to groups like the Anti-Defamation League and the Philonise & Keeta Floyd Institute for Social Change, run by social justice advocate Philonise Floyd, the brother of George Floyd. The company included the possible write-off of the remaining Yeezy inventory in its outlook Wednesday for its earnings this year, narrowing its expected loss to €100 million

YEEZY shoes made by Adidas are displayed at Laced Up, a sneaker resale store in New Jersey. AP from an earlier prediction of €450 million, thanks in part to the earlier two releases of Yeezy shoes. CEO Bjorn Gulden, who took over after the Yeezy breakup, is leading an effort to recover from the loss of the profitable Yeezy business. The announcement from Adidas comes at a time of rising antisemitism and islamophobia after the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war. Gulden referenced the “terrible

Bachmann graces Rotarians

Philippine Sports Commission chairman Richard E. Bachmann (center) receives a memorabilia during his speaking engagement at the Rotary Club of Manila’s 18th weekly meeting at the Manila Polo Club in Makati City. With him are (from left) Rotary Club of Manila District Governor Jackie Rodriguez and president Rafael Alunan III and Rotarian Raoul Creencia. NONOY LACZA

Senators with PBA Legends Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri (third from

left) and Senator Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada (second from left) pose for a photo with their recent visitors—Philippine Basketball Association Legends Francis “Mr. Clutch” Arnaiz (left) and former San Juan Vice Mayor Philip “Mr. Stretch” Cesar.

Benilde’s Lady Blazers sweep UPVC in Challenge Cup

OLLEGE of Saint Benilde clobbered the University of the Philippines Volleyball Club, 25-20, 25-18, 25-10, for its second straight win in the Philippine National Volleyball Federation Challenge Cup on Thursday at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum in Manila. The Lady Blazers, reigning two-time National Collegiate Athletic Association champions, needed only 86 minutes go to 2-0 won-lost in Pool A of the 16-team women’s division. Saint Benilde has yet to yield a single set after also sweeping Parañaque City, 25-6, 25-25-20, 25-17, in a superb start in the Challenge Cup supported by the Philippine Sports Commission, PLDT, Rebisco, Akari, Foton and CBPI. The Lady Blazers have one last assignment against the Volida Volleyball Club next week to complete a Pool A sweep and advance in the

THE Lady Blazers’ Zamantha Nolasco spikes on in. NONIE REYES

The boys’ 16-, 14- and 12-andunder categories all drew packed 32-player draws, underscoring the enthusiasm of the young players not only to excel this week but also with an eye on future prospects. This marks the first time that Silay City is hosting this kind of tournament, reflecting the city’s commitment to encourage its youth and at the same time enhance the quality of tennis among local players. Mayor Gallego has pledged to make it an annual event as part of the city’s sports program. “We want to inspire the youth to pursue tennis as a sport and potentially secure opportunities to join top universities in Manila in the

Challenge Cup quarterfinals of the PNVF headed by Ramon “Tats” Suzara. Earlier, UP Diliman eclipsed La SalleDasmariñas, 25-16, 25-27, 25-8, 25-16, for a 2-0 slate in Pool D after also wiping out Lyceum of the Philippines University-Batangas, 25-14, 2511, 25-17, on Wednesday night. Arellano likewise ran away with a straight-sets victory against the University of Batangas, 25-18, 25-17, 25-19, for a winning start in Pool C.

In the men’s play, the University of Batangas made up for the loss of its women’s team by cruising past the Volida Volleyball Club, 25-14, 25-12, 25-11, in Pool A while Emilio Aguinaldo College debuted with a 2516, 25-20, 23-25, 25-15 win over Sta. Rosa City in Pool D. The 36-team PNVF Challenge Cup, formerly known as the Champions League, will take a week-long break before plunging back on November 24 for 10 straight days of action to determine the quarterfinalists. The playoffs then come off the wraps on November 25 and 26 in a series of knockout duels until the championship for the first crown of the retooled Challenge Cup featuring 20 teams in the men’s and 16 squads in the women’s division.

Ancajas: Been there, done that, moving on

Youngsters from Silay draw spotlight in juniors netfest HE Mayor Joedith Gallego National Junior Tennis Championships gets going Friday at the Silay courts in Negros Occidental with the aim of providing a platform for young talents to showcase their skills. Close to 200 players are clashing for top honors in various age groups with Hannah Divinagracia, Louchelaj Estember and siblings Guillerma and Gennalyn Makilan leading the chase in the girls’ 18-and-under side. Jeremy Napiere, Miguel Alarcon, Enzo Alipo-on and Jay Lorico, on the other hand, banner the cast in the boys’ class of the premier category of the Group 1 tournament presented by Dunlop.

circumstances” in the Middle East, saying some of the company’s more than 600 employees in Israel had been called up for military service and that “we, as a company, are starting donations programs, for the whole area, also for Gaza.” The company is working with the SOS Kinderdoerfer weltweit children’s relief agency to help those who have been affected by the conflict. The assumption in the outlook

is that remaining Yeezy inventory “will be written off...if that will happen or not is something that we evaluate all the time, so there are no decisions on what we’ll do,” Gulden told reporters on a conference call. “Right now, that is financially the worst case and it is a possibility. Currently there is no decision. ” He added that “we of course hope we can do more drops next year and we can get more value out of it and donate the proceeds, but right now financially we haven’t made a decision and that’s why the outlook is the way it is.” He said there were “many scenarios” and that the shoes were stored in a number of different locations. He declined to say what the company would do with the shoes if they remain unsold. The breakup with Ye left the company, based in Herzogenaurach, Germany, with €1.2 billion worth of unsold Yeezys and searching for a responsible way to dispose of them. Giving the shoes away to people in need would have raised concerns about informal resales due to their high market value, the company said, while restitching them to remove the brand identification would have been dishonest. AP

future,” Gallego said. Napiere also banners the 16-andunder cast that includes Andrian Rodriguez, Romell Gimena and Takuya Joson, while Rodriguez and Ciaran Alipo-on gain the top two seeding in the 14-and-under group of the week-long event also held as part of the Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala junior program put up by Palawan Pawnshop president and CEO Bobby Castro. Ciaran Alipo-on and Kent Largavista loom as the players to watch in the 12-and-under division while Kate Chavez, Kathyrine Bugna, Rodjun Largavista and Jacq Lorico are expected to slug it out for the top 10-and-under unisex honors.

By Josef Ramos

ERWIN “THE PRETTY BOY” ANCAJAS is again in a “been there, done that” after his title fight against reigning World Boxing Association bantamweight champion Takuma Inoue—originally scheduled for November 15 in Tokyo—was postponed after the Japanese broke a rib in sparring. “It’s part of a boxer’s life, not only me,” Ancajas told BusinessMirror through online call on Thursday. “It’s a blessing in disguise, I guess, because I can prepare more to enhance my conditioning.” “God has other plans for me. I just have to move on,” he added. Postponed fights is nothing new in Ancajas’s career. He’d been through the same situation thrice before: n Top Rank postponed his November 2019 fight against challenger Jonathan Rodriguez because the Mexican couldn’t secure a US visa in earnest. n Their fight was reset for April 2020 but Covid messed up global schedules (the fight was finally held in April 2021 with Ancajas retaining his

International Boxing Federation (IBF) super flyweight belt via unanimous decision, and n A unification fight with World Boxing Organization champion Kazuto Ioka set December 2021 in Tokyo was canceled after the Japanese government ordered a lockdown because of a resurgent Covid scare. Ancajas’s manager and trainer Joven Jimenez remain at the Knuckleheads Gym in Las Vegas to continue training. “So far, we’re already adjusted for the postponement so we will improve what we need to improve on,” said Jimenez, noting that they’ve been in the US since January. After losing his IBF belt to Argentina’s Fernando Daniel Martinez twice in, Ancajas and his camp decided to move up from 115 lbs to 118 lbs. He debuted in the heavier class with a fifth-round technical knockout win over Wilner Soto of Colombia last June 16 in Minneapolis. International matchmaker Sean Gibbons said the Ancajas-Inoue fight will be in January but no specific date nor venue was set.

Motoring BusinessMirror

Henry Ford Awards Best Motoring Section 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 2011 Hall of Fame

B8 Friday, November 10, 2023

Editor: Tet Andolong • www.businessmirror.com.ph

ISUZU GIVES THE PUBLIC A PEEK

OF THE FUTURE AT THE JAPAN MOBILITY SHOW

Story & Photos by Patrick Tulfo

SUZU Motors Limited together with UD Trucks Corp. gave the attendees of the recently concluded 2023 Japan Mobility Show, a glimpse of the future with the theme,” Innovation for you—Accelerate the Future of Transport” which emphasizes Isuzu’s vision of mobility society in the future. The futuristic corporate theme is perfectly seen in the company’s sprawling booth at the Tokyo Big Sight in Tokyo, Japan where the much-awaited biennial event that showcases the latest in Japan auto industry are held. Visitors of Isuzu’s booth was transported to another world via the future tunnel courtesy of the two gigantic LCD screens facing each other directly, this tunnel is found at the entrance of the booth but the Future Cube at the end of that tunnel is even more mesmerizing as it displayed graphics that are like those seen in Hollywood movies. There is also a viewpoint, that gives a peek into a sustainable city of the future and the warehouse, the future of logistics. The products and solutions that Isuzu and UD Trucks displayed highlighted the integration of transport and innovation and this was grouped into

three categories, and these are Innovation for Earth, Innovation for Society, and Innovation for Life. The Innovation on Earth is part of Isuzu’s plan to eliminate the emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) throughout the life cycle of its offerings as well the GHG emissions from its business operations by 2050. Both Isuzu and UD are currently developing and offering products and solutions that contribute to a carbon neutral world. Overall, these can be gleaned on some of the notable future offerings of the company.

The GIGA FUEL CELL THE Fuel cell (FC) powered heavy duty truck that was on display was the result of the joint research agreement between Honda Motor Co., Ltd.

THE EVision is a futuristic variant of the ELF truck which is now available in EV in Japan.

THE future of Isuzu GIGA Truck is Fuel Cell. and Isuzu that started in 2020. Isuzu provided the GIGA heavy-duty truck while Honda provided the Fuel Cell for the powertrain. Both Honda and Isuzu believe that Fuel Cell (FC) technology fueled by hydrogen that produces zero CO2 emissions are ideal for trucks designed to carry heavy loads over long distances and as well as long hours of operation. Isuzu is aiming at launching this futuristic heavy-duty truck in the year 2027.

ELF EV THE ELF EV is Isuzu’s first mass-pro-

duced BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle) joining the lineup in conjunction with the light-duty ELF (N-Series here in the Phils.) full model change. Sharing the same platform with current diesel line up of the company. The ELF EV comes in wide range of model variations as well as platforms. It enables customers to start using BEV without sacrificing the convenience offered by diesel engines. Isuzu plans to market the ELF EV outside Japan in stages and hopefully we will get this variant sooner rather than later. The ELF EV represents the truck manufacturer’s goal of carbon neutrality. The EVision is another interesting concept from Isuzu, the EVision is a variant of the ELF EV and in a working product display. It showed a futuristic

THE EVision is a futuristic variant of the ELF truck which is now available in EV in Japan. setup that changes the batteries of the ELF in a robotic way. While the two batteries which powered the ELF are almost production ready the battery changing system is just for show for now. The ELF Mio is an upcoming addition to the ELF series, the light-duty truck was designed so that it can be driven with a standard Japanese license. This Isuzu’s response to chronic driver shortage in Japan because of its aging population. The ELFMio boasts of the most com-

fortable cabin in its classes even for tall drivers. It also has a small turning radius that promises great maneuverability we can expect the ELFMio to find its way into the country in the coming months. Last but not the least is the Isuzu Erga Bus concept, the Isuzu engineer explained that this is a regular bus that drivers and passengers are accustomed to but with an EV powertrain. It is currently under development and no word on its mileage yet.

Electrified Lexus lauds bamboo in Japan Mobility Show

S promised, here’s Lexus at the Japan Mobility Show that I had just covered at Tokyo’s famous Big Sight inside the Japanese capital. My gratitude goes to Nadinne Capistrano and Shaina Mae Semana for providing weighty details to this obra. With its theme, “Pushing the Boundaries of the Electrified Experience,” Lexus wowed crowds with its exceptionally innovative electric cars of the future. Its next-generation Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) concept car LF-ZC, set for release in 2026, along with the BEV flagship concept model LF-ZL, which offers a glimpse into the brand’s future, were big hits to car buffs always in search of the extraordinary. As the name suggests, the LF-ZC (Lexus Future Zero-emission Catalyst) forms the catalyst for new experiences in the electric age, including elevated driving dynamics, uncompromised design, and new exclusive services.

Future Flagship THE LF-ZL (Lexus Future Zero-emission Luxury) is a future flagship model that aims to present an innately sustainable, guilt-free luxury lifestyle that empowers customers to live in tune with their needs and desires while at the same time contributing positively to the environment and society at large. Since its birth in 1989, Lexus has pushed boundaries in the automotive industry, consistently challenging the conventional notions of luxury and offering customers new product propositions and experiences. As a luxury

lifestyle brand that transcends the automotive sphere, Lexus continues to anticipate changing customer needs and desires with creativity and attention to detail, striving to surprise and surpass expectations. LF-ZC embodies this vision, standing as a symbol of Lexus’ electrification journey. LF-ZC is characterized by its sleek proportions, low center of gravity, spacious cabin and an emotionally charged design that seamlessly blends functionality and aesthetics.

Become one LEXUS BEVs will achieve more versatile vehicle packaging by minimizing all core components. This translates directly to driving performance, with LF-ZC delivering engaging and exhilarating dynamics where driver and car become one. For a personalized driving experience, Lexus becomes a true companion to customers by adjusting fundamental performance characteristics, such as acceleration and handling, to driver preferences through softwareenabled hardware. Lexus has also been exploring new possibilities for traditional materials through technology, combining the dual principles of environmental and social sustainability and luxurious design. The design theme of “Provocative Simplicity” represents an evolution of Lexus’ unique identity, creating a striking presence through a sleek, refined design. Focusing on aerodynamics and incorporating unique BEV functional and structural elements, the design team pursued an eye-catching, elegantly condensed form with a low center of gravity that hints at an exhilarating driving experience.

Bamboo IN line with Lexus’s sustainability philosophy, bamboo has been chosen as the signature material to exemplify the commitment to a circular economy that efficiently reduces, reuses and recycles valuable environmental

resources. By incorporating bamboo into the design of next-generation BEVs through various techniques, Lexus elevates electric vehicles to a new level of luxury and beauty. The next-generation voice recognition system utilizes advanced AI technology called “Butler,” using self-learning functions for software customization and allowing the vehicle to automatically set optimal personal settings for each customer with every drive. Further, Lexus stressed that nextgeneration Lexus BEVs will feature a new modular structure formed through “gigacasting,” which splits the vehicle body into three parts: front, center and rear. This enables the vehicle to drive itself with only the battery, motor, tires and wireless terminal components in the front, center and rear sections. Bold from the start, Lexus targets itself to be electrified by 2035. That will be the day.

PEE STOP HOOR AY to TMP VP Elvin “The Big E” Luciano for playing a crucial role in marshalling the 25-strong Toyota-Lexus media delegation to the just-ended Japan Mobility Show in tandem with newly-promoted AVP for Lexus Jade Sison-Mendoza. The duo did a splendid job of ensuring that schedules were followed to the hilt in that every squad member was attended to with tempestuous tenacity, to the delight—I must insist—of TMP top guns Vince Socco and Rommel Gutierrez. Cheers! Of course, a warm hug, too, to TMP’s EVP Jing Atienza and VP Danny Cruz, who both made my Tokyo trip complete by bringing me, together with Ira Panganiban (Visor EID Vernon B. Sarne missed the bus), to Abbey Road, the famous bar where only Beatles songs are performed live nightly, at the fabled Roppongi district not far from glitzy Ginza. It happened one night with a little help from Danny “Sir John” Isla. Ye-ye-ye-yeahhh!