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PSEi posts biggest one-day gain since 2007 after entering bear market

Economy

Jun 262013

PSEi posts biggest one-day gain since 2007 after entering bear market

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) on Wednesday made its biggest one-day gain since August 2007 after entering bear territory on Monday, the local bourse reported. The bellwether PSEi returned to the 6,000 level after closing 329.88 points or 5.7 percent higher than Tuesday’s 5,789.06, bringing its current level to 6,118.94. Positive news from the United States economy and listed companies’ impressive first quarter income performance gave PSEi a push after a massive selloff wiped its gains for the year. On Monday, the main index slumped 3.05 percent or 181.99 points to 5,789.06, sinking by 21.68 percent after posting 7,392.20- its highest record- on May 15 this year. A decline of 20 percent or more signals the market’s entry into the bear market. “Against a backdrop of solid fundamentals that have not changed even amidst the volatilities in the past weeks, the declines have served to put some stocks at attractive prices. I think this is what we saw today with the strong recovery of the market,” PSE Chairman Jose Pardo said. He added that volatility is a natural effect of uncertainties due to policy announcements abroad. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 “When the market goes past the overreaction phase, countries with strong fundamentals and buffers against uncertainties should be able to stay the course of their growth. The causes for the Philippines’ impressive growth continue to persist and should remain strong moving forward,” Pardo said. Earlier, the local bourse reported that earnings Read More …

BSP: Temporary market volatility could last for months

Economy

Jun 262013

BSP: Temporary market volatility could last for months

MANILA, Philippines – The temporary volatility in financial markets could last for months, but the Philippines will survive given its strong fundamentals, officials said on Wednesday. “These are interesting times again,” Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Amando Tetangco, Jr. said in a speech before financial officers in Makati City. The central bank chief said the “furor” will soon “subside” once investors have a complete grasp on the United States Federal Reserve’s pronouncements that it may scale down stimulus measures this year. “There is always volatility on the way to recovery. The way to recovery is not a clear path,” Tetangco said. “What is important is that you focus on your goal and don’t be distracted because volatility is inevitable,” he added. The scenario “will be there or a while, possibly for months,” said International Monetary Fund resident representative Shanaka Jayanath Peiris. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Investors have been rattled by concerns that cheap money from the $85-billion monthly bond buying program of the US will end soon, prompting them to re-position their holdings back to world’s largest economy. The Philippine Stock Exchange index, one of the world’s best performers last year, entered a bear territory last Tuesday, closing at 5,789.09 as it erased all its gains for the year. A bear territory is marked by a 20-percent slump from the bourse’s last peak. Meanwhile, the peso touched 44 level versus the dollar last Monday before it bounced back to close at 43.46 last Tuesday. Read More …

Maynilad bags 3 Cannes Lions for anti-dengue bottle

Economy

Jun 262013

Maynilad bags 3 Cannes Lions for anti-dengue bottle

MANILA, Philippines – West zone concessionaire Maynilad Water Services, Inc. bagged three awards from the 60th Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in France for the advertisements it produced for its Dengue Bottle project. Maynilad, in partnership with the Department of Health and global marketing firm Y&R Philippines, won one Silver Lion and two Bronze Lion awards in what is considered as the Acedemy Awards of the advertising industry. The Dengue Bottle is a do-it-yourself project against mosquitoes using a recycled plastic bottle with a mixture of clean water, brown sugar and yeast. The mixture emits carbon dioxide which attracts mosquitoes, trapping them and eventually killing them inside the bottle. Maynilad said the bottle can kill hundreds of mosquitoes in two weeks before requiring replacement. “We are both honored and grateful for these awards. This is not only a win for us and our partners, but for the communities that have become safer because of this dengue-preventing device,” Maynilad President and Chief Executive Officer Ricky Vargas said. Citing data from DOH’s Regional Epidemiology Surveillance Unit Maynilad said that in the National Capital Region alone, there were 2,332 recorded cases of dengue from January 1 to April 13 this year. Dengue is the leading cause of child hospitalizations in the country.

Balisacan unperturbed by weak peso, stocks

Economy

Jun 252013

Balisacan unperturbed by weak peso, stocks

MANILA, Philippines – The country’s top economic manager said he remains unperturbed by the weakening of the peso and the local bourse, saying these barometers are going into a ‘dip’ cycle. Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan pointed out that the peso at one time weakened to beyond 53 to the US dollar, and that the present level of the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) is still well above the 1,800-mark a few years back. “I would like to think that it is just a dip,” Balisacan told reporters on the sidelines of a World Bank presentation on climate change yesterday. The PSEi fell below 5,800 yesterday, entering bear market territory, according to market analysts. Nonetheless, Balisacan said the real economy remains strong based on sound fundamentals and strong domestic market. “The weak peso is good for our competitiveness. It is not only good for exports, but for our local industries which are competing with imports,” he added. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 A stronger dollar makes imported products more expensive, allowing locally-produced goods to compete in the market. Increased local production would, in turn, create more jobs. “The weakening of the peso will not only benefit the exporters or the families of overseas Filipinos sending dollar or dollar-denominated remittance inflows, but broadly our local industries that are producers or assemblers of exports using imported parts,” said Balisacan, who is also director general of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA). Meanwhile, robust investments in the Read More …

Trade deficit widens to $1 B

Economy

Jun 252013

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines trade deficit in April 2013 widened to $1.020 billion from $153 million in the same period last year, the National Statistics Office (NSO) reported yesterday. The government statistics agency reported that total external trade in goods for April 2013 reached $9.263 billion, down 1.7 percent from $9.423 billion recorded in the same month in 2012. This was due to an 11.1 percent slowdown in exports to $4.121 billion in April 2013 from 4.635 billion in the same period last year. Merchandise imports, on the other hand, rose 7.4 percent to $5.141 billion in April 2013 from $4.788 billion in April 2012. The growth in merchandise imports in April was fueled by increased importation of transport equipment. Imports of transport equipment with an 11.5 percent share to total imports in April was valued at $593.61 million, 148.6 percent higher than the previous year’s level of $238.78 million and the highest annual growth rate among the top ten imports. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 “Robust investments in the power and transportation sectors drove overseas purchases to a solid recovery in April,” said Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan in a separate statement. Imports of mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials was the top imported commodity in April 2013 with payments amounting to $1.283 billion. It went up 21.4 percent over last year’s figure of $1.057 billion. On a monthly basis, it grew 23.3 percent from the $1.040 billion recorded in March 2013. Volume Read More …

Phl, Australia firms team up to develop Pinoy technoprenuers

Economy

Jun 252013

Phl, Australia firms team up to develop Pinoy technoprenuers

MANILA, Philippines — Incubator-accelerator firms from the Philippines and Australia have entered into a partnership to fund and mentor Filipino technopreneurs. Local incubator Kickstart Ventures Inc., a wholly-owned company by Globe Telecom, teamed up with Australian counterpart Pollenizer to bring the latter’s distinctive approach to company formation into the Philippines market. The partnership dubbed Pollenizer@Kickstart hopes to increase the chances of success of local technopreneurs by combining top talent, great ideas, and startup best practices. The concept is to provide highly-skilled engineers, business people, and product managers with a unique environment for entrepreneurial experimentation. Pollenizer@Kickstart encourages interested individuals to apply to join a team that Kickstart and Pollenizer are co-founding to address a well-researched problem, with the Pollenizer@Kickstart program providing a built-in funding runway, and a structured incubation process. Minette Navarrete, President of Kickstart, said team members could be corporate employees looking for more autonomy and freedom to experiment, entrepreneurs looking to plug into a support system and pre-defined project, or people who have moved between both environments. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Each team member is considered a co-founder and receives an equity stake in the business that they form as well as a salary to meet month expenses. Team members are expected to own the vision and execution for the business, with intense support, mentorship and guidance from Kickstart and Pollenizer. One of them will also be chosen as the Chief Executive Officer of the new business. The businesses will be given funding Read More …

Despite hot money outflow, BSP says no to capital controls yet

Economy

Jun 242013

Despite hot money outflow, BSP says no to capital controls yet

MANILA, Philippines – Capital controls are still off the table even if only to prevent money from leaving the Philippines, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said. BSP Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said the central bank is “not looking at capital controls” to temper the slump in the financial markets driven by worries the US will scale back its stimulus measures soon. Earlier this year, the idea of capital controls has also been floated, that time to manage the reverse: large inflows flocking to emerging markets for better returns. But after the US Federal Reserve said it may taper off its quantitative easing measures “later this year,” investors have begun leaving developing nations on optimism interest rates will soon rise in the world’s largest economy. The actions of investors caused the Philippine Stock Exchange index to lose 3.41 percent on Monday and close at 5,971.05, the lowest since January. The peso, meanwhile, slumped to its weakest level since January last year to end trading at 43.84 versus the greenback. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 On Saturday, BSP Deputy Governor Diwa Guinigundo said the country will “maximize the returns” of its foreign reserves to have enough buffer to cushion outflows. BSP Assistant Governor Ma. Cyd Tuano-Amador, for her part, said the weakening of the peso has limited effect on inflation. “There is a considerable range where the peso can move before any breach of the inflation target can happen,” Amador said last Friday.

(UPDATE) 'Big 3' and Total jack up fuel prices anew

Economy

Jun 242013

(UPDATE) 'Big 3' and Total jack up fuel prices anew

MANILA, Philippines – Oil companies Petron Corp., Pilipinas Shell, Chevron Philippines and Total Philippines on Tuesday morning implemented another round of fuel price increases. The oil companies raised the prices of their gasoline products by 45 centavos per liter and diesel and kerosene by 90 centavos per liter at 6 a.m. Petron said that the latest price increase is based on prices of oil in the international market and the foreign exchange rate. The increase came a week after the companies increased the prices of the gasoline products by P1.05 per liter, diesel by P1.45 per liter and kerosene by P1.30 per liter.

Phl in good position to weather volatility – credit watchers

Economy

Jun 242013

Phl in good position to weather volatility – credit watchers

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines’ strong fundamentals will not only keep the economy afloat, but will also ensure that the recent financial market turbulence will not have any effect on the country’s credit rating, debt watchers said. Standard & Poor’s (S&P) Ratings Services and Fitch Ratings, which granted the country investment-grade status earlier this year, said the Philippines is in a good position to weather the sentiment-led volatility. “It will not have any impact on the Philippines’ credit rating. Our outlook for the Philippines is stable,” S&P credit analyst Agost Benard said in a phone interview yesterday. He declined to elaborate. For his part, Andrew Colquhoun, Fitch’s head of Asia-Pacific Sovereigns, said the country is “well-placed” to absorb the recent sell-off driven mainly by concerns the US would reduce and eventually pullout its stimulus measures. In effect, cheap money that has been utilized to boost growth in Asia found their way back to the US on optimism interest rates would increase there. Proof of this was the plunge of the local index to its lowest level since January yesterday, to close at 5,971.05, down 3.41 percent. Colquhoun cited the large current account surplus posted by the country since 2003, allowing it to generate dollars more than enough to meet its external obligations. As of March, the current account surplus stood at $3.4 billion. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 The current account – which include earnings from exports, remittances and business process outsourcing – has contributed to Read More …

Market drops below 6,000; peso falls

Economy

Jun 242013

MANILA, Philippines – Continuous foreign selling amid external worries dragged the bellwether stock index to a six-month low yesterday and nearer bear market territory. At the same time, the peso hit a fresh 17-month low versus the greenback as investors expect positive data from the US this week to support a pullout of stimulus measures later this year. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) sank 3.41 percent or 211.12 points to end at 5,971.05, its lowest since closing at 5,934.05 on Jan. 4. After hitting its 31st all-time high this year at 7,392.20 on May 15, the PSEi has since fallen 19.22 percent. A 20 percent or more decline marks the start of the bear market. Meanwhile, the local currency closed at 43.84 against the dollar, losing 12 centavos versus its close last Friday at 43.72. The close was the peso’s weakest against the US currency since Jan. 16, 2012 when it hit 43.88. Last Friday, the peso touched the 44-level, a two-year low, before it bounced back to close stronger. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 “We broke down below 6,000 psychological support, trailing regional bourses’ performance,” said Freya B. Natividad, investment analyst at Papa Securities. “I think the weakness stemmed from continued sell-off of foreign fund managers in the local bourse,” she said. Net foreign selling hit P557.77 million yesterday. Justino Calaycay Jr., an analyst at Accord Capital Securities, said attention shifted to the growing weakness of the Chinese economy. “Bears kept its dominance, threatening Read More …

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