Maniolas

MANILA, Philippines – Achieve that mastery of spoken English – be it British English or American English. When you enroll at the Center for Global Best Practices pioneering seminar-workshop, “Master Class on English Pronunciation and Effective Presentation,” they will teach you how to speak using the global English standard: with correct phonology, accurate diction, proper enunciation, and precise articulation. The superiority and your confidence in speaking in English comes with your awareness and practice that you are saying it the right way. You will also learn presentation best practices that can transform you to become a more effective speaker. This new program is scheduled on Sept. 1 and 2, 2016 at the EDSA Shangri-La Hotel, Mandaluyong City. This unique program will feature professor Louie Agnir-Paraan Ph.D.,the course director and lecturer of best practices communication programs of CGBP. She took her doctorate degree at the University of the Philippines in Diliman majoring in English Studies where she garnered the highest grade of 1.04 and was awarded the outstanding dissertation. She earned her Masters in Language and Literature at the University of the Philippines in Baguio where she graduated with a 1.01 GPA. She also has a master’s degree in Educational Psychology from UP Diliman. Her AB in Philosophy was also earned at UP Diliman. She graduated high school at the International School of Kuala Lumpur where she was the first Asian and first woman editor-in-chief of the school paper. For more details about this program and other upcoming best practices seminars Read More …

MANILA, Philippines – Filipino-owned Starlite Ferries launched last week the latest addition to its fleet of 15 modern roll-on, roll-off (ro-ro) vessels at the Batangas Port, boosting its efforts  to modernize inter-island travel in the country. The brand-new M/V Starlite Saturn, built by the Kegoya Dockyards in Kure near Hiroshima, Japan, is equipped with the latest state-of-the-art amenities, including CCTV cameras and a helipad for emergency medical evacuation, among others. Starlite Ferries president Francis Cusi said the new vessel follows the customized design of the three earlier ro-ro units. The company has ordered an initial seven ships from Japan, with eight more to be custom-built later. M/V Starlite Saturn has a service speed of 13.5 knots or nautical miles per hour. The 2,700-gross ton ship can ferry 711 passengers and 20 drivers in bunk comfortably on its upper decks and up to 21 buses in its hold. Unlike the second-hand ships now plying Philippine seas which were built for sailing in Japan’s calm inland seas, Starlite’s Saturn and other vessels in the Batangas-based shipping company’s fleet are designed to navigate the country’s open sea routes and seasonal rough waters. Starlite Ferries is a 100-percent Filipino-owned company that started operations in 1995 with its first route, Batangas-Calapan (Mindoro). To date, Starlite has brought convenience to Filipino sea travelers by opening new routes such as Roxas-Caticlan and Roxas-Odiongan, and guarantees more routes to open as they connect Luzon to Mindanao. What differentiates Starlite Ferries from other domestic shipping companies is its emphasis Read More …

MANILA, Philippines – LT Group Inc. grew its net earnings in the first semester to P4.56 billion, 28 percent higher than the previous year. The banking business contributed 38 percent of LTG’s income or P1.73 billion while the tobacco business comprised 32 percent or P1.45 billion. PNB reported a net income of P4.42 billion, up eight percent year on year. Equity in net earnings from the 49.6 percent stake in PMFTC Inc., the partnership between Fortune Tobacco and Philip Morris, reached P1.4 billion, significantly higher than the P420 million recorded a year earlier. The conglomerate attributed this to the change in mix of PMFTC’s sales, with premium Marlboro accounting for a higher share of total volume. LTG said that while there is some improvement, illicit trade continues to affect the overall profitability of the tobacco business. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Asia Brewery Inc. (ABI) was also a significant contributor to total earnings, making up P720 million or 16 percent. Tanduay Distillers Inc. (TDI) added P444 million or 10 percent. ABI’s Cobra energy drink, Absolute and Summit bottled water, Tanduay Ice alcopop and Vitamilk soymilk continue to be market leaders, LTG said. “The exceptionally hot summer and some impact from election-related spending resulted in the growth in volumes of ABI’s products. In late May, the company signed a joint venture agreement with Heineken for the beer business,” LTG said. TDI reported a 148 percent jump in net profit to P444 million as revenues grew with the Read More …

“We envision the store to be a place where people can re-enact scenes from their favorite shows, where they can come to regularly interact with our stars, and where they can find new ways to experience everything ABS-CBN has to offer,”  ABS-CBN president and CEO Carlo Katigbak said during the 23rd National Retailers Conference and Expo. MANILA, Philippines – Media and entertainment firm ABS-CBN Corp. will open an experience store that will allow individuals to be part of their favorite television programs as part of efforts to further grow its consumer business. “We envision the store to be a place where people can re-enact scenes from their favorite shows, where they can come to regularly interact with our stars, and where they can find new ways to experience everything ABS-CBN has to offer,”  ABS-CBN president and CEO Carlo Katigbak said during the 23rd National Retailers Conference and Expo. The experience store is meant to allow the company to connect to viewers amid rising digital consumption.  ABS-CBN’s consumer businesses account for P17 billion in annual revenues, or 45 percent of the company’s total revenues. The bulk or 55 percent comes from advertising. ABS-CBN’s consumer business is composed of subscription, ticketed experiences, and durable goods. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 The subscription business, which includes cable and broadband provider SKY, The Filipino Channel, and ABS-CBNmobile, is the largest contributor to the company’s consumer sales. Accounting for the second biggest share in consumer sales is the ticketed experiences category Read More …

Electricity rates will drop to P8.50 per kilowatthour in August, Meralco said. Meralco/Released MANILA, Philippines – Meralco announced that the residential rate for a typical household will go down this August by around P0.11 per kilowatthour (kWh), bringing it down to P8.50 per kWh. This translates to a reduction of around P22 in the electricity bill of a household with monthly consumption of 200 kWh. The reduction is due to the downward movement in the generation charge, which more than offset a higher transmission charge.  This month’s overall rate is lower by P0.62 per kWh compared to August 2015’s P9.12 per kWh. Meralco also responded to President Rodrigo Duterte’s call to provide electricity to marginalized households through an ongoing partnership with the Department of Energy and the National Housing Authority. To further help its customers manage their electricity consumption, Meralco’s prepaid electricity service will be available to residents of Makati, Mandaluyong and Pasig starting October 2016. With the support of the Energy Regulatory Commission, Meralco continues to deploy its prepaid service in more areas. For more information, watch this month’s Meralco Advisory: