Maniolas

A man holds a smartphone, looking at an electric board displaying stock prices at a brokerage house in Hangzhou in east China’s Zhejiang province. Chinatopix via AP NEW YORK  — Another slump in the Chinese stock market spread across the globe Thursday, causing steep declines in U.S. and European shares, and dragging the Standard & Poor’s 500 index into the red for 2015. Keeping score: The Dow Jones industrial average fell 297 points, or 1.7 percent, to 17,052 as of 2:45 p.m. Eastern time. The S&P 500 index lost 36 points, or 1.7 percent, to 2,043 and the Nasdaq composite fell 120 points, or 2.4 percent, to 4,899. The S&P 500 is now down 0.8 percent for 2015. The Dow is off 4 percent while the Nasdaq, fueled partly by strong gains in Google and other tech stocks, is up 3.4 percent. China concerns: Worries over China, the world’s second-largest economy, were again the catalyst for Thursday’s losses. The Shanghai Composite Index dropped 3.4 percent on heavy selling of energy and property companies. Chinese shares have had a wild ride this week and that has raised uncertainty about Beijing’s ability to stabilize the market and its surprising devaluation of its currency, the renminbi, last week. China’s devaluation has caused other countries to in turn devalue their own currencies, notably the oil rich country of Kazakhstan and the Southeast Asian manufacturing center of Vietnam. “The emerging markets really got slammed overnight and that quickly spread to the rest of the world,” Read More …

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY — The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) has appealed to local government units as well as Congress to enact laws that will prohibit and penalize the building of structures and the planting of trees near transmission lines.

MANILA, Philippines – Amid demand for real estate, a tightening supply of land in the metro is pushing developers to explore other locations known as “new wave cities,” property consultancy services firm CBRE Philippines said. Fringes of Metro Manila such as Sta.Rosa, Clark, Cebu, Iloilo and Davao are becoming potential growth areas where various mixed-use projects are being created, the firm said. According to CBRE, among the factors that help influence the rise of different developments include convenience, accessibility, cost competitiveness, availability of labor and government support. “Actualizing the potential of new wave cities through strategic utilization of resources in these areas can increase the chances of these areas as the next home of local and foreign companies,” CBRE chairman and chief executive Rick Santos said. On top of these emerging cities is Clark in Pampanga which is strategically located in Northern Luzon and is being underscored by CBRE as a vital new wave city and a potential business process outsourcing (BPO) hub. “CBRE underscores Clark’s potential as a BPO hub because of its accessibility through air, land, and sea, available developable land, government incentives, and a skilled English-speaking labor pool,” Santos added. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 BPO revenues grew 18 percent in 2014 and is seen to overtake remittances from overseas, Filipino workers while top BPO companies, including Accenture and Convergys, are already expanding into the provinces. Total BPO office occupancy rate for the five business districts (Makati, Fort Bonifacio, Alabang, Quezon City and Read More …

By the year 2017, commuters to Eastern Metro Manila, which includes Pasig, Marikina, Cainta, Antipolo and other parts of Rizal province, would have the additional convenience of an extended LRT line with stations to be located in Cainta and Masinag. The P9.5-billion project would have a 4.2-kilometer elevated guideway extension from the present terminal of LRT Line 2 in Santolan all the way to Masinag. This infrastructure project would inevitably increase land values and trade and commerce in this part of the metro and most importantly further commuter convenience, but then such would have to come at a price – horrendous traffic for the duration of its construction. Started in June, the project is expected to cause peak traffic congestion in the area by the third week of September and would last in the next two- and-a-half years. Two lanes of Marcos Highway on each direction are set to be closed and those who travel through the area should expect a delay of at least one-and-a-half hours. Well, most of the time it takes some form of sacrifice in order to achieve progress and development. At least there’s promise of some good times to look forward to. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Some practical thinkers believe, though, that before considering an extension of where the rail system goes, the government should first look into how the system presently works or how it doesn’t.   We hope this extension would not mean an extension of rail commuters’ agony Read More …

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Franchise Association (PFA) has officially opened its 17th Franchise Excellence Awards (FEA) search, the winners in which both homegrown and international will be conferred recognitions and awards during the Franchise Excellence Awards (FEA) at the Marriott Grand Ballroom on Sept. 23. PFA president Franklin Go said, “the FEA winners have become benchmarks of success in the country’s franchise sector and have inspired many in the industry to strive for excellence, a key to becoming, globally competitive.” Two of the coveted awards are Global Filipino Franchise Award (President’s Award), which recognizes Philippine franchise companies that have become benchmarks in overseas expansion; and the Outstanding Filipino Franchise Award, which is for Filipino franchise brands that have become benchmarks in national market penetration through excellent franchise operations and good corporate governance. Hopefuls may also bag the International Master Franchise Award, which recognizes international franchises operating in the country that have become benchmarks in franchise operations, particularly in sustained sales growth, expansion and employment generation; the Most Promising Filipino Franchise Award, for MSME Filipino franchises that have the potential to become major players in the industry; and the Best Overall Marketing Campaign Award, which recognizes franchise companies with a successful and effective marketing program that contributed significantly to its growth and to the advancement of the franchising sector. There will also be awards for franchisees who have epitomized success and growth in franchise operations. FEA nominees are judged based on a carefully crafted set of criteria, which include the Read More …