Rapid Philippine growth presented to APEC key execs

 Economy
Apr 142015
 
Rapid Philippine growth presented to APEC key execs

“The Philippines will hit, in 2015, a ‘demographic sweet spot’ that will approximately last for the next 35 years,” Philippine Ambassador to Singapore Antonio Morales said. Photo shows a street in the Philippine capital of Manila. TPSDave MANILA, Philippines — Philippine Ambassador to Singapore Antonio Morales recently presented facts about the Philippines and overview of the Philippine economy before 40 officials of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation in Singapore. In the April 8 meeting, Morales noted the rapid growth trajectory of the Philippine economy from 2010 until 2014. In his presentation, he emphasized that the country’s economy grew by 6.1 percent, making it the second fastest-growing economy in the region after China. He said various factors which contribute to the sharp growth include the country’s large but young population, the various anti-corruption measures that have been established by the current administration, as well as structural changes taking place in the economy caused by good economic fundamentals. “According to UN population projections, the Philippines will hit, in 2015, a ‘demographic sweet spot’ that will approximately last for the next 35 years. Countries in such conditions post an average yearly growth of 7.3 percent,” cited Morales. The ambassador said that the Philippines “can no longer be labeled the sick man of Asia due to the favorable economic conditions and is now savoring an unprecedented level of confidence from the international economy. “For the first time in the country’s history, the Philippines is ranked investment grade by the major credit rating outfits—Moody’s, Standard and Read More …

US stocks mostly higher after mixed earnings

 Economy
Apr 142015
 
US stocks mostly higher after mixed earnings

Trader Sal Suarino works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange Tuesday, April 14, 2015. Wall Street stocks finished mostly higher Tuesday following mixed corporate earnings news and slightly disappointing US retail sales in March. AP PHOTO/RICHARD DREW NEW YORK–Wall Street stocks finished mostly higher Tuesday following mixed corporate earnings news and slightly disappointing US retail sales in March. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 59.66 points (0.33 percent) to 18,036.70. The broad-based S&P 500 gained 3.41 (0.16 percent) at 2,095.84, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index fell 10.96 (0.22 percent) to 4,977.29. Earnings from large banks JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo exceeded expectations. But analysts said a lower profit forecast from health-care giant Johnson & Johnson due to the strong dollar underscored fears that the greenback will dent multinationals’ earnings reports in the coming weeks. US retail sales rebounded in March from a three-month slump, rising 0.9 percent, slightly below the consensus estimate of 1.0 percent. Dow member JPMorgan tacked on 1.6 percent as first-quarter net income rose 12.2 percent to $5.9 billion behind strong investment banking and trading results. Johnson & Johnson, another Dow member, was flat after trimming its full-year profit forecast due to the strong dollar. First-quarter net income translated into $1.56 per share, two cents above expectations. Freight railroad Norfolk Southern dropped 4.2 percent following a warning that first-quarter earnings are expected to be 15 percent below last year’s due to lower revenues, in part from a decline in coal volumes. Google fell Read More …

Toyota hits record sales, underscores lack of new plates

 Economy
Apr 142015
 
Toyota hits record sales, underscores lack of new plates

When a steel girder erector being used for the Skyway project near Tramo and Andrews Avenues in Pasay City fell to the ground last month, it hit eight vehicles. Now while it’s noteworthy that the occupants of those cars were miraculously unharmed, it’s also interesting to note that four of those eight vehicles were Toyotas. You don’t have to be a statistician to see that half of the cars involved were Toyotas. And if you want to talk about odds, there’s a high probability that that’s because of Toyota’s stranglehold on the Philippine market—to the tune of almost 45 percent on average month to month for more than a year already. That’s almost half of the local market. Imagine that. Out of 10 cars sold here, almost five of that will be Toyotas. Which means that the 20 or so other Japanese, Korean, American, European, Chinese, and Indian brands competing in our market will be fighting tooth and nail for the other five units. Extrapolate that to 100 units, or 1,000 units, or 10,000 units, or even to 100,000 units, and it’s still Toyota owning almost half that number. The implications are staggering. And now comes news that the largest local car manufacturer in the country achieved its highest sales to date in a single month last March. Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP) registered its record-breaking performance of 10,237 units sold. Its previous sales milestone was recorded last October 2014 with 10,163 units sold. Based on the most recent CAMPI report, Read More …

Judgment day: Are you ready?

 Economy
Apr 132015
 

THE Energy department has extended the bid submission deadline for the supply of the first 3,000 tricycles powered by electricity, an official said yesterday. Less than a month before the April 15 deadline for filing income tax returns (ITRs), the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) released an amendment on the guidelines for submission of ITRs of individual and corporate taxpayers.

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