Maniolas

MANILA, Philippines – A forum on “Managing In a Crisis Situation” will be held on May 29 & 30 at Crowne Plaza Hotel, Ortigas Center, Quezon City. For more information you may call tel. nos. 475-9996, 631-9801 & 746-1468.  E-mail: commbiz19@yahoo.com. Ber Pacheco, president of CommBiz Inc., said crisis happens; whether we like it or not. The important thing is: “Is the company prepared?” And: “Are you?” Speakers invited to share their talents on the topics are: Carlos Gundran, president, Philippine Society of Emergency Medical Technicians & Medical Director, Life Support Training International (Conducting Emergency Operations In Times Of Disasters & Calamities); Col. Sebastian C. Siga-An (Ret.), security consultant, Fluor Daniel, Inc.-Philippines (Carrying Out A Security & Protection Plan During Crisis Situation); Max Edralin, PR consultant, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas & former vice president-PR, CitiBank (Key Role Of Public Relations In Crisis Management); Dr. Nick Fontanilla, president, The Asia Pacific Center for Research & past president, Philippine Marketing Association (Methodologies To Use For Business Continuity During Crisis Situation); and Col. Mateo Luga (Ret.), security & management consultant & former head, Asset Protection Center, PLDT (Preparing The Crisis Management Plan).

MANILA, Philippines – For its corporate social responsibility (CSR) project, the Wong Chu King Foundation (WCKF) is funding the Hapag-Asa Integrated Nutrition Program of Assisi Development Foundation Inc. (ADFI), to help provide for the nutritional needs of more than eight million undernourished children in the Philippines. WCKF aims to perpetuate the memory of Emmanuel Wong Chu King, philanthropist and patriarch of the Wongchuking family by helping poor and underprivileged sectors with their nutrition, education and livelihood needs. ADFI also aims to help the poor and underprivileged by giving them access to sustainable agricultural technology, farm implements and tools; formal and non-formal education; medical assistance, facilities and health care alternatives; and opportunities for leadership, livelihood and skills training and spiritual and values formation. “Hapag-Asa seeks to improve the national status of moderate and severely malnourished children through supplemental feeding programs, health and nutrition education and value formation, as well as responsible parenthood training and livelihood opportunities for their parents.”

MANILA, Philippines – Listed property firm Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc. has completed its return to the bond market, raising $225 million in fresh capital to support debt payments and expansion projects. The real estate unit of the Villar family said it generated $350 million of demand from 44 offshore and institutional investor accounts in the first dollar-denominated bond offering from a Philippines corporate in 2014. “The success of the tender offer and new issue represents an important milestone for Vista Land in the active management of its capital structure,” Vista Land said. “Most importantly, the exercise achieved the Vista Land’s objectives of reducing interest expense, further diversifying its funding sources and increasing funding from offshore investors,” it added. In terms of geographic distribution, roughly 95 percent of the bonds were distributed in Asia and the rest was distributed in Europe. By investor type, 60 percent of the bonds were distributed to banks, 28 percent to fund and asset managers, and 12 percent to private banks, Vista Land said. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 “This enabled Vista Land to price the new five-year issuance at a yield of 7.625 percent, representing a 12.5 basis points tightening from initial guidance of 7.75 percent,” the property firm said. The bonds of subsidiary VLL International Inc. will bear a fixed interest coupon of 7.45 percent per year, with interest payable semi-annually in arrears. HSBC acted as sole global coordinator, and with DBS Bank Ltd., acted as joint bookrunners and Read More …

MANILA, Philippines – The US Wheat Associates (USW) supports the Philippine government’s decision to impose provisional duty on flour imports from Turkey citing that such creates a level playing field. In a statement, the USW said it is pleased the Philippine government has decided to provide relief to flour millers in the form of a provisional anti-dumping duty on Turkish flour imports. “The government’s decision sends a clear signal that flour millers in the Philippines, employing Philippine workers, should be able to operate in an open and fair trade environment,” the group said. USW which works with American wheat farmers with millers and baking associations in the Philippines, supports competitive, open and fair trade environments. It noted that Turkey’s highly protected wheat and flour market and complex inward processing scheme has created disruptive incentives for the Turkish milling industry to dump flour in export markets. “The Philippine government was correct in investigating PAFMIL’s (Philippine Association of Flour Millers, Inc.) claim against Turkish flour dumping. It also correctly found strong justification to protect its flour milling industry. As a result, every stakeholder in this issue may now move forward together in the spirit of fair competition,” the group said. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Last week, the Department of Agriculture (DA) issued an order imposing a provisional duty of 35 percent on hard flour used for making bread, 39.26 percent on biscuit bread, and 35.21 percent on soft flour used for pastries and cookies, on top of Read More …

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. AP       NEW YORK (AP) – The stock market fell sharply Friday, dragged down by disappointing quarterly results from Amazon and Ford. Escalating tensions between the US and Russia over Ukraine also weighed on the market. Worried investors sold their risky assets and moved into the traditional havens: bonds, gold and stocks that pay high dividends like utilities. The Standard & Poor’s 500 fell 15.21 points, or 0.8 percent, to 1,863.40. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 140.19 points, or 0.9 percent, to 16,361.46 and the Nasdaq composite lost 72.78 points, or 1.8 percent, to 4,075.56. Friday’s sell-off was enough to push the Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq into the red for the week. Technology stocks, which have been volatile for the last two months, were once again a hotbed of selling. Amazon, the world’s largest online store, sank $33.32, or 10 percent, to $303.83. Amazon reported late Thursday an increase in first-quarter profit, but the company also said that spending on investments will likely lead to an operating loss in the second quarter. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 The retail giant dragged the rest of the technology sector lower, making it one of the worst performing sectors in the S&P 500. Netflix fell more than six percent, Priceline lost five percent, Facebook fell five percent and Twitter lost more than seven percent. Investors have had little patience for companies missing their forecasts this quarter, Read More …