Purisima named Finance Minister of the Year anew

 Economy
Feb 012014
 
Purisima named Finance Minister of the Year anew

MANILA, Philippines – Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima has once again been recognized as Finance Minister of the Year for Asia-Pacific.   In recognition of his role in improving fiscal efficiency, instituting reforms against corruption, and elevating the Philippines in the eyes of international investors, the award from The Banker marks Purisima’s fourth straight year in receiving Finance Minister of the Year honors from different award giving bodies, a first in the history of the finance department and in the Philippines.  Purisima emphasized his fourth award naming him Finance Minister of the Year is a testament to President Aquino’s guiding principle that good governance is good economics. Purisima thanked the President for his leadership and commitment to accountability and transparency, as well as his colleagues in the cabinet and fellow members of the cabinet’s Economic Development Cluster. Working together, they have achieved the economic gains for which Purisima is being honored. The country’s economy recently posted a 7.2 percent growth in 2013. Since the start of the Aquino administration, the Philippines has maintained an average of 6.3 percent growth and remains to be one of the fastest-growing countries in Asia.  While the Philippines continues to improve its economic outlook with record-high GDP growth rates, investment grade ratings from major credit rating agencies, and strong macroeconomic fundamentals, Purisima stressed the current administration’s term is only half-done. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1  “Our goals for 2014 include improving the revenue to GDP through the ongoing reforms in the Bureau Read More …

Emerging Power to launch Mindoro geothermal plant

 Economy
Feb 012014
 
Emerging Power to launch Mindoro geothermal plant

MANILA, Philippines – Emerging Power Inc. (EPI), a Mindoro-based power company, will launch its 40-megawatt geothermal power plant, a move seen to help bring down power rates in the province by about 40 percent to P6.58 per kilowatt-hour from the current P11 per kwh. This will mean a savings of at least P2.1 billion in four years, according to estimates made by EPI. The geothermal facility will be located in the barangays of Montelago, Montemayor and Melgar-B in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro and will supply 20 MW to Occidental Mindoro Electric Cooperative (Ormeco). EPI spokesperson Gani Capaning said the facility would help address the problem of power outages and high electricity costs in the province. “If we keep investing in coal and oil, consumers will be paying P40 per kilowatt-hour by year 2030 if we are to use the estimates of institutions like the International Energy Agency (IEA) and The Economist. In contrast, the Montelago geothermal power plant will stabilize the price over the next 20 years and consumers will only pay a maximum of P7.50 per kwh by 2030,” Capaning said. Ormeco president Audel Arago, for his part, said the facility would help augment power supply in the province. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1  “As we anticipate the Montelago geothermal power plant’s commissioning and operation in (2016), we look forward to the positive economic and environmental impact it will bring, when our consumers shall have been accorded more affordable electricity drawn from renewable energy,” Arago said. Read More …

Telcos heat up battle for post paid market

 Economy
Feb 012014
 
Telcos heat up battle for post paid market

MANILA, Philippines – Rivals Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) and Globe Telecom Inc. launched new plans for subscribers as the battle in the postpaid segment of the telecommunication market continues to heat up. Charles Lim, executive vice president and head of wireless consumer business of Smart Communications Inc. and Digitel Mobile Philippines Inc. (Sun Cellular), said the PLDT Group has launched the Unli Tri-Net Call & Text Plan 899 allowing postpaid customers unlimited voice and SMS connections to all mobile users subscribed to Smart, Sun Cellular and Talk ‘N Text. Lim said the “ultimate” postpaid plan is designed to make unlimited calls and texts to over 72 million mobile users of the PLDT Group. “No other unlimited postpaid plan has been designed to give three times more power connecting you to more than 70 percent of mobile phone users in the country. With the combined power of Smart and Sun Cellular’s mobile network, our subscribers are also assured of the most extensive and reliable coverage available under one postpaid plan,” he stressed. Subscribers of the Unli Tri-Net Call & Text Plan 899 would also get to choose the smartphone of their choice from the lined-up handset offers of Smart and Sun Cellular. “We have been offering a wide range of smartphones – from the high-end to entry-level models – bundled with our equally wide array of postpaid plans that suit our consumers’ budget and lifestyle,” Lim added. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 The Unli Tri-Net Read More …

Nintendo chief stays on, health business planned

 Economy
Jan 312014
 
Nintendo chief stays on, health business planned

Shoppers walk through the sales floor of Nintendo 3DS video game software at an electronics store in Tokyo.(AP Photo/Shizuo Kambayashi) TOKYO — Nintendo has been unable to arrest a slide in console sales as more people play games on smartphones and tablets. The company’s apparent solution? A move into health care. Nintendo president Satoru Iwata vowed Thursday to stick to the company’s old ways, refused to resign or cut product prices despite its dismal earnings, but said the video game maker will enter the health care industry. Iwata didn’t give details of what he called his “quality of life” business plans, except that it won’t be a wearable device. Kyoto-based Nintendo already offers fitness games. Iwata promised to disclose details later this year. Iwata displayed his typical stubbornness in brushing off criticism about how the maker of Super Mario and Pokemon games should update itself for the era of smartphone and other mobile devices. The popularity of such devices has been drawing consumers away from consoles devoted to games but Nintendo has resisted changing its business to incorporate tablets and smartphones. “Nintendo has value because it is different from others,” Iwata said at a Tokyo event for analysts and reporters, a day after he and other top executives took a pay cut for the company’s poor performance. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Nintendo reported Wednesday a 10.2 billion yen ($99 million) profit for April through December, down from 14.55 billion yen a year earlier as sales Read More …

A touch of red helps global art market boom

 Economy
Jan 312014
 
A touch of red helps global art market boom

A Sotheby’s employee poses for photographers with ‘Wand’ by Gerhard Richter, center, ‘Mao’ by Andy Warhol, left, and ‘Rosso Plastica’ by Alberto Burri on display at the auction house in London. (AP Photo/Sang Tan) LONDON — Want to sell that masterpiece for a fortune? It might help if it’s red. That’s just one trend from an art market that has come roaring back from the global financial crisis, with buyers from emerging markets such as China molding tastes and driving top-end prices ever higher. Sales next week at London’s Sotheby’s and Christie’s auction houses are expected to generate at least 400 million pounds ($658 million) amid an insatiable global appetite for works by Picasso, Matisse and other modern masters. Sotheby’s put its works on public display in London Thursday, and there was a distinct scarlet hue to the star lots — Gerhard Richter’s cadmium-colored abstract “Wall,” expected to sell for at least 15 million pounds; an Andy Warhol portrait of Chairman Mao valued at 5 million pounds to 7 million pounds; a vivid red piece in molten plastic by Alberto Burri that could break the 3-million-pound record for the Italian artist. “When we’re pricing things we’re aware of the power of red,” said Alex Branczik, head of Sotheby’s contemporary art department in London. “Red is a color that incites passion. It’s the color of the sunset, it’s the color of blood,” he said. “I think it’s more primal than nationality, but I do think it has a special resonance for Read More …

PSALM to pick administrator for Mt. Apo geothermal plants

 Economy
Jan 312014
 
PSALM to pick administrator for Mt. Apo geothermal plants

MANILA, Philippines – The Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM), the state agency tasked to oversee the privatization of power assets, will start the selection and appointment of the independent power producer administrator (IPPA) for the Mindanao-based Mt. Apo 1 and 2 geothermal power plants. PSALM president Emmanuel Ledesma, Jr. said during the meeting of the board of directors on Jan. 29, “we have been given the authority to commence the sale process for the Mt. Apo IPPA selection, and we plan to conduct the bidding in the third quarter of this year.” He said PSALM would use the same structures used in the selection and appointment of IPPA for the bulk energy of the Unified Leyte Geothermal Power Plant, which was bid out last year. The IPPA for the Mt. Apo plant will manage two government contracts, with contracted energies of 390 gigawatt-hours (gwh) and 398 gwh per year, respectively. The Mt. Apo 1 and Mt. Apo 2 geothermal plants, each with a rated capacity of 54.24 megawatts, are located in Kidapawan City, North Cotabato. Owned and operated by Energy Development Corp., the power plants were commissioned in February 1997 (Mt. Apo 1) and June 1999 (Mt. Apo 2) under a build-operate own contract scheme. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 The cooperation period for both plants is 25 years, which would expire on Feb. 15, 2022 for Mt. Apo 1 and on June 17, 2024 for Mt. Apo 2.

Cement sales up 6% in 2013

 Economy
Jan 292014
 
Cement sales up 6% in 2013

MANILA, Philippines – Cement sales grew six percent in 2013 from a year ago amid strong construction activity, the Cement Manufacturers Association of the Philippines (CeMAP) said. Data from the CeMAP showed total cement sales reached 19.445 million metric tons (MT) last year, up from the 18.356 million MT sold in 2012. For the fourth quarter alone, cement sales went up 2.1 percent to 4.503 million MT compared to the 4.409 million MT in the same period in 2012. CeMAP president Ernesto Ordoñez said in a telephone interview the growth in sales in 2013 was supported by the construction activities undertaken by both the government and private sector last year. For 2014, he said the group expects cement sales to continue to grow. “We see strong growth in 2014 because of continued confidence in government, which should lead to more investments in projects,” he said. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 He said the huge budget of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) for infrastructure spending would likewise support higher cement sales this year. More investments in mass housing, he added, will also drive higher cement sales. Philippine Constructors Association Inc. president Augusto Manalo said earlier the construction sector is seen to post double-digit growth this year from about P380 billion in 2013.

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