Maniolas

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines will name a finance attaché to China to help resolve discrepancies in trade data between the two countries which resulted in billions of pesos in revenue losses. “I will appoint a finance attaché to China to talk and go over the exporters there so we can solve this,” Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez told a budget hearing at the Senate yesterday. “We would like our attaché in China to work very closely with our BOC (Bureau of Customs) here and the BOC in China,” he said. According to Finance data, there exists an “alarming” discrepancy worth P1.8 trillion in trade data between the Philippines and its trading partners in 2014. As a result, the government lost P231 billion in revenues that year, equivalent to two percent of gross domestic product. Dominguez said around 30 percent of the P1.8 trillion came from China, which is the country’s fourth biggest export destination and top source of imports in July, latest figures showed. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Specifically, China cornered 11.3 percent of exports and 11.2 percent of imports during the period. “The differential is about 50 percent (from what is reported here and there) so with that, we hope the attaché can assist the BOC to correct them,” Dominguez said. Appointing a finance attaché is consistent with Department of Finance Order 105-2015 issued during the previous administration that mandated a two-year stint for every person deployed overseas. They are appointed by the President Read More …

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine manufacturing sector grew at a record pace in September, outpacing the performance of other countries in Southeast Asia, according to the latest reading of the Nikkei Philippines Manufacturing Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI). The PMI registered a higher reading of 57.5 in September, higher than the August reading of 55.3 and is the steepest since data collection for the local manufacturing sector began in January. An index reading of above 50 indicates improvement in business conditions and activity while a reading below 50 indicates the opposite. The Nikkei manufacturing PMI is released monthly ahead of official economic data. The positive reading in September was attributed to strong client demand and higher production targets. “Driving the overall improvement in business conditions was another marked rise in new contract win as a number of firms reported having secured new customers. Moreover, the rate of growth was the sharpest on record so far,” said IHS Markit the entity that compiles the data for Nikkei. Purchasing managers surveyed during the reference period reported hiring more workers to enhance operating capacity and accommodate additional orders. Greater demand for goods also led manufacturers to purchase more input materials despite the higher cost brought about by the depreciation of the peso against the US dollar. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 “All looks positive for goods-producing companies in the Philippines, with strong demand conditions leading to robust growth of new orders and output,” IHS Markit economist Alex Gill said in Read More …

THE Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECoP) said contractualization cannot be eliminated in the process of curbing the incidence of “endo,” adding that President Rodrigo R. Duterte shares this view.

MANILA, Philippines – Asia’s Emerging Dragon Corp. (AEDC), which is owned and controlled by tycoon Lucio Tan, is planning to bid for the redevelopment of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) under the government’s public-private partnership (PPP) scheme. “We are participating in the bidding because we firmly believe in the growth potential of our country’s premier airport, given our past experience of pushing for Philippine aviation development,” AEDC president Salvador Mison said. AEDC said it would have a foreign partner when it submits the bid for the P74.6-billion project. AEDC is confident it could provide viable solutions to NAIA’s inter-terminal connectivity as well as traffic congestion in the area. AEDC’s foreign partner is expected to provide the technical expertise in its long-term proposal. The National Economic and Development Authority approved last month the NAIA redevelopment project which involves the upgrade of the country’s main international gateway. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 In particular, the project is looking to improve the safety and security, as well as maximize the capacity of the NAIA through infrastructure or assets for air traffic and land side management. In addition to the upgrade of the airport, the private partner will be responsible for the operations and maintenance of the NAIA according to international standards. Under the deal, the concession period covers 15 to 20 years, including the design or construction. Procurement for the project is expected to begin soon.  The award and signing of the concession agreement is expected by September Read More …

Still considered as a vibrant economy, the Philippines continues to nurture a growing real estate market. Specifically for resort clubs, condominium buildings, and subdivisions, where the market has been notably shrinking, the competitive landscape is fiercely contested. We see a proliferation of sales agents distributing leaflets at busy intersections, inside malls and other places where people who are likely to buy shares of stocks in upcoming resort clubs, condominium units being constructed, or dream houses in just-cleared lands, can be found. The sales agents have excellent pressure selling techniques that are able to convert curious, prospective customers is to hooked buyers, albeit sometimes reluctantly, and often at a cost. Buyers usually sign contracts without the full knowledge of the terms and conditions that come with what they are buying, or worse, the real condition of the property or share they have pledged to pay through  monthly installments for years. Unfortunately, all those frustrating stories of unfulfilled agreements are made known only when the duped buyers are already in a similar situation. Sad stories How many have gone through the agony of sad stories where, after making the down payment and a couple of monthly installments, the buyer discovers that work on the property has stopped and what remains are unfinished roads and a broken promise. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Or the now familiar case of buyers, after several years of religiously paying monthly installments until fully paid, could not get the title to their respective Read More …