Mindanao oil firms ordered to explain huge price rollback

 Economy
Sep 292016
 
Mindanao oil firms ordered to explain huge price rollback

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Energy (DOE) has ordered Mindanao oil players to explain the unusual price reductions in gasoline products which is considered as anti-competitive behavior under the law. Based on the monitoring of the DOE-Mindanao Field Office (MFO), the oil companies from Aug. 30 to Sept. 6 cut prices a sizable P3 per liter on the average. Elsewhere in the country, oil companies raised gasoline prices by 50 centavos per liter during the period, reflecting the uptrend in the global market amid positive signals over a production freeze among major oil producers. While price rollbacks are a welcome development for the consumers, the DOE cautioned that sudden and sustained huge decreases in oil prices might qualify as an anti-competitive behavior under the Oil Deregulation Law. “This market behavior puts both the smaller oil players and the consumers at a disadvantageous position in the long run. Smaller oil players may actually lose its market share and end up closing, allowing the remaining oil players the chance to dictate prices to the detriment of the consuming public,” the DOE said. This market behavior could also spark more peddling of petroleum products through the “bote-bote” scheme and the alleged smuggling of oil products from nearby countries. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 The DOE said its Mindanao office has been coordinating with local government units (LGUs) and the Bureau of Fire Protection to eliminate the “bote-bote” scheme while also discouraging consumers from patronizing such activity as this Read More …

$1.3 B hot money flees in past 3 weeks

 Economy
Sep 292016
 
$1.3 B hot money flees in past 3 weeks

Latest data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas showed $1.27 billion worth of foreign funds were withdrawn from the markets from Sept. 1 to 16, while inflows only amounted to $567.14 million.  MANILA, Philippines – Close to $1.3 billion worth of foreign portfolio investments or ‘hot money’ were pulled out from the Philippines in the first three weeks of September amid the negative sentiment of investors. Latest data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed $1.27 billion worth of foreign funds were withdrawn from the markets from Sept. 1 to 16, while inflows only amounted to $567.14 million. The amount pulled out from the markets was 21 percent higher than the $1.05 billion withdrawn in the same period last year. This resulted in a net outflow of $701.12 million in the first three weeks of September. Foreign portfolio investments or hot money are referred to as speculative funds controlled by investors who actively seek short-term returns and high interest rate investment opportunities. Foreign funds continued to move out of the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) due to external shocks brought about by the timing of the interest rate hike in the US as well as developments in the country. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 The Duterte administration declared a “state of lawless violence” after 15 people were killed in an explosion in Davao City last Sept. 2. Likewise, President Duterte launched tirades against US President Barack Obama, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, and the European Union Read More …

Tourism program seems adrift

 Economy
Sep 292016
 
Tourism program seems adrift

Tourism industry professionals I have been talking to are giving me the picture of a tourism industry that has gone adrift. I suspected as much and I pin the blame on the appointment of a Tourism Secretary who took an assignment that is way beyond her pay grade. I imagine that when she was appointed, President Duterte didn’t give it much thought. Tourism wasn’t on top of his list of priorities. He didn’t know what the job entailed in terms of a prospective appointee’s capability and experience. And he didn’t know too many people in the industry beyond a local travel agent. Puede na yan. Little did the President know that the job of Tourism Secretary required more than knowledge of booking tickets and taking visitors around tourist spots. It requires solid marketing experience and a level of sophistication that would allow her to sell the country in a very competitive tourism market. Luckily, the last Tourism Secretary did his homework very well. He came up with a road map for the development of the industry which includes very specific plans on things to do for a number of years beyond his term of office. He also invested in a catchy marketing campaign that can be as promising as the long term image campaigns of Thailand, Malaysia and India. It is really a pity if the current Secretary of Tourism is unable to follow through the gains of the past. Continuity is important if we want to realize dividends from Read More …

Higher farm mechanization level targeted by end-2017

 Economy
Sep 292016
 
Higher farm mechanization level targeted by end-2017

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Center for Post-harvest Development and Mechanization (PhilMech) has moved to next year its target of four horsepower per hectare (HP/ha) farm mechanization level of the country. “We still cannot reach it this year, but by end-2017, we can reach that level and even exceed, provided the DA (Department of Agriculture) will give all equipment needed,” PhilMech executive director Dionisio Alvindia. The previous DA administration under former secretary Proceso Alcala earlier targeted to attain 4 HP/ha level by year-end to be at par with ASEAN neighbors for the regional integration. The local agricultural industry is currently at 3 HP/ha from the .75 HP/ha status in 2010. Alvindia said this is also because of the lack of budget allocation for the mechanization sector of the agriculture industry, with a funding of only P300 million next year. PhilMech said an increase in farm mechanization could make Filipino farmers as competitive as their counterparts in Thailand and Vietnam. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Under the new administration, Alvindia said PhilMech is aiming for new directions as it now focuses on stakeholder-driven research and development. “Our new advocacy is to develop and commercialize the technologies where stakeholders will be the ones to tell us what they want and need, then we will address their concerns,” he said. Alvindia said the RDE agenda should result to getting more inputs from the intended users of farm technologies, particularly small farmers and agriculture cooperatives, and to manufacturers of farm Read More …

Insurance firms roll out financial awareness program for students

 Economy
Sep 292016
 
Insurance firms roll out financial awareness program for students

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Life Insurance Association (PLIA) has launched two initiatives that seek to increase financial awareness among high school students. Gregorio Mercado, president of PLIA, cited the need to address the low rate of financial literacy in the country and help Filipinos understand how insurance can help them fulfill their goals. “PLIA strives to contribute to the Insurance Commission’s efforts to propagate the importance of financial literacy,” Mercado said. With this, the PLIA has started to roll out a program that aims to create a financial education curriculum geared towards Philippine secondary schools. The curriculum will cover topics such as identifying financial needs and choosing financial products, as well as sample lesson plans, student activities and assessment and downloadable classroom teaching aids. The Department of Education is expected to validate all the content included in the curriculum, PLIA said. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Once created, it will be made available through an online portal, and will be  accessible to parents, teachers and students, alike. The insurance group said its long-term target was to have the curriculum adopted by secondary schools into their programs.  “PLIA is proud to have started developing something today that will eventually represent an institutionalized intervention in increasing public awareness on the value of life insurance through our education system,” Mercado said. Meanwhile, PLIA also announced its partnership with the Foundation for the Advancement of Life and Insurance around the World (FALIA) to conduct a series of lectures in Read More …

Alliance Global sets P150-B capex

 Economy
Sep 292016
 
Alliance Global sets P150-B capex

MANILA, Philippines – Alliance Global Group Inc. (AGI), the holding company of tycoon Andrew Tan, is pouring in more than P150 billion this year and in 2017 to fund the expansion of its various subsidiaries. Bulk of the amount will go to property arm Megaworld Corp. AGI’s other business units include liquor firm Emperador Inc., Golden Arches Development Corp. (the operator of McDonald’s in the Philippines), and Resorts World Manila operator Travellers International Hotel Group Inc. “We continue to be optimistic about what lies ahead. That is why we have kept an aggressive capex plan moving forward. In 2010 to 2015, we spent an aggregate of P270 billion for our expansion projects. We will spend more than half of that amount for 2016 and 2017 alone, proving our positive outlook for our business,” said King Sian, president of AGI. Sian said Megaworld would continue to expand its office leasable portfolio with the aim of hitting 1.5 million square meters by 2020. This year alone, the company expects to have 730,000 sqm of office leasable area  For its whisky business, Sian said Emperador is now present in 100 countries, further strengthening its position as the world leader in terms of volume.  Travellers International will likewise continue to expand its portfolio, Sian said. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 It is now working on the 10-storey Marriot West Wing annex, which will add 228 rooms to RWM’s target of over 4,000 keys. The company is also constructing two internationally Read More …

Simplified tax exemption for nonprofit schools

 Economy
Sep 282016
 

Nonstock, nonprofit educational institutions may have reason to be upbeat this school year with the issuance of Revenue Memorandum Order (RMO) No. 44-2016, excluding them from the renewal requirements of their tax exemption status. Readers may recall that in 2013, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) issued RMO No. 20-2013, requiring nonstock, nonprofit organizations under Section 30 of the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC) to secure confirmatory BIR rulings or certificates of tax exemption by submitting an application and supporting documents for evaluation. However, this requirement was declared null and void as far as nonprofit schools were concerned when a Regional Trial Court in 2014 cited the constitutional protections enjoyed by such institutions.

 Older Entries  Newer Entries