Palace budget for Aquino’s trip to APEC, ASEAN meets: a modest P14.3M

 News
Oct 062013
 
Palace budget for Aquino’s trip to APEC, ASEAN meets: a modest P14.3M

Philippine President Benigno Aquino III smiles upon his arrival at Bali airport, Indonesia, Sunday, Oct. 6, 2013 to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum. AP Photo MANILA, Philippines — Amid the furor over the allocation of additional pork barrel to lawmakers in May 2012, President Aquino is attending two regional summits in Southeast Asia with a budget of P14.3 million. The President left on a chartered flight Sunday morning for Bali, Indonesia to attend the 21st Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Economic Leaders’ Meeting and CEO Summit from Oct. 6 to 8. Joining him was an 84-member delegation, including Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo, Socio-Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan, Cabinet Secretary to the President Jose Rene Almendras, Presidential Management Staff head Julia Andrea Abad, and Presidential Protocol chief Celia Anna Feria. Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario and Strategic Communications Secretary Ramon Carandang flew to the island resort ahead of the delegation. The President and the same delegation would later fly to Brunei Darussalam to attend the 23rd ASEAN Summit and Related Meetings from Oct. 9 to 10. Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. said the government earmarked P14.3 million for the President’s attendance at the two summits. This would cover expenses for transportation, accommodation, food and equipment, among others, for Mr. Aquino and the delegation, he said. “I think we’ve had lower [budget] but it’s safe to say that this is a lesser amount… considering this is essentially two trips,’’ deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said in Read More …

President Aquino lauds holding of 7th ASEAN Navy Chiefs Meeting in Manila

 Entertainment
Sep 132013
 
President Aquino lauds holding of 7th ASEAN Navy Chiefs Meeting in Manila

President Benigno S. Aquino III answers questions from the media during the press briefing after gracing the 7th ASEAN Navy Chiefs Meeting (ANCM) at the Ballroom 2, Raffles and Fairmont Hotel in Makati Avenue, Makati City on Tuesday (September 10). With theme: “Partnership for Peace and Prosperity” to highlight the need for strengthened cooperation among the ASEAN Navies for peace, stability and progress in the ASEAN region. (MNS Photo). MAKATI CITY, Sept 10 (Mabuhay) — President Benigno S. Aquino III lauded the 7th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Navy Chiefs Meeting held at the Fairmont Hotel here on Tuesday. The President said in his speech keynoting the event that the meeting provided a venue where member-countries could come together and foster “a strong sense of regional solidarity” while upholding “our individual sovereignty.” “Our respective nations have all strived to uphold our individual sovereignty, while at the same time fostering a strong sense of regional solidarity—one that favors consensus and collaboration instead of discord, aggression, and imposition,” the President said. “And it is in meetings like this where we can make progress on that front—where we can truly solidify our ties and protect our common seas,” he added. He said the end result of the Asean Navy Chiefs Meeting was to ensure “freedom of navigation, the safety of commercial vessels, and the security of their civilian passengers” which he pointed out was in line with the goal of the ASEAN Economic Community, which we intend to establish by 2015. “This Read More …

BSP eases forex rules anew

 Economy
Jul 052013
 
BSP eases forex rules anew

MANILA, Philippines – The country’s foreign exchange rules were liberalized anew on what the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said was part of efforts to prepare the Philippines for the financial integration of Southeast Asian economies by 2015.  “The objective is to further broaden the scope for regional and international transactions as we become more integrated with financial markets globally,” BSP Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said in a text message to reporters. BSP Deputy Governor Diwa Guinigundo, in a separate text message, said the new rules were meant to “prepare the Philippines for a more integrated financial markets” of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) by 2020. Tetangco said the central bank is allowing non-residents to invest in foreign companies listed in the Philippine Stock Exchange. Peso earnings from these investments may now also be converted into dollars. Prior to this, Guinigundo said only Philippine residents could register with custodian banks in order to buy shares of PSE-listed non-resident companies. Registration of portfolio investments – inflows to equities, bonds and peso deposits – through custodian banks are necessary to allow remittance of earnings and convert them into other currencies. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1  “We are setting the stage for the eventuality that trading links (among the ASEAN nations) are established,” he told reporters.  “This is in connection also to the planned cross-listing” on regional bourses planned under the ASEAN financial integration, Guinigundo explained. In addition, the BSP is also allowing the pre-payment of central Read More …

Shell chief underscores benefits of regional integration by 2015

 Economy
Jun 152013
 
Shell chief underscores benefits of regional integration by 2015

MANILA, Philippines – The benefits of regional integration are numerous not just for the different economies but for the private sector as well as it would encourage companies to further improve their services and products, the Philippine chief of a multinational oil firm said. In a paper on regional integration, Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. country manager Edgar Chua said these initiatives could provide an opportunity for companies like Shell to further improve themselves and compete more “through operational excellence.” “Hence, we benchmark our product and services against the best of the best in the world. Benchmarking is our way of knowing where we are vis-à-vis our peers and competitors,” said Chua in an article posted on the company’s website. In Asia, negotiations for various regional integration initiatives have taken off. One such initiative is the negotiations for the proposed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). The proposed RCEP, which includes all the 10 ASEAN economies plus their six free trading agreement partners namely, Australia, China, India, Japan, Korea, and New Zealand, would create the world’s largest free trade bloc with huge impact to the world economy, according to the Asian Development Bank in its ADB Outlook 2013. The RCEP economies have a combined total population of 3.5 billion, a gross domestic product of $21.4 trillion and trade receipts of $12 trillion, according to the ADB. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Chua said besides the RCEP, the so-called ASEAN economic community (AEC) has also emerged. With a target Read More …

SME dev’t tackled at ADB forum

 Economy
Jun 052013
 
SME dev’t tackled at ADB forum

MANILA, Philippines – Financing for overall development of small and medium enterprise (SME) were discussed recently by former Agrarian Reform Secretary Philip Ella Juico in a dialogue with the SME finance working group at a forum held at the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Juico, a former dean of the De La Salle University Graduate School of Business, shared his characterization of SME’s in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as a basis for the establishment of credit risks of SME’s to qualify under ADB-assisted development finance windows.  Juico said the proposed characterization, could be used as a basis for risk mitigation financing policies of development banks. According to Juico, the SME sector in ASEAN is not monolithic and to regard it as such may be counter-productive due to the diverse characteristics of the sub-sectors where SMEs operate. Juico cited the case of the electronics and e-ICT subsectors in Malaysia and Singapore where both subsectors exhibited strong performance as original design manufacturer (ODM) and as electronics manufacturing Services (EMS) production platforms with substantial financial and R&D government support. Both subsectors in the two countries enjoyed strong performance in both the domestic and export markets. The same subsectors in the Philippines and Indonesia, however exhibited different characteristics with the electronics and e-ICT industries transitioning from a “mom-and-pop” to corporate operations mainly as subcontractors to domestic-based multinational companies. Juico pointed out that these subsectors in the two countries have been operating as original equipment manufacturer (OEM) production platforms at the lower end Read More …

Aquino: PHL gets ASEAN support on maritime dispute with China

 News
Apr 252013
 
Aquino: PHL gets ASEAN support on maritime dispute with China

President Benigno Aquino III on Thursday expressed confidence that the Philippines got the support of the Association on Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on the way it is handling its maritime dispute with China. In his speech upon arrival from the ASEAN summit in Brunei, Aquino said he was able to voice out the Philippines’ call for a legally binding code of conduct that will govern the South China Sea during the annual meeting of Southeast Asian leaders. “Batid ng lahat ng pinuno ng ASEAN: ang maigting nating paninindigan ukol sa West Philippine Sea, ay nakatuon, hindi lamang sa pansariling interes ng kanya-kanyang bansa, kundi para rin sa mas aktibong kalakalan, at malawakang kaunlaran sa bahaging ito ng daigdig,” he said. Aquino added that ASEAN leaders also agreed to fully implement the Declaration of the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea. The Philippines refers to maritime areas on the western side of the country as the “West Philippine Sea.” These include the Kalayaan Island Group, which is part of the disputed Spratly Island, and the Panatag Shoal, which was the site of standoff between Philippine and Chinese vessels last year. The ASEAN is a regional organization composed of the Philippines, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Singapore, Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei, as well as Taiwan and China, have overlapping territorial claims on parts of the South China Sea. China claims ownership of the whole South China Sea. ‘Two-step approach’ At a separate press briefing Read More …

ASEAN leaders talk China, trade at Brunei summmit

 News
Apr 242013
 
ASEAN leaders talk China, trade at Brunei summmit

PNoy off to Brunei for 22nd ASEAN Summit. President Benigno Aquino III gives a last-minute talk to members of his Cabinet during send-off at the NAIA Terminal II in Pasay City on Wednesday. Aquino will be attending the 22nd ASEAN Summit in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei on April 25. At left is Vice President Jejomar Binay. Benhur Arcayan BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN – Southeast Asian leaders met in Brunei on Wednesday for talks aimed at easing tensions over the South China Sea and building momentum towards groundbreaking economic partnerships. The annual summit of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) began in the capital of the oil-rich sultanate with a dinner in which the leaders were looking to rebuild unity after unprecedented infighting last year. The split was over how much pressure the group should try to apply to China over competing territorial claims to the resource-rich South China Sea. The Philippines and Vietnam, as well as China and Taiwan, claim parts of the sea, which is also home to some of the world’s most important shipping lanes as well as rich fishing grounds. But a push by the Philippines and Vietnam for ASEAN to send a united message to an increasingly assertive China crumbled amid resistance from Cambodia, a close Chinese ally that held the rotating chair of the bloc in 2012. Senior ASEAN figures emphasised ahead of the two-day summit that the group, which for more than four decades has operated by consensus, must work hard to find Read More …

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