BPO firm Ubiquity Global to expand presence in Phl

 Economy
Mar 022014
 
BPO firm Ubiquity Global to expand presence in Phl

MANILA, Philippines – New York-based business process outsourcing (BPO) firm Ubiquity Global Services is expanding its presence in the Philippines as it is set to open a new contact center in Bacolod in Negros Occidental next month. In a statement, Ubiquity founder and president Matt Nyren said the company chose Bacolod for its expansion citing the availability of talent pool.  “We’ve been very impressed with the professional talent available in Bacolod and in the Province of Negros Occidental,” he said. The company’s contact center will be the first to open in the province’s Information and Communications Technology complex, the Negros First CyberCentre. The new facility can accommodate more than 1,000 employees. Ubiquity  intends to hire more than 200 employees in Bacolod for the new facility over the next 90 days. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Throughout the year, the firm will continue operational expansion.   “We look forward to rapid expansion in the CyberCenter, which will be an ideal site for the delivery of our servicing solutions,” Nyren said. Ubiquity has been operating in the Philippines since 2005 through its facility in Bonifacio Global City. The firm offers customer experience management solutions designed to improve user satisfaction while reducing total servicing costs. Its solutions include live customer support services, interactive voice response solutions, multichannel real-time servicing and a variety of physical correspondence services. Aside from the US and the Philippines, Ubiquity also has a facility in El Salvador.

‘Remarkable’ growth for PHL economy despite disasters

 Entertainment
Jan 312014
 
‘Remarkable’ growth for PHL economy despite disasters

By Mynardo Macaraig President Benigno S. Aquino III leads the ceremonial laying of the San Gabriel Power Plant Project time capsule in Brgy. Sta Rita, Batangas City January 14 that include Batangas Governor-turned actress Vilma Santos, among the many manifestations of continued economic growth in the Philippines. (MNS Photo) MANILA  (AFP) – The Philippine economy was one of the fastest-growing in Asia last year after shrugging off devastating natural disasters and expanding at a “remarkable” pace in the final quarter, the government said Thursday. The economy grew by 6.5 percent in the last three months of the year even as a super typhoon claimed thousands of lives and an earthquake struck popular tourist islands, Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan told reporters. “This is a remarkable turnout,” Balisacan said, as he emphasised the final quarter expansion was expected to be the fastest in the Asia-Pacific after China, which recorded annual GDP growth of 7.7 percent last year. Growth for all of 2013 was 7.2 percent, the fastest since President Benigno Aquino came to power in 2010 and exceeding the government target of 6.0-7.0 percent. The government said the main drivers of growth were in the manufacturing, trade, real estate and finance sectors, while hailing the performance as further proof of Aquino’s economic stewardship. The Philippines endures relentless natural disasters because it is located along a typhoon belt and the so-called Ring of Fire, a vast Pacific Ocean region where many of Earth’s quakes and volcanic eruptions occur. However the final quarter Read More …

Construction projects in PH on the rise

 Economy
Aug 302013
 
Construction projects in PH on the rise

By Michelle V. RemoPhilippine Daily Inquirer 10:47 pm | Friday, August 30th, 2013 The value of construction projects with approved building permits rose in the second quarter from a year ago on the back of substantial demand for residential and office spaces. This was according to the National Statistics Office, which reported that construction projects with building permits were valued at P66.4 billion in the second quarter, up by nearly 18 percent from P60.9 billion reported in the same period last year. The total value was spread over 29,424 projects, lower by about 4 percent than the 30,614 approved building projects reported for the same period last year. Nearly half, or P32.6 billion, of the total value of construction projects was accounted for by the residential sector. Non-residential accounted for P28.5 billion and the balance covered repairs. The total floor area for residential projects stood at 3.3 million square meters, while that for non-residential settled at 2.1 million square meters. The total floor area for residential projects was up from 3.1 million square meters a year ago, while the total floor area for office and other non-residential projects was lower than last year’s 2.8 million square meters. The double-digit growth in the value of construction projects was attributed to still significant demand for residential and office spaces. Economists said the demand for residential spaces in the Philippines was partly boosted by remittances from overseas Filipino workers, while demand for office spaces was driven in part by demand from business process Read More …

BPO employees drive growth of convenience stores

 Economy
Aug 112013
 
BPO employees drive growth of convenience stores

MANILA, Philippines – More convenience stores are expected to open in the country to take advantage of strong consumer spending, a top executive of a property consultancy firm said over the weekend. Colliers International research manager Karlo Pobre told reporters that even if there are many convenience stores in the country’s major business districts and information technology centers, more are still expected to open to serve middle class employees, particularly those in the business process outsourcing (BPO) sector. “The market is not saturated yet mainly because of the BPO sector. The closest retail store they (BPO employees) can get into is a convenience store,” Pobre said. The improvement in the income of these individuals is leading to  increased spending which will encourage the expansion of convenience stores. “You can just imagine that all buildings will have their own convenience stores,” he said. Among the players in the country’s convenience store market are 7-Eleven, run by Philippine Seven Corp.; Ministop Philippines under the Robinsons Retail Group; and FamilyMart operated by a joint venture of Japanese firms FamilyMart Co., Ltd. and Itochu Corp. with SIAL CVS Retailers of the Rustan’s Group and Ayala Land Inc. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 7-Eleven, currently has 900 outlets nationwide, 323 of which are in Metro Manila. It plans to open 100 more stores nationwide this year. Ministop has over 330 stores in the country, 66 percent of which are located in Metro Manila. FamilyMart, which entered the Philippine market earlier this Read More …

Ind’l spaces to remain abundant – CBRE

 Economy
Aug 102013
 
Ind’l spaces to remain abundant – CBRE

MANILA, Philippines – Despite interest from foreign firms to invest in manufacturing facilities in the Philippines amid the country’s impressive economic performance, supply of industrial spaces is expected to remain abundant given the high power and labor costs here, property services firm CBRE Philippines said. “While renewed interest in the country’s industrial sector is evident, investments in these types of projects may take some time before it materializes, with supply of industrial properties to remain abundant in the short to medium term,” CBRE Philippines said in its Metro Manila MarketView report for the second quarter. Supply of industrial spaces is seen to remain healthy over the short to medium term as it noted that foreign firms are concerned over the country’s power and labor costs. “The manufacturing sector continues to be challenged by relatively high labor and power costs compared to its neighboring nations,” the CBRE report said. But while high power costs are preventing foreign firms from making investments here at the moment, the development of new power generating plants is expected to benefit companies that will locate in the country in the future. It noted that investments in the power sector have increased with foreign and local firms vying to set up power plants throughout the country. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 “The development of new power generating plants is anticipated to produce enough energy to address the demands of the general population and the ongoing industrialization of the economy. It is also expected Read More …

Phl still among preferred sites for BPOs – US firm

 Economy
Jun 202013
 
Phl still among preferred sites for BPOs – US firm

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines remains among the preferred sites for business process outsourcing (BPO), according to a leading US-based BPO and information technology (IT) company. Shore Solutions Inc., one of the bigger players in the BPO business, said revenues from the BPO industry in the Philippines is expected to hit $16 billion this year, or almost 20 percent higher than the $13.4 billion last year. It noted that with increasing demand from prospective investors and subscribers, the industry would need at least 1.3 million direct hires by 2016 from 720,000 last year. “That should require 516,000 additional seats, and some 2.5 million square meters of additional office space,” Darcey Lalonde, Asia chief executive officer of Shore Solutions said in a forum yesterday. The industry employed over 720,000 in 2012, with another 1.6 million indirectly. Expansion has already been noted in the key urban centers outside Metro Manila such as Cebu and Davao. In Metro Manila, the major BPO centers are in Makati, Quezon City, Manila, Taguig and Mandaluyong. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Lalonde said that the next or third wave of BPOs is targeting key cities in Laguna, Batangas and Bacolod. However, he said government should consider anew opening up to a limited extent or to select sectors, ownership of land to foreign entities.

PLDT media business remains insignificant contributor to profit

 Economy
May 052013
 
PLDT media business remains insignificant contributor to profit

MANILA, Philippines – New York-based Moody’s Investors Service believes that the media business of dominant carrier Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) would remain an insignificant contributor to the company’s profitability. Yoshio Takahashi, assistant vice president of Moody’s, said in the company’s new and analysis of its latest credit outlook that PLDT’s media business would remain a insignificant contributor to the company’s profitability over the next two to three years. “In this context, strengthening PLDT’s media business is a positive move, although it will remain an insignificant contributor to PLDT’s profitability over the next two to three years,” Takahashi stressed. In the global telecommunications market, he pointed out that quadruple-play services including telephone, wireless, broadband Internet, and television (TV) are increasingly important in attracting and retaining customers and at the same time increasing average revenue per user and broadening the earnings base. Furthermore, he added that the development of pay-TV would enhance the provision of content across various platforms. According to him, revenues from PLDT’s TV business accounted for about two to three percent of the total group revenues last year. The company’s net income jumped 12 percent to P35.5 billion last year from P31.7 billion in 2011, while consolidated revenues rose 10 percent to P169.33 billion from P153.96 billion. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 The analyst said the PLDT Group is strategically increasing its investment in the media business to strengthen its ability to deliver multi-media content through its broadband and mobile networks. PLDT, through Read More …

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