US ‘pivot’ to Asia gaining strength—admiral

 News
Oct 242013
 
US ‘pivot’ to Asia gaining strength—admiral

USS George Washington. AP FILE PHOTO ABOARD THE USS GEORGE WASHINGTON—The United States has significantly increased its warships and aircraft deployed in Asia despite Washington’s budget woes, adding punch to its “pivot” to the region, a senior naval commander said. Rear Admiral Mark C. Montgomery, commander of an aircraft carrier strike group homeported in Yokosuka, Japan, said the expanded military presence would have a calming effect on simmering tensions and territorial disputes in the region. “The strategic rebalancing has resulted in an extremely higher number of surface combatants, cruisers and destroyers that support the strike group,” Montgomery told Agence France-Presse in an interview on Wednesday aboard the aircraft carrier USS George Washington in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea). “What we’ve seen is an increase in surface combatant presence here in the Western Pacific… so these ships are spread throughout those areas,” he said, in the interview at the flag bridge of the nuclear-powered supercarrier as fighter jets took off and landed on the deck as part of drills. “Having more ships gives us more presence. It allows us to have a greater force.” Montgomery said US defense budget cuts and the recent 16-day partial US government shutdown have not affected his command. The shutdown forced President Barack Obama to skip two Asian summits this month, triggering concerns about the extent of US commitment to the region as China becomes more assertive. “Operations and maintenance decisions have not affected us. The strategic rebalance is continuing in earnest,” the admiral Read More …

Japan trade deficit at record in September

 Economy
Oct 202013
 
Japan trade deficit at record in September

TOKYO  — Japan’s trade deficit ballooned to a fresh record for September as costs for imports of food and other necessities outstripped growth in exports. Preliminary customs data Monday show September’s deficit was 932 billion yen ($9.5 billion), the 15th consecutive monthly shortfall. The deficit for April-September rose to nearly 5 trillion yen ($51 billion), also a record for the first half of the fiscal year. Imports rose 16.5 percent in September from a year earlier to 6.90 trillion yen ($70.3 billion), while exports, helped by recoveries in key overseas markets such as the U.S. and EU, climbed 11.5 percent to 5.97 trillion yen ($60.9 billion). The yen has weakened by almost 25 percent against the U.S. dollar in the past year, making Japan’s exports cheaper overseas but also raising costs for imports. Imports of oil and gas accounted for nearly a third of the total but fell 1 percent as oil prices moderated. Imports of soybeans and other food and machinery surged at double-digit rates. Exports were boosted by rising shipments of vehicles, iron and steel, rubber, chemicals and machinery. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 The U.S. remained Japan’s largest export destination, at 1.11 trillion yen ($11.3 billion), while imports totaled 665 billion yen ($6.8 billion). The resulting 533 billion yen ($5.4 billion) surplus rose 25 percent from a year earlier. But Japan’s trade deficit with China jumped 87 percent to 620 billion yen ($6.3 billion) as imports of such items as cellphones and solar Read More …

PH nurses in Tokyo also hurdle gap in language

 News
Oct 132013
 
PH nurses in Tokyo also hurdle gap in language

TOKYO—It was hard enough being transplanted into a new culture. Being hobbled by a completely alien language was another burden on Joyce Paulino and hundreds of nurses and care workers sent from the Philippines to Japan under an economic agreement between the two countries. The language barrier has played a key role in dashing the dreams of many nurses and caregivers seeking permanent jobs in Japan, since the challenging national exam for them to be certified is given mostly in Japanese. As a result, very few have passed the exam. But unlike many of her fellow workers sent to the Land of the Rising Sun under the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (Jpepa), Paulino, 34, is one of a handful who not only mastered the language but also passed the exam for care workers on her first try early this year. Her accomplishment ensures that she can continue staying, working and earning a decent living in Japan for as long she likes. Paulino’s earnings at a nursing facility in Tokyo have been a big help to her parents and three siblings back home. She shoulders some of the household expenses, sends her youngest sibling to school, and pays for the tuition and other needs of her nieces and nephews. Paulino is happy where she is, and doesn’t plan on returning home soon. But all this did not come easy for Paulino. Learning the language while working and studying Japanese practices for the national test required skillful juggling and time management from Read More …

With Obama out, other leaders take APEC main stage

 News
Oct 072013
 
With Obama out, other leaders take APEC main stage

BALI — Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and other Asia-Pacific leaders took center stage Monday at a regional summit after President Barack Obama was a no-show due to the U.S. government shutdown. Leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, meeting amid tight security on this tropical island in eastern Indonesia, urged faster work on reforms meant to break down trade barriers and improve competitiveness. But their summit meetings aren’t all work and there are some light moments. Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono took the chance to pick up a guitar and sing his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, a happy 61st birthday. Abe, struggling to extricate Japan from two decades of stagnation, pledged to move ahead with reforms he has promised as part of his “Abenomics” economic strategy. “It’s not easy for a country stuck in deflation for 15 years to get out,” Abe said. He promised measures to ensure that an increase in Japan’s sales tax, which has driven consumer confidence to record lows, does not derail the economic recovery he has nurtured since taking office last December. “Now we can wipe out the doom and gloom atmosphere in the Japanese economy,” Abe said. Speaking to a gathering of business and political leaders, he also sought to reassure other Asian countries, especially those that suffered colonization and invasion before and during World War II, over Japan’s efforts to upgrade its military. “We are aspiring to become a pro-active contributor to stability and security in the world as a country that Read More …

DTI to hold more FTA info sessions

 Economy
Sep 292013
 
DTI to hold more FTA info sessions

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) will conduct more information sessions on free trade agreements entered into by the country this year to enable more firms to benefit from such deals. Speaking at the Doing Business Using Free Trade Agreements: Manila Stakeholders Dialogue Forum, DTI’s Bureau of Export Trade Promotion director Senen Perlada said the department plans to hold 125 sessions under the Doing Business in Free Trade Areas (DBFTA) program this  year, higher than the total of 116 sessions conducted in 2012. Last year’s 116 sessions were attended by 11,169 participants which represented 5,833 companies. “Why are we doing this? We need to raise the level of awareness on free trade agreements,” Perlada said. He said the free trade agreements open a lot of opportunities for local companies in terms of increasing exports to overseas markets. The DBFTA program, which was launched in 2010, is a series of business information sessions conducted nationwide to increase exporter awareness of the country’s free trade agreements. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Currently the Philippines has free trade agreements with Japan and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The country has also entered into free trade agreements through the ASEAN with China, Korea, India, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. The DBFTA is among the activities being undertaken by the DTI for the country to increase exports. Under the Philippine Export Development Plan, the country’s total exports are targeted to increase to $120 billion by Read More …

July exports up by 2.3%

 Economy
Sep 102013
 
July exports up by 2.3%

MANILA, Philippines – The country’s merchandise exports increased by 2.3 percent to $4.836 billion in July 2013, up from the $4.727 billion posted in the same period last year, the National Statistics Office reported on Tuesday. Machinery and transport equipment, woodcrafts and furniture, chemicals, electronic products, and cathodes and sections of cathodes of refine copper supported the country’s exports, which grew by 7.7 percent from the $4.49 billion posted in June 2013. On the other hand, aggregate merchandise exports for the first seven months of the year dropped by 3.4 percent to $30.422 billion from the $31.487 billion posted in the same period last year. Electronic products, the country’s top export, accounted for 39.1 percent of the total export receipts at $1.893 billion, although it dropped by 5.6 percent from the previous month’s $2.006 billion. In terms of groups, manufactured goods made up 79.3 percent of the total export receipts, followed by mineral products (8.2 percent), total agro-based products (7.6 percent), special transactions (2.5 percent) and forest products (0.1 percent). Japan was the country’s top export destination with an 19.8-percent share, followed by China (13.2 percent), United States (12.6 percent), Hong Kong (8.5 percent) and Singapore (6.8 percent). Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1

Index climbs as market turns optimistic

 Economy
Sep 092013
 
Index climbs as market turns optimistic

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) rose 0.38 percent or 22.42 points to 5,997.04 as investors turned optimistic given positive developments overseas. “A discernible shift towards optimism continues to visit upon the market as the week opened,” said Justino Calaycay, an analyst at Accord Capital Equities Corp. “Still, the pace remains rather slow, evidencing a hangover of hesitation ahead of the crucial Federal Reserve meeting two weeks henceforth,” Calaycay said. The markets expects the US Fed to start tapering off its bond buying stimulus program, which has boosted liquidity in the financial markets. Asian bourses were also in the positive territory on the back of news on export growth and steady inflation in China. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rallied 2.48 percent or 344.42 points to 14,205.23 while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index gained 0.37 percent or 83.75 points to 22,704.97. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Locally, all counters were in the green, led by industrial sector that added 0.69 percent or 63.40 points to 9,303.92. Turnover remained thin at P5.4 billion from P5.37 billion on Friday. Advancers outpaced decliners, 89 to 53, while 32 stocks did not change. “The PSEi made an early foray into and test of the 6,000-mark but continues to fail to hold as value turnover remains light,” Calaycay said.

China's yuan joins world's most traded currencies

 Economy
Sep 062013
 
China's yuan joins world's most traded currencies

Visitors look at the art work by American artist Tony Oursler entitled “100 Yuan (People’s Republic of China)” which features a projection of a Chinese renminbi note with a talking Mao Zedong at a gallery in Beijing, China. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan) HONG KONG  — China’s yuan has joined the ranks of the most traded currencies for the first time, underlining the growing might of the country’s economy, the world’s second-largest. The yuan became one of the top 10 traded currencies in 2013, rising to No. 9 on the list due to a “significant expansion” in offshore trading, the Bank for International Settlements said in a report Thursday. It’s a sharp jump from the bank’s last survey in 2010, when the yuan, also known as the renminbi, was No. 17 on the list. Turnover in trades involving yuan surged to $120 billion a day on average in April 2013, three and half times more than the $34 billion in 2010. Still, that figure is dwarfed by the dollar, which accounted for about $4.7 trillion daily. The Bank for International Settlements, which is an international organization of central banks, said the yuan along with the Mexican peso, which rose to No. 8, “saw the most significant rise in market share among major emerging market currencies.” China’s leaders want the yuan to become an international currency and have been promoting its use as an alternative to the dollar. The yuan is not yet fully convertible but Beijing has been gradually loosening controls. Read More …

PH, Japan hold ‘frank discussions’ on sea disputes

 News
Sep 052013
 
PH, Japan hold ‘frank discussions’ on sea disputes

By Nikko DizonPhilippine Daily Inquirer 3:21 am | Friday, September 6th, 2013 Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin MANILA, Philippines—The Philippines and Japan on Thursday had “very frank discussions” on the territorial disputes in regional seas without specifically mentioning China, which has been aggressively asserting its claim to islands that are within both countries’ territories. Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin and visiting Japanese Minister Ichita Yamamoto discussed the territorial disputes at the Department of National Defense (DND) in Camp Aguinaldo. Yamamoto, the state minister for Okinawa and affairs related to Japan’s northern territories, is the third Japanese official to visit the Philippines in the last three months. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe came to visit and met with President Aquino in July and Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera was in Manila in June. In a statement, the defense department said Yamamoto’s visit was “aimed to further reiterate Japan’s position and views under the administration of Prime Minister Abe on regional security issues, especially [in] the East China Sea.” Gazmin and Yamamoto “acknowledged [that] the common concerns of the Philippines and Japan are issues related to maritime security,” the statement said. Arbitration It said Gazmin stressed the need for all parties, whether in the East China Sea or in the West Philippine Sea, to exercise strategic restraint. Gazmin reiterated that the Philippines would continue to deal with the West Philippine Sea dispute through arbitral proceedings under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos). Yamamoto supported the Philippines’ position and “stressed that Read More …

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