New York – Page 3

Unfair competition

Economy

Jul 202013

The end will never justify the means. How can some sectors even suggest that the government turn a blind eye on the illegal act of dumping Turkish flour into our territory and then threaten to increase bread prices if anti-dumping duties are imposed on Turkish flour. Two lobby groups of bakers have warned that they will increase the price of pandesal from P3 to P3.50 per piece if government decides to impose a 20 percent dumping duty on Turkish flour, which the bakers apparently have been using. They have in fact already petitioned the Department of Agriculture and the Tariff Commission not to impose the dumping duties. Aside from entering the country at dumped prices, this is the same Turkish flour which in the past has been pestered by health and safety issues. Dumping, a special case of price discrimination, is a situation in which the price a firm charges for its goods in a foreign market is lower than either the price it charges in its home market or the production cost. Dumping thus is the sale of surplus output of a firm on foreign markets at below cost price. Dumping also occurs when a firm sells its products at a higher price in the home market and at a lower price in the foreign market. (http://www.economicsconcepts.com/dumping.htm) In 2012, Turkish flour was sold to the Philippines at $340 per metric ton while their domestic price in Turkey was $470 per ton. In 2011, the export price of Turkish flour Read More …

US 7-11 stores rapped for exploiting Filipinos

News

Jun 182013

US 7-11 stores rapped for exploiting Filipinos

Philippine Daily Inquirer 2:47 am | Wednesday, June 19th, 2013 Graphics depicting the locations of 7-Eleven stores involved in a federal indictment are shown after a news conference at the US Attorney’s office, Monday, June 17, 2013, in the Brooklyn borough of New York. Philippine officials in the US are investigating the reported exploitation of Filipino immigrants at several 7-Eleven convenience stores in two East Coast states under a scheme likened to a “modern-day plantation system” where their wages are withheld and their employment concealed under stolen identities. AP PHOTO/JOHN MINCHILLO MANILA, Philippines—Philippine officials in the United States are investigating the reported exploitation of Filipino immigrants at several 7-Eleven convenience stores in two East Coast states under a scheme likened to a “modern-day plantation system” where their wages are withheld and their employment concealed under stolen identities. Nine store owners and managers were charged on Monday in the scheme to exploit immigrants from Pakistan and the Philippines, in part by paying them using the stolen Social Security numbers of a child and three dead people, according to the Associated Press (AP). Most of the defendants were arrested early Monday as US federal authorities raided 14 franchise stores on Long Island, New York, and in Virginia. Immigration and customs enforcement agents were executing search warrants at about 30 other stores across the US suspected of similar infractions, authorities said at a news conference in Brooklyn. The Philippine Embassy in Washington and the Philippine Consulate General in New York are looking into Read More …

New York considers crackdown on counterfeit luxury goods

Economy

Jun 132013

New York considers crackdown on counterfeit luxury goods

NEW YORK (AP) — It’s one of the worst kept secrets in New York. Hidden around the city are counterfeit goods labeled “Prada” or “Louis Vuitton” or some other luxury brand. They’re sold for a pittance to bargain hunters from around the world who flock to Chinatown. Now, if a proposed bill passes the City Council, customers caught buying these items could be punished — with a fine of up to $1,000, or even prison time. A City Hall public hearing is scheduled for Thursday to examine the black-market business. The bill sponsor is Council member Margaret Chin. She expects a vote sometime in the coming months.

PCGG to testify in art theft case vs Imelda Marcos’ ex-aide in New York

News

Jun 032013

PCGG to testify in art theft case vs Imelda Marcos’ ex-aide in New York

By Dona Z. PazzibuganPhilippine Daily Inquirer 6:53 pm | Monday, June 3rd, 2013 PCGG Chairman Andres Bautista AFP FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines — The Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) will testify in the art theft and tax fraud case brought against former first lady Imelda Marcos’ former social secretary and confidante in New York. The PCGG was summoned by the State Supreme Court in Manhattan to testify when the trial of Vilma Bautista starts on October 7. Ms. Bautista, 74, was arrested and arraigned last November 20 for trying to sell three valuable artworks, including a Monet masterpiece, which the Philippine government had reported to be part of the Marcos ill-gotten wealth that disappeared after the downfall of the Marcos regime in 1986. PCGG Chairman Andres Bautista, head of the agency tasked to go after the ill-gotten wealth of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, revealed the sending of a representative to testify in the trial. “For sure some people from the PCGG will testify in the trial, might be me,” Mr. Bautista said. “We have been assured by the NYDA (New York District Attorney) they believe these paintings rightfully belong to Filipino people,” Mr Bautista said. The PCGG has been cooperating with the NYDA investigation since mid-2011. “The position of the PCGG is these paintings are part and parcel of our missing paintings therefore should be returned to the Republic,” Mr. Bautista stressed. The New York District Attorney’s Office has charged Ms. Bautista and her nephews Chaiyot Jansen Navalaksana, Read More …

Going back to school abroad

News

Jun 012013

By Rene PastorThe FilAm 1:24 am | Sunday, June 2nd, 2013 LEVELLING UP The author recently completed his requirements for a Master of Science in International Relations. Contributed photo/The FilAm When American whiz statistician Nate Silver, who was our commencement speaker, urged the millennials not to stop “being weird,” I felt oddly out of place, coming from Ray Romano’s league of Men of a Certain Age. It was the kind of raw, gusty and rainy day which made for a miserable go in New York City. My wife and I struggled under one umbrella that couldn’t shield my suit from the rain nor her green dress, but you cannot choose a graduation day. Mine fell on an afternoon that resembled slushy winter more than spring. We got off at Penn Station and began walking toward the Jacob K. Javitz Convention Center on 11th Avenue and 39th Street where The New School was holding its commencement ceremony. I was a candidate for a degree in Master of Science in International Relations. More than 30 years after getting a bachelor’s degree in mass communication from the Ateneo, I would be marching again. Sitting on a bench, waiting for us to line up so the 77th commencement of The New School could start, I looked around at faces I did not know. I was surrounded by complete strangers, not by people I had schooled with for four years. Millennials’ graduation Although we were told to put away our phones after putting on our Read More …

PAL flights to New York to start once US lifts ban

Economy

May 012013

PAL flights to New York to start once US lifts ban

MANILA, Philippines – Philippine Airlines will soon be able to mount flights to New York once the United States Federal Aviation Administration lifts its ban on additional flights from the Philippines. The ban comes after the US FAA downgraded the country’s standing as a member of the International Civil Aviation Organization, placing the Philippines in Category 2 or unsafe status. After a five-day audit early this year, ICAO found out that the country managed to address and resolved its safety concerns, seen to bring the Philippines back to Category 1 status. “With the lifting of the US FAA sanction, we can go to New York already,” PAL President and Chief Operating Officer Ramon Ang said. PAL currently flies to Honolulu, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Las Vegas. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Ang said that according to a meeting of civil aviation authorities in Brussels, Belgium, the 27-nation European Union, which also imposed a similar sanction, is likely to lift its own three-year ban on Philippine air carriers “within the year.”

Diplomats Offer Special PH Tour Package

News

Feb 132013

By Rene Ciria-Cruz INQUIRER.net US Bureau 9:47 am | Thursday, February 14th, 2013 LOS ANGELES—Philippine diplomats and tourism officials are offering a modestly priced tour package that includes an audience with President Benigno “Noynoy” III at the presidential palace. The 8th Ambassadors, Consuls General and Tourism Directors Tour of the Philippines is set for July 9–15, 2013. For just $1,933 per person on double occupancy, the package features “a grand welcome and reception,” visits to onsite bazaars and mini-trade fairs, introductions to business and investment opportunities and a photo-op with President Aquino at the Malacanang Palace. Since it was first launched in 2005, the Ambassadors, Consuls General andTourism Directors Tour to the Philippines has attracted thousands of participants from various cities in the United States. Also included in the basic tour package are the following: • Round-trip ticket from U.S. departure points to Manila via Philippine Airlines (departing on July 7, 2013) • 3 nights stay at the EDSA Shangri-la hotel in Ortigas Center, Mandaluyong City • Daily buffet breakfast and two lunches; dinners with cultural show and entertainment • Historic wreath-laying ceremony at Rizal Park • Intramuros Tour (Fort Santiago, Manila Cathedral, San Agustin Church and Bahay Tsinoy) • Pasarap (Spa treatments), Paganda (Beauty Salon) and Pasaya (Studio Tour and Audience to Variety Shows) • Out of Town Day Tour to Tagaytay with lunch and fun activities For those who want to experience more of the sights and other adventures in the Philippines, optional extension tours are also available Read More …

Newer Entries