Ashes of Pinay who died in US limousine fire, now with her family in Tarlac

 News
Jun 112013
 
Ashes of Pinay who died in US limousine fire, now with her family in Tarlac

The ashes of Neriza Fojas, the Filipina who died when she got trapped inside a burning limousine in San Francisco, California, was brought home to her family in Tarlac, GMA News TV’s flagship newscast reported Tuesday evening. The victim’s husband, Carlo Moya, brought the ashes from the United States to the Philippines, a report on State of the Nation with Jessica Soho said. Moya and Fojas were married in a civil ceremony last year. They had planned to have a church wedding in the Philippines on June 19. Fojas was having a celebration with eight of her girl friends inside the limousine, when it caught fire on the night of May 5.  They were heading across the San Mateo-Hayward bridge in San Francisco for a bachelorette party at a hotel.  Aside from Fojas, four of her friends also died, while the other four survived. Mechanical failure has loomed as a probable cause of the limousine fire, according to a Reuters report on June 7.  — Rouchelle R. Dinglasan/ELR, GMA News

Phl stocks surge on better US jobs data

 Economy
Jun 102013
 
Phl stocks surge on better US jobs data

MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) – The Philippine stock market rallied back to the 6,800 level following the strong gains in US stocks last Friday. The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index jumped by 2.59 percent or 173.65 points to 6,875.60. The broader all-share index rallied by 1.96 percent or 81.20 points to 4,229.61. Trading volume reached 1.14 billion shares worth P14.22 billion ($332.63 million) with 123 stocks advancing, 52 declining, and 29 unchanged. All six counters were up. “Buyers resumed to position in equities on Monday, encouraged in part by Wall Street’s overnight ascent,” 2TradeAsia.com said. Dow Jones industrial average index jumped by 207 points last Friday on back of a US labor department report that American employers took in more workers in May. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Monday’s climb, according to analyst Justino Calaycay of Accord Capital Equities Corp., has taken back 40 percent of the values lost during the meltdown. “Yet despite the strong price and index surge, caution remained fairly evident as turnover kept a slack pace,” Calaycay said. Value turnover have been below the five-period and 30-period averages for quite some time and Monday’s action does not show any indication that is to change. Stocks in the 30-company index were mostly up. These include Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co., SM Prime Holdings, Inc., and Alliance Global Group, Inc.    

Palace reassures public of AFP modernization to protect sovereignty

 News
Jun 082013
 
Palace reassures public of AFP modernization to protect sovereignty

Malacañang on Saturday reassured the public the government has not lost its focus in achieving a minimum credible defense position to protect Philippine sovereignty against external and internal threats. Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said the government has already accomplished much in modernizing the country’s police and military. “We are going to achieve what we have always maintained, what the President has always said—a minimum credible defense position; and if the lawmakers would wish to add to the budget of the AFP, again, we are going through a budget deliberation process,” Lacierda said on government-run dzRB radio. He added the current thrust of the government is modernizing the Philippine police and military. As for some lawmakers’ call to increase the 2014 budget of the police and military for 2014, he said they can do their share by taking part in the deliberation for the 2014 budget. Lacierda also said Congress can add to the budget for the military and the police, which would be a great help for the country. But he said adding any amount should be in the budget process and budget deliberations. “It is within the process itself, as to their discretion how they would like to assist in further modernizing our forces,” he said. Under the AFP Modernization Law, the Aquino administration acquired a Hamilton-class cutter from the US, the BRP Gregorio del Pilar. The Navy is also awaiting the arrival of another naval ship from the US, he said. Also, he said the military acquired several Read More …

Hero's welcome awaits now famous dog Kabang in Zamboanga

 News
Jun 082013
 
Hero's welcome awaits now famous dog Kabang in Zamboanga

Hero dog Kabang goes to Makati after arriving from US. Team Kabang members play with hero dog Kabang during a presentation rite in Makati City shortly after the dog’s arrival from a successful operation in San Francisco, California, USA. From left to right: Mona Consunji of Animal Welefare Coalition, veterinarians Anton Mari Lim and Edgardo Unson. Danny Pata The residents of Zamboangga City will be giving a hero’s welcome to the now internationally-famous dog Kabang, who arrived in the Philippines on Saturday after her eight-month treatment in the United States. Kabang’s owners — Rudy and Cristina Bunggal — and the hero dog’s fans are eagerly awaiting her arrival in Zamboanga on Sunday, according to a report of Kara David for “24 Oras.” Kabang’s owners said even the pup that the dog left behind before going to the US, is also excited about the hero dog’s arrival. The couple’s niece, Mary Jane Manuel said, they are happy that Kabang, who became famous for heroically saving two young girls from a road accident, is finally headed home. Zamboangga residents have readied a motorcade and a meet-and-greet- for the hero dog. Kabang’s arrival in PHL Balitanghali’s Katrina Son said Kabang arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport around 3:00 a.m. on Saturday and was mobbed by local media. The hero dog seemed to look healthier and more cheerful after undergoing reconstructive surgery to close the gaping wound on her face. Kabang’s Philippine vet Dr. Anthony Lim said Kabang underwent a gruelling five-hour facial Read More …

China's top butcher tries to sell US on takeover

 Economy
Jun 062013
 
China's top butcher tries to sell US on takeover

Wan Long, 72, chairman of Shuanghui International, prepares himself before an interview in his office in Luohe, in central China’s Henan province. (AP Photo/Alexander F. Yuan) LUOHE, China  — At an age when most Chinese executives are long retired, the country’s top hog butcher is taking on a daunting new job persuading Americans to allow him to complete China’s biggest takeover of a U.S. company. Shuanghui International’s $4.7 billion bid for Smithfield Foods Ltd. has the endorsement of the American company’s board. But facing anxiety over food safety scandals in China and complaints about Chinese cyber spying, 72-year-old chairman Wan Long has launched a charm offensive to reassure Americans they have nothing to fear and possibly much to gain from the tie-up. “We want to be vigilant that Smithfield’s brand doesn’t change, its team doesn’t change, its production sites don’t change, it doesn’t cut jobs,” said Wan in an interview at Shuanghui’s 15-story headquarters in this eastern Chinese city. As for reassuring American consumers about quality, Smithfield “already has a very good food safety control system,” Wan said. “With our support, they will do better in quality and safety controls.” Wan’s strategy of talking to reporters and inviting them to visit Shuanghui’s packing plants is an unusual approach in China, where companies are secretive and corporate bosses rarely speak in public. As Chinese companies expand abroad, those habits have hurt some when the United States, Australia and other countries balked at acquisitions by unfamiliar buyers in oil, mining and technology Read More …

2 US submarines docking in Subic for refuelling

 News
Jun 062013
 
2 US submarines docking in Subic for refuelling

By Frances Mangosing 6:03 pm | Thursday, June 6th, 2013 MANILA, Philippines – Two US Navy vessels are docking in Subic Bay this weekend for routine port calls, the US Embassy said Thursday. The US Navy submarine tender USS Frank Cable (AS 40) and submarine USS Asheville (SSN 758) will be in Subic Bay on Friday, June 7, and Saturday, June 8, respectively, to refuel and receive supplies. The L.Y. Spear-class USS Frank Cable, which was commissioned in 1980, is nearly 200 meters long and has a crew of 1,500. The Frank Cable serves as the US 7th Fleet’s mobile repair and support platform.  It is homeported in Guam. Commissioned in 1991, the USS Asheville is a Los Angeles-class submarine that is 91 meters long, and has a top speed of 32 knots underwater. It is homeported in San Diego, California. Follow Us Recent Stories: Complete stories on our Digital Edition newsstand for tablets, netbooks and mobile phones; 14-issue free trial. About to step out? Get breaking alerts on your mobile.phone. Text ON INQ BREAKING to 4467, for Globe, Smart and Sun subscribers in the Philippines. Tags: Features , Global Nation , Subic , US military , US submarines , VFA Factual errors? Contact the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s day desk. Believe this article violates journalistic ethics? Contact the Inquirer’s Reader’s Advocate. Or write The Readers’ Advocate:

US eyes progress on South China Sea tensions

 News
Jun 052013
 
US eyes progress on South China Sea tensions

WASHINGTON – A US official on Wednesday voiced hope that China and Southeast Asian nations will start talks soon on a code of conduct to resolve disputes over the South China Sea after repeated flare-ups. Joe Yun, the acting assistant secretary of state for East Asia, said that China and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) made apparent progress during a working-level meeting last week in Bangkok. “I think there seems to be an understanding that at a future date, maybe sometime this year, they will announce a formal beginning of negotiations” on a code of conduct, Yun told the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “If that’s the case, we would genuinely welcome it because we see CoC as a key piece of the puzzle that would bring peaceful resolution” to rival claims in the South China Sea, Yun said. Tensions have soared in recent years as Vietnam and the Philippines accuse China of increasingly assertive claims to territories in the South China Sea, through which around half of the world’s cargo passes. The broader region is also rife with maritime disputes, with the Philippines and Taiwan recently at loggerheads and China and Japan embroiled in a bitter dispute over islands in potentially energy-rich waters of the East China Sea. Yun reiterated that the United States does not take sides in territorial disputes and that a code of conduct, which would formalize rules of behavior, offered the best way to prevent further conflict. “To be frank with Read More …

US home prices soar 12% in April

 Economy
Jun 052013
 
US home prices soar 12% in April

WASHINGTON (AP) – US home prices soared 12.1 percent in April from a year earlier, the biggest gain since February 2006, as more buyers competed for fewer homes. Real estate data provider CoreLogic says prices rose in April from the previous April in 48 states. Prices also rose 3.2 percent in April from March, much better than the previous month-to-month gain of 1.9 percent. Prices in Nevada jumped 24.6 percent from a year earlier, the most among the states. California’s gain was next at 19.4 percent, followed by Arizona’s 17.3 percent, Hawaii’s 17 percent and Oregon’s 15.5 percent. More people are looking to purchase homes. But the number of homes for sale is 14 percent lower than it was a year ago. The supply shortage has contributed to the price increases. Rising home prices can help sustain the housing recovery. They encourage more homeowners to sell. And they spur would-be homeowners to buy before prices increase further. Home sales and prices began to recover last year, six years after the housing bust. They have been buoyed by steady job gains and low mortgage rates. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Sales of previously occupied homes ticked up to a 3 ½ year high in April, according to the National Association of Realtors. And they are likely to keep growing: A measure of signed contracts to buy homes rose to its highest level in three years in April. There is generally a one- to two-month lag between a Read More …

Palace downplays US travel alert notice

 News
Jun 052013
 
Palace downplays US travel alert notice

The United States was just being “prudent” when it issued an alert notice to its citizens in the Philippines, Malacañang said Wednesday as it downplayed the advisory. “That’s part of their alert notice to their citizens. Very recently, they made a travel alert also. Again, this part of their being prudent as someone who would like to protect their citizens here,” presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said at a press briefing. In an advisory, the US State Department cited the growing terrorist groups particularly in Mindanao that are targeting foreigners. The report also classified the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and its armed branch, the New People’s Army (NPA), as terrorist groups. Lacierda said although the notorious Abu Sayyaf bandit group still exists, its numbers have been “effectively decimated” by the military. “We are aware of the presence of Abu Sayyaf. It is not a secret but the Abu Sayyaf is more or less a bandit group already. Our Armed Forces have effectively decimated their numbers,” he said. “They have been reduced to a kidnap-for-ransom group and that’s the status right now, and we continue to pursue lawless elements in the country,” Lacierda added. Lacierda, however, refused to comment on the US State Department’s classification of the CPP-NPA as a terrorist group. “Well, it’s not for us to say ‘do we agree or not’. That’s how they would like to classify the CPP-NPA,” he said. — Patricia Denise Chiu/KBK, GMA News

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