US – Page 22 – Maniolas

USPACOM's Locklear to visit PHL again

News

Jun 052013

A ranking United States military officer is set to visit the Philippines this week to consult with defense authorities “on a range of common security challenges,” but no media event was scheduled. According to a statement from the US Embassy in Manila on Wednesday, Admiral Samuel Locklear III, commander of the US Pacific Command (USPACOM), will be in Manila on Thursday and Friday. Prior to his scheduled arrival, Locklear attended the annual Shangri-la Dialogue security conference in Singapore where he met with Asia-Pacific defense officials. In June last year, Locklear accompanied General Martin Dempsey, the highest-ranking general in the US military, to meet President Benigno Aquino III, also after attending the Shangri-la Dialogue. The following month, Locklear paid a courtesy call on Aquino to talk about maritime and regional security, as well as the US-Philippine bilateral defense alliance. Locklear’s personal decorations include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, Distinguished Service Medal with one gold star, Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit with four gold stars, Bronze Star Medal, and numerous individual, Campaign and Unit awards. The US and Philippines are allied by a 1951 mutual defense treaty. In the early 1990s US forces vacated Clark Air Base and Subic Naval Base, two large facilities used during the Vietnam War, after a disagreement over rents. In recent years the Philippines has been seeking to improve its defense ties with the US amid a festering territorial dispute with China over parts of the South China Sea. Some of its facilities are being used in Read More …

US manufacturing index sinks to June 2009 level

Economy

Jun 042013

US manufacturing index sinks to June 2009 level

WASHINGTON (AP) — A measure of US manufacturing fell in May to its lowest level since June 2009 as slumping overseas economies and weak business spending reduced new orders and production. The Institute for Supply Management said Monday that its index of manufacturing activity fell to 49 last month from 50.7 in April. That’s the lowest level in nearly four years and the first time the index has dipped below 50 since November. A reading under 50 indicates contraction. The ISM index had sunk during the recession to a low of 33.1 in December 2008. Since the recession ended in June 2009, it peaked at 59.6 in February 2011. Monday’s report showed that a gauge of new orders fell to 48.8, the lowest in nearly a year. Production dropped to its lowest point since May 2009, and employment dipped. Manufacturing has struggled this year as weak economies abroad have slowed US exports. US businesses have also reduced their pace of investment in areas such as equipment and computer software. At the same time, consumers are holding back on spending more for factory-made goods, possibly a result of higher Social Security taxes, which have reduced most workers’ paychecks this year. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Monday’s weak manufacturing reading suggests that the economy will slow in the April-June quarter from its 2.5-percent annual pace in the first three months of the year. Many analysts expect the economy’s annual growth rate this quarter to be about two percent. Read More …

US auto sales roar back in May

Economy

Jun 042013

A buyer moves between rows of 2013 Ram pickup trucks and Dart sedans at a Dodge dealership in Littleton, Colorado. Chrysler’s US sales rose 11 percent in May, a sign that auto sales rebounded from a slight dip in April and will continue to boost the US economy. AP DETROIT (AP) – Full-size pickups once again dominated US auto sales in May, as small businesses – increasingly confident in the economy – raced to replace the aging pickups they held on to during the recession. Car buyers, too, were lured by low interest rates and Memorial Day sales. Overall, US consumers bought 1.4 million vehicles in May, up eight percent from the same month a year ago, according to Autodata Corp. The results suggest the auto industry will remain a bright spot in an economy that’s been slowed by weak manufacturing. And the boost from the industry will help sustain the economy’s steady job growth. Most automakers topped analysts’ expectations last month, with Nissan reporting its highest May sales ever after cutting prices on seven popular models. Chrysler, Ford, Honda and Toyota also reported increases. Only Volkswagen’s sales were down from last May. Automakers sold 173,972 full-size pickups in May, the highest total since a year-end rush last December, according to Ward’s AutoInfoBank. Sales of Ford’s F-Series pickup, which is the country’s best-selling vehicle, rose 31 percent to a six-year high of 71,604. General Motors and Chrysler also posted full-size truck sales gains of more than 20 percent. Those sales Read More …

‘Kabang’ set for hero’s return after surgery in US

News

Jun 042013

‘Kabang’ set for hero’s return after surgery in US

Agence France-Presse 9:02 pm | Tuesday, June 4th, 2013 Kabang, a two-year-old injured mixed breed, chews on a toy after being released from the from the William R. Pritchard Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital at the University of California, Davis, in Davis, Calif., Monday, June 3, 2013. Kabang lost her snout and upper jaw saving two girls’ lives and is heading back to the Philippines after treatment at a California hospital. AP MANILA, Philippines — A mongrel dog is set for a hero’s welcome when she returns to the Philippines following surgery in the United States to reconstruct her face after apparently saving two girls from being hit by a motorcycle. Kabang was released from the University of California’s Davis Veterinary Hospital on Monday after eight months of treatment in which her face was partially rebuilt and she was cured of cancer and heartworm. In 2011 Kabang, then aged two and pregnant, became a hero in the Philippines after running in front of a motorcycle in what her owner said was a deliberate act to save her daughter and niece who were crossing a busy road. Thousands of dollars were raised for her treatment through an online campaign. “I think I will cry when I see her. She’s like a member of our family,” said owner Rudy Bunggal, a laborer who lives in a shanty in a poor southern Philippine town, told AFP by phone on Tuesday. In the accident Kabang’s snout and part of her jaw were torn off when Read More …

US: Corruption abets terror in PH

News

Jun 012013

By Tarra QuismundoPhilippine Daily Inquirer 2:08 am | Sunday, June 2nd, 2013 MANILA, Philippines—While citing its “strong counterterrorism cooperation” with the Philippines, the United States noted that “official corruption” and resource and personnel constraints had stymied the country’s antiterror campaign. In its latest Country Reports on Terrorism released this week, the US Department of State, however, lauded the Philippines continuing pressure on known terror groups, saying that its efforts in the last decade “have been successful at isolating and constraining the activities of domestic and transnational terrorists.” Mindanao remains classified as a “terrorist haven” due to the presence of the al-Qaida linked Abu Sayyaf which the US had tagged as a foreign terrorist organization. The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and its armed wing, the New People’s Army (NPA), also remain on the terror list. “The Philippines has coordinated with US law enforcement authorities, especially regarding US fugitives and suspected terrorists. An under-resourced and understaffed law enforcement and justice system coupled with widespread official corruption, however, resulted in limited domestic investigations, unexecuted arrest warrants, few prosecutions, and lengthy trials of cases,” said the report released on May 30. The report noted, for instance, that the proscription case the Philippine Department of Justice (DOJ) brought against the Abu Sayyaf, the first of its kind that sought to officially tag the group as a terrorist organization under the 2007 Human Security Act, had remained pending by the end of last year. The US also cited a Manila court’s dismissal of an Read More …

U.S. Immigration bill–what happens now?

News

May 312013

By Harvey I. BarkinINQUIRER.net US Bureau 1:44 am | Saturday, June 1st, 2013 From left, Myisha Areloano, Adrian James, Jahel Campos, David Vuenrostro, and Antonio Cabrera camp outside of the Obama Campaign Headquarters in Culver City, Calif. in protest of President Obama’s immigration policies and in hopes of getting him to pass an executive order to halt discretionary deportation on Friday, June 16, 2012. AP FILE PHOTO SAN JOSE, California—The U.S. immigration reform bill approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee last week and slated for the Senate floor in June is still getting mixed reviews from immigrant rights supporters. For Filipinos directly affected by the U.S. immigration reform bill, family reunification is the big question. How long will the wait be for petitioned siblings, who are not undocumented students and not agricultural workers? Of the more than 200 proposed amendments to the U.S. immigration reform bill, 141 passed in almost 30 hours of debate in the Judiciary Committee Analysts say if the Republican-controlled House passes the bill by July, legislation may occur in early August this year. “There are both good and bad consequences” as the bill stands now, Pramila Jayapal, co-chair of women’s rights campaign We Belong Together and founder-executive director of the biggest immigrants advocacy movement in Washington state OneAmerica, told INQUIRER.net. “One positive thing is that there’s a major concern to wipe out the backlog (of petitions) so Filipino families can be together. We need to get rid of a 4.3 million backlog.” The wait for relative-sponsored Read More …

Japan ‘comfort women’ mayor survives censure

News

May 302013

Japan ‘comfort women’ mayor survives censure

Philippine Daily Inquirer 6:29 am | Friday, May 31st, 2013 Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto attends the city’s assembly in Osaka Thursday, May 30, 2013. The mayor of Japan’s second-largest city survived a censure motion at the assembly Thursday despite his inflammatory comments over Japan’s wartime sex slavery, remarks that sparked an international uproar. AP PHOTO/KYODO NEWS TOKYO—A Japanese mayor who caused a storm with his comments on wartime “comfort women” survived a censure motion filed by local politicians on Thursday. Council members in the western city of Osaka rejected the motion against mayor Toru Hashimoto, who is also joint leader of the national Japan Restoration Party, city officials said. Hashimoto prompted outrage at home and abroad by suggesting that battle-stressed soldiers during World War II needed the services of up to 200,000 sex slaves from Korea, China, the Philippines and elsewhere who were forcibly drafted into Japanese brothels. The non-binding motion had earlier been expected to be approved. But the New Komeito Party, which holds the balance of power on the council, reversed its earlier stance and voted against it. Ichiro Matsui, Osaka prefectural governor and a close aide to Hashimoto, earlier hinted that if the motion was passed, Hashimoto would resign to force a mayoral election in which he would seek reelection. On Tuesday Hashimoto canceled a trip to the United States after the US denounced his remarks as “outrageous and offensive.” Seeking to contain the fallout from his comments, the former TV pundit said Monday that Tokyo should Read More …

Motorola to make first US-assembled smartphones

Economy

May 302013

Motorola to make first US-assembled smartphones

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) – Cellphone pioneer Motorola announced Wednesday that it’s opening a Texas manufacturing facility that will create 2,000 jobs and produce its new flagship device, Moto X, the first smartphone ever assembled in the US. The company has already begun hiring for the Fort Worth plant. The site was most recently unoccupied but was once used by fellow phone manufacturer Nokia, meaning it was designed to produce mobile devices, said Will Moss, a spokesman for Motorola Mobility, which is owned by Google. “It was a great facility in an ideal location,” said Moss, who said it will be an easy trip for Motorola engineering teams based in Chicago and Silicon Valley, and is also close to the company’s service and repair operations in Mexico. The formal announcement came at AllThingsD’s D11 Conference in Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif., from Motorola CEO Dennis Woodside. Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s office administers a pair of special state incentive funds meant to help attract job-creating businesses to the state, but Moss said the Republican governor did not distribute any money to close this deal. “Motorola Mobility’s decision to manufacture its new smartphone and create thousands of new jobs in Texas is great news for our growing state,” Perry said through a spokeswoman. “Our strong, healthy economy, built on a foundation of low taxes, smart regulation, fair legal system and a skilled workforce is attracting companies from across the country and around the world that want to be a part of the rising Texas Read More …

Peso up from 11-mo slump

Economy

May 302013

MANILA, Philippines – The peso recovered yesterday from its 11-month slump against the dollar as investors cheered the better-than-expected first quarter economic growth rate. The local unit closed 42.32 against the dollar, 12 centavos stronger than the previous day’s 42.44, which was the weakest since June 2012. Dollars traded reached $1.112 billion, up from Wednesday’s $1.057 billion. “Basically, the strength was due to local story of a strong GDP (gross domestic product) growth that was well above market expectations,” a trader at a local bank said in a phone interview. Driven by consumption and investments, the economy grew by a surprising 7.8 percent for the first three months, the fastest in three years, and beating market consensus of just about six percent. The result was also well-above the official six to seven-percent growth goal for the year. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Emilio Neri Jr., an economist at the Bank of the Philippine Islands, said investors would likely continue purchasing the peso, thereby boosting its strength versus the US dollar, “in the near-term.” “The Philippine peso may see some appreciation pressure in the near-term after its sharp slide in the past week as dealers were likely surprised by the strong GDP print,” Neri said in a research note. The peso, Asia’s second best performer last year, has lost more than three percent since the end of last year. This was the second straight day it traded at 42-level versus the greenback this year. While good news Read More …

US, Canada, UK warn vs travel to Mindanao

News

May 302013

US, Canada, UK warn vs travel to Mindanao

By Tarra Quismundo and Michael Lim UbacPhilippine Daily Inquirer 9:51 pm | Thursday, May 30th, 2013 MANILA, Philippines—Three more countries have issued travel advisories against Mindanao amid the United States’ warning of a “credible kidnap threat” in the Zamboanga Peninsula. This developed as the Philippines said there was “no specific threat” in the area based on monitoring of law enforcement and security officials. In a Palace briefing Thursday, deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said the government “respects the prerogative of any country to issue any precautionary measures that they feel their citizens must take while here in our country.” “In fact, when it comes to our citizens abroad, [other countries] also respect our prerogative to issue this kind of advisory to our countrymen [stationed overseas],” said Valte. She cited the recent terrorist attack in Boston—which killed three people and injured 264 others—where the Philippine government issued a similar message to Filipino citizens who may be in the area. In its travel advisory on Wednesday, the US state department cited a report about the resurgence of kidnapping groups, particularly in Zamboanga, that were targeting foreigners. On Thursday, Australia advised its nationals against traveling to parts of Mindanao, particularly Zamboanga and Sulu, citing a similar warning that the United States had issued its citizens. “We continue to strongly advise you not to travel to central and western Mindanao, including the Zamboanga Peninsula and Sulu Archipelago, due to the very high threat of terrorist attack, kidnapping, violent crime and violent clashes between armed Read More …

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