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PNG rice planting project ready for harvest in Nov.

RICE planted by Filipino farmers in Papua New Guinea (PNG) will be ready for harvest in December, to be sold in that country and the excess exported to the Philippines, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said.
The DA cited an agreement reached by the two countries on Friday.
Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol, who was the Philippine representative in the meeting with the government officials of PNG, said the rice was planted in August by farmers from North Cotabato, and has reached reproductive stage and may be ready for harvest by the end of December.
According to Mr. Piñol, the rice was planted at a 25-hectare demonstration farm, of which eight hectares was developed by the Filipino farmers.
“Under the arrangement, rice produced by Filipino farmers will be absorbed by the local market and the excess could exported to the Philippines,” Mr. Piñol said in a statement.
Mr. Piñol noted that PNG’s rice requirement is about 400,000 metric tons (MT) every year while the Philippines imports about one million MT annually.
According to Mr. Piñol, he was instructed by President Rodrigo R. Duterte to pursue a Rice Development Project between the Philippines and PNG.
The MoA involves exchange of technology and assistance in agricultural development which include livestock, rice, and other crops.
“In the arrangements already set for the rice program, private Filipino agricultural groups and companies will be asked to invest in the rice industry of PNG. The PNG Government has offered to facilitate the use of the vast uncultivated lands for rice farming through a crop sharing agreement with the local landowners,” Mr. Piñol said.
“The Governor of a province has offered an initial 50,000 hectares of uncultivated land beside a huge river. He said as much as two million hectares could be developed into rice farms in his province,” Mr. Piñol added.
In a briefing, Mr. Piñol said the project was fully funded by the private sector, except the technical team which was initially sent by the Philippine government to conduct a site validation.
“Aside from the technical team that we sent for the project, there were no government funds spent,” Mr. Piñol told reporters.
He said there are ongoing negotiations between the Philippines and PNG on access to tuna fishing grounds.
“Since the early 80’s, Philippine fishing vessels have been given fishing permits and then fishing access is negotiated annually between the fishing companies,” Mr. Piñol said.
Each vessel used by Filipino fishermen must pay between $200,000 and $400,000, which PNG now wants to increase to $2 million.
“The new rate is unfair to the fishing companies, because they invested in PNG. They invested in processing facilities based on an earlier agreement allowing them to ship out a portion of their produce,” Mr. Piñol said.
“We’re still continuing our negotiations with PNG based on the issues raised by our stakeholders,” he said. — Reicelene Joy N. Ignacio

Globe doubts new telco player can deliver on its commitments

By Denise A. Valdez
GLOBE TELECOM, Inc. expressed doubt the new major telco player can deliver the elevated level of service it promised during the first year of its operations, noting that it will likely face the same challenges faced by the incumbents in building network infrastructure.
Globe President Ernest L. Cu told reporters in a chance interview on Tuesday the provisional new telco player, Mislatel Consortium, is unlikely to succeed in providing an average minimum broadband speed of 27 Megabits per second (Mbps) in its first year of operations and 55 Mbps on its second, as indicated in its bid.
“There’s no telco that can do that in one year, in my opinion… To me, it’s 24 months. Let’s see. We use the same equipment, we go through the same permitting process. Let’s see,” he said.
According to an August report from wireless coverage mapping company OpenSignal, the average download speed for Globe is 5 Mbps, and for its rival PLDT, Inc., 7.5 Mbps.
Information and Communications Technology Chief Eliseo M. Rio, Jr. said in a social media post on Saturday the consortium of China Telecommunications Corp., Dennis A. Uy’s Udenna Corp. and its subsidiary Chelsea Logistics Holdings Corp. — named together Mislatel Consortium from the name of franchise holder Mindanao Islamic Telephone Company, Inc. (Mislatel) — is now cleared to be declared winner in the bidding as its competitors’ motions for reconsideration have already been denied.
“Mislatel made a commitment to greatly improve our telecommunication industry that can bring us at par with Singapore and is putting a hefty performance bond (P24B) if they fail in its commitments in a five-year period,” Mr. Rio said.
The bidding’s terms of reference require the new telco player to submit an annual audit of its commitments to the NTC, which if unfulfilled, will require it to forfeit its performance security and give back its awarded radio frequencies to the government.
Globe’s Mr. Cu said aside from Mislatel’s speed commitment, its population coverage commitment of 37.03% in the first year and 84.01% cumulative coverage over a five-year period is also questionable.
“I don’t think there’s any telco in the world that in their first year of operations, other than (India’s) Reliance Jio, that they get significant market share from incumbents in the first year. But the caveat there is that Reliance Jio, before they launched, was building for four to five years… They had a few hundred plus thousand cell sites by the time they launched… (For Mislatel), this is their required, (that) they’ve covered x% of the country…,” he said.
The success of Mislatel Consortium largely hangs on the contribution of seasoned telco China Telecom, one of the biggest mobile telco providers in China. But Mr. Cu said operating in the Philippines is a different case as it sets different conditions for companies.
“There’s nuances in every country with regard to telco. The regulatory framework is different. We have a very complex regulatory framework from national government down to LGU (local government unit), down to the barangay level. So I hope they took that into consideration when they promised they would roll out that much in one year. Because today, we still have pending cell sites…,” Mr. Cu said.
Dissatisfied with the reign of Globe and PLDT, President Rodrigo R. Duterte sought to find a “third telco” that would break their duopoly.
Mr. Rio himself, in his Saturday social media post, noted the incumbents did not have to commit topnotch services as what is required from the new telco player.
“They never posted any performance security. For the first time in our history, we required a new telco player to come up with time-bound commitments and putting their money where their mouths are,” he said.
Amid the government’s hopes for Mislatel’s success, both Globe’s Mr. Cu and PLDT Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan said they don’t see the entry of a new competitor to post immediate impact on revenues and subscriber base.
Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls.

T-bill, T-bond rates seen steady

YIELDS ON government securities on offer this week are seen to move sideways as market players price in improved inflation expectations following the monetary policy tightening last week.
The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) is offering P15 billion worth of Treasury bills (T-bill) today, broken down into P4 billion, P5 billion and P6 billion for three-month, six-month and one-year debt papers, respectively.
The government will also offer P15 billion in reissued five-year Treasury bonds (T-bond) tomorrow with a remaining life of four years and three months. The papers carry a 5.5% coupon rate.
A bond trader said the rates of the T-bills on offer today will likely move sideways “reflecting the recent rate hike of the central bank.” Meanwhile, another trader expects yields to move 10-15 basis points (bp) from the previous auction.
Last week, the Treasury made a full award of P15-billion in short-dated bills as the market expects inflation to slow down in the coming months.
The 91-, 182- and 364-day papers were quoted at 5.172%, 6.245% and 6.521%, respectively.
Meanwhile, traders expect the yield on the five-year T-bond to decline from the previous auction, with the first one giving a 6.9-7.25% forecast.
“For the T-bonds, I expect it to have more demand but rates will likely be higher than the market,” the second trader said in a text message on Friday, giving a 6.8-7.1% range for the average yield.
“Improved inflation expectations due to the BSP’s (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas) revised forecast will play a role.”
The BTr made a partial award of the five-year bonds when it was last issued on Oct. 9. The government raised P9.74 billion versus total tenders reaching P15.73 billion. It fetched an average yield of 7.342%, surging 144 basis points (bp) from 5.902% tallied in the previous auction.
Based on the PHP Bloomberg Valuation Service Reference Rates, the 91-, 182- and 364-day papers were quoted at 5.298%, 6.104% and 6.532%, respectively, on Friday.
Meanwhile, the five-year debt was quoted at 7.128%.
During its Thursday meeting, the BSP’s policy-setting Monetary Board fired off another 25-bp hike in policy rates, following rate increases worth a cumulative 150 bps since May.
Following this, the central bank said it now expects inflation to clock in slower in the coming months, with price increases seen to settle below 4% over the next two years.
By next year, inflation is expected to settle at 3.5%, back within target and lower than the 4.3% previous estimate.
The Treasury is raising P270 billion from the domestic market this quarter through auctions of securities, offering P180 billion in T-bills and another P90 billion in T-bonds. — Karl Angelo N. Vidal

Holiday dressing according to Shangri-La Plaza mall

IF YOU shop in Shangri-La Plaza, you’re up for one flamboyant holiday.
On Nov. 9, the Mandaluyong mall showed off the holiday collections from some of its tenants namely Adora, John Herrera, K&Company, Mico Boutique, Plains and Prints, Rajo!, and Rustan’s.
The show was cut into segments not based on the designers, but by look. There were Pleated Pastels, Spots and Stripes, Nudists, Black and White, Dark Florals, and Red Hot.
Pleated Pastels opened with clothes from Weave and Plains and Prints, in what else: pleated pastels. The clothes showed an innocent femininity, paving the way for the fun and folly of Spots and Stripes. The looks were from stores Plains and Prints, Adora, Rustan’s, and Mico. Fun was the only way to describe a polka-dotted ensembles from Plains and Prints and Criselda Lontok from Rustan’s.
Nudists, meanwhile, exhibiting clothes in a metallic neutral shade, was dominated by loose, flowy designs by Rajo Laurel’s Rajo!, and an elaborate dress by K & Company. Black and White proved more serious, with chic, ladylike designs from Criselda Lontok, Tadashi Shoji, Mico and John Herrera.
Meanwhile, the Dark Florals collection, with clothes from Criselda Lontok, Tadashi Shoji, and Mico was popular. A particular favorite was a line of dresses from Tadashi Shoji that were printed with roses — straightforward but sweet.
Finally, the show ended with the Red Hot collection, with clothes from Adora, Mico, Mac Duggal, K&Company, and John Herrera. Mr. Herrera’s and Mico’s clothes had a touch of 1990s sobriety, but K&Co. topped it off with flamboyant lace dresses that honored the color of passion, and will be sure to make heads turn at any Christmas party. — Joseph L. Garcia

New blow to Chinese agriculture as African swine fever discovered in wild boar

BEIJING — China’s efforts to stem the spread of African swine fever were dealt a fresh blow on Friday when the agricultural ministry confirmed it had found the first case in a wild boar, deepening a three-month-old crisis for the world’s top pork producer.
The country also confirmed the first outbreak in the southwest province of Sichuan, the country’s leading pig-herding region, raising the likelihood of a major impact on pork supplies in coming months.
The disease was found in a dead wild boar in Baishan city, Jilin province, in northeastern China, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said in a statement published on its website.
“The new case means that it will be even more difficult to control African swine fever. How do you control wild boars?” said Yah Guiding, an analyst with consultancy China-America Commodity Data Analytics.
China has banned transportation of live pigs and products from regions infected by African swine fever and neighboring provinces to control the spread of the highly contagious disease, as well as prohibiting the feeding of kitchen waste to hogs.
But the virus has continued to spread despite the government’s efforts, with more than 60 outbreaks in 18 provinces across the nation since early August.China’s large population of wild boar, which can harbor the disease without showing symptoms, is estimated to total around 33.5 million, according to Reuters calculations based on data from the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FARO).
Local authorities in Jilin have inspected neighboring areas frequented by wild boars and carried out a comprehensive sterilization of all pig farms in the area, the agriculture ministry said in its statement.
Analysts said the discovery of the wild boar suggested that the virus could have been brought into China by the animals coming from other countries.
China has blamed the feeding of kitchen waste to pigs for the spread of disease.
The highly contagious disease was also discovered on a farm of 40 pigs in Yibin city, in Sichuan’s southeast.
“With the new case in Sichuan, all major pig production provinces have now fallen. The situation is very severe,” Yah said.
China slaughters around 700 million pigs a year. Sichuan produced almost 66 million last year, according to official data, more than any other province.
Sichuan is also the province with the highest per capita consumption of pork in China at 36 kg (79 pounds), according to data from the National Statistics Bureau.
Provincial authorities in Sichuan issued a ban last week on the import of all live hogs and hog products from other regions in a bid to keep the disease out.
But Yibin is close to Sichuan’s borders with Chongqing municipality and Guizhou province, both of which have already reported outbreaks.
Pig prices in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan, are currently the highest in the country, thanks to strong local demand and a bump-up after the disease infected nearby provinces.
Prices fell by 0.2 yuan on Friday from a day earlier to 17.7 yuan ($2.55) per kg, according to data collected by China-America Commodity Analytics.
The discovery of African swine fever in Sichuan comes less than three months ahead of Lunar New Year celebrations in early February that mark China’s peak demand period for pork.
There is no cure and no vaccine for the disease, and the virus can survive for weeks in pork and animal feed. — Reuters

PayMaya sees significant customer growth

PLDT, Inc.’s mobile wallet arm PayMaya Philippines, Inc. expects significant growth in its customer base to continue this year.
“By the end of the year… we’ll have about six times more users both active and total users than we did at the beginning of the year… driven by more customer acquisition (and) more use cases,” PayMaya Philippines chief operating officer and managing director Paolo Azzola told reporters on Friday.
Mr. Azzola said in December last year there are 8 million users in PayMaya and Smart Money. The whole digital innovations group of PLDT, Voyager Innovations, Inc., is targeting to have 30 million users in its platforms by 2020.
Aside from PayMaya, Voyager also handles PLDT’s remittance network Smart Padala, online loaning platform Lendr, financial technology arm FINTQ, and free mobile browsing app Freenet.
In October, PLDT announced it signed an agreement with Tencent Holdings Ltd. and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR) to acquire $175 million worth of shares in Voyager.
The company’s chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan said earlier this month they’re only waiting for World Bank sister organization International Finance Corp. (IFC) to decide on increasing its investment size in Voyager before they close the deal, which is expected by the end of November. Once they finalize the agreement, Mr. Pangilinan said PLDT’s stake in Voyager would shrink to about 48%.
Mr. Azzola noted the foreign investors trust the leadership of Voyager President and Chief Executive Officer Orlando B. Vea and his management team, which is important in keeping the company’s strategies and vision intact.
“The whole point of getting these guys onboard is not just because of the money. It’s because of the fact that they know how to run companies like ours. We know our company and people, they can help us refine the outlook the way that we run the company and their market experience,” he said.
Mr. Azzola also said that moving forward, they plan to expand PayMaya’s services beyond quick response (QR) payments. He noted they are still “scratching the surface” and have gotten to only 1% of their QR rollout.
“We’re not here to rollout just QR. We’re here to provide digital financial services to everyone in the Philippines. So for us, if QR is the best thing for a particular user base in a particular space, we will roll it out. But I don’t want to just say roll out, just QR to everyone… when I know that it’s not what they really need or want,” he said.
He added the company plans to further boost other uses for the mobile wallet such as online shopping, bills payment and sending money.
Last year, PayMaya Philippines started a partnership with Facebook to allow its customers use the Facebook Messenger app for various transactions such as money transfer. Mr. Azzola said they plan to launch more projects in partnership with Facebook, aside from deals with quick service restaurants.
Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Denise A. Valdez

Gov’t debt yields end flat

By Christine J.S. Castañeda
Senior Researcher
YIELDS on government securities (GS) were flat last week amid the suspension of excise taxes on fuel and the central bank’s policy rate hike.
On average, GS yields — which move opposite to prices — went down by 8.77 basis points (bp), according to the PHP Bloomberg Valuation Service (BVAL) Reference Rates as of Nov. 16 published on the Philippine Dealing System’s Web site.
Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion, chief economist at UnionBank of the Philippines, said: “Market players were mostly on the sidelines [last] week.”
“All eyes were on the BSP’s (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas) move, and it seems market participants were positive on the inflation situation bolstered by the suspension of excise taxes on fuel next year,” he added.
Guian Angelo S. Dumalagan, market economist at the Land Bank of the Philippines (LANDBANK) said: “GS yields fell [last] week following the decline in oil prices, the initial drop in local stocks, and the suspension of further excise taxes on fuel.”
“These developments solidified views of easing inflation in the coming months. The drop in yields was tempered by the 25-bp rate hike of the BSP,” Mr. Dumalagan added.
The central bank raised policy rates by 25 bps in its Nov. 15 meeting. This was the fifth consecutive time the central bank raised its policy rates this year after the two 50-bp increases in August and September and two 25-bp increases in May and June.
Meanwhile, Malacañang has approved the suspension of the P2 per liter increase in fuel excise tax scheduled in January 2019. The Palace announced the approval through a Nov.8 memorandum from Executive Secretary Salvador C. Medialdea informing Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III, Budget Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia and Energy Secretary Alfoso G. Cusi “of the approval of your [Oct. 11] recommendation to suspend the next scheduled increase in the excise tax on fuel…”
GS yields ended mixed at the close of the market last Friday. The 91- and 182-day papers increased by 12.60 bps and 15.60 bps to fetch 5.298% and 6.104%, respectively. The 364-day debt inched up by 1 bp to 6.532%. The two- and 20-year notes also went up by 0.30 bps to 6.773% and 8.145%, respectively.
On the other hand, the largest decline was seen for the 10-year bond which lost 47.90 bps to 7.335%. It was followed by the seven-, 25-, and five-year bonds which fell by 31.80 bps, 20.20 bps and 14.60 bps, respectively, yielding 7.235%, 8.168%, 7.128%. The four- and three-year notes also shed 8.30 bps and 3.50 bps to fetch 7.05% and 6.944%.
For this week, LANDBANK’s Mr. Dumalagan said: “GS yields might show some upward bias [this] week, as likely firm US reports on housing, manufacturing,and services could divert investors’ attention to the possible December 2018 rate hike of the US Federal Reserve.”
“The recent increase in BSP policy rates might also push yields higher, although geopolitical concerns and growing expectations of easing inflation might keep yield increases minimal,” he added.
For his part, UnionBank’s Mr. Asuncion said: “[This] week, the market is anticipated to be more active now that monetary policy is clearer and may mean that this is the last BSP hike for this cycle.”

Uncomplicated fashion

LACOSTE, which is celebrating its 85th anniversary, remains true to its style philosophy: keep things simple.
It’s iconic shirts are classic, and so are the French brand’s bags, shoes, and watches.
For its 85th year, the brand will be releasing its “12.12. chronograph” watch starting Dec. 12. It is, of course, simple and minimalist in design.
The new collection puts the elements of the classic polo shirt created in 1933 by the company’s founder René Lacoste into the watches. The dials bear the crocodile insignia while the straps — which come in silicone and leather — have the iconic petit piqué motif, which pays homage to the look of the traditional Lacoste shirt fabric.
The silicone-strapped watches come in white, green, red, black, and khaki.
Marketing product manager for watches Stefan Glatz said the company, which has been working with the Lucerne group in the Philippines for almost 20 years, has a good footing in the country because “the Filipinos relate to the brand.”
What more can we expect from Lacoste, at least for the watches?
He said: “What we are doing is we’re looking at the previous collections, and we’re continuing to enhance them with new colors, new features, new design, but one factor remaining: simplicity. Yes, we always remain true to the brand philosophy.” — NFPDG

Senate extends telco franchise for China Communications unit

THE Senate passed on third and final reading the bill extending the franchise granted to G. Telecoms, Inc., a subsidiary of Shenzhen-based China Communication Technology Co. (CCT), for another 25 years.
House Bill No. 5559 was approved with 18 affirmative votes, zero negative votes, and no abstention.
The bill introduced several amendments to Republic Act No. 8196, which originally granted the company a franchise to operate radio stations in 1996. Its previous franchise was set to expire in 2021, according to the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC).
G. Telecoms, Inc., formerly called Ermita Electronics, Inc., offers satellite broadband services.
The franchise allows G. Telecoms to operate “wire and/or wireless telecommunications systems” and “other telecommunications systems technologies presently available or will be made available” in the future.
The franchise may be revoked upon failure to operate continuously for two years.
Under the bill, G. Telecoms, Inc. is authorized to “connect or demand connection of its telecommunications systems to other telecommunications systems… for the purpose of providing extended and improved telecommunications services to the public.”
The company is also required to inform Congress of any sale, lease, transfer, grant of usufruct or transfer of controlling interests within 60 days of the completion of the transaction. Failure to report to Congress will result to a franchise revocation.
Failure to also provide Congress with the company’s annual report of its compliance to the terms and conditions of the franchise will subject the company to a fine of P500 per working day of noncompliance.
Aside from G. Telecoms, Inc., the Senate has also granted the franchise of Mindanao-based Malindang Broadcasting Corp. House Bill No. 5665 was approved with 18 affirmative votes, zero negative vote, and no abstention. — Camille A. Aguinaldo

Peso likely to climb

THE PESO is seen to strengthen further against the dollar as easing inflation expectations following the policy tightening of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), as well as dovish remarks from a US central bank official, will likely support the local currency.
On Friday, the peso ended the week at P52.715 versus the greenback, up from its P52.805 finish the previous day, as the market reacted to the central bank’s policy tightening.
Week on week, the peso also strengthened from its P52.96-per-dollar finish on Nov. 9.
Michael L. Ricafort, economist at Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., said “relatively lower” global oil prices as well as easing inflationary pressures and expectations following the BSP’s rate hike will continue to support further gains in the local unit.
The central bank’s policy-setting Monetary Board raised policy rates by 25 basis points on Thursday, marking its fifth consecutive tightening move this year, amid lingering upside risks to inflation.
Inflation steadied in October as it matched September’s 6.7% print, a nine-year high.
Aside from lower petroleum prices and easing inflation expectations, Mr. Ricafort said dovish signals from some Fed officials regarding the US economy may also support the peso this week.
Guian Angelo S. Dumalagan, market economist at Land Bank of the Philippines, said the dollar may depreciate further in the first two days of the week as Fed Vice Chairman Richard Clarida acknowledged signs of slowing global growth which may affect the US economy.
Towards the end of the week, Mr. Dumalagan said the greenback may move with an upward bias amid likely upbeat US economic data on building permits as well as housing, but may be capped by likely soft print on US durable goods orders.
For this week, Mr. Ricafort expects the peso to trade between P52.40 and P52.70, while Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion, UnionBank of the Philippines chief economist, gave a P52.20-P52.60 forecast. Mr. Dumalagan gave a P52.50-P53.10 range. — Karl Angelo N. Vidal

Biofuel groups ask federal judge to freeze US refinery waiver

NEW YORK — A group representing biofuel companies asked a federal judge on Tuesday to force the US Environmental Protection Agency to stop exempting small refineries from renewable fuel laws until a lawsuit challenging the agency’s actions is resolved.
Producers United argued, among other things, the EPA violated the law when it issued retroactive biofuel credits to HollyFrontier and Sinclair Oil this year as part of a legal settlement.
The EPA’s decision, first reported by Reuters, lowers statutory renewable fuel mandates without any required public notice, the group alleges in the challenge, filed in US Appelate Court in Washington.
Several biofuel organizations have brought similar lawsuits against the EPA related to small refinery hardship waivers, but Producers United is the first to ask a judge to freeze the program.
The group did not disclose its members.
The EPA declined to comment. “We don’t comment on pending litigation,” an agency spokesman said.
The US Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) requires refiners to blend biofuels like ethanol into their fuel pool or buy compliance credits from competitors who do. Refineries with a capacity less than 75,000 barrels-per-day can receive waivers if they prove compliance would cause them disproportionate hardship
The EPA, under President Donald Trump, has greatly expanded the waiver program, awarding 29 exemptions for the 2017 calendar year, up from 16 in 2016 and just seven in 2015, EPA data shows.
The EPA says lawsuits brought by HollyFrontier and Sinclair forced the agency to expand the definition of hardship, but biofuel groups say the shift was politically motivated and driven by former EPA administrator Scott Pruitt.
The EPA gave HollyFrontier nearly $34 million worth of credits for this year to reverse denial of a waiver for one of its Wyoming plants dating back to 2015. Sinclair received waivers worth undisclosed millions for two facilities in the same state for 2014 and 2015.
Both companies had challenged EPA’s denials in a federal appellate court in Colorado in 2016.
Producers United claims the EPA’s expansion of the program was done largely in secret and must be legally scrutinized before it can be allowed to continue.
It also argues the judges in the Holly and Sinclair cases did not require the EPA to issue retroactive credits, nor did they say the refineries deserved to be exempted.
The EPA lacks the authority to issue the retroactive credits, the group argued.
The EPA is still considering one 2016 application for a hardship waiver, according to the group, which wants to ensure it does not result in more retroactive credits. — Reuters

Air Jordan XI Concord drop to liven up Holiday season

Considered as one of the “holy grails” among sneaker collectors, the Air Jordan XI is once again due to be released locally in its original colorway — the fan favorite “Concord.”
To be dropped on Dec. 8 at select Nike and Titan outlets, the Air Jordan XI Concord is to be sold at a price of P10,695.
The Air Jordan XI Concord made its debut in 1995 when National Basketball Association legend Michael Jordan sported it off his first retirement from the game and wore jersey #45 instead of the iconic #23 which the Chicago Bulls already retired.
The shoe was an instant hit for sneaker collectors and has gone on to become a “must-have” for sneaker lovers and collectors.
The Concords have also been a staple also not only on the court but also off it as people have partnered them with their casual — or even formal — wear.
The Dec. 8 drop of the Air Jordan XI Concord is a continuation of what is already an annual holiday tradition.
Highlights of the shoe include the original patent leather cut, Nike Air details on the insole, original box, and the #45 on the heel — just like when they debuted on court. — MASM

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