Facebook Instagram Linkedin Twitter Youtube
Home Blog Page 10567

House with a Clock chimes in atop N. America box office

LOS ANGELES — A horror comedy about a clock counting down to doomsday chimed in at the top of the North American box office this weekend, industry estimates showed on Sunday.
Universal’s family film The House with a Clock in Its Walls clocked up $26.9 million over its debut three-day weekend, the industry tracker Exhibitor Relations said.
Jack Black and Cate Blanchett star alongside young Owen Vaccaro as Lewis Barnavelt, an orphan sent to live with his warlock uncle.
In its second week, A Simple Favor jumped a notch to second place. Lionsgate’s tale about a mommy blogger (Anna Kendrick) investigating the disappearance of her friend (Blake Lively) earned $10.4 million.
Just a shade below with $10.3 million, Warner Bros.’ The Nun dropped to third place.
The latest fright fest in the popular Conjuring series stars Taissa Farmiga — whose sister Vera headlined two Conjuring films — in a story about a young nun, an exorcist and a guide stumbling onto a dark secret deep in Dracula country in the 1950s.
After slaying the box office at number one, sci-fi action movie The Predator fell to fourth place with earnings of $8.7 million.
A Fox reboot of the franchise’s original production that starred Arnold Schwarzenegger, the film’s $24.6 million opening weekend haul did not meet expectations.
Glitzy rom-com Crazy Rich Asians, another Warner Bros. product, held on to fifth place with $6.5 million.
The film, with a nearly all-Asian cast led by Henry Golding and Constance Wu, has a rich North American take of $159.4 million in its six-week run.
Rounding out this weekend’s top 10 were: White Boy Rick ($5.0 million); Peppermint ($3.7 million); Fahrenheit 11/9 ($3.1 million); The Meg ($2.4 million); and, Searching ($2.2 million). — AFP

Marriott opens 2nd PHL hotel in Clark Freeport

By Arra B. Francia
Reporter
CLARK FREEPORT, PAMPANGA — The hospitality sector is catching up with the number of investments coming in to Clark, as the public saw the opening of not only the first five-star hotel in Clark Freeport Zone, but also the first to carry an international brand this month.
The Clark Marriott Hotel welcomed its first guests on Sept. 14, becoming a new destination for leisure travelers, corporate guests, and for the Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, and Exhibitions (MICE) market.
“This is the newest five-star hotel in Clark Freeport Zone with exciting new rooms, exciting facilities, exciting meeting concepts, different restaurants, two bars, (and) beautiful wellness floors. We’ve got an exciting proposition,” Clark Marriott Hotel General Manager Goeran Soelter said in an interview with reporters during the hotel’s opening.
Mr. Soelter said that apart from being the first five-star hotel in the area, he observed that not many four-star hotels have opened in the past five to six years. This will allow them to capitalize on Clark’s current growth.
“There’s a lot of development happening, and a lot of investment going to Clark. He [the owner] felt it would be good to have Marriott as the first international brand. And we will enjoy this for quite some time because no other new brands will be opening in the next two, three years or so,” Mr. Soelter said.
The Clark Marriott Hotel has 260 rooms — deluxe rooms, deluxe family rooms, executive deluxe rooms, deluxe suites, an executive suite, and a presidential suite.
The hotel has five restaurant and bars, namely the Goji Kitchen + Bar (which features a separate noodle bar), Smoki Moto, Urban Coffee Co., the Pool Bar, and The Lounge. Amenities include a swimming pool, a fitness center, a kids club, and the Quan Spa.
To attract the MICE crowd, the hotel has the Grand Ballroom which can accommodate up to 360 guests. Adjacent to the ballroom are separate meeting rooms of various sizes with different capacities from 20 to 80 people.
The 16-storey hotel also boasts of being the tallest structure in Clark, making it the best spot to enjoy a view of the booming business district.
“We want people of Clark to come here for their weddings, for their birthdays, to come and have coffee, but also just come for a Friday night dinner with their family. It’s important for us that we can connect with the community and be a part of this community,” Marriott International Senior Director for Sales and Distribution in the Philippines Peter Foreman said during the interview.
Mr. Foreman also expects to welcome people from Manila driving to Clark for a weekend getaway.
“They can have a two-night weekend here, play golf, eat at a local restaurant, have a massage, do local shopping, and just explore another part of country. So the staycation business is a big part of the way we sell to the Philippines,” Mr. Foreman explained.
Planting the Marriott brand in a growing district such as Clark is further expected to attract more international and corporate guests familiar with the brand. Marriott is one of the largest hotel chains in the world — over 6,000 hotels with more than a million rooms. This is spread out across more than 30 brands and 122 countries.
This will also introduce the brand to Filipinos. This is the second Marriott Hotel in the country, the first being the Newport Marriott in the Resorts World and Casino complex in Pasay City.
“We want to attract more Filipinos when they travel abroad, but also people coming in from Sydney or Singapore or China, we want them to say that ‘Ah, we’ve got a Marriott in the local city where I’m at and that’s where I’m going to stay.’ So we’re going to give them that confidence and that brand recognition,” Mr. Foreman said.
Clark Marriott Hotel is owned and operated by Widus International Leisure, Inc., which also operates the adjacent Widus Hotel and Casino in the area.

SB Corp. in e-payment tie-up for entrepreneurs

SB Corp President and Chief Executive Officer Ma. Luna E. Cacanando — SBGFC.ORG.PH

THE Small Business Corporation (SB Corp.) has tied up with the Land Bank of the Philippines (LANDBANK) to offer an e-payment service to mostly benefit micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in rural areas.
Under the memorandum of agreement, SB Corp. will avail of Landbank’s e-payment facility under its payment service provider (PSP) as part of its efforts to provide fast and efficient payment collection services for MSMEs.
For its part Landbank, through its Link.BizPortal, will allow SB Corp. clients to transact business or pay monetary obligations to SB Corp. via the internet using any e-payment models offered by the bank.
Aside from streamlining the payment transaction, Landbank’s online portal minimizes the direct and indirect costs associated with physical cash or distribution of in-kind goods. The system also offers maximum secure security for both small and large value payments.
SB Corp. President and Chief Executive Officer Ma. Luna E. Cacanando said the agreement would help beneficiaries of the Pondo sa Pagbabago at Pag-asenso (P3) who face problems in producing a valid identification card to avail of the lending program’s benefits.
“Because, most of our clients in the P3 program are having difficulty in producing a valid identification card, we need a fintech solution and this partnership with Landbank to make documentation easier,” Ms. Cacanando said in statement on Monday.
P3 is intended to give micro enterprises better access to finance, providing them an alternative to the informal or “5-6” lending scheme.
The loanable amount per borrower can range from P5,000 to P300,000, with a maximum interest rate of 26% per annum and without collateral requirement. The rate is lower than the 20% per day, week or month charged by “5-6” lenders. It is also lower than the interest imposed by microfinancing institutions.
The program’s target loan beneficiaries are small enterprises in priority and emerging industries, start-up businesses and technology innovators.
The Department of Trade and Industry, under which the SB. Corp. is attached, estimated last year that informal lenders had so far collected some P30 billion nationwide. — Janina C. Lim

Gov’t rejects all bids for T-bills

THE GOVERNMENT rejected all bids for the Treasury bills (T-bill) it offered on Wednesday as rates came in higher than expected as the market awaits the policy meetings of the local and US central banks.
The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) did not accept any tenders during the auction on Monday, where it intended to borrow P15 billion via the short-term debt. This was the first auction where the Treasury made a full rejection in nearly seven months or since Feb. 26.
The demand for the T-bills was tepid as total tenders came in at P15.97 billion, lower than last week’s P20.7 billion and just filling the offer volume.
Broken down, the government rejected all bids for the 91-day tenor. Total offers reached just P2.991 billion out of the P4 billion it wanted to raise.
Had the government accepted all tenders, the three-month papers would have fetched an average rate of 4.381%, 83.2 basis points (bp) higher than the 3.549% tallied during the Sept. 10 auction.
The BTr also declined P4.575-billion worth of tenders put up for the 182-day debt. This is short of the P5-billion program. The average rate would have climbed 54.5 bps to 5.142% from last week’s 4.597% had the Treasury accepted all offers.
The Treasury likewise refused to award any 364-day T-bills, even with offers reaching P8.401 billion, above the P6 billion the government wanted to raise. Had the government made a full award, the papers would have fetched a yield of 5.643%, 24.3 bps higher than the 5.4% quoted last week.
At the secondary market prior to the auction yesterday, the three- and six-month papers were quoted at 4.3054% and 4.8354%, respectively, while the rate of the one-year notes stood at 5.3899%.
At the close of trading, all the T-bill tenors rallied to fetch lower rates. The 91-day debt papers were quoted at 3.9397%, while the 182-day securities fetched 4.5635%. The 364-day T-bill saw its rate drop slightly to 5.3866%.
Deputy Treasurer Erwin D. Sta. Ana said after the auction that the Treasury decided to reject bids across the board ahead of the monetary policy decisions of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) as well as the US Federal Reserve this week.
“The committee decided to fully reject all tenors…because [it] believes that it will be more prudent to wait for the policy meeting of the Monetary Board this week,” Mr. Sta. Ana told reporters on Monday.
The BSP is widely expected to tighten its policy settings anew on Thursday. In a BusinessWorld poll conducted last week, at least 15 economists expect the central bank to increase its benchmark rates by another 50 bps to quell inflation expectations.
The BSP has raised borrowing costs by a cumulative 100 bps since May, with rates currently ranging 3.5-4.5%.
Meanwhile, the Fed’s policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee is also seen to raise its rates at its meeting this week.
The market has also priced in another round of policy tightening from the US central bank in December and twice more in 2019 due to a tightening job market and rising inflation.
“From the 91- and 182-day day T-bills, both were undersubscribed. It could be a manifestation of those two events happening this week,” Mr. Sta. Ana added. “We’ve taken a more prudent way of managing it so we just have to wait for what’s going to happen this week.”
A bond trader likewise said the Treasury opted to reject all bids as expected due to the upcoming policy meetings of BSP and Fed.
“For the 364-day, it could have gone up higher by 15-20 bps had the BTr accepted bids. It’s too high so they rejected the bids instead,” the trader added.
The Treasury is raising P300 billion from the domestic market this quarter through auctions of securities, offering P195 billion in T-bills and another P105 billion in Treasury bonds.
The government plans to borrow P888.23 billion this year from local and foreign sources to fund its budget deficit, which is capped at 3% of the country’s gross domestic product.
MARAWI BONDS
Meanwhile, Mr. Sta. Ana said the BTr is preparing for a possible retail Treasury bonds (RTB) to be offered to support the rehabilitation of war-torn Marawi City, although he noted that the timing and size of the issue is still in the works.
“Timing is not certain at this point, but we are putting all efforts to make it live for Marawi,” Mr. Sta. Ana said.
Last Thursday, Task Force Bangon Marawi chair Eduardo D. Del Rosario said the government intends to raise P50-60 billion through an RTB offer next month. He said the final issue size will ultimately depend on the BTr and the Department of Finance which will determine how much will be needed.
“Although this is not sure yet, maybe an auction size at the minimum, but it depends on the requirement again for Marawi,” Mr. Sta. Ana said.
The Deputy Treasurer noted that the bureau is “still positive” about offering the RTBs within the year, which will likely carry a tenor in the short end or belly of the curve.
Mr. Sta. Ana also said a portion of the possible RTBs can be offered via an online platform.
“There is a component that is online so we are working with our market markers on how we can implement an online ordering platform,” he said.
The proceeds of the bond offer will supplement the funds allocated by the government as well as pledges and development assistance from other counties and private firms. — Karl Angelo N. Vidal

Tilemaker Esta Galleria unveils first showroom

By Bjorn Biel M. Beltran
Special Features Writer
AMID STRONG growth in the country’s construction sector, premium tilemaker Esta Galleria, Inc. made its debut in the Philippines, launching a new curated showroom at Glorietta 3, Ayala Center, Makati.
Esta Galleria, a joint venture between Ayala Corp. and Nenking Holdings Group Co., Ltd., offers premium quality tiles that build on the tile-making traditions of Foshan in Guangdong Province, China, where they are manufactured through advanced press machines and ink-jet printing technology from Italy and Spain.
“Esta Galleria is synonymous with quality, durability, and excellence,” Gabriel Katigbak, general manager of Esta Galleria, said in a statement. “Its selection is ever-expanding, ranging from the essentials to the unique and handmade.”
The company produces tiles using porcelain, cement, and stone materials, with ranges that feature wood, dry granular, lappato, soft polish, and high-definition ink-jet printed designs.
At the launch of the showroom, Mr. Katigbak told BusinessWorld that Esta Galleria seeks to capitalize on the country’s construction boom by offering the market with more varied options for premium tiles such as the brand’s unique Italian and Spanish-inspired designs, as well as its BIG+ and V-LIFE series.
According to the research arm of the Fitch Group, BMI Research, the Philippine construction industry is projected to steadily expand over the next decade, gradually expanding at an average real rate of 9.8% in the decade between 2017 and 2026.
“There’s so much construction going on in the country right now,” Mr. Katigbak said.
“Esta Galleria offers a huge array of tiles. I think what differentiates us from other brands is we’re able to offer many different designs in huge sizes. We’re here to supply our tiles to provide the market with many more options and many different designs and styles.”
The BIG+ tile series, which comes in sizes up to 1.2 x 2.4 meters, features Italian design elements printed using eight-channel ink-jet technology, and boasts of a large-scale restoration of the natural texture of stone and spatial patterns. The uniquely shaped V-LIFE collection, meanwhile, uses high standard porcelain antique technology to create a soft and glossy surface.

Tom Hardy says on-screen Venom stays true to Marvel comics

MOSCOW — British actor Tom Hardy said on Friday he believes his new superhero movie Venom remains faithful to the Marvel Comics books in its portrayal of an investigative journalist whose body becomes the host for an alien with enhanced powers.
Hardy, who previously starred in Dunkirk and Mad Max: Fury Road, plays the sharp-toothed title character and his human alter-ego, reporter Eddie Brock.
“The depiction of Venom, I think, has been extremely faithful to the comics,” Hardy said at a press conference in Moscow to promote the movie.
“If we look at some of the images directly from comic book, they haven’t deviated in any,” he added. “If anything they’ve recreated certain elements accurately from comics book.”
Venom is scheduled to start rolling out in worldwide theaters on Oct. 3. It debuts in the United States and Canada on Oct. 5. — Reuters

The orchestra goes to the movies

By Gideon Isidro and
Eunice Bacalando
Concert Review
Silver Screen Symphonies
Manila Symphony Orchestra
Sept. 16
The Theatre at Solaire
ANYBODY who is into movies would appreciate Silver Screen Symphonies, performed by the Manila Symphony Orchestra (MSO) at the Theatre at Solaire.
The MSO was joined by guest singer Demie Fresco, well known in the television scene having competed in the second season of The Voice and also being a four-day consecutive champion of ABS-CBN’s Tawag ng Tanghalan. The male vocals for the show were supplied Laurence Mossman, a Filipino-New Zealander who has appeared in the film Die Beautiful, the Filipino TV series Dolce Amore, and several music productions. To add a jazz flavor to the traditional orchestra, the MSO was joined in by saxophone player Michael Guevarra who has worked with Stevie Wonder, Diane Schuur, and the Lettermen. He is an active member of the AMP Band in the Philippines, and has performed in many countries abroad.
True to their promise to make us feel like we were in the movies, as the show opened the first frame of the 20th Century Fox introduction was projected on the screen. “They’re going to play in jive with the projection! This is awesome!” I told myself.
Unfortunately, the technical personnel played the introduction clip with the sound on (yes, they forgot to mute it), and they had to repeat the piece. The orchestra was also about five seconds delayed, so it sadly took away from the experience.
The orchestra then played what would have been probably been the best follow up to the 20th Century Fox intro, the Star Wars (1977) theme by John Williams. It was very appropriate: strong, optimistic, and made you look forward to the rest of the show.
The Star Wars theme was played perfectly; the brass were exciting, the violins endearing, and the triangle was clanging exactly the way it should be in the movies. You could really feel like the force was with you. But the MSO did not follow through with the “Imperial March” — you do not play Star Wars without the “Imperial March,” you just not do that to your movie score fans.
HORROR MUSIC
The show shifted sensibilities with John Williams’ theme for Jaws (1975), and while the MSO only had two double basses that time, they were able to produce the scary unstable sound that made you feel like Bruce the shark was just around the corner.
This was followed by music by Bernard Hermann, who did the music for several Alfred Hitchcock thrillers. In the “Prelude” of Vertigo (1958), the strings haunted with their short screechy bursts, complemented by the horns adding much tension with their long howls. However, what made MSO’s delivery worth listening to and maybe even better than the studio recording was the harp, which, unlike the studio recording, was so crisp and clear. It made one’s skin crawl.
After the horror of the prelude, the violinist concertmaster bowed a sad tune conveying the unrequited longings for another person, the opening melody for “Scene d’ Amour,” also from Vertigo. As the rest of the orchestra joined in, one felt haunting emptiness, wonder, and hope all cycling through making it an emotionally rich journey.
The prelude from Psycho (1960) was up next. While the orchestra was hitting the right notes, there was something lacking — it turned out that the MSO was lacking the basses and cellos to really make the piece work. In this instance, the violins were overpowering the bass instruments by sheer number. The violins did excellently though; their screechy, shifting of pitch perfectly exuding that tension.
JAZZ IT UP!
After that horror fest of tunes, the MSO lightened things up a bit with the jazzy theme from Taxi Driver (1976), with Guevarra called in to play the saxophone. He was fantastic! His playing was crisp and in the times when a sustain was needed, he hit it just right. The orchestra, particularly the violins, were in good sync with him, proving that they had a good rehearsals with each other. Guevarra continued to play other jazz tunes that were received well by the audience.
The next composer in the line-up was Hans Zimmer, and the orchestra started with “The Circle of Life” from The Lion King (1994). Although the MSO played music from “The Circle of Life,” they didn’t really play “it” — the most memorable parts of the song are the opening chants and the iconic “this is Lion King” moment. The MSO could have approximated the chants by using the MIDI resources that they had or with the brass instruments. The percussion was very weak in this piece. Without the opening chants and the strong percussion, it was a limp cat instead of a majestic lion.
The MSO was handicapped in the songs “I Can’t Just Wait to be King” and “Hakuna Matata” since they really couldn’t use the movie’s engaging vocals, however, they were still able to deliver something enjoyable by focusing on the happy beat and approximating the dynamic high and lows of the movie.
OF JOHN BARRY
Mossman was called on stage to sing “Born Free” from the movie Born Free (1966). The original by Matt Monro had that classic 1950s voice: a light and raspy tenor. In contrast, Mossman’s theatrical background was obvious with his voice fit for a musical: a baritone with deep bass undertones, full bodied, and well enunciated. It may have sounded awkward to people with established preferences, but the audience did applause upon hearing him sing the first lines powerfully.
The audience giggled in delight as the next piece came up; it was the “James Bond Theme!” The audience let out a laugh as Mossman exited the stage and mimicked James Bond’s iconic gun shooting pose. I’m not sure if that was planned, but it was so apt as he was wearing a tux and has a build similar to Pierce Brosnan.
Instead of being carried by an electric guitar, the main melody of the theme was carried out by the violins. Those expecting the bite and crunch of the electric guitar didn’t really appreciate it that much. But lovers of classical music might appreciate MSO’s version better as it was more classic than jazzy.
LOVE SONGS
The night’s mood changed with Titanic’s “My Heart Will Go On.” What we really loved about MSOs arrangement of the song was that they used a harp instead of a synth to complement the melody of the flute. This highlighted the Celtic flavor that the flute and its melody already had.
Fresco’s voice smoothed through instrumentals as gently as she entered the stage. Just like Mossman, her voice has personality; it’s exactly the kind of voice you would hear from Filipino local channels. It was just like watching noon time TV. And just like with Mossman, some people may have found Fresco’s singing awkward at first, but setting that aside, she had well practiced techniques and is worth a good listening to.
A still of The Mask of Zorro (1998) was projected onstage and it was time for Mossman and Fresco to have their long awaited duet. We found their singing not so compatible — their vocal ranges were just too far off. Mossman seemed to have a hard time reaching higher notes and Fresco’s high voice didn’t blend well with Mossman’s low pitches. But they are both good singers, and the MSO should get them again for other productions.
SUGGESTIONS
Tried and tested, the MSO members were their usual disciplined selves and were able to execute all the musical tasks that were laid at their feet. Their performance ethic was also shared by the three guest musicians, and you could see that they were all well rehearsed.
In order to perfect their productions, the MSO must look into rehearsing with the technical team as numerous blunders during the performance took away from the hard work of the orchestra.
The MSO should also think on delivering what will emotionally connect to the audience. For example, they should have tried to use the opening chants of the Lion King, as that’s what the people grew to love. The theme for Jurassic Park could have been included in the John Williams line-up as it’s considered as part of his top 10 most iconic scores. The orchestra was excellent, it was the selections and decisions that we have reservations with.
Overall, Silver Screen Symphonies by the Manila Symphony Orchestra was worth watching earning a 4 out of 5 stars.

EDC prepares to bid for geothermal concessions in Chile and Peru

LOPEZ-LED Energy Development Corp. (EDC) is preparing to participate in auctions for geothermal concessions in South American countries Chile and Peru, while undertaking initial construction work in a service area it won in Indonesia, its top official said.
“We’re preparing for the auctions in both Chile and Peru,” EDC President and Chief Operating Officer Richard B. Tantoco told reporters over the weekend.
“The system in Chile is the national grid is the one that auctions. There’s an auction next year, second quarter,” he said. “So we’re preparing.”
He said an EDC team based in Chile is in the Philippines to look into “constructibility reviews, EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) pricing reviews.”
Mr. Tantoco described the Chile concession as substantial with a potential capacity of 150 megawatts (MW). He said the foreign country has small geothermal assets in operation at around 30 MW, with an expected expansion by 28 MW and another one of the same size.
“So this (new concession) is gonna be bigger when it eventually gets built out, but it will take time,” he said.
In Peru, the concessions are bigger but its government has set to announce when it would schedule an auction, he said.
“Ang maganda sa Peru (What’s good with Peru is) they auction the capacity by technology,” he said, explaining that separate auctions are held for solar, geothermal and other energy sources with the national grid as the off-taker or the user of the output.
“And then we finally got awarded what they call in Indonesia [as] the PSPE rights,” he said, referring to the Indonesian term for preliminary geothermal survey and exploration assignment. “After all these years.”
He said a PSPE is the equivalent in the Philippines of a renewable energy service contract. He said the awarded rights have a “big potential.”
“We’re doing road constructibility surveys,” he said “If all goes well, drilling [could be] in about 18 to 24 months.”
Mr. Tantoco said EDC is open to partnership with local entities and had been meeting with potential partners in the past five to six years. He said Indonesian laws require a local company to have a stake of at least 5% in a geothermal venture.
In the Philippines, EDC is looking at two geothermal expansion ventures for inclusion in the government’s list of energy projects of national significance (EPNS), he said.
“There’s a couple that we’re hoping will move forward in due course,” Mr. Tantoco said.
He said the projects are an expansion of an existing geothermal projects on Mt. Apo in Mindanao, and an expansion of its Bacon-Manito (BacMan) project.
Asked whether these projects will vie for EPNS certification,” he said: “We’d like to [apply for EPNS] because they’re important.”
Executive Order No. 30 created the Energy Investment Coordinating Council (EICC), which through the Department of Energy approves projects deemed of national significance.
Asked when the company plans to apply, he said: “When we have a higher degree of certainty and confidence on the resource and the fact that the resource is not problematic.”
During the pre-development phase, an EPNS certification entitles the project to all the rights and privileges provided for under EO 30, including action on the application within 30 working days. The executive order was signed by the President in June 2017, while the Energy department issued its implementing rules and regulations in April 2018.
EPNS projects enjoy presumption of prior approval, which means it is presumed to have already complied with the requirements and permits from other government permitting agencies. It will be deemed approved if no action is made five days after the lapse of the 30 working-day period for processing of the application.
Mr. Tantoco said the Mindanao geothermal expansion could reach a capacity of 20 to 60 megawatts (MW), while BacMan could have about 40 to 60 MW.
“We don’t know until we drill the first well,” he said about the exact capacity of the Mindanao expansion.
The Mindanao project is the third phase of its project in the area. The first and second phases have a capacity of 52 MW and 54 MW, respectively. BacMan is also the third phase, after 120 MW in phase one and 20 MW in phase two.
EDC has a total installed energy capacity of 1,457 MW, of which 80% or 1,169 MW come from its geothermal projects. — Victor V. Saulon

Insurance brokers post growth in mediated premium

PREMIUM INCOME generated by brokerage activities grew in 2017 driven by mediated profit in the non-life segment, the Insurance Commission (IC) said.
In a statement on Monday, Insurance Commissioner Dennis B. Funa said the insurance brokerage industry tallied a mediated premium of P57.92 billion in 2017 as reported by 63 insurance brokerage firms.
The mediated premium income last year grew 11.23% from the P52.07 billion in total premiums logged in 2016.
The commission said 20.56% or P57.08 billion of the P227.58 billion total premium generated by life and non-life firms passed through brokerage activities.
Broken down, the bulk or 83.54% of the mediated premium generated last year came from the non-life insurance industry, totalling P48.38 billion.
On the other hand, the mediated premium from life insurance amounted to P8.7 billion, representing 15.02% of the total.
The brokerage industry likewise generated P837.34 million in membership fees for health maintenance organizations.
The top 10 insurance brokers — namely BDO Insurance Brokers, Inc.; Marsh Philippines, Inc.; AON Insurance and Reinsurance Brokers Philippines, Inc.; HSBC Insurance Brokers (Phils.), Inc.; Jardine Lloyd Thompson Insurance Brokers, Inc.; Lockton Philippines Insurance and Reinsurance Brokers, Inc.; Anchor Insurance Brokers Corp.; Gotuaco, Del Rosario Insurance Brokers, Inc.; Unicon Insurance Brokers Corp.; and Intertrade Insurance Brokers — produced 75% of the overall premium income mediated by the brokerage industry.
Likewise, the industry reported a total of P7.32 billion in terms of brokerage revenue or commissions earned as of end-2017, 12.1% higher than the P6.53 billion a year ago.
Commissions of insurance brokers were primarily from the non-life segment, totalling P6.17 billion and representing 84.21% of total earners, Mr. Funa said.
On the other hand, the reinsurance brokerage industry, according to reports from 19 firms, reported a total mediated premium profit of P2.18 billion in 2017, 61.48% higher from just P1.35 billion the previous year.
However, total commissions earned by these reinsurance brokers slid 8.62% to P154.21 million as of end-2017 from P168.75 million in 2016.
Reinsurance brokers PhilPacific Insurance Brokers and Managers, Inc.; KRM Reinsurance Brokers Phils., Inc.; Pana Harrison Reinsurance Brokers (Phils.), Inc.; Alsons Insurance Brokers Corp.; and Jardine Lloyd Thompson Insurance Brokers, Inc. produced 70% of the premium produced by the reinsurance brokerage industry last year.
The IC recently obtained the approval of the Department of Budget and Management to rename its brokers division to the brokers and insurance pools division.
“The Insurance Pools Section is tasked to recommend guidelines for the regulation and supervision of insurance pools in the country,” the IC said. — K.A.N. Vidal

Number of constructions by type

Number of Constructions by type

How PSEi member stocks performed — September 24, 2018

Here’s a quick glance at how PSEi stocks fared on Monday, September 24, 2018.

Philippine Stock Exchange’s most active stocks by value turnover — September 24, 2018.

Malacañang: Enrile, Marcos can’t ‘twist’ martial law history

MALACAÑANG ON Monday contradicted former Senate president Juan F. Ponce-Enrile’s remarks in his interview with former senator Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. contradicting several established circumstances of the martial-law regime of the late dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos.
In that interview as posted on the internet by the camp of the younger Mr. Marcos, Mr. Enrile said, among other things, that the mass arrests in the wake of the enforcement of martial law in September 1972 were “not true,” adding that no one was arrested for his political beliefs.
The younger Mr. Marcos is the only son of the late dictator Marcos, under whose regime Mr. Enrile served as martial-law administrator and defense minister. He broke ties with the dictator after a plot against Mr. Marcos was exposed, leading to the spontaneous succession of events in the 1986 People Power Revolution that finally toppled Mr. Marcos.
Among the many arrested on that Saturday night of September 23, 1972, when martial law began to be enforced, were Senators Benigno S. Aquino, Jr., Jose W. Diokno, and Ramon V. Mitra, Jr., the poet and former senator Francisco A. Rodrigo, journalists and Constitutional Convention delegates Napoleon G. Rama and Jose Mari Velez, publishers Joaquin P. Roces and Teodoro M. Locsin, and journalist Maximo V. Soliven.
Also arrested in the course of martial law’s enforcement were journalists Amando Doronila and Luis D. Beltran, and Constitutional Convention delegates Aquilino Q. Pimentel Jr., Jose Concepcion, and Teofisto T. Guingona Jr., and many others.
Sought for comment during a briefing at the Palace on Monday, Presidential Spokesperson Harry L. Roque, Jr. said: “I don’t think they can twist history when there’s a law and there are court decisions attesting to what happened during martial law. If you remember, a couple of weeks back we even had here in Malacañang as guest members of the Compensation Board, and they still have last minute problems to resolve on how to release all the compensation for the victims of martial law.”
Mr. Roque was referring to the Human Rights Victims Reparation and Recognition Act of 2013, of which Mr. Enrile himself, as Senate president five years ago, is a signatory.
“So the position of the Palace is we are implementing the law and the law says that there should be reparations paid to victims of martial law,” Mr. Roque also said. But he also added that Mr. Enrile is “entitled” to his own “belief.”
“But as far as the Palace is concerned, there are decisions affirming that there were grave human rights violations committed during the Marcos regime,” Mr. Roque said.
In an interview with ANC, former senator Rene A.V. Saguisag, a leading human-rights lawyer who fought the dictatorship, said the younger Mr. Marcos might “Heaven forbid!” become president.
“He (Mr. Enrile) has to protect his wealth, his reputation kaya (which is why he’s) brown-nosing a potential president in my view,” Mr. Saguisag said.
Mr. Roque, for his part, said: “That’s their business. That’s an issue that we have nothing to do with.” — Arjay L. Balinbin

1...10,56610,56710,568...12,880Page 10,567 of 12,880
© 2024 BusinessWorld Publishing.
All rights reserved.
Read our privacy guidelines
Facebook Instagram Linkedin Twitter Youtube