Facebook Instagram Linkedin Twitter Youtube
Home Blog Page 10815

PHL seeking greater SKorea market access for bananas

THE Philippines is considering a preferential trade agreement with South Korea to ease access for its banana exports, or may seek to include provisions for banana exports in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) free trade agreement.
Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said he met recently with his South Korean counterpart, Kim Chun, to explore greater market access for bananas to South Korea, including lower tariffs.
“We are considering options on a better process moving forward, either bilateral through a Pref(erential) Trading arrangement PTA or under ASEAN-Korea,” Mr. Lopez told reporters in a mobile message.
“We will push this forward and issue a paper in the next two weeks,” he added.
Mr. Lopez noted that the Philippines remains South Korea’s leading banana supplier, accounting for about 85% of the market. However, other countries are trying to increase their market access, possibly leading to stiffer competition in the future, he said.
A preferential trading agreement may cover only certain products or trade arrangements and may only be valid for a certain number of years.
ASEAN’s FTA with South Korea was signed in 2005.
Under the FTA, bananas, including plantains, fresh or dried, are classified as a “sensitive” commodity and its final status has not yet been negotiated.
Peru is expected to be granted zero tariffs by next year, while Vietnam, Ecuador, Costa Rica and Honduras will enjoy the same by 2022.
Philippine banana shipments to South Korea are subject to a 30% tariff.
South Korea is the Philippines’ third-biggest banana market after Japan and China.
Regarding the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which South Korea is part of, Mr. Lopez reported “good progress” in the talks among the 10 ASEAN country-members and six non-ASEAN free trade agreement partners.
“[There is] good progress on RCEP discussions as we further fine-tune the key elements with agreements on more parameters, such as level of inclusion on tariff reduction and minimal exclusion list, got goods services and investments,” Mr. Lopez said, noting that more updates will be released in the next few months.
Participating countries include ASEAN member countries plus six of its FTA partners — China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand.
If concluded, RCEP will be the largest economic trade bloc, representing close to half of the world’s population; almost a third of the global economy; and a quarter of the world’s exports.
Mr. Lopez also expects ASEAN members to sign a deal soon to strengthen e-commerce in the region. — Janina C. Lim

House bill filed seeking 60-day NFA rice buffer

HOUSE Agriculture and Food Committee Chair Jose T. Panganiban, Jr. has filed a bill proposing to increase the required rice buffer stock of the National Food Authority (NFA) to 60 days from 15 days.
House Bill 8131, or the proposed National Food Security Act of 2018, was filed on Aug. 22, amid a supply crisis and rising prices for the staple grain.
“This bill seeks to institute new measures for the NFA to more effectively handle its role of ensuring national food security and stabilizing rice supply and prices,” the ANAC-IP representative said in his explanatory note.
He also noted the bill is in line with other government efforts such as the ongoing push to legislate the Revised Agricultural Tariffication Act, which points to the need to “review and amend the NFA charter.”
Mr. Panganiban said initial capital of P25-billion needs to be allocated to the NFA for it to maintain a 60-day buffer.
“The budget for the purchase of rice stocks from the Authority for any pro-poor programs… shall be included in their respective allocations in the annual General Appropriation Act,” according to the bill.
The NFA, as proposed, will be reclassified as a Government Instrumentality vested with Corporate Powers (GICP), which makes it neither an agency nor a corporation. It shall also be an attached agency of the Office of the President, which can only be abolished upon approval of Congress.
The bill proposes governance by the seven-member Food Security Board, headed by the NFA Administrator with a representative from the Department of Agriculture as its vice chairman.
The Departments of Social Welfare and Development and Interior and Local Government, rice farmers and corn farmers shall also have seats on the governing board.
The bill also empowers the authority to hand out fines or imprisonment for “serious” offenses like hoarding, profiteering, and cartel behavior. — Charmaine A. Tadalan

CTA rejects Philip Morris refund claim

THE Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) has dismissed a claim by Phillip Morris Philippines Manufacturing, Inc. for a refund worth over P152 million, citing procedural faults like a lapsed filing deadline.
According to the decision dated Aug. 3, the tobacco company filed a Petition for Review against the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) seeking “the refund or issuance of tax credit certificate in the total amount of P152,877,472.10 corresponding to the excise tax allegedly advanced or deposited by it on tobacco and cigarette products it exported.”
The decision, signed by CTA Associate Justice Cielito N. Mindaro-Grulla, said that review petition was denied “for lack of merit.”
In 2014, Phillip Morris filed an administrative claim for the refund of more than P150 million which allegedly represents “excise tax advanced or deposited by petitioner on tobacco and cigarette products it exported for the period covering January 12, 2009 to December 31, 2009.”
It added that it “has not been replenished or refunded under RR No. 3-08 including Product Replenishment Certificates (PRCs) with outstanding balances and Product Replenishment Debit Memo (PRDM) for replenishment.”
According to the BIR website, RR No. 3-08 “Amends certain provisions of existing Revenue Regulations on the granting of outright Excise Tax exemption on removal of excisable articles intended for export or sale/delivery to international carriers or to tax-exempt entities/agencies and prescribes the provisions for availing claims for product replenishment.”
The CTA ruled that the tobacco company’s claim for refund “is already barred by prescription pursuant to Sections 204(C) and 229 of the NIRC of 1997” which states that no tax credit or refund is allowed unless the petitioner files a claim to the BIR within two years since the payment of the tax or penalty.
According to Sections 204(C) of the NIRC of 1997, “No credit or refund of taxes or penalties shall be allowed unless the taxpayer files in writing with the Commissioner a claim for credit or refund within two (2) years after the payment of the tax or penalty.”
Section 229 states: “In any case, no such suit or proceeding shall be filed after the expiration of two (2) years from the date of payment of the tax or penalty.”
CTA’s decision stressed, “Taxpayers are not left without recourse. Remedies were provided under the regulations.”
The court added, “Petitioner failed to comply with the required procedure when it belatedly filed the claim for refund or issuance of tax credit certificate.” — Gillian M. Cortez

OECD finds improvements in Southeast Asian SME policy framework

THE Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said it found an improved policy environment for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Southeast Asia since its last survey in 2014, particularly in terms of e-commerce access.
The OECD’s SME Policy Index: ASEAN 2018, published over the weekend, said the prioritization of the sector comes as incomes rise and trade barriers fall, opening up opportunities for SMEs producing goods and services.
“The report finds that most ASEAN countries are active in the area of SME policy and apply a mix of horizontal and targeted approaches. On the horizontal side, they tend to prioritize measures to cut red tape and streamline business registration. On the targeted side, they tend to focus on measures to enhance productivity and increase access to finance,” The OECD said in the report’s executive summary.
Carried out between July 2016 and October 2017, the OECD report covers SME productivity, technology and innovation; environmental policy; access to finance; access to markets and internationalization; institutional frameworks; legislation, regulation and tax; entrepreneurial education and skills; and social enterprises and inclusive SMEs.
On a scale of 1 to 6, the region scored highest in measures to enhance access to markets and internationalization at 4.55; promotion of entrepreneurial education and skills at 4.27; and institutional framework at 4.20.
It cited Singapore and Malaysia as having “an advanced stage of policy development in a significant number of policy areas, with policies adhering to international best practices.
Meanwhile, Indonesia,Thailand and the Philippines were tagged as “mid-level performers in most policy areas.”
“This indicates that their SME policy is well-elaborated and adequately implemented, though some limitations remain, often in monitoring and evaluation,” the report said.
On the other hand, Brunei Daruasalam and Vietnam are still considered relatively new to SME policy.
The Philippines scored best at 4.44 in the institutional framework category and worst at 3.36 on legislation due to regulation and taxes.
“Company registration is still rather burdensome in the Philippines. Further steps could be taken to streamline registration requirements among different government agencies. This could facilitate the creation of a single registration number to operate a business or at least reduce the number of registration numbers required,” it said.
The report also recommends removing the mandatory lending requirement which seems to “prevent banks from efficiently allocating credit.”
It added that the needs to Philippines enhance and improve international market access while boosting adoption of new technology.
“The Philippines has traditionally adopted a service delivery approach to SME policy providing services to help SMEs increase their competitiveness,” the report said.
“However, the country also pursues a secondary objective, which sees SME policy as a tool to decrease poverty and regional inequalities as part of its goal of building a predominantly middle class society by 2040,” it added.
The report noted that the private sector participation in SMEs is “relatively robust.” However, firms are hindered by “lack of infrastructure, rather weak institutions and relatively burdensome tax rates and regulations.
It added that government bureaucracy and graft and corruption remain commonplace particularly in the procurement.
In 2016, the Philippines had 915,726 registered enterprises. Of these, 89.6% were classified as micro-sized, 5% small and 4% medium, and 0.4% large.
SMEs accounted for 63.3% of employment and 36% of GDP that year. — Janina C. Lim

CTA rules against BIR on Hard Rock Cafe deficiency tax

THE Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) has ruled against the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) which assessed Hard Rock Cafe (Makati City) Inc. (HRCM) a deficiency tax charge of over P22 million in 2012.
In a decision dated Aug. 15, the CTA found that HRCM was assessed an 18% amusement tax as a “bar and cafe night club,” resulting in a deficiency percentage tax of P22,098,415.04.
The BIR claimed that HRCM enters into contracts with various artists to perform every night and the talent fees were passed on to customers through higher prices. It added that customers patronize the establishment mainly to watch the artists, to dance, and to mingle with performers.
The CTA said the BIR “failed to present evidence that petitioner’s establishment also functions as a night club.”
“In the case at hand, it was established that although petitioner provides some form of entertainment, the same are but incidental to its main line of business of serving food and drinks. While customers may dance within the dining area, there is no designated dance floor,” the CTA said.
“Likewise, records are bereft of evidence that the petitioner employs dancers to dance with its customers… Records are bereft of evidence that petitioner’s establishment was frequented by customers for dancing either with their own partners or professional dancers furnished by petitioner,” it added.
Section 2 of Revenue Regulation No. 14-67 states that “night clubs” are places “frequented by pleasure seekers at night where food and wines and drinks are served and music furnished and the patrons allowed to dance whether with their own partners or professional hostesses furnished by such resorts.”
According to Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 18-2010, night and day clubs are drinking, dancing, and entertainment venues which “oftentimes also serve food and provide entertainment.” — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

TRAIN Law: PEZA tax incentives for registered enterprises

THE TRAIN law is expected to make significant changes to the tax incentives of PEZA registered enterprises.
With the enactment of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law, there has been concern on the impact of the law on new and existing Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA)-registered enterprises. Stakeholders are also concerned that investors, including PEZA-registered enterprises, may be re-thinking their business plans in the country if tax incentives that are currently available will be removed.
Before the TRAIN law, PEZA-registered enterprises were granted income tax holidays (ITH) of three, four or six years, which means that for that given period, the PEZA-registered enterprise are fully exempt from income taxes levied by the national government (but not from all other national taxes). These PEZA-registered enterprises also enjoyed a 5% preferential tax rate on gross income earned in lieu of all national and local taxes (except real property taxes on land owned by developers) after the expiration of the ITH.
Likewise, prior to the TRAIN law, PEZA-registered enterprises enjoyed VAT zero-rating on local purchases of goods and services. This means that any sale of goods, property or services made by a VAT-registered supplier from the Customs Territory to any PEZA-registered enterprise is legally entitled to zero percent (0%) VAT.
However, when the TRAIN law took effect this year, the provision of zero-rating of sales of goods and services to registered enterprises within separate customs territories and tourism enterprise zones was vetoed by the President. There were questions on whether the vetoed provision immediately removed the existing VAT zero-rating enjoyed by PEZA registered enterprises on their purchase of goods and services.
It is noteworthy to mention that even prior to the TRAIN law, the zero-rating of sales of goods and services had a legal basis under the PEZA law (RA 7916). Furthermore, Revenue Memorandum Circular (RMC) No. 74-99 specifically states that all sales of goods or property to a PEZA-registered enterprise made by a VAT registered supplier from the Customs Territory is subject to 0% VAT.
Court rulings have also held that sales to PEZA-registered enterprises are zero-rated sales following the Destination principle. Under this principle — to which our Philippine VAT system adheres — goods and services are taxed only in the country where they are consumed. Thus, sales of goods and services made by local suppliers to PEZA-registered entities are treated as zero-rated sales because these are considered export sales and not destined for local consumption.
To address the issue on the VAT zero-rating of sales of goods to PEZA-registered enterprises, the PEZA issued Memorandum Circular (MC) No. 2018-003 on March 12, declaring status quo on the VAT zero-rating incentive on the sale of goods and services to separate customs territories. Notwithstanding this, taxpayers are anticipating the implementation of the Enhanced VAT Refund Mechanism, which will have a significant impact on the VAT-zero rating of goods.
With the Enhanced VAT Refund Mechanism, the sale of goods to PEZA-registered enterprises will no longer be considered export sales subject to 0% VAT. That said, both existing and new PEZA-registered enterprises will need to pay 12% VAT and thus, may be able to file for a refund for any unutilized input VAT.
The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) issued RMC No. 17-2018, amending RMC No. 89-2017 and RMC No. 54-2014 pertaining to the processing of claims for issuance of tax refunds or tax credit certificates in relation to the amendments by the TRAIN law. The BIR is now given a period of 90 days from the date of submission of the official receipts or invoices to decide on any VAT refund claims filed. The TRAIN law also has a provision that the failure of any BIR official to act on the VAT refund claim within the 90-day period could result in administrative and criminal liability for the said BIR official.
With the new 90-day period to decide on a claim, taxpayers are concerned that BIR officials will just deny VAT refund claims if they are unable to meet the deadline. Prior to the TRAIN law, if the BIR deemed the VAT refund claim as proper, it could either grant a cash refund or issue a tax credit certificate. However, under the TRAIN law, the VAT refund claim will be granted only through a cash refund.
Another interesting change under the enhanced VAT refund mechanism is the automatic appropriation. This means that 5% of the total VAT collection of the BIR from the immediately preceding year shall be treated as a special account in the general fund or as trust receipts for the purpose of funding the claims for VAT refunds. With the amendments brought about by the Enhanced VAT Refund Mechanism, taxpayers may have a shorter window for cash refunds to which they may be entitled.
The possible change in the VAT zero-rating is dependent upon the fulfilment of the following conditions: (1) the successful establishment and implementation of an enhanced VAT refund system that grants refunds of creditable input tax within 90 days from the filing of the VAT refund application with the BIR; and (2) all pending VAT refund claims as of Dec. 31, 2017, shall be fully paid in cash by Dec. 31, 2019.
We should note that the BIR has yet to issue clear guidelines on these matters. Until the time the BIR has clearly addressed this, taxpayers — including PEZA registered enterprises — can only hope that this enhanced VAT refund mechanism will be implemented as it should be and that their current tax incentives will continue.
This article is for general information only and is not a substitute for professional advice where the facts and circumstances warrant. The views and opinion expressed above are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of SGV & Co.
 
Irish Rosanne M. Pullante is a Senior Associate at SGV — Financial Services Tax.

TNT catches a break in battle of striving teams

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo, Senior Reporter
THE TNT KaTropa caught a break and stopped their losing skein on Sunday, defeating the Columbian Dyip, 118-114, in overtime in their battle of struggling teams in the Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Playing sans head coach Nash Racela, who was reportedly “put on leave” by management following a rough start to the season-ending PBA conference, TNT held steady amid a resilient fight from Columbian to wiggle out of a three-game losing streak and get back to winning while infusing life back to its flickering campaign.
Led by guard Terrence Romeo, the KaTropa raced to an early lead in the opening quarter of the contest.
The count stood at 8-7 and TNT on top with 9:38 to go in the first quarter before the KaTropa went on a 14-2 run with Mr. Romeo leading the charge to build a 22-9 advantage midway into the frame.
Columbian tried to rally back behind Jerramy King but TNT would hold strong to take a 40-26 lead after the first 12 minutes.
The Dyip started the second quarter with more spring to their game.
With contributions coming from different directions, Columbian would manage to narrow the gap to four points, 49-45, with 4:03 to go in the period.
But Jayson Castro would douse water on the rally of the Dyip, hitting back-to-back triples in the next minute to give his team more elbow room, 55-45, which they would use as leverage to remain in control, 61-48, by the halftime break.
Columbian continued to fight back in the third period as import Akeem Wright got his groove going.
They cut back TNT’s lead to five points a number of times, the last one at 73-68 at the 4:53 mark, but continued to be under heading into final canto, 84-77.
Mr. Wright and RaShawn McCarthy got the Dyip to a fast start in the fourth period, helping their team to reclaim the lead, 90-89, with 7:21 to go in the game.
The two teams had a slugfest after, fighting to a 104-103 count, with TNT ahead, entering the last two minutes.
The KaTropa extended their lead to four points, 107-103, after Roger Pogoy hit a triple with 1:05 remaining.
Mr. Wright cut TNT’s lead to two, 107-105, with a quick layup seven seconds later.
TNT tried to add on to its lead after but its trip down court went fruitless.
Columbian sued for time with 18 ticks left on the clock to set up a play.
It went to Mr. Wright who drove to the basket and drop off at the last moment to Russell Escoto to tie the score at 107-all with 10 seconds to go.
The KaTropa called time and set up a play but Mr. Romeo’s looper as time expired did not fall, sending the game to extra period.
Momentum swung in overtime with the two teams exchanging leads.
TNT was on top, 115-114, with a minute left in the match before Mr. Romeo made it a three-point lead, 117-114, with 57 seconds remaining.
The score stood the same with 17 seconds left as the Dyip called a timeout.
They were forced to a turnover, however, which proved to be an error they could not recover from.
Mr. Castro led TNT with 25 points and seven assists while Mr. Romeo added 22 points and six dimes.
Mr. Pogoy had 16 while Anthony Semerad had 15 points.
Import Stacy Davis only had 11 points in 22 limited minutes.
Mr. King, meanwhile, paced the Dyip with 26 points with Mr. Wright finishing with 24 points, nine rebounds and nine assists. Mr. McCarthy had 18 points.
With the win TNT improved to 2-4 while Columbian remained winless at 0-5.

A campaign of lessons for volleyball and basketball

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo, Senior Reporter
THE 18th Asian Games campaigns of the Philippine women’s volleyball and men’s basketball teams in Indonesia officially came to an end on Saturday and Friday, respectively, with both looking at them with some regrets, believing they could have done better, but nonetheless determined to make full use of the lessons they got moving forward.
After the battle smoke cleared, the Philippine volleybelles wound at eighth place in the field of 11 nations in the tournament topped by China.
The team won one match against Hong Kong in its seven games and lost to host Indonesia, 3-1, in the battle for seventh place on Saturday.
The Philippines, however, made a strong run for the battle for fifth in its consolation clash with Kazakhstan a day prior, stretching the latter to five sets before bowing down by the slimmest of margins, 11-25, 25-22, 15-25, 25-19 and 14-16.
“Too bad, breaks didn’t go our way,” national team coach Shaq Delos Santos surmised after the tough loss against Kazakhstan.
“But it’s okay. Our purpose here is to gain experience and compete against the best teams in Asia. The fact that we managed to drag Kazakhstan to five sets is a good sign of our progress,” he added.
The coach went on to say that their journey continues after the Asian Games and that they hope to build on the gains they got from their two-week campaign.
“We will not stop. We’re just starting the national team program. Our training and exposure in other major tournaments would definitely continue,” he said.
“After this, we’ll be going to the AVC Asian Cup. Again, our hopes are high. I hope the team would carry all the lessons they gained here and show improvement when we face other Asian teams again in Thailand,” added Mr. Delos Santos, whose Asian Games team was led by the likes of Alyssa Valdez, Jaja Santiago, Kim Fajardo, Aby Marano, and Cha Cruz.
COMPETING FOR GOLD MEDAL
For the men’s basketball team, meanwhile, it, too, rued the could-have-beens in its just-concluded Asian Games bid but instead chose not to focus too much on them but rather on the positives, including having the chance to play with a National Basketball Association-caliber player like Filipino-American Jordan Clarkson.
“Of course there is some regret. Our game against China [in the preliminary round], had we pulled it off we could have been playing for a gold medal. Our game against Korea [in the quarterfinals], in the fourth quarter they just got the breaks in the offensive rebounds which they turned to big baskets. But overall we are happy with our showing,” said national team coach Yeng Guiao upon their return from Indonesia after their journey ended on Friday.
The Philippines had winnable games against China and South Korea before losing, 82-80, in group play, and, 91-82, in the quarterfinals, respectively.
But the team bounced back with very convincing victories over Japan and Syria in the consolation clashes, winning by an average margin of 43.5 points, to finish fifth in the tournament, which eventually won by China over Iran.
“Playing with Jordan Clarkson was a great experience. It’s not just his ability to play but who he is as a person. He is very grounded despite his stature as an NBA player and he is very Filipino. We enjoyed playing with him and so did he,” said Mr. Guiao of their experience with Mr. Clarkson, who plays for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA.
“He (Clarkson), too, shared our regret of not being able to vie for a medal but we all realized that we can compete against China and Korea. We were not able to go up against Iran but we will see what we can do against it on September 13,” said Mr. Guiao, referring to the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers second round where the Philippines faces off first with Iran.
Mr. Guiao was named to handle the FIBA World Cup qualifier team in place of Chot Reyes, who is serving a suspension following a brawl involving the Philippines and Australia on July 2.
Meanwhile, as of this writing, the Philippines was to end its campaign at the 18th Asian Games with the triathlon athletes seeing action.
The Philippines stood at 19th place with four gold, two silver and 15 bronze medals, as of noon on Sunday.
The closing ceremonies for the quadrennial continental sporting meet, which took place in Jakarta and Palembang, were to take place later yesterday.

Federer out-maneuvers Kyrgios as Kerber, Zverev fall at US Open

NEW YORK — Five-time champion Roger Federer found a new way to amaze Saturday as he reached the US Open last 16 with a 6-4, 6-1, 7-5 victory over Nick Kyrgios.
The second-seeded Swiss withstood an early onslaught from the unpredictable Aussie, firing 51 winners that included an unlikely forehand flicked around the net post that Kyrgios couldn’t believe.
“Definitely a bit of luck and good feet,” Federer said of the shot that had Kyrgios wide-eyed at the net.
Federer had the luxury of a two-set lead when the duo’s most entertaining exchanges thrilled the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd.
Things would have been much different if Kyrgios could have converted one of four break points in the seventh game of the opening set.
But Federer escaped, breaking Kyrgios to pocket the first set and dominating the second.
“He’s an unbelievable frontrunner,” Kyrgios said. “When he gets in front, there’s not much you can do.”
Federer will be seeking a 13th appearance in the US Open quarter-finals when he plays Australian John Millman, who reached the last 16 of a major for the first time with a 6-4, 4-6, 6-1, 6-3 victory over Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin.
If he makes it past Millman, Federer could find Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic waiting in the last eight.
Djokovic, winner of US Open titles in 2011 and 2015, extended his dominance over Richard Gasquet with a 6-2, 6-3, 6-3 victory in front of a rowdy night crowd on Ashe.
“It was the best match of the week so far without a doubt, and one of the best performances of the hardcourt season after Wimbledon,” said Djokovic, who warmed up for Flushing Meadows by beating Federer in the Cincinnati Masters final.
Djokovic saved all five break points he faced to book a meeting with Joao Sousa of Portugal, a 7-6 (7/5), 4-6, 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (7/5) winner over France’s Lucas Pouille.
KERBER CAN’T GET IT DONE
The third round was the end of the line for men’s and women’s fourth seeds from Germany — Alexander Zverev and Angelique Kerber.
Kerber, the 2016 US Open winner tying to become the third woman in the last 20 years to win both Wimbledon and the US Open in the same season, was bundled out by Slovakia’s Dominika Cibulkova 3-6, 6-3, 6-3.
Zverev, the 21-year-old sensation, who has lifted titles in Munich, Madrid and Washington this year and reached finals in Miami and Rome, fell 6-7 (1/7), 6-4, 6-1, 6-3 to veteran compatriot Philippe Kohlschreiber.
It was another Grand Slam disappointment for Zverev, touted as the youngster most likely to end the major dominance of Federer, Djokovic, and Rafael Nadal.
Kohlschreiber will seek a quarter-final berth against 2014 runner-up Kei Nishikori after the Japanese downed Argentine Diego Schwartzman 6-4, 6-4, 5-7, 6-1.
Kerber’s defeat followed the early exits of world number one Simona Halep and No. 2 Caroline Wozniacki — who were both also seeking a second Grand Slam title of the year.
Fifth seed Petra Kvitova was also ousted, the two-time Wimbledon champion falling 7-5, 6-1 to rising Belarussian star Aryna Sabalenka.
In all just three of the top 10 women made it through to the fourth round, although Kerber didn’t blame a domino effect for her departure.
“I’m not looking around who was winning or who was losing,” she said. “You have sometimes days where you are trying everything, but it’s not really working as you wish.”
Cibulkova, the 29th seed, moves on to face 2017 finalist Madison Keys, who shook off a slow start to beat Serbian Aleksandra Krunic 4-6, 6-1, 6-2.
Sabalenka will play Japan’s Naomi Osaka, who crushed Aliaksandra Sasnovich 6-0, 6-0.
Sixth-seeded Caroline Garcia of France also departed, beaten 5-7, 6-4, 7-6 (7/4) by Spain’s Carla Suarez Navarro, and Czech teenager Marketa Vondrousova sprang a surprise, too, with a 7-6 (7/4), 2-6, 7-6 (7/1) victory over 13th-seeded Belgian Kiki Bertens.
Suarez Navarro, seeded 30th, next faces 2006 champion Maria Sharapova, who defeated 2017 French Open winner Jelena Ostapenko 6-3, 6-2.
Vondrousova, through to a Grand Slam third round for the first time, will play Ukraine’s Lesia Tsurenko, who defeated Czech Katerina Siniakova 6-4, 6-0 after taking out Wozniacki in the second round. — AFP

Kaya FC-Iloilo and Davao Aguilas open Copa Paulino Alcantara bids with wins

KAYA FC-Iloilo and Davao Aguilas FC got their respective campaigns at the Copa Paulino Alcantara to a winning start, taking their tournament debuts at the weekend at the Rizal Memorial Football Stadium.
Iloilo-based Kaya defeated Global Cebu FC, 4-0, in Group B while the Aguilas got the better of two-time Philippines Football League champion Ceres-Negros FC, 3-1, in Group A in the kickoff double header on Saturday of the first-ever staging of the tournament named after the legendary Filipino-Spanish footballer Alcantara.
Robert Lopez Mendy scored a hat trick for Kaya to get their Copa bid rolling with Miguel Tanton adding another goal in the victory.
Kaya was aggressive to start the match with its efforts finally bearing fruit in the 23rd minute with Mr. Mendy curled the ball to the net to break the nil-nil tie.
Global did well in containing the bleeding and just be down, 1-0, by the halftime break.
In the second half though, things would open up for Kaya with Mr. Tanton scoring on a free kick early at the 49th minute to make it 2-0.
Then Mr. Mendy scored the second of his hat trick six minutes later before sealing the deal for Kaya with another goal in the 62nd minute.
The hat trick was the third this year for Mr. Lopez Mendy, and first in the Copa Paulino Alcantara, with Kaya, which finished runner-up in the recent PFL season.
“We’re happy to get the three points. We played the first half and the first 25 minutes of the second half really well. It was a mixed game, where we employed different approaches. In terms of objective, we were able to get the three points. But moving forward, if we really want to win the Copa Paulino Alcantara, we need to sustain it for 90 minutes,” said Kaya head coach Noel Marcaida following their win.
AGUILAS WIN
Meanwhile, Davao dug deep to book its first win at the expense of powerhouse Ceres in the night cap.
Matthew Hartmann, Phil Younghusband and Tahj Minniecon provided the goals for the Aguilas as they fended off the “Busmen.”
Ceres had its chances to start the match but could not complete them and saw it beaten to the punch for the opening goal in the 38th minute when Mr. Hartmann found the bottom of the net.
Two minutes later, Mr. Younghusband scored for Davao to make it 2-0 heading into the halftime break.
Ceres opened the second half with urgency and was consequently rewarded with a goal in the 54th with Blake Powell on the scoring end to narrow the gap, 2-1.
The two teams battled after with the Aguilas eventually creating more breathing space, 3-1, in the 76th minute care of Mr. Minniecon. It was a lead they would hold on to the rest of the way.
The Copa Paulino Alcantara has all six teams in the PFL, divided into two groups, competing and trying to win the title and earn a spot in the 2019 AFC Cup.
Making up Group A are Ceres, Stallion Laguna FC and Davao while Group B has Kaya, JPV Marikina FC and Global.
Copa Paulino Alcantara matches will be played from Sept. 1 to Oct. 27 in various venues, including Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila and the Philippine Football Federation Training Center in Carmona, Cavite. Matches will be streamed live over PFLTV.ph. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Lakers waive Luol Deng to save money for 2019 NBA free agency

LOS ANGELES — Britain’s Luol Deng was waived Saturday by the Los Angeles Lakers, enabling the club to save enough money under NBA salary cap rules to land a top 2019 free agent.
The move came on the first day the Lakers could use a waive-and-stretch rule to spread the final year of his salary cap cost over three seasons.
That will give the Lakers enough money next year to add a maximum-level free agent to play alongside LeBron James as the once-mighty team tries to rebuild around the four-time NBA Most Valuable Player after years of struggles.
Deng, 33, played in 57 games for the Lakers over two seasons, averaging 7.5 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists. But his time was limited since Magic Johnson took charge of the club.
“We made this move to further our future salary cap and roster flexibility as we continue to build this Lakers team according to our current overall vision,” Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka said.
Next year’s potential free agent market includes Golden State stars Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson and Toronto’s Kawhi Leonard.
Deng, born in what is now South Sudan, looks to continue his career for what would be a 15th NBA campaign after more than nine seasons in Chicago and stints in Cleveland, Miami as well as with the Lakers.
He has career averages of 15.0 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.0 steals over 880 NBA games. — AFP

Disappointed Rogen Ladon really wanted to get gold

ONE of the Filipino athletes who had a solid shot at a gold medal at the just-concluded 18th Asian Games in Indonesia, it is understandable the disappointment that boxer Rogen Ladon is feeling, more so because of the circumstances how things ended for him which he described as far from ideal.
The last man standing for the Philippine boxing team, flyweight Ladon was on track for a gold medal until a head-butt from opponent Jasurbek Latipov of Uzbekistan in their gold medal on Saturday derailed his quest, forcing him to settle for a silver medal.
Absorbing an ugly wound on his right eyebrow that oozed with blood following the head-butt, the ring doctor forced to stop the fight 22 seconds into the second round.
Moments later, the match was sent to the judges’ scorecards which yielded in favor of Mr. Latipov, 3-1.
Mr. Ladon said he was very disappointment of the result, believing he was doing well until the head-butt, which he claimed to be suspicious in nature.
“It’s a big disappointment. It’s a major disappointment. Not only me, but the entire country aspired for the gold medal,” said Mr. Ladon after the medal awarding ceremonies.
“He [Latipov] was in the ropes and when he sprung back, he gave me the head butt,” he said.
Philippine sports and boxing officials lamented the way thing ended for Mr. Ladon and some of the Filipino boxers who wound up on the raw end of what they deemed to be questionable decisions.
They vowed to raise much-needed reforms to world boxing governing bodies so as to limit occurrences of such incidence.
All in all, the eight-athlete Philippine boxing team chalked up three medals at the 2018 Asiad — one silver and two bronzes from light flyweight Carlo Paalam and middleweight Eumir Felix Marcial.
Mr. Ladon’s silver was in addition to that won by judoka Kiyomi Watanabe in the women’s 63kg event. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

1...10,81410,81510,816...13,027Page 10,815 of 13,027
© 2024 BusinessWorld Publishing.
All rights reserved.
Read our privacy guidelines
Facebook Instagram Linkedin Twitter Youtube