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BDO to raise P5 billion in fresh funds via LTNCDs

BDO Unibank, Inc. will raise P5 billion via long-term negotiable certificates of deposit.

BDO UNIBANK, Inc. is set to raise P5 billion worth of long-term negotiable certificates of deposit (LTNCD) to support its business expansion and extend the maturity of its funding sources.
In a disclosure to the local bourse on Wednesday, the Sy-led lender said it will offer 5.5-year LTNCDs amounting to P5 billion, with an option to increase the issue size depending on market demand.
With an indicative pricing of 5.125-5.5%, the final coupon rate will be set before or after the offer period, which will run from March 27 until April 5. However, the bank can adjust the offer period as needed.
Investors can invest for a minimum of P100,000 with increments of P50,000. Interest will be paid quarterly in arrears. The debt papers will be issued on April 12.
Like regular time deposits offered by banks, LTNCDs offer higher interest rates. However, LTNCDs cannot be pre-terminated but can be sold on the secondary market, making them “negotiable.”
These instruments are insured by the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. and are exempt from withholding tax, given that the papers will be held at least five years.
BDO said the fund-raising activity is part of its “efforts to lengthen the maturity of its funding sources and support business expansion plans.”
In April 2018, the country’s biggest bank raised P8.2 billion via LTNCDs, carrying an interest rate of 4.375% per annum. The offer was upsized from the initial offer of P5 billion to accommodate strong demand from investors.
Deutsche Bank AG-Manila branch will serve as the sole lead arranger of the latest LTNCD offer. It will also act a selling agent alongside BDO and BDO Private Bank. Meanwhile, BDO Capital and Investment Corp. will be the bank’s financial advisor.
BDO booked a record-high net income of P32.7 billion in 2018, up 17% from the P28.1 billion tallied a year ago, on the back of robust earnings from its core businesses.
BDO shares closed unchanged at P132 apiece on Wednesday. — Karl Angelo N. Vidal

MPTC subsidiary begins working on Cavite portion of CALAX

By Denise A. Valdez, Reporter
A METRO PACIFIC Tollways Corp. (MPTC) unit on Wednesday broke ground for the Cavite segment of the Cavite-Laguna Expressway (CALAX).
“Ngayon ay pinagdiriwang natin ang pagsisimula ng construction ng Cavite segment ng Cavite-Laguna Expressway [Today we celebrate the start of construction of the Cavite segment of the Cavite-Laguna Expressway],” MPTC President Rodrigo E. Franco said during a ceremony in Imus, Cavite yesterday.
“In (three) years time, we hope the province of Cavite will have a brand-new expressway that will connect to the existing CAVITEx (Manila-Cavite Expressway), which is also operated by the Metro Pacific group,” he added.
The P35.43-billion CALAX is a project of MPCALA Holdings, Inc. which aims to build a 45.3-kilometer link between CAVITEx and the South Luzon Expressway (SLEx).
It is divided into two sections: the 27.2-kilometer Cavite section which just broke ground, and the 18.1-kilometer Laguna section which is already being built.
“The Laguna section of the CALAX project is also under construction, and we expect to open the first sections of the Laguna section sometime by the third quarter, as early as July of this year,” Mr. Franco said.
The whole CALAX alignment is scheduled for completion in 2022. By then, it is expected to accommodate 50,000 cars and reduce travel time from CAVITEx to SLEx to below 45 minutes from the current 2.5 hours.
“Nagmamadali na po kami dahil kailangan matapos lahat ng [We’re rushing because we need to finish all] projects by 2022, before the end of the term of President Duterte. We will deliver on our promise, not just to solve traffic, but to bring development to our provinces,” Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark A. Villar said.
MPTC is the tollways unit of Metro Pacific Investments Corp., one of three key Philippine units of Hong-Kong based First Pacific Co. Ltd., the others being Philex Mining Corp. and PLDT, Inc. 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.

Shakespeare theater company coming to Manila


SHAKESPEARE’s Rose Theatre Company will make its international debut in Manila in September. The UK company will be performing two of Shakespeare’s plays — Macbeth and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The two plays will play over one week for nine shows only from Sept. 17 to 22.
The productions are brought to the Philippines by Lunchbox Theatrical Productions, which previously brought in shows such as Phantom of the Opera, Wicked, and Mamma Mia.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a riot of criss-crossed love and feuding fairies, with clod-hopping amateur actors and a magical potion adding to the confusion and mayhem.
Macbeth is bloody, action-packed and psychologically tense. Populated by witches, ghosts and haunting apparitions, it tells the story of over-reaching ambition, a toxic marriage, a kingdom in crisis, and a man’s encounter with his own darkest self.
Shakespeare’s Rose Theatre rose in the historic city of York, UK, last year, inspired by the famous London Rose Playhouse built in 1587, 12 years prior to The Globe. It recreates the experience of watching theater in an Elizabethan setting. The 21st century version has a 13-sided pop-up Elizabethan-style theater constructed from state-of-the-art scaffolding, corrugated iron and timber, and comprised three tiers of covered seating with an open courtyard for standing “groundlings.”
In its debut season last year, Shakespeare’s Rose Theatre garnered popular and critical acclaim, as well as awards for Best Cultural Experience and Best Attraction. This year it will return for a second season in York, while simultaneously a second theater will make its debut at Blenheim Palace in Oxford, UK.
Now Philippine audiences can enjoy these two productions, which come direct from the summer season at Blenheim Palace, performed by a British cast in their first international season at Theatre at Solaire.
Originator of the project and CEO of Lunchbox Theatrical Productions, James Cundall, said “While Manila audiences will be seated in the comfort of Theatre at Solaire rather than an open-air scaffolding structure, the two productions will be innovative, immersive and fun, with the actors making some of their entrances and exits through the audience. We will have dramatic sword-fights, bubbling cauldrons, wayward fairies, comic love scenes, gruesome murders, grand poetry and no shortage of fake blood! I believe Shakespeare’s Rose Theatre offers something for everyone, and will showcase heritage theatre at its best.”
Artistic Director for Shakespeare’s Rose Theatre and The director of Macbeth will be Damian Cruden, who worked with the company last year, and was Artistic Director at York Theatre Royal for over 20 years. Directing A Midsummer Night’s Dream is Juliet Forster who was the original director for the play and will also be directing other titles in the UK season this summer.
For more information, visit www.shakespearesrosetheatre.com.

Tech-based confidential feedback platform for workplaces helping women employees speak up

IN A male-dominated industry, women in the field of technology are now given the chance to speak up through tech-based tools.
Dorothy Yiu, chief operating officer of EngageRocket, a cloud-based software that helps a company make better decisions in relations to its people using data, said although women in technology are already growing, they are still relatively outnumbered by men.
Founded in 2016, the Singapore-based company specializes in developing tools for companies to improve employee engagement and productivity, as well as to provide an early warning for employee attrition.
Noting a recent report across seven major technology companies, she said women account for less than 30% of leadership positions and less than 27% for technical positions. The companies included in the study were Facebook, Intel, Amazon, Twitter, Microsoft, Google, and Apple.
Sharing her personal experience, she said in an email interview early this month, “Personally, I was often the only woman in the room and I led an all-men software engineering team. There was a heightened pressure of wanting to be accepted and to be ‘liked.’ In my earlier days, I was also poorly equipped with the tech lingo, which added to my hesitation to speak up.”
In addition to this, she noted that there are still very few women role models in the industry and gender inequality is still observed everywhere.
“Gender inequality continues to prevail in the workplace today as women are paid less for the same performance and remain underrepresented in top positions,” she noted.
“These challenges are seen around the world, not just in Asia, as there is a perception that women are either competent or liked, but rarely both. This has contributed to the subconscious tendency of women choosing the seemingly safer choice of remaining silent, in the fear that speaking up might make them seem incompetent, or disliked for bringing up an opposing view.”
To address these problems, she said it is very important for managers to have mentoring activities not only for women, but for their employees. This could give them the chance to express what is in their mind. In addition to this, tools that can help employees identify their competencies can also help improve working conditions.
Still, to assure that they are able to speak up, they should be given means to do so with the assurance of confidentiality and security.
“Giving employees a confidential avenue to provide their feedback ensures everyone’s voice can be heard. It enables female employees who struggle to speak up to have a safe and confidential way to voice their opinion and make a difference to their own engagement,” she explained.
“Softwares like EngageRocket and Slack can be easily implemented and is a simply way to enable organizations to keep communication flowing and a pulse on employee sentiment. It enables female employees who struggle to speak up to have a safe and confidential way to voice their opinion and make a difference to their own engagement,” she said.
These both function as a medium for women to freely express themselves through internal messaging systems. Specifically for EngageRocket, it automates the process of giving and analyzing feedbacks from employees for the company’s human resource department and leaders.
“We have built the software such that it is simple and easy to regularly get feedback from employee at various touch points throughout the employee lifecycle,” she said.
In analyzing feedback received, the platform can generate recommendations for leaders on how they can address the problem at hand.
“The platform comes with well-researched workplace questions that are translated to most of our regional languages. Real-time analysis of the feedback also enable EngageRocket to serve as an early warning system for talent disengagement. Proprietary algorithms and artificial intelligence like machine reasoning are used to turn the data into immediate insights and action ideas. Managers are also given recommendations on how to engage their teams based on the aggregated results,” she explained. — V.M.P. Galang

Asia junk bonds may return 14%

HSBC PRIVATE BANKING has joined a growing number of funds that are bullish on Asia’s junk bonds and expect further gains after a strong rally in the first quarter.
US currency junk notes in the region have gained 5.6% so far this year, in the strongest start since 2012, according to ICE BofAML data. The private wealth arm of HSBC Holdings Plc sees more scope for gains, fueled by Chinese developers that are making progress cutting debt. “Stealth easing” of Chinese property curbs has also raised hopes of a boost ahead, even as new home price growth abated for a fourth straight month.
HSBC Private Banking predicts that Asian dollar junk debt could return 14% in 2019 after losses last year, while Asia investment-grade bonds may return 7%, according to Jeffrey Yap, Hong Kong-based regional head of fixed income, currencies and commodities, Asia.
The firm is positive on Chinese property US currency junk notes, which make up a high proportion of the region’s speculative-grade debt, as deleveraging efforts by developers have been “on track,” and their sales have been strong, said Yap, whose firm manages $309 billion in assets globally.
Average yields on Asia’s junk dollar notes have fallen about 2 percentage points so far this year to 6.9%, but they are still above the low of 5.9% in the past 12 months, according to a Bloomberg Barclays index. — Bloomberg

These fats keep processed foods fresh longer — but they shorten people’s lives

By Dinna Louise C. Dayao
WHAT are you having for lunch today? If you’re like four in every 10 Filipino adults, you will eat lunch out. Will you eat a burger and fries in a fastfood restaurant, fried fish in a canteen, or fried chicken in a convenience store? Maybe you’ll have a donut or a cup of 3-in-1 coffee for dessert.
But before ordering your lunch, and buying that donut or sachet of coffee consider this — those goodies could be laden with artificial trans fats.
TRANS FATS
There are two kinds of trans fatty acids, or trans fats for short. Naturally occurring trans fats are found in beef, pork, lamb, butter, and milk. Studies show that, in moderation, these trans fats do not seem to be as harmful as the manmade variety. It is the latter that are more concerning.
Artificial trans fats are made when hydrogen is added to vegetable oil. This process, called “hydrogenation,” produces partially hydrogenated oil, essentially turning liquid oil into solid form. This oil stays fresh longer than other fats. It is also much cheaper than butter, lard, or other fats like palm oil.
These characteristics make partially hydrogenated oil a favorite frying oil of restaurants ranging from fastfoods to turo-turo (a road-side diner). So, the fried food for lunch could be dripping with artificial trans fats.
Partially hydrogenated oil is also added to processed food as it enhances taste and texture at a low cost. The trans fats in this oil prolong the shelf life of packaged foods like baked goods, corn and potato chips, nondairy coffee creamer, margarine, and microwaveable popcorn.
HOW TRANS FATS HURT YOU
Artificial trans fats have “no known health benefits,” said the World Health Organization. Globally, these fats contributed to more than half a million deaths in 2010.
Research has been done since the 1990s on the health effects of artificial trans fats and here are some of them.
1. Trans fats clog your arteries. Eating foods that contain these fats raises the low-density lipoprotein (LDL or “bad”) cholesterol in the blood. At the same time, trans fats lower the high-density lipoprotein (HDL or “good”) cholesterol. This is a double whammy for one’s heart.
When a person has a lot of LDL, it tends to “stick to the lining of the blood vessels,” said Dr. Ranulfo B. Javelosa, Jr., the division chief of preventive cardiology at the Philippine Heart Center. Over time, the LDL — combined with other substances found in the blood — hardens and clogs the arteries. This results in the inability of oxygen-rich blood to freely flow to the organs and other parts of the body. As a result, one is in danger of having a heart attack or a stroke.
On the other hand, heart-heathy HDL “scours the walls of blood vessels and removes excess cholesterol,” said Dr. Javelosa. The higher one’s HDL levels are, “the more cholesterol is being removed from where it might otherwise cause damage,” he said.
Eating a lot of trans fats, though, decreases your HDL.
Even a small amount of trans fats is bad. For every 2% of calories from artificial trans fats consumed daily, the risk of heart disease rises by 23%, reports Harvard Health Publishing.
Heart disease is the leading cause of death of both men and women in the Philippines, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority. In 2013, the disease claimed the lives of 118,740 Filipinos. This means that, every hour, 13 people die due to heart disease.
2. Trans fats can cause weight gain. Consuming foods rich in these fats may increase a person’s body mass index or BMI. BMI is a measure of body fat based on height and weight, and the higher the BMI — meaning the heavier a person is — the higher the risk of developing diabetes.
Diabetes is among the top killer diseases in the Philippines. It is number five on the list. In 2013, 27,064 people died due to the disease, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority. That’s three people every hour.
3. Trans fats shrink the brain and impairs memory. “Trans fats were most strongly linked to worse memory, in young and middle-aged men, during their working and career-building years,” said Beatrice A. Golomb, MD, PhD, in a press release from the American Heart Association. Dr. Golomb is a professor of medicine at the University of California, San Diego.
GETTING RID OF TRANS FATS
The World Health Organization (WHO) aims to get rid of harmful trans fats from global food supplies by 2023. The move could potentially save some 10 million lives, according to the health agency. It is a move that is good for the heart, as the success stories of Denmark and New York show.
In 2003, Denmark passed a law “limiting the amount of trans fats to 2 grams per 100 grams of fat or oil,” reports the WHO. The law set up a system of fines and penalties for violators.
Denmark’s law did save lives. Between 2003 and 2012, deaths due to heart disease in the country dropped from 359.9 to 210.9 per 100,000 people. This is one of the key findings of a study by Brandon Restrepo, a postdoctoral researcher with the European University Institute, and his research partner.
The Big Apple followed suit in 2007. “New York City was the first large metropolitan area in the United States to restrict trans fats in eateries, starting July 2007,” wrote Dr. Eric Brandt and his fellow researchers in their report. The municipal ban covered eateries ranging from bakeries to street-fair food booths.
Did it make a difference to the health of New Yorkers? The researchers checked medical records and compared counties covered by the ban to counties that were not. And they found that the ban is a win. The people living in counties that banned trans fats had 6.2% fewer heart attacks and strokes than those living in countries without bans.
Here’s another finding that shows the city’s ban works. A 2019 study shows that the levels of trans fats in the blood of New Yorkers who ate out four or more times weekly after the ban dropped by 61.6%. In comparison, blood trans fatty acid levels declined by more than 54% nationally between 2000 and 2010.
The bottom line is that the less trans fats a person consumes, the better for their health. Banning the toxic fats is good for the heart, as the success stories of Denmark and New York show.
There is no ban on trans fats in the Philippines. Still, one need not wait for such a ban to shift to healthier eating. Right now, one can take steps to avoid or lessen their consumption of these dangerous fats.
This story was produced under the “(Un)Covering Trans Fats Media Training and Fellowship Program” by Probe Media Foundation Inc. (PMFI) and ImagineLaw (IL). The views and opinions expressed in this piece are not necessarily those of PMFI and IL.

Huawei presents flagship smartphone in Paris during Chinese leader’s visit

PARIS — Huawei, the world’s third-largest smartphone maker, presented its new flagship phone in Paris on Tuesday with the hope of making further gains in Europe, a region where its other products could face in-depth scrutiny for security reasons.
Huawei’s P30 Pro, which has four rear cameras — including a so-called “time of flight” camera that helps its artificial intelligence create better exposures — will aim to take on Samsung’s Galaxy S10 and Apple’s iPhone X.
The phone has a new light sensor that detects yellow rather than green, which Huawei said would significantly boost light absorption to create better results, even in near darkness.
The P30 Pro, Huawei’s P30 premium version, also uses electromagnetism to vibrate the screen to create a speaker when the device is held up to the face, minimizing any sound problems when taking a telephone call, added the company.
An executive at Huawei’s product launch in Paris said the P30 would go on sale with a starting price of €799 ($902), while the P30 Pro would have a starting price of €999.
The unveiling of Huawei’s smartphone in Paris coincides with the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to the French capital, where President Emmanuel Macron held a meeting along with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker to discuss climate and trade.
Huawei, which also makes telecoms network equipment, has been under much international scrutiny following US allegations that the Chinese giant’s products could be used by Beijing for spying.
The company has strongly rejected the allegations and earlier this month sued the US government over the issue.
Before his Paris visit, Xi stopped in Monaco, the tiny sovereign enclave on the Mediterranean, to mark the principality’s decision last year to agree a deal with Huawei to develop its 5G network, prompting concerns among European officials that other countries could follow suit.
The European Commission is poised to urge EU countries to share more data to tackle cybersecurity risks related to the next generation of mobile technology, or 5G, but will ignore US calls to ban Huawei, people familiar with the matter said last week. — Reuters

Zalora set to move to Cavite warehouse facility in 2020

By Arra B. Francia, Reporter
FASHION E-COMMERCE site Zalora Philippines is moving into a new warehouse facility in Cavite by 2020, where it can expand its current capacity by more than six times.
Zalora Philippines Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Paulo Campos III said on Wednesday that it has partnered with Ayala-led AC Infrastructure Holdings Corp. (AC Infra) for the construction of a 40,000-square meter (sq.m.) New Fulfillment Center located on a 3.7-hectare property near the Muntinlupa-Cavite Expressway.
“We’re experiencing really accelerating growth and tremendous, (especially) on super peak days. We really have had to build out a new facility,” Mr. Campos told reporters in a media roundtable discussion in Taguig City on Wednesday.
“It’s a build-to-suit facility that will feature very innovative conveyor technology, some forms of automation, and increase the throughput.”
The New Fulfillment Center will have a capacity of 7.2 million items, six times more than its capacity of 1.2 million items at its Carmona warehouse.
“Our strategy is to retain the one fulfillment center strategy…We could use it (the Carmona site) for (Entrego’s) expansion. We would potentially make use for it as an alternative site,” Mr. Campos said, referring to its last mile logistics service, Entrego.
AC Infra is funding the construction of the facility that is scheduled to be completed by December 2019. Zalora Philippines will then lease out the property from AC Infra.
The warehouse will also include a 5,000-sq.m. office space, which can employ up to 1,200 employees.
The new facility will address the strong growth of Zalora Philippines’ customer base and wider assortment of products available on the website.
By end-2018, Zalora Philippines counted a total of nine million e-mail subscribers, 7.4 million app downloads, 7.7 million Facebook fans, and 100 million website sessions. The company noted that 70% of its customers are women, while 30% are men.
Bulk of its customers come from Metro Manila at 42%, followed by the Cavite and Laguna area with seven percent, and Cebu with six percent. Its two fastest-growing geographies last year were Batanes and Sulu.
To sustain this growth, Zalora Philippines is partnering with several established brands such as Debenhams, Marks & Spencer, J. Crew, Jack Wills, Pomelo, and designer Josie Natori’s sleepwear brand Josie and clothing line N Natori. It is also expanding into the kids’ category.
“Zalora Kids is a new source of growth for us in 2019. Now that we have a more established customer base between the age of 20 and 40, the real millennial years, we want to be able to ensure we have a product for the whole family,” Mr. Campos said.
The company is also building four new pop-up stores in different shopping malls this year, with two in Metro Manila and two outside the metro, to further boost customer convenience in picking up orders.

How PSEi member stocks performed — March 27, 2019

Here’s a quick glance at how PSEi stocks fared on Wednesday, March 27, 2019.

 
Philippine Stock Exchange’s most active stocks by value turnover — March 27, 2019.

Metro Manila among cities facing huge economic risks from natural and man-made disasters

Metro Manila among cities facing huge economic risks from natural and man-made disasters

Officials deny China loans call for territorial seizure

CABINET OFFICIALS have denied that the terms of a loan obtained from China contain provisions for the surrender of territory in the event of default by the Philippines, and dismissed the prospect of default as remote because the loan is small.
At a news conference in Malacañang, Finance Undersecretary Bayani H. Agabin said the funding arrangements for the Chico River Pump Irrigation Project have no such provisions identifying collateral that can be seized in the event of a default.
“May mga pangambang kumakalat na ang Reed Bank o Recto Bank ay maaaring angkinin ng mga ibang bansa kung sakaling ang Pilipinas ay hindi makabayad ng kaniyang mga utang. Nais po naming linawin na ang ating mga loan agreements — kasama na po dito ang ating mga loan sa China — ay hindi naglalaman ng ganitong probisyon. Walang anumang collateral na nagdudulot ng pagsuko ng ating teritoryo (There are fears that Reed Bank or Recto Bank could change hands in the event the Philippines cannot pay its loans. We would like to make clear that all the loan agreements, including the ones with China, have no such provisions. Absolutely no terms involving the surrender of territory),” he said on Wednesday.
Justice Secretary Menardo I. Guevarra also described the $62.8 million Chico River project in Northeastern Luzon as “small,” making the prospect of default “kind of far-fetched.”
“Unang-una maliit lang ‘yung loan e. Kayang-kaya namang bayaran ‘yon. (First, the loan is small. We can pay easily.) Second, assuming for the sake of argument (that there is a delay or default), I’m sure that there are mechanisms in place which will take care of that situation like probably restructuring of the loan or maybe an arbitration clause,” Mr. Guevarra told reporters on Tuesday evening.
“So (on the matter) of attaching or levying properties belonging to the nation, maybe (that is), in my opinion, kind of far-fetched,” he added.
Last week, Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio T. Carpio said that if the Philippines defaults on its Chico River project loan, China can seize the country’s “patrimonial assets and assets dedicated to commercial use,” including the gas reserves in Reed Bank located in the West Philippine Sea.
Citing Article 8, paragraph 8.1 of the Chico River Pump Irrigation Project loan deal, Mr. Carpio said the Philippines “irrevocably waives any immunity on the grounds of sovereign or otherwise for itself or its property in connection with any arbitration proceeding.”
At his Palace briefing, Mr. Agabin also called the possibility of a default “remote.”
“Ang waiver of sovereign immunity ay hindi nagpapahintulot sa sinumang dayuhan o foreign party na kunin o angkinin ang ating mga likas na yaman. Ibig sabihin lamang nito ay pinahihintulutan ang mga counter-party ng Pilipinas sa isang kasunduan na dalhin sa korte ang kaso kung umabot man na ang Pilipinas ay hindi makabayad sa utang nito (A waiver of sovereign immunity does not mean that any foreigner can seize our natural resources. It only means that we consent to a counterparty bringing us to court in the event the loan cannot be paid),” he added.
Mr. Carpio has noted that in the event of a dispute, the arbitration will be conducted by the China International Economic Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC) in Beijing “under CIETAC arbitration rules,” which will then be “final and binding.”
On the Chico River project, Mr. Agabin said: “Nakasaad sa kasunduan na kung sakaling hindi na makabayad ng utang ang Pilipinas (the provisions in the loan agreement for default), which again is very remote, ay dapat maunang ayusin ang anumang problema sa labas ng arbitration (call for, first, to resolve the matter outside of arbitration).”
“If worse comes to worst at hindi maganda ang resulta ng arbitral tribunal (and the ruling of the arbirtral tribunal is unfavorable), inuulit po namin na kailangan pa ring dalhin ng counter-claimant ang desisyon sa korte ng Pilipinas (we repeat that a counter-claimaint must obtain a ruling from a Philippine court), usually the Regional Trial Court, upang magpatibay ng arbitral award (to enforce an arbitral award).
Ito po ang prosesong tinatawag natin na ‘enforcement of arbitral award.’ (This part of the process is called ‘enforcement of arbitral award).’”
Finance Assistant Secretary and spokesperson Antonio Joselito Lambino II, when asked what assets can be used as payment if the Philippines defaults, said after the briefing that the foreclosure on patrimonial property could include shares of stock, but ruled out land because of the prohibition on foreign ownership of land.
Mr. Guevarra also said he has yet to read the loan agreement but described it as broadly similar to a “standard commercial contract.” and “something like a template that has been used for many other loan agreements.”
“I guess we’re just really worrying too much. I don’t think we even have to think about that problem in the future because the intention of the government is to honor all of its loan obligations. And that one is a small amount,” he added. — Arjay L. Balinbin and Vann Marlo M. Villegas

DBM authorizes 4th government salary hike financed by ‘any available’ 2018 Budget funds

THE Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said the fourth tranche of salary increases for government workers will be financed by available appropriations from the re-enacted 2018 Budget.
National Budget Circular No. 575 posted on DBM’s website on Monday, covers “all positions for civilian personnel, whether regular, casual, or contractual in nature, appointive or elective, full-time or part-time, now existing or hereafter created in the Executive, Legislative and Judicial Branches, the Constitutional Commissions and other Constitutional Offices, and SUCs (state universities and colleges).”
However, state workers without employer-employee relationship and with salaries sourced from non-personnel services appropriations of agencies are excluded from the coverage.
The funding for the fourth tranche of the salary hike for government workers will be charged against “any available appropriations under the 2018 General Appropriations Act, as reenacted” this year.
The budget circular also provided rules on granting bonuses such as the mid-year bonus, productivity enhancement incentive and performance-based bonus.
Last week, President Rodrigo R. Duterte signed Executive Order (EO) No. 76 authorizing funding for the salary hike. This amended EO No. 201 or the fourth tranche of state employees’ salary adjustments signed by President Benigno S.C. Aquino III in 2016.
On March 15, the DBM recommended that Mr. Duterte amend the EO signed by his predecessor to “authorize government agencies to utilize available appropriations under the re-enacted budget in the meantime to meet the funding requirements of the salary adjustments.”
The standoff which has delayed the P3.757-trillion 2019 appropriations bill ended on Tuesday after Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III signed the document “with reservations,” leading to its transmittal to Malacañang for the President’s signature.
The budget delays stemmed from the refusal of the Senate to accept the allegedly “unconstitutional” insertions made by members of the House of Representatives after the bicameral conference committee agreed on a final version for the President’s signature.
The President’s spokesperson, Salvador S. Panelo, said that Mr. Duterte “can sign it immediately” if he feels the alleged post-ratification realignment does not violate the Constitution.
Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia said a Budget deadlock that lasts until April will bring down full-year growth to 6.1-6.3%, well under the government’s original 7-8% target and likely level with the 2018 pace of 6.2%.
Economic managers were forced to reduce their growth targets to 6-7% this year from 7-8% previously, because it will be “very difficult” to catch up with the rollout of infrastructure projects after missing much of the dry-season window for construction. — Karl Angelo N. Vidal

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