Facebook Instagram Linkedin X Youtube
Home Blog Page 11228

Japan event fills a ‘void’ for ONE Championship — analyst

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
TOKYO — This weekend ONE Championship makes history as it holds its first-ever event in Japan with “ONE: A New Era.”
And for combat sports analyst Nissi Icasiano, for ONE to finally descend on “The Land of the Rising Sun,” which has a rich martial arts history and was home to one of the top MMA promotions in Pride Fighting Championships, is really a huge occasion as it solidifies its growing standing as an MMA powerhouse.
“From the very beginning, ONE Championship’s main goal is to be the premier destination of mixed martial arts in the eastern hemisphere. They have gone to several markets in the region, including untapped countries such as Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and Cambodia. But there is still something missing in order to cement the company’s position as the real successor of the legendary Pride organization,” said Mr. Icasiano in an online correspondence with BusinessWorld.
“Let me use a comic-book analogy here. It’s like Thanos’ feared Infinity Gauntlet in the pages of Marvel Comics. You can say that the missing Infinity Stone for an MMA company like ONE is holding an event on Japanese soil. After nearly eight years of holding events in various cities across Asia, they finally get to do that. Of course, staging an event in Japan’s capital of Tokyo holds historical relevance,” he added.
ONE: A New Era, happening at the Ryogoku Kokugikan here on March 31, boasts of the biggest fight card in the promotion’s history, including four title fights and legends stepping into the cage.
The Japan event is headlined by the world lightweight title fight between champion Eduard Folayang of the Philippines and hometown bet Shinya Aoki.
Co-headlining it is the champion-versus-champion battle between women’s strawweight world champion Xiong Jing Nan of China and women’s atomweight champion Angela Lee of Singapore for the former’s belt.
Also part of the card is the middleweight world championship collision of champion Aung La N Sang of Myanmar against Ken Hasegawa of Japan as well as the world bantamweight title clash of champion Kevin Belingon of the Philippines against Brazilian Bibiano Fernandes.
A New Era will see the ONE debut as well of MMA legends Demetrious “The Mighty Mouse” Johnson and Eddie “The Underground King” Alvarez in separate grand prix matches with Filipino flyweight Danny Kingad also set to see action.
For Mr. Icasiano, that ONE decided to lay out a lot for its first Japanese event is not at all surprising.
“I consider Japan as the birthplace of mixed martial arts. Shooto and Pancrase gave birth to the sport we love and adore today. For ONE Championship, a company that claims to be Asia’s frontrunner in MMA, it is paying homage to the place where it originated. Definitely, it is a milestone for the company,” he said.
GREAT PLATFORM FOR FILIPINOS
Considering the enormity of the whole event in MMA, it presents a great platform for Filipino fighters to showcase what they are capable of to an even wider audience, the fight analyst said.
“All eyes of the MMA world will be on ONE’s card in Tokyo this Sunday, and it’s a great platform for Filipino athletes such as Eduard Folayang, Kevin Belingon and Danny Kingad to showcase what Filipino MMA is all about. Their matches on Sunday are important because it could establish that Filipinos are not just part of Asian MMA’s ecosystem. We could stake our claim that it’s possible for us Filipinos in a constantly expanding landscape of MMA to be apex predators at the top of the food chain. Definitely, it is a must-win for the three Team Lakay representatives. But it comes with greats rewards,” Mr. Icasiano said.
He went on to say that among the three Filipino fighters seeing action, while he believes all are a capable of emerging triumphant, he sees Mr. Folayang having “the greatest chance of walking out victorious,” owing to how he is the more well-rounded fighter over Mr. Aoki at this stage of their respective careers and how he has significantly improved since he last fought the Japanese legend in 2016.
“Messrs. Belingon and Kingad should have a tougher time against Brazilian Bibiano Fernandes and Japanese Senzo Ikeda, respectively,” Mr. Icasiano said.
The analyst said Mr. Belingon should be on top of his game against Mr. Fernandes who most certainly would go for his vaunted takedown game to reclaim his title. Knocking out his opponent and not leave the outcome of the match to the judges would serve Mr. Belingon’s cause well, said the analyst.
Mr. Kingad, on the other hand, has had his struggles against Japanese opponents in the past, Mr. Icasiano observed. He is hoping that the Filipino flyweight made the necessary preparations against Mr. Ikeda and would show the true top-class fighter that he is.
ONE: A New Era will be available live for viewing on the ONE Championship app while in the Philippines it can be seen at ABS-CBN S+A beginning at 6 p.m. and iWant Sports.

GoPilipinasGo pep rally unites PHISGOC and PSC

PHILIPPINE Southeast Asian Games organizing committee chair Alan Peter Cayetano on Tuesday night vowed to leave behind the bickering among sports officials as he tried to rally Team Philippines toward the overall title in the coming Games.
Speaking before some 1,300 national athletes and coaches during the pep rally and concert spearheaded by GoPilipinasGo movement, Cayetano said: “We will try work harder. We will try to get along better, we will try to get more funds.”
It was a show of solidarity among sports officials as Cayetano shared the stage with Philippine Sports Commission Butch Ramirez, chief of mission Monsour del Rosario, Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) board member Jonne Go and Philspada head Mike Barredo.
Cayetano told the athletes to just stay focused on training as they released white doves in a symbolic gesture of unity.
“It’s a humbling experience for myself, for chairman Butch, and for everyone here on stage because you the athletes continue to teach us a lot,” said Cayetano.
“It’s easy to say win as one, but there’s a lot of hard work that we should put into winning as one,” added the former senator and secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Leading the Filipino legends who took the stage and inspired the athletes were bowling Hall of Famer Bong Coo, Olympic bronze medalist in taekwondo Stephen Fernandez, SEA Games and Asian Games wushu champ Willy Wang.
“We have two objectives. One is we need to win the overall title and secondly, we want the 10 other countries to say na iba talaga mag-host ang pinoy,” said Cayetano.
Olympic weightlifting silver medalist Hidilyn Diaz, SEAG back-to-back triathlon gold winner Nikko Huelgas and World gymnastics bronze medalist Caloy Yulo also exhorted their fellow athletes through videos they made while training abroad.

US NCAA tourney: How much are Sweet 16 tickets?

LOS ANGELES — The cheapest ticket for this week’s NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games is at Kansas City’s Sprint Center.
The venue is hosting the Midwest Regional on Friday and Sunday. As of late Wednesday afternoon, tickets to the Friday evening games — Auburn vs. North Carolina and Houston vs. Kentucky — were available for as little as $73 on StubHub. One ticket gets you into both games.
The cheapest ticket for Sunday’s Elite Eight game, featuring Friday’s winners, was going for $46 on StubHub.
It’ll be more costly to see games the other regional venues, with the most expensive site feeling the Zion Effect. Freshman phenom Zion Williamson and the rest of the Duke Blue Devils play Virginia Tech while LSU plays Michigan State on Friday in the East Regional at Washington DC’s Capital One Arena.
Session tickets for that doubleheader were starting at a cool $273 Wednesday afternoon on StubHub. The cheapest ticket available for Sunday’s Elite Eight game featuring Friday’s winners in DC was $142 on StubHub.
The regional games taking place Thursday and Saturday — the South and West — are also more expensive than the Midwest Region games.
In the South, which will be held at Louisville’s KFC Yum Center, tickets were available for as little as $117 on StubHub to see both Virginia play Oregon and Tennessee play Purdue. Tickets to Saturday’s Elite Eight game could be had as cheap as $60.
In the West, at Anaheim’s Honda Center, tickets for the Sweet 16 games pitting Gonzaga against Florida State and Michigan against Texas Tech, were starting at $110 on StubHub. The Elite Eight game on Saturday had tickets available for as low as $90.
Here’s the breakdown of the lowest-priced available tickets on Vivid Seats and Ticketmaster (again, these prices were as of late Wednesday afternoon):
South Region Sweet 16: $103 (Vivid) and $110 (Ticketmaster)East Region Sweet 16: $330 (Vivid) and $323 (Ticketmaster)Midwest Region Sweet 16: $67 (Vivid) and $70 (Ticketmaster)West Region Sweet 16: $106 (Vivid) and $110 (Ticketmaster). — Reuters

PBA goes to Pangasinan for annual All-Star event

THE HOMESTRETCH of the elimination round of the season-opening Philippine Basketball Association tournament Philippine Cup ceases momentarily to give way to the annual All-Star festivities this weekend in Pangasinan.
Happening in the town of Calasiao, this year’s All-Star weekend begins with the holding of three skills challenge events as aperitif to the night cap that is the revived Rookies/Sophomores versus Juniors selection match.
Rain or Shine Elasto Painters’ Beau Belga, last year’s Obstacle Course winner, returns to defend his title against a field of big men, namely, Yousef Taha (TNT), Noy Baclao (Alaska), Justine Chua (Phoenix), Mo Tautuaa (NorthPort), Raymar Jose (Blackwater), Prince Caperal (Barangay Ginebra), Brian Faundo (Meralco), Russel Escoto (Columbian Dyip), and Rafi Reavis (Magnolia).
His fellow Rain or Shine (ROS) player James Yap, too, is back to try and keep his Three-Point crown. Angling to take the title away from him are LA Tenorio (Barangay Ginebra), Marcio Lassiter (San Miguel) Matthew Wright (Phoenix), Robert Bolick (NorthPort), Simon Enciso (Alaska), Philip Paniamogan (NLEX), Michael Digregorio (Blackwater), Reden Celda (Columbian Dyip), Baser Amer (Meralco), Roger Pogoy (TNT), and Peter June Simon (Magnolia).
Then there is Slam Dunk king Rey Guevarra of the Phoenix Pulse Fuel Masters who is seeking to stay at the top of the league’s high-flyers, leading the participants in the slam dunk competition which also has Renz Palma (Blackwater), Chris Newsome (Meralco), Lervyn Flores (NorthPort), and CJ Perez (Columbian Dyip) seeing action.
Meanwhile, making a comeback is the RSJ game, featuring the PBA’s upstarts, which was first played 30 years ago.
Bannering the rookie-sophomores team is Mr. Perez. Joining him are Jason Perkins (Phoenix), Jeron Teng (Alaska), Messrs. Bolick and Jose, Abu Tratter and Paul Desiderio (Blackwater), Mark Tallo (NLEX), Trevis Jackson (Meralco), Rey Nambatac and Javee Mocon (Rain or Shine), and Robbie Herndon (Magnolia).
The Juniors, for their part, have Mac Belo and Ael Banal of Blackwater, Messrs. Pogoy and Wright, Jio Jalalon (Magnolia), Carl Bryan Cruz (Alaska), Kevin Ferrer (Barangay Ginebra), Rashawn McCarthy and Russel Escoto (Columbian), Mike Tolomia (Meralco), Ed Daquioag (Rain or Shine) and Von Pessumal (San Miguel).
On Saturday, the second day of the festivities, will be the grand fan’s day with an accompanying music festival with Pupil, Gloc9 and JKris performing.
Then on Sunday, March 31, will have the Shooting Stars, 3×3 Challenge and the weekend’s highlight — the North All-Stars versus South All-Stars match.
Voted by the fans to start for the North team are Calvin Abueva (Phoenix), Japeth Aguilar (Barangay Ginebra), Paul Lee (Magnolia), Messrs. Tenorio and Lassiter (San Miguel).
The North reserves are Stanley Pringle (Northport), Alex Cabagnot and Arwind Santos (San Miguel), Gabe Norwood (Rain or Shine), Jayson Castro and Troy Rosario (TNT), Chris Banchero (Alaska), Mark Caguioa (Barangay Ginebra), Mr. Perkins, and Marc Pingris (Magnolia). PBA legends Benjie Paras and Ronnie Magsanoc of the Shell franchise fame are also part of team. Coaching the North team is Louie Alas of Phoenix.
Starting for the South, meanwhile, are June Mar Fajardo (San Miguel), Mr. Yap, Scottie Thompson and Greg Slaughter (Barangay Ginebra) and Mark Barroca (Magnolia). The reserves are Chris Ross (San Miguel), Messrs. Amer, Simon, Jalalon, Pogoy and Belo, Terrence Romeo (San Miguel), Poy Erram (NLEX) and Joe Devance (Barangay Ginebra). Purefoods legends Alvin Patrimonio and Jerry Codiñera spice up the squad. Rain or Shine Caloy Garcia will be the South coach.
PBA Commissioner Willie Marcial said they are “happy” to bring the PBA All-Star festivities to Calasiao, seeing how it has taken care of the league when it pays a visit there. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Federer beats Medvedev into Miami Open quarters

MIAMI — A clinical Roger Federer took a confident step towards a fourth Miami Open title on Wednesday, easing past 13th-seeded Russian Daniil Medvedev 6-4 6-2 to book his spot in the quarter-finals.
Federer, a winner of 100 career titles, can look back on dozens of brilliant performances and the Swiss maestro could add his ruthless fourth-round win over the red hot Russian to that list.
With 17 match wins, no player has had more success this year than the lanky Russian but Medvedev had no answers for a rampaging Federer, who needed just 61 minutes to reach the last eight, where he will take on towering sixth-seeded South African Kevin Anderson.
“There were really long rallies, tactical points. The big points went my way and that was the difference,” said Federer.
“I’m serving great this week and hope I can keep it up in the next round.”
The match got off to a routine start until Federer took control.
With Medvedev 4-3 up in the first, the 20-times grand slam champion swept the next five games to take the opener and a 2-0 lead in the second.
Medvedev halted the bleeding with a hold at 2-1 but there was no stopping the fourth-seeded Federer who claimed a second break to go up 5-2 and then had an easy hold to seal a business-like victory.
The Russian could not convert any of his three breakpoints, while Federer took all three of his.
Federer’s fourth-round contest had been scheduled for Tuesday but was moved due to rain, giving the 37-year-old Swiss little time to recover before facing the hard-hitting Anderson, who was a 7-5 7-5 winner over Australian Jordan Thompson.
Defending champion John Isner came out on the winning side of two tie-breakers in his afternoon battle with Roberto Bautista Agut to advance 7-6(1) 7-6(5) to the semi-finals of the tournament, where he has yet to drop a set.
The seventh-seeded American thumped 25 aces to see off the Spaniard and will next face either 18-year-old Canadian Felix Auger Aliassime or defensive baseliner Borna Coric, who play their quarter-final in the night session on Wednesday. — Reuters

Curry, Durant propel GS Warriors past Grizzlies

LOS ANGELES — The Golden State Warriors needed a late surge and 28 points apiece from Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant to hold off the host Memphis Grizzlies 118-103 on Wednesday night.
Curry hit six 3-pointers and Durant missed just one shot for the Warriors (51-23), who moved a half-game ahead of Denver (50-23) in the race for the top seed in the Western Conference.
The Warriors, who own a 2-1 lead over the Nuggets in their season series, host Denver one final time on April 2.
Jonas Valanciunas (27 points, 13 rebounds) and Bruno Caboclo (17 points, 13 rebounds) recorded double-doubles for Memphis, which lost for just the second time in its last seven home games.
The Warriors found themselves trailing 92-91 after two free throws by Chandler Parsons with 9:25 remaining, before taking the lead for good on a Shaun Livingston hoop nine seconds later.
Durant then scored the next seven points (two free throws, a 3-pointer and a two-point jumper) to increase the Golden State lead to 100-92 with seven minutes to play.
After a 3-pointer by Caboclo and a free throw by Valanciunas cut the Memphis deficit in half, the Warriors got two consecutive hoops from Livingston and one apiece from Draymond Green and DeMarcus Cousins to finally pull away from a team that’s already been eliminated from playoff contention.
Curry complemented his 28 points with 10 rebounds and seven assists for the Warriors, who won for the fifth time in their last six road games and 25th time in 37 road games this season.
The Warriors, who complete a two-game trip Friday night at Minnesota, lead the NBA in road winning percentage.
Durant shot 12-for-13 en route to his 28 points, helping Golden State connect on 53.6% for the game. — Reuters

Halep sees off Wang, will face Pliskova in Miami semis

MIAMI — Simona Halep overcame a hiccup in the second set to secure a 6-4 7-5 Miami Open quarter-final victory over China’s Wang Qiang on Wednesday, putting the Romanian one win away from reclaiming the world’s top ranking from Naomi Osaka.
Standing in her way will be Karolina Pliskova, who endured a blip of her own in the second set before defeating Marketa Vondrousova 6-3 6-4 in the evening session.
Halep broke Wang three times to race into a 4-1 lead before closing out the first set when she cut off the angle on a short forehand and blasted a winner into the open court.
But Wang came out firing in the second set, breaking Halep three times and holding to love in back-to-back service games to build a 5-1 lead.
The second seed stormed back but Wang nearly forced a third set when she quickly jumped out to 0-40 in the 10th game, only for the Romanian’s confident net play to get her out of the jam.
Halep then went on to wrap up the win over 18th-seeded Wang in 89 minutes and match her best effort in Miami, which came in 2015 when she lost to Serena Williams in the semis.
“Playing again in the semi-finals is going to be a big challenge. And maybe I can do my best result here and play in the final,” Halep said on court. “It’s going to be a big match in the next round.” — Reuters

Woods is still Woods

By all accounts, Tiger Woods had a mediocre round at the Austin Country Club yesterday. Three birdies and three bogeys that included an inexcusable three-putt effort on the 14th hole pretty much summed up his up-and-down run. Even his irons, invariably the best clubs on his bag, were off, leading to head-scratching ball positions on the greens — or, worse, short of the greens — even after lengthy discussions with caddie Joe LaCava. And yet the World Number 14 sounded more relieved than downcast in the aftermath, contending that “there’s no scorecard except for whether you won the match or not.”
Needless to say, Woods was on the mark in his assessment. The Dell Technologies Match Play Championship is unlike any other event on the tour schedule. In fact, it’s unlike even previous iterations of the World Fold Championships stop; four players in each of 16 predetermined groups go up in round-robin format to determine who among them advances to sudden-death affairs under match-play conditions. And because holes won, lost, or drawn are counted against a given partner’s tally, the aggregate number of strokes doesn’t matter. After prevailing over PGA Tour Rookie of the Year Aaron Wise, he joked that his score was “not very good. Not very good. I broke 80.”
Moving forward, Woods will have to do much better if he wants to make the weekend. Up next is Brandt Snedeker, who hasn’t been able to put up a number superior to his in the 14 times they’ve been paired together on tour. Still, as he noted, his friend boasts of a hot putter, “and, in this format, that’s what you need to [have].” The good news is that he’s in prime physical shape and far removed from the neck issues that compelled him to miss the Arnold Palmer Invitational early this month. “I’m able to get into a better posture, and that helps. And because of that, I’m able to log in a little bit of practice time.”
That said, the pride of Texas has presented a challenge, especially with swirling winds. Pin placements are on the tough sides, closer to mounds and ridges and potentially damaging to players off misjudged approach shots. Of course, Woods is Woods, arguably the most accomplished match-play competitor in the sport’s history. More than talent and experience, there is his resolve. And with fortunate bounces, he may yet get to negotiate the course seven times over five days and ultimately emerge victorious.
 
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994.

Online learning: Five tech skills to build your next creative project

When talking about careers in tech, one might immediately jump to developing apps and jumping between complicated coding projects. But coding isn’t just a science; it’s an art. And with a solid baseline of fundamental tech skills, a little creativity goes a long way.
This mix of skills is becoming more and more important as jobs become more specialized. According to a 2019 report by LinkedIn Learning, some of the most in-demand hard skills are in the design, marketing, and production arenas, most of which entail expertise on a particular skill set.
Luckily, there are thousands of online courses available to help you seize these opportunities, at your own pace. Here are five of these creative tech skills and where you can learn them:

Computer graphics/CAD

Rendering computer graphics is a widely-needed skill needed in a great range of industries. The software to be used varies on the intended purpose: AutoCAD is mostly used in architecture, engineering, and product design, for instance, while OpenGL can be used for VR and scientific visualization.
“AutoCAD 2017 Essential Training” takes you through the program’s tools, culminating in how to draw and create models using the functions. If you’re also interested in learning OpenGL, “Learning OpenGL” similarly introduces the program and discusses how to utilize it.

Video production

When it comes to content creation in the digital age, video is still king. It could be your favorite series, a 6-second ad, or the new summer blockbuster film. Video consumption is increasing across different channels — and demand for those who can produce it is higher than ever.
“The Complete Video Production Bootcamp” offers courses on the basics, even including a lesson on how to bring your video to a wider audience. On the other hand, “Video Editing Training” does a deep dive on specific skill sets and the tools and software that you need to master them.

Animation

While films and cartoons are still arguably the most popular platforms of animation, its usage has crossed over to similar media such as video games, virtual reality (VR), and augmented reality. This increasing demand is translating to an increase in profits, with the global industry expected to earn $270 billion by 2020.
Many professionals in the industry are sharing their expertise through online schools, some of the most popular being Animation Mentor and iAnimate. If you’re looking for short courses, AMA University Online offers a bevy running from 2D/3D animation to modeling cartoon characters using the Maya software.
 

Mobile app development

Apps have become an indispensable part of our mobile experience, whether for work or leisure. Annual app spending is a great indicator: Newzoo reported $92.1 billion in revenue for 2018, and it’s expected to climb up to $139.6 billion by 2021.
Since the market is a mix of users on various kinds of devices, it may be wise to get acquainted with different operating systems. “iOS 12 Development Essential Training” is a two-part course on fundamentals and web distribution, while “Android Development for Beginners” focuses on the basics for the platform.

Game development

The gaming industry is enjoying massive growth, projected by Newzoo to have earned around $138 billion by the end of 2018. There’s much going on in our shores as well, one of the buzziest news being the opening of Ubisoft Philippines last August.
While it’s surely a dream for gamers to join such companies, an understanding of theory and knowledge of software would first be needed as a foot-in-the-door. Courses like “Introduction to Game Design” and “Introduction to Game Development” can help jumpstart the journey, while more tech-centric courses like “3D Game Development” delve deeper into the different software such as Blender and Unity.

Economists count budget delay’s Q1 cost

By Charmaine A. Tadalan
Reporter
ECONOMIC GROWTH this quarter could hover close to last quarter’s pace but will be substantially slower than the year-ago clip when official data is reported on May 9, according to economists asked on Wednesday, citing primarily the impact of delayed enactment of the P3.757-trillion national budget for this year.
The bicameral dispute over the 2019 national budget — which was supposed to have been enacted by end-2018 — ended on Tuesday when Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III finally signed and transmitted it to the Office of the President on Tuesday, even as he formally noted the Senate’s reservations about P95-billion post-ratification fund allocations made by the House of Representatives.
House Appropriations committee chairman Rolando G. Andaya, Jr. of Camarines Sur’s 1st district on Wednesday stood by the “legality” and “constitutionality” of the 2019 national budget. It is now up to President Rodrigo R. Duterte to maintain or veto the provisions questioned by the Senate. “Kung nais pong i-veto ng Presidente nasa karapatan naman po niya, at taon-taon — kada budget — meron naman po talagang veto message. Ayun naman po’y tinatanggap ng Kongreso at wala naman pong problema (It is the President’s prerogative to veto budget items, as he does yearly through a veto message with every budget. Congress accepts that and there will be no problem),” Mr. Andaya said in an interview over radio station dzMM.
Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia said on Tuesday that “Q1 growth rate [is] already likely to be trimmed” as a result of delayed budget enactment. The inter-agency Development Budget Coordination Committee the other week slashed its 2019 gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecast to 6-7% from 7-8% originally as the government operates on a reenacted budget, while the National Economic and Development Authority — which Mr. Pernia heads as director-general — has estimated separately that operating on a reenacted budget until April would cut full-year growth to 6.1-6.3%.
Sought for his estimates on first-quarter GDP expansion, ING Bank N.V. Manila Senior Economist Nicholas Antonio T. Mapa said in an e-mail on Wednesday that the pace would likely be “below six percent to 5.8%.”
“Slower government spending, coupled with likely weaker capital formation due to elevated borrowing costs and base effects will collectively set the bar high for GDP to top the six-percent handle,” Mr. Mapa said.
For Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion, chief economist at the Union Bank of the Philippines, Inc., and Sun Life Financial economist Patrick M. Ella, first-quarter GDP growth could clock in at 6.2% and six percent, respectively, while Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) economist Michael L. Ricafort said it could come in at “at least six percent.”
Those estimates compare with last quarter’s 6.1% and the 6.6% actually recorded in last year’s first quarter.
“This largely looks like the previous quarter’s economic growth and may be due to the lagged impact of slower inflation,” Mr. Asuncion said in a separate email.
The overall rise of prices of widely used goods slowed for the fourth straight month to a one-year-low of 3.8% in February from the nine-year-high 6.7% clocked in September and October last year. Last year saw headline inflation clock in at 5.2%, the fastest in nearly a decade.
“The pick-up in domestic consumption demand is likely to be felt by ending Q2 and beginning Q3 this year,” Mr. Asuncion said, citing the impact of inflation that appears to be finally sliding back into the central bank’s 2-4% full-year target range, with the pace in 2019’s first two months averaging 4.1%.
The Philippine Statistics Authority is scheduled to report March inflation on April 5.
Household spending, fueled partly by remittances from Filipinos working abroad, contributes about 70% of economic output.
RCBC’s Mr. Ricafort said slower growth in government spending due to the delayed 2019 budget enactment was the main drag on growth, offset by bigger business and household spending due to easing inflation and consumption related to the May 13 mid-term elections, among others.
‘WHAT IS LOST IS LOST’
The government had been banking on front-loading infrastructure work this quarter, ahead of the 45-day ban on public works starting March 29 ahead of the May 13 midterm elections and weather disturbances next semester. The reenacted national budget left new projects unfunded.
Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III told reporters in Clark economic zone on Wednesday that the government is now hard-pressed to catch up with infrastructure work.
“… [I]t is already late. It is already election ban, so I don’t know if they can really catch up. With the awarding of the contracts, election ban [is] two days from now, how can you award a contract?” Mr. Dominguez said.
“The budget is not yet effective, because even if it is all okay, they still have two weeks to publish it,” he added. “Time is lost. What is lost is lost. No matter how much you want to catch up, you can never really catch up especially that the weather has been so good for the past almost three months or four months. Sayang (That opportunity is gone).”
Consequently, the government’s 6-7% GDP growth target for 2019 “becomes less attainable,” Mr. Dominguez said.
“It is like a balloon. You put a little weight in it, it cannot fly as high.”
ING’s Mr. Mapa said all eyes are now on Mr. Duterte, particularly how soon he will sign the 2019 national budget into law and how much of it he may veto.
“Our full-year forecast is currently at 6.3% but if the budget impasse continues and the bill remains unsigned by the President, we may have to revise this slightly lower,” Mr. Mapa said.
“Government spending was one key contributor to growth in 2018 as it helped offset slowing private sector consumption last year. Even if consumption rebounds in 2019, delayed government outlays and weaker capital formation (public construction is part of this) may offset the recovery in household spending.”
For RCBC’s Mr. Ricafort, “Philippine economy/GDP for 2019 could still grow by 6.5-7% for 2019, similar to earlier estimates amid the easing trend in inflation and interest rates in the coming months of 2019 that may increase incomes and spending power of consumers and businesses.” — with Reicelene Joy N. Ignacio

Banks’ bad loans grow in January

BAD LOANS held by big banks grew in January to outpace lending growth, the latest central bank data showed.
Non-performing loans (NPLs) of universal and commercial banks rose to P131.356 billion, picking up from just P113.518 billion in December and jumping 29.6% from the P101.391 billion problem debts as of January 2018, according to the latest data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
NPLs are loans left unpaid for at least 30 days beyond due date. These are considered risky assets given the slim chance for borrowers to settle these liabilities, in turn spelling losses for lenders.
January’s increase outpaced the 13.1% increase in banks’ total loan portfolio to P8.852 trillion from P7.827 trillion a year ago.
As a result, the share of NPLs rose to 1.48% of total loans as of January, compared to 1.3% a year ago.
Past due loans, which cover all types of overdue payments, also went up by a third to some P182.82 billion. Meanwhile, debts enrolled for restructuring — or longer repayment periods — dropped by 16.5% to P31.506 billion.
Despite the rising NPLs, big banks added a mere three percent to their allowance for loan losses. The figure went up to P152.457 billion from P148.978 billion previously. This is enough to fully cover bad debts if they were completely written off, although the coverage ratio is down to 116.06% from 146.93%.
Meanwhile, bank deposits continued to grow in January to P11.389 trillion, 7.1% more than P10.635 trillion a year ago.
The central bank monitors the NPL ratios of banks and other monitored financial businesses in order to keep track of asset quality and safeguard the soundness of the financial system.
The latest NPL tally sustains a trend seen in 2018, when the share of NPLs in total debts rose to break a decline seen since 2013.
The bigger stash of problem loans came after the BSP raised benchmark borrowing rates by 175 basis points last year, with the five successive rate hikes meant to rein in inflation expectations. The key rate rose to 4.75% from three percent — a nine-year high — which in turn pushed market yields higher.
BSP Deputy Governor Chuchi G. Fonacier has said that the higher NPL tally may be attributed to a “stricter definition” of past-due and non-performing loans as provided under a recent circular.
S&P Global Ratings said in a recent webcast that it expects the rising share of soured debts to persist this year, although the ratio is expected to “remain very low.”
Big banks saw NPLs reach 1.26% of total loans last year, while the industry-wide ratio stood at 1.77% of all loan books. — Melissa Luz T. Lopez

Power grid operator flags spike in demand

THE NATIONAL GRID Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) is bracing for power demand to hit a record high in this year’s dry season, prompting the privately owned grid system operator to call on consumers to use energy efficiently.
“Peak power periods in Luzon are expected within the months of April and May, with the rising temperatures prompting a spike in demand,” the company said in a statement on Wednesday.
NGCP said it was “gearing up” for the coming dry season as the Department of Energy (DoE) expects electricity demand in Luzon to reach 11,403 megawatts (MW), nearly five percent more than the previous year’s peak.
Last year, actual peak demand registered in Luzon was 10,876 MW, which was recorded on May 28.
“The demand for power has been increasing year-on-year. With the DoE’s forecast breaching 11,000 MW, NGCP’s system operations is working round-the-clock to ensure the sufficient supply of power during the critical summer months,” the company said.
“Constant coordination is also being done with power generating plants to make sure that maintenance shutdowns will not coincide with the peak periods within the summer.”
NGCP also called on consumers in the Visayas and Mindanao to use power efficiently in the summer months when it expects power supply to be lean. “Visayas and Mindanao have also reached new highs in terms of peak demand in 2018,” it said.
Last year, demand in the Visayas grid peaked at 2,053 MW on May 24, while demand in the Mindanao grid reached 1,853 MW on Dec. 13.
For 2019, the DoE expects almost a 12% increase in demand in Visayas load growth with a projected peak of 2,299 MW.
In Mindanao, demand is projected to hit 2,130 MW, or higher by almost 15%.
The peak periods in both areas are expected in the final quarter of the year.
“We all can positively contribute to energy efficiency, even at the individual or household level. The simple practices we do to save electricity consumption will go a long way. Cleaning the fan blades of our electric fans, aircon filters and dust in lightbulbs will help our appliances function more efficiently,” NGCP said.
“Unplugging appliances when not in use and scheduling the use of electricity-heavy appliances, such as irons and washing machines, to off-peak periods (before 11 a.m. and after 7 p.m.) will help a lot in saving electricity consumption, ensuring better power flow within the grid,” it added.
The company also assured industry stakeholders that it was continuously developing the power grid to accommodate additional loads from power generation companies and enable better transmission of power across the country.
“We are expediting the completion of projects aimed to accommodate this increase in demand. NGCP appeals for the support and cooperation of local government units and the public as we hope to complete these projects at the soonest possible time to prevent any negative impact on power supply during the dry season ahead,” the company said. — VVS

1...11,22711,22811,229...14,286Page 11,228 of 14,286
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
© 2024 BusinessWorld Publishing.
All rights reserved.
Read our privacy guidelines
Facebook Instagram Linkedin X Youtube