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Phoenix sends Magnolia crashing for 3rd win in row

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
THE Phoenix Fuel Masters raced to their third win in a row at the Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup after beating the Magnolia Hotshots Pambansang Manok, 95-82, on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Showing collective poise and grit, the Fuel Masters took the challenge that the Hotshots gave and successfully ground it out to book their third straight victory in the season-ending PBA tournament and improve to a 5-1 win-loss card while handing Magnolia (2-1) its first defeat.
The Fuel Masters started aggressively, following the lead of import Eugene Phelps.
Phoenix built a 15-7 lead by the 6:18 mark of the first quarter.
It continued to hold off Magnolia for the remainder of the period, eventually establishing a 30-19 advantage at the end of the first 12 minutes.
In the second period, Ian Sangalang and import Romeo Travis got the Hotshots offense going, towing their team to within five points, 34-29, with three and half minutes lapsing.
Phoenix adjusted behind Mr. Phelps, extending its lead anew to double-digits, 42-39, at the 5:52 mark.
Magnolia, however, was not to be denied a charge back.
Messrs. Travis and Sangalang, along with guard Jio Jalalon, willed their team back, levelling the count at 46-all with 58 ticks left.
Mr. Phelps handed back the lead to the Fuel Masters off two free throws, 48-46, with 32 seconds left only to be answered by Mr. Jalalon with two freebies of his own 13 seconds later to force a stalemate at the end of the first half, 48-all.
The two teams jockeyed for position to start the third quarter, looking to seize the momentum as the second fold unravelled.
The count stood at 59-57 in favor of Phoenix midway into the frame.
Phoenix tried to create some distance after only to be countered by Magnolia, forcing them to get tangled at 64-all with less than three minutes remaining.
A 7-3 run to finish the quarter gave the Fuel Masters a 71-67 lead after 36 minutes of play.
Phoenix took off from where it left in the third to start the final canto.
Led by Mr. Phelps and LA Revilla, the Fuel Masters went on an11-5 run to hold an 82-72 advantage with 5:30 left on the clock.
Magnolia attempted to fashion out a comeback led by Aldrech Ramos but Mr. Phelps, Matthew Wright and Calvin Abueva would not allow Phoenix to have any slippage and had their eyes on a winning finish.
The Fuel Masters held an 87-80 lead entering the last two minutes and stayed ahead on their way to booking the streak-extending victory.
Mr. Phelps had 36 points, 18 rebounds and four blocks for Phoenix while Matthew Wright and Justin Chua added 13 and 12 points, respectively.
Mr. Abueva, meanwhile, had nine points, 10 rebounds, five assists and three blocks.
Mr. Travis, meanwhile, led Magnolia with 28 points and 19 rebounds.
Messrs. Sangalang and Jalalon and Mark Barroca each had 11 points.
“Finally, we got to beat Magnolia, which I believe is one of the top defensive teams in the league. We got to hold them down,” said Phoenix coach Louie Alas in the postmatch press conference.
“At 5-1 we’re doing okay but we cannot rest and we have to continue winning games,” he added.

Tamaraws bounce back, stomp on Maroons, 89-73

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
THE Far Eastern University Tamaraws got back in the win column on Sunday after defeating the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons, 89-73, in University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 81 action at the FilOil Flying V Centre in San Juan City.
Got off to fast start, the Tamaraws, who were handed a stinging loss by University of Santo Tomas last time around, left the Maroons dead in their tracks, on the strength of solid defense and crisp offense, and never looked after to improve to 2-1 in the season while sending UP (1-2) to its second straight defeat.
The Tamaraws opened the proceedings with an 8-0 blast in the first minute and a half to set the pace early on.
They would build on it on the play of Prince Orizu and Axel Iñigo the rest of the way to take a 25-13 advantage in the opening quarter.
In the second period, Javi Gomez De Liaño tried to jump-start the offense of the Maroons but only to be countered by Iñigo and the rest of the Tamaraws.
The count stood at 35-26, with FEU on top, midway into the frame.
UP continued to fight back after, managing to trim its deficit to just five points, 36-31, with 2:45 to go.
FEU though finished strong to carry a 49-35 lead heading into the halftime break.
The onslaught continued for the Tamaraws at the start of the third period as Orizu pounded on the UP defense.
They stretched their lead to 21 points, 58-37, in the first three minutes, and from there it was all FEU, which led 69-46 heading into the final frame.
UP started the fourth period with 10 straight points in the first two and a half minutes of the period to trim FEU’s lead, 69-56.
Orizu And Company, however, found their collective footing after the UP run, going on an 8-0 run in the next two minutes to extend their lead back to 20 points, 76-56.
The Maroons could not recover from said FEU recoil as the latter piled up things anew on its opponent and headed for the win.
Orizu led the Tamaraws with 15 points and seven rebounds with Arvin Tolentino finishing with 13 points.
Wendell Comboy had 12 points while Jesper Parker finished with 11 points, six rebounds and six assists.
Gomez De Liaño had 15 points while his brother Juan had 13.
Jun Manzo had 11 points and six assists for the Maroons, which played sans head coach Bo Perasol who was serving his suspension after the outburst he had on game officials in their last assignment.
FEU next plays on Sept. 30 against the University of the East (0-2), which had a game against De La Salle University later yesterday, while UP clashes with league-leading Adamson University (3-0) on Sept. 26.

Tiger Woods takes 3-shot lead at Tour Championship

ATLANTA — Tiger Woods is one round away from ending his five-year victory drought after storming into a three-shot lead on day three of the Tour Championship here Saturday.
Woods, 42 looked in a class of his own as he carded a five-under-par 65 to leave himself on 12 under for the tournament at Atlanta’s East Lake Golf Club.
After an opening birdie on the par-four first, Woods went surging clear of the field with a run of five straight birdies from the third hole.
The run came with a mix of superb iron play and rock-solid putting, including a 21-foot birdie putt on the fourth.
There was also a moment of magic from the former world number one on the seventh, when he drilled a 172-yard approach shot to five feet and then tapped in for birdie.
He was denied a bigger lead after bogeys on the ninth and 16th holes.
“I got off to a nice start and made some nice putts. Good Lord,” Woods said afterwards.
“I left myself in good spots, too, so I was able to take a run at some of the putts. Other than number three, every putt was uphill, so it was nice. I felt like I could free-wheel it, and they went in.”
A Woods victory would be an 80th PGA Tour triumph and take him to within two wins of Sam Snead’s all-time 82 Tour victories.
SIMPLE MATH
“I would love to be able to win this event,” he said.
“I’ve got a three-shot lead. I’ve got a bunch of guys behind me that have been playing well and are playing well, and we’ll see what happens tomorrow.”
With one round remaining, Woods leads by three from Rory McIlroy and Justin Rose on nine under.
“Simple math says that if I play a clean card, the guys behind me have to shoot 67 to force it into extra,” Woods added.
“So, that helps. I don’t have to shoot 63 or 64 and hope I get help. That’s a big difference.
“This is a spot I’d much rather be in than certainly four or five back.”
And having won 106 tournaments around the globe, Woods was quizzed if there was any further room for a 107th victory prize.
“I am sure there would be room somewhere in the house if I happened to go on and win this event,” he said.
Woods’ last victory came 1,875 days ago in August 2013 when he captured the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.
The 14-time Major winner is a two-time former Tour Championship winner and enjoys a remarkable record of winning 54 of 57 PGA Tour events when holding the 54-hole lead.
The 42-year-old returned to golf this season after missing most of the previous two years with a debilitating back injury.
However Woods has progressed steadily during his comeback season, leading the British Open during the final round in July before finishing second at last month’s PGA Championship.
He fired a 62 earlier this month and has also done enough to force himself into the USA team for next week’s Ryder Cup.
Behind Woods, McIlroy is lurking menacingly after carding a four-under-par 66.
Overnight leader Rose remains in the hunt but will look to improve on Sunday after a two-under-par 68.
Kyle Stanley and Spain’s Jon Rahm are a further three shots back on six under, six strokes behind Woods.
Paul Casey, Tony Finau and Billy Horschel are seven off the lead on five under. — AFP

Karolina Pliskova upsets Japan Naomi Osaka to win Tokyo title

TOKYO — Former world number one Karolina Pliskova stunned Japanese tennis sensation Naomi Osaka in straights sets to capture the Pan Pacific Open on Sunday.
The fourth seed needed just 63 minutes to complete a clinical 6-4, 6-4 victory over the newly crowned US Open champion in Tokyo, bringing Osaka’s 10-match winning streak to a shuddering halt.
“I’m just happy it didn’t go to three sets,” said the Czech, who had been taken the distance in her previous three matches.
“My serve is my biggest weapon and it was key today,” added Pliskova after scooping an 11th career title.
“Naomi was maybe a little bit tired, you could see that. But the future is bright for her and congrats to her for an incredible few weeks.”
The players had split their previous two meetings, but Osaka started the final as favorite after her historic New York triumph.
And the third seed began in menacing fashion, thumping an ace down the middle on the first point and holding her first two service games to love.
But Pliskova slowly turned the screw and broke for 3-2 with a fizzing backhand her opponent swished well wide.
The Czech was soon a set to the good after unleashing another brutal drive, Osaka caught flat-footed and dumping it into the net.
Runner-up in Tokyo two years ago, Osaka climbed to seventh in the world rankings after becoming Japan’s first grand slam singles champion but she looked lost for ideas against Pliskova.
The 20-year-old buried her head in a towel during the changeover and things barely improved in the second set, Osaka whacking her racquet against her sneakers in anger at her wastefulness.
As the strain began to show, a dejected Osaka called for coach Sascha Bajin and groaned: “I feel so stressed out!”
Sensing blood, Pliskova broke for 5-4 after a poor Osaka drop shot gifted her an easy put-away and moments later she delivered the coup de grace with a sixth ace that Osaka barely wafted her racquet at.
For Pliskova, it was a first tournament victory since Stuttgart in April — and the first since wedding long-time partner Michal Hrdlicka in the summer.
“The first one this year was before the wedding,” smiled the Czech. “I’m just happy that I also have a title as a married woman.” — AFP

Pacio makes it three Team Lakay ONE champions

MAKE IT three current world champions in Asia’s largest mixed martial arts organization for fabled Baguio City group Team Lakay. This, after Joshua “The Passion” Pacio emerged as victorious in his title quest for the world strawweight title in ONE Championship at the weekend at “ONE: Conquest of Heroes” in Indonesia.
Faced Yoshitaka “Nobita” Naito of Japan for the second time for the 126-lb division gold, Mr. Pacio made sure that he would not fall for a second time to the Japanese, showcasing his highly improved game that the erstwhile champion just could not match up in the end as the Filipino ran away with the title by way of unanimous decision at the Jakarta Convention Center on Saturday night.
Back in October 2016 the two fighters collided for the strawweight title for the first time where Mr. Naito won by submission (rear-naked choke) in the third round to successfully defend the belt.
Last weekend, Mr. Naito went anew to his vaunted grappling skills but Mr. Pacio showed that he was far wiser to fall to such once again, countering with his solid takedown and grappling defense to complement his crisp and clean combinations throughout the contest to rock his opponent and book the championship win.
The win put Mr. Pacio (13-2) in the company of stable mates Geje “Gravity” Eustaquio (flyweight) and Kevin “The Silencer” Belingon (bantamweight/interim) as ONE Championship world champions from Team Lakay.
Lightweights Eduard “Landslide” Folayang and Honorio “The Rock “ Banario (as featherweight) were former Team Lakay ONE champions.
Following his victory, Mr. Pacio, 22, was very grateful for finally realizing his dream of earning a world championship title even as he dedicated the win to residents of Baguio and Benguet who were recently devastated by Typhoon Ompong (international name: Mangkhut).
“I’m speechless, but I want to thank the Lord Jesus Christ, and ONE Championship for the privilege and this unexplainable feeling. Last week, typhoons struck Baguio City, Benguet, and the Cordilleras. A lot of places were hit hard. Many people died and some are still missing. This is for all of them. I know that the Cordilleras will come back and rise again soon as one,” he said at the post-fight interview.
He was also thankful to his team for preparing him well against a tough opponent like Mr. Naito.
“I would like to thank my coach Mark Sangiao, who is here, and all our coaches, friends and sponsors. They had our backs since day one. I tried to counter his (Naito’s) takedowns and grappling, but this guy is a legend. He was so tough,” Mr. Pacio said.
KINGAD WINS
Also triumphant at Conquest of Heroes was flyweight Danny “The King” Kingad, also of Team Lakay.
Mr. Kingad (11-1) came from behind to win his battle against Japanese newcomer Yuya “Little Piranha” Wakamatsu by unanimous decision.
The Filipino was in trouble for the majority of the opening round after being tagged by Mr. Wakamatsu’s hard right straight and a follow-up knee strike. Avoiding further danger in the stand-up exchanges, Mr. Kingad resorted to his wrestling in the succeeding rounds where he found his leverage by shooting for high-impact takedowns and threatening with various submissions.
In the end, his performance earned the nod of the three cageside judges for the unanimous decision win.
With the victory, Mr. Kingad now has won three straight since absorbing his first lost to former ONE flyweight champion Adriano Moraes of Brazil in November last year.
Meanwhile, Filipino women’s atomweight fighter Jomary Torres (4-1) saw her four-fight winning streak come to an end after bowing to hometown bet Priscilla Hertati Lumban Gaol by unanimous decision.
Next for ONE Championship is “Kingdom of Heroes” on Oct. 6 in Bangkok, Thailand, which will be headlined by the World Boxing Council Super Flyweight World Championship fight between champion Srisaket Sor Rungvisai of Thailand against Iran Diaz of Mexico. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Del Monte, Tagaytay Highlands, and Bacolod capture 13th PAL Ladies Interclub division titles

DAVAO CITY — Del Monte, Tagaytay Highlands and Bacolod captured division titles Saturday at the close of the 13th Philippine Airlines Interclub golf team championships at the Rancho Palos Verdes Golf and Country Club.
Del Monte leaned on Martina Minoza’s 52 points and Rhea Langgamin’s 51 to win the Founders division with 554 points. Kiara Therese Montebon was the third scorer with 45 points.
Lady Eagles Australian 1 finished second with 541 points behind Kelsey Benett’s 55 points while Negros Occidental settled for third with 507.
In the Sportswriters division, Tagaytay Highlands drew 53 points from Sophia Blanco to beat Camp Aguinaldo by 15 points.
Tagaytay closed out with 123 for 460 points while Aguinaldo, anchored by Mabel Salivio’s 47, submitted 111 for 445.
Pueblo de Oro drew 49 points from Alethea Paige Gaccion to settle for third place with 433.
In the tight battle for the Friendship crown, Bacolod edged host Rancho Palos Verdes, 362-361, behind a strong finish of 99 points.
Jocel Pagunsan led Bacolod with 41 points while Mi Sun Jo led the host club with 36 points.
Apo Golf settled for third place with 326 points.
Pradera Verde captured the championship division, beating Manila Southwoods by 13 points.
Major sponsors for the 13th PAL Ladies Interclub include Airbus, Bombardier, People Asia, UM Broadcasting Network and Primax Broadcasting Network.
Other sponsors are TFC, Mastercard, Resorts World, SEDA Hotel, SM Supermalls, and Banco de Oro. Donors are Asia Brewery and Philippine National Bank.
THE FINAL RESULTS:
FOUNDERS — Del Monte 554 (136-138-132-148), Lady Eagles Australian 1 541 (116-158-121-146), Negros Occidental 507 (124-130-126-127), Alabang 501 (121-136-116-128), Orchard 452 (117-117115-103), Wack Wack 445 (119-105-114-107)
SPORTSWRITERS — Tagaytay Highlands 460 (106-120-111-123), Camp Aguinaldo 445 (109-118-107-111), Pueblo de Oro 433 (121-99-98-115), Manila Golf 403 (89-111-95-108), Rancho Palos Verdes 1 400 (109-103-92-96), Lady Eagles Australian 2 399 (101-99-98-101), Camp John Hay 398 (89-96-104-109), Eagle Ridge 379 (95-88-106-90), Fairways and Bluewater 349 (89-88-86-86), Alta Vista 335 (84-8471-96), Iloilo 278 (72-68-63-75)
FRIENDSHIP — Bacolod 362 (82-84-97-99), Rancho Palos Verdes 2 361 (94-98-83-86), Apo 326 (81-87-81-77), Alabang 2 321 (77-84-81-79), Orchard 258 (95-84-38-41), Victorias 251 (61-75-55-60)

Yankees clinch AL wild card berth

LOS ANGELES — The New York Yankees punched their ticket to the playoffs, clinching a American League wild card berth for the second straight year with a 3-2 victory over the Baltimore Orioles.
Aaron Hicks hit a double to drive in the winning run in the 11th inning on Saturday for the Yankees, who improved to 95-59 on the season, their most wins since 2012.
New York will play a winner-takes-all wild card affair on Oct. 3, most likely against Oakland.
New York raced to a 54-27 record at this season’s halfway stage and a lead over the Boston Red Sox before injuries slowed them down.
The Red Sox clinched their third straight division crown by beating New York on Thursday.
The goal now is to become the first team in the Yankees storied history to win the World Series as a wild card team. — AFP

Resurgent Braves win NL East crown

LOS ANGELES — Mike Foltynewicz pitched a no-hitter into the seventh as the Atlanta Braves clinched their first division title in five years with a 5-3 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday.
Rookie Ronald Acuna caught a flyball for the final out setting off a celebration on the SunTrust Park field for the newly-crowned National League East Division champs.
The Braves will begin the postseason on October 4 in a best-of-five series against an undetermined opponent. Atlanta won its fourth consecutive game and beat second-place Phillies for the third straight day.
The crowd gave a standing ovation to the 26-year old Foltynewicz, who improved to 12-10 on the season. He left the game with a 4-0 lead and runners on first and second base in the seventh Arodys Vizcaino closed out the ninth for his 16th save of the season. He got Wilson Ramos to ground out, fanned Roman Quinn and got Maikel Franco to hit a flyball to the outfield.
Philadelphia has won six and lost 14 this month after leading the division in early August. — AFP

Asia League: A must try for PBA

MACAU — So the IECO Green Warriors had just wrapped up their Asia League Terrific 12 Tournament winless, but not after giving up a fight in their second and last game of their group stage match against the Xinjiang Flying Tigers, the former team of Gilas Pilipinas naturalized player Andray Blatche.
The Green Warriors, owned by Dioceldo Sy of Blackwater, had been given the exposure in the Asian level that is getting tougher by the day. The league had brought in top-tier teams from China, Japan, Taiwan and Korea among others and to see a Philippine representative out there that was put up two weeks before the start of the tournament and able to come up with a gallant stand in the final day is all worth it.
The IECO Green Warriors are composed of a selection of players from the MPBL, the D-League, two players from Blackwater in the PBA, a few other Fil-Ams and imports.
Watching the Asia League Terrific 12 is like seeing a glorified William Jones Cup event — or even more, which is why Sy wants his group to put up a team again next year.
“By next year, we’re going to field in our team, Blackwater, to compete there,” Sy said. “It’s a strong league and this is good for the PBA as well because it is going to open its doors to the Asian level.”
Sy encourages his fellow PBA owners to give the Asia League a try because competing there is all worth it and it would give them a taste of how Asian level competition is being played.
“I even asked the organizers to reserve at least two more slots for the PBA. I’m talking to PBA commissioner Willie Marcial on the possibility of PBA teams competing there. We just have to work on our calendar,” added Sy.
For Ariel Vanguardia, who made his return in coaching after last handling the Phoenix Fuel Masters, Asian basketball is growing.
“I think everybody is at the same level and I’m happy to see that the region is growing,” added Vanguardia, who steered the Matthew Wright-led Westport Malaysia Dragons to a championship a few years ago which earned him a ticket to coaching in the PBA.
In the Asia League Terrific 12, several notable standouts were able to showcase their wares, among them include local players Gab Banal and Matt Salem, two players from the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League, a league put up by Senator Manny Pacquiao, and has become the fastest growing regional basketball league in the Philippines.
In the two games they played, Banal and Salem averaged in double figures.
The son of multi-titled champion player and coach Joel Banal, who plays for the Bacoor Strikers, averaged 12.5 points and four rebounds per game.
Salem, a deadshot shooter who plays for the Navotas Clutch, averaged 11.5 points and five rebounds a game.
Asia League is growing and wait until next year where teams from Australia and New Zealand possibly joins the competition.
Brian Goorjian, a six-time champion in Australia’s NBL and six-time Coach of the Year in the same league, said that it will only be a matter of time before the Asia League becomes similar to the NBA Summer League.
 
Rey Joble has been covering the PBA games for more than a decade. He is a member of the PBA Press Corps and Philippine Sportswriters Association.
reyjoble09@gmail.com

Butler on the way out

In retrospect, the Timberwolves’ acquisition of Jimmy Butler this time last year wasn’t such a good move. True, it led to their first playoff appearance in 13 years. And, true, it was a gamble that looked ready to reap dividends for some time to come. On the other hand, there can be no quibbling with the outcome: The four-time National Basketball Association All-Star is on his way out, and sooner rather than later.
Considering the stakes, it’s no wonder Timberwolves head coach and head of hoops operations Tom Thibodeau wants to keep Butler on the roster for the 2018-19 season even with free agency coming next. His own tenure with the franchise is at stake, and, determined to show some semblance of improvement by way of validating his leadership, he knows dealing his best player for budding talent is tantamount to a reboot that seals his fate.
Of course, the final say lies with ownership, and especially for the Timberwolves. Prominently hands on, Glen Taylor has been front and center in major negotiations involving former stars, among them Kevin Garnett to the Celtics in 2007 and Kevin Love to the Cavaliers seven years later. And, based on news gathered by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, he is again bent on having his way with Butler; contrary to sentiments being conveyed by Thibodeau and general manager Scott Layden, he has told peers that Butler is available for the taking.
Moving forward, Taylor may well have the more defensible position. Regardless of what the Timberwolves gave up to get Butler last year, the fact remains that he now wants out. And, really, there’s nothing like a disgruntled marquee name feuding with the other leading lights on the team to sabotage growth. As also proven during his stint with the Bulls, he has no patience for the slow progression of talents. Meanwhile, the franchise has made a choice, clearly hitching its future to Karl Anthony-Towns via a whopping $190-million supermax extension.
Admittedly, the Timberwolves will be bargaining from a place of weakness in its attempts to be rid of Butler. Then again, it’s better to get pennies to the dollar than nothing at all. And, if nothing else, it will have avoided throwing good money over bad; he’s due for a big payday next year, and, given his injury history, the prospect of handing him eight-figure checks when he’s 35 is far from enticing. In other words, the seemingly sorry saga has a silver lining. It just isn’t evident yet.
 
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994.

Peso to drop ahead of Fed, BSP

THE PESO will likely weaken anew this week due to escalated geopolitical tensions overseas and in anticipation of the possible policy tightening of the local and US central banks.
On Friday, the local unit closed at P54.04 versus the greenback, slightly stronger than the P54.075 finish on Thursday amid some respite from geopolitical tensions.
Week on week, the peso declined from its P53.97 finish on Sept. 14.
Guian Angelo S. Dumalagan, Land Bank of the Philippines chief economist, said the dollar is expected to appreciate this week due to “escalating geopolitical concerns abroad and widespread expectations of another US rate hike on Sept. 27.”
On Monday, he said the dollar might strengthen as investors flock to safer currencies following negative developments on the US-China trade talks as well as uncertainties on the ongoing Brexit negotiations.
Last week, China imposed levies on $60 billion worth of American products in retaliation to the $200-billion tariffs on Chinese goods that will be in effect starting Monday.
A senior White House official said on Friday that Washington is optimistic about finding a way forward in its trade clash with Beijing, although it does not have a scheduled date for further talks, Reuters reported.
“Meanwhile, the EU and the UK have not made significant progress on the Brexit trade deal, with Prime Minister Theresa May saying that ‘no deal is better than a bad deal’,” Mr. Dumalagan added.
The market economist noted the greenback may appreciate again after likely moving sideways on Tuesday and Wednesday “fuelled by possible rate hike of the US Federal Reserve and expectations of more hawkish cues” from Fed officials Jerome Powell and Robert Kaplan.
The Fed is widely expected to raise interest rates this week amid tightening job market and inflation surpassing the 2% target. Another round of tightening is also expected in December, as well as two more next year.
“Of course, if the rates keep on going up in the US, it will put pressure for emerging markets, causing Asian currencies to further depreciate,” a foreign currency trader said in a phone interview on Friday.
On the other hand, the dollar’s ascent might be capped by possible rate hike from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, which is also widely expected by the market.
In a BusinessWorld poll, at least 15 economists expect the central bank to tighten its policy settings by another 50 bps to temper inflation expectations.
“The policy rate gap between the Philippines and the US is a relevant concern, as it is one [of the] factors contributing to the peso’s weakness,” Mr. Dumalagan noted.
Meanwhile, the trader noted that various central banks “seems to be talking and employing a coordinated effort to address the problem.”
“If this becomes the strategy, it will be more effective going forward,” the trader said.
For this week, Mr. Dumalagan expects the peso to move between P53.80 and P54.40 versus the dollar, while the trader gave a P53.87-P53.28 range. — Karl Angelo N. Vidal

Stocks seen sideways ahead of BSP, Fed reviews

By Arra B. Francia
Reporter

THE MAIN INDEX will likely trade sideways in the week ahead as investors anticipate the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) action on interest rates on Thursday.

The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) surged 3.48% or 248.27 points to close at 7,383 on Friday, lifting itself out of bear territory after three days of consecutive losses that pulled it back to the 7,100 level on Thursday. Friday’s performance, however, failed to lift the index for the week, as it still lost 0.41% or 30.15 points on a weekly basis.

Turnover stood at P32.19 billion for the week. Net foreign selling slowed to P1.70 billion versus the massive figure of P33.52 billion logged the week before.

Eagle Equities, Inc. Research Head Christopher John Mangun noted that Friday’s gain indicates that local investors have been supporting the market despite foreign investors’ consistent selling spree.

“Based on the technicals and market sentiment, the index may trade sideways next week as investors sit on the sidelines waiting to see if the BSP will raise interest rates at the Monetary Board meeting next Thursday,” Mr. Mangun said in a weekly market note.

Economists expect the BSP to hike rates by another 50 basis points (bps) when the Monetary Board meets on Sept. 27, given the faster-than-expected August inflation print of 6.4%. Should this materialize, the rate hike will follow the 100 bps increase the local central bank has implemented since May, with benchmark rates now ranging from 3.5-4.5%.

“If they raise rates [this] week, we may see the market go up as this will come as a positive to investors that something is being done to curb higher inflation. Another positive effect of an interest hike is it may encourage foreign funds to flow back in to the peso as our currency has performed better than what is expected,” Mr. Mangun explained.

Online brokerage 2TradeAsia.com said inflation should taper off in the fourth quarter as long as the Department of Finance executes a proper implementation of its 10-point inflation buster program.

“The only unknown variable so far is the extent of holiday spending growth, which might prod demand-push cycle,” 2TradeAsia.com said in a weekly market note.

The BSP’s policy meeting will come after the US Federal Open Market Committee’s two-day meeting on Sept. 25-26, where analysts are also looking at a potential rate hike.

“Any aggressive move could widen the greenback’s differential with peer currencies, unless regional counterparts adopt similar steps. Meanwhile, there are also those anticipating a status quo, pending resolution of trade-related spats,” 2TradeAsia.com said.

Eagle Equities’ Mr. Mangun placed the market’s support level from 7,200 to 7,350, with resistance from 7,500 to 7,840.

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