Alsons lists P100 million worth of commercial paper

October 26, 2018 | 8:56 pm

ALSONS Consolidated Resources, Inc (ACR) listed on Friday P100 million worth of commercial paper, the first portion of its P2.5-billion debt program, to cover the initial funding for its venture into renewable energy.
The funds raised from the issuance will partly fund the development of its P4.25-billion run-of-river hydroelectric power project at the Siguil River basin in Maasim, Sarangani province.
“We’re looking to add up to 145 megawatts of renewable energy from the eight run-of-river hydro power facilities that we will be developing in various locations in Mindanao and Negros Occidental,” said ACR Executive Vice-President Tirso G. Santillan, Jr. during the listing ceremony.
“This facility will give us the ability to bridge the financial requirements of our projects under development,” he added.
The hydropower plant is expected to start commercial operation in 2021 and will power Sarangani province, General Santos City and some municipalities in South Cotabato.
Mr. Santillan described the issuance as a “high point” in the company’s efforts to tap the short-term capital market for its working capital.
He said the company is also looking to add more run-of-river hydroelectric projects in Negros Oriental, Sarangani, Davao Oriental, Zamboanga del Norte, the two Agusan provinces, and Surigao del Sur.
ACR’s commercial paper is due on Oct. 21, 2019 and carry a discount rate of 6.38%.
ACR’s power group claims to be Mindanao’s first and most experienced independent power producer. It operates four power facilities on the island.
Aside from the Siguil project, ACR is also developing a 105-MW San Ramon Power, Inc. coal-fired power plant in Zamboanga City, which is expected to begin operating in 2022.
The group also runs the Southern Philippines Power Corp. in Alabel, Sarangani and Western Mindanao Power Corp. in Zamboanga City.
It also operates the 103-MW Mapalad Power Corp. diesel plant in Iligan City and the first 105-MW section of the 210-MW Sarangani Energy Corp. baseload coal-fired power plant in Maasim, Sarangani province.
The Sarangani plant’s second 105-MW section is expected to begin commercial operations in the first quarter of 2019.
On Friday, shares in ACR slipped 0.79% to close at P1.26. — Victor Saulon

Feasible for PHL to decarbonize while meeting energy needs — Shell

October 26, 2018 | 8:54 pm

A DEVELOPING country such as the Philippines needs energy to support its growth, but can still commit to decarbonize and support the global aspiration to limit the rise in the earth’s temperature by 2 degrees Celsius.
This was the message of Jeremy Bentham, Royal Dutch Shell plc’s vice-president for global business environment and head of scenarios.
“Yes, you can go to net-zero emissions that will be a combination of decarbonizing the power sector [and] deeply electrifying the economy and using in that electricity more things like solar or wind, and using natural gas with carbon capture and then using alongside oil and gas for premium use, developing more biofuels,” he said in an interview.
Mr. Bentham was the guest speaker of the Management Association of the Philippines on Friday and spoke about the “future of energy.”
“A primary challenge is having enough energy to do the things you need to do because you can’t build anything or operate anything without energy,” he said.
“To have a better life for most people, you need to build and do more. Energy is going to be important,” he added.
He said decarbonizing is feasible and can be done in the Philippines over 50 years.
“So you have the opportunity to get it right the first time,” he said.
He said Shell’s role through the changes in the world’s energy needs is evolving.
“Shell is a major energy company. We serve so many people around the world. Just think about consumption of fuels for vehicles. We have more retail sites in the world than McDonald’s. We sell twice as many coffees as Starbucks,” he said.
“So we serve customers with the energy that they need. Now, we know that our customers who need more energy, but we also know that customers that need cleaner energy. So we’re trying to look at the ways we can do and bring that,” he added.
Mr. Bentham said the last decades have been dominated by oil and gas, leaving the perception that the company is an oil and gas company.
“Of course, oil and gas are very important, and they will continue to be important but oil and gas are just a form of energy, and what we really are is an energy company,” he said.
“As our customers change their needs, and as economies develop we will change whatever it is that they need to have,” he added. — Victor V. Saulon

Government debt climbs to P7.16 billion in Sept.

October 26, 2018 | 8:49 pm

By Elijah Joseph C. Tubayan, Reporter
THE government’s total outstanding debt grew in September due to the weaker peso, the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) said.
The total debt stood at P7.16 trillion as of September, up 11.1% from P6.44 trillion in the same period last year.
It also inched up 0.8% from the P7.10 trillion recorded in the previous month.
64.08% of the total were borrowed locally, while 35.92% were from external sources, well within this year’s 63-35 target borrowing mix favoring domestic lenders.
The national government’s local debts stood at P4.59 trillion, 9.5% higher than the P4.19 trillion last year, and a 0.3% increase from August.
“For the month, the increase in domestic debt was due to the net issuance of government securities amounting to P14.54 billion and the depreciation of the peso that increased the value of onshore dollar bonds by P0.31 billion,” the BTr said.
The BTr quoted the peso at P54.102 per dollar in September, weaker than the P53.475 in August and P50.83 versus the greenback in September 2017.
Meanwhile, external debt amounted to P2.57 trillion in the January-September period, 14% higher than P2.26 trillion logged in the same nine months last year, and 1.6% higher than the end-August level.
“The increment in external debt was due to net availments of foreign loans amounting to P22.52 billion and the P29.68 billion impact of local currency depreciation against the US dollar,” the BTr explained.
“This was slightly offset by the net depreciation of third-currency denominated debt amounting to P11.13 billion,” it added.
The government borrows from local and foreign sources to fund its budget deficit, which for this year is capped at 3% of the country’s gross domestic product.
This year, the government has widened the share of foreign debt from 20% last year as it seeks to take advantage of favorable interest rates currently before it increases further next year, as projected.
The government expects the debt as a share to the economy to decline from 42.6% in the first quarter this year to 38.6% by 2022.

Quezon City seeks bidders to solid waste management PPP project

October 26, 2018 | 8:48 pm

By Elijah Joseph C. Tubayan, Reporter
THE QUEZON CITY local government is inviting prospective competitive bidders for the P22-billion Integrated Solid Waste Management Facility Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Project, as tender documents will be available for purchase starting next week.
In a statement late Thursday, the PPP Center said the Quezon City government is “inviting local and international entities to submit comparative proposals for the design, financing, construction, operation, and maintenance of a biodegradable source separated waste treatment and residual combustible waste treatment technologies capable of processing up to 3,000 metric tons of municipal solid waste (MSW) per day and generating 36 MWe (Net).”
The project also includes the construction of a monofil for fly ash disposal, and other ancillary facilities such as monitoring systems, administration buildings, scale houses, transmission lines, utility systems, among others, with an overall indicative cost of P22 billion.
Interested challengers must purchase tender documents from the Quezon City government worth P300,000 available starting Oct. 30.
The pre-bid conference has been tentatively set on Nov. 22, and the bid submission date on Jan. 31 next year. The winning proponent is targeted to be selected by Feb. 28, followed by the issuance of the notice of award and the signing of the project documents on March 5, and 25, respectively.
Quezon City accepted the project as an unsolicited proposal, and awarded the original proponent status to a consortium of Metro Pacific Investments Corporation (MPIC), Covanta Energy, LLC, and Macquarie Group Limited on March 17 last year, followed by the signing of a Joint Certification of Successful Negotiation on Oct. 12 this year.
The original proponent has the right to match the lowest complying bid submitted by challengers in a Swiss challenge.
The main bid parameter will be based on the lowest tipping fee — or the fee charged by the operator accepting the solid waste — inclusive of value-added tax (VAT) and other applicable taxes.
According to the tender documents, the Quezon City local government is responsible for the payment of the tipping fee.
“QC LGU also commits to deliver 1,700 metric tons of MSW per day, to acquire the right-of-way (“ROW”) for access roads and other utilities such as transmission lines, and to acquire the project site of the facility in case expropriation is required,” the PPP Center said.
Private concessionaires will get 95% of the revenues generated from tipping fees, power generations fees, and the sale of by-products, while the local government will take the remaining balance.
The project will have a 35-year concession period.
The proponent is expected to provide the local government with a “sustainable, environmentally friendly, and cost-efficient waste disposal solution for its current solid waste management challenges.”
Among expected outcomes of the project include: reduced exposure to illnesses from biohazards and pests, job creation from the construction, operation, and maintenance of the project, reduced greenhouse gas emissions, and savings from electricity costs.

DoF identifies abuses in corporate tax system

October 26, 2018 | 8:47 pm

By Elijah Joseph C. Tubayan, Reporter
THE DEPARTMENT of Finance (DoF) is seeking to stop what it called “abuses” in the corporate tax system under the Tax Reform for Attracting Better and High-quality Opportunities (TRABAHO) bill.
The DoF said the debates on the second tax reform package have been focused on fiscal incentives and have “unfortunately ignored one vital public concern, which is the possible rampant abuse of these perks as well as the practice of transfer pricing and spread of harmful tax practices.”
The DoF listed the top abuses of tax incentive regimes in the Philippines, which include enterprise zones with regional investment incentives, but are diverting their activities outside the region; transfer pricing schemes to lower payable taxes by transferring activities to a sister firm; and disguising non-qualifying activities into qualifying activities.
Other abuses include domestic firms restructuring as foreign investors to get special tax rates; existing firms transforming into new entities to qualify for new incentives; reporting churning or fictitious investments; schemes to accelerate income or defer deductions at the end of a tax holiday period; overvaluation of assets for depreciation, tax credit, or other purposes; and employment and training credits, where firms employ fictitious employees and roll out fake training programs.
“Some of these abuses we can control or enforce better, but no amount of enforcement will be adequate if our current system is prone to these abuses,” Finance Undersecretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua was quoted in a statement as saying.
He said these abuses are estimated to cost the government some P43 billion in 2015 alone, on top of the P301 billion in tax incentives that were granted by various investment promotion agencies.
The proposed reforms to plug the abuses in the TRABAHO bill include the improvement of general anti-avoidance rules especially on firms’ allocation of income and deductions, gains and loss determination and recognition, and stricter definition and implementation of related measures.
This includes tightening the definition of exporters to a firm that exports 90% of its sales, from the current 70%, disallowing the double registration of activities, strict implementation of the new investment-new incentive scheme, expanding the definition of large taxpayer, and defining a medium taxpayer, among others.
The TRABAHO bill mainly seeks to cut the corporate income tax rate gradually from 30% currently to 20% by 2029, while limiting fiscal incentives in a maximum of five years to industries identified in the Strategic Investments Priority Plan (SIPP) that also satisfy performance indicators.
Redundant incentives will be repealed, but the measure would retain and harmonize some perks in a single menu which, among others, include: a three-year income tax holiday, followed by a special income tax rate of 18% starting 2021, to decline to 13% by 2029; allowable deductions on labor, research and development, training, infrastructure development; and some customs duties exemptions — limited to up to five years — before they are subjected to the regular corporate tax scheme. It will also disallow the use of value-added tax and local tax incentives.
The House of Representatives approved the TRABAHO bill, or House BIll No. 8083 on final reading in September, while the Senate has yet to come up with a committee report. The DoF aims to have the measure signed into law before yearend.

Decline reported in trade discrepancy data

October 26, 2018 | 8:43 pm

By Elijah Joseph C. Tubayan, Reporter
THE DISCREPANCY between trade data as reported by the Philippines and its trading partners declined after the implementation of the national single window system, the Department of Finance (DoF) said.
“A comparison between trade data reported in the IMF (International Monetary Fund) Direction of Trade Statistics and the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) shows that trade data discrepancy declined from 40.8% in 2015 to 33.1% in 2017,” the DoF said in an economic bulletin on Friday.
The PSA had reported $66.96 billion worth of exports in 2017, but this was lower than the import data recorded by its trading partners of $88.60 billion, with a variance of 41.6%.
The discrepancy was lower than the 53.3% in 2016, but was slightly higher than the 40.8% recorded in 2015.
Import data reported by the PSA was $102 billion in 2017, below trading partners’ reported exports worth $121.55 billion, with a 27.5% variance.
The discrepancy grew slightly from 27% in the previous year, but was lower than the 40.9% posted in 2015.
The DoF said among the causes of data discrepancy are smuggling, valuation differences, differing treatment of re-exports and transshipment, wrong attribution, and misinvoicing.
“The drop in trade discrepancy data indicates the upgraded capability of tax collectors to assess and collect properly tax revenues from taxpayers,” the DoF said.
“Automation of trade processes thru the TradeNet which will go live (in) December 2018 will further reduce trade data discrepancy, improve revenue collectors’ capabilities and at the same time, facilitate trade,” it added.
TradeNet, the country’s national single window system for Customs transactions and required clearances, was launched in December last year. It also links to the single window platforms of other Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries.
The government had initially linked 16 government agencies in TradeNet, covering frequently-traded goods such as rice, sugar, used motor vehicles, some chemicals, frozen meat, medicines and cured tobacco. This will be expanded to 66 agencies dealing with external trade.
The DoF said last year that China was among the largest sources of trade data discrepancies, with a gap of P1.8 trillion between the volume of exports reported by China and the volume of imports reported locally.

Qatar seeks enhanced economic ties with PHL

October 26, 2018 | 8:43 pm

By Camille A. Aguinaldo, Reporter
QATAR is looking to enhance further cooperation with the Philippines in trade relations, especially on the energy, education and agriculture sector, beyond the present labor relations between the two countries.
“I would like to assure that the state of Qatar is keen to enhance relations with the Philippines in more fields….I think we will promote, we have more to do to enhance the relations. In the last period, the relations with Philippines was really focused on labor. But now I think we have many, many fields to work on that we can benefit,” Qatari Ambassador to the Philippines Ali Ibrahim Al-Malki said during a forum on the Middle East organized by the Philippine Ambassador Foundation Incorporated (PAFI) at the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) in Pasay City.
Mr. Ali Ibrahim said he sees more cooperation between the Philippine and Qatari businessmen in the coming years after the Qatari Embassy has invited both parties to visit each other’s countries to explore investment opportunities.
“We’re asking businessmen here in the Philippines to come to Qatar and also the business in Qatar to come to the Philippines to see what they work on here and what are the chances here in the Philippines,” he said.
“The next year, there will be more relationship from the business sector. We’re looking to enhance this in all the fields. I think from the next year, we’re more (than) willing to enhance this relation in trade,” he added.
The Ambassador also noted, without going into details, that an energy agreement between the two countries is already in the works.
“We are studying an agreement between the Philippines and Qatar. We will sign it soon, I think. There will be cooperation for the energy. And already we’re exporting gas to the Philippines and oil as well. And with this agreement, this will…enhance cooperation in this field,” he said.
As for labor relations between the two countries, Mr. Ali Ibrahim also mentioned that Filipino workers in Qatar are considered partners in that country’s development and growth. He added that Qatari companies consider Filipino workers as their “most skilled workforce.”
About 255,000 Filipinos are working in Qatar, according to the DFA.

Wall Street’s rally provides PSEi lift

October 26, 2018 | 8:19 pm

THE BOURSE recovered on Friday, following Wall Street’s rally to return above the 7,000 mark.
The Philippine Stock Exchange Index climbed 97.49 points or 1.39% to end 7,064.33 while the all-share index rose by 51.35 points or 1.19% to finish 4,332.59.
“Philippine shares made back some substantial gains after U.S. stocks staged a strong comeback last night, regaining much of the ground lost in a rout during the prior session,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Managing Director Luis A. Limlingan said in a mobile phone message on Friday, while RCBC Securities, Inc. said in its Stock Market Weekend Recap attributed to research analyst Fiorenzo De Jesus: “The PSEi followed Wall Street’s rally, bucking a regional downturn, and traded in the green the entire session.”
Thursday saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average rise 401.13 points or 1.63% to 24,984.55, the S&P 500 gain 49.47 points or 1.86% to 2,705.57 and the Nasdaq Composite Index add 209.94 points or 2.95% to 7,318.34.
Jervin S. De Celis, Timson Securities, Inc. trader, also cited the US markets’ influence as well as general optimism about third-quarter corporate earnings, so far, as factors that buoyed local stocks.
“Since we have a shorter trading period next week, we may see the index go sideways unless we see lower estimates for the inflation rate for the month of October,” he added.
The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) is scheduled to report October’s inflation rate on Nov. 6. Both the central bank and the Finance department are expected to release their estimates next week. Inflation has lately been clocking in at nine-month highs, averaging five percent in the nine months to September against the central bank’s 2-4% target range for full-year 2018.
The PSA is also scheduled to report third-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) performance on Nov. 8. GDP clocked in at just six percent in the second quarter, slower than the 6.6% in January-March and in April-June last year.
“A better figure than the previous quarter may also propel the PSEi towards 7,200-7,500,” Mr. De Celis added.
Only one of the six sectoral indices lost on Friday: mining & oil, by 14.96 points or 0.15% to close at 9,411.22.
The others gained at the closing bell: holding firms by 146.04 points or 2.14% to 6,957.87, property by 70.81 points or 2.06% to 3,494.49, industrials by 90.36 points or 0.86% to 10,522.41, services by 3.62 points or 0.24% to 1,461.59 and financials by 1.48 points or 0.09% to 1,563.56.
Stocks that declined outnumbered those that gained 99 to 80, while 56 others ended flat.
Friday’s list of 20 most active stocks showed only one that fell at the closing bell: International Container Terminal Services, Inc., which shed 0.22% to finish at P90 apiece.
Three others ended flat: Universal Robina Corp. at P130 apiece, Metro Pacific Investments Corp. at P4.77 and Globe Telecom, Inc. at P2,050 each.
The 16 others on the list that gained included SM Investments Corp. that increased by 4.07% to P895 apiece, Ayala Corp. that climbed 3.37% to P920, Jollibee Foods Corp. that increased by 3.05% to P270, San Miguel Food and Beverage, Inc. that added 3.01% to P85.50 each.
RCBC Securities’ Mr. De Jesus noted that market heavyweights SM Investments and Ayala as well as their corresponding property arms SM Prime Holdings, Inc. (up 2.37%) and Ayala Land, Inc. (1.97%) contributed a total of 81.99 points to PSEi.
Some 892.966 million shares worth P4.968 billion changed hands on Friday compared to Thursday’s 870.53 million worth P5.499 billion.
Net foreign selling shrank 64% to P398.601 million from Thursday’s P1.117 billion — the smallest amount in three days — as total sales by investors abroad fell by 16.623% to P2.816 billion from P3.377 billion and overall buying grew by 6.955% to P2.417 billion from P2.26 billion. — Janina C. Lim

AUB signs deal with PAL to expand use of WeChat in ticketing

October 26, 2018 | 8:13 pm

ASIA United Bank (AUB) said it signed a partnership deal with Philippine Airlines (PAL) to allow Chinese travelers to pay for tickets using WeChat Pay, amid the increase in visitor traffic from China.
In a statement on Friday, AUB said its partnership with the flag carrier will expand the use of WeChat Pay in purchasing PAL tickets.
As of September, PAL had rolled out WeChat Pay to 55 ticketing outlets nationwide.
WeChat users can also locate PAL ticketing offices though AUB’s WeChat Pay official account.
“PAL’s additional payment acceptance channels would further bolster the country’s tourism efforts and promote innovative access to this thriving tourist market,” the bank said in the statement.
In November, AUB signed a licensing agreement with Tencent Holdings Ltd. to accredit merchants to accept payments using WeChat Pay’s quick response code-based technology.
The bank developed the AUB PayMate mobile application in late 2017 for merchants accepting payments from Chinese visitors via WeChat Pay.
In an April interview, AUB first vice president Maria Magdalena V. Surtida said half of the total WeChat Pay transactions are happening in Metro Manila, while the rest are in the provinces.
China was the country’s second-largest tourism market with a total of 764,094 arrivals in the seven months to July period, after South Korea.
AUB booked a consolidated net profit of P1.57 billion in the six months to June, up 17.5% from a year earlier.
AUB shares closed at P59 on Friday, up 50 centavos or 0.85%. — Karl Angelo N. Vidal

UCPB unit lending to coconut farmers declines nearly 32%

October 26, 2018 | 8:13 pm

UCPB-CIIF Finance and Development Corp. said livelihood loan disbursements to small coconut farmers declined in the third quarter.
UCPB-CIIF Finance, one of the development lending arms of the United Coconut Planters Bank (UCPB) Group and the Coconut Industry Fund (CIIF) companies, said in a statement it released P125.6 million in new livelihood loans to small coconut farmers in the three months to September, down 31.96% from a year earlier.
This brought the year-to-date total for lending was P278.7 million, down 15.16% from a year earlier.
UCPB-CIIF Finance had not replied to a request for comment at deadline time.
UCPB-CIIF Finance President Edgardo C. Amistad said in the statement the lending firm has been providing financing to coconut farmers since 1995 for short-gestation projects that generate quick returns such as cash crop cultivation and village-based processing of coconuts, among others.
The company was formed in late 1994 to lend to coconut farmers who cannot tap other formal credit sources.
Since then, UCPB-CIIF Finance has released loans amounting to P9.3 billion to 447,000 coconut farmers. — Karl Angelo N. Vidal

Peso closes stronger vs dollar on inflow speculation

October 26, 2018 | 8:09 pm

THE peso strengthened further against the dollar to a seven-week high with market participants speculating about remittance and bond inflows.
The peso ended the week at P53.64 against the dollar, against its previous close of P53.80 on Thursday.
This was the currency’s highest close since it hit P53.55 on Sept. 5.
The peso opened the session at P53.75, strengthening to its high of P53.64, which was also the closing level. The intraday low was P53.77.
Trading volume grew to $723 million from $667.1 million Thursday.
A foreign exchange trader said the peso strengthened against the dollar on Friday even though the US currency also firmed against other currencies.
The peso “Traded in a [stronger] range again today despite the dollar rally overnight,” the trader said in a phone interview.
Reuters reported that the dollar lingered near a 10-week high on Friday with traders expect strong US gross domestic product data.
“The peso was pushed more on the possibility of inflows for the weekend,” she added.
Another trader raised the possibility of inflows during the trading session.
“I would say there was a flow, but I’m not entirely sure where it came from,” the trader said.
“I think there could be a bond inflow. There was offshore money coming in to buy our [government securities]. I think yields have fallen today, so that could be another factor.” — Karl Angelo N. Vidal

Four not-so-starving artists on making art and making a living

October 26, 2018 | 7:34 pm

Ask any kid what they want to be when they grow up and you’ll likely get the same parent-approved answers—doctor, lawyer, engineer. But for a lot of kids, their idea of a fulfilling life is one wielding paint brushes and squeezing paint tubes.
The stereotype of the “starving artist” creeps in early. A passion for painting gets downplayed into a hobby. Parents, concerned for their children’s financial security, push them towards those same career paths—doctor, lawyer, engineer. Society-at-large is generally lukewarm towards the idea of arts as a means to make a living.
But the myth of the starving artist is truly just that—a myth.
As art and pop culture conventions become more prevalent, artists and convention-goers are getting more opportunities to meet each other and break the stereotype that you can’t create art and make a living at the same time.
At Komiket, a comics and art convention that took place over Oct. 13 and 14 at The Elements in Centris, Quezon City, we found and profiled four artists who proved that a non-traditional job can be both financially and personally fulfilling.

Marcela Suller (IG: @marcella_suller)

Number of years as a professional artist: Three years
Current work: Full-time artist
Background:
Marcella took up Political Science at Ateneo de Manila University, following her parents plan for her to be a lawyer. After graduation, Marcela interned at an art studio where she received formal training.
What made you pursue art?
“That’s always been my dream ever since I was a kid,” Marcelo said, describing a childhood spent reading illustrated books. “[But] I grew up in the province and it wasn’t normal to become an artist as your profession before.”
So when she went down to Manila for college from her hometown in La Union, it was to study political science, a path to becoming a lawyer.
During her years at Ateneo, Instagram had started to become the platform of choice for local artists looking to share their works. Marcela said that seeing so many others making a living off of their art inspired her to revisit her childhood dream.
After graduating in 2014, Marcela interned in an art studio to hone her natural talents before jumping headlong into her new career.
“I tried to do realistic illustrations but I only got frustrated because I couldn’t exactly draw the person so I just did it stylized,” Marcela said. “I made it cute. I was also inspired by children’s book illustrations and things I saw on Instagram.”
As the industry and fanbases grew with the help of conventions and events like Komiket, Marcela said that the money she made off of her art commissions had begun surpassing her salary as a graphic designer at the small ad agency she worked at. Seeing this, her parents eventually gave in and supported her career as an artist.
Unlike most artists featured at conventions, Marcela doesn’t do commission-based art as a side-hustle. Her steady stream of income comes from consignment deals with arts-and-crafts stores in malls to carry her work.
What’s the hardest part of being in the industry?
Just like her shift from political science to fine arts, the beginning was always the hardest.
“At first, there weren’t any stores [that carried art merchandise] yet,” she said. “There weren’t that many craft and art stores in malls and the bazaars were rare back in 2015. So what I earned wasn’t regular every month.”
“But now that there are more cons and there are more stores that cater to artists, what I earn is more regular,” she said.
Marcela said she’s attended dozens of conventions over the last three years, and it’s done a lot to further her career. There she got to meet other professional artists she only knew about through Instagram and get tips from fellow artists to improve her art.
What would you say to budding artists hoping to enter the industry?
“At the start, you might get disappointed because you’re not meeting your target goal. It’s really going to take time,” she said. “In my first year, it didn’t work, so I needed a day job. In my second year, I still had a day job but I also included my art. Once I got more skills, there, I managed to go full time on my business.”
According to Marcela, attending art events and finding a circle of fellow artist friends are essential to furthering your career.
“In college, I didn’t know any artists. It was such an out-of-this-world concept that you can live off pins and stickers,” Marcela said. “It’s much better if there’s an art community that you’re a member of.”

Moreen Guese (IG: @moyeedoll)

Number of years as a professional artist: Six years
Current work: Full-time advertising art director and freelance artist
Background:
Moreen was born to a family of artists, with both parents being Fine Arts graduates from UST. She was exposed to graphic design at a very young age, growing up with an advertising agency for a family business.
What made you pursue art?
Aside from the family business, Moreen comes from a background in the theater. “My entire life, I’ve been surrounded by really creative people,” she said. “Individuals from so many different types of art like performance art, visual arts.”
What’s the hardest part of being in the industry?
Moreen finds self-doubt to be the greatest hindrance to making art, particularly when it comes to confidence in one’s art style. “It’s always a challenge to stand out in an industry that has so many talented people.” Moreen said.
What would you say to budding artists hoping to enter the industry?
Moreen believes in creating art that stays true to oneself. “Don’t adjust your art style because you think that there’s a certain benta (selling point) to it,” she said. “If you do it for you, eventually, people will love it because it’s you. You put your heart and soul into the artworks that you’ve created. So that’s the most important thing.”

Gabriel Garcia (IG: @gabbytrocious)

Number of years as a professional artist: Five years
Current work: Art Director for an ad agency while freelancing as a comics artist
Background:
Gab, or Fluffi, came from a family of artists. He took up fine arts in college, majoring in painting at UST.
What made you pursue art?
Gab points to cartoons and his uncle, a caricature artist, as his inspirations. Today, Gab does a myriad of commission-based work: branding, graphic design, illustration, motion graphics, and even art direction.
Having recently started making comics, Gab said that his inspiration his art style — “not really manga, not really western”—was Bryan O’Malley, the creator of international hit Scott Pilgrim vs. The World.
What’s the hardest part of being in the industry?
Gab said that it was surprisingly easy for him to break into the local comics industry. Initially pushed by his officemates, Gab said that he fell in love with the medium after attending a convention and experiencing the industry first-hand.
“People are very supporting [in the comics industry] and as for the freelancing, it was hard at first because it was very difficult to find clients who can pay my rate. But once the word got out [it got easier],” he said.
Past the initial growing pains of getting exposure, Gab says the continuing struggles of being a freelance artist are largely the same as those of someone working in advertising: difficult clients.
“It’s currently still happening, I have a client who has a long back-and-forth process with their bosses,” he said. “It’s been three months now and I still have the problem.”
What would you say to budding artists hoping to enter the industry?
“It also takes patience to listen to a client’s dumb revisions,” he said. “It takes patience to learn new crafts like Illustrator, Photoshop. It takes patience to learn anatomy. It really needs patience for everything.”
“Just persevere,” he said. “Don’t give up. Keep on practicing because it gets better as long as you keep doing your craft. Don’t stop doing, it keep getting better.”

Misato Wakatsuki (IG: @misamisatoto)

Number of years as a professional artist: Three years
Current work: Full-time artist
Background:
Misato started out as a freelance artist, leveraging her formal training as an art major from Adventist University of the Philippines. Pressure from friends to find corporate work led her to a communications job at an educational institution. She lasted one year before realizing it just wasn’t for her. She’s been a full-time artist ever since.
What made you pursue art?
As a child, Misato had no idea how to draw. In fact, she admitted to constantly bugging her talented classmates for drawings. After some playful mocking from her classmates about her persistence and lack of talent, Misato’s competitive spirit kicked in.
“Umabot dun sa point na the whole vacation between Grade 5 and Grade 6, nagdo-drawing lang ako, hanggang sa umabot na lang sa point na it became a habit, then nagulat na lang ako, lifestyle ko na siya.” (It came to a point where I was just drawing during the whole vacation between Grade 5 and Grade 6, then it became a habit, then I was surprised that it had become my lifestyle.)”
What challenges do you face in the industry?
Misato acknowledges that the harsh reality of freelancing entails self-discipline and the right attitude, especially because you have to wear many hats. More than just being a creative, you’re an entrepreneur managing a startup of one.
“Ikaw ang PR, ikaw ang HR, ikaw ang audit… so hindi lang siya yung simpleng ‘Kunin niyo ‘ko as an artist.’ Rather, it’s a lot of tasks combined in one field.” (“You’re PR, you’re HR, you’re the auditor… so it’s not as simple as saying, ‘Hire me as your artist.’ Rather, it’s a lot of tasks combined in one field.)”
What would you say to budding artists hoping to enter the industry?
Misato insists that your price as an artist should always be right, especially if you want to avoid burning out. “Kasi eventually, sige, sugod ka lang, [pero] hindi mo alam na mas mahal pala puwede mong i-presyo sa gawa mo… Dun magsisimula yung mabuburnout ka. Kasi parang ang laki ng effort na ginagawa mo pero napaka-low ng return. Yun yung unang factor na makakawala ng passion.”
(“Because okay, you can go full speed ahead, but you may not know that you can charge higher for your work… That’s where burnout starts. It’s like you put so much effort but get such a low return. That’s the first factor in losing your passion.”)

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