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How PSEi member stocks performed — July 2, 2018

Here’s a quick glance at how PSEi stocks fared on Monday, July 2, 2018.

Jurassic dinos boost N. American box office

LOS ANGELES — Big-grossing films Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom and Incredibles 2 again dominated the North American box office this weekend, but two new entrants beat expectations to place third and fourth, according to industry estimates on Sunday.
Universal’s latest earth-stomping dinosaur movie took in $60 million for the three-day weekend, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported.
The superhero-family-next-door of Incredibles 2, a Pixar/Disney animation, earned $45.5 million.
Together they helped estimated industry receipts to the end of June rise 15% against the same month last year.
Jurassic, featuring Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard, and Incredibles, with voice actors Craig T. Nelson and Holly Hunter, were expected to do well. The former is nearing the $1 billion mark globally, while Incredibles is set to become the second-biggest animated film ever in North America, after Finding Dory.
But Variety said that two new films, Sony’s Sicario: Day of the Soldado and Lionsgate’s Uncle Drew, had easily outperformed industry expectations to place third and fourth.
The Sicario sequel, an action thriller starring Benicio Del Toro and Josh Brolin, took in $19 million, outperforming the well-reviewed original film by $7 million. Its highly topical premise has CIA agent Brolin teaming up with hitman Del Toro to fight drug cartels smuggling “terrorists” across the Mexican border.
On a lighter note, Uncle Drew draws on the talents of basketball stars present and past — Kyrie Irving, Shaquille O’Neal, Chris Webber, Lisa Leslie and Reggie Miller, with a court-full of others in cameo roles.
Hard-luck streetball team manager Uncle Drew (Irving, in a role that originated in a Pepsi ad) rounds up his old crew ahead of a big tournament in Brooklyn. The film took in $15.5 million.
Ocean’s 8 from Warner Bros. slipped two spots to fifth place, taking in $8 million in its fourth week out. The female-centric heist film stars Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett and Anne Hathaway.
Rounding out the top 10 were: Tag ($5.6 million); Deadpool 2 ($3.5 million); Sanju ($2.6 million); Solo: A Star Wars Story ($2.3 million); Won’t You Be My Neighbor? ($2.3 million). — AFP

Boomers beat Gilas in highly emotional, fight-shortened match


By Michael Angelo S. Murillo, Senior Reporter
BOCAUE — Australia retained leadership in Group B of the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers after it defeated the Philippines, 89-53, in a highly emotional match at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan, that saw a fight break in the third period that eventually halted the contest.
With the top spot at stake heading into the next round of the competition, the two teams played with a lot of pride and emotion but in the end there was no denying the Boomers’ dominance as they banked on their length and crisp outside shooting before the match took an unexpected turn.
The match got off to a competitive start with the two teams trying to establish early control.
Led by National Basketball Association players Thon Maker and Matthew Dellavedova, the Boomers would go on an early run.
But Gilas Pilipinas would eventually catch up with them, with naturalized player Andray Blatche showing the way.
The count stood at 19-16 with two minutes remaining and Australia on top before the Boomers went on a 4-2 run to finish things to hold a 23-18 advantage after the first quarter.
In the second quarter, Australia got it going strong, outscoring the home team, 13-7, to extend its lead to 11 points in the first six minutes of the canto, 36-25.
It was a distance that the Boomers would use as a springboard to hold sway, 52-37, by the halftime break.
FIGHT ERUPTS
The third period saw Australia continue firing from all cylinders, stretching its lead to 31 points, 79-48, with four minutes remaining before a fight broke loose.
Roger Pogoy and Chris Goulding were jockeying for position when the former inadvertently shoved the latter that sent the Australian down.
Big man Daniel Kickert added ember to the fire when he knocked down Mr. Pogoy with a solid elbow, prompting the rest of the Gilas players to come in defense of their teammates and engaging the Australians to a fight.
A long lull ensued as game officials tried to figure out everything that had happened and the penalties to be meted.
When the decision was handed down, four Australians were ejected — Messrs. Goulding, Maker and Kickert and Nathan Sobey — while Gilas saw nine players thrown out, namely, Messr. Blatche and Pogoy, Terrence Romeo Carl Bryan Cruz, Jayson William, Calvin Abueva, Troy Rosario, Japeth Aguilar and Matthew Wright.
The decision left the Philippines with only three players — June Mar Fajardo, Gabe Norwood and Baser Amer.
The game continued until it was finally stopped at the 1:57 mark of the period and the score at 89-53 when it was only Mr. Amer who was left on the court for the Philippines after Messrs. Fajardo and Norwood fouled out.
Mr. Goulding led Australia with 20 points followed by Mr. Kickert with 12.
Mr. Blatche paced Gilas with 12 and Mr. Fajardo had 10.
Following the game, both teams did not hold a postgame press conference as deemed necessary by FIBA.
After the first round, Australia topped the grouping with a 5-1 record while the Philippines finished second at 4-2.
Japan squeaked its way to the next round by finishing with a 2-4 record, edging Chinese Taipei (1-5).
Meanwhile, prior to the start of the game the Australian team released a statement regarding the “peeling” incident involving it a day before.
During a closed-door practice on Sunday, the Australian team took liberty in peeling off FIBA-approved decals on the floor over “safety concerns” for its players.
The move did not sit well in particular with the local organizing committee, the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas and the management of the Philippine Arena, describing the act as “uncalled for” and could have been handled more appropriately.
In a statement prior to Monday night’s match, the Australian team, through Mark Bradtke of the Australian Basketball Federation, said it meant no disrespect and was just looking after the welfare of its players.
“We want basketball to be the winner. We also want to have a safe but respectful environment. We are very happy with the new court decals. Our concerns were alleviated,” the statement read.
“Our intentions were pure in rectifying what was potentially a player safety issue for all participants. As our loss against Japan shows, this is a very tough competition, and we wanted the best environment for all players whose health and safety is critical,” it added.
The aggrieved parties accepted the apology.

Tanauan mayor killed, Duterte ‘suspects’ drug links

President Rodrigo R. Duterte on Monday, July 2, said he “suspects” that slain Tanauan City Mayor Antonio C. Halili was involved in illegal drug activities.
Mr. Duterte made his remarks during the 58th founding anniversary of the province of Southern Leyte at the Provincial Capitol Grounds in Maasin City on Monday evening.
“Nabalitaan nako si Halili karon lang (I received the news about Mr. Halili just now)… Ambot kinsay gapatay pero gi-ingnan ta mo, ayaw lagi. Ayaw gyud (I don’t know who killed [him], but I warned you not to… Never.),” he said.
He likewise likened Mr. Halili to drug-linked slain mayors such as Albuera, Leyte Mayor Rolando R. Espinosa, Sr. and Ozamiz City, Misamis Occidental Mayor Reynaldo Parojinog, Sr. “Pero suspetsa pa lang” (But it’s just a suspicion), he added.
The mayor, who paraded suspected drug dealers through the streets of his city, was shot dead on Monday while attending a weekly flag ceremony for government officials, police said.
Mr. Halili was declared dead on arrival at a hospital from a single bullet wound to the chest, sustained as he and civil servants sang the national anthem in Tanauan, a city in Batangas province southwest of the capital Manila.
“We are shocked, we are saddened,” Vice-Mayor Jhoanna Villamor, who was standing beside Mr. Halili, told radio station DZBB after the shooting.
What appeared to be a smartphone video of the shooting went viral on social media, showing a single shot ringing out as the anthem played, then screaming and pandemonium. The video could not be immediately verified.
Mr. Halili gained prominence for introducing a “walk of shame” parade of alleged drug dealers through his city of Tanauan.
Police say they have killed more than 4,200 suspected drug dealers during shootouts in a bloody war on drugs launched by President Rodrigo R. Duterte two years ago, a campaign condemned by domestic and international human rights groups.
Mr. Halili was stripped of his supervisory powers over local police in October 2017 due to a proliferation of illegal drugs in his city, amid allegations by the Philippine National Police (PNP) that he may have been involved. He denied the allegations.
In an interview with Reuters in August 2016, the second month of the crackdown, Mr. Halili said he backed Mr. Duterte’s campaign but believed drug kingpins should be the main targets, otherwise thousands of people would be killed.
He expressed concern over the way police conducted the war on drugs and the reliability of their intelligence, and that he might be accused of colluding with narcotics gangs.
“No one is safe — mayors, governors, congressmen — just a false intelligence report by the police can end up with any of them being destroyed,” the mayor said in the interview.
“I have a feeling they (police) are going after the small fry to frighten the people,” he said.
For his part, Interior Secretary/Officer-in-Charge Eduardo M. Año said in a statement, “I have directed the PNP, especially Calabarzon police director, P/Chief Superintendent Edward Carranza, to make this case a top priority.”
One investigator told a radio station that a high-powered rifle was used in the attack.
For his part, Presidential Spokesperson Harry L. Roque, Jr., said in his press briefing in Maasin, Leyte, on Monday: “Kinikilala po natin si Mayor Halili bilang mayor ng isa sa pinakaprogresibong bayan ng Batangas. Iyan po ang Tanauan, at nangangako po ang Palasyo na bibigyan ng katarungan ang kanyang pagkamatay. Magkakaroon po ng mabilisang imbestigasyon at paglilitis sa mga taong responsable sa pagpatay nito.”
(We acknowledge Mayor Halili as mayor of one of the most progressive cities in Batangas. That is Tanauan, and the Palace vows justice for his death. There will be a prompt investigation and hearing on the people responsible for his murder.)
Senators also issued their statements in response to Mr. Halili’s murder.
“The killings of priests, prosecutors, and former and incumbent local officials in broad daylight and in full view of the public may be suggestive of the impunity and brazenness of those responsible for such acts,” said Senator Panfilo M. Lacson, a former PNP chief.
“The Philippine National Police should feel challenged, if not taunted. And they must immediately consider stricter firearms control strategies before similar killings could reach ubiquitous levels,” he added.
Senator Juan Edgardo M. Angara urged the PNP and the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) to “exhaust all means to bring the perpetrators to justice.”
Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III called the suspect “a coward” for targeting the mayor from a distance.
Senator Paolo Benigno A. Aquino IV said increasing violence in the country was alarming since the perpetrators now target basically anyone. “Whoever, whenever, no one is safe anymore,” he said in a statement.
“When killings are rewarded by the failure of authorities to solve them, it strengthens the culture of violence, where disagreements are settled by permanently silencing the opponent,” Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph G. Recto said in his statement.
Senator Joseph Victor G. Ejercito said in a message to reporters: “One requisite of a developing nation is to have a conducive atmosphere for business to grow. Violent assassinations are blackeyes to this goal of achieving peace for economic development,” he said in a phone message to reporters.
Senator Francis N. Pangilinan for his part said: “We reiterate: the everyday killings of our citizens do not and will not solve the drug problem… It is this Philippine image of a ‘wild, wild west’ that has also dampened the desire of both foreign and local investors from investing, thereby slowing down our economic development and preventing much needed employment and opportunities and jobs for our citizens.”
Human Rights Watch (HRW), for its part, said Mr. Halili’s killing, “like the thousands of killings in the ‘war on drugs’ of the Duterte administration, demands immediate and thorough investigation by Philippine authorities.”
“While we did not agree with Mayor Halili’s method of dealing with crime and illegal drugs in his city, his murder is condemnable. He may have deprived many Tanauan residents of due process but that doesn’t mean he should be deprived of it too. We reiterate our call for an end to the culture of impunity in the Philippines where thousands have been killed in extrajudicial killings of criminal suspects, activists, members of indigenous tribes, journalists, priests, and politicians like Mayor Halili. The only way that can happen is if perpetrators — including Mayor Halili’s killers — are investigated, arrested, charged and tried in a court of law,” HRW also said. — main report by Reuters, with Arjay L. Balinbin and Camille A. Aguinaldo

DoLE chief: Eight wage boards have submitted recommendations

“EIGHT REGIONS” have already submitted their recommendations for an increase in their minimum wage rates, Labor Secretary Silvestre H. Bello told reporters on Monday.
Mr. Bello declined to name all regions but mentioned leading economic region Central Luzon (Region 3), which he said, “Magiincrease sila ng another (P)20.” (They want to increase by another P20.)
He also said the highest recommendation was from Region 9 (Zamboanga Peninsula), which recommended a P56 increase in their minimum wage.
Region 3 last raised its wages by P16 on May 1, 2017, a check with the website of the National Wages and Productivity Commission showed.
Last month, Mr. Bello said all regional wage boards will submit their wage recommendations by the end of June, last weekend, to July 15, two weeks from this reporting.
Mr. Bello said further, “May mga mas mataas sa P20 (Others are higher than P20).”
He also said the highest recommendation was from Region IX (Zamboanga Peninsula), which recommended a P56 increase in their minimum wage.
When asked when the eight regional boards could issue their wage orders, Mr. Bello said “Pag nakuha na ang lahat (When we get recommendations of all the other regional wage boards).” — Gillian M. Cortez

Retiring Ombudsman flags need for stricter monitoring of cases

By Charmaine A. Tadalan
OMBUDSMAN CONCHITA Carpio-Morales is leaving her office “with a heavy heart” after the dismissal of high-profile cases due to inordinate delay.
“Most of our high profile cases are dismissed by the Sandiganbayan because of the inordinate delay doctrine of the Supreme Court,” the Ombudsman said on Monday during the Multi-Sectoral Forum in Baguio City.
“It’s very disappointing. I’m leaving the office with a heavy heart. ‘Heavy’ because the inordinate delay doctrine has not been handled by the Supreme Court the way we would like it,” she said. The Ombudsman had previously asked the High Court to set guidelines in deciding when the period of delay of a case is deemed inordinate.
On this note, the retiring Ombudsman said she hopes her successor will be able to lessen the problem through stricter monitoring system of cases.
“It’s impossible for us to solve all the problems and that’s the reason why we have to improve our system of filtering cases,” Ms. Morales said. “I would like my succeeding Ombudsman to be more active in monitoring cases.”
“It will in a way solve the problem of inordinate delay kasi malalaman mo kung kailan natutulog ang kaso (because you can see when the case is dormant),” she said.
Ms. Morales said she sees the high number of cases being filed in the Office of the Ombudsman as a reflection of public trust and confidence in its officers.
The Ombudsman will be ending her seven-year term on July 26. She said that over the course of her stay, what challenged her most is handling all 19,000 cases she inherited.
“The greatest challenge was to resolve 19,000 cases that I inherited, some of which had no records, some of which had fallen apart,” she said.
Asked whether she has plans to run in next year’s midterm elections, she said “if you’re referring to the incoming elections, there is a prohibition in the law that an Ombudsman or a Deputy Ombudsman cannot run for public office in the elections immediately after their severance from the office.”
“Now, are you asking me if I might be interested later on when the prohibition stops? No, I’m not interested. I’ve devoted almost 48 years of my life in the judiciary, in public service and that’s good enough, I want to smell the flowers,” she added.

Nationwide Round-up

Roque derides Sison over Duterte ouster comment

Communist leader Jose Maria Sison — PHILSTAR

PRESIDENTIAL SPOKESPERSON Harry L. Roque, Jr. on Monday said exiled communist leader Jose Maria “Joma” Sison is “dreaming” for saying that President Rodrigo R. Duterte “will be ousted.” “Joma Sison, wake up,” Mr. Roque said in Filipino, and challenged the founder of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) who has been living in The Netherlands since 1987 to come home to see for himself the country’s current situation. Speaking at a press briefing in Maasin, Leyte, Mr. Roque pointed out that the CPP and its armed wing New People’s Army have unsuccessfully been trying in the last 70 years to bring the government. “Managinip ka pa rin di mo pa rin mapapatalsik ang gobyerno ng Pilipinas (Even if you keep dreaming, you will never be able to kick out the Philippine government),” Mr. Roque said. Defense Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana, meanwhile, said: “Ito talagang si Sison, he never ceases to amaze me. He begs for a peace talk and a ceasefire and now turns around that they will no longer negotiate with this government and threatens to destabilize the administration. Ano ba ang ginagawa nila (What have they been doing) for the past 49 years?” Mr. Lorenzana accused the CPP, along with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines, of using the pursuit of peace talks as a strategy to enforce a ceasefire “so that they can regain lost grounds.” He added, “Let us not be lulled or hoodwinked by Sison’s glib tongue about reforms. They will institute reforms all right, but along communist lines when they have finally won… The government, on the other hand, has been instituting reforms in accordance with our laws, our resources and our people’s most pressing needs, such as land reform, job generation projects, infrastructure development, and other poverty alleviation initiatives.”— Arjay L. Balinbin

Robredo camp slams OSG for causing delay in shading threshold case

VICE-PRESIDENT Maria Leonor “Leni” G. Robredo has called out the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) for attempting to extend for the third time its deadline to comment on the 25% voting threshold petition she filed before the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET). In a five-page motion submitted to the PET on June 29 and released to media on Monday, the camp of Ms. Roredo “vehemently” opposed the OSG’s third motion for extension “since it would already total to a whopping 40 days period to file said comment.” Ms. Robredo’s chief legal counsel, Romulo B. macalintal, said in a statement, “the OSG has been given enough time to respond to the order of the Presidential Electoral Tribunal,” which represented the Commission on Election (COMELEC) in the case. According to Ms. Robredo’s camp, the OSG asked for a 15-day extension on May 28 after receiving the PET’s order to comment on May 17, a day past the 10-day deadline issued by the PET. They then asked for a second 15-day extension on June 11 and a third one on June 26, when the OSG failed again to submit a comment. Ms. Robredo’s motion said, “[t]he continued failure of the OSG to submit the Comment for an in behalf of Comelec has resulted to a delay in the disposition of the (petition to uphold the 25% voting threshold) dated April 19, 2018.” In that petition, Ms. Robredo urged the PET to uphold the 25% threshold in her ongoing election recount against losing vice presidential candidate Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos, Jr., as it was the same threshold used in the 2016 national elections. — Dane Angelo M. Enerio

Fuel prices pulled higher by international market rates


PRICES OF gasoline, diesel and kerosene will all increase this week to follow the movement of prices in the international market, oil companies said on Monday. Gasoline will be costlier by P0.65 per liter (/L), diesel by P0.55/L and kerosene by P0.70/L. The month of July starts with a price increase following June’s three weeks of hefty price cuts. The oil companies that sent their advisories as of Monday will all be implementing the price adjustment at 6:00 a.m. on Tuesday, July 3. Last week, the per liter prices of gasoline, diesel and kerosene were down by P1.15, P0.90 and P0.85, respectively. During the weekend, Eastern Petroleum Corp. warned of a price reversal because of recent political turbulence in Libya and Venezuela, and the recent oil export ban on Iranian oil production coupled with low inventory in US. Last Sunday, oil companies that sell liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) also increased the price of the cooking gas by P0.90 per kilogram. They also increased the price of LPG for cars by P0.05/L. The price hikes reflected the international LPG contract prices for the month of July. — Victor V. Saulon

SC grants transfer of ex-NBI exec drug trial to Makati court

THE SUPREME Court (SC) has granted the Department of Justice’s (DoJ) request to transfer to a Makati City court the drug trial venue of former National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Anti-Illegal Drugs Unit head Augusto Eric Isidoro and several others. The case involves a shabu laboratory discovered in Virac, Catanduanes. Former Justice secretary Vitaliano N. Aguirre sought for the transfer in March as Judge Lelu P. Contreras is the only one in Virac. He was the same judge asked to inhibit from the drug cases for delaying the release of a warrant to search the laboratory where authorities seized 22.5 kilos worth of shabu (methamphetamine), and for illegally ordering authorities to destroy evidence in the scene. Mr. Isidoro allegedly owns the lot of the shabu laboratory, which authorities claimed was the biggest to be discovered in the Philippines so far. The SC, in a notice dated June 19 and released to media on Monday, directed Branch 43 of the Virac Regional Trial Court (RTC) to forward the records of the cases to the Makati RTC, which was directed to raffle the cases among its branches within three days of receipt. Mr. Isidoro surrendered to the NBI on March 28 over the pending cases. — Dane Angelo M. Enerio

Cebu’s popular Larsian barbecue strip on 2-month closure for renovation

THE LARSIAN barbecue strip in Cebu, popular among locals and tourists, will be closed for two months starting July 2, the Cebu provincial government announced yesterday. Larsian Administrator Joey Herrera, in an advisory, said the closure will be for “rehabilitation and repair works… which also includes addressing drainage and other sanitary concerns.” Stall owners and workers will also be undergoing a series of training on proper food handling and customer service. To minimize disruption in their livelihood, temporary stalls are set up at a province-owned lot on B. Rodriguez Street, a few meters from the original Larsian location.

Bigger Maasin terminal

THE EXPANDED terminal building of the Maasin Airport, which can now accommodate 150 passengers from the previous 50, was formally inaugurated on July 2, led by officials of the Department of Transportation (DoTr), Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, and local government units. DoTr Secretary Arthur P. Tugade, in a statement, said there are already plans to further upgrade the airport, including expanding the runway to 1.8 kilometers from the current 1.3. Maasin City, the capital of Southern Leyte province, has several tourist attractions such as the City Forest Park, Cacao Mountain Resort, beach resorts, and the Cagnituan eco-park. Its neighboring towns are known for dive sites.

PDEA-11 probes illegal drugs in Davao prison

THE PHILIPPINE Drug Enforcement Agency-Davao (PDEA-11) is investigating the continued entry of illegal drugs into the Davao Prison and Penal Farm after six detainees tested positive for shabu (crystal meth). PDEA-11 Regional Director Antonio E. Rivera reported last week that the inmates from the medium security camp were found positive in a random testing conducted last month. He said investigators are looking at how the illegal substance was brought to the prison facility despite the tighter security checks put in place by law enforcers. “That is a big question,” Mr. Rivera said. — Carmelito Q. Francisco

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