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WB sees PHL sustaining growth pace

By Elijah Joseph C. Tubayan
Reporter
THE WORLD Bank sees the Philippines sustaining last year’s economic growth pace well into 2019, but said much depends on “timely” government spending on infrastructure as well as a close watch on rising inflation pressures and the risk of overheating.
The World Bank’s East Asia and Pacific Economic Update 2018 showed the Philippines can be expected to sustain the 6.7% gross domestic product (GDP) growth it achieved last year up to 2019 — thus keeping the multilateral lender’s January projection — before slightly moderating to 6.6% in 2020.
While the projections for the Philippines outpace those for the other major Southeast Asian countries Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam and a 5.4% regional average up to 2020, they fall short of the 7-8% annual target the government has adopted up to 2022, when President Rodrigo R. Duterte ends his six-year term.
Philippine economic growth averaged 6.3% in 2010-2016 during the administration of former president Benigno S.C. Aquino III which had focused on fiscal consolidation at the expense of spending, bagging a string of investment-grade credit ratings for the country.
The Philippine Statistics Authority reported separately on Thursday that it revised economic expansion in 2017’s fourth quarter to 6.5% from 6.6% initially due to downward revisions for mining and quarrying (5.4% from 8.8%); manufacturing (7.9% from 8.8%); financial intermediation (5.2% from 5.9%); as well as transport, storage and communication (4.9% from 5.4%). Upward revisions were made for construction (4.3% from 2.8%); trade (8.7% from 7.9%); electricity, gas and water supply (5.5% from 5.1%); and fishing (-0.1% from — 0.5%);
GDP Projections
“Any growth above 6.7% would require vigorous investment in physical and human capital to push the economy beyond its current potential output,” the World Bank said in its latest report.
“Investment growth hinges on the government’s ability to effectively and timely implement the Build, Build, Build public investment program.”
The World Bank’s forecast matches the International Monetary Fund’s 6.7% projection for this year, but is below the Asian Development Bank’s 6.8% and 6.9% for 2018 and 2019, and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific’s 6.8% for this year.
The World Bank also cited risks to the forecast such as a potential “faster-than-expected pace of policy rate normalization in advanced economies which could further adversely impact capital flows and weaken the peso”, which is also under pressure from a widening current account deficit. A weaker peso, in turn, will pressure prices of goods to increase “at a time when global commodity prices are rising.”
“The monetary authority would need to watch for early overheating signs and if necessary adjust its accommodative monetary policy stance,” it added.
“We’re beginning to see inflation rise in the Philippines that would bolster the case for tightening monetary policy,” World Bank Chief Economist for East Asia and Pacific Sudhir Shetty said in a video conference from Jakarta.
“With the tightening, particularly in the US… it is time for central banks in East Asia and the Pacific to be ready for the tightening of rates.”

Higher tax continues to dampen demand for cars

AUTOMOBILE SALES fell for the third straight month in March as a higher tax rate that came into force in January continued to dampen demand, industry groups reported on Thursday.
A joint report of the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI) and Truck Manufacturers Association showed that member companies sold 28,216 units last month, down 22.8% from the 36,561 in March 2017 and 7.8% from February’s 26,176 units.
The first three months saw industry sales drop 8.5% to 86,037 from 94,026 a year ago.
Car Sales
“The decline in sales in the first quarter of 2018 is not unexpected,” Rommel R. Gutierrez, president of CAMPI and a first vice-president at Toyota Motor Philippines Corp., said in an e-mailed statement.
“The impact of the change in excise tax rates under the TRAIN law was anticipated for this particular period,” he said, referring to Republic Act No. 10963 or the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion law that raised tax rates for automobiles, fuel, minerals and other products in order to more than make up for a cut in personal income tax rates, starting Jan. 1.
March alone saw Toyota Motor topping other sellers with 11,406 units that accounted for 40.42% of the total, down 15.7% from a year ago; followed by Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. with 6,734 that contributed 23.87% to the total, down 1.3%; and Ford Motor Company Phils. Inc.’s 1,851 (6.56%), down 50.7%. — J. C. Lim

When a girl becomes a mother

By Michelle Anne P. Soliman
Nineteen-year-old Flordeliza of Lapaz, Iloilo City had her first child in January — she only realized she was pregnant when she was already three months along. The fifth of six children, she had stopped going to school in 2014 in order to earn money for her family. Now to help support her own child, she takes in laundry in their neighborhood while the father of her child is currently seeking employment. Asked if she would like to attend university and finish her studies, she agreed. She hopes to pursue a degree in Hotel and Restaurant Management if given the opportunity.
This may be an impossible dream. Young parents like Flordeliza miss out on education and job opportunities and instead adjust to their responsibilities as parents.
“Every year, the Philippines forfeits around P33 billion in lost income alone due to early pregnancy,” which is “over 1% the country’s GDP as of 2012,” states a study on the effects of teenage pregnancy by health economist Dr. Alejandro Herrin in 2016.
There are 10 million girls between the ages of 10 and 19 in the country according to the Philippine Statistics Authority. In 2017, “9% of women aged 15 to 19 have begun childbearing,” the National Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) reported. By the age of 19, one in five girls is, or will soon be, a mother.
Early parenthood prevents young girls from achieving their goals and expanding their capabilities. And they more likely to fall into poverty.
Not surprisingly, the more education a young person has, the less likely they are to engage in sex before the age of 18, according to the Young Adult Fertility and Sexuality Study of 2013. The proportion of young people who had their sexual initiation before the age of 18 is highest among those with just elementary schooling at 30%. This drops as education increases.
THE BABAENIHAN CAMPAIGN
In order to increase awareness among young girls from marginalized communities about the issues surrounding teenage pregnancy, the Babaenihan campaign — a portmanteau of the Filipino words babae (woman) and bayanihan (community cooperation) — was launched in 2016 as a collaborative effort between the Office of the Vice-President (OVP) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). It aims to invest in education, health, and economic opportunities. The campaign’s activities include national-level talks, community-based talks, and local government engagement. Under the OVP’s Angat Buhay program, the Babaenihan campaign has held events in Palawan, Pampanga, Camarines Sur, and Metro Manila.
“The key things to do is to provide information to young people through education. For those who are not in school, [we are] finding ways to [reach] communities through NGOs and provide information, make sure they have access to health care services and facilities,” UNFPA country representative Klaus Beck told the press shortly after the Babaenihan campaign engagement at the UP Visayas — Iloilo campus in March.
“[We need to] make sure that the health facilities are welcoming to young people so they feel comfortable going there… We need to look at the laws that we have in the country which is related to access of people to modern family planning,” he added.
Every aspect of a young mother’s life is affected alongside her child’s welfare said Vice-President Maria Leonor G. Robredo. “It does not only affect the nurturing of the child, but also the young mother’s education, her economic opportunities after [child birth], and the welfare of the child. It affects many aspects of her life.
“This is the intention of the Babaenihan campaign,” said the vice-president in a mix of English and Filipino. “It is a series of talks. After this, there will be talks with the teenage mothers or those who have recently given birth to provide them programs in order to get back on their feet. I think the key to prevention of teenage pregnancy is access to education.”
Traditional ideas dictated by culture are one of the reasons the young enter married life early. “Culture dictates that when a girl becomes a young woman, she may already marry. [This] even if the law dictates that only boys and girls ages 18 years old can enter into marriage,” Ms. Robredo noted during an engagement with the students. She said she saw many 14- and 15-year-old who were already mothers while on a her recent visit to survivors of the Marawi siege in Mindanao, saying that this is prevalent in indigenous communities.
Many young people’s lack of access to information can lead to starting a family earlier in life, said Ms. Robredo, elaborating that who have access to information tend to prioritize their education and are more career-oriented. “Access to schools is a number one [priority]. If the child is very poor and the access to school is hard, dropping out becomes an attractive option,” she said.
SEX EDUCATION
A fact that many parents may not want to face is that there is a good chance that their child is already sexually active.
One in three Filipino youths have already engaged in premarital sex according to the Young Adult Fertility and Sexuality Study in the Philippines of 2013, and one in every four began engaging in sexual activity before the age of 18. Worse yet, almost 78% of the first instance of premarital sex is unprotected, exposing these young people to the risk of pregnancy and disease.
Mr. Beck stressed the importance of encouraging conversations on reproductive health in the home.
“Teenage pregnancies are not really a deliberate choice. It often happens by chance,” said Mr. Beck. “It happens often because girls don’t really have the information they need to understand their own bodies. They don’t have the ability to say ‘no’ at times [when it comes to sex]. We have to go out of our comfort zone. Our comfort zone is to not talk about these things. If they understand how their bodies work, then they are less likely to become pregnant,” he said.
“Being a father of two young girls, it can be difficult to talk about it. But they know you have to have the conversation about their bodies. We have to protect young girls from abuse because some of these pregnancies happen because of it. It has an impact your entire lives going forward. It may end your education, it may lead you in the worse place financially, it might lead you to have another child directly afterwards. It changes the trajectory of your life,” he said.
The abuse is real. “Fifteen percent of girls aged 13 to 17 have experienced sexual violence,” noted Ms. Robredo, citing a “national baseline study on violence against children in 2015.”
MOVING FORWARD
“We (UNFPA) would want to focus on community talks, whether it’s with young mothers and young boys to really make changes happen, moving from awareness to action,” Mr. Beck told BusinessWorld.
“We are working with national and local governments to help make [medical] services better and more youth friendly and accessible,” he said of medical aid. He also mentioned partnering with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in providing livelihood programs for young mothers.
“My suggestion to the UNFPA is for the next module to have breakout sessions for the young ones and for them to do action points based on what they have learned,” Ms. Robredo told the press.
The second Babaenihan event this year following the one held in Iloilo city is scheduled to be held in Lanao del Norte.

IMF chief flags debt risk as ‘Belt and Road’ advances

BEIJING — International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde said on Thursday that China’s Belt and Road initiative is showing signs of progress, but warned of potential debt risks for partner countries involved in joint projects.
One challenge is to ensure that Belt and Road only travels where it is needed, and the second is to focus on sound fiscal policies, Ms. Lagarde said in prepared comments in a speech at a Belt and Road conference in Beijing on Thursday.
“Fortunately, we know that China’s leadership is aware of these potential risks — as well as the proven strategies that can help address the challenges,” Ms. Lagarde said.
President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative, unveiled in 2013, aims at building a modern-day Silk Road connecting China by land and sea to Southeast Asia, Central Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa.
China has pledged $126 billion for the ambitious plan.
In his opening speech to the annual Boao Forum on Tuesday — Asia’s equivalent of Davos — Mr. Xi said Belt and Road pacts had been made over the last five years with more than 80 countries and international bodies.
Ms. Lagarde said the initiative can provide much needed infrastructure financing to partner countries, but should not be considered “a free lunch” by those nations.
Belt and Road ventures can lead to a “problematic” increase in debt, potentially restricting other spending as debt service obligations rise, which could create balance of payment challenges.
In countries where public debt is already high, careful management of financing terms is critical, in order to protect China and partner governments from entering into pacts that will cause financial difficulties in the future, Ms. Lagarde warned. — Reuters

In aging Thailand, developers race to supply locals and elderly expats

BANGKOK — At 79, Thai businessman Boon Vasin’s latest $500-million venture is a bet on a market he knows well — looking after Thailand’s rapidly growing population of old people.
Not only is Thailand aging faster than its neighbors, but it is also becoming an increasingly popular retirement option for foreigners attracted by its agreeable climate, low living and health costs and culture of service.
“We will look after them from their waking hours until they go to sleep,” said Mr. Boon, chairman of the Thonburi Healthcare Group Pcl.
“This group has big spending capacity.”
His Jin Wellbeing County is a “medical city” for Thai and foreign retirees being built across more than two hectares on the outskirts of Bangkok.
The first of nearly 500 housing units being sold in an initial phase are being marketed for nearly $130,000, plus additional fees of 7,000-8,000 baht ($224-$385) a month for meals and services ranging from fitness sessions to excursions.
Mr. Boon predicts care services will yield recurring profits of up to 240 million baht each year from the project, plus unit sales and medical services.
AGING FASTER THAN NEIGHBORS
Together with China, Thailand is aging much faster than its regional neighbors. By 2040 it is expected to have the highest share of elderly people of any developing country in East Asia, according to the World Bank.
Thailand has 7.5 million people aged 65 and over, a figure projected to swell to 17 million by 2040 — more than a quarter of the expected population.
That’s partly due to improving medical care extending life expectancies, but also a fall in birth rates from an average of more than six children per woman in 1960 to 1.5 in 2015.
In the past, generations of the same Thai family lived under the same roof and elderly were cared for by their offspring. But the changing population balance as well as a shift from the countryside to towns means that’s increasingly impractical.
Real estate developers are already tapping the market.
A residential project worth $160 million by developer Magnolia Quality Development Corporation, which is scheduled to open in 2022, will include a wellness centre offering elderly care services with specialists in areas such as dementia, said chief executive Visit Malaisirirat.
All the homes in SC Asset Corporation Pcl.’s $350-million luxury brand are equipped with designs aimed at the elderly, the group’s marketing head, Nattagit Sirirat, told Reuters.
This includes shock absorbent floors and wheelchair access.
“We worked with Siam Cement, which designed a shock absorbing compound to use in flooring,” he said.
The company was “closely studying retirement homes and communities” and was considering a partnership with a local private hospital operator to build a retirement community, he added, while declining to divulge predicted returns.
For his care home, Mr. Boon is focusing on people with an income of over 100,000 baht a month — and not just Thais. The aim is to sell at least 20% of the project to foreigners, who are targeted along with locals in marketing materials.
“We have Chinese and Japanese buyers who are interested,” he said.
Mr. Boon has partnered with a Chinese agent, Shanghai Losen Sale, to sell 90 units worth 671 million baht to Chinese customers.
Thailand did not make the top ten list of International Living’s 2018 index for the best places to retire for US expats. Costa Rica was at number one and neighboring Malaysia at number five.
International Living described Malaysia as “easy, English-speaking and First World.” English is still not widely spoken in Thailand, particularly outside of the major cities.
The state has tried to address this by promoting English as a second language.
Many parts of Thailand away from the well-known expatriate enclaves also fall decidedly in the developing countries category.
But it is becoming an increasing draw for retirees.
The number of foreigners over 50 who have applied for retirement visas to stay in Thailand almost doubled to nearly 73,000 in 2017 from fewer than 40,000 in 2013, according to immigration bureau data.
At the top of the list are Britons — and last year the government launched a campaign to specifically attract British pensioners once Britain leaves the European Union and closer destinations such as Spain become less attractive.
Bryan Walker, 78, is one of those retirees attracted by Thailand’s food and climate.
“It’s just so good,” said Mr. Walker, a former humanitarian aid worker who is considering a number of retirement facilities in the north of Thailand.
“I’ve lived and worked in so many countries. Here the cost of living is wonderful, the climate is superb, although it’s a bit hot at times. But the range of food is like nothing I’ve ever experienced,” Mr. Walker told Reuters.
Peter Brown, owner of the Care Resort Chiang Mai, a care facility in the northern Thai city, set up his business after seeing his mother in a care home in Britain.
“I found problems in how they do care. Basically, not enough nursing staff,” he said.
“I decided on a better way to do this.” — Reuters

Netflix pulls out of Cannes festival

LOS ANGELES — Netflix, Inc. said on Wednesday it was totally pulling out of the Cannes Film Festival next month after organizers banned the streaming platform’s films from competition for its refusal to release them in cinemas.
Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos told Hollywood trade publication Variety in an interview it was pointless to show at Cannes after the festival rule change.
Cannes festival director Thierry Fremaux said last month that Netflix had refused to give its movies theatrical distribution in France and would therefore be banned from competition at the 12-day festival. However, Thierry said Netflix could show movies outside competition.
Netflix will not participate as a non-competitor, Mr. Sarandos told Variety. “I don’t think there would be any reason to go out of competition. The rule was implicitly about Netflix, and Thierry made it explicitly about Netflix when he announced the rule,” he said.
“We want our films to be on fair ground with every other filmmaker,” he added. “There’s a risk in us going in this way and having our films and filmmakers treated disrespectfully at the festival. They’ve set the tone. I don’t think it would be good for us to be there.”
Netflix plans to release 80 original films in 2018 to its 109 million streaming customers around the world.
Netflix showed two films at the prestigious film festival last year — but triggered a scandal over its refusal to show Okja in French cinemas before distributing it for streaming to its subscribers.
The streaming giant also showed the film The Meyerowitz Stories by Noah Baumbach at the festival.
The company has released a few films, like fantasy thriller Bright, starring Will Smith, in a small number of theaters. But most major chains have refused to show Netflix movies because it releases them at the same time online. Movies from traditional studios typically run exclusively in cinemas for about three months.
French law stipulates movies cannot be available for home streaming until three years after a cinematic premiere. The timeline is considered largely obsolete due to a spike in piracy and streaming platforms in the United States like Netflix and Amazon. Netflix has voiced willingness to taking films to French theaters — but refuses to wait three years to make it available on its platform.
Mr. Sarandos said he personally would not attend the May 8-19 festival in the French Riviera, but said Netflix executives would be there looking at films to acquire.
Netflix said it had nothing to add to Sarandos’ comments to Variety.
The annual festival, which began as an art house showcase more than 70 years ago, has increasingly attracted more commercial movies and top celebrities to its red carpets.
Cannes organizers announced last week that the latest Star Wars movie Solo: A Star Wars Story would get its world premiere at the festival on May 15 ahead of its worldwide rollout on May 23.
“Film festivals are to help films get discovered so they can get distribution,” Mr. Sarandos told Variety. “Under those rules, we could not release our films day-and-date to the world like we’ve released nearly 100 films over the last couple of years.”
Netflix won five Oscar nominations earlier this year for its period racial drama Mudbound, while its film Icarus about Russian sports doping won best documentary. — Reuters/AFP

TV wakes up to power of old people and ‘Generation Viagra’

CANNES — They have long been ignored and despised as a “dying demographic” by television executives in the headlong stampede for younger viewers.
But with millennials spending less time in front of the small screen than their mobiles and computers, TV is at last waking up to the needs of its vast grey audience.
A whole swathe of new shows at MIP, the world’s largest TV market in Cannes, France, either feature or are aimed directly at old people.
From new dramas like The Viagra Diaries to hit reality shows like Old People’s Home For 4 Year Olds in which small children and retirement home residents are brought together, producers are challenging the taboo that seniors don’t make good TV.
The Voice Senior, an old folks version of the blockbuster singing show, will hit screens across Europe and Asia in 2018.
It follows hot on the heels of the success of an originally Korean talent show Better Late Than Never — which has been sold to 16 countries — where older hopefuls share the bill with veteran entertainers.
AGING BABY BOOMERS
The Dutch producers of The Voice Senior, Talpa, are also launching Around the World With 80-year-olds, where eight octogenarians who have never left their homeland jet off together.
With aging baby boomers TV’s most loyal viewers, watching up to five hours a day, producers say it is high time this relatively rich demographic was taken seriously.
“Why not show older people on screen too?” said Talpa’s Annelie Noest. “They watch a lot of TV but we never see them.”
She said when The Voice Senior was shown in the Netherlands it attracted a surprising high younger audience.
“You see yourself or your parents in these stories,” Noest told AFP.
“Old people on screen historically has been a bit tricky if we are honest,” said Harry Gamsu, of Red Arrow International, the company behind Old People’s Home For 4 Year Olds. “But the success of shows like ours — and it had massive ratings — is changing that, particularly combined with kids, which broadens it out.”
YOUNGSTERS WIPE OFF YEARS
“There is a real appreciation that this growing slice of the population want to see content that is relevant and reflects them,” Gamsu added.
“Just because a show is starring older people doesn’t mean it can’t be innovative, or a bold and loud social experiment,” he said.
Nor are broadcasters in search of the holy grail of shows that transcend the generations afraid to resurrect old formats if it can put bums on the sofa.
In Britain, the BBC is reviving The Generation Game, which first screened in 1971, which often brought three generations of families together on set.
Professor Carolyn Yoon, author of the Ageing Consumer, said that trend was “hugely positive” particularly since new research being carried out at the University of Michigan where she works shows exposure to young people can wipe years off older people.
“People generally think of themselves as about 12 years younger than their chronological age. But it turns out that in positive situations with younger people, or just being surrounded by images of young people, can make people feel even younger.”
She said two decades can be wiped off a felt age — but the effect only works in positive situations.
Contrary to the stereotype, professor Yoon said: “older people are much more focused on positive experiences” than young people and anything that generates positivity.
“I can see how these shows can create a very positive feel-good cross-generational effect” for program-makers, she added.
“It is really quite an exciting development particularly as the picture of aging has been relatively dismal even up to now even with the aging of the baby boomers.”
But taboos may be slowly tumbling. Having not made it to the screen in 2012, an adaptation of the bestselling novel The Viagra Diaries, about “Generation Viagra” third-agers rediscovering dating in their 60s and 70s, is finally being made into a TV series in the US. — AFP

Ayala-led Prime Orion planning to develop 2 industrial parks

By Krista A. M. Montealegre, National Correspondent
AYALA-LED Prime Orion Philippines, Inc. (POPI) is riding on the country’s manufacturing resurgence, as it targets to become the largest player in the real estate logistics and industrial sector.
POPI President and Chief Executive Officer Maria Rowena Victoria M. Tomeldan said in a briefing on Thursday the goal is to build a hub in key cities across the country starting with the launch of two industrial parks by the first half of next year.
“Because of the economic fundamentals of the country, the manufacturing sector is enjoying growth. We want to seize the opportunity to bring them (locators) all in,” Ms. Tomeldan said.
Kicking off the expansion will be a 60-100 hectare industrial park in Cagayan de Oro near the Laguindingan airport that will make available 42 parcels of land consisting of smaller lot cuts of 7,000 square meters compared to the usual size of one hectare in Luzon.
The second industrial park will rise in central Luzon, but Ms. Tomeldan declined to disclose the specific location.
Moving forward, the intention is to keep a balanced portfolio mix of lots for sale and warehouse facilities within the estate that will generate recurring earnings for the company, she said.
Ayala Land, Inc. is set to own 64% of POPI after engaging in a P3-billion share-swap deal that transferred the former’s 75% stake in Laguna Technopark, Inc. (LTI) into the listed firm. The property giant is keen on further raising its stake in POPI “if there is an opportunity,” Ms. Tomeldan said.
The infusion of LTI into POPI, owner of the Tutuban Center in Manila, set the stage for the latter’s venture into the real estate logistics and industrial estate business. LTI, which posted revenues of P1 billion and a net income of P300 million in 2016, manages the 460-hectare Laguna Technopark in Santa Rosa and Biñan, and 135-hectare Cavite Technopark in the municipality of Naic.
As part of its transformation, POPI maximized the value of its 14-hectare Lepanto property in Calamba, Laguna by shifting subsidiary Lepanto Ceramics’ focus from tile manufacturing to real estate warehouse operations.
The company upgraded the common areas of the Lepanto Industrial Complex, initiated rehabilitation program, and converted formerly non-leasable areas into leasable spaces.
The retail business also continued to undergo a massive metamorphosis. POPI turned the Tutuban railway station building into a model for adaptive reuse of a built heritage site. Major facility upgrades, the re-zoning of the mall, and the introduction of unique retail and wholesale concepts allowed the company to improve profit margins for the year.
So far, POPI has spent P500 million to renovate the Tutuban commercial complex, with a gross leasable area of 53,000 square meters.
POPI generated earnings of P18.6 million last year, a turnaround from the net loss of P414.9 million which included provision for probable losses of P235 million.
Consolidated revenues fell 27% to P630.2 million from P860.1 million, as it winds down its non-core issuance business. The decline was tempered by higher rental revenues from Tutuban Center and Lepanto warehouse.
Shares in POPI fell eight centavos or 2.45% to end at P3.19 each on Thursday.

Ang Larawan to make its European premiere at the Udine film festival

ANG LARAWAN, the award-winning musical film based on National Artist Nick Joaquin’s play A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino, will be making its European debut when it screens in competition at the 20th Far East Film Festival in Udine, Italy, from April 20 to 28.
The festival showcases popular Asian films.
The Udine film festival will be the third international festival that Ang Larawan, produced by Culturtain Musicat Productions, will be joining after its world premiere at the 2017 Tokyo International Film Festival last October, and the Cinematografo International Film Festival in San Francisco a few weeks later.
“I’m beyond excited to see how our kababayans (countrymen) in Italy and the Italians, themselves, will react to our film,” actress Rachel Alejandro, one of the film’s stars and also an executive producer, was quoted as saying in a press statement. “It was such a gratifying experience when we screened at the Tokyo Film Festival and Cinematografo in San Francisco… It’s simply a dream come true for me to be showcasing our Filipino talent to the rest of the world.”
The musical film — with a libretto written by National Artist Rolando Tinio, and music composed by Ryan Cayabyab — was directed by Loy Arcenas was quoted in the release as saying: “I love the fact that Europe will get to know more of Mr. C’s brilliance through the performances of some of the best Filipino singer-actors captured in Ang Larawan.”
Ang Larawan will be screened on April 24, 11 a.m., at Teatro Nuovo Giovanni da Udine.
The film is still being shown in the Philippines through school tours and special screenings. For an updated schedule of the film’s local and international screenings, check out Ang Larawan The Movie on Facebook or log on to anglarawan.com.

Phinma eyes LNG facility in Cebu

By Victor V. Saulon, Sub-Editor
PHINMA Petroleum and Geothermal, Inc. (PPG) is developing a liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility with a 120-megawatt (MW) power plant in Cebu, which company officials expect to be completed by 2022 to 2023.
“We are developing an LNG-to-power project in Argao, Cebu,” Raymundo A. Reyes, Jr., PPG executive vice-president and chief operating officer, told stockholders during the company’s annual meeting on Thursday. Argao is about 70 kilometers southwest of Cebu City.
“There is a low level of activity in the upstream [sector]. Your company decided to expand to the midstream sector of the business,” he added.
Mr. Reyes said in November 2017, the company signed a joint development agreement with three companies, which will cover the deployment of the floating storage and regasification unit as well as the 120-MW power plant and associated facilities.
“To date, high-level engineering design and solutions have already been completed for the jetty, the floating power plant, and the floating LNG storage and regas unit,” he said. “And we expect by the middle of this year, we would have the feasibility level cost available to us.”
He said LNG supply and shipping solutions have already been identified and selected, and an LNG market forecast has also been completed. The company is in discussion for an agreement on LNG supply and delivery, he added.
Mr. Reyes told reporters that the feasibility study, once completed, would determine the economic viability of the project, and whether it is a “go or no-go.”
“This will be a 20 to 25-year project so we have to be conscious of the behavior of LNG price in the market,” he said.
Francisco L. Viray, PPG president and chief executive officer, said the capacity of the power plant was determined based on the region’s demand.
“It’s the size that can be absorbed in Visayas. No more than 10% kasi dapat ang size mo sa grid. Visayas is about 2,000 MW, so no more than 200 MW,” he said, adding that the size is expandable because the facility is modular.
“And of course it is contingent on a power supply agreement (PSA). Hindi naman matutuloy ’yon kung walang PSA. That’s very critical,” the official added.
Mr. Viray said the capacity of the storage facility would be determined after the outcome of the feasibility study.
“The study here will tell us whether gas will be competitive under a technology-neutral energy mix, or not. Once it is competitive, I think it will be competitive in other sites, so it’s just a matter of timing later on,” he said.
The company had earlier dropped plans to build the facility in Sual, Pangasinan because of the excess capacity in the Luzon grid, Mr. Viray said.
“I don’t think we need that capacity [in Luzon] before 2025. So we shifted it dito sa Visayas,” he said.
Mr. Viray declined to disclose the expected cost of the project, saying figures at this time were still “very rough” estimates. He also did not name the development partners because of a non-disclosure agreement.
Mr. Reyes said the biggest cost of component of the project would be the combined cycle gas turbine for the power plant.
PPG parent Phinma Energy Corp. is among the local companies that have undertaken initial plans to develop an LNG facility. The venture is in part prompted by the expected depletion of the country’s lone source of domestic natural gas, the Malampaya offshore field west of Palawan, which is expected to run out starting in 2024.
Natural gas, said to be the cleanest fossil fuel, is usually transported through a pipeline, but if the deposit is large and the market is overseas, the gas may be liquefied into LNG and moved via specialized tankers.
The other day, Phinma Energy said it is entering the downstream oil sector, initially catering to the fuel requirement of its own diesel plants, through subsidiary One Subic Oil Distribution Corp.

Lost in Space finds new life on Netflix

LOS ANGELES — More than 50 years after it appeared on US television, science-fiction family drama Lost in Space is getting new life as a series on Netflix and will offer a break from the dystopian fare popular among futuristic shows today, the show’s star Toby Stephens said.
“There’s great TV around but a lot of it is really depressing,” Stephens told Reuters at the series premiere in Los Angeles ahead of its Friday release.
“What’s great about this show is that it’s very aspirational. … it also has this positive message about family and humanity, which I think we need at the moment,” said the British actor best known for playing a James Bond villain in 2002’s Die Another Day.
Stephens plays family patriarch John Robinson, commander of the spaceship Jupiter 2, which crashes on an unknown planet light years away from Earth.
The year is 2046 and the Robinson family and other Jupiter 2 passengers encounter an alien environment.
Like the 1965 series, Lost in Space is based loosely on Johann David Wyss’s 1812 adventure novel The Swiss Family Robinson. The series also keeps the popular catchphrase “Danger, Will Robinson,” the robot warning given to the youngest of the Robinson clan.
The 10-episode first season reworks some characters’ back stories and family relationships and the scheming Dr. Smith is now a woman, played by Parker Posey.
“There is definitely a different dynamic,” said Mina Sundwall, who plays daughter Penny Robinson. “We’re very complicated, we’re very messy. You see marriage problems between John and (wife) Maureen.
“We’re also a mixed family and we have (sister) Judy from another marriage of Maureen’s, which I think brings another… dynamic between them,” Sundwall said. — Reuters

SFA Semicon Philippines gets $30-million loan from parent

SFA Semicon Philippines Corp. (SSPC) obtained a loan from its parent company to fund capital expenditures and refinance debt.
In a disclosure to the stock exchange on Thursday, the local arm of one of Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.’s South Korean suppliers said it received a $30-million loan from SFA Semicon Co. Ltd.
SSPC will repay the loan in full after two years and four months, with interest payable on the unpaid principal at the rate of 4.6% per annum.
Proceeds of the loan will partially fund capital expenditures and working capital requirements as well as refinance its outstanding long-term loan.
Last February, SSPC opened its $51-million manufacturing facility in Clark Freeport Zone, Pampanga where it plans to start producing the latest version of embedded multimedia cards (eMMC) found in tablets, smartphones, and GPS tracking systems.
With a gross manufacturing footprint of 18,000 square meters, the new facility forms part of the second phase of its manufacturing building in Pampanga in line with the vision to make SSPC its manufacturing hub in the region.
The company targets to accommodate service contracts from new clients with the facility.
SSPC has a business transaction agreement to supply its products to Samsung until May 2019.
Prior to the opening of the facility, SSPC was already the top export revenue-earning locator in Clark Freeport Zone. It expects to further increase its export revenues with this expansion.
Shares in SSPC were unchanged at P2.16 apiece on Thursday. — Krista Angela M. Montealegre

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