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How to jazz up your LinkedIn profile

Astrong social media presence is a must for marketers these days. But aside from boosting sales through Facebook and Instagram, here’s another use for the internet: building your company’s cred to make it more attractive to potential employees.

And right now, the best place to do that is on LinkedIn, a platform which boasts 467 million users worldwide and focuses on building a desirable reputation for both employees and employers.

Unaware of how to navigate LinkedIn? Here’s a little cheat sheet we came up with, based on the recent LinkedIn for Success seminar at the Marco Polo Hotel, as well as the e‑book entitled “Employer Branding Essentials”.

 

1. Expand your reach

Widen your company’s reach by encouraging employees to identify themselves as part of the company on their profiles on the platform. After all, employees are a company’s “unofficial recruiters and marketers.”

“In doing so,” the digital material said, “your employees will soon amplify your message further than any official channel ever will.”

Encouraging your employees to update their profiles on LinkedIn provides an opportunity to establish a desirable image among potential applicants. In fact, according to LinkedIn Talent Trends 2016, “1 in 4 candidates look at employee profiles after hearing about a new job.”

Once employees have updated their profiles, companies should urge them to engage in conversations, actively post contents, and grow their connections on the platform. You can also add the “follow” button so every time people follow your company’s page, it will spread through their networks.

 

2. Build engagement

Make sure to update your company page as it is your official presence on LinkedIn. In the same way, you should also establish your career page as it serves as an extension of your company page where employees can share stories about their experience working at your company.

Posting videos and photos about your company also helps in engaging potential employees with your page. Some ideas in creating proper career pages, according to the material, includes using existing photos and videos as part of custom modules, running a photo contest by asking employees to share snaps or images featuring a recent company event or their daily stay in your workplace, and republishing blog content produced by your leaders.

You can motivate followers to apply by sharing updates about your company on the platform.

 

3. Boost job interest

The job descriptions that you post on your LinkedIn profile are not mere blurbs that people scan through. Job descriptions, according to the e‑book, are “prime real estate” for promoting an employer’s brand.

“LinkedIn has millions of job posts and distributes them to candidates based on skill sets, but it’s your descriptions that will compel them to view and apply,” it added.

In publishing job openings, do not get too creative with job titles. instead, just stick to standard.

It is also good to share your company’s culture and values through job descriptions as they are the first thing candidates want to know before applying or joining a company, according to LinkedIn’s Global Talent Trends Report 2016.

 

4. Empower new employees

Your employees play a huge role in establishing a good employer brand as “they shape your company’s culture, live your values, and work to manifest your mission.”

Failing to engage employees, will make your campaign to establish a desirable brand “quickly fall apart.” In doing so, you should “onboard them well” and provide them with tools and skills to fulfill their roles in your company.

Engaging employees start from the time you welcome them to your company, which set them on a path to “job satisfaction, improved productivity, and ultimately, a long tenure at your company.” Ideas to consider in welcoming new employees include showing a welcome video from your CEO, giving information on how to get social, and conducting a fun activity that will tell them your culture and values.

You can nurture your employees by continuously teaching them new skills and knowledge. To make them stay in your company, create and highlight career advancement opportunities.

A port of many opportunities

Cagayan de Oro, known as the ‘melting pot of Mindanao’, has proven time and again its capabilities as one of the Philippines’ best cities for investors. Due to its accessibility as a city with multiple air and sea ports in the area, and its consistent rank among the list of the most competitive Philippine cities by the National Competitiveness Council, it has become the regional center and logistics and business hub of Northern Mindanao and one of the most progressive and competitive cities in the country.

Part of the reason for its competitiveness and why it holds the potential to become one of the country’s emerging business sectors is its well-developed infrastructure backbone. The first-class city has the major advantage of being a gateway to Northern Mindanao, with connectivity to major production areas and markets through Laguindingan International Airport and an extensive inter and intra-city road networks. The city also possesses the largest seaport in Mindanao, the multi-berth Cagayan de Oro baseport.

Cagayan de Oro serves as a city of trade links in Southern Philippines, the entry point for goods to be quickly distributed to a consumer market of millions, and the most efficient exit for the island’s agricultural and industrial products to its major foreign and domestic markets in Visayas and Luzon. Supply chain companies have located their major depots or distribution centers in the area.

Its strategic location attracted even the Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation to put up its multi-billion peso fuel import facility there, dubbed as the North Mindanao Import Facility (NMIF), which provides power and energy to the population of Visayas and Mindanao.

Cagayan de Oro also has a solid infrastructure for telecommunication. The city is linked to four access nodes (fiber optic ring). Thus, when one side is cut-off, the city/province can still access connection from other nodes since all signals are being hauled to the cable landing stations in Batangas and Ilocos. It is now part of the seamless fiber optic ring of all major telecom providers and host of Cellular Mobile Telephone Services (CMTS) Main Switching Centers (MSCs).

Another reason for the city’s growing economic strength lies in its extensive pool of human resources. As the home of many universities and other educational institutions, Cagayan de Oro supports the growth of its over 600,000 residents with quality education and training. Xavier University (Ateneo de Cagayan) is Mindanao’s first university, while Capitol University and the Liceo de Cagayan University are cited by the National Association of Colleges and Universities as among the country’s top 10 higher education institutions with the highest number of accredited programs. The city has access to eight universities, 70 colleges and six computer technology institutes in the region.

Xavier University — www.xu.edu.ph

Special skills training and apprenticeship programs are readily available for Cagayan de Oro residents. For instance, Xavier University has partnered with Asian Carmakers Corporation, the official BMW distributor in the Philippines, to bring the expertise of BMW to technical education students.

A skilled and educated population in turn contributes to the formation of a valuable work force that is attractive for corporations in various industries.

In terms of economy, Cagayan de Oro is largely sustained on the strength of its industry, commerce, trade, and service sectors. The city is the growth driver of Northern Mindanao, with a gross regional domestic product of P270.0 billion in 2014, attributable to the city’s thriving industry and services sectors.

The business processing and outsourcing (BPO) has especially benefited from the city’s ample work force. At present, business process operators in the city include the Concentrix Corporation, a global knowledge process outsourcing company and wholly owned subsidiary of SYNNEX Corporation; Rider Livett Bucknall, a company which provides quantity surveying, project/construction management, and advisory services for BPOs; and Teleperformance, the world’s leading provider of outsourced omnichannel customer experience management services.

Even now, Cagayan de Oro’s potential as a BPO hotspot continues to attract investors abroad, powering the city’s overall sustainable and eco-friendly economic development. Today, Cagayan de Oro boasts of five IT parks and two IT buildings, two of which are PEZA-registered.

Meanwhile, the rich agricultural resources of the city has also made it a prime location for agribusiness. Multinational agribusiness companies, such as Del Monte and Nestle, have chosen Cagayan de Oro as their site of operations. As the gateway to Southern Philippines, Cagayan de Oro provides direct access to rich agricultural areas of Mindanao, which is the source of 40% of the country’s food and livestock. The city is also a significant producer of oleochemical and other coconut products. Presently, Northern Mindanao is the top producer of cattle and is the third largest producer of poultry in the country.

As the Philippine economy attracts more foreign business due to its rapidly growing economy, next wave cities like Cagayan de Oro can only become more attractive for investors over time. Its excellent location coupled with sound infrastructure and a valuable work force make it one of, if not the best cities to do business in the foreseeable future. — Bjorn Biel M. Beltran

Some marketing ideas to try this holiday season

With Christmas Day right around the corner, everyone, equipped with ready cash and credit card, seems to be in a feverish hunt for the perfect gifts for oneself and for others. What can business owners do to make hay while the sun shines?

The best bet would be to give gifts, like chocolates, bottles of wine and other festive fare. “Gifts are a time-honored way to show clients that you value them, in turn inspiring loyalty to you,” says Startups.co.uk, an independent online resource for starting business in the U.K.

Startups suggests sending small gifts with the company’s branding as an alternative. Just make sure that they are practical. “A branded lanyard may come across as pointless if your business doesn’t serve those who have a particular use for them,” the site says.

Giving prospective customers free samples may convince them to finally make a purchase, while providing the loyal ones with samples of a new product can help drum up interest. Send some to the influencers and journalists, too. Startups said doing so may persuade them to give one’s product a go. They may even write about or promote it on their social media accounts.

A simple greeting card is another potent instrument for expressing one’s appreciation of a customer’s loyalty. Put some effort into choosing one, though. “Personalized, [specially designed] cards (think cheesy team photos) are particularly memorable, and a great way to re-affirm any relationships you have built with clients while working with them or selling to them,” Startups says.

Try offering mouth-watering deals and/or discounting some products. “Seasonal deals and discounts can go a long way in driving awareness of your business,” the site says. “Consider buy-one-get-one-free deals or a 20% discount on spends over a certain amount throughout December. You could also offer incentives such as free gift wrapping or an extra, small service thrown in with each large purchase.”

Let the customers know about the deals and discounts by promoting them on the company’s Web site and, most especially, social media accounts. “You have to be very clear on the start and end date of your special promotion, as well as the price they are paying, the amount they’re saving, and how limited the time is to take advantage of all these things,” GearLaunch, an e-commerce software provider, says.

It continues: “There’s no time to waste at this point, so they either want it or they don’t; move along if their answer is no. Let them know it’s for them and them alone, and that it’s going away as soon as they scroll past it.”

To boost social media presence, consider running giveaway competitions. “Simply offer up one of your products or services (or a collection of them), and ask that users follow you, like the post and tag their friends to enter to win,” Startups says.

Using hashtag helps increase the giveaway promo’s visibility. But be inventive. The site cites the #MakeItThoughtful hashtag of John Lewis, a high-end department store, which encouraged users be more thoughtful in giving gifts, and #TedsElfie of Ted Baker, a luxury clothing retail company, which corresponded to a game on Instagram in which users had to search for missing elves across profiles.

Business owners will also do well to share the contents their customers generate. “The more you interact with your customers, the more they will feel like they’re of value to your business. Users may well share images and posts about your products or services across social media — try finding the best ones and sharing them on your own channels, reacting to them as you go and perhaps adding your own hashtag,” Startups says.

This may be more difficult to pull off, but it is nevertheless worthwhile to try: offer expedited shipping. “Shipping is a huge concern for buyers at this time of year. Everyone is freaking out about getting their gifts on time for Christmas and being able to finish up their shopping list as quickly as possible. Here’s your chance to ease their stress and still profit,” GearLaunch says. “If you can guarantee customers that they will receive your product in time to wrap it and throw it under the tree, you have already solved a huge problem and established dominance in your niche.”

Of course, don’t forget to stock up on the best-sellers and the products that would make for great gifts. And to keep on top of fulfilling orders, Startups suggests giving customers the option to pre-order.

The site also recommends taking temp into service. “If you know that this season is going to be a busy one for you, you might consider hiring an extra pair of hands to help you out temporarily. Get in touch with a temping agency if you’re not sure where to start — just be sure that you can comfortably pay the extra wages,” it says.

The wonders of Cagayan de Oro

It was in 2014 when Cagayan de Oro was named as one of the nine “emerging cities of tomorrow” by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat). The nine cities were chosen based on their size, rapid growth, geographical variety and significance as part of an urban cluster linked to cross-border exchange. At present, the city of Cagayan de Oro is continuously gaining growth as it serves as the regional center and business hub of Northern Mindanao.

Aside from its projected population growth, strategic location and economic ability, Cagayan de Oro is a home of cultural heritage and recreational destinations that attract local and foreign tourists, who have significantly contributed to the growth of the city as a whole.

There are many reasons to visit Cagayan de Oro. It offers outstanding scenic places ranging from historical landmarks, churches, museums, prestige beaches, rivers, majestic mountains and caves. In addition to this list, the city is dubbed as “The City of Golden Friendship” because of the friendly, hospitable and accommodating treatment of Kagay-anon people in which they treat their visitors like a family.

The rich history of Cagayan de Oro can be traced through the historical treasures located at its museums. City Museum of Cagayan de Oro, which was formerly known as the Water Tank Tower, is one of the historical places in the heart of the city that contains old photographs and paintings, artifacts, antiques and an interesting old Ostrich egg, which is believed to be centuries old. The establishment is the oldest public structure in the city, which was built in 1922 and renovated into a museum in 2008.

The Museum of Three Cultures in Capitol University houses a gallery of ethno history, Butuan archaeological artifacts, arts and crafts from the Higaonon and Manobo cultures, and a treasure of Christians lowland artifacts of Northern Mindanao region. It also has an art gallery and a coffee shop used to promote the local visual arts of Mindanao.

Other museums located in the city are: Museo de Oro that exhibits artifacts dug from Huluga Caves and repertoire of Bukidnon and the Maranao cultures; and the La Castilla, a museum dedicated to the conservation and preservation of the historical and cultural heritage found in the personal memorabilia of the founders of the Liceo de Cagayan University.

The most known worship venue in the city, St. Augustine Metropolitan Cathedral, is located at the right of the City Museum of Cagayan de Oro. It has a gothic style architecture, adorned with stained glass and beautiful paintings of the four evangelists. The establishment has gone through several changes since it was built in 1624. It was only in 1946 when the cathedral and the convent was rebuilt through Archbishop James Hayes, SJ.

Every year, the feast day of St. Augustine, known as Higalaay Festival, is celebrated. It is a week-long festivity filled with a series of colorful, culturally-rich and fun-filled core events that culminate on the 28th of August. The celebration has grown not only as the customary day of thanksgiving but also as an avenue to promote Cagayan de Oro City and the surrounding areas as investment and tourism destinations in the globe.

Just beside the St. Augustine Metropolitan Cathedral is the Gaston Park, which is considered as a favorite venue of the city’s residents after attending a Sunday mass. It was once the main plaza of Cagayan de Misamis during the Spanish colonial period which served as a training ground for local patriots in the course of the Philippine-American War.

Another noteworthy establishments in the city is Vicente de Lara Park, formerly known as MacArthur Park, where Press Freedom Monument and the Heritage Monument of Misamis Oriental designed by national artist Eduardo Castrillo are located. Most of the events in the city are being held here. At night, the park is being lit up with various colors by the pendant lamps hanging on the trees.

Local and international hotel chains have already put up their hotel accommodation in the city, as well as restaurants, making it easier for visitors and tourists to look for a place to stay and eat.

Cagayan de Oro is truly majestic. From a face of an emerging city filled with rich culture and history, it also offers a relaxing environment for tourists who seek peace and solitude or fun and adventure.

The city is dubbed as the “Whitewater Rafting Capital” in the Philippines due to its fun and thrilling rafting experience in Cagayan de Oro River. The river’s depth, incline and rock formations make the flow of water powerful that cascades over rocks and boulders. Kayaking is also a must-try adventure in the river, where you can face the rapids alone, unlike with rafting that comes with group.

Just a few kilometers away from the city, a beautiful forest reserve named Mapawa Nature Park lies. Exciting activities such as horse-back riding, zip-line, cliff jumping, canyoneering, water slide, and forest and river trekking await. The park also caters group events and conducts eco-lectures and team-building activities for companies, corporations and groups.

Other popular destinations in the city are: Macahambus Cave, also called a “thru cave” as another opening at the end of the cave can be found; Monigue Cave that boasts a sparkling formations of calcites inside; Catanico Falls, a small narrow falls surrounded by magma stone boulders; and Migtugsok Falls, a falls with five beautiful cascading waters. — Mark Louis F. Ferrolino

Amazing DIY holiday decors

Christmas is the merriest season of the year but also the most expensive one. Setting up a stunning decorations from outside the house up to the interior and table centerpiece can definitely break one’s budget. Spreading some holiday cheer and making the festive extra special can be as economical as possible by skipping the store-bought decors and investing time in do it yourself (DIY) crafts.

It’s never too late to add Christmas decorations in your home. Aside from making the home look beautiful and attractive, Christmas decors bring the family closer as they work together in coming out with perfect decorating ideas. While some people opt to buy traditional Christmas trees, lights, lanterns, candy canes and snowflakes in stores, there are many ways in making alternatives for these ornaments without cashing out too much. Apart from being practical, DIY crafts are unique and special since it can be customized and personalized.

DIY Christmas tree is a great project. You can pick the size, color and style that will completely complement your home’s interior and personality. For households who have limited spaces, a three-dimensional paper Christmas tree is a great choice. It can be made from cardboards, colored papers, magazines, scratch papers or newspapers, which can be easily finished with spray paint, glitters, stickers, paper cutouts, or anything else you can think of. Posting some of your collections in the wall, such as frames, souvenirs and colorful buttons, and form it as a tree is also a good choice for small homes as it does not occupy any space on the flooring.

For book lovers who want to exhibit their collection, DIY Christmas tree made from stacks of books can be considered. The good thing about this is you can attempt to build a massive and tall tree as much as you can and arrange the books by colors and sizes. Putting a star on top and some traditional decors around the tree can make it more appealing. If you are worried about its stability, you can simply pick up some books with green cover and stack them on the bookshelf from largest to smallest, and top it with a star.

For people who always want to put a natural element in their craft, a sturdy tree branch can be transformed into a Christmas tree. Simply apply a white spray paint and stick it in a transparent glass bottle or any container, then decorate it with Christmas balls and flowers. To make it more personal, you can hang some pictures of your family members or any significant stuff you have collected.

Outdoor decorations are also important as it sets the tone of Christmas and welcomes the visitors as they enter the home. Christmas lanterns can significantly make the ambience merrier but DIY Christmas lanterns that display your personality and creativity can make your home truly exceptional.

DIY Christmas lanterns can be made out of simple materials like mason jar or empty wine bottle. By simply putting a battery-powered LED string lights inside the jar or bottle and artistically knotting at least three of it together can be a great alternative to a lantern. To make it more attractive, you can turn the jar or bottle as the heads of Santa Claus or a Snowman, and add Christmas balls and poinsettia as other elements.

Lanterns made from recycled materials may be the best idea to make a DIY hanging decor. Materials such as plastic bottles, soda cans, cups, spoon and fork can be turned to an elegant masterpiece by combining your imagination and artistry. For instance, the petal shape pieces of plastic spoons can be arranged to form a star or lotus-shape lantern that can be painted with a color that complements your home’s exterior.

For a snowy indoor wall scene, popsicle sticks can be made as snowflakes by arranging the sticks to the desired shapes and covering it with white or any color of the paint that matches your wall. Cute little penguins painted in recycled two-liter bottles can perfectly complement this, together with a Christmas wreath on the door.

On Christmas Eve, the table also deserves a special touch. For a simple yet stunning centerpiece, you can place a three to five square shaped candles in a rectangular serving dish and fill the remaining spaces with cranberries, enhance with a few pine twigs or any available Christmas decor. For a colorful choice, simply fill a bowl with brightly colored balls and place it in a stand covered with green ornaments.

Empty glass bottles can be also used as a centerpiece to radiate a fresh and elegant tablescape. For instance, an assortment of clear or lightly tinted glass bottles filled with small balls and something greenery on top can be artistically arranged on the center, together with pine cones spread around. — Mark Louis F. Ferrolino

Christmas dinner traditions from around the world

As the season of giving, many people look forward to Christmas for the gifts. Many think of the holiday as the season of lights and beautiful decorations. For most Filipinos, they no doubt look forward to the food.

One of the best parts of a Filipino Christmas is the traditional noche buena, a sumptuous homecooked feast served on Christmas Eve. Rich, flavorful dishes such as lechon or pancit, hamon and queso de bola, plus sweet pastries like bibingka, halaya, or fruit salad, all of these are brought out to celebrate the coming of Christ and are eaten together with family and friends.

Of course, sitting down with loved ones in a Christmas feast is not an exclusively Filipino tradition. Check out how people all over the world celebrate the holiday with food and traditions of their own.

Poland

Christmas Day meals in Poland is an elaborate affair, as a traditional vigil supper known as Wigilia. After the first star appears in the sky on Christmas Eve, Polish families share the Christmas wafer (opłatek) and wishes good things for the coming year, then sit down to eat a meatless meal in honor of Catholic tradition. A traditional Christmas meal in Poland includes fish dishes and Borscht (beetroot soup) with Uszka (tortellini). A variety of special Christmas rollmops, matjas herring, poppy seed cakes (makowiec), dried fruit compote and other delicacies including edible Christmas ornaments are also served. Dishes typically include: stuffed carp, fried carp, herring in wine sauce, herring in cream sauce, fruit compote, vegetable salad, soup (beetroot, mushroom, or fish) with uszka, pierogi, peas and carrots, boiled potatoes, mushroom cream sauce, sauerkraut, and makowiec (poppy seed rolled cake).

France

Observed in France and some other French-speaking countries, a réveillon is a long dinner or party held on the evenings preceding Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. An extravagant or a luxurious celebration, a réveillon usually serves food like lobster, oyster, escargots or foie gras as appetizers, while the main course features stuffed turkey with chestnuts. Dessert may consist of a Yule log, known as a bûche de Noël. In the French province of Provence, the tradition of the thirteen desserts is followed, in which 13 desserts are served, which include pompe à l’huile (a flavoured bread), dates, and the like. Needless to say, the celebration is flush with the serving of quality wine, with champagne or similar sparkling wines drunk as a conclusion.

Japan

While the Japanese celebrate Christmas with their own traditional Christmas cakes — either a white sponge cake covered with cream and decorated with strawberries or a Stollen cake, either imported or made locally — millions of Japanese people celebrate Christmas with a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken. When the American brand opened its first branch in Japan in the 1970s, it created a marketing campaign centering on the holiday that saw great success. The campaign was so successful that eating KFC at Christmastime has become a national custom.

Finland

The food table prepared as a tradition in Finland is called the Joulupöytä. While it consists of many different dishes, a Christmas staple is usually the ham, which is eaten with mustard or bread along with laatikkos, (casseroles made with swede, potato and carrot, occasionally liver). Fish, often lutefisk (aged whitefish and lye) and gravlax (raw salmon, cured in salt, sugar, and dill) is also served. Finnish people also prepare different casseroles with potatoes, rutabaga or carrots, and serve alcoholic or non-alcoholic mulled wine.

United Kingdom

In the UK, Christmas dinner is typically eaten in the afternoon on Christmas Day and is usually features stuffed turkey, gravy, sometimes pigs in blankets (sausage-based dishes) or devils on horseback (bacon-wrapped dates, fruit, or nuts); cranberry sauce or redcurrant jelly; bread sauce; yorkshire pudding, roast potatoes (sometimes also boiled or mashed); vegetables (usually boiled or steamed), particularly brussels sprouts and parsnips; with dessert of Christmas pudding (or plum pudding), sometimes mince pies or trifle, with brandy butter and/or cream.

Mexico

Like Filipinos, Mexicans also celebrate noche buena on Christmas Eve, a festive occasion with family and guests. While Christmas meals can differ from region to region, the traditional stew pozole is a common staple. Made with hominy and meat — usually pork — it’s accompanied by a wide variety of condiments like shredded cabbage, chile peppers, avocado, and lime. Other dishes include tamales (maize or dough steamed in a corn husk or banana leaf), atole (hot corn- and maize-based beverage), birria (spicy stew, traditionally made from goat meat or mutton), and menudo. Sweet tamales filled with pineapple, raisins, strawberries, or corn are common desserts alongside sweets like flan, fruit and milk or liquer-flavored gelatin, or Champurrado.

More Americanized fare like brandy-glazed ham, chicken, turkey or sometimes duck is served in some areas, along with mixed grilled, stewed, or raw vegetables like carrots, potatoes, spinach, cactus, onions, chayote squash and radishes. Salsa is always served as a garnish and accompanied by queso fresco, tortillas, and refried beans, if not “sopa de arroz,” rather rice cooked with tomato and spices. The bacalao fish is common in coastal zones, along with shrimp or fish soup. — Bjorn Biel M. Beltran

Tax reform, budget implementation set

By Arjay L. Balinbin

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte yesterday signed into law the P3.767-trillion national budget for 2018 and the first of up to five tax reform packages — major measures crafted by his administration to help put economic growth on a faster lane and lift more Filipinos out of poverty.

Signing both measures — Republic Act No. 10964 or the General Appropriations Act for 2018 and RA 10963 or the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion Act (TRAIN) — in simple ceremonies in Malacañan Palace puts them on track for prompt implementation starting Jan. 1.

TAX REFORM KICKS OFF
In his speech, Mr. Duterte described the TRAIN as “the administration’s biggest Christmas gift to the Filipino people as 99% of taxpayers will benefit from simpler, fairer and more efficient tax…”

The entire tax reform program aims to shift the burden to those who can afford to pay more and raise additional revenues to help support the Duterte administration’s “Build, Build, Build” program that will see P8.44 trillion spent on major public infrastructure until he ends his term in mid-2022.

“One of the TRAIN’s most significant breakthroughs is that, beginning Jan. 1, 2018, those earning below P250,000 (a year) will be exempt from income tax,” Mr. Duterte said.

“The law also addresses long-overdue corrections in our tax laws and introduces a more progressive tax system for the rich and the poor…” he added.

“Revenues from the TRAIN will fund our priority projects to ensure quality education — including free tuition in state universities and colleges — quality health care, social protection and conditional cash transfers, improved infrastructure… and the reconstruction of Marawi” City that was razed as government forces battled Islamic State-inspired militants there for five months from late May.

The measure — initially projected to rake in an additional P130 billion before last-minute insertions last week pared this down to a little more than P90 billion — cuts personal income tax rates, and makes up for the expected foregone revenues by reducing exemptions from value added tax, increasing excise tax rates for fuel and automobiles and introducing an excise levy for sugar-sweetened drinks.

It also doubles taxes for some investment products as well as the mining excise tax, and increases levies for tobacco and coal, while streamlining and reducing estate and donors’ tax rates, among others.

Mr. Duterte was silent on controversial last-minute inclusions like changes in tobacco and coal tax schemes that some observers have alleged favor certain companies.

“I am directing the Department of Finance to ensure effective implementation of Package 1 of TRAIN and to immediately submit to Congress Package 2 which deals with corporate income tax early next year…” he said, referring to his administration’s move to cut the corporate income tax rate — currently at 30% — to about 25% in order to match levels of competitors for investments elsewhere in Asia.

Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III has said his department hopes to persuade Congress to make up for the first package’s revenue shortfall by approving next quarter “the second part of the package” that will include an excise tax amnesty, easing of the bank secrecy law and an increase in the Motor Vehicle Users Charge in order to bring projected revenues of the entire package back closer to P130 billion.

Sought for comment, Tax Management Association of the Philippines President Maria Lourdes P. Lim said she “welcomes the approval of the package 1 of the tax reform measure, primarily because it reduces the personal income tax, which will redound to the benefit of the working class, and because it will increase their take-home pay, and they will have more disposable income.”

“But there are some proposals which appeared to have significantly departed from the earlier version and some of these were not even included during discussions in the past. For example, we see that… DST (documentary stamp tax)… rates were simply doubled. I don’t know where that came from in terms of whether there was a study made,” she added.

“We were caught off guard. During the hearings, we did not discuss that at all.”

For Ramon C. Casiple, executive director of the Institute for Political and Electoral Reform, “Congress is living up to its practice which is basically inserting provisions that there might be actually either loopholes or opportunities for them, and that is the reality there.”

DUTERTE’S FIRST BUDGET
In the same remarks, Mr. Duterte noted that the 2018 national budget — the first crafted by his administration — is 12.4% more than 2017’s P3.35-trillion spending plan and “will primarily support infrastructure development and free education in state universities and colleges, universal health care, free education, and the maintenance of peace and order across the country.”

In a press release, Senator Loren B. Legarda — who heads the Senate’s Finance committee — said that the new national budget gives social services the biggest slice of the pie at 38.7%, followed by economic services with 30.5%, general public services with 16.4%, debt payment with 9.8% and defense allocation with 4.6%.

“The two laws that I signed today are fulfillment of my campaign promise to institute genuine fiscal reform that will be felt by every Filipino,” Mr. Duterte said in his speech.

“The implementation of these laws will serve as our national, initial step towards cutting poverty rate to 14% [from 21.6% in 2015] and making the Philippines an upper middle-income country by 2022.”

Megawide, GMR to build Clark terminal

THE CONSORTIUM of listed builder Megawide Construction Corp. and Bangalore-based airport operator GMR Infrastructure Ltd. has won the contract to build a new terminal building at Clark International Airport, the Bases Conversion and Development Authority announced in a press release on Tuesday.

“The Department of Transportation and the Bases Conversion and Development Authority have awarded the engineering, procurement and construction contract for the Clark International Airport new terminal building to the Megawide-GMR Consortium,” the statement read, noting that the group had submitted “lowest calculated responsive bid” and passed post-qualification evaluation phase that checked the veracity of documents it had submitted.

BCDA said the Megawide-GMR consortium had submitted the lowest financial proposal of P9.36 billion in an auction on Dec. 14 — about 25% lower than the P12.55-billion auction ceiling — beating four other contenders, namely: Sinohydro Corporation Limited (P10.68 billion), China Harbour Engineering Company Limited (P11.73 billion), China State Construction Engineering Corporation Limited (P12.3 billion) as well as the consortium of Tokwing Construction Corp. and China Machinery Engineering Corp. (P12.45 billion).

The National Economic and Development Authority Board, headed by President Rodrigo R. Duterte, gave the green light for the BCDA’s Clark International Airport Expansion Project to proceed in a meeting on June 27.

It involves construction by 2019 of a 82,600-square-meter terminal building designed to handle eight million passengers a year, nearly double the current 4.2 million capacity.

Offered to investors in July, the project kick-started the Duterte administration’s “hybrid” mode of financing big infrastructure, involving use of state funds or foreign aid in the construction phase and public-private partnership (PPP) for the operation and maintenance segment. The new terminal building is scheduled to break ground today at the Clark Civil Aviation Complex in Pampanga, BCDA said in its statement.

Clark International Airport has long been singled out as an alternative gateway to decongest Ninoy Aquino International Airport, which accommodated over 39.5 million passengers in 2016, way above its 30.5 million designed capacity. The project also jibes with government plans to develop a 9,450-hectare area in Clark Freeport and Special Economic Zone as a major investment center.

Megawide itself is no stranger to airport terminal development, having bagged in 2014 — again in a consortium with GMR — the 25-year PPP contract to build, operate and maintain a new Mactan Cebu International Airport terminal for some P17.52 billion.

“Megawide will be building on its previous success and expertise, which it garnered from the Mactan Cebu International Airport… Aside from bagging these big-ticket items, the third-quarter earnings were above our expectations as construction revenues finally picked up,” Luis A. Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital Development Corp., said in a mobile phone message.

The nine months to September saw profit attributable to Megawide’s controlling shareholders grow 5.73% to P1.383 billion year on year, on the back of a four percent increase in revenues to P14.26 billion.

Megawide’s share price settled up 1.23% at P18.10 apiece on Tuesday after hitting a high of P18.28 (up 2.24%) and a low of P17.80 (down a nearly flat 0.45%), compared to their P17.88 finish last Monday. — Patrizia Paola C. Marcelo

Japan debt rater keeps investment-grade score of the Philippines

A JAPAN-BASED debt watcher has affirmed its credit rating for the Philippines, with the view that “aggressive” infrastructure spending plans under the Duterte administration will ensure solid growth over the medium term.

Rating and Investment (R&I) Information, Inc. kept its “BBB” rating with a “stable” outlook for the Philippines, vouching for the country’s ability to pay its debts.

A growing stream of investments — largely driven by the “Build, Build, Build” program of the Duterte administration that will see some P8.44 trillion spent on public infrastructure until 2022 — will help sustain rapid overall economic expansion, adding to buoyant household spending that has been a staple growth driver.

“The Philippines’ economy is expected to post solid growth, driven by aggressive infrastructure investment under the Rodrigo Duterte administration. Anticipated widening of the fiscal deficit and another current account deficit will unlikely be a major disturbing factor,” R&I said in a statement on Monday.

“The Duterte administration has the strongest enthusiasm for larger infrastructure investment among recent administrations and is working to improve efficiency in spending.”

The latest rating action keeps the Philippines one notch above minimum investment grade, matching those given by the three biggest international rating agencies.

Last week, Fitch Ratings upgraded the Philippines’ long-term issuer rating to “BBB” amid optimism that the tax reform program and public spending plans will keep the economy growing at above six percent annually.

R&I said a wider fiscal deficit at three percent of gross domestic product (GDP) will not cause a “significant” deterioration” in the country’s debt burden and overall fiscal discipline, as there remains much room to accommodate even bigger spending.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte yesterday signed the first package of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion, which will reduce personal income tax rates but will also raise fresh revenues via higher levies on fuel, cars, sugar-sweetened drinks, coal, cigarettes, investment products, and cosmetic procedures, to name a few.

The additional revenue streams are seen to support the P8.44-trillion infrastructure spending plan laid out until 2022, which involves the construction of 75 flagship projects designed to improve logistics and the ease of doing business here.

Robust foreign direct investments and rosy economic prospects also allay funding concerns, R&I said, and the current account deficit expected this year merely reflects increased imports rather than collapsing fiscal health for the Philippines.

“[I]t is essential to sustain the momentum of investment from inside and outside the country by improving the business environment through continued reforms,” the debt watcher added.

At the same time, R&I noted that tax reform as well as a recovery in global oil prices could push inflation upward, leaving more work for the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to keep overall price increases under control amid the upbeat growth momentum.

Philippine GDP expanded by 6.7% in 2017’s first three quarters, well within the government’s 6.5-7.5% growth goal for the entire year. This has been accompanied by inflation that averaged 3.2% from January to November, settling comfortably within the central bank’s 2-4% target range.

R&I also dismissed fears over political risks, saying that initial tensions between the Philippines and the United States — especially after Mr. Duterte declared his “separation” from the United States in a speech to businessmen in Beijing in October last year — have dissipated, as the President has shifted to a “more realistic and pragmatic stance” since then.

“R&I believes that the risk of diplomatic relations dampening the economy has diminished after being elevated following his inauguration,” the credit rater said, citing currently warm ties between US President Donald J. Trump and Mr. Duterte. — Melissa Luz T. Lopez

Meralco creates unit to set up charging stations for e-vehicles

By Victor V. Saulon, Sub-Editor

MANILA ELECTRIC Co. (Meralco) has created a new subsidiary that will be engaged in owning, maintaining and operating a network of charging stations for electric vehicles, the company told the stock exchange on Tuesday.

“We see opportunity in the development of e-vehicles moving forward. At the same time, it’s also pro-environment. So we wanted to also contribute, of course, to the reduction in [carbon] emissions,” William S. Pamintuan, Meralco’s lead lawyer, told reporters on Tuesday.

“It is common knowledge that transport is the number one emitter of carbon emission in the country right now,” he added.

In its disclosure, Meralco said the new subsidiary’s network will also serve batteries and vehicles using electric energy and other alternative energy sources. It has yet to decide a name for the entity. The move has been approved by its board of directors.

Mr. Pamintuan said the new unit will tap “new opportunities,” including stimulating demand for electricity as e-vehicles are additional consumers of electricity.

“So hopefully it will also drive increased consumption moving forward and increased demand,” he said.

Lawrence S. Fernandez, Meralco vice-president and head of utility economics, said the company was looking at putting up the charging stations within the distribution utility’s franchise area — largely Metro Manila.

“The target will first be public utility vehicles, so e-trikes, e-jeeps, e-shuttles,” he said, adding that the next opportunity would possibly be private e-vehicles.

Part of the plan is to create an e-vehicle ecosystem, he said.

“It’s a developing market… In other countries, they’ve shown that there’s already a trend to shift away from internal combustion engines to e-vehicles. We think that they also might be a market for that in the Philippines, especially e-vehicles,” he said.

Mr. Fernandez said the pilot charging station to be put up by Meralco accepts both European and Japanese standards, currently the accepted benchmark for the industry worldwide.

Meralco’s move comes as another group in the energy sector has made headway in creating an e-vehicle ecosystem.

The rival — QEV Philippines Electromobility Solutions and Consulting Group, Inc. — said in October that it was looking to install 100 fast chargers in SM malls and another 100 in Shell stations, in line with its target of putting up 200 charging stations by 2022.

QEV Philippines said it was aiming to complete the first 50 within the first half of 2018. It is also focused on building an ecosystem of electric chargers and electric vehicles, and bringing them together to develop a market.

At present, separate companies put up the charging stations and the electric vehicles, but not an ecosystem where both can thrive, she said. QEV Philippines’ parent, QEV Capital Pte. Ltd., is doing the same initiative globally.

QEV Philippines is the joint venture between Filipino businessman Enrique M. Aboitiz and his Spanish business partner Enrique Bañuelos.

On Tuesday, shares in Meralco rose 0.74% to close at P326.60 each.

Meralco’s controlling stakeholder, Beacon Electric Asset Holdings, Inc., is partly owned by PLDT, Inc.

Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has interest in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls.

Gov’t rejects all bids for T-bonds

THE GOVERNMENT once again rejected all bids for the reissued five-year Treasury bonds (T-bond) on offer at its auction yesterday as it saw weaker demand amid tight liquidity in the market.

The Bureau of the Treasury did not award its offer of five-year papers, which was met with demand worth P10.054 billion, just over half of the P20 billion it planned to borrow.

Had the government proceeded with an award, the five-year bonds, which have a remaining life of four years and one month, could have fetched an average rate of 4.681%, well above its 4% coupon rate and also higher than the 4.55% average quoted when these papers were last sold.

Still, yesterday’s average would have been lower than the 4.7099% yield on the five-year papers in the secondary market before the auction, as well as the tenor’s 4.7174% rate at the closing of the fixed-income exchange.

The four-year papers — the bonds’ closest liquid tenor — were also quoted at a higher rate of 4.8393% at noon and at the market’s close.

Yesterday’s auction — the last for this year — was the fourth consecutive time the Treasury totally rejected banks’ bids following its successful five-year retail Treasury bonds (RTB) offering last month. The government raised P255.4 billion from the RTBs, which carry a 4.625% coupon rate.

After the auction, National Treasurer Rosalia V. De Leon told reporters that the government’s rejection of bids was due to “tight liquidity” following the successful retail bond offering.

“You see the rates and again, I guess it’s tight liquidity because we’ve seen undersubscription. The banks also think [that] we are not in need of the cash after the good harvest brought by the RTB,” Ms. De Leon said, also citing the “wide pickup in the repo (repurchase) market” as one the factors.

Ms. De Leon added that demand thinned as lenders were “not in the mood” to offer as the year ends.

“[Maybe, some banks] are not in the mood anymore because we’re already closing the books and they feel [that] even if they submit a very high offer, obviously we’re in a good position to reject,” she said.

The National Treasurer said the US Federal Reserve’s interest rate hike last week also caused banks to ask for higher yields.

“Because the Fed is looking at three to four rate hikes [next year], I think the market is still looking at increasing [their rates],” she noted when asked for an outlook.

Meanwhile, traders interviewed said they expected the Treasury to reject the bids because the rates was “too high.”

A trader said: “[I] didn’t expect them to sell this bond at a higher rate since they’re already done for the year [due to the RTB].”

As for the government’s borrowing plan for next year, Ms. De Leon said this will be released before 2017 ends.

“Our commitment is we’ll issue the issuance program for the next six months… We’re building on the six tenors, and then every quarter, we’ll release the volume,” Ms. De Leon said.

The government borrows from both local and external sources to tap market liquidity in order to finance its budget deficit capped at 3% of gross domestic product, or about P482.1 billion.

For this year, the government had set a P727.64-billion borrowing plan, 80% of which or P582.11 billion was to be sourced from local lenders through Treasury bills and bonds. The P145.53-billion balance, meanwhile, was to be borrowed from external creditors. — K.A.N. Vidal

Federal Reserve’s dots have lost the plot as economists puzzle over outlook

THE FEDERAL RESERVE published a fresh set of economic forecasts last week covering the next three years. Economists have been trying to make sense of the 2018 outlook ever since.

Here’s the conundrum. Fed officials raised their forecast for growth by four tenths of a percentage point for next year, to 2.5%. That’s comfortably above the 1.8% rate they estimate the economy can sustain in the long run.

The unemployment rate falls just two tenths more under that robust forecast to average 3.9% in the fourth quarter of 2018 — well under their estimate of full employment. Inflation moves up to just under 2%.

For all that, they kept their interest-rate projections for 2018 steady at three increases, presented in a dot-plot chart, to finish the year in a range of 2% to 2.25%. Put another way, the economy will run a lot hotter than the committee forecast in September, but the rate-hike path stays the same.

“The revisions to the forecast were inconsistent with the lack of revisions to the dots,” said Torsten Slok, chief international economist at Deutsche Bank AG in New York. “The number of dots should have gone up.”

Jerome Powell, nominated by President Donald Trump to replace Fed Chair Janet Yellen when her terms ends Feb. 3, discussed various “challenges” created by the dot plot in a February 2016 speech, including the fact that they are anonymous and quickly become stale.

If confirmed by the Senate, he’ll have a chance to do something about it under any review of the central bank’s communication strategy he decides to undertake. Meanwhile, economists are tossing explanations at the 2018 forecast to see if they can get something to stick. Here’s a look at some theories and where they might fall apart.

POSITIVE SUPPLY SIDE SHOCK
The economy can grow faster without much inflation if productivity suddenly picks up. The Republican tax plan currently being hammered out in Congress does create incentives for investment.

Caveat: It can take years for new investments to percolate through to higher productivity. If Fed officials really thought the economy was on the cusp of a supply boom, they would have raised their longer-run growth estimate. They didn’t. In her press conference, Yellen said she was uncertain about the tax plan’s supply-side benefits.

INFLATION PERSISTENCE
It may be that more Fed officials view inflation as less responsive now to low rates of unemployment. This was Yellen’s answer in her press conference: “You might think, well, shouldn’t I see more?” she said, referring to rate hikes, after cautioning that the projections are a mash-up of 16 different outlooks and not a consensus forecast.

“Well, okay, growth is a little stronger. The unemployment rate runs a little bit lower, that would perhaps push in the direction of slightly tighter monetary policy,” she said. “Counterbalancing that is that inflation has run lower than we expect, and, you know, it could take a longer period of a very strong labor market in order to achieve the inflation objective.

Caveat: Fed officials did see inflation excluding food and energy rising to 1.9% at the end of next year, in effect reversing a soft spot that began in February. In other words, persistence fades at lower rates of unemployment. If officials believe it takes lower unemployment to get inflation moving, their estimate of the long-run sustainable unemployment rate should have moved lower from 4.6%. It didn’t.

POLITICS
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. economists suggest Fed officials want to avoid showing an aggressive policy response on the eve of a vote on the Republican tax bill. “We think the monetary policy projections may be lagging the economic projections, perhaps in part due to political sensitivity,” they said in a note to clients on Dec. 13.

Bloomberg Economics chief US economist Carl Riccadonna also thinks there was some political sensitivity that kept the committee from showing four hikes for next year. “The Fed is eager to avoid political meddling,” he said.

Caveat: The Fed is in a period of transition. Powell is expected to take the helm in February, at which point Trump will have three vacancies to fill on the Board of Governors in Washington, including the influential post of vice chairman.

Credibility is essential in times like this, and nobody expects Powell to squander what the Fed has built up over nearly four decades.

Nevertheless, economists said the Fed is in show-me mode now with the tax package and inflation, while ready to move to faster hikes if necessary.

“If we saw of a series of inflation prints where inflation was moving higher, even just up to their target, we would see them be more aggressive on their rates,” said Robert Martin, an executive director at UBS Securities in New York and a former Fed economist. — Bloomberg

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