Facebook Instagram Linkedin X Youtube
Home Blog Page 12365

China presses Europe for anti-US alliance on trade

BRUSSELS/BERLIN — China is putting pressure on the European Union (EU) to issue a strong joint statement against President Donald Trump’s trade policies at a summit later this month but is facing resistance, European officials said.
In meetings in Brussels, Berlin and Beijing, senior Chinese officials, including Vice-Premier Liu He and the Chinese government’s top diplomat, State Councillor Wang Yi, have proposed an alliance between the two economic powers and offered to open more of the Chinese market in a gesture of goodwill.
One proposal has been for China and the European Union to launch joint action against the United States at the World Trade Organization (WTO).
But the European Union, the world’s largest trading bloc, has rejected the idea of allying with Beijing against Washington, five EU officials and diplomats told Reuters, ahead of a Sino-European summit in Beijing on July 16-17.
Instead, the summit is expected to produce a modest communique, which affirms the commitment of both sides to the multilateral trading system and promises to set up a working group on modernizing the WTO, EU officials said.
Vice-Premier Liu He has said privately that China is ready to set out for the first time what sectors it can open to European investment at the annual summit, expected to be attended by President Xi Jinping, China’s Premier Li Keqiang and top EU officials.
Chinese state media has promoted the message that the EU is on China’s side, officials said, putting the bloc in a delicate position.
The past two summits, in 2016 and 2017, ended without a statement due to disagreements over the South China Sea and trade.
‘WE WON’T DO IT’
“China wants the European Union to stand with Beijing against Washington, to take sides,” said one European diplomat.
“We won’t do it and we have told them that.”
China’s Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Beijing’s summit aims.
In a commentary on Wednesday, China’s official Xinhua news agency said China and Europe “should resist trade protectionism hand in hand”.
“China and European countries are natural partners,” it said.
“They firmly believe that free trade is a powerful engine for global economic growth.”
Despite Mr. Trump’s tariffs on European metals exports and threats to hit the EU’s automobile industry, Brussels shares Washington’s concern about China’s closed markets and what Western governments say is Beijing’s manipulation of trade to dominate global markets.
“We agree with almost all the complaints the US has against China,” another diplomat said.
“It’s just we don’t agree with how the United States is handling it,” another diplomat said.
Still, China’s stance is striking given Washington’s deep economic and security ties with European nations. It shows the depth of Chinese concern about a trade war with Washington, as Trump is set to impose tariffs on billions of dollars worth of Chinese imports on July 6.
It also underscores China’s new boldness in trying to seize leadership amid divisions between the United States and its European, Canadian and Japanese allies over issues including free trade, climate change and foreign policy.
“Trump has split the West, and China is seeking to capitalise on that. It was never comfortable with the West being one bloc,” said a European official involved in EU-China diplomacy.
“China now feels it can try to split off the European Union in so many areas, on trade, on human rights.”
Another official described the dispute between Mr. Trump and Western allies at the Group of Seven summit last month as a gift to Beijing because it showed European leaders losing a long-time ally, at least in trade policy.
European envoys say they already sensed a greater urgency from China in 2017 to find like-minded countries willing to stand up against Trump’s “America First” policies.
A report by New York-based Rhodium Group, a research consultancy, in April showed that Chinese restrictions on foreign investment are higher in every single sector save real estate, compared to the European Union, while many of the big Chinese takeovers in the bloc would not have been possible for EU companies in China.
China has promised to open up. But EU officials expect any moves to be more symbolic than substantive.
They say China’s decision in May to lower tariffs on imported cars will make little difference because imports make up such a small part of the market. China’s plans to move rapidly to electric vehicles mean that any new benefits it offers traditional European carmakers will be fleeting.
“Whenever the train has left the station we are allowed to enter the platform,” a Beijing-based European executive said.
However, China’s offer at the upcoming summit to open up reflects Beijing’s concern that it is set to face tighter EU controls, and regulators are also blocking Chinese takeover attempts in the United States.
The European Union is seeking to pass legislation to allow greater scrutiny of foreign investments.
“We don’t know if this offer to open up is genuine yet,” a third EU diplomat said. “It’s unlikely to mark a systemic change.” — Reuters

NLEX to tap bond market in Q4

By Arra B. Francia, Reporter
TOLL ROAD operator NLEX Corp. looks to brave the bond market anew by the fourth quarter of 2018 to finance the construction of the North Luzon Expressway — South Luzon Expressway (NLEX-SLEX) Connector Road.
“Hopefully by the latter half of this year, we will go back to the public bond market and raise bigger amounts of money. This time to fund what we call a game changer, this is the NLEX Connector Road which will start construction next year,” NLEX Corp. President and Chief Executive Officer Rodrigo E. Franco said at the listing ceremony of the first tranche of its shelf-registered bonds yesterday.
The unit of Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) needs financing for P16 billion out of the NLEX-SLEX Connector Road’s total project cost of P23 billion. Of this, 30% will be funded through equity and 70% will be through a combination of bonds or bank loans.
“Around P11-12 billion (from banks or bonds). We may do it in tranches. Construction is done over time. The bonds, we have to program it,” Mr. Franco told reporters after the listing ceremony.
The remaining P7 billion of the project cost will be spent for right-of-way acquisition, which Mr. Franco said can be paid over time.
The NLEX-SLEX Connector Road is an eight-kilometer elevated highway extending the NLEX southward from Segment 10 in C3 Road Caloocan City to the Polytechnic University of the Philippines in Sta. Mesa Manila, and also connecting the common point of Skyway Stage 3.
The highway is set to reduce travel time from Clark, Pampanga to Calamba, Laguna from three hours to one hour and 40 minutes, with expected usage of at least 35,000 vehicles per day.
Meanwhile, the company on Wednesday raised P6 billion from the issuance of Series A bonds due 2025 with a coupon rate of 6.6407% per annum and Series B bonds due 2028 carrying an interest of 6.9% per year.
The funds raised from the first tranche of the P25-billion bonds under shelf registration will be used to finance the company’s R-10 Section Project, a 2.6-kilometer elevated toll road set to extend the C-3 Road exit ramp of Segment 10 to R-10 Road near the Port Area.
NLEX Corp. started construction for the R-10 project last month, and is scheduled to be completed by the fourth quarter of 2019.
The issuance is the 11th listing at the Philippine Dealing & Exchange Corp. (PDEx) for the year, bringing the total new listings for the year to P88.81 billion.
With this, the Metro Pacific group now has a total of P31.5 billion worth of listed bonds in the PDEx, comprising 3.58% of the total outstanding face amount of P881-billion corporate bonds enrolled at the fixed income exchange.

PHL franchise industry seen to grow by 15-20% this year

By Janina C. Lim, Reporter
THE LOCAL franchise industry is confident of breaching the P1-trillion revenue mark this year as it aggressively positions the Philippines as the “franchise hub of Asia.”
“In 2017, the contribution of the franchise sector is $18.1 billion or almost P1 trillion,” Philippine Franchise Association (PFA) President Richard V. Sanz said during a press briefing in Makati City on Wednesday.
“Internally, we’re looking at 15 to 20% (growth)… I’m optimistic in a 20% growth” he told reporters separately, when asked for the growth forecast for 2018.
If realized, the sector’s 2018 revenues will reach $21.72 billion or P1.15 trillion.
The growth will be driven by the $3-billion investment it expects to generate solely from the Franchise Asia Philippines 2018 Conference and Expo, touted as Asia’s biggest franchising exhibit. The week-long event, which starts on July 18, expects to draw 60,000 visitors.
However, basing projections on a conservative 10% annual growth, the PFA said revenues will hit $24 billion or roughly P1.3 trillion by 2020.
At present, there are about 2,000 local and international franchise brands in the country, with 200,000 stores and employing 1.2 million.
PFA Chairman Emeritus Samie C. Lim noted the growing foreign investments in the franchising sector, describing the Philippines as “the apple of the eye of foreign brands.”
To further position the Philippines as an international franchise development center, Mr. Sanz laid down the PFA’s agenda for the next two years, with the globalization of homegrown brands as its number one priority.
“We have noticed that a lot of Filipino brands are ripe to be in the global arena. We have more than 50 Filipino brands globally. We want this to increase so this is something we are pushing for,” Mr. Sanz said.
He added PFA is looking to concentrate the expansion within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) due to its close proximity to the Philippines.
Mr. Sanz said the group will also be supporting micro, small, and medium entrepreneurs through mentoring programs and regional trade shows.
“The small and medium agri-businesses, the farmers, can integrate their products into the value chains of the PFA members,” Mr. Sanz added.

Automotive display maker JDI bets big on digital dashboards

FULLY digital screens are replacing speedometers and dials in vehicles, making industry leader Japan Display Inc. (JDI) optimistic about boosting sales to global car makers.
While most new models usually have a center information panel for maps, entertainment and other functions, manufacturers are also increasingly replacing the dashboard facing the driver with a flat screen. Look inside the latest BMW or Mercedes-Benz, chances are Japan Display made the panel.
Replacing instrument clusters with screens is challenging, because they need to be more reliable and withstand swings in temperature, while providing critical information for the driver. That also makes them more expensive and lets display suppliers demand higher margins, making them an attractive enterprise. Japan Display, the world’s biggest supplier of panels in cars, is betting that the shift to electric vehicles will make screens the key selling point for any car as drivers pay more attention to the interior aesthetics of automobiles than what’s under the hood.
“It used to be all about the engine — how many cylinders, how much horse power, the sound of it — but with electric vehicles that’s all gone,” Holder Gerkens, who heads JDI’s automotive business, said in an interview. “How do you create attraction? You can do a lot with displays.”
Digital dashboard also offer advantages for drivers, for example changing the style and amount of information for different driving modes, making maps more prominent when needed. For now, they are mostly used in high-end cars made by Audi, Mercedes-Benz and some supercar manufacturers.
The Japanese company controlled 19% of the $6.7-billion global market for automotive displays last year, according to IHS Markit. LG Display was second with 14%.
Sluggish global smartphone sales, which make up about 80% of revenue, are behind JDI’s bid to increase automotive sales. In addition, Apple, Inc., the company’s biggest customer, is shifting to next-generation organic light-emitting diode displays, which JDI doesn’t produce in mass quantities. Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Display Co. supply most of the world’s OLED screens.
Adoption of OLEDs in cars will probably take longer. Unlike liquid-crystal displays, OLED pixels can glow on their own and do not require a backlight, which makes them thinner and more energy efficient. These are significant advantages when it comes to smartphones, but automakers are likely to be more concerned with OLED’s limited lifetime and considerably higher price, Gerkens said.
Japanese companies were the first in the world to commercialize flat-panel technology, but couldn’t keep up with South Korean and Taiwanese rivals in capital investment and price competition. JDI was created in 2012 in a merger of the troubled screen-making units of Toshiba Corp., Sony Corp., and Hitachi Ltd. JDI embraced a strategy of focusing on higher-quality, smaller-sized screens, which has helped it to gain a key foothold in the car industry.
“We are moving away from flat rectangular shaped displays,” Gerkens said. “The future will be more and more design driven.” — Bloomberg

Go signal for PT Nusantara tender offer seen by August

METRO PACIFIC Tollways Corp. (MPTC) targets to get the greenlight from Indonesian regulators for the conduct of a tender offer in favor of minority shareholders of infrastructure firm PT Nusantara Infrastructure Tbk by August.
“We are filing in Indonesia with their SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission). That will determine the actual timeline. It should be August when we get the final clearance sa Indonesia,” MPTC President and Chief Executive Officer Rodrigo E. Franco told reporters on Wednesday.
The Indonesian counterpart for the SEC is called the Financial Services Authority (FSA).
Mr. Franco said they can determine the timeline for the tender offer once it secures clearance from FSA.
MPTC on Tuesday announced that its unit PT Metro Pacific Tollways Indonesia (MPTI) acquired an additional 4.99% stake in PT Nusantara or 760 million shares. The share purchase brought PT MPTI’s total stake in PT Nusantara to 53.26%, prompting the firm to conduct a mandatory tender offer to its minority stockholders.
PT Nusantara’s minority shareholders collectively own 44.21% of the firm, with the other 2.53% held as treasury shares.
Should all shareholders participate in the tender offer, MPTC would have to pay out 1,421 billion Indonesian Rupiah (IDR) or around P5.29 billion, based on a price of 79 centavos per share.
Mr. Franco said they are currently preparing the funding plan for the offer.
“It’s not yet firm but we have bank facilities also. We’ll look at the response to the tender offer…see how the market will react,” Mr. Franco said.
The MPTC executive said PT Nusantara will likely remain a publicly listed firm even after the tender offer.
PT Nusantara has interests in tollroads, water, energy, port operations, and telecommunications. It operates a total of 34.47 kilometers in toll roads in Indonesia.
MPTC’s investment in the Indonesian firm forms part of its parent Metro Pacific Investment Corp.’s plan to expand into Southeast Asia and create a pan-ASEAN tollway network.
Prior to Indonesia, MPIC already had stakes in Don Muang Tollway Public Company Limited, a major toll road operator in Bangkok, Thailand, and in CII Bridges and Roads, a firm with road and bridges projects in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
Earlier this year, the company said it is looking to close a deal for a tollway project in Malaysia. Mr. Franco, however, declined to comment on the matter.
MPIC is one of three key Philippine units of Hong-Kong based First Pacific Co. Ltd., the others being Philex Mining Corp. and PLDT, Inc. Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls.
Shares in MPIC gained a centavo or 0.21% to close at P4.68 each at the stock exchange on Wednesday. — Arra B. Francia

Sucking up soup with a straw

THREE WORDS come to mind when you’re eating xiao long bao, the Chinese steamed soup dumplings:
1. It’s “delicious.”
2. It must have been “tricky” to make, and
3. It’s “witchcraft,” because how can you encase soup in a delicate dim sum skin?
Bai Nian Tang Bao opened late last month in BGC’s Uptown Parade (near the Valkyrie club complex). Guests were served Three Seafood Fried Noodles, and a variety of fried rice, which, while all good and filling, can be waved away for the Giant Tang Bao. Don’t forget the Shanghai-style fish fillet though, that really is quite good: immersed in a dark sauce, and crispy yet yielding.
Anyway, back to the Giant Tang Bao. Sure, there are other xiao long baos in the menu, which are to be scooped up in a Chinese soup spoon and moistened with black vinegar before being delivered whole into one’s mouth. The Giant Tang Bao, however, comes with a bit of fanfare.
It is as big as a baby’s face, and a server comes and hands you a paper straw, which you poke through the dim sum skin, and you suck the soup out of it. You’re supposed to wait a couple of minutes before starting to suck up the soup though, otherwise, it would be too hot.
This reporter’s verdict? The soup was thick, hot, and had multiple layers of flavor. Abandon the idea of the paper straw, transfer the Giant Tang Bao from the bamboo steamer onto a plate, puncture the skin with a spoon, and let the soup wet the dim sum skin. That, I think, allows for one to enjoy all its flavors.
The multiple flavors come from a long cooking process, which takes about 12 hours. The soup contains pork and crab roe — which is as much as co-owner Paul Li would let on. The crab roe is special, imported from a lake in Shanghai.
“Most of the food, if we can get it locally… for the xiao long bao, there are secret sauces, ingredients, we get those from Shanghai,” said Mr. Li.
The soup is frozen and packed into the dim sum skins, and then steamed at just the right time and temperature so the soup inside heats up, yet not so much as to damage the dim sum skin.
According to legend, xiao long bao appeared on Chinese imperial tables in the 1700s. One of the most famous xiao long bao places is Nanxiang Bun Shop in Shanghai, which moved to government hands after China’s Communist revolution in the 1940s. Bai Nian Tang Bao — bai nian meaning “100 years” according to a release — was founded in 2001, and is a member of Shanghai’s xiao long bao association.
The Philippine franchise of Taiwanese xiao long bao giant Din Tai Fung was a sensation when it first opened a few years ago. Mr. Li said that while xiao long bao has proven to be a fixture in the country, he and his business partner (both fans of the dumpling) noted that the xiao long bao outlets here come from Taiwan and Singapore.
“But xiao long bao, this food, comes from China,” he said, referring to their own version. “The taste, we feel, is different. We want to bring the original taste.” — JLG

Dell study shows changing face of video gamers


THE GAMING industry has changed considerably and so did the behavior and the profile of the typical gamer, a new study by PC giant Dell has shown.
An online survey commissioned by Dell’s gaming brand revealed that the habits and attitudes of today’s gamers have changed.
The profile of a gamer, according to the survey, is no longer described as “the stereotypical teen loner playing in his parents’ basement.”
“Gone are the days that being called a ‘gamer’ is derogatory,” the company said in the report. The survey showed that fewer than one in 10 (8-9% each) feel either “judged,” “childish” or “embarrassed” for being called a “gamer.”
The survey respondents also noted the benefits of playing video games, which reaffirmed a research conducted by the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Australia which found teens who were regular gamers scored higher than average in math, reading and science on an international exam. Survey respondents said that, because of gaming, they are more strategic thinkers (39%), have improved hand-eye coordination (37%) and increased reaction time (36%). Some even perceive that their teamwork (27%) and leadership (18%) skills have improved.
The more advanced the gamer, the more likely they are to report skill development. Half of gamers at pro level (54%) claimed that gaming has made them more strategic thinkers, while 36% of casual players and 30% of noobs said the same. Similar patterns occur for technology skills: 42% of pros said they are more tech savvy compared to 18% of casual players and only 14% of noobs.
Dell commissioned research firm Researchscape to conduct the online survey among 5,763 video game players from 11 countries (Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, New Zealand, UK and US).
To qualify for the study, respondents had to play videogames on desktops or laptops for at least an hour a week. They did not need to identify as gamers, and 7% said they did not. The survey was fielded from Dec. 9, 2017, to Jan. 30, 2018.

Daneco management aims to settle debt to suppliers in 2 years

TAGUM CITY, Davao del Norte — The group formed by the National Electrification Administration (NEA) to manage the Davao del Norte Electric Cooperative, Inc. (Daneco) has promised to settle its P2.1 billion debts to suppliers within the next two years.
NEA project supervisor for Daneco Mario Angelo M. Sotto, in a press conference here Tuesday, said the Task Force Duterte-North Davao Power has been improving operations despite the still unsettled management dispute hounding the power cooperative.
“We will continue to improve the efficiency (of the cooperative),” said Mr. Sotto.
He said Daneco was able to increase its collection efficiency in May to 98% with an income of about P422 million.
The cooperative has 197,880 household connections covering most parts of Davao del Norte and the entire Compostela Valley.
Daneco was in the middle of an administrative controversy between a group of officers that sought accreditation with the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) and another under NEA.
Both groups were asserting authority over operations, including the collection of monthly fees.
The issue was brought before the courts and in 2014, the Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the NEA group. The CA issued a final ruling last year, but the CDA-accredited group declined to honor it, bringing the matter to President Rodrigo R. Duterte.
NEA then created the task force.
NEA Administrator Edgardo B. Masongsong said the collection problem has nearly been resolved with “only about 5%” of its consumers still paying the CDA group.
Mr. Masongsong noted local government units, through the mayors and Governors Anthony G. del Rosario of Davao del Norte and Jayvee Tyron L. Uy of Compostela Valley, have been supporting the NEA group.
With the collection efficiency improved, Mr. Masongsong said Daneco is now working at reducing systems loss, which has gone down to 20% from 23% about two years ago.
“I believe the problem of systems loss will go down to the cap (of 13%),” said Mr. Masongsong.
Based on Daneco’s assessment, every 1% systems loss is equivalent to about P4 million in lost revenue.
“We…only want that the people are served. The only way to do it is to have just one entity,” said Energy Assistant Secretary Redentor E. Delola.
Mr. Delola added the Department of Energy is still finalizing its evaluation of the Daneco situation and is planning to talk with the CDA-accredited group. — Carmelito Q. Francisco

These red wines are perfect for chilling

By Elin McCoy, Bloomberg
LAST WEEKEND the temperature on my back deck was 95°F (35°C), steaks were on the grill, and I craved a thirst-quenching drink that wasn’t that summer cliché, rosé. With charred meat, beer is not the answer, nor is a frozen margarita or tart white. Sticky summer weather is what the world’s light reds, best served chilled (sometimes even ice cold), are made for.
The French call them vins de soif (wines for thirst) or glou-glou (glug-glug, in English). They’re wines so gulpable that one bottle will probably not be enough of their fresh, vivid fruit flavors. To judge by wine bar offerings and by-the-glass lists, these lively easy drinkers have soared in popularity.
Unpretentious and relatively inexpensive, they’ve become a summer essential, the wine version of designer flip-flops. They’re produced just about everywhere — even California, where big, sun-kissed, concentrated reds are the norm. Some winemakers are deliberately creating wines for chilling. New California superstar-to-be Laura Brennan Bissell, who makes wine under the Inconnu brand, for example, describes her Lalalu cabernet franc as a California vin de soif.
Increasingly these wines, like Santa Julia Malbec-Bonarda from Argentina, even include the directions “bebase frio” (drink chilled) on the label, so you know you won’t look like an ignorant klutz if you plop in an ice cube.
Not just any red qualifies for chilling. Let big-deal cabernets hibernate until fall. Low temperatures highlight their tannins and higher alcohol and make the wines taste metallic, while oaky ones seem dry and astringent. What you want are light, fruity examples with low alcohol, soft tannins, and high acidity. Time in the fridge dials up the acidity, so the wines taste juicier and even more refreshing.
What to look for? The gateway chillable reds are Beaujolais, made from the gamay grape, but there are plenty of other, less well-known varieties, such as frappato, grignolino, cinsault, schiava, trollinger, pelaverga, mencia, dolcetto, zweigelt, grenache, pineau d’aunis, bonarda, and lambrusco. Many of these are from cooler regions such as Northern Italy and the Loire Valley. And some of the wines made from them are produced by carbonic maceration, in which whole bunches of grapes are fermented in a sealed vat with carbon dioxide. That gives them a particularly lively character that chilling points up.
Don’t assume red wine over ice has to be served on its own in a glass. Recently, on a trip to California, I asked Massimo di Costanzo, who makes stunning, powerful cabernets, how he got into wine. He waxed poetic about peeling and slicing peaches to go in the pitchers of cold red wine his grandparents drank in Positano in summer. That’s a common hot-weather beverage in rural Italy.
In Spain, just about everyone has a personal recipe for sangria, the summer deck drink that first came to popularity in America with the 1964 World’s Fair. Sales of bottled red versions have been reviving over the past several years as premium versions have made their debuts. For example, Begonia Sangria Tinta (1 liter, $10), a 6% alcohol mix of monastrell and bobal grapes blended with sugar cane, spices, herbs, Azahar flowers, and the essence of Valencia oranges. It’s the only nonpasteurized sangria in the US, made completely with Spanish ingredients. Serve ice cold.
How to chill red wine? Put the bottle in the fridge for 45 minutes to an hour before serving, or plunge into an ice bucket filled with a mix of ice and water for 15 minutes. If desperate, just throw in a few ice cubes and swirl — but take them out before they start diluting the wine.
EIGHT REDS BUILT TO CHILL
• 2016 Santa Julia Tintillo Malbec-Bonarda Argentina ($13) This blend of equal parts bonarda and malbec from Argentina’s Uco Valley is made by carbonic maceration and loaded with juicy, spicy red fruit flavors and snappy acidity.
• 2016 Pierre-Marie Chermette Beaujolais ($14) Basic Beaujolais such as this one, from a superb producer, is the definition of thirst-quenching. Made partially with carbonic maceration, it’s lip-smacking and brims with lush, bright fruit.
• Cleto Chiarli Vecchia Modena Premium Lambrusco di Sorbara ($16) Once thought of as sweet fizzy plonk, lambrusco, made from the grape of the same name, can also be dry and crisp — and delicious when ice cold. This one is lightly sparkling, with tastes of crushed strawberry and a hint of spice, and has only 11.5% alcohol.
• 2017 Marcel Lapierre Raisins Gaulois Vin de France ($16) This cheerful gamay is the entry-level bottling from one of Beaujolais’s most famous natural winemakers. Lively and spicy-fruity, it’s a toss-back wine with sophistication. In France it’s available as a bag-in-box wine.
• 2016 Tendu Red Wine ($20) Steve Matthiasson’s crowd-pleasing, wallet-friendly California blend of three Italian red varieties is sold in one-liter bottles with a crown cap, like beer. It’s tart and fresh, with cherryish flavors.
• 2016 Valle dell’ Acate Il Frappato Vittoria ($20) Frappato is a native Sicilian variety, and this tangy, vibrant example from a well-known producer is aged in stainless steel tanks to retain the grape’s savory juiciness and rose petal and berry aromas.
• 2015 Heitz Cellars Grignolino ($22) Known for long-lived cabernets, Napa’s historic Heitz Cellars has been making zippy, strawberry-scented pale reds from grignolino since the winery’s founding in 1961. The grape is native to Italy’s Piemonte. This vintage brims with bright cranberry-cherry-orange peel flavors.
• 2017 Broc Cellars Valdiguié ($26) The winery cellar of this new wave California producer, which buys grapes, is a warehouse in Berkeley. People used to refer to valdiguié as Napa gamay, but it’s really an obscure variety from southwest France. Its raspberry-strawberry flavors will remind you of Beaujolais.

Honor 10: Budget-friendly flagship

By Zsarlene B. Chua, Reporter
In recent years, the battleground in the fiercely competitive smartphone market has shifted from top-tier phones with top-tier pricing to mid-range pricing with top-tier specs and for the Chinese Honor brand (a sub-brand of Huawei) this is a battleground they want to dominate in, especially with the introduction of Honor 10.
There’s a lot to love about this phone, starting from its design which has the almost bezel-less display and iridescent color, the variant BusinessWorld was sent to review is called Phantom Blue and bears striking resemblance to Huawei’s Klein Blue, a Royal Blue with a “Twilight” effect for a bit more shine.
At first glance, the design for the Honor 10 is very similar to the mother brand’s P20 line. This writer has a P20 Lite and aside from the repositioning of things — the rear camera in Honor is horizontal while P20 Lite is vertical — and the position of the fingerprint scanner (Honor’s is in front while P20 Lite is at the back), it was entirely possible for the two to be mistaken for the other.
And that’s not necessarily a bad thing as the 128 GB/4 GB RAM variant of the Honor 10 is priced at P23,990 while the P20 with 128 GB/4 GB RAM is priced at P34,990. So if one wants to have the P20 but cannot afford the price, Honor 10 is more than just a good alternative as inside, the Honor 10 contains the same Kirin 970 chipset that powers the P20.
But how does it perform? Pretty admirably but it’s not without a few concerns. Focusing on all the good things it has to offer, the almost bezel-less screen display is crisp and with 5.84 inches the full HD display provides amazing visuals.
The device feels premium and while Honor went for a minimalist design — the volume rocker and power button is on the right while the SIM tray is on the left and the fingerprint scanner sitting unobtrusively at the bottom of the screen display with a hazy outline to show where it is — it didn’t skimp on the metal trim running on the side of the device or the aforementioned iridescent glass panel at the back.
It is a beautiful phone though the back does attract more than attract fingerprints so one has to repeatedly wipe it off. It feels good on the hand though this writer has found that it’s a bit slippery so one can benefit from using the jelly case provided in the box for better handling.
With 4 GB RAM and 128 GB ROM, there’s a lot of room to play with and multi-task. It runs Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) mobile on high without a hitch though playing Asphalt 8: Airborne tends to heat up the device a bit. The device doesn’t have a microSD slot, which is a bit disappointing but with 128 GB of storage, the sting hurts less.
The speakers are located at the bottom of the device where it accompanies the USB Type-C charging port and the 3.5-mm earphone jack. The speakers are nice and loud and clear, so that’s a definite plus for this writer.
Honor 10 has also incorporated a face recognition technology which was fairly reliable, though it does take a lot of getting used to the fact that one has to raise the phone to eye level to unlock the phone every time. Most of the time, recognition is snappy though there are times — when there’s low light — when it requires several tries. It also does not recognize one’s face if one is wearing a pair of sunglasses.

The author’s selfie using Honor 10 — Photo: Zsarlene B. Chua

The face recognition technology made the fingerprint scanner on the bottom of the display a bit unnecessary though it is more reliable than face recognition. Personal preference-wise, this writer likes having the fingerprint scanner at the back of the device like the P20 line instead of below the display.
The rear camera sports a dual 24 MP (f/1.8) monochrome camera and a 16 MP (f/1.8) full color camera while the front has a single 24 MP shooter. While the Honor 10, likely due to its lower price point, doesn’t carry the Leica-branded cameras, the shooters on this device are no slackers: it does perform admirably in low light situations though several brightly-lit areas can be overexposed and it shoots daytime scenes beautifully though it tends to be on the warmer side of the spectrum.
Low-light shot using Honor 10 — Photo: Zsarlene B. Chua

Low-light shot using Honor 10 — Photo: Zsarlene B. Chua

Honor 10 runs on EMUI 8.1 which is based on Android 8.1 Oreo. It doesn’t have an app drawer though there’s an option to put one in (and the notch can be hidden as well), so it’s a matter of preference. Out of the box, the device comes with a bit of bloatware including several games such as the aforementioned Asphalt and a few others. This writer found that it’s the same for the P20 Lite, several games are pre-installed. Is it a deal-breaker? No, but it can be a bit annoying.
That aside, the phone has a 3,400 mAH non-removable battery which affords a user a decent a day and a half of moderate usage though it does come with a supercharge technology that charge from 0% to 100% in a little over two hours.
In all, this is a pretty solid device — there’s a lot to love and a few quirks that usually is about personal preference. It’s a half-step down from the P20 but it certainly is no slouch in any department.
Huawei Honor 10 4GB/128 variant is available at Lazada for P23,990.
Here’s a glance at its specs sheet:
OS: Android 8.1 (Oreo)
CPU: Octa-core (4×2.4 GHz Cortex-A73 & 4×1.8 GHz Cortex-A53)
Internal Storage: 64/128 GB, 4/6 GB RAM
Primary Camera: Dual 16 MP (f/1.8) + 24 MP B/W (f/1.8), phase detection autofocus, LED flash,check quality
Secondary Camera: 24 MP, f/2.0, 1080p
Color: Phantom Blue, Phantom Green, Midnight Black, Glacier Grey

Tugade: No decision yet on Dalian trains for MRT

THE Department of Transportation (DoTr) on Wednesday said the independent audit of the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) has been completed, but no decision has been made regarding the new train cars from China.
Transportation Secretary Arthur P. Tugade said he will discuss the results of the audit and assessment of the MRT-3 and the new train cars with supplier Dalian Locomotive and Rolling Stock Co.
Conducted by TUV Rheinland, the audit involved a review of the terms of reference (TOR) of the previous administration’s purchase of 48 train cars for the MRT-3 from Dalian.
“Is the evaluation showing that the submission is complete and in accordance to the TOR? Answer is no. Is the non-compliance substantive and prejudicial to safety and comfort of passengers? That we will find out during the discussion with Dalian,” Mr. Tugade was quoted as saying in a statement.
Mr. Tugade said he was scheduled to meet with Dalian officials on the same day to discuss the ways the government and the company may arrive at a “win-win situation.”
Transportation Undersecretary for Railways Timothy John R. Batan earlier told reporters the agency has received the report in late May.
“As you know, multi-faceted yung issue. Merong signaling, merong weight, merong depot equipment. So we just really want to understand it fully. And then we will explain it to the public,” he earlier said.
The Dalian trains procured during the previous administration were earlier found to be overweight, hence the need for a third-party auditor to assess if it may be used in the MRT-3. The audit began in January.
Mr. Tugade also said the DoTr is looking to seal the maintenance deal with Sumitomo Corp. and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (Sumitomo-MHI) for MRT-3.
“My understanding is that the signing between government of the Philippines and Sumitomo will be sometime this month…. There might be some modification there,” he said. — Denise A. Valdez

French discover new pleasure… adult comics about wine

PARIS — It is no secret that the French love wine. But they are also the world’s second biggest consumers of graphic novels after the Japanese.
Now a new wave of literature is putting the two passions together — comics for adults about wine.
The genre that was completely unheard of little more than a decade ago has jostled itself on to the bookshelves, with a festival dedicated to it booming among the vineyards near Bordeaux.
BD & Vin — meaning graphic novels and wine — is the brainchild of winemaker Romain Sou, whose Chateau Lacouture domaine is just across the Gironde estuary from the fabled Chateau Margaux.
“I love graphic novels and I love wine and so do most of my friends.”
“But 10 years ago when we started, it wasn’t at all obvious that there would be a thirst for BDs (graphic novels) about wine,” he said.
Ironically, it was the phenomenal success of the Japanese manga series Drops of God which turned the French onto the potential of comics about wine.
The story of a Japanese beer company employee, who must correctly identify 13 wines from his father’s collection to inherit his wealth, made several obscure French winemakers stars overnight in Asia.
It also sparked runs on some wines featured in the series, including the Bordeaux Chateau Mont-Perat, with one Taiwanese importer selling 50 cases in two days.
Decanter magazine declared the manga “arguably the most influential wine publication for the past 20 years,” and its authors, sister and brother Yuko and Shin Kibayashi, taste setters.
RISE OF NATURAL WINE
Another dynastic soap opera, this time thick with sex and intrigue, has since made the French adult comic book series Chateaux Bordeaux a best seller.
But a line of more down-to-earth graphic novels has struck a still deeper chord in France.
Les Ignorants, A Great Forgotten Burgundy, and Mimi, Fifi & Glouglou — which has already been translated into English — have caught the mood of a country which is looking much harder at what it drinks.
All deal, in one way or another, with organic and natural wines, whose rapid rise in popularity in recent years often sparks heated debate around French dinner tables.
Etienne Davodeau’s account of his year with the natural winemaker Richard Leroy in his Loire Valley vineyard in Les Ignorants (The Ignoramuses) is already regarded as a classic.
Leroy is one of a growing band of organic winemakers who have turned their backs on a homogenized way of winemaking to follow biodynamic principles, using little or no sulphur.
Mimi, Fifi & Glouglou is a hilarious insider take on a wine-obsessed, mostly urban crowd.
The three trendy Parisian friends “drink wine, think wine, talk wine and dream wine,” said their creator Michel Tolmer, who gently sends up their nerdy rivalry and “wine-upmanship” as they blind taste.
Indeed, the flavor, character and aroma of natural wines can vary hugely between years as winemakers try to find the pure expression of the ground and climatic conditions in which the grapes were grown — what the French call “terroir.”
This almost mystical concept is of course sacred to Mimi, Fifi and Glouglou — French for “glug, glug” — who are ever ready to put the finer points of a wine’s minerality to the test, through several bottles if necessary.
‘YOU ARE DRINKING A STORY’
Organic winemaker Emmanuel Guillot also sets out in search of the ultimate oenological high in his warm-hearted hit series, A Great Forgotten Burgundy (Un Grand Bourgogne Oublie), which is as much about educating as entertaining its readers.
His Guillot-Broux family estate pioneered organic winemaking in Burgundy in the 1950s, growing almost all their grapes on soil that has never been touched by herbicides or pesticides.
For Guillot — whose characters are often modelled on his friends, family, and fellow winemakers — the success of the genre is all about wine-lovers’ thirst for a deeper relationship with what they are drinking.
“When you drink a bottle of wine you travel. It is not just alcohol, you are drinking the story,” he told AFP.
“There are the people and the culture and the struggles behind it — and most of all, how the earth it comes from has been looked after.”
Guillot’s latest story is partly inspired by his friend and namesake Emmanuel Giboulot, who was threatened with prison for refusing to spray his organic grapes with insecticide in a celebrated case in 2014 which helped change the way Burgundy winemakers now deal with disease outbreaks.
“With graphic novels you get right inside the lives of the characters and you see the joys and the crises that have gone into a bottle of wine. It’s all about emotion,” he said.
Good wine, Guillot argues “is a bit like theater. Why go to the theater when you have television? Because when it is good it is so much better, and when you have experienced that you will go back again and again…” — AFP

1...12,36412,36512,366...14,272Page 12,365 of 14,272
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
© 2024 BusinessWorld Publishing.
All rights reserved.
Read our privacy guidelines
Facebook Instagram Linkedin X Youtube