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MMFF could consider dropping final entries if film quality is poor — Joy Belmonte

ONE OF the new members of the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) Executive committee (Execom) suggests the possibility of a film festival entry being dropped from the lineup if its quality if not up to par.

“I think we should not be closed to the idea that those film scripts already selected can still be excluded should the final product be below an established set of standards,” said newly appointed Execom member Ma. Josefina “Joy” Belmonte-Alimurung in an online interview with BusinessWorld.

The Quezon City Vice-Mayor and head of the Quezon City Film Development Council is one of three replacements for the four members who recently resigned from the Execom due to disagreements with how the festival is being run, most notably with the decision to choose four of the eight official festival entries via their scripts rather than as finished films.

Joining Ms. Belmonte-Alimurung on the committee are film director Maryo J. delos Reyes, and actor and AVP for Community Relations and Services of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. Arnel Ignacio.

The announcement was made on July 11 by the MMFF.

“I have the highest regard for the resigned Execom members and understand completely the reasons behind their resignation, all of which I took into consideration before accepting the appointment,” Ms. Belmonte-Alimurung told BusinessWorld on July 12.

She added she accepted the post “because I feel that the MMFF is still relevant to the majority of Filipinos given the timing on which it takes place and the traditions that surround it.”

“I don’t think the MMFF ever had any pretenses of being just an indie filmfest to begin with unlike, say, QCinema, so no conflict there,” she noted.

RESIGNATIONS
On June 30, scriptwriter Ricky Lee, academician Rolando Tolentino, and broadcast journalist Kara Magsanoc-Alikpala all announced their resignations from the Execom, partly in protest of the way the first four entries to the film festival were selected. This was followed by the resignation of Ed Lejano, the executive director of the Quezon City Film Development Council, on July 8.

“From early on, I was hopeful that the significant gains of the 2016 MMFF be maintained for this year. Succeeding developments with the various committees thus far, have proven otherwise. The ensuing issues resulting from the current compromise selection process make it untenable for me to remain in the committee,” Mr. Lejano said in a statement furnished to Interaksyon.com.

“I firmly believe that for MMFF to truly benefit all its industry stakeholders, the finished film submission is one basic requirement that is fair and viable for all, not to mention above board,” he added.

The four entries — chosen from submitted scripts — saw the return of the regular big ticket names: comedian/host Jose Marie “Vice Ganda” Viceral, Rodel Pacheco Nacianceno (better known as Coco Martin), and Marvic Valentin “Vic” Sotto.

This year’s MMFF vision was to combine “quality and box-office potential” according to Thomas Orbos, general manager of the MMDA, as quoted by MMFF spokesperson Noel Ferrer in an online interview with BusinessWorld in March.

Among the films that didn’t clinch a spot in the first round were Erik Matti’s Buy Bust; Raya Martin’s Smaller and Smaller Circles, an adaptation of F.H. Batacan’s Palanca-winning English novel; and Loy Arcenas’ Ang Larawan, a musical adaptation of National Artist Nick Joaquin’s The Portrait of the Artist as Filipino.

CHALLENGE TO COMMERCIAL OUTFITS
While some people see the return of festival staples as a sign that the MMFF is only considering the star power of the leads instead of the quality of the films, Ms. Belmonte said: “if anything, last year’s festival put some pressure on our commercial film producers to up the ante and set the bar higher in terms of artistic excellence even while they are headlined by big stars and have the advantage of bigger budgets.”

The challenge now, she explained is for the festival not to alienate new audiences developed by last year’s festival.

“Thus in short, fairness is important. This means that artistically excellent films should not be pulled out of cinemas prematurely just because they do not pull in SRO crowds but be accorded the same treatment as the more commercially viable ones,” she said.

She also noted that the festival should “be more transparent with regards to the funds earned by this festival.”

“I am assuming that the bias towards commercial films has some philanthropic objective other than to enrich producers, so I’d like to have very definite mechanics in place to ensure this and to make this info open,” she explained.

The MMFF will run from Dec. 25 to Jan. 7. — Zsarlene B. Chua

Shakey’s eyes bigger slice of Middle East with UAE deal

SHAKEY’S Pizza Asia Ventures, Inc. (SPAVI) is hoping to grab a slice of the United Arab Emirates market, as it signed a deal with Dubai-based Aljeel Capital LLC. to open at least 10 stores in the next five years.

In a statement on Thursday, SPAVI said its subsidiary Shakey’s Pizza Regional Foods Limited signed the area development agreement with Aljeel Capital, its second international franchise.

The listed firm holds the perpetual rights to the Shakey’s brand for the Middle East, Asia (except for Japan and Malaysia), China, Australia, and Oceania.

The first store in UAE is scheduled for opening in the first half in 2018, and will be located in Dubai.

In December, SPAVI signed an agreement with a franchisee in Kuwait to put up at least 10 stores in the Middle Eastern country. The company said it is on track to open its first store in Kuwait by the third quarter of this year.

“Dubai, UAE, and the rest of the Middle East are great markets for us. Not only are there strong and welcoming Filipino communities which love the Shakey’s brand and are excited about experiencing it away from home, but there are also tremendous growth opportunities within the mainstream markets there,” SPAVI President and Chief Executive Officer Vicente L. Gregorio was quoted as saying in a statement.

For his part, Aljee Capital Chief Executive Officer Firas Hurieh cited the opportunities in the region.

“We are excited about this partnership and more thrilled to bring a solid brand such as Shakey’s to the UAE as there is a huge opportunity to target a wide customer base and grow the brand in the next few years,” Mr. Hurieh was quoted as saying.

The first Shakey’s store in the Philippines opened in 1975, and has since expanded to 189 stores as of the end of March 2017.

Earnings of SPAVI gained 25.67% year on year in the first quarter of 2017, to P172.83 million compared to the P137.53 million it delivered during the same period a year ago.

Shares in SPAVI fell by 52 centavos or 3.84% to close at P13.02 apiece on Thursday. — Arra B. Francia

Higher prices, weak peso boost Nickel Asia

NICKEL ASIA Corp. on Thursday said the estimated value of shipments jumped 41% in the first six months of 2017, amid an improvement in nickel ore prices and a weaker peso.

The country’s top nickel miner told the stock exchange the value of nickel ore shipments stood at P7.16 billion in the first half, higher than the P5.08 billion during the same period last year.

“The increase is mainly due to higher prices for its nickel ore sales combined with higher shipment volumes and a weaker peso exchange rate,” the firm said.

Nickel Asia sold a total 8.92 million wet metric tons (WMT) of nickel ore from its four operating mines during the January to June period, versus 8.54 million WMT logged a year ago.

“The estimated realized nickel price on 4.68 million WMT of ore sales to Japanese and Chinese customers in the first six months of the year averaged $25.88 per WMT compared to an average of $18.24 per WMT on 5.14 million WMT of ore sales realized during the same period last year,” the miner said.

To recall, nickel prices in the first half of 2016 were significantly lower due to a slump in demand amid an economic slowdown in China.

“We are delighted with our first-half shipment results, despite the challenges we continue to face. By focusing our efforts on the shipment of higher-value saprolite ore, the company benefited from higher ore prices, particularly in the first quarter,” Gerard H. Brimo, Nickel Asia president and CEO, was quoted as saying.

Nickel Asia shares dropped 2.97% to P6.20 a piece on Thursday. — J.C. Lim

Bieber’s Singapore show organizer seeks China expansion

AFTER staging concerts in Singapore for the past two decades, the city-state’s best-performing initial public offering this year is taking its entertainment on the road.

Unusual Ltd., which will run Justin Bieber’s concert in Singapore later this year, wants to double the number of shows it organizes by next year, Chief Executive Officer Leslie Ong said in an interview on Tuesday. New markets it’s expanding into include China’s second-tier cities and capitals across Southeast Asia.

“These cities have great potential because of their population, and because there aren’t many concerts there,” Ong said, referring to smaller Chinese cities such as Wuxi and Wuhan. “The crowd is hungry for such events.”

While China offers opportunities, a challenge the company may face is in securing venues, which are largely operated by private entities, according to Jarick Seet, head of small and mid-cap research at RHB Research Institute Singapore Pte.

Unusual’s Ong said he’s in talks with a venue operator that owns multiple exhibition halls across China. The company, which has brought Mariah Carey and the Foo Fighters to Asia, is considering acquisitions to complement its business, such as ticketing platforms. Ong is also interested in buying rights to children shows and sporting events.

Unusual’s ambitions in China come at a time when Chinese appetite for leisure and recreational options is increasing. The country’s domestic media and entertainment industry has grown by more than 70% in the last five years to $204 billion, according to PWC. Chinese consumers are also going overseas for fun, spending less on shopping and more on unique experiences they can’t get at home.

The company’s share price has surged 158% since its April listing. The stock is trading at a price-to-earnings multiple of 50-60, Seet said, which is expensive even if the company doubles the number of shows in a year. Singapore’s benchmark Straits Times Index trades at 13 times earnings.

Unusual’s CEO says the valuation will be justified when he adds more shows and executes his expansion plan. — Bloomberg

eSports league announces franchises for Overwatch tilt

SAN FRANCISCO — A league being formed for local-based eSports — competitive video gaming as a spectator event — has awarded seven franchises aimed at fueling the fires of fans with city-based teams.

Computer game giant Activision Blizzard announced Wednesday team rights in the Overwatch league, with buyers including the NFL’s New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and baseball’s New York Mets chief operating officer Jeff Wilpon.

Teams have been bought in Boston, New York, Los Angeles, Miami, San Francisco, Shanghai, and Seoul for what is being touted as the first eSports league with teams rooted in cities.

Although millions of people watch eSports online and at global tournaments, backers of Overwatch say this approach is likely to draw in new audiences which can develop loyalty to their local players and attend community competitions.

Establishing local teams to compete in an Activision league devoted to its hit video game Overwatch could lead to some of the same treatment as traditional sports, with local matches held in real-world venues and trash-talk by fans wearing garb emblazoned with team logos.

“I think anchoring eSports teams in a community will change the way people think about the spectator experience,” Activision chief executive Bobby Kotick told AFP.

“The thing we really like about traditional leagues is local fans.”

Activision did not disclose the price of the franchises, but a source close to the matter confirmed reports that each cost about $20 million.

Kevin Chou, cofounder of mobile game company Kabam, bought the rights to a Seoul team, predicting that the league was going to take eSports “to the next level” in terms of market size and fan engagement.

Chou said he is partnering with a stadium in Seoul that can pack about 10,000 people and that he intends to fill the venue for Overwatch matches.

LOCAL HEROES
This league will be focused on competitive play of Activision’s team-based shooter game Overwatch, and a goal of building professional stars — possibly with big-league payouts.

The league is to get started later this year, with initial matches taking place in Southern California. Teams will share revenue generated by the latest entry in the booming trend of computer game play as spectator sport, according to Kotick.

New team owners will be recruiting players and getting rosters formed in coming months.

Kotick envisioned Overwatch players becoming local heroes and role models, similar to stars of real world sports.

“I think this is the next evolution of sports, and we want to be part of it,” Wilpon of the Mets baseball team told AFP.

“When you start seeing people wearing team hats and T-shirts around town, that will be very exciting.”

Advertisers aiming to reach real-world baseball fans have been expressing interest in ways to connect with online viewers, according to Wilpon.

“I see out advertisers looking for something different than we are giving them in the ballpark,” Wilpon said.

“And, there are advertisers in eSports wanting to go mainstream to local networks, so there are some cross-pieces we see that are very exciting.”

It is certainly a money-spinning industry, with global revenue in the hundreds of millions of dollars and growing, according to industry trackers.

Data shows that eSports fans watch and compete in growing numbers, bringing passion akin to that seen in traditional sports which have started to see audiences skew older, according to Kotick.

“We realized there is a great economic opportunity in eSports that would be enhanced with entrepreneurs as team owners,” Kotick said.

Overwatch boasts 30 million players around the world. Meanwhile, hundreds of millions of people watch eSports.

A strong focus of the Overwatch League is to provide competitive gamers with the kind of status typically given to professional athletes in traditional sports.

Teams in the league will share in revenue from sources such as licensing, broadcast rights, and ticket sales, according to Activision.

Overwatch was designed for eSports experiences, building in features such as international settings and characters representing a wide range of demographics, according the chief executive. — AFP

Maynilad allots P378M for sanitation program

MAYNILAD Water Services, Inc. is setting aside P378 million for its five-year sanitation program ending in 2022 as part of its mandate to help in protecting community health and the environment.

In a statement, the company said P318 million of the amount is allocated for the acquisition of 56 new vacuum truck units, which will expand its septic tank cleaning services to more customers.

“We appeal to our customers to have their septic tanks desludged because not doing so will result in serious environmental, health, and safety risks to their family and community,” Maynilad President and CEO Ramoncito S. Fernandez said.

Maynilad said the budget for the trucks include smaller vacuum truck units with a capacity of 4 cubic meters. The units can enter narrow alleys “so that formerly inaccessible houses may be reached and provided desludging services,” it said.

The company said the remaining amount will be used to buy more septage treatment equipment, which will allow for the projected increase in septage collected from septic tanks in the coming years.

It said the sanitation program is part of the company’s P30.6-billion wastewater management program for the next five years.

“Maynilad customers interested in availing of the company’s septic tank cleaning service may call the Maynilad Hot line 1626 to determine the requirements and procedures,” the company said.

Maynilad serves most of Manila, parts of Quezon and Makati cities, as well as the cities of Caloocan, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Valenzuela, Navotas and Malabon. Its franchise area includes the cities of Bacoor and Imus and the municipalities of Kawit, Noveleta and Rosario in Cavite.

Metro Pacific Investments Corp., which has a 52.8% stake in Maynilad, is one of three 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. — Victor V. Saulon

Streaming TV apps grapple with password sharing

MORE THAN ONE-FIFTH of young adults who stream shows like Game of Thrones or Stranger Things borrow passwords from people who do not live with them, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll, a finding that suggests media companies are missing out on significant revenue as digital viewership explodes.

Twenty-one percent of streaming viewers ages 18 to 24 said they had accessed at least one digital video service such as Netflix, Inc, HBO Now, or Hulu by using log-in credentials from someone outside their household at some time. Overall, 12% of adults said they did the same thing.

Subscription revenue is likely to come under scrutiny starting next week when TV industry players begin reporting quarterly earnings. Netflix, the dominant streaming service, releases its results on Monday.

Up to now, Netflix and other streaming networks have accepted some password-sharing, but they may face pressure from investors to change course if new sign-ups slow substantially, Wall Street analysts said. Revenue growth at Netflix is projected to drop from 31% in this year’s second quarter to 19% in the second quarter of next year, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

“If Netflix goes from a 30% revenue growth story to a 10% story, there is absolutely going to be more focus on their leaving money on the table,” said Justin Patterson, an analyst with Raymond James.

Netflix declined to comment.

Respondents to the Reuters/Ipsos survey said they borrow passwords to save money on video subscriptions, which can be cheap on their own but add up with multiple services.

Donielle Bradshaw, a live-in nanny in Smyrna, Georgia, said she uses her 28-year-old sister’s password for Hulu, and her 32-year-old brother’s password for Netflix.

“I feel like since we are family, it’s OK,” said Bradshaw, 22, who estimates she watches four hours of shows on weeknights and 10 hours a day on weekends.

If companies cracked down on password sharing, Bradshaw said she would be willing to pay for her own Netflix subscription but is not sure about Hulu, which is owned by several media companies. “I binge a lot of shows on Netflix. I don’t think I could do without it,” she said.

Companies say they accept some sharing as a way to promote their programming to potential customers, but they also take steps to curtail blatant freeloading.

Many networks limit the number of people who can watch programming at the same time. Netflix, for example, allows two to four simultaneous streams per subscription, depending on the plan, and charges more for the higher number of streams.

HBO, a unit of Time Warner, Inc, actually encourages younger viewers to use its HBO Now and HBO Go services for free by offering it to about 100 US colleges and universities.

“For us it’s more important that at that age where they are not financially independent quite yet, they are habituating to using the product to ultimately aspiring to becoming paid customers,” Bernadette Aulestia, executive vice-president of global distribution, said in an interview.

Netflix executives also have said they know some viewers share passwords.

“We could crack down on it, but you wouldn’t suddenly turn all those folks to paid users,” Netflix Chief Financial Officer David Wells said at a Goldman Sachs conference last September.

MISSING A CHANCE
Industry analysts say companies are missing a chance to grow revenue. An analysis by Parks Associates estimated streaming providers will lose $550 million in 2019 from password sharing.

“There has been this kind of cavalier attitude about it,” Parks Associates analyst Glenn Hower said. “It hasn’t been a priority.”

Companies could crack down if they want. Cisco Systems, Inc., for example, sells products that can detect abnormal activity on an account such as an unusual time or place, said Conrad Clemson, Cisco’s senior vice-president and general manager of service provider platforms and applications.

Cisco’s customers, which include streaming services and pay TV distributors, decide whether to use the information simply for monitoring or take additional steps such as sending a warning to account holders or shutting down an account, he said.

“A lot of service providers and content providers are very much in the experimental phase right now,” he said.

Streaming providers say they do track account use but have provided few specifics.

The Reuters/Ipsos poll was conducted online in English throughout the United States from June 8 to June 26. It gathered responses from 4,453 adults, including 3,557 people who said they streamed video from their cable TV provider or from standalone services like Amazon Prime, Hulu or Netflix. The poll has a credibility interval, a measure of accuracy, of 2 percentage points. — Reuters

Wacom targets 30% sales growth in PHL

TECHNOLOGY firm Wacom is looking to grow its business in the Philippines by at least 30% this year as it expects increased demand for its products citing the country’s position as a new art talent hub.

“There is an increasing demand for Filipino artists which means more demand [for our products]… the Philippines last year was the top source of artists in the ASEAN for major studios,” Antonius Malabanan, Wacom country manager for the Philippines, said during the launch 10 new products. “We’re targeting 30% growth in sales this year.”

The 35-year-old Japanese firm, which offers intuitive and natural user interface technologies used in smartphones and tablets for creatives, started its Philippine operations 20 years ago. The Philippines is its third top market in the region, after Thailand and Indonesia.

“There’s a need of 5,000 new artists in the next three years just to meet the demand of work from abroad,” Mr. Malabanan noted.

He added company’s target market in the Philippines are both consumer and the growing creative segment, also with the introduction of the K-12 program which offers creative courses.

Wacom Senior Director for Sales (Southeast Asia and South Asia) Ong Khiaw Seng, for his part, said that the long-term plan is to double its sales in the country as the animation industry in the Philippines is also growing.

“Long term or the next five years, we target to double (our revenue,” Mr. Seng said, although he did not disclose the financials of the company.

Historically, its most in-demand product is its entry-level Intous product — a line of creative pen tablets used by for drawing, sketching and photo activities.

Its new products include Wacom pen computers, pen displays, pen tablets, smartpads, and consumer-range line of styli for different creative needs.

The company sold 4,000 units in 2015 and 6,000 units last year. — I.C.C. Delavin

How PSEi member stocks performed — July 13, 2017

Here’s a quick glance at how PSEi stocks fared on Thursday, July 13, 2017.

Michael Jackson estate plans TV animated Halloween special

NEW YORK — An animated television special featuring Michael Jackson will premiere this year for Halloween in the latest posthumous project by the estate of the late King of Pop.

The estate said Michael Jackson’s Halloween will air on CBS in the United States around the Oct. 31 holiday dedicated to the ghoulish and supernatural.

The estate said in an announcement Tuesday that it was also in talks to broadcast Michael Jackson’s Halloween abroad.

Since Jackson’s sudden death in 2009, his estate has pursued a range of projects to monetize the legacy of one of pop history’s top-selling artists.

Success has been mixed, with the estate putting up for sale his Neverland ranch in California after early talk of preserving it.

Two new albums of unreleased material have come out since Jackson’s death but one of them, 2010’s Michael, was marred by controversy over whether Jackson would have wanted the unfinished music released or if he was even singing on all the tracks.

Jackson was an early enthusiast of adapting his music to videos and short films with his “Thriller,” a 14-minute extravaganza of Halloween-like characters, becoming a landmark in music history when it was released in 1983. — AFP

Hot money enters in June, flees in 1st half

By Melissa Luz T. Lopez, Senior Reporter

MORE FLIGHTY foreign capital entered the country in June on the back of investor confidence with legislative approval of the first tax reform package and “accelerated” net foreign buying at the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported yesterday.

But June’s net inflow was not able to prevent the six-month tally to slip to a net outflow from a net inflow recorded in 2016’s first half.

Foreign portfolio investments yielded a $79.56-million net inflow last month, recovering from May’s $24.35-million net outflow but still dwarfed by the $450.87-million net inflow in June 2016.

Such investments are often called “hot money” given the ease by which these funds enter and leave markets, versus the more stable foreign direct investments.

The Philippines got $2.016 billion in aggregate inflows last month, 35.77% more than May’s $1.285 billion and 11.41% more than June 2016’s $1.81 billion.

Outflows totaled some $1.937 billion last month, 28.31% more than May’s $1.509 billion and 42.52% more than June 2016’s $1.359 billion.

Net inflows in June’s first two weeks offset outbound capital as the month drew to a close, central bank showed.

“This may be attributed to positive investor sentiment relative to the anticipated resolution of the conflict in Marawi City, accelerated net foreign buying, and approval by Congress of the first tax reform package,” the BSP said in a statement yesterday.

On May 31, the House of Representatives approved on third and final reading its version of the tax reform bill, which seeks to reduce personal income taxes while raising fresh revenues from higher excise levies on fuel, cars and sugar-sweetened drinks. The reform is now in the Senate, which has questioned moves to remove value added tax exemption of lower housing segments and of cooperatives, among other concerns. The Finance department wants to implement these tax adjustments by January 2018.

About 82% of capital inflows went to PSE-listed firms — mostly to shares of holding firms, property companies, telecommunications firms, banks and utilities — yielding $311-million net inflows.

About 17.2% went to peso-denominated government securities while the 0.8% balance went to other peso-denominated debt papers, yielding a $247-million net outflow and a $16 million net inflow, respectively.

Investors also anticipated the end of conflict in Marawi City between government forces and hundreds of militants who had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State, the BSP said.

Clashes in that central Mindanao city have been raging for nearly two months since they erupted on May 23.

The 60-day martial law proclamation covering the entire Mindanao that was declared after the Marawi conflict erupted is set to expire on July 22.

The government has yet to declare Marawi as completely free of terrorists, but President Rodrigo R. Duterte had said last Tuesday that he expected the crisis to lift in “10-15 days”.

The peso also returned above the P50 level versus the dollar since June 20 and has since been trading at 10-year lows.

OUTFLOWS IN FIRST HALF
Despite hot money’s recovery in June, the first semester still saw a $460.83-million net outflow, reversing from the $593.87-million net inflow recorded in 2016’s comparable six months.

The central bank said this reflected heightened market uncertainty due to local and international developments like the Department of Environment and Natural Resources’ crackdown in February on several mining projects and interest rate increases in the United States in March and June.

The United States, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Malaysia, and Luxembourg were the biggest sources of foreign funds in June, accounting for a cumulative 80.1%.

The US continued to be the main destination of outflows, getting 64.7% of the total.

OUTLOOK

“Robust economic growth and manageable inflation that are supported by appropriate fiscal and monetary policies coupled with healthy corporate earnings will help attract more foreign portfolio capital into the country,” said Angelo B. Taningco, economist at Security Bank Corp., adding that “progress in tax reform deliberations and infrastructure spending in the upcoming months will be a boost to foreign investor sentiment, and delays on these two could pose a concern or challenge in encouraging foreign portfolio investments.”

The central bank expects hot money to post a $900-million net outflow this year, reversing a $404.43-million inflow in 2016, according to latest official estimates announced last month.

Trump in Paris with Russia scandal in tow

PARIS — Donald J. Trump arrived in Paris on Thursday for a presidential visit filled with Bastille Day pomp and which the White House hopes will offer respite from rolling scandal back home.

Air Force One touched down at Paris’ Orly airport shortly after 0630 GMT, with US president beginning a 24-hour trip that coincides with France’s national day on Friday and the 100th anniversary of US involvement in World War I.

Accompanied by First Lady Melania Trump, the 71-year-old stepped onto French soil for the first time as president hoping the visit will distract from weighty allegations that his family and inner circle colluded with Russia to win the 2016 US election.

The scandal has put his son and top aides in legal jeopardy and cast a pall over his efforts to remake American politics.

During the lightning visit, Mr. Trump — who sees himself as a transformative figure in US politics — will be the guest of honor at festivities marking a pivotal point in the French Revolution, after a trip to Napoleon’s tomb and a Michelin-starred dinner at the Eiffel Tower.

Mr. Trump and his host, recently-elected French President Emmanuel Macron, will watch troops parade down the Champs-Elysees and mark 100 years since America entered World War I on France’s side.

Mr. Macron, 39, is hoping to use the weight of history and French grandeur to charm the unpredictable Mr. Trump — six weeks after welcoming Russia’s Vladimir Putin at the grandiose Palace of Versailles.

In London, Berlin, Brussels and Paris, European leaders are wondering how best to handle the US president, whose nationalist “America First” agenda has upended transatlantic relations.

Mr. Macron hopes to build a relationship with the new occupant of the White House that might enable him to influence US policy or, at the least, help avoid serious strains between the EU and Washington.

There are already tensions over climate change and trade, while Mr. Trump was openly critical of the EU last year and snubbed a handshake with German Chancellor Angela Merkel during their first meeting in March.

“It’s very difficult to play chess with a man whose strategy is a complete mystery and whose only consistency is his pursuit of American national interest,” foreign affairs expert Bertrand Badie of Sciences Po university in Paris told AFP.

“To imagine that you might change his mind on something is simply mad.”

MACRON, THE ‘ANTI-TRUMP’
Talks between the two leaders are expected to focus on joint efforts to combat the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria, where American and French troops are in action side-by-side. They will dine together at the Jules Verne restaurant up the Eiffel Tower, enjoying stunning views of the French capital along with their wives Melania and Brigitte.

Messrs. Trump and Macron appear to have little in common, with their views at odds on everything from globalization to immigration.

Mr. Macron was even described as the “anti-Trump” during his run for the French presidency this year.

As well as a huge generational gap — Mr. Trump at 71 is almost twice Macron’s age — there is scant evidence of any overlap of interests in their personal lives.

Mr. Macron also criticized Mr. Trump’s decision to withdraw the United States from the global Paris climate change agreement last month and used the American’s own slogan against him, saying: “Make our planet great again.”

Mr. Macron told regional newspaper Ouest-France on Thursday that Paris and Washington had “an essential point of convergence: fighting terrorism and protecting our vital interests.”

However, he also lamented “a protectionist tendency (which) has resurfaced in the United States.”

“I want to defend free and fair trade,” he added.

But sources in the French presidency insist ties are healthy even after a muscular handshake seen as a battle of wills between the two of them when they first met at a NATO summit in May.

“The relationship is excellent,” said one member of Mr. Macron’s team.

PRAGMATIC APPROACH
Manuel Lafont-Rapnouil, an expert at the European Council on Foreign Relations think tank, said Mr. Macron had no choice but to try to build ties with the US president.

“Whatever you think, the United States is still the United States and we need them on lots of issues. You can’t just say ‘Trump is there so let’s wait until he’s gone,’” he told AFP.

“Even if it is very difficult to handle someone as unpredictable as him, you need to try to salvage what you can.”

Nearly 11,000 police officers will be on duty, with France in its highest state of alert after a string of terror attacks since 2015 that have killed more than 300 people.

And in early July, police charged a 23-year-old suspected far-right activist with plotting to assassinate Mr. Macron at the Bastille Day parade. — AFP

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