THE PESO strengthened against the dollar on Friday to return to the P51 level as it continued to correct following its plunge on Monday.
The local currency ended the week at P51.89 against the greenback, 21 centavos stronger than its P52.10 close on Thursday.
The peso traded stronger the whole day, opening the session at P52 versus the dollar. Its best showing yesterday was at P51.82. Its intraday low, meanwhile, was seen at P52.05 to the greenback.
Dollars traded slightly declined to $656.3 million on Friday from the $668.4 million that changed hands in the previous session.
Traders interviewed over the phone said the peso extended its strength in what is seen as a correction after its plunge to the P52 level on Monday.
“The magnitude of the move is too big, and given the fact that there was a support in the past four trading days. There was a support for the peso,” a trader said.
“Probably, the BSP (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas) is providing liquidity lately. That prompted most of the players to try to square out the long-dollar-peso positions for now. Thus we saw a good correction,” the trader noted.
Meanwhile, another trader said domestic trading tracked the stronger local currency in the offshore exchange market.
“The offshore dollar-peso trading went [higher], that’s why we saw the peso strengthening,” the trader said, adding that the pair continued to trade within the range. — K.A.N. Vidal
PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte on Thursday foresees a better life for the Filipino people on his third year in office, adding that they only need to “endure a little more” before things improve.
“Just bear with the sacrifices a little more,” the President said at the launch of Tienda Para sa mga Bayani at the 6th Regional Community Defense Group, Camp General Adriano Hernandez in Iloilo. “I’m on my second year. Maybe towards the end of the third year and the early part of the fourth year [we’re going to be a little better.]”
“You will no longer need to go abroad,” Mr. Duterte said, especially to those who plan to work overseas. “Don’t go abroad anymore because I cannot protect you. Let’s just endure sacrifices here a little longer.”
Mr. Duterte made these remarks after he recently banned the deployment of Filipino workers (OFWs) to Kuwait due to the increasing number of abuses and deaths, including the case of slain Filipina domestic helper Joanna D. Demafelis.
On the same day, before addressing the military at Camp General Adriano Hernandez, the President visited the wake of Ms. Demafelis where he said: “I’d tell you now, until and unless [the two primary suspects are arrested] and they are really behind bars, the deployment [ban] of OFW to [Kuwait] will remain.”
According to the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO)- Presidential News Desk (PND), Mr. Duterte had also “issued his appeal to the members of the New People’s Army (NPA) to return to the fold of the law promising them with a better life by providing them job and livelihood opportunities.”
“I will pay each of you if you surrender,” he said. “You should enrol in TESDA (Technical Education and Skills Development Authority). Learn the skills [now because we no longer have any workers],” the President said.
Mr. Duterte likewise stressed his promise to “support and protect the uniformed personnel.” — Arjay L. Balinbin
THE Philippine Stock Exchange, Inc. (PSE) has priced its stock rights offer (SRO) at a premium, the underwriter of the deal said on Friday.
BDO Capital and Investments Corp. President Eduardo V. Francisco said PSE’s SRO will be sold at P252 per share, above its closing price of P236.20 at the stock exchange on Friday.
“It was priced at a premium over today’s P236.2 close showing belief of investors in our capital markets,” Mr. Francisco said in a text message to reporters.
With the sale of 11.5 million shares, the SRO will allow the PSE to raise P2.898 billion. Proceeds of the offer will be used to partially finance its acquisition of the Philippine Dealing System Holdings Corp. Remaining funds will be used for general corporate purposes and for the introduction of new products until 2020.
Due to unfavorable conditions in the global market, the SRO’s timeline was adjusted — it will now run from March 12 to 16, having previously been set from Feb. 26 to March 2.
The fund-raising activity will likewise help the company bring down broker ownership to less than 20%, which is needed to secure the Securities and Exchange Commission’s approval to merge the PSE with the fixed-income bourse.
The PSE posted an 18% net income increase in 2017 to P825 million, boosted by higher trading activity and one-time gains from the sale of its Tektite office in Ortigas. — Arra B. Francia
A DOG video topped Google Philippines’s YouTube Ads Leaderboard, a bi-annual list of the top 10 Philippine ads on the video platform, which was released on Thursday.
The ads are based on “popularity and promotion,” notes a company release, with the new list highlighting “the continued popularity of local creativity” and brands’ using “different approaches” to attract and inspire Filipino audiences.
“It’s clear that brands are optimizing YouTube, seizing the opportunities unique to the platform to more effectively engage their audiences,” said the statement released by Google Philippines.
Globe Telecom dominated the leaderboard in 2017 as it once again took the top spot in the second half of the year with its “Because you can never have too many dog videos” holiday ad, which followed the success of its Star Wars-inspired #CreateCourage video in the first half.
The video — which currently has 9.8 million views on the platform and 85 million views worldwide — revolves around an old widower and the new connections he makes with a lost dog he rescues and its real owners over Christmas.
Globe Strategist for Digital and Social Content Kenn Penero said during the awarding ceremony at Google head office in BGC, Taguig, that it has a been long standing tradition for Globe to release these kinds of ads during the holidays, and the strategy behind this piece was to make the audience fall in love with the characters first before coming to the actual product.
“Through masterful storytelling, brands can nurture interests and fuel passions, hold the attention of millions, and grow their share of audiences online,” Gabby Roxas, Country Marketing Manager of Google Philippines, was quoted as saying in the Google statement.
One of the biggest trends among the winners was the use of music and dance elements, with six out of the 10 featured ads using musical and dance performances. The two other major trends were the use of vloggers (video bloggers) and the shift to “panoramic experiences” that focused on “trying to capture more than just merchandise but its impact on the lives of consumers.”
“The Leaderboard is increasingly skewed towards cultural content like music, travel, and advocacy. This approach is all about getting audiences [to] lean in and be engaged, with ‘selling’ as an afterthought,” said Google Philippines’ statement.
Knorr Philippines received special attention for its “When Mom Cooks Favorite Food (We Get Lit!)” entry, which placed 9th in the list. It features local vloggers Ranz Guerrero and Niana Guerrero in a scriptless, fourth wall-breaking 13-minute vlog.
Newcomers on the leaderboard were OPPO Philippines with its “CaptureTheRealYou with the new OPPO F5” video, and Philippine Airlines (PAL) with its “Fly the Way You Deserve with PAL” spot, which took 3rd and 10th place, respectively.
All the winners were awarded with framed stills containing comments from their videos, with the top three also getting special plaques, during the official awards night on Jan. 22.
Three special awards were decided by vote among the event’s atendees. Globe’s “#CreateNewTraditions” ad won the Lola Basyang Award while Nestle Philippine’s Milo ad received the Last Song Syndrome (LSS) award and the Best Indak Award.
Here are all the ads featured in YouTube’s Ads Leaderboard for H2 2017:
1. “Because you can never have too many dog videos/#CreateNewTraditions,” Globe Telecom (9.8 million views)
2. “Get #ChampionEnergy with James Reid, Ranz, and Niana,” Nestle Philippines/Milo (8.2 million views)
3. “#CaptureTheRealYou with the new OPPO F5,” OPPO Philippines (4.6 million views)
4. “Sweet-Sarap Dance Tutorial,” Jollibee Philippines (4.5 million views)
5. “#ThePLAN for Solenn Heusaff is to meet new people/ #Scenezoned,” Globe Telecom (3 million views)
6. “Jollibee’s Unbeatable Double,” Jollibee Philippines (3.1 million views)
7. “Coke Studio PH: Off of Center by Franco X Reese Lansangan,” Coke Philippines (3 million views)
8. “Capture the Night Anthem” featuring Liza Soberano, Samsung Philippines (2.3 million views)
9. “When Mom Cooks Favorite Food (We Get Lit!)” featuring Ranz and Niana, Knorr Philippines/Knorr Sinigang Mix (3.3 million views)
10. “Fly the Way You Deserve with PAL,” Philippine Airlines (1.6 million views)
SOURED DEBTS held by thrift lenders grew by a tenth in 2017 to match the increase in total loans granted from a year ago, latest central bank data showed, as these banks enjoyed a surge in profits.
Non-performing loans (NPLs) held by thrift lenders reached P40.448 billion at end-December, up by 10.4% from the P36.654 billion tallied in 2016, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). The figure, however, declined from the P41.715 billion in bad loans incurred as of November.
NPLs refer to debts left unpaid for at least 30 days past due date. These are considered as risky assets due to a high risk of default that would spell losses for the bank.
The growth in NPLs matched a 10.6% increase in the banks’ total loan portfolio, which expanded to P860.304 billion from P778.133 billion the previous year.
NPLs accounted for 4.7% of total credit lines extended by the banks, barely changed from the 4.71% ratio posted in December 2016.
Despite the increase in problem loans, the thrift lenders kept their reserves for potential defaults steady at P26.929 billion, which can only cover 66.58% of the NPL stash. This declined from the 73.05% coverage ratio recorded in 2016.
Thrift banks are focused on lending to consumers and small-scale firms, which is are deemed riskier segments. On the other hand, the bigger universal and commercial banks cater mostly to corporate clients.
Meanwhile, bank deposits likewise reached P945.431 billion, growing by 8.3% from the P872.869 billion tallied in 2016.
Thrift banks enjoyed a 29.2% improvement in bottom lines, according to BSP data. The lenders reported a cumulative net income of P17.939 billion in 2017, surging from the P13.889 billion booked in 2016.
Cost-to-income ratio also improved to 62.71% from 63.58% the prior year, as a cumulative P45.65 billion non-interest expenses generated a P72.798-billion operating income for thrift players.
There are 54 thrift banks operating in the Philippines as of end-September.
The central bank monitors the loan and asset quality of banks and other financial firms as they seek to maintain a stable financial system. — Melissa Luz T. Lopez
THE government is considering moves to allow ride-sharing in more regions, including Mindanao, owing to the lack of transport capacities in these areas.
The Land Transportation and Franchising Regulatory Board (LTFRB) made this announcement on Friday after its regional offices received requests to make Transport Network Vehicles (TNV) available in their areas.
“We want to see the requirements, particularly in region 10 and 12. There’s also [interest] in region 2 and 5,” LTFRB Board Member Aileen A. Lizada told reporters on Friday, referring to provinces in the Mindanao, Bicol, and Cagayan Valley regions.
One thousand TNV units have been allotted for Cebu and 500 in Pampanga, Ms. Lizada said during the fourth anniversary celebration of ride-hailing platform Uber in the Philippines. She added that these allocations will be reviewed every three months.
Uber Philippines also announced its intention to expand its reach to cover Pampanga after the LTFRB announced that it is opening up Cebu and Pampanga for TNVs to operate in.
Since the LTFRB has given an allocation for Pampanga, this means anytime we can launch, Uber Philippines’ Public Policy Head Yves P. Gonzalez said, adding that the platform will have to file an application at LTFRB’s regional office and conduct beta testing which could take one to two months.
While the application is still subject for review, Uber is eyeing to have 250 cars in Pampanga, Mr. Gonzalez said, refusing to answer queries regarding expansion to other areas.
On March 1, the LTFRB and officials of both Uber and Grab are set to discuss the details for the resumption of TNV application processing on March 5.
In July last year, the agency suspended the processing of TNV applications, citing that TNV operators didn’t know the rules.
According to Ms. Lizada, only 59,020 TNV units are currently operating, serving 52% of the demand, from an initial 121,000 units.
“One TNC (Transport Network Company) has an average of 5.5 trips per day. One TNC has 7 average trips per day. We fused them together and we came out with a common base pool of 65,000 in order for the TNVs to serve 75% of the demand,” she explained.
Although the agency is encountering difficulty to keep up with the demand for ridesharing, it will still remove the franchise of TNVs that have been inactive for more than 91 days.
Ms. Lizada said that they would prefer to deal with the issues in Metro Manila before Uber heads out to Pampanga. — Anna G. A. Mogato
REVOLUTION Precrafted has struck a deal with Central Country Estate, Inc. (CCEI) for the construction of prefabricated homes in a 70-hectare development in Pampanga.
In a statement issued late Thursday, the local startup that develops prefabricated designer homes said it will be investing $115.4 million to build over 7,100 prefabricated homes in The Lakeshore in Mexico, Pampanga. Revolution Precrafted expects more than $345 million in revenues from the project, including the sale of prefabricated homes and pop-up retail stores.
The company describes the project, dubbed Revolution Flavorscapes at Lakeshore, as the “first livable food park” as it would house pop-up stores featuring cuisines from 200 countries.
“We all love food and we believe that there should be a community meant for all our foodies. The world’s first livable food park concept is another fresh concept which continues our tradition of bringing industry-first and world-first projects,” Revolution Precrafted founder and Chief Executive Officer Jose Roberto Antonio said in a statement.
CCEI will be building what it calls a FamiLeisure hub which will include a community swimming pool, a “drive-by” cinema, museums, spas, and a sports center.
“We will develop the property to ensure that there will be ample open spaces, where the residents can run, hike, and engage leisure activities. We are very excited about the project and we will reveal the new amenities in the coming months,” CCEI Managing Director Brian John Mangio said in the statement.
Once CCEI completes its development, Revolution Precrafted will bring in the prefabricated homes which will be installed in the community. There will be three types of units in the community, the smallest of which is Revolution Alcove, 48-square meter townhouses, priced at P1.8 million.
The 60-sq.m. single attached units called Revolution Cocoon will be priced at P2.16 million, while the 72-sq.m. Revolution Next units will be sold at P2.52 million.
The retail pop stores will cost P6.2 million each.
Other highlights in the masterplanned community include a Museum of Ice Cream, Museum of Candy, a Chocolate Gallery, and microbrewery surrounded by a beer garden.
The company noted that the development is located near the Clark International Airport, which is expected to increase economic activity in the area.
Revolution Precrafted said it will take it three years to develop the masterplanned community after starting this year.
Revolution Precrafted is a local startup that has garnered so-called “unicorn” status, meaning that it has managed to quickly increase its market value to over $1 billion. It pools together architects, artists, and designers for the creation of prefabricated livable spaces. — Arra B. Francia
THE GOVERNMENT will start handing out cash transfers to some 7.4 million households by March, with the P200 monthly subsidy expected to help poor families cope with rising prices of basic goods.
In a statement, the Department of Finance (DoF) said 4.4 million existing beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program as well as 3 million senior citizens receiving social pensions will start receiving additional doleouts this February, representing the unconditional cash transfers provided under the tax reform law.
Signed into law as Republic Act 10963, the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law introduced additional taxes on fuel, cars, coal, sugar-sweetened drinks and a host of other items, which took effect Jan. 1.
Majority of Filipinos will also enjoy bigger disposable incomes under TRAIN, as it reduced the income tax rates for those earning below P2 million yearly. However, this does not include minimum wage workers as they are already exempted from paying duties under the old tax regime.
Some P25.67 billion or 30% of the additional revenues generated by the new tax law will be spent on “social protection” programs, largely for the cash transfers to the 10 million poorest families in the country.
Under the program, these households will receive P2,400 this year to help them keep up with higher daily expenses as a result of the TRAIN law. The subsidies will increase to P300 a month or P3,600 annually for 2019 and 2020.
Finance Undersecretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua said the 7.4 million families will be receiving a top-up in their existing conditional cash transfers as early as this month if they are getting their benefits via automated teller machine cards. Those withdrawing over the counter through rural banks, cooperatives and non-government organizations will receive additional money by March.
Meanwhile, senior citizens will get the additional benefits by next month as well.
Mr. Chua said that the remaining 2.6 million families will receive P2,400 worth of cash transfers by August, citing a report from the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
A RURAL BANK in Batangas has been ordered shut by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), becoming the second lender to be closed down by regulators this month.
The BSP’s Monetary Board on Thursday shut down the operations of the Empire Rural Bank, Inc., a lender based in Lipa City. The Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC) took over the bank the following day as receiver.
Empire Rural Bank runs one branch along C.M. Recto Avenue in Lipa, and is led by its president Benjamin B. Abendan, according to the BSP’s database.
The bank holds P36.4 million in total deposits spread across 564 accounts as of December 2017, the PDIC said. Of the amount, P31.6 million is covered by deposit insurance.
PDIC’s takeover allows the state-run deposit insurer to acquire the lender’s assets in order to pay outstanding liabilities to depositors.
Bank deposits are insured up to P500,000 per depositor, according to the law. Funds used to settle valid deposit insurance claims are drawn from the Deposit Insurance Fund managed by the PDIC.
Any remaining amount which cannot be supported by the insurance fund will be sourced from the sale of the closed bank’s properties.
Depositors with balances of P100,000 or lower can avail of early payment, provided that they have no outstanding obligations with the bank, the PDIC said.
The Empire Rural Bank follows the fate of the Rural Bank of Loreto, Inc. in Dinagat Islands, which was also closed down by the BSP on Feb. 9.
The central bank ordered the closure of six rural banks and one thrift bank last year. In 2016, the regulator closed 22 lenders. — Melissa Luz T. Lopez
LOCAL shares continued to decline on Friday, dragged by index heavyweights unloaded by foreign investors.
The 30-member Philippine Stock Exchange index lost 0.56% or 48.01 points to 8,467.56 on Friday, failing to follow the general upswing seen in global markets. The broader all-shares index likewise declined 0.47% or 23.63 points to 5,063.56.
“Overall, we traded sideways which was what we expected. Several blue-chip issues took significant losses as we see continued net foreign selling,” Eagle Equities, Inc. Research Head Christopher John Mangun said in a report.
Papa Securities Corp. noted that blue chip JG Summit Holdings, Inc. (JGS) dragged the index. Shares in JG Summit dropped 2.75% or P2.05 to P72.50 apiece on Friday, with foreigners selling P167 million worth of stocks in the firm.
This follows Ayala Land, Inc., which was sold down 0.79% to P43.90 each, for an aggregate value of P250 million from foreign investors.
“We also saw selling pressure on the country as the Asia/Pacific region was up when Philippine net foreign selling surpassed the P1-billion mark again at P1.04-billion, the last time we saw this much selling was last Monday, Feb. 12,” Papa Securities Trader Gabriel Perez said in an e-mail.
Net sales on Friday almost tripled Thursday’s net outflows of P389.87 million.
Most Asian indices went back to positive territory on Friday, tracking the general increase in markets in the United States, where the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.66% or 164.70 points to 24,962.48.
Majority of sectoral indices trekked lower on Friday, led by the financials sector that last 1.11% or 24.39 points to 2,177.06. Property declined by 0.95% or 36.77 points to 3,825.42; industrial fell 0.83% or 93.84 points to 11,151.25; services dipped 0.09% or 1.53 points to 1,744.07; while holding firms were down 0.02% or 1.28 points to 8,621.77.
The mining and oil sector was the lone sub-index that managed to post gains, climbing 1.15% or 139.52 points to 12,238.06.
A total of 3.26 billion issues switched hands, valued at P9.24 billion, lower than the previous session’s turnover of P10.46 billion.
Decliners prevailed for the day, 122 against 91 that advanced and 39 that ended flat.
Among the day’s advancers was MRC Allied, Inc., jumping 48.72% to 58 centavos, with a value turnover of P729 million, making it the second most traded issue of the day.
“Some say the interest in MRC is linked to its possible emergence as another telco player. This past August, its majority shareholder, Menlo Capital Corp, acquired 70% of PT&T (Philippine Telegraph & Telephone),” Papa Securities’ Mr. Perez said.
THE Philippines has summoned United States Ambassador Sung Y. Kim on the latest Worldwide Threat Assessment report of the US intelligence community that listed President Rodrigo R. Duterte as “a threat to democracy in Southeast Asia.”
In a statement on Friday afternoon, Feb. 23, Presidential Spokesperson Herminio Harry L. Roque said: “Executive Secretary Salvador C. Medialdea summoned United States Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim yesterday, February 22, where they discussed the latest US Intelligence Community’s Worldwide Threat Assessment report.”
Mr. Medialdea, according to Mr. Roque, “instructed the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), through our Philippine embassy in Washington D.C., to coordinate and engage with the US agencies involved in the writing of the assessment.”
“ES Medialdea further directed our embassy officials and staff in the US to provide the latter accurate information on the realities happening on the ground in the Philippines, including the actions taken by the President and his administration to promote socioeconomic development for the country and provide a safe and secure environment for all Filipinos, respecting at all times the rule of law,” the spokesman added.
The Feb. 13 report, bylined by National Intelligence director Daniel R. Coats, places Mr. Duterte alongside Cambodian’s Hun Sen, the Rohingya crisis in Myanmar, and Thailand’s military-backed constitution as “regional threats to democracy.”
The report likewise said that Southeast Asian countries “will struggle to preserve foreign policy autonomy in the face of Chinese economic and diplomatic coercion.” — Arjay L. Balinbin
Snap Inc.’s flagship platform has lost some luster, at least according to one social-media influencer in the Kardashian-Jenner clan.
Shares of the Snapchat parent company sank 6.1 percent on Thursday, wiping out $1.3 billion in market value, on the heels of a tweet on Wednesday from Kylie Jenner, who said she doesn’t open the app anymore. Whether it’s the demands of her newfound motherhood, or the recent app redesign, the testament drew similar replies from her 24.5 million followers. Wall Street analysts too have begun to notice, citing recent user engagement trends noticed since the platform’s redesign.
Jenner’s tweet was followed late Thursday by one from Maybelline New York, asking its followers if it should stay on the Snapchat platform. The beauty-product brand owned by Paris-based L’Oreal SA said its “Snapchat views have dropped dramatically,” but it still wanted to connect with its followers.
Citigroup analyst Mark May downgraded the stock to sell from neutral earlier this week after seeing a “significant jump” in negative reviews of the app’s redesign. He expects the reviews could cause user engagement to fall, hurting financial results.
Meanwhile, as the app takes criticism, Chief Executive Evan Spiegel may become one of the highest paid executives in the U.S. After the company’s IPO last March, Spiegel got a $636.6 million stock grant that will be payable through 2020.
“Still love you tho snap,” Jenner hedged in a later tweet. — Bloomberg
