WTO meeting ends in discord, smaller-scale trade talks urged

December 15, 2017 | 12:01 am

BUENOS AIRES/WASHINGTON — The World Trade Organization (WTO) failed to reach any new agreements on Wednesday, ending a three-day ministerial conference in discord in the face of stinging US criticism of the group and vetoes from other countries.

The stalemate dashed hopes for new deals on e-commerce and curbs to farm and fisheries subsidies and raised questions about the body’s ability to govern increasingly disputed global trade.

The frustrations led some ministers, including US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, to suggest that negotiations among smaller groups of “like-minded” WTO countries were a better approach going forward.

“We have not achieved any multilateral outcomes,” European Union (EU) Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom told a news conference. “The sad reality is that we did not even agree to stop subsidizing illegal fishing.”

She said the meeting laid bare one of the WTO’s biggest deficiencies — that all agreements must have the unanimous consent of all 164 member countries. She said the United States was partly to blame but that other countries also blocked progress.

WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo added that WTO members needed to do some “real soul searching” about the way forward and realize they cannot get everything they want.

“Progress was going to require a leap in members’ positions,” Mr. Azevedo said at the event’s closing ceremony. “We didn’t see that.”

He said US moves to block WTO appeals judges, which could disrupt the body’s dispute settlement system, were not discussed as a formal topic, but several ministers voiced concerns in statements at the conference.

The failure to agree on new deals means that talks on the same trade topics will continue. WTO delegates agreed to set a new goal for reaching a comprehensive fisheries subsidy by the time of the next ministerial conference in 2019.

Trade ministers instead emphasized the WTO’s post-conference work programs, such as efforts to improve market efficiency, curb excess industrial capacity and improve subsidy transparency.

Ms. Malmstrom said “short-term plurilateral arrangements within the WTO framework” were the best way forward. Two such arrangements came together at the Buenos Aires conference.

On Wednesday, some 70 members, including the United States, European Union and Japan, pledged to forge ahead with negotiating rules on electronic commerce after a broader deal among the full membership failed. Absent from the group were China, India, Vietnam and Indonesia.

The EU and Japan joined the United States on Tuesday in vowing to combat market-distorting policies, such as those pervasive in China that have fueled excess industrial capacity, including subsidies for state-owned enterprises and technology transfer requirements.

“The potential focus on plurilateral negotiations between like-minded countries is a natural and positive outcome, if it turns out to bear fruit,” said Chad Bown, a senior fellow and trade expert at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington.

Mr. Bown said a good template would be the 1996 WTO Information Technology Agreement, which initially had just 29 countries lowering tariffs on IT products. That has since expanded to 82 countries covering 97% of trade in the sector.

The WTO conference’s chair, former Argentine Foreign Minister Susana Malcorra, defended the WTO’s need for unanimity among its large and unruly membership, saying it was the still the best forum to deal with trade disputes.

“Let’s better work to strengthen WTO, because the alternative is the jungle,” she said.

AT FIRST, ‘AMERICA FIRST’
The conference began with Mr. Lighthizer setting an acrimonious tone with sharp criticism of the WTO, telling ministers on Monday that it was impossible to negotiate new rules while many of the current rules were not being followed, and that the WTO was losing its focus and becoming too litigation-focused.

Driven by President Donald J. Trump’s “America First” strategy and a preference for bilateral deals, the United States had pushed against ministers drafting a perfunctory ministerial that included references to the centrality of the global trading system and to trade as a driver of development. The statement was ultimately blocked. — Reuters

Aboitiz Construction tapped for PRII project

December 15, 2017 | 12:01 am

PHILIPPINES RESINS Industries, Inc. (PRII) has tapped the construction arm of the Aboitiz Group to undertake the expansion of its polyvinyl chloride (PVC) resin plant in Bataan. In a statement issued on Thursday, Aboitiz Construction, Inc. (ACI) said it has signed a memorandum of agreement with PRII for the project that would double the capacity of the latter’s plant to 200,000 metric tons per year.

The resin plant expansion will include the structural, mechanical, piping, and civil works components, and expected to be finished in 18 months.

“In so doing, PRII will be able to better serve the domestic market,” ACI said.

In statement by PRII released in January this year, the company said it will be spending $44 million for the expansion of its plant in Bataan.

“Upon completion in December 2018, the new facilities are expected to add 110,000 metric tons a year to and thereby double PRII’s PVC production capacity, further strengthening its reliability as a PVC supplier in the Philippine market,” PRII said in a statement posted on its Web site earlier this year.

PRII is part of the Tosoh Corp. Group of Japan that started operations in January 1999. Its Bataan plant is the company’s only manufacturing facility in the country, which it uses to meet the demand of local PVC product manufacturers, according to its Web site.

The partnership marks the second time that the two companies have teamed up, as ACI also constructed PRII’s plant in 1998, at the time when ACI was still known as Metaphil.

ACI forms part of the Aboitiz Group of Companies, which has core investments in power distribution, generation, and retail electricity supply, financial services, food manufacturing, real estate, infrastructure, and portfolio investments — all held under Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Inc. (AEV).

AEV posted a 6.9% decrease in attributable profit to P15.9 billion in the first nine months of 2017, amid a 27% increase in gross revenues for the period to P111.48 billion.

Shares in AEV were up by 2.63% or P1.80 to close at P70.20 at the stock exchange on Thursday. — Arra B. Francia

Urduja landfall seen Friday morning

December 15, 2017 | 12:01 am

TROPICAL STORM Urduja (international name: Kai-tak) is expected to make landfall on Eastern Samar by Friday morning, Dec. 15, bringing moderate to heavy rains within its 400-kilometer diameter, according to weather bureau PAGASA’s report as of 5 p.m. yesterday. As of Thursday afternoon, storm signal #2 was already up in Eastern Samar along with the neighboring provinces of Samar and Biliran. PAGASA said scattered to widespread rains are expected over the rest of the Visayas, and the regions of Bicol, Caraga and Northern Mindanao within 24 hours. Residents in these areas are alerted against possible flash floods and landslides. Urduja is forecast to remain over Philippine islands over the weekend.

SEA TRAVEL, FLIGHTS AFFECTED BY URDUJA
AS tropical storm Urduja intensified yesterday, Dec. 14, more than 30 sea vessels in at least 10 ports in Bicol and four in Eastern Visayas were ordered not to venture out, leaving 3,867 passengers stranded as of 12 noon, according to the Philippine Coast Guard. There were also 561 rolling cargoes affected. Meanwhile, budget airline Skyjet canceled flights between Metro Manila and Siargao.

Ugly win

December 15, 2017 | 12:01 am

Not a single one of the Thunder’s so-called Big Three players particularly well yesterday. Not reigning Most Valuable Player Russell Westbrook, who posted a triple-double but shot only three of 17 from the field. Not Carmelo Anthony, who put up zero assists and 12 points off 14 attempts as a far third in the pecking order. And most certainly not Paul George, who should have been due big numbers, but who instead did not better than five dimes and 12 markers, also off 14 tries.

The good news is that, for all of the Thunder’s shocking lack of production from its marquee names, they still wound up with the win. They had to, of course, and not just because they were coming off a demoralizing home loss at the hands of the otherwise-underwhelming Hornets. More importantly, they needed to prevail against the host Pacers in support of George and, in the process, allow him to move on from an acrimonious split.

Parenthetically, the franchise that George called home for the first seven years of his National Basketball Association career was in no mood to forget his transgression. If nothing else, the Pacers were still smarting enough to wallow in pettiness. Prior to the start of the match, they saw fit to show a protracted video of all former players they deemed to be of significance. And while all the usual suspects were on it (including veteran Jeff Foster and recently disgraced Chuck Person), he was not. The 17,923 who were on hand at the Fieldhouse loved it, to be sure; they booed him at every instance, and even the locals who wore his jersey relished making him feel decidedly unwelcome.

Under the circumstances, George should have been pumped. He should have had yesterday circled on his calendar, armed with the resolve to play his best, the way most other stars visiting old haunts invariably do. Instead, he was passive from the get-go, handling and getting rid of the rock as if it were on fire, and it’s telling that he didn’t get his first bucket until there were but three minutes and change left in the second quarter. That said, the Thunder were there for him; as Westbrook noted in the aftermath, “we came out and competed for him.”

Considering how the Thunder came close to snatching defeat from the throws of victory, they’re far from the powerhouse preseason prognoses figures would challenge the Warriors and the Rockets at the top of the West. Still, there are silver linings; they got a W without Andre Roberson, their best perimeter defender by far, and on the strength of yet another monster performance from slotman Steven Adams. Given the latter’s superlative showing of late, they wouldn’t be faulted if they began touting a Big Four.

Indeed, yesterday wasn’t pretty, but the Thunder at least proved they could protect a lead. They still have two-thirds of their 2017-2018 campaign to get better, and they will. The question is how much, and whether it will be enough to get past the established elite.

Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is the Senior Vice-President and General Manager of Basic Energy Corp.

ING Bank phasing out financing for projects based on coal power

December 15, 2017 | 12:01 am

ING BANK NV said it will avoid funding projects that rely on coal power, drastically reducing the bank’s exposure to the non-renewable energy source by 2025.

In a statement on Wednesday, ING said that with immediate effect, it will seek out clients in the utilities sector with under 10% exposure to coal power.

By the end of 2025, it intends to bring this ratio down to 5%. However, the bank will continue to fund non-coal energy projects to support coal-dependent clients transitioning to cleaner energy sources.

“This is a sharp reduction from the coal policy update that was launched ahead of the Paris Climate Conference in 2015… At that time, we said we’d no longer finance any new clients whose business is over 50% reliant on operating coal-fired power plants,” the statement read.

Meanwhile, the Dutch bank will phase out its lending to coal-fired power plants by the end of 2025. This is in support to its 2015 decision to refrain from funding that type of power plant, excluding standing commitments.

“We [realize] that contributing to the Paris Agreement targets is also about making clear choices in what we’ll no longer finance, especially when there are good alternatives available,” ING Vice-Chairman Koos Timmermans was quoted as saying in the statement.

“We are taking this decisive step as part of our overall ambition to support the energy transition,” he added.

ING has been supporting sustainable energy projects as well as those seeking to mitigate climate change.

The bank has provided financial support for renewable energy projects worth €29 billion, in addition to €4 billion in direct loan exposure to renewables at end-November. This amounts to 60% of ING’s total utilities sector portfolio.

ING served as the lead arranger for the 150-megawatt Burgos Wind Farm in Ilocos Norte in 2014. — Karl Angelo N. Vidal

Making The Crown

December 15, 2017 | 12:01 am

NETFLIX’s award-winning series The Crown launched its second season on Dec. 8, continuing the series’ exquisite narration of Britain’s history through the reign of Queen Elizabeth II.

The Crown Season 2 shows the queen’s younger years as the monarch and her family live through the 1950s and the swinging ’60s.

“Season 2 picks up from 1956 and continues with the Suez crisis and it then goes from 1956 to 1963,” Andy Stebbing, the series’ co-producer, said in an interview at the series’ main filming location, Elstree Studios in Hertfordshire, England.

As in the first season, the show’s producers wanted to depict Britain’s major political events in painstaking detail but were quick to point out that the series is “not a documentary” but a “character-driven drama” written by Peter Morgan, the show’s creator.

“The detail is probably what makes it so good and so watchable. We’re trying to show our audience what it’s like being part of the royal family, so the detail is incredibly important, especially to get the [historical] events right. We spend a lot of time trying to get the detail right, from the costumes to the actors, even down to the extras — from the footman to the number of horses there were in the real event. But then sometimes it is good to deviate from that as well,” Stebbing said.

To show how much work goes into making The Crown, Stebbing, along with the show’s supervising art director Mark Ragget, costume designer Jane Petrie, costume coordinator Jo Bradley, and textile artist Louisa Sorrentino, gave a group of visiting journalists a tour of the show’s production sets at Elstree Studios.

The Crown 1 — Mark Ragget, *The Crown*’s supervising art director, said the show employs scenic artists whose job is to “age” set pieces. *The Crown* Season 2, he explained, depicts a post-war Britain, which means interiors of royal residences were not looked after and “were a bit of run-down.” Scenic artists would then come to the set to do marbling and graining, create water stains on furniture and add crackle to paintings to make them look worn. Above photo shows Claire Foy shooting a scene in Lancaster Mansion, one of the show’s film locations. — Photo: Robert Viglasky / Netflix

The Crown 2 — An actor playing the famed photographer Cecil Beaton captures Philip’s (Matt Smith) first official portrait as a Prince. Shot in Lancaster Mansion, one of the show’s film locations.

TheCrown_philip_crown — “You probably heard people refer to it as Queen’s crown and the King’s crown. Well that’s erroneous. There’s no such thing,” said Major David Rankin-Hut, the show’s royal advisor. “There’s only the Royal Crown. But the difference is, when a new queen or king ascends the throne, he or she can change it slightly. Photo shows Queen Elizabeth II (Claire Foy) formally making Philip (Matt Smith) a British Prince — Photo: Robert Viglasky / Netflix

The Crown 5 — Some scenes require computer-generated imagery (CGI) to illustrate the scale of a major event. The show hired a visual effects studio that does crowd replication, photo real digital set extensions, and other visual effects.

The Crown 6 — Scenes that show cars entering and exiting the gates of the Buckingham Palace, politicians gathering at Downing Street, and the queen boarding the plane at the London airport are filmed at Elstree Studios’s back lot and are then edited to add CGI. — Photo: Stuart Hendry / Netflix

The Crown 4 — While the show has a room filled with vintage pieces worn by characters and extras, it also has its own dye shop where Jane Petrie, the show’s costume designer, works with textile artist Louisa Sorrentino to design special outfits for certain scenes. Costume coordinator Jo Bradley said that oftentimes, Petrie would find a picture, which she’ll take down to the dye workshop and have Sorrentino screen-print it into a fabric and have it tailored by a dressmaker. “The costumes that we make for the main cast are not necessarily the exact replica of what the Royal family wore. There is a certain degree of artistic license between Jane and the directors. It gives us an idea of shape and feel. But sometimes there is a change of color or change of shape,” she said. “Jane has got color palettes for each location. So it might be teal and green on one location, or it might be sort of ambers and browns. She does this so the actors kind of pop out a little bit but also as a crowd that they look kind of united,” she said. — Photo: Alex Bailey / Netflix

The Crown 3 — Final preparations for the Queen Mother, played by Victoria Hamilton — Photo: Robert Viglasky / Netflix

TheCrown-costume — Racks of vintage pieces worn by the shows’s characters — Photo: DESWILLIE / Netflix

The Queen (Claire Foy) and Jackie Kennedy (Jodi Balfour) share a moment. — Photo: Alex Bailey / Netflix

Vietnam’s women beat other SE Asians in running companies

December 15, 2017 | 12:01 am

VIETNAM is a bright spot for gender diversity in Southeast Asia, with a recent report showing the country has a higher representation of women serving as board directors and chief executive officers than Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia.

Some 25% of CEOs or board directors in Vietnam are women, according to September data from the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). Women hold 14% of CEO or board level positions in Malaysia and 10% in Singapore. Indonesia came in last among the four countries, at 6%.

“Women in Vietnam lead or own many SMEs and large enterprises which provides positive, visible and diverse role models to other women,” said Ian Grundy of Switzerland-based employment firm Adecco Group AG, the world’s largest provider of temporary workers.

More women in Vietnam, compared with Singapore and Malaysia, are also hoping to be promoted, the BCG report found based on surveying more than 2,000 employees. Malaysia has the largest proportion of female respondents who intend to stay in their current roles.

Beliefs that hinder gender diversity include the misconceptions that promoting women comes at the expense of meritocracy, and that company growth and transformation are more urgent priorities, the report said.

According to another study by Deloitte in June this year, 17.6% of board members in a survey of 50 Vietnamese companies were women. That’s more than double Asia’s average of 7.8%, with developed nations such as Taiwan, Japan and South Korea ranking among the bottom in the region. Women comprised 13.7% and 10.7% of board members in Malaysia and Singapore respectively.

Emerging countries outperform developed countries in Asia in women’s representation on company boards, said Adecco’s Grundy. Vietnam’s progress in gender diversity is partly due to measures by government and businesses to retain and grow female talent, he said.

“Having said that, it is important to remember that Southeast Asia still lags behind Europe and North America,” said Grundy. “And globally we are still some way from achieving optimal gender diversity, which means there is continued effort required from all stakeholders in the region.”— Bloomberg

PSEi rallies above 8,400 on Fed interest rate hike

December 15, 2017 | 12:01 am

LOCAL EQUITIES rallied past the 8,400 level on Thursday, reflecting Wall Street’s gains, as the US Federal Reserve implemented a highly anticipated interest rate hike.

The benchmark index finished 1.21% or 101.45 points higher at 8,461.06 yesterday.

The broader all-shares index likewise gained 1.15% or 56.56 points to 4,938.54.

“Philippine markets gained in a similar fashion as US stocks reacted positively on news even on a widely anticipated Fed rate hike last night,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Managing Director Luis A. Limlingan said in a mobile phone message.

Results of the US Federal Open Market Committee’s (FOMC) two-day meeting which ended on Wednesday included the increase in benchmark lending rate to a target range of 1.25% to 1.5%. The FOMC also said it is mulling three more rate hikes in 2018.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.33% or 80.63 points to 24,585.43. The Nasdaq Composite index meanwhile added 0.20% or 13.48 points to 6,875.80, while the S&P 500 index was slightly down by 0.05% or 1.26 points to 2,662.85.

Summit Securities, Inc. President Harry G. Liu noted that the Fed rate increase has already been absorbed by the market.

“I presume the market is accepting what they see. The US market is stable even with the increased interest rates. (On it’s impact on the Philippines), it’s a very small increase, market already absorbed it,” Mr. Liu said in a phone interview.

At home, after the stock market’s close, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas held fire on monetary policy as inflation remains within target and with economic growth remaining upbeat, which came despite a fresh rate hike in the US that would trigger rising global yields.

As expected, the Monetary Board kept borrowing rates unchanged during its eighth and final review for 2017. Rates were kept at 3.5% for the overnight lending rate, 3% for the overnight reverse repurchase rate, and 2.5% for the overnight deposit rate.

“A buildup in price pressures point to a monetary tightening in 2018,” Mr. Limlingan said.

The mining and oil counter was the lone sector that ended in the red on Thursday, falling by 1.02% or 119.51 points to 11,601.56.

All other sub-indices increased, with holding firms recording the largest gain at 1.79% or 151.11 points to 8,572.80; followed by services, which added 1.44% or 22.96 points to 1,609.14. The property sector was up by 0.97% or 38.22 points to 3,942.78; industrials added 0.75% or 83.96 points to 11,187.26; while financials rose 0.56% or 12.15 points to 2,170.84.

The market logged a value turnover of P7.62 billion, higher than Wednesday’s P6.3 billion, as 1.84 billion issues switched hands.

Foreigners turned buyers, logging net inflow of P1.06 billion, a reversal of Wednesday’s net sales worth P419.27 million.

Gainers outpaced losers, 110 to 103, while 33 issues were unchanged. — Arra B. Francia

Hometown girl wins Negros Island Film Festival awards

December 15, 2017 | 12:01 am

A SHORT film about a man with healing abilities which affected his personal life, recently took home a slew of prizes at the first Sine Negrense: Negros Island Film Festival Awards Ceremony held at SM City Bacolod.

Belle Kay Loyola’s Dalit (Poison) won Best Film, while Noel Armocillo, Jr. was awarded as Best Director and Best Production Design, and John Arceo was lauded for Best Actor, and Louie Dormido for Best Supporting Actor.

The thesis film for Loyola’s Digital Filmmaking Program at De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB), Dalit was inspired “by cultural and historical stories, as well as Filipino beliefs.” She wished to highlight a place where people depend on faith and folk healers.

“I feel so happy that I was given the chance to showcase my film to the residents of my hometown while I studied filmmaking,” she said.

“It’s funny how this film was once just a concept, and for the past months, I have proven that it’s not about who you are as a person, it’s about the perseverance and positivity that you would apply, and the rest will just flow.” Loyola added.

Adobo by Val Vestil, Alibungan by Matthew Piodena, Five Sorrowful Mysteries by Shannan Gonzales, Happy Birthday by Gkie Erebaren, Hawud by Paul Venzi Florendo, Kaasab by Vince Divinagracia, and Handuraw by Gilbert Basilio, among others, likewise competed for top prize.

Alibungan took home the Jury’s Choice, Best Screenplay, and Best Editing awards. Denli Chavez received the Best Actress trophy as Jane, a girl with a traumatic experience, in Happy Birthday, while Kaasab bagged Best Musical Score and Best Supporting Actress for Kim Agnes.

Five Sorrowful Mysteries was hailed as having the Best Cinematography, while Hawud won Best Sound Design.

Festival Director Tanya Lopez described Sine Negrense as “a venue, a platform for local filmmakers to hone their craft, and it’s a good way to promote local talent.” It hopes to develop a new generation of filmmakers and enthusiasts, as well as cultivate an informed public on the importance of storytelling in cinema, to include identity, heritage, and culture.

Lopez had the assistance of Festival co-director Rodolfo Banjo Hinolan and program director Adrian Torres in organizing the event, with the help of the Film Development Council of the Philippines, National Commission for Culture and the Arts, Negros Museum, and Design Brewer.

Your Weekend Guide (December 15, 2017)

December 15, 2017 | 12:01 am

THE DISPLAY of Mark Justiniani’s The Settlement, presented by CANVAS and the Ateneo Art Gallery, has been extended until Jan. 2 at the Unionbank Plaza of Areté, Ateneo de Manila. The Settlement is part of the artist’s current series of assemblages and installations which creates an illusion of infinite space through the careful manipulation of light and mirrors. The external features of artwork look like a shanty while the inside is rich in Philippine historical and cultural references such as martial law, the Marcos burial, the Aguinaldo Hall in Malacañang, Andres Bonifacio, a mananaggal, and a mob of rallyists. The work is on view from Dec. 15 to 24 from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. (it is suggested to visit The Settlement before Simbang Gabi at Ateneo’s Church of the Gesù), then from Dec. 25 to Jan. 2 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

THE Metropolitan Museum of Manila will once again open its gates for free on Dec. 16. There will be a special guided tour of the latest exhibitions for children of the Malate community called Pamaskong Paslit at 10:30 a.m. At 2 p.m., there will be guided tours through the architectural exhibitions at the Met. and at 3:30 p.m., there will be a concert of Christmas carols performed by the UP Manila Chorale. Meanwhile, there will be 50% discounts given on all Met publications and merchandise at the METLab Pop-up Shop. The Met is located at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Complex, Roxas Blvd., Malate, Manila.

Globe Live and 9Works Theatrical present A Christmas Carol the Musical at the Globe Iconic Store Bonifacio High Street Amphitheater in Bonifacio Global City until Dec. 27. Directed by Robbie Guevara, the musical is based on the novel by Charles Dickens. Tickets and schedules are available at TicketWorld (www.ticketworld.com.ph, 891-9999).

THE 1960’s celebration of drugs, sex, love, and peace, Hair — presented by Repertory Philippines — has performances until Dec. 17 at the Onstage Theater, Greenbelt 1, Ayala Center, Makati City. The musical is directed by Chris Millado. Tickets and schedules are available at TicketWorld (www.ticketworld.com.ph, 891-9999).

On its 35^th Concert Season, the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra presents Romancing the Classics Concert IV on Dec. 15, 8 p.m., at the Main Theater of the Cultural Center of the Philippines. The repertoire includes Debussy’s “La Mer,” Rodrigo’s “Fantasia para un Gentilhombre,” and M. Ravel’s “Valse nobles et sentimentales” and “Bolero,” as well as a performance by Uruguayan guitarist Eduardo Fernandez. The show will be conducted by Yoshikazu Fukumura. Tickets are available at TicketWorld (www.ticketworld.com.ph, 891-9999).

The ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra Plays the Music of Jose Mari Chan will be held on Dec. 16, 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. at the Theatre at Solaire, Solaire Resort & Casino, 1 Aseana Ave., Entertainment City, Parañaque City. Tickets and schedules are available at TicketWorld (www.ticketworld.com.ph, 891-9999).

The Ayala Museum’s ArtistSpace presents Cheryl Hironaka’s 13^th solo exhibition La Maison Coquette featuring designs of homes, furniture, interior spaces, and objects. The exhibit runs until Dec. 28. The museum is open from Mondays to Sundays, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Admission is free.

Dancer and Robinsons Malls celebrity endorser Maja Salvador will have a mall show at Robinsons Metro East on Dec. 17, 5 p.m. A meet and greet with 15 lucky fans will be held after the show.

PAW Patrol: Ready for Action, a live kiddie show, will have performances at Robinsons malls. Children will have a chance to become PAW Patrol trainees, do warm-up exercises, and prepare for the major dance number, “Pup Pup Boogie.” Catch the show on Dec. 15 at Robinsons Galleria, Dec. 16 at Robinsons Magnolia, Dec. 17 at Robinsons Galleria Cebu, and Dec. 18 at Robinsons Place Manila. Shows will be at 2 and 4 p.m.

In celebration of Pinkfong’s “Baby Shark” series hitting 1 billion global views on YouTube, Pinkfong’s Grand Asia Concert Tour will come to Manila for interactive shows and meet and greets in selected Robinsons malls: Dec. 15 at Robinsons Metro East, Dec. 16 at Robinsons Galleria, Dec. 17 at Robinsons Manila, and Dec. 18 at Robinsons Lipa. Shows will be at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. Kids will be able to join the mall event for a minimum P1,000 single receipt transaction made at any retail outlet of Robinsons Place Las Piñas, Robinsons Metro East, Robinsons Galleria Ortigas, Robinsons Place Manila and a P500 single receipt transaction for Robinsons Place Imus and Robinsons Place Lipa.

Nation at a Glance — (12/15/17)

December 15, 2017 | 12:00 am

News stories from across the nation. Visit www.bworldonline.com (section: The Nation) to read more national and regional news from the Philippines.

How PSEi member stocks performed — December 14, 2017

December 15, 2017 | 12:00 am

Here’s a quick glance at how PSEi stocks fared on Thursday, December 14, 2017.