A man holding an egg in Lille, northern France. The tainted-eggs scandal that swept Europe this month saw millions of eggs destroyed and caused tens of millions of euros in damage. — AFP
EUROPE’S contaminated egg scare has cost Dutch poultry farmers at least €33 million ($39 million), according to a preliminary estimate by the government.
The scare, triggered by the presence of the insecticide fipronil in eggs, has spread to 18 European countries and even reached as far away as Hong Kong.
“Direct costs to the (Dutch) poultry sector where fipronil was used are estimated at €33 million,” Health Minister Edith Schippers and deputy economy minister Martijn van Dam said in a letter to parliament.
“Of this, €16 million is as a result of the subsequent ban while €17 million derives from measures to rid farms of fipronil contamination,” the ministers said.
Poultry farms on average suffered initial damages of between €120,000 to €200,000, the ministers said.
Their findings are based on an investigation by Wageningen University’s Economic Research Unit.
The estimate does not include nonfarmers in the poultry sector, nor does it take into account further losses in production by farms.
Wednesday’s letter also said investigators from the Dutch Food and Goods watchdog found that Chickfriend, the company that allegedly cleaned chicken pens with fipronil, used a second toxic substance called amitraz.
The insecticide, a mildly toxic chemical used to kill flies, was found to have been used on a single cattle farm that also held chickens, but was not found in the farm’s poultry section, the letter stressed.
“The slaughter of calves at the farm has been suspended until the outcome of the amitraz investigation,” it added
Two owners of Chickfriend briefly appeared in court in connection with the case last week and remain in custody.
Lawmakers are due to debate the fall-out from the crisis on Thursday.
Earlier this month, a Dutch farming federation estimated total damages to be at least €150 million.
The Dutch Farmers and Gardener’s Federation on Wednesday wrote a letter to Van Dam, saying farmers urgently needed assistance as they were facing financial ruin.
“The consequences for the affected businesses are huge,” said Federation Chairman Eric Hubers in a letter which was sent to AFP.
The businesses “are being hit by high costs and face bankruptcy if they get no financial support,” said Hubers, whose federation represents some 50,000 farmers across all sectors.
Millions of eggs have been pulled from supermarket shelves and destroyed across Europe and dozens of poultry farms closed since the fipronil contamination was made public at the start of the month.
Commonly used to get rid of fleas, lice and ticks from animals, fipronil is banned by the European Union from use in the food industry.
The issue has sparked a row between Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany, the three countries at the centre of the crisis, about how long officials knew about the problem.
Belgium has accused the Netherlands of having detected contaminated eggs as far back as November but keeping it quiet. The Netherlands has said it was tipped off about the use of fipronil in pens but did not know it was in eggs.
Belgium meanwhile has admitted it knew about fipronil in eggs in early June but kept it secret because of a fraud investigation.
Belgium became the first country to officially notify the EU’s food safety alert system on July 20, followed by the Netherlands and Germany, but the news did not go public until Aug. 1. — AFP
GOLDEN HAVEN Memorial Park, Inc. named Maribeth C. Tolentino as its new president, after Jerry M. Navarette stepped down from the post.
In a regulatory filing on Wednesday, the Villar-led listed company said Mr. Navarette resigned as president and director “to focus on another endeavor.” Prior to her appointment, Ms. Tolentino was the company’s chief operating officer.
Mr. Navarette is also the president and chief executive officer of another Villar-owned company Starmalls, Inc.
Camille A. Villar, daughter of Golden Haven founder and chairman Manuel B. Villar, Jr., was also elected as director, filling the seat vacated by Mr. Navarette.
Golden Haven, which is involved in memorial park development and death care services, saw its net income grow 24% in the first half of 2017. Revenues jumped 13% to P473 million, driven by higher memorial lot and columbarium sales.
The company completed the construction of the Golden Haven Memorial Chapel and Crematorium in the San Ezekiel complex in the first half of the year.
To date, Golden Haven has launched eight memorial park developments, with a total area of over 66 hectares, throughout the country.
No longer is traffic useful as an excuse for being late. It’s too trite. On the other hand, can fear of traffic and making too ample an allowance for its dilatory effect cause one to arrive too early for an appointment?
Given our penchant for “Filipino time,” is tardiness more forgivable than being too punctual or worse being ahead of time?
Showing up on the dot at the time indicated on the invitation is likely to land one in the company of caterers fixing tablecloths or a surprised host coming out of the bedroom in their boxer shorts. (Is the dinner for tonight?)
The early bird invites the same disconcerted stare accorded to a burglar that has managed to elude the guards.
Those who take time seriously clash with the majority who carelessly take invitations that specify time as a form of an inside joke. Stated start times are like the appliance store’s recommended sticker prices which are there only to be routinely slashed for a 30% discount.
The early bird is punished. His compulsive punctuality is a social blight that requires him to affect an appearance of looking only mildly bored rather than stressed. While waiting for a late lunch companion, Mr. Punctuality is repeatedly approached by a waiter for his order, if only to justify depriving hovering guests outside (please wait to be seated) of a table occupied by someone staring at the entrance with the concentration of a retarded dog, willing the absent master to come and rescue him from humiliation. (Sir, here’s a basket of complimentary bread to occupy you.)
Looking at the watch and loudly clicking the tongue are uncontrollable tics. Such body language communicates to the curious table nearby that Mr. P actually has a purpose-driven life. He sends texts to the absent companion — I’m in the last chapter of Brothers Karamazov. Ordering soup, while waiting for the late mate, is a bad move. It concedes defeat and surrenders to the premise that Mr. P is really eating by himself as if waiting for an imaginary friend. Why else did he bring a thick book?
When finally the late mate shows up, she is not at all stressed. She may go through the motions of an apology — I had to finish watching the director’s cut of Lord of the Rings. If I leave it, I lose track of the characters’ names. This flimsy expected is expected to be accepted without a fuss, accompanied by an accusation — you’re always too early.
The early bird has to be rid of his socially unaccepted behavior. If everybody agrees to be late, why not simply join them, adopt the practice, and move the posted time by an hour, or if this seems to radical, maybe, 45 minutes. The solution is simplicity itself.
But… what if posted time is in fact the expected hour? What if there is already a budding social movement to extend the courtesy of punctuality in all appointments both business and social? Should the early bird not show solidarity with them?
Mr. Punctuality is incorrigible. He sets the alarm and wakes up ahead of the ring. He is restless when he has an appointment and knows he needs to work backwards and determine when he should get ready and figure out travel time to make it to a meeting on time, allowing for a an upended 10-wheeler truck blocking the traffic and dealing with a motorcycle dinging his side mirror.
Still, socially acceptable local laggards here manage to be punctual when traveling to other cultures, managing to get to their train schedules and showing up for the lobby pickup by the local tour guide.
Certain business appointments also require timeliness. The conference call that engages twenty people from all around the world to discuss financial results require synchronized punctuality.
One is occasionally rewarded by like-minded friends who show up at the agreed time. Sometimes, there are even more punctual freaks that arrive at the meeting place 15 minutes ahead of time. They can show some slack — you’re not late, my friend. I’m just a little early. Of course, next time, the merely punctual one will be ahead of time too.
As part of the list of characteristics for a utopian world, it will be latecomers who will be given the bewildered stare — do you have another meeting here?
FORMER MISAMIS Oriental governor Oscar S. Moreno, now the mayor of Cagayan de Oro City, will be facing more graft charges in connection with the lease of heavy equipment from 2007 to 2012, which the Commission on Audit (CoA) has disallowed. In 16 separate resolutions, Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales ordered the filing before the Sandiganbayan of 18 counts of violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (Republic Act No. 3019) against Mr. Moreno. In related administrative cases, the Ombudsman has already held Mr. Moreno guilty of grave misconduct, serious dishonesty, and falsification of public documents, among other charges. He was ordered dismissed from service in early June and meted the accessory penalties of perpetual disqualification from holding public office, forfeiture of retirement benefits, cancellation of eligibility, and bar from taking civil service examination. The dismissal order is under a pending reconsideration case before the Court of Appeals. Included as Mr. Moreno’s co-accused are several former provincial officials, namely: Divina Bade, Cancio Guibone, Elmer Wabe, Patrick Gabutina, Rolando Pacuribot, Danilo Maputol, Elsie Lopoy, and Administrative Aide Leemar Tinagan. The COA Special Audit Report on equipment rental of the provincial government of Misamis Oriental for 2007 to 2012 “revealed that the road maintenance program of the province received the biggest share of the non-office projects and that the expenses for rental equipment is the third-biggest expenditure under maintenance and other operating expenses. The CoA also stated that the disbursements for equipment rental were irregular, with transactions amounting to P20,500,000.00 considered as fictitious as suppliers denied participation in the bidding process.” Mr. Moreno and his co-accused provincial officials also allegedly did not conduct any public bidding for the multi-million peso lease deals.
LONDON — Sea Quest Hero is more than just the usual computer game in which players find their way through mazes, shoot and chase creatures — it also doubles as scientists’ latest tool for studying Alzheimer’s disease.
Computer screenshot of Sea Hero Quest
The game — downloadable from Aug. 30 in its virtual reality version — seeks to stimulate players’ brains through a series of tasks based on memory and orientation skills, while gathering data to research dementia.
One of the first symptoms of Alzheimer’s is loss of navigational skills. But data comparing cognitive response across a broad spectrum of ages is rare, and this is what the game seeks to provide.
The game — billed as the “largest dementia study in history” — has been developed by Deutsche Telekom, Alzheimer’s Research UK and scientists from University College London and the University of East Anglia.
The mobile version, which came out in 2016, has already been downloaded three million times in 193 countries.
Playing the game for just two minutes, the website said, generates the same amount of data scientists would take five hours to collect in similar lab-based research.
With the equivalent of 63 years already played, scientists now have some 9,500 years worth of dementia research to go through.
“That gave us an enormous amount of information and it really allowed us to understand how men and women of different ages navigate in the game,” David Reynolds, chief scientific officer at Alzheimer’s Research UK, told AFP.
Resolving the tasks requires the use of “different parts of your brain and different parts of your brain are used in different ways by different types of dementia — so it allows us to link what someone can do to what is going on in their brain,” Reynolds added.
50 MILLION SUFFERERS
The addition of virtual reality will provide yet another layer of data.
“The headset technology is helping to track where the person is looking at all times as well as where they’re going,” Lauren Presser, one of the game’s producers, told AFP.
Nearly 50 million people around the world suffer from dementia and Alzheimer’s according to the latest estimates. This figure could balloon to 132 million by 2050.
Game’s creators hope it could eventually enable diagnosis and treatments of patients far earlier than is currently possible.
“We know keeping your brain fit and active, like keeping your body fit and active, is good and is helping to reduce your risk of dementia or slowing its progression down if you have it,” he said. — AFP
When Fitbit introduced the Flex 2 in late 2016, Fitbit fans rejoiced because the pioneering maker of wearable fitness trackers has finally introduced a swim-proof fitness device. Not only that, Fitbit wanted to step up its game (pun intended) and make the Flex 2 a fashionable wearable by coming up with accessory options, which included colored bands, metallic bangles and necklaces. Did Fitbit succeed in rolling out the ultimate wear-it-anywhere fitness accessory? Read on.
DESIGN
Compared to Fitbit Flex, which was launched in 2013, the Flex 2 comes with a slimmer band that has textured surface and rounded edges. The thinness of the band and its edges don’t trap sweat as much as a flat band would, which helps minimize that vinegar-like (sweaty) smell that rubber strap leaves behind every time you take it off your wrist – something Fitbit users often complain about. (I reviewed the Fitbit Charge 2 before and I had the ‘smelly wrist’ problem, especially after working out, which was why I found it necessary to wash the band frequently before putting it on again on my way to work.)
The Flex 2 is easy to put on (it’s a struggle to take off, however), and it’s light as a feather. I’d often forget that I have it on unless it vibrates to remind me to get up and move. Now, the notification can be tricky, and since the Flex 2 doesn’t have a screen, it took me a while to become familiar with its five colored lights indicator. More on this later.
Included in the box is the Fitbit mini tracker, a short charging cable, and two Classic Fitbit wristbands (large and small). Aside from black, three other colored bands (navy, gray and yellow) can be purchased as a set for P1,490 via Lazada.com.ph. For those who want turn the Flex 2 into a piece of jewelry, Fitbit’s online store sells Flex 2 metallic bangles and necklace with a pendant. With prices ranging from $80 to $100, these accessories come in stainless steel, 22-karat gold plated, and 22-karat rose gold plated variants.
PERFORMANCE
Setting up the Flex 2 requires you to install the free Fitbit mobile app first, where the device will have to be synced regularly to monitor your progress. Here, Fitbit will require you to create an account and answer some questions. The app will use your answers for various calculations, such as stride lengths to estimate distance and basal metabolic rate to estimate calorie burn. Once you’ve set your fitness goals and the app has analyzed your personal data, the app will create scheduled notifications on the fitness tracker to give you gentle reminders and keep you moving towards your goal.
Flex 2’s core features can be seen on the app’s dashboard. It will show you how the device records your daily physical activities: how many steps you’ve made during the day, how much calories you’ve burned, how much sleep you’ve had, as well as your exercise history. For the latter, Fitbit automatically recognizes a range of exercises, which includes Pilates and swimming. Alas, the Flex 2 doesn’t come with a heart rate monitor like Fitbit’s premium models do.
Since a screen is absent, the Flex 2’s alert system takes A LOT of getting used to. When I say a lot, we’re talking about agonizing first few weeks of trying to memorize the light patterns to understand what the Flex 2 wants to tell you every time it calls your attention. Don’t believe me? Here’s one of the many Flex 2’s light indicators from Fitbit’s website:
“Tap your Flex 2 to see your progress towards your daily activity goal. Each solid white light represents 25% of your goal, so for example, if your goal is 10,000 steps and you see four white lights, you’ve gone at least 7500 steps. When you reach your goal Flex 2 vibrates and the lights flash in celebration. If you check your progress after you’ve surpassed your goal you’ll see a flashing green light and four white lights.”
And that’s just for your progress. If you want call alerts on the device, Fitbit says the Flex 2 will vibrate twice and you’ll see a pattern of one blue light and four white lights repeated four times, or until you answer the call or double tap Flex 2 to dismiss the notification. Still not confused? Don’t get me started on the indicator for charging the device.
At times, I had to give up on the notifications and just open the app to see what the tracker recorded for the day. It felt like checking your answering machine and listening to voice messages.
The confusing notifications aside, the Flex 2 has some nifty features. Unlike the Fitbit Charge 2, this wearable tracker is so light that I could wear it all day; I could even sleep with it. Its battery also lasts 4-5 days before recharging, which is long enough for me.
I also find the sleep tracking feature very useful since I have an irregular sleeping habit, which I only realized upon reading the app’s weekly report of my sleeping hours.
The automatic tracking of different activities is also useful although at times it mistakenly identifies certain activities as exercises. The Flex 2, for one, thought I did “outdoor biking” for a few minutes when, in fact, I only drove my way to work. I didn’t mind since Fitbit rewarded me with a Sneakers badge because of it.
What the Flex 2 does well, however, is its ability to track swimming. The device can record a swimmer’s pace and the distance covered. The Flex 2 worked okay even for a novice swimmer like me, although Fitbit says there might be inconsistencies in one’s swim data log if the swimmer takes a break often if one changes the swimming style. On its website, Fitbit recommends continuous swimming and freestyle swimming for the Flex 2 to produce consistent data.
The Fitbit app uses a gaming reward system that sends badges every time you hit a milestone or crush a goal. It also suggests other Fitbit apps that work well with the device such as the Fitstar Personal Trainer, which helps if someone doesn’t have time to go the gym.
VERDICT
The Flex 2 works great as an everyday wearable because it’s discreet enough for the wearer to forget it’s there. It’s a basic fitness tracker that delivers on its promises despite the complicated notification system and the lack of a heart rate monitor, which most fitness trackers have. If you’re looking for a full-fledged fitness tracking device, you’ll have to turn to the Flex 2’s bigger and more expensive siblings, but if you’re a swimmer and you need your tracker to report just the basic stats, this is it.
Fitbit Flex 2 retails for P5,490. What’s included: tracker, charging cable, two wristbands (large and small)
DAVAO CITY’S water distributor has urged the city council to hasten the approval of the proposed P10-billion bulk water project as services worsen, particularly in the second district.
“This is an urgent request for approval of application for allowable use (for the bulk supply project source),” said Davao City Water District (DCWD) spokesman Bernardo D. Delima as he appeared before the council on Tuesday, where he was questioned by councilors over the longstanding water supply problem in the northeastern and central parts of the city.
The pending bulk water supply project — to be undertaken by Apo Agua Infrastructura, Inc (AAII), a partnership between Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Inc. (AEV) and J.V. Angeles Construction Corp. (JVACC) — is awaiting the city council’s approval after it was remanded to the committee level.
AAII has an exclusive contract with DCWD to supply 300 million liters of water per day for 30 years, beginning 2019.
AAII was aiming to start construction of the project, which will source water from the Tamugan River, by the fourth quarter this year.
“Apo Agua said it is still within the timetable. This means that once the permit is granted civil works will be fast-tracked,” Mr. Delima said.
AAII General Manager Cirilo Almario III, for his part, told the councilors that once they get the allowable use permit, they will immediately apply for a Certification for Eligibility to Convert from the Department of Agriculture and then to the Department of Agrarian Reform for land conversion.
Mr. Almario said with the delay in securing permits from government agencies, the project could start operations by the middle of 2020 instead of 2019.
In the meantime, DCWD General Manager Edwin V. Regalado said the district is carrying out works to address the supply problems.
“We will be able to provide 24-hour water supply to all areas in Cabantian in the second district once we complete all necessary interventions by December this year, “Mr. Regalado said.
DCWD serves 212,995 connections through 10 independent water supply systems using ground water sources.
Of the total service area, about 5% or 10,312 connections are under the Cabantian Water Supply System.
“Due to massive housing development in the area, the recharge zone has been significantly diminished resulting in the slower replenishment of the aquifer in the area, and aggravated by the El Niño phenomenon in 2015-2016 resulting in actual flow of only 5,930 cubic meters,” Cherry Mae Hidalgo of DCWD’s Engineering Department said. — Carmencita A. Carillo
6th Annual Washington International
Rockville, Maryland
Aug. 12-16, 2017
Final Top Standings
1. GM Oliver Barbosa PHI 2533, 7.0/9
2-4. GM Joshua Friedel USA 2536, GM Eugene Perelshteyn USA 2507, IM Yang Kaiqi CHN 2441, 6.5/9
5-13. GM Niclas Huschenbeth GER 2575, GM Evgeny Postny ISR 2570, GM Fabien Libiszewski FRA 2523, GM Carlos Hevia Alejano CUB 2497, IM John Burke USA 2489, GM Akshat Chandra USA 2480, GM Alexander Fishbein USA 2460, GM Denes Boros HUN 2452, IM Michael Song CAN 2419, 6.0/9
14-21. GM Samuel Sevian USA 2620, GM Mark Paragua PHI 2500, GM Darwin Yang USA 2493, IM Prasanna Rao IND 2455, IM Nicolas Checa USA 2454, IM Prav Balakrishnan USA 2427, IM Rolando Nolte PHI 2394, IM Michael Mulyar USA 2393, 5.5/9
Total of 75 Participants
Time Control: 90 minutes for 40 moves, followed by 20 minutes to the end of the game, with a 30-second increment from move 1
Remember GM Oliver Barbosa? All Filipino chessers should. In the 40th Chess Olympiad (Istanbul) where the Philippines was in the lead deep into the tournament (we beat Iceland, Bulgaria drew with Hungary and clobbered England in successive rounds) Barbosa was 2nd board, played in all 11 rounds and scored five wins four draws and two losses.
That was one memorable Olympiad. Our powerful lineup was:
board 1. GM Wesley So
board 2. GM Oliver Barbosa
board 3. GM Eugene Torres
board 4. GM Mark Paragua
board 5. IM Oliver Dimakiling
This was the last good performance for our country in the Olympiads, and you may notice that our board 1, 2 and 4 have already left Philippine shores and live in the USA. Wesley has transfiliated to the US Chess Federation, but Oliver and Mark (on paper at least) still play for the Philippines.
Filipino Grandmaster Oliver Barbosa reviews games during Chess NYC’s Nationals Prep Team Invitational. — Photo credit: Facebook/@newyorkcitychess
How is GM Oliver Barbosa doing? He is still only 30 years old (born Sept. 29, 1986) and obviously a lot of successes lie ahead of him. The problem is that several years ago the Philippine Sports Commission cut the allowances of many of our top chessplayers. This forced several of our best players, including Oliver, to leave the country seeking greener pastures.
International Grandmaster Richard Bitoon went to Texas, where another Filipino GM, Julio Catalino Sadorra, stays.
Grandmasters Mark Paragua and Oliver Barbosa wound up in New York where they tried to eke out a life in its tournament circuit and enroll chess students to pay for their daily bills.
Slowly, things started to look up for Oliver. New York has a thriving chess culture and Barbosa’s tremendous chess strength and very obvious talent helped him sign up a lot of paying students. Then he married the former Shine Gordovez, a Senior Fraud Specialist working in J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. Previous to that she was with the Philippine Heart Center.
Nowadays he does not play so much but once in a while reminds all of us just what a strong player he is. I will let him tell you about the 6th Washington International.
“The Washington International is one of the best organized tournament here in the US. Grandmasters have free accommodation and even guaranteed minimum prizes, which is why a lot of so a lot of GMs play in this tournament. I feel lucky to have won this tournament since there were a lot of higher rated players. Also, I don’t have the luxury of time to study and prepare top level chess anymore since I am working as a chess teacher here in NY. I would say previous preparations helped me a lot, experience in top level play and me being a very resourceful player helped me win this event. I’d like to thank Mr. Mike Reagan for organizing that tournament, and to my family and wife for their never ending support all the way.”
GM Barbosa sent me two of his games from Washington with his annotations. I will show you one today and the other on Tuesday.
His opponent in the following game, GM Eugene Perelshteyn is a well-known guy in US chess circles. Originally from Ukraine, his family moved to the US when he was still a child. Born 1980, Perelshteyn was the US Junior Champion in 2000. He has written two chess books on the opening and is the developer of the Android application, Chess Genie, a collection of puzzles for tactics training.
* * * Barbosa, Oliver (2533) — Perelshteyn, Eugene (2507) [B14]
Washington International (7), 15.08.2017
This is a crucial game for me. I remember I played Eugene before and I lost so I need to get back to him and this is the perfect opportunity for me.
1.Nf3 c5 2.c4
We’re not going for crazy Sicilian lines, let’s go to quieter positions.
2…g6 3.e3
Not really the main line though I am trying to arrive at a particular middlegame position as you will see later in the game. I don’t have much time for preparation nowadays so it’s a good thing I can use some of my preparations when I was really active on tournament play.
3…Bg7 4.d4 cxd4 5.exd4 d5 6.cxd5
Isolated pawn! It’s considered a weakness most of the time but this game shows the good points of having one.
6…Nf6
No rush in taking the pawn back. 6…Qxd5 7.Nc3 Qa5 8.Bb5+ Bd7 9.Bc4
9…Nf6 10.Qb3 0–0 11.Bxf7+ (11.Qxb7? Bc6 12.Qxe7 Bxf3 13.gxf3 Nc6 14.Qc5 Qxc5 15.dxc5 Nd4 16.Kf1 A bit messy but white should still have the advantage) 11…Rxf7 12.Ne5 e6 13.Qxb7 Nd5 14.Nxf7 (14.Qxa8 Bxe5 15.dxe5 Qb6 gets white’s king and queen both in trouble) 14…Nxc3 15.Nh6+ Bxh6 16.Bxh6 Nb5+ 17.Bd2 Qb6 Black is slightly better;
9…Qb4 10.Qe2 Nf6 11.0–0 0–0 12.Bd2 White has a slight advantage.
7.Bc4 0–0 8.Nc3 Nbd7 9.0–0 Nb6 10.Bb3 Nbxd5
Now this is the position I’m trying to reach. An isolated pawn. One of the positive points of having an isolated pawn is that you have more space and more active pieces and having said that of course I would make use of my pieces to create an attack rather than trade them.
11.Re1
Rooks should be on open or half open files.
11…b6 12.Bg5 Bb7 13.Rc1 Nxc3 14.bxc3
Having an isolated pawn on the side is better than having an isolated pawn at the center.
14…Rc8 15.Qd3
Prevents Ne4 from black and also threatens the g6 pawn if ever black decides to kick my active bishop on g5.
15…Qd6 16.Ne5
Centralization! This move also restricts black from moving his f8 rook.
16…e6
I think this is a critical point in the game. Both sides have finished their development and it’s time for some planning. The computer engine suggests h3 but of course I think it would hurt my position much if I play it out to h4 and maybe later play h5 weakening black’s kingside formation.
17.h4 Nd5 18.c4 Ne7
This is a mistake I calculated and hoped that he would fall for when I played 17.h4. There are two alternatives here.
First is 18…Nf6, a move that is hard to accept but it is more about provocation, tempting me to play c4 and block my own bishop. 19.Qe3 Nd7 20.h5 keeps an edge though.
After 18…Nb4 the continuation would be 19.Qd2 (19.Qh3 Nc6 with a repetition) Nc6 20.Nxc6 Qxc6 21.d5 Qc5 22.dxe6 Bd4 23.Be3 and White still has the edge.
19.c5!
Before I start the combination, every piece should be working including the bishop on b3.
19…bxc5 <D>
POSITION AFTER 19…BXC5
20.Nxf7! Qxd4
Everything loses:
20…Kxf7 21.Rxe6;
20…Rxf7 21.Rxe6 Qxd4 22.Qxd4 Bxd4 23.Rxe7 Bxf2+ 24.Kh2 Rcf8 25.Bh6 and every black piece falls apart.
21.Qxd4
Later on, I determined that 21.Bxe6 was more efficient. I had actually thought of this move but stopped after 21…Qxd3 22.Ne5+ Kh8 23.Nxd3 Rc7 (23…Rce8 24.Bd7) 24.Rxc5 Nc6. I should have thought about it a bit longer for then I would surely have seen 25.Bf4 Re7 26.Bd6 and wins easily.
21…Bxd4 22.Bxe6 Rc7 23.Bf4
Now, wherever the rooks goes, it ends up getting captured by the knight’s discovered check.
Inaccurate! even though I’m still winning one shouldn’t miss opportunities like this. Correct was 28.Re8+ Kg7 29.g3!
28…Rf8 29.Nxc8 Rxc8 30.Rf1 1–0
We have run out of space so you will have to wait till Tuesday to see the other game Oliver annotated.
Bobby Ang is a founding member of the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) and its first Executive Director. A Certified Public Accountant (CPA), he taught accounting in the University of Santo Tomas (UST) for 25 years and is currently Chief Audit Executive of the Equicom Group of Companies.
DOLLAR NOTES to be floated by BDO Unibank, Inc. fetched investment grade status from Moody’s Investors Service, on the back of the lender’s stable funding profile as it seeks to raise fresh capital.
In a statement, the international debt watcher gave a “Baa2” rating with a “stable” outlook for BDO’s dollar-denominated issuances under its $2-billion medium-term note (MTN) program since 2012.
“The Baa2 senior debt rating is anchored on BDO’s baa2 baseline credit assessment and Moody’s expectation of a very high probability of systemic support from the Philippine government,” the credit rater said, pointing out that the rating matched the current status held by the Philippines which was last affirmed in June.
The country’s biggest bank in asset terms unveiled an offshore debt program in 2012 in order to raise funds for corporate loans, especially to those taking on infrastructure projects under the government’s infrastructure program.
The note program serves as a flexible facility for companies to issue foreign currency notes in global capital markets, and are offered on a continuing basis. The listed lender previously said that funds raised through its MTN program will be used for general funding and re-lending.
BDO can float dollar bonds in tranches until such time when it maximizes the approved amount of $2 billion.
Moody’s has given the same rating for BDO’s issuance of dollar debt papers in October last year, which came ahead of the bank’s announcement of the offering at the local bourse. Back then, the bank sold $300 million bonds in the offshore market which it used to settle maturing debts.
The offering fetched a coupon rate of 2.630%, which is deemed the “lowest ever” seen for a Philippine issuer.
The debt watcher said the next tranche of the bonds will come with a five to 5.5-year tenor, to be listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange.
Moody’s gave the Baa2 rating — which is a notch above minimum investment grade — to BDO’s fund-raising exercise as it took note of the bank’s “stable” asset quality and loss-absorbing buffers, coupled with its prominent and “growing” franchise, more than sufficient capital buffers, stable profitability, and robust funding and liquidity profiles.
On the other hand, the debt watcher also noted some weakness in BDO’s “relatively unseasoned” loan book and its high concentration in the manufacturing sector. — Melissa Luz T. Lopez
WASHINGTON — Damage from hurricane Harvey could put it among the top five most costly US storms ever, with failing dams and levees driving up loss forecasts, data modeling showed Tuesday.
Estimates for total economic costs and damage shot up overnight to $42 billion from $30 billion, as flooding began to spread to Louisiana and flood control measures became overwhelmed, according to Chuck Watson, founder of the disaster modeling firm Enki Research.
While authorities still focused on rescuing survivors on Tuesday, the question of the storm’s aftermath — and its expected long-lasting hit to the Texas and US economies — was only beginning to come into view.
Recent research also shows natural disasters can result in more concentrated poverty in former disaster areas.
“If Harvey were your normal hurricane it would be probably a $4 billion event,” Mr. Watson told AFP. “That would be tragic for the people affected, but for the effect on the macroeconomy, we wouldn’t be talking about it at all.”
As yet, the storm is nowhere near as costly as 2005’s hurricane Katrina, which took a $118 billion bite out of the regional economy.
But at $42 billion in unrecoverable economic losses, Harvey would be about as damaging as hurricane Ike, which struck Texas and parts of the Caribbean at a cost of $43 billion in 2008, and hurricane Wilma, which tore through North America in 2005, with a cost of nearly $38 billion, according to Watson’s estimates.
And the Harvey estimate could still go up.
A US energy hub with $1.6 trillion in annual economic output, Texas accounts for nearly 9% of America’s GDP, the second largest state economy after California — and larger than Canada or South Korea. — AFP
THE PESO moved sideways yesterday, slipping slightly, as the dollar fetched some gains as sentiment recovered following geopolitical tensions between United States and North Korea.
The local currency closed at P51.13 versus the greenback, down two centavos from Tuesday’s P51.11-per-dollar finish.
The peso opened weaker at P51.14 and hit an intraday low of P51.24 against the dollar. It touched the previous day’s level as its best showing during the session before settling at the closing rate.
Analysts attributed the peso’s slight depreciation to geopolitical concerns offshore, with the currency merely moving sideways as it reacted to dollar movements.
“Most of the movements were dictated by overall movements by the dollar,” one trader said in a phone interview. “The dollar extended a bit on its gains last Tuesday, but it was not meaningful. Easing tensions probably capped the topside to dollar-peso trading.”
Dollars traded on Wednesday reached $567.45 million, slightly higher than the $548.9 million that exchanged hands the previous day, although at a level that’s slightly below average, the trader said.
Another observer pointed out that market players may be on a wait-and-see mode ahead of key economic data in the US, which could shed some light on the next moves of the Federal Reserve.
“Geopolitical risks in the region, Hurricane Harvey’s impact in the US and US labor data are this week’s market fixation,” ING Bank N.V. Manila senior economist Jose Mario I. Cuyegkeng said in a separate market commentary, as he pointed out that investors have shifted to risk aversion following North Korea’s missile launch towards Japan on Tuesday.
“Market caution would likely remain for most of this week until clearer actions and responses from the US come to fore,” the bank economist said.
Reuters reported that investor concerns over Pyongyang’s decision to launch a ballistic missile towards Japan have begun to recede, which comes after US President Donald J. Trump issued what appeared to be a more diplomatic statement which helped ease tensions.
Mr. Trump said “all options are on the table” in dealing with North Korea’s actions, which was more measured than his previous call of responding with “fire and fury” amid threats to fire Guam, a US territory.
Due this week are data on labor, manufacturing, construction spending, and car sales — all of which may bare hints as to whether the US economy is sustaining its recovery in line with the Fed’s expectations.
For today, the trader expects the peso to trade between P51-51.25, amid expectations that the local unit will simply track the dollar. Meanwhile, Mr. Cuyegkeng sees a P50.95-51.30 range.
ASIAN CURRENCIES RISE
Most emerging Asian currencies rose on Wednesday, with the Chinese yuan hitting its highest level in over a year, as investors’ concerns over North Korea’s latest missile launch eased.
North Korea’s launch on Tuesday of a ballistic missile over northern Japan initially spooked investors and triggered a slide in the dollar, but North Korean media reports lacked the usual claims of technical advances, suggesting the test may not have gone as planned.
China’s yuan rose to its highest since June 23, 2016, and was headed for a fourth straight session of gains after the central bank set sharply firmer guidance and following stronger institutional and corporate dollar sales.
Prior to market opening on Wednesday, the People’s Bank of China raised its official yuan midpoint to 6.6102 per dollar, the strongest since Aug. 17, 2016.
The South Korean won was quoted at 1,122 as of 0509 GMT, up 0.4% compared to Tuesday’s close of 1,126.4. Meanwhile, Malaysia’s ringgit and the Indian rupee inched down.
“First, risk sentiment is better due to lowered tensions with North Korea. ‘All options are on the table’ sounds less threatening than ‘fire and fury’, said Sean Yokota, head of Asia strategy at Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken.
“Second, the Chinese yuan’s strength is dragging Asian FX (foreign exchange) stronger. The central bank seems okay with a stronger currency.”
Currency traders are now looking to US non-farm payrolls data for August, due on Friday, following data that showed US consumer confidence surged to a five-month high in August as the labor market improved and house prices rose. — Melissa Luz T. Lopezwith Reuters
FRANCE faces its poorest wine harvest since 1945 after an unusually mild March and frosty April, experts said Friday, although a hot summer promises to deliver top vintages.
“At harvests everywhere, in places where we thought there would be a little less, there’s a lot less,” said Jerome Despey, the head of a governmental wine advisory board.
This year’s harvest will be “the smallest since 1945,” Despey told a news conference.
The agriculture ministry said output was expected to total 37.2 million hectoliters, 18% less than 2016 and 17% below the average over the past five years.
The 2016 harvest was already one of the poorest in 30 years.
Despey said the ministry figures were based on assessments made early this month before the start of the harvests, which have now begun in the southeast, about two weeks earlier than usual.
Despey, who is also secretary general of France’s biggest farmers union FNSEA, told AFP last week he expected a 40% drop in output in the prime wine-growing region of Bordeaux, the country’s largest.
Vineyards in northeastern Alsace, which produces mainly white wines, were also hard hit.
The new drop in production is “mainly attributable to the severe spring frost that affected all the wine-growing regions to varying degrees at a sensitive time for the vine,” the agriculture ministry said.
The bitter cold struck twice within a week in April, ravaging the fragile shoots and buds that had emerged prematurely following mild temperatures in March.
To combat the frost, nervous wine makers in Bordeaux set fires in oil drums, then positioned them carefully between the rows of budding grapevines. Giant fans were also deployed to battle the cold, damp air settling on the plants.
Some losses are also anticipated in the Burgundy region, where the grapes have been repeatedly hit by hail in recent years.
Vineyards in the south, Beaujolais and the Rhone valley suffered an exceptionally dry summer that will further depress yields, the agriculture ministry said.
One advantage of drought is that it reduces the impact of diseases on the vines.
The maturity and good health of the grapes point to a “year 2017 that will stand out for quality, happily,” Despey said.
In the five years to 2016, hail knocked out as much as half of Burgundy’s harvest, according to the Global Wine Risk Index.
The index covers 110,000 wineries in 131 countries producing about 26 billion liters every year.
Switzerland, Austria, Germany and Hungary also suffered frost this year that could claim 30% — up to 60% in some parts — of the harvest in those countries.
Wine, which is one of France’s top exports, is “a highly vulnerable industry,” said researcher James Daniell of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany.
About 10% of wine production is lost to natural hazards every year at an estimated loss of $10 billion, he said.
At the prestigious Vinexpo wine fair in Bordeaux in June, wine makers brainstormed over how to mitigate challenges to their livelihood posed by climate change.
Producers have found that global warming can cause grapes to ripen earlier, which changes their sugar and acid levels, leading to lower-quality wines with higher alcohol content.
Some are using low-tech approaches to delay harvesting times and increase soil moisture, experimenting with pruning later or using grape varieties that take longer to ripen, thrive in warmer climes or are resistant to drought.
But these grapes are not yet ready to be turned into great wines, experts say. — AFP
