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More American tourists head to Japan as battered yen beckons

JAPANESE Yen and US dollar banknotes are seen in this illustration taken March 10, 2023. — REUTERS

AMERICAN TOURISTS headed for Japan have surged this year, lured by a slump in the value of the yen, which is also driving a massive jump in foreign investor interest in the country’s lodgings market.

The number of Americans arriving in Japan by air crossed more than 900,000 in the first five months of 2024, climbing 17.4% year over year and vaulting 35.5% from 2019 before the pandemic, the International Trade Administration data showed.

While pent-up travel demand since the end of the pandemic has also contributed, the Japanese currency’s recent plunge to a 38-year low to the US dollar has been a key factor, as it boosts the spending power of American tourists.

Since the end of the pandemic, demand has been booming across the Asia-Pacific, drawing in travelers from China, as well as long-haul visitors from North America with more Americans opting to travel internationally.

“The weakened yen compared to the US dollar makes the entire travel experience more affordable for American tourists,” said Tim Hentschel, chief executive officer of travel bookings platform HotelPlanner.

Foreign investments in the Japanese hotel industry have also seen a sharp spike. Cross-border investments in the industry came in at $1.38 billion in the first half of this year, up 19.2% from the same period of 2023, and 176.3% compared to the first half of 2019, according to MSCI data.

Several US-based hotels such as Marriott, Hilton, Hyatt and Choice have been expanding their footprint in Japan by partnering with local real estate and hospitality companies.  “When someone who doesn’t know much about Japan visits the country for the first time, they might be more inclined to book with a familiar name,” said Wanping Aw, a travel agent in Tokyo.

Short-term rentals giant Airbnb reported a 130% increase in nights booked by American guests in Japan in 2023 from a year earlier.

Airlines are also moving in tandem with this trend, adding more seats between the US and Japan.

Carriers scheduled about 1.5 million seats between the two countries in June, July and August, a 9% increase from a year earlier, according to data in May from online travel agency Hopper.

United Airlines, Delta Air Lines and American Airlines Group have increased scheduled seat capacity between the US and Japan for the summer by 19%, 10% and 7%, respectively, Hopper data showed. — Reuters

Scientists increasingly wary bird flu pandemic ‘unfolding in slow motion’

A PERSON holds a test tube labeled “Bird Flu,” in this picture illustration, Jan. 14, 2023. — REUTERS

CHICAGO/LONDON — Scientists tracking the spread of bird flu are increasingly concerned that gaps in surveillance may keep them several steps behind a new pandemic, according to Reuters interviews with more than a dozen leading disease experts.

Many of them have been monitoring the new subtype of H5N1 avian flu in migratory birds since 2020. But the spread of the virus to 129 dairy herds in 12 US states signals a change that could bring it closer to becoming transmissible between humans. Infections also have been found in other mammals, from alpacas to house cats.

“It almost seems like a pandemic unfolding in slow motion,” said Scott Hensley, a professor of microbiology at the University of Pennsylvania. “Right now, the threat is pretty low … but that could change in a heartbeat.”

The earlier the warning of a jump to humans, the sooner global health officials can take steps to protect people by launching vaccine development, wide-scale testing and containment measures.

Federal surveillance of US dairy cows is currently limited to testing herds before they cross state lines. State testing efforts are inconsistent, while testing of people exposed to sick cattle is scant, government health officials and pandemic flu experts told Reuters.

“You need to know which are the positive farms, how many of the cows are positive, how well the virus spreads, how long do these cows remain infectious, the exact transmission route,” said Dutch flu virologist Ron Fouchier of the Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam.

Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo, director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said surveillance for humans is “very, very limited.”

Marrazzo described the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention’s human flu surveillance network as “really a passive reporting, passive presentation mechanism.” The US Department of Agriculture is more proactive in testing cows, but does not make public which farms are affected, she said.

Several experts said differing approaches from animal and human health agencies could hamper a quicker response.

“If you were designing the system from scratch, you would have one agency,” said Gigi Gronvall, a biosecurity expert at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. “This is not the only example where we have environmental or animal problems that cause human problems.”

A USDA spokesperson said the agency is working “around the clock” with CDC and other partners in a “whole-of-government response,” adding that ongoing research shows “America’s food supply remains safe, sick cows generally recover after a few weeks, and the risk to human health remains low.”

The CDC in a statement said it, “USDA, and state and local health departments across the country have been preparing for the emergence of a novel influenza virus for nearly 2 decades and continually monitor for even the smallest changes in the virus.”

‘A NOTE OF CAUTION’
Some pandemics, including COVID-19, arrive with little warning. In the last flu pandemic, caused by H1N1 in 2009, the virus and its predecessors had first spread among animals for several years, Mr. Hensley said, but more surveillance would have helped health authorities prepare.

Three people in the US have tested positive for H5N1 avian flu since late March after contact with cows, experiencing mild symptoms. One person in Mexico was infected with a separate H5 strain not previously seen in humans, and with no known exposure to animals. Other cases were reported in India, China and Australia, caused by different strains.

The World Health Organization (WHO) says H5N1’s risk to humans is low because there is no evidence of human transmission. Some tools are available if that changes, including limited amounts of existing H5N1 vaccine and antiviral medications like Tamiflu.

There are mechanisms to launch larger-scale production of tests, treatments and vaccines, if needed, said the United Nations agency’s head of flu, Wenqing Zhang.

Other experts said there is sufficient concern to start preparing for potential spread in humans, although triggers for taking action differ depending on the role played in the response, said Richard Hatchett, chief executive of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI). His organization acted early on funding COVID vaccine development, and is now in talks with research partners about H5N1.

CEPI aims to create a library of prototype vaccines for pathogens with pandemic potential. This would help drugmakers initiate large-scale production and distribute shots where necessary within 100 days of an outbreak.

Some countries are taking steps to protect people against H5N1. The United States and Europe are securing doses of pre-pandemic flu vaccine that could be used for high-risk groups, including farm or lab workers. Finland is expected to become the first country to inoculate fur and poultry farm workers, as well as animal health response workers.

Expanding vaccine access is also complex, said the WHO’s Ms. Zhang. Manufacturers of potential pandemic flu vaccines make seasonal flu shots and cannot produce both at once, she said.

Since most flu vaccines are made using virus grown in eggs, it could take up to six months to produce pandemic shots. The US is in talks with Moderna to use their faster mRNA technology for pandemic flu shots.

The experts all acknowledged a need to balance acting quickly to avert a threat versus overreacting.

“We want to sound a note of caution,” said Wendy Barclay, a virologist at University College London who researches avian flu for the United Kijngdom Health Security Agency, “without saying the world is about to end.” — Reuters

Buildmate: Embracing the opportunities of digital transformation

Mars Kaw put her efforts into making Lazada her primary sales channel, and has benefitted greatly from the platform’s extensive resources.

Mars Kaw initially had reservations about the opportunities of e-commerce. Her father had been in the building-supplies business, and following in her father’s footsteps, she had established Buildmate in 2010. For several years, she had been operating offline, putting her focus mostly on business-to-business transactions to grow her company.

It was only when she met a Lazada seller who achieved great success through the platform did she realize the gains it would bring. She had launched Buildmate on Lazada back in 2015, but had never considered it the primary means of expanding her business. That meeting, in her own words, had been eye-opening.

“Before, I thought of e-commerce as just a side business,” Ms. Kaw admitted. “That was my lightbulb moment, when I realized it was not just for the sidelines but that you could go big on online platforms. I got inspired by that seller and, on that day, I decided to go all out on Lazada.”

Since then, Ms. Kaw put her efforts into making Lazada her primary sales channel, and has benefitted greatly from the platform’s extensive resources. For instance, when she was first starting out in the world of e-commerce, her key account manager at Lazada provided the invaluable advice and encouragement she needed to help her manage her digital storefront.

The free classes provided by Lazada University have also provided her with the knowhow, from creating efficient product listings to optimizing promotions and advertising techniques, among other things. As a result, she said that Buildmate’s revenue per buyer has increased by as much as 15% after implementing the strategies she learned.

Ms. Kaw has also leveraged Lazada’s various tools to enhance Buildmate’s presence. For example, she uses Lazada’s customer engagement management feature to interact proactively with shoppers and LazLive to engage with customers in real time. “As technology rapidly advances, understanding new tools and seller programs can set you apart from the competition,” Ms. Kaw said. “It makes you adaptable to the ever-changing market, equips you to handle complex situations, and make better decisions.”

Online-to-Offline Success

Another benefit Ms. Kaw found by bringing her business to Lazada was that she has been able to expand her customer reach exponentially. “When I was starting out, I only served the cities near my area of CAMANAVA. With Lazada, I’ve been able to tap into markets from Luzon to Mindanao, all while staying in my office,” she said.

Interestingly, while Buildmate’s operations are now primarily online, the company’s brick-and-mortar store in Manila has also seen increased foot traffic as a result of its digital presence.

“With Lazada, people search for our store and visit us to see the products physically, which has helped our offline store generate foot traffic,” Ms. Kaw explained. “This creates a 360-degree shopping experience, allowing customers to buy products online and exchange or upgrade them offline. Most importantly, having an offline store builds trust with our buyers.”

Ms. Kaw’s journey of digital transformation has garnered numerous accolades for Buildmate. The company received the top award in the home and living category at the 2020 Lazada Awards and was inducted into the awards’ Hall of Fame in 2021. Additionally, she has become a Lazada certified trainer, committed to sharing her knowledge and experiences to help other e-commerce entrepreneurs succeed.

“Consistency is key to surviving in the online business,” she emphasized. “You need grit, dedication, enthusiasm, and a drive to continually learn and create memorable experiences for customers. Online business is not easy, and challenges are inevitable. Be ready for this, and you’ll succeed.”

Through her strategic embrace of digital transformation, Mars Kaw has not only expanded Buildmate’s horizons but also set a compelling example for other businesses navigating the e-commerce landscape.

Sign up now to become a Lazada seller.

 

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Jollibee to take control of South Korea’s Compose Coffee

BW FILE PHOTO

Philippine fast food firm Jollibee Foods Corp will acquire a majority stake in privately held Compose Coffee, a South Korean coffee chain, as part of a deal valuing the target at $340 million, the company said on Tuesday.

Jollibee’s unit Jollibee Worldwide Pte will acquire 70% of Compose Coffee and its majority-owned Titan Fund will take 5%, the fast-food firm said in a disclosure. The remaining 25% will be held by private-equity firm Elevation, it said.

Compose Coffee has 2,470 stores, all franchised, giving it a debt-free balance sheet, and good cash returns and profitability margins, said Jollibee, which will increase its global store network to 10,000 with the deal. — Reuters

Philippines says June 17 South China Sea incident ‘most aggressive’ recent Chinese action

MANILA – The Philippine military said on Tuesday that China’s actions last month in a disputed shoal in the South China Sea was its “most aggressive” response in “recent history.”
Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad, navy spokesperson on South China Sea issues, said the Chinese coast guard’s actions were “deliberate, planned and escalatory”.
A Philippine sailor suffered serious injury after what its military described as “intentional-high speed ramming” by the Chinese Coast Guard on June 17 during a resupply mission for troops stationed on the Second Thomas Shoal. – Reuters

Japan’s Universal scraps plan to buy central Philippines casino

MANILA – The Philippine unit of Japan’s Universal Entertainment Corp is no longer acquiring a majority stake in PH Resorts’ gaming project in the central Philippines, PH Resorts said on Tuesday.
In a filing to the stock exchange, PH Resorts said it received a letter terminating a deal for Universal’s Okada Manila to buy a majority stake in the company’s Emerald Bay gaming project in Cebu province.
The companies failed to agree to a valuation, two sources with knowledge of the matter said. One of the sources said PH Resorts wants the buyer to pay the casino’s debts due in July, which Okada was not in favor of.
Shares in PH Resorts slumped as much as 29% to a nine-month intraday low following the disclosure. Okada Manila did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
PH Resorts will engage with other companies that have already expressed interest in the Emerald Bay project, company president Raymundo Martin Escalona said in a statement.
It was already the third cancelled deal for the stalled project of PH Resorts, which is owned by Dennis Uy, a close associate of former President Rodrigo Duterte. Uy’s conglomerate engaged in an aggressive, debt-backed expansion during Duterte’s term, but was forced to sell companies following the pandemic.
Okada Manila was looking to expand its footprint outside of Manila where it operates a $3.3 billion gambling resort. – Reuters

Samsung Electronics workers to strike on July 8-10, union official says

THE LOGO of Samsung Electronics is seen at its office building in Seoul, South Korea, March 23, 2018. — REUTERS

SEOUL – A workers’ union at Samsung Electronics in South Korea has called a strike for July 8-10, a union official said on Tuesday, as it steps up industrial action against the country’s most valuable company.

The union is determining how many workers will join the strike, the official told Reuters by telephone.

Son Woo-mok, leader of the union, said late on Monday that the union wants a more transparent system for bonuses and time off, and wants the company to treat it as an equal partner.

Samsung declined to comment on the union’s strike plan.

Its share price was unaffected, rising 0.1% in morning trade versus a 0.7% decline in the benchmark price index. .KS11

Union membership increased rapidly after Samsung in 2020 pledged to stop discouraging the growth of organised labour.

The strike itself is unlikely to have a major impact on chip output as most production at the world’s biggest memory chipmaker is automated, two analysts told Reuters.

But any impact will ultimately depend on how many people that operate chip plants participate and for how long, said senior researcher Kim Yang-Paeng at the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade.

“Chip production cannot proceed with replacement workers” if people who operate the automated machines walked out for a long time “because of the specificity and expertise of the work,” Kim said.

Last month, workers en masse took annual leave on the same day in what was effectively the union’s first industrial action. At the time, Samsung said there was no impact on production or business activity. Those striking were mainly employed at inner-city offices rather than at manufacturing sites, analysts said.

“This planned strike marks a turning point in Samsung’s history of non-union management. This could be seen as a drop in employee loyalty at Samsung … caused by wages and disappointing compensation compared to Samsung’s rivals,” a Seoul-based analyst said on Tuesday, declining to be identified as details of the strike were unknown. – Reuters

US Supreme Court rules Trump has broad immunity from prosecution

REUTERS

WASHINGTON – The US Supreme Court ruled on Monday that Donald Trump cannot be prosecuted for actions that were within his constitutional powers as president in a landmark decision recognizing for the first time any form of presidential immunity from prosecution.

The justices, in a 6-3 ruling authored by Chief Justice John Roberts, threw out a lower court’s decision that had rejected Mr. Trump’s claim of immunity from federal criminal charges involving his efforts to undo his 2020 election loss to Joe Biden. The six conservative justices were in the majority, while its three liberal members dissented.

Mr. Trump is the Republican candidate challenging Mr. Biden, a Democrat, in the Nov. 5 US election in a 2020 rematch. The Supreme Court’s slow handling of the case and its decision to return key questions about the scope of Mr. Trump’s immunity to the trial judge to resolve make it improbable he will be tried before the election on these charges brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith.

“We conclude that under our constitutional structure of separated powers, the nature of presidential power requires that a former president have some immunity from criminal prosecution for official acts during his tenure in office,” Mr. Roberts wrote.

Immunity for former presidents is “absolute” with respect to their “core constitutional powers,” Mr. Roberts wrote, and a former president has “at least a presumptive immunity” for “acts within the outer perimeter of his official responsibility,” meaning prosecutors face a high legal bar to overcome that presumption.

In remarks at the White House, Mr. Biden called the ruling “a dangerous precedent” because the power of the presidency will no longer be constrained by the law.

“This nation was founded on the principle that there are no kings in America … no one is above the law, not even the president of the United States,” added Mr. Biden, speaking hours after one of his campaign officials said the ruling makes it easier for Mr. Trump “to pursue a path to dictatorship.”

The ruling could scuttle parts of the special counsel’s case as US District Judge Tanya Chutkan mulls the breadth of Mr. Trump’s immunity.

In recognizing broad immunity for Mr. Trump, Mr. Roberts cited the need for a president to “execute the duties of his office fearlessly and fairly” without the threat of prosecution.

“As for a president’s unofficial acts,” Mr. Roberts added, “there is no immunity.”

Mr. Trump hailed the ruling in a social media post, writing: “BIG WIN FOR OUR CONSTITUTION AND DEMOCRACY. PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN!”

Mr. Trump, 78, is the first former US president to be criminally prosecuted and the first former president convicted of a crime. Mr. Smith’s election subversion charges embody one of the four criminal cases Mr. Trump has faced.

The court analyzed four categories of conduct contained in the indictment. They are: his discussions with US Justice Department officials following the election; his alleged pressure on then-Vice President Mike Pence to block congressional certification of Mr. Biden’s win; his alleged role in assembling fake pro-Trump electors to be used in the certification process; and his conduct related to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol by his supporters.

The outcome gave Mr. Trump much of what he sought but stopped short of allowing absolute immunity for all official acts, as his lawyers had advocated. Instead the court specified that actions within the president’s “exclusive sphere of constitutional authority” enjoy such a shield, while those taken outside his exclusive powers are only “presumptively immune.”

The court found Mr. Trump was absolutely immune for conversations with Justice Department officials. Mr. Trump is also “presumptively immune” regarding his interactions with Mr. Pence, it decided, but returned that and the two other categories to lower courts to determine whether Trump has immunity.

The ruling marked the first time since the nation’s 18th century founding that the Supreme Court has declared that former presidents may be shielded from criminal charges in any instance. The court’s conservative majority includes three justices Mr. Trump appointed.

The court decided the case on the last day of its term.

 

‘PRESIDENT IS NOW A KING’

Justice Sonia Sotomayor, joined by fellow liberal Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, delivered a sharply worded dissent, saying the ruling effectively creates a “law-free zone around the president.”

“When he uses his official powers in any way, under the majority’s reasoning, he now will be insulated from criminal prosecution. Orders the Navy’s Seal Team 6 to assassinate a political rival? Immune. Organizes a military coup to hold onto power? Immune. Takes a bribe in exchange for a pardon? Immune. Immune, immune, immune,” Ms. Sotomayor wrote.

“In every use of official power, the president is now a king above the law,” Ms. Sotomayor added.

Mr. Trump’s trial had been scheduled to start on March 4 before the delays over the immunity issue. Now, no trial date is set. Trump made his immunity claim to the trial judge in October, meaning the issue has been litigated for about nine months.

 

‘THUMB ON THE SCALE’

UCLA School of Law professor Rick Hasen, a critic of Mr. Trump’s efforts to overturn his election defeat, said: “The Supreme Court has put out a fact-intensive test on the boundaries of the president’s immunity – with a huge thumb on the scale favoring the president’s immunity – in a way that will surely push this case past the election.”

“Sorting out the court’s opinion and how it applies is going to take a while,” Georgetown University law professor Erica Hashimoto added. “No chance of a pre-election trial.”

The Supreme Court made two other rulings this year beneficial to Mr. Trump. In March, it reinstated Trump to the presidential primary ballot in Colorado. And last week, it raised the legal bar for prosecutors pursuing obstruction charges in Smith’s election subversion case against Trump and defendants involved in the Capitol attack.

In the special counsel’s August 2023 indictment, Mr. Trump was charged with conspiring to defraud the United States, corruptly obstructing an official proceeding and conspiring to do so, and conspiring against the right of Americans to vote. He has pleaded not guilty.

Ms. Sotomayor wrote on Monday: “Relying on little more than its own misguided wisdom about the need for bold and unhesitating action by the president, the court gives former President Trump all the immunity he asked for and more.”

In a separate case brought in New York state court, Mr. Trump was found guilty by a jury in Manhattan on May 30 on 34 counts of falsifying documents to cover up hush money paid to a porn star to avoid a sex scandal before the 2016 election. Trump also faces criminal charges in two other cases. He has pleaded not guilty in those and called all the cases against him politically motivated.

Not since its landmark Bush v. Gore decision, which handed the disputed 2000 US election to Republican George W. Bush over Democrat Al Gore, has the Supreme Court played such an integral role in a presidential race.

If Mr. Trump regains the presidency, he could try to force an end to the prosecution or potentially pardon himself for any federal crimes. – Reuters

 

Amazon sidesteps carbon offset standard Bezos helped fund

REUTERS

Amazon has become the first company to sidestep a global standard for verifying carbon offsets that was developed by a non-profit funded largely by the US technology conglomerate’s founder and executive chair, Jeff Bezos.

Amazon is backing the development of a new standard that could allow the online retailer and cloud-computing provider to overcome a dearth of supply for quality-labeled offsets, enabling it to meet its target of cutting its greenhouse-gas emissions to zero on a net basis by 2040. Critics worry that the move could lead to market confusion and a compromise in the standards of carbon offsets.

Companies under pressure to curb their emissions can buy credits from developers of projects that absorb carbon, such as through reforestation. The market for offsets has remained small due to a limited number of projects that can verify their climate benefits.

Amazon told Reuters it has completed work on Abacus, a framework for verifying the quality of carbon offsets in reforestation and agroforestry. Amazon developed the standard with carbon registry Verra as an alternative to one developed by the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market (ICVCM), the world’s biggest grouping of private sector and environmental groups dedicated to validating carbon offsets. Verra first announced it was developing the label with Amazon and its Abacus working group in 2022.

Mr. Bezos, through his $10-billion Earth Fund that he set up to tackle climate change, is one of ICVCM’s biggest donors, having plowed at least $11 million into ICVCM and sister organization Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative since their 2021 launch.

Jamey Mulligan, Amazon’s head of carbon neutralization, said in an interview that the company evaluated and supported ICVCM’s work, but that it wanted a more ambitious standard.

“We want to ensure that every credit investment has a real, conservatively quantified and verified impact on emissions,” Mr. Mulligan said. He declined to comment on whether Mr. Bezos was involved in Amazon’s decision.

Mr. Bezos could not be reached for comment.

Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft and Salesforce have said they plan to buy up to 20 million metric tons of Abacus-certified credits.

Pedro Martins Barata, co-chair of ICVCM’s panel of experts, said he was worried about development of an alternative standard and that he hoped that Abacus would eventually be folded into ICVCM.

“Otherwise, you get again into a confusing state in the market where each set of companies will find their own standards they want to support and they will say that they’re a particular type of quality,” he said.

Mr. Martins Barata added that ICVCM was reviewing Verra’s methodology for developing carbon offsets from agroforestry and reforestation projects, and that if it approves it this could make the Abacus label compatible with ICVCM’s label.

Kelley Kizzier, director of corporate action and markets at Bezos Earth Fund and a member of ICVCM’s board, said Abacus is complementary rather than competitive to ICVCM. She also declined to comment on Bezos’ role.

“What we need to focus on is generating high-integrity (offsets). There is room for lots of actors to do that,” Ms. Kizzier said.

The label will be available within weeks, Verra said.

 

OFFSET MARKET

The $2-billion market for voluntary carbon offsets has remained small amid concerns by companies and investors that the underlying projects may not curb as many emissions as they claim.

The market accounts for offsetting 300 million metric tons of emissions annually, according to an Environmental Defense Fund analysis of data from financial information provider MSCI. Yet only a fraction of those offsets are verified, with ICVCM’s main quality label, CCP, accounting for 27 million tons.

“My main concern with the strategy remains with the idea that the purchase of these credits somehow ‘neutralizes’ Amazon’s impact. I don’t think it does,” said Gilles Dufrasne, policy lead at environmental non-profit Carbon Market Watch.

Deborah Lawrence, chief scientist at credit ratings firm Calyx Global, welcomed the label’s requirement to make public data on how much carbon the projects store but said it still had questions about Abacus’ ability to ensure the carbon removals are permanent.

“Their permanence position requires further investigation,” she said. “The way it is phrased is giving us pause, but their annual monitoring and making the results public are great ideas and raise the bar.”

Amazon generated 71.3 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions in 2022, according to its latest sustainability report, of which 54.98 million tons came from its supply chain.

It will take two to three years for projects to qualify for the Abacus label because many rely on trees growing and then developers proving how much carbon they absorb.

Mulligan said Amazon could become one of the biggest carbon-credit buyers, but that it would not use them in place of the company’s efforts to decarbonize its business.

He added that Amazon is currently reviewing more than 70 proposals from developers and expects to restore tens of thousands of hectares of degraded land.

Any developer can apply for the Abacus label provided they meet requirements of Verra’s methodology, which the Abacus working group, a team of scientists, non-governmental organizations and industry specialists helped develop.

Eron Bloomgarden, founder of Emergent, a not-for-profit organization that mobilizes private-sector funding for forest countries, said Abacus would help grow the carbon-offset market.

“The work of ICVCM is important but it’s insufficient for the growth of the market, because what we are trying to do is solve big existential challenges like climate change and biodiversity extinction,” he said. – Reuters

Drugmakers’ appeal to end Zantac cancer lawsuits rebuffed by judge

FREEPIK

A Delaware judge rebuffed a request by GSK and other drugmakers to appeal a ruling allowing more than 70,000 lawsuits claiming that the heartburn drug Zantac caused cancer to go forward.

The ruling by Judge Vivian Medinilla of the Delaware Superior Court means that the drugmakers, which also include Pfizer PFE.N, Sanofi SASY.PA and Boehringer Ingelheim, will have to ask the Delaware Supreme Court directly for permission to appeal. GSK said it already submitted its appeal to that court.

If the state high court declines to take the appeal, it will clear the way for the Zantac lawsuits to go to trial.

“Judge Medinilla resoundingly rejected GSK, Boehringer Ingelheim, Pfizer, and Sanofi’s attempt to end run around the jury system in Delaware,” said Jennifer Moore, a lawyer for the plaintiffs.

GSK in a statement said “the scientific consensus remains that there is no consistent or reliable evidence that ranitidine increases the risk of any cancer.” Ranitidine is the active ingredient in the now discontinued drug.

Lawsuits began piling up after the US Food and Drug Administration in 2020 asked manufacturers to pull the drug off the market over concerns that ranitidine could degrade into a cancer-causing chemical called NDMA over time or when exposed to heat.

The drugmakers say Medinilla should have kept the plaintiffs from introducing expert testimony that Zantac can cause cancer, as a federal judge did in 2022 in about 50,000 claims centralized in Florida.

The plaintiffs’ cases depend on that testimony, and cannot go to trial without it.

Industry groups including the US Chamber of Commerce backed the drugmakers’ appeal in a filing last month, saying letting Medinilla’s ruling stand had relaxed the standards for evidence in the traditionally business-friendly state and threatened to turn it into “a hotbed of products-liability and mass-tort litigation.”

Medinilla wrote on Monday that she had not adopted a different standard from the Florida federal judge, but simply reached a different conclusion about the evidence in the case.

First approved in 1983, Zantac became the world’s best-selling medicine in 1988 and one of the first to top $1 billion in annual sales. It was originally marketed by a forerunner of GSK and later sold successively to other companies.

The vast majority of pending cases are in Delaware. Only one case, against GSK and Boehringer Ingelheim in Illinois, has gone to trial, ending in a victory for the companies last month. – Reuters

‘Roaring Kitty’ lawsuit over GameStop is withdrawn for now

By Mike Mozart from Funny YouTube, USA - GameStop, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=89854717

NEW YORK – Investors in GameStop have for now withdrawn their lawsuit accusing Keith Gill, who is known as “Roaring Kitty” and helped spur the meme stock mania of 2021, of defrauding them through a “pump-and-dump” scheme for the video game retailer.

A proposed class action accusing Mr. Gill of securities fraud was filed on Friday in the Brooklyn, New York, federal court, but voluntarily withdrawn on Monday without explanation. The lawsuit can be refiled, according to the filing.

Lawyers at the Pomerantz law firm, which represents the investors, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Investors led by Martin Radev, who lives in the Las Vegas area, said Mr. Gill manipulated GameStop securities between May 13 and June 13 by quietly accumulating large quantities of stock and call options, then dumping some holdings after emerging from a three-year social media hiatus.

They said Mr. Gill’s activities caused GameStop’s share price to gyrate wildly, generating “millions of dollars” in profit for him at their expense.

“Defendant still enjoys celebrity status and commands a following of millions through his social media accounts,” the complaint said. “Accordingly, Defendant was well aware of his ability to manipulate the market for GameStop securities, as well as the benefits he could reap.”

Mr. Gill did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Monday.

On May 12, he posted a cryptic meme on the social media platform X that was widely seen as a bullish signal for GameStop, whose stock he cheer leaded in 2021.

GameStop’s share price more than tripled over the next two days, then gave back nearly all the gains by May 24.

On June 2, Mr. Gill revealed that he owned 5 million GameStop shares and 120,000 call options, and on June 13 revealed he had shed the call options but owned 9 million GameStop shares.

Investors said the truth about Mr. Gill’s investing became known on June 3 when the Wall Street Journal wrote about the timing of his options trades and said the online brokerage E*Trade considered kicking him off its platform.

The meme stock mania was fueled in part by investors stuck at home during the pandemic, and led to a “short squeeze” that caused losses for hedge funds betting stock prices would fall.

On Monday, trading in Chewy shares became volatile after Mr. Gill revealed a 6.6% stake in the pet products retailer. – Reuters

Board approves P35 NCR wage hike

Tailors are at work at a shop in Santa Cruz, Manila. The National Capital Region Wage Board approved a P35 hike in the daily minimum wage. — PHILIPPINE STAR/RYAN BALDEMOR

By Chloe Mari A. Hufana

THE REGIONAL Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) has approved a P35 minimum wage hike for workers in the National Capital Region (NCR), which will take effect on July 17.

According to Wage Order No. NCR-25, the minimum daily wage for nonagricultural workers in the region will be increased to P645.

For workers in agriculture and service/retail establishments employing 15 workers or fewer, daily wages will be raised to P608 from P573.

Workers in manufacturing establishments regularly employing fewer than 10 will also receive a minimum daily wage of P608.

The RTWPB-NCR approved the order on June 27, but a copy was released only on Monday.

“The wage order is to take effect after 15 days from its publication, or on July 17, 2024 which is exactly a day after the anniversary of the preceding wage order,” the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) said in a statement.

A P40 minimum wage increase was implemented in NCR on July 16, 2023.

The DoLE said the new wage rates are about 5.7% higher than the prevailing daily minimum wage rates in the region.

“(The new rates) remain above the latest regional poverty threshold for a family of five. These likewise result in a comparable 5% increase in wage-related benefits covering 13th month pay, service incentive leave, and social security benefits,” it said.

The wage order will directly impact 988,243 minimum wage earners in the capital region, DoLE said.

About 1.7 million full-time wage and salary workers that earn above minimum wage “may also indirectly benefit as a result of upward adjustments at the enterprise level arising from the correction of wage distortion,” it added.

Retail and service establishments with not more than 10 regular workers and enterprises affected by natural calamities or disasters can apply for exemption from the wage hike. Barangay Micro Business Enterprise are also not covered by the minimum wage law.

Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECoP) Governor Arturo “Butch” C. Guerrero III told BusinessWorld via iMessage that the P35 wage increase is a “relief” for employers.

“This is a relief compared with the P750 wage hike per day the labor groups are recommending to the wage board and with the P150 per day additional to [Senator Juan Miguel F.] Zubiri’s legislated wage increase in the Senate,” he said.

Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) Chairman George T. Barcelon in a phone call with BusinessWorld said the P35 wage hike is “very reasonable.”

“[A] P35 increase per day is a win-win [because] this is more affordable for the micro, small, and medium enterprises, for the small business establishment to continue doing their business,” he said. “At the same time, this also indirectly mitigates inflation.”

The Philippines has been battling persistent inflation, as the cost of food, transport and utilities continue to rise.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort warned about second-round inflation effects arising from the wage hike.

“Some pickup in inflation through higher prices of affected goods or services, or the so-called second-round inflation effects, as the wage increase is around +5.7% that could [be] passed by some businesses and industries in terms of higher prices of their products by a similar extent to reflect the increase in labor, production and input costs,” he said in a Viber message to BusinessWorld.

However, he noted some companies might absorb the higher costs, which will result in smaller profit margins.

Mr. Ricafort said the P35 increase in wages would still “somewhat help” workers cope with expenses.

However, labor groups were not happy with the RTWPB-NCR’s order, saying it was not enough to help workers cope with the rising cost of living.

“The P35 wage hike in Metro Manila is not only inadequate but also seems like a tactic to distract workers from their escalating push for a P150 daily wage increase through legislation,” Federation of Free Workers President Jose Sonny G. Matula said in a statement.

“This highly insufficient increase, however, will only strengthen our resolve to pursue a legislated wage hike. The current economic conditions demand a comprehensive solution that addresses the dire financial realities workers face nationwide,” he added.

Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) Vice-President Luis Manuel C. Corral said in a statement that the NCR wage board “opted to protect business profits rather than the bigger societal purpose of the wage increase.”

“As TUCP has repeatedly pointed out, the need to elevate the daily wage above the poverty threshold to afford a family of five at least one nutritious meal a day is inextricably linked to addressing the growing problem of stunting Filipino children due to persistent poverty and inequality,” he said.

The National Wage Coalition, which had sought a wage hike of not less than P150, said the P35 wage hike shows a “heartless disregard for the economic crises faced by our workers and families.”

“Our minimum wages do not amount to liveable wages… The P35 increase does not even amount to measly change; it is not even sufficient for a kilo of rice,” it said in a statement.

The NCR wage board had received several wage petitions from labor groups ranging from P597 to P750.

Unity for Wage Increase Now sought a P597 increase in daily wages, while four hospital employee associations and the Pasig Labor Alliance for Democracy and Development sought a P750 hike.

In February, the Senate approved on third and final reading a P100 across-the-board minimum wage increase for workers in the private sector. The House of Representatives has yet to pass similar legislation.

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