Arsenal sends title message with a 3-0 rout of Brighton and Hove Albion; Man City beats Palace

April 7, 2024 | 7:40 pm

LONDON — Arsenal sent out a huge statement in a gripping Premier League title race with a 3-0 rout of Brighton and Hove Albion to go top after Manchester City’s 4-2 win at Crystal Palace on Saturday.

Liverpool, who had begun the day on top of the table, will now be under immense pressure to respond when they face Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday.

Goals by Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz and Leandro Trossard ensured Arsenal made it 10 wins from their last 11 league games with only last weekend’s 0-0 draw at Manchester City costing them points.

Mikel Arteta’s side, bidding to deliver a first English title since the 2003-04 season, have 71 points from 31 games with Liverpool, who have a game in hand, on 70. Reigning champions Manchester City also have 70 points.

In such a tight tussle Arsenal’s far superior goal difference, could prove crucial.

A 3-0 home defeat against Brighton in May last season ended any realistic title hopes Arsenal had, but they have made a massive improvement since.

From the moment Mr. Saka stroked home a penalty in the 33^rd minute they looked unshakeable, and second-half goals by Mr. Havertz and former Brighton man Mr. Trossard had the away fans singing loudly in the south coast rain.

“Really happy, a big performance,” Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta told Sky Sports. “Brighton hadn’t lost at home since August and that says everything really. Today we were outstanding and needed that level today.”

Arsenal have not conceded a goal in their last five away league games, while scoring 20 goals in the process, and City and Liverpool will know that Arteta’s team are not going away.

Earlier at Selhurst Park, Manchester City suffered an early shock as they fell behind to a goal by Jean-Philippe Mateta.

But Kevin De Bruyne struck twice with Rico Lewis and Erling Haaland also on target as City cruised home.

Odsonne Edouard grabbed a late consolation for Palace.

“It’s just like every other title race. We have to win every game,” the 19-year-old Mr. Lewis told TNT Sports. “There’s three teams in it and we have to be the strongest team.”

Mr. De Bruyne, who along with Mr. Haaland was rested for Wednesday’s 4-1 win over Aston Villa, produced a vintage display as he clocked up his 100^th goal for the club.

“Without him we would not be able to win this. You talk about managers but players like Kevin make this game easy,” Pep Guardiola, whose side is seeking a fourth successive Premier League title, said.

“He has been one of the best players in City’s history.”

Aston Villa dropped points in the battle for fourth place as they drew 3-3 at home to Brentford. Villa had been 2-0 up with goals by Ollie Watkins and Morgan Rogers, but Brentford scored three times in nine minutes through Mathias Jorgensen, Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa to lead before Mr. Watkins grabbed his second to secure a point for the hosts.

“It’s frustrating, we lacked that big team mentality where they kill games off which is disappointing,” Mr. Watkins said.

Villa have 60 points to fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur’s 57 but Tottenham have two games in hand, the first of them being Sunday’s home game against Nottingham Forest.

Luton Town secured a massive three points in their bid to avoid relegation as they hit back to win 2-1 at Bournemouth.

Carlton Morris struck the late decider as third-from-bottom Luton claimed their first win since January to move to 25 points, the same as 17^th-placed Nottingham Forest.

Everton also claimed a vital victory as they won 1-0 against 19^th-placed Burnley, Dominic Calvert-Lewin profiting from a bad error by Burnley goalkeeper Arijanet Muric.

It ended a 13-game Premier League winless streak for Everton who are four points above the relegation zone.

Newcastle United boosted their hopes of qualifying for Europe as they won 1-0 at Fulham, while West Ham United claimed a 2-1 win at Wolverhampton Wanderers to stay seventh — their winner coming directly from a superb James Ward Prowse corner. — Reuters

Samsung Galaxy Watch Earth Day Run 2024

April 7, 2024 | 7:39 pm

SAMSUNG Philippines and RunRio have banded together to take steps for a greener earth

Samsung Philippines in partnership with RunRio, is inviting you to take a collective step towards a greener, more sustainable planet by joining the Galaxy Watch Earth Day Run 2024.

Happening on April 21 at the SM Mall of Asia Complex, Galaxy Watch Earth Day Run 2024 advocates for the preservation of our planet, recognizing the urgent need to address pressing environmental challenges. The run aims to shed light on critical environmental issues and to encourage and promote sustainable practices, eco-friendly choices, and responsible consumption, recognizing that small actions collectively contribute to significant positive impacts.

Runners can track their progress during the race in style with Samsung’s latest fitness tracker and avail of the limited edition Galaxy Fit3 Bundle, which offers 30% off on the race registration fees and the Galaxy Fit3. The bundle packs are priced at P3,899 for the 21K with a Galaxy Fit3, P3,479 for the 10K with a Galaxy Fit3, and P3,339 for the 5K and a Galaxy Fit3!

This partnership is very much in line with Samsung’s continued commitment to sustainability. The company strives to build sustainability into its product and technology experience and empower people in their own sustainability journey.

Athletic Bilbao beats Mallorca to win Copa del Rey and end 40-year trophy drought

April 7, 2024 | 7:39 pm

SEVILLE — Athletic Bilbao beat Mallorca 4-2 on penalties on Saturday to win their 24^th Copa del Rey title and their first since 1984 — ending a 40-year trophy drought in a nerve-wracking final in Seville.

Athletic have been through years of heartache, having lost their previous six consecutive Spanish cup finals and a Europa League final to Atletico Madrid in 2012.

But roared on by around 50,000 fans who invaded Seville and outnumbered Mallorca’s supporters at a sold-out La Cartuja stadium which holds 60,000 spectators, Athletic put all their trauma behind to pull out the long awaited victory in a hard-fought final.

Their 23-year-old keeper Julen Agirrezabala, who made a couple of brilliant saves during the game, saved one spot kick in the shootout from Mallorca’s Manu Morlanes, while Nemanja Radonjic skied his effort.

Athletic’s penalty takers meanwhile were flawless in their execution, scoring four in a row to secure the win that crown a brilliant season under the calm guidance of ex-Barca manager Ernesto Valverde, in which they are also bidding for a top-four LaLiga finish.

“I’m so happy to have made history at this club, the club of my life! I’ve been dreaming about this for a long time. I’ve given everything for my family, my friends…” an emotional man-of-the-match Nico Williams told TVE.

“The fans have always been with us and they deserve it, let’s enjoy it. It’s a dream to win with the club of my life. Everyone can enjoy it now and celebrate!”

The game had finished 1-1 after extra time. Despite Bilbao dominating proceedings with almost 70% of possession, Dani Rodriguez fired in a curling shot after a couple of other efforts had been charged down, giving Mallorca the lead in the 21^stminute.

But Ohian Sancet equalized in the 50^th minute before Bilbao laid siege to Mallorca’s goal, with keeper Dominik Greif working his magic to deny several efforts by the Basque players. — Reuters

One setback

April 7, 2024 | 7:38 pm

Paige Bueckers had a remarkably nuanced take on a critical call with 3.9 seconds left in their Final Four match that all but doomed the Huskies’ chances to triumph. They were down by one, but had the offense set up to get the ball in the hands of their transcendent star for a potential game winner. As she drove right off a screen from Aaliyah Edwards, however, the latter was called for an offensive foul for having illegally cut the path of defender Gabbie Marshall. “Everybody can make a big deal of that one single play, but not one single play wins a basketball game or loses a basketball game,” she said in her post-mortem.

Bueckers is right, to be sure. And, in connection with her view, it’s also significant to note that Edwards did set a moving pick to prevent Marshall from crowding her. Had the whistle not been blown, the Huskies would have been able to take a questionable stab at the basket as she curled for either a shot or a pass. If there’s any knock on the stoppage of play, it’s that the development denied players the opportunity to decide the outcome of the set-to for and by themselves. Unfortunately, there can be no escaping the criticism either way given the stakes and the intrinsic partisanship in hoops competitions.

Contests are zero-sum games, especially in the NCAA tournament. As good as the protagonists may be, one setback is all it takes to eliminate them from contention for the championship. For the Huskies, the good news is that Bueckers will be staying on for another campaign. And with a full roster, their March Madness experience in 2025 figures to be marked different. The fact that Caitlin Clarke will have moved on to the pros by then cannot be understated as well.

For now, though, the Huskies will have to content themselves watching the Hawkeyes do battle against the Gamecocks in the final. And as they ruminate on what could have been, they will, no doubt, draw on their disappointment to motivate them next year. The one controversial moment that did them in the other day may yet serve them in good stead moving forward.

Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and human resources management, corporate communications, and business development.

Thailand eyes 6-nation visa to lure moneyed tourists

April 7, 2024 | 6:51 pm

Bloomberg-Thailand — TOURISTS visit Wat Arun Ratchawararam Rathawaramahawihan in Bangkok in January. — BLOOMBERG

THAILAND is steering an initiative for a joint-visa program with countries that together hosted about 70 million tourists last year as Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin ramps up initiatives to attract more long-haul and high-spending travelers.

Mr. Srettha — who’s pledged to elevate Thailand’s status as a tourism hotspot into an aviation and logistics hub — has discussed the Schengen-type visa idea with his counterparts in Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar and Vietnam in recent months. The facility is meant to ensure seamless mobility for travelers among the six neighboring countries.

With most leaders positively responding to the single-visa concept, tourism-reliant Thailand aims to generate more revenue per traveler and cushion its economy from headwinds such as sluggish exports and weak global demand that’s hurt its manufacturing industry.

The six Southeast Asian nations reported a combined 70 million foreign tourist arrivals in 2023, according to official data. Thailand and Malaysia accounted for more than half of the tally, generating about $48 billion in tourism revenue.

The single-visa is the most-ambitious among Srettha’s lineup of tourism initiatives but targeted for the long-term. The industry has served the country well, accounting for about 20% of total jobs and making up about 12% to the nation’s $500-billion economy. Barring the pandemic years, tourism has flourished and provided a cushion against a slump in manufacturing and exports, the traditional bulwarks of the economy.

The tourism industry is upbeat, with Marisa Sukosol Nunbhakdi, a former president of the Thai Hotels Association, saying “a common visa could entice long-haul travelers to make an easier decision.” The visa validity will need to be extended to 90 days from the usual 30-day period to make it attractive, she said.

Mr. Srettha’s administration has set a goal of attracting 80 million tourists by 2027. And since taking power about seven months ago, his government has signed a reciprocal visa waiver deal with China — Thailand’s largest market for tourists — and offered temporary visa waivers for travelers from India, Taiwan and Kazakhstan. It’s also mulling a plan to open casinos inside large entertainment complexes and event-based tourism will help the country generate more revenue.

If done right, the benefits of visa-free travel won’t be confined to tourism alone as ease of travel would be a boon for business travelers and trade, according to Bill Barnett, managing director of hospitality and property consultancy C9 Hotelworks.

But a Schengen-type visa, which allows free travel around the border-free zone within Europe, may be an uphill task given Asean’s poor track record in expediting multilateral policy framework and the group’s standing as a talk shop.

“Country by country seems to be the best way to do it,” Mr. Barnett said. “Bilateral agreements, where governments are leading the way for this type of thing, make a lot of sense as they are looking outward and not inward.”

For a joint visa scheme, approvals have to be coordinated and the absence of standard immigration criteria among participating nations unlike the European Union can pose challenges, according to Thitinan Pongsudhirak, professor at Chulalongkorn University’s political science faculty. Asean, as a grouping is a divided body with a poor immigration record, he said.

With Mr. Srettha being neophyte in politics, he may lack the clout to push through the visa proposal, Mr. Thitinan said. “All the various things he’s been trying to do, I see it as picking low-hanging fruits and picking fruits off the ground,” Mr. Thitinan said. “Sometimes fruits on the ground are rotten.” — Bloomberg

US, China need ‘tough’ conversations — Yellen

April 7, 2024 | 6:50 pm

BEIJING — US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Sunday that the ability to have difficult conversations has put the two economic superpowers on “a more stable footing” over the past year.

As they began a meeting in Beijing, Mr. Li responded that the two countries needed to respect each other and should be partners, not adversaries, adding that “constructive progress” had been made during Ms. Yellen’s trip.

Ms. Yellen said Washington and Beijing had a “duty” to responsibly manage the complex relationship, as she brought her case for reining in China’s excess factory capacity to the Chinese leadership.

“While we have more to do, I believe that, over the past year, we have put our bilateral relationship on more stable footing,” Ms. Yellen said. “This has not meant ignoring our differences or avoiding tough conversations. It has meant understanding that we can only make progress if we directly and openly communicate with one another.”

Ms. Yellen has made the threat of China’s excess production of electric vehicles (EVs), solar panels and other clean energy products to producers in the US and other countries a focus of her second visit to China in nine months.

She visited Beijing in July 2023 to try to normalize bilateral economic relations after a period of heightened tension caused by differences over issues ranging from Taiwan to COVID-19’s origins and trade disputes.

In a further sign of the ties stabilising, US President Joseph R. Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping sought to manage tensions over the South China Sea in a nearly two-hour call on Tuesday, their first direct talks since a summit in November.

US and Chinese military officials met their Chinese counterparts last week for a series of rare meetings in Hawaii focussed on operational safely and professionalism.

BALANCED GROWTH
On Saturday in the southern export hub of Guangzhou, Ms. Yellen and her main economic counterpart, Vice Premier He Lifeng, agreed to launch a dialogue focussed on “balanced growth.” Ms. Yellen said she intends to use the forum to advocate for a level playing field with China to protect US workers and businesses.

“As the world’s two largest economies, we have a duty to our own countries and to the world to responsibly manage our complex relationship and to cooperate and show leadership on addressing pressing global challenges,” Ms. Yellen told Mr. Li.

The Economist Intelligence Unit forecasts China’s battery manufacturing capacity will outpace demand by a factor of four by 2027, as its EV industry continues to grow.

Beijing’s support for battery-powered rides has helped homegrown champions like BYD 002594.SZ and Geely 0175.HK grab share in the world’s biggest car market, and turn China into the world’s largest auto exporter.

But rapid growth has also meant China has created excess manufacturing capacity that could be between 5 and 10 million EVs per year, according to consultancy Automobility.

Still, far from curbing investment in manufacturing, China has doubled down on Mr. Xi’s new mantra of unleashing “new productive forces,” by investing in cutting-edge technology including EVs, commercial spaceflight and life sciences — areas where many US firms hold advantages.

Throughout her visit, Chinese state media have pushed back against Ms. Yellen’s message on excess capacity.

State news agency Xinhua said on Saturday that talking up “Chinese overcapacity” in the clean energy sector created a pretext for protectionist policies to shield American companies.

Suppressing China’s EV-related industries will not help the US grow its own, Xinhua said, expressing hope that more headway could be made during Ms. Yellen’s visit to break down barriers hindering mutually beneficial cooperation. — Reuters

X challenges Brazil’s ‘forced’ order to block certain accounts

April 7, 2024 | 6:48 pm

X CORP., formerly Twitter, has been “forced by court decisions” to block certain popular accounts in Brazil and is prohibited from giving details of the order, the company said on Saturday.

X owner Elon Musk said in a post on the platform, that this order could lead to a total loss of revenue and shut down of the offices in Brazil, promising that he would legally challenge it where possible. The social medial company said it is unaware why the blocking orders have been issued and is barred from giving details of the impacted accounts, adding that it is threatened with daily fines if it fails to comply.

“This judge has applied massive fines, threatened to arrest our employees and cut off access to X in Brazil,” Mr. Musk said when referring to a user’s post on Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes’ “free speech crackdown.”

Last year, Mr. Moraes also ordered an investigation into executives at social messaging platform Telegram and Alphabet’s Google, who were in charge of a campaign criticizing a proposed internet regulation bill.

The bill put the onus on internet companies, search engines and social messaging services to find and report illegal material, instead of leaving it to the courts, and charge hefty fines for failures to do so. — Reuters

Denmark shuts down cannabis street in Christiania hippie enclave

April 7, 2024 | 6:47 pm

COPENHAGEN — Residents in Copenhagen’s famous hippie enclave Christiania began digging up its main street known for its cannabis trade on Saturday, hoping to free the area of criminal gangs following multiple deadly shootings.

After tolerating the illegal sale of cannabis for more than 50 years in the former army barracks claimed by hippies during the 1970s, authorities and the residents of Christiania decided this year to dig up what is known to locals as ‘Pusher Street.’

Freetown Christiania has developed into a major tourist attraction with more than half a million visitors a year, but an increase in gang violence linked to drug trafficking in the area has concerned both residents and authorities.

“We have always said we support free hash but it’s not possible,” said Hulda Mader, a spokesperson for Christiania. “We want the street to be ours again.”

Police have in recent years removed the cannabis booths from time to time only to see them rebuilt shortly after.

“Pusher Street has to die in order for Christiania to live,” the Mayor of Copenhagen Sophie Hæstorp Andersen told Reuters.

“The crime scene we have seen here has been so violent … we cannot have a Christiania that is dying out because people don’t dare to be here and where we see the local Christianites being threatened by greedy pushers and dealers.”

In August, a 30-year-old man was fatally shot and four more were injured in the streets of Christiana, the most recent in several deadly shootings linked to organized crime.

Locals were invited to claim cobble stones as souvenirs from the famous street on Saturday, after police tore down the booths.

“To me, Pusher Street is actually the least unique, right? It is what I associate with violence, gangs, murder, threats, and everything which are actually antonyms to what Christiania is,” said Mathilde Brandstrup, a Christiania local.

Danish police will remain present in Christiania and in the surrounding area “as long as it is necessary” to prevent sales of illegal drugs resuming, Deputy Chief Superintendent Simon Hansen said.

The residents in Christiania live autonomously with self-declared rules, although they are not recognized as their own town by Copenhagen authorities.

Danish pop singer Lukas Graham was born and raised in Christiania, and has written several songs about his life growing up in the hippie enclave. — Reuters

Climate activist Greta Thunberg detained twice at demonstration in The Hague

April 7, 2024 | 6:47 pm

THE HAGUE – Climate activist Greta Thunberg was detained twice by police at a demonstration in The Hague, the Netherlands, for several hours on Saturday.

Thunberg was initially detained and held for a short time by local police along with other protesters who tried to block a major highway into The Hague.

After she was released Thunberg quickly rejoined a small group of protesters who were blocking a different road leading to the railway station. There, she was detained a second time and driven off in a police van.

After being held for several hours she was released again in the evening, a spokesperson for protest organisers Extinction Rebellion told Reuters.

Before she was detained Thunberg told journalists she was protesting because the world is facing an existential crisis.

“We are in a planetary emergency and we are not going to stand by and let people lose their lives and livelihood and be forced to become climate refugees when we can do something,” she said.

Activists had been trying to block the nearby A12 highway. That road has been blocked for several hours dozens of times in recent months by activists demanding an end to all subsidies for the use of fossil fuels.

At previous protests police drove detained protesters to another part of town, where they were released without further consequences.

Local police would not comment on individual cases but said everyone who tried to block roads was detained. On social media site X, police posted that 412 protesters had been detained, mostly for participating in a banned protest. — Reuters

[B-SIDE Podcast] Safeguarding the Philippine gambling sector from online scams

April 7, 2024 | 12:01 am

Follow us on Spotify BusinessWorld B-Side

Online gambling has evolved, thanks to advancements in technology and innovations within the industry. With this evolution, however, also comes the rise of sophisticated gambling fraud. In this B-Side episode, BusinessWorld speaks with Frederic Ho, Jumio Corporation’s vice president of Asia Pacific, on how online gambling has evolved, and how both consumers and the authorities can protect themselves against fraudsters in this digital space.

Recorded on March 21, 2024. Produced by Earl Lagundino.

Follow us on Spotify BusinessWorld B-Side

Sun Life reigns as the no. 1 life insurance company for the 13^th year in a row

April 6, 2024 | 12:05 am

Sun Life of Canada (Philippines), Inc. continues to reign as the no. 1 life insurance company for 13 consecutive years after garnering PHP 55.79 billion in Total Premium Income.

This is according to the 2023 report released by the Insurance Commission based on submitted unaudited Quarterly Report on Selected Financial Statistics. In the same report, Sun Life also ranked no. 1 in Total Assets with PHP 306.33 billion, and Net Income with PHP 8.79 billion.

“Being consistently no. 1 means that our clients continue to trust us to help them secure a brighter future for themselves and their loved ones,” Sun Life Philippines CEO and Country Head Benedict Sison said. “It is a privilege to be their chosen partner in their financial journey, and we will continue to honor their confidence by serving them with excellence.”

This milestone comes on the heels of Sun Life’s 129th anniversary, making it the first and longest-standing life insurance company in the Philippines. As a further testament to its dedication in delivering excellence, the company also received accolades from regional award-giving bodies recently. Sun Life was recognized as one of the Industry Champions of the Year at the Asia Corporate Excellence and Sustainability (ACES) Awards. Likewise, it was also bestowed with the Corporate Excellence Award at the Asia Pacific Enterprise Awards (APEA) for demonstrating effective talent mobilization and organizational capability that deliver consistent business results while remaining aligned to the company’s purpose.

“We would not be where we are today if not for the passion and dedication of our advisors and employees,” Sison added. “We would like to thank them for their commitment to our mission of helping Filipinos achieve lifetime financial security and live healthier lives.”

Spotlight is BusinessWorld’s sponsored section that allows advertisers to amplify their brand and connect with BusinessWorld’s audience by publishing their stories on the BusinessWorld Web site. For more information, send an email to online@bworldonline.com.

Join us on Viber at https://bit.ly/3hv6bLA to get more updates and subscribe to BusinessWorld’s titles and get exclusive content through www.bworld-x.com.

Asian Hospital, Inc. to hold virtual Annual Stockholders’ Meeting on April 30

April 6, 2024 | 12:02 am

Spotlight is BusinessWorld’s sponsored section that allows advertisers to amplify their brand and connect with BusinessWorld’s audience by publishing their stories on the BusinessWorld Web site. For more information, send an email to online@bworldonline.com.

Join us on Viber at https://bit.ly/3hv6bLA to get more updates and subscribe to BusinessWorld’s titles and get exclusive content through www.bworld-x.com.