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MONEY SENT HOME by overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in November grew by 5.7% to $2.644 billion, the lowest amount in six months, data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed. Read the full story.
THE SUPREME COURT of the State of New York (NY) on Saturday denied Rizal Commercial Banking Corp.’s (RCBC) motion to dismiss the case filed by the Bangladesh Bank related to the $81-million cyber heist in 2016 over jurisdictional matters.
The ruling only resolved jurisdictional issues on whether the case will be held in New York or in the Philippines as the witnesses and evidence involved in the case are from here, RCBC said in a disclosure to the local bourse on Monday.
“Without ruling on the merits, the Court confirmed its jurisdiction over RCBC and the individual defendants. It also exercised its discretion to find that New York is a convenient forum to try the case,” the bank said.
RCBC said the ruling is “not a decision on the merits of the case and is not in any way a finding of liability on the part of RCBC or any of the individual defendants.”
“The New York Court also directed the parties to mediate the dispute,” it added.
The listed lender said it will “continue to defend the case vigorously and is considering all options, including the possibility of an appeal against the denial of the motion to dismiss.”
“[What] remains unexplained until today, more than six years after this incident in February 2016, is what actually happened within the walls of Bangladesh Bank. It has not released any report of the incident and has repeatedly pointed fingers at other parties instead of revealing what truly occurred within the confines of their offices and people they control,” RCBC added.
Bangladesh Bank’s case was filed before the Supreme Court of the State of New York in May 2020.
This followed the decision of the Federal Court of New York to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Bangladesh Bank on the 2016 incident.
The dismissed case was filed by Bangladesh Bank to seek compensation for the $81 million it allegedly lost to North Korean hackers who sent multiple remittance orders out of the central bank’s account with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
These funds were allegedly remitted to accounts in RCBC and were also said to have been channeled into local casinos through gambling.
In 2016, RCBC was slapped with a record P1-billion fine by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas for lapses that led to the incident. It was able to pay the penalty in 2017.
The lender’s net income increased by 95% year on year to P3.9 billion in the third quarter of 2022.
This brought the RCBC’s consolidated net profit for the first nine months of 2022 to P10 billion, surging by 88% from the year prior.
RCBC’s shares went down by 60 centavos or 2.65% to close at P22 apiece on Monday. — AMCS
SHANGHAI NIGHTS: From Madame Ning with Love (A Chinese New Year Celebration with Desire, Danger, and Dance) will be held on Jan. 20, 8 p.m., at The Peninsula Manila’s Salon de Ning. The evening will feature the improv group SPIT in an immersive two-hour melodrama featuring a love triangle, set in 1920s Shanghai on the eve of Chinese New Year. The audience will help decide the fate of lovers to the tune of the music of the Jazz Age, as they sip on cocktails and have their fortunes told. The evening’s festivities cost P888 (inclusive of taxes and one drink). For inquiries and reservations call 8887-2888 local 6694.
DUTY Free Philippines (DFP) welcomes the Year of the Water Rabbit with the “Chinese New Year Jan-Pack Sale” on Jan. 21-23. International travelers, — balikbayans, overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), and foreign tourists — can take advantage of deals as participating brands will offer discounts of as much as 20% on selected items. The sale will run on Jan. 21 at DFP’s downtown Fiestamall store in Parañaque City and on Jan. 22-23 at Luxe Duty Free in Pasay City. Traditional lion and dragon dances will be held be on Jan. 23 at both the Fiestamall and Luxe Duty Free stores. There will also be a Chinese Wishing Ceremony officiated by Feng Shui master Patrick Lim Hernandez at Luxe Duty Free where shoppers can join and offer their New Year wishes.
SINGER Christian Bautista celebrates his 20th year in showbiz with an anniversary concert, The Way You Look at Me, on Jan. 28 at the Samsung Performing Arts Theater in Circuit Makati. The show includes guest performances from The CompanY, Julie Anne San Jose, Sam Concepcion, and Morissette Amon. For tickets, visit https://bit.ly/TWYLAMtickets. For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/stagestalents/.
NOSTALGIA reigns in the Newport Performing Arts Theater in February as several concerts feature music from the 1970s to the ’90s. Three of the biggest heartthrobs from the 1970s — Christopher De Leon, Tirso Cruz III, and Edgar “Bobot” Mortiz — will perform in Some Kind of Valentine, a two-night Vegas casino-style spectacle showcasing the trio’s flair for humor, wit, and comic frolic. Lovi Poe will join them onstage for the pre-Valentine concert at Newport Performing Arts Theater on Feb. 3 and 4. On Feb. 11, the theater will be the venue for The Music of Love, a sentimental concert featuring Richard Poon, Kyla, and Sitti. Finally, on Feb. 14 and 15, Gary Valenciano will ignite the stage with his music and passion in the Gary V: Re-energized Manila concert. His special guests will be pop-rock princess Yeng Constantino and his daughter and award-winning songwriter Kiana Valenciano. Tickets to Some Kind of Valentine are now available at all TicketWorld and SM Tickets outlets, with prices ranging from P1,500 to P8,000. Tickets to Gary V: Reenergized are also available at all TicketWorld and SM Tickets outlets, with prices ranging from P1,800 to P9,800. For inquiries, contact the Newport World Resorts National Sales Team via 0917-658-9378, 0917-872-8309, and 0917-872-8734, or call Ticketworld (8891-9999), or SM Tickets (8470-2222).
REESE Witherspoon and Ashton Kutcher star in Your Place or Mine, which debuts on Netflix on Feb. 10. They play Debbie and Peter, who are best friends and total opposites. She craves routine with her son in LA, he thrives on change in New York. When they swap houses and lives for a week, they discover what they think they want might not be what they really need.
MULTI-platinum selling recording artist and songwriter Miley Cyrus has released “Flowers,” the first single from her forthcoming 8th studio album, Endless Summer Vacation. The track finds Miley opining on self-love and courage. The song comes with a fashion-forward video , created by Cyrus and directed by Jacob Bixenman, with Stephen Galloway serving as creative movement director. Endless Summer Vacation will be available globally on both digital and at physical retailers on March 10. Fans can pre-order multiple physical configurations on shop.mileycyrus.com.
FILIPINO singer-songwriter Jason Marvin starts 2023 with the release of his new single, “Oras.” Brimming with lush, gentle arrangements and laid-back vocals, the piano-driven ballad finds the Cornerstone Entertainment artist traveling back in time to amend a romantic relationship. It also touches on the idea of admitting one’s mistakes and using them as motivation to become a better person. “Oras” is available on all digital music platforms worldwide via Sony Music Philippines.
THE Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) has elected Benedicta Du-Baladad as its president for 2023.
In a statement on Monday, it said Ms. Du-Baladad, the group’s 75th president, is the founding partner and chief executive officer of the Du-Baladad and Associates (BDB) law firm.
She replaces former Public Works and Highways Secretary Rogelio L. Singson, who served as MAP president from July 1 to Dec. 31, 2022 after former MAP president Alfredo E. Pascual was appointed Trade secretary under the Marcos administration.
Ms. Du-Baladad is an accountant and lawyer with a joint degree — Masters of Law and International Tax Program at Harvard University.
“Her experience, expertise, determination, and strong will, all contributed to making BDB Law one of the leading tax and corporate law firms today leading to its consistent recognition as an outstanding tax law firm by international ranking bodies, including the Chambers and Partners, International Tax Review, Legal 500 and Asia Legal Business,” the association said.
Ms. Du-Baladad served as president of the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (FINEX) in 2017 and was the co-chairperson of the Capital Market Development Council from 2019 to 2022.
She was an official of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), where she served various roles in operations, policy formulation, and legal. She moved to the private sector in 2001 and became the president of the Tax Management Association of the Philippines.
“These valuable insights into both the public and private sectors and her notable objective thinking are attributes that serve her well in her role as a consultant of the government on various projects, including those on tax reforms, pension reforms and capital market development initiatives,” the MAP said.
Currently, Ms. Du-Baladad serves as a director for various firms and non-governmental organizations such as Asia Pacific director for WTS Global (Netherlands), vice chair of Bank of Commerce, and trustee of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Institute of Corporate Directors, and Women Business Council of the Philippines. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave
Here’s a quick glance at how PSEi stocks fared on Monday, January 16, 2023.
THE PESO posted a fresh six-month high against the dollar on Monday as easing US inflation in December 2022 fanned hopes of smaller rate hikes from the US Federal Reserve as early as this month.
The local currency closed at P54.575 versus the greenback on Monday, climbing by 31.50 centavos from Friday’s P54.89 finish, data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines showed.
This is the peso’s best close since it finished at P54.47 on June 22, 2022.
The peso opened Monday’s trading session at P54.90 per dollar, which was already its weakest showing for the day. Its intraday best was at P54.475 against the greenback.
Dollars traded went down to $1.27 billion from $1.37 billion on Friday.
A trader said in an e-mail that the peso strengthened on expectations that the Fed would hike rates by just 25 basis points (bps) in its first policy meeting for the year to be held on Jan. 31 to Feb. 1.
Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort likewise said in a Viber message that the peso was supported by latest US consumer inflation data that bolstered hopes of slower tightening by the Fed,
The US central last month hiked its federal funds rate by just 50 bps to a 4.25%-4.5% range following four straight 75-bp increases. This brought cumulative hikes for 2022 to 425 bps.
The US consumer price index (CPI) slipped by 0.1% last month, the first decline since May 2020 and coming from a 0.1% rise in November.
On an annual basis, the CPI increased 6.5%, easing from the 7.1% print seen in November 2022.
The dollar is already at its lowest since May at 127.22 yen, having shed 3.2% last week, and threatens to break major support around 126.37, Reuters reported.
The euro also lost 1.5% on the yen last week, but was aided by gains on a broadly softer dollar, which saw it reach a fresh nine-month peak of $1.0872 on Monday.
All of which saw the US dollar index ease to its lowest since June at 101.780.
For Tuesday, the trader said the peso could weaken against the dollar on expectations of weak Chinese gross domestic product (GDP) data that could fuel recession fears.
The trader sees the peso moving between P54.45 and P54.70 versus the greenback on Tuesday, while Mr. Ricafort gave a forecast range of P54.45 to P54.65. — AMCS with Reuters
PHILIPPINE SHARES climbed on Monday amid Wall Street’s rise last week and a stronger peso amid expectations of smaller rate hikes from the US Federal Reserve.
The 30-member Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) went up by 93.94 points or 1.35% to 7,045.48 on Monday, while the broader all shares index rose by 37.53 points or 1.03% to end at 3,675.15.
This was the first time the PSEi closed at the 7,000 level since April 25, 2022. It was also its best finish since the 7,061.49 close recorded on April 21, 2022.
“The uplift in the market was provided by US shares closing at the highest in a month, with the S&P 500 ending within a whisker of 4,000,” First Metro Investment Corp. (FMIC) Head of Research Cristina S. Ulang said in a Viber message.
Philstocks Financial, Inc. Research Analyst Claire T. Alviar said the market surged on Monday amid expectations that the Fed will be less aggressive following slower consumer inflation in December.
“The strengthening of the peso against the dollar lifted the market as well,” she added.
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq finished at their highest levels in a month on Friday, Reuters reported.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 112.64 points or 0.33% to 34,302.61; the S&P 500 gained 15.92 points or 0.4% to 3,999.09; and the Nasdaq Composite added 78.05 points or 0.71% to 11,079.16.
The S&P 500 closed at its highest level since Dec. 13, while the Nasdaq closed at its highest level since Dec. 14.
The consumer price index and other recent data have bolstered hopes that a sustained downward trend in inflation could give the Fed room to dial back on its interest rate hikes.
The US central bank raised borrowing costs by 425 basis points last year, which brought the federal funds rate to 4.25-4.5%. It will hold its first policy review for this year from Jan. 31 to Feb. 1.
Fed hike hopes also helped boost the peso against the dollar. The local unit closed at P54.575 versus the greenback on Monday, an over six-month high.
Most sectoral indices closed higher on Monday except mining and oil, which went down by 80.18 points or 0.69% to 11,457.63, and services, which slipped by 1.79 points or 0.1% to 1,725.26.
Meanwhile, financials gained 50.12 points or 2.79% to 1,841.46; holding firms added 163.03 or 2.43% to end at 6,870.52; property went up by 11.21 points or 0.36% to 3,063.99; and industrials increased by 32.24 points or 0.32% to end at 10,005.80.
Value turnover went up to P10.23 billion on Monday with 1.11 billion shares changing hands from the P9.24 billion with 1.63 billion issues traded on Friday.
Advancers outnumbered decliners, 138 versus 65, while 46 names closed unchanged.
Net foreign buying climbed to P1.08 billion on Monday from the P706.98 million seen on Friday.
FMIC’s Ms. Ulang placed the PSEi’s support at 6,700 and resistance at 7,100. — J.I.D. Tabile with Reuters
THE GOVERNMENT will maintain a two-month buffer stock of sugar to contain price volatility in the commodity, Malacañang said in a statement on Monday, citing a briefing President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. delivered en route to the Davos conference in Switzerland.
“We will maintain from now on, in sugar, a two-month buffer stock,” Mr. Marcos was quoted as saying. “People will know we won’t have a shortage because we will always (have) a two-month buffer stock, which I will maintain.”
The Palace gave no details on which agency will oversee the buffer stock scheme or what its procurement budget will be.
The government, through the National Food Authority (NFA), also maintains a buffer stock equivalent to at least 15 days’ consumption for rice.
The NFA builds up an inventory of rice purchased from domestic farmers and releases stock to local governments or non-government organizations during disasters. To do so the NFA maintains a network of buying stations, mills, and warehouses in rice-growing provinces.
The NFA rice buffer stock operation was granted a budget of P12 billion in 2023, including procurement.
The NFA does not engage in market intervention but releases a quantity of cheap rice for purchase by low-income consumers.
Mr. Marcos, who serves as his own Agriculture Secretary, promised when he took office in June to limit food imports “as much as possible.”
Early in his term, a spike in sugar prices allegedly caused by tight supply forced him to authorize sugar imports of 150,000 metric tons in September.
Sugar prices in supermarkets hit a record P134 per kilogram in October.
In December, Mr. Marcos also approved refined sugar imports of a further 64,050 metric tons.
Mr. Marcos said digitalizing the Bureau of Customs will be a key measure in dealing with smuggling.
Addressing domestic production of food, Mr. Marcos said: “We have to go back to the sugar industry … We have to go back to the onion growers and help them… so we do not need to import.” — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza
THE government’s onion import plan is not likely to attract importers because of the “tight window” to apply for an import permit, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) said in a report.
“The extreme conditions attached to the unscheduled quota all but guarantee that it will not be filled and likely will not come close to filling,” USDA said.
“Regardless of the limited volume and tight window of opportunity to apply for import permits, several other conditions also apply and reduce the likelihood that the quota will be realized or achieve its intended result of providing price relief to consumers,” it said.
The Department of Agriculture (DA) recently authorized imports of 21,060 metric tons (MT) of onions — including 17,100 MT of the red variety and 3,960 MT of the yellow — to stabilize onion prices.
In a letter to the Bureau of Plant Industry dated Jan. 6, the DA said applications for sanitary and phytosanitary import clearances were open to importers between Jan. 9 and Jan. 13.
Importers were only given until Jan. 27 to bring in their shipments in order not to disrupt the domestic onion harvest.
The retail price of onions, observed in markets at up to P600 per kilo, has far exceeded the suggested retail price of P250.
“Meanwhile, the Philippines has no scheduled or notified exception for a quota or quantitative restriction on onions in the WTO (World Trade Organization),” the USDA said.
The restriction on the shipments, including the ports to be used to land the cargoes as well as the timeline, will limit the number of licensed importers able to import fresh onion, the USDA said, adding that cold storage capacity may not be up to the task of storing the imports.
“This combination of factors will further impede the ability of imported onions to access and flow through the local supply chain,” the USDA said. — Ashley Erika O. Jose
THE high price of onions is disproportionate to the small shortfall in domestic production, which could have easily been addressed by well-timed imports, Senators said.
Senator Cynthia A. Villar, who chairs the Senate committee on Agriculture and Food, cited data from the Philippine Statistics Authority pointing to a 2021 onion surplus if domestic production and imports are added up, raising the question of why prices rose so sharply late in 2022.
In 2021, she said, domestic production amounted to 218,047 metric tons (MT) of onion, against demand of 266,526 MT.
“If you look at the 2021 figure… there was a shortage of 38,000 MT but DA imported 101,000 MT, so there was a surplus during 2021 of 53,000 MT,” she said.
“They said that prices went up during 2022 because there was a shortage, but there was an oversupply in 2021 of 53,000 MT, so even if there is a deficiency of 30,000 MT, (it should have been) more than covered by the oversupply in 2021,” she added.
Demand in 2022 amounted to 270,410 MT against domestic production of 238,561 MT. The Department of Agriculture (DA) said it authorized imports of 29,707 MT to address the deficiency.
At the hearing, Senator Maria Imelda Josefa R. Marcos said market prices as high as P750 per kilogram reflect an “abject lack of planning.”
“Minimal importation would have solved this if it had been timely and well projected. However, there seems to be as well a level of treachery and manipulation involved,” she added.
Ms. Villar said market prices are completely out of line with the estimated supply shortfall. The 2022 deficit of around 2,140 MT “does not justify the price of P550 to P700.”
She noted that prices did not rise to the same extent in 2019, when the shortfall was 12,663 MT, but the price during that year’s holiday season topped out at P180.
DA Policy, Planning and Regulations Undersecretary Mercedita A. Sombilla, speaking at the hearing, said that the figures she received from the Bureau of Plant Industry is not consistent with data being cited by the DA.
Ms. Villar said such inconsistencies undermine trust in official data.
“You guys are changing the figures to justify the wrongdoings performed by some of those in the DA,” she said.
According to Ms. Sombilla’s presentation, at the end of 2022, the onion supply was in deficit by 3,859 MT, with total supply at 313,542 MT and total demand at 317,401 MT.
“While we were reviewing the data, we also unearthed that there was over 10,000 MT… that did not come out, so there should be 6,000 MT available,” Ms. Sombilla said.
“So, we could say that we really don’t have a shortage to (justify the extent of the price increase),” Ms. Villar said. “That is why we’re calling this hearing for the people to be able to explain what is happening… they have to explain to us what is happening in the DA and, of course, in the Bureau of Customs (BoC).”
Senator Joseph Victor G. Ejercito, speaking at the hearing, said smugglers remain unchecked, and the volumes they are bringing in far outweigh the highly-publicized retail shipments brought in by Philippine Airlines (PAL) crew members.
“The PAL crew were bringing gifts for personal consumption. Previously (it was) apples, grapes, perfume, shoes. But now, they (bring) their families onions,” he said.
“We choose to punish (aircrew), but what about the big-time cartels, smugglers, protectors, who get past?”
The crew members caught by customs will be charged with violating the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act and the Plant Quarantine Decree of 1978.
Senator Mary Grace Natividad S. Poe-Llamanzares noted that the price of one kilo of onions has now exceeded the daily minimum wage.
She said that P700 per kilo of onion is “about three times as expensive as chicken and 25-50% more expensive than pork or beef.”
The BoC has made some arrests, BoC Assistant Commissioner Vincent Philip C. Maronilla said during the hearing.
“Of those that docked, we apprehended 86 containers recently. There are onions which passed through the Port of Mindanao Container Terminal, Subic, and Davao,” he added.
Ms. Villar dismissed the 987 MT of agricultural products seized as “irrelevant.”
“The amount we imported in 2021 is more than 100,000 MT. What you apprehended seems very small,” she said. “In figures, that amount is just (a rounding error)… That is worthless.”
President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. also serves as his own Secretary of Agriculture, making any disruptions in the food supply his responsibility to a great extent.
“I think it is important that the President take that portfolio so that not only to make it clear to everyone what a high priority we put on the agricultural sector, but also as a practical matter so that things move quickly because the events of the global economy are moving very quickly,” Mr. Marcos has said.
“We have to be able to be agile, we have to be able to respond properly in a measured way as soon as there is a situation that needs to be addressed,” he added. — Alyssa Nicole O. Tan
THE bottom line in providing low-cost housing is affordability, with Habitat for Humanity Philippines citing the wide gap between the pricing of affordable units and what the typical buyer can afford.
“The national and local governments, private, non-governmental organizations and contractors (must collaborate)” to produce an outcome where, “instead of one family covering the P855,000 for the house and a lot… it could just be P250,000,” Mardi Mapa-Suplido, chief executive officer of Habitat for Humanity Philippines, said at an industry forum on Monday. The key to true affordability, she added, is “knowing (the buyer’s) income.”
Ms. Mapa-Suplido was among the presenters at a conference for the “sheltertech,” industry, in which participants were exploring ways to make housing “vibrant and investible,” according to the conference’s organizers.
Marcelino C. Mendoza, president and chairman of the Organization of Socialized and Economic Housing Developers of the Philippines, Inc., said one other approach to chip away at costs in low-cost housing is to ensure the process of building and buying houses is made more efficient via digitalization.
“Digitalization in the Philippines is still at a very low level. There’s a lot more upside and what is important is it could benefit the homeowners through efficiency and more cash for them,” Mr. Mendoza said.
Roberto Batungbacal, the Dow Chemical Co. Philippines country manager, said one other way to make housing more efficient is to recycling waste to produce building materials.
“Apart from addressing pollution in the environment, it will enable us to (add to the) domestic supply of construction materials,” Mr. Batungbacal said.
He cited Green Antz Builders as an example of a company that recycles waste into construction materials. — Justine Irish D. Tabile
