NCCA denies petition to delist temple as Important Cultural Property

November 17, 2021 | 12:06 am

THE NATIONAL Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) has denied a petition to delist the Pao Ong Hu Taoist Temple in Sta. Ana, Manila as an Important Cultural Property (ICP).

An Important Cultural Property is one that has been determined as possessing “exceptional cultural, artistic, and /or historical significance” to the country. It is the second highest level of protection after the classification of National Cultural Treasures. The determination is made by the NCCA, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines, and the National Museum of the Philippines (NMP).

According to a statement released by the NCCA on Oct. 27, the Pao Ong Hu Taoist Temple had been declared as an ICP under NMP Resolution No. 03-2016. “The temple is located just behind the Parish Church of Our Lady of the Abandoned (Sta. Ana Church), which is a declared National Cultural Treasure,” said the statement, which noted that “It features two rooms dedicated to two different personas, one for Pao Kong — a Taoist God, and for Guanyin — a female deity resembling the image of Virgin Mary.”

The NCCA had received a petition from Chloe Go on Aug. 8, 2020 to delist the Pao Ong Hu Taoist Temple. Ms. Go filed a petition giving the following reasons for delisting the temple: 1.) that the previous and current owner had no knowledge of the ICP status of the structure, as there was no indication that the property was already declared an ICP; 2.) that the property was turned over to Ms. Go by the previous owner devoid of any artifacts; 3.) that the declaration of the property as an ICP blatantly disregards the principles of due process, as no public notice and/or hearing has been done; and, 4.) that after declaring the structure as an ICP, the concerned Registry of Deeds was not notified.

In the NCCA statement it explained that, “Pursuant to Sec. 8 of Republic Act No. 10066 and Section 11 of its Implementing Rules and Regulations, the NCCA posted a public notice online to invite support or opposition from various stakeholders regarding the filed petition. This public notice was posted on Jan. 8, 2021 with a deadline set on Jan. 29, 2021.

“Moreover, this Commission requested the comments of the National Committee on Monuments and Sites (NCMS), National Committee on Architecture and Allied Arts (NCAAA), Manila Heritage Tours Sta. Ana, and the local government unit of the City of Manila. The NCAAA asserted that while the said property is culturally significant, it has deteriorated so much that its architectural significance has been compromised. The Manila Heritage Tours Sta. Ana and the City of Manila have not given any position regarding the matter.”

Given this, the NCCA said, “After due deliberation and careful evaluation, the petition to delist the Pao Ong Hu Taoist Temple as an ICP was dismissed on Sept. 16, 2021 for lack of legal and factual justifications as per NCCA Board Resolution No. 2021-312. Furthermore, the declaration of the Pao Ong Hu Taoist Temple as an ICP will be duly registered in the Philippine Registry of Cultural Property and the installation of the declaration marker be implemented accordingly.”

GMA income down 6%; ABS-CBN trims loss

November 17, 2021 | 12:06 am

GMA Network, Inc. on Tuesday reported a 6% decrease in third-quarter attributable net income to P2.34 billion from P2.49 billion in the same period last year, while ABS-CBN Corp. trimmed its attributable net loss to P303.09 million from a loss of P3.33 billion previously.

In a stock exchange filing, GMA said its net revenues for the quarter grew 0.85% to P5.96 billion from P5.91 billion in the same period a year ago.

Production costs for the third quarter surged to P1.20 billion from P618.37 million in the same period last year, while cost of sales dropped by 61% to P109.36 million from P280.58 million previously, bringing the company’s gross profit to P4.65 billion, down by 7% from P5 billion in the same period in 2020.

The company’s general and administrative expenses increased 5.6% to P1.50 billion in the third quarter of the year from P1.42 billion in the same period in 2020.

Meanwhile, GMA’s nine-month attributable net income grew 53.3% to P5.98 billion from P3.90 billion previously, as net revenues for the period climbed 30.8% to P16.56 billion — propelled by advertising revenues — from P12.66 billion last year.

“With GMA’s broadcasting operations currently enjoying the widest reach in the free-to-air arena, consolidated sales of the company for the past nine months breached the P16.0-billion mark, at P16,556 million,” the company said.

“Advertising revenues comprised 93% of the total revenue pie and was also the driver for the considerable improvement in the topline — both through airtime sales and through the company’s presence in the online landscape,” it added.

Meanwhile, ABS-CBN managed to reduce its nine-month attributable net loss to P3.67 billion from a loss of P7.25 billion in the same period last year.

ABS-CBN’s total revenues for the January-to-September period fell 25.1% to P12.75 billion from P17.03 billion previously.

The company’s production costs for the period went down 30.2% to P5.38 billion from P7.71 billion, while cost of services fell 8.8% to P6.04 billion from P6.62 billion previously, and cost of sales dropped 94.3% to P17.87 million from P313.59 million in the same period last year, bringing its gross profit to P1.31 billion, down 45.2% from P2.39 billion last year.

ABS-CBN’s advertising revenues for the period fell by P2.1 billion, or 35.5% lower, attributable to its absence in the free-to-air advertising space following the cease-and-desist order issued by the National Telecommunications Commission on its broadcast operations on May 5, 2020 and the adoption of a resolution denying its franchise application by the House Committee on Legislative Franchises on July 10 of that year.

“Consumer sales [were] similarly affected by the cease-and-desist order as this prohibited the company from engaging in Sky Cable’s DTH (direct-to-home) services and distribution of TV Plus Boxes,” the company noted.

“In addition, the impact of the [coronavirus] outbreak resulted in the cessation of various ancillary operations such as Heroes Burger, Kidzania Manila and Studio XP. These unfortunate events resulted in a decrease in consumer revenues of P1.9 billion,” it added.

The company also announced on Tuesday that it was awarded $21 million in lawsuit against 21 pirate website operators.

“The court in the Southern District of Florida entered a default judgment in favor of… ABS-CBN and against 21 pirate site operators. The order includes an award of damages in excess of $1 million against each of the 21 pirate website operators,” the media company said in an e-mailed statement.

The company also said the websites associated with these “illegal operations” are streaming portals offering “free access” to its content in the United States and abroad. — Arjay L. Balinbin

OPM folk music icon Heber Bartolome, 73

November 17, 2021 | 12:05 am

10274106_10151764588522614_2285404460302758372_n — FILIPINO musician Heber Gonzalez Bartolome — FACEBOOK.COM/HEBER.BARTOLOME.18

FILIPINO musician Heber Gonzalez Bartolome passed away on the evening of Nov. 15, his brother Jesse confirmed. He was 73.

While Mr. Bartolome’s cause of death is not confirmed, his brother said that he had a lingering prostate illness for over a year.

Mr. Bartolome, best known for songs like “Tayo’y Mga Pinoy,” “Karaniwang Tao” and “Nena,” came from a musical family. Born on Nov. 4, 1948 in Cabanatuan, Nueva Ecija, his parents were Deogracias Bartolome, a pastor and also violin and guitar maker, and Angelina Gonzalez, a zarzuela singer.

Mr. Bartolome earned a degree in Fine Arts from the University of the Philippines in 1973 before founding a protest band band called Banyuhay Ni Heber during martial law together with his brothers Jesse and Levi. He performed around the country, as well as staged concerts in Australia and Europe.

He was also a former member and trustee of the Filipino Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, Inc. (FILSCAP), a non-stock, non-profit organization that grants music users legal permission to publicly play, stream, broadcast, or reproduce.

Aside from playing music, Mr. Bartolome was also an educator and painter.

He was a Filipino Literature professor at the De La Salle University from 1981 to 1984.

In Sept. 2017, Mr. Bartolome held an art exhibit at the Philippine Consulate in Calgary. He also participated in art exhibits and competitions in Australia, Germany, Brussels, Austria, Spain, and China.

Details on the burial are to follow. — MAPS

DITO CME incurs P1.8-B loss; Chelsea cuts loss

November 17, 2021 | 12:05 am

DENNIS A. Uy’s DITO CME Holdings Corp. incurred an attributable net loss of P1.81 billion for the third quarter, a reversal of its P14.64-million profit in the same period last year.

Chelsea Logistics and Infrastructure Holdings Corp., his shipping and logistics company, cut its attributable net loss for the quarter to P1.13 billion from a loss of P1.32 billion in 2020.

In a stock exchange filing on Tuesday, DITO CME said it consolidated the financials of DITO Telecommunity Corp. into the company in the third quarter of the year, making it part of the reporting of its financial results.

For the third quarter, DITO CME reported P327.27 million in revenues, which generated a gross profit of P287.15 million.

However, its operating expenses for the quarter surged to P1.71 billion from P2.1 million in the same period a year ago, resulting in an operating loss of P1.42 billion from a loss of P2.1 million previously.

“The increase in operating expenses was mainly due to expenses involving the rollout of DITO Telecommunity in various areas within the Philippines,” the company said.

DITO CME, which owns 54% of DITO Telecommunity, handles the investments of Mr. Uy’s Udenna Corp. in media, communications, entertainment, and information technology.

It has three digital companies: Unalytics, which provides managed analytics services; Acuity Global, which curates media properties across platforms and provides media planning and buying; and Luna Academy, an online education platform aimed at equipping users with future-ready skills, credentials, and certificates.

For the January-September period, DITO CME reported P327.27 million in revenues, which generated a gross profit of P287.15 million.

Operating expenses rose to P1.75 billion from P3.68 million in the same period last year, resulting in an operating loss of P1.46 billion from a loss of P3.68 million previously.

“DITO Telecommunity is playing the long game. From day one, we did mention already that building a telco from scratch will be very much capital extensive, but the milestones reached in just nine months of operation is encouraging to say the least,” DITO CME President and Director Ernesto R. Alberto said.

The company said DITO Telecommunity now covers 340 cities and municipalities with over 3,300 towers built.

Since March, DITO Telecommunity has already gained four million subscribers, DITO CME noted.

Meanwhile, Chelse Logistics reported P1.14 billion in revenues for the third quarter, up 51.8% from P752.54 million in the same period last year.

Helped by lower expenses, the company managed to trim its loss before tax for the quarter to P1.13 billion from a loss of P1.29 billion in the same period in 2020.

Attributable net income for the nine-month period was cut to P2.2 billion from a loss of P2.6 billion in 2020.

Chelsea’s total revenues for the January-to-September period declined 1.5% to P3.27 billion from P3.32 billion previously.

The company managed to trim its loss before tax to P2.20 billion from a loss of P2.57 billion last year.

Chelsea said the narrower net loss was driven by “continued rational cost-containment measures as well as a slight year-on-year improvement in revenues led by its freight and logistics businesses.”

“Chelsea group’s third-quarter performance highlights the continuing recovery story for the industry as well as the group with our freight business leading the way,” Chelsea President and Chief Executive Officer Chryss Alfonsus V. Damuy said.

He said that despite the continuing fears from the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) Delta variant, “we are confident that the economy is poised to gradually recover in the last quarter of the year as the government accelerates the vaccination program, which will bring about herd immunity for the population.”

“We have already seen a continued drop in the number of active cases with substantially lower positivity rates,” he added.

On Tuesday, shares in DITO CME fell by 1.49% to P5.95 each, while Chelsea shares closed unchanged at P1.93 apiece. Mr. Uy is chairman of both companies. — Arjay L. Balinbin

Where’s the wasabi? 7-Eleven is sued over snack mix

November 17, 2021 | 12:04 am

NEW YORK — 7-Eleven, the convenience chain known for Slurpees and Big Gulp beverages, has been sued by a US consumer who claims its private-label Wasabi Delight Flavored Snack Mix contains no wasabi.

The lawsuit, filed on Sunday night in Manhattan federal court by Oscar Ithier, joins hundreds of proposed $5 million-or-larger class actions accusing food companies of overcharging consumers through false and misleading packaging.

Mr. Ithier said the label for 7-Eleven’s snack mix is deceptive because neither the wasabi powder in the “crunchy wasabi peanuts” nor the artificial wasabi flavor in the “wasabi green peas” on the ingredients list contains wasabi.

The West Harrison, New York resident also said real wasabi, a greenish Japanese condiment that is similar to horseradish and has antioxidant properties, tastes “bright and pungent” with a fast-fading heat, while “fake” wasabi burns hotter and longer.

“Defendant gained an advantage against other companies, and against consumers seeking to purchase a product that contained some wasabi,” the complaint said.

7-Eleven did not immediately respond on Monday to requests for comment. The chain has more than 77,000 stores worldwide, including nearly 16,000 in North America. Its parent is Seven & I Holdings Co.

The lawsuit seeks damages for snack mix purchasers in New York and eight other US states, who typically paid $2.59 or more for a 4.5-ounce (128-gram) bag, whose packaging includes a pair of chopsticks holding a wasabi pea.

Mr. Ithier is represented by Spencer Sheehan, a Great Neck, New York, lawyer known for filing dozens of lawsuits claiming that “vanilla” products contain little or no vanilla bean. More recently, he has filed lawsuits alleging that Kellogg Co.’s Strawberry Pop-Tarts contain too few strawberries. — Reuters

Sia’s DoubleDragon reports income decline; REIT, MerryMart records growth

November 17, 2021 | 12:04 am

SIA-LED listed firms reported mixed earnings in the third quarter as listed property firm DoubleDragon Properties Corp.’s attributable net income declined, while the real estate investment trust (REIT) firm and listed grocery operator both posted net income growths for the period.

In a regulatory disclosure on Tuesday, DoubleDragon reported a 76% decline in attributable net income for the quarter ending September, scoring P120.45 million from P495.58 million in the same period last year.

DoubleDragon’s topline for the quarter inched up by two

ent, amounting to P1.73 billion from last year’s P1.69 billion.

For the January-September period, DoubleDragon’s attributable net income declined 33% to P2.53 billion from P3.8 billion year on year. Its nine-month topline dropped to P4.41 billion from last year’s P9.79 billion as its rent income declined 15% to P2.53 billion and interest income went down by 40% to P20.53 million.

Compared with the same period last year, the company did not account for a one-off P5.49-billion unrealized gains from the changes in fair values from an investment property.

Hotel revenues for the nine-month period rose 14.49% to P420.70 million, while real estate sales surged 124.29% to P718.64 million.

However, the company’s core net income as of September this year went up 250.86% to P4.18 billion from P1.19 billion in 2020.

DoubleDragon said its total equity grew 31.35% to P64.44 billion in the nine-month period after it listed its real estate investment trust (REIT) and after the new equity infusion of Jollibee Foods Corp. (JFC) into its industrial leasing unit, CentralHub Industry Centers, Inc.

“DDMP REIT, Inc. (DDMPR) is just the first of DoubleDragon’s pillars to unlock its true value. DoubleDragon’s warehouses, community malls and hotels will soon follow suit as DoubleDragon positions itself in the forefront of the post-pandemic recovery of the economy,” DoubleDragon Chief Investment Officer Hannah Yulo-Luccini said in the DoubleDragon statement.

The company said CentralHub is working on ramping up the construction of its P24.8-billion industrial warehouse portfolio after completing its equity joint venture with JFC. DoubleDragon and JFC plan to launch CentralHub’s REIT initial public offering (IPO) next year, which is expected to be the country’s first industrial REIT IPO.

Meanwhile, according to a DDMPR regulatory filing, the firm swung to profitability in the third quarter with a net income of P589.9 million, a reversal of the P82.44-million loss incurred a year ago. It generated a topline of P664.12 million.

For the nine-month period, DDMPR’s net income declined 37% to P2.77 billion from last year’s P4.42 billion. Its topline also dropped to P1.81 billion from P6.36 billion.

However, its nine-month core net income jumped 171.68% to P2.77 billion, excluding fair value gains, from P1.02 billion in the same period last year. Rental and CUSA income rose 6.94% to P1.55 billion.

DDMPR said its portfolio is 97.71% leased out “and continues to remain stable.”

On the other hand, MerryMart Consumer Corp’s regulatory disclosure showed its net income surged to P6.59 billion in the third quarter from P836.45 million a year ago. The company’s topline rose 23% to P966.08 million from P782.73 million.

As of September this year, MerryMart’s net income posted a 59% growth to P23.01 million from the P14.5-million income logged a year ago. Consolidated revenues grew 15.92% to P2.81 billion from P2.42 billion.

In a separate statement, MerryMart also noted it recently signed agreements with Quezon-based Carlos SuperDrug chain and Zamboanga-based Cecile’s Pharmacy chain. The transactions are expected to “bring significant improvement on cost efficiencies.”

“The whole team of DoubleDragon and MerryMart will remain determined to nurture and grow all its business units in preparing to be a major beneficiary in the next cycle of economic recovery that should follow post the COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) global pandemic era,” Edgar J. Sia II, chairman of DoubleDragon, DDMPR, and MerryMart, said in the DoubleDragon statement.

On Tuesday, shares of DoubleDragon declined by 0.10% or one centavo to close at P9.99 each and DDMPR closed unchanged at P1.81 apiece.

Meanwhile, MerryMart stocks rose 0.63% or two centavos to close at P3.18 per share. — Keren Concepcion G. Valmonte

MPBL Invitational Tournament kicks off at MOA Arena on Dec. 11

November 17, 2021 | 12:04 am

By John Bryan Ulanday

TWENTY-TWO teams so far have thrown their hats to the much-awaited return of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) for the Chooks-to-Go-backed Invitational Tournament at the Mall of Asia (MOA) Arena next month.

After initial plans of playing in either Caloocan, Antipolo or Sta. Rosa, commissioner Kenneth Duremdes said the league is already ironing out details with the Pasay City venue under a closed-circuit setup when it opens shop anew on Dec. 11-21.

Accommodation of fully-vaccinated fans, pending the go signal of the Inter-Agency Task Force, is also in play with Metro Manila now under a more relaxed Alert Level 2 situation amid the pandemic.

“Hopefully, the venue (MOA) can be confirmed today. We’re ready and excited. This is the right time to reignite the league after our long hiatus,” Mr. Duremdes said in the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) Forum yesterday.

Defending champion Davao Occidental and archrival San Juan banner the cast in the MPBL’s first tourney since finishing the pandemic-delayed Lakan Season last March in Subic under a full-bubble setting.

Apart from a transition to the metropolis under a semi-bubble environment, the MPBL Invitationals will also serve as the league’s walk through for a professional shift soon under the monitoring of the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) and the Games and Amusements Board (GAB).

“FIBA will be watching how we run a tournament. It will be our testing ground for the pros,” added Mr. Duremdes as the Invitationals follow a FIBA-type format for 10 days.

The 22 squads will be divided into four groups playing in a single-round robin format. Top two teams of each pool then advance to the crossover knockout phase all the way to the finals.

Climate change is a public health issue, says study

November 17, 2021 | 12:04 am

By Patricia B. Mirasol

NO DISEASE GROUP is spared from the effects of climate change, as the rise in global temperatures is increasing the incidence of heat-related illnesses and expanding the reach of zoonotic diseases like coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), according to a study commissioned by insurance provider Pru Life UK, a subsidiary of British financial service provider Prudential plc.

“Climate change reverses some of the gains we already had in public health,” said the study’s co-author Dr. Ramon Lorenzo R. Guinto, a planetary health expert and member of the National Panel of Technical Experts of the Climate Change Commission of the Philippine government. Planetary health is a field that refers to the interconnectedness of humanity’s wellbeing to the quality of their environment.

Released this November, the paper offers five actions for mitigating the negative health impact of climate change: viewing climate change as a public health issue; transitioning to clean renewable energy as a means to keeping the global average temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius; pursuing climate adaptation to enhance resilience to disasters and other health impacts; raising everyone’s awareness of climate change and adaptation; and enacting financial solutions as a protection from climate emergency-related shocks.

“Don’t just be concerned about the future waves of COVID-19, but also the future tsunamis of recessions, climate change, and biodiversity collapse,” warned Dr. Guinto. “Hopefully, we will recover and revitalize universal healthcare also as a climate change measure.”

NO DISEASE IMMUNE TO CLIMATE CHANGE
A key finding, according to the study, is that there is no disease group immune to the effects of climate change. In the Philippines, some of the disease conditions that are expected to worsen include:

Heat-related illnesses like heat cramps, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke — The country does not have the national and local heat health plans that are more familiar to temperate regions like Europe, Dr. Guinto said. “In a tropical place like the Philippines, people think, ‘Oh, we can withstand high temperatures,’” he added.
Vector-borne diseases like dengue and malaria — In the National Capital Region alone, every 1 degree Celsius increase in minimum temperature will cause 233 more dengue cases. Droughts and floods yield dengue outbreaks, as the stagnant bodies of water that are created become breeding grounds for virus-carrying mosquitoes.
Emerging infectious diseases with pandemic potential like COVID-19 — An estimated 75% of emerging human infectious diseases are noted to be of zoonotic origin. The conversion of animal habitat into agricultural use has brought animals and humans in closer interaction, increasing the chance of exchanging pathogens.
Cardiorespiratory diseases due to air pollution, as well as other forms of pollution produced by fossil fuels — Air pollution exposes 91% of the world’s population to poor air quality levels. In Switzerland-based Institute for Management Development (IMD)’s smart city index 2020, Manila scored low in air quality under the health and safety indicator.
Forced displacement of communities due to typhoons, storm surges, and coastal flooding —The prediction is that the coastal City of Manila could be underwater by 2050 if climate change isn’t addressed, said Dr. Guinto. Manila is not a unique situation; more than 60% of the Philippine population live in coastal areas. Rising sea levels may make these areas become uninhabitable, forcing mass displacements.
The co-occurrence of undernutrition and obesity resulting from climate-unfriendly food systems — Obesity is intertwined with malnutrition, and can stem from a diet that is calorically excessive but not nutritionally adequate. In the Philippines, the rate of increase in adult obesity exhibited a rapid growth between 1995 and 2015: 5.4% in men and 3.7% in women, according to the World Obesity Federation.
Mental health conditions emanating from both abrupt disasters and slow-onset environmental change — Typhoon Haiyan’s survivors still suffer mentally and emotionally, according to a 2019 news report, years after the 2013 climate emergency. Haiyan’s impact overwhelmed the disaster response which focused more on providing basic needs, setting mental health aside.

“This is an equity issue as well,” said Dr. Guinto. “It affects the marginalized at a greater degree… [rather] than us who have access to healthy food and air-conditioning.”

SIDEBAR | How individuals can help mitigate climate change

Dr. Jaime Galvez Tan, former Health secretary and chair of social development non-profit Health Futures Foundation, offered the following suggestions for mitigating climate change at an individual level:

Start at home — practice recycling, waste segregation, and composting.
Limit plastic consumption — observe how much you use plastic, especially single-use plastic, in a given week.
Plant a tree — make it a regular activity, like a planned birthday event.
Consider eating green — lessen your consumption of red meat as its production is a contributor to land use-related greenhouse emissions.

Hollywood crew members narrowly approve contract with TV and film producers

November 17, 2021 | 12:03 am

de-andre-bush-eoohqHDVEP0-unsplash — DE’ANDRE BUSH/UNSPLASH

LOS ANGELES — Some 60,000 behind-the-scenes workers in US film and television narrowly approved a new contract with producers, their union said on Monday.

The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE), which includes camera operators, make-up artists, sound technicians and others, said in a statement its members voted to ratify a new three-year contract that was tentatively agreed last month.

The voting was close, with 50.3% of members voting yes and 49.7% voting against, IATSE said.

The deal with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) was reached in October after the union threatened a strike that would have to shut down film and television production around the United States in the biggest stoppage since the 2007-2008 strike by Hollywood screenwriters.

It would have hit a wide range of media companies including Netflix, Inc, Walt Disney Co. and Comcast Corp.

The contract reduces working hours and increases pay for members who work on streaming platforms, and improves rest periods and meal breaks on TV and film sets. IATSE leaders had strongly urged members to ratify it, saying it was “the best agreement possible.” — Reuters

Delta dominates the world, but scientists watch for worrisome offspring

November 17, 2021 | 12:03 am

globe-facemask — Alexey Solodovnikov, Valeria Arkhipova/CC BY-SA 4.0/Wikimedia Commons

CHICAGO — The Delta variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus now accounts for nearly all of the coronavirus infections globally, fueled by unchecked spread of the novel coronavirus in many parts of the world. So far, vaccines are still able to defend against serious disease and death from Delta, but scientists remain on alert.

Here is what we know:

DELTA — STILL DOMINANT
The Delta variant, first detected in India in December 2020, remains the most worrisome version of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

The World Health Organization classifies Delta as a variant of concern, a category that means the variant is capable of increasing transmissibility, causing more severe disease or reducing the benefit of vaccines and treatments.

Delta’s “superpower” is its transmissibility, according to Shane Crotty, a virologist at the La Jolla Institute for Immunology in San Diego.

Delta is more than two times as contagious as previous SARS-CoV-2 variants, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Studies suggest it may be more likely to put infected people in the hospital than prior forms of the virus.

Delta also can cause symptoms two to three days sooner than the original coronavirus, giving the immune system less time to mount a defense.

People infected with Delta carry around 1,200 times more virus in their noses compared with the original version of the coronavirus. The amount of virus in vaccinated individuals who become infected with Delta is on par with those who are unvaccinated, and both can transmit the virus to others.

In vaccinated people, however, the amount of virus drops more quickly, so they likely spread the virus for a shorter time.

According to the WHO, Delta makes up 99.5% of all genomic sequences reported to public databases and has “outcompeted” other variants in most countries.

A key exception is South America, where Delta has spread more gradually, and other variants previously seen as possible global threats — notably Gamma, Lambda, and Mu — still contribute to a significant proportion of reported cases.

DELTA OFFSPRING
Given Delta’s global dominance, many vaccine experts now believe that all future variants will be offshoots of Delta.

One notable Delta “grandchild” is known as AY.4.2 and is concentrated largely in the UK, where it makes up roughly 10% of sequenced virus samples.

AY.4.2 carries two additional mutations in the spike protein, which the virus uses to enter cells. Scientists are still studying what advantage, if any, these mutations confer.

The UK Health Security Agency has designated the AY.4.2 a “Variant Under Investigation.” A preliminary analysis suggests it does not significantly impair vaccine effectiveness compared with Delta, but there is some evidence that it could be slightly more transmissible, the agency said.

According to the WHO, AY.4.2 has spread to at least 42 countries, including the United States.

MORE ON THE WAY?
Virus experts are closely watching the evolution of Delta, looking for any sign that it has acquired mutations that would allow the highly transmissible variant to pierce the immune protection of vaccines and natural infection.

Even so, while current vaccines prevent severe disease and death, they do not block infection. The virus is still capable of replicating in the nose, even among vaccinated people, who can then transmit the disease through tiny, aerosolized droplets.

To defeat SARS-CoV-2 will likely require a new generation of vaccines that also block transmission, according to Dr. Gregory Poland, a vaccine developer at the Mayo Clinic.

Until then, Mr. Poland and other experts say, the world remains vulnerable. — Reuters

Villar-led Vistamalls registers 64% profit rise to P675M

November 17, 2021 | 12:03 am

THE Villars’ Vistamalls, Inc. booked a P675-million attributable net income in the third quarter, jumping 64% from P411 million in the same period last year on the back of higher revenues.

The company’s regulatory filing on Tuesday showed its third-quarter topline rose by 43% to P1.87 billion from P1.31 billion in the same period last year. Its rental income grew 27% to P1.67 billion from P1.31 billion.

For the January-September period, Vistamalls logged a P2.32-billion attributable net income, 48% higher than the P1.57 billion recorded a year ago.

The company’s revenues amounted to P5.63 billion, up by 22% from P4.63 billion as rental income rose 16% to P4.81 billion.

“The increase was primarily attributable to the contribution of the newly opened of commercial centers which are primarily with essential tenants,” Vistamalls said.

On Tuesday, shares of Vistamalls declined by 1.26% or five centavos to close at P3.92 apiece. — Keren Concepcion G. Valmonte

Junna Tsukii, Jamie Lim open world karate bid in Dubai

November 17, 2021 | 12:03 am

THE Philippines’ Junna Tsukii and Jamie Lim jumpstart their campaign today in separate weight classes in the 2021 Karate World Senior Championships at the Hamdan Arena in Dubai.

Ms. Lim will be the first to plunge into action as she competes in the women’s 61-kilogram kumite event starting at 1 p.m. (Philippine time), while Ms. Tsukii gets her chance to have a piece of the action at 9:30 p.m. in the 50-kg section.

The 30-year-old Ms. Tsukii is expected to be one of the favorites being ranked No. 2 in her division while Ms. Lim, a Southeast Asian Games gold medalist like the former, should give it all and defy the odds being an underdog in her class.

Both are out to boost their stocks as they gear towards qualifying to the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Karate Pilipinas President Richard Lim, whose group was officially recognized as the country’s governing body of the sport by the World Karate Federation (WKF) during its congress Monday, said he likes their chances.

“We have high hopes for a podium finish for Ms. Junna and Ms. Jamie,” said Mr. Lim.

John Enrico Vasquez and Sarah Pangilinan, the other two Filipino entries, for their part, open their campaign in the individual kata competition unfurling at 1 p.m. for male karatekas and 3 p.m. for the female participants.

If they made past the eliminations, the medal matches are slated on Saturday. — Joey Villar