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Tiger, Charlie Woods claim team event? You can bet on that

TIGER Woods has overcome lengthy odds to return to a competitive golf event just 10 months following a near-fatal car crash.

Odds being offered by one sportsbook say he and son Charlie are also heavy underdogs to best the other 19 teams in this week’s PNC Championship. The annual winter team event pairs a major champion with a family member.

Woods readily admits he is nowhere near close to being able to compete in a Professional Golfers Association (PGA) Tour event. But he will return to the course this week with Charlie, now 12, after teaming together for a seventh-place finish last year.

Team Woods is being offered at +1000 to win by SportsBetting.ag, which is tied for the sixth-shortest odds in the field. That’s still well behind the returning victorious team of Justin Thomas and his father Mike, who are heavy pre-tournament favorites at +180.

The next-shortest odds belong to Matt Kuchar and 14-year-old son Cameron (+650), who tied for fifth last year at The Ritz-Carlton Golf Club Grande Lakes in Orlando, FL.

Vijay Singh and son Qass finished one stroke behind Team Thomas last year but are returning as +1400 longshots by the sportsbook. — Reuters

Peso strengthens vs dollar as economic managers raise growth target for 2021

THE PESO strengthened versus the greenback on Wednesday after the government raised its growth target and as more vaccines arrived in the country.

The local unit closed at P50.27 per dollar on Wednesday, gaining eight centavos from its P50.35 finish on Tuesday, data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines showed.

The peso opened the session at P50.32 per dollar on Wednesday. Its weakest showing was at P50.36, while its intraday best was at its close of P50.27.

Dollars exchanged slipped to $650.8 million on Wednesday from $651.7 million on Tuesday.

A trader attributed the peso’s strength to positive sentiment after economic managers upgraded their growth target for the year.

The Development Budget Coordination Committee on Tuesday said it revised its growth target anew for 2021 to 5-5.5% from the 4-5% it gave in August.

Economic managers said the continued easing of restrictions and increase in business activities would push faster growth this year.

The economy expanded by 7.1% year on year in the third quarter, bringing gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the first nine months to 4.9%. GDP shrank by a record 9.6% last year.

Meanwhile, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said investors were also bullish after more vaccines arrived in the Philippines.

More than 8.2 million vaccine doses arrived in the Philippines on Tuesday night. Vaccine czar Carlito G. Galvez, Jr. said the country is set to receive 24 million doses this week.

For Thursday, Mr. Ricafort gave a forecast range of P50.17 to P50.32 per dollar, while the trader expects the local unit to move within P50.10 to P50.35. — LWTN

PSEi sinks as PHL logs first cases of new variant

STOCKS dropped on Wednesday after the country logged its first cases of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and ahead of the US central bank’s policy decision.

The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) plunged by 109.41 points or 1.51% to close at 7,132.58 on Wednesday, while the broader all shares index fell 59.10 points or 1.53% to 3,782.59.

“Philippine shares succumbed to panic selling as the first the country logged its first cases of the Omicron variant,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan said in a Viber message.

Investors want to see whether COVID-19 cases will be contained and if the government will impose tighter mobility restrictions to prevent infections from increasing, Mr. Limlingan said.

The Health department on Wednesday said it detected the first two cases of the Omicron variant in the country just a few hours after the national task force announced the country will remain under the less restrictive Level 2 until Dec. 31.

The World Health Organization said the Omicron variant poses “very high” global risk as it is now recorded in more than 60 countries, Reuters reported.

“The PSEi also corrected lower as US stock market corrected lower for the second straight day amid the highest US producer prices since records started in 2010 at 9.6% which could increase the odds of more hawkish Federal Reserve, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said in a Viber message.

US producer prices increased more than expected in November as supply constraints persisted, leading to the biggest annual gain since the series was revamped 11 years ago and supporting views that inflation could remain uncomfortably high for some time, Reuters reported. Producer prices increased 9.6% year-on-year, and 0.8% in November after increasing 0.6% in October.

Meanwhile, the Fed was expected to announce its policy decision overnight following its Dec. 14-15 meeting.

Back home, all sectoral indices closed in the red on Wednesday. Property plunged 76.45 points or 2.34% to 3,184.46; holding firms dropped 102.04 points or 1.44% to 6,940.35; mining and oil fell 124.06 points or 1.34% to 9,098.83; services declined 25.95 points or 1.31% to 1,947.99; financials lost 20.76 points or 1.27% to 1,607.92; and industrials decreased 103.92 or 1% to 10,231.32.

Value turnover soared to P11.35 billion with 1.33 billion issues switching hands on Wednesday from the P7.6 billion with 1.33 shares traded the previous day.

Decliners outnumbered advancers, 142 versus 58, while 54 names remained unchanged.

Net foreign buying decreased to P237.63 million from the P457.94 million recorded the previous trading day.

Diversified Securities, Inc. Equity Trader Aniceto K. Pangan said in a text message that the PSEi’s support for this week is at 6,795, while resistance is at 7,265. — MCL with Reuters

MERALCO secures ISO 9001:2015 Certification for QMS

The Networks Group of the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) has been awarded with an ISO 9001:2015 certification for incorporating quality management system in its operations. This is a testament of Meralco’s commitment in #KeepingTheLightsOn and in providing service excellence to its customers, the community, and the country despite the challenges brought about by the pandemic.

Present during the ceremonial awarding on December 9, 2021 at the Meralco headquarters in Pasig City were (in photo from R to L) Ms. Sheena C. Santos, Meralco Substation Services Asset Management Staff Engineer and Networks ISO 9001:2015 Certification Project Manager; Mr. Marvin G. Gonsalves, SAVP and Head of Networks Project Portfolio Management and Networks ISO 9001:2015 Certification Project Sponsor; Mr. Ronnie L. Aperocho, Meralco SVP and Head of Networks; Mr. Gilmore A. Rivera, SOCOTEC Philippines, Inc. Operations Director; Mr. Jose S. Reyes Jr., Meralco VP and Head of Networks Technology and Asset Management and Networks QMS Manager; and Ms. Jerah L. Duran, SOCOTEC Philippines, Inc. Marketing Officer.

ISO 9001 is an international standard on Quality Management System (QMS) which shows the ability of an organization to consistently provide quality products and services that meet the requirements of customers. The certification was issued on May 25, 2021 by SOCOTEC Certification Philippines, Inc. under the recognition of United Kingdom Accreditation System (UKAS) following a series of audits.

 


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Gender-based violence survivors have recourse in national emergency hotline

By Patricia Mirasol

The national government’s 911 emergency hotline now also provides support to gender-based violence (GBV) survivors. Calls coursed through the free and 24/7 hotline previously usually included reports on fire, police, medical, and search and rescue assistance. All GBV distress callers will get psychosocial first aid and are assured of confidentiality.

GBV is a term that refers to any harmful threat or act directed at an individual or group based on actual or perceived biological sex, gender identity and/or expression.

“The Department pledges to help all women and children who experienced gender-based violence, to providing [all women and children who experience GBV] with social protection, services, and interventions to assist them towards their healing,” said Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) secretary Rolando Joselito D. Bautista, in a press statement.

The Joint Memorandum Circular (JMC) for the hotline’s inclusion of GBV distress calls was signed by the DSWD, the Department of the Interior and Local Government, and the Department of Justice in a virtual ceremony on Dec. 7, in time for this year’s 18-Day Campaign to End Violence Against Women (VAW).

Enacted by the Inter-Agency Council on Violence Against Women, the campaign has the 2016-2021 theme, a “VAW-Free Community Starts with Me.” The 2017 National Demographic Health Survey, released by the Philippine Statistics Authority, showed that one in four Filipino women, aged 15-49, has experienced physical, emotional, or sexual violence by their husband or partner. An additional 68% of girls and young women in the country have experienced online harassment on social media.

CULTURAL NORMS
“There’s a greater awareness nowadays with regard to GBV,” said Jasmine T. Cruz, events coordinator of Time’s Up Ateneo (TUA), described as a “collective of survivors and advocates fighting against sexual violence and impunity in Ateneo de Manila and beyond.”

TUA, she told BusinessWorld in an e-mail, is creating a network of school-based anti-sexual violence groups called the Haliya Network.

Groups with a similar advocacy include FEUHSDoBetter Movement, Theresians Against Sexual Harassment and Abuse, and Knollers For Knollers.

Apart from economic vulnerability, culture is also a contributing factor to GBV. The World Health Organization (WHO) said cultural and social norms can either protect against or support violence. Social tolerance of violent behavior, it said in a 2009 paper, is learned in childhood by — among others — witnessing violence in the family as well as in the media.

Ms. Cruz told BusinessWorld a Filipino movie she saw showed convicts who almost successfully escaped jail — except they were caught when one of them blurted out, “Hi, sexy,” to a woman who was passing by.

“Women are constantly bombarded by these sexually charged words, and it makes women feel unsafe and disrespected,” she said. “When pop culture portrays these instances as something that’s just funny or harmless, it encourages a culture that doesn’t take GBV seriously, thus [allowing for its] perpetuation and escalation in society.”

Mass media campaigns, according to WHO, can convey messages on healthy behaviors by attaching a social stigma to unwanted behavior. Campaigns can likewise make positive appeals, like promoting parenting styles that contribute to a happy family life. Strong audience identification with characters who are positive role models can also help improve cultural and social norms, WHO said.

PHL organizations share how to promote social impact in tell-all book 

Planting Greatness: Organizations Accelerating Social Impact in the Philippines, a book that shows how change-makers solve the country’s problems, contains the stories of corporate executives, social entrepreneurs, and non-profit leaders dedicated to social advocacies and corporate social responsibility (CSR). 

“Each of them differs in various ways, whether it’s in terms of size and scale, access to resources, or focus on impact,” said Jose Marcelo “Mio” F. Borromeo, the book’s editor-in-chief, at its launch on Monday. “We were adamant that the book captured this kind of variety if only to convince the reader that greatness does come in many forms.” 

A common thread in all the stories featured in Planting Greatness is the dedication to help others through ingenuity and initiative.  

Mr. Borromeo added: “My hope for the readers is that they come away with the same sense of drive and determination. If readers can take at least one story from it and share it with someone else, then we’ve crossed the milestone.” 

The book also highlights that for innovative CSR programs to be sustainable, they will have to be built on relationships, partnerships, and a culture of sharing and caring, according to Jose Luis M. Oquiñena, chairman of the Gawad Kalinga Community Development Foundation (GK). 

“When we at GK sent out on our mission to end poverty for 5 million people, we knew it was impossible to do it alone. We had to work with others, to engage others,” he shared at the launch. “Ending poverty in our country is impossible for just one organization.” 

Allan V. Barcena, assistant vice-president and CSR and public relations head of Energy Development Corp.n (EDC), added that both external stakeholders and employees within the company should be encouraged to participate. 

Communication platforms like Facebook and Viber were used to engage everyone as well as virtually connect stakeholders and employees with the communities involved, “so they will know the stories and not just the products,” said Mr. Barcena. 

“In this pandemic, where it’s hard to plant trees on a face-to-face basis, we also found a way to develop an app where they can participate virtually,” he explained. “And we encourage them to support our scholarship programs by donating. We made sure the donating platforms are easy, quick, and flexible.” 

Meanwhile, for Carlo P. Carlon, founder of the Lend-A-Bike Project which kicked off as a form of assistance for frontliners during the pandemic, clear goals and sharing the outcome can really inspire people. 

“From my experience, if you have the idea or if you try to implement the idea, it’s very important that you also share the results. Objective, goal, dream, then results,” he said. “People are more inclined, or are drawn to, concrete results.” 

Today, the bike-sharing model pioneered by Mr. Carlon’s initiative continues to offer solutions to long-standing issues that plague Metro Manila, much like many other organizations’ projects featured in Planting Greatness

EIC Mr. Borromeo shared: “It’s not about using all of the strategies [in the book], but determining which may be best for you.” 

Planting Greatness: Organizations Accelerating Social Impact in the Philippines is available via Bookshelf PH

EXPLAINER – How worried should we be about the Omicron variant?

The Omicron coronavirus variant has been detected in 77 countries since it was first identified three weeks ago, fueling concerns that its large number of mutations will help it spread faster and evade protection provided by COVID-19 vaccines or prior infection.

Scientists await answers to these important questions:

IS IT MORE CONTAGIOUS?

The fast-spreading Delta variant remains dominant worldwide, and it is unclear whether Omicron is inherently more contagious than its predecessor, the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a brief issued on Sunday.

Early data suggests that the new variant is spreading faster than previous versions of the virus. In South Africa, the UK and Denmark, the number of new Omicron infections has been doubling every two days – “an alarming rate of growth,” according to Dr. Eric Topol, director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in La Jolla, California.

The Omicron variant accounted for about 44% of infections in London on Monday and was expected to become the dominant version of the virus there within 48 hours.

WHAT TYPE OF ILLNESS DOES IT CAUSE?

Scientists say it is still too early to know whether Omicron causes more or less severe COVID-19 than previous versions of the virus.

In South Africa, scientists have said they see no sign that the Omicron variant is causing more severe illness. Hospital data found that COVID-19 admissions were rising sharply in more than half of the country’s nine provinces, but there have been comparatively few deaths and indicators such as the median length of hospital stay have been reassuring.

Among the 43 people identified as having the Omicron variant in the United States, most reported mild symptoms including coughing, congestion and fatigue.

People so far infected with Omicron have largely reported mild illness likely because many have at least some immunity from vaccinations and/or prior infection.

A more clear picture of Omicron’s severity will come from analyzing outcomes for a larger number of infected people, particularly older, unvaccinated, previously uninfected patients.

CAN IT RE-INFECT PEOPLE OR EVADE VACCINE PROTECTION?

The Omicron variant has about 50 mutations not seen in combination before, including more than 30 mutations on the spike protein the coronavirus uses to attach to human cells. Most current COVID-19 vaccines target that spike protein, making the cluster of mutations potentially problematic.

In its latest report, the WHO said there were early signs that vaccinated and previously infected people would not build enough antibodies to ward off an infection from Omicron.

A small study from a South African research institute suggested that Omicron could partially evade protection from two doses of the Pfizer Inc vaccine. The drugmaker and its partner, BioNTech, said a third booster dose of their vaccine was better able to neutralize Omicron in the laboratory. These findings will need to be compared with how vaccinated people fare in the real world against Omicron.

A UK government brief on Friday said early estimates suggest vaccine protection against symptomatic disease is significantly lower with Omicron infection compared to the Delta variant, although a booster dose led to vaccine effectiveness of 70% to 75% soon after the extra shot.

ARE CURRENT TREATMENTS STILL EFFECTIVE?

Omicron’s mutations are expected to reduce the effectiveness of certain manufactured antibody treatments, including some sold by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals and Eli Lilly & Co. Drugmaker GSK last week said its antibody-based COVID-19 therapy with U.S. partner Vir Biotechnology was effective against the Omicron variant in lab tests.

Experimental antiviral pills – such as Pfizer Inc’s Paxlovid and Merck & Co Inc’s molnupiravir – target parts of the virus that are not changed in Omicron. These drugs are likely to become important weapons if vaccine-induced and natural immunity are threatened. – REUTERS

Netflix, Spotify multiple category winners at Twitter’s brand awards for 2021

By Patricia Mirasol

Netflix and Spotify are multiple category winners in Twitter’s #BestOfTweets 2021 Southeast Asia (SEA) Awards. The Dec. 14 awards presentation recognized the brand campaigns that caught the attention of people on the social media platform across SEA this year. 

The awards garnered about 200 campaign nominations — a testament to Twitter’s partnership with brands, said Yu Sasamoto, Twitter’s vice-president for JAPAC (Australia, Greater China, Japan, India, New Zealand, Southeast Asia, and South Korea). 

“It was a rewarding year for Twitter from a business perspective, as we saw a 37% increase in global revenue as compared to the previous year,” he said at the virtual event. “Two hundred eleven million people actively use Twitter around the world, and [a lot are] in Southeast Asia.” 

Netflix, a California-headquartered subscription streaming service, snagged these country-wide awards: @NetflixID (Netflix Indonesia) for its Army of the Dead Twitter launch, @NetflixMY (Netflix Malaysia) for its Money Heist Twitter launch, and also @netflixth (Netflix Thailand) and NetflixMY under the most tweeted about brands category. 

Music streaming service Spotify, on the other hand, won the region-wide award for Best Brand Voice with @SpotifyKDaebak, an account for everything K-pop with over 370,000 followers. It also won the country-wide most tweeted about brands category for the Philippines (@Spotify_PH), and the best #OnlyOnTwitter category for @SpotifyThailand’s customized solutions that enable Thais to support local artists and learn about the news. 

“While everyone is unique, we are all connected in our shared interests,” added Daniela Bogoricin, Asia Pacific director of Twitter Next, in the said event. 

PHILIPPINE WINNERS
At the country level, Twitter announced the #BestofTweets awards to the following Philippine winners: 

Best Campaign for Driving Positive Change in Society – @UnileverPhils for its #Shop2Give campaign that supports Filipino children in need through UNICEF, as well as underprivileged communities through Gawad Kalinga.  

Best Brand Voice – @unionbankph for its #WillUBMine campaign which demonstrated how the bank cared for its customers through its customer service.  

Best Virtual Event – @LazadaPH for its Branded Notifications campaign that sent customer deals in the lead up to big shopping day sales.  

Best Use of Video – @Viu_Ph for its #TagDubonViu campaign, a video series showing the reactions of different personalities as they watched dramas in Tagalog.  

Best Campaign from a Newcomer – @byscosmetics_ph for its SKIN by BYS skincare launch that connected to the K-pop fandom through cultural references and a K-drama star ambassador.  

Most Tweeted about Brand – @Spotify_PH for leading the music discourse by leaning in their audience’s interests, and wrapping their brand into the conversation.  

Best Launch on Twitter – @KFCPhilippines for its launch of its Double Down all-meat burger, whose focus on the burger’s ingredients drove fans to tweet that they deserved it.  

Best Connection to Culture – @PondsPH for connecting with the local K-pop community, the third biggest worldwide, by tapping a K-pop star for their latest product, the Pond’s Triple Glow Serum.  

Best #OnlyOnTwitter – @TourismPHL, for using over 30 emojis to match 30 local destinations, each with customized replies, images, and landing pages. 

The best brands on Twitter don’t tweet like brands on Twitter, according to Preetha Athrey, acting head of marketing for Twitter’s Asia Pacific region. “It takes an authentic brand voice to build a community and connect on Twitter,” she said.

Filinvest Land wins at Dot Property Philippines Awards 2021

Futura Dagupan
Filinvest Land, Inc. (FLI) marks another milestone by bagging the Best Developer Award for North Luzon and Mindanao categories in the recently concluded Dot Property Philippines Awards 2021. These awards recognize the valuable contributions of FLI to the advancement of the regions.

“Thank you, Dot Property, for recognizing our developments in North Luzon and Mindanao. We are truly grateful for this wonderful honor. We would also like to thank our employees, business partners, service providers, and the rest of the Filinvest family whose efforts enabled us to succeed and thrive even during the pandemic,” said Vince Lawrence L. Abejo, the first senior vice-president and chief sales and marketing officer of FLI. “Wherever we are, we follow the very same ethos that has guided Filinvest through numerous successes in its over 50 years of experience — creating green and sustainable communities.”

FLI boasts of a strong presence in four key areas in North Luzon — Bulacan, Pampanga, Tarlac, and, most recently, Pangasinan — building on the successes it has begun in the Filinvest New Clark City and the Mimosa+ Leisure City.

Meanwhile, in Mindanao, FLI is present in Davao, Butuan, Cagayan de Oro, Koronadal, and Zamboanga, with properties ranging from mid-rise condo communities and subdivisions to exclusive island vacation homes.

“Nurturing a diverse property portfolio in over 250 key areas nationwide is our way of reaching out to our fellow Filipinos and making them feel how it is to own their own homes. Filinvest truly builds the Filipino dream,” added Mr. Abejo.

After its one-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Dot Property Philippines Awards returned to celebrate the resilience of the property sector. Dot Property is a digital media company that drives a network of nine property portal websites and offline media throughout Asia to honor the absolute best projects, developers, and companies that contribute to the real estate sector.

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Philippines detects first 2 cases of Omicron coronavirus variant

MANILA – The Philippines has detected two imported cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant of concern, its first reported cases, the Department of Health said on Wednesday.The two Omicron variant cases, detected from 48 samples sequenced on Dec. 14, were currently isolated in a quarantine facility, it said in a statement. — Reuters

Australian mining state passes Aboriginal heritage protection law

MELBOURNE – Western Australia’s parliament passed legislation late on Tuesday aiming to better protect Aboriginal heritage in the mining state, however indigenous groups said it did not go far enough and are now counting on changes at the national level.

Indigenous heritage protection has become a major issue after global miner Rio Tinto in 2020 legally destroyed culturally significant rock shelters dating back more than 46,000 years for an iron ore mine, sparking public and investor outrage.

Western Australia state Premier Mark McGowan said the new legislation, which overhauled a 1972 law, took a respectful approach to managing Aboriginal cultural heritage in a state rich in mineral and energy resources on their land.

“Finding a balance between the protection of that rich cultural heritage and delivering on the economic potential of natural resources to ensure our state‘s continuing prosperity is crucial,” McGowan said in a statement.

The state said the new law is the only Aboriginal heritage legislation in Australia to require that Aboriginal people give “informed consent” for agreements.

One of the main concerns raised by Aboriginal groups is that the legislation keeps the final say over development decisions with a government minister in cases where a developer and traditional owners cannot agree terms.

“This will be business as usual on our sacred sites, which leads to the continued destruction and desecration of Aboriginal cultural heritage,” National Native Title Council Chairman Kado Muir said in a statement.

The state‘s Chamber of Minerals and Energy has backed the legislation but said the next step of setting out regulations within the new framework would be tough.

“Change of this scale is complex, and the challenge ahead to deliver on the potential set out in the bill should not be underestimated,” the chamber’s chief executive Paul Everingham said in a statement in November.

An Australian inquiry into Rio Tinto’s destruction of Juukan Gorge recommended a new national legal framework and for Aboriginal people to be the top decision makers on heritage issues.

Aboriginal groups are now counting on federal legislation to go further than the Western Australia law. – REUTERS

S.Korea considers tightening COVID-19 rules as new cases climb to daily record

SEOUL – South Korea reported 7,850 new coronavirus cases for Tuesday, its highest daily total, as breakthrough infections among those already vaccinated continue to spike, with the number of patients in serious condition also reaching a fresh high at 964.

Daily tallies of infections shot past 7,000 for the first time last week, just days after passing the 5,000 mark, putting ever greater strains on the country’s medical capacity.

Total infections in the pandemic so far have risen to 536,495, including 128 cases of the Omicron variant, with 4,456 deaths, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency.

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum warned on Wednesday that the government is considering reimposing strict distancing curbs including a ban on gatherings and a curfew on dining in eating establishments. An official announcement is expected on Friday.

South Korea has fully vaccinated more than 94% of its adults so far, and is accelerating its ongoing campaign promoting booster shots by shortening intervals for all ages.

But the number of new cases has been spiralling since authorities eased distancing rules last month as part of a ‘living with COVID19‘ policy. – REUTERS