FDC targets workplace herd immunity this year

August 19, 2021 | 12:01 am

GOTIANUN-LED Filinvest Development Corp. (FDC) has expressed optimism about its prospects for the rest of 2021 as it aims to fully inoculate its work force before the year ends.

“We never stopped pushing our projects and growth initiatives forward despite the challenges borne out of the pandemic. With the light of vaccinated hope, we choose to be on the side of optimism. This confidence is borne out of our fast-moving vaccination program FilVax and our accelerated digital transformation,” said Lourdes Josephine T. Gotianun-Yap, FDC president and chief executive officer, in a statement.

To date, the group’s vaccinated population surged to 71%, with 65% fully vaccinated and 35% with their first dose. The inoculation goal covers employees and third-party service providers.

“We are looking forward to achieving herd immunity by the fourth quarter of the year, which will be a critical milestone in the group’s continued growth and recovery curve amid this pandemic. FilVax is only one of the entire group’s synergistic efforts in ensuring that we keep the Filinvest family safe and healthy as we continue to respond to the needs of our stakeholders,” Ms. Gotianun-Yap said.

FilVax is the Filinvest group’s free vaccination program for employees, drivers, messengers, utility workers, and security guards assigned to FDC properties and workspaces nationwide.

It kicked off on Aug. 4 at the Filinvest Mega Vaccination Center at Festival Mall, Filinvest City, Muntinlupa.

FDC has so far accelerated its digital transformation amid the pandemic and implemented measures to keep its employees, customers, and stakeholders safe.

Companies under FDC include Filinvest Land, Inc., EastWest Banking Corp., Filinvest REIT Corp., FDC Utilities, Inc., Filinvest Alabang, Inc., and Filinvest Supermall, Inc.

The Filinvest group also owns Crimson Resorts in Boracay, Mactan, and Alabang, and The Quest Hotels in Cebu, Clark, and Tagaytay.

DFNN incurs P35-M loss after gaming halt

August 19, 2021 | 12:01 am

DFNN Inc. recorded a P35.25-million attributable net loss during the second quarter, citing the temporary closure of its gaming operations due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

The listed company said in a stock exchange disclosure on Wednesday that its bottom line for the April-to-June period is 45.4% lower than the previous year’s P64.5-million net loss attributable to parent firm equity holders.

DFNN’s total revenue for the quarter rose 104.1% to P112.42 million, of which commission income contributed P86.42 million, followed by service fees at P22.28 million, and sale of licenses at P3.71 million.

For the first half, DFNN reported a P63.25-million attributable net loss, 24.2% lower compared with the P83.49-million loss incurred in the same semester in 2020.

Total revenue for the six-month period fell 17.2% to P268.89 million from P324.88 million the previous year.

Of the total, commission income accounted for P213.14 million, followed by service fees at P45.85 million, and sale of licenses at P9.9 million.

“Total revenue during the first six months decreased by 17.2% compared to the same period of 2020 mainly due to the decrease in commission income. Total revenue derived from commission income amounted to P213.14 million compared to P243.53 million for the same period in 2020 attributable to the temporary shutdown of gaming operations due to the COVID-19 lockdown,” DFNN said.

DFNN President and Chief Executive Officer Calvin Lim said the positive result of the company in terms of revenue was due to InPlay.ph.

“It is an undeniable success as customers now opt to use the same for the reliability and convenience that it offers,” Mr. Lim said.

Gross gaming revenue (GGR) of InPlay.ph, under DFNN’s subsidiary Inter-Active Entertainment Solutions Technologies Inc. (IEST), reached P113.9 million in the first half.

Consolidated costs and expenses of DFNN for the first half fell to P311.9 million due to the temporary closure of the gaming business sector amid lockdown measures.

Meanwhile, DFNN said its subsidiary, iWave, Inc., launched the Global Trade Exchange (GTX) platform under its Seychelles unit GlobalTradeX, Ltd., which allows the issuance, custody, and trading of digital assets across borders under the jurisdiction of the Authority of the Freeport Area of Bataan.

“iWave was awarded a license to operate the Digital Asset Exchange to serve exclusively non-Filipino clients and non-Filipino issuers,” DFNN said.

The company disclosed that GTX has over $2.9 billion in the pipeline from issuers that plan to list on the exchange before the end of 2021.

“iWave’s mandate allows for the operation of various financial and capital market services on the platform. This includes the trading and settlement of Digitized Securities, Futures, Commodities, and Derivatives. Currently, GTX has over 500 Digital Asset pairs available for Spot, Margin, and Futures trading via the web, iOS and Android. GTX also provides Fiat P2P, Lending and Staking as a service,” DFNN said.

On Wednesday, shares of DFNN at the stock exchange rose 6.10% or 23 centavos to end at P4 apiece. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave

D&L adjusts timeline for P5-B bond offering

August 19, 2021 | 12:01 am

D&L Industries, Inc. on Wednesday said it is adjusting the timeline for its P5-billion fixed-rate bonds as it completes regulatory requirements.

It is now aiming to secure a permit to sell by Aug. 27 or 31 from the initial Aug. 20, while it is now targeting the offer period to run from Sept. 1 to 6 from Aug. 24 to 31.

“The corporation is still in the process of complying with the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission,” the company said in a disclosure.

The offer consists of Series A bonds with a three-year term due 2024 and Series B bonds with a five-year term due 2026. The principal amount of the offer was set to P3 billion, with an oversubscription option of up to P2 billion.

D&L plans to use proceeds from its maiden bond offering to partially finance capital expenditures, repayment of bridge loans and interest costs drawn to fund capital expenditures, and for general corporate purposes.

The bonds will be listed and traded through the Philippine Dealing & Exchange Corp. It scheduled its settlement, issue, and listing date on Sept. 10 from the initial Sept. 7 plan.

Shares of D&L at the stock exchange improved by 1.34% or 11 centavos, closing at P8.31 apiece. — Keren Concepcion G. Valmonte

Philippines ranks 3^rd most restrictive to FDI

August 19, 2021 | 12:00 am

Auto Sales

August 19, 2021 | 12:00 am

CAR SALES in July went up by 4.7% year on year, but the industry group is anticipating a slowdown in sales this month due to the tighter lockdown restrictions. Read the full story.

How PSEi member stocks performed — August 18, 2021

August 19, 2021 | 12:00 am

Here’s a quick glance at how PSEi stocks fared on Wednesday, August 18, 2021.

Peso drops on hawkish Fed comments

August 18, 2021 | 9:00 pm

THE PESO weakened versus the greenback on Wednesday following hawkish signals from the US Federal Reserve.

The local unit closed at P50.43 per dollar, shedding 2.9 centavos from its P50.401 finish on Tuesday, based on data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines.

The peso opened Wednesday’s session at P50.37 per dollar. Its intraday best was at P50.25, while its weakest showing was its close of P50.43 versus the greenback.

Dollars exchanged dropped to $796.1 million on Wednesday from $859.9 million on Tuesday.

The peso weakened due to the hawkish remarks of US Fed Chairman Jerome Powell on Tuesday, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said.

Mr. Powell on Tuesday said that it remains unclear if the outbreak of the more infectious Delta variant will have noticeable repercussion for the economy, Reuters reported.

He said while the pandemic will likely continue “for a while”, “people and businesses have improvised and learned to adapt” in order to carry on.

Separately, Minneapolis Federal Reserve President Neel Kashkari said trimming the central bank’s bond-buying program could be “reasonable” by late 2021, although this will be dependent on further progress in the labor market.

Meanwhile, a trader said the peso depreciated as players waited for the release of the minutes of the Fed’s policy meeting in July later on Wednesday.

Last month, the US central bank kept the policy rates unchanged near zero saying concerns over the pandemic remains despite some signs of progress in the economy.

For today, both Mr. Ricafort and the trader gave a forecast range of P50.25 to P50.50 per dollar. — LWTN with Reuters

PSEi extends rally on firms’ positive Q2 results

August 18, 2021 | 9:00 pm

PSE-720p-2 — PHILIPPINE STAR/KRIZ JOHN ROSALES

PHILIPPINE shares climbed on Wednesday, along with other markets in the region, as earnings of most companies rebounded in the second quarter.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) went up by 118.77 points or 1.81% to close at 6,680.18 on Wednesday, while the all shares index gained 45.94 points or 1.12% to end at 4,118.41.

“We’re on a medium-term rally due to the big drop ever since months ago,” Summit Securities, Inc. President Harry G. Liu said in a phone call.

“With earnings of most listed companies improving in the second quarter despite the lockdown or restrictions, local market continued to recover as investors’ sentiment [improved] with net foreign investors buying and most Asian markets on the upside,” Diversified Securities, Inc. Equity Trader Aniceto K. Pangan said in a text message.

“The local bourse climbed together with most Asian markets as investors look forward to the US Federal Reserve’s stimulus updates,” Timson Securities, Inc. Trader Darren Blaine T. Pangan said in a Viber message.

Asian stocks edged up from a three-week low on Wednesday, but gains were capped by ongoing fears about the Delta variant of the coronavirus, Reuters reported.

Japan’s Nikkei snapped a four-day close in the red to climb 0.59% to 27,585.91; the Shanghai SE Composite index rose 1.11% to 3,485.29; and Hong Kong’s HSCEI went up by 0.73% to 9,125.69.

Most sectoral indices closed in the green on Wednesday except for mining and oil, which went down by 129.06 points or 1.35% to close at 9,375.25.

Meanwhile, holding firms climbed 174.19 points or 2.68% to 6,651.15; property rose 80.78 points or 2.64% to 3,141.06; financials added 14.90 points or 1.04% to finish at 1,445.34; services increased by 10.44 points or 0.64% to 1,639.24; and industrials went up by 57.20 points or 0.59% to 9,641.08.

Value turnover inched down to P6.18 billion with 1.14 billion shares switching hands on Wednesday, from the P6.76 billion with 1.20 billion issues traded on Tuesday.

Advancers outperformed decliners, 94 against 88, while 55 names closed unchanged.

Foreigners turned buyers anew with P90.51 million in net purchases from the P534.4 million in net outflows seen in the previous trading day.

“Currently trading at its immediate resistance at the 6,680 level, we may have to see in the remaining days of the week if this area holds,” Timson Securities’ Mr. Pangan said. “Otherwise, next immediate support is at 6,270.”

Summit Securities’ Mr. Liu expects the market to “calm down” from the rally and test lows.

“If [in] the third quarter, all the [companies] will be doing well and [are forecasted] to do better next year, then we will be able to reverse the market before the year ends,” he added, noting that all market fundamentals have been showing up, considering the slew of initial public offerings slated for the year. — K.C.G. Valmonte with Reuters

DoF still sees PhilHealth as ‘viable’ but may need to adjust coverage

August 18, 2021 | 8:28 pm

THE PHILIPPINE Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) is expected to remain viable over the near term with P160 billion in reserve funds, but Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III warned that the insurer will have to adjust its coverage in the event of a prolonged public health crisis.

Mr. Dominguez said PhilHealth has P160 billion in reserves but is currently “struggling” to pay claims due to rising expenses and plummeting contributions during the pandemic.

“PhilHealth is still very viable on a cash flow basis but again, let us point out that PhilHealth has in fact incurred a drop in contributions because of the problems with the COVID-19, and there’s also the increase in expenditures. But so far, I believe they can handle the situation,” he told reporters Tuesday.

Mr. Dominguez said the health insurer “is okay” for a few more months but warned that “everybody has to change their lifestyles” if the pandemic drags on for five years.

The insurer had a P25.5-billion deficit as of June, which is fully covered by the subsidies it obtained from the National Government worth P44.6 billion, he said.

Mr. Dominguez said PhilHealth can still sustain heavy spending for years and will not “disappear” despite its deficits, which need to be offset with subsidies.

“What will happen is some of the coverage might change. It’s hard to tell exactly,” he added.

PhilHealth officials have warned that the insurer may incur a P17-billion net loss this year if a scheduled contribution rate hike is postponed.

They project a diminution of reserve levels to P143.5 billion if the contribution rate hike is deferred.

Bills have been filed in Congress seeking to defer the scheduled increase in member monthly premiums to 3.5% of their basic salary, from 3% previously.

PhilHealth has also built up a backlog in paying hospitals, who are struggling to sustain their operations due to the prolonged pandemic.

BusinessWorld asked PhilHealth for comment but had not responded at the deadline. — Beatrice M. Laforga

Exporters told to make allowances for China port delays

August 18, 2021 | 8:27 pm

THE PHILIPPINE Ports Authority (PPA) is asking exporters and importers to make the necessary adjustments for delays caused by port closures in China.

Ningbo port, one of the largest in the world, is partially closed after a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) case was detected there, worsening congestion in several Chinese ports as ships divert from Ningbo.

“Preparation is key to reduce the negative impact of the delays in their overall daily operations\,” the PPA said.

The PPA noted that other major ports in the region have also reported congestion issues.

The congestion issues add to the current backlog in international trade. The global shipping industry has been facing a shortage of vessel space during the pandemic, pushing freight rates higher and delaying goods shipments.

“We need to prepare. Eventually, the delays in cargo shipments will catch up with us due to the congestion being experienced in these transshipment ports,” PPA General Manager Jay Daniel R. Santiago said.

“We are encouraging all importers and exporters to take the necessary steps to adjust and secure their operations to mitigate the impact of the slowdowns or partial closures of the big ports in their overall operations.”

PPA noted that major Philippine ports are not congested as they are operating below the utilization threshold of 75%. Manila ports that handle 85% of the country’s foreign trade volume are operating as normal, the PPA added.

“PPA assures the shippers that Philippine ports can handle the bulk of the delayed shipments when conditions at the transshipment ports start to normalize,” Mr. Santiago said. — Jenina P. Ibañez

Outlook for upstream energy industry ‘bleak’ as Malampaya winds down

August 18, 2021 | 8:26 pm

FITCH SOLUTIONS Country Risk & Industry Research said it has a “bleak” outlook for the Philippine upstream energy sector, citing the continuing decline in the Malampaya gas field’s reserves and lack of investment in exploration.

“The Philippines’ crude oil and natural gas production remain in freefall under the weight of natural declines and underinvestment in new exploration. The current dire situation poses significant risks to the Philippines’ future energy supply security given how reliant it is on oil and gas for power generation, industrial processes and transportation,” Fitch said in a note Wednesday.

It said output has been “broadly declining” starting 2010, due to the accelerating decline of the Malampaya gas field and a lack of significant discoveries to supplement it.

Fitch deems the imminent depletion of the country’s only indigenous gas field as “problematic,” since the Malampaya project accounts for 30% of Luzon’s power generation. Its services 20% of national demand.

“The gradual reduction in gas production from the field is already driving up consumer electricity costs and causing rotational power outages across the islands; a complete stoppage without replacements in place would prove to be highly damaging for businesses and end-users alike,” it said.

The accelerating decline in the Malampaya field’s output has spurred liquefied natural gas import projects across the country, but they face delays in completion due to the restrictions brought about by the global health emergency, regulatory processes and rising competition from renewables, it added.

Fitch contends that dry natural gas production has been declining since 2020, and will continue to do so until 2027. Meanwhile, the production of crude oil, NGPL (natural gas plant liquids) and other liquids are likely to remain relatively steady until 2030.

Meanwhile, offshore exploration in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) remains a challenge for the country as it faces opposition from China due to the latter’s territorial claims, preventing exploration activity in petroleum blocks in the area, it said.

Despite the recent lifting of the moratorium on oil and gas exploration in the WPS, the Philippines has not embarked on any new activity, though “a growing numbers of firms (are) keen to rekindle interest.”

Energy Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi has said that his department endorses the award of three unnamed service contracts, which are now being reviewed by President Rodrigo R. Duterte.

“As a prospective market to target for investors, however, the Philippines is highly interesting given the large, energy-hungry domestic market and ample trade opportunities throughout the region. Although for now most seem content to wait it out (until) maritime tensions dissipate and below-ground potential to become more concrete,” Fitch said. — Angelica Y. Yang

CoA says Agri dep’t failed to spend P9.8 billion

August 18, 2021 | 8:25 pm

GOVERNMENT AUDITORS said the Department of Agriculture (DA) left about P9.8 billion unused in 2020 due to bid failures, incomplete procurement documentation, and the difficulties encountered in moving projects forward due to the pandemic.

The Commission on Audit (CoA) said the Department of Agriculture (DA) disbursed P49.25 billion or 83.4% of its P59.06-billion budget, with the balance of P9.8 billion reverting to the Treasury.

In its audit report for 2020 made public on July 13, CoA said many cases of underutilized budgets were due to the failure to submit to local government units billing statements and documents required to process claims, and slow fund disbursement of funds.

It noted quarantine constraints impeding work at the DA head office, the Philippine Rural Development Project and Bureau of Agriculture and Fisheries Engineering.

Lapses were also found in DA regional offices due to delayed or failed procurement exercises, documentary shortcomings to effect payment from local government units or farmers, inadequate planning, and adverse weather particularly in the Soccsksargen region.

DA offices disbursed P588.05 million or 83.9% of theirs P700.73-million allocation for the Provision of Agricultural Equipment and Facilities program, which is part of a broader effort to make rice cultivation more competitive.

Auditors found “deficiencies” worth P82.15 million in the DA’s Ilocos Region field office, such as partial delivery of machinery in violation of contract terms, non-submission of memoranda of agreement and supporting documents covering spending items, and requests for changes in delivery locations stipulated in the contract.

“Due to the above deficiencies, the expected benefits from the projects, activities, programs funded from the government funds were not fully realized to the disadvantage of the intended beneficiaries,” CoA reported.

Auditors recommended that the DA “plan and strategize to ensure timely implementation of programs and projects” to provide benefits and services to concerned sectors especially during the time of pandemic.

They also recommended that DA agencies maximize the use of disbursements and stay compliant with government budgeting rules. CoA urged the agencies to keep stakeholders informed of the documentary requirements to participate in government programs.

DA Spokesman Noel O. Reyes said via text message Wednesday that the COA has given the department 60 days from receipt of the report — June 30 — to respond to the findings.

“We have until Aug. 29 to make the reply. We are in the process of crafting the updates,” he added. — Russell Louis C. Ku with Revin Mikhael D. Ochave