BSP tells banks to tighten guard vs terrorism financing

February 7, 2022 | 12:03 am

THE BANGKO SENTRAL ng Pilipinas (BSP) reminded banks to implement targeted financial sanctions (TFS) like asset freezing to combat the financing of terrorism and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

BSP Deputy Governor Chuchi G. Fonacier through Memorandum No. M-2022-007 told its supervised financial institutions to implement TFS-related policies that are “consistent and proportionate to their risk profile.”

The memorandum was issued as the country is aiming to report to the Financial Action Task Force this May that it has boosted TFS for terrorism financing and proliferation financing following its gray-listing in June 2021.

TFS are measures like asset freezing and limiting the availability of funds that will benefit designated persons or entities, which can in turn be used for terrorism financing, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and proliferation financing.

The BSP said banks are expected to conduct assessment, regular audit or review of screening systems to ensure that their systems and processes on TFS are working as intended.

“The methodology should be tailored fit according to the risk and context of the BSP-supervised financial institutions. The simpler the products, services and operations of the institution, the simpler the approach that can be used,” the central bank said.

At minimum, they are expected to practice sanction screening by verifying the names and country of residences of account holders and other persons acting on behalf of account owners.

Information on wire transfers and trade transactions should also be screened. This should be conducted upon account opening, periodically, and whenever there are updates to a client’s account information including ultimate beneficial ownership, authorized signatories, or change in the names of clients.

Banks also need to conduct a periodic screening of all customers whenever there are changes to the sanctions list and designated persons, the BSP said.

Corporate accounts that involve one or more signatories of a designated person will also be subjected to TFS, the central bank said.

“Even if a corporation is not listed/designated, but there is a reasonable ground or probable cause to believe that the corporation is under the control of a designated person, then the sanctions will also apply,” the BSP said.

Banks are expected to confirm with the Anti-Money Laundering Council within 24 hours a target match or an account that bears all identifier information designated in the sanctions database, even if there is no amount to be frozen in an account.

The sanctions database of financial institutions includes identified terror groups by the United Nations Security Council, among others.

The BSP said banks have the option to include in their sanctions database other persons or groups that have been designated by other jurisdictions including Office of Foreign Assets Control of the US Department of the Treasury and the European Union. — Luz Wendy T. Noble

Restyled and re-teched: Mercedes-Benz E-Class, P5.39M

February 7, 2022 | 12:03 am

The 10th-generation Mercedes-Benz E-Class gets a significant refresh with more aggressive styling and new tech toys. — PHOTO FROM AUTO NATION GROUP

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WITH 14 MILLION units sold globally since the release of its perceived first ancestor in 1946, there is much expectation in the market for the latest iteration of the Mercedes-Benz E-Class — the Stuttgart premium car maker’s best-selling model series. By all accounts, the E-Class has been warmly received a moneyed automobile set in the Philippines, so the brand’s local importer and distributor, the Auto Nation Group (ANG), recently enthusiastically presented the 10^th generation’s significantly refreshed version via a digital launch.

This “new take on an automotive icon,” according to ANG President Felix Ang, comes, for now, in a lone E 200 AMG Line guise (sourced straight from Sindelfingen, Germany) with a price tag of P5.39 million. Locally, “almost 2,000” units of the E-Class have been sold in the country since the model was first offered here in 2005, revealed ANG Chief Operating Officer Francis Jonathan “Frankie” Ang, who added that he expects the newest version to be “competitive” here. “You can talk to it, and it makes every drive safer, smoother, and more satisfying,” he added.

Even if it is still part of the 10^th-generation E-Class set first launched in 2016, the newest iteration is said to boast significant, sweeping changes inside and out. Perhaps this particularly rings true in the E 200 AMG Line here, which earns its “AMG” appendage through sporty, stylistic touches and such.

It starts with 19-inch AMG five-twin-spoke light-alloy wheels painted in Tantalite Gray with a high-sheen finish. The front end gets a reworking with a more muscular stance — through so-called power domes on the hood, and an attractive grille set off by diamond-shaped pins in chrome. The updated version of the brand’s high-performance LED lamps make their appearance in the E-Class as well.

The rear of the latest E-Class features two-piece LED taillamps which “wrap horizontally around the body to make the E-Class appear wider and stronger.” The previous “crystalline optic” of the previous version are supplanted with geometrically designed LEDs. The Philippine-spec E-Class also receives an AMG-specific apron at the back. Its boot can swallow 540 liters of cargo.

In the cabin, the luxurious accoutrements and touches help to underpin a heightened experience. Mercedes-Benz points to the use of “fine materials and class-leading innovation,” such as huge 12.3-inch digital screens positioned together for a wider appearance and enhanced visibility. Complementing this is the latest version of the MBUX multimedia system which accommodates voice commands and infotainment functions such as destination input, phone call, music selection, climate control, and ambient lighting. The E-Class boasts a multifunction steering wheel wrapped in Nappa leather, while the infotainment system has Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity.

In the area of safety, the new E-Class, reported Mercedes-Benz, is “loaded with safety features and driver assistance technologies that keep both driver and passengers safe while on the road.” The suite that comprises a shell of safety includes the company’s proprietary Pre-Safe system, along with Attention Assist and Active Brake Assist. Meanwhile, Urban Guard is comprised of an anti-theft alarm system plus tow-away protection that enables the owner to remotely detect changes in the location of the vehicle. It is also equipped with Active Parking Assist with an advance reversing camera to provide support to the driver.

Powering the E-Class is a 2.0-liter, inline, four-cylinder petrol engine, mated with a 9G-Tronic nine-speed automatic transmission. The system submits an output of 197hp and 320Nm, and is said to be able to change gears even at low engine revs — leading to fuel efficiency and manageable noise levels.

Mercedes-Benz Philippines Senior Product Manager Benjie Bautista described the model’s Filipino buyers as “loyal,” saying that “80% of E-Class buyers would buy another E-Class,” according to the company’s survey. He added that additional highlights of the new E-Class are definitely its premium Burmester surround sound system with 13 speakers, 64-hue ambient color capability, and wireless mobile device charger.

When asked by “Velocity” if there’s a chance Filipino buyers could get a crack at owning the more powerful Mercedes-AMG E53 — powered by a turbocharged and supercharged 3.0-liter inline-six-cylinder engine that makes 429 horsepower — Mr. Bautista replied, “We’d like to have this here, so we’re hoping for allocation.” He spoke briefly on what he called a “bottleneck issue” in the production of Mercedes-Benz units brought about by the challenges of the pandemic, and the well-known global semiconductor shortage. Meanwhile, ANG AVP for Sales and Marketing Rhomel Franco said that E-Class buyers get two years limited mileage warranty — stretchable to three years.

“This is one of the best cars you’ll get to drive in your life,” declared Mr. Bautista. “There’s safety, performance, and comfort.” — Kap Maceda Aguila

Wordle is the Word: A logophile’s paean

February 7, 2022 | 12:03 am

By Andreas Kluth

“IN the beginning was the Word.” John was exaggerating in his Gospel — there had been rather a lot going on even before words. But he was on to something. Whenever humanity took a leap, words weren’t far.

They first became the Next Big Thing during the Stone Age. Once we started enunciating and understanding words — rather than just grunting or howling at one another — we had a clear edge over the neighbors.

In the Bronze Age, we took it up a notch, with written words. Admittedly, the user interface of the beta versions — from hieroglyphics to cuneiform — left much to be desired. But once the Phoenicians launched Alphabet 2.0, they set the rest of us on a trajectory that remains as impressive as the arc of Moore’s Law in another context.

Notable innovators included the likes of Johannes Gutenberg. The Chinese had dabbled in movable type, but it was the German goldsmith who got us properly into printing words — and thus into mass-producing as well as mass-consuming them.

Sometimes, innovation went retro, by giving us new ways of hearing words. Around the time we discovered distance writing (that is, the telegraph), we also figured out how to hear distant voices (through telephones). In our own WhatsApp era, all these word forms — spoken, written, hieroglyphic in the form of emoticons — are in flux. Where that mash-up leads, FWIW, remains unclear.

Which brings us to the bigger point about words. They can be the most beautiful things in the world, but also the ugliest. For every beacon of logophilia (love of words), there have always been countless victims of logophobia (fear of words, although that’s not actually a word) or logorrhea (think of diarrhea).

For the logophiles — from Shakespeare to Webster, Tolkien or Seuss — English is a particular treasure chest, because it’s just got so darn tootin’ many words. There are the punchy, short Germanic ones from the Anglo-Saxons, and also the longer, fancy French ones from the Normans. And then all the rest, from Arabic (as in algebra) to Persian and Urdu (khaki).

But make this ammo available to the armies of logophobia and logorrhea, and the result becomes unspeakable and unreadable. Politicians and PR types use words to produce evasive Orwellian gibberish. Snowflakes and the Woke treat words — starting, but not ending, with pronouns — as pitchforks for revolution. Their foes on the opposite side escalate by corrupting words into dog whistles of prejudice. On it goes, down it goes, into the gutter.

Atrocities against the Word don’t even have to be political. A horrible meta-ideology has crept into linguistics that I’ll call anything-goes. It’s the syntactical equivalent of anarchy, where there’s no difference between me and I, who and whom, as and like, lie/lay/lain and lay/laid/laid. I’ll bet these preachers of laissez-faire would rediscover such nuance quickly if they had to decide between being hung and hanged.

Language changes, they say. Yes, it does. There was a time when, if you were sick, you’d go to a leech (doctor); and if you prayed a lot, you were silly (pious). But change must be gradual, organic, and digestible — evolutionary, not revolutionary. During transitions, rules still matter, like decorum.

What I’m really saying is that words deserve more respect. We fight about them because we care about them, because they matter. We need our words to be fully human. That also means we need them to play.

Oh, I like my occasional Sudoku and Ken Ken, like the rest of you. But numbers don’t have the soul of words. So give me my Scrabble, Boggle, and Bananagrams. Give me a punny crossword. Or, like the New York Times, invent delights like Spelling Bee. It’s a digital hive of seven letters, out of which you make as many words as possible. If you’re good, they call you genius; if you’re great, they make you Queen Bee. Everyone in my family wants to be that.

So it was great to add another addiction recently. In October, a software engineer in Brooklyn launched a new word game. His name is Josh Wardle, so it was inevitably named Wordle. You get six tries to guess a five-letter word, with a few colorized hints.

Like a true logophile, Mr. Wardle made the game for “an audience of 1,” as he puts it. It’s now played by millions every day, including me. There’s even a Chinese version, getting around the problem with characters by using pinyin (see: problems with hieroglyphics and cuneiform, above).

Wordle has everything modern humans crave. First: simplicity. The rules take seconds to learn. Second: depth. The intuition takes lifetimes to master. Third: deniability. My editor thinks I’m working while I’m at it. And finally, the clincher: words.

This week, Josh Wardle sold Wordle to the New York Times. They were rather coy about the amount, but it seems to be a packet. Good for you both. You deserve it. Everyone from the Phoenicians to Gutenberg to John the Evangelist is green with envy. Maybe the word was not the beginning. But — teleologically — it just may be the end. — Bloomberg

Sugar producers say imports of 200,000 MT poorly timed

February 7, 2022 | 12:03 am

THE United Sugar Producers Federation (UNIFED) said the decision to import 200,000 metric tons (MT) of sugar during the peak milling season will depress prices that sugar planters can fetch for their crops.

“(It) is appalling that the very agency that is supposed to protect us seems determined to kill the industry,” UNIFED President Manuel R. Lamata said in a statement.

The Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) issued Sugar Order No. 3 covering imports during crop year 2021-2022, which are intended to stabilize rising prices and augment supply in typhoon-hit areas.

“This is adding insult to injury, and the issuance of the order is very ill-timed. The one that will clearly benefit from these imports are industrial users, especially bottling companies that have been provided half of the import quota,” former Sugar Regulatory board member Emilio Bernardino L. Yulo said.

“The import volume is way too much and (should not have been announced) at this time when sugar milling is at its peak,” Mr. Yulo added.

UNIFED had been lobbying the government to cap fertilizer prices in order to contain rising input costs.

“It is very frustrating for SRA to make this import order a priority when it has not even addressed our request to urge the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to cap fertilizer costs,” Mr. Lamata said, noting that such requests were first put forward last year.

“They only see the increasing cost of sugar in the market but they do not acknowledge the forces driving those prices up and much of it can be attributed to fertilizers that almost tripled in cost and fuel that has breached the P50 per liter mark. Whatever increase in sugar prices we are seeing in the market, goes to (the) cost of farm inputs,” he added.

“We are still in a midst of a crisis, and our sugar planters in Southern Negros are still trying to recover from the effects of Odette, and here is another crisis that will hit us. We hope that SRA will reconsider and amend the order until they get a good picture from the ground as to what quantity is just needed to ensure that the industry is protected,” Mr. Yulo said.

In a separate statement, UNIFED called for the removal of the regulator’s Administrator Hermenegildo R. Serafica over the decision to import.

“We are appealing once again to President Rodrigo R. Duterte to help us and fire SRA Administrator Serafica as it seems he is working for the benefit of others instead of us,” Mr. Lamata said.

“Mr. Serafica is only there to protect the interests of the big industrials to the detriment of the Filipino people. Mr. Duterte, we are once again appealing that you help us put a stop to these machinations by the SRA and the DA. They are supposed to protect industry stakeholders but all these moves point to one thing, they are determined to kill the industry,” he added. — Luisa Maria Jacinta C. Jocson

Fil-Am Miller gets complete full-routine training

February 7, 2022 | 12:02 am

IT’S looking better everyday for Fil-Am alpine skier Asa Miller, the country’s lone representative to the Beijing Winter Olympics.

“Today’s (Sunday) training was good,” said the 21-year-old Mr. Miller following completing another full-routine on Sunday at the National Alpine Skiing Center on Xiaohaituo Mountain.

“No soreness and less pain this time,” he added.

It was the fifth time that Mr. Miller, who will make his second Olympics appearance, got to train at the sprawling training center that is currently encountering lack of snow.

The Portland native would plunge into battle in the men’s giant slalom starting at 10 a.m. on Sunday and the slalom also at 10 a.m. three days later.

Mr. Miller took a one-day rest Friday to grace the opening ceremony in Beijing.

While he’s off the ski slope, Mr. Miller said he’s doing workout at the gym to prepare physically.

“I still train at the village, focusing mostly on my legs, core strength and stability,” said Mr. Miller, who’s participation is being bankrolled by the Philippine Sports Commission chaired by William Ramirez. — Joey Villar

SPNEC bags solar power deal with Angeles firm

February 7, 2022 | 12:02 am

LEVISTE-led Solar Philippines Nueva Ecija Corp. (SPNEC) said it had been awarded a 10-year contract to supply Angeles Electric Corp. (AEC) with around 97.8 megawatt hours (MWh) daily.

SPNEC said in a media release sent over the weekend that based on the terms published on the Department of Energy (DoE) website, the listed renewable energy company will supply AEC from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily for 10 years.

“This will provide SPNEC a base of contracted revenues, while being able to sell the rest of its energy to the spot market or other off-takers,” the company said.

SPNEC said the tariff will be disclosed when the renewable power supply agreement (PSA) is submitted to the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) for approval. The contract will begin on March 26, 2023 or upon the commission’s approval.

The company said AEC awarded the PSA after a competitive selection process (CSP) in which SPNEC submitted the best offer among five bidders. It added that more CSP’s are being planned in support of the DoE’s Renewable Portfolio Standard program.

“The contracting of the first phase of our solar farm shows that renewable energy in the Philippines is a supply-constrained market. This reinforces our drive to expand SPNEC’s capacity to meet the country’s great demand for renewable energy,” SPNEC Founder Leandro L. Leviste said in a statement.

The company said it is finalizing plans for an asset-for-share swap with its parent, Solar Philippines Power Project Holdings, Inc., which may enable SPNEC to acquire over 20 solar project companies.

The prospective acquisitions include more than 10 gigawatts (GW) of projects in development, it said, citing figures from the DoE. The government targets to source 35% of the country’s energy from renewables by 2030, SPNEC said, adding that the goal would translate to demand for over 20 GW of solar energy.

On Jan. 11, SPNEC said its board of directors had approved an increase in its capital stock to 50 billion shares to prepare for the asset-for-share swap with its parent company. — Marielle C. Lucenio

Peso may climb vs dollar ahead of GIR data, pediatric vaccination drive

February 7, 2022 | 12:02 am

THE PESO may strengthen this week amid expectations that the country continued to have ample foreign exchange buffers as well as the start of the vaccination drive for children.

The local unit closed at P51.14 per dollar on Friday, weakening by nine centavos from its P51.05 finish on Thursday, data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines showed.

Still, it strengthened by nine centavos from its P51.23 finish a week earlier.

The peso weakened from its Thursday close as slowing inflation would support the Philippine central bank’s pledge to remain accommodative, even as the US Federal Reserve has already hinted on a possible rate hike by next month, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said in a Viber message.

Inflation eased to 3% in January from 3.6% in December mainly due to a slower increase in utility prices, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) released on Friday showed. The PSA used 2018 as the base year for the consumer price index from 2012 previously.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said easing inflation is consistent with their expectation that the rise in the consumer price index will be within their 2-4% target in 2022 and 2023. Inflation averaged 4.5% last year from 2.6% in 2020, mainly due to higher oil and food prices.

The Monetary Board will hold its first policy review for the year on Feb. 17. BSP Governor Benjamin E. Diokno has earlier said they would wait for four to six consecutive quarters of economic growth before looking at a possible rate hike.

Meanwhile, the Fed earlier said it is likely to raise borrowing costs starting March to quell rising inflation. Markets expect the US central bank to fire off at least three rate hikes this year.

Meanwhile, the relaxation of restriction measures in Metro Manila and some provinces helped to boost market sentiment for the peso last week, UnionBank of the Philippines, Inc. Chief Economist Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion said in an e-mail.

As infections declined, the government placed Metro Manila and some provinces back under Alert Level 2 for the first two weeks of February, allowing for increased operating capacity for businesses.

The market this week will factor in the US jobs data released on Friday, Mr. Asuncion said.

Preliminary data from the US Labor department on Friday showed nonfarm payrolls rose by 467,000 in January despite the Omicron surge. This is more than the 150,000 jobs added expected by analysts in a Reuters poll.

Meanwhile, Mr. Ricafort said gross international reserves (GIR) data may also boost the peso this week. The January data is scheduled for release on Monday, based on the BSP’s advance release calendar.

The country’s dollar buffers stood at $108.891 billion as of end-December, declining by 1.11% from the record $110.117 billion as of end-2020 and also below the $111-billion end-2021 projection given by the BSP.

The central bank expects the GIR to reach $112 billion by end-2022.

Mr. Ricafort said the market will also factor in the start of the inoculation for children aged five to 11 years old on Monday.

On Friday, 780,000 doses of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine formulated for younger children arrived in the Philippines. They were procured by the National Government through the World Bank.

For this week, Mr. Ricafort gave a forecast range of P50.90 to P51.30 per dollar, while Mr. Asuncion expects the local unit to move within P50.80 to P51.30. — L.W.T. Noble with Reuters

Geely PHL opens Las Piñas dealership

February 7, 2022 | 12:02 am

VELO_DASH_image1 — IMAGE FROM GEELY PHILIPPINES

SOJITZ G AUTO Philippines (SGAP) welcomes 2022 by expanding its dealership network anew. Located in a rapidly urbanizing residential-commercial center in Metro Geely Las Piñas is owned and managed by Premier Adventures, Inc., and is expected to serve customers and potential customers in the area — offering the brand’s newest models and providing convenient and quality after-sales service.

“We are opening 2022 with high hopes that this year will be better for all of us. This year, we have lined up more dealership openings that will add to the total of 24 dealerships we had when we closed 2021. These dealerships nationwide will give our customers easier access to Geely’s existing and soon-to-be-launched models,” said SGAP President and CEO Yosuke Nishi.

Geely Las Piñas is a 1,600-sq.m. outlet featuring six service bays and a five-car showroom. The newly opened dealership is located on J. Aguilar Ave. (CAA Road), Pulang Lupa Dos, Las Piñas City. The facility is open Mondays to Saturdays, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Science fiction epic Dune leads BAFTA nominations with 11 nods

February 7, 2022 | 12:02 am

Timothée Chalamet in Dune (2021) part 1 — Timothée Chalamet in Dune (2021) part 1 — IMDB.COM

LONDON — Science fiction epic Dune, a mammoth adaptation of Frank Herbert’s 1965 novel, led nominations for the British Academy Film Awards on Thursday, securing 11 nods, with dark Western The Power of the Dog following with eight.

Belfast, Kenneth Brannagh’s semi-autobiographical black and white comedy drama set at the onset of Northern Ireland’s three decades of conflict, received six nominations at Britain’s top movie honors.

All three films will compete for best film at the awards, known as the BAFTAs (British Academy of Film and Television Arts), alongside coming-of-age tale Licorice Pizza and Don’t Look Up, a humorous warning about climate change.

James Bond movie No Time to Die, a remake of West Side Story, and Licorice Pizza each got five nominations.

“It’s an incredibly exciting list of nominations, 48 different films have been nominated this year,” BAFTA Chair Krishnendu Majumdar told Reuters.

“The key thing to take out is the breadth and the diversity of stories. Really different films have been nominated not just in terms of genre but also who’s in them and who’s making them.”

Following an outcry in 2020 over the lack of diversity among an all-white acting nominees list and all-male best director contenders, BAFTA has expanded membership, added a longlist voting round and increased the acting and director categories.

Half of the best director nominees this year are women: Jane Campion for The Power of the Dog, Audrey Diwan for Happening, a French drama about illegal abortion in the 1960s, and Julia Ducournau for body horror Titane.

Aleem Khan (After Love), Ryûsuke Hamaguchi (Drive My Car), and Paul Thomas Anderson (Licorice Pizza) complete the list.

Boasting an all-star cast, Dune, about an intergalactic battle to control a precious resource, is also in the running for adapted screenplay, original score, and cinematography alongside other creative and technical categories.

The leading actress nominees are Lady Gaga for fashion drama House of Gucci, Alana Haim for Licorice Pizza, Emilia Jones for CODA, a coming-of-age story about the only hearing member of a deaf family, and Renate Reinsve for romance drama The Worst Person in the World.

Also nominated are Joanna Scanlan for playing a widow who discovers a devastating secret in After Love and Tessa Thompson for Passing, a film about racial identity.

Leading actor nominees include Benedict Cumberbatch for his portrayal of a 1920s rancher in The Power of the Dog, Leonardo DiCaprio for playing an astronomer desperate to save the planet in Don’t Look Up, and Will Smith for playing the father of tennis champion sisters Venus and Serena Williams in King Richard.

Ali & Ava actor Adeel Akhtar, Mahershala Ali (Swan Song) and Stephen Graham (Boiling Point) complete the list.

The BAFTAs will be held in-person on March 13 in London, following a virtual event last year due to the pandemic. — Reuters

Bangsamoro region accredits more halal certification companies

February 7, 2022 | 12:02 am

EXPORTS of halal goods from the Muslim-majority Bangsamoro region are expected to expand with the licensing of more halal certification firms and initiatives to boost trade links with the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA).

Prime Certification and Inspection (PC&I) Asia Pacific, Inc., whose parent company is headquartered in Dubai, officially received its certification of registration on Feb. 3 from the Regional Bangsamoro Board of Investments (BBoI), along with four other companies.

“The five companies, upon receiving this certificate of registration can fully be operational with their own respective ventures and will automatically enjoy fiscal incentives provided for by the Regional BBoI,” Ishak V. Mastura, the board’s chairman, said in a statement.

PC&I will provide halal accreditation for export products, particularly those bound for the Middle East, the agency said.

For BIMP-EAGA, which covers areas with largely Muslim populations, the Bangsamoro Economic Development Council (BEDC) recently created a committee that will focus on strengthening ties with the four-nation economic grouping.

EAGA, formally established in 1994, is composed of Brunei Darussalam; Indonesia’s Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Maluku, and Papua provinces; Malaysia’s Sabah, Sarawak, and Labuan; and the Philippine regions of Mindanao and Palawan.

Director-General Rosslainie Alonto-Sinarimbo of the Bangsamoro Ministry of Trade, Investment, and Tourism said the sub-committee formed in December will be working closely with the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA), which serves as the Philippine’s lead agency for EAGA programs.

“(T)he sub-committee will truly sustain our engagement with MinDA and the BIMP-EAGA counterparts for the region’s sustainable economic growth,” Ms. Sinarimbo said during the 1^st Regular Meeting of the BEDC’s Economic Development Committee in mid-January.

MinDA Development Management Officer Amhed Jeoffrey Datukan said during the meeting that one of the steps recently taken was a partnership with the Bangsamoro Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Agrarian Reform (MAFAR) for the development of the halal beef sector, among others.

“MinDA forged an engagement with BARMM-MAFAR on the development of halal beef production industry, assist the Mindanao Barter Trade Council, and implement other several ongoing priorities that BARMM could take advantage of,” Mr. Datukan said.

The Bangsamoro region’s halal verification laboratory was renovated and upgraded last year for P47 million.

The facility, which has been fitted with new equipment, can do analysis for ethanol, gelatin, pesticide residue, minerals and heavy metals in food and water, and meat and meat-based products.

The global halal market, which was estimated at around $3 trillion in 2021, is expected to grow to $10 trillion in the next few years, according to the national government’s Department of Trade and Industry.

Halal, the Arabic word for permissible, refers to goods and services that conform to Islamic law and practices. — Marifi S. Jara

Investors impressed by fourth-quarter BPI rebound

February 7, 2022 | 12:01 am

By Lourdes O. Pilar, Reseacher

INVESTORS snapped up shares in Ayala-led Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) after it reported strong fourth-quarter earnings.

A total of P1.28-billion worth of 12.79 million BPI shares were traded from Jan. 31 to Feb. 4, data from the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) showed, making it the fourth most actively traded issue last week.

Shares in the fourth-largest universal and commercial bank in terms of total assets finished at P100.00 apiece on Friday, up 0.71% week on week from the P99.30 close on Jan. 28. For the year, the stock gained 9.8%.

Analysts pointed to BPI’s strong quarterly earnings report that made it one of the most active stocks last week.

“Banks and financials were generally strong this week, up 2.5% week-on-week, so this likely contributed to higher volume for BPI,” COL Financial Group, Inc. Research Analyst Adrian Alexander N. Yu said in an e-mail.

“In addition, BPI reported strong full year 2021 earnings result of P23.9 billion, up 11.5% year on year driven by lower provisions and strong fee income,” he added.

In a separate e-mail, Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Research Luis A. Limlingan said investors expected a strong earnings result which caused a sharp rise in BPI’s price a trading session prior to disclosure.

“That’s why on the day of the press release publication, some have decided to top slice from their attractive positions already,” Mr. Limlingan said.

Diversified Securities, Inc. Equity Trader Aniceto K. Pangan said in a mobile phone message on Friday: “Investors reacted positively as price appreciated from P94.50 per share to as high as P100.50 after earnings went up by more than 51% in fourth quarter boosted by income from fees as performance of most business lines surpassing 2019 or pre pandemic levels.”

In its disclosure to the PSE, BPI’s net income rose by 51.2% year on year to P6.4 billion in the October-to-December period.

This brought the bank’s bottom line for the full year of 2021 to P23.88 billion, a 11.5% gain from the previous year, driven by lower provisions and record-high fee income.

Total revenues edged lower by 4.2% to P97.4 billion last year, as net interest income dipped by 3.7% year on year to P69.58 billion.

BPI’s net interest margin dropped by 19 basis points from to 3.3% from 3.5% amid lower yields across most loan portfolios and treasury assets.

Meanwhile, non-interest income declined by 5.5% to P27.82 billion in 2021 due to lower trading income but this was strengthened by a 23.2% boost in fee income, with the performance rebound in most business lines surpassing 2019 levels.

This year, Mr. Yu expects BPI’s revenue to reach P105.6 billion with earnings of P29 billion.

Mr. Limlingan said BPI would benefit from sustained improvement in bank lending, even with the Omicron virus variant around.

He projected BPI’s first-quarter net income to hit mid to high double-digit growth, which would likely be the trend throughout 2022.

“With the strong price action [last] week, we are looking at BPI sustaining the uptrend and hopefully breaking above P100.00 per share,” Mr. Yu said.

Mr. Yu gave BPI a strong support level at P93.00-P96.00 per share and resistance of P100.00 apiece.

Mr. Limlingan pegged BPI’s support at P94.80 per share and its resistance at P101.55.

“BPI’s probably going into consolidation mode next week, given the surge in its price this week,” added Mr. Limlingan.

For Mr. Pangan, the bank “may sustain its momentum going forward barring any surge in transmission rates that may limit ease in restrictions. Also, as long as global inflation rate could be managed to normal levels with gradual monetary policy applications.”

Mr. Pangan’s immediate support for BPI is P93.10 per share and its immediate resistance at P102.50 per share.

Pagdanganan settles for share of 41^st place; Maguire makes history in winning Drive On Championship

February 7, 2022 | 12:01 am

macguire — IRISH golfer Leona Maguire poses with the trophy after winning the LPGA Drive On Championship on Feb. 5 at Crown Colony Golf & Country Club in Fort Myers, Florida. — REUTERS

BIANCA Pagdanganan faltered midway and settled for a share of 41^st place as Irish Leona Maguire took home the crown in the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Drive On Championship on Saturday at the Fort Myers, Florida.

The Filipina Olympian swung out with guns ablaze after firing three birdies in the first 12 holes for a shot at further climbing the ladder but had setbacks in the 13^th and 15^th hole heading home.

Though she made up for it with a birdie in a last push, Ms. Pagdanganan finished with a five-under 211 along with 11 other players for a $6,162 prize (Over P300,000) at the end of the $1.5 million, 54-hole Florida showpiece.

Still, it was a strong rebound for the 24-year-old ace after missing the championship cut in Gainbridge last week heading into her next event at the JTBC Classic in Carlsbad, California on March 24-27.

Yuka Saso, the reigning US Women’s Open champion and Ms. Pagdanganan’s teammate in the Philippines’ Asian Games conquest in 2018, missed the championship cut by just a stroke with 144 at joint 74^th place.

It’s the first early exit for Ms. Saso in the last 11 months as she looks forward to a better outing in the Women’s World Championship on March 3-6 in Singapore and the LPGA Thailand on March 10-13.

Meanwhile, Ms. Maguire unleashed a strong finishing kick with a series of birdies to fend off a late rally by American Lexi Thompson for the $225,000 Florida purse.

Ms. Maguire, who became the first Irish winner in LPGA Tour history, had seven birdies to secure a three-stroke victory with an 18-under 198 total over Thompson with 15-under 201. — John Bryan Ulanday