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Apple, Amazon suspend Parler social network from App Store and web hosting service

In addition to Parler, right-leaning social media users in the United States have flocked to messaging app Telegram and hands-off social site Gab. Screenshot via the App Store

Apple Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. have suspended Parler from their respective App Store and web hosting service, saying the social networking service popular with many right-leaning social media users has not taken adequate measures to prevent the spread of posts inciting violence.

The action by Apple and Amazon follows a similar move by Alphabet Inc.’s Google on Friday. Parler is favored by many supporters of US President Donald J. Trump, who was permanently suspended from Twitter on Friday, and it is seen as a haven for people expelled from Twitter.

“We have suspended Parler from the App Store until they resolve these issues,” Apple said in a statement Saturday.

Apple had given Parler 24 hours to submit a detailed moderation plan, pointing to participants’ using the service to coordinate Wednesday’s siege of the US Capitol.

Amazon’s move effectively takes the site offline unless it can find a new company to host its services.

Amazon suspended Parler from its Amazon Web Services (AWS) unit, for violating AWS’s terms of services by failing to effectively deal with a steady increase in violent content, according to an e-mail by an AWS Trust and Safety team to Parler, seen by Reuters.

An Amazon spokesperson confirmed the letter was authentic.

Due to the “very real risk to public safety” that Parler poses, AWS plans to suspend Parler’s account effective Sunday, at 11:59 p.m. PST, the e-mail seen by Reuters showed.

Parler Chief Executive John Matze lashed out at Amazon, Google, and Apple, saying it was a coordinated effort knowing Parler’s options would be limited and it would inflict the most damage right as Trump was banned from other social media platforms.

“There is the possibility Parler will be unavailable on internet for up to a week as we rebuild from scratch,” he said in a post on Parler.

“This was a coordinated attack by the tech giants to kill competition in the market place… You can expect the war on competition and free speech to continue, but don’t count us out.”

In addition to Parler, right-leaning social media users in the United States have flocked to messaging app Telegram and hands-off social site Gab, citing the more aggressive policing of political comments on mainstream platforms such as Twitter Inc. and Facebook Inc. — Bhargav Acharya/Reuters

Catholics show devotion to statue amid super-spreader worries

More than 400,000 Catholics in Manila celebrated on Saturday a feast for a centuries-old wooden statue of Jesus Christ, despite health experts warning it could turn into a super-spreader event for coronavirus.

Authorities canceled an annual procession of the life-sized image of the “Black Nazarene”, the country’s largest religious event that draws millions of devotees in an annual ritual that has been observed for 200 years.

Instead, church leaders organized 15 Masses at Manila’s Quiapo church, which houses the statue that is believed to bring miracles. They livestreamed the services and urged devotees not to attend.

Most of the faithful stayed at home and attended Mass by means of social media or broadcast television, Alex Irasga, head of the celebration’s working committee, told ANC news channel.

But many still attended, with a total of around 400,000 people cumulatively going in and out of the church vicinity by late afternoon, police data showed.

“We’re really going to need a miracle to stop a super-spreader event in Quiapo right now. Please don’t go,” said Edsel T. Salvana, director of the Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology at the National Institutes of Health at the University of the Philippines Manila on Twitter before noon.

More than 6,000 police officers monitored entry points and enforced physical distancing at the Quiapo church, but this was sometimes ignored by people hustling to be blessed with holy water at the end of every Mass.

“We know that social distancing violations will lead to increased number of cases,” tweeted Dr. Anthony C. Leachon, former adviser of the coronavirus task force.

The Philippines, which has the second-highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in Southeast Asia after Indonesia, reported 1,952 new infections on Saturday, the highest in three weeks.

PRAYING FOR AN END TO THE PANDEMIC
About 80% of the country’s 108 million people identify as Roman Catholic.

“I am not afraid to go here even with the risk of COVID-19 because I have faith in Jesus the Nazarene. Every year, every week I go to church,” Arjay Echon, 29, a supermarket employee and a devotee for seven years, told Reuters.

Mr. Echon, wearing a facemask and shield while carrying a small replica of the “Black Nazarene,” said he was praying for the pandemic to end.

The annual procession of the statue depicting Jesus shouldering a heavy cross—canceled this year—usually draws millions of devotees, many barefoot and jostling to get close and touch the image.

The statue was carved in Mexico and brought to the Philippines in the early 17th century.

“My personal prayer is good health for my family… I pray for a better Philippines this 2021 and for COVID-19 to end,” Prubancio Sarasin, A 56-year-old security guard, told Reuters. — Adrian Portugal and Eloisa Lopez/Reuters

October FDI net inflows lowest since April

By Beatrice M. Laforga, Reporter

Foreign direct investments (FDI) to the Philippines in October fell to the lowest level in six months, amid a fresh surge in coronavirus infections overseas, according to the central bank.

FDI net inflows shrank by a quarter to $423 million from $561 million a year earlier, the second straight month of yearly decline, according to data sent by Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Benjamin E. Diokno via Viber on Friday.

The October inflows were the lowest since $314 million in April, when many parts of the country and the rest of the world were locked down at the height of the pandemic.

Restrictions have been eased since the second half of last year, but local quarantine and physical distancing measures remain.

“The slowdown in FDI during the month may be attributed in part to concerns over the resurgence of COVID-19 cases in the US, Japan and some European countries,” the BSP said.

Some of the world’s largest economies reported higher infection tallies around October lowering the cases for months.

In the ten months to October, FDI net inflows fell by a tenth to $5.3 billion from a year earlier.

“The decline in FDI net inflows reflected the adverse impact on investor sentiment amid the uncertainties surrounding the effect of a prolonged pandemic on the global economy,” the central bank said.

“The was offset by the increase in consumer spending, which was translated into investment in the last quarter of 2020,” Emmanuel J. Lopez, dean of the Colegio de San Juan de Letran Graduate School said in an e-mail.

The expected seasonal uptick in public consumption should temper the losses as these may become investments in the latter part of 2020, he added.

“Whatever FDI shortage we experience in the preceding year can very well be recovered in 2021,” Mr. Lopez said.
“This was optimistically illustrated by the good credit rating the country gets from foreign independent credit rating agencies.”

November trade deficit narrowest since June

By Arjay L. Balinbin, Senior Reporter

The Philippine trade deficit dropped to its lowest level in five months in November, suggesting that trade could contribute to economic growth in the fourth quarter, though declining imports hinted at slowing domestic demand.

The trade deficit was $1.73 billion, lower than $1.79 billion in October and $3.65 billion in November last year.

The lower trade gap translated to $1.9 billion less demand for dollars to pay for imports, supporting the peso’s appreciation against the greenback in recent months, Michael L. Ricafort, chief economist at Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., said in an e-mail.

Coronavirus-related lockdowns cut the country’s net imports amid reduced business and economic activities, he pointed out.

“A further pickup and reopening of the local and global economies from lockdowns, a reduction in new COVID-19 cases, and further progress on the development and deployment of coronavirus vaccines could help improve economic recovery prospects,” Mr. Ricafort said.

Relaxed quarantines in Manila, the capital and nearby cities in the coming months could boost the economy further, he added.

Merchandise exports rose by 3% from a year earlier in November from a revised 1.2% decline in October and a 0.2% slide in November last year, according to preliminary data from the local statistics agency.

Export growth in November was the fastest in 10 months.

Merchandise imports shrank for the 19th straight month in November by 18.9% to $7.52 billion. This almost matched the 18.8% contraction in October and worse than the 4.5% decline in November last year.

The country’s external trade in goods fell by more than a tenth to $13.31 billion in November from a year earlier, bringing the 11-month level to $135.60 billion, which is a fifth lower than a year earlier.

For the 11 months to November, exports fell by 11.1% to $57.97 billion, better than the Development Budget Coordination Committee’s (DBCC) 16% estimate for 2020.

Year to date, imports reached $77.63 billion, a quarter lower than a year earlier and worse than the DBCC’s revised target of a 20% decline for the full year.

For the 11 months, the trade balance hit a deficit of $19.66 billion, lower than the $37.7-billion gap a year earlier.

Nicholas Antonio T. Mapa, senior economist at ING Bank N.V. Manila Branch, traced export growth to strong outbound shipments to China and Taiwan as both countries bounced back from the COVID-19 fallout.

The trend of modest export gains and weak imports are likely to continue “for at least the first half of the year with the recent spike in COVID-19 cases likely to sap momentum from the recent pickup in global trade, leading to softer export growth,” he said in an e-mail.

“Domestic activity in the coming quarters will likely remain subdued, with the economy expected to remain in recession until 2Q 2021, which would translate to only a modest pickup in import demand,” Mr. Mapa said.

With imports expected to remain well below pre-pandemic levels and exports not seen to sustain their recent pickup in volume, the trade deficit should remain manageable, he said.

“The peso should enjoy modest appreciation pressure if the global weak US dollar theme plays out,” he added.

Electronic products remained the Philippines’ top export in November, with earnings of $3.53 billion, 4.6% higher than a year earlier. They accounted for 60.9% of total exports, the Philippine Statistics Authority said.

The US was the top export destination, receiving $956.8 million in exports or 16.5% of the total. It was followed by China ($923.65 million), Japan ($872.95 million), Hong Kong ($736.13 million) and Singapore ($313.89 million).

China was the Philippines’ biggest supplier of imported goods for the month, with a total value of $2.02 billion, or 26.8% of the total. It was followed by Japan ($734.35 million), the US ($554.40 million), Indonesia ($545.58 million) and South Korea ($528.88 million).

Central bank raises P100 billion in short-term bills

By Beatrice M. Laforga, Reporter

The Philippine central bank fully awarded the short-term securities it offered on Friday as tenders nearly doubled the program at its first auction this year.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) borrowed P100 billion in 28-day debt as tenders reached P185.85 billion, making the auction 1.86 times oversubscribed.

The central bank has been making full awards since it started selling its own securities in September.

“The stronger demand for the BSP bills reflects the ample liquidity in the financial system as cash holdings gradually return to normal following the December holidays,” BSP Deputy Governor Francisco G. Dakila, Jr. said in a statement.

The bills fetched a weighted average yield of 1.6607%, down by 2.296 basis points (bps) from 1.687% at the previous auction on Dec. 18.

Rates sought for the debt ranged from 1.64% to 1.675%, lower than 1.67 to 1.69%, previously.

“Looking ahead, the BSP’s calibration of its monetary operations will continue to be guided by its assessment of market developments and liquidity conditions, as well as discussions with BSP counterparties,” Mr. Dakila said.

The lower rates could be a signal that investors might be expecting the central bank to resume its easing cycle this year, UnionBank of the Philippines, Inc. Chief Economist Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion said in a Viber message.

“Although the BSP said that it may hold the key rate in the first half of this year, the market is seemingly starting to price in more easing by the central bank this 2021,” he said.

“This is observed because of declining yields. It may also be that players are starting to position themselves ahead of the monetary easing or pause by the BSP,” he added.

Central bank Governor Benjamin E. Diokno this week said the Monetary Board was likely to maintain a low interest environment for the next few quarters to help the economy recover faster from pandemic-induced recession.

The central bank cut benchmark interest rates by a total of 200 bps last year, bringing its overnight reverse repurchase, lending and deposit rates to record lows of 2%, 2.5% and 1.5%, respectively.

Headline inflation quickened to 3.5% in December, mainly due to a faster increase in the prices of food and transportation.

Russian drugmaker seeks vaccine emergency use

Russia’s Gamaleya Research Institute of Epidemiology has applied for emergency use authorization for its coronavirus vaccine in the Philippines, according to the local Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The regulator, which got the application on Jan. 7, had ordered the drugmaker to submit missing documents, FDA Director-General Eric Domingo said on Friday.

Gamaleya withdrew its application for clinical trials of its vaccine on Jan. 6, the Department of Science and Technology (DoST) said.

“Their reason was simple — they would apply for emergency use authorization so they don’t need the clinical trials here,” Science and Technology Undersecretary Rowena Guevarra told an online news briefing.

US drugmaker Pfizer, Inc. and Britain’s AstraZeneca Plc have also filed for emergency use with the FDA.

The three already have existing emergency use approvals in other countries.

Meanwhile, the DoST said China National Pharmaceutical Group Co., Ltd. (Sinopharm) had yet to decide whether to pursue clinical trials for its coronavirus vaccine in the Philippines.

“Sinopharm has yet to decide if it will conduct a clinical trial here or just apply for an emergency use authorization,” DoST Assistant Secretary Leah J. Buenda told a televised public briefing in mixed English and Filipino.

Ms. Buendia said the agency had signed a confidentiality disclosure agreement with Sinopharm even if it had not yet received any data from the Chinese drugmaker. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas and Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

Philippines on lookout for 3 virus strains

Health authorities are monitoring the entry of two other coronavirus variants aside from a more contagious strain from the United Kingdom, where there had been a fresh surge in infections.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario S. Vergeire noted that aside from the UK variant, they were looking out for the variants from South Africa and Malaysia.

“The three variants are already being monitored as it reflects signature mutations in the spike region of the virus, as has been studied in affected countries,” she told reporters in a Viber group message.

The Philippine Genome Center would continue analyzing positive samples to monitor the new strains, she said.

Health regional offices were tapped to get samples from different regions specifically in the Visayas and Mindanao regions for genome sequencing.

South African Health authorities last month identified the new variant that has caused a second wave of infections there, while a Malaysian health official also announced the detection of another variant in December, according to separate Reuters reports in December.

The Genome Center had not detected the UK variant in the initial 305 positive samples from patients admitted to various hospitals in the past two months and from inbound travelers who tested positive at the airports.

A 30-year-old Filipina domestic helper from Cagayan Valley Region who arrived in Hong Kong in northern Philippines last Dec. 22 tested positive for the UK variant.

DoH said on Thursday she had been isolated in Hong Kong and was stable. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

Coronavirus cases nearing 484,000

The Department of Health (DoH) reported 1,776 coronavirus infections on Friday, bringing the total to 483,852.

The death toll rose by eight to 9,364, while recoveries increased by 285 to 449,330, it said in a bulletin.

There were 25,158 active cases, 82.6% of which were mild, 8.6% did not show symptoms, 5.4% were critical, 2.9% were severe and 0.48 were moderate.

Bulacan reported the highest number of new cases at 99, followed by Davao City at 96, Quezon City at 83, Rizal at 80 and Laguna at 64.

DoH said seven duplicates had been removed from the tally, while one recovered case was reclassified as death. Five laboratories failed to submit their data on Jan. 7.

More than 6.5 million people have been tested for the coronavirus in the Philippines as of Jan. 6, according to DoH’s tracker website.

The coronavirus has sickened about 88.5 million and killed 1.9 million people worldwide, according to the Worldometers website, citing various sources including data from the World Health Organization.
About 63.6 million people have recovered, it said. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

House to start cha-cha debates next week

The House of Representatives will start debates on a resolution proposing changes to the 1987 Constitution on Jan. 13, a congressman said on Friday.

Party-list Rep. Alfredo A. Garbin, Jr., who heads the House committee on constitutional amendments, said the panel would tackle the resolution filed by Speaker Lord Allan Q. Velasco last year.

The lawmaker said the resolution only proposes changes to economic provisions of the charter.

“Permission is being sought from the Filipino people to entrust to Congress the enactment of exceptions to the general rules stated in particular economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution,” Mr. Garbin said in a statement.

The 33-year old Constitution bars foreign investors from owning more than 40% of certain industries.

He said the coronavirus pandemic had made the matter of easing economic provisions of the Constitution urgent, as domestic markets struggled to boost the economy during the lockdown.

The committee seeks to finish deliberations before year-end, in time for a plebiscite coinciding with the 2022 national elections, Mr. Garbin said. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

Senator seeks dismissal of illegal drug case

Detained Senator Leila M. de Lima has asked a Muntinlupa City court to dismiss her second drug-related charge for insufficiency of evidence.

In an 82-page filing, Ms. de Lima said the prosecution had failed to present evidence that would show that the case involved illegal drugs.

The lawmaker also said the prosecution had failed to prove that she conspired with her co-accused to commit illegal drug trading.

Ms. de Lima said the prosecution in the past three years had failed to specify the type of drugs and quantity involved in the alleged illegal drug trade.

The senator, who is a staunch critic of President Rodrigo R. Duterte, filed a similar pleading this week for one of her three drug trafficking cases.

Ms. de Lima is on trial for allegedly abetting the illegal drug trade in the country’s jails when she was still Justice secretary. She was accused of extorting millions of pesos from a drug lord that she allegedly used to finance her senatorial campaign in 2016.

She has been jailed at the Philippine National Police Custodial Center in Camp Crame since February 2017. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

Senate to probe sex for gadgets

A senator has filed a resolution seeking to investigate the rising cases of sexual exploitation of children by online predators amid a coronavirus pandemic.

“The delay in face-to-face classes will continue to expose grade school and high school children to these local and foreign sexual predators lurking on the internet,” Senator Imee R. Marcos said in a statement on Friday.

She cited reports that some students have been selling sensual photos and videos of themselves to finance their distance learning.

“The problem may have already grown to involve not only individual perverts but organized crime syndicates,” Ms. Marcos said in the resolution. — Charmaine A. Tadalan

Cash aid for employees to resume

The Employees Compensation Commission (ECC) will resume giving cash aid to employees who got the coronavirus after suspending the program in September over budget constraints.

“We are ready to open again for cash assistance,” ECC Executive Director Stella Z. Banawis told an online news briefing on Friday.

Ms. Banawis said the ECC expanded its cash assistance to cover COVID-related sickness, but had not anticipated the number of applicants that will avail the program.

She said only the cash aid for COVID-19 was suspended, while sickness, medical and funeral benefits and death pension had not been affected.

This comes after reports from labor group Federation of Free Workers that the ECC had denied applications of its members who got infected with the coronavirus.

More than 8,000 people applied for the cash aid, and the commission had processed at least 4,000 beneficiaries, Ms. Banawis said. — Charmaine A. Tadalan

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