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Damosa Land ramps up vaccine rollout for employees

DAMOSA LAND, Inc. (DLI) began rolling out coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines to its employees and their dependents, as part of its parent company Anflo Management and Investment Corporation’s goal to vaccinate 100% of the group’s workforce.

With over 50% of the workforce vaccinated, DLI is on track to have all its employees vaccinated by the early fourth quarter.

Thanks to the company’s information drive about vaccines, the COVID-19 vaccines received a 90% acceptance rate among employees, from an initial acceptance rate of around 50%.

“For our company, it is also about giving our employees the confidence, peace of mind, and a sense of normalcy as they safely strive to get back on track when it comes to work and be able to continue providing for their families. This is our goal as we give them the opportunity to get vaccinated while the region starts to recover from the economic downturn it experienced recently,” DLI President Cary F. Lagdameo said in a statement.

DLI also partnered with the Davao local government to provide inoculation venues for pre-registration and vaccination activities of communities in the area.

Phoenix Petroleum income up 9% quarter on quarter

PHOENIXFUELS.PH

LISTED oil firm Phoenix Petroleum Philippines, Inc. announced a net income of P132 million for the second quarter, higher by 9% compared with the level in the first quarter, on the back of increased local sales of its fuel and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) products.

“Overall volume grew 32% from the prior quarter as the growth of the domestic business picks up pace,” the Dennis A. Uy-led company said in a regulatory filing on Monday.

The company did not release year-on-year comparative figures.

Domestic volume rose by 27% quarter on quarter. Manufacturing and trade were the main industries which drove up the firm’s commercial and B2B segments during the period.

Phoenix Petroleum said its LPG business also improved in the three months ending June due to “strong” canister volume sales and better sales in the industrial sector.

Meanwhile, international sales were up by 37% quarter on quarter due to growth in Vietnam’s LPG business, it added.

“Our second quarter performance shows that our domestic growth is accelerating, and we are solidifying our market positions as evidenced by the recent market share expansion. Despite challenges, we are able to continue to expand our network via a capex-light model, win new B2B accounts, and keep our costs in line,” Phoenix Petroleum President Henry Albert R. Fadullon said.

He added that Phoenix would continue to implement “high-impact” activities to strengthen its fundamentals.

On Monday, the firm acknowledged that retail recovery had slowed down due to challenges in mobility amid spikes in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases, slower-than-expected vaccine rollout and the threat of new COVID-19 variants.

Last week, Phoenix Petroleum settled P3.08-billion worth of commercial papers, which were partly financed by internal funds. The securities were listed in the PDEx or Philippine Dealing & Exchange Corp.

As of the first quarter, the oil firm’s local market share stood at 7.8%, bigger than the 7.1% recorded in the same period last year, according to the Energy department. Phoenix Petroleum said this “cements” its position as the third-largest oil player in the Philippines.

Phoenix Petroleum shares at the local bourse improved by 0.15% or two centavos to close at P12.96 apiece on Monday. — Angelica Y. Yang

BPI looking to launch new apps, boost sustainable financing efforts

BANK OF THE Philippine Islands (BPI) will launch new apps as it continues to digitize and will likewise sustain its pivot towards sustainable financing, aiming to exit coal financing by as early as 2033.

BPI President and Chief Executive Officer Jose Teodoro K. Limcaoco said the bank is currently developing apps to complement branch transactions amid a shift in consumer behavior due to the pandemic, even as he said the worst is likely over for the lender, assuming the Delta variant’s impact will be manageable.

Mr. Limcaoco noted that BPI’s branch transactions have dropped by around 30-70% as many clients have become more comfortable going online for their banking needs.

“We are redesigning our branches to transform them from being places for chores, such as withdrawals or deposits, to more avenues of the more high-value interactions that will satisfy our customers’ more complex financial needs, such as investments, planning, and the like,” Mr. Limcaoco said in a Monday briefing to celebrate the bank’s 170th anniversary.

BPI is set to launch two apps this year: a platform for micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises (MSME) and one where clients can redeem loyalty rewards, he said.

The MSME app will let small businesses perform digital banking services as well as nonbank solutions to help in their operations as they transition to online selling. Mr. Limcaoco said app users will be able to collect and receive payments through Viber.

Mr. Limcaoco said he is optimistic that BPI already overcame the worst as borrowers have adjusted to the crisis, although he acknowledged that the upcoming Metro Manila lockdown is a “setback.”

“We are looking at manageable NPL (nonperforming loan) levels. This is all presupposed on the assumption that we can control the Delta spread. Sure, the ECQ (enhanced community quarantine) is a setback, but God willing, hopefully the setback is not so bad,” he said.

Meanwhile, the bank’s top official also reiterated its target to become a “more sustainable and inclusive bank.”

“We are reducing our coal financing in our portfolio by half by 2026, and to zero [loans to the sector] by 2037, if not earlier,” Mr. Limcaoco said, noting they hope to exit lending to the sector by as early as 2033.

Moving towards sustainability also means BPI will likewise integrate environmental, social and government governance principles in its lending practices, he said, noting they added a particular consideration for economic growth due to its impact on borrowers and the country.

BPI’s net income jumped 28.8% to P6.8 billion in the second quarter from P5.375 billion a year earlier as it set aside lower provisions for bad loans, which helped offset the decline in its earnings from its core businesses.

The bank’s shares climbed by P2.50 or 3.11% to close at P83 apiece on Monday. — L.W.T. Noble

Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index of select ASEAN economies, (July 2021)

FACTORY ACTIVITY in the Philippines continued to expand in July, in contrast to the broad contraction in Southeast Asia where many economies are grappling with a fresh surge in coronavirus infections, a survey by IHS Markit showed on Monday. Read the full story.

Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index of Select ASEAN Economies, (July 2021)

How PSEi member stocks performed — August 2, 2021

Here’s a quick glance at how PSEi stocks fared on Monday, August 2, 2021.

Peso climbs vs dollar ahead of CPI

THE PESO strengthened against the greenback on Monday on the back of market expectations of slower July inflation and gains in the stock market.

The local unit closed at P49.90 per dollar yesterday, gaining seven centavos from its P49.97 finish on Friday, based on data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines.

The peso started trading at P49.95 per dollar on Monday. Its weakest showing was at P50.05, while its intraday best was its close of P49.90 versus the greenback.

Dollars exchanged fell to $776.52 million from $1.364 billion on Friday.

A trader said the peso strengthened on optimism over upcoming inflation data.

A BusinessWorld poll last week yielded a median estimate of 4% for July headline inflation, which if realized, would be slower than the 4.1% in June and the first time inflation would fall within the central bank’s 2-4% target since the 3.5% print in December.

Analysts said the consumer price index (CPI) likely rose at a slower pace last month due to lower meat prices, which is seen to offset higher costs of oil and other food items.

The Philippine Statistics Authority will report July inflation data on Aug. 5, Thursday.

Meanwhile, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort attributed the peso’s appreciation to gains at the stock market.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index gained 176.08 points or 2.81% to close at 6,446.31 on Monday, while the broader all shares index rose by 50.41 or 1.28% to finish at 3,985.27.

For Tuesday, the trader gave a forecast range of P49.80 to P50.05 per dollar, while Mr. Ricafort expect the local unit to move between P49.80 and P50. — L.W.T. Noble

Shares rise on bargain hunting, better earnings

COURTESY OF PHILIPPINE STOCK EXCHANGE, INC.

PHILIPPINE shares rallied on Monday as investors went bargain hunting and as sentiment improved after several companies released their earnings reports for the second quarter.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) gained 176.08 points or 2.8% to close at 6,446.31 on Monday, while the all shares index went up by 50.41 points or 1.28% to end at 3,985.27.

“Philippine shares were bought up on close after being heavily sold down last Friday as investors reassessed the impact of having the ECQ (enhanced community quarantine) imposed on the country,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan said in a Viber message.

“More [second-quarter] results have trickled in, and many from the main index have performed above expectations, hinting that companies are slowly recovering or adjusting to the changing environment,” Mr. Limlingan said.

On Monday, PSEi member BDO Unibank, Inc. said it swung to profit in the second quarter with P11.043 billion in net earnings from the P4.5-billion loss it posted in the same period last year. Meanwhile, SM Prime Holdings, Inc. reported a P5.2-billion net income in the April to June period, up by nearly 148% year on year from P2.1 billion.

“Investors took opportunities out of the market’s slide causing the rise this Monday. Foreign investors helped in the rally,” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Senior Research Analyst Japhet Louis O. Tantiangco said via a separate Viber message.

“Trading had no conviction however… as many investors still chose to stay on the sidelines due to the lingering uncertainties on our COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) situation and economic outlook amid the threat of the Delta variant,” he added.

“[The] sharp rise of the market was also helped by the low value traded, which may come across as negative but on the bright side, it signals continuing appetite for local blue chips,” First Metro Investment Corp. Head of Research Cristina S. Ulang said in a separate Viber message.

Majority of sectoral indices closed in the green on Monday except for mining and oil, which lost 249.06 points or 2.54% to end at 9,527.20.

Meanwhile, holding firms climbed 186.29 points or 2.97% to 6,451.57; property went up by 84.91 points or 2.89% to 3,019.48; financials improved by 35.44 points or 2.6% to 1,396.53; services gained 22.58 points or 1.48% to close Monday’s session at 1,547.81; and industrials rose by 123.52 points or 1.37% to end at 9,091.90.

Value turnover dropped to P3.54 billion with 1.5 billion issues traded on Monday, from the P6.27 billion with 1.81 billion shares switched hands on Friday.

Decliners outnumbered advancers, 119 against 78, while 46 names closed unchanged.

Foreigners turned buyers with P135.03 million in net purchases logged on Monday from the P1.60 billion in net outflows seen on Friday. — Keren Concepcion G. Valmonte

Metro mayors agree on 2-week 8-hour curfew

PHILIPPINE STAR/ MIGUEL DE GUZMAN

METRO Manila mayors have agreed to impose an 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. curfew starting Aug. 6, when a two-week strict lockdown takes effect to contain a more contagious Delta coronavirus variant.

Cities in the capital region will decide whether to impose a liquor ban, Benjamin de Castro Abalos, Jr., who heads the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA), told an online news briefing on Monday.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte has placed Manila, the capital ang nearby cities under an enhanced community quarantine until Aug. 20 amid a surge in infections probably spurred by the Delta variant from India.

The government also extended the travel ban on India and its neighbors until mid-August.

Makati, Taguig, Pasig and Las Piñas probably won’t ban liquor, unlike the cities of Valenzuela, Mandaluyong, Parañaque, Pasay, Navotas, Pateros, Quezon City and San Juan, Mr. Abalos said.

“When it comes to the liquor ban, each city will decide,” he said in Filipino.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario S. Vergeire said health authorities have detected 165 local cases of the Delta variant.

Of 216 patients who got the virus, 17 still have it, nine have died and 190 recovered, she told an online news briefing

Of the 17 active cases, 15 were local and two were returning migrant Filipinos, she said.

Ms. Vergeire said there was still no evidence that the Delta coronavirus is freely roaming in the community. “We need sufficient evidence for us to declare that there is already a community transmission.”

The Octa Research Group from the University of the Philippines on Sunday flagged a fresh surge in coronavirus infections in the capital region, suggesting that a more contagious Delta variant was freely moving in the community.

The capital region reported 1,740 infections on July 31, the highest since May 10, it said.

The weekly average of new coronavirus cases in the region rose by 40% to 1,279 from a week earlier, it added.

The increase could not be easily explained by Alpha or Beta variants that have been managed, OCTA Research fellow Fredegusto P. David said. There might be 300 new Delta variant infections daily in Metro Manila.

DAILY TALLY
The Department of Health (DoH) reported 8,167 coronavirus infections on Monday, bringing the total to 1.6 million.

The death toll rose to 28,093 after 77 more patients died, while recoveries increased by 9,095 to 1.51 million, it said in a bulletin.

There were 62,615 active cases, 93.9% of which were mild, 1.3% did not show symptoms, 2.1% were severe, 1.48% were moderate and 1.2% were critical.

The agency said 94 duplicates had been removed from the tally, 20 of which were tagged as recoveries.

Nineteen recoveries were reclassified as active cases, while 29 recoveries were classified as deaths, it added. Three laboratories failed to submit data on July 31.

Meanwhile, Interior Undersecretary Jonathan E. Malaya said Metro Manila residents who will get vaccine during the two-week lockdown would be allowed to leave their homes.

Cargo vehicles may enter and leave the capital region, while other vehicles would need to pass through checkpoints, he told an online news briefing.

Also on Monday, Justice Secretary Menardo I. Guevarra said unvaccinated people would not be discriminated against during the two-week enhanced lockdown in Metro Manila.

“There will be no distinction between authorized persons outside residence who have been vaccinated and those who have not received such vaccines,” he told reporters in a Viber group message. 

Mr. Guevarra said an inter-agency task force had made the decision since most Filipinos have not been vaccinated against the coronavirus.

Under the rules, only essential workers and people buying essential goods would be allowed to go out.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte earlier ordered police and village captains to bar unvaccinated people from leaving their homes during the enhanced quarantine period.

“If they refuse vaccination, barangay captains should not let them leave their house,” Mr. Duterte said in Filipino at a televised Cabinet meeting on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Senator Mary Grace Natividad Poe-Llamanzares said vaccination cards should be used to facilitate mobility including that of Filipino workers seeking to travel overseas.

“Now that we are once again about to enter a two-week hard lockdown, we need to have a recovery plan for the economy to keep businesses from closing and more people from losing jobs in the pandemic,” she said in a statement.

Ms. Poe has filed a bill seeking to expand the use of the vaccination card from being a purely informative record to a document that a fully vaccinated person can use to travel locally or overseas.

“I totally support the move to have a unified vaccine card because it is easier to verify the authenticity of the information and will make mobility of Filipinos for travel easier,” said Sherilyn G. Malonzo, officer-in-charge of the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency.

“It will also make the job of enforcement officers easier,” she said in a Viber message. “This will also close the door for discretion and wrong judgment and even bias on the part of enforcement officers at checkpoints.” — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza, Alyssa Nicole O. Tan and Bianca Angelica D. Añago

Metro residents to get P1,000 cash aid amid lockdown

PHILIPPINE STAR/ MICHAEL VARCAS

LOW-INCOME residents of Metro Manila will get P1,000 each in cash aid before a two-week enhanced lockdown that will start on Aug. 6, according to the presidential palace.

Budget officials were set to meet on Monday to decide where the cash aid, which will be limited to P4,000 per household, would be taken, presidential spokesman Herminio L. Roque, Jr. told a televised news briefing.

“It’s sure to be given away,” he said. “What we don’t know yet is where the money will come from. The President’s order was to look for funds.”

Think tank IBON Foundation has said the administration could realign the 2021 budget to fund more urgent concerns amid lockdowns spurred by a more contagious Delta coronavirus variant.

The Department of Budget and Management said P13 billion in government savings were not enough to fund the cash aid.

State offices have identified P13 billion of unspent funds from their 2020 budgets, Budget Undersecretary Tina Rose Marie L. Canda said in a Viber message. “All of it is still not enough.”

President Rodrigo R. Duterte issued Administrative Order 41 in May asking agencies to identify funds from their 2020 budgets that can be declared as savings and used for cash handouts.

Lawmakers are pushing for a third stimulus package worth P400 billion to help sectors hit hard by the pandemic.

The Public Works department identified the biggest savings among agencies Ms.  Canda said.

The government releases cash handouts to low-income families during a strict lockdown.

In March when Metro Manila reverted to an enhanced community quarantine the state allotted P23 billion in cash aid. Beneficiaries got P1,000 each, or as much as P4,000 per household.

The Budget department has released  P679.27 billion to agencies as of June 30 for the government’s pandemic response.

Meanwhile, the Labor department said it would allot less than P4 billion from its budget as cash aid for workers affected by the two-week enhanced community quarantine.

Labor Assistant Secretary Dominique R. Tutay told an online news briefing they would meet with officials from various agencies including the Social Welfare, Budget and Finance departments on Tuesday to discuss the cash aid.

The labor department would come out with a memo before Aug. 6 she said.

She added that the agency expects about 327,000 workers with flexible working arrangements, 127,000 of whom are in the capital region, to be affected by the two-week lockdown due to fewer work days.

The Philippine economy could lose more than P200 billion during the two-week lockdown, the National Economic and Development Authority said in a statement last week.

It would also increase the number of poor people by as many as 177,000 and add 444,000 jobless Filipinos, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick Chua said.

The government should use the next three weeks to fast-track vaccinations in high-risk areas, he said.

The OCTA Research Group from the University of the Philippines earlier urged the government to impose a “circuit breaker” lockdown to contain a fresh surge in coronavirus infections that may be due to the Delta variant. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza, Beatrice M. Laforga and Bianca Angelica D. Añago

Local governments outside the capital take measures vs Delta variant spread 

PEOPLE line up for vaccination on Aug. 2 at the Festive Walk Transport Hub 2 inside the Megaworld Business Park in Iloilo City. — @FESTIVEWALKILOILO

SEVERAL LOCAL governments across the country are taking various measures to prevent a surge in coronavirus cases amid the threat of the more transmissible Delta variant.  

In Iloilo City, the regional center of Western Visayas in central Philippines, Mayor Jerry. P. Treñas announced Monday morning that a “stricter lockdown” will be imposed this week to Sunday.    

“From Aug. 3 to 8, I will place the city on hard lockdown as protection for everyone here. Aklan and Cebu are both experiencing a surge; their hospitals are full with patients already being confined outside the facility. We don’t want the same scenario in Iloilo City,” he said in a statement.  

The city is already under the enhanced community quarantine from Aug. 1 to 7, the second strictest lockdown level.   

Non-essential establishments or those not related to food and medicine will be temporarily closed. A total liquor ban that prohibits sale and consumption of alcoholic drinks will be imposed, according to the statement.   

All inbound flights and sea travel will be suspended from Aug. 4 to 8, and all travelers will be banned during the five-day period.    

In Easter Visayas, the regional Health office is expanding contact tracing to the “third generation level” of the positive patient. It also asked local governments, through the barangay health emergency response teams, to ensure isolation in a facility or home quarantine for second and third generation contacts. 

Over the weekend, the regional office confirmed 10 Delta variant cases, which were all “considered to be local cases because there were no recorded travel history outside the region amongst them.”  

Zamboanga City, in the southwestern part of the country, has declared a no-movement day during the first three Sundays of the month despite being under the general community quarantine, the most relaxed lockdown level. The city also maintains the requirement of a negative RT-PCR test result for all inbound travelers.   

Baguio City, a popular tourist destination in northern Luzon, is banning non-essential travelers “regardless of place of origin” starting July 31.  

The local government, in a statement, said this will be in effect “tentatively” for one week. — MSJ 

Damage in infra, farm output from rains at P1.87B

BAGUIO PIO

THE GOVERNMENT has so far recorded P1.87 billion worth of damage to public structures and agricultural produce due to weeks of incessant rains brought by the southwest monsoon.   

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said Monday that the partial cost of damage to roads and flood-control structures has reached P1.17 billion.  

“As of 6:00 am Monday, Aug. 2, 2021, the DPWH Bureau of Maintenance reported that in Central Luzon alone, partial cost of damage to public infra is at P699.16 million from P349.96-million damage to roads and P301.20 million to flood-control,” the department said in a statement.  

It said the CALABARZON region — composed of Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon provinces — has the second highest cost of damage at P224.2 million from P222.62-million damage to roads and P1.60-million damage to flood-control structures.  

The Cordillera Administrative Region recorded a P113.51-million damage to roads.   

In MIMAROPA — Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, and Palawan — cost of damage reached P65 million with P5 million in roads and P60 million in flood-control structures.  

The DPWH also reported a P39.66-million cost of damage to roads in the National Capital Region, and P31.05-million damage to roads and flood-control structures in the Ilocos Region.  

The department said it has cleared 32 national roads in Luzon, but six roads remain closed to traffic, including four roads in Cordillera and two in Central Luzon “due to soil collapse and flooding.”  

AGRICULTURE
In the agriculture sector, losses rose to P698.53 million against the previous estimate of P615.72 million, according to the Department of Agriculture (DA).   

The DA’s Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Operations Center said in a bulletin on Monday that those affected include 26,994 farmers and 34,029 hectares of agricultural areas across the Cordillera Administrative Region, Ilocos, Central Luzon, CALABARZON, MIMAROPA, Bicol Region, and Western Visayas.  

Farm production losses reached 14,175 metric tons (MT). Affected commodities include rice, corn, high value crops, livestock and poultry, fisheries, and agri-infrastructure.  

Damage to rice totaled P586.01 million, with 11,918 MT of lost production volume and 31,900 hectares of affected agricultural areas.   

High value crops losses totaled P47.85 million. A total of 719 MT of production volume and 1,288 hectares of farmlands were affected.    

Losses to corn amounted to P37.57 million. 1,538 MT of production volume were damaged while 841 hectares of farm production areas were affected.    

Other subsectors that recorded losses include fisheries at P14.2 million, irrigation facilities at P9.53 million, and livestock and poultry at P3.37 million.    

The DA said it is conducting further assessment and validation of agricultural losses and is coordinating with other government agencies and local government units in providing assistance to affected farmers.   

“Based on reports (of the different regions), there are no reported damage on road networks and bridges that can affect accessibility and mobility of food supplies to date,” the DA said in the bulletin. — Arjay L. Balinbin and Revin Mikhael D. Ochave 

P46.9M worth of irrigation projects completed in Camariñes Sur  

IRRIGATION projects totaling P46.92 million were recently inaugurated in Camariñes Sur, the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) said.   

NIA, in a statement on Monday, said it launched on July 28 to 29 the following: P26.16 million Pump House and Farm Pond at Tigman-Hinagyanan-Inarihan River Irrigation System in the town of Calabanga; P14.08 million Punta Diamante Pump Irrigation System in the town of Canaman; and P6.69 million rehabilitated Taisan Communal Irrigation System Dam (Sibagat Small Reservoir Irrigation Project) in the town of Minalabac.    

The irrigation project in Calabanga will serve 1,363.12 hectares and benefit 2,245 farmers, while the Canaman project will serve 250 hectares tilled by 122 farmers.  

The Minalabac project will benefit 165 farmers covering 350 hectares of agricultural areas.  

Meanwhile, Camariñes Sur Rep. Luis Raymund F. Villafuerte, Jr. asked for NIA’s help on the completion of the Sustainable Bicol River Irrigation System.    

Mr. Villafuerte said more than 2,000 hectares of agricultural areas will be covered by the project.  

“Camariñes Sur is top five among rice producing provinces in the country despite having few irrigation systems since the majority of our lands are rain-fed. If the Sustainable Bicol River Irrigation System is finished, it could push the province into the top three major rice producers,” Mr. Villafuerte said.    

For his part, NIA Administrator Ricardo R. Visaya said 153 projects worth P11 billion were inaugurated in the last two months, while around 35 projects amounting to P2.7 billion will be launched this August.    

“NIA continues to develop and construct irrigation systems nationwide amidst the pandemic. The agency remains committed to its mandate of developing and maintaining irrigation systems in support of the agricultural program of the government most especially in this time of pandemic,” Mr. Visaya said. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave  

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