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Megawide appeals status revocation by MIAA

By Arjay L. Balinbin, Senior Reporter

MEGAWIDE Construction Corp. and its foreign partner GMR Infrastructure Ltd. asked the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) board to reconsider its decision to revoke its original proponent status for the P109-billion rehabilitation of the country’s main gateway.

“Yes, this morning (we submitted the letter) to MIAA and the Department of Transportation,” Megawide Corporate Communications Officer Anna Karenina M. Salgado told BusinessWorld in a Viber message on Monday.

In a Dec. 21 letter addressed to MIAA chairman and members of the board of directors, the consortium’s representative and Megawide Director Manuel Louie B. Ferrer said they had submitted additional documents such as its 2019 audited financial statements, joint and solidary agreement executed by the consortium members, latest company profile of GMR, and a revised computation of the tandem’s financial qualifications to prove its capability to undertake the project.

Mr. Ferrer said the decision by the MIAA board to revoke its original proponent status for the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) rehabilitation project on Dec. 4 “naturally was based on an incomplete set of facts or documents.”

“As a result, the decision should be reconsidered in light of new and material information addressing the very issue raised prompting MIAA’s decision,” he added.

Mr. Ferrer said the consortium would finance the project through a combination of 70% debt worth P76.1 billion and 30% equity amounting to P32.6 billion.

“We respectfully point out as well that since the government had negotiated with the earlier proponents — otherwise known as the ‘super consortium’ — for two years, it would be in keeping with good practice and fair play for us to be also afforded a reasonable period within which to negotiate with the government and submit all the necessary documents to show our capabilities,” Mr. Ferrer said.

The so-called “super consortium’’ was composed of Aboitiz InfraCapital, Inc; AC Infrastructure Holdings Corp.; Alliance Global Group, Inc.; Asia’s Emerging Dragon Corp.; Filinvest Development Corp.; and JG Summit Holdings, Inc. The group obtained its original proponent status in September 2018, but this was revoked in July.

Transportation Secretary Arthur P. Tugade said at a Senate hearing last week Megawide-GMR was not yet totally out of the picture.

MIAA General Manager Eddie V. Monreal said at the same hearing that once the agency receives the formal appeal letter from the tandem, the board will make its final decision.

Mr. Monreal also disclosed that two more companies, such as Philippine Airport Ground Support Solutions, Inc. and San Miguel Corp. (SMC), are interested in the rehabilitation of the NAIA.

San Miguel President and Chief Operating Officer Ramon S. Ang said his company’s proposal is only to operate and maintain the main gateway.

“Our proposal is brought on only by the need to have it running effectively and safely for the Filipino people, until our Bulacan airport project is up,” he said last week.

Mr. Ang said the government would benefit more from the sale or development of the NAIA property, potentially earning as much as P2 trillion from the sale of the 646-hectare complex.

Terry L. Ridon, convenor of infrastructure-oriented think tank Infrawatch PH, said in an e-mailed statement on Monday that MIAA should reject proposals to operate and manage the NAIA.

“Aside from not bringing anything new to the table, it will not transform NAIA into a world-class airport all Filipinos can pride themselves in. More importantly, any O&M proposal will only duplicate the already good work the agency has been undertaking in operating the airport, despite no government funding and reliant only on internally generated income,” he said.

Japan joint venture signs deal to provide subway train cars

THE joint venture of Sumitomo Corp. and Japan Transport Engineering Co. (J-Trec) signed a contract with the Transportation department on Monday to provide 240 train cars or bagons for the phase 1 of the Metro Manila Subway Project.

“The 240 train cars are more than the 224 operational train cars that we had as of July 2016,” Transportation Undersecretary for Railways Timothy John R. Batan said in his speech during the virtual contract signing on Monday afternoon.

Only the joint venture of Sumitomo and J-Trec had submitted in July a bid proposal to provide train sets for the first phase of the subway project.

To recall, the J-Trec-Sumitomo JV was awarded in July last year the contract for the rolling stock package of the North-South Commuter Railway Project (Malolos to Tutuban) in the total amount of P739.48 million and ¥23.84 billion, according to a copy of the notice of award posted on the official website of the Transportation department.

Sumitomo is also one of the maintenance service providers of Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3), along with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering, Ltd. and TES Philippines, Inc.

The subway will have 17 stations. The 34 kilometer-long railway system project will “feature the country’s first-ever subway system… that would cut travel time from Quezon City to Parañaque City and/or Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 (NAIA T3) from one hour and 10 minutes down to just 35 minutes,” the department said.

The first phase covers the first three underground stations, tunnels and depot construction, depot equipment and buildings.

The government broke ground for the first three stations in February last year after the Transportation department signed a P51-billion deal with the Shimizu joint venture, which consists of Shimizu Corp., Fujita Corp., Takenaka Civil Engineering Co. Ltd., and EEI Corp.

The Philippines and Japan signed in March 2018 the first tranche of the P355.6-billion loan for the project.

The department expects the tunneling work on the first phase of the project to begin in the second half of 2021. — Arjay L. Balinbin

Port operators can now recover empty container handling costs

THE Philippine Ports Authority’s (PPA) administrative order prescribing fees for the handling of foreign empty containers is expected to help port operators recover the costs for the service that was tariff-free in the past, listed port operator International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI) said.

The “administrative order from the Office of the General Manager of the PPA on the prescribed empty container handling fees for foreign empty containers… should enable the port operators to recover the cost associated in handling the empty containers, which had no tariff in the past,” ICTSI said in a disclosure to the stock exchange on Monday.

PPA issued a separate administrative order prescribing storage fees for out-of-gauge (OOG) containers at Manila South Harbor, Manila International Container Terminal, and Batangas Port.

OOG refers to “either a flatrack or open-top container laden with a cargo that exceeds the dimensions of a standard ISO container by height, width or length and this cannot be shipped using a closed ISO container,” PPA said in its Administrative Order No. 13-2020, as posted on its official Facebook page.

PPA’s Administrative Order No. 11-2020, which is also posted on the agency’s Facebook page, “prescribes the guidelines in handling foreign empty containers in the terminals at the Manila South Harbor, Manila International Container terminal, and Batangas Port.”

“The handling of empty containers in the terminal includes the receiving, handling, and stowing of empty containers from container yards outside the terminal or a direct return from the consignee warehouse and moving empty containers from storage areas within the terminal,” the order said.

A separate administrative order was issued for the handling fees.

Fees for empty container handling, according to Administrative Order No. 12, are from P1,400 up to P3,150.

The order takes effect after 15 days following completion of its publication in a newspaper of general circulation and a copy submitted to the UP Law Center.

Prescribed storage fees for imported OOG containers are from P1,443.90 to P2,887.80, depending on the size.

For exported OOG containers, fees are from P360.90 to P721.80, depending on the size.

Such storage fees are to be charged starting Jan. 1 next year. — Arjay L. Balinbin

Philex Mining unit gets new 25-year term from DENR

PHILEX Mining Corp. has announced that its subsidiary in Surigao del Norte has secured the renewal of its mineral production sharing agreement (MPSA) from the government.

In disclosure to the stock exchange on Monday, Philex Mining said the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) had approved a new 25-year term of MPSA-149 under Silangan Mindanao Mining Co., Inc.

The company said the new term will start on Dec. 29, 2024.

“MPSA-149-99 XIII covers the Boyongan deposit in the Province of Surigao del Norte and is part of Silangan Mindanao Mining Co., Inc.’s Silangan Copper-Gold Project,” the company said.

Philex’s Silangan project is touted as one of the big ticket mining projects that can greatly increase the contribution of the local mining industry to the Philippine economy.

However, it has been affected by the ongoing ban on open pit mining imposed by the late former Environment Secretary Regina Paz L. Lopez in April 2017.

Open pit mining is a surface mining method that has been used by the mining industry for the extraction of minerals such as copper and gold.

During the third quarter, Philex Mining posted an attributable net income of P495.04 million, sparked by better revenues. The company’s revenues during the period rose 21.9% to P2.17 billion.

For the January-September period, Philex Mining said its net income more than doubled to P919.59 million, against the P439 million it posted last year.

On Monday, shares in Philex Mining at the stock exchange rose 5.27% or 27 centavos to end at P5.39 per piece.

Philex Mining is one of three Philippine units of Hong Kong-based First Pacific Co. Ltd., the others being Metro Pacific Investments Corp. and PLDT, Inc. Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has interest in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave

Fit-out costs rise amid pandemic

PROPERTY fit-out costs in the country increased this year despite the stronger Philippine currency, a report by commercial real estate services company JLL (Jones Lang LaSalle) showed.

The JLL Asia Pacific Fit-Out cost guide 2020/2021 released on Wednesday said that average fit-out cost in the Asia Pacific increased 4.7% year on year, with the Philippines not an exception.

“The Philippines relies heavily on imported materials, which were costlier due to the effects of the pandemic and reported higher fit-out costs despite the effects of a stronger currency,” JLL said.

Fit-out costs refer to the furnishing or preparation of the interiors of a space for occupation.

The cost of furniture in the Philippine market is $375 per square meter, higher than South Korea ($364), Taiwan ($360), and New Zealand ($358). The cost is however lower than furniture in countries like Thailand ($377) and India ($392).

Working with furniture manufacturer Haworth, Inc., JLL said that furniture costs vary per region because of corporate agreements with suppliers, the use of imported furniture, and strategies for workplace design such as collaborative spaces versus traditional workstations.

“The nature of the business activity, including whether a market serves as a satellite or offshore location or as regional headquarters,” JLL said, also influences variations in furniture costs.

Reinstatement costs also vary per market. In the Philippines, the capital cost of rebuilding a space to a typical leased condition would be $118 per square meter.

This is much lower than Japan or Hong Kong, where reinstatement would cost $732 and $452 per square meter, respectively. It is also lower than the costs for Southeast Asian neighbors Singapore ($172) Indonesia ($161), and Malaysia ($140).

But it remains higher than costs in Thailand ($97) and Vietnam ($75).

JLL expects fit-out costs in most markets to continue increasing over the next year, especially with health and safety measures reducing onsite work. Companies may also use more expensive local sources of material to reduce project risks against supply chain disruptions.

But weaker office space demand could also contribute to price decreases.

“Many locations are reporting an increased willingness for contractors to revisit and reduce their overall margins as they compete for work in the short to medium term,” JLL said.

“This often serves to balance out cost increases in other aspects, examples including increases in health and safety costs in Manila (estimated at 1% of capital expenditures).” — Jenina P. Ibañez

Drug war documentary big winner at FAMAS awards

ASWANG, Alyx Ayn Arumpac’s documentary on the horrors of the Duterte Administration’s drug war juxtaposed with the shape-shifting monster found in Filipino folklore, was the night’s biggest winner at the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) Awards, winning both Best Picture and Best Documentary alongside technical awards for Best Cinematography and Best Editing.

The film was awarded Best Picture for its “painful examination of current realities, and a sober reminder that cinema is a powerful social mirror,” read the jury’s citation. The awards night was held online on the FAMAS Facebook and YouTube pages on December 20.

Aswang’s Best Picture win marks the first time in the history of the FAMAS awards that a documentary won the night’s top award.

The FAMAS awards is considered the oldest existing award-giving body in the Philippines and one of the oldest in Asia, having started in 1953. The awards are given by the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences, an organization composed of writers and movie columnists.

The night’s other big winner was a crime drama on domestic abuse, Verdict, which won Best Director for Raymund Ribay Guttierez, Best Actor for Kristofer King (an honor he shared with Kalel, 15’s Elijah Canlas), and Best Supporting Actress for Dolly de Leon.

Rae Red’s crime thriller Babae at Baril also took home several awards including Best Actress for Janine Guttierez, Best Musical Score for Nerrika Salim and Immanuel Verona, and Best Production Design for Eero Yves Francisco.

Below is the complete list of winners at 2020 edition of the FAMAS Awards:

Best Picture: Aswang

Best Director: Raymund Ribay Gutierrez (Verdict)

Best Actress: Janine Gutierrez (Babae at Baril)

Best Actor: Elijah Canlas (Kalel, 15) and Kristofer King (Verdict)

Best Supporting Actress: Dolly de Leon (Verdict)

Best Supporting Actor: Ricky Davao (Fuccbois)

Best Documentary: Aswang

Best Short Film: Tokwifi

Best Screenplay: Glenn Barit (Cleaners)

Best Cinematography: Alyx Arumpac and Tanya Haurylchyk (Aswang)

Best Editing: Fatima Bianchi and Anne Fabini (Aswang)

Best Musical Score: Nerrika Salim and Immanuel Verona (Babae at Baril)

Best Sound: Jet Leyco and Brian Gonzales (My Alien Friend)

Best production design: Eero Yves Francisco (Babae at Baril)

The Fernando Poe Jr. Memorial Award: Angel Locsin

The German Moreno Youth Achievement Award: Liza Soberano and Matteo Guidicelli

The Dolphy King of Comedy Award: Pokwang

The Dr. Jose Vera Perez Memorial Award: Boy Abunda

The FAMAS 2020 Advocacy Directing Award: Neil “Buboy” Tan

The FAMAS Lifetime Achievement Awardees: Ricky Lee (scriptwriting), Rox Lee (alternative cinema), and Armida Siguion-Reyna (industry development) — Zsarlene B. Chua

Phoenix Petroleum seeks trading suspension of its series A preferred shares 

DENNIS A. UY-LED Phoenix Petroleum has requested on Monday for the voluntary suspension of the trading of its third tranche series A (PNX3A) preferred shares, as the firm addresses concerns and questions on their settlement.

In a regulatory filing, the firm said that it asked for the postponement as it needed to clarify issues, queries and questions on the settlement or redemption of the PNX3A shares.

On Friday, Phoenix Petroleum said that it would fully redeem all of its PNX3A shares at P100 apiece. The total redemption price was P1.25 billion.

The outstanding preferred shares were issued five years ago, on Dec. 18, 2015. They had an interest rate of 7.427% per year and were entitled to an optional redemption during the third year of its listing date. If not fully redeemed on the fifth year after the listing date, the shares were subject to a step-up dividend rate.

In a previous filing, Phoenix Petroleum said that the shares could be redeemed through its paying agent BDO Unibank, Inc.-Trust and Settlement Group.

Earlier, the firm approved the settlement of P3 billion in outstanding commercial papers, which were issued at a discount last year to a face value of 4.6657% per annum.

During the third quarter, the company reported a net income of P296 million, reversing its P5-million loss in the second quarter. Meanwhile, its overall volume sales rose by 42% from July to September on the back of local business recovery as well as relaxed lockdown measures.

Shares in Phoenix Petroleum on Monday decreased 0.16% to finish at P12.76 apiece. — Angelica Y. Yang

Central bank waives transaction fees under PhilPaSS until 2021

THE CENTRAL BANK said fees will be waived until end-2021. — BW FILE PHOTO

THE CENTRAL BANK has extended further the waiving of fund transfer fees for transactions made via the PhilPaSS or Philippine Payment and Settlement System facility until next year as part of their continuing relief measures amid the coronavirus crisis.

Memorandum No. M-2020-095 signed by BSP Deputy Governor Maria Almasara Cyd N. Tuaño-Amador on Dec. 16 said the temporary waiver of transfer transactions will be applied until the last business day of 2021.

The move is meant “to provide further support for the efficient operations of financial institutions and further foster a supportive environment” for BSP-supervised institutions, the central bank said.

In turn, these entities are expected to provide better financial intermediation services to the public and encourage use of electronic payments.

The waived fees will apply for interbank transactions, peso leg of dollar trades, peso leg of government securities trades, Philippine Clearing House Corp. transactions, automated teller machine transactions, and the manual processing of interbank transactions.

“The BSP enjoins participants of PhilPaSS to actively disseminate to the public the available automated clearing houses (i.e., InstaPay and PESONet) and PhilPaSS as facilities to electronically transfer funds to target recipient accounts maintained with other banks participating in PhilPaSS, thereby providing Filipinos a wide range of digital payment channels,” Ms. Tuaño-Amador said.

PhillPass is the country’s real-time gross settlement system that facilitates bank transfers between lenders. Payments for transactions are carried out through the demand deposit accounts of banks maintained with the BSP.

The latest memorandum follows the earlier released Memorandum No. M-2020-048 which extended the waiver of fund transfer fees of PhilPasSS transactions only until the last business day of 2020.

It was in April when the BSP first waived PhilPass transaction fees, initially set to be in effect just until the end of the lockdown in Manila. — L.W.T. Noble

DMCI Homes unveils condominium project in Malate

DMCI PROJECT Developers, Inc. is looking to generate around P3 billion in reservation sales from its newly launched condominium in Malate, Manila.

In a statement, DMCI Homes Vice-President for Project Development Dennis Yap said the company launched The Camden Place after seeing “encouraging” sales of its previous projects despite the pandemic.

“There’s a growing market optimism because of the steady demand for residential spaces even with the health crisis. Aside from that, we would like to believe that homebuyers will continue to patronize our projects because we always strive to offer the best value products in the market,” Mr. Yap said.

The single-tower project is located along Dominga St. and near the campuses of College of St. Benilde and De La Salle University.

The Camden Place will have 756 units, which is a mix of studio, 1-bedroom, and 2-bedroom units measuring 24 square meters (sq.m.) to 54.50 sq.m. It will have 27-residential floors and five-podium parking levels. Pre-selling unit prices start at P3.98 million.

The project is targeted for completion in March 2025.

“For The Camden Place, we aim to offer young working professionals and students right-sized homes with convenient indoor amenities and facilities that help satisfy their work, lifestyle, and wellness needs. We also hope to generate interest from homebuyers who may want to invest in a property with big rental and capital appreciation potential,” Mr. Yap said.

The Camden Place will also feature a co-working space, Sky Deck Pool, fitness gym, lounge areas, entertainment room, game area, Sky Promenade, and Sky Lounge.

Shareholders approve Millennium Global’s increase in capital stocks

MILLENNIUM Global Holdings, Inc. has secured the approval of its stockholders to increase its authorized capital stock to an amount not exceeding P10 billion.

In a regulatory filing on Monday, the company said its stockholders had granted the change in its stock to up to P10 billion, divided into 100 billion shares, and with a par value of 10 centavos per share.

Millennium Global said the amount is yet to be determined by its board of directors, but will not exceed P10 billion.

The new figure is an increase from the company’s previous authorized capital stock of P250 million, divided into 2.5 billion shares, at a par value of 10 centavos per share.

The company added that the stockholders also approved the subscription to at least 25% of the stock by Yang Chi Jen, the company’s chairman, at 20 centavos per share.

“The number of shares to be subscribed by Mr. Yang shall be determined after relevant board approval/s of the exact amount/s of the increase in authorized capital stock. The increase may be done in tranches, but not to exceed the total amount of P10 billion,” the company said.        

According to the disclosure, the change aims to raise additional capital for its investments and operations.

Meanwhile, the company also announced that its principal office is now at Lot 9 Block 2 John St., Multinational Village, Parañaque City.

On Monday, shares of Millennium Global at the stock exchange rose 13.84% or P0.031 to end at P0.255 per piece. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave

Bilingual pop anthem ‘Suyowins PhilPop songwriting tilt

NOAH Alejandre and Reanna Borela’s “Suyo” bagged the top prize of the PhilPop 2020 Songwriting Festival. Conveying the intricacies of romantic relationships amidst language and cultural differences, “Suyo” bested 14 entries from Metro Manila, North Luzon, South Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao clusters on the PhilPop Finals Night, held online on Dec. 20. The composers behind the winning song — who also interpreted their own track under the moniker, reon — walked away with the grand prize of P1 million, tax free.

Aikee’s “Bestiny” and Sherwin Fugoso’s “Pahuway” emerged as the first and second place winners, winning P500,000 and P250,000, respectively.

“Bestiny” was interpreted by Kevin Yadao and Jr. Crown, while “Pahuway” was sung by Ferdinand Aragon, who composed the PhilPop 2018 runner-up song, “Di Ko Man.”

A special award called Smart People’s Choice, which was determined based on the cumulative number of streams and views via Spotify and YouTube, was also handed out to the standouts in every geographical cluster: “Kasadya,” composed and interpreted by XT on Sax with Jay-ar Vaño for Mindanao; “Suyo,” composed and interpreted by reon for the Visayas; “Para Kay Catriona,” composed by Kulas Basilonia and interpreted by I Belong to the Zoo for South Luzon; “Balikan,” composed by Lolito Go and interpreted by Ben Manalo for North Luzon; and “Huling Sayaw,” composed by Kian Dionisio and interpreted by Nyoy Volante for Metro Manila.

PhilPop Songwriting Festival 2020 kicked off its celebration with a week-long series of online events featuring the 15 finalists.

Connect, a digital media agency based in the Philippines, produced a five-part series called PhilPop 2020 Podcast. The digital documentary, which ran from Dec. 12 to 18, put a spotlight on the finalists per cluster and the stories behind every song.

During the week-long promo spot, the finalists also guested at Wish 107.5’s Connect to talk about their respective entries in the competition.

A day before the Finals Night, PhilPop 2020 also debuted the music videos of the PhilPop finalists. They are now available on Warner Music Philippines’ official YouTube account.

Yellen pressed to back strong dollar policy in reversing Trump-era tone

JANET YELLEN once touted the benefits of a weaker greenback for exports, but as the incoming Treasury secretary, she faces pressure to return the US to a “strong-dollar” policy — and may cause trembles on Wall Street if she doesn’t.

The greenback’s tumble this year — it’s heading for the second-biggest drop in the past decade and a half — has already stoked foreign policy makers’ concerns, thanks to the competitive advantage it gives the US. Even a tacit endorsement of a weakening dollar could spur tensions with trading partners.

Yellen, President-elect Joe Biden’s pick for Treasury chief, if confirmed will take office about a month after her predecessor labeled two countries as currency manipulators and named 10 on a watch list for artificial interference. The moves, unveiled Dec. 16, capped a volatile period for currency commentary under President Donald Trump’s administration that heightens focus on Ms. Yellen’s approach.

The US adopted a policy of favoring a “strong” dollar in 1995, marking an end to regular calls for other countries to drive their currencies higher. While the mantra did evolve from one Treasury chief to another, no administration from then until the Trump years communicated, as the president did in 2017, that the dollar was “getting too strong.”

While they sometimes did endorse a strong dollar — always from a long-term perspective — Mr. Trump and outgoing Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said that a weaker currency would help American exports. Mr. Mnuchin also said an “excessively strong dollar” could have negative short-term effects on the US economy.

It’s a sentiment Ms. Yellen herself has suggested she shared in the past.

As president of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco in 2004, Ms. Yellen helped establish a view among investors that the US central bank saw a weaker currency as a help in addressing the country’s current-account deficit. As the Fed’s chair a decade later, she continued to make that connection, saying repeatedly that dollar appreciation posed a drag for American exports.

It’s the Treasury secretary’s job to oversee currency policy, and at least two former holders of that title have urged Yellen to make clear she doesn’t favor dollar depreciation. That’s after Mr. Mnuchin went so far as to entertain Mr. Trump’s consideration to forcibly weaken the dollar in mid-2019.

PREDECESSORS’ CALLS
“It would be unwise to appear actively devaluationist or indifferent to the dollar,” Larry Summers, who was Treasury secretary under Bill Clinton and national economic adviser under Barack Obama, said last month.

Mr. Summers highlighted that the dollar’s dominant role in the global financial system puts the onus on the Treasury to manage its responsibilities carefully. Favoring a strong dollar is “prudent” for the incoming secretary, in particular given Biden’s plans for “expansionary policy,” said Mr. Summers, who is a paid contributor to Bloomberg.

Hank Paulson, who served as Treasury secretary under George W. Bush, made the same point in a Wall Street Journal opinon column this month.

“Interest rates are at historic lows, and the federal debt is larger as a share of the economy than at any time since the end of World War II,” Mr. Paulson wrote. “It is critically important to bend down the steep trajectory of the rising national debt. Otherwise, the dollar will eventually be debased. Washington won’t be able to pay its bills.”

Those aren’t the kinds of concerns Ms. Yellen needed to focus on during her tenure at the Fed, which began in the 1990s as a board member. She instead looked at how the exchange rate factored into the economic outlook, and what the implications were for setting monetary policy.

“Yellen as a Fed person can talk about the benefits of a weaker dollar with regard to inflation and exports,” said Brad Bechtel, global head of foreign exchange at Jefferies LLC. “But as a Treasury secretary the typical stance is a strong dollar policy.”

The dollar’s exchange rate has been set by the market since the 1970s, and official comments don’t tend to have more than a fleeting impact on the greenback, but they are still viewed closely by overseas policy makers along with investors.

The new administration’s pronouncements will be keenly eyed after the Mnuchin Treasury’s latest report on overseas foreign-exchange practices. For a quarter century, the US held off on declaring any trading partner as a manipulator of its currency.

Mr. Mnuchin applied that label three times — for China from August 2019 to January, and, in Wednesday’s announcement, for Switzerland and Vietnam.

MANIPULATOR TAG
Switzerland’s central bank quickly rebuffed Mr. Mnuchin’s demand for it to scale back intervention in the franc. Taiwan, which is on the so-called monitoring list, said the Treasury inaccurately represented its foreign-exchange purchases.

On that score, Ms. Yellen has previously indicated a more understanding view of exchange-rate movements. In 2019, she said, “It’s really difficult and treacherous to define when a country is gaming its currency to gain trade advantages.”

“She will likely advocate a high hurdle both to express and implement an active dollar policy and also to be cautious in accusing trade partners of currency manipulation,” Daniel Hui, a JPMorgan Chase & Co. global foreign-exchange strategist, wrote in a Dec. 14 report.

Regardless of whether she actively returns the US to a strong dollar policy or tries to shy away from any comments, Yellen is seen bringing stability and predictability to any comments on the $6.6 trillion-a-day currency market. She underscored the importance of message discipline when, as Fed chair, she called on her colleagues in 2014 to be mindful of what they said about the dollar and highlighted that it’s the Treasury that speaks for the US government on the currency.

“By longstanding agreement, the Treasury speaks for the US government on international economic policy and the dollar,” Yellen observed in the late-October 2014 Fed policy meeting.

More than six years later, that’s just the role she’ll be expected to take on. — Bloomberg