DUISBURG, Germany — Sevilla midfielder Lucas Ocampos headed a late goal to snatch a 1-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers as they reached the Europa League semifinals on Tuesday after the English side paid the price for an early penalty miss.
Raul Jimenez saw his hesitant spot kick easily saved by goalkeeper Bono in the 13th minute of the single-leg tie and Wolves failed to muster a shot on target after that as former Real Madrid and Spain coach Julen Lopetegui’s side took control.
Five-times winners Sevilla, who will face Manchester United in the last four in Cologne on Sunday, enjoyed 73% of possession and won 14 corners to none for Wolves in a one-sided game.
Wolves, playing in their first European quarter-final for 48 years, appeared to feel the effects of a marathon season which saw them play 59 matches, including 17 in the Europa League starting at home to Crusaders on July 25 last year.
Yet the Midlands team made a promising start with Adama Traore at the centre of things. Having set up an early chance which Raul Jimenez headed straight at Bono, the Spaniard powered into the area and was tripped from behind by Diego Carlos.
Jimenez, who usually waits for the keeper to move, appeared caught in two minds and his effort was comfortably stopped by Bono with a dive to his left. It was the Mexican’s first penalty miss for Wolves after converting his previous eight efforts.
Sevilla dominated the match after that, passing the ball around in the centre of the pitch, but it was fairly unproductive possession and they created few openings.
The second half was a similar story with Wolves apparently happy to allow Sevilla to knock the ball around in midfield.
But the Spaniards grew more dangerous towards the end and broke through with two minutes left. Their 13th corner was rolled to Ever Banega and he curled a cross into the area which Ocampos flicked past keeper Rui Patricio. — Reuters
GELSENKIRCHEN, Germany — Shakhtar Donetsk booked a clash with Inter Milan in the Europa League semifinals after goals from Brazilians Junior Moraes, Taison, Alan Patrick and Dodo gave them a 4-1 win over FC Basel in a one-sided last-eight clash on Tuesday.
Shakhtar, who won Europe’s second-tier competition in 2009, missed a string of chances to win by an even bigger margin as they dominated throughout the match with crisp one-touch passing and superior close control.
Moraes headed the Ukrainian side into a second-minute lead after a howler by Basel’s Serbian goalkeeper Djordje Nikolic, who was beaten to the ball by the striker after he rushed off his line to meet a Marlos corner.
Nikolic made amends with several good saves in the first half but was powerless in the 22nd minute when Taison capped a lightning Shakhtar break with a deflected shot after good work by Marlos and a clever dummy by Patrick.
Marcos Antonio rattled the woodwork with a long-range effort in the 40th minute before Patrick made it 3-0 with a 75th-minute penalty after Yannick Marchand fouled Taison in the area.
Right back Dodo put the icing on the cake for Shakhtar in the 89th minute with an unstoppable shot before Basel substitute Ricky van Wolfswinkel netted a stoppage time consolation for the Swiss from close range. — Reuters
Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox team delayed “Halo Infinite,” the biggest video game planned for the November launch of its new console, partly due to the challenges of working from home during the COVID-19 outbreak.
The change was made “to ensure the team has adequate time to deliver a Halo game experience that meets our vision,” according to a statement posted on the Halo Twitter account.
Halo is a multibillion-dollar franchise that began with the first Xbox almost two decades ago. The delay may hurt sales of the new Xbox Series X console, which the company confirmed will go on sale in November.
Originally announced at the E3 2018 conference, Halo Infinite stayed under the radar until last month, when it was showcased during a video presentation for upcoming Xbox Series X games. Footage of the game was widely panned, with fans criticizing the graphics and gameplay.
Shortly afterward, community manager John Junyszek wrote in a blog post that the team had heard fans’ feedback. “We do have work to do to address some of these areas and raise the level of fidelity and overall presentation for the final game,” he added.
Microsoft cited delays resulting from a development team working at home during the pandemic. Some parts of video-game development are difficult to do remotely.
Other games for Xbox and Sony Corp.’s PlayStation have been postponed and Microsoft gaming chief Phil Spencer said in May that the pandemic was hitting game development harder than the console-building schedule.
343 Industries, the Microsoft game studio that builds Halo, has been rushing to finish the game and realized it wasn’t going to be possible by November. Even getting the demo ready for last month’s presentation was difficult, said a person familiar with the decision. Some of the finish and fidelity issues that plagued the demo can be improved with the additional time, said the person, who asked not to be identified discussing internal deliberations.
Even before COVID-19, Halo Infinite’s development had been turbulent. Last year, the game’s creative director and executive producer both left. — Bloomberg
Airbnb is preparing to submit documents confidentially with the US Securities and Exchange Commission for an initial public offering. The long-awaited move would represent a swift comeback for the home-sharing startup after the coronavirus pandemic sent the travel industry into a tailspin.
Airbnb Inc. plans to file paperwork for a stock market listing in the next few weeks paving the way for its shares to start trading as soon as the fourth quarter, according to people familiar with the matter.
The San Francisco-based company is preparing to submit documents confidentially with the US Securities and Exchange Commission for an initial public offering, said the people, who asked to not be identified discussing private information. The long-awaited move would represent a swift comeback for the home-sharing startup after the coronavirus pandemic sent the travel industry into a tailspin.
The Wall Street Journal reported earlier that Airbnb was planning to file paperwork later this month. Airbnb declined to comment on the matter. The company’s plans could change as new outbreaks of the disease continue to flare in the US, the people said.
Airbnb is working with Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. on its IPO, according to a person familiar with the matter. Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs declined to comment.
Chief Executive Officer Brian Chesky had originally wanted to take the initial steps toward a listing in March, but his plans were nixed by COVID-19. By April, Mr. Chesky was facing $1 billion in cancellations, he said in an interview with Bloomberg TV in June. Travel bans and lock-downs caused planned bookings to tumble about 90% and Airbnb cut 25% of its workforce in a bid to survive. Other travel sites, like TripAdvisor Inc. and Booking Holding’s Inc., also hit crisis mode and had to eliminate thousands of jobs.
But by May, Airbnb was already seeing a rebound. The number of nights booked at US listings between May 17 and June 3 was greater than during the same period the previous year, as city dwellers took advantage of work-from-home policies and escaped apartments for nearby vacation rentals. As of June 17, Airbnb’s bookings had increased 20% year over year in the US, according to data from market research firm AirDNA.
Prior to the pandemic, Airbnb had been leaning toward a non-traditional route to the public markets. The company was planning to follow in the footsteps of Spotify Technology SA and list directly, forgoing raising new money by selling shares and allowing its investors to put their shares on the market without waiting for a lock-up period. But the turmoil caused by the pandemic forced Airbnb to raise $2 billion in debt and equity securities in April to shore up its finances, reducing its valuation to $18 billion from $31 billion. As a result, the company decided to go the traditional IPO route to raise cash for the business, the people said. — Bloomberg
QBO Innovation Hub has partnered with the US Embassy to bring entrepreneur’s ideas to reality with the third iteration of Bootqamp: From Idea to Fruition.According to the PwC 2020 Philippine Startup Survey: COVID-19 Edition, 49% of business owners have started offering a new product or service during the pandemic.
In a five-week online program, 20 teams will be guided through the steps of launching a startup. “Supporting new approaches and innovation is especially important as we seek to meet the challenges posed by this pandemic. Bootqamp in particular targets idea stage innovators who are looking to bring their concepts out into the market for the first time,” said QBO director Katrina Rausa Chan.
“Many startups would build an app or a platform the moment they think of a brilliant idea and all is good until they encounter issues. My tip for founders is to explore different ways you can validate your idea to make sure you’re not wasting your time, energy, and money. Don’t stop until you discover which technique suits your company,” said MK Bertulfo of FHMoms, a startup that completed QBO’s first Bootqamp run.
Bootcamp will be delivered fully online, with learning sessions, workshops, feedback sessions, and allocated periods for the teams to run validation activities with potential customers. At the culminating showcase, select teams will win valuable resources to support their product or business launch.
For details, visit bit.ly/QBOBOOTQAMP3. Registration is open until Aug. 23. Bootcamp begins Sep. 4.
Facebook Inc. said on Tuesday it removed 7 million posts in the second quarter for sharing false information about the novel coronavirus, including content that promoted fake preventative measures and exaggerated cures.
It released the data as part of its sixth Community Standards Enforcement Report, which it introduced in 2018 along with more stringent decorum rules in response to a backlash over its lax approach to policing content on its platforms.
The world’s biggest social network said it would invite proposals from experts this week to audit the metrics used in the report, beginning in 2021. It committed to the audit during a July ad boycott over hate speech practices.
The company removed about 22.5 million posts with hate speech on its flagship app in the second quarter, a dramatic increase from 9.6 million in the first quarter. It attributed the jump to improvements in detection technology.
It also deleted 8.7 million posts connected to “terrorist” organizations, compared with 6.3 million in the prior period. It took down less material from “organized hate” groups: 4 million pieces of content, compared to 4.7 million in the first quarter.
The company does not disclose changes in the prevalence of hateful content on its platforms, which civil rights groups say makes reports on its removal less meaningful.
Facebook said it relied more heavily on automation for reviewing content starting in April as it had fewer reviewers at its offices due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
That resulted in less action against content related to self-harm and child sexual exploitation, executives said on a conference call.
“It’s graphic content that honestly at home it’s very hard for people to moderate, with people around them,” said Guy Rosen, Facebook’s vice president for integrity.
Facebook said it was expanding its hate speech policy to include “content depicting blackface, or stereotypes about Jewish people controlling the world.” — Reuters
LOS ANGELES — Looking for a new way to communicate during the pandemic? A Los Angeles company has created phone booth-sized machines to beam live holograms into your living room.
The device made by PORTL Inc. lets users talk in real-time with a life-sized hologram of another person.
The machines also can be equipped with technology to enable interaction with recorded holograms of historical figures or relatives who have passed away.
Each PORTL device is seven feet tall, five feet wide, and two feet deep, and can be plugged into a standard wall outlet. Anyone with a camera and a white background can send a hologram to the machine in what Chief Executive David Nussbaum calls “holoportation.”
“We say if you can’t be there, you can beam there,” said Mr. Nussbaum, who previously worked at a company that developed a hologram of Ronald Reagan for the former president’s library and digitally resurrected rapper Tupac Shakur.
“We are able to connect military families that haven’t seen each other in months, people from opposite coasts,” or anyone who is social distancing to fight the coronavirus, Mr. Nussbaum added.
Prices for the machine start at $60,000, a cost that Mr. Nussbaum expects will drop over the next three to five years. The company also plans a smaller tabletop device with a lower price tag early next year.
The devices can be equipped with artificial intelligence technology from Los Angeles-based company StoryFile to produce hologram recordings that can be archived. Adding that to the current device brings the cost to at least $85,000.
The companies are promoting to museums, which could let visitors question a hologram of a historical figure, and to families to record information for future generations.
People can feel like they are having a conversation with a recorded hologram, said StoryFile Chief Executive Heather Smith.
“(You) feel their presence, see their body language, see all their non-verbal cues,” she said. “You feel like you’ve actually talked to that individual even though they were not there.” — Reuters
LONDON — An announcement by Russia on Tuesday that it will approve a COVID-19 vaccine after less than two months of human testing prompted alarm among global health experts, who said that with no full trial data, the vaccine is hard to trust.
Intent on being first in the global race to develop a vaccine against the pandemic disease, Russia has yet to conduct large-scale trials of the shot that would produce data to show whether it works—something immunologists and infectious disease experts say could be a “reckless” step.
“Russia is essentially conducting a large population-level experiment,” said Ayfer Ali, a specialist in drug research at Britain’s Warwick Business School.
She said such a super-fast approval could mean that potential adverse effects of a vaccine may not be picked up. These, while likely to be rare, could be serious, she warned.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said the vaccine, developed by Moscow’s Gamaleya Institute, was safe and that it had been administered to one of his daughters.
“I know that it works quite effectively, forms strong immunity, and I repeat, it has passed all the needed checks,” Mr. Putin said on state television.
Francois Balloux, an expert at University College London’s Genetics Institute, said it was “a reckless and foolish decision.”
“Mass vaccination with an improperly tested vaccine is unethical,” he said. “Any problem with the Russian vaccination campaign would be disastrous both through its negative effects on health, but also because it would further set back the acceptance of vaccines in the population.”
SCIENTIFIC PAPERS
His comments were echoed by Danny Altmann, a professor of Immunology at Imperial College London, who said the “collateral damage” from deploying any vaccine that is not yet known to be safe and effective “would exacerbate our current problems insurmountably.”
Even as Russia declared victory, more than half a dozen drugmakers around the world are in the process of conducting large-scale, advanced human trials of their potential COVID-19 vaccines, each with tens of thousands of volunteer participants.
Several of these frontrunners, including Moderna, Pfizer, and AstraZeneca, say they hope to know if their vaccines work and are safe by the end of this year.
All are expected to publish their trial results and safety data and submit them to regulators in the United States, Europe and elsewhere for scrutiny before any licence could be granted.
The Russian vaccine’s approval by the Health Ministry comes before trials that would normally involve thousands of participants, commonly known as a Phase III trial. Such trials are usually considered essential precursors for a vaccine to secure regulatory approval.
Peter Kremsner, an expert at Germany’s University Hospital in Tuebingen who is working on clinical trials of a vaccine candidate from CureVac, said Russia’s move was “reckless.”
“Normally you need a large number of people to be tested before you approve a vaccine,” he said. “I think it’s reckless to do that if lots of people haven’t already been tested.”
Experts said the lack of published data on Russia’s vaccine—including how it is made and details on safety, immune response and whether it can prevent COVID-19 infection—leaves scientists, health authorities and the public in the dark.
“It is not possible to know if the Russian vaccine has been shown to be effective without submission of scientific papers for analysis,” said Keith Neal, a specialist in the epidemiology of infectious diseases at Britain’s Nottingham University. — Reuters
Meralco personnel are seen upgrading its distribution transformers and installing new metering facilities to serve the Angono-Binangonan Center of Dialysis Inc. located along J. Sumulong Avenue in Teresa, Rizal. With its mandate to always keep the lights on, Meralco ensures that hospitals including COVID-19 treatment and testing centers are given the utmost priority when it comes to providing safe, reliable and adequate supply of electricity during the pandemic.
DoH warns vs bogus contact tracers; Duterte orders police to assist tracing teams
THE DEPARTMENT of Health (DoH) warned the public against individuals claiming to be part of the government’s contact tracing team and soliciting personal information that can be used for financial scams. In an advisory on Tuesday, the DoH said those who get contacted should verify the identity of the tracer from their village-level health emergency team. “If they introduce themselves as part of the LGU (local government unit) Contact Tracing Team, please verify basic information and ensure that they have been referred by your Barangay Health Emergency Response Teams,” DoH said. The department also asked those who will receive suspicious calls to report details to the DoH hotline so that authorities can investigateand take legal action against these scammers.
POLICE HELP Meanwhile, President Rodrigo R. Duterte has ordered the police to assist LGUs in contact tracing through the use of their available resources such as vehicles. “Contact tracing means that ‘yung people who are doing the actual tracing will have to travel to the place where the person in question resides. Kailangan ito ng sasakyan (They need vehicles),” Mr. Duterte said in a televised talk late Monday. He added that the police can help in coordinating the entry of local officials from one area to another in cases where the contacts being traced live across local borders and have to pass through police-manned checkpoints. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas and Gillian M. Cortez
Former Comelec chair Brillantes, 80
SIXTO S. Brillantes, Jr., former Commission on Elections (Comelec) chair and was known for exposing the alleged cheating in the 2004 polls, passed away Aug. 11. He was 80. The Comelec confirmed on Tuesday the death of Mr. Brillantes, who battled the coronavirus disease. “This is to confirm the passing of former Chairperson Sixto S. Brillantes, Jr., today at a little past 11 a.m.,” Comelec Spokesperson James B. Jimenez said in a message to reporters. Before Mr. Brillantes was appointed to the Comelec in 2011 under the administration of then President Benigno C. Aquino III, he practiced election law and had a number of high profile clients, including former President Joseph E. Estrada and the Ampatuan family. Mr. Brillantes also represented the late actor and presidential candidate Fernando Poe, Jr., who contested his loss to former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in 2004. The election lawyer raised cheating allegations against Ms. Arroyo, which became known as the “Hello Garci” scandal. — Gillian M. Cortez
Supreme Courts sets oral deliberations on anti-terror law
THE SUPREME Court (SC) will hold oral arguments in September on the petitions against the law that expanded the definition of terror crimes. SC Public Information Chief Brian Keith F. Hosaka told reporters via Viber the deliberations will be held “on the 3rd week of September, at the earliest.” The court has consolidated the six latest petitions against the Anti-Terrorism Act with the first 19 lawsuits filed, he said. There are two other petitions already submitted online but pending physical filling. The respondents were given 10 days to answer the petitions against the law that took effect last July 18. The assailed law considers attacks that cause death or serious injury, extensive damage to property and manufacture, possession, acquisition, transport and supply of weapons or explosives as terrorist acts. The government is also allowed to detain a suspect even without warrant of arrest for 14 days from three days previously. The law also creates the Anti-Terror Council composed of Cabinet officials, which can perform acts reserved for courts, such as ordering the arrest of suspected terrorists. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas
Killing of peace consultant Echanis muddled by identity confirmation
JUSTICE SECRETARY Menardo I. Guevarra said he has already ordered an investigation on the killing of Randall Echanis, a consultant of the communist organization National Democratic Front of the Philippines, but it will not start until the slain man is confirmed to be him. “In view of the emerging confusion as to the identity of the subject, however, we shall await confirmation by the family of the deceased that the subject was indeed peasant leader Echanis,” he told reporters via Viber. Justice Undersecretary Markk L. Perete said “forensic examination” may be needed to identify the victim. “We leave it to experts to complete this identification,” Mr. Perete said. The Anakpawis party-list, where Mr. Echanis was chair, said in a statement on Tuesday that his widow, Erlinda Echanis, already positively identified her husbands body at a funeral home in Quezon City. She described the remains as bearing “torture marks, multiple stab and gunshot wounds.” The police, however, “forcefully took” Mr. Echanis’ remains as there was supposedly no release order from their office and the body was still “under investigation,” according to Anakpawis. “I condemn the persistent harassment of PNP (Philippine National Police) La Loma-QCPD and their brazen act of snatching the remains of my husband,” she said in a statement sent to reporters past 11 p.m. Monday.
ID CARD Policemen also arrested Jose Paolo Colabres, a member of the paralegal team seeking to claim Echanis’ body. He was brought to Camp Karingal where he is under investigation for obstruction of justice. Lt. Johanna Sazon, Quezon City Police District spokesperson, said the body was taken as investigators need to secure fingerprints and DNA samples to prove Mr. Echanis’ identity. Mr. Echanis was initially identified by the police as Manuel Santiago based on an identification card found beside him, and his companion, Louie Tagapia. The two were shot and killed by armed men at Mr. Echanis’ rented apartment in Novaliches on Monday. “Kailangan po natin ng proof to prove na siya talaga si Echanis na sinasabi po nila (We need proof to prove that he really is Echanis as they claim),” Mr. Sazon said in an interview over ANC. Former Anakpawis party-list representative Ariel Casilao said they have reason to believe the government was involved in the murder given Mr. Echanis’ background as a peasant leader and involvement with the communist political group. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas and Emmanuel Tupas/PHILSTAR
INVESTMENTS approved by the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) for the first seven months declined by almost 30% as companies turned more cautious amid a coronavirus crisis.
Approved investments covering 164 projects from January to July fell 27% to P52 billion compared to the same period last year, PEZA said in a press release on Monday.
PEZA, the second-biggest contributor to investment pledges after the Board of Investments (BoI), said foreign direct investments slid by 26% to P36.26 billion, while local investments plunged by 63% to P15.75 billion.
Approved investments in the manufacturing sector increased by 24% to P23.34 billion. PEZA recorded P11.4 billion worth of investments in the outsourcing sector, 37% higher than last year.
The investment promotion agency also posted a 7% drop in exports to $24.81 billion (P1.2 trillion) in the first half. Employment fell by 3% to 1.47 million jobs.
In a statement, PEZA Director-General Charito B. Plaza attributed the lower investments to the pandemic that has “affected our economy badly.”
“Nevertheless, we at PEZA remain hopeful to bounce back from this,” she said.
“Even with the difficulties brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, PEZA continues to attract investors to the country and promote the creation of special economic zones especially in the countryside that will become economic drivers in every region,” she added.
Ms. Plaza last month said she expected investments for the full-year to shrink from last year’s P117.5 billion, which had declined by 16% from the year earlier.
Before the pandemic, PEZA was targeting 5-10% investment growth this year.
The PEZA board earlier in the lockdown rescheduled meetings due to restrictions and health risks at its offices. Even before the lockdown, PEZA said total approved investments slid by 5.85% in the first two months of the year.
To attract investments, the agency has been hosting virtual investor forums and promoting the development of economic zones in the countryside.
The BoI approved P645.3 billion in investments in the first half, mostly accounted for by a P530.8-billion airport project from San Miguel Aerocity, Inc.
Domestic investments under BoI jumped almost three times to P626.7 billion in the first half from a year earlier. In contrast, foreign investments plummeted by almost three-quarters to P18.6 billion. — Jenina P. Ibañez
THE GOVERNMENT placed Metro Manila and nearby provinces such as Bulacan, Cavite and Laguna under a two-week lockdown until Aug. 18 to help curb the rise in coronavirus infections. — PHILIPPINE STAR/MICHAEL VARCAS
By Luz Wendy T. Noble, Reporter
THE continued spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which prompted renewed lockdown restrictions in Metro Manila and nearby provinces, may further erode rating buffers of the Philippines, Fitch Ratings said.
“Downside risks to our economic projections for the Philippines, noted in our last rating review in May…are materializing due to the country’s difficulty in containing the virus,” the global debt watcher said in a note on Tuesday.
The Health department on Tuesday reported 2,987 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total to 139,538 — the highest in Southeast Asia.
Fitch noted the rising number of coronavirus infections and the renewed lockdown, which will end on Aug. 18, are likely to depress economic growth by much more than it earlier anticipated.
It said it would likely lower its earlier forecast of a 4% contraction in gross domestic product (GDP) this year.
In May, Fitch downgraded its outlook for the Philippines to “stable” only three months after it gave a “positive” outlook. A stable outlook indicates that a country’s rating is likely to be maintained in the next 18-24 months. It affirmed the country’s credit rating at “BBB” — a notch above the minimum investment grade that it gave in December 2017.
S&P Global Ratings also kept its BBB+ long-term credit rating and stable outlook for the country in May. Moody’s Investors Servicelikewise affirmed the country’s Baa2 rating with a stable outlook on July.
In its Tuesday note, Fitch said the government might find it difficult to limit pandemic-related spending if the economy “continues to contract and fails to recover as fast as the authorities expect.”
“If the recovery stalls, there may be pressure for even more fiscal stimulus,” Fitch said.
Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III earlier rejected calls to increase the government’s P180-billion economic stimulus package.
“Whatever stimulus package we have, it has to be affordable and it has to recognize the fact that this virus may not be defeated by the end of this year. So we have to keep, as they say, we have to keep our powder dry for next year as well,” Mr. Dominguez said.
The Philippines plunged into a recession after the economy shrank by 16.5% in the second quarter. The government expects the economy to contract by 5.5% this year, worse than its earlier forecast of 2% to 3.4% contraction.
“The Philippines entered the crisis with fiscal buffers, given its low general government debt ratio of 34.1% of GDP, against the ‘BBB’ peer median of 42.2%. These buffers are being eroded by pandemic-related economic shock, but there is still room to accommodate some deterioration in the fiscal outlook,” Fitch said.
It also flagged the country’s current account deficit, which is “unlikely to go back to its pre-crisis standing by 2021 to 2022,” but said this alone is unlikely to be a significant risk to the country’s rating.
“We do not expect the current-account deficit to return to pre-crisis levels in 2021-2022, as the recovery in domestic import demand will largely offset the improvement in exports as the pandemic’s effects ease,” it said.
Oxford Economics said a “precarious situation” remains in India, Indonesia and the Philippines, where infections continue to surge and workplace mobility has yet to recover.
“These economies remain highly vulnerable, given weak public health infrastructure and limited fiscal resources,” it said in a note on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, an improvement in the country’s credit rating could help lure foreign investments and lower borrowing costs for the Philippines, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said.
Amid the worsening impact of the pandemic, a critical factor to manage credit ratings will be the country’s economic recovery, UnionBank of the Philippines, Inc. Chief Economist Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion said.
“For the Philippines, economic recovery will depend on the virus outbreak path, the magnitude of the policy response, and consumer and corporate consumption behaviors,” he said in a text message, noting this would likely be gauged by credit raters as well.
Meanwhile, Asian Institute of Management economist John Paolo R. Rivera said credit ratings are likely to be “compromised” based on second-quarter GDP data. He added that credit ratings are not “the best metrics to assess future defaults.”
“It seems that credit ratings are more of political signals because it’s easier to explain the movement in credit rating than the implications of fiscal policies,” he said in a text message, noting that inflation is still within target.
