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WFH during ECQ: Salcedo Auctions’ Richie Lerma

AUCTION houses, much as art fairs and galleries, are now selling and exhibiting online, having made a total shift to digital platforms during the quarantine period.

Salcedo Auctions director Ramon “Richie” Lerma observed that their staff remain focused while working from home despite the lack of face-to-face interaction.

“Nothing can, of course, compare to in-person contact when meeting or providing feedback, particularly to our creative staff. I haven’t really felt a big change in terms of productivity — in fact sometimes I feel that we are able to do more given that people can focus more on their work while in lockdown (laughs),” Mr. Lerma wrote in an e-mail to BusinessWorld.

On April 18, Salcedo Auctions held its first benefit online auction since the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) was imposed, selling Romulo Galicano’s painting The Wrath of God for P4 million. A second benefit online auction under Salcedo Auctions’ subsidiary Gavel&Block will be held on May 23 at 2 p.m. Proceeds from the first auction went to the purchase of personal protective equipment for hospitals around the country. Money raised in the upcoming auction will benefit the international food relief organization Rise Against Hunger (RAH) Philippines.

Mr. Lerma noted that everyone in the team “is coping with the situation as best as they can.”

Here’s how Mr. Lerma has been working from home over the past few weeks.

WHERE IS YOUR HOME OFFICE?
I have a home office set up inside the bedroom, but I hardly use it. My family loves to hang out in the kitchen, so my “home office” right now is the dining table adjacent to it.

WHAT IS YOUR PREFERRED MEETING METHOD AND WHY?
I like Zoom, particularly because of the many functionalities of the platform. Our recently concluded Gavel&Block #WeBidAsOne community call was a nice way to introduce a new way for people in the art and community to gather in a convivial online setting. We received good feedback from it, and hope to do more as we deal with the COVID-19 situation.

WHAT TIME DO YOU START YOUR DAY FOR WORK? IS IT EARLIER OR LATER THAN YOUR USUAL SCHEDULE? WHAT TIME DO YOU END?

We maintain our usual work-week schedule even while working from home, so I’m usually online — on my laptop or on the phone — with my staff starting at 9 a.m. Unofficially, we end the day at 6 p.m., but it usually goes beyond that time.

DO YOU TAKE BREAKS?
Yes, certainly! [Watching] Netflix. [Doing a bit of] cooking, or tasting [my wife] Karen’s cooking is a great respite from work.

DO YOU STILL DRESS UP FOR WORK OR HAVE YOU SWITCHED TO A MORE CASUAL ATTIRE?
I’m in my home lounge attire [on] most days, so I’m usually off-cam with the staff. On those days where work necessitates needing to be on-cam, then I dress appropriately.

WHAT DIFFICULTIES OR CHALLENGES DID YOU EXPERIENCE? ANY DISTRACTIONS?
Fortunately, we have not had much difficulty work-wise transitioning to operating online during this period. Luckily, our sons have their own private spaces where they can attend school online, so there has not been any distraction.

WHAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT LESSON YOU HAVE LEARNED FROM WORKING FROM HOME?
The new work arrangements we have put in place as a response to the ECQ allowed us to reassess our operational requirements as well as the responsibilities that we delegated to our staff. A number of them were deployed to take on new tasks, which gave them the opportunity to show their added capabilities. Their resilience throughout this situation, for which I must commend them — has enabled us to continue to be productive. It’s not so much a lesson, but rather a reassurance that I’ve gleaned from this experience about the quality of our staff, and the immense trust that our organization has built over the past 10 years seeing the community‘s enthusiastic response to our auction and exhibition programs, which continue with enthusiastic resolve, and a deep commitment to society and its future. — Michelle Anne P. Soliman

ABS-CBN moves to block NTC order

By Vann Marlo M. Villegas, Reporter

ABS-CBN Corp. asked the Supreme Court to stop the implementation of the National Telecommunication Commission’s cease-and-desist order to halt its operations due to franchise expiration.

The network filed a petition for issuance of a temporary restraining order and/or writ of preliminary injunction, two days after it went off air on May 5 following the order of the NTC (National Telecommunication Commission) due to the expiration of its franchise on May 4.

In a 46-page petition, ABS-CBN said the NTC committed grave abuse of discretion “amounting to lack of jurisdiction” when it issued the cease and desist order.

It said the telecommunications regulator should have deferred to the Congress, which approves franchise renewals, and allowed ABS-CBN to continue airing on radio and television.

There are 11 House Bills and two Senate Bills filed for the renewal of the company’s franchise.

“The NTC’s failure to consider all these factors amounts to a capricious and whimsical exercise of discretion in the issuance of the CDO,” ABS-SCBN said. “The NTC merely relied on the supposedly expired legislative franchise of ABS-CBN without regard to the attendant circumstances.”

The NTC in March said in a hearing that it would issue provisional authority to ABS-CBN, following the position of the Department of Justice that the Congress could authorize it to allow the operation of ABS-CBN while its franchise renewal is pending.

The House of Representatives sent a letter to the NTC and the Senate passed a resolution mandating the commission to issue provisional authority to ABS-CBN.

“The NTC’s bad faith, malice, and underhandedness are simply shocking and abhorrent,” the network said.

RIGHTS VIOLATED
ABS-CBN also said the cease-and-desist order violated its right to equal protection as it deviated from past practice.

It noted that it has been a “settled practice” of the NTC to allow broadcasting entities to continue operation pending the renewal or extension of the franchise.

ABS-CBN cited five instances where the NTC allowed broadcasting networks to go on air while their franchises expired and are awaiting their approval of the Congress.

“There is no reason why the same practice should not be applied to ABS-CBN,” it said.

“The fact that the OSG (Office of the Solicitor General) has filed a petition for quo warranto before this Honorable Court does not create any real difference or distinction which would justify a different treatment,” it said.

The company said the order against it is in the nature of preliminary injunction, and it should have been issued “upon notice and after hearing, and requisites for preliminary injunction must have been met,” violating its right to due process.

ABS-CBN also argued that there is no urgency for the issuance of the cease-and-desist order and the closure “will cause serious and irreparable damage” to public interest as well.

“ABS-CBN has more than 11,000 employees. The closure of ABS-CBN will jeopardize the livelihood not only of such employees, but also of their families,” it said.

The government will also be deprived of a “significant source of tax revenues” as from 2016 to 2019 the network paid tax of at least P14.3 billion.

The shutdown order also amounts to “limitation if not curtailment of the freedom of speech and of the press with prior restraint.”

ABS-CBN also filed an urgent motion for the raffling of its petition, as its operations is “a matter of public interest and transcendental importance” as one of the largest broadcasting networks in terms of coverage and audience.

10 artists, 10 songs mark Upstart’s 10 years in fundraising online concert

IN line with its 10th anniversary, the theater group Upstart Productions presents Upstart 10 for 10, an online mini-concert fundraiser on May 9, 8 p.mat its Facebook page.

Upstart 10 for 10 will feature 10 artists namely Topper Fabregas, Rony Fortich, Jenny Jamora, Carla Guevara-Laforteza, Lorenz Martinez, Shiela Valderrama-Martinez, Jill Pena, Felix Rivera, Ice Seguerra, and Reuben Uy.

The show’s repertoire will include 10 songs from Upstart Productions’ first musical, Breakups & Breakdowns by Joel Trinidad and Rony Fortich.

The show is part of the Open House series of shows which aim to solicit donations for the benefit of the theater professionals behind the scenes — stage managers, prop masters, dressers, set builders, and the unsung heroes, who have lost their means of livelihood during this current pandemic.

The show will be on FB Live on Upstart’s page https://m.facebook.com/upstartproductionsinc/

To support the project and donate, visit bit.ly/Upstart10for10.

PLDT studies budget cut to P63B

By Arjay L. Balinbin, Reporter

PLDT Inc. (PLDT) is looking at reducing its capital spending for this year by 24% to P63 billion from the planned P83 billion as movement and travel restrictions under the government-imposed enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) hamper its network rollout.

The Pangilinan-led company also reported on Thursday that its first-quarter net income had decreased 12% to P5.91 billion because of losses on its investment in German-based Internet company Rocket Internet and ramped-up investment in its digital arm Voyager Innovations, Inc.

“Our capex (capital expenditures) is likely to decline by 20 to 25%. Our best estimate as of now is that from P83 billion, it will probably drop to around P63 billion for the year unless, of course, we regain much of the momentum lost during this ECQ,” PLDT Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Manuel V. Pangilinan said during a virtual press briefing on Thursday.

PLDT Chief Finance Officer Anabelle L. Chua said the ECQ restrictions could lead to the spending adjustment.

“Our network rollout activities have been constrained by the reduced mobility of our network teams since the ECQ was imposed in mid-March,” she said.

In a disclosure to the stock exchange, PLDT said its first-quarter net income dropped 12% from P7.2 billion a year ago.

PLDT’s core income was also down 5% to P6.9 billion from P7.20 billion.

Total revenues went up 7% to P43.65 billion, of which service revenues increased 8% to P41.8 billion and non-service revenues inched up 1.25% to P1.85 billion.

By business segment, PLDT Home revenues grew 23% to P9.6 billion while revenues of the Individual segment soared 49% to P20.2 billion. The Enterprise group recorded P10.1 billion in revenues, up 24%.

Data and broadband saw revenues rise 19% to P29.3 billion as of end-March. PLDT said data contribution to service revenues grew to 71% in the first quarter.

“For most of the first three months of 2020, the Wireless Consumer business maintained its forward momentum in top-ups, driven by greater adoption of data among its subscribers and higher usage by existing data users,” PLDT said.

“Mobile data usage continued to be driven by customer demand for video, social media services, and mobile games delivered to prepaid subscribers through various GIGA load packages. When the lockdown came along, this was augmented by customers using various work collaboration apps conveniently bundled in a new service offer called GIGA Work,” it added.

The company said the bulk of its capex this year will go to connectivity, which includes fiber to the home, home WiFi and mobile.

It will also focus on upgrading IT systems since many businesses and individual consumers have been moving to online activities.

As for his outlook for the second quarter, Mr. Pangilinan said: “The revenue for the second quarter will likely show a decline of low to middle single digits compared to the first quarter revenues this year. But compared to the first quarter last year, it is likely that it will show growth.”

“The first half of this year will also be ahead of the first half of last year in terms of revenue,” he added.

Shares in PLDT went down by P48 or 3.76% to close at P1,227 apiece.

Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls.

Saith the Lord

MOVIE REVIEW
Venganza (Vengeance, 1958)
Directed by Manuel Conde
Available on Mike de Leon’s
Citizen Jake Vimeo site

PRECIOUS little has been written online or on print about Manuel Conde save a book by Nicanor Tiongson (which I haven’t been able to read, unfortunately, and is currently unavailable). The filmmaker is best known for his comic Juan Tamad (Lazy John) film series, and for writing, producing, directing a small scale biopic on Genghis Khan that depicted the eponymous Mongol prince (also played by Conde) as an ambitious, charmingly inventive runt — the film competed in the 1952 Venice International Film Festival, the first ever Filipino film to do so.

Venganza (Vengeance, 1958) which Mike de Leon has made available on his Vimeo website (sans subtitles, alas) isn’t as well-known and isn’t the Conde we are familiar with: a straightforward drama about the peaceful Simoun’s (Mario Montenegro) vow of revenge when bandits led by Martinico (Eusebio Gomez) and Peklat (Scar, played by the always memorable Joseph Cordova) terrorize his village and cause the death of his newly wedded wife Pilar (Perla Bautista).

Martinico is the ostensible villain and a rotten dastard to the core but Simoun’s true adversary is in my book the officiating priest (and Pilar’s brother), Padre Roman (Carlos Padilla, Jr.). As the village’s religious leader, Roman is a force to reckon with; the folk bow and defer to his judgment and while he couldn’t keep the bandits from raiding Simoun’s wedding, he does manage to check the bandits’ (and Simoun’s) more violent instincts.

Padre Roman can’t stop the worst from happening but that doesn’t stop him from attempting to stop worse from happening: when Simoun takes on the dark portentous glower that is apparently the Montenegro trademark (we saw that same expression in Avellana’s earlier Lapu-Lapu) he doesn’t hesitate to remind Simoun that only God has the right to judge and mete out punishment; later when they see each other again Roman doesn’t hold back in condemning Simoun’s intention of using Martinico’s new bride against the bandit, recruiting an entire village of Igorots to help in his scheme. Roman is a common figure in Filipino films, the indomitable parish priest, who glides through many a Filipino melodrama insisting on the infallibility of church dogma, on occasion (not very often) pausing to help the protagonist in some small way (maybe one of the more interesting variations on this figure I’ve seen was in — again Avellana, but I was taking a dive into his filmography at the time — Anak Dalita, where Vic Silayan’s Father Fidel plays a [probably unintentional] ambiguous role, working with both hero and villain and deftly prevaricating on the moral issues).

Here Roman stands firmly on the side of God with regards to vengeance, and he comes off as dull and self-righteous. You wonder if the effect isn’t deliberate: Simoun’s bloodthirst is so much more compelling, not to mention sexy, that you tend to tune Roman out (so does Simoun, who at this point can’t really hear much beyond the pulsebeat in his ear); later, when Simoun is further along his plot and his treatment of the aforementioned bride seems cool if not downright sinister, Roman’s words feel more reasonable and we’re readier to listen. The two men represent familiar tropes in the standard-issue revenge drama; what I think Conde brings to the genre is an evolving, surprisingly nuanced (if ultimately conventional) view of both men and their positions on revenge.

Conde directs with assurance and grace; like Avellana he keeps a tight rein on his camera, bringing out his visual virtuosity only when called for. The wedding party from the bandits’ entry to their ultimate demands is a marvel of escalating tension: Peklat points his gun at the band and demand they play a tango, and from the musicians’ reluctance and the villagers’ shocked expressions you know this is a genuinely scandalous moment; Peklat delivers a satirical speech (a parody of hurt feelings because the villagers hadn’t invited them to the party) and watching the tense glances between Simoun, Ramon, and Pilar, you know they know how much danger they’re in. Later we see Simoun standing by the grave with a black band round his left arm; the camera pans down to his shoes, dissolves to later, and we see the same shoes and armband, only Simoun is seated. Time has passed and Simoun has taken the weight off his feet but little else has changed: he still mourns Pilar, still wants to exact bloody justice.

Simoun stalks Peklat, who leads a band of men delivering Martinico’s bride; when he improvises a delayed-action device and sets it off, the bride’s head jerks up to the camera and we see the visage of Carmencita Abad — startlingly beautiful, faintly Chinese — for the first time (we never really notice Conde concealing her face because the director never makes a big deal of it; the reveal is a nice shock effect). When Martinico has his enemies bound and helpless around him, Simoun deftly uses the one subject he’s familiar with — a man’s thirst for revenge — to force a one-on-one duel with the bandit leader, a genuinely tense confrontation using itaks, or short swords with blades weighted at the end to lop off tree branches or human limbs (Gomez swings his in wide circles like a helicopter blade; Montenegro keeps his pointed matter-of-factedly forward; Conde uses medium shots and long takes, the better to see the action and the combatants’ skill with blades). Simoun’s gambit is a clever comment on the tunnel-vision nature of vengeance — that a more mentally nimble opponent can use your single-mindedness against you — though of course Roman has to step in at the last minute to deliver the last word on the subject. A surprisingly engaging film, from a master Filipino filmmaker.

A British nurse is the chosen superhero in new Banksy artwork

LONDON — A young boy chooses a nurse as the superhero he wants to play with over Batman and Spiderman in a new artwork by Banksy that encapsulates the gratitude Britons have felt toward the country’s National Health Service during the coronavirus crisis.

The painting by the secretive street artist was unveiled at University Hospital Southampton, in south England, on Wednesday.

An image of the work was also posted on Banksy’s Instagram page with the caption “Game Changer.”

Hospital chief executive Paula Head said: “So proud to reveal this amazing piece of art Painting for Saints, created by #Banksy as a thank you to all those who work with and for the NHS and our hospital.

“An inspirational backdrop to pause and reflect in these unprecedented times,” she added on Twitter.

It is not the first Banksy work inspired by COVID-19. He posted scenes of his trademark stencilled rats running amok in a bathroom last month, accompanied by the comment: “My wife hates it when I work from home.”

His existing Girl with a Pierced Eardrum mural was also updated with the addition of a blue surgical mask, although the update was not confirmed to be his work on Instagram.

The new painting will be on display at the hospital until after the lockdown and it will then be auctioned for NHS charities, according to the BBC. — Reuters

ICTSI net income plunges 18%

RAZON-LED International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI) saw its net income attributable to equity holders drop by 18% to $59.6 million in the first quarter due to lower operating income, increase in concession interest, and pandemic-related expenses.

In a regulatory filing Thursday, the listed firm said the net income decrease was partially tapered by the 10% decrease in equity in net loss of its joint ventures and an associate to $5.5 million from $6.1 million for the same quarter in 2019.

The decline in loss came as the company increased its share in the net income of Manila North Harbour Port, Inc. in April last year, while it decreased its share in net loss at Sociedad Puerto Industrial Aguadulce S.A., ICTSI’s joint venture project with PSA International Pte Ltd. (PSA) in Buenaventura, Colombia.

The global port developer and operator saw its gross revenues from port operations fell by 2% to $375.8 million in the January-March period from $383.8 million posted in the same quarter last year, dragged down by lockdowns and decline in trade activities, no thanks to the global coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, as well as lower revenues from storage.

ICTSI’s total consolidated throughout for the quarter grew slightly by 1% to 2,508,986 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), driven by the contribution of its new terminal in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil and new services at certain terminals.

Excluding the contribution of its Rio de Janeiro business, the company’s consolidated organic gross revenues would have decreased by five percent and its consolidated organic volume by 1%.

Consolidated financing charges and other expenses for the quarter grew by 17% to $33.2 million from $28.3 million in 2019 primarily due to COVID19-related expenses and the absence of capitalized borrowing costs related to the Phase 2 expansion project in Basra, Iraq last year.

“The effect of the virus was felt in the latter part of the first quarter and our volumes compared to the previous year were largely flat,” ICTSI Chairman and President Enrique K. Razon, Jr. said.

Mr. Razon noted that its Asia business delivered lower volumes compared to a year ago, while its EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) and America segments registered positive volume growth for the quarter, though, showed signs of weakness in March.

Considering the impact of the global health crisis, ICTSI has reduced its capital expenditure plan for the rest of the year to $100 million, mainly for the completion of ongoing expansion projects.

For the quarter, it spent $59.7 million for project expansions in the Philippines, Mexico, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

“We have taken significant measures which include reducing our cost base and capital expenditure while seeking ways to increase our market share in certain markets. We continue to monitor the situation carefully so we can adapt our responses,” he said.

On Thursday, shares in ICTSI inched down 0.54% to close at P82.55 each. — Adam J. Ang

Musicals out, one-man plays in: Broadway gets creative waiting for show to go on

TELEVISION can fake it, movie audiences can wear masks, but a live theater performance like Romeo and Juliet needs real actors kissing and fighting rivals in front of real people.

Theater, especially large-scale musicals and romantic dramas on Broadway and in London’s West End, faces unique challenges in coming back during the coronavirus outbreak even as shutdowns and restrictions are beginning to ease around the world.

Expensive, risky, and involving scores of people backstage and in audience areas, live theater may be the last to bring up the curtain again, producers and actors say, and even then it will not be the same for some time.

“We are living real-life stories in real time, in cramped quarters, sometimes on small stages, sometimes with lots of people and figuring how to do that work in the age of COVID-19 is really the challenge that we are up against,” said Mary McColl, executive director of the actors union Equity in the United States.

“When we cry, there are tears, sometimes our noses run. Sometimes when we sing or are yelling, we spit and that lands on other actors, or it might land on the orchestra pit. And we are doing that eight times a week,” she said.

Broadway theaters went dark in mid-March and London’s West End followed a few days later. Almost no one expects them to reopen when the current closure period ends on June 7 and June 28 respectively.

“We are very tied to social distancing measures. As long as they are still in place, a mainstream return to theater and musical theater in particular looks pretty impossible,” said Jessica Koravos, president of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Really Useful Group.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll in April found that only 27% of those questioned would go to a theater performance when venues reopen, while 51% said live theater should not resume at all before a vaccine is available.

However the theater world is eager to get going before then and the to-do list goes beyond hand sanitizers in theater foyers, seating audiences apart, and disposable programs.

CREATIVE PEOPLE, CREATIVE SOLUTIONS
The US branch of Equity has hired an epidemiologist to come up with protocols for actors, stagehands, and costume and make-up departments. Elsewhere, people are brainstorming about what kind of plays would work best or taking theater out of traditional spaces, including outdoors or into restaurants.

“I don’t think theater will go away. I just think it will be different when it comes back,” said Brian Moreland, producer of upcoming Broadway shows American Buffalo and Blue.

“For a small amount of time, it will be smaller casts. Those are going to be smaller budgeted shows. The returns can be lower, the ticket prices can probably be lower,” Moreland said.

Theaters may be dark, but online rehearsals are going ahead, dancers are keeping up routines, and actors are running lines on shared video platforms so they can be ready when protocols are in place for a return.

Broadway producer and investor Brisa Trinchero is among the optimists.

She said playwrights are writing new pieces that would cater to social distancing and some companies are looking to resume with one-person productions that would minimize both costs and risks to other performers.

“We are an industry of creative people,” Trinchero said.

“I think there will be an exciting resurgence of smaller performance pieces, cabaret, more intimate things that make sense financially but also allow for performers initially to be a little bit more remote and don’t require thousands of people in the audience to make the math work,” she said.

Musicals, which have large casts, musicians, and backstage crews and are the most expensive to mount, are likely to be the last to come back. The Really Useful Group, producers of shows like Cats and the planned new London musical Cinderella, had to shutter 28 musicals around the world before the pandemic.

The Seoul production of Phantom of the Opera is back up but only due to extensive coronavirus testing and contact tracing by South Korean authorities, Koravos said.

Shows with one or two actors, or limiting theaters to 50% capacity might work for some. But for big musicals “it wouldn’t be possible commercially to survive on those audience levels,” said Koravos.

Despite the tough outlook, the theater community is more hopeful than a month ago and convinced that the shutdowns have proved the value of human connection and live entertainment that theater offers.

“People are now talking about what it looks like on the other side and three to four weeks ago we weren’t prepared to have this conversation,” Moreland said. “So that makes me very hopeful.” — Reuters

Lockdown gives $3.4-billion boost to PLDT, Globe

WHILE the coronavirus grinds the $331 billion Philippine economy to almost a halt, a boom in mobile digital payments is reviving investor interest in the nation’s two telecom carriers.

Forced to stay at home since President Rodrigo Duterte ordered a lockdown in mid-March, millions of Filipinos are now using their smartphones to pay for items from bread to vegetables and meat, increasingly shunning cash transactions. Some employers are even paying salaries using phone apps.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is breathing new life into phone-based payment systems that earlier failed to take off in the Southeast Asian country. While PLDT Inc. and Globe Telecom, Inc. introduced their platforms as far back as 2000, their apps started tasting success only after handsets and wireless data became more affordable.

“The days of people of wanting to hand cash over as their main means may be numbered,” Globe President Ernest L. Cu said, citing concerns that the coronavirus can stay on bills for a long period of time. Registration at its GCash payment system has more than doubled month-on-month since the lockdown, making it the third most downloaded free app behind Tiktok and Zoom, according to Maria Aurora Sy-Manalang, chief technology and operations officer at the carrier.

Transactions and total volume handled by PLDT’s PayMaya more than doubled from a year ago in the first quarter, and “this accelerated growth trajectory has been sustained,” PayMaya President Shailesh Baidwan said.

Shares of PLDT on Wednesday have rebounded 50% from a 16-year low touched on March 20, while those of Globe have jumped 37% from an almost two-year low. PLDT and Globe are two of the three stocks that are up in the 30-company benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange Index this year, with recent gains helping add a combined $3.4 billion to their market value. PLDT fell 3.8% on Thursday as it reported a 12% drop in first-quarter net income, while Globe slid 1.8%.

“Globe and PLDT have always said that fintech is a new leg of growth and the virus gave a glimpse of what can happen,” said Rachelle Cruz, an analyst at Manila-based AP Securities Inc.. “Fintech will be one of the megatrends post coronavirus. It will get higher market shares in money transfers and online payments that could lead to other financial services.”

The pandemic is spurring people in countries from India to Indonesia to switch to phone apps for payments as they avoid touching cash — the predominant mode of transactions. In the Philippines, the central bank says only 9% of the population uses credit cards. PLDT and Globe have about 160 million in combined wireless subscribers, exceeding the nation’s population of 108.7 million.

The leap toward technology — use of wireless data for payments — is among initiatives pursued by the carriers as widespread use of data and social media combined with crushing price wars have dented revenues from calls and texts. Building another source of revenue has also become more urgent as PLDT and Globe face the entry of a third major player.

While Globe and PLDT’s financial services aren’t likely to end 2020 with a profit, these initiatives could post narrower losses and turn cashflow positive over a shorter time as both carriers build on their gains from the lockdown, according to Ms. Cruz.

GCash transactions have doubled from a year ago, with money transfers and online payments during the lockdown growing at 20% to 25% over the previous quarter, and the average size of settlements during the lockdown rising 40% to about P1,000, Ms. Sy-Manalang said. Meanwhile, PayMaya’s transaction volumes for previously cash-heavy sectors such as pharmaceuticals and groceries are rising as Filipinos shop for essentials during the lockdown, Mr. Baidwan said.

“The virus has accelerated the acceptance of mobile phones as a mode of payment,” said Ms. Cruz at AP Securities. “The quarantine left many people no choice but to use the technology that’s easily available and ubiquitous.” — Bloomberg

A practical guide to staying hydrated during the pandemic

By Teddy S. Manansala

HIGH temperatures have been recorded across the country as the dry season continues amid COVID-19 pandemic. To keep up everyone’s health and wellness, hydration cannot be ignored.

The Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) recommends drinking six to eight glasses of water and other beverages per day. Yet, this requirement is higher when a person’s level of physical activity is increased such as in the case of exercise or sports activities. In addition, don’t forget to increase water and fluid intake these days when the heat index is so high in order to prevent heat stroke and dehydration.

You don’t have to wait to feel thirsty before taking your fluid. Thirst is the body’s signal to the brain that your cells are already dehydrated. Take note that our body cells are composed of 70% water or more of its total mass. Within our cells, water functions in facilitating physiological and biochemical processes such as energy production, the synthesis of hormones, elimination of wastes, blood pressure and heart rate regulation, body temperature or thermoregulation, and immune cells response, among many others.

Here are the “5 Cs” to increase your water and fluid intake:

1. Choose fresh foods that are high in moisture or water content. There are many kinds of locally available fresh produce from local farms and markets that are good such as watermelon, cantaloupe, citrus fruits, grapefruit, cucumber, celery, tomatoes, and coconut meat. They are also good sources of dietary fiber which helps flush out toxins from your body. A plus point — you may help our local farmers by purchasing their fresh produce online or by visiting the nearby markets.

2. Create dishes with more liquid. In meal planning and preparation, always include at least one menu item with more liquid or stock such as soups, stews, noodle dishes, soupy vegetables and seafood. You may include simmered, boiled, or braised meats. Don’t forget to make it even more nutritious by adding economical indigenous ingredients such as the leaves of malunggay, sili, camote tops, squash, amaranth, and fern.

3. Carry that reusable water tumbler with you. Having a personal water tumbler will aid you in keeping track of your daily water intake. In addition to that, drinking from your own bottle likewise helps the environment by limiting your use of single-use containers.

4. Chill with refreshing drinks. You can be creative with your beverages by making infused drinks and fruit shakes, using less table sugar in the latter. Personalize your infused drinks with citrus fruits such as lemon, oranges, tangerine, lime, and calamansi. Vegetables such as sliced cucumbers and fresh herbs such as mint may be used. Meanwhile, fruit shakes can be a combination of seasonal fruits made with less table sugar, and using low-fat milk, or made with yogurt for increased good bacteria in your guts.

5. Consume those highly caffeinated drinks in moderation. Beverages with high caffeine content such as coffee and teas may be consumed in moderation. To make them healthier, add a squeeze of lemon, lime, or calamansi. This reduces the bitter taste in coffee while the vitamin C content increases the absorption rate of the antioxidant catechins present in tea. Remember, use less table sugar to no sugar at all as both caffeine and simple sugars are dehydrating.

Teddy S. Manansala is a Registered Nutritionist-Dietitian and holds two master’s degrees from the University of the Philippines (UP) and the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde, where he is an Assistant Professor at the School of Hotel, Restaurant and Institution Management (SHRIM).

Robinsons Land earnings up 82%, capex cut 11%

EARNINGS of Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC) ballooned 82% in the first quarter due to changes in its accounting policy which resulted in higher profits from its residential business.

The Gokongwei-led real estate company reported a net income of P3.34 billion in the January-to-March period, jumping from P1.8 billion in the same period last year. Consolidated revenue likewise rose 70% to P11.57 billion.

In a statement, the company said its new accounting policy resulted in a 241% leap in residential revenues to P6.7 billion, which made up 58% of its consolidated revenue. This is due to the recognition of revenue based on a buyer’s equity threshold of 10% from the previous 15%.

But the remainder of revenues which comprised those from RLC’s investment portfolio were flat because of operational disruptions from following lockdown measures implemented in mid-March.

Capital expenditures (capex) for local operations stood at P5.91 billion in the first quarter. For the full year, RLC said it is cutting capex to P24 billion from P27 billion as an effect of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ).

“Due to the effects of the ECQ and the expected slow transition back to normal life, RLC has assessed its new projects pipeline. Projects that have not commenced will no longer be pursued for now,” it said.

By business segment, RLC’s mall business contributed revenues of P2.87 billion, down by 8% from a year ago. This is attributed to the closure of its 52-mall network across the country in compliance with government orders to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus.

The office segment added P1.43 billion, up by 27% from last year, due to the strong market reception of its new buildings in Quezon City and Tarlac. RLC now has 23 operational sites in its portfolio of office buildings.

Hotels and resorts raised P468 million in the first quarter, down by 10% from in 2019. The company said even before the lockdown, there have been frequent booking cancellations because of fear of the coronavirus and the eruption of Taal Volcano in January. The company’s average occupancy rate stood at 79% for its network of more than 3,000 rooms.

Revenues from RLC’s industrial and integrated developments division, which accounts for its operations of warehouse facilities, grew 96% to P96.4 million. The company said it intends to build more warehouses to expand its portfolio.

“RLC continues to be optimistic about its growth outlook as it builds a larger and more diversified platform. Our strong fundamentals and solid balance sheet will help us navigate the challenges brought about by the new coronavirus,” RLC President and Chief Executive Officer Frederick D. Go said in the statement.

“As we emerge from the enhanced community quarantine, our priorities are the welfare and wellbeing of our employees, business partners, and patrons,” he added.

Shares in RLC at the stock exchange increased 58 centavos or 4.04% to P14.92 each on Thursday. — Denise A. Valdez

Sing along in special telecast of Disney music and High School Musical

BRING a little magic into your homes with The Disney Family Singalong and the full singalong telecast of the Emmy and Billboard Music Award-winning High School Musical on Tuesday, May 12, 7 p.m., on Disney Channels across Southeast Asia.

The star-studded The Disney Family Singalong special, hosted by Ryan Seacrest from his home, averaged 12.2 million viewers in its debut broadcast in the United States last month. It was widely acclaimed for its creativity and inventiveness, as stars offered messages of support and performed favorite Disney songs with their families, “quarantine” partners, or solo from their homes. The stars include Christina Aguilera, Erin Andrews, Bobby Bones, Michael Bublé, Kristin Chenoweth, Darren Criss, Luke Evans, Elle Fanning, Josh Gad, Ariana Grande, Josh Groban, Julianne Hough, Little Big Town, Demi Lovato, Alan Menken, Donny Osmond, Tracee Ellis Ross, and John Stamos.

James Monroe Iglehart and the Broadway Company of Disney’s Aladdin also reunited for a rendition of “Friend Like Me.’

For the finale, Kenny Ortega of High School Musical fame leads stars from High School Musical and more in a rousing version of “We’re All in This Together.” The stars include Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, Corbin Bleu, Monique Coleman, Lucas Grabeel, KayCee Stroh, Raven-Symoné, Dove Cameron, Sofia Carson, Booboo Stewart, Sarah Jeffery, Meg Donelly, Milo Manheim, Joshua Bassett, Olivia Rodrigo, Sofia Wylie, Matt Cornett, Dara Reneé, Julia Lester, Larry Saperstein, Frankie Rodriguez, Joe Serafini, and Tik Tok Sensations Charli D’Amelio and Dixie D’Amelio, Chucky Klapow, Jared Murillo, Ro Malaga, Britt Stewart, Kim Klapow and Bayli Baker Thompson.

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