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PSEi hits 6,600 level, logs best finish since March

By Denise A. Valdez, Senior Reporter

THE MAIN INDEX logged its best finish since March on Thursday as it extended its rally for a fourth consecutive day.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) surged 180.72 points or 2.79% to hit 6,644.77 at the close of trading. The broader all shares index likewise jumped 70.7 points or 1.83% to end at 3,919.31.

The PSEi opened at 6,477.16, which was already its low for the trading session. It reached a high of 6,702.75 intraday before inching down slightly at the session’s close.

Thursday’s finish marked the PSEi’s best since March 6’s close of 6,770.38, which was before the announcement of strict lockdown measures amid the coronavirus pandemic. The market again showed signs of recovery in June after the easing of quarantine rules in Metro Manila, with the PSEi’s previous peak logged at 6,583.84 June 9.

“The main index has broken above its main resistance of 6,580, its previous high last June,” AAA Southeast Equities, Inc. Research Head Christopher John Mangun said in an e-mail. “The pullback that we saw last week was extremely beneficial to the uptrend as it relieved selling pressure, allowing other investors to get in before the market continued higher.”

Apart from maintaining its current uptrend which has been going on since Oct. 30, the local bourse also saw foreign investors reversing to a net buying position on Thursday. The market recorded net purchases of P623.88 million, reversing Wednesday’s net outflows of P431.49 million and ending five days of selling.

“[M]ore and more investors gain confidence that the economy will see a strong rebound in the fourth quarter. A pick up in government and consumer spending is expected as we approach the Christmas season,” Mr. Mangun said.

Prospects that United States (US) presidential candidate Joe Biden would win the election also helped push investor optimism on Thursday, as a win for the Democrats may result in an easing of the trade war between US and China.

“We think that if Biden will win, US-China trade war would somehow be (pushed to the) sidelines and this would benefit the sentiment towards Asian markets including the Philippines,” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Research Associate Piper Chaucer E. Tan said in a text message.

Nearly all sectoral indices ended Thursday’s session with gains. Property grew 101.05 points or 3.27% to 3,184.47; holding firms rose 214.91 points or 3.17% to 6,976.65; financials climbed 30.11 points or 2.38% to 1,293.19; services added 24.49 points or 1.68% to 1,479.46; and industrials picked up 129.76 points or 1.49% to 8,833.91. The sole declining index was mining and oil, which dropped 22.48 points or 0.28% to end the session at 7,768.48.

Value turnover on Thursday stood at P10.18 billion with 5 billion issues switching hands, up from the previous session’s P7.25 billion with 2.34 billion issues.

Advancers outpaced decliners, 128 against 73. Some 53 names ended unchanged.

COVID-19 vaccine program may start in May

THE PHILIPPINE government is considering orders for 24 million units of coronavirus vaccines and may start inoculating Filipinos by May, according to the country’s vaccine czar.

The vaccines might be ordered in the first quarter, Carlito Galvez, Jr., who is in charge of the state’s import and distribution program, told the ABS-CBN News Channel on Thursday.

The inoculation program might start as late as the end of next year if vaccine development and manufacturing are delayed, he told an online news briefing separately.

Mr. Galvez this week said the government would focus on evaluating vaccines and clinical trials this quarter and on procurement and storage in the first quarter of next year.

“Developed countries have already secured a vaccine,” he said. “What we need to do is have an advanced procurement while the vaccine is being produced.”

The government would prioritize 24 million frontliners, indigents and poor communities, Mr. Galvez said.

He said the vaccination program could take three to five years since supply might not be able to keep up with demand.

The Department of Health (DoH) reported 1,594 coronavirus infections on Thursday, bringing the total to 389,725.

The death toll rose by 42 to 7,409, while recoveries increased by 468 to 349,543, it said in a bulletin.

There were 32,773 active cases , 83% of which were mild, 10.1% did not show symptoms, 2.5% were severe and 4.4% were critical.

Manila reported the highest number of new cases at 253, followed by Cavite at 126, Davao City at 78, Rizal at 78 and Quezon City at 73.

DoH said six duplicates had been removed from the tally, while 14 cases tagged as recovered were reclassified as deaths. It said 10 laboratories had failed to submit their data on Nov. 4.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte last month said the government had funds to buy coronavirus vaccines, but it needs more so the entire population of more than 100 million could be inoculated.

He said he would look for more funds so all Filipinos could be vaccinated. The President said he was okay with vaccines developed either by Russia or China.

Mr. Duterte said he had spoken with outgoing Russian Ambassador Igor A. Khovaev and was told that Russia intends to set up a pharmaceutical company in the Philippines that will make the vaccines available here.

He said soldiers and the police will be among the first ones to be vaccinated, along with poor Filipinos.

DoH on Wednesday said it was looking at two sets of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine makers for potential government orders when these become available.

The first group consists of drug manufacturers and bilateral partners that may want to conduct clinical trials in the Philippines first.

The other group consists of drug companies that are willing to sell the vaccines to the government.

DoH is also in talks with manufacturers for potential vaccine orders once they finish clinical trials in November.

The agency has said it had developed the expertise to enforce a national vaccine program for the coronavirus.

The coronavirus has sickened 48.5 million and killed 1.2 million people worldwide, according to the Worldometers website, citing various sources including data from the World Health Organization (WHO).

Almost 35 million people have recovered from the virus, it said.

It added that active cases stood at 12.5 million, 1% or 89,441 of which or 70,477 were either serious or critical.

The United States had the most infections at 9.8 million, followed by India with 8.4 million and Brazil with 5.6 million. The US also had the most deaths at 239,842, Brazil had 161,170 and India had 124,354. — Gillian M. Cortez and Charmaine A. Tadalan

SWS poll shows most Pinoys think they’re worse off

MAJORITY of Filipinos felt their quality of life worsened in the past year, with 82% identifying themselves as “losers” amid a coronavirus pandemic, according to the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) poll.

Only 6% said they were “gainers,” while the remaining 11% felt no change, it said in a report posted on its website on Wednesday night.

The poll resulted in a net gainer score of -76, which the polling body classified as “catastrophic.”

“The September 2020 score joins SWS’s worst trends in survey history, having recorded -78 in May and -72 in July during the COVID-19 crisis,” SWS said.

“The only other time the score reached a catastrophic level was in June 2008 (-50), during rice and oil price hikes,” it added. SWS started doing the quality of life poll in 1983.

The net gainer scores in all areas were worse than the July results. Mindanao scored 9 points lower at -74 in September 2020, while Visayas dropped 5 points to -80. Metro Manila worsened by 4 points to -76 and the rest of Luzon fell by a point to -75.

Results also showed net gainer scores were worse for families experiencing hunger and for those who did not graduate from college.

“Adults from families that were involuntarily hungry in the last three months had a higher losers score than those that were not,” SWS said. The get gainer score among those who were hungry was -84 against the -72 score among those who were not.

The poll also showed non-college graduates found their quality of life significantly worse than those who graduated from college, but hardly varied between jobless adults and those who were employed.

The net gainer score of college graduates was -64 against the -72 to -83 scores of those with less education, while those who were employed and unemployed scored -73 and -79, respectively.

SWS interviewed 1,249 people by phone from Sept. 17 to 20 for the poll, which had an error margin of ±3 points. — Charmaine A. Tadalan

Senator says Manila has more time to review ties with US

SUSPENDING the termination of a military pact with the US on the deployment of troops for war games will give the Philippines more time to review relations with its former colonizer, a senate leader said on Thursday.

“It’s a good move while the Executive department is reviewing the pros and cons of the agreement, especially our defense relationship,” Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III told reporters in a Viber group message.

Presidential spokesman Harry L. Roque on Wednesday said President Rodrigo R. Duterte might invoke the second suspension of the termination of the visiting forces agreement (VFA).

Mr. Duterte in February notified the US he would end the two-decade-old defense pact after the US Embassy canceled the visa of Senator Ronald M. dela Rosa, his former police chief who led his deadly war on drugs.

The termination was suspended for six months in June amid a coronavirus pandemic and heightened tensions in the Asia-Pacific region. This may be extended for another six months.

Mr. Sotto sought changes to the VFA, which he said should contain a cause that obligates the US to define the Philippines against external threats.

Also on Thursday, Albay Rep. Jose Maria Clemente S. Salceda said a potential Joe Biden presidency in the US would restore closer ties between the two countries.

Joseph R. Biden would likely veer away from US President Trump’s “America First” policy and return to multilateralism.

“This bodes well for the Philippines’ access to the COVID-19 vaccine,” he said in a statement.

Mr. Salceda said a Biden presidency would ease the deadlock on America’s stimulus talks as the Democratic Party is projected to keep control of the US Congress. This is good for the Philippines because the US is a major trade partner and investment source, he added.

“Biden is more open to multilateral trade deals than Trump has been,” Mr. Salceda said. “A shift from Trump’s hardline stance on trade will open opportunities for trade deals with the US.” — Charmaine A. Tadalan and Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

Nationwide round-up (11/05/20)

Palace says no need to realign anti-insurgency funds

THERE is no need to realign the government’s anti-insurgency budget for next year to increase funding for disaster response, Malacañang Palace Spokesperson Harry L. Roque said on Thursday. In a briefing, he said the funds allocated for the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict’s (NTF-ELCAC) will go to typhoon-affected and calamity-prone areas anyway because insurgents are active in these regions. “Iyong ELCAC na pondo po ay pupunta doon sa area na mayroong insurgency problem dahil alam naman natin na kinakailangan magkaroon ng pag-unlad para mawala na iyong problema pagdating sa insurgency (The ECLAC fund will go to the areas that have insurgency problems because as we know, development is needed to eradicate the insurgency problem),” he said. Opposition lawmakers have questioned the P19-billion proposed budget for NTF-ELCAC in 2021, and have called for a realignment to other purposes such as recovery programs in areas devastated by natural calamities. — Gillian M. Cortez

Philippines in the running for 5 global categories after winning 4 Asian honors in 2020 World Travel Awards 

THE PHILIPPINES now has four awards from the  27th World Travel Awards after Intramuros, the Spanish-era walled city in the capital Manila, was declared as Asia’s Leading Tourist Attraction on Wednesday. The announcement came after the country bagged the Asia awards for leading beach and diving destination, and the Department of Tourism as leading tourist board. “These recognitions are certainly an inspiration to the industry as we safely and gradually reopen our destinations for tourism. These would not be possible without the combined efforts from our tourism stakeholders, local government units, partner agencies, and our fellow Filipinos who have tirelessly promoted our country’s attractions, products, and culture,” Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said in a statement. Meanwhile, the Philippines is also in the running for five global categories, including the four that won at the regional level plus Siargao as leading island destination. The tourism industry contributed P2.48 trillion to the economy in 2019, the highest since 2000 based on available government data. Visitor arrivals have been on a steady growth in the past five years, with more than 8.2 million recorded last year from 5.36 million in 2015.

Regional Updates (11/05/20)

Ready for Siony

Batanes residents, known as Ivatans, are no stranger to strong typhoons and have a long tradition of preparing by boarding up their windows with shutters locally called tapangko, and tying up structures or what they call kapanpet. The provincial government said on Thursday morning that the local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council has been placed under 24/7 alert status for storm Siony (international name: Atsani), which could make landfall by Friday morning, according to the national weather bureau.  Tropical cyclone wind signal #2 was up in Batanes and the neighboring Babuyan Islands. As of 4 p.m. Thursday, Siony was located 340 kilometers (km) east of Basco, Batanes and moving slow at 20 km per hour with winds of 100 km/h and gustiness of up to 125 km/h.

EU sets P63-M assistance for typhoon Rolly relief and recovery operations

THE European Union (EU) is sending €1.3 million (P63 million) in emergency relief aid to families affected by typhoon Rolly (international name: Goni). The funding will go to humanitarian aid groups in the Philippines that are providing shelter, food, water supply, and livelihood assistance in the devastated areas, according to the European External Action Service (EEAS) in Manila. “It will not only cover the immediate needs of the most affected populations, but will also help the Filipino people restore their homes and livelihoods so they can get back on their feet as soon as possible. The EU stands in solidarity with those affected in the Philippines,” EU Commission for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič said in the EEAS press statement on Thursday. The fund will be sourced from the EU’s Acute Large Emergency Response Tool (ALERT), which is used to respond to natural hazards in places where over 100,000 people or over half the population are affected. Over 230,000 families composed more than 900,000 people have been affected by the typhoon, mostly in the Bicol Region, based on the national disaster management’s council update as of Nov. 5. More than 14,000 houses were totally destroyed while almost 30,000 bore partial damage.

FARMERS
The Department of Agriculture (DA) said on Thursday it has allotted P682.43 million worth of assistance to almost 33,000 farmers in Bicol. Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar, who visited one of the hardest hit provinces, Albay, said P592.43 million will also be released by the Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. Another P90 million worth of assistance were given to farmers such as hybrid rice seeds, corn, assorted vegetables, urea fertilizer, farm implements, fishing boats, and fishing gears. Mr. Dar said affected farmers and fisherfolk can also avail of a P25,000 rehabilitation loan under the DA’s Agricultural Credit and Policy Council. Damage to agriculture has reached P2.95 billion as of the DA’s Nov. 5 bulletin. About 126,135 metric tons (MT) of farm produce were lost, while 31,573 farmers and fisherfolk were affected across 66,068 hectares of agricultural land in five regions. Commodities that were damaged include rice, corn, abaca, high-value crops (assorted vegetables, cassava, banana, and other fruit trees), livestock, and agricultural facilities. Malacañang, meanwhile, sent 60 tons of relief goods to Catanduanes, the island province where Rolly first made landfall at super typhoon category. Palace Spokesperson Harry L. Roque assured residents that the government will provide the food and water they need.

POWER SUPPLY
On power facilities, the estimated cost of damage has reached P179.16 million, with the bulk incurred by electric cooperatives in Bicol, according to the National Electrification Administration’s (NEA) report on Thursday. FICELCO in Catanduanes sustained the largest damage at P133.06 million. NEA also reported that 52.27 % of the affected power supply has been restored, covering about a million households in Bicol, and parts of Calabarzon, Mimaropa and Eastern Visayas. However, almost a million other households remain without supply, mostly in Bicol, as several transmission lines are still down. Eighteen transmission lines are still offline, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines said in a separate advisory. For Catanduanes, Energy Undersecretary Felix William B. Fuentebella said in a briefing Thursday that 500 linemen will be sent to help repair posts, but full power restoration could take several weeks. — Jenina P. Ibañez, Revin Mikhael D. Ochave, Gillian M. Cortez, and Angelica Y. Yang

House tribunal upholds election victory of Manila’s Lopez

THE House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal (HRET) upheld the victory of Manila 1st District Rep. Manuel Luis T. Lopez in the 2019 elections. In a resolution dated Aug. 27, released to the media only on Thursday, the HRET junked the electoral protest filed by his opponent, former congressman Benjamin D.R. Asilo. “Our landslide win was clear and irrefutable that even our opponent failed to present his supposed witnesses,” Mr. Lopez said in a statement on Thursday. The nine-member tribunal dismissed the case for being insufficient in form and substance after Mr. Asilo failed to present his 112 intended witnesses who were supposed to prove that “traditional election irregularities, manipulations and anomalies” were committed in the 2019 elections. The HRET, composed of three Supreme Court justices and six members of the House, is currently chaired by Associate Justice Marvic Mario Victor F. Leonen. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

Davao City council asked to reassess resolution endorsing Samal-Davao Bridge

A FORMER local consumer group leader has asked the Davao City council to reevaluate, or better yet immediately revoke, the resolution endorsing the construction of the Samal-Davao bridge project. Wenifredo Gorrez, a city resident and former executive director of Konsumo-Dabaw, said the endorsement went against procedure because it was passed before the issuance of an environmental compliance certificate (ECC) by the Environment department. “Hence, the City Council may not be able to discharge its duty to maintain ecological balance as provided under the Local Government Code based on a complete set of information on the environmental impacts of the project and issue its timely disapproval where justified. The fast-paced implementation of the project will render the City Council’s intervention moot,” Mr. Gorrez said in his letter sent on Nov. 3 to Councilor Melchor B. Quitain, Jr., temporary presiding officer of the council. The endorsement is contained in Resolution No.0384-2019, titled Favorably Endorsing the Samal-Davao City Connector Bridge Project of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). During a virtual public hearing conducted by the DPWH last month for its ECC application, Councilor Pilar C. Braga indicated that the city government should still review concerns raised on the bridge’s final design and location despite the endorsement. — Maya M. Padillo

BSP to start gathering data for small-business credit system

THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said it will begin work this month compiling a credit risk database (CRD) that will help banks more easily evaluate the creditworthiness of small businesses and wean lenders away from requiring excessive collateral cover.

The project is backed by the Japan International Cooperation Agency and will run until 2023, BSP Governor Benjamin E. Diokno said.

“Actual data collection will start in the third week of November. Orientation about the data collection process is being conducted for the officers of the 18 participating banks,” Mr. Diokno said in a briefing Thursday. Building the CRD framework will run from 2021 to 2022.

Banks have been reluctant to lend to some small-, and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) due to the dearth of credit data for the sector.

“CRD addresses two key issues on SME financing. First is SMEs’ reluctance to seek bank loans due to lack of credit history or collateral. Second is the banks’ perception that SMEs, in general, are high risk,” Mr. Diokno said.

The BSP hopes to provide banks with tools to assess small firms’ capacity to pay back loans and reduce their dependence on collateral for credit decisions.

“Since it will cover certainly more data points and more SME data than what a single bank can come up with, the CRD model can be more stable and accurate in coming up with in terms of predictive analysis,” said Ellen Joyce L. Suficiencia, director of the BSP’s Center for Learning and Inclusion Advocacy.

Ms. Suficiencia said banks that already have their internal credit scoring tools can use the CRD to validate their own evaluations.

The CRD could also enable the practice of risk-based interest, Ms. Suficiencia said.

“If you’re an SME that’s categorized in the lower probably probability of default group, then you should be able to get better loan terms,” she said.

By the end of the three-year project, the CRD will be turned over to a permanent body, either an industry association, a government agency, or the BSP, Ms. Suficiencia said. The target is to encourage adoption by more banks eventually, expanding funding to SME clients.

The Department of Trade and Industry has estimated that the broader category of micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) accounted for about 99% of the one million registered businesses in 2018.

The sector received loans worth P208.201 billion in the first quarter, or about 2.47% of the banking system’s loans overall. This is much less than the 10% share required by Republic Act. No. 6977 or the Magna Carta for MSMEs.

The central bank has been encouraging banks to extend credit to small businesses during the pandemic crisis via regulatory relief such as allowing MSME loans to count towards reserve compliance. — Luz Wendy T. Noble

Small businesses seen playing key role in achieving SDGs

WWW.UN.ORG

SMALL FIRMS have become more significant in the effort to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) after the pandemic set back many of the gains of recent years, participants at the Sustainability Summit 2020 were told.

At the forum Thursday, United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) CEO and Executive Director Sanda Ojiambo said fallout from the pandemic hit small businesses hard, disrupting supply chains and business operations.

“COVID-19 has caused a humanitarian and economic crisis that threatens to push the global goals even further off track. MSMEs (micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises) are the businesses that have been the hardest hit by the pandemic (and) are feeling the squeeze,” Ms. Ojiambo said during the forum streamed online.

“We firmly believe that the SDGs can be achieved only with active support (and) leadership from these enterprises. That’s why the UNGC in every region has pivoted to help support MSMEs weather the current storm and position themselves for sustainable recovery,” she added.

She said the UNGC has also formed a Sustainable MSME program, which includes providing expertise to develop recovery and resiliency business strategies.

In the Philippines, 99% of businesses are MSMEs generating more than 5.5 million jobs. They also account for 62% of the workforce.

National Economic and Development Authority Undersecretary Rosemarie G. Edillon said at the forum that the pandemic has also forced small businesses to adopt more sustainable practices.

She said a deep review of current business policies, financing mechanisms and government practices is needed to address the ongoing crisis.

“It has been said that this pandemic has come about because of some unsustainable practices we have, whether in production or consumption… Once they emerge from the acute response to the COVID-19, MSMEs will benefit from the creation of a cohesive narrative for their recovery that mobilizes efforts across sectors,” she added.

To help businesses in the post-pandemic era, Ms. Edillon said the government’s plan is focused on five areas: health system improvement, food security, learning continuity, digital transformation and ecological integrity.

“These priorities also coincide with the global goals and their means of implementation and right now it’s too early to know whether the time-bound targets of the SDGs will be reset, but their principles remain useful in organizing a recovery strategy that combines growth, inclusion and sustainability,” she said.

In an October policy brief, the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs estimated the goal of eliminating extreme poverty by 2030, one of the 17 SDGs, may no longer be possible because of the pandemic, even under the most optimistic scenario. — Beatrice M. Laforga

Bureau of Customs audits produce additional P1 billion in revenue

THE Bureau of Customs (BoC) said it generated an additional P1.035 billion in revenue in the 10 months to October after finding violations by importers in post-clearance audits.

“The BoC, through the Post Clearance Audit Group, collected P1.035 billion in additional revenue as a result of post-clearance audits conducted on importers suspected to have violated CMTA (the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act),” the bureau said in its year-to-date accomplishment report.

The bureau conducts regular audits each year to verify importer compliance. The process generates penalties from any adverse audit findings.

The BoC also confiscated P9.963 billion worth of smuggled goods during the period, according to the report, posted on the BoC website.

Smuggled cigarettes and other tobacco products made up half of the total confiscated goods with an estimated value of P4.99 billion. This was followed by illegal drugs worth P1.85 billion or 18.6% of the total, and smuggled cash worth P1.2 billion (12%).

Other top imported items brought in illegally include fake goods valued at P521 million, cars and accessories worth P355 million, general merchandise P310 million, agricultural goods P208 million, food P200 million, and personal protective equipment, medical supplies and cosmetics P196 million.

“The BoC has remained consistent and compliant to its mandate to carry out operational and preventive measures against illicit trade, ensuring secure borders and efficient services,” the BoC said.

The bureau filed 94 cases before the Department of Justice (DoJ) against 205 respondents and cancelled accreditations of 508 importers and 116 Customs brokers.

The BoC investigated 135 Customs personnel and charged 45 of them with administrative cases; seven with criminal charges before the DoJ; 157 cases before the Office of the Ombudsman; and 50 cases before the National Bureau of Investigation.

It dismissed 20 officers and dismissed another four.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte has asked the DoJ to form a task group that will investigate alleged corruption in the “entire government” through 2022.

The BoC is among the top five agencies identified by the DoJ as prioritized for investigation, along with Philippine Health Insurance Corp., the Bureau of Internal Revenue, the Land Registration Authority, and the Department of Public Works and Highways.

The bureau collected P50.9 billion in October, exceeding its downward-revised collection target by 5.2%.

In the year to date, it collected P448.95 billion, which was 6.75% above target but 14.9% lower than the year-earlier level.

The BoC’s collection target for the year was reduced to P506.15 billion as the economic slowdown and lockdowns here and abroad impact global trade and the government’s tax take. — Beatrice M. Laforga

China trade show target set lower for PHL delegation

THE PHILIPPINE delegation to a trade show in China is targeting $160 million in export deals this year, which would represent a drastic downgrade compared with the year-earlier result after a reduction in the size of its pavilion.

The 40 Philippine food companies are planning to reach 1,300 buyers at the China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai which ends Nov. 10, the Trade department’s Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM) said in a statement Thursday.

Last year, the Philippine delegation generated $300 million at the same event.

The top sellers of the 2019 Philippine delegation of 139 exhibitors, including 32 food vendors, were fresh bananas, pineapples, mangoes and durian along with processed fruits and nuts and coconut products. The exhibition space of more than 240,000 square meters attracted buyers from more than 100 countries.

Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said the trade show will reflect restrictions to doing business imposed by the pandemic.

“This year is a pandemic year. This is a hybrid show this year, where the goods are displayed but negotiations are done via the online B2B facility,” he said in a mobile message.

“The target is also based on the reduced pavilion size this year, as well as the projected decrease in the number of buyers attending CIIE this year.”

The food companies in this year’s delegation are selling tropical fruit, vegetables, and health-oriented snacks.

The delegation held an online business matching session with 40 Chinese buyers on Oct. 29, generating leads for fresh fruit and vegetables, chocolate, healthy snacks, seafood, beverages, and condiments.

The Philippine pavilion this year will include interactive conference pods for virtual business activities and conferencing.

Commercial counsellors will represent the government, helping promote products and relay information, instead of the exhibitors themselves.

“For this hybrid participation, there will be a mix of physical product presentation in the pavilion that will be facilitated by onsite officers from our trade posts in China and online B2B (business to business) matching activities between our companies in Manila and the Chinese buyers who will visit our booth in Shanghai,” CITEM Executive Director Pauline Suaco-Juan said. — Jenina P. Ibañez

EU pledges P8.5 billion worth of grants for Mindanao agri, power

THE European Union (EU) will provide 150 million euros (P8.5 billion) worth of grants to support agricultural development in Mindanao and electricity projects for small island communities in the southern Philippines, the Department of Finance (DoF) said in a statement.

The DoF said Thursday that Thomas Wiersing, the charge d’affaires of the EU Delegation to the Philippines, committed to the financial aid.

At a recent meeting, Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III expressed his gratitude for the grants, as well as the EU’s earlier commitment to reorient parts of its aid to help the region deal with the pandemic.

The EU said in July it will reorient up to 15 million euros to support the region’s attempts to contain the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Mr. Dominguez also proposed that the plan to support the electrification of small island communities involve the use of clean energy.

The proposal was supported by the EU Delegation, the DoF said.

The latest grant will add to the 85 million euros worth of total grants the EU provided to the region so far this year.

The EU provided grants worth 24.5 million euros to the Philippines in August to fund the rehabilitation of Marawi City and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao’s pandemic containment effort.

In July, it also agreed to provide 60.5 million euros to fund selected development programs in Mindanao.

The EU is the country’s 11th biggest source of official development assistance.

During the same meeting, Mr. Dominguez also sought the EU’s assistance in making the manufacturing sector more competitive, specifically in integrating medium-sized enterprises with the supply chains of larger firms. — Beatrice M. Laforga

Bases authority rebids consulting services package of Subic-Clark Railway Project

THE Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) is rebidding the P1.5-billion consulting services package of the Subic-Clark Railway Project.

In an announcement published in newspapers Thursday, BCDA said it “intends to apply the sum of P1,520,534,400.00, inclusive of value-added tax and applicable government taxes, being the approved budget for the contract (ABC) to payments under the contract for the Consulting Services for the Subic-Clark Railway Project.”

BCDA said the Bids and Awards Committee Secretariat will be accepting eligibility documents from interested consultants until Nov. 17 at its corporate center in Taguig City.

“Applications for eligibility will be evaluated based on non-discretionary ‘pass/fail’ criterion,” it added.

Interested bidders may acquire a complete set of bid documents until Dec. 10 for P75,000.

The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board approved the 71.13-kilometer railway project in April 2018.

The P50.03-billion project aims to connect Subic Bay Freeport Zone and Clark Freeport Zone “to support current industrial activities and the potential demand for freight services along the Subic-Clark corridor,” according to NEDA’s website.

NEDA said P42.53 billion of the total project cost will be financed via official development assistance or ODA.

“This project (will) help decongest Metro Manila traffic, provide infrastructure for the Metro Luzon Urban Beltway, and spur the development of a freight railway system for Luzon,” NEDA added. — Arjay L. Balinbin

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