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Phoenix seeks leaner supply chain, cost cuts

PHOENIX Petroleum Philippines, Inc. (Phoenix) said it is pursuing cost and productivity measures, including the integration of all its property assets under one unit and the ongoing rationalization of its supply chain.

Upon its regular strategic review, the listed independent fuel retailer told the stock exchange on Thursday that it seeks to create leaner supply chain and logistics, improve productivity, and lower expense base.

The company will integrate all of its assets under its property holding subsidiary, Duta, Inc., which will take over the company’s inventory of owned and leased assets, manage real estate leases, and handle future purchase of properties.

It will also identify and implement real estate synergies with other Phoenix businesses, and will co-develop with other real estate developers.

“Under Duta, Inc., we are repositioning real estate as an integrated, dynamic portfolio that aligns real estate resources with competitive strategies and maximizes yield,” Phoenix Chief Finance Officer Concepcion F. de Claro said.

“Duta will have greater financial accountability as it will have its own organization, budget, and Board-approved KPIs (key performance indicator),” the official added.

The company’s stockholders recently approved Phoenix’s investment of up to P4.9 billion into the holding unit over the next three years.

Phoenix also seeks to minimize risks and capital expenditure burden through the formation of a separate road transport company, which will partner with operators.

Phoenix President Henry Albery R. Fadullon noted the low availability of trucks and high attrition among drivers, which affects its efficiency and ability to deliver.

“Adding to the overall complexity is the increased exposure to health, security, safety, and environmental (HSSE) risks and capex (capital expenditure) for the fleet expansion,” he added.

The newly installed president said the company already did test runs of outsourcing delivery operations, seeing an improvement in truck utilization to 1.5 times of trips each day from just 0.75 times.

Moreover, Phoenix continues to rationalize the supply chains of its lubricant and FamilyMart businesses, eyeing to save over P300 million over the upcoming years.

Last year, the company started to shift to third-party service providers from an in-house distribution for both segments.

FamilyMart is said to save P4 million monthly from simplified operations, while its lubricant business is estimated to save P40 million in operating expenses and P230 million in working capital.

“Our domestic opex (operating expenses) were down 12% year-on-year in the )first quarter), which worked especially well for us during these times. We are already realizing gains from these initiatives. We will continuously challenge our cost structure and find ways to be more efficient and drive operational excellence,” Ms. de Claro said. — Adam J. Ang

Comedian Jo Koy tours Manila in latest Netflix special

IN his newest Netflix special, comedian Joseph Glenn Herbert, better known as “Jo Koy,” continues to marvel at his Filipino roots while touring his Filipino-American friends around a city he used to live in.

Jo Koy: In His Elements is Filipino as Mr. Herbert empathically says onstage: “every element of this show is Filipino.” And it was true, but only to a point because what makes Mr. Herbert’s comedy so relatable is the amusement sparked by a person wondering why his Filipino mother does the things she does — things we never dared to ask our mothers.

He tells a story of his mother’s propensity to have him dance whenever anyone visited their house once she discovered that he could dance a mean Michael Jackson.

The bit is met with uproarious laughter because many of us, at one point, wondered why our parents had us put on a talent show for visitors.

This is Mr. Herbert’s third special with Netflix after Live in Seattle in 2017 and Comin’ In Hot in 2019.

While much of the special features Mr. Herbert doing a stand-up comedy show in Solaire Resort and Casino in Parañaque City, each segment is interspersed with a short travelogue where he “tours” fellow Filipino-Americans like breakdancer Ronnie Abaldonado and Grammy-winning music producer Ramon “!llmind” Ibanga, Jr., around Manila.

I say “tours” because the visits to places like churches are so short that they are meant to point out that none of the people Mr. Herbert brought over for the special had ever been to the Philippines.

Mr. Herbert himself only spent five years in the Philippines, though in interviews he said that those five years were his happiest.

There are scenes of them traveling from the airport to hotel via a fully decked-out, colorful jeepney (which, sadly, are even scarcer now with the lockdown), playing street basketball, and eating chicken adobo.

And then we go back to the stage show where he says that Filipinos are so close that he only just realized that one of the cameramen, the one assigned to take his close-ups, was his uncle. Whether it was true or not, it made for a great laugh.

Another segment is about how he got his name “Jo Koy.” The build-up is long — longer than his other stories — and the pay-off isn’t that surprising (especially if you are a writer who has asked him about it before), but the delivery is gold and the audience is in stitches.

At length, Jo Koy: In His Elements is a enjoyable romp about a man discovering his Filpino-ness and having fun while doing it.

The comedy special streams starting June 12 on Netflix. — Zsarlene B. Chua

Exporters focus on local market

PHILIPPINE exporters are pushing for local consumers and businesses to prioritize their products as they shift to the domestic market while recovering from the effects of the pandemic.

Philexport President Sergio R. Ortiz-Luis Jr. said in a phone interview on Thursday that companies are temporarily focusing on the domestic market as long as businesses are unable to resume operations at full capacity, which he estimated could last a year.

“During this pandemic time, mukhang maraming kumpanya na kailangan tulungan, lalo na ‘yung mga supplier na maliliit. Encourage ko sila na ituloy ang negosyo.” (It looks like there are plenty of companies that need help, especially small suppliers. We encourage them to continue their business).

He emphasized that the move is temporary as industries recover, and is not intended to discourage the importation of products. But he also said that goods produced in the country should be prioritized.

“‘Yung mga namimiling mga kumpanya rito na nagbubukas, unahin na muna ‘yung mga local para matulungan nila. Lalo na ‘yung maliliit. Dun na muna sila bumili.” (For companies that are opening up, they should prioritize local business first to help them. Especially the small ones. They should buy there.”

He listed food items, clothes, and face masks as items that can be produced locally.

Some exporters have already shifted production to personal protective equipment, including face masks and cleanroom suits.

Philippines trade declined in April, with merchandise exports falling by 50% year-on-year, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority. Merchandise imports also fell 65%.

“It will take time to recover,” Mr. Ortiz-Luis said, explaining that companies are not able to operate at full capacity and are facing diminished market consumption.

He said he cannot measure local demand at this time, but believes that the move would significantly help companies.

“The demand is low. Dahan-dahan. We’re hoping na kahit low yung demand, unahin muna ‘yung local.” (Slowly. We’re hoping that even though demand is low, they’ll buy local first). — Jenina P. Ibañez

Disney’s take on young adult novel Artemis Fowl to debut on June 12

WALT Disney Co on Friday will release a film adaptation of popular young adult book series Artemis Fowl, one that its stars and director admit differs from the story written by Irish author Eoin Colfer.

A movie trailer released in March prompted criticism from some fans because it appeared the title character was a hero rather than the villain he was made out to be in the first Artemis Fowl book, which was published in 2001. Seven other books followed through 2012.

Actor Ferdia Shaw, who plays Fowl, said filmmakers changed the 12-year-old criminal mastermind “a little bit” for the movie version.

“But he’s still got his hard edge and his gritty sides,” plus a colorful fairy world and other elements from the book, Shaw said. “So I think it will be very well received.”

Artemis Fowl will debut on the Disney+ streaming service rather than movie theaters because many cinemas around the world remain closed to help curb the spread of the coronavirus.

In the movie, Fowl is searching for his missing father, played by Colin Farrell, when he discovers an underground fairy world called Haven City.

Director Kenneth Branagh said he wanted to make a movie that both book lovers and audiences new to Artemis Fowl could appreciate.

“You could not assume that anybody going into the cinema had necessarily read the books or knew the characters,” Branagh said, “so there would need to be a way of telling the first story in the cinema that acknowledged that.”

Author Colfer has given his blessing to the movie, according to a summary released by Disney.

“I thought all their changes were totally justified, and for the better,” Colfer said. — Reuters

DoubleDragon profit buoyed by rents

DOUBLEDRAGON Properties Corp. reported a 44% growth in earnings for 2019 due to its robust topline supported by its rental business segment.

In a statement Thursday, the listed property developer of businessman Edgar “Injap” J. Sia II said its net income last year rose to P10.65 billion from the previous year’s P7.42 billion.

Consolidated revenues jumped 41% to P20.2 billion, where recurring revenues accounted for P3.95 billion, higher by 30% from the previous year.

The company said the growth in recurring revenues can be attributed to rental revenues, which expanded 31% to P3.27 billion due to the completion of 803,735 square meters of leasable space.

Retail community malls maintained a 93.4% occupancy rate as CityMall tenants helped hit a double-digit same store sales growth.

Three new office towers were added to DoubleDragon’s portfolio, and its DD Meridian Park in the Bay Area leased out 98.9% of its six completed office towers.

The company also secured seven new Hotel 101 projects which raised its total new project inventory to P20.22 billion. Of this value, some P3.22 billion has already been sold out. Hotel room occupancy for its major hotels improved to an average of 84.8% last year from 78.3% in 2018.

“It is trying times like these, when the most important aspect is having a relevant and resilient business model in the company’s portfolio, and we are glad that DoubleDragon’s portfolio had the opportunity to be tested,” Mr. Sia said in the statement.

“The size of the company’s real estate portfolio and the revenues it used to generate will not matter much if the changes of customer behavior…will make the real estate portfolio irrelevant going forward. Our team will continue to make sure that its portfolio will always be geared to capture the bright future of our economy,” he added.

Mr. Sia noted while parts of the country were on lockdown, DoubleDragon was able to keep some of its revenue streams active.

CityMalls were open because tenants were mostly essential businesses. Its hotels accommodated employees of business process outsourcing (BPO) firms. DD Meridian Park kept generating revenues from BPO tenants. Its CentralHub warehouse complex was also utilized by companies that needed storage due to mobility limitations.

“The DoubleDragon team will continue to further improve and strengthen all its four pillars of growth as it progresses forward in this new decade,” Mr. Sia said, referring to provincial retail leasing, office leasing, industrial leasing and hotels.

Shares in DoubleDragon at the stock exchange gained P2 or 11.11% to P20 each on Thursday. — Denise A. Valdez

Tracking system established for returning OFWs

THE Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) said it developed a voluntary tracking system for returning Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs), which will require registration for beneficiaries to avail of government support programs.

In a statement Thursday, DoLE said the tracking system is called the OFW Assistance Information System (OASIS), which it hopes will facilitate the smooth return of OFWs to the Philippines.

Labor Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III said in a statement, “The system… aims to give our OFWs… efficient and timely assistance to ease their anxieties when returning home in the midst of this pandemic.”

OASIS will also help “facilitate organized arrival at the airport, efficient swab testing, and rapid pick up and transport to their respective hotels and homes and other necessary processes.”

OFWs interested to be tracked on OASIS can register online through www.oasis.owwa.gov.ph. A link will be sent through e-mail to successful registrants. — Gillian M. Cortez

Court to hear ABS-CBN return-to-air plea on July

THE Supreme Court is set to deliberate on July 13 the petition of ABS-CBN Corp. seeking to stop the implementation of the order by the National Telecommunications Commission which directed the media company to go off-air on May 5.

“That will be deliberated on July 13 because we waited for the comments of the House of Representatives, the lower House and upper House and I think we only received the comments last Monday or last Friday pero the member in charge asked for July 13 for deliberation,” Chief Justice Diosdado M. Peralta said in a virtual press briefing.

The deliberation date is more than two months since the filing of ABS-CBN’s petition for a temporary restraining order against NTC’s cease-and-desist order on May 7.

The network went off air on May 5 after the issuance of the order following the expiration of its legislative franchise on May 4.

ABS-CBN said in its petition that its halt of operations will affect the livelihood of its more than 11,000 employees and the government will also lose revenues as it has paid P70.5 billion taxes from 2003 and 2020.

The network also noted that it would lose up to P35 million daily when it is off-air.

In its comment, the telecommunications regulator maintained that it did not commit grave abuse of discretion when it issued the cease and desist order.

The NTC also held that it did not violate ABS-CBN’s right to due process and equal protection clause.

The Supreme Court early this month dismissed for lack of legal standing the petition of lawyer Lorenzo G. Gadon in March to stop the House of Representatives from asking the NTC to issue a provisional authority to the network once its franchise expired.

The House of Representatives issued the letter to NTC, asking it to issue a provisional authority to ABS-CBN. The telecommunications regulator instead issued the cease-and-desist order.

ABS-CBN’s franchise is being heard by the House of Representatives. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

Gone with the Wind, Cops pulled as pop culture reckons with racism

OSCAR-WINNING Civil War epic Gone with the Wind was pulled from the HBO Max streaming service and reality TV show Cops was canceled as America’s reckoning with systemic racism extended to its popular culture.

Less than 24 hours later, the DVD for Gone with the Wind jumped to the top of Amazon.com Inc.’s list of best-selling TV shows and movies.

Outrage and mass protests over racism following the death of African-American George Floyd in police custody have forced media companies to take a closer look at their programming.

AT&T Inc.’s WarnerMedia, which runs HBO Max, said it removed Gone with the Wind. The company acknowledged the film is a product of its time but added that it “depicts some of the ethnic and racial prejudices that have, unfortunately, been commonplace in American society.”

“We felt that to keep this title up without an explanation and a denouncement of those depictions would be irresponsible,” an HBO Max spokesperson said.

The 1939 film will return to HBO Max with “a discussion of its historical context” and a denouncement of racist depictions, the spokesperson added.

The movie, set on a Georgia plantation, won eight Academy Awards including best picture and set a milestone in Hollywood when supporting actress Hattie McDaniel, who played a black maid, became the first African American actor to win an Oscar.

The Paramount Network, a cable TV channel owned by ViacomCBS Inc., removed Cops from its schedule. The show debuted in 1989 on the Fox network and was considered a pioneer of reality television as it followed real-life police on the job. But it came under criticism as glorifying law enforcement without any footage of police brutality.

Spike TV, now the Paramount Network, picked up Cops in 2013.

Civil rights group Color of Change applauded the decision to drop Cops and called on media companies to end other troubling portrayals of crime and policing.

“Cops led the way, pushing troubling implications for generations of viewers,” the group said in a statement. — Reuters

Second coronavirus wave emerges in US

TEXAS on Wednesday reported 2,504 new coronavirus cases, the highest one-day total since the pandemic emerged.

A month into its reopening, Florida this week reported 8,553 new cases — the most of any seven-day period.

California’s hospitalizations are at their highest since May 13 and have risen in nine of the past 10 days.

A fresh onslaught of the novel coronavirus is bringing challenges for residents and the economy in pockets across the US. The localized surges have raised alarms among experts even as they’re masked by the nation’s overall case count, which early this week rose just under 1%, the smallest increase since March.

“There is a new wave coming in parts of the country,” said Eric Toner, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. “It’s small and it’s distant so far, but it’s coming.”

Though the outbreaks come weeks into state reopenings, it’s not clear that they’re linked to increased economic activity. And health experts say it’s still too soon to tell whether the massive protests against police brutality that have erupted in the past two weeks have led to more infections.

In Georgia, where hair salons, tattoo parlors and gyms have been operating for a month and a half, case numbers have plateaued, flummoxing experts.

Puzzling differences show up even within states. In California, which imposed a stay-at-home order in late March, San Francisco saw zero cases for three consecutive days this week, while Los Angeles County reported well over half of the state’s new cases. The White House Coronavirus Task Force has yet to see any relationship between reopening and increased cases of COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019), Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen Hahn said on a podcast.

But in some states, rising numbers outpace increases in testing, raising concerns about whether the virus can be controlled. It will take a couple of weeks to know, Mr. Toner said, but by then “it’s going to be pretty late” to respond.

Since the pandemic initially swept the US starting early this year, almost 2 million people have been infected and more than 110,000 have died.

After a national shutdown that arrested the spread, rising illness had been expected as restrictions loosened. The trend has been observed across 22 states in recent weeks, though many increases are steady but slow.

In New York, the state hardest hit by COVID-19, Governor Andrew Cuomo only recently started reopening by region. New York City, the epicenter, began the first of four phases Monday.

“We know as a fact that reopening other states, we’re seeing significant problems,” Mr. Cuomo said Tuesday. “Just because you reopen does not mean you will have a spike, but if you are not smart, you can have a spike.”

Experts see evidence of a second wave building in Arizona, Texas, Florida and California. Arizona’s daily tally of new cases has abruptly spiked in the last two weeks, hitting an all-time high of 1,187 on June 2.

Texas on Wednesday reported a 4.7% jump in hospitalizations to 2,153, the fourth consecutive daily increase. The latest figures showing an escalation came as Governor Greg Abbott tweeted a public service announcement featuring baseball legend Nolan Ryan urging Texans to wash their hands and to not be “a knucklehead.”

Mr. Abbott was criticized for an aggressive reopening last month. Mobile-phone data show activity by residents is rebounding toward pre-COVID levels, according to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s PolicyLab. — Bloomberg

ABS-CBN says PDR issuance ‘above board’

ABS-CBN Corp. assured lawmakers on Thursday that its issuance of Philippine Depositary Receipts (PDRs) is “above board” as evaluated by the government and market authorities.

“Their acts are all above board, they have relied on the approvals and the permits and licenses issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE),” ABS-CBN legal counsel Cynthia Roxas-Del Castillo said during the hearing of the House committees on legislative franchises and good government and public accountability on Thursday.

“If for any reason, those decisions are wrong… we have po, in good faith, relied in them. So it’s going to cause some effect on the Philippine capital market dahil po it will erode the investor’s confidence in the decisions made by these government agencies and market regulation authority,” she added.

A PDR is a security that grants the holder the right to the delivery of sale of the underlying share, according to the PSE.

Ms. Roxas-Del Castillo said that PDRs are “purely financial instruments” which cannot be used to participate in the management of ABS-CBN.

“PDRs are purely financial instruments,” she said, adding that they are not shares that can be used to vote or participate in the broadcast company’s management.

The lawyer added that PDRs are not new since it was introduced in the Philippines right after the Asian financial crisis to offer financial relief.

Ms. Roxas-Del Castillo also said that ABS-CBN Holdings Corp. and ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp. are different entities, saying that the former is a company incorporated to invest in shares while the latter is the company involved in mass media.

“Hindi po party sa PDR instrument ang ABS-CBN Broadcasting. Ang only link po, if you can call it a link, is that ang PDR investors po, when they invest in PDRs, they track the performance of ABS-CBN Broadcasting kasi dun po nanggagaling ang kita ng ABS-CBN Holdings,” she said.

Meanwhile, Anakalusagan Rep. and House committee on public accounts chair Michael T. Defensor said that ABS-CBN’s issuance of PDRs circumvents the Constitution in terms of mass media ownership.

While foreigners do not have their names on the shares of ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp, Mr. Defensor said that PDRs allow them to own the same.

“There is an actual share in ABS-CBN Corp. They may not have their names, wala po sa pangalan nila yung ABS-CBN Corp. share, pero ang bawat PDR, ay may katumbas na share sa ABS-CBN Corp. ‘Yan po sa aking palagay is a circumvention of our Constitution on ownership. Sa maraming pagkakataon, yan po ay pwede nating sabihing na merong banyaga, meron siyang kinabitan na korporasyon na Pilipino, pero ang kita at pagmamay-ari, sa katotohanan, ay kanya ” he said.

Mr. Defensor also contested Ms. Roxas-Del Castillo’s statement that PDR investors cannot take part in the management of ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp.

“Papasok po ako doon sa kontrata natin, yung Philippine Deposit Receipt Instrument. Ang sabi, ‘it will not alter, modify or otherwise change its Articles of Incorporation or By-Laws or take any other action so as to materially prejudice any rights in relations to the PDRs.’ Ito po ang tinatawag na negative covenant. Wala kang pwedeng gawin hangga’t kapit ko ang PDR,” he said.

Meanwhile, SEC Commissioner Ephyro Luis B. Amatong said that the commission was still waiting for the ruling of the Supreme Court on how to treat media companies that issued PDRs to foreigners.

“At this point, your honor, we do not look at derivatives like the PDRs. We await the ruling of the Supreme Court on what is the correct test and how we will treat those who have already issued PDRs, not just ABS-CBN, but GMA7 and any other media company that issued PDRs in favor of foreigners,” he said.

The two panels were discussing whether ABS-CBN violated the Constitution when it sold PDRs to foreigners which allegedly allowed non-Filipinos to own the network. The 1987 Constitution states that media companies should be 100% Filipino-owned. — Genshen L. Espedido

Coachella, Stagecoach music festivals canceled for 2020 on virus concerns

THE 2020 editions of the Coachella music festival and its country music counterpart Stagecoach have been canceled due to concerns over a possible autumn resurgence of COVID-19 cases, Riverside County health office said late Wednesday.

“I am concerned as indications grow that COVID-19 could worsen in the fall,” said the County’s Public Health Officer Cameron Kaiser, who signed the order canceling the festivals.

Coachella, one of the biggest music festivals in the world that brings half a million fans to an open-air site in Indio, east of Los Angeles, and Stagecoach were initially scheduled for April, but were re-scheduled for October.

Entertainment news website Billboard had earlier reported that Coachella is unlikely to take place this year, adding that Anschutz Entertainment Group, the parent company of both the music festivals’ organizer Goldenvoice, is laying off 15% of the workforce.

Goldenvoice did not respond to a Reuters request for comment. — Reuters

BoP excess widest in 15 months

THE COUNTRY’S balance of payments (BoP) position ended at a wider surplus in April amid inflows from government loans secured to respond to the coronavirus crisis.

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) data released Thursday showed the country’s BoP position stood at a surplus of $1.666 billion in April, marking its third consecutive month in surfeit. This is wider than both the April 2019 surplus of $467 million as well as the $448-million surfeit in March.

The April surplus is also the biggest since the $2.704 billion booked in January 2019.

The BoP shows the country’s economic transactions with the rest of the world within a given period.

The BSP said on Thursday it now sees the country’s BoP position hitting a surplus of $600 million this year, down from the $3 billion estimate given in November last year. The new projection is 0.2% of the country’s gross domestic product from 0.7% for the November forecast.

“The BoP surplus in April 2020 reflected mainly the inflows arising from the national government’s deposits with the BSP of its foreign loan proceeds as well as the BSP’s foreign exchange operations and income from its investments abroad,” the central bank said in a statement on Thursday.

Inflows were partially offset by foreign currency withdrawals made by the government to pay its debt obligations that month.

For the first four months, the country’s BoP position stood at a surplus of $1.598 billion, thinner than the $4.265-billion surfeit seen in the same period last year.

ING Bank N.V. Manila Senior Economist Nicholas Antonio T. Mapa said the BoP surplus may have been due to loans secured by the government for its fight against the pandemic.

“BoP remained in surplus in April even as we noted some capital flight with successive days of net foreign selling in the bond market. These outflows were likely offset by incoming dollars linked to the government’s loans from multi national institutions and foreign issuance,” Mr. Mapa said in an e-mail.

RECORD-HIGH RESERVES
At the current level, the end-April BoP position reflects final gross international reserves (GIR) of an all-time high $90.942 billion, the BSP said.

This is higher than the $88.861 billion at end-March and the $83.613 billion seen as of April 2019.

At this level, the GIR can cover eight months of imports of goods and services. It also represents about 5.5 times the country’s short-term external debt based on original maturity and four times based on residual maturity.

Data showed the BSP’s gold reserves, which form part of the country’s reserve buffer, totaled $8.015 billion for the eleventh consecutive month or since end-June 2019. This was, however, lower than the $8.123 billion seen in April last year.

Special drawing rights or the amount that the country can tap from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) stood at $1.171 billion, lower than the $1.182 billion seen at end-April 2019 but beyond the $1.167 billion as of March.

Gains from foreign investments stood at $77.886 billion, up from the $76.48 billion in the preceding month as well as the $71.847 million logged a year ago.

Meanwhile, the country’s reserve position stored with the IMF stood at $580.4 million as of April, higher than the $524.3 million at end-April 2019 as well as the $578.5 million in the previous month.

Foreign currency deposits totaled $3.288 billion, surpassing the $2.2 billion a year ago and the $2.619 billion as of March.

The BSP expects reserves to reach $91 billion by end-2020, slightly higher than the $90 billion projection it gave in November.

Security Bank Corp. Chief Economist Robert Dan J. Roces said the GIR has been one of the country’s strengths even before the pandemic and has continued to support market confidence, as seen in the peso.

“Record high GIR solidifies BSP’s ability and credibility to provide dollar liquidity and tame currency speculation especially now amidst the pandemic,” Mr. Roces said.

“The sustained build up on GIR is proof that we can continue to enjoy foreign exchange stability and GIR levels without needing to keep interest rates elevated to attract foreign inflows,” ING’s Mr. Mapa added. — L.W.T. Noble

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