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Peso ends flat vs dollar

Peso Dollar
THE PESO closed unchanged ahead of central bank meetings.

THE PESO closed flat against the dollar on Monday amid “strong” appetite for the US currency despite trading weaker overnight.
The local unit closed Monday’s session at P52.65 versus the greenback, flat from Friday’s close.
The peso opened the session stronger at P52.63 per dollar, slipping to as low as P52.72 intraday. Meanwhile, its best showing for the day stood at P52.62 against the greenback.
Trading volume thinned to $846.4 million from the $976.4 million that switched hands the previous session.
A foreign exchange trader said Monday’s trading was “very quiet” as the pair traded within a 10-cent range.
“We saw a weak dollar overnight. We’re supposed to move higher, but this is the evidence that there’s a strong desire to buy dollars despite weakening versus other currencies in the region,” the trader said in a phone interview.
Reuters reported that the dollar index edged down 0.1% to 96.481 against a basket of currencies, as weak manufacturing data increased bets that the US Federal Reserve will trim borrowing costs this year.
Meanwhile, another trader said the peso closed flat despite being “generally weaker” intraday amid “dovish” expectations ahead of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) policy meeting.
In a BusinessWorld poll, 10 out of 13 analysts expect the central bank to keep its benchmark rates steady during its review later this week as they may need more inflation data points before trimming rates.
Apart from this, the second trader said the peso closed flat amid “increasing concerns of a global growth slowdown after a slew of weaker economic data from the US last week.”
For today, the first trader expects the peso to move between P52.55 and P52.80 versus the dollar, while the other gave a P52.55-P52.75 range.
“The local currency might further weaken on market positioning amid likely pivotal policy cues from the BSP and the US Federal Reserve meetings this week,” the second trader noted. — K.A.N. Vidal

Stocks jump ahead of Federal Reserve’s review

By Arra B. Francia, Reporter
STOCKS jumped on Monday as investors awaited the US Federal Reserve’s policy meeting this week.
The 30-member Philippine Stock Exchange index firmed up 0.95% or 74.74 points to close at 7,873.02, reversing the losses seen in morning trading. The broader all-shares index likewise gained 0.67% or 32.39 points to 4,845.42.
“The Fed watch, US-China trade news kept the market cautiously at bay this week as investors carefully bought into selective names today,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Managing Director Luis A. Limlingan said in a mobile phone message on Monday.
Eagle Equities, Inc. Research Head Christopher John Mangun noted the same, saying the index ended higher alongside other Asian markets.
“Asian equities pulled ahead today on the growing speculation that the US Federal Reserve will sound dovish at its policy meeting this week,” Mr. Mangun said in an e-mail on Monday.
Analysts expect the US Federal Reserve to cut their interest rate forecasts this year, which means little to no further tightening in 2019. The US central bank’s two-day policy meeting will start on March 19.
The Fed’s policy meeting will be followed by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ Monetary Board’s own review on Thursday.
A BusinessWorld poll showed 10 of 13 economists predicting that the Monetary Board will keep benchmark interest rates steady on Thursday as headline inflation has been declining in the previous months.
Mr. Mangun added that seeing as the index closed near the 7,900 resistance level, it may bounce off and edge lower on Tuesday.
“However, a break above 7,900 is bullish and may give investors some optimism. Trading volumes are still below average,” he said.
The PSEi also trailed off Wall Street’s advance last Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.54% or 138.93 points to 25,848.87. The S&P 500 index rose 0.5% or 14 points to 2,822.48, while the Nasdaq Composite index increased 0.76% or 57.62 points to 7,688.53.
Back home, services was the lone sector that ended in negative territory, dropping 0.25% or 4.08 points to 1,575.
The rest went up, led by mining and oil which soared 1.37% or 111.60 points to 8,247.37. Holding firms rose 1.33% or 102.17 points to 7,775.64; property gained 1.11% or 44.06 points to 4,013.95; financials increased 0.75% or 13.28 points to 1,784.09; while industrials added 0.66% or 77.33 points to 11,633.66.
Some 1.70 billion issues valued at P5.32 billion switched hands, significantly lower than Friday’s P20.79-billion turnover.
Advancers outpaced decliners by a hair, 94 to 93, while 54 names were unchanged.
Foreign investors remained net buyers at P406.76 million, although lower than the previous session’s net purchases worth P1.81 billion.

Poe keeps lead in poll; Bong Go jumps to 3rd place

CANDIDATES aligned with President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s administration, as well as a number of independent candidates continued to dominate Pulse Asia’s latest senatorial poll which reelectionist Senator Grace Poe continued to lead.
The noncommissioned survey, conducted Feb. 24-28, showed Ms. Poe maintaining her lead from Pulse Asia’s Jan. 26-31 survey, and still followed by fellow reelectionist Cynthia A. Villar of the Nacionalista Party.
Mr. Duterte’s aide, Christopher Lawrence T. Go, jumped to third place in the February survey from eighth last January. The other candidate associated with Mr. Duterte, former National Police chief Ronald M. Dela Rosa, leapt to 7th place in February from 15th place last January.
Completing the top six are reelectionist Juan Edgardo M. Angara and former senators Manuel M. Lapid and Pia S. Cayetano.
Mr. Dela Rosa leads the latter six top placers, followed by reelectionist Nancy S. Binay (8th place), former senator Ramon Revilla Jr. (10th place), Ilocos Norte Governor Imee R. Marcos (11th place), and reelectionist Aquilino Martin L. Pimentel III (12th place).
Former senator Manuel A. Roxas II is the lone oppositionist in the Top 12, occupying 9th place.
At the tailend, former senator Jose P. Ejercito Jr. ranks between 10th and 15th place, and fellow administration ally Francis N. Tolentino is between 11th and 15th place.
“Virtually the same percentages of Filipino voters are ambivalent about whom to elect as senator (1.1%), refuse to identify their preferred senatorial candidates (1.6%), or do not express support for any of the candidates running for senator (1.0%) in the coming May 2019 elections,” Pulse Asia said.

Palace: No need for Department of Water

MALACAÑANG ON Monday thumbed down the suggestion of Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia that there should be a Department of Water “that would centralize all activities having to do with water resource.”
“Hindi kailangan iyon (That is not needed),” Presidential Spokesperson Salvador S. Panelo said at a news conference at the Palace on Monday.
“Eh ‘yung problema nga na ‘yun nagawan na nila ng paraan (They were able to find a solution to the problem). They created their own problem; they created their own solution. It’s purely inefficiency, mismanagement,” he added, referring to the Manila Water Company, Inc.
Mr. Panelo said further the draft Executive Order (EO) to address the water shortage in Metro Manila will be ready “any time this week or the week after.”
In a social media post on March 14, Mr. Pernia said: “It’s a real shame [that] we have a Dept. of Energy, which is important, but we utterly lack an Apex body — a Dept. of Water — to ensure water supply and distribution — an indispensable VITAL need. ‘Water is life.’ As the age-old saying goes, ‘Ok lang kung walang ilaw, basta lang may tubig!’ (It is okay if we do not have lights, as long as we have water).”
The proposed EO, according to Mr. Panelo, was “still being processed and finalized.”
“I have a personal suggestion: I think we should really put reservoir in all cities of this country, as well as in provinces. It’s very easy to build reservoir. I cannot even understand why we’re not doing that,” he added.
Last Sunday, Cabinet Secretary Karlo Alexei B. Nograles said a draft EO may place the National Water Resources Board (NWRB), which will be tasked to integrate all government efforts pertaining to water, under the Office of the President (OP).
“Among the provisions of the proposed EO is the reconstitution of the National Water Resources Board (NWRB) into a body that will be responsible for policy, direction-setting, and the integration of all government efforts pertaining to water,” he said in a statement.
The body, according to Mr. Nograles, “may be placed under the supervision of the Office of the President.”
The NWRB is currently under the supervision of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) by virtue of EO No. 123 s. 2002.
“Given the scope and breadth of water-related concerns, the supervision of OP could help ensure that all 30-plus agencies involved in water resource management are on the same page,” Mr. Nograles explained.
One of the responsibilities of the NWRB, he also said, “would be the crafting of a national water management master plan.” — Arjay L. Balinbin

Crimes against Chinese on the rise — watchdog

KIDNAPPINGS AND other crimes related to gambling and victimizing Chinese nationals are on the rise, warned a citizens watchdog in a recent statement.
“Crimes related to casino or online gambling are on the rise. They no longer just result in torture and extortions but also…kidnapping, suicides and outright homicide and murders,” the Movement for Restoration of Peace and Order (MRPO) said in a statement on March 11.
According to the group, the Anti-Kidnapping Group (AKG) of the Philippine National Police (PNP) has “recorded 15 victims of casino-related kidnapping incidents in 2018, and eight victims in the first two months of 2019.”
“This averages two victims a month, but MRPO reports that easily, five times more cases go unreported and therefore, undocumented by the AKG,” MRPO said.
“The incidents proliferate in geometric progression the past few years. The main problem is, very rarely do the victims file a case or pursue a case even if already filed.”
“The Tsinoy community likewise reports several cases of casino-related suicides, which apparently, are not reported to the police. Some of the victims were reportedly invited to work in the Philippines but before they start to work, they were enticed to gamble first to learn the ropes,” said MRPO.
The group added, “Unable to pay for the losses, they are then kept in a safe house, beaten and tortured until their families pay off. But a few victims decide to jump off tall buildings to spare their families the agony of paying off debts that their family cannot afford to pay.”
MRPO also said, “Despite the non-cooperation of the victims, the PNP, especially its Anti-Kidnapping Group, has been assiduous in doing their jobs although in most circumstances, it ends up being a waste of resources, manpower, time and effort when victims refuse to pursue the cases filed against malefactors.”
Among the cases cited by MRPO is that of Kate Liu, who “was abducted on Jan. 25, 2018 and was brought to a resort in Ternate, Cavite.”
“The suspects allegedly recommended her to act as an interpreter and picked her up from her residence to meet the client. Instead of proceeding to the nearby Solaire Hotel in Manila, she was brought to a Cavite resort, where she was able to seek help from the Filipino resort manager. The suspects escaped, but these were the same suspects who took Shi Guangdi, a student, just the week before (Jan. 16, 2018) Liu’s abduction.”
“Shi Guangdi paid P2 million ransom. Unfortunately, he left and returned to China even before AKG was able to file the case at the prosecutor’s office. The information from his case led to the arrest of the suspects in Liu’s kidnapping. The case is ongoing.”
MRPO proposed that the PNP, through AKG, establish a standard operating procedure (SOP) with the Department of Justice and the Bureau of Immigration to deport suspects arrested in casino-related kidnappings in instances where cases do not prosper in court.
The organization also proposed that the AKG seek the cooperation of the Chinese embassy to get data about suspects from China, especially to identify the accounts they use for money transfer.
Sought for comment, PNP Spokesperson Senior Supt. Bernard M. Banac said in a statement:
“The recent series of arrest of Chinese gang men involved in this activity is testament to the relentless effort of the PNP to check on these people.
“Although the crime involves Chinese victims and Chinese suspects, the fact that the crimes were committed in PHL soil makes the PNP duty bound to address these cases and serve the ends of justice regardless of who are involved.
“Despite the challenges, the PNP remains committed to its mandate to enforce the law, prevent online gaming crimes, and respond to reported incidents mainly thru the efforts of AKG, CIDG, IG and other operating units. In coordination with our international counterparts, we are seeking better and more effective ways to be one step ahead of mostly Chinese syndicates that prey on their fellow Chinese in a criminal scheme starting from an apparent harmless usury that eventually ends up to kidnapping for ransom incidents.” — Vince Angelo C. Ferreras

Palace: PHL to take US cue on ICC

By Arjay L. Balinbin, Reporter
THE Philippine government will follow the United States’ policy on “denying or revoking” visas for members of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Malacañang said on Monday.
“Kasama lahat ‘yun (That will all be part [of the policy]),” Presidential Spokesperson Salvador S. Panelo said at a news conference at the Palace on Monday when asked if the Philippine government, like the US, will also “deny or revoke” visas for ICC members who will pursue an actual investigation on President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s drug war.
“That includes everything to stop them from committing any acts that will be violative of our laws,” he added.
Citing news reports last Sunday, Mr. Panelo said: “I think the US State Department warn[ed] the personnel and staff of the ICC [that] if they pursue their investigations of certain heads of state of other countries, they will not be given or… their visas will not be renewed because as far as the US government is concerned, it (the ICC) is politically persecuting those subject of investigation.”
Mr. Panelo said ICC members can still visit the country as “tourists,” but they will be “deported” if they begin gathering data and interviewing persons in relation to the complaint about Mr. Duterte’s nationwide war on drugs campaign.
“Well, they can come here as guests, visitors. Puwede yun (that is allowed); pero (but) any move that will be deemed as a violation of our laws, eh may problema sila dun (they will have a problem),” he also said.
The ICC investigators, Mr. Panelo further said, “cannot undertake anything in connection with jurisdictional exercise on what they have in mind because that’s in violation of our laws.”
“We will not allow any attempt at interfering with the sovereignty of this country,” he added.
Mr. Panelo also maintained that the ICC has “never acquired jurisdiction over our country for the reason that… the requirement of publication imposed by law is not observed.”
He said there has to be a publication of the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the ICC, in a newspaper of general circulation or the Official Gazette.
He then said that “even if there was ratification by Congress or by the Senate on that particular subject, still a law cannot be enforced unless you comply with the requirement.”
At the same briefing, Mr. Panelo said the reported extrajudicial killings (EJKs) have no impact on the confidence of foreign investors who want to do business in the Philippines.
According to the President’s spokesman, Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia, and Trade and Industry Secretary Ramon M. Lopez have said the issue of human rights violations or extrajudicial killis has “never” been raised “during their meetings with investors and other conferences relative to the business investments [in] this country.”
He also claimed that foreign direct investment inflows to the Philippines have already increased. “If you compare that to the previous administration, ang laki ng ating nakuhang (we got so much) investment[s] from the foreign side,” he said.
For their part, a delegation of international lawyers urged President Rodrigo R. Duterte and his administration to avoid attacking lawyers publicly to stop extrajudicial killing and killings of lawyers.
“President Duterte and his administration should refrain from publicly attacking lawyers and instead publicly condemn all attacks against lawyer, prosecutors, and judges at all levels and in strong terms,” the lawyers recommended in their preliminary findings on the killing of lawyers in the Philippines.
It has been reported that at least 37 members of the legal profession have been killed due to exercise of their duties since Mr. Duterte assumed office in June 2016.
The latest lawyer killed is Rex Jasper Lopoz who was gunned down in Tagum City, Davao del Norte last March 13.
The lawyers also said that the government should “put an end to the practice of red-tagging and end public disclosure of drug lists.” — with Vann Marlo M. Villegas

Chedeng may weaken into an LPA as it crosses Mindanao

TROPICAL DEPRESSION Chedeng brought moderate to heavy rains in the Caraga and Davao regions on Monday, prompting several local government units to declare the suspension of classes until at least Tuesday. Weather bureau PAGASA said in its 5 p.m. advisory on Monday that similar weather conditions are expected on Tuesday in parts of the regions of Davao, SOCCSKSARGEN (South Cotabato-Cotabato-Sultan Kudarat-Sarangani-General Santos City), Bangsamoro, and Zamboanga Peninsula. PAGASA also said Chedeng is likely to make landfall over the eastern coast of Davao Oriental Tuesday morning and “is expected to weaken into a Low Pressure Area (LPA) while crossing Mindanao.” The Davao Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council has raised a blue alert status, a level that means at least half of the personnel of government and other related agencies have to be at their posts, ready for the roll-out of response programs. Class suspensions were ordered in several towns and cities, including Maco, Mabini, Pantukan, Mawab, Nabunturan, maragusan and New Bataan in Compostela Valley province; Tagum, Samal, and Panabo cities in Davao del Norte; Mati City in Davao Oriental; and Davao City, among others.

Gasoline up by P1.45/L, other fuel prices also higher this week

OIL COMPANIES are raising the prices of petroleum products this week, with gasoline prices increasing by P1.45 per liter (/L), one of the biggest price hikes in recent months. Diesel products will increase by P0.30/L while kerosene will be up by P0.40/L. The companies that sent their advisories as of early afternoon on Monday said they would impose the price hike at 6:00 a.m. on Tuesday, March 18. This week’s price increase for diesel and kerosene follows last week’s respite when the prices of both products were unchanged. Gasoline was up by P0.90/L last week. So far this year, the price of gasoline has been up save for a cut in the first week of February. Year-to-date adjustments stand at a net increase of P6.10/L for gasoline. Diesel and kerosene were also at a net increase of P4.65/L and P3.45/L, respectively. — Victor V. Saulon

SC halts implementation of law school admission exam

THE SUPREME Court (SC) has issued a temporary restraining order on the implementation of the Philippine Law School Admission Test (PhiLSAT), the nationwide law school admission exam administered by the Legal Education Board (LEB). In a notice dated March 12, the SC allowed students who were not able to take the PhiLSAT and who did not pass the exam to “conditionally enroll” in law schools. “Those who have not taken the PhiLSAT prior to the beginning of the Academic Year 2018 to 2019, or who have taken the PhiLSAT but did not pass, or are honor graduates in college with no PhiLSAT Exemption Certificate, or honor graduates with expired PhiLSAT Exemption Certificates may now be allowed to conditionally enroll as incoming freshmen law students under the same terms as LEB Memorandum Order No. 11, series of 2017,” the SC said. Prior to the first PhiLSAT on April 16, 2017, retired Makati City Regional Trial Court Judge Oscar B. Pimentel, along with several others including lawyers and aspiring law students, assailed the validity of the PhiLSAT with a petition filed on April 7. A second petition was filed in Nov. 2018. The SC held an oral argument last March 5 for the petitions. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

PHL to host international law conference

THE PHILIPPINES is set to host the most prestigious international law conference in Asia this year, which is expected to be attended by 400 delegates from the region. The 7th Asian Society for International Law (AsianSIL) Biennial Conference will be hold on Aug. 22 to 23, to be participated in by international law practitioners and other judicial figures in the public and private sector from the Asian region. AsianSIL is headed by former presidential spokesperson and humanitarian lawyer Harry L. Roque. The kick-off ceremony for the event was held Monday, coinciding with the re-launch of the Philippine Yearbook of International Law, a referential publication dedicated to international legal studies. Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Teodoro L. Locsin, who led the ceremony, said the AsianSIL Biennial Conference “will benefit from the expertise not only of leading international law practitioners and teachers across the region, but also of the Asian judges of the International Court of Justice and other international judicial and arbitral bodies.”–Gillian M. Cortez

4 kms of improved Boracay circumferential road fully open by end-March

THE 2.66-kilometer (km) section of the Boracay circumferential road from Cagban Port to Hue Hotel and the 1.462-km segment from Hue Hotel to Elizalde will be fully opened to motorists by the end of the month, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) announced Monday. In a statement, DPWH Secretary Mark A. Villar said phase 1 of the rehabilitation of the island’s circumferential road “is now substantially-completed” following an inspection. The DPWH-Region 6 office is also set to start the civil works for the project’s phase 2, which will start from the Elizalde property passing through Ambassador Hotel to City Mall, with a total length of 1.9 kms, and the improvement of the 1.4-km road from Tambisaan Port to Rotonda. The second phase is targeted for completion and opening before the end of the year. DPWH will also be working on the road along Lake Town, near D’ Mall.

Homegrown developer starts 2nd housing project in Bohol

BOHOL’S HOMEGROWN developer Lite Properties Corp. (LPC) has broken ground for its second project in Bohol, named Corella Homes after the town where it is located. “This is going to be our biggest project. This is a landmark project for us,” said LPC Chief Executive Officer Lucio Lim Jr, noting that they are bullish about the growing housing demand in the province. Corella Homes, located about seven kilometers from the capital Tagbilaran City, is a mid-range housing project that will be located on a 25,000-square meter property along the main highway in Barangay Poblacion. It will have 209 housing units and five units of commercial spaces. LPC’s first housing project in Bohol is the Lirio Residences in Tagbilaran City, a mid-market project beside the old airport. LPC is the property development unit of Lite Holdings, a company founded by the Lim family of Bohol and has interests in shipping, cement, and rice, among others. Aside from Bohol, the firm also has other developments in Cebu, including Lucena Homes in Minglanilla town and Luciana Residences in Cordova on Mactan Island. — The Freeman

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