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GSIS recommends to Duterte P1,000 hike in month pensions

By Melissa Luz T. Lopez, Senior Reporter
THE Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) has recommended a P1,000 increase in the monthly pensions paid to retirees, it announced Friday.
In a statement, the state-run pension fund for government employees said it proposed to President Rodrigo R. Duterte to hike basic pensions for retired and persons with disability (PWD) members to P6,000 from the present P5,000 minimum rate.
GSIS President and General Manager Jesus Clint O. Aranas said its board of trustees has already approved the proposal which will cover 67,201 pensioners, but will not require higher member contributions.
“It should be noted that GSIS is recommending a pension hike that will not necessitate an increase in the monthly contribution of our members nor bring about adverse effects in the actuarial life of the pension fund,” Mr. Aranas was quoted as saying.
This is in contrast to the Social Security System (SSS), which is awaiting the implementation of higher contribution rates for its members to prolong its fund life. The pension firm for private sector employees recently secured the authority to raise the rate every other year to 12% this year and 15% by 2025 from 11% currently, as provided under the newly-signed Social Security Act of 2018.
The SSS is counting on these higher contributions to extend the fund life to 2038, six years longer than the current 2032, following the P1,000 across-the-board increase in monthly pensions which took effect in 2017. Another P1,000 increase is on deck, although resigned SSS president Emmanuel F. Dooc said they want to see a longer fund life before they implement this pension hike.
Meanwhile, GSIS sees its fund life lasting until 2051.
If approved, this would follow the 1.5% pension increase for GSIS beneficiaries that took effect in January, which is annual raise provided by their charter. Monthly pension rates may be adjusted through the recommendation of the GSIS head and as approved by the President of the Philippines.
The pension hike is proposed to take effect February, and will be paid retroactively.
Mr. Aranas clarified that those receiving GSIS pensions on behalf of members who have passed away will not be entitled to the pension hike.
Average monthly pensions now stand at P12,560, the GSIS said.

Peso drops to two-week low on weak global growth prospects

THE PESO slipped to two-week low versus the dollar on Friday, reeling from negative market sentiment following a dimmer global outlook from the European Central Bank (ECB).
The local unit ended the week at P52.25 against the greenback, 10 centavos weaker than Thursday’s P52.15 finish.
This is the peso’s weakest showing since Feb. 18 at P52.33.
The peso traded generally weaker as it opened at P52.30, even touching an intraday low of P52.385 to $1 during the session. It briefly touched P52.23 as its best showing for the day before settling at the closing rate.
Two traders attributed the peso’s move to market caution following the ECB’s dovish remarks.
“The peso weakened today on dollar safe-haven demand on anticipations of strong US labor data tonight and after the European Central Bank revised down its inflation and growth outlook for the Eurozone and initiated a new stimulus program for financial institutions to avert any anticipated future credit crunches,” one trader said when sought for comment.
Reuters reported that ECB President Mario Draghi said the European economy is in a “period of continued weakness and pervasive uncertainty,” offering cheap credit for banks rather than delivering on its planned rate hikes.
Another trader noted that this triggered a “risk-off” sentiment among investors, with the paler growth outlook for Europe boosting the dollar and creating what appears to be a modest “contagion” effect for other currencies.
Still, dollars traded on Friday rose to $1.233 billion, higher than the $1.079 billion which exchanged hands the previous day.
The second trader noted that these currency trades may be due to some flows for retail Treasury bond purchases, as well as interbank trading within the day.
The currency saw a big depreciation earlier this week as markets reacted to the appointment of Budget Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno as new governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, who is viewed to be dovish.
“He is more dovish, which means there’s a lower interest rate scenario that will lead to a weaker peso,” the trader added. — Melissa Luz T. Lopez

PSEi drops amid fears of global economic slowdown

By Arra B. Francia, Reporter
SHARES retreated on Friday, tracking the sell-off overseas on the back of fears of the global economic growth slowdown.
The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index fell 1.07% or 84.68 points to 7,797.11 on the last trading day of the week, reversing the gains seen in the previous session. The broader all shares index likewise slumped 0.59% or 28.74 points to 4,817.22.
“Philippine shares quietly traded on the downside as the European Central Bank (ECB) cut Eurozone forecast and the Euro-USD plunged,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Managing Director Luis A. Limlingan said in a mobile phone message, also noting the ECB’s decision to extend more cheap loans for banks.
The ECB slashed its 2019 gross domestic product estimate to 1.1% from 1.7%, while also cutting all inflation forecasts. With this, ECP President Mario Draghi said they will be enforcing new support measures such as cheap loans for banks, and lower interest rates for a longer period of time.
Analysts said that these support mechanisms point to ECB’s weaker economic growth, adding to fears that the global economy is slowing down.
The negative sentiment was seen across all regions, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average shedding 0.78% or 200.23 points to 25,473.23. The S&P 500 index stumbled 0.81% or 22.52 points to 2,748.93, while the Nasdaq Composite index plunged 1.13% or 84.45 points to 7,421.47.
Asian indices were mostly in the red on Friday as well. Japan’s Nikkei 225 plummeted 2.01% or 430.45 points to 21,025.56; the Hang Seng index spiraled down 1.93% or 554.75 points to 28,224.70, while the Shanghai Composite fell 4.4% to 2,969.86.
Regional markets were generally in selling mode after China reported its biggest drop in exports since 2016, further contributing to concerns on a global slowdown.
At the local bourse, all sectoral indices moved to negative territory, led by holding firms which dropped 1.41% or 111.88 points to 7,798.76. Financials followed with a 0.98% decline or 17.50 points to 1,760.86.
Property edged lower by 0.91% or 36.29 points to 3,945.68; industrial slid 0.48% or 55.91 points to 11,580.39; services slipped 0.04% or 0.59 points to 1,550.64, while mining and oil was almost flat with a decrease of 0.02% or 1.53 points to 8,139.15.
Turnover further slimmed to P5.3 billion after some 1.1 billion issues switched hands, from the P5.84 billion seen on Thursday.
Decliners trumped advancers, 111 to 94, while 48 names were unchanged.
Foreign investors remained on buying mode, posting net purchases of P60.09 million, albeit smaller than the previous session’s P565.24 million.

How the Lopez-owned Benpres building sparked an entrepreneurial spirit


By Joseph L. Garcia, Reporter
WHILE the Lopez family can be construed as just another of the 40 families or so that form the nation’s elite, the story of the country flows well in their veins, and at the same time, their story imprints on ours. The various Lopez holdings in land, energy, and media, summarized in the Lopez Group of Companies (that includes media conglomerate ABS-CBN, the Rockwell Land developments, and energy companies under First Philippine Holdings Corp., among many, many others) shape the way we live lives in the city and its surrounding environs.
Excluding the ABS-CBN headquarters in Quezon City and its land development offices in its Rockwell base in Makati, a large chunk of the Lopez family’s operations were centered in Benpres, one of the first skyscrapers in the Ortigas area. Built in the early 70s at a then-impressive six stories (since largely developed by the Ortigas family), it was once called the Chronicle Building, named after the family’s newspaper, The Manila Chronicle.
Designed by Gabriel Formoso, its austere facade seemed to reflect the family newspaper’s strict values.
This year, the former six-story building will be knocked down to make room for a 40-story building, set for completion in 2023, and will be rechristened the Chronicle Building. It will again house the Lopez Group of Companies, but especially those from the power sector. The stories of the building and its people, are published in a book called Benpres: Stories Around A Landmark, edited by Vergel O. Santos, with contributions by Dr. Gerald Lico, Paulo Alcazaren, Thelma Sioson San Juan, Dulce Festin Baybay, and Benjamin Lopez.
While the Lopezes happily decorated their building (a Malang in the lobby is one of its hallmarks), trouble was afoot. The Lopezes, establishing their fortune in sugar in the prewar period, expanded their empire at a steady rate after the second world war. One of their kinsmen, Fernando Lopez, served as vice-president of the Philippines three times, his final term serving as the vice-president for the dictator, Ferdinand Marcos. In 1972, Marcos declared martial law, and one of the first on his hitlist were the Lopezes. One of the Lopez heirs, Eugenio Lopez, Jr., was arrested on trumped-up charges. In a bid for his release, Marcos hit a bargain by having Eugenio Lopez Sr. sign over a large part of his empire to the president and his cronies, effectively dismantling it. Many members of the Lopez family were then forced to flee the country.
The building itself was not sequestered, recalled Mercedes “Cedie” Lopez-Vargas, executive director of the Lopez Museum and Library, and president and executive director of the Lopez Group Foundation. She is also the daughter of Oscar M. Lopez, chairman emeritus of First Philippine Holdings, and the granddaughter of Eugenio Lopez Sr. The family still maintained offices there despite many of their members being in exile until the “People Power” revolution of 1986. The Lopezes then began to rebuild their dismantled empire, starting its life anew in the Benpres building. “It’s more than a building; it’s a memory,” said Ms. Lopez in a speech on Jan. 30, when various members of the Lopez family launched the book and bid goodbye to the building.
“We’re not getting rid of the building,” she said. While she said this, the former Lopez Museum had been stripped of its door, and most of its art collections, a huge chunk of it by Philippine masters, had been moved to a storage facility in Antipolo. “I think it has served its life, and the needs for this building. the conglomerate, have grown.”
As for the museums collections and artifacts, Ms. Vargas said that the museum, which once occupied the first floor of Benpres, will be split into two locations. The first would be a location in Antipolo, and then a second would be a spot in its ambitious Rockwell development, The Proscenium. “The main storage unit will be in Antipolo. Artworks will probably come and flow into Rockwell, and come back,” she said.
As for the Benpres book, she said, “We suddenly realized that everyone was feeling so sentimental about this building. How do you feel sentimental about a building? I guess it did have a lot of memories; a lot of battles — a lot of good times as well.”
Ms. Vargas shared some of her fond memories of the building, sharing that she would come here a lot to pick up her father after work; when she was a little girl. “My father hated it when we weren’t employed, even when we were still in school, so we would have to have summer jobs here.”
“I feel sad, but at the same time, it’s that promise of a new building that’s more fitting,” she said. In the end, while the Benpres building is a story of a business empire’s cycle of rise and fall, reflecting that of a nation, it is still a story of family. This idea of family expands covering not only the Lopezes, but the bonds forged with each other by the people who have worked in the building, and the lives shaped by its operations. “This building was good to us,” said Ms. Vargas. “It was like shelter, a sanctuary — home.”
Federico R. Lopez, chairman and chief executive officer of First Gen Corp. and Energy Development Corp. (EDC), recalled when the family was in search of a new core business in 1986.
“I felt the real bustle come alive with our re-entry into the power generation business. At First Gen, our offices were in the windowless middle area of FPH’s 4th floor, so we were never conscious of what time of day or night it was,” he said in his remarks during the book launch.
“Most of the time, we end our days at 9:00 p.m. and come back early the next day. As a team, we tackled every challenge and difficulty that came our way. Nothing was too big, or too small. Every day was an ‘all hands on deck’ kind of day. Everyone openly shared problems on a common table. But there were always many strong professional shoulders to share the load with. I always idealize that period when purpose, entrepreneurial fervor, and high caliber of professionalism came together to accomplish our great undertaking and together, we all ushered in a new Philippine gas industry,” he said.
“We were still in our 30s and felt we could abuse our bodies with impunity. Of course, if we were to do it all again today, we would advocate something more attuned to our Chairman Emeritus concern for employee health and wellness. Nevertheless, at the time we were happy beyond a doubt, and those fires forged working comradeships that remain as strong and as sharp as a sword’s edge to this day,” he added.
He said undoubtedly, Benpres was witness to the Lopezes determination “to start or build up businesses that are catalysts for national development which is testament to one of its core values: a pioneering entrepreneurial spirit.”
“As we have envisioned the building’s rebirth, it is as much about paying homage to the past as it is paving the path for tomorrow,” Mr. Lopez said.

How to get more Pinays to pursue STEM careers

YOUNG WOMEN entering the field of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) face many challenges, given the prejudice against their gender.
But this should not dissuade women from following their dreams, according to several Filipina advocates at the first #STEMSisterhood: She Talks Asia x L’Oreal Philippines Tribe Meet Up for Women in Science in Makati City on Feb. 11 (International Day of Women and Girls in Science).
“If it’s something that’s of interest to you… start from a problem solving mindset, and bring that to your career. Establish what you are going for… whether it’s taking an online class, whether it’s having a coffee chat with someone who’s in the field that you are interested in,” Alexandra Suarez, country head of Bumble Philippines, said.
For Dr. Geraldine Zamora, who received the Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) Award for Medicine in 2016, women should grab opportunities given to them and focus on achieving one’s goal.
“Just go for it. Do everything that you can do. Achieve it… There will always be opportunities and you just get them… It’s really more of accepting the opportunities that have been presented to you… looking at your goal and working hard,” she said.
Despite the number of opportunities available in STEM fields, there is a decline in women engagement in the sciences.
Eleanor Rosa Pinugu, co-founder and chief operating officer of She Talks Asia, cited data from the Commission on Higher Education that showed women enrollment in STEM courses decreased to about 43% in 2017.
While this figure is better than other countries like the United Kingdom where it is just 17%, Ms. Pinugu said there still needs to be more effort in encouraging women to pursue STEM careers.
“Actually, entry is not an issue, and sustaining a career is not an issue. It’s really more of encouraging more people to get into it that we should focus on,” she said.
To encourage more women in the STEM fields, having role models is important.
“One suggestion here is perhaps you should have more role models of their dream job… The thing is, if we can expose more role models in the media… if we have something like that, more kids, more girls who would go to sciences and engineering,” Dr. Maricor Soriano, a physicist in the National Institute of Physics in the University of the Philippines Diliman, said.
While not everyone can succeed in these fields, Ms. Soriano said supporting the sciences can be done anywhere and everywhere.
“Not everyone can go into the sciences… but those who are passionate about science but would not want to go to this discipline can still support the Sciences. You may be media practitioners, go ahead and write about scientists and engineers. Wherever you are, if you could do something to support the sciences,” Ms. Soriano said.
Women also need support from family and friends to achieve their dreams.
“It takes a village to raise a child, and it takes a village to raise a scientist… You have to understand that to someone, you are part of someone’s village… Your friend or… someone around you can get affected… Understand that you have a role to play, as well,” Carmel Valencia, corporate communications head of L’Oreal Philippines, said.
“I think it’s more than just getting numbers. It’s also a fundamental way of someone to be able to have this opportunity… Women have the power can and have the power to change the world,” Ms. Valencia added. — Vincent Mariel P. Galang

Labor force survey

LATEST data show a decline in the country’s unemployment rate and underemployment rates in January, the government’s statistical agency reported on Thursday. Read the full story.
Labor force survey

Less Filipinos jobless, seeking more work

By Carmina Angelica V. Olano
Researcher
LATEST data show a decline in the country’s unemployment rate and underemployment rates in January, the government’s statistical agency reported on Thursday.
At the same time, the period saw a decline in the number of employed Filipinos even as the ranks of the unemployed went down. This can be explained by the decline in the participation rate, which indicates more Filipinos have left the labor force.
Labor force survey
Preliminary results of the January 2019 round of the Labor Force Survey (LFS) conducted by the Philippine Statistics Authority put the country’s unemployment rate at 5.2%, down from the 5.3% recorded in the same period last year.
This is equivalent to 2.29 million jobless Filipinos, down from 2.32 million in January 2018.
Likewise, the underemployment rate — the proportion of those working, but still looking for more work or longer working hours — improved to 15.6% from 18%. This corresponds to around 6.45 million Filipinos underemployed compared to 7.5 million the previous year.
Among the January LFS rounds, January 2019’s unemployment rate was lowest since 2005, the year the government adopted new definitions for the LFS.
The same could be said for underemployment, considering that rates go as high as above 20% in past LFS rounds.
The size of the labor force in January was approximately 43.659 million out of the 72.524 million Filipinos 15 years and older, yielding a participation rate of 60.2%, lower than the year-ago 62.2%.
The employment rate, which is the proportion of the employed to the total labor force — inched up to 94.8% in January from 94.7% in the same round last year.
However, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) noted in a statement that the number of employed persons in the latest survey was lower by 0.9% or 387,000 to 41.4 million versus the 41.8 million employed in January 2018.
“This was mainly due to the 1.7 million employment loss in the agriculture sector, which overshadowed the combined 1.3 million additional employment in industry and services sectors,” NEDA said in its statement.
The employment rate in agriculture was 22.1% in January, down from 26% in the same round last year.
Meanwhile, the employment rate in services improved to 58.1% from 55.9% while that of industry rose to 19.7% from 18.1%.
NEDA noted the rising cost of inputs amid low profit, limited access to credit, poor infrastructure, and vulnerability to environmental risks that have contributed to the continued decline of workers in agriculture.
“The prevalence of low-productivity jobs in the agriculture sector remains a challenge. Sustainable solutions such as shifting rice farmers to high-value crops, promoting crop diversification, accelerating development of local infrastructure and training for farmers on technological advances are critical to raising productivity in agriculture,” NEDA quoted its director-general, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia, as saying.
Full-time workers — those who worked for at least 40 hours in a week — increased to 71.7% from 63.6% in January 2018. Part-time workers accounted for 27.7% of employed persons from 35.2%.
The January round of LFS also revealed that working hours per week averaged 43.2 hours, up from 40.6 hours a year ago.
“The overall improvements in the proportion of remunerative work and full-time employment, as well as the decline in underemployment and vulnerable employment, indicate that the quality of work in the country is continuously progressing,” Mr. Pernia said.
For Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) economist Michael L. Ricafort, the decline in unemployment was “widely expected,” ascribing it to the continued growth of labor-intensive industries like retail, real estate, construction, business process outsourcing, manufacturing and tourism.
He added that higher-paying construction jobs “partly lured away” some workers from the agriculture sector, especially those in fast-growing provinces outside Metro Manila.
Mr. Ricafort also noted the lower participation rate that was brought about by the smaller number of employed and unemployed Filipinos in January.
“[T]his could be a signal that some people withdrew from the local job market as this might indicate some people looked for jobs overseas, instead of applying for work locally,” he said.
For Union Bank of the Philippines, Inc. (UnionBank) chief economist Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion, the country’s unemployment rate in January was “quite a surprise.”
“It must be considered that GDP (gross domestic product) growth last year was lower than [in] previous years. I did expect that unemployment might be the same or even worse than the previous period. This may mean that there were better and real opportunities for the labor force considering the challenges to economic growth last year,” Mr. Asuncion said.
“Aside from increased availability of jobs, the quality of jobs might have also improved. Jobseekers find jobs, while those looking for better jobs actually get them as well.”
In a research note, global think tank Nomura estimated the country’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate at 5.1%, which “sustains a downtrend that has become more pronounced over the last few years.”
“In addition to the near-term boost from election-related spending, falling unemployment supports the strong rebound in household consumption that we expect this year and drives our above-consensus 2019 GDP growth forecast of 6.8%, up from 6.2% in 2018,” Nomura said.
To recall, the Philippine economy grew by 6.2% in 2018, dragged by slower-than-expected GDP growth of 6.1% in the fourth quarter.
For UnionBank’s Mr. Asuncion, an improvement in agriculture employment could improve the overall employment situation in the country further, noting that the sector employs most of the country’s poor.
“Agriculture has been the drag on our economy. It has limited the opportunity to cut unemployment significantly. Just imagine if agriculture growth will be secured and expanded, it will definitely be an important contributor to economic growth and additional employment where jobs are needed badly,” Mr. Asuncion said.
“As investment-led economic growth in the country continues, UnionBank’s Economic Research Unit sees unemployment and underemployment continue to decline,” he added.
“However, agriculture employment is expected to be meager and thus a drag to the overall picture of the labor force in the country.”
RCBC’s Mr. Ricafort likewise expected labor conditions to improve this year on the back of slowing inflation, easing borrowing rates and the rollout of more public infrastructure projects.

Electricity bills higher this month — Meralco

DISTRIBUTION utility Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) announced on Thursday a slight increase in the overall electricity rates for March to P10.4961 per kilowatt-hour (/kWh), up by P0.0894/kWh from the P10.4067/kWh in February.
Meralco, which earlier reported a 4.6% rise in its customer base to 6.61 million, said the increase translates in an P18 rise in the total monthly bill of a typical household consuming 200 kWh. Those using 300 kWh, 400 kWh and 500 kWh can expect increases of P26.82, P35.76 and P44.70, respectively.
The increase in power rates this month comes despite the lower cost of electricity under power supply agreements (PSA), which brought down the generation charge. The decline failed to offset the higher electricity cost at the spot market and the rise in other charges, including transmission cost and government taxes.
“From P5.8939/kWh last month, generation charge for March went down to P5.5973/kWh, a decrease of P0.2966/kWh,” the country’s biggest distribution utility said.
It said the P1.0768/kWh decrease in PSA charges was because of the strengthening of the peso against the US dollar, lower fuel prices and higher average plant dispatch.
Meralco said unit one of the First Gen Corp.’s 414-megawatt San Gabriel power plant returned to normal operations in February after the scheduled maintenance outage in January.
“The share of PSAs to Meralco’s total requirement this month was at 48%,” the listed company said, referring to the February supply month whose charges are carried in March bills.
In contrast, charges from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) rose by P0.5178/kWh because of the tighter supply conditions in Luzon “with higher demand for power and more frequent plant outages this month,” Meralco said.
The cost of power from the independent power producers (IPPs) was higher by P0.0549/kWh due to the lower average plant dispatch. Quezon Power Philippines Ltd. was on scheduled maintenance outage from Jan. 18 to Feb. 8.
WESM and IPPs provided 12% and 40% of Meralco’s supply requirement, respectively.
Meanwhile, the transmission charge for residential customers rose by P0.0288/kWh after the higher ancillary service charge imposed by privately owned National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP).
Taxes and other charges also went up by P0.3572 after the completion of the refund last month on the universal charge-stranded contract costs.
“Meralco’s distribution, supply, and metering charges, meanwhile, have remained unchanged for 44 months, after these registered reductions in July 2015,” the company said, reiterating that it does not earn from the pass-through charges, such as the generation and transmission charges.
Generation charge payments go to power suppliers, while payment for the transmission charge goes to NGCP. Taxes and other public policy charges like the universal charge and feed-in tariff allowance are remitted to the government.
Meralco’s controlling stakeholder, Beacon Electric Asset Holdings, Inc., is partly owned by PLDT, Inc. Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has interest in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — VVS

FX reserves grow for fourth month

FOREIGN CURRENCY reserves rose in February for the fourth straight month, the central bank reported on Thursday, marked by higher investment income at a time of a stronger peso.
Gross international reserves (GIR) surged to $82.896 billion for the month, rising from January’s upward-revised $82.487 billion and the $80.432-billion level in February 2018, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported yesterday.
This is the highest reserve level since October 2016, when the GIR stood at $85.106 billion.
In a statement, the central bank attributed the bigger GIR to inflows from its foreign exchange operations, as well as higher net foreign currency deposits held by the government. This was partly offset by the state’s payment of its maturing foreign obligations.
Income from the BSP’s offshore investments rose to $70.44 billion last month from the $69.97 billion in January as well as the $64.185 billion seen a year ago. This accounted for bulk of the reserves.
In contrast, the country’s foreign currency holdings slipped to $2.431 billion from January’s $2.441 billion, just as the peso gained strength versus the dollar.
The central bank usually dips into the reserves to temper sharp swings in the exchange rate. The local unit continued to pare back 2018’s losses to average P52.1901 against the greenback, coming from January’s P52.4679. In fact, the peso even returned to the P51:$1 level in the last two days of February.
Some currency traders have said that the BSP likely bought more pesos during the month as monetary authorities sought to rebuild the reserves — after it slipped to a seven-year low in 2018 — to cushion the peso’s drop.
Meanwhile, the value of the BSP’s gold holdings slid to $8.359 billion from $8.407 billion a month ago. This reflects lower gold valuations in the international market.
Reserves maintained under the International Monetary Fund (IMF) dipped to $472.5 million versus $477.2 million the prior month.
The country’s special drawing rights — or the amount which can be tapped under the IMF’s reserve currency basket — roughly steadied at $1.193 billion.
February’s GIR shot past the $77-billion projection of the central bank for the full year.
The reserves can cover up to 7.3 months’ worth of import duties, higher than the seven-month ratio in December but below the 7.5-month coverage a year ago. Still, the central bank described this as an “ample” liquidity buffer above the three-month global standard.
The GIR is also equivalent to 6.3 times the Philippines’ short-term foreign debt based on original maturity (of up to one year), and 4.1 times when computed in residual terms (outstanding external debt with original maturity of up to a year, plus principal payments on medium- and long-term loans of the public and private sectors falling due within the next 12 months).
The GIR has consistently been cited as a source of strength for the Philippines, as it serves as a buffer against external shocks that could erode the country’s capability to service its foreign obligations. — Melissa Luz T. Lopez

Trolls targeted Captain Marvel, but Disney was ready for them

THE online trolling was fierce.
Brie Larson, Oscar-winning star of the Captain Marvel, is too political, the trolls said. She can’t possibly be strong enough. She’s forcing diversity on moviegoers.
Perhaps worst of all, she doesn’t smile enough, the trolls whined. So they posted doctored pictures of Larson, in her Captain Marvel regalia, doing what superheroes — male, female or otherwise — seldom do while rescuing Earth from almost certain annihilation. Smiling.
But besieged movie studios have learned how to deal with online turmoil. With hundreds of millions of dollars on the line, the Walt Disney Co. empire — and Larson herself — struck back.
She shared altered photos of other Marvel superheroes, the male Iron Man, the male Captain America, and the male Doctor Strange, with silly grins to illustrate the double standard of the “smile more” trope.
She also countered another line of attack. The comic-book Captain Marvel has been a man and a woman over the years (unlike, say, Wonder Woman), and Larson faced questions over whether she was brawny enough to play one of the most powerful characters in the Marvel universe. In a show of strength, she posted videos of her workouts on Instagram, including one where she pushed a 5,000-pound Jeep. Larson also didn’t shy away from the topic of female empowerment in interviews.
“This film is about trying to put in as many little revolutions as possible,” she told AV Club. “And as many little nods to what that experience is like, being a woman, so that other people could feel less alone.”
Not that long ago, a studio trying something different — remaking a classic comedy with women in the lead roles instead of men, say, or casting a female Asian-American as a day-saving fighter pilot — struggled with how to respond to online harassment campaigns. That wounded Sony Pictures’ 2016 Ghostbusters reboot, and it drove Kelly Marie Tran of Disney’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi off Instagram.
“If a backlash gets enough visibility in the news, it’s the tipping point that can become a crisis situation,” said Justin Pertschuk, senior vice-president of digital marketing at Universal Pictures. “Ultimately a negative conversation on social that gets amplified through the new media has the power to break a movie.”
The Last Jedi, boosted by moviegoer loyalty to its beloved franchise, did well at the box office. But Ghostbusters struggled, despite mostly positive reviews and an opening weekend that was a career best dollarwise for director Paul Feig and actress Melissa McCarthy. Along the way, actress-comedian Leslie Jones was subjected to online racism and misogyny, similar to what bedeviled Tran.
Captain Marvel, which comes out this week (It opened in the Philippines on Wednesday; it opens in the US and Canada over the coming weekend. — Ed.), is set in the 1990s, when alter ego Carol Danvers becomes one of the universe’s most powerful heroes and joins a galactic war between two alien races. The film could garner opening-weekend ticket sales of about $125 million in theaters in the US and Canada, rivaling (male) Marvel colleagues Iron Man and Thor. Shawn Robbins, chief analyst at the research site Box Office Pro, put his estimate at $160 million.
Trolls seem hellbent on driving those numbers down. They’re a relatively recent phenomenon, a loose organization of men dedicated to policing the culture. Having achieved success using social media to hound female gamers and journalists during the so-called Gamergate of the earlier 2010s, they moved on to politics and now cinema. The attacks have gotten so bad that Rotten Tomatoes took the step last week of prohibiting user reviews before a movie’s release, an attempt to prevent trolls from torpedoing a film. (Actual film critics have responded favorably to Captain Marvel: It currently has an 83% rating on the site and is “certified fresh.)
Disney has plenty of experience dealing with the onslaught. Executives and strategists try to keep their tactics under the radar, and Disney declined to provide an executive to comment on its tactics. But the studio’s answer to the online hate is there for all to see on the internet.
STUDIOS ARE MUCH MORE EXPERIENCED NOW
Last year, trolls zeroed in on Black Panther and its groundbreaking African-American cast. Facebook groups tried to target the Rotten Tomatoes scores of the movie, posting negative comments to depress the online index that some moviegoers use to gauge whether the film is worth seeing. Facebook took the pages down, while Twitter tackled fake reports of racially motivated violence at screenings. The movie went on to become the highest-grossing superhero movie ever screened in US and Canadian theaters.
Some digital-marketing specialists recommend leaving it to the fans of the movies to correct any negative discourse, rather than having the companies intervene. But studios have made countering online barrages a priority. In 2019, digital ad spending in the entertainment industry will be an estimated $6.64 billion, up from $3.45 billion in 2016, according to researcher EMarketer.
Spending on digital has risen from a maximum of 10% of the overall marketing budget to, in some cases, half the funds for a movie campaign, Pertschuk said.
Likewise, the number of teams at the major Hollywood studios dedicated to countering online trolling has swollen from just a handful to as many as 40, said Marc Karzen, lead strategist at RelishMix, which tracks online activity and advises studios on tactics.
“The studios are much more experienced in dealing with these wildfires that spike up,” Karzen said. “If the movie is great, you have to stick to your guns.” — Bloomberg

Queen of Jazz Annie Brazil takes her final bow, 85

THE country’s queen of Jazz, Annie Brazil (born Justiniana Bulawin), died of pneumonia at the age of 85 on the afternoon of March 5 in Quezon City, her children — singers Richard James B. Merk and singer Rachel Anne Wolfe, and Raffy Wolfe — confirmed in separate Facebook posts on the day of her passing.
“We are saddened by the demise of Ms. Brazil known as the Grand Lady of Jazz and the Philippine Queen of Jazz,” said an official statement from the Office of the Presidential Spokesperson on March 6.
“For the woman who has lived a life full of music, rest in peace and may perpetual light shine upon her as we pray for the repose of her soul,” the statement continued.
Ms. Brazil had been based in New Jersey, USA, for the last 20 years, living with her daughter. She suffered a stroke in 2017 while visiting in the Philippines and was advised not to travel.
Ms. Brazil was born in Manila in 1934 and started singing at the age of six in front of American soldiers in Clark Air Base and Jimmy’s Night Spot in Dewey Boulevard (now Roxas Boulevard).
“I started singing with a big band when I was 12. I was not only singing jazz, I was singing old songs. I used to listen to Vaughn Monroe, [Frank] Sinatra, Vic Damone, Perry Como… Nat King Cole,” she said in a YouTube video posted in 2018.
“You gotta have a sound for jazz, you can’t just sing jazz. You’ve got to have the sound, the feeling, the soul, and the spirit, you know?” she explained.
In a career which spanned almost eight decades, she had sung with jazz greats like Nina Simone, Miles Davis, and Duke Ellington.
In 2003, she received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Filipino-American Jazz Society, and in the same year, she also received an award from the Asian American Jazz Festival in New York.
“When I’m on stage, I’m a totally different person. I’m alive, it’s like I’m home,” Ms. Brazil said in the video before saying that she “doesn’t want to stop singing until He takes my gift away.”
She might have been called the Queen of Jazz or the Grand Lady of Philippine Jazz but the signer disliked this, saying that she hates “being called the Queen of Jazz” because “queens are just for beauty queens, right?”
“But we have fun giving titles to artists right? I don’t mind,” she said in the YouTube video.
And despite her passing, it seems Ms. Brazil’s gift of song has brought people together once more as her friends and loved ones spent the first few days of her wake singing, including pianist Henry Katindig who performed Grover Washington, Jr.’s “Just the Two of Us” as seen in a video posted on Facebook.
“I lost my Queen of Jazz. I lost my dearest mom, Annie Brazil. Dear God, please bless the loving soul of my dear mom. Please take good care of her in your beloved kingdom. I love her very, very much. ‘Til we meet again, mom,” jazz singer Mr. Merk posted in his Facebook page.
In the same platform, actress Vivian Velez and composer Vehnee Saturno extended their condolences.
“My sincere and deepest sympathies to the Merk family for the passing of their jazz matriarch, Annie Brazil. I had the rare opportunity to share the stage with her and other Pinoy Jazz luminaries at the Catalina Club in Hollywood, where we all shared the most heartwarming and gracious of vibes,” jazz guitarist Johnny Alegre said in a Facebook post.
“Rest In Peace tita Annie. Your friends in the world of jazz are grieving too. Eternal rest grant unto your soul, let perpetual light shine upon you,” jazz singer Lorna Cifra said in a separate post.
“I just want to be remembered for my voice and for my name, Annie Brazil,” Ms. Brazil said in the YouTube video.
Ms. Brazil was involved with an American DJ James Bernard Merk based in Okinawa and they had a son. After his death at the young age of 31, Ms. Brazil married music impresario David Wolfe, who was the father of Rachel Anne. They adopted Raffy in 1986.
The singer lies in state at the Premier Suite 1 Chapel, Loyola Memorial Chapels, Guadalupe Makati. Viewing is until March 9 and cremation will be on March 10 at the Loyola Crematory in Makati. — Zsarlene B. Chua

PLDT allots record P78-billion capex for 2019

PLDT, Inc. is allocating a record P78.4 billion in capital expenditures (capex) for this year, 34% higher than last year’s figure, as the telecommunications giant ramps up its network expansion amid the impending entry of a new player.
“We’re guiding capex at the number of P78.4 billion, which is an increase of P20 billion over the P58 billion realized in 2018,” PLDT Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Manuel V. Pangilinan said in a press briefing on the company’s 2018 financial results on Thursday.
Of the total capex, P48 billion will be dedicated for network and information technology platforms “to widen PLDT’s lead in network quality.” This includes the expansion of its LTE/3G mobile coverage, widening its fiber footprint, and lifting its network capacity to cater to growing demand for data.
“We have another P16 billion which is what we call business and customer capex. For every home we connect, we spend for the last mile, the modems. Since we don’t charge the customers, that’s a PLDT asset and a PLDT capex,” PLDT Chief Financial Officer Anabelle L. Chua said.
PLDT is also spending a one-time capex of around P3 to P4 billion for its Home and Enterprise units, which will be used to hire around 3,000 to handle installation and repair services. Another P2 billion will be used for data center expansion.
Mr. Pangilinan said that in the coming years, although capex may not be as high as P78.4 billion, the company is moving to the direction of normalizing the high investments.
“It’s sort of emerging to us that there are new areas of revenue that we’re seeing that we did not anticipate. Particularly when 5G (fifth generation network) is built in this country and elsewhere. I think as we get to know the Home business more and more, we’re surprised pleasantly that there are new areas of revenue that can be developed or that can emerge that can help the revenue line of PLDT,” Mr. Pangilinan added.
SOARING PROFIT
Meanwhile, PLDT reported its attributable net income surged 40.47% to P18.92 billion in 2018, from P13.37 billion in 2017, as revenues rose 3% to P164.75 billion on stronger demand for data.
PLDT reported its core income dropped 5% to P26.2 billion, as it accounted for the P3-billion loss in digital arm Voyager Innovations, Inc. Excluding Voyager, the company said telco core income is 3% higher at P24.4 billion in 2018.
Service revenues grew 5% to P149.4 billion. The bulk or 60% of this came from higher data services which generated P90.2 billion, up 37% year on year.
On the other hand, revenues from domestic voice fell 7% to P42.6 billion, while short message service (SMS) revenues plunged 53% to P10.3 billion. Revenues from international voice also went down by 27% to P6.2 billion.
By business segment, PLDT’s enterprise unit contributed P38.4 billion in revenues, up 10% from the previous year. PLDT Home also added P36.4 billion or 10% more from 2017, and wireless segment P62.5 billion or 7% higher.
“I would like to think it’s been a satisfactory year for PLDT,” Mr. Pangilinan said.
“The fixed side of business, Home and Enterprise, continue to show robust growth. And that robust growth should continue onwards from 2019 through the coming years. That will underpin the growth prospects of the PLDT group moving forward,” he added.
PLDT is setting a telco core income guidance of P26 billion for 2019, up 6.6% from last year’s P24.4 billion. Dividend payout is also set at 60% of the core income. — Denise A. Valdez