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Japanese tractor maker Yanmar seeking partners in Southeast Asia

BANGKOK — Japan’s Yanmar Agribusiness Co Ltd. said on Tuesday that it plans to expand its business in South and Southeast Asia beginning this year with its newly launched tractors.
Yanmar Agribusiness President Hiroaki Kitaoka said that the company is looking for distributors in the Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia, and Bangladesh.
“We would like to find the great distributors in those countries,” Mr. Kitaoka said during the company’s launching of its 51-horsepower YM351A and 57-horsepower YM357A tractors.
Yanmar equipment is assembled by the company’s partner in India, ITL, in which Yanmar has a 30% stake.
“Our mission is to go to South Asia and Southeast Asia including Indonesia and Thailand next,” according to Mr. Kitaoka.
The tractors come with a Smart-Assist remote which allows tractor users to monitor the equipment with their smart phones, which is expected to reduce downtime, thereby increasing earnings.
Geolocation technology issues warnings when the equipment is operating outside the set parameters, he added.
Both tractors are appropriate for paddy, dry field and hauling, with a maximum turning angle of 55 degrees.
“If downtime is long, customers will lose productivity,” Yanmar Agribusiness Manager Osamu Omoro said.
“Customers can maintain income and can work in a very long period,” Mr. Omoro added.
Yanmar has been operating in the Philippines since 2014.

PLDT hikes capex to P70B for 2019

By Denise A. Valdez
PLDT, Inc. is raising its capital expenditure (capex) by a fifth to at least P70 billion for this year, mostly to fund its network expansion plans.
Manuel V. Pangilinan, chairman, president and chief executive officer of the listed telecommunications giant, and chairman of Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC), told reporters on Friday the whole group will record a bigger budget for this year.
“I don’t know what the aggregate number is… But if you add the group’s capex, it’s going to be more than a hundred billion this year… PLDT alone will account for at least P70 billion,” Mr. Pangilinan said when asked about MPIC’s capex for 2019.
A P70 billion capex will be 21% higher than the “record” P58 billion capex for 2018. Around 54% of last year’s budget was dedicated to its wireless business and 46% to fixed broadband.
Mr. Pangilinan said higher capex for PLDT will be used for expansion projects such as the rollout of fourth generation (4G) and fifth generation (5G) networks.
“(The capex is) mainly (for) fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) on the fixed side. And for the wireless, it’s making complete substantially our 4G and start constructing the 5G network. So it’s a continuous exercise,” Mr. Pangilinan said.
He also said the government’s initiative to encourage common tower providers will reduce the burden on telcos to build their own cell sites.
“I think it will help our capex, although it’s not a very significant amount of money, but it will help our capex somewhat. So we’re willing to cooperate with these new tower companies,” the PLDT chief said.
Fitch Ratings said in a November report it expects telcos PLDT and Globe Telecom, Inc. to invest higher this year because of the entry of a “third telco” — the Mislatel Consortium.
“Fitch expects this to temper revenue growth and raise the capex pressure on PLDT Inc. (BBB/Stable) and Globe Telecom, Inc. (BBB-/Stable),” the credit rater said then.
Globe had a capex of $950 million (about P49.8 billion) last year. While it has not disclosed its 2019 capex yet, Globe President, Ernest L. Cu previously said they were eyeing a budget “close to it (2018 capex)” for this year.
Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls.

France makes biogas support conditional on costs

PARIS — France is ready to provide 7 to 9 billion euros ($8-10 billion) of subsidies for renewable gas but only if the industry can substantially lower its costs, the government said on Friday.
Produced from methanisation of agricultural and other biological waste, biogas still costs about four times more than natural gas imported by pipeline or LNG tankers from countries like Russia, Norway, Algeria or Qatar.
Under its draft “PPE” 10-year energy plan, the government set a target for biogas to account for seven to 10 percent of gas consumption by 2030 from well below one percent today if costs can fall rapidly.
Gas grid operator GRTgaz said in a statement the draft PPE was worrying for the outlook of the nascent biomethane industry.
It said a goal to reduce costs to 67 euros per MWh by 2023 was way too ambitious. Current tariffs are around 90-95 euros per MWh.
“No other renewable energy sector that is mature today has seen its development conditional on such terms,” GRTgaz said.
It said the PPE did not account for the fact that biogas is non-intermittent, can easily be stored, helps deal with waste and provides income for farmers.
“As it is, the PPE trajectory threatens the development of this young industry,” GRTgaz said.
Through a system of tenders, the government wants to boost the amount of biogas produced in France from 5.4 terawatt hour in 2016, to 14 TWh in 2023 and 24 to 32 TWh in 2028. It also wants to boost the amount of biogas injected in the gas grid from virtually nothing today to more than half of production.
Although France is way behind biogas pioneers like Denmark and Germany, the sector is growing quickly. The amount of biogas injected in GRTgaz’ pipelines rose 75 percent to 714 GWh last year. Installed capacity is 1.2 TWh at 76 sites, and there is a pipeline of 661 new projects for a total capacity of 14 TWh.
A year ago, French utility Engie’s CEO Isabelle Kocher said biogas has the potential to grow from about one percent of gas consumption in France to 10 percent by 2025, 30 percent by 2030 and 100 percent by 2050. Over the next decade, the government wants to reduce total French gas consumption from 493 TWh in 2017 to about 420 TWh in 2028 through energy savings and better insulation. — Reuters

Fashion conscious


FASHION shows our desires and our means to achieve them through carefully selected items. In turn it also begins to see our values and how we seek to live them. In an exhibit called Fashion Revolution at the Metropolitan Museum of Manila, we are given alternatives on how to live more sustainably through the clothes that we interact in and interact with.
The exhibit, which runs until early April, is a collaboration between The Swedish Institute and various Swedish fashion brands such as H&M, Houdini, and Babybjorn. Along with that, various exhibits are found around a gallery in the second floor to reflect safer alternatives to cleaning clothing (a light pumice stone to “dry-clean” sweaters, for example), or clothes made using alternative materials, such as recycled paper.
H&M, as a global giant, is usually pilloried in the press for alleged unsustainable and unethical practices with regards to the environment and labor. However, Dan Mejia, Head of Communications and Press for H&M in the Philippines, said, “Most of it comes from a lack of information of what H&M is really doing and has been doing since 1990.”
He cites, for example, that H&M requires its partner factories (outsourcing for cheap labor is one of the controversies that H&M faces) to sign sustainability commitments before H&M works with them. He also cited recent developments in production: for example, he points to H&M’s use of organic cotton and its clothing drive. H&M has collection boxes in its stores where shoppers are encouraged to drop their discarded clothing in exchange for discount vouchers — these clothes will be processed to create new garments. The initiative has been in place since 2013. According to Mr. Mejia, the company has managed to collect 18,000 tons of clothing this way; equivalent to 89 million T-shirts.
“Our aim for 2030 is to be able to use 100% recycled material. To be able to [do] that, we need to radically increase the recycling of existing textiles,” said Mr. Mejia.
H&M’s exhibit section in Fashion Revolution includes various clothes made out of recycled materials called the Conscious Exclusive collection. The materials are made from a variety of sources, from discarded fishing nets to coastline waste. The materials have been processed to look like real, actual textiles, resulting in some flowy, stunning gowns.
Mr. Mejia also points out H&M’s continued fight for living wages in the countries where it sources its clothes. Speaking about this practices, and the required cooperation from the rest of the world, he said, “What we just need to do… get all these brands to come together and at the same time, to get the support of the governments.”
The Swedish Ambassador, Harald Fries, told BusinessWorld, “This exhibition is about a new business model for fashion, and to go away from what we call a linear model.”
The traditional linear model follows a make, use, and discard line; while the exhibit calls for a more circular model, where the discarded products can become useful again.
It’s no surprise that a country like Sweden, famously mindful of its environment, would care about the issue.
Said Mr. Fries, “Sweden has a long tradition of caring not just for yourself and your core family, but for society,” he said, pointing out the country’s welfare system. “I think there is a sense that you don’t only look at yourself… look at the whole society. Look at nature, your environment; in the whole country, in the whole world.”
Mr. Mejia, said, “As a human being, as a customer, we all have needs. We need to look good, we like to feel good; but we have to do it responsibly.” — Joseph L. Garcia

Bourse operator to introduce PSE total return index

By Arra B. Francia
Reporter
THE PHILIPPINE Stock Exchange, Inc. (PSE) will be introducing a new index that will help track the overall return of the main index, as part of efforts to cater to the needs of a broader investor base.
In a statement over the weekend, the bourse operator said it will launch the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) Total Return Index (PSEi TRI). The new index will have the same components as the PSEi and will integrate regular and special cash dividends of index components on ex-date.
The PSEi TRI will measure the overall return of the index, considering both capital gains and dividend payments, and whether these dividends are reinvested back into the PSEi.
“We have always been focused on investment gains from price appreciation. As done in other markets, we want to show the bigger picture on the profitability of stock and index investing,” said PSE President and Chief Executive Officer Ramon S. Monzon in a statement.
The PSEi TRI uses 1,000 as the base value, with Dec. 28, 2007 as the base year. This places the PSEi TRI at 2,771.01 on Dec. 28, 2018, indicating a 10-year cumulative gain of 417.6%, higher than the PSEi’s 298.6% increase from 2008 to 2018.
The PSE also noted that a five-year computation of the PSEi TRI will show a growth of 38.7%, against the 26.8% uptick of the PSEi.
Any changes to the PSEi will also be reflected on the PSEi TRI. The new index will be available on the PSE website no later than 5 p.m. of each trading session.
Sought for comment, Timson Securities, Inc. equities trader Jervin S. de Celis said this could affect the strategies of investors.
“TRI’s return is almost always higher than the price return performance of an index since TRI gauges returns if dividends are reinvested,” Mr. De Celis said in a mobile phone message.
“So for active investors who are outperforming the return of an index, TRI might make their fund look like it’s performing less or underperforming. In turn, these investors may change their strategy by shifting to other low-cost funds.”
The PSEi TRI is part of the bourse operator’s efforts to launch more PSE indices this year. The PSE said it is also reviewing the current sector index classification.
“We want our sectoral indices to be more representative of the industries they belong to. This will be beneficial to fund managers in planning and executing their investment strategies. We hope to announce the new sector classifications by midyear,” Mr. Monzon explained.
The PSE indices to be released will be available for index licensing. Collective investment schemes that track PSE indices or use PSE indices as the underlying index for their fund will be charged with license fees depending on the fund, as well as the size of the fund’s net asset value.
“Index licensing is not something unique to the PSE. Several other exchanges globally charge for the intellectual property of the indices they develop and maintain,” Mr. Monzon said.
The PSE chief said last year that they will introduce the licensing scheme for all funds tracking the PSEi starting this first quarter. The licensing fee will be equivalent to three basis points of the total assets under management of any PSEi-tracking fund.

T-bills on offer may fetch lower rates on dovish Fed

YIELDS ON the Treasury bills (T-bill) on offer today are expected to slide after the US central bank signalled a dovish stance on hiking its borrowing costs at its policy review last week.
The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) is offering P20 billion worth of T-bills on Monday, broken down into P6 billion each for the three- and six-month papers and another P8 billion for the one-year instruments.
Traders interviewed before the weekend said rates of the T-bills on offer today will likely move lower from the previous auction, with one saying yields could slide by 5-10 basis points (bp).
“The rates of the T-bills will slide…as the demand is still expected to be strong at around twice the offer size,” the trader said in a phone interview Friday.
Last week, the Treasury borrowed just P18.397 billion out of the P20 billion it wanted to raise at its T-bills auction, partially awarding the shortest tenor amid lukewarm demand as investors continued to park their funds in the longer-dated securities.
At that auction, the rate of the 90-day papers climbed 11.6 bps to 5.534%, while the 182- and 364-day IOUs fetched lower rates of 5.892% and 5.946%, respectively.
Based on the PHP Bloomberg Valuation Service Reference Rates, the three-month, six-month and one-year papers were quoted at 5.436%, 5.813% and 5.977%, respectively, on Friday.
The trader said yields on the T-bills will move lower as investors price in the results of the policy meeting of the US Federal Reserve last week.
As expected, the Fed kept interest rates at its two-day review last week, saying it will be “patient” in raising its borrowing costs this year amid “conflicting signals” on the US economic outlook.
“We continue to expect the American economy will grow at a solid pace in 2019, although likely slower than the very strong pace of 2018,” Fed Chair Jerome Powell said in a press conference following the two-day meeting.
Meanwhile, another trader said market participants will watch out for the domestic inflation data for January to be released on Tuesday.
A BusinessWorld poll of 12 analysts yielded a 4.5% median estimate for headline inflation, which, if fulfilled, will be slower than the 5.1% tallied in December.
The expected deceleration in inflation was mainly attributed to the sustained decline in food prices, which helped offset higher oil prices due to pickup in global crude prices and new tranche of the fuel excise tax implemented during the month.
The government plans to raise P360 billion this quarter through domestic means. Some P240 billion will be borrowed through 12 weekly T-bill auctions during the three-month period, while P120 billion worth of Treasury bonds will also be issued through six fortnightly auctions.
The state wants to borrow P1.189 trillion in 2019 to fund its spending plans. Of the amount, 75% will be sourced domestically while the remainder will be from foreign creditors. — Karl Angelo N. Vidal

EU seeks to placate Washington by approving soybeans for biofuel

BRUSSELS/NEW YORK — The European Commission said on Tuesday it had concluded that US soybeans can be used in biofuels in the European Union, part of the bloc’s push to improve strained trade relations with the United States.
However, industry sources said it was unlikely to lead to a flood of additional US soybean imports into Europe.
US President Donald Trump agreed in July not to impose tariffs on EU car imports while the two sides explored ways to boost trade including a possible deal to remove tariffs on non-auto industrial goods and to boost EU imports of US soybeans and liquefied natural gas.
The Commission said in a statement the recognition of US soybeans for use in biofuels was valid until July 1, 2021, but could extend beyond that date as long as they met sustainability criteria set in new EU rules in the 2021-2030 period.
“Today’s decision is new proof that the European Union is delivering on our commitments,” a Commission spokesman said.
Currently, the United States exports soybeans to the EU for animal feed but the soybean oil byproduct has to be shipped back because Europe does not allow it to be used for fuel. The new rule would change that.
“So, on its face, it does nothing to increase soybean exports in the EU,” a US-based lobbyist for the biodiesel industry said. “It just helps European farmers capture the full value and saves US farmers shipping costs.”
One US Congressional staffer described the move as more the removal of a trade barrier.
EU biofuel producers used an estimated 400,000 tonnes of soybean oil for biofuel production in 2018 against some 5.9 million tonnes of rapeseed oil, the main feedstock, according to Claus Keller of German commodity analysts FO Licht.
“I think the EU move will be positive for US soybean sales prospects to the EU but it will not open a floodgate,” he said, adding that sales would be influenced by US-China trade talks and on the future for Argentine biodiesel, which faces duties in the United States and could face measures in Europe.
The Commission, which negotiates trade deals for the 28-nation EU, has said the July agreement led to a 112 percent rise in US soybean imports in the second half of 2018.
The United States is Europe’s main supplier, with a 75 percent share of EU soybean imports.
The increase has been driven by a slide in the US soybean price, which slid after China imposed higher tariffs on US beans in its trade row with Washington, rather than because of any concerted action by the EU, analysts said.
The EU imports about 14 million tonnes of soybeans per year as feed for animals. — Reuters

From cabinet ministers to a toddler:PeopleAsia honors diverse group as People of the Year

THIS YEAR is all about “tycoons, thespians and a tot,” as Stargate Media Corp.’s PeopleAsia names 17 People of the Year awardees, a roster which includes Olympic silver medalist Hidilyn Diaz and Presidential adviser on entrepreneurship, Jose Maria “Joey” Concepcion III.
“These are self-made Filipinos who elevated Filipino talent and culture to the world,” Jose Paolo S. dela Cruz, managing editor of PeopleAsia, told BusinessWorld during the event on Jan. 30 at the Marriott Grand Ballroom in Pasay City.
“For this issue, aside from the usual movers and shakers, we also gave recognition to people who promoted nation-building,” he added.
Mr. Concepcion, who led this year’s pack, is a two-time People of the Year awardee and is noted for “his exceptional contributions in inspiring and educating micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) as they grow they respective businesses,” according to a press release.
He is joined by businessman Dennis Uy, the man behind Udenna Corp. and Phoenix Petroleum; William T. Belo, chairman emeritus and founder of Wilcon Depot Inc., the local construction supply and home improvement retailer; and Enrico “Rikki” Dee, FooDee Global Concepts President and CEO, who brought international food brands such as Hawker Chan and Tim Ho Wan to the Philippines.
“This year, we have a good mix of entertainers, businessmen and athletes — many of which are very successful, inspiring yet low-key people. People who are not usually in the headlines,” Mr. Dela Cruz said.
Also in this year’s list is artist Andres Barrioquinto who staged his Portraits exhibit at the National Museum last year which featured 18 portraits of people such as fashion designer Josie Natori.

PeopleAsia 2
Youngest People of the Year awardee, three-year-old Scarlet Snow Belo.

Female awardees this year include Ms. Diaz who won the country’s first silver medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics and the country’s first gold medal in the 2018 Asian Games; Len Cabili of the Filip+Inna clothing brand who collaborates with indigenous weavers and seamstresses in far-flung regions of the country; and singer Lani Misalucha, famously called “Asia’s Nightingale,” who “continues to soar as one of the country’s leading musical exports to the United States,” said the statement.
The magazine also had its younger People’s Choice awardee this year — three-year-old Scarlet Snow Belo (the daughter of beauty magnate Vicki Belo and Hayden Kho) whose Instagram followers come to almost three million.
“This is a kid who brings joy to her followers. Her innocence in how she looks at the world and the joy she brings is a welcome break from all the seriousness in the world,” said Mr. Dela Cruz.
Members of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s economic team — Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark Villar, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade, Budget and Management Secretary Benjamin Diokno, and Bases Conversion and Development Authority President and CEO Vince Dizon — were also awarded as they continue to try to usher in a “Golden Age of Infrastructure in the Philippines” with the government’s flagship “Build, Build, Build” program.
Lastly, the magazine and Resorts World Manila named National Artist for Music Ryan Cayabyab and singer Kristine Zhenie “KZ” Tandingan as the “Lucky Persons of the Year,” an award given in recognition of their “hard work, dauntless perseverance and unshakeable faith that enabled them to change their fate and be a symbol of hope,” said the statement.
The People of the Year award was created in 2004 to “honor and recognize exemplary individuals whose achievements make them stand out from the rest of the crowd… outstanding individuals from diverse fields and industries, regardless of age, gender, status in life, and even political affiliation,” said Jose R. Rodriguez, the magazine’s associate publisher, in his message.
Stargate People Asia, published by Stargate Media Corp., is part of the STAR Group of Companies which includes BusinessWorld. — Zsarlene B. Chua

Chelsea Logistics mulls bond offering this year

CHELSEA LOGISTICS Holdings Corp. (CLC) may conduct a bond offering up to P7 billion to finance its expansion plans for the year, following the company’s withdrawal of its proposed share offering earlier this month.
CLC Vice-President for Finance Ignacia S. Braga IV said they are currently working with local debt watcher Credit Rating and Investors Services Philippines, Inc. (CRISP) to rate CLC. CRISP guides investors by rating companies based on their investment risks in the debt market.
“We are working with CRISP to do a rating of Chelsea Logistics…so that if we decide to do it under debt, under bond-raising, commercial papers, at least we will be ready,” Ms. Braga told reporters on the sidelines of ISM Communications Corp.’s special stockholders’ meeting last week
The listed logistics firm earlier planned to offer three million preferred shares, with an overallotment option of up to two million preferred shares, priced at P1,000 each, to raise up to P5 billion this year. The capital raised was meant to fund its expansion and acquisitions.
Asked if the fund-raising activity will still constitute P5 billion, Ms. Braga said it could now reach P7 billion due to additional capital expenditure requirements.
Ms. Braga noted most of the company’s capex is for a warehouse facility on a 2.5-hectare property in Taguig.
“We’re building a warehouse complex. We need about P2.5 billion to complete (the) project, but we have already acquired the property so it’s (gonna be less than that). We have already awarded the construction of the building… And to support the warehouse, you need the delivery vehicles,” Ms. Braga explained.
The Taguig warehouse will be fully leased out to local logistics solutions firm, Worklink Services, Inc.
The CLC executive said the company is also beefing up its container yards following their acquisition of Trans-Asia Shipping Lines, Inc., which operates two freighters, among others. The company currently has container yards in Davao and Manila. The expansion of the container yards entails the purchase of more terminal equipment, flat beds, and trucks.
Meanwhile, Ms. Braga said there are no allocations for infrastructure projects for this year since the company will only be conducting project feasibility studies to submit unsolicited proposals.
CLC has already received the original proponent status for four projects. This includes its P49-billion offer to develop and operate the Davao International Airport, an P11.2-billion proposal to develop and operate the Sasa Port in Davao City, a monorail system in Davao, and a light rail system in Cebu.
CLC’s net income attributable to the parent dropped 72% to P43.01 million in the first nine months of 2018, amid a 61% uptick in gross revenues to P3.69 billion during the same period. — Arra B. Francia

Yields on gov’t debt drop

By Marissa Mae M. Ramos
Researcher
YIELDS ON government securities fell last week amid a risk-off tone in the market following dovish sentiments by the US central bank and expectations for the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to keep rates steady, with inflation showing signs of slowing.
On average, debt yields — which move opposite to prices — dropped by 19.06 basis points (bps) from week-ago levels, according to the PHP Bloomberg Valuation Service Reference Rates published on the Philippine Dealing System’s website last Feb. 1.
“Main driver [last] week has been external — the US Federal Reserve kept its interest rate unchanged and hinted that future rate adjustments higher might be limited,” said Deanno J. Basas, president and managing director of ATRAM Trust Corp. (ATRAM Trust).
At home, Mr. Basas noted market expectations of domestic inflation slowing further this year.
“With the Fed move, the market is expecting that BSP will also put rate hikes on hold, especially as local inflation is also seen to move lower. Longer-term bond yields have moved more with investors favoring these bonds to lock in at these higher yield levels,” he said.
Carlyn Therese X. Dulay, first vice-president and head of Institutional Sales at Security Bank Corp. (Security Bank), concurred: “The dovish FOMC meeting fueled the downward trend in addition to strong buying interest from both local and offshore dealers and end clients,” she said, referring to the Fed’s policy-making Federal Open Market Committee.
In addition to the pause in rate hikes, Ms. Dulay also noted expectations the BSP will cut banks’ reserve requirement (RR) ratio. “A possible RR cut in the near future also emboldened market participants to take positions on increased liquidity in the system should the cut be executed soon.”
The Fed opted not to raise interest rates in its policy meeting last week. It previously hinted that it will tighten its interest rates by two times this year. However, some officials said the central bank “will be patient” in raising borrowing costs as it will gauge the economy’s performance.
Meanwhile, at home, the BSP last year raised key rates by a total 1.75 percentage points in an attempt to temper inflation, which hit a nine-year high.
With inflation likely to rebound within the 2-4% target this year, BSP Governor Nestor A. Espenilla, Jr. hinted that the central bank will go back to cutting the reserve ratio for universal and commercial banks, which is presently at 18%.
The BSP chief aims to cut the reserve standard to a single digit before his term ends in 2023.
January inflation data will be released by the Philippine Statistics Authority on Tuesday, while the Monetary Board’s first meeting for this year is scheduled on Thursday.
As trading hours ended in the secondary market last Friday, yields on government debt papers fell across the board from a week ago.
Yields on the 91-, 182-, and 364-day Treasury bills (T-bills) went down by 3.7 bps, 19.1 bps, and 9.2 bps, respectively, to 5.436%, 5.813%, and 5.977%.
At the belly of the curve, the seven-year Treasury bonds (T-bonds) dropped 20.6 bps to fetch 6.181%. The two-, three-, four-, and five-year debt papers were quoted at 6.014%, 6.070%, 6.106%, and 6.131%, respectively, which were 20.2 bps, 19.6 bps, 19.4 bps, and 19.9 bps lower than the rates seen the previous week.
The 10-, 20-, and 25-year T-bonds also went down 22.2 bps (6.256%), 26.4 bps( 6.52%), and 29.4 bps (6.626%), respectively.
Security Bank’s Ms. Dulay expects yields to continue to trade within range this week, even as risk events such as inflation data and the Monetary Board meeting “may cause some volatility.”
For ATRAM Trust’s Mr. Basas: “[W]e might see a bit more downward movement in yields especially if inflation comes out lower than expected and if the BSP statements become more dovish, but we expect it to be limited.”
“We are getting to support levels, with the 10-year [bonds] near 6%. We would not recommend chasing the market beyond these levels, as we expect to see it consolidate here, given how quickly it has moved over the past couple of months,” he said.

USDA extends deadline for farm assistance to Feb. 14 after shutdown

WASHINGTON — US farmers now have until Feb. 14 to apply for federal aid designed to offset the impact of retaliatory Chinese tariffs on American crops, the US Department of Agriculture said on Monday, after delays caused by the month-long government shutdown.
The previous deadline for the aid program, officially known as the Market Facilitation Program (MFP), was Jan. 15. But a partial 35-day government shutdown that ended last Friday had delayed the application and payment processes for the aid.
“If you are a farmer or rancher whose commodities have been directly impacted by tariffs, you now have until February 14 to submit your application,” USDA said in a tweet.
The Trump administration last year pledged up to $12 billion in aid to help offset some of the losses for crops hit by retaliatory Chinese tariffs imposed in response to Washington’s tariffs on Chinese goods.
A USDA spokesperson on Monday said the department has as of Monday paid out a total of $5.94 billion to farmers in trade aid, with the top five commodities that received aid being soybeans, corn, wheat, dairy and sorghum.
The top five states that received aid were listed as Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, and Nebraska.
China had zeroed in on US farmers with tariffs after President Donald Trump imposed duties on $250 billion worth of Chinese goods last year as part of his vow to cut the US trade deficit with China.
Beijing slapped a 25 percent tariff on US soybeans in retaliation. That effectively shut down US soybean exports to China, worth around $12 billion last year.
With China typically taking around 60 percent of US supplies, the loss of that export market has left farmers struggling with a supply overhang.
Separately, the USDA will release several key grain reports on Feb. 8 including quarterly US grain stocks, winter wheat seedings and a final report on 2018 crop production, the department’s chief economist told Reuters via email on Monday.
The reports, which were delayed by the partial US government shutdown that ended on Friday, were originally scheduled for release on Jan. 11. The USDA also plans to release a monthly crop supply/demand report on Feb. 8.
Traders are also awaiting data on US export sales of grain, beef and pork, which the USDA reports on weekly. Those weekly reports were suspended during the government shutdown.
Traders are also keen to see backlogged weekly Commitments of Traders reports from the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the main futures regulator. This data offers a look at whether speculators and hedgers hold net long or net short positions in various derivatives, including CBOT grain and oilseed futures. Also pending are monthly USDA updates on winter wheat condition ratings for key states in the southern Plains and Midwest. — Reuters

Learning to overcome obstacles at a pretty active training facility


PEOPLE WHO want to achieve their fitness goals beyond logging time in typical gym work may want to check out Pretty Huge Obstacles (PHO).
Touted as Asia’s largest indoor obstacle course training facility, PHO boasts of a huge number of physical obstacles designed to toughen up one not only physically but also mentally in a fun and collaborative way.
Located at the second floor of the Civic Center at SM Aura Premier, Bonifacio Global City in Taguig, PHO’s obstacles, the people behind the facility said, are configurable into over 100 flexible combinations, ensuring a “pretty awesome workout.”
The facility has adult and kid obstacle zones, a 100-meter elevated indoor race track, five-star level changing rooms, and a health food lounge.
Among the obstacles inside are quintuple angle steps, monkey bars, a five-foot wall, a balance beam, small wheels, a nine-foot wall, island hops, gymnast rings, a weaver, a cliffhanger, a Tarzan swing, and a wave wall.
PHO also offer three types of functional group classes that are handled by certified and highly capable instructors who work to motivate members to go beyond their limits and reach their potential.
There are classes that are suited for someone who is looking for yoga classes, high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and pilates, while functional training classes work best for mobility.
And for those who are training for their next obstacle course race, obstacle course training classes will unleash the champion in them.
PHO also has an adjunct facility called Physio-PHOrtress which provides outcome-based health programs for obstacle course racers through sports-specific individualized assessment and intervention.
As a testament to its top-class offering, PHO was recently designated by the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) as the official cross-training venue for the country’s national athletes.
The Philippine obstacle course racing team, which is set to see action at the Southeast Asian Games here in November, is also to train at PHO.
“When we started conceptualizing this we wanted to bring together families and friends [for a fun and effective fitness journey] and we are confident that the concept will do well here in the Philippines,” said Ritsuo Arao, chief operating officer of PHO, during the media launch of the facility on Feb. 1, speaking of the concept behind PHO.
“As this comes together we’ve realized the seriousness of this and it has become more and more important for us as went about setting it up. So we are honored to be in this position and we are not going to let the people down and we believe we can deliver the right thing here,” Charz Kelso, PHO chief strategic officer, said.
PHO is currently on soft opening for early members and those who want to see for themselves what it is all about. It is targeting to officially open on March 1.
For membership, training programs, and race event inquiries, contact info@prettyhugeobstacles.com. For the latest updates on the facility, meanwhile, visit PHO’s Facebook and Instagram pages at @prettyhugeobstacles.
PHO is also set to launch a mobile app where members and non-members can check out what it offers and updates. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

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