BusinessWorld (Philippines) articles from January 2000, page 10

BusinessWorld (Philippines) archives from January 2000

Sugar MAV may be dropped.
January 14, 2000... The Department of Agriculture (DA) may disallow the importation of the country's Minimum Access Volume (MAV) for sugar this year to prevent a further drop in raw sugar prices. Agriculture Secretary Edgardo J. Angara yesterday said the DA...

Wage, oil price hikes seen affecting January inflation.
January 14, 2000... The national inflation rate is expected to continue its steady climb this month mainly due to the double impact of minimum wage increases and oil price hikes. It is, however, expected to be relatively unaffected by the possible increase...

Establishment of Cebu IT parks sought by DoST.
January 14, 2000... CEBU CITY - Cebu is an ideal site for information technology parks, according to an official of the Department of Science and Technology (DoST). So far, however, only the Cebu Light Industrial Park (CLIP) in Mactan Island has expressed...

MAV committee urges additional corn importation.
January 14, 2000... An interagency committee has recommended to President Estrada the importation of an additional 151,000 metric tons of corn at low tariff to cover an expected first semester shortage. Agriculture Secretary Edgardo J. Angara, who chairs the...

Dear Editor: PNCC takes note of reader's claims.
January 14, 2000... We took serious note of the letter sent by Mr. Pio L. Rodriguez in your "Dear Editor' section which appeared last January 4, 2000 entitled "Disaster waiting to happen at the Expressways." Mr. Rodriguez is correct in saying that the...

Fast Forward: Tell that to the Marines.
January 14, 2000... Everything considered, the Estrada-Lim-Lacson trio's rationale for the deployment of at least 500 Marines in Metro Manila, and possibly other urban areas nationwide, is preposterous, dangerous and simply does not wash. As correctly...

Rule of Law: Why the death penalty won't work.
January 14, 2000... So we have put seven convicts to death by lethal injection. But for many, the primordial question persists: By what moral right may the state inflict death as penalty for crime? There's no question that the death penalty is "legal" since...

Creation of oil exchange firm against gov't policies - DoE.
January 13, 2000... The Department of Energy (DoE) is opposing House Bill (HB) No. 8710 or the establishment of a National Oil Exchange Corp. (NOEC) as there is no guarantee that it will lower petroleum prices. It said the proposal also runs counter to the...

Upshot: Coping with a sugar glut.
January 13, 2000... As explained in a previous article in this column, a sugar crisis similar to that in 1997 is expected. Some experts in the industry say it may come sooner than we think, about the first quarter of 2000 when prices start plunging due to...

Economic superbody approves key moves.
January 13, 2000... At its first meeting yesterday, the newly created policy superbody, the Economic Coordinating Council (ECC) recommended the promulgation of several major economic policies. The body proposed the creation of a Department of Housing,...

Pepsi and Caltex labor unions file notices of strike.
January 13, 2000... Separate notices of strike were filed by the unions of Caltex Philippines, Inc. and Pepsi-Cola Products Philippines, Inc. last January 11 at the National Capital Region's office of the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB-NCR). ...

Int'l ratings agencies downgrade Metrobank.
January 13, 2000... As Abacan justifies recent bank acquisitions Two international credit rating agencies yesterday downgraded Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. (Metrobank), citing "heightened risk" from its "increasingly aggressive" bid to retain its...

Normal weather to boost 1st-half palay output by 2.4%.
January 13, 2000... The Department of Agriculture (DA) forecasts paddy rice or palay production for the first semester to expand by a slow 2.4% to 5.4 million metric tons (MT) from 5.272 million MT a year ago due to the onset of normal weather conditions. ...

Dear Editor: Horrifying experience.
January 13, 2000... One of the most horrifying experiences I've been through lately was a visit to the Land Transportation Office at East Avenue, Quezon City. The looks of the compound itself was itself was scary enough. There were several signs warning people...

Dear Editor: Concord remains in the background.
January 13, 2000... We welcome the move of President Estrada in shelving his Concord. We warn him, however, not to resort to any kind of tricky maneuver to revive it once more. For that might cause him not only his popularity but also his presidency. ...

Lehman to underwrite Napocor bond offering.
January 13, 2000... State-run National Power Corp. (Napocor) yesterday said it has chosen Lehman Brothers to be lead underwriter for the planned $300-million to $500-million Yankee bond offer set for the first quarter of the year. Napocor president Federico...

CCP wants cut in Jumbo Palace restaurant profits.
January 13, 2000... The government should get at least a P60-million share of the gross annual profits of Stanley Ho's floating Jumbo Palace Restaurant docked near the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) complex. However, the CCP leadership, led by...

Rumors on casino license rejection fail to rattle BW.
January 13, 2000... Rumors that the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) has disapproved BW Resources Corp.'s application to operate a casino inside the floating Jumbo Palace circulated the market yesterday. Still, no amount of bad news prevented...

South Seas gets P600-M bid from Ongpin group.
January 13, 2000... Philippine Stock Exchange yesterday forced dormant mining firm South Seas Natural Resources (SSO) to confirm talks that former Finance Minister Roberto Ongpin is buying into the company for P600 million given plans to venture into...

Prices stable during holidays.
January 13, 2000... Despite increased demand during the holidays and unfounded fears of shortages related to the so-called "millennium bug," manufacturers and retailers of basic commodities resisted pressure to raise prices, assistant Trade secretary Zenaida C....

Ombudsman seen ready to decide on sugar scam.
January 13, 2000... After an almost two-year delay in its investigation, the Office of the Ombudsman is just about ready to hand down its verdict on the P1.3-billion sugar scam. Agency sources said Ombudsman Aniano A. Desierto met with his ranking officials...

Calling a Spade...: Josie's choice.
January 13, 2000... While it may have been overshadowed by subsequent events, the resignation of Undersecretary Josie Lichauco from the DOTC should spark some very serious soul-searching on the part of the President, if he means business about improving the...

Dear Editor: Raking up old issues unfair; Laya says his actions at CB were above board.
January 13, 2000... In your issue of December 28, Mr. D.L. Lucas purported to review my term as Central Bank Governor from 1981-84 ("Jaime C. Laya: The Central Bank's 'Wonder Boy' of Sorts"), but proceeds to write a rehash of old allegations about me and then...

Street Strategist: The divergence theory: Are you a source or a sink?
January 13, 2000... "The divergence of a curl is zero." - A math theorem Some theories you know by name but don't understand, like the theory of relativity. Some theories, you know by name and you understand, like Newton's theory of gravity. There...

Ancestral domain.
January 13, 2000... The Senate was asked to investigate alleged intrusions into ancestral domains by large-scale mining firms and commercial plantations in Zamboanga del Norte, Nueva Vizcaya and Oriental Mindoro. Sen. Gregorio B. Honasan, who sought the Senate...

Work continues at Visayas office despite case vs head.
January 13, 2000... CEBU CITY - Assistant Ombudsman Nicanor Cruz has ordered an inventory of all cases pending before the Office of the Visayas Deputy Ombudsman. He didn't specify a time frame, but told the directors, investigators and all section heads to...

BSP Reference Rates as of January 12, 2000.
January 13, 2000... Equivalent Equivalent Equivalent of foreign of US$1 of foreign currency in in foreign currency in Currency US Dollar currency RP peso Convertible currencies with BSP US dollar 1.000000 1.000000 40.477000 Japanese yen 0.009430...

Military chaplain abducted.
January 13, 2000... Suspected leftist rebels abducted Philippine Air Force (PAF) chaplain Capt. Melchor Fernando on January 5 in Sitio Igsusu, Bgy. Tubili, Paluan, Mindoro Occidental, governor Josephine Y. Ramirez-Sato said yesterday. In a radio interview, Ms....

Marines deployment a test only, says Estrada.
January 13, 2000... Malacanang stressed yesterday its order for the deployment in Metro Manila of some 500 soldiers from the Philippine Marine Corps is related to the reported alliance between Moro secessionist rebels and communist guerrillas. President...

Public trust in Erap drops.
January 13, 2000... People's trust in President Joseph Estrada's capability to solve the country's problems is on the decline, a recent survey shows. On the question of whether Mr. Estrada "can get things done," only 72% of respondents who answered the December...

Graft suit vs alleged FM cronies dropped.
January 13, 2000... Six alleged cronies of the late President Ferdinand Marcos have escaped graft prosecution after the Supreme Court dismissed on a technicality the government's petition calling for their trial by the Sandiganbayan. The Court's third...

Gov't launches drive vs tax credit scam.
January 13, 2000... The government hopes to come up with concrete results in its investigation of the multibillion-peso tax credit scam in the next 100 days, Executive Secretary Ronaldo B. Zamora said yesterday. In a news conference during the launching at...

Peso weakens in step with Asian currencies.
January 13, 2000... Shadowing the movements of a weakening Thai baht, the peso yesterday plunged to average at P40.627 to the US dollar, 15 centavos lower than the previous day. At the Philippine Dealing System, the country's electronic currencies exchange,...

New economic officials expected to prod Congress to okay budget.
January 13, 2000... Malacanang remains hopeful the newly appointed officials of the Department of Finance (DoF) will be able to convince Congress of the government's revenue targets expressing optimism the Legislature will pass the 2000 budget next week. ...

Securities Act passage eyed to end standoff for SEC top slot.
January 13, 2000... Even as it sent confusing signals to the stock market, the resignation of Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Perfecto R. Yasay, Jr. was pressed yesterday by President Estrada. Mr. Estrada said the SEC chief had promised to quit...

Senate committee approves proposed tax amnesty law.
January 13, 2000... The Senate ways and means committee yesterday approved the proposed tax amnesty law, effectively expanding its coverage in a bid to make more tax delinquents avail of the scheme. The committee decided to include unpaid duties and tariffs...

Estrada defends Lim.
January 13, 2000... President Estrada defended yesterday his appointment of Interior and Local Government Secretary Alfredo Lim amid allegations the former Manila mayor violated human rights. "Walang katotohanan lahat iyan. Wala namang makakapagturo na may...

PESO Cross Rates as of January 12, 2000.
January 13, 2000... one unit Phil Aussie Bahrain Cndn French of currency peso dollar dinar dollar franc Philippines 1.0000 0.0376 0.0093 0.0360 0.1568 Australia 26.5806 1.0000 0.2475 0.9569 4.1679 Bahrain 107.3774 4.0397 1.0000 3.8657 16.8372 ...

The Westin goes Swiss.
January 13, 2000... Authentic Swiss cuisine comes to Manila as the Westin Philippine Plaza features Swiss delicacies at the Alfiere Mediterranean Bistro with its Swiss Food Festival. Celebrity chef Alexander Rufibach was flown in especially for this event which...

Options for Health: Psyche yourself for successful weight loss.
January 13, 2000... The Christmas holidays have come and gone and all of a sudden the weighing scale jumps up to show that you have gained not just a few pounds but quite a lot. You now start to resolve to let go of these unwanted pounds and you are hoping it...

25th Baguio Ladies Golf tees off today.
January 13, 2000... BAGUIO CITY - Defending champion Aguinaldo Ladies Golf team guns for its fourth consecutive title in the Class A in today's start of the 25th Baguio Ladies Invitational Golf Tournament here. The event is held at the 3,684-yard, par-61...

Nokia's 'I-Pop' clinches Best Use of Media top prize.
January 13, 2000... Nokia's unique promotional vehicle, the "I-Pop," has clinched the main prize for the most creative media idea and execution in the Media's 1999 Agency of the Year Awards. The "I-Pop" concept won the "Best Use of Media" award amidst stiff...

Vatican says yes to plant, animal engineering.
January 13, 2000... Despite controversy surrounding the ill effects of biotechnology, top Catholic Church officials are convinced that this latest progeny of science is a gain rather than a loss to humanity. Biotechnology, or the use of biological techniques...

HP opens Hong Kong's first wireless Internet phone demonstration center.
January 13, 2000... Hewlett-Packard has opened Hong Kong's first wireless application protocol (WAP) demonstration center, an initiative expected to hasten the day when Hong Kong's expanding legions of mobile phone users can execute financial transactions, place...

Greenpeace launches campaign vs Negros coal power plant.
January 13, 2000... BACOLOD CITY - Environmentalist group Greenpeace International has launched a campaign to stop the coal-fired power project in Pulupandan in Negros Occidental. Athena Ronquillo-Ballesteros, Greenpeace Southeast Asia energy campaigner,...

DENR personnel to be charged in relation to illegal log shipment.
January 13, 2000... The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) will file administrative charges against four Mindanao-based DENR officers in connection with the illegal shipment of 38,065 board feet of hardwood lumber to Metro Manila earlier this...

New watershed atlas to help in environmental management.
January 13, 2000... Conservation efforts in the country may soon be made more effective with the development of geographic information systems (GIS). The Department of Science and Technology (DoST), through the University of the Philippines Los Banos College...

Integration of IT and education curriculum pushed.
January 13, 2000... With so much interest in technology applications in education these days, an education technology expert is suggesting that technology integration in instruction should be purposive and based on the curriculum. This advise given by...

IBM, STA to market online education solution.
January 13, 2000... SoftTech Advantage, Inc. (STA) and IBM Philippines, Inc. have forged a partnership to market an Internet-based system to streamline school's operations. STA, a local software developer, developed the system, called School-OnLine (SOL)...

Alcatel launches mobile phone for youth market.
January 13, 2000... As the country gives new meaning to the label of "texting capital of the world," more and more telecommunications solutions vendors continuously provide wireless technologies to make correspondence easier with the use of a mobile phone. One...

Jobstreet holds raffles.
January 13, 2000... Jobstreet.com, the Philippines' newest Internet job site, said it will be giving away P10,000 in cash every week for the whole month of January through a raffle on its website, www.jobstreet.com. Visitors to the Jobstreet.com Philippine...

Lotus develops banking application for Solidbank.
January 13, 2000... Lotus Software Philippines, Inc. is currently developing a software application for Solidbank Corp. to automate the latter's credit card and multipurpose loan application operations. The loans approval project is expected to automate and...

Demand Rates as of January 11, 2000.
January 13, 2000... The interbank demand rate weighted average was 8-11/16%, according to the Bangko Sentral treasury department. Rates quoted by 25 participating institutions ranged from 8-5/8% to 9-1/8%, with lenders outnumbering borrowers at 13 to 12. Total...

Compaq to acquire local partners.
January 13, 2000... Compaq Computer Philippines said it is studying the possibility of acquiring a local company as part of its plan to expand its business in the country. The plan was disclosed by Nilo S. Cruz, newly appointed president and managing director of...

Manilabank gets commercial bank license via TA.
January 13, 2000... Six months after reopening, thrift bank Manila Banking Corp. will now become a commercial bank after the policy-setting Monetary Board (MB) of the Bangko Sentral approved its purchase of TA Bank of the Philippines, Inc. Bangko Sentral...

DBS ups stake in FEBTC.
January 13, 2000... The Development Bank of Singapore, Ltd. (DBS) increased its stake in Far East Bank and Trust Co. (FEBTC) to 10.6% with its purchase of the International Finance Corp.'s (IFC) 3.2% shares in the bank. The transaction was yesterday crossed...

Senate okays 1-year delay in 10% EVAT.
January 13, 2000... The Senate yesterday approved on third and final reading a bill delaying for another year the imposition of the 10% expanded value-added tax (EVAT) on banking transactions. Thirteen senators voted in favor of Senate Bill (SB) 1851, which...

PNB privatization scheme to be changed, says Pardo.
January 13, 2000... Newly installed Finance Secretary Jose T. Pardo yesterday said his department will come up with a new scheme for the sale of the government's 30% stake in semiprivate Philippine National Bank (PNB). "There are a lot of other schemes I...

YOUR OWN MONEY: The padala business has come a long way (Door-to-door remittance services).
January 13, 2000... Housewife Reby Somo, 40, had been paying a visit to her bank for 12 straight years to get the monthly remittance that her Saudi Arabia-based husband faithfully sends to his family. Her husband used to send the money exactly every end of...

BSP chief defends decision on troubled RBSM.
January 13, 2000... Troubled Rural Bank of San Miguel (RBSM) had warned of a possible "banking system-wide financial crisis" in its attempt to avail of an emergency loan from the Bangko Sentral during the crossover to year 2000. "They tried to borrow under...

Tighter farm credit.
January 13, 2000... Rice farmers can expect to have fewer cash in their hands with the government's decision to continue selling milled rice at reduced prices. Agriculture economist Rolando T. Dy of the University of Asia and the Pacific said the move may force...

Chingkoe siblings battle for control over holdings firm.
January 13, 2000... The group of former DKC Holdings vice-chairman and president Felix Chingkoe yesterday asked the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) en banc to drop the motion for reconsideration filed by the camp of sibling Faustino Chingkoe for an...

At least 100 millionaire cooperatives in Visayas.
January 13, 2000... CEBU CITY - There are at least 100 millionaire cooperatives in Central Visayas, challenging misconceptions that cooperatives are low-income organizations. According to the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) 1998 annual report, these...

Printing supply manufacturer opens Mactan EPZA facility.
January 13, 2000... LAPU-LAPU CITY, Cebu - Printing solutions provider Lexmark International, Inc. remains bullish on the local economy as it bares plans to increase its presence in the country through expansion this year. Newly formed subsidiary Lexmark...

SkyCable plans to purchase three small cable firms.
January 13, 2000... SkyCable, a cable unit of SkyVision Corp. of the Lopezes, is planning to acquire three small cable companies this year, as part of expansion strategy. Acquisition has been one of the key strategies of the Lopez-controlled cable firm in...

Conciliation talks fail to hold off strike in garments firm.
January 13, 2000... Some 2,000 workers of garment exporter Gelmart Industries Philippines, Inc. went on strike last January 7 and picketed all entrances to the firm's plant in Paranaque City. The strike was staged after several conciliation meetings at the...

NFA to bid out sugar.
January 13, 2000... BACOLOD CITY - The National Food Authority is expected to bid out 25,000 metric tons of sugar this week for export and buy domestic stocks starting today, Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) chief Nicolas Alonso said. The 25,000 MT is part...

Tax proposal chances.
January 13, 2000... The proposed consumption tax has very little chances of passing the House of Representatives, Speaker Manuel B. Villar, Jr. yesterday said. In a radio interview, Mr. Villar noted that imposing new taxes is not the solution to the government's...

Superbody formed.
January 13, 2000... The Department of Agriculture has gathered the country's former Agriculture secretaries into an advisory body that will promote agriculture initiatives as well as help address issues affecting the sector. The superbody will be chaired by the...

'Quality at entry' rule for ODA projects?
January 13, 2000... Official development assistance (ODA) projects are expected to have a tougher time getting government approval as state agencies are now looking to adopt policy changes aimed at adding more "quality" to the performance of the country's...

Taxwise or Otherwise: Tax on dividends.
January 13, 2000... As the Tax Reform Act of 1997 (Tax Code) progresses into its third year of implementation, several amendments that Congress introduced still require further clarification. One such amendment pertains to the tax treatment of cash dividends...

Insurgency forces shelving of sugar plantation project.
January 13, 2000... A proposed $250-million sugar plantation project in Talayan, Maguindanao is being placed on the back burner, due to the continued unrest caused by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). Presidential committee on flagship programs and...

One Voice: Beginning anew.
January 13, 2000... Two weeks into the new year and the new millennium, the President has given us hope for a new beginning. His Ulat sa Bayan was well-received, by all accounts. The new Cabinet secretaries are generally acceptable to the majority of the...

The View from Taft: Lessons from the Asian crisis.
January 13, 2000... The shakedown that came with the Asian economic crisis has separated the proverbial grain from the chaff, the companies that survived and even thrived as against those that foundered and collapsed. It all boils down to one basic factor: the...

Gov't to bid out sanitary landfill projects.
January 13, 2000... The government is keen on exploring new ways to address the waste dis-posal problem in Metro Manila and its neighboring provinces. But is not closing its doors to the use of sanitary landfills for solid waste management, Secretary Robert...

Palace warns MILF rebels: Behave or suffer offensives.
January 13, 2000... President Joseph Estrada warned yesterday the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) of stepped-up military offensives. This was after government troopers regained control of the municipal hall of Talayan, Maguindanao, which 40...

Roxas appointment stalls Congress work.
January 13, 2000... The House of Representatives adjourned the special session yesterday without any accomplishment. The leadership crisis in the committee on rules prevented lawmakers from acting on any bill during the session called by Malacanang for this...

Cabinet revamp expected to raise Estrada ratings.
January 13, 2000... Replacing members of his official family is expected to improve the approval rating of the President, Vice-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said yesterday. In a press conference at her office in Manila, Ms. Arroyo said the Cabinet...

Top cops given new posts.
January 13, 2000... Following the reassignment of former Southern Police District director Chief Supt. Romeo Maganto and former Northern Police District director Chief Supt. Rodolfo Caisip, Central Police District director Chief Supt. Romulo Sales was also...

Taiwanese fishers arrested.
January 13, 2000... The Philippine Navy caught five Taiwanese fishermen poaching off the coast of Ilocos Norte, barely a day after six Chinese fishing vessels were spotted in Scarborough Shoal. Defense Secretary Orlando S. Mercado yesterday said the Philippines...

EIIB abolition.
January 13, 2000... The committee on ways and means of the House of Representatives has drafted a proposal that seeks to abolish the Economic Intelligence and Investigation Bureau (EIIB). However, the filing of the bill is said to be dependent on whether or not...

Freed kidnapped victims.
January 13, 2000... The three Hong Kong businessmen who were abducted last month in Makati were rescued by the Philippine National Police (PNP) Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force yesterday morning. Lo Gao Hoo, Jack Wan Hoo and Ju Hoo, who were...

COURT SIDE: The Worm goes to Dallas.
January 13, 2000... Some people never learn. Else, how would you explain the plan of prospective Dallas team owner Mark Cuban to hire Dennis Rodman? Sure, the seven-time rebounding leader is a competitor on the parquet floor, and brings with him 13 years of...

New aggie technology reaches Leyte farmers.
January 13, 2000... Various agricultural communities in Leyte province are the recipients of technology assistance from the Department of Science and Technology (DoST), helping improve farming methods and crop yields. This is made possible under its...