BusinessWorld (Philippines) articles from January 2012

BusinessWorld (Philippines) archives from January 2012

GSIS presses to clear path for bank unit's sale.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Ann Rozainne R. Gregorio STATE PENSION fund Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) will pursue the sale of its banking unit as soon as it settles a court case that halted completion of the bidding process of GSIS Family Bank last...

BPI net income up at P12.8B.(Financial report)
January 31, 2012... Byline: Ann Rozainne R. Gregorio AYALA-LED Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) - the country's third largest in terms of assets - said profits rose by 13% annually last year, driven by increase in both its net interest and non-interest...

Peso slips further amid Euro worries.
January 31, 2012... THE PESO slid against the dollar for the second straight trading session yesterday as market players fled to the greenback on worries over the unresolved euro zone debt problem. After losing half-a-centavo on Friday last week, the peso...

Security Bank launches seven-year debt papers (Seeks to raise as much.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Ann Rozainne R. Gregorio SECURITY BANK Corp. (Security Bank) launched its long-term negotiable certificates of deposit (LTNCDs) on Monday as part of its liability management program and to augment funds for its lending business, a...

COURTSIDE.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Anthony L. Cuaycong For the third straight final in a major championship, Novak Djokovic met Rafael Nadal. And for the third straight time, he emerged victorious. Even as his win the other night stretched his mastery over his nemesis...

GIVE AND GO.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Michael Angelo S. Murillo The fairy-tale run of the Powerade Tigers in the PBA Philippine Cup did not have a "happily ever after" ending as the powerhouse Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters underscored reality and put things in proper...

Bourse slips as investors watch Euro meet.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Franz Jonathan G. de la Fuente STOCKS CLOSED lower on Monday on profit taking as investors chose to wait for clear signs of progress in Europe's efforts to resolve its debt issues. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) shed...

Bustamante rules Derby City 10-ball Challenge.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Marlon Bernardino PHILIPPINE BILLIARD icon Francisco "Django" Bustamante is once again at the top of the billiards world as he emerged the winner of the 2012 Derby City Classic Fatboy 10-Ball Challenge held at the Horseshoe Casino and...

Local food exposition slated.
January 31, 2012... THE COUNTRY'S BEST food products take center stage once more as the Philippine Food Processors and Exporters Organization, Inc. (Philfoodex) holds the 11th Philippine Food Expo from Feb. 23 to 26 at the World Trade Center in Pasay City. With...

HP bares campaign to empower students.
January 31, 2012... BRINGING TOGETHER the power of innovation and education, HP ushers in its pioneering A+ campaign that empowers Filipino students to achieve academic excellence in school with the help of HP's latest innovative imaging and printing technologies....

Sugarleaf offers organic, nutritious menu.
January 31, 2012... ENJOY DELICIOUS FOODS at Sugarleaf whose menu nourishes at the cellular level and provides much more than calories. Aside from using natural and organic ingredients creatively crafted into delicious soups, salads, sandwiches, wraps, drinks,...

BRIEFS.
January 31, 2012... Prestige card launched MANILA HOTEL introduces Prestige Card, a special reward program for the most esteemed clientele that is carefully tailored to let them experience the privileged lifestyle. Prestige Card holders are entitled to up to 50%...

AXN Beyond takes to the air with retro TV series.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Jeffrey O. Valisno Identified by its blue globe logo, its white pilot caps, and its stewardesses wearing their sky-blue trademark uniforms, Pan American World Airways - commonly known as Pan Am - was a cultural icon of the 20th...

To Take a Stand
January 31, 2012... Byline: Oscar P. Lagman, Jr. Renato Corona is not morally fit to be Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, say 188 members of the House of Representatives. They have asked, therefore, the Impeachment Court, composed of the 23 members of the...

FENCE SITTER.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Antonio R. Samson When meeting in a corporate setting, one way of identifying yourself is handing out a calling card. Consultants for corporate branding include the look and feel of calling cards and what they say about the person and...

MAP INSIGHTS.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Joey A. Bermudez "Self-made" is how we describe people who had to claw their way to success. We readily assume that they single-handedly created their own greatness. Did they? In his book "Adventures of a Bystander," Peter...

FRAMEWORK.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Elfren Sicangco Cruz The two most dominant challenges in family business are succession planning and professionalizing management. In the Philippine business environment today, an increasing number of family businesses are facing...

COMMENTARY.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Winston A. Marbella Many years ago, the BBC made an excellent documentary on the craft of management by using the symphony orchestra as metaphor. I thought it was a difficult thing to do, but the audacious guys of BBC had the...

ANALYSIS.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Samuel V. Senoren IN HIS best-selling autobiography "My Life," former US President Bill Clinton wrote that during his impeachment trial, House prosecutors could not make their allegations stick so "they were making up their case as...

Outsourcing sector upbeat on revenue.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Kathleen A. Martin THE BUSINESS process outsourcing sector is expected to have reached its $11-billion revenue target last year based on initial figures that showed growth for the voice, health care and back-office subsectors, an...

Power barge sale set for April.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Emilia Narni J. David THE SALE of power barges aimed at augmenting supply in Mindanao has been set for April, according to the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM). In the invitation to bid for the...

Growth uptick eases pressure on key rates.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Neil Jerome C. Morales A SLIGHT uptick in the economic output for the last quarter has eased the pressure on the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to further cut rates, economists from financial institutions said yesterday. ...

Trade department starts consultations on development of industry road.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Eliza J. Diaz THE TRADE department launched yesterday the first leg of private sector consultations on developing industry road maps in a bid to align competitiveness goals with the government's trade and investment strategies. ...

Schoolbuilding PPP attracts 9 groups.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Kim Arveen M. Patria THE SCHOOLBUILDING project under the government's public-private partnership (PPP) has so far attracted nine prospective bidders as of yesterday, an official said. Kenneth C. Tirado, head of the communications...

Agriculture dep't earmarks P128M for rice processing.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Louella D. Desiderio and Sarwell Q. Meniano THE AGRICULTURE department is allotting P128 million to put up four rice processing centers aimed at supporting farmers and increasing output. In a text message yesterday, Agriculture...

Groups set to improve health care.
January 31, 2012... THE ASSOCIATION of Deans of Philippine Colleges of Nursing (ADPCN) and the Retirement & Healthcare Coalition (RHC) are collaborating on seminars to help improve hospital standards, the latter business group said in a statement yesterday. ...

Rural dev't program for Luzon, Visayas eyed.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Carmelito Q. Francisco DAVAO CITY - The Agriculture department is evaluating the feasibility of implementing a rural development program in Mindanao for the Visayas and Southern Luzon. A statement from the Department of Agriculture...

E. Visayas strike-free for nine years.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Sarwell Q. Meniano TACLOBAN CITY - Eastern Visayas has been free of labor strikes in the past nine years, boosting efforts to draw investments, a local Labor official said. "In inviting investors, we have to show them that we are...

System to upgrade standards.
January 31, 2012... THE TRADE and Agriculture departments are putting up a product traceability system to help agribusiness exporters meet global safety and security standards, the former agency said in a statement yesterday. The three-year project dubbed as...

LET'S TALK TAX.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Elbert S. Cruz Previously, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) consistently ruled that royalties arising from the Technical Service Agreement relating to licensed know-how in the manufacture of a company's products are rightfully...

Century Properties reports higher 10-month net income.(Financial report)
January 31, 2012... Byline: Franz Jonathan G. de la Fuente NEWLY-LISTED real estate developer Century Properties Group, Inc. hiked its net income by nearly four times for the 10-month period last year versus year-ago levels due to a surge in total company...

Globe Telecom gets $90-M loan facility (Proceeds to finance capital.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Kathleen A. Martin GLOBE TELECOM, Inc. has borrowed $90 million from China Banking Corp. (ChinaBank) to be used for the former's capital expenditures for this year. "[The firm] signed a 10-year $90-million floating rate term loan...

Raffles, Fairmont projects in Makati to be open by second half of 2012.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Franz Jonathan G. de la Fuente INTERNATIONAL hotel and resort brands Raffles and Fairmont are set to open their first joint Philippine development in Makati City in the second semester this year catering to the local luxury market, a...

SEC approves restructuring plan for Cirtek Electronics.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Cliff Harvey C. Venzon CIRTEK Electronics Corp., a subsidiary of listed chipmaker Cirtek Holdings Philippines, Inc., has obtained the approval of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for equity restructuring in a bid to...

Cebu Pacific's IPO proceeds not yet entirely disbursed.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Kathleen A. Martin CEBU AIR, Inc. has yet to disburse the full P3.74 billion it obtained from its initial public offering (IPO) in 2010. In a disclosure yesterday, Cebu Air said P1.18 billion has remained as of end-2011 from its...

Financial Times to beef up local talent pool.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Emilia Narni J. David INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS paper Financial Times is set to beef up its local talent pool to develop more services for its readers and digital subscribers, an official told BusinessWorld yesterday. It is also...

Sugar miller posts losses.(Financial report)
January 31, 2012... ROXAS HOLDINGS, Inc., posted losses on the back of high costs of sales in its interim period before it officially embarks to a new fiscal year, the company said in a disclosure yesterday. The company, which is the sugar milling arm of Roxas and...

Firm spends P1.113B.
January 31, 2012... Listed Trans-Asia Oil and Energy Development Corp. has spent P1.113 billion from the stock rights offering it conducted in 2011, the company said in a disclosure to the bourse yesterday. The company has spent the said amount from the P1.165...

Ayala expands project.
January 31, 2012... BACOLOD CITY - Encouraged by the robust market take-up, Ayala Land, Inc. launched the third phase of a residential subdivision project within a master-planned estate in Talisay City, Negros Occidental. On the market now are 116 lots in Verdana...

Bills on Health, Displaced Persons OK'd
January 31, 2012... Byline: Noemi M. Gonzales TWO PROPOSED MEASURES aimed at promoting the rights of Filipinos were approved by the House of Representatives last week. House Bill (HB) 5627 seeks to provide monetary compensation including immediate relief and...

Lawmakers Target Passage of 45 Bills before March Recess
January 31, 2012... Byline: Noemi M. Gonzales THE HOUSE of Representatives is hoping to pass at least 45 bills on third reading before Congress goes on a month-long break in March, a ranking leader of the chamber said. In a letter dated Jan. 19, Speaker...

Cayetano presses for strict adherence to anti-smoking laws.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Antonio Siegfrid O. Alegado A LAWMAKER yesterday urged the government and local executives to strictly ensure the implementation of a law requiring establishments to designate a smoking area. Citing Section 6 of Republic Act (RA)...

Palace official 'ready' for sanctions for behavior.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Johanna Paola D. Poblete PRESIDENTIAL Adviser on Political Affairs Ronald M. Llamas broke his silence a week after the furor raised by his patronage of a stall selling pirated DVDs, indicating he is "ready to face" any sanctions...

Corona 'got' P10-M discount on condo unit from Megaworld.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Antonio Siegfrid O. Alegado HOUSE prosecutors continued to present witnesses and documents on real properties allegedly linked to Chief Justice Renato C. Corona at the resumption of the impeachment trial yesterday. Megaworld Corp....

Feb. 4 declared a holiday in Zambales.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Johannna Paola D. Poblete PRESIDENT Benigno S. C. Aquino III has declared Saturday, Feb. 4, as a special non-working holiday in the province of Zambales. The announcement was in connection with the holding of the special elections for...

Russian ships dock in Manila for four-day goodwill visit.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Mariae Francesca C. Ramos THREE Russian ships which took part in combating piracy in Somalia set anchor in Manila for a four-day goodwill visit to the Philippines. Large anti-submarine ship Admiral Panteleyev, rescue tug Fotiy...

Two ex-school officials convicted for graft.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Noemi M. Gonzales THE SANDIGANBAYAN yesterday convicted two former officials of the Batangas State University (BSU) for allegedly abusing their positions for financial gains. Ernesto M. de Chavez, former president of BSU, and...

Aquino swears in new officers of business group.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Johanna Paola D. Poblete PRESIDENT Benigno S. C. Aquino III administered the oaths of office of the newly elected Board of Directors and Officers of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) in ceremonies held in...

Palace aide assuages China's concerns.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Johanna Paola D. Poblete THE ENHANCED defense cooperation between the Philippines and the United States contributes to peace and stability in the region, and should not affect the Philippines' relationship with China as the bilateral...

China responds to reports of rise in US army presence.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Darwin T. Wee BEIJING - China's foreign ministry doused water over heated opinions raised by reports that the Philippine government is open to the stronger presence of US troops in the Philippines, which many see as a countering...

Philippines seeks to upgrade defense with Italy's assistance.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Mariae Francesca C. Ramos THE PHILIPPINES is poised to engage in an Implementing Agreement (IA) with the Italian government to accelerate the procurement of Defense equipment and materials as part of the country's military capability...

Sendong-hit areas underserved - UN.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Kim Arveen M. Patria ALTHOUGH "very basic assistance" is being delivered to several areas in Mindanao affected by typhoon Sendong (international name: Washi), many communities have yet to access relief efforts, the United Nations...

Growth slows substantially (2011 target missed; central bank sees.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Trishia P. Octaviano with Neil Jerome C. Morales THE ECONOMY grew by just 3.7% last year despite government efforts to hike spending in the fourth quarter, pulled down by a slump in exports and lingering global economic woes. The...

Gov't planning to tax ecozone oil imports.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Diane Claire J. Jiao THE GOVERNMENT is planning to charge import taxes on oil firms located inside ecozones, a Cabinet official yesterday said, in an attempt to stem rampant smuggling. "The BIR (Bureau of Internal Revenue) is...

Administration urged to address 'paralysis'.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Diane Claire J. Jiao A BALANCE between the need to accelerate growth and promote good governance needs to be struck by the government, the new chief of the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) said, prompting a Cabinet...

Anti-cybercrime bill approved by Senate.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Antonio Siegfrid O. Alegado A MEASURE seeking to establish safeguards in using the Internet has been passed at the Senate. Voting 13-1, legislators approved on third and final reading Senate Bill (SB) 2796, which penalizes...

CONSUMER GUIDE.
January 31, 2012... 4 Fingers opens first Philippine branch DINERS IN SM North EDSA's newly opened crispy chicken restaurant, 4 Fingers Crispy Chicken, have been munching on the crispy chicken coated with soy garlic and spicy sauce, in a setting reminiscent of...

Cement sales seen slower.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Eliza J. Diaz SALES OF local cement producers grew at a slower pace last year amid lackluster public construction and infrastructure spending, an official said yesterday. Local cement demand rose 1% to 15.6 million metric tons (MT)...

Tampakan firm appeals rejection of ECC petition.
January 31, 2012... Byline: Louella D. Desiderio and Romer S. Sarmiento SAGITTARIUS Mines, Inc. (SMI), the firm pursuing the Tampakan copper- gold project, has appealed the government's decision not to process the firm's application for an environmental permit....

TAKE TEN.
January 30, 2012... Byline: Behn Cervantes I had planned to minimize problems but when you plan, you do only with names and/or numbers. When they become realities or people, they become problems. For example, one of my most reliable singers is tenor Dondi...

New hair care line focuses on damaged hair.
January 30, 2012... DOVE HAS unveiled its latest line of hair care products - Dove Damage Therapy. The products deeply nourish and replenish depleted hair that is experiencing dryness and damage to restore hair's beauty through three special ingredients:...

CHESS PIECE.
January 30, 2012... Byline: Bobby Ang 10th Parsvnath International Open Delhi, India January 14-23, 2012 Final top Standings 1. GM Oliver Barbosa PHI 2573, 9.5/11 2-3. GM John Paul Gomez PHI 2506, IM Babu MR Lalith IND 2484, 9.0/11 4-5. GM Mark...

COURTSIDE.
January 30, 2012... Byline: Anthony L. Cuaycong Maria Sharapova was a picture of grace following her crushing defeat at the Australian Open ladies' singles final the other day. Certainly, her disappointment at her failure to lift the Daphna Akhurst Memorial Cup...

WEALTH MANAGER.
January 30, 2012... 2012 is shaping up to be the Philippines' year, with investors scouring the country for assets to snap up, lured by the promise of growth while the Western world continues to languish in the doldrums. The challenge for the country, said...

WEALTH MANAGER.
January 30, 2012... Byline: Daniel Anne Nepomuceno-Rodriguez Recommendation: Accumulate/Cautious buy REGINA Capital Development Corp. has placed a "cautious buy" tag on shares in Pepsi-Cola Products Philippines, Inc., saying these are currently expensive and...

WEALTH MANAGER.
January 30, 2012... Byline: Judy Dannibelle T. Chua Co Recommendation: Long-term buy and hold ANALYSTS have advised investors to buy shares in Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. given the company's stability and the stock's uptrend potential. "PLDT...

WEALTH MANAGER.
January 30, 2012... Byline: Bettine Faye V. Roc Recommendation: Buy A LOCAL brokerage firm has advised investors to buy shares in Robinsons Land Corp., citing the company's plan to expand its budget hotel operations to tourist areas. "Robinsons Land is...

WEALTH MANAGER.
January 30, 2012... Byline: Mike Ferrer While baseball isn't one of my favorite sports, it most closely resembles the one sport I'm most interested in - the investment game. And Moneyball, the movie, captures this analogy perfectly. The movie is based on the...

WEALTH MANAGER.
January 30, 2012... Byline: Billy Cortez In two recent columns (not consecutively written), we focused on investment banking. We started off with some definition of significant investment banking terms. We wrote about IPOs (initial public offerings), stressing...

WEALTH MANAGER.
January 30, 2012... Byline: Anthony Pangilinan I spent the weekend at an out-of-town two-night team-building program for one of the winningest teams in the Philippine Basketball Association. I am not one who evaluates the success of my own change management and...

WEALTH MANAGER.
January 30, 2012... Byline: Josiah Go In my previous article ("Why businesses fail"), I explained that businesses fail when lacking in at least one of these four factors: product-market, people, peso and prayers. This article will focus on some of the possible...

WEALTH MANAGER.
January 30, 2012... Monday, 30 Jan. - Last day for e-FILING/FILING & e-PAYMENT/PAYMENT of 1702Q together with the summary alphalist of withholding agents of income payments subjected to withholding tax (SAWT) by EFPS and manual filers for FQ ended Nov. 30,...

Another sluggish market seen this week.
January 30, 2012... Byline: Franz Jonathan G. de la Fuente MARKET participants are expected to move cautiously this week amid uncertainty on how the euro zone will continue to deal with the debt crisis. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) shed 1.43%...

UnionBank profit rises 23%.(Financial report)
January 30, 2012... Byline: Ann Rozainne R. Gregorio NET PROFIT of Aboitiz-led Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) rose by 23% last year amid a surge in trading gains and charges, fees and commissions. In a statement released yesterday, the bank said it...

More peso appreciation expected.
January 30, 2012... THE PESO may further strengthen against the dollar this week after the US Federal Reserve last week said it would keep its monetary policy loose until 2014 to support the recovering US economy. Developments in the euro zone, however, will...

20-year T-bond rate seen falling amid high demand.
January 30, 2012... Byline: Ann Rozainne R. Gregorio DEMAND for fresh 20-year Treasury bonds will likely pull down their coupon rate versus the rate they got at a debt exchange last July, traders said. The debt papers, up for auction tomorrow, may fetch a...

YIELD TRACKER.
January 30, 2012... Byline: Karen Joyce Q. Ang YIELDS on short-tenored government debts rose last week as investors searching for higher returns flocked to long-dated securities. Yields on government debt securities climbed by an average 11.57 basis points...

Funds in special deposit accounts up 3%.
January 30, 2012... Byline: Neil Jerome C. Morales FUNDS placed in the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas' (BSP) special deposit accounts (SDAs) remained high early this month, data from the central bank showed. Banks are still waiting for investment opportunities,...

PDIC takes over Batangas rural bank.
January 30, 2012... Byline: Neil Jerome C. Morales THE BANGKO Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has placed a Batangas-based rural bank under the receivership of the state deposit insurer - the third for the year. The Monetary Board, in Resolution No. 126 dated Jan....

Natural catastrophe insurance for individuals in the works.
January 30, 2012... Byline: Diane Claire J. Jiao GERMAN Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) is aiding the Insurance Commission to develop a natural catastrophe insurance for individuals, with more storms expected to hit the country amid unabated climate...

Seminars on health care set.
January 30, 2012... THE RETIREMENT & Health care Coalition (RHC), composed of the American, European, Japanese, and Korean chambers, is set to hold a series of one-day seminars aimed at dissecting the Philippine health care system. In partnership with German...

Reality show partners with APO Floors.
January 30, 2012... THE POPULARITY of reality television shows relies on the authenticity of the entire series, from the stars of the show down to their everyday activities. But the stars and their idiosyncrasies do not alone make a reality TV show interesting. ...

Multiply offers perks for online shoppers.
January 30, 2012... LAST YEAR, Multiply transformed itself from a social networking site into the country's biggest online shopping destination with over 100,000 online storefronts across 16 product categories. This change, which was brought on by a growing...

E. Ganzon introduces South, West Insula.
January 30, 2012... E. GANZON, Inc. (EGI), a company that has 29 years of experience as a builder and engineering company, offers two new latest developments in the heart of Quezon City - South Insula in Timog Avenue and West Insula in West Avenue. Both Insulas...