BusinessWorld (Philippines) articles from June 2011

BusinessWorld (Philippines) archives from June 2011

COURTSIDE.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Anthony L. Cuaycong Maria Sharapova could not help but sport a huge grin as she fielded questions shortly after her quarterfinal-round victory at Wimbledon. She looked extremely fresh, with not a hair out of place, no doubt because it...

16 RP bets advance to World Pool last 64.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Marlon Bernardino REIGNING NATIONAL Open Champion Lee Vann "The Slayer" Corteza defeated Marcus Chamat of Sweden, 9-6, in Group L in their do-or-die match to lead 15 other Filipino cue artists through to the Last 64 of the 2011 World...

A sneaky kind of spicy.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Sam L. Marcelo Szechuan spiciness sneaks up on you. It doesn't burn your tongue off or make you flail around for a glass of water. Its effects are insidious and cumulative. Only after several mouthfuls will you notice that your...

A taste of Guangdong.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Jeffrey O. Valisno With its luxurious interiors styled to resemble a regal Chinese home, and authentic Cantonese dishes prepared with skill and pride in time- honored fashion, Hyatt Hotel and Casino Manila's Li Li is a classy and...

Guimaras-inspired ice cream.
June 30, 2011... GUIMARAS TOURISM gets a shot in the arm as Magnolia Ice Cream places the island on the spotlight through its newest flavors Mangga't Kasuy and Mangoes and Cream. The ice cream brand will also feature Guimaras - known for its mangoes which are...

Sweet treats Custom-made fondant cakes burst on the Cagayan de Oro.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Michael D. Banos CAGAYAN DE ORO - Ever since her custom-made fondant cakes burst onto Cagayan de Oro's social scene barely a year ago, orders have been coming so thick and fast that Ma. Aurora "Awi" Riego de Dios Garcia-Chaves and her...

SPECIAL FEATURE: adviser.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Victoria T. Vizcarra More and more retailers are taking their wares to the Web - and for good reason. "Online selling requires far lesser capital than a brick-and- mortar store," says RJ David, co-founder and managing director of...

SPECIAL FEATURE: adviser.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Anna Patricia G. Valerio NO LONGER CONSTRAINED by high rental rates and strict opening hours, entrepreneurs are starting to find a low-maintenance home on the Web. But the virtual business world comes with a catch: with everyone...

Bank consolidation OK'd.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Ann Rozainne R. Gregorio THE BANGKO SENTRAL ng Pilipinas has approved the consolidation of Valiant Rural Bank, Inc. (Valiant Bank), Rural Bank of Sapian, Inc. and Rural Bank of Ma-ao, Inc., with Valiant Bank as the surviving entity....

NGO to boost microlending operations.
June 30, 2011... NONGOVERNMENT organization Center for Agriculture and Rural Development (CARD) Inc. has issued corporate notes worth P750 million to expand its microlending operations. In a statement, CARD said it issued the five-year notes last June 13 with...

Peso sustains strength, gains nine centavos.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Ann Rozainne R. Gregorio with AFP THE PESO sustained its strength against the dollar yesterday as market players remained optimistic that Greek lawmakers will pass Greece's austerity package. The local currency gained nine centavos...

Bourse tumbles on PLDT uncertainties.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Neil Jerome C. Morales UNCERTAINTIES on a possible violation of index heavyweight Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) dragged the main index, closing for the second day in the red this week. The Philippine Stock Exchange...

CALLING A SPADE...
June 30, 2011... Byline: Solita Collas-Monsod Leila de Lima has always held my respect and admiration for her competence and integrity. So I was dumbfounded when she announced in her press conference on Tuesday that information (more accurately, the absence...

THE VIEW FROM TAFT.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Henry R. Atayde I am often asked what the difference is between a Christian Brother and a priest. A priest arrives in a community, builds a church, and saves lives through conversion. A Christian Brother enters a community, builds a...

MOVERS, MAKERS, SHAKERS.
June 30, 2011... Byline: JJ Calero "Everything is a Blessing; One Door Closes Another Door Opens!" This is a snapshot of the life of Joe Magsaysay of POTATO CORNER (not to be confused with the Joe Magsaysay the advertising icon)! "Everything is a...

STRATEGIC PERSPECTIVE.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Rene B. Azurin By criticizing President Aquino's hands-off "nobody home" brand of management, ex-President Arroyo is clearly inviting us to compare it unfavorably with the hands-on style she supposedly practiced. The problem with that...

Ayala Corp. continues foray into energy with 135-MW plant.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Emilia Narni J. David AYALA-LED AC Energy Holdings, Inc. has formed a joint venture with Trans-Asia Oil and Energy Development Corp. to build a P12-billion,135- megawatt (MW) power plant in Batangas that can run on coal and other...

Tampakan firm questioned on post-mining safeguards.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Louella D. Desiderio DAVAO CITY - Local governments with a stake in the massive Tampakan copper-gold project have raised concerns over the management of the site at the end of the mine's life in recent consultations held by project...

Philex says record profits seen by end-December.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Kathleen A. Martin PHILEX MINING Corp., the country's biggest miner, expects to record higher profits in the first half versus year-ago levels after ramping up production amid improved metal prices, an official yesterday said. ...

Alveo Land to spend P1.7B for Pampanga condo complex.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Neil Jerome C. Morales ALVEO LAND Corp., the upper and middle-income segment brand of property giant Ayala Land, Inc., will spend up to P1.7 billion for its first condominium in Angeles City, Pampanga. The residential project comes...

Lopez unit to restructure debt.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Neil Jerome C. Morales LOPEZ HOLDINGS Corp., the listed conglomerate with interests in media, power generation, real estate and telecommunications, plans to complete restructuring $41 million worth of debt this year, a ranking...

Realty sector to enjoy continued growth.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Neil Jerome C. Morales THE PHILIPPINE real estate market is set to enjoy a "sustained upward cycle" as demand for office space combined with interest in retail, tourism and residential projects will continue to drive the sector...

Xavier University puts up retail center.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Al Gerard G. dela Cruz CAGAYAN DE ORO - Xavier University, a Jesuit-run institution in Mindanao, has partnered with Pryce Corp. to erect a shopping mall inside the campus that will feature students' business experiments. The retail...

Japan digital TV standard still preferred (Broadcasters say price a.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Kathleen A. Martin THE GROUP of some of the Philippines' major television and radio stations said on Wednesday that Japan's digital TV standard is still better suited for the country than its upgraded European rival, citing cost...

EU cites gains in ties with Philippines.
June 30, 2011... ECONOMIC TIES between the Philippines and the European Union (EU) have continued to grow, especially in the wake of the global economic crisis, the EU Delegation to the Philippines said in a statement on Wednesday following the release of the...

More oil, gas exploration sites offered.
June 30, 2011... THE ENERGY department will unveil today 15 areas to be offered for oil and gas exploration under the Fourth Philippine Energy Contracting Round, an official statement read on Wednesday. In the launch of the contracting round today, the...

TAXWISE OR OTHERWISE.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Blesidlda A. Pestano 'The accelerating shift in economic power from the developed to emerging economies is dramatically changing the banking industry across the world.' - PwC, from the report, 'Banking in 2050' Talks about a...

Agriculture dep't sets aside P415M for Samar projects.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Louella D. Desiderio THE DEPARTMENT of Agriculture is allocating P415 million for irrigation and other projects in Samar aimed at increasing its food production. Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala said in a statement yesterday...

Government panel warns against threats to peace process.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Amilbahar S. Mawallil and Johanna Paola D. Poblete ZAMBOANGA CITY - The government peace panel has warned against groups that threaten to undermine the southern peace process, while calling for vigilance on the part of the public. ...

At least 22 dead from highest level of flood in Davao City.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Joel B. Escovilla and AFP DAVAO CITY - At least 22 individuals died after two hours of downpour that resulted in a river overflow which submerged parts of this city on Tuesday, a local official said yesterday. The National Disaster...

Anti-crime policy to be rationalized - Ochoa.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Johanna Paola D. Poblete THE GOVERNMENT will target specific criminal activities under a rationalized anti-crime policy, Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa, Jr., recently named chairman of the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime...

Ombudsman to probe former official for tampering of cases.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Noemi M. Gonzales THE OFFICE of the Ombudsman has ordered an investigation on its former official for alleged tampering of resolutions and decisions. In a press conference yesterday, Ombudsman spokesman Mary Rawnsle Lopez said of...

Victims' relatives seeking changes to live coverage rules.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Nathaniel R. Melican RELATIVES OF the victims of the Maguindanao massacre have filed a petition with the Supreme Court seeking to strike out certain guidelines in the live coverage of the trial. In a 25-page partial motion for...

Indonesian nationals rescued.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Amilbahar S. Mawallil and AFP ZAMBOANGA CITY - Authorities rescued four Indonesian nationals in the island-province of Tawi-Tawi yesterday after their boat was swept by strong current brought about by bad weather to the Philippines,...

Maternity Leave for State Workers Sought
June 30, 2011... Byline: Noemi M. Gonzales A BILL has been filed at the House of Representatives seeking to grant maternity leave benefits to unmarried women in government service. House Bill 4684 amends Republic Act 8281 or the Government Service...

Customs seizes P50-million counterfeit items from China.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Diane Claire J. Jiao THE BUREAU of Customs (BoC) yesterday seized P50 million worth of various counterfeit goods made in China. The consignees, SARAE Trading and MLKMZ Trading, attempted to smuggle footwear and audio equipment...

Rights watchdog scores Aquino output.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Noemi M. Gonzales LITTLE HAS been done by the administration in upholding human rights and delivering on the campaign promise to dismantle private armies, an advocacy group yesterday said in rating the first-year performance of...

Koronadal on alert to avoid attack, says intelligence chief.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Romer S. Sarmiento KORONADAL CITY - Intelligence monitoring has been heightened to thwart a possible bomb attack in this city, a police official said yesterday. "Koronadal is a target of a bomb attack [based on intelligence...

500 villages in C. Mindanao prone to floods, landslides.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Louie O. Pacardo KORONADAL - About 500 villages in Central Mindanao are threatened by flood and landslides due to continuous rains, the regional Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) said. Jaime G. Flores, MGB-12 chief geologist, said...

IT agency outlines dev't thrust till 2016.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Kathleen A. Martin THE COMMISSION on Information and Communications Technology (CICT) yesterday unveiled the country's 2011-2016 Philippine Digital Strategy during the 2011 Philippine ICT Summit in Mandaluyong City. The strategy,...

Bidding in December?
June 30, 2011... THE BIDDING for two priority road projects to be undertaken under the government's public-private partnership program may be held this December or by January next year, Public Works Secretary Rogelio L. Singson said via text yesterday. He said...

Estimates revised.
June 30, 2011... FIRST METRO Investment Corp. (FMIC) and the University of Asia and the Pacific, which collaborate to publish their monthly The Market Call, have slashed their projection for gross domestic product growth this year to 6% from the 6.7%-73% range...

Reducing the burden.
June 30, 2011... IN A BID to reduce the amount of debt to be passed on to electricity users, the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) is proposing a scheme to get in advance concession fees under transmission privatization contracts....

Gov't back to a deficit in May (Revenue agencies miss targets;.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Diane Claire J. Jiao THE GOVERNMENT returned to a deficit last month, with officials claiming that expenditures had been accelerated following criticism that recent fiscal gains were due largely to underspending. The budget...

Bond swap launch rescheduled to July 5.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Ann Rozainne R. Gregorio A BOND SWAP originally scheduled to be launched by the government last Tuesday will push through next week, a joint deal manager said. "The government will launch its local debt exchange on July 5," said...

Concrete action sought with groundwork laid.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Eliza J. Diaz CONCRETE REFORMS are now expected from the government, businessmen said as they noted efforts by President Benigno S. C. Aquino III to lay the groundwork for his pledges to grow the economy and combat corruption. Mr....

BSP chief sees June inflation hitting 4.6-5.5%.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Antonio Siegfrid O. Alegado INFLATION is expected to have further accelerated this month but overall the rise in consumer prices remains manageable, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) chief yesterday said. "Inflation for June is...

PhilWeb to enter Timor-Leste.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Neil Jerome C. Morales ONGPIN-LED online casino operator PhilWeb Corp. is expanding to Timor- Leste after bagging a permit in line with its strategy of tapping Southeast Asian markets, the company said in a statement yesterday. ...

Cojuangco, Ang acquire more San Miguel shares.
June 30, 2011... Byline: Neil Jerome C. Morales SAN MIGUEL Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Eduardo M. Cojuangco, Jr. has acquired more shares along with another official under an incentive option roughly a week after the Supreme Court confirmed with...

Net Group to build three 'green' towers.
June 30, 2011... LOCAL DEVELOPER The Net Group said it is building an energy-efficient, mixed-use complex in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig. The first tower of the development dubbed "Net Metropolis, 5th Ave." will be completed by end-2011, The Net Group said...

Loan facility to aid OFWs.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Ann Rozainne R. Gregorio STATE-RUN Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) and Land Bank of the Philippines (Landbank) are making a loan facility available for Filipino migrant workers and their families who want to start up a...

'Hot money' hits triple net inflows at $2.2B.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Antonio Siegfrid O. Alegado NET INFLOW foreign portfolio investments - also known as "hot money" given the ease with which they can be put in and out of an economy - have tripled indicating that Philippine investments remain...

COURTSIDE.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Anthony L. Cuaycong Venus and Serena Williams aren't known to be generous in their praise of opponents, but Wimbledon 2011 has proven to be a welcome exception. Just the other night, they were both moved to give props in their...

GIVE AND GO.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Michael Angelo S. Murillo In about a year, the Philippine national football team, more popularly known as the "The Azkals," has made significant headway. From a perennial underdog in the sport, our team has shown revived "bite" to its...

American riders dominate Lanao leg of motocross series.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Michael Angelo S. Murillo AMERICAN MOTOCROSS riders showed their world-class form as they rode to top finishes in the sixth leg of the Enersel Forte Philippine and World Motocross Series in Tubod, Lanao del Norte, last weekend. ...

Franchise Asia set in September.
June 29, 2011... DELEGATES FROM the member-nations of the World Franchise Council (WFC) and Asia Pacific Franchise Confederation (APFC) converge in Manila this September to chart the future of global franchising. To date, 24 member-country associations have...

Rizal's Noli, Fili sent to Argentina.
June 29, 2011... RIZAL'S NOVELS Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo will be part of the "Torre de Babel de Libros" library project in Buenos Aires, Argentina, by the National Book Development Board (NBDB), a government agency mandated to promote book reading...

Baguio marks RP-Japan friendship month.
June 29, 2011... THE PHILIPPINES-JAPAN Friendship Month is celebrated in the month of July to commemorate the designation of July 23 as Philippines-Japan Friendship Day in the Golden Jubilee Celebration of the diplomatic relationship between the two countries in...

CONSUMER GUIDE.
June 29, 2011... GMLC launches 2 Torre Lorenzo condominium GRAND METRO Lorenzo Corp. (GMLC) promises to redefine condo living especially for students, young professionals and small families. Recently launched high-rise development 2 Torre Lorenzo, GMLC's...

BRIEFS.
June 29, 2011... Congress on obesity set THE PHILIPPINES is set to host the Asia-Oceania Congress on Obesity on Aug. 31 to Sept. 2 at the Sofitel Philippine Plaza, Manila with the theme "The Growing Problem of Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome: Asia-Oceania...

Oz and them.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Sam L. Marcelo A touring exhibition from La Trobe University Museum of Art (LUMA) in Australia attempts to answer the questions French Post-Impressionist Paul Gauguin raised when he cornered centuries of existential angst - past and...

ARTS & CULTURE.
June 29, 2011... Alliance Francaise de Manille THE FRENCH cultural center presents Ancotres/Ninuno by Ivi Avellana- Cosio. This exhibition opens at the Alliance Francaise Total Gallery on July 5 and runs until July 28. Alliance Francaise de Manille is located...

A woman's world.
June 29, 2011... WOMEN ARE the focus of the 42nd season of Ballet Philippines (BP), the longest-running dance company in Southeast Asia. Called "Faces of Eve," the season celebrates 100 years of International Women's Day. "Since last year we focuses mostly...

ONSTAGE.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Juan Antonio Lanuza Elton John and Tim Rice's Aida, which is one of Disney's first ventures into Broadway musicals, has been a big hit in both the US, England and 20 other countries, and now also in Manila. The show opened in New...

SPECIAL FEATURE.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Katrina Paola B. Alvarez FOR YEARS, facial symmetry has been touted as a universal sign of beauty, one that's rooted in the animal instinct to seek healthier, more fertile, and genetically superior mates. Several studies over the...

SPECIAL FEATURE.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Victoria T. Vizcarra BEAUTY CAN be a cruel mistress: Thanks in no small part to the twin forces of time and gravity, the triangular shape common to youthful faces eventually gives way to a more flat and rectangular angle. But for...

SPECIAL FEATURE: health guide.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Katrina Paola B. Alvarez Generic medicines are positioned as cheaper but just as effective alternatives to their branded equivalents, especially when sold at public health facilities. Consumers, however, could still be shelling out...

SPECIAL FEATURE: health guide.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Victoria T. Vizcarra IT MAY SEEM like an unseemly, if not awkward procedure, but a digital rectal exam (DRE) - in which a physician uses a gloved, lubricated finger to physically check the rectum and prostate gland - is key to...

SPECIAL FEATURE: health guide.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Anna Patricia G. Valerio A BATTLE is being waged at the forefront of the Philippine pharmaceutical field. A sting operation conducted by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) last November seized more than P25 million worth of...

SPECIAL FEATURE: health guide.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Juan Paolino Cornejo GENERIC DRUGS attract customers by being up to 80% cheaper than their branded counterparts. A welcome blessing for the sick, but this discrepancy has also been cause for much conflict between originator...

SPECIAL FEATURE: Health Advocacy Companies.
June 29, 2011... Bigger firms may have gotten on the workplace wellness wagon before their smaller counterparts, but when it comes to promoting health in the office, many find that business size doesn't matter. In the United States, the Health Enhancement...

US assistance not immediate under Mutual Defense Treaty.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Noemi M. Gonzales THE PHILIPPINES cannot invoke its Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) with the United States to stake a claim in the disputed South China Sea, a former dean of the University of the Philippines (UP) Law School said...

Church to remain opposed to SMI.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Romer S. Sarmiento KORONADAL CITY - The local Catholic Church will not back down on its crusade against the Tampakan copper-gold mining project of Sagittarius Mines, Inc. (SMI) despite its economic contributions contained in its...

BPO growth needs closer industry-school ties.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Marites S. Villamor CEBU CITY - Business process outsourcing (BPO) stakeholders here yesterday called for stronger academe-industry cooperation to address the skills gap that has hampered the growth of their industry. "There's a...

Tax shortfall seen to have weighed on May's fiscal balance.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Diane Claire J. Jiao A SHORTFALL incurred by the two main revenue collectors and increased state spending may have weighed on the government's fiscal balance last month, two private sector economists said separately yesterday. "It...

Suggested price lifted.
June 29, 2011... THE AGRICULTURE department has suspended the suggested retail price (SRP) for chicken, expecting supply of the commodity to rise in the coming weeks. "We are suspending SRP [for chicken] in the meantime," Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala...

Post-harvest funding set.
June 29, 2011... THE PHILIPPINE Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization (PhilMech) plans to spend P16 billion from this year until 2016 on farm mechanization and post-harvest facilities to help increase rice production. "We have a P16-billion budget...

Tax rates for imported rum cut.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Diane Claire J. Jiao THE BUREAU of Internal Revenue (BIR) has corrected the tax classification for seven imported brands of rum, effectively bringing down their excise tax rates. The BIR issued Revenue Regulations No. 8-2011, dated...

Report cites prospective investor gains in ASEAN.
June 29, 2011... THE ASEAN COMMUNITY targeted for 2015 offers opportunities to investors, even as weak economic links among the 10 component countries and their expected continued market orientation towards the rest of the globe mean they will remain vulnerable...

AD LIB.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Greg B. Macabenta The headline of one newspaper couldn't have stated it in more frightening terms: "GMA allies prepare frontal attack vs Noy/Noy wants war, he'll get it." The story, which broke into print the other day, was enough to...

CORE.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Benjamin E. Diokno The size and composition of government spending, and how the budget is financed, matter. For now, let me focus on the composition of the budget. Fiscal policy, defined as the use of government spending, taxation,...

Shoptalk.
June 29, 2011... A spontaneous President President Benigno S. C. Aquino III's penchant for surprises and breaking protocol, observed during a recent plant inauguration, has been described by a company executive as a "security nightmare for the PSG...

Chemrez bats for larger sales share in US market.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Kathleen A. Martin and Emilia Narni J. David CHEMICAL MANUFACTURER Chemrez Technologies, Inc. is looking to grow its market share in the United States as conditions there reportedly pose an opportunity for "dramatic" growth, an...

NTC revives proposal to cut charges for text, voice services.
June 29, 2011... Byline: Kathleen A. Martin A STATE agency has revived attempts to lower fees for mobile phone services by proposing to slash the interconnection charges for calls made and text messages sent between rival networks. The National...