B 2


BY KATRINA MENNEN A. VALDEZ REPORTER


business The Manila Times TUESDAY D e cember 14, 2010


Data provided by the Department of Finance One-Stop- Shop (DOF- OSS) showed that total claims ap- proved for TCCs during the first 11 months amounted to P4.288 bil- lion, or 28 percent higher than last year’s P3.346 billion. “This can still be attributed to the country’s recovering exports indus-


Tax credits jump by a third T


HE tax credit certificates (TCCs) issued by the government jumped by almost a third at end-November.


try,” Eric Dural, DOF-OSS officer-in- charge for special concerns, said. At end-October, Philippine ex- ports climbed 26.4 percent to $43.05 billion from a year ago, according to the National Statistics Office. The government gives out TCCs mainly to exporters. They use these cred- its for their prior payments of customs


Govt debt slides amid the peso’s appreciation


THE Philippine government’s debt declined in September from the previous month because of the net redemption of bonds and the pe- so’s appreciation. The Bureau of Treasury said the national government’s debt as of September stood at P4.664.2 tril- lion, or 0.6 percent less than the August level of P4.691.6 billion. With the Philippine population at 94 million, every Filipino there- fore would be in hock for P49,637. Of the total obligations, P1.965.7 trillion, or 42 percent is owed to foreigners while P2.698.5 trillion, or 58 percent, to domestic creditors. The domestic component of the debt fell month-on-month as the gov- ernment redeemed Treasury notes. The foreign component of the debt rose on the combined effects of the P49-


billion net availment, P12-billion appre- ciation of the third currencies against the US dollar, and P57-billion appreciation of the peso against the US dollar. The Philippines’ contingent debt, composed mainly of guarantees is- sued by the national government for obligations incurred by its agencies, declined to P561 billion from the end-August level of P576 billion. The decline was because of the P4- billion net repayments, P13-billion appreciation of the peso against the US dollar, and P1-billion adjustments because of the late recording of the repayment of a loan by state-run Phil- ippine National Oil Company to the Export-Import Bank of Japan. This was, however, partially offset by the P3-billion appreciation of the third currencies against the US dollar. KATRINA MENNEN A. VALDEZ


duties and tariffs for raw materials and other taxable transaction in making and sending their products overseas. TCCs are the exporters’ incentive- in-paper so that when they make their subsequent imports, they would no longer have to pay taxes by presenting the certificates. This is the government’s way of reim- bursing the exporters of their pay- ment of tariffs, duties and VAT. The DOF Investment Incentive


Group approved a total of 492 TCCs valued at P1.543 billion, 38 percent higher than the P1.118 billion posted in the same period last year.


Smuggled sugar seized


Bureau of Customs Commissioner Angelito Alvarez (right) inspects one of the 30 containers of sugar worth more than P50 million seized today. The sugar shipment, which was unloaded at the Manila International Container Port recently did not have an import permit from the Sugar


Regulatory Commission. Others in photo are Customs Deputy


Commissioner for Enforcement Horacio Suansing (center) and Security and Enforcement acting director Jose


Yuchongco (left) who detected and foiled the smuggling attempt.


Work on Gokongwei naphtha plant to start in 2011


AFTER several years of delay, the Gokongwei group’s naphtha cracker plant would finally push through, according to the Board of Invest- ments (BOI).


In a briefing on Monday, Trade Undersecretary and BOI Managing Head Cristino Panlilio said the groundbreaking for the proposed $600-million facility in Barangay Simlong, Batangas City would be held in January next year.


Manila Water reinforces pipeline


MANILA Water Co. is laying steel pipe- lines in Marikina, Pasig and Cainta, which have been retrofitted to absorb the effects of a possible earthquake. In a statement, the water distribu- tor said the new pipelines will be 9.6 kilometers long and would measuer between 1200-millimeters and 1800-millimeters in diameter. “The pipelines are being laid to increase water supply reliability and have been fitted with earthquake-re- silient flexible joints,” the Ayala-led company said. Manila Water is the concessionaire of state-run Metropolitan Water- works and Sewerage System for the eastern part of Metro Manila and for Rizal province. The company’s pipe project is be- ing undertaken in several stages. Un- der phase one, 3.1 kilometers of pipes will be laid from the Balara treatment plant in Quezon City to the Marikina River. Phase two will cover the laying of 6.5 kilometers of pipes along the Marikina River to Marcos Highway.


Phase three will run from Imelda


Avenue to Ortigas Avenue. Phase one of Manila Water’s pipe-


laying project is 46 percent complete while phase two is 65 percent fin- ished, with road restoration work along Marcos Highway in full swing. Both phases will be completed by June 2011, while phase three is scheduled for completion in 2012. Once completed, the new pipe- lines will help balance the load of Manila Water’s PG-6 mainline net- work, a larger and older mainline stretching 15 kilometers. This was laid more than 30 years ago and serves as the main water artery for Marikina, Pasig, Makati and Taguig. “The new pipelines will also


boost water pressure of the smaller secondary and tertiary lines as they [the new lines] will also be utilized as dedicated lines to convey water to portions of Pasig, Cainta, Taytay, Angono and Binangonan,” the com- pany said. EUAN PAULO C. AÑONUEVO


A BOI document showed that JG Summit Oleofins Corp., a unit of JG Summit Holdings Inc., is apply- ing for registration with the incen- tives-giving agency as a new pro- ducer of polymer-grade ethylene and propylene, pyrolysis gas and by-products such as fuel gas, fuel oil, and acid gas. The plant would have a capacity of 925,537 metric tons a year. Panlilio said the Gokongwei


firm is already importing the equipment, adding that the plant’s operations would start in the latter part of 2012.


The project is seeking pioneer sta- tus or a six-year income tax holiday. The BOI official said he met with Lance Gokongwei, JG Summit Holdings president and chief oper- ating officer, last month. “We could compete head-on with [plastic imports from] China when


we have the naphtha plant in place,” Panlilio said.


He said the country however


would not achieve plastics self- sufficiency even with this naph- tha cracker plant as it would meet just about half of the do- mestic demand.


JG Summit had registered this proposed naphtha cracker plant with the BOI in 2005 and 2008. BEN ARNOLD O. DE VERA


Mineral output surges on higher prices


THE output of the Philippine me- tallic mineral sector surged in the first nine months of this year, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said. Based on the Mineral Production


Report, the DENR-Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) said the metallic minerals sector grew 40 percent to P79.755 billion in the first three quarters of 2010 com- pared with P56.917 billion in the same period last year.


The MGB attributed the expansion to the concerted efforts by the min- ing industry’s different sub-sectors, all of which posted positive growth. Rebounding from the slump suf- fered last year, the nickel sub-sector contributed P18.059 billion of the total production value, 64 percent higher than the P11.005 billion posted a year ago.


Nickel concentrate production was up a percent to 22,517 dry metric tons (DMT) from 22,348 DMT, while the value of this output grew by 7 percent to P6.147 billion from P5.745 billion. Direct shipment of nickel ore


grew by 60 percent to 10.574 mil- lion DMT from 6.614 DMT last year, while its total production value


surged 127 percent to P11.912 bil- lion from P5.251 billion over the same period.


Among the top players in the Phil- ippine nickel sub-sector were CTP Construction and Mining Corp., Platinum Group Metals Corp., Carrascal Nickel Corp.; Hinatuan Mining Corp., Rio Tuba Nickel Min- ing, and Taganito Mining Corp. The gold sub-sector has domi- nated the charts, contributing P49.901 billion to the mining sec- tor’s production, or 30 percent higher than the P38.301 billion re- corded in 2009.


Gold prices are projected to sus- tain their current levels of above $1,000 per troy ounce for the rest of the year as demand for jewelry from China and India continues to grow. In June, the price for the yellow metal hit an all-time high of $1,233.65 per troy ounce. Among the top Philippine gold pro- ducers were the Phil. Gold Processing and Refining Co. (PGPRC), Philsaga Mining Corp., APEX Mining Co. Inc., Lepanto Consolidated Mining Corp., and Benguet Corp. Production volume and value of the silver sub-sector grew 26 percent


and 65 percent, respectively, from 24,048 kilos valued at P482 million, to 30,244 kilos at P796 million. As co-product of gold and copper mining, silver opened the year at $17.80 per troy ounce in January. In June, the price of silver went up by as much as $18.47 per troy ounce. The top players in the Philippine


silver sub-sector were PGPRC, APEX, Lepanto, and Philsaga.


The copper sub-sector saw pro- duction volume and value rising 19 percent and 56 percent, respectively, from 144, 753 DMT with estimated value of P7.299 billion last year to over 171, 832 DMT valued at P11.362 billion this year. Earlier, the price of the red metal shot up 79.10 percent from $1.79 to $3.21.


The top copper producers were Carmen Copper Corp. of Atlas Con- solidated Mining Corp., Philex Min- ing Corp., TVI Resources Develop- ment Phil. Inc., and the Rapu-Rapu Processing Inc.


Production of zinc went down by 9 percent from 10,501 to 10,338 DMT. Its value also fell 8 percent from P93.241 million to P86.115 million. JAMES KONSTANTIN GALVEZ


businessinbrief


■ IP Converge Data Center Inc. said it would pay a total dividend of P40 million, or P0.22 per share, payable in two tranches at P0.11 per tranche. The first dividend payment will be on or before January 26, 2011 and will be payable to shareholders as of record date December 31, 2010. The second payment is slated for April 2011 and will be payable to shareholders as of March 31, 2011. KRISTA ANGELA M. MONTEALEGRE


■ FILINVEST Land Inc. has started constructing its first mid- rise building project in the South Roads Properties in Cebu City called Amalfi Oasis. The project has 10 to 12 buildings within the 50.5-hectare Citta de Mare, a joint venture between the company and the Cebu City government. KRISTA ANGELA M. MONTEALEGRE


■ STERLING Bank of Asia said it is on track to meeting its double-digit growth projection this year amid improvements in banking fundamentals. The bank said it has already surpassed last year’s performance.


LAILANY P. GOMEZ


■ GLOBE Telecom Inc. said it will suspend some of its text and call promos during Christmas and New Year to prevent network congestion. The promos that will be suspended are the Super Unli 25, Super Unli for seven days and Touch Mobile Unlicombo 100 and 20. DARWIN G. AMOJELAR


■ THE Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. said the Philippine Stock Exchange has approved the lender’s plan to list up to 220 million common shares to cover its stock rights offer- ing. The additional shares will be sold at P50 each and the entitlement ratio is one rights share for every 9.557 common shares held by a shareholder.


LAILANY P. GOMEZ


■ The Energy Regulatory Commission said that it has approved the power supply agreement between First Bukidnon Electric Cooperative Inc. and Crystal Sugar Co. Inc. Under the deal, Fibeco will buy electricity generated by CSCI whenever available during both milling and off-milling periods. The cost of electricity will be around P2.13 per kilowatt-hour and P2.31 per kilowatt-hour during the six-month and three-month milling periods, respectively.


EUAN PAULO C. AÑONUEVO A meaningful present


T’S the season of giving and good cheer. It’s also the season of spend- ing. I guess there is no other time of the year, which rivals the frenzy of buying presents for people in our Christmas list. And with the spend- ing for goods, most individuals and households would experience a net capital outflow for the month, even with the 13th month pay and extra bonuses that some companies extend to their employees. It has been said that we Filipinos


I


DENNIS L. BERINO, DBA


have a lower savings rate compared to our regional neighbors. Some estimates say that 45 percent of the population has some form of sav- ings. It may be ironic to point out that we have a higher percentage of cell phone ownership, where some sources estimate about 50 million Filipinos have at least one cell phone. And of course, with the cell phone ownership comes the ex- penses for the load as well as related


services. It was even pointed out that school children scrimp on food and other needed school items just so they can buy that much needed load for their texting, calling and downloading needs. Saving for the future is best in- culcated during the formative school years of the children. This particular habit, if properly im- bibed, becomes a regular practice that should benefit the population at large. But with all the noise of consumerism and spending, even


working adults do not save the nec- essary amount for some future needs—for the purchase of big ticket items like a house and lot or a car, for the education of their children, for emergency needs like hospitali- zation, even for retirement benefits. It is said that a lot of people who go into retirement do not have enough funds for their needs. Some are forced to continue working while many depend on their rela- tives for their sustenance. Savings, from the individual per-


spective, is beneficial in terms of al- locating funds for future needs. Sav- ings help channel financial resources for the banks and other financial companies to pool together and in- vest both in private enterprise as well as government activities. The finan- cial services sector which includes banks, insurance, pre-need, mutual funds, cooperatives, among others, are potent sources of capital forma-


tion which contributes to the fund requirements for nation building. It is, thus, necessary for us to de-


velop programs that will help de- velop the savings initiatives among the population. Several decades back, the banking sector developed the catchphrase “Ipagpatuloy ang kaunlaran, mag-impok sa bangko,” to instill the necessity for savings among the population. Similar cam- paigns are something that should not be done by individual banks alone but should be pushed by the industry as a group to develop sav- ings consciousness.


The insurance industry can also be a potent vehicle for savings since it encourages insured to keep on paying their premiums so as to get the benefits from their insurance plans sometime in the future. Until many of the big companies went belly-up, the preneed industry was also a good means to save for the


education, pension and retirement, health needs among others of the population. The preneed industry however has to make a lot of catch up to recover the trust and confi- dence of the consuming public. And so let us go our merry ways to celebrate this season of good cheer. But let us also remember to save. A newly opened savings ac- count or a life insurance or educa- tion policy may not be as glamorous gifts compared to a computer tablet or a branded pair of jeans. But in the long-term, their benefits may be more meaningful and long-lasting.


The author is a professorial lecturer at the De La Salle University College of Business. He welcomes comments at dennis.berino@dlsu.edu.ph. The views expressed above are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official posi- tion of De La Salle University and its faculty and administrators.


The Board of Investments en- dorsed most of the applicants. Upon the approval of the Bureau of Customs (BOC), the Duty Draw- back Group granted 221 TCCs amounting to P1.113 billion. This was 18 percent lower than last year. “The BOC managed their ap-


proval of TCCs as it negatively impact[ed] their tax collection tar- get,” Dural said.


The Bureau of Internal Revenue granted 522 tax credits amounting to P1.631 billion, or double the P868 million a year ago. These credits in- volved value-added tax (VAT) claims.


PHILIPPINE Long Distance Tel- ephone Co. (PLDT) on Monday said it will offer a new technology that would revive its landline business. In a statement, the country’s larg- est telecom company said it is trans- forming the face of its fixed line busi- ness with a new offering that bundles a landline service with a touch-screen tablet and a high speed myDSL serv- ice all under one service plan. The landline business had fallen on hard times due to the popularity of text messaging or SMS (short messaging service). The PLDT TelPad unit includes a special handset that also serves as a charging dock for an application-rich, seven-inch screen tablet computer. Subscribers can use the handset or the portable tablet computer to make and receive phone calls and access over a hundred thousand online applications. This is on top of the unlimited


PLDT adopts new tack to revive landline business


broadband access of the bundled service. “We are reshaping the future of the landline and we are starting to bring it to the market now,” Napoleon Nazareno, PLDT president and chief executive said. At end-September, PLDT’s total number of fixed line subscribers stood at 1.84 million. Revenues generated from PLDT’s fixed line business amounted to P37.043 billion in the first nine months, a decrease of P1.35 billion, or 4 percent, from P38.4 billion in the same period last year. PLDT’s fixed line revenues dropped 2 percent to P11.56 billion in the first nine months this year compared with the P11.74 billion in the same period last year. Recently, PLDT also completed the P2.8-billion upgrade of the PLDT Do- mestic Fiber Optic Network. DARWIN G. AMOJELAR


MANAGING FOR SOCIETY


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