B 2


BY BEN ARNOLD O. DE VERA REPORTER


business The Manila Times FRIDAY July 23, 2010


as starting informal talks with the European Union (EU) for a possible bilateral trade pact, the Trade department said. Department of Trade and Indus-


try (DTI) Secretary Gregory Domingo told reporters that the government has to engage in trade talks because the country would be put in a disadvantage in light of the globalized economy. “You have to be part of every trade agreement; to not be a part is a dis- advantage,” Domingo said. “Our interest is not free trade per se, but the interest of Filipino busi-


RP to forge more free-trade deals T


HE Philippines is keen on joining the negotiations for the inter- regional economic integration as well


nesses and consumers,” he added. The DTI chief said the Philip- pines should address first issues on labor and environmental stand- ards before it could join the Trans- Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) negotiations.


This agreement aims for the eco- nomic integration of countries in Asia and the Pacific Rim. The na- tions that are involved in the talks are Australia, Brunei, Chile, New


Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US and Vietnam.


These nations have come up with a process through which additional countries can come in amid ongo- ing negotiations.


The second round of negotiations for the TPP Agreement was held in June, but talks are expected to con- tinue until next year. Besides TPP, the Philippines and the EU will start informal talks for a possible free trade agreement (FTA). The Philippines and EU re- cently signed a Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA), which covers areas such as coun- ter-terrorism, education and cul- ture, human rights, migration, politico-security concerns, as well as energy, transportation, and trade and investment. With the PCA in place, the Phil-


ippines must pursue a bilateral FTA with the regional bloc since the EU is now also in discussions with individual members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) for a similar trade deal, pundits said.


Asean groups the Philippines, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The bloc’s members started con- ducting talks with the UE after ne- gotiations for a regional trade agree- ment bogged down last year. In addition to these accords, Domingo said the DTI will also keep an eye on sub-agreements, or the details and guidelines of vari- ous trade pacts the Philippines has entered. “Sub-agreements are more im- portant. Sometimes the agreement


‘Green lane’ for reliable importers Motorists brace for higher toll ■ BRACE FROM B1


IN A big to streamline business processes, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) will ease some restrictions on product standards and testing, but an industry group said such a tack would only open the floodgates to sub-stand- ard products.


In a speech before members of the Philip- pine Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Wednesday night, DTI Secretary Gregory Domingo said “vast improvements” in the busi- ness registration system will be announced by the government next week.


Besides streamlining the processes and requirements in registering business names, DTI will also fast track the issuance of im- port commodity clearance (ICC) certifi- cates, he said. To cut short the time used in acquiring ICC certifications, Domingo said DTI will come up with a “green lane” that will service importers who have spotless track records in the previous tests their products have undergone. The ICC certificate is issued to importers whose products have passed the safety and qual- ity tests as required under the Philippine Na- tional Standard. Importers must affix on their goods the ICC sticker, which serves as a qual- ity-assurance seal for consumers.


Domingo said up to 80 products require ICC marks before they are sold in the domes- tic market.


He said testing these goods usually takes a lot of time, adding that the government lacks equipment and facilities to test some imports. The DTI is also reviewing the list of products that require testing, after which the agency will


determine those that may no longer have to undergo quality checks. For products whose tests eat up a long


time, Domingo said DTI will issue a provi- sional approval.


He said that if the test results show that the products are substandard, DTI will block the succeeding shipments of the erring importer. The Federation of Philippine Industries (FPI)


however bucked the plan, adding that the stand- ards are necessary to curb the entry of sub-stand- ard imports. “There has been an unabated influx of substandard products ranging from food to construction materials like ceramic tiles and steel bars,” Jesus Arranza, FPI chairman, said in a statement.


This prompted the FPI and the Philippine Product Safety and Quality Foundation to work for the setting up of standards, which the World Trade Organization (WTO) allows to protect the environment, health and safety of people, Arranza said.


The industry official said that domestic manufacturers “worked so hard so that this ICC will undergo [a] very strict printing process,” adding that the certificates used to be printed by importers. “It appears from the statement of Secretary Domingo that the present dispensation favors trading than manufacturing; that he favors im- porters who bring in substandard products than domestic manufacturers who employ millions of Filipinos and remit billions of taxes to the government,” the FPI official said. BEN ARNOLD O. DE VERA


calized, thus minor,” said Augusto Santos, NEDA deputy director-general. Department of Transportation and Com- munications Secretary Jose de Jesus said the VAT issue will be taken up in today’s meeting. The TRB has jurisdiction over NLEX, SLEX, the Manila-Cavite Expressway, South Metro Manila Skyway, Southern Tagalog Arterial Road (STAR) and the Subic-Clark- Tarlac Expressway (SCTEx).


Julius Corpuz, TRB spokesperson said the


new SLEX toll fees will also be discussed. The VAT on tolls was supposed to be implemented as early as 2005 but the pre- vious administration deferred it. Under Memorandum Circular 63-2010, Bu- reau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Kim Jacinto-Henares said the agency expects to raise P1 billion a month from the VAT on tolls, or higher than the previous administration’s computation of P1.3 billion a year.


No more back taxes The BIR order comes as the Aquino gov-


ernment scrounges for additional funds to bridge a P325 billion budget deficit gap programmed for this year.


Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima told reporters that the government however is no longer keen on collecting back taxes arising from the failure to implement the levy in 2007. “We will no longer run after the tax de- ficiency on VAT on toll,” Purisima said. Based on the computations made by the


previous administration, all the operators of tollways owe government a combined P6.5 billion in taxes from 2007 to 2009. “How can we collect such taxes which


were in the first place had not been col- lected [from] the road users,” Purisima said. “It is difficult to collect the back taxes.


Thus, we have to implement the law pro- spectively notwithstanding the fact that the 12 percent VAT on road tolls should have been imposed as early as 2007,” he said.


VAT on tolls illegal With the looming increase in tolls, Senate


President Juan Ponce Enrile urged motor- ists to challenge the VAT before the courts. “The Expanded Value Added Tax law did not mention toll fees among those subject to the 12-percent VAT,” he said. The senator said a toll is a tax imposed for the use of roads belonging to the gov- ernment. He said that since private com- panies built the expressways, they should collect tolls to pay back what the govern- ment would have spent. Sen. Ralph Recto meanwhile asked the Sen- ate Committee on Public Services to investi- gate the 250-percent increase in the SLEX toll. “It is important that the people be in- formed of the justifications for the high increase, especially if the amount appears to be exorbitant and confiscatory,” he said. He added that any unjustified increase


would only “aggravate the already poor conditions of majority of the people.”


■ FINANCES FROM B1 Improving RP public finances


emerging markets, including the Philippines,” says Le Borgne. “Domestic reforms would be a catalyst for higher growth.”


The PQU forecasts dollar remittances from


overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to increase by 8 percent this year but to be almost flat in real peso terms because of inflation and an appreci- ated peso compared to last year. The report says that deployment of OFWs actually accelerated during the recent global financial crisis partly because top OFW destina- tions were not as affected as the rest of the world. Worldwide, growth is firming up to reach 3.1 to 3.3 percent this year. Developing countries are projected to grow significantly faster, to a little over 6 percent. Growth in the United States and Japan is firming up and has spread to the private-sector, becoming more broadly based and self-sustaining. In contrast, however, growth in European countries, weighed down by the debt-related issues, remains weak. The PQU says the contagion from the European sovereign debt problems is so far limited to a few countries like Argentina and Venezuela. It says the Philippines has minimal


FOOD


direct trade and financial linkages to troubled economies in Europe’s periphery. Together, the five at-risk economies—Greece, Spain, Italy, Ireland and Portugal—account for modest shares of annual trade and investment flows of the Philippines. Relations with Greece—the epicenter of the crisis—deal mostly with Filipino workers many of whom are in the maritime industry where remittances have actually increased during the global financial crisis. Financial links with the five countries are even less notable. The PQU adds that any exposure Filipino


investors, including banks, may have to their sovereign debts are protected by a EUR 750 billion aid package backed by the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund. “The Philippines has a current account surplus and, more generally, a healthy external position and its banks are conservatives in their lending, funding, and investment strategies. Banks have low loan-to-deposit ratios so that they have limited reliance on external whole- sale funding markets,” notes the PQU report.


bizzfizz_98@yahoo.com


TERMINAL, INC. INVITATION TO BID FOR THE SALE OF EXCESS/UNSERVICEABLE AND REPOSSESSED ASSETS OF FTI


The Food Terminal Inc. invites interested parties to bid on the disposal of company excess/ unserviceable and repossessed assets on “AS IS WHERE IS BASIS” Description


Location


(FTI Owned Assets) Lot I:


Two (2) units Power Transformer, CEM 750 KVA, 240 Volts, 3 phase Lot II:


Excess Unserviceable Motor Vehicles


One (1) Unit Dump Truck, One (1) unit Service Car “Honda”, One (1) unit Road Roller, Diesel Engine Lot III:


Various excess/unserviceable assets of FTI, consisting of returned waste materials, dilapidated guardhouses, electrical panel board, water tank steel base/structure, one (1) unit steel water tank, scrap corr. GI sheet, used office furniture and


equipments, scrap materials returned by SEU and other junk items. (FTI Repossessed Assets)


Assorted used materials and equipments consisting of air conditioning units, conference tables fabric partition cubicles, water pumps, printing machine, water pumps, Four (7) units Dodge Ram Mini Van/Sports car, various meat processing equipments consisting of meat grinder , meat slicer, stuffing machine, silent cutter, One (1) unit 20 footer ref. van, sealer machine, roller machine, stainless tank, jar moulding mixer, “pugon” and other scrap junk materials repossessed from the following delinquent lessees. 1. Latitude Broad Band (Lot –IV) 2. Philmotors (Lot V)


3. Armstrong Food Corporation (Lot-VI) 4. Vierich Trading (Lot-VII) 5. Applied System (Lot-VIII) 6. Enhae Trading (IX)


The following is the schedule of activities: 1. Issuance of bidding documents/ Inspection of interested bidders. 2. Deadline for Submission of Sealed bids 3. Opening of bids 4. Bidding Place


PDU/DA


Former Pilipinas Kao Badminton Area


76,000.00


CRW/DA Area PDU Area


Php. 430,000.00 540,000.00


Minimum Bid Price


is balanced but the timing of the implementation may be good or not,” he said.


The Philippines has a bilateral trade accord with Japan called the Japan-Philippines Economic Part- nership Agreement.


As an Asean member-country, the Philippines is also involved in the Asean Trade in Goods Agreement, as well as in the bloc’s trade deals with Australia and New Zealand, China, India, Japan and Korea. Domingo said DTI acknowledges the need for a single body to spear- head trade negotiations. “[There should be] only one chief negotiator,” he said. At present, DTI, as well as the Departments of Agriculture and of Foreign Affairs engage in various trade negotiations.


Waterfront sees slight growth this year


WATERFRONT Philippines Inc. said it may be unable to completely turn around its finances by yearend since the hotel industry has yet to emerge from the global financial crisis. In its definitive statement, the


Gatchalian-led hotel operator said it sees a one- to two-percent growth, which may not be a sign of complete turnaround, but enough for the company to lay the ground for greater profitability in the following years. “The company is able to weather


the present storm and adapt to the extensive changes in travel trends and behavior, and ready to take advantage of the resurgence of interest after a global economic recovery,” the firm said. In the first three months, Water-


front posted a net loss of P85.52 million, a reversal of its net income of P27.996 million in the same period last year because of an increase in operating expenses. Revenues, however, grew by 7


percent to P509.65 million from P476.08 million on higher occupancy. The company said it has posi- tioned itself to take advantage of the renewed interest in travel by using technology to reach a wider range of customers worldwide. Waterfront recently set up an


integrated e-distribution system to make real-time booking and confirma- tion possible from its corporate website, as well as tap “vast opportuni- ties available on the Internet.” The company continues to partner


with several global and alternative distribution systems to expand the marketing reach and maintain streamlined operations. The company operates Waterfront


Cebu City Hotel & Casino and Water- front Airport Hotel and Casino in the Visayas, Waterfront Insular Hotel Davao in Mindanao, and Manila Pavilion Hotel and G-Hotel in Luzon. Waterfront shares rose from P0.26 to P0.27 each on Thursday. KRISTA ANGELA M. MONTEALEGRE


Lot 52


Motor Pool Area Stall 111/116 PDU Warehouse DA Area Stall 426


- July 26 to 29, 2010


- July 30, 2010 on or before 2:00 pm - July 30, 2010 (2:30 pm)


-Conf. Room, Admin. Bldg. FTI Complex, Taguig City


Interested parties can inspect, obtain further information and secure bidding forms upon payment of a non refundable fee of Php. 500.00, Sealed bids accompanied by a bidders bond equivalent to ten per centum (10%) of the bids in the form of cash or cashier’s check shall be accepted by the Asset Disposal Committee not later than the date and time specified above. For more details and inquiries, pls. call PDU at Tel no. 828-21-18 and 838-43-01 to 32 local 2485 and 2578.


FTI reserves the right to reject/ any all bids, or any part thereof, to waive any defect or informality of the bid proposals received and to accept the offer it deems most advantageous to the company.


(SGD.) MARIA THERESA A. PINTO President


MT – July 23, 2010


Php. 2,128,504.00 820,500.00 675,290.00 44,900.00 22,578.00 20,000.00


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