| MARKET INFORMATION | |||
| Market Closed | |||
| As of FRI JAN 13, 2012 15:30:00 PM | |||
| PSE COMPOSITE AND SECTORAL INDICES | |||
| VALUE | CHANGE | % CHG | |
| PSEi | 461383.00% | 34.28 | 0.7375 |
| All Shares | 3,129.07 | 16.05 | 0.5103 |
| Financials | 1,021.05 | 12.37 | 1.197 |
| Industrial | 7,297.49 | 41.12 | 0.5603 |
| Holding Firms | 3,662.46 | 32.55 | 0.8809 |
| Property | 1,631.42 | 8.71 | 0.5368 |
| Services | 1,727.17 | 15.43 | 0.8855 |
| Mining & Oil | 25,041.33 | 265.95 | 1.0509 |
| MARKET ACTIVITY | |||
| Trades |
| 22403 | |
| Volume | 2,227,110,024 | ||
| Value | 5,755,478,619 | ||
| Advances |
| 61 | |
| Declines |
| 101 | |
| Unchanged |
| 50 | |
BANKO SENTRAL NG PILIPINAS
Key Rates
13 January 2012
| US$ 1.00 | PhP 44.0230 |
| Repo Rate | 6.50% |
| Reverse Repo Rate | 4.50% |
| Inflation Rate | 4.2%(2006=100) |
| (Dec '11) | 4.0%(2000=100) |
| 91-day T-bill Rate | 0.92% |
| Gold Buying/ troy oz. | US$1648.15 |
| Silver Buying | US$30.20 |
Treasury Department
Reference Exchange Rate Bulletin
13 January 2012
| UNITED STATES | DOLLAR | USD | 44.023 |
| JAPAN | YEN | JPY | 0.5736 |
| UNITED KINGDOM | POUND | GBP | 67.5401 |
| HONGKONG | DOLLAR | HKD | 5.6679 |
| SAUDI ARABIA | RIAL | SAR | 11.7395 |
| UNITED ARAB EMIRATES | DIRHAM | AED | 11.9862 |
| CHINA | YUAN | CNY | 6.9681 |
| KOREA | WON | KRW | 0.0382 |
| EUROPEAN MONETARY UNION | EURO | EUR | 56.4595 |
News From PHILEXPORT:
US-RP Agree to Push Trade Facilitation in Bilateral Treaty
The well known claim that the only bilateral trade and investment agreement the Philippines has entered into is that with Japan through the Philippine-Japan Economic Cooperation Agreement (PJEPA) is not exactly true.
Philippine and US trade negotiators recently agreed to expand a little known bilateral Trade and Investment Framework Agreement the two countries signed on November 9, 1989 to now include adopting the best customs practices to meet global standards.
That particular treaty, entered into by the long-time defense allies, had been drowned out and used little after the Philippine Senate booted out the US military bases that included Subic, Clark and Poro Point and John Hay in 1991.
It is now being resurrected to bolster bilateral trade relations between the two countries and the entry point has apparently been focused on facilitating the flow of goods between the US and the Philippines.
Covered in the new agreement include: the advanced exchange of customs laws, procedures and rules through publication including that in the internet.
They have also agreed to speed up the release of imported goods from each of the contracting parties by simplifying customs procedures in keeping with the global standards set in the Revised Kyoto Convention (RKC) to which the Philippines sought to join only a couple of years back.
Also agreed was for each of the US and Philippine customs authorities to adopt automation to be able to meet international standards in modern customs administration and provide such systems to customs users.
On top of all the procedural agreement, the contracting countries have had a meeting of minds in helping each other modernize their customs procedures.
The latest round of agreement to activate a little-known trade and investment pact between the trading partners was seen to fall short of the comprehensive coverage of the PJEPA. But it signaled a new era in the bilateral relations of the US and the Philippines after trade and political relationships soured up in the 90s. -- Abe P. Belena, PHILEXPORT News and Features
MENA Offers Business Opportunities
The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, a strong emerging market, provides huge business opportunities.
Among the sectors that have good potential are food, beverage particularly beer, luxury goods, flavors and fragrance ingredients, and skin care products.
Citing the World Bank, an article by the Euromonitor International said that more than 50 percent of food currently consumed in the MENA region is imported, making it the largest food-importing region in the world.
"High rates of population growth combined with severely constrained water and land resources suggest that this dependence on imports will increase or remain at current levels for the foreseeable future," it noted.
The region also provides long-term growth opportunities for brewers considering its rising beer consumption.
Euromonitor estimated that beer volumes in MENA may have grown six percent in 2011, outpacing the global beer market seen at two percent. It was expected to increase five percent annually over 2011-2016, making it the world's fastest growing region.
Volume growth will be driven by the region's largest South African and Nigerian markets, although other smaller markets are also expected to register dynamic growth.
Likewise, MENA's luxury goods sector remains resilient to the global financial crisis, with the tourism real estate and hospitality expected as its next big business area.
"But, luxury goods companies are still under pressure to come up with new business ideas to maximize growth prospects going forward. Luxury hospitality is a good fit for fashion houses because hotels, especially boutique ones, tend to command the same fashionable (as aspirational) appeal as luxury accessories," said analyst Rob Walker.
The MENA is also a huge market for flavor and fragrance ingredients, with consumption forecast to continue to rise much faster than the global average.
"Growth rates over 2010-2015 are forecast to be similar (just under 5% for flavors and just over 5% for fragrances), with the Middle East and Africa set to outperform all other regions, even Asia Pacific and Latin America," the market research group said in another article.
Moreover, more big international players are making moves to increase their shares of sales in the region's skin care market.
"In the main markets of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Iran and South Africa, this trend is likely to be particularly pronounced, simply because these are the largest and most robust markets, both in terms of size and volume," it added.. -- Danielle Venz, PHILEXPORT News and Features
BSP Loosens Screws on Dollar Outflows
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has finally reversed its long-standing tight control of dollar outflows minted when the country suffered from chronic balance of payment deficits and overseas Filipino remittances were still not an economic force.
The new policy (BSP Circular 742) was issued in late November and took effect before the end of 2011. It has set free seven major dollar transactions that used to be tightly regulated. BSP reasoned that the new forex policy is meant to encourage peso-dollar transactions in the formal market, improve data capture of these deals, and ease foreign exchange deals in the banking system.
The decision came in the heels of BSP announcements it had piled up the biggest dollar reserve in its history amounting to over $75 billion, equivalent to the dollar the country needs to cover more than a year of imports.
On top of the list are non-trade current account transactions that include the lease of foreign own equipment like oil drilling facilities, refund of foreign grants and loans as well as dollar commissions on stock market deals and settlement of FCDU deposits of closed banks.
The BSP has likewise allowed authorized agent banks (AABs) to sell dollars as advanced payment of imports regardless of amount and without the need for BSP prior approval. Only the standard documentation is needed.
The central bank likewise lifted the mandatory inward remittance of dollar earnings of Filipinos with foreign investments as well as the required conversion to pesos of dollar foreign direct investments to qualify for BSP registration.
And in support of the bandied flagship program of the present administration, the Public-Private Partnership program in building big-ticket public works projects, the BSP announced it has exempted those projects from securing prior BSP approval to apply for foreign loans.
Also lifted was the BSP rule that commanded importers who bought dollars to pay their inward shipments to remit the bought dollars to the company from whom they bought their supplies in only three days.
And for the benefit of exporters, the BSP has approved the extension beyond one year the validity of letters of credit.
These new set of foreign exchange policies was seen as the concrete application of the promise made by BSP deputy governor Diwa Gunigundo during the December National Exporters' Summit that the BSP will henceforth forge monetary policies in support of Philippine exports. -- Abe P. Belena, PHILEXPORT News and Features
Amendment to Retail Trade Law Pushed
A handicraft industry leader is pushing for the immediate amendment of the retail trade liberalization law in an effort to attract more foreign investors to set-up their businesses in the country.
Dennis Orlina, president of the Philippine Chamber of Handicraft Industries, Inc. (PCHI), said the Philippines should shift to 100-percent foreign investment approach.
Orlina said under the Republic Act 8762 or the Retail Trade Liberalization Law, foreign investors need to shell out huge capital investments. It requires 100-percent local ownership for retail businesses with capitalization below $2.5 million.
"We are sleeping on a retail trade law that is so protective; it is not helping us," he said. "It is the only remaining protectionist retail trade law in Asia; everyone else has shifted to a 100-percent foreign investment approach."
Orlina said even as various Asian countries like Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia implement such foreign investment strategy, their local players have always survived and performed as well.
He explained that once the retail trade law is relaxed, many foreign big-box retailers will be encouraged to locate in the Philippines. They will buy more from the exporters here, thus enabling the latter save huge sum of money for marketing their products abroad.
"Local sourcing not only of local retailers plus foreign retailers (if and when they invest in the country), will definitely boost supplier's activity. Deducting costs incurred in exporting may allow us to be competitive," Orlina noted.
He added that foreign retailers that will locate here will be able to promote the Philippines in their online catalogue. This will enable the country save on international marketing.
Moreover, Orlina said developing the local market will provide job opportunities for Filipinos.
This, especially as the Philippines and five other Asian markets have been identified among the top 30 emerging countries for retail development.
His view was shared by the Joint Foreign Chambers of the Philippines (JFCP) which believed the entry of more foreign retail investors into the Philippines would be good for the country.
Opening the retail trade could create jobs at every stage of the retail process and indirectly in those who service the retail sector, the group said recently before the Senate trade committee hearing on the measure.
The JFCP said a liberalized retail sector could support the more rapid growth of the tourism sector, which is a major priority of the government.
It would benefit especially to Filipino consumers who could purchase higher quality goods at lower price.
Foreign retailers also would source their goods locally if they are given quality and pricing comparable to their foreign sources of supply.
"This can lead to orders from local suppliers to supply not just retail outlets in the Philippines but for export to their outlets in other countries," it noted.
The group did not believe that the Retail Trade Act has achieved its objective of liberalizing foreign ownership in the retail trade sector due to various restrictions it imposes requiring 100-percent local ownership for most retail businesses with capitalization below $2.5 million and other conditions which deter many investors.
To address this, it recommended that the current legislation be amended to reduce the threshold at which foreign investment is allowed to the level of the Foreign Investments Act. -- Danielle Venz, PHILEXPORT News and Features
The Philippines and four other Asean countries need to work together manage natural hazards and disasters more effectively in a bid to reduce their socio-economic damages.
This recommendation was made by Danilo Israel, a senior research fellow at the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS), in a policy notes titled "Forecasting natural hazards and disasters in selected Southeast Asian countries: the need for cooperative action".
Israel said some countries in the region like Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, the Philippines and Vietnam may be vulnerable to disasters than others, due to the relatively still developing state of their economies and limited disaster response capabilities.
He said their proximity and similarity of socioeconomic conditions thus may allow some forms of intercountry cooperation to address these problems in the future, specifically in the case of weather and climate forecasting.
To this end, Israel said improvements in the existing national meteorological and hydrological services (NMHS) of a country maybe needed.
Citing a data, he said NMHS improvements could reduce road, maritime and aviation accidents; save human lives from floods and in possible environmental accidents; and reduce power failures.
Israel said the promotion of an integrated and intercountry NMHS could reduce cost and increase efficiency.
He likewise recommended other initiatives the Asean countries should pursue to strengthen their capabilities in addressing natural hazards and disasters.
These are sharing of data and information among them particularly on the forecasting of natural events with transboundary implications; conduct of common research and development activities especially on transboundary weather and climate-related issues; and undertaking of international workshops and other forums to promote exchange of relevant data and information. -- Danielle Venz, PHILEXPORT News and Features
Agricultural waste from pineapple and banana can be alternative materials for apparel, home textiles, upholsteries, non-wovens and industrial fabrics.
Nora Mangalindan, researcher for Philippine Textile Research Industry (PTRI) of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), shared in a recent forum that aside from being environment-friendly, the materials are also abundant in the country.
PTRI aims to support the Philippine textile and allied industries achieve global competitiveness through utilization of indigenous resources and development of technical competence in textile production and quality assurance.
According to research, Mangalindan said that the country has almost 59,000 hectares of pineapple plantations mostly found in Davao region, Northern Mindanao, Western Visayas, Davao Del Norte and Eastern Visayas. On the other hand, there are almost 47,000 hectares of banana plantations mostly found in North Cotabato, South Cotabato, Northern Mindanao, Bukidnon and the Bicol region. Such yield can provide 55, 483 metric tons and 307,000 metric tons of fiber respectively.
Using fibers also has technological advantages Mangalindan said.
"It is biodegradable and sustainable, ecologically sound and has better performance in terms of fiber and fabric properties," she noted.
Pineapple fiber comes from wastes of pineapple which is rich in lignin and cellulose. Normally, these are already considered organic waste until recent experiments produced silk-like textiles if combined with polyester or silk. The fiber is very soft, lightweight, easy to maintain and wash, blends with other fabrics very well and appears elegant.
Meanwhile, fiber from banana is similar with that from the bamboo and ramie, but its fineness and spinnability is better than the two. It is very strong but lightweight, with high moisture absorption and more importantly, is also biodegradable
In the past, pineapple and banana fibers had very limited application and were primarily used to make mats, ropes, and some other composite materials. But with the growing importance of eco-friendly fabrics, the use of pineapple and banana fibers has increased even in the other fields such as apparel and home furnishings.
"This is a niche market because eco-fabrics, which are sustainable, are in demand in the global market", Mangalindan said -- Gelo Udaundo, PHILEXPORT News and Features
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