Bizman invests on medical tourism
By Cris Evert Lato
Cebu Daily News
Posted date: May 27, 2009
Cebu Daily News / Enterprise
After cashing in on adventure tourism when he set up the Sky Experience Adventure series last year, Cebuano businessman Richard L. King is investing on another tourism-related sector – medical tourism.
King, chairman of J. King and Sons Company, Inc. said the company would open diagnostic screening center on the seventh and eighth floors of the Crown Regency Hotels and Towers in Osmeña Boulevard in the fourth quarter of the year.
“The concept is to provide comfort and convenience for medical tourists. What they’ll just do is to check in the hotel and wake up in the morning knowing that they can step in a screening center inside the hotel without to endure long waiting lines,” he said.
King said the company has partnered with a major hospital organization but has yet to firm up the contract and the memorandum of agreement.
He said the 2,000 square meter facility (1,000 square meters per floor) will also cater to walk-in clients and Club Ultima members, a club membership structure which the company also runs.
King said this facility also works to the advantage of club members who can pay for their executive check-ups in advance and save on costs.
“The trend today is towards health consciousness and that’s what we’re getting at for this new facility,” King told Cebu Daily News in an interview last week.
The Sky Experience Adventure included entertainment facilities, such as the edge coaster ride and sky observatory at the top floors of the company’s Crown Regency Hotel in Fuente Osmena.
Apart from this recent developments, King said the company continues to invest on multi-million tourism developments in at least six Philippine locations to increase the country’s bid to become the top tourist destination worldwide.
He said long term plan is to put up diagnostic screening centers in other tourism projects.
These developments include those located in Cebu, Boracay Island in Aklan, Davao and Makati. There are also planned investments for Panglao Island, Bohol and Tagaytay City located in the provinces of Cavite and Batangas.
King said they are working towards creating a fully-integrated tourism business banking on the company’s strength as a player in the real estate and hospitality industries since 1991.
In Cebu, the company owns Crown Regency Hotels and Towers and Club Ultima in Osmeña Boulevard and two other Crown Regency hotels in barangay Guadalupe, Cebu and Lapu-Lapu City.
The company also owns three resorts in Boracay Island. These are the newly-opened Crown Regency Resort in station 3, Crown Regency Resort and Convention Center in station 2 which is undergoing construction and Crown Regency Prince to be opened this month in station 1.
King said they are still in the planning stage on what specific projects to establish for the existing properties in Panglao and Tagaytay.
The company started with Prince Court Hotels and Suites in 1991.
The company also owns Best Inn, First Laundy Services, MetroSports Center and Vital-C health products among others.
Bizman Invests On Medical Tourism
Sky adventure in Fuente
By Cris Evert Lato
Cebu Daily News
Posted date: May 25, 2009
http://services.inquirer.net/print/print.php?article_id=20090525-206991
Sky Adventure in Fuente
For years, white sand beaches and rich cultural heritage are two main reasons why tourists come to Cebu.
But today, there is another reason why tourists are in Cebu: the edge coaster ride on top of Cebu’s tallest tower.
“People now come to Cebu to experience how it is to be on top of Cebu’s tallest tower riding a coaster or watching the scenery from above,” said Richard King, chairman of J. King and Sons Company Inc., which is the prime mover of the activities under the brand Sky Experience Adventure.
King, who graduated summa cum laude in Chemical Engineering from the University of San Carlos in 1979, said the Sky Experience Adventure series was launched in December 2008.
The adventure experience includes the edge coaster ride, sky walk extreme and sky observatory among others. The activities are all located in Tower 1 of Crown Regency Hotels and Towers in Osmeña Boulevard in Cebu City.
The adventure series attracted Pinoy boxing champion, Manny Pacquiao, who was in Cebu last Sinulog.
King said putting up the extreme adventure experience “in the heart of Cebu’s tallest tower” had been planned since he decided to put up the hotel-tower property.
“We want to make this a landmark of Cebu. In two to three years, this may not be the tallest tower here anymore. Having this whole range of sky adventure activities will place us in a strategic position,” said King who has a master’s degree in business management from the Asian Institute of Management in 1983.
SKY EXPERIENCE
About $5 million was invested for the sky experience adventure series, said King.
This investment is growing as they aim to improve the services to suit the adventurous needs of the public.
King said an American company, which put up the different rides in Las Vegas, was commissioned to install the edge coaster ride located on the 38th floor and the sky walk, 127 meters above the street.
King said the company takes pride on the edge coaster ride as the world’s first and the only amusement ride of its kind.
The coaster ride literally goes around the edge of the building. The riders are locked into the rail seats, which can be tilted at 55 degrees.
“We are elevating the level of the hospitality industry to entertainment. It is no longer just rooms or banquets and the concept of sky adventure fits in this entire concept,” he said.
Entrance to the sky observatory costs P380 for non-peak hours (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.) and P480 for peak hours (4 p.m. onwards). The fee is good for two people and inclusive of a sky meal — bottomless drinks and a sandwich.
Online bloggers have posted positive reactions on the edge coaster ride, which is at P500 during non-peak hours and P600 for peak hours. The fee is also good for two people.
For the faint-hearted, the sky observatory, also on the 38th floor, offers an alternative. Coin-operated binoculars and telescopes are available or tourists and visitors can enjoy the view at the tower’s Sky Bar.
About 40 people, including the operators and maintenance personnel, were trained by employees of the American company, who installed the edge coaster ride.
“Safety is secured for all rides and activities. The system is monitored in the US and through the Internet, they know what’s going on–how many took the ride and in what time,” he said.
INNOVATION
An additional feature, which is gaining attention, is the 4D Theatre on the 18th floor where viewers can see, feel, hear and move with the movie.
The audience can watch three movies which last for close to 30 minutes. The fee is from P450 to P600 depending on the viewing time.
“This is innovation and all these put us up ahead of the competition. Innovation is a characteristic of the different ventures of the company,” said King.
King said another ride, called an “insanity orbit,” will also be in place two years from now.
As the company develops more properties nationwide, King hopes to bring the concept of the sky experience.
Taking inspiration from his father, Don Jesus Amado King, he said making people aware and appreciate these innovations would be the primary challenge.
He said he also should not wait for tomorrow to do things that can be done today.
But before making any decision, King said it pays to anticipate for any eventuality by gathering the right information — the same learning concepts he applied in making the breathtaking sky experience adventure activities a reality for Cebu.
RP coping well with global crisis – ADB
By Ted P. Torres Updated March 30, 2009 12:00 AM
http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=453281&publicationSubCategoryId=66
MANILA, Philippines – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said the Philippines is dealing with the global financial crisis better than most countries in the Asia Pacific region.
“The Philippines is well positioned to show great leadership in deepening economic integration both within the region and with the global economy,” ADB president Haruhiko Kuroda said at a reception held last week at the ADB headquarters in Manila.
Since opening its doors in 1966, ADB has invested more than $10 billion in financial and technical assistance to the Philippines.
Kuroda noted that ADB has worked since its inception 42 years ago with other partners to help bring drinking water, irrigation, education, electricity, decent housing and many other benefits to the nation’s poor people.
The reception was held in honor of the relationship with the Philippines, which has played host to the financial institution’s headquarters.
“More specifically, it is a privilege for ADB to pay homage to our host country — a country whose people are known the world over for their determination, pride, and dauntless spirit,” the ADB chief executive added.
He added he was “very pleased as well that ADB has been able to support the government’s fiscal, regulatory and legal reforms, which have also benefited the poor while enhancing the country’s financial and economic resilience.”
Meanwhile, the Australian government recently extended a P3.8-billion grant to the Philippines over a five-year period to manage and maintain more than 1,000 kilometers of provincial roads in up to 10 provinces in Mindanao and the Visayas, under the Provincial Road Management Facility agreement.
The Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) signed the agreement for the Philippine government.
An estimated four million population in the two regions will have better access to rehabilitated and maintained road networks, economic activity and public infrastructure and services that will improve their livelihoods by 2014.
“Better roads will also improve access to jobs, health services and essential social and educational facilities in rural and regional areas,” Australian Ambassador to the Philippines Rod Smith said.
The provinces that will initially be allowed access to the funds are Bohol, Surigao del Norte, Misamis Occidental, Agusan del Sur, Bukidnon, Guimaras, and Misamis Oriental.
For the periods covering 2008 and 2009, the Australian Government, through the Australian Agency for International Aid (AusAID) will provide an estimated P4.4 billion in development assistance, focusing on economic growth, basic education, and national stability and human security.
European tourism junket ongoing on Boracay
By Nestor P. Burgos Jr.
Inquirer Visayas
First Posted 16:46:00 05/06/2009
Filed Under: Tourism
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/regions/view/20090506-203485/European-tourism-junket-ongoing-on-Boracay
ILOILO CITY, Philippines—More than 200 travel agents from the biggest European tour wholesaler are on a familiarization tour of Boracay Island in what tourism officials expect to be a big boost in drawing more Europeans to the resort.
Around 260 tour agents and counter staff of tour consolidator Meier’s Weltreisen arrived on the island on Tuesday for a three-day familiarization tour and seminar on the island, Edwin Trompeta, regional director of the Department of Tourism, said in a telephone interview.
The tour for travel agents and staff from 220 travel agencies in Germany and Austria is part of the company’s 20th annual Far East Live Seminar (FELS). The group arrived in Manila on May 3.
Travel writers from Germany and Austria and travel trade press representatives also joined the seminar.
The participants are billeted at the newly opened Boracay Shangri-la Resort and Spa, the main venue of the seminar.
They have been doing their rounds of the bars, restaurants, hotels and the beachfront “to get a pulse of the place and the people,” according to Trompeta.
Trompeta said the tour was expected to have a big impact on tourist arrivals from Europe especially in Boracay because Meier’s Weltreisen accounts for 30 percent of tourist arrivals in Asia.
He cited the impact of Meier’s FELS on destinations where it conducted its seminars.
Vietnam’s tourist arrivals increased by 40 percent after the 2006 FELS in the country, he said. Tourism also rose in Khao Lak in Thailand after the 2007 FELS there.
He said the activity is estimated to initially bring in around P15 million in tourist revenues to the country.
Germany and the United Kingdom are among the country’s biggest tourist markets in Europe. Around 55,000 Germans visit the country each year with more than 5,000 also going to Boracay, according to Trompeta.
Foreign tourist arrivals in the country grew by an average of 10.6 percent in 2004-2008, considered one of the best performing destinations in the world, according to Tourism Secretary Joseph “Ace” Durano in an earlier interview.
Domestic tourism also grew by an average of 18 percent yearly with Boracay Island among the top tourist destinations.
Boracay has reported high occupancy for its 5,800 hotel rooms, and 340 more rooms are under construction.
The tourist arrivals have been boosted by direct flights from Taiwan and Shanghai to the Kalibo airport on the Aklan mainland.
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo last March announced that investors are also coming in to develop an international airport in Caticlan, the jump-off point to Boracay. Another airport is being eyed on the nearby Carabao Island.
Why Cebu is a top tourist destination
http://globalnation.inquirer.net/cebudailynews/enterprise/view/20090220-190045/Why-Cebu-is-a-top-tourist-destination
GOOD image, flight accessibility and warm people are the top reasons why Cebu continues to be the top tourist destination in the country, a ranking official of the Department of Tourism (DOT) said.
DOT Undersecretary Phineas Alburo said on Wednesday that the Bureau of Immigration recorded a total of 397,355 international visitors directly arrived in Cebu in 2008.
This is equivalent to a six-percent growth compared to 374,047 international tourists in 2007.
“This tells us that indeed Cebu continues to attract tourists,” said Alburo.
“ Cebu has a wholesome, well-rounded image, which is good for honeymooners, families. It has all the ingredients for shopping, culture, heritage ,” he added.
Last year, a total of 3.14 million tourists visited the country. This represents 1.63 percent growth from last year’s 3.09 million arrival in 2007.
Direct flights from countries such as China, Singapore, Qatar and Malaysia, among others, greatly contribute to Cebu larger market share of this tourists, said Alburo.
He said there are 20 to 22 flights fly between Manila and Cebu daily apart from several provincial flights to destinations such as Bacolod, Aklan (Boracay), Davao and Cagayan de Oro.
“We still have direct flights to Narita and Osaka (Japan), Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), Hong Kong, Singapore, Seoul (Korea) and Qatar. Flights from America and Europe landing in Manila can immediately go to Cebu.”
In a statement, DOT said joint tour programs of DOT and partner travel agents and airlines in China and Taiwan increased demand.
“Air connectivity between Cebu and the cities of Shanghai and Taipei with almost daily charter flights were established,” the DOT said.
Growth of Indian tourists visiting Cebu peak up as the DOT push for aggressive promotions on incentive travel, shopping and leisure holiday.
“Support of the private sector through familiarization trips and participation in travel fairs created more partnerships, sealed deals and greater collaboration in the market.” /Reporter Cris Evert B. Lato
Not your typical hotel experience: Sky Walk Extreme and Edge Coaster (The Manila Times, Philippines)
Sky Experience Adventure in Crown Regency Hotel & Towers
By Johanna M. Sampan, The Manila Times, PhilippinesMcClatchy-Tribune Regional News
http://www.hotel-online.com/Neo/News/2009_Jan_29/k.MFL.1233167136.html
Jan. 29–Braving the commonalities of the facilities in a hotel, Crown Regency Hotel and Towers in Cebu City recently launched The Edge Coaster and Sky Walk Extreme Sky Adventure to have new tourist spots not just in the land of Magellan’s Cross but as well as in the country.
Located at the 38th floor is The Edge Coaster. The first of its kind in the Philippines, each unit has two seats that can be titled up to 55 degrees. Safely and tightly fastened in the coaster, it revolves around the edge of the hotel that takes approximately four minutes. The sensation of what hanging on the edge of the building is what the ride is all about. While on the ride, you can have the panoramic view of the Queen City of the South. To make the excitement and thrill more evident, joysticks are accessible to control the tilting.
On Sky Walk Extreme Sky Adventure is on the 37th floor. Guests need to wear SkyWalk suits that are attached to harnesses to ensure safety. This experience allows anyone to walk around the edge of the building on see through glass flooring. The tour guide will assist and take pictures while embarking on the tour.
Both attractions have no height and weight limitations and can be enjoyed by everyone–except of course, by infants.
“This concept can’t bee seen anywhere in the Philippines. We’re really going miles ahead by offering entertainment and leisure, all in one roof,” Hitesh Sampat, Crown Regency Hotel and Towers general manager shares.
“First in the country, we hope that people wouldn’t leave and say that ‘it was nothing’ because we aim to give them memorable moments for them to remember,” Sampat adds.
“We ensure that the rides are safe. The Sky Walk Adventure passed all the international standards for its level and passenger safety system has been tested through the years. As long as your under 5,000 pounds, you’ll be safe,” Danny Dy, managing director of International Link Management and Consultancy, the firm behind the Sky Walk Experience relates.
Extreme activities are open from 8 a.m. to 2 a.m. daily and it costs P500 each on first try and P400 for succeeding rides.
—–
To see more of The Manila Times, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.manilatimes.net.
Copyright (c) 2009, The Manila Times, Philippines
For Sky Walk and Edge Coaster Promo Tickets, please contact:
Daisy Guo
Chinese Interpreter
International Sales Coordinator
Online Marketing Officer
E-mail: ftrdcmarketing@gmail.com
Cell: (+63917) 462-1174
Skype & Yahoo! Messenger: daisy_guo_onlinemarketing
My website: http://www.cebucondoreview.co.cc
My wordpress: http://daisyguoonlinemarketing.wordpress.com
Fuente Triangle Realty Development Corp.
Ground Floor, Tower 2,
Fuente Towers, Osmeña Blvd.
Cebu City, 6000
Philippines
Taiwan Tourists encouraged to visit Boracay, Palawan to hike tourist arrivals
http://www.travelandtourismnews.com/taiwan-tourists-encouraged-to-visit-boracay-palawan-to-hike-tourist-arrivals/
Taiwanese tourists are currently being encouraged to visit Boracay and Palawan, the Philippines’ leading vacation destinations, to further increase the country’s visitor arrivals.
The two islands, whose beaches are considered as among the world’s best, are leading destinations for the choosy Taiwanese market, tourism officials said, citing the country’s positive feedback during the Taipei International Travel Fair (TITF) at the Taipei World Trade Center.
The Philippine booth attracted Taiwanese tourism stakeholders, allowing Filipino travel agencies to update customers about their newest holiday packages.
“With exhibitors from 62 countries and regions, occupying more than 1,200 units, we are pleased to say that the Taiwanese market crowded the 54-square meter Philippine booth for inquiries and bookings on Boracay and Palawan,” Department of Tourism Secretary Joseph “Ace” Durano.
Approximately 60,195 Taiwanese visited the Philippines during the first six months of the year. Arrivals from the said country is seen to grow, thanks to increased Taiwanese interest in the country’s beaches.
“Our booth simulated a picturesque beach complete with white sands, making it the most photographed among all the others,” said Eduardo Jarque, Jr., DOT Undersecretary for Tourism Planning and Promotions.
Taiwan’s cold weather may also encourage their residents to visit tropical countries such as the Philippines, tourism officials said.
The cold weather in Taiwan may also encourage Taiwanese to spend the holidays in tropical countries such as the Philippines. – GMANews.TV
Boracay Island prepares for Russian tourists
http://www.travelandtourismnews.com/boracay-island-prepares-for-russian-tourists/
Tourism front-line workers are taking crash courses in Russian to prepare for the entry of Russian tourists to Boracay Island, an online news site reported.
The News Today reported that Russian Embassy officers and staff were brought in to teach tourism workers Russian language and cuisine.
It said the Boracay Foundation Inc. (BFI) has been holding the seminars since July for the expected surge of Russian visitors availing of a 21-day visa privilege.
BFI has been closely working with the Russian consulate in holding the series of seminars.
“We want to equip hotel and resort staff and those involved in other service related functions so that we cater to them better,” said BFI executive director Virgie Sarabia.
The first seminar was conducted last July. It focused on lifestyle, gourmet and cultural beliefs and practices.
Frontliners were taught to be punctual in meetings and appointments, and to be prepared for the meetings to drag on with a long period of socializing before business.
Seminar participants were also given a crash course and demonstration in Russian gourmet cooking.
Russian embassy protocol officer Dmitry Larionov; Alexander Kravets, chef of Ambassador Vitaly Vorobiev and Honorary Consul Armi Lopez Garcia led the seminar.
Tourism regional director Edwin Trompeta said Russia was previously not a focus of marketing programs of the Department of Tourism.
“It was not our usual market. But we were surprised when Russian tourists started coming in droves in recent years,” Trompeta said.
He said the tourists usually include young professionals and businessmen and the “new rich” who benefited from recent economic growth in Russia.
“The Russian market is growing very fast and we have to be prepared,”said Trompeta.
He said tourists usually arrive starting this month just before the onset of winter and until summer.
Russian tourists usually come in groups, stay longer and spend more compared to other tourists.
Last August, Trompeta said, the DOT spearheaded a team to Moscow for Wellness and Leisure Fair as part of its marketing and promotion blitz.
He said that in January alone, two planeloads of Russian tourists numbering around 500 came to Boracay.
Aside from visiting tourist destinations, they also go shopping in malls and department stores.
“They spend a lot of time to shop and they even complained when we give them half a day to go shopping,” he said.
THE HEIGHT OF THRILL
TRAVEL / TOURISM
D-11
Sunday: November 2, 2008
By LESTER GOPELA HALLIG
http://beta2.philstar.com/Article.aspx?ArticleId=411998&publicationSubCategoryId=87
Cebu City’s Crown Regency Hotel &Towers is considered the tallest hotel building in the country. That should clue you in that this is no ordinary hotel. For in this 40-story building, entertainment is taken to new heights through its Sky Experience Adventure.
Edge Coaster in Crown Regency Hotel
Literally at the top of this latest attraction is the Edge Coaster. It is the world’s very first and only amusement ride of its kind. Consider: the Edge Coaster goes around the edge of the building’s 38th floor while riders are strapped onto a rail seat.
While riders will be rewarded here with a breathtaking view of the city, the Edge Coaster has another trick that will take your breath away – you can pull a lever that can tilt your seat up to 55 degrees. For thrill-seekers, this is the way to go. Even those who want to defy their fear of heights might as well take themselves for a ride here.
This is just the tip of Crown Regency’s innovative iceberg. It is, after all, the brainchild of Richard King, president and CEO of J King & Sons Inc.
“The Edge Coaster is a new concept. You cannot find anything like this in the world. The idea is to make our new developments the attraction of that destination. So if you are in Cebu City, whether you’re a guest here or staying elsewhere, you will want to come to see us,” says King.
He promises that the daring ride is a hundred-percent safe. Fact is, all the rides comprising the Sky Experience Adventure have seats securely held by double-redundant restraint systems.
If one has to ask, yes, it took specially made equipment for Crown Regency to bring up the rides to the top of the building.
“We are definitely elevating the hospitality industry to that of entertainment. Our future resorts and hotels will have their own Sky Experience Adventures. For Cebu, we are offering a whole new set of attractions,” he adds.
Part of that set is the Sky Walk Extreme. You must take that name literally as well. While you’re strapped to a safety harness, you can walk around the edge of Crown’s 37th floor. Talk about a walk in the clouds.
King reveals that another crazy ride is coming in 2010: the Insanity Orbit. This particular ride extends from the 40th floor of the hotel. It is an inverted centrifuge that will get this spin passengers at up to three ‘G’s’!
“It is going to be the second ride of its kind in the world. We patterned it after the Stratosphere Tower in Las Vegas. The best part is that it pulls the riders out in escape-proof seats to an angle of 70 degrees,” he explains. “It will tilt you facing straight down from the 40th floor!”
He chuckles, “Those daring enough will take that ride. Even the plain curious will come to this tower. Everybody will want to. I would have to say that we should be proud that we are starting all this here in Cebu.”
Those who simply want to enjoy themselves at this high playground have a lot going for them, too. At the 38th floor, there’s the Sky Observatory, which offers a spectacular view of the city with coin-operated binoculars and telescopes, and the Sky Bar. The bar’s floors are made of thick clear glass so guests can look down at the city below their feet.
Crown Regency Cebu, which opened in 2005, also houses such restaurants as the Sparkz RestoBar, Wang Shan Lo Chinese Cuisine, Night Talk Lounge, and Stratus Fine Dining, and a gaming arcade called Vivo Gamezone.
With all these trail-blazing features in a hotel, one wonders where King finds his creative streak. King, who is an engineer by profession, replies, “I’ve always been creative. Even when I was still in school, I thought differently. I look at things beyond, not what is in front. I always make my own analysis. I think like a customer.”
He cites the hotel’s Club Ultima, a lifestyle club that boasts of the most modern and complete facilities and amenities. With new and exciting attractions and developments on his plate, do not expect King to slow down just one bit.
As one of the fastest growing hotel chains in the country, Crown Regency is constructing additional hotels. The most notable among these is their Boracay hotel.
“It will be the biggest hotel in Boracay with 457 rooms and a water park. It is an attraction in itself. It will likewise have its own Sky Experience Adventure, just like our other future projects,” he discloses.
But of course, the hottest ticket this side of the world will be the Sky Experience Adventure.
He muses, “I think everybody’s looking forward to these new happenings.”
And that include us.
Crown Regency Hotel & Towers is located at Fuente Tower, Osmeña Boulevard, Cebu City.
Water concession Boracay proposal for joint venture arrangement
November 3rd, 2008
MANILA, Philippines–Metro Manila East Zone concessionaire Manila Water Co. Inc. wants to operate a 25-year concession to provide water to Boracay Island in Aklan.
Manila Water chief finance officer Sherisa Nuesa said the Ayala Group subsidiary was looking at a possible capital investment of P1 billion in a potential joint venture that would operate the concession. The company has submitted to Philippine Tourism Authority, the government agency that holds the right to operate the water concession in Boracay, a proposal for a joint venture arrangement.
“We want to be the joint venture partner of PTA in the water concession. We would like to have a full concession in Boracay. We would like to protect the island and we were invited to look at it because of the need to improve the water and wastewater system there,”.
Reliable sources of water and a proper wastewater treatment should be an integral part of the preservation and development of Boracay since a number of international companies are setting up hotels on the island, he said.
Fresh from a bond offer that raised P4 billion for the company,Manila Water was also poised to expand to Asia, focusing on the privatization of water concessions in Vietnam.
The company recently won a $15-million water supply development and management contract in Ho Chi Minh City.
The East Zone covers 23 cities and municipalities, including parts of Manila, San Juan, Taguig, Pateros, Antipolo, San Mateo, Marikina, Pasig, Mandaluyong, Makati and most of Quezon City.
Palace supports Bora resort owners’ bid to have lands titled
October 29th, 2008
Business Mirror A6
The Nation
October 29, 2008
Malacañang has assured resort and hotel owners on Boracay Island that President Arroyo is supporting their intention to secure titles for the land they are currently occupying.
Executive Secretary Eauardo Ermita said the President has instructed concerned government agencies to hold dialogues and come out with a solution in the wake of the Supreme Court (SC) decision declaring the entire island a government property.
The Court affirmed Proclamation 1064, issued two years ago by Arroyo, declaring the island resort into 400 hectares of reserved forestland and 628.96 hectares of agricultural land. However, the Court said the resort and hotel owners and those residing in the island need not vacate the area at once and instead can own the land that they are occupying through a congressional act or strike a special scheme with the government.
Ermita admitted that President Arroyo wants to resolve the issue through a congressional act. He added government agencies like the Departments of Agriculture and of the Environment and Natural Resources were instructed to consult with the residents and investors on Boracay to craft solutions acceptable to all the parties.
“We are aware of the desire of the residents and resort and hotel owners to have the lands they occupy titled. We support their wish and we are now consulting with [Liberal Party] Rep. [Florencio] Miraflores [of Aklan] on how to achieve this,” Ermita said.
The SC, in a landmark ruling early this month, settled once and for all the issue of land ownership in Boracay, sustaining the right of possessors on classified agricultural land to apply for registration of ownership or title to the property which they currently occupy.
Majority, if not all, of the existing resorts and tourism establishments fall within the classified agricultural land of Boracay available for registration and titling under applicable laws.
The Court, in upholding the validity of Proclamation 1064 which classifies 400 hectares of Boracay Island as forestland and 628 hectares as agricultural, said that “in issuing the proclamation, the government has taken the step necessary to open up the island to private ownership except on areas in the island classified as forestland.”
In its decision, the SC said Congress may enact a law to entitle private claimants to acquire titles to the lots they occupy or to exempt them from certain legal requirements.
Ermita disclosed that the Palace is also amenable for other courses to support the desire of the resort and hotel owners like special schemes that would relax certain rules on applying for land title.
R. Mercene
Palace orders dialogs after SC Boracay ruling
October 29th, 2008
THE DAILY TRIBUNE
BUSINESS Chito L. Lozada
October 29, 2008
President Arroyo has instructed concerned government agencies to hold dialogs and come out with a solution in the wake of the Supreme Court decision declaring the entire Boracay Island as government property.
Malacañang has assured resort and hotel owners in Boracay Island that the government is supporting their intention to get titles of the land they are currently occupying, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said.
The high court affirmed Proclamation 1064 issued two years ago by President Arroyo declaring the island resort into 400-hectares of reserved forestland and 628.96 hectares of agricultural land. However, the Supreme Court said the resort and hotel owners and those residing in the island need not vacate the area at once and instead can own the land that they are occupying via a congressional act or strike a special scheme with the government.
In his recent weekly news conference in Malacañang, Ermita admitted that President Arroyo wanted to resolve the issue through a congressional act. He added that government agencies such as the Agriculture and the Environment and Natural Resources departments were instructed to consult with the residents and investors in Boracay to craft solutions both acceptable to the parties.
“We are aware of the desire of the residents and resort and hotel owners to have the lands they occupy titled. We support their wish and we are now consulting with Rep. Miraflores on how to achieve this,” Ermita said.
Boracay resorts assured to get land titles
October 29th, 2008
MANILA BULLETIN
BUSINESS BULLETIN
Page B-1
October 29, 2008
Malacañang has assured resort and hotel owners in Boracay Island that President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is supporting their intention to get titles of the land they are currently occupying.
Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said the President has instructed concerned government agencies to hold dialogues and come out with a solution in the wake of the Supreme Court decision declaring the entire island a government property.
The High Court actually affirmed Proclamation 1064 issued two years ago by President Arroyo declaring the island resort into 400 hectares of reserved forestland and 628.96 hectares of agricultural land. However, the High Court said the resort and hotel owners and those residing in the island need not vacate the area at once and instead can own the land that they are occupying via a congressional act or strike a special scheme with the government.
In his recent weekly news conference in Malacañang, Ermita admitted that President Arroyo wants to resolve the issue through a congressional act. He added that government agencies like the Agriculture and the Environment and Natural Resources departments were instructed to consult with the residents and investors both acceptable to the parties.
“We are aware of the desire of the residents and resort and hotel owners to have the lands they occupy titled. We support their wish and we are now consulting with Rep. Miraflores on how to achieve this,” Ermita said.
The Supreme Court, in a landmark ruling early this month, settled once and for all the issue of land ownership in Boracay, sustaining the right of possessors on classified agricultural land to apply for registration of ownership or title to the property which they currently occupy.
Majority if not all of the existing resorts and tourism establishments fall within the classified agricultural land of Boracay available for registration and titling under applicable Philippine Laws.
Boracay resorts…
The High Court in upholding the validity of Proclamation 1064 which classifies 400 hectares of Boracay Island as forest land and 628 hectares as agricultural, stated that “in issuing the proclamation, the government has taken the step necessary to open up the island to private ownership except on areas in the island classified as forestland.”
In its decision the SC said Congress may enact a law to entitle private claimants to acquire titles to the lots they occupy or to exempt them from certain legal requirements.
Ermita disclosed that the Palace is also amenable for other courses to support the desire of the resort and hotel owners like special schemes that would relax certain rules on applying for land title.
SC decision to boost Boracay Island’s full tourism potential
October 17th, 2008
THE PHILIPPINE STAR
VOL.XXIII NO.82.FRIDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2008.18 SECTIONS, 116 PAGES
POSSESSORS, investors and other stakeholders in Boracay Island declared that the recent Supreme Court decision on the issue of land ownership in the country’s top tourist destination as “the single most significant step to boost the country’s bid in becoming a premier tourist spot among other Asian destinations”.
“Investors’ confidence will definitely be boosted by this landmark (decision) since the legitimacy of land ownership and possession will finally be resolved, said Jocielo Ramirez, a former director of the United Nations World Food Program.
As one of the possessors and stakeholders in Boracay Island, Ramirez said that he sees a better future for Boracay as serious investors will have a different perspective about their investment plans for the island.
Ramirez, a Filipino who occupies a one-hectare property in the island said that contrary to the current public perception, we as stakeholders here see the High Court’s ruling as a very positive development”, Ramirez said.
He explained that as soon as the issue on property rights and ownership are settled, the re-development of Boracay will be set in motion. Proper environmental protection and related programs will be re-established to compliment world-class facilities that will be built in the island, he added.
Boracay lifts construction ban
CEBU DAILY NEWS
ACROSS THE VISAYS
Vol.11 No. 606
October 16, 2008
Iloilo City – Officials governing Boracay Island have ordered the lifting of a moratorium on new construction projects on the already congested island-resort.
In a resolution unanimously passed by the Malay municipal council last Oct. 6, the officials directed the lifting of the moratorium passed on Oct. 24, 2007 and implemented starting Jan. 2, 2008.
Councilor Rowen Aguirre, chair of the council’s committee on rules and ordinances, said the council decided to lift the moratorium after the Department of Tourism (DOT) finalized the draft of the Boracay Comprehensive Land Use Plan and after the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) also fitnalized an environmental master plan for the island.
Aguirre said the lifting of the moratorium would take effect after the issuance by Malay Mayor Ciceron Cawaling of an implementing order.
The six-month moratorium was supposed to end on July 2 but was extended by three months, he said.
“We already have a comprehensive framework for further developing the island so we can continue the development projects,” Aguirre told the Inquirer in a telephone interview on Tuesday.
He said they lifted the moratorium because the construction of schools and other public infrastructure were also stalled.
The moratorium was implemented after the DENR called on stakeholders to put in order development projects on the island due to environmental and pollution risks brought about by the unhampered construction of resorts, hotels and structures. It prohibited the construction of new structures for commercial and residential use like hotels, resorts, malls and apartments.
Aguirre said applicants for building permits would be required to abide by conditions, including the expropriation of portions of their properties if required by the government for public works projects.
Also, the municipal government would not issue building and construction permits for critical areas like wetlands and other no-build zones.
The DENR earlier sued Cawaling and a property developer of violating Republic Act 3019 (Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act) R.A.6713 (Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Government Officials and Employees) and Executive Order 92 (Administrative Code of 1987) for failing to immediately implement the moratorium.
The construction boom on the island has been boosted by the steady increase of tourist arrivals on the island. / INQUIRER
SC decision to boost Boracay Island’s full tourism potential
THE PHILIPPINE STAR
VOL.XXIII NO.82.FRIDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2008.18 SECTIONS, 116 PAGES
POSSESSORS, investors and other stakeholders in Boracay Island declared that the recent Supreme Court decision on the issue of land ownership in the country’s top tourist destination as “the single most significant step to boost the country’s bid in becoming a premier tourist spot among other Asian destinations”.
“Investors’ confidence will definitely be boosted by this landmark (decision) since the legitimacy of land ownership and possession will finally be resolved, said Jocielo Ramirez, a former director of the United Nations World Food Program.
As one of the possessors and stakeholders in Boracay Island, Ramirez said that he sees a better future for Boracay as serious investors will have a different perspective about their investment plans for the island.
Ramirez, a Filipino who occupies a one-hectare property in the island said that contrary to the current public perception, we as stakeholders here see the High Court’s ruling as a very positive development”, Ramirez said.
He explained that as soon as the issue on property rights and ownership are settled, the re-development of Boracay will be set in motion. Proper environmental protection and related programs will be re-established to compliment world-class facilities that will be built in the island, he added.
US sub-prime crisis and the Philippine housing sector
By Mr. Antonio V. Osmeña
(Estatements)
Sun Sta. Cebu – Business Section
October 15, 2008
Wednesday
The economic meltdown in the United States started with housing sub-prime mortgages, which is the Wall Street’s euphemism for junk.
But while this is true, problems have spread way beyond the sub-prime sector. Those who predicted that the housing hiccup wouldn’t be a big deal failed to grasp that possibility. It turned out that Wall Street’s greed – and by Wall Street, we mean world-wide money and investment sector not a geographic area in downtown Manhattan-was supplemented by ignorance.
People in the world of finance created, bought, sold and traded securities that were too complex for them to fully understand. Try analyzing collaterized debt obligations (CDOs) – squared. Good luck!
Lehman’s fall shows the downside of using borrowed money. Even though Lehman has a 158-year old name, it’s actually a 14-year old company that was spun off by American Express (AmEx) in 1994. AmEx had gobbled it up 10 years earlier, and it wasn’t in prime shape when AmEx spat it out. To compensate for its relatively small size and skimpy capital base, Lehman took risks that proved too large.
To keep profits growing, Lehman borrowed huge sums relative to its size. Its debts were about 35 times its capital, far higher that its peer group’s ratio. And it plunged heavily into real estate ventures that cratered.
The world lost faith in American International Group (AIG) – the world’s leading insurer – too. A major reason is that AIG is one of the creators of the aforementioned credit-default swaps.
What are those, you ask? They’re pixie-dust securities that supposedly offer insurance against a company defaulting on its obligations. Assume you buy $20 million of Ford bonds. You might hedge your bet by buying $20 million CDs from AIG. In return for the premium, AIG agrees to give you $20 million should Ford have an “event of default” on its obligations. But as a way to make sure that swap can make good on its obligations, AIG has to post collateral. If its credit is downgraded, as was the case with AIG, the company has to post more collateral.
What put AIG on the brink was that it had to post $14 billion overnight which, of course, it didn’t have lying around. What doomed AIG was the rating agencies’ decision – they had suddenly awakened to AIG’s problems – to sharply downgrade the firm’s securities.
Since AIG is in a much scarier situation than Lehman – the insurer has assets of $ 1 trillion, more than 70 million customers and intimate back-and-forth dealings with many of the world’s biggest and most important financial firms – the US Governmenr felt that it had no choice but to intervene.
There is no question that the crisis has gone so deep that it cannot be halted by government bailout. Banks and other financial companies around the globe are struggling to pull themselves out of this mess. Rebuilding will take time, vast amounts of money and constant attention to stop greed. Sooner or later, the trillions of dollars that the Federal Reserve and other central bankers are throwing into the markets will stabilize things.
When this happens, the housing prices will stabilize because no financial trend continues forever. The effect of lost of credibility with foreigners, specifically of Wall Street and fund insurers, is that the shift of investment will benefit the real estate industry.
The sub-prime mortgage fiasco in the US will never happen in the Philippines because credit capabilities of the borrowers are strictly observed by our financial and bank institutions. Our central bank have the just-right measure of regulation.
Of course, there are only a few Filipino greedy bank CEOs who were drawn to the AIG’s fundamentally flawed business model.
The root of the problem is that many borrowers showed no fear at all, and Wall Streeters didn’t have time to worry about regulation, which was in disrepute. They didn’t worry about risk, which had supposedly been magically whisked away by all sorts of smart new products – derivatives like credit-default swaps. This lack of fear became a hothouse of greed and ignorance on Wall Street – and on Main Street as well.
When greed exceeds fear, trouble follows. Wall Street has always been a greedy place and every decade or so it suffers a blow resulting in a bout of hand-wringing and regret, which always seems to be quickly forgotten.
Analysts argue that real estate investments in our country, specifically residential condos, will not be affected by the US economy meltdown and, on the contrary, many expect more investors to come in because it is the safest investment until confidence is restored in the US security market.
Supreme Court decision to boost tourism in Boracay
Manila Standard Today
Business B3
October 16, 2008
INVESTORS and other stake holders in Boracay Island backed the Supreme Court decision on the issue of land ownership in the country’s top tourist destination, saying it was the single most significant step to boost the country’s bid in becoming a premier tourist spot in Asia.
“Investors’ confidence will definitely be boosted by this landmark [decision] since the legitimacy of land ownership and possession will finally be resolved,” said Jocielo Ramirez, a former director of the United Nations World Food Program.
As one of the possessors and stakeholders in Boracay, Ramirez said he saw a better future for the island as serious investors would have a different perspective about their investment plans.
Ramirez, a Filipino who occupies a one-hectare property in the island, said contrary to the current public perception, stakeholders saw the high court’s ruling as a very positive development.
He said as soon as the issue on property rights and ownership were settled, the re-development of Boracay would be set in motion. Proper environmental protection and related programs would be re-established to complement world-class facilities that will be built in the island, he added.
The Supreme Court early this month settled once and for all the issue of land ownership in Boracay, sustaining the right of possessors on classified agricultural land to apply for registration of ownership or title to the property which they currently occupy.
Majority, if not all, of the existing resorts and tourism establishments fall within the classified agricultural land of Boracay available for registration and titling under applicable Philippine laws.
The high court, in upholding the validity of Proclamation 1064, which classifies 400 hectares of Boracay Island as forest land and 628 hectares as agricultural, said the government had taken the step necessary to open up the island to private ownership, except on areas in the island classified as forestland.”
While proclamation for ownership for possessors for the portions of Boracay classified as agricultural area has been settled, the high court made a caveat in the promulgation of its decision that for those portions marked as forestland, no application for title may be entertained “as forest lands are fundamental to our nation’s survival and their promotion and protection are not just fancy rhetoric for politicians and activists.”
“The SC decision was likewise hailed by environmentalists as the single most significant manifestation of the High Court’s awareness to protect our environment as a necessary component for nation building,” said Ramirez.
Boracay construction frenzy to resume; SC ruling on ownership of land welcomed
Philippine Daily Inquirer
A15
October 16,2008
By Nestor P. Burgos Jr.
Inquirer Visayas
ILOILO CITY – OFFICIALS IN Boracay Island have ordered the lifting of a moratorium on new construction projects in the already congested island resort.
The lifting of the moratorium came as some property owners on the island expressed support for the Supreme Court decision that declared the entire island as public domain.
In a resolution unanimously passed by the Malay municipal council last Oct. 6, the officials directed the lifting of the moratorium passed on Oct.24, 2007 and implemented starting Jan.2 this year.
Councilor Rowen Aguirre, chair of the council’s committee on rules and ordinances, said the council decided to lift the moratorium after the Department of Tourism (DOT) finalized the draft of the Boracay Comprehensive Land Use Plan and after the Development of Environment and natural Resources (DENR) had also finalized an environmental master plan for the island.
Aguirre said the lifting of the moratorium would take effect after Malay Mayor Ciceron Cawaling issues an implementing order.
The six-month moratorium was supposed to end on July 2 but was extended by three months, he said.
In a statement, a property owner on the island said the SC decision could actually boost investor confidence because it would lead to a more orderly way of titling lands.
“Investors’ confidence will definitely be boosted by this landmark (decision)since the legitimacy of landownership and possession will finally be resolved,” said Jocielo Ramirez, a former director of the United Nations World Food Program, in a statement.
Ramirez, who occupies a hectare property in Boracay, said stakeholders in the island resort see the SC ruling as “a very positive development.”
Aguirre said applicants for building permits would be required to abide by conditions, including the expropriation of portions of their properties if required by the government for public works projects.
Also, the municipal government would not issue building and construction permits for critical areas like wetlands and other no-build zones.
The DENR earlier sued Cawaling and a property developer for failing to enforce the moratorium on construction.
The DENR accused Cawaling and the municipal government of giving undue advantage to developer J.King and Sons.
In an earlier statement, Aklan Rep. Florencio Miraflores reiterated claims that “the rights of the landowners will be respected because they are builders in good faith.”
“These possessors who have been in the area for a long time now and money have got nothing to fear. The SC decision should be welcomed by Boracay stakeholders as a very positive development,” Miraflores said.
He said the SC ruling “has provided clear guidelines on how possessors of these real properties might acquire legal titles to the pieces of land they now occupy.”
The House of Representatives had already approved a bill declaring parcels of land in Boracay as open for agricultural, commercial, residential and other productive purposes.
Miraflores said the approved bill has already been referred to the Senate.
Investors hail SC ruling on Boracay
THE DAILY TRIBUNE
Business
October 16, 2008
Civic and business groups in Boracay Island hailed the recent Supreme Court (SC) decision on the issue of land ownership in the country’s top tourist destination as “the single most significant step to boost the country’s bid in becoming a premier tourist spot among other Asian destinations.”
“Investors’ confidence will definitely be boosted by this landmark (decision)since the legitimacy of land ownership and possession will finally be resolved,” said Jocielo Ramirez, a former director of the United Nations World Food Program.
As one of the possessors and stakeholders in Boracay Island, Ramirez said that he sees a better future for Boracay as serious investors will have a different perspective about their investment plans for the island.
Ramirez was reacting to a story which came out in The Tribune the other day saying that the recent SC ruling that Boracay is a public domain had “created” serious concerns and confusion among the stakeholders and individual investors in the island.”
Under the Torrens Title System of the government, the land which is properly titled prior to 1975 is exempt from the SC ruling, Fairways and Bluewater Resort complex said in a statement yesterday.
The SC ruled that except for lands already covered by titles issued in 1975 under Presidential Decree 705, or the Forestry Reform Code of the Philippines, the whole Boracay Island belongs to the government.
In a decision penned by Associate Justice Ruben Reyes, the SC upheld the validity of Proclamation 1064 that classified Boracay into 400 hectares of reserved forest land and 628.96 hectares of agricultural land.
Fairways and Bluewater, the largest single land owner in Boracay with its 120-hectare holdings, belongs to this exempt category. The subject property has the original title issued in 1993 which was subsequently acquired by Fil-Estate Properties Inc. in the early 1990s.
He explained that as soon as the issue on property rights and ownership are settled, the re-development of Boracay will be set in motion. Proper environmental protection and related programs will be re-established to compliment world-class facilities that will be built in the island, he added.
The SC, in a landmark ruling early this month, settled once and for all the issue of land ownership in Boracay, sustaining the right of possessors on classified agricultural land to apply for registration of ownership or title to the property which they currently occupy.
Supreme Court decision seen to boost Boracay’s tourism potential
Business Mirror
The Nation
By J.Mayuga
October 16, 2008
POSSESSORS, investors and other stakeholders on Boracay Island on Wednesday said the recent Supreme Court (SC) decision on the issue of land ownership in the country’s top tourist destination is “the single most significant step to boost the country’s bid in becoming a premier tourist spot among other Asian destinations.”
“Investors’ confidence will definitely be boosted by this decision since the legitimacy of land ownership and possession will finally be resolved,” said Jocielo Ramirez, a former director of the United Nations World Food Programme.
As one of the possessors and stakeholders on Boracay Island, Ramirez said he sees a better future for Boracay as serious investors will have a different perspective about their investment plans for the island.
Ramirez, a Filipino who occupies a one-hectare property in the island, said that contrary to the current public perception, “we as stakeholders here see the SC’s ruling as a very positive development.”
He explained that as soon as the issue on property rights and ownership are settled, the redevelopment of Boracay will be set in motion. Proper environmental protection and related programs will be reestablished to complement world-class facilities that will be built on the island, he added.
The Court, in a landmark ruling early this month, settled once and for all the issue of land ownership on Boracay, sustaining the right of possessors on classified agricultural land to apply for registration of ownership or title to the property that they currently occupy.
Majority, if not all, of the existing resorts and tourism establishments fall within the classified agricultural land of Boracay available for registration and titling under applicable laws.
The Court in upholding the validity of Proclamation 1064, which classifies 400 hectares of Boracay Island as forestland and 628 hectares as agricultural, states that, “in issuing the proclamation, the government has taken the step necessary to open up the island to private ownership except on areas in the island classified as forestland.”
While proclamation for ownership for possessors for the portions of Boracay classified as agricultural area has been steeled, the SC made a caveat in the promulgation of its decision that “for those portions marked as forestland, no application for title may be entertained as forestlands are fundamental to our nation’s survival and their promotion and protection are not just fancy rhetoric for politicians and activists.”
“The SC decision was, likewise, hailed by environmentalists as the single most significant manifestation of the Court’s awareness to protect our environment as a necessary component for nation-building,” Ramirez pointed out.
Meanwhile, Liberal Party Rep. Florencio Miraflores of Aklan reiterated his earlier claims that “the rights of the landowners will be respected because they are builders in good faith.”
“These possessors who have been in the area for a long time now and have invested a considerable amount of their time and money have got nothing to fear. The SC decision should be welcomed by Boracay stakeholders as a very positive development,” Miraflores said.
RP An Island of Calm Amid Storm – S&P
By Christian V. Esguerra
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Front Page
October 15, 2008
Filipinos may be grumbling about the hard times but to an international credit rating outfit, the Philippines is “an island of calm” in a world financially in turmoil.
The favorable assessment of the country was made by Agosto Bernard, Standard & Poor’s associate director, in an e-mail to Malacañang’s investor relations office.
Malacañang yesterday distributed a portion of the e-mail to reporters, ostensibly to reinforce the Arroyo administration’s contention that the country was on sound economic footing.
“Yes, the Philippines is ‘lucky’ because they have made the necessary adjustments and reforms when times were still good,” Bernard said.
“So they are facing the global market problems and economic slowdown from a considerably improved position, compared to what they were in 3-4 years ago…”
Bernard added: “The Philippines is an ‘island of calm’ currently while there is turmoil in higher rated and previously stable countries….”
The Palace released the e-mail at a time when many countries in the Western world, including economic powers like the United States and Britain, were struggling to cope with an international crisis.
NEDA EXPLAINS
Based on some statistics, however, the Philippine economic picture is not all that rosy.
Official statistics show the Philippine growth rate in the second quarter slowed down to 4.6 percent, much slower than the 8.3 – percent expansion registered in the same period last year and below the growth forecast of 5.3 percent.
The value of the peso has also deteriorated from 41.23 to 47.240 to the dollar since the start of the year.
The country’s inflation rate also rose to a 17-year high of 12.5 percent in August before easing to 11.9 percent in September, while the value of the local stock market has declined by around 40 percent since January.
Sought for comment, Rolando Tungpalan, deputy director general of the National
Economic Development Auhtority (NEDA), told the Inquirer there were clear bases for Standard & Poor’s assessment of the Philippines.
Tungpalan said the inflation rate not only had slackened in September but that the August rate was primarily a reaction to “movements in the US and other markets.”
REFORMS IN PLACE
Tungpalan said the rating agency was apparently seeing the fiscal reforms put in place by the government, including adjustments in the banking system made as a result of the Asian financial crisis in 1997.
“I don’t want to put words into the Standard and Poor’s message, but we can relate with their statement,” he said.
In a text message, Press Secretary Jesus Dureza boasted of the country’s “fiscal reforms, falling national government deficit from P187 billion in 2004 to P32 billion currently, public sector surpluses, and falling debt to gross domestic product ratios.”
Bernard’s message was included in yesterday’s presentation at the Cabinet’s economic cluster meeting yesterday, which tackled the government’s action plan to cushion the negative impact of the financial crisis on the country.
President Macapagal-Arroyo on Monday proposed a Southeast Asian initiative to protect the region from the financial crisis. The matter will be discussed on the sidelines of the Asia-Europe Meeting in Beijing next week.
Dureza said Ms Arroyo would announce today preliminary details of the regional strategy.
“The country will be very sturdy,” he said in a press conference. “It will weather the storm if there is any storm at all.”
INCENTIVES BILL
At the same briefing, Tungpalan assured the public of the government’s “full program” to address the financial crisis.
The main idea was to continue increasing spending on infrastructure and basic services, a top priority in the P1.4-trillon national budget for next year, and better tax collection.
“We are keeping this momentum and that should keep us not only in calm but also better waters,” Tungpalan said.
At the House of Representatives, Majority Leader Arthur Defensor said House Bill No. 5241, which calls for the adoption of an investments and incentives code, would be among the top measures to be considered by the chamber.
Speaker Prospero Nograles said the proposed measure would set up an updated and coherent investment policy that would make the country attractive to foreign and local investors.
Nograles said the Philippines needed to compete with other developing economies in the region to lure foreign investors, especially since local capital was limited.
The proposed measure seeks to reconcile the Omnibus Investments Code, the special laws for economic zones and other incentive statutes.
One of its authors, Rep. Exequiel Javier, said these numerous laws “make the situation confusing and unmanageable to both the government and investors.”
With a Report from Leila B. Salaverria.
World Stocks Soar on Wall Street Rally
The Philippine Star
Headline
October 15, 2008
Hongkong - World markets soared for a second day Tuesday, led by a record 14 percent jump in Tokyo, after Wall Street rallied from its worst week ever on optimism that government rescue efforts will heal the crippled global financial system.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index surged 1,171.14 points, or 14.5 percent, to close at 9,447.57, its biggest single-day gain in history. That’s a stunning reversal after the index plunged 24 percent last week. Tokyo financial markets were playing catch-up to recent developments because they were closed Monday for a holiday.
European markets followed Asia higher in early trading, with benchmarks in Britain, Germany and France opening up more than 4 percent.
Hong Kong’s key index gained 3.2 percent, while South Korea’s market jumped over 6 percent. The Philippine market surged more than 7 percent (Story on B-1) and Indonesia’s market-shut half of last week due to dramatic declines-was up more than 6 percent.
Only China’s main market index fell-sliding 2.7 percent.
Late Monday in the US, government officials and industry executives said the Bush administration will use $250 billion of the #700-billion bailout program recently passed by Congress to buy into American banks. The government initially will buy stock of nine large banks, but the program is expected to be expanded to many others.
President George W. Bush later announced the $250 billion plan by the government to directly buy shares in the nation’s leading banks.
He said the drastic steps were “not intended to take over the free market but to preserve it.”
That followed signals that European governments were putting up nearly $2trillion to safeguard their own banks.
The governments are ensuring that no matter what happens they’re not going to allow another major institution to fail,” said Singapore-based investment analyst Nicole Sze of Bank Julius Baer & Co., which manages about $300 billion in assets.
“What’s happened in the last 48 hours is an extremely positive development…You’re seeing a reversal of the panic selling, and we think a temporary bottom has been found.”
Tuesday’s advance came after the Dow Jones industrial average gained more than 11 percent-its biggest one-day gain since 1933-in a huge overnight rally as traders reacted with relief to efforts by the US and Europe to inject capital into banks and get lending flowing again.
US stock futures were up, suggesting Wall Street would climb higher Tuesday. Dow futures advanced 51 points, or 0.5 percent, to 9,540. S & P 500 futures were up 10 points, or one percent, to 1,026.
In line with the global intervention, Asia-Pacific government took more steps to fortify their own financial systems.
As part of the Japanese measures, authorities on Tuesday relaxed regulations on companies buying up their own shares, a change that will help prevent takeovers and allow companies to prevent a nose-dive in their own issues.
Japan also promised to continue to protect people’s insurance policies and savings accounts, and said it will consider capital injection into medium-size and small Japanese financial institutions.
Japanese megabank Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. added more than 14-percent after completing a $9 billion deal for a 21-percent stake in US investment bank Morgan Stanley.
In Australia, the government announced a plan to inject $7.4 billion to strengthen the country’s economy, helping send the S&P / ASX200 index 3.7 percent higher. Hong Kong promised to guarantee all bank deposits until 2010.
Russia’s stock markets joined the upward surge Tuesday, prompting regulators to suspend trading on one of the two major exchanges. The MICEX, where most of Russia’s trading takes place, climbed 11.2 percent before trading was halted for an hour. The RTS climbed 6.4 percent.
Stocks across Asia have surged this week after going into a tailspin last week amid growing worries that the financial crisis would pull the global economy into recession.
While those concerns still linger, investors were encouraged that governments appeared to be taking steps to tackle one of the core problems-helping to revive bank-to-bank lending, which has almost ground to halt because of fears about repayment due to enormous losses from souring mortgaged-linked debt.
Lending rates softened somewhat Tuesday in Asia but remained elevated despite the coordinated global interest rate deductions and massive liquidity boosts of late, a sign that banks were still skittish about making loans to one another.
On Tuesday, the Honkong Interbank offered rate, known as Hibor, for three-month dollar loans dipped 0.02 to around 4.42-still nearly double what it was in the days before Wall Street bank Lehman Brothers collapsed last month, analysts said. A similar rate in Singapore slid .13 to 4.66.
“Things are still definitely not back to normal,” said Teck-Kin Suan, an economist at United Overseas Bank in Singapore. “Obviously the banks are still reluctant to lend…it’s going to take some time for these measures to take place.”
On Monday, the London interbank offered rate, or Libor, for three-month dollar loans fell 0.07 percent to 4.75 percent.
Oil continued to rise, with light sweet crude for November delivery gaining $2.54 to $83.73 a barrel in Asian trade on the New YorkMercantile Exchange. The contract added $3.49 to settle at $81.19 overnight.
In currencies, the dollar was at 102.35 yen – up from below 100 yen last week – while the euro was little changed at $1.3644. - AP
Markets Roar Back
Manila Standard Today
Headline
October 15, 2008
Standard and Poor’s cites Philippines as an ‘island of calm for having made the necessary reforms when times were still good.
Tokyo – A global rally sent Asian stocks skyrocketing Tuesday as world governments threw lifelines to ailing banks in a bid to end the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.
And oil prices rose above $83 a barrel in Asia as panic selling over a global financial crisis eased after the US and Europe pledged to pump capital into ailing banks.
Light, sweet crude for November delivery was up $2.38 to $83.57 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange by mid-day in Singapore. The contract rose $3.49 overnight to settle at $81.19.
In Manila, an official said the World Bank had offered to finance the Philippines’ contingency plan to boost the economy amid a looming recession in the West.
And the credit-rating agency Standard and Poor’s said the Philippines faced the global economic slowdown “from a considerably improved position” compared to its Asian neighbors.
“The World Bank has made such an offer, and its up to Finance Secretary Margarito Teves, Jr. to determine whether we will take it,” said Rolando Tungpalan, deputy director-general of the National Economic Development Authority.
“The Philippines is lucky because they have made the necessary adjustments and reforms when times were still good,” said Agost Bernard, Standard and Poor’s associate director.
“They are facing the global market problems and economic slowdown from a considerably improved position compared to what they were three to four years ago.”
Investors cheered the latest steps by world leaders to unlock frozen credit markets, driving the Dow to its biggest gain in 75 years overnight.
Tokyo’s Nikkei index soared 13 percent by lunch, one of its biggest ever gains, as the Japanese government unveiled market-stabilizing measures including an easing of restrictions on company share buy-backs.
Stocks soared more than 5.0 percent in Hongkong, Sydney and Seoul after European governments pumped billions of dollars into their credit-starved banks and Washington said it would buy stakes in an array of financial firms.
“The markets had been saying it was necessary to inject public funds into troubled financial institutions, and countries have moved to do that,” said Kazuhiro Takahashi, equity chief at Daiwa Securities SMBC.
It was a spectacular turnaround for the Nikkei, which plunged 9.62 percent on Friday, the biggest loss in two decades, capping its worst week ever. Japanese markets were closed on Monday.
The surge came after Wall Street’s Dow Jones index jumped 11.08 percent Monday, snapping an eight-session losing streak.
It was the Dow’s biggest points gain on record and its sharpest percentage rise since 1933 during the Great Depression.
“Sharp stocks market gains were in response to the latest bold measures from the major economies to shore up banks, unfreeze credit markets, and boost liquidity in money markets,” said NAB Capital strategist John Kyriakopoulos.
Sydney was 5.2 percent ahead at the midday break, while Hong Kong and Seoul both opened up 5.1 percent.
“We’ve seen phenomenal gains,” said Adrian Leppinus of Cameron Securities in Australia.
“There’s been a mad rush for people to get back in.”
AFP with AP and Joyce Pangco Pañares
US sub-prime crisis and the Philippine housing sector
By Mr. Antonio V. Osmeña
(Estatements)
Sun Sta. Cebu – Business Section
October 15, 2008
Wednesday
The economic meltdown in the United States started with housing sub-prime mortgages, which is the Wall Street’s euphemism for junk.
But while this is true, problems have spread way beyond the sub-prime sector. Those who predicted that the housing hiccup wouldn’t be a big deal failed to grasp that possibility. It turned out that Wall Street’s greed – and by Wall Street, we mean world-wide money and investment sector not a geographic area in downtown Manhattan-was supplemented by ignorance.
People in the world of finance created, bought, sold and traded securities that were too complex for them to fully understand. Try analyzing collaterized debt obligations (CDOs) – squared. Good luck!
Lehman’s fall shows the downside of using borrowed money. Even though Lehman has a 158-year old name, it’s actually a 14-year old company that was spun off by American Express (AmEx) in 1994. AmEx had gobbled it up 10 years earlier, and it wasn’t in prime shape when AmEx spat it out. To compensate for its relatively small size and skimpy capital base, Lehman took risks that proved too large.
To keep profits growing, Lehman borrowed huge sums relative to its size. Its debts were about 35 times its capital, far higher that its peer group’s ratio. And it plunged heavily into real estate ventures that cratered.
The world lost faith in American International Group (AIG) – the world’s leading insurer – too. A major reason is that AIG is one of the creators of the aforementioned credit-default swaps.
What are those, you ask? They’re pixie-dust securities that supposedly offer insurance against a company defaulting on its obligations. Assume you buy $20 million of Ford bonds. You might hedge your bet by buying $20 million CDs from AIG. In return for the premium, AIG agrees to give you $20 million should Ford have an “event of default” on its obligations. But as a way to make sure that swap can make good on its obligations, AIG has to post collateral. If its credit is downgraded, as was the case with AIG, the company has to post more collateral.
What put AIG on the brink was that it had to post $14 billion overnight which, of course, it didn’t have lying around. What doomed AIG was the rating agencies’ decision – they had suddenly awakened to AIG’s problems – to sharply downgrade the firm’s securities.
Since AIG is in a much scarier situation than Lehman – the insurer has assets of $ 1 trillion, more than 70 million customers and intimate back-and-forth dealings with many of the world’s biggest and most important financial firms – the US Governmenr felt that it had no choice but to intervene.
There is no question that the crisis has gone so deep that it cannot be halted by government bailout. Banks and other financial companies around the globe are struggling to pull themselves out of this mess. Rebuilding will take time, vast amounts of money and constant attention to stop greed. Sooner or later, the trillions of dollars that the Federal Reserve and other central bankers are throwing into the markets will stabilize things.
When this happens, the housing prices will stabilize because no financial trend continues forever. The effect of lost of credibility with foreigners, specifically of Wall Street and fund insurers, is that the shift of investment will benefit the real estate industry.
The sub-prime mortgage fiasco in the US will never happen in the Philippines because credit capabilities of the borrowers are strictly observed by our financial and bank institutions. Our central bank have the just-right measure of regulation.
Of course, there are only a few Filipino greedy bank CEOs who were drawn to the AIG’s fundamentally flawed business model.
The root of the problem is that many borrowers showed no fear at all, and Wall Streeters didn’t have time to worry about regulation, which was in disrepute. They didn’t worry about risk, which had supposedly been magically whisked away by all sorts of smart new products – derivatives like credit-default swaps. This lack of fear became a hothouse of greed and ignorance on Wall Street – and on Main Street as well.
When greed exceeds fear, trouble follows. Wall Street has always been a greedy place and every decade or so it suffers a blow resulting in a bout of hand-wringing and regret, which always seems to be quickly forgotten.
Analysts argue that real estate investments in our country, specifically residential condos, will not be affected by the US economy meltdown and, on the contrary, many expect more investors to come in because it is the safest investment until confidence is restored in the US security market.
Boracay Island’s mid-year tourist arrivals hit 0.4-M; P7.3 billion in receipts
Aug 21st, 2008 by Philippine Travel Blog.
http://www.lakbaypilipinas.com/blog/2008/08/21/boracay-islands-mid-year-tourist-arrivals-hit-04-m-p73-billion-in-receipts/
Tourists who flocked to this country’s prime tourist destination – Boracay Island, numbered 400,037 from January to July of this year, according to the records of the Provincial Tourism Office (PTO) here.
Records of the PTO also revealed that the arrivals generated a total of P7,354,040,185.80 in tourism receipts.
For the period January to July of this year, foreign tourists totaled 111,736 while domestic tourists were counted at 246,378. Overseas Filipinos, who also visited the island during the same period numbered 41,923.
Foreign tourist arrivals for the period registered highest during the month of February while domestic tourists had the highest number with 66,846 in the month of April. Overseas Filipinos flocked to the island with the highest number in February.
Tourist arrivals this year for the period January to July is higher when compared with PTO records last year, which was listed at 387,288. Last year’s total number in tourist arrivals was at P596,748 which generated a total of P10,970,257,183.20 tourism receipts.
The on-going improvement of Kalibo Airport here, now an international gateway catering to international flights from South Korea and Taiwan is seen to further boost Boracay’s tourists arrivals.
Presently, the airport terminal for incoming international flights is under construction and will soon be finished in six months’ time, according to Kalibo Airport Manager Percy Malonesio.
Malonesio said that President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo visited Aklan July 1 and 2 of this year to distribute relief goods to typhoon victims and to see the situation in Aklan, he was asked by the President of the project’s time frame.
The national government under PGMA’s administration gave P50 million to start the project, and additional fund in millions to complete it.
High Yield Investment in Asia
International Real Estate Lecturer Endorses Crown Regency Resort
A18 Sun.Star Cebu | Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Business
Int’l real estate lecturer endorses Crown Regency Boracay Resort
Watch Worldwide Investors’ Endorsements Here
An experienced real estate investor who lectures around the world on strategic global real estate investments has endorsed Crown Regency Hotels and Resorts, a fast-growing chain of local hotels in the Philippines.
John V. Childers, also consultant to Donald Trump, is one of the most respected speakers in North America and Australia, teaching others about real estate investing techniques.
According to his official website www.johnchilders.com, Childers “has built a substantial real estate empire,” not only in the United States but also in strategic locations around the globe and continues to expand his investments.
In one of his trips to the Philippines, Childers learned about Crown Regency Hotels and Resorts. He invested in the company by buying units at Crown Regency Resort and Convention Center in Central Boracay, an upscale condotel resort which will be completed by 2010.
The purchase of even just a unit already guarantees exciting perks and privileges to buyers, which include a free Club Ultima membership and 52 days of free stay in any Crown Regency Hotel across the country or in any of the 2,900 affiliated hotels and resorts of Interval International worldwide.
“If you want to make a good investment, look at the Crown Regency offer. It’s where I put my money. And I have a lot of units with them,” Childers said.
Please visit www.cebucondoreview.co.cc for more details about this high yield investment in Boracay Island.
Also talk to me through Yahoo! Messenger & Skype: daisy_guo_onlinemarketing
For more information please Contact:
Daisy Guo
International Marketing Assitant
ftrdcmarketing@gmail.com or info@cebucondoreview.co.cc
Cell: (+63917) 462-1174
My Website: www.cebucondoreview.co.cc
- High Yield Investment www.cebucondoreview.co.cc
Cebu tourist arrivals increase by 8.2%
International tourist arrivals in Cebu reached 284,059 during the first semester of the year, an 8.2 percent growth from last year’s 262,539 arrivals.
The growth in foreign tourists arrivals in Cebu is higher than the national growth rate of 7.4 percent. The country’s foreign tourists reached nearly 1.4 million during the first semester of 2008.
Around 1.3 million foreign tourists visited the country in 2007, based on data presented by Department of Tourism (DOT) Undersecretary Phineas Alburo earlier this week.
Alburo said the Philippines has projected between 3.4 to 3.5 million tourists to “visit and explore tourist destinations” this year.
The average tourist growth rate is at seven percent to nine percent, Tourism Secretary Joseph “Ace” Durano said in an interview recently.
However, Durano clarified that growth should be evaluated based on number of tourist arrivals and tourist spending.
“The real story is in the tremendous increase in tourist spending which may be obtained from shopping, adventure tourism activities and spa and wellness services,” Durano said.
Despite rising prices of fuel and basic commodities, Alburo said the tourism sector remains optimistic that they would reach their target as more direct flights opened between Cebu and international points.
He said the presence of China-based airlines plying direct charted flights from Cebu to Shanghai, Nanning and Guanzhou (and vice versa) would ensure continuous tourist flow at least by the end of the year.
Three Chinese airlines namely China Eastern, China Southern and Shanghai Airlines are now operating direct flights to Cebu.
The other direct flights to Cebu, such as those for Mumbai and New Delhi in India and Vladivostok in Russia, are still under negotiation. The tourists from these two countries are known to be big spenders.
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