Nissan mulls assembly of new model in PH

By Louella D. Desiderio, The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines - The local unit of Japanese firm Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. is conducting a study on the assembly of a new vehicle model in the Philippines following the release of the Comprehensive Automotive Resurgence Strategy (CARS) Program.
“With the CARS Program coming out... we are going through that study phase and if it comes out beneficial to build new models in the Philippines, then investment will not be an issue,” Nissan Philippines Inc. (NPI) president and managing director Antonio Zara told reporters at the launch of the NV350 Urvan yesterday.

The 200,000 volume of production requirement over a period of six years under the CARS Program, however, will be difficult for the company to meet.
“For a brand like Nissan, we will have to consider not just domestic demand. We will have to consider export,” Zara said.
He noted exports would still be a challenge for the company given Nissan’s strong manufacturing operations in markets like Thailand and Indonesia.
“It will be challenging for us to compete in economies of scale with those countries...We have to define our niche,” he said.
Executive Order 182 or the CARS Program approved by President Aquino on May 29, seeks to support the assembly of three vehicle models by providing incentives in the form of tax payment certificates to firms which meet investment and production volume requirements.
NPI’s Almera and Patrol Safari are currently assembled locally.
While the previous generation of the Urvan was also produced in the country, the company decided to shift to imports from Japan for the new generation to provide the best value to customers.
With the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement in place, the company can import the Urvan from Japan at zero tariff, removing the duty differential which reached around 40 percent earlier.
As the Urvan is the most popular nameplate for NPI, holding the second biggest share or 36.7 percent of the local van market, Zara said the aim of the company is to maintain if not further grow its share for the latest generation.
The new Urvan which is suitable for family use and public transport features an upgraded engine, improved air-conditioning and redesigned interior space for passenger ride comfort.
The van which will be available starting June 15, has the following configurations and pricing: 15-seater (P1.183 million); 18-seater (P1.196 million) and three-seater cargo (P1.177 million).
Those using the new Urvan as a registered public utility vehicle will get to enjoy three-year manufacturer’s warranty at no additional cost.
Read more on The Philippine Star.

LOOK: Google Doodle marks PH Independence Day

MANILA -Google has created a special doodle on Friday to mark the Philippines' 117th year of independence.
This year’s Independence Day doodle on the Google.com.ph homepage depicts the Philippine flag with the sun and three stars standing for one “O” of the company’s logo. The letters also make use of the colors of the flag.
Clicking on the doodle will lead users to more information about the history of Philippine independence.
Google has been making doodles to celebrate the Philippine Independence Day since 2009.
A “doodle” is a decorative change made to the Google logo to celebrate holidays, anniversaries, and the lives of famous artists, scientists, and leaders.

Binay on PNoy non-endorsement: Galangin natin

ABS-CBNnews.com

MANILA - Vice President Jejomar Binay on Friday said he respects the response of President Benigno Aquino III on his earlier statement that he is hoping to get the endorsement of the President for the 2016 elections.

Binay, who has long expressed his intent to run for president in next year's polls, said in a media forum Wednesday that he remains hopeful he will be endorsed by Aquino.
Aquino, however, seemed to have rejected the possibility. He pointed out that Binay has always been with a different party since the 2010 polls.
"Siguro hindi klaro kasi. Hinahanap ba niya ang suporta ko kasi 2010 ibang grupo siya tumakbo. 2013 nanguna din siya ng ibang grupo. Tapos pagdating sa 2016, magkasama kami? Parang patungo pa lang siya sa amin, parang ang layo ng kurba para makarating," the President said Thursday.
"Even in this point, presumptuous ako sa hinahanap niyang pagsuporta. Yung mga ginawa niyang pagtakbo nung 2010 or 2013 eh iba naman talagang partido at grupo ang sinamahan niya. So parang sinasabi ngayon hinihintay niya yung endorsement ko eh hindi naman niya hiningi, di ba parang - may phrase yung panahon ng mga magulang ko, adelantado. I am presuming too much that he wants my support."
The President added that what he can promise any candidate is clean and credible elections next year.
According to Binay, who led the Independence Day celebration in Luneta, Manila along with Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada on Friday, he respects the statements given by Aquino.
"Nasabi na ni Pangulo, galangin natin. Yun ang pagkakasabi ni Pangulo," Binay told reporters. "Wala na, tapos na yun. May sinagot na si Pangulo."
Meanwhile, Binay only answered "okay lang" when asked to react on Senator Grace Poe's statement that if she becomes president, she will not grant Binay presidential pardon if the corruption allegations him lead to his conviction.
"Any president in office--after this president [Aquino]--who pardons them will lose his or her legitimacy," said Poe, referring to Binay, his son Makati Mayor Junjun Binay and other individuals facing plunder and graft charges over the alleged overpricing of the Makati City Hall Building 2.
"I don't think people will be confident in that administration. And even if let's say -- he (Binay) is one of them -- he wins and he actually assumes office, and he pardons the others, I think he will start with the wrong foot and I don't think that administration will last," she added.

Filipinos in S. Korea urged to guard against MERS-CoV

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) reminded overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in South Korea to take the necessary precautions against the dreaded Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) after South Korean nationals had been infected with the disease.

In his Twitter account, POEA chief Hans Leo Cacdac posted a list of things that Filipinos in South Korea should do to avoid contracting the disease:

• Always practice proper hand hygiene by washing your hands with soap or alcohol hand rubs.

• Practice proper cough etiquette. Use a tissue when coughing or sneezing and cover your mouth and nose with it. Dispose of the tissue in a waste basket.

• Avoid contact with persons sick or infected with MERS-CoV. If you have a respiratory illness, stay home and wear a surgical mask to protect your family.

• Visit your doctor, a hospital or health facility immediately if symptoms of MERS-CoV manifest itself, including persistent coughing and other symptoms.

So far, there have been four deaths and 50 cases of MERS-CoV reported in South Korea.

ECCP pushes tax reforms to boost PH competitiveness

By Louella D. Desiderio, The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines - A group of European businessmen with operations in the Philippines is pushing for adjustments on the tax system to make the country competitive in the region.
In a statement yesterday, European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP) president Michael Raeuber said the Philippine government needs to adjust the tax rate imposed on individuals and companies to ensure the country’s competitiveness.

“We have to bring the Philippines forward. The government now has limited time to approve economic legislation and institute reforms. If we do not address the issue now, companies will be going to Vietnam and not here,” he said.
While the ECCP has been encouraging European businesses to set up shop in the Philippines, he said the country must offer the right set of incentives and tax system to be an attractive and competitive location for investments.
Marikina Rep. Romero Quimbo who also chairs the ways and means committee at the House of Representatives is considered an ally of the ECCP in pushing for adjustments on the tax system as the official shares the group’s view of the Philippines being a costlier place for investments compared to its peers in Southeast Asia.
“The cost of doing business in the Philippines is higher than in competing countries in the region. With ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) integration starting soon, it makes good economic sense to completely overhaul our corporate and individual income taxes in order to be competitive,” Quimbo said.
The Philippines imposes the highest tax rate of 32 percent on incomes of individuals among countries in the ASEAN.
The country’s tax bracket rates have been in place since 1997 with 86 percent of income taxes being shouldered by only 16 percent of the population.
As the country wants to attract more foreign investments particularly in agriculture and manufacturing, Quimbo said changes in the tax system would be necessary to achieve the government’s goal of making economic growth inclusive.
At present, there are proposals in the House of Representatives to adjust income tax brackets to inflation.
There are also proposals seeking to reduce the corporate income tax rate to 25 percent from 30 percent.
Read more on the Philippine Star.

Marco Sison shares how OPM can recover its glory

By Yong Chavez, ABS-CBN North America News Bureau

CALIFORNIA – Marco Sison, one of the most well-known voices of Original Pilipino Music (OPM) during its heyday in the '80s, said there's a big hole in the Philippine music industry and not because there's a lack of talented singers.
"Kasi siguro may shortage ng composers. In the '80s kasi may yearly competition ng composers, amateur and professionals, yung Metropop, at dun nafe-feature yung mga aspiring composers at dun nga lumabas sina Vehnee Saturno. Sana magkaron ulit ng ganun para yung mga composers, kasi hindi rin nila alam kung paano nila ipe-present ang mga kanta nila," said Sison.

The Manila-based singer is a US green card holder and regularly visits California where two of his children go to school.
The other two are staying with him now in the Philippines while pursuing their own showbiz careers.
The singer said his next tour with fellow OPM icons is tentatively set for September, hopefully when Rico Puno has fully recovered from his heart surgery.
"Si Rico is recuperating right now, so yung mga prayers nyo po is kailangang-kailangan ni pareng Rico para mabilis ang kanyang pag-galing," he said.
Before going back to Manila, Sison staged an intimate show for Filipinos in southern California to promote his latest cd, "Isang Pagkakataon."
Read more on Balitang America.

Aquino: Philippines a 'far cry' from 5 years ago

by Willard Cheng, ABS-CBN News

Philippine President Benigno Aquino arrives to deliver a speech during the Philippines Investment Forum in Tokyo, Japan. Photo by Yuya Shino, Reuters

PNoy woos Japanese investors at Tokyo forum

TOKYO — Expectedly, President Benigno Aquino painted a promising picture of the Philippine economy and spoke of a positive record of his administration in a bid to attract more Japanese businessmen to invest in the Philippines.
Speaking before the Philippine Investment Forum held at the Hotel New Otani, he described the current status of the country as a “far cry” from the country’s standing when his predecessor, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, left office.
He also compared how his administration fared better than previous ones in a number of areas including power and the number of awarded public-private partnership projects (PPP).
“While the Philippines of today is a far cry from the Philippines of five years ago, there remains much to be done. There are other paths we can pave towards even greater progress, which is precisely why we are here. Japanese companies have already made their mark on the Philippine electronics, shipbuilding, and automotive industries, among others—to the point where their work and their products are already irreplaceable in the lives of Filipinos. Today, I tell you: there is no better time to set up shop in the country,” Aquino said.
Aquino spoke of the country’s selling points, including its average 6.3 percent average GDP growth, credit ratings upgrade, and the quality of the Filipino workforce.
“Filipinos are young, trainable, and skilled; companies have entrusted them with producing quality products, from luxury bags, to electronics and automobiles, to the components of modern aircrafts,” Aquino said.
He also pointed out the Philippines’s acceptance into the European Union’s Generalized System of Preferences Plus (GSP+) that allows exporters to the EU to enjoy duty free access for certain products.
He also assured potential investors of efforts to ensure enough “diversified and reasonably-priced” power supply in the country, saying that 30 new power projects have gone online during his administration which added 1,097 megawatts to the power supply.
“Forty-eight more projects are set to go online between now and 2020, which will add a further 4,693.6 megawatts to our total dependable capacity of 15,665 megawatts. In sum, my administration’s contribution to our power supply will be at 5,790.6 megawatts. Compare this to the 21 power projects commissioned during my predecessor’s nine-and-a-half year term, which added only 1,667 megawatts,” Aquino said.
Aquino also cited that his administration has surpassed the number of PPP projects of the past three administrations, with nine solicited projects already awarded out.
Another one, he said, will be awarded “very, very soon, and 15 other projects in various stages of procurement and roll-out.”
He also enumerated efforts to “invest” and improve social services. Referring to the K-12 program, Aquino said that government is determined to meet the requirements of adding two years to basic education.
“Reforms in education have also been implemented, adding two years to our basic education cycle and bringing it to par with international standards. While these additional years will mean a vast increase in demand for textbooks, seats, and classrooms, through prudent fiscal management, the Philippine government has the wherewithal to meet these requirements,” Aquino said.
He also spoke of TESDA’s programs to provide students with the needed skills and boasted the high employment rate of TESDA graduates.
“Specifically for animation, for example, I am told that job placement has reached 85.9 percent,” he said.
'HIGH LEVEL OF INTEREST'
There is a “high level of interest” among Japanese investors to do business in the Philippines as organizers noted the high turnout of registrants who came to the forum.
About a thousand business executives came, according to Hiroyuki Ishige, chairman and CEO of the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), who noted the “remarkable” performance of the Philippine economy and the improvement in governance under the Aquino administration.
Philippine Ambassador to Japan Manuel Lopez noted an “overflow of registrants” in what he described as one of the largest Philippine investment forums in Japan.
“I hear that both for both yesterday and today’s forum, there was an overflow of registrants. If not for the limited confines of both venues, we would have easily shared this forum with over a thousand participants today, undeniably a testimony of how far Philippine-Japan relations have come, and evidence of how in the annals of our long and recent history, Philippine economic relations have transformed under the good governance and economic reform policy of (President Aquino),” Lopez said.
Japan was the Philippines’ top trading partner in 2014 with total trade reaching 19.11 billion dollars last year. Japan was also the top source of IPA- or Investment Promotion Agency-approved investments last year with total investments worth 0.8 billion dollars in 2014.
The forum was organized by JETRO, the Japan-Philippine Economic Cooperation Committee, the ASEAN-Japan Center, the Philippine Embassy and the Philippine Society of Japan with the help of the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, among others.

3 top trends in Philippine franchising

By Noel Siggaoat, Managing Director, Francorp Philippines

MANILA – At Francorp, we live and breathe franchises. Day in and day out, we help start-up and established businesses grow from one to many through franchising.
In the course of doing franchise consultancy work for close to twenty years now, Francorp has been at the forefront of the latest trends in franchising in the Philippines.
Below are the top three trends that will impact the Philippine franchise landscape in the next year or two, and beyond:
1) The boom in education franchises
Education franchises have been around for many years now but in the last year or so, we've seen an explosion of education businesses opening their doors to franchising. In this category are pre-schools, math programs (computational or analytical), reading enrichment programs, professional review schools, specialty skills schools, to name a few. The origins of these concepts are both foreign and homegrown.
The demand for education in all its forms is a good sign for a country like the Philippines as it gains momentum towards developed-country status in the next decade or so. Another explanation for the growth in schools is the growing number of parents who don't mind spending on development programs for their children, believing that these are complementary to formal education and will contribute to the child's overall development. Of course, the growing young population is an important driver of demand for this segment.
This increasing demand for education makes enterprising Filipinos go into the education business as start-up entrepreneurs or as franchisees. Brands such as the Canadian Tourism and Hospitality Institute (CTHI), Aloha Arithmetic, Readsmart Learning Center (formerly Infant Jesus Montessori), Explorations Pre-School, Mathemagis Singapore Math, and CMA Mental Arithmetic have all started to franchise.

2) Use of franchising to reduce distribution layers
The traditional franchisor is the retail store or restaurant owner who goes into franchising to increase his number of branches. We are seeing a new breed of franchisors: Original manufacturers or master distributors going into franchising to reduce their distribution layers.
The Generics Pharmacy is one of the first to adopt this strategy. Instead of staying with the traditional system of supplying to distributors, who then supply to other distributors, or to stores and retailers, many manufacturers and master distributors are reducing the distribution channel by putting up their own stores directly and making these available through franchising.
Instead of being at the mercy of third-party retailers at the end the channel, these brand owners or master suppliers are controlling their own destiny by specifying how the store will look, how the products are marketed, and even the price at which these products are sold to the end consumer.
By cutting out the middle man, brand owners are able to lower the retail price of their products. Additionally, they are able to increase margins for those that remain in the channel.
Aside from The Generics Pharmacy, Francorp has helped develop brands such as PR Gaz Haus, and Holcim Cement to grow through franchising.

3) More complex franchise formats
For many years, franchise formats in the Philippines were the garden-variety single unit franchise. As the franchise industry becomes more mature, more innovative and complex formats are being employed.
Franchisors are now looking to add multi-unit formats like area development franchises and master franchises to their offerings. Area development franchisees are wholesale multi-unit owners who are given exclusivity for a city or province. Master franchisees usually own the rights to an entire state or country and also have the option to sub-franchise to third-party investors. This is commonly used for international expansion.
Some franchisors are also offering conversion franchises, where independent store owners already in a similar business convert their stores and become part of the franchisor's brand and network. Some franchisors go into joint ventures with their franchisees and are part-owners of the franchise store. In this set-up, they earn as a franchisor and a franchisee at the same time. Some franchisors, on the other hand, intentionally look for passive franchisees who are only interested in putting up the capital for the franchise unit; the franchisor himself will manage the franchise for an additional fee.
As franchising continues to grow in the Philippines, we may see more of these newer and innovative formats to meet the needs, capabilities, and goals of franchisors and franchisees.
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Franchise Talk is a content partnership of ABS-CBNnews.com with Francorp Philippines. For more on master franchising & to meet foreign franchise brands, attend the How to Franchise Your Business Seminar on Jun 13 & 14 at Franchise Asia 2015 in SMX Convention Center Mall of Asia. For more information contact franchisetalk@francorp.com.ph or visitwww.francorp.com.ph for more information.
About the author: Noel Siggaoat is the Managing Director of Francorp Philippines. An MBA graduate of the Carnegie Mellon University of Pennsylvania and a Certified Franchise Executive (CFE), he heads the firm's consultancy practice. Noel has a diverse background in IT, finance, retailing, and franchising and has worked with companies here and abroad. He is a weekend athlete who has completed marathons, a half-Ironman, and other endurance events.

Philippines still studying whether to join China-led AIIB

by Willard Cheng, ABS-CBN News

TOKYO - President Benigno Aquino on Wednesday said the Philippines is still studying the proposal to join the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).

The AIIB is being proposed by China to provide funds for infrastructure projects in the region.

Answering a question at the International Conference on The Future of Asia organized by the Japanese media group Nikkei, Aquino said that it has to be determined if joining the AIIB would be beneficial for the country.

"We have not joined the AIIB. We have not indicated that we are ready to join also. We are actually… at the stage of studying the proposal to join this particular new entity," he said.

He recalled the country’s experience with a Chinese loan granted to the previous administration of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo for the Northrail project, which he said, was not helpful to the country.

In 2012, China decided to demand payment for the loan at the height of tensions between Manila and Beijing over territorial claims.

"We are unfortunately also possessor of an experience wherein there was a concessional loan allegedly granted to my predecessor, which once operational was neither concessional nor helpful to our country… As you know, a concessional loan will have grace period, will have probably a decade, or a decade and a half to two decades or more to repay. The drawdowns from this loans were demanded very, very early that potentially could have led us to a cross-default," Aquino said.

Aquino said the Philippines will look at the governance structure of AIIB to make sure the economic help it intends to provide will not be affected by politics.

“And I think it behooves our sense of fiscal responsibility to look at how the governance structure of the AIIB will be, so that the economic help that is supposed to be afforded will not be subjected to vagaries of politics between our countries and the lead proponent," he said.