Coaches laud stunning Filipino win

http://www.affsuzukicup.com/_webapp_739177/Coaches_laud_stunning_Filipino_win

JAKARTA: The after-effects of the Philippines' stunning 2-0 win over defending champions Vietnam on Sunday are not being felt only in Hanoi. On Monday, the shock result was also a hot topic for officials and journalists gathered in Indonesia for the Group A matches in the AFF Suzuki Cup.

The Filipinos have been one of the tournament's traditional whipping boys and they hold the record for the tournament's heaviest defeat, a 13-1 thrashing by Indonesia in 2002. But having drawn 1-1 with three-time champions Singapore in their tournament opener, they now stand on the brink of the semi-finals after a resolute performance against the Vietnamese.

The general consensus in Jakarta was that their win against the Vietnamese was not undeserved.

Said Thailand coach Brian Robson: "I went to the tournament where the Philippines and Laos qualified for the finals and I was that you can't underestimate any of those teams because they were well organised and they have had very good preparations where they've been together for three to four months.

"When teams are organised, you can't dismiss them and the Philippines showed that last night in their victory against Vietnam."

Having seen his side pegged back to a 2-2 draw by the Philippines in the qualifiers, after holding a two-goal lead, Laos coach David Booth was not surprised by the result.

"I thought that the Philippines were absolutely terrific and I thought that their discipline was absolutely superb," the Englishman said.

For Indonesia coach Wolfgang Pikal, the result is yet another indication that the level of Filipino football is now very close to the top teams in the region.

"I think that the gap is very close," the Austrian said. "The Philippines played very well last night. They have a lot of players playing abroad and they did their homework. I think they're doing a good job because a few years ago, everyone was expecting them to be beaten easily."

And Malaysia coach K. Rajagobal believes that the result is a positive development for the regional football tournament.

"You see that things have turned around in Asean football and I'm not surprised with the result," he said. "The Philippines have got some good players from abroad in their side, just like Singapore, and they are now a very competitive team. Their win yesterday has boosted their standing and they are serious contenders to reach the semi-finals.

"You definitely cannot take any of teams in this tournament lightly anymore. That's good because it make things much more exciting for everyone.

Historic victory leaves McMenemy bewildered

Full article here: http://www.affsuzukicup.com/_webapp_735740/Historic_victory_leaves_McMenemy_bewildered

Hanoi: Philippines coach Simon McMenemy was in a state of disbelief after seeing his team hand defending champions Vietnam a stunning 2-0 defeat in Group B of the AFF Suzuki Cup on Sunday evening at the My Dinh Stadium.

Chris Greatwich and Phil Younghusband scored the goals as the Philippines claimed their greatest win in recent history and remarkably moved to the top of the group standings ahead of Singapore on goal difference.

"I'm pinching myself, I'm not sure we have done what we have done," said McMenemy. "I keep thinking I'll wake up in bed in the Sheraton hotel and we'll still have the game to play.

"We knew we could defend, we knew we were disciplined enough but we didn't know if we could go up the other end and score goals. We knew that would be our issue so we worked hard in training on simple things like converting breakaways when we are on the run."

McMenemy hailed his team's performance but admitted to being bewildered by the result.

"I came in here the other day and said I was proud of my boys, but I don't know how we've done that," he said.

"That was an incredible feat considering they are the Philippines and where they have come from. To go and turnover a powerhouse like Vietnam is incredible.

"We rode our luck throughout the game but I said to the guys at halftime: 'You have to keep putting yourself in a position for good things to happen to you and you have to keep working hard'.

"If you keep working hard the luckier you get. We had three chances and scored twice. This won't sink in for quite a while."

Vietnam coach Henrique Calisto was angered by the nature of the Philippines' win and was heavily critical of the style of play used by the Filipinos.

"Football is not this, football is not putting eight players in front of the area with no offensive system," said the Portuguese coach. "They were fighting and I respect the players but if you think this is football then you are wrong.

Philippines 2 Vietnam 0: Vietnam humbled by resolute Philippines

http://www.affsuzukicup.com/CustomContentRetrieve.aspx?ID=735734

Hanoi: The Philippines recorded the biggest upset in the history of the AFF Suzuki Cup on Sunday evening as Simon McMenemy's side handed defending champions Vietnam a 2-0 defeat in their Group B encounter at My Dinh Stadium.

Chris Greatwich and Phil Younghusband scored a goal in each half to give the unfancied Filipinos the greatest result in the country's recent history and leave them on the verge of qualifying for the semifinals for the first time.

The win follows fast on the heels of a 1-1 draw with Singapore in their opening game and moves the Philippines to the top of the standings with one round of matches remaining.

After a tame start it was the Philippines who went closest to opening the scoring when, the 18th minute, the Vietnamese defence failed to clear Phil Younghusband's corner and the ball fell at the feet of Ian Araneta, but his shot was only good enough to clip the outside of the post.

That scare woke the home side out of their early slumbers but, fortunately for the Filipinos, goalkeeper Neil Etheridge was on hand to keep out Pham Thanh Luong's effort a minute later.

An elementary error by the Fulham goalkeeper, however, almost resulted in disaster for the Philippines moments later when Etheridge handled the ball outside his penalty area and, from the resulting free kick, Nguyen Minh Phuong curled a free kick around the defensive wall that went just wide of goal.

With seven minutes remaining in the half, the Philippines stunned the Vietnamese when Anton del Rosario crossed for Greatwich to claim his second goal of the tournament, a diving header that was somehow miss-read by Duong Hong Son.

Vietnam could find no way through the well-drilled Philippine defence throughout the rest of the half and, as the second period began, Henrique Calisto's team became increasingly desperate.

Nguyen Vu Phuong shot just wide from the edge of the area in the 56th minute while Rob Gier deflected Nguyen Anh Duc's effort wide four minutes later. Substitute Nguyen Trong Hoang, meanwhile, forced a fine save from the imposing Etheridge just two minutes after his introduction.

But, with 11 minutes remaining, the Philippines managed to put the result beyond doubt when, with Vietnam committing men forward, Phil Younghusband led a break that resulted in the former Chelsea trainee stepping inside the home defence and curling a low shot beyond Hong Son.

The goal silenced the 40,000 capacity crowd at My Dinh and, as supporters poured out of the stands and into the streets Pham Thanh Luong hit the woodwork as Vietnam's desperation continued right until the final whistle.

Philippines' BPO industry seen growing to US$25 billion by 2015

Manila Bulletin
http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/290651/philippines-bpo-industry-seen-growing-us25-billion-2015

MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) - The Philippines is seen to maintain its position as one of the world's top outsourcing destination, generating an annual revenue of 25 billion U.S. dollars by 2015.

The global business process outsourcing (BPO) revenues meanwhile is expected to reach 250 billion U.S. dollars in 2015 from just 150 billion U.S. dollars this year, data from the Business Processing Association of the Philippines' (BPAP) showed.

"More companies are expected to sub-contract service to companies in the Philippines as a way to cut costs," BPAP said.

The country's BPO industry is seen to end the year with 9 billion U.S. dollars in total revenue. The BPO industry is currently one of the major sources of growth of the Philippine economy.

BPAP said the Philippines is expected to maintain its market share of around 10 percent, despite emerging competitors like Vietnam and other countries in South America also joining the race for more clients.

"The country's BPO industry currently employs around 600,000 people. We want that to grow to around 1.3 million workers in the next five years," Danilo Reyes, BPAP director, said in a statement.

He said much of the growth will still come from call centers, which currently make up bulk of the local BPO sector. The Philippines recently displaced India as the world's leader in call centers.

No to reproductive health; yes to reproductive wealth

By Willy E. Arcilla
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 21:57:00 11/25/2010
http://business.inquirer.net/money/topstories/view/20101125-305314/No-to-reproductive-health-yes-to-reproductive-wealth

MANILA, Philippines—The Philippine economy is booming—GDP growth rate is accelerating while inflation remains benign. The stock market is on a bull run and the real-estate sector is soaring. OFW remittances, BPO and export revenues are reaching record heights. Unemployment is falling as the job market grows and employee compensation rises.

Interest rates remain low, encouraging investments in high-potential industries like real estate and tourism, manufacturing and BPO, agriculture and mining. The consensus of local businessmen and economists, foreign investors and MNCs is the future is very bright. Based on the latest independent surveys, even the percentage of people claiming hunger and poverty is retreating—all these positive news despite the absence of a Reproductive Health (RH) bill.

Should we not all pause and reflect if the RH bill will help rather than hurt the country?

Let us learn from the errors of the Western countries saddled by aging and shrinking populations, and closer home, even from Asian economic tigers that have regretted their aggressive population-control policy, which are now scrambling to correct their impending crisis of depopulation—Japan and Korea, China and Taiwan, Thailand and Singapore.

No less than US past president Bill Clinton found himself an unlikely spokesman for the anti-RH bill advocates when he categorically admonished political and business leaders at a recent visit to Manila, “You have a large and young population that is a boon.”

A country’s people can be harnessed to become its strongest asset and greatest wealth—both as a market base and a labor force. This is evident in the four BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China), touted as emerging dynamos not only because of their high growth rates but their absolute size and strength, in which population is a vital ingredient. These four countries alone combine for 2.9 billion people, 48 percent of the world’s population. Even the 10-member Asean’s attractiveness lies not just in being a low-cost production hub, but also in becoming a potentially lucrative market of over 600 million consumers.

Let us not allow the RH bill to distract and divide us. Rather, let us unite and focus on realizing the long-delayed Philippine economic miracle. Let us undertake a structural transformation in our economy, starting with revitalizing agriculture and fisheries to attain self-sufficiency in food production and drive high-value agricultural exports; investing massively in infrastructure; reviving industry to provide gainful employment and export world-class quality products instead of world-class Filipino talent (whom we should safeguard as our competitive advantage in the global economy); promoting the country as an investment haven and a tourism destination. All this will help transform the economy from an over-reliance on OFW remittances and consumption spending so that our people may grow in productivity as workers and in affluence as consumers.

Let us learn from host countries and foreign employers of 11 million overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and emigrants, who have discovered that Filipino workers are of world-class caliber, but paid in Third World wages in their home country—and rewarded them financially more than we have.

I dread to imagine how our Almighty God and heavenly Father will punish our leaders and our people not just for our collective greed and lust, but our ingratitude for the blessings of a nascent Philippine economic miracle if we insist on legalizing a contraceptive mentality (“more people=more poverty”), and sex without consequence.

Instead of sex education, let us promote “love education”; a culture of life, not a culture of death. Instead of reproductive health, let us promote what I would call “reproductive wealth,” as practiced by the early Christian communities when the faithful worked according to their ability, and consumed only according to their need. “Reproductive wealth” that begets more wealth calls for the rich helping the poor and the poor helping themselves. Once the millions of poor Filipinos can reach middle-income status through better compensation such as profit-sharing, then rich Filipinos can become even richer.

When companies practice profit-sharing, the nation’s 38 million employees will feel more empowered by a real sense of ownership. Workers who are part-owners are more productive. They will drive revenues, cut costs and conserve cash without being told. Such companies will expand further, create more jobs and, collectively, help the country achieve economic growth that will be faster, more inclusive and therefore sustainable.

Here lies the secret to eliminating poverty and corruption. P-Noy (Aquino) says, “Pag walang corrupt, walang mahirap.” The RH bill implies, “Pag walang tao, walang mahirap.” But the truth is the poor do not need more sex and artificial contraception. Rather, they need better-paying work. The rich need to give the poor not more condoms, but more rewards for work to motivate their performance. As someone once said, “We need to put a condom on greed.” Given a chance to reach middle-income status, the poor will not find time to get drunk or gamble, nor enough energy for irresponsible sex. No to Reproductive Health. Yes to Reproductive Wealth. “Pag walang suwapang, walang mahirap.”

(The author is president of Business Mentors Inc. Feedback at willyarcilla@yahoo.com.)

Economic vitality list ranks Manila in top 10 worldwide

JJAC
BusinessWorld
http://www.bworld.com.ph/main/content.php?id=22169

METRO MANILA is among the top 10 metropolitan areas worldwide with the best economic performance following the global recession, a ranking issued by the public policy group The Brookings Institution showed.

Brookings, in collaboration with the London School of Economics and Political Science and Deutsche Bank Research, last Tuesday released its "Global MetroMonitor" report measuring the economic vitality of 150 areas in terms of income and employment.

Metropolitan economies -- defined as integrated collections of cities, suburbs and even surrounding rural areas that are "centers of high-value economic activity in their respective nations and worldwide" -- were ranked in three periods: pre-recession (1993-2007), recession/year of minimum growth (2007-2010) and recovery (2009-2010).

Manila, which placed 34th pre-recession, rose to 24th during the downturn and improved further to 9th during the recovery, the Brookings list showed.

Pre-recession, incomes in the metropolis were up an annual 3.4% while employment rose by 2.6%. At the height of crisis, incomes dipped by 0.9% while employment growth eased to 1.0%. Post-crisis, Metro Manilans’ incomes were said to be up 5.3% and employment, 4.0%.

"The global downturn and recovery are accelerating a shift in growth towards lower-income metropolitan areas in Asia and Latin America," the report stated.

The recovery period ranking was led by Istanbul, followed by Shenzhen, Lima, Singapore, Santiago, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Beijing, Manila and Rio de Janeiro.

The bottom ten, meanwhile, was comprised of Athens, Madrid, Johannesburg, Riga, Valencia, Las Vegas, Thessaloniki, Barcelona, Dubai and Dublin.

Dublin, in particular, highlighted how the "Great Recession" had affected economies. From sixth in the pre-recession period it was now in last place.

"The past two decades have seen lower-income metro areas in the global East and South ‘close the gap’ with higher-income metros in Europe and the United States, and the worldwide economic upheaval has only accelerated the shift in growth toward metros in those rising regions of the world," Brookings said.

As lower-income metro areas are expected to post faster growth, the report said policy makers should brace for increased demand from a growing middle class.

Growing demand, it added, will also put pressure on public services and living environments.
Brookings explained that it was "concerned with the dynamics of metropolitan economies and how they compare in terms of their growth performance and potential rather than their absolute economic performance levels."

Sought for comment, National Economic and Development Authority Deputy Director-General Augusto B. Santos said Manila’s inclusion reflected the resilience of the Philippine economy and the effect of fiscal and monetary stimulus provided by the government.

"We are not as dependent in exports compared to Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan," he claimed.

He added about a fourth the country’s total gross domestic product was attributable to Metro Manila. -- JJAC

Philippine paper money is reliable

John Mangun
Outside the Box
Business Mirror
http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/home/opinion/4430-philippine-paper-money-is-reliable

If you have been reading this column long enough, then you are aware of the problems associated with “paper” money, fiat currency backed with nothing of intrinsic value. The French historian and philosopher Voltaire wrote, “Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value—zero.” Friedrich A. Hayek, an Austrian economist said, “Practically all governments of history have used their exclusive power to issue money to defraud and plunder the people.”

However, paper money is a great economic invention. When the supply of currency in circulation is properly managed by a central bank, paper money is a very efficient and effective method of storing wealth and for using as a medium of exchange.

Paper money in circulation is like the lubricating oil in your car’s engine. If there is too little, the system seizes up and will not run. If there is too much, the system becomes overloaded and does not run well. The secret to managing the money supply is to make sure there is just the right amount. Too much money and there will be inflation because of the imbalance between the “value” of the money and the goods the money purchases.

If there is too small an amount in circulation, then the paper money competes with other commodities for value. For example, for many years after the Vietnam War, the US dollar was really the medium of exchange because the Vietnamese government oversupplied the economy with local currency, the dong. Because there was too many dong, that paper money lost value. However, the supply of dollars was constant and held value. Over time though, the amount of dollars in physical circulation became scare. Physical dollars became more and more valuable, creating price inflation for the goods the dollars bought.

It is not only the amount of paper money in the economic system that is important but what that paper money is being used for.

What is happening in the US now, for example, is that the Federal Reserve is printing trillions of dollars that is not being used for economic activity but is being used to pay for more government debt. That is not healthy for an economy.

One of the duties of a nation’s central bank is to keep the money supply in balance with the nation’s economic growth, even to anticipate future growth so as to not have too much or too little money in circulation.

Perhaps the best accomplishment of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) through the years has been the management of the money supply. The Philippine money supply has been allowed to expand during periods of strong economic growth and contract when too much paper money in circulation would have been harmful. At the time when the economy really started booming during the presidency of Fidel Ramos, the Philippines’ money supply grew by as much as 25 percent in a year. This is a huge increase that by conventional wisdom would have been crazy. But the economy needed that extra money then and it utilized all those additional pesos in circulation very well.

This year, the BSP is allowing the amount of currency in circulation to grow by about 8-9 percent.

As long as the money is being put to good use and, therefore, inflation is low, the BSP can properly put more and more money in the economic system to help grow economic activity.

Because of what has happened in the global economies, not only during the last two years but for the last two decades, we think of prices bubbles as bad. There is nothing necessarily wrong with price bubbles that pop as long as the increase in price is not based on buying through debt, with borrowed money.

The thing that killed the US stock market in the 1990s and the US housing market most recently is the prices that were artificially high because people used borrowed money. When the borrowing stops and prices go down, the loans still have to be repaid.

Look at the local stock market. After a two-year period of booming stock prices, suddenly this month prices have fallen significantly. Granted, if you invest in the local market, you may have lost money. Get a new stock market adviser because other investors got out weeks ago, now sitting with very large profits.

Yet because the rising stock prices that put the market at an historic high was paid for with cash not credit, we will see stock prices shoot up again very shortly.

More important, though, the way the economy handles cash-based price bubbles is an important indicator of the health of the economic system.

Billions of cash in pesos have been pulled from the stock market in the last weeks. What we have witnessed is how efficiently the economy has handled this excess liquid cash. While the stock market has been drained of large amounts of liquid cash, the government debt market has absorbed a portion of it. The benchmark 91-day Treasury-bills reached an historic low interest rate of 0.775 percent or 67.5 basis points lower than the previous record low of 1.48 percent last November 15, while the yield on the 182-day debt dropped by 33.3 basis points to a new low of 1.650 percent from 1.985 percent. Money easily went from one financial vehicle to another without any disruption to the economy.

Part of this is because these investments are cash, not debt based, and is easily transferable, and part of it is because the BSP has the right amount of paper money in the economic system.

The BSP has maintained prudent and sensible money supply policies through the years and the net result is that the Philippine Peso is reliable and credible paper currency.



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