Palace approves 25-year
extension of ICTSI contract
PRESIDENT Macapagal-Arroyo has signed the
new pact between the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) and
International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI) which
extends for another 25 years ICTSI’s cargo handling
contract at the Manila International Container Port (MICP).
“The PPA will reap huge benefits with the contract extension
and will be able to finance the development and expansion
of ports and terminals using even only the fees collected
from ICTSI,” PPA general manager Atty. Oscar Sevilla
said.
ICTSI’s contract with the PPA will expire in 2013 yet.
Under the extended contract, ICTSI is set to inject a substantial
amount in the next four years to further enhance its grip
on the increasing international containerized cargo market.
According to Sevilla, some of the conditions of the new contract
include ICTSI shouldering dredging at the port, extension
of the berthing area, and procurement of additional cargo
handling facilities.
ICTSI also agreed to pay the PPA higher fees from what it
is paying now, Sevilla said.
The bulk of PPA revenues comes from ICTSI and another cargo-handling
operator, Asian Terminals, Inc.
MICP handles the bulk of cargo in and out of the country.
However, for the past 14 months, the port has been experiencing
a downturn.
Latest data from the Philippine Ports Authority showed MICT
cargo volume dropped 3% in August compared to the figure posted
a year earlier.
Despite the fall, MICT is still optimistic of reaching its
growth target of 4.8% for the year as it expects cargo volumes
to rise in the run-up to Christmas.
“For the first half of the year, (volumes were) flat
but the figures are improving. I sure hope that we will hit
our target this year,” MICT general manager Capt. Francis
Andrews said in an earlier interview.
If MICT hits its target, this would be a record high for the
facility. Last year, it moved 1.2 million TEUs, the same as
in 2004.
MICT first hit the million-TEU mark in 2002, and has since
posted record cargo volumes, except last year when the volume
was flat.
ICTSI officials blame the general weakness of the economy
and political instability for the less-than desirable volume
performance.
UPS: Redistribution facility on hold
due to low volumes
UNITED Parcel Service (UPS) has deferred
the establishment of a redistribution facility in Luzon due
to low cargo volume to and from the area, UPS intra-Asia hub
manager Arturo Areola told PortCalls.
Last year, UPS planned to put up such a 1,500-square meter
facility to decongest its intra-Asia hub in Clarkfield, Pampanga.
Under the plan, cargoes to and from Luzon will be diverted
to the facility from its hub to accommodate more exports and
imports to and from Luzon.
Based on the original schedule, the facility should have been
up by now.
“Our plan has to wait a little further. But we are not
totally abandoning it and will immediately push for it once
there is enough traffic or if cargo volume in the hub overflowed,”
Areola said.
UPS sees another 30% growth in Philippine exports this year.
The same growth was posted in 2005.
Eyed for the redistribution facility are Rosales and Dagupan
in Pangasinan and Tarlac City to take advantage of the Subic-Clark-Tarlac
Expressway Project (SCTEP) that is set to be in full commercial
operations by 2008.
The SCTEP will link the growth centers of Region III to provide
easy access to the international container port facility in
Subic and the international cargo/passenger airport facility
in Clark to boost industrial activities that will spur growth
of Central Luzon. It will provide the shortest and direct
access to four ecozones in Luzon — Subic, Bataan Technopark,
Clark, and Hacienda Luisita Technopark.
Once complete, the P21 billion, 94-kilometer, four-lane road
is expected to decongest traffic at the North Luzon Expressway,
the McArthur Highway and the Pan-Philippine Highway as well
as serve as an alternate route to the Olongapo-Gapan-San Fernando
road.
In another development, some 300 Philippine-based UPS employees
recently trooped to Barangay Cauayan in Angeles, Pampanga
as part of the company’s fourth annual global volunteer
week.
UPS said its employees spend 100,000 hours doing volunteer
work in 50 countries undertaking community services such as
painting houses, landscaping and cleaning grounds.
The volunteer community service program this year includes
about 500 hours of coordinating baseball tourna-ments for
blind and visually impaired children in Taiwan, 2,000 hours
renovating schools and shelters in Germany, 6,500 hours across
the United States providing logistics support to raise funds
for breast cancer research, and 100 hours for sorting food
for food banks in Montreal, Canada.
DMAP member companies see earlier-than-expected
recovery
DISTRIBUTION managers expect full business
recovery from typhoon Milenyo a month earlier than projected.
“Business is recovering faster than projected. This
is a good development for our members as we are back on track
in hitting our full-year growth target,” said John Guillermo,
vice president of the Distribution Management Association
of the Philippines (DMAP).
Based on initial assessments, DMAP-member companies particularly
those engaged in the food sector are a month ahead of the
two-month expected recovery period.
Guillermo said majority of DMAP member-companies’ operations
in Southern Manila are almost back to normal. Only isolated
areas are without power in the Bicol region. Southern Manila
and the Bicol region were the two hardest hit when typhoon
Milenyo unleashed its fury last month leaving the two areas
without electricity for almost three weeks. The situation
forced businessmen to cancel orders.
Guillermo noted losses from sales are down to manageable levels
and not seen as seriously affecting business targets even
if recovery takes a bit longer.
DMAP member companies reported average daily loss sale of
up to 60 tons in the first three days after the typhoon left
the metro. The figure increased by up to 10% the following
week after the government failed to restore power immediately.
“With the earlier-than-projected recovery, DMAP operations
are so much better now. We expect more activity in the run-up
to Christmas,” Guillermo predicted.
Guillermo said they see better growth prospects toward year
end particularly if the current business climate holds, the
peso continues its rally against the dollar, and oil prices
continue to drop.
Aug
exports, imports register double-digit increases
TOTAL external trade in goods for January
to August in 2006 reached $64.816 billion, up 13.3% from $57.224
billion during the same period a year earlier. Total foreign-made
merchandise grew 10.2% to $33.858 billion from $30.737 billion.
Exports, on the other hand, rose 16.9% to $30.958 billion
from $26.487 billion of the previous year.
Aug imports up 15.3%
Total merchandise trade for August 2006 went up 18% to $9.15
billion from $7.752 billion during the same period last year.
Dollar-inflow generated by exports reached $4.265 billion,
or 21.4% higher than last year’s $3.513 billion. Expenditures
for imported goods also gained 15.3% to $4.886 billion from
$4.239 billion.
Electronics rule
Accounting for 44.6% of the aggregate import bill, payments
for electronic products amounted to $2.179 billion or a 12.9%
growth over last year’s figure of $1.930 billion. Compared
to the previous month’s level, purchases grew 11.6%
from $1.953 billion. Among the major groups of electronic
products. components/devices (semiconductors) got the biggest
share at 36.1% and recorded an increase of 16.7% to $1.765
billion from $1.512 billion during the same month in 2005.
Imports of mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials
in August ranked second with 19.3% share and posted an increase
of 41.8% to $944.16 million over the previous year’s
level of $665.72 million. The growth was due to the increase
in the expenditures on petroleum, gas and diesel oils.
Industrial machinery and equipment, accounting for a 3.6%
of the total imports, ranked third as foreign bill amounted
to $176.75 million, or a decline of 1.8% from $179.92 million
last year.
Transport equipment, contributing 3.5% to the total bill,
was the country’s fourth top import for the month with
payments placed at $172.1 million from last year’s $121.30
million or a year-on-year growth at 41.9%. The gain was mainly
brought about by the acquisition of airplanes and other aircraft,
and the rise in the value of imports on passenger cars, other
public transport type passenger motor vehicles, components,
parts and accessories of other motorcycles and airplanes/helicopters.
Iron and steel, comprising 2.2% of the total imports, registered
a $106.64 million worth of imports while cereals and cereal
preparations recorded a share of 2.1% or $103.99 million worth
of imports.
Rounding up the list of the top imports for August 2006 were
organic and inorganic chemicals, $95.79 million; textile yarn,
fabrics, made-up articles and related products, $90.23 million;
metalliferous ores and metal scraps, $85.91 million; and plastics
in primary and non-primary forms, $85.16 million.
Aggregate payment for the country’s top ten imports
for August 2006 reached $4.040 billion or 83% of the total
bill.
Payments in August for raw materials and intermediate goods
accounted for 40.2% as importation moved up 15% to $1.964
billion from last year’s figure of $1.708 billion. Semi-processed
raw materials got the biggest share of 36.7% and valued at
$1.793 billion.
Capital goods comprising 31.5% of the total imports, inched
up 6.5% year-on-year to $1.538 billion from $1.443 billion.
The major share went to telecommunication equipment and electrical
machinery with a 18.1% share of the total imports and billed
at $883.27 million.
Expenditures for mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials
grew 41.8% to $944.16 million from $665.72 million during
the same period of 2005.
Purchases of consumer goods amounted to $363.79 million, a
growth of 12.8% from $322.67 million in August 2005, while
special transactions dropped by 22.9% to $76.08 million from
$98.69 million.
Key markets
Imports from the US accounting for 15.3% of the total import
bill, dropped 5.2% to $747.71 million from $788.33 million
during the same period of 2005. Exports to the US amounted
to $808.54 million yielding a two-way trade value of $1.556
billion and a trade surplus for the Philippines placed at
$60.82 million.
Japan, the country’s second biggest source of imports
for August with a 12.1% share, reported shipments billed at
$591.98 million against exports earnings of $632.04 million.
Total trade amounted to $1.224 billion, with a trade surplus
registered at $40.06 million.
Saudi Arabia followed as the third biggest source of imports
with a 9.2% share, recorded payments worth $450.32 million
or a year-on-year growth of 33.2%. The growth was due to the
increase in the value of imports on petroleum oils. Revenue
from Philippine exports, on the other hand, reached $3.75
million resulting in a total trade value of $454.07 million
and a $446.57 million deficit for Philippines.
Other major sources of imports for the month of August were
Taiwan, $417.34 million; Singapore, $377.95 million; Republic
of Korea, $332.16 million; People’s Republic of China,
$309.38 million; Thailand, $209.32 million; Malaysia, $197.02
million; and Hong Kong, $174.24 million.
Payments for imports from the top ten sources for the month
amounted to $3.807 billion or 78% of the total.
