PSB: No SEC certificate, no accreditation for forwarders
THE Philippine Shippers' Bureau (PSB) is implementing a policy
of "no SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) certification, no accreditation"
among freight forwarders.
The move ensures forwarders comply with the new P4 million paid-up capitalization
requirement in the forwarding industry.
The SEC certification will be the basis for PSB to issue accreditation papers,
provisional or otherwise, regardless of whether there are documentary requirements
lacking in the application, according to PSB executive director Atty. Pedro Vicente
Mendoza.
"As long as freight forwarders have a certification from the SEC showing that they have
complied or have started to comply with the new cap requirement, PSB will immediately
issue their reaccreditation," Mendoza told PortCalls.
"We will not entertain any renewal application without the SEC certification as PSB is
enforcing am 'SEC first' compliance procedure to reduce paper work and facilitate
accreditation in PSB," he added.
"The new condition has already been put in place since 2006 and forwarders have no
reason to delay their conformity with the new policy as they have been given ample time
to comply," Mendoza said.
He added the PSB will continue rejecting applications for reaccreditation and advised
forwarders to secure the SEC clearance first before filing applications with PSB to save
on time.
PSB accreditation is needed by freight forwarding firms to continue transacting with the
Bureau of Customs.
Striking a compromise
Freight forwarders are seeking an audience with the PSB to strike a compromise agreement
on the new accreditation process.
The Philippine International Seafreight Forwarders Association and the Alliance of
Concerned Freight Forwarders said while they believe the accreditation difficulties
are just birth pains, a dialogue between all concerned parties would enhance procedures.
In January 2006, PSB increased the capitalization requirement for the freight forwarding
business to eliminate fly-by-night companies. The agency also collapsed the five industry
categories to three, namely non-vessel operating common carriers (NVOCC), international
freight forwarder and domestic freight forwarder (DFF).
Early last year, the PSB deferred implementation of the new capital requirement - but only
for new freight forwarders - to January 2008 instead of January 2007 to accommodate the request of
small forwarders.
Existing non-vessel operating common carriers have until January 2, 2009 to comply although they
should have complied with 50% of the new capital rule by January 3, 2008 and the remaining 50% a year
later.
Existing DFFs have until January 2, 2009 to comply with the new capital ruling. For new DFFs, the PSB
jacked up capital requirements to P1 million from P250,000, effective January 3, 2008.
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Third-party accreditation of importers to start soon
NEXT month, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) will begin outsourcing
accreditation and evaluation of importers.
Three firms - SGS, Dun and Bradstreet and Intertek -
are being eyed for the service but other companies are still welcome to apply.
"Once implemented, we expect to reduce smuggling in the country significantly and
increase revenue collection by some 5-10% or about P25 billion," Customs commissioner
Napoleon Morales said.
"The good thing here is that this will come at no added cost on the part of the government
as importers seeking accreditation will be the ones to pay," Morales said.
The BOC has formed a committee led by deputy commissioner Atty. Reynaldo Nicolas
to craft the program's terms of reference (TOR).
Nicolas said his group will release the TOR in the next few days for subsequent publication in two weeks.
The price to be charged importers will be the deciding factor for which companies will be accredited, Nicolas noted.
According to the program, the third-party service providers will conduct background checks, verification and audits to
ensure only legitimate importers are accredited.
The firms will also provide services such as consultancy, monitoring, inspection
and reporting including photo documentation for industry, financial institutions,
trade companies and those who need independent third-party service to secure the
correctness of transactions.
SGS is the world's leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company.
It is recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity, and employs over
50,000 people and operates a network of more than 1,000 offices and laboratories around the world.
Intertek is also a leading provider of quality and safety solutions serving a wide range of industries around the world.
It offers auditing and inspection, testing, quality assurance and certification services.
Dun and Bradstreet is a global provider of company credit reports and profiles, including risk evaluation reports and sales and marketing solutions.
At present, customs personnel conduct inspection on importers seeking BOC accreditation.
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CCBI unhappy with declarant provision of RKC
THE Chamber of Customs Brokers, Inc. (CCBI) is pushing for the country's immediate
accession to the Revised Kyoto Convention (RKC) even if it sees a possible problem
area involving the "declarant" provision of the RKC.
In a position paper submitted to the latest hearing of the Senate's Foreign Affairs
Committee, CCBI president Roland Quiambao said RKC ratification will facilitate the
transaction of the trading community with the Bureau of Customs (BOC) primarily due
to the maximum use of information technology in customs administration.
He added the use of pre-arrival information and other risk management protocols as well
as more transparent and easy access of customs rules and regulation will boost the movement
of goods in and out of the country.
"However, CCBI has reservations over some provisions of the RKC, particularly Chapter 3.6 and
3.7 of the convention, that deals with qualifications and entitlements of a person acting as
'declarant' due to its conflict with Republic Act 9280 or the Customs Brokers Act of 2004 that
has been crafted taking into account the existing Philippine conditions," Quiambao explained.
"The said legislation has eliminated the pernicious practice under Section 1301 of the Tariff and
Customs code of the Philippines of allowing attorneys-in-fact as 'declarants' without any professional
pre-qualification and accountability," Quiambao said.
"Thus, this position to ratify without amendment to RA 9280 will spawn the re-birth of 'declarant'-fixers
at the BOC," Quiambao added.
Chapter 3.6 of the RKC provides for the national legislation specifying the conditions under which a person
is entitled to act as "declarants" while Chapter 3.7 entitles any person to act as "declarant" as long as
they have the right to dispose of the goods.
RA 9280, meanwhile, defines "declarant" as a customs broker who passed the licensure examination for
customs brokers conducted by the Professional Regulation Commission; importers and exporters doing
business as natural persons or under sole proprietorship; and judicial exporters belonging to priority
export industries as defined by the Export Development Council in line with the Philippine Export
Development Plan.
There are moves in both Houses of Congress to amend RA 9280 to align its provisions with the RKC.
Hearings are, however, at a virtual standstill, with the issue having been superseded by different
events despite being certified urgent by the Office of the President.
Among the benefits of accession to RKC are cost effectivity and efficiency both for the BOC and the shippers;
trade facilitation through information technology; harmonized customs procedures, reduced time and cost,
increased transparency and predictability in Customs transactions, and elimination of discretionary
treatment and application of rules; special procedures for low-risk importers; and reduced opportunities
for extortion.
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TNT keeps Subic, Clark on its radar
TNT Express is looking at expanding its Philippine operations in two
of the country's top ecozones-Subic Bay and Clark.
TNT said the eventual pullout of the Asia-Pacific hub of competitor
Federal Express from Subic is an opportunity to corner a modest percentage
of the express market in the area.
FedEx will transfer its Asia-Pacific hub to China by year-end. And so will UPS,
which currently maintains its Asia-Pacific hub in Clarkfield. UPS announced this
week that it will relocate to Shenzhen to benefit from the city's booming economy
and significantly reduce transit times across the Asia region.
TNT is the only express firm operating in the county without a presence in Subic and Clark.
"We are seriously looking at Subic and Clark for our future expansion. However, we do not see
it happening in the near-term due to lack of volume in the area," TNT Express new country manager
Cetin Yalcin said in an interview.
"Nonetheless, we are keeping Subic and Clark in our radar as it really has huge potentials," Yalcin added.
"In the meantime, we will concentrate on our area of interest to corner a huge share in
the expected boom in shipments of electronics, garments and textiles," Yalcin said.
TNT is looking at a 20% growth in electronics shipments and a 16% increase in garments shipments.
It is also looking at penetrating the machinery industry, fresh tuna exports, pharmaceutical business,
secure transport issues for electronics, and high-tech shipments for added revenue and volume growth
this year.
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UPS to fly out of Clark in 2010
ANOTHER express operator is moving its operations from the country and relocating to China.
United Parcel Services (UPS), which maintains an Asia-Pacific hub in Clarkfield, Pampanga, has
announced it is relocating to Shenzhen, China to benefit from the city's booming economy and
to provide customers with significant time-in-transit and cost advantages.
UPS will leave Clark in 2010, but will continue to operate two aircraft out of nine from
the Philippine facility. Workforce will slowly be cut in the next two years.
The pullout is the second after Memphis-based Federal Express decided to relocate
from Subic Bay to China at the end of the year due to Subic's inability to accommodate larger aircraft.
UPS is investing close to $180 million for its new China hub for completion in 2010.
"We want to be where our customers need us most. Since we began flying directly to China
in 2001, we have watched this region grow exponentially not only from a small package
perspective but also in heavy air freight," UPS senior vice president for South Asia
Pacific Andy Connelly said.
China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan account for more than half of UPS'
total intra-Asia volume.
"Given the growth in shipping along southern China it makes sense to sort and dispatch
this volume from a hub closer to our customers," he said, adding that UPS intends to build
a new sorting hub in Shenzhen with five times the capacity of the existing hub.
UPS will base the new intra-Asia hub at the Shenzhen Airport in Southern China, near Hong Kong.
The hub will slash at least a day off shipment times-in-transit for Asian customers while offering
a new level of service to the manufacturing region in Guangdong province.
The facility is expected to cover about 89,000 square meters and will include an express customs
handling unit, sorting facilities, cargo handling and cargo build-up areas and ramp handling
operations.
It will be capable of processing up to 18,000 pieces per hour initially, expandable to a
capacity of 36,000 pieces per hour. About 400 people will be employed.
To further complement its China operations, UPS last year forged an agreement
with the Shanghai Airport Group to establish the UPS International Air Hub at
Pudong International Airport in Shanghai that will connect to the UPS global air network,
including US and European destinations as well as to all major Asian points.
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Aboitiz Transport to hike freight, passage rates
ABOITIZ Transport System (ATS) may be jacking up by 10% to 20% passage and freight
rates as early as next month due to the continuing spike in fuel prices.
"The fuel issue is really affecting everyone. Everything now is really going up,"
ATS chief executive officer Enrique Aboitiz said at the sidelines of the company's
annual stockholders meeting last week.
"This (rate increase) will be on top of the
existing surcharges we are enforcing, which we are also considering hiking up," he said.
The company has taken several measures to save on energy cost - from vessel speed reduction
to changing the type of fuel used by its fleet.
It is also continually converting unutilized passage space to freight, a move that has boosted
freight capacity by 9% and revenues by 6% last year.
Oil prices were at the $135/barrel level over the weekend.
Oil firms operating in the Philippines have said they will continue implementing a weekly hike
in pump prices in the next two months. The price of diesel, the most commonly used fuel by
sea-going vessels, is widely expected to reach P50 per liter before yearend from the present P43.
Zero oil import tariff
Meanwhile, the government has scrapped the levy on all oil imports from 1% to zero to cushion the
impact of the rising fuel cost on the country, a net importer of oil.
Last year, ATS registered total consolidated revenues of P11.1 billion,
an improvement versus the P10.6 billion posted in 2006.
Net income attributable to equity holders of parent of P420
million in 2007 increased 113% compared to the P197 million posted in 2006.
The company said it is gearing toward becoming a logistics and supply chain company
that has increasing control of its network. Next month, it will buy a supply chain
company to complement its operations.
ATS' supply chain business increased 123% last year, significantly contributing to revenues.
ATS is setting aside about P850 million this year to finance expenditures. Of the amount, P480
million will be used by ATS, P100 million by its express group including the value-added service
providers, and P260 million by subsidiary Supercat.
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Damco opens Singapore hub
DAMCO, the freight forwarding arm of the A.P. Moeller-Maersk Group,
has established an intra-Asia hub in Singapore to cut cost and transit time.
In a statement, Damco Asia-Pacific head Jens Wessel said the decision is based
on growing demand for LCL services from its customers. "With the new service,
frequency of sailings will increase on average from one per week, per destination
to two or three sailings per week, per destination for most destinations," Wessel
said, adding there is also likely to be up to seven times as many sailings destination
choices as there was previously.
The hub offers services from 80 countries of origin worldwide, to more than 288
destinations throughout Asia. The main origin countries are the US and Europe.
The LCL cargo is then collected at the hub in Singapore before being routed to
final destinations throughout the intra-Asia region.
"Singapore offers key advantages from a connectivity and productivity standpoint.
With the number of vessel calls and operators in Singapore, as well as its strategic
location, Singapore offers multiple weekly sailings to most intra-Asia destinations,
providing maximum flexibility and the lowest transit time for our customers," Anders
Johansen, Regional Ocean Freight Manager for Damco, said.
Damco said it is carrier-neutral and flexible, having access to a network
of all major ocean carriers and airlines, in addition to a host of local
service providers such as trucking and customs house brokers.
Damco was born from the merger of Dutch freight forwarding company
Damco Sea & Air and the forwarding activities of Denmark-based DSL Star Express.
Established in 1988, Damco Sea & Air was P&O Nedlloyd's forwarding arm.
In 2005, the A.P. Moller - Maersk Group acquired Damco Sea & Air in connection
with the acquisition of P&O Nedlloyd.
Since 2001, Maersk Logistics has been providing ocean freight forwarding services,
in addition to its supply chain management services, under the name DSL Star Express.
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