by admin | Nov 27, 2017 | Headlines, Photo Story
In photo: Los Angeles Consul General Adelio Angelito S. Cruz (2nd row; 9th from left), Philippine Franchise Association (PFA) Vice Chairman Bing Sibal-Limjoco (1st row; 5th from left), PFA Executive Director Chit Estrada (2nd row; leftmost), Philippine Trade and Investment Center (PTIC)-Los Angeles Trade Commissioner Celynne Layug (1st row; 3rd from left), and members of the Filipino community in Los Angeles.
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), through the Philippine Trade and Investment Center (PTIC) – Los Angeles, conducted a Franchising Seminar on 16 November 2017 with the Philippine Franchise Association (PFA) and the Philippine Consulate General – Los Angeles. The event was attended by 40 participants composed of Fil-Am community, businessmen, and media.
Ms. Bing Sibal-Limjoco, Vice-Chairman of PFA and CEO of Francorp Philippines gave an overview of Philippine franchising and discussed the trends, opportunities, and advantages of franchising.
Franchising is one of the platforms for fostering the culture of entrepreneurship in the Philippines and one of the ways to support MSME policy. The PFA has seen the benefits of offering franchising as a strategy to grow one’s business and for those interested in doing business through franchising. It is notable that Philippine brands have likewise established their operations in foreign markets such as the US. Apart from prominent Philippine franchise brands, franchise startups such as Belgian Waffle have started to penetrate the US market with its first franchise store opening in San Diego, California, USA.
by admin | Nov 24, 2017 | Business, National News, Negosyo Center Updates
24 November 2017, Manila – The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) teams up with listed property developer DoubleDragon Properties Inc. in the development of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the provinces through the Go Lokal stores. Under the partnership, DoubleDragon will operate and manage Go Lokal stores in all CityMalls branches.
Go Lokal!@CityMall will be launched nationwide tomorrow, November 25, 2017 in CityMall Imus, Cavite. Registration starts at 11:00 am.
Visit Go Lokal! Store outlets @SMKultura Makati, @Rustan’sMakati, @Glorietta@, @Robinson’sPlaceManila, @EnchantedKingdom and @GoLokal!ConceptStore@DTI located at the Groundfloor, Trade and Industry Bldg., 361 Sen. Gil Puyat Avenue, Makati City.
by admin | Nov 21, 2017 | National News
Manila – Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte and Chinese Premiere Li Keqiang witnessed (15 November 2017) the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) of the Philippines (PH) and the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) of the People’s Republic of China (PROC) during the sidelines of the visit of the Chinese Head of Government to the Philippines.
DTI Secretary Ramon Lopez and MOFCOM Vice-Minister Fu Ziying signed the MOU on joint cooperation on Industrial Parks Development, which would expand opportunities for bilateral trade and economic cooperation.
“The MOU sets the tone in creating a program that will facilitate a seamless investment guide for Chinese investors in PH industrial parks,” said Sec. Lopez.
Sec. Lopez further shared that the MOU provides provisions on undertaking business matching activities to facilitate possible partnership and collaboration between PH and PROC enterprises.
“This joint cooperation will strengthen economic ties between the two countries by enhancing the Philippines’ manufacturing competence and diversifying China’s investments in the Philippines,” said the trade chief.
Chinese investors have earlier visited possible locations in Luzon and Mindanao for industrial park development, as a response to earlier commitments of China to President Duterte to expand opportunities in the Philippines.
Meanwhile, the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) of the Philippines and the State Intellectual Property on Cooperation of China also signed a MOU in protecting, utilizing, managing, and enforcing intellectual property through joint cooperation. The MOU was signed by IPO Director General Josephine Santiago and National Development Reform Commission (NDRC) Vice Chairman Zhang Yong.
Twelve other agreements were signed during the event, including cooperation on youth, infrastructure development, climate change, defense industry, and investment and production, among others.
“The signing of these documents reflects the commitment of Philippines and China towards mutually beneficial cooperation, as well as the resolve of the administration of President Duterte to strengthen further the renewed ties of friendship with China, our Asian neighbor,” he concluded.
by admin | Nov 21, 2017 | DTI Updates, Headlines
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) issued a revised Department Administrative Order (DAO) on cement importation to ensure consumer protection through compliance on quality standard procedure. This allows pre-shipment test in select and accredited testing centers from the country of origin to facilitate ease and fast importation process, while ensuring standard compliance.
“The pre-shipment testing will avoid delays in import supply which augment the cement requirement for the ongoing infrastructure projects. However, there will still be local verification tests, including sampling prior to its release to the market,” said DTI Secretary Ramon Lopez.
In the revised DAO, the distinction between the regular trader importers from integrated cement producer (ICP) importers was removed and both are now subject to the same import procedures including the option to do pre-shipment testing.
“We are also helping the importers avoid unnecessary freight through the pre-shipment test. Right at the country of origin, they will be informed if their products will be acceptable or not in the Philippines (PH),” the trade chief added.
The local verification test or the post-shipment test will confirm the compliance to the standards of the products. Importers whose shipments passed the pre-test but would fail the local verification test will be disqualified from doing pre-shipment testing in the future. Likewise, the foreign testing center from the country of origin involved in the approval of the products will be blacklisted.
“These amendments will ensure that quality cements get into the PH market and support quality infrastructure development under the Build Build Build program,” Sec. Lopez concluded.
by admin | Nov 20, 2017 | Photo Story
PH welcomes leading Japanese confectionery manufacturers. The Philippines, through the Department of Trade and Industry’s Foreign Trade Service Corps (DTI-FTSC), welcomed 19 confectionary manufacturers from Kansai Kashi Kogyo Cooperative Association, led by its President Mr. Fujisawa Hajime, President of Nobel Confectionery Co., Ltd. (1st row; 5th from left), through a briefing held last 16 November at Dusit Thani Manila in Makati City. In her welcome remarks, DTI Industry Development and Trade Policy Group Assistant Secretary Rafaelita M. Aldaba (1st row, 4th from left) introduced DTI’s Inclusive Innovation Industrial Strategy or i3S, which aims to develop globally competitive and innovative industries to sustain the country’s high growth trajectory with innovation at its core. Agribusiness and processed food are among the 12 priority industries identified under the i3S. Mr. Nobuyuki Nakajima, Deputy Executive Director of Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) Manila (1st row, 3rd from left), and Mr. Kawamura Tomotaka, Project Manager of Sojitz Philippines Corporation (1st row, 6th from left), also shared their valuable experience in doing business in the Philippines from a Japanese perspective. The event was concluded by a business networking session attended by members of the Philippine Confectionery, Biscuit and Snack Association (PCBSA), led by its President, Mr. Kissinger Sy (1st row, 1st from left). The Philippine confectionary industry grew by 2.6% in 2016, with revenues amounting to USD 670.10 million
