by admin | Dec 13, 2017 | Business, Headlines
The Department of Trade and Industry through its Export Marketing Bureau sees solid growth for Philippine merchandise exports this year as it continues to expand by 11.68% with total sales of $53.11 billion for the period January-October 2017 compared to the same period last year with total $47.55 billion of export sales.
For ten straight months, the value of merchandise exports in the review period was shared almost evenly by electronics and non-electronics at 50.78% and 49.22%, respectively.
In a preliminary report from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), Year-On-Year (YOY) growth for October 2017 showed the country’s total export sales increased by 6.6% from $5.04 billion last year to $5.37 billion this year supported by the double-digit growths of six out of top ten major Philippine exports including fresh bananas.
Six gainers for October 2017 exports sales include gold (297%), electronic equipment and parts (43.3%), metal components (21.9%), fresh bananas (20.8%), other mineral products (19.6%), and electronic products (13.8%).
Receipts for top ten major exports for October 2017 reached $4.25 billion with a total share of 79.2% of the total export receipts. Electronic products led the top ten commodities with total export sales of $2.86 billion, accounting for 53.2% of the total exports revenue for the month of October 2017.
“Export sector is a big employment generator and we welcome these positive developments as this will translate to more job opportunities,” said DTI Undersecretary for Trade and Investments Promotion Group Nora K. Terrado.
Japan remains as the top export destination for October 2017 with total exports receipt of $871.36 million and a share of 16.2% in total exports.
“Japan is a significant trading partner for the Philippines. We are maximizing good relations that we have with them by introducing and increasing awareness of various design-driven products and services that we can export. We are also seeking new markets while we continue to expand our exports to existing trading partners. DTI continues to apply new approaches and strategies based on trends and changing consumer landscape,” explained Terrado.
Meanwhile, the leading destination of PH merchandise exports for the first ten months of the year was still the combined markets of PROC (China) and HK SAR (Hong Kong). Shipments to this combined markets, with a share of 24.31%, increased by 22.10% in value.
By regional bloc, East Asia remains the top regional export destination for Philippine merchandise exports comprising for 51% share in total exports sales while ASEAN ranked second with 16% share for the month of October 2017. Exports to European Union remain rosy with total sales of $677.94, an increase from $549.20 million in October 2016.
Recently, DTI unveiled the Inclusive Innovation Industrial Strategy or i3s that aims to grow and develop globally competitive and innovative industries. With this, DTI aims to increase production capacity of the country’s industries as well as introduce and develop innovative and creative products and services viable for exports.
by admin | Dec 7, 2017 | Business, DTI Updates, Headlines
MAKATI – The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) successfully conducted the Manufacturing Summit 2017 on 29 November 2017 at Fairmont Makati, bringing together more than 250 stakeholders from the private sector, industry associations, business chambers and stakeholders from the government and academic and research community.
Taking off from the 2016 Manufacturing Summit, which focused on “Trabaho at Negosyo” for inclusive growth, this year’s Summit highlighted the remarkable performance of the manufacturing industry, the accomplishment of DTI’s Manufacturing Resurgence Program, and the country’s new industrial policy dubbed as Inclusive Innovation Industrial Strategy (i3S).
The i3S aims to grow and develop globally competitive and innovative industries with innovation at the front and center of industrial policies and programs supported by pillars consisting of building new industries, clusters, and agglomeration. These will also ensure Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise (MSME) growth and development, human resource development, and improving ease of doing business and the business environment.
“With intense competition due to rising globalization, regional economic integration, and disruptive technologies, innovation is crucial for the inclusive and sustainable growth of the economy, particularly manufacturing,” said Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez.
“Our vision is for the Philippines to have creative and connected communities of different stakeholders like innovators, start-ups, SMEs, and large enterprises that will collaborate to produce new products and services,” Sec. Lopez said.
Moving forward, the Trade Chief indicated that DTI will focus on three major strategic actions: establish i3 zones or parks without walls, where universities and industrial hubs could work together and collaborate on innovation initiatives; using fiscal and non-fiscal support to promote local manufacturing of key products that are heavily imported like pharmaceutical products or medical devices; and continue the collaboration with industry, academe, other government agencies and stakeholders in building the inclusive innovation ecosystem.
To encourage more investments and change in mindset, i3S would provide incentives on R&D and innovation, as well as tax deductions on trainings and workers’ skills upgrading. There will also be business matching, exhibits, and trade fairs.
Sec. Lopez shared that the establishment of domestic ecozones is vital in building industry clusters that can provide a fertile environment for innovation and inter-firm cooperation leading to competitiveness improvements. Incentives to be provided in domestic ecozones will be rationalized, with applicable domestic taxes like value added and excise will be paid by locators just like other companies located outside domestic ecozones.
“DTI will continue to fine tune the i3S, refine it to fully embed and integrate innovation, and ensure that new technologies can be applied to reduce poverty and promote shared prosperity for all,” Sec. Lopez declared.
by admin | Dec 6, 2017 | Business, Headlines
MAKATI – The Philippines (PH) continues to receive business intentions and expansion projects from large companies based in China (CN).
In a recent meeting between Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez and Handi Group President Hanling Wu, they discussed possibility of investments of the company in a petroleum refining and petrochemical manufacturing facility in the country.
“We welcome business intentions to strengthen our petrochemical industry, which the government actively supports. They expressed strong confidence on the business environment stability during the Duterte administration,” said Sec. Lopez.
Handi Group is one of the largest and advanced private specialty oil producers in China. The conglomerate is based in Hainan Province and engages in multiple industries, including oil refinery, chemical industry, trading, investment, and financing.
The group, through its subsidiaries Hainan Handi Sunshine Petrochemical Co., Ltd. (HDS), Hainan Handi Petrochemical Co., Ltd. (HDP), Handi Lubricant Technology (China) Co., Ltd., Handi Sunshine Trading Co., Ltd., and Handi Investment, has established a full scale and long-term strategic cooperation with large international energy companies such as ExxonMobil, Total, Chevron, and BASF.
Sec. Lopez opened the discussion of putting up a facility in Mindanao, which will be suitable for the company’s power, land, and accessibility requirements.
Mr. Wu conveyed the need of Handi Group for a pool of technical staff, specifically engineers, from PH and the availability of talents in Mindanao.
“There are a lot of universities in Mindanao that produce quality graduates and professionals in the field of engineering. We have good universities present in all parts of PH,” the Sec Lopez said.
by admin | Dec 4, 2017 | Business, National News
In partnership with the Department of Trade and Industry, Rustan’s Supercenter Inc opens its first Go Lokal! Store in Shopwise Araneta Center today,December 4, 2017 at 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm.
Go Lokal! is a retail concept store initiated by the DTI in collaboration with selected retail partners to showcase Philippine products of quality and unique designs, crafted and manufactured by the country’s MSMEs.
The Go Lokal!@ShopwiseAraneta will feature new blends and tastes of food products of selected Go Lokal! suppliers from various parts of the country in support of Shopwise’s “Flavor of the Philippines, a showcase of familiar native delicacies from the islands of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.
More Go Lokal! store outlets @Rustan’sMakati, @SMKultura Makati, @Glorietta2, @Robinson’sPlaceManila, @CityMalls nationwide, @EnchantedKingdom and the GoLokal!ConceptStore@DTI located at the groundfloor of the Trade and Industry Bldg., 361 Sen. Gil Puyat Avenue, Makati City.
by admin | Nov 29, 2017 | Business, National News
MANILA – Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) financing and guarantee attached corporation, Small Business Corporation (SBCorp) attached micro-finance will be offering zero percent interest loans to help the constituents of Lanao del Sur, specifically Marawi micro entrepreneurs displaced by the war, starting early December 2017 up to April 2018 as part of government rehabilitation efforts of Marawi City.
“The recent events in Marawi raised the need to generate several programs that will aide in the rehabilitation of Marawi and the full assistance to affected residents. In support of government-wide efforts to help the people of Marawi, we will be working closely with our Maranao countrymen to ensure they have access to the needed funds to get their businesses back on their feet,” said Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez.
After the interest free loan, we shall extend the Pondo sa Pagbabago at Pag-asesnso (P3) Program which is also the Microfinance program implemented by the SBCorp. This will be complemented by starter livelihood kits being distributed by the DTI.
For Micro Finance Institutions (MFIs) that want to start lending to the Lanao del Sur area in solidarity with the people of Marawi and the entire province, the P3 Program will provide credit risk support to MFIs in exchange for their timely and quick response. A DTI-SBCorp team has been assigned at DTI-Marawi to set up the P3 facility, which will also be supported by DTI-Cagayan de Oro.
To date, SBCorp—with the support of the DTI regional and provincial offices—has accredited a total of 94 MFIs, plus another 45 MFIs in the pipeline. Moreover, the P3 Program is now rolled out throughout the entire country from north to south except for a handful of provinces, with close to 40,000 borrowers to date.
Most of the MFIs that have signed up are cooperatives, i.e. self-help people’s organizations that have a good grasp of the needs of their members to grow their businesses. Likewise, several large MFIs—including the Center for Agriculture and Rural Development (CARD)—have aired their support to the program for its timely scale up even in remote areas of the country.
“We laud SBCorp’s untiring efforts to link up with finance institutions across the country to ensure conduits are in place for the P3 Program. We have the funds, and we now have the channels to help our MSMEs expand their businesses,” said Sec. Lopez
For 2018, the government will add another Php1.0 billion to the P3 fund to support more micro enterprises in growing their small business.
The SBCorp will be accrediting least five local MFIs per province in the coming years to ensure that micro enterprises will have easy and reliable access to reasonably-priced credit within their own locality, with a total of 400 grassroots conduits targeted. The agency will also support these MFIs by way of capacity-building training.
Through the P3 program, the government hopes to encourage communities to organize themselves into cooperatives or other self-help units engaged in entrepreneurship.
DTI also opened the invitation to the rural banking sector to support the P3 Program, given the more than 2,000 branches nationwide that are mostly rural-based. These make the small banks a potent force for scaling up the P3 Program and for improving the fund-channeling system so that the fund reaches micro enterprises in a timely and judicious manner.
Launched last April 2017, the P3 Program supports micro entrepreneurs across the country with an initial funding of Php850 million via lower cost loans. The program is intended to help those people involved in micro enterprises and who are vulnerable to usurious lenders in the absence of an alternative source.
Under the program, a micro enterprise can borrow between Php5,000 up to Php100,000 depending on its business need and repayment capacity. Interest rate and service fees do not exceed 2.5 percent monthly as compared to the 20 percent monthly rate under the 5/6 system. Documentation is simplified and processing time is also reasonable.
Among those helped by the P3 Program were Rose Marie Obena of Tacloban City, Leyte and Hercolano Villasin of Calubian, Leyte. Obena was the sole survivor among her family after Typhoon Yolanda, and was among the first batch of market vendors that accessed a P3 loan to expand her store. The 78-year old Villasin, on the other hand, accessed the P3 Program through the Fatima Multi-Purpose Cooperative (FATIMA MPC) to support his dried fish business, which he had been doing since he was in his teens.
“Through the P3, our poor sectors can find relief from overly expensive borrowings as they pursue their livelihood activities,” the trade chief said.
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.
