by Ferry Bayu | Aug 14, 2023 | Business
Most Grab drivers want to keep job after pandemic: ADB
MANILA — Around 90 percent of food delivery riders on Grab would like to continue working for the platform even after the COVID-19 pandemic, a study by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) showed.
“We asked our respondents, 12,000 of them, in Manila, Cebu, and Davao, and we asked them, were they willing to continue their work with Grab food delivery? More than 90 percent of them said that they would continue after the pandemic,” Takashi Yamano, principal economist at the ADB’s Economic Research and Development Impact Department, said on Monday.
Food deliveries proliferated in key Philippine cities during pandemic-induced lockdowns.
“So it was not one-time shift to this work, but they are intending to stay with the work. And I believe that this workforce will continue to expand,” Yamano said.
Yamano noted that Grab drivers enjoy having an independent working environment and a decent income from their job.
“Many drivers we talked to said they enjoy not having supervisors observing their work,” he noted.
“(They also have) decent earnings, so on average, workers earn about P5,700 per week. This adds up to average monthly wage of P23,000 with Grab… In their previous jobs they earned about P15,000,” he said.
Yamano stressed, however, that government must give gig economy workers, like food delivery riders, some sort of social protection.
“Although they are independent contractors, bringing them into the social economy, formal economy is very important… This is a new form of employment,” he added.
“There’s an advantage of this kind of contract, platformers contracting independent work. There’s benefits to it. So instead of restricting their work, maybe find a proper way of helping them,” he said.
by Ferry Bayu | Aug 14, 2023 | Business
Investors look to BSP buffer after anticlimactic economic growth
Stock market investors will be bracing for the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) next policy meeting on Thursday while digesting a steady stream of second quarter corporate earnings.
This comes as the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) continued its downtrend after the government released last week disappointing economic growth data for the second quarter. The PSEi lost 0.7 percent to 6,405.91 from the previous week.
Michael Ricafort, chief economist at the Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., said the PSEi was resting just above the major support zone of 6,400 to 6,250. He pegged the key resistance areas for the PSEi at 6,730 to 6,830.
The BSP Monetary Board will have several data points to consider in the upcoming interest rate setting meeting.
The chief consideration among these was the recent July inflation report showing inflation cooling for six straight months to 4.7 percent.
HSBC Asean economist Aris Dacanay maintained their expectation that the BSP would keep its policy rate stable at 6.25 percent on Aug. 17.
“Although [the second quarter Philippine economic] growth surprised to the downside, we think risks to the inflation and policy rate outlooks are to the upside,” Dacanay said.
“To some extent, growth cooling may also support macroeconomic stability and domestic balance … Although marginally improving, the national saving rate has not normalized to prepandemic levels while investment continues to be robust,” he said.
“This imbalance may then require a tight monetary stance to help rein in demand, incentivize saving and bring the domestic economy back to balance,” he added.
by Ferry Bayu | Aug 14, 2023 | Business
AnyMind Group releases Q2 2023 earnings
Company made an operating profit for the quarter and continued to see quarterly year-on-year growth across revenue, gross profit and adjusted EBITDA
AnyMind Group [TSE:5027], an end-to-end commerce enablement company, has today announced its financial results for the second quarter of fiscal year 2023. Please see below for some highlights pertaining to the company’s Q2 2023 earnings disclosure.
Further information can be found on the investor relations site (Q2 2023 earnings presentation; Q2 2023 financial report).
About AnyMind Group
Founded in April 2016, AnyMind Group [TSE:5027] is an end-to-end commerce enablement technology company with a purpose to make it exciting for everyone to do business. The company provides two broad offerings to brands and businesses, publishers and influencers: Brand Commerce and Partner Growth. Brand Commerce provides businesses with the company’s platforms for manufacturing, e-commerce enablement, marketing and logistics, whilst Partner Growth provides web and mobile app publishers along with influencers and content creators with platforms for monetization and optimization. Partner Growth customers can also tap on the company’s Brand Commerce offering. AnyMind Group has over 1,300 staff across 19 offices in 13 markets, including Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Mainland China, Japan, India and the United Arab Emirates.
Chris Lu
Regional Head, Communications
ch***@**********up.com
+65 6386 7368
by Ferry Bayu | Aug 13, 2023 | Business
Generali Philippines Announces new President and Chief Executive Officer
Generali Life Assurance Philippines, Inc. (Generali Philippines) is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Hak Hong Soo as President and Chief Executive Officer.
Edryan Lorenzo
+639164901076
ed****@************cy.com
by Penny Angeles-Tan | Aug 12, 2023 | Business
Allianz PNB Life, one of the leading life insurance companies in the Philippines, is excited to announce that RiteMED, one of the most trusted pharmaceutical companies in the Philippines, is its newest partner for Allianz Healthbox. This partnership further enhances the health and wellness offerings available to all Allianz PNB Life Health customers.
Present at the signing of partnership between Allianz PNB Life and RiteMed Philippines, Inc. from L-R: Leonardo Tan, Jr. (Chief Product Provider Officer, Allianz PNB Life), Joe Gross (President and Chief Executive Officer, Allianz PNB Life), Noel Herrera Lim (General Manager and Consumer Cluster Head, RiteMed Philippines Inc.), Lhea Laurel (Business Development Manager, RiteMed Philippines Inc.)
Allianz Healthbox is a one-stop shop for healthcare, lifestyle, and wellness needs. All Allianz PNB Life customers are entitled to exclusive perks from Allianz Healthbox partners. “Nowadays, people realize how important it is to take care of well-being. At Allianz PNB Life, we support our customers’ health journey beyond health protection products. Healthbox has been our means to provide extra care for clients through the benefits offered by our partner brands,” said Leonardo Tan Jr., Chief Product Provider Officer at Allianz PNB Life.
He added, “Our partnership with RiteMED provides customers convenient access to affordable maintenance medication. It boosts the value-added offerings of our over 50 partners who continue empowering our valued customers to safeguard physical health and peace of mind.”
Thanks to this partnership with RiteMED, Allianz PNB Life Health customers can now purchase from the RiteMED Tamang Alaga online store and enjoy a range of medicines, discounts and freebies.
Allianz Healthbox also offers well-known health and lifestyle leaders such as:
- Free Teleconsultation from KonsultaMD
- Free In-Clinic Consultation from MyHealth
- Free Gym Access from Anytime Fitness
- Free Mindfulness Meditation Workshop from Whitespace Wellness
- Free Eye Scan from Asian Eye Institute
You can also visit https://www.allianzpnblife.ph/healthbox.html to learn about Healthbox partners freebies and perks.
This partnership solidifies Allianz PNB Life’s commitment to prioritizing its customers’ overall health and well-being. As more partners join the Allianz Healthbox network, we are further strengthening our comprehensive healthcare solutions to cater to the diverse needs of our valued customers.
“At Allianz PNB Life, we go beyond health protection. Together with our Life Changers, we are here to support the customers in their health and wellness journey,” emphasized Christopher Cabognason, Chief Distribution Officer.
“That is why we offer innovative and customer-centric services that go beyond traditional insurance coverage. We believe in nurturing strong partnerships with other leading organizations in various industries to deliver value-added benefits and top-notch customer experience. Together, let’s safeguard your well-being and embrace a healthier future.”
Our dedicated Allianz Life Changers are available at our Life Track Stations at PNB branches nationwide, ready to help you identify the life and health protection you need. You can also visit https://www.allianzpnblife.ph/healthbox.html for more information.
by Ferry Bayu | Aug 11, 2023 | Business
Diokno rejects proposed luxury tax hike
MANILA — Department of Finance (DOF) Secretary Benjamin Diokno on Thursday nixed the idea of imposing higher tax on luxury items.
Luxury goods are currently subject to a 20 percent tax.
Responding to questions from Nueva Ecija Rep. Rosanna Ria Vergara during the opening of the 2024 budget deliberations at the House of Representatives, Diokno explained that it is hard to implement and easy to avoid.
“I was wondering, do you have anything on your table that propose like a proportional tax, a luxury tax, a wealth tax? Is that something you would consider?” Vergara asked.
Diokno said the agency had no such proposals.
“When you propose a tax, one nice property of a tax is it should give you a high yield and the administrative cost should be very minimal… For example, if you wanna tax diamond, you’re practically not going to collect anything because that’s easy to hide,” Diokno said.
“Sometimes when you also try to tax a luxury good, people will just go abroad and buy it there… Luxury tax is not part of our proposal at the moment,” he added.
Albay Rep. Joey Salceda earlier raised the possibility of raising tax on jewelry, perfumes, and yachts to 25 percent or 30 percent to increase government revenue.
Marcos earlier said the proposal was “reasonable.”
When asked if the government is considering non-regressive taxes, Diokno revealed they are reviewing the VAT because the government is only collecting less than half of what it is supposed to make from the VAT.
“[VAT here] is one of the highest in this part of the world yet its yield is very low, only 40 percent. We only collect 40 percent of what we’re supposed to collect so we are doing a study on the value added tax which is a nice tax to make it more effective and more high yielding,” Diokno said.
Diokno also defended the VAT in terms of being pro-poor.
“I think our value added tax is one of the best in terms of being pro-poor because we do not tax food in its original state, in other countries it’s also being taxed,” Diokno said.
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