URGENT! PHIL. ECONOMIC BRIEFING IN CDO ON MARCH 23 AT MALLBERRY

We are pleased to invite you to the Philippine Economic Briefing on 23 March 2011, Wednesday from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon at the Platinum Ballroom, Mallberry Suites, Cagayan De Oro City. Registration for the event will start at 8:00 a.m.

The Briefing entitled “Daylight in the Philippines: Accelerating Progress” will be conducted by the Secretaries of the Department of Finance, Department of Budget and Management, Department of Trade and Industry, and the Director-General of the National Economic and Development Authority and the Deputy Governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. The briefing will focus on the economic performance in 2010 and the prospects and policy directions for 2011.

For confirmation, you may contact telephone numbers (088) 8591426 / 3016 or email at orochamber@gmail.com.

Very truly yours,

SGD.

ANTONIO D. UY

President, OROCHAMBER

Morning Brief: 21 March 2011

Japan crisis may curb PH growth in 2011 MANILA, Philippines—The government will review its growth forecast of 7 to 8 percent for the year as the disaster in Japan, a major export market and source of OFW remittances, could impact on the ability of the Philippines to hit the bullish projection. According to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the crisis in Japan could have dampening effects on the growth of its own economy and those of its neighbors and the world over the short term. “The short-term effects of the events in Japan may be somewhat negative,” BSP Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said. He stressed, however, that any adverse economic impact would be short-lived given aggressive efforts to rehabilitate Japan. While there was a probability that the Philippines’ growth target for 2011 might be missed because of the crisis in Japan, Tetangco said robust growth rates could still be accomplished after this year. “The medium- to long-term scenario is still positive due to ongoing rebuilding and reconstruction efforts in Japan,” Tetangco said. He said the Philippines could not remain unharmed by the disaster that struck one of the world’s biggest economies given the trade, both in terms of merchandise and labor, relationship between the two countries. Latest government documents showed that in January, goods exported by Filipinos to Japan were valued at $566 million, accounting for 14 percent of total export income of the Philippines for the month. Japan also serves as second home to many overseas Filipino workers. Remittances sent to the Philippines by Filipinos based in Japan amounted to $72.66 million in January, nearly 5 percent of the $1.48-billion total for the month. Prior to the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan and the ensuing nuclear disaster, the Philippine government had been optimistic that the 2011 growth forecast would be attainable. Economic managers of the Aquino administration had said that favorable factors, including potentially higher investments in infrastructure, would propel the country to post yet another robust rate of expansion this year.

Investors set to look overseas [this] week www.cnnmoney.com NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Once again, investors will focus their attention abroad this week on the crises in Libya and Japan. Stocks took a beating last week as the tragic Japanese earthquake quickly became a potential nuclear catastrophe, sending investors fleeing into safer investments. The Dow fell 1.5% last week while the S&P 500 fell 1.9% and Nasdaq composite dropped 2.7%. The uncertainty surrounding Japan's currency and the possibility of more supply shortages for companies led worried investors to pull out of stocks. Last week General Motors said it would shut down production at one Louisiana plant due to the earthquake. On Friday, world leaders from the Group of 7 leading economies orchestrated a Japanese yen intervention. "This market has been so dominated by Japan, it's hard to see anything outside of that influencing investors at the moment," said Bill Stone, chief investment strategist with PNC Financial. Developments in Libya will also play a big role in the markets this week. On Saturday a coalition of United States, United Kingdon and French forces launched air strikes against Gadhafi forces to protect Libyan civilians. But in a televised speech, Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi remained defiant and referred to the allied military as "terrorists." On Friday stocks rose in part because Gadhafi had announced a cease-fire with rebels which failed to materialize. Additionally oil pricesdeclined on that news. The upcoming week's economic agenda is thin, with only a few notable reports like durable goods and initial jobless claims out later in the week. U.S. corporate earnings will once again be in focus for investors. Companies scheduled to report next week range from electronics retailer Best Buy to smartphone maker Research in Motion and software giant Oracle. Jack Ablin, chief investment officer for Harris Private Bank, said he's looking forward to seeing Best Buy's results because of its exposure to changes in U.S. consumer behavior. "The biggest mystery right now is how U.S. consumers are responding to higher gas prices," Ablin said. "Best Buy is a good company to watch to get a feel if consumers are cutting back." On the Docket: Monday: Luxury company Tiffany & Co. (TIF) will report its results before the opening bell. The jewelry company, famous for its blue boxes, is expected to post a profit of $1.39 a share, up from $1.09 a share last year. The National Association of Realtors will release its February existing home sales data at 10 a.m. ET. Economists on average expect existing home sales will fall to 5.05 million annualized units for February compared with January's 5.36 million units. Japanese markets will be closed on Monday in observance of a national holiday. Tuesday: Retailers Dollar General (DG, Fortune 500), Express (EXPR) and Walgreen (WAG, Fortune 500) will issue their results before the bell. Also reporting Tuesday is cruise line operator Carnival (CCL) and investment bank Jefferies (JEF). After the closing bell, investors will get results from software maker Adobe Systems (ADBE) and credit card company Discover (DIS,Fortune 500). There is no major economic data out on Tuesday. Wednesday: Cereal maker General Mills (GIS, Fortune 500) will report its results before the bell. Analysts expect General Mills to have a profit of 56 cents a share Investors will get February new home sales figures from the Census Bureau at 10 a.m. ET. Economists are looking for 288,000 annualized units for February, up slightly from 284,000 units in January. Thursday: Analysts expect the Best Buy (BBY, Fortune 500) to earn $1.85 a share for its first quarter, according to Briefing.com. Other names reporting before the opening bell include video game retailer GameStop (GME, Fortune 500), homebuilder Lennar (LEN) and food processor ConAgra (CAG, Fortune 500). After the bell, software giant Oracle (ORCL, Fortune 500) and smartphone maker Research in Motion (RIMM) will post their results. Analysts expect RIMM to earn $1.75 a share while Oracle is expected to earn 49 cents a share. The bulk of potentially market-moving economic data will be out on Thursday. The Labor Department will release its weekly jobless claims report while the Commerce Department will issue its February durable goods report at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists on average expect durable good orders rose 0.9% in February compared with the 3.2% rise posted in January. Initial jobless claims are expected to remain roughly unchanged at 384,000 claims. Friday: Homebuilder KBHome (KBH) is scheduled to report before the opening bell. Wall Street will get the third and final reading of fourth-quarter U.S. gross domestic product. It's not expected to change much, with economists looking for 4Q GDP to be increased 0.1 percentage points to 2.9%. Also out Friday is the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment survey for March. The market expects a reading of 68.0.

Oil Rises After U.S., U.K., France Begin Military Strikes Against Qaddafi Oil climbed in New York after the U.S., U.K. and France launched cruise missiles and airstrikes at targets in Libya as escalating violence curtails crude supplies from the North African nation. Futures advanced as much as 2.1 percent after Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi vowed to repel allied forces pounding military installations. Output has fallen to less than 400,000 barrels a day, about a quarter of the production before the crisis, and may stop, Shokri Ghanem, chairman of Libya’s National Oil Co., said on March 19. The country produced 1.59 million barrels a day in January, according to estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Crude oil for April delivery gained as much as $2.12 to $103.19 a barrel, in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, and was at $102.97 at 9:12 a.m. Sydney time. The contract, which expires tomorrow, dropped 35 cents to $101.07 on March 18. The more-actively traded May contract rose $2.14 to $103.99. A no-fly zone is now in place over Libya, Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, said yesterday. The coalition ordered Qaddafi to withdraw his forces from major cities after weeks of fighting with rebels that has left hundreds dead in the bloodiest of popular uprisings to have swept the Middle East this year. Brent crude oil for May settlement increased $2.04, or 1.8 percent, to $115.97 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. The contract fell 97 cents, or 0.8 percent, to end the session at $113.93 a barrel on March 18.

Sources: Bloomberg, Reuters, www.inquirer.net, www.philstar.com, www.bworldonline.com, www.cnnmoney.com

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