Scheduled Power Interruption on Sunday, August 14, 2011

CAGAYAN ELECTRIC POWER & LIGHT CO., INC

Important Notice to CEPALCO Customers

Subject: Scheduled Power Interruption on Sunday, August 14, 2011

The Cagayan Electric Power & Light Co., Inc. (CEPALCO) would like to inform all customers that power supply will be interrupted on AUGUST 14, 2011 as shown below:

Reasons:	FACILITATE 69KV LINE RE-STRUCTURING AT LIMKETKAI GATEWAY TOWER OVERPASS AT CM RECTO AVENUE. CEPALCO WILL ALSO CONDUCT LINE MAINTENANCE WORKS ALONG OSMEÑA EXTENSION AREA.
Date:	Sunday, August 14, 2011
A. Interruption Time:	6:00 AM – 6:00 PM (12 hours)
Affected Areas:	69-KV CUSTOMERS: 1.      Gaisano City, Recto Ave. 2.     Limketkai Mall, Lapasan 3.     Limketkai Plant, Puntod CAMAMAN-AN FEEDER #4 (34.5-KV): 1. Along Osmeña Extension from corner CM Recto towards Gaabucayan St.
B. Interruption Time:	6:00 AM – 8:00 AM (2 hours); switching works 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM (2 hours); switching works
Affected Areas:	PUEBLO FEEDER #2: 1.      Portion of Upper Carmen, Upper Balulang and all of Brgy. Lumbia including; PNR Sawmill, Shop and transmitter; Pueblo de Oro, Camella Homes, Xavier Estates, Xavier Heights, Xavier High School, La Buena Vida, Frontiera and Montana subdivisions; CAA-BAT Lumbia Airport & Rio Verde
C. Interruption Time:	6:00 AM – 7:00 AM (1 hour); switching works 5:30 PM – 6:30 PM (1 hour); switching works
Affected Areas:	CARMEN FEEDER #3: 1.     Portions of Carmen: along vicinities of Villarin St. towards portion of Canitoan-Pagatpat Road; including St. Mary’s Academy (formerly Cathedral School of Technology), Golden Village, City Hospital-DOH Area, COWD reservoir and Seriña St. from Villarin St. down to Madonna and Child Hospital. 2.     M. Suniel St. from Villarin St. down towards portion of Mabolo St.; including Matilde Neri St., Dabatian St. and Cagayan de Oro College area; and; portion of Lirio St. area. 3.     Portions of Upper Carmen towards Dagong including SM CITY; PRYCE HOTEL; SPUM & SEARSOLIN.

Power will however be restored immediately without further notice when line works are completed earlier than scheduled.

We hope the affected customers and the public in general

will be guided by this announcement. Thank you.

Released by:

Ms. Marilyn A. Chavez Senior Manager Customer & Community Relations Dept.

Morning Brief: 9 August 2011

T-bill rates fall across the board  Treasury bill rates fell across the board at Monday’s auction as the global uncertainty created by the downgrade of the US credit rating prompted fund holders to invest in short-term and perceivably risk-free assets like government securities. Yield of the bellwether 91-day bills fell 23.3 basis points to 2.073 percent. Volume of bids reached P9.62 billion compared with the P2 billion that the government was selling. The Bureau of the Treasury’s auction committee accepted only P2 billion worth of bids for the three-month securities, saying it did not see any need to raise more than originally programmed. “The drop in the rates was a market reaction to what has happened to the US. Investors want to go for short-term and risk-free assets like T-bills,” Deputy Treasurer Eduardo Mendiola said. Yield of the 182-day bills dropped 53.4 basis points to 2.25 percent. Bids for the six-month bills amounted to P11.08 billion, more than three times the P3 billion offered for sale. The auction committee accepted P3 billion worth of bids. The rate for the 364-day bills settled at 2.75 percent, down 48.6 basis points. The one-year government securities attracted P13.77 billion worth of bids compared with the P4 billion on offer. The auction committee raised the full amount on schedule. “Investors want to park money in T-bills than in other instruments. They wanted to buy more [T-bills], but there is no need for us to raise more,” Mendiola said.—Michelle V. Remo Sale of RTBs in Q4 eyed The government is considering selling another P35 billion to P40 billion worth of Retail Treasury Bonds (RTBs) in the fourth quarter to meet expected additional demand from individual investors. Deputy Treasurer Eduardo Mendiola on Monday said this, noting that the move was also aimed at encouraging more Filipinos to invest. Unlike regular treasury bonds, RTBs require a minimum investment of only P5,000, making them affordable to a greater number of individual investors. “We are considering P35 billion to P40 billion,” Mendiola told reporters Monday after the auction for Treasury bills. The amount will be on top of the P103 billion worth of RTBs that the government sold in February this year, which had tenors of 5 and 10 years. The 5-year bonds fetched a rate of 6 percent, while that on the 10-year debt paper was higher 7.375 percent. Mendiola said the RTB issuance, if this would be pursued, would likely be held in October or November. The sale of RTBs in the domestic market is consistent with the government’s aim of gradually shifting its borrowing requirements from foreign currency-denominated obligations to peso-denominated instruments. Finance officials said raising more funds via sale of peso-denominated instruments would help reduce the country’s exposure to foreign exchange risk. Funds raised by the government from bond sale, such as RTBs, are meant to help plug the government’s budget deficit and pay maturing obligations. For this year, the government set a budget deficit ceiling of P300 billion, lower than the actual gap of P314 billion last year. Finance officials said the actual deficit for this year could be much lower than the P300-billion ceiling, noting the relatively small budget gap posted as of the first half. Data from the Department of Finance showed that the deficit in January to June amounted to only P17.23 billion, significantly lower than P152.13 billion programmed for the period. The government aims to reduce the deficit over the medium term in the hope of improving the country’s credit-worthiness.—Michelle V. Remo

S&P 500 Extends Worst Slump Since 2008 Bear Market on Downgrade  U.S. stocks tumbled, dragging benchmark indexes to their biggest slump since December 2008, amid concern that a downgrade of the nation’s credit rating by Standard & Poor’s may worsen an economic slowdown. All stocks in the S&P 500 Index (SPX) retreated for the first time since at least 1996 as the index’s 10 main groups fell more than 5.3 percent. Bank of America Corp. (BAC) tumbled 20 percent to lead financial shares in the S&P 500 down 10 percent, the most since April 2009. Ford Motor Co. (F) and Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) slumped at least 8.3 percent, pacing losses in stocks most-tied to the economy. Chevron Corp. (CVX) dropped 7.5 percent as oil slid. The S&P 500 retreated 6.7 percent to 1,119.46 at 4 p.m. in New York. The gauge slumped 11 percent in three days, the most since November 2008, and fell to the lowest since September. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 634.76 points, or 5.6 percent, to 10,809.85 today. About 18 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges at 4:52 p.m., the fifth-highest volume since mid-2008, Bloomberg data show. Treasuries rose. “There’s no reason to get in front of this train,” Keith Wirtz, Cincinnati-based chief investment officer at Fifth Third Asset Management, which oversees $16.7 billion, said in a telephone interview. “Yes, there’s cheapness in the stock market, but right now emotions are high. There’s enough uncertainty out there. People are moving towards no risk. That includes Treasuries, which is ironic.” Bernanke May Move to Lift Confidence on Concern U.S. Heading for Recession Federal Reserve officials tomorrow may move to bolster investor confidence after an unprecedented downgrade to America’s credit rating and concern the U.S. may be headed for a recession sent global share prices tumbling. Chairman Ben S. Bernanke and his colleagues may prolong a pledge to maintain record monetary stimulus, said economists at JPMorgan Chase & Co., BNP Paribas and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. The Fed could do so by making a commitment to hold its $2.87 trillion balance sheet steady for an “extended period.” The Fed also may replace shorter-term securities with longer maturities to reduce rates on longer-term debt. “Those steps are all about bolstering confidence,” said Michael Feroli, chief U.S. economist at JPMorgan Chase in New York and a former Fed economist. “It wouldn’t do tons to alter economic and financial conditions, but the perception that the Fed will act and do something is reassuring.” The drop in global stocks, further fueled by concerns over Europe’s debt crisis, adds to pressure on the Fed, which is confronting a slowing U.S. economy and unemployment stuck above 9 percent. Policy makers plan to hold a one-day meeting tomorrow and release a statement at around 2:15 p.m. “The mounting worries threaten to tip an already fragile recovery into recession,” said Julia Coronado, chief economist for North American for BNP Paribas in New York.

Crude Declines for Second Day on U.S. Rating Downgrade, Rising Stockpiles  Oil declined for a second day in New York as the U.S. credit rating cut and rising stockpiles stoked concern an economic slowdown will worsen and reduce fuel demand in the world’s biggest crude consumer. Futures slipped as much as 1.3 percent today, dropping from the lowest settlement in more than eight months. U.S. equities slumped the most since December 2008 yesterday, following Standard & Poor’s Aug. 5 downgrade of the U.S. credit rating. An Energy Department report tomorrow may show crude inventories climbed for a third week. “This is a blow to the market psyche and confidence going forward,” said John Kilduff, a partner at Again Capital LLC, a New York-based hedge fund that focuses on energy. “The pressure is going to remain on prices until we see some sign that things are improving.” Crude for September delivery decreased as much as $1.06 to $80.25 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was at $80.79 at 9:22 a.m. Sydney time. The contract yesterday tumbled $5.57 to $81.31, the lowest since Nov. 23. Prices are down 15 percent in August and 12 percent lower in 2011. Brent oil for September settlement decreased $5.63, or 5.2 percent, to $103.74 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange yesterday. The European benchmark contract settled at a $22.43 premium to U.S. futures, compared with the record close of $22.67 on Aug. 2.

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

BDO UNIBANK INC. 

Jonathan Ravelas

Chief Market Strategist

(632) 858-3145

Rhys Cruz

Junior Researcher 

(632) 858-3001 

VISA REISSUANCE PROGRAM (VRP)

VISA REISSUANCE PROGRAM (VRP)

As of July 25, 2011, some visa applicants may be eligible for an appointment through the U.S. Embassy in Manila's Visa Reissuance Program (VRP). If qualified for a VRP appointment, applicants need only to schedule an appointment, appear at the Embassy at the appointed time, and then have the application screened and give 10-print fingerscans. No need for an interview, and appointments are available within a few days! To qualify for the VRP, you must be able to answer "yes" to all of the following:

1. I am a Philippines passport holder.

2. I have previously been issued, in Manila, a full-validity visa (a visa good for five or ten years).

3. My visa is still valid... or it has expired within the last twelve months.

4. I have in my possession all of my passports covering the entire period of time since I received that full-validity visa.

5. I have not been refused a U.S. visa in the last twelve months.

6. My visa is not annotated "clearance received".

7. I have not ever stayed in the U.S. longer than 6 months (even if the Department of Homeland Security approved the extension of stay).

8. I have not ever been arrested or convicted for any offense or crime, even if subject of a pardon.

9. I can provide the visa control number from my visa (located in the upper right hand corner of the visa).

If you are able to meet all of the above conditions, you are eligible for a VRP appointment. Please go online or contact the call center to schedule the VRP appointment.

Important Reminders:

1. The U.S. Embassy in Manila reserves the right to interview any applicant. If an interview is required, a representative of the U.S. Embassy will contact the applicant within two business days of his/her VRP appointment.

2. If you schedule a VRP appointment, but are not actually eligible for a VRP appointment, you will be turned away at the Embassy and asked to schedule a regular appointment. Please make sure you are eligible for a VRP appointment based on the above criteria.

http://manila.usembassy.gov/wwwh3024.html