LUCENA CITY INCOME

 In our continuation of dissecting the National Statistical Coordination Board report, the "Filipino Investor by Arnel L. Cadeliña " focuses on the income data and % share of each Calabarzon Cities and then applied the necessary statistics.


Here are the findings:


1. The CALABARZON city with the highest income is Calamba City.
2. The CALABARZON city with the lowest income is Tayabas City with a rank of 11 out of 11.
3. Lucena City ranked 6th out of 11.
4. Batangas City who ranked 3rd has income of 45% more than Lucena City.
5. Sta. Rosa City who ranked 2nd has income of 58% more than Lucena City.

.This data will help policy makers and researchers interested in Lucena City

Lucena City Population by 2015

The recent statistics on the Philippine economy was released last May 2012 by the National Statistical coordination Board and  “The Filpino Investor by Arnel L. Cadeliña” culled the data that focuses on Lucena City and applied the necessary statistics   

By focusing on Lucena City and compare it with other cities in the CALABARZON, here are the findings that are useful locally:

    1.  In CALABARZON selected cities, Lucena City ranked fifth in

            terms of population.

    2.   The average increase of population in Lucena City is 1.66% per

          annum.

     3.   By 2015, Lucena City is projected to have a population of 254,

           215.

     4.   In 2015, the Lucena City  population of 254, 215 will live in

           an area of about 8,316.90 hectares or 83,169,000 square 

            meters. This means 327 square meters per person. 

This data will help policy makers and researchers interested in Lucena City.

Arnel L. Cadeliña

World Education Congress confers Business Leadership Award on Ateneo Graduate School of Business (AGSB)

 World Education Congress confers Business Leadership Award on Ateneo Graduate School of Business (AGSB)
date posted: 2012-07-17 09:27:13


For the second time in a row, AGSB received another accolade for business leadership given in Mumbai, India last June 29. This award was given by the World Education Congress Global Awards for Excellence in Education, Leadership, and Teaching.

 This is in recognition of AGSB’s pre-eminence and leadership in the offering of dynamic and responsive MBA programs to its practitioner-based constituents, adult learning teaching methods, and state-of-the-art facilities for both online and classroom teaching.

Dr. Mansibang, APS Registrar received the award in the form of a Trophy and a Citation for AGSB held at Taj Lands Mumbai Ends Hotel. The international gathering saw many global university and education leaders congregate in this Indian City to recognize the achievements of universities, education officials, and teachers.

Last year, AGSB also was also awarded as the Best Business School in Innovation Leadership held in Singapore under the auspices of CMO Asia Best Business Schools Awards.

 
Ateneo de Manila University

Amando M. Tetangco,Jr.

Laurence Neville said that the origins of a country's growth are political and social forces- and possibly luck in having the right leaders.  

The Philippines is being lucky to have   Amando M. Tetangco, Jr. at the helm as Governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas since July 2005.
He was cited in 2011 as having the highest grade of A in the Global Finance Annual Central Banker Report Cards. No head of Central Banks from The Americas and Europe received a Grade of A. The recognition validates his expertise on controlling inflation, achieving economic growth goals, stabilizing the Peso, manage interest rates and standing up to political interferences.


Under his term the Philippines as an emerging market was recognized as possessing  the characteristics necessary to join the elevated heights of of the BRICs ( Brazil, Russia, India and China). Two leading financial institutions have devised new groupings of countries , Goldman Sachs invented the Next Eleven (N11) Citi coined 3G or the Global Growth Generators both include the Philippines (Global Finance, December 2011).

The GDP of the Philippines grew 7.7% to P2.42 trillion  and the inflation from January-March 2012 was a low 3.1% (Business World (June 2, 2012).


Mr. Tetangco said yesterday that "BSP is ready to make adjustments as needed to ensure a non-inflationary growth environment.mindful of the external rsiks, particularly the weakness in the Euro zone, tentative growth in the US and slowdown in China".

The noise of politics are always in the headlines but the good news as recognizing Mr. Tentagco for his outstanding work of stabilizing our financial system and for making difficult and controversial decisions under trying circumstances we rarely heard in the evening news.

Am I who belong to the only few who noticed his miracle work?

Arnel L. Cadeliña
Director-Research and Development
Sacred Heart College-Lucena City
email: lenra1967@yahoo.com
blog: nelcadelina.blogspot.com

A daughter is a gift of love.

The Index Fund of BPI

     Index Funds are generally an investment that are low-cost, low risk funds that track the performance of the Philippine Stock Exchange. They generally are not actively managed and have low turnover so they don't generate a lot of taxable income.

     In lay man's term the Index Fund is a mutual fund that is run virtually on autopilot. Generally stockbrokers don't recommend index funds because no commissions can be derived for them. For the first-time investors, investing a small amount of their portfolio in an index fund is a very good start.

    I will focus on one index fund offered by the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) and will tackle it without the complicated finance terms for the majority of the blog readers to understand.

First, Why an Index Fund?. The primary benefits of investing in a mutual fund is that our gains are exempted from taxes based on the Comprehensive Tax Reform Program (CTRP). This was done to promote long-term savings in the country. Secondarily, over the long term index funds have outperformed other mutual funds because they charge low fees. The BPI Fund managers charged 0.75% per annum for the management and distribution fees while others charged 1.75%.  In terms of sales load, the BPI Index Fund charged 1.5% while other mutual funds charged 2% this will result on more shares for you if you choose an Index Fund.

Second, What are the Risks of an Index Fund?Mutual Funds are registered with the SEC and they are neither insured with the PDIC nor any other agency of the government, nor guaranteed by the Fund Manager. Before investing  investors are expected to understand that the Fund is not a bank deposit product and any income, or loss, shall be for the account of the investor. Investors are advised to read the Prospectus of the Fund before investing.

Third, How much do I need to Invest in an Index Fund?. The minimum investment is P5,000 if you avail of the BPI regular subscriptiion plan (RSP). The plan require you to invest minimum of P1,000 additional investment per month deducted from your BPI savings account. If you will not avail of the RSP your minimum initial investment is P10,000 and additional investment is your prerogative.

Fourth, How will I earn money in an index fund?. If the present Net Asset Value (NAV) is higher than your buying NAV you will earn money. Historically, the BPI Index Fund is earning money. 

Fifth, How will I redeem or encash my investment? Submit to your BPI bank your Purchase Order starting 9:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.. You will be paid in full via a Debit Authority you indicated in your  application Settlement Account you signed on the date of your application..

The 5 years annualized return  of the Philippine Index Fund is 9.79% per annum beating the inflation rate and other type of mutual fund. (see figure above).       

For my blog readers, it is time you consider investing in an Index fund.

Arnel L. Cadeliña

Top Ten Reasons Why SSS will hike their contributions

In the tradition of the great David Letterman, Here is my top ten list why our SSS will increase their contribution rate. Enjoy!
 
10. They want to extend the life of SSS to 35 years or up to year
       2046. As of today, the current fund will last only up to year
       2039.


9. They want to increase the benefits of the SSS members but first
    you have to cough up more until your payslip net pay drops to...
    zero.

8.  Our SSS contribution rate is only 10.4% of our monthly salary
     while GSIS members pay 21%.  No wonder their pension is
     higher!.


7. They want to lend more to SSS members and corporate sector.
    The profit will help them increase their own salaries and benefits
    while ours stagnates.

6. They can reason out that we have a low inflation rate therefore
    an increase will not be "felt' by the SSS members.

5. The 29.2 million members of SSS contributed P79 Billion pesos
    but they paid P76 billion for SSS benefits.This thin margin made
    them sleepless.

4. They are projecting a possible loss of overseas jobs which means
    lower SSS collections from the OFW.

3.  They are aware that Filipinos are adept in changing eating
     pattern in order to cope up with deductions and high prices.
     Noodles anyone?

2. In 2007, the SSS spends 11% of our contribution for their
   operating expenses while Malaysia spends only 2%.

1. They want to increase your minimum pension of P2,400 after working and contributing to them for 20 years and increased it possibly by 10%. Meaning an increase of P240 to achieve a minimum pension of.............. ( no laughing please).........P2,640.
  

Pretty Good ( Translation: Pwede na 'yan)

I love poetry especially related to education and economic thoughts. Here's one that you will love reading to your children, students.... well I guess for everybody. 

Thank you to Mr. Charles Osgood. 
 

Pretty Good ( Translation:  Pwede na 'yan)

by  Charles Osgood  (1933-)
from the Osgood File, 1986

There once was a pretty good student
   Who sat in a pretty good class
And was taught by a pretty good teacher
  Who always let pretty good pass.
He wasn’t terrific at reading,
   He wasn’t a whiz-bang at math,
But for him, education was leading
  Straight down a pretty good path.
He didn’t find school too exciting,
  But he wanted to do pretty well,
And he did have some trouble with writing
  Since nobody taught him to spell.
When doing arithmetic problems,
  Pretty good was regarded as fine.
5+5 needn’t always add up to be 10;
  A pretty good answer was 9.
The pretty good class that he sat in
  Was part of a pretty good school,
And the student was not an exception:
  On the contrary, he was the rule.
The pretty good school that he went to
  Was there in a pretty good town,
And nobody there seemed to notice
  He could not tell a verb from a noun.
The pretty good student in fact was
  Part of a pretty good mob.
And the first time he knew what he lacked was
  When he looked for a pretty good job.
It was then, when he sought a position,
  He discovered that life could be tough,
And he soon had a sneaking suspicion
  Pretty good might not be good enough.
The pretty good town in our story
  Was part of a pretty good state
Which had pretty good aspirations
  And prayed for a pretty good fate.
There once was a pretty good nation
  Pretty proud of the greatness it had,
Which learned much too late,
  If you want to be great,
Pretty good is, in fact, pretty bad.

Short advice for the Graduating students

My Dear Graduating students:

In an era of joblessness you will be faced with a lot of challenges. My advice would be to build on your career; accept a job even if it is not your dream job and USE that experience.

The Philippine working environment are full of loop holes and you need to be OPEN to different career paths.

When you finally get your first job take on difficult projects that will allow you to DEMONSTRATE your skills.

Invest on continued learning, this separates the slick and the slack.

Remember those who value professionalism and ethics always stand out in the long run.

Do not forget that faith and reason always complement one another. Do not forget what you learned from your humanities and philosophy classes because in the workplace there are people who are full of logic but they lack the soft skills. Learn from them by taking the right path.

Good luck on your job hunting, My prayers are intended for you.

Arnel L. Cadeliña

Political will

 In a difficult time like this, a leader should understand what are the primary problems of the nation and act on it with utmost determination to fix them.

Last night, the US President announced in his State of the Union addressed universities and colleges that the higher education on notice he said. "Higher education can't be a luxury— it's an economic imperative that every family in America should be able to afford." What Obama showed was leadership, vision, courage and political will.

When can we find our own  politicians allocate their pork barrels to train college students for high-growth industries that would provide financial incentives to colleges and universities who offer programs that ensured their students find work?. When can we find a leader that will say and at the same time act to make college degrees at quality universities affordable?

candor dat viribus alas.

Escalating college costs killing the dream

My friend Ruben enrolled his son at an elite college in Quezon City. His dream seeing his son graduating in that university is their family’s ultimate goal. Since he is working in Saudi Arabia he has no problem in terms of paying the tuition fee. Until now. His company was coded red meaning that Saudi citizen will be prioritized in terms of employment. His income, which is not increasing for the past three years, is in jeopardy. This year he paid around P53,000 for one semester tuition fee of his son but his incomes barely budge..

In the Philippines, the parents are now experiencing the escalating college costs in an era of very slow increase of income. There are families now who opted to enroll their children in city or state colleges because college is becoming so expensive.

The crux of the problem: Tuition and fees which surged to more than 400% over the last 20 years -- while middle class incomes have stagnated.

During my college time tuition in 1988 rang in at about P2000, adjusted for inflation. By 2012, that number had climbed about roughly P36,500 a semester -- and that doesn't include books or room and board.
Income: If incomes had kept up with surging college costs, the typical Filipino would be earning around P600,000 a year. But in reality, it's nowhere near that.

In 2009 -- the latest data available -- the average family income of Filipinos was P129,000  or roughly P10,750 a month. This only validates that there is growing disparity between income and the cost of higher education.


Being a college professor I am now seeing families are taking on unprecedented levels of debt or downgrading their child's education from private to public to cut costs.

It is a reality that a college degree is not an assurance to be employed but it will give you a fighting chance. Economic statistics validate that there is more opportunity for college degree holders than a high school diploma.

To solve this problem it requires the direct intervention of the government.It is true that the government allocated 3.1% of the GDP for education but it is far below compared to Malaysia whose spending forms at least 8.1% of their GDP for education or to Thailand whose budget for education amounts to 5.2% of their GDP.

We can not speak of comparative advantage when the costs of college education is now the foremost barrier to enter hence the government should intervene before dreams will be put in a wayside.



Arnel L. Cadeliña

References:
.http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/edu_edu_spe-education-spending-of-gdp

The Retreat : leave the temporal in order to find the eternal,

Last month, I accompanied my business students in their retreat at Tagaytay City. The spiritual "recharging" we all need because there are lot of noises in our environment nowadays. The technology and the gadget can always "connect" us to everyone we know or even to strangers. The media and the social networks really made our life easier but our spiritual need is getting colder because of these.

The only chance to see our real selves and to connect to a higher calling is to have a silence for a few days. Without TV, cellphone, IPad, internet and even temporary disconnection to our family. This is the time to know who we really are and what is our purpose in this place called earth.

The three day retreat gave me these realizations:
1. Everyone of us on whatever beliefs we have are longing to connect to God.
2. We pray mainly in order for God to give us what we need but there are cases that what we asked can not be given for reasons we don't know..

3. There are two kinds of prayer: the prayer of God's suitor and the prayer of God's workers.
4. The God's suitors are Christians who only prays to ask but not helping in the propagation of His kingdom either by words or deeds.
5. The prayers of God's workers are the first to be answered because his prayers are like the prayers of the prophets, apostles and healers before and during Jesus time. You can check the bible and see how the prayers of Job, Jonah, Paul, Peter and the other were heard. Miracles do happened and it usually given to God's workers.

Retreat is truly beneficial to everybody and all of us are called to be God's workers in our own ways. The benefits: He will always take our prayer into account and give us what we "really" need.

Life is difficult according to Scott Peck but one way to cope was  written centuries ago by St. Ignatius of Loyola: go on a 5 day retreat to discern spirits and to learn following the inspirations of God.


This Lenten Season, I encouraged you to try one.