Category: Philippine Star

Cebuano firm Aznar Shipping Corp. is turning to the Philippine capital markets to finance an expansion of its fleet and maritime infrastructure, confident that the growing role of shipping in domestic trade will sustain demand for inter-island services.

The shipping operator has filed a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission for an initial public offering of up to 1 billion primary common shares, with an over-allotment option of up to 100 million secondary shares, subject to regulatory approval.

At an indicative maximum price of P0.67 a share, the primary offering could raise as much as P670 million in gross proceeds. The secondary shares could generate a further P67 million if the over-allotment option is fully exercised.

The final offer price will be determined through book-building.

Aznar Shipping intends to deploy most of the proceeds towards fleet expansion and shipyard facility development, while allocating the remainder for general corporate purposes. The planned investment reflects the company’s effort to build a larger regional shipping platform at a time when trade and passenger flows across the Visayas are expanding.

‘As economic activity across the Visayas continues to grow, we want Aznar Shipping to grow with the region,’ Kyle Alexander C. Aznar, president and chief executive, said.

The company sees additional vessels and infrastructure as critical to connecting more of the region’s emerging economic centers and increasing its capacity to carry passengers, vehicles and cargo.

The investment case rests partly on the scale of maritime activity already concentrated in the Visayas.

A study by the Center for Research and Communication estimates that Visayas ports accounted for about 35 per cent of national cargo throughput, 60 per cent of passenger traffic and 49 per cent of roll-on/roll-off vehicle movements between 2022 and 2025. More than half of the country’s ship calls were also recorded in the region.

RoRo traffic – a key market for Aznar Shipping because its vessels carry vehicles as well as passengers and cargo – is expected to provide further momentum. The CRC study projects Visayas RoRo traffic to grow at an average annual rate of 12.9 per cent through 2028, compared with 10.7 per cent nationally.

That differential points to a potentially attractive regional growth market, but also underscores the capital intensity of competing for it.

Aznar Shipping currently operates nine vessels on four major inter-island routes, with regular port calls at eight ports across Cebu, Leyte, Panay and Negros Occidental.

Its customer base spans shippers, trucking and logistics companies, bus operators, construction companies, freight forwarders and passengers, giving the company exposure to both commercial and consumer demand.

The company plans to increase vessel capacity, add viable routes and develop the operational infrastructure needed to support a broader network.

The IPO will therefore provide Aznar Shipping with capital to pursue growth without relying solely on internally generated funds or conventional borrowing. For investors, however, the expansion also puts greater emphasis on the company’s ability to convert regional economic growth into higher vessel utilization, revenue and returns on capital.

Aznar Shipping has appointed Investment and Capital Corporation of the Philippines and PNB Capital and Investment Corporation as joint issue managers, joint lead underwriters and joint bookrunners.

Subject to regulatory approvals and market conditions, the IPO is scheduled to run from December 1 to December 8, 2026, with listing targeted for December 18 on the Philippine Stock Exchange’s Small, Medium and Emerging Board under the ticker ALX.

The company is enrolled in the PSE’s Listing Engagement and Assistance Program, which provides prospective issuers with guidance and support through the listing process.

For Aznar Shipping, the offering is more than a fund-raising exercise. It is a test of whether a regional shipping company can scale alongside an increasingly integrated Visayas economy – and whether investors will see enough value in that growth to back its next phase of expansion.

The Philippines remains on track to conclude negotiations for a free trade agreement (FTA) with Canada this year.

‘We made substantial and positive progress last round, and we remain on track in concluding the Philippines-Canada FTA negotiations this year,’ Trade Undersecretary Allan Gepty said in a Viber message yesterday.

The Philippines and Canada held the fourth round of FTA talks from Sept. 8 to 11 in Toronto, Canada.

‘We are almost closed; we will just address remaining issues through virtual and small meetings,’ Gepty said.

Once talks are concluded, the FTA with Canada will be the Philippines’ first free trade deal in North America.

Gepty said the FTA with Canada has a forward-looking scope, coverage and commitment to enable the countries to build a stronger, future-ready economic partnership.

‘This FTA pursues sustainable development and an inclusive agenda, resilient supply chain and digital transformation,’ Gepty said.

As negotiations for the FTA with Canada progress, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is stepping up its engagement with stakeholders to maximize the deal’s intended benefits.

The DTI recently held consultations with Philippine professionals and Filipino-Canadian businesses to provide an overview of the bilateral FTA and exchange views on the deal’s trade and commercial opportunities.

The Philippines has been working on increasing its FTAs to diversify its trade partners.

In July, the Philippines concluded FTA talks with Chile, marking the country’s first trade deal in Latin America.

The Philippines is also pushing to complete its FTA review with Japan this year.

Members of the House prosecution panel have maintained that their statements on the ongoing impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte were not about the merits of the case, but merely on procedure and summary of the proceedings.

Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Terry Ridon and counsel for the prosecution Benjamin Tolosa Jr. made this assertion as they explained to the Senate impeachment court why they should not be sanctioned for violation of the sub judice rule which barred parties from commenting on the merits of the case.

In his verified answer to the impeachment court’s show cause order, Ridon said his statements only meant to keep the public informed of the status and progress of the proceedings, adding that he has always understood the distinction between reports on what transpired during proceedings, explaining procedural developments and progress of the prosecution.

‘In making these statements, Rep. Ridon never intended to prejudge the case, influence the senator-judges, substitute public discussion for the evidence and arguments properly presented before the honorable court or diminish the authority of the honorable court to determine the merits of the impeachment case,’ he said.

For his part, Tolosa said his statements either concerned procedural matters or merely recounted matters already placed on record fairly and accurately, in good faith and without editorial comment.

He asserted that his statements, when considered in its complete context, did not evaluate a disputed fact, the credibility of a witness, the relevance, weight or sufficiency of evidence.

‘Accordingly, there is no basis for citing the undersigned counsel for violation of Rule 18,’ Tolosa said.

He further contended that his statements did not state that the prosecution’s evidence was already sufficient to warrant the Vice President’s conviction nor did he urge the Senate impeachment court to convict Duterte.

‘The undersigned counsel did not assess the credibility, weight or sufficiency of those statements and admissions, nor did he urge this honorable impeachment court to draw any particular conclusion from it. Instead, it was merely made to explain the prosecution’s decision to reserve its right to call Respondent ,’ Tolosa said.

Infrastructure and transport advocates have urged government to strip the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) of its power to issue tollway extensions, saying its authority should be limited to regulating toll rates.

In a study by several infrastructure and transport researchers, they said the local tollway network, both completed and planned, has grown to as much as P2.73 trillion to date.

However, the study said toll projects granted through supplemental toll operation agreements (STOA), issued by the TRB, amounted to P766.81 billion.

The researchers said it is necessary to strip the TRB’s power to grant STOA. Although the STOA is designed to extend the distance of an existing tollway, the study flagged multiple instances that it was used to approve large-scale projects.

In 2022, toward the end of the Duterte administration, the TRB granted San Miguel Corp. (SMC) with a STOA for the 19.37-kilometer Pasig River Expressway (PAREX). The TRB said PAREX is an extension of SMC’s South Luzon Expressway.

SMC bagged STOAs for three others: the 417-km SLEX Toll Road 5; 40.62-km Southern Access Link Expressway; and the 136-km Northern Access Link Expressway.

The process was changed only when the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Code was amended in 2023, requiring tollways issued with STOAs to be subjected to a comparative challenge.

Still, the researchers insisted that the TRB’s power should be reduced to setting toll rates, raising how its authority to grant STOA competes with the capacity of the Department of Public Works and Highways to process PPPs.

‘Accordingly, the powers and functions of the TRB should be reduced and limited to regulation of existing tollways and toll setting. It should no longer decide on development of new tollways or on STOA,’ the study proposed.

The researchers also warned of competition concerns given that Philippine tollways are operated largely by two developers: SMC (P1.2 trillion) and Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (P482 billion). The two are working toward a merger.

In response, the researchers called on the Philippine Competition Commission to signal as early as now that it would block the proposed merger, citing industry concentration.

The study was developed by researchers from commuter groups Ilog Pasiglahin, Make It Safer Movement and Move As One Coalition and academic institutions Ateneo de Manila University, Harvard Kennedy School and Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Muntinlupa.

A China Coast Guard (CCG) vessel ‘intentionally rammed’ a ship of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) about 54 nautical miles off the coast of Palawan on Friday, the Philippine Coast Guard said.

PCG spokesman for the West Philippine Sea Rear Admiral Jay Tarriela said the CCG vessel struck the BRP Datu Magat Salamat at around 11 a.m. while the Philippine vessel was conducting a fisherfolk assistance mission.

‘It was not a collision. It was an intentional ramming done by the CCG-21585,’ Tarriela said.

Tarriela said the BFAR vessel was carrying out a mission to provide fuel subsidies and food packs to Filipino fishermen in the Kalayaan Island Group following weeks of monsoon rains.

‘The objective of the BFAR deployment is purely humanitarian. It is not conducting operations that provoked anybody or any state,’ he said.

The contact damaged the main railings on the starboard side, metal stanchions and support structures as well as deck fixtures and equipment. No injuries were reported.

‘Even after the collision, CCG-21585 conducted yet another dangerous maneuver, passing dead astern at a distance of only about five meters,’ Tarriela said.

‘This kind of behavior of the Chinese government is an outright violation of the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Convention and the collision regulations,’ Tarriela added.

The Chinese embassy, however, disputed the Philippine account, saying the incident was a collision caused by the BRP Datu Magat Salamat after it ignored warnings from the CCG vessel and accelerated after altering its course.

The BRP Datu Magat Salamat was refloated Thursday after running aground at Hasa-Hasa Shoal during its operations.

Tarriela said it would be docked at Coron Port for an assessment of its seaworthiness.

He said the CCG’s 215 series consists of smaller, faster and more agile vessels capable of intercepting ships in the West Philippine Sea.

The decision on whether to file a diplomatic protest will be left to the Department of Foreign Affairs, while the PCG would continue supporting the remaining BFAR vessels in their supply missions to Filipino fisherfolk.

A village chairman surrendered to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) his nephew who had been wanted for drug charges in this city on Tuesday.

Jaime Bustarde, chief of Barangay City Camp Proper, tapped the help of his sister, Lily Flora, in persuading their nephew, Jayson Sumera, to surrender.

Judge Maria Ligaya Rivera of the Baguio Regional Trial Court Branch 5 on Monday issued an arrest warrant for Sumera, who was wanted for violating Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.

After failing to find Sumera in his known address, the NBI sought the assistance of Bustarde, who asked his sister to bring their nephew to the barangay hall, where the suspect was arrested.

In the next two days, many institutions will turn to remembering the atrocities of the martial law period. Often dubbed by historical revisionists as the ‘golden era’ in Philippine history, it was an overlooked period in time, marred by multiple offenses against humanity. Not all of us were born during that time; all we hear are stories that resonate so deeply in the present. With a president having the same surname as the dictator, it seems like we are confused about what will happen next.

That time was filled with military rule. My grandmother would say that they could not just leave the house at any time they wanted. They were forced to adhere to the soldiers’ commands, often getting scared to death. Others speak of extortion and torture, especially when they did not get what they wanted. Detractors would tell us to just forget and move on. The most difficult part is the latter, but it is always a choice not to forget. It is in remembering that we learn, supposedly, not to repeat the mistakes of the past.

We are seeing a repeat of those events in different forms: the silencing and threatening of the press, abuse of power, and many more. We are masked in a concept of freedom that we cannot even fully grasp. It is as if we are fooling ourselves while enjoying the liberty that we have now. I wish there was just someone who could cut across those who are dazed by that era. I wonder what it takes for them to believe that everything was real. Even the families of those who were victims live to tell the tale, but they, too, are often disregarded.

What happens next is still a blur. We are finding ourselves in a political turmoil, caught between two big political families. Both find themselves with a fanbase almost close to a cult. Their narratives are the same, including their spiels and convictions. It is as if they have been brainwashed with information only they want to believe. I feel sad that the truth is devalued unless more institutions stand up and teach what is supposed to be true.

I don’t know how many of us will still remember or if we still want to. It is indeed a choice, a hard one, but it just makes perfect sense. Remembering is not about being trapped in the past. It is about carrying its lessons into the present, especially when the same language of fear, power, and silence begins to sound familiar. Perhaps that is why memory matters most when it becomes uncomfortable.

We owe it to those who lived through that period to listen and to those who never came home to remember. Perhaps, we also owe it to ourselves to ask whether the freedoms we enjoy are being protected, or slowly being taken for granted. Forgetting may be easier but keep in mind that remembering requires courage. If history is meant to teach us anything, it is that forgetting has consequences.

University of the Philippines remained unblemished in the UAAP Season 89 men’s basketball tournament after grounding the Ateneo Blue Eagles, 94-75, Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

This is UP’s seventh straight win in the Battle of Katipunan, stretching back to UAAP Season 86.

Former NCAA Finals Most Valuable Player James Payosing powered UP with 16 points, three rebounds and two assists. Veejay Pre and Rey Remogat had 14 markers apiece, while Francis Nnoruka finished wirth 12 points and 13 rebounds.

Ateneo was able to build a substantial lead in the first half, going up 37-30 after a triple by Travis Roberts.

But an 11-0 run, capped by a split from the line by Rainer Maga, pushed UP ahead 41-37.

Ateneo still took the lead in the third quarter, going up 47-46, but from that point on, it was all Fighting Maroons.

A 12-2 run capped by a Rey Remogat layup helped UP take a 58-49 lead.

An and-one play by Jared Bahay made it a 52-58 deficit, but UP found a higher gear.

A Roberts jumper made it a 61-73 deficit for Ateneo, before a 22-4 run capped by a slam by Russel Ogana, made it a 90-65 lead as UP tightened up on defense while getting their way on anything they wanted.

Gani Stevens had nine points for UP. Ogana added seven off the bench.

Jared Bahay carried the Blue Eagles with 17 points, three assists and two rebounds. Kieffer Alas, who had 10 points in the first half, had 13 after almost 25 minutes of play.

The Fighting Maroons are now holding a 2-0 win-loss record, while Ateneo dropped to 1-1.

As Ariana Grande herself sang, “God is a woman.”

Oscar-nominated filmmaker Greta Gerwig has confirmed that veteran actress Meryl Streep will be the voice of the lion Aslan in her Netflix movie adaptations of “The Chronicles of Narnia,” the popular book series by C.S. Lewis.

Speculations regarding Streep’s involvement have been circulating for a year but Gerwig made the casting official in an interview with Empire magazine which shared a first look image of deity-like animal.

Gerwig’s take on Aslan sees the talking lion with visible colors on his coat and whiskers, but standing out are the feline’s heterochromic eyes. The creative design, according to the director, is inspired by the late rock star David Bowie.

“I wanted someone who was profound but not pretentious, who had gravitas but not morose self-seriousness. Someone who could communicate depth and pathos as well as joy and delight,” Gerwig said about tapping Streep for a second time after 2019’s “Little Women.”

“I wanted someone who was older than 70, so there was a wisdom of experience, but who also had the capacity of fresh wonder, like a child. And also to be one of the greatest actors to ever do it. That list is not a long one,” she also said.

Bowie isn’t the only inspiration for the film as Gerwig also credited the music of Paul McCartney, David Gilmour, Pete Townshend, Jimmy Page, and Robert Plant for assuring her.

“Narnia is literally a world made out of music. It is a world sung to life by Aslan, and rock ‘n roll to me felt like a world made out of music,” the director added.

Gerwig will begin her adaptations of “Narnia” with “The Magician’s Nephew,” the penultimate one penned by Lewis but the first one chronologically.

It will follow the adventure of two children, Digory and Polly (relative newcomers David McKenna and Beatrice Campbell), discovering Narnia after the latter’s uncle Andrew gives them a magical ring.

Also in the film are Carey Mullihan, Ciarán Hinds, Denise Gough, Susan Wokoma, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Samantha Spiro and Emma Mackey as Jadis, the future White Witch.

“Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew” will be the first Netflix film to get a wide theatrical release, coming out this February, before moving to the streaming platform in April.

The Philippines is expected to import more chicken meat next year due to higher demand from the manufacturing and food service sectors, according to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).

In a report, the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service said that Philippine chicken imports are estimated to reach 780,000 metric tons (MT) in ready-to-cook equivalent in 2027.

‘Imports are forecast to trend upward as demand from the food manufacturing and food service industries continues to rise, driven by population growth and better economic performance projected for 2027,’ it said.

The recent estimate is 14.7-percent higher than the revised 680,000 MT in ready-to-cook equivalent seen for 2026.

According to the international agency, Brazilian chicken would continue to dominate the chicken market next year due to its price advantage relative to other suppliers to the Philippines.

Imports from Brazil are expected to capture the majority of the market in total Philippine chicken meat imports.

Citing industry contacts, the USDA said that prices for Brazilian chicken meat remain competitive compared to other trading partners, particularly the United States, the European Union and Canada.

Imports of mechanically deboned meat (MDM) of chicken from Brazil made up about 66 percent of all imports as of July, according to the Bureau of Animal Industry.

MDM chicken is a typical ingredient in manufactured products, including hotdogs and luncheon meat.

The USDA noted that regionalization agreements for Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, or bird flu, with several countries could also allow the eased entry of foreign chicken meat to the Philippines.

Under the scheme, the government will no longer impose a country-wide ban on poultry imports during bird flu outbreaks; instead, the importation of poultry products will be allowed in case-free areas.

Meanwhile, the USDA said that local chicken meat production is forecast to reach 1.92 million MT next year, a 5.8-percent increase from the 1.82 million MT estimate this year.

‘This growth is supported by expanding operations among poultry integrators and other commercial farms, alongside efficiency gains from labor- and time-saving technologies, improved genetics and continuing training for farm personnel,’ it said.

The international agency noted that the local swine sector’s incomplete recovery from African swine fever continues to support poultry output, as raisers have veered away from hog production to poultry.