Philippine Asian News Today Vol 21 No 01 | Page 12

BUSINESS NEWS
12
PayPAL hiring 1,000 workers
for its PH operations
proficiency and a strong pool of
experienced customer service
professionals. These are exactly
the type of people we are looking
for to join PayPal, as we expand
our customer service offerings,
providing
multichannel
and
higher quality support for PayPal
customers
worldwide,”
said
Nicholls.
Putting the customer first and
being a customer champion is at
the heart of PayPal’s business.
The new site will cater to
several regions — including North
America, Australia, and the United
Kingdom.
Global payments leader PayPal
Having
previously
served
is set to hire more than 1,000 customers through outsourcing
employees in the next two years for partners, the new PayPal global
its new global customer operations operations center in Alabang
center in Alabang, Metro Manila.
now centralizes customer service
John Nicholls, senior director together with business, recruitment
of PayPal Global Customer Services and training support functions.
and country site Lead, said the
PayPal employees can expect
center will be the largest and first to receive robust product,
consolidated operations site for language and cultural training that
PayPal in the Philippines and will will equip them with the necessary
primarily serve PayPal’s English- knowledge and skills to better
speaking customers when it opens understand PayPal customers
later this year.
and the intricacies of the many
“The level of service and hires international markets they will
in the Philippines has always been serve.
exceptional – with high English
Nicholls
said
PayPal
is
PHILIPPINE ASIAN NEWS TODAY January 1 - 20, 2019
PNT Foreign Exchange
$1.00 Cdn = P 39.37 Php
$1.00 US = P 52.23
€1.00 EUR = P 59.52
D1.00 BHD= P 138.60
R1.00 SAR = P 13.93
¥1.00 JPY= P 0.48
committed to helping employees
realize their full potential as
professionals. Apart from core
competency
development,
opportunities for growth will
be available at all levels in an
international company like PayPal.
“At the heart of our operations
is the commitment to instill a
sense of ownership among our
employees. This is true no matter
where we establish operations
across the globe,” Nicholls said.
“By providing our local teams with
consistent training, mentoring,
and leadership, we are investing
in their professional development
and in a better service experience
for our customers.”
As the new PayPal Manila site
leader, Nicholls intends to build
the PayPal culture and to bring a
lasting impact to the community.
“To bring the PayPal mission and
vision to life – to democratize
financial services – we are looking
for a diverse and inclusive team
of
passionate,
values-driven
employees,” Nicholls said.
PayPal is now accepting
applications for a wide range of
customer support roles. To find out
more about these opportunities,
visit
www.paypaljobs.com.
(B.C.Magkilat, mb.com)
Faster growth for 2019 seen
The economy is seen to grow
between 6.8 and 7.2 percent this year
driven by strong macroeconomic
fundamentals, based on a research
of an investment banks.
The outlook of First Metro
Investments Corp. (FMIC) is
significantly higher than the World
Bank’s forecast of a 6.5 percent
GDP growth for the country and
is close to the Asian Development
Bank’s 6.7 percent projection.
As of the third quarter of 2018,
the economy expanded by 6.3
percent.
The Development Budget
Coordination Committee targets
GDP growth of 6.5 to 6.8 percent
in 2018.
“Economic expansion will
be driven by the upturn in
consumption spending as a result
of an improving inflation outlook,”
FMIC said, noting that the
contribution from a sustained fiscal
stimulus out of the government’s
infrastructure spending, a recovery
in the manufacturing sector, rising
tourist arrivals, and the expected
hefty election spending.”
“The Philippine economy
is again in a growth trajectory.
Apart from the country’s strong
macroeconomic
fundamentals
and expected inflation easing this
year, another important factor in
pushing economic growth is the
continued policy reform drive of
the Duterte administration, which
includes tax reform, corruption and
red tape reduction, broadening the
base of the financial system and
facilitation of new and disruptive
technologies,”
said
Rabboni
Francis Arjonillo, FMIC president.
Cash remittance from overseas
Filipino workers (OFW) will sustain
its 2 to 4 percent growth rate this
year, FMIC said.
Victor Abola, economist at the
University of Asia and the Pacific,
said consumption is seen to grow 6
percent this year amid the various
spending stimulus.
The industry sector is projected
to grow 8.3 percent while the
services sector is seen to grow 7
percent, Abola noted.
FMIC expects inflation average
between 3 and 3.5 percent as food
supply stabilizes and global oil
prices ease.
The Philippine peso is seen
to average at 54 to the dollar, on
pressures from a widening trade
deficit as import of capital goods
continue to increase in support of
the government’s infrastructure
push.
FMIC said imports will sustain
their double-digit growth of 10
to 14 percent on the back of the
government’s infrastructure push
while exports will recover, growing
by 4 to 8 percent.
Christopher Ma. Carmelo
Salazar, FMIC group head for
financial markets, said bond rates
are seen to drop by 50 basis point
from their 2018 yearend levels
on an environment of declining
inflation.
The projected slower policy
rate hikes in the US, coupled by
a possible policy rate cut by the
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP)
in the second half of the year will
further ease the pressure for a hike
in bond rates, FMIC said.
Arjonillo said there is also a
compelling argument for the BSP
to cut reserve requirement by two
percentage points, releasing to
the economy about P180 billion in
additional liquidity.
This will also reduce banks’
intermediation cost by 15 basis
points that could further drive
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economic activity, he said.
Jose Pacific Marcelo, FMIC
group head for investment banking,
meanwhile, said fund raising in
capital markets this year will reach
P824 billion, up 51 percent from
last year’s P546 billion.
Fixed income issuances are
seen hitting P618 billion due to the
anticipated quadrupling of bank
bonds, up from last year’s P319
billion.
The equities-based issuances
meanwhile are seen to hit P206
billion, 9 percent lower than last
year’s P227 billion.
Initial public offering (IPO)
meanwhile is seen to pick up from
issuances deferred last year due
to market conditions, hitting P62
billion compared to just P8 billion
last year.
Christina Ulang, FMIC head
of research, meanwhile said
corporate earnings may post a 10-
percent growth this year, pushing
the Philippine Stock Exchange
index (PSEi) to between 8,400
and 8,800 as investors give the
market a price-to-earnings ratio
of between 18 to 19x. (R. Castro,
Malaya)