INVESTING WISELY AMIDST THE GLOBAL CRISIS

Rumors of an impending global crisis always makes businessmen jittery and uneasy. Earlier this year the markets were affected by the fears of a European crisis. I remembered at that time, my British friend urged us to pay our Tumble Tots (British Pre School Franchise) royalty earlier than the due date since the pound was weaker and that it would be advantageous for us to do this. We made some quick computations and paid the royalty earlier as what my friend suggested. True enough, we were able to saved a significant amount which we used to re paint our building.

This is what I call good timing – really good timing. Many of my friends in Manila who were well diversified in their trust portfolios also enjoyed positive returns.

A good number of financial experts says that these types of investments are more stable than shares of stocks. This is because your money or investment is being managed by professional fund managers who make it their business to make your money grow. And by consolidating your money with other investors; you now have greater access to a wide range of assets. This way you diversify your investments and you spread your risks.

But nothing in life is free. You have to pay a fee for the professional managers to invest your money in bonds, stocks and other instruments to get the returns consistent with the fund’s stated objectives. The minimum investment will depend on the requirement of the Fund Managers. I know that it can be as low as USD 1,000.00 or P 50,000.00. Your money may reach double digit figures. It would be good to know that (just like in any ordinary investments ) there are corresponding risks and capital may be lost also.

But their popularity had grown these past years. I know of many young businessmen who are putting their money in various trust portfolios. Personally, I think it is called “Trust” because it is really a question of trust. How much do you trust your chosen fund managers to handle your hard earned or extra money? Do you trust their promises that they can make your money earn higher than putting it in the bank?

We had often been confronted with nothing but depressing news for the Philippines. Yesterday, there was big fire in Quezon City and the firemen lamented that they could not do so much because there was no adequate supply of water. On the other hand, when I opened the TV to listen to the news; I saw people lining up for water. Today, on my way home from a meeting, I heard over the radio that there are more people who are hungry now than last year.

So it is really a refreshing news to know that single country funds like Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia performed very well in the trust market. For instance the JF Philippines and Indonesia USD funds achieved 23.5 % and 22.4 % respectively.
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MEETING FRIENDS. I was walking at Eastwood City to go to Citibank and I was surprised to see Jason Magnaye and Bert Barriga at Cybermall having coffee. Bert called me and it is always a pleasant surprise to see colleagues in Manila. I am glad to know that Jason is now the new Investment and Promotions Director for Davao. He is young and his dynamism would be good for the city. Bert who is now the top man of the ICT (information, communication, technology) has his hands full promoting Davao as an ICT hub for BPO‘s ( Business Process Outsourcing). Congratulations to Bert and to the ICT advocates because Davao is now the top city for BPO investments.

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AUSTRALIAN BUSINESS DELEGATES. I received an invitation for a cocktail at the Traders Hotel in Manila hosted by the Philippine Australia Business Council (where I used to sit as a member of the board) for the CCIAP (Chamber of Commerce and Industry Australia Philippines) delegates last Tuesday, 20th of July 2010. Unfortunately I was not able to attend due to an important previous commitment which was on the same day and time. I would had wanted to attend that because I do business with Australia where two(2) of my schools; the Joji Ilagan Foundation and the International Culinary and Hospitality have educational cooperation agreement with Australian schools . There were ten (10) delegates from Queensland representing various businesses: Mrs. Connie da Cunha - President, CCIAP;Mrs. Adriana Shepard - Partner, Adna Living Water ;Mr. Allan Shepard - Senior Lecturer, Griffith University;Mrs. Gina Luck - Managing Director and Owner Luxe Care Collection Pty Ltd ‘;Mr. Jachin Navarro - Managing Director, Navarro Enterprises Pty Ltd; Mrs. Kay Ganley - CEO, Charlton Brown; Mrs. Luz Sheppard - Director and Owner, LD Sheppard & Associates Pty Ltd;Mr. Peter Shepard - Partner, Adna Living Water; Mr. Wayne Harrison - Managing Director, Australian Immigration Visas and Australian Trades; Mr. Manuel Paneda - Principal, Mell Accounting Plus . Let me know if you are interested to touch base with any of the delegates

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CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE.The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) will be holding a Chamber Management Workshop on Friday, July 23, 2010 at the Apo View Hotel and these will be attended by the Officers of the Chambers of Commerce of Region 11; Davao del Norte (Tagum and Compostela) , Davao del Sur (Digos)and Davao Oriental (Mati). Mr. Cris Frianiza, the Executive Director of PCCC together with Mr. Edwin Capili- PCCI Vice President for Mindanao will be heading the team who will visit Davao.

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HUMAN RESOURCE SUMMIT.The Mindanao Technical Vocational Schools Association will be holding its annual Human Resource and Skills Development (HRSD) Summit in Butuan City on Aug. 11, 12, 13, 2010. The new TESDA Director General Joel Villanueva ( son of Eddie Villanueva and former member of Congress as party list representative) is expected to attend the event.

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“The key is not to prioritize what is on the schedule, but to schedule your priorities.” ~Stephen Covey

(Joji Ilagan Bian is a strong and respected advocate for the development of the region. She is Chair of Joji Ilagan Foundation (www.jojiilagancareercenter.com) ; President , Phil. Call Centers Alliance and Mindanao Tech Voc Schools Association; Mindanao Rep, Export Development Council. Email comments jojibian2@yahoo.com)