The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced on Tuesday that seven sports centers managed by the office will gradually reopen for public use starting from November 1, after they were no longer needed for anti-epidemic purposes. The seven centers include Sun Yat Sen Memorial Park Sports Centre, Harbour Road Sports Centre, Boundary Street Sports Centre No. 2, Hiu Kwong Street Sports Centre, Java Road Sports Centre, Sai Wan Ho Sports Centre, and Lai Chi Kok Park Sports Centre,Click here for the timetable for the reopening. Members of the public can reserve the fee-charging facilities of the venues according to their booking commencement dates via the Internet booking services of Leisure Link, counter bookings and self-service kiosks, or via the Booking Offices of the District Leisure Services Offices during office hours.

Index heavyweights drive markets higherLikewise, the broader All Shares index gained 20.89 points or 0.66 percent to finish at 3,198.63. MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine stock market advanced yesterday, with the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange Composite index (PSEi) closing 65.58 points or 1.11 percent higher at 5,970.33. Likewise, the broader All Shares index gained 20.89 points or 0.66 percent to finish at 3,198.63. Analysts from Philstocks Financials said interest in index heavyweights, especially SM Investments Corp. and SM Prime Holdings, helped lift the bourse into the positive territory. Asia’s main markets had struggled overnight but Europe’s STOXX 600 made a 0.5 percent early gain as both the pound and UK government bonds rallied in London.

Learn how to prepare bid documentsMANILA, Philippines — The Government Procurement and Policy Board regularly release compliance regulations that will boost the efficiency of procurement and bidding for consulting services. Whether you are doing government to government (G2G) or government to private transactions, you must update yourselves to these changes. The rules mandate all government entities and prospective bidders to use the revised bidding documents for the procurement of consulting services. Failure to successfully conclude procurement projects are normally due to faulty crafting of the TORs and requirements in the bidding documents, while the disqualification of bidders are attributable to inability to align their bidding documents with the Philippine bidding documents (5th Edition). Learn from expert practitioner, lawyer Zoilo Andin Jr. who is a seasoned lecturer, senior consultant, and adviser to many national government agencies, LGUs, private companies, and law firms on Procurement Law.

An autistic teenager was on Monday sentenced to 14 days’imprisonment, suspended for 12 months, for prank-calling a judge and his wife eight times in December two years ago. Chan Po-hong, 19, previously pleaded guilty to contempt of court, after he allegedly violated an interim court injunction banning the doxxing and harassing of judicial officers and their families. He was said to have obtained the telephone numbers online and made eight silent calls to the judge and his wife on December 6, 2020. His conviction is also the first in the territory in relation to the injunction imposed in October 2020. Passing sentence, High Court judge Russell Coleman noted that Chan had told police investigators under caution that he committed the acts thinking it was fun, and was dissatisfied with the judge being “pro-government”.

A gun accidentally discharged inside the Happy Valley Police Station on Monday morning; no injury was caused. The incident occurred at around 9am in the bullet-loading areas of the police station. Police officers said the incident was suspected to be due to a male officer who serves for the Hong Kong Island Regional Traffic Department firing a bullet in an accidental discharge of his gun. The case is now under investigation by the department with officers emphasizing the police force has strict rules on equipment use.

Raslag accelerates spend of IPO proceeds by 6 monthsRaslag [ASLAG 1.68 1.20%] [link], the solar power generation company owned by the Nepomuceno Family, disclosed that its board has voted to re-allocate the disbursement schedule of its IPO proceeds to spend P380 million in mid-November of this year on paying the balance owed on the land for RASLAG-4, and funding the equity portion for RASLAG-4’s construction and development. The original schedule called for this to happen sometime in the first half of next year. ASLAG did not say why it is accelerating the RASLAG-4 project, nor did it say how the proceeds of the loan would be used. MB BOTTOM-LINEI’ve been a vocal opponent of a board’s ability to make changes to the disbursement plan of its IPO proceeds, but that’s usually because these changes are not obviously to the benefit of minority shareholders. They’re putting IPO investor cash to work sooner than anticipated.

Banks’ real estate exposure eases to 21.8% in 1st halfBuildings are seen along EDSA in Quezon City before dawn, Sunday (July 3, 2022). Commercial real estate loans grew by 6.7 percent to P1.58 trillion from P1.48 trillion, while residential real estate loans went up by 8.2 percent to P919.89 billion from P850.34 billion. Past due commercial real estate loans decreased by 7.6 percent to P39.91 billion from P43.21 billion, while past due residential real estate loans slipped by 4.9 percent to P101.41 billion from P106.67 billion. The industry’s real estate exposure from January to June was well within the 25 percent ceiling set by the BSP. These measures also included the heightened surveillance of banks’ real estate and project finance exposures, and the real estate stress test thresholds for universal and commercial banks as well as thrift banks.

Air strikes continue to pound Marawi City on June 29, 2017, more than a month after the Maute Group seized the city. A soldier walks past a bombed-out mosque in Butig, Lanao del Sur after government troops retook Butig town from the Maute group in December 2016. MindaNews photo by Froilan GallardoBut after two weeks, the Maute Group failed in its bid to occupy the town of Butig. It is said that the Maute Group even sent fighters to the ISIS war in the Middle East. The residents’ cash and jewelry were also secured to fill the Maute Group’s war chest.

BEIJING — President Xi Jinping on Sunday kicked-off the 20th congress of China’s ruling Communist Party, a week-long event where he is widely expected to win a third leadership term and cement his place as the country’s most powerful ruler since Mao Zedong. The son of a Communist Party revolutionary, Xi has reinvigorated a party that had grown deeply corrupt and increasingly irrelevant, expanding its presence across all aspects of China, with Xi officially its “core”. The twice-a-decade congress is expected to reconfirm Xi as party general secretary, China’s most powerful post, as well as chairman of the Central Military Commission. The day after the congress ends on Saturday, Xi is expected to introduce his new Politburo Standing Committee, a seven-person leadership team. RELATED STORIESEXPLAINER: The ways China’s Xi Jinping amassed power over a decadeWho is China’s President Xi JinpingRead Next

BEIJING – Chinese President Xi Jinping is to open the 20th Communist Party Congress on Sunday, a week-long event where he is widely expected to win a third leadership term and cement his place as the country’s most powerful ruler since Mao Zedong. ADVERTISEMENTThe congress will likely open with Xi, 69, reading a lengthy report in a televised speech that reviews the party’s achievements of recent years and outlines broad-brush priorities for the next five years. REVOLUTIONARY’S SONThe son of a Communist Party revolutionary, Xi has reinvigorated a party that had grown deeply corrupt and increasingly irrelevant, expanding its presence across all aspects of China, with Xi officially its “core”. The twice-a-decade congress is expected to reconfirm Xi as party general secretary, China’s most powerful post, as well as chairman of the Central Military Commission. The day after the congress ends on Saturday, Xi is expected to introduce his new Politburo Standing Committee, a seven-person leadership team.

Carlo Biado blanked Chinese Taipei’s Hsieh Chia Chen, 10-0, to barge into the semifinals of the US Open 9-Ball Championship Friday, Oct. 14, in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Carlo Biado is the last Filipino standing in the US Open 9-Ball Championship. Corteza absorbed a 10-2 beating from United Kingdom’s Chris Melling while Garcia fell short on his bid with a 10-5 loss to Austria’s Max Lechner. Biado, meanwhile, held his ground and bested Poland’s Konrad Juszczyszyn, 10-7, in the Last 16 before routing Chen in the quarters. Lechner trounced United Kingdom’s Chris Melling, 10-4, while Chung squeaked past Albania’s Eklent Kaci, 10-8.

Two 18-year-old men and a 16-year-old girl were arrested for stealing a Tesla that was put for sale on online trading platform Carousell on Friday. A woman earlier put the electric car for sale on Carousell and arranged a meeting with two so-called buyers in Sai Kung. Officers then located the electric car at a Mei Foo parking lot through the GPS. They successfully intercepted and arrested the two men and the girl for taking conveyance without authority. Police have recovered the car key from one of the men and all three are now remanded in custody.

U.S. Navy F-18 fighter jets are parked on the deck of aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) during a goodwill visit in Manila, Philippines. (Reuters)The United States has made available US$100 million in foreign military financing to the Philippines, its ambassador in Manila said on Friday, part of efforts to boost the Southeast Asian country's defence capabilities and military modernization. The new military financing underscores improved defence ties between the treaty allies under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, whose predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte, shifted his country's foreign policy away from the United States to pursue warmer ties with China. Manila is looking to buy heavy-lift Chinook helicopters from the United States. The amount includes US$475.3 million worth of foreign military financing to Philippines, among the biggest in Southeast Asia.

UBX, Yield Guild Games and Xave Finance join hands in organizing the Web3 Hackathon to be held on Nov. 12 and 13, 2022 in Makati City. CONTRIBUTED PHOTOUBX, the leading open finance platform in the Philippines, has collaborated with globally renowned Filipino-led web3 companies in the world, Yield Guild Games (YGG) and Xave Finance, to organize the Web3 Hackathon, an official side event of the first-ever Philippine Web3 Festival, to be held on Nov. 12 and 13, 2022 in Makati City. A week-long premier event, the Philippine Web3 Festival will showcase everything that the Philippines has to offer in the metaverse. "UBX has always been at the forefront of driving innovation in the world of finance. "We couldn't have asked for better partners, as UBX and YGG both have the requisite expertise and drive to make this event possible," Xave Finance founder and CEO Chris Verceles said.

Police on Wednesday arrested a 31-year-old university graduate who may have learned how to make drugs online and turned a To Kwa Wan home into a drug lab, where officers seized about HK$4 million worth of dangerous drugs. The unemployed man was arrested on suspicion of manufacturing and trafficking in dangerous drugs. The To Kwa Wan flat that was used is a 300 square feet two-bedroom apartment located on Mok Cheong Street. Officers seized some drug making equipment and packaging tools as well. Cheung also said every corner of the property was used for storing, planting or cooking drugs.