MANILA, Philippines – JG Summit Holdings Inc. has set aside P28 billion for capital outlays this year, bulk of which will be channeled to its telecommunication and airline businesses.

The diversified holding company also expects to post a record year in terms of revenues, core earnings and cash flow generation in 2009 despite some pressures from the global economic slump.

The capital expenditure budget for this year is lower than the P33.4 billion spent last year due to lower spending on the food business, JG Summit president Lance Gokongwei said after the company’s stockholders’ meeting Friday.

He said spending on the food business would be less this year because the company has completed the expansion of its sugar refinery, the cost of which jacked up capital spending last year.

The breakdown of this year’s capex budget was estimated by Gokongwei as follows: Telecommunications (P12 billion); airline (P5 billion); property (P7 billion); food (P3 billion) and the balance of P1 billion for other businesses.

Gokongwei said JG Summit was expecting a 15- to 20-percent growth in revenues this year, matching the pace of expansion in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (Ebitda). “So it will be a number close to P29-P30 billion Ebitda,” Gokongwei said.

Last year, its core earnings rose 59 percent, translating to an Ebitda of P25 billion out of P100 billion in revenues. But the company incurred a net loss of P585.52 million attributable to equity holders of the parent company last year, a reversal from the P11.37 billion in net profit in 2007, largely due to foreign exchange as well as other treasury and non-recurring losses.

Gokongwei said the group was continuing to invest heavily in the telecom business but declined to elaborate on future strategy.

Subsidiary Digital Telecommunications Philippines Inc., which operates the Sun Cellular network, has quietly increased market share to become a leading player especially in the post-paid subscriber market.