Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 06 February 2025

[Bulls n Bears]

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Major International Business Headlines Brief:::  06 February 2025 

 


 


 


 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

 


 

 


 

ü  Kenya central bank cuts main lending rate to 10.75%

ü  South African rand weakens; traders focus on president’s address

ü  ArcelorMittal South Africa delays long-steel plant closure amid
government talks

ü  Kenya has begun talks with IMF for new lending program, finance minister
says

ü  Kenya private sector activity expands weakly in January, PMI shows

ü  Sasol sees up to 36% drop in half-yearly profit on lower oil prices

ü  China says will protect its own interests in face of U.S. ‘bullying’

ü  Bank of England to resume rate cuts with outlook complicated by tax hikes
and Trump tariffs

ü  India likely to cut benchmark rates for the first time in nearly five
years as economy slows, inflation eases

ü  Ukraine’s allies warn Europe against returning to Russian gas as part of
a peace deal

ü  Huawei revenue rises at fastest pace since 2016 on the back of consumer
segment growth

ü  Trump sued over purge at NLRB, regulator targeted by SpaceX, Amazon and
others

ü  Ford CEO calls for ‘comprehensive’ tariff analysis for all countries

ü  Ford beats earnings expectations but forecasts tougher year ahead

ü  DOT secretary says he spoke with Elon Musk on U.S. airspace reforms

 


 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

 


 

Kenya central bank cuts main lending rate to 10.75%

(Reuters) – Kenya’s central bank cut its benchmark lending rate by 50 basis
points to 10.75% on Wednesday, its monetary policy committee said.

 

The decision was in line with the forecast of a Reuters poll of four
economists.

 

The central bank also cut banks’ Cash Reserve Ratio by 100 basis points to
3.25% to support a lowering of lending rates, the committee said in a
statement.

 

 

 

 

 

South African rand weakens; traders focus on president’s address

(Reuters) – The South African rand weakened early on Thursday as investors
focussed on President Cyril Ramaphosa’s national address for clarity on the
country’s economic and political policies.

 

At 0641 GMT, the rand traded at 18.5925 against the dollar, about 0.3%
weaker than its previous close.

 

Ramaphosa will deliver around 1700 GMT the annual State of the Nation
Address (SONA), the first under his coalition government, which will provide
investors some clarity on economic reforms and the country’s approach to
structural challenges.

 

Although SONA has traditionally not been a market-moving event, this address
could be different, analysts said.

 

A highlight may be the economic reforms underway, which are key to removing
the country from the Financial Action Task Force’s greylist and stabilising
the fiscus.

 

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday, without citing evidence, that
“South Africa is confiscating land” and “certain classes of people” were
being treated “very badly”. He said he would cut funding until the matter
was investigated.

 

ETM Analytics said in a research note that Ramaphosa will want to use the
opportunity of SONA to paint the country’s future efforts in a better light.

 

“This SONA will, therefore, be the main event of the day and capture the
bulk of the market’s attention through the afternoon and evening as it
receives more and more coverage,” the note added.

 

South Africa’s benchmark 2030 government bond was weaker in early deals,
with the yield up 1.5 basis points at 9.06%.

 

 

 

 

 

ArcelorMittal South Africa delays long-steel plant closure amid government
talks

(Reuters) – ArcelorMittal South Africa said on Thursday it will delay the
closure of its long-steel plant operations by a month, as the steelmaker
engages in talks with the government to salvage the business.

 

The company had planned to start winding down the loss-making long-steel
business by the end of last month, but has delayed it due “continuing
discussions with the South African government” as well as
higher-than-anticipated orders.

 

The outcome of the talks will be announced before the end of this month, the
steelmaker said in a statement.

 

The company stated that a 380 million rand ($20.44 million) loan from the
Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa, its second-largest
shareholder after parent company ArcelorMittal, has facilitated the
continued operations of its long-steel business.

 

ArcelorMittal South Africa also reported a headline loss of 5.1 billion rand
for the year ended December 31, wider than the headline loss of 1.89 billion
rand in 2023.

 

The company said the losses were mainly driven by the weak financial
performance of its long steel business on the back of soft demand, high
energy and logistics costs, as well as the influx of low-cost steel imports,
particularly from China.

 

The closure of the long-steel operations, which produce fencing material,
rail, rods and bars used in the construction, mining and manufacturing
sectors, has been on the cards since November 2023. The shutdown could
affect about 3,500 direct and indirect jobs.

 

Advertisement

($1 = 18.5867 rand)

 

 

 

Kenya has begun talks with IMF for new lending program, finance minister
says

(Reuters) – Kenya has already started talks with International Monetary Fund
officials to secure a new lending program when the current one expires in
April, its finance minister told Reuters on Wednesday.

 

The East African nation needs continued support from the Washington,
D.C.-based lender to keep its economy on track, Finance Minister John Mbadi
said in an interview.

 

Kenya’s debt-servicing costs have surged due to a borrowing spree over the
past decade, while it abandoned a plan to raise revenue via tax hikes last
year in the wake of deadly protests.

 

“Maybe before the current program comes to a close in April, there should be
some indicators whether we are starting a new program and what that new
program will entail,” he said.

 

A $1.5 billion commercial loan from the United Arab Emirates, at an 8.25%
interest rate, was still an option for the government to fund its budget
this fiscal year, he said, but they are also considering other sources,
including issuing a Eurobond.

 

“We have the option of taking that… or we go to the market which is open
now, and with our good and positive credit,” he said.

 

The decision by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump to freeze
foreign aid could hit Kenya hard, as it lacks the fiscal space to replace
the funding, Mbadi said, adding that he hoped the United States would
reconsider.

 

“We don’t have that fiscal space… We will have to rearrange the budget and
rechannel the domestic resources,” he said.

 

 

 

 

Kenya private sector activity expands weakly in January, PMI shows

(Reuters) – Kenya’s private sector activity expanded for a fourth straight
month in January but only modestly and at a slower pace than in December, a
survey showed on Wednesday.

 

The Stanbic Bank Kenya Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) slipped to 50.5 in
January from 50.6 a month earlier. Readings above 50.0 signal an expansion
in activity.

 

“The index was above the 50.0 neutral mark for the fourth successive month,
thereby extending the current period of private sector growth,” Stanbic Bank
said in comments accompanying the survey.

 

In January, the finance ministry estimated growth slowed to 4.6% in 2024
from 5.6 percent in 2023 but predicted it would pick up this year.

 

Inflation rose in January, reaching 3.3% year-on-year from 3.0% a month
earlier, data from the statistics office showed.

 

“Kenyan businesses reported an increase in purchase prices for imported
commodities, albeit a slower one than the preceding month, still attributed
to higher taxes,” said Christopher Legilisho, an economist at Stanbic Bank.

 

“Output prices increased but less briskly,” he added. “We would therefore
foresee a slight easing in inflationary pressure during January than was the
case in December.”

 

 

 

 

 

Sasol sees up to 36% drop in half-yearly profit on lower oil prices

(Reuters) – South African petrochemical firm Sasol forecast a fall of up to
36% in half-yearly earnings on Wednesday, mainly due to a decline in oil
prices and lower sales volumes.

 

Sasol said in a trading update that it expects its headline earnings per
share (HEPS), a profit measure widely used in South Africa, to come in
between 13 rand and 15 rand ($0.6955-$0.8025), down from 20.37 rand in the
same period last year.

 

The company, which produces chemicals and liquid fuels from coal and gas,
said the decline was primarily because of a 13% fall in the average rand
Brent crude oil price per barrel, as well as a significant drop in refining
margins and fuel price differentials.

 

A 5% decrease in sales volumes due to lower production and market demand
also hurt income, Sasol said.

 

The company will release its half-yearly results on Feb. 24.

 

($1 = 18.6923 rand)

 

 

 

 

 

China says will protect its own interests in face of U.S. ‘bullying’

BEIJING — China has toughened its tone following the Trump administration’s
opening salvo of trade tariffs.

 

“In the face of one-sided acts of bullying, [China] will definitely take
necessary measures to firmly protect its own rights and interests,” Chinese
Ministry of Commerce Spokesperson He Yongqian told reporters Thursday,
according to a CNBC translation.

 

She added that China would not provoke trade disputes and remained ready to
resolve problems through discussions. Beijing’s official commentary
previously emphasized the willingness to negotiate.

 

China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Lin Jian struck conveyed a
similar mood on Wednesday.

 

“China firmly deplores and opposes the move of the U.S. to levy a 10 percent
additional tariff on Chinese imports under the pretext of the fentanyl
issue,” he said, according to an official English translation. “The measures
China has taken are what’s needed for safeguarding our legitimate rights and
interests.”

 

The official remarks came just days after the U.S. announced 10% tariffs on
Chinese goods, to which the Chinese side on Tuesday retaliated with its own
duties of up to 15% on U.S. liquefied natural gas and select products,
starting Feb. 10.

 

The U.S. also halted a so-called de minimis exemption, making it more
expensive for Chinese e-commerce merchants to ship products directly to U.S.
consumers.

 

Ministry of Commerce spokesperson He on Thursday urged the U.S. to create a
“fair and predictable” environment for cross-border e-commerce.-cnbc

 

 

 

 

Bank of England to resume rate cuts with outlook complicated by tax hikes
and Trump tariffs

The Bank of England is widely expected to cut interest rates on Thursday,
amid a complex backdrop of a tepid domestic growth outlook, an upcoming hike
in taxes paid by businesses and U.S. President Donald Trump’s
market-rattling tariff threats.

 

As of Wednesday morning, Money markets were pricing in a 98% probability of
a quarter-point rate cut at the February meeting, which would take the Bank
rate to 4.5%. The BOE opted to hold at its previous gathering in December,
citing “elevated” services inflation of 5% and a higher-than-expected
headline print of 2.6% in November. That rate has since cooled to 2.5%,
while services inflation dropped to a 33-month low of 4.4%.

 

Since January, traders have ramped up their bets on the total number of BOE
rate cuts likely to take place during 2025. Where at the start of the year
only two trims were expected, economists and prominent business voices
including the head of British bank Lloyds

, Charlie Nunn, have said they anticipate three trims. Markets are meanwhile
pricing more than 80 basis points’ worth of cuts by December, suggesting
four reductions could be a possibility.

 

Those bets have built on the back of several data surprises, including
weaker-than-expected retail sales data and disappointing November growth.

 

Closely watched on Thursday will be the vote split among the nine members of
the Monetary Policy Committee — with a unanimous or near-unanimous decision
suggesting a bias toward easing — as well as the BOE’s updated growth and
inflation projections.

 

The U.K. economy stagnated in the third quarter, and the BOE has already
forecast that the final three months of last year also showed no growth.

 

Any downgrade to the BOE’s 2025 growth projections, or to its outlook for
inflation to hit 2.7% in the fourth quarter of 2025 and ease to 2.2% across
2026, will be seen as support for the doves.

 

Uncertainty ahead

Two upcoming major developments could complicate the Bank’s forecasting,
which BOE Governor Andrew Bailey is likely to be questioned on.

 

The first is how the central bank now views any potential inflationary
impact from the fiscal reforms announced by the U.K. government in October,
which include a significant hike in the tax that businesses face on
payrolls. A survey by the British Chambers of Commerce published January
said some firms were planning price rises as a result of higher costs.

 

 

Made with Flourish

The second question is how the U.K. will fare amid Trump’s volatile trade
policy and the start of his tit-for-tat trade war with China, which is
currently tamer than originally feared. Trump has threatened to slap tariffs
on imports from the U.K. and European Union, but his delay of duties on
Canada and Mexico has suggested other countries may be able to negotiate
their way out of the fight.

 

It has also been suggested that the U.K. could benefit from wider trade
disputes with the U.S. due to its more balanced trade relationship with the
world’s biggest economy, allowing for an increase in U.K. investment and new
trade opportunities.

 

 

“If Chinese goods find their way to the continent and into the U.K., and
exert a downward pressure on prices, it gives the [European Central Bank]
and the BOE more scope to lower interest rates more aggressively than
markets are anticipating this year, especially as growth is expected to
weaken over the coming quarters,” Dan Boardman-Weston, chief executive
officer and chief investment officer of BRI Wealth Management, told CNBC’s
“Street Signs” on Tuesday.

 

That is likely to reaffirm the monetary policy divergence between the BOE
and the ECB — which markets view as likely to cut by a whole percentage
point this year — and the U.S. Federal Reserve, seen trimming by a
half-point at most.

 

Anthony Karaminas, global head of sub-advised fixed income at SEI, said that
the U.K.’s situation of “stagflation-lite” — economic stagnation combined
with above-target inflation — was a challenge for the BOE as it “seeks to
support economic activity while also adhering to its explicit inflation
mandate.”

 

“Looking ahead, sticky inflation might limit Governor Bailey’s ability to
cut rates much further,” Karaminas said in emailed comments.

 

It the central bank presses ahead with a swift pace of easing, the U.K.
government bond market “could suffer a credibility penalty in the form of a
significantly higher term premium,” he said, adding this would limit the
scope of the government to spend to boost the economy at a time when it
“desperately needs a dose of productivity-driven growth.”

 

U.K. borrowing costs spiked in January amid a global bond market sell-off
and stoked by concerns about Britain’s deficit and weak growth forecasts.
Borrowing costs have since fallen significantly.-cnbc

 

 

 

 

 

 

India likely to cut benchmark rates for the first time in nearly five years
as economy slows, inflation eases

India’s central bank will likely cut benchmark interest rates in its policy
meeting that’s underway, as easing inflation offers it room to stimulate a
faltering economy, though the rupee hovers at record lows.

 

The Reserve Bank of India is poised to trim the repo rate by 25 basis points
to 6.25% as it concludes its policy meeting on Friday, setting off “a
shallow rate cut cycle,” said Taimur Baig, chief economist at DBS Bank.

 

Indian bonds have rallied in recent weeks with the 10-year benchmark yield
falling by 16.5 basis points in about three weeks to 6.664% as of Wednesday
close, according to LSEG data, as traders ramp up wagers for an interest
rate cut at the February meeting.

 

If the RBI does lower rates, it will be the first cut in nearly five years.
The central bank last reduced rates in May 2020 as the country battled the
Covid-19 pandemic-inflicted downturn.

 

Investors will also scrutinize the statement of the new RBI Governor Sanjay
Malhotra to assess the direction of the bank’s monetary policy. Malhotra
took charge in December.

 

“It will be interesting to see if the RBI continues with the governor’s
statement, apart from the monetary policy statement, as a tool of policy
communication,” Goldman Sachs said.

 

The Wall Street bank anticipates a quarter-percentage cut this week, along
with a monetary policy shift to looser “accommodative” stance from
“neutral.” It also penciled in an additional 25-basis-point cut in April.

 

The benchmark repo rate has remained steady at 6.5% for past two years, as
the domestic inflation rate has stayed above the central bank’s medium-term
target of 4%, and even breached the RBI’s upper tolerance limit of 6% in
October.

 

“The delay in implementation of universal tariffs by the incoming U.S.
administration provides some tactical space for RBI to prioritize domestic
growth ... and space to cut policy rates,” said Ruhul Bajoria, an economist
at Bank of America in India.

 

The Indian government has been steadily lowering its full-year real GDP
forecasts, after the economic growth missed expectations by a large margin
in the quarter ended September, when its grew by 5.4% — its slowest
expansion in nearly two years.

 

The latest projection last month trimmed the growth estimates for the
current fiscal year to 6.4% from 7.2% in October, its worst in four years,
while inflation projection was raised to 4.8% versus 4.5% earlier.

 

After breaching the upper limit in October, India’s consumer price inflation
has eased, dropping within the central bank’s tolerance ceiling of 6%,
coming in at 5.22% in December and 5.48% in November.

 

Changed house

Softer inflation readings have offered the RBI room to lower rates, in what
is also the first policy meeting after Malhotra took charge for a three-year
term.

 

His predecessor, Shaktikanta Das had maintained steady interest rates for
nearly two years toward the end of his six-year stint.

 

 

 

In RBI’s most recent monetary policy meeting in December, the rate-setting
panel kept the key interest rate unchanged in a split decision, while
cutting the cash reserve ratio by 50 basis points to 4.0%, effectively
easing the monetary conditions.

 

The new senior monetary policy leadership could give “the MPC a fresh look,
but also possibly a different approach,” Bajoria said.

 

Malhotra has remained fairly tight-lipped on his monetary policy views, but
he acknowledged in the financial stability report in December that easing
inflation and the potential for monetary policy flexibility were positive
developments.

 

The governor also cautioned the medium-term economic outlook remains
challenging, citing risks including rising geopolitical conflicts and
financial market turmoil.

 

He has reportedly ordered a review of the central bank’s inflation and
growth forecasting tools in an effort to minimize projection errors.

 

Weakening rupee

A weakening rupee has made it tougher to loosen the monetary policy. The
rupee has been on a steady decline against a stronger dollar, shedding 3.6%
against the dollar since early November.

 

With the rupee hitting record lows against the greenback, any cuts to the
bank’s policy rate could spark a further rise in domestic inflation, putting
further pressure on the currency and likely triggering capital outflows.

 

RBI has acted to implement substantial interventions in the foreign exchange
market to help cushion a potential sudden outflows of foreign capital and
avoid any steep fall in the currency.

 

“The level of volatility on which intervention is undertaken appears to have
shifted higher,” BofA’s Bajoria said, adding that “a weak rupee can
influence timing, but would not overrule the need for policy support.”

 

External headwinds

India-watchers have also been on tenterhooks over possible actions by
President Donald Trump, who floated the idea of universal tariffs during his
campaign trail.

 

With a trade surplus of over $43 billion with the U.S in 2023 — over $41
billion in the first 11 months of 2024 — India faces heightened scrutiny as
Trump focuses on reducing trade deficits.

 

India emerges as major beneficiary from U.S. tariff policies: Allianz
Globalwatch now

VIDEO03:03

India emerges as major beneficiary from U.S. tariff policies: Allianz Global

The U.S. trade policy framework under Donald Trump’s second presidency could
strengthen the dollar and Treasury yields, keeping the U.S. interest rates
elevated for longer.

 

That has complicated the policy decisions for central banks in Asia,
including the RBI, as boosting growth by loosening policy would mean
widening the rate differentials and reducing the allure of its investment
assets.

 

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seen keen to enhance trade relations
with the Trump administration and avoid tariff tensions with its largest
trading partner. Modi has reportedly been invited to meet with Trump next
week.-cnbc

 

 

 

 

 

Ukraine’s allies warn Europe against returning to Russian gas as part of a
peace deal

Ukraine’s closest allies have warned against the European Union reopening
Russian gas pipelines as part of a potential peace settlement, with one
Baltic nation describing the prospect as “not a good solution in any way.”

 

It comes shortly after the Financial Times reported that EU officials were
considering whether to restore gas flows from Russia to Europe as part of a
settlement to end the Kremlin’s years-long Ukraine war.

 

The report, which was published on Jan. 30 and cited unnamed sources
familiar with discussions, said the idea had been endorsed by some EU
officials as one way of lowering regional energy costs.

 

Estonia, a NATO member which shares a 294-kilometer (183 miles) border with
Russia, is among those calling on the 27-nation bloc not to reopen Russian
gas pipelines.

 

The Eastern European country said the EU must not allow itself to become
dependent on Russian energy as part of a Ukraine peace settlement, noting
that restoring gas flows would be inconsistent with the bloc’s goal of
phasing out Russian fossil fuel imports by 2027.

 

“We have seen in history that Russia has used energy as a weapon. Russia has
repeatedly demonstrated this — and so, going back is not a good solution in
any way,” Kadri Elias-Hindoalla, director of Estonia’s foreign affairs’
sanctions and strategic goods department, told CNBC via video call.

 

Europe should have learned its lesson when Russian forces invaded Georgia in
2008, Estonia’s Elias-Hindoalla said, adding that the Ukraine war has since
reaffirmed the importance of finding alternative suppliers and improving the
bloc’s energy independence.

 

“Our position is very clear: We should maximize sanctions and limit Russia’s
energy imports as much as possible,” Elias-Hindoalla said.

 

The foreign ministries of Russia and Ukraine did not respond when contacted
by CNBC for comment.

 

For its part, the European Commission said it is “not making any links”
between the reopening of Russian gas and Ukraine peace talks. The European
Commission is the EU’s executive arm.

 

“Whenever we have such talks, when that moment comes, it will be with
Ukraine and we do not confirm any links reported in the article … about any
links between the transit of gas through Ukraine and any peace talks,” EU
spokesperson Paula Pinho said in a press briefing on Thursday.

 

The EU’s plan, Pinho said, remains to stick to the gradual phasing out of
Russian gas. The bloc adopted a 15th package of sanctions against Russia
late last year, seeking to further weaken Russia’s military and industrial
capabilities.

 

‘One of the worst ideas in the history of the world’

Lithuania, which was occupied by the Soviet Union until 1990, has said that
securing an end to the fighting in Ukraine must take place with Kyiv’s full
involvement.

 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy underlined this message in an
interview with The Associated Press earlier this month, warning it would be
“very dangerous” to exclude Kyiv from talks between the U.S. and Russia
about how to end the invasion.

 

Speaking during a virtual appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos,
Switzerland, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Jan. 23 that he would like
to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin “soon” to find a way to end
the Ukraine war.

 

President Donald Trump: I'd like to meet with Putin and get the
Russia-Ukraine war endedwatch now

VIDEO05:45

President Donald Trump: I’d like to meet with Putin and get the
Russia-Ukraine war ended

Former Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said the prospect
of peace through dependence on Russian gas was “demonstrably one of the
worst ideas in the history of the world.”

 

“The suggestion to reinstate this disastrous policy is nothing more than
spitting on the graves of its innocent victims,” Landsbergis said in social
media post on Jan. 30.

 

Even in the event of an end to the Ukraine war, Lithuania’s President
Gitanas Nausėda has warned that his country’s geographical position could
make it vulnerable to a broader conflict. The country of 2.8 million borders
Russia’s Kaliningrad exclave to the west and Moscow’s ally of Belarus to the
east.

 

Europe’s gas supply shift

Russian gas exports to Europe via Ukraine came to halt at the start of 2025,
marking the end of Moscow’s decades-long dominance over the region’s energy
markets.

 

Ukraine’s Zelenskyy said at the time that the end of Russian gas transit
through his country to Europe represented “one of Moscow’s biggest defeats”
and called on the U.S. to supply more gas to the region.

 

Russia, meanwhile, warned that EU countries would likely suffer the most
from the supply shift. Moscow is still able to send gas via the TurkStream
pipeline, which links Russia with Hungary, Serbia and Turkey.

 

Poland, a staunch Ukraine ally and another European country that shares a
border with Russia’s Kaliningrad, has also urged EU countries not to reopen
Russian gas flows.

 

“I can only hope that European leaders will learn lessons from Russia’s
aggression against Ukraine and that they will push through a decision to
never restore the pumping of gas through this pipeline,” Polish President
Andrzej Duda said in an interview with the BBC last month.

 

His comments referred to the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline, which connects
Russia and northern Germany via the Baltic Sea.-cnbc

 

 

 

 

Huawei revenue rises at fastest pace since 2016 on the back of consumer
segment growth

BEIJING — Chinese telecommunications and smartphone giant Huawei continues
to grow and take market share from Apple

, despite U.S. restricting the company’s access to high-end technology.

 

Huawei’s revenue exceeded 860 billion yuan ($118.27 billion) in 2024,
Chairman Howard Liang said Wednesday, according to local state media. Huawei
did not comment when contacted by CNBC.

 

That’s a 22% jump in revenue from 2023, and the fastest growth since a 32%
increase in 2016, according to CNBC calculations of publicly released
figures. Huawei typically publishes its annual reports in March.

 

Liang, speaking at a local government conference, described Huawei’s
consumer business as “returning to growth” and car solutions business as
seeing “rapid development,” according to a CNBC translation of the
Chinese-language report. He said Huawei’s information and communications
technology business — which has been the largest segment by revenue —
“remained stable.”

 

Since 2019, the U.S. has restricted Huawei’s ability to access technology
from American suppliers, from advanced 5G chips to Google’s Android
operating system.

 

Huawei’s revenue barely grew in 2020, and plunged by nearly 29% in 2021. Its
consumer segment was hit hard, and even as revenue rose 17% year on year to
251.5 billion yuan in 2023, it was just over half of what the unit generated
at its peak in 2020.

 

Huawei’s smartphone shipments in mainland China surged by 37% last year,
climbing from fourth to second place by market share, while Apple fell to
third place with a 17% drop, according to Canalys data. Vivo, known for its
budget-priced devices, ranked first by market share in 2024, the data
showed.

 

The telecommunications company started to make a comeback in the smartphone
market in 2023 with the release of its Mate 60 Pro in China. Reviews
indicated the device offers download speeds associated with 5G — thanks to
an advanced semiconductor chip.

 

Just over a year later, Huawei launched the Mate 70 smartphone series that
uses the company’s first fully self-developed operating system, HarmonyOS
NEXT.-cnbc

 

 

 

 

Trump sued over purge at NLRB, regulator targeted by SpaceX, Amazon and
others

The former chair of the National Labor Relations Board in a new lawsuit
Wednesday accused President Donald Trump of breaking the law when he fired
her from the agency last week.

 

Lawyers for Gwynne Wilcox argue that she was removed from her post for a
“political purpose” in a manner that violates the 90-year-old statute that
established the NLRB.

 

Her lawsuit in Washington, D.C., federal court seeks an order reinstating
her on the board and declaring that her firing was unlawful.

 

Created by Congress to enforce U.S. labor laws, NLRB is an independent
agency with board members who are insulated from arbitrary removal. No
member of the NLRB had ever been fired by a president, until Wilcox.

 

On Trump’s first day in office, he replaced Wilcox as the chair with another
board member. A week later, both Wilcox and the NLRB’s top lawyer, Jennifer
Abruzzo, were fired in a “late-night email,” according to the suit.

 

That email said she was being fired because the “heads of agencies within
the Executive Branch must share the objectives of [Trump’s] administration.”
Wilcox was appointed by former President Joe Biden, a Democrat.

 

The lawsuit calls this “a blatantly political purpose that flies in the face
of the NLRB’s independent status.”

 

Wilcox argues that her firing did more than just violate the agency’s
independence.

 

It effectively forced “an immediate and indefinite halt” to all of the
NLRB’s regulatory activity.

 

At the time of Wilcox’s firing, there were already two vacancies on the
five-member NLRB panel. Wilcox’s ouster leaves just two remaining members on
the board, Marvin Kaplan and David Prouty.

 

With only two out of the five board seats filled, the NLRB does not meet the
three-member threshold that it requires to continue operating.

 

Without a quorum of three, “no mechanism remains for resolving labor
disputes” at NLRB, Wilcox’s lawsuit said.

 

This could be a positive development for the group of companies, including
Elon Musk’s SpaceX, Amazon and other giants, that have argued in a slew of
lawsuits that the labor board’s structure is unconstitutional.

 

A vocal opponent of labor unions, Musk was Trump’s largest campaign donor.
The billionaire currently serves as a “special government employee” and the
leader of Trump’s anti-bureaucracy effort, known as DOGE.

 

Musk and his lieutenants at DOGE are carrying out an unprecedented effort to
reduce federal spending, moving through agencies and personnel offices and
recommending that thousands of civil servants be reclassified, and in some
cases, fired.

 

“We spent the weekend feeding U.S.A.I.D. into the wood chipper,” Musk wrote
on X Monday, referring to the U.S. Agency for International Development.

 

There is currently no record of DOGE members visiting the NLRB or contacting
the agency. The NLRB declined to comment on Wilcox’s suit.-cnbc

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ford CEO calls for ‘comprehensive’ tariff analysis for all countries

DETROIT — Ford Motor CEO Jim Farley on Wednesday said if the Trump
administration is going to implement tariffs affecting the automotive
industry, it should take a “comprehensive” look at all countries.

 

Farley singled out Toyota Motor and Hyundai Motor for importing hundreds of
thousands of vehicles annually from Japan and South Korea, respectively,
that have little to no duties compared with the 25% tariff President Donald
Trump has threatened imposing on Canada and Mexico.

 

“There are millions of vehicles coming into our country that are not being
applied to these [incremental tariffs],” Farley said during the company’s
fourth-quarter earnings call with investors. “So if we’re going to have a
tariff policy ... it better be comprehensive for our industry.

 

“We can’t just cherry pick one place or the other because this is a bonanza
for our import competitors.”

 

 

Farley’s comments follow Trump implementing a 10% additional tariff on goods
from China, which include automobiles, and ongoing negotiations with Canada
and Mexico regarding 25% levies on imports from those countries to the U.S.

 

For years, Ford has touted its investments in the U.S., as well as having
the most American workers of any automaker, even as it is considered a
disadvantage to its business.

 

GlobalData reports 46.6% of all vehicles sold in the U.S. last year were
produced outside of the country. South Korea, at 8.6%, and Japan, at 8.2%,
rank second and third in vehicle imports, only trailing Mexico, at 16.2%,
GlobalData reports.

 

Cars imported from South Korea currently have no tariffs, while those
imported from Japan are subject to 2.5% duties. Truck imports for the
countries are 25%.

 

Aside from Hyundai and its sibling company Kia, General Motors

annually imports hundreds of thousands of vehicles tariff-free from South
Korea.

 

Nissan Motor

and Honda Motor

, along with smaller carmakers such as Subaru, also import vehicles from
Japan, along with Toyota.-cnbc

 

 

 

 

 

Ford beats earnings expectations but forecasts tougher year ahead

DETROIT — Ford Motor beat Wall Street’s top- and bottom-line expectations
for the fourth quarter but forecast a tougher year ahead for the company, as
CEO Jim Farley promises improvements in vehicle quality and costs.

 

Shares of Ford fell 5% in after-hours trading.

 

Ford’s forecast this year calls for adjusted earnings before interest and
taxes, or EBIT, of $7 billion to $8.5 billion; adjusted free cash flow of
$3.5 billion to $4.5 billion; and capital expenditures between $8 billion
and $9 billion.

 

For 2024, Ford reported adjusted EBIT of $10.2 billion, or $1.84 in adjusted
earnings per share, and net income of $5.9 billion, or $1.46 in earnings per
share. The automaker reported total revenue, including its financial arm,
was a company record of $185 billion, and adjusted free cash flow was $6.7
billion.

 

“We think it’s prudent. There’s a lot of external factors … but our future
is really in our hands,” Farley said Wednesday during CNBC’s “Closing Bell”
on the cautionary guidance. 

 

Here’s how the company performed in the fourth quarter compared with average
estimates compiled by LSEG:

 

The company said its 2025 guidance, which is in line with or lower than many
analysts’ expectations, “presumes headwinds related to market factors.” They
include 2% industry lower pricing and slightly lower wholesales for Ford but
not additional tariffs by the Trump administration.

 

“Given the pause in the current tariff situation, specifically in Mexico and
Canada, we are not choosing to take any actions at this time,” Ford Chief
Financial Officer Sherry House told media on Wednesday during a call. “We’re
going to let this run itself out so we can better understand the potential
impacts on our business.”

 

House said this year’s forecast also takes into account expectations of a $1
billion reduction in material and warranty costs compared with last year.
This follows $1.4 billion in cost reductions in 2024, which were largely
offset by unexpected quality and warranty costs.

 

The first half of 2025 is expected to be weaker than the backend. That
includes first-quarter adjusted EBIT that is projected to be roughly
breakeven due to lower wholesales and less profitable vehicles being
produced, including launch activity at major U.S. assembly plants in
Kentucky and Michigan.

 

For the fourth quarter of 2024, Ford reported net income of $1.8 billion, or
45 cents per share, compared with a net loss of $526 million, or a loss of
13 cents per share, a year earlier. Adjusting for one-time items, the
company reported earnings per share of 39 cents.

 

Ford’s traditional “Blue” operations and “Pro” fleet businesses carried the
automaker to profitability, as its “Model e” electric vehicle business lost
$5.08 billion in 2024, including $1.39 billion during the fourth quarter.

 

Its Blue business, which includes internal combustion engine vehicles,
earned $5.28 billion in 2024, a nearly $2.2 billion decrease from the year
before. Pro earned more than $9 billion last year, including $1.63 billion
in the fourth quarter.

 

For 2025, Ford is forecasting EBIT of $7.5 billion to $8 billion from Ford
Pro; $3.5 billion to $4 billion for Ford Blue; and a loss of $5 billion to
$5.5 billion for Ford Model e. Its Ford Credit arm is expected to post
earnings of $2 billion.

 

Ford was under pressure to perform after crosstown rival General Motors

easily topped Wall Street’s fourth-quarter expectations and said its 2025
guidance is in line with or above analysts’ expectations.

 

Ford underperformed expectations last year largely due to unexpected
warranty and recall problems plaguing the company’s earnings. Shares of the
automaker declined nearly 20% in 2024 amid the problems, which Farley has
promised to rectify.-cnbc

 

 

 

 

DOT secretary says he spoke with Elon Musk on U.S. airspace reforms

U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said he spoke with Trump
administration advisor and CEO of SpaceX Elon Musk about reforming the
country’s airspace and raised concerns about the military’s use of
helicopters in Washington, D.C.’s crowded airspace after a deadly collision
last week.

 

“I had a conversation with Elon Musk yesterday, pretty remarkable guy. He
thinks differently than I think probably a lot of us do, but he has access
to the best technological people, the best engineers in the world,” Duffy
said Wednesday at a roadway transportation event in Washington. “We’re going
to remake our airspace, and we’re going to do it quickly.”

 

Duffy’s comments come a week after an Army Black Hawk helicopter collided
with an American Airlines

regional jetliner that was moments away from landing at Ronald Reagan
Washington National Airport. All 64 people on the American flight and the
three military crew on the Black Hawk, which was on a training mission, were
killed. It was the deadliest airline accident in the United States since
2001.

 

Trump has tasked Musk with running the so-called Department of Government
Efficiency, which has received access to such data as the Treasury
Department’s payment systems. Musk didn’t immediately respond to a request
for comment.

 

SpaceX, along with other space companies, shares airspace with commercial
airplanes. The FAA, which oversees U.S. airspace, also oversees Musk’s
SpaceX. Musk threatened to sue FAA over “regulatory overreach” last year
when the agency did not approve launch licenses for SpaceX as rapidly as he
wished.

 

Last month, a Starship rocket suffered an inflight failure that resulted in
a field of debris raining down near Caribbean islands and causing dozens of
commercial flights to divert or delay to avoid the area.

 

U.S. airline executives have for years called for additional funding for the
modernization of U.S. air traffic control systems and additional hiring of
air traffic controllers to stem a yearslong shortage.

 

Duffy didn’t elaborate on the potential changes to U.S. airspace management.

 

Duffy said that one air traffic controller was handling both airplane and
helicopter traffic at the time of the crash and that he will “look at the
policies and the procedures inside the tower.”

 

“We’re going to pull that authority back to make sure that we have the right
policies in place inside our towers to make sure when you fly, you’re safe,”
he said.

 

Duffy said officials need to look at the safety of conducting military
training missions at night.

 

“And if we have generals who are flying in helicopters for convenience
through this airspace, that’s not acceptable,” he said. “Get in a damn
Suburban and drive. You don’t need to take a helicopter.”

 

The U.S. Army didn’t immediately comment. The Pentagon declined to comment.

 

The National Transportation Safety Board, which is leading the investigation
into last week’s crash, is still probing the cause of the deadly
collision.-cnbc

 

 

 

 


 


 


 Invest Wisely!

Bulls n Bears 

 

Cellphone:         +263 71 944 1674 | +27 79 993 5557 

Email:                <mailto:bulls at bullszimbabwe.com>
bulls at bullszimbabwe.com

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INVESTORS DIARY 2025

 


Company

Event

Venue

Date & Time

 


 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 


Companies under Cautionary

 

 

 


 

 

 

 


CBZH

GetBucks

EcoCash

 


Padenga

Econet

RTG

 


Fidelity

TSL

FMHL

 


 

 

 

 


 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

 


 

 


DISCLAIMER: This report has been prepared by Bulls ‘n Bears, a division of
Faith Capital (Pvt) Ltd for general information purposes only and does not
constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy or
subscribe for any securities. The information contained in this report has
been compiled from s believed to be reliable, but no representation or
warranty is made or guarantee given as to its accuracy or completeness. All
opinions expressed and recommendations made are subject to change without
notice. Securities or financial instruments mentioned herein may not be
suitable for all investors. Securities of emerging and mid-size growth
companies typically involve a higher degree of risk and more volatility than
the securities of more established companies. Neither Faith Capital nor any
other member of Bulls ‘n Bears nor any other person, accepts any liability
whatsoever for any loss howsoever arising from any use of this report or its
contents or otherwise arising in connection therewith. Recipients of this
report shall be solely responsible for making their own independent
investigation into the business, financial condition and future prospects of
any companies referred to in this report. Other  Indices quoted herein are
for guideline purposes only and d from third parties.

 


 

 


 (c) 2025 Web:  <http://www.bullszimbabwe.com> www.bullszimbabwe.com Email:
<mailto:bulls at bullszimbabwe.com> bulls at bullszimbabwe.com Tel: +27 79 993
5557 | +263 71 944 1674

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

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