Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 03 April 2018

Tue Apr 3 12:52:25 CAT 2018

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Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 03 April 2018

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*  South Africa's rand inches ahead against vulnerable dollar

*  The Islamic Development Bank to finance $185 mln projects in Tunisia

*  Egypt net foreign reserves rise to $42.611 bln at end-March - c.bank

*  South African court dismisses bid to block $4.7 bln renewable deals

*  Egypt to keep customs exchange rate at 16 pounds in April

*  Nigeria's FX reserves up 9 pct in past month -central bank data

*  Tunisia raises fuel prices again to reduce budget deficit

*  South African tourism has "huge growth potential": minister

*  Listeria class action filed against South Africa's Tiger Brands

*  Mauritius cuts 2018 growth forecast, agriculture seen slowing

*  Spotify braces for $20bn US share market listing

*  White House criticises China for $3bn tariffs on US imports

*  Murdoch proposes Sky News sale to Disney

*  Grab boss: 'Zero issues' with Uber deal in South East Asia

*  Amazon and Intel drive US markets lower

 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

South Africa's rand inches ahead against vulnerable dollar

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa’s rand opened firmer on Tuesday as the
greenback dipped slightly with some traders opting for short-dollar
positions as the scandal around President Donald Trump momentarily eclipsing
fears over a U.S.-China trade war.

At 0640 GMT the rand was 0.21 percent firmer at 11.8375 per dollar compared
to an overnight close of 11.8200 in low volume trade over the Easter weekend
that saw most global markets closed.

Technical and momentum indicators suggested the rand was slightly oversold
in the past few sessions and would move firmer toward a resistance level at
11.80, paving the way for further gains later in the week.

The rand lost more than 2 percent in value against the dollar in the
previous week as the trade tiff between the world’s two largest economies
escalated. China on Tuesday imposed extra tariffs on 128 U.S. products in
response to U.S. tariffs on imports of aluminium and steel.

“The news this weekend across the globe revolved around Trump’s issues with
regards to one Stormy Daniels more than the effect of the recent trade
tariffs which goes to show how quiet this weekend was,” said chief trader at
Standard Bank Warrick Butler.

The trade fears have dampened global risk appetite, but the rand remains an
EM favourite following a ratings reprieve by Moody’s and data suggesting the
continent’s most industrialised was on track for faster growth.

Local data releases include new vehicles sales data for March and the Absa
Purchasing Managers’ Index.

The yield for the benchmark government bond was flat at 7.985 percent.

The JSE Top-40 index was 0.3 percent lower at 48,638, tracking declines in
major overseas markets.

 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

The Islamic Development Bank to finance $185 mln projects in Tunisia

TUNIS (Reuters) - The Islamic Development Bank has agreed on Sunday to lend
Tunisia $185 million to finance developments including an electricity
project, an official told Reuters.

The bank agreed to finance an electricity link worth $150 as well as the
construction of hospitals in Kasserine and Kef worth $34 million.

The agreement will be signed on Thursday between Tunisia’s Minister of
Development and the head of the bank, which holds its annual meeting in the
country this year.

Egypt net foreign reserves rise to $42.611 bln at end-March - c.bank

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt’s net foreign reserves rose slightly to $42.611
billion at the end of March from $42.524 billion at the end of February, the
central bank said on Monday.

Cairo’s foreign reserves have been climbing since the country secured a $12
billion three-year International Monetary Fund loan programme in 2016 as
part of efforts to woo foreign investors and revive its ailing economy.

South African court dismisses bid to block $4.7 bln renewable deals

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - A South African court on Thursday dismissed a bid
to block $4.7 billion in renewable power contracts, an energy ministry
spokeswoman said, removing an obstacle to the first major investment deal
under President Cyril Ramaphosa.

The last-minute legal challenge was lodged earlier this month by the
National Union of Metalworkers (NUMSA) and Transform RSA, a group which has
lobbied for ousted president Jacob Zuma in the past.

It was opposed by the energy ministry and state power utility Eskom, which
had been due to sign 27 mostly wind and solar deals with independent power
producers (IPPs).

On Thursday the court in Pretoria said NUMSA and Transform RSA’s legal
application was not urgent and should be set aside.

NUMSA and Transform RSA had argued that the deals would lead to coal-sector
job losses and should be scrapped.

“Although we acknowledge the judgement we are dissatisfied,” Transform RSA
president Adil Nchabeleng said, adding that his group would appeal the
ruling.

A spokesman for Eskom said the power utility was ready to sign power
purchase agreements with the IPPs when it received a directive from the
energy ministry to do so.

Egypt to keep customs exchange rate at 16 pounds in April

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt will keep its customs exchange rate steady at 16
pounds per dollar for April, state news agency MENA said on Saturday.

Egypt began setting a monthly fixed customs exchange rate in January,
following the flotation of its pound currency in November 2016. It has since
set it each month.

The pound has remained roughly at the same level in recent months, trading
at around 17.6 to the dollar on Saturday.

Nigeria's FX reserves up 9 pct in past month -central bank data

LAGOS (Reuters) - Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves stood at $46.2 billion
as of March 28, up 8.8 percent from a month earlier, central bank data
showed on Saturday.

Successful debt sales, including a eurobond offering last month, have helped
the government accrue billions of dollars in foreign reserves, although they
remain far from the peak of $64 billion in August 2008.

The government raised $2.5 billion in Eurobonds in February and expects more
to follow. Nigeria’s foreign exchange buffer has climbed 53 percent since
March 2017 when it stood at $30.30 billion.

Tunisia raises fuel prices again to reduce budget deficit

TUNIS (Reuters) - Tunisia raised fuel prices on Saturday for the second time
in three months in an effort to rein in its budget deficit, one of a series
of reforms the country’s international lenders want.

The price of a litre of petrol will rise about 3 percent, from 1.80 dinars
to 1.85 dinars, starting Sunday, the ministry of energy said in a statement.
The last increase was also by about 3 percent, in January of this year.

The International Monetary Fund approved last week the payment of a $257
million tranche of Tunisia’s loan programme and urged it to go ahead with
more reforms.

The IMF said in statement that among the priorities for 2018 are to
strengthen tax collection, not grant new wage increases unless growth
surprises on the upside and enact quarterly price increase for fuel.

Fuel subsidies will rise from the 1.5 billion dinars expected this year to a
3 billion dinars with the rise of world oil prices, Minister of Reforms
Taoufik Rajhi said.

Tunisia has forecast that the budget deficit will fall to 4.9 percent of
gross domestic product in 2018, from about 6 percent in 2017.

South African tourism has "huge growth potential": minister

CAPE TOWN (Reuters) - South Africa will speed up visa processes and lure
major conferences in an effort to boost foreign arrivals by 40 percent by
2021, its tourism minister said on Friday.

The new measures are part of a goal to attract five million additional
travellers – four million international tourists and one million extra local
holiday trips and will help limit the “blip” a major drought is having on
South Africa’s top tourist draw card, Cape Town, said minister Derek
Hanekom.

“I am bullish because there is huge growth potential,” Hanekom told Reuters
in an interview.

“On the international front conditions are very much in our favour so its
going to be easier to achieve the four million part than the one million,”
he said.

Tourism, which contributes more than 400 billion rand ($34 billion) to
Africa’s most industrialized economy, or around 8 percent of GDP, is seen by
government as key to help drive growth and reduce a stubbornly high
unemployment rate.

South Africa emerged from a recession last year but is struggling to grow
its economy and less disposal income means locals are hesitant to travel.

However, the long-haul destination still provides good value for money for
foreign tourists attracted to its white beaches, iconic Table Mountain and
wildlife safaris.

Earlier this month, the World Travel and Tourism Council said travel and
tourism would contribute around 424.5 billion rand to the overall economy in
2018, before rising by 3.5 percent a year to 598.6 billion or 10.1 percent
of GDP in 2028.

Besides establishing a fund which is geared to help South Africa win more
global conferences and exhibitions, Hanekom said home affairs officials were
also developing online visa applications, as well as possibly producing them
for tourists on arrival at airports.

“Of course the first prize for us and the easiest is when visitors from
particulars countries don’t need visas at all,” he said.

Hanekom said discussions with home affairs and foreign relations departments
would consider granting more countries visa waivers for short trips,
following success with visitor numbers from Russia which increased 57
percent last year.

Tourism officials said current visa processes were putting off tourists from
China, India and Nigeria, some of the world’s largest outbound travel
markets.

($1 = 11.8239 rand)

Listeria class action filed against South Africa's Tiger Brands

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - A class action lawsuit was filed on Thursday
against South Africa’s Tiger Brands, after one of the company’s food
factories was linked to a listeria outbreak that has killed 180 people since
early 2017, the lawyer running the case said.

Richard Spoor, a human rights advocate who previously masterminded a massive
class action on behalf of gold miners with silicosis, filed the lawsuit on
behalf of families affected by the listeria outbreak. The case against Tiger
Brands was clear, Spoor said.

“Their fingerprints are all over this outbreak,” he told Reuters.

A spokeswoman for Tiger Brands confirmed the company had received the
filing, the first lawsuit against the company following the outbreak, and
was reviewing its contents.

Tiger Brands said this month it had received notice of two class action
suits against the firm, with the total amount claimed against the company
estimated at 425 million rand ($36 million).

Tiger Brands’ Chief Financial Officer Noel Doyle said at the time in an
interview on Radio 702 that the company had yet to calculate the total
financial impact of the suits.

The food producer has suspended production at its Polokwane, Germiston,
Pretoria and Clayville sites in South Africa, which produce polony, and
other cold meats.

Separately, the World Health Organization said in a statement that it was
ready to provide support in cases where countries do not have
well-established surveillance systems and laboratory diagnostic services in
place to detect listeria, and “has reached out to 16 African nations.”

Kenya, Zimbabwe and Zambia have banned imports of South African processed
meat, dairy products, vegetables and fruit since the listeria outbreak.
Mozambique and Namibia halted imports of processed meat products and
Botswana said it was recalling them. Malawi has stepped up screening of
South African food imports.

Mauritius cuts 2018 growth forecast, agriculture seen slowing

PORT LOUIS (Reuters) - The economy of Mauritius is expected to grow by 3.9
percent this year, down from a previous forecast of 4.0 percent in December,
due to an expected slowdown in agriculture and fishing activities, the
statistics office said on Friday.

The Indian Ocean island economy expanded by 3.8 percent in 2017, lower than
the previous estimate of 3.9 percent.

Statistics Mauritius said agriculture would expand by 1.1 percent this year
instead of 2.0 percent, due to no growth in sugarcane and lower growth in
other agricultural activities.

Mauritius, which markets itself as a bridge between Africa and Asia, has
been working to shift the economy from reliance on sugar, textiles and
tourism towards offshore banking, business outsourcing, luxury real estate
and medical tourism.

Spotify braces for $20bn US share market listing

Shares in the music streaming firm Spotify will be publicly traded for the
first time later on Tuesday when the firm debuts on the New York market.

The flotation marks a turning point for the firm, that, after 12 years, has
not yet made a profit.

Spotify's listing, which could value it at $20bn (£14bn), is unconventional:
it is not issuing any new shares.

Instead, shares held by the firm's private investors will be made available.

What was once an small upstart Swedish music platform, has grown rapidly in
recent years, adding millions of users to its free-to-use ad-funded service,
and converting many of them to its more lucrative subscription service.

It is now the global leader among music streaming companies, boasting 71
million paying customers, twice as many as runner-up Apple.

What Spotify must do to survive

How Spotify came to be worth billions

So far costs and fees to recording companies for the rights to play their
music, have exceeded Spotify's revenues, although that gap is narrowing.

And some analysts predict the listing will speed-up Spotify's race towards
profitability.

"Up until now it was the warm-up lap," says Mark Mulligan at MIDia Research.
"When that's done we'll see a bit of a shift in strategy and direction."

Why is Spotify listing its shares?

The firm made a commitment to investors who backed it as the company was
growing, that they would be given the chance to cash in their investment. So
Spotify had to list its shares sooner or later.

But it could also herald a new phase for the firm.

Being publicly traded will put pressure on the management, and could provide
the excuse they need to make changes, says Mark Mulligan.

"Once you're a tech stock - more than with a normal listed company -
[investors] expect you to do stuff fast, change fast," he says.

So what will change?

"So far they've been treading a very fine line between being the dramatic
new future of the music business but simultaneously being the biggest friend
of the old music industry by giving record labels a platform to build out of
decline," says Mr Mulligan.

"To go to the next phase [Spotify] will have to stop talking out of both
sides of its mouth, which it does at the moment. And stop being so friendly
to the record companies."

More than half of Spotify's revenue goes directly to the record companies.
But they are not likely to make any bold moves immediately, since the labels
also control two thirds of the music that Spotify plays.

Chris Hayes at Enders Analysis says while it may not be as a direct result
of the share listing, he also expects Spotify to evolve.

"I think over time they're going to have to diversify their offering," he
says, helping to set them apart from a sea of rival streaming services.

What will Spotify look like in the future?

They have already moved into podcasts and producing original music. They may
well start to offer more original content like Taylor Swift's recent video
which was only made available on the platform, says Chris Hayes.

It could also be thinking about emulating Berlin-based Soundcloud, which
offers a social media forum for lower-profile content creators, he says.

Mark Mulligan thinks they could offer documentaries, information about
artists, special music features, news articles and even comedy.

Will things be different for artists?

One of the thorniest issues for Spotify in the past has been a backlash from
artists who say only the biggest stars make enough income from the streaming
subscription model.

"At the moment it's all about record labels. Spotify doesn't have a place
for artists," says Mark Mulligan.

"The bigger bolder things post [the share listing] will be doing something
very clear for artists."

He thinks in time Spotify could start offering places for artists to build
their own creative spaces and profile pages - so that there are ways to
bypass the record labels and go straight to Spotify to reach fans.

Chris Hayes thinks it will be some time before record labels are sidelined.
But he says if Spotify can attract more subscription customers, payments to
artists will increase automatically through the current pay-per-listen
model.

So can Spotify make money?

The firm's first operating profit (not including debt financing) is on the
horizon for 2019 based on current trends, according to Mr Hayes.

"The strategy has always been, the free tier is not very lucrative but it is
a funnel through which to persuade free users to upgrade to the subscription
tier which is lucrative."

As long as subscriptions continue to grow it should eventually become
profitable.

Mr Mulligan thinks as the business matures it will learn to make money from
its loyal customers by offering more services.

Above all there is scope to exploit the data gleaned from fans' playlists,
and the company could sell its data tools back to the music industry. For
example Spotify's insights into people's listening habits could inform an
artist planning a route for their next tour.

What about the competition?

Spotify may be the current market leader, but in the long-term there are
threats on the horizon in the shape of the Apple, Amazon, Google and
possibly even Facebook.

"Ultimately Spotify's biggest risk is: what is it like to be the only
company in a marketplace that has to turn a profit?" says Mark Mulligan.

The tech giants wield vast resources and have ready-built ecosystems from
smart speakers to social networks.

"Spotify's rivals are the biggest companies in the world with bottomless
pockets," he says, and they are using music as a way to sell their core
products, not as a business proposition in itself. They could offer the
record labels more money than Spotify can afford to pay.

"That would be my biggest worry if I were Daniel Ek," he says, referring to
Spotify's co-founder.

"What if Apple decided: let's throw ten billion at this and see if we can
throw Spotify out of the water?"--BBC

White House criticises China for $3bn tariffs on US imports

The White House has criticised China after it imposed retaliatory tariffs
against the US on a range of goods, including pork and wine.

Beijing put duties of up to 25% on 128 American imports following President
Donald Trump's decision to slap taxes on imports of steel and aluminium.

China said the move was intended to safeguard its interests and balance
losses caused by the new tariffs.

US stocks fell sharply and Asia traded generally lower, amid trade war
fears.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 Index lost 2.2%, while the Dow Jones Industrial
Average dropped 1.9%.

In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 opened down about 1.5% on Tuesday but recovered
a little to close 0.45% lower. The Shanghai Composite closed down even
further, dropping 0.84%, although Hong Kong's Hang Seng bucked the trend,
reversing earlier losses to finish up 0.29%.

What are tariffs and trade wars (and should you worry?)

Five reasons why trade wars aren't easy to win

What could China do in a US trade war?

The White House reacted angrily to China's move.

"Instead of targeting fairly traded US exports, China needs to stop its
unfair trading practices which are harming US national security and
distorting global markets," spokeswoman Lindsay Walters said.

She added; "China's subsidisation and continued overcapacity is the root
cause of the steel crises,"

The back-and-forth reflects rising tensions between the US and China, which
President Trump has described as an "economic enemy".

What is this fight about?

The US has taken two major steps on tariffs recently that have triggered
tension with China, the first on steel and aluminium and the second on
intellectual property.

The global steel and aluminium tariffs were announced on 8 March. The US is
using national security laws to impose the tariffs, which it says are needed
to protect US producers.

Certain allies such as Canada, Mexico and the European Union are in line for
exemptions, pending talks.

China has challenged the US use of national security laws and announced
retaliatory tariffs on $3bn (£2.1bn) worth of US products.

Those tariffs went into effect on Monday, targeting US goods including
frozen pork, nuts, fresh and dried fruit, ginseng and wine.

The US tariffs related to intellectual property are expected to be set out
this week.

They stem from a US investigation into the alleged theft of intellectual
property and Beijing's "Made in China 2025" programme, which the US says
puts its firms at a disadvantage and unfairly pressures them to share
technology, especially in fields such as robotics and telecommunications.

Up to $60bn in tariffs could be imposed on Chinese imports.

China's ambassador to the US, Cui Tiankai, warned Beijing would take
counter-measures of "the same proportion".

What is a trade war and why should I worry?

Reality Check: Is Trump right about US trade deficit?

Who will blink first?

By Stephen McDonell, BBC News, Hong Kong

China's theft of foreign intellectual property is what sparked all this in
the first place, according to Washington. If international companies want to
operate in China they must hand over their intellectual property for the
privilege, thus delivering the likes of German high-speed rail technology
into the hands of Chinese engineers.

Yet now that China's retaliatory tariffs have kicked in, there are also
those sympathetic with that argument who are worried that launching a
potential tariff war is not the way to fix the problem. Naturally others say
China has been getting away with this for years and tough measures were
needed in order to force change.

There is also the overall imbalance in US-China trade but a large Chinese
surplus, of course, means it is potentially much more exposed during a trade
war than America. For this reason Beijing will want to negotiate a way out
of this escalating tariff showdown.

Its first set of tariffs are relatively mild but they come in response to
the first round of US tariffs and a second has already been announced. There
are plenty more American companies to be hit and other nations, especially
those in Europe and Asia, could soon find themselves dragged into this
conflict.

How have producers reacted?

American businesses caught up in the dispute have raised alarms, noting that
China is a large market for certain goods, including pork, soya beans and
aircraft.

For example, last year China was the third largest market for US pork,
receiving about $1.1bn worth of products, according to the National Pork
Producer Council.

"Any restriction on export markets is not a good development for US pork
producers," Jim Monroe, a spokesman for the National Pork Producers Council,
told the BBC.

US companies have said that while they share some of the Trump
administration's concerns, they are worried that threatening tariffs is not
the best way to resolve the problems.

"The direction of what the US government is doing, and that is to apply some
pressure, use some leverage, to level the playing field is the right one,
although I don't think tariffs is the best way to go," said William Zarit.
chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in China.

Mr Zarit told the BBC that members of his organisation, which represents
more than 900 companies operating across China, including Intel, Dell,
Honeywell and Coca-Cola, were encouraged to hear that top officials have
started talking again.

"I think it shows that both sides want to solve this before it gets out of
hand," he said.--BBC

Murdoch proposes Sky News sale to Disney

Rupert Murdoch's 21st Century Fox has said it would sell off Sky News to
Disney or ring-fence it to try to allay regulatory concerns over its
proposed acquisition of Sky.

Fox wants to buy the 61% of Sky it does not already own.

But it faces regulatory problems after the Competition and Markets Authority
found the £11.7bn deal was not in the public interest.

Fox had already pledged to ensure the independence of Sky News.

The Murdoch family's news outlets are currently consumed by nearly a third
of the UK's population across TV, radio, online and newspapers.

The Murdoch Family Trust controls News Corporation, which publishes
newspapers including the Sun, the Times and the Sunday Times.

Sky was one of the top gainers on the FTSE 100 in morning trading on
Tuesday, with shares up about 1%.

What is the ring-fencing proposal?

Under the proposed new deal, the news channel would become a distinct
company within Sky, run by the head of Sky News.

Funding for Sky News would also be guaranteed for 15 years. Previously, Fox
had said it would be funded for 10 years.

The executive chairmen of Sky, Rupert Murdoch and his son Lachlan, and the
chief executive, Chase Carey, would not try to influence editorial decisions
made by the head of Sky News, according to a statement by 21st Century Fox.

The company had already proposed remedies to the CMA's concerns, including
having an independent board for Sky News.

However, critics of that proposal, including politicians such as Ed
Miliband, Vince Cable and Kenneth Clarke, had said that the head of Sky News
would still be appointed by the head of 21st Century Fox and so could be
influenced by the Murdochs.

Fox hit back at those politicians on Tuesday, saying their assertions were
"unsupported and fanciful".

What is the new Disney proposal?

Fox also proposed selling off Sky News to Disney, whether or not Disney's
proposed acquisition of Fox goes through.

Disney's proposed takeover of 21st Century Fox, which has yet to be approved
by regulators, includes Fox's current 39% stake in Sky.

Even if that takeover gets knocked back, Sky News would still be sold off
under the new proposal.

Disney chief executive Bob Iger is keen on Sky and has said he is
"committed" to Sky News, which is loss-making.

US media giant Comcast has also thrown its hat into the ring for Sky with a
£22.1bn bid in February.

Comcast has a broadband division serving 29 million US customers. It also
owns NBC and Universal Pictures and wants to buy a majority stake in Sky.

What do Sky shareholders think of the proposals?

Analysis: Simon Jack, business editor

This is great news for Sky shareholders.

If Sky News is sold to Disney or legally separated from the rest of Sky,
then the thorny issue of Murdoch control over Sky News - to add to the Sun,
the Times and the Sunday Times - is finally laid to rest.

What we will then have is a straight shoot out between 21st Century Fox and
US rival Comcast to acquire Sky.

A proper auction between those two bidders will mean a higher price for Sky.

Currently Fox is offering £10.75 per share and Comcast has indicated it
would be prepared to bid £12.50.

Directors at Sky are pretty confident that Fox will have to come in with a
better offer.

At that point, we will see how serious Comcast really is in its bid to
derail Rupert Murdoch's carefully laid plans to sell Fox to Disney and
effectively dismantle a media empire it has taken a lifetime to build.--BBC

Grab boss: 'Zero issues' with Uber deal in South East Asia

The chief executive of ride-sharing firm Grab says he is confident
regulators will not derail his plan to buy Uber's South East Asian
operations.

Anthony Tan told the BBC he saw "zero issues" on how the deal was done.

South East Asia's most popular ride-hailing firm said last week it would buy
its rival's regional operations for an undisclosed sum.

But Singapore, Malaysia and Philippines regulators are investigating whether
the sale breaches competition rules.

The Philippines anti-competition watchdog said the deal created a "virtual
duopoly", while Malaysian officials said they would monitor Grab for
possible anti-competitive behaviour.

Last week Singapore's regulatory body said it had "reasonable grounds" to
suspect that competition had been infringed.

It proposed interim measures requiring the two rivals maintain their
pre-transaction independent pricing for customers until regulators completed
a review of the deal.

Analysis: When Goliath stands to lose every time

Analysts have warned that the takeover could result in higher prices and
less choice for users.

Asked by the BBC about the regulators' concerns, Mr Tan said: "So far there
are zero issues, zero issues specifically on the deal of how it's done. Of
course there are ways that we can make [the deal] better. There are ways
that we can manage how to serve our customers better."

Grab would work with the regulators in each of the three countries, Mr Tan
said, and would commit to maintaining the firm's current base fares in order
to protect customers.

"The number one thing that any regulator is concerned about is how do we
make sure that we as, a leader do not set a bad example, do not take
advantage.

"So we are out there, we are very visible, to say 'Look, we will not
predatory price, we will not take advantage of our drivers'."

Under the terms of the deal, Uber will take a 27.5% stake in Singapore-based
Grab in exchange for Grab taking over the US giant's ride-sharing and food
delivery operations across South East Asia.

Uber has invested about $700m in the region, but has not got close to being
profitable.

Chief executive, Dara Khosrowshahi, who has been preparing the firm for an
initial public offering in 2019, knows he must make the business more viable
if the stock market flotation is to be a success.

One tactic is to cut deals in markets where Uber is not the biggest player.
It gave up the battle for China in 2016, and has also pulled out of Russia.

A profile of Grab including an interview with Anthony Tan will kick off a
series looking at Asia's Tech Titans on BBC World News on Saturday 7
April.--BBC

Amazon and Intel drive US markets lower

Wall Street shares plunged to their lowest level in weeks on Monday in a
wide sell-off led by technology firms.

Intel was among the biggest losers, after a report that Apple plans to stop
using Intel chips for its computers.

E-commerce giant Amazon also slid by more than 5%, after new attacks from US
President Donald Trump.

The falls extended recent declines triggered by increased debate in the US
about competition and privacy rules, as well as tensions over trade.

The technology-heavy Nasdaq index lost 193 points, or 2.74%, to close at
6,870.1

The S&P 500 fell 59 points or 2.2% to 2,581.9, while the Dow fell 458.9
points or 1.9% to 23,644.19.

Technology companies saw some of the steepest declines on Monday, but the
falls touched every sector of the S&P 500.

The S&P and the Nasdaq indexes ended the day having given up most of the
gains made since a steep sell-off in February, while the Dow closed at its
lowest level since November.

Tariffs

Analysts said the declines in recent weeks have been triggered by
uncertainties over many aspects of the economy, including borrowing costs,
trade tensions, debate about data regulations, and driverless car
technology.

On Monday, China imposed new taxes of up to 25% on 128 US imports worth
$3bn, including pork, fruit, nuts and wine, in retaliation for steel and
aluminium tariffs the US announced last month.

US technology companies with large operations in China could be exposed to
retaliation if the dispute escalates.

But for firms like Facebook, which ended 2.75% lower and is blocked in
China, fears of increased regulation are triggering many of the declines,
said Sucharita Kodali, a retail analyst for Forrester Research who tracks
Amazon and other companies.

"The lack of regulation [in the US] has been fundamental to the success of
these large tech companies ... Their business is dependent on that," she
said. "That's the fear."

Ms Kodali said she thinks some of the panic is overblown, since any changes
will take time to be implemented.

"It's just so speculative," she said.

Apple's chips

Monday's declines come amid weeks of choppy market trading, which have
unsettled investors after last year's the steady upward climb.

The volatility has sparked selling as people cash in on last year's gains
and look for new, safe investments.

In some cases, investors had specific reasons to dump stocks on Monday.

Bloomberg reported that Apple is developing its own chips to use in its
computers, with the transition planned as soon as 2020. The report sent
Intel shares down more than 6%.

Tesla shares also fell by more than 5%, after the firm was rebuked by US
safety regulators for sharing information about a recent crash. Investors
are also worried about the company's finances, as it spends heavily to ramp
up car production.

Amazon reported the steepest decline on the S&P 500, falling 5.2% after Mr
Trump tweeted another attack on the firm.--BBC

INVESTORS DIARY 2018

Company

Event

Venue

Date & Time

Zimplow

final dividend 0.13c per share record

23/03/2018 

TSL

AGM

28 Simon Mazorodze Road, Southerton

27/03/2018 12pm

Willdale

AGM

19.5km peg, Lomagundi Road, Mount Hampden

29/03/2018 11am

Good Friday

30/03/2018 

Easter Monday

02/04/2018

Zimbabwe

Independence Day

Zimbabwe

18/04/2018

Workers’ Day

01/05/2018

Africa Day

25/05/2018

Zimbabwe

Heroes’ Day

Zimbabwe

13/08/2018

Zimbabwe

Defence Forces Day

Zimbabwe

14/08/2018

 <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 sources 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
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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 sourced from third parties.

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