Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 02 March 2018

Fri Mar 2 11:46:46 CAT 2018

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Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 02 March 2018

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*  Barclays Africa lifts profit, looks to Nigeria for growth

*  Saudi Aramco to supply Egyptian refineries for 6 months - minister

*  South Africa's rand recovers slightly as Trump's tariff hurts dollar

*  Nedbank FY profit edges up, Ecobank weighs

*  South Africa's cabinet considering expanding zero-rated VAT basket

*  Rio Tinto's Mozambique woes mount as Australian watchdog takes company to
court

*  Nigeria Union Bank working with Citi on Eurobond, others to follow
-sources

*  S.Africa economic confidence to get a lift after cabinet reshuffle

*  Trump steel tariffs: Trading partners threaten retaliation

*  Jaguar reveals first all-electric SUV

*  Insurer Liberty FY profit up 8 percent

*  UK gas supply warning ceases as cold snap continues

*  Bill Gates says crypto-currencies cause deaths

*  Equifax finds more victims of 2017 breach

 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

Barclays Africa lifts profit, looks to Nigeria for growth

(Reuters) - Barclays Africa Group, South Africa’s No.2 lender by market
value, plans to extend its reach throughout the continent, it said on
Thursday after posting annual profit up nearly 4 percent.

Chief Executive Maria Ramos said the bank, which is changing its name back
to South African brand Absa after its split from former parent Barclays,
aims to enter Nigeria as it seeks to lift its share of the African market to
12 percent from 6 percent over the medium term.

Finance Director Jason Quinn told Reuters that Nigeria has been in its
sights for some time.

“We would have to think carefully about how and when to enter the Nigerian
market and that is what we are going to start doing,” he said.

“We have to decide how we enter, whether we acquire or build.”

The bank had earlier reported normalised diluted headline earnings per share
— the primary measure of profit in South Africa, stripping out one-off items
— up 3.9 pct at 1,837.7 cents for the year to Dec. 31, helped by a 20
percent drop in credit impairments.

Net interest income, a gauge of lending profitability, rose by 1 percent to
42.32 billion rand ($3.56 billion), while its net interest margin was
unchanged at 4.95 percent.

Growth in the United States was the positive surprise in the second half,
even as Europe, Japan and China grew at or above consensus expectations, the
bank said.

This more than made up for slow economic expansion in its main markets,
which account for about 80 percent of group income.

Barclays Africa and its rivals have struggled to increase lending as slowing
economic growth in many African markets tempers demand from corporate
clients while retail clients in its home South African market feel the
squeeze from rising interest rates.

However, confidence in its domestic market has been buoyed by the Cyril
Ramaphosa’s elevation to the South African presidency last month, pledging
to revitalise the economy.

Barclays Africa said it expects growth in loans and deposits to improve in
2018 and forecast stronger loan growth from the rest of Africa. It also
forecast stronger loan growth in corporate and investment banking in South
Africa.

($1 = 11.9025 rand)

 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

Saudi Aramco to supply Egyptian refineries for 6 months - minister

CAIRO (Reuters) - Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil producer, agreed to
supply Egyptian refineries with crude oil for six months, starting January
2018, Egypt’s Petroleum Minister Tarek El Molla told Reuters on Thursday.

Aramco will supply 500,000 barrels per month of crude oil to Egyptian
refineries, Molla added.

South Africa's rand recovers slightly as Trump's tariff hurts dollar

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa’s rand opened weaker against the
dollar on Friday, but had regained some ground lost in the previous session
as U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to impose tariffs on steel and
aluminium stalled the greenback’s recent recovery.

At 0640 GMT the rand was 0.27 percent weaker at 11.8800 per dollar, a touch
better than Thursday’s slide to a 2-week worst of 11.9450 triggered by bets
the U.S. Federal Reserve could raise interest rates at least four times in
2018.

Trump’s tariff plan sparked fears of an imminent trade war and worries about
its potentially negative impact on the world’s largest economy, dragging the
dollar back from six-week highs.

With no data releases locally and mid-tier data releases offshore, traders
are set to eye the 11.90 technical resistance level as an indicator of
momentum.

Stocks were set to open softer with the benchmark Top-40 futures index down
0.5 percent.

Bonds were also softer, with the yield on the benchmark paper due in 2026 up
half a basis point to 8.14 percent.

Nedbank FY profit edges up, Ecobank weighs

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa’s No.4 lender by value Nedbank
reported a slight increase in full-year profit on Friday as cost cuts and
lower bad debts offset a weak showing at its west-African associate Ecobank.

Diluted headline EPS, the primary profit gauge in South Africa that strips
out one-off items, rose 2.4 percent to 2,406 cents in the year ended
December.

Excluding the results from Ecobank, which suffered 744 million rand in
associate income losses, Nedbank would have managed about an 8 percent rise
in headline EPS, the company said.

Net interest income, a key measure of lending profitability, was 4.5 higher
at 27.6 billion rand.

Nedbank, along with rivals, has struggled to grow lending at a faster rate
as a stagnant economy and high personal debt levels hit both investment and
investment spending.

But the election of Cyril Ramaphosa as South African president last month on
promises to revitalise the economy has lifted confidence among business
leaders. [

“While structural challenges remain, 2018 has started with renewed optimism
that these will be addressed and that improving business and consumer
confidence should lead to a cyclical upturn off a low base,” Nedbank said in
a statement.

Insurer Liberty FY profit up 8 percent

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South African insurer Liberty Holdings reported an
8 percent rise in annual profit on Friday, a sign that a turnaround strategy
under a new chief executive is bearing fruit.

Normalised headline EPS, the main profit measure in South Africa that strips
out one-off items, came in at 2,719 cents in the year ended December
compared with a 2,527 cents a year earlier.

Liberty, a unit of lender Standard Bank, is in the middle of a turnaround
plan that includes greater focus on higher margin products and slower
offshore expansion under new chief executive David Munro, who took the
reigns almost a year ago from Thabo Dloti.

Dloti resigned after clashing with the board over his acquisition-fueled
expansion strategy across Africa at the expense of what Standard Bank has
said was the neglect of the vast, largely untapped lower-income market at
home.

“We are confident that the group will emerge from this period of change with
significantly greater potential to serve the needs of all stakeholders, the
company said.

S.Africa economic confidence to get a lift after cabinet reshuffle

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Confidence in South Africa’s economy will get a
boost after Monday’s cabinet reshuffle by President Cyril Ramaphosa returned
trusted hands to crucial budget-related ministries, a Reuters poll showed on
Thursday.

Seventeen of the 20 economists surveyed in the past three days said Monday’s
reshuffle would have a significant positive impact on South Africa’s
economic confidence this year.

One economist said it would be very significant, while the remaining two
said it would have an insignificant impact.

In that same sample, 18 indicated they were optimistic the country’s
business sector would play a bigger part in job creation in the next two
years. One economist was very optimistic while the remaining one was
pessimistic.

“Both business and consumer confidence is likely to be boosted by the
election of Cyril Ramaphosa to President of the Republic and the cabinet
reshuffle that (followed),” said Jeffrey Schultz, economist at BNP Paribas
in Johannesburg.

South Africa’s business confidence rose for a third month in a row in
January to its highest since late 2015, on expectations the new leadership
of the ruling party would stabilise economic policy, a survey showed last
month.

“President Ramaphosa clearly has his sights set on improving the domestic
business climate and promoting more public-private sector participation,”
said Schultz.

Gross domestic fixed investment - normally capital spending, such as buying
new machinery for future production - fell into a recession in 2016,
recovering only slightly early last year before hitting another slump in the
second quarter.

The private sector makes up nearly two-thirds of the gross domestic fixed
investment contribution to GDP, although it has played a smaller role in
recent years, with government pushing infrastructure projects to raise jobs.

Schultz added that it would take some time for the trust between business
and the government to be rebuilt, but it was clear the new government has
realised it needs business sector buy-in to get growth and reduce
unemployment.

Unemployment was at just over 20 percent a decade ago and now more than a
quarter of South Africa’s labour force is jobless.

OLD TRUSTED HANDS BACK AT HELM

Ramaphosa appointed Nhlanhla Nene as finance minister on Monday and Pravin
Gordhan as public enterprise minister. All but one of the 20 economists
polled singled out these two National Executive appointments as most likely
to inspire economic confidence.

Both Nene and Gordhan served as finance ministers in the last administration
but were unceremoniously sacked by former President Jacob Zuma.

A poll last month suggested South Africa’s new leadership would need to be
prudent and creative in managing the economy to avoid a credit rating
downgrade, by raising taxes without suffocating a chance for growth.
[ECILT/ZA]

Moody’s is due to publish a review later this month, which economists said
in February would offer the country a reprieve.

South Africa's cabinet considering expanding zero-rated VAT basket

CAPE TOWN (Reuters) - South Africa’s cabinet may expand the basket of
zero-rated value-added tax (VAT) items after it was hiked by 1 percentage
point in last week’s budget, the minister of communications said on
Thursday.

Treasury said last Wednesday VAT would be raised for the first time in 25
years as part of efforts to cut the budget deficit, stabilise debt and raise
revenues for free tertiary education.

The decision to raise the tax was seen a daring one by the government as it
risked upsetting already strained relationship between the ruling African
National Congress (ANC) and its trade union and communist party allies.

“As a response to concerns raised on the VAT tax increases proposed, cabinet
is also considering expanding the list of basic goods that are zero-rated on
VAT,” communications minister Nomvula Mokonyane told a media briefing.

The move to raise VAT to 15 percent from 14 starting in April is expected to
generate an additional 23 billion rand ($2 billion) of revenue in 2018/19.

The ANC also said on Sunday that it wants to alleviate the impact on the
poor of an increase in value-added tax by adding more zero-rated and
tax-free items.

The tax increase was however welcomed by ratings agencies who have raised
concerns about Pretoria’s falling ability to boost revenues without
resorting to excessive borrowing, criticism has come from broad sectors of
society.

Rio Tinto's Mozambique woes mount as Australian watchdog takes company to
court

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Australia’s corporate watchdog said on Friday it has
launched court action against global miner Rio Tinto and two former
executives for misleading investors about the coal reserves it reported in a
$4 billion acquisition in Mozambique.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission said the company and
its former Chief Executive Tom Albanese and former Chief Financial Officer
Guy Elliott had made deceptive statements in their 2011 annual report,
published in 2012.

“ASIC alleges that RTL (Rio Tinto Ltd) engaged in misleading or deceptive
conduct by publishing statements in the 2011 annual report, signed by Mr
Albanese and Mr Elliott, misrepresenting the reserves and resources of RTCM
(Rio Tinto Coal Mozambique),” the commission said in a statement.

Rio Tinto had no immediate comment on ASIC’s action, but has previously
denied any wrongdoing in a similar case brought by the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission.

Rio Tinto now faces court cases in the United States and Australia over the
disastrous acquisition of Riversdale in Mozambique, with the U.S. SEC having
charged the company, Albanese and Elliott with fraud.

“The outcomes of these matters, and associated class actions that have been
commenced on behalf of securities holders, remain uncertain, but they could
ultimately expose the Group to material financial cost,” the company said in
its 2017 annual report released on Friday.

ASIC said it is asking the court to declare that Rio Tinto broke the
Corporations Act, is seeking monetary penalties against Albanese and Elliott
and is asking the court to bar them from managing corporations“for such
periods as the court thinks fit”.

The commission is continuing investigations into the circumstances
surrounding the impairment of the Mozambique coal assets, it said, declining
to comment further.

Rio Tinto bought Riversdale for $4 billion in 2011, wrote off about $3.5
billion of its value and sacked Albanese and other executives involved in
the deal in 2013. The Mozambique deal came on top of hefty writedowns on a
previous acquisition.

The SEC alleges that the company and executives inflated the value of coal
assets in Mozambique and concealed critical information while tapping the
market for billions of dollars.

The company, Albanese and Elliott have all said they would vigorously defend
themselves against the allegations.

Rio Tinto already reached a settlement with the UK’s Financial Conduct
Authority, agreeing to pay a fine of £27 million ($35.6 million) for
breaching accounting rules in connection with the Mozambique assets.

“The investment in 2011 of $4 billion in Mozambique in what ultimately
turned out to be inferior quality coal assets was undoubtedly a low point
during my tenure,” outgoing Chairman Jan du Plessis said on Friday in his
final annual report with the company.

Nigeria Union Bank working with Citi on Eurobond, others to follow -sources

LAGOS (Reuters) - Nigeria’s Union Bank is working with Citigroup and
Renaissance Capital on a planned Eurobond sale, two banking sources told
Reuters, following on from its $163 million share sale in the fourth quarter
to boost lending.

The bank’s plans also follow Nigeria’s $2.5 billion Eurobond sale in
February to refinance local currency bonds at lower cost. The West African
country aims to raise a further $2.8 billion this year.

Union Bank and Renaissance Capital declined to comment, while a Citi
representative was unable to make immediate comment.

Banking sources said Union could issue up to $250 million in bonds including
one in local currency.

The bank, in which Atlas Mara owns a 22.1 percent stake, plans to tap
opportunities to lend to agribusinesses.

Nigerian banks are gearing up to tap Eurobonds to boost lending and to
refinance existing dollar debts before interest rates begin to rise further
in the United States.

The race for more capital has also been fuelled by stricter accounting
principles on how lenders recognise losses, which are likely to knock 50-200
basis points off industry capital, banking executives have said.

The central bank this year put a restriction on dividend payments for
lenders with high non-performing loans and capital ratios lower than its
minimum requirement.

Banking sources said that rival lenders could follow Union Bank’s lead. FCMB
is considering a Eurobond and Diamond Bank, with an existing $200 million
Eurobond due next year, could tap markets again, sources say.

Fidelity Bank issued a $400 million Eurobond in October at 10.75 percent to
refinance existing debt and boost lending. The mid-tier bank told Reuters it
used the bond proceeds to fund its trade book in the fourth quarter.

An FCMB spokesman said the bank was open to raising funds in the future but
details have not been worked out. A Diamond Bank official said investors
would be informed on any decision to raise fresh capital.

Trump steel tariffs: Trading partners threaten retaliation

The main trading partners of the US have reacted angrily after President
Donald Trump announced plans to impose tariffs on steel and aluminium
imports.

Canada and the EU said they would bring forward their own countermeasures to
the steep new tariffs.

Mexico, China and Brazil have also said they are weighing up retaliatory
steps.

Mr Trump tweeted that the US had been "decimated by unfair trade and bad
policy". He said steel imports would face a 25% tariff and aluminium 10%.

However, critics argue that the tariffs would fail to protect American jobs
and would ultimately put up prices for consumers.

The news sent shares in Asia down on Friday, with Japan's benchmark Nikkei
225 losing more than 2% by mid-morning.

Shares in Japan's car-making giant Toyota were down more than 2% and Nippon
Steel stocks down more than 4%.

Toyota said the US decision would "adversely impact automakers, the
automotive supplier community and consumers".

On Friday, China urged the US to "exercise restraint in using trade
protection tools".

President Trump ordered an investigation into the industry last April under
a clause of a 1962 law, which grants the White House authority to restrict
imports in the face of a national security threat.

The Commerce Department report found that imports were harming the domestic
steel and aluminium industries, and could affect the defence industry, the
Washington Post reported.

The decision on imposing tariffs rests with the President and does not need
Congressional approval.

*         Steel tariffs: what impact will they really have?

*         What would China do in a US trade war?

*         Where Trump stands on world trade

*         What has the political reaction been?

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said the tariffs would put
thousands of European jobs at risk.

"We will not sit idly while our industry is hit with unfair measures," he
said. "The EU will react firmly and commensurately to defend our interests."

In Canada, the largest supplier of steel and aluminium to the US, trade
minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said any tariffs would be
"unacceptable".

Minister of Foreign Affairs Chrystia Freeland said Canada would take
"responsive measures" if restrictions were imposed but did not give details.

In other reaction:

*         Brazil, also a large steel exporter to the US, threatened
"multilateral or bilateral" action to protect its interests

*         Australia's trade minister Steven Ciobo said the imposition of
such tariffs would distort trade "and ultimately... lead to a loss of jobs"

*         Germany's steel industry federation, WV Stahl, said the US
measures violated the rules of the World Trade Organization and would have a
major impact on Germany's steel market

*         How has China reacted?

*         On Friday, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said:
"If all countries follow the example of the United States, this will
undoubtedly result in a serious impact on the international trade order",
according to AFP news agency.

Li Xinchuang, vice-secretary-general of the China Iron and Steel
Association, said the impact on China would not be big, adding: "Nothing can
be done about Trump. We are already numb to him."

Little Chinese steel directly reaches US ports, Reuters news agency notes,
because of previous anti-dumping duties, designed to prevent countries from
selling their products at prices deemed unfairly low.

But US steel industry executives say Chinese steel is still widely shipped
to the US through third countries.

President Xi Jinping's top economic adviser, Liu He, met the Trump
administration on Thursday for "frank and constructive" talks, a White House
official said.

How did other markets respond?

In South Korea, America's third largest source of steel, shares in
steelmaking giant Posco were down more than 3.5%. The benchmark Kospi index
was down close to 1.5%.

In China, investors seemed less concerned about the new tariffs. Hong Kong's
Hang Seng index was down 1.7%, while the Shanghai Composite was down 0.7%.

In Australia, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index had lost 1% by midday trade,
dragged down by losses in commodities. Stocks in mining giant BHP Billiton
were down more than 1.5%.

What did Trump say?

Mr Trump pledged to rebuild the US steel and aluminium industries which he
said had suffered "disgraceful" treatment from other countries, in
particular China, for decades.

"When our country can't make aluminium and steel... you almost don't have
much of a country," he said.

"We need great steel makers, great aluminium makers for defence."

The US is reliant on steel imports from more than 100 nations

Mr Trump's announcement was slightly delayed amid reports of disagreement
among his aides.

More than a dozen metals executives, including representatives from US Steel
Corp and Arcelor Mittal, stood alongside him as he made the announcement.

During his presidential campaign, Mr Trump said that foreign countries were
"dumping vast amounts of steel all over the United States, which essentially
is killing our steelworkers and steel companies".

Since taking office he has said cheap imports from China are harming the
viability of industry in the US.

What shape is the US steel industry in?

The US imports four times more steel than it exports and is reliant on steel
from more than 100 nations.

The US Department of Energy says the steel industry is recovering after a
slump following the 2008 financial crisis.

But it is an industry significantly weaker than it was at the turn of the
millennium. In 2000 the US produced 112m tons of steel - a figure that had
fallen to 86.5m tons in 2016.

In 2000, 135,000 people were employed in the industry - a figure that fell
to 83,600 in 2016.--bbc

Jaguar reveals first all-electric SUV

Jaguar has revealed the production version of its first all-electric SUV as
luxury carmakers race to go green.

The I-Pace can reach 60mph in 4.5 seconds and has a range of almost 300
miles on a fully charged battery.

The vehicle is set to reach showrooms by July, potentially beating rival
Audi's all-electric e-tron that is expected to be released "in the summer".

The I-Pace was designed in the UK but will be built in Austria.

It will go on display at the Geneva motor show later this month and cost
£63,495 in the UK.

The I-Pace can charge up to 85% of its battery from a public power point in
85 minutes and takes about two hours for a full charge.

The car is the first all-electric SUV since Tesla unveiled its Model X in
2015.

Luxury carmakers are keen to make inroads into the market for clean energy
vehicles as demand for fossil-fuel powered models wanes.

Last year, the government announced that new diesel and petrol cars and vans
will be banned in the UK from 2040 in a bid to tackle air pollution.

Jaguar Land Rover said that every vehicle line it launches from 2020 will
have an all-electric or hybrid version.

Germany's BMW is also planning all-electric models and hybrid vehicles and
its first electric Mini will be released next year.

Jaguar said that its new I-Pace was inspired by its C-X75 supercar driven by
the villainous Mr Hinx during a car chase in the James Bond film Spectre.

It added that the I-Pace has been tested to extremes and able to operate at
minus 40C - 10 degrees colder than conventional electric vehicles.==bbc

UK gas supply warning ceases as cold snap continues

National Grid's first "gas deficit warning" for eight years has been
withdrawn after supplies increased.

The network operator issued the warning on Thursday, saying it might not
have enough gas to meet demand due to the current cold snap gripping the UK.

The warning was a call to the market to boost supplies.

National Grid said it did not anticipate having to issue a new warning on
Friday, but would do if supplies dropped off again.

Army called in as Storm Emma hits the UK

Latest updates as blizzards and snow hit the UK

It's snowing - can I refuse to go to work?

A National Grid spokesperson said: "The market has continued to respond over
the last 24 hours and we have seen an increase of supplies into the network.

"As the extremely cold weather continues we expect to see high demand on the
gas network, so we are continuing to monitor developments closely.

"Protecting customer supplies is always our first priority and we would like
to reassure them that this high demand has not affected their domestic gas
supplies".

Blizzards

The sub-zero temperatures and snowy conditions in the UK have caused a spike
in demand for gas from consumers and businesses.

National Grid has seen its highest demand for gas for six years in the past
week.

That increase in demand was coupled with unplanned outages to supplies
coming from Norway, the Netherlands, and Belgium, leading to the National
Grid warning.

Suppliers responded to Thursday's warning by pumping more gas into the
system, and some large businesses agreed with their energy suppliers to use
less gas.

National Grid can ask large businesses to scale back gas usage, but in this
case, reductions in gas use by industry were done through commercial
contracts with suppliers.

Supplies to domestic consumers were not affected.

In recent years the UK has become more reliant on gas imports. Gas-fired
power stations are taking up the slack as coal-fired power stations are
decommissioned.

In addition, a large North Sea gas storage facility called Rough is in the
process of being closed down due to safety concerns.--bbc

Bill Gates says crypto-currencies cause deaths

Crypto-currencies are killing people in a "fairly direct way", Microsoft
founder Bill Gates has said.

He was referring to the way digital currencies like Bitcoin are used to buy
drugs like synthetic opioid fentanyl.

In an "ask me anything" session on news website Reddit, he said that the
anonymity of digital currencies meant they were linked to terrorist funding
and money laundering.

Some criticised him, saying he was ill-informed about the technology.

Asked by one user for his opinion on the technology, Mr Gates replied: "The
main feature of crypto-currencies is their anonymity. I don't think this is
a good thing. The government's ability to find money laundering and tax
evasion and terrorist funding is a good thing.

"Right now, crypto-currencies are used for buying fentanyl and other drugs
so it is a rare technology that has caused deaths in a fairly direct way. I
think the speculative wave around ICOs [initial coin offerings] and
crypto-currencies is super risky for those who go long."

Veteran investor Warren Buffet has previously said that the speculative
crypto-currency craze "will come to a bad end".

Mr Gates has not always been so cynical about Bitcoin. In 2014, in an
interview on Bloomberg TV, he said that Bitcoin "was better than currency".

His less than enthusiastic response on Reddit did not go down well with all
those participating in the debate, with some reproaching him for what they
felt was an attempt to influence the market. Others suggested that he needed
to look again at the Bitcoin white paper.

Charitable donations

In the wide-ranging Reddit chat, Mr Gates told the audience that his top
three goals were "reducing both childhood death and malnutrition and ending
polio".

Mr Gates is co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation which spends
billions each year on education and health projects.

The foundation has also sponsored the development of blockchain - the
technology that underpins crypto-currenices - for merchants in Kenya.

Microsoft is also looking to integrate blockchain-based technology for
verifying digital identity.

The rise in value of crypto-currency has prompted governments around the
world to look more closely at its impact on economies and citizens.

While the technology underlying it is often praised, there are concerns
about how it could disrupt the economy as well as its links to cyber-crime
and money laundering.

The UK's Treasury Committee is currently investigating the impact of such
currencies.-bbc

Equifax finds more victims of 2017 breach

The massive data breach suffered by credit-rating company Equifax hit more
people than previously thought, the company has reported.

In September last year Equifax said it had discovered that 145 million US
customers may have had their information stolen.

Its investigation into the breach has revealed that the details of a further
2.4 million Americans went astray.

Continuing analysis of stolen data had helped identify new victims, it said.

Publicly apologised

"Equifax will notify these newly identified US consumers directly, and will
offer identity-theft protection and credit-file monitoring services at no
cost to them," it said in a statement.

Equifax made the announcement on the same day that it reported its full-year
earnings.

The firm said the breach cost more than $114m last year, after insurance
payouts, but the company's profits remained healthy, helped by a strong
performance in its international business and new tax cuts that the US
approved last year.

The firm reported $587.3m in profits last year, up 20% from 2016. In the
fourth quarter, profits were $172.3m, rising 40% compared to the same period
in 2016.

In 2017, Equifax said an internal investigation had uncovered signs of
unauthorised access to data including names, addresses and social security
numbers.

And the company set up a website for people to learn if they were among
those whose information had been accessed.

Equifax was widely criticised after the breach and its then chief executive
publicly apologised for failing to protect information and for taking so
long to let victims know their data had been compromised.

Several senior executives, including the chief executive, subsequently left
the company because of the breach.

Equifax holds data on more than 820 million consumers and 91 million
businesses worldwide.

It does credit checks, ID theft monitoring and offers job verification
services.--BBC

INVESTORS DIARY 2018

Company

Event

Venue

Date & Time

Proplastics

final dividend of 0.26c record date

02 Mar 2018

Simbisa Brands Limited

EGM

SAZ Building Northend Close, Northridge Park, Borrowdale

09 Mar 2018 8:15am

CFI

AGM

Farm & City Boardroom, 1st Floor, Farm & City Complex, 1 Wayne Street

12 Mar 2018 11am

 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

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Bulls n Bears 

Telephone:      <tel:%2B263%204%202927658> +263 4 2927658

Cellphone:      <tel:%2B263%2077%20344%201674> +263 77 344 1674

Alt. Email:       <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> info at bulls.co.zw  

Website:
<http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bulls.co.zw&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AF
QjCNH8LYgdY55h-XKseuM8Kpr-JKdfhQ> www.bulls.co.zw 

Blog:
<http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bulls.co.zw%2Fblog&sa=D&sntz=1
&usg=AFQjCNFoIy6F9IXAiYnSoPSgWDYsr8Sqtw> www.bulls.co.zw/blog

Twitter:         @bullsbears2010

LinkedIn:       Bulls n Bears Zimbabwe

Facebook:
<http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FBullsBearsZimba
bwe&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNGhb_A5rp4biV1dGHbgiAhUxQqBXA>
www.facebook.com/BullsBearsZimbabwe

Skype:         Bulls.Bears 

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