Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 12 November 2018

Mon Nov 12 08:48:47 CAT 2018

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Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 12 November 2018

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*  Zimbabwe's unlicensed foreign currency traders face 10-year jail

*  Total plans new offshore Angola well to boost oil output

*  IMF sees Namibia’s GDP contracting in 2018

*  Egypt's Banque Misr seeks to borrow $550 million before end-2018 - vice chairman

*  South Afica's Sasol to reverse provision over tax dispute

*  South Africa's struggling state arms firm Denel fires CFO

*  Tiger Brands says FY earnings to fall as much as 30 percent

*  Kenyan private equity firm raises $155m in second round funding

*  U.S. OPIC signs $100 million loan deal with Africell

*  Alibaba Singles Day sales frenzy surpasses records

*  Firms 'struggling to recruit as overseas staff stay away'

*  My Brexit box: The people stockpiling food

*  UK economy grows at fastest rate since late 2016

*  Ryanair plane seized by French authorities in cash row

*  Netflix chief Reed Hastings ready for Disney Plus battle

*  Modi's India: Failing the jobless?

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Zimbabwe's unlicensed foreign currency traders face 10-year jail

(Reuters) - Unlicensed foreign currency traders in Zimbabwe face up to 10 years in jail if convicted and loss of their money and assets when new exchange control rules are published this week, a senior government official said on Sunday.

The southern African nation, which adopted the U.S. dollar after dumping its hyperinflation-hit currency in 2009, is gripped by a shortage of cash dollars, which has seen prices of imported goods spiral in recent weeks.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government, under pressure to make good on pre-election promises to mend the stricken economy, is on a drive to end parallel market trading it blames for fuelling price increases.

Ministry of Justice permanent secretary Virginia Mabhiza said Mnangagwa would use executive powers to amend the exchange control and money-laundering laws in an official notice that will be gazetted on Monday.

Mabhiza said the new rules will also empower police, the National Prosecuting Authority and anti-corruption commission to compel suspects to explain their source of wealth and bank deposits.

Last year in September the government published similar regulations, which lapsed this year with no major arrests.

“All those who fail to give satisfactory answers risk forfeiture of their assets or monies in their accounts,” Mabhiza said.

The new regulations would be in effect for six months and require parliament approval to become permanent, she said.

The central bank last month directed banks to separate foreign currency accounts from the surrogate bond note currency and their associated electronic deposits.

This tacit admission that the bond notes and electronic deposits were not at par with the U.S dollar accelerated their collapse on the black market.

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Total plans new offshore Angola well to boost oil output

LUANDA (Reuters) - French oil company Total said on Saturday it plans to drill 13 wells on block 17, offshore Angola, in order to maintain production of 400,000 barrels per day of crude until 2023 in Africa’s second largest crude producer.

In a statement, the company said the wells, which will connect marginal fields to existing floating platforms, would be divided between two projects.

CLOV 2 will involve drilling seven additional wells to produce 40,000 barrels of oil per day. First oil is expected in 2020.

Dalia 3 will see six new wells drilled, producing 30,000 barrels per day, with oil coming onstream from 2021.

The projects, along with the previously announced Zinia 2, will enable Total to maintain production from block 17 of more than 400,000 barrels per day, the company said.

IMF sees Namibia’s GDP contracting in 2018

WINDHOEK (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projects that Namibia’s GDP will contract in 2018, pushing out its forecast for growth to next year when it sees support from strong mining production and a rebound in construction activities.

Namibia’s economy is forecast to contract 0.2 percent this year, down from a previous forecast of 1 percent growth, due to a weak performance in the manufacturing and construction sectors, the finance ministry has said.

The diamond and uranium producer’s economy contracted by 0.9 percent in 2017.

Geremia Palomba, who led the IMF team, said growth would gradually recover.

“After years of robust growth, the economy has entered a recession phase...IMF staff anticipates that the economy will recover gradually,” Palomba said in a statement

He said growth would strengthen at a long-term rate of about 3 percent, but gave no specific time frame. He added that growth would be below the average recorded in recent years, held back by low productivity growth and stagnant competitiveness.

Namibia’s GDP has averaged 4.29 percent since independence in 1990

Palomba said the downside risks to the IMF’s outlook included lower-than-expected revenue from the Southern Africa Customs Union (SACU), slower growth recovery, and fiscal slippage.

Egypt's Banque Misr seeks to borrow $550 million before end-2018 - vice chairman

CAIRO (Reuters) - Banque Misr is seeking to borrow $550 million from foreign lenders before the year’s end to improve dollar liquidity, the vice chairman of Egypt’s second largest bank said on Sunday.

Citi Bank and Emirates NBD will be arranging the loan, Akef ElMaghraby told Reuters.

South Afica's Sasol to reverse provision over tax dispute

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South African petrochemicals group Sasol said on Friday it will reverse a provision of 1.3 billion rand ($91 million) after a previous unfavourable ruling over a tax dispute with the revenue service was overturned on appeal.

Sasol, the world’s top manufacturer of motor fuel from coal, said in a statement it made the provision after a tax court ruled in favour of the South African Revenue Service (SARS).

The revenue service had argued in court that some crude oil procurement contracts between Sasol’s Oil division and other Sasol units should be disregarded for tax purposes, which led to a higher tax liability for Sasol Oil.

Sasol then set aside the provision to cover penalties and interest payments relating to the tax dispute while appealing the case at the Supreme Court of Appeal, which on Friday set aside the previous ruling.

($1 = 14.2528 rand)

South Africa's struggling state arms firm Denel fires CFO

JOHANNESBURG/PRETORIA (Reuters) - South African state-owned weapons manufacturer Denel has fired its chief financial officer Odwa Mhlwana after he was found guilty of all disciplinary charges relating to irregular expenditure, the firm said on Friday.

The firm appointed Wim de Klerk, former chief executive of ArcelorMittal South Africa as acting CFO, adding that a formal process to recruit a permanent CFO will commence soon.

Mhlwana had been put on suspension in June while Denel conducted a probe into allegations of misconduct by him.

Denel also said it had selected a new CEO, after the previous one resigned in May.

“An announcement is expected to be made by mid December 2018 once Cabinet approves the appointment,” it said in a statement.

Reforming troubled state-owned entities such as Denel is a top priority for President Cyril Ramaphosa as he strives to put the sluggish economy back on a sustained growth trajectory.

Ramaphosa oversaw the appointment of a new board at Denel, which produces military kit including armoured vehicles for the South African army and foreign forces, in April in an effort to put the company on a firmer financial footing.

Earlier on Friday the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) said South Africa’s government must urgently inject at least 7 billion rand ($491 million) into Denel in order for the firm to pay suppliers and implement its turnaround strategy efficiently.

Denel reported a 1.7 billion rand loss for the 2017/18 financial year and is struggling to pay worker salaries and deliver on roughly 18 billion rand of outstanding orders.

Around 100 members of the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) marched to the ministry of public enterprises in the capital Pretoria on Friday to press their demands. The marchers carried placards bearing slogans including “Bailout Denel or no votes next year” and “Denel not for sale”.

NUMSA and Solidarity, another union with members at Denel, have both rejected a management proposal to cut their salaries by around 20 percent from the end of November as part of short-term cost-saving measures.

Tiger Brands says FY earnings to fall as much as 30 percent

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa’s Tiger Brands expects full year headline earnings per share to fall between 25 and 30 percent compared with the previous year, the food group said on Friday, sending its shares 3 percent lower.

In August, the company had forecast headline earnings per share, excluding costs from a disposal of its Haco business in December 2017, of between 22 and 37 percent.

Headline earnings per share strips out certain once-off items and is the main profit measure used in South Africa.

The company’s earnings for the year to the end of September were impacted by a product recall in response to a deadly listeria outbreak in South Africa.

Tiger Brands said headline earnings per share, excluding Haco, were expected at between 539 cents and 647 cents per share versus 2,155 cents per share in the same period last year.

Tiger Brands said in May that a recall of cold meat products in response to a deadly listeria outbreak cost it 365 million rand ($29 million), which weighed hit its half-year earnings.

Its shares fell 3.11 percent to 271.38 rand by 0950 GMT.

Kenyan private equity firm raises $155m in second round funding

NAIROBI (Reuters) - Catalyst Principal Partners, a Kenyan private equity firm, has raised $155 million in its second round of funding, securing capital from local pension funds and international investors, it said on Friday.

Private equity is still a relatively new financial vehicle on Africa’s landscape but firms such as Catalyst are helping to grow its appeal to institutions looking for exposure to fast-growing economies on the continent.

Catalyst, which focuses on investments in East Africa, launched nearly a decade ago with $125 million which it invested in nine companies in Kenya, Tanzania and Ethiopia.

The fresh capital will target $7.5 million-$22.5 million range of investments, aimed at companies in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Zambia, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, Catalyst said in a statement.

“Catalyst largely focuses on emerging and mid-sized companies with strong growth and profitability prospects,” said Paul Kavuma, the chief executive of Catalyst.

He founded the Mauritius-registered Catalyst in 2009 after working for Actis in Kenya and Britain for several years.

The firm has invested in businesses in the manufacture of consumer goods, pharmaceuticals, industrial agro-processing, logistics and engineering as well as healthcare, technology and financial services, it said.

It typically invests over a four to six-year period by acquiring shareholdings “targeting businesses in need of expansion and replacement capital, recapitalisations and pre-IPO investments.”

U.S. OPIC signs $100 million loan deal with Africell

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - African telecoms firm Africell on Friday signed a $100 million loan agreement with U.S. development financier the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), both entities said.

The loan will help fund Africell’s expansion of communications infrastructure.

The deal was signed on the sidelines of the African Development Bank’s Africa Investment Forum in Johannesburg, and forms part of the OPIC’s $1 billion investment in African infrastructure and technology launched earlier in 2018.

Alibaba Singles Day sales frenzy surpasses records

Internet giant Alibaba has set new sales records on Sunday for its biggest shopping day, the annual Singles Day.

The Chinese company hit a record $1bn (£774m; €883m) in sales in 85 seconds, and then just shy of $10bn in the first hour of the 24-hour spree.

In total, customers spent $30.8bn, up 27% on last year, but the lowest annual increase in the history of Singles Day.

Online discounts have been offered on 11 November, Alibaba's informal holiday for singles, since 2009.

Alibaba Group chief executive Daniel Zhang said the spending bonanza demonstrated "customers' continued pursuit to upgrade their everyday lifestyles".

The event was kicked off on Saturday with a gala featuring US singer Mariah Carey, a Japanese Beyoncé impersonator and a shoe-shopping-themed Cirque du Soleil performance.

What is Singles Day?

Alibaba invented the occasion to celebrate the unattached as an antithesis to the romantically involved on Valentine's Day.

It is now the world's biggest online sales event and this year's total was more than Black Friday and Cyber Monday's totals combined, according to Bloomberg.

Some 180,000 brands are available in the shopping blitz, including top technology companies Xaomi, Apple and Dyson.

Last year, the Chinese company expanded the event to the Western market, with downloads of its app AliExpress surging in the US and UK.

Will Singles Day keep on growing?

The shopping frenzy has broken world records in e-commerce sales - surpassing last year's record at 17:34 Hong Kong Time (10:34 GMT).

However, observers believe as the event matures, its growth rate will slow down.

Alibaba has also faced new challenges this year, such as new rivals in the market, a slowing economy and its stock dropping 16% thanks to China's trade war with the US.

The November sale event is expected to be founder Jack Ma's last at the helm of the company. The current chief executive will take over as chairman next year, Alibaba announced in September.--BBC

Firms 'struggling to recruit as overseas staff stay away'

Firms seeking staff are being hit by labour shortages, with a "reversal" in the number of migrants in UK workplaces, says HR body the CIPD.

As Brexit approaches, the CIPD says the shortage of both EU and non-EU migrants reflects a falling interest in the UK as a destination for migrant workers.

And it said research among over 1,000 employers suggested that vacancies are becoming harder to fill.

The squeeze is leading employers to increase pay rates, said the CIPD.

While the short-term outlook for employment remains strong, labour and skills shortages are accelerating, says the institute.

According to the latest official data, the number of non-UK-born workers in the UK decreased by 58,000 between April to June last year and the same period this year, with 40,000 of these non-EU-born workers.

This compares with an increase of 263,000 for the same period between 2016 and 2017.

'Post-Brexit system'

"The data implies that the pendulum has swung away from the UK as an attractive place to live and work for non-UK-born citizens, especially non-EU citizens, during a period of strong employment growth and low unemployment," said Gerwyn Davies of the CIPD.

"This has heightened recruitment difficulties for some employers.

"It also underlines the risk that more non-UK-born citizens and employers will be discouraged from using the post-Brexit system if more support is not provided and it is not made simpler, fairer and more affordable; especially for lower-skilled roles.

"Against the backdrop of a tight labour market, failure to do this will heighten recruitment difficulties and could lead to negative consequences for existing staff, such as higher workloads, and loss of business or orders for firms."

Looking ahead, the CIPD says that the UK labour supply looks set to be further constrained from 2021 when migration restrictions for EU citizens are introduced, especially for lower-skilled workers.

It says that employers express concern that the main route for recruiting EU citizens to fill lower-skilled roles that was recently proposed by the Migration Advisory Committee won't be enough to satisfy their recruitment needs.

In addition, a third of employers who employ non-EU citizens say that the administrative burden of using the current points-based system for non-EU citizens system, which will most likely be adopted for EU citizens from 2021, is too great.--BBC

My Brexit box: The people stockpiling food

"It might sound a bit crazy," admits Justyna Kowalczyk.

She's talking about her "Brexit box" tucked under the kitchen table.

In the plastic container, which is around the same size as a small box of photocopier paper, she has bottles of tonic water, coffee and French marmalade. Away from the kitchen, in a cupboard she has stored extra bottles of shampoo.

They're hardly essentials for daily living but they're all made in the European Union and Justyna says she's simply making sure she'll still be able to have her favourite products in the immediate aftermath of Brexit.

The box was her partner's idea.

"It wasn't like one day we decided Brexit is coming, it was more of a process than a one-off decision."

She says she's joked about it with her friends, but not everyone has found her box so crazy. "Everyone thinks about it a little bit... everyone is a bit nervous," she says.

The idea that we might not be able to shop as normal in the immediate aftermath of Brexit seems ludicrous. When I asked on Twitter if anyone was putting aside goods, I was accused of scaremongering. "What a ridiculous tweet, do people actually think we're going back to the stone age immediately after Brexit?" was one scathing response.

A spokesperson for the Department for Exiting the European Union is unequivocal people shouldn't be concerned, saying that the government is preparing for all eventualities but had no plans to stockpile food and people should not do so either.

"The UK has a strong level of food security built upon a diverse range of sources including strong domestic production and imports from third countries. This will continue to be the case whether we leave the EU with or without a deal."

Food 'stockpiled' over Brexit border fears

Raab under fire over Dover-Calais comment

What would 'no deal' Brexit mean for food and medicine?

Industry body the British Retail Consortium says there is no evidence of any widespread stockpiling of food. I asked the four major supermarkets as well as Aldi and Lidl whether they had seen any evidence, but none of them responded.

But according to food research charity IGD, 2% of shoppers in a survey of 1,700 people last month said they had started to stock up on food supplies.

Last month, the New York Times ran a front-page story on "the British hoarders" preparing for Brexit.

A Facebook group called the 48% Preppers, named after the proportion of people who voted to remain in the EU in the 2016 referendum, suggests stockpiling more everyday items. In the group, which has around 1,600 members, a 16-page leaflet called Getting Ready Together is being circulated.

It advises keeping at home extra non-perishable items, which can be prepared quickly and require little water. Suggestions include potatoes, eggs, carrots, crackers, cheese, milk powder, grains and instant mash. Tinned fish and soup also feature as well as tea and coffee.

If the name didn't give it away, the group makes no secret of the fact that it thinks Brexit will be bad, "possibly even disastrous" for the UK and acknowledges its advice is based on this assumption.

But are people right to be worried about the availability of certain foods when the UK leaves the EU?

As a country we're currently heavily reliant on imports. In fact, just half of the food we eat in the UK originates here, with most of the rest imported from Europe, including almost all our fresh fruit and many of our vegetables.

Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab said this week: "I don't think it's a question so much of the risk of major shortages but I think probably the average consumer might not be aware of the full extent to which the choice of goods that we have in the stores are dependent on one or two very specific trade routes."

Mr Raab also admitted that even he "hadn't quite understood" how reliant UK trade in goods is on the Dover-Calais crossing, which is vital for trade with Europe.

Fresh food - which cannot be stockpiled - is the biggest concern. A vegetable shortage last year, driven by bad weather in southern Europe, highlighted this dependence, and led to a flurry of pictures on social media of empty supermarket shelves.

Dave Lewis, the chief executive of the UK's largest supermarket Tesco, warned on this last month.

"The biggest single challenge will be in a no-deal scenario, will be what happens with fresh food," he said.

"It's all about product flow [over borders]. The possibility of stockpiling fresh food is very, very limited."

Just in time

The UK's supply chains work on a "just in time" basis, meaning stock is delivered daily, not stored for long periods in warehouses.

Mr Lewis said in the lead-up to Brexit that Tesco was focusing on how to ensure movements of fresh food were not held up.

He added that the retailer was looking at stockpiling grocery products, with contingency planning stepping up after Christmas if a deal is still not struck.

To illustrate the complexity, Paul Martin, UK head of retail at consultancy KPMG, says 290 trucks come through Dover each day just supplying citrus fruits. He says any level of disruption, such as trucks needing to pass extra inspections, is likely to have an impact.

"If we have a no-deal scenario, if there is disruption, then certain products will not be available for a certain period of time," he says.

He is, however, certain that any supply shortage would be only temporary "because it's in the interests of all parties to get the supply chain as close to normal as quickly as possible".

Trying to fly in produce from elsewhere is a possibility, but this would cost more, and it's unlikely other countries would have the stock in sufficient volume to make up the shortfall, he says.

Meanwhile, limited free warehousing space, particularly refrigerated space, in the country means supermarkets stockpiling goods themselves isn't practical on a large scale.

One cold storage firm, Wild Water, has already warned it has run out of room due to the food industry stockpiling in the run-up to Brexit.

And stocking up on fresh food simply isn't possible, says Catherine Shuttleworth, shopping and retail expert at agency Savvy.

"Supermarkets might be able to stockpile tins, but not milk, cheese and fresh fruit. These are the things we buy every day as a nation," she says.

She warns if food supplies are affected by Brexit, supermarkets are likely to raise prices to try and slow demand.

Prof Tim Benton, an expert in food systems from the University of Leeds, also thinks if the EU and the UK fail to reach agreement on the terms of departure then there could be "significant interruptions to food supplies".

"If disruption were to continue for more than a week almost any food might start becoming difficult to get," he says.

As a result, he believes that it makes "some degree of sense" not to assume food supplies will be available as normal if significant structural changes to customs regimes at borders are likely.

Nevertheless, all official bodies advise against stockpiling, with the British Retail Consortium saying it's "not a practical response to a no-deal on Brexit".

Justyna is not deterred though. "I just want to make sure I have my favourite things," she says.--BBC

UK economy grows at fastest rate since late 2016

The UK economy grew by 0.6% in the three months to September, with warm weather boosting consumer spending, the Office for National Statistics said.

The figure for the third quarter is in line with predictions from the Bank of England and other forecasters.

However, buoyant growth in July was offset by a slowdown in August and September.

It is the highest quarterly growth figure since the fourth quarter of 2016, when the economy grew 0.7%.

Analysts warned the economy had "little underlying momentum" and growth would decline in the final three months.

The ONS also issued a separate monthly figure for September, which, like the previous month, showed zero growth.

Services, which make up three-quarters of the economy, only grew by 0.3% in the three months to September.

After a slow start to the year, construction activity grew by 2.1% in the quarter. Manufacturing also picked up after a slow second quarter, thanks to strong car manufacturing numbers for the quarter.

Household spending grew by 0.5% in the quarter, but business investment shrank by 1.2%, suggesting uncertainty among companies over the effects of Brexit.

Business investment had been expected to rise by 0.2%, according to forecasts. It has now contracted for three quarters in a row.

The overall picture is one of an economy still recovering from an exceptionally weak, weather-affected start to the year. Construction and energy production both had a strong quarter and the weather played its part again in July, as sunshine and the World Cup boosted consumer spending. It's the strongest quarter for nearly two years, but the economy didn't keep up the strong momentum of July, with August and September registering no additional growth at all.

Worryingly but perhaps not surprisingly, business investment was down sharply, matching anecdotal evidence of firms' caution ahead of Brexit. Although car production was up compared with the second quarter of this year, it is down compared with the same period last year and domestic car sales were very weak - it's exports that are keeping the car industry ticking over.

Plenty for the chancellor to be cheerful about today, but a third quarter of falling business investment - the first time that's happened since the financial crisis - shows that firms think the sun may be shining now, but big clouds are looming.

'Signs of weakness'

Chancellor Philip Hammond said: "Today's positive growth of 0.6% is proof of the underlying strength in our economy. We are building an economy that works for everyone, with 3.3 million more people in work, lower unemployment in every part of the country, and wages rising at their fastest pace in almost a decade."

ONS head of national accounts Rob Kent-Smith said: "The economy saw a strong summer, although longer-term economic growth remained subdued. There are some signs of weakness in September, with slowing retail sales and a fallback in domestic car purchases.

"However, car manufacture for export grew across the quarter, boosting factory output. Meanwhile, imports of cars dropped substantially, helping to improve Britain's trade balance."

Samuel Tombs, chief UK economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said: "Two consecutive months of stagnation in GDP underline that the economy has little momentum and that the strong quarter-on-quarter growth rate simply reflects the weather-related rebound in the summer.

"The expenditure breakdown of GDP, meanwhile, shows that business investment fell by 1.2% quarter-on-quarter in Q3, taking the total decline since the peak in Q4 2017 to 2.4%. The risk of a no-deal Brexit is the clear driver of the downturn."

Suren Thiru, head of economics at the British Chambers of Commerce, said: "It remains likely that the stronger growth recorded in the third quarter is a one-off for the UK economy, with persistent Brexit uncertainty and the financial squeeze on consumers and businesses likely to weigh increasingly on economic activity in the coming quarters."--BBC

Ryanair plane seized by French authorities in cash row

A Ryanair plane has been seized by French authorities in a row over money in the latest problem for the airline.

The French civil aviation authority grounded the Boeing 737 on Thursday at Bordeaux airport, before it was due to fly to Stansted with 149 passengers.

It said the move was "a last resort".

The dispute was caused by French subsidies paid to Ryanair for flights from Angoulême regional airport between 2008 and 2009, which the European Commission later deemed illegal.

The French civil aviation authority did not say how much money was involved, but regional airport officials said the sum was €525,000 (£457,000).

The authority said the plane "will remain immobilised until the sum is paid".

Ryanair profits hit by strikes and higher fuel costs

Ryanair sacks staff who 'slept on floor'

Ryanair tops airline compensation appeal claims

"It is unfortunate that the state had to take such action, which led to the inevitable inconvenience of the 149 passengers on board the immobilised plane," the French civil aviation authority said.

"Those passengers were able to eventually reach their destination later that evening on another Ryanair plane, but with a five-hour delay."

It is the latest in a series of setbacks for Ryanair, which has recently faced a series of strikes by pilots and cabin crew across Europe.

But despite flight cancellations, Ryanair reported an 11% rise in traffic in October, as it carried 13.1 million passengers.

The stoppages contributed to a 7% fall in profits to €1.2bn (£1.06bn) for the six months to 30 September.--BBC

Netflix chief Reed Hastings ready for Disney Plus battle

The boss of Netflix, Reed Hastings, has told the BBC he is looking forward to going up against Disney when it launches its online streaming service, Disney Plus, next year.

"We've been competing with Amazon for more than 10 years, so we're used to healthy, strong competition," he said.

"It makes us better."

But Disney Plus, which has been dubbed the "Netflix Killer", is expected to give both Amazon's Amazon Prime and Netflix a run for their money.

And Mr Hastings admitted that Disney, which reported record results on Thursday, is a "formidable" firm.

"They've got so much content [like] Star Wars and Marvel, they'll be a great competitor," he said.

"And that will push us to do the best work of our lives."

Seven shows that defined Netflix

How Netflix went from pioneer to powerhouse

The rise and rise of Netflix

Netflix, which already has more than 130 million paid memberships in more than 190 countries, is also banking on winning more fans and boosting subscriptions across Asia.

On Thursday, the firm unveiled its plans for 17 made-in-Asia programmes to be released next year.

India is an especially huge market for the firm. It has just launched its first local production there, a crime thriller called Sacred Games.

South Korea is another big market for the company, but Mr Hastings told the BBC that China would remain a tough market to crack.

"In China, you need a government licence," Mr Hastings said.

"[And] since Apple and Disney's movie services got closed down there two or three years ago, we concluded that we would not be able to get a licence, and so we have been focusing elsewhere."

Rapid growth, troubling debt?

In its first year as a public company in 2002, Netflix had fewer than one million subscribers, but since then it has seen extraordinary growth.

The streaming giant added seven million new customers in the three months to September, bringing its global total to more than 137 million.

The results were stronger than expected and came as Netflix premiered a record amount of original programming, including new seasons of Orange Is The New Black and BoJack Horseman.

But critics have said that much of this growth is backed by unsustainable levels of debt and that the firm is burning through cash as it continues to invest in new productions.

The company had a negative cash flow of $690m during the three months to September.

The BBC teen drama taking on Netflix

Use of online pay-to-watch TV surges ahead

But Mr Hastings argues the firm's debt levels are "quite sustainable".

"We're continuing to expand throughout the world and we are investing in content ahead of our revenue.

"And what that does is attract new subscribers, which is why in the stock market we are up over 1,000% in the last five years, because that investment has been so successful."--BBC

Modi's India: Failing the jobless?

One of the greatest challenges facing India is the creation of new jobs for its rapidly expanding workforce.

The current government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has pledged to achieve this in a country that will in the next few years surpass China as the world's most populous.

It's led to a heated debate within India about what exactly Mr Modi has promised and how you accurately measure employment for an economy with a vast informal labour force.

As elections approach in India, our Reality Check team will be following the campaigns, addressing claims and unpicking the facts around contentious policy issues.--BBC

INVESTORS DIARY 2018

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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%2FBullsBearsZimbabwe&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNGhb_A5rp4biV1dGHbgiAhUxQqBXA> www.facebook.com/BullsBearsZimbabwe

Skype:         Bulls.Bears 

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