Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 10 October 2018

Wed Oct 10 08:15:05 CAT 2018

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Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 10 October 2018

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*  Nigeria's Buhari asks lawmakers to approve $2.79 bln Eurobond -letter

*  South Africa's rand, banking stocks rally as Mboweni named finance
minister

*  Nigeria's cenbank head to meet MTN and banks over $8.1 bln repatriation
row -sources

*  S.Africa dollar bonds trim losses after Mboweni appointed as finance
minister

*  Telkom Kenya holds talks over two submarine cable landing deals

*  IMF lowers South Africa's economic growth forecasts, urges reforms

*  Ghana reshuffles executives at cocoa industry regulator

*  IMF: 'Dangerous undercurrents' threaten global economy

*  Skincare brand Deciem shuts stores following online post by founder

*  RBS boss: Rebuilding trust will take another 10 years

*  HSBC in $765m settlement with US Department of Justice

*  Virgin Galactic to reach space in 'weeks not months'

*  'Big four' audit firms face competition probe

*  Google Pixel 3 phones launch during privacy storm

*  Canada farm that gave birth to the McIntosh apple up for sale

*  North Sea Rhum gas field deal moves closer amid Iran sanctions

 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

Nigeria's Buhari asks lawmakers to approve $2.79 bln Eurobond -letter

ABUJA (Reuters) - Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday asked
lawmakers to approve the issuance of a $2.79 billion Eurobond, in a letter
read in the upper chamber of parliament.

He said he wanted the Eurobond to be issued in the international capital
market for the “implementation of new external borrowing” that had already
been approved in the 2018 budget to help finance the budget deficit and to
fund infrastructure projects.

 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

South Africa's rand, banking stocks rally as Mboweni named finance minister

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa’s rand climbed to a session best on
Tuesday after President Cyril Ramaphosa appointed former central bank
governor Tito Mboweni as finance minister, a moved that soothed markets
after days of uncertainty.

At 1622 GMT the rand was 1.24 percent firmer at 14.6825, a touch softer than
the session best of 14.6525 after the decision.

Bank stocks rose 1.19 percent, as investors welcomed Mboweni’s appointment
that eased a week of uncertainty.

Ramaphosa said he received and accepted Nhlanhla Nene’s resignation as
finance minister on Tuesday.

Nene faced calls to resign after he admitted visiting the Gupta brothers,
friends of scandal-plagued former president Jacob Zuma who have been accused
of high-level influence-peddling, and failing to disclose the meetings
earlier. Zuma and the Guptas have denied any wrongdoing.

Bonds were also firmer, with the yield on the benchmark paper due in 2026
down 4 basis points 9.22 percent.

“Tito brings strength to the position. He is not afraid to go up against
other ministers and he also understands the importance of fiscal
consolidation which is crucial at this moment,” said Nazmeera Moola of
Investec.

Moody’s, the last of the top three rating agencies to have Pretoria’s debt
at investment grade, is set to release its latest review on Friday.

In the equities market, the Johannesburg all-share index and the Top-40
index struggled to hold on to gains registered immediately after the
appointment of Mboweni, despite the rally by banking stocks.

The All-share inched 0.06 percent lower to 54,187 points and the blue-chip
ended the session 0.15 percent weaker at 47,970 points.

First Rand gained 1.95 percent to 62.09 rand, while Absa Group rose 1.54
percent to 148.61 rand. Capitec Bank Holdings firmed 1.44 percent at 991.38
rand.

“The investor community is sad to see Minister Nene go but they are also
very happy to see Tito Mboweni come in because he is well known and well
respected in the investment community,” FNB Wealth portfolio manager, Wayne
McCurrie said.

“The state president has shown that he will act against any indiscretion
that impairs the integrity of his appointees in cabinet,” he said.

Nigeria's cenbank head to meet MTN and banks over $8.1 bln repatriation row
-sources

LAGOS (Reuters) - Nigeria’s central bank governor is to meet representatives
of telecommunications company MTN and banks on Tuesday to discuss a dispute
over the repatriation of $8.1 billion, two sources with direct knowledge of
the matter said.

The dispute is over the transfer of $8.1 billion of funds which Nigeria’s
central bank said the company had sent abroad in breach of foreign-exchange
regulations. Nigeria, which accounts for a third of the South African
company’s annual core profit, is MTN’s biggest market.

The people with knowledge of the matter, who did not want to be named, said
executives from MTN and the four lenders involved in the case - Standard
Chartered, Stanbic IBTC Bank, Citibank and Diamond Bank - would hold talks
with Nigerian Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele on Tuesday.

MTN declined to comment and a central bank spokesman did not respond to a
text message and phone calls seeking comment.

Shares in MTN, Africa’s biggest telecoms company, weakened more than 4
percent on Tuesday on uncertainty over the outcome of a meeting and by 1127
GMT were down 2.21 percent at 84.10 rand.

The stock has lost around 20 percent since the demand by Nigeria’s central
bank on Aug. 29.

Nigeria’s central bank said the funds had been illegally moved abroad
because the company’s bankers had failed to verify MTN had met all the
foreign exchange regulations.

MTN has denied the allegations.

The talks in Nigeria come days after Emefiele said the bank may reduce the
amount to be repatriated.

The money is more than half of MTN’s market capitalisation, and analysts
have said the demand risked further undermining Nigeria’s efforts to shake
off an image as a risky frontier market for international investors.

The banks involved have previously said they would engage with the country’s
financial regulator.

S.Africa dollar bonds trim losses after Mboweni appointed as finance
minister

LONDON (Reuters) - South Africa dollar-denominated debt trimmed losses
across the curve on Tuesday after President Cyril Ramaphosa appointed former
central bank governor Tito Mboweni as finance minister.

The 2044 and 2041 issues traded around 0.5 cents lower, after having lost
nearly 0.8 cents earlier in the day, according to Tradeweb data.
Shorter-dated bonds erased nearly all their losses to trade almost flat on
the day.

Telkom Kenya holds talks over two submarine cable landing deals

NAIROBI (Reuters) - Telkom Kenya is in talks with two unnamed parties over
partnerships to allow it to sell high speed internet capacity from two
undersea data cables that are about to land in the East African nation, its
CEO said on Tuesday.

The operator, which is the smallest in Kenya behind Safaricom and Bharti
Airtel’s Kenyan unit, has been focusing on data to gain market share. It
already distributes capacity from three other undersea cables, using its
extensive fibre network in the country.

“The combination of affordable data options, strong network coverage across
the country... catering to a data hungry market, has enabled us to become
the preferred data network,” Aldo Mareuse, the CEO of Telkom, told a news
conference.

It says it has the cheapest data plan in the market, offering 2 gigabyte
(GB) for 99 shillings ($0.9826).

Safaricom, the dominant operator with nearly 70 percent of the market, cut
its internet connection prices last month in response to Telkom’s aggressive
positioning.

Telkom, 60 percent owned by London-based Helios Investment with the rest
held by the government, had 4.1 million users, about 9 percent of the
market, as of July this year.

“We are now putting in place an aggressive market engagement campaign, to
strengthen our push towards 5 million customers and beyond,” Mareuse said.

He called on the regulator to ensure agents of Telkom’s mobile money service
T-Kash could work with those of Safaricom’s M-Pesa platform on cash
transfers and other transactions, to boost competition in the sector.

The two mobile money wallets were interlinked last week, allowing customers
of either service to send money to each other seamlessly, but Mareuse said
the agent and merchant integration networks were critical.

The integration of the two agent networks, together with those of Airtel’s
financial service, is one of the recommendations contained in a draft study
on competition, which Safaricom has objected to. ($1 = 100.7500 Kenyan
shillings)

IMF lowers South Africa's economic growth forecasts, urges reforms

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday cut
South Africa’s economic growth forecasts for this year and next, as it urged
implementation of reforms to improve policy certainty and the efficiency of
state-owned companies.

Having stagnated for a decade, Africa’s most industrialised economy slipped
further in the second quarter by entering recession for the first time since
2009. In response, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a plan to shift
government expenditure and launch an infrastructure fund.

The IMF now expects South Africa’s economy to expand 0.8 percent, down from
a forecast of 1.5 percent in July. It is expected to grow 1.4 percent in
2019, down from a previous estimate of 1.7 percent, the Fund said in its
latest World Economic Outlook report.

“Recent reforms in South Africa, such as measures adopted to tackle
corruption, to strengthen procurement, and in the intention to eliminate
wasteful expenditure, are welcome,” the IMF said.

“However, further reforms are needed to increase policy certainty, improve
the efficiency of state-owned enterprises, enhance flexibility in the labor
market, improve basic education, and align training with business needs.”

Ghana reshuffles executives at cocoa industry regulator

ACCRA (Reuters) - Ghana has replaced three deputy chief executives at the
cocoa industry regulator, Cocobod, promoting Cocoa Health and Extension
director Emmanuel Opoku to the role of deputy chief executive for
operations, government sources told Reuters.

Opoku, who had served in the Research, Monitoring and Evaluation unit of
Cocobod, replaces Nana Oduro Owusu, whose contract has been terminated, two
sources told Reuters.

It is not clear what may have led to Oduro’s removal. “The new appointments
took effect from October 1 in a letter issued from the President’s office,”
one source said.

Emmanuel Agyemang Dwomoh, head of the Cocoa Research Institute is now deputy
chief executive for Agronomy and Quality Control, replacing Yaw Adu-Ampomah,
who has been reassigned as advisor to the Minister of Agriculture.

The President also appointed Emmanuel Ray Ankrah as deputy chief executive
for Finance and Administration to succeed William Mensah, who has retired,
the sources said.

IMF: 'Dangerous undercurrents' threaten global economy

One of the most comprehensive studies of the state of banking and markets
since the financial crisis warns that "dangerous undercurrents" are a rising
threat to the world economy.

The International Monetary Fund's Financial Stability Report says that
although banks are far safer than they were in 2008 there are new risks.

Trade tensions are growing, the IMF says, and inequality has risen.

Further moves towards a trade war could "significantly harm global growth".

Other threats to trade, such as a disorderly Brexit, could also "adversely
affect market sentiment", the IMF argues.

The US-based organisation says that a "no-deal" departure from the European
Union could lead to fragmentation in European money markets, meaning that
finance cannot flow around the system so efficiently.

The body urges the Bank of England to be ready to provide more quantitative
easing - money printing - if it is required.

In a separate report, the IMF said the UK had historically weak public
finances with high levels of debt and low levels of assets. Britain sold off
many of its assets in the privatisations of the 1980s and 1990s and also did
not create a sovereign wealth fund from its oil revenues, which Norway did.

Of leading industrialised countries, only Portugal's "net worth" was in a
poorer position, the IMF said.

That could mean that Britain will have to raise more taxes in the future
because government-owned asset growth will not provide as much support to
the economy.

The Financial Stability Report is the second time in 24 hours the IMF has
published sober warnings about the state of global finance.

On Monday, it downgraded world growth forecasts for next year, blaming new
trade barriers.

Tuesday's report says governments should resist attempts to roll back
banking regulations put in place in 2008 to stop a similar financial crisis
happening again.

Complacent

President Donald Trump has already pushed through laws repealing banking
rules in America for smaller institutions, saying they were holding back
bank lending to businesses.

The IMF also warns market investors, who have seen the largest upward bull
run in stocks in history.

The report says they are in danger of becoming complacent about the chances
of an economic shock to the system.

One could be the ending of "easy money".

Central banks are starting to withdraw the stimulus that was put in place at
the time of the financial crisis.

Interest rates are rising and quantitative easing - money printing - being
dialled back.

The IMF fears this could lead to sharp falls in markets.

The risks of a government funding crisis in Italy, where the country's banks
are under pressure, is also highlighted.

"Looking ahead, clouds appear on the horizon," the report, published at the
body's annual meeting in Bali, Indonesia, says.

"Support for multilateralism has been waning, a dangerous undercurrent that
may undermine confidence in policymakers' ability to respond to future
crises.

"Nonetheless, despite trade tensions and continued monetary policy
normalisation in a few advanced economies, global financial markets have
remained buoyant and appear complacent about the risk of a sudden, sharp
tightening in financial conditions."

Contagion risk

The IMF's warnings will increase fears that the present buoyancy in global
growth may not last.

The American economy has been performing strongly, encouraging international
investors to move capital there and invest in the dollar.

To cool inflationary pressure, the American central bank, the Federal
Reserve, is raising interest rates, which acts as a further attraction to
global capital because returns are higher.

That puts pressure on emerging market economies such as Turkey and
Argentina, which have large amounts of debt which concerns investors.

The IMF says there is a "risk of contagion" as investors become increasingly
nervous about the strength of emerging markets, with the risk of capital
flows towards the US accelerating.

The report says that outflows could hit $100bn (£76.4bn) over a year, about
0.6% of emerging market economies' gross national income.

That would be "of a magnitude" similar to the financial crisis.--BBC

Skincare brand Deciem shuts stores following online post by founder

Toronto-based beauty brand Deciem has temporarily shut its stores following
a shock announcement by its founder.

Brandon Truaxe said in a video on Instagram that they were closing until
further notice citing "major criminal activity". He did not give details.

The company produces The Ordinary brand, which has become a global cult hit
for its ingredients-focused and affordable skincare options.

It has stores in Canada, the US, the UK, and Australia.

The company website shows many of the stores were closed on Tuesday
following Mr Truaxe's rambling post on the brand's Instagram account about
alleged "financial crimes and much other".

The company was founded in Canada in 2013, launching a number of brands
including The Ordinary.

In 2017, beauty giant Estée Lauder acquired a stake in Deciem, citing its
"consumer-centric focus that is already impacting the world of beauty".

In a statement to the BBC, Estée Lauder said; "We are deeply concerned by
the material that has recently been posted on social media and will defend
our rights as a minority investor."

Deciem has seen rapid international expansion and was projected to earn
$300m (£228m) in sales in 2018.

This latest upheaval is not the first disruption for the brand.

Mr Truaxe fired his co-CEO in February, and the Instagram message announcing
the temporary shutdown is the latest in a string of controversial online
postings by the founder, who took over the social media account earlier this
year.

He has used the social platform to publicly sever ties with collaborators,
engage sometimes aggressively with online commentators, and other behaviour
that has concerned clients.--BBC

RBS boss: Rebuilding trust will take another 10 years

It's 10 years since RBS received a £45bn bailout from the taxpayer, but boss
Ross McEwan says its reputation could take another decade to restore.

RBS now has one of the highest levels of cash reserves in the industry.

But Mr McEwan told the BBC that while its finances may now be fixed when it
comes to building levels of trust, there is still a long way to go.

"I think it will take five - maybe even 10 - years to rebuild trust to where
we'd want it to be."

RBS's reputation has suffered more than most banks since the crisis. As well
as paying out billions in fines and compensation, its poor treatment of many
small business customers in the aftermath of the crash was the subject of a
highly critical report from the Financial Conduct Authority.

Emails from RBS staff encouraging colleagues to "give business enough rope
to hang themselves" and using an RBS subsidiary to acquire property from
distressed companies at knockdown prices to sell at a profit, revealed a
shockingly cynical culture in some parts of the bank.

A sense of injustice was compounded when the banking watchdog, the FCA,
concluded - after a four-year inquiry - that RBS's business-lending
activities were not within its regulatory remit.

I put it to Mr McEwan that the failure to deal with these issues was a
source of ongoing mistrust. He admitted that the bank had failed some
customers, and said sorry.

"We were not there supporting customers in the way we should have been and
for that once again I apologise."

Painful surgery

Mr McEwan has spent exactly five years at the helm helping oversee what he
describes as "one of the biggest turnarounds in corporate history".

It's been a long hard slog and left RBS barely recognisable from the beast
it was in 2008, when it was the world's biggest bank on some measures.

In the last decade it has shut up shop or sold operations in 41 countries,
shedding some 130,000 workers.

It used to make nearly 40% of its revenue overseas - today that's only 7%
and its lending has shrunk from £2.2 trillion (that's more than the entire
UK earns and spends in a year) to £748bn.

This kind of surgery is painful. In total, the bank has racked up losses
from fines compensation and restructuring costs of £63bn. In other words -
it chewed through the whole £45bn bailout and then some.

It's now making a profit of about £1bn every three months and has started
paying a dividend to its shareholders, but Mr McEwan acknowledges it's very
unlikely that taxpayers will ever be repaid in full.

For normal customers, perhaps the most visible changes are in the cities,
towns and villages where the branches are - or aren't.

Since 2007, the number of RBS branches (including NatWest, Royal Bank of
Scotland and Ulster Bank) has more than halved. Like other banks, RBS points
to the rise in the popularity of banking online or via mobile as an
explanation/excuse for more than 1,000 closures, but if you are trying to
rebuild RBS as your friendly neighbourhood bank, it surely helps if you have
one in your neighbourhood.

Replacing branches with mobile apps is all very well if the technology
works, but often it hasn't. Serious meltdowns in 2012 and 2014 led to chaos
for customers and cost the bank more than £100m in fines.

That is why the bank is trying to simplify the plumbing that underpins its
services. From a mindboggling 5,000 separate computer systems and
applications, RBS now runs a "mere" 2,500 and hopes to get that down to
1,500 by 2020.

"We will never be simple - but we will be simpler," he says, adding that he
considers the threat of cyber-attack the bank's number one risk.

Mr McEwan and his boss, RBS chairman Sir Howard Davies, know that rebuilding
the RBS brand is a big job - which is one of the reasons they are thinking
of ditching it altogether. Sir Howard has been saying for months that the
company is a collection of brands (NatWest, Ulster, Coutts etc) with the
most toxic one on top.

That process has already started. The RBS logo on its UK headquarters in
London has been replaced with a NatWest sign - and the same is happening in
remaining RBS branches across England and Wales. In Scotland, RBS will still
be the Royal Bank of Scotland or "the Royal" for short.

But as long as people remember the great financial crisis, the name RBS will
live on.--BBC

HSBC in $765m settlement with US Department of Justice

HSBC has reached a $765m (£582.3m) settlement in the US over its sale of
mortgage-based securities during the run-up to the financial crisis.

The deal resolves claims by the US that HSBC misled buyers about the quality
of the securities, which were backed by pools of home loans.

The issues, which occurred between 2005 and 2007, led to major losses by
investors, prosecutors said.

As is common in such settlements, HSBC did not admit or deny the claims.

In a statement, the bank said it had since strengthened its internal
controls and was "pleased" to have resolved the probe.

"The US management team is focused on putting historical matters into the
rear view mirror and completing the turn-around of HSBC's US operations,"
said Patrick J Burke, who heads the bank's US unit.

HSBC's settlement was announced Tuesday by federal prosecutors in Colorado.

It is one of many agreements resolving investigations of bank handling of
residential mortgage-backed securities that authorities have announced since
the financial crisis.

Prosecutors have accused companies that created and sold the securities -
bonds that were backed by home loans - of overlooking the risks that
families would not be able to pay, at times deliberately.

'Abuse of trust'

In this instance, the US Department of Justice said HSBC misled investors
about the process it used to evaluate the investments.

It also misrepresented the quality of the securities even though internal
reviews had raised concerns, the US said.

At one point, an HSBC trader even said that a security planned for sale by
HSBC would "suck", according to the US.

The activities led to major losses by investors and contributed to a crisis
of foreclosures that hit the US, said Bob Troyer, US Attorney for the
District of Colorado.

"HSBC made choices that hurt people and abused their trust," he said. "If
you make choices like this, beware. You will pay."

Residential mortgage backed securities were a major contributor to the 2008
financial crisis, after the crash of the US housing market exposed investors
to losses.

They also stirred outrage at the local level by complicating the resolution
of mortgages that went into default.

HSBC, which handled about $24bn of residential mortgage-backed securities
between 2005 and 2007, has faced numerous lawsuits for those activities.

In 2016, it agreed to pay more than $400m to the US to resolve claims about
its servicing of home loans.--BBC

Virgin Galactic to reach space in 'weeks not months'

Entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson has said that Virgin Galactic is "weeks"
away from its first trip into space.

"We should be in space within weeks, not months. And then we will be in
space with myself in months and not years," the firm's founder and chief
executive told news website CNBC.

He said the firm would be taking people into space "not too long after"
that.

Sir Richard is in a race with Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos to send the first
fee-paying passengers into space.

He founded the commercial spaceflight company in 2004.

The company first promised sub-orbital spaceflight trips for tourists by the
start of 2009.

But delays and a fatal crash in 2014 prevented Sir Richard's original
ambitions.

Earlier this year, Virgin Galactic completed a supersonic test flight of its
SpaceShipTwo passenger rocket ship, its first since the crash.

The 67-year-old multi-millionaire was initially expected to take part in a
space flight before April this year.

High demand

In an interview with BBC Radio 4's You and Yours programme, Sir Richard said
he was receiving astronaut, centrifuge and fitness training.

He also insisted there was huge demand for commercial space flights.

"If I have a room full of 10 people, eight out of 10 would love to go to
space if they could afford it," Sir Richard told CNBC.

"It is up to us to produce as many spaceships as we can to cater with that
demand."

His announcement comes shortly after rival SpaceX unveiled the first private
passenger it plans to fly around the Moon.

The mission is planned for 2023, and would be the first lunar journey by
humans since 1972.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has said his space travel firm Blue Origin will
launch a manned mission into space by 2019. Mr Bezos didn't clarify if he
meant crew or fare-paying passengers.

Earlier this month, Blue Origin also announced that it is launching a
non-profit group with Airbus, the European Space Agency, Agencia Espacial
Mexicana, and French construction company Vinci Construction to explore ways
to colonise the moon.--BBC

'Big four' audit firms face competition probe

The dominance of the "big four" accountancy firms, Deloitte, EY, KPMG and
PwC, is set to be scrutinised following widespread concerns.

The Competition and Markets Authority said it would probe whether the sector
is "competitive and resilient enough to maintain high quality standards".

The decision follows fears the sector "is not working well for the economy
or investors", the CMA added.

It follows criticism of the auditors of collapsed construction firm
Carillion.

"If the many critics of the audit process are right, it is not just the
companies which buy audits that lose out; it is the millions of people
dependent on savings, pension funds and other investments in those companies
whose audits may be defective," said the CMA's new chairman Andrew Tyrie.

'Move swiftly'

The CMA investigation will examine three main areas.

How firms choose auditors and the frequency of switching, with most firms
still turning "almost exclusively" to one of the "big four" when choosing an
accountant

Resilience of the industry because of the risk the "big four" firms' were
"too big to fail", potentially threatening long-term competition

The lack of incentive for auditors to produce "challenging performance
reviews" given that companies, not investors, pick their own auditor

CMA chief executive Andrea Coscelli said it planned "to move swiftly and to
issue our provisional findings before Christmas".

The CMA's decision comes after the industry watchdog said earlier this year
that the auditing work of the "big four" firms had deteriorated. The
Financial Reporting Council said KMPG's audits in particular had shown "an
unacceptable deterioration".

Michael Izza, chief executive of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in
England and Wales (ICAEW),welcomed the investigation.

"It is vital that we rebuild public trust in audit - the success of UK
business depends on it," he said.--BBC

Google Pixel 3 phones launch during privacy storm

Google has launched its latest smartphones under the shadow of a data
exposure scandal.

The Pixel 3 handsets introduce new photography features including a much
higher-quality digital zoom than before.

The company suggests the innovation shows it has no need to place more than
one camera on the handsets' rear.

The launch comes a day after it emerged that a Google+ bug was not made
public when it was discovered in the Spring.

The flaw led to personal data belonging to 500,000 members of the social
network not being properly protected.

Google has announced it is now ending access to the service to the wider
public.

The Pixel phones will not be directly affected by the move, but do make use
of several of the firm's cloud-based technologies including Google Photos -
an image storage service that was spun out from Google+ three years ago.

One industry-watcher said part of the company's motivation for offering the
Pixel 3 and larger Pixel 3 XL was to promote "the best of Google", adding
that the message would now be harder to convey.

"The value proposition of Pixel is not just the hardware but the whole
Google experience," explained Carolina Milanesi from the consultancy
Creative Strategies.

"If you're starting to question Google and whether or not you want to be
entrenched in its services, then the value that you'll see in the handsets
will decline."

Despite positive reviews for previous editions of the Pixel, they have been
niche products.

Google attained a peak smartphone market share of just 0.53% in the final
three months of 2017, according to market research firm IDC, and has since
seen that drop to 0.14%.

Photo advances

Many of the benefits of the new phones are derived from them coming with the
latest version of Android and integrating Google's services more seamlessly.
For example, the firm's virtual assistant can now be triggered by squeezing
the devices' sides.

But the Pixel team also hopes several photography-related features will have
special appeal.

Unusually, the handsets now have more cameras on their fronts than rears.

A second wide-angle lens has been added to the phones' face to make it
easier to take group shots without the need for a selfie stick. Software is
automatically applied to the resulting images to correct for distortions.

In addition, algorithms originally developed for the firm's standalone Clips
camera have been integrated to automatically take photos at the best moment
- for example just as subjects smile or open their eyes - to avoid the need
for a button tap.

However, the firm has kept to a single rear camera on both models despite a
trend among other firms to build more into their premium models.

The Galaxy S9 and iPhone XS, for example, have two back cameras. Huawei's
P20 Pro and LG's V40 have three. Lenovo is teasing a four-camera module. And
leaks suggest Nokia is working on a phone with five.

One advantage of having more lenses is that each can offer a different focal
length, letting users optically zoom in without a substantial loss in
quality.

But Google's Super Res mode aims to emulate this using digital zoom alone.

It does this by first sampling pixels taken from slightly different
points-of-view, captured as a result of small vibrations in the owner's
hand.

It then uses software to combine the information into a higher-resolution
image from which the cropped-in view is extracted.

If the phone is locked to a tripod or otherwise steadied, the camera
sensor's image stabiliser slightly moves it about to get the same effect.

A second computational photography mode called Night Sight is also promised
as a future update to take photos in low-light conditions without a flash.

It works by taking several frames at different exposures and then merging
the data together while using machine learning-trained software to add back
colour.

This approach contrasts with that of Samsung, which introduced a
dual-aperture lens to allow more light in when required.

The executive responsible, Mario Queiroz, said Google had deliberately
sought out software-based solutions.

"You can brute-force your way to functionality by putting in a bunch of
hardware," he explained.

"But I think you may be wasting hardware in that case and potentially making
your phone more costly."

One expert suggested this approach could backfire.

"Despite the fact Google has already proved that having a single lens
offering exceptional performance can pay off, to the uneducated consumer
there's a natural assumption that two lenses are better and three lenses
spectacularly so," commented Ben Wood from the consultancy CCS Insight.

Other new features include:

*         Top Shot - a facility that automatically tries to identify the
best image from a burst of photographs taken in quick succession

*         Sunrise Mode - a feature that changes the colour of the screen to
mimic dawn ahead of a morning wake-up alarm, if the phone is placed in an
optional dock

*         Titan - a new chip that secures biometric and other data, which
Google says should make the devices harder to hack

*         The Pixel 3 starts at £739 - slightly less than the iPhone XR -
while the Pixel 3 XL starts at £869 - slightly more than Samsung's Galaxy
Note 9.

They will be released in the US next week, and Europe at the start of
November.

The firm also showed off a new Chrome OS tablet - the Slate - which comes
with a detachable keyboard similar to that of Microsoft's Surface.

In addition, its smart speaker range gained a screen-based model called the
Home Hub, which will compete with Amazon's Echo Show.

Google said it had deliberately built the device without a camera in order
to reduce privacy concerns around positioning it in personal places like the
bedroom.

Ms Milanesi said it was an example of a tech firm making "choices based on
the level of trust in its brand" rather than what was technologically
possible.

Unlike its competitor, the Home Hub provides access to YouTube.--BBC

Canada farm that gave birth to the McIntosh apple up for sale

The birthplace of the iconic McIntosh apple - an ageing orchard in Ontario,
Canada - is up for sale.

Pioneered by John McIntosh in 1811, the McIntosh Red would grow to become
one of the most popular varietals and inspire Apple's Macintosh computer.

McIntosh's farm is being sold by its current owner Gerd Skof for C$875,000
($675,000, £514,000).

The ruby-red fruit has been the inspiration behind Apple's Macintosh
computer.

The farm has been vacant for over a year and whoever buys the spot in
Dundela near the New York border will need to love home repairs as much as
history.

A CBC reporter who visited the property described it as "overgrown".

"Today, the McIntosh red apple trees go unpruned and unpicked, with hundreds
of kilograms of fruit rotting on the ground. Some have disappeared in wild
overgrowth, along with pear and plum and walnut counterparts, as the orchard
slowly returns to bush," wrote Stu Mills for the CBC.

Mr Skof says he and his wife moved 16 months ago to be closer to a hospital
in their old age. Before they bought the place in 1987, he says it changed
hands several times. Over the years he put in extra bathrooms and amenities
for farm labourers.

Some of his neighbours have raised eyebrows at the price tag, but Mr Skof
says he is in no rush to sell.

How farmer's grow apples all year long

Kazakhstan's treasure trove of wildly flavoured apples

"I'm an old guy, was never sick one day, never in a hospital. I moved out 16
months ago and my three freezers in Ottawa are full of fruits to keep me
young," he said in an email.

Mr Skof thinks the farm's role in agricultural history would make it an
"ideal tourist attraction", although that was never something he wanted to
do.

At one point, he got so sick of apple history lovers exploring his
properties he put up a "no trespassing" sign.

History of the McIntosh apple

Look up the definition of the word "apple" in the dictionary and you will
likely find a picture of the McIntosh Red - the fruit's sweet but mild flesh
is the quintessential taste of early autumn.

The fruit was discovered when John McIntosh bought the farm in 1811 and
found some apple saplings that went on to produce especially delicious
fruit. His son learned how to clone the tree and commercial production began
in earnest in 1870.

The original McIntosh tree died in 1910, but its clones lived on. By 1960,
the McIntosh dominated 40% of the Canadian apple market and was imported as
far as Britain.

The apple was so beloved by Apple employee Jef Raskin that he named the
company's flagship personal computer after it, with a slight change in
spelling to avoid another company's copyright.

But its popularity has waned, and the apple now accounts for just about a
quarter of the Canadian market, and just 5% of the US market.--BBC

North Sea Rhum gas field deal moves closer amid Iran sanctions

A deal to buy three key North Sea gas fields has moved closer after
uncertainty created by US sanctions against Iran delayed the process.

Rhum and its neighbouring assets the Bruce and Keith fields deliver about 5%
of the gas produced in the UK.

The Rhum field - about 240 miles north east from Aberdeen, off Shetland - is
co-owned by the Iranian Oil company.

BP is also a partner but its stake is in the process of being sold to Serica
Energy.

The sanctions followed US President Donald Trump's announcement that the US
was withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal.

Serica has now said it has received assurances that non US countries
providing goods, services and support will not be exposed to secondary
sanctions.

'Significant contribution'

An arrangement will be put in place whereby any money made by the Iranian
Oil Company from the Rhum field will be held by a third party for as long as
the US restrictions are in place.

Serica is also in the process of purchasing BP and Total's interest in the
Bruce and Keith developments.

Serica chief executive Mitch Flegg said: "The receipt of the license and
assurance from OFAC (US Office of Foreign Assets Control) is an important
step towards ensuring the integrity of ongoing operations from this
important North Sea field which makes a significant contribution to UK
indigenous gas production.

"We welcome the constructive approach taken by all parties. This outcome
protects a valuable British asset which, together with the Bruce and Keith
fields, produces about 5% of UK offshore gas production.

"Serica is now able to move forward to completing the BP and Total
transactions, allowing us to focus on optimising the full performance of the
Bruce, Keith and Rhum fields, extend production life where possible and
ensure maximum economic recovery of remaining reserves to the UK's benefit."

In 2010, the Rhum field was shut down because production could have been
breaking European Union sanctions against Iran.--BBC

INVESTORS DIARY 2018

Company

Event

Venue

Date & Time

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