Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 10 April 2019

Wed Apr 10 09:48:55 CAT 2019

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Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 10 April 2019

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*  IMF trims South Africa's economic growth forecast to 1.2 percent

*  Nigeria's parliament recommends tax rise on luxury goods

*  South Africa's carbon tax could cost Amplats $21 mln a year from 2021
-CEO

*  Drought will drag down Kenya's 2019 economic growth, World Bank says

*  South Africa's rand on the front foot in early trade

*  Malawi 2018/19 maize output up 24 pct, minimal effect from cyclone Idai-
minister

*  Egypt GDP to grow 5.5 pct in 2019, 5.9 pct in 2020 -IMF

*  Kenya central bank says to hold rate-setting meeting on May 27

*  Kenyan shilling weakens on demand from energy sector

*  Nigeria seeks private investors for aircraft leasing venture

*  World economy facing delicate moment, IMF says

*  Tesco profits jump 'in uncertain market'

*  Facebook to use AI to respect the dead

*  Asos profits plunge 87% after difficult year

*  Carlos Ghosn says 'backstabbing' behind his arrest

*  Boeing 737 Max grounding hits American Airlines outlook

*  Standard Chartered to pay $1bn for breaching Iran sanctions

 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

IMF trims South Africa's economic growth forecast to 1.2 percent

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund lowered its
forecast for South Africa’s economic growth to 1.2 percent in 2019 and to
1.5 percent in 2020, saying political and policy uncertainty remained a
constraint on activity.

South Africa has seen growth stagnate in the decade since the world’s
financial crisis, with policy missteps under former President Jacob Zuma
making worse global conditions marked by a plunge in commodity prices and a
rise in the cost of capital.

The economy grew 0.8 percent in 2018, and the 1.2 percent expansion
projected by the IMF is down from its October forecast of 1.4 percent. In
February, the National Treasury said gross domestic product would grow 1.5
percent in 2019.

“The projected recovery reflects modestly reduced but continued policy
uncertainty in the South African economy after the May 2019 elections,” the
IMF said in its World Economic Outlook before its spring meetings in
Washington this month.

“Structural bottlenecks” would continue to weigh on investment and
productivity, while subdued metal export prices were also a risk, the IMF
said ,referring to the country’s longstanding lack of skilled labour and
competition in key industries.

President Cyril Ramaphosa has pledged to re-ignite growth by attracting 1.2
trillion rand ($86 billion) of investments in the next five years and
improving the ease of doing business in the country.

He faces an uphill battle with nationwide electricity blackouts last month
expected to dim business and consumer confidence before national elections
on May 8.

($1 = 14.0247 rand)

 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

Nigeria's parliament recommends tax rise on luxury goods

ABUJA (Reuters) - Nigeria’s parliament has asked the government to consider
increasing taxes on luxury goods to boost revenues, it said on Tuesday.

An expenditure plan approved by the Senate on Tuesday showed Nigeria is
expected to generate 172.47 billion naira ($564 mln) from privatisation
proceeds this year.

The budget deficit for 2019 is estimated at 1.86 trillion naira ($6.1 bln),
according to the plan. Lawmakers said the deficit would covered via
borrowing, privatisation proceeds and loans secured for specific projects.

($1 = 306.00 naira)

South Africa's carbon tax could cost Amplats $21 mln a year from 2021 -CEO

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa’s new carbon tax could cost Anglo
American Platinum up to $21 million a year from 2021 its chief executive
said on Tuesday, piling pressure on an industry already grappling with
higher energy and labour costs.

South Africa’s parliament in February approved a long-delayed carbon tax
bill as part of plans to reduce harmful emissions in Africa’s most
industrialised and polluting country.

The bill, which was postponed at least three times since first being mooted
in 2010, faces opposition from heavy energy users, including Amplats, the
world’s biggest platinum producer.

On the sidelines of a industry conference in Johannesburg, Chief Executive
Chris Griffith said the carbon tax would cost Amplats around 50 million rand
($3.56 million) over the next two years.

That would rise to between 200 and 300 million from 2021, from when a tax on
electricity use is included.

“I’m saying to the government don’t do it,” he said.

($1 = 14.0289 rand)

Drought will drag down Kenya's 2019 economic growth, World Bank says

NAIROBI (Reuters) - Dry weather across much of Kenya is likely to curb the
country’s economic growth this year, the World Bank said on Tuesday, as it
cut its forecast to 5.7 percent growth.

Kenya’s economy expanded by an estimated 5.8 percent last year, the bank
said in its latest report on the country, as the country recovered from a
slowdown the year before caused by another drought and election jitters.

“The medium-term growth outlook is stable but recent threats of drought
could drag down growth,” the World Bank said.

The latest forecast is down from the bank’s 5.8 percent projection in
October. It is also lower than the government’s own forecast, which is 6.3
percent, according to the central bank.

“Risks include drought conditions that could curtail agricultural output,
especially if the country’s grain-growing counties are affected,” the bank
said.

The so-called long rains season from March till May hasn’t started in most
of the country. Agriculture accounts for close to a third of Kenya’s annual
economic output.

If the government fails to meet its revenue collection targets, the economy
could face more risk from macroeconomic instability, the bank said in the
report.

Externally, Kenya faces risks from global trade tensions, which could cut
its exports and the funds sent home by Kenyans abroad.

“An unanticipated spike in oil prices, and tighter global financial market
conditions ... could lead to a disorderly adjustment of capital outflows
from Kenya,” the report said.

Kenya’s current account deficit narrowed to 4.9 percent of gross domestic
product in 2018 from 6.3 percent in 2017, the bank said. The deficit was
financed by both government and capital inflows, it said, increasing the
central bank’s hard currency reserves.

“This continues to provide a comfortable buffer against external short-term
shocks,” it said.

The World Bank, which is one of Kenya’s biggest development financiers,
urged the government to curb tax exemptions to boost revenue and to inject a
dose of realism when forecasting revenue collection.

Critics have accused the government of overly optimistic revenue forecasts
in recent years, to justify increased spending. The government has regularly
failed to meet those targets.

There was no immediate comment from the ministry of finance.

The government should also end caps on commercial lending rates imposed in
2016, which continue to compromise the effectiveness of monetary policy, the
World Bank said.

“There is need to repeal interest rate caps and restore the potency of
monetary policy, which is essential in responding to shocks,” it said in the
report.

South Africa's rand on the front foot in early trade

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa’s rand firmed early on Tuesday,
advancing alongside Asian currencies as a dollar wobble helped sustain
demand for risk assets.

At 0730 GMT the rand was 0.42 percent firmer at 14.0700 per dollar compared
to a close of 14.1300 overnight in New York.

The dollar measured against a basket of currencies was down 0.8 percent,
subdued by easing fears of a global slowdown.

Since advancing to a more than one-month best at the end of March after
Moody’s declined to issue a credit review, leaving Pretoria’s debt at
investment grade, the rand has traded in a narrow range as it nears the
14.00 mark seen as the next pivot point.

With interest rates steady and inflation moderate, the currency offers one
of the most attractive spreads to U.S. dollar and other low yield
currencies, making it a target for carry traders.

A business confidence index release on Wednesday, and mining and
manufacturing production figures on Thursday are the main data points
locally, while investors will also have an eye on the tariff dispute between
Washington and Beijing.

Bonds inched firmer ahead of an auction of long term government fixed
instruments, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year bond down 0.5 percent
to 8.51 percent.

Stocks opened flat, with the Johannesburg Stock Exchange’s (JSE) Top-40
index just shy of 52,000 points on the back of a week-long rally spurred by
gains in resource and retail stocks.

Malawi 2018/19 maize output up 24 pct, minimal effect from cyclone Idai-
minister

BLANTYRE (Reuters) - Malawi’s maize output increased by just over 24 percent
in the 2018/19 farming year so far, boosted by favourable weather conditions
and government subsidies, the agriculture minister said on Tuesday.

Production rose to 3.355 million metric tonnes from 2.697 million metric
tonnes in the 2017/18 farming season, according to the second round of the
2018/19 Agricultural Production Estimate Survey (APES), Joseph Mwanamvekha,
minister of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development said.

In February, the government had estimated production of 3.387 million metric
tonnes in the 2018/19 season which ends in May.

Maize is a staple crop in the southern African nation of 19 million people.

Mwanamvekha said cumulative rainfall performance for most parts of the
country has been good this season compared to last season, while government
subsidies to farms also helped lift production.

“Despite the floods which occurred in the southern region districts, the
general picture is that crop production will increase significantly over
last season and (the) five-year average on all commodities except cotton and
wheat,” he said in a statement.

Malawi, along with its neighbours Mozambique and Zimbabwe were hit in March
by floods linked to Cyclone Idai, which killed hundreds of people in those
countries.

Mwanamvekha said that while the floods had damaged livestock, crops,
fisheries and irrigation infrastructure, crops in most affected areas were
at “an advanced physiological development stage,” meaning that the loss was
minimal.

The government plans to distribute maize seed and sweet potato vines to
affected farming households, he added.

Egypt GDP to grow 5.5 pct in 2019, 5.9 pct in 2020 -IMF

CAIRO (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday forecast
Egypt’s economy would grow 5.5 percent this year - unchanged from its
October estimate - and 5.9 percent in 2020.

In its World Economic Outlook, the Fund edged up its 2019 forecast for
consumer price inflation to 14.5 percent from 14 percent. It predicted an
easing to 12.3 percent in 2020.

Egypt’s gross domestic product grew 5.3 percent last year, when inflation
was 20.9 percent.

The IMF forecast this year’s current account deficit at 2.4 percent of GDP,
the same as 2018 and unchanged from its forecast in October.

Unemployment was projected to fall to 9.6 percent from 10.9 percent last
year.

Egypt signed a three-year $12 billion loan programme with the IMF in late
2016 as it sought to attract back international investors who pulled out
after an uprising in 2011.

The government imposed tough reforms, including a steep currency devaluation
and deep cuts to energy subsidies and introducing a value-added tax, leaving
many of Egypt’s nearly 100 million citizens struggling to make ends meet.

Egypt will remove remaining subsidies on most energy products by June 15, it
told the IMF in a January letter released by the fund on Saturday as part of
a review of the loan programme. 

Kenya central bank says to hold rate-setting meeting on May 27

NAIROBI (Reuters) - The Central Bank of Kenya’s Monetary Policy Committee
will hold its next rate-setting meeting on May 27, the bank said.

At its last meeting in March, the central bank held its benchmark lending
rate at 9.0 percent, saying inflation expectations remain within the target
range.

Kenyan shilling weakens on demand from energy sector

NAIROBI (Reuters) - The Kenyan shilling weakened against the dollar on
Tuesday, undermined by dollar demand from energy sector firms and surplus
liquidity in the local money market, traders said.

At 0905 GMT, commercial banks quoted the shilling at 100.75/95 per dollar,
compared with 100.65/85 at Monday’s close.

Nigeria seeks private investors for aircraft leasing venture

LAGOS (Reuters) - Nigeria plans to set up an aircraft leasing company to
help domestic and African carriers obtain new planes and is seeking private
partners for the venture, the government said on Monday.

Most airlines in Nigeria want to expand their fleets, but high financing
costs and currency risks have hampered growth. Nigerian airlines’ revenues
are in naira, while most of their costs are in U.S. dollars.

The government said in a statement the new company would initially lease
aircraft from international lessors and sub-lease them to domestic
operators.

It wants the partner to be a consortium of international lessors, financial
institutions and investors, and said bidders had until May 20 to show
interest. The government will own a minority stake.

On Friday, Nigeria’s Medview Airline said it had been in talks with some
financial institutions to raise capital and that a lack of infrastructure as
well as dollar shortages were complicating its operating environment.

The company added its short-term growth prospects were limited after posting
losses.

The government has said it plans to hand over airports to private managers
to attract investment and overhaul aviation infrastructure that has suffered
decades of neglect and under-investment. It also plans to set up an aircraft
maintenance facility in Lagos or Abuja with private operators.

The government had been considering launching a national carrier, but
suspended that project in September, without giving a reason.

World economy facing delicate moment, IMF says

The global economy is at what the International Monetary Fund's chief
economist calls a "delicate moment".

Gita Gopinath says that while she does not predict a global recession,
"there are are many downside risks".

The IMF has released its regular assessment of the World Economic Outlook,
which forecasts global growth of 3.3% this year and 3.6% in 2020.

That would be slower growth than last year - and for 2019, a downgrade
compared with the previous forecast.

The downward revision of 0.2 percentage points for global growth is spread
widely.

Developed economies affected include the US, the UK and the eurozone.

The UK economy is predicted to grow by 1.2% in 2019, down 0.3% from the IMF
forecast in January. Growth in 2020 has also been revised down.

The revisions are especially marked for Germany and Italy, which is already
in recession.

US proposes tariffs on EU cheese and wine

Germany's economy: Should we be worried?

The IMF expects weaker performance in Latin America, as well as in the
Middle East and North Africa.

For China, there are small revisions, upward for this year and downward for
next. The slowdown there, which began at the start of the decade, is
expected to continue.

'Precarious' recovery

The weakness in the forecast reflects a slowdown in the latter part of 2018,
which the IMF expects to continue in the first half of this year.

After that, growth should pick up more pace, with the additional momentum
continuing into next year.

But Ms Gopinath describes that recovery as "precarious".

She says it depends on a recovery in a number of developing economies that
are stressed, notably Turkey and Argentina.

Ms Gopinath also expects a partial recovery in the eurozone.

The US, however, is likely to slow further, growing by slightly less than 2%
next year as the impact of President Donald Trump's tax cuts fades.

There is no sign in her blog, or in the IMF's report, of any sympathy for
President Trump's view that the main thing holding back the US economy is
the Federal Reserve's increases in interest rates over the last two years.

Flare of disruption?

The risks that Ms Gopinath warns about include some familiar ones.

The first she mentions is the possibility that global trade tensions could
flare up again and spread into new areas.

She refers to cars in particular, an area where President Trump is
considering new tariffs on imported goods.

That, she suggests, could lead to "large disruptions to global supply
chains". She says the escalation of US-China trade tensions contributed to
last year's slowdown.

She also mentions risks associated with Brexit. The forecasts for the UK are
based on the expectation of an orderly departure - with a deal - from the EU
later this year. A no-deal Brexit would be more costly.

Other risks include the possibility of a deterioration in financial markets,
leading to higher borrowing costs, including for governments. That raises
the possibility of what she calls sovereign/bank doom loops.

That was a particular problem in the euro-area financial crisis, when
financial problems for governments and banks reinforced one another.--BBC

Tesco profits jump 'in uncertain market'

Profits at Tesco have jumped 28% in what the UK's biggest supermarket chain
described as an "uncertain" market.

Chief executive Dave Lewis said the group was on track to meet the "vast
majority" of the turnaround goals he set when he was appointed four years
ago after an accounting scandal.

The group said its performance was "strong", and Tesco has almost doubled
its dividend.

Full-year pre-tax profits were £1.7bn, with Tesco's same store sales up
1.7%.

"After four years we have met, or are about to meet, the vast majority of
our turnaround goals. I'm very confident that we will complete the journey
in 2019/2020," said Mr Lewis, who oversaw the takeover of wholesaler Booker
in 2017.

"I'm delighted with the broad-based improvement across the business," he
said.

Overall like-for-like sales (which strip out changes to stores) rose 2.9%,
including the 1.7% at Tesco and 11.1% for Booker. Group sales fell in Asia.

Jobs have been lost as he aims to save £1.5bn a year and up to 9,000 roles
were put at risk in January when the chain announced it would close food
counters in 90 stores.

He has also launched a discount chain, Jack's, to take on German rivals Aldi
and Lidl, which Tesco said had received a "strong response" in the eight new
stores.

The proposed tie-up between Sainsbury's and Asda, which is currently being
investigated by the competition authorities, could further change the
landscape, said Julie Palmer, partner at Begbies Traynor.

"External threats are also putting pressure on the retailer with continued
uncertainty due to Brexit and the turbulent High Street conditions,
evidenced by its decision to cut up to 9,000 jobs by shutting the fresh food
counters at 90 stores.

"With Marks & Spencer's tie up with Ocado and Amazon's new grocery arm,
Amazon Fresh, Dave Lewis will be wary of standing still and instead will
want to keep moving," she said.

The chain said it would set out some "untapped value opportunities" at a
presentation in June.--BBC

Facebook to use AI to respect the dead

Facebook has said it is working on using artificial intelligence to prevent
a common and upsetting problem: receiving notifications about deceased
friends and loved ones.

The company said it hoped to stop the “painful” experience of getting
suggestions to invite dead people to events, or to wish them a happy
birthday.

On profiles, tributes to a person will now appear separately, keeping the
deceased’s timeline as they left it.

"We hope Facebook remains a place where the memory and spirit of our loved
ones can be celebrated and live on,” said Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook’s chief
operating officer.

Users have often complained about being shocked and upset when Facebook
nudges them to interact with a deceased loved one.

Since 2009, Facebook has given users the ability to “memorialise” profiles;
a status which adds “Remembering” to the person’s name and allows friends to
post messages (more than 30 million people do this every month, Facebook
said).

Once a page has been memorialised, it no longer appears within notifications
as if that person were still alive. But, for profiles of deceased users that
have not yet been memorialised, Facebook said it would use AI to stop those
accounts from appearing in unexpected places as well.

Legacy contact control

Facebook also announced other tweaks to how dead people are represented on
the network.

Memorialised accounts will now have a separate “tributes” tab for people to
leave condolences and memories, a move that would leave the deceased’s
timeline intact.

Content posted as tributes can be moderated by a person’s “legacy” contacts.
These are other Facebook users who they have designated as a trusted person
or persons, who can take over in the event of their death.

"Legacy contacts can now moderate the posts shared to the new tributes
section by changing tagging settings, removing tags and editing who can post
and see posts,” Ms Sandberg explained.

"This helps them manage content that might be hard for friends and family to
see if they’re not ready.”

Under-18s cannot nominate a legacy contact, but parents or guardians of
children who have died can contact Facebook to request access.

Some of these changes have come in response to abuses of its systems, such
as a “prank” in which users would falsely tell Facebook someone had died,
locking that user out of their account, and causing friends distress.--BBC

Asos profits plunge 87% after difficult year

Online fashion retailer Asos has seen its profits plunge, after a difficult
year caused by heavy discounting and website traffic issues.

Asos' pre-tax profits fell 87% to £4m for the six months to 28 February
against the same period in 2018.

The firm said it had managed to stabilise sales, which rose 14% to £1.3bn
for the period.

Asos said marketing changes meant a fall in visits to its websites and a
drop in its search engine rankings.

Chief executive Nick Beighton said that Asos had identified a number of
things it "can do better", and that heavy investment in its platforms gave
the retailer "increased confidence" that its performance would improve in
the second half of the year.

He added that the global fashion industry was growing and now worth more
than £220bn.

"We now have the tech platform, the infrastructure, a constant conversation
with our growing customer base who love our own great product and the
constantly evolving edit of brands we present to them," said Mr Beighton.

"We believe that ultimately there will only be a handful of companies with
truly global scale in this market. We are determined that Asos will be one
of them."

Asos said its financial guidance for the year remained the same.

In December, Asos warned on profits, saying that cutting prices to match
rivals had not led to a significant increases in sales. Asos shares fell by
almost 40%.--BBC

Carlos Ghosn says 'backstabbing' behind his arrest

Nissan ex-boss Carlos Ghosn has accused former executives at the firm of
"backstabbing" and says he is innocent of all charges against him.

In a pre-recorded video released by his legal team, he said he was victim of
a "conspiracy" and wanted a fair trial.

Nissan said in response that there was "substantial evidence" against him.

Mr Ghosn was arrested for a fourth time last week while on bail awaiting
trial on charges of financial misconduct and breach of trust.

"Aside from any criminal matters, Nissan's internal investigation has
uncovered substantial evidence of blatantly unethical conduct," the company
said.

"Further discoveries related to [Mr] Ghosn's misconduct continue to emerge."

Carlos Ghosn is trying to seize the initiative.

The man who was once one of the most powerful figures in the global motor
industry has suffered months of indignities and humiliations. Now he seems
determined to tell his side of the story - even though he is in prison once
again.

His argument is simple. The charges against him are false and he has been
the victim of a conspiracy orchestrated by managers at Nissan, who were
afraid of losing their influence within the Alliance - the global carmaking
group that also includes Renault and Mitsubishi.

But - and it's a big but - he hasn't offered much here to back up his
defence. Just a bald statement that he's innocent of the charges.

Nissan is having none of it. The company insists it has evidence of
"blatantly unethical conduct" by Mr Ghosn and says further material is still
emerging.

Which brings us to another aspect of his statement: his plea for a "fair
trial". Something he suggests his lawyers aren't very confident about.

That looks like a comment designed to cause maximum embarrassment in Japan,
already squirming under the harsh international spotlight cast upon it by Mr
Ghosn's arrest and detention.

In the video message, the 65-year-old, who was first arrested in November,
maintained his denial of any wrongdoing or misconduct.

"This is about a plot, this is about conspiracy, this is about backstabbing
- that's what we are talking about," Mr Ghosn said in the video, released at
a news conference.

"There was a fear that the next step of the alliance... would in a certain
way threaten some people or eventually threaten the autonomy of Nissan."

Mr Ghosn was the architect of the alliance between Nissan and French
carmaker Renault, and brought Mitsubishi on board in 2016.

The fall from grace for the industry titan has attracted global attention.
It has also put a spotlight on fighting within the carmaker alliance and on
Japan's legal system.

His wife Carole Ghosn has flown to France to ask the government there to
intervene on her husband's behalf.

What has happened so far?

Prosecutors said Mr Ghosn's latest arrest related to transfers of Nissan
funds totalling $15m (£11.5m) between 2015 and 2018.

They allege that $5m of that amount was used by Mr Ghosn for personal
expenditure.

Local media had previously said that authorities had been building a new
case against him involving payments to a dealership in Oman.

He had been released on bail in March after being in prison for more than
three months.

Mr Ghosn was first detained in November, charged with under-reporting his
pay package for the five years to 2015.

In January, a fresh charge claimed he understated his compensation for
another three years. He was also indicted on a new, more serious charge of
breach of trust.

He is credited with turning around the fortunes of Nissan and Renault over
several years.--BBC

Boeing 737 Max grounding hits American Airlines outlook

American Airlines has cut its sales outlook after being forced to cancel
hundreds of flights involving the grounded Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft.

The airline now expects a key measure of total revenue to be flat or grow by
1% during the first quarter, compared to previous forecasts of a 2%
increase.

The firm is the second largest operator of the Boeing 737 Max 8 in the US.

The jet is at the centre of two fatal crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia
within five months of each other.

American Airlines also said that it was unable to forecast how much the
disruption would cost the company.

Since the Boeing 737 Max 8 was grounded in the US on 13 March, American
Airlines has cut 1,200 flights and has extended cancellations through its
second quarter to 30 June, which will affect about 90 flights a day.

The plane is grounded as investigations continue into the Ethiopian Airlines
crash last month which killed all 157 people on board.

It follows an earlier disaster in October when a 737 Max 8 flown by
Indonesian airline Lion Air crashed, claiming the lives of 189 people.

American Airlines said: "The financial costs of this disruption in future
periods cannot be forecasted at this time and will be dependent upon a
number of factors, including the period of time the aircraft are unavailable
and the circumstances of any reintroduction of the aircraft to service."

American Airlines' share price fell by 2.8% to $32.94 in early trading.

Boeing is working on a fix to the anti-stall system, known as MCAS, in 737
Max 8 planes which preliminary reports suggest caused both the Lion Air and
the Ethiopian Airlines flights to repeatedly nosedive.

American Airlines operates 24 of the 737 Max 8 planes and has an additional
76 jets on order from Boeing.

Southwest Airlines is Boeing's largest customer for the 737 Max 8. It
already operates 34 of the jets out of a total order for 250 planes.

Boeing has temporarily cut production of the 737 airliner, which will drop
from 52 planes a month to 42 from mid-April.--BBC

Standard Chartered to pay $1bn for breaching Iran sanctions

Standard Chartered bank is being fined $1.1bn (£843m) for violating US
sanctions against Iran and over inadequate financial crime controls.

The penalties, imposed in connection with a range of different
investigations in the US and the UK, all date back to before 2014.

The London-based banking firm set aside $900m in February in preparation for
the settlements.

Standard Chartered has also undertaken to improve its compliance procedures.

The bulk of the settlement, $639m, relates to breaches of US sanctions
against Burma (Myanmar), Cuba, Iran, Sudan and Syria.

The bank will also pay £102m to Britain's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

The FCA found "serious and sustained shortcomings" in Standard Chartered's
anti-money laundering controls.

Bill Winters, the bank's chief executive, said: "The circumstances that led
to today's resolutions are completely unacceptable and not representative of
the Standard Chartered I am proud to lead today.

"Fighting financial crime is central to what we do and who we are; we do not
tolerate misconduct or lax controls and we will continue to root out any
issues that threaten the trust we have built over more than 160 years."

US authorities said a former banker at Standard Chartered's Dubai branch had
pleaded guilty in New York to conspiracy to violate sanctions.--BBC

INVESTORS DIARY 2019

Company

Event

Venue

Date & Time

Zimbabwe 

Independence Day

Zimbabwe

18 Apr 2019 

Good Friday

19 Apr 2019

Easter Saturday

20 Apr 2019

Easter Sunday

21 Apr 2019

Easter Monday

22 Apr 2019

Workers Day

01 May  2019

Africa Day

25 May 2019

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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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