Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 19 December 2019

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Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 19 December 2019

 


 

 


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ü  MTN South Africa's mobile money service to go live in Jan 2020

ü  Hitachi, MHI reach settlement over South African project

ü  South Africa energy minister vows to keep burning coal for power

ü  Nigeria's Buhari approves record 2020 budget, on time for his first time

ü  South Africa's rand down as gains on global sentiment fade

ü  Giant solar park in the desert jump starts Egypt's renewables push

ü  Kenyan shilling strengthens against the dollar

ü  Sudan's Nile Bank signs deal with Oracle, signaling thaw with U.S

ü  Russia hopes to sign Congo oil pipeline deal soon -dep energy minister

ü  Rand flat after overnight rally on Sino-U.S. trade cheer

ü  Apple, Google and Amazon decide to 'play nice' over smart home tech

ü  Vauxhall union seeks guarantees over car merger

ü  Felixstowe: Strike dates set for UK's busiest container port

ü  Bet365: UK's best-paid boss hits £323m jackpot

ü  YouTube's top earners: Eight-year-old Ryan tops list with $26m

ü  Banks and insurers to face climate stress tests

ü  'Time to tackle online giants' says UK regulator

 

 

 

 

 

 


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MTN South Africa's mobile money service to go live in Jan 2020

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - MTN’s mobile money service will go live in January
in South Africa, allowing customers to send, receive, save money and pay for
goods using their mobile phones, the mobile operator said on Wednesday.

 

Last year group Chief Executive Officer Rob Shuter told a telecoms
conference in Cape Town that the company would relaunch mobile money
services in South Africa, three years after canning the service.

 

Shuter, who has experience in banking, is in the middle of a strategic
revamp of Africa’s biggest telecoms group to hunt for returns in everything
from financial services, music and video games.

 

“The introduction of this mobile money service is a pivotal step in MTN’s
strategy and represents MTN’s participation in the next phase of increasing
convergence we are seeing between financial services and mobile technology,”
MTN South Africa CEO Godfrey Motsa said in a statement.

 

The service, called MoMo, will run on the Ericsson Converged Wallet. During
the initial phase it will be available to MTN customers and offer basic
services such as sending money to any mobile phone number in the country,
buying prepaid services like electricity and paying for purchases at
selected till points, the firm said.

 

MTN will kick off the service in a country where about 11 million South
Africans remain unbanked, while 50% of the adult population remains thinly
served, according to MTN South Africa Chief Officer of Mobile Financial
Services, Felix Kamenga.

 

“MoMo aims to bridge this gap with this innovative mobile money offering,
providing a payments solution that encourages financial inclusion,” he
added.

 

The announcement comes months after a subsidiary of MTN Nigeria was granted
a “full super agent” licence by the Central Bank of Nigeria that would allow
it to provide financial services.

 

 

 

 


 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

 


 

Hitachi, MHI reach settlement over South African project

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan’s Hitachi Ltd and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd
(MHI) said on Wednesday they had reached an out-of-court settlement of their
dispute over losses stemming from a South Africa power plant project.

 

Hitachi will pay MHI a settlement of 200 billion yen ($1.8 billion) in March
and transfer to MHI its entire 35% stake in their joint venture Mitsubishi
Hitachi Power Systems, the companies said in separate statements.

 

Hitachi said the stake transfer would reduce its burden by 70 billion yen,
meaning it would pay 130 billion yen to MHI.

 

In 2007, Hitachi won a contract to build 12 boilers for the Medupi and
Kusile power plants of South African utility Eskom.

 

It later transferred the contract to the joint venture, Mitsubishi Hitachi
Power Systems Ltd, which was set up in February 2014 by combining the
thermal power generation businesses of the two companies.

 

But the power stations were hit by cost overruns and delays, and Hitachi and
MHI disagreed on whether some costs were incurred before or after the
creation of the venture.

 

Hitachi said it would book expenses of 378 billion yen related to the
settlement for the fiscal year ending March 31. As a result of this and
other factors it lowered its annual net profit forecast to 170 billion yen
from 360 billion yen previously.

 

($1 = 14.7075 rand)

 

($1 = 108.6400 yen)

 

 

South Africa energy minister vows to keep burning coal for power

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa’s energy minister vowed on Tuesday to
keep burning coal to generate electricity, even as the continent’s biggest
greenhouse gas emitter adopts more renewable energy sources to meet its
commitments on tackling climate change.

 

Africa’s most industrialised economy is also grappling with a power crisis
that has hurt growth, temporarily shut down mining operations and threatened
its remaining investment grade rating.

 

“As much as we intend to utilise the sun and wind resources we have, we
intend to continue to use our fossil fuel resources, and to increase
investment in ... clean coal technologies,” Minister of Mineral Resources
and Energy, Gwede Mantashe told delegates at a local launch of the IEA Coal
2019 report.

 

The International Energy Agency (IEA) report, which predicted that global
coal demand would remain stable until 2024, as growth in Asia offsets weaker
Western demand, was published on Tuesday.

 

The government had already shrunk its dependence on coal for power
generation to 75%, from 90% a few years ago, he said, adding that the
government had “given renewables the biggest growth allocation”, in future
projects.

 

“South Africa is a major producer of coal,” Mantashe added. “Entire towns
and settlements exist around coal mining areas, and as such, our focus must
be on how to mitigate the impact of coal sector downscaling.”

 

The government’s long term power plan, released in October, provides for
1,500 megawatts (MW) of new coal power, 2,500 MW of hydropower, 6,000 MW
from photovoltaic, 14,400 MW from wind and 3,000 MW from natural gas.

 

The plan aims to relieve the country’s frequent, crippling power shortages
which worsened last week when heavy rains caused outages at its Medupi coal
fire power plant and at open pit coal mines.

 

Such plants make South Africa one of the world’s top 20 emitters of carbon
dioxide, a cause of controversy at home.

 

“Coal no longer makes sense,” the Mail & Guardian weekly wrote in its latest
edition, ahead of the IEA launch. “It pollutes rivers and fills our lungs
with poison ... It drives the climate crisis, which is already destroying
communities.”

 

 

Mantanshe told delegates in Johannesburg he would not be swayed by anti-coal
activists.

 

“I listen to them, but their story is not the only story in town,” he said.
“We are not consumed by denialism when it comes to climate change ... (but)
We must ensure a balanced approach.”

 

 

Nigeria's Buhari approves record 2020 budget, on time for his first time

LAGOS (Reuters) - Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari approved a record
10.59 trillion naira ($34.62 billion) budget for 2020 on Tuesday, marking
the leader’s first spending plan not beset by major delays.

 

The president’s signature paves the way for a likely return to the
international debt market next year as Nigeria still struggles to shake off
the impact of a 2016 recession it emerged from the following year.

 

The budget, passed by lawmakers earlier this month, assumes a deficit of
1.52% of the estimated gross domestic product - representing around 2.18
trillion naira - to be financed through foreign and domestic borrowing.

 

Crude production is assumed at 2.18 million barrels a day with an oil price
of $57 per barrel, according to the spending plan. Nigeria is Africa’s top
oil producer.

 

Buhari’s budgets during his first term were plagued by delays, only being
approved well into the spending plans’ affected years after tussles with
opposition lawmakers and ruling party politicians who disagreed with the
presidency’s fund allocations.

 

But since Buhari’s re-election last February those days have ended. His win
came with parliamentary victories for loyalists in his All Progressives
Congress party.

 

Economists say Nigeria’s budgets, while large, are not always realistic,
with the amount disbursed each year often falling short of the projected
spending.

 

($1 = 305.9 naira)

 

 

 

South Africa's rand down as gains on global sentiment fade

JOHANNESBURG - South Africa’s rand slipped against a stronger dollar on
Wednesday.

 

The rand was 14.4480 versus the greenback by 0814 GMT, 0.4% weaker than the
previous day’s close.

 

An index measuring the dollar against a basket of six major currencies
jumped to a six-day high of 97.343 and was last up 0.1% at 97.302 after
strong U.S. economic data.

 

The rand had already fallen a day earlier as recent gains over optimism
about a preliminary US-China trade deal gave way to profit-taking and
concerns about Britain’s exit from the European Union.

 

Wayne McCurrie, of FNB Wealth and Investments, told Reuters while the rand
had lost a couple of cents it has performed very well recently, bolstered by
international events even in the face of problems with the economy and power
supply at home.

 

“The specific little bit of weakness today, there is no news or event you
can put your finger on,” he said. “It’s nothing in the bigger scheme of
things.”

 

Stocks were higher, with the Johannesburg Stock Exchange’s Top-40 index up
0.89% and the broader all-share index also up 0.79%.

 

Government bonds were flat, with the yield on the benchmark 2026 instrument
up 0.1 basis point at 8.3%.

 

 

Giant solar park in the desert jump starts Egypt's renewables push

ASWAN, Egypt (Reuters) - Near the southern Egyptian city of Aswan, a swathe
of photovoltaic solar panels spreads over an area of desert so large it is
clearly visible from space.

 

They are part of the Benban plant, one of the world’s largest solar parks
following completion last month of a second phase of the estimated $2.1
billion project.

 

Designed to anchor a renewable energy sector by attracting foreign and
domestic private-sector developers and financial backers, the plant now
provides nearly 1.5 GW to Egypt’s national grid and has brought down the
price of solar energy at a time when the government is phasing out
electricity subsidies.

 

In 2013, Egypt was suffering rolling blackouts due to power shortages at
aging power stations. Three gigantic gas-powered stations with a capacity of
14.4 GW procured from Siemens in 2015 turned the deficit into a surplus.

 

National installed electricity capacity is now around 50 GW and Egypt aims
to increase the share of electricity provided by renewables from a fraction
currently to 20% by 2022 and 42% by 2035.

 

“They have plans to bring out renewable energy, private sector invested,
across the Red Sea in wind and throughout the deserts for solar power,” said
Christopher Cantelmi of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a lead
backer of Benban along with the European Bank for Reconstruction and
Development.

 

The Benban project’s 32 plots were developed by more than 30 companies from
12 countries, including Spain’s Acciona, UAE-based Alcazar Energy, Italy’s
Enerray, France’s Total Eren and EDF, China’s Chint Solar and Norway’s
Scatec. Developers of the plant, around 40 km (25 miles) northwest of Aswan,
are guaranteed a feed-in tariff price for 25 years.

 

“It really introduced a lot of them to Egypt for the very first time, to
project finance and to infrastructure finance,” said Cantelmi.

 

A third phase at Benban could add more than 300 MW, though nothing has been
decided yet, while another large scale solar development is planned 45 km
north of Aswan at Kom Ombo.

 

Egypt has struggled to attract foreign investment outside the oil and gas
sector, despite winning praise for an IMF-backed economic reform programme
since 2016.

 

At Benban, developers visited by an IFC team last month raised the issue of
a stand-off over a government demand that they collectively pay an extra 1.9
billion Egyptian pounds ($118 million)in infrastructure costs. There had
also been some curtailment of supplies to the grid as they waited for new
transmission lines to be added.

 

But operations were generally going well, and the Egyptian Electricity
Transmission Company was paying on time, they said.

 

BRUSHING MACHINES

Solar irradiation is exceptionally good at Benban and running costs are low,
developers say. Upkeep is largely limited to brushing the desert dust from
the panels to maximise absorption.

 

“You don’t need a lot of manpower round here, you only need cleaning
machines ... and maintenance, which is not a big amount of people,” said
Mohamed Ossama, project head for Egypt’s Taqa Arabia, which has a 50 MW
plot.

 

Benban has brought down the price of solar energy, drawn in dozens of
companies, and given Egypt’s south an economic boost, said Mohamed Orabi,
professor of power electronics at Aswan University.

 

However, the plant needed a storage system - still a key technological
challenge for solar power that surges during the daytime - in order to
stabilise supplies to the grid, he said.

 

Last year a report from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA)
suggested Egypt could be more ambitious in its green energy goals and aim to
supply 53% of its electricity from renewables by 2030.

 

But it said developers could be discouraged by complex administrative
procedures, and urged Egypt to review its market framework and develop local
manufacturing capacity for renewables.

 

“The (Benban) project showcases Egypt’s seriousness in doing renewable
energy business, especially when most countries in the region have been
stalling on this front, with the exception of Jordan and Morocco,” said
Jessica Obeid, an energy expert at Chatham House.

 

“In the next stages, political and policy stability are important, reduction
of the complex bureaucratic measures and clear assignments of institutions’
mandates and facilitation of the process will be much needed.”

 

($1 = 16.0600 Egyptian pounds)

 

 

Kenyan shilling strengthens against the dollar

NAIROBI (Reuters) - The Kenyan shilling strengthened on Wednesday supported
by inflows from diaspora remittances amid thin importer dollar demand and
tight liquidity in the local money market, traders said.

 

At 0837 GMT, commercial banks quoted the shilling at 101.25/45 per dollar,
compared with 101.40/60 at Tuesday’s close.

 

 

 

Sudan's Nile Bank signs deal with Oracle, signaling thaw with U.S.

CAIRO (Reuters) - Sudan’s Nile Bank signed an accord with U.S. software firm
Oracle Corp for the provision of a mobile banking platform, a sign Sudan’s
economic relations with the United States are thawing after years of
crippling sanctions.

 

The U.S. removed most sanctions on Sudan in October 2017, but left in place
restrictions linked to the conflict in Darfur and to Washington’s continued
listing of Sudan as a state sponsor of terrorism.

 

Relations between Washington and Khartoum have warmed since popular protests
led to the ouster in April of President Omar al-Bashir, who had been in
power for almost 30 years, and the U.S. has indicated it may end the
terrorism listing.

 

The Oracle agreement is the first major U.S.-Sudanese collaboration in over
two years, according to a statement issued on Tuesday by Sudan’s Central
Trading Company (CTC Group), an Oracle partner.

 

The U.S. embassy in Khartoum said the agreement was “an example that the
changes Sudan has achieved are not only in the political sphere but in the
economy too”.

 

The agreement was signed a day earlier in the presence of U.S. embassy
officials, the embassy statement said.

 

“Not only will the platform from Oracle improve efficiency and compliance
for Nile Bank, but it will help make lending to small business and rural
customers cheaper and more streamlined,” the embassy statement said.

 

One Sudanese banker said that it had been a major hassle doing business
without access to Oracle software, and that the software firm had recently
declined to work with his bank for fear of violating the sanctions.

 

 

Russia hopes to sign Congo oil pipeline deal soon -dep energy minister

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia is hopeful of Russia’s TMK and the Republic of the
Congo’s national oil company, SNPC, signing a deal soon to build an oil
pipeline in the West African nation, Russian deputy energy minister Pavel
Sorokin said on Tuesday.

 

Sorokin also said state-owned arms company Almaz Antey is ready to supply
weapons to Congo and that plans were in place over a nuclear centre.

 

 

 

Rand flat after overnight rally on Sino-U.S. trade cheer

(Reuters) - South African rand was trading flat against the dollar on
Tuesday after an overnight rally fuelled by optimism over an interim trade
deal between Washington and Beijing.

 

Rand was trading at 14.3560 versus the greenback, as of 0545 GMT, 0.07%
stronger from the previous close.

 

“Overnight trade saw the rand briefly break below the R14.35/$ mark,”
Peregrine Treasury Solutions said in a note, as markets around the world
thrived on improved sentiment after a thaw in the 17-month-old trade
dispute.

 

Markets are awaiting a raft of data releases from the UK, Europe and the
United States due on Tuesday, covering jobs, trade balance and industrial
and manufacturing production.

 

 

“Should the euphoria continue we can even look for a break below the R14.30
mark,” Peregrine said.

 

Government bonds also strengthened, with the yield on benchmark 2026
instrument falling 2.5 basis points to 8.265%.

 

 

 

Apple, Google and Amazon decide to 'play nice' over smart home tech

The highly competitive tech giants Apple, Google and Amazon have announced
they are teaming up in an effort to make smart home tech easier to use.

 

The firms, along with the Zigbee Alliance, will work together so that smart
home products are compatible with many different smartphones and voice
assistants.

 

Ikea is among other companies involved.

 

One analyst said the move was a "surprise" and showed the companies were
willing to "play nice".

 

In recent years, the tech giants have been fiercely vying for dominance over
smart home tech - with Amazon's Alexa and Google Assistant often considered
to have carved up the lion's share of products.

 

Manufacturers have often had to choose a particular voice assistant with
which to make their device compatible - a smart speaker that "works with
Alexa" but not Siri, for instance.

 

To take an example, Hive does not yet have Apple HomeKit integration, which
would allow its wide range of smart home products to be used with Siri and
the iPhone's Home app, despite having promised to add the functionality for
years.

 

Meanwhile, the Chamberlain MyQ system for garage door openers can be
operated via voice with Google Assistant - but not Amazon's Alexa.

 

Having to force consumers - and manufacturers - to choose one voice
assistant over another could be a thing of the past, if the new partnership
between the tech firms goes as planned.

 

On their project website, the companies state: "Customers can be confident
that their device of choice will work in their home and that they will be
able to set up and control it with their preferred system."

 

The firms say that current smart home products should continue to work, even
after the new standard is brought in.

 

However, that won't be imminent - draft specifications are due to be
released in late 2020 at the earliest.

 

"If you take the three names involved, the last thing they do is play nice
together," said analyst Carolina Milanesi at Creative Strategies, referring
to Apple, Google and Amazon.

 

"It makes a lot of sense to come together and at the end of the day... It's
just going to make the whole market and opportunity bigger for all of them."

 

But Ms Milanesi said it would not spell the end of competition between the
firms - although products advertised as working with one voice assistant
versus another, may disappear.

 

The announcement comes practically on the eve of CES - the world's largest
consumer electronics trade show, which is held every year in Las Vegas in
early January.

 

Ms Milanesi points out that consumers attending the show in 2020 might now
be more interested in what smart home product manufacturers come up with the
following year, once more details of the new standard have been made
available.

 

It was noteworthy that the first product category to be targeted by the new
standard will be security products, said tech analyst Adam Simon at market
research firm Context.

 

He said Context research showed that the most important reason consumers
gave for the purchase of smart home products was "to give me peace of mind
to know that my home is secure".

 

Devices such as smart locks, security cameras, connected smoke alarms and
intruder-sensors fall into this category.

 

However, Mr Simon noted that the tech firms would have to ensure that the
new standard, which will increase compatibility between products, must not
make it easier for hackers to get access to connected devices in peoples'
homes.

 

"Inasmuch as it's great for everything to communicate, you're as good as
your weakest link - the product that doesn't have all the security features
in it.

 

"Security has to be paramount."--BBC

 

 

Vauxhall union seeks guarantees over car merger

Britain's biggest union is seeking guarantees about the future of Vauxhall
after its owner, France's PSA Group, agreed to merge with Fiat Chrysler.

 

The merger creates the world's fourth-largest car company, but has raised
concerns about continuing investment at Vauxhall.

 

Unite national officer Des Quinn said he wanted an urgent meeting to
"alleviate uncertainty".

 

Vauxhall has 3,000 staff in the UK, the bulk at its Ellesmere Port plant.

 

Fiat Chrysler and PSA, which also owns Peugeot, Citroen and Opel, confirmed
a $50bn (£30.8bn) merger deal on Wednesday.

 

The companies said the deal is aiming for annual cost savings of $4bn
through shared purchasing agreements and combined technologies.

 

The companies say there are no plans to close factories. But when it emerged
earlier this year that the two firms were in negotiations, there was
speculation that Vauxhall was vulnerable to any restructuring.

 

Mr Quinn said: "Unite is seeking guarantees at the highest level as to the
long-term future of all PSA's UK sites and its highly skilled world class
workforce.

 

"It is essential that such a meeting happens as soon as possible in order to
alleviate the natural and legitimate concerns of the workforce at this time
of change and uncertainty."

 

He said the popularity of Vauxhall and Fiat cars in the UK meant there was
industrial logic about maintaining a UK presence.

 

China stake

PSA boss Carlos Tavares will become chief executive of the new company and
will also have a seat on its board.

 

The deal is Fiat Chrysler's second attempt at a merger this year.

 

The carmaker had originally proposed a merger with its French rival Renault
for £29bn, but pulled out of the deal in June following intervention from
the French government, which has a 15% stake in Renault. The deal would have
created the world's third-largest carmaker.

 

The merger of Fiat Chrysler and France's PSA is expected to be completed
within the next 12 to 15 months.

 

Before the merger is completed, China's Dongfeng Motor Group will be cutting
its 12.2% stake in the French carmaker by selling 30.7 million shares to
PSA.

 

In November, US rival General Motors sued Fiat Chrysler, claiming it bribed
union officials over many years to gain advantages that cost General Motors
millions of dollars.

 

Fiat Chrysler has denied the allegations, claiming that General Motors was
trying to disrupt its merger plans. On Wednesday, Fiat Chrysler's boss Mike
Manley said the lawsuit had not affected the terms of the merger.--BBC

 

 

Felixstowe: Strike dates set for UK's busiest container port

Workers at the UK's busiest container port will take strike action for two
days after Christmas in a dispute over outsourcing.

 

The union Unite claims the Port of Felixstowe is transferring engineering
jobs to cut costs, and fears it is "the thin end of the wedge".

 

More than 110 engineers will hold stoppages from 07:00 to 19:00 GMT on 27
and 28 December.

 

The Port of Felixstowe has been approached for comment.

 

The engineers, employed by port operator Felixstowe Dock and Railway
Company, voted 98% to take industrial action over a plan to transfer members
of the tyre-fitting operation to another firm.

 

'Catastrophic'

Unite claims to have 1,900 members among an approximate 3,000 workers at the
Chinese-owned port in Suffolk, though only the engineers will take the
strike action.

 

The union said the threat was only to the tyre-fitting operation at present,
but it feared it could be "the start of an unwelcome trend".

 

Felixstowe is the UK's busiest container port and in 2018 it handled 37% of
the country's cargo arriving by container.

 

It also loads 40 rail services a week and has a terminal which loads and
unloads two daily ferries for lorries.--BBC

 

 

 

Bet365: UK's best-paid boss hits £323m jackpot

Bet365 boss Denise Coates has received a £323m payday, confirming her
position as the UK's best paid executive.

 

The co-founder of the online gambling firm was paid a £277m salary plus
dividends as the popularity of online gambling continues to grow.

 

The firm's accounts show that in the year to end-March her salary rose from
£220m on the previous period.

 

But the rise comes as the industry faced mounting criticism, including over
children gambling.

 

The privately held company is owned jointly by Ms Coates and members of her
direct family, including her brother John, who is joint chief executive, and
her father Peter, the firm's chairman.

 

Ms Coates earned a first-class degree in econometrics - the application of
statistical methods to economic data - from Sheffield University before
joining the High Street betting firm, run by her father.

 

She identified the potential of online gambling in 2000 and invested in the
domain name Bet365.com so that she could drive the family business in that
direction.

 

Bet365 made a profit before tax of £791m in the year, compared with £661m
the year before.

 

The firm paid dividends of £92.5m, half of which are thought to have gone to
Ms Coates, as the owner of about half of Bet365's shares.

 

The group of firms owns Stoke City Football Club, which made a loss of £8.7m
in the year.

 

The High Pay Centre, a think tank which monitors income, said the timing of
the release of the Bet365 results looked "cynical", given it was just after
a general election.

 

High Pay Centre executive director Luke Hildyard said: "This looks like
cynical timing, sneaked out straight after a general election campaign where
excess wealth, taxes on the rich and the vast gap between those at the top
and everybody else have been key issues."

 

He added: "Business success should be incentivised and rewarded, but a
payment a fraction of this size would still afford a lifestyle beyond the
wildest dreams of most people."

 

Mr Hildyard said there was "clearly scope" for those accumulating such sums
to pay their workers more or contribute more in taxes.

 

Child gambling

In October, Cardiff University research suggested that two-fifths of 11 to
16-year-olds had gambled in the past year.

 

The study said this was "particularly concerning, given that across the UK,
most forms of commercial gambling are only legal for those aged 18 and
over".

 

Fruit machines were the most popular form of gambling, followed by playing
cards for money with friends and scratchcards.

 

Dr Graham Moore of the Centre for the Development and Evaluation of Complex
Interventions for Public Health Improvement said at the time: "The evidence
shows that people who gamble earlier in life are more likely to become
problem gamblers in adulthood."

 

However, a Gambling Commission study in October suggested that 11% of
children had gambled within a week of the survey being conducted.

 

But in addition, the regulator warned in July of research that indicated
links between "problem gambling and suicidal thoughts or attempts".

 

Bet365 says it has "an unwavering commitment to deliver industry-leading
approaches to player protection", including monitoring customer gambling,
and says it will "terminate the [customer] relationship if it feels the risk
of harm is too high".--BBC

 

 

YouTube's top earners: Eight-year-old Ryan tops list with $26m

An eight-year-old boy who reviews toys has been named as the highest earning
YouTuber, for the second year in a row.

 

Ryan, of Ryan's World, earned $26m (£20m) in 2019, up from $22m in 2018,
according to an annual top-10 ranking by Forbes, based on estimated earnings
between June 2018 and June 2019.

 

YouTube accounts Dude Perfect and Nastya came in second and third, with $20m
and $18m respectively.

 

And between them, the 10 highest paid YouTubers of 2019 earned $162m.

 

Dude Perfect features five friends in their 30s playing with toys such as
Nerf guns and attempting various trick shots.

 

The Nastya channel features Anastasia Radzinskaya, who was born in southern
Russia with cerebral palsy.

 

And Jeffree Star's account has dozens of videos of him giving makeup
tutorials.

 

Forbes estimated pre-tax income from s, sponsored content, merchandise sales
and tours.

 

Ryan - who lives with his mother, father and twin sisters in Texas - usually
releases a new video for his 22.9 million subscribers each day.

 

They frequently receive millions of hits - and a couple have more than a
billion.

 

Last November, he told NBC people liked his videos because he was
"entertaining and funny".

 

Ryan's most popular video, which has 1.9 billion views, is a five minute 56
second clip of him running around on an inflatable in his garden, retrieving
plastic eggs with toys inside.

 

The youngster, whose estimated earnings doubled from 2017 to 2018, has
rebranded his account from Ryan ToysReview to Ryan's World since last year's
ranking.

 

But Ryan is something of an outlier, according to Chris Stokel-Walker, an
internet culture writer and author of the book YouTubers.

 

"The vast majority of people who start a YouTube channel, or engage in any
career as an influencer, won't make it," he told the BBC.

 

"96.5% of YouTubers don't make enough from advertising revenue alone to
break the US poverty line - and with the number of creators on the platform
constantly increasing, the competition is only getting tougher."

 

YouTube videos with children in them receive three times more views on
average than other types of videos from high-subscriber channels, according
a study from US think tank the Pew Research Centre.--BBC

 

 

 

Banks and insurers to face climate stress tests

The Bank of England has launched one of the most ambitious attempts to date
to quantify the risk that climate change poses to the financial system.

 

Banks and insurers will face climate stress tests in a similar way to the
financial stress tests they already do.

 

It is a project that could ultimately result in banks and insurers having to
hold more capital to do certain kinds of business.

 

And that could have profound effects on the way the economy is funded.

 

Bank officials told journalists that the value of every asset on the face of
the planet will be affected by climate change. Where values change, there is
financial risk and the bank wants to measure it - and then manage it.

 

Large banks and insurance groups will be asked to go through their balance
sheets almost asset by asset to assess the risks posed by a range of climate
scenarios.

 

Climate risks

It's perhaps not intuitive to see how climate change affects financial
assets.

 

Imagine that, after years of Australian bush fires, insurers decide that
houses in the country are uninsurable. A house that can't be insured is
worth a lot less than one that can. The price plummets, to be worth less
than the mortgage the owner has taken out.

 

The bank that offered that mortgage is left nursing a big loss - and so are
all the other banks. Hey hey presto, you have an Australian financial
crisis.

 

You could find examples closer to home. Banks and insurers already look very
closely at houses built in flood-affected areas.

 

If the bank of England decides that it wants them to hold additional capital
(effectively financially penalising them for taking that risk) then that
insurance and those mortgages will be harder and more expensive to get.

 

The Bank of England recognises there are two types of financial risk posed
by climate change. There are physical risks arising from weather related
events - floods, droughts, fire, etc.

 

And then there are what it describes as transition risks. Things that happen
as a result of adjusting to a low carbon economy - meat becoming more
expensive, costs incurred in the mandatory insulation of homes.

 

Unexpected consequences

This is a massive undertaking, and banks and insurers are being consulted on
what information is most relevant and how it can best be gathered.

 

The European Banking Authority is considering doing something similar, while
the Federal Reserve is expected to be watching closely.

 

The Bank insists that this is not primarily an exercise designed to place
additional burdens on financial institutions. However, the Bank of England's
most powerful regulatory tool is the rules around how much shock absorbing
capital it requires them to hold.

 

Making banks ultimately pay more to finance climate changing behaviour is
the kind of powerful stick climate activists have been crying out for.

 

But it is also the kind of thing that could have unexpected and possibly
painful transitional effects.--BBC

 

 

 

'Time to tackle online giants' says UK regulator

The UK should consider tougher rules for online giants such as Google and
Facebook, the Competition and Markets Authority has said.

 

It is concerned that the firms' dominance in digital advertising could be
harming competition.

 

People using these platforms also may not be control of their data, the CMA
said.

 

The comments come amid reports that the government will create a new digital
watchdog to oversee these businesses.

 

The Financial Times reported that the regulator will have new powers which
will include enforcing a new code of conduct for big tech firms and allowing
more data accessibility for consumers.

 

Google takes the lion's share of search advertising sales in the UK,
accounting for about 90% of the market with revenue of £6bn.

 

Facebook takes about half of UK online display advertising revenue, reaching
£2bn in 2018.

 

The CMA said in an interim report on the market that "big is not necessarily
bad" and that both firms offer innovative products and services.

 

However, Facebook and Google may have become entrenched in the UK market
"with negative consequences for the people and businesses who use these
services every day", the competition authority said.

 

A lack of "real competition" could mean higher advertising costs being
passed on to consumers.

 

It could also mean people are missing out on "the next great new idea from a
potential rival", the CMA said.

 

The market dominance of Google and Facebook "may potentially be undermining
the ability of newspapers and other publishers to produce valuable content
as their share of revenues is squeezed by large platforms," the CMA added.

 

There is also a lack of transparency about how their platforms work, with
publishers reporting dramatic drops in traffic after opaque alterations to
Google and Facebook algorithms, it said.

 

Data question

The collection of people's personal data gives the tech giants power by
allowing them to target advertising at individuals more effectively than
others can, it said.

 

"Both for privacy and competition reasons, it is essential that people feel
in control of their data. At the moment, the CMA is concerned that this is
not always the case," the competition authority said.

 

Facebook has a "take-it-or-leave-it" approach to its service when it comes
to personalised advertising, "forcing [consumers] to share considerable
amounts of personal data as a condition for using the service," the CMA
said. Privacy settings are difficult to access, it added.

 

The CMA said at this stage "there is a strong argument for the development
of a new regulatory regime" which could "include rules governing the
behaviour of online platforms and giving people greater control over their
own data".

 

Should the new UK government decide not to make any new rules, the CMA said
it was ready to act directly through its own powers.

 

Google hits back

Ronan Harris, Google UK and Ireland vice-president, said that the digital
advertising industry "helps British businesses of all sizes find customers
in the UK and across the world and supports the websites that people know
and love with revenue and reach".

 

"We've built easy-to-use controls that enable people to manage their data in
Google's services - such as the ability to turn off personalised advertising
and to automatically delete their search history," he said.

 

"We'll continue to work constructively with the CMA and the government on
these important areas, so that everyone can make the most of the web."

 

A Facebook spokesman said: "We are fully committed to engaging in the
consultation process around the CMA's preliminary report, and continuing to
deliver the benefits of technology and relevant advertising to the millions
of people and small businesses in the UK who use our services."

 

"We agree with the CMA that people should have control over their data and
transparency around how it is used. In fact, for every ad we show, we give
people the option to find out why they are seeing that ad and an option to
turn off ads from that advertiser entirely.

 

"We look forward to further engagement with the CMA on these topics."

 

Industry body TechUK said: "Personalised advertising must put consumers in
the driving seat and our members are continually working to improve their
services, not only to offer people more relevant adverts, but to ensure that
consumers are able to control their data and how it is used.

 

"This is a balancing act and TechUK is committed to working with the CMA
over the coming months to find the best way forward that promotes
competition and continued innovation whilst protecting consumers."

 

No market investigation?

While the CMA may have signalled a call for tighter rules, a full-blown
market investigation is not likely to be on the cards, according to law firm
Linklaters.

 

Christian Ahlborn, global head of competition at Linklaters, said: "While
the report identified a range of potential concerns as well as potential
remedies, the CMA cited the risk of cutting across government regulation, as
well as the global nature of the conduct under scrutiny, as key factors in
its preliminary conclusion that a market investigation would not be
appropriate."

 

Nevertheless, 2020 would probably be "a year of intense scrutiny by the CMA
of the digital advertising market as it seeks to address some clear, global
concerns about the sector".--BBC

 

 

 

 


 

 


 

INVESTORS DIARY 2019

 


Company

Event

Venue

Date & Time

 


 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 


Companies under Cautionary

 

 

 


 

 

 

 


Bindura Nickel Corporation

 

 

 


Padenga Holdings

 

 

 


Delta Corporation

 

 

 


Meikles Limited

 

 

 


 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

 


 

 


DISCLAIMER: This report has been prepared by Bulls ‘n Bears, a division of
Faith Capital (Pvt) Ltd for general information purposes only and does not
constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy or
subscribe for any securities. The information contained in this report has
been compiled from sources believed to be reliable, but no representation or
warranty is made or guarantee given as to its accuracy or completeness. All
opinions expressed and recommendations made are subject to change without
notice. Securities or financial instruments mentioned herein may not be
suitable for all investors. Securities of emerging and mid-size growth
companies typically involve a higher degree of risk and more volatility than
the securities of more established companies. Neither Faith Capital nor any
other member of Bulls ‘n Bears nor any other person, accepts any liability
whatsoever for any loss howsoever arising from any use of this report or its
contents or otherwise arising in connection therewith. Recipients of this
report shall be solely responsible for making their own independent
investigation into the business, financial condition and future prospects of
any companies referred to in this report. Other  Indices quoted herein are
for guideline purposes only and sourced from third parties.

 


 

 


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