Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 18 December 2020

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Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 18 December 2020

 


 

 

	
 


 

 


ü  Google sued again over anti-competitive search practices

ü  Brexit: Trade talks to resume as sides warn 'differences' remain

ü  Coronavirus: Coca-Cola restructuring cuts 2,200 jobs worldwide

ü  Alibaba says its technology won't target Uighurs

ü  Retail traders leave Wall Street for dust in 2020 stocks rally

ü  Retail traders leave Wall Street for dust in 2020 stocks rally

ü  U.S. Republicans seek firm end to Fed's coronavirus loans, complicating
aid talks

ü  Analysis: Insurers, drugmakers sail into unknown with COVID vaccine
rollout

ü  Asia shares slip on news U.S. to blacklist more Chinese firms

ü  Bezos' Blue Origin to deliver first flight-ready rocket engines next
summer - ULA CEO

ü  Nigeria: House Passes N453 Billion NDDC 2020 Budget

ü  Rwanda Extends Tax Breaks to Manufacturing, Construction

ü  Nigeria: Sylva - Oil Market Players' Survival Depends On Effective
Cost-Cutting Measures

ü  Kenya: President Kenyatta Inaugurates National Security
Telecommunications Service

ü  Kenya: Housing Finance, KCB Get Sh2.6 Billion for Cheap Home Loans

 


 

 


Google sued again over anti-competitive search practices

Google is being sued by 38 US states, accused of trying to make its search
engine as dominant inside cars, TVs and speakers as it is in smartphones.

 

This follows a landmark lawsuit by the US Department of Justice (DoJ) over a
similar issue in October.

 

It is the tech giant's third US government-related lawsuit in two months.

 

Google said in a blog that redesigning its search engine would "deprive
Americans of helpful information".

 

"We know that scrutiny of big companies is important and we're prepared to
answer questions and work through the issues," wrote Google's director of
economic policy Adam Cohen.

 

"But this lawsuit seeks to redesign Search in ways that would deprive
Americans of helpful information and hurt businesses' ability to connect
directly with customers. We look forward to making that case in court, while
remaining focused on delivering a high-quality search experience for our
users."

 

He added that there are many alternatives to Google when looking for
relevant information, including Amazon, Expedia and Tripadvisor.

 

The tech giant's view is that the lawsuit is suggesting that Google Search
"should, in fact, be less useful" to consumers.

 

"When you search for local products and services, we show information that
helps you connect with businesses directly and helps them reach more
customers," wrote Mr Cohen.

 

"This lawsuit demands changes to the design of Google Search, requiring us
to prominently feature online middlemen in place of direct connections to
businesses."

 

The complaint was filed on Thursday by 38 states and territories with both
Democrat and Republican prosecutors, led by Colorado Attorney General Phil
Weiser.

 

"Google's anticompetitive actions have protected its general search
monopolies and excluded rivals, depriving consumers of the benefits of
competitive choices, forestalling innovation, and undermining new entry or
expansion," Mr Weiser explained. "This lawsuit seeks to restore
competition."

 

It is a separate matter to the lawsuit filed on Wednesday in which 10 US
states accuse Google of anti-competitive online advertising practices,
including an allegation that it made a deal with Facebook to manipulate
online advertising auctions.

 

'Monopolising voice assistants'

In some ways, the latest complaint is similar to the DoJ's lawsuit, which
focused on the billions of dollars Google pays each year to ensure its
search engine is installed as the default option on browsers and devices
like mobile phones.

 

However, the latest legal complaint goes further to say that the tech giant
is using its existing monopolies in search - such as "exclusionary
agreements" and its ability to collect "vast amounts of data" - to dominate
newer technologies as well.

 

For instance, the lawsuit claims Google bars devices that use Google
Assistant from including competing virtual assistant technology, such as
Amazon's Alexa.

 

"Google is preventing competitors in the voice assistant market from
reaching consumers through connected cars, which stand to be a significant
way the internet is accessed in the near future," said Iowa Attorney General
Tom Miller, who also sued Microsoft back in 1998 over antitrust issues.

 

Smart speaker maker Sonos has publicly complained in the past that Google
used its market power unfairly to monopolise the voice assistant market.
Sonos only finally decided to support the Google Assistant in 2019.

 

The coalition is asking the court to halt what it calls Google's illegal
conduct and restore a competitive marketplace, as well as removing any
unfair advantages the tech giant gained as a result of its practices. It
calls for Google's parent Alphabet to be forced to divest some assets and
award damages, instead of paying a fine.

 

"Fines are like kicking gorillas in the shin. We fortunately have remedies
that are much broader in scope," said Nebraska Attorney General Doug
Peterson.

 

The states who filed the lawsuit on Thursday are: Colorado, Arizona,
Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Alaska,
Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Maine, Maryland,
Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico,
North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South
Dakota, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming, the District
of Columbia, and the territories of Guam and Puerto Rico.--BBC

 

 

 

Brexit: Trade talks to resume as sides warn 'differences' remain

UK and EU negotiators will continue their talks later on a post-Brexit trade
deal - but both sides are warning that major obstacles remain.

 

Boris Johnson spoke to EU Commission head Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday.

 

The prime minister said discussions are in a "serious situation" and a no
deal scenario was "very likely" unless the EU position changed
"substantially".

 

Mrs von der Leyen said bridging "big differences", particularly on fishing
rights, would be "very challenging".

 

However, she also welcomed "substantial progress on many issues".

 

The UK has been in a transition period since leaving the EU on 31 January,
where it has been following the bloc's trading rules.

 

That arrangement will end on 31 December and Mr Johnson acknowledged that
"time was short".

 

And the UK's chief negotiator, Lord Frost, tweeted: "The situation in our
talks with the EU is very serious tonight. Progress seems blocked and time
is running out."

 

'Simply not reasonable'

The talks taking place in Brussels between Lord Frost and his EU counterpart
Michel Barnier are aimed at breaking the deadlock on key issues that remain
unresolved.

 

These include fishing, state subsidies, the level playing field - common
rules and standards that prevent companies from gaining an unfair
competitive advantage - and the legal enforcement of any deal.

 

BBC political correspondent Chris Mason said the UK does not like a
suggestion from the EU that support that comes from Brussels, rather than a
member state, should be exempt from any limits on state aid.

 

In a statement issued after the phone call, Downing Street reported the
prime minister said "we were making every effort to accommodate reasonable
EU requests on the level playing field, but even though the gap had narrowed
some fundamental areas remained difficult".

 

"On fisheries he stressed that the UK could not accept a situation where it
was the only sovereign country in the world not to be able to control access
to its own waters for an extended period and to be faced with fisheries
quotas which hugely disadvantaged its own industry.

 

"The EU's position in this area was simply not reasonable and if there was
to be an agreement it needed to shift significantly."

 

The basics

Brexit happened but rules didn't change at once: The UK left the European
Union on 31 January 2020, but leaders needed time to negotiate a deal for
life afterwards - they got 11 months.

 

Talks are happening: The UK and the EU have until 31 December 2020 to agree
a trade deal as well as other things, such as fishing rights.

If there is no deal: Border checks and taxes will be introduced for goods
travelling between the UK and the EU. But deal or no deal, we will still see
changes.

What happens next with Brexit?

 

 

Earlier, UK cabinet minister Michael Gove warned the talks may go on until
after Christmas. He said that while Christmas Day would be "sacrosanct", it
was possible that Parliament, which is now closed for the holiday, could be
recalled to approve a deal.

 

Mr Gove also suggested that although the European Parliament has said it
would not have time to ratify a deal by 31 December if it was not concluded
by this Sunday, they could "apply provisional application of the treaty".

 

But asked at the Commons Brexit Committee about how likely a deal is, he
replied: "I think, regrettably, the chances are more likely that we won't
secure an agreement. So at the moment less than 50%."

 

It's long been predicted that competition rules and fishing would be the
last areas where compromise is found.

 

For Boris Johnson's government, being tied to EU regulations in perpetuity
defeats the purpose of Brexit and makes a mockery of "taking back control".

 

For the European Union, it will not allow its internal market to be
undermined by offering the UK unfair access.

 

Ursula von der Leyen has claimed the two sides have made a significant step
by agreeing to a "strong mechanism" to ensure neither side lowers their
environmental or social standards, but are yet to agree on how each could
diverge from these levels in the future.

 

A good number of EU diplomats were quietly confident it was a matter of
when, not if, EU access to UK fishing waters could be sorted. But it's
proving trickier than they thought.

 

Sources tell me that Michel Barnier explained to EU ambassadors at the start
of this week that if fishing is resolved, then a wider deal would quickly
fall into place.

 

But there's no sign of a meeting of minds on fish, with the EU warning
openly it may prove to be impossible.

 

But let's remember this is the most intense of negotiations and that every
public proclamation from London or Brussels will be chosen to strengthening
their respective hands in what are the final days and hours of talks.--BBC

 

 

 

Coronavirus: Coca-Cola restructuring cuts 2,200 jobs worldwide

Coca-Cola is to cut about 2,200 jobs in its global workforce as part of a
restructuring plan.

 

The soft drinks giant's restructure has been accelerated by the coronavirus
pandemic which has seen the widespread closure of venues where Coke is sold.

 

The bulk of the layoffs will be in the US, where it will shed 1,200 jobs.

 

At the end of 2019, Coca-Cola had around 86,000 employees but faces pressure
on its revenues which have been hammered by the pandemic.

 

About half of Coca-Cola's sales typically comes from consumers drinking its
beverages away from home. Social restrictions to curb the spread of the
virus have led to widespread closures of bars, restaurants, cinemas and
sports stadiums where its drinks are sold.

 

In August, Coke said it would offer 4,000 workers in the US, Canada and
Puerto Rico voluntary layoff packages.

 

Coke expects the job cuts to result in annual savings of between $350
million and $550 million, a spokesman for the company said.

 

Slimming down

Coke has responded to the crisis with plans to restructure its business and
slim down its portfolio.

 

The move will see the global drinks giant slash its 430 master brands by
more than half to 200, to focus on products that are growing and can achieve
a large scale.

 

It is retiring its Tab soda and Zico coconut water brands, and earlier this
year closed its Odwalla juice and smoothie business.

 

The Atlanta-based company reported revenue of $8.65bn (£6.4bn) for its
latest quarter results , a decline of 9% from a year earlier.

 

The job losses do not affect employees at its bottling plants, most of which
are independent.

 

These bottling operations employ hundreds of thousands of people around the
globe.--BBC

 

 

 

Alibaba says its technology won't target Uighurs

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba has said it will not allow its technology
to be used for targeting or identifying specific ethnic groups.

 

The statement follows reports that the company’s content moderation
technology can pick out Uighur minorities.

 

Alibaba said it was “dismayed' that Alibaba Cloud developed facial
technology that includes ethnicity as an attribute for tagging video
imagery.

 

"We have eliminated any ethnic tag in our product offering," Alibaba said.

 

The firm said it never intended the technology to be used in this manner.

 

US-based surveillance industry researcher IPVM published a report on
Wednesday that said software capable of identifying Uighurs appears in
Alibaba’s Cloud Shield content moderation service for websites.

 

Alibaba describes Cloud Shield as a system that “detects and recognises
text, pictures, videos, and voices containing pornography, politics, violent
terrorism, advertisements, and spam, and provides verification, marking,
custom configuration and other capabilities.”

 

IPVM said mention of Uighurs in the software disappeared around the time it
published its report.

 

Alibaba - which is listed in New York and Hong Kong - is the biggest cloud
computing vendor in China and the fourth worldwide, according to data from
researcher Canalys.

 

Earlier this week one of Huawei's European communications managers resigned
from the Chinese firm over concerns about its role in the surveillance of
Muslim Uighurs.

 

New forced labour allegations

 

The latest report comes amid new allegations of potential forced labour in
China’s west.

 

The BBC uncovered evidence suggesting that more than half a million minority
workers a year are being marshalled into seasonal cotton picking.

 

That’s in addition to a large network of detention camps, in which more than
a million are thought to have been detained, and claims that minority groups
are being coerced into working in textile factories.

 

The Chinese government has long denied forced labour claims, insisting that
the camps are “vocational training schools” and the factories are part of a
massive, and voluntary, “poverty alleviation” scheme.

 

Following the BBC investigation, a member of an influential parliamentary
committee urged UK businesses to investigate their sources of cotton, to
ensure they avoided purchasing material that involved forced labour.

 

Also, the US recently banned cotton imports from a Chinese state-owned
enterprise it said has used the forced labour of detained Uighur Muslims in
Xinjiang province.

 

The Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC) is a quasi-military
organisation that reportedly accounts for nearly a fifth of Xinjiang’s GDP,
and is one of China’s largest cotton producers.--BBC

 

 

Retail traders leave Wall Street for dust in 2020 stocks rally

LONDON (Reuters) - Retail traders have ridden 2020’s stock market rally
better than the professionals, with their most popular picks outperforming
market indexes and well-resourced investors such as hedge funds.

 

Online trading platforms have reported a retail rush since the COVID-19
pandemic hit markets in March, with near-zero interest rates and a roaring
rebound luring a new generation of stuck-at-home traders wanting to sharpen
their skills on stocks.

 

And while the scramble into fast-growing but highly-valued stocks has echoes
of the 2000 dotcom bubble, plentiful cheap cash means retail traders do not
yet look ready to cash in.

 

COVID-19 WINNERS

Record sums of central bank stimulus have turbocharged markets in 2020,
inflating asset prices, often to record levels and particularly in U.S.
tech.

 

Retail investors have picked the biggest beneficiaries, including Amazon,
electric vehicle makers Tesla and Nio, as well as pharma hopefuls looking
for a break in the COVID-19 vaccine hunt.

 

A basket of 58 U.S.-listed stocks popular with retail traders is up more
than 80% this year, outstripping the S&P 500’s 14.5% rise and a hedge fund
basket’s return of 40%, two Goldman Sachs-compiled indexes show.

 

 

 

Retail traders leave Wall Street for dust in 2020 stocks rally

LONDON (Reuters) - Retail traders have ridden 2020’s stock market rally
better than the professionals, with their most popular picks outperforming
market indexes and well-resourced investors such as hedge funds.

 

Online trading platforms have reported a retail rush since the COVID-19
pandemic hit markets in March, with near-zero interest rates and a roaring
rebound luring a new generation of stuck-at-home traders wanting to sharpen
their skills on stocks.

 

And while the scramble into fast-growing but highly-valued stocks has echoes
of the 2000 dotcom bubble, plentiful cheap cash means retail traders do not
yet look ready to cash in.

 

COVID-19 WINNERS

Record sums of central bank stimulus have turbocharged markets in 2020,
inflating asset prices, often to record levels and particularly in U.S.
tech.

 

Retail investors have picked the biggest beneficiaries, including Amazon,
electric vehicle makers Tesla and Nio, as well as pharma hopefuls looking
for a break in the COVID-19 vaccine hunt.

 

A basket of 58 U.S.-listed stocks popular with retail traders is up more
than 80% this year, outstripping the S&P 500’s 14.5% rise and a hedge fund
basket’s return of 40%, two Goldman Sachs-compiled indexes show.

 

Amateur traders have also piled into electric truckmaker Nikola, which is
yet to sell a truck, and big lockdown winners in exercise bike maker Peloton
and Zoom.

 

Market veterans draw comparisons with the frenzy in little-known internet
stocks before the 2000 dotcom crash.

 

“Of course it’s a bubble. But money is free, liquidity is high, its never
been easier to trade for retail punters, there’s no savings rate or bond
yield and everyone wants the bubble to pop,” Mark Taylor, a sales trader at
Mirabaud Securities, said.

 

AT A STRETCH

Many of the stocks retail traders have been buying look expensive, based on
the commonly-used price-to-earnings ratio.

 

The P/E ratio for stocks in Goldman’s ‘Retail Favourites’ index is deeply
negative, as the companies lose money.

 

 

 

 

U.S. Republicans seek firm end to Fed's coronavirus loans, complicating aid
talks

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A new potential roadblock to a $900 billion
coronavirus economic relief bill emerged in the U.S. Congress on Thursday as
some Senate Republicans insisted on language ensuring that expiring Federal
Reserve lending programs cannot be revived.

 

 

One Democratic aide criticized the move by Senator Pat Toomey, a
Pennsylvania Republican, saying it would limit President-elect Joe Biden’s
ability to respond to the heavy economic toll of the pandemic, which in
addition to killing more than 300,000 Americans has thrown millions out of
work.

 

“It would tie the hands of the Biden administration to use those tools if
needed,” a senior House Democratic aide said.

 

Both parties were scrambling on Thursday to strike a deal on a new
compromise aid package. They have set aside Democratic demands for a new
funding stream for state and local governments and Republican demands that
companies be shielded from coronavirus-related lawsuits.

 

But Toomey wants to ensure that the Fed and Treasury are stripped of the
authority to restore pandemic lending facilities that Treasury Secretary
Steven Mnuchin will allow to expire on Dec. 31, including the Main Street
program for mid-size businesses and facilities for municipal bond issuers
and corporate credit and asset backed securities.

 

Mnuchin is clawing back some $455 billion from the Fed facilities, which
would be used to help pay for the new aid package for individuals and small
businesses.

 

But the move limits the options for Biden’s Treasury secretary nominee Janet
Yellen to backstop financial markets in the event of more turmoil, and his
transition team called it “deeply irresponsible.”

 

Toomey told reporters his proposal will prevent the Treasury and Federal
Reserve from making “carbon copies” of the loan programs to reconstitute
them under new names.

 

“I think there is very broad support among Republican senators for this
approach and it is very important to many of us,” Toomey said.

 

Senator Mike Crapo, the Republican chairman of the Senate Banking Committee,
said he supported Toomey’s proposal because in COVID-19 legislation passed
in March, “We made it very clear that the facility is terminated at the end
of this year.”

 

Senator Ron Wyden, a Democrat, said in a statement that with Toomey’s
proposal, Republicans were “drawing a line in the sand over their ability to
sabotage the economy and tie the Biden administration’s hands” for political
gain.

 

Toomey, who would chair the banking panel next year if Republicans retain
Senate seats in Georgia runoff elections on Jan. 5, said the Fed would still
keep its non-pandemic emergency lending powers. The central bank and the
Treasury would need to “come to Congress if they believe there is a specific
need for any extraordinary programs,” he said.

 

 

 

Analysis: Insurers, drugmakers sail into unknown with COVID vaccine rollout

LONDON (Reuters) - Speedy global delivery of COVID-19 vaccines by air and
sea in ultra cold conditions will lead to a jump in cargo insurance rates
and spur demand for new areas of coverage, leaving underwriters on high
alert.

 

Pharmaceutical companies normally manage the risks of transporting their
products through buying insurance or relying on an in-house insurer, known
as a “captive” insurer.

 

But as Pfizer Inc and other drugmakers start to roll out vaccines more
broadly, existing company-wide annual cargo insurance programmes are likely
to be insufficient, industry sources say.

 

“Where manufacturers or logistics providers see gaps in their coverages,
they may look to the insurance markets to plug those gaps,” said Charlie
Netherton at broker Marsh.

 

The first U.S. vaccine shipments departed Pfizer’s facility in Kalamazoo,
Michigan this week, while tens of thousands of people in Britain have had
their first dose of the Pfizer vaccine, which was developed with Germany’s
BioNTech.

 

Moderna Inc is also due to roll out a COVID-19 vaccine once regulatory
approval is secured, as is Britain’s AstraZeneca which has developed a
vaccine with Oxford University.

 

Transporting vaccines, however, is already high risk, with around 30% of
vaccine consignments globally lost to damage or theft, insurance sources
say.

 

Prices for new contracts in the transport insurance market were climbing
sharply even before the pandemic following rising claims and reduced
competition, and industry sources expect insurance rates to jump when pharma
companies involved in COVID-19 vaccines renew their annual policies next
year, given the additional risk.

 

“Vaccine producers which do not have long-term contracts in place must
expect additional insurance costs of up to 20% compared to the previous
year,” said Reiner Heiken, chief executive of U.S.-headquartered Hellmann
Worldwide Logistics.

 

Those companies are also expected to take out more cover for added risks
including extra-cold transport and increased likelihood of cyber attacks or
old-fashioned theft, sources said.

 

To rein in their insurance costs, drug firms are likely to take on more of
the initial risk themselves, or make more use of in-house captives, which
have become increasingly popular in large firms.

 

Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca did immediately respond to requests for
comment via email.

 

GOING MISSING

Insurers, for their part, also risk claims under liability policies if the
vaccines are administered after being damaged in transit, and cause major
side effects, Nicky Stokes at broker New Dawn Risk said.

 

A consignment carrying tens of thousands of packs of a COVID-19 vaccine that
is lost, stolen or damaged from a truck or refrigerated container has an
estimated value of $15-$50 million, industry sources say.

 

Such losses compare with total claims on cargo insurance of $563 million
last year, the International Union of Marine Insurance said.

 

The U.S. and British governments have said they will take on liability risk
if the vaccines cause side effects but it is not clear if that includes side
effects caused by damage in transit.

 

Any losses on the transport of vaccines would come on top of more than $100
billion in claims due to the pandemic predicted by Lloyd’s of London this
year across a range of insurance classes.

 

Transporting the vaccine by the first movers such as Pfizer requires
constant conditions of -70 degrees Celsius. Monitoring will be complex at
scale.

 

If the vaccines “veer outside of their optimum temperature range for a
certain period of time then regulatory bodies will deem them spoiled and
unfit for consumption, which for insured or insurers would mean a loss,”
said Mel Buitendag with insurance broker Gallagher.

 

The vaccine is so far being transported by plane.

 

However, A.P. Moller Maersk, the world’s no.1 container shipping line, said
it has an agreement with COVAXX, a division of U.S. private group United
Biomedical, to move the vaccine in specialised refrigerated reefer
containers.

 

“Transportation by air freight is happening already,” said Maersk’s global
head of pharmaceuticals Hristo Petkov. “For ocean volumes we are looking at
end of the second quarter and the beginning of the third quarter.”

 

COVAXX’s Chief Executive Mei Mei Hu told Reuters it was working with Maersk
to secure comprehensive cargo insurance for the full value of each shipment.

 

“The greatest common risk to temperature-controlled cargo transported via
either sea or air is at the points of transition to the last mile - between
ocean and inland or air and inland,” Hu said.

 

“Any transition point can introduce extra handling, changes in power
supplies, or delays in customs clearance that can threaten the shipment’s
integrity.”

 

ARMED GUARDS

Interpol has issued a global warning about vaccines being a prime target for
organised crime.

 

The vaccines are likely to need advanced tracking and even armed escorts,
Gallagher’s Buitendag said.

 

Cargo insurance typically excludes cyber attacks, so pharma companies
usually buy extra cover.

 

“A successful worldwide distribution will require unparalleled data
connectivity,” said Kevin Rimmer, head of cargo at broker McGill and
Partners.

 

 

 

Asia shares slip on news U.S. to blacklist more Chinese firms

TOKYO (Reuters) - Asian shares slipped on Friday after Reuters reported that
the United States is set to add dozens of Chinese companies, including the
country’s top chipmaker SMIC, to a trade blacklist later in the day.

 

Still, the prevalent underlying mood on global equities remained upbeat, as
the prospect of a major U.S. coronavirus relief package meant investors were
keen on picking up stocks and other risk-exposed assets.

 

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dropped 0.6% from
Thursday’s record. Mainland Chinese shares fell 0.4% while Hong Kong’s Hang
Seng lost 1%.

 

Washington is expected to name some Chinese companies that it says have ties
to the Chinese military, sources said, adding in total around 80 additional
companies and affiliates to the so-called entity list, nearly all of them
Chinese.

 

Japan’s Nikkei dipped 0.2%, facing strong resistance around 27,000 while
European shares are seen weaker, with Euro Stoxx 50 futures down 0.45% and
FTSE futures falling 0.3%.

 

U.S. S&P 500 futures eased 0.24%, a day after their underlying index gained
0.58% to close at an all-time high of 3,722.48.

 

Global equities on the whole basked in optimism that a deal will be reached
over a fresh U.S. economic stimulus package.

 

Lawmakers from both major U.S. political parties said failing to agree was
not an option, and earlier Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell
said talks could spill into the weekend.

 

Many investors saw the passing of new measures to support the economy as
imminent after data showed the number of Americans filing first-time claims
for jobless benefits unexpectedly rose last week.

 

Markets were encouraged that the United States stood ready to ship 5.9
million doses of a new coronavirus vaccine developed by Moderna that is on
the cusp on winning regulatory approval.

 

“Even though the current state of outbreak is so bleak, markets are assuming
vaccines will help the U.S. achieve a herd immunity next year and that
everybody will be dancing in spring, with pent-up demand for consumption
exploding,” said Kozo Koide, chief economist at Asset Manegement One.

 

“Fund managers would be wise to ride on this bandwagon for now, but markets
appear to be underestimating uncertainties. It’s not known exactly how long
vaccines will protect you. There will be disappointment if markets learn
they are not like measles vaccines, one shot of which will last for life,”
he added.

 

The bullish mood supported many currencies against the safe-haven U.S.
dollar, while other assets ranging from risky bitcoin to safe-haven gold
also rose.

 

The dollar index stood at 89.977 , having slipped below 90 for the first
time in two and a half years.

 

The euro changed hands at $1.2246 , having hit a two-and-a-half-year high of
$1.2273 on Thursday. The dollar stood at 103.37 yen, after having slipped to
a nine-month low of 102.88.

 

As expected, the Bank of Japan extended a package of steps aimed at easing
corporate funding strains caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

 

The British pound slipped 0.40% to $1.3534 , off the two-and-a-half-year
high it hit on Thursday, taking a minor hit after British Prime Minister
Boris Johnson’s office said trade talks with the European Union were in a
“serious situation”.

 

Bitcoin rose 1.5% to $23,128, extending its weekly gains to 21.3%, with a
break of the $20,000 mark on Wednesday triggering a fresh wave of buying
binge.

 

Spot gold eased slightly to $1,881.6 per ounce after having hit a one-month
high of $1,896.2 in the previous session while copper hit its highest levels
in almost eight years.

 

Likewise oil climbed to a nine-month high before easing slightly in Asia on
Friday.

 

Brent crude futures traded at $51.34 a barrel, down 0.3% on day but not far
from Thursday’s peak of $51.90, having gained 2.7% so far this week.

 

 

 

Bezos' Blue Origin to deliver first flight-ready rocket engines next summer
- ULA CEO

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The chief executive of United Launch Alliance (ULA),
a joint rocket venture between Boeing Co and Lockheed Martin Corp, said it
expects to receive two new rocket engines from billionaire Jeff Bezos’ Blue
Origin by next summer.

 

ULA, the Pentagon’s top launch contractor for national security satellites,
had initially expected the shipment in 2020 for a debut flight in early
2021, but this was delayed by development hurdles.

 

The installation of Blue Origin’s reusable BE-4 engines into ULA’s
next-generation Vulcan rocket will keep it on track for the debut launch of
a moon lander dubbed Peregrine at the end of 2021, ULA Chief Executive Tory
Bruno said. The Vulcan rocket has won a slate of key U.S. defense missions
through 2027.

 

“That is now our expectation, that Peregrine will go to space in the 4th
quarter of 2021,” Bruno told reporters during a call on Thursday.

 

ULA picked Blue Origin’s BE-4 in 2018 to power Vulcan, a two-stage
heavy-lift rocket that will succeed ULA’s Atlas 5 workhorse.

 

The delivery of Blue Origin’s BE-4 was delayed over an issue with the
engine’s complex single-shaft turbopump, the part of a rocket engine that
injects flammable propellants during ignition with forces of 80,000
horsepower.

 

Those challenges are “all behind us now and we are very confident in the
final configuration,” Bruno said.

 

 

 

Nigeria: House Passes N453 Billion NDDC 2020 Budget

The House of Representatives yesterday approved N453,200,000,000 2020 budget
for Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to cover the capital,
personnel expenditure and other cost of the commission for the period ending
on 31 March 2021.

 

The approval followed the consideration of the report by the House Committee
on Niger Delta Development Commission at the plenary.

 

Laying the report, the Chairman of the Committee on NDDC, Hon. Olubunmi
Tunji-Ojo, stated that the committee carried out a holistic oversight of the
commission and the report is aimed at placing the commission in the most
optimal position to effectively execute its statutory mandate to Nigerians.

 

He expressed pride at the increase in revenue from the region that gave the
commission a little more percentage revenue to run smoothly.

 

He said: "That the House do consider the Report of the Committee on Niger
Delta Development Commission (NDDC) on the issue from the Statutory Revenue
Fund of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), the total sum of
N453,200,000,000.

 

"Of which the sum of N27,389,000,000 is for Personnel Expenditure,
N13,937,244,107 is for Overhead Expenditure, N2,793,755,893 is for Internal
Capital, N409,080,000,000 is for Development Projects for the period ending
on 31 March 2021.-This Day.

 

 

 

Rwanda Extends Tax Breaks to Manufacturing, Construction

Starting January, the Government will roll out tax incentives, for two
years, to help stimulate investments in the manufacturing and the
construction sectors as well as speed up business recovery from the Covid-19
effects.

 

The relief is under an initiative known as 'Manufacture and Build to Recover
Programme', which was approved by cabinet this week.

 

The programme is designed to significantly reduce the cost of setting up
industries of select products as well as existing firms who would like to
expand their current operations.

 

The incentives are seeking to increase the production of construction
materials, agro-processing, as well as hygiene and sanitation products.

Companies setting up industries or expanding operations in the above sectors
will be exempted from import duty for materials and equipment bought for
purposes of setting up the production plants.

 

In the event that the materials are bought locally, the firms will be
exempted from Value Added Tax which is at 18 per cent.

 

The programme will run for two years with beneficiaries expected to have
completed setting up their industries.

 

The incentives will also see large construction projects in the country
exempted from paying Value Added Tax on materials sourced locally such as
steel and cement for a 3-year period.

 

Zephanie Niyonkuru, the Deputy Chief Executive of Rwanda Development Board,
explained that the programme is part of the economic recovery plan aimed at
boosting economic activity and consequently create more jobs.

Niyonkuru told The New Times that the incentives were tailored with an
intention to create fiscal policies that entice investments at a time when
there is hesitance and reluctance to invest.

 

"The task was to create a fiscal policy which entices people to invest now
instead of waiting. That is the way we can create jobs, boost local
production capacities, improve productivity," he said,

 

The incentives exempting VAT and import duty for companies setting up
industries, he said, could see an increase in the number of local producers
and consequently lead to the recapturing of the domestic market.

 

The element of providing VAT exemption for locally sourced construction
materials to construction projects, he said will increase consumption of
locally produced goods and recapture the domestic market in the process and
consequently reduction of trade deficit.

To ensure that the programme is relevant for local manufacturers, Niyonkuru
said that they have been holding countrywide consultations to access
challenges and pain points.

 

In the process, they were able to, for instance, understand why some firms
produce below their installed capacity and interventions required.

 

"We have been visiting some of these companies, we wanted to have a
programme that complements existing ones, and we want to support new
companies and existing firms. We found that some existing companies were
producing under capacity for various reasons. We accessed the support that
they needed," he said.

 

These could see an increase in the number of production plants for
agri-processing which includes maize flour, wheat flour, edible oil, milk
products among others.

 

hygiene and sanitization which includes light manufacturing of products such
as hygienic products, sanitizers, soaps, detergents, sanitary pads and
others could also be a major beneficiary.

 

Producers of construction materials who include cement producers, steel,
tiles among others are also key beneficiaries.

 

Others include packaging materials which will be working with the above
firms.

 

Trade and Industry Minister Soraya Hakuziyaremye said that from the
programme, the government expects an increase in the number of industries in
the country as well as better performance for existing ones.

 

Benjamin Gasamagera, a local businessman involved in manufacturing welcomed
any incentives, noting that it will increase the number of players,
competition and ultimately the quality of products.

 

By easing the entry of new firms into the sector, Gasamagera said that local
products are likely to be more competitive in quality and prices and
eventually ready for exports.

 

Commenting about the programme, on Social Media, National Industrial
Research and Development Agency Director General Christian Sekomo noted that
it will improve the productivity of locally made products both in quality
and quantity.

 

Rwanda's manufacturing sector is dominated by agro-processing as well as
light manufacturing such as soaps and detergents, pesticides, garments, wood
and pharmaceuticals.

 

The industry is also driven by construction materials (cement and tiles,
plastics, paints, and metals), and other cross-cutting enablers like paper
and plastic packaging, as well as glass bottles and containers.

 

However, the country continues to experience a supply deficit of these
products with imports dominant.

 

Among the key challenges that have been previously cited in Rwanda's
manufacturing sector include lack of skilled labour, high cost of raw
materials, inadequate supply of raw materials and access to working capital.

 

The Covid-19 pandemic had a toll on industry, with estimates showing that
the sector contracted at the rate of 19 per cent in the first half of the
year.-New Times.

 

 

 

Nigeria: Sylva - Oil Market Players' Survival Depends On Effective
Cost-Cutting Measures

Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, yesterday
stated that the survival of players in the oil and gas industry would depend
on their ability to adopt lower cost solutions.

 

The minister, at the 2020 conference of the Nigeria Association of Energy
Economists (NAEE) in Abuja, said the pandemic provided the opportunity for
reducing costs as well as carbon emission that will transform the industry.

 

He added that the future and survival of many players depend not only on
cleaner energy but also on the ability to deploy lower cost solutions and
seek diversification from crude oil to cleaner energy.

Sylva said the country was proposing a post COVID-19 era where the
transformed national oil firm will be swift to respond to oil prices fall
and carbon emission reduction.

 

"Our strategy to strengthen the Nigerian oil and gas industry in a
post-COVID world is to transform our national oil company into a diversified
energy holding company to enable us respond swiftly to the twin challenges
of future crash in crude oil prices and de-carbonisation by moving rapidly
to becoming an energy holding company with more divested interests.

 

"Consequently, we have focused on our gas resources as a critical transition
fuel to help battle global warming and function as a bridge between the
dominant fossil fuel of today and the renewable energy of tomorrow," he
said.

 

According to him, natural gas has the ability to meet the increasing global
requirement for cleaner energy use and also facilitate economic growth
through domestic use.

 

 

He stated that gas will become an alternative to petrol and diesel to
cushion the effects of deregulation on the people.

 

The minister described the discoveries of COVID-19 vaccines in Russia, North
America, China and various parts of the world as a game changer, recalling
that the members and non-members of the Organisation of the Petroleum
Exporting Countries (OPEC) had on May 20 met to decide the curtailment of
oil production volume due to oversupply.

 

The minister said the curtailment had saved the industry and expressed hope
that the global economy would eventually recover.

 

The industry, he said, is grappling with over-supply issues from the US
shale and struggle for market shares among producers.

 

He, however, said the pandemic, which is now in its second phase, had
continued to dampen the structure and dynamics of the energy industry.

 

He stated that the impact will vary across the oil and gas industry
segments, adding that while oil companies with low reserve will push to
accelerate production, those with higher cost structures will struggle.

 

The minister said due to low revenue, there would be debate on the
prioritisation of oil reinvestment and social needs while some governments
would take the chance for spurring support for energy transition and
diversification.

 

"The future survival of many players in the industry depends not only on
focusing on renewable energy sources but also upon an ability to deliver
lower-cost solutions.

 

"Our vision is to diversify into more diverse interests. We are focusing on
our gas natural resources to function as a bridge between fossil fuel and
the energy of tomorrow," he said.-This Day.

 

 

 

Kenya: President Kenyatta Inaugurates National Security Telecommunications
Service

Nairobi — President Uhuru Kenyatta on Thursday launched the National
Security Telecommunications Service (NSTS), an integrated communications
platform aimed at enhancing sharing of information between Kenya's security
agencies.

 

"This will enhance co-ordination of security activities and operations,
allow real-time information exchange, and allow our security agencies to
better deal with emerging threats in the realms of cybercrime," President
Kenyatta said during the launch of NSTS at Embakasi Garrison in Nairobi
County.

 

With the new integrated system, the President said the military, police,
intelligence and other security services will be able to communicate more
effectively at both intra-agency and inter-agency levels.

He pointed out that the new technological development will enable security
agencies to collaborate better and improve response times to public safety
needs.

 

"This communication system is yet another strand in the golden thread of
greater synergies and closer cooperation between Kenya's security agencies;
who now operate under a Multi-Agency framework," the President said.

 

Before the establishment of the new platform, each of the country's security
formations were using their own telecommunication network, an arrangement
the President said led to duplication of infrastructure and made
cross-agency communication difficult.

 

Speaking to staff of NSTS, the President said the new platform will help
address the challenge of geographical penetration faced by some of the
individual agency's networks.

He said NSTS will provide secure communications to the country's foreign
missions as well as security teams operating outside the country adding that
the new agency was established in line with the Executive Order No. 4 of
2020.

 

President Kenyatta commended NSTS's Board of Directors led by its Chairman,
Chief of Defence Forces, General Robert Kibochi, for setting up the platform
in a record six months.

 

"I would like to thank all our Security Agencies; the Kenya Defence Forces,
the National Police Service, the National Intelligence Service, the Kenya
Prisons Service, the Kenya Wildlife Service, the Kenya Forest Service, and
the Kenya Coast Guard Services, as well as the National Government
Administrative Offices for their cooperation on this mission," the President
said.

 

Defence CS Dr Monica Juma, in whose docket the new agency rests, said NSTS
will eliminate the risk of the country's security being compromised due to
the utilization of porous commercial communication networks.

"The actualization of the concept of National Security Telecommunication
Services network is a key milestone in providing a synchronized
communication network of security agencies that will enable them combat
threats against our national security. This will enhance the safety of our
nation and security of our people," Dr Juma said.

 

Chief of Defence Forces General Robert Kibochi noted that the new network is
a critical milestone in the modernization of Kenya's security sector saying
the service will enhance the security and safety of the nation and its
citizens.

 

"This telecommunication service will deliver secure communication for our
security agencies, national government, administrative offices and our
diplomatic missions abroad creating interconnectivity of voice, data and
video conferencing," General Kibochi said.

 

At the event also attended by Cabinet Secretaries Fred Matiang'i (Interior),
Joe Mucheru (ICT) and Head of Public Service Dr Joseph Kinyua among other
senior Government officials, the President handed the new agency its
founding instruments among them a certificate of incorporation and
flag.-Capital FM.

 

 

 

Kenya: Housing Finance, KCB Get Sh2.6 Billion for Cheap Home Loans

The State-backed mortgage firm has offered KCB Group and Housing Finance
Sh2.64 billion to offer homes loans with interest rates of less than 10 per
cent.

 

The lower home loan rates are the product of the newly established Kenya
Mortgage Refinance Company (KMRC), a Treasury-backed lender, which offers
banks and saccos cash for onward lending to households.

 

KCB Group will receive Sh.2.13 billion and Housing Finance HFC (Sh514
million) while Stima Sacco and Nyandarua Towers Sacco have been offered Sh69
million and Sh29 million respectively.

 

KMRC will lend to banks and financial co-operatives at an annual interest of
five per cent, enabling them to write home loans at less than 10 per cent --
lower than the average lending rate of 11.92 per cent or 42 per cent
cheaper.

Homebuyers in Nairobi metropolitan area -- which extends to neighbouring
Kiambu, Machakos and Kajiado -- will access a maximum of Sh4 million in home
loans while the mortgage backed by the refinance form for the rest of the
country has been capped at Sh3 million.

 

This means individuals who qualify for the subsidised loans or those earning
less than Sh150,000, will have to top up their loans with commercial credit
should they seek a home above the Sh4 million.

 

KMRC chief executive Johnstone Oltetia said the refinancing firm expects KCB
and Housing Finance to start lending immediately, saying the deal allows
lenders to offer loans at a single digit.

 

"We will give priority to owner-occupier facilities to enable borrowers to
use their rent money to repay mortgages faster, thereby reducing
non-performing loans," said the KMRC boss.

"We have a Sh25 billion World Bank kitty as well as a Sh10 billion line of
credit ready for lending from the African Development Bank."

 

The banks will have seven years to repay the KMRC loans.

 

The government owns a 25 per cent stake in KMRC, with the rest of the shares
held by banks, saccos and microfinance institutions.

 

The role of KMRC is limited to mobilising cash for mortgages and cushioning
the lenders from losses linked to defaults.

 

Mortgage firms have shied from writing housing loans, mainly due to a lack
of long-term deposits in the industry to match them.

 

The KMRC will now feed the banks with long-term funding, reducing the
lenders' reliance on short-term loans.

 

Commercial banks in Kenya had only 27,993 mortgage accounts in their books
worth Sh237.7 billion as at the end of 2019, according to the CBK data. The
mortgage penetration rate, at only 2.7 per cent of gross domestic product
(GDP), compares poorly to South Africa's mortgage industry that makes up 31
per cent of GDP.-Nation.

 

 

 

 


 


 


Invest Wisely!

Bulls n Bears 

 

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INVESTORS DIARY 2020

 


Company

Event

Venue

Date & Time

 


 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 


Zimbabwe

National Unity Day

Zimbabwe

22/12/2020

 


 

Christmas Day

 

25/12/2020

 


 

Boxing Day

 

26/12/2020

 


 

New Year’s Day

 

01/01/2021

 


Companies under Cautionary

 

 

 


 

 

 

 


ART

Seed co Int.

Dairibord

 


Starafrica

Medtech

Turnall

 


Seed co

 

 

 


 

 

 

 


 <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.

 


 

 


(c) 2020 Web: <http://www.bullszimbabwe.com>  www.bullszimbabwe.com Email:
<mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> info at bulls.co.zw Tel: +263 4 2927658 Cell: +263 77
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