Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 07 April 2021

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Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 07 April 2021

 


 

 


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ü  Amazon's Jeff Bezos backs tax rise on companies

ü  Toshiba confirms $20bn takeover bid from British fund

ü  IMF forecasts stronger recovery for world economy

ü  Even 'dungers' are too pricey in NZ property market

ü  Test travel regime must be easy and cheap, says PM

ü  Asia shares set for sluggish start after Wall Street retreats from record
highs

ü  ‘Millionaires tax’ threat has some NY bankers, managers eyeing exits

ü  Samsung Electronics says Q1 profit likely rose 44%, matching expectations

ü  Google AI scientist Bengio resigns after colleagues' firings -email

ü  Nokia settles patent fight with Lenovo

ü  Facebook says data on 530 million users 'scraped' before September 2019

ü  Nigeria: IMF Projects Stronger Economic Recovery for Nigeria, Others

ü  Ethiopia: Talks Collapse On Ethiopia's Electric Nile Dam

ü  Mozambique: Japan Suspends Mozambique's Debt Service

ü  Uganda's Muted Response On Repaying U.S.$488 Million IMF Loan

 

 

 

 

 


 <https://www.facebook.com/Hyundaizimbabwe/> 

 


 

Amazon's Jeff Bezos backs tax rise on companies

Amazon boss Jeff Bezos has said he supports raising taxes on US companies.

 

The comments by the world's richest man come as US President Joe Biden is
pushing to raise the corporate rate from 21% to 28%.

 

The rise would help pay for a massive spending plan to upgrade America's
roads, ports, water pipes and internet.

 

In his speech unveiling the proposal, Mr Biden singled out Amazon as an
example of a company that pays too little.

 

The statement by Mr Bezos said Amazon supported Mr Biden's "focus on
infrastructure" and called on Democrats and Republicans to "work together"
and reach a compromise.

 

"We recognize this investment will require concessions from all sides - both
on the specifics of what's included as well as how it gets paid for (we're
supportive of a rise in the corporate tax rate)," Mr Bezos said in the
statement.

 

"We look forward to Congress and the Administration coming together to find
the right, balanced solution that maintains or enhances U.S.
competitiveness."

 

Unanswered questions

Amazon's position sets it apart from that of Republicans and top business
lobbies, which have already spoken out against the tax increases, which they
claim would hurt economic growth.

 

In his statement, Mr Bezos did not say whether Amazon would support the
White House's other tax proposals beyond the increase to the corporate rate.

 

Those are aimed at capturing more tax from profits earned by US companies
overseas, including by working with other countries to establish a global
minimum tax.

 

Analysts say changes to those rules are likely to stir stronger opposition
from businesses than the rise in the corporate rate, which many companies do
not face, thanks to deductions and other credits.

 

In 2020, Amazon paid an effective federal income tax rate of 9.4%, according
to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy.

 

Though it has long faced attacks for its tax practices, Amazon has pushed
back more strongly against critics in recent weeks.

 

On Twitter, it sparred with Senator Elizabeth Warren, who recently accused
the firm of exploiting corporate loopholes and paying "close to nothing" in
tax, while discussing her own tax plans.

 

The company said it had reported $1.7bn in federal tax expense last year and
invested $350bn. Amazon's investments have helped reduce its tax bill under
rules aimed at incentivising firms for activities like research and
development.

 

"You make the tax laws @SenWarren; we just follow them. If you don't like
the laws you've created, by all means, change them," the company said.--BBC

 

 

 

 

Toshiba confirms $20bn takeover bid from British fund

Japanese conglomerate Toshiba has received a buyout offer from a British
private equity fund in a deal that could be worth about $20bn (£14.5bn).

 

The scandal-hit firm's shares were temporarily halted on Tokyo's stock
exchange after it confirmed the bid by CVC Capital Partners.

 

If successful, it will allow Toshiba to focus on renewable energy and other
core businesses, reports suggested.

 

Toshiba's US-listed shares rocketed almost 20% after the bid was revealed.

 

The conglomerate has been at the centre of a number of scandals in recent
years, including false accounting and huge losses linked to its US nuclear
unit.

 

It was forced to sell its profit-making chip sector to make up for huge
losses.

 

Toshiba's chief executive and president Nobuaki Kurumatani confirmed the
offer from CVC Capital Partners - his former employer - on Wednesday, adding
that "we'll discuss it in a board meeting."

 

CVC's main office is in London although Luxembourg is its official
headquarters.

 

Toshiba is one of Japan's oldest and largest firms whose business empire
stretches from home electronics to nuclear power stations.

 

Its accounting scandal in 2015, in which it admitted overstating its profits
for six years, shocked corporate Japan.

 

The firm was on the brink of bankruptcy and to avoid being delisted from the
Tokyo Stock Exchange, had to sell its crown-jewel memory-chip business.

 

Toshiba's shares were still demoted to the Tokyo Stock Exchange's second
tier in 2017 and only returned to the first section in January.

 

The company's recovery took place under Nobuaki Kurumatani - the first
outsider to lead the company in 50 years. He joined from CVC Capital
Partners in 2018 and has worked to regain investor confidence.

 

The deal with CVC would rank among the top 20 largest leveraged buyouts in
history but due to Toshiba's involvement in nuclear power stations, it would
require the Japanese government's permission.

 

2px presentational grey line

Toshiba was once synonymous with the global ascent of corporate Japan, but
has since been forced to diversify into other areas.

 

Last year, the Japanese electronics giant sold its final stake in the
personal computer maker Dynabook. This marked the end of its connection with
making PCs or laptops.

 

Toshiba has been under pressure from large overseas shareholders for greater
transparency and better governance.

 

CVC is looking to expand in Japan and has bought a low-cost skincare brand
Shiseido's lower-priced skincare and shampoo brands for $1.5bn.

 

It is also making big investments in rugby, paying £365m for a 14.3% stake
in the Six Nations annual men's rugby tournament.--BBC

 

 

 

IMF forecasts stronger recovery for world economy

The International Monetary Fund is now forecasting a stronger economic
recovery this year and next.

 

The IMF has upgraded both its UK and global forecasts compared with what it
projected in January.

 

But the British economy is still predicted to return to its pre-pandemic
level of activity only in late 2022.

 

The agency also warns that recoveries are diverging dangerously within and
between countries.

 

The new UK forecast is for growth of 5.3% this year and 5.1% in 2022. Both
figures are upgrades, though the latter is only marginally higher than the
January forecast.

 

The recovery follows last year's pandemic driven contraction of 9.9% which
was the deepest of any of the G7 major developed economies.

 

'Fairly modest'

Bringing in the two predicted recovery years, the UK's performance over 2020
to 2022 would be ahead of one of the G7 countries, Italy.

 

The new global forecasts are growth of 6% and 4.4% this year and next. Both
are upgrades, a fairly modest one for 2022.

 

That mainly reflects up-rating to the forecast for developed economies,
especially the United States.

 

'Diverging recoveries'

In a blog on the forecasts, the IMF's chief economist Gita Gopinath says a
way out of the health and economic crisis is increasingly visible.
Vaccinations, she writes, are likely to power recoveries in many countries
in 2021.

 

But she is also concerned about how those recoveries are diverging.

 

Countries with slower vaccine rollouts, more limited support from economic
policy, and those more reliant on tourism are likely to do less well.

 

The first two of these are particular issues for developing countries. Many
have less access to vaccines, and they also tend to find it more difficult
to finance economic and health policy actions.

 

Among emerging and developing economies, China has already returned to
pre-pandemic levels of economic activity. But many others in the group are
not expected to do so until well into 2023.

 

The report says the cumulative losses in income per person over the period
2020 to 2022 are likely to be 20% for those countries, compared with a less
severe but still large figure of 11% for the developed world.

 

'Reversed'

The report also says that gains in poverty reduction have been reversed. It
says people counted as extremely poor are likely to have increased by 95
million last year, with a rise of 80 million in the number who are
undernourished.

 

The IMF says the divergences are occurring not just between but also within
countries. Income inequality is likely to increase as young people and those
with relatively low levels of skills have been harder hit in both developed
and developing countries.

 

Women have already been affected as they account for a large share of
employment in some sectors, such as tourism, where there is a lot of
personal contact.

 

The pandemic has also had an impact on workers whose jobs are vulnerable to
automation. That is a process that has been accelerated as a result of the
health crisis.--BBC

 

 

 

Even 'dungers' are too pricey in NZ property market

New Zealand was a world leader at containing Covid-19, but it now leads the
world in something less desirable.

 

It has the most unaffordable housing market among the 36 Organisation for
Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) nations.

 

Even "dungers" - a local term for run-down houses - are selling for over
NZD$1m (£510,000) in Auckland’s most expensive neighbourhoods.

 

Median house prices surged nearly 23% over the last 12 months to NZ$780,000.

 

Although New Zealand faced its worst recession in a generation due to the
Covid pandemic, its swift lockdown measures worked, and it was one of the
first developed economies to start showing signs of economic recovery.

 

The country also plans to open a travel bubble with neighbouring Australia
on 19 April, one of the first glimmers of a return to normal for its
important tourism sector.

 

Like many countries, New Zealand enacted a number of stimulus measures last
year, pouring billions into the economy.

 

Coupled with historically low interest rates, the stimulus stoked an
already-strong housing market in New Zealand.

 

“Housing affordability continues to be one of the ‘big’ issues for New
Zealanders looking to get onto the housing market," said Wendy Alexander,
the acting chief executive at the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand.

 

REINZ figures show the median price in Auckland, the country’s biggest city,
is now NZ$1.1m, up 24% over the last year.

 

'Dungers' for millionaires

Even "dungers" are not immune to high prices. One sold in the suburb of
Avondale for NZ$1.81m in January.

 

“Common sense would suggest that run-down or derelict properties could sell
for a bargain."

 

"However, as we’ve seen time and time again, this isn’t always the case in
the current market," Ms Alexander told the BBC.

 

Currently, houses under NZ$500,000 account for just 17.6% of the market,
while houses over NZ$1m made up over 30% of the market, according to REINZ.

 

A year ago, those numbers were reversed, with nearly a third of houses in
the lowest bracket.

 

Houses typically took around 30 days to sell, which is the fastest sales
rate in 17 years.

 

Investors are now the biggest property buyers in the country of five
million, with 40% of sales in the final quarter of 2020 made to owners of
multiple properties.

 

Cooling measures

 

Last month, New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern introduced cooling
measures for the property market.

 

The measures doubled to ten years the amount of time that investors need to
hold onto a property in order to avoid paying a tax on selling it.

 

The changes will also stop investors from claiming mortgage payments as an
expense against their rental income.

 

The government also pledged to speed up the pace and scale of house building
with a new government fund.--BBC

 

 

Test travel regime must be easy and cheap, says PM

Boris Johnson says any testing regime for international travel should be
easy and cheap, after the boss of EasyJet criticised new government plans.

 

The prime minister also said vaccine passports would be a "fact of life" for
people travelling internationally in future.

 

The government hopes to reopen international travel on 17 May, but is yet to
make a final decision.

 

However, the prime minister said he had "not given up" on the idea.

 

Under plans outlined on Sunday, destinations would be classed as green,
amber or red based on their Covid infection rates and vaccination coverage.

 

No isolation would be necessary on return to the UK from green countries,
but pre-departure and post-arrival tests would be required, potentially
costing up to £200 each.

 

But earlier on Tuesday, EasyJet boss Johan Lundgren told the BBC this would
make travel too expensive, with the tests costing as much or more than a
flight in some cases.

 

Asked about the comments, and whether cheaper lateral flow tests could
replace PCR tests in the plans, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: "I do
think we want to make things as easy as we possibly can.

 

"The boss of EasyJet is right to focus on this issue, we're going to see
what we can do to make things as flexible and as affordable as possible."

 

Mr Lundgren told the BBC that if costs were not reduced, the government
"wouldn't open up international travel for everyone, but only those who can
afford it.

 

"If you are ticking all of those boxes to become a green destination

[multiple tests] don't make sense to me and it would add to cost and
complexities."

 

Scientists and ministers recently warned that holidays to destinations such
as France, where Covid cases are rising, are "unlikely". But Mr Johnson said
he "had not given up" on the idea that non-essential foreign travel could
begin again on 17 May.

 

However, other travel industry figures called for clarity following the
prime minister's latest announcement on lockdown restrictions easing.

 

The Business Travel Association said the announcement was "beyond
disappointing" and called for "a clear pathway to international travel and
trade".

 

Its chief executive, Clive Wratten, said moves to open borders had "once
again been kicked down the road".

 

"The business travel industry continues to be crippled by today's lack of
movement," he added.

 

The boss of travel firm Thomas Cook, Alan French, also told the BBC's Wake
Up to Money that a lack of clarity around what type of tests might be
required for passengers and when they would need to be taken was a let-down.

 

He said that overall, there were "glimmers of good news", in that the
earliest date for travel resuming on 17 May was not pushed back. "But
actually, the details were missing and that was disappointing," he said.

 

'Disappointed'

On Monday, Mr Johnson said he did not want to see coronavirus re-imported
from abroad and urged people to wait for a report from the Global Travel
Taskforce on 12 April.

 

But Gemma Antrobus, owner of independent travel company Haslemere Travel,
warned that business owners like herself faced a difficult path.

 

"Disappointed is putting it mildly. Where we hoped confidence would start to
pick up, and more people would be interested in booking holidays
 that just
won't come this week."

 

She added that some customers had now moved bookings for holidays five times
amid changing restrictions.

 

"Every week we don't have that confidence from consumers, business owners
like myself just wonder what lies ahead."

 

 

 

Asia shares set for sluggish start after Wall Street retreats from record
highs

Asia equities are set for a sluggish open on Wednesday after Wall Street
pulled back from record highs reached in previous sessions, as investors eye
the upcoming earnings season for more signs of a recovery following a series
of strong U.S. economic data.

 

The three major Wall Street indexes closed lower on Tuesday, a day after the
S&P 500 and the Dow rose to record levels driven by optimism from a
greater-than-expected jobs report last Friday and data showing a dramatic
rebound in the U.S. services industry on Monday.

 

 

Investors also weighed the latest U.S. job openings report, which showed on
Tuesday that vacancies rose to a two-year high in February while hiring had
its biggest gain in nine months amid increased COVID-19 vaccinations and
additional government stimulus. read more

 

"We've had a few big up days in a row and I think markets are looking to a
take a little bit of a pause here," said Charlie Ripley, vice president of
portfolio management at Allianz Investment Management in Minnesota. "From an
economic data perspective, we didn't get too much information except for the
jobs opening report and market pricing is reflecting that."

 

Japan's Nikkei 225 futures fell 0.1%, while Australian S&P/ASX 200 futures
rose 0.04%.

 

The International Monetary Fund raised its global growth forecast to 6% this
year from 5.5%, reflecting a rapidly brightening outlook for the U.S.
economy. read more

 

 

With upcoming earnings season expected to show S&P profit growth of 24.2%
from a year earlier, according to Refinitiv data, investors will be watching
to see whether corporate results further confirm recent positive economic
data.

 

"We're heading into earnings season and we'll get a better look of how
companies performed in the first quarter even as we exit the pandemic,"
Ripley said.

 

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) fell 0.29% to
33,430.24, the S&P 500 (.SPX) lost 0.10% to 4,073.94 and the Nasdaq
Composite (.IXIC) dropped 0.05% to 13,698.38.

 

U.S. Treasury yields dipped, with 5-year notes leading the decline, on
investor views that market pricing based on an earlier-than-expected
tightening by the Fed was too aggressive.

 

 

Benchmark 10-year notes last rose 18/32 in price to yield 1.6578%, from
1.72% late on Monday.

 

The dollar slipped to a two-week low against a basket of world currencies,
with traders taking advantage of its strong March performance as dropping
Treasury yields pressured the greenback. read more

 

The dollar index fell 0.259%, with the euro down 0.05% to $1.1869. The
Korean won strengthened 0.08% versus the greenback at 1,118.21 per dollar.

 

Crude oil prices partially rebounded from the previous session's losses,
lifted by strong data from the United States and China. read more

 

U.S. crude gained 1.16% to settle at $59.33 per barrel, and Brent settled at
$62.74 per barrel, up 0.95% on the day.-The Thomson Reuters Trust
Principles.

 

 

 

‘Millionaires tax’ threat has some NY bankers, managers eyeing exits

For decades New York’s bankers and fund managers have accepted the city’s
high tax rates as a part of working in the world’s premier financial
capital.

 

But with plans afoot to raise rates as part of a New York state budget
agreement, some financiers are exploring exits, emboldened by a pandemic
that has illustrated how working on Wall Street may no longer mean working
from Wall Street.

 

"I'm already looking for an apartment in Florida," said one highly paid
person at a top-tier bank who asked not to be identified because his
employer does not yet know of his plans to move.

 

Others earning more than $1 million are considering still bolder steps such
as moving not only themselves but also their entire investment firms out of
the city, arguing higher taxes cut into their ability to pay staff.

 

A proposal making its way through New York's state legislature would have
top New York City earners paying up to 15.73% in combined state and city
taxes.

 

New York state's income tax rates currently range from 4% to 8.82% and New
York City's tax ranges from 3.08% to 3.88%, leaving the top earnings paying
closer to 12.7%.

 

Dubbed the "millionaires tax," the proposal would add surcharges to people
earning more than $1 million a year and beat out California localities to
claim the country's highest combined tax rate.

 

Some among those who make $1 million or more, putting them in the higher tax
bracket, are saying the city's cultural offerings, which were long a salve,
no longer outweigh the benefits of lower tax locations like Florida, Utah or
Texas, especially given the success of remote working during the pandemic.

 

PASSAGE SEEMS LIKELY

 

The tax proposal, which seems likely to pass, is the culmination of a battle
between progressive and moderate Democrats. Until recently New York Governor
Andrew Cuomo resisted the millionaires tax.

 

The political dynamics have made the extensive lobbying efforts of
businesses and wealthy individuals all but moot.

 

Large financial companies including Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N), Virtu
Financial Inc (VIRT.O) and hedge fund Elliott Management have already said
they are moving some staff out of New York.

 

Big companies will probably not abandon their New York headquarters for tax
reasons altogether, but some of their staff and smaller firms, like hedge
funds that employ only dozens of people, might, sources said.

 

"This is real," one of the smaller fund managers said. "This creates an
overwhelming incentive to move."

 

Last month, a group of business leaders, including those of JPMorgan Chase &
Co (JPM.N), Citigroup Inc (C.N) and BlackRock Inc (BLK.N), took the unusual
step of issuing a public letter warning that rich people would move out of
New York if a major tax increase came to fruition.

 

It said companies may have to move staff out of New York because their top
talent does not want to be taxed at high levels. Some companies already have
initiated moves for expense and corporate tax purposes, said people familiar
with the moves.

 

"When wealthy people don't like something, they don't protest, they just
leave," said Geoffrey Weinstein, a tax attorney at Cole Schotz.

 

"The wealthy are under attack and they are seeing if there isn't a way to
lop off 15%. They are looking for options."-The Thomson Reuters Trust
Principles.

 

 

 

Samsung Electronics says Q1 profit likely rose 44%, matching expectations

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) on Wednesday said first-quarter
profit likely rose 44%, with analysts attributing the surge to brisk sales
of smartphones and TVs, albeit tempered by a likely fall in chip earnings
after a storm halted U.S. output.

 

The South Korean technology giant forecast January-March operating profit of
9.3 trillion won ($8.32 billion), matching a weighted average analyst
forecast from Refinitiv SmartEstimate.

 

Analysts said Samsung's mobile division likely saw operating profit soar
more than 1 trillion won to about 4.15 trillion won after its flagship
Galaxy S21 smartphone series outsold the previous version by a two-to-one
margin in the six weeks since its January launch, according to research
provider Counterpoint.

 

A lower starting price for the flagship helped sales for the world's largest
smartphone maker during the quarter, with the S21 priced $200 lower than the
S20, Counterpoint said.

 

Profit in Samsung's television set and home appliance business also likely
more than doubled to around 1 trillion won, analysts said, due to continued
stay-at-home demand.

 

Cross-town TV and home appliance rival LG Electronics on Wednesday announced
its largest-ever preliminary quarterly operating profit of 1.5 trillion won
for January-March.

 

In Samsung’s chip division, analysts said profit likely fell 20% to 3.6
trillion won due to the cost of ramping up domestic production as well as
losses at its Texas plant following a mid-February stoppage, blunting the
benefits of strong demand.

 

U.S. memory chip peer Micron Technology Inc (MU.O) last month forecast
third-quarter revenue above analyst estimates due to rising demand brought
about by a global shift to remote work.

 

The price of DRAM chips widely used in laptops and other computing devices
rose 5.3% in January-March from the previous three months, showed data from
TrendForce. Analysts expect that trend to continue as a global chip shortage
spurs on buyers to snap up supplies.

 

"Prices are likely to rise further in the current quarter due to solid
demand for servers," said analyst Park Sung-soon at Cape Investment &
Securities.

 

CHIP INTEREST

 

When Samsung announces detailed earnings later this month, "there will be
interest in finding out how much Samsung is struggling in terms of low
yields in its non-memory business, in addition to the extent of the losses
in Texas and the U.S. pressure to increase chip investment," Park said,
referring to the number of non-memory chips that pass quality tests.

 

Analysts have estimated that Samsung will invest about 10 trillion won in
its chip contract manufacturing business this year, compared to about 6
trillion won last year.

 

Two top White House aides are set to host a meeting on April 12 with
chipmakers and automakers in attendance on the state of the U.S. supply
chain, Reuters previously reported. Samsung is considering a new $17 billion
chip plant in the United States.

 

Samsung also said, in a preliminary earnings release without offering any
breakdown of the figures, that revenue likely rose 17% from the same period
a year prior to 65 trillion won.

 

Its share price traded down 0.2% after the release versus a 0.2% rise in the
benchmark KOSPI (.KS11). The stock has risen about 6.2% so far this year
versus the KOSPI's 8.8%.

 

($1 = 1,118.2100 won)-The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

 

 

Google AI scientist Bengio resigns after colleagues' firings -email

Google research manager Samy Bengio said on Tuesday he was resigning,
according to an internal email seen by Reuters, in a blow to the Alphabet
Inc (GOOGL.O) unit after the firings of his colleagues who questioned paper
review and diversity practices.

 

Though at least two Google engineers had earlier resigned to protest the
dismissal of artificial intelligence (AI) researcher Timnit Gebru, Bengio is
the highest-profile employee yet to depart. read more

 

 

Google confirmed Bengio's resignation and his email. Bengio did not respond
to requests for comment. Bloomberg earlier reported the news.

 

A distinguished scientist at Google, Bengio spent about 14 years at the
company and was among its first employees involved in a decade-old project
known as Google Brain that advanced algorithms crucial to the functioning of
various modern AI systems.

 

Andrew Ng, an early Brain member who now runs software startup Landing AI,
said Bengio "has been instrumental to moving forward AI technology and
ethics." Another founding member, Jeff Dean, now oversees Google's thousands
of researchers.

 

Google Brain researcher Sara Hooker in a tweet described Bengio's departure
as "a huge loss for Google."

 

 

In the internal email Bengio had sent, he said he decided to leave Google to
pursue "other exciting opportunities" and that his last day would be April
28.

 

Google fired staff scientist Margaret Mitchell in February after alleging
she transferred electronic files out of the company. It fired fellow
researcher Gebru in December after she threatened to quit rather than
retract a paper.

 

Mitchell has said she tried "to raise concerns about race and gender
inequity, and speak up about Google's problematic firing of Dr. Gebru."
Gebru has said the company wanted to suppress her criticism of its products
and its efforts to increase workforce diversity. Google has said it accepted
her offer to resign.

 

Bengio had defended the pair, who co-led a team of about a dozen people
researching ethical issues related to AI software. In December, Bengio wrote
on Facebook that he was stunned that Gebru, whom he was managing, was
removed from the company without him being consulted.

 

 

Though he did not mention the firings in his farewell note, they influenced
his decision to resign, people familiar with the matter said, speaking on
condition of anonymity.

 

Bengio wrote in the email, "I learned so much with all of you, in terms of
machine learning research of course, but also on how difficult yet important
it is to organize a large team of researchers so as to promote long term
ambitious research, exploration, rigor, diversity and inclusion."

 

Nicolas Le Roux, a Google Brain researcher, told Reuters that Bengio had
devoted himself to making the research organization more inclusive and
"created a space where everyone felt welcome."

 

Google recently moved oversight of the AI ethics team from Bengio to vice
president Marian Croak. In February, Croak told staff at a town hall that
Google wanted management that could focus fully on that area, saying it had
just been a small part of what Bengio was supporting.

 

Google also pledged several changes at the town hall aiming to regain
researchers' trust, Reuters previously reported. -The Thomson Reuters Trust
Principles.

 

 

 

Nokia settles patent fight with Lenovo

Finland's Nokia (NOKIA.HE) has settled a multi-year patent fight with
China's Lenovo Group (0992.HK), the world's biggest PC maker, resolving all
pending litigation across all jurisdictions, the companies said on
Wednesday.

 

While terms of the cross-license agreement remain confidential, Lenovo will
make a net balancing payment to Nokia, the Finnish telecom equipment maker
said.

 

 

A Nokia spokesman declined to disclose the financial details.

 

Nokia launched its legal battle against Lenovo in 2019 over alleged
infringement of 20 video-compression technology patents and had cases in the
United States, Brazil and India, in addition to six cases in Germany.

 

Lenovo had also sued Nokia in a court in California.

 

A Munich court ruled in September that Lenovo infringed one of Nokia's
patents, and it ordered an injunction and a recall of products from
retailers. The order was stayed in November by a German appeals court.

 

 

"The global accord struck will enable future collaboration between our
companies for the benefit of customers worldwide," said John Mulgrew, chief
intellectual property officer of Lenovo.

 

Nokia's patent portfolio is composed of around 20,000 patent families,
including over 3,500 patent families declared essential to the 5G technology
standard.

 

Last month Nokia struck a deal with Samsung to license patents covering its
innovations in video standards.

 

Its Scandinavian rival, Ericsson (ERICb.ST), has also got ongoing patent
disputes with Samsung (005930.KS) and KPN NV (KPN.AS), the largest Dutch
telecommunications company.-The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

 

 

Facebook says data on 530 million users 'scraped' before September 2019

Facebook Inc (FB.O) on Tuesday said a recently reported data leak affecting
potentially 530 million users stemmed from a misuse of a feature in 2019 and
that the company had plugged the hole after identifying the problem at the
time.

 

Business Insider reported last week that phone numbers and other details
from user profiles were available in a public database. Facebook said
"malicious actors" had obtained the data prior to September 2019 by
"scraping" profiles using a vulnerability in the social media service's tool
to sync contacts.

 

The company said it identified the issue at the time and modified the tool.

 

"As a result of the action we took, we are confident that the specific issue
that allowed them to scrape this data in 2019 no longer exists," Facebook
said in a blog post.-The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

 

Nigeria: IMF Projects Stronger Economic Recovery for Nigeria, Others

Abuja — The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has projected a stronger
economic recovery in 2021 for Nigeria and Sub-Saharan Africa.

 

In a report it released yesterday, IMF projected that the Nigerian economy
is likely to grow to 2.5 per cent, against its earlier projection of 1.5 per
cent it announced in January of 2021.

 

Nigeria's economy exited recession in the last quarter of 2020 through a
0.11 per cent gross domestic product (GDP) growth.

 

In its new World Economic Outlook update that was released yesterday, IMF
said it expected the global economy to grow by 6 per cent in 2021, up from
its 5.5% forecast in January. Looking further ahead, global GDP for 2022 is
seen increasing by 4.4 per cent, higher than the 4.2 per cent earlier
estimated.

 

The organisation based its new projects on increasing COVID-19 vaccine
rollouts. It however warned of daunting challenges, based on the different
rates of administering the vaccines across the globe.

 

"Even with high uncertainty about the path of the pandemic, a way out of
this health and economic crisis is increasingly visible," IMF chief
economist Gita Gopinath said in the Economic Outlook report.

 

Gopinath said the outlook presents daunting challenges related to
divergences in the speed of recovery both across and within countries and
the potential for persistent economic damage from the crisis.

 

On the other hand, the IMF estimated growth of 5.1 per cent for advanced
economies for 2021 was revised to be at 6.4 per cent.

 

According to the new economic forecast, emerging and developing economies'
growth would be at 6.7 per cent for 2021, with India expected to expand by
as much as 12.5 per cent.

 

Gopinath said lower levels of female employment was also exacerbating
disparities in emerging economies.

 

"Within-country income inequality will likely increase because young workers
and those with relatively lower skills remain more heavily affected in not
only advanced but also emerging markets and developing economies," he said.

 

The Fund said higher debt service costs are also expected to constrain the
ability of most emerging economies to address social needs and reduce
poverty and growing inequality,adding that about 95 million people are
likely to fall below the extreme poverty threshold during 2020-21 period.-
Leadership.

 

 

 

Ethiopia: Talks Collapse On Ethiopia's Electric Nile Dam

Sudan and Egypt have grown increasingly concerned by Ethiopia's stance
during negotiations over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. The gravity
dam on the Nile has been under construction since 2011.

 

The latest round of talks between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan over the Grand
Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) appeared to have broken down on Tuesday.

 

The three sides are all seeking to find some common ground but Egypt's
Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Ethiopia had a "lack of political
will to negotiate in good faith."

 

Hosted by the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in Kinshasa, the meeting
between the three countries' foreign ministries began on Sunday and were
extended into a third day on Tuesday.

 

To further complicate proceedings, a Congolese mediator said Sudan had
objected to the terms of a draft communique, news agency AFP reported.

"Ethiopia and Egypt accepted the terms contained in the draft final
communique. But Sudan felt that its interests in the River Nile were at
threat," the DRC source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told AFP.

 

Delegations from the three countries were hoping to find a breakthrough in
negotiations over a project Ethiopia says is key to its economic
development.

 

Grave concerns downstream

 

However, the other parties remain uncertain over the GERD. Egypt fears the
dam will endanger its supplies of Nile water, while Sudan is concerned about
the dam's safety and water flows through its own dams and water stations.

 

Egypt had said this latest meeting represented the last chance to re-start
negotiations before Ethiopia begins to fill the dam for the second year in a
row, after seasonal rains begin this summer.

Ahead of the latest round of talks, Egypt's President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi
said there would be "inconceivable instability in the region" if his
country's water supply were affected by the dam.

 

The Nile, the world's longest river by some people's calculations and one of
the two longest by anybody's, remains crucial to keeping Africa fed and
watered. Roughly 19 in 20 Egyptians live within a few kilometers of the
river's banks and rely on its water.

 

Sudan and Ethiopia at loggerheads

 

Meanwhile, Sudan's foreign minister Mariam al-Sadig al-Mahdi said on Tuesday
that Ethiopia's insistence on such unilateral moves represented a violation
of international law.

 

"Without a new approach to negotiations, there becomes space for Ethiopia to
impose a fait accompli and put all the peoples of the region in grave
danger," said al-Mahdi.

 

Sudan and Egypt agreed on a proposal to include the European Union, the
United States and the United Nations in the talks, as well as African Union
mediators.

 

But Egypt said Ethiopia rejected the proposal during the meeting, as well as
other suggestions to re-start negotiations.

 

Sudan is also in the midst of a border dispute with Ethiopia.-(Reuters, AFP)

 

 

 

Mozambique: Japan Suspends Mozambique's Debt Service

Maputo — The Japanese government has suspended the servicing of Mozambique's
debt to Japan, amounting to 92 million meticais (about 1.3 million US
dollars).

 

The suspension of the debt service covers the period from May to December
2020, and is intended to alleviate the financial burden caused to Mozambique
by the Covid-19 pandemic.

 

The debt service suspension was formalized by Foreign Minister Veronica
Macamo and the Japanese Ambassador Kimura Hajime, at a ceremony in Maputo on
Monday.

 

Speaking after the ceremony, Macamo said the suspension showed the firm
commitment of Japan in helping Mozambique consolidate its efforts to promote
rapid, sustainable and inclusive economic and social development.

 

"The measure taken by the Japanese government", she said, "meets the
concerns of our society in this period when the country is facing a
combination of challenges, including the heinous actions of terrorism, armed
violence in the centre of the country, the adversities of the Covid-19
pandemic, and the impact of climate change".

She stressed the importance of assisting the victims of terrorism in the
northern province of Cabo Delgado, including the supply of water
purification equipment, costing 4.67 million US dollars, and the supply of
technical equipment worth 1.8 million dollars to the Mozambican Maritime,
Lake and River police for operations to rescue citizens who have taken to
the sea to flee from the terrorists operating in coastal districts.

 

Hajime said that, with the money saved, Mozambique could acquire other
resources to alleviate the effects of Covid-19. He noted that Japan had, via
Unicef, granted Mozambique 745,000 dollars in April 2020 to purchase
indispensable products in the areas of medicine, water and sanitation,
required to combat the pandemic.

 

He added that Japan last year disbursed 100 million dollars to the
Catastrophe Containment and Relief Trust, run by the International Monetary
Fund (IMF), which provides debt service relief to countries hit by
catastrophic events including public health crises such as the pandemic.

 

"We are pleased that we can help Mozambique in alleviating its foreign debt
service", said the ambassador.

 

Other countries that have suspended Mozambique's debt service payments
include China and Belgium.

 

 

 

Uganda's Muted Response On Repaying U.S.$488 Million IMF Loan

Uganda appears muted on preparations for repayment of a Ush1.8 trillion
($488.7 million) loan obtained from the International Monetary Fund (IMF)
last year to counter negative economic effects caused by the coronavirus
pandemic as Parliament warms up for budget debate.

 

In a time of growing taxpayer agony, the loan facility carries a five-year
repayment period and is interest-free, according to IMF records.

 

A portion of the debt funding was allocated towards foreign currency market
interventions executed by the Central Bank during times of significant
trading volatility that often cause sharp depreciation against the local
currency.

 

Debt portfolio

 

The balance was meant to boost financial stimulus packages targeted at
struggling local businesses and healthcare services.

 

Whereas the IMF has reportedly sought clarity on developing countries' plans
to repay huge loans obtained last year, Treasury insists there are no
ongoing discussions over the matter.

"But we believe debt cancellation opportunities offered by major lenders
like the European Union and China would benefit us more than the current G20
debt service suspension initiative. We are engaging donors on ways of
reducing our debt burden," said Dr Albert Musisi, Commissioner for
macroeconomic policy in the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic
Development.

 

Concerns over Uganda's surging debt levels are likely to dominate budget
debates that commence this month following a report by the Auditor General's
Office that raised alarm about rapid growth in the country's debt portfolio
and limited ability to service its debt obligations.

 

The country's overall debt portfolio rose from $12 billion in 2018/19 to $15
billion in 2019/20 while Ush4.3 trillion ($1.2 billion) alone was borrowed
for anti-Covid-19 interventions.

 

Recent budget allocation proposals show the defence and security sector is
positioned to receive a lion's share of the 2021/22 budget in spite of
various funding cuts experienced in many sectors. Uganda registered a tax
revenue deficit of Ush1.3 trillion ($352.9 million) for the first six months
of 2020/21 according to URA data.

Proposed budgetary allocations to defence and security are expected to
increase from Ush4.4 trillion ($1.19 billion) to Ush7.17 trillion ($1.9
billion) for year 2021/22.

 

However, proposed tax measures targeting the transport sector and
individuals subjected to tax investigations have raised worries about
competitiveness in the former and human rights abuses instigated by the tax
agency.

 

"The proposed motor vehicle possession fee will create multiple taxes in the
transport industry and make it less competitive. Uganda currently charges
more than 100 per cent of the value of old cars in import duty while excise
duty levied on fuel keeps going up every year," argued Jet Tusabe, Tax
Director at BDO Uganda Office.

 

"Besides, commercial vehicles are subject to advance income tax and are
exposed to taxes imposed on spare parts. The sector directly affects the
cost of doing business in other sectors like education, leisure and
hospitality and manufacturing and any instability might push up inflation,"
Tusabe added.-East African.

 


 


 


Invest Wisely!

Bulls n Bears 

 

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Skype:         Bulls.Bears 



 

 

 


 

INVESTORS DIARY 2021

 


Company

Event

Venue

Date & Time

 


 

 

 

 

 


 

Independence Day

 

18/04/21

 


 

Public Holiday in lieu of Independence Day falling on a Sunday

 

19/04/21

 


 

Workers Day

 

01/05/21

 


FCB

AGM 

virtual

06/05/21 : 3pm

 


 

Africa Day

 

25/05/21

 


 

 

 

 

 


Companies under Cautionary

 

 

 


 

 

 

 


ART

PPC

Dairibord

 


Starafrica

Fidelity

Turnall

 


Medtech

Zimre

Nampak Zimbabwe

 


 

 

 

 


 <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) 2021 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
344 1674

 


 

 

 

 

 

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