Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 06 July 2021

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Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 06 July 2021

 


 

 


 <https://www.nedbank.co.zw/> 

 


 

 


ü  Four-day week 'an overwhelming success' in Iceland

ü  Hong Kong defends privacy law after Big Tech raises concerns

ü  Ever Given: Egypt agrees deal to release ship that blocked Suez Canal

ü  Welsh semiconductor firm bought by Chinese company

ü  Vauxhall to build electric vans at Ellesmere Port

ü  Workers can return to the office in two weeks' time

ü  Empathy bootcamp? UK banks seek payback on $105 bln COVID loans

ü  Samsung Electronics Q2 profit likely up 38% on strong chip prices

ü  Glass Lewis recommends vote against Adani director over Australian
project

ü  Coop, other ransomware-hit firms, could take weeks to recover, security
experts say

ü  Deutsche Bank launches indexes to track 21 emerging market currencies

ü  Twitter loses immunity over user-generated content in India

ü  Honda, Nissan saw China sales tumble in June

ü  Ethiopia: HPR Approves Over Half Trillion Birr Budget for Upcoming
Ethiopian Fiscal Year

ü  Nigeria: 'Nigeria Losing 200,000 Barrels of Oil Daily to Vandalism'

ü  Uganda: Only 1.5 Percent of Social Assistance Reaches Intended Targets -
IMF

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

 


 

Four-day week 'an overwhelming success' in Iceland

Trials of a four-day week in Iceland were an "overwhelming success" and led
to many workers moving to shorter hours, researchers have said.

 

The trials, in which workers were paid the same amount for shorter hours,
took place between 2015 and 2019.

 

Productivity remained the same or improved in the majority of workplaces,
researchers said.

 

A number of other trials are now being run across the world, including in
Spain and by Unilever in New Zealand.

 

In Iceland, the trials run by Reykjavík City Council and the national
government eventually included more than 2,500 workers, which amounts to
about 1% of Iceland's working population.

 

Many of them moved from a 40 hour week to a 35 or 36 hour week, researchers
from UK think tank Autonomy and the Association for Sustainable Democracy
(Alda) in Iceland said.

 

The trials led unions to renegotiate working patterns, and now 86% of
Iceland's workforce have either moved to shorter hours for the same pay, or
will gain the right to, the researchers said.

 

Workers reported feeling less stressed and at risk of burnout, and said
their health and work-life balance had improved.

 

Will Stronge, director of research at Autonomy, said: "This study shows that
the world's largest ever trial of a shorter working week in the public
sector was by all measures an overwhelming success.

 

"It shows that the public sector is ripe for being a pioneer of shorter
working weeks - and lessons can be learned for other governments."

 

Gudmundur D. Haraldsson, a researcher at Alda, said: "The Icelandic shorter
working week journey tells us that not only is it possible to work less in
modern times, but that progressive change is possible too."

 

Spain is piloting a four day working week for companies in part due to the
challenges of coronavirus.

 

And Unilever in New Zealand is also giving staff a chance to cut their hours
by 20% without hurting their pay in a trial.

 

In May, a report commissioned by the 4 Day Week campaign from Platform
London suggested that shorter hours could cut the UK's carbon footprint.-BBC

 

 

 

Hong Kong defends privacy law after Big Tech raises concerns

Hong Kong has defended planned changes to privacy laws, brushing off
concerns raised by a technology industry body.

 

The new law targets "doxxing" - the malicious act of publishing people's
personal information online.

 

But an industry group says technology giants may pull out of the city over
fears that they could become liable for user content.

 

Hong Kong's leader, Carrie Lam said officials would meet companies that are
concerned about the changes.

 

In a letter, the Singapore-based Asia Internet Coalition (AIC) - which
counts Facebook, Google, Twitter and Apple amongst its members - said the
proposed legislation was too broad.

 

"The local staff of overseas platforms in Hong Kong are not responsible for
the operations of the platforms; neither do they
have access right or
control to administer the online platform contents," the AIC said.

 

 

"The only way to avoid these sanctions for technology companies would be to
refrain from investing and offering their services in Hong Kong, thereby
depriving Hong Kong businesses and consumers, whilst also creating new
barriers to trade," the letter added.

 

The letter, which was written on 25 June and made public on Monday, was
addressed to Hong Kong's Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data.

 

In response, the government department reiterated that the changes to the
law would only concern unlawful doxxing.

 

The AIC has told the BBC that the letter does not mention individual
companies or that any one member is planning to leave Hong Kong.

 

When asked about the warning on Tuesday, Hong Kong's chief executive
dismissed the concerns.

 

"We are targeting illegal doxxing and empowering the privacy commissioners
to investigate and carry out operations, that's it," Ms Lam told reporters
at a weekly news briefing.

 

She also signalled that her government would continue to fast-track the new
legislation.

 

What are the proposed privacy law changes?

In May, Hong Kong's government announced plans to change data privacy laws
after doxxing was widely used during pro-democracy protests in 2019.

 

The tactic was used to name police officers and court officials who had
helped to crack down on protests online or worked on legal cases in which
activists were prosecuted. Journalists and protestors were also targeted.

 

The proposed changes to the laws would ban doxxing and give authorities the
power to force social media companies and websites to remove personal
information from their platforms.

 

In 1997, the former British colony of Hong Kong was returned to Chinese rule
with guarantees of continued freedoms.

 

Pro-democracy activists say those freedoms are being eroded by Beijing,
especially in the wake of a controversial national security law which was
introduced last year. China denies these allegations.

 

Google and Apple did not immediately respond to requests for comment from
the BBC. Facebook and Twitter referred the BBC to the AIC's original
letter.-BBC

 

 

 

Ever Given: Egypt agrees deal to release ship that blocked Suez Canal

Egypt will release the container ship that blocked the Suez Canal in March,
after it agreed a compensation deal with the vessel's owners and insurers.

 

The two sides said the Ever Given would be allowed on Wednesday to leave the
Great Bitter Lake, the canal's midway point, where it has been impounded.

 

The deal's terms were not revealed, but Egypt had demanded $550m (£397m).

 

The 400m-long (1,312ft) Ever Given became wedged across the canal after
running aground amid high winds.

 

It was freed six days later following a salvage operation that involved a
flotilla of tug boats and dredging vessels, and during which one person was
killed.

 

Global trade was disrupted as hundreds of ships had to wait to pass through
the 193km (120-mile) waterway, which connects the Mediterranean Sea to the
Red Sea and provides the shortest sea link between Asia and Europe.

 

UK Club, which insured the Ever Given's owner Shoei Kisen for third-party
liabilities, announced on Sunday that a "formal solution" had been agreed
with the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) to settle their dispute over
compensation.

 

"Preparations for the release of the vessel will be made and an event
marking the agreement will be held at the authority's headquarters in
Ismailia in due course," it added.

 

The SCA said the event would be held on Wednesday, and that participants
would be able to watch the ship leaving the canal.

 

Neither side disclosed the amount of compensation, but SCA chairman Osama
Rabie said it would receive a tug boat as part of the deal.

 

The SCA initially asked for $916m, including $300m for a salvage bonus and
$300m for loss of reputation. But UK Club rejected the claim, describing it
as "extraordinarily large" and "largely unsupported".

 

The SCA later lowed its demand to $550m, but the owners and insurers
reportedly offered to pay $150m.

 

Mr Rabie said in May that the Ever Given had struggled to steer and ran
aground despite the efforts of two escort tugs because it was moving at a
"very high" speed and its rudder's size "was not appropriate".

 

UK Club said that while the Ever Given's owners and insurers "fully
acknowledge that the SCA is entitled to compensation for their legitimate
claims arising out of this incident", they were concerned by the
allegations.

 

"It is important to clarify that whilst the master is ultimately responsible
for the vessel, navigation in the canal transit within a convoy is
controlled by the Suez Canal pilots and SCA vessel traffic management
services. Such controls include the speed of the transit and the
availability of escort tugs."

 

The value of the goods inside the Ever Given's 18,000 containers has been
estimated at $775m. They include products for large multinational companies
like Chinese PC manufacturer Lenovo and Swedish furniture giant Ikea, as
well as those for smaller businesses like UK-based clothing company Snuggy
and bicycle maker Pearson 1860.-BBC

 

 

 

Welsh semiconductor firm bought by Chinese company

A Newport factory which produces microchips has been bought by a Chinese
company.

 

Newport Wafer Fab is an electronics firm which produces semiconductors and
employs 450 people at its site in Tredegar Park.

 

It has been bought by Nexperia - which already has a site in Manchester.

 

Dr Drew Nelson, Newport Wafer Fab's outgoing chairman, said the deal was a
"key part" of the industry in south Wales.

 

Nexperia is a Chinese owned company with headquarters in the Netherlands.

 

Production at the Tredegar Park area began in the 1980s when it originally
made silicon chips.

 

How the semiconductor shortage is hitting Playstation and Xbox

Can Europe supercharge semiconductor production?

It now makes silicon semiconductors and is developing into compound
semiconductors, which are smaller and carry more information faster than
silicon.

 

The site is a member of the CSconnected group of Welsh organisations,
including Cardiff and Swansea Universities, which wants to make Wales a
world technology leader.

 

In 2017, the 10 councils that make up the Cardiff Capital Region announced
£38 million for a facility, or foundry, in Newport to make compound
semiconductors which go into robotics, 5G and driverless cars.

 

The aim is to create 2,000 highly skilled jobs in five years .

 

Dr Nelson said the deal for the Wafer Fab site helped secure its future, and
semiconductor production in Wales.-BBC

 

 

 

Vauxhall to build electric vans at Ellesmere Port

The owner of car brand Vauxhall is expected to announce plans to build
electric vans at its Ellesmere Port plant in Cheshire.

 

The investment, said to be worth hundreds of millions of pounds, would
safeguard more than 1,000 factory jobs.

 

The future of the plant has been in doubt after Vauxhall's parent company,
Stellantis, scrapped plans to build its new Astra model there.

 

Details of the plans are set to be revealed at press conference later.

 

Stellantis has held discussions with the UK government over options for its
Cheshire factory and it is known the company is seeking financial support
for its plans.

 

Carlos Tavares, head of Stellantis, previously warned that the company would
no longer invest in pure diesel or petrol cars at the plant, and said a
decision on where it would build electric vehicles would depend on the UK
government's support of the car sector.

 

Sales of vans have been booming during the pandemic, as a result of growing
home delivery sales.Vauxhall's Luton plant is currently operating at full
capacity so Stellantis wants to expand production at Ellesmere Port to serve
the UK market.

 

Like other manufacturers it is also preparing for an all-electric future.
The UK will ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars from 2030, with other
European countries setting similar targets.

 

Last week, Japanese carmaker Nissan announced an expansion of electric
vehicle production at its car plant in Sunderland which will create 1,650
new jobs.

 

Short-term fix?

Professor David Bailey, an economist at Birmingham Business School, told the
BBC's Today programme that Vauxhall's plans would support jobs in the short
term, but there was a question over how sustainable they would make
Ellesmere Port.

 

"There is there is no [Stellantis electric vehicle] battery plant being
built in the UK... so if batteries are being brought in from France and
elsewhere, that's going to add to costs and it's going leave Ellesmere Port
as a relatively high-cost location," he said.

 

"[Building one in the UK] would really anchor vehicle production at
Stellantis at Ellesmere Port and Luton in the UK.

 

"Longer term we're going to need a lot of batteries in the UK and we will
need battery plants to keep mass car and vehicle production here."

 

Stellantis is currently building two battery plants, one in France and one
in Germany, and is looking to establish a third, rumoured to be in Italy.

 

The outlook for the British automotive industry is certainly a lot rosier
now than it was just a few months ago.

 

Without investment in new products every few years, car plants die; and the
ageing factory at Ellesmere Port has long been regarded as particularly
vulnerable.

 

Earlier this year Carlos Tavares, the acerbic chief executive of Vauxhall's
parent company Stellantis, made it very clear that investment would only
arrive if the government itself were prepared to support the industry.

 

It appears the government has done just that, with both Nissan, and later
today Stellantis itself, pledging to spend serious amounts of money
developing electric vehicles here as a result.

 

But there's a long way to go to secure the future of car manufacturing, as
it prepares for an all-electric future. After years of uncertainty over the
outcome of Brexit, which made carmakers reluctant to commit to new plans,
the UK is still playing catch-up.

 

So while the news from Nissan and Vauxhall has been widely welcomed, people
within the sector agree that much more is needed.

 

line

Stellantis is the world's fifth-largest carmaker and also owns Peugeot, Fiat
and Chrysler.

 

Ellesmere Port, acquired by Vauxhall Motors in 1957 from the Royal Auxiliary
Air Force, initially developed the site as a sub-assembly and engine
production line for its Dunstable and Luton factories

 

Employment peaked at the site in 1975, with 12,000 people on staff.-BBC

 

 

 

Workers can return to the office in two weeks' time

Workers will be able to return to the office after 19 July when Covid
restrictions are due to end, Boris Johnson has said.

 

Government guidance that people who can work from home should, is set to end
with other restrictions.

 

Some firms said they were looking forward to "seeing our great towns and
cities fill up again".

 

However, human resources body CIPD said the removal of restrictions
"shouldn't signal a mass return to workplaces".

 

Many office workers have worked predominantly from home since the first
lockdown in March last year.

 

The guidance changed briefly in August last year, when rates of the virus
were low, and the government ran an ad campaign to encourage people back
into the workplace.

 

Almost all Covid restrictions are expected to go in two weeks' time, and it
will then be up to employers to determine whether their staff should be in
the office.

 

The Centre for Cities think tank said the number of people back in their
place of work across the UK's largest towns and cities was still just a
quarter of what it was pre-pandemic.

 

Centre for Cities' Paul Swinney said the lack of people working in offices
had been a "real challenge" for shops, cafes and pubs who used to depend on
office workers for business.

 

"The change to the 'back to the office' advice will doubtless be good news
for them, but a question mark remains over how many workers will return now
restrictions have lifted," he said.

 

David Abrahamovitch, founder of Grind coffee shops, said the relaxation on
office-working rules was "very much welcomed".

 

He previously said the four-week delay to restrictions ending "killed the
summer" for his London-based coffee shops, which rely on commuters for
business.

 

"We are looking forward to seeing more people back in the city," he said. "I
hope lots of companies will follow the lead of those such as Apple and
mandate a return to the office for at least three days per week."

 

Almost all of 50 of the UK's biggest employers previously told the BBC they
do not plan to bring staff back to the office full-time.

 

Some 43 of the firms said they would embrace so-called hybrid working, a mix
of home and office working, with staff encouraged to work from home two to
three days a week.

 

Major city banks are adopting different working approaches. Goldman Sachs
has told staff to be ready to return to the workplace in July, while
NatWest's new working model could see just 13% of staff in the office
full-time.

 

The Bank of England has asked its staff to work at least one day a week from
its offices from September.

 

Joanna Place, the bank's chief operating officer, said it was expecting over
time staff would spend three or four days a week on average in the office
and one or two days working from home.

 

"My own personal view is that the pull of the office might be a bit bigger
than we anticipate," she said.

 

'Give confidence to workers'

Peter Cheese, chief executive of the CIPD, said a return to the office
should be "down to individual organisations consulting with their people to
agree working arrangements".

 

"'Freedom Day' shouldn't signal a mass return to workplaces, but it could
signal the start of greater freedom and flexibility in how, when and where
people work," he added.

 

Mr Cheese said regardless of the changes in guidance, employers should
continue to put in place measures to "give confidence to workers that their
workplace is safe", such as spacing out desks and implementing one-way
systems.

 

"Businesses shouldn't rush to simply revert to how they used to work, now we
have experience and evidence that it can be done differently," he said.

 

"People generally want a mix of workplace and home working. Employers should
be trying to understand and support individuals' preferences over more
flexible working arrangements where possible, balanced with meeting the
needs of the business."

 

Alistair Elliott, a senior partner at Knight Frank, said the estate agent
"wholeheartedly" welcomed the lifting of working from home guidance.

 

"While this was imperative at the beginning of the pandemic, we look forward
to seeing our great towns and cities fill up again, bringing all the
benefits that the best collaborative workplaces create," he added.

 

Richard Burge, chief executive of London Chamber of Commerce and Industry,
said businesses would welcome being able to increase their capacity or
"kickstart their chosen future ways of working plans".

 

"For London this is all hugely significant and is a further placing of the
'open for business' sign on the front door," he added.

 

However, Mr Burge said he wanted to hear "clarity regarding face covering
usage" on London's transport network.

 

"Confidence in public transport is key to both commuter and visitor return
to London," he said.

 

"Ultimately, the answer is yes" - your employer can tell you to work from
the office, according to Shah Qureshi, partner and head of employment at law
firm Irwin Mitchel.

 

However, Mr Qureshi adds that under the Health and Safety at Work Act,
"employers have an obligation to ensure that there is a safe working
environment, a safe workplace, to which an employee returns", which is
irrespective of whether restrictions are abolished on 19 July.

 

So although all coronavirus restrictions are set to end on 19 July, measures
put in place by companies could still include spacing desks out, enforcing
one-way walking systems and ensuring adequate sanitary facilities, to make
sure their offices are safe.

 

"There is an obligation to return to the office where an employer requires
you to do so, and your normal workplace is the office, but there is a duty
of care that the employer has to ensure that everything is safe as far as
possible," said Mr Qureshi.

 

"The duty of care [from employers] still remains and has always been there,"
he added.

 

Mr Qureshi added that as the law currently stands, there is no legal right
for employees to work from home.-BBC

 

 

 

Empathy bootcamp? UK banks seek payback on $105 bln COVID loans

(Reuters) - As payback time approaches for more than 75 billion pounds ($104
billion) of emergency state-backed loans, Britain's banks must tread a
delicate path with businesses propped up during the pandemic.

 

Faced with trying to limit losses for themselves and taxpayers but also
avoid a repeat of the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, when banks
were vilified and forced to pay millions of pounds in redress for heavy
handed debt repayment tactics, lenders are pledging that this time will be
different.

 

With the first COVID loan repayments now falling due, Britain's four biggest
banks have hired more than 750 debt collection experts between them and
training is being given on how to handle customers sensitively.

 

"We did bootcamp training to make sure they're all ready to go," said Hannah
Bernard, head of business banking at Barclays.

 

As one of the first major markets to begin collecting state-backed loans
from the pandemic, the world will be watching how Britain's banks fare.

 

The government's early estimate was that losses on the most popular bounce
back loan scheme that enabled small businesses to borrow up to 50,000 pounds
with few questions asked – could be up to 60%, when taking into account
credit problems and fraud.

 

While the loans are either 100% or 80% guaranteed by the government -
limiting the potential financial pain for banks - they must make all efforts
to collect before the state pays up and some bankers said those costs could
mean they make an overall loss on the scheme.

 

HANDLING DISPUTES

 

So far, senior bankers interviewed by Reuters said cases of outright fraud
seem to be lower than expected. There are also schemes allowing most
borrowers to extend payments, but evidence of disputes with borrowers are
emerging.

 

Social media posts from disgruntled customers, interviews with small
businesses, and copies of letters sent by banks to customers and seen by
Reuters show some borrowers are unhappy with their treatment.

 

"This will be a big test of 2008 proportions," lawmaker and chair of the
all-party group for fair business banking Kevin Hollinrake said. "I'm very
concerned, as warm words from the banks
 from the top haven't always been
mirrored by actions at the coalface."

 

One doctor in the National Health Service, who took out a bounce back loan
for a private practice, told Reuters after he ticked a box on an HSBC form
asking if he was experiencing financial hardship, he was dismayed to see the
hoped-for extension declined and the bank immediately took full payment.

 

HSBC said it had tried to contact the customer three times through various
channels, and that its online forms made clear that ticking the box would
automatically exclude a deferral.

 

Other bank customers have had the full 50,000 pounds loan amount demanded
back within 14 days and been told they made mistakes in the application or
were never eligible in the first place, according to copies of letters sent
to them and reviewed by Reuters.

 

Bankers said abrupt treatment and demands for immediate repayment would only
happen in cases of suspected fraud. They do not want to risk undoing the
perception of Britain's banks having had a 'good crisis'.

 

Out of an initial wave of around 60,000 bounce back loans that have come due
for repayment at NatWest, only a single-digit percentage have failed the
first payment, said Andrew Harrison, interim head of business banking.

 

Yet the removal of hundreds of bank branches in recent years will not help
in any dispute resolution, business leaders said.

 

"As more firms start to struggle this is the moment when the bank should be
the sound adviser and I don't think businesses look at them that way, it was
all done by algorithms, so there are no relationships," said Richard Burge,
chief executive of the London Chamber of Commerce.

 

'EMPATHY TRAINING'

 

The real pain may be yet to come.

 

"We shouldn't underestimate the continued high level of government support,
and after it is turned off the question is how many businesses can really
survive," NatWest's Harrison said.

 

The bank, which has renamed its 'debt management operations' unit 'financial
health and support', has hired an extra 150 debt collection staff, he said,
and used behavioural science techniques to better understand the reading
abilities of customers and strip out jargon.

 

HSBC has likewise hired around 200 extra staff and trained them to empathise
with customers, the lender's head of commercial banking Amanda Murphy said.

 

"What we are better at now, and it's not just banks but I think society, is
understanding more about vulnerability, the stresses people have and the
connection between one's business and personal life," she said.

 

"If someone is telling you 'I've come to the end of my tether', that's not
just a phrase," Murphy said.

 

Staff have been trained on how to handle and refer such cases to specialist
teams, as well as making customers aware of independent third party
resources, she said.

 

CRACKS APPEAR

 

With plans for an industry-wide collections body having collapsed, banks
will face scrutiny on how they collect loans, and in some cases how much
they charged.

 

The bulk of loans were awarded at low interest rates making debt relatively
easy for firms to service - including bounce back loans fixed at 2.5% - but
there was a significant chunk granted under other schemes with no fixed
price.

 

More than 3 billion pounds of funds for nearly 17,000 businesses were
charged at double-digit interest rates, according to figures obtained under
a Freedom of Information request by anonymous small business campaigner Mr
Bounce Back.

 

These higher rates were mainly charged by non-bank lenders unable to benefit
from cheap Bank of England funding.

 

Business banking account provider Tide recently told small business
customers it would not provide payment deferrals on bounce back loans
because it couldn't afford to, Reuters reported.

 

"We really wanted to help and are as disappointed as anyone," said Oliver
Prill, CEO of Tide, who urged the BoE to open up its cheap funding to
non-banks.

 

As the industry largely succeeded in getting money quickly to businesses
that needed it, the challenge now is to avoid undoing all that good work
through the collections process.

 

"No bank wants the reputation that the industry had 13 years ago, nobody
wants that," said HSBC's Murphy.

 

The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

 

Samsung Electronics Q2 profit likely up 38% on strong chip prices

(Reuters) - Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) likely saw a 38% surge in
profit for the April-June quarter thanks to strong chip prices and demand
spurred by a pandemic-led consumer appetite for electronics as well as
recovering investment in data centres.

 

Operating profit for the world's biggest memory chip and smartphone maker
likely jumped to 11.3 trillion won ($10 billion), according to a Refinitiv
SmartEstimate drawn from 20 analysts and weighted toward those who are more
consistently accurate.

 

The South Korean tech giant's strong performance - coming despite it
shipping fewer smartphones than in January-March - underscores the
stratospheric demand for chips that has depleted stockpiles and filled
production capacity.

 

The result would be up 20% from the first quarter and mark Samsung's highest
operating income for the second quarter since 2018. Revenue likely rose
15.4%.

 

Samsung is scheduled to announce preliminary second-quarter results on
Wednesday.

 

The company's chip division likely benefited from memory chip price hikes
that exceeded market estimates, analysts said, while shipments grew as well.

 

Prices of DRAM chips, widely used in servers, mobile phones and other
computing devices, jumped 27% compared to the March quarter, while those of
NAND flash chips that serve the data storage market rose 8.6%, according to
research provider Trendforce.

 

Profit also improved at Samsung's chip-contract manufacturing and logic chip
design business, partly because operations at its storm-hit Texas factory
returned to normal, analysts said.

 

They estimated the chip division's operating profit in April-June rose about
22% from the year-earlier period to about 6.6 trillion won.

 

Still, Samsung's smartphone shipments dropped to about 59 million in
April-June from about 76 million in the first quarter, according to
Shinyoung Investment & Securities, as sales slowed for its latest flagship
model, launched in mid-January.

 

Reduced demand from India, hard hit by the pandemic during the quarter, as
well as tight supply for some mobile processor chips may also have affected
shipments, analysts said, estimating the mobile business' operating profit
at about 2.9 trillion won.

 

($1 = 1,129.2800 won)

 

The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

 

Glass Lewis recommends vote against Adani director over Australian project

(Reuters) - Proxy advisory firm Glass Lewis has recommended shareholders in
Adani Enterprises Ltd (ADEL.NS) vote out a member of the board's risk
committee.

 

Glass Lewis said it was making the recommendation after an Australian court
in August found that Adani Abbot Point Terminal Pty Ltd, a coal export
terminal in the state of Queensland, engaged in monopolistic business
practices. It awarded four companies that used the terminal a combined A$107
million ($80.7 million).

 

An Adani spokesperson said, however, that the Abbot Point Terminal was a
separate company, and was not part of Adani Enterprises. The port operator
is owned by Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSE.NS).

 

The nominee, Pranav Adani, is the sole member of the Adani Enterprises' risk
committee up for re-election at its annual general meeting on July 12.

 

Adani Enterprises' Australian unit, Bravus Mining & Resources, is developing
the Carmichael mine in Queensland to sell thermal coal to India - a
controversial project due to concerns about global warming. The coal will be
transported via the Abbot Point Terminal.

 

($1 = 1.3259 Australian dollars)

 

The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

 

Coop, other ransomware-hit firms, could take weeks to recover, security
experts say

(Reuters) - Computer systems of several companies across the world,
including 800 physical grocery stores of Sweden's Coop, that were shut down
after attacked by REvil ransomware could take weeks to recover, cyber
security experts said.

 

Hackers from the REvil cybercrime gang compromised systems of IT firm Kaseya
and malware trickled down to its resellers and reached end customers such as
Coop who used its software.

 

The ransomware locked data in encrypted files and late on Sunday hackers
demanded $70 million to restore the data. read more

 

The REvil actors had claimed that a million machines were compromised, said
Mark Loman, director of engineering at cybersecurity firm Sophos.

 

"Depending on how big your business is and if you have backups, it can take
weeks before you have restored everything, and as the supermarkets in Sweden
have been impacted, they can lose a lot of food and revenue," he said.

 

Coop's grocery store chain had to close hundreds of stores on Saturday
because its cash registers are run by Visma Esscom, which manages servers
for a number of Swedish businesses and in turn uses Kaseya.

 

"We have stopped the attack and we are now restarting our systems," a Coop
spokesperson said.

 

"We are recovering the systems and have now technicians who are visiting all
of the affected stores to recover the data systems," they added.

 

Visma Esscom did not respond to requests for comment.

 

While many Coop stores remained closed on Monday, some stores have opened
their doors and were allowing customers to pay by using an app called "Scan
and Pay."

 

"I don't think we have seen anything this large scale before," said Anders
Nilsson, chief technology officer at ESET Nordics. "This is the first time
we are seeing a grocery not been able to process payments and this shows how
vulnerable we are."

 

To fix the issues, Coop's payment provider needs to physically go to all
stores and restore payment machines manually from backups.

 

As is routine, the hackers created a channel for negotiating with the
victims of the ransomware attack.

 

Speaking in this online chatroom, which Reuters was able to access, a
representative for a REvil affiliate said the hackers had no regrets about
forcing Coop to close.

 

"It's nothing more than a business," the representative told Reuters when
asked about the impact of shutting supermarkets in Sweden.

 

The representative said that while the gang was seeking $70 million to
restore all the data from all the victims, "we are always ready to
negotiate."

 

ESET's Nilsson said, "It doesn't really matter if they pay or not, they are
still going to take time to restore all the machines."

 

Colonial Pipeline faced an extortion attack earlier this year, causing a
shutdown lasting several days. The company paid the hackers nearly $5
million to regain access.

 

"Paying a ransom is just putting the fire out but it will not make your
environment more secure," said David Jacoby, deputy director at Kaspersky.

 

"The companies should not pay the ransom, because we don't want to encourage
cyber criminals that this is something that's profitable."

 

The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

 

 

Deutsche Bank launches indexes to track 21 emerging market currencies

(Reuters) - German lender Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE) said on Tuesday it
launched a new set of foreign exchange (FX) indexes to track 21 emerging
market (EM) currencies, indicating a growing relevance and importance of
developing markets in the global economy.

 

The set of four new non-tradable FX indexes would track EMs that have over
the past couple of decades seen increased global investment inflows, growing
proportion of government debt issuance, and a significant jump in
transaction volumes in FX.

 

"The new indices track both spot and carry performance of 21 emerging market
currencies, serving as a comprehensive set of barometers for EM investors
tracking FX," Deutsche Bank EM strategist Oliver Harvey said in a statement.

 

The Thomson Reuters

 

 

 

Twitter loses immunity over user-generated content in India

(Reuters) - Twitter Inc (TWTR.N) no more enjoys liability protection against
user-generated content in India as the U.S. microblogging giant has failed
to comply with new IT rules, the Indian government said in a court filing.

 

The statement is the first time Prime Minister Narendra Modi's
administration has officially said Twitter has lost its immunity after
repeatedly criticising the company for non-compliance.

 

The dispute and the public spat has raised concern that American firms will
find it difficult to do business amid a more stringent regulatory
environment.

 

India's IT ministry told the High Court in New Delhi that Twitter's
non-compliance amounted to a breach of the provisions of the IT Act, causing
the U.S. firm to lose its immunity, according to the filing dated July 5.

 

The filing came in a case filed by a Twitter user who wanted to complain
about some allegedly defamatory tweets on the platform, and said the company
was not complying with the new law that requires appointment of certain new
executives.

 

Twitter declined to comment. The company has previously said it was making
all efforts to comply.

 

India's new IT rules which became effective end-May are aimed at regulating
content on social media firms and making them more accountable to legal
requests for swift removal of posts and sharing details on the originators
of messages.

 

Technology minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has slammed Twitter for deliberately
defying the law and said all social media firms must abide by the new rules.

 

In recent weeks, as acrimony grew between New Delhi and Twitter, Indian
police have filed at least five cases against the company or its officials,
including some related to child pornography and a controversial map of India
on its career page.

 

Police in two Indian states have named Twitter India chief Manish Maheshwari
in complaints. Separately, the state of Uttar Pradesh has challenged in the
Supreme Court a bar on police action against Maheshwari, after a lower court
protected him against arrest over an accusation that the platform was used
to spread hate.

 

The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

 

 

Honda, Nissan saw China sales tumble in June

(Reuters) - Japanese automakers Honda Motor (7267.T) and Nissan Motor
(7201.T) saw their sales in China tumble in June as overall sales in the
world's biggest car market decline.

 

Honda sold 118,168 cars in China in June, down 17% from a year earlier.
Nissan said in a statement that it sold 114,605 vehicles in China last
month, down 16.3%.

 

The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) said on Monday that
it expects vehicle sales in China to hit 1.93 million units in June, down
16.3% from a year earlier. read more

 

Separately, General Motors Co (GM.N), which only reports quarterly China
sales, said it sold over 750,000 between April and June, up 5.2% from the
same period last year.

 

The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

 

 

Ethiopia: HPR Approves Over Half Trillion Birr Budget for Upcoming Ethiopian
Fiscal Year

Addis Ababa — The House of People's Representatives (HPR) has approved 561.7
billion Birr budget for the Ethiopian Fiscal Year 2014.

 

Responding to questions posed by members of the House of People's
Representatives (HPR) about the budget today, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed
emphasized the need for increasing productivity in key sectors and
mobilizing domestic financial resources for better earnings instead of
solely depending on the limited budget alloted.

 

The budget allocated for sustainable development programs has doubled from 6
billion Birr to 12 billion Birr while subsidy to regions increased by 15
percent when compared to the closing budget, he added.

 

Revenues, Budget and Finance Standing Committee Chairperson, Yayesh
Tesfayehun said the budget bill has focused on mobilizing domestic financial
resources, including taxation, with plans to use the obtained finance for
prioritized areas.

 

Out of the total 561.7 billion Birr budget, 162 billion Birr is allocated to
recurrent budget, 183.5 billion Birr to capital expenditure, 203.95 billion
Birr for subsidy to regions and city administrations, and 12 billion Birr to
sustainable development, the chairperson explained.

 

The approved budget has shown 18 percent increase as compared to the just
concluded fiscal year, she noted.

 

The Council of Ministers approved the budget bill for the 2014 Ethiopian
Fiscal Year and referred it to HPR for approval.-ENA.

 

 

 

Nigeria: 'Nigeria Losing 200,000 Barrels of Oil Daily to Vandalism'

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has said an
average of 200,000 barrels were lost per day due to pipeline damage.

 

Mohammed who disclosed this at a Town Hall Meeting on Protecting Oil and Gas
Infrastructure in Abuja on Monday, also said N60 billion is spent annually
to repair and maintain vandalised oil and gas points.

 

The Ministers of Environment, Mohammad Abubakar, Niger Delta Affairs,
Godswill Akpabio as well as Minister of State Petroleum Resources, Timipreye
Sylva represented by the Group Managing Director of NNPC, Mela Kyari were
panelists at the event.

 

Statistics revealed that between January 2019 and September 2020, 1,161
pipeline points across the country were vandalised.

 

"Apart from the impact on the nation's earnings, consider also the
environmental problems caused by the incessant vandalism, in terms of
freshwater pollution, air pollution, soil pollution etc., you will
appreciate the enormity of the problem," the minister said.

 

He said with oil providing 80 per cent of Nigeria's budgetary revenues and
95 per cent of foreign exchange earnings, the impact of the incessant
destruction of oil pipelines on the economy humongous. (NAN)-Daily Trust.

 

 

 

Uganda: Only 1.5 Percent of Social Assistance Reaches Intended Targets - IMF

Only 1.5 per cent of close to $281m that is allocated to social assistance
for the vulnerable population reaches intended targets in Uganda, according
to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

 

At least 22 per cent of Ugandans, which translates to more than 8.3 million
people, according to Uganda Bureau of Statistics, are classified as
vulnerable but more than 76 per cent or more than 6.3 million never access
social assistance.

 

The low access, the IMF says, makes Uganda an outlier in effective social
support compared to other East African member states whose allocations
average 11.4 per cent.

Uganda only allocates 0.8 per cent of its gross domestic product, which
translates to $281m towards social assistance in various programmes to
support a sea of needy people.

 

Therefore, the IMF noted, there is need for government to strengthen social
assistance programmes and improve targeted assistance through a broad-based
approach that is infused in tax policy measures with focus put on mobilising
more money in taxes to expand social assistance.

 

Government extends social assistance to vulnerable Ugandans through a number
of programmes including Social Assistance Grants for Empowerment (SAGE),
Uganda Women Entrepreneurship Programme, Expanding Social Protection,
Community Rehabilitation Programme for the Disabled and Youth Livelihood
Programme, among others.

 

However, implementation of such programmes is hindered by lack of empirical
data on targeted individuals, which makes it almost impossible for
government to sufficiently extend social assistance.

Additionally, such funds are diverted to other programmes that in most cases
have no any single attachment to the vulnerable poor.

 

It should also be noted that there is lack of effective planning, which in
most cases means that money is allocated to non-essential programmes such as
conferences, travel and sensitisation.

 

Social assistance and protection programmes are mainly managed under the
Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development complemented by other
programmes such as Operation Wealth Creation and recently Emyooga.

 

However, such programmes have over the years delivered dismal performance,
failing to reach intended targets.

 

This is largely in part due to poor planning and low allocations that is
mostly informed by low domestic revenue mobilisation.

 

Therefore, in its report, the IMF noted that Uganda must find ways of
improving domestic revenue mobilisation in order to support critical
programmes such as social assistance.

 

Most social assistance programmes under the Ministry of Gender, Labour and
Social Development are donor funded.

 

Increase in vulnerability

 

The IMF report comes at a time when there is urgent need for increased
social assistance due to a number of vulnerabilities that have resulted from
Covid-19. A recent Household Survey by Uganda Bureau of Statistics indicated
that Covid-19 had in only one year forced at least 300,000 Ugandans into
poverty with the number of income poverty worsening from 19 per cent to 22
per cent. The survey indicated that the number of poor Ugandans had by the
end of 2020 increased from eight million to 8.3m with majority of these
living in Busoga, Bukedi and Acholi sub-regions.-Monitor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 


 


Invest Wisely!

Bulls n Bears 

 

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INVESTORS DIARY 2021

 


Company

Event

Venue

Date & Time

 


 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 


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.

 


 

 


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