Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 29 October 2021

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Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 29 October 2021

 


 

 


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

 


 

 


ü  Facebook changes its name to Meta in major rebrand

ü  Squid Game cryptocurrency soars 2300% in first few days

ü  Amazon to pay billions to prevent Christmas shortages

ü  US growth slows to just 2% as Delta hits economy

ü  China rations diesel amid fuel shortages

ü  Tax burden to rise by £3,000 per family, warns think tank

ü  The British twins who set up a black-founded $1bn 'unicorn'

ü  The African tech firm hoping to power space missions

ü  Halloween scare on markets

ü  Thousands gear up for tech blowout in Lisbon in test of new normal

ü  Easier cartel rules for packaging, logistics companies, EU's Vestager
says

ü  Britain could board more French boats in fishing dispute - UK minister

ü  Japan PM Kishida's pledge to review quarterly disclosure may take years

ü  BNP beats Q3 expectations, launches 900 mln euro share buyback

ü  Brexit: French Agriculture Minister says no progress in fishing talks
with UK

 

 

 

 

 

 


 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

 


 

Facebook changes its name to Meta in major rebrand

Facebook has changed its corporate name to Meta as part of a major rebrand.

 

The company said it would better "encompass" what it does, as it broadens
its reach beyond social media into areas like virtual reality (VR).

 

The change does not apply to its individual platforms, such as Facebook,
Instagram and Whatsapp, only the parent company that owns them.

 

The move follows a series of negative stories about Facebook, based on
documents leaked by an ex-employee.

 

Frances Haugen has accused the company of putting "profits over safety".

 

In 2015, Google restructured its company calling its parent firm Alphabet,
however, the name has not caught on.

 

Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg announced the new name as he unveiled plans to
build a "metaverse" - an online world where people can game, work and
communicate in a virtual environment, often using VR headsets.

 

He said the existing brand could not "possibly represent everything that
we're doing today, let alone in the future", and needed to change.

 

"Over time, I hope that we are seen as a metaverse company and I want to
anchor our work and our identity on what we're building towards," he told a
virtual conference.

 

"We're now looking at and reporting on our business as two different
segments, one for our family of apps, and one for our work on future
platforms.

 

"And as part of this, it is time for us to adopt a new company brand to
encompass everything that we do, to reflect who we are and what we hope to
build."

 

The company also unveiled a new sign at its headquarters in Menlo Park,
California, on Thursday, replacing its thumbs-up "Like" logo with a blue
infinity shape.

 

Mr Zuckerberg said the new name reflects that over time, users will not need
to use Facebook to use the company's other services.

 

The word "meta" comes from the Greek word meaning "beyond".

 

To an outsider, a metaverse may look like a version of VR, but some people
believe it could be the future of the internet.

 

Instead of being on a computer, people in a metaverse might use a headset to
enter a virtual world connecting all sorts of digital environments.

 

It is hoped the virtual world could be used for practically anything from
work, play and concerts, to socialising with friends and family.

 

Facebook said it intends to start trading its shares under the new stock
ticker MVRS from 1 December.

 

Leaked documents

The company has had multiple hits to its reputation, with The Washington
Post today reporting that Facebook withheld important information about
vaccine misinformation from policymakers during the pandemic.

 

It was the latest in a series of stories based on internal documents leaked
by ex-employee Ms Haugen to the media. Among other things, the reports have
claimed Facebook sat on research that showed Instagram harmed teenage mental
health, and struggled to remove hate speech from its platforms outside the
US.

 

Mr Zuckerberg has described the reports as a "coordinated effort to
selectively use leaked documents to paint a false picture of our company".

 

Trying to name a company is difficult. Zuckerberg says he's chosen Meta,
because of its meaning in Greek - "beyond". It also alludes to the
"Metaverse", an online virtual oasis that he wants to build.

 

Here's why Facebook, might have a problem with getting everyone to call them
Meta.

 

Firstly, the move looks like Facebook is trying to divert attention away
from the trove of negative stories hanging around the company. Critics
believe Facebook has done this because the brand has become toxic. We've
already seen Senators ignore the name change, with one describing the move
as "cosmetic".

 

Secondly, the "Metaverse" doesn't yet exist. Zuckerberg was keen to stress
it was a long-term product. So having a name totally unrelated to your main
offering is perhaps a little
strange. Almost all of Facebook's revenue comes
from advertising from Facebook and Instagram.

 

And thirdly, we know that other Big Tech rebrands have failed. Almost no one
refers to Google as "Alphabet", the name it rebranded itself to in 2015.

 

What is clear is that running Instagram and Facebook is no longer Mr
Zuckerberg's passion. He is interested in creating virtual worlds, that he
thinks will transform the human experience. The constant criticism of how he
runs his social media companies must be draining. This restructure may give
him the ability to focus more on the segments of the company that excite
him.

 

The division makes sense in that respect. However, we'll have to wait and
see whether people will go along with it.

 

-BBC

 

 

Squid Game cryptocurrency soars 2300% in first few days

If you're a fan wanting to express your devotion to the hit Korean Netflix
show Squid Game - well, there's a cryptocurrency for that.

 

Squid, which was trading around 1 cent on Tuesday, reached $2.34 (£1.70) on
Friday - a more than twenty-fold jump.

 

Its market capitalisation, or total volume in the market, is $184m (£133m).

 

The dystopian series - which tells the story of a group of people forced to
play deadly children's games for money - has become a viral sensation.

 

Squid is what is known as a "play-to-earn" cryptocurrency, where people buy
tokens to play in online games where they can earn more tokens. These can
then be exchanged for other cryptocurrencies or fiat money.

 

In the case of Squid, many buyers will be gamers looking to play in an
online game of the program, which begins in November.

 

"The more people join, the larger reward pool will be (sic)," according to
the platform's whitepaper, which says developers will take 10% of the entry
fee with the remaining 90% given to the winner.

 

"More importantly, we do not provide deadly consequences apparently!"

 

Individual rounds have costs to join - for example, playing Round 1: Red
Light, Green Light will cost a player 456 Squid - with six rounds in total
that get more expensive as they go along.

 

"This cryptocurrency joins a long and growing list of digital coins and
tokens that piggyback on random memes or cultural phenomena," Cornell
University economist Eswar Prasad told the BBC.

 

"Remarkably, many such coins rapidly catch investors' fancy, leading to
wildly inflated valuations. Naïve retail investors who get caught up in such
speculative frenzies face the risk of substantial losses."

 

Play-to-earn games: the future of gaming?

Play-to-earn games have grown increasingly popular during the pandemic as
the surge in online gaming encouraged the development of the GameFi
technology sector which combines entertainment with real tools for earning
money.

 

The metaverse is expected to help this sector develop even further.

 

It's not just crypto traders that have benefited from Squid Game's
popularity.

 

Netflix's subscriptions saw a bounce when the program was released.
According to Bloomberg, the Korean series is thought to be worth some $900m
to the streaming giant, after costing just $21.4m to make.-BBC

 

 

 

Amazon to pay billions to prevent Christmas shortages

Amazon has said it will spend several billion dollars to manage labour
shortages and supply chain issues in the run up to Christmas.

 

The online retail giant said it was doing "whatever it takes to minimise the
impact" on customers and sellers.

 

The warning came as it revealed its net income had dropped to $3.2bn
(£2.3bn) in the third quarter, compared to £6.3bn in 2020.

 

However, the company said net sales increased 15% to $110.8 billion.

 

Andy Jassy, chief executive, said Amazon expected to "incur several billion
dollars of additional costs" as it managed through "labour supply shortages,
increased wage costs, global supply chain issues, and increased freight and
shipping costs".

 

"It'll be expensive for us in the short term, but it's the right
prioritisation for our customers and partners," he added.

 

"We've always said that when confronted with the choice between optimising
for short-term profits versus what's best for customers over the long term,
we will choose the latter - and you can see that during every phase of this
pandemic."

 

Businesses across the world have been grappling with shortages and issues
with supply chains as economies have rebooted following coronavirus
lockdowns.

 

A global chip shortage is causing delays on the production lines of many
products - including cars, washing machines, and smartphones - due to supply
not keeping up with demand.

 

Surging demand for goods, including those sold by Amazon, has led to
increased congestion at ports in many countries, with retailers sounding the
alarm bell that deliveries for the holiday season could be delayed.

 

In California in the US, there have been record-breaking queues of container
ships outside major ports.

 

Staffing shortages

Amazon's staffing issues has led to the retailer offering one-off payments
of up to £3,000 in a bid to attract staff in UK regions where there is high
demand for labour.

 

The firm is hiring for 20,000 positions across its UK network during the
festive season amid fears over worker shortages. It also began offering a
£1,000 signing-on bonus to recruit permanent staff in some regions in
August.

 

Pay for the temporary roles starts at a minimum of £10 per hour, rising to
£11.10 in some parts of the UK.

 

In the past Amazon has faced accusations of poor working conditions both in
the UK and the US, where it is the country's second largest employer.

 

Reuters reported Amazon Chief Financial Officer Brian Olsavsky had said
worker shortages contributed to inconsistent staffing levels at the company.

 

He said staff became its primary capacity constraint in the third quarter,
which he added was having an impact on other areas of the business.-BBC

 

 

 

US growth slows to just 2% as Delta hits economy

US economic growth slowed sharply in the third quarter of the year, as the
fast-spreading Delta variant of coronavirus dampened consumer spending.

 

The economy expanded at an annualised rate of just 2% in the three months to
September - down from 6.7% in the previous quarter.

 

It came as the US faced supply chain issues, rising inflation and new Covid
restrictions in some places.

 

But infection rates are falling and some experts think growth will pick up.

 

On a non-annualised basis, the growth figure was 0.5%.

 

During the third quarter, the Commerce Department said, a "resurgence of
Covid-19 cases resulted in new restrictions and delays in the reopening of
establishments in some parts of the country".

 

Pandemic-era loans to businesses, grants to state and local governments, and
social benefits to households all decreased, it added.

 

Among other things, sales of big-ticket manufactured goods fell by 26%
during the period. In particular, sales of new cars fell sharply, as prices
shot up amid a shortage of semiconductors.

 

At the same time, growth in the US services sector decelerated to 7.9%, as
consumers spent less on eating out and staying in hotels.

 

The US economy contracted sharply in 2020 as the pandemic hit, but it roared
back in the first half of this year. Since then, the recovery has cooled
because of a surge in Delta infections aggravated by lacklustre vaccination
rates.

 

The US added a disappointing 194,000 jobs in September, as the Delta variant
of coronavirus continued to drag on the economy. Economists had expected it
to add nearer its 2021 monthly average of 500,000.

 

Inflation, meanwhile, hit 5.4% in September, with global supply chains
struggling to meet soaring consumer demand as the economy reopened.

 

'Risk has risen'

The Federal Reserve has argued the high prices will be transitory and has no
immediate plans to raise interest rates to cool things down. However, it
does expect to begin paring back its pandemic-era stimulus for the economy
later this year, which some fear may be too soon.

 

Richard Flynn, managing director at Charles Schwab UK, said: "Today's
disappointing GDP data will increase investor concerns about strength of the
US economy.

 

"Risk has undoubtedly risen for investors, as there are now more questions -
including about fiscal and monetary policy - than there are answers."

 

However, Willem Sels, chief investment officer of Global Private Banking and
Wealth at HSBC, said he expected the slowdown to be temporary.

 

"As companies rebuild their very low inventories, demand should remain
strong, and activity should eventually pick up," he added.

 

"We also think consumption will rebound when consumers grow more confident,
especially as many households have managed to save more during the lockdown
and may want to spend ahead of the holiday season."-BBC

 

 

 

China rations diesel amid fuel shortages

Petrol stations in many parts of China have begun rationing diesel amid
rising costs and falling supplies.

 

Some truck drivers are having to wait entire days to refuel, according to
posts on social media site Weibo.

 

China is currently in the midst of a massive power crunch, as coal and
natural gas shortages have closed factories and left homes without power.

 

And this latest issue is only likely to contribute to an ongoing global
supply chain crisis, say analysts.

 

"The current diesel shortages seem to be affecting long distance
transportation businesses which could include goods meant for markets
outside of China," said Mattie Bekink, China Director at the Economist
Intelligence Unit.

 

"Depending on the duration and intensity of this crunch, we could well see
this contribute to the global supply chain challenges."

 

The global supply chain crisis has been largely driven by the Covid-19
pandemic, with demand surging as economies re-open.

 

In China, trucks are only being allowed to fill up 100 litres each - about
10% of their capacity, a truck dealer from Shijiazhuang city in Hebei
province told Chinese business news service Caixin.

 

In other parts of the country, reports suggest rations are even tighter with
drivers only allowed to buy up to 25 litres.

 

Meanwhile, in the city of Fuyang, about a seven hour drive south of the key
transportation hub of Shijiazhuang, Caixin reports petrol stations are
limiting purchases or charging drivers surcharges of up to 300 yuan ($47,
£34) to fill up their tanks.

 

"After going to a few [petrol] stations, there is no more diesel, and prices
will continue to rise, and large trucks running logistics will not be able
to refuel," one Weibo user wrote.

 

Another also bemoaned the impact on inflation and deliveries.

 

"Do you get the feeling that food has become more expensive and the express
delivery is slower? It would be better to buy less on 11/11," referring to
Alibaba's Single's Day, typically one of the biggest days of the year in
China's shopping calendar.

 

China's coal shortage

Aidan Yao, a senior emerging Asia economist at AXA Investment Managers, told
the BBC while the market is well aware of China's coal shortage, the "diesel
problem is new".

 

"All fossil fuels have seen a price renaissance lately as the
underinvestment in these fuel sources has created a shortfall of supply at a
time when demand is surging," he said.

 

"Oil, gas, coal prices have all moved in tandem and are through the roof."

 

Oil prices have hit their highest levels since 2014 in recent weeks, causing
fuel crises in places such as Europe and the UK.

 

Part of this has been driven by coal and natural gas shortages in countries
like China and India, which analysts predict will see users switch to oil
for power generation and heating.

 

Such demand could boost overall crude consumption by more than half a
million barrels of oil a day.

 

"This is merely the latest manifestation of shortages impacting China,"
Jeremy Stevens, Chief China Economist at Standard Bank told the BBC from
Beijing.

 

He said companies are already turning to diesel-fuelled generators to keep
their factories open during the power crunch.

 

"The heart of the matter is the energy crisis," he said.

 

Both Mr Yao and Mr Stevens warned that these current power crises show the
dangers of switching to renewables too quickly.

 

"The path to net zero is treacherous and the journey needs to be planned
carefully," Mr Yao said.-BBC

 

 

 

Tax burden to rise by £3,000 per family, warns think tank

Measures introduced since Boris Johnson came to power, including Wednesday's
Budget, will increase the UK's tax burden by £3,000 a year per household.
according to the Resolution Foundation.

 

The think tank found policies announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak had
boosted incomes by 2.8% for the poorest fifth of households.

 

However, households on middle incomes would take a 2% hit, it added.

 

Mr Sunak said his Budget had "cut taxes for millions of the lowest-paid".

 

That claim was challenged by the Foundation's figures.

 

It said the changes to the amount families can keep from their earnings if
they are on universal credit only partially offset the effect of withdrawing
the £20-a-week boost during the pandemic.

 

On average, recipients would lose £800 a year, it calculated.

 

The £3,000 figure produced by the Resolution Foundation includes business
taxes, which are regularly passed on to consumers.

 

Of the 4.4 million households on universal credit, about three-quarters (3.2
million households) will be worse off as a result of decisions to take away
the £20-a week-uplift, despite the chancellor's new universal credit
measures.

 

But 1.2 million households would be better off by £900 a year than before
the Budget.

 

Responding to the Foundation's calculations, a Treasury spokesperson told
the BBC: "It's misleading to imply that households will immediately face a
£3,000 tax hit, because this figure appears to include business and
employers' taxes which aren't applicable directly to households.

 

"The same report shows that the government's policies are set to boost
incomes for those at the bottom of the distribution and that higher taxes
will mostly impact middle-to-higher income households.

 

"This government's decisions have been worth nearly £500 per year extra to
households on average, and more than £1,000 for the poorest households - and
that's before factoring in wage growth, including the rise in the National
Living Wage."

 

Talking on BBC Breakfast, Mr Sunak said pressures on the economy "will be
with us for a while", but that the government's plan was working and "we can
face the future with a bit more confidence".

 

He also said that wages were rising and that he had "cut taxes for millions
of the lowest-paid people", adding that it was his job to be concerned about
inflation and his new fiscal rules were "how we build up resilience".

 

Government figures show that when you take account of investment in public
services, the average earner has seen improvements worth £500 a year
overall.

 

Unprecedented crisis

Setting out the Budget on Wednesday, Mr Sunak said his plans were focused on
the "post-Covid" era and would pave the way for an "economy of higher wages,
higher skills, and rising productivity".

 

He told MPs the higher tax burden was down to the pandemic. "Taxes are
rising to their highest level as a percentage of GDP since the 1950s - I
don't like it, but I cannot apologise for it - it's the result of the
unprecedented crisis," he said in his Budget speech.

 

He committed to spending increases of £150bn over three years, including
nearly £2bn to help schools in England catch up following coronavirus, £6bn
to tackle NHS backlogs and £7bn for transport projects.

 

He also announced that the universal credit "taper" rate would be cut by 8%
no later than 1 December, so that instead of losing 63p of benefit for every
£1 earned above the work allowance, the amount will be reduced to 55p.

 

Meanwhile, the National Living Wage will increase next year by 6.6%, to
£9.50 an hour.

 

Labour's shadow chancellor, Rachel Reeves, welcomed the increases in
spending announced by Mr Sunak, but said there were areas that gave her
"cause for concern".

 

Highlighting the need for greater investment in education, she told BBC
Radio 4's Today programme: "If we are going to grow the economy sustainably,
we have got to invest in our young people.

 

"Unless we ensure that kids catch up from that missed-out education [during
the pandemic], there will be a long-term cost to our economy."

 

Worse off

The Foundation's overnight analysis of the Budget and Spending Review 2021
revealed a deteriorating picture on family finances, with household incomes
set to stagnate as a result of rising inflation.

 

"Higher taxes aren't a surprise, given the UK is combining fiscal
conservatism with an ageing society and a slow-growing economy. But it is
the end of low-tax conservatism, with the tax take rising by £3,000 per
household by the middle of this decade," said Torsten Bell, chief executive
of the Resolution Foundation.

 

With higher growth, inflation and public spending than previously expected,
combined with tax rises already in train, the Foundation warns that the UK
could be set for a flat recovery for household living standards.

 

The combined effect of universal credit changes, alcohol and fuel duties,
higher council tax, income tax and national insurance delivered a 2.8% boost
to the incomes of the poorest households.

 

But middle-income households will see incomes drop by 2% and the richest
fifth of households will suffer a 3.1% hit by the middle of the decade, the
Foundation warned.

 

Wages set to fall

In the wider population, wages are set to fall next year after inflation.

 

It means the last decade has been the weakest decade for pay growth since
the 1930s.

 

By May 2024, real wages will have grown by just 2.4% since 2008 - compared
with a 38% real wage increase between 1992 and 2008.

 

"The chancellor got some really good news for the public finances yesterday
- lower borrowing, because the economy's doing slightly better than we all
though six months ago. But good news for public finances wasn't good news
for household finances," the Foundation's Mr Bell told BBC Breakfast.

 

"That's because higher inflation that actually helped the chancellor with
his borrowing figures is obviously hurting household budgets, and that's why
the Office for Budget Responsibility expects household incomes and wages to
actually not grow at all in the next year.

 

"So that's going to be really bad news for everyone worrying about their own
budgets."-BBC

 

 

The British twins who set up a black-founded $1bn 'unicorn'

When 29-year-old twins Oliver and Alexander Kent-Braham decided to reinvent
one of the most traditional areas of finance - insurance - all they had to
go on was an idea and the foyer of a gym for an office.

 

"We were all members of Virgin Active gym. It had wi-fi, coffee and a
location on The Strand!" says Oliver.

 

That's where Marshmallow insurance was born, with the help of chief
technology officer (CTO) David Goaté. They had no capital and no clients but
they knew they had a strong idea.

 

Their hunch was right, in September 2021 the company reached unicorn status
- meaning it is valued at $1bn (£727m) - making it the UK's second
black-founded unicorn firm. Ismail Ahmed's firm, WorldRemit (now Zepz), a
digital cross-border payment platform, became the first in August.

 

Oliver says when they conceived their insurtech firm ("insurtech" means
innovating new products and services within the insurance sector) they
wanted to turn the industry on its head.

 

The twins had a conversation with a friend who had recently moved to the UK
and kept receiving expensive quotes for car insurance led them to their big
question: how do you find reasonably priced insurance if you don't have a UK
driving licence?

 

The key was smarter use of technology and data and they are able to
specialise in products for "riskier" customers - migrants, young people and
those with low credit scores.

 

"If we were going to start again we would look to raise capital sooner,
because before you raise capital you don't have the confidence to take the
next step," says Oliver.

 

"It was literally Tim Holliday (CEO of Marshmallow), David, Alexander and
myself for nine months. Tim joined our company not taking a salary."

 

Their next step was to raise capital. Not an easy feat.

 

"Venture capitalists hold the keys to starting new companies. You have to
have a mutual acquaintance to even speak to many funders and that needs to
change," says Oliver.

 

The most recent government statistics say black-owned businesses are four
times more likely to have their business loan applications rejected than
white or South Asian business founders.

 

In 2020, 10x10, a group of early-stage black founders and venture
capitalists, found that just 22% of black founders were able to secure
funding from venture capitalists for their start-up.

 

"The first investor to really believe in us was a guy called Bernard Kantor,
who was the founder of Investec bank, and no one really believes in you
until one person believes in you," Oliver.

 

But just getting to this stage puts the Kent-Braham brothers in a rarefied
position. Just 6% of small medium enterprise companies in the UK are MEG
(minority ethnic group)-led.

 

So how exactly do you create a black unicorn?

 

The twins have always been driven, being offered a scholarship at the
prestigious Reed School on the strength of their skill as sportsmen. That
drive has carried them to the top of their field, they say.

 

"We played a lot of elite-level tennis and what we took from that was
persistence. I think that is a skill set needed in businesses; no matter if
you're knocked down, you need to get up and try again," says Oliver.

 

"We'd always had a bit of an entrepreneurial flair. When we were 12, we were
selling golf balls fished out of the lake and that sort of stuff.

 

"It was through our early 20s where we just got really into kind of the tech
world and into FinTech especially, the whole space is exciting, and that's
where we then started to think wanted to start our own tech company."

 

But despite BAME communities comprising 14% of the UK population, all-ethnic
founding teams received just 4% of all venture capital investments between
2009 and 2019.

 

And further analysis found that 90% of that money went to teams with white
entrepreneurs and just 0.24% went to black entrepreneurs.

 

The latest research from KPMG suggests that, thanks to the UK's Covid
vaccination programme and a greater business confidence in the post-Brexit
environment, global Venture Capital Investment into UK companies has
continued to grow, with £6.7bn being invested in the second quarter of 2021.

 

Back at Marshmallow, Oliver Kent-Braham has some advice for anyone looking
to set-up a business: "To begin with, no one believes in you. Your parents
say, 'Oh my god, don't quit your job!' They don't want you to take that
risk. So take the risk and be bold in your approach.

 

"Start small, but go after really big problems."-BBC

 

 

 

The African tech firm hoping to power space missions

"Most satellites are simply computers that are tossed out the side of a
rocket [that] are tumbling in space," says Jonathan Lun.

 

Mr Lun and his Cape Town-based company, Hypernova Space Technologies, are
keen to give these tumbling satellites a little bit more autonomy.

 

The firm has developed a thruster system that could give even the smallest
types of satellites the capacity to move around.

 

The company is hopeful that their technology could be applied to
nanosatellites which are small satellites weighing under 10kg and, even
applied to the tiniest of them all, the 10cm cubes known as cubesats.

 

There are an estimated 3,200 nanosatellites floating around in orbit
already, and that number is expected to grow rapidly in the near future:
SpaceX alone is in the process of launching a constellation of around 42,000
satellites.

 

But experts are concerned that this explosion in numbers may lead to
problems.

 

Without manoeuvrability - the capacity to change direction - nanosatellites
risk colliding with each other, causing space debris which might cause
problems for other missions.

 

Mobility would also make it much easier to retrieve, or dispose of,
satellites once their working life was over.

 

But as nanosatellites are deliberately designed to be small and cheap, any
new thruster technology needs to be simple to be commercially viable.

 

Around a decade ago, Mr Lun came across an interesting thruster technology
that had previously been researched by Nasa but never fully pursued. He
found that an electric reaction could be used to vaporise solid metal fuel,
a process which then created a jet of fast-moving plasma that could propel a
satellite along.

 

One big advantage to using solid fuels in this way would be that the
material would be stable enough to add to a thruster-system prior to launch
- removing the need for any last-minute fuelling before sending satellites
off into space.

 

"They don't have to worry about filling it up, they don't have to worry
about [the material] being toxic, they don't have to worry about it during
launch, something breaking and leaking," adds Stephen Tillemans, the head of
engineering at Hypernova.

 

Mr Tillemans confirms the company has successfully run several environmental
tests, such as, running the thruster in a vacuum, in extreme temperatures,
and with high vibration. Hypernova's first mission in space will be in early
2022 with EnduroSat, a company based in Bulgaria.

 

Together, the companies are aiming to assess the performance of the thruster
technology in space, including measuring its force and demonstrating that it
can successfully change the orbit of a satellite.

 

Hypernova are not alone in their research, other organisations are also
investing in developing the thruster technology that could propel small
satellites through space, including MIT in the US, and the European Space
Agency and its Helicon Plasma Thruster.

 

Hypernova is also collaborating with other players in the South African
space industry, such as the Electrical and Electronic Engineering department
at Stellenbosch University, which is currently developing a technology that
would allow satellites to dock with each other.

 

Looking much further in to the future, Mr Lun is confident that it would be
possible to scale-up Hypernova's thruster technology so it could potentially
be used for much bigger satellites and more ambitious missions.

 

He is even hopeful that using metal as a fuel will facilitate bigger
opportunities for the industry as a whole because thrusters could
potentially be powered using substances found in space - both substances
mined in-situ, or collected from space debris, for instance.

 

"So, if we can now switch over from rare expensive liquids and gases as fuel
sources, to move stuff around in space with cheap and abandoned iron ore or
other metals, it changes the game completely."-BBC

 

 

 

 

Halloween scare on markets

A look at the day ahead from Saikat Chatterjee.

 

Some ghoulish pre-Halloween drama this week on global bond markets but it
hasn't really spooked equity markets, which have marched higher even as
short-end government bond yields explode -- the tech-heavy Nasdaq (.NDX) in
particular, hit a new record high on Thursday.

 

Currency volatility too is close to 2021 lows. One explanation is that the
strength of trailing third quarter earnings are propping up stock markets.

 

That may not wash for much longer though. Results from tech heavyweights
Apple and Amazon missed market expectations, pushing their shares lower in
after-hours.

 

That's weighing on Asian stocks on Friday, putting MSCI's ex-Japan index on
track to snap three weeks of gains (.MIAPJ0000PUS). U.S. stock futures are
set to open in the red.

 

Euro zone bond yields are continuing to rise after European Central Bank
President Christine Lagarde failed to dissipate bets on end-2022 interest
rate hikes. Italian bond yields endured their biggest daily rise in over a
year and are rising further on Friday.

 

Her prediction for inflation to remain below target in the medium-term
hasn't pushed German inflation-linked 10-year bond yield much away from the
record low hit on Wednesday.

 

What it may boil down to is, in the words of Citi strategist Matt King, a
"credibility gap" between inflation and real yields, already at its most
stretched the 1970s.

 

This chasm poses a conundrum for policymakers. In Australia for instance,
officials seem to have lost control of the yield target which key to the
central bank's stimulus policy. Instead, bonds saw their biggest selloff in
decades and markets are howling for rate hikes as soon as April. read more

 

Things seem to have calmed a touch as the weekend approaches; the dollar is
weaker, Bitcoin advanced 1% and China's stricken Evergrande has made an
interest payment for an offshore bond, making it the second time in a week
it narrowly averts default.

 

Key developments that should provide more direction to markets on Friday:

 

Daimler AG (DAIGn.DE) reported a higher Q3 net profit on despite a 25% cut
in production and expects to hit profit targets. read more

 

Ether , the world's second largest cryptocurrency, hit an all-time high
above $4,400

 

Data corner: Preliminary Q3 GDP readings from eurozone, Germany, France,
Italy

 

Corporate earnings; ExxonMobil, Chevron, Natwest Group, BNP Paribas

 

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

 

 

Thousands gear up for tech blowout in Lisbon in test of new normal

(Reuters) - Web Summit, one of the largest tech conference organisers, will
open its doors next week in Lisbon for its first in-person event since the
pandemic struck, with the likes of Microsoft, Amazon and Apple set to speak.

 

Hot on the heels of the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona in June, it
will be the next large tech conference to test a return to normal, reuniting
entrepreneurs, top executives and major investors after 19 months of video
meetings.

 

About 40,000 attendees are slated to join the summit, which will feature
1,000 speakers ranging from Microsoft (MSFT.O) Vice Chairman Brad Smith to
Apple (AAPL.O) software boss Craig Federighi, addressing audiences including
founders of companies which have only recently emerged.

 

"It's almost 100% in-person attendees - we don't sell online-only tickets,"
Web Summit co-founder Paddy Cosgrave said. "Most of these company founders
have never been seen in person: they went from nowhere to somewhere
exclusively in the last two years of lockdown."

 

Players in the tech sector, which gained unprecedented financial clout and
political reach as the coronavirus pandemic accelerated digitalisation
worldwide, are set to tackle themes ranging from privacy and regulation to
racism and fintech.

 

While Facebook CPO Chris Cox will be talking about the "metaverse", on
another stage the social media group's newest whistleblower Frances Haugen
will discuss the network's grasp over its 3 billion users - or nearly half
the planet.

 

PHYSICAL EVENT

 

Joining them at the summit which runs from Nov. 1 to 4 will be executives
from more than 70 "unicorns" - startups valued at more than $1 billion -
while hundreds of startup founders will be seeking attention from venture
capitalists to help scale their business.

 

"As people head to Web Summit - for what will be the first physical event
for many - I think everyone will be looking forward to the serendipitous
meetings, chats between stage sessions, and bumping into old friends
in-person again," Harry Nelis, partner at venture capital fund Accel, told
Reuters.

 

A gathering of this size also brings into focus safety precautions against
the spread of the coronavirus and bears the risk of turning into a
"superspreader" event, though the venue - Portugal - is among the world's
most-vaccinated countries.

 

"We will have teams across the venue monitoring capacity, ensuring one-way
traffic flows," Cosgrove said. Numerous outdoor meeting spaces were created
for small groups, along with on-site medical staff and isolation rooms in
every building, he added.

 

For conference organisers, a successful event is critical to stay above
water. Last year's event cancellation forced MWC to lay off about 40% of its
staff, with MWC organiser and telecoms industry association GSMA taking a
hard hit. read more

 

Cosgrove said Web Summit did not lay off any people because of the pandemic,
relying on revenue streams from other products, including hybrid
conferencing software, initially designed to complement networking at
in-person events and now due to underpin next year's CES in Las Vegas.

 

Launched in Dublin in 2010 with just 400 participants and hosted in Lisbon
annually since 2016, Web Summit hosted about 100,000 attendees in 2019.

 

The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

 

Easier cartel rules for packaging, logistics companies, EU's Vestager says

(Reuters) - Packaging and logistics companies may soon be able to cooperate
on green projects without any fear of flouting cartel rules, EU antitrust
chief Margrethe Vestager said on Friday.

 

Under EU cartel rules, companies that collude to illegally fix prices or
share markets can face fines up to 10% of their global turnover.

 

EU antitrust enforcers plan to provide guidance for packaging and logistics
companies, Vestager said in the text of a speech to be delivered at an event
in Helsinki.

 

"Consider an established market with some bad environmental habits – maybe
to do with packaging or logistics. To break out of that rut, companies in
that market might need to cooperate, in order to get to a better, more
sustainable equilibrium," she said.

 

"In such cases, the Commission want to provide legal certainty that they
will not fall foul of the EU's rules on cartels. All of this will be
explained in a Commission communication, to be adopted very soon," Vestager.

 

She will shortly adopt looser state aid rules to allow EU countries to
subsidise energy, climate and environment projects in line with the European
Commission's goal of greening the bloc's economy.

 

The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

 

Britain could board more French boats in fishing dispute - UK minister

(Reuters) - Britain could order the boarding of more French vessels in
retaliation for the detention by France of a British scallop trawler in
French waters, a British minister said as a post-Brexit fishing dispute
escalated.

 

Britain's foreign minister has summoned France's ambassador to London to
explain Paris' actions later on Friday.

 

"Obviously it's always open to us to always increase the enforcement that we
do on French vessels, to board more of them if that's what they're doing to
our vessels," British Environment Secretary George Eustice told BBC
television.

 

"There are other administrative things that we can require of vessels. It's
not something that we want to get into."

 

The Cornelis Gert Jan, a scallop dredger, was escorted to the northern port
of Le Havre after its crew failed to prove it was allowed to fish in French
territorial waters, according to French officials.

 

Eustice said London's focus for now was trying to resolve the issue with the
European Commission and with France's ambassador to London.

 

"We obviously reserve the ability to be able to respond in a proportionate
way, " Eustice said.

 

France has listed potential sanctions against Britain if there is no
progress in talks, including extra customs checks on British goods from Nov.
2 and what was seen in London as a threat to cut electricity exports to
Britain if talks fail.

 

French Agriculture Minister Julien Denormandie told France 2 TV on Friday
that there was no progress in talks between France and Britain over
post-Brexit fishing licences, and said it was right for France to consider
sanctions against the UK.

 

The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

 

Japan PM Kishida's pledge to review quarterly disclosure may take years

(Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida wants to ease quarterly
disclosure requirements for companies as part of his pledge to forge a "new
capitalism", but implementation could take years, complicating the outlook
for one of his key promises.

 

Just weeks into office and facing a tightrope election on Sunday, Kishida
already had to water down a pledge to raise the capital gains tax, for fear
of hurting stock prices.

 

Delays to disclosure requirements plans would cast more doubt on Kishida's
ability to push through policies to redistribute wealth and close the wage
gap.

 

"Stock prices may fall if Kishida pushes through (a review of disclosure
rules). But it's part of his mandate of turning away from policies just
seeking short-term return," said Daiju Aoki, chief Japan economist at UBS
Sumi Trust Wealth Management.

 

"If he wants to forge a new capitalism that looks not just at shareholders'
interest but social and environmental issues, this is something he must
accomplish."

 

Japan made quarterly disclosure mandatory in 2008 as part of efforts to make
its rules more aligned with that of the United States and increase market
appeal to overseas investors.

 

But some ruling party lawmakers have called for relaxing the rule, arguing
that quarterly disclosures force companies to focus too narrowly on
short-term gains.

 

"Companies must do business from a long-term perspective and in a way that
benefits not just shareholders, but employees and business partners,"
Kishida told parliament on Oct. 8.

 

"We must create an environment to encourage this, such as by reviewing
quarterly disclosure rules and, in return, have firms ramp up disclosure of
non-financial information," he said.

 

With an election looming, however, Kishida's administration has made little
progress in kicking off the process.

 

Discussion at a panel overseen by the Financial Services Agency (FSA), which
lays the groundwork for crafting necessary legislation, won't start until
next year, government officials with knowledge of the matter say.

 

"It's an issue that will discussed through next year," one of the officials
said.

 

The earliest the government can submit legislation to parliament will be
2023 and for new rules to be applied in 2024, the officials said on
condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly.

 

There are doubts on whether the FSA would willingly heed to Kishida's calls.
The agency reviewed the feasibility of mandatory quarterly disclosures back
in 2018 and concluded it was necessary for investors.

 

"We need quite solid justification to reverse what's now mandatory into
voluntary rules," said an FSA official.

 

Private sector reaction remains mixed.

 

Yoshihiko Kawamura, chief financial officer of Hitachi (6501.T), welcomed
Kishida's proposal given the heavy burden of preparing quarterly documents.

 

"There's talk within our company on how long we can continue doing quarterly
disclosure," he said.

 

Akira Kiyota, CEO of Japan Exchange Group (8697.T), is cautious, saying
information must be disclosed in a timely manner to ensure stocks accurately
price in corporate value.

 

Yutaka Suzuki, an analyst at Daiwa Institute of Research, says it's unclear
how a review of quarterly disclosure would help Kishida achieve wealth
redistribution.

 

"If a lack of timely information disclosure raises uncertainty over
corporate management, that could prompt risk-averse investors to pull money
out of the stock market, making it difficult for companies to raise funds,"
he said.

 

"It could also send a wrong message to overseas investors, who may think
Japan is passive about information disclosure."

 

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

 

 

BNP beats Q3 expectations, launches 900 mln euro share buyback

(Reuters) - France's biggest listed lender BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA) posted a
better-than-expected third-quarter profit on Friday on lower provisions for
pandemic-related loan losses and a sharp rise in equity trading.

 

Like U.S. and European rivals, BNP Paribas thrived on the economic rebound
to release cash set aside for pandemic losses.

 

BNP Paribas reported a 32.2% rise in net income from a year ago to 2.50
billion euros ($2.92 billion), beating a mean forecast for 2.23 billion
euros in a poll of analysts compiled by Refinitiv.

 

Revenue was up 4.7% to 11.40 billion euros, above the 11.22 billion expected
by analysts, while the cost of risk, reflecting provisions against bad
loans, was down 43.3%.

 

BNP Paribas, which overtook British bank HSBC (HSBA.L) last year to become
Europe’s largest bank by assets, also said it will launch a 900 million euro
share buyback program on Nov. 1.

 

In its corporate and investment banking activities, the lender benefited
from strong growth in equity trading activity with revenue up by 79.3%.

 

But revenue was down 28% in fixed income, currencies and commodities trading
after a 43% drop in the second quarter.

 

"In a more lacklustre context, customer activity was lower on the rates and
forex markets but remained strong on the commodities markets," BNP Paribas
said in a statement.

 

In its international financial services activities, which include asset and
wealth management, international retail banking and insurance, revenue fell
by 3% reflecting a weaker contribution from its insurance business, BNP
Paribas said.

 

BNP Paribas shares have gained around 33% this year against a 36.53%
increase for the Stoxx Europe 600 Banks index (.SX7P).

 

($1 = 0.8570 euros)

 

The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

 

Brexit: French Agriculture Minister says no progress in fishing talks with
UK

(Reuters) - French Agriculture Minister Julien Denormandie told France 2 TV
on Friday that there was no progress in talks between France and Britain
over post-Brexit fishing licences, and added it was right for France to
consider sanctions against the UK.

 

Britain and France have been at loggerheads over how to resolve fishing
licences following the UK's decision to leave the European Union.

 

On Thursday, Britain denounced France's seizure of a British boat in French
waters and warned Paris against further retaliation, in a rapidly
deteriorating row over post-Brexit fishing rights. read more

 

The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

 

 

 

 


 


 


Invest Wisely!

Bulls n Bears 

 

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INVESTORS DIARY 2021

 


Company

Event

Venue

Date & Time

 


 

 

 

 

 


 

National Unity Day

 

December 22

 


 

Christmas Day

 

December 25

 


 

Boxing Day

 

December 26

 


 

Public Holiday in lieu of Boxing Day falling on a Sunday

 

December 27

 


Companies under Cautionary

 

 

 


 

 

 

 


ART

PPC

 

 


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:
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