BUSINESS BUSINESS Wednesday 25 October 2017 PAGE | 23 PAGE | 22 QDB showcases 35 businesses Qatari businesses urged to invest in Uganda Dow & Brent before going to press Over 1,500 firms seek ‘siege compensation’ Mohammad Shoeb The Peninsula O ver 1,500 private companies and businesses have filed complaints seeking compensa- tion for damages caused due to the ongoing siege imposed by some of Qatar’s neighbouring countries, a top official of Qatar Chamber (QC) told The Peninsula. Qatar formed a Compensa- tion Claims Committee on July 9 to pursue compensation for losses stemming from the eco- nomic and diplomatic siege against Qatar by four Arab coun- tries on June 5. Sheikh Khalifa bin Jassim bin Mohammed Al Thani (pictured), Chairman of QC, said: “Out of the over 1,500 applications received so far seeking compensation, about 800 cases have already been reviewed and submitted to the committee for legal action.” Commenting on the magni- tude of the damages and the chances of the winnability of cases, Sheikh Khalifa, added: “The damages are to the tune of billions of dollars. I have the esti- mated figures for the losses, but we are still receiving applications and the figure is growing. As far the chances of success is con- cern, it would be too early to comment on that. But what I can say is that our cases are very- very strong.” About the details and nature of damages, he said that losses are of different types. They are not only limited to confiscation of Qatari vessels laden with mil- lions of dollar worth of goods, or the extra amount of money com- panies are required to pay for sourcing goods and services from alternative destinations due to the siege. “It is also about losses in business opportunities compa- nies suffered due to the siege. A lot of companies have com- mitments with Qatar, for instance finishing projects in certain time period at a given cost, but they are facing con- straints due to the blockade. A lot of companies used to source materials, manpower resources, and many other things from the blockading countries, whose supplies were abruptly suspended by the siege countries without prior notice or any valid reason,” he said. About the details of the courts Qatar is approaching, Sheikh Khalifa said that it is for the Committee and the lawyers to decide. The Committee is deal- ing with international law firms to take legal action in appropri- ate courts, which can include courts based in the US and Europe. “The Committee has appointed lawyers, and we will go everywhere possible to seek justice”, noted the chairman of Qatar’s oldest and largest private industry representative body. → Continued on page 22 Damage claims Compensation Claims Committee is dealing with international law firms to take legal action in appropriate courts, which can include courts based in the US and Europe. 8,110.16 +7.25 PTS 0.09% QE $52.46 $52.46 +0.56 +0.56 BRENT 23,469.60 +195.64 PTS 0.84% 7,526.54 +2.09 PTS 0.03% DOW FTSE100
Transcript
BUSINESSBUSINESSWednesday 25 October 2017
PAGE | 23PAGE | 22
QDB showcases 35
businesses
Qatari businesses urged to invest in Uganda
Dow & Brent before going to press
Over 1,500 firms seek ‘siege compensation’Mohammad Shoeb The Peninsula
Over 1,500 private companies and businesses have filed complaints seeking compensa-
tion for damages caused due to the ongoing siege imposed by some of Qatar’s neighbouring countries, a top official of Qatar Chamber (QC) told The Peninsula.
Qatar formed a Compensa-tion Claims Committee on July 9 to pursue compensation for losses stemming from the eco-nomic and diplomatic siege
against Qatar by four Arab coun-tries on June 5.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Jassim bin Mohammed Al Thani (pictured), Chairman of QC, said: “Out of the over 1,500 applications received so far seeking compensation, about 800 cases have already been reviewed and submitted to the committee for legal action.”
Commenting on the magni-tude of the damages and the chances of the winnability of cases, Sheikh Khalifa, added: “The damages are to the tune of billions of dollars. I have the esti-mated figures for the losses, but we are still receiving applications and the figure is growing. As far
the chances of success is con-cern, it would be too early to comment on that. But what I can say is that our cases are very-very strong.”
About the details and nature of damages, he said that losses
are of different types. They are not only limited to confiscation of Qatari vessels laden with mil-lions of dollar worth of goods, or the extra amount of money com-panies are required to pay for
sourcing goods and services from alternative destinations due to the siege.
“It is also about losses in business opportunities compa-nies suffered due to the siege. A lot of companies have com-mitments with Qatar, for instance finishing projects in certain time period at a given cost, but they are facing con-straints due to the blockade. A lot of companies used to source m a t e r i a l s , m a n p o w e r resources, and many other things from the blockading countries, whose supplies were abruptly suspended by the siege countries without prior notice
or any valid reason,” he said. About the details of the
courts Qatar is approaching, Sheikh Khalifa said that it is for the Committee and the lawyers to decide. The Committee is deal-ing with international law firms to take legal action in appropri-ate courts, which can include courts based in the US and Europe.
“The Committee has appointed lawyers, and we will go everywhere possible to seek justice”, noted the chairman of Qatar’s oldest and largest private industry representative body.
→ Continued on page 22
Damage claims
Compensation Claims Committee is dealing with international law firms to take legal action in appropriate courts, which can include courts based in the US and Europe.
8,110.16+7.25 PTS
0.09%
QE
$52.46 $52.46 +0.56+0.56
BRENT
23,469.60+195.64 PTS
0.84%
7,526.54+2.09 PTS
0.03%DOWFTSE100
22 WEDNESDAY 25 OCTOBER 2017BUSINESS
A wing spar assembly robot at the Boeing factory in Everett, Washington. Boeing began production of the 777X jetliner, which will feature many of the fuel-saving innovations and comforts of the Boeing 787.
Boeing begins production of new 777 X
Qatari businesses urged to invest in UgandaThe Peninsula
Ugandan President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has urged Qatari businessmen to take advantage of
investment opportunities in the country.
A business delegation led by Mohamed bin Ahmed bin Towar, Qatar Chamber (QC) vice chair-man recently visited Uganda aimed at enhancing trade and economic relations between Qatar and Uganda and exploring investment opportunities in food security and tourism.
The delegation also visited plot set for establishing a Qatari City in Uganda, according to a statement issued by QC, yesterday.
Expressing his keenness on enhancing cooperation ties between Uganda and Qatar,
Ugandan President Museveni, who received the Qatari delega-tion stressed that his country would provide more incentives to attract Qatari investors.
The Qatari delegation held meetings with various officials including the Ugandan Prime Minister, Ministers of Finance, Foreign Minister , Minister of Investment, Civil Service and other officials. During the meet-ings, both the sides stressed on the need to develop trade and
investment relations. The Ugandan officials put
forward many ideas for invest-ment including a project for developing a Qatari city by a leading Qatari real estate com-pany, establishing a Qatari Islamic bank in Uganda, and investing in tourism, livestock, food security and parks sector. Qatari businessmen also invest-ment opportunities in mining, coffee and real estate sectors.
QC vice chairman, Bin Towar, reaffirmed Qatar Chamber’s interest to see more business cooperation between the coun-tries and see more Qatari investments in Uganda.
“There is a great interest for Qatari businessmen to explore available investment opportuni-ties in Africa in general and in Uganda in particular. Uganda is a good investment destination for businessmen. Qatari and
Ugandan businessmen can build partnerships in agriculture, food industry, mining and oil explo-ration, Islamic banking, as well as tourism,” he said.
“In the light of the economic development that Uganda seeks to achieve, there are many opportunities for cooperation and exchange of experiences and joint investments with various investors and Qatari companies in many sectors. Uganda is rich
in natural resources, especially in agriculture and food industries, which opens the door to alliances and partnerships between the two sides. This vital area serves Qatar’s goals in achieving food security,” he stressed.
Bin Towar also added high-lighted that Uganda’s geographic positioning makes it a gateway to all neighbouring African mar-kets for Qatar.
“Uganda is a strategic
country in East Africa and has concluded several agreements with neighbouring countries, which means that exports can reach more countries through Uganda and thus open up new export markets for country goods. It also provides an oppor-tunity for increased cooperation between Qatari and Ugandan businessmen to set up joint ven-tures serving the economies of the two countries,” he said.
Qatari city
The Ugandan officials put forward many ideas for investment including a project for developing a Qatari city in Uganda by a leading Qatari real estate company.
Qatari business delegation, led by Mohamed bin Ahmed bin Towar (fourth left), QC vice chairman with Ugandan President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni (fourth right) and other officials in Uganda.
QFC’s Nasser Al Taweel named in Legal 500 GC PowerlistThe Peninsula
The Qatar Financial Centre (QFC) Authority’s Chief Legal Officer Nasser Al
Taweel (pictured) has been listed on the Legal 500 GC power list: Middle East. The list aims to identify and recognise an array of the most influential and inno-vative in-house teams working in the Middle East.
Nasser has extensive expe-rience of both Qatari law and English law, and was one of the first Qataris to qualify as a solic-itor in the Senior Courts of
England and Wales. In his cur-rent role as Chief Legal Officer at the QFC, Nasser heads a department of lawyers from var-ious countries with extensive backgrounds and ensures that the QFC adopts and adheres to best internationally accepted practices in governance compliance.
Commenting on his listing in the Legal 500 GC power list, he stated: “I am delighted and hon-oured to have been personally recognised. I would like to thank the legal department at the QFC, this award is very much about
the whole of the team, not just me. The department has worked tirelessly to revamp and imple-ment a working method based around being closer to the busi-ness and the industry, understanding their needs and focusing on the quality of work produced rather than quantity. It is this great work the team has undertaken that has helped ele-vate our department and make us award winning.”
Earlier this year, the legal department at the QFC won an award for the Middle East legal department of the year. The
QFC’s legal environment pro-vides an internationally recognised platform for leading Qatari and international compa-nies to expand in Qatar or overseas from the QFC. This in turn supports Qatar’s economic development and diversification efforts and contributes to knowl-edge and expertise sharing in Qatar and beyond. QFC’s Legal Department provides a compre-hensive set of in-house legal services and is at the centre of the strategic development, enhancement and advocacy of the QFC’s legal environment.
Over 1,500 companies seek siege damages
Barwa Real Estate’s net profit at QR1.22bnThe Peninsula
Barwa Real Estate Compa-ny’s net profit attributable to shareholders of the par-
ent amounted to QR1.22bn for the period ended September 30, 2017, down from QR1.49bn recorded for the same period of 2016. The company’s earnings per share edged down to QR3.14 fromQR3.85 during the period.
The decrease in the net profit resulted from the decline in the profits of some of the non-recur-ring items like revaluation gain from investment properties and other income, in addition to the termination of the finance lease agreements of one of the subsid-iaries of the Group, which resulted in collecting QR1.3bn in the first quarter of 2017, the Group stated yesterday.
However, on the operational level, the Group has succeeded to enhance its operating income
by increasing its net rental income by QR96m with an increase of 16 percent compared to the same period of the year 2016. The Group’s operating income is expected to increase as a result of the signing of an agreement for the lease of the
entire Mustawdaat project in Umm Shahrain area for 10 and a half years, starting from Octo-ber1, 2017 for a total rental value of QR755m.
In addition to that, the group has leased all the showrooms of phase one of Madinat Al
Mawater and handed over a Housing Complex to Shell Co. in Al Khor. In addition to many other projects under construc-tion which are expected to be operational in the near future.
The Group’s results reflect Barwa’s keenness to increase sustainable returns for its share-holders by strengthening the Group’s asset base with new operating projects and at the same time improving the effi-ciency of current operational projects, hence contributing to increased operating revenues. It is also clearly evident that Barwa is keen on enforcing the princi-ple of partnership with the State of Qatar, which reflects posi-tively on its financial position. This partnership is clearly dem-onstrated in many projects such as Mustawdaat project and Mad-inat Al Mawater project.
During the nine month period ended in 30 September
2017, Barwa was able to accom-plish a number of key achievements including increase in the rental income, signing the contract for the leasing of the entire Mustawdaat project in Umm Shahrain area, start of the operations of Madinat Al- Mawa-ter (Phase 1); and signing the construction contract of Madi-nat Al- Mawater (Phase 2) with a contract value of QR112.5m and a total built-up area of 35.6 thou-sand square meters.
Signing the construction contract for warehouses and workshops in Barwa Al-Baraha project with a value of QR139.95m and ongoing con-struction of Mustawdaat, Dara A and Barwa Village extension projects are among other projects.
The Group maintains a cash balance of QR3.1bn to cover financial needs and support its investment strategy.
Barwa headquarters in Al Sadd, Doha.
CaixaBank’s profits jump as it moves out of CataloniaMadrid
AFP
CaixaBank, Spain’s third largest lender, said yesterday its net profit
doubled in the third quarter, as it suffered a “moderate” but temporary run on depos-its due to the crisis over Catalonia’s push for independence.
CaixaBank, which con-firmed it has relocated its headquarters from Barcelona to Valencia in response to the Catalan crisis, did not give any details of the amounts of deposits that had been withdrawn.
But chief executive Gonzalo Gortazar said that the impact in the days following the banned inde-pendence referendum on October , had been “moderate”.
Presenting the bank’s third-quarter earnings, Gor-tazar said that CaixaBank’s bottom-line net profit dou-bled to ¤649m in the period from July to September.
By comparison, Caixa-Bank, Catalonia’s biggest bank, had booked net profit of ¤332 m in the third quar-ter of 2016
QIMC reports QR163.5m net profit for first nine monthsThe Peninsula
Qatar Industrial Manufac-turing Company (QIMC) yesterday said it
achieved a net profit of QR163.5m as of September 30, 2017 slightly up from QR 163.1m reported from a year ago.
Sheikh Abdul Rahman bin Mohamed bin Jabor Al Thani (pictured), Chairman of the Board of QIMC yesterday announced the nine month financial results.
QIMC’s earnings per share reached QR3.44, compared to QR3.43 for the same period in
2016.The total equity of the company’s shareholders was QR1,537m during the period, compared to QR1,516m for the same period in 2016.
Commenting on the pos-sibility of participating in the upcoming meetings of the Federation of Gulf Coopera-tion Council Chambers (FGCCC), he said Qatar will attend all meetings irrespec-tive of the presence or absence of the representa-tives from the blockading countries.
“The next meetings of GCC Chambers are expected to be held next month, or in December, in Muscat (Oman’s capital). We will attend every GCC and the League of Arab States’ meetings. If the block-ing countries do not want to participate, it’s up to them… In fact we already partici-pated in a meeting of GCC Chambers in Azerbaijan last week,” Sheikh Khalifa stressed.
→ Continued from page 21
23WEDNESDAY 25 OCTOBER 2017 BUSINESS
QDB showcases 35 businesses QNB Group topsThe Banker’s 100 ArabBanks list for 2017
The Peninsula
Qatar Development Bank (QDB) – through the support of its export development and promotion
agency, Tasdeer – showcased 35 Qatari small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from the con-struction sector at Infra Oman, one of the largest building and construction expos in the Mid-dle East.
The 7th International Exhi-bition for Infrastructure & Industrial Projects was held at Oman Convention & Exhibition Center. Every year, sequent edi-tions of the exhibition series unite regional and international industry leaders, contracts, con-sultants, suppliers and buyers in Oman. Thus, the fair serves as an ideal platform to achieve unparalleled insights into the Middle East’s infrastructure development environment.
QDB’s pavilion at Infra Oman included the following shortlisted 35 companies: Ara-bian Specialised Materials Co. (ASMA), Salama Road Marking
Factory, Doha Waterproof Fac-tory, Seashore Steel, Twyla, International Welding Rods Fac-tory, Doha Cables, Al Sada Factory for Plastic Pipes, Doha Factory for Paints & Chemicals, Doha Plastic, Al Khayarin Plas-tic Factory, Bumatar German Factory for Plastic Products, Qatar National Aluminium Panel Co. (QNAP), Al Naqeeb Plastic Factory, Sarplast Qatar, Qatar Wire Product Co., Qatar Pipe-line & Fittings Co.(QPF), National Paints Factories, Qatari Cana-dian for Energy and Electrical Industries, Al Bedaya Steel Industries, Al Wasit Cabins (GETC Group), Qatar Interna-tional Cables Company, Al Bayan for Electronics and LED Tech-nologies, Doha Regional Plastics Solutions, Al Sada Plastic Pro-files, Uniplast Qatar, Al Muftah Fiberglass Products, ASTAD, Qatar Paving Stones, Qatar
Aluminium Extrusion Company (QALEX), Qatar Plastic Products Company, Qatar Wooden Prod-ucts Company, Qatar Saudi Gypsum Industries Company, Amiantit Qatar Pipes Co., and Qatar Clay Bricks Company.
Elaborating on the impor-tance of widening Qatar’s commercial trade outreach, QDB Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Abdulaziz bin Nasser Al Khalifa said: “ Oman today is a new gate-way to Qatar. In Qatar Development Bank’s latest expe-rience at the Infra Oman exhibition this year, we have learnt that through exporting Qatari products to Oman and other interested regional and international parties attending Oman’s exhibition, Qatar has found a very new door to the world. Harnessing the natural leverage of our region’s geogra-phy – and with the support of
true friends and brotherly nations, like Oman – we look for-ward to strengthening our export trade across international com-mercial markets by sea and by air, close and far.”
Executive Director of Export Development & Promotion Agency – Tasdeer, Hassan Kha-lifa Al Mansoori said, “At QDB, we are proud to serve as our nation’s commerce and trade diplomats. To this end, we mir-ror our country’s long-standing position of seeking constructive ties with all of our neighbours and we have found Oman to be a very warm and welcoming regional market. This year, Qatari companies partake in this region-ally well-renowned exhibition – Infra Oman – with the aim of entering into mutually-benefi-cial agreements with our Omani partners as well as other regional and international partners.”
The Peninsula
QNB Group, the largest financial institution in the Middle East and
Africa, once more proved its performance, strength, and stability by leading The Bank-er’s list of the top 100 Arab Banks for 2017. The recogni-tion was based on QNB being ranked number one as the region’s largest bank by Tier 1 capital, featuring a growth by more than 20 percent, com-pared to the same period last year.
The Bank maintains its commitment to long-term and prudent growth of Tier 1 cap-ital, which continues to increase despite several challenges.
The group wrapped up the past nine months ended 30 September, achieving a net profit of QR10.3bn, up by 6 percent from September 2016. Total assets increased to QR792bn, up by 11 percent. This was driven by a growth rate of 14 percent in loans and advances to reach QR579bn.
The year 2017 has wit-nessed more astounding achievements for QNB, which has maintained its ranking of
the most valuable banking brand in the Middle East and Africa region, according to the annual survey carried out by Brand Finance and published by The Banker magazine.
QNB brand was confirmed among the World’s Top 500 Banking Brands, representing an increase to rise to the 60th place globally, in addition to attaining the highest rating of AA+ in brand strength, making it the only Qatari banking brand among the world’s top 100.
Commenting on the recent successful accomplishment , Ali Al Kuwari, QNB Group CEO, said: “We are proud to lead the list of the top 100 Arab Banks, another triumph that proves the steadiness of our economic performance, thanks to the healthy management strate-gies we are following.
There is no doubt that the Bank, being the largest in Qatar and the leading in the region, keeps emphasizing the signif-icance of implementing a strategic planning towards glo-balization.” Al Kuwari added: “QNB Group has already started on bringing to reality its aspi-ration of becoming ‘a leading bank in the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia by 2020.”
Qatari officials receiving the ‘best designed exhibition pavilion’ award at the event.
Co-founder of Infosys Nandan Nilekani, who took over as the non-executive chairman of the company after a boardroom reshuffle, addresses a press conference held at Infosys headquarters in Bangalore to announce its financial results for Q2 yesterday.
Tokyo’s Nikkei extends record winning streakTokyo
AFP
Tokyo’s benchmark stock index rose again yester-day, extending the
longest winning streak in its nearly 70-year history as Japan kicks off its latest cor-porate earnings season.
The Nikkei 225 gained 0.50 percent, or 108.52 points, to finish at 21,805.17, logging its 16th consecutive day of gains, while the broader Topix index rose 0.67 percent, or 11.67 points, to 1,756.92.
Japanese shares had opened lower as investors cashed in on the recent run-up, with buying sentiment subdued after Wall Street retreated from record levels.
But the Nikkei changed direction by midday, notch-ing up its longest string of gains since the index was cre-ated in 1950.
With the yen at relatively weak levels, investors are betting that Japan Inc will report more bumper profits as earnings season gets into full swing this week.
The dollar fetched 113.54 yen against 113.41 yen in New York.
Toyota rose 0.67 percent to 7,028 yen as rival Honda gained 0.63 percent to 3,493 yen.
Toshiba turned up 0.30 percent to 332 yen after get-ting a nod from shareholders to sell its prized memory chip business, a deal seen as cru-cial to plugging massive losses.
Major bank Mitsubishi UFJ rose 1.59 percent to 751.3 yen while brokerage Nomura fell 0.59 percent to 656.8 yen.
Nissan fell 0.36 percent to 1,093 yen on worries over sales.
The Nikkei business daily reported its domestic sales have fallen 20 percent year-on-year this month as an inspection data-faking scan-dal forced the automaker to halt shipments in Japan.
Nigeria’s senate to probe Etisalat Nigeria loan default
Abuja
Reuters
Nigeria’s Senate voted in favour yesterday of launching an investiga-
tion into the default on a $1.2bn loan earlier this year by Etisalat Nigeria and into how the funds were used.
Etisalat Nigeria, now called 9mobile, took out a syndicated loan from 13 Nigerian banks but failed to make repayments ear-lier this year.
“The Senate is aware of allegations that the loans had been diverted to other uses not related to the business, as there was no evidence of what the company did with the loans,” the upper house said in an order paper published on Twitter.
The vote mandates the Sen-ate Committee on Banking and National Security to launch an investigation, which, if required, will pass its findings on to regulators including the financial crimes agency.
In its order paper the Sen-ate also raised questions over
the Abu-Dhabi listed parent company Etisalat, which sub-sequently terminated its management agreement with its Nigerian business and gave up its 45 percent stake.
“The decision of the core investors to pull out of Nigeria raises issues of suspicion, on the intent of a company in obtain-ing a loan facility, defaulting and then pulling out of the country, hoping that their shares would be used to write off the debts,” the document said, without naming Etisalat.
Etisalat declined to com-ment. The motion said that, as of 2016, Etisalat Nigeria had started defaulting on its $1.2bn loan obligations leading to a few bailouts from its parent company in Abu Dhabi.
The document also said it was understood that about 42 percent of the loan has been repaid, “remaining an outstand-ing debt of $696m representing 58 percent of its capital, which Etisalat has failed to serve since 2016”.
Bukola Saraki (pictured), the Senate president, said after the vote that it was important to launch an investigation.
“We must protect jobs, cor-porate governance, investment climate in the country. I implore the committee to do a thorough job in the interest of the econ-omy and the country,” he said.
Nigerian lenders have picked Barclays to try to find new investors for 9mobile, two banking sources told Reuters last week.
Eurozone job creation hits decade highBrussels
AFP
Business activity across the eurozone slowed in Octo-ber, a key survey showed
yesterday, but job creation hit the fastest pace in a decade as the economic recovery in Europe stayed on track.
Analysts said that while the slip in the headline readings of the survey by data monitoring company IHS Markit was dis-appointing, the economy remained on its best run since
the eurozone debt crisis. A pur-chasing managers’ index (PMI) compiled by Markit dipped to 55.9 in October after 56.7 in September, the group said in a statement.
“Job creation was a key fea-ture of the latest survey as firms took on staff at the quick-est pace in over a decade, responding to greater work-loads and pressure on capacity,” said Andrew Harker of IHS Markit.
“The manufacturing sector once again led the way,
posting another record rise in employment,” he added.
Eurozone powerhouses France and Germany led the growth spurt in the 19-country single currency bloc, with the French economy posting the sharpest rise in output since May 2011.
Given the latest evidence of healthy growth and falling unemployment, the ECB will be expected to announce a big reduction in its stimulus to the eurozone economy at a meet-ing tomorrow.
Apple supplier AMS soars as earnings drive European sharesLondon
Reuters
Shares of Apple suppliers were boosted yesterday by robust results from chip-
maker AMS as earnings drove strong European share price moves while regional and coun-try benchmarks remained muted.
The pan-European STOXX
600 was down 0.1 percent, while London’s FTSE 100 retreated 0.1 percent. Paris’s CAC 40 and Ger-many’s DAX rose 0.1 percent.
Apple supplier AMS jumped 18 percent after reporting results. While third-quarter sales were just under expectations, analysts said strong fourth-quarter guid-ance offset the slight miss.
Suisse analysts said in a note.Other Apple suppliers
exposed to the iPhone X roll-out also rose, with Dialog Semicon-ductor up 3.6 percent and STMicroelectronics up 0.8 percent.
Swedish mining company Boliden disappointed investors with its trading update and fell 9.5 percent, while defence firm Saab rose 5 percent after it reported order bookings and profits above market forecasts.
Germany’s DAX was boosted by Commerzbank shares rising 3.5 percent after a source said the German lender hired Gold-man Sachs to help it defend itself against potential takeover bids. Speculation grew that Com-merzbank may attract bids.
In Italy, oil services group Saipem rose 9.3 percent, set for its best day in 13 months, after confirming its profit guidance for
the year. It reported a good order intake in the third quarter and strong offshore business.
This helped push oil and gas stocks up 0.2 percent.
Randstad, the world’s sec-ond-largest staffing company, slipped 5.5 percent after report-ing large one-off costs at Monster Worldwide, the US job hunting portal it acquired last year.
QDB exhibition
The fair serves as an ideal platform to achieve unparalleled insights into Mideast’s infrastructure development.
Infosys headquarters
24 WEDNESDAY 25 OCTOBER 2017BUSINESS
Dutch leader of the PvdA Labour party, Lodewijk Asscher (standing) gestures as he speaks with outgoing Dutch Finance Minister and President of the Eurogroup Jeroen Dijsselbloem (right) in The Hague. Dijsselbloem leaves national politics, after a disappointing result for his center-left Labor Party (PvdA) in the Netherlands parliamentary election in March.
‘Farewell, Dijsselbloem’Microsoft drops lawsuit against US government
Washington
AFP
Microsoft is drop-ping a lawsuit against the US g o v e r n m e n t after the Depart-
ment of Justice issued new rules limiting the use of secrecy orders that prevent firms from telling customers law enforce-ment has accessed their data.
The tech giant sued the gov-ernment in April last year, but declared victory Monday and said it was ending its case after the DOJ announced it would revise its rules.
Brad Smith, Microsoft’s chief legal officer, said the com-pany had achieved “an unequivocal win for our cus-tomers” that protected the constitutional rights of US citizens.
“Until now, the government routinely sought and obtained orders requiring email provid-ers to not tell our customers when the government takes their personal email or records,” he wrote in a blog post.
“Sometimes these orders don’t include a fixed end date, effectively prohibiting us for-ever from telling our customers that the government has obtained their data.”
Smith acknowledged that secrecy orders were sometimes required for legitimate reasons -- such as protecting individu-als at risk from harm or ensuring an investigation was not thwarted.
But, he added, at the time the lawsuit was filed, “the gov-ernment appeared to be overusing secrecy orders in a routine fashion - even where the specific facts didn’t support them”.
“When we filed our case we explained that in an 18-month period, 2,576 of the legal demands we received from the US government included an obligation of secrecy, and 68 percent of these appeared to be indefinite demands for secrecy,” he said.
But in a memo issued last week, Deputy Attorney Gen-eral Rod Rosenstein said any such gag order “should have an appropriate factual basis” and “should extend only as long as necessary to satisfy the govern-ment’s interest”.
While lauding the DOJ’s decision, Microsoft repeated its call on US Congress to amend the 1986 Electronic Communi-cations Privacy Act that regulates government access to contemporary electronic communications.
It comes as the US Supreme Court last week announced it would hear a separate privacy case that pits the Trump administration against Microsoft.
The case examines whether US law enforcement should be allowed to access evidence held on servers overseas dur-ing an investigation.
It comes after Microsoft refused to hand over emails during a US drug trafficking investigation on the basis the police’s warrant did not extend to Ireland, where the messages were stored.
Access to evidence
The case examines whether US law enforcement should be allowed to access evidence held on servers overseas.
Microsoft refused to hand over emails during a US drug trafficking investigation.
Crackdown on India shell companies unearths $1bnNew Delhi Bloomberg
India is intensifying its crack-down on dubious companies after it unearthed over $1bn
in suspicious cash deposits as part of its investigations into corruption and efforts to boost foreign investment, a minister said.
While the government has already revoked permissions for over 200,000 companies and restricted their bank accounts, it is now working on limiting property transfers to trace any further generation of black money, said P.P. Chaudhary (pictured), junior minister for corporate affairs, in an interview on October 18 in New Delhi.
The ministry is probing deposits of over $1bn made by around 20,000 companies dur-ing the cash ban last year, while its Serious Fraud Investigation Office is investigating 1,505 companies for allegedly violat-ing the Companies Act. It is examining another 809 listed
companies, found untraceable by SEBI, to check their status, existence of their offices and directors, the minister said.
After winning the 2014 elec-tion in a landslide on the promise of tackling corruption and improving the ease of doing busi-ness, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been taking measures to prevent money laundering, counterfeiting, hoarding and tax evasion. In November last year, he withdrew 86 percent of cur-rency on circulation aiming to crackdown on unaccounted wealth and put an end to India’s
vast shadow economy. In an Independence Day speech on August 15, Modi claimed the move had unearthed over 300,000 shell companies.
“Our purpose is to increase compliance so that investors’ confidence increases in Indian companies,” Chaudhary said. “This will also attract foreign investors who would be sure that the companies they are investing in are genuine. We will have to curb shell companies if we want to increase confidence of inves-tors in India.”
Following Modi’s speech, the ministry of corporate affairs struck off the names of 217,239 companies for failing to comply with regulatory requirements and disqualified directors on these companies’ boards from assum-ing directorship at other firms.
“The final list of disqualified directors may touch up to 450,000,” Chaudhary said. “The companies which deposited money during demonetization are being investigated using artificial intelligence”.
Households enjoy easier credit access: ECBFrankfurt am Main
Retuers
Eurozone households enjoyed easier access to credit in the third quarter
of 2017, the European Central Bank said yesterday, while lending conditions for busi-nesses were broadly unchanged.
A loosening of the standards banks use to judge creditwor-thiness “continued for all loan categories” as banks jostle to attract borrowers at a time of record-low interest rates and easy access to cheap credit.
The ECB closely watches lending data to gauge the effec-tiveness of its ultra-loose monetary policy, which aims to
bolster growth and inflation in the single currency area by encouraging spending and investment. A quarterly survey of 141 banks found that lenders eased requirements for busi-nesses by 1.0 percent, a slight slowdown from the 3.0 percent loosening seen between April and June.
But creditworthiness stand-ards were 11 percent looser for mortgages, a bigger change from the previous quarter’s 4.0 percent. Credit standards on consumer credit and other lending to households also eased.
Looking ahead to the final quarter of 2017, the surveyed banks said they expected credit standards to remain roughly
unchanged for businesses, although households and con-sumers could look forward to further easing.
Demand for loans mean-while continued to rise across all categories between July and September, the ECB said, pow-ered by the “low general level of interest rates” while mort-gage borrowing was boosted by “favourable housing market prospects”.
The ECB has set interest rates at record lows, offers cheap loans to banks and buys up billions in government and corporate bonds each month in a bid to pump cash into the economy and push up inflation towards its goal of just under 2.0 percent.
German bond yield hits 2-week high as data firms up ECB betsLondon
Reuters
Europe’s benchmark govern-ment bond yield reached a two-week high yesterday
after strong economic data helped convince some investors the European Central Bank is plotting a change to its ultra-easy monetary policy approach.
Analysts say strong business and bank lending surveys pro-vided more evidence that the ECB will announce a trimming
of its monthly bond purchases at its meeting on Thursday, though with an accompanying extension
of the scheme. German 10-year yields rose more than 3 basis points to 0.47 percent, their high-est since October 12 and well clear of a five-week low of 0.35 percent struck on October 17. All other euro zone yields were 1-3 bps higher on the day.
“We see a quite benign eco-nomic environment and that is one driver for the rise we saw this morning,” DZ Bank strate-gist Christian Lenk said.
“It’s two days ahead of the ECB meeting and the market is
more nervous than usual. That’s why it caused such a significant reaction.”
The bloc is enjoying the best growth momentum in a decade, and monthly surveys on Tues-day indicated a business rebound in its biggest economies was showing no signs of stopping.
Activity in the French private sector rose more than expected in October while German busi-nesses posted the highest increase in new orders in 6-1/2 years, PMI surveys showed.
Private sector growth across the euro zone stayed strong even though firms increased prices at the steepest rate in over six years.
The ECB’s quarterly bank survey showed a continued trend of demand-driven loan growth that banks expect to continue till the end of 2017.
Inflation remains the big headache for policymakers, however. At 1.5 percent it remains well below the ECB’s target of almost 2 percent.
Economists polled by
Reuters expect the central bank to say on Thursday it will start cutting monthly purchases to 40 billion euros from €60bn euros in January. They were split on whether the programme would last six or nine months after that.
“Many pundits hold a bear-ish bias on rates and spreads going into the ECB meeting, sug-gesting it doesn’t take much for Draghi to trigger a risk-on rally,” said Padhraic Garvey (pictured), global head of debt and rates strategy at ING..
Gold prices slip on nerves before Fed Chair decisionLondon
Reuters
Gold prices dipped yester-day as investors nervously awaited news
on the next head of the US cen-tral bank, while strong share markets and a calmer geopo-litical environment sapped safe-haven demand.
“The hawkish speculation about a new Fed chair has added some downside pres-sure,” said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank in Copenhagen.
President Donald Trump told reporters on Monday he
was “very, very close” to mak-ing his decision on who should chair the US Federal Reserve.
A hawkish candidate would be expected to favour higher interest rates, boosting the value of the dollar and making greenback-denominated gold more expensive for holders of other currencies.
Spot gold had slipped 0.5 percent to $1,275.81 an ounce by 1425 GMT, after hitting its lowest since October 6 at $1,271.86 in the previous session.
US gold futures for Decem-ber delivery fell 0.3 percent to $1,277.40 per ounce.
Liu re-named as key economic adviser to XiBeijing
Bloomberg
China re-named Liu He (pictured), one of Pres-ident Xi Jinping’s closest
financial and economic advisers, to the Communist Party’s Central Committee, a signal the country’s leaders aren’t looking to make signif-icant changes to economic policy as they begin a new five-year term.
Liu is a longtime member of Xi’s inner circle and has played a key role in shaping policy, mostly behind the scenes, as director of the Communist Party’s general office of the Central Leading Group for Financial and Eco-nomic Affairs. Liu also is vice chairman of the National Development & Reform Com-mission, the government’s top economic planning body.
The 204 full members of the Central Committee, a body including government leaders, People’s Liberation Army generals, and heads of major state-owned enter-prises, were reported Tuesday by the official Xinhua News Agency.
“Liu He remaining on the Central Committee reflects Xi’s reliance on him for eco-nomic reforms,” said Iris Pang, an economist for Greater China at ING Groep NV in Hong Kong.
The new committee ros-ter released today at the close of the 19th Party Congress in Beijing didn’t give guidance on who may succeed People’s Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan. He recently dropped heavy hints that he’s set for retirement.
Among potential succes-sors, Jiang Chaoliang, the current party chief of Hubei province, and China Securi-ties Regulatory Commission Chairman Liu Shiyu, were named to the Central Com-mittee. China Banking Regulatory Commission Chairman Guo Shuqing remained on the panel. PBOC Deputy Governor Yi Gang was named as an alternate mem-ber to the committee.
Jiang’s joining “raises the probability” he could replace Zhou, according to Evan Medeiros, Asia managing director at the Eurasia Group and former senior director for Asian affairs at the White House National Security Council. Guo “is still in the game” and a leading con-tender along with Jiang, he wrote in a report.
25WEDNESDAY 25 OCTOBER 2017 BUSINESS
French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire (second left), Junior Economy Minister Benjamin Griveaux (left), Junior Minister in Charge of Digital Sector Mounir Mahjoubi (right) and Minister of State attached to the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne (centre) visit the Bercy Lab to launch business modernisation drive at the Bercy Finance Ministry in Paris, France.
Business modernisation drive
India’s cabinet nods $32.4bn to recapitalise state banksNew Delhi
Reuters
India’s cabinet approved a $32.4bn plan yesterday to recapitalise its state banks over the next two years, in a bid by Prime Minister
Narendra Modi to tackle a major drag on the economy that has frustrated his attempts to boost growth.
Once the world’s fastest-growing major economy, India has seen its growth rate plum-met to the lowest in three years, far below levels needed to cre-ate enough jobs to absorb the million Indians joining the work force every month.
Modi’s government has tried to respond by stepping up pub-lic spending, but the slowdown has stressed its finances, making it imperative for private invest-ment to pick up the slack.
Officials privately admit they have struggled to revive private investment because state-owned banks, which provide much of the credit in the economy, are saddled with a mountain of bad debt that has crimped their abil-ity to offer new credit.
The decision to recapitalise the banks is meant to clear that bottleneck, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said at a press con-ference in New Delhi.
“The decision to recapitalise public sector banks with 2.11 tril-lion rupees will address the bank balance sheet problem and push growth forward,” Jaitley said.
By some estimates, banks need as much as $65bn in addi-tional capital by March 2019 to fill the hole left by soured loans and to meet new regulatory cap-ital requirements.
The official announcement, which was followed by a series of tweets from government min-isters holding it up as “unprecedented”, comes after a
flurry of activity in the govern-ment over the past few weeks, driven by the prime minister’s office.
Modi, who swept to power in a landslide victory for his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2014 promising a reform agenda to revive economic growth, faces state elections later this year and a re-election bid by 2019.
He has faced criticisms after a surprise scrapping of high-value bank notes last November and a new goods and services tax effected earlier this year dis-rupted businesses across the country.
People close to Modi have previously told Reuters he wants to control the political damage and ensure the economic slow-down remains temporary.
Mohan Guruswamy, an economist in New Delhi, said the government should have taken action three years ago to revive the banking sector.
“Now it’s more expensive, and we will not see results soon,” Guruswamy said.
Finance ministry officials said the bank recapitalisation would be followed by a series of
reforms in the sector. They said the details would come later.
Of the planned 2.11 trillion rupees sum, recapitalisation bonds will account for 1.35 tril-lion rupees, while 760 billion rupees will come from budget-ary support and equity issuance, said Rajiv Kumar, India’s finan-cial services secretary.
It was not immediately clear what the impact will be on the country’s fiscal deficit, which Jaitley aims to keep at 3.2 per-cent of GDP for the current fiscal year to March.
“India’s banking was the weakest link in the revival of the economy,” said N R Bhanu-murthy, an economist at the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, a Delhi-based think-tank partly funded by the finance ministry.
“The government should complete the process as early as possible.” Bhanumurthy added that the move might have an impact on the government’s fis-cal deficit target this year.
Twenty one state-run banks account for more than two-thirds of India’s banking assets. But they also account for a bulk
of the record 9.5 trillion Indian rupees ($145bn) of soured loans.
In addition to repairing their balance sheets, the banks need billions of dollars in new capital to meet global Basel III banking rules, due to fully kick in by March 2019.
Fitch Ratings estimates Indian banks will need $65bn of
additional capital by March 2019 to meet Basel III global banking rules. Moody’s expects the top 11 state lenders alone will need nearly $15bn.
Bank stocks rallied ahead of the news conference on expec-tations of a recapitalisation plan. The state bank index closed 3.8 percent higher.
India’s Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs, Arun Jaitley addressing a press conference at National Media Centre in New Delhi, yesterday.
Soured loans
By some estimates, banks need as much as $65bn in additional capital by March 2019 to fill the hole left by soured loans and to meet new regulatory capital requirements.
Oil prices creep upward as traders expect higher demand growthLondon
Reuters
Hedge fund managers con-tinue to hold large bullish positions in crude and
fuels, anticipating strong demand growth and output restraint will lift oil prices into a new, higher, trading range.
Hedge funds and other money managers held a net long position equivalent to 883 mil-lion barrels in the five biggest futures and options contracts linked to petroleum on October 17.
The net position had been reduced by 6 million barrels compared with the previous week and 45 million barrels from the recent peak on Sep-tember 26 . But it was 578
million barrels higher than at the end of June and still near this year’s peaks, according to records published by regulators and exchanges.
Fund managers made com-paratively minor adjustments to their positions in Brent, US petrol and US heating oil in the week to October 17, with few signs of profit-taking.
Significant short-selling emerged, however, in US crude, where portfolio managers added 23 million barrels of fresh short positions.
Funds have embarked on a new cycle of short selling, the tenth since the start of 2015, with short positions up by 40 million barrels since September 26.
But the current cycle is unu-sual in that prices have risen over
the last two weeks, even as funds added 35 million barrels of new short positions.
The combination of rising prices with a new wave of short selling indicates US crude prices may be moving into a new, higher trading range.
From a pure positioning per-spective, the concentration of long positions among hedge funds continues to pose a downside risk to oil prices if fund managers attempt to realise some of their profits before the year-end.
But a move into a higher range would be consistent with the emerging fundamental pic-ture, with US oil drilling slowing, crude stocks falling, and con-sumption of refined fuels at home and in export markets increasing strongly.
Britain’s EU bank capital could be locked up for decades after BrexitBerlin
Reuters
Britain could wait more than three decades to recover billions of euros
in capital once it ceases to be a shareholder in the European Investment Bank on its depar-ture from the European Union, the boss of the bank said.
In an interview with Ger-man business dai ly Handelsblatt, Werner Hoyer (pictured) also said the loss of the 16 percent of shareholder capital that Britain holds would force the bank to rein in its lending unless other member states stepped up to compensate.
The EIB, owned by the EU’s member states, uses their cap-ital deposits as security to fund loans for research, infrastruc-ture and environmental projects in Europe and around the world. Hoyer said that the need to unwind positions in an orderly fashion meant that Brit-ain would only see its cash allocation to the bank, a total of €3.5bn, in 2054, 35 years after the expected March 2019 exit date.
“As things stand, repayment will come only when the cur-rent loan portfolio, in which the
British are participants, is fully recovered,” he told Handelsblatt.
A final decision on a further allocation of about €36bn in capital from Britain, which was not paid in cash, has yet to be taken, but Hoyer said that under a proposal by lead Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier, a British deposit could take the place of the shareholder capi-tal, also until 2054.
“That strikes me as a fair position that does both sides justice,” he told the paper.
Britain must choose from a range of existing off-the-peg models for its relationship to the European Union when it leaves the bloc, Barnier told a group of newspapers separately.
Macron faces hurdle from Irish PM on digital taxParis
AFP
President Emmanuel Macron’s push for a new EU tax on Internet giants
met resistance yesterday from Ireland, a country favoured by the likes of Google and Facebook for its low corporate taxes.
After a meeting in Paris, Macron and visiting Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar admit-ted they had failed to reach agreement on how to ensure that tech titans pay more tax in Europe.
Varadkar, who like Macron is part of a new, younger gen-eration of EU leaders, said the issue of how best to tax Internet firms “so that they pay their fair share” was among those on which the two “don’t necessar-ily agree”.
While saying both he and Macron wanted Europe to take advantage of the digital revolu-tion and promote innovation, the Irish remained convinced that a global, rather than an EU, solution was needed to stop tech tax avoidance.
At an EU summit last week the two men reportedly clashed on the issue with Varadkar standing by the view of Ireland, Luxembourg and a handful of other small countries that such a tax would deter investment.
Macron, who has been push-ing hard for harmonised tax rates among EU members,
acknowledged at the end of the summit last week that these member states could lose out.
“Some states will perhaps lose out in the short-term, mar-ginally, because they’ve built models based on this (low cor-porate tax rates),” he told reporters on Friday.
But he insisted that the US tech giants known as GAFA, Google, Amazon, Facebook and Apple, would not leave the EU market of 500 million wealthy consumers if they were forced to pay higher taxes.
Macron agreed Tuesday that further discussions with Varad-kar in person had been “inconclusive”.
France needs the backing of all EU members to achieve its tax goal which requires unanim-ity of all 28 states.
The meeting between Macron and Varadkar was the first between the two youthful leaders since they both took office this year.
Macron backed Varadkar on Brexit, saying it was up to Brit-ain to resolve the issue of its border with Ireland after it leaves the EU.
“It’s up to the United King-dom to propose concrete solutions to minimise the impact of Brexit on the border between Ireland and the United King-dom,” Macron said.
The issue of the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland, the only land border the
UK will have with the EU after Brexit, is a top priority in the negotiations between Brussels and London, which began in June.
There are fears the return of a “hard” border would disrupt the fragile peace in Northern
Ireland, which was plagued by three decades of unrest until a 1998 peace deal.
Varadkar thanked Macron for his “solidarity” in “doing all that we can to ensure there is no return to a physical border on the island of Ireland.”
French President Emmanuel Macron (left) shakes hands as he welcomes Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar upon his arrival at the Elysee Palace, in Paris, ahead of a meeting, yesterday.
26 WEDNESDAY 25 OCTOBER 2017BUSINESS
QATAR STOCK EXCHANGE
QE Index 8,110.16 0.09 %
QE Total Return Index 13,600.25 0.09 %
QE Al Rayan Islamic Index 3,195.76 0.84 %
QE All Share Index 2,274.28 0.48 %
QE All Share Banks &
Financial Services 2,555.48 0.14 %
QE All Share Industrials 2,494.97 0.53 %
QE All Share Transportation 1,662.70 1.68 %
QE All Share Real Estate 1,585.14 1.24 %
QE All Share Insurance 3,020.04 0.80 %
QE All Share Telecoms 1,023.61 0.26 %
QE All Share Consumer
Goods & Services 4,858.90 1.74 %
QE INDICES SUMMARY QE MARKET SUMMARY COMPARISON WORLD STOCK INDICES
GOLD AND SILVER
24-10-2017Index 8,110.16
Change 7.25
% 0.09
YTD% 22.29
Volume 5,101,664
Value (QAR) 139,723,239.63
Trades 1,855
Up 13 | Down 28 | Unchanged 0023-10-2017Index 8,117.41
Change 40.92
% 0.50
YTD% 22.22
Volume 8,106,298
Value (QAR) 165,429,610.98
Trades 2,201
EXCHANGE RATE
GOLD QR150.1488 per grammeSILVER QR2.0057 per gramme
Index Day’s Close Pt Chg % Chg Year High Year Low
All Ordinaries 5962.508 5.325 0.09 5987.3 5635.1
Cac 40 Index/D 5400.87 14.06 0.26 5442.1 4733.82
Dj Indu Average 23273.96 -54.67 -0.23 23368.37 17883.56
Hang Seng Inde/D 28154.97 -150.91 -0.53 28798.78 21883.82
INTERNATIONAL MARKETS - A LIST OF SHARES FROM THE WORLD
A C C-A/D 1777.8 -2.5 14981
Aban Offs-A/D 186.05 3.1 316277
Ador Welding-B/D 533 -1.2 4906
Aegis Logis-A/D 233.4 -1.3 600105
Alembic-B/D 38.8 -0.2 45044
Alkyl Amines-B/D 584.2 0.5 2781
Alok Indus-B/D 3.39 0.07 2023719
Apollo Tyre-A/D 240.3 0.35 77310
Asahi I Glass-/D 375.8 0.8 3495
Ashok Leyland-/D 128.4 0.05 304730
Bajaj Hold-A/D 2890.8 10.6 1333
Ballarpur In-B/D 12.04 -0.05 184396
Banaras Bead-B/D 63.3 5.1 3878
Bata India-A/D 789 -5 20455
Beml Ltd-A/D 1737.75 15.65 40848
Bhansali Eng-B/D 108.25 -0.45 338113
Bharat Bijle-B/D 1077 -17.3 3416
Bharat Ele-A/D 174.4 0.2 258723
Bharatgears-B/D 142.85 0.8 6552
Bhartiya Int-B/D 624.9 1.45 16438
Bhel-A/D 87.95 1.2 679359
Bom.Burmah-A/D 1625.95 -57.55 35619
Bombay Dyeing-/D 202.5 -1.65 586289
Camph.& All-Xc/D 868.45 11.9 5307
Canfin Homes-A/D 538.95 1.55 174217
Caprihans-Xc/D 105.5 -2.6 4845
Castrol India-/D 376.5 -0.55 128856
Century Enka-B/D 360.15 -5 8866
Century Text-A/D 1326.5 0.1 27865
Chambal Fert-B/D 148.4 2 429620
Chola Invest-A/D 1169 29.35 20642
Chowgule St-Xt/D 14 0.15 1132
Cimmco-B/D 92.45 -0.75 7112
Cipla-A/D 595.25 1.55 58970
City Union Bk-/D 159.6 -0.65 14620
Colgate-A/D 1059.05 -2.7 11335
Container Cor-/D 1333.55 1.55 7218
Dai-Xc/D 406 0.95 2828
Dcm Financia-B/D 3.09 0.14 2100
Dcm Shram Ind-/D 344 -3.7 26987
Dhampur Sugar-/D 305.55 0.65 68362
Dr. Reddy-A/D 2367 2.15 12235
E I H-B/D 140.4 1.8 9542
E.I.D Parry-A/D 357.55 2.55 46782
Eicher Motor-A/D 31500 359.15 1426
Electrosteel-B/D 34.05 1.85 585866
Emco-T/D 17.7 0.45 37661
Escorts Fin-Xt/D 5.47 -0.28 2301
Escorts-A/D 733.75 9.7 85045
Eveready Indu-/D 331.15 7.7 7700
F D C-B/D 178.8 -4.8 5121
Federal Bank-A/D 124.85 0.2 332139
Ferro Alloys-X/D 22.82 -0.45 2607881
Finolex-A/D 707.7 -17.85 8327
Forbes-B/D 1779.95 -58.4 7806
Gail-A/D 443.3 8.85 1045929
Gammon India-Z/D 5.69 -0.15 133530
Gangotri Tex-Z/D 0.92 -0.03 3969
Garden P -B/D 33.65 -0.05 6859
Godfrey Phil-A/D 1006.35 1.55 6472
Goodricke-Xc/D 278.95 -4 25141
Goodyear I -B/D 810.65 -8.4 2536
Hcl Infosys-A/D 48.25 -0.15 418329
Him.Fut.Comm-B/D 30 1.4 8123375
Himat Seide-B/D 367.15 9.9 23692
Hind Motors-B/D 7.3 0.02 115703
Hind Org Chem-/D 19.05 0.4 64980
Hind Unilever-/D 1271.25 22.6 36441
Hind.Petrol-A/D 465.85 5.35 192770
Hindalco-A/D 268.9 -3.5 347056
Hous Dev Fin-A/D 1722.7 1.8 305250
I F C I-A/D 22.8 0.3 270293
Idbi-A/D 54.3 2.5 398888
Ifb Agro-B/D 666.7 -26.6 6618
Ifb Ind.Ltd.-B/D 888.1 -16.75 5015
India Cement-A/D 182.45 1.5 342159
India Glycol-B/D 326.2 11.55 185931
Indian Hotel-A/D 111.15 -1.5 119423
Indo-A/D 114.45 2.4 117391
Indusind-A/D 1664.7 -31.2 67928
J.B.Chemical-B/D 274.5 0.55 2776
Jagson Phar-B/D 34.1 0.2 7371
Jamnaauto-B/D 58.95 -0.05 281046
Jbf Indu-B/D 217.65 0.4 32076
Jct Ltd-Xc/D 3.32 -0.06 555409
Jenson&Nich.-T/D 8.58 0.62 29563
Jindal Drill-B/D 154.5 -0.6 10531
Jktyre&Ind-A/D 146.05 -1.15 102928
Jmc Projects-B/D 427.9 15.3 1327
Kabra Extr-B/D 140 6.35 4060
Kajaria Cer-A/D 700 1.15 19582
Kakatiya Cem-B/D 363.5 3.7 7499
Kalpat Power-B/D 365.05 -4.55 7282
Kalyani Stel-B/D 404.6 2 13623
Kanoria Chem-B/D 87.25 -0.2 15995
Kg Denim-Xc/D 61.15 0.2 11621
Kilburnengg-Xd/D 85.8 -1.65 28653
Kinetic Eng-Xc/D 68.5 1.15 8699
Kopran-B/D 69.4 0.2 42506
Lakshmi Elec-X/D 734.35 -7.6 6293
Lgb Broth-B/D 941.75 29.1 4759
Lloyd Metal-Xd/D 19.75 0.9 131046
Lumax Ind-B/D 1713 77.2 5377
Lupin-A/D 1026.5 -10.2 50021
Lyka Labs-B/D 54.75 0.95 96065
Mafatlal Ind-X/D 293.8 19.95 2216
Mah.Seamless-B/D 481.2 8.9 33972
Mangalam Cem-B/D 369.15 7.7 2284
Maral Overs-B/D 44 1 13559
Mastek-B/D 343.85 14.75 223750
Max Financial-/D 571 -3.8 45445
Mrpl-A/D 129.9 0.4 166243
Nagreeka Ex-B/D 35 0.9 7514
Nahar Spg.-B/D 108.4 0.9 4558
Nation Alum -A/D 85.3 0.45 987141
Navneet Edu-B/D 169.7 -0.9 12969
Neuland Lab-B/D 1112 7.95 1017
Nrb Bearings-B/D 133.7 -0.75 5299
O N G C-A/D 176 4.4 852843
Oil Country-B/D 48.15 0.9 20296
Onward Tech-B/D 139.7 1.9 59370
Orchid Pharm-T/D 17.45 0.15 46373
Orient Hotel-B/D 40.15 3 253076
Orient.Carb.-B/D 1344.7 -17.65 2466
Patspin India-/D 26.65 1.55 37030
Punjab Chem.-B/D 403 7.05 1623
Radico Khait-B/D 221.2 -3.6 386924
Rallis India-A/D 252.15 13.15 147222
Rallis India-A/D 252.15 13.15 147222
Reliance Indus/D 532.9 12.5 251550
Ruchi Soya-B/D 22.6 -0.25 130610
Saur.Cem-Xc/D 82.1 1.25 77832
Sterling Tool-/D 265.7 0.6 3357
Tanfac Indu-Xd/D 111.25 9.35 169122
Tanfac Indu-Xd/D 111.25 9.35 169122
Thirumalai-B/D 1818.8 11.95 13950
Til Ltd.-B/D 518.1 -3 6307
Timexgroup-T/D 37.25 -0.75 8167
Tinplate-B/D 266.6 -6.15 327844
Ucal Fuel-B/D 202.15 6.75 28247
Ucal Fuel-B/D 202.15 6.75 28247
Ultramarine-Xc/D 270.5 -2.05 36656
Unitech P -A/D 6.12 -0.26 2826001
Univcable-B/D 161 0.95 65104
3I Group/D 940 -5.5 335496
Assoc.Br.Foods/D 3371 0 133512
Barclays/D 196.25 0.8 8492445
Bp/D 494.7 3.75 10593640
Brit Am Tobacc/D 4847 -20 756467
Bt Group/D 272.15 -1.6 2913210
Centrica/D 172.8 -2.6 5481957
Gkn/D 318 -1 2902332
Hsbc Holdings/D 745.7 2.2 6749541
Kingfisher/D 303.8 0.6 1839271
Land Secs./D 966.5 -0.5 549560
Legal & Genera/D 267.5 -0.6 1945453
Lloyds Bnk Grp/D 67.45 0.45 38966100
Marks & Sp./D 347.1 0.2 1224852
Next/D 4881 4 172836
Pearson/D 705.925 10.5 833200
Prudential/D 1858.5 -26.5 1647345
Rank Group/D 228.4 0.1 9276
Rentokil Initi/D 322.9 1.3 1933587
Rolls Royce Pl/D 929.5 -4.5 783835
Rsa Insrance G/D 634.5 4 999596
Sainsbury(J)/D 246.3 -0.1 1952992
Schroders/D 3484 0 84441
Severn Trent/D 2142 5 150329
Smith&Nephew/D 1414 -4 521583
Smiths Group/D 1554.125 -19 259179
Standrd Chart /D 774.7 7 1224326
Tate & Lyle/D 651 5.5 555833
Tesco/D 187.611 0.15 3454918
Unilever/D 4141 20 1223383
United Util Gr/D 842.5 2 657809
Vodafone Group/D 215.6 -0.6 10237867
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LONDON
Chinese President Xi Jinping’s vast “Belt and Road” infrastructure project was unexpectedly included in the ruling Communist Party’s con-stitution yesterday, giving it greater policy heft and added pressure to succeed.
The party’s amended charter, approved at the close of its twice-a-decade congress, pledged to “pursue the Belt and Road initiative”, a further sign of Xi’s expanding power and evidence that the ambitious “Silk Road”-like initiative will endure beyond Xi’s tenure.
It also underscores how the Communist Party has increased its attention to foreign policy and reflects Xi’s growing desire for China to take a global leadership role, analysts said.
“Everyone knows that the Belt and Road is very impor-tant to Xi, it has his personal stamp and authority,” said Peter Cai, a non-resident fellow at Sydney-based think tank Lowy Institute.
“But to have major policy, especially an external engagement policy, to be written into a party constitu-tion, at least in recent memory, it is something quite significant,” he said.
First mentioned during a speech Xi gave to university students in Kazakhstan in 2013, the plan is a vehicle for China to take a greater role on the international stage by funding and building global transport and trade links in more than 60 countries.
Xi has heavily promoted the initiative, inviting worldleaders to Beijing in May for an inaugural summit at
which he pledged $124bn in funding for the plan.Local Chinese governments as well as state and pri-
vate firms have rushed to offer support by investing overseas and making loans.
Some critics argue that China is exporting excess indus-trial capacity to spread its influence, and that the initiative, which has seen developing countries take on heavy debt, needs higher standards of governance and transparency.
“China has made commitments and pledges to many developing countries and it will take that length of time, 10 years or more, to complete the initiative,” said Rajiv Biswas, Asia Pacific chief economist at IHS Markit.
“This has also strengthened China’s soft power glo-bally, so it wouldn’t make sense for China’s point of view to suddenly pull away from all of this,” he said.
Other analysts said its inclusion could be a double-edged sword that adds pressure for the initiative, which remains broadly defined and leaves much to interpreta-tion, to succeed.
“The danger of having given it greater visibility is that actually there are going to be more of those efforts to play to the policy in a political way rather than considering carefully the costs and benefits of each portion of what one is doing,” said Dali Yang, a professor at the Univer-sity of Chicago.
Many private investors have jumped on the band-wagon to describe their projects as Belt and Road-related, while local governments have rolled out individual Belt and Road plans.
The heads of Chinese firms including China Commu-nications Construction Co and China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation told Reuters during the week-long congress that they would place greater focus on developing their overseas businesses in support of the Belt and Road initiative.
The party congress saw Xi cement his power ahead of a second five-year term and put him in the same com-pany as the founder of modern China, Mao Zedong, with the enshrinement of his political thought into the coun-try’s constitution.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin got a swift rebuttal after he went on national television to claim a hypothetical Indiana family would save $1,000 under President Don-
ald Trump’s tax plan.It came from a fellow cabinet member.
At virtually the same time on another net-work, White House Budget Director Mick Mulvaney dismissed as flawed any attempt to predict the impact of the plan on a par-ticular family because so many essential details had yet to be determined.
“It is impossible to sit down and say, this will be the impact on this wage earner or this family at this particular time,” Mulva-ney said on CNN’s State of the Union on October 1, the same day as Mnuchin’s appearance on ABC’s This Week.
Inconsistent communication from the White House about how its tax plan would work and who would benefit risks under-mining Trump’s campaign to build public support for his signature initiative. It also leaves lawmakers guessing about what the president wants -- or at least is willing to accept -- as Congress fills in the broad tax framework Trump and GOP leaders released last month.
Even Senate Finance Chairman Orrin Hatch, whose panel is responsible for draft-ing tax legislation, said in an interview Monday that he wasn’t certain of Trump’s red lines -- hours after the president shot down in a Twitter post a Republican idea to reduce annual limits on 401(k) retirement
account contributions.“We need to know what the president
wants to do to try to coordinate it with him,” he said. “So far I’m not quite sure where he’s going.”
House Republicans hope to vote before Thanksgiving on a final plan, which they expect to unveil as soon as next week, said a senior party aide.
By then, contradictory statements from administration officials would threaten to weaken both the White House’s credibility and muddy its argument as Americans form crucial early perceptions.
“The Administration has always been clear and consistent on the top priorities for tax reform: giving middle-income Ameri-cans a tax cut and bringing the corporate rate down to 20 percent or lower,” White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement. “We hope Dem-ocrats who have supported similar proposals in the past will put aside partisanship and support giving the middle class a major tax cut, American workers a pay raise, and our businesses of all sizes a level playing field to compete.”
The White House starts from behind with the public. Americans oppose the Trump tax plan by 52 percent to 34 percent, according to a CNN poll taken October 12 through Oct. 15. Only 24 percent believe they would be better off under Trump’s plan, according to the poll.
While Trump has repeatedly promised wealthy Americans wouldn’t benefit from the tax overhaul, Vice President Mike Pence has championed the plan as an “across the board” cut for all income levels. The White House branded the plan a “middle-class mir-acle” just hours before National Economic
Council Director Gary Cohn said on ABC he couldn’t guarantee taxes won’t go up for some middle-class Americans.
Republicans have vacillated on how to treat state-and-local taxes and whether to add a higher tax bracket for top earners. Administration officials have made several conflicting statements about the effect on the deficit, ranging from predictions of debt-reducing growth to revenue neutrality to active advocacy for more debt. “It’s a gong show,” said David Stockman, who served as budget director when President Ronald Reagan passed tax cuts in the 1980s. Stock-man blamed “naïve cowboys” in the administration with scant Washington expe-rience for the lack of message discipline.
Any shifts in messaging reflect the evolv-ing nature of the legislative process, said a senior administration official, who requested anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.
The White House has especially strug-gled to combat claims that the tax proposal
is geared toward the wealthy.
Jack Farchy Bloomberg
Noble Group Ltd.’s sale of its oil business to Vitol Group probably buys the embattled commodity trader
time. But even if it survives long enough to complete the deal, there’s still an almighty struggle ahead: the near-inevitable restructuring of over $3 billion in debt.
Analysts at BNP Paribas SA, Nomura Holdings Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and iFast Corp. all predicted after the sale was announced on Monday that the
Hong Kong-based company would be forced to restructure its debt.
“The next few months will be critical,” said Jean-Francois Lambert, a consultant and former head of global commodity trade finance at HSBC Holdings Plc. “The business whilst shrinking is still bleeding and this becomes very worrisome.”
Noble Group didn’t respond to requests for comment.
The company’s bonds extended gains on Tuesday after the trader said the Vitol deal, coupled with the earlier sale of the gas and power business to Mercuria Energy Group, would provide sufficient proceeds to pay down two secured debt facilities. But attention is shifting to the ability of the rump company, focused on coal and iron ore trading in Asia, to service Noble’s debt load.
Those prospects don’t look especially good: as part of a profit warning on Monday, Noble said
its hard commodities business would make net losses of $50m to $100m in the third quarter -- the third straight quarter in which the division has been a source of losses.
“Remaining unsecured debt has interest liabilities of above $200m, which is unlikely to be serviced from the remaining hard commodities business,” Varun Ahuja at JPMorgan said in a note on Monday. “We think the restructuring of the remaining business post completion of the oil business is the base case.”
He estimates what’s left of Noble could make an annual operating profit of no more than $200m. He expects creditors to recover 53 cents on the dollar based on cash levels as of June 2017 from estimates of 42-57 cents in a liquidation scenario analysis in May.
Noble’s January 2020 notes climbed 1.2 cents to 39.9 cents on the dollar as of 4.52pm. Hong Kong
time, the highest since October 6, according to Bloomberg-compiled prices. Its shares tumbled 4.2 percent to close at 34 Singapore cents, the lowest level since June and bringing this year’s losses to 80 percent.
Exactly how much surplus cash Noble will have from the sale of the oil unit and gas and power business is far from clear. On Monday, it said that for “illustrative purposes”, had the deals been done immediately after the end of June the company would have received $1.42bn in aggregate proceeds, and after repayment of $836m of debt would have been left with $582m in net proceeds.
Those numbers include proceeds from both the planned sale of the oil business, and also the completed sale of the gas and power business, a Noble spokesperson confirmed by email. The gas and power sale proceeds are based on the
consideration paid on closing, plus amounts placed in escrow and cash received by the business prior to the closing date, they said.
Noble received $102m in cash and a further $83m paid into an escrow account when it sold its gas and power business to Mercuria at the end of last month.
What’s more, the value of the net working capital in the oil business -- the basis for calculating how much Vitol will pay -- is likely to have declined since June as the business was “adversely affected” by capital constraints during the period, according to Noble’s statement.
And not all of the proceeds of the oil sale would be paid immediately: according to the deal with Vitol, $174m would be paid into three separate escrow accounts. S&P Global Ratings said on Monday that “default risk remains” for Noble as the company’s cash balance remains uncertain.
Pressure on as Xi’s ‘Belt and Road’ enshrined in Chinese party charter Brenda Goh and John Ruwitch Reuters
White House’s tax message clouds pitch for Trump plan
As the US Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump waves after speaking at a news conference to reveal his tax policy at Trump Tower in Manhattan, New York, in this file picture.
Toluse Olorunnipa Bloomberg
While Trump has repeatedly promised wealthy Americans wouldn’t benefit from the tax overhaul, Vice President Mike Pence has championed the plan as an “across the board” cut for all income levels.
Noble received $102m in cash and a further $83m paid into an escrow account when it sold its gas and power business to Mercuria at the end of last month.
Noble Group’s next battle will be over its $3bn debt pile
BUSINESS VIEWS 27WEDNESDAY 25 OCTOBER 2017
28 WEDNESDAY 25 OCTOBER 2017BUSINESS
BACK TO BUSINESS
Toshiba’s boss sorry as shareholders blast $18bn sale of chip
sight
AFP
Toshiba’s president yes-terday apologised “sincerely” over the
$18bn sale of its prized mem-ory chip business, as shareholders demanded answers over the deal seen as pivotal to the survival of one of Japan’s best-known firms.
Bowing deeply at the start of a tense shareholders’ meeting, Satoshi Tsunakawa said: “We sincerely apologise for causing problems and worry.”
More than 600 investors poured into the meeting as they voted in favour of the sale to a consortium led by US investor Bain Capital—which includes US tech giants Apple and Dell as well as South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix—after months of wrangling.
Angry jeers rang out from some stockholders who had little choice but to agree to unload the division so the cash-strapped company can plug massive losses at its US nuclear division, Westing-house Electric.
Tsunakawa pledged to finish the sale by the end of March 2018 and stressed: “We will continue to have honest management, and improve our internal governance.”
That pledge did not sit well with one 77-year-old pensioner who owns Toshiba stock, which has plunged about 25 percent since the losses were made public in late December.
F o r m e r T o s h i b a employee Masayuki Sakurai
said the firm’s top brass was evasive about what would happen if the planned sale were to fall through.
The chip unit brought in around a quarter of Toshiba’s total annual revenue and is the crown jewel in a vast range of businesses ranging from home appliances to nuclear reactors.
Toshiba, the world’s number-two chipmaker behind Samsung, narrowly averted a delisting this year, but it still faces the humiliat-ing prospect of being yanked from Japan’s premier stock exchange if the sale does not raise enough money.
And some investors had doubts about whether things would change at the firm, which was recovering from a 2015 accounting scandal when the huge US losses were made public.
On Monday, the firm said it would post a 110bn yen ($970m) net loss in the cur-rent fiscal year because of a tax bill linked to the massive sale.
He warned Toshiba could find itself in trouble again, despite the much-needed cash injection.
The Japanese industrial giant is trying to recover from the disastrous acquisi-tion of Westinghouse, which racked up billions of dollars in losses before being placed in bankruptcy protection.
Those losses came to light as the group was still reeling from revelations that top executives had pressured underlings to cover up weak results for years after the 2008 global financial meltdown.
Capital Comment
If we don’t show our European partners quickly how we plan to reimburse the €10bn, we won’t get out of the excessive deficit procedure & we’ll remain the black sheep of Europe.
Bruno Le Maire, French Finance Minister.
EU Public Debt
A look at Google’s new Pixel 2 phones at a New York City pop-up shop in New York City.
GM blunts impact of production plungeSouthfield
Bloomberg
General Motors Co. masked the effects of big production cuts it warned were coming
by boosting sales of more lucra-tive SUVs and reducing costs.
The automaker reported adjusted profit of $1.32 a share for the quarter ended last month, beating the $1.11 average analyst estimate. Strong demand for the new Chevrolet Equinox crossover helped top expectations despite the company cutting North American vehicle output by more than a quarter.
The earnings add to the momentum GM has been building by changing perception of its tech-nology. CEO Mary Barra has taken a page from the book of Tesla Inc.’s Elon Musk this fall by generating buzz about electric and autono-mous vehicles hitting the market. Wall Street has grown more opti-mistic that GM’s test fleet of self-driving electric cars can be converted into a lucrative robotaxi operation that eventually could be worth billions.
“The progress we’ve seen in the stock price, certainly we’re pleased,” GM Chief Financial
Officer Chuck Stevens (pictured) told reporters yesterday. “It’s the strength of the core business. Sec-ondly, we also have been out very actively talking about the assets, the capabilities and the approach we have been bringing to bear rel-ative to autonomy and personal mobility.”
GM shares climbed as much as 3.6 percent and traded at $46.53 as of 9:56 a.m. in New York, up 3.1 percent. The Detroit automaker’s shares have surged 33 percent this year, more than doubling the gain by the benchmark Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.
The largest US automaker has cut annual costs by more than $5bn since the beginning of 2014, which has helped keep profits up even as
production and sales are down, Stevens said.
Investors have been interested in GM’s potential to develop its own ride-sharing business using self-driving cars. The company’s core business has also been resil-ient amid a weaker car market.
“At the moment, the force is strong with GM,” James Albertine, an analyst with Consumer Edge Research, wrote in a report to cli-ents Tuesday. Although some analysts have speculated that GM will spin out some businesses, especially self-driving car and per-sonal mobility units, Stevens downplayed the possibility for now, saying it makes sense to keep those businesses under one roof.
While Wall Street has been excited about GM’s future technol-ogy, the past quarter was one of retrenchment. Production cuts were the biggest factor in revenue falling 14 percent to $33.6bn.
The automaker has been reducing output at passenger car plants as sales slow, including cut-ting a shift at its compact car plant in Lordstown, Ohio, and one at its sedan plant in Detroit. Even an SUV plant in Tennessee will be cutting jobs next month to reduce inven-tory at dealers.
Google’s Pixel 2 off to a rocky startSan Francisco Reuters
The launch of Alphabet Inc’s second-genera-tion Google Pixel smartphones has been hampered by display
screen problems and pricing and shipping issues, prompting the company to open an investiga-tion and issue multiple apologies to customers.
The Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL, which start at $649 and debuted in stores on Thursday, are the lynchpin of Google’s efforts to take on Apple Inc’s iPhone directly.
Early Pixel 2 users have voiced frustration with mishaps, including a potentially serious problem with the screen.
Google said it is investigat-ing whether graphics are burning into the display of the Pixel 2, following a report on the AndroidCentral blog detailing the issue after a week of use. Burn-in, which usually becomes a problem only after several
years of activity, can make it dif-ficult to see information on the display.
Google likely would need to halt production if there is prob-lem, said Ryan Reith, a mobile device analyst at research firm
IDC. “We take all reports of issues very seriously, and our engineers investigate quickly,” Mario Queiroz, Google’s vice president for Pixel product man-agement, said in an emailed statement to Reuters. “We will provide updates as soon as we have conclusive data.”
The investigation follows Google’s acknowledgement that it may introduce new software to respond to users’ concern about a blue tint to the Pixel 2 XL’s 6-inch screen. The device incorporates new OLED display technology, which Google described as offering “a more natural and accurate rendition of colors.”
Reviewers and users in online support forums have also reported a clicking noise during calls and poor Bluetooth connec-tions between the Pixel 2 and other devices. Google did not immediately comment on the issues.
On Friday, the company vowed to reimburse an undis-closed number of people who
were charged $30 extra for the Pixel 2 by a Verizon Wireless reseller operating at Google pop-up stores in the United States.
The surcharge “was an error,” Google said in its apol-ogy. Prior complaints led Google to drop the price of an adapter used to connect headphones to $9 from $20, matching the price of a comparable iPhone adapter.
Google also sent emails over the weekend to buyers advising that delivery of their Pixel 2 may be delayed as much as one month, to late November, according to the AndroidPolice news blog and users’ postings on Reddit forums. Customers said Google offered a free smart-phone case, which otherwise starts at $40. Google did not immediately comment.
Google made a significant bet on the smartphone business last month, agreeing to acquire an HTC Corp hardware devel-opment team for $1.1bn.
Shares of Google fell 1.9 per-cent to $985.54 at Monday’s close.
Problems with tech
The investigation follows Google’s acknowledgement that it may introduce new software to respond to users’ concern about a blue tint to the Pixel 2 XL’s 6-inch screen.
Reviewers and users in online support forums have also reported a clicking noise during calls and poor Bluetooth connections between the Pixel 2 and other devices.
