INDEX RISES 4.4% IN MARCH: Page 2 China’s factory price surge deepens global infl ation worries

Saturday, April 10, 2021 Sha’aban 28, 1442 AH

NEW SETBACK FOR POPULAR JET: Page 8 GULF TIMES Boeing reveals ‘potential’ 737 MAX BUSINESS electrical issue

German firms unveil lavish post-blast Remote hearings key Beirut port plan

AFP restored architectural heritage, Beirut all wrapped in a plan that would generate 50,000 jobs and bil- lions in profit. A German delegation yesterday The German pitch saw an unveiled a spectacular multi- “opportunity for a new city”, to solving disputes billion-dollar project to rebuild mapped out in a presentation Beirut port and its surroundings that featured what it said were but admitted it was contingent successful examples of rede- on far-reaching reforms. veloped ports in cities like Cape Swathes of the port and adjacent Town, Bilbao and Vienna. neighbourhoods were destroyed Lars Greiner of Hamburg Port when fire ignited poorly stored Consulting (HPC) said the during pandemic, ammonium nitrate on August concept would “develop the port 4, causing one of the world’s precinct of Beirut into a world largest ever non-nuclear explo- class, state-of-the-art port” that sions and killing more than 200 would be more automated, cost- people. eff icient and ready for regional The plan put forward by two trade growth. German firms envisions moving The private initiative is the first most port activity away from the large-scale, comprehensive plan says QICCA offi cial city centre and re-urbanising the after last year’s blast and has most damaged areas. the support of Germany, whose By Peter Alagos Speaking at a press conference ambassador attended the press Business Reporter in Beirut, Colliers Germany man- conference. aging director Hermann Schnell Other international players are listed “aff ordable housing for also working on alternative or dvancements in technol- families, green space and good complementary proposals. ogy have helped the ar- infrastructure” among other French shipping giant CMA CGM, Abitration industry adapt features. which leads container opera- to the challenges imposed by the The project envisions beaches tions in Lebanon, submitted its Covid-19 pandemic, thus prov- and a “central park” alongside own master plan in September. ing the eff ectiveness of remote hearings in resolving various types of disputes, an offi cial of the Qatar International Centre for Conciliation and Arbitration Turkey’s rising inflation outlook (QICCA) said. According to Dr Minas maintains need for tight policy Khatchadourian, general coun- sel of QICCA, the Covid-19 Reuters 2019, well above a 5% off icial pandemic “has had an unprec- Istanbul target, signifying the need to edented impact on the arbitral QICCA board member for International Relations, Sheikh Dr Thani bin Ali al-Thani, and (right) QICCA general counsel Dr Minas maintain highest policy rate in process.” At the start of the pan- Khatchadourian. PICTURES: Jayan Orma any big economy. demic, Khatchadourian noted Expectations for Turkish inflation Under the former governor, that several hearings were post- “The reality is that remote ture of the evidence and whether “A healthy competition be- saying technology helped the ticked higher in a closely watched Naci Agbal, the central bank poned due to travel restrictions hearings can work, and we have an in-person hearing would as- tween the arbitration institu- centre work on diff erent cases survey published yesterday, has already lifted the policy rate and social distancing measures seen several successful exam- sist with the resolution of the tions is necessary for continu- last year. putting pressure on the central from 10.25% to 19%. But he was implemented by the government ples of this. The technology dispute, the size and complex- ous improvement, but it could In 2020, Sheikh Thani said bank’s new chief to maintain tight removed on March 20 — after to curb the spread of the virus. used to facilitate remote hear- ity of the dispute, technological also be wise to co-operate in QICCA received 27 requests for policy after his surprise appoint- only about five months on the “Nevertheless, illustrating ings is now well-established, considerations, time zone con- some circumstances. A combi- arbitration cases and two re- ment sparked a lira selloff . job and two days after a last the adaptability and fl exibility with signifi cant improvements siderations, and any justifi able nation of both may develop the quests for conciliation cases, In the central bank (TCMB) rate hike. of arbitration, several tribunals made in terms of functionality concerns regarding witness tam- best conditions for international and settled commercial disputes survey, the forecast for end-2021 The central bank is expected to and arbitral institutions quickly to better suit the needs of re- pering, Khatchadourian noted. institutional arbitration to excel worth QR425mn. annual consumer price inflation hold interest rates at 19% at its adapted by ordering remote mote hearings,” Khatchadourian “Meanwhile, many arbitration as a legitimate means for dispute Sheikh Thani said the cases rose to 13.12% from 11.54% a monthly rate-setting meeting on hearings,” Khatchadourian told explained. institutions, if not all, recorded resolution,” Khatchadourian were related to diff erent types month ago. April 15, according to a Reuters Gulf Times. According to Khatchadourian, a growth in caseload last year, stressed. of contracts in sectors, such The Turkish lira is also expected Poll. He said QICCA organised arbitral tribunals will need to con- demonstrating that recourse to QICCA board member for as construction, commercial to weaken further against US However, the new governor is hearings that were conducted sider a number of factors when institutional arbitration is be- International Relations Sheikh agency, insurance, communica- dollar at the end of the year. seen to begin easing monetary virtually through videoconfer- deciding on whether to hold re- ing preferred. This means that Dr Thani bin Ali al-Thani also tions, engineering, real estate Inflation climbed above 16% in policy earlier than previously ence with participants “in one or mote or in-person hearings. one institution’s gain or success underscored the advantages of brokerage, sales and supply, and March, its highest since mid- thought. more geographical places.” These factors include the na- is not necessarily another’s loss. conducting remote hearings, fi nancing.

QSE tops 10,500 level on bullish outlook of retail investors, Gulf institutions

By Santhosh V Perumal credit rating agency Capital Intelligence saw Qatar’s automobile sector witness the extent of QR9.66mn compared with Business Reporter aff irm the short term and long term robust expansion particularly in heavy net sellers of QR41.39mn the previous foreign currency rating of the Qatar equipment in Q1 2021. week. The foreign individuals were net Islamic Bank with “stable” outlook. Amidst the overall bullish momentum, buyers to the tune of QR1.29mn against The bullish outlook of local and A half of the traded constituents the insurance, transport and banking net sellers of QR3.22mn the week ended foreign retail investors, as well as Gulf extended gains this week, which saw counters witnessed net profit booking April 1. institutions, helped instil confidence Nebras Power, a joint venture of Qatar this week which saw a total of The domestic funds’ net selling in the Qatar Stock Exchange, which Electricity and Water Company, expand 195,489 Masraf Al Rayan-sponsored declined considerably to QR22.86mn surpassed the 10,500 levels this week. into Ukrainian markets by acquiring exchange traded fund QATR valued at compared to QR48.08mn a week ago. The Islamic equities were seen QR486,006 change hands across 36 The Gulf individuals’ net selling eased outperforming the market this week transactions. markedly to QR42.19mn against which saw Al Faleh Educational WEEKLY REVIEW Market capitalisation saw about QR58.74mn the previous week. Holding’s entry into the venture market QR8bn or 1.29% increase to The Arab individuals’ net selling from April 13. QR616.02bn, mainly on small cap shrank notably to QR0.64mn The industrials, real estate and telecom six solar projects and entering into segments this week which saw a total compared to QR20.82mn the week counters witnessed higher than a partnership agreement with UDP of 70,859 Doha Bank-sponsored QETF ended April 1. average demand this week which saw Renewables (UDPR) and their parent valued at QR743,378 traded across 13 However, foreign funds’ net buying QSE chief executive Rashid bin Ali al- holding company UFuture. deals. weakened significantly to QR38.97mn Mansoori highlight the “pivotal” role of Nevertheless, the foreign institutions’ The industrials index soared 3.09%, Amidst the overall bullish momentum, the insurance, transport and against QR343.76mn a week ago. Qatar Development Bank in supporting net buying substantially declined this realty (2.27%), telecom (1.39%) and banking counters at the QSE witnessed net profi t booking this week The Arab funds were net profit takers to the venture market. week, which saw the container and consumer goods and services (0.97%); the extent of QR0.42mn compared with The weakened net selling pressure of cargo throughput via Hamad, Doha and whereas insurance declined 0.44%, International Investment, Ezdan and among the losers this week. The local net buyers of QR0.02mn the previous the Gulf and Arab individuals as well as Al Ruwais ports record strong growth in transport (0.33%) and banks and Qatari Investors Group; while Zad retail investors turned net buyers to the week. Total trade volume declined more the domestic institutions also had role the first quarter (Q1) of this year. financial services (0.19%) this week. Holding, Qatar Islamic Insurance, tune of QR16.42mn against net sellers than 10% to 2.23mn shares, while value in sustaining the positive sentiments The Arab institutions were seen bearish, Major gainers included Investment Inma Holding, Qatari German Medical of QR171.76mn a week ago. more than doubled to QR3.22bn despite this week, which saw an international albeit at lower levels, this week which Holding Group, Qamco, Salam Devices and Al Khaleej Takaful were The Gulf institutions were net buyers to 2% lower transactions at 53,427 this week. Gulf Times 2 Saturday, April 10, 2021 BUSINESS Big brands join $1bn forest conservation push for SE Asia

Thomson Reuters Foundation eff orts by other groups to build more is also its biggest producer of palm oil, commodity traders, palm oil processors Last year, well-known brands launched organisation running it, are crucial, he Kuala Lumpur sustainable palm-oil supply chains, he an edible oil used in everything from and growers, consumer goods firms a fresh push to stop commodity supply added. “We are also concerned that added. margarine to soap and fuel. and manufacturers, will join the scheme chains fuelling forest loss. with carbon sequestration as one of In 2020, tropical forest losses around Many big buyers of palm oil, besides before the first payments are made in It was met with scepticism by many the stated benefits, carbon credits Major household brands and palm-oil the world equalled the size of the purchasing certified sustainable oil, December. green groups after the same set of may be claimed and sold to climate buyers Nestle and PepsiCo have backed Netherlands, according to monitoring have invested in technologies to Projects will be selected based on their companies failed to meet a 2020 target polluters,” he told the Thomson Reuters a scheme that aims to invest $1bn in service Global Forest Watch. monitor their supply chains and help potential to protect and restore large to purchase only sustainably produced Foundation. forest conservation across Southeast Green groups blame production of stop deforestation, but with limited areas of natural ecosystems and critical commodities. Marcus Colchester, a senior policy Asia over 25 years. commodities like palm oil and minerals success so far. habitats such as rainforest, peatland Environmentalists urged firms in advisor at the UK-based Forest The Rimba Collective, developed by for much of the destruction of forests, The Rimba Collective will have an and mangroves. the Rimba Collective to ensure their Peoples Programme, called the Lestari Capital, a Singapore-based as they are cleared for plantations, initial focus on projects in Indonesia Other priorities are to generate entire supply chains are not linked to Rimba project “innovative” and urged impact investment firm, will fund ranches, farms and mines. and aims to be the largest business- measurable ecosystem benefits deforestation and to transparently Indonesia to help by simplifying its projects that protect and restore more Cutting down forests has major led conservation initiative in the — including carbon sequestration, report on progress. onerous process for recognising than 500,000 hectares (1.2mn acres) implications for global goals to curb region. water purification and soil health Grant Rosoman, senior adviser at customary land rights. of tropical forests in Indonesia and the climate change, as trees absorb about Its founding partners are consumer — and decent livelihoods for local Greenpeace International, said more Kevin Woods, a senior policy analyst region. a third of the planet-warming emissions goods companies Nestle, PepsiCo, communities. finance for forest conservation, at Washington-based nonprofit Forest “By linking conservation funding produced worldwide, but release Procter & Gamble and Singapore-based Benjamin Ware, global head of especially led by communities, was Trends, said studies showed results are directly with company operations, it carbon back into the air when they rot agribusiness Wilmar International. sustainable sourcing and climate desperately needed. poor when forest conservation does has the potential to be a game-changer or are burned. They will contribute funding managed delivery at Nestle, said the firm’s He welcomed the long-term nature of not support those rights. for forest protection and restoration,” Forests also provide food and by Lestari Capital for a portfolio involvement would “enable us to speed the new scheme and the fact that its “This can be best achieved by funds Michal Zrust, Lestari Capital co-founder, livelihoods, and are an essential habitat of forest conservation projects in up our proactive eff orts to protect results will be verified independently. going through local organisations told a virtual launch event this week. for wildlife. Indonesia is home to the Southeast Asia. forests and peatlands as well as human But transparency around how it works, that work closely with forest-based The initiative will complement world’s third-largest tropical forests but It is hoped more investors, such as rights”, beyond its supply chain. including its costs, payments and the communities on...conservation,” he said.

Hong Kong defends plan to reduce China’s factory price corporate database transparency

AFP by journalists to improve ac- surge deepens global Hong Kong countability, expose wrong- doing, and bring to light im- portant matters of public Hong Kong offi cial on concern,” Hong Kong’s Foreign Friday defended plans Correspondents’ Club said in a Ato curb public access recent statement. to company searches, a move David Webb, a Hong Kong- transparency, media and some based activist investor, said infl ation worries business advocates have warned allowing directors to obscure will hamper the exposure of their identities “reduces the Bloomberg shady corporate dealings. ability of researchers and jour- Beijing The semi-autonomous fi - nalists to shine a light in shady nancial hub currently main- places.” tains a paywalled Companies “The proposed law will fa- hina’s producer prices climbed in Registry listing the registered cilitate corruption, fraud and March by the most since July 2018 owners of businesses. other crimes, and make it eas- Con surging commodity costs, add- The database has been used ier for directors to hide from ing to worries over rising global infl ation by journalists, academics and creditors,” he told Bloomberg as the pandemic recedes. activist shareholders to unravel News. The producer price index rose 4.4% from global money trails, including On Thursday, Bloomberg re- a year earlier after gaining 1.7% in February, wealth amassed by the families ported that the International the National Bureau of Statistics said on of senior Chinese leaders. Chamber of Commerce Hong Friday, higher than the 3.6% median esti- The new proposal will mask Kong had urged the govern- mate in a Bloomberg survey of economists. the home addresses and iden- ment to reconsider the propos- The consumer price index increased 0.4% tifi cation card numbers of al, saying it was being pushed after falling for two straight months. owners and directors, limit- through too quickly and would After months of defl ation, producer ing the information to corre- hurt the city’s business hub prices have started to pick up sharply this spondence addresses. reputation. year as the cost of oil, copper and agricul- Hong Kong’s government Hong Kong’s govern- tural goods rallies. says the change is needed to ment made a similar attempt As the world’s biggest exporter, China’s protect privacy. to change the Companies rising prices threaten to stoke infl ation “Agencies and offi cers who Registry in 2013 but it was around the world, adding to volatility in work against money launder- shelved after a backlash, fi nancial markets. ing will still be able to get the including from within the Infl ation risks already are mounting be- information,” Christopher Hui, financial industry, where cause of a stronger recovery in the world Hong Kong’s Secretary for Fi- some acknowledged the economy, massive fi scal stimulus in the nancial Services and the Treas- benefits of keeping public US and soaring shipping costs. ury, told lawmakers on Friday. access to the data. “Our research has found that China’s “The change is absolutely Media exposes made possi- PPI has a high positive correlation with Shipping containers next to gantry cranes at the Yangshan Deepwater Port in Shanghai. China’s producer prices climbed in March by not a regression, but a devel- ble by company searches since CPI in the US,” said Raymond Yeung, chief the most since July 2018 on surging commodity costs, adding to worries over rising global inflation as the pandemic recedes. opment as people attach more then have included helping to economist for Greater China at Australia importance to privacy,” he uncover ships that violated and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. gate prices, and consumers aren’t quite in consumer prices, policy could begin to recovery of the services sector is not ideal added. North Korea sanctions, alleged “The higher-than-expected PPI data back on their feet”, says David Qu, econo- tighten,” he said. Consumer-price defl ation either, but manufacturing is exceptionally The government says sanctions-busting deals with could impact people’s judgment of infl a- mist at Bloomberg. Surging commodity in recent months was driven mainly by falling good, meaning that manufacturing will stronger protections are need- Iran by China’s telecoms gi- tion pressure in the US and globally, and prices have gained the attention of Chi- pork prices, a key component of China’s CPI continue to drive economic growth going ed to counter doxxing — the ant Huawei as well as compa- this impact shouldn’t be underestimated.” na’s top policy makers, with the Financial basket. While prices are likely to pick up, the forward, while services will be a drag.” publishing of private data on nies and properties owned by The CSI 300 Index was down 1.5% in Stability and Development Committee — slow recovery in household spending means PPI increases could reach more than 7% the Internet. the families of senior Chinese Shanghai yesterday. Copper futures in chaired by Vice Premier Liu He — calling infl ation will likely remain subdued. in the next two to three months, he added. The tactic was used by both leaders. Shanghai inched lower, while construc- this week for eff orts to stabilise prices. Core consumer prices, which exclude For Chinese businesses, rising factory sides of the ideological divide The latest planned change tion steel also dropped. Authorities should “keep a close eye on volatile energy and food costs, rose 0.3% prices mean higher profi ts and more ca- during 2019’s huge and often comes as Beijing cracks down “Beneath the upswing in China’s in- commodities prices,” the committee said in March from a year earlier, while food pacity to repay debt, with industrial prof- violent pro-democracy pro- on dissent in Hong Kong. fl ation in March was a telling divergence in a statement on Thursday evening. prices fell 0.7%. its jumping in the fi rst two months of the tests. The city’s legislature has — prices tied to commodities were major The infl ation data show consumption “The recovery of manufacturing indus- year from the same period in 2020, recent But transparency activists been scrubbed of opposition drivers, while those linked to household remains subdued, giving the central bank try is fast, but the speed of the consump- data showed. However, purchase prices have reacted with alarm. and the government is unlikely demand were relatively stable. reason not to tighten monetary policy tion rebound is less than ideal,” said Zhou for industrial companies rose even faster “The companies registry is to face resistance to its planned There are two implications — industrial anytime soon, according to ANZ’s Yeung. Hao, senior emerging markets economist in March than the price of fi nished goods, an important tool long used changes. fi rms stand to gain from higher factor- “If infl ation pressure starts to manifest at Commerzbank AG in Singapore. “The which could squeeze profi ts if it continues. China is paying a high price for its ban on Australian coal

By Clyde Russell also been gaining since the restrictions For thermal coal, the main impact on imports from Australia, with Dalian from the ban of Australian cargoes ap- Commodity Exchange futures rising 16% pears to have been strength in Chinese China is paying a high price for its unof- from 1,353 yuan ($206.56) a tonne at domestic prices, with benchmark coal at ficial ban on coal imports from Australia, the start of October to end at 1,573 yuan Qinhuangdao, as assessed by SteelHome, with the cost of domestic and alternative on Thursday. This price isn’t directly closing at 747 yuan a tonne on Thursday, foreign supplies rising for both thermal comparable to the free-on-board prices equivalent to about $114. and coking grades of the fuel. in Australia and the United States, as it While this is down from the winter peak China, the world’s biggest importer, includes freight and other costs as well as of 1,038 yuan a tonne, it’s still 22% higher producer and consumer of coal, has import taxes and duties. than the 612 yuan that prevailed at the eff ectively ended imports from Australia, However, it does show that Chinese start of October. the biggest shipper of coking coal used domestic prices have been pushed higher, It’s also believed that the Chinese to make steel and number two in thermal partially reflecting the higher cost of im- authorities prefer a domestic thermal coal coal used to produce electricity, as part of ports from sources other than Australia. price in a range between 530 to 580 yuan an ongoing political dispute between the China’s neighbour Mongolia has a tonne, a level said to secure the profit- two nations. become its biggest supplier of coking coal, ability of mines while keeping electricity The restrictions on imports from Aus- meeting 61.7% of imports in the first two prices competitive. tralia came into eff ect in the second half months of this year, up from just 17.7% in China has turned to Indonesia, the of last year, resulting in China’s imports the same period in 2020, according to world’s top exporter of thermal coal, dropping to virtually zero in the first two off icial data. to plug some of the gap caused by the months of this year from a 2020 high of Australia’s share of imports came down absence of Australian cargoes, as well 9.46mn tonnes in June, according to Ref- to zero from 68.4% in January-February as buying more from Russia and South initiv vessel-tracking and port data. 2020, according to the data, while the Africa, two countries that can off er similar However, China’s consumers of United States boosted its share to 9.1% quality coal to Australia. imported coal have been facing higher from under 2%, and Canada went to 12.1% But boosting supplies from these coun- costs, with prices for alternatives to ern hemisphere winter. The Singapore United States, the price diff erence has of October last year, a gain of 34%. This from 6.1%. tries appears to have done little to lower supplies from Australia, both local and Exchange contract for Australian coking entirely reversed since the ban started to means that US coking coal is currently While coking coal supplies from Mongo- domestic prices, meaning Chinese users foreign, rising as the market adjusts to coal ended at $113.71 a tonne on Thursday, aff ect flows. about $39 a tonne more expensive that lia are cheaper than those from seaborne are still paying substantially more for the the unoff icial ban. down 18.8% from the $140 that it reached Coking coal free-on-board at the US supplies from Australia, and this doesn’t alternatives, it’s believed that they tend to fuel than what they were prior to the ban In coking coal, the price of free-on- at the start of October, just as the Chinese east coast port of Hampton Roads, as account for the higher shipping costs track Chinese domestic prices, meaning of Australian coal. board Australian cargoes has been weak- ban was coming into eff ect. assessed by commodity price reporting given the longer distance from the US east it’s likely that they have risen sharply as ening since the ban was imposed, apart If a Chinese importer switched from agency Argus, has surged to $152.75 on coast to China. well, especially once transportation and  Clyde Russell is Reuters analyst. The from the usual seasonal gain for the north- Australian cargoes to those from the Thursday from $114 a tonne at the start China’s domestic coking coal price has washing costs are factored in. views expressed are his own. Gulf Times Saturday, April 10, 2021 3 BUSINESS

Most Asia bourses end lower, but Singapore’s biggest optimism remains

AFP world economy from the export Hong Kong giant, putting pressure on central banks as they try to keep borrow- ing costs down. bank to reduce offi ce Most Asian markets retreated on Axi strategist Stephen Innes Friday as traders took their foot said the figures “might add a rip- off the pedal ahead of a much- ple or two of angst to the inflation anticipated earnings season, while pacifist calm that has fallen on the an increasingly confident mood market”. Still, he added: “Make no on trading floors has analysts mistake this is a global equity mar- predicting the global equities rally ket that is turning exceptionally space in home market still has legs. comfortable with growth driving While some countries are up yields supported by a Fed that Bloomberg having trouble with their vaccine is in absolutely no hurry to tap the Singapore programmes and a pick-up in in- brakes. fections, there is a general feeling “The question is, does it get that governments will get a better better than this, or are we nearing BS Group Holdings Ltd hold on the crisis and allow econo- peak optimism? Or will US stocks is poised to trim offi ce mies to reopen, even if a little later remain in ‘kids in a candy store Dspace in Singapore, the than previously hoped. mode’ while gliding on a sugar latest bank to pare its footprint Wall Street provided another rush tailwind from a once-in-a- in the city-state during the strong lead, with the S&P 500 generation type stimulus eff ect?” coronavirus pandemic. chalking up a second successive Hong Kong and Shanghai Southeast Asia’s largest bank record and the Nasdaq piling on dropped as traders kept tabs plans to surrender about two and more than 1% as tech shares re- on China-US relations after half fl oors, or 75,000 square feet, gained their mojo, having suff ered Washington restricted trade with in Tower 3 of the Marina Bay Fi- recent selling. top Chinese supercomputing nancial Centre, according to peo- Federal Reserve boss Jerome centres on security grounds, while ple with knowledge of the matter. Powell again repeated his mantra lawmakers unveiled legislation to The lender occupies more that the bank would stand fast solidify ties with Taiwan and pres- than a dozen fl oors in the build- in its pledge to keep borrowing sure Beijing over alleged theft of ing, located in the central busi- costs at record lows for as long as intellectual property. ness district near the iconic Ma- needed to support recovery in the Sydney, Seoul, Mumbai, rina Bay Sands hotel and casino. world’s top economy. Singapore, Taipei and Wellington DBS is set to give up the fl oors While last week’s blockbuster were also lower, though there in December, the people said, jobs report was welcome, he said were gains in Tokyo, Bangkok and asking not to be identifi ed be- the “recovery remains uneven Jakarta. cause the plans are private. A and incomplete” and he wanted to London and Frankfurt dipped in representative for the company see more of those before he was early trade, while Paris was flat. declined to comment. happy progress was being made. But Xi Qiao at UBS Global The move comes on top of the The DBS Group Holdings logo is displayed atop Tower 3 of the Marina Bay Financial Centre in Singapore. DBS Group is poised to trim off ice Analysts said an unexpected Wealth Management said there lender’s plans to cut space in space in Singapore, the latest bank to pare its footprint in the city-state during the coronavirus pandemic. rise in jobless claims last week would likely be more gains in the the pricey Hong Kong market. backed up Powell’s stance. pipeline. Banks around the world are re- Inc. Citigroup is giving up three for DBS, which also has space in “build the soul of the company.” fi nancial district. Singapore’s There remains a concern that “A lot of investors are worried thinking their use of offi ces af- fl oors as it aims to better opti- Changi Business Park. The downsizing by fi nancial offi ce market has shown recent the forecast strong recovery, the about the stock market highs, ter the health crisis showed that mise its real estate, while Mi- Singapore’s largest bank has fi rms may not necessarily be a signs of a recovery. reopening of the economy, Presi- but that doesn’t mean it can’t get they can still operate eff ectively zuho is cutting space equivalent been promoting work fl exibility huge setback for the Singapore The vacancy rate eased to dent Joe Biden’s vast spending higher, and the economic condi- with many employees at home. to less than one fl oor on the back while also espousing the ben- offi ce market, given that tech 3.3% last quarter from 3.9% in sprees, and the rollout of vaccines tions are certainly set up for a HSBC Holdings Plc is allow- of work from home success. efi ts of offi ce life. In November, behemoths are expanding their the last three months of 2020, will fan inflation to a point that positive equity environment,” she ing more than 1,200 staff at its DBS is the anchor tenant at it said employees would be al- presence in the Southeast Asian according to preliminary esti- the Fed will be forced to lift rates told Bloomberg TV. UK call centres to permanently MBFC Tower 3, which is part of lowed to work remotely as much hub. Amazon.com Inc is taking mates by CBRE Research. The earlier than it intends. Eyes are now turning to the work remotely. a three-tower complex managed as 40% of the time. Chief Ex- up the three fl oors that Citi- rebound was led by Grade A Yields on benchmark 10-year release of corporate results for In Singapore, DBS is follow- by Raffl es Quay Asset Manage- ecutive Offi cer Piyush Gupta group is relinquishing, while offi ce buildings, with rents for Treasuries — a gauge of future January-March, with expectations ing the footsteps of Citigroup ment. Other tenants include Rio said last month that staff some- ByteDance Ltd agreed to lease those properties remaining sta- rates — edged down as Powell high that companies are seeing Inc and Mizuho Financial Group Tinto Plc. It’s the headquarters times need to be in the offi ce to three fl oors in a building in the ble in the quarter. spoke, though they remained the benefits of the recovery and around a one-year high. are hopeful for the outlook. Data on Friday showed Chinese In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 closed producer prices rose at their fast- up 0.2% to 29,768.06 points; Hong est pace in more than two years Kong — Hang Seng Index ended owing to a jump in the cost of down 1.1% to 28,698.80 points and Toshiba board urges caution over CVC Capital off er commodities. Shanghai — Composite closed That has led to concerns the down 0.9% to 3,450.68 points increases will filter through to the yesterday. Bloomberg will conduct a “careful review of the ini- est shareholder in memory-chip maker company’s effort to restructure after its Tokyo tial proposal when it is further clarifi ed Kioxia Holdings Corp. Given the sensi- large-scale accounting scandal before in the future.” Toshiba’s shares slid 5.4% tivity around Toshiba’s business, gov- he passed the baton to Nobuaki Kuru- in Friday trading. ernment approval would be required for matani in 2018. Tsunakawa had stepped oshiba Corp’s board issued an The board also said the CVC proposal the deal, said Chief Cabinet Secretary down as a representative executive of- unusual statement on Friday in was “completely unsolicited and not Katsunobu Kato. ficer last year. Tthe wake of CVC Capital Part- initiated by Toshiba.” Separately, Toshiba this week reap- Singapore-based fund Effissimo has ners’s offer to take the Japanese con- The company disclosed this week pointed Satoshi Tsunakawa, currently been increasing its pressure on Toshiba glomerate private, cautioning the pro- that CVC made an offer to buy out its chairman of the company, as an execu- in recent months, including forcing the posal is preliminary and may not lead to public shareholders. The preliminary tive officer to have him deal with its company to hold an extraordinary gen- a transaction. Shares tumbled. proposal is for ¥5,000 a share or about largest shareholder Effissimo Capital eral meeting of shareholders in March. CVC’s offer is not legally binding and ¥2.28tn ($20.7bn), Bloomberg News re- Management, according to people fa- At that event, Toshiba shareholders many details still need to be worked ported. miliar with the matter. approved the firm’s request for an in- out, said Osamu Nagayama, chairper- An acquisition by a foreign buyer The board approved the decision dependent investigation into director son of the board. Any deal also requires may prove difficult because the compa- during a meeting on Wednesday, said appointments at the annual sharehold- extensive regulatory reviews and CVC ny has been considered an icon of Japan the people, asking not to be identified ers’ meeting last year – despite Toshiba would have to organise a consortium to and several of its businesses have deep because the matter is private. management opposition. line up financing. strategic importance for the country. The move will give Tsunakawa a more That vote was considered a blow to “We expect that such fi nancing proc- Its nuclear unit, for example, is central role as the tech icon navigates Kurumatani. Effissimo has hired law- ess would require a substantial amount involved in decommissioning the the flurry of deal negotiations. yers to investigate those appointments. An external view of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The Hang of time and involve complexity for con- wrecked Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear Tsunakawa became the conglomer- A Toshiba spokeswoman declined to Seng Index closed down 1.1% to 28,698.80 points yesterday. sideration,” said Nagayama. Directors power plant. Toshiba is also the larg- ate’s president in June 2016 and led the comment on the board’s move.

Top India bank drags its feet on billionaire Adani coal loan Emerging currencies and stocks

Bloomberg are fully funded. Spokespeople for SBI haven’t retreat as dollar bounces back Mumbai responded to e-mails seeking comment. The Adani loan has left SBI, which is majority- owned by the Indian government, in a bind. Reuters bank held interest rates earlier India’s largest bank hasn’t decided whether to While foreign investors are increasingly London in the week. help finance an Australian coal mine following restricting support to companies involved in The zloty was set to be the mounting pressure from climate activists and extracting or consuming coal, since it’s the best-performing EMEA cur- investors, including BlackRock Inc. most carbon-intensive fossil fuel, 70% of India’s merging-market curren- rency for the week, adding Two senior State Bank of India executives, who electricity comes from coal plants. cies retreated on Friday about 2% to the dollar and 0.8% asked not to be identified, said the bank was The bank has to balance its clean-energy lending Eafter the dollar bounced to the euro. dragging its feet on extending part of a funding policy with the power supply needs of the back from two-week lows, but Recent weakness in the dollar line of as much as $1bn to Adani Enterprises country, the SBI executives said. were set to rise for the week and US yields came as a source Ltd, which plans to use the money for the The Carmichael mine is located in the Galilee with the Polish zloty mark- of relief for emerging market controversial Carmichael mine. Basin in the northeastern Queensland province. ing large gains after the central assets, which are largely trading The bank’s executive committee, which will make The mine’s licence was off icially approved by bank held lending rates. down for the year amid pressure the final decision, hasn’t had discussions about the Queensland government in 2019 and if fully Russia’s rouble and the South from an increase in US lending the loan this year, the officials said. developed, the mine could contribute to an African rand led losses across rates. The Carmichael mine has been the focus of eventual doubling of Australia’s coal exports. While currencies in Europe, the Mid- Bucking the trend, Rus- environmental protests since it was proposed that may provide a fresh boon for the country’s dle East and Africa (EMEA), sia’s rouble was set for a fourth in 2010. SBI shareholders have joined the economy, it would be detrimental to eff orts to limit while the MSCI’s index of straight weekly loss, its worst opposition. BlackRock and Norway’s Storebrand global warming and follows a year when Australia emerging-market currencies losing streak since the height of ASA raised their objections over the past year, suff ered record temperatures and widespread fell 0.2%. the Covid-19 pandemic last year. and Amundi SA divested its holdings of SBI’s wildfires. SBI drafted an in-principle agreement But the index was set to add Recent losses in the currency green bonds because of the bank’s ties to the with Adani in 2014 for a $1bn facility and brought in about 0.2% for the week, ben- were driven by concerns over Carmichael mine. several banks from across the world to provide the efi ting from recent weakness a possible military confl ict be- SBI Chairman Dinesh Kumar Khara, who took funding as part of a consortium. in the dollar and US Treasury tween Russia and Ukraine, as well charge in October, is reticent to disburse the The plan has had several iterations since yields. as Western criticism of Moscow’s funds to Adani given the opposition to the then as the project became more politically While the dollar rose from treatment of prominent Kremlin Australian project, bank officials said. Still, no controversial. The memorandum of two-week lows on Friday, it was critic Alexei Navalny. decision has yet been made about the loan, they understanding between SBI and Adani for still set for its worst week this Turkey’s lira was muted for said. SBI’s shares were up 0.6% in Mumbai on disbursing the loan included several covenants year, following dovish com- the week, with investors re- Friday, the third-best performer among peers in covering environmental clearance, viability of ments from the Federal Reserve. lar. That means the dollar has High-yielding currencies maining wary over the coun- a gauge of 10 lenders that was down 0.5%. Adani the project and timelines. “The Fed has been trying for not been able to turn the tables such as the rand also marked try’s fi nancial credibility after Enterprises was up 2.4%. While environmental clearance was granted by a long time to dampen expecta- in its favour,” analysts at Com- strong gains for the week. major shifts in central bank Adani said in a statement that construction of the Queensland government, the disbursal is tion of an imminent normalisa- merzbank wrote in a note. Central European currencies governance over the past two the Carmichael Mine is “well underway and subject to meeting other conditions including tion of monetary policy. Against Following this sentiment, US were all set for weekly gains, years. we are on track to export” coal in 2021. The funding visibility from other lenders, the two this backdrop economic data yields had retreated through the with the Polish zloty rising the Emerging-market stocks fell company added that its mine and rail projects officials said. coming in below expectations week, while emerging-market most against the dollar and the for the day, and were set for can put a dampener on the dol- debt saw strong infl ows. euro after the Polish central mild weekly losses. Gulf Times 4 Saturday, April 10, 2021 BUSINESS

Google-backed India startup Credit Suisse is planning Dunzo seeks $150mn hedge fund unit overhaul funding Bloomberg Bloomberg Mumbai New York unzo Digital Private Ltd, a redit Suisse Group AG is plan- delivery startup backed by ning a sweeping overhaul of D Google and operating in eight Cthe hedge fund business at the Indian cities, aims to double the centre of the Archegos Capital blow amount of capital it has raised so far up, as the drama forces Wall Street to extend its reach across the country banks to reconsider how they fi nance and become a $1bn revenue business some of their most lucrative clients. in the next two years. The Swiss bank is weighing signifi - The app, which connects low-cost cant cuts to its prime brokerage arm in couriers to thousands of individual coming months, people familiar with merchants, has lured Indians with its the plan said. rapid delivery of items ranging from The lender has already moved to groceries to parcels in traffic-clogged tighten fi nancing terms with some cities. The Bengaluru firm has so far funds, and hopes changes to the unit raised about $140mn to date and aims can allow it to forgo major cuts to oth- to tap investors for roughly another er parts of the investment bank, which $150mn in 2021. just had a banner quarter, the people “The expansion only really starts said, asking not to be identifi ed as the next year at full pace, so we’ll raise the matter is private. capital this year, but it gets deployed The implosion of Bill Hwang’s fam- only next year,” Kabeer Biswas, Dun- ily offi ce — which has caused one of zo’s 36-year-old chief executive of- the costliest blows to Credit Suisse ficer, said in an interview. in its 165-year history — is the latest The company may expand to two reckoning for banks chasing the lu- more cities in 2021, then build toward crative business of catering to hedge a presence in 20 urban areas by mid- funds, which present the potential for 2023, he said. both outsized gains and huge losses, It’s also started offering 15-minute magnifi ed by large borrowing. deliveries for a range of 2,000 com- Deutsche Bank AG sold its prime A Credit Suisse logo on the roof of its headquarters in Zurich. Credit Suisse is planning a sweeping overhaul of the hedge fund business at the centre of the monly-sought-after items. brokerage business to BNP Paribas Archegos Capital blow up, as the drama forces Wall Street banks to reconsider how they finance some of their most lucrative clients. Dunzo was founded in 2014 and SA in 2019 as part of a retreat from started out as a WhatsApp service, equities during the German bank’s they match the more restrictive terms ple said. Deutsche Bank sold its prime Archegos was so much bigger than any cording to the memo. The bank has before becoming an app where cus- overhaul. of other prime-brokerage contracts, business to BNP as part of the German of its rivals. seen a run of missteps under the fi- tomers typically pay about $6 per Credit Suisse declined to comment. people with direct knowledge of the bank’s huge 2019 overhaul that in- The bank announced a raft of nal months of Urs Rohner’s tenure as order. Prime-brokerage divisions cater matter said. tended to cut its investment banking changes within the investment bank chairman. It’s tapping into growing Inter- specifi cally to hedge funds, lending Specifi cally, the bank is shifting business, especially in equities. because of the loss, including the de- Antonio Horta-Osario is set to take net usage and accessibility in India, them cash and securities and execut- from static margining to dynamic The lender, which became a force parture of Brian Chin, who led the over after the bank’s annual general where tech and consumer startups ing their trades, and the relationships margining, which may force clients to on Wall Street after the fi nancial cri- business. meeting later this month. are flourishing as the number of can be vital for investment banks as post more collateral and could reduce sis, had struggled to keep hedge funds The head of equities sales and trad- Known for disciplined cost-cutting smartphone users nears 1 billion. well as being a signifi cant source of the profi tability of some trades. clients in recent years after a string of ing Paul Galietto, is stepping down during his time at Lloyds Banking E-commerce has been the quick- revenue. Swaps are the derivatives Hwang missteps, and client balances declined immediately, though will stay through Group Plc, he may also make further est growing channel for fast-moving Credit Suisse is the biggest prime used to make highly leveraged bets on in the run up to chief executive offi cer April to assist in the transition, ac- changes. consumer good products in recent broker among European banks, in an stocks at Archegos and which lie at the Christian Sewing’s decision to sell the cording to a staff memo earlier this Gottstein, who pledged a “clean years, and now accounts for about industry that accounted for about heart of the losses. business. week reviewed by Bloomberg. slate” after scandals under his pred- 5% of all such sales, according to $15bn of revenue in 2020. Credit Suisse is also concerned the Now, at Credit Suisse, CEO Thomas The lender also announced three ecessor, is wedged between disgrun- Jefferies. Prime brokerage generally accounts woes at the prime brokerage business Gottstein — who signalled the bank additional exits. Ryan Atkinson, tled staff and his own bosses who are Dunzo and other food delivery for about a third of equities revenue will impact morale at other parts of planned to reduce risk in prime bro- head of credit risk for the invest- increasingly taking charge. services have also seen Covid-19 across the industry most years. the securities business and that it may kerage in a Swiss newspaper article — ment bank; Ilana Ash, head of coun- The board is pushing for a review of drive competition as a second wave Since the drama, Credit Suisse has spark departures, the people said. is facing questions from his own star terparty credit risk management for the bank’s wider strategy, not just the of infections sweeps India. been calling clients to change margin The investment bank is keen to traders, dealmakers and private bank- that unit and Manish Mehta, head of units that have run into trouble, the Competing firms riding that boom requirements in swap agreements so take care of top performers, the peo- ers on why the bank’s $4.7bn hit from counterparty hedge fund risk, ac- people said. include food-delivery app Swiggy, which said Monday that it’s raising $800mn. The growing imposition of state- level restrictions “is a negative de- velopment for consumption in gen- eral” but web-based retail will likely XP Asset to raise Brazil timberland fund of up to $360mn get a “boost,” Jefferies analysts, in- cluding Vivek Maheshwari, wrote in a Bloomberg zil,” Castro said in an interview. “And ing to Castro. Potential investors at cock Natural Resource Group, a glo- ments in the sector will total about report Tuesday. Brasilia the return for those funds has no cor- fi rst will include pension funds, en- bal investment manager. He also had 35.5bn reais from 2020 through 2023, Biswas said Dunzo doubled its an- relation with other markets, so they dowments, sovereign-wealth funds, stints at FourWinds Capital Manage- doubling the amount for the previous nual sales in 2020 and expects the are a real diversifi cation alternative for insurance companies, family offi ces ment and Forest Systems, focusing on four years combined. same rate of growth this year. Dun- P Inc, Brazil’s biggest broker- local and foreign investors.” and private-banking fi rms, he said, carbon credits and land investments. The fund’s strategy will be to di- zo’s biggest operation in Bengaluru is age, is preparing to raise as Brazil’s fund industry posted almost adding that XP will also provide seed The goal is to obtain environmental, versify risks by purchasing mature now breaking even, he said. Xmuch as 2bn reais ($360mn) for 39bn reais in net infl ows in January money. social and governance certifi cations forests with diff erent types of timber However, the company is burning its fi rst timberland fund as low inter- and February, after raising 174bn reais The fi rm is also mulling a way to for all the products sold by the new buyers, Sutton said. It will be denomi- up to $2.5mn a month, though Biswas est rates increase demand for alterna- in 2020, according to Anbima, the na- eventually let retail investors par- natural-resources unit to attract the nated in reais and aims to yield at least expects Dunzo to become profitable tive investments. tion’s capital-markets association. ticipate, according to Isaac Sutton, a growing segment of ESG investors, 7% above the rate of infl ation. in 24 to 30 months. It may also look Cleidson Rangel, a specialist in Interest rates near record lows have partner at BH26, a boutique focused Castro said. Returns will be generated by the in- to expand in other markets in Asia in natural resources, joined XP’s fund- persuaded many investors to seek on natural resources in Brazil that is Rangel said there’s a potential crease in land values and gains from 2023, he said. management unit to run a new op- out non-traditional assets to boost an exclusive XP adviser. market of $50bn of timberland in- sales of timber and carbon credits, “You make 20 cents an order – the eration focused on that sector, ac- returns. Money has been pouring in Foreign investors are permitted to vestments in Brazil and $400bn in according to Sutton, a former head only way to make this business work cording to Bruno Castro, XP Asset even as the nation staggers through buy a maximum of 49% of a plot of farmland. Only 8% of planted timber of proprietary investments at Grupo is at scale,” he said. Management’s chief executive offi cer. the Covid-19 pandemic with an infec- land in Brazil, so the XP fund will be forests in Brazil are in the hands of in- Safra SA, the Brazilian banking group. Still, “it’s important to be ex- The fi rm also plans to create farmland tion rate that’s among the highest in a vehicle for them to invest without vestors, and more pulp and paper pro- XP Asset Management has 100bn tremely disciplined in your geo- and carbon-credit funds, Castro said. the world. surpassing that threshold, said Ran- ducers are willing to sell, he said. reais in assets under management graphical expansion, because you “There are so many investment op- The timberland fund plans to start gel, who for almost 10 years was a Iba, the nation’s timberland in- and aims to double that in two could suddenly start losing money portunities in a nation the size of Bra- raising money in May or June, accord- director of Brazil investments at Han- dustry association, estimates invest- years, Castro said. everywhere.” China Huarong tries to revive investor confidence after rout

Bloomberg China Huarong, it is risky to assume reassuring investors that its business publish an unaudited financial report Beijing that default risk is low simply because environment and operations have had that could not accurately reflect its the Ministry of Finance is the largest no major changes recently. financial performance. shareholder of the firm, he said. Why does it matter: China Huarong Management also highlighted the China Huarong Asset Management Co His firm does not hold Huarong’s bonds is deeply intertwined in the nation’s bright prospects of the distressed- is stepping up eff orts to revive investor or shares. financial markets. asset sector due to an expected rise confidence after persistent questions What’s the company: China Huarong A restructuring of the firm would be in demand for dissolving financial about the bad-debt manager’s financial is one of the four state-owned entities the most high-profile reorganisation risk, and flagged opportunities in health sent its dollar bonds tumbling to set up by China’s government in 1999 to of a Chinese state-owned financial areas such as corporate mergers record lows. In an e-mailed response to help clean up a banking system riddled institution in recent years. and reorganization, bankruptcy questions from Bloomberg on Friday, with bad debt. The failure to report annual earnings restructuring and mezzanine the state-owned company said it has It listed in Hong Kong after a $2.5bn on time has fueled speculation that the investment. been making debt payments “on time” initial public off ering in 2015. company may have problems unknown The company didn’t elaborate on and its operations are “normal.” The The firm was left reeling in 2018 after to its investors. its plans in its brief statement to comments came a day after people former chairman Lai Xiaomin was Uncertainty over China Huarong’s Bloomberg on Friday. familiar with the matter said China accused of bribery and ultimately found planned overhaul may raise refinancing What do ratings companies say: Huarong has prepared a plan to boost guilty of receiving 1.79bn ($273mn) in risks for the firm and its subsidiaries. Fitch Ratings maintained its A rating profitability that would avoid the need illicit payments. Investors are paying close attention to and stable outlook on China Huarong for a debt restructuring or government Under his watch, China Huarong any signs of government intervention in its latest rating report published in recapitalisation. expanded into areas including products was halted in Hong Kong on While China Huarong’s debt recouped after Chinese off icials recently began June. While prices for several of China securities trading, trusts and other April 1, when the company said its 2020 some losses after Bloomberg dialing back financial support for some The assessment “reflects the Huarong’s bonds have bounced from investments, deviating from the original financial results were delayed because reported details of the overhaul plan state-owned enterprises. government’s ownership and very high their lows on Thursday, the securities mandate of disposing bad debt. its auditor needed more time to finalise on Thursday, yield spreads over SOEs defaulted on a record 81.5 bn yuan level of control, which indicates close continue to trade at historically Lai was was sentenced to death in a transaction. comparable Treasuries on several dollar of domestic bonds last year, according linkages between the company and its depressed levels as investors look for January and later executed. The bad-debt manager has submitted bonds were headed for record closing to data compiled by Fitch Ratings, sponsor,” Fitch said. more clarity on the company’s finances China Huarong has started trimming an overhaul plan to regulators and highs on Friday, a sign of persistent though most of these companies Moody’s Investors Service maintained and overhaul plan. non-core assets amid regulatory received positive initial feedback, investor scepticism. were aff iliated with local or regional its A3 rating in a credit opinion released The selloff , which has spilled over to pressure to return to its roots. according to people familiar with the The firm’s bond due 2030 is indicated governments. in December. some of China Huarong’s peers, has Net income slumped 92% in the first matter who asked not to be identified at about 420 basis points, compared China Huarong’s biggest shareholder is The assumption of a very high level become the latest test of investor faith half of 2020 from a year earlier as the discussing private information. to 208 basis points at the end of last the country’s Ministry of Finance. of government support takes into in China’s state-owned borrowers after value of some assets dropped in the China Huarong is still determining the month, Bloomberg-compiled prices What does the company say: At consideration its ownership structure a record-breaking surge in defaults last wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. value of its stakes in some onshore and show. a brief call held after the earnings and strategic importance, Moody’s year. “Too big to fail appears to be an The company’s market value has off shore units and finalising which ones Some yuan bonds of Huarong delay was announced, China Huarong analysts said in the report. outdated concept in China,” said Deng tumbled to about $5bn from $15bn will be sold, part of the reason it held off Securities Co, a unit of China Huarong, executives including Vice President Fitch declined to comment when Hao, chief executive of Beijing GEC when it listed. releasing 2020 results, the people said. also plunged to record lows in the Wang Wenjie told investors the firm was contacted by Bloomberg via email, and Asset Management. What’s happening: Trading in China The company is also awaiting final onshore market this week, prompting operating normally. a Moody’s analyst wasn’t immediately For a giant and complex entity like Huarong shares and structured approvals from Chinese authorities. the brokerage to put out a statement They said it was inappropriate to available to provide remarks. Gulf Times Saturday, April 10, 2021 5 BUSINESS

DJIA WORLD INDICES Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Indices Lt Price Change Dow Jones Indus. Avg 33,579.93 +76.36 Apple Inc 131.32 0.74 6,887,659 S&P 500 Index 4,104.60 +7.43 Amgen Inc 247.68 0.32 131,190 Nasdaq Composite Index 13,838.82 +9.51 American Express Co 147.26 0.15 97,242 S&P/Tsx Composite Index 19,201.32 -27.55 Boeing Co/The 250.68 -1.67 738,622 Mexico Bolsa Index 47,766.64 -421.51 Caterpillar Inc 228.03 -1.06 197,655 Brazil Bovespa Stock Idx 118,231.20 -82.00 Salesforce.Com Inc 227.89 1.53 343,234 Ftse 100 Index 6,915.75 -26.47 Cisco Systems Inc 51.82 -0.18 1,005,861 Cac 40 Index 6,169.41 +3.69 Chevron Corp 102.58 -0.43 438,363 Dax Index 15,234.16 +31.48 Walt Disney Co/The 187.09 -0.12 343,271 Ibex 35 Tr 8,565.80 -72.00 Dow Inc 62.83 -0.57 216,243 Nikkei 225 29,768.06 +59.08 Goldman Sachs Group Inc 330.78 -0.11 171,860 Japan Topix 1,959.47 +7.61 Home Depot Inc 316.47 0.65 203,686 Hang Seng Index 28,698.80 -309.27 Honeywell International Inc 224.21 1.98 337,668 All Ordinaries Indx 7,252.25 +1.94 Intl Business Machines Corp 135.03 -0.07 187,594 Nzx All Index 2,057.06 -8.41 Intel Corp 67.67 0.92 1,948,927 Bse Sensex 30 Index 49,591.32 -154.89 Johnson & Johnson 160.72 -1.38 601,628 Nse S&P Cnx Nifty Index 14,834.85 -38.95 Jpmorgan Chase & Co 156.15 0.66 784,524 Straits Times Index 3,184.54 -1.86 Coca-Cola Co/The 52.89 -0.43 740,548 Karachi All Share Index 30,709.54 +286.24 Mcdonald’s Corp 229.39 -0.37 254,209 Jakarta Composite Index 6,070.21 -1.52 3M Co 197.23 0.77 170,575 Merck & Co. Inc. 75.93 0.58 542,718 Microsoft Corp 254.34 0.43 2,131,513 Nike Inc -Cl B 133.92 0.18 352,909 TOKYO Procter & Gamble Co/The 136.45 -0.59 364,143 Travelers Cos Inc/The 151.92 1.04 88,081 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Unitedhealth Group Inc 371.42 1.79 232,599 Eisai Co Ltd 7,313.00 0.91 859,100 Visa Inc-Class A Shares 220.73 0.01 588,145 Eneos Holdings Inc 478.70 -0.83 12,273,200 Verizon Communications Inc 57.45 -0.27 738,548 Fanuc Corp 28,095.00 0.38 1,002,700 Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc 54.28 -0.93 451,464 Fast Retailing Co Ltd 87,890.00 -3.40 1,430,300 Walmart Inc 139.18 -0.38 421,148 Fujifilm Holdings Corp 6,722.00 2.06 1,731,900 Fujitsu Ltd 16,695.00 0.21 613,000 Hitachi Ltd 5,135.00 2.66 4,369,700 FTSE 100 Honda Motor Co Ltd 3,215.00 -0.68 3,390,400 Hoya Corp 13,705.00 1.48 859,100 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Itochu Corp 3,495.00 -1.08 4,407,200 Japan Exchange Group Inc 2,875.00 6.25 2,906,300 Traders work at the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. The DAX 30 closed up 0.2% to 15,227.34 points yesterday. Anglo American Plc 3,083.00 -0.03 2,926,546 Japan Post Holdings Co Ltd 930.00 -0.98 6,663,900 Associated British Foods Plc 2,484.00 -0.24 684,274 Japan Tobacco Inc 2,075.50 1.29 4,628,100 Admiral Group Plc 3,150.00 -1.25 445,851 Kansai Electric Power Co Inc 1,115.50 0.81 1,693,700 Ashtead Group Plc 4,573.00 1.24 1,413,781 Kao Corp 7,335.00 0.49 1,600,800 Antofagasta Plc 1,730.00 -0.57 941,278 Kddi Corp 3,490.00 1.07 5,637,100 Auto Trader Group Plc 569.40 -0.97 1,884,327 Keyence Corp 51,810.00 1.29 445,400 Aviva Plc 404.60 -0.69 8,144,715 Kirin Holdings Co Ltd 2,050.00 0.17 4,840,600 Avast Plc 468.00 -0.66 1,276,573 Europe markets mark Komatsu Ltd 3,381.00 -1.20 2,868,500 Aveva Group Plc 3,776.00 0.03 228,852 Kubota Corp 2,466.50 0.84 2,936,600 Astrazeneca Plc 7,287.00 0.61 2,436,041 Kyocera Corp 7,210.00 1.44 1,293,000 Bae Systems Plc 515.00 -2.24 8,153,343 M3 Inc 8,097.00 1.42 3,865,400 Barclays Plc 185.70 -1.21 58,776,553 Marubeni Corp 911.30 0.77 6,132,100 British American Tobacco Plc 2,786.00 -2.54 3,880,608 Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings 832.00 -0.48 4,487,300 Barratt Developments Plc 794.60 1.72 2,294,476 longest weekly winning Mitsubishi Corp 3,046.00 -0.65 3,174,200 Bhp Group Plc 2,150.00 -0.88 3,661,179 Mitsubishi Electric Corp 1,664.00 0.54 3,732,900 Berkeley Group Holdings/The 4,634.00 1.33 172,483 Mitsubishi Estate Co Ltd 1,905.00 -1.27 4,236,200 British Land Co Plc 512.40 -1.39 1,598,656 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries 3,360.00 -0.59 971,500 B&M European Value Retail Sa 547.20 0.18 1,389,185 Mitsubishi Ufj Financial Gro 582.60 0.10 53,585,000 Bunzl Plc 2,409.00 0.25 740,493 Mitsui & Co Ltd 2,290.00 -0.48 4,711,900 streak since Nov 2019 Bp Plc 295.00 -1.16 40,552,554 Mitsui Fudosan Co Ltd 2,437.50 -0.69 3,144,200 Burberry Group Plc 2,044.00 1.74 731,129 Mizuho Financial Group Inc 1,560.00 0.26 6,104,200 Bt Group Plc 153.50 -1.10 13,240,948 Ms&Ad Insurance Group Holdin 3,185.00 0.03 958,900 European stocks hit a se- the unwind from growth Axi strategist Stephen Coca-Cola Hbc Ag-Di 2,413.00 0.25 583,284 Reuters, AFP Murata Manufacturing Co Ltd 9,107.00 -0.70 1,729,900 ries of all-time highs this is over,” remarked OANDA Innes said the fi gures Compass Group Plc 1,558.50 -1.39 2,143,389 London Nidec Corp 14,180.00 0.89 1,561,300 week, despite setbacks on senior analyst Edward Moya. “might add a ripple or two Croda International Plc 6,612.00 1.38 222,820 Nintendo Co Ltd 64,850.00 0.14 709,900 Crh Plc 3,528.00 1.23 722,729 the vaccination front after While some countries of angst to the infl ation Nippon Steel Corp 1,842.50 -2.87 5,972,900 Dcc Plc 6,294.00 -0.38 304,613 uropean stocks were European regulators found are having trouble with pacifi st calm that has fallen Nippon Telegraph & Telephone 2,848.00 2.37 6,592,500 Diageo Plc 3,183.00 -0.13 3,004,334 subdued on Friday, a potential link between coronavirus vaccine pro- on the market”. The main Nissan Motor Co Ltd 573.60 -0.12 16,676,300 Evraz Plc 599.20 0.20 2,163,627 but marked their AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 grammes, there is a feeling stocks indices in Hong Nitori Holdings Co Ltd 20,340.00 0.59 256,600 E Experian Plc 2,653.00 0.23 1,419,059 Nomura Holdings Inc 585.00 1.42 19,497,900 longest weekly winning vaccine and reports of rare that governments will get a Kong and Shanghai gave Ferguson Plc 9,310.00 0.45 375,118 Olympus Corp 2,314.50 4.85 6,396,900 streak since November brain blood clots. grip on the crisis and their up around 1% as traders Flutter Entertainment Plc-Di 15,295.00 -1.20 192,262 Ono Pharmaceutical Co Ltd 2,802.00 0.52 1,218,900 “The year has been with- economies will start to ex- kept tabs on China-US re- Fresnillo Plc 894.40 -1.84 850,961 2019 as hopes of a rapid re- Oriental Land Co Ltd 16,280.00 -0.28 514,600 Glencore Plc 288.70 -1.90 28,967,301 covery in economic growth out a major correction so pand, though possibly later lations after Washington Orix Corp 1,821.50 0.05 2,866,300 Glaxosmithkline Plc 1,319.60 -0.15 6,415,635 off set doubts over the eu- far, and with equity infl ows than previously hoped. restricted trade with top Otsuka Holdings Co Ltd 4,516.00 0.76 1,077,700 #N/A Invalid Security 0.00 0.00 - rozone’s Covid-19 vaccina- continuing to hit new mul- In Europe, stock mar- Chinese supercomput- Panasonic Corp 1,377.50 0.99 7,813,100 Hikma Pharmaceuticals Plc 2,433.00 0.66 346,981 Recruit Holdings Co Ltd 5,223.00 -0.63 3,484,800 tion programme. ti-year highs the sense of ket indices in London and ing centres on security Hargreaves Lansdown Plc 1,667.00 0.00 714,940 Resona Holdings Inc 449.20 0.27 9,747,800 The pan-European ‘irrational exuberance’ is Frankfurt traded close to grounds. Halma Plc 2,559.00 1.03 569,598 Secom Co Ltd 9,392.00 0.83 636,800 STOXX 600 index was up building once again,” said the break even point as In the US, Federal Re- Hsbc Holdings Plc 437.40 -0.59 15,730,049 Sekisui House Ltd 2,374.50 1.19 2,706,400 Homeserve Plc 1,191.00 0.08 572,317 0.1% after hitting an all- Chris Beauchamp, chief trading ended, while in serve boss Jerome Powell Seven & I Holdings Co Ltd 4,312.00 -2.53 4,313,700 Intl Consolidated Airline-Di 210.15 -2.05 21,393,019 time high at the open, while market analyst at IG. Paris the CAC 40 was es- has again said the bank Shimano Inc 26,465.00 1.17 231,200 Intermediate Capital Group 1,968.00 -0.93 381,074 the UK’s blue-chip FTSE “Some measure of cau- sentially unchanged. would stand fast in its Shin-Etsu Chemical Co Ltd 19,710.00 1.73 1,693,600 Intercontinental Hotels Grou 5,162.00 0.00 333,577 100 slipped 0.4%. Glo- tion would seem to be the In midday New York pledge to keep borrowing Shionogi & Co Ltd 5,850.00 1.92 1,025,300 3I Group Plc 1,241.00 -0.96 1,083,901 Shiseido Co Ltd 7,483.00 -0.53 1,140,300 bal sentiment was under- prudent approach until a trading, the Dow Jones costs at record lows for as Imperial Brands Plc 1,542.00 -1.19 2,251,390 Smc Corp 66,740.00 0.69 183,200 pinned by the US Federal more comprehensive con- index had gained a little long as needed to support Informa Plc 584.20 -0.98 1,795,206 Softbank Corp 1,442.50 1.23 11,884,900 Reserve’s pledge to keep its clusion can be drawn.” ground. recovery in the world’s top Intertek Group Plc 6,054.00 0.46 250,903 Softbank Group Corp 9,950.00 -0.50 10,444,800 Jd Sports Fashion Plc 917.00 5.11 2,956,500 super-easy policy in place Investors will shift their In Germany, indus- economy. Sompo Holdings Inc 4,138.00 -0.36 610,800 Just Eat Takeaway 7,225.00 0.32 101,512 even as data showed the focus to the US earnings sea- trial production dropped While last week’s block- Sony Group Corp 12,230.00 2.77 4,432,600 Johnson Matthey Plc 3,134.00 -0.35 649,257 world’s largest economy son next week, with profi ts for the second month in a buster US jobs report was Subaru Corp 2,103.50 -0.92 2,961,300 Kingfisher Plc 343.90 1.69 5,147,734 row in February after eight welcome, he said the “re- Sumitomo Corp 1,544.50 -0.61 3,521,800 kicking into higher gear. at S&P 500 companies ex- Land Securities Group Plc 716.60 -0.72 1,489,618 Sumitomo Electric Industries 1,667.00 -1.10 2,005,600 London equities have pected to jump 25% in the months of gains, as the covery remains uneven and Legal & General Group Plc 296.40 0.99 12,123,123 Sumitomo Metal Mining Co Ltd 4,928.00 -2.40 2,222,800 outperformed this week, fi rst quarter, according to economic impact of the incomplete” and he want- Lloyds Banking Group Plc 43.26 -0.37 126,690,722 Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Gr 3,873.00 -0.31 5,660,800 Refi nitiv IBES estimate. pandemic began to bite, of- ed to see more of those be- #N/A Invalid Security 0.00 0.00 - with the domestically fo- Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdin 3,748.00 -0.19 1,142,900 Mondi Plc 1,907.50 0.47 875,390 cused FTSE mid-cap index Airbus rose 0.3% after fi cial data showed Friday. fore he was happy progress Sumitomo Realty & Developmen 3,795.00 0.74 1,362,700 M&G Plc 218.00 -0.27 5,739,980 notching a record high as the French planemaker re- Analysts said the data was being made. Suzuki Motor Corp 4,797.00 0.48 1,347,300 Melrose Industries Plc 173.60 0.46 5,665,153 Britain gradually emerges ported slightly higher de- raised fresh doubts about There remains a concern Sysmex Corp 11,135.00 -1.11 484,300 Wm Morrison Supermarkets 182.70 -0.87 7,273,278 Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd 3,750.00 1.13 7,572,400 from a strict winter coro- liveries in the fi rst quarter. the health of Europe’s top that strong recovery expec- National Grid Plc 900.50 -0.33 4,642,214 Terumo Corp 4,017.00 2.68 3,251,000 navirus lockdown. Holiday company TUI economy after it bounced tations, President Joe Bi- Natwest Group Plc 196.65 -0.66 18,459,772 Tokio Marine Holdings Inc 5,206.00 -0.46 1,714,600 “While the UK and US fell 2.1% after it said it back from a coronavirus- den’s vast spending sprees, Next Plc 8,296.00 1.10 302,908 Tokyo Electron Ltd 49,730.00 -0.24 1,173,500 Ocado Group Plc 2,150.00 0.61 776,027 have done relatively well was raising 350mn euros triggered downturn early and the rollout of vaccines Tokyo Gas Co Ltd 2,313.00 0.67 1,574,300 Phoenix Group Holdings Plc 748.60 0.13 1,259,428 on the vaccination roll- ($416.33mn) through an last year. will fan infl ation to a point Toray Industries Inc 680.60 -0.44 5,050,800 Pennon Group Plc 1,015.50 1.04 913,285 out, continental Europe issuance of convertible Separate data showed that the Fed will be forced Toyota Motor Corp 8,418.00 0.00 6,017,900 Polymetal International Plc 1,458.50 0.21 1,418,221 has lagged,” said Dhaval bonds to bolster its fi nanc- Chinese producer prices to hike rates earlier than it Unicharm Corp 4,566.00 -0.52 951,500 Prudential Plc 1,557.50 0.52 3,025,356 West Japan Railway Co 5,918.00 0.58 1,064,700 Joshi, chief strategist at es and repay debt. rose at their fastest pace in intends. Persimmon Plc 3,210.00 1.42 846,210 Z Holdings Corp 545.90 -0.93 26,108,700 BCA Research. Stock markets strug- more than two years ow- EURO STOXX 50 end- Pearson Plc 805.80 1.05 1,046,616 “But they will sort it out gled to fi nd a direction with ing to a jump in the cost of ed fl at at 3,977.46 points; Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc 0.00 0.00 - Royal Dutch Shell Plc-A Shs 1,395.80 -0.96 4,315,782 later this year. traders taking their foot off commodities. London — FTSE 100 closed Royal Dutch Shell Plc-B Shs 1,335.40 -0.82 5,229,229 You’ll see an early re- the pedal before a much- That has led to concerns down 0.3% to 6,920.15 Relx Plc 1,910.50 0.32 1,920,219 SENSEX bound in UK and US econo- anticipated earnings sea- the increases will fi lter points; Paris — CAC 40 Rio Tinto Plc 5,663.00 -1.60 2,184,412 mies from Q2 onwards. son that could give fresh through to the world econ- ended fl at at 6,169.41 Rightmove Plc 618.40 0.82 1,746,332 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume In continental Europe, it impetus to the recent glo- omy, putting pressure on points and Frankfurt — Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc 111.88 0.68 37,194,660 Adani Ports And Special Econ 823.60 0.07 21,804,785 will be later this year rather bal equities rally. central banks as they try to DAX 30 closed up 0.2% to Rsa Insurance Group Plc 683.60 0.03 2,031,831 Asian Paints Ltd 2,630.80 -0.75 1,185,017 than Q2.” “Investors are unsure if keep borrowing costs down. Rentokil Initial Plc 514.20 0.78 3,005,015 15,227.34 points yesterday. Axis Bank Ltd 668.20 -1.97 12,509,114 Sainsbury (J) Plc 245.60 0.37 3,564,642 Bajaj Finance Ltd 4,872.30 -3.13 2,902,646 Schroders Plc 3,626.00 -1.06 282,015 Bharti Airtel Ltd 545.25 0.41 11,426,998 Sage Group Plc/The 652.20 -0.43 2,475,558 Bajaj Auto Ltd 3,651.30 0.04 484,807 HONG KONG HONG KONG Segro Plc 972.60 -0.90 2,393,263 Bajaj Finserv Ltd 9,629.05 -0.27 328,699 Smurfit Kappa Group Plc 3,448.00 -1.46 289,207 Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd 425.60 -1.15 4,089,592 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Standard Life Aberdeen Plc 301.50 -0.26 3,024,659 Britannia Industries Ltd 3,797.70 -0.50 526,934 Ds Smith Plc 414.80 0.12 3,300,186 Ck Hutchison Holdings Ltd -0.39 Cipla Ltd 883.05 4.88 11,189,432 63.25 3,645,405 Hong Kong & China Gas 12.28 0.49 13,069,321 Smiths Group Plc 1,613.50 1.10 587,719 Hang Lung Properties Ltd 1.46 Coal India Ltd 129.50 -1.63 10,149,401 20.80 5,175,450 Bank Of Communications Co-H 4.96 0.81 24,140,606 Scottish Mortgage Inv Tr Plc 1,192.50 -0.79 3,447,429 Ck Infrastructure Holdings L 0.22 Divi’s Laboratories Ltd 3,752.35 1.00 1,247,594 46.55 783,749 China Petroleum & Chemical-H 4.06 -1.93 145,667,338 Smith & Nephew Plc 1,400.00 0.25 1,988,537 Hengan Intl Group Co Ltd 0.59 Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories 4,760.30 1.52 1,362,147 50.90 4,029,541 Hong Kong Exchanges & Clear 462.80 -0.30 3,878,615 Spirax-Sarco Engineering Plc 12,240.00 2.43 147,707 Cspc Pharmaceutical Group Lt -1.66 Eicher Motors Ltd 2,521.60 -1.23 719,036 9.49 21,753,608 Bank Of China Ltd-H 2.99 0.00 299,416,664 Sse Plc 1,541.50 -0.03 2,917,026 Hang Seng Bank Ltd 0.65 Gail India Ltd 138.80 0.18 8,347,169 153.70 1,763,288 Hsbc Holdings Plc 46.55 -0.64 11,098,917 Standard Chartered Plc 497.50 -1.41 3,517,607 China Resources Land Ltd -0.68 Grasim Industries Ltd 1,440.00 -0.54 1,125,347 36.60 9,151,324 Power Assets Holdings Ltd 45.75 0.00 1,741,811 St James’s Place Plc 1,343.00 1.32 924,136 Ck Asset Holdings Ltd 0.42 Hcl Technologies Ltd 1,045.40 0.76 3,708,082 47.75 5,248,415 Mtr Corp 44.00 -0.11 2,913,757 Severn Trent Plc 2,406.00 0.63 492,020 Sino Biopharmaceutical -1.22 Housing Development Finance 2,513.90 0.45 3,234,017 8.10 40,265,820 Techtronic Industries Co Ltd 139.00 -1.70 2,697,967 Tesco Plc 234.40 -0.61 15,027,213 Henderson Land Development 0.29 Hdfc Bank Limited 1,421.75 -0.77 14,078,908 34.65 2,041,077 China Overseas Land & Invest 19.88 -0.10 12,540,478 Taylor Wimpey Plc 190.05 1.88 9,355,389 Aia Group Ltd -1.31 Hdfc Life Insurance Co Ltd 694.85 -0.94 1,586,783 97.80 19,195,186 Tencent Holdings Ltd 620.50 0.08 22,463,921 Unilever Plc 4,131.00 -0.84 2,644,700 Ind & Comm Bk Of China-H 0.18 Hero Motocorp Ltd 2,912.90 -0.52 557,093 5.50 118,748,891 China Unicom Hong Kong Ltd 4.37 -0.68 52,206,124 United Utilities Group Plc 957.80 0.06 1,512,530 Sun Hung Kai Properties 0.25 Hindalco Industries Ltd 361.05 -1.14 16,371,164 118.40 1,629,559 Link Reit 70.50 -0.14 3,447,651 134.64 -1.33 42,179,230 New World Development 1.23 Vodafone Group Plc Hindustan Unilever Ltd 2,476.00 2.74 2,604,858 41.10 3,957,980 Petrochina Co Ltd-H 2.73 -1.44 157,025,849 Wpp Plc 943.60 -0.69 2,004,123 Geely Automobile Holdings Lt 20.70 -0.24 42,092,518 Icici Bank Ltd 566.20 -1.82 23,239,564 Cnooc Ltd 7.91 1.15 202,961,518 Whitbread Plc 3,466.00 -0.06 499,018 Xiaomi Corp-Class B 25.70 -1.91 114,867,435 Indusind Bank Ltd 923.65 -1.20 4,980,026 China Construction Bank-H 6.52 -0.31 207,150,755 Swire Pacific Ltd - Cl A 62.10 3.24 5,213,231 Infosys Ltd 1,441.05 0.08 6,052,712 China Mobile Ltd 50.25 -0.79 25,430,243 Sands China Ltd 37.10 -3.13 14,808,184 Indian Oil Corp Ltd 91.70 -1.34 10,297,316 Alibaba Group Holding Ltd 218.00 -2.24 22,699,587 Wharf Real Estate Investment 43.40 -0.34 1,692,905 Itc Ltd 213.10 -0.07 16,364,247 Clp Holdings Ltd 74.75 -0.07 2,681,452 TOKYO Jsw Steel Ltd 621.00 1.12 51,062,079 Country Garden Holdings Co 9.83 -1.70 12,636,243 Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd 1,799.25 0.90 3,139,384 Aac Technologies Holdings In 39.85 -1.36 2,297,430 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Larsen & Toubro Ltd 1,404.10 -1.06 2,015,002 Wuxi Biologics Cayman Inc 102.00 -4.85 15,997,297 Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd 791.15 -0.50 2,065,092 GCC INDICES Aeon Co Ltd 3,212.00 0.69 1,871,000 Shenzhou International Group 167.10 -2.22 3,115,040 Maruti Suzuki India Ltd 6,827.10 0.00 641,327 Indices Lt Price Change Ajinomoto Co Inc 2,220.00 0.41 1,941,800 Ping An Insurance Group Co-H 91.20 -2.20 37,058,501 Nestle India Ltd 17,592.40 -0.55 73,944 Ana Holdings Inc 2,458.50 0.66 2,986,100 China Mengniu Dairy Co 44.80 -2.40 9,440,569 Ntpc Ltd 102.80 -2.10 19,751,417 Doha Securities Market 10,541.53 +43.20 Asahi Group Holdings Ltd 4,757.00 1.19 1,883,000 Sunny Optical Tech 178.10 -2.78 3,899,215 Oil & Natural Gas Corp Ltd 103.80 0.19 17,645,822 Asahi Kasei Corp 1,232.50 -0.08 3,405,000 Boc Hong Kong Holdings Ltd 27.20 1.87 12,549,235 Power Grid Corp Of India Ltd 208.30 -0.33 6,622,326 Kuwait Stocks Exchange 4,772.62 +27.35 Astellas Pharma Inc 1,636.50 0.40 5,078,200 China Life Insurance Co-H 15.84 -0.88 54,064,461 Reliance Industries Ltd 1,982.05 -1.16 6,478,482 Bandai Namco Holdings Inc 8,455.00 2.82 1,186,900 Citic Ltd 7.49 -0.27 22,070,724 Sbi Life Insurance Co Ltd 910.10 0.18 1,344,813 Oman Stock Market 3,708.88 -5.61 Bridgestone Corp 4,397.00 0.21 1,921,600 Galaxy Entertainment Group L 69.85 -3.85 11,328,572 State Bank Of India 353.00 -0.73 46,473,100 Canon Inc 2,576.00 1.02 5,268,700 Wh Group Ltd 6.92 -1.28 37,170,218 Central Japan Railway Co 15,840.00 0.70 632,800 Shree Cement Ltd 31,748.75 0.53 146,698 Chubu Electric Power Co Inc 1,348.50 1.12 1,239,000 Sun Pharmaceutical Indus 636.75 3.66 16,755,446 Chugai Pharmaceutical Co Ltd 4,358.00 -0.09 2,512,200 Tata Steel Ltd 899.50 -2.06 32,179,069 Dai-Ichi Life Holdings Inc 1,998.00 -0.89 4,787,000 Tata Consultancy Svcs Ltd 3,322.25 0.15 2,911,129 Daiichi Sankyo Co Ltd 2,990.00 1.65 4,031,300 Tech Mahindra Ltd 1,053.00 2.33 6,029,994 “Information contained herein is believed to be reliable and had been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. The Daikin Industries Ltd 22,775.00 0.73 828,700 Titan Co Ltd 1,592.00 1.32 3,569,146 accuracy and completeness cannot be guaranteed. This publication is for providing information only and is not intended Daiwa House Industry Co Ltd 3,268.00 0.80 1,580,900 Tata Motors Ltd 318.20 1.35 75,462,572 as an off er or solicitation for a purchase or sale of any of the financial instruments mentioned. Gulf Times and Doha Bank Daiwa Securities Group Inc 575.00 0.65 4,380,400 Upl Ltd 634.90 -2.56 4,995,747 or any of their employees shall not be held accountable and will not accept any losses or liabilities for actions based on Denso Corp 7,114.00 -0.89 1,260,100 Ultratech Cement Ltd 6,825.85 -2.09 592,763 this data.” East Japan Railway Co 7,450.00 0.34 1,222,000 Wipro Ltd 450.10 1.81 11,699,385 Gulf Times 6 Saturday, April 10, 2021 BUSINESS

Spain cuts 2021 growth forecast Pioneer to buy DoublePoint to 6.5% after first-quarter contraction in $6.4bn Permian deal Reuters Madrid

Bloomberg New York Spain’s government slashed its forecast for this year’s economic recovery yesterday to reflect a Covid-induced contraction in the ioneer Natural Resources Co first quarter and expected delays to the is buying DoublePoint En- arrival of EU rescue funds. Pergy LLC in a deal valued at The government now expects gross do- $6.4bn, less than three months af- mestic product to grow 6.5% in 2021, down ter completing its purchase of fel- from a previous estimated range of 7.2%- low shale driller Parsley Energy Inc 9.8%, Economy Minister Nadia Calvino told as it expands in the US Permian Ba- a news conference. sin. With its economy — the eurozone’s fourth- The deal is comprised of ap- largest — highly dependent on foreign proximately 27.2mn shares of Pio- tourism, Spain suff ered more than most neer common stock, $1bn of cash developed countries during the first year and assumption of approximately of the pandemic, posting a record contrac- $900mn of debt and liabilities, ac- tion of 10.8% in 2020. cording to a statement from Pio- A third wave of the coronavirus hit the neer. country in the first two months of the year, The transaction is expected to and a massive snowstorm also disrupted close in the second quarter. activity in much of Spain in January. Bloomberg News reported earlier “The recovery is delayed by one quarter,” that the companies were close to an Calvino said, adding however that the agreement. government expected a strong increase in Pioneer will increase its position to the second half of 2021. more than 1mn net acres through the The Bank of Spain had already lowered its deal, acquiring “primarily undrilled” 2021 growth forecast for similar reasons to new land. 6%, while the International Monetary Fund “DoublePoint has amassed an im- expects a 6.4% expansion. pressive, high quality footprint in As global vaccination eff orts ramp up, the the Midland Basin,” Pioneer chief economy should expand by 7% in 2022, executive offi cer Scott D Sheffi eld with output recovering to pre-pandemic said in the statement, referring to levels by the end of that year, Calvino said, land within the larger Permian shale before slowing down to 3.5% in 2023 and play. 2.1% in 2024. The deal will generate “signifi cant Unemployment should stabilise at 15% value for our shareholders.” this year and slowly recede through 2024, The acquisition will be one of the thanks to the cushioning eff ect of the largest in North America’s oil indus- worst oil-industry collapse in his- Pioneer in October agreed to buy basin, with enviable scale and asset fi rms including Apollo. In 2017, the ERTE government furlough scheme, which try this year, and the fi rst big trans- tory. Parsley Energy for $4.5bn in stock, concentration.” pair sold rights to about 70,000 acres should keep jobless figures well below action since the rapid run-up in oil Crude prices have advanced 27% which followed a $9.7 takeover by DoublePoint was founded by co- to Parsley for $2.8bn. the record high of 27% seen in the last prices to more than $60 a barrel over this year, more than erasing 2020’s ConocoPhillips of Concho Resources CEOs Cody Campbell and John Sell- Shortly thereafter, they raised financial crisis. the past fi ve months. slump, amid increasing optimism Inc. “Pioneer is favourably posi- ers, who made their names fl ipping more money, formed DoublePoint The disbursement of €140bn ($166.40bn) DoublePoint’s investors include that economies will continue to reo- tioned to emerge as one of the large, drilling leases in the Eagle Ford re- and set to work snapping up drilling in European Union recovery funds over the Apollo Global Management Inc, pen, sparking demand for gasoline, independent survivors of Permian gion of South Texas in the early days rights in the Permian’s Midland sub- next three years — around half in grants — Quantum Energy Partners, Magnetar diesel and other fuels. consolidation,” Bloomberg Intelli- of the US shale boom before moving region. will further boost the economy, but most Capital and Blackstone Group Inc’s The deal is the latest in a series of gence Senior Industry Analyst Vin- on to the more lucrative Permian Ba- DoublePoint was running seven of the impact will not be felt until 2022. GSO Capital Partners. transactions as US drillers consoli- cent G Piazza said in a note. sin. drilling rigs and was on course to pro- Calvino had estimated last year that the Sheffi eld is expanding in the Per- date in an eff ort to survive the up- The company’s recent deals have There they assembled large hold- duce 80,000 barrels of oil a day as of funds would lift growth to 9.8% in 2021. mian Basin in the aftermath of the heavals caused by the pandemic. created “a formidable rival in the ings with backing from private equity the fi rst quarter this year. Gulf Times Saturday, April 10, 2021 7 BUSINESS

UPS bets on electric aircraft to get packages to the hinterlands

Bloomberg signals that freight delivery is likely to be one him of the early 2000s, when startups rushed purchases bring a discount, said Kyle Clark, at a sorting centre’s parking lot, allowing New York of the first industries to take advantage of to develop so-called personal jets. That chief executive off icer of the South Burlington, the courier to avoid using small air-freight the technology. FedEx Corp is experimenting industry dissolved with the 2008 financial Vermont-based manufacturer. contractors and trucks to get packages from with pilotless Cessna 208 cargo aircraft and crisis and all the investment turned to dust, Clark, a plane and helicopter pilot, estimated its main hubs to facilities in remote areas, such United Parcel Service Inc is buying 10 small Slovenia-based Pipistrel, which makes light Aboulafia said. that the operating cost of an eVTOL is about as North Dakota. electric-powered aircraft that take off like propeller planes, expects to start delivering “There’s now the same combination of lots of half that of a small cargo plane, mostly “It will allow us to bypass a lot of the handoff s helicopters and fly like planes, aiming to cargo drones in two years. cash looking for a home and a high degree of because of fuel and maintenance savings. that take place today with using the typical reduce its costs from contracting with small Still, there are big hurdles for eVTOLs, even for techno-utopia,” he said. It costs about $380,000 to overhaul a Cessna small airplanes,” Perez said in an interview. air freighters to reach far-flung areas. freight, including a limited range and heavy Cost estimates 208 engine, which is needed after about UPS expects to use the eVTOL in more The first delivery of the ALIA-250 from Stone batteries. The business case for the next- 3,000 flight hours. Overhauling the ALIA-250’s populated areas as the aircraft’s safety is Point Capital-backed Beta Technologies is generation technology is in its early stages, Beta’s aircraft has four rotors on top and a electric motors is expected to cost a third less established. Perez envisions flying packages in expected in 2024, UPS said in a statement on spurring caution among analysts such as propeller in the back. The company says it can and wouldn’t be necessary until 10,000 hours, bulk, for example, to downtown Atlanta from Wednesday, and the courier has an option to Richard Aboulafia. travel 250 nautical miles (290 miles, 460km) he said in an interview. the city’s airport, skirting metropolitan area acquire as many as 150. While the vehicles February’s $3.8bn merger of air-taxi startup on a charge and can tote as much as 1,400 Skirting traffi c traff ic. will be piloted, UPS already envisions drone Archer Aviation with a blank-check company pounds (635kg) of cargo. That will limit the If the aircraft can be operated as a drone, versions that could fly on their own and would backed by investment banker Ken Moelis and vehicle’s use since the typical small freighter UPS could also save by reducing the need for it promises to be even more cost-eff ective. be less costly to operate. United Airlines Holdings Inc, is a red flag that UPS uses can carry about 3,500 pounds and trucks and – at some point – pilots. Autonomous flights would be on routes For all the hype surrounding potential the eVTOL market is too frothy, said Aboulafia, has a range of roughly 1,200 nautical miles. Juan Perez, chief information and engineering currently served by contractors, so they passenger-carrying air taxis, UPS’s foray into an aerospace consultant for Teal Group. While UPS didn’t disclose the price, Beta’s off icer at the Atlanta-based courier, said wouldn’t aff ect UPS’s union pilots, who fly electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft Investment pouring into the industry reminds ALIA-250 lists for $4mn each, though large the aircraft will be nimble enough to land large cargo jets, Perez said.

Norway wealth fund should invest in fewer US producer prices companies, says govt Reuters follow-up of companies,” Fi- Oslo nance Minister Jan Tore Sanner told reporters. “To reduce the number of Norway’s $1.3tn wealth fund, the companies … will to a very little increase by more than world’s largest, should reduce extent increase the risk (for the the size of its global company return of the fund) and lead to a reference index by between better follow-up (of companies).” 25% and 30% to better follow up The fund pools the Norwegian companies, primarily by remov- state’s revenues from oil and gas ing small cap stocks, the finance production and invests them ministry proposed yesterday. abroad in stocks, bonds, property The move reflects the growing and renewable energy projects. forecast in March awareness among international The government rules in a mi- investors about risk in the envi- nority and must win the support Bloomberg ronmental, social and corporate of other parties in parliament to Washington governance (ESG) field, in which pass its proposals. the Norwegian wealth fund has The fund uses the FTSE Global often set the pace. All Cap index from the FTSE Rus- S producer prices The fund’s reference index sell index as the basis for its own climbed more than fore- would be cut to around 6,600 reference index. Ucast last month in a broad firms from 8,800 companies “In emerging markets, there advance, indicating infl ation- presently, the ministry said in are, to a greater extent, weaker ary pressures continue to build its annual recommendation to institutions, fewer protection of across the nation’s economy. parliament. minority shareholders and so it The producer price index for The fund should also exclude is more challenging to have a re- fi nal demand increased 1% in for now more companies from sponsible investment strategy,” March from the prior month af- emerging markets, in the index Sanner told Reuters. ter a 0.5% gain in February, the governing its investment, it said. The fund’s management, Norges Labour Department said yes- The fund currently holds stakes Bank Investment Management, terday. The gain was twice the in around 9,100 companies, and can still invest in emerging median projection in a Bloomb- a smaller reference index could, markets if it so decides. erg survey of economists as cost over time, lead to a cut in the But being excluded from the increases for goods and services number of companies owned. reference index means the fund accelerated. “We see a high number of com- would invest in fewer emerging The data, typically scheduled panies leads to higher costs... market stocks than they would for release at 8:30am New York and leads to a more complex had they been included. time, was delayed on the gov- ernment’s website. The S&P 500 was little changed in early trad- ing and the yield on the bench- mark 10-year Treasury note in- creased. Take Friday afternoons off this Excluding volatile food and summer, PwC tells UK staff energy components, the so- called core PPI increased 0.7% from a month earlier. Men load wood into a burner while boiling maple sap in the evaporator in their sugar shack at Grossman Brothers Maple Products in Claridon, Bloomberg companies grapple to work out The monthly advance in the Ohio. The US producer price index for final demand increased 1% in March from the prior month after a 0.5% gain in February, the Labour what post-pandemic working index led to a 4.2% increase in Department said yesterday. patterns will look like after the overall PPI from March 2020, PricewaterhouseCoopers workers who have spent months when the pandemic caused the future path of infl ation in the makers view as delivering only a food, energy, and trade services Some business executives will give UK staff on Friday working remotely start returning prices to retreat. That was the coming months. temporary boost to infl ation. — a measure often preferred by have noted plans to raise con- afternoons off this summer to the off ice. sharpest annual gain since 2011. The cost of goods climbed Fed chairman Jerome Powell, economists because it strips out sumer prices, which could drive and allow them to choose the PwC will allow its employees Given major infl ation met- 1.7% in March, the most in during a virtual panel on Thurs- the most volatile components up infl ation measures like next amount of time they spend to choose the times they start rics declined at the start of the records to December 2009. More day, said that while price pres- — rose 0.6% in March from a week’s CPI. A surge in pent-up working from home as part of and finish their working days, pandemic, year-over-year fi g- than 25% of that gain was due to sures are expected to rise as the month earlier and increased demand — along with a massive a post-pandemic shakeup of and expect their staff to spend ures will quickly accelerate — a an 8.8% spike in gasoline prices. economy reopens, the pickup in 3.1% from the same period last injection of fi scal aid — should working patterns. between 40% to 60% of their development referred to as the Services costs climbed 0.7%, the infl ation will likely be tempo- year. support an acceleration in con- The accountancy firm announced time with their colleagues, either base eff ect. The upward dis- third straight gain and fuelled rary. The Institute for Supply Man- sumer prices, but it’s unclear its hybrid working model would in off ices or at client sites, it said tortion will also appear in the by increased margins at retailers “We would be monitoring in- agement’s prices paid indexes whether price gains will be sus- include “a reduced working day” in a statement. closely-watched consumer price and wholesalers. fl ation expectations very care- for both manufacturers and tained. at the end of the week during July The firm will take a phased ap- index report on Tuesday. Shortages of materials have fully. If we see them moving per- service providers have surged But if none or only some of and August, and anticipates most proach to introducing the new Producer prices, which have driven up input prices at the sistently and materially above to the highest since 2008 in re- these price increases can be of its 22,000 staff will clock off at policies, after telling its employ- the potential of being passed same time producers are con- levels we’re comfortable with, cent months amid supply chain passed to consumers, pressure lunchtime after a more compact ees in England and Wales this on to consumers, are rising at tending with higher shipping then we’d react to that,” Powell disruptions, limited availability on profi t margins could develop working week. week that its off ices are open for a brisk pace, adding fuel to an costs and bottlenecks — devel- said. of materials and surging input if fi rms have diffi culty cutting The announcement comes as those who want to go. already-intense debate about opments Federal Reserve policy Producer prices excluding prices. costs elsewhere. Tweets, receipts and Peloton riders: Foodmakers embrace big data

Bloomberg feeds or delivery orders. Some companies are grab- With long-established brands like Betty Crocker and Birds Eye Oven Roasters in six months. When air “Consumers don’t know what they are going to do bing cell-phone tracking info, scouring customers’ Oscar Mayer, market-leading companies have been fryers became hot, the company made videos for in a year,” he said. Post-pandemic life is “uncharted grocery receipts and keeping tabs on how long it largely content to drive sales through traditional social media showing how to make its broccoli bites waters.” When a handful of teens took to social media to takes to clean up dinner. Conagra is even moni- advertising or simple name recognition. and cauliflower wings in the device. Conagra has But while data usage is on the rise, Big Food’s complain about the paltry size of their microwavea- toring Peloton subscriptions to gauge whether One obstacle they’ve long faced is in data collec- sold $27mn of oven roasters over the past year. embrace of analytics brings some challenges. At ble mac and cheese, Big Food was paying attention. shoppers would be more inclined to buy health tion. Since the products are generally sold through Food companies “have tried to listen to the con- the top of the list: It brings risks of privacy issues for At Kraft Heinz Co, the corporate behemoth that’s food versus junk food, and tweaking its marketing grocery stores rather than directly to consumers, sumer and make themselves more relevant in terms customers, who may not always realise how much responsible for a lot of the items in your pantry accordingly. food makers have less insight into the details of the of taste and ingredients,” said Nicholas Fereday, a information they’re handing over. right now, a “social listening team” picked up on Data analytics are shaping up to be a critical factor transaction, including what other products custom- consumer foods analyst at Rabobank. “They are In 2019, General Mills altered its Box Tops for that chatter in the summer of 2019. Months later – in determining which food companies can thrive ers are buying. The largest consumer packaged playing in an area that traditionally we assumed the Education programme in a way that turned it into lightning speed in the food world – Kraft Macaroni in a post-pandemic world. Americans have turned goods companies have only one-tenth the size of small brands had an upper hand in because they a significant data collection operation. Rather than and Cheese Big Bowls were on store shelves. back to old pantry stalwarts over the past year, customer databases compared with retail peers, are more socially savvy.” clip box tops, shoppers are now directed to upload Tracking social media buzz is one of the newly giving new life to staid brands that had been losing according to Boston Consulting Group’s data. Kraft’s super-sized mac and cheese shows just how scans of their grocery receipts to an app, showing honed tools in Kraft’s data collection toolbox, and out to smaller competitors. But investors are realis- A rise in delivery and growing direct-to-consumer savvy the big players are becoming. The product the company what else they bought along with the both the company and its packaged-food peers are ing not everyone can hold onto those gains once eff orts that accelerated in 2020 have started to shift was developed quickly and is now outperforming company’s products. increasingly thinking about how they gather and use the economy opens back up and people eat less at the balance. The data available through e-com- internal expectations. Without the kind of social “We’ll have the history of your shopping trips, will information like this to speed product development. home. Pandemic outperformers like Clorox Co are merce is similar in many ways to what supermarket media monitoring that Kraft has been refining, understand what products you like,” said North “For a food brand it’s really no longer about who facing similar questions about how they’ll fare once loyalty programs already off ered, but it’s now “this could be a multi-year process because you’ve American retail president Jon Nudi. The company has the biggest factory, or who has the biggest me- things get back to normal. available at a much larger scale and more quickly, missed your annual planning window,” said US chief can tailor its coupons based on how long since dia budget,” said Taylor Smith, a partner at Boston An S&P index of consumer staples stocks is up explained Bob Nolan, who leads Conagra’s insights growth off icer Sanjiv Gajiwala. you last purchased a General Mills product – or a Consulting Group. “It’s about what data you have about 27% in the past year, the best 12-month and analytics team. Merchants can see what shop- Some companies are still employing more old- competing item. “If we know you like Cheerios but and how you use it.” performance in that period in over a decade. Yet pers purchased, what they clicked on but didn’t school methods, like focus groups and consumer you haven’t bought it, we can serve up a promotion From Kraft to General Mills Inc to Conagra Brands that pales in comparison to the 63% surge in the purchase, what else was in their baskets and what surveys. On a recent investor call, JPMorgan Chase on Cheerios.” Inc, big foodmakers are finally warming to analytics broader S&P 500. And foodmakers like Campbell they’ve bought over time. & Co’s Ken Goldman pressed Campbell Soup for any Participants can block out other receipt items if as they try to become nimbler and more responsive Soup Co. and Kellogg Co are among the worst Manufacturers are also getting more creative in the data that could help the company confidently pre- they’d like, the company says. Still, the change has to consumer whims. A pandemic-driven rise in on- performers in that consumer index, which also ways they’re getting information. Besides Peloton dict consumer behaviour post-pandemic, leading drawn criticism on social media and other sites line shopping and grocery delivery has widened the includes toilet-paper manufacturers, grocery stores subscriptions, Conagra gathers data on recipe chief executive off icer Mark Clouse to acknowledge such as parenting forums on Reddit. trove of data available to food companies that have and cigarette makers. searches online and appliance sales to tailor its that its predictions are merely “theoretical.” But Big Food isn’t exactly Big Brother, according to long struggled to gain insight into shopping trends For other industries, the use of analytics is nothing marketing eff orts. Ovens are the second most-used The problem isn’t with Campbell specifically, Gold- Ray Yu, a partner at Boston Consulting Group. The because retailers, not manufacturers, have been the new – everything from banking to health care to kitchen appliance after stovetops, said Nolan. So man told Bloomberg in an e-mail. Many companies data gathered tends to be aggregated on a macro gatekeepers to most shopper transactions. retail has been reshaped by user data. But large when his team saw sheet-pan meals was a popular rely on optimistic consumer surveys that aren’t nec- scale, helping companies identify broader trends, And Big Food isn’t just keeping an eye on Twitter food manufacturers have been late to the party. search on Pinterest, it launched sheet-pan-ready essarily reliable in such an uncertain environment. he said. Saturday, April 10, 2021 GULF TIMES BUSINESS Made in USA reflation trade is a globally unwanted export

Bloomberg future deficits when it could have been the rising price of government debt has region are still low compared with costs too much debt. The recovery is masking in 2013, there may be parallels with the Washington spent on investments and reforms. Debt become a headache for policymakers and of existing debt. Italian 10-year bonds sold this so far, but fragilities are growing for chaos sparked by then Federal Reserve sustainability is a valid concern.” investors alike. with a coupon of 4.75% almost a decade markets.” chief Ben Bernanke suggesting monetary Yields on Group of Seven government In an interview with Bloomberg Televi- ago are likely to be refinanced at a much Nash says the “canary in the coal mine” stimulus would be pared at some point in The US bond tantrum is sending a chill debt have more than doubled since the sion, European Central Bank President lower rate given their current yield of is the developing world, already feeling the future. through indebted countries which have start of the year after climbing 27 basis Christine Lagarde last week said that 0.631%. the impact of rising costs to borrow in US This time bond markets have become for years paid less to borrow more. points to 0.48%, according to Bloomberg policymakers won’t shy away from us- Across the Atlantic, there’s even less cause dollars. A benchmark gauge of emerging- unruly because the US has unleashed tril- As the American economy powers ahead, Barclays index data, as Treasury yields ing all their powers to stop bond yields for worry, this year anyway. Interest pay- market stocks has trimmed gains to just lions of dollars in fiscal stimulus, according government bond yields from Australia set a blistering pace. US 10-year yields moving higher. The ECB has accelerated ments on the national debt fell last year 3.4% for the year amid concern poorer to Steve Major, the head of fixed-income to Italy are taking the cue and following traded at 1.72% as of 7:17am in New York, bond buying to push back against rising and are on track to continue sliding – even nations will lag eff orts to deliver vaccines research at HSBC Holdings Plc. those of the US upwards. Those higher near a 14-month high set at the end of borrowing costs. after all the pandemic spending and amid to their population and stimulus to their “For all the talk of another taper tantrum, costs threaten to undermine a flagging March. The math goes something like this: Every the highest 10-year borrowing costs in a economies. we may have already had something simi- recovery in Europe, which is losing control While it’s hard to pin down how much of 10 basis-point move across Europe’s debt year. Emerging-market nations owe more lar but this time it was brought on by the of the pandemic and extending curbs. that is down to what’s happening in the structure would translate into about €11bn But a period of belt-tightening down the than $4tn in dollar debt, according to government’s aggressive fiscal loosening. They’re also unwelcome for emerging Treasury market, analysts at ING Groep NV ($12.9bn) of annual interest. That’s based line could harm the economic recovery estimates from the Bank for International Shall we call it a ‘fiscal tantrum’?” Major markets reliant on dollar funding. point to the US as the driver, going as far on a back-of-the-envelope calculation of and eventually require more stimulus from Settlements. The burden gets bigger as said. “Whatever the reason, the economy “This is something investors are watch- as to assert that no reflation trade would the region’s debt at €11tn, according to Eu- central banks, according to Mark Nash, US yields rise, with the potential that their is not going to be helped by higher yields.” ing,” said Thomas Wacker, head of credit be happening in Europe in a world in ropean Commission data, and the average a money manager at Jupiter Investment debt troubles spill over into other markets, Germany, France, Spain and Austria will at UBS Global Wealth Management. “Any which it was isolated from the US. rate of interest at 1.6%, or €181.42bn over a Management. according to Nash. sell bonds totalling almost €21bn, accord- increase in interest rate costs reduces Regardless of whether they can blame four-quarter rolling period. “The market will have to look for austerity While the causes are diff erent from the ing to Commerzbank AG. Germany is countries’ fiscal headroom and adds to run-it-hot American economic policy, For now, funding conditions in the euro in the future,” Nash said. “There is just taper talk that wreaked havoc on markets expected to redeem €21bn.

Fortnite maker and Apple duel in filings as App Store trial nears

AFP San Francisco

Epic Games and Apple duelled in legal filings ahead of a trial over whether to break the iPhone maker’s tight grip on the App Store. Epic, the maker of the massively popular Fortnite game, accused Apple on Thursday of trapping people in its mobile device world and collecting “outsized commis- sion” at the App Store that serves as the only source of digital content. Apple countered that it has no monopoly when it comes to digital games and that the suit is part of an eff ort by Epic to por- tray “Apple as the ‘bad guy’ so that it can revive flagging interest in Fortnite.” Apple pulled Fortnite from its App Store in August of last year after Epic released an update that dodges revenue sharing with the iPhone maker, and the companies are now locked in a legal battle. A trial in the case is set to begin May 3 in US federal court near San Francisco. Apple chief Tim Cook as well as Epic founder and top executive Tim Sweeney are among those expected to testify. “Apple constructed the iOS ecosystem, A Boeing 737 MAX airplane prepares to land after a test flight in Seattle, Washington, on September 30, 2020. “Boeing has recommended to 16 customers that they address a potential electrical issue in using a combination of technical and a specific group of 737 MAX airplanes prior to further operations,” the company said in a statement yesterday. contractual means, to restrict distribution of iOS apps, foreclosing competition, harm- ing the competitive process, and harming consumers,” Epic contended in a filing. The iOS software runs Apple mobile devices. The App Store is home to more than 1.8mn apps worldwide, generating billions of dol- lars in revenue for developers since it was Boeing reveals ‘potential’ launched in 2008. People spent $70.3bn at the App Store last year alone, according to market tracker Statista. Apple’s commission on App Store transac- tions ranges from 15% to 30%, and the online shop has been part of the Silicon Valley titan’s eff ort to ramp up revenue 737 MAX electrical issue from digital content and services. Epic has called the App Store bite of trans- AFP path exists for a component of the electrical expect to eliminate that stock until sometime Other signifi cant orders had already been actions an “Apple Tax” and contended that Paris power system”, it said. next year. announced by Ryanair, United Airlines and in- the vetting of apps there is “cursory.” Electrical systems must be grounded to avoid The MAX was grounded after 346 people vestment fi rm 777 Partners. Apple maintains that the commission is overloads that can cause serious failures. died in two crashes — the 2018 Lion Air disaster The Southwest order, which includes options standard for the market, and is warranted S aircraft manufacturer Boeing said yes- Boeing did not say which airlines were con- in Indonesia and an Ethiopian Airlines crash the on another 155 new MAX planes, is the big- given the company’s investments in secu- terday it had recommended that 16 cli- cerned nor did it give the number of aircraft following year. gest for the model since regulators cleared it to rity, privacy and innovation. Uents fl ying its 737 MAX models address involved. Investigators said a main cause of both crash- resume service. It has argued that Epic “would like to reap a “potential electrical issue”, a new setback for The plane maker did say it was “working es was a faulty fl ight handling system known as Major airlines continue to burn through the benefits of the App Store without pay- its most popular plane. closely” with the US Federal Aviation Adminis- the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmenta- cash due to low travel volumes caused by the ing anything for them.” Boeing managed to get the 737 MAX back tration (FAA) and would direct clients on how to tion System, or MCAS. Covid-19 pandemic, but the sector expects to Apple said Epic has benefited from the into the air late last year after it was grounded resolve the issue. The FAA in mid-November cleared the MAX rebound this year. iOS ecosystem with some 130mn down- for 20 months following two fatal crashes, and The 737 MAX has been a huge hit with air- to return to service following upgrades to the Meanwhile, Boeing continues to face liti- loads in 174 countries, which earned Epic recently announced an order for 100 of the air- lines, and was Boeing’s best-selling aircraft plane and pilot training protocols. gation from families of victims who died in more than half a billion dollars, before craft as the airline sector begins to recover from until it was grounded in March 2019. Other regulators have followed suit since crashes on Lion Air and Ethiopian Airlines changing its tune and seeking “special the coronavirus pandemic. Around 450 of the planes have been delivered then. fl ights. treatment.” “Boeing has recommended to 16 customers to date to 49 airlines or aircraft leasing compa- Commercial fl ights resumed in December In January, Boeing agreed to pay $2.5bn in The dispute comes with Apple and other that they address a potential electrical issue nies. 2020 with Brazilian airline Gol, then in the US fi nes to settle a criminal probe with the US De- tech giants facing increased scrutiny for in a specifi c group of 737 MAX airplanes prior After the Covid-19 crisis hammered the air and Canada. partment of Justice over claims the company their dominance in various economic sec- to further operations,” the company said in a transport sector, airlines cancelled hundreds of It is still grounded in China. defrauded regulators overseeing the 737 MAX. tors, allowing them to grow even as much statement yesterday. orders however. On March 29, US carrier Southwest Airlines The industrial catastrophe has cost Boeing of the economy contracts from the impact The potential problem identifi ed yesterday Boeing currently has more than 400 aircraft said it had agreed to buy 100 more Boeing 737 billions of dollars and seriously damaged its of the coronavirus pandemic. requires “verifi cation that a suffi cient ground waiting to be delivered to clients, and does not MAX planes, providing a key vote of confi dence. reputation.

US fossil-fuel firms took billions in tax breaks — and then laid off thousands

Figures show 77 companies fossil-fuel companies laid off workers, with despite federal government tax assistance The extended carry-back benefit was “We look forward to better days ahead for pressure in their role in the climate crisis received $8.2bn under tax changes a more than 58,000 people losing their amounting to $591m. embraced by the oil and gas industry, with everyone as the nation emerges from the and the deaths of millions of people each related to Covid relief and yet jobs since the onset of the pandemic, or Other major oil and gas companies many companies suff ering losses even pandemic.” year through air pollution, the oil and almost every one let workers go around 16% of the combined workforces. including Devon Energy and Occidental before Covid-19 hit. This expense management didn’t extend gas industry has sought to paint itself as The largest beneficiary of government Petroleum also took in major pandemic Pandemic shutdowns then severely to the pay of Marathon’s chief executive, the protector of thousands of American Guardian News & Media assistance has been Marathon Petroleum, tax benefits in the last year while also curtailed travel by people for business or Michael Hennigan, who made $15.5mn in workers who face joblessness due to Joe Washington which has got $2.1bn in tax benefits. shedding thousands of workers. pleasure, dealing a major blow to fossil- 2020. Biden’s climate policies. However, in the year to December 2020, “I’m not surprised that these companies fuel companies through the plummeting Hennigan, appointed to the position last “Targeting specific industries with new the Ohio-based refining company laid took advantage of these tax benefits, use of oil, with the price of a barrel of oil year, was paid around $1m more than taxes would only undermine the nation’s Fossil-fuel companies have received bil- off 1,920 workers, or around 9% of its but I’m horrified by the layoff s after they even entering negative territory at one the 2019 income of his predecessor, Lee economic recovery and jeopardise good- lions of dollars in tax benefits from the US workforce. got this money,” said Chris Kuveke, a point last year. Tillman. paying jobs, including union jobs,” said government as part of coronavirus relief As a comparative ratio, Marathon has researcher at BailoutWatch. A spokesman for Marathon, the one com- According to BailoutWatch, Marathon’s Frank Macchiarola, senior vice-president measures, only to lay off tens of thousands received around $1m for each worker it “Last year’s stimulus was about keeping pany to answer questions on the layoff s, chief executive is paid 99 times the aver- for policy, economic and regulatory aff airs of their workers during the pandemic, new made redundant, according to Bailout- the economy going, but these companies said the business made “the very diff icult age company worker’s salary. at lobby group American Petroleum Insti- figures reveal. Watch, a nonprofit advocacy group that didn’t use these resources to retain their decision” to reduce its workforce, provid- “They had no problem paying their execu- tute, following Biden’s announcement of a A group of 77 firms involved in the extrac- analysed Securities and Exchange Com- workers. These are companies that are ing severance and extended healthcare tives for good performance when they new climate-focused infrastructure plan. tion of oil, gas and coal received $8.2bn mission filings to compile all the data. polluting the environment, increasing the benefits to those aff ected. didn’t perform well,” said Kuveke. “There “It’s important to note that our industry under tax-code changes that formed part Phillips 66, Vistra Corp, National Oilwell deadliness of the pandemic and letting go “These diff icult decisions were part of a is no problem with working Americans receives no special tax treatment, and of a major pandemic stimulus bill passed Varco and Valero were the next largest ben- of their workers.” broader, comprehensive eff ort, which also retaining their jobs but I don’t believe we we will continue to advocate for a tax by Congress last year. eficiaries of the tax-code changes, with all of The tax benefits stems from a change in included implementing strict capital dis- should subsidise an industry that has been code that supports a level playing field Five of these companies also got benefits them also laying off workers in the past year. the Cares Act from March last year that cipline and overall expense management supported by the government for the past for all economic sectors along with poli- from the paycheck protection programme, In the case of National Oilwell Varco, a allowed companies that had made a loss to lower our cost structure, to improve the 100 years. It’s time to stop subsidising cies that sustain and grow the billions of totalling more than $30mn. Houston-headquartered drilling supply since 2013 to use this to off set their taxes, company’s resiliency, and re-position it for them and start facing the climate crisis.” dollars in government revenue that we Despite this, almost every one of the company, 22% of the workforce was fired, receiving this refund as a payment. long-term success,” the spokesman said. Faced by growing political and societal help generate.”