ESKOM WOES | Page 3 From national treasure to global disgrace Friday, February 22, 2019 Jumada II 17, 1440 AH UK FINDINGS: Page 12 Watchdog fi nes GULF TIMES asset managers for breaking BUSINESS competition rules Global trade pain stings export India, China to drive economies from Japan to Germany Bloomberg natural gas market Frankfurt rom Japan to Germany, from economic numbers to profi t warnings, there’s no shortage of evidence that the Fworld is feeling the pain of a slump in trade. In Asia, South Korea and Japan reported declines in exports, while European powerhouse Germany is seeing manufactur- until 2040: IEF chief ing shrink the most in six years. Shipping giant Maersk said yesterday that profi t will fall short of expectations, and chief Share of gas in global energy mix will GECF and called for the organisation’s executive Soren Skou said the outlook for this year is bleaker. be no less than 25% by 2040, says “valued contributions” to the dialogue. A UBS tracker puts global growth at the weakest in a dec- Dr Xiansheng In order to enhance this dialogue, the ade, and the worries have overwhelmed central bankers. GECF will participate in the ‘9th IEA-IEF- On Wednesday, minutes of the Federal Reserve’s last policy By Pratap John OPEC Symposium on energy outlook’ next meeting highlighted slower growth in China and Europe, Business Editor week, of which the GECF will be the fourth trade disputes and complications from Brexit. partner. The European Central Bank was set to publish the account GECF secretary general Dr Yury Senty- of its January meeting later yesterday, and some offi cials have ndia and China will drive the natural gas urin made introductory remarks. already laid the groundwork for a policy response in March. market until 2040, International En- Dr Xiansheng is an accomplished au- That could include new long-term loans for banks and a Iergy Forum (IEF) secretary general Dr thority not only on energy policy related change to their language on the outlook for interest rates. Sun Xiansheng said even as he underlined matters, but has ample industry experi- “Uncertainty is the big buzzword for central banks,” natural gas’s “critical role in achieving sus- ence, covering both oil and gas produc- Carsten Brzeski, ING Diba chief economist, said on Bloomb- tainable and inclusive growth”. tion, trading and pipeline construction, erg Television. “Maybe if all these external risks turn out be- The two Asian countries will be the ma- gathered through the various roles he held nign, then we might see another move by the Fed, another jor consumers over the next two decades at China National Petroleum Corpora- attempt by the ECB to normalise. But judging from today, followed by Africa and the Middle East, he tion (CNPC). In his current role as the the probability that all these risks will have a benign outlook said while delivering the second edition of secretary-general of the IEF, an intergov- is pretty low.” the 2019 series of the Gas Exporting Coun- ernmental organisation that aims to foster Bond markets around the world have responded to the tries Forum’s (GECF) monthly lecture here greater mutual understanding and aware- weaker outlook. The average yield on securities in the yesterday. ness of common energy interests among its Bloomberg Barclays Global-Aggregate Index fell this week to Indian demand for gas is estimated to members, he has contributed greatly to the the lowest since April, and Japanese bond yields dropped to grow at 4.9% through 2040 while that of global dialogue on energy. two-year lows yesterday. China at 4.7%, Xiansheng said while de- The organisation has some 72 member “There is no sense that yields will rise anywhere around livering the lecture entitled “Global Energy countries and between themselves account the world,” said Takafumi Yamawaki, head of Japan rates and Security: The Role of Gas in Sustainable for the bulk of global supply and demand foreign-exchange research at JPMorgan Chase & Co in Tokyo. and Inclusive Growth” at the GECF’s head- for oil and gas. That makes this year’s V-shaped recovery in global equity quarters in Doha. Considering their similarities and markets all the more striking as traders bet on a resolution to Africa’s demand will grow at an estimated aligned interests, such as encouraging the US-China trade dispute. 3.3% between now and 2040, while the Mid- Dr Xiansheng delivering the second edition of the 2019 series of the Gas Exporting the dialogue between producers and con- In the euro area, the manufacturing Purchasing Manag- dle East at 2% during the period, he said. Countries Forum’s monthly lecture in Doha yesterday. Right: Sentyurin. sumers, the GECF and the IEF have been ers Index dropped to a level consistent with contraction. IHS Demand in the US, the world’s largest PICTURES: Shemeer Rasheed collaborating for several years, an exam- Markit, which compiles the report, said the 19-nation econ- economy, will grow at 0.7% through 2040, ple of that being their joint work on the omy may struggle to register growth much above 0.1% this Xiansheng said. This is a fact, he said, that has been the market, but Qatar will continue to be Joint Organisations Data Initiative (JO- quarter. In terms of production, the IEF secretary proven by all major forecasting agencies, a steady producer through the forecasted DI-Gas). Orders fell for a second month, with companies citing general noted that Africa will grow at an including Opec and the International En- period. And while the focus of the GECF is on “global trade protectionism worries, Brexit, the downturn of estimated 3.7% until 2040. Mozambique ergy Agency. In terms of the consumers, the IEF sec- natural gas as the cleanest, most effi cient the auto sector, increased political uncertainty.” will drive the African production at 12.2% “In fact, the share of gas in the global en- retary general mentioned there would be a and most versatile source of energy, simi- But there were some positives. Services proved a bright during the period, he said. ergy mix will be no less than 25% by 2040,” shift to Asia, with China and India having larly to the IEF, it looks at the interrelation spot, and it pushed the overall composite PMI to a three- The Middle East will follow with a he noted. the fastest growth rate. between gas and other energy sources as month high. France also off ered some support, reporting a growth rate of 2.2% with Qatar and Iran The fi gure also corresponds with the fi g- Xiansheng also called for collaboration well as the sustainable growth of gas mar- better-than-forecast PMI that may hint at a stabilisation. leading gas production until 2040. ures projected in the GECF’s own Global in terms of policy and investment deci- kets. For Skou, his peers, and global manufacturing as a whole, In Asia–Pacifi c (2%), Australia and Chi- Gas Outlook 2040. sions and a necessity to develop infrastruc- Both organisations are united in their the latest fi gures show that a truce in the US-China trade war na will be major producers at 3% and 3.9% “Gas will continue to get momentum as ture and pricing mechanisms. In order to belief that achieving the United Nations can’t come soon enough. respectively. it can be a solution to the Paris Agreement ultimately reach energy security supply, he Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) The latest reports are that negotiators are working on mul- In his speech, Xiansheng underlined the Goals,” Xiansheng stated. stressed that “international and regional and especially SDG 7 ‘Ensure access to af- tiple memorandums of understanding that would form the critical role of natural gas in achieving sus- Looking at producers, he said several energy cooperation is the solution”. fordable, reliable, sustainable and modern basis of a fi nal trade deal, though no breakthrough is expected tainable and inclusive growth. new emerging producers are expected in This is where he praised the role of the energy for all’ is of prime importance. during talks this week. Samsung revamps flagship range with 5G, low-cost options Bloomberg first time the figure had slid on a full-year Samsung’s stock fell about 1% yesterday would be integrated into the new camera San Francisco/London basis, according to Strategy Analytics. morning in Seoul. application. It lets people upload photos Consumers are holding on to their Samsung will probably sell more than and videos directly to the Instagram phones longer and spending less on 40mn Galaxy S10 units in the first year of Stories feature and use the app’s filters. Samsung Electronics Co debuted its most upgrades, putting pressure on manufac- release, Counterpoint said in an e-mail. Samsung also said it is working with extensive new lineup of smartphones, turers to bolster innovation and justify That would be more than the Galaxy S9 Adobe Inc on an optimised version of its taking on Apple Inc in a slowing market their price tags. With premium mobile for the same period, but fewer than the Premiere Rush CC video editing app. with 3-D cameras, an in-screen fingerprint phones that can cost well over $1,000 a Galaxy S7, Samsung’s best-selling S-series The Galaxy Fold, which turns into a tablet, scanner and faster 5G connectivity and a piece, customers have also been turning smartphone, it said. will cost $1,980. device with a folding screen. to lesser-known companies, which has The S10 and S10+ include 6.1-inch and “The foldable design, especially the The South Korean technology giant given rise to Chinese companies such as 6.4-inch screens respectively, up from hinge, is more refined than many other introduced four new phones in its Galaxy Huawei Technologies Co, Xiaomi Corp 5.8 inches and 6.2 inches on last year’s competing solutions,” said Bryan Ma, vice S range – the S10, S10+, S10e, and S10 5G.