The Daily Economic and Business News Update – Tuesday, 27

Group Corporate Strategy ZB Financial Holdings Limited 1st Floor, 21 Natal 21 Natal Road, Belgravia, Box 3198, Harare

Tel: +263 (0)8677002001

The Daily Economic and Business News Update, Friday, 28 June 2019

Foreign Currency, Money, Equities & Commodities Markets Overview

Foreign Currency Markets International Stock Markets Year–On-Year Inflation Rates Currency 28-06-19 27-06-19 Index 27-06-19 26-06-19 Change Country Rate USD/RTGS 7.8950 6.6700 Dow Jones 26,526.58 26,536.82 -0.04% Zimbabwe 97.85%May USD/ ZAR 14.1413 14.2334 NASDAQ 7,967.76 7,909.97 +0.73% South Africa 4.5%May May EUR/ USD 1.1370 1.1364 FTSE All Share 4,041.72 4,046.05 -0.11% Malawi 8.9% GBP/USD 1.2675 1.2694 Nikkei 225 21,219.70 21,288.27 -0.32% Zambia 16 8.0% May USD /BWP 10.6157 10.6496 DAX 12,271.03 12,245.32 +0.21% Botswana 2.6% May Old Mutual Implied Exchange Rates Mozambique 2.42%May Currency 27-06-19 26-06-19 May 2019 Apr 2019 Mar 2019 Feb 2019 Namibia 4.1% May USD/ZWL 8.7254 9.2219 9.7191 6.1291 5.4150 4.4057 Kenya 5.49% May ZWL/ZAR 1.6251 1.5600 1.2609 1.2938 1.3073 3.1868 Ghana 9.4% May Regional Stock Markets Nigeria 11.4%May Index 27-06-19 26-06-19 Change Interest rates 27-06-19 Brazil 4.66%May ZSE Industrial Index 702.83 727.56 -3.40% SARB Prime Rate 10.25% China 2.7%May ZSE Mining Index 270.97 275.71 -1.72% BOB Prime Rate 5.00% Canada 2.4%May ZSE All Share 210.68 218.06 -3.38% LIBOR One Month 2.402% Germany 1.4%May JSE All Share 58,066.65 58,421.72 -0.61% LIBOR Three Month 2.330% Australia 1.3%May Ghana SE-CI 2,372.99 2,370.97 +0.09% LIBOR One Year 2.183% U.K. 2.0%May Nairobi All Share 148.34 148.38 -0.03% Federal Discount Rate 1.000% Japan 0.7% May Nigeria All Share 29,749.35 29,609.00 +0.47% Federal Prime Rate 3.500% U.S.A. 1.8%May Last Daily YTD YTD Issued 27-06-19 26-06-19 Traded Change Change Change Zimbabwe Market Cap. ZSE Counter (US$) (US$) (US$) (US$) (US$) (%) Shares (US$) ZB Financial Holdings 0.55 0.5 0.5 +0.05 +0.19 +52.78% 175,190,642 96,354,853.10 First Capital Bank Limited 0.064 0.064 0.064 0.000 +0.004 +6.67% 2,156,260,176 138,000,651.26 CBZ Holdings Limited 0.5497 0.55 0.55 -0.0003 +0.3997 +266.5% 687,231,691 377,771,260.54 Econet Wireless Zimbabwe 1.9757 2.2926 2.2926 -0.3169 +1.0757 +119.5% 2,590,577,000 5,118,202,978.90 FBC Holdings Limited 0.6025 0.6049 0.6049 -0.0024 +0.4025 +201.3% 671,949,927 404,849,831.02 Fidelity Life Assurance 0.11 0.11 0.11 0.000 0.000 0.00% 108,923,291 11,981,562.01 Get Bucks 0.12 0.12 0.12 0.000 +0.083 +224.3% 1,093,567,251 131,228,070.12 NMBZ Holdings Limited 0.28 0.28 0.28 0.000 +0.19 +211.1% 392,954,830 110,027,352.40 Old Mutual Plc 13.0453 13.75 13.75 -0.7047 +8.3453 +177.6% 64,173,594 837,163,785.81 First Mutual Holdings 0.21 0.2104 0.2104 -0.0004 +0.015 +7.69% 690,143,060 144,930,042.60 Mashonaland Holdings 0.0447 0.0447 0.0447 0.000 +0.0101 +29.19% 1,859,073,947 83,100,605.43 ZSE Gainers ZSE Losers 27-06-19 Previous 27-06-19 Previous Counter (US$) (US$) Change (%) Counter (US$) (US$) Change (%) ZBFH 0.5500 0.5000 +10.00% Axia 0.5500 0.6397 -14.02% Edgars 0.2400 0.2200 +9.09% Econet 1.9757 2.2926 -13.81% InnScor 2.7954 2.7000 +3.53% African Sun 0.4270 0.4600 -7.17% Delta 3.4347 3.4000 +1.02% Willdale 0.0434 0.0465 -6.67% International Commodity Prices +0.042% ZSE Market Data Index 27-06-19 26-06-19 Commodity 27-06-19 26-06-19 Jan 19 Jan 18 Turnover Value ($m) 12.6389 7.9451 Gold (US$/oz) 1,409.20 1,408.60 1,283.50 1,317.10 Foreign Buys ($m) 4.5475 5.5540 Platinum (US$/oz) 812.00 814.00 792.00 942.00 Foreign Sales ($m) 1.1031 8.5555 Silver ( US$/oz) 15.225 15.240 15.470 17.150 Market Cap ($m) 27,884.55 29,142.33 Palladium ( US$/oz) 1,532.00 1,500.00 1,252.00 1,086.00 YTD Change (Market Cap) +45.31% +51.87% Brent Crude Oil (US$/barrel) 66.55 66.49 53.80 66.55

Disclaimer: This document may be legally privileged and/or confidential and has been prepared for informative purposes only. No liability whatsoever for any loss howsoever arising from the use of this review or its contents or otherwise arising in connection therewith shall be accepted by ZB Financial Holdings, any of its directors, employees, or associates. Any person who makes use of this document shall be solely responsible for making his or her own independent investigation of the issues discussed in this report. ZB Financial Holdings accepts no responsibility whatsoever for the accuracy or completeness of the information contained in this document.

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Local Business News

1. The Zimbabwe Revenue Authority said yesterday it collected about ZWL$5 billion in the first half of this year, out of its 2019 target of ZWL$9.6 billion. Zimra commissioner general Faith Mazanhi said the agency was optimistic it would attain its target again this year, after managing to do so in the previous year. “We engaged in a very aggressive voluntary compliance programme,” she said. Zimra is the main source of funding for the government budget. With Zimra owed ZWL$5 billion in unpaid taxes, Mazanhi said the tax collector had reached an understanding with a number of companies that were yet to settle their dues. (Herald)

2. President Mnangagwa says government will vigorously push the ongoing reform process and implored captains of industry to complement the efforts through explaining the developments to citizens as no one should be left out. He said this while officially opening the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce (ZNCC) 2019 annual congress in Victoria Falls yesterday. The ZNCC congress, which ends today, is running under the theme; “Expanding horizons: Dynamic solutions for economic turnaround.” President Mnangagwa said his administration will not avoid doing what is good for the country in the short to medium term as it presses ahead with attaining Vision 2030. “We shall continue to deepen the ongoing reform initiatives and not shy away from doing that which is good for our country and the generality of our people,” said President Mnangagwa. (Herald)

3. The Economists Roundtable has implored businesses to stop pegging prices of goods and services against the value of the US dollar, since the costs they incur are in local currency. The call follows the introduction of currency reforms in Statutory Instrument (SI) 142 of 2019. Key among the reforms in SI 142 0f 2019 is the scrapping of the multi-currency system and coming in of the Zimbabwe dollar. The Economists Roundtable told journalists on Wednesday pegging prices against the value, which has been prevalent since 2009 when the country adopted multiple currencies, was no longer necessary. “Ever since we dollarised, everybody has been

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benchmarking against the US dollars,” said former University of Zimbabwe economics lecturer Professor Ashok Chakravarti. (Herald)

4. The Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) has assured tourists that international credit cards are still usable in Zimbabwe following the new monetary regulations announced by Government through Statutory Instrument 142 of 2019. Government on Monday announced new monetary regulations through a statutory instrument, which is also known as Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (Legal Tender) Regulations, 2019, which effectively outlawed the multi-currency system and introduced the Zimbabwe Dollar. In a statement, ZTA said tourists can still transact locally using international credit cards like Visa and Mastercard, change any freely convertible foreign currency in banks or bureau-de-change or make prior arrangements with their banks so that they withdraw cash at local ATMs. (Herald)

5. Zimbabwe is set to take delivery of farming equipment worth a combined US$102 million within two weeks from John Deere and Belarus as government deepens efforts to boost productivity and ensure food security. This was said by Lands, Agriculture, Water, Climate and Rural Resettlement Deputy Minister Vangelis Haritatos during Agribank’s annual general meeting in Harare yesterday. John Deere, a top United States agricultural equipment maker, thrashed a US$50 million farm mechanisation deal with the Government in February. Belarus, one of the five Eurasian countries visited by President Mnangagwa in January, will also provide equipment worth US$52 million. Both deals include tractors, combine harvesters and planters. The equipment comes ahead of the 2019-2020 summer cropping season. Haritatos said the tractors are in excess of 1 000 while combine harvesters “are quite a sizeable number” and hundreds of planters. (Herald)

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6. President Mnangagwa has called for an agricultural model that mitigates climate change and implored young innovators and researchers to come up with solutions to boost output. While fielding questions from delegates at the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce (ZNCC) annual congress here yesterday, the President said climate change was posing challenges to agriculture, especially the Command Agriculture initiative. “Command Agriculture is facing challenges especially with regards to climate change,” said President Mnangagwa. “We must come up with an agriculture model that mitigates against climate change. (Herald)

7. Standard Chartered Bank on Wednesday launched its first digital bank in Zimbabwe, another landmark innovation by the financial institution that aims to tap on the growing mobile penetration in the country. The launch of the digitally-led bank follows launches in Uganda, Tanzania, Ghana and Kenya in the first quarter of the year and Côte d’Ivoire in 2018. Standard Chartered’s digital bank is designed to bring convenience to clients by enabling them to access banking services through Internet and mobile platforms. Speaking at the launch event, head of retail banking, Valeta Mthimkhulu, highlighted that the digital bank offers seventy of the common services encompassing card management on the application, opening an additional account, ordering a debit card, local and international funds transfer, all without the need to visit a branch. (Herald)

8. Zimbabwe could be losing millions of US dollars in potential revenue due to the inability by relevant state departments to certify minerals value before export due to the unavailability of certification laboratories and technologies. This was revealed at a stakeholders consultative conference held in Harare recently under the auspices of state minerals marketing arm, the Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe (MMCZ). Government lab, Metlab, is unable to cover the gap as it needs to be capacitated to be an umpire and or commercial lab. The meeting was organised by the marketer so that it could solicit for producers’ input into problems affecting production as government seeks to boost mining sector export earnings

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from US$3, 2 attained last year to US$12 billion per year from 2023 onwards. (Herald)

9. At least US$15 million is required to purchase new mining equipment ahead of resumption of asbestos mining at King Mine in Mashava after successful de-watering of flooded shafts at the mothballed facility. Acquisition of new modern mining equipment will pave way for full-scale ore extraction at the mine which started de-watering shafts after President Mnangagwa’s administration poured funds for the revival of Shabanie Mashava Mines (SMM).Addressing stakeholders during a tour of the mine on Wednesday, SMM chief finance officer Luckson Dziva said the company, which closed down at the height of the economic meltdown in 2004, will likely resume fibre

10. Foreign currency retention thresholds for exporters have not changed following the proclamation of Statutory Instrument 142 of 2019 that scrapped the multi-currency system and replaced it with a local currency, the Zimbabwe Dollar. This was said by Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) Governor John Mangudya in response to enquiries on the fate of foreign currency retention thresholds for exporters such as tobacco farmers and gold producers, among others, following Monday’s proclamation. “Nothing has changed on the foreign currency retentions for all exporters including for tobacco growers. The same is true for Diaspora remittances, which can still be paid in cash or through nostro accounts,” said Mangudya. (Herald)

11. China Industrial International Group Zimbabwe has unveiled a US$6 million investment towards citrus fruit production in Zimbabwe that will go towards supporting local farmers. The investment will see the firm entering into joint ventures with local farmers and supporting them with inputs like fertiliser and seeds, before exporting, a development that is expected to earn the country foreign currency. In an interview on Tuesday, group chief executive Nie Yang said

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citrus fruits such as oranges had a ready market in China and the project had the potential to transform the lives of many smallholder farmers. In addition, said Nie, the company had a grant of about US$100 000 for the construction of a specialised classroom block for children living with disabilities. (Herald)

12. Cigarette manufacturer, British American Tobacco (BAT) Zimbabwe says its sales volumes have remained stable despite a challenging operating environment. “Our company continued to produce as expected and despite the challenging operating environment, our sales volume continue to perform relatively well. Like any other company in Zimbabwe, we are facing challenges with respect to making payments and our working capital requirements,” head of legal and external affairs, Mduduzi Lokotfwako said. “Our company will continue to strive to deliver shareholder value as part of our focus. Looking ahead, our company will also continue to ensure its strategies remain appropriate and that its brand portfolio is consumer relevant at all times,” he said. Lokotfwako said they will continue to aggressively invest in their brands to ensure they remain relevant to consumers. They would also maximise on technology to improve efficiencies and gain customer and consumer insights. (NewsDay)

13. Chinese mining firm, San He Zimbabwe, had its property attached by the sheriff after it failed to settle over US$218 970 in salary arrears and non-payment of overtime. The mine, based in Guruve, had failed to pay workers their full salaries, forcing employees to sue and eventually winning the case. The award was registered at the High Court, paving way for the attachment of property such as dump trucks, tractors, irrigation equipment and excavators. After the attachment, the company, however, applied for stay of execution at the High Court, but lost the case (NewsDay)

14. The Zimbabwean dollar suffers a crisis of expectation with observers saying certain

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fundamentals have to be met to ensure the currency’s survival. This comes after this week’s government decision to abolish the multi-currency system and declare the ZW$, abandoned 10 years ago, as the sole medium of exchange. Observers said a lot has to be done to ensure the currency’s value is not significantly eroded within a short space of time. (DailyNews)

15. CFI subsidiaries, Crest Poultry Group (Pvt) Ltd, Agrifoods (Pvt) Ltd and Manicaland Farmers’s Co-op (Pvt), all under judicial management, will soon get out of the woods after they satisfied tough requirements to operate normally. Reggie Saruchera, the judicial manager for the 3 companies, said all requisite conditions precedent to the scheme of arrangement had been fulfilled. (DailyNews)

16. Star Africa has broken its 10-year lossmaking streak by reporting a net profit of RTGS$8.8 million for the year to March 2019, helped by a sharp increase in turnover. The conglomerate achieved a 51% increase in turnover, which amounted to RTGS$72.7 million compared with RTGS$48.1 million, recorded in the previous comparative period. The group’s operating income went up 3-fold to $12.4 million from $3.1 million that was achieved last year. (DailyNews)

17. Government was stampeded into seeking refuge in the resurrected Zimbabwean dollar, as an emergency, as it feared losing control of the financial levers of the economy through rapid re- dollarisation which was likely to result in failure to pay civil servants, particularly the military, in foreign currency as demanded, with dire consequences. The return of the ZimDollar was hurried and mysteriously done amid a torrent of official rhetoric about the need for a sovereign currency to the extent that government structures and stakeholders were kept in the dark. Even Cabinet ministers seemed to be playing catch-up this week. (Independent)

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18. International financial institutions, particularly the International Monetary Fund, which recently approved a Staff-Monitored Programme with Zimbabwe, were stunned by government’s decision to immediately scrap the multi-currency regime and revive the Zimbabwean dollar as the sole legal tender in the economy. On Monday, government, through Statutory Instrument 142 of 2019, abolished the use of foreign currency in local transactions in a bid to contain the thriving black market. (Independent)

19. Latin American countries such as Bolivia and Peru like Zimbabwe did this week once embarked on de-dollarisation without macro-economic stability and other necessary conditions, with the process ending up in inevitable failure. On Monday, Zimbabwe, through Statutory Instrument 142 of 2019, abolished the use of foreign currency in local transactions in a bid to contain the thriving black market. The Zimbabwean dollar became the only legal tender with effect from Monday, nearly a decade after it was decimated by hyperinflation and demonitised. However, the local unit has been introduced without vital benchmarks being met. (Independent)

20. Controversial businessman Jayesh Shah stands to lose out more than US$410 000 after the Supreme Court of Zimbabwe ordered that share certificates lodged as collateral for a loan he advanced to Allied Bank be returned to the troubled financial institution. This comes after the Supreme Court ruled in favour of Allied Bank in a dispute with a company owned by Shah involving a $410 000. (Independent)

21. The mining sector can only pay electricity tariffs in forex to Zesa Holdings if the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe increases their foreign currency retention threshold, a top mining official has said. The power utility has been crippled by various challenges such as failure to settle its debts for power imported from Eskom in South Africa and Hidroeléctrica de Cahora Bassa in Mozambique. They owe the two power utilities a total US$83 million for electricity imports. This has resulted in Eskom cutting power supplies to Zimbabwe from 450 megawatts to just 50 megawatts which

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has contributed to the intensified power outages countrywide. Zesa has proposed that the mining sector pay its tariffs in forex to assist them to pay its foreign obligations. (Independent)

22. Zimbabwe banks have dumped Paynet, a subsidiary of Mauritian financial services provider Cambria, as they are developing their own new system expected to be in place mid-July. This comes amid indications that the banks will not be settling the Paynet debt in foreign currency as it demanded. Paynet switched off Zimbabwean banks a fortnight ago over a debt of US$470 000 debt. The development of the of the system to be known as Bank File Interchange System (BFIS) will be collaboratively funded by all banks and will have the Bankers Association of Zimbabwe as its custodian while riding on the ZimSwitch platform. (Independent)

Regional News

1. South Africa’s rand retreated early yesterday, pausing after a two day advance as investors took profits and looked ahead to the G20 summit where the United States and China are set to agree a truce in their tariff war. At 0650 GMT the rand was 0.1% weaker at 14.2300 per dollar, easing slightly from its overnight close of 14.2250. In the previous session the rand had pushed to a new 5-week high as the 14.20 resistance level attracted some bids despite waning risk demand after the United States central bank played down expectations of aggressive interest-rate cuts. A Chinese newspaper, citing sources, said that the United States and China have agreed to a tentative truce in their trade dispute ahead of a meeting between leaders of the two nations on Saturday on the sidelines of the G20 summit. Bonds were flat, with benchmark 2026 government issue steady at 8.16%. (Reuters)

2. South Africa’s foreign direct investment swung to inflows in the first quarter from outflows in the final quarter of last year as domestic private firms received equity and debt funding from foreign parent companies, the central bank said yesterday. Foreign direct investment inflows

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totalled 11.7 billion rand ($825.85 million) in the first three months of 2019 from outflows of 8.2 billion rand in the previous quarter, the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) said in its Quarterly Bulletin. The country registered portfolio investment inflows of 29.2 billion rand from January to March from outflows of 33.9 billion rand in the prior quarter as foreigners acquisition of domestic debt securities exceeded net sales of local equities, the SARB said. (Reuters)

3. Morocco will open new terminals at Tanger Med port yesterday, allowing it to surpass the Mediterranean’s largest ports Algeciras and Valencia in terms of container capacity, and drive more investment and manufacturing to the country. Tanger Med, the biggest port in Africa with an annual volume of 3.5 million 20-foot equivalent units (TEU) in 2018, will add six million in capacity after its extension worth 1.3 billion euros, port director Rachid Houari said in an interview. Morocco hopes the port, which offers a platform for exports by local production plants of French car makers such as Renault SA and Peugeot SA, will reach volumes of 4.5 million TEU by this year’s end like Algeciras in southern Spain. (Reuters)

4. Global ride-hailing firm Uber Technologies Inc is in talks with regulators over plans to expand into two West African countries and provide a boat service in Nigerian megacity Lagos, a company executive said yesterday. In much of sub-Saharan Africa there are low levels of personal car ownership, rapidly expanding populations and a lack of efficient mass transport systems in fast-growing cities. Uber, which said it has 36,000 active drivers in sub-Saharan Africa, operates in a number of countries in East and South Africa but is largely absent from West Africa, aside from Nigeria and Ghana. (Reuters)

5. Shares in MTN Nigeria dropped yesterday to their lowest level since the telecom company listed five weeks ago, after a court case about its $2 billion tax dispute with the government was adjourned until October. Analysts said the court adjournment created uncertainty for investors

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as the tax dispute would continue to linger. (Reuters)

6. Daniel Mminele will retire as deputy governor of the South African Reserve Bank at the end of the month after 10 years in the job, the central bank said yesterday, making him the third member of its policy committee to quit the regulator recently. Mminele’s retirement follows the departure of fellow deputy governor Francois Groepe in January and advisor to the governor Brian Kahn late last year. Governor Lesetja Kganyago’s position is also up for renewal, with his five term expiring in November. He has previously said it is up to President Ramaphosa whether or not he will serve another five-year term. (Reuters)

7. Nigerian stocks dropped to its lowest in five weeks yesterday after heavyweight Dangote Cement declined. Stocks have been on a losing streak since the end of May and has fallen for fourth straight days. However, losses on Dangote Cement, its most capitalised listed companies on the exchange, worsened the decline. MTN Nigeria, the exchange’s second biggest capitalised company was on a back foot but later recovered. (Reuters)

8. Government says it is capable of supplying 1.3 million metric tonnes of maize to the Democratic republic of Congo DRC to meet maize deficit in that country. Acting Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry Moses Mawere says government has begun facilitating for trade between the two countries. Mr. Mawere says the two countries are set to sign a Memorandum of understanding MOU which will facilitate for trade of agriculture products like maize and mealie meal. He says the draft document of the MOU will be ready and shared with the DRC counterparts by the tenth July this year. (LusakaTimes)

9. Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday outlined his vision of what intra-African trade

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should be. Mr Buhari spoke while receiving a report of a committee he set up to review the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The president has been criticised by many for his refusal to sign the AfCFTA when most other African countries have signed. Mr Buhari has, however, said the agreement needs to be reviewed to ensure it benefits Nigeria before he would sign. Speaking yesterday, the president said the AfCFTA as it is "will have both positive and negative effects on us as a nation and on our region." (AllAfrica)

10. The Minister of Finance and Economic Development Mr Kenneth Matambo says there are no plans to upgrade Makopong, Middlepits and Bokspits border posts because South Africa has designated only four border posts on their side as commercial border posts. The four, which were designated as such for purposes of processing exports and VAT refunds for goods leaving South Africa, were Ramatlabama, Pioneer, Tlokweng and Martins' Drift, he said. (AllAfrica)

11. Authorities along the Kenya-Uganda border are roping in business groups run by women in a campaign meant to make official border points attractive to traders and dissuade them from using illegal crossings. This, they hope, will tame smuggling of banned or fake goods and raise avenues to collect more tax from traders using the revamped Busia One-Stop Border Post, the Malaba crossing and other border points under renovation. (AllAfrica)

12. Access Bank Ghana has unveiled its new logo as part of its efforts to strategise to become Africa's financial gateway to the world by 2020. The new logo is a combination of diamond and still has the three chevrons that depict the old Access Bank with unique brand colours. The new brand identity follows the successful merger of Access Bank PLC (Public Limited Company) and Diamond Bank of Nigeria. Speaking at the programme, the Managing Director of Access Bank Ghana, Mr Olumide Olatunji said the new Access Bank was currently the largest retail bank in

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Africa, with over 29 million customers in 12 countries across three continents. (AllAfrica)

13. Finance State Minister in charge of Planning David Bahati has said government will never ask for debt relief again. In April 1998, the World Bank and International Monetary Fund joined a list of multilateral lenders writing off substantial sums of money that Uganda had been holding in debt. Specifically, the World Bank and the IMF wrote off Shs2.4 trillion ($650 million), relieving Uganda the burden of repaying various loans. Speaking in Kampala during a budget breakfast meeting early this week, Mr Bahati said the NRM government is not thinking of asking for debt relief "because everything is under control". (AllAfrica)

International News

1. The dollar trod water early today as investors awaited a crucial meeting between the leaders of the United States and China at a Group of 20 summit over the weekend for any signs of progress to end their heated trade war. The mood improved the previous day after the South China Morning Post said Washington and Beijing were laying out an agreement that would help avert the next round of tariffs on an additional $300 billion of Chinese imports. (Reuters)

2. U.S. President Donald Trump made clear today that trade was his top priority at a summit of leaders of Group of 20 nations, as China’s Xi Jinping warned against rising protectionism and India, Japan and Russia defended multilateral trade rules. Trump, who is holding a series of meetings on the sidelines with world leaders, including Japan’s Shinzo Abe and India’s Narendra Modi, said he saw U.S. trade prospects improving, days after criticising the U.S.-Japan security treaty and demanding that New Delhi withdraw retaliatory tariffs. (Reuters)

3. Russian President Vladimir Putin said today that his face-to-face meeting with U.S. President

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Donald Trump in Osaka would be a good opportunity to continue dialogue between the leaders following their summit in Helsinki last year. “We have things to discuss,” Putin said in brief comments to reporters ahead of the meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit. (Reuters)

4. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) risks being pulled deeper into Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s domestic projects, curbing its international ambitions and tying its fortunes closer to its home market, four sources familiar with its strategy said. Unusually for a sovereign wealth fund, which typically is solely focused on generating wealth for future generations, PIF has a two-pronged mandate - it is also expected to develop domestic projects that will reduce Saudi Arabia’s reliance on oil. That means PIF acting as a cornerstone investor on some major hometown ventures with foreign investors expected to join in. (Reuters)

5. The development of the global economy is largely driven by one-sided decisions and disputes felt by the entire system, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said today. “We should still focus on the World Trade Organization (WTO) reform to achieve balanced development of the global economy and so this growth is open to everyone,” Modi told a meeting of leaders of the grouping of BRICS nations on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Japan’s western city of Osaka. (Reuters)

6. The US Federal Reserve said Thursday that its annual tests of the financial strength of the 18 largest banks in the United States revealed that each had enough capital to justify paying some of it out to shareholders. The clean bill of health is good news for big banks and their shareholders, but it could fuel concerns that federal regulators are embracing a laissez-faire approach to financial oversight. There was one caveat to the Fed's across-the-board thumbs- up: The central bank said it found weaknesses in how Credit Suisse was measuring potential losses, and the Fed therefore capped the amount of money the Swiss bank could return to its

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investors until it corrected the problem. (BusinessTimes)

7. Asia's army of equity capital bankers are betting on a stream of listed companies seeking fresh funds, including Alibaba's plans for an up to US$20 billion Hong Kong share sale, as trade tensions continue to weigh on the big business of taking firms public. Proceeds from iniital public offerings (IPOs) in Asia-Pacific halved in the six months ended June to US$22.5 billion, data from Refinitiv shows. Overall equity capital raising volumes fell by 26%, even as companies including newly-listed technology stocks sought fresh funds via follow-on offerings and convertible bonds. Bankers said IPO volumes were weakened by volatile markets amid the ongoing US-China trade tensions. (BusinessTimes)

8. Some of the world's richest people may take their money away from private bankers and wealth managers unless they offer more impact investments and philanthropy deals, according to family offices and foundations. RS Group chair Annie Chen, whose Hong Kong-based family office is dedicated to impact investments, said at the Asian Venture Philanthropy Network conference in Singapore on Wednesday that despite many banks promising to offer more deals that do good, front-line bankers and relationship managers often failed to do so. Her comments come as private bankers prepare for the transition of wealth away from older family members and toward next-generation investors who have expressed a desire to change the world for the better as well as make money. (BusinessTimes)

9. Bitcoin's rise was meteoric this week and its decline has been just as swift. It's easy come, easy go in the crypto world, where a frenzy over Bitcoin pushed its price to nearly US$14,000 on Wednesday, its highest level since January 2018. The largest digital asset then reversed course in a matter of minutes after a prominent cryptocurrency exchange reported an outage. The retreat accelerated yesterday and put the coin's price back to nearly the same level as just five

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days ago. The jump in prices brought back memories of the crypto bubble that burst at the end of 2017, when Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies beset by regulatory setbacks and fraud- related issues fell from grace. (BusinessTimes)

10. India's market regulator reinforced disclosure rules for when the shares in a company are pledged as collateral and tightened rules for mutual funds to try to protect minority shareholders and retail investors. Promoters of a company often its main investors will have to disclose reasons for having pledged shares when combined pledges exceed 20% of the total share capital in a company or 50% of their total shareholding in the firm, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) said in a statement yesterday. (BusinessTimes)

11. Vietnam's economy grew at a faster pace in the second quarter of this year than economists predicted, underpinned by foreign investment and export growth. Meanwhile, its June trade surplus was likely US$400 million, and its annual consumer prices increased 2.16% this month. Gross domestic product rose 6.71% from a year earlier, down from a revised 6.82% in the first quarter, according to data from the General Statistics Office (GSO) in Hanoi today. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of five economists was for growth of 6.61%. (BusinessTimes)

12. Japan yesterday cautioned the two candidates vying to replace Prime Minister Theresa May that a no-deal Brexit would be so disruptive for many companies that Japanese capital's 35-year honeymoon with Britain could end. In an appeal to both Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt, Foreign Minister Taro Kono said that Tokyo did not want a no-deal Brexit, that some companies were already moving out and that more investment could go. (BusinessTimes)

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13. SRI Lanka's tourism industry is recovering faster than expected after the Easter Sunday suicide bombings shook the island-nation, giving a much-needed boost to the economy, Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera told AFP. The country was hit by mass cancellations after Islamic State-backed terrorists attacked three churches and three hotels on April 21, leaving 258 dead, including dozens of foreigners. Yet, even in the bombings' aftermath, domestic tourists filled hotels, and visitors from key European markets are already starting to return, Mr Samaraweera said in the interview on Wednesday. (BusinessTimes)

14. World Trade Organisation judges sided with India yesterday in a dispute against the United States over subsidies provided to American renewable energy companies. In a complaint filed at the WTO's Dispute Settlement Body in 2016, India argued that the states of California, Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana and Washington offered unfair benefits to American producers. DSB arbitrators agreed with India that the subsidies, which include tax breaks and other incentives, unfairly discriminate against foreign companies. (BusinessTimes)

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