Bizness Lounge: July 2015

Monday 13 July 2015

Help your children avoid the debt trap- teach them to save!

Nobody wants to hear their children say, “When I grow up, I want to be in debt, just like you”. For some parents, speaking about money to their children is left for when they are much older, if at all. The result? When they grow up, they won’t be equipped to manage their own finances and avoid the inevitable “debt trap”. There is good news! It’s not too late to educate your children no matter how old they are. DebtBusters, South Africa’s leading debt management company has come up with a few fun ways to educate your children.
1. Have a conversation with your children
If you reflect on the financial discussions you have with your children, you may find they consist of repetitive quotes and saying that were passed down from your own parents; “Switch off the lights, money doesn’t grow on trees!” or “How could you lose your shoes? Do you know how much they cost me?” Perhaps you should consider having a real conversation with them. In fact, stop telling them and start showing them! Begin by opening up

A financial plan is your map to achieving your financial goals. These could include education for your children, building a house, starting a business or, securing an asset. The risk of not having a financial plan is that you will most likely never achieve your financial goals.
Many people think that if you earn a good salary, you don’t need a financial plan. This could not be further from the truth. Those that are dependent on a steady income, must ensure they are building a solid financial future for themselves.
Without a financial plan, you may find yourself in a tricky spot should any unforeseen events occur and you find you are not sufficiently covered for the financial burden they may bring with them. Neglecting to save and plan for future risks is

Kenya's shilling weakened to a new 3-1/2-year low against the dollar on Monday, hurt by demand for the U.S. currency from energy and manufacturing sectors.
At 0635 GMT, commercial banks quoted the shilling at 102.50/70 to the dollar, compared with Friday's close of 101.85/95. Down about 14 percent against the dollar this year, the shilling is trading at a level last seen in October 2011.
A trader at one Nairobi-based commercial bank said several orders which came through late on Friday were processed on Monday morning, putting pressure on the currency.

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"We had demand from the energy sector and also saw some manufacturing companies look for orders to buy dollars," said the trader.
Traders say the shilling was expected to remain under pressure in coming days, hurt by a wide current account deficit and scarce tourism receipts due to dwindling visitor numbers following a spate of attacks by Somali Islamists.
The possibility that the central bank will once again intervene to prop up the local currency by selling dollars was offering support to the shilling, added the Nairobi-based trader.
"We expect the central bank to do something," he said.

MPLX to buy MarkWest for $15.63 billion, creating fourth-largest MLP

Marathon Petroleum Corp's (MPC.N) master limited partnership (MLP), MPLX LP (MPLX.N), will buy natural gas processor MarkWest Energy Partners LP (MWE.N) for about $15.63 billion, a deal that will create the fourth-largest MLP by market value.The acquisition, which will create an MLP with a market value of $21 billion, will add natural gas processing facilities to MPLX's crude-heavy portfolio.
The deal comes less than a month after Energy Transfer Equity's (ETE.N) unsolicited $48 billion offer for Williams Cos Inc (WMB.N).
Tax-advantaged MLPs have found favor with investors because they pay out most of their cash flow as dividends. To grow their dividends, MLPs use acquisitions to expand their asset base.
MPLX expects the combined company's dividend to

Samsung launches charm offensive as proxy vote looms in $8 billion merger battle

SEOUL | By Joyce Lee and Se Young Lee

With four days to go in a landmark proxy battle, a Samsung firm is going all out to coax a legion of undeclared investors into backing an $8 billion merger with a sister company that is key to the future of the country's biggest family-run conglomerate. Holders of nearly one-third of Samsung C&T Corp (000830.KS) shares are believed to support the plan, while the votes of more than half are not publicly known ahead of a ballot at a July 17 shareholders meeting. The deal needs the backing of two-thirds of votes cast at the meeting to pass.
The construction firm on Monday launched a media blitz, with front-page ads in domestic papers seeking support after weeks of courtship of retail and institutional investors. An owner of 3,000 shares told Reuters he was visited three times

Republican Rubio raises $12 million for 2016 White House bid

WASHINGTON

U.S. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida raised $12 million in the three months through the end of June for his Republican bid for the presidency in 2016, his campaign said on Monday.Outside groups that back Rubio said last week they raised about $32 million to support his White House bid. Rubio launched his campaign in April and has positioned himself as a standard bearer for a new generation of Republican leadership.
Early fundraising is important for Republicans seeking the distance themselves from the pack, which includes 15 announced candidates so far. Presidential hopefuls want to show they can bring in big checks and attract a broad base of grassroots supporters.
Rubio's total fundraising was well below the

In speech, Clinton to put wages at heart of economic policy

WASHINGTON | By Alistair Bell

Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton will put the fight for higher wages for "everyday Americans" at the heart of her economic agenda on Monday, when she makes the first major policy speech in her White House bid.Clinton will argue that ensuring middle-class wages rise steadily along with executive salaries and company profits is the defining economic challenge of our time, her campaign said.
With one eye on the growing support for socialist Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, who is also seeking the Democratic nomination, Clinton will lay out her economic vision in the address at The New School university in Manhattan's Greenwich Village at 10 a.m. EDT.
She will unveil specifics in a series of speeches in

Taiwan courts tech start-ups to drive economic growth

TAIPEI | By J.R. Wu

A mechanic examines a Gogoro Smartscooter which is connected to a tablet, in its shop in Taipei, Taiwan, July 6, 2015.

Reuters/Pichi Chuang

Companies such as electric motor scooter firm Gogoro could hold the key to Taiwan's economic growth.In just three years, the start-up, which counts Japan's Panasonic Corp as a strategic partner and Cher Wang, the founder of local smartphone maker HTC Corp as a key investor, raised $150 million to develop the smartphone-synched bike, and a charging network for it. The Smartscooters went on sale last month, starting at around $4,100.
Gogoro's success in creating a home-grown, innovative product is precisely what Taiwan's government wants to foster as it seeks to reduce the export-driven economy's reliance on the island's world-class tech manufacturing sector.

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These tech firms, which include HTC, the world's biggest contract chip maker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd and iPhone maker Hon Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd, also give Taiwan an advantage over the many other countries seeking to nurture tech start-ups.
"We hope our policies can help a

Wall St. to open higher on Greece rescue deal

By Tanya Agrawal

Wall Street was set to open higher on Monday after euro zone leaders reached an agreement with Greece to move forward with a third bailout loan for the country to avert bankruptcy.Greece won conditional agreement to receive a possible $95 billion over three years, along with an assurance that euro zone finance ministers would start discussing ways to bridge a funding gap until a bailout – subject to parliamentary approvals – is finally ready.
That will only happen if Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras can meet a tight timetable for enacting unpopular reforms of value added tax, pensions and quasi-automatic budget cuts.

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"For the markets, it's clearly a positive that there is an agreement among the European member states and that there is an atmosphere of co-operation," said Philippe Gijsels, head of research at BNP Paribas Fortis Global Markets in Brussels.
"Still, there is a bit of execution risk which may haunt us in terms of volatility."
World markets rose, while the dollar index .DXY gained 0.51 percent to $96.50 against a basket of major currencies following news of the deal.
S&P 500 e-minis ESc1 were up 13.5 points, or 0.65 percent, with

Alibaba's Ma-backed Hundsun defends role in stock market rout

BEIJING

Hundsun Technologies Inc (600570.SS), the financial information technology company controlled by Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (BABA.N) founder Jack Ma, on Monday rejected local media criticism that blamed its platform for China's stock market rout."It's not objective or rational to say that HOMS was the major force of the stock market turmoil," Hundsun in a filing to the Shanghai Stock Exchange today.
The HOMS cloud-based system was launched in May 2012 and was originally designed for small and mid-sized asset management firms. Since China's stock rally started, however, it has been widely used by "gray market lenders" - off-market financing firms that allow speculators to borrow up to 10 times their starting capital for up to 17 percent annualized interest.

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During the past four weeks when China's stock market tanked around 30 percent, investors with such excessive leverage were forced to sell shares to

Mexico kingpin 'Chapo' Guzman stages brazen jailbreak in blow to president

ALMOLOYA DE JUAREZ, Mexico | By Alexandra Alper

Mexico's most notorious drug lord, Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, broke out of a high-security prison on Saturday night for the second time, escaping in a tunnel built right under his cell, and heaping embarrassment on President Enrique Pena Nieto. The kingpin snuck out of the prison through a subterranean tunnel more than 1.5 km (1 mile) long that ended at an abandoned property near the local town, National Security Commissioner Monte Alejandro Rubido told a news conference on Sunday.
Guzman, who had bribed his way out of prison during an escape in 2001, was seen on video entering his shower area at 8:52 p.m. on Saturday (0152 GMT Sunday), then disappeared, the National Security Commission (CNS) said.

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Wanted by U.S. prosecutors and once featured in the Forbes list of billionaires, Guzman was gone by the time guards entered his cell in Altiplano prison in central Mexico, the CNS said.
"This is going to be a massive black eye

Europe gives tired cheer to Greek rescue deal

LONDON | By Marc Jones

World markets gave a weary cheer on Monday as euro zone leaders emerged from-all night talks in Brussels with a deal to keep Greece afloat and part of the euro currency union.European Council President Donald Tusk announced just as trading started that after months of tortuous negotiations, marathon overnight discussions had produced the third bailout deal in five years for Greece.
"The agreement was laborious, but it has been concluded. There is no Grexit," European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker told a news conference after 17 hours of bargaining.
The head of the International Monetary Fund, Christine Lagarde, called it "a good step to rebuild confidence" in Greece, helping investors to shake off the grip of relentless uncertainty.
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index .FTEU3 jumped 1.75 percent to hit a 2-week high while Italian IT10YT=TWEB, Spanish ES10YT=TWEB and Portuguese PT10YT=TWEB bonds made gains versus German Bunds in debt markets.
The euro EUR=EURJPY= rose initially against the world's other major currencies too but dropped back shortly afterwards as traders locked in some of its gains of recent days.
Capital controls imposed by Athens have

Rwanda to host Africa hotel talks in 2016

KIGALI, Rwanda - The government through the Rwanda Development Board, will host the Africa Hotel Investment Forum (AHIF) next year in Kigali.
Ambassador Yamina Karitanyi, the Chief Tourism Officer at RDB said: “We see AHIF as an excellent platform to meet many of the most important decision makers and investors, who have the power collectively to influence investment in the hospitality industry in Africa.
“We are determined to build relationships and showcase Rwanda as the right place to do business and therefore we believe that hosting the event will create an opportunity for local hotel developers to forge partnerships with investors.”
AHIF brings together the leading international hotel investors in Africa with local operators, ministers, government officials and industry experts, to discuss all aspects of hotel investment and operation in Africa.
In Africa as a whole, Travel and Tourism is

West African travel business pushes ahead at Accra Weizo

July 12, 2015 | Filed under: Art and Travel | Author: OBINNA EMELIKE

Looking at the hall that morning at La Palm Royal Beach Resort, especially with the good number of travel and tourism professionals, companies, government representatives, and personalities, it baffles that the preparation for the successful one-day travel event only started this April.

From Ghana, the host country, Nigeria, the organizer, Benin Republic, Togo, Sierra Leone, The Gambia, among others, the well-attended Accra Weizo, lived up to its core objective of integrating the West African region for better economic gains.

The airlines, IATA, hotel chains/owners, tour operators, travel agents, destination managers, travel media among other major players in travel and tourism in West Africa were on hand to discuss way forward for the industry in the region.

But before major papers were presented by industry experts on topical issues, Ikechi Uko, CEO, Akwaaba Travel Market, the organiser of

Africa is considered the new market for investors around the world and the reason is not far fetched. The continent is relatively under-developed and investors know it is full of resources both human, natural and man made.
Think of gold, oil, limestone, glass stone, diamonds, natural vegetation, coal, tin and a rather suitable weather and it is easy to see why it is easy to make it in Africa.
In 2014, numerous entrepreneurs used this resources to their advantages and got huge financial and social standing rewards, but 2015 looks to become bigger. Financial June teeth compiled the 10 businesses in Africa that have rewarded Africans in 2014 and are still lucrative for investments in 2015
– Media and Entertainment: For ages the media and entertainment industry has been bringing in money from all angles. In 2014, the movie industry in particular was boosted by new lucrative collaborations with the western movie industry. Think half of a yellow sun which brought OC Ukeje and Genevieve Nnaji to a global audience.
30 days in Atlanta also saw collaborations with

Samsung Electronics to bring forward key smartphone launch: source

SEOUL | By Se Young Lee

Samsung Electronics Co is bringing forward the launch of a key premium smartphone model, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters on Friday, as the South Korean tech giant seeks to revive sales after a sluggish second quarter. The world's top smartphone maker will launch a new version of its Galaxy Note phablet in mid-August, the person said, declining to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter. Previous versions, such as the Note 3 and 4, typically launched in September.
A Samsung spokeswoman declined to comment.
The mid-August launch will likely put the new Note smartphone model on the market ahead of arch-rival Apple Inc's next iPhones. The U.S. company is preparing for its largest initial production run for new phones so far by the end of the year, the Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week.
Samsung is seeking to rebound from a

Millions more Americans hit by government personnel data hack

WASHINGTON | By Patricia Zengerle and Megan Cassella

Data breaches at the U.S. government's personnel management agency by hackers, with suspicions centering on China, involves millions more people than previously estimated, U.S. officials said on Thursday.The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) said data stolen from its computer networks included Social Security numbers and other sensitive information on 21.5 million people who have undergone background checks for security clearances.
That is in addition to data on about 4.2 million current and former federal workers that was stolen in what the OPM called a "separate but related" hacking incident. Because many people were affected by both hacks, a total of 22.1 million people were affected, or almost 7 percent of the U.S. population.

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The breach had already been considered one of the most

Oil steady as demand worries offset China, Greece optimism

LONDON | By Simon Falush

Oil prices steadied on Friday as worries about oversupply and slowing demand offset support from a rebound in Chinese stock prices and hopes of a breakthrough in the Greek debt crisis.Brent crude oil LCOc1 was up 7 cents at $58.68 a barrel by 1254 GMT (8:54 a.m. EDT). So far this month, the international benchmark has lost more than 7 percent.
Front-month U.S. crude futures CLc1 were trading 9 cents higher at $52.87 per barrel.
Oil's flat performance contrasted with a rally in other global financial markets, which drew support from hopes a deal would be reached soon to keep Greece in the euro and a rebound in Chinese equities, which had fallen sharply.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) said on

Fragmented markets shrug off global seizures

LONDON | By Lionel Laurent

A trading shutdown across Chinese markets, a multi-hour outage at the NYSE and the financial quarantine of Greece sound like the plot of a summer disaster movie. Yet their collision this week left only a flesh wound.For a post-crisis market structure that is frequently lambasted by investors as fragmented and vulnerable to a global liquidity shock, this is no mean feat. Global equities are down just 1 percent this week, with little sign of worldwide systemic spillover from U.S. technical glitches or wild swings in China.
And more broadly, despite a pick-up in volatility on bond, currency and equity markets, major benchmark indexes have kept within a fairly narrow trading range.
Is our imperfect system stronger than previously thought? After all, while these shocks were clearly painful on a local level - Greek household savings are

Markets toast Greek bid to clinch debt deal

LONDON | By Lionel Laurent

Global financial markets rallied on Friday on hopes that last-minute concessions by Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras would clinch a deal with the country's international creditors and save it from bankruptcy.Stock markets across Europe and Asia rose more than 1 percent, the euro gained and low-rated euro zone bond yields retreated, after a volatile week that saw Greece's banks remain shut following a referendum vote that rejected previous bailout terms and raised chances of a "Grexit" from the euro.
The new agreement is by no means a done deal. Greece's parliament still needs to throw its weight behind the proposals and trust with creditors needs to be rebuilt. But investors dialled down cautious trades and market volatility in Europe fell to

Markets toast Greek bid to clinch debt deal

LONDON | By Lionel Laurent

Wall St. opens higher on Greek hopes, China bounce

By Tanya Agrawal

Wall Street opened sharply higher on Friday on hopes that Greece might be able secure fresh funding and after China's premier said the country's economic growth was stabilizing.All the three major indexes were up more than 1 percent, with the Dow Jones Industrial average and the S&P 500 in positive territory for the month.
Greece made substantial concessions in its latest proposal to lenders, including new tax hikes, in return for $59 billion to help cover debts until 2018.
Euro zone finance ministers will meet on Saturday to decide on a third bailout for Athens.
U.S. markets had fallen sharply earlier in the week as concerns over a slowdown in China, a drop in commodity prices and the Greece crisis spooked investors.
"The U.S. market is a little bit overvalued and

Nigeria's central bank de-emphasises FX rate on black market

Reuters

Nigeria's central bank de-emphasises FX rate on black market. PHOTOS: venturesafrica

Nigeria's central bank does not emphasise the parallel market, which has thin dollar volumes, in the determination of naira exchange rate, its spokesman said on Thursday.
The naira was quoted at a record low of 235 to the dollar on the parallel market on Thursday, down 1.50 naira on the day, as dollar shortages persisted, one trader said.
"There is need to de-emphasize the parallel market. How can less that one percent be determinant of the rate?" central bank spokesman Ibrahim Muazu said. "Most of those going that way are those that don't want to be documented."

S.Africa's rand recovers after cautious Fed minutes

Reuters

S.Africa's rand recovers after cautious Fed minutes. PHOTOS: Money101

South Africa's rand recovered against the dollar on Thursday after minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve signalled a rate hike there would likely be left until at least September.
By 0600 GMT the rand had firmed 0.49 per cent to 12.5100 after plunging to a fresh one-month low of 12.5820 overnight, as fears of a strike in the gold sector and the ongoing selloff in China's equity market weighed.
The index measuring the greenback against a basket of major currencies slipped over 0.2 percent as minutes of the Fed's June policy meeting indicated the bank needed further signs of an economic recovery before raising interest rates.

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The Fed's cautious tone offered some reprieve to emerging market currencies dragged lower by Greece's debt crisis and commodity prices hit by China's slowing economy.
"The rand remains weak against its peers driven partly by the lower commodity price arena, partly by poor fundamentals and partly by a bit of momentum," said Warrick Butler, chief currency trader at Standard Bank.
Dollar buying remained the key market driver, Butler noted, although the rand could test the 12.48 resistance.
Government bonds remained in a thin range, with the benchmark issue due in 2026 trimming 1 basis point to 8.25 percent.
South Africa's statistics department publishes May mining data at 0930 GMT followed by manufacturing output figures at 1100 GMT.

campaigners for girls abducted by Boko Haram

Reuters

Nigeria's president meets campaigners for girls abducted by Boko Haram. PHOTOS: Spy

Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday held his first meeting with campaigners calling for the release of more than 200 schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram militants in the northeastern town of Chibok last year.
The militant Islamist group, whose six-year insurgency has seen thousands killed in Africa's most populous nation and top oil producer, caused an international outcry when it took the girls from secondary school dormitories in April 2014.
Buhari praised members of the Bring Back Our Girls group for their efforts to prevent the missing children being forgotten.
(READ MORE: Nigeria says reaches deal with Boko Haram over abducted girls)
"Nobody in Nigeria or outside could have missed your consistency and persistence," said Buhari during the meeting at his presidential villa in the capital, Abuja.
"I think you will agree that the

S.Africa's May manufacturing output down 1.4 % year/year

Reuters

S.Africa's May manufacturing output down 1.4 % year/year. PHOTOS: constructionreviewonline

South Africa's manufacturing production fell by 1.4 percent year-on-year in May after a revised 2.1 percent contraction in April, Statistics South Africa said on Thursday.
On a month-on-month basis, factory output was down 0.4 percent, and dipped by 0.3 per cent in the three months to May compared with the previous three months.

Special Report: Inside Thailand's trafficking crackdown

BANGKOK | By Amy Sawitta Lefevre and Andrew R.C. Marshall

Police Major General Thatchai Pitaneelaboot (L) listens as a Rohingya trafficking victim leads a police unit to a camp where he was detained in Satun, southern Thailand in this March 27, 2014 file photo.

Reuters/Andrew RC Marshall/Files

Sheltering in the backroom of a provincial Thai police station is a 35-year-old street vendor who triggered a human trafficking investigation that has reverberated across Southeast Asia.He is a Rohingya Muslim, a mostly stateless group from western Myanmar. He had scraped a living for the past decade selling fried bread, or roti, from a push cart in Nakhon Si Thammarat, a city in southern Thailand.
Then his nephew fell into the hands of murderous human traffickers.

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The roti seller's desperate bid to save him ultimately led to the discovery of scores of jungle graves on the Thai-Malaysia border in May and

IMF lowers global growth forecasts, cites U.S. weakness

WASHINGTON

The International Monetary Fund on Thursday trimmed its forecast for global economic growth for this year to take into account the impact of recent weakness in the United States.But the global financial institution said growth prospects for next year remain undimmed, despite Greece's debt crisis and recent volatility in Chinese financial markets.
In an update to its World Economic Outlook report, the IMF said the global economy should expand 3.3 percent this year, 0.2 percentage point below what it predicted in April. Growth should speed up to 3.8 percent next year, it said, unchanged from earlier forecasts.
The IMF pinned much of the blame for the

IMF lowers global growth forecasts, cites U.S. weakness

WASHINGTON

Trade halts add to China’s Potemkin market problem

By Quentin Webb

July 9, 2015

The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are his own.
Trading halts add to China’s Potemkin market problem. Boom, bust and bailout are already making it hard for outsiders to take Chinese stocks seriously. An extraordinary slew of trading halts, trapping investors in hundreds of stocks, makes things worse. Bosses and bourses are buying temporary respite at the cost of their own credibility.
China’s leaders are used to getting their way. Hence their kitchen-sink bid to bring a disobedient market to heel: cut interest rates, curb short-selling, boost margin lending, search for scapegoats, get brokers buying and, most recently, forbid big shareholders from selling for six months.
Those top-down wheezes, which on the morning of July 9 finally appeared to be turning the tide, are matched by an equally iffy bottom-up trick. As of July 8, Reuters reckons some 1,300 Shanghai and Shenzhen-listed firms, worth $2.4 trillion, had halted trading. It’s hard to think of any other market where this has happened on such a scale. Bosses are abusing stock market rules that should be used sparingly, ahead of a big deal for example, and exchanges are playing along.
To be sure, the halts are clustered in smaller stocks, so this hurts individual investors, the boom’s main culprits, more than blue-chip focused institutions. The direct hit to foreigners, who own just 2 percent of the market, is small.
Still, this sends a terrible signal. What is a market if you can’t set prices or trade? Firms look like they have something to hide. And valuations were pretty frothy, so the moment of reckoning is probably just delayed. That’s unless you think firms like Hainan Rubber or Cecep Wind-Power – to pick on just two big stocks that seized up on July 8 – are fairly priced. They shut up shop with $4 to $5 billion in market capitalization, and valuations of 238 and 109 times forward earnings, respectively.
The market may at last be steadying. But it seems incredible that just last month China’s non-inclusion in key international indexes looked so close-run. The message from executives and politicians alike is: everything is fine, just don’t look too closely. Such a Potemkin Village view of markets should worry investors.

PepsiCo profit, revenue beat estimates as higher pricing pays off

PepsiCo Inc (PEP.N) reported better-than-expected quarterly profit and sales and raised its full-year adjusted earnings forecast as higher prices helped drive revenue growth in its beverages business for just the second time in nearly four years.The company's shares rose 3 percent to $98.49 in premarket trading on Thursday.
PepsiCo, like other soft drink makers, has been battling falling soda sales in the United States, with customers turning to healthier drinks that use more natural ingredients.
However, revenue from the company's Americas beverages business, its largest, rose 1 percent to $5.34 billion in the second quarter, as its strategy of raising prices to offset the impact of a strong dollar paid off.
Organic volume sales in the region also rose 1 percent, the company said.
The company said on Wednesday that it

U.S. jobless claims rise to highest level since February

WASHINGTON

New applications for U.S. unemployment insurance benefits rose last week to their highest rate since February, but remained at levels consideredconsistent with a firming labor market.
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 15,000 to a seasonally adjusted 297,000 for the week that ended July 4, the U.S. Department of Labor said on Thursday.
The previous week's claims were revised to 282,000, showing that 1,000 more people filed than initially reported.
Economists polled by Reuters had expected new applications to fall to 275,000 last week.
Thursday's jobless claims report marks the

Rolls-Royce Downgrades 2015, 2016 Profit Forecasts

The Rolls-Royce logo and The Spirit of Ecstasy hood ornament are seen during the first press day ahead of the 85th International Motor Show in Geneva on March 3, 2015. Reuters

British engineering company Rolls-Royce downgraded its profit forecasts for this year and next, citing continued weakness in oil and gas markets plus lower demand for some of its aero-engine programs.
The profit downgrade, the latest in a series issued by the company, comes four days after new chief executive Warren East took the helm.
Rolls-Royce said on Monday 2015 profit would now come in between 1.325 billion pounds and 1.475 billion pounds ($2.1-2.3 billion), as much as 5 percent lower than it had previously guided, due to a further deterioration in energy markets which would affect sales of marine engines.
For 2016, Rolls-Royce said lower demand and pricing for its Trent 700 engines, reduced demand for its business jet engines and a softer regional aftermarket would hit profits by 300 million pounds.
"I am clearly disappointed by today's announcement and the impact this will have on our investors and employees," East said in a statement.
"Notwithstanding the market developments, it is our responsibility to build a business that is sustainable and resilient no matter what is thrown

Burt Shavitz attends 'Burt's Buzz' screening at Crosby Street Hotel on May 29, 2014, in New York City. Shavitz died Sunday. Getty Images/Andrew H. Walker

Burt Shavitz, co-founder and namesake for natural care product company Burt's Bees, has died, the company said on Sunday. He was 80.
Shavitz, "a wild-bearded and free-spirited Maine man" and beekeeper, co-founded the company with artist Roxanne Quimby in 1984, the company said in a statement.
The pair started off making candles from beeswax before developing a few years later the lip balm that exploded the company's popularity and remains its best selling product, it said.
"It is with broken hearts that we must convey the

Uber CEO Travis Kalanick gestures as he delivers an address to employees and drivers marking the company's five year anniversary in San Francisco, California June 3, 2015. Reuters/Robert Galbraith

Uber Technologies Inc. will invest “upwards of” $50 million in a new center in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad over the next five years, the California ridesharing company said in a statement Monday.

The company is also partnering with the local government of the state of Telangana, of which Hyderabad is the capital, to come up with a “new framework” to help govern cab-hailing app services providers, the company said in the statement. In Hyderabad, where Uber has been present for close to 18 months, the ridesharing company currently operates a customer support center.

By 2016, Uber plans to train more than 2,000 drivers to use its technology and work on its network locally, in collaboration with the Telangana Academy for

S.Africa's rand weakens as Greece fears dampen risk appetite

Reuters

S.Africa's rand weakens as Greece fears dampen risk appetite. PHOTOS: Money101

South Africa's rand weakened on Monday as the euro zone crisis deepened after Greek voters rejected terms of a rescue package, sending investors into safer havens and hitting sentiment for emerging market currencies.
At 0610 GMT, the rand was almost half a percent weaker against the greenback at 12.3475, compared with Friday's close in New York of 12.3005 per dollar.
"The rand has kicked weaker in reaction to the Greek "nai" vote, but the worst may already be past," said Rand Merchant Bank in a note to clients.
"Greece will continue to dominate the

Kenya's shilling weakens to 100 against dollar, fresh 3-1/2 year low

Reuters

Kenya's shilling weakens to 100 against dollar, fresh 3-1/2 year low. PHOTOS: AllAfrica

Kenya's shilling on Monday weakened to a fresh three and a half year low, Reuters data showed, hitting the 100 level against the dollar for the first time since Oct. 2011.
The shilling closed on Friday at 99.70/80. Traders said the shilling started weakening in early trade due to concerns of a widening current account deficit and on a stronger dollar globally after Greece vote against the bailout conditions demanded by its creditors.
At 0736 GMT, the shilling was trading at 100.05/15 against the dollar.

Two African cities among the cheapest in the world for beer

CNBC Africa

Photo source: Wikimedia

Two African cities are among the top 20 cheapest cities in the world when it comes to the price of beer. This is according to GoEuro’s 2015 Beer Price Index, which compares several beers in stores and bars across 75 cities in terms of price.
The bus, train and flight comparison site for travel across Europe, ranked Cairo, Egypt, 11^thwhile Cape Town, South Africa came in at 12^th place. A beer in Cairo will set you back $2.11 and in Cape Town $2.14, see below. For more insights CNBC Africa spoke to Ricky Sutton, UK country manager at GoEuro

Investors lower Samsung Electronics second-quarter expectations amid S6 doubts

SEOUL | By Se Young Lee

Doubts over the sales prospects of Samsung Electronics Co Ltd's new flagship smartphones are damping expectations of a rapid turnaround for the South Korean giant, even though profit likely continues to recover from last year's troughs.After peaking in mid-March as favorable reviews for the new Galaxy S6 models boosted earnings hopes, the company's stock price has languished and was down nearly 6 percent for the year as of mid-day trade on Monday. Supply shortages for the curved-screen S6 edge and economic headwinds in Europe and China have lowered expectations.
"After the first-quarter results the consensus for second-quarter earnings was somewhere in the high 7 trillion won ($6.22 billion), but now I

Google's Waze to start carpooling pilot program in Israel

JERUSALEM

Google-owned online mapping company Waze is launching a carpooling pilot program in Israel where commuters pay fellow drivers a small fee for a ride to and from work.The new application, called RideWith, will use Waze's navigation system to learn the routes drivers most frequently take to work and match them up with people looking for a ride in the same direction.
Google bought Israel-based Waze, which uses satellite signals from members' smartphones to offer real-time traffic information, for about $1 billion two years ago.
"We're conducting a small, private beta test in the greater Tel Aviv area for a carpool concept, but we have nothing further to announce at this time," Waze told Reuters of its foray into the increasingly competitive field of ride-sharing.
Drivers will be limited to just two journeys a day and

BOJ keeps rosy view of regional Japan, watching markets after Greek upset

TOKYO | By Leika Kihara

The Bank of Japan on Monday maintained its upbeat assessment on regional sectors of the economy, saying they are recovering thanks to a pick-up in output and tightening job markets.In a quarterly review of regional economies, the BOJ raised its assessment for the Hokkaido northernmost region and left intact the views for the remaining eight areas.
"All regions saw their economies recover or recover moderately" reflecting gradual improvements in domestic and external demand, the BOJ said in the report.
The optimism came despite soft exports and output reflecting feeble overseas demand, which led some analysts to believe the world's third-largest economy may have suffered a temporary soft patch in the April-June quarter.
"Japan's economy will continue to recover moderately," BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said in a speech to a quarterly meeting of the

China's economy shows 'positive changes': statistics bureau

BEIJING

China's economy is showing some positive changes as recent government measures gradually gain traction, but policymakers cannot lower their guard against headwinds crimping growth, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Monday.China's economic performance remained within a "reasonable range" and economic growth was basically stable, Sheng Laiyun, the bureau's spokesman, said in remarks published on the bureau's website.
"The improvement in main indicators is still initial and we cannot lower our guard against the downward pressure on the economy," Sheng said.
"Arduous efforts are still needed to consolidate the foundation of economic stabilization and ensure the achievement of the full-year growth target."
Activity in China's factory sector expanded slightly in

New Honda CEO says no plans to help air bag firm Takata fund global recalls

TOKYO | By Minami Funakoshi

Honda Motor Co's (7267.T) new chief executive said the Japanese automaker has no plans for now to provide financial aid to Takata Corp (7312.T), the air bag supplier at the center of a costly global safety recall that has dented Honda's public image as well as its earnings.Speaking at his first news conference since taking the helm in June, Takahiro Hachigo said on Monday Honda has now set aside enough this year to cover the cost of recalling over 2 million cars with potentially faulty air bag parts made by Takata. The automaker recently restated last year's earnings to account for additional costs.
"We have money budgeted for quality-related costs, as we did last year, and we think we can respond within this allocated amount," Hachigo told reporters in

U.S. futures fall as Greece uncertainty continues

By Tanya Agrawal

U.S. stock index futures fell on Monday after Greece rejected debt bailout terms, throwing the future of the country's euro zone membership into further doubt.* World markets fell, but less sharply than expected and analysts attributed the relatively muted reaction to expectations the European Central Bank would act to limit any damage.
* The ECB's governing council began a conference call at 1000 GMT (6 a.m. ET) Monday to decide how long to keep Greek banks afloat. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande will meet in Paris in the afternoon.

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* Greece's finance minister quit and Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said his government was ready to return immediately to negotiations with

Oil falls on Greece vote, China stock market turmoil

LONDON | By Christopher Johnson

Oil prices fell sharply on Monday after Greece rejected debt bailout terms and as China rolled out emergency measures to prevent a full-blown stock market crash, adding to worries about poor demand growth at a time of global oversupply.The result of Greece's referendum has put in doubt its membership in the euro, pulling down the single currency EUR= against the dollar.
A strong dollar tends to pressure commodities as it makes fuel more expensive for holders of other currencies.
Commodities were also sucked into market turmoil that has seen Chinese shares .CSI300 fall as much as 30 percent since June due in part to an economy that is growing at its slowest pace in a generation.
Chinese brokerages and fund managers have

Stocks, euro fall but no rout after Greek 'No'

LONDON | By Nigel Stephenson

Shares fell, the euro stumbled and yields on weaker euro zone economies' bonds rose after Greece overwhelmingly voted against conditions for a rescue package, but there was no rout and contagion was limited.Investors sought low-risk assets including Bunds, but the yield premium of Italian 10-year debt IT10YT=TWEB over Germany DE10YT=TWEB remained below the eight-month highs it hit a week ago.
The euro EUR= lost half a percent to $1.1053 and 0.6 percent against the safe-haven Japanese yen EURJPY=. It fell as low as $1.0967 in Asia before rebounding, garnering some support from the resignation of Greece's outspoken finance minister, Yanis Varoufakis.

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Analysts attributed the relatively muted market reaction to

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