Month: April 2019

Національний банк України знизив облікову ставку до 17,5% річних з 18%, повідомила прес-служба регулятора. Зміни набувають чинності 26 квітня. «Наразі стійка тенденція до уповільнення інфляції до цілі 5% дає змогу Національному банку розпочати цикл зниження облікової ставки. Разом з тим правління бачить ризики, реалізація яких може стати цьому на заваді», – заявили в НБУ. Головним внутрішнім ризиком Нацбанк називає «традиційне посилення невизначеності в рік президентських та парламентських виборів». Востаннє Національний банк знижував облікову ставку в травні 2017 року. На рівні 18% вона була з вересня 2018 року. Облікова ставка є одним із інструментів, за допомогою якого Нацбанк встановлює для комерційних банків орієнтир щодо вартості залучених і розміщених коштів. Фактично вона визначає ціну грошей. …

Gunmen Kill Female Polio Vaccinator in Pakistan

Police in Pakistan say unknown gunmen shot dead a female polio vaccinator and wounded another Thursday, raising the number of deaths to three in attacks against this week’s national immunization campaign. The latest shooting incident occurred in southwestern Baluchistan province where, police said, assailants on a motorbike opened fire at a polio team in a remote district on the Afghan border. They described the conditions of the injured female health worker as “critical.” “The women were coming back from the field after administering polio drops to children when they were shot at by two unknown men riding a motorbike,” said Rashid Razzaq, a senior official at the polio emergency center in the provincial capital of Quetta. He told VOA that one victim died instantly while the other received “serious” bullet injuries and is undergoing treatment in a Quetta hospital. Razzaq confirmed authorities have temporarily suspended the vaccination campaign in Chaman. Other attacks took place in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, also bordering Afghanistan, where gunmen shot dead two police offices escorting polio vaccinators. Additionally, authorities also arrested 10 men in the provincial capital Peshawar for spreading unfounded rumors through fake social media videos that a polio vaccine had led to fainting and vomiting. One of the detainees, identified as school teacher Nazar Muhammad, could be seen in the scaremongering Twitter videos instructing his students to faint and pretend to be sick from the oral polio vaccine (OPV). The videos quickly went viral, sparking widespread protests in parts of Peshawar, with angry …

Гривня впевнено тримається на міжбанку

На міжбанківському валютному ринку 25 квітня попит і пропозиція майже вирівнялися, котирування не надто відрізняються від рівнів вчорашнього закриття торгів – 26 гривень 62,5 – 65 копійок за долар. Національний банк України встановив опівдні довідкове значення курсу на рівні 26 гривень 62 копійки, це на 3 копійки більше за офіційний курс на 25 квітня. Свого пікового значення 28 гривень 39 копійок за курсом НБУ впродовж останнього року долар сягнув 30 листопада 2018 року. На 12 березня 2019 року офіційний курс становив 26 гривень 31 копійку, це найвищий курс гривні від липня 2018 року. …

Гонтарева дала свій прогноз на курс гривні після виборів

Макроекономічна ситуація в Україні залишатиметься стабільною після виборів, якщо «вакханалія судової системи не зруйнує всі наші досягнення», заявила в інтерв’ю Радіо Свобода екс-голова Національного банку України Валерія Гонтарева у відповідь на питання про вплив зміни президента України на курс гривні. «Ми перейшли на плаваючий курс, перейшли на нову політику інфляційного таргетування. Тож якщо вакханалія судової системи не зруйнує всі наші досягнення, то макроекономічна ситуація буде і надалі залишатися стабільною. Тим більше, у нас дуже інституційно сильний незалежний НБУ і дуже професійний і порядний міністр фінансів Оксана Маркарова», – сказала Гонтарева. 21 квітня відбувся другий тур виборів президента України. Згідно з даними Центральної виборчої комісії, Володимир Зеленський набрав понад 73%, чинний президент Петро Порошенко – понад 24%. За три дні після виборів гривня зміцнилася на 26 копійок стосовно долара. …

Ціна нафти сягнула максимуму за півроку

Котирування нафти зранку 25 квітня досягли максимальних значень за піврічний період, пікові значення становили 75 доларів 40 центів за барель марки Brent. Востаннє на такому рівні ціна «чорного золота» перебувала наприкінці жовтня 2018 року. До кінця 2018 року ціна впала майже до 50 доларів за барель, але відтоді суттєво зросла. Сполучені Штати оголосили цього тижня, що з 1 травня скасовують тимчасові дозволи на імпорт нафти і газового конденсату з Ірану для п’яти країн, щодо яких ці дозволи діяли з осені 2018 року. Ідеться про Китай, Індію, Японію, Південну Корею і Туреччині. Міністр енергетики Саудівської Аравії Халід аль-Фаліх, коментуючи рішення США, зазначив, що поки не бачить необхідності діяти у відповідь на посилення санкцій проти Ірану. Раніше президент США Дональд Трамп натякав на те, що саудити мають резервні потужності, які могли б компенсувати відсутність іранського експорту на світовому ринку. …

After Years of Losses, World’s Forests ‘in Emergency Room’

The world lost 12 million hectares (30 million acres) of tropical tree cover last year, the equivalent of 30 soccer pitches a minute, researchers said Thursday, warning the planet’s health was at stake. It was the fourth highest annual decline since records began in 2001, according to new data from Global Forest Watch, which uses satellite imagery and remote sensing to monitor tree cover losses from Brazil to Ghana. “The world’s forests are now in the emergency room,” said Frances Seymour, senior fellow at the U.S.-based World Resources Institute (WRI), which led the research. “It’s death by a thousand cuts — the health of the planet is at stake and Band-Aid responses are not enough.” Seymour said the data represented “heartbreaking losses in real places,” with indigenous communities most vulnerable to losing their homes and livelihoods through deforestation. Climate implications The loss of huge swathes of forest around the world also has major implications for climate change as they absorb a third of the planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions produced globally. “Forests are our greatest defense against climate change and biodiversity loss, but deforestation is getting worse,” said John Sauven, executive director of Greenpeace UK. “Bold action is needed to tackle this global crisis including restoring lost forests. But unless we stop them being destroyed in the first place, we’re just chasing our tail.” The study found much of the loss occurred in primary rainforest — mature trees that absorb more carbon and are harder to replace. The rate of destruction …

Malawi Rolls Out Africa’s First Malaria Vaccine for Children

As the World Health Organization marks World Malaria Day, April 25, Malawi has launched the pilot phase of Africa’s first malaria vaccine. The WHO chose Malawi, alongside Ghana and Kenya, because of the high numbers of malaria cases and treatment facilities. The pilot phase aims to vaccinate 360,000 children per year, 120,000 of them in Malawi. But, as Lameck Masina reports from Lilongwe, while the vaccine is expected to save thousands of lives, its effectiveness is limited. …

South Korean Economy Shrinks Unexpectedly in 1st Quarter

04/25/2019 selleco

South Korea’s economy unexpectedly shrank in the first quarter, marking its worst performance since the global financial crisis, as government spending failed to keep up the previous quarter’s strong pace and as companies slashed investment. The shock contraction reinforced financial market views that the central bank is likely to make a U-turn on policy, shifting to an easing stance and possibly cutting interest rates to counter declining business confidence and growing external risks. A worse-than-expected downturn in the memory chips sector hit first quarter capital investment, while slumping exports amid the Sino-U.S. trade dispute erased gains from private consumption, the Bank of Korea said Thursday. Gross domestic product (GDP) in the first quarter declined a seasonally adjusted 0.3 percent from the previous quarter, the worst contraction since a 3.3 percent drop in late 2008 and sliding from 1 percent growth in October-December, the Bank of Korea said Thursday. None of the economists surveyed in a Reuters poll had expected growth to contract. The median forecast was for a rise of 0.3 percent. Government spending “Government spending failed to keep up the bumper boost of the fourth quarter, especially for construction investment, while a drop in business investment was worse than expected due to a downturn in the chips sector,” a BOK official said, adding there was also a strong base effect after solid fourth-quarter growth. The grim data came a day after the Moon Jae-in government unveiled a 6.7 trillion won ($5.9 billion) supplementary budget to tackle unprecedented air pollution …

US Measles Cases Hit Highest Level Since Eradication in 2000

The United States has confirmed 695 measles cases so far this year, the highest level since the country declared it had eliminated the virus in 2000, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Wednesday. The resurgence, which public health officials blamed in part on the spread of misinformation about the safety of vaccines, has been concentrated mainly in Washington state and New York with outbreaks that began late last year. “The longer these outbreaks continue, the greater the chance measles will again get a sustained foothold in the United States,” the CDC warned in a statement. It said outbreaks can spread out of control in communities with lower-than-normal vaccination rates. Although the disease was eliminated from the country in 2000, meaning the virus was no longer continually present year round, outbreaks still happen via travelers coming from countries where measles is still common, the CDC says. As of Wednesday, the number of measles cases so far this year exceeds the 667 cases reported in all of 2014, which had been the highest annual number recorded since the elimination in 2000. The virus has been recorded in 22 states so far in 2019, the CDC said. The virus can lead to deadly complications, but no measles deaths have been reported in the latest outbreaks. Responding to the new figures, U.S. Health Secretary Alex Azar urged greater vaccination, saying in a statement that the vaccine’s “safety has been firmly established over many years.” “The United States is seeing a …

Facebook Beats Profit Estimates, Sets Aside $3B for Privacy Penalty 

Facebook on Wednesday blew away Wall Street profit estimates in the first quarter as it kept a lid on the costs of making its social networks safer, and set aside $3 billion to cover a settlement with U.S. regulators, calming investors who had worried about the outcome of a months-long federal probe. Shares of the world’s biggest online social network jumped more than 10% after hours. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has been investigating revelations that Facebook inappropriately shared information belonging to 87 million of its users with the now-defunct British political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica. The probe has focused on whether the sharing of data and other disputes violated a 2011 agreement with the FTC to safeguard user privacy. Facebook set aside $3 billion to cover anticipated costs associated with the settlement, but said the charges could reach as high as $5 billion. Civil penalty If the settlement is in that range, it would be the largest civil penalty paid to the agency, said David Vladeck, a former FTC official now at Georgetown Law School. “Everyone expected there would be a substantial civil penalty in this case,” said Vladeck. “There’s no question that Facebook is going to have to settle this matter. Investors want this behind them.” The accrual cut the company’s net income in the first quarter to $2.43 billion, or $0.85 per share. Excluding the $3 billion it set aside, Facebook would have earned $1.89 a share, up from $1.69 the year prior and easily beating analysts’ …

Microsoft Surges Toward Trillion-Dollar Value as Profits Rise

Microsoft said profits climbed in the past quarter on its cloud and business services as the U.S. technology giant saw its market value close in on the trillion-dollar mark. Profits in the quarter to March 31 rose 19 percent to $8.8 billion on revenues of $30.8 billion, an increase of 14 percent from the same period a year earlier. Microsoft shares gained some 3% in after-hours trade, pushing it closer to $1 trillion in value. It ended the session Wednesday with a market valuation of some $960 million, just behind Apple but ahead of Amazon. In the fiscal third quarter, Microsoft showed its reliance on cloud computing and other business services which now drive its earnings, in contrast to its earlier days when it focused on consumer PC software. “Leading organizations of every size in every industry trust the Microsoft cloud,” chief executive Satya Nadella said in a statement. Commercial cloud revenue rose 41% from a year ago to $9.6 billion, which now makes up nearly a third of sales, Microsoft said. Some $10.2 billion in revenue came from the “productivity and business services” unit which includes its Office software suite for both consumers and enterprises, and the LinkedIn professional social network. The “more personal computing” unit which includes its Windows software, Surface devices and gaming operations generated $10.6 billion in the quarter. …

Trump’s Fed Pick Moore Draws Fire From Democrats; Republicans Silent

Stephen Moore, the economic commentator that U.S. President Donald Trump has said he will nominate to the Federal Reserve Board, is drawing new fire from top Democrats for his comments denigrating, among other targets, women and the Midwest. But Republicans, whose 53 to 47 majority in the U.S. Senate gives them the final say on whether Moore’s pending nomination is confirmed, have not weighed in since news surfaced this week documenting Moore’s long history of sexist remarks, some of which he says were made jokingly. As a Fed governor, Moore would have a say on setting interest rates for the world’s biggest economy. Some economists and Democratic lawmakers have questioned his competence, citing his support for tying policy decisions to commodity prices and his fluctuating views on rates. This week though, it is his comments about gender and geography that are drawing criticism. “What are the implications of a society in which women earn more than men? We don’t really know, but it could be disruptive to family stability,” Moore wrote in one column in 2014. In 2000, he opined that “women tennis pros don’t really want equal pay for equal work. They want equal pay for inferior work.” The New York Times among others has documented many other instances where he expressed similar viewpoints. It’s just added evidence that Moore is unfit for the Fed job, vice chair of the joint economic committee Carolyn Maloney told Reuters. “Those include his reckless tendency to politicize the Fed as well as …

UN: No Screen Time for Babies; Only 1 Hour for Kids Under 5

The World Health Organization has issued its first-ever guidance for how much screen time children under 5 should get: not very much, and none at all for those under 1. The U.N. health agency said Wednesday that kids under 5 should not spend more than one hour watching screens every day – and that less is better. The guidelines are somewhat similar to advice from the American Academy of Pediatrics. That group recommends children younger than 18 months should avoid screens other than video chats. It says parents of young children under two should choose “high-quality programming” with educational value and that can be watched with a parent to help kids understand what they’re seeing. Some groups said WHO’s screen time guidelines failed to consider the potential benefits of digital media. WHO’s screen time advice “overly focuses on quantity of screen time and fails to consider the content and context of use,” said Andrew Przybylski, director of research at the Oxford Internet Institute at the University of Oxford. “Not all screen time is created equal.” Britain’s Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health said the data available were too weak to allow its experts to set any thresholds for the appropriate level of screen time. “Our research has shown that currently there is not strong enough evidence to support the setting of screen time limits,” said Dr. Max Davie, the college’s Officer for Health Improvement. “The restricted screen time limits suggested by WHO do not …

Boeing Reports Lower Profits Amid 737 MAX Crisis

Boeing reported lower first-quarter profits Wednesday as the global grounding of its 737 MAX plane following two crashes hit results. The US aerospace giant reported $2.1 billion in profits, down 13.2 percent from same period a year ago. Revenues dipped 2.0 percent to $22.9 billion, due to a tumble in commercial plane revenues following the suspension of 737 MAX deliveries. Boeing also withdrew its full-year profit forecast, citing uncertainty surrounding the 737 MAX. The aerospace giant has been under scrutiny since the March 10 crash of an Ethiopian Airlines jet, which came on the heels of an October Lion Air crash. Together the crashes claimed 346 lives. Boeing said it is “making steady progress” on a fix to the jet’s anti-stall system that is thought to be a factor in both accidents. The company has conducted more than 135 test flights of the fix and is working with global regulators and airlines, it said in a news release. “Across the company, we are focused on safety, returning the 737 MAX to service, and earning and re-earning the trust and confidence of customers, regulators and the flying public,” said Chief Executive Dennis Muilenburg in a press release. The company announced earlier this month it was cutting monthly production of the 737 by about 20 percent. Boeing shares were up 1.3 percent at $379.07 in pre-market trading. …

South Sudan Measles Outbreak Raises Questions About Vaccines

Despondent, Akon Mathiong points to two small mounds of dirt where she buried her grandsons, 4 and 5 years old, last month. They died after contracting measles in one of the worst-hit areas of South Sudan’s latest outbreak. “Every time I see the graves I feel like crying,” Mathiong said. The family said the boys had been vaccinated against the highly infectious disease. Similar infections are prompting questions about whether some vaccines have been compromised in a country largely devastated by conflict. As South Sudan emerges from a five-year civil war, more than 750 measles cases, including seven deaths, have been reported since January. That’s almost six times the number of cases for all of 2018, according to World Health Organization data. The increase in measles cases is part of a global one, in part because of misinformation that makes some parents balk at receiving a vaccine. WHO noted a 300% increase in reported measles cases worldwide in the first three months of this year compared with the same period last year. Many in developing countries don’t dispute the vaccine but instead are held back by lack of access. Measles, spread by coughing, sneezing, close contact or infected surfaces, has no specific treatment. Malnourished children and those with weak immune systems can develop severe complications that can lead to death — and malnourishment can reduce how well the vaccine protects them. Though an emergency vaccination campaign is underway in South Sudan’s 12 affected counties the outbreak is spreading, leading some …

В уряді очікують подальшого зниження ціни на газ для населення

04/24/2019 sellbiz

У Кабінеті міністрів України очікують подальшого зниження ціни на газ для населення. Як заявив на засіданні уряду прем’єр-міністр Володимир Гройсман, 24 квітня спливає термін, протягом якого НАК «Нафтогаз України» мав знайти рішення для зниження ціни на газ для населення – згідно з динамікою світових ринків. «У понеділок, 22 квітня, «Нафтогаз» мене почув. Вони зменшують з 1 травня ціну на тисячу кубів. Думаю, це буде не останнє зниження, адже ринки показують (відповідну динаміку)», – цитує Гройсмана прес-служба уряду. Він також нагадав, що питання ціни газу стало «другим попередженням» для менеджменту «Нафтогазу». «Перша епопея була з контрактом, друга – з цінами на газ, третьої не буде. Якщо менеджери НАК не зрозуміють, що вони найняті державою, аби ефективно управляти компанією, а не гратися з народом, наслідок буде один – зміна менеджменту «Нафтогазу», – сказав прем’єр. Тим часом, 24 квітня у команді Володимира Зеленського, який, за даними ЦВК, перемагає на виборах президента України, закликали «НАК «Нафтогаз України» і Кабінет міністрів провести відповідні консультації з МВФ та, замість запланованого підвищення, вийти на відповідне пониження ціни газу для населення із 1 травня». При цьому ще два дні тому, 22 квітня, в уряді повідомили, що узгодили з «Нафтогазом України» механізм зниження ціни на газ для населення і теплової генерації з 1 травня – до рівня 8247 гривень за тисячу кубометрів. Згідно з урядовим рішенням, ухваленим на засіданні 3 квітня, якщо кон’юнктура газового ринку демонструє зниження цін на газ для промисловості, «Нафтогаз» зобов’язаний продавати газ для населення за ціною, що визначається як середньоарифметична ціна газу, за якою державна …

На міжбанку стрімко зростає гривня

04/24/2019 sellbiz

Валютний ринок продовжує зміцненням гривні реагувати на спокійне завершення президентських виборів в Україні. Опівдні 24 квітня Національний банк України оприлюднив довідкове значення курсу на рівні 26 гривень 59 копійок за долар. Це на 10 копійок менше за офіційний курс на 24 квітня. Пропозиція долара суттєво переважає попит, відзначає сайт «Мінфін», який відстежує перебіг торгів на міжбанківському валютному ринку. «НБУ вже виходив на торги в «анонімному» форматі через Matching і купив не менш як 15 мільйонів доларів за ціною 26,59-26,595 гривні. Учасники ринку чекають на продовження купівлі валюти регулятором, і багато клієнтів впевнені в тому, що цими інтервенціями Нацбанк утримає долар від просідання нижче рівня в 26,50 гривні», – вказують експерти. Почесний президент Київської школи економіки, заступник голови Ради НБУ Тимофій Милованов заявив Радіо Свобода, що курс гривні до долара та інших світових валют від результатів виборів «зараз ще не залежить». «Це буде залежати від економічної політики, яка буде впроваджуватися. Думаю, що ринки, економіка і люди в цілому придивляться до того, які будуть перші призначення, перші політичні, економічні рішення нової команди, хто буде в цій команді», – вказав фахівець. Свого пікового значення 28 гривень 39 копійок за курсом НБУ впродовж останнього року долар сягнув 30 листопада 2018 року. На 12 березня 2019 року офіційний курс становив 26 гривень 31 копійку, це найвищий курс гривні від липня 2018 року. …

Apparel Sector a Reminder That Vietnam and China Must Get Along

Vietnam this week just celebrated the fact it has survived nearly a millennium of independence from China, which previously ruled the smaller neighbor for nearly as long. Much is made of the ancient rivalry between the two sides — but there is far less attention, especially on the international stage, on areas where they both get along fairly well. The textile and garment sector is as good an example as any of this amicable cooperation, given that China is the world’s biggest exporter in the industry, and Vietnam is the second biggest. Analysts often describe Hanoi as taking a path similar to Beijing’s, both having communist leaders who turned toward export-led market capitalism in recent decades, and in terms of selling ever more footwear, clothes and bags to the world, Vietnam is indeed following China’s actions. “China and Vietnam hold a pivotal position in the global textile market,” Chen Dapeng, president of the China National Garment Association, said at a trade conference in Ho Chi Minh City this month. “The industries of the two countries are highly complementary.” The industries compete for customers, but they are also complementary in that Chinese factories supply much of the fabric and other inputs needed in the business, while Vietnamese factory hands are increasingly supplying the labor as costs rise in China. “We believe many in Asia can cooperate,” said Le Tien Truong, CEO of the Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group. “We are not just taking Chinese investment, but also reforming Vietnamese suppliers.” …

Study: Storm Waves Capable of Moving Car-Sized Boulders Threaten Coastal Communities

The awesome power of nature remains undefeated. According to researchers in Britain, even moderate storms can move large boulders weighing as much as 10 (metric) tons. As a major storm follows one that recently hit the African country of Mozambique, researchers warn that even large natural barriers may not offer much defense. Arash Arabasadi reports. …

Analysts: China Trying to Use Belt and Road Meeting to Counter US Influence

China is getting ready to welcome representatives from 150 nations, including senior leaders of 40 countries, to discuss its international infrastructure program at the second Belt and Road Forum, beginning Thursday and running through Saturday in Beijing. Analysts say it is not merely a conference on infrastructure building, but an attempt by China to display its popularity and power as a political rallying force. This is significant in view of severe criticism by the United States, which has described the Belt and Road Initiative, or BRI, as China’s “vanity project.” “It is a political show of strength. BRI has assumed the characteristics of a global public good,” said Sourabh Gupta, senior fellow at the Institute for China-America Studies in Washington. “In a sense, conceptually, it is about China slipping itself into American clothing which the U.S. itself has discarded. It is about mainstreaming China as a leader of the global development system.” China has repeatedly denied it has a political purpose in trying to construct connectivity projects across the world. “The ‘Belt and Road Initiative’ is not a geopolitical tool but a platform for cooperation. We welcome all parties to take part in it,” Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said at a recent press conference. The forum is expected to see an emphasis on the importance of multilateralism and its criticism of protectionism in business and world affairs. Some observers see this as a veiled attempt by Beijing to build up world opinion against the United States. …

NASA Probe Detects Likely ‘Marsquake’ – an Interplanetary First