Category: Business

Workers around Tunisia went on strike Thursday to demand higher pay in a standoff with a government struggling to reduce unemployment, poverty and social tensions. All flights in and out of the North African country's main airport were cancelled, and schools nationwide were closed. Ports, public transport, hospitals and other public services were also disrupted.   Marathon last-minute negotiations between the government and union umbrella group UGTT failed to avert Thursday's strike by public sector workers.   Thousands of people gathered at the national union headquarters in Tunis and marched through the capital's main thoroughfare, carrying signs reading "Get Out!" and "The People Want the Fall of the Regime." Rallies were also held in other cities.   Addressing the crowd in Tunis, the head of the UGTT, Noureddine Tabboubi, accused…

John C. Bogle, who simplified investing for the masses by launching the first index mutual fund and founded Vanguard Group, died Wednesday, the company said. He was 89. Bogle did not invent the index fund, but he expanded access to no-frills, low-cost investing in 1976 when Vanguard introduced the first index fund for individual investors, rather than institutional clients. The emergence of funds that passively tracked market indexes, like the Standard & Poor’s 500, enabled investors to avoid the higher fees charged by professional fund managers who frequently fail to beat the market. More often than not, the higher operating expenses that fund managers pass on to their shareholders cancel out any edge they may achieve through expert stock-picking. Mutual fund industry critic Bogle and Vanguard shook up the industry…

Female employees at Citigroup Inc around the world are paid just 71 percent of what men earn, the giant bank said on Wednesday, declaring its intentions to close its gender pay gap. A Citigroup shareholder group that sought data on the pay gap said the bank is the first U.S. company to disclose such figures. The U.S.-based bank employs more than 200,000 people in more than 100 countries, and more than half those employees are female, it said. Tackling the 29 percent gap means increasing the number of women in senior and higher-paying roles, promoting women to at least 40 percent of assistant vice president through managing director jobs, Citigroup said in a statement. Citigroup said it disclosed the data in response to a shareholder proposal from Arjuna Capital, an…

The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach on Wednesday said they set all-time records for moving cargo in 2018, after U.S. retailers and manufacturers pulled forward imports to avoid higher tariffs on Chinese goods. The Port of Los Angeles, North America's busiest container port, handled 9.46 million 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) last year, the most in its 111-year history and 1.2 percent more than in 2017. The neighboring Port of Long Beach processed more than 8 million TEUs for the first time last year, after container cargo totals jumped 7 percent from 2017. "This is a rush of cargo based on political trade policy," said Gene Seroka, executive director for the Port of Los Angeles, where direct trade with China accounted for just over half of the $284 billion…

A Gillette ad for men invoking the #MeToo movement is sparking intense online backlash, with accusations that it talks down to men and groups calling for a boycott. But Gillette says it doesn't mind sparking a discussion. Since it debuted Monday, the Internet-only ad has garnered nearly 19 million views on YouTube, Facebook and Twitter — a level of buzz that any brand would covet. The two-minute ad from Procter & Gamble's razor brand shows men and boys engaging in bullying and sexual harassment and encourages men to "say the right thing" and "act the right way." Taking on bullying, sexual harassment and toxic masculinity is a big task for a razor brand. Many critics took to social media saying it was insulting to men and laden with stereotypes. The…

More than 3,200 government, business, academics and civil society leaders will address issues of globalization, climate change and other matters of world importance next week at the annual World Economic Forum in the plush Swiss Alpine village of Davos. The list of participants reads like the Who’s Who of the most powerful, successful and inventive movers and shakers in the world. They will be rubbing shoulders during hundreds of formal sessions and workshops, as well as in private bilaterals on the sidelines of the meeting. They will discuss and seek solutions to some of humanity’s most vexing problems. The theme of this year’s gathering is Globalization "4.0: Shaping a Global Architecture in the Age of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.” That refers to the emerging technology breakthroughs in such fields as…

Although it is unclear if the United States and China will be able to meet a 90-day deadline and strike a deal on trade by March 2, the tussle is clearly adding to uncertainty about the future fate of the Chinese government’s strategic plan named “Made in China 2025.” The plan itself is much like other countries’ goals to move up the industrial value chain. According to Beijing’s plan, China aims to make the country a world leader in 10 key sectors such as robotics, information technology, and artificial intelligence by 2025. However, what has raised concerns is how China is going about reaching that goal. Foreign companies and governments have voiced growing concern about the plan and the Chinese policy and practice of forcing companies to hand over technology…

French President Emmanuel Macron is formally launching a "grand debate" to try to appease the yellow vest movement following weeks of anti-government protests. Macron heads Tuesday to Grand Bourgtheroulde, a small town in Normandy, where he is to meet about 600 mayors and local officials.   Despite a high security presence, a ban on traffic and restricted access to the town, dozens of yellow vests protesters gathered outside the town to express their discontent.   "We are being prevented from accessing the village," said protester Florence Clement. "I was crossing the road with my yellow vest but I was asked to remove it because it's forbidden."   Macron started his journey with a stop in the small town of Gasny to attend a local officials' meeting, where some expressed their…

China’s trade surplus with the United States rose dramatically in 2018, despite a tit-for-tat tariff war with the U.S. that has roiled global markets. The surplus stood at a record-high $323.3 billion, compared to $275.8 billion recorded the year before.  Data released Monday by China’s customs bureau shows the country’s exports to the U.S. grew more than 11 percent in 2018. Imports from the United States rose only slightly (0.7 percent).  But the data also revealed that exports slowed by 3.5 percent last month, as the administration of President Donald Trump imposed a series of stiff tariffs on billions of dollars of Chinese goods to force Beijing to buy more American goods and to resolve issues involving technology, intellectual property and cyber theft issues. The data also revealed mixed news…

The auto industry gathered in Detroit on Sunday, on the eve of the last winter edition of North America's premiere auto show, as carmakers grapple with a contracting market and uncertainty in the year ahead. Concerns over the health of the global economy and a US-China trade war loomed over the North American International Auto Show, as it prepared to open Monday with the first five days dedicated to the media and industry insiders. The show opens to the general public on January 19. While a number of major announcements were expected -- including an anticipated strategic alliance between Ford and Volkswagen -- there will be fewer automakers and new car unveilings, making it more subdued.  "This is a transition year for the Detroit show," said analyst Michelle Krebs of…

Saudi Arabia's energy minister said Sunday that major oil producers need to do better to narrow swings in prices that dip below $60 a barrel and rise above $86. "I think what we need to do is narrow the range... of volatility," Khalid al-Falih said.   "We need to do better and the more producers that work with us, the better we're able" to do so, he told the Atlantic Council's Global Energy Forum in Abu Dhabi.   Cautious not to set a price target or range, he explained there are consequences when oil prices dip too low or rise too high.   Last month, OPEC countries, including Saudi Arabia, and other major oil producers agreed to cut production by 1.2 million barrels a day to reduce oversupply and boost…

Zimbabwe will introduce a new currency in the next 12 months, the finance minister said, as a shortage of U.S. dollars has plunged the financial system into disarray and forced businesses to close. In the past two months, the southern African nation has suffered acute shortages of imported goods, including fuel whose price was increased by 150 percent Saturday. Zimbabwe abandoned its own currency in 2009 after it was wrecked by hyperinflation and adopted the greenback and other currencies, such as sterling and the South African rand. But there is not enough hard currency in the country to back up the $10 billion of electronic funds trapped in local bank accounts, prompting demands from businesses and civil servants for cash that can be deposited and used to make payments. ​Two…

Elon Musk's rocket company SpaceX will reduce its workforce by about 10 percent of the company's more than 6,000 employees, it said on Friday. The company said it will "part ways" with some of its manpower, citing "extraordinarily difficult challenges ahead." "To continue delivering for our customers and to succeed in developing interplanetary spacecraft and a global space based Internet, SpaceX must become a leaner company. Either of these developments, even when attempted separately, have bankrupted other organizations," a spokesman said in an email. In June, Elon Musk fired at least seven people in the senior management team leading a SpaceX satellite launch project, Reuters reported in November. The firings were related to disagreements over the pace at which the team was developing and testing its Starlink satellites. SpaceX's Starlink program…

The United States on Friday signaled it would not bow to the European Union's request to keep agriculture out of planned U.S.-EU trade talks, publishing negotiating objectives that seek comprehensive EU access for American farm products. The objectives, required by Congress under the "fast-track" trade negotiating authority law, seek to reduce or eliminate EU tariffs on U.S. farm products and break down non-tariff barriers, including on products developed through biotechnology, the U.S. Trade Representative's (USTR) office said. Agricultural issues were among the major sticking points in past negotiations for a major U.S.-EU trade deal, the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), before talks were shelved after Donald Trump was elected president in 2016. EU trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom told U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer in Washington on Wednesday that the…

Uganda's growing debt is sustainable, and the country is not at risk of losing state assets to China, the country's finance minister, Matia Kasaija, said this week. Uganda's auditor-general warned in a report released this month that public debt from June 2017 to 2018 had increased from $9.1 billion to $11.1 billion. The report — without naming China — warned that conditions placed on major loans were a threat to Uganda's sovereign assets.  It said that in some loans, Uganda had agreed to waive sovereignty over properties if it defaults on the debt — a possibility that Kasaija rejected. "China taking over assets? … in Uganda, I have told you, as long as some of us are still in charge, unless there is really a catastrophe, and which I don't…

Despite the U.S. stock market recovery, Macy's and American Airlines' revised revenue forecasts for 2018 have sent their stock prices spiraling. Other retail stocks fell, too, including J.C. Penney, Nordstrom and Kohl's. The reports come amid news of another iconic department store, Sears, fighting for survival. But U.S. trade and financial officials say the U.S. economy is on solid ground and will continue to grow for years to come. VOA's Zlatica Hoke reports. ...

The 800,000 federal workers who are not being paid or are working without pay during the partial government shutdown were the first to feel its impact. But as Anna Kook reports, other segments of the economy are also being hurt, especially in Washington, home to the largest number of federal workers in the country. ...

U.S. officials expect a visit from China’s top trade negotiator this month in Washington, signaling that higher-level discussions are likely to follow this week’s talks with midlevel officials in Beijing as the world’s two largest economies try to reach a deal to end a tit-for-tat tariff war. “The current intent is that the Vice Premier Liu He will most likely come and visit us later in the month and I would expect the government shutdown would have no impact,” U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told reporters Thursday in Washington. “We will continue with those meetings just as we sent a delegation to China.” The U.S. government is in the 20th day of a partial shutdown with President Donald Trump, a Republican, and congressional Democrats feuding over funding and Trump’s desire…

China’s Commerce Ministry says that the United States and Beijing made progress in discussions about structural issues such as forced technology transfers and intellectual property rights during trade talks this week. But the lack of details from both sides following the meetings highlights the uncertainty that remains, analysts say. The talks, which were originally scheduled to wrap up on Tuesday stretched to the evening and into Wednesday.   U.S. officials have said the talks are going well, a point Commerce Ministry spokesman Gao Feng echoed on Thursday at a regular briefing.   “The length of the meetings shows that both sides were serious and sincere about the talks,” he said. “Structural issues were an important part of this round of talks and there has been progress in these areas.”  …

The United States says talks in Beijing on ending a bruising trade war focused on Chinese promises to buy more American goods. But it gave no indication of progress on resolving disputes over Beijing’s technology ambitions and other thorny issues. China’s Ministry of Commerce said Thursday the two sides would “maintain close contact.” But neither side gave any indication of the next step during their 90-day cease-fire in a tariff fight that threatens to chill global economic growth. That uncertainty left Asian stock markets mixed Thursday. Share prices had risen Wednesday after President Donald Trump fueled optimism on Twitter about possible progress. The U.S. Trade Representative, which leads the American side of the talks, said negotiators focused on China’s pledge to buy a “substantial amount” of agricultural, energy, manufactured goods…

Deep in a provincial region of northwestern Turkey, it looks like a mirage — hundreds of luxury houses built in neat rows, their pointed towers somewhere between French chateau and Disney castle. Meant to provide luxurious accommodations for foreign buyers, the houses are however standing empty in what is anything but a fairy tale for their investors. The ambitious development has been hit by regional turmoil as well as the slump in the Turkish construction industry — a key sector — as the country's economy heads towards what could be a hard landing in an intensifying downturn. After a long period of solid growth, Turkey's economy contracted 1.1 percent in the third quarter, and many economists expect it will enter into recession this year. The country has been hit by…

With the March deadline approaching for Britain to depart the European Union, there are concerns that Britain's exit could undermine Western sanctions against countries like Iran, Syria and North Korea. Analysts note that Britain has been influential in persuading the EU to take action, saying there are risks Britain will seek a different path as it carves out new economic and strategic partnerships. “Some estimates hold that up to 80 percent of the EU’s sanctions that are in place have been put forward or suggested by the UK," said Erica Moret, chair of the Geneva International Sanctions Network. She says Britain's future absence from EU meetings will impact the bloc's future relations. "The UK is also a very important player of course as a leading economic and political power, a…

Concerns have arisen that European sanctions against countries like Iran, Syria and North Korea could be undermined by Britain’s upcoming departure from the European Union. Britain will be free to implement its own sanctions regime — and while both Brussels and London insist they will continue to work together, analysts say there are risks that Britain will seek a different path as it carves out new economic and strategic partnerships after Brexit. Henry Ridgwell reports from London. ...

Another clutch of U.S. Federal Reserve officials said Wednesday they would be cautious about any further increases in interest rates so that the central bank could assess growing risks to an otherwise solid U.S. economic outlook. The presidents of three of the 12 Fed regional banks, from Chicago, St. Louis and Atlanta, all pointed to a need for greater clarity on the state of the economy before extending the central bank's rate hike campaign into a fourth year. Two of the three, Charles Evans of Chicago and James Bullard of St. Louis, are voting members this year on the Federal Open Market Committee, the bank's policy-setting panel. Bullard has long been critical of the Fed's rate increases, begun in December 2015, but the caution from Evans is new, even if…

The World Bank is downgrading its outlook for the global economy this year, citing rising trade tension, weakening manufacturing activity and growing financial stress in emerging-market countries. In a report titled “Darkening Skies,'' the anti-poverty agency said Tuesday that it expects the world economy to grow 2.9 percent in 2019, down from the 3 percent it forecast back in June. It would be the second straight year of slowing growth: The global economy expanded 3 percent last year and 3.1 percent in 2017. 'Risks are rising' “Global growth is slowing, and the risks are rising,'' Ayhan Kose, the World Bank economist who oversees forecasts, said in an interview. “In 2017, the global economy was pretty much firing on all cylinders. In 2018, the engines started sputtering.'' The bank left its…

Peru Attorney General Pedro Chavarry resigned on Tuesday after a public outcry over his handling of the high-profile corruption investigation involving Brazilian builder Odebrecht. His departure from the public prosecutors office marks a fresh victory for President Martin Vizcarra and supporters of his measures to uproot entrenched corruption in one of Latin America's fastest-growing economies. Chavarry prompted widespread scorn and days of street protests after he announced on New Year's Eve that he was removing two lead prosecutors from the Odebrecht inquiry, which has targeted former presidents and presidential candidates. Vizcarra responded by sending Congress legislation to suspend Chavarry and overhaul the prosecutor's office. Resignation protects prosecutor? Chavarry denied he was trying to meddle in the investigation and said he was stepping down to protect the independence of the prosecutor's…

Labor rights campaigners warned against complacency as the European Union on Tuesday withdrew its threat to ban Thai fishing imports into the bloc, saying that the country has made progress in tackling illegal and unregulated fishing. The EU's so-called "yellow card" on Thai fishing exports has been in place since April 2015 as a warning that the country was not sufficiently addressing the issues. "Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing damages global fish stocks, but it also hurts the people living from the sea, especially those already vulnerable to poverty," Karmenu Vella, European Commissioner for environment and fisheries said. "Today's decision reverses the first step of a process that could have led to a complete import ban of marine fisheries products into the EU," he said in a statement. Thailand has…

Hospitals in Zimbabwe are turning away patients as a strike by doctors enters its sixth week. There is no end in sight to the strike, as President Emmerson Mnangagwa's government says it cannot meet the doctors’ demands. The Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals, Zimbabwe’s largest treatment center, is largely empty as a doctors’ strike that began December 1 drags on. Sixty-nine-year-old Kasirina Zibveka had a lung infection in September, according to her medical records. After numerous tests were done, it was confirmed that her right lung had gone bad and needed to be removed.   But by then, doctors were on strike. She was discharged December 13 and was told to return Monday for the ailing lung to be removed. But with the strike unresolved, that did not happen.   Her…