MEF BUSINESS NEWS 27 MARCH 2024 Chinese President Xi Jinping met with a group of US chief executives to potentially improve strained relations between the two countries amid trade tensions. The meeting, held in Beijing, aimed to address concerns over China’s manufacturing investments possibly leading to oversupply in global markets. Details were limited, but attendees included executives from companies such as Chubb, Pfizer, and FedEx, suggesting a diverse representation from the US business sector. The gathering underscores the importance of dialogue between the two nations for managing bilateral relations and global economic stability. ———————— IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva emphasized at Beijing’s China Development Forum that China faces a pivotal decision between sticking with past policies or adopting pro-market reforms to spur growth. Georgieva highlighted global economic resilience to shocks but cautioned about weak growth prospects due to low productivity and high debt levels. She urged China to choose between traditional policies or reinventing itself for sustained high-quality growth, amid calls for Beijing to boost domestic demand and enact structural reforms. ———————— Japan issued a strong warning on potential currency intervention as the yen hit its weakest level against the dollar in about 34 years. Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki signaled readiness to take decisive action, stating they are closely monitoring market developments and prepared to act against excessive movements. ———————— Shares of Donald Trump’s social media venture surged during its New York market debut, boosting the former US president’s stake to $4.6 billion. Trump Media & Technology Group, which operates the Truth Social platform, saw its stock climb to $79.38 from its initial price of $49.95, eventually closing 16% higher at $57.99. The company, now listed on Nasdaq under the symbol DJT, merged with Digital World Acquisition. Trump, holding a 58% stake in the merged entity, benefited most from the price increase. That means: he became richer. Despite legal and financial challenges, including a recent ruling allowing him to delay a $464 million fraud judgment by paying $175 million, Trump’s business endeavors continue to draw attention and investment. —————————— —————————— MEF MOBILE NEWS 27 MARCH 2024 Vodafone Germany plans to save €400 million over two years by cutting 2,000 jobs and streamlining operations. The initiative is part of a broader cost-cutting strategy led by CEO Margherita Della Valle, which involves eliminating 11,000 jobs. The company is also selling its Italian unit to Swisscom, its Spanish operations to Zegona Communications, and pursuing regulatory approval for a merger of its UK business with CK Hutchison-owned 3 UK. ————————————- The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is investigating how technology and telecom firms responded to the SolarWinds cyber attack in 2020, which compromised thousands of companies and government offices. The SEC is requesting internal communications from affected companies to assess the attack’s impact and identify potential gaps in corporate security. Last year, the SEC filed a lawsuit against SolarWinds and its top information security executive, alleging they deceived investors by concealing cybersecurity vulnerabilities during the breach. ————————- VNPT’s Know Your Customer mobile identity platform, developed by the Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group, has surpassed one billion user requests, marking a significant milestone as the first of its kind in Vietnam. Over the past five years, the platform has provided electronic Know Your Customer services to more than 100 banks, financial institutions, telecom, and e-commerce entities, facilitating identification for over 40 million individuals. Processing an average of 600,000 requests daily, with peaks reaching over a million requests, the system has demonstrated its efficiency and scalability. ——————— Telecom Italia signed a new commercial agreement which provides for the former monopoly’s access, on a non-exclusive basis, to DaZN content until the 2028-2029 Series A soccer season. The terms of the agreement are not known, which according to Il Sole 24 Ore should see a commitment close to 50 million euros per year for Telecom Italia, a value that reduces the burden currently borne by the company for the previous agreement with DaZN which ends in June 2024. The agreement was originally set at 340 million euros per year, then renegotiated, but which still weighs on the group’s results, particularly in terms of cash flow. ——————— —————- —————- MEF TECH NEWS 27 MARCH 2024 Over a quarter of UK tech businesses prefer selling to overseas investors or listing shares abroad due to concerns about domestic infrastructure and skills shortages, a Barclays survey shows. Approximately 16% favor selling to foreign buyers, and 10% prefer selling shares internationally. This indicates challenges for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in persuading UK firms to remain and grow domestically, especially as notable British firms like Arm and DeepMind have sought foreign investment for global expansion. —————————- And under current government policies, up to 8 million UK workers could lose their jobs to artificial intelligence, the Institute for Public Policy Research warns. AI affects 11% of tasks, potentially rising to nearly 60% with deeper integration. Part-time, entry-level, and back-office roles are most vulnerable, highlighting challenges for the government’s reliance on AI to boost productivity. ————————— Apple has announced that its annual Worldwide Developers Conference will commence on June 10, with expectations high for the unveiling of its long-awaited artificial intelligence strategy. The event, scheduled to run until June 14, is anticipated to feature a significant focus on AI, Bloomberg reports citing sources familiar with the matter. ————————— Robinhood Markets, renowned for commission-free trading, is expanding its services with the launch of a credit card for US consumers. The Robinhood Gold Card, available exclusively to members of its Gold program, features no annual fees or foreign transaction fees. It offers 3% cash back on all purchases, setting it apart from competitors like JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s Chase Sapphire Reserve, which offers rewards for select transactions only.
MEF BUSINESS NEWS 27 MARCH 2024 Chinese President Xi Jinping met with a group of US chief executives to potentially improve strained relations between the two countries amid trade tensions. The meeting, held in Beijing, aimed to address concerns over China’s manufacturing investments possibly leading to oversupply in global markets. Details were limited, but attendees included executives from companies such as Chubb, Pfizer, and FedEx, suggesting a diverse representation from the US business sector. The gathering underscores the importance of dialogue between the two nations for managing bilateral relations and global economic stability. ———————— IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva emphasized at Beijing’s China Development Forum that China faces a pivotal decision between sticking with past policies or adopting pro-market reforms to spur growth. Georgieva highlighted global economic resilience to shocks but cautioned about weak growth prospects due to low productivity and high debt levels. She urged China to choose between traditional policies or reinventing itself for sustained high-quality growth, amid calls for Beijing to boost domestic demand and enact structural reforms. ———————— Japan issued a strong warning on potential currency intervention as the yen hit its weakest level against the dollar in about 34 years. Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki signaled readiness to take decisive action, stating they are closely monitoring market developments and prepared to act against excessive movements. ———————— Shares of Donald Trump’s social media venture surged during its New York market debut, boosting the former US president’s stake to $4.6 billion. Trump Media & Technology Group, which operates the Truth Social platform, saw its stock climb to $79.38 from its initial price of $49.95, eventually closing 16% higher at $57.99. The company, now listed on Nasdaq under the symbol DJT, merged with Digital World Acquisition. Trump, holding a 58% stake in the merged entity, benefited most from the price increase. That means: he became richer. Despite legal and financial challenges, including a recent ruling allowing him to delay a $464 million fraud judgment by paying $175 million, Trump’s business endeavors continue to draw attention and investment. —————————— —————————— MEF MOBILE NEWS 27 MARCH 2024 Vodafone Germany plans to save €400 million over two years by cutting 2,000 jobs and streamlining operations. The initiative is part of a broader cost-cutting strategy led by CEO Margherita Della Valle, which involves eliminating 11,000 jobs. The company is also selling its Italian unit to Swisscom, its Spanish operations to Zegona Communications, and pursuing regulatory approval for a merger of its UK business with CK Hutchison-owned 3 UK. ————————————- The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is investigating how technology and telecom firms responded to the SolarWinds cyber attack in 2020, which compromised thousands of companies and government offices. The SEC is requesting internal communications from affected companies to assess the attack’s impact and identify potential gaps in corporate security. Last year, the SEC filed a lawsuit against SolarWinds and its top information security executive, alleging they deceived investors by concealing cybersecurity vulnerabilities during the breach. ————————- VNPT’s Know Your Customer mobile identity platform, developed by the Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group, has surpassed one billion user requests, marking a significant milestone as the first of its kind in Vietnam. Over the past five years, the platform has provided electronic Know Your Customer services to more than 100 banks, financial institutions, telecom, and e-commerce entities, facilitating identification for over 40 million individuals. Processing an average of 600,000 requests daily, with peaks reaching over a million requests, the system has demonstrated its efficiency and scalability. ——————— Telecom Italia signed a new commercial agreement which provides for the former monopoly’s access, on a non-exclusive basis, to DaZN content until the 2028-2029 Series A soccer season. The terms of the agreement are not known, which according to Il Sole 24 Ore should see a commitment close to 50 million euros per year for Telecom Italia, a value that reduces the burden currently borne by the company for the previous agreement with DaZN which ends in June 2024. The agreement was originally set at 340 million euros per year, then renegotiated, but which still weighs on the group’s results, particularly in terms of cash flow. ——————— —————- —————- MEF TECH NEWS 27 MARCH 2024 Over a quarter of UK tech businesses prefer selling to overseas investors or listing shares abroad due to concerns about domestic infrastructure and skills shortages, a Barclays survey shows. Approximately 16% favor selling to foreign buyers, and 10% prefer selling shares internationally. This indicates challenges for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in persuading UK firms to remain and grow domestically, especially as notable British firms like Arm and DeepMind have sought foreign investment for global expansion. —————————- And under current government policies, up to 8 million UK workers could lose their jobs to artificial intelligence, the Institute for Public Policy Research warns. AI affects 11% of tasks, potentially rising to nearly 60% with deeper integration. Part-time, entry-level, and back-office roles are most vulnerable, highlighting challenges for the government’s reliance on AI to boost productivity. ————————— Apple has announced that its annual Worldwide Developers Conference will commence on June 10, with expectations high for the unveiling of its long-awaited artificial intelligence strategy. The event, scheduled to run until June 14, is anticipated to feature a significant focus on AI, Bloomberg reports citing sources familiar with the matter. ————————— Robinhood Markets, renowned for commission-free trading, is expanding its services with the launch of a credit card for US consumers. The Robinhood Gold Card, available exclusively to members of its Gold program, features no annual fees or foreign transaction fees. It offers 3% cash back on all purchases, setting it apart from competitors like JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s Chase Sapphire Reserve, which offers rewards for select transactions only.