Company news in brief

TFG rallies on December sales jump

The Foschini Group (TFG) reported a more than 30% jump in December sales, buoyed by recent British acquisitions, lifting the South African retailer's share price by 5%.

The clothing and homeware retailer has expanded in developed markets, including the purchase of Britain's Whistles in 2016 and Hobbs last year, as a weak economy, tighter credit rules and tough competition hampered growth in its home market.

That expansion helped to lift the international division's December sales by nearly 64%. For the nine months to Dec. 31, total sales including its African and international divisions were up 17.1%, TFG said without disclosing the total value. – Nampa/Reuters

Ethiopia to revive Zambian Airlines

Ethiopian Airlines signed an agreement with the Zambian government to relaunch the southern African country's national carrier, which was shut down more than two decades ago.

Ethiopia's state-owned flag carrier, ranked by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) as the largest airline in Africa by revenue and profit, is in talks with a number of airline companies across the continent to acquire stakes and manage operations.

Ethiopian Airlines said on Tuesday said it had struck a deal with shareholders of Zambia Airways and had acquired a 45% stake in the firm. It did not disclose how much it had paid for the stake.

State-owned Zambia Airways went into liquidation in 1994. – Nampa/Reuters

Ericsson to write down billions in Q4

Swedish telecoms equipment maker Ericsson said it would write down 14.2 billion kronor (US$1.8 billion) in assets as the troubled company struggles to compete in a rapidly changing sector.

The writedowns, which will be booked in the fourth quarter of 2017 and which were expected, originate mainly from goodwill from "investments made 10 years ago or more, and has limited relevance for Ericsson's business going forward," the company said in a statement.

Ericsson is trying to divest the two business areas mainly responsible for the writedowns, digital services and media.

Once a global leader in equipment making, Ericsson is facing intense competition from the likes of Finland's Nokia and China's Huawei, coupled with sagging investment in networks. – Nampa/AFP

BP hit by new US$1.7bn oil spill charge

British energy giant BP will take an additional charge of US$1.7 billion in the fourth quarter of 2017 linked to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster in 2010.

BP also expects to be hit by an additional US$3 billion of Gulf-related costs this year, up from a previous estimate of US$2 billion. This brings BP's total cost linked to the disaster - including fines and compensation to businesses - to around US$65 billion at the end of 2017.

BP saw its fortunes and reputation ravaged by the devastating oil spill disaster eight years ago caused by an explosion at the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig that the company leased. – Nampa/AFP

Maersk, IBM to launch blockchain-based platform

The world's largest container shipping firm A.P. Moller-Maersk is teaming up with IBM to create an industry-wide trading platform it says can speed up trade and save billions of dollars.

The global shipping industry has seen little innovation since the container was invented in the 1950s, and cross-border trade still leaves an enormous trail of paperwork and bureaucracy.

Blockchain technology powers the digital currency bitcoin and enables data sharing across a network of individual computers. It will help manage and track tens of millions of shipping containers globally by digitising the supply chain process from end to end, the companies said.

A shipment of refrigerated goods from East Africa to Europe can go through nearly 30 people and organisations and involve more than 200 different communications. Documentation and bureaucracy can be as much as a fifth of the total cost of moving a container. – Nampa/Reuters