Company news in brief

SAA to reorganise in turnaround drive

South Africa's struggling state-owned airline will reorganise into three business units as part of a revamp plan that could also involve the partial sale of its catering unit, its chief executive officer said on Monday.

Vuyani Jarana said during a briefing that South African Airways (SAA), which hasn't made a profit since 2011, would organise itself into domestic, regional and international business units.

Each unit will have its own management, rather than decisions being centralised, in a bid to make the airline more agile and increase accountability.

Jarana also said the firm was exploring the partial sale of its catering unit, Air Chefs, as part of the restructuring.

SAA, which expects to make another large financial loss this year, hopes to turn a profit by 2021 via restructuring and cutting jobs and routes.

But its finances were dealt another blow last week when it was ordered to pay R1.1 billion rand to rival Comair to settle an anti-competition case. – Nampa/Reuters

Petra Diamonds appoints Duffy as CEO

Miner Petra Diamonds Ltd on Monday reported lower first-half adjusted core earnings hurt by falling diamond prices, and said it had appointed industry veteran Richard Duffy as its new chief executive officer.

Petra, which runs the iconic Cullinan mine in South Africa, said adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell 6.4% to US$75.6 million in the six months ended December 31, from US$80.8 million a year ago.

The company said Duffy, a former AngloGold Ashanti finance director and head of AngloGold's African operations, would assume the role on April 1, in place of Johan Dippenaar, who decided to step down in September last year.

Petra told Reuters last week its debts from the Cullinan mine stood at around 65% of its overall US$650 million in borrowing, which would represent about US$420 million.

The company stuck to its production forecast 3.8-4.0 million carats for fiscal 2019. – Nampa/Reuters

Tel Aviv Stock Exchange expects IPO to go ahead

The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) expects to float nearly a third of its shares in an initial public offering some time this year, its chief executive officer said on Monday.

The exchange aims to become competitive, cheaper and more efficient after around 200 de-listings over the past decade and a slump in trading volumes. It has sought to list on its own exchange since it demutualised in 2017 and became a for-profit exchange.

"We are a good asset," CEO Itai Ben Zeev told reporters. "So, it isn't an IPO I foresee will be a big challenge to finish with regards to pricing and stuff like that."

Ben Zeev said last September that the bourse hoped to sell at least 31.7% of its shares solely to retail investors by the end of 2018, but on Monday he said that staff demands had made that timeframe impossible to meet, without elaborating on what the demands were.

TASE hosts 447 listed companies with a combined market value of US$209 billion. Ben Zeev reiterated his aim to get the public more involved, noting the bourse has lost 40% of investors since 2010. – Nampa/Reuters

Bottler Coca-Cola HBC buys Bambi

Soft drink bottler Coca-Cola HBC said on Monday it would buy Serbian biscuit and confectionary maker Bambi for an enterprise value of 260 million euros (US$294 million) from private equity investor Mid Europa Partners.

The Swiss-based company, which bottles and sells Coca-Cola Co drinks in 28 countries, said Bambi had revenue of around 80 million euros in 2018, of which more than two thirds were earned in Serbia and the rest in the Western Balkans.

It said the company had "strong" profitability and a margin on earnings before interest and taxation that was nearly three times higher that of Coca-Cola HBC.

Shares of the Switzerland-based bottler fell last week after it warned of higher finance costs on its existing borrowing and weak consumer spending in several of its markets this year.

The deal to buy Bambi is expected to close in the second quarter of 2019, Coca-Cola HBC said. – Nampa/Reuters

Uber agrees to pay VAT in Egypt

Uber has agreed to pay value-added tax on its services in Egypt, Egyptian officials said on Monday, a move that may help resolve a long-simmering feud with traditional taxi drivers.

The agreement would also apply to other ride-hailing companies, the head of the Egyptian Tax Authority, Abdel Azeem Hussein, said. Egypt's value-added tax (VAT) rate is 14%.

Egypt introduced a law last May regulating ride-hailing apps Uber and Careem, after Egyptian taxi drivers filed a lawsuit arguing that the two companies were illegally using private cars as taxis and were registered as a call centre and an internet company, respectively.

An Egyptian court suspended Uber and Careem's services in March last year after the taxi drivers' suit but another court stayed the suspension ruling in April, allowing the companies to operate while the case was appealed to a higher court. A verdict is expected on Saturday.

Uber has faced regulatory and legal setbacks around the world amid opposition from traditional taxi services. It has been forced to quit several countries, including Denmark and Hungary. – Nampa/Reuters