Business

AMMAN — Amman Chamber of Commerce (ACC) President Issa Murad on Sunday expressed the private sector's appreciation for the recent government decision to launch procedures aimed at stimulating the investment environment and increasing the economic growth in the Kingdom.

In a statement carried out by the Jordan News Agency, Petra, Murad said the investment decision announced by Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour on Saturday at the Jordan Investment Commission (JIC), would have a great effect in boosting the national economy's competitiveness.

Murad described these decisions as "constructive" and added that they could stimulate economic activity and help Jordan improve its ranking on the foreign investment attraction index.

The government's decision to grant the transportation sector some tax and customs exemptions represent a "qualitative leap" in motivating the sector to present better services to citizens, the ACC president indicated. 

By granting government incentives, with certain conditions, to companies owning 20 buses would encourage consolidation among public transportation companies in the near future, he elaborated.

The president also commended the government's decision to extend the exemption period for some unfinished projects, reiterating the importance of the decision in enhancing some major projects which encountered difficulties and were not able to complete the jobs   on time, Petra reported.

Expanding the incentive umbrella to include ICT sector activities within the Investment Law is also a positive step, Murad said, stressing that the ICT sector is essential in developing economies in general.

He also expressed the chamber's appreciation for the JIC's efforts in boosting Jordanians' capabilities, praising the draft bylaw of residence, labour and workers at development areas and free zones, which organises labour issues and give priority to Jordanians to work in these schemes, according to Petra.

RIYADH — Saudi Arabia on Saturday strongly criticised Standard and Poor’s (S&P)agency for downgrading the kingdom’s credit rating over the oil price slump, saying it was not backed by facts.

“The evaluation... came as a hasty reaction, unjustified and not backed by reality,” the finance ministry said in a statement cited by the SPA state news agency. “The agency depended on temporary and unsustainable factors,” it said.

S&P late Friday lowered the long-term credit rating for Saudi Arabia one notch to A+ after its deficit rose sharply because of low oil prices.

The ratings agency maintained its negative outlook on the world’s top crude exporter, saying that the decision reflected the challenges of reversing the “marked deterioration” in the Saudi fiscal balance.

S&P said it could further lower the rating within the next two years if Riyadh fails to achieve a “sizable and sustained reduction in the general government deficit”.

The finance ministry cast doubt on the decision, saying S&P lowered the country’s ratings twice within one year from AA- with a positive outlook to A+ with a negative outlook because of the oil price fall.

It also said the decision did not take into account the sound fiscal position of Saudi Arabia, which is backed by assets of more than 100 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) besides large foreign currency reserves.

Saudi Arabia recorded a $17 billion budget deficit last year for the first time since 2009. It is expected to post a deficit of around $130 billion this year, according to the International Monetary Fund.

S&P said that Saudi Arabia, a key member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, had seen its deficit climb to 16 per cent of GDP in 2015 compared with 1.5 per cent in 2014 because of the plunge in the price of oil, Riyadh’s main source of revenue.

It added that the government could cut back on key investments and cut subsidies on power, water and fuel to strengthen government finances in the coming years.

But it also referred to political risk, saying that “intra-family issues around succession could make the kingdom’s policy decisions more challenging and difficult to predict”.

In February S&P had put the Gulf state on negative outlook, warning about its dependence on oil.

The price of a barrel of oil has tumbled from $90 to less than $50 since June last year.

WASHINGTON — US President Barack Obama early Friday won congressional passage of legislation that lifted the threat of a default on government debt through the end of his presidency and a budget blueprint easing strict spending caps through September 2017.

The Senate voted 64-35 to approve the measure, which was negotiated over the past few weeks by the White House and congressional leaders, including former House speaker John Boehner, who retired from Congress.

Obama will sign the bill into law as soon as he receives it, the White House said in a statement.

Without action by Congress, the Treasury Department would have exhausted the last of its borrowing capacity on November 3, according to Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, and risked default on US obligations within days that would roil global financial markets.

The two-year budget provision provides new top-line spending levels for Congress for the fiscal year that began October 1 and the one starting October 1, 2016.

It loosens budget caps, allowing an additional $80 billion in spending on military and domestic programmes over the two years.

But lawmakers still need to allocate that money among thousands of budget-line items. They face a December 11 deadline, when existing spending authority by government agencies expires, and a spirited fight is expected.

Obama called on Congress to build on the budget "by getting to work on spending bills that invest in America's priorities without getting sidetracked by ideological provisions that have no place in America's budget process".

Conservative Republicans are likely to try to attach  controversial policy add-ons, such as prohibiting funding for women's healthcare provider Planned Parenthood to punish the group for an abortion-related controversy involving fetal tissue.

Some may also try to undo Dodd-Frank Wall Street reforms enacted after the 2008-09 financial crisis or prohibit new regulations on carbon emissions.

During Senate debate on Thursday, conservatives railed  against the budget and debt limit bill.

Republican Senator Rand Paul, who is running for the Republican nomination for president, complained in a floor speech: "The right's going to get more military money. The left's going to get more welfare money. The secret handshake goes on and the American public gets stuck with the bill."

Senator Ted Cruz, a rival Republican presidential hopeful, returned to Washington from the campaign trail to accuse Republican majorities in Congress of "handing the president a blank credit card for the remainder of his tenure".

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican who helped negotiate the bill, praised the measure for rejecting tax increases and noted that the added spending would be offset by savings elsewhere in the government.

He also said it would "enact the most significant reform to Social Security since 1983". The estimated $168 billion in long-term savings from the programme would be achieved by clamping down on medical fraud and excess claims associated with disability benefits.

Separately, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Friday urged the Federal Reserve (Fed) to be cautious on raising rates, warning that tightening too fast could force it to reverse and possibly lose credibility.

In a review of the world's top industrial economies ahead of the November 15-16 Group of 20 (G-20) summit in Antalya, Turkey, the IMF said the United States and the global economy face risks tied to the impending rate hike, which would be the first in more than nine years.

The Fed on Wednesday put off the decision, but pointed to the distinct possibility that it could happen in December.

While a rate rise would represent the Fed's confidence in US economic growth, the IMF warned that it could happen "amid large uncertainty about slack in labour markets, the neutral policy rate and the path for inflation and wages."

It said global financial stability is often in the balance, given that an increase in the Fed's benchmark rates could spark "abrupt" shifts in global investment portfolios and high market volatility.

Domestically, the IMF added, "should financial conditions tighten more than warranted by cyclical conditions, it may become a drag to the recovery, and may force the Fed to reverse direction, with a potential cost in terms of credibility".

And it could also drive the dollar higher, with more negative consequences for US exports.

The IMF had advice for other G-20 economies as it pushed more efforts to right global economic "imbalances", such as excess debt and huge trade surpluses.

It said the United States, Japan, and France, most notably, need strong medium-term plans to cut their debts.

Surplus countries like Germany and the Netherlands can afford to spend more and spur growth at home and across the sagging eurozone.

As for China, the world's second largest economy, the IMF said the country needs to work to prevent "too sharp a slowdown in growth" while advancing structural reforms.

The reforms are crucial "to unleash new sources of growth and rebalance the economy towards consumption over the medium term", it said.

It also urged Beijing to rein in credit growth and slow investment growth to reduce risks in the domestic economy.

"Finding the right mix of reducing vulnerabilities and maintaining growth will be an ongoing challenge," it added.

LONDON — There is no let-up in executives' appetite for corporate takeovers despite volatility in the stock market and mounting concerns over the global economy, particularly China.

According to a survey released this week by consulting firm EY, the recent wave of mergers and acquisitions, or M&A, is set to continue over the coming year. 

It found that 59 per cent of global companies are planning to secure at least one deal over the next 12 months, partly as a means of cushioning waning global growth as China's economy slows.

The figure for October is up from 56 per cent in April and 40 per cent at the same time last year. It represents the highest interest in acquisitions that EY's survey of corporate deal making has found in its six-year history. The low point was at the start, when only 24 per cent of companies signalled the intention to make a takeover.

"With modest increases in global gross domestic product, organic growth alone is not enough for companies to expand and reshape at the pace they need," said Pip McCrostie, EY's global head of transactions.

"The search for growth is lifting deal making to record highs, and executives are focusing on M&A to secure innovation, competitive advantage and market share for the foreseeable future," she added.

M&A activity has really gathered pace this year with deal values, according to EY, already up 35 per cent on 2014 and more mega deals, those valued above $10 billion, in 2015 than in any previous year of the survey's history.

Earlier this month, the world's top two beer makers agreed to join forces to create a company that would control nearly a third of the global market. Much of the logic behind the £69 billion ($106 billion) takeover of British-based SAB Miller by Anheuser Busch InBev is to cope with faltering beer consumption in many parts of the world.

Other big deals this year include Royal Dutch Shell's ¢£47 billion ($71 billion) yet-to-be-completed acquisition of BG Group, as well as the $62.6 billion merger between Heinz and Kraft Foods, which is now called Kraft Heinz.

EY said the boundaries between industries looks set to blur, with 48 per cent of executives planning acquisitions in a different sector as new technology impacts almost everything along the business chain. The manufacturing and retail sectors are set for the most such activity.

And companies are increasingly ready to make deals outside their home country. The firm said 70 per cent of respondents are looking to do so, with the 19-country eurozone set to see a rise in deals amid hopes that the debt crisis that has gripped the region has abated following the latest bailout of Greece.

"This is down to increased confidence in the stability of the region," said McCrostie.

Though deal making has been on the rise over the past few years as the global economy recovered from its deepest recession since World War II and companies built up their cash reserves, EY says it could have been even higher. It noted that 73 per cent of executives have walked away from deals over the past 12 months.

"Executives are taking a long-term view and evaluating deals more carefully than ever before," indicated McCrostie. "They are stepping back when necessary. This is not 'a deals for deals sake mentality'."

EY's survey was based on surveys of more than 1,600 executives in 53 countries.

Separately, a new survey in the US showed that many business economists expect modest economic growth for the rest of the year, with only a small percentage taking a more bullish outlook.

Four-fifths of the experts surveyed by the National Association of Business Economics expect fourth-quarter growth of at least 2 per cent. But only 7 per cent predicted growth will top 3 per cent, down from the 16 per cent who held that optimistic view in July.

Expectations are declining for fourth-quarter wages and employment, said Jim Diffley, senior director at consulting firm IHS Inc. and chairman of the survey.

Only 29 per cent of those surveyed expect their company to add jobs in the next three months, the lowest rate this year, according to the survey. But half of the economists said their firms had trouble filling some jobs, and one-third continued to say their companies face a shortage of skilled workers.

On pay, 44 per cent expect their companies to boost wages, the weakest outlook since a survey one year ago. In the last quarter, a third of the firms in the survey raised pay, down from more than 40 per cent in each of the previous two quarters.

The group surveyed 106 economists between September 21 and October 6.

Most of the economists said the slowdown in China's growth and the strong US dollar aren't affecting their companies. Lower oil prices have helped nearly one-third of the companies and hurt about one-fifth.

The group split on whether an interest-rate hike by the Federal Reserve would make much difference to their companies.

Slightly more than half said sales rose at their companies in the third quarter and expect sales to grow again in the fourth quarter. 

Profit margins shrank at 22 per cent of the companies and grew at 29 per cent. In the group's July survey, margins narrowed at only 14 per cent of companies while they grew at 32 per cent.

AMMAN — United Group for Land Transport Company (UGLTC)  is showing success with higher earnings and profit.

According to a disclosure sent to the Jordan Securities Commission, the company boosted earnings by 51.8 per cent to JD4.1 million during the first nine months of this year from JD2.7 million during the same period of last year.

UGLTC was also able to double gross profit to JD1.8 million from JD0.9 million.

After taking into consideration administrative and general expenses, depreciation, financing costs and other income, the company’s pretax profit boiled down to JD1.4 million, 133 per cent higher than the JD0.6 million recorded during the first nine months of last year.

Profit after tax amounted to JD1.1 million from JD0.5 million registered on September 30, 2014.

Mid-year 2015 results showed a better achievement with earnings totalling JD2.9 million, 93.3 per cent higher than the JD1.5 million recorded during the first half of the last year.

Gross profit came at JD1.4 million, a 250 per cent increase over the JD0.4 million at the end of June 2014.

The pretax profit surged 1,000 per cent to JD1.1 million as of June 30, 2015, from JD0.1 million after taking into consideration administrative and general expenses, depreciation, financing costs and other income.

Profit after tax amounted to JD0.9 million from JD0.1 million registered on June 30, 2014.

UGLTC Chairman Mazen Azmi Al Qawasmi assured the shareholders in the annual report that the company’s position was strong and described 2014 results as good in light of difficult conditions that the land transport sector is passing through.

The company earned JD4 million last year (JD3.3 million in 2013) and profit after deducting tax and provisions came at JD0.7 million. almost equal to the previous year. 

“The political situations and developments in the region are still negatively affecting land transport activity in Jordan, especially because of limited business to neighbouring Syria and Iraq,” he wrote in a foreword.

Qawasmi mentioned the decline in fuel prices during the last quarter of 2014 as another negative factor that led to a general drop in transport charges and caused some confusion in determining prices. 

He stressed that the management strenuously worked and will persist to cut operational costs as much as possible by seeking to organise transport programmes in order to benefit from all available resources and capabilities.

The chairman underlined the importance of a contract signed with Jordan India Fertiliser Company and stressed that UGLTC will meticulously look after the transport of phosphoric acid from Shidiyeh to Aqaba.

He indicated that the company was proceeding with the maintenance and asphalting of the company’s plaza located at Al Rashdiyah in Aqaba in order to obtain an official business licence and a land deed.

“This project aims at opening a parking garage in Aqaba to become a centre for the trucks that transport phosphoric acid associated with the tender for Jordan India Fertiliser Company,” the chairman wrote.

He said UGLTC would keenly try to attract new customers to maintain a good level of income and activate the handling process, indicating that the local market was marked by stiff competition with several entities engaged in the land transport of various goods.

As such, Qawasmi added, the company could not specify and evaluate its share in the domestic market because the necessary statistics for that were not available, noting in this regard that UGLTC did not have any activities abroad other than transporting goods by land to neighbouring Arab markets.

Financially, the annual report showed that UGLTC generated profits during the past five years, the highest was in 2012 when the amount reached JD1 million and the lowest was JD0.6 million in 2013.

The company distributed JD1 million in cash dividends to shareholders this year at a rate of 15 per cent. In 2011, shareholders received JD0.9 million.

In 2010 and 2012, the cash dividends amounted to JD0.6 million each year.

According to the balance sheet as of September 30, 2015, shareholders equity totalled JD9.9 million, of which JD6.6 million was capital, JD1 million mandatory reserve and JD1.1 million retained earnings. The remaining JD1.1 million was the profit generated during the January-September period of this year.

Liabilities totalled JD1.5 million, JD0.6 million of which were short –term loans. 

The company is repaying two loans amounting to JD2 million loan, at a 9 per cent interest rate and no commission, obtained from Audi Bank to finance the purchase of 60 trucks (trailers and semi trailers). The last installment is due in September 2016.

Out of JD11.3 million in total assets, JD9.3 million were property and machinery after deducting accumulated depreciation. JD1 million were receivables.

At the end of last year, UGLTC employed 73 workers and its capital investment amounted to JD9.9 million. Its offices are located in Sahab/Al Raqeem. 

AMMAN — Royal Jordanian (RJ) announced in a press statement on Wednesday that  it generated JD27 million net pretax profit in the first nine months of this year.

The amount represents a 272 per cent increase from the JD15.7 million net loss registered during the same period in 2014, the statement said.

“The net profit after tax for the first nine months of 2015 reached JD21.4 million, an increase of 236 per cent over the corresponding period of last year,” it indicated. 

RJ’s Chairman Suleiman Hafez expressed satisfaction with the company’s positive results, describing them as a quantum leap during a period when air transportation is still affected by the instability in the neighbouring countries which negatively influences travel and tourism to Jordan and the Middle East. “These results will help the company continue the current restructuring process,” Hafez said in the statement. 

He attributed the noticeable improvement in financial results to the efficiency and loyalty of the staff and its keenness to implement the board’s vision and the 5-year strategic plan since the beginning of the year. 

“The strategy focuses on restructuring in all areas, increasing revenues and reducing the operating cost, while improving the quality of services and maintaining RJ’s leading position among the airlines in the Levant ,” the chairman added.

RJ has been Jordan’s national carrier for the last 52 years, he remarked. 

Noting that air traffic is seasonal in nature, Hafez indicated that airlines, including RJ, normally achieve better financial results in the second and third quarters which are marked by active traffic during the summer season.

As such, the gains are earned in the peak seasons and holidays and not in the first and last quarters of each year when the number of travellers drop.

The chairman pointed out that the cost-control policy of the airline resulted in reducing operational spending in the first nine months of this year by 22 per cent compared to the same period of last year. 

He mentioned that RJ’s gross profit amounted to JD85 million, 95 per cent higher than the corresponding period of last year.

The gross profit was achieved when JD434 million of operatinal costs was deducted from the earnings that totalled JD519 million.

Elaborating further, Hafez said in the statement that the fall in fuel prices this year contributed to a drop in expenses besides operational efficiency which played a key role as a number of the network’s stations were closed due to their weak feasibility and the number of aircraft were reduced accordingly.

“At the end of last year, RJ shut down Delhi, Mumbai, Colombo, Lagos, Accra, Milan, Alexandria and Al-Ain stations,” the statement quoted the chairman as saying. “The airline also opened new markets in the region — Tabuk and Najaf.”

Additionally, RJ reduced the number of its aircraft in sync with the needs of the route network, which is continuously being assessed, in line with the airline’s strategies.

Noting that the company increased the frequency of flights to certain destinations in response to greater demand on travel particularly in the peak seasons, the chairman indicated that flights to Aqaba increased from 11 to 16 weekly, with changes to the schedule of flights to meet passengers’ needs.

He added that RJ will open new destinations worldwide before the end of this year.

“Flights to eight destinations — Damascus, Aleppo, Mosul, Tripoli, Benghazi, Misrata, Sanaa and Aden — are still halted due to security reasons,” Hafez elaborated. 

Hafez described RJ as a prominent Jordanian success story that constantly look for new and promising opportunities to increase revenues, enhance its competitiveness in the air transport industry and improve its air and ground services in a way that enables it to run safe and seamless flights to the passengers’ satisfaction and to achieve RJ’s vision of being the airline of choice that connects Jordan and the Levant with the world.  

KUWAIT CITY — Kuwait's ruler called Tuesday on officials in the oil-rich state to seek alternative revenue sources and reduce public expenditure after state income dropped 60 per cent due to a sharp slide in crude prices.

Addressing parliament at the beginning of its new term, Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah urged citizens to understand the new measures.

"The decline in global oil prices has caused state revenues to drop by around 60 per cent while spending remained without any reduction leading to a huge deficit," the emir told lawmakers.

He called for "speedy actions to adopt serious and fair measures to complete economic reforms... and reduce public expenditures".

"Any delay would only increase the budget deficit and make the cost [of reforms] higher," the emir said.

Oil prices have lost around 60 per cent of their value since June 2014, hitting the coffers of energy-dependent countries like Kuwait.

Oil income accounted for about 94 per cent of Kuwait's revenues during the past 16 years, when the emirate posted a budget surplus and piled up massive fiscal reserves of around $600 billion (543 billion euros).

The reserves are invested mostly abroad by the country's sovereign wealth fund.

The International Monetary Fund said in a report last week that under existing conditions, the reserves would be enough to last Kuwait for the next 23 years.

But Sheikh Sabah said the government should avoid tapping the sovereign fund to finance the budget shortfall.

Based on figures published by the finance ministry, Kuwait's revenues in the first half of 2015 hit 8.34 billion dinars ($27.6 billion), way below the 15.1 billion dinars of income in the same period of last fiscal year.

The revenues, however, amounted to more than half of the 12.2 billion dinars income projected for the whole year.

At the start of 2015, Kuwait lifted subsidies on diesel, kerosene and aviation fuel. It is considering similar measures for electricity, water and petrol.

Public spending has risen more than three-fold in Kuwait over the past seven years, with the overwhelming majority of the increase going to wages and subsidies.

The tiny emirate has a native population of 1.3 million and is also home to about 2.9 million foreigners.

AMMAN — Investments and Integrated Industries Company (IIIC) lowered its bank debts to JD23.1 million at the end of June 2015 from JD27.3 million at the end of last year. 

According to financial information disclosed to the Jordan Securities Commission, the company's finance expenses during the first half of this year and during 2014 amounted to JD0.5 million and JD0.8 million respectively.

As a Jordanian holding company, the unmanned IIIC manages its subsidiaries or other entities where it owns equity; invests in shares, stocks and securities; extends loans, guarantees and financing to subsidiaries; and exercises financial and administrative control on one or more firms that become a subsidiary.

IIIC's  interim summary of consolidated financial statements as of June 30, 2015, showed a JD0.6 million profit gained almost entirely from an unspecified investment income that totalled JD0.9 million before deducting finance expenses.

Within this amount, nearly JD30,000 flowed from two subsidiaries.

A negligible JD12,850 dripped as profit from Quality Printing Press  (QPP), a limited liability company capitalised at JD3.2 million, 82.6 per cent of which owned by IIIC. 

QPP's net sales of paper stationery products such as photocopy paper, cash rolls, fax and thermal cash rolls, plotter rolls, adhesive rolls, exercise notebooks, college notebooks, university notebooks, writing pads and drawing pads, amounted to JD4.3 million during the first half of this year.

But after taking into account production costs and various expenditures, including finance expenses, QPP's net profit came at JD12,850.

Another insignificant JD17,176 trickled as a yield from Quality Food, a limited liability company capitalised at JD3 million, 98 per cent owned by IIIC.  

Quality Food stopped operations in May 2011 and its premises were leased for three years to Amana Food Industries in April 2013.

"Because imported meat was essential as a raw material in our industry, we faced the risk of border closure in case of contagious diseases," IIIC's 2014 annual report said.

It also listed stiff price competition in the domestic market from lower quality local or imported products as a reason for halting production besides water scarcity and the fluctuation in the euro exchange rates.

No activities were mentioned at the Integrated Mining Company, another subsidiary, and at Al Matn Investment Company, a subsidiary that was voluntarily liquidated last year.

IIIC indicated in the report that its subsidiary Oran Investment Company planned to expand activities in the Amman Stock Exchange through investing in companies that have strategic dimension and low risk.

The plan for QPP was to lift sales by 5 per cent from 9,646 tonnes in 2014 to 10,128 tonnes in 2015 and the sales amount by 5 per cent  from JD9 million to JD9.5 million, in response to international economic conditions and the slight rise in raw material costs.

Besides mentioning fluctuations in international prices of raw materials as a risk associated with QPP's operations, the report pointed to an increase in the imports of finished products at lower prices, especially in the absence of adequate customs protection.

"QPP's market share of the photocopy paper stands at about 48 per cent," the report indicated, noting that the market needs 11,000 tonnes of this product.

"The market needs 4,600 tonnes of school notebooks and QPP has a 40 per cent share of this," it said.

Leaconfield Capital and Korerseas were among the main QPP suppliers.

IIIC's balance sheet as of June 30, 2015, showed total assets at JD34.2 million, of which JD20.2 million were financial assets at fair value.

JD10.2 million were current assets, mostly receivables owed to the company by commercial businesses and related parties, and JD2.9 million were inventory. 

Capitalised at JD14.5 million, the shareholders equity stood at JD8.1 million due mainly to JD6.2 million of accumulated losses at the end of June 2015.

According to the annual report, capital investment at the end of 2014 amounted to JD24.1 million.

The performance of IIIC was diminished last year as the consolidated financial statements as of December 31, 2014, showed a drop in QPP sales and in gross profit.

Sales declined by 6.2 per cent from JD9.6 million in 2013 to JD9 million, JD0.2 million of which were exports to Iraq.

Gross profit fell by 42 per cent from JD1.1 million to JD0.6 million, but the net result was a JD0.9 million loss, more than double the JD0.4 million loss posted at the end of 2013.   

A breakdown of IIIC's earnings and profit reveals that QPP was in the red by JD1.4 million but the loss was minimised by a JD0.5 million profit gained from an unspecified investment income that totalled JD1.1 million before deducting finance expenses.

At the end of the last year, IIIC was owned by Elia Nuqul and Sons Company (53.2 per cent), Elia Qostandi Farah Nuqul (6.7 per cent), Samira Shukri Rizek Rizek (6.7 per cent) and Ghassan, Marwan, Lina and Randa Elia Qostandi Nuqul each holding a 6.7 per cent stake.

"The company's shares are not traded on the Amman Bourse as they are entirely owned by the Nuqul family," the annual report said.

An official at the bourse told The Jordan Times that the wording was not correct as IIIC is listed and that its shares can be traded.

"You can place an order to buy IIIC shares but the question is finding somebody willing to sell," he said.

126 workers were employed by IIIC at the end of last year, all of them at QPP.

GENEVA — The benefits of a treaty that will cut red tape at borders and standardise customs procedures are much larger than previously thought and could add $3.6 trillion to annual global exports, the World Trade Organisation (WTO) said in a report on Monday.

The WTO's trade facilitation agreement (TFA), struck at a ministerial conference in Bali in December 2013, will do more to boost trade than if all the world's import tariffs were removed, cutting costs 9.6 to 23.1 per cent, the WTO calculated.

"You could say that it's global trade's equivalent of the shift from dial-up Internet to broadband," said WTO Director General Roberto Azevedo.

Once the new rules come into effect, which Azevedo hoped would happen by the end of 2016, it will cut waiting times at customs, lessen the potential for corruption and hasten foreign direct investment into weaker economies.

The TFA had previously been expected to add $400 billion to $1 trillion to trade, according to various economic studies.

Many trade experts had shied from using the upper end of those forecasts, but the WTO's own research found they were on the low side.

"Overall, the simulations confirm that the trade gains from speedy and comprehensive implementation of the TFA are likely to be in the trillion-dollar range, contributing up to almost 1 per cent to annual gross domestic product growth in some countries," the report said.

The agreement, which was created in December 2013, will come into force when two-thirds of WTO members have ratified it. Fifty have ratified it so far, out of 161 current WTO members.

The report used two main models for estimating the gains from the agreement: a "computable general equilibrium" (CGE) simulation, which makes assumptions about "what if" certain barriers are removed, and a "gravity model", based on historical evidence of removal of trade barriers.

The CGE model predicts exports will rise by at least $750 billion to well over $1 trillion per year, adding 0.34 to 0.54 percentage points to annual global economic growth, it indicated.

Gravity model estimates put the annual export gains at $1.1 trillion to $3.6 trillion, the report concluded. It did not estimate the impact on gross domestic product under the gravity model.

BEIJING — China has never said the economy must grow 7 per cent this year, Premier Li Keqiang said in comments reported by the government ahead of a key meeting this week that will set economic and social targets for the next five years.

Li's comments coincide with remarks by a top central bank official, who said on Saturday that China would be able to keep annual economic growth at around 6-7 per cent over that period.

The statements come at a time of growing concern in global financial markets over China's once mighty economic juggernaut.

China cut interest rates for the sixth time in less than a year on Friday. Monetary policy easing in the world's second-largest economy is at its most aggressive since the 2008/09 financial crisis, as growth looks set to slip to a 25-year low this year of under 7 per cent.

China's economy grew 6.9 per cent in the July-to-September quarter from a year earlier, data showed last week.

Speaking on Friday at the Central Party School, which trains rising officials, Li said the economic difficulties ahead for China should not be underestimated.

His report to the annual meeting of parliament set this year's gross domestic product (GDP) growth target at about 7 per cent.

"We have never said that we should defend to the death any goal, but that the economy should operate within a reasonable range," the central government paraphrased Li as saying in a statement released on its website late on Saturday.

Chinese leaders will signal that growth is their priority over reform by setting a growth target of around 7 per cent in the next long-term plan, policy insiders say.

The party's central committee will meet from Monday to Thursday to set out the 13th Five-Year Plan.

The party's People's Daily on Sunday listed on its microblog what it said were 10 focus areas for the Five-Year Plan, including maintaining economic growth, improving the industrial structure and pushing forward innovation. It gave no details.

Nevertheless, while the focus is on growth, China is still moving ahead on financial reforms.

Besides cutting interest rates on Friday, the People's Bank of China (PBoC) said it was also freeing the interest rate market by scrapping a ceiling on deposit rates.

The change, which Beijing had promised to deliver for months, will in theory allow banks to price loans according to their risk, and remove a distortion to the price of credit that analysts say fuels wasteful investment in China.

It should also offer some reassurance to financial markets after they were unsettled by the chaotic responses to the country's recent stock market plunge and then a yuan  devaluation.

The deposit rate reform builds on the introduction of deposit insurance, creating space for smaller banks to compete with their bigger rivals

It is seen as a long-term step towards a more market-driven banking sector, if smaller banks lend funds to parts of the economy shunned by large banks.

‘New normal’

China's economic growth has not been bad over the last year considering the problems in the global economy, Li said.

There were reasons for optimism going forward, such as rising employment, more spending on tourism and a fast growing service sector, Li added.

"The hard work of people up and down the country and the enormous potential of China's economy gives us more confidence that we can overcome the various difficulties," he  elaborated.

While the government has flagged a "new normal" of slower growth as it tries to shift the economy to sustainable, consumption-led growth, official data shows it has consistently at least met, and mostly exceeded, the growth targets it sets.

Beijing needs average growth of close to 7 per cent over the next five years to hit a previously declared goal of doubling GDP and per capita income by 2020 from 2010.

But the stock market turmoil and unexpected fallout from the modest yuan devaluation have raised fears among policy makers that an abrupt slowdown in growth could spark systemic risks and destabilise the economy.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said this month that China's policy makers should forge ahead with structural reforms to put the world's second-largest economy on a more sustainable footing, even as growth is likely to slow further to 6.3 per cent in 2016.

The IMF expects China's growth to slow to 6.8 per cent this year from 7.3 per cent in 2014, and weaken further in 2016, maintaining its existing forecasts.

"Modest further policy support to ensure that growth does not fall sharply is likely to be needed, but further progress in implementing the authorities' structural reforms will be critical for private consumption to pick up some of the slack from slowing investment growth," IMF stressed in its World Economic Outlook.

Beijing faces a tough balancing act in preventing a sharp slowdown, reducing vulnerabilities from excess leverage and strengthening the role of market forces in the economy, the IMF indicated.

The credit and investment boom, fanned by Beijing's massive  stimulus package implemented during the height of global financial crisis, resulted in heavy debt among local governments  and widespread factory overcapacity.

"There are risks of a stronger growth slowdown if the macroeconomic management of the end of the investment and credit boom of 2009-12 proves more challenging than expected," the IMF said.

The IMF reaffirmed its calls for China to press ahead with market-based currency reforms, following the country's surprising move to devalue the yuan in August.

"The recent change in China's exchange rate system provides the basis for a more market-determined exchange rate, but much depends on implementation," the IMF said.

"A floating exchange rate will enhance monetary policy autonomy and help the economy adjust to external shocks, as China continues to become more integrated into both the global economy and global financial markets," it added.

China has described the yuan devaluation as modest and part of reforms to make the currency more market-driven, which coincided with the country's push to have the yuan included in the IMF's Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) basket.

But the move spooked financial markets, as investors feared it could lead to competitive devaluations which could destabilise the fragile global economy.

Chinese officials have pledged to push financial reforms to make the yuan more convertible as they seek to win the IMF's approval for the yuan's inclusion into SDRs.

However, the central bank has intervened heavily to support the yuan since the devaluation, alongside massive government efforts to stem a slide in the stock market.

The IMF board is scheduled to decide in November whether the yuan will join the Special Drawing Rights basket.