A protracted recession and, most recently, the COVID-19 pandemic have made it difficult for the continent’s most industrialised economy to generate a large number of jobs in recent years.

About 8.4 million people were out of work, up from 5.2 million in 2014. There were 161 million employed people, a 92,000 decrease by Q2 2024. Agriculture, construction, and trade were the industries with the largest employment declines registered, while utility, social services, and manufacturing were the only industries to add jobs.

The statistics represent the first public releases following the coalition government formed in May 2024, which prioritised recovering the failing economy. The African National Congress (ANC) lost an absolute majority in the vote, probably in part because unemployment was a major political issue.

The Western Cape, Mpumalanga, and KwaZulu-Natal provinces saw the biggest declines in employment, according to the statistics office.

Laying out the government’s priorities for the next five years, President Cyril Ramaphosa said recently that officials thought small businesses and the informal sector held the greatest potential for job creation.

However, economist Sanisha Packirisamy at local investment firm Momentum Investments, told Reuters that since the COVID-19 pandemic, there had been a recovery in employment in areas viewed as more highly skilled, largely in the services sector. Whereas for workers classified as unskilled or semi-skilled there had barely been a recovery.

Packirisamy further stated that significant job creation in the African country would take time, and “as such we are not expecting significant job growth in the remainder of this year”.

Under an expanded definition of unemployment, which includes those discouraged from seeking work, 42.6% were jobless in the second quarter of 2024 compared with 41.9% in the previous three months.

Solly Molayi, acting head of population statistics, said the hotel and restaurant sector lost 87,000 jobs in the second quarter and was the biggest contributor to joblessness in trade.

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IFM: In last year’s award, we were highlighting TPIPP’s power plant operations relating to the use of municipal solid waste (MSW) as fuel. How have the operations been affected by the disruptions relating to the COVID-19 pandemic?
Pakkapol: TPIPP processes between 8,000-10,000 tons per day of MSW to run our Waste to Energy (WTE) Power Plant. Despite lockdowns and mobility restrictions in the past two years, we handled similar volumes of MSW during the year. In addition to various types of boilers suitable for MSW, we have developed our very own version of the mechanical and biological treatment (MBT) plant that allows us to handle unwanted MSW. And, a matter of pride for us that confirms the significant role that we now play in disposing MSW, TPIPP was granted a license to dispose of COVID-19 waste that due to its very nature requires extra attention in handling and demands high standards of safety which are incorporated in our safety system.

At this point, TPIPP remains the largest MSW power plant and processor in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the largest in the world in a single location with a zero-waste policy. We have also begun the roll-out of our medium-term projects. Firstly, to switch our 220MW coal-fired power plants to run on MSW and secondly to support the move of our parent company, TPI Polene Plc (TPIPL) to run its cement kilns with alternative fuels (AF) replacing coal. Upon completion of these projects, TPIPP’s operations will eliminate more than 19.5m tons of CO2 equivalent and will be 12.6m tons below carbon neutral by 2026. Overall, this will advance the TPI Group’s goal to achieve net zero GHG far ahead in timeline compared to our local peers.

IFM: Energy inputs have become a significant cost swing factor especially starting second half of 2021 and at this point, it does not look like the price trend is going to revert to historic norms. How has TPIPP coped amidst the rising cost of energy production?
Pakkapol: Our 180MW capacity that operates on MSW and the 40MW that runs on waste heat have been insulated from the rising production costs. As for our coal-fired power plants, some are under plant improvements in preparation for the switch to the MSW fuel, so our coal input has been lower. Overall, especially this year we exercise cost optimization in order to remain profitable while at the same time meeting our power purchase agreements. Externally, we also benefited from the government’s mandated Ft adjustments during the year that added about THB1.1 per unit compared to the tariff in 2021. This has helped offset the rising cost, and we expect the supportive power pricing structure to remain throughout this year and next year. Our investment shift to focus on increasing MSW input has been well-timed and will allow room to mitigate increases in the fuel inputs.

IFM: Apart from the ongoing projects in your existing facilities are there other new MSW projects in the pipeline?
Pakkapol: Under an ad hoc purchase power program of the government, TPIPP has clinched sales of an additional 40MW capacity valid for the next two years, at least. This new sales contract will allow us to maximize the utilization of our existing assets. In September, we received permission to hook up our facility to the national grid and we can begin delivery in December 2022. This way we can assist the government in increasing its power capacity that is derived from renewable power – MSW.

TPIPP has also been awarded two MSW power projects. One is the 9.9MW power capacity in the southern province of Songkhla with a Commercial Operation Date (COD) in early 2024. The second one is a 7.92MW power capacity in the northeastern province of Nakorn Ratchasima with COD in early 2024 also. For both projects, TPIPP will sign long-term power purchase agreements with the state-owned power agency, Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA).

Songkhla and Nakorn Ratchasima are the larger and faster growing provinces in their respective regions. For example, the population of these provinces account for 17.2% and 13.6% of the Southern and Northeastern regions, respectively. In terms of economic contribution, Songkhla accounted for 19.8% of the GDP of the southern region while Nakorn Ratchasima accounted for 18.4% of the GDP of the northeastern region based on the 2019 national statistics. Thus, installing MSW-driven power plants in these areas will help address the ever growing waste accumulation and recycling it into higher value power production. The multiplier effect of having an MSW power plant is many folds spanning across health, economy and environment – areas that answer to the call for corporate social responsibility and the main tenets of ESG agenda.

IFM: From our observation, it has been quite some time that the Thai government has opened bidding for a sizable power capacity. Are there more potential projects coming up?
Pakkapol: According to the Power Development Plan 2018 revision 1, the government aims for 9,996 MW of new capacity coming from renewable energy, including hydropower. The government has plans to tender more renewable power capacity in the near future and TPIPP intends to participate especially in those that will allow TPIPP to expand the company further.

IFM: Over a period of less than a decade, TPIPP has harnessed the technology and the processes to convert MSW into fuel and achieve high profitability at the same time. At this stage what further defines your long term goal?
Pakkapol: All of our ongoing projects and activities including our parent TPIPL are about moves towards de-carbonization and green energy. Some 30-40 years ago, stakeholders in many companies typically worried mainly about returns and profit-generation. However, with the paradigm shift across the globe to the more pressing concerns on climate change and ESG-driven (Environmental Social and Governance) business-as-usual (BAU) operations our group’s goals have shifted as well. For example, at the parent company, TPIPL is switching from diesel trucks to EV (electric vehicle) trucks for mining activities and from using coal to MSW for the clinker process. For TPIPP we are switching from coal to MSW for electricity production and the medium term goal is to become a carbon-free power plant.

These moves re-enforce the group’s re-branding into a new era. TPI today stands for “Technology, Products and Innovation”, instead of “Thai Petrochemical Industry.” The group strives to use the latest, best disruptive technology and innovation to produce only world class products at competitive prices to answer our customer’s daily life needs. Moreover, the group will never stop innovating new processes and products to expand our businesses. Our motto since inception has been constant “We Build the Future”. We want the world to be a better place for our people to live happily and peacefully together. Our projects and investments have yielded benefits to all of our stakeholders on a consistent basis through the years.

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Qantas’ net loss after tax for the fiscal year that ended on June 30 decreased from USD 1.7 billion to USD 860 million.

Qantas Chief Executive Officer Alan Joyce remarked, “These figures are astonishing, and getting through to the other side has obviously been tough.”

Recently, engineers fired a shot across the airline’s bow with a one-minute work stoppage.

The Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association is advocating for a 12% wage increase, which it claims would equal 3% annually over the four years following the expiration of their last agreement in 2019.

Members of the ALAEA who work as engineers for Qantas began their shifts one minute late.

In a message to the members, the federal secretary, Steve Purvinas, requested that they “just sit at a table for one minute.”

On hearing the findings, Qantas’ shares soared, rising 8% to USD 4.91 by 10.25 am in a buoyant Australian market.

After the COVID-19 pandemic considerably disrupted air travel, Qantas reported that flying levels for the year averaged 33% of pre-pandemic levels, but ended the financial year at 68%.

In spite of the fact that Alan Joyce claimed that “we always believed travel demand would recover significantly, the speed and scale of that recovery have been unprecedented.”

Although it will still not pay a dividend for the year, this, together with lower debt levels, allowed the airline to announce an on-market share repurchase of up to USD 400 million.

In addition to the investments we’re making in customers and our people, Alan Joyce said, “Our debt is now below our target range, so we’re in a position to start repaying shareholders.”

At the end of the fiscal year 2021–2022, the airline’s net debt decreased from a high of USD 6.4 billion to USD 3.9 billion.

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Overall, a careful policy balancing between stemming inflation through tightening policy rates and maintaining accommodative monetary policy is needed for sustained economic recovery and financial stability, the Central Bank of Kenya noted.

Following the lifting of restrictions that allowed for the complete restoration of commercial activity in 2021, the Kenyan economy recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic. The central bank forecasts a 5.7% increase in growth for 2022.

After experiencing a 0.3% decline in 2020, the economy recovered to post 6.8% growth in 2021.

Effective implementation of monetary, fiscal, and financial policies, in addition to the relaxation of COVID-19 containment measures, not only played a stabilizing role but also created an atmosphere that was favorable for economic recovery.

After surviving the Omicron variation in the fourth quarter of 2021, a successful vaccine, and improved adherence to COVID-19 guidelines, recovery is still on track.

However, the research cautioned that some of the main domestic risks to development include the potential return or introduction of the COVID-19 virus mutation, poor credit uptake during the electioneering period, and drought shock to agriculture.

According to the paper, the Russia-Ukraine war has impacted energy and commodity prices, increased global inflation, and caused a faster-than-expected tightening of monetary policy.

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A list of businesses that have gotten substitutable loans as part of the Future Fund is made public by the government’s development bank.

The former chancellor, Rishi Sunak, established the fund with the intention of assisting start-up businesses that were finding it difficult to attract investment during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The fund has provided funding totaling £1.14 billion to 1,190 companies.

According to the most recent data from the British Business Bank (BBB), investments have been made in businesses like Just Won’t Die, a maker of Kombucha, Flower of Life, and Lightpoint Medical, which creates robot technology for cancer surgery. State of Play Hospitality, which operates activity bar brands including Bounce, Flight Club, and Puttshack, which each offer table tennis, darts, and mini-golf, is also partially owned by the taxpayers.

The state also owns stock in the producer of medical cannabis oils Avida Global Limited, whose chairman is Benjamin Mancroft.

Mancroft was elected to the House of Lords in February 1988 and once made headlines for his controversial comments about NHS nurses who were caring for him at the Royal United Hospital in Bath.

The business started operating in 2018 and grows the plant on a farm in Colombia. Despite medical marijuana becoming legal in the UK in November 2018, the NHS website states that doctors still only recommend it to “very few” patients.

A third or so of the companies that have received investment from the Future Fund have had their loans converted to equity after obtaining at least equal private backing. As a result, the government now owns stock in more than 400 businesses.

These companies were identified in previous BBB data disclosures as the coffee brand Black Sheep, the football team Bolton Wanderers, and the sex party planning company Killing Kittens. Additionally, Better Tasting Drinks Co Limited, a company that makes kombucha, and Grass & Co., a company that produces cannabidiol products, both belong to the cannabis industry.

The Future Fund was intended to secure a flow of financing, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, to enterprises who would not have been able to access government support schemes, while providing long-term value for the UK taxpayer, said Ken Cooper, a managing director at the BBB.

“We are happy to see that so many of those businesses have since gone on to seek additional private financing, allowing the Future Fund to profit from their future expansion,” Ken added.

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According to Arqaam Capital, real estate volumes should stay at multi-year highs and Knight Frank expects prices to jump between 4-6 percent. Additionally, brokerage firm Haus & Haus expect 18 months of buoyant market conditions, and Savills says prices will continue to rise, but at a more sustainable pace than in 2021.

Haider Tuaima, head of real estate research at ValuStrat consultancy told the media, “The UAE property market will perform in a healthy way. We have developers offering attractive payment plans and mortgage interest rates are low. We will see more international investors coming in to buy the property next year.”

The UAE property market saw some depreciation due to a three-year oil price slump that began in 2014 over oversupply concerns and the ensuing pandemic. But now it has turned a new leaf and is recovering as people move to larger homes with outdoor amenities amid a surge in remote working and online learning.

Additionally, supportive economic measures and government initiatives such as residency permits for the retired and remote workers, along with he expansion of the 10-year golden visa programme have also contributed to a growing market sentiment.

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Vietnam has now gone through 11 consecutive days with a daily increase of Covid-19 cases. The country’s Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) in a July report said that achieving the previously set growth targets for the entire year is going to be difficult, since it requires excellent control over the spread of the virus and ensuring the production and business activities are not hampered.

Because of the country’s swift and effective control measures earlier this year , Vietnam enjoyed steady economic recovery from 2020, a year troubled by the pandemic, when its GDP growth rate plunged to 2.91 percent, the lowest over the past decade.

According to Vietnam’s General Statistics Office (GSO), during the first half of this year, the country recorded a year-on-year GDP growth of 5.64 percent, well above the 1.82 percent posted in the same period last year.

The industry and the construction centre were the primary reason behind such a spectacular growth. The sector registered a growth rate of 8.36 percent against the first half of last year, and contributed 59.05 percent in overall growth.

But the Covid-19 situation in the country took a turn for the worse in April this year as the Delta variant became the main cause of concern. In order to curb the spread, strict measures were put in place, and that hindered the recovery momentum of the country.

Some of Vietnam’s industrial parks were forced to temporarily cease operation due to clusters of infections, and the Vietnamese capital Hanoi and the southern business hub Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), the epicenter of the current Covid- 19 wave, went into lockdown in July with very strict social distancing measures in order.

The number of new enterprises established in July in the country also dropped by 22.5 percent from the previous month and their total registered capital also went down by 25.3 percent.

At present, inoculating the citizens of the country remains the top priority of the Vietnamese government. According to official statistics, as of August 5, Vietnam has received 18 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine from other countries and international organisations.

The post Vietnam’s goal of 6.5% GDP in trouble as Covid-19 cases increase appeared first on International Finance.

The country is also home to the Tadawul Stock Exchange in Riyadh that registered around a 27 percent rise in market value since the beginning of 2020, just when Covid-19 was beginning to show its impact on the world economy. The overall index registered an average increase of only 1.6 percent, and it easily supersedes the 14.2 percent increase during the MSCI World Index of all countries.

. Peru and Colombia also registered drops of more than 20 percent. Coming to the Middle East countries, Egypt witnessed a decline of 6.5 percent and Qatar registered a very slow increase of 1.2 percent. After Saudi Arabia, UAE stood second in the post-pandemic market, registering a 21.3 percent rise.

Tarek Fadlallah, chief executive of Nomura Asset Management in the Middle East told the media, “The Saudi authorities were relatively quick to react with a series of measures, especially relating to smaller businesses, to help ease the burden of the pandemic economic effects, and the market has reacted to that.”

Saudi Arabia also received praise from the International Monetary Fund for tackling the pandemic efficiently along with bringing reforms to its capital markets which helped enhance its positions as the biggest equities trading hub in the Gulf.

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Additionally, compared to 2019, another 108 million workers all over the world are now categorised as poor or extremely poor, which means that the next five years of progress will be primarily focused on eradicating working sector poverty.

The UN Sustainable Development, which has a goal of solving this issue by 2030, said in a statement, “The employment growth will be insufficient to make up for the losses suffered until at least 2023.” ILO economist and lead author of the report, Stefan Keuhn, told the media that the real impact on the labour market was even more after factors like reduced working hours for employees were taken into account. The estimated working hour losses in 2020 compared to 2019 is equal to 144 million full-time jobs in 2020.

Keuhn also mentioned that even though the numbers are glaring, it still does not capture the actual impact it had on the labour market. He also noted that while hiring in the US has started again after the massive job losses made headlines around the world, many workers in places like Europe continue to work in reduced hours.

The post The global unemployment rate to reach 5.7% in 2022: ILO appeared first on International Finance.

He also mentioned that the peak load in Dubai also increased 10 percent from 7,248 megawatts (MW) during the same time period. Al Tayer mentioned that the increased demand for energy and peak load in Dubai means that the country’s economy is on its way and there will be a comeback of various vital activities in the emirate.

He told the media, “It indicates that the UAE is moving steadily towards promoting economic prosperity and decent living for all citizens and residents. In line with the forward-looking vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to achieve comprehensive and sustainable development in Dubai, we continue to increase our installed capacity of electricity and water, as well as the capacity of the transmission and distribution networks.

“This is to keep pace with the expansion of urban and economic development in Dubai and DEWA’s vision to become a globally leading sustainable innovative corporation. DEWA’s installed capacity has reached 12,900 megawatts of electricity and 490 million imperial gallons per day (MIGD) of desalinated water.”

DEWA is regarded as one of the most reputable utilities in the world that have set benchmarks for various other companies in the world. The company has maintained a steady record of reliability, efficiency, sustainability, and optimum management of electricity and water infrastructures.

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