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Monday, August 6, 2018 (21-04-2075) kathmandupost.ekantipur.com
‘Hazardous’ smoky air shuts down Yosemite Nat’l Park
Inside
China’s Unipec
suspends US oil
imports
China’s Unipec, the trad-
ing arm of state oil
major Sinopec, has sus-
pended crude oil
imports from the
United States due to a
growing trade spat
between Washington
and Beijing, three sourc-
es familiar with the situ-
ation said on Friday. It is
not clear how long the
temporary halt will last,
but one of the sources
said Unipec has no new
bookings of US crude
until at least October.
Unipec and Sinopec,
Asia’s largest refiner
and biggest buyer of US
oil, did not respond to
requests for comment.
Chinese buyers had
already slowed their
purchases of US oil to
avoid a likely import tar-
iff threatened by Beijing
amid the escalating
trade dispute between
the world’s two largest
economies. Pg: II
Complaints
mount against
Tesla in Norway
“I’ve had the car for
eight months and it ran
fine for four days,” says
Yngve Solberg, who like
many Norwegians is fed
up with the slew of prob-
lems his Tesla X has
given him. Tesla has
sold more cars per capi-
ta in Norway than any
other country in the
world thanks to the gov-
ernment’s generous
measures in favour of
electric cars including
tax exemptions, free city
tolls and public parking.
More than 26,000 Tesla S
and X models are regis-
tered in Norway, accord-
ing to the website www.
teslastats.no. But Tesla
has struggled to provide
after-sales support that
matches the soaring
demand for its high-end
electric cars. Pg: II
Canada ‘very
keen’ on wrapping
up Nafta talks
Canada is “very keen”
on concluding negotia-
tions to renew the North
American Free Trade
Agreement as soon as
possible, Foreign
Minister Chrystia
Freeland said on
Saturday, amid signs of
progress after months of
delays. Talks to modern-
ise the 1994 trade pact
started in August 2017
but have dragged on
much longer than
expected as Canada and
Mexico pushed back
against far-reaching
US demands for
reform. President
Donald Trump has said
he will walk away from
Nafta unless major
changes are made.  Pg: III
High-flying tech
firms, the new
tech bubble?
Silicon Valley giants
have become a
gargantuan force on
Wall Street, as
demonstrated by
Apple recently topping
$1 trillion in stock-mar-
ket valuation.
But should we fear
that a new tech bubble is
ready to burst?
Apple ended the formal
trading week worth a
history-making $1 tril-
lion. Meanwhile, four
other tech firms round-
ed out a list of the five
most valuable compa-
nies based on share pric-
es. Amazon was worth
$889 billion; Google-
parent Alphabet was val-
ued at $856 billion;
Microsoft weighed in at
$828 billion, and
Facebook was valued at
$513 billion. Pg: IV
$28m TIA runway rehab
project stirs back to life
SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, AUG 5
The $28-million runway reha-
bilitation project at Tribhuvan
International Airport (TIA)
stirs back to life after lying in
limbo for months.
Rehabilitation work on the
3,050-metre aged runway pave-
ment at the airport is expected
to begin by the second week of
February next year and be
completed by July. Airport
authorities sprung into action
due to extreme pressure fol-
lowing frequent cracks in the
runway at the country’s sole
international airport that
have raised safety concerns.
Authorities had put the TIA
runway rehabilitation project
on hold until the international
airport in Bhairahawa is con-
structed after being frustrated
by its intermittent progress.
Meanwhile, a five-year
working plan unveiled
recently by the Tourism
Ministry has issued a comple-
tion deadline of mid-July 2019
for the TIA runway rehabilita-
tion project.
The project is expected to
pick prequalified bidders
within 45 days after issuing a
notice inviting prequalified
bidders to submit financial
proposals within 15 days, said
Raj Kumar Chettri, general
manager of TIA.
In March 2017, the project
prequalified four firms follow-
n Tourists wearing sarees take photos during a visit to Hanuman Dhoka Durbar Square in the Capital. 
Market inspection drive of large firms fizzles out
POST REPORT
KATHMANDU, AUG 5
The government has failed
to carry out effective market
inspection of large firms
despite repeated pledges to
protect consumers from
business misconduct and
fraud.
According to the records
of the Department of
Commerce and Supply
Management, 4,915 outlets
were checked in the last fis-
cal year, most of them small
retail shops. Among them,
4,157 firms were from the
Kathmandu Valley.
Following the inaugura-
tion of the Oli administra-
tion on February 15,
Supplies Minister Matrika
Prasad Yadav had promised
to put big offenders behind
bars. However, the govern-
ment remained a mute
spectator when businesses
hiked prices after the budget
statement was issued, said
consumers.
Among the 4,915 firms
probed in the last fiscal year,
action was taken against
only 43 firms even though
many of them were found to
be engaged in fraud. “Most
of the market monitoring
ing the completion of their
technical evaluation. The pre-
qualified companies are China
National Aero Technology
International Engineering
Corporation, China Harbor
Engineering, Beijing
Changdao Municipal
Engineering Group and a
Nepali-Chinese joint venture
consisting of China Railway
No 5 Engineering Group and
Swachchhanda Nirman Sewa.
However, the project was
bogged down by problems.
According to Chettri, the
winning contractor will be
given four months to make
preparations. The company
will be required to have all its
logistics and construction
materials in place before it is
allowed on the runway.
The project plans to com-
n A file photo shows police officials during a market inspection.
operations were conducted
as a mere ritual,” said a
department official.
The 43 firms against
whom the department had
sought to take action includ-
ed five schools and six auto-
mobile traders.
The five schools--GEMS
School, Dhapakhel; Rato
Bangala School, Patan;
Premier International
School, Satdobato and
Chandbagh School,
Bansbari--were accused of
charging exorbitant fees
plete the rehabilitation of 500
metres of the runway at the
southern part—the most criti-
cal area at the airport—within
three months. According to
the project, milling machines
will be used to remove the
pavement to rehabilitate the
runway. The design was pre-
pared in 2014, but the project
decided to review it after the
earthquake of April 2015.
The airport will have to be
shut down from 12 midnight to
6 am daily to carry out the
runway rehabilitation works,
according to TIA. For the last
six years, TIA has been forbid-
ding aircraft weighing more
than 196 tonnes to land on its
tattered runway to prevent
further damage. The old run-
way has been affecting smooth
operation of aircraft due to
l ac k o f co n su m e r p rot ect i o n
from students.
The department said it
was still in the process of
obtaining the consent of
public prosecutors.
Similarly, the department
has almost stopped the pro-
cess of taking action against
the six automobile traders
due to pressure from influen-
tial groups.
There has been no pro-
gress in the case against six
hospitals either.
The department itself
filed cases against 13 firms
cross currency
NR 110.0800 127.3300 0.9890 143.1800 110.7100 84.7400 81.4600 1.6015 Euro 127.33
INR 68.5400 79.2800 0.6159 89.1360 68.9190 52.7555 50.7060 0.6244
GBP 0.7686 0.8891 0.0069 0.7729 0.5916 0.5686 0.0112 0.0070
JPY 111.2500 128.6800 144.9275 111.8700 85.6300 82.3000 1.6236 1.0111
EUR 0.8645 0.0078 1.1247 0.8692 0.6654 0.6395 0.0126 0.0079
USD 1.1567 0.0090 1.3011 1.0055 0.7697 0.7398 0.0146 0.0091
How to read the table
The chart shows the rates of nine world currencies. Move across the table to find rates of exchange between any two
currencies. One unit of the currency mentioned horizontally is worth that amount in the currency mentioned vertically.
Page II Yosemite National Park’s iconic cliffs are shrouded in so much smoke from nearby wildfires that
the air quality is worse than anywhere in America and is rivaling Beijing.
repeated occurrences of
cracks in the pavement.
While cracks and uneven
surfaces can cause dangerous
take-offs and landings, airline
officials said they had been
facing hours of delay almost
every day during the rainy
season, frustrating travellers
and causing financial distress
for airlines. Scores of flights
have been diverted or delayed
in recent years due to prob-
lems in the runway. Trouble
mainly occurs during the
rainy season. This monsoon,
the runway has developed
cracks more than 20 times,
according to airline operators.
The Civil Aviation
Authority of Nepal (Caan) will
dip into the Airport
Development Fund (ADF) to
finance the project. Since
operating on Durbar Marg
and New Road. Similarly, it
filed cases against 12 outlets
selling food items and one
eatery business operating in
Dhading on Prithvi Highway.
From the last four months,
the government has handed
over the task of conducting
market inspections outside
the Valley to local govern-
ments. So far, no significant
progress has been seen
with regard to prosecuting
fraudsters, the department
source said.
USD EUR JPY GBP CHF CAD AUD INR NR
underground power line
Half of project
works finished
July 2014, Caan has been col-
lecting an extra Rs1,000 in air-
port development tax from
each passenger departing on
international flights from TIA.
The money will be spent on
projects to improve facilities
at TIA. A study conducted by
Caan in 2014 had concluded
that the runway at TIA was
not strong enough to handle
wide-body jets due to its age-
ing asphalt foundation, and
distress is caused to the upper
surface instantly when heavy n Workersare seen at the construction site of Nepal’s first
planes land on it. Repeated underground transmission line in Matatirtha area. 
occurrences of cracks on the
runway have been affecting POST REPORT
smooth operation of aircraft KATHMANDU, AUG 5
since 2011.
When compared to the core Nearly half of the construc-
part of the runway between tion of Trishuli-Kathmandu
2006 and 2013, damage to the 220 kV double-circuit line,
intermediate layers was Nepal’s first underground
caused by the operation of power transmission line, has
large jets like the Airbus A330 been completed.
and Boeing 777, according to 48 percent of the works—or
Caan. In 2013, there were 1,000 630 metre has been completed,
operations of A330-300 air-
craft, 955 of Boeing 777 and 452
out of the 1,309 metre trans-
mission line in Matatirtha
of A330-200, and the numbers area, the project said on
are expected to double in the Sunday. The underground
next 20 years. structure can house 24 elec-
Cracks first appeared on the tricity cables.
runway in June 2011, and they A government team led by
have become a recurrent prob- Minister for Energy, Water
lem. Cracks were reported Resources and Irrigation
occasionally in 2012. However, Barsha Man Pun made an
the problem worsened in 2013, onsite visit of the project and
forcing Caan to take a harsh directed the contractor to
decision to bar aircraft weigh- complete remaining works
ing more than 196 tonnes from within next two months. Pun
landing at TIA for a month. was accompanied by Energy
Secretary Anup Kumar
Upadhyaya and Managing
Director of Nepal Electricity
Authority (NEA) Kulman
Ghising.
During the high-level gov-
ernment team visit, the con-
tractor expressed to accom-
plish the works within the
given deadline provided the
authority eased hurdles in
construction works.
The contractor has also
asked the government to
ensure security and settle
issues related to forest. Nearly
270 workers have been mobi-
lised for construction.
Amid concern over the for-
est issue, minister Pun made
a phone call to Minister for
Forests and Environment
Shakti Bahadur Basnet to
immediately resolve hurdles
like cutting down trees at the
project construction site
among others.
“The government will
address the problems at the
local level and ask the Home
POST PHOTO: SANJOG MANANDHAR Ministry to ensure safety and
Adulteration rampant due to poor oversight
PRATAP BISTA said Raj Kumar Rijal, chief
HETAUDA, AUG 5 of the office. “Although we
have limited resources to
Food adulteration has regularly inspect the mar-
become rampant in the ket, we have been actively
central Tarai due to inade- involved in punishing
quate oversight and weak wrongdoers,” he said, add-
law enforcement. ing that the office expected
The Regional Food action to be taken against
Technology and Quality the accused in a majority of
Control (RFTQC) office, cases. Due to lack of human
Hetauda filed 119 cases resources and technology,
related to unhygienic and the food samples collected
adulterated foods at the from the market have to be
District Administration sent to Kathmandu for test-
Office in the last fiscal year ing. According to the
ended mid-July. RFTQC, the highest number
In the previous fiscal year of 35 adulteration cases
2016-17, the office had filed have been filed in
40 cases at different district Makwanpur district fol-
administration offices. A lowed by Bara with 34 and
majority of the cases were Parsa with 21 cases.
related to unhygienic oil Similarly, 10 food adultera-
and dairy products. tion cases have been filed in
The office oversees nine Sarlahi, 10 in Dhanusha and
districts--Makwanpur, Bara, six in Rautahat.
Parsa, Sarlahi, Rautahat, Although adulteration
Sindhuli, Chitwan, cases are on the rise in
Dhanusha and Mahottari-- Chitwan, officials are cur-
in the central Tarai. rently engaged in gathering
“We have initiated legal evidence and recording
proceedings against the statements. “We have not
firms and individuals found filed charges but we are
selling substandard foods,” planning to do so by this
F ORE X
US Dollar 110.08
Pound Sterling 143.18
Japanese Yen 0.99
Chinese Yuan 16.11
Qatari Riyal 30.23
Australian Dollar 81.46
Malaysian Ringit 26.96
Saudi Arab Riyal 29.35
Exchange rates fixed by Nepal Rastra Bank
PHOTO: NEA
The transmission line will
evacuate 60MW of
electricity generated by
Upper Trishuli-A to
Kathmandu
security at the construction
site,” said Pun, adding that
the government was commit-
ted to constructing the struc-
ture by the given deadline
without compromising on its
standards and quality.
The Cabinet had permitted
to cut 682 trees that fall
under the Mahalaxmi
Matatirtha Community
Forest, which later on was
revised to 336 units.
With the revision, the con-
tractor again has to take
approval from the concerned
authority.
As the project construction
has made it difficult for com-
muters to walk along the
road, locals have started fill-
ing gravel at the trench con-
structed for laying cables.
The transmission line will
evacuate 60MW of electricity
generated by Upper Trishuli-A
to Kathmandu. The project is
expected to come into opera-
tion by mid-January.
The total transmission line
length is 45 km. Of the total
length, 1,309 metre is being
constructed underground.
Project Chief Phanindra Raj
Joshi said that 127 towers out
of 140 towers have been erect-
ed so far.
Apart from the power that
will be evacuated from Upper
Trishuli-A project, the NEA
has planned to use the facility
for evacuating electricity pro-
duced by other similar hydro-
power projects in the Trishuli
corridor.
The project is being con-
structed under the China’s
Exim Bank concessional loan.
fiscal year,” said Anup
Halwai, food inspector at
the office.
In many Tarai districts,
very few cases are filed
against wrongdoers due to
lack of manpower and tech-
nology. While one case has
been filed in Rautahat, no
action has been taken in
Mahottari and Sindhuli
districts for lack of food
inspectors. As local
administrations don’t take
market monitoring serious-
ly, very few cases are filed,
the office said.
Out of the total 601 sam-
ples collected in the central
Tarai region, 81 samples or
13 percent tested negative.
Edible oil and ghee were the
most common unhygienic
products being sold in the
market followed by milk and
dairy products, said the
office unveiling the annual
market monitoring report
on Friday.
In the previous fiscal
year, 65 out of the 611 sam-
ples of food items tested
were found to be unhygienic
and adulterated.
C M Y K
Monday, August 6, 2018 | the kathmandu post
news digest
TSMC Q3
revenue hit by
computer virus
TAIPEI: A computer
virus outbreak has
hit third-quarter
results at Taiwan
Semiconductor
Manufacturing
Company Ltd, the
world’s largest contract
chipmaker, the
company said on
Sunday. On Saturday,
TSMC, a major supplier
for Apple Inc, said
that a number of its
computer systems
and fab tools had been
infected by a virus, but
the problem had been
contained. The compa-
ny expects full recovery
on August 6. “TSMC
expects this incident to
cause shipment delays
and additional costs. We
estimate the impact to
third quarter revenue
to be about three per-
cent, and impact to
gross margin to be
about one percentage
point,” it said. “The
company is confident
shipments delayed in
third quarter will be
recovered in the fourth
quarter 2018, and main-
tains its forecast of
high single-digit reve-
nue growth for 2018 in
US dollars given on July
19, 2018.” (REUTERS)
Petrobras Q2
profits jump to
$2.7 billion
RIO DE JANEIRO: Brazil’s
flagship oil company
Petrobras announced
sharply higher net
profits for the second
quarter of 10.072
billion reais
($2.7 billion) on Friday,
crediting higher
crude prices for the
‘Hazardous’ smoky air shuts
down Yosemite Nat’l Park
ASSOCIATED PRESS
SAN FRANCISCO, AUG 5
Yosemite National Park’s icon-
ic cliffs are shrouded in so
much smoke from nearby
wildfires that the air quality is
worse than anywhere in
America and is rivaling
Beijing.
The unhealthy haze prompt-
ed officials to close the scenic
Yosemite Valley and other
areas on July 25 along with
hundreds of campsites and
hotels in what has become the
park’s longest closure in more
than two decades. Officials say
they tentatively plan to reopen
Monday after a 12-day closure
but will reassess this weekend.
“We are hoping to get back
open on Monday but condi-
tions have to be safe,” said
park spokesman Scott
Gediman, who said the deci-
sion will be based on air quali-
ty, visibility, weather patterns
and safety for firefighters who
are performing protective
measures known as back
burning near the park’s south-
western border.
Coming at the height of the
summer season, the closure
has dealt a financial blow to
Yosemite, a crown jewel of the
National Park System,
and caused upheaval for thou-
sands of tourists whose sum-
mer trips have been abruptly
canceled.
“I’m totally gutted we can’t
visit Yosemite,” said British
tourist Caroline Lansell, on
a summer holiday to
California with her husband
and two children.
Like many, they booked
nearly a year ahead of time to
secure a coveted hotel room
peak tourist season
n A signon Highway 41 announces the closure of Yosemite National Park near Oakhurst, California. The
park has been closed for nearly two-weeks during the peak tourist season. 
The closure is estimated to cause a financial loss of
several million dollars for the park, its hotels and gateway
communities that rely on summer tourists for business
inside the park, where hotels
and campsites fill up months
in advance and are typically
booked through October. They
fly back to England on Sunday
and don’t know if or when
they’ll get back to Yosemite.
“It was going to be our first
and probably only time
because it’s such a long, long
way to come,” said Lansell. “I
fancied doing the meadows,
the lakes and the massive
cliffs. It’s really sad. But at
world
least we’re alive. There are
people who have lost their
lives and homes.”
The 115-square mile
(300-square kilometre) fire
near Yosemite started on
July 13 and is now 41 percent
contained.
It is one of several large
wildfires that fire crews are
battling in California, where
record-breaking heat and
years of drought have turned
immense tracts of forests and
AP/RSS
parched grasslands into tinder
boxes. Overall, six people have
died in the blazes and thou-
sands have had to evacuate
their homes.
In recent days, the fire
reached into remote areas of
Yosemite, which is about 250
miles (400 kilometres) from
San Francisco.
The park ordered about
200 workers who live in
Yosemite’s popular Valley
region to leave Friday because
of inaccessible roads.
Not all of the park is closed;
roughly the northern third of
Yosemite has remained open.
But officials say it is Yosemite’s
longest and most extensive clo-
sure since 1997, when floods
shut the park for two months.
With Yosemite’s highlights
off-limits, other nearby
National Parks are getting a
surge of visitors.
“We’ve definitely seen an
influx, and visitors say they
had to change plans last-min-
ute because they can’t go to
Yosemite,” said Sintia
Kawasaki-Yee, a spokeswoman
for Sequoia and Kings Canyon
National Parks. Last weekend,
Kings Canyon had to shut one
of its campgrounds after a
rush of visitors depleted its
water supply, she said.
Gediman, the park spokes-
man, estimates a financial loss
of several million dollars for
the park, its hotels and gate-
way communities that rely on
summer tourists for business.
The precise figure will be cal-
culated after the park reopens.
“It’s a huge impact,”
Gediman said. On a typical
summer day, anywhere from
15,000 to 20,000 visitors enter
the park, which charges $20
for an individual pass, $35 for a
vehicle pass and up to $300 for
a commercial coach.
“This time of year the
campgrounds would be full
and the lodging would be full,”
he said. Since the closure, at
least 1,000 campground and
hotel bookings have been can-
celed each day, he said,
describing the 7.5-mile-long
(12-kilometre-long) Yosemite
Valley as “empty” except for
smoke.
Yosemite Valley is the cen-
terpiece of the visitor experi-
ence, offering sweeping views
of its majestic landmarks such
as Half Dome, Bridal Veil Fall,
El Capitan and Yosemite Falls.
money
China’s Unipec
suspends US
oil imports
REUTERS
SINGAPORE/BEIJING, AUG 5
China’s Unipec, the trading
arm of state oil major
Sinopec, has suspended crude
oil imports from the United
States due to a growing trade
spat between Washington
and Beijing, three sources
familiar with the situation
said on Friday.
It is not clear how long the
temporary halt will last, but
one of the sources said Unipec
has no new bookings of US
crude until at least October.
Unipec and Sinopec,
Asia’s largest refiner and
biggest buyer of US oil, did
not respond to requests for
comment.
Chinese buyers had already
slowed their purchases of US
oil to avoid a likely import
tariff threatened by Beijing
amid the escalating trade dis-
pute between the world’s two
largest economies.
Beijing has put US energy
products, including crude oil
and refined products, on a
list of goods it will hit with a
25 percent import tax in
retaliation for similar moves
by Washington. It has not
said when it will impose
the tariffs.
Unipec said earlier this
year it expects to trade up to
300,000 barrels per day (bpd)
of US crude oil by the end of
the year, about triple its trad-
ing volume of US oil last year.
China’s crude oil imports
from the United States
reached an average of 334,880
bpd in the first eight months
II
of this year, according to
trade flows data on Thomson
Reuters Eikon.
The amount of US crude
arriving in September is
expect to fall to 197,515 bpd, as
only three supertankers are
en-route to China, the data
showed.
The absence of China, the
largest buyer of US crude
after Canada, has partly
weighed on US spot crude
prices, making them more
affordable for other buyers
in Asia.
Unipec will continue trad-
ing US crude, selling the oil to
Europe, one of the sources
said. Still, it is unlikely to ship
any of the oil to the east as it
no longer has a backstop for
the oil if it cannot find a
buyer at the right price dur-
ing the voyage, said three
traders that participate in
the market.
China’s prohibitive import
tariff, which amounts to close
to $18 a barrel when crude is
at $70, has also deterred other
Chinese buyers such as state-
owned companies PetroChina,
as well as state-controlled
Zhenhua Oil and independent
refiners, from importing US
crude, they said.
China’s oil imports from
West Africa are set to rebound
in August to 1.6 million bpd,
the highest since May, accord-
ing to data on Eikon.
Unipec has also bought
North Sea Forties and Russian
Urals last month for
September delivery when the
arbitrage opened, trade sourc-
es said.

Huawei in British spotlight Battery of complaints mount

improvement. The
April to June period
saw a 45 percent
increase over the
6.96 billion reais net

against Tesla in Norway

profits in the first
quarter. It was the
best quarterly result
since 2011 and came
despite the company
taking a pounding dur-
ing a May truckers’
strike that crippled the
country’s economy for
almost two weeks, espe-
cially impacting fuel
deliveries. (AFP)
Adani Group wins
licence to sell gas
in 11 cities
NEW DELHI: Adani
Group has won a
license to sell gas in 11
cities for households
and vehicle use - the
Petroleum and Natural
Gas Board (PNGRB)
said in a statement on
Friday. Adani Gas will
sell gas on its own in
six cities and in a joint
venture with Indian Oil
Corp in five cities,
PNGRB said. Indian Oil
Corp will sell com-
pressed natural gas and
piped cooking gas in
four cities. Other com-
panies that won the
licenses are Torrent
Gas, Bharat Gas
Resources Ltd and
GAIL Gas Ltd. India
had auctioned licences
for 86 areas in April as
the country wants to
increase the share of
the cleaner fuel in its
energy mix to 15 per-
cent in the next few
years, from about 6.5
percent currently.
Indian gas regulator
PNGRB on Friday
announced the winners
for 46 areas. (REUTERS)
REUTERS
LONDON/SAN FRANCISCO, Aug 5
Huawei Technologies is facing
increased scrutiny in Britain
because it is using an ageing
software component sold by a
firm based in the United
States, one of the countries
where lawmakers allege its
equipment could facilitate
Chinese spying, sources told
Reuters.
The fact that the British
misgivings stem in part from
Huawei’s relationship with a
US company shows how trade
wars and heightened national
security concerns are making
it harder for technology firms
and governments to safeguard
products and communication
networks.
A report last month by a
British government oversight
board charged with analysing
Huawei equipment said it had
found technical and supply
chain “shortcomings” which
exposed the country’s tele-
coms networks to new securi-
ty risks.
One of those is due to
Huawei’s use of the VxWorks
operating system, which is
made by California-based
Wind River Systems, said
three people with knowledge
of the matter, all of whom
spoke on condition of ano-
nymity when discussing
details which were not made
public in the report.
The sources said the ver-
sion of VxWorks being used
by Huawei will stop receiving
security patches and updates
from Wind River in 2020, even
though some of the products it
is embedded in will still be in
service, potentially leaving
British telecoms networks
vulnerable to attack.
cyber security
“Third party software,
including security critical
components, on various com-
ponent boards will come out
of existing long-term support
in 2020, even though the
Huawei end of life date for the
products containing this com-
ponent is often longer,” the
July report, which did not
name VxWorks, said. US and
Australian lawmakers have
said Huawei’s products can be
used to facilitate Chinese espi-
onage operations, an allega-
tion the world’s biggest pro-
ducer of telecoms equipment
has repeatedly denied.
All three sources said there
was no indication that the
VxWorks mismatch was delib-
erate. There is also no sugges-
tion that the software itself
represents a security risk.
Reuters was not able to
establish which Huawei prod-
ucts were involved or what
steps the Chinese company
was taking to address the
issue. A spokeswoman for
Wind River Systems said she
was unable to comment on
Huawei, but said the company
often helped customers
upgrade to newer software
versions. “Wind River offers
migration routes and paths
for its customers, which
should be pretty well known
and understood in the indus-
try,” she said. A Huawei
spokesman declined to com-
ment on specific issues in the
report but said the company
would address any areas for
improvement which were
raised by British authorities.
“Cyber security remains
Huawei’s top priority, and we
will continue to actively
improve our engineering pro-
cesses and risk management
systems,” he said.
While the United States and
Australia have moved to
restrict the use of its gear due
to security concerns, Huawei
has been deepening ties with
Britain, supplying broadband
equipment to its largest tele-
coms provider, BT Group, and
mobile networks for wireless
giant Vodafone Group.
Consultant Edward Amoroso,
a former chief security officer
at AT&T, said Huawei’s experi-
ence in Britain showed the
challenges of securing inter-
national supply chains.
Although no one should dis-
miss Huawei as a supplier
solely because of its geograph-
ical location, reliance on soft-
ware that is going out of sup-
port is a legitimate concern,
Amoroso said.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
OSLO, Aug 5
“I’ve had the car for eight
months and it ran fine for
four days,” says Yngve
Solberg, who like many
Norwegians is fed up with the
slew of problems his Tesla X
has given him.
Tesla has sold more cars per
capita in Norway than any
other country in the world
thanks to the government’s
generous measures in favour
of electric cars including tax
exemptions, free city tolls and
public parking.
More than 26,000 Tesla S
and X models are registered in
Norway, according to the web- n A Model S electric car of US car maker Tesla leaves a Tesla service center in Oslo, Norway.  afp/rss
site www.teslastats.no.
But Tesla has struggled to time he has faced trouble, it ny’s after-sales support, com- testing ground for electric
provide after-sales support has taken him several months pared with 57 percent who are cars. The Scandinavian coun-
that matches the soaring to get an appointment for satisfied. try, whose electricity is almost
demand for its high-end elec- repairs. “Norwegians are right to be exclusively from hydro, aims
tric cars. “Because of the doors, I upset with Tesla,” admitted to stop selling cars running
As a result, Tesla owners in couldn’t park next to other Tesla chief executive Elon on fossil fuels in seven years—
Norway face long waits for cars for three months, neither Musk. by 2025.
repairs, a shortage of spare at my work garage nor in my “We are having trouble Tesla is therefore doubling
parts, difficulty reaching cus- parking spot outside my home. expanding our service facili- its efforts to meet Norway’s
tomer services, leading— All this with a car that costs ties in Oslo especially,” he needs.
unsurprisingly—to oodles of 1.1 million kroner (115,000 tweeted on July 5. The company’s spokesman
complaints. euros, $133,000),” he bristled. He said the problems could in the Nordic region, Even
In the first half of the year, On an online forum for the be resolved “quickly” if Sandvold Roland, said after-
Tesla became the company Norwegian Association of Norway would give the green sales support staff has already
with the fourth-highest num- Electric Cars, another Tesla light for mobile service vans been augmented by 30 percent
ber of complaints registered owner said he was so frustrat- able to provide repairs at cli- this year, additional shifts
with the Norwegian Consumer ed he ended up taking his car ents’ homes. have been set up in some plac-
Council. In 2017, it held the to Danish capital Copenhagen Tesla is in talks with es, and a new repair centre is
24th spot. to replace a faulty suspension authorities with a view to due to open shortly in Oslo.
A car enthusiast, Solberg arm. He has also been waiting adapting this service to “Things are improving,”
has had a long series of woes for new seats for 13 months. national regulations, which said Satheesh Varadharajan,
with his new Tesla X. These are not isolated cases. strictly define car repair the head of the Association of
Among the problems he has A survey conducted by the shops. Tesla Owners. “It’s positive,
faced were malfunctioning Tesla Owners Club Norway The problems are particu- though we’re still a little con-
rear doors and a faulty sus- indicates that 38 percent are larly troublesome for Tesla, as cerned about whether it’s
pension system. And each dissatisfied with the compa- Norway is a seen as a global going quickly enough.”

b at t l i n g h y p e r i n f l at i o n

How far can Venezuela go in raising price of world’s cheapest gas?

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
CARACAS, Aug 5
In Venezuela’s inflation-hit econ-
omy, a single US dollar can buy
3.5 million litres of gasoline—an
absurdity that the government
says it will tackle with a hike in
the cost of state-subsidized fuel.
But just how far can President
Nicolas Maduro go without get-
ting his fingers burned?
Maduro announced on July 29
plans to adjust the price of gaso-
line and regulate sales based on
the so-called “fatherland card,”
an electronic card that provides
access to subsidies. As a first step
the government began a census
of motor vehicles, set to end on
Sunday.
A litre of 91-octane gasoline
currently costs one bolivar, while
95-octane gas costs six. By con-
trast, a single egg in Venezuela’s
hyperinflation ravaged econo-
my—estimated by the IMF at one
million percent in 2018—costs
200,000 bolivars.
A dollar on the country’s black
market is currently trading at 3.5
million bolivars.
Experts say the retail price of
gasoline covers just between two
and four percent of its cost of
production.
Maduro has kept details of the
fuel price adjustment under
wraps, but he said that “we are
paying to throw it away ... we
need to move to a rational usage.”
Yet talking openly about cut-
ting the gasoline subsidy has
been a taboo since the 1989 riots
known as the “Caracazo,” which
were triggered by a rise in fuel
prices and left 300 people dead in
Caracas and towns surrounding
at a time of profound stagnation,
in an economy that has not
stopped shrinking since 2014.
Fuel subsidies have cost the
Venezuelan government $10 bil-
lion a year since 2012, petroleum
expert Luis Oliveros told AFP.
That has created a such a gap-
ing hole in the budget that the
government has tried to fill by
printing more money, which in
turn has created even higher
inflation, Oliveros said.
“It is a lie that increasing the
n Gas station workers pump gas into cars at a gas station of the state oil price of fuel is an inflationary
company PDVSA in Caracas, Venezuela.  REUTERS measure,” he said. “The subsidies
are hyperinflationary.”
the capital. touched them. The situation has only been
Even though the iconic late In 2016, Maduro authorised the made worse by the drop off in oil
leader Hugo Chavez questioned first price hike in 20 years, but production from 3.2 million bar-
the rock-bottom prices of only by between 1.328 percent and rels a day in 2008 to 1.5 million in
state-subsidized fuel during his 6.566 percent, which made no 2018.
term in office between 1999 and impact on the derisory prices. That is why the operating
his death in 2013, even he never The new adjustment will come capacity of refineries has fallen
and gasoline imports have risen.
In a perverse twist, there has
been a decrease in the demand
for fuel because 90 percent of
Venezuela’s public transport
vehicles are out of operation
because there cannot buy spare
parts to keep them on the road,
according to unions.
Venezuela imports 33,600 bar-
rels of gasoline and 36,000 barrels
of diesel a day from the United
States, according to the US
Energy Information Agency.
Maduro has yet to explain
what happens to consumers who
do not have a state-issued “father-
land card.”
With wages ravaged by
hyper-inflation, it is unlikely
prices will get anywhere near
international levels. If they did,
however, filling a gas tank would
cost a Venezuelan two years of
their minimum-wage income.
“Prices are so far behind that
no matter how big the increase in
terms of percentage, they will
still remain low,” said Henkel
Garcia, director of the
Econometrica consultancy group.
Economist Luis Vicente Leon
said the government will use
greater subsidies in the “father-
land card” system to ensure
that fuel is affordable for all
cardholders.
According to the opposition,
this card is designed for the
Socialist government to broaden
its support base, which has been
weakened by the economic crisis
and longstanding shortages of
food, medicine and basic goods.
The 12 million Venezuelans
with the cards—a third of the
population—systematically
receive food vouchers.

C M Y K
III money economy the kathmandu post | Monday, August 6, 2018

news digest
RBS announces
first dividend in
a decade
LONDON: Britain’s Royal
Bank of Scotland will
pay its first dividend
since its near-collapse
and state bailout in
2008, paving the way for
the government to fur-
ther reduce its stake in
the lender. Taxpayer-
owned RBS said it
would pay an interim
dividend of 2 pence per
share, subject to the
finalisation of a $4.9 bil-
lion settlement with the
US Department of
Justice (DOJ) over the
bank’s sale of mort-
gage-backed securities
in the run up to the
financial crisis. Until
its agreement in May,
the looming settlement
had blocked RBS’s
return to dividends,
excluding a whole class
of income-focused
investors from buying
its stock. Announcing
the bank’s half-year
results, RBS CEO
Ross McEwan said
the bank was now
looking to return
further excess capital to
shareholders, including
via special dividends
or share buy backs,
from 2019. (REUTERS)
British Airways
owner logs $1.6b
in profits
LONDON: IAG, which
owns British Airways
and Spanish carrier
Iberia, said Friday
that first-half profits
more than doubled
but cautioned over the
ongoing impact of
French air traffic con-
trol strikes. Earnings
after taxation flew to 1.4
billion euros ($1.6 bil-
lion) in the first six
months of 2018 com-
scenic view
Canada ‘very keen’
on wrapping up
Nafta talks
nCanadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland gestures during a joint
Nafta news conference in Mexico City, Mexico. 
REUTERS
OTTAWA, AUG 5
Canada is “very keen” on con-
cluding negotiations to renew
the North American Free
Trade Agreement as soon as
possible, Foreign Minister
Chrystia Freeland said on
Saturday, amid signs of pro-
gress after months of delays.
Talks to modernise the 1994
trade pact started in August
2017 but have dragged on
much longer than expected as
Canada and Mexico pushed
back against far-reaching US
demands for reform.
President Donald Trump has
said he will walk away from
Nafta unless major changes
are made.
In a renewed push, Mexican
and US cabinet ministers held
a series of meetings in
Washington over the past
week in a bid to work out their
differences. One Mexican offi-
cial expressed optimism that
some kind of agreement could
be reached by the end of the
month.
“I and Canada are very,
very keen to get it done as
quickly as possible,” Freeland
n Tourists visit Dhumba Lake in Mustang. It is famous for being a sacred Buddhist lake and its emeraled-green coloured clear water.  rss told reporters on a conference
call. She did not answer
REUTERS
directly when asked whether
the end of August was a real-
istic deadline.
Mexican and US officials
are due to meet again next
week to work on contentious
issues such as wages and
rules governing how much
North American produced
content an automobile must
contain to qualify for duty-
free status.
Freeland said she was
ready to join the talks at any
time but did not give details.
Canadian officials dismiss
speculation that she is being
sidelined.
“While this is a trilateral
agreement ... there are also
significant bilateral trading
issues between each of the
countries,” said Freeland,
adding that she welcomed
bilateral talks between
Canada’s two Nafta partners.
The Trump administration,
which complains Nafta
caused hundreds of thou-
sands of manufacturing jobs
to move to plants in low-wage
Mexico, wants Mexican work-
ers to be paid more and is
demanding more North
American content in cars and
light trucks produced in the
Nafta nations.

High-flying tech firms,

pared with 607 million

Companies in a race to
euros a year earlier,
IAG said in a results
statement. The London-
listed group, which is

hit $1 trillion valuation

also the owner of Irish

the new tech bubble?

airline Aer Lingus and
Spanish carrier
Vueling, added that
total revenues swelled
three percent to 11.2 bil-
lion euros. “We’re
reporting another
good set of results in
quarter two,” said
chief executive
Willie Walsh. “There
was a strong perfor-
mance in both unit rev-
enue and costs. (AFP)
Steel Authority
of India misses
profit estimates
NEW DELHI: Steel
Authority of India Ltd
missed analysts’ esti-
mates for quarterly
profit on Friday, as it
booked a one-time
charge of 2.77 billion
rupees ($40.38 million),
including a provision
for royalty payment
to Odisha government.
However, higher
income from its flag-
ship steel plant
located in Chhattisgarh
helped the company
post a net profit of
5.40 billion rupees for
the quarter ended
June 30, compared
with a loss of 8.01 bil-
lion rupees a year
earlier. The company
said the exceptional
item included a provi-
sion of 1.44 billion
rupees to Odisha gov-
ernment’s royalty claim
related to iron ore fines
from August 1, 2009 to
August 23, 2012. (REUTERS)
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
NEW YORK, Aug 5
Silicon Valley giants have
become a gargantuan force on
Wall Street, as demonstrated
by Apple recently topping $1
trillion in stock-market valua-
tion.
But should we fear that a
new tech bubble is ready to
burst?
Apple ended the formal
trading week worth a histo-
ry-making $1 trillion.
Meanwhile, four other tech
firms rounded out a list of the
five most valuable companies
based on share prices.
Amazon was worth $889 bil-
lion; Google-parent Alphabet
was valued at $856 billion;
Microsoft weighed in at $828
billion, and Facebook was val-
ued at $513 billion.
Together, these companies
account for about 20 percent
of US GDP, and more than
Germany’s GDP.
Combined, the tech stocks
account for more than 25 per-
cent of the value of the
Standard & Poor’s 500, the
index that includes the 500
largest companies listed in the
United States.
At the end of 1999, a few
months before the infamous
dot.com internet bubble burst,
the five biggest companies on
the stock market (Microsoft,
General Electric, Cisco,
Walmart and Intel) accounted
for 15.5 percent of US GDP, AJ
The top five tech companies account for nearly
20 percent of the US GDP and more than 25 percent of
the value of the Standard & Poor’s 500 index
Bell investment director Russ
Mould recalled in a note.
“Anyone who owned those
stocks at the market top suf-
fered some serious portfolio
pain,” Mould said.
“They lost money on those
five names for the next dec-
ade.”
He made it clear he was not
predicting market woes for
“FAANG” stocks—those of
Facebook, Amazon, Apple,
Netflix and Google.
“However, it does warn
against the dangers of blindly
assuming that what is work-
ing now will work forever and
that paying any price for a
stock will be rewarded,”
Mould said.
Nate Thooft of Manulife
Asset Management told AFP
that there was “no shortage of
arguments” on why shares in
those companies would con-
tinue to do well, but he saw
wisdom in reducing “exposure
a bit” to reduce risk.
Investors at that time hurled
money at just about any start-
up with a website, even if it
wasn’t clear exactly how a
given company was going to
make money.
“Most of those companies
had no earnings, a lot of them
had no sales; they were still
selling at huge valuation lev-
els,” said Tower Bridge
Advisors portfolio manager
Maris Ogg.
“Everyone was anticipating
what the internet and the tech
would do. They were about 20
years too early.”
Since the dot.com crash,
venture capitalists have shied
away from startups that don’t
have convincing plans to
become profitable.
The crash also gave rise to
“a lot of healthy skepticism”
about big tech companies,
according to Ogg.
There is also a renewed
focus on the ratio between
share price and company prof-
it, a key investing considera-
tion that was neglected in the
early 2000s.
Amazon appears to be an
exception, but it has a winning
record of taking on new mar-
kets, and spending heavily up
front to “disrupt” the status
quo in the long run.
Tech titans such as Google
and Facebook have become
such formidable forces that
they are prime targets for reg-
ulation or fines, which could
slow growth or hurt profits.
Maris said investors should
be mindful to routinely
rebalance their portfolios to
avoid them becoming too
heavy with fast-growing tech
firm shares.
After all, any internet firm
can be eclipsed by a young
startup.
“Every technology compa-
ny remains vulnerable to
being disrupted by a slightly
more clever version of itself,”
BlackRock Global Allocation
Team portfolio manager Russ
Koesterich said in a blog post.
For example, he noted, at
the time of the financial crisis
Nokia had a 45 percent share
of the smartphone market, the
iPhone was just a year old and
Facebook was a baby.
“The overall sector contin-
ues to be extraordinarily prof-
itable, and, despite rumors to
the contrary, reasonably val-
ued,” Koesterich said.
REUTERS
SAN FRANCISCO, AUG 5
Amazon, Microsoft and
Alphabet are locked in a tight
race to become the second
publicly-listed US company to
reach a $1 trillion stock mar-
ket value after Apple became
the first to touch the 13-digit
milestone.
Wall Street’s optimism
about last year’s 10th anniver-
sary iPhone, coupled
with record share buybacks,
have propelled Apple’s
stock 34 percent higher over
the past 12 months, pushing
the company’s stock market
value above $1 trillion on
Thursday.
The Cupertino, California
company’s shares added
another 0.3 percent on Friday,
putting its market capitalisa-
tion at $1.005 trillion.
Apple’s 12-month gain is far
better than the S&P 500’s 14
percent increase over the past
year, but it pales beside
Amazon’s astounding 85 per-
cent surge, propelled by the
online retailer’s and cloud
computing heavyweight’s
scorchingly fast revenue and nearly 18 percent in 2018. provided most of Amazon’s
profit growth. Together with Facebook, operating profits.
Amazon is now the sec- the five largest US companies “Of the three companies,
ond-largest publicly-listed US account for 15 percent of the I’d say Amazon will get to $1
company, with a market capi- S&P 500. trillion next,” Morgan said.
talisation of $889 billion, fol- Synovus Trust portfolio Average analyst price tar-
lowed closely by Alphabet and manager Dan Morgan said he gets put Apple’s stock market
Microsoft, at $856 billion and owns shares of Amazon most- value at $1.05 trillion, Amazon
$830 billion respectively. ly because of its dominance of at $1.02 trillion, Alphabet at
Google-owner Alphabet’s the cloud computing industry, $970 billion and Microsoft at
stock has risen 32 percent over a business that grew 42 per- $953 billion, according to
the past 12 months, and is up cent in the June quarter and Thomson Reuters data.

F I N A N C I A L A N A LYS I S

Stellar EU banks’ performance won’t last

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
PARIS, Aug 5
European banks may have man-
aged to generate surprisingly
solid earnings in the second
quarter, but low interest rates,
Brexit fears and trade war woes
make a repeat performance
unlikely, analysts say.
Big names BNP Paribas,
Barclays, Intesa Sanpaolo, Credit
Suisse and BBVA all wrongfooted
sector experts with results
exceeding consensus forecasts.
“For many banks, earnings
were better than expected,”
Simon Outin, an analyst with
Allianz Global Investors, told
AFP.
“But it’s also true that consen-
sus forecasts had been lowered
quite a bit recently,” he said, as
banks were seen struggling to
thrive in their traditional credit
business.
That they still managed to pull
off an earnings surprise was
mostly down to view that loan
repayment rates are improving,
justifying a reduction in funds set
aside to cover risky exposure,
and giving the bottom line an
immediate boost.
“The main adjustment variable
for almost all the banks which
have reported earnings are the
provisions against doubtful loans
which are much lower than
expected,” said Jerome Legras,
head of research at asset manag-
ers Axiom AI. “This in essence
was what made the results better
than analysts’ expectations,” he
told AFP.
Taking back risk provisions
helped banks offset the dampen-
ing impact of a low-interest rate
environment that is set to linger
even as EU growth and inflation
are showing signs of picking up.
French bank Societe Generale
said it expects to improve its risk
management further throughout
the year, a hint that it could take
back more provisions to feed
profits.
In southern Europe, Spain’s
BBVA and CaixaBank, Portugal’s
Caixa Geral de Depositos and
Italy’s Intesa SaoPaolo are all
making progress in removing
toxic loans from their books.
Even the world’s oldest bank,
Monte Dei Paschi Di Siena, man-
aged to eke out a profit in the
three months to June, a remarka-
ble performance given that the
bank was so weakened by the
2008 financial crisis that it was
pulled back from the brink with a
government bailout.
But while analysts accept that
taking back risk provision is a
legitimate reward for improved
risk management, they also
say that banks shouldn’t push
their luck.
Big names BNP Paribas, Barclays, Intesa Sanpaolo, budding economic recovery.
But that strategy has become
Credit Suisse and BBVA all wrongfooted sector experts with more uncertain as trade risks
and political worries threaten to
results exceeding consensus forecasts throw a spanner in the works.
Swiss banking group UBS has
Some, like Dutch banking giant to do something about that, the warned that rising protectionism
ING, are “playing with fire” with European Central Bank, has not was puncturing investor confi-
their low provisions, said Martin shown any signs of wanting to dence, and Credit Suisse said
Crum, an analyst with IEX.nl. hike official rates any time soon upcoming monetary policy shifts
“You can’t reduce the cost of despite moving its quantitative by the world’s central banks were
risk indefinitely,” added Legras easing stimulus policy slowly likely to sow uncertainty.
at Axiom. “At some point it will towards the exit. Meanwhile, Britain’s looming
reach the bottom of the cycle and The EU’s other big central departure from the EU is a big
then you will need other sources bank, the Bank of England, headache for that country’s
of growth, either from greater raised its key rate at the start of banks just as they have recovered
cost control, or from improving August, but also hinted that inter- a high level of financial strength.
interest rate margins.” est rates wouldn’t rise again For them, the stakes in Brexit
But those margins are difficult soon. talks are especially high because
to boost while official interest Instead, Europe’s retail banks of the question of what will hap-
rates remain low, analysts try to use the improving economy pen to passporting rights, which
warned, meaning banks can’t to bolster their loan volumes, allow EU members to do business
make much profit from loans. especially in the corporate sector in each other’s countries without
The eurozone institution able which is poised to invest in the needing further authorisation.

C M Y K
Monday, August 6, 2018 | the kathmandu post bazaar money IV

Nepse
shares
1,189.88pts
-0.12%
Nepali factories struggle market watch

RETAIL PRICE

to find green tea leaves

Vegetables Unit Price (Rs)
highest losers
Red Potato kg Rs58
IGI PROFL RRHP MSLB LVF1 RHPC
-5.30% -5.26% -3.75% -3.69% -3.55% -3.36% White Potato kg Rs48
Onion (Indian) kg Rs48
NGPL SCB SLBBL JSLBB NCCB
moderate losers
UNL
Indian mills are offering more for Nepali tea leaves due to its good flavour Tomato Small kg Rs45
-3.03% -2.81% -2.75% -2.39% -2.19% -2%
BIPLAV BHATTARAI Carrot kg Rs125
moderate gainers ILAM, AUG 5
Tomato Big kg Rs55
AMFI DHPL HDL MMFDB JEFL MSMBS The trend of exporting green tea
1.90% 1.90% 1.96% 1.99% 2% 2.30% leaves to India has not reduced Squash kg Rs65
despite proliferation of tea pro-
highest gainers cessing mills in the eastern hill Cabbage kg Rs55
ODBL KKHC NMBSF1 MLBL RMDC CEFL districts in the last few years. As a
result, local tea processing plants Brinjal Long kg Rs55
2.36% 2.77% 2.91% 3.76% 4.18% 9.82%
have not been able to get the
required amount of green tea
Cow Pea kg Rs85
leaves. According to traders, Cauliflower kg Rs75
organic green tea leaves are most-
Nepal Stock Exchange ly exported to mills like Okayti,
Singhadurbar Plaza, Kathmandu Fruits Unit Price (Rs)
August 05, 2018 Mirik and Charmile in the hills of
Darjeeling district in India. Apple kg Rs115
Trading Information Trading Price
From the Antu area alone, near-
SN Company Max Min Closing No Shares
ly a dozen of trucks export green
Pomegranate kg Rs190
1 Agriculture Dev Bank Ltd 328 325 328 3712
2 Api Power Co Ltd 271 266 271 4476 tea leaves to Darjeeling daily. Pineapple kg Rs105
3 Arambha Microfinance Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 646 646 646 10 Indian agents are mobilised to
4 Arun Kabeli Power Ltd 253 250 250 830 collect tea leaves and they set up
5 Arun Valley Hydropower Dev Co Ltd 141 138 141 2470 Cucumber kg Rs55
6 Asian Life Insurance Co Ltd 635 630 630 2427 tea collection centres in different
7 Bank of Kathmandu Ltd 263 255 260 8220 parts of Ilam. Papaya kg Rs85
8 Barun Hydropower Co Ltd 138 136 137 174
9 Bhargav Bikash Bank Ltd 127 126 127 347 In areas where transportation
10 Bottlers Nepal (Terai) Ltd 5401 5350 5401 220 facility is not available, tea leaves Banana Doz Rs95
11 Butwal Power Co Ltd 442 439 440 2079 are transported by mules, accord-
12 Central Finance Co Ltd 115 112 114 2517
13 Century Commercial Bank Ltd 168 166 168 10910 ing to traders. They said that Lime 100Pcs Rs225
14 Chhimek Laghubitta Bikas Bank Ltd 865 862 865 1468 Nepali tea farmers are paid high-
15 Chhyangdi Hydropower Ltd 128 125 126 209
16 Chilime Hydropower Co Ltd 743 733 742 5260 er for the organic green tea leaves
17 Citizen Bank International Ltd 233 229 231 13890 by the Indian mills as compared to n A general view of Mist Valley tea factory at Jitpur, Ilam. daily commodities
18 Citizen Investment Trust 2469 2431 2431 1084 local mills. In Suryadaya
19 Citizens Mutual Fund -1 8.97 8.97 8.97 500
20 City Express Finance Co Ltd 123 101 123 13227 Municipality, the floor price of ing capacity. Om Kafle, manager amount. Likewise, tea processing engaged in commercial tea farm- Commodities Unit Price (Rs)
21 Civil Bank Ltd 150 148 148 17727 green tea leaves has been set at Producer Manager of Ilam of the mills in Fikkal has also ing, out of which 5,598 farmers
22 Civil Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Ltd
23 Deprosc Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Ltd
725
715
725
701
725
701
198
300 Rs40 per kg. The Indian mills have Tea, said they have received 25,000 dropped by half due to unavaila- are based in Ilam. Pokhreli Rice kg Rs75
24 Deva Bikas Bank Ltd 128 127 128 2762 been offering Rs50 per kg. There kg less green tea leaves this bility of green tea. “Most of the Ilam, Jhapa, Dhankuta,
25 Dibyashwori Hydropower Ltd 107 103 107 172 are nearly half dozen tea mills in year as compared to last year’s mills are operating below capaci- Terhathum and Panchthar are Jeera Masino Rice kg Rs70
26 Everest Bank Ltd 670 663 663 11273
27 Everest Insurance Co Ltd 0 0 0 1 Antu area alone and a number of consignment. ty in the eastern hilly district,” main tea producing districts.
28 Excel Dev Bank Ltd 325 323 325 6002 small mills are in process to oper- Production of processed tea at said Deepak Pradhan, manager of According to National Tea and Indian Basmati Rice kg Rs120
29 First Micro Finance Dev Bank Ltd 503 500 500 1790
ate soon. two factories in Antu and Small Tea. Coffee Development Board, Nepal
30 Forward Community Microfinance Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 2120 2090 2119 397 Mansuli Rice kg Rs55
31 Gandaki Bikas Bank Ltd 195 191 194 6740 Farmers said that the Indian Panchakanya has dropped by The district has nearly two earned Rs3 billion from tea export
32 Garima Bikas Bank Ltd 184 182 183 1141 mills offer higher prices for 50,000 kg this season. The daily dozen of tea processing mills. In last year. Of the total production,
33 Global IME Bank Ltd 296 292 295 8898 Sona Rice kg Rs50
34 Global IME Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 1145 1142 1144 108 Nepali tea due to its good flavour. processing capacity of to tea mills the last few years, farmers 55 percent of CTC is exported to
35 Global IME Samunnat Scheme-1 8.60 8.53 8.60 4447 Ilam’s biggest tea factory Ilam in Ilam including Ilam Tea is have been opening small process- India while 90 percent of ortho- Beaten Rice(Taichin) kg Rs130
36 Goodwill Finance Co Ltd 123 123 123 1000 Tea has not been able to get dox and green tea is exported
37 Grameen Bikas Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 574 565 569 2950
15,000 kg. However, they have been ing mills.
38 Gurans Life Insurance Co Ltd 851 831 836 586 enough supply as per its process- processing only half of the A total of 9,236 farmers are mainly to the third countries. Beaten Rice kg Rs70
39 Gurkhas Finance Ltd 105 103 105 4127
40 Hathway Finance Co Ltd 127 127 127 120
41 Himalayan Bank Ltd 560 550 551 2008 Big Mas kg Rs110
42 Himalayan Distillery Ltd 1295 1295 1295 100
43 Himalayan General Insurance Co Ltd
44 Himalayan Power Partner Ltd
45 ICFC Finance Ltd
429
271
164
426
269
161
426
270
163
1650
260
1913
earning a living Small Mas kg Rs90
46 IME General Insurance Ltd 835 803 803 550 Big Mung kg Rs100
47 Jalabidyut Lagani tatha Bikas Co Ltd 164 160 162 10148
48 Janaki Finance Ltd 192 192 192 20 Musuro(No. 1) kg Rs100
49 Janata Bank Nepal Ltd 155 153 153 10954
50 Janautthan Samudayic Laghubitta Bikas Bank Ltd 2880 2850 2850 133
51 Jebils Finance Ltd 102 102 102 20 Musuro(No. 2) kg Rs90
52 Jyoti Bikas Bank Ltd 139 138 139 1111
53 Kabeli Bikas Bank Ltd 217 217 217 20
54 Kailash Bikas Bank Ltd 222 217 220 5890 Rahar kg Rs110
55 Kalika Microcredit Dev Bank Ltd 1300 1276 1276 35
56 Kamana Sewa Bikas Bank Ltd
57 Kankai Bikas Bank Ltd
143
127
140
127
143
127
7462
102
Chana(Big) kg Rs200
58 Khanikhola Hydropower Co Ltd 111 108 111 283
59 Kisan Microfinance Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 1569 1543 1550 81 Chana(Small) kg Rs150
60 Kumari Bank Ltd 200 197 200 6464
61 Laxmi Bank Ltd 249 245 249 1183
62 Laxmi Equity Fund 8.20 8.20 8.20 1000 Chilli Powder kg Rs300
63 Laxmi Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 1029 1029 1029 26
64 Laxmi Value Fund-1 10.20 10.03 10.03 26000
65 Life Insurance Co Nepal 1600 1580 1600 423
66 Lumbini Bikas Bank Ltd
67 Lumbini General Insurance Co Ltd
156
522
153
516
155
516
7466
977
gasoline watch
68 Machhapuchhre Bank Ltd 209 205 207 12315
69 Mahalaxmi Bikas Bank Ltd 193 188 193 7573
70 Mahila Sahayatra Microfinance Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 665 644 665 520
71 Mahuli Samudayik Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 2600 2475 2499 3050
72 Manjushree Finance Ltd 121 121 121 200
73 Mega Bank Nepal Ltd 165 161 164 17240
74 Mero Microfinance Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 1032 1005 1032 386
75 Mirmire LaghuBitta Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 1508 1460 1481 748
76 Miteri Dev Bank Ltd 279 275 276 567
77 Mithila LaghuBitta Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 910 890 907 355
78 Muktinath Bikas Bank Ltd 382 378 380 8154
79 Nabil Bank Ltd 907 900 905 6414
80 NABIL Bank Ltd Promotor Share 711 705 707 4530
81 Nabil Equity Fund 9 8.83 8.84 25630
82 NagBeli LaghuBitta Bikas Bank Ltd 1115 1115 1115 87
83 National Hydro Power Co Ltd 81 79 80 11870
84 National Life Insurance Co Ltd 776 762 762 170
85 National Microfinance Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 2165 2132 2133 174
86 Naya Nepal Laghubitta Bikas Bank Ltd 725 719 725 137
87 Neco Insurance Co Ltd 524 518 520 2444
88 Nepal Bangladesh Bank Ltd 208 205 205 6265
89 Nepal Bank Ltd 290 283 285 5980
90 Nepal Community Dev Bank Ltd 120 119 120 149
91 Nepal Credit And Commercial Bank Ltd 181 176 178 7646
92 Nepal Doorsanchar Comapany Ltd 729 720 729 1865
93 Nepal Hydro Developers Ltd 165 162 165 80
94 Nepal Insurance Co Ltd 553 543 543 1101
95 Nepal Investment Bank Ltd 625 619 625 6053 n Child vendors walk around the premises of Pashupatinath temple to sell cotton-candy in Kathmandu, on Saturday.  Post Photo: Anish Regmi
96 Nepal Investment Bank Ltd Promoter Share 560 549 549 7066
97 Nepal Life Insurance Co Ltd 1015 1006 1012 2126
98 Nepal SBI Bank Ltd 504 497 503 1980
99 Nerude Laghubita Bikas Bank Ltd 620 620 620 455
100 Ngadi Group Power Ltd 165 157 160 168 M E TA L S H O R TA G E
101 NIBL Pragati Fund 8 7.95 7.95 1982

Aluminum tariffs tap out

102 NIC Asia Bank Ltd 319 315 316 4436
103 NIC Asia Growth Fund 9.07 9.01 9.01 5500
104 Nirdhan Utthan Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 970 966 970 571
105 NLG Insurance Co Ltd 845 836 842 3267
106 NMB Microfinance Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 1505 1500 1500 218
107 NMB Bank Ltd 318 316 317 5941

Canada craft brewers

108 NMB Hybrid Fund L-1 9.26 9.10 9.10 4161
109 NMB Sulav Investment Fund-1 12.35 12 12.35 24600
110 Om Dev Bank Ltd 175 170 173 8508
111 Oriental Hotels Ltd 503 490 503 2635
112 Pokhara Finance Ltd 139 136 137 933 bullion Price Per tola
113 Prabhu Bank Ltd 186 182 183 9696
114 Prabhu Insurance Ltd 504 495 497 473
115 Premier Insurance Co Ltd 1058 1046 1048 2011
116 Prime Commercial Bank Ltd 290 285 290 6491 AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE producer, Beau’s Brewery in
117 Prime Life Insurance Co Ltd 519 514 514 437 OTTAWA, Aug 5 Vankleek Hill, Ontario, is also Fine Gold Rs56,000
118 ProgressiveFinance Ltd 112 108 108 4550
119 Prudential Insurance Co Ltd 745 730 733 3765 struggling to get can orders in on
120 Purnima Bikas Bank Ltd 170 170 170 96 Canadian craft brewers are fac- time, its chief financial officer
121 Radhi Bidyut Co Ltd 226 223 224 190
122 Rairang Hydropower Dev Co Ltd 157 153 154 1670 ing a sudden aluminum can Tania Beimers said. Silver Rs735
123 Rastriya Beema Co Ltd 10360 10356 10356 20 shortage and are blaming the The company added cans to
124 Reliance Finance Ltd 122 120 120 2861 supply disruptions on aluminum its offerings of bottled beers
125 Ridi Hydropower Dev Co Ltd 117 115 115 195 Source: FENEGOSIDA
126 RMDC Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 647 633 647 1136 tariffs, making these small busi- and kegs last year, and they
127 RSDC Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 534 519 520 1233 nesses among the first casualties now account for 30 percent of
128 Sagarmatha Insurance Co Ltd 1325 1310 1325 2017
of the Canada-US trade spat. its sales.
129 Sahayogi Bikas Bank Ltd
130 Samata Microfinance Bittiya Sanstha Ltd
202
1286
196
1280
196
1286
17646
376 “It’s a terrible time for brew- “The shortage and delivery Int’l market
131 Sana Kisan Bikas Bank Ltd 1100 1092 1100 764 ers,” Luke Harford, president of delays have created a lot of extra
132 Sanima Bank Ltd 318 315 315 8208 Energy Price (US$)%Change
133 Sanima Equity Fund 9.11 9.05 9.11 1000 industry association Beer work for us to ensure that we
134 Sanima Mai Hydropower Ltd 316 313 314 25784 Canada, told AFP, noting that have the supply of cans needed Brent Crude Futr (Bbl) 73.21 -0.33
135 Saptakoshi Dev Bank Ltd 116 114 116 891
136 Shangrila Dev Bank Ltd 146 144 145 10421 Canadian tax hikes on beer and to keep producing,” Beimers Gas Oil Fut (Ice) (Mt) 652.00 0.66
137 Shikhar Insurance Co Ltd 928 917 917 1091 new competition from the soon- said.
138 Shine Resunga Dev Bank Ltd 277 273 275 2632 to-be-legal recreational-use can- There are 817 brewing facili- Gasoline Rbob Fut (Gal) 206.55 -0.13
139 Shrijana Finance (Bittaya Sanstha) 270 270 270 145
140 Siddhartha Bank Ltd 301 296 300 6853 nabis in October will compound ties in Canada. Per capita beer Natural Gas Futr (Mmbtu) 2.85 1.31
141 Siddhartha Equity Fund 9.14 9.01 9.01 23000 brewers’ tariff woes. consumption was 75.5 litres
142 Siddhartha Equity Orineted Scheme 11.45 11.44 11.44 3000 Agriculture Price (US$)%Change
143 Siddhartha Insurance Ltd 660 659 660 150 Canada is the world’s third last year.
144 Soaltee Hotel Ltd 240 236 240 2551 largest aluminum producer, but Several companies contacted Cocoa Future (Mt) 2,114.00 -1.12
145 Standard Chartered Bank Ltd 749 726 726 5653 still imports more than 2 billion Canadian craft brewery beers at a liquor store in Ottawa.  by AFP said they were grudging-
146 Sunrise Bank Ltd 219 216 217 3107
n AFP/RSS Coffee ‘C’ Future (Lb) 107.75 0.98
147 Surya Life Insurance Co Ltd 558 552 552 2004 cans annually, mostly from the ly looking at other suppliers but Corn Future (Bu) 384.25 0.79
148 Suryodaya Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 1490 1436 1464 162 United States, according to the tariffs, soda pop companies that Ottawa said it has only enough Beimers said “there aren’t a ton
149 Swabalamban Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 1210 1200 1202 2590
government statistical agency. use significantly more cans cans to last until the end of the of suppliers for printed cans so Cotton No.2 Futr (Lb) 88.12 -0.80
150 Swadeshi Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 1640 1620 1630 604
151 Swarojgar Laghu Bitta Bikas Bank Ltd 760 740 740 1370 When Canada imposed retalia- than beer makers began stocking month, after his American sup- the options are limited.” Rough Rice (Cbot) (Cwt) 11.5 -1.16
152 Synergy Power Dev Ltd 117 115 115 235 tory tariffs on US aluminum up, leading to the current supply plier advised it would not be able Brewers facing a can crunch
153 Tinau Dev Bank Ltd 175 172 172 1587 Soybean Future (Bu) 902.25 0.53
154 Uniliver Nepal Ltd 24500 24500 24500 10 imports on July 1, brewers say shortage. to deliver its August shipment of have been urged to simply switch
Soybean Meal Futr (T) 331.8 -0.24
155 United Finance Ltd 168 168 168 200 they began receiving notices of The closure in January of a 160,000 cans. to bottles, “but it’s not that easy,”
156 United Modi Hydropower Ltd 170 162 170 684 price hikes and warnings of sup- Massachusetts plant owned by “We were told the shipment Meek said, explaining that most Soybean Oil Futr (Lb) 28.86 0.87
157 Unnati Micorfinance Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 1815 1800 1815 70
158 Vijaya laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 730 715 730 335 ply disruptions. Crown Holdings, a major can wouldn’t arrive and they don’t small brewers have either a can- Sugar #11 (World) (Lb) 10.85 2.46
159 Womi Microfinance Bittiya Sanstha Ltd 1308 1303 1308 245 This comes as demand for beer supplier to microbrewers, had know when we’ll get it,” he said. ning or a bottling line. Setting up
160 World Merchant Banking & Finance Ltd 96 96 96 90 Wheat Future(Cbt) (Bu) 579.75 -0.51
cans is rising in North America also tightened supplies prior to “If we run out of cans, which a new line costs upwards of
Total Traded Amount Rs.: 167,049,684 Sub-Indices Current Pts Change %Change to meet changing consumer the tariffs war. are now more than 50 percent of Can$300,000 and can’t be set up Industrial Metals Price (US$) %Change
Total Traded Shares: 597,597 Banking 1,014.30 3.51 0.34 tastes. In Canada, beer can sales Can manufacturers are now our sales, it’s going to be a bad, overnight.
Total Transactions: 2,989 Hotels 1,812.69 4.24 0.23 Copper Future (Lb) 276.35 0.95
rose 4.3 percent while bottle sales racing to boost production but bad year.” Harford predicts the 10 per-
Dev Bank 1,424.78 11.17 0.79 fell 10.7 percent in 2017, accord- many craft brewers “working Alberta province’s GP cent tariff imposed by both
Index Current Pts Change %Change Precious Metals Price (US$)%Change
NEPSE 1,189.88 1.43 0.12 HydroPower 1,425.28 5.65 0.39
Finance 607.13 0.97 0.16
ing to official data. hand to mouth will suffer in the Brewing Company suspended Canada and the United States on
Sensitive 250.97 0.18 0.07 Gold 100 Oz Futr (T Oz) 1,223.20 0.25
Float 85.44 0.12 0.14 Non Life Insura 5,819.13 30.92 0.53 Harford explained that when interim,” Harford said. production for two weeks in July aluminum will cost the domestic
Canada announced a month in Paul Meek, owner of citing a shortage of cans. brewing industry an additional Silver Future (T Oz) 15.46 0.50
Base: 16/07/2006, (Adjusted on 10/04/2007) = 100 advance that it would impose the Kichesippi Beer Company in Canada’s largest organic beer Can$10.5 million this year.

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