LONDON (Reuters) &#8211; Shoppers in England were ordered to wear face coverings for the first time on Friday as new rules came into force, albeit with the government relying on customers’ common sense to stick to the policy rather than active policing.A woman wears a protective mask next to a sign urging to wear face coverings at a store, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in London, Britain July 24, 2020. REUTERS/Simon Dawson



The requirement, announced on July 13, marks the latest step in Britain’s slow acceptance of the benefits of face coverings in preventing the spread of COVID-19.



“I don’t like them, but if it keeps people safe you’ve got to do it,” said retiree Michael James, wearing a black face covering.



“I can’t understand how I didn’t have to wear one yesterday and I have to today. What’s the difference in the two days? But, yeah, if it cuts it down, anything.”



Some retailers, including supermarkets and coffee shop chains, said they supported the rules and would ask customers to abide by them, but it would not be up to staff to enforce them.



The move comes as deaths and new cases drop and the government encourages people back to work.



Asked how the rules should work, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “We should rely on the massive common sense of the British people&#8230; The people understand the value of face masks in confined spaces.”



Police can fine shoppers 100 pounds ($127) if they refuse to wear a mask, but the Police Federation of England and Wales, which represents rank and file officers, said enforcement should be a last resort.



“I’ve been into the supermarket this morning. There were some people wearing masks and some people not wearing masks. I was,” said former teacher Helen Curran.



Britons were initially told there was no compelling evidence masks helped to stop spread the virus, but that position has gradually been reversed, first with a requirement to wear them on public transport, and now in shops.

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England’s shoppers ordered to wear face coverings

(Reuters) &#8211; South Africa’s MTN Group (<a href="https://www.reuters.com/companies/MTNJ.J">MTNJ.J</a>) expects first-half sales to double, beating analyst estimates, the company said on Friday, sending its shares up more than 7%.



The telecoms sector has experienced a spike in network data traffic as millions of South Africans were forced to work and entertain themselves from home after the government imposed a lockdown from the end of March to curb the spread of the new coronavirus.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="275" height="183" src="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/mtn.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-376942"/></figure>



However, the country’s largest mobile operator by subscribers also benefited from foreign-exchange gains, it said without elaborating.



The group estimates headline earnings per share (HEPS), which strips out certain one-off items and is the main profit measure in South Africa, to be up at least 195 cents at more than 390 cents for the six months to June 30, against analyst expectation for HEPS of 271 cents.



Shares in the company jumped 7.7% to 64.49 rand by 0801 GMT, on course for their highest daily gain in three weeks.



“The market was very worried about the slightly high levels of debt at MTN and potentially the impact of the coronavirus, but it looks like they are tracking well ahead of the numbers that we were expecting,” said Nadim Mohamed, a partner at First Avenue Investment Management.



Taking into account a price-to-earnings ratio of less than 8 times, with a strong dividend, the stock is potentially undervalued, he added.



The company, which reports results on Aug. 6, also said it expects an increase of at least 140% in first-half earnings per share, which include gains on the disposal of the ATC Uganda and ATC Ghana tower joint ventures.



Rival Vodacom Group (<a href="https://www.reuters.com/companies/VODJ.J">VODJ.J</a>) on Thursday reported a 7.6% rise in first-quarter group service revenue, buoyed by strong demand for voice, data and financial services in South Africa during the lockdown.

South Africa’s MTN buoyed by expected leap in first-half earnings

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) &#8211; Sub-Saharan Africa’s economy will contract this year after shutdowns disrupted activity and as daily cases of coronavirus are still rising in the region but a recovery is expected next year, a Reuters poll found on Friday.



Following months of lockdowns which have muted economic activity a Reuters poll taken in the past week suggested the region will contract 3.1% this year but bounce back to around 3.5% growth in 2021.



Some countries have begun relaxing restrictions but virus cases are still increasing, unlike in many developed countries that have started to show signs of recovery, so the uncertainty meant the range of forecasts for next year was wide &#8211; between flatlining and 4.8% growth.



South Africa has reported the most cases in Africa, partly reflecting more widespread testing, and it is harder to gauge the full extent of outbreaks elsewhere although there are no signs numbers are falling.



“Growth downgrades dominate in a region where external and fiscal buffers were already substantially eroded. The impact of COVID-19 will reduce growth even further,” Standard Chartered wrote in a note.



Nigeria, Africa’s biggest economy, was expected to contract 3.7% this year but bounce back to 2.0% growth next year.



Continental peer South Africa was expected to grow 3.5% next year following an 8.0% contraction this year, a Reuters poll showed last week. 



However, Ghana, one of the continents oil exporters, was still expected to grow, expanding 1.9% this year and 4.2% in 2021.



“Despite the obvious downside risks from lower oil prices and headwinds from COVID-19, we believe Ghana has a decent growth outlook and reasonably comfortable external sector metrics relative to other African oil exporters,” said Michael Kafe, economist at Barclays.



“The fallout from COVID-19 and associated lockdown means GDP growth is likely to be weak this year. However, unlike other African oil exporters such as Angola, Gabon and Nigeria, where GDP growth is likely to contract this year, we expect Ghana to post positive GDP growth.”



Kenya &#8211; east Africa’s biggest economy &#8211; was expected to have a lacklustre performance this year with no growth, a poor outcome having averaged around 6% annual growth in the past decade.

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Sub-Saharan Africa GDP to contract 3.1% this year

KAMPALA (Reuters) &#8211; The sale of a 20% equity stake in MTN Uganda, the East African nation’s biggest telecoms operator, will be restricted to citizens of the East African Community trading bloc, a spokesman for the sector regulator told Reuters on Friday.

Sale of 20% stake in MTN Uganda to be restricted to East Africans – regulator

NAIROBI (Reuters) &#8211; Tanzania’s former President Benjamin Mkapa, who ushered in multiparty democracy at home and worked to end conflict in East Africa, died in the early hours of Friday, President John Magufuli said.



Mkapa led several regional peace mediation initiatives as his country’s third president between 1995 and 2005, and afterwards continued to seek reconciliation in Burundi, Kenya, Democratic Republic of Congo and the Great Lakes region.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="683" height="1024" src="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Benjamin_William_Mkapa-683x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-376927" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Benjamin_William_Mkapa-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Benjamin_William_Mkapa-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Benjamin_William_Mkapa-533x800.jpg 533w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Benjamin_William_Mkapa-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Benjamin_William_Mkapa-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Benjamin_William_Mkapa-scaled.jpg 1365w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Benjamin_William_Mkapa-696x1044.jpg 696w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Benjamin_William_Mkapa-1068x1602.jpg 1068w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Benjamin_William_Mkapa-600x900.jpg 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px" /></figure>



He died while receiving treatment at a hospital in Dar es Salaam, Magufuli said in a statement, without elaborating.



“In Kenya we retain fond memories of his mediation efforts,” said former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.



“(He) helped the country return to peace after the 2007-2008 election violence,” Odinga said, referring to a period in Kenya when 1,200 people were killed in ethnic clashes resulting from a presidential vote whose outcome Odinga disputed.



“A statesman particularly remembered as an indefatigable peacemaker in the East African region,” said the African Union Commission Chair Moussa Faki Mahamat.



Magufuli declared a seven day mourning period, during which all flags will be flown at half-mast.



“I am saddened by the death of our elder Benjamin Mkapa,” Magufuli said in a tweet. “I will remember him for his love of country &#8230; hard work and effort in building the economy. The nation has lost a strong figure.”



Mkapa, 81, a former journalist, also served as an ambassador, foreign minister and leading official of the ruling CCM party.



Mkapa was first elected president in 1995 in Tanzania’s first multi-party elections and oversaw macroeconomic reforms that helped stabilise a struggling economy and secured debt relief from foreign donors.



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Former president of Tanzania Benjamin Mkapa is dead.

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) &#8211; South African department stores chain Woolworths Holdings flagged a small fall in annual sales after its non-food stores were shut in the second-half of its financial year due to COVID-19 lockdowns.



Even before the global health crisis, South African brick-and-mortar retailers were struggling with weak consumer spending amid slowing wages growth, high utility costs and high unemployment. The pandemic has compounded these problems.



Woolworths, which also operates in Australia, said group sales for the 52 weeks ended June 28 fell 0.1% compared with a year earlier. In constant currency terms, sales declined 1.1%.



The sales performance for the second half was hit also by a drop in customer numbers as they limited trips to malls and shopping centres, with some opting just to shop online.



This pushed online food sales for the South Africa business up by 87.8%, while Woolworths Fashion, Beauty and Home online sales grew by 41.3% during the second half.



For the full year, Woolworths food sales jumped 10.7% while fashion, beauty and home sales declined 10.7 as shoppers prioritised essentials.



“To stimulate trade and manage inventory levels throughout this period, management executed a series of focused promotional and clearance initiatives targeted at generating and preserving cash,” the firm said in its trading update.



“While this negatively impacted gross profit margin, it has resulted in better inventory levels and an improved working capital and net gearing position at year-end.”



In Australasia, sales in upmarket department store David Jones fell 6.3% over the year, while sales in Country Road Group declined 14.3%. Online turnover in both businesses jumped 100.7% and 28.1% respectively in the second half.



South Africa’s retail sales plunged by a record 50.4% in April and by 12% in May, data showed on Wednesday, in the latest evidence of the impact of the early, stricter phase of the country’s coronavirus lockdown.

Woolworths

South Africa’s Woolworths sees annual sales dip as COVID-19 hits

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa’s rand weakened early on Friday after the central bank cut interest rates on Thursday and signalled it may have reached the end of its easing cycle.



At 0645 GMT the rand was up 0.03% to 16.6700 per dollar, after falling to 16.7350 overnight, its weakest in four sessions — missing a brief emerging-market advance that had seen most risk currencies climb.



The central bank’s five-member monetary policy committee on Thursday voted three to two for a 25-basis-point rate cut to a record low of 3.50%. The rate cut had been expected. 



Analysts said steadier rates in the final half of the could see the rand add to its recovery, with excess liquidity from stimulus programs in developed markets favouring risk assets.



In the current sessions, investor attention turned back to global issues, foremost among them tension between China and the United States.



“Relatively riskier assets, including the rand, are trading defensively as market sentiment deteriorated even further overnight due to an escalation of US-Sino tensions,” said economists at ETM Analytics in a note.



On Thursday, China ordered the United States to shut its Chengdu consulate, in retaliation for the closure of a Chinese consulate in Texas, in a tit-for-tat battle that may have implications for global trade and a growth recovery.



Bonds were weaker in early trade, with the yield on the benchmark 2030 government issue up 7.5 basis points to 9.195%.

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South Africa’s rand weaker after central bank rate cut

DAR ES SALAAM (Reuters) &#8211; Tanzania’s former President Benjamin Mkapa, who served from 1995 to 2005, died in the early hours of Friday, President John Magufuli said in a statement.



Mkapa, the East African nation’s third president who led several regional peace mediation efforts in office and afterwards, died while receiving treatment at a hospital in Dar es Salaam, Magufuli said, without giving more details.



He declared a seven day mourning period, during which all flags will be flown at half-mast.



“Magufuli asks all Tanzanians to remain calm, patient and united during this difficult time,” a statement from his office said.



Mkapa, 81, also served as an ambassador, minister and key official of the ruling CCM party, Magufuli said.

Tanzania’s former president Benjamin Mkapa dies, presidency says

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa’s government may temporarily ban lenders from blacklisting consumers whose credit records have been hit by the coronavirus crisis, a consultation document published by the main opposition party showed.



The Department of Trade (DTI) document said it was considering banning blacklisting and ordering the removal of any adverse information on consumers’ profiles, until Sept. 30 or when a national state of disaster ends, whichever comes first.



“The regulations are aimed at assisting all consumers who are negatively affected by the national state of disaster &#8230; and subsequently have had their credit records deteriorating,” said the document, published by the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA).



The changes would be backdated to April 1, the document said, giving lenders until July 24 to submit written responses.



“Government will carefully consider any proposals &#8230; and will take all views into account before making a decision,” the DTI said, adding Trade Minister Ebrahim Patel would not consider the draft document until the consultation was complete.



The DA said the changes would hit banks’ lending appetite, pushing up the cost of credit, and allow already indebted South Africans to rack up further borrowings.



Separately, Standard Bank (<a href="https://www.reuters.com/companies/SBKJ.J">SBKJ.J</a>) and Investec (<a href="https://www.reuters.com/companies/INVP.L">INVP.L</a>) (<a href="https://www.reuters.com/companies/INLJ.J">INLJ.J</a>) have started offering government-backed coronavirus loans under adjusted terms to allow more firms to access funds, their websites showed, including removing a cap on turnover.



Lenders and the government have been looking to boost take-up of an up to 200 billion rand ($12.17 billion) government scheme to drive lending to coronavirus-hit businesses. Only 10.6 billion rand had been paid out by July 7.



Standard Bank confirmed customers could now access the loans under adjusted terms but had no further comment. Investec and other major banks had no immediate comment.

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South Africa may stop lenders blacklisting borrowers during pandemic

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa witnessed some 17,000 extra deaths from natural causes or 59% more than would normally be expected between early May and mid-July, scientists said, suggesting many more people are dying of COVID-19 than shown in official figures



New data by the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC), released overnight, showed that just in the week to July 14 &#8211; the latest figures available &#8211; there was an excess of 5,022 deaths by natural causes, about half more than usual.



Africa’s most industrialised nation is in the middle of a runaway epidemic of the coronavirus, with cases increasing by more than 10,000 day and the current total approaching 400,000.



But its recorded death toll is low, at 5,940 deaths or less than 1.5 percent of cases.



Debbie Bradshaw, chief specialist scientist at the government-funded research council, said the figures revealed “a huge discrepancy” between the confirmed COVID-19 death toll and the excess natural deaths.



Richard Lessells, an infectious disease specialist at the KwaZulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform in eastern South Africa, said the figures were not surprising because the same pattern could be seen in other countries.



It could partly reflect other knock-on effects in the health system, such as “if I have a stroke at home and my family decide they don’t want to take me to hospital because it’s too risky and I die at home.”



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">LOCKDOWN EASED BEFORE PEAK</h3>



President Cyril Ramaphosa implemented a tough lockdown at the end of March, shutting shops, ordering people to stay home and sending the army on to the streets to enforce it, back when South Africa had only 400 recorded cases.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="760" height="382" src="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/CR-lockdown.png" alt="Ramaphosa tests negative for coronavirus as South Africa to begin lockdown" class="wp-image-365190" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/CR-lockdown.png 760w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/CR-lockdown-300x151.png 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/CR-lockdown-696x350.png 696w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 760px) 100vw, 760px" /><figcaption>Ramaphosa tests negative for coronavirus as South Africa to begin lockdown</figcaption></figure>



But a surge in poverty and unemployment in a country that already had too much of both spurred the government to lift restrictions well before the peak of infections.



The council’s data showed 17,090 extra deaths, 11,175 were people over the age of 60, a telltale sign of COVID-19, which is overwhelmingly more deadly for older people.



Addressing parliament by teleconference on Thursday, Health Minister Zweli Mkhize acknowledged the SAMRC figures, adding that they were “comparable to countries like India and Russia, but significantly lower than the UK or Spain.”



Ramaphosa said this month that scientists had predicted up to 50,000 coronavirus deaths in South Africa, a figure which seems possible based on Thursday’s findings by the council.

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South Africa 59% excess deaths imply hidden COVID-19 toll

(Reuters) &#8211; Billionaire Elon Musk’s SpaceX is looking to raise new capital at a valuation of about $44 billion, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" src="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/GettyImages-1175368064-1110x740.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-361863"/><figcaption>SpaceX Chief Engineer Elon Musk speaks in front of Crew Dragon cleanroom at SpaceX Headquarters in Hawthorne, California on October 10, 2019. (Photo by Yichuan Cao/NurPhoto via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



The company is in talks with investors for raising about $1 billion at a price of $270 a share, the report said, adding that the round is unlikely to be completed within the next couple months and terms could change. (<a href="https://bloom.bg/32M8h2v">bloom.bg/32M8h2v</a>)



SpaceX did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.



SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule delivered NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley to the International Space Station in May, marking the first U.S. space capsule to do so with a crew since 2011.



The private rocket company also raised $346.2 million in May at a valuation of about $36 billion.



Musk is also the chief executive officer of electric carmaker Tesla Inc (<a href="https://www.reuters.com/companies/TSLA.O">TSLA.O</a>).



Tesla on Wednesday posted a profit for four straight quarters, a condition for it to be considered for the stock index of the largest U.S. companies.

Billionaire Elon Musk: I am not Warren Buffett’s biggest fan

Billionaire Elon Musk: I am not Warren Buffett’s biggest fan. gettyimages-1155740300-594×594

African born Elon Musk’s SpaceX in talks to raise funds at $44 billion valuation: Bloomberg News

Millions of children will stay home tomorrow as South Africa will lock down its public schools once again- for four weeks this time &#8211; as COVID-19 cases rocket.Many of the public schools had reopened their doors merely days ago, despite concerns from parents and unions that this may spread the disease. The government also pledged to extend the academic year beyond 2020 to help children cash up with their studies. 



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="397" height="594" src="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/gettyimages-1006175054-594x594-1.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-374814" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/gettyimages-1006175054-594x594-1.jpg 397w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/gettyimages-1006175054-594x594-1-201x300.jpg 201w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 397px) 100vw, 397px" /><figcaption>South African President Cyril Ramaphosa addresses a media conference at the end of the BRICS Summit in Johannesburg on July 27, 2018, as the heads of the BRICS group &#8212; Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa &#8212; met in Johannesburg for an annual summit dominated by the risk of a US-led trade war. &#8211; Five of the biggest emerging economies on July 26, stood by the multilateral system and vowed to strengthen economic cooperation in the face of US tariff threats and unilateralism. (Photo by Themba Hadebe / POOL / AFP) (Photo credit should read THEMBA HADEBE/AFP via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



South Africa has the fifth highest number of cases in the world and more than half of the continent&#8217;cases, he said. The country needed to be vigilant and strict in taking precautions against disease, President Cyril Ramaphosa said in his address to the nation.



&#8220;An impediment to learning will damage an entire generation,&#8221; says President Ramaphosa. he said this was taken into consideration in making the decision. 



There have been calls to close schools from many groups. The government has met with 16 bodies representing everyone from teachers to parents. 



&#8220;What everyone does agree on though it that health must remain out main concern,&#8221; he sad



&#8220;All public schools should take a break for the next four eweeks. This has been expeienced in other countries schools have opened and had to be closed. This means schools will close July 27 and reopen on August 24.&#8221;



&#8220;The current academic year will be extended beyond 2020. Details of this will be announced soon. We have taken a deliberately cautious approach.&#8221; 



Many public schools reopened just over a week ago, amid sanitising and social distance rules. Many schools reported COVID-19 cases among their pupils.

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COVID -19: South Africa public Schools to close for four weeks – Ramaphosa

WASHINGTON (Reuters) &#8211; The International Monetary Fund confirmed on Thursday that South Africa has requested emergency financing assistance and its executive board will consider the request on Monday, which would bring to 72 the number of countries receiving IMF aid to deal with the coronavirus pandemic.



“They’ve requested this assistance to help them address urgent balance of payments needs arising from this external shock that the pandemic has given to so many countries,” IMF spokesman Gerry Rice told a regular news briefing. “As always, our board will make the decision on the approval and on the amount.”

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IMF board to consider South Africa financing aid on Monday-spokesman

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa’s central bank cut its main lending rate by a further 25 basis points on Thursday, to a new record low of 3.50%, as the COVID-19 pandemic strangles the economy and keeps a lid on inflation.



The decision comes on top of 275 bps of rate cuts earlier this year and was in line with the prediction of 13 of 28 economists in a recent Reuters poll.



“The (monetary policy) committee notes that the economic contraction and slow recovery will keep inflation well below the midpoint of the target range for this year,” Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago told a news conference.



“Inflation is expected to be well contained over the medium-term, remaining close to the midpoint in 2021 and 2022.”



The central bank met after data last week showed that consumer inflation fell to 2.1% year on year in May, its lowest in more than 15 years, from 3.0% in April.



That is below the bank’s target range of 3% to 6%.



The central bank now expects gross domestic product to contract 7.3% in 2020, versus an earlier prediction for a 7.0% contraction.



South Africa has recorded the most coronavirus cases in Africa, with total infections just shy of 400,000 and rising by more than 10,000 a day in recent days.

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South Africa cuts rates further as COVID-19 strangles economy

(Reuters) &#8211; Here’s what you need to know about the coronavirus right now:



South Africa’s 59% excess deaths imply hidden COVID-19 toll



South Africa witnessed some 17,000 extra deaths from natural causes, or 59% more than would normally be expected, between early May and mid-July, scientists said, suggesting many more people are dying of COVID-19 than shown in official figures.



New data by the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC), released overnight, showed that just in the week to July 14 &#8211; the latest figures available &#8211; there was an excess of 5,022 deaths by natural causes, about half more than usual.



Africa’s most industrialised nation is in the middle of a runaway epidemic of the coronavirus, with cases increasing by more than 10,000 a day and the current total just shy of 400,000. But its recorded death toll has so far been low, at 5,940 deaths, or less than 1.5% of cases.



U.S. Senate Republicans, White House cite early progress on coronavirus aid bill



Leading U.S. Senate Republicans and the White House said late on Wednesday they had hammered out agreements in principle on portions of a potential coronavirus-response bill, which could be presented to Democrats as early as this week as lawmakers race to pass legislation by the end of July.



Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told reporters there was an agreement on sending another round of direct-payment checks to Americans to help them get through economic woes created by the worsening pandemic.



Mnuchin, however, would not provide details on the amount of money individuals and families might receive, or qualifications for getting the checks under this Republican-crafted plan.



Siemens to roll out flexible working app for 100,000 staff



Siemens is rolling out its Comfy mobile phone app to hundreds of its offices around the world to help staff safely return to the office after the coronavirus shutdown.



More than 100,000 staff in 30 countries will get access to the app, which gives data on occupancy levels and updates on the local COVID-19 situation so they can comply with physical distancing regulations.



Staff worried about COVID-19 infections among fellow workers can also use a contact-tracing feature on the app created under a partnership with U.S. software developer Salesforce.



COVID-induced khat shortage adds to Somalia’s health woes



In sweltering Mogadishu, Sharif Ahmed, 22, tried to attack relatives and neighbours, resulting in an emergency trip to a psychiatric hospital in handcuffs. He is suffering withdrawal from the narcotic leaf khat.



Somalia shut down flights in late March to curb the spread of the new coronavirus, meaning the drug could no longer be imported by air from Kenya. That affected users, causing some to go for long periods without sleep.



The price of khat surged when the flights were stopped, putting it out of reach for most users and straining resources at Mogadishu’s Habeeb Psychiatric Emergency Hospital.



“Out of the total number of patients we have, half of them are addicted to the drug,” said Abdirashid Abdulahi, a doctor at the hospital, referring to the 40 patients under his care.



Reducing Corporate America’s real-estate footprint



A Reuters analysis of quarterly earnings calls over the past week revealed more than 25 large U.S. companies planned to downsize their office space in the year ahead, moves designed to reduce the second-largest expense after payrolls at corporations.



Reductions in office spending could likely be followed by layoffs and investments in technology that should help improve productivity, said Bill McMahon, chief investment officer of active equity strategies at Charles Schwab.



While companies tend to cut back on their real estate needs during typical recessions, the last four months of economic lockdown have shown many workers can remain productive at home, said Danny Ismail, an analyst at independent research firm Green Street Advisors. As a result, the cutbacks that companies are making are more likely to be permanent, he added.

Clarification on COVID-19 “hotspots” as SA moves to level 3 lockdown

What you need to know about the coronavirus right now

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) &#8211; Twitter Inc (<a href="https://www.reuters.com/companies/TWTR.N">TWTR.N</a>) on Thursday reported its highest-ever yearly growth of daily users who can view ads, beating analysts’ estimates on usage and sending its shares up 4%.



Twitter’s average monetizable daily active users (mDAU) increased 34% year over year to 186 million, above analysts’ estimate of 176 million, in a rise it said was primarily driven by external factors such as shelter-in-place requirements and increased conversation around the COVID-19 pandemic.



But the company missed Wall Street’s lowered expectations for quarterly revenue, as the coronavirus-spurred economic slowdown battered the company’s largely events-oriented digital ads business.





Ad sales, which make up 82% of Twitter’s revenue, sank 23% to $562 million, a drop the company attributed to brand spending pauses tied to the pandemic and U.S. civil unrest. Analysts had expected $585 million, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.



Chief Executive Jack Dorsey opened a conference call with analysts by apologizing for the hack that compromised the accounts of high-profile users last week, saying “we feel terrible.” In a statement, Dorsey said Twitter had taken steps to improve its security and “resiliency against targeted social engineering attempts.”



Total revenue came in at $683 million, down 19% year-over-year, helped by steadier sales growth from the licensing of users’ posts to researchers and marketers.



Twitter has struggled to build out its ad offerings, leaving it reliant on a suite of promotional tools geared toward advertising around big events and product launches, which have all but vanished during the pandemic.



The company said it finished rebuilding its ad management technology in the second quarter, which would support faster development of new formats going forward, and was rolling out measurement tools for “direct response” ads used by app developers.



On the conference call, Chief Financial Officer Ned Segal declined to give details about the impact of a July social media advertising boycott that was intially focused on Facebook (<a href="https://www.reuters.com/companies/FB.O">FB.O</a>) but spread to other platforms. Dorsey said Twitter’s actions to protect conversations on the platform were being noted by advertisers.



Twitter also said it was exploring “subscriptions and other approaches to complement our advertising business,” such as commerce, though it was not expecting any revenue to result this year Dorsey said on the call that the company would have a “really high bar for when we would ask consumers to pay for aspects of Twitter.”



The company reported a second-quarter loss of $1.2 billion, largely driven by the reversal of a tax benefit established last year, when the company transferred intellectual property to Ireland. Because of the second quarter’s steep coronavirus-related losses, Twitter did not make enough money to take advantage of the tax benefit.



Adjusted to exclude the tax considerations, the company incurred a loss of $127 million, or 16 cents per share, roughly in line with analyst expectations of a $125 million loss. It had an adjusted profit last year of $37 million.



Echoing earlier guidance, Twitter said it expects data licensing revenue to “moderate” for the rest of the year.



Costs and expenses grew 5% to $807 million, below the increase in the low teens that Twitter had forecast. The company said it anticipated expense growth of 10% or more in the third quarter.



Social media rival Snap Inc (<a href="https://www.reuters.com/companies/SNAP.N">SNAP.N</a>) missed user growth estimates earlier this week, as its usage bump from coronavirus lockdowns petered out sooner than expected, but it beat targets for revenue gains.

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Wall Street retweets: Twitter shares rise on record yearly growth in daily users

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa’s Sasol said on Thursday a unit damaged by fire at its Lake Charles Chemical Project (LCCP) should reach meaningful output by October, a month later than previous guidance.



Even before a fire earlier this year, the Louisiana plant, which converts natural gas into plastics ingredient ethylene, had been hit by delays and cost overruns that led to the company’s joint CEOs stepping down last October.



On Thursday, the world’s top producer of motor fuel from coal said work at the last unit to be repaired from fire damage had experienced “some challenges” and meaningful output was delayed from previous guidance of September.



Six downstream chemical units at the 1.5 million ton per year ethane cracker feed into each other, and can only produce commercially viable output once a meaningful level of production is achieved.



Sasol, which is in talks for a potential partner at its U.S. Base Chemicals assets, said project expenditure is currently $12.7 billion.



Shares in Sasol fell 2.43% to 138.55 rand by 0730 GMT as dampened global fuel demand, concerns about the LCCP project and lower than expect output weighed.



“They are just reminding the market that they have some execution risk with Lake Charles,” Cratos Capital equities trader Greg Davies said.



Also on Thursday, Sasol gave its sales and production update for the year to June.



Saleable production from its mining business was flat at 36.1 million tonnes versus a year earlier.



Sales of liquid fuels and natural gas fell by 12% and 8% respectively following lower demand because of lockdown restrictions.



Total sales volumes at its performance chemicals business rose 8% compared to the prior year.



Sasol said the novel coronavirus had also impacted production at its organic chemicals operations in Terranova, Italy, and its Nanjing surfactant producing plant in China. Both were both temporarily shut during the third quarter.



Sasol has recorded 774 coronavirus infections, most of which have been in South Africa where two employees have died.

South Africa’s Sasol cuts production, sales target due to COVID-19 lockdown

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England’s shoppers ordered to wear face coverings

South Africa’s MTN buoyed by expected leap in first-half earnings

Sub-Saharan Africa GDP to contract 3.1% this year

Sale of 20% stake in MTN Uganda to be restricted to East Africans – regulator

Former president of Tanzania Benjamin Mkapa is dead.

South Africa’s Woolworths sees annual sales dip as COVID-19 hits

South Africa’s rand weaker after central bank rate cut

Tanzania’s former president Benjamin Mkapa dies, presidency says

South Africa may stop lenders blacklisting borrowers during pandemic

South Africa 59% excess deaths imply hidden COVID-19 toll

African born Elon Musk’s SpaceX in talks to raise funds at $44 billion valuation: Bloomberg News

COVID -19: South Africa public Schools to close for four weeks – Ramaphosa

IMF board to consider South Africa financing aid on Monday-spokesman

South Africa cuts rates further as COVID-19 strangles economy

What you need to know about the coronavirus right now

Wall Street retweets: Twitter shares rise on record yearly growth in daily users

Sasol expects delay in last unit in U.S. project to come onstream

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