timesofmalta.com

RS2 equity gains for third time this week

Edward Rizzo — Thu, 23 May 2013 15:33:00 +0200

The share price of RS2 Software plc extended its recent positive trend with the third increase during the last four sessions of this week. The IT equity gained a further 1.4 per cent to yet another all-time high of €1.13 across two trades totalling 26,600 shares. The licence sales concluded last year and the commencement of the first managed services contract earlier this year coupled with the prospects of other potential licence sales as well as the interest by a new investor to acquire at least 10 per cent of the company helped the equity climb by 62.4 per cent since the start of 2013. Shallow trading activity was evident elsewhere in the local market with Bank of Valletta plc rebounding by 1.1 per cent to regain the €2.23,5 level on volumes of almost 6,300 shares. Meanwhile, HSBC Bank Malta plc eased 0.8 per cent to the €2.63 level across two deals totalling 4,900 shares. This afternoon, the Bank announced that it will publish its half-year results on August 5. In the hotel sector, International Hotel Investments plc maintained the 87c5 level on a small deal of 500 shares. IHI held its annual general meeting this morning and the Chairman reiterated the commitment to dispose of...

European Commission proposes upgrade for 319 key seaports

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:10:00 +0200

The European Commission yesterday launched a new initiative to improve port operations and onward transport connections at 319 key seaports along Europe’s coastline. The Commission said that the guidelines and legal changes being proposed will help port operators upgrade their services and facilities and give them more financial autonomy. Seventy four per cent of the goods entering or leaving Europe go by sea, but one-fifth of that amount currently passes through just three ports: Rotterdam, Hamburg and Antwerp. This imbalance between port performance results in congestion and extra costs for shippers, transport operators and consumers. The new proposals could save the European economy up to €10 billion by 2030 and help develop new short sea links. Vice-president Siim Kallas, European Commissioner for Mobility and Transport, said: “Our seaports are vital gateways, linking our transport corridors to the rest of the world. We already have some of the finest port facilities in the world. We need to keep them. But we are facing major challenges in terms of congestion, traffic growth and investment. More of our ports need to reach these high standards. The proposals today will bring...

Businesses with effective indirect tax management remain a minority – KPMG

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:09:00 +0200

Businesses are not still prepared to deal with the people, process and technology needs that are essential to indirect taxes, according to the third annual edition of KPMG’s Benchmark Survey on VAT/GST (goods and services tax). The survey shows that 64 per cent of respondents do not have a global head of VAT/GST and there has been no obvious commensurate increase in headcount either at a global, regional or local level in the last year. Moreover, the respondents are responsible to accomplish more with less with 21 per cent (26 per cent in 2012) not having any full-time VAT/GST employees. Many chief financial officers continue to view the effectiveness of their tax department through the lens of corporate tax with insufficient focus on VAT/GST. Eighty three per cent of all respondents (versus 77 per cent in 2012) do not have VAT/GST performance goals visible and meaningful to the CFO. Now, with increasing government focus on taxes calculated on consumption rather than profits, CFOs should consider how their businesses are managing this real-time tax. KPMG said that “on the positive side” there is a slight shift towards tax departments taking stronger ownership and accountability...

BoV raises profile of its strategic arm

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:08:00 +0200

Bank of Valletta yesterday announced that its strategic management is being given a more coherent structure with the setting up of a dedicated unit to be headed by one of its senior staff members, chief officer Joseph Camilleri. The Strategy and Process Management Department will be responsible for the execution of the strategies approved by the board of directors as well as their periodic updating for the purpose of ascertaining efficient and effective business processes. “The department will provide a crucial link between the strategies outlined by the board and their implementation by the Bank’s team of executives. Mr Camilleri’s broad experience with the bank – particularly his time in IT, human resources and wealth management – will enable him to take a macro view of all the bank’s processes and ensure that these reflect the bank’s commitment to innovation and customer-centricity,” chairman John Cassar White said. Mr Camilleri’s current role as chief officer for human resources will be assumed by Anthony Scicluna, who has been serving as the chief officer for group internal audit. In turn, the internal audit function of the group will be headed by executive head Moira Falzon.

New consumer portal for Nestlé Malta

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:07:00 +0200

Nestlé Malta, the local branch of the world’s leading nutrition, health and wellness products has launched an advanced portal to showcase its vast portfolio of international brands. The portal also gives easy access to customers to interact with the company. The new consumer portal, accessible on www.nestle.com.mt will be regularly updated with all the content in line with new company developments. Designed in conformity with all the Nestlé corporate sites, the portal contains the latest news related to the Nestlé Malta brands as well as local news updates. The portal also contains information about Nestlé‘s history, the company’s Creating Shared Value philosophy, tips on nutrition, health and wellness and other related information. The Nestlé Malta portal is linked to Nestlé’s website network and gives consumers access to other Nestlé portals worldwide. “This portal is yet another way of communicating and providing first-hand information to the Maltese consumers and customers. We have no doubt that it will become an important resource to those wishing to access information about some of the world’s best known Nestlé brands available in Malta,” said Alfred Borg, Nestlé Malta’s...

New Uniblue CEO to propel company into tablets era

Martin Debattista — Thu, 23 May 2013 00:06:00 +0200

The new chief executive officer of Uniblue Systems Limited, one of Malta’s most successful ICT companies which serves international markets, would like to see more incentives that lead to the better exploitation of the opportunities for education and training in ICT in Malta. “There is a wealth of IT education available and we’d like to see the development of more incentives for individuals and companies to take advantage of this,” 45-year old Christopher Bolin told i-Tech just after taking over the Birkirkara-based company. His background is in software development at startups including Prevx and some of the biggest companies in Silicon Valley like Symantec; he was also chief technology officer at McAfee. He has had extensive exposure to all elements of product operations, business and technology strategy and organic and inorganic growth. This should give Mr Bolin, in his own words, “not only broad experience, but also a broad network of support.” “I have 22 years experience building commercial software products in companies both large and small. I have ‘grown up’ in IT with the best-and-brightest in Silicon Valley and the UK.” Uniblue Systems was launched in Malta by its...

Preparing our ports for the future: making the most of a vital resource

Sim Kallas — Thu, 23 May 2013 00:06:00 +0200

Europe’s prosperity has always been linked to sea trade and ports, which have great potential for sustaining growth in the years ahead. As gateways to the EU’s entire transport network, they are engines of economic development. And more cargo, cruise ships and ferries in our ports mean more jobs. Europe depends heavily on its seaports, which handle 74 per cent by volume of the goods exported or imported to the EU and from the rest of the world. Not only are they important for foreign trade and local growth, ports are the key for developing an integrated and sustainable transport system, as we work to get trucks off our saturated land transport corridors and make more use of short sea shipping. Even with only modest assumptions of economic growth, port cargo volumes are expected to rise by 57 per cent by 2030, almost certainly causing congestion. In 20 years, Europe’s hundreds of seaports will face major challenges in performance, investment needs, sustainability, human resources and integration with port cities and regions. So our ports need to adapt. Take the next generation of ultra-large vessels that carry 18,000 containers. Put onto trucks, these containers would stretch in a...

MIM launches new book on income tax law

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:06:00 +0200

The Malta Institute of Management yesterday launched Principles of Maltese Income Tax Law written by Robert Attard. The book provides an up-to-date discussion of Maltese income tax legislation along with the leading decisions of the courts including substantial extracts from major judgments. Practitioners and students reading law, accountancy, ACCA, ADIT and the MIT diploma can turn to Principles of Income Tax Law for an understandable discussion of two of the most dynamic and controversial chapters in the laws of Malta. Areas of focus include international taxation, tax policy and tax controversy. Principles of Maltese Income Tax Law enhances Principles of Maltese Tax Law published by the MIM in 2008, selling out within a few months from the date of publication. Philip Sciberras, a former judge of the Court of Appeal described the book as “a must-read for all who are either interested or involved in this highly specialised area of law” and described the author as “an expert in his field, without doubt one of Malta’s finest scholars on tax law”. Giovanni Bonello, a former judge of the European Court of Human Rights said that the book is “not just an arid explanation of the...

‘Bring your own device’ is here to stay

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:05:00 +0200

The concept of BYOD (bring your own device) is becoming increasingly popular and is quickly becoming widespread across many organisations. According to a Cisco Technology Report, the desire for maximum flexibility in how, where and when employees carry out their jobs is growing thus pointing companies in the BYOD direction. Recent Cisco research estimates that data traffic generated via mobile devices will grow by approximately 26 times in the next five years. The adoption of BYOD has traditionally been equated with headaches for many IT departments. Although there are many advantages associated with BYOD (such as giving the users freedom in the choice of equipment, time and place of access) potential security and network management issues may arise. This is due to the fact that in order for an employee to use a device for both personal and professional use, the employee should be able to operate under different security policies. An integrated technology solution should offer BYOD network access in any form which is wired, Wi-Fi, remote and mobile with simultaneous application of security policies and confidentiality. Furthermore, when the device user connects to a professional...

The new man at the helm of Premier Capital plc

Edward Rizzo — Thu, 23 May 2013 00:05:00 +0200

My weekly articles generally provide readers with updates on various companies that have their shares listed on the Malta Stock Exchange. In the past, I have also written reports with the aim of keeping readers informed of various developments across the local and international financial markets with the ultimate scope of providing timely information and in-depth analysis to investors. However, it is also necessary for investors to keep abreast of developments across bond issuers. As such, following the company announcement issued on April 4 confirming the appointment of Bertrand Attard as the new chief executive officer as well as an executive director of Premier Capital plc, I met up with the new man at the helm of the company responsible for the McDonald’s operations in Malta, the Baltics and Greece. The intention was to obtain a deeper understanding of the 2012 financial performance across the various markets in which they operate and learn more about the plans of the company’s new CEO. At the start of the interview it was immediately evident that although Mr Attard has only been acting as CEO for just over one month, his knowledge of Premier Capital and the McDonald’s ethos...

Malta’s slow burning socio-economic issues

John Cassar White — Thu, 23 May 2013 00:05:00 +0200

Malta may have escaped the worst consequences of the protracting eurozone economic downturn, but no one must be fooled into thinking that our future prosperity can be guaranteed without addressing a number of serious socio-economic challenges. These are slow burning issues that will not demand a solution in the next few months, but they will simply not go away until we show the determination to address them. Two of these issues are closely connected: our pensions and health systems. They are both related to the demographic facts that our population is growing older, that we are living longer and that most of us will need increasing medical support as we do so. The Government has done well to appoint an action committee to look into the issues of ageing and to come up with an active ageing strategy. The need for further reform in our pensions system will become more pressing in the next few years. This will not be so because the IMF and the European Commission will keep telling us that our pensions system is inadequate, but because social pressure will increase to ensure that our present and future pensioners are guaranteed a decent quality of life that can only be given by a...

Lead offers training programmes for human resources recruiters

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:05:00 +0200

Lead Training Services in collaboration with the South Africa-based Omnicor company will offer various training programmes in the coming weeks, the first of which is targeted at experienced HR recruiters. Precision Selection Interview Skills is an advanced full-day programme with its foundation in best-practice psychological science, helping experienced job interviewers develop laser-sharp skills and effectiveness. Omnicor was launched in 1998 to provide organisational development through customised, clever people-based solutions. Since then the company has been providing clients with value for money solutions that work. The Precision Selection Interview Skills programme is based on years of practical consulting work and recent science, and is delivered by James Ashton and Cathy Farlam Ashton, the founders of Omnicor. It offers interviewers insights and skills, helping them move their interviews from conversation to analytical process, matching a person’s talents and potential with the needs of the business. Job applicants value winning the job after a tough interview process more than if they feel the process was not challenging. The Precision Interview Skills programme looks at...

UN awards searching for Malta’s best e-content

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:04:00 +0200

Counterfeit drugs are a serious health risk and an economic issue in many African countries. In 2009, two web developers from Ghana created mPedigree, an SMS based mobile app protecting consumers from potentially harmful drugs. This solution was a World Summit Award Global Champion in 2012 (WSA). It shows how quality e-content creates value add for users and opens up business opportunities for developers. The World Summit Award (WSA) is a United Nations initiative that selects and promotes the world’s most outstanding digital content. As such, it is also open to participation from Malta. “Today, our world is almost entirely connected. But in this ocean of products and services, quality e-content is hard to find and local solutions have a hard time to compete with mainstream solutions,” said WSA chairman Peter A. Bruck. “WSA provides the answer to this issue, by promoting local content with global relevance.” Maltese e-content creators are invited to take part in the 2013 edition of the WSA. Projects can be submitted until July 1, 2013 in one of several categories that cover, amongst others, e-government, e-education, e-health, the environment, e-entertainment, e-media, e-business...

Stimulus measures push European shares to new high

Reuters — Thu, 23 May 2013 00:04:00 +0200

European shares hit a new five-year high yesterday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the central bank would retain its stimulus measures until the economy improved. Analysts stayed positive on the stock market’s near-term outlook, saying the recent rally was likely to continue and investors would not be deterred from adding riskier assets such as equities to their portfolios. The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares closed 0.2 per cent firmer at 1,256.28 points, the highest close in five years. It is up more than 10 per cent so far this year. “I don’t think that recent gains are unsustainable as we are still in an environment where the global liquidity backdrop is dominating any other concerns,” Ian Richards, global head of equities strategy at Exane BNP Paribas, said. “The liquidity support will not be around forever, but presumably the support won’t be withdrawn until economic activities improve.” Recent data from the world’s biggest economy have been encouraging. Analysts said the US was on a recovery path, but progress had been slow and unemployment was still high. Bernanke said in a testimony to Congress the Fed’s policy was providing benefits to the...

Unravelling Budget 2013 jungle

Lino Spiteri — Thu, 23 May 2013 00:04:00 +0200

When the Budget for 2013 was presented by then Finance Minister Tonio Fenech it was obvious that whoever was appointed Minister of Finance after the forthcoming general election would have a tough task implementing it. Had it been Mr Fenech he would soon have faced the familiar task of starting off with the projections for 2012 all awry. That is what the incoming Finance Minister, Edward Scicluna, was told by the Budget Office as soon as he sat down in his new seat. The structural deficit for 2012 was going to be substantially higher than forecast, as also predicted over a year ago by those of us who follow fiscal and economic affairs. Higher it was, by almost a third, as the IMF too noted. The rest – the real forecast outturn for 2013 – Scicluna had to discover for himself. That outturn once again, unless remedial action is taken, will be much worse than forecast by Fenech when he presented the 2013 estimates. Planned public expenditure would be too high relative to estimated revenue. The latter aggregate, to boot, would once again be below what minister Fenech had estimated. The Budget, with the election in mind, included a hash of an income tax review which would reduce...

The Farsons Foundation supports quality in photojournalism

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:04:00 +0200

For the 12th successive year The Farsons Foundation is sponsoring the Malta Journalism Awards’ Press Photography category. “The Foundation notes the constant progress of Maltese press photography as, year on year, press photographers endeavour to set a higher benchmark,” Bryan Gera, chairman of The Farsons Foundation said. “Capturing and presenting news images in an informative, imaginative and visually stimulating way not only updates the public but increases the credibility of the media as a reflection of society,” said Malcolm J. Naudi, chairman of The Institute of Maltese Journalists. “Through their respective submissions in this category, Maltese press photographers are showing how, in an impactful manner, they are mastering the capability to capture strong journalistic contents that reflect the news events, personalities and social issues.” The Malta Journalism Awards consist of 16 categories in print, broadcasting, electronic and general. The awards ceremony will be held at The Palace Hotel, Sliema next month.

Ultra high speeds for cable-based internet access soon

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:03:00 +0200

The next generation standard for ultra fast internet broadband over cable TV infrastructure, DOCSIS 3.1, could be deployed as early as 2015/2016. This is expected to support download speeds of 10 Gbps and upload speeds of 1 Gbps. In Malta, Melita’s fibre-powered network for its TV and internet access services is based on the DOCSIS standard. Today it offers a maximum speed of 100 Mbps. Broadbandtvnews.com quotes Ralph Brown, CTO Cablelabs, saying 1 Gbps downstream premium offers are likely to be available in the US as soon as 2016 and “we would be foolish not to start DOCSIS 3.1 before then.” He added that the roadmap now envisages specs being issued this year and the first products coming onto the market in 2014 ahead of initial deployments in the following one to two years. John Chapman, CTO CABU, Cisco Systems, meanwhile said that the specs are currently being developed by experts from Canada, Germany, the UK, France, Israel and US, meeting regularly in Denver. 3.1 will indeed be able to spectrum share with 3.0, allowing for the blending of new and existing services. A lot of existing 3.0 software will still be used for 3.1 and only necessary changes will be made, with 3.1...

Shipping movements

Gollcher — Thu, 23 May 2013 00:03:00 +0200

The Sea Breeze from Annaba to Annaba, the Jork Valiant from Algeciras to Naples, the Erkan K from Vana to Constanta, the Karina from Bejaia to Algiers, the Connorth from Algiers to Misurata, the CMA CGM Cendrillon from Port Said to Genoa, the Pagola from Ravenna to Trapani (all Carmelo Caruana) and MC Eurocargo Malta from Genoa to Civitavecchia (Sullivan Maritime) today. The CMA CGM Lyra from Part Klang to Valencia, the Nicola from Algiers to Algiers, the King Basil from Alexandria to Mersin and the BF Caroda from Annaba to El Kohms (all Carmelo Caruana) tomorrow. The Volos from Durres to Taranto, the Ecem Kalkavan from Naples to Catania, the CMA CGM Lavender from Tanger Med to Avcilar, the Pagola from Trapani to Ravenna, the CMA CGM Wagner from Jeddah to Tanger Med (all Carmelo Caruana) and the MV Eurocargo Venezia from Genoa to Civitavecchia (Sullivan Maritime) on Saturday. The Meta from Piraeus to Tanger Med, the CMA CGM Jamaica from Algeciras to Livorno, the K River from Izmir to Izmir, the Macao Strait from Misurata to Misurata, the Fas Dammam from Algiers to Skikda, the Classica from Mersin to Antalya (all Carmelo Caruana) the Maersk Bogor from Algecirs to Canakkale and the...

Sony to discuss spin-off suggestion

Tim Kelly, Reuters — Thu, 23 May 2013 00:03:00 +0200

Few foreign activist investors have made much headway in forcing change in Japan, where a conservative corporate culture favours long-standing ties with banks, business partners and workers rather than shareholders seeking value. Struggling electronics giant Sony Corp., though, with more foreign and fewer bank shareholders, may prove something of an exception. That is the hope, at least, of Californian billionaire Daniel Loeb, whose Third Point hedge fund has built up a more than six per cent stake in Sony, making it the group’s biggest stockholder. Loeb wants CEO Kazuo Hirai to sell as much as a fifth of the group’s money-making entertainment arm – movies, TV and music – to free up cash to revive an electronics business battered by competition from Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics. He reckons the shake-up, which Hirai said yesterday would be considered by the board, could increase Sony’s market value by 60 per cent. The target and timing of Loeb’s polite hand-delivered overture are not accidental. Sony earns two-thirds of its revenue overseas and, for corporate Japan, appears more westernised. Hirai, who spent most of his childhood in the US, was picked by former CEO Howard...

The right to be forgotten in the EU

Josette Grech — Thu, 23 May 2013 00:03:00 +0200

With the development of internet technology, a large number of people, companies, entities and organisations are interacting with each other. The processing of this interaction leaves behind a trail of users’ personal information that can last long after users withdraw their consent for its use and publication. Currently users can only request deletion of data that is incomplete or incorrect. This leaves much to be desired and users understandably complain that their online reputation is at stake when they are not allowed to remove material when they so choose. For this purpose, a “right to be forgotten” is included in a proposed regulation on data protection published by the European Commission. The General Data Protection Regulation proposes new legal provisions applicable within the social media and online context, such as Facebook and Google. In principle, this right allows users to get their personal information removed from primary websites and any other sites that link to, or republish, their information. A data controller is obliged to erase any links to, or copy or replication of personal data at the data subject’s request. To secure optimal consumer data protection, a...