Business

WASHINGTON — Twitter on Thursday reported soaring user growth in the past quarter even as ad revenues took a hit amid civil unrest in the United States.

The short-message social network reported a net loss of $1.2 billion in the quarter, most of that coming from setting aside funds for income taxes.

Revenue slumped 19 per cent from a year ago to $683 million. Despite some modest rebound from the pandemic-induced economic slump, Twitter said that "many brands slowed or paused spend in reaction to US civil unrest" in May and June.

Twitter said ad revenue declined 15 per cent over the last three weeks of June, but appeared to have rebounded since then.

A key metric for Twitter, the number of "monetisable" daily active users, hit 186 million in the second quarter for a jump of 34 percent from last year.

Chief executive Jack Dorsey said the user gains showed "the highest quarterly year-over-year growth rate we've delivered" using this measure.

"People continue to come to Twitter to learn about and participate in conversations focused on systemic racism, Black Lives Matters, COVID-19 and the reopening and reclosing of economies all around the world," Dorsey told analysts on a conference call.

Twitter shares jumped 6.2 percent in pre-market trade following the release.

Recovering from hack 

The earnings report comes a week after Twitter suffered a hack that affected high-profile accounts and raised fears about security of the service which has become a key element of political conversation.

Dorsey apologised for the incident and added that Twitter "moved quickly to address what happened," and had taken additional steps "to improve resiliency."

Twitter acknowledged on Wednesday that in 36 of the 130 accounts that were compromised, hackers were able to access direct messages intended to be private, adding to the severity of the incident.

Those affected included one unidentified elected official in the Netherlands.

"We are actively working on communicating directly with the account-holders that were impacted," Twitter said on its security blog.

Dorsey said of the incident: "We understand our responsibilities and are committed to earning the trust of all of our stakeholders with our every action, including how we address this security issue."

Twitter, an important tool used by President Donald Trump, is seen by some analysts as an important element in news and political discussion, a key to its growth.

The research firm eMarketer said its estimate of Twitter's user base, using a different method than the company, shows the number of users will grow to some 305 million this year.

In the past quarter, "Twitter's user growth accelerated in Q2 as housebound consumers continued to use the platform to follow news about the coronavirus and other current events," said eMarketer analyst Jasmine Enberg.

Dorsey confirmed reports that Twitter is looking at some kind of subscription option that this would likely be "complementary" to the existing service.

He said Twitter was "in the very early phases of exploring" a new subscription plan and that some tests are likely this year, while adding that "we have a really high bar for when we would ask consumers to pay for aspects of Twitter."

PARIS — Many workers' lives have been abruptly upended by the coronavirus pandemic, as job losses in tourism, air travel, food and drink or other industries hit those both on fixed contracts and in the informal sector.

From employees making a comfortable living, to others just scraping by, people around the world are confronting anxiety over how to feed their families and shame at being forced to seek handouts amid growing poverty.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says that world gross domestic product (GDP) is set to plunge 4.9 per cent this year from the crisis sparked by the global pandemic, and warns that low-income households and unskilled workers are most affected.

AFP met people in France, Mexico, Ukraine, Spain, Colombia and the United States, who already are, or fear they soon will be, without work and spoke of their despair, sacrifices, dashed hopes and fears for the future.

Plunged into precariousness 

"I've slipped into a state of insecurity," says Frenchman Xavier Chergui, 44, who for 10 years has been a temp maitre d', filling in at Paris restaurants when they were short staffed.

The married, father of two made a monthly 1,800-2,600 euros ($2,062-2,978), and in a really good month could sometimes earn 4,000 euros.

But as soon as France locked down, the work stopped and the family is surviving on state aid of 875 euros.

He hasn't been able to meet his monthly rent of 950 euros since March, nor the electricity bill for three months.

Although he has managed to keep up his 250-euro car loan repayments, the family's holiday in the south west is now off the cards, he said.

"We've lost everything... Psychologically you have to cope with it," he told AFP.

But his wife is suffering from depression and he is just holding out for September when he hopes business will resume -- virus permitting.

Forced career about-turn

With dreams of becoming a pilot, 26-year-old Colombian Roger Ordonez had been working as a flight attendant for Avianca since 2017 but studying to get his wings.

"You get used to a certain lifestyle because you have a good salary and you can travel," he said.

He has visited various countries in the region and the US in recent years and took his family for their first trip abroad.

At the end of March, at the airline's request, he agreed to take two weeks' unpaid leave, which was then extended.

Two months later, he learned that his temporary contract would not be renewed after it ended on June 30.

In the meantime, Avianca filed for bankruptcy.

Ordonez has had to abandon his pilot studies and can no longer help his family out with the bills.

"I've looked for work but it's difficult because my sector is tourism and it's the most affected by COVID-19," he said.

He is thinking of retraining, perhaps in management, trade or sales, he says.

Food bank 'shame' 

To fill the fridge and feed her student son, daughter and grandson, Sonia Herrera has no choice but to rely on the food bank.

"It makes me a bit ashamed to ask for help," the 52-year-old Honduran, who lives in the Spanish capital, said.

People look, and there is the guilt of wondering if "maybe others need it more", she added.

As a domestic worker, she earned a monthly 480 euros until her employers in central Madrid let her go, the day after Spain's lockdown began.

As an undocumented migrant, she cannot claim state aid.

The whole family lives on about 600 euros in unemployment benefit that her daughter Alejandra, 32, receives after losing her job as a cook in a nursery which had to close during confinement.

With a few savings too, they scrape by.

But little pleasures "that you notice when you lose them", such as occasionally going out for an ice cream, are gone and their cat Bella's operation had to be put back.

"The end of the month scares me more than the virus. You have to eat after all," Herrera said.

'Total shock'

Ukrainian IT specialist Natalia Murashko, 39, was due for a promotion after four years as a senior quality-control engineer at American travel company Fareportal.

When the pandemic hit, about 15 employees were dismissed on March 31 but she thought her job was safe as her bosses had reassured her.

However, the very next day, she was given two weeks' notice. "I thought at first it was a stupid April Fool's joke," she said.

"It was a total shock."

Murashko's computer skills placed her in a rarefied group that can make several thousand euros a month in Ukraine, compared to an average salary in the country of around 300 euros.

She was able to afford a cleaner, trips to the beautician and new clothes.

From one day to the next, her life changed beyond recognition.

Now she is living off savings and odd jobs. Last month, the mum of two teens, who also looks after her 73-year-old mother, made 600 euros.

Her job hunting has been fruitless and she limits her spending to the absolute minimum.

"One thing I haven't cut is my psychotherapist," she said. Since losing her job, she has had trouble sleeping and suffers anxiety.

Living in fear 

Marie Cedile dreads hearing that she will be among those to lose their jobs at French shoe company Andre, which filed for bankruptcy on March 21 before going into receivership.

Under the only takeover offer on the table, just half of the 450 staff would be kept on.

She is worried that at the age of 54 and having spent all her working life at Andre, she will have trouble finding a new job.

"I have customers whom I fitted for shoes when they were little and who come today to get their children fitted," she said.

One of her two daughters died aged 29 last year of brain cancer, she said.

"Fortunately I had my work, relationships with the customers, that helps."

After 30 years she still earns the minimum wage -- 1,250 euros a month.

Just over 1,000 euros goes on rent for their flat in the Morangis suburb of Paris.

"You need two salaries to cover it. My husband is unemployed but he's younger than me, he should find a job," she said.

"I'll take anything if I'm laid off, even if it means cleaning houses, I'll find something."

Alone at the bar 

The barstools at Cafe Fili, the Mediterranean restaurant in Washington where Zac Hoffman works, are now mostly empty, as customers prefer to sit outside.

"I don't feel like I'm back to work. I don't have bar guests. The restaurant's never full 'cause it can't be," the 28-year-old said.

Restaurants have been Hoffman's life since he took his first job as a prep cook aged 15.

But six years ago, he realised that he preferred working behind the bar, where the customer is always close and making new friends -- never a bad thing as a candidate for the local area council -- is easy.

He used to make up to $40 an hour, mostly from tips.

But after a period of unemployment when businesses shut down as the pandemic intensified in mid-March, he now makes at most $25 an hour.

What worries him most, though, is whether local businesses will have to close again, in which case he believes most would never reopen, or whether he or his coworkers will be next to get the virus.

"All of our interactions are kind of governed by this anxiety of possible death, which is not really where we want to be," he said.

'Pushed to the bottom' 

Mexican tour guide Jesus Yepez has been sleeping at a homeless refuge after being evicted from his rented accommodation in the capital's historic centre early this month.

"I was born on a cosy mattress in Coyoacan (a bohemian district of Mexico City where Frida Kahlo and Leon Trotsky lived) but the vagaries of life have pushed me to the bottom," the 65-year-old said.

Before coronavirus, he would earn 500 pesos (about $22) leading an hour-long tour.

But Mexico's museums and galleries shut at the end of March as high season began and Yepez has struggled like many others in the tourism sector, which makes up 8.7 per cent of GDP.

Early on, he had some savings, but they are gone and tourists are not yet back.

His qualifications in architecture, international relations, English and French are of little use to him now.

"All that I ask is to get through this and find a retirement home to grow old in dignity. I'm not ill, just tired of life."

ROME — Italian prosecutors said on Tuesday they are seeking an eight-year prison term against the head of oil company Eni, Claudio Descalzi, as part of a long-running corruption case implicating the Italian firm and its UK counterpart Shell in Nigeria.

Italian investigators suspect the two oil groups used bribes to obtain rights in 2011 to a Nigerian offshore oil block estimated to hold nine billion barrels of crude, for $1.3 billion (1.1 billion euros).

Out of that sum, almost $1.1 billion was believed to be bribes to a London bank account that ended up going to various Nigerian politicians, including a former oil minister.

The trial of Eni and Shell for corruption opened in the spring of 2018 and two middlemen — a Nigerian and an Italian — were handed four-year prison terms later that year after an accelerated trial.

Both oil companies deny any wrongdoing.

Prosecutors also requested an eight-year prison term for Paolo Scaroni, who was chief executive of Eni at the time, and a seven-year term for Malcolm Brinded who was then Shell's head of exploration and production.

Italian prosecutors are also seeking a 10-year term for Nigeria's energy minister at the time, Dan Etete, as well as the recovery of the $1.1 billion.

In a statement, Eni called the requests by prosecutors completely groundless and noted that US authorities closed their probes and the payments had been made following an inquiry by Britain's Serious Organised Crime Agency. 

WASHINGTON — Sales of existing homes jumped a record 20.7 per cent in June, ending three months of coronavirus-driven declines as buyers returned to the market, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) said on Wednesday.

Sales were at a seasonally adjusted annualised rate of 4.72 million last month, slightly better than expected, though were down 11.3 per cent from June 2019.

NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun credited the month-on-month rebound to "buyers... eager to purchase homes and properties that they had been eyeing during the shutdown".

"This revitalisation looks to be sustainable for many months ahead as long as mortgage rates remain low and job gains continue."

Sales rose in all regions with the nation's west seeing the biggest jump, while prices were up 3.5 per cent from a year ago.

However, inventory tightened, with unsold units dropping to a 4-month supply from 4.8 months in May, and total inventory at 1.57 million units — down 18.2 per cent from June 2019 even if it's 1.3 per cent above last month.

"Home prices rose during the lockdown and could rise even further due to heavy buyer competition and a significant shortage of supply," Yun said.

The relatively healthy data comes despite otherwise gloomy projections for the US economy, where business shutdowns to stop COVID-19 sent the unemployment rate to 11.1 per cent in June and a surge in cases has forced some areas to roll back steps to reopen.

"This might seem hard to square with the surge in unemployment," Ian Shepherdson of Pantheon Macroeconomics said of the NAR survey, "but the wave of job losses among the relatively young workforce in the leisure and hospitality sector has mostly hit renters; the median age of a US homebuyer is about 47".

NEW YORK — Nine global corporations unveiled an initiative on Tuesday to step up efforts to move to a "net zero" carbon emissions society, while Apple announced its own plan to be carbon neutral by 2030.

A new coalition including US-based Microsoft, Germany's Mercedes-Benz AG, France's Danone and Anglo-Dutch Unilever aims to "develop and deliver research, guidance, and implementable roadmaps to enable all businesses to achieve net zero emissions", according to a statement by the group.

The initiative, known as Transform to Net Zero, aims to help businesses achieve zero emissions no later than 2050.

"Over the past decade, many businesses have committed to net zero targets. It is now time to accelerate the actions needed to achieve this essential goal," said Aron Cramer, president of the non-profit consultancy BSR, which will serve as the secretariat for the initiative.

"We are now in a decisive decade, in which we must urgently decarbonise the economy, if we are to stave off the worst impacts of climate change."

Other founding members of the coalition include the Danish shipping giant Maersk, Brazilian personal care firm Natura & Co., US-based Starbucks and Nike, India-based tech firm Wipro and the nonprofit Environmental Defense Fund.

"The gap between where we are on climate change and where we need to be continues to widen," said Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defence Fund.

"This new initiative holds tremendous potential for closing these gaps. Especially if other businesses follow in the coalition's footsteps."

 Apple goes green 

Apple said in a separate announcement it would become carbon neutral by 2030 for all its operations, including manufacturing.

The California tech giant, which is already carbon neutral for its corporate operations, said the move would mean no climate impact for all its devices sold.

As part of an environmental update, Apple said it plans to reduce emissions by 75 per cent by 2030 while developing "innovative carbon removal solutions" for the remaining 25 per cent of its comprehensive footprint.

This includes investing in projects to restore savannas in Kenya and a mangrove ecosystem in Colombia to remove or store carbon.

"Businesses have a profound opportunity to help build a more sustainable future, one born of our common concern for the planet we share," said Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook.

"Climate action can be the foundation for a new era of innovative potential, job creation, and durable economic growth."

Apple said it has commitments from over 70 suppliers to use 100 per cent renewable energy for Apple production.

As part of the effort, Apple will also establish an "accelerator" fund to invest in minority-owned businesses to contribute to the initiative, as part of its $100 million commitment to promote racial equity and justice.

DUBAI — Mustafa, a hipster Pakistani graphic artist, has a month to find a new job or be forced to leave Dubai among an exodus of expatriates whose futures have been up-ended by coronavirus. 

The United Arab Emirates — made up of seven sheikdoms including the oil-rich capital Abu Dhabi and freewheeling Dubai — has become a hub for young professionals.

But the pandemic has set in motion a global economic crisis that one study said could see some 900,000 jobs lost in the UAE — among a population of under 10 million — and force 10 per cent of its expatriate residents to leave.

In a country where permanent residency is not generally offered, even for those who have spent decades in the UAE, as the redundancies begin to mount many are being forced to sell up their things and make a quick exit.

"We all know how the UAE is a temporary place and, one day or another, we all have to go back home or elsewhere," said Mustafa, who before the crisis earned a good salary with a sports marketing firm.

Without a new job, in a market where openings are few and applicants are many, the 30-year-old will have no choice but to return home to Pakistan — a prospect he feels gloomy about.

"Here I worked with luxury hotel brands, airports, car brands, extreme sports. They don't have a big market share there," he said about Pakistan, adding that even if he did find a job, the salary would be "half of what you get paid in Dubai".

'Expats, not migrants' 

Expatriates, who make up about 90 per cent of Dubai's population of more than 3.3 million, have helped create and operate its mega malls, attractions and five-star hotels, and turn it into a global hub for tourism, banking and services.

But with global travel only just emerging from a standstill, and lockdown measures still in force in many countries, all these industries have taken a heavy hit.

Scott Livermore, chief economist at Oxford Economics Middle East, said the Gulf system, however, is designed to keep foreigners as "expats rather than migrants", with welfare state support reserved for citizens. 

"Expatriates then return to their country of origin or move on to another country," Livermore told AFP. "It is a conscious, designed policy."

Endless planeloads of blue-collars workers have already left Dubai on repatriation flights, but the city — as the archetype of globalised consumerism — could itself suffer from the departure of free-spending higher income earners.

According to an Oxford Economics study, employment across the Gulf could fall by 13 per cent during the crisis, resulting in the population declining by between 4 per cent in Saudi Arabia and Oman and around 10 per cent in the UAE and Qatar.

"While an expat exodus may mean that the Gulf Cooperation Council 'exports' some of the impact of recession, it will also have some adverse consequences on key sectors," the study said.

In Dubai, which has already been suffering from an oversupply of property in particular, the study said "sectors that are vulnerable are travel and tourism, hotels and restaurants, and real estate and logistics".

'I want to stay' 

Emirates airline is one of the companies that have taken a major hit in the crisis, cutting a tenth of its giant workforce of 60,000, including 4,300 pilots and nearly 22,000 cabin crew.

Sami, an Egyptian flight attendant who travelled the world with the airline for six years, was one of those laid off in June in a "five-minute meeting" as it processed the lay-offs on an industrial scale.

"We were many of us, hundreds waiting around all day for one-on-one meetings," he said.

The 32-year-old, who took out a loan to buy a smart SUV and become accustomed to a "life of luxury", will now have to return to his family in Cairo with "no plans" in mind.

"I really want to stay in Dubai, but I don't think there are any decent opportunities now," he said.

LONDON — Eurozone stock markets pushed higher Monday as EU leaders laboured to pin down a 750-billion-euro ($860-billion) coronavirus rescue package for the battered region.

The euro hit a four-month dollar peak of $1.1468, before paring its gains.

Frankfurt equities rose 1 per cent and Paris added 0.5 per cent.

Outside the eurozone, London lost 0.5 per cent.

Wall Street was mixed as investors awaited congressional debate on another round of stimulus spending and major earnings releases later in the week.

Sentiment was hit by contrasting developments regarding the coronavirus pandemic.

A spike in new COVID-19 infections forced fresh containment measures — notably in Australia, Hong Kong and the United States — and fuelled fears about the stuttering economic recovery.

Meanwhile, two studies offered fresh hope of a potential vaccine, which is the only development that would provide safety to people and allow economies to operate normally.

EU leaders resumed talks to resolve their deadlock on a huge coronavirus rescue package back on track after a furious row about grants for member states threatened to derail it.

The talks by the 27 followed three days and nights of prolonged wrangling that failed to agree a plan to help drag Europe out of a painful pandemic-induced recession.

French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel expressed cautious optimism for a deal as the talks resumed on Monday

'Hopes high' 

"Hopes are high for the deal to get done today, with risk appetite mainly looking intact even if they need another week to finalise the technical details," said analyst Edward Moya at online currency trading platform Oanda.

"The EU is known for bickering, but it is also known for brokering deals," said market analyst David Madden at CMC Markets UK.

Meanwhile, as the COVID-19 pandemic shows little sign of abating, the rally that has characterised equity markets since hitting a low in March is showing signs of stalling.

The spikes in the number of infections — Hong Kong saw a record rise on Sunday, while Florida's has been described as "out of control" — have led leaders to unveil new measures to curb the disease's spread, including closing bars and restaurants and making masks compulsory.

Investors are keeping an eye on Washington, hoping lawmakers will press ahead with fresh stimulus measures for the world's top economy.

Oil prices slid lower as Chevron said it had agreed to buy US company Noble Energy. The plunge in oil prices as coronavirus lockdowns throttled demand has made much oil production unprofitable.

"Many of the smaller companies can't survive in this environment and the incentive to make a deal will grow," said Moya.

LONDON — British clothing-to-food retailer Marks & Spencer could axe up to 950 management and administrative jobs to counter slumping profits and sales in the face of the coronavirus outbreak, it said on Monday.

The high-street stalwart, which had already been suffering from fierce online competition from the likes of US giant Amazon, has seen its troubles compounded by the COVID-19 lockdown that shuttered shops nationwide.

The enforced closures, which sought to halt the spread of the killer disease, were imposed on March 23 and lasted almost three months for non-essential stores.

M&S had in May revealed that annual net profit slumped by almost 50 per cent, booked a sizeable charge for the coronavirus outbreak, and added it would slash costs.

The company added on Monday that the latest proposed cutbacks were part of its transformation plan.

"M&S is now proposing to implement these changes and create a new retail management structure that is fit for the future — removing role duplication, providing clearer leadership accountabilities and freeing up its retail teams to focus more on the customer," it said in a statement.

"The proposed changes would affect 950 roles across central support functions in field and central operations and property and store management."

In Britain, the coronavirus outbreak, in tandem with a tough retail climate, has sparked the demise of several well-known high-street names and the loss of thousands of jobs.

Earlier this month, pharmacy giant Boots and department store group John Lewis said they would together axe at least 5,300 jobs, despite government efforts to safeguard employment.

Some 9.3 million UK workers have had up to 80 per cent of their wages paid for by the UK government under its furlough scheme, which ends in October.

WASHINGTON — After months of working from home, stir-crazy Americans have finally reached the long, hot days of summer only to watch their vacation horizons dim, with travel options shrinking as the country's coronavirus cases soar.

"All I've been doing this year is canceling trips", 61-year-old Keith Gibbons said with a sigh, a new reality that the government contractor called "very frustrating".

Trips abroad are mostly out: The overwhelming majority of countries now bar American citizens amid a sharp US resurgence of COVID-19. The country's caseload has climbed to over 3.7 million — more than one-fourth the world's total — and deaths have reached over 140,000. 

As for cross-country trips, it is not that simple: In the vast US, laws on mask-wearing and social distancing vary dramatically, and sometimes confusingly, from one jurisdiction to another.

Some states are even imposing quarantines on visitors. Hawaii, for example, has ordered those arriving on the Pacific archipelago to self-quarantine for 14 days. 

Its governor, David Ige, announced on Thursday that beginning September 1, visitors will also have to submit to a coronavirus test within 72 hours of departing for the state and present proof of a negative result upon arrival in Hawaii. 

Meanwhile, New York has extended its list of US states — totaling 22 now — whose citizens will be required to self-quarantine after arriving in the northeastern state. 

In the city of Chicago visitors from 17 states must self-isolate for two weeks — or face fines of up to $500 a day.

Complicating many Americans' travel plans, the summer destinations of Florida and California are among the hardest-hit by COVID-19, even if the popular Disney World park in Orlando, Florida has partially reopened and a Disney-linked shopping district in California reopened earlier this month.

As for ocean cruises, a highly popular travel option in normal years, they remain banned by a federal "No Sail Order" through September. 

'It doesn't seem wise' 

At this point, Gibbons said: "It doesn't seem wise to go anywhere, either because of the local health situation or because the hotels and other establishments are taking steps to deal with COVID in a manner that makes the trip less interesting." 

So if "you want to go to a nice hotel for the weekend but the restaurants are closed, the pool is closed, services are limited, it doesn't sound like a lot of fun".

Saher Rizvi, a 40-year-old neurologist in Washington, was supposed to leave in early July for a 10-day vacation to Monaco with her husband and two sons, aged five and seven. The trip had to be cancelled. 

Today, she draws a sharp red line: Her family will not travel by plane or by train. 

"I don't think it is safe," said Rizvi, who as a physician has followed the evolution of the pandemic closely.

While some people may have to travel by plane or train for important professional purposes or for family emergencies, "for pleasure, it just seems like the risk benefit doesn't seem worthwhile", Rizvi said. 

Instead, her husband had been trying to persuade her to rent an RV for a road trip, but she has her doubts. 

"From a Monaco vacation to the RV, well," she burst out laughing, making clear that the lure of travelling in a compact camper was not compatible with the level of luxury she expected from a hotel overlooking the Mediterranean.

Summer vacation has long been a staple for Americans. This year has not been kind to them.

The recent surge in COVID-19 infections — coupled with the devastating blow to the economy and jobs — has sharply impacted travel plans, according to the US Travel Association (USTA): Bookings for future airplane and hotel reservations dropped a sharp 73 per cent year-over-year in early July.

A recent survey by the research institute Longwoods International found that 76 per cent of Americans were prepared to change their travel plans for the next six months because of the pandemic. Indeed, 45 per cent have already cancelled their plans.

"I can't complain", Gibbons said. "A lot of people have lost their lives, or are sick; others lost their jobs. So I'm fortunate that I've still got a job and have these choices to make."

At this point, Gibbons has successively canceled planned trips to Florida, Delaware and Portugal.

USTA, which represents the hotel, restaurant, leisure and air-travel sectors, said most Americans are now planning to travel by car and to stay relatively close to home, even if a few hardy souls are taking the chance of traveling to national parks. 

Result: With domestic travel spending expected to drop by 40 per cent, this year will be no holiday for the travel and leisure sectors.