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AMMAN — The Amman Stock Exchange (ASE) on Sunday said the shares of Food Models Company will be suspended from trading for one trading session.

The company’s shares will be suspended for Sunday’s trading session, due to its accumulated losses percentage which exceeded 75 per cent of its capital, the ASE said.

Trading on the company’s shares shall be resumed regularly as of Monday, according to the ASE website. 

LONDON — The British were warned for weeks that a vote to leave the European Union would result in economic pain. Now they will find out whether it will.

UK financial leaders are scrambling to reassure households, businesses and investors that they can contain the doom and gloom they had predicted in case of a British exit, or Brexit. The pound plunged to its lowest level in over 30 years on Friday, raising concerns about price inflation, and shares in the UK's biggest banks and real estate builders posted double-digit declines as economists predicted the country would fall into recession.

Economists slashed their forecasts for Britain, with some expecting a recession and next to no growth next year. That's a sharp reverse for an economy that had been among the best-performing in the developed world in recent years.

In an early sign of problems, Moody's Investors Service downgraded the UK outlook from "stable" to "negative”. The referendum result, it said, "will herald a prolonged period of uncertainty for the UK, with negative implications for the country's medium-term growth outlook”.

Holly Miller, 32, said the vote would affect her economic life profoundly.

"I'm quite shocked by it all," she said. "I'm just applying for a mortgage so we're worried about that."

Only the soothing reassurances of Bank of England Governor Mark Carney managed to ease the market carnage on Friday, as he pledged to stabilise markets if needed. But beyond the short-term market turmoil, the concern is what the vote means for the national economy and its 64 million people.

Before the vote, with campaigning in full swing, the British Treasury had estimated that an exit from the EU would cost the country the equivalent of 4,300 pounds ($5,900) per household. Tax receipts would face a 30 billion pounds shortfall that would have to be filled with tax increases on income and inheritance. House prices, the Treasury had said, could be as much as 18 per cent lower by 2018 than if the country hadn't left the EU.

Campaigners for "leave" dismissed this as scare-mongering. With the vote result confirmed, the "remain" camp sought to shift away from warnings and into damage control: trying to maintain confidence in the business community and among households.

The City of London Corporation, which represents the financial services industry, a big maker of money and jobs for the country, sought to downplay the impact of the vote on the City, the square mile that is the heart of London's financial hub.

"The City of London has thrived as a financial and trading centre for more than a thousand years and will continue to do so," Mark Boleat, policy chairman for the Corporation, said in a statement. "There will be no mass exit of banks and financial institutions from the square mile. While there will be uncertainty as Brexit negotiations go on we are still the financial centre of the fifth-largest economy in the world."

Some companies, particularly banks, had said they could move jobs away from London if Britain leaves the EU. That is likely to cost some jobs. How many is yet to be seen.

The British economy could also find it more costly to raise money. Ratings agency Standard & Poor's is considering downgrading the country because of the uncertainty related to the vote. A lower rating could mean higher borrowing costs for the government — and in the longer term, less money to spend on schools, hospitals and roads.

"The real question now is how badly the EU will punish the UK for this decision," said Megan Greene, chief economist at Manulife Asset Management.

Others were looking on the bright side.

At First Property Group, a London-based real estate investment firm, Chief Executive Ben Habib, who backed leaving the EU, said the vote means Britain will now be able to drive a better deal with the rest of Europe.

Supporters of the "leave" campaign had accepted that there was a potential economic cost to leaving the EU, but have claimed it is a short-term price to pay in exchange for greater control of policies like immigration and borders.

"We now have the foundations for a very good negotiation with the EU," he said, while minimising the market turmoil. "The markets are gyrating, but these are gyrations and will not materially affect our economy."

Habib said the drop in the pound would help British exporters by making their goods cheaper and more competitive in the global marketplace.

Habib's colleague and friend George Digby, however, was less upbeat. He had voted to remain and said the best he could do was wait and see if there is significant economic damage, as his "remain" camp had claimed.

"I hope I am proved wrong on that score," he said.

LONDON — Sterling hit a 2016 high and the euro surged against the dollar and yen on Thursday after a series of late opinion polls favoured Britain staying in the European Union and bookmakers’ odds indicated a further shift towards the "Remain" camp.

Britons were voting on Thursday on whether to stay in the European Union in a referendum that could change the face of Europe and was  being nervously watched by financial markets and politicians across the world.

A British exit, or Brexit, would deprive the 28-member EU of its second-biggest economy and one of its two main military powers, sending political shockwaves across the continent, some  economists predicted.

After four months of bitter campaigning, polling stations opened at (06:00 GMT) on Thursday to close at 21:00, while results were expected to be announced by the 382 individual local counting areas on Friday.

An Ipsos MORI poll for the Evening Standard, conducted on Tuesday and Wednesday, showed 52 per cent of British voters would opt to remain while 48 per cent would opt to leave. An online Populus poll showed support for an "In" vote at 55 per cent.

Earlier polls by ComRes and by YouGov also showed a last-minute rise in support for Britain to remain in the EU. Sterling rose 1.5 per cent in morning trade in London to top $1.49 for the first time this year.

"The market is clearly now pricing in, with near certainty, a "Remain" vote... I do think a "Remain" vote is more likely, but not with the degree of certainty that appears to be now priced," said Adam Cole, head of G10 currency strategy at RBC Capital Markets.

The pound, and to a lesser extent the euro, have been buffetted since February, by opinion poll results which have swung from predicting a clear victory for the government-led "In" camp to a narrow vote for a "Brexit".

Odds on the Betfair betting exchange have slumped from 40 per cent last Thursday before the killing of pro-EU lawmaker Jo Cox to just 14 per cent on Thursday. But the final polls still remain within the margin of error.

"The early results are potentially going to be very confusing," Cole said. "If this is the starting point [with which] we go into the 10 o'clock polls and the results, there's a lot of scope of volatility, to the downside."

Sterling is up around 4 per cent this week but the options market shows record levels of uncertainty about its fate over the next 24 hours. Overnight sterling implied volatilities were quoted as high as 125 per cent, levels at which traders said it was effectively impossible for fund and corporate buyers to trade. It dropped towards 40 per cent around mid-day as the currency rallied.

Pollster YouGov will publish a poll of how people have voted shortly after polling stations close, hoping to repeat its successful prediction of the 2014 Scottish independence vote.

Banks have warned clients about volatile trading conditions around the results which may lead to large gaps in prices. Barclays stopped accepting new "stop loss" orders as of (06:00 GMT), an extremely rare move for one of the big six banks that dominate the world's biggest financial market.

"These are very challenging conditions," said Yujiro Goto, currency strategist at Nomura, warning of a sharp fall in sterling if there are signs of a "Leave" vote after polls close.

Improving risk sentiment

Rising expectations that Britain would vote to stay in the EU bolstered overall risk sentiment, helping higher-yielding currencies and dampening demand for safe-haven currencies like the yen and the Swiss franc.

Nevertheless, nervousness is expected to prevail for the next 24 hours as liquidity stays on the lower side. That is likely to lead to wild swings in most currency pairs.

"The pound will take centre stage. But other European currencies and particularly dollar/yen also bear watching as the pair will reflect swings in risk sentiment," said Shin Kadota, chief Japan FX strategist at Barclays.

The dollar was up 1.3 per cent at 105.86 yen, while the euro jumped 2 per cent to a two-week high of 120.91 yen. The single currency hit a six-week high of $1.1422, moving in sympathy with the rising British pound.

SAN FRANCISCO — Electric car maker Tesla Motors wants to buy solar panel maker SolarCity for up to $2.8 billion in an attempt to create a one-stop shop for cleaner energy as consumers become more concerned about fossil fuels harming the environment.

The all-stock bid announced Tuesday values SolarCity Corp. at $26.50 to $28.50 per share, depending on a review of the company’s books.

SolarCity’s stock surged $3.31, or 16 per cent, to $24.50 in after-hours trading following the announcement of the deal.

Tesla’s shares sank $24.86, or 11 per cent, to $194.75, signaling that many investors don’t like the idea of the company relinquishing 8 to 9 per cent of its current market value of $32 billion to expand into the solar energy industry.

Both of the companies, located about 17 miles apart in Silicon Valley, are burning through cash as they try to expand in still relatively small markets. Tesla has lost $1.2 billion in the past two years alone while SolarCity has suffered losses exceeding $1.1 billion during the same span.

Yet both have fared well in the stock market, particularly Tesla. That’s largely because its CEO, Elon Musk, has been widely viewed as a visionary since he co-founded online payment service PayPal.

Now, the 44-year-old Musk is trying to bring two of his progeny together. He is chairman of both companies and the largest individual shareholder in each, with a 26 per cent stake in Tesla and a 22 per cent stake in SolarCity. The solar panel company’s CEO, Lyndon Rive, is Musk’s cousin.

Tesla is pursuing SolarCity 14 months after introducing a battery system that stores solar energy in homes and businesses trying to minimise their dependence on the power grids run by utilities. The battery, called “Powerwall”, marked Tesla’s first product outside the sleek and expensive electric vehicles that the Palo Alto, California, company has been making since 2008.

Musk said in a Tuesday conference call that he believes both Tesla and SolarCity will be better off if their products are united under one roof and a common brand.

If the deal goes through, SolarCity will adopt Tesla’s name and sell its solar panels alongside power-storing batteries, Musk said. 

AMMAN − The Amman Stock Exchange (ASE) said that the shares of Arab Future Investment Company will be suspended from trading as of Wednesday June 22nd 2016, following a decision issued by the minister of Industry and Trade approving the company’s capital reduction.

The company will be suspended until the completion of all procedures, required by the Jordan Securities Commission and the Securities Depository Centre, according to the ASE website.

AMMAN — The Housing Bank for Trade and Finance (HBTF) on Monday signed a partnership agreement with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) that will support the provision of a new loan, geared towards businesses working in tourism. 

The initiative is part of an effort by USAID’s Building Economic Sustainability through Tourism Project to boost access to credit for small, medium, and large tourism enterprises, particularly outside Amman, according to a USAID statement. 

“Community-based tourism offers the authentic, unique, local and hospitable experience that many visitors seek,” Russell Bauer, director of the Economic Development and Energy Office at USAID Jordan said, noting that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can enable local communities to benefit directly from tourism.  

The new loan product is to help SMEs grow and expand, benefitting local communities and tourists alike, Bauer explained.

“The signing of the agreement comes in support the tourism sector, as one of Jordan’s most vital sectors that contributes to the national economy, and drives development forward,” Ihab Al Saadi, HBTF general said.

The loans are offered at flexible terms and preferential interest rates as an incentive for tourism businesses.

USAID will provide technical assistance to community based tourism operators in preparing effective loan applications and enhancing their capacity to manage operations. 

The initiative aims to improve banks’ willingness to provide tourism loans by demonstrating the benefits of tourism projects and businesses, and to encourage tourism entrepreneurs to apply for loans, boosting local economies around Jordan.

AMMAN — Jordan Strategy Forum’s Jordan Investor Confidence Index increased in March 2016 by 3.76 to reach around 97.87 points compared to 94.11 points in February 2016.

Confidence, as measured by each sub-index, differed in performance in March 2016, according to a forum statement. The sub-index of confidence in the Amman Stock Exchange (ASE) drove the overall increase in the Jordan Investor Confidence Index with an increase of 3.55 points to reach 100.45 points in March 2016. This increase is attributed to the positive change in foreign investment in the ASE whereby the inflow of foreign investment was over 4.5 times the size of the outflow of foreign investment in that month. This increase in confidence in the stock exchange was accompanied by a slight decrease in the Monetary Sub-Index, which dropped by approximately 0.55 points, and an increase in the Real Economy Sub-Index, which rose by 0.75.

The forum attributed the decrease in confidence in the monetary system to a decrease in CBJ’s foreign reserves by JD 253 million to reach 12,450 million in March 2016. 

This is in addition to a decrease in money being denominated in the Jordanian Dinar from 85.3 per cent in February of 2016 to 85 per cent in March 2016. The Forum’s statement did not disclose reasons for the drop. 

The Real Economy sub-index witnessed a drop in the capital of companies registered, in spite of an increase in the number of companies registered, which increased to 616 in March 2016, compared with 605 companies in February 2016. 

Moreover, this month private sector credit relative to total remained at 60 per cent in March. In spite of these changes, the slight increase in the value of the sub-index can be attributed to the increase in the Manufacturing Quantity Production Index, which settled at 161.8 points, compared to 155.1 points in February 2016. This is in addition to an increase in the number of construction permits and real estate activities.

The Jordan Investor Confidence Index is a monthly-issued index published by Jordan Strategy Forum. It aims to measure the confidence of investors operating in the Jordanian market through three aspects: confidence in the Jordanian Dinar and the monetary system, confidence in the real economy, and confidence in the Amman Stock Exchange.

BERLIN — German prosecutors are investigating former Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn and another unnamed executive over allegations that they didn’t inform investors soon enough about the company’s scandal over cars rigged to cheat on US diesel emissions tests.

The Braunschweig prosecutor’s spokesman, Matthias Diekman, said in a statement Monday that the probe was opened at the behest of Germany’s Federal Financial Supervisory Authority, the country’s financial watchdog.

German stock market law requires publicly traded companies to alert investors as soon as they have unforeseen developments that could affect a decision to buy or sell the stock. Prosecutors said that Volkswagen only made that notification on September 22, and that there was evidence that the disclosure obligation should have been fulfilled earlier.

The news release said that the second employee is not the current board of directors’ chairman, Hans Dieter Poetsch. Poetsch was chief financial officer under Winterkorn but has since left that post.

Volkswagen did not immediately respond to calls seeking comment. The company has already said in response to an investor lawsuit that it met its disclosure obligation. Volkswagen has said Winterkorn was sent a memo on May 23, 2014, about emissions irregularities uncovered by an environmental group, but the company was not sure he saw it, and that top officials discussed the matter on July 27, 2015.

The company said earlier that the issue was believed to be something that could be resolved through a settlement that would not impose heavy costs, and it still believed that to be the case in early September 2015. On September 18, the US Environmental Protection Agency issued a violation notice, leading Volkswagen to assess the risks as more serious and issue its investor advisory four days later.

Winterkorn stepped down as the scandal came to light, saying he was doing so “in the interests of the company even though I am not aware of any wrongdoing on my part”.

Volkswagen has admitted equipping cars with software that sensed when the car was on a test stand and turned off emission controls during everyday driving. The company has apologised and commissioned a law firm to investigate. It is negotiating a settlement with US authorities in federal court in San Francisco on how it would fix or buy back some 500,000 diesels sold in the United States. Some 11 million such cars were sold worldwide.

Volkswagen has set aside 16.2 billion euros ($18.3 billion) from last year’s earnings to deal with the costs of recalls and fixes.

AMMAN — Six Jordanians will attend the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES), which will take place between June 22 and 24, 2016, in Palo Alto, California, according to a statement of the US embassy. 

They will be joining more than 700 entrepreneurs from around the world along with investors, speakers and leaders in the entrepreneurship space.

The attendees from Jordan are Massa Al Dalqamouni, Kamel Al Asmar, Rasha Al Khateeb, Sami Hourani, Sima Najjar and Lama Shashaa, according to the statement. 

These entrepreneurs will be joined by high-level US government officials, including President Barack Obama, Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker, and Administrator of the Small Business Administration Maria Contreras-Sweet.

They will also meet with USAID Administrator Gayle Smith, Ambassador at-Large for Global Women’s Issues Catherine Russell, and Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Richard Stengel.

This summit will be the 7th installment in a series previously hosted by the United States and the governments of Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, Morocco and Kenya.  

In bringing the summit back to the United States, President Obama highlights his commitment to building bridges that help us tackle global challenges together, according to the embassy statement. 

PARIS — Three mega-mergers in the agrochemical sector, including Bayer and Monsanto, have raised concerns among farmers who fear higher prices and consumers more genetically-modified food.

Even before Bayer successfully woos US-based Monsanto, German civil society has erupted in protest against a national champion acquiring a producer of genetically-modified seeds and Roundup, the world’s leading but also controversial weedkiller that is suspected of being a carcinogen.

Meanwhile ChemChina is tying the knot with Swiss-based Syngenta, and US companies Dow and DuPont are also finishing wedding plans.

The three giants born of these mergers will control two-thirds of the global market for seeds and pesticides, two key products for farming.

As competition regulators in Europe and the United States weigh the mergers, non-governmental organisations and advocates of small-scale farming are voicing their concerns.

“Wherever you set the bar to define an oligopoly, it’s clear that the mergers will further reduce choice for farmers, especially in southern countries,” said Renee Vellvee of the NGO Grain.

She expressed concern the mergers would put “too much power at the top of the food chain in the hands of several company boards”.

In Germany, Annemarie Volling of the AbL group of small and medium-sized farmers worries that after such mergers “the big players will decide themselves which sorts of seeds will go on the market”.

“For the moment, there are no GM crops in Europe, but the question is whether Bayer will dare to try it,” she said.

Large farmers and cooperatives in Germany are so far less engaged.

“It isn’t an issue at all, the farmers have other concerns at the moment,” such as the fall in milk prices, said Holger Brantsch of the Brandenburg Agricole Federation. “It doesn’t interest them at the moment.”

Consolidation = higher costs 

While some sympathetic US farm groups see the mergers as a means for their suppliers to cut costs and maintain funding for research and development into innovative products, others are calling for the mergers to be blocked.

“Seed costs are the highest input expense for farmers,” National Farmers Union president Roger Johnson said in a statement last month.

“While some of the cost can be attributed to more sophisticated technology, we have seen time and again that consolidation and market restructuring has increased the cost of crop inputs.”

With the current low prices for food commodities, “additional cost increases for crop inputs could cripple a lot of family farms in this country”, he warned.

In Argentina, a big customer for GM seeds for corn, soybeans and cotton, there is a wait-and-see attitude.

“While the scenario of price hegemony is likely, it isn’t the immediate reality,” said Carlos Marin, member of a group of over 2,000 agricultural businesses. 

On the contrary, he noted pesticide and fertiliser costs have been decreasing in recent months.

In France, the cooperative group InVivo, which holds about half of the market for the distribution of pesticides, believes it is large enough to hold its own in price negotiations with the agrochemical giants.

And “there are new suppliers arriving on the market, in particular with generic versions of pesticides, where there is a frenzy of competition,” said Jean-Sebastien Bailleux, who heads up the agricultural supplies unit at InVivo.

Tractors too? 

But Pat Mooney, director of the Canadian NGO ETC, called it “short term thinking by any company... to think they can face the pressure themselves”.

He believes the pressure could be even greater as the current crop of mergers could be just a prelude to agrochemical companies being picked by tractor manufacturers, which have much higher sales.

The purchase of Bayer-Monsanto would be of interest to a company like John Deere as both agrochemical groups and equipment manufacturers have been moving towards providing data services to farmers for “precision agriculture”.

A mash of precise data on soil conditions, often gleaned in part from satellites, plus GPS guided application of pesticides or water, can help boost yields while cutting costs.

“I don’t think any farmers feel very good about having so much of their input controlled by so few companies,” said Mooney, noting concerns voiced by several farm groups.

“They’d be much more nervous if John Deere was coming in, because it’s a much bigger company than Monsanto,” he added.