Story of the Day:
The only listed power utility in Zambia, Copperbelt Energy Corporation, has advised shareholders that it expects improved earnings when it produces its 6 month unaudited financial statements. Read more
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The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has defended its proposed Extended Credit Facility – ECF programme that the new Finance Minister Dr. Situmbeko Musokotwane has proposed to close before the end of the year 2021. The IMF has stated that the programme will help Zambia to underpin the reforms that government will undertake to address macroeconomic imbalances. Read more: Zambian Business Times
Zambia’s chances of getting a fourth mobile telecoms network operator for the past four years has suffered yet another setback after Beeline Telecoms failed to start operations within the initially designated six months and has instead asked for an extension. Read more: Zambian Business Times
Zambia’s target to produce 900,000 tonnes of copper in 2021 hangs in balance as the country recorded a 3.6 percent decline in copper production in the first half of this year hitting 393,114.88 metric tonnes from last year’s 407,807.70 tonnes. Read more: Zambia Daily Mail
In an effort to help small and medium-sized entrepreneurs (SMEs) improve service delivery, Ecobank has launched a business account which promotes the use of digital platform in the sub-sector. The account offers SMEs three free digital features, namely Ecobank pay, which receives secured digital payments, Omnilite, which manages online banking transactions, and Google My Business, allows them to market their products and services on the platform. Read more: Zambia Daily Mail
International Business and Finance
The decision by Nigeria’s government to suspended Twitter continues to deal a massive blow to its revenue ambitions. According to Netblocks Cost of Shutdown Tools, which uses the classic Free Digital App GDP impact technique, the Twitter ban costs Nigeria’s economy $250,600 every hour, and it has been 2,400 hours since the FG banned Twitter. To simply put, Nigeria has lost at least over $600 million in revenue. Read more: Business Insider
The plane maker Boeing says it expects that it will take another two and a half years for global aviation to return to pre-pandemic levels. Its vice president of commercial marketing, Darren Hulst, said: “The industry recovers to 2019 levels of traffic by the end of 2023, early 2024” and domestic flying would be at the forefront of any recovery. Read more: BBC News
US Inflation took a breather in August, coming down from a 13-year high. Still, price increases remain uncomfortably high compared to before the pandemic. Consumer prices rose 5.3% in the year ended in August, slightly below the 5.4% increase in June and July, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Tuesday. Stripping out more volatile items like food and energy, prices rose by 4%, also a smaller increase than in July. Read more: CNN
The U.K.’s consumer prices index surged by 3.2% in the 12 months to August, official data showed on Wednesday, the largest ever month-on-month increase since records began in Jan. 1997. Read more: CNBC
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In 69 trades recorded yesterday, 1,827,377 shares were transacted resulting in a turnover of K3,325,196. Share price gains were recorded in LAFA of K0.04, in Zanaco of K0.10 and in Zambia Sugar of K0.10. Trading was also recorded in AECI, British American Tobacco Zambia, Copperbelt Energy Corporation, PUMA, Real Estate Investments Zambia, Standard Chartered Zambia, ZCCM and Zambeef. The LuSE All Share Index (LASI) closed at 4,746.58 points, 0.89% up from its previous close of 4,704.41 points. The market closed on a capitalization of K61,452,992,516 including Shoprite Holdings and K26,670,307,076 excluding Shoprite Holdings.
Chart of the Day: