Story of the Day:
Currency fluctuations across the African continent remain one of the reasons why the development of capital markets that seek out foreign investment has lagged behind in terms of development, according to The World Bank. Read more
Local Business and Finance
Japanese renewable energy company Univergy Solar is to invest more than $200 million in two solar power projects in Zambia that will add 200 megawatts (MW) to the country’s national grid next year, the government said on Friday. Read more: Reuters
Barrick Gold believes its Zambian copper mine is worth more than the $735-million carrying value listed in its latest annual report. CEO Mark Bristow said he’s received interest from potential buyers of the mine, called Lumwana, but isn’t in a hurry to sell it. Bristow disputed a report that it would start the disposal process in January. Read more: Mining Weekly
Government says it is working on a mining tax regime that will benefit both the country and mining companies.
Foreign Affairs Minister Joseph Malanji says government is concerned that some Value Added Tax -VAT- claims by some mining firms are not genuine. He says government has ben getting a raw deal because of this. Read more: ZNBC
Over $3.8 billion has been invested in Zambia by Chinese firms in various fields. Chinese Ambassador to Zambia Li Jie disclosed this at a media briefing in Lusaka to mark the 55th Anniversary, since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Zambia and China. Read more: Lusaka Times
Finance Minister Bwalya Ng’andu has called on Zambians to be vigilant in curbing the country’s low tax compliancy levels to promote fiscal fitness. Read more: Lusaka Times
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has confirmed intentions to undertake a field staff visit to Zambia next month to exchange views on policies government is undertaking to stabilize the country’s economy. Read more: News Diggers
The impact of power rationing or load shedding in now manifesting in different economic areas with the latest being the impact on prices of dry foods. Prices of dry foods on the local market such as dry Fish and Kapenta have been hiked by about 25% from the previous months prices raising inflation concerns. Read more: Zambian Business Times
International Business and Finance
Zimbabwe’s state-owned electricity distributor, grappling with drought and ageing equipment, said on Thursday it will disconnect mines, farms and other users as it looks to recover $77 million in unpaid bills. Read more: Africa News
The European Union is proposing to extend the deadline for Brexit by three months to Jan. 31, according to a draft declaration seen by Bloomberg that will be discussed by envoys in Brussels on Monday. Read more: Bloomberg
Investors expect the Fed to once again issue an “insurance” cut that protects against negative fallout from the trade war and global economic slowdown. The markets put the probability of a quarter point cut at more than 90%, according to CME Group’s FedWatch tool. Read more: CNN
Business activity continued to slow around the world headed into the fall, with the U.S. showing signs of tepid growth. Read more: Wall Street Journal
Stocks are flirting with record territory but have been stuck in a narrow trading range, leaving investors grasping for a fresh driver that could propel the bull market to even greater heights. Read more: Wall Street Journal
Jaguar Land Rover has reported a quarterly profit after seeing a big boost to sales in China. The firm made a pre-tax profit of £156m in the three months to 30 September, with revenues up 8% to £6.1bn. Sales in China – a key market for car manufacturers – were up by nearly a quarter from a year earlier. Read more: BBC News
Capital Markets Report
In 3 trades recorded on Wednesday, 10,067 shares were transacted, resulting in a market turnover of K9,088. Trading activity was recorded in Copperbelt Energy Corporation and Zambeef. The LuSE All Share Index (LASI) closed at 4,352.11 points down by 0.17% from its previous close of 4,359.34 points. The market closed on a capitalization of K56,919,935,729 including Shoprite Holdings and K22,680,729,749 excluding Shoprite Holdings.
Chart of the Day: