Story of the Day
Over the last twenty years of working, I have interviewed a great number of candidates at various levels of employment; both entry level junior roles and middle management candidates. Most candidates prepare very well for technical and behavioral questions and simply do well in them. However, there is one obvious question that get the least attention from candidates. This question is “Why do you want to work here?” Candidates will come prepared to share, their greatest strength, a moment when they shined, and an innovation they developed but don’t prepare adequately for the question, why do you want to work here. It may seem like it’s a simple question that can be answered off the cuff, but I can assure you, it’s not that simple. Read more
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The monetary policy committee in Africa’s red metal hotspot will on Monday 15 August commence two day deliberations on the pen ultimate rate stance of 2022. May MPC kept rates unchanged at 9.0% while the Bank of Zambia was weary of the morphing global risk environment marred by excessive inflation and dislocated grain markets. The rate decision committee will highly likely keep the currency monetary policy stance in view of single digit inflation and more importantly the stronger optimism surrounding the greater odds of an IMF financing package in the August – September period. Read more: The Business Telegraph
The Citizens Economic Empowerment Commission (CEEC) has unveiled Seven Empowerment programmes to the tune of 365 million Kwacha. CEEC Director General Muwe Mungule says the new empowerment programmes are targeted at Citizens, Small and Medium Enterprises as well as corporate enterprises. Dr. Mungule says the first Empowerment product is the Marketeers Booster loan which is expected to create 10,000 jobs. He says the financing product will be between 500 to 5000 Kwacha and will have no interest rate. Read more: ZNBC
The Zambia Institute of Chartered Accountants -ZICA- says Zambia’s economy is showing positive signs according to what was projected. ZICA President, Cecilia Zimba, says if the government continues with the right policies, the Zambian economy will recover. Mrs. Zimba has told ZNBC News in Livingstone that the reduction in inflation rate is one of the indicators of a rebounding economy. Read more: ZNBC
One year after being voted into office, President Hakainde Hichilema has urged Zambians not to look backwards but forge ahead with the new dawn administration as it endeavours to better their lives. Mr Hichilema said Government has done a lot in the one year it has been in office such as employing over 42,000 teachers and health workers, and that this is not the end as more will be done in due course. “I have come here before after election time and this is yet another time and I want to repeat what I have said particularly because today is 12 of August. Read more: Zambia Daily Mail
International Business and Finance
Saudi oil giant Aramco has broken its own record with a $48.4bn profit for the second quarter of 2022. It is a 90% year-on-year increase and marks the biggest earnings for the world’s largest energy exporter since its public listing three years ago. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has seen oil and gas prices skyrocket. According to Bloomberg, the Saudi oil giant’s figure represents “the biggest quarterly adjusted profit of any listed company”. Read more: BBC News
UK workers are going into the office an average of just 1.5 days a week, with only 13% coming in on a Friday, a survey suggests. Consultancy Advanced Workplace Associates surveyed 43 offices in the UK, representing nearly 50,000 people, in June and July. It suggests average attendance was just 29%, with a peak of 39% mid-week. During the pandemic, offices shifted to home-working but many have continued with a hybrid model since then. Pre-Covid, UK workers were going into the office an average of 3.8 days a week, the research – which covered sectors including banking, energy, engineering, healthcare, insurance and tech – found. Read more: BBC News
Five state-owned Chinese companies, including the country’s leading energy and chemical company, have chosen to delist from the New York Stock Exchange by the end of August. In separate statements issued Friday, China Life Insurance, PetroChina, Sinopec, Aluminum Corporation of China and Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical said they had notified the NYSE and applied for “voluntary delisting.” All five companies cited “low turnover in the US” and “high administrative burden and costs” as their reason for the departure. Read more: CNN
Africa is the second-most populous and second-largest continent after Asia, with tremendous economic potentials. The continent is one of the world’s fastest-growing regions and welcomes business investment with rewarding opportunities. With an estimated $6.7 trillion in business and consumer spending and over 1.7 billion people, Africa is a prosperous region for global businesses. But Africa is not without challenges, especially in the business sector. This article focuses on the critical challenges of doing business in Africa. In writing this article, we consulted reliable sources such as the World Bank, Africa Energy Portal, The Guardian, Energy Capital Power, etc. Read more: Business Insider
Ethiopia announced today that it has completed the third filling phase of its ambitious Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) project. The massive reservoir, which has cost the Horn of Africa country an estimated $4 billion to construct, is a source of concern for Egypt and Sudan. Both downstream countries of the Nile River are worried that a reservoir of such magnitude could disrupt their access to the water body. But Ethiopia’s insistence on seeing the project through has caused a diplomatic impasse between the three countries. Recently, the United Nations and the UAE Government called on the three countries to resume an AU-led diplomatic talk aimed at resolving the dispute. Said talk has yet to resume. Read more: Business Insider
Capital Markets Report
In 153 trades recorded yesterday, 447,470 shares were transacted resulting in a turnover of K1,175,559. A share price loss of K0.01 was recorded in Zanaco. Trading activity was also recorded in AECI, Bata, Copperbelt Energy Corporation, Chilanga Cement, Madison Financial Services, Standard Chartered Zambia, Zambeef and ZAMEFA. The LuSE All Share Index (LASI) closed at 6,960.46 points, 0.05% down from its previous close of 6,963,78 points. The market closed on a capitalization of K71,229,315,747 including Shoprite Holdings and K36,446,630,307 excluding Shoprite Holdings.