Story of the Day
A key attribute of the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) is its dexterity – the agility with which it has been able to respond to the pressing needs of the country at any given time. Since its establishment, the Corporation has been instrumental in spearheading and implementing South Africa’s industrial development trajectory helping to create industries that have since become cornerstones of the country’s economy. Read more
Local Business and Finance Sponsored By Liquid Intelligent Technologies
Zambia’s official creditors led by China have agreed to provide debt relief to the southern African nation, paving the way for an IMF bailout and setting a precedent for how Beijing could work with other lenders to tackle the threat of a wave of defaults across emerging markets. A committee of creditors co-chaired by China and France said on Saturday that they were “committed to negotiate with the Republic of Zambia terms of a restructuring” under a G20 framework to co-ordinate debt relief. Read more: Financial Times
Zambia has cancelled US$1.6 billion in agreed upon but not-disbursed Chinese loans, mostly from China Exim Bank and the Industrial Commercial Bank of China, to help manage its debt woes. It is a portion of the US$2 billion that Lusaka has cancelled in undisbursed loans from its external creditors, coming shortly before its official bilateral lenders agreed on Saturday to provide debt relief to the Southern African nation. Read more: South China Morning Post
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation has announced that President Hakainde Hichilema will on Tuesday undertake a two-day State Visit to Tanzania at the invitation of that country’s President, Samia Suluhu Hassan. In a statement, Monday, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Stanley Kakubo said during the visit, the two leaders would discuss issues relating to TAZARA, TAZAMA Pipelines Limited, and the Nakonde-Tunduma One Stop Border Post. Read more: News Diggers
Zimbabwean companies are set to increase exports to Zambia following increased engagements with buyers in the country, during the ongoing Zambia Agricultural and Commercial Show. National trade development and promotion organisation, ZimTrade, has facilitated 30 companies that are exhibiting at Zambia’s largest trade exhibition event, among them seven youth-owned enterprises. Read more: The Herald
Chinese enterprises participating in Zambia’s biggest agricultural and commercial show on Monday expressed happiness at the level of response gotten from customers that visited their exhibition stands. The Chinese Embassy in Zambia has managed to organize 110 enterprises at the 94th Agricultural and Commercial Show, resulting in organizers recognizing China as a “country of honor” because of the unprecedented number of Chinese firms at the show. Read more: Xinhua
Konkola Copper Mines (in liquidation) has sued its former provisional liquidator Milingo Lungu and his law firm, Lungu Simwanza and Company, claiming over US$59 million which he allegedly drew from the mining company’s accounts. Read more: News Diggers
Zambia’s sovereign dollar-denominated Eurobonds gained more than 1 cent in the dollar on Monday, after a pledge on Saturday by bilateral creditors to negotiate debt relief cleared the way for a $1.4 billion deal with the IMF. Its 2024 maturity was up 1.417 cents at 8.46 GMT, according to Tradeweb data, while the 2027 issue was up 1.242 cents. Bonds were bid between 58.5 cent and 59.2 cents – still trading at distressed levels – but at their strongest in a month. Read more: Yahoo Finance
International Business and Finance
More than two years into the pandemic, many have burned out, quit their jobs or are struggling to make ends meet as record inflation takes a huge bite out of their paychecks. But, for the past eight weeks, thousands of people in the United Kingdom have tested a four-day schedule — with no cut to their pay — that could help usher in a new era of work. It’s the world’s biggest trial of a four-day work week so far. Already, some workers have said they feel happier, healthier and are doing better in their jobs. Read more: CNN
The dollar tumbled to a one-month low against a basket of major currencies on Monday after data showed the US economy has entered a technical recession, prompting investors to think the Federal Reserve may be slower to raise interest rates. The dollar index, which measures the greenback’s performance against six other currencies including the Japanese yen, slipped 0.52% to trade at $105.35 – its lowest since July 5. Read more: Business Insider
Asian stock markets tumbled on Tuesday, with indexes in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Shanghai leading the way, as investors were jittery about US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s expected visit to Taiwan that could severely escalate tensions with China. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index slid 3%. Mainland China’s Shanghai Composite Index also tumbled 2.6%. Taiwan’s Taiex declined 1.7%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 also shed 1.6%, and Korea’s Kospi lost 0.8%. The Taiwan dollar weakened 0.2% against the US dollar. Meanwhile, the Japanese yen, a traditional safe-haven currency, surged 0.7% against the greenback. Worries about escalating tensions in Taiwan Strait are roiling markets. Read more: Read more: CNN
The Biden administration faces a legal deadline at midnight to defend former President Donald Trump’s China tariffs, even as the White House considers scaling them back to lower consumer prices and ease inflation. Scores of companies sued the Trump administration in September 2020, arguing the process of implementing a third and fourth tranche of tariffs on roughly $350 billion in goods was overly broad and hastily implemented. Read more: CNBC
The loss of confidence in China’s property sector could feed into a contagion that would further drag down the Chinese economy, analysts warned. The comments come after beleaguered developer China Evergrande Group failed to deliver a promised $300 billion restructuring plan over the weekend. Read more: CNBC
Capital Markets Report
In 95 trades recorded yesterday, 28,943 shares were transacted resulting in a turnover of K152,083. A share price loss of K0.01 was recorded in Zanaco. Trading activity was also recorded in Airtel, Chilanga Cement, PUMA, Standard Chartered Zambia, Zambia Breweries, Zambia Sugar and CEC Africa on the quoted tier. The LuSE All Share Index (LASI) closed at 6,889.66 points, 0.05% down from its previous close of 6,892.98 points. The market closed on a capitalization of K70,921,149,945 including Shoprite Holdings and K36,138,464,505 excluding Shoprite Holdings.
