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Zambia Receives $100 Million Boost for Green, Resilient, and Transformational Tourism Development
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Meta plans to create Twitter rival
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Bata posts a 757% increase in profit before tax
Story of the Day
Speech Delivered by ACCA Zambia Head Janic Mwati at the 2023 Edition of the ACCA Business Leaders Conference: “It is with great pleasure and excitement that I welcome you all to this remarkable gathering, the annual ACCA Business Leaders Conference, where we come together to explore and discuss the ever-evolving landscape of “Trends Shaping Business Strategy and the World of Work” which is this year’s theme. Today, we find ourselves standing at the intersection of remarkable transformation and unprecedented challenges. The world of business is evolving at a rapid pace, driven by technological advancements, societal shifts, and global events. In this dynamic environment, it is imperative for us, as leaders, to stay ahead of the curve and adapt our strategies to effectively navigate these changes. As business becomes increasingly global,finance professionals and business leaders are increasingly being seen as a source of higher-value business advice and analysis. Your understanding of worldwide trends and their potential impact on your organisation has never been more important.” Read more
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The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved a $100 million credit to strengthen Zambia’s nature-based economy and increase economic opportunities in emerging tourism destinations in the country such as Liuwa Plains National Park, Source of the Zambezi, and Kasaba Bay. In Zambia, the nature-based economy spans many sectors and offers multiple environmental, social, economic, and fiscal benefits however more effective natural resource management is needed to improve economic opportunities for local populations and community incomes. Currently, several potential tourism areas in Zambia suffer from poor accessibility, poverty, and environmental degradation. Read more: APO Group
Zambia Association of Manufacturers (ZAM) has implored government to increase surtax on imported cement bags to 20 percent from the current 10 percent in an effort to protect the local market. According to ZAM in its submission made to Ministry of Finance and National Planning on the 2024 national budget, Zambia has become a dumping ground for cement bags. The manufacturers anticipate that increasing the surtax to 20 percent from the current 10 percent would encourage local cement producers to ‘Buy Zambian’ and local cement bag manufacturers would get a level playing field with manufacturers from other countries. The current capacity of local manufacturers is about 100 million bags per annum which is more than double of total bags required by cement manufacturers in Zambia. Read more: Zambia Monitor
Zambia’s labour force has increased in the last five years, rising from 3.4 million in 2017 to 3.6 million in 2021, a new labour force market research paper has revealed. The research paper was conducted by the Jesuit Centre for Theological Reflection and Zambia Chartered Accounts Studies (ZCAS) University. According to the research paper disseminated on Thursday in Lusaka, the labour force is still dominated by males who contribute about 60 percent. Read more: Zambia Monitor
The Lusaka South Multi Facility Economic Zone-LMFEZ- has signed a K7m investment deal with Umoyo Natural Health Limited to set up a manufacturing and trading factory within the zone. Under the deal, Umoyo Natural Health Limited will set up a state-of-the-art factory on a 2-hectare piece of land within the facility, and will create an additional 125 jobs by third year of its operations. Lusaka South MFEZ Corporate Affairs Manager Alice Schultz has told ZNBC News that the construction of the project is expected to commence in the third quarter of 2023. Ms Schultz says the initial project investment is K7m and this will grow to K17m in three years. She says the factory is positioned to service the market in and around Zambia and is already utilizing local raw material in the production of its products with the goal of diversifying the Zambian Economy and promoting agro-processing. Read more: ZNBC
Bank of Zambia Exchange Rates
Currency | Buying | Selling |
---|---|---|
USD | 19.8761 | 19.9235 |
GBP | 24.9465 | 25.0160 |
EUR | 21.4006 | 21.4596 |
ZAR | 1.0720 | 1.0754 |
In International Business News Sponsored By
Meta has shown staff plans for a text-based social network designed to compete with Twitter, sources have told the BBC. It could allow users to follow accounts they already follow on Instagram, Meta’s image-sharing app. And it could potentially allow them to bring over followers from decentralised platforms such as Mastodon. A Meta spokesperson confirmed to the BBC that the platform was in development. “We’re exploring a standalone decentralised social network for sharing text updates,” they said. Read more: BBC News
Goldman Sachs has slashed its forecast for oil prices by nearly 10%, citing weak demand in China and a glut of supply from sanctioned countries, including Russia. The Wall Street bank now thinks Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, will cost $86 a barrel in December, compared with its previous estimate of $95, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude will fetch $81 a barrel, down from $89. That’s despite Saudi Arabia’s recent decision to slash its own output, and a pledge by other members of the OPEC+ alliance of leading oil producers to extend a policy of supply restraint into next year. Read more: CNN
JP Morgan has agreed to pay roughly $290m to settle a lawsuit brought on behalf of alleged victims of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Attorneys for the bank said it was “in the best interests of all parties, especially the survivors who were the victims of Epstein’s terrible abuse”. The lawsuit had alleged the largest US bank ignored warning signs about its client during a 15-year relationship. The agreement is subject to court approval. JPMorgan Chase will not admit liability in the case, but upon the settlement’s approval the bank will put out a statement regretting its association with Epstein, David Boies, one of the victims’ attorneys, told CNN. Read more: CNN
The S&P 500 jumped to its highest level in 13 months on Monday as traders hoped the Federal Reserve will skip hiking rates when the central bank decides on policy Wednesday. The S&P 500 added 0.93% to close at 4,338.93, with gains steadily increasing throughout the trading day. The benchmark surpassed its high from last August and reached the best levels since late-April 2022. The Nasdaq Composite popped 1.53% to finish the day at 13,461.92, also reaching the highest level since April 2022. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 189.55 points, or 0.56%, to close at 34,066.33. Markets have come to expect that the Fed will skip a rate increase at this week’s meeting, with traders pricing in a roughly 72% chance that there will be no hike. The Fed has hiked 10 consecutive times. Tuesday’s inflation data could help reinforce the case that inflation is subsiding, as economists expect the consumer price index to show inflation dropping to a 4% annual rate in May. That’s down from 4.9% in the prior month. Read more: CNBC
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak made a big pitch to the tech community Monday, casting the U.K. as a global center for artificial intelligence and regulation of the technology. “We must act and act quickly if we want not only to retain our position as one of the world’s tech capitals, but to go even further and make this the best country in the world to start, grow and invest in tech businesses,” Sunak said, addressing a crowded tech conference in London. “I feel a sense of urgency and responsibility to make sure that we see things because one of my five priorities is to grow our economy. And the more we innovate, the more we grow.” “I want to make the U.K. not just the intellectual home but the geographical home of global AI safety regulation,” Sunak added. Read more: CNBC
In accordance with the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Act No. 41 of 2016, Zambia Bata Shoe Company PLC announces its audited financial results for the year ended 31st December 2022. Revenue increased by 36% to K224 million mainly attributed by Retail business turnaround and marketing reactivation and advertisement which created a new sense of awakening the “Bata” brand. Operating Expenses increased by 2% to K32.9 million. The increase was only marginal through optimization and effective expense management with real time tracking and monitoring. Profit before tax increased 757% to K56 million in line with increased revenue, gross margins and optimization of expenses. The Company increased production volume pairs to 515,214 representing a growth of 24%. This is attributed to the implementation of demand-based production planning and close monitoring of inherent production Key Performance Indicators of material yield factors, capacity utilization, and other efficiency data. Read more
In 99 trades recorded yesterday, 14,297 shares were transacted resulting in a turnover of K52,764.59. Trading activity was also recorded in AECI, Airtel, CEC Zambia, PUMA, Standard Chartered Bank Limited, Zambeef and Zanaco as well as CEC Africa on the quoted tier. The LuSE All Share Index (LASI) maintained its close at 8,188.98 points. The market closed on a capitalization of K76,574,830,373.94 including Shoprite Holdings and K41,794,144,933.94 excluding Shoprite Holdings.
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