Story of the Day
Shareholders of ZCCM Investments Holdings Plc (ZCCM-IH) have approved an K85.3 million dividend at K0.53 per share during the 18th Annual General Meeting held today virtually. This follows a Group profit of K2.1 billion (compared to K307 million in 2019) and a Company profit of K568 million (compared to K153 million in 2019) recorded for the 2020 financial year end. This represents 594% and 271% increase in profits compared to the previous year respectively. Read more
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Government is pleased with the positive performance of the 2022 budget, which has seen the sustained financing of social sectors and installation of over 41,000 new employees on the public service payroll. Finance and National Planning Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane says the budget has also been able to meet several budget obligations for the current year. The Minister was speaking in reference to the November, 2022 budget expenditure whereby 10.8-billion Kwacha was released to finance public service delivery. Read more: ZNBC
Zambia is on course to get its fourth mobile operator with Beeline Telecom to launch commercial LTE-based services by the end of January 2023. Beeline’s entry into the Zambian market has been confirmed by The Zambia Information and Communication Technology Authority (ZICTA). Beeline was granted an operating license in February 2021 and had been set to launch commercial services in June of this year but encountered problems due to Covid-19 related issues. Read more: Lusaka Times
Jesuit Center for Theological Reflection (JCTR) has disclosed that the cost of living for a family of five as measured by its Basic needs and Nutrition Basket for the month of November 2022 in Lusaka increased to K8, 567.20. Speaking during a media briefing, JCTR Social and Economic Development Programmes Manager Muchimba Siamachoka said this reflects a K29.42 increase from the K8, 537.78 recorded in October, 2022. Ms. Siamachoka said upward movement in the basket is attributed to increased prices in items such as 1kg Kapenta which went up by K61.77 from K197.65 to K259 as well as other food items. Read more: Money FM
A French international association specialised in timber trade has pledged to explore investment opportunities in the forestry sector in Zambia.
The investment pledge was made after Minister of Green Economy and Environment Collins Nzovu requested for support from the International Technical Association for Tropical Woods (ATIBT) to help Zambia derive maximum benefits from timber trade, which has a huge potential to contribute to the county’s economic growth. During a meeting held at the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs in Paris with ATIBT director general, Benoit Duval, Zambia’s Ambassador to France Dr Christine Kaseba, Zambia Environmental Management Agency director Maxwell Nkoya and the embassy staff, Mr Nzovu said Zambia was looking for technical and financial support to achieve value addition for its timber. Read more: Zambia Daily Mail
ZAMBIA Development Agency (ZDA) has called for strengthening of bilateral trade agreements between Zambia and the United States of America (USA) in order to exploit trade and investment between the two countries. ZDA acting director general Albert Halwampa said strengthening bilateral ties will help Zambia to fully utilise export opportunities that exist under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). Speaking when a team from the American Embassy and United States Agency for International Development (USAID) paid a courtesy call on him recently, Mr Halwampa said the US is the largest economy in the world and a strategic market for Zambia. Read more: Zambia Daily Mail
International Business and Finance
Copper rose on Thursday on hopes that an easing of coronavirus controls in top consumer China will increase demand, with Goldman Sachs predicting prices could reach a record high of $11,000 in a year. Benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) was up 0.9% at $8,529.50 a tonne at 1720 GMT. Weakening growth in China and elsewhere dragged prices from a high of $10,845 in March, but the market is now anticipating economic recovery. Read more: Reuters
The United states have been keen on establishing a sustainable trade relationship with several African states. Recently the US government is looking to renew a trade agreement with Africa that affords some countries in the Sub-Saharan region tariff-free exporting. Under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) which comes to an end in 2025, Joe Biden is looking to give Africa preferential access to US markets, and tap into Africa’s growing economy. Read more: Business Insider
The US government recorded a monthly budget deficit of $249 billion in November, a 30% increase from a year earlier amid increased spending and falling revenue, the Treasury Department reported Monday. Federal budget outlays increased by $28 billion, or 6% in November, with agencies such as the Education Department reporting increased spending, according to the Monthly Treasury Statement. Receipts for November fell by 10%, or $29 billion, with decreases seen in areas such as government revenue from payroll taxes. Factoring in calendar-related differences affecting the November 2021 budget, the November 2022 deficit would be only 20% higher, according to the Treasury. Read more: CNN
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is striking a cautiously optimistic tone about 2023, predicting a major inflation cooldown and stressing that a recession isn’t required to get prices back under control. “I believe by the end of next year you will see much lower inflation, if there’s not an unanticipated shock,” Yellen told CBS’s “60 Minutes” in an interview that aired on Sunday. Yellen cited plunging gas prices — AAA said Monday the national average is down by 52 cents per gallon in the past month — tumbling shipping costs and shortening delivery lags. Read more: CNN
Capital Markets Report
In 51 trades recorded yesterday, 33,687 shares were transacted resulting in a turnover of K102,290.94. Trading activity was recorded in CECZ, PUMA, Standard Chartered Bank Limited, Zambia Breweries, Zanaco and Zambeef as well as CEC Africa on the quoted tier . The LuSE All Share Index (LASI) maintained it’s close at 7,336.59 points. The market closed on a capitalization of 72,866,533,168.565 including Shoprite Holdings and K38,083,847,728.65 excluding Shoprite Holdings.