Story of the Day:
FQM Trident announced that for this year’s annual Tree Planting Season, the mine has grown 60,000 trees to be planted around its operation, which is an increment of 10,000 trees from the number it planted during last year’s season. FQM Trident’s General Manager Junior Keyser made this statement at the official launch of the 2022/2023 National Tree Planting Season in Kalumbila on December 15, 2022. The launch was hosted at Trident’s South-east Waste Rock Dump, one of the sites earmarked for the mine’s rehabilitation efforts. This event was graced by the Minister of Green Economy and Environment Hon. Engineer Collins Nzovu as Guest of Honour, North-Western Province Minister Robert Lihefu, Senior Chiefs and Traditional Leaders and British High Commissioner Nicholas Woolley also attended. Read more
Local Business and Finance Sponsored By Liquid Intelligent Technologies
President Hakainde Hichilema says Zambia will engage neighbouring Zimbabwe in an effort to address the energy deficit in the country. President Hichilema observed that part of the problem of electricity in the country was due to the poor management of the Kariba dam by the Zambezi River Authority. The President said the Zambezi River Authority has failed to manage the asset properly. President Hichilema disclosed that as early as May last year, the authorithy was aware of the poor compliance levels at the North and South Bank of the Kariba dam but failed to correct the situation on both sides. The Head of State said he will therefore initiate a high-level meeting with his Zimbabwean counterpart, Emmerson Mnangagwa, to know the prevailing challenges and possible solutions. Read more: ZNBC
Mines and Minerals Development Minister Paul Kabuswe says Southern Province has the potential to become a mining powerhouse with the discovery of minerals in various areas in the province. Mr. Kabuswe says Government has taken interest in mining activities in the province because unscrupulous individuals have been exploiting minerals illegally. He says his ministry is finalizing the formulation of the minerals commission which will have presence countrywide and will be a stakeholder across all mines in the country. Mr. Kabuswe says his ministry also intends to capacitate Mineral bureaus for them to perform their tasks in line with President Hakainde Hichilema’s guidance on mining activities. Read more: ZNBC
The United Nations Commission for Africa – UNECA and the Africa Input and Export Bank have brought in their expertise to actualise the car battery project between Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo – DRC. Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry Chipoka Mulenga stated that the two multilateral institutions will play a key role in the feasibility studies of the car battery project. Mr Muenga added that two production plants will be set up in Zambia where the car batteries will be produced. “We have identified a place for the car battery plant and this is in Ndola, we may not only do with one plant, we may set up two or three plants, but to start with, our focus is making sure that we first set up this plant in Ndola,” he said. Read more: Lusaka Times
President Hakainde Hichilema has revealed that there are leakages at the Kariba dam, saying there is no need to hide such things. The President says his administration spoke a lot in the past year and it’s now time to get things done. And Energy Regulation Board Chairperson Reynolds Bowa has announced that Zesco and Maamba Collieries Limited have agreed on the repayment of the debt owed to Maamba Collieries, to be cleared in two phases. Read more: News Diggers
A PwC Zambia’s 2021 Listed Companies Analysis Report has revealed that market capitalisation of companies listed on the Lusaka Stock Exchange (LuSE) increased by K9.8 billion to K67.3 billion in kwacha terms, and by US$1.3 billion to US$4 billion in US dollar terms in 2021. The report reveals that Zambia Sugar, Copperbelt Energy Corporation, Chilanga Cement (formerly known as Lafarge Cement Zambia) and Zambia National Commercial Bank recorded the largest increase in terms of market capitalisation in 2021. Read more: News Diggers
International Business and Finance
As the new year kicks off, Africa is likely to experience a contraction of its annual GDP growth as rising inflation and interest rates hikes continue to bite, restricting borrowing and government spending, says Charlie Robertson, chief economist at Renaissance Capital. “It’s going to be a year of austerity for many lower-income countries, not just Africa. They can’t borrow easily from abroad. It’s too expensive. We’ve got a global slowdown, which won’t help exports. And that’s a tough combination. Governments will have to take measures like removing the fuel subsidy or at least reducing it in the second half of 2023, which is likely to hurt the middle classes.” Read more: African Business
Kenya Airways shares have been suspended from trading for an additional year from 5 January, according to a statement from the Nairobi Stock Exchange. The airline was first taken off the stock exchange in 2020 following the government’s plans to take full ownership of the carrier as the Covid-19 pandemic decimated the global aviation industry. But the shares will stay off the market pending a restructuring which the government now hopes will lead to a sale to private investors. Read more: African Business
Rolls-Royce sold a record number of cars last year, driven by demand in the US — its biggest market. The UK-based carmaker sold 6,021 cars, an 8 per cent rise on 2021 — and the highest annual figure in its 119-year history. The company expects to deliver record profits when it discloses financial figures in the coming weeks. Read more: Financial Times
The Earth’s protective ozone layer is on track to recover within four decades, closing an ozone hole that was first noticed in the 1980s, a United Nations-backed panel of experts announced on Monday. The findings of the scientific assessment, which is published every four years, follow the landmark Montreal Protocol in 1987, which banned the production and consumption of chemicals that eat away at the planet’s ozone layer. The ozone layer in the upper atmosphere protects the Earth from the sun’s ultraviolet radiation, which is linked to skin cancer, eye cataracts, compromised immune systems and agricultural land damage. Scientists said the recovery is gradual and will take many years. If current policies remain in place, the ozone layer is expected to recover to 1980 levels — before the appearance of the ozone hole — by 2040, the report said, and will return to normal in the Arctic by 2045. Additionally, Antarctica could experience normal levels by 2066. Read more: CNBC
The Swiss National Bank on Monday reported a loss of 132 billion Swiss francs ($143 billion) for the 2022 financial year, citing preliminary figures. It represents the biggest loss in the central bank’s 116-year history and equates to roughly 18% of Switzerland’s projected gross domestic product of 744.5 billion Swiss francs. Its previous record loss was 23 billion francs in 2015. As a result it will not make its usual payouts to the Swiss government and member states, it said, with payments to its shareholders also set to be affected. In 2021, the bank reported a 26 billion franc profit. Read more: CNBC
Nigeria has officially restricted massive cash withdrawals from the bank beginning Monday the 9th January in an effort to cool off inflation. Nigerians will only be allowed to withdraw 44 dollars per week per individual and $11,000 for businesses, a policy that is most likely to affect millions of Nigerians especially businessmen and high cash intensive activities. The stated goal of the authorities is to succeed in limiting the mass of banknotes in circulation, both to control illicit financial flows and corruption, and to modernise the payment system such as digital money transfers, mobile money or again the e-naira, the digital naira intended for businesses. Read more: African Business
Goldman Sachs will lay off as many as 3,200 employees this week as an uncertain economic and market climate pushes the bank to hunt for cost savings, according to a person familiar with the matter. More than a third of the job cuts are expected to be from the firm’s trading and banking units, the person said. Like its Wall Street rivals, Goldman Sachs has been hit by a slump in global dealmaking activity as fewer companies merge or seek to raise capital. Read more: CNN
Capital Markets Report
In 270 trades recorded yesterday, 3,373,789 shares were transacted resulting in a turnover of K5,543,602.76. A share price gain of K0.01 was recorded in Zambia Breweries. Trading activity was recorded in Airtel, Copperbelt Energy Corporation Zambia , Chilanga Cement, Madison Financial Services, National Breweries, PUMA, Standard chartered Bank Limited, Zambeef, Zanaco, and Zambia Sugar. The LuSE All Share Index (LASI) closed at 7,356.97 points up by 0.02% from its previous close of 7,355.71. The market closed on a capitalization of K72,955,243,684.85 including Shoprite Holdings and K38,172,558,244.85 excluding Shoprite Holdings.