Story of the Day:
In the first week of March 2020 trading on the LuSE, we saw hope for the equities market as it was not completely dominated by the Bond market. Opening the market with a score of 98% to 2% as compared to week one of February with the bond market which scored 100% of sales. Read more
Local Business and Finance Sponsored By Liquid Telecom
The kwacha has taken a cue from the Emerging Market (EM) ‘commodity exposed’ rout. As at midday, the red metal currency was priced at 15.55/15.60 in bid/offer having opened the first business day of the week beginning 10 March at 15.25/15.55. The Kwacha was last seen at these levels on Dec 06 which prompted the central bank to raise the cash reserve requirement 400 basis points to 9% to curb the slide. Read more: The Business Telegraph
Transport and Communications Minister Mutotwe Kafwaya says government is still waiting for the board to submit a business case to revive TAZARA. In an interview, Kafwaya explained that once the business case was completed, the Zambian government will plan on how to finance the requirements. Read more: News Diggers
Russia says it is unprepared to make a financial commitment towards the construction of a US$10 billion nuclear power plant in Zambia. And Zambia says it lacks adequate funds to finance the project. Read more: Zambian Observer
Livingstone Chamber of Commerce and Industry President, Namakau Siyanga says the Coronavirus outbreak has affected business in the tourist capital.
Ms. Siyanga says China is a major source of goods for most businesses in Livingstone, and that any slowdown in economic activities in the Asian country automatically spills over to Zambia. Read more: ZNBC
The Ministry of Mines and Minerals Development (MMMD) of Zambia has hinted of plans to set up a Minerals Commission similar to that of Ghana to regulate its mineral resources especially its recently found gold reserve. Read more: Ghana News Agency
KPMG Featured Article
Over the last year many finance teams have successfully implemented two new accounting standards, IFRS 9 – Financial instruments and IFRS 15 – Revenue from contracts with customers and are realising that the level of effort required and changes have been greater than anticipated. Read more
International Business and Finance Sponsored By Royal Air Charters
Goldman Sachs Group Inc Chief Financial Officer Stephen Scherr said on Tuesday the bank is “very open” to acquisitions, especially those that would speed the growth of its existing businesses. Read more: Reuters
Congo Republic aims to reach a deal with energy traders Glencore and Trafigura to restructure a $1.7 billion debt before a meeting with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in April, the head of the national oil company, told Reuters. Read more: Reuters
Banks in Italy and the United Kingdom are preparing to postpone mortgage payments for people affected by coronavirus as the number of cases in Europe rises sharply. Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), a leading UK bank, said Tuesday that customers who fall into financial difficulty as a result of the coronavirus can ask for their mortgage or loan payments to be delayed for up to three months. Read more: CNN
The Japanese government said it would offer some $15 billion in financing for businesses hit by the novel coronavirus and spend about $4 billion directly to prop up the economy. Read more: Wall Street Journal
Saudi Arabia will boost oil supplies to a record level next month in a sharp escalation of its price war after the collapse of an Opec production deal with Russia that had stabilised the market. The kingdom aims to supply 12.3millionbarrels a day of crude, which is 2.5million b/d more than it was producing and greater than its maximum sustained output capacity. That suggests Saudi Arabia will take barrels from storage to flood the market as it takes on rivals in a fight for market share. Read more: Financial Times
After weeks of worrying that lower interest rates will squeeze bank profits, investors confronted a still more alarming possibility on Monday: that a collapse in oil prices could trigger a wave of defaults by borrowers. By the end of the day, US bank shares had chalked up their worst single-session performance since 2009 and the industry was a big contributor to a global stock market rout. Read more: Financial Times
Businesses will likely cut their overseas investments by between 5% and 15% this year in response to the coronavirus outbreak, but there may also be a longer-lasting movement of production back to their home countries, the United Nations said Friday. In a report, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development said businesses will likely hold back on planned investments in the countries most severely affected by the spread of the virus. Read more: Bangkok Post
The Treasury Department is considering delaying tax payments beyond the April 15 deadline, according to a person familiar with the plans, as taxpayers and the Internal Revenue Service brace for economic disruption from the spread of the coronavirus. Read more: New York Times
Capital Markets Report
There were no trades recorded yesterday. The LuSE All Share Index (LASI) maintained its close of 4,260.56 points, as there were no share price movements. The market closed on a capitalization of K57,363,640,096 including Shoprite Holdings and K23,124,434,116 excluding Shoprite Holdings.
Chart of the Day:
