Toyota Kenya and other African subsidiaries of its parent firm Toyota Tsusho Corporation (TTC) will be making vehicle purchase orders directly from the factory without going through sales and marketing representatives of automaker Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC). The move is aimed at increasing efficiency and competitiveness of the vehicle dealerships in the continent. TTC is the distributor of TMC’s vehicles in various African countries including Kenya where it owns Toyota Kenya Limited. “On June 1, 2018, the group and TMC entered into a memorandum of understanding regarding a transfer of TMC’s entire sales and marketing operations in the African market…
Author: The Editor
Zambia is known for two things globally – red metal mining (copper) of which it is Africa’s second largest producer and is also the home of one of the worlds natural wonders, the Mosi -o-tunya falls. For the purpose of this article, I will glean more towards the latter. “Dr. Livingstone I presume,” Henry Morton Stanley said to him on the shores of lake Tanganyika at Ujiji village in 1871. I always knew this scene as part of my history faculty. However not in the context of capital markets. It was at an ACCA capital markets workshop, at the Radisson…
Mining has a considerable positive economic impact on most African countries, but with the right kind of support from government, industry, individual stakeholders and the general population, it can be even greater, says African Mining Network chairperson Yolanda Torrisi. She suggests that a more positive attitude to mining and greater cooperation by all stakeholders would help present a united industry. “There are opportunities, but all must work together to realize the benefits.” In realizing these benefits, some regions and countries are doing better than others, with Zimbabwe, Namibia and Botswana making progress to the advantage of their entire populations. Surprisingly, Torrisi…
If crude price bears persist, importing nations could benefit through easing pump prices in the interim Oil is on a roller coaster with global growth weakness and supply economics weighing the commodity With a recent price hike effected by the Energy Regulatory Board, Zambia’s inflation has ticked up over 400bps to 8.3%. Current levels are in breach of the 6-8% BOZ targeted band. Being a net importer, the copper producer was adversely impacted by rising brent prices (at $76bbl.) and a weakening local currency. This resulted in a 16.8% – 21% pump price adjustment from gasoline to kerosene last month.…
Kenya’s capital markets have improved in the second edition of the Absa African Financial Markets Index. It’s been ranked 3rd among the 20 countries surveyed. South Africa was ranked first, with Ethiopia, rounding out the list. The 2018 edition of the report pointed to weak participation levels by local retail and institutional investors as an impediment to the development of capital markets in most markets. The report came out on the same day when the International Monetary Fund also pointed out that the Kenyan Shilling was about 17% overvalued. Below is a conversation between CTGN Africa and Mr. George Asante…
The London listed entity to focus on Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia and SA The miner will focus on copper, platinum and gold London Listed Anglo American is intensifying its exploration efforts in southern Africa. Anglo will be exploring areas it exited decades ago when metal prices were depressed. This includes areas such as the Copperbelt of Africa which extends from DRC to Zambia to Angola. Metal prices have now almost quadrupled making it attractive for investment. Angola American will be devoting 33% of its $6-billion budget (over 5 years) to Southern Africa investing in platinum, diamond and iron-ore mines that…
Economic think tank Dr. Lubinda Habazoka has explained the concept of listing. This follows the recent information asymmetries in the Southern African nation about the future of ZAFFICO. There were allegations leveled against the state that the SOE was in the process of being privatized and that control would be in the hands of a Chinese shareholder. This resulted in demonstrations that were suspected to have been politically fueled by disgruntled facets of society whose fears were allayed by both the Vice President – Honorable Inonge Wina and Minister of Finance – Margaret Mwanakatwe earlier last week. They both re-iterated…
Standard Bank responds to institutional investor calls for secondary listing A move to support broadening and deepening of financial markets The continents largest pan African bank, Standard Bank, will join SA’s largest insurer Sanlam on the A2X stock exchange. A2X is the Johannesburg Stock Exchange – JSE’s upcoming rival launched in 2017 and has recently gained ferocious momentum. A2X has a listing will shore up a listing of 13 corporates after Standard Bank on the 15 Nov pushing total market cap to circa $41bn (ZAR600bn). See below the current listings on the A2X. Standard Bank and AVI have joined the…
A team of global investors led by J.P. Morgan Sub – Saharan Economist Ayomide Mejabi met with the Economics Association of Zambia team led by its president Dr. Lubinda Habazoka in Lusaka on 01 Nov. The team comprising various fund managers and eurobond holders visited Zambia to assess economic pulse. Despite debt sustainability concerns, the Association is confident that Zambia will meet its repayment obligation given the current bullish macroeconomic variable landscape. The Association further revealed that the state still has room to implement measures that would slow the accumulation of debt further to acceptable and sustainable levels. The investors…
Financial markets for Africa’s second largest copper producer were ranked 8th from a the 20 assessed countries. This was according to the ABSA Africa financial markets index launched in Lusaka on 06 Nov. Zambia’s financial markets improved to 8th place (from 9th in the inaugural index launch last year). The Southern African nation scored (53) a weighted rating from the individual 5 pillars ranging from access to foreign exchange markets to capacity of local investors. The index scores were highest in the access to foreign exchange markets (77/100) and market transparency, tax and regulatory environment (56/100). Zambia had a weak…