Kenya:
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Treasury bills latest average rates- 91 day 8.54%, 182 day 10.81% and 364 day 11.68%. Previous rates were 8.34%, 10.69% and 11.40% respectively….
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The noose is set to tighten on bank loan defaulters with a proposed law that gives saccos direct access to credit repayment records of all borrowers having been tabled for debate in Parliament. The Bill allows savings and credit cooperative societies (saccos) direct access to information about good and bad borrowers, effectively enabling them to weed out those who turn to them for loans after defaulting on their bank debts….
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Kenya’s largest bank by assets, KCB Group, announced it will temporarily shut down all its branches in the country and across the region over the weekend for a major systems upgrade.The NSE-listed lender advised its customers that it will be upgrading its core banking system beginning this Friday afternoon up to Sunday midnight “to provide customers with a simpler and enhanced banking experience….
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Hundreds tomato farmers in Kirinyaga County are a worried lot following a sharp fall in prices. A spot-check established that one kilogramme of tomatoes now costs Sh20 down from Sh120.The drastic change of prices is forcing farmers from the region which is leading in horticulture to sell their produce at throw-away prices. Farmers attributed the poor prices to a glut and a lack of ready market……
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A section of legislators have dismissed the move by banks to offer Sh30 billion to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) on friendly terms as a public relations gimmick meant to hoodwink Kenyans. The lawmakers asked the President to assent to the Bill and ignore the claims by the banks that it would not be good for the economy and would result in the growth of informal, unregulated lending……
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The Cabinet at a special sitting on Thursday approved plans to see Kenya meet its oil export target of 2022. In that effort, the Cabinet approved Sh3.2 billion for the upgrading of the Lokichar-Leseru road to smooth the way for the transportation of a projected 2,000 to 4,000 barrels of oil a day from the Turkana oil fields to Eldoret from whence the oil will be transported to Mombasa for refining.“It is envisaged the crude oil will be transported by rail and road from Eldoret to Mombasa,” a press statement explained….
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Banking crisis sees National Bank of Kenya lose Sh15b in customer deposits in the six months to June this year. A confidence crisis staged by the collapse of three small and medium-tier banks last year led to panic withdrawals, despite assurance from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK)….
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Kenya has found itself isolated after its peers in East Africa developed cold feet on a trade deal with the European Union (EU). One after another, the five countries in the region have backed out of the deal, leaving Kenya on the negotiating table alone. Unlike Kenya, the other East African countries have nothing to lose if they do not ratify the deal, known as the Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs), by the October 1 deadline — at least not in the short term……
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Bad loans at National Bank of Kenya more than quadrupled to Sh27.3 billion in the half year ended June, contributing to an 82% drop in net profit in the period. The lender’s net profit in the period stood at Sh311.2 million compared to Sh1.7 billion the year before…
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The National Treasury is planning to issue a 10-year bond to raise Sh25 billion for the purposes of financing the country’s Budget. Investors in the bond will be paid an interest rate (technically called coupon rate) that will be determined by the market through an auction. The coupon will be paid half-yearly. The bond has been advertised by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) acting as the agent for the Treasury….
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Econet Media Thursday launched a sports channel that will air limited live matches from the English Premier and America’s NBA leagues every weekend. Econet Media’s Kwese Free Sports TV channel started broadcasting in Kenya yesterday on the free-to-air Signet platform and will air a live English Premier League match every Saturday at 5pm and three NBA live matches in a week….
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Kenya Airways has completed the sale of five acres of land in Embakasi to the Kenya Medical Supplies Agency (Kemsa) in a transaction that will earn the carrier over Sh400 million. KQ anticipates that this income, in addition to Sh20 billion expected from execution of a restructuring plan in collaboration with American consultancy Mckinsey, will lift the business from the financial pit it finds itself in….
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KCB Group’s impending exit from the management of Chase Bank has opened the door for interested parties to bid for the majority stake in the troubled lender. KCB Group chief executive Joshua Oigara announced on Thursday that the bank will in two months cede the management of Chase Bank to the Kenya Deposit Insurance Corporation (KDIC) in order to make the selection of the new investor “open, transparent and above board.”….
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Kenya is considering revising downwards the minimum amount of money required to invest in companies that own and operate income-generating property projects. This follows investors’ lukewarm appetite for real estate investment trusts (REITs), the investment vehicles that were introduced by capital markets regulators to help small and individual investors own pieces of the lucrative property market. Kenya introduced a Development Real Estate Investment Trust (D-REIT) setting the minimum application amount at Ksh5 million ($50,000), but only one company has floated the shares and it has struggled to win the confidence of investors……
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The National Treasury is yet to settle on a date for introducing the much-awaited mobile phone-based bond named M-Akiba four months after it was supposed to be launched. The State paper targets cheap borrowing by expanding subscription from traditional institutional investors. M-Akiba will be sold at minimum denominations of Sh3,000 through mobile money platforms. Individuals can bid a maximum of Sh140,000 for the income tax-free bond. Potential investors will only need a mobile phone line and subscription to a mobile money transfer service, which will enable telcos to open an electronic account with the CDSC on their behalf.
Africa:
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Tanzania’s main opposition party Chama cha Democrasia na Maendeleo (Chadema) vows to hold country wide protests on September 1 against what it alleges as the suppression of democracy by the government under President John Magufuli….
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South Sudan’s inflation more than doubled in July to reach an annual rate of 661.3 %, its statistics office said on Monday, as the economy of the 5-year old nation continued to reel amid civil conflict….
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Commercial Bank of Africa (CBA) has launched an equivalent of its mobile banking product M-Shwari in Uganda, seeking to replicate the success of the saving and credit service in Kenya……
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Regional airlines are sprucing up their fleets with new aeroplanes. Ethiopian, Rwandan and Tanzanian airlines will receive new aircraft from next week. Tanzania plans to have its Air Tanzania Company Ltd (ATCL) return to its regional routes. However, analysts are sceptical about whether demand for air travel in the region is high enough to sustain the fleet expansion programmes……
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South Africa’s economy has leapfrogged Nigeria’s as Africa’s largest in dollar terms, reclaiming the top spot it lost two years ago. Both economies face recession after contracting this year. But while the South African rand has gained more than 16 % since the beginning of 2016, Nigeria’s naira has plunged by more than a third of its value…
Business quote for the weekend
[ATTACH=full]52531[/ATTACH]
Credits- various
Good day. Great weekend.