Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 29 June 2023

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Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 29 June 2023 

 


 

 


 <https://www.nedbank.co.zw/> 

 


 

 


 

ü  Africa: Global Nicotine Forum Spotlights Gaps In Tobacco Industry
Transformation In Lower Middle-Income Countries

ü  South Sudan: Govt Enters Deal to Start Electricity Export to South Sudan

ü  Kenya: Safaricom Picks MTN Executive to Lead Ethiopian Unit

ü  Kenya: DP Gachagua Assures of Reforms in the Milk Sector

ü  Nigeria: Japa - Canada Announces Tech Job Opportunities for Nigerians,
Others

ü  Nigerian Energy Stocks Close in On Best Quarterly Performance in Nine
Years

ü  Kenya: KRA On the Spot Over Excise Duty Stamp Contract

ü  Nigeria: Naira Extends Gain At I&E Window

ü  Uganda Closer to Activating Islamic Banking

ü  Ghana: Fitch Affirms Afreximbank's Rating At 'BBB', Outlook Stable

ü  Nigeria: Cooking Gas Price Dips 7.61 Percent - NBS

ü  Package holidays in Greece, Spain and Turkey soar in price

ü  Heating down but spending up for royal finances

ü  ChatGPT owner OpenAI to open first foreign office in UK

ü  The loan sharks profiting from the pain of soaring prices

 


 

 


 <https://www.cloverleaf.co.zw/>          

The

Africa: Global Nicotine Forum Spotlights Gaps In Tobacco Industry
Transformation In Lower Middle-Income Countries

With nearly 80 percent of the world's users of risky forms of tobacco living
in lower-middle-income countries (LMICs), the poor uptake of safe nicotine
products in these countries remains a cause for concern.

 

A myriad of shortcomings have enabled the tobacco industry to expand its
markets in at least 137 World Bank rated LMICs by capitalising on economic
growth, changing social norms and population demographics. Many LMICs have
weaker smoke-free policies and fewer restrictions on tobacco advertising
compared with other world regions and these have resulted in rising tobacco
prevalence across countries classified under the LMICs category.

 

 

The Seventh Tobacco Atlas Report of 2022 noted that some countries, mostly
in Africa, are experiencing increases in smoking prevalence and the trend is
likely to occur in many countries, especially countries with the Lowest
Human Development Index (HDI), due to income growth and increasing cigarette
affordability as well as the tobacco industry's strategy of aggressive
marketing in those countries. According to the report, while global smoking
prevalence decreased from 22.7 percent in 2007 to 19.6 percent in 2019, in
many poorer countries there was either no change or prevalence increased.

 

Tobacco companies have over the years been championing the roll-out of
safer, novel smoke free nicotine products with the aim of reducing morbidity
and mortality associated with tobacco. Amongst these products are heated
tobacco products, E-vapour products and oral smokeless products. These
products provide nicotine without burning, making them a much better
alternative to cigarettes.

 

 

Despite the fact that tobacco companies have a presence in most LMICs,
Africa included, the conspicuous absence of tobacco cessation products and
safer nicotine products on the African continent cannot go unnoticed.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) countries in the African
Region are experiencing an increasing rate of tobacco use. The fast growth
of the population in Sub-Saharan Africa and an increase in consumer
purchasing power is leading to larger and more accessible markets in Africa.
In addition to that there are the intensive efforts by the tobacco industry
to expand African markets.

 

Speaking during a Global Nicotine Forum panel that set out to explore
whether the Tobacco industry transformation was really reaching LMICs,
Joseph Magero, a Tobacco Harm Reductionist from Kenya said African smokers
were mostly willing to switch from combustible to non-combustible nicotine
products but cost was a huge barrier.

 

"In Africa as a continent, at the moment has about 77 million smokers. There
are about a quarter of a million Africans dying from smoking related
diseases. What is the tobacco industry doing since they are actively
involved on the African continent?   We at the moment cannot afford
cessation services including products which are recommended by the World
Health Organisation (WHO) like Nicotine Gum and Pouches which cost about
US$45 to US$50 dollars and most smokers cannot afford that. Smokers are
willing to switch and we keep hearing about these products but we have no
access to them."

 

 

However, other experts believe that while tobacco companies might have
intentions to invest in safer nicotine products in low middle-income
countries, the policy inconsistencies and regulatory uncertainly in most
LMICs, was a hindrance to a speedy tobacco transformative process. Countries
like India, Uganda, Ethiopia and many others LMICs have since issued bans on
the possession, trade and marketing of E-cigarettes.

 

Atul Agarwal, an expert in Strategy and Operations primarily working in life
sciences, consumer and industrial products sectors, said corporates hate
uncertainty.

 

"It is a fact that most tobacco companies have significant profits from the
LMICs. It is a big source of  revenue and profit for Tobacco companies. The
other factor is that there is the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control
(FTCT) guidelines and so on but these countries have limited capacity to
enforce those guidelines.

 

"There is also a lot of regulator uncertainly which also negatively impacts
the commitment of tobacco companies. The one thing that corporations don't
like is uncertainty. Whether it's the economic uncertainty or the regulatory
uncertainty, they don't like that," said Agarwal.

 

He however said there is need to further interrogate the reluctance of
tobacco companies to roll out and make safer nicotine products available in
LMICs where it is legal to sell smoke free and safer nicotine products.

 

Dr Sud Patwardhan, the co-founder of the Centre for Health Research and
Education said, "It is absolutely clear that consumers all around the world
are demanding reduced risk products. They may not express it all around the
world but that unexpressed sentiment is very, very strong, and it is also a
fact that most tobacco companies have a significant revenue and profit
source in low-and-middle-income countries - if you look at India or
Indonesia, or many countries in Africa, many countries in South America,
[these countries are] big  revenue earners.

 

Meanwhile, Flora Okereke, the Head of Global Regulatory Insights and
Foresights at British American Tobacco (BAT) echoed that tobacco
transformation in LMICS has largely been slowed down by regulatory induced
resistance.

 

"I believe in health equity and therefore, technically, safer nicotine
products should be available and accessed by everyone who needs them.
However, that is not reality is it? In the 60 markers that we have, the top
12 THP markets, four of them are actually in the LMICs. If it wasn't for the
pushback in the markets, some of our smoke free products would be in the 21
COMESA markets today but that could not happen because of the regulatory
pushback," said Okereke.

 

She added that there are several factors to consider before launching
products in any market including LMICs. These include regulation, cost
(price), local consumer taste and knowledge, among others.

 

"There are challenges. A lot of the LMICs have health priorities that go
beyond thinking about smokers. Probably 16 of these countries that are
classified as LMICs have smoking prevalence that are less than 10 percent
but they have high incidence of child deaths, traffic deaths, sanitary
issues, Cholera and Malaria. Thinking that they are going to focus on few
smokers and not these priority issues is a little far-fetched."

 

While tobacco taxes have been viewed as the most cost-effective way to
reduce tobacco use and health care costs, especially among youth and
low-income people, various speakers at the GNF concurred that novel tobacco
products should be regulated and taxed differently from cigarettes to
encourage adult smokers to move to these products.

 

 

 

South Sudan: Govt Enters Deal to Start Electricity Export to South Sudan

The Ugandan government has signed an agreement to start exporting
electricity to South Sudan.

 

The Power Sales Agreement (PSA) was signed on Tuesday by the Ministry of
Energy Permanent Secretary, Irene Bateebe on Uganda's behalf whereas Beck
Awan Deng, the General Manager of South Sudan Electricity Cooperation
(SSEC), signed on behalf of his country.

 

The Minister of Energy Ruth Nankabirwa Ssentamu, led the Uganda Government
delegation to Juba for the execution, while her counterpart, Peter Marcello
Jelenge, represented the South Sudan government.

 

The deal will see Uganda supply 400 kilo-volts of power to the towns of
Kaya, Oraba, Elegu and Nimule in South Sudan to boost socio-economic
activities in the border areas.

 

The development follows a December 2015 Memorandum of Understanding to
develop transmission and distribution infrastructure to connect the two
countries.

 

 

The June 27 discussions and agreement will see the prioritization of the
development of the 400 kilo-volt Olwiyo - Juba Power transmission Line of
308km.

 

Of these, 138km will be on the Ugandan side and 170km in South Sudan to
facilitate power exchange between the two countries.

 

The 400kV power substations of Olwiyo and Bibia near Uganda's Elegu border
post, plus the Juba substation, will also be expanded.

 

"Today's signing ceremony marks the beginning of serious cooperation in
power trade between Uganda and South Sudan. We would like to see projects
that benefit both the people of Uganda and South Sudan...We will take power
from small towns in Uganda, such as Elegu and Oraba. Similarly, the people
at the border of such as Nimule and Kaya in South Sudan shall be supplied
with power from Uganda," said Minister Nankabirwa.

 

Progress

 

 

The 400kV Olwiyo-Juba Transmission Line will pick up power from Olwiyo
Substation, which is already operational at 132kV.

 

In the MoU signed between Uganda and South Sudan, the Nile Equatorial Lakes
Subsidiary Action Plan (NELSAP) was mandated to coordinate the joint
development of the transmission line whereas a Joint Technical Committee has
been established to plan and coordinate the project's development.

 

On the other hand, Uganda and South Sudan have secured funds for feasibility
studies from African Development Bank (AfDB).

 

AfDB would also finance the project based on EPC or Public Private
Partnership, depending on the outcome of the feasibility study whereas a
consortium of CESI S.p.A (Italy), ELC Electroconsult S.p.A. (Italy) and
Colenco Consulting Ltd (Nigeria) has been procured to undertake the
feasibility study, which commenced in March 2023 and will be completed in
February 2024.

 

The two countries also collaborate in the power distribution segment, where
distribution networks have already been constructed in the Uganda-South
Sudan border towns of

 

Nimule and Kaya and this cooperation is expected to enhance regional
productivity and support security along the border towns.

 

South Sudan is said to have the lowest electricity consumption per capita in
Sub-Saharan Africa.

 

Capacity

 

Uganda's current electricity generation capacity stands at about
1,250Megawatts but consumption stands at slightly above 650 megawatts during
peak hours, creating a surplus of half of what is generated.

 

The amount of electricity produced in Uganda is expected to increase to over
2,000MW if all the six units at the 600MW Karuma hydropower dam are added to
the national grid as well as Kikagati (16MW) and Nyamagasani I (15MW) and
other small hydro power plants .

 

Therefore, the amount of unused power is expected to increase due to low
growth in demand.

 

To this, Uganda exports a certain percentage of its electricity to
neighbouring Kenya and part of Tanzania, eastern DR Congo and now South
Sudan will follow suit.

 

The exportation of electricity to neighbouring countries is also a fallback
position in case of any shortfall in the country.

 

For example last year, Uganda was forced to buy 60 megawatts from Kenya to
plug a shortfall gap caused by flooding at the 183MW Isimba dam that led to
a temporaly shut down.

 

 

 

Kenya: Safaricom Picks MTN Executive to Lead Ethiopian Unit

Nairobi — Wim Vanhelleputte will take over as Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
of Safaricom Telecommunications Ethiopia PLC starting September 1.

 

He will replace Anwar Soussa, whose over two-year leadership will be ending
on Saturday.

 

Vanhelleputte joins the telco from MTN Group, where he has been serving as
Operations Executive since August 2022.

 

"We are pleased to announce the appointment of Wim Vanhelleputte as the
Chief Executive Officer of the Safaricom Telecommunications Ethiopia PLC
effective 1st September 2023," Safaricom announced on its LinkedIn page.

 

"Wims brings extensive leadership experience and deep industry knowledge,
having worked for over 25 years."

 

Soussa, who is the founding CEO of Safaricom Ethiopia, led the establishment
of the organization and the launch of mobile money services in the Horn of
Africa country.

 

>From 2016 until last year, Vanhelleputte served as CEO of MTN Uganda.
Between 2009 and 2015, he was also the CEO of MTN Ivory Coast.

 

A Belgian national, he holds a Bachelor's Degree in General Engineering and
a Master's Degree in Nuclear and Solid-State Physics from the Free
University of Brussels.

 

"As Wim joins us, we have planned for a seamless transition to ensure that
we maintain our momentum so far in delivering our vision to transform lives
through a digital future for all Ethiopians."

 

-Capital FM.

 

 

 

Kenya: DP Gachagua Assures of Reforms in the Milk Sector

Nairobi — The government is set to reform the dairy sub-sector through
modernization of the New Kenya Cooperative Creameries (KCC) factories and
expansion of its market, Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua said on Tuesday.

 

Gachagua also said the Government will help the New KCC to acquire new
market for its milk products within the national and county government
institutions and school-feeding programmes in learning institutions.

 

"The New KCC is a government-owned entity and is the vehicle that will sort
out the dairy farmers. It is the organisation that serves the farmer, is not
a profit-making entity. Milk sector had been affected by conflict of
interest and state capture for long," said Gachagua.

 

 

Speaking during a visit to the New KCC milk processing plant in Dandora,
Nairobi, the Deputy President said the Government will introduce
far-reaching reforms which will increase returns for milk farmers and that
farm-gate prices will shoot up to at least Sh60 per litre.

 

He said the measures are part of the Government's efforts to transform the
dairy industry and empower the state-funded entity so that the company can
process milk for local consumption and for the foreign markets.

 

The DP is set to hold a conference bringing together all the milk
stakeholders to come up with strategies to transform the sub sector.

 

Emphasizing that the intention is to turn-around the company to
profitability, the Deputy President said government aims to double the
processed milk to over three million litres per day for higher returns to
farmer.

 

 

In return, he said, this will double to eight per cent the contribution of
the subsector to the nation's Gross Domestic Product.

 

Gachagua said he will work with the New KCC Board of Directors to explore
new markets for its milk among the government institutions.

 

"We are going to create market for New KCC in government institutions. If
there is a good market, the company will increase prices. Other private
companies will also increase prices because of competition in the market,"
he said.

 

Gachagua noted that the State-owned entity is a player to cushion the
farmers and the consumers against market forces like fluctuation of prices.

 

He underscored that the agriculture sector has provided jobs to many
households in the country as it directly contributes 22 per cent to the
Gross Domestic Product and 27 per cent indirectly through linkages with
other sectors.

 

With a capacity of 4.5 million litres per day, he said there were
possibilities for the farmer to deliver milk to the government-owned
processor instead of exploitative brokers.

 

"Doubling the deliveries also means we are not only improving our food
security, but also multiplying direct jobs from the current 750,000 to over
1.5 million. This is rather urgent in contributing to sorting out
unemployment," he said.

 

He also urged the company to lead in diversification to more valuable
products beyond the powdering of milk and traditional products.

 

The DP was accompanied by Cabinet Secretary for Co-operatives And Micro,
Small And Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Development Simon Chelugui, New KCC
Board Chairman David Maina and the Company Managing Director Nixon Sigei.

 

Also present were MPs James Gakuya (Embakasi North), Benjamin Gathiru aka
Major Donk (Embakasi Central), Maina Mathenge (Nyeri Town), Joseph Cherorot
(Kipkelion East).

 

-Capital FM.

 

 

 

Nigeria: Japa - Canada Announces Tech Job Opportunities for Nigerians,
Others

Canada has unveiled its first-ever immigration tech talent mechanism that
will establish new job opportunities for Nigerian citizens and others.

 

The new job opportunities are announced a few days after Germany passed an
immigrant law created to encourage more people from outside the European
Union to come to the country for work.

 

The talent strategy which was launched at the 2023 Collision Conference in
Toronto includes new measures and improvements on existing measures to help
businesses in Canada thrive in a competitive landscape, Toronto News
reported.

 

 

"Over this year, Canada is going to be developing a specific stream for some
of the world's most highly talented people that will be able to come to
Canada to work for tech companies whether they have a job offer or not,"
Sean Fraser, Canada's Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship,
said on Tuesday.

 

"We are going to be launching a digital Nomads strategy which is going to
allow people, who have a foreign employer to come and work in Canada for up
to six months," he said.

 

Fraser disclosed that talented people will reside in communities in the
county and spend money and if land the job offers while they are here, will
be allowed to continue to stay and work in the country.

 

"Finally, we have been watching very closely what has been going on in the
tech sector in the United States where we have seen a public narrative about
layoffs. We have been having private conversations about opportunities" he
added.

 

 

The minister said from July 16, they will have a stream that will allow
10,000 H-1B visa holders in the United States to come and work in Canada.

 

"The reality is that you have the ideas but you need the talents. You have
told us that and we have been listening. We are going to do everything we
can to push Canada as the destination where your ideas can become a
reality,' he said.

 

Canada's aging population and lower birth rate have been shrinking its
labour force, forcing the country to intensify its efforts to attract large,
young and vibrant immigrants by offering immigration-friendly policies.

 

The country landed 437,120 Permanent Residents (PRs) in 2022, a nearly eight
per cent rise from the total number of PRs in 2021, according to data the
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.

 

For Nigeria, it grew by 41.9 per cent to 22,130 last year from 15,595 in the
previous year.

 

Last year, the Canadian federal government announced a massive plan to take
in 500,000 immigrants a year by 2025, with almost 1.5 million new immigrants
coming to the country over the next three years.

 

"We're enthusiastic about the ambitious goals we have set in immigration
because they aren't just about numbers--they are strategic. With this
strategy, we're targeting newcomers that can help enshrine Canada as a world
leader in a variety of emerging technologies," Fraser said.

 

Last month, Canada announced new measures to make it easier for families of
recent immigrants to relocate to the country just a few days after the UK
said it was restricting foreign students from bringing their families into
the country starting next year.

 

That same month, the country announced that its express entry was now
implementing a category-based selection to help tackle labour shortages and
boost the economy.

 

-Vanguard.

 

 

 

Nigerian Energy Stocks Close in On Best Quarterly Performance in Nine Years

The NGXOILGAS, the index tracking the performance of that sector, has
yielded 50.7 per cent since April as of Tuesday.

 

Nigerian energy stocks are right in the neighbourhood of their best quarter
in nine years, enjoying a boost from the unusually strong investor sentiment
that has come to shape trade after the new government announced a resolve to
pursue several market-friendly reforms.

 

It has never been so fruitful for the energy shares of Africa's
second-biggest bourse since the second quarter of 2014 as now, according to
the NGXOILGAS - the index which tracks the performance of that sector -
having yielded 50.7 per cent since April as of Tuesday. That is only lower
than the three months to June 2014 when such stocks returned 62.5 per cent.

 

 

The index is only outperformed by the one monitoring the progress of
insurance equities out of the five sector indexes on the Nigerian Exchange.

 

While oil & gas equities have yielded 66.5 per cent since the start of the
year, they have added 41.2 per cent in 52 weeks, according to the Nigerian
Exchange data.

 

MRS Oil leads the pack of the six benchmark stocks, with a yield of 182.6
per cent so far this quarter.

 

Eterna Oil, acquired by unlisted Rainoil Limited some 18 months ago, and
Mike Adenuga-backed Conoil come next, returning 180.9 per cent and 115.8 per
cent in that order.

 

Nigeria's biggest oil & gas company by market value, Seplat Energy, is up by
only 21.7 per cent this quarter. But the oil driller thrilled shareholders
in April when it announced a novel windfall dividend, doubling the cash it
paid them for the last quarter of last year as a global oil price boom
catapulted the firm to record revenue.

 

 

Seplat Energy, which has a secondary listing in London, is the company stock
of the 156 equities quoted in Lagos paying dividends for each of the four
quarters of the year.

 

Energy stocks and new reforms

 

A tide of policy shifts in Africa's biggest oil producer in the wake of
President Bola Tinubu's rise to power in May, including the cessation of a
popular but costly petrol subsidy scheme, is rejuvenating participation in
energy stocks and helping return liquidity to the market.

 

Eliminating the subsidy "will also spur investments in both the upstream and
downstream sectors over the medium term, as crude production for domestic
refining is not subject to OPEC quota," analysts at Vetiva Securities
Limited said in a note this month.

 

 

CEO Mele Kyari of the state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Company
Limited (NNPCL) said a few weeks ago that local oil marketers could start
importing fuel this month, weaning its firm off the monopoly of bringing in
petroleum products from abroad.

 

That positive is also drawing investors to energy stocks, considering that
the move could free up more cash for oil & gas companies.

 

Nigeria's Petroleum Industry Act, which came to life in 2021, forbids NNPCL
from importing above 30 per cent of the country's gasoline needs.

 

The conversion of NNPCL itself into a publicly quoted company is in the
works, having been bogged down by loss-making, mismanagement, graft and
decrepit infrastructures for years under a government corporation structure.

 

Energy companies exiting the market in droves

 

The boom in the valuation of energy stocks coincides with a time when
retaining such companies is increasingly problematic for the Nigerian stock
market authorities and winning new ones is perhaps far more harrowing.

 

Oando, also listed in Johannesburg, and Ardova are on the line-up of
companies set to take their leave from the main stock exchange in Lagos as
their core investors have declared the aspiration to take them private.

 

While oilman Abdulwasiu Sowami, who holds a 74.1 per cent interest in
Ardova, has tabled N17.4 billion (premium inclusive) to buy the remaining
shares, Oando's top shareholders, Wale Tinubu and Omamofe Boyo, are talking
others into taking a premium of 58 per cent on the share price as of 28
March as an incentive to divest.

 

Rak Unity Petroleum, which is in liquidation, teed off final payments to
shareholders last month, setting the stage for the company to formally go
under.

 

-Premium Times.

 

 

 

Kenya: KRA On the Spot Over Excise Duty Stamp Contract

Nairobi — Procurement greed at the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) might rip
off taxpayers' money following their move to re-advertise tender on excise
duty stamps with no existing gaps.

 

Details have emerged that taxpayers procured Excisable Goods Management
System in 2015 for Sh 2.5 billion under a five-contract between SICPA SA of
Switzerland and Kenya Revenue Authority.

 

In the terms of the agreement, the Swiss firm which procures stamps for
alcoholic drinks, beverages, and tobacco was supposed to come to an end in
November 2022 with KRA taking ownership of the system.

 

Revelations made by the company officials before the Public Investment
Committee for Commercial and Energy, however, showed that the money to
procure the system is on the verge of being lost if KRA terminates the
contract.

 

 

"As far as we are concerned, we were just following the contract. On our
side, nothing was done wrong. You should just ask KRA why they advertised
the expression of interest," said Chief Commercial Officer Gianni Santoro.

 

Pokot South MP David Pkosing who chairs the committee questioned the
existing gaps that propelled KRA to float the tender after a ten-year stint
with the Swiss Firm.

 

"Why did KRA do that, did they find a gap in your system and therefore you
are doing it? Did you have any assessment, my understanding is that you
evaluate a system for the 10-year period, do an assessment, and say these
are the reasons we are going for a new system," said Pkosing.

 

 

SICPA Chief Commercial Officer told MPs KRA raised no issues during the
implementation of the contract that pointed out any inconsistencies or
dissatisfaction.

 

"The contract was implemented to the full satisfaction of KRA, the
performance indicators between SICPA and KRA indicate the issues. We have no
clue why the tender was advertised," said Santoro.

 

EGMS System

 

Eyebrows were raised on the move by the taxman to advertise an expression of
Interest for a new system, therefore, discarding the EGMS System which is
already acquired through the 2015 Contract.

 

Questions have lingered on whether terminating the contract with SICPA or
initiating a new contract with a different contractor will save taxpayers
money.

 

This is after it emerged that despite the contract agreement stating that
the equipment owned by the Swiss Firm will be transferred to KRA, the tax
collector has no capacity to run.

 

 

"The ownership of the equipment will be transferred to KRA but whether
another company will be able to use the equipment the answer is no because
other companies have different solutions which are different from ours,"
Santoro said.

 

Laikipia West MP Mwangi Kiunjuri poked holes in the contractual agreement
alluding that the contract was suspicious and might have been propelled by
powerful forces in the previous regime.

 

"How can you own something that you can't be able to use tomorrow? If you
leave it with me how can I be able to operate it? If they will not renew it,
what purpose will the machine offer?" posed Kiunjuri.

 

Kasarani MP Ronald Karauri added: "Does SICPA have an unfair advantage on
this tender because if they hand over the system to KRA, will another
company be able to manage it. It means that SICPA has held KRA hostage to
award them the tender moving forward."

 

Handover Fix

 

The Swiss Firm however argued that the technicalities of a security contract
force them to run the system even after the termination of the contract
saying due to the security features it can't be taken up by another entity.

 

"Yes, it needs to be serviced by SICPA and run by us otherwise you lose the
purpose of the system because it becomes hopeless because you lose the
security just," Santoro said.

 

The Swiss Firm said that no feasibility study has been carried out to
determine the motive to terminate the contract.

 

SICPA affirmed that the taxman delinking from them will have a ripple effect
which might cost taxpayers.

 

"I would expect the cost to be higher because over the years we have built
knowledge, systems, and solutions which know extremely well how the system
works in Kenya. My personal opinion is that I would expect the system to
cost more," Santoro said.

 

Pokot South MP implied that tender wars might be at play to push for the
termination of the contract with taxpayers bearing the brunt.

 

"People might be wanting to kick off SICPA and get an opportunity to rip off
Kenyans three times. We don't know, so we need a comparison so that the
people of Kenya can make informed decisions," Pkosing stated.

 

On corruption allegations, SICPA had denied the allegations saying it was
sanctioned for organizational deficiencies.

 

"There might be revenue leakages in the system through EGMS because when I
go back to the issue of criminal culpability according to the laws of
Switzerland. If the tender was advertised in Switzerland would you still be
shortlisted?"Karauri posed.

 

The Swiss Firm defended itself saying it fully exonerated the organization
from corruption allegations and the Office of the Attorney General in
Switzerland only imposed a fine on them.

 

"We have never been sanctioned on corruption allegation, all the cases
against us were concluded and we were found not guilty," Santori said.

 

-Capital FM.

 

 

 

Nigeria: Naira Extends Gain At I&E Window

Naira extended gain at the official market to trade at N763.00 per $1 on
Tuesday

 

The Naira gained further against the United States dollar on the Investors
and Exporters (I&E) on Tuesday, two sessions after it closed on a negative
note last Friday.

 

According to data posted on the FMDQ securities exchange window where forex
is officially traded, naira closed at N763.00 per dollar on Tuesday,
appreciating further by N5.17 ( 0.67 per cent) from N768.17 it exchanged on
Monday.

 

The local unit opened sales on Tuesday at N760.50/$1 before it experienced
an intraday exchange rate of N841.00 (low), a high of N467.00, and then
settled at N763.00.

 

The Tuesday rate signifies a 0.9 per cent appreciation from N770.17 the
naira exchanged against the greenback on Friday last week.

 

Foreign exchange turnover within the day's market session increased
significantly by 23.98 per cent ($245.65 million) from $198.13 million
published in the previous market session on Monday.

 

At the parallel segment, currency dealers exchanged the dollar at N766.00
across states in Nigeria including the Federal Capital Territory on
Wednesday.

 

-Premium Times.

 

 

 

Uganda Closer to Activating Islamic Banking

Parliament has passed a series of Bills to harmonise issues relating to
Islamic Banking products, only setting aside the Income Tax Amendment Bill
for committee and government concurrence.

 

In its sitting on Tuesday June 27, 2023 chaired by Speaker Anita Among, the
Bills were passed to clear the way for the long awaited Islamic banking.

 

The Financial Institutions Act has been amended in section 115B(2) to remove
the provision for a Shariah Advisory Council, which MPs said would be
over-legislation, instead opting for Bank of Uganda to institutionally
address operational issues relating to Islamic banking.

 

 

The Attorney General, Hon. Kiryowa Kiwanuka, said maintaining in the
Financial Institutions Act a provision for the committee would complicate
the central bank's supervisory mandate over a product it has helped to
create.

 

"First of all, Bank of Uganda should never determine the business model of
any commercial bank, it should sit outside to determine whether the product
is safe for the customer; if it sits in the advisory council, who will
protect the consumers?" he said.

 

MP Abdu Katuntu (IND, Bugweri) agreed with the Attorney General.

 

"You have to leave the Bank of Uganda structures to work; there is only one
law which is seeking to prescribe the operational work of Bank of Uganda;
what you need to have is a department...they can create some departments in
charge of Islamic Banking, and this can come under Regulations and not
substantive law," counseled Katuntu.

 

He added: "Bank of Uganda cannot create and regulate a product at the same
time."

 

 

Then came the Excise Duty Amendment Bill 2023, which MPs passed to change
Schedule 2 of the Excise Duty Act and place a 15 per cent excise duty on
ledger, ATM, and withdrawal fees, to bring Islamic banking products under
the same tax regime as other banking products.

 

This now harmonises excise duty on all banking products uniformly.

 

MPs unanimously okayed the amendment to the second schedule of the Stamp
Duty Act to reflect an Shs15,000 charge on Islamic banking-related
agreements.

 

The Value Added Tax Amendment Bill, which harmonises the reporting time for
conventional banking practices and the Islamic banking was also passed by
Members, bringing the country closer to the commencement of Islamic banking
financial products by commercial banks.

 

Speaker Among described the laws as an Eid-al-Adhuha gift for the Muslim
community that has been longing for the introduction of Shariah-compliant
banking products, vowing to resist people she said have been eager to
frustrate the idea.

 

"I want to put this on record; people have been lobbying not to have this
Islamic banking passed; but we must pass it;" she said.

 

Parliament convenes on Thursday, 29 June 2023 to consider the remainder of
the Bills whose enactment would set Islamic banking to sail in Uganda.

 

 

 

Ghana: Fitch Affirms Afreximbank's Rating At 'BBB', Outlook Stable

The global rating agency, Fitch Ratings, has affirmed the African
Export-Import Bank's (Afreximbank) Long-Term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at
'BBB', with a Stable Outlook.

 

Fitch also affirmed Afreximbank's Short-Term Issuer Default Rating at 'F2'
and the Long-Term ratings on the Bank's Global Medium Term Note Programme
and Debt Issuances at 'BBB'.

 

The rating affirmation is a strong testament of the Bank's systemic
relevance to Africa and captures the increasing number of the key mandates
given to the Bank by the African Union (AU), such as the implementation of
the health response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the support for access to
grains and fertilizers in the context of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

 

 

Fitch acknowledged Afreximbank's strong capital and liquidity position.

 

In addition to the 'excellent' internal capital generation, the Bank had
raised US$1.4 billion paid-in capital, as of 2022, out of the planned raise
of US$2.6 billion by 2026.

 

The agency noted that Afreximbank had a strong liquidity profile, as its
share of treasury assets rated 'AA' to 'AAA' remained above the 'strong'
threshold of 40 per cent. It added that the Bank's liquidity profile was
further enhanced by its access to capital markets and other alternative
liquidity sources even during challenging times.

 

The Bank has continuously demonstrated its ability to de-risk its lending
portfolio, noted Fitch.

 

With a low concentration risk, coupled with a high collateralisation of the
loan book, where 25 per cent of the loan book was cash collateralised and
eight per cent was credit insured from 'A' to 'AA' rated insurers, "the
'moderate' risk management policies primarily reflect the use of credit risk
mitigants that have helped maintain a relatively low non-performing loan
ratio, despite the high-risk environment that the bank operates in."

 

 

Commenting on the development, Prof. Benedict Oramah, President and Chairman
of the Board of Directors of Afreximbank, said that Fitch's affirmation was
a strong testament to the Bank's strong developmental mandate and its
increasing countercyclical role in helping its member countries during
challenging times.

 

"The Bank has continued to contribute and define the path for Africa's
economic future through the creation of programmes and initiatives that
support the emergence of integrated and well diversified African economy
that adapts and responds to global shocks," he said.

 

"The Bank's consistent and prudent response to member countries' needs
during challenging times and its ability to manage exposures prudently have
led to its recognition by member countries as a systemic institution as
evidenced by its accreditation by the AU and its selection by the AU as a
preferred partner in implementing some AU strategic initiatives," he noted.

 

-Ghanaian Times

 

 

 

Nigeria: Cooking Gas Price Dips 7.61 Percent - NBS

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has disclosed that the average price
of 12.5kg of cooking gas dropped Month-on-Month (MoM) by 7.61 per cent to
N9, 537.89 in May 2023, from N10, 323.33 in April 2023.

 

This is even as a market survey by Vanguard showed further decline in the
price of 12.5kg by 18.7 percent to N7, 750 in June 2023, from N9, 537.89 in
May 2023.

 

However, the average retail price of cooking gas increased YoY by 9.30
percent to N9, 537.89 in May 2023, from N8, 726.30 in May 2022.

 

In its Cooking Gas Price Watch for March 2022, the NBS also stated that on a
MoM basis, the price of 5kg of cooking gas declined by 6.07per cent to N4,
360.69 in May 2023, from N4, 642.27 recorded in April 2023.

 

The report showed that Cross River recorded the highest average retail price
for the refilling of a 12.5kg cooking gas with N11, 083.33, followed by
Jigawa with N10, 975.00 and Akwa Ibom with N10, 174.29.

 

On the other hand, Adamawa recorded the lowest price with N7, 925.00,
followed by Zamfara and Borno with N8, 128.57 and N8, 200.00 respectively.

 

Meanwhile, operators have attributed the decline in the price of cooking gas
to fall in price of the product at the international market.

 

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the current price
of natural gas dropped by 76.1 per cent to 2.10 per one million dollars
British Thermal Units (BTU) on May 31 from 8.78 per one million dollars BTU.

 

-Vanguard.

 

 

 

Package holidays in Greece, Spain and Turkey soar in price

All-inclusive package holidays have jumped in price for Mediterranean
hotspots including Majorca and Crete.

 

The average price of a week with full food and board in Majorca in Spain is
up 21%. Prices for Tenerife have risen more than 22%, figures from
TravelSupermarket showed.

 

Crete in Greece is 25% more expensive than last year.

 

Overall the most popular destinations, Spain, Turkey, Greece, Portugal and
Cyprus have gone up by nearly 12%.

 

Prices for countries beyond the Med have also risen, according to the
figures compiled by the price comparison website for the BBC.

 

That has left people like Sophie West, from Castleford in Yorkshire, paying
significantly more than they did last year for the same holiday.

 

Sophie saved to afford her trip, and is currently in a hotel with a water
park in Crete with 25 members of her extended family and her friend Sarah.
She says at least having the all-inclusive deal will help keep a lid on
their spending while they are there.

 

"It's mainly for my brothers, because they've all got kids," she says. "It's
so much easier for them to know that they don't have to take any other
money."

 

There are "ice-creams on tap" for the youngsters.

 

Sophie has managed to keep costs down other ways too. She booked in January
when there were cheaper deals, and she got ten days holiday for less than
the rest of her party are paying for seven, by flying on off-peak days.

 

The family could have saved money by holidaying somewhere cheaper, but even
for lower cost destinations prices are up this year. A week in Morocco is
27% more expensive than last year. Bulgaria has gone up 13%.

 

TravelSupermarket calculates the average using the results of searches for
holidays in the given destinations. While this shows a general trend, exact
costs will vary depending on location and time of booking.

 

The average of the top five most popular destinations for UK travellers has
risen by 11.9% since last year, but there is variation between countries.
The average package price has risen fastest in Spain, up nearly 15%, but
only by 5% in Portugal.

 

Compared to before the pandemic the average price across the top five
destinations is up more than 30%, well above the rate of general inflation
since 2019.

 

Sandra Ollerton, who runs Preston Travel Centre, in Lancashire says
nevertheless demand remains high.

 

But she says some people are cutting the length of their holidays from two
weeks to one to save money or finding other ways to "travel smarter".

 

"We're seeing an increase in multi-generational holidays, because we're
finding that some of the grandparents weren't affected as much financially
by Covid or the cost-of-living crisis, so they are helping out their
children and their grandchildren," she says.

 

One common trick, to wait until the last minute to see if prices fall, may
not work this year, according to Richard Singer, chief executive of
TravelSupermarket.

 

"It is unlikely that prices will fall substantially for this summer," he
says, because despite higher prices, demand is outstripping supply.

 

"Prices for next year are looking on a par with this year," he adds.

 

Choose destinations where the value of the pound is strong. This year that
includes Turkey, Bulgaria and Portugal

Source: Which?and TravelSupermarket

 

Beyond travel and accommodation, holidaymakers will also have to fork out
more money to leave their car at the airport. The average rate per night
went up by nearly 10% this year, from just over £13 in May last year to more
than £14.

 

The cost of travel insurance is also up by around 10%.

 

There is one cost, however, that has come down: car hire. After spiking
higher last summer as operators struggled to scale back up after the
pandemic, hiring a car this August has become more affordable. For example,
the average daily rate for hiring a car in Ireland dropped from £203 in
August last year to just £48 this August. Rates in Croatia, Italy, Spain and
the United Arab Emirates have also dropped by more than 40%.

 

Against that backdrop Laura Betchette, an assistant tax manager from
Wakefield, and her partner James are wrestling with their travel plans.

 

They are getting married at the end of August, and wanted a traditional
honeymoon following the wedding day, but the quotes they were given for
their "dream honeymoon" was beyond their budget.

 

"For the Maldives for a week we were looking at between nine and ten
thousand pounds," she says.

 

So they are postponing the trip until in November or December giving them
time to put a bit more in the "honeymoon pot".

 

And they are working out whether booking flights and hotels separately
themselves would be cheaper than an all-in-one package.

 

But switching destinations could bag them more savings.

 

They are now considering a week in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, the
only destination out of the top ten where the average all-inclusive package
price has come down since last year, at least for travellers going in
August.

 

And any cash gifts at the wedding can always go towards the honeymoon fund
too, she says.-bbc

 

 

 

 

Heating down but spending up for royal finances

The Royal Household's official spending rose by 5% last year, to £107.5m,
while its funding from taxpayers remained at £86.3m, annual accounts have
revealed.

 

This meant drawing on reserves for what royal officials called an
"exceptional period of transition" following Elizabeth II's death.

 

It was also confirmed the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have vacated Frogmore
Cottage, in Windsor, Berkshire.

 

The accounts also show royal heating is kept at 19C - to cut energy use.

 

To help save the planet as well as bills, the accounts report a "concerted
effort" by staff in royal residences to set the winter heating to 19C, while
any empty rooms were kept at 16C.

 

The running costs of the monarchy - such as for official visits and
residences - are funded by the "Sovereign Grant", currently calculated as
being 25% of the profits of the Crown Estate.

 

The annual accounts for 2022-23 show this funding was £86.3m, the same as
the previous year.

 

But spending was almost £21m higher than the Sovereign Grant, with palace
officials attributing the extra costs to:

 

the continuing renovation of Buckingham Palace

extra expenses for the queen's funeral

the King's accession

rising inflation

The 10-year £369m project to repair Buckingham Palace had £34.5m allocated
this year.

 

"Virtually no-one" was living in the palace, royal officials said, although
staff might stay there on a temporary basis for events.

 

But the King and Queen Camilla planned to live there once building work was
complete, in a few years from now.

 

The officials gave no further details of plans for Frogmore Cottage.

 

The Duke of York remains in Royal Lodge, in Windsor, but they would not
comment on his leasing arrangements.

 

On average, about 500 Royal Household staff were being paid by the Sovereign
Grant during the year - and there were questions about efforts to increase
diversity, with the proportion belonging to ethnic minorities, 9.7%, showing
no change since last year.

 

Royal staff received training under a "diversity and inclusion strategy",
with concerns having been raised after black British charity founder Ngozi
Fulani faced repeated questions about where she was "really from", at a
Buckingham Palace reception.

 

The public funding also covers the cost of official royal travel and visits,
which included:

 

more than £1m on 179 helicopter journeys

almost £32,000 when the King used the royal train for a two-day tour from
Ayr to Manchester

£187,000 for the then Prince of Wales' visit to Rwanda for the Commonwealth
Heads of Government Meeting

£146,000 for the King's tour of Germany on his inaugural state visit as
monarch

But most of the visits were much more low-key, with:

 

2,700 engagements through the year

95,000 guests attending events in royal residences

Paying visitors to royal residences helped to offset some of the costs, with
£9.8m in income earned - still less than half the pre-Covid levels.

 

The queen's death, last September, saw the Palace receiving an unprecedented
level of correspondence, including messages of condolence, with 183,000
items arriving in the post.

 

In separate accounts, the Duchy of Cornwall reported profits of about £24m,
in a transitional year that saw the new Prince of Wales replacing his father
as the recipient.

 

'True cost'

Keeper of the Privy Purse Sir Michael Stevens said the annual finances
covered an unprecedented "year of grief, change and celebration".

 

As well as events including the Platinum Jubilee, the queen's death and the
King's accession, he said, the Royal Household "has not been immune to the
impacts of the joint challenges of the pandemic and inflationary pressures,
which have resulted in a flat Sovereign Grant".

 

But anti-monarchy group Republic said the royals were increasing their
spending while "public services are being squeezed".

 

Income from the duchies of Cornwall and Lancaster should go to the state, it
says, while additional costs such as policing are not included in the annual
accounts.

 

"The royals have long hidden their true cost, which we have worked out to be
at least £345m," Republic chief executive Graham Smith said. "That's enough
to pay for 13,000 new nurses or teachers."-bbc

 

 

 

ChatGPT owner OpenAI to open first foreign office in UK

The US company behind ChatGPT has said its first international office will
be based in London.

 

OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman said the move was an "opportunity to
attract world-class talent".

 

It comes after he criticised the EU's proposed legislation regulating
artificial intelligence (AI), which would require companies to reveal the
content used to train their systems.

 

The UK meanwhile is planning what it calls "pro-innovation" regulation.

 

"We are thrilled to extend our research and development footprint into
London, a city globally renowned for its rich culture and exceptional talent
pool," said Diane Yoon, OpenAI VP of People.

 

"We are eager to build dynamic teams in research [and] engineering... to
reinforce our efforts in creating and promoting safe AI."

 

When ChatGPT burst onto the scene last November, the chatbot's ability to
give human-sounding answers to questions kickstarted intense global interest
in the latest AI-powered products.

 

It also sparked a debate about what threats AI potentially poses - and what
regulation is needed to mitigate those risks.

 

At an event at University College London in May, Mr Altman said he believed
AI could create jobs and reduce inequality.

 

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said at the event that AI could "positively
transform humanity" and "deliver better outcomes for the British public,
with emerging opportunities in a range of areas to improve public services".

 

ChatGPT has proven controversial, being briefly banned in Italy before it
was restored in April 2023.

 

The UK government said it has invested £2.5bn in AI since 2014.

 

The BBC has approached the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
for comment.

 

 

 

 

The loan sharks profiting from the pain of soaring prices

"The harder it gets for everyone, the better it gets for me."

 

"D", not his real name, has worked as an illegal moneylender for two
decades, and says business has never been so good.

 

He is one of two loan sharks we have spoken to in rare interviews in order
to highlight the dangers of people turning to unofficial lenders due to the
cost of living.

 

With no paperwork, high interest rates, and sometimes brutal consequences,
there is huge risk attached to this type of borrowing.

 

D estimates that he has lent money illegally to hundreds of people across
the country after starting out in security work 20 years ago. When we meet
in a warehouse, his mouth is covered and he wears smart-looking sunglasses.

 

Nearly all of his "customers" are regulars, he says, paying off their debts
within two or three months. They're usually back again a few weeks later.

 

D adds that with inflation remaining high, demand has soared. He now hears
from single mums and families looking to borrow smaller amounts of £500 to
£1,000 to pay gas and electricity bills or for groceries.

 

Watch the full report on Newsnight on BBC Two at 22:30

Interest rates of up to 50%, or "double bubble" terms, where the original
loan is doubled each month, are often applied.

 

Most of D's clients would probably accept whatever terms he set out, he
says, largely out of desperation.

 

With prices failing to drop as quickly as predicted, demand is unlikely to
fade soon.

 

Research shared with BBC Newsnight suggests that the potential client base
could be expanding.

 

A new report commissioned by Fair4All Finance, a government-backed body that
works on financial inclusion, looks at the lived experience of illegal
moneylending in the UK. Researchers from fraud prevention firm We Fight
Fraud and Lancaster University heard from 287 people across London, Preston,
Port Talbot and Glasgow who had engaged with loan sharks and illegal
moneylenders in the last three years, as well as eight illegal moneylenders.

 

Current users said they were borrowing about £3,000 on average, and clients
were more likely to be lower-waged, full-time workers.

 

D calls himself an "enforcer", referring to what happens if payments are
missed or his messages go ignored.

 

"Then, the car outside is uninsurable. The windows and doors in the front of
your house are pulled out and then it even goes up to you being badly
beaten."

 

He says that beatings are "rare", but admits to carrying out violent acts -
breaking legs, smashing teeth or eye sockets, leaving people in hospital.

 

When challenged on why this type of "enforcement" has to be so brutal, he
says: "It's personal. The way they've hurt me, I want to hurt them -
physically and financially."

 

In his own words, he is "providing a service" that relies on people "helping
him back" after he has lent them money.

 

'The business leader'

Another active illegal moneylender we spoke to, "M", claims to have lent
millions of pounds to clients over the past 20 years.

 

He now runs a team that operates in different areas across the UK. He
estimates that he has about £2m out in loans at the moment. When a request
for money above a certain value comes in, it gets referred up to him.

 

M deals with "the rich" - people borrowing higher values to fund house
renovations or to get a business out of difficulty. The interest rates rise
with the risk attached and a guarantor is often required.

 

Clients give him a form of guarantee in case they are not able to keep up
with repayments. They might include a watch, a set of car keys, or pictures
of photo IDs of their friends so he knows where to find them and chase the
money.

 

"I'm constantly amazed who comes to me," he says. M claims to have funded
birthday parties for well-known footballers who pay him back on payday.

 

With many people unwilling to talk about debt, there is little data
available about the number of lenders operating without a licence. In a
report last year, the right-leaning think tank the Centre for Social Justice
estimated that about one million people in England could owe money to
illegal moneylenders.

 

M dismisses what he describes as an outdated view of "a bully boy business".
His collection tactics instead rely on fear.

 

"In this day and age, it's gone round to more being a nuisance," he says.
"If there's no contact, there might be pictures outside the house, or a
knock on the neighbour's door asking where you are.

 

"That fear, that intimidation, that coercion is better to be used without an
act."

 

The recent research for Fair4All Finance did find that violence was rare,
although the threat of it was common.

 

Quote card graphic

One client told the report authors that the reality of the threat felt most
serious when it came to their family. "Stuff was going to happen to me, but
not just me
 I get threats for hurting my family
 your mum is getting this,
your brother is getting that."

 

Another female client in Glasgow claims that she was forced to clean an
office building for an illegal lender as an alternative way to pay back
£1,000 she had borrowed. Her debt would be reduced by about £30 per shift.

 

She described the experience as "degrading" and said she felt anxious and
depressed. She now rarely leaves the house.

 

"Today, it is much more about someone getting inside your head than breaking
your legs," says Cath Wohlers of the Illegal Money Lending Team, which
prosecutes loan sharks in England.

 

"That can be anyone," she adds, pointing out that one in five people
arrested by her team last year was female.

 

Research also suggests that clients were more likely than the average person
to have been refused credit elsewhere before turning to an illegal
moneylender.

 

Those with poor credit ratings are often limited to payday loans or other
high-cost options. However, many of these - such as Wonga - have been
regulated out of business, after concerns that they were causing severe
financial distress to consumers.

 

Jason Wassell, chief executive of the Consumer Credit Trade Association,
suggests there is a risk that a smaller market "can be taken too far", with
access to credit being reduced for people who might then go to friends and
family, or even illegal lenders.

 

But Mick McAteer, a former board member of the UK's financial watchdog, says
that improving the regulation of "subprime" lenders has protected people
from being targeted with unaffordable products.

 

He suggests that more efforts should be made to help people manage their
debts and to boost alternative options such as community lenders or credit
unions.

 

According to the Bank of England, about 1.98 million people across the UK
use credit unions. Some experts say there is a long way to go before these
can plug the gap left by the exit of higher-cost lenders. Credit unions
can't reach consumers as quickly and struggle to scale up as quickly as
private companies due to a lack of access to technology.

 

And as prices continue to rise, business for illegal money lenders like D
and M shows no sign of slowing.

 

But as Cath Wohlers warns: "They will absolutely bleed you dry. It's just
not worth it.

 

"If you are in debt, speak to your creditors and have conversations rather
than borrowing more money to get out of it."-bbc

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 


 


Invest Wisely!

Bulls n Bears 

 

Cellphone:      <tel:%2B263%2077%20344%201674> +263 77 344 1674

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INVESTORS DIARY 2023

 


Company

Event

Venue

Date & Time

 


 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 


 

Heroes’ Day

 

Aug 14

 


 

Defence Forces Day

 

Aug 15

 


 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 


Companies under Cautionary

 

 

 


CBZH

GetBucks

EcoCash

 


TSL

Econet

Turnall

 


First Capital Bank

ZBFH

Fidelity

 


Zimplow

FMHL

 

 


 

 

 

 


 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

 


 

 


DISCLAIMER: This report has been prepared by Bulls ‘n Bears, a division of
Faith Capital (Pvt) Ltd for general information purposes only and does not
constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy or
subscribe for any securities. The information contained in this report has
been compiled from s believed to be reliable, but no representation or
warranty is made or guarantee given as to its accuracy or completeness. All
opinions expressed and recommendations made are subject to change without
notice. Securities or financial instruments mentioned herein may not be
suitable for all investors. Securities of emerging and mid-size growth
companies typically involve a higher degree of risk and more volatility than
the securities of more established companies. Neither Faith Capital nor any
other member of Bulls ‘n Bears nor any other person, accepts any liability
whatsoever for any loss howsoever arising from any use of this report or its
contents or otherwise arising in connection therewith. Recipients of this
report shall be solely responsible for making their own independent
investigation into the business, financial condition and future prospects of
any companies referred to in this report. Other  Indices quoted herein are
for guideline purposes only and d from third parties.

 


 

 


(c) 2023 Web: <http://www.bullszimbabwe.com>  www.bullszimbabwe.com Email:
<mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> bulls at bullszimbabwe.com Tel: +263 4 2927658 Cell:
+263 77 344 1674

 


 

 

 

 

 

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