Story of the Day:
Zambia has all it needs to be a tech giant in the region. The key lies in resisting the temptation to merely replicate global trends as opposed to focusing on learning from them to develop solutions tailored to our needs. Zambia has in the last few months experienced a rapid acceleration in the adoption of digital technology in all sectors of the economy. This growth has been driven by social distancing necessitated by the COVID-19 outbreak. Read more
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Zambia has in the past few months engaged Chinese creditors to try to secure the suspension of debt service falling due from May 1 to Dec. 31, the ministry of finance said on Thursday. Read more: Reuters
Zambia, as at end of 1Q20 owes K25.4billion ($1.27billion) in domestic arrears. The domestic arrears number reflects liquidity that the state owes to the real sector of the economy which has ballooned over the years. Read more: The Business Telegraph
The Zambia Airports Corporation Limited – ZACL has signed a deal with Protea hotel that will see the hotel chain run the hotels at the Kenneth Kaunda International Airport – KKIA in Lusaka. Read more: Zambian Business Times
The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) has conducted investigative interviews with Lafarge Zambia PLC, Dangote Cement Zambia Limited, Zambezi Portland Cement Limited and Sinoma Cement. CCPC said the commission has continued to receive complaints and queries from members of the general public on suspected cartelistic conduct in the cement sector relating to alleged price fixing. Read more: Zambian Business Times
Companies listed on Lusaka Securities Exchange (LuSE) last week witnessed improved trade activity resulting in a significant increase in the overall turnover to over K10.7 million from around K16,700 the previous week. Of the total turnover, CEC Africa on the quoted tier accounted for a bulk of K10.6 million while the rest was shared among eight other firms that participated. Read more: Zambia Daily Mail
International Business and Finance
The selection of a new director general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) is entering its final stage. The final two – from an initial list of eight candidates – are Nigeria’s former finance minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and South Korean trade minister Yoo Myung-hee. Both are female which means that if members of the WTO can coalesce around one them in the final stages of selection, it will be the first time the job has been taken by a woman. Read more: BBC News
International Business Machines (IBM) has announced it will split into two public companies. The move is an attempt to shift its focus to higher-margin businesses like cloud computing and artificial intelligence. A new company focusing on legacy IT infrastructure will be named and spun off next year. IBM shares closed nearly 6% higher after the announcement. Read more: BBC News
U.K. Parliament’s defence committee said in a new report that there is “clear evidence of collusion” between Huawei and the “Chinese Communist Party apparatus.” They pointed to allegations of state funding to Huawei as well as the company potentially having to comply with China’s national security laws. The lawmakers said that U.K. operators might have to consider ripping out Huawei gear from their 5G networks by 2025, rather than 2027. Read more: CNBC
The outlook for the airline industry continues to be bleak, and one CEO has issued a particularly devastating warning on its future as fears mount over a potential second wave of coronavirus infections this fall and winter. “The worst is not behind any airline, not only Qatar Airways,” Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker said. “There will soon be other bailouts in Europe, there will be other collapses around the world. Because of the second wave, even more severe than in the first wave.” A staggering 43 commercial airlines have already folded so far this year. Read more: CNBC
On Thursday, the United States Congressional Budget Office estimated that for fiscal year 2020, which ended September 30, the US deficit hit $3.13 trillion — or 15.2% of GDP — thanks to the chasm between what the country spent ($6.55 trillion) and what it took in ($3.42 trillion) for the year. As a share of the economy, the estimated 2020 deficit is more than triple what the annual deficit was in 2019. And it’s the highest it has been since just after World War II. Read more: CNN
Capital Markets Report Sponsored By ZCCM-IH
In 4 trades recorded yesterday, 173 shares were transacted yielding a market turnover of K5,450. A share price gain of K3.01 was recorded in ZCCM. The LuSE All Share Index (LASI) closed at 3,811.75 points. The market closed on a capitalization of K55,896,157,023 including Shoprite Holdings and K21,656,951,043 excluding Shoprite Holdings.
Chart of the Day:
