Category: East Africa
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Kenya’s new vehicle sales plunge 30 pct in first half
The number of new vehicles sold in Kenya dropped 30.2 percent in the first six months of this year from the same period last year mainly due to high lending rates. Most buyers of new vehicles, like light commercial trucks, rely on asset financing facilities by banks and interest rates were as high as 24…
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Kenya:US mining rules turn the heat on Kenya-based oil explorers
New rules requiring oil and mineral companies to disclose all payments made to governments around the world have come into force in the United States, turning the heat on oil exploration and mining firms with operations in Kenya, including Tullow Oil. The newly published industry rules, derived from the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer…
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Kenya:KQ extends record after tax loss to Sh26.2bn
Kenya Airways announced a record net loss of Sh26.2 billion in the year ended March, widening the Sh25.7 billion net loss the year before. KQ, as the airline is popularly known, suffered from a Sh9.7 billion foreign exchange loss and an acceleration of other costs including interest expenses. Its revenue increased to Sh116.1 billion from…
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Tanzania gets $7.6 bln loan from China’s Exim Bank for railway
Tanzania has secured a $7.6 billion loan from China’s Export-Import Bank (Exim) to build a railway line that will link it to its neighbours, President John Magufuli’s office said on Wednesday. Tanzania wants to profit from its long coastline and upgrade its rickety railways and roads to serve growing economies in the landlocked heart of…
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Kenya:Deacons to list on Nairobi bourse after six-year wait
Deacons Kenya plans to list its shares on the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) for Sh15 each valuing the clothing retailer at Sh1.85 billion. The listing by introduction of 123,558,228 shares is scheduled for August 2, at the NSE’s alternative investment market segment (Aims). With the listing the retailer’s shares will stop trading on the over-the-counter…
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Kenya: KRA goes after big banks accused of falsifying bad loans
The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has opened investigations into the activities of eight top commercial banks accused of inflating their stock of bad loans to reduce their tax obligations. The taxman insists that a large stock of the bad loans is the product of irresponsible and insider lending that does not qualify as losses for…
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Kenya:Internet outage to hit businesses for next two weeks
Businesses that connect to the Internet through the TEAMS undersea cable are set to experience downtimes between today and July 28 as the operator embarks on maintenance works. The East African Marine System-TEAMS- that is jointly owned by the government and the private sector yesterday said the shutdown is to allow for expansion of the…
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Kenya:Insurance industry should adopt latest technology to curb fraudulent claims
Last year, the local media highlighted an insurance fraud case where a husband and wife decided to fake the husband’s death and the death certificate, then have the wife claim compensation from their insurer. Prior to this story, there had been a case involving 11 individuals who were arrested and arraigned in court, suspected to…
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Kenya:Bankers want CBK action on lenders kept private
The Central Bank of Kenya should keep disciplinary actions taken against commercial banks private in order to avoid erosion of public confidence in the sector and dimming a lender’s chances of recovery, a new survey shows. Fund managers, bankers and investors interviewed by research firm HTM Capital while supporting the current clean up in the…
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Kenya:Africa and allies seek new deal from Nairobi’s UN trade talks
The Fourteenth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) taking place in Nairobi entered a crucial stage yesterday with the opening of the first committee of the whole conference where critical issues at the centre of global commerce were discussed. Kenya’s Foreign Affairs secretary, Amina Mohamed, who is chairing the committee,…