Category: East Africa
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Kenya’s power imports from Uganda up 281pc
Kenya’s electricity imports from Uganda have grown 281 per cent in the six months to June as drought cut local generation of hydro-electric power by a third or 615.69 million kilowatt hours. Kenya imported 131.6 million kilowatt hours (kWh) from Uganda in the first half of this year compared to 34.5 million units in the…
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Political tension subdues trading at Nairobi bourse
Trading at the Nairobi bourse on Wednesday plummeted to rock bottom as tension gripped the country in the wake of a contested outcome of Tuesday’s election, bringing economic activity across all sectors to a standstill. Turnover slumped to Sh166.6 million as investors largely kept away from the market hoping for a speedy resolution of the…
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Sugar millers allowed to import 150,000 tonnes
The Sugar Directorate has issued permits to nearly all private millers to import 150,000 tonnes of the commodity ahead of the expiry of the Common Market for Eastern and Central Africa (Comesa) duty-free window. Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) director-general Alfred Busolo said the millers will be operating below their installed capacity in the next…
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NSE share rally boosts pension fund returns
Pension subscribers have begun reaping the benefits of a recovering equities market that has now boosted average returns for schemes above the rate of inflation. An industry survey by Actuarial Services East Africa (Actserv) for the quarter ending June shows that the average return for schemes rose to 8.1 per cent from 2.5 per cent…
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Uganda, Tanzania start work on construction of $3.5BN oil pipeline
The leaders of Tanzania and Uganda laid a foundation stone on Saturday for the construction of a $3.55 billion-crude export pipeline that would pump Ugandan oil for international markets. The 1,445 km-project – set for completion by 2020 – will stretch from landlocked Uganda’s western region, where crude reserves were discovered in 2006, to Tanzania’s…
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Virtual lender Branch Kenya loans hit Sh3.6 billion
Mobile-based lender Branch has disbursed a cumulative Sh3.63 billion ($35 million) loans in Kenya where virtual lending is growing in popularity. Branch, founded in 2015, says its customer base has grown to 350,000 individuals who have made over 1.5 million loan transactions. “We have seen fantastic growth at Branch because we know what our borrowers…
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Kenya: Forex reserves hit new low as CBK shores up the shilling
Foreign exchange reserves have fallen to the lowest level since March 16 when it was at $6.973 billion (Sh724.56 billion), underlining increased activity by Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) to stabilise the shilling and debt payment. The CBK says in the latest weekly bulletin that the country’s forex reserves, largely in US dollars, dropped by…
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Kenya: Release City Hall’s Sh1bn, KRA ordered
City Hall has been allowed to pursue punishment of the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) boss John Njiraini for attaching Sh1 billion to recover disputed taxes despite a court order barring the same. Justice George Odunga has allowed City Hall to file a contempt of court application against the KRA after the taxman attached the sum…
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Kenya: Safaricom rallies to Sh25 on dividend deadline
Safaricom shareholders have enjoyed a Sh214 billion gain in their wealth this year after the telco’s share hit a new all-time high of Sh25 on Friday. The share price rally on the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) saw the telecoms operator become the first listed company in Kenya to touch the Sh1 trillion mark in market…
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East Africa: IDB Capital enjoined in Imperial Bank asset row
Development financier IDB Capital has been enjoined in a suit filed by Imperial Bank’s receiver managers to recover Sh34 billion from firms linked to the lender’s scam. IDB is seeking to free assets tied down by the court case as they were used as security for loans. IDB Capital had asked Justice Fred Ochieng to…