Trade Africa

2012-02-15T21:31:00.001Z

1 Kenya Airways prepares for major expansion2 Nigeria trade figures summary, 2011: high import of finished goods hurting economy3 Six months into a new government, Zambia reminded the problems are complex, long term4 South Africa, Britain trade up in 20115 Cameroonian youth ‘insulted’ by government job offers: how much is a university degree worth?6 Asia buys record Africa oil volumes after

Kenya Airways prepares for major expansion

2012-02-15T21:21:00.002Z

Kenya Airways has appointed two financial firms to join its transaction team that will steer its planned rights issue later in 2012, Xinhua reports. A number of appointed brokers will lead the rights issue in Kenya and several neighboring countries. Company officials said the funds raised would be used to finance fleet expansion, including buying 10 new Embraer E-190 aircraft, which will

Nigeria trade figures summary, 2011: high import of finished goods hurting economy

2012-02-15T21:17:00.008Z

Writing in the Vanguard newspaper, Omoh Gabriel, Business Editor, says “Nigerians have continued to spend the nation’s foreign reserves in the importation of finished consumer products that could be sourced locally if efforts are made to patronize made in Nigeria products.” He quotes from a Bureau of Statistics report showing that Nigeria’s import of finished goods it could produce locally have

Six months into a new government, Zambia reminded the problems are complex, long term

2012-02-15T21:13:00.003Z

Michael Sata was elected president of Zambia in 2011 on strong expectations of political and economic reform. As in many other African countries, corruption and cronyism amongst long-ruling elite was a sore point for citizens. Similarly, many Zambians look to government to do something about chronic unemployment. Chinese companies are major stakeholders in the country’s dominant copper mining

South Africa, Britain trade up in 2011

2012-02-15T21:10:00.003Z

South African Minister of International Relations and Co-operation Maite Nkoana-Mashabane said with Britain trade had improved in 2011 after declining 37% from 2008 to 2009, amid the global financial crisis. In the first 10 months of 2011, South African exports to the UK had increased 10.7% while UK imports were up 30.6%. In 2011, the two countries agreed to double trade between them by 2015.

Cameroonian youth ‘insulted’ by government job offers: how much is a university degree worth?

2012-02-15T21:07:00.000Z

This time this refers to Cameroon, but it could be anywhere in Africa. The government of President Paul Biya has, unlike those of most African countries, oil money to play with to pacify the population. The sector may be a fraction of that of neighboring oil giant, Nigeria, but Cameroon is also a much smaller country with a much lower population. Last year was an election year in Cameroon.

Asia buys record Africa oil volumes after Iran cuts

2012-02-15T21:04:00.001Z

Asia's imports of crude from West Africa are at record highs as sanctions on Iran cut supplies from the Islamic Republic to China, a Reuters survey of West African oil flows suggests, Christopher Johnson reports. North American, Asia and European refiners compete to buy West Africa's high quality, low sulphur crude oil. Increasingly it is a favorite source of fuel for Chinese, Indian and other

Some simple reasons the Chinese have fit so easily into Africa

2012-02-13T20:15:00.001Z

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Different work cultures as a source of African - Chinese misunderstanding

2012-02-13T20:14:00.000Z

The multiple barriers that hamper trade within Africa

2012-02-13T20:12:00.002Z

Zambia, Zimbabwe seek more revenues from their mines

2012-02-13T20:10:00.000Z

Intra-Africa trade accounts for only 11% of world total

2012-02-07T19:42:00.003Z

The January 2012 African Union summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia received more attention than previous such meetings. There were at least three reasons for this. One, AU Chairman Jean Ping from Gabon was being challenged in his bid for a second term by South African foreign affairs minister Nkosasana Zuma. An incumbent chairman is usually a shoo-in for a second term. The closely fought contest,

Entrepreneur, are you doing business with the wrong bank?

2012-02-07T19:38:00.000Z

This is not about a businessperson seeking a loan from the bank he or she transacts with. That perennially sore subject for a lot of businesspeople is for another day. This is instead about how your bank could be the wrong type for day to day business transactions. Many people, businesspeople who should be more demanding included, stick with banks offering bad servics for their needs surprisingly

When the market leader gets complacent

2012-02-07T19:35:00.003Z

Econet Wireless is one of Zimbabwe’s biggest corporate success stories. It is the country’s leading telecommunications company. In a few years, it has also made significant inroads in being a big mobile communications/internet companies in several other countries. It can proudly claim many ‘firsts’ to its name. What for many Zimbabweans makes it a particularly iconic brand, far beyond the

DHL Freight prepares for the coming great African trade boom

2012-02-07T19:34:00.000Z

Whether Africa is a massive business/trade ‘problem’ or a massive opportunity depends on who and where you are. The business/trade problems are well known, and talked about endlessly. Intra-continental trade is the lowest in the world at only about 10%, hampered by tariff and non-tariff barriers; slow, bureaucratic ports; and trade-related corruption is rife. African trade is still a tiny

Ten astonishing things about the West’s ‘loss' of Africa to China

2012-01-31T15:38:00.000Z

by Chido Makunike ‘How the West lost Africa to China’ is an increasingly frequent theme of international relations policy analysis. The West’s relations with Africa have not always been happy, but they have been deep and long. Long after slavery and colonialism, the West’s overall presence and influence in Africa are pervasive; so much so that Africa has long been taken for granted as almost ‘

2012-01-07T12:29:00.000Z

1 Zambia’s copper output to hit 1.6m tonnes by 2016 2 Why Africa must take advantage of Europe’s debt crisis 3 Unlimited opportunity for China-Africa cooperation 4 West African skies beckon more carriers 5 Sub-Saharan Africa set for 2012 boom 6 Exporters lose out as Mombasa port congestion intensifies 7 Nigeria, Global Biofuels sign 414 billion-Naira accord 8 Africa trade shields South

Zambia’s copper output to hit 1.6m tonnes by 2016

2012-01-07T11:30:00.003Z

The Chamber of Mines of Zambia (CMZ) has said the current environment coupled with increased investments will push Zambia’s copper production capacity to 1.6 million tonnes per annum by 2016. CMZ general manager Fred Bantubonse said while that target could be realised, there was need to maintain the current investment climate to attract more investors to the sector. The target would depend

Why Africa must take advantage of Europe’s debt crisis

2012-01-07T11:19:00.004Z

by Craig Falck The global economic slowdown has wreaked havoc on a number of economies, sending numerous once-powerful nations to their graves. Europe has been badly affected, even more so because of the countries’ debts within the Eurozone and their inabilities pay their multi-billion dollar debts, such as Greece. Italy and Spain are also in trouble, and it’s a problem that isn’t going to go

Unlimited opportunity for China-Africa cooperation

2012-01-07T08:52:00.002Z

by Yu Shengnan, Guo Qian China-Africa new strategic partnership continues to develop rapidly in the second decade of the new century with frequent high-level visits and successful expansion of political, economic, and cultural cooperation. The cooperation has effectively promoted the economic and social development in the African countries and China, improving people’s living standard, and

West African skies beckon more carriers

2012-01-06T23:16:00.002Z

by Drew Hinshaw From Senegal to Sierra Leone, start-ups, decrepit local carriers and even international airlines are out to prove that jet travel can extend beyond deep-pocketed passengers to West Africa's flourishing middle-class and business travelers. In the past year, Ethiopian Airlines, Kenya Airways Ltd. and even American R&B singer Akon have invested in new local carriers. Air

Sub-Saharan Africa set for 2012 boom

2012-01-06T23:13:00.001Z

If you want to hear some sunny economic forecasts for 2012, it’s best not to go looking in the United States – where GDP will grow by a lackluster 2 percent – or the eurozone, where the economy will actually get smaller this year. No, if you’re looking for good news you’d be better off turning to the world’s poorest region, sub-Saharan Africa, where the economy is set to grow by nearly 6

Exporters lose out as Mombasa port congestion intensifies

2012-01-06T23:12:00.000Z

by George Omondi A fresh pile-up of cargo at the port of Mombasa is causing anxiety among exporters as delays in clearance put orders worth billions of shillings at stake. Traders said a flood of uncollected containers has jammed the facility, with slow clearance by Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) and Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) adding to their losses. “The port is overwhelmed by imports. Some

Nigeria, Global Biofuels sign 414 billion-Naira accord

2012-01-06T23:07:00.003Z

by Elisha Bala-Gbogbo Nigeria, Africa’s top oil producer, signed a memorandum of understanding with Global Biofuels Ltd. to build 15 integrated biofuel plants for about 414 billion naira ($2.55 billion), the Trade and Investment Ministry said. Global Biofuels will start “the implementation of an agro- based industrial activity for the production of ethanol, biomass electric power and food, all

Africa trade shields South Africa from euro slowdown

2012-01-06T23:06:00.002Z

Trade with Africa should help to cushion SA in the face of a global slowdown, according to figures from the South African Revenue Service (SARS). SA’s growing exports to Africa this year may help the economy to stave off the alarming prospect of a recession in Europe, its main trading partner. Asia’s rapidly expanding economies will still, without doubt, provide the most important source of