Kenyan shilling steady, stocks a fraction higher

At 1300 GMT, commercial banks quoted the shilling at 89.25/45 to the dollar, compared with Tuesday's close of 89.30/40. Traders said there were some dollar inflows from tea exporters and non-governmental organisations, which countered the demand for the U.S. currency. On the Nairobi Securities Exchange, the main NSE-20 Share Index inched 11.93 points or 0.2 percent higher to close at 5,267.54 points. Bonds valued at 4.31 billion shillings ($48.15 million) were traded compared with 4.34 billion shillings on Tuesday. [...]

Kenya government unveils plan to assess energy consumption and demand

The Government Wednesday appeared to own up to the criticism that its ambitious plan to add another 5000MW of power to the national grid by 2016 could leave the country with more electricity than it needs. It has now started a one-month survey to determine the exact amount of electricity demand that the country has before more is generated.[...]

Kenya Airways Resuming Liberia Route Oct. 24

Kenyan Airways is poised to be the second airline to resume flights to Ebola-stricken Liberia. The airline has slated October 24th, 2014 as its tentative date for the resumption of flights to Liberia, Airport Authority sources in Monrovia confirmed. [...]

Tullow partner frets over capital gains tax

Turkana explorer Africa Oil says the re-introduced capital gains tax will make it harder for companies to invest in the oil industry. In an update, the Canadian explorer and Tullow Oil partner said it was in talks with Kenya Oil & Gas Association (KOGA), an industry lobby, to push for an amendment to reduce the tax rate. Africa Oil said the tax rate of between 30 and 37.5 per cent was not sustainable and may end up discouraging other explorers who the industry needs to take development to the next level. [...]

Mwalimu Sacco’s plans to acquire Equatorial bank put on hold

Kenya’s largest savings society Mwalimu Sacco’s bid to acquire a majority stake in Equatorial Commercial Bank (ECB) has hit a bump after it was stopped pending a fresh audit of the deal. The Industrialisation and Enterprise Development ministry, the State department that is in charge of cooperative societies, stopped the transaction. In its letter to the Sacco, the ministry has raised queries on the valuation, profitability and corporate governance at ECB, asking for a higher degree of clarity before the bid is allowed to proceed. [...]