EABL up for earnings boost from bottling unit disposal

Beer maker East African Breweries Limited’s (EABL) earnings this year are set to get a major boost following conclusion of the sale of its glass bottle manufacturing subsidiary. The brewer Thursday announced that the sale of Central Glass Industries (CGI) to a South African glass-making firm was completed on September 30, a deal in which EABL expects to earn Sh4.5 billion from which it can reduce its debt [...]

Unga subsidiary sale softens forex losses, profit up 31pc

Flour miller Unga Group’s recent sale of its paper packaging subsidiary boosted its full-year net profit by nearly Sh200 million, cushioning the company from high foreign exchange losses incurred in the year. Unga Group has booked a Sh192.1 million gain in its books that includes the profit made after selling its 51 per cent stake in Bullpak Limited to UK-based Nampak Holdings [...]

WTO’s 5,000 guests a boost for Kenya Airways, hotels and KICC

National carrier Kenya Airways (KQ) and the Kenyatta International Convention Center (KICC) and Nairobi hotels are eyeing a big boost from the upcoming World Trade Organisation (WTO) meeting slated for December. Kenya Airways is the official carrier of the estimated 5,000 delegates [...]

New rules to spur Exchange Traded Funds liquidity

According to a new policy guideline from the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) the market makers will provide both selling and buying prices to ensure that an investor actually buys or sells the ETF units they seek to at a specified price at any time. Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs), a form of investment vehicle where investors pool their cash, will have to guarantee ability of seller to find a buyer by appointing market makers before listing on the Nairobi Securities Exchange [...]

AfDB fund acquires firm for Sh3.6bn

Nairobi-based African Guarantee Fund (AGF) has expanded its footprint into West Africa after it bought a majority stake in the Guarantee Fund for Private Investments in Africa (Gari) for Sh3.6 billion ($35 million) [...]

Lobby asks House to allocate SMEs cash for cheap loans

Small businesses are lobbying Parliament to speedily allocate money for the Micro and Small Enterprises (MSE) Fund, especially at a time commercial loans are pricey due to rising interest rates. Traders through their lobby group, the Kenya National Alliance of Street Vendors and Informal Traders, say Parliament has not allocated any funds three years after the MSE Act was passed [...]

Claims of bribery, fraud as Tatu row takes new twist

The court battle between foreign and local shareholders of the multibillion-shilling real estate development Tatu City on Thursday took a new twist after the parties made bribery and fraud claims against each other. Tatu City’s CEO Christopher Baron is seeking to disqualify trial judge Eric Ogola over claims that he may have been bribed by former Central Bank of Kenya governor Nahashon Nyagah and business mogul Vimal Shah to twist the case in their favour [...]

US, Kenya partner in Treasury staff hiring plan

The National Treasury has partnered with its US counterpart to improve the management of public debt through recruit of more staff and quicker document processing. An International Monetary Fund (IMF) report that the Kenyan Treasury is keen to increase the capacity of the Debt Management Office (DMO) with a view to preventing accumulation of foreign arrears as happened recently [...]

Firms hired more staff in Sept on weak demand for imports

Kenyan companies employed more staff in September in response to rising demand for local goods as a weak shilling made imports less attractive. The shilling has lost about 16 per cent to the dollar since the beginning of the year making imports expensive. Central Bank of Kenya governor Patrick Njoroge said at a media briefing on Tuesday importation of consumer goods had dropped [...]