A digital copy of the Business News 24 (05 May 2015 edition). Zimbabwe's premier business news free sheet published by the Zimpapers Newspapers Group (1980) Limited and available every week day from 1530hrs to give a summary of the day's business news.

1. News Update as @ 1530 hours, Tuesday 05 May 2015
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We are up to date with licence fee payments, says Telecel
By Rumbidzayi Zinyuke
Telecel Zimbabwe says it is up
to date with payments for its
operating licence despite the
sentiments that it has not been
compliant.
Two months ago, Government
cancelled an agreement with the
firm which allowed it to operate
without paying the $137,5 mil-
lion needed to renew its operat-
ing licence. In a statement, the
company said it has not skipped
a payment since the agreement
was made and the next instal-
ment was due next month.
“Telecel is currently in compli-
ance with its obligations as per
the Licence Renewal Agreement
entered into between Tele-
cel, POTRAZ the regulator and
the Government of Zimbabwe
as represented by the Minis-
try of Finance and the Ministry
of Transport and Communica-
tions.”
“Telecel has honoured all sub-
sequent licence fees payment
obligations as per the agreed
payment plan and is currently
up to date. The next instalment
is due in June of this year. At no
time was Telecel unable to pay
for its agreed commitments and
it is important for the public to
know the true facts behind the
story,” the company said.
The company said it had nego-
tiated with Government to off-
set the licence fees against the
interconnection fees of $12 mil-
lion it was owed by TelOne and
NetOne.
“An agreement was reached and
signed on the August 6, 2013.
The Agreement entailed pay-
ment of an immediate lump
sum of $14 million in addition
to using debt accrued from the
Government telecommunica-
tions operators on interconnect
fees to offset part of the fees.
This debt amounted to $12
million. The balance would be
payable in instalments over a
period of 7 years,” the company
said.
The company however said it
paid through its bankers but
the $6 million paid through Met-
bank had not been forwarded
to Potraz.Potraz last week can-
celled the mobile phone oper-
ator’s licence with effect from
April 28, and gave it 30 days to
wind up operations and another
60 days to decommission its
equipment.
ICT Postal and Courier Services
Minister Supa Mandiwanzira
said this was because the com-
pany had failed to comply with
the country’s indigenisation
laws since 2002 when it started
operations in the country.
Dutch-headquartered firm
VimpelCom owns 60 percent
of Telecel with the remaining
40 percent being controlled
by Empowerment Corporation
(EC), a local consortium.
●

2. BH24

3. 3 BH24
Bank lending rates for corporate clients decline
By Tawanda Musarurwa
HARARE-Zimbabwe's
doing business environment
reforms will initially exclu-
sively focus on Harare, with
a national steering com-
mittee and technical work-
ing groups having already
been put in place, Zimba-
bwe Investment Authority
chief executive Mr Richard
Mbaiwa has said.
Mr Mbaiwa told the Parlia-
mentary Portfolio Commit-
tee on Industry and Com-
merce this morning that this
is due to the fact that the
capital city tends to be the
focus of most competitive-
ness survey. He said if suc-
cessful, the model will be
replicated to other cities.
"The main focus right now is
the city of Harare and regis-
trar of companies. Harare is
the focal point in the World
Bank Survey and other com-
petitiveness surveys. So in
terms of reforms, our idea is
to use the city of Harare as
a model, which will be rep-
licated to other cities," he
said.
Zimbabwe is ranked 171
out of 189 countries on the
2015 World Bank Ease of
Doing Business Index. This
is notwithstanding indicated
efforts at reforming the local
doing business environment
over the past few years.
In 2011, the Government
set up the ZIA One-Stop-
Shop to improve the local
business operating environ-
ment for new investors, but
it seems this has had limited
benefits as the country has
only made marginal pro-
gress on the rankings over
the past few years.
Although admitting that the
One Stop Shop had flopped
due to "lack of legal back-
ing", the ZIA boss said pro-
gress was being made in
other areas, particularly
with respect to work being
carried out by newly estab-
lished 'technical working
groups'.
"Work done so far has led
to the establishment of a
national steering commit-
tee and technical working
groups that will look at each
and every indicator ....there
is a technical working group
for each indicator.
"These technical working
groups have actually started
meeting and looked at the
issues and recommenda-
tions have actually come
out of those technical work-
ing groups which are going
to be implemented, but also
conveyed to the people who
carry out these business
surveys," he said.
Mr Mbaiwa added that the
authority has begun engag-
ing donors to assist in the
financing of the reform pro-
cess.
"We are quite aware that
there is limited fiscal
space within Government
and Treasury in terms of
supporting some of these
reform measures....
One of the things that we
have done is that we have
approached co-operating
partners who have brought
in resource people, consult-
ants and they are prepared
to fund computerisation
of institutions such as the
registrar of companies and
others. We have already
submitted the necessary
requests for the funding
requirements."
ZIA says it expects the
country to move within the
top 100 of the next World
Bank World Bank Ease of
Doing Business Index due to
the ongoing reforms.
●

4. 4 BH24

5. 5
By BH24 Reporter
HARARE-The country's bank lend-
ing rates have remained high despite
a marginal decline in rates for cor-
porate clients, statistics from the
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe have
shown.
In its weekly economic report, the
central bank said lending rates for
corporate clients went down to 8,85
percent during the week ending April
24 from 8,90 percent in the previous
week.
Weighted lending rates for individu-
als however firmed to 12,69 percent
from 12,59 percent recorded in the
prior period.
The gap between lending and
deposit rates has remained wide
with the majority of bank deposits
being short-term leading to higher
rates for fixed deposits.
The Zimbabwean banking sector
has been struggling under the tight
liquidity challenges that have crip-
pled the economy over the past
years and since the adoption of mul-
ti-currency regime, has used high
interest rates on loans as a means to
survive the high cost of money asso-
ciated with country risk.
Government negotiated with banks
to reduce their lending rates to levels
below 10 percent per annum in 2013
but the agreement was suspended
before the end of the year after
banks complained that the move had
narrowed margins.
During the week, average savings
deposit rates remained unchanged
at 3,54 percent, while deposits with
1 month and 3 month tenors fell
to 9,21 percent and 10,81 percent
respectively.
The RBZ said the total value of
transactions processed through the
National Payment System during the
week under review rose to US$1,
11 billion, up from US$1, 04 billion
recorded in the previous week.
This was a result of a general
increase in transactions processed
through the system.
Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS)
transactions went up 7 percent to
$962,98 million in the review period
from $900,06 million recorded in the
prior week.
Transactions made through the
Automated Teller Machines were also
up 10 percent at $53,9 million from
$49 million while Point of Sale trans-
actions went up 41 percent to $27,8
million from $19,7 million.
Cheques transactions were up 19
percent at $3,17 million from $2,67
million in the prior period.
Mobile based transactions were how-
ever 3 percent down to $67,04 mil-
lion from $69 million in the previous
week.
In terms of proportions, RTGS pay-
ments continued to dominate the
NPS, accounting for 86,37 percent
of the total value of transactions, fol-
lowed by Mobile-based transactions
at 6,01 percent and ATMs at 4,84
percent.●
Bank lending rates for corporate clients decline
BH24

6. 6 BH24

7. 7 ANALYSIS7 NEWS
ByConradMwanawashe
MANUFACTURES will this year focus on
initiatives to unlock manufacturing com-
petitiveness and will interrogate issues
includingdevelopingvaluechainsforvari-
oussectorswhentheyconvergeinGweru
fortheConfederationofZimbabweIndus-
triesconference.
CZI president Mr Charles Msipa said
this year’s conference will have a dual
approachwithonefocusingonhowcom-
panies can improve internal efficiencies
and the development of value chains.
The conference will be running under the
theme: “Unlocking Manufacturing Com-
petitiveness”.
“We are going to convene for our annual
congress in Gweru from July 29-31 and
will be held at the Executive Lodge in
Gweru. It will be the first to be hosted in
the Midlands in Gweru seeing that the
Midlands industrial sector has taken a
hammeringoverthecourseofthelastsix
orsevenyears,”saidMrMsipa.
“It’s going to be a dual approach; first
approach is what companies/firms can
do internally within their environments to
improve their own efficiencies in order to
improvetheiroverallcompetitiveness.”
Mr Msipa said the conference will have
some keynote speakers from the Lean
Institute Africa from South Africa to talk
about lean manufacturing which focuses
onefficiencyinmanufacturingoperations.
“Wewillalsosharesomelocalexperiences
from local manufacturers from some
value chain initiatives that have been tak-
ing place in some value chains such as
edible oils and cotton and clothing value
chains. We will share some of the lessons
from the value chains that have taken
place recently,” said Mr Msipa.The value
chain approach looks at the whole spec-
trum from raw materials right through to
thefinishedproduct.
For instance, instead of just looking at
what is happening in the issues relating
to cooking oil, including the volume of
imported cooking oil; the value chain for
cooking oil would look at the production
of soya beans, the conditions around
the production of soya beans and cotton
seed, the extraction of the oil, processing
into the final product.There have been
some initiatives where industrialists and
policy makers have looked and devel-
oped a strategy for the whole value chain
over the last 12 months, according to Mr
Msipa.
“We have an initiative in the cotton to
clothing value chain where they devel-
oped a strategy for the development of
cotton to clothing value chain. The strat-
egy would look at how to boost produc-
tion of cotton, processing, manufacture
of fabric and manufacture of clothes,” he
said.
Vice President Mnangagwa is expected to
headline senior Government officials who
haveconfirmedattendanceattheconfer-
ence. The conference will also include a
tour of performing and struggling indus-
tries to understand “what’s working and
what’snotworking”.●
CZI to focus on competitiveness
MrCharlesMsipa

8. BH24

9. HARARE - Volumes were improved
in today's trades, but the downward
trend of the industrial index contin-
ued as it declined 0.47 points (or
0,30 percent) to close at 154.91.
Fidelity Life lost 1,50 cents to close
at 7,70 cents, while seed manufac-
turer SeedCo lost a cent to trade at
94 cents and telecoms giant Econet
was down 0,50 cents to 48,50
cents.
Also trading in the negative was
hotelier Meikles which was 0,20
cents lower at 8,50 cents whilst
African Sun, Ariston and RTG were
each 0,10 cents down to settle at
2,70 cents, 0,40 cents and 1,10
cents, respectively.
Similarly as yesterday, there were
no counters that traded in posi-
tive territory, while 11 counters
traded flat. The volume increase
was largely attributable to trades
in Delta, Seedco and Econet, which
pushed up the value of trades to
$1,7 million.
The mining index was flat at 42.93
points as BNC, Falgold, Hwange
and RioZim maintained previous
price levels at 4 cents, 0,40 cents,
3,50 cents and 6 cents in that
order. - BH24 Reporter●
9 ZSE REVIEW
Industrial stocks keep falling

10. REGIONAL NEWS10
South Africa's rand was stable
against the dollar early on Tues-
day and was expected trade in
a narrow range for most of the
session given a dearth of market
moving data.
Government bonds extended
recent gains, pushing yields to
their highest in nearly 2 weeks,
in line with US Treasuries after
higher than expected factory
data stoked rate hike expecta-
tions in the world's largest econ-
omy.
By 0640 GMT the rand traded at
12,0500 against the greenback,
barely changed from Monday's
close at 12,0605.
"The rand will continue trading
in a narrow range as participants
wait on the sidelines ahead of the
Germany factory order release
on Thursday and the all-impor-
tant US employment report on
Friday," Barclays Africa said in a
note.
In fixed income, government
debt maturing in 2026, the
benchmark for the market, was
yielding 4 basis points higher
at 8,095 percent compared to
where it ended the previous ses-
sion.
"A move above 8,13 percent
could cause another bout of price
weakness and the medium term
objective of 8,5 percent could
become a reality sooner rather
than later," Standard Bank trader
Warrick Butler said.
Traders and analysts said
Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja
Kganyago's speech later in the
morning could give some clues
on the outlook for South African
interest rates.
The bank's monetary policy com-
mittee will hold its third policy
meeting of the year later this
month. - Reuters●
Rand largely flat

11. 11 ZSE
ZSE
MOVERS CHANGE TOdAy PRICE USC SHAKERS CHANGE TOdAy PRICE USC
ARISTON -20.00 0.40
FIDELITy LIFE -16.30 7.70
RTG -8.33 1.10
AFRICAN SUN -3.57 2.70
MEIKLES -2.29 8.50
SEEDCO -1.05 94.00
ECONET -1.02 48.50
INdICES
INdEx PREVIOUS TOdAy MOVE CHANGE
INDUSTRIAL 155.38 154.91 -0.47 POINTS -0.30%
MINING 42.93 42.93 +0.00 POINTS +0.00%
Stocks Exchange

12. 12 dIARy OF EVENTS
The black arrow indicate level of load shedding across the country.
POWER GENERATION STATS
Gen Station
24 April 15
Energy
(Megawatts)
Hwange 442 MW
Kariba 614 MW
Harare 30 MW
Munyati 29 MW
Bulawayo 26 MW
Imports 0 MW
Total 1153 MW
20 May 2015 - The Seventy-Fifth Annual
General Meeting of Astra Industries Limited; Place: The Auditorium at Astra Park, Cor-
ner Ridgeway North / Northend Roads, Highlands, Harare; Time: 12:00 hours.
21 May 2015 - The 20th Annual General Meeting of Members of NMBZ Holdings Lim-
ited; Place: 4th Floor, Unity Court, Corner 1st Street/ Kwame Nkrumah Avenue, Harare;
Time: 10:00 hours.
28 May 2015 - The twentieth Annual General Meeting of dairibord Holdings Limited;
Place: Mirabelle Room, Meikles Hotel, Harare; Time: 11:30 am.
29 May 2015 - The 13th Annual General Meeting of NICOZdIAMONd Insurance Lim-
ited; Place: NICOZDIAMOND Auditorium, 7th floor Insurance Centre, 30 Samora Machel
Avenue; Time: 12:00 hours.
THE BH24 dIARy

13. The European Commission raised
its euro-area growth forecast as the
impact of a weaker euro and unprec-
edented monetary stimulus help the
economy overcome pressure on con-
fidence from the continuing crisis in
Greece.
Gross domestic product in the
19-nation currency bloc is forecast
to increase 1,5 percent this year, up
from a prediction of 1,3 percent in
February, according to the commis-
sion, the European Union executive in
Brussels. It slashed its growth projec-
tions for Greece at a time when the
cash-strapped country is struggling
to persuade its euro-area partners to
help pay its bills.
“The legacy of the crisis will continue
to be felt for years to come,” Marco
Buti, the head of the commission’s
economics department, said in the
report. “Will the economy be able to
generate a self-sustained and bal-
anced expansion once these tempo-
rary tailwinds fade? The answer is not
self-evident.”
The European Central Bank’s quan-
titative-easing program “is having a
significant impact” on financial mar-
kets and the economy, the commis-
sion said. “Fiscal policy is also accom-
modating growth.” Lower oil prices,
the euro’s depreciation and steady
global growth also are supporting the
European economy, it said.
debt Pile
Tuesday’s report shows that while
the euro area is slowly recovering,
France, the bloc’s second-largest
economy, will not expand as quickly
in 2016 as the EU forecast just three
months ago. Italy, the third-largest
euro-zone economy, will see its debt
pile get larger this year as it records
growth of 0,6 percent, according to
the forecasts.
The cut in the growth forecast for
Greece -- where Europe’s debt bomb
exploded more than five years ago
-- may make it harder for Prime
Minister Alexis Tsipras’s government
to convince the EU and the Interna-
tional Monetary Fund that it should
row back austerity while it struggles
to record a primary budget surplus.
“There is a choice for the Greek gov-
ernment to make -- time is running
out,” European Commission Vice
President Valdis Dombrovskis said in
a statement. “All fundamentals for a
return to growth and stability are still
very much there.”Greece will grow by
0,5 percent in 2015, the commission
projected. That compares with a 2,5
percent prediction in the EU’s most
recent forecasts published in Febru-
ary.
“Positive momentum” in the Greek
economy has “been hurt by uncer-
tainty since the announcement of
snap elections in December,” the
commission said. “The current lack
of clarity on the policy stance of the
government vis-a-vis the country’s
policy commitments in the context
of the EU/IMF support arrangements
worsens uncertainty further.”
The Brussels-based commission fore-
cast euro-area inflation to start creep-
ing up again and avoid the deflation
it predicted in February. yet it will
remain below the ECB’s goal of just
under 2 percent throughout this year
and next. Inflation will stand at 0,1
percent in 2015, before quickening to
1.5 percent in 2016, the commission
said. - Bloomberg●
13 INTERNATIONAL NEWS
EU raises growth outlook as ECB counters Greek threat

14. By Emmanuel Iruobe
Philosophically, it could
be argued that nations are
endowed with different sets
of natural resources for the
sole purpose of facilitating
trade and exchange – if every
nation had the exact same
resource profile, there’d
be no need for any form of
exchange.
Beyond philosophy, how-
ever, the case for boosting
global trading has never been
louder with the recent growth
slowdown in the global econ-
omy. A series of analyses
from the International Mone-
tary Fund (IMF), which has a
long history of advocating for
more criss-crossing of goods
and services, suggest that
trading does more than just
provide money for nations, it
triggers a virtuous cycle that
spikes growth and innova-
tion, while reducing poverty.
“If you care about growth and
innovation; if you care about
jobs and the real incomes of
the middle-class; if you care
about poverty reduction and
greater economic fairness; if
you do care about all these
things, you need to be seri-
ous about fostering global
trade,” advocates Christine
Largarde, the IMF’s Manag-
ing Director.
Africa has witnessed impres-
sive economic growth in
the last decade—fuelled by
increased foreign investment
inflow and better commod-
ities trading—but a slow-
down in the transfer of goods
poses a number of setbacks.
Africa is expected to suffer a
shrunken portfolio of invest-
ment inflows should the
slowdown persist.
However, should global
trading improve, here are
the gains Africa’s stands to
attract:
More jobs: A strong corre-
lation exists between trading
and job creation. The IMF
reports that exports of goods
and services directly and
indirectly supported an esti-
mated 11,7 million US jobs
in 2014.
Ironically, Africa contin-
ues to suffer from massive
unemployment. Its two big-
gest economies—Nigeria
and South Africa—both have
more than 20 percent of their
population unable to secure
a job. Interestingly both
countries, despite attract-
ing significant international
investments, noticeably have
marginal trade relations with
neighbours. With the US
already providing more than
10 million jobs from trade
avenues, both economies can
take a cue from the global
economic leader.
Economies of Scale: Coun-
tries like Nigeria are known
for oil production, while
South Africa is known for dia-
mond and platinum mining,
as well as telecom services
and finance. East Africa pro-
vides a suitable tourism des-
tination in Kenya and Ethio-
pia. These could all form the
basis of specialisation for
most of these regions.
Encouraging structural
reforms: The IMF believes
that trade reforms, which
result from increased trad-
ing, can increase external
competition in the products
and services markets. This,
it believes, encourages key
infrastructure investments,
and strengthens institutions
by encouraging better gov-
ernance and an improved
business environment.
This can be seen in China’s
renewed investments strides
across Africa. The country,
which has sunk a minimum
of $200 billion into Africa’s
infrastructure landscape,
has improved road access,
improved aviation and sup-
ported governments’ effort
in rebuilding the emerging
African economy. - Ventures
Africa●
14 ANALYSIS
Why increased global trading is good for Africa
14 ANALySIS