ECONOMIC NEWS

SIMONIS Storm Securities expect inflation to hover above 6,5% next year based on a lower base this year but additionally based on the price movements in key categories.  read more

The growth of the South African economy was held back and activity slowed in the third quarter of 2013, the SA Reserve Bank said on Tuesday.  read more

Johannesburg - South African yellow-corn futures rose to the highest level in more than 15 months in Johannesburg trading. read more

The Meat Board and unions representing the interest of farmers in the country have backed the country’s biggest meat producer, Meatco, to request that it should get the biggest shares of the 1 600 tonnes export quota to Norway.  read more

New research finds banking group Absa’s CashSend to be the most popular mobile money system in South Africa. read more

South Africans made up 22 of the 100 most influential Africans, according to a new list published by the New African on Wednesday. read more

Cape Town - The extreme drought, that forced livestock farmers in many parts of the country to slaughter "up to a third" of their livestock, will lead to a serious shortage of red meat. read more

There has been significant increase in per-hectare yield of rice farms in the Atwima-Mponua District following the introduction of improved technologies. - See more at: http://www.ghanabusinessnews.com/2013/11/25/rice-production-goes-up-in-atwima-mponua/#sthash.vcQUOSi0.dpuf read more

Government has with immediate effect banned the trading and marketing of pigs and its products to help in the fight against African swine fever. read more

Berlin - The German economy slowed in the third quarter despite a strong pickup in both corporate investment and government spending, data released Friday showed.  read more

Johannesburg - Ascendis Health debuted on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange on Friday, after raising more than R450m in a share sale to fund acquisitions. read more

Millers are grappling with stockpiles of maize bran after Government halted the export of the commodity in September this year. read more

Johannesburg - The first interest rate hiking by the South African Reserve Bank (Sarb) will most likely only be in 2015, according to John Loos, FNB's household and property sector strategist. read more

Johannesburg - South African soybean futures declined the most in almost seven weeks. The oilseed for delivery in December, the most active contract, fell 1.8 percent, the biggest decline since October 1, to 6,250 rand ($619) a metric ton by the noon close on the South African Futures Exchange in Johannesburg.  read more

Agriculture and Livestock Minister Bob Sichinga has disclosed that Zambia was on a strong position in terms of food security in the African region. read more

Eskom has declared an electricity supply emergency, and is urging customers to severely curtail usage from Tuesday (19 November) onwards. read more

Johannesburg - The EU is preparing a ban on South African citrus imports that could take orange juice off Europe’s breakfast tables next summer and sour efforts in Brussels to broaden trade with Africa’s biggest economy. read more

Johannesburg - The South African Reserve Bank (Sarb) will probably keep interest rates steady when it ends its final policy meeting of the year this week and is likely to stay on hold until at least late 2014, a Reuters poll showed on Monday. read more

Johannesburg - The value of debit card fraud losses decreased by 42 percent between January and September this year compared to the same period last year, the SA Banking Risk Information Centre (Sabric) said on Monday.  read more

Shares of Illovo Sugar fall more than 2 percent after the South African company says tough market conditions are likely to negatively impact its full-year earnings. read more

Business confidence in the manufacturing sector was weak in the third quarter of this year, according to a Manufacturing Circle survey. read more

The South African wool market held on to last week’s gains and remained steady for this week, Cape Wools said on Wednesday. read more

The North West provincial government is on a drive to create 20 000 jobs, starting on December 1. read more

East African Breweries has increased the amount of money it pays farmers for 90kg bag of barley by 17 per cent, from Sh2800 in 2012 to Sh3285.  read more

A new deal between MTN and Visa will enable MTN Mobile Money users to make face-to-face and online transactions wherever Visa is accepted.  read more

Johannesburg - Chile's CFR on Monday threatened to pull out its R13.48bn (at Monday's rand/dollar exchange rate) deal to buy drug maker Adcock Ingram if it does not win support from the state pension fund that ranks as Adcock's biggest shareholder. read more

On the back of growing trade between Ireland and South Africa, Ireland’s Minister for Trade and Development, Joe Costello TD, will lead the third Enterprise Ireland trade mission to South Africa in November.  read more

The annual rate of inflation for the month of October 2013 has reduced to 6.9% compared to 7.0% recorded in September 2013.  read more

The Association of Meat Importers and Exporters of Namibia, which represents the interest of dairy and meat importers and exporters, has said that the recent decision by government to limit the amount of milk imported into the country will limit consumer choices.  read more

FNB reports that monthly non-cash purchases by customers in its consumer segment have surpassed cash withdrawals at its ATMs by R800 million.  read more

Johannesburg - South Africa's HSBC Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 51.5 in October from 49.8 in September, its biggest expansion in 10 months as producers recovered from labour strikes, a survey showed on Tuesday. read more

Cape Town - Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies insisted on Tuesday that stricter affordability testing was the industry's answer to objections about the removal of adverse credit information. read more

Johannesburg - Corn futures in South Africa rose to the highest levels in more than four months by the midday close in Johannesburg.  read more

Sporting an appealing mix of successful retailers guaranteed and construction progressing apace, the vision for the R400 million Eyethu Orange Farm Mall to become a successful, profitable asset for the community of Orange Farm is within reach.  read more

Ghana has been voted the Vice Chairman of the Union of African Shippers Council (UASC) for the first time in the history of the organisation. read more

THE Zambia Cooperative Federation (ZCF) is scouting for US$21 million to set up milling plants in 25 districts. read more

Cape Town – The persistent weakness in the perception of SA in international media coverage is the under-representation of SA’s business sector and the difficulty to identify a business leader or leaders “representative" of the country. read more

A Stellenbosch University study shows a rapidly growing black middle class in South Africa, along with a dramatic decline in racial inequality. read more

New York - US stocks resumed their upward move on Thursday as economic data underscored views US monetary stimulus will be in place for the foreseeable future and as earnings offered some upbeat news. read more

Johannesburg - South Africa’s inflation rate fell from the highest level in four years to 6 percent in September.  read more

Port Elizabeth - The South African wool market ended softer this week, Cape Wools said on Wednesday. read more

The manufacturers’ sentiment index jumped to 36,61 in the third quarter of this year from the -14,89 recorded at the end of the previous quarter, Simonis Storm Securities (SSS) said in a report released earlier this month. read more

Hong Kong - Asian markets mostly rose on Monday, with sentiment buoyed by last week's deal in Washington to avert a default as well as a record close on Wall Street. read more

Johannesburg - South Africa has endorsed a trade deal with Poland, Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe has said read more

Washington - The US debt jumped above $17 trillion for the first time in history, the Treasury Department has said.  read more

The Namibian Government is injecting huge stimulus into the Namibian economy in order to accelerate the growth of local enterprises. The recent promulgation of the amended Regulation 28 and 29 of the Pension Funds Act has the potential to unlock capital and channel its flow towards entrepreneurial businesses. read more

hina's consumer price index (CPI), a key measure of inflation, climbed to 3.1 percent year-on-year in September, the government has said.  read more

Johannesburg - The softer global economy and weak domestic business and household confidence are expected to keep South African GDP growth at 2.0% this year with a marginal pick-up to 2.8% in 2014. read more

Johannesburg - Markets across the world on Thursday gave a lukewarm reaction towards the US debt deal, due to fears that the scenario will repeat itself early next year. read more

East Africa Glassware Mart plans to double its revenue to $34 million (Sh2.9 billion) by opening in 10 new markets within Africa over the next three years. read more

NWK Agri-services, formerly Dunavant Zambia, has diversified its commodity buying opportunities from cotton to soya beans and maize. read more

Washington - Citrus production in Florida, the world's second largest orange juice supplier after Brazil, is being threatened by a bacteria from Asia that has scientists racing for a remedy. read more

Ghana has been ranked as the fourth country in Africa with the highest public debt in relation the total value of the economy.  read more

The construction of the US$40 million Mukuba Shopping Mall in Kitwe has hit a snag after being halted by the Zambia Environmental Management Agency (ZEMA). read more

Zambia’s domestic and external debt for the year 2013 is projected to reach 37 percent of the country’s GDP. read more

Rome - Global food prices are not expected to fall much further after their fifth consecutive monthly decline in September, the United Nations food agency said on Thursday, trimming its estimate for 2013/14 world cereals production. read more

Johannesburg - The purchasing managers' index (PMI) fell to an eight-month low in September as a strike in the auto sector hurt new sales orders, suggesting a slowdown in the manufacturing sector, survey showed on Tuesday.  read more

Cape Town - Climate change poses a major threat to South Africa's maize production and food security, says the Agricultural Research Council. read more

Commodity prices at retail level are, on the average, trading at more than 16 per cent of wholesale prices, the Esoko-GNA Commodity Index (EGCI) has revealed. read more

The dominance of retail property developments over other types of commercial property development is continuing unabated. read more

Johannesburg - China's decision to place a 6% VAT charge on freight and related costs is going to have an impact on the importing price from China, warned Asgar Mahomed, managing director of ICT distributor, Esquire Technologies. read more

Cape Town - With consumers buckling under rising food, fuel and electricity prices, the gloves have come off as supermarkets go to war for their share of an already tough market.  read more

The business community has welcomed the release of the census results earlier this month saying they will help them plan their business operations.  read more

Upmarket property manager, JHI Properties said the property market is performing well with very few vacancies available. read more

Today, around 85% of all retail payment transactions are done with cash, which equates to 60% of retail transaction value, while 34% of all consumer payments ($63 trillion in total spend) are done with cash. read more

Johannesburg - The North West province on Wednesday declared there was a drought across its whole territory, an important maize growing region. read more

The latest second quarter GDP report released by the Namibia Statistics Agency shows that the economy recorded a slow growth of 2,3% in the second quarter of this year compared to an increase of 12,3% in the same period last year.  read more

Abuja - Nigeria's year-on-year consumer inflation fell to 8.2% in August, lower than July's 8.7% figure, the statistics bureau said on Tuesday, and touching a new 5-year low. read more

Johannesburg - South Africa's retail sales grew 2.8 percent year-on-year in July, far below forecasts, but higher than the revised 1.4 percent recorded in June, Statistics South Africa said on Wednesday.  read more

Milan - Prada is seeing green shoots in Europe and feels confident about China, its biggest market, even though sales slowed in the first half, the luxury Italian fashion house said on Tuesday. read more

The average change in prices of goods and services in the country, measured by inflation, dropped to 11.5 per cent in August after registering a consistent rise since January, this year. read more

South African consumer confidence has improved for the second half of 2013 according to the results of the latest MasterCard Index of Consumer Confidence, released on Monday (16 September).  read more

The total Namibian debt (comprising domestic and foreign government, corporate and household debt) grew by 0,43% during July to N$80,98 billion, representing an annual growth rate of 9,93%, slightly lower than the growth recorded in June of 10,15%.  read more

London/New York - Consumers are sticking to frugal shopping habits developed in the recession even as developed economies show signs of recovery, suggesting some behaviour changes could be permanent, industry executives say. read more

Cape Town - The publication of rules governing the use of the name Rooibos is a first step in preventing its misuse and achieving international protection for the iconic South African plant, said the South African Rooibos Council.  read more

Johannesburg - Manufacturing output increased by 5.4% year-on-year in volume terms in July from a revised 0.5% in June, Statistics South Africa said on Wednesday. read more

Government has secured a loan of 7.3 million euros for investment in the banana industry to ensure the production of quality bananas for export, said Dr Hawkins Asiedu, a Director at the Ministry of Trade and Industry.  read more

The environment for doing business in Ghana in 2012 was far better than this year; that is according to the Executive Opinion and Global Competitiveness Report.  read more

The World Economic Forum (WEF) has ranked Zambia as one of the top 10 most competitive economies in Africa for 2013. read more

The African mobile telecom market is forecast to grow from a combined value of over US$60 billion in 2013, to a value in 2020 of almost US$234 billion – with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 21.27%. read more

The International Monetery Fund(IMF) has weighed into the long-running debate on high household debt, warning that commercial bank's level of exposure to this was a "significant source of vulnerability".  read more

The Bank of Namibia has released its selected monthly statistics for June. The statistics show that total Namibian debt (comprising domestic and foreign government, corporate and household debt) grew by 1.19% during June to N$80.64 billion. This represents an annual growth rate of 10.15%, slightly lower than the growth recorded in May of 10,2%.  read more

Mealie meal prices have continued to rise in most parts of Western Province with Sikongo having the highest cost of K90 per 25kg bag of breakfast and K85 roller meal.  read more

Zambia will this year face a rice deficit of 15,000 tonnes against the national requirements of more than 62,000 tonnes due to poor yields, the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) report has revealed.  read more

Cisco’s Visual Networking Index projects that there will be more than 133 million network connections in South Africa by 2017.  read more

Shanghai -The maiden voyage to Europe by a Chinese merchant ship through the "Northeast Passage" will help the world's biggest exporter speed goods to market and is a symbol of Beijing's strategic ambitions in the Arctic. read more

Johannesburg - Trade conditions remained positive in July, despite volatility on a month-to-month basis, the SA Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Sacci) said on Tuesday.  read more

A total of 25 Chinese enterprises worth US$1.2 million have been set up in the Chambishi Multi Facility Economic Zone (MFEZ) in the past year, the Zambia Development Agency (ZDA) has said.  read more

Zambia’s economic outlook will remain favourable in the second half of 2013 due to continued strong domestic investments in key productive sectors. read more

A new index reveals that South Africa is ranked fourth when it comes to academics attracting money from businesses to carry out work in innovation and research. read more

Cape Town - There are indications of a degree of consolitation in the South African manufacturing sector, according to Coenraad Bezuidenhout, executive director of the Manufacturing Circle. read more

Buenos Aires - China has approved its first major shipment of genetically modified Argentine maize, Buenos Aires officials said last week, signalling an increase in competition for a market long dominated by US exporters. read more

Pretoria - Agriculture employs 5.2% of the workforce but only accounts for 2.5% of annual gross domestic product, statistician general Pali Lehohla said on Monday. read more

VENTURES AFRICA – Sugar prices continue to slide in Tongaat Hulett’s (Tongaat) regional markets, CEO Peter Staude, admitted on Wednesday, adding the global prices have been their lowest in several years. read more

Cape Town - The global wine industry is worth $230bn a year and the potential yields for the South African industry have never been as great, nor the pitfalls as plenty, according to Linda Buckley, director of executive education at UCT’s Graduate School of Business (GSB). read more

Mbombela - An international company is all set to harvest green tea leaves in Barberton to extract powerful anti-oxidants that help treat diseases such as cancer, malaria and heart disease.  read more

Johannesburg - The drop in consumer confidence might have been exaggerated, according to the latest FNB [JSE:FSR] and BER Consumer Condifence Index (CCI). read more

Despite an increase in the number of people in South Africa’s middle class, its share of the country’s income has declined, according to a new study. read more

Cairo - Egypt is in the early stages of an export boom, suggesting its economy could begin to recover in the next few months if a minimum level of political stability is restored. read more

Johannesburg - South Africa’s rand declined for a second day and bonds fell, driving yields to the highest in a month, as credit growth slowed and before data this week that may show the trade deficit this year is widening. read more