Author: Khusoko

The African Continental Free Trade Area, AfCFTA, an agreement that removes trade tariffs in the African continent became operational on Sunday. 54 member states have agreed on the process to implement the accord. https://twitter.com/_AfricanUnion/status/1147815925787373568 The AfCFTA will be governed by five operational instruments: the Rules of Origin; the online negotiating forum; the monitoring and elimination of non-tariff barriers; a digital payments system and the African Trade Observatory. “The eyes of the world are turned to Africa,” Egyptian President and AU chairman Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi said at the opening ceremony of the 35th Ordinary Session of the Executive Council. “AfCFTA will reinforce…

Kenya wants to become East Africa’s manufacturing hub for the small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by fostering their growth through access to finance, markets and capacity development. This will be achieved from the Manufacturing SME Hub launched by the Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM). The Hub seeks to address the challenges affecting SMEs in the country including unfriendly policies and regulatory regime, tedious and lengthy process in quality standards and certifications, access to markets, access to affordable finance and poor governance structures. “The Government is keen on growing SMEs as demonstrated by the Government’s directive for relevant ministries to devise…

South African-owned eatery, Big Square has opened its 13th branch at Shell Service Station in Mountain View along Waiyaki Way. “The new restaurant outlet will provide both motorists and shoppers the opportunity to experience their array of delicious and authentic home-made meals in a relaxed environment in the Mountain View area,” said Big Square in a statement. “An increasingly globalised environment and Kenya’s growing population and economy is fuelling demand for new retail formats that meet consumers preferences and aspirations,”Sebastian McKinlay, the firm’s Managing Director said during the launch of the KSh 45 million outlet. The fast-food eatery prides itself…

Two derivative contracts- East African Breweries and Safaricom- were traded at the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) derivatives market on Thursday. “We wish to notify market participants, investors and the public that the NSE NEXT derivatives market has successfully conducted its first futures trades. The initial trades were executed by Standard Investment Bank and Kingdom Securities who cleared through the Co-operative Bank of Kenya,” said the NSE in a statement. The two contracts are worth KSh48,000 and will expire in September 2019. The Safaricom PLC and EABL contracts delivery will be on 19th Sep 2019, strike price 28.90 Value of Ksh28,900…

Increased demand for new orders in the domestic and foreign markets drove up Kenya’s private sector growth to a 10-month high of 54.3 in June compared to 51.3 in May. The monthly Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) by Stanbic Bank further attributed the growth to an easing of cash flow over the past few months, with the private sector lending rising to 3.2%. source: tradingeconomics.com Readings above 50.0 signal an improvement in business conditions on the previous month, while readings below 50.0 show a deterioration. “Alongside the sharp increase in new orders, firms stated that new government spending plans should help…

Coca-Cola has introduced new Coke flavors to the Kenyan market to offer customers more choice and convenience. This is in line with the company’s growth strategy and operating model to adapt to changing consumer tastes and buying habits. “With innovation at the core of our new business strategy, we will be able to create more opportunities for use of local ingredients and other inputs. We will also create more jobs for farmers, youth and women. We’re listening carefully and working to ensure that consumers are firmly at the centre of our business so we can continue to grow responsibly,” said…