Author: Khusoko

Warehousing shortage in Kenya ‘is getting sharply worse’ with almost a fifth of manufacturers having lost sales in the past five years. The Warehousing Market in Kenya 2018 from Tilisi Developments Limited, the first mover in Kenya’s emerging Grade-A logistics real estate sector, survey of 56 companies spanning manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, horticulture, logistics and retailers, found that 16 percent had sought new warehousing in 2017/2018, with a rising proportion failing to find any solution. The search levels represented a sharp jump from the previous year, when 9 percent of respondents searched for new warehousing, while 5 percent did in 2015. “The…

National carrier Kenya Airways (KQ) will now fly directly to the US, presenting new opportunities for Kenyans in travel, trade, and commerce. This is after the Kenya Airports Authority received the Last Point of Departure (LPD) clearance for Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) from the American government. PRESS RELEASE: Following the announcement between President @UKenyatta and President @realDonaldTrump, JKIA has now achieved Last Point of Departure (LPD) status. This allows JKIA to facilitate direct flights between Kenya and the US. 1/3 — Kenya Airports (@KenyaAirports) August 29, 2018 The maiden flight is set to take off on October 28, 2018.…

Kenya Airways has reported a pretax loss of Ksh 3.99 billion for the first half of 2018, from a loss of Ksh 5.77 billion during the same period last year. “Our loss before tax is down by 30 percent. We keep slowly but steadily improving,” Chief Executive Sebastian Mikosz. The improvement in their financials has been attributed to passenger numbers which increased by 6.6 percent to 2.3 million, while cargo uplift increased by 13 percent to 31,973 tonnes over the same period last year. However, in their commentary “Although reporting improved performance, fuel price volatility continues to be a major challenge…

Kenya and the United States have agreed to consult further on the  Nairobi-Mombasa Expressway project that links Nairobi and Mombasa. In a statement after President Uhuru Kenyatta met President Donald Trump on Monday committed to expanding their economic cooperation aimed at making their nations stronger and their citizens more prosperous. “Both sides agreed to undertake further consultations to conclude the terms of the financing agreement,” the White House said in a statement. The two in recognition of the importance of high-quality infrastructure welcomed the proposal by the United States engineering and construction firm Bechtel Corporation to build a modern superhighway…

Uganda-based motorbike hailing service SafeBoda has launched in Nairobi. Customers will pay a minimum fare of Sh30 per trip. For longer journeys, users will be required to pay Sh25 base fare, Sh30 per kilometre and Sh1 per minute. The bodaboda hailing service is available in Westlands, Parklands, Mbagathi Way, Madaraka, Lavington, Upper Hill, Kilimani, Kileleshwa and Riverside. “Our aim is to improve the industry for both riders and passengers by increasing the number of safe trips taken per day and by making travel around cities convenient and stress-free,” SafeBoda said in a statement. In Nairobi, SafeBoda’s mobile application aims to…

Parliament is set to reintroduce the Kenya Bankers Reference Rate (KBRR) as a base rate to calculate the cost of credit. According to new proposed amendments to the Banking Act, Parliament’s Finance and National Planning Committee: “Section 33B of the Banking Act is amended by deleting subsection (1) and substitution. Therefore the following new subsection: A bank or financial institution shall set the maximum interest rate chargeable for a credit facility in Kenya at no more than 4 percent  above the base rate set and published by Kenya Bankers Reference Rate.” Banking Circular No. 4 of 2016 sent to Chief…