Business

HARARE – South Africa (SA) has endorsed Tourism minister Walter Mzembi’s candidature for the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) secretary-general post. In supporting Mzembi, SA’s Tourism minister, Tokozile Xasa, said “Africa must demonstrate unity of purpose in the forthcoming UNWTO…elections”. She said the move is critical in enabling the continent to collectively address the…

HARARE – Financial services group, Zimre Holdings (Zimre), says its cost containment measures have started yielding results after the group trimmed its loss to $2,2 million from $23,1 million in the year ended December 2016. Group chairperson Ben Khumalo said the group — which has been undergoing various cost containment measures — had also adopted…

HARARE – Impoverished Zimbabwe must clear $1,8 billion of debt arrears to the World Bank (WB) and the African Development Bank (AfDB) before the banks can start lending to President Robert Mugabe’s government, economists have said. This comes after Singaporean global commodities firm, Trafigura Group, has agreed to provide Zimbabwe with $1,1billion that enables the…

HARARE – Zimbabwe’s excise duty collections have been nose-diving on the back of deteriorating economic conditions, the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) said. Zimra chairperson Willia Bonyongwe said revenue from excise duty in the first quarter amounted to $150,2 million against a target figure of $162,6 million as disposable incomes increasingly shrunk. Commonly referred to as…

HARARE – Zimbabwe has spent $45 million on road rehabilitation, disbursed through State road fund administrator Zinara, with government looking into its coffers for more, Vice President (VP) Emmerson Mnangagwa said. The VP yesterday said the money had been channelled mostly towards road upgrades, following the heavy rains that have devastated the country’s road network….

HARARE – Government has mobilised funding for command livestock, with the programme’s document set to be presented in Cabinet in two weeks’ time, Vice President (VP) Emmerson Mnangagwa said. The VP yesterday told delegates at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair business conference that the programme — similar to the on-going command agriculture — but ear-marked…

HARARE – Zimbabwe’s largest platinum producer, Zimplats, says it is in discussions with government over an impending compulsory acquisition of 28 000 hectares of its land by the State. The Alex Mhembere-led platinum mining company yesterday said while government had already made moves to grab the land and use it “for the benefit of the…

HARARE – Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa says government has assumed pharmaceutical manufacturer, CAPS Holdings (CAPS)’s, legacy debt. Despite growing calls for government to stop warehousing State enterprises’ debt, Chinamasa said Treasury was moving to honour the ailing firm’s debts through Treasury Bills (TBs), in a move aimed at making the company attractive to investors. “Government…

HARARE – The world’s largest platinum producer Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) says production at its Zimbabwean unit went up two percent to 18 900 ounces in the quarter to March 2017. Amplats owns and operates Unki Platinum Mine (Unki) near Shurugwi. In a statement accompanying its quarterly production update, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange-listed company said…

HARARE – Zimbabwean farmers have sold 52,5 million kg of the nation’s top export earner tobacco as at week four of the marketing season, 34 percent higher than the previous year’s output, official data showed. This shows the sector recovering from the damage to commercial farming associated with land seizures. Production and sales of tobacco…