Bleak beef futures

Pass any restaurant today and everyone is ordering all variants of chicken or fish on the menu and skipping anything that contains beef. Drive past many of the popular nyama choma (roast meat) eating places and there are more staff than customers and very few vehicles parked outside. Bulls that used to fetch 20,000 shillings ($285) at weekly auctions can now be bought for as little as 5,000 shillings. And the latest marketing gimmick is that you’ll get a free ¼ kilo if you buy a kilo of meat at some butcheries.

The cause of all this is rift valley fever, a mysterious deadly disease, that has spread slowly from the remote parts of North Eastern Kenya but has now reached Nairobi and other urban areas despite several measures taken to combat it.

February 8 Pot Pourri

bounced bond: Celtel intends to retire its 4.5 million bond notes in February 2007. They were due to mature in 2009

standard goes main: The standard group moves to the main investor segment of the NSE from the alternative counter on February 13.

coast gets university: Kenyatta University will open a new campus in Mombasa

port expansion: Kenya ports authority will create 3 new container berths (terminals) by dredging port Reitz and reclaiming 100 hectares in west kipevu

Foreign investors take punches
– Even as Woodside oil packs up their equipment to return to Australia, the National oil corporation of Kenya has issued a new international tender for non- exclusive surveys offshore in Lamu

– Tiomin has stopped the Kwale sands project (citing delays and cost overruns) after the project lender had withdrawn a $15m facility.

Jobs

Regional managers (2) for East and West Africa (Ref: DN001) at African management services company (AMSCO) . Apply to recruitment@amscobv.com

Coffee development fund
credit & commercial manager, finance manager. Apply by 23/2 to the managing trustee 52714-00200 Nairobi

FSD Kenya
– Agriculture finance specialist (16/3)
– Challenger fund manager (28/2)
Apply to lydiah@fsdkenya.org

Relationship manager Mombasa at Housing Finance. Apply to human.resources@housing.co.ke

Kenya Airways
– Area manager Eastern Africa
– Head of in-flight services & standards
Apply to the Group HRD 19002 Nairobi by 16/2

Human resources manager at KPMG. Apply to esd@kpmg.co.ke by 9/3

Audit seniors at Manohar Lall & Rai . Apply to info@mlnr.net by 15/2

Public relations manager at the Nairobi stock exchange (NSE) . Apply through Deloitte at esd@deloitte.co.ke by 21/2

PKF: audit managers (PKF/AM/100) audit supervisors (PKF/AS1/101) audit seniors (PKF/AS2/102). Apply to pkfnbi@ke.pkfea.com by 23/2

Urban inflation index

Litre of fuel 74.29 shillings (+1.8%)
a year ago: 72.99

Maize meal (2 kg. unga) 50 shillings (-7.4%)
a year ago: 54

Sugar (2 kg. Mumias pack) 150 shillings (+30%)
a year ago: 115

Tusker beer: 100 shillings at local (-9%)
a year ago: 110

Safaricom promotion: Saasa – with 8 shillings per minute calls during off peak hours
a year ago: bamba 50 – low denomination airtime top up card costing 50 shillings

US Dollar exchange rate: 69.97 shillings (-2.4%)
a year ago: 71.69

CDS expands

The Government will implement a scriptless securities settlement and central depository system for private listed securities and government debt instruments through the FLSTAP program.

Bank shares in ’06

Share performance of financial institutions listed at the Nairobi Stock Exchange in 2006.

Share prices as at: Dec 05 Dec 06 Change
Barclays Bank 263 77 (385) 46%
C.F.C Bank 75 89 19%
Diamond Trust 32.25 72.5 125%
Equity (listed in August ’06) 70 139 99%
Housing Finance 13.95 48 244%
I.C.D.C Investments 72.5 325 348%
Jubilee Insurance ]83 323 289%
Kenya Commercial 113 241 113%
National Bank 28.75 58 102%
NIC Bank 51 102 100%
Pan Africa Insurance 40 91.5 129%
Standard Chartered 139 205 47%

Other share activity
– Barclays had a 5-for-1 share split and a bonus issue of 1 for 3 and still paid the highest dividend of about 14 sh. per share in 2006
– Standard Chartered paid a 7.5 sh per share dividend
– Jubilee paid 4.25 sh dividend
– KCB paid a much improved dividend of 4 sh per share
– NIC paid a 2.5 sh dividend
– Equity joined the NSE as the entire shareholding was listed in August 2006 at 70 shillings per share after earlier paying a dividend of 2 sh per share.
– ICDCI shares rocketed up into the stratosphere as the company announced a 10 for 1 share split
– Pan Africa Insurance paid a 1.2 sh dividend
– CFC paid a dividend of 0.84sh per share
– Diamond Trust paid a 0.7sh dividend
– National Bank and Housing Finance had improved earnings but no dividend.