It was inevitable

Kenya has been ordered to play a World-Cup qualifier soccer match against Tunisia behind closed doors in September after a fan was killed during crowd trouble at their match against Morocco last month. This will give organizers a chance to reflect on what went wrong in June with tickets (which ran out, and new ones were re-printed and sold even after the stadium was full, uninvited guests both unofficial (the crowd who bum-rushed the stadium, and destroyed one gate as they forced their way in) & official (what was the mayor’s car and about 20 taxis and vehicles doing inside the stadium besides enabling the dignitaries they brought to bypass bothersome ticket and security checks?)among other issues. No fans will be allowed in, but you can be sure that there will a significant number of officials and observers in the stadium to monitor the match.

Around again at Telkom

From Balancing Act Africa: What the Government will get from a Safaricom sale will not be enough to fund a restructuring at Telkom.

Scholarships available

The Africa America Institute has announced scholarships for up to $10,000 for students in Africa.

Deadline for application is July 31. For more details see: http://www.aaionline.org/webzine/news.asp

Banks named

From Haliburton through Kenya: Africa Confidential claims that illegal payments for Nigeria’ $10 billion gas export plant, built by Halliburton, Technip, Snamprogetti and the Japanese Gas Corporation appear to have been channeled through Kenya’s Transnational Bank and on to major international financial institutions, such as Bankers Trust, Citicorp and Deutsche Bank, who have all been asked to help the investigators with their enquiries.

NSE for Beginners

Prices are as at end of June 2005.

Agricultural
Unilever Tea (115.00)
Pro: tea is hot sector
Con: expensive share

Kakuzi (61.50)
Pro
Con

Rea Vipingo (21.25)
Pro:Largest producer of African sisal (Thanks to Kuoasan for correction)
Con: Focus mainly on sisal and yet textiles is a difficult sector.

Sasini (34.25)
Pro: tea is hot sector
Con: Trade dispute with Pakistan – main Tea destination

Commerc.and Allied
Car & General (30.00)
Pro
Con

CMC(50.00)
Pro: stong fleet sales, expanding into Sudan & Tanzania
Con: strong competition from vehicle importers

Hutchings Biemer (20.25)
Pro:
Con: Inactive share

Kenya Airways (63.50)
Pro: Solid management, dominant in parts of Africa
Con: airline sector unpredictable, with rising oil prices

Marshalls (26.50)
Pro: Strong government sales
Con: Peugeot eclipsed by cheaper Toyota & other Japanese brands
Nation Media Group (199.00)
Pro: leading regional media house
Con: Expensive stock

Tourism Promotion Services (Serena)(86.50)
Pro: Soon to merge with Serena Tanzania & Zanzibar
Con: very competitive sector

Uchumi Supermarkets (19.95)
Pro: restucuring under a strong management team
Con: cash flow and creditor problems still unresolved

Finance & Invest
Barclays Bank(251.00)
Pro: Kenya’s leading & most profitable bank
Con: high share price

CFC Bank (66.50)
Pro: Large insurance business
Con: few branches

Diamond Trust (28.50)
Pro: Affordable share for a clean Bank
Con: few branches

Housing Finance Company of Kenya(12.65)
Pro: Restructuring/merger talks ongoing
Con: Not fully provided for bad debts

ICDC (67.00)
Pro: diversified portfolio
Con: not much share movement

Jubilee (69.50)
Pro: potential as Kenya is an under-insured country
Con: difficult selling insurance in Kenya

K.C.B(70.00)
Pro: largest branch network in Kenya
Con: still separating the good book from the bad

National Bank (20.75)
Pro: Speculation on a restructuring deal
Con No dividend likely for many more years

National Industrial Credit (NIC)(54.50)
Pro: MOVE network has greatly increase customers, and loans
Con: MOVE costly

Pan Africa Insurance Holdings Ltd (32.50)
Pro: potential as Kenya is an under-insured country
Con: Not much share activity

Standard Chartered Bank (130.00)
Pro: pays high dividend, costs half as much as Barclays
Con Still a pricey share

Indust. & Allied
Athi River Mining Ltd (25.75)
Pro: Cement is a hot & they have expanded to fertilizer (another hot sector)
Con have only 10% share of cement market

BOC (K) (142.00)
Pro
Con: expensive share

Bamburi (122.00)
Pro Cement is hot sector because of increased building activity
Con: expensive share

British American Tobacco (224.00)
Pro: leading producer and market share growing despite legislative threats
Con: expensive share

Carbacid (124.00)
Pro
Con: Expensive share

Crown Berger(29.75)
Pro
Con

Olympia Capital Holdings (23.50)
Pro: large rubber operation
Con: had a tough year

E.A.Cables (145.00)
Pro: solid management and dividend payout
Con: Expensive share

E.A.Portland (105.00)
Pro Cement is hot sector because of increased building activity
Con: A strong Yen will eat into profits

E.A.Breweries (149.00)
Pro: we are a drinking nation
Con: rural beer sales dropping owing to illicit, cheap alternatives

Sameer Africa (18.00)
Pro: Now free to sell/distribute all tyres in Africa
Con: No longer Bridgestone exclusive, and shares will be offloaded later

Kenol (115.00)
Pro: very active shares, price passed 600/= before split in 2004
Con: relatively low dividend

Mumias (26.50)
Pro: Most efficient Kenyan sugar company, and can export to EU
Con: Sugar is produced more cheaply in neighboring COMESA countries

K.Power & Lighting (110.00)
Pro: High tariffs lead to high profits
Con: A strong Euro will eat into profits, and drought will affect production

Total (44.75)
Pro: Higher earnings & dividends per share than KENOL
Con: Shares not as active as KENOL

Unga (19.55)
Pro
Con: no significant share activity

ALTERNATIVE INVESTMENT MARKET SEGMENT (AIMS)
A.Baumann (10.70)
Pro
Con

City Trust (57.00)
Pro
Con

Eaagads (17.00)
Pro
Con: no significant share activity

Express (15.80)
Pro: Huge currency transport contract with Central Bank
Con: Recent losses make dividend unlikely soon

Williamson Tea (144.00)
Pro: Tea is hot
Con: Expensive share

Kapchorua (185.00)
Pro tea is hot sector
Con: Expensive share

K.Orchads (4.55)
Pro
Con

Limuru Tea (365.00)
Pro tea is hot sector
Con: Very expensive share

Standard Group Ltd (40.50)
Pro: rumored to be for sale
Con: High operational costs in bid to catch Nation media group