Africa Briefs

Zambia drought could slash maize output

Zambia's maize production may drop around 50% in the current 2017/18 crop season if a dry spell which the nation is experiencing continues into next month, an industry body said.

Zambia National Farmers' Union (ZNFU) spokesman Calvin Kaleyi said a lot of the maize crop in key production areas had wilted and this was likely to hit the harvest.

"If this trend continues into February, we are in trouble. We may be lucky to hit 1.8-2 million tonnes of maize," Kaleyi said. – Nampa/Reuters

Nigeria: No interest rate meeting

Nigeria's central bank said yesterday a key interest rate setting meeting intended for January 22-23 will not be held due to an inability to form a quorum, adding that the benchmark rate will be maintained at 14%.

The decision comes because there are not enough members of the Central Bank of Nigeria's (CBN's) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to form a quorum. At least five of the MPC's 12 members are due to be replaced after retiring last year.

Several new members of the MPC have yet to be approved by lawmakers, according to two central bank sources. At the heart of the matter is a stand-off between the presidency and legislature over the latter's powers to confirm - or deny - executive nominees to key posts within the government.

Egypt targets flotations of SOEs

Egypt is looking to offer shares in eight to 10 state companies on the stock exchange over the next 18 months as part of a drive to attract foreign investors , finance minister Amr El-Garhy has said.

The flotations will be the first batch in a programme to float stakes in dozens of state-owned companies over the next three to five years in areas including oil, services, chemicals, shipping and real estate.

Egypt's stock market has taken off since the country floated its pound currency in November 2016, with the Egyptian blue-chip index gaining about 80% since then.

The government has said previously it plans to offer 20 percent of state-owned Banque du Caire as well as a 40 percent stake in the Arab African International Bank (AAIB), in which the central bank owns a stake. – Nampa/Reuters

Libya to reopen As-Sarah fields

Libya's National Oil Corporation (NOC) announced the reopening of the eastern As-Sarah oil fields, where more than 50 000 barrels per day (bpd) in a Wintershall concession had been shut in by a blockade since November.

Two wells started pumping on Sunday and production was expected to reach around 55 000 bpd yesterday.

The NOC had blamed Wintershall, BASF's oil and gas subsidiary, for an "unauthorised" shutdown it said had cost Libya more than US$281 million.

Last year Libya's output rose to around 1 million bpd, up from lows of around 200 000 bpd in 2016. Libya along with Nigeria has been exempted from OPEC-led production cuts. – Nampa/Reuters