FRIDAY, 1.30PM
ZIMBABWE’S industrial index registered a record one-day loss of 254 points on Thursday under selling pressure from small investors.
Analysts said the pressure stemmed mainly from fears that treasury bill interest rates, which have been rising since the beginning of the week, could rise further than the 22.41% at Thursday’s daily auction session.
TB interest rates have recently been reversing the trend of the past few months which saw the rates dropping as far as 15.5% following the introduction of a new auction system which made discount houses the primary dealers in TBs. The index ended the day pegged at 10,343.51 points.
Minings, meanwhile, were unchanged, with gold counters benefiting from the higher bullion price of Z$3 769,15 Zimdollars (US$342,65), up from Z$3 743,30 Zimdollars (US$340,30) on Wednesday. The index dropped 9 points to close at 997.07 points. — Pana-Misa
BUSINESS BRIEFS
SECOND GAMING LICENCE MPUMALANGA yesterday issued its second gambling licence, to Tsogo Sun for a casino complex in Witbank. The issue is conditional on Tsogo obtaining appropriate rezoning of the proposed site. Tsogo said yesterday it is appealing a court judgment obtained against it by competitor Karos Hotels forcing the provision of additional information.
GOLD OUTPUT UP SOUTH African gold production increased 4,4% to 43 766,8kg in March from 41 919,8kg in March last year, according to the Chamber of Mines. Production for the quarter ending March 31 totalled 121 081,2kg, 2,4% down on 124 962,9kg produced in the first quarter of last year. March 1997 production was 12% up on February 1997’s total output of 38 926,8kg.