ROTHMANS of Pall Mall (Zambia) recorded a pre-tax profit of 5,8-billion kwatcha for the 1999 financial year, dropping 12% on the previous year’s returns. The company’s 1999 annual report attributed the drop “to the continuing decline in the economic performance of the country as a whole, resulting in reduced consumer spending”. According to the report, 1999 was characterised by continued local economic uncertainty and difficult trading conditions.