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1. By Funny Hudzerema
HARARE – Government has
released $500 000 to facili-
tate the hosting of this year’s
Sanganai/Hlanganani World
Tourism Expo.
Earlier indications from the
Zimbabwe Tourism Authority
(ZTA) was that the tourism
expo could be postponed or
even cancelled if the body
failed to access funding.
This year’s edition of the
Sanganai/ Hlanganani World
Tourism Expo is going to be
hosted in Bulawayo from June
16 to 18, 2016.
Addressing a press conference
today, acting ZTA chief exec-
utive Mr Givemore Chidzidzi
News Update as @ 1530 hours, Friday 03 June 2016
Feedback: bh24admin@zimpapers.co.zwEmail: bh24feedback@zimpapers.co.zw
Government rescues 2016 Sanganai/Hlanganani World Tourism Expo

2. said all the resources for the
expo are now in place with a
number of institutions having
confirmed participation.
“Government has injected
$500 000 to support the San-
ganai/ Hlanganani expo for
the event to be a success after
we faced some finance chal-
lenges,” said Mr Chidzidzi.
“Since 2008, when Sanganai/
Hlanganani expo was adopted
as a national event it has been
largely funded by the Govern-
ment. Indeed at some point
the Authority was contemplat-
ing postponing the event if not
cancelling it indefinitely but
gladly our continued engage-
ment efforts with the Gov-
ernment (Ministry of Finance)
have yielded positive results,”
he said.
According to the ZTA, 163
tourism companies have
registered to participate as
exhibitors an increase from
last year’s edition where 128
companies participated and 19
international journalists from
countries such as Nigeria,
South Africa, USA, and the
United Kingdom and Spain
have registered to cover the
event.
“The exhibitors are in various
categories such as accom-
modation, tour operations,
airlines, publicity associa-
tions, NGOs and Government
institutions among others. So
far we have 28 foreign exhib-
itors from countries such as
Botswana, SA, Uganda, Kenya,
India and Indonesia,” he said.
He added that so far 128
international buyers from
countries like Europe notably
UK, Spain and Germany have
confirmed participation, while
others will come from markets
in the Americas, China, Asia &
Pacific, Africa and the Middle
East, first group of buyers is
expected to jet in on 06 June
2016.
Mr Chidzidzi added that the
showcase will allow small
travel and tour operators who
are unable to go outside and
market the country at various
travel shows, a chance to do
it from their own backyard.
He said small scale operators
in Bulawayo would be allowed
to exhibit at Sanganai/Hlan-
ganani at no cost.●
2 news
Mr Chidzidzi

3. BH243

4. BH244

5. BH24 Reporter
HARARE - Farm implements
manufacturer, Zimplow Holdings
Ltd (Zimplow)’s operating loss
for the first four months of the
year worsened to $1,68 million
from a loss of $1,24 million dur-
ing the same period last year.
Group CEO Mr Mark Hulett told
the company’s shareholders
yesterday that the depressed
performance was due to a
decline in revenues during the
period under review as most
of the firm’s strategic business
units (SBUs) recorded lower
business during the period.
“The drought has weakened
demand in the region and the
late start of the tobacco market-
ing season led to our revenues
falling by 40 percent to $4,6
million from $7,7 million which
was achieved the same period
last year.
“With a generally subdued per-
formance in volumes the group’s
operating loss for the four
months increased by 36 percent
to a loss of $1,68 million from a
loss of $1,24 million during the
same period last year,” said Mr
Hullet. In terms of the respec-
tive performances of Zimplow’s
SBUs during the period under
review, the CEO said Farmec
was affected by the delay in the
opening of the auction floors,
the drought and the fact that
the big tobacco companies are
not giving capex to growers this
year.
As a result of this volumes for
Farmec were down 40 per-
cent compared to the same
period last year. In respect
of the future prospects of the
Farmec business Mr Hullet said
a number of strategies already
in place would put the busi-
ness in good stead as the year
proceeds.
“Despite the poor performance
we have got some turnaround
strategies; firstly the renewal
of the Massey Ferguson deal-
ership for next five years as
new management in the group
reviewed that the idea is a
positive idea for the group going
forward. Secondly the more food
programme is moving positively
this is the programme between
the Government and the Brazil-
ian government,” he said.
He added that the appointment
of the new Massey Ferguson
qualified parts and service man-
ager to the Zimplow head office
is a positive move.
“The centralisation of operations
which reduce costs and increase
efficiencies in the business all of
these strategies will play a big
role in our turn around strate-
gies which we believe will bring
positive results in the second
half. The generator power
business recorded a significant
drop in volumes during the first
four months, largely due to the
fact that electricity supply has
unexpectedly stabilised to April
2016.
“Fortunately the units and parts
division has performed very
strongly above budgets and
ahead of last year’s numbers….
the unit has recorded a profit of
$100 000 as at the end of April,”
he said.
In terms of the Mealie Brand
division, Mr Hullet said animal
drawn implements continue to
record poor performance with
volumes falling 47 percent com-
pared to the same period last
year. At Barzem, earth-moving
and handling equipment volume
continue to be depressed again
due to lack of liquidity in the
country, depressed commodity
prices.
“It’s very apparent that these
two factors has influenced our
customers to choose fleet main-
tenance over fleet replacement
and as a result volumes have
declined by 60 percent com-
pared to the prior period last
year,” said the CEO.
Going forward the group is look-
ing to restructure to a “much
leaner model”, and management
is working hard to extract cash
tied up in debt and invento-
ries.●
Zimplow operating loss worsens in 4-months to April
5 news

6. BH246

7. BH247

8. By Funny Hudzerema
HARARE – First Mutual Wealth
Management - a new subsidiary
of First Mutual Holdings – says
it is targeting savings from
the informal sector and small
and medium-sized enterprises
(SMEs) by encouraging savings
from as little as $20.
First Mutual Wealth Management
general manager Mr Max Ncube
said the company was cognisant
of the fact the economy was now
largely dominated by the infor-
mal sector.
“The economy has been infor-
malised; in other words we used
to have big business now we
have smaller business and we
believe that this our big market.
“We believe that these smaller
markets have individuals who
are doing their small business
and they can save their contri-
butions as low as $20 per month
which is really meant to ensure
that even a person who sells
bananas can decide to save,”
he said. He was speaking at the
launch of the First Mutual Wealth
Management Company this
morning.
“The conditions of saving are
very flexible to an extend that
a person can access the savings
within 24 hours and through that
way it will encourage people to
save. “We are going to create
awareness through advertising,
door to door campaigns, mar-
keting to companies and we are
also targeting groupings which
include churches and burial soci-
eties where people are groupings
and this will reduce the costs
than addressing people individ-
ually,” he said. The First Mutual
Wealth Management Company
has a shareholder capital of $663
000, total asset base of $834
000 and funds under manage-
ment of $124 million.
Speaking at the same event,
Securities and Exchange Com-
mission of Zimbabwe chairper-
son Mrs Willa Bonyongwe said
there is need to create a culture
of savings in the country despite
economic hardships the country
is experiencing.
“While as a country we are
facing economic challenges
we still need to plan for the
future and promote a culture of
savings through asset manage-
ment companies. There is need
to create products which can
assist towards economic growth
through assert management
from all sectors of the economy
through creating saving plat-
forms,” she said.●
8 news
First Mutual Wealth Management targets informal sector, low income earners

9. BH249

10. BH24 Reporter
HARARE-Tobacco farmers
have so far accrued $312
million from the sale of 107,
8 million kilogrammes of
Virginia tobacco since the
tobacco selling season began
on March 30, latest Tobacco
Industry and Marketing
Board (TIMB) statistics show.
The 107, 8 million kg of
tobacco were sold both on
the auction and contract
floors.
The TIMB statistics show
that a total of 21 million kg
of tobacco worth $53 million
was sold at the auction floors
while 86, 8 million kg worth
$259,1 million was sold at
the contract floors.
The tobacco sold is 20, 79
percent more than what was
sold during the comparable
period last year.
A total of 89,3million kg
worth $258 million had been
sold during the same period
last year.
The average price of tobacco
at auction floors is currently
$2, 52 per kg while the con-
tracted crop is being bought
at an average price of $2, 98
per kg reflecting an increase
of 0, 12 percent from the
prior comparable period.
TIMB said the top price for
the contract floors is cur-
rently $6, 25 per kg while at
the auction floors it was $4,
99 per kg. The lowest price
that has been recorded so far
is $0, 10 per kg.
A total of 6,09 bales have so
far been rejected due to poor
quality and poor packaging
this season, compared to 9
percent rejected the same
period last year.
This season tobacco volumes
are expected to decline by
20 percent due to the El
Nino induced drought which
affected the crop.
Meanwhile the 2016 tobacco
marketing season is at its
peak with the number of
bales coming to the auction
floors is expected to decline
in the upcoming weeks.●
10 news
Tobacco farmers sell $312m worth of golden leaf
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11. HARARE -The mainstream
industrial index dropped
0.13 (or 0, 12 percent) on a
week-on-week basis, despite
trading unchanged today.
The industrial index stood at
yesterday’s 104.30 points.
On the upside giant insurer
Old Mutual and Meikles rose
$0, 0101 and $0, 0003 to
close at $2, 2351 and $0,
078, respectively.
But beverages giant Delta,
telecoms giant Econet, Simb-
isa, PPC, Hippo, Dairibord
and starafrica corporation
all traded unchanged at $0,
7000, $0, 2300, $0, 1400,
$0, 6500, $0, 2000, $0, 0550
and $0, 0085 respectively.
Willdale was the only faller,
down $0, 0003 to close at
$0, 0015.
The mining index gained 0.23
to 25.77 in today’s trades
as RioZim rose $0, 0030 to
close at $0, 1640.
Bindura, Falgold and Hwange
maintained previous price
levels at $0, 0120, $0, 0050
and $0, 0300 respectively.
On a week-on-week basis,
the mining index gained
0.23. (or 0,90 percent).
. BH24 Reporter ●
Industrials unchanged
11 zse

12. Movers CHANGE Today Price USc SHAKERS Change TODAY Price USc
RioZim 1.86 16.40 Willdale -0.03 0.15
Old Mutual 0.45 223.51
Meikles 0.38 7.80
Index Previous Today Move Change
Industrial 104.30 104.30 +0.00 points +0.00%
Mining 25.54 25.77 +0.23 points +0.90%
12 zse tables
ZSE
Indices
Stock Exchange
Previous
today

13. 13 DIARY OF EVENTS
The black arrow indicate level of load shedding across the country.
POWER GENERATION STATS
Gen Station
02 June 2016
Energy
(Megawatts)
Hwange 302 MW
Kariba 285 MW
Harare 0 MW
Munyati 30 MW
Bulawayo 23 MW
Imports 0 - 400 MW
Total 1205 MW
9 JUNE -- First Mutual Holdings Annual General Meeting; Place: Royal Harare Golf Club, Harare; Time: 14:30hrs
15 JUNE 2016 -- Rainbow Tourism Group 7th Annual General Meeting; Time: Jacaranda Rooms 2 and 3 at the Rainbow Tour-
ism Hotel and Conference Centre, 1 Pennefather Avenue, Samora Machel Avenue West, Harare; Time: 1200 hours...
16 JUNE 2016 -- RioZim 60th Annual General Meeting; Place: No. 1 Kenilworth Road, Highlands, Harare; Time: 10.30 hours...
22 JUNE 2016 -- Zimre Holdings Limited 18th Annual General Meeting; Place: NICOZDIAMOND Auditorium, 7th Floor Insur-
ance Centre, 30 Samora Machel Avenue, Harare; Time: 1430 hours...
22 JUNE 2016 -- GB Holdings Limited Annual General Meeting; Place: Cernol Chemicals Boardroom, 111 Dagenham Road, Wil-
lowvale, Harare; Time: 11.30 hours...
23 JUNE 2016 -- Zimpapers 89th Annual General Meeting; Place: Zimpapers Ltd Boardroom, Sixth Floor Herald House, Cnr. G.
Silundika/Sam Nujoma Street, Harare; Time: 1200hrs…
THE BH24 DIARY

14. JOHANNESBURG - Illovo
Sugar reported a 36,5 per-
cent drop in full-year profit
on Friday as lower export
prices of the sweetener and
a severe drought in south-
ern Africa weighed on its
performance.
Headline earnings per
share (EPS) for the year to
March fell to 113,6 cents
in the year to the end of
March, from 179 cents a
year earlier.
Headline EPS is the main
profit measure in South
Africa and strips out cer-
tain one-off items.
"Direct and indirect
drought impacts across
all six countries of oper-
ation, currency volatility
and high interest rates in
various jurisdictions, and
reducing domestic sales
demand in Malawi, as well
as on-going pressure on
sugar export revenues,
combined to weigh heavily
on the group's results," the
company said.
Illovo, which operates in
South Africa, Mozambique,
Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia
and Swaziland, said the
profit drop was within guid-
ance. – Reuters●
14
Rand steady, but rating review poses
risk
Illovo Sugar FY profit drops 36,5 pct as
drought hits earnings
regioNAL News
JOHANNESBURG - South
Africa's rand was flat
against the dollar in early
Friday trade, with dealers
and analysts expecting
caution to prevail ahead of
a rating review by Standard
& Poor's which could result
in a sub-investment rating
if unfavourable.
The JSE securities
exchange's Top-40 futures
index was up 0,42 percent,
suggesting the local bourse
would open a touch firmer
at 0700 GMT.
The rand traded at 15,5750
versus the dollar by 0646
GMT, unchanged from
Thursday's New York close.
Government bonds, how-
ever, edged slightly higher,
and the yield on debt
maturing in 2026 fell 3
basis points to 9,29 per-
cent.
Investors were bracing for a
verdict from S&P, which has
expressed concern about its
dismal growth outlook and
heavy reliance on capital
flows.
The review is expected after
South Africa's bond and
stock markets are closed
for the day, although the
rand will still be trading on
the global arena.
"Risk is for an adverse
reaction in the currency
market in a very illiquid
time of day/week," Stand-
ard Bank trader Oliver
Alwar said in a note to
clients.
"I would advise caution
today. There may be oppor-
tunities, but be aware of
the large risk."
Investors also awaited US
jobs data later on Friday
which could add pressure
on high yielding but riskier
emerging market assets if it
backs the case for interest
rates to rise in the world's
biggest economy.
- Reuters●

15. Brent crude held its gains
near $50 a barrel as inves-
tors shrugged off OPEC’s
decision to stick to its policy
of unfettered output amid
signs the global market is
re-balancing.
Futures were little changed
in London after closing above
$50 for the first time in
almost seven months. While
members of the Organisa-
tion of Petroleum Exporting
Countries rejected a proposal
to adopt a new production
ceiling, ministers were united
in their optimistic outlook for
markets. US output declined
for a 12th week and crude
stockpiles dropped, according
to a report from the Energy
Information Administration.
Brent has surged almost 80
percent from a 12-year low
in January amid disruptions
from Nigeria to Venezuela
and as US output declines
under price pressure from
OPEC’s policy of sustain-
ing production. The group
needs more time to come up
with a new output ceiling,
outgoing Secretary-General
Abdalla El-Badri said after
the meeting in Vienna, add-
ing that it’s hard to find a
target when Iranian supply is
rising and significant Libyan
volumes are halted.
“The consensus in the market
is that we will see balance
sometime before the end of
2016,” Michael McCarthy,
a chief strategist at CMC
Markets in Sydney, said by
phone. “Although no agree-
ment was reached by OPEC,
they’re edging toward being
able to have a civil discus-
sion again. The ongoing evi-
dence that demand is picking
up in the US and that there
is a supply side response, is
keeping the market sup-
ported.”
Output Ceiling
Brent for August settle-
ment was at $50,11 a barrel
on the London-based ICE
Futures Europe exchange, up
7 cents, at 8:13 a.m. in Lon-
don. Prices closed Thursday
above $50 for the first time
since Nov. 3. The contract
is up 1,6 percent for the
week, heading for a fourth
weekly advance. The global
benchmark crude traded at a
premium of 42 cents to West
Texas Intermediate.
WTI for July delivery was at
$49,21 a barrel on the New
York Mercantile Exchange, up
4 cents. The contract rose 16
cents to close at $49,17 on
Thursday, the first increase
in five sessions. Total volume
traded was about 45 percent
below the 100-day average.
Before the meeting, Saudi
Arabia had floated the idea
of restoring a group pro-
duction ceiling as a gesture
to show it had no plans to
flood the market and it was
serious about making the
gathering a success. Iran has
rejected any cap on output
as it restores volumes follow-
ing the removal of sanctions
in January.
“This re-balancing is already
under way,” John Driscoll,
chief strategist at JTD Energy
Services Pte in Singapore,
said in a Bloomberg Tele-
vision interview. “We are
entering the peak summer
demand season. There are
some supports for this $50
level at the present time.”
OPEC and oil-market news:
• OPEC appoints Nigeria’s
Mohammed Barkindo new
secretary-general.
• Prices will keep recovering
and the market is in good
shape, Saudi Arabia’s Oil
Minister Khalid Al-Falih said
in Vienna.
• US crude stockpiles
dropped by 1,37 million bar-
rels last week, the EIA said
Thursday.
– Bloomberg●
15
Oil shrugs off OPEC decision to skip curb as US output shrinks
internatioNAL News

16. By Ceri Jones
For most of this decade, Africa
has displayed similar charac-
teristics to China and India in
the run-up to their boom years
with several countries achieving
multi-year spurts of growth of
in excess of 7 percent. Many
countries possess abundant
natural resources and have
young and rapidly urbanising
populations with rising purchas-
ing power. African countries,
in the main, are also more
politically stable than in living
memory and there have been
sustained improvements in cor-
porate governance.
For the most part, however, the
high expectations for the conti-
nent’s growth have so far failed
to materialise. From a relatively
low aggregate level of eco-
nomic development (from which
rapid growth is achievable) the
average growth rate of African
countries was 4,4 percent over
the past 10 years, according to
African Economic Outlook.
For the most part, however,
high expectations for the con-
tinent’s growth have failed to
materialise. Growth in Africa is
at its slowest for sixteen years,
and the IMF recently cut its
growth forecasts by more than
any other country bar Brazil.
For sub-Saharan Africa it fore-
casts growth of 4 percent and
4,7 percent for 2016 and 2017
respectively, and for South
Africa 0,7 percent and 1,8 per-
cent. This primarily reflects the
adjustment to lower commodity
prices and higher borrowing
costs, which are weighing heav-
ily on small and large nations
alike.
Nonetheless, Africa remains
one of the preferred frontier
markets for investment oppor-
tunities – at least according a
PwC report, The Africa Business
Agenda, based on the insights
of 153 CEOs and public sector
leaders across the continent.
The 2016 report, published in
May, reveals the huge efforts
African businesses are putting
into ramping up their strategies
to stimulate growth in a difficult
global environment.
Regulatory support
Governments have also been
looking at ways of generating
alternative revenues to com-
pensate for drops in crude oil
and other commodity prices.
Prominent among these are
initiatives to promote best prac-
tice in asset management and
financial product distribution
which, especially in the context
of flat global investment mar-
kets, are designed to encourage
foreign inflows.
For example, South Africa’s
Financial Services Board (FSB)
has extended the Collective
Investment Scheme Control
Act (2002) to hedge funds. The
legislation beefs up compliance
and safeguards for hedge funds
such as requiring a trustee on
either side of a transaction and
for every hedge fund to be reg-
istered with an objective, simi-
lar to the Key Investor Infor-
mation requirements for UCITS
16 analysis16 analysis
Africa's untapped potential

17. 17 analysis17 analysis
funds. The move is expected to
encourage pension funds and
others to invest.
Applicants were initially slow
to apply, but in April the FSB
announced that 188 hedge
fund portfolios had received
collective investment scheme
approval and a further 31
portfolios had obtained provi-
sional approval. Additionally, a
number of unit trust funds are
expected to register so they
can operate as so-called hedge
funds lite.
There is also pressure on fees.
Regulators are driving down
charges on retail financial
products. Likewise, wealth
managers and pension funds
are looking at collective invest-
ment structures as platforms to
deliver lower fee levels.
The continent’s $1trn pension
fund market has been par-
ticularly criticised for its high
charges, complex policy condi-
tions and exit penalties. In July
2015 South Africa’s National
Treasury responded by issuing
draft regulations encouraging
boards of trustees to consider
low-cost passive funds as the
default choice.
This has given rise to renewed
interest in ETFs in South Africa,
according to Duncan Smith,
senior sales and relationship
manager, emerging markets at
Societe Generale. He says the
firm’s Johannesburg branch, as
a trustee for various ETF man-
agement companies, has seen
some providers using broad-
based indices while others are
manufacturing their own, often
adopting a socially responsible
investment (SRI) overlay.
Market initiatives
Stock markets across the
region, of course, vary enor-
mously. The $100bn South
African stock market dwarfs its
neighbours, while second-tier
markets such as Egypt, Nigeria
and Morocco fall in the $30-
100bn range, while third-tier
ones such as Uganda, Kenya,
Botswana and Zambia, at
$1-6bn, have scarcely begun to
be exploited.
The larger markets are leading
the way in making themselves
more attractive to international
investors. The Johannesburg
Stock Exchange is migrating
to T+3 mid-year, and is also
reshaping the bond platform of
its CSD, Strate.
A collaboration between the
London and Nigerian markets
should boost liquidity and
turnover. Africa’s most popu-
lous country also implemented
securities lending regulation, in
January, and launched its first
sovereign sukuk.
Countries such as Ghana, the
Ivory Coast and Morocco are
also trialling securities lending
with local investors, ahead of
opening up the practice for
foreign participants.
Specialist Africa asset manag-
ers that would not typically be
considered retail are looking
at setting up UCITS vehicles
in Luxembourg and Dublin to
attract international money, but
many firms are watching and
waiting before committing to
UCITS platforms as this is not a
cheap exercise, says one local
banker who preferred to remain
anonymous.
As confidence grows, though,
foreign investors are pushing
deeper for opportunities. "Local
regulation in Africa is evolving
and encouraging pension funds
and institutions to look beyond
the usual oil, gas and bank
stocks, and is opening up mid-
cap stocks such as consumer
staples as well as less con-
ventional finance and resource
stocks," says Steven Shultz,
head, investments and savings
marketing at Momentum.
Favoured assets
Several firms are also launching
niche funds in private equity,
property, IT, and renewables as
well as infrastructure, where
there is typically a particu-
lar focus on power, energy or
transport.
Agriculture is a particularly
hot sector. Half of the world's
uncultivated land suitable for

18. 18 analysis18 analysis
growing food crops is in Africa
but the continent generates
only 10% of global agricultural
output – but with annual pop-
ulation growth of 2,7 percent
food demand is expected to
double every 30 years. Aurorae,
an agri-focused fund backed
by Axa Ventures, announced a
$10m fund in the first quarter.
Fixed income has also seen a
massive uptick, partly because
raw returns are attractive com-
pared with other markets but
also because they are not par-
ticularly correlated with other
sources of bond returns.
"African fixed income markets
are certainly not perfectly cor-
related with those in developed
markets," says Mr Shultz. "In
terms of returns, there is a
massive variance with South
African government-issued
bonds yielding around 9.3%
on local currency denomi-
nated ten-year bonds, against
an inflation backdrop of 6,2
percent.
In the case of US dollar-denom-
inated debt, annualised returns
of around 4,9 percent are
achievable over a similar ten-
year term. Investor motivation
varies but is primarily a combi-
nation of attractive returns and
diversification at a time when
broad asset classes are increas-
ingly correlated."
As the continent’s investment
markets mature, western insti-
tutions are increasingly invest-
ing in the region’s financial
services firms. In January, for
example, Prudential Financial
expanded its footprint in Africa
with a $350m partnership with
LeapFrog Investments, target-
ing life insurance companies in
larger economies on the conti-
nent, including Ghana, Kenya
and Nigeria.
Credit downgrade
Short term, the biggest blot on
the landscape is the potential
downgrade of South African
debt, possibly as early as June,
and its impact on South Afri-
ca’s inclusion in bond indexes
around the world. The top 40
stocks in Johannesburg are also
traded in the UK so a down-
grade might encourage inves-
tors to trade offshore rather
than onshore.
"It is particularly dangerous as
many global institutions and
hedge funds have mandates
stipulating investment grade
holdings, and it is just at the
time we should be ramping
up investment," adds Shultz.
"The ratings agencies have
been exceptionally patient and
level-headed, but they are now
looking for plans to be imple-
mented.
If plans such as fiscal consoli-
dation and proactive measures
to encourage economic growth
are successfully implemented,
it may allow us to escape the
downside, however any slipping
could be perceived negatively
and would certainly contribute
to a downgrading of South Afri-
ca’s credit rating."
Certainly, foreign investment
flows have not proven sticky
to date – as Thomson Reuters
data (see graph) shows.
"Private wealth funds investing
in Africa tend to be tacti-
cal and will typically be an
all-benchmark bet, very often
as a satellite to a core port-
folio, and this makes these
allocations inherently volatile,"
says Peter Preisler, director of
investment services, head of
Europe, Middle East & Africa at
T. Rowe Price. "But there is no
doubt that government and big
pension funds want to diver-
sify. Some of the newly created
sovereign funds from nations
such as Rwanda and Ghana will
almost be development funds
to support infrastructure build,
which is attractive."
The flipside is that "local
institutional investors such as
pension funds are looking to
invest a portion of their portfo-
lios out of the country and this
shift will help to stabilise the
market," adds Preisler. "Apart
from improving diversification,
in recent months investing
outside the country has also
been highly beneficial in terms
of currency movements."
– GlobalInvestor●