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1. BH24 Reporter
HARARE – Zimbabwe’s larg-
est gold producer Metallon
Corporation saw output for
the first quarter slipping 15
percent to 20 673 ounces as
a result of electricity supply
interruptions and equipment
breakdowns.
The disruptions were experi-
enced at Metallon’s strategic
How Mine.
In its Q1 2016 production
and corporate update the
group said it lost around 4
275 ounces to the electricity
interruptions.
How Mine’s gold output for
the quarter reached 9 540
ounces down from 13 680
ounces in the prior compara-
ble period.
In addition to the power out-
ages, the mine was affected
by failures at its primary mill
and north shaft hoist in Janu-
ary and February.
However, the group’s
Shamva, Mazowe, Arcturus
and Redwing mines all
recorded higher output com-
paratively.
News Update as @ 1530 hours, Thursday 05 May 2016
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Metallon Q1 output falls on power outages, equipment breakdowns

2. The group’s C1 costs (cash or
production) and C3 costs for
the period under review ere
$884 and $1 081 per ounce
respectively.
“Costs were higher than
expected due to production
shortfalls and increased
expenditure. As production
and cost efficiencies improve
throughout the year with new
equipment and increased
capacity, Metallon expects
these costs to reduce fur-
ther,” said the group.
Commenting on the Q1
performance Metallon CEO
Mr Ken Mekani said despite
the challenges experienced
during the first quarter,
going forward the group will
continue with investments in
operations and capacity this
year, which will put the gold
producer in good stead for
the next five years.
“There have been some chal-
lenges in production during
the first quarter due to equip-
ment breakdowns at How and
Shamva Mines and significant
power interruptions. This
year we will be investing in
our assets by refurbishing
and upgrading operations and
expanding capacity which will
deliver economies of scale
and significantly lower costs.
“This investment and the
exploration taking place will
put Metallon on course to
increased production over the
next five years. Metallon is
committed to mining in Zim-
babwe and we are especially
pleased with the tremen-
dous progress at Redwing
Mine since the resumption of
operations in November 2015.
All mining operations made
a profit in March 2016 and
Metallon now looks towards
the future with a production
target of 120 000 ounces in
2016.”
The group is targeting gold
output of circa 120 000
ounces by year-end.
Meanwhile Metallon says
exploration at has com-
menced at Mazowe Mine and
will continue over the next
six months.
And that construction on the
new Mazowe Processing Plant
and the new tailing facilities
at both Mazowe and Shamva
Mine are progressing well,
with target commissioning
expected in the third quarter
of this year.
It is anticipated that the new
Mazowe Processing Plant will
increase capacity at the mine
to 70 000 tonnes per month,
therefore the mine will be
producing approximately 22
000 ounces per annum.
Updating on the performance
of the Redwing Mine, the
group said the mine continues
to increase production since
the resumption of operations
in November 2015, and in
March its gold output reached
over 1 000 ounces.
Metallon has producing assets
in Zimbabwe and exploration
assets in Zimbabwe, Tanzania
and the Democratic Republic
of Congo.
.●
2 news

3. BH243

4. BH244

5. By Tawanda Musarurwa
HARARE-The International
Monetary Fund’s executive
board has commended the
Government for its efforts in
restoring confidence in the
banking sector, especially the
move to reduce non-perform-
ing loans.
The establishment of special
purpose vehicle – Zimbabwe
Asset Management Company
(ZAMCO) – last year has had a
significant impact on reducing
systemic NPLs and inject-
ing liquidity into the banking
sector.
And at the close of 2015, the
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe
(RBZ) reported that ZAMCO
had acquired and restructured
non-performing loans total-
ing $357 million from several
banking institutions.
ZAMCO has acquired and
restructured loans for dis-
tressed companies that have
good turn around prospects
in key sectors of the economy
such as agro-processing, min-
ing and manufacturing.
The board, which recently
concluded a review of the
2016 Article IV Consultation
with Zimbabwe and the third
review under the Staff Moni-
tored Program (SMP) said in a
statement:
“Directors welcomed progress
in enhancing the resilience of
the financial system and reduc-
ing non-performing loans.
“They encouraged the author-
ities to continue to strengthen
bank supervision and risk man-
agement, facilitate financial
deepening, and promote finan-
cial inclusion,” said the IMF.
The intervention of the facility
has helped in reducing the
country’s NPL ratio which had
reached a topmost of 20, 45
percent in June 2014 to 10, 87
percent by the end of last year.
Notwithstanding that has been
progress, Zimbabwe’s NPL ratio
is still above the World Bank’s
benchmark of 5 percent and
still higher than some of the
country’s peers on the conti-
nent.
For instance, according to
World Bank statistics, by the
end of 2015 Kenya, Nigeria,
Mauritius, South Africa, the
Democratic Republic of Congo
and Namibia all had NPL ratios
below 6 percent.
However, the RBZ has fore-
casted the NPL ratio to be at
10 percent by mid-year, and to
have reached the World Bank
benchmark of 5 percent by the
close of this year.
The local financial services
sector has shown significant
improvement in stability and
operational improvement over
the past year.
RBZ statistics show that as
at December 31, 2015, the
aggregate core capital for the
banking sector stood at $982,
5 million from $811, 2 million
in the prior year.
And last year the sector
reported an aggregate net
profit of $127, 5 million, with
15 of the 18 operating banks
recording profits.●
5 news
IMF executive board backs Zim financial sector reforms

6. BH246

7. BH247

8. BH24 Reporter
HARARE -Mobile telecoms
giant Econet Wireless Zimba-
bwe has launched a new con-
sumer promotions that will
give customers 700 percent
free bonus airtime daily.
The promotion – 7X – is open
to all Econet subscribers and
allows them to get custom-
ised daily usage target and
will get back seven times the
talk time in the form of free
minutes, SMSs and mobile
internet upon achieving the
daily target.
Explained Econet general
manager products and ser-
vices Ms Mellany Mariri:
“Your daily target is individ-
ual and unique to you, for
instance, if your daily target
is 50c, you will be allocated
a fixed bonus of data, voice
and SMS worth $3, 50. And
you will earn a bonus allo-
cation by calling or texting
another Econet customer as
well as browsing the inter-
net,” she said.
To confirm their 7X daily
target, our customers simply
need to dial *143#.
Econet CEO Mr Douglas
Mboweni said the idea of
the promotion was to create
more value for its customers.
“In developing the promo-
tion, we were driven by the
need to give our valued cus-
tomers more value for their
money. Today we are giving
them an opportunity to talk
more, SMS more and surf the
internet more,” he said.
“Realising that our valued
clients’ average daily spend-
ing trends are not equal, all
offers are personalised. Cus-
tomers can reach daily usage
target by using Econet line
by either calling or texting
any other Econet customer
as well as browsing the
internet.
“On reaching the 7X bonus
target at any point during
the day, customers will get
notification that they have
reached their target and
have been allocated 700
percent bonus. Customer can
use the 700 percent air-
time bonus to browse, SMS
and make calls to any other
Econet customers.”
The promotion will run for
three months.●
Econet Launches 7XBonus
8 news
Mr Douglas Mboweni

9. BH249

10. BH2410

11. HARARE-Global integrated
midstream and downstream
oil company, Puma Energy
recorded a 22 percent
increase in sales volume,
reaching a new quarterly
record level of 5 230 million
square meters compared to
4 270 million square meters
recorded at the same period
last year.
Puma entered the Zimba-
bwean market in November
2013 after acquiring 60 per-
cent of the ordinary shares
in Redan Petroleum, gaining
62 service stations across
the country in the process.
Apart from Zimbabwe,
Puma is present in 15 other
African countries which
include Angola, Benin, Bot-
swana, Democratic Repub-
lic of Congo, Ghana, Ivory
Coast, Malawi, Mozambique,
Namibia, Nigeria, Senegal,
Tanzania, South Africa and
Zambia.
In the period under review,
the group’s cash flow from
operating activities rose
26 percent to $203 million
owing to maintained working
capital discipline.
Strategic investment in
major construction works
in Africa and Asia Pacific
improved by 29 percent from
$145 million to $186 million.
In a statement, Puma Energy
chief financial officer Denis
Chazarain said the company
had started the year with
a very strong first quarter,
reflecting continuous growth
in sales volumes and earn-
ings before interest, taxes,
depreciation and amortiza-
tion (EBITDA) despite obvi-
ous challenges in the wider
market.
“This success comes down to
solid operating performance
and good working capital
discipline, which together,
maintain a resilient business
model that delivers solid,
consistent results,” said.
Chazarain added that the
group had now reached a full
global scale with the inte-
grated business model and
looked forward to further
growth throughout 2016.
“I am particularly pleased as
this discipline was main-
tained through significant
growth of our portfolio. We
opened two new airports,
expanded our service sta-
tion network in Ghana, and
increased storage capacities
in Asia Pacific – all while
maintaining a healthy cash
flow.”
The Group’s total storage
capacity has grown to 7.8
million square metres.
Gross margin and EBITDA
recorded an upsurge of 23
and 37 percent respectively,
the highest levels in the his-
tory of the group
.-New Ziana●
11 news
Puma sales volume up 22 percent.

12. HARARE -The mainstream
industrial index’s extended
rally continued as it added
0.32 to close at 106.54.
Heavyweight Delta Bever-
ages drove the gains with
a $0,0114 gain to close at
$0,7225, while conglomerate
Innscor, NMBZ, OK Zim and
PPC all traded unchanged at
$0,2300, $0,0380, $0,0420
and $0,6500 respectively.
The gain was partially off-
set by losses in Natfoods,
which was $0,0100 weaker
at $2,0900, while telecoms
firm Econet slipped $0,0049
to settle at $0,2500 and
giant insurer Old Mutual
traded $0,0021 lower at
$2,2000.
Turnall dipped $0,0010 to
settle at $0,0110.
The mining index was
unchanged at 20.00 as
Bindura, Falgold, Hwange
and RioZim maintained
previous price levels at
$0,0100, $0,0050, $0,0300
and $0,1100 in that order.
. - BH24 Reporter ●
ZSE12
Equities continue on bullish run
02 03
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13. Movers CHANGE Today Price USc SHAKERS Change TODAY Price USc
Delta 1.60 72.25 Turnall -8.33 1.10
Econet -1.92 25.00
NatFoods -0.47 209.00
Old Mutual -0.09 220.00
Index Previous Today Move Change
Industrial 106.22 106.54 +0.32 points +0.30%
Mining 20.00 20.00 +0.00 points +0.00%
13 zse tables
ZSE
Indices
Stock Exchange
Previous
today

14. 14 DIARY OF EVENTS
The black arrow indicate level of load shedding across the country.
POWER GENERATION STATS
Gen Station
05 May 2016
Energy
(Megawatts)
Hwange 575 MW
Kariba 581 MW
Harare 19 MW
Munyati 29 MW
Bulawayo 29 MW
Imports 0 - 200 MW
Total 1331 MW
• African Sun EGM, Holiday Inn, 09 May, 1400hrs,
• Innscor EGM, Royal Golf Club, 10 May, 0900hrs
• 05 May - Barclays Bank of Zimbabwe AGM; Place: Meikles Mirabelle Room; Time: 1500hrs
• 18 May - ZB Building Society AGM; Place: 21 Natal Road, Avondale, Harare; Time: 12:00hrs
• 18 May - The 76th AGM of Astra Industries Limited; Place: Auditorium at Astra Park, Corner Ridgeway North/Northend
Roads, Highlands, Harare; Time: 12:00hrs
• 19 May - The Fifth Annual General Meeting of Padenga Holdings Limited; Place: Royal Harare Golf Club, 5th Street extension,
Harare; Time: 08.15am
• 19 May - NMBZ AGM; Place: Unity Court, Corner 1st Street Kwame Nkrumah Avenue; Time: 10:00am
• 19 May - Turnall Holdings AGM; Place: Jacaranda Room, Rainbow Towers; Time: 12:00
THE BH24 DIARY

15. JOHANNESBURG-THE rand
regained some composure
yesterday morning as global
markets stabilised after a
recent wobble.
It is recovering from a drop
of more than 4 percent
against the dollar in the past
two days, which pushed it
near R15 on Wednesday amid
panic about global growth.
"The rand’s weakness
remains part of a broader
sell-off of global risk assets
centred on equities and com-
modities," Rand Merchant
Bank analyst John Cairns
said in a note.
"Emerging markets have
been particularly badly hit,
reflecting both a reversal
of their extraordinary gains
of the past few months and
political negatives from Tur-
key and Brazil."
With some of the major Asian
markets, notably the Nikkei
225, closed for a public holi-
day, sentiment is likely to be
driven by European and US
markets.
Commodity prices were con-
fined to their recent ranges,
with Brent crude hovering
around $45 a barrel in early
trade.
At 8.53am‚ the rand was at
14,7744 to the dollar from
149755 at Wednesday’s
close. It was at 16,9747
against the euro from
17,2065 previously‚ and at
21,4442 against the pound
from 21,7068 previously.
The euro was at $1,1489
from $1,1485.-BDLive●
regioNAL News15
Rand regains some composure

16. SHANGHAI/SINGA-
PORE-China will invest 77
billion yuan ($11,9 billion)
this year in building aviation
infrastructure, the official
Xinhua news agency reported
late on Wednesday, citing
the country's civil aviation
regulator.
The Civil Aviation Admin-
istration of China (CAAC)
said the investment, which
will focus on airports, will
initially lead to 11 key con-
struction projects and 52
aviation-related upgrades
to existing facilities, Xinhua
reported.
"The general aviation sector,
especially aircraft research
and manufacturing, has
become a hot spot of both
industrial upgrading and
social concern," Feng Zheng-
lin, head of the CAAC, told
the official news agency.
China's cabinet separately
said late on Wednesday it
would support the develop-
ment of the country's avi-
ation industry and opening
up low-altitude air space, an
issue that constrains a fledg-
ling market for helicopters
and small aircraft. It did not
provide details.
"Opening up will especially
benefit China's tourism,
emergency medical services
and pilot training sectors,
which operate light aircraft
and helicopters," said Greg
Waldron, Asia Managing
Editor at industry publication
Flightglobal.
Civilian air traffic controllers
handle low-altitude air space
and work with the military to
manage both civil and mili-
tary traffic in most parts of
the world.
China's military controls the
country's air space, and its
planes have priority over
civil aircraft. Special mili-
tary-only zones also force
other aircraft to take a
longer route.
Over the last few years,
Beijing has relaxed some
restrictions on flights
below 1,000 m (3,280 ft) -
although civil aircraft still
need military approval to fly
through some areas.
Industry observers expect
the approval process to be
further relaxed and the ceil-
ing to increase to 3,000 m,
in line with Western norms.
Some, however, are cautions.
"I doubt they will let people
get into their aircraft and fly
off without approval like in
Australia and the US. This
is still China and there will
still be restrictions," Waldron
said.
The relaxation could boost
demand for light aircraft.
China had only 1 600 light
aircraft and around 80
airports to handle them in
2013. It will need 10 000
light aircraft this decade to
meet demand, according to
some projections.
The US, by comparison, had
about 300 000 GA aircraft
and 24 000 airports for them
in 2013.
Since 2000, Western firms
like America's Cessna and
Austria's Diamond Aircraft
have set up joint ventures
with Chinese partners to
produce light aircraft in the
country. - Reuters ●
internatioNAL News16
China to invest $11.9 billion in aviation

17. By Wandile Sihlobo
WORKING as an economist
in the agricultural sector can
be very frustrating. I often
function between two worlds:
the policy environment and
the realm of information and
analytics.
I am often astounded by how
little attention is paid by
agricultural policy-makers to
information and analytics, a
crucial element in conducting
agricultural economics in an
orderly manner.
This frustration is not unique
to SA. Not long ago, in con-
versation with an Ethiopian
friend on food security in
Africa, his frustration seeped
through. Working for an
Addis Ababa-based non-
governmental organisation
focusing on agriculture, he
vented his frustration about
the challenges of working on
regional food security issues
with policy makers. They,
and other relevant groups,
seem to turn a deaf ear
17 analysis17 analysis
Policy on farming in Africa ignores research

18. whenever new strategies are
recommended.
I could relate to his frus-
tration, particularly when
considered in the context
of the future of agricul-
ture in sub-Saharan Africa.
Over the years, a number
of research studies have set
out blueprints for achieving
agriculture-led growth in
the region. However, there
seems to be little, if any,
interest in following the pol-
icy suggestions flowing from
the research.
A recent study by Michigan
State University and Stellen-
bosch University agricultural
economists Thom Jayne and
Lulama Ndibongo-Traub,
identified seven challenges
to which African policy-mak-
ers need to respond if they
are to achieve agriculture-led
growth, focusing strongly on
developing rural agricultural
markets. These challenges
cover areas from job crea-
tion and land policy to youth
involvement, the telecommu-
nications revolution, macro-
economic management, soil
management and climate
variability.
Agriculture can contribute
significantly to job creation,
from farming to the delivery
of services.
To achieve this, government
intervention is essential,
specifically investment in
infrastructure to unlock the
sector’s potential in rural
areas and increase profita-
bility.
The lack of youth involve-
ment in the sector is a seri-
ous concern that agricultural
policy makers and role play-
ers need to focus on. About
45 percent of sub-Saharan
Africa’s population is below
the age of 15, while farmers
in the region are ageing (the
average age of a farmer in
SA is 62).
There is a dire need for edu-
cation on the role agriculture
plays in the economy, to
remind young people about
the value of the sector, but
more importantly, to change
the notion that agriculture is
just a form of livelihood. It
should be viewed as a busi-
ness, where being a farmer
is being a businessman.
Land policy has for some
time been viewed as a chal-
lenging factor in unlocking
the sector’s productivity.
Most rural areas in Africa
operate under communal or
state-owned land systems,
making it difficult to use
land as collateral to obtain
finance from the banks.
One of the most important
areas influencing the profit-
ability of Africa’s agricultural
sector is macroeconomic
management. This manage-
ment influences currency
rates, which in turn influence
the prices paid for imports of
agricultural inputs.
For example, in SA, the
agricultural sector imports
roughly 80 percent of its
fertiliser requirement, which
on average accounts for 35
percent of grain-production
costs. A stable currency
assists farmers in planning
for the upcoming production
season and keeps input costs
reasonable.
Agriculture remains a key
sector for achieving eco-
nomic growth and trans-
formation in sub-Saharan
Africa. Governments across
the region are starting to
show an active interest in
agricultural development,
with much emphasis in most
countries being placed on
increasing production, farm-
er-training programmes and
seed development.
However, by attending to the
aforementioned challenges,
rural people’s livelihoods
could be improved across the
region.●
• Sihlobo is a former Grain
SA economist who cur-
rently leads agri-econom-
ics research at the South
African Agricultural Busi-
ness Chamber. He writes
in his own capacity
18 analysis18 analysis