By Tawanda Musarurwa

Harare – Local platinum producer Zimplats Holdings Ltd posted a loss after tax for the half year to December 31, 2015 of $0,6 million compared to a profit of $3,9 million recorded during the same period last year largely due to a combination of higher taxes and weak metal prices.

Taxation for the half year rose to $1,2 million from $0,8 million in the prior comparable period.

“Net cash inflows from oper-ating activities for the period decreased from $107,8 million recorded during the same period last year to $6,5 mil-lion mainly due to the impact

of lower metal prices and the furnace breakout which occurred in May 2015 on sales proceeds,” said the plati-num producer in a statement accompanying its results.

The firm’s revenue for the period slid 12 percent to $204,4 million from prior com-parable period as weak metal prices took their toll.

The dip in revenue was despite a growth in sales volumes during the period. According to Zimplats, half-year plati-num sales rose from 103 092 ounces (oz) to 128 431 (oz).

News Update as @ 1530 hours, Wednesday 24 February 2016

Feedback: bh24admin@zimpapers.co.zwEmail: bh24feedback@zimpapers.co.zw

Zimplats posts HY loss on higher taxes & limp metal prices

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Mainly as a result of the limp metal prices, the platinum miner’s gross revenue per platinum ounce of $1 591 for the half year was 30 percent lower than $2 265 in the par-allel period last year.

Cost of sales of $185,7 million were 14 percent higher than the same period last year’s $162,4 million mainly due to the increase in sales volumes.

Gross profit margins deterio-rated from 30 percent in the prior period to 9 percent in the current half year mainly due to lower metal prices.

In terms of production during

the half-year, tonnes mined for the half year increased 30 percent to 3,27 million tonnes from the same period in 2014.

Management attributed the rise to ore supply contribution from the Ngezi South open-pit (which started in the quarter ended 30 June 2015) of 423 000 tonnes and increased production from underground mines following the re-de-ployment of fleets from the collapsed Bimha Mine.

As a result tonnes milled increased by 26 percent to 3,12 million tonnes compared to the same period last year.

4E (platinum, palladium, rhodium and gold) mill head grade at 3.223g/t was 1 per-cent lower than the previous year’s 3.253g/t.

Meanwhile, royalty and commission expense of $5,1 million reported for the period in question was 72 percent lower than the $17,8 million reported in the prior compara-ble period.

“The decrease was mainly due to the revenue decline and The High Court of Zimbabwe judgment in the case involving a dispute between Zimbabwe Platinum Mines (Pvt) Ltd and ZIMRA over which mining roy-

alty provisions are applicable to the operating subsidiary.

“The judge ruled that the roy-alty provisions in the operating subsidiary’s mining agreement take precedence over the roy-alty provisions set out in the Finance Act

(Chapter 23:04) and that accordingly the operating sub-sidiary is liable to pay royal-ties at the rate of 2,5 percent of the value of all minerals produced and not at the higher Finance Act rates,” explained Zimplats.

Zimplats has not declared a dividend for the period.●

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BARCeLONA – Econet Wire-less’ mobile money service, EcoCash and Nearex’s new product EcoCash TA! - a con-tactless micropayment service - can be experienced at the ongoing Mobile World Con-gress (MWC) 2016 in Spain.

The service was initially launched in Zimbabwe last December. EcoCash has now extended its service to its 5 million customers, to facilitate daily micro payments, for as little as $0,10 with EcoCash TA!

And according to Econet, the tap and pay micropayment offering has the potential to make Zimbabweans lead the world with mass market cash-less payments

EcoCash TA! is based on Xip micropayment platform from Nearex, a Singapore head-quartered technology com-pany.

At the core of the platform is

XipPOS, an extremely low cost mobile NFC POS that EcoCash is currently offering to the merchant community for less than $0,13 per day along with an EcoCash merchant account, making it possible for infor-mal sector merchants to have one of the most affordable electronic cash registers in the world.

EcoCash’s XipPOS offering will drive financial inclusion of hundreds of thousands of micro and small merchants across Zimbabwe with a sophisticated mobile NFC POS.

Said Econet CEO Mr Douglas Mboweni:

“Zimbabwe has played a leading role in financial inclu-sion through EcoCash mobile money payments. In moving

to the next level of the finan-cial inclusion lifecycle, disrup-tive innovation is necessary to ensure that day to day micro transactions are formalised.

“EcoCash Ta! tap and pay ser-vice, comes in as the catalyst to formalizing small to medium enterprise sector estimated at $2 billion in value, which is largely informal, to-date.”

Existing subscribers of Eco-Cash can obtain a XipTAG, an NFC sticker that can be stuck on any phone, at a cost of just $1 each. Subscribers can just tap their phone on a XipPOS and make payments of any denomination from their Eco-Cash wallet.

Transactions up to $1, are pro-cessed for free, making such micro-transactions completely affordable and eliminating any need for small coins. Transac-tions above $1 attract a com-petitive fees of just 1 percent providing all the benefits of a cashless transaction to both

the subscriber as well as mer-chant for a very little cost.

Nearex CEO Mr Mayank Sharma further explained: “Mobile wallets are rapidly chasing the mighty mobile phones that have reached nearly everyone on the planet, yet money sent from one mobile wallet to the other needs to be cashed out before it is used for payments. Nearex has developed XIP, a mobile micropayment solution, from the ground up to com-pete with the convenience, affordability and acceptability of cash.

“We are delighted that a visionary operator such as Econet has selected XIP as a platform to deliver the immense benefit of widespread cashless payments to Zimba-bwean society through its path breaking product EcoCash TA!. We are glad to showcase it at our stand at 7K01 at MWC this year and invite everyone to experience it”. ●

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ecoCash TA! to allow for micro-payments

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BH24 Repoter

HARARe - The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has moved to protect the integrity of the local financial services sector by backing NMBZ, which recently fell prey to a social media hoax.

The hoax - on WhatApp mes-saging platform - claimed that the bank was facing curator-ship.

Said RBZ governor Dr John Mangudya in a statement:“The Reserve Bank wishes to reas-sure the public that NMB Bank is not facing any liquidity challenges and there is no threat of curatorship or liqui-dation as alleged.

“Members of the public are therefore advised to ignore any misleading statements from unauthorised and uninformed persons on the status of banking institutions or the banking sector,” he said.

“The Reserve Bank is the sole superintendent of the banking sector in Zimbabwe, and any information on the condition of banks, other than that published by the banking institution itself, should come from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.”

As at December 31, 2015 NMBZ had core capital of $42,09 million compared to the prescribed minimum

capital requirement of $25 million.

In the Monetary Policy State-ment announced last month, the regulator said the local financial services sector was safe.

“The banking sector exhibited positive developments in 2015 as evidenced by its sustained safety and soundness, satis-factory with respect of met-

rics such as capital adequacy, liquidity and profitability, among others.

“In particular, the sector benefitted from concerted efforts by the Reserve Bank and Government to promote the resilience of the sec-tor, bolster confidence and improve regulatory oversight to enhance the sector’s capac-ity to adequately support economic activity.”●

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‘Banking sector safe’: RBZ

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HARARe - The local equities market bucked a two-day win-ning streak as the mainstream industrial index retreated 0.11 to close at 99.20 as three coun-ters lost ground.

Activity remains subdued on the market.

Clothing retailer Edgars eased $0,0030 to settle at $0,0550, while Barclays shed $0,0010 to trade at $0,0340 while Hippo was $0,0005 weaker at $0,3490.

There were no trades in the positive territoryas Dairi-bord, Delta, Mashonaland,

OK Zimbabwe and Old Mutual traded unchanged at $0,0690, $0,5300, $0,0168, $0,0350 and $1,8000 respectively.

The mining index was steady at 18.74 as all the mining coun-ters maintained yesterday’s price levels - BH24 Reporter ●

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equities market drops

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MOveRs CHANGe TOdAY PRiCe UsC sHAKeRs CHANGe TOdAY PRiCe UsC

EDGARS -5.17 5.50

BARCLAyS -2.85 3.40

HIPPO -0.14 34.90

iNdex PReviOUs TOdAY MOve CHANGe

INDuSTRIAL 99.31 99.20 -0.11 points -0.11%

MINING 18.74 18.74 +0.00 POINTS +0.00%

13 Zse TABLes

Zse

iNdiCes

stock exchange

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16 diARY OF eveNTs

The black arrow indicate level of load shedding across the country.

POWeR GeNeRATiON sTATs

Gen Station

24 February 2016

Energy

(Megawatts)

Hwange 415 MW

Kariba 285 MW

Harare 30 MW

Munyati 21 MW

Bulawayo 22 MW

Imports 0 - 280 MW

Total 1148 MW

25 February 2016 - extraordinary General Meeting (“eGM”) of the shareholders of Radar Holdings Limited; Place: Tanganyika House, 6th Floor Boardroom, Harare; Time: 0900 hours...

25 February 2016 - The 49th Annual General Meeting of Mashonaland Holdings Limited; Place: The Boardroom, 19th Floor, ZB Life Towers, 77 Jason Moyo Avenue, Harare; Time: 1200 hours...

26 February 2016 - The sixty-ninth Annual General Meeting of Ariston Holdings Limited; Place: Ariston Holdings Limited Main Boardroom, 306 Hillside Road, Msasa Woodlands, Harare: Time: 14.30 hours:

THe BH24 diARY

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JOHANNesBURG - South Africa's rand edged up on Wednesday but most trad-ers were hesitant to make any significant moves before Finance Minister Pravin Gord-han spells out how govern-ment plans to boost economic growth to avert a sovereign ratings downgrade.

By 0649 GMT the rand was 0.11 percent firmer at 15.2250 per dollar, after closing at 15.2425.

Traders said most trading in the session would likely come after the budget as the country and certainly foreign investors eagerly await Gord-han’s proposals on how he is going to try and fix the fiscal situation in the country.

But it was clear that the rand is struggling to make mean-ingful gains given the risk-on global market environment has run out of steam, traders added.

"Gordhan will attempt to walk tightrope of reigning in fiscal budget while not sabotaging what little economic growth momentum South Africa has left," said NKC African Eco-nomics analysts in a note.

"Should he succeed, we should see the rand break through technical barriers around psychological 15.0000 level against the dollar."

Stocks were set to open lower at 0700 GMT, with the JSE securities exchange's Top-40 futures index down 1.14 per-cent.

Shares in Aspen Pharmacare rose 9.4 percent to 289 rand on Tuesday after the drug-maker said it expected its interim earnings to be as much as 23 percent higher.

Bonds were mostly weaker, adding 0.5 basis points to 9.165 percent - Reuters●

ReGiONAL NeWs 18

Rand up, investors eye budgetZambia electricity deficit rises to 1 000 MW: energy

minister

LUsAKA - Zambia's elec-tricity deficit has risen to 1,000 megawatts (MW) from 700 MW in November as Africa's No. 2 copper producer cuts hydro power generation due to falling water levels as drought bites in the region.

"We have gradually contin-ued to reduce generation. We are 1,000 MW short of the installed capac-ity," Energy Minister Dora Siliya told parliament on Tuesday– Reuters●

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The pound fell to the lowest level in almost seven years after Bank of England policy makers said uncertainty over Britain’s membership of the European union is weighing on the currency.

Sterling has tumbled since London Mayor Boris Johnson, one of the nation’s most pop-ular politicians, said Sunday he’ll campaign for the u.K. to leave the Eu in a June referen-dum. Sterling’s 2.7 percent plunge in the first two days of this week was the biggest since February 2009 in the teeth of the global financial crisis.

BOE officials including Gover-nor Mark Carney said Tuesday the weaker pound could offset the u.K.’s other economic frail-ties and help boost inflation. The policy chief added that the central bank wasn’t making any judgment on the outcome of the Eu vote, which could lead to the nation quitting the political and economic bloc -- a so-called “Brexit.”

“‘Brexit’ is certainly weighing on the pound,” said Daniel Brehon, a foreign-exchange

strategist at Deutsche Bank AG in London. “But, struc-tural concerns such as the current-account deficit were already a problem beforehand. Long-term the depreciation may help boost inflation but pass-through has been under-whelming so far.”

Deutsche Bank is bearish on the pound and forecasts a drop to $1.28 by year-end, Brehon said.

The pound fell 0.2 percent to $1.3994 as of 9:09 a.m. Tokyo time Wednesday, after touch-

ing $1.3986, the lowest since March 2009. It was at 78.78 pence per euro after sliding 1.7 percent over Monday and Tuesday.

The prospect of Britain leaving the world’s largest single market is adding to the losses caused by traders pushing back bets on the timing of a BOE interest-rate increase. Together, these factors have helped push the pound lower against all of its Group-of-10 peers this year.

It’s “increasingly clear” that

the moves in the pound and in options insuring against a future drop in sterling “have spiked to levels” similar to those seen in the Scottish referendum campaign of 2014, Carney told u.K. lawmakers.

The pound “has under-per-formed ahead of u.K. political events in the past,” Common-wealth Bank of Australia strat-egists including London-based Peter Dragicevich wrote in a note. “The upcoming ref-erendum will be no differ-ent.”.-Bloomberg●

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Pound drops below $1.40 for first time since 2009 amid 'Brexit' concerns

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By Chris vermeulen

This past week was not for the ‘faint of heart’. All of the asset classes witnessed wildly volatile moves, which culminated in an 11 percent move of crude oil. The u.S. equity markets survived a scare on Friday, February 12th, 2016 and moved up sharply. Gold returned as a safe haven for investments. The uncertainty of further rate hikes, by the FED, has turned the u.S. dollar into a range-bound trade.

Crude Oil surges by 11 per-cent on Friday, February, 12th, 2016

Crude oil proved to be last week’s last, after dropping to a new 52-week low, Friday, February 12th, 2016, saw the energy markets move up by 11 percent. This rise was brought about by the expectations of a produc-tion cut by the OPEC nations. If we witness follow up buying, in the coming week, it will be the first indication of a “bottoming process”, although it is still in its early stages. When the models confirm a ‘bottom’, I will enter

into long positions and enjoy the bull ride.

sPx confirming a short-term double bottom:

The SPX clearly shows an attempt to form a double bottom at 1810 levels with three critical cycles bottoming at the same time.

The RSI is also showing positive divergence which is similar to that of the energy markets. When the SPy goes above 188.70, its’ next target is 195.00.

The stock markets also took comfort from the Federal Reserve Chairperson, Dr. Janet yellen’s, testimony when she did not rule

out a rate cut, if the situation were to worsen further, but she stated that it is a “not so likely scenario”. She also agreed that the risks to the economy have increased with the sharp fall in crude oil prices, a strong dollar, a weakening Chinese economy and the junk bond defaults.

24 analysis24 ANALYsis

expect huge price swings next month

25 analysis25 ANALYsis

Although she maintained that a gradual rate hike plan be imple-mented, she was also quick to state that it was not ‘pre-set.’ It will change, as and when the situation demands. She also kept the option open of using the neg-ative interest rates, seen as a few developed countries have been using it with success. The initial fear of the FED experts, is that negative rates will lead to cash hoarding by individuals, which will in turn weaken the financial system. However, the experiment in Denmark, Japan, Sweden, Switzerland and the Euro-zone has elevated their fears. These events have led to a strong surge in safe-haven assets, led by Gold, while the u.S. dollar gave up some of its gains.

Gold is confirming that a bot-tom is likely in place:

During the recent decline in Gold, many have started questioning its’ status, as the safe haven in this current deflationary environ-ment. All of the “naysayers” were given a befitting reply when Gold surged more than $50 an ounce and settled at its’ highest level, in

almost a year, on Thursday, Feb-ruary 11th, 2016, while investors tried to escape the global market route, by investing in safe haven assets.

Gold has been the best perform-ing asset class in 2016, while the World and the u.S. equity markets have had their worst 6 weeks. The Chinese economic slowdown and other uncertain economic situations globally have led investors into Gold. An existing negative interest rate scenario globally, led by Japan, the ECB and possibly the FED, is also contributing to making the market participants nervous.

In the current rise, Gold has bro-ken out its’ of critical resistance level, which earlier had put a cap on the move up (these points are marked with arrows on the above chart). However, the buyers have become over enthusiastic and have pushed the RSI into overbought territory, which will cause a retracement in Gold. Find out where and why gold is about to correct and when you should invest for the long haul. The u.S. bond markets have also saw buying as being another safe asset class and the rise in value confirms rates will continue to decline as explain by this bond

trader.

The Us dollar is experiencing profit booking:

The uS dollar, which is also a safe haven, at times, is experiencing profit booking, by the bulls. The index will turn bearish once the u.S. dollar index declines, and stays below 93. Currently, the Euro and the Japanese yen have turned bullish and are most likely to lead the way, signaling that the dollar will follow suit and drop even lower.

Conclusion:

In the short-term, Gold and the u.S. bonds will surprise to inves-tors on the downside, whereas crude oil and SPX will cause sur-prise on the upside as explain in a recent interview with an tech-nical analyst of the stock market. However, due to the testimony by the ECB President, Mario Draghi, to the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee, all the mar-kets will remain “volatile”. Draghi is known to surprise markets with large-scale announcements. – www.TheGoldAndOilGuy.com●