IMF forecasts stable inflation beyond 2018 | The Times Group

IMF forecasts stable inflation beyond 2018 | The Times Group: By William Kumwembe:

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has projected a solid downward trajectory of inflation beyond 2018, converging at 5 percent in the long term.

The Bretton Woods institution has since said it expects Malawi’s inflation to average 9 percent this year, in line with an earlier projection by Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM).

IMF says it expects inflation to close at 9.5 percent by end of 2018.

Growth forecasts raise eyebrows - The Nation Online

Growth forecasts raise eyebrows - The Nation Online: Businesses and economic analysts have bemoaned Malawi’s ambitious gross domestic product (GDP) targets, saying they slow down growth as businesses take a wait-and-see approach.

In turn, government misses out on revenue, analysts have said.

Malawi Supreme court favours Khato on Salima-Lilongwe Water Project - The Maravi Post

Malawi Supreme court favours Khato on Salima-Lilongwe Water Project - The Maravi Post: BLANTYRE-(MaraviPost)-The Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal judges on Thursday throw away an objection application in which two civil society organisations (CSOs) want� to replace the Malawi Law Society (MLS) in the Salima-Lilongwe Water Project case

The two CSOs—Youth and Society (YAS) and Centre for Human Rights and Rehabilitation (CHRR) wanted the case to back to the High Court of Malawi to determine the legality of the project in respect of awarding of the contract to Khato Civils Limited as well as commencement of work without an environmental impact assessment (EIA) report.

Inflation under control—RBM | The Times Group

Inflation under control—RBM | The Times Group: he Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) has said it remains confident the country’s inflation remains under control and would average between 9.3 and 9.6 percent this year.

This is despite inflation rising for the third straight month in September although at a slower pace.

Headline inflation edged up by 0.2 percentage points to 9.5 percent in September 2018, from 9.3 percent recorded in August 2018.

Report shows trade gap still widening - The Nation Online

Report shows trade gap still widening - The Nation Online: The Malawi Growth and Development Strategy (MGDS) III aspirations were this week put on the spotlight following revelations from the International Trade Index on Trade Map that the country’s imports are declining. The index observes that Malawi’s imports from the rest of Africa declined over the past five years, at a time exports are also declining. It shows that Malawi’s imports declined from $1.2 billion (about K876 billion) in 2013 to $758 million (K555 billion) in 2017.

Malawi's Kanyika Niobium ready for mining; promises 1000 jobs...as extractive industry revenue down 10% - The Maravi Post

Malawi's Kanyika Niobium ready for mining; promises 1000 jobs...as extractive industry revenue down 10% - The Maravi Post: LILONGWE-(MaraviPost)-The halted Kanyika Niobium Project says the “mine is ready”, after years of giving hope to communities at Inkhosi Mabilabo Jere in the Northern district of Mzimba.

The exploration of Niobium and Tantalum that started 2006 to 2012, the project has assured 1,000 jobs to Malawians when mining starts in 18 months time.

This comes as the second Malawi Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (Mweiti) report shows that revenue has gone down 10 percent to MK5.3 billion.

Malawi Set to Get Zambia Power to Minimise Blackouts - allAfrica.com

Southern Africa: Malawi Set to Get Zambia Power to Minimise Blackouts Malawi is set to start getting 20 megawatts of electricity from Zambia starting this week, bringing hope that the persistent power blackouts would be minimized. Minister of Energy Aggrey Massi said on Saturday that this follows an interconnection power agreement which the governments of Malawi and Zambia signed a month ago in Lusaka. "The government is making strides to end the power blackouts and this is just one step among many the government has lined up," Massi said.

Price hikes push up inflation to 9.5% - The Nation Online

Price hikes push up inflation to 9.5% - The Nation Online: . Rising electricity tariffs is expected to put pressure on inflation In September, Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority (Mera) increased the price of fuel by an average of five percent, a development which compelled service providers to push up their prices as well. During the same month, Mera also approved a 31.8 percent tariff hike for Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (Escom) over a four-year period. Maize prices, on the other hand, have also gone up to an average of K7 500 per 50 kilogramme (kg) bag from an average of K5 000 per 50 kg bag some months before. 

African Governments Are Paying for the World Bank’s Mauritius Miracle – Foreign Policy

African Governments Are Paying for the World Bank’s Mauritius Miracle – Foreign Policy: OCTOBER 18, 2018, 11:05 AM PORT LOUIS, Mauritius—The security guard at Malawi Mangoes’ registered address at an office at the St Louis Business Centre in downtown Port Louis is not sure if we’re in the right place. The staff at the front desk are bewildered by our request to speak to someone from the company. The otherwise modest office block has flat-screen televisions on the walls and glossy magazines with titles like Savile Row and Family Business on a table in a small waiting area. After about 20 minutes, a woman in a suit appears, bearing apologies—she had been out to lunch. At first, she seems to mistake us for investors in Malawi Mangoes. We jump in to clarify: We’re journalists looking to talk to someone from the company, which in 2014 received a $5 million loan from the private investment arm of the World Bank, the International Finance Corporation (IFC). Our interlocutor appears confused, as if she knows little about the business, or why we might be attempting to learn more about it in Port Louis, Mauritius.

Malawi Govt Gets K5.6 Billion From Mining Sector - Activist Calls for Enactment of New Minerals Bill - allAfrica.com

Malawi Govt Gets K5.6 Billion From Mining Sector - Activist Calls for Enactment of New Minerals Bill - allAfrica.com: The Malawi government received over K5.3 billion from the mining sector in the 2015/2016 financial year, says the Malawi Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (MWEITI) report for the year in question launched on Wednesday night in Lilongwe.

It was revealed during the launch that Raiply Malawi Limited, the company which processes timber products in Viphya Plantation, paid most of this tax.

This is the second MWEITI report since Malawi began subscribing to Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) standards.