Observer Money

Chamwe Kaira The Southern African Customs Union (SACU) was Namibia’s largest export destination in June, taking 30% of total exports, data from the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA) shows. The BRIC+5 bloc followed closely with 29.9%, while the European Union (EU) accounted for 12.5%. COMESA made up 11.6% and the OECD 9.1%. Exports to SACU were mainly non-monetary gold and diamonds. The BRIC+5 bloc received mostly uranium.  The EU market imported fish, beef and ores and concentrates of base metals. COMESA’s main imports from Namibia were fish, sulphur, unroasted iron pyrites and rubber tyres. The OECD market took uranium and nickel…

Chamwe Kaira Andrada Mining Limited has started exploration drilling at its Lithium Ridge project in the Erongo Region.  The company is working with Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile SA through its subsidiary SQM Australia (Pty) Ltd. The drilling forms part of the first stage of a three-stage earn-in agreement with SQM. Under this stage, SQM will fund up to U$7 million in exploration to secure an initial 30% interest. Across all three stages, SQM may fund up to U$40 million. The programme involves 14 000 metres of orientated diamond drilling on priority lithium targets.  It also includes high-resolution geological…

Chamwe Kaira  Reconnaissance Energy Africa Ltd says drilling of the Kavango West 1X exploration well remains on schedule and expects to reach total depth by the end of November. The well spudded on 31 July. Brian Reinsborough, president and chief executive officer, said the operations team in Namibia is making steady progress. “We anticipate entering the Otavi reservoir, the primary target for the Damara Fold Belt Play, in October and plan to penetrate over 1500 metres of potential reservoir section. We look forward to reporting results of this play opening well to all stakeholders around year-end,” he said.  The well…

Chamwe Kaira Namibia’s annual inflation rate eased to 3.5% in July from 3.7% in June, resuming the downward trend seen earlier in the year.  However, an analyst has warned that risks remain skewed to the upside heading into the last part of 2025. Almandro Jansen of Simonis Storm Securities said imported cost pressures continue to present the main threat.  He pointed to the 30% US tariff on South African exports and ongoing reviews of US tariffs on Chinese goods as new sources of uncertainty in global supply chains. “For Namibia, the short-term impact may involve marginal relief from surplus South…

Chamwe Kaira Capricorn Group has told shareholders it expects profit after tax, earnings per share and headline earnings per share for the year ended 30 June 2025 to rise by between 12% and 17% compared to the previous year. The audited results are scheduled for release on or about 18 September. In the 2024 financial year, Capricorn reported profit after tax of N$1.74 billion, up 17.7% from N$1.48 billion in 2023. Return on equity increased to 17.9% from 17.6%. The growth was attributed to strong results across its businesses, including Bank Windhoek, Bank Gaborone, Capricorn Asset Management, Entrepo Group, Peo…

Chamwe Kaira  The new executive committee of the Namibia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NCCI) Lüderitz branch has pledged to represent businesses of all sizes. It will focus on creating an enabling environment that promotes entrepreneurship, youth empowerment, and investment. Alex Gawanab was elected chairperson, with Daniel Hooft as vice-chairperson. Both are prominent figures in the local business community, representing the fishing industry and the emerging kelp-linked sector. In his acceptance speech, Gawanab said Lüderitz has the resources to drive economic growth in the town and the Karas Region through both established industries and new sectors.  He said the committee…

Shoprite Group results for the 52 weeks ended 29 June surpassed a N$250 million mark, the group announced on Tuesday. Chief executive officer Pieter Engelbrecht said the group achieved sales growth of N$20.6 billion for the period. Engelbrecht said the group returned N$16.5 billion at point of sale while successfully maintaining its selling price inflation at only 2.3% in its core Supermarkets RSA segment.  The group has 30 million customers, and in terms of sales performance in its core Supermarkets RSA segment, the Shoprite and Usave brands saw a sales increase of 5.9%, translating to N$6.5 billion in sales growth…

Chamwe Kaira  The recent announcement of a 15 percent tariff on Namibian exports to the US and a 30% tariff on South African goods has implications that go beyond trade flows, analyst Almandro Jansen of Simonis Storm Securities has warned.  Jansen said these measures will also affect how money moves across borders, particularly through the  Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) system,  the backbone of international payments. SWIFT is used by over 11 000 financial institutions worldwide. It allows banks to send payment instructions, settle cross-border trade, and communicate in a standard format.  Almost every Namibian dollar earned from…

Chamwe Kaira  Walvis Bay exported goods  worth nearly N$7 billion in June,  according to the latest International Merchandise Trade Statistics Bulletin released by the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA). Sea transport remained the top channel, moving exports valued at N$6.9 billion, equal to 56.7% of all exports. The shipments mainly included uranium, fish and copper products.  Air was the second most used mode, carrying 23.6% of exports, mostly non-monetary gold and diamonds.  Road transport followed with 19.7%, with fish, petroleum oils and sulphur among the main goods. In total, 312 464 tonnes of goods left the country in June. This was…

Capricorn Group has appointed Mariantha Fryer as group brand manager in its brand and corporate affairs department, effective 1 September.Fryer has close to 25 years of experience in strategic marketing, brand building and communications. She has worked in industries ranging from automotive and financial services to education and advertising.Her appointment strengthens Capricorn Group’s focus on building its brand and engaging stakeholders.Photo: Bank Windhoek