2merkato

Allana Potash Corp., which has started feasibility study on its potash property in Ethiopia, announced yesterday that its common shares would start trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange at market open today.

Allana said that its stock symbol would remain "AAA".

Farhad Abasov, Allana's President and CEO, said that trading on the Toronto Stock Excange would enhance the company's already strong trading liquidity and attract a broader investor base to Allana.

Ayat Real Estate bought Addis Ababa Ras Hote, one of the oldest hotels in Ethiopia, for 124.4 million birr last Thursday.

Three other companies had bid for the hotel. Sheger Investment offered 121.6 million birr; GCf Plc, in a joint venture with Solomon Admassu, offered 100 million birr; and Nebeyu Ketsela, an individual, offered 100 million birr.

Ayat has already paid 46 million birr, 37 percent of the 124.4 million birr for the hotel, and is scheduled to pay the balance over the coming five years. 

Coffee Plantation Development Enterprise (CPDE) announced that it had earned 84 million birr by selling coffee at local and foreign markets over the last fiscal year. The enterprise sold 64,000 quintals of coffee during the reported period.

Countries to which the enterprise exported coffee include the United Sstates, Australia, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Japan and Sweden.

About 49.5 million birr of the 84 million birr profit was obtained from over 16,000 quintals coffee sold locally.
According to the director general of CPDE, the amount earned from the export of coffee is up by 56 million from last year’s earnings. 

Ethiopia has not signed the COMESA Free Trade Agreement. Some professionals say that this could keep Ethiopian businesses from benefiting from the initiative.

Businesses in the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) states will now be able to participate in tenders issued in one another’s countries with a 15 percent preferential treatment against international bidders.  

All the same, Ethiopian businesses will still enjoy the preferential treatment although tariffs will be levied on their exports to COMESA states as the country has not signed the FTA, Gashaw Debebe, secretary general of the Ethiopian Chamber of Commerce and Sectoral Associations, said.