Family Bank to open nine more branches

Nakuru governor Kinuthia Mbugua (right) unveils a plaque during the re-launch of Family Bank- Molo Branch on February 26, 2016. Looking on are the bank's founder Titus Muya (left) and Chairman Wilfred Kiboro. The bank plans to increase its branches to 100. PHOTO | SULEIMAN MBATIAH | NATION MEDIA GROUP 

In Summary

• Family Bank will open nine more branches as part of its growth strategy even as it prepares to enter the regional market.
• Through the bank’s foundation, more than 350 students from poor families in 47 counties are now enjoying their learning after receiving financial support.

By FRANCIS MUREITHI
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Family Bank will open nine more branches as part of its growth strategy even as it prepares to enter the regional market.

Uhuru train plans may derail Kidero-Japan tram

Passengers queue to ride Ethiopia's new tramway on September 20, 2015 in Addis Abada. Kenya will launch a project to have a similar light train network in June 2016. AFP PHOTO | MULUGETA AYENE 

In Summary

• Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero travelled to Japan last year, and Germany the previous year, to shop for a suitable rail system for Nairobi.
• Nairobi government Saturday insisted it was working with JICA to build a Nairobi loop line which would connect Mombasa Rd, Thika Rd, Ngong and all routes running into the CBD.
• The national government trashed the county plan, saying the county had no role in construction of railways.
• Passengers have been shunning commuter trains plying Embakasi, Ruiru, Kahawa and Kikuyu routes because of their poor state.

By VINCENT ACHUKA
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The ambitious plan by the national government to construct Nairobi’s first ever urban passenger light rail network has created confusion as the county government had also planned for a similar project whose construction was to begin this month.

Bread shortage hits shelves in Venezuela

A baker makes sandwich bread at one of the bakeries still offering some bread in Caracas on February 25, 2016. On any given day, people in Venezuela can wait hours to get some subsidized milk, cooking oil, milk or flour with some bakeries rationing their bread production and others selling no bread at all. PHOTO | AFP PHOTO  

In Summary

• Venezuela gets 96 per cent of its foreign currency from oil exports, and as crude prices have plunged, so have the country’s imports — among them wheat.
• The leftist government of President Nicolas Maduro has tightly controlled access to hard currency, and this has affected imports ranging from medicine to toilet paper and now wheat, which Venezuela does not grow.

By AFP
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CARACAS, Sunday
At a popular east Caracas bakery, customers can buy Spanish olive oil, Italian tomato sauce and even American chocolates. But bread? Forget it.

KQ's financial problems put Nairobi- Tel Aviv direct flights in jeopardy

Kenya Airways plane on the run way at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. KQ could miss a chance to ride on gains made during President Uhuru Kenyatta’s trip to Israel unless it gets back on good financial footing soon. PHOTO | LIZ MUTHONI | NATION MEDIA GROUP 

In Summary

• Kenya Airways could miss an opportunity to ride on gains made during President Uhuru Kenyatta’s trip to Israel unless it gets back on good financial footing.
• Israel cancelled direct flights to Kenya in 2002 following a terror attack on an Israeli-owned hotel in Kikambala and an aeroplane belonging to the country’s airline.

By OTIATO GUGUYU
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Kenya Airways could miss an opportunity to ride on gains made during President Uhuru Kenyatta’s trip to Israel unless it gets back on good financial footing soon.

Flower sector earns Sh63b despite dip in export volumes

Ms Peris Adhiambo grades cut flowers at the de Ruiter East Africa show-house in Naivasha, Nakuru County on August 11, 2015. The volumes of cut flowers exported dropped last year even as its value went up by Sh10 billion. PHOTO | SULEIMAN MBATIAH | NATION MEDIA GROUP 

In Summary

• Statistics from the Horticultural Crop Directorate indicate that 121,346 metric tonnes of flowers worth Sh62.9 billion were exported in 2015.
• In 2014, the flower industry earned the country Sh54.6 billion with export volumes totalling 136,601 metric tonnes.

By OTIATO GUGUYU
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The volumes of cut flowers exported dipped last year even as its value went up by Sh10 billion, according to the Kenya Flower Council (KFC).

Bill proposes to reduce interest rates to promote business

Customers wait to be served in KCB. The Banking (amendment) Bill seeks to set a limit to what banks charge borrowers although the Central Bank has warned against such a move. PHOTO | SALATON NJAU | NATION MEDIA GROUP 

In Summary

• Mr Njomo on Sunday said high interest rates discouraged borrowers, leading to less entrepreneurs and lack of jobs for the youth.

By JEREMIAH KIPLANG'AT
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Kenyan banks will cut interest rates by almost half if a Bill before Parliament becomes law, a step that will promote entrepreneurship.

African IPOs undeterred by commodities rout - law firm

The NSE board said that the IPO will open on July 24 and will run up to August 12. FILE PHOTO 

In Summary

• "Fifteen IPOs are already in the pipeline, with one, Nigeria's Interswitch, which processes payments for banks and operates in five African countries, could be Africa's first billion-dollar IPO," the firm said in a statement.

By REUTERS
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African companies are likely to launch more than a dozen initial public offerings (IPOs) this year, defying commodity price drops and capital flight from emerging markets, international law firm Baker & McKenzie said on Monday.