Donors snub trade forum

Chinese Pharmaceutical Company at Kpone to re-open.

Trade liberalisation not good for Ghana, developing countries - Minister 

Market index increases but volumes decrease 

Kpone (Greater Accra) 25 Nov. ’99

Sanbao, a Chinese Pharmaceutical Company at Kpone Export Processing Zone, which closed down on October 25, following a raid by armed robbers, is scheduled to re-open by the middle of next month.

Mr Meng Fan Ming, Managing Director of the company disclosed this to Ms Beatrice Naa Afieye Ashong, Member of Parliament for Kpone/Katamanso and the chief of Kpone, Nii Tetteh Otu II, at Kpone.

He said 20,000 dollars worth of spare parts needed to reactivate the plant are expected to arrive at Tema Port within a week.

He explained that during the raid, the armed robbers tampered with the equipment used for the production of insulin, thus forcing the company to close down and sending all the 23 Ghanaian workers home.

Mr Ming said the Police have started providing security and "I feel investors will be able to work in a peaceful atmosphere this time".

The Managing Director expressed his appreciation to the MP, who donated 500,000 cedis and some food items to the Chinese employees and their Ghanaian counterparts when she visited them soon after the robbery.

Ms Ashong said she was happy that the company is to be re-opened and expressed the hope that with enough security now in place, the company would increase production for export.

"If you get more profit, you will be able to expand to create more job opportunities for the youth in Kpone and Tema Municipality in general", she added.

Nii Otu said the Ghana Telecom plans to extend telephone facilities to the Export Processing Zone (EPZ) soon adding that everything would be done to ensure that the management of the company enjoys its stay.

One of the eight armed robbers, identified as Abinga was shot dead, while two others Yakubu Egala and Lartey were wounded and are still on admission at the Police Hospital, Accra under Police guard.

The Police are still looking for five others. The robbers took away three million cedis and 2,900 dollars and other items

GRi../

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Accra (Greater Accra) 25 Nov. ’99

Mr J. H. Owusu Acheampong, Minister of Food and Agriculture, has said that the trade liberalisation policy currently being pursued by the government has worked to the disadvantage of developing countries, including Ghana.

He has therefore appealed to multi-lateral bodies and international policy makers "to review the current international trade paradigm and put in place broad based trade negotiations policies to ensure balanced results that will benefit all countries".

A statement issued in Accra on Thursday said the Minister made the call at the 30th session of the conference of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in Rome to which he led a five-member Ghanaian delegation.

The conference was attended by representatives of more than 165 member nations who discussed issues relating to the state of the world's food and agriculture and the FAO's budget, among others.

Mr. Acheampong noted that the trade liberalisation policy, with its resultant privatisation, coupled with uneven access to modern technology, militates against the competitiveness of local industries and locally manufactured products.

Mr. Acheampong emphasised that inasmuch as developing countries welcome foreign investors into their economies, "international policy makers must put proper measures in place to ensure that the pursuit of trade liberalisation does not become detrimental to those countries".

He observed that whereas world food production increases, food production levels in Africa decline significantly, leading to the malnourishment of about 40 per cent of the population.

The Minister called for renewed action by the authorities to remedy the situation.

While in Rome, Mr. Acheampong discussed collaboration in separate meetings with United Kingdom under Secretary for International Relations, Mr George Foulks, and Mr Fawzar Al-Sultan, President of IFAD and Alhaji Sani Zango Daura, Nigerian Federal Minister of Agriculture.

Mr Foulks assured the Minister that the UK intends to provide more support to Ghana in her poverty alleviation efforts.

GRi./

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Accra (Greater Accra) 25 Nov. ’99

The Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) All-Share Index on Monday inched up after weeks of persistent decline.

However, market indicators recorded low volumes with total shares traded hitting one of its lowest so far this year.

The All-Share Index gained 0.47 points on the strength of a 15-cedi appreciation of Accra Breweries Limited (ABL) while shares traded were a mere 8,500 from 61,600 shares on Monday. It hit 5,000 in August. Brokers continued to blame the general economic atmosphere of lack of liquidity, domestic price hikes and low world market prices for Ghana's exports for the poor performance of the bourse.

Negative pressures dominated the market with the change in the year to date closing at negative 13.87 per cent.

Offers were down at 662,500 from Monday's close of 723,410 shares while demand also finished lower by more than half from 131,000 shares to 59,800.

Market capitalisation was 3,223.87 billion cedis, slightly higher than the 3,223.13 billion cedis recorded on Monday.

In the broader market, there was only one price change in ABL, which gained 15 cedis to begin the week at 435 cedis.

Meanwhile, stakeholders met in Accra on Wednesday to negotiate on the initial public offer of the Produce Buying Company (PBO), which is to be listed by December one to bring the number of listed companies to 23.

The following are the last prices of listed equities in cedis:

ABL 435 +15

AGC 18,700

ALW 2,490

BAT 475

CFAO 40

EIC 1,880

FML 900

GBL 1,500

GCB 749

GGL 950

HFC 750

MGL 200

MLC 150

MOGL 15,700

PAF 300

PZ 800

SCB 19,700

SPPC 180

SSB 1,980

UNIL 1,870

UTC-E 125

CMLT 420

GRi./

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