COMPANY NEWS IN BRIEF

Tiger Brands to extend Tjaart Kruger's contract



SA's largest food producer, Tiger Brands, announced on Monday they have opted to extend the appointment of CEO Tjaart Kruger until the end of 2028, citing his progress in the group's long-term turnaround plan. The owner of brands such as Tastic and All Gold initially appointed Kruger for a period of 26 months, commencing at the beginning of November 2023, and his plan, after years of sluggish performance, is simplifying its operating model and product ranges. Progress made in the plan includes appointment of new executive managing directors for the group's six operating divisions, a new model, as well as "progress with regards to the group culture and staff engagement," it said. "The board believes that this decision will provide leadership certainty to Tiger Brands' multiple stakeholders and the necessary runway for the group's succession plans." Tiger, valued at about R41 billion on the JSE, was up less than 1% on Monday afternoon but has gained about 40% on a one-year basis.

FIN24



MTN registers drop in profits



Africa's largest mobile operator MTN reported on Monday it suffered about R14 billion negative profits swing in its half-year to end-June, when it was hit by conflicts, currency volatility, and grew its SA service revenue by less than inflation. But MTN said it was pleased with some underlying operating trends, including fintech revenue growing by over a quarter in constant terms. The group reported a loss after tax of about R9.7 billion to end-June from a profit of about R4.4 billion previously, notably hit by a depreciation of the Nigerian naira, which contributed most, to R16 billion in net foreign exchange losses. The group also felt pressure due to a conflict in Sudan, which is suffering fuel shortages, power outages and network disruptions, and its total subscribers edged up 0.8% to 288 million. Excluding Sudan, and MTN's exit from Afghanistan, subscribers rose 3.2% In SA, however, service revenue only increased 3.3% to about R21 billion, with outgoing service revenue falling 5.5%, while data revenue only picked up 2.4%. Inflation for the period averaged just over 5%, though fintech revenue surged 59% - helped by airtime advance initiatives - and subscribers rose 4.7% to 38.5 million. Its margin in SA also improved, allowing its core profit to rise more than 4% to about R9.5 billion. At a group level fintech revenue grew 27% in constant-currency terms, but only about 7% in reported terms, with Nigeria's currency issues meaning that service revenue in the country just about halved, when it should have grown by almost a third. Shares of MTN were up almost 1% on Monday afternoon but have lost almost a third in the past 12 months.

FIN24



X to shut down Brazil operations



Social media platform X, formerly Twitter, will shutter its local operations in Brazil following a bitter legal tussle over the platform's rights and responsibilities, owner Elon Musk said on Saturday. The service will remain available to Brazilian users. The closure was the apparent culmination of an ongoing legal battle between Musk and Brazilian Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes, who has said he is trying to fight the spread of dangerous disinformation online. A post Saturday from X's Global Government Affairs department said Moraes had "threatened our legal representative in Brazil with arrest if we do not comply with his censorship orders." It said the office closure was necessary "to protect the safety of our staff," adding, "the responsibility lies solely with Alexandre de Moraes." The Brazilian government was critical of X's stance, with Secretary of Digital Policies Joao Brant writing on the platform that the company had a "pathetic attitude." He added that X would force a "probable escalation that could lead to blocking of the platform".

AFP



Kenya Airways makes first half-year profit in over a decade



Kenya Airways on Monday its first half-year profit in more than a decade, helped by rising passenger numbers, and said it was hopeful it could break even for the full year.

The airline made a profit after tax of 513 million Kenyan shillings ($4 million) for January to June, overturning a 21.7 billion shilling loss in the first half of 2023.

Chief Executive Allan Kilavuka told a briefing the company was seeking to finalise negotiations with a strategic equity investor, without giving details.



One of Africa's three biggest airlines, Kenya Airways slid into insolvency in 2018 after an expansion drive left it with hundreds of millions of dollars in debt.

The collapse in international travel during the COVID-19 pandemic, combined with a sharp weakening of the Kenyan shilling and higher interest rates made it more difficult to service that debt.

The airline has been in the red since 2013.

Kilavuka said the first-half results were a milestone and he was "reasonably confident" Kenya Airways would break even for 2024 as a whole.

The airline's revenue rose by 22% in the first half, he said, helped by a 10% rise in passenger numbers.

A stronger Kenyan shilling following a rally earlier in the year when the government successfully sold a new international bond to avoid defaulting on another bond due in June also helped.

"The Kenya shilling has significantly strengthened against the U.S. dollar ... so obviously that has helped us to reduce the (foreign exchange losses)," Kilavuka said.



REUTERS