Banking & Finance
What the Bank of Zambia Policy Rate Means for Your Loan
The policy rate is 13.25% but the average lending rate is near 28%. Why the gap exists, what actually moves your repayment, and the three questions to ask…
News
The latest reporting and analysis from The Zambian Economist, across every beat we cover.
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Business & Economy
Zambia’s Power Deficit and the Real Cost to Business
Load shedding hit twelve hours a day and the deficit reached 1,600MW. Supply is better in 2026 - but the costs it imposed are still sitting on Zambian…
Business & Economy
Zambia’s Debt-for-Energy Swap Explained
Zambia bought back a US$1.36 billion bond with an AfDB loan and committed US$275 million in savings to the power grid. A world first - explained, with the…
Banking & Finance
Why a Strong Kwacha Is Not Always Good News for Zambia
The kwacha is up 20% this year. It cuts import costs and inflation - but squeezes exporters, tourism and the government revenue base. Who wins, who pays, and…
Banking & Finance
Zambia Inflation Rate 2026: What the Numbers Actually Show
Zambia's inflation fell to 6.5% in June 2026, back inside the Bank of Zambia target band. What drove it, which parts are temporary, and what it means for…
Agriculture & Mining
Copper and the Kwacha: How the Link Actually Works
Copper sets the kwacha, and the kwacha sets almost everything else in Zambia. The full chain explained - production, price, currency, inflation and your borrowing costs.
Business & Economy
Zambia’s Economy in 2026: A Business Guide to the Numbers That Matter
Inflation, the kwacha, copper, interest rates, power and public debt - a plain-English guide to the numbers shaping Zambia in 2026 and what each one means for business.
Business & Economy
What the Next Government Inherits: Zambia’s Economic Position on 14 August 2026
Debt restructured to 94 per cent of perimeter, inflation at an eight-year low, and record harvests - set against a primary surplus falling by two-thirds and no successor…