The Editorial Team |

Oil Plunge Pressures Nigeria to Devalue the Naira Further

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) — Nigeria will probably need to weaken the naira further following its devaluation last week, even as the central bank bucked global trends by holding interest rates on Tuesday to support the currency. With the decision to keep its benchmark rate at 13.5%, the central bank aims to avoid putting further pressure on the local unit after devaluing the exchange rate used by foreign bond and stock investors, which had…

Pandemic Threatens Billions in Credit-Card Losses in Echo of ’08

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NEW YORK (Capital Markets in Africa) — For Bethany and Derick Hingle, every dollar counts now. In just a matter of weeks, the New Orleans couple — he’s a self-employed photographer, she works at a jewelry store — watched most of their income evaporate as the coronavirus pandemic shuttered businesses. They began calling their banks, securing extensions for credit-card bills from Capital One Financial Corp. and a local credit union. They couldn’t catch a break on a…

U.S. Stocks Extend Gains With Stimulus in Sight: Markets Wrap

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) — U.S. stocks looked to post their first back-to-back gain since the coronavirus crisis began as investors awaited details on unprecedented government spending packages aimed at countering the hit from the pandemic. Treasuries advanced. The S&P 500 Index extended gains following Tuesday’s 9.4% surge in anticipation of the deal between the White House and Congress. After overnight negotiations, the bill is slated for a vote Wednesday. Boeing Co. rallied, lifting…

Forget $25, Oil’s Trading Much Lower in the Real World

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) — As oil crashes due to the impact of the coronavirus, it’s easy to overlook an even more dismal reality for producers: the real prices they’re getting for their barrels are worse still. Having collapsed by about 60% this year, Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude have stabilized at around $25 a barrel, but the price rout is far deeper for actual cargoes, which are changing hands at large and…

South African Bonds Soar as Central Bank Signals Debt-Buying

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) — South African bonds soared, with the yield on the most-traded government securities falling by the most in 19 years, after the country’s central bank said it will start buying debt in the secondary market in an unprecedented intervention to boost liquidity. The move came as government yields reached record highs even after the South African Reserve Bank cut its policy rate last week by the most in a decade…

South Africa Bank Union Criticizes Lenders Over Slow Virus Response

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) — A South African labor union representing 73,000 banking employees said it hasn’t been informed on how a national lockdown will affect workers providing essential services. “The absence of such information is of serious concern because we need to give our members exact details on what the impact will be of the working arrangements on staff and how the selection of key employees to keep finance services afloat during this…

South Africa Ensures Continuity at Central Bank as Naidoo Stays

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa): South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has reappointed Kuben Naidoo as deputy governor of the central bank, ensuring continuity at the institution’s top management level for least another four years. Naidoo will serve a further five years after his first term expires March 31, the central bank said in an emailed statement Wednesday. His reappointment follows that of Governor Lesetja Kganyago in July when Ramaphosa also named Fundi Tshazibana and Rashad…

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