For U.K. Housebuilder Stocks, Election Is Still All About Brexit

For U.K. Housebuilder Stocks, Election Is Still All About Brexit

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – Uncertainty, uncertainty and more uncertainty. For investors in U.K. home builders, the word has been a bane for more than three years as the industry contends with the hit to consumer confidence caused by Britain’s prolonged departure from the European Union. Now there is an election coming and investors in the sector are hoping for a Conservative victory to help solidify this year’s rally, which has seen big players…

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Brexit Trade Deadline ‘Very Demanding,’ Irish Finance Chief Says

Brexit Trade Deadline ‘Very Demanding,’ Irish Finance Chief Says

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – The European Union’s time frame to complete a post-Brexit trade deal with the U.K. will be “very demanding” as officials race to complete a complicated set of negotiations at an unprecedented pace, according to Irish Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe. Prime Minister Boris Johnson will have only 11 months to negotiate a trade deal with the EU’s 27 remaining members even if an agreement to exit to the bloc goes through the British…

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Global Risk Binge Gives Central Bankers Cause to Shudder

Global Risk Binge Gives Central Bankers Cause to Shudder

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – Global central banks are approaching the end of the year with a collective shudder at the risky behavior that their low interest-rate policies are encouraging. Policymakers from European Central Bank and the Federal Reserve are among those raising cautionary flags at potentially unsafe investing stoked by their efforts to flood economies with ultra-cheap money. Stock indexes from the U.S. to India are at records, and low sovereign bond yields…

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Treasury Yields May Trail GDP for Decades in Debt-Trap Fallout

Treasury Yields May Trail GDP for Decades in Debt-Trap Fallout

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – Benchmark Treasury yields have trailed U.S. nominal growth rates for almost a decade — and will continue to do so for at least into the 2040s as the nation’s debt mounts, according to Deutsche Bank AG’s Jim Reid. Fiscal policy will play a bigger role in supporting future growth in the world’s largest economy, entailing more borrowings, and monetary policy would need to keep interest rates capped to help ease…

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Never in the History of the Euro Has Volatility Been This Low

Never in the History of the Euro Has Volatility Been This Low

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – It has never been this calm in the euro-dollar options market and it’s starting to look like a structural shift toward persistent low volatility. There were record lows for one- and three-month volatility in the common currency Wednesday, following similar moves in longer tenors at previous sessions. While the expected calm of Christmas holidays may explain the move over the one-month horizon, the trend runs further out and maybe…

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African Bank to Add Credit Cards, Overdrafts to Diversify Income

African Bank to Add Credit Cards, Overdrafts to Diversify Income

JOHANNESBURG(Capital Markets in Africa) – African Bank Holdings Ltd. plans to offer overdrafts as the South African lender adds income sources to draw more distance between itself and its collapsed former parent. “We are looking to relaunch our credit-card product next year and we are looking to launch an overdraft product as well,” Chief Executive Officer Basani Maluleke said by phone. “The diversification of our funding is also a critical success factor for the bank.” The lender’s…

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Demand Surges at South African Bond Auction Despite Junk Threat

Demand Surges at South African Bond Auction Despite Junk Threat

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Demand at South Africa’s weekly government bond auction surged as investors stocked up on some of the most attractive yields in emerging markets before supply dries up into the year-end. Investors bid for almost four times the amount of securities on offer, making it the strongest sale since the government increased the auction amount to 4.53 billion rand ($306 million) on August 6, according to Bloomberg calculations based on central-bank data. S&P…

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