The Editorial Team |

Two Middlemen Found Guilty in Milan Trial Over Nigeria Oil Graft

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Two middlemen were found guilty of corruption in Milan in a case related to an oil deal involving Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Eni SpA and the Nigerian government. Emeka Obi and Gianluca Di Nardo were found by a court to have helped arrange a payment between the oil companies and the Nigerian government for an oil license in the country, which largely went to pay bribes. The verdict could help bolster Italian prosecutors’ case…

RWE Adds African Producers to Talks on Supplying German Terminal

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Africa is joining Qatar and the U.S. on the list of potential suppliers of liquefied natural gas to Germany’s first import terminal for the fuel. Talks are underway with African LNG producers to supply the planned German facility, as well as with Qatar, the world’s biggest producer, said Andree Stracke, chief commercial officer at RWE AG’s supply and trading unit. The German utility has agreed to take capacity in the proposed terminal…

South Africa, in Grip of Recession, May Mull Rate Increase

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – South African policy makers may be about to consider whether to follow counterparts from Russia to Turkey and raise interest rates — even when the country is battling a recession. Investors and economists are divided on the chances that officials will respond to emerging-market turmoil with the country’s first upward move in borrowing costs since 2016. While forward-rate agreements suggest there’s a small chance of an increase on Thursday, just three of…

Steinhoff Seeks Extra Funding to Aid Mattress Firm Revival

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JOHANNESBUG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Steinhoff International Holdings NV is assessing ways to attract extra funding for Mattress Firm to execute a turnaround of the troubled U.S. bedding retailer. Bought for $3.8 billion two years ago, Mattress Firm has emerged as a headache for Steinhoff as it strives to shore up liquidity following an accounting scandal. The 3,300-store chain expanded too aggressively, suffered from ineffective marketing and has been embroiled in a dispute with suppliers,…

Global Security at Stake in Mali’s Islamist War, President Says

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BAMAKO (Capital Markets in Africa) – Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita said his country’s six-year fight against Islamist militants should be a global concern as the West African nation faces the fallout from the offensives against insurgents in Iraq and Libya. “What’s happening in Mali doesn’t only concern us here, but the global community,” Keita, 73, said in an interview in the capital, Bamako. “With the advances in the fight against the Islamic State in Syria and…

Whose Farm Is It Anyway? Drones Give Answers in Top Cocoa Grower

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ABIDJAN (Capital Markets in Africa) – In a cramped office in his parents’ backyard in Ivory Coast, Joseph-Olivier Biley is dreaming up solutions to Africa’s farming challenges. His answer: drones. The 25-year-old and his team of graduates from across the continent have spent a year developing and testing technology they say can help boost yields, improve crop forecasts and solve longstanding land-ownership issues in the world’s largest cocoa-producing nation. The drones are used to create…

South Africa Eases Free-Carry Rules in Final Mining Charter

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – South Africa eased some of the more controversial provisions in a final version of its Mining Charter approved by the cabinet this week as the government seeks to provide policy certainty and ease investor concerns. While holders of new mining rights must still give employees a 5 percent stake in the assets, they can choose to offset another 5 percent for nearby communities by investing in community development instead,…

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