The Editorial Team |

South African PMI Shows First Factory Growth in Three Months

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – An index tracking South African manufacturing activity rose for the first month in three in July, but this was tempered by a lowering of expectations for future business conditions. The purchasing managers’ index compiled by the Stellenbosch-based Bureau for Economic Research and Absa Bank Ltd. climbed to 51.5 in July from 47.9 in June. A reading above 50 indicates growth in the factory sector. This is the highest reading since May…

Emerging Markets Struggle Amid Trade Woes as Commodities Slide

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Emerging markets struggled to gain traction amid heightened trade-war rhetoric and a slide in commodities. The largest stock ETF in developing nations started the month lower, and most currencies fell after China warned the U.S. against “blackmailing and pressuring” it over trade. Chile’s peso slumped with copper, while miner Vale led losses in raw-material peers. South Africa’s rand rose amid bets that the ruling party’s proposal to speed up land redistribution will reduce uncertainty,…

Nigerian Stocks Fall Most in Six Weeks as Earnings Disappoint

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Nigeria’s benchmark stock index fell the most in six weeks Wednesday, as earnings from some of the country’s biggest companies proved disappointing and some investors opted to move money out of equities. The Nigerian Stock Exchange All Share Index dropped 1.1 percent, the most since June 21. Royal Exchange Plc declined 10 percent to be the worst performer. Dangote Cement Plc, the largest share by market value, fell 1.3…

Transnet Overpaid $38 Million for Locomotives, Report Says

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Transnet SOC Ltd., South Africa’s state-owned rail and ports operator, paid 509 million rand ($38 million) more for 100 locomotives after switching a supply contract to a Chinese rail company from Mitsui & Co. of Japan, according to a report commissioned by the National Treasury. The finding is part of an investigation into so-called state capture, in which private individuals used influence over government officials to win contracts from…

Rough Quarter at the Frontier Leaves Top Bond Investor Unfazed

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Danish money manager Morten Bugge, battered by three months of carnage in frontier bond markets, says his appetite is intact — especially for Africa. Bugge, who’s beaten 96 percent of peers in five years, succeeded in betting exclusively on these less-developed markets by buying mostly local-currency debt. His theory: most foreigners steer clear and low duration makes it less sensitive to twitchy U.S. Treasuries. Though his $343 million Global Evolution Emerging…

SocGen, BNP Said Among Banks Exposed to Ivorian Cocoa Firm

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ABIDJAN (Capital Markets in Africa) – Lenders in Ivory Coast are threatening to stop financing cocoa exports unless the government halts the liquidation of a local shipping company, with units of BNP Paribas SA and Societe Generale SA among banks exposed to debt that may not be repaid, according to people familiar with the matter. Banks and the government are continuing talks after a court on July 18 ordered the liquidation of Saf-Cacao, which two years ago was the country’s second-biggest…

Nigeria Ruling APC Bleeds as Key Figures Drop Buhari Before Vote

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Nigerian leader Muhammadu Buhari lost a key supporter in his northern stronghold, a day after the senate president walked out of the ruling party amid a wave of defections to a swelling opposition movement ahead of elections in February. The governor of north western Sokoto state, Aminu Tambuwal, left the All Progressives Congress to join the People’s Democratic Party, which ruled Nigeria for 16 years until Buhari’s 2015 win, the governor’s…

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