The Editorial Team |

Uganda Defends Introduction of Social-Media Tax After Outcry

KAMPALA (Capital Markets in Africa) – Ugandan authorities defended the introduction of a tax on users of social media such as Facebook and Twitter, saying the revenue is necessary to fund public services. The daily levy equivalent to about 5 U.S. cents is “a small contribution of citizens towards the development of their country,” Minister of State for Finance David Bahati was quoted by the state-run Uganda Media Centre as saying on Tuesday. East Africa’s…

Burning Villages, Ethnic Tensions Menace Mozambique Gas Boom

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MAPUTO (Capital Markets in Africa) – Women’s cries just after 1 a.m. confirmed Barnabe Samuel Mussa’s worst fears — an attack was underway. He and other men from his village of Mitumbate in Mozambique were camped in a dense forest armed with bows, arrows, and machetes, awaiting the arrival of a little-known group of Islamist fighters that’s terrorized residents in the gas-rich area 1,800 kilometers (1,118 miles) northeast of the capital, Maputo. An explosive cocktail…

Squabbling Within Zimbabwe’s Opposition May Weaken Election Bid

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HARARE (Capital Markets in Africa) – Bickering within Zimbabwe’s opposition alliance is weakening its chances of ousting the ruling party in this month’s elections, the southern African nation’s first since Robert Mugabe ended his 37-year rule in November. The High Court is hearing a case brought by Thokozani Khupe, former vice president of the main opposition group, the Movement for Democratic Change, that she and not its president Nelson Chamisa should campaign under its name. In four parliamentary races, members…

IMF Urges Egypt to Watch Inflation After New Subsidy Cuts

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CAIRO (Capital Markets in Africa) – The International Monetary Fund urged Egypt to maintain a tight monetary policy as a new round of subsidy cuts rekindled inflation worries. The Washington-based lender praised Egypt’s implementation of economic reforms as “instrumental in achieving macroeconomic stabilization, with external and fiscal deficits narrowing, inflation and unemployment declining, and growth accelerating.” At the same time, the central bank “should retain its restrictive stance to counter second-round effects of fuel and electricity price increases,”…

What Central Bankers Are Saying About the Trade War Threat

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Central bankers are sounding the alarm on how the fledgling trade war could complicate their work by fanning inflation, undermining demand and unnerving investors. With President Donald Trump readying to impose tariffs on China and also European automakers, monetary policymakers might be forced to decide whether to focus on supporting growth or fighting price pressures. A sell-off in equity markets would only add to their stress. Here are extracts of some…

Higher Debt Costs Cut South Africa Fiscal Room, Moody’s Says

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – The weaker rand and foreign-investment outflows from South Africa are raising the nation’s debt costs and reducing its fiscal flexibility, but its vulnerability to tightening financing conditions is still low, Moody’s Investors Service said. The rand depreciated 14 percent against the dollar in the second quarter, the worst performance among major currencies after Brazil’s real, while portfolio outflows totaled about $6.4 billion, Moody’s said in an emailed report Tuesday, citing data…

South African Central Bank Is Said to Call for Capitec Fee Probe

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – South Africa’s central bank asked the country’s credit regulator to probe whether Capitec Bank Holdings Ltd. re-introduced a product criticized for its fee structure, an investigation that is ongoing, according to a person familiar with the matter. The referral to the National Credit Regulator came after the issue about the so-called multi-loan product was raised in a report by short-seller Viceroy Research in January, said the person, asking not to be…

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