The Editorial Team |

IMF Sees `Prominent’ Downside Risks to South Africa’s Outlook

NAIROBI (Capital Markets in Africa) – Downside risks to South Africa’s economic outlook are “prominent,” with spending pressures and a higher public-wage bill potentially raising financing costs and damping growth, the International Monetary Fund said. “Fiscal consolidation is needed to strengthen public finances,” the Washington-based lender said in an emailed statement Tuesday after concluding a visit to the nation with the continent’s most-industrialized economy. While steps announced in the February budget are a move in the right…

OPEC Resistance to Saudi Supply Plan Grows as Iraq Objects

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Iraq said OPEC should resist pressure to increase oil supplies, strengthening opposition to plans by Saudi Arabia as the group prepares to meet next week. OPEC’s second-biggest producer said supply curbs by the cartel haven’t yet achieved their purpose, with oil prices still below the desired level. Its defiance follows similar resistance from Iran and Venezuela, meaning three of the five countries that founded OPEC now oppose the Saudi plan. The…

Uganda Keeps Key Rate at Record Low But Sees Prices Rising

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KAMPALA (Capital Markets in Africa) – Uganda’s central bank maintained its key interest rate at a record low but warned that inflation is set to accelerate from a 3 1/2-year low. The Monetary Policy Committee kept the benchmark rate at 9 percent, GovernorEmmanuel Tumusiime-Mutebile told reporters Monday in the capital, Kampala. Growth in consumer prices slowed to 1.7 percent in May, the weakest level since 2014, and the risks to the inflation outlook in Africa’s biggest coffee exporter…

As Haftar Closes in on Derna, Fears of a Divided Libya Grow

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TRIPOLI (Capital Markets in Africa) – Libyan military commander Khalifa Haftar is close to capturing the last major city out of his control in the oil-rich east, giving him a potential boost in the scramble for power before the fractured country heads to possible elections this year. After weeks of heavy fighting left dozens dead, a unit loyal to Haftar’s self-styled Libyan National Army said it had advanced early Monday on two districts in the…

MSCI Win Bets Make Saudi Stocks Even Pricier Than New Peers

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Emerging-market investors need increasingly deeper pockets as they prepare to add stocks from the region’s largest exchange. Saudi Arabian shares have climbed 14 percent this year, partly as foreign investors bet the country will win upgrades to emerging-market status, which they expect to trigger billions of dollars of inflows from funds tracking global benchmark indexes. The buying has pushed the capitalization of Riyadh’s market beyond that of South Africa in dollar terms for…

Equities Market Update |The Bulls Dominate Again …as NSEOILG5 Gains 4.89%

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – The Nigerian bourse extended its bullish run, as the NSE All-Share index advanced by 0.83%, to settle the year-to-date return at +2.42%. The market turnover increased by 33.57%, however, the volume of transactions declined by 43.39%. The market breadth stood at 1.29x, indicating twenty-seven (27) gainers and twenty-one (21) laggards. SEPLAT emerged the top gainer, as its share price appreciated by 8.14% to close at NGN769.00. The top gainers’…

Park Your Money in Nigeria, a Haven Amid Emerging-Market Mayhem

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Investors looking for a haven amid the rout in emerging markets over the past two months would have found one in Nigeria’s domestic debt. Naira bonds issued by the government have returned 8.4 percent in dollar terms this year, the most in the Bloomberg Barclays Global EM Local Currency Index, which includes 25 countries from Argentina to Turkey. And it’s the only local-currency debt not to have made losses…

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