The Editorial Team |

Some of South Africa’s Economic Rebound Started Under Zuma

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – South Africa’s new president, Cyril Ramaphosa, is credited with boosting confidence in the economy, but some of that rebound started under his predecessor, Jacob Zuma. The economy expanded 1.3 percent last year, exceeding the National Treasury’s forecast. The annualized growth in the three months through December was the most since the second quarter of 2016 and fixed capital formation expanded after three quarters of contraction. This “suggests that confidence was returning…

Tillerson Heads to Africa With Security, Not Aid, as Focus

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Secretary of State Rex Tillerson begins his first official trip to sub-Saharan Africa with a pledge to help shore up trade, civic freedom and good governance in countries that President Donald Trump has harshly criticized. Tillerson arrived on the continent Wednesday with the Trump administration advocating cuts of more than a third in aid to African countries and programs, along with deep reductions to global health initiatives. With several U.S. allies struggling to…

South African Stocks 0.5% Lower, Tunisia SE Rises 0.8%;

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – FTSE/JSE Africa All Share Index falls 0.5% in Johannesburg. Fortress drops after Resilient and Fortress announce they will restructure Siyakha Trust and Siyakha 2 Trust, with the intention to unwind cross-shareholding. Biggest laggers by percentage points: Tiger Brands (-7.9%), after U.A.E. bans co.’s processed meat products, Kumba (-7.1%), Fortress B shares (-5.9%), Fortress A shares (-5.6%), Steinhoff (-4.7%), BHP (-4.2%), FirstRand (-3.9%) News: Everglen to Sell About $100m of Transaction…

Buhari Grapples With Widening Crises as Nigerian Vote Looms

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Islamist militant attacks, gasoline shortages, worsening violence over grazing land, simmering unrest in the southeast — the crises keep mounting for Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari less than a year before general elections. The most recent setback came on March 1 when suspected Boko Haram Islamist militants killed three United Nations aid workers and eight soldiers in an attack in the north-eastern town of Rann, about two weeks after they kidnapped more…

Smurfit Kappa Rejects International Paper’s Takeover Offer

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Smurfit Kappa Group Plc rejected an unsolicited takeover approach from U.S. rival International Paper Co. in the latest sign of accelerating global consolidation in the booming packaging business. The cash-and-shares proposal “fails entirely” to reflect growth prospects, said the Dublin-based maker of cardboard boxes and paper bags, without disclosing the terms. Smurfit shares soared as much as 20 percent, the biggest intraday gain in almost a decade, giving a market value of about…

FinTech in South Africa: Accelerating the Digital Transformation of Banking & Financial Services

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The impact of Blockchain, AI, Mobile Money, Digital Wallets and Payment innovations are radically transforming the financial services landscape as FinTech disruptors intensify the challenge to Incumbent Banks in Africa and kickstart new growth opportunities Johannesburg, South Africa: Africa’s financial services landscape continues its dynamic evolution as the rapid growth of FinTech on the continent drives both the disruption and leapfrogging of legacy systems and further accelerates the digital transformation of financial services. In South…

Seeking IMF Bailout, Debt-Laden Congo Steps Up War on Graft

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KINSHASA (Capital Markets in Africa )- Authorities in the Republic of Congo plan to arrest more officials as part of an anti-corruption drive to meet conditions set by the International Monetary Fund for a bailout. Oil-producing Congo owes creditors at least $9.14 billion and sought support from the IMF last year. The Washington-based lender has insisted the government make “bold and immediate governance reforms” before any package is considered. Congo’s intelligence service last month arrested…

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