Iron Ore Exports Hit Record as Barclays, Goldman Spar on Outlook

Iron Ore Exports Hit Record as Barclays, Goldman Spar on Outlook

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – The global iron ore industry got off to a very strong start in 2018 with record exports from key shippers just as Barclays Plc and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. duel about whether high prices will last amid a debate about prospects for demand in China and rising mine supply. Exports from Australia’s Port Hedland were 41.1 million metric tons in January, according to the Pilbara Ports Authority. That’s a record for the…

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This Stock Proves How Much Egyptians Love Their Cigarettes

This Stock Proves How Much Egyptians Love Their Cigarettes

CAIRO (Capital Markets in Africa) – If money talks, the relationship between Egyptians and their cigarettes won’t be changing any time soon. Shares of Cairo-based Eastern Tobacco, which holds a monopoly on cigarette production in Egypt, have hit successive record highs, in both dollar and local-currency terms, after the company posted an increase of almost 161 percent in first-half profit. Eastern Tobacco has been on a upward trend since Egypt let its currency float freely…

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Day of Reckoning for South Africa’s Zuma as ANC Top Brass Meets

Day of Reckoning for South Africa’s Zuma as ANC Top Brass Meets

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Time appears to be running out for South African President Jacob Zuma. Six weeks after his deputy, Cyril Ramaphosa, replaced him as leader of the ruling African National Congress, the party’s top brass is due to meet in Cape Town on Wednesday to decide whether to force him from office. The crunch meeting of the National Executive Committee comes a day before Zuma was due to deliver the annual state-of-the-nation…

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Mining Companies Are Suddenly Positive on South Africa Again

Mining Companies Are Suddenly Positive on South Africa Again

JOHANNESBBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Cyril Ramaphosa isn’t even president yet and mining companies are already changing their tune on South Africa. A former mine union leader and now one of the wealthiest black South Africans, the new leader of the ruling African National Congress is seen as more willing to negotiate investor-friendly policy, according to executives attending the African Mining Indaba conference in Cape Town this week. That’s partly after he told reporters in…

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Congo Seeks More Cobalt Control as Batteries Drive Boom

Congo Seeks More Cobalt Control as Batteries Drive Boom

KINSHASA (Capital Markets in Africa) – The Democratic Republic of Congo will seek greater control of the global cobalt market by engaging directly with car and battery manufacturers, according to its largest state-owned mining company. “I find it scandalous that when cobalt is discussed, and the explosion of electric vehicles, only the traders and consumers are referenced and Congo and Gecamines are not cited,” Gecamines Chairman Albert Yuma said in an interview in Cape Town. The market…

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Bitcoin Miners Face Shakeout as Only Strongest Survive at $6,000

Bitcoin Miners Face Shakeout as Only Strongest Survive at $6,000

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – Bitcoin miners face a reckoning as the cryptocurrency’s tumble wipes out profits for all but the industry’s most efficient operators, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. Only miners with access to “very cheap” electricity of about 6 cents per kilowatt hour or less can stay profitable after Bitcoin slumped to $6,000 on Tuesday, said Sophie Lu, an analyst at Bloomberg New Energy Finance in Beijing. If Bitcoin stays this low…

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Bitcoin and Stocks Have More in Common Than You Think: Gadfly

Bitcoin and Stocks Have More in Common Than You Think: Gadfly

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – Bitcoin has been a plaything for risk-hungry traders and punters rather than a widely held investment or real-world currency. It’s been shunned by banks and banned by governments. Yet it’s still possible that its slide on Monday made the broader market selloff worse, as investors sold assets to compensate for crypto-losses. Marginal as this may be, and you can’t be certain of correlation with something as unstable as digital…

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