The Editorial Team |

Wild Swings in Iraq Oil Production Give OPEC Another Problem

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – OPEC has an Iraq problem: the group’s second-biggest exporter is lurching between quota busting and production-crimping crisis, clouding the policy-making picture as ministers decide how long they need to extend output curbs. After consistently exceeding its output quota all year, Iraqi production plunged in October when clashes between the federal army and fighters from the semi-autonomous Kurdish region disrupted fields in the disputed Kirkuk province. While the conflict has calmed, exports from…

Glencore’s Trouble in Congo Claim Its Highest Profile Victim

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Two weeks after the Paradise Papers leak brought a wave of scrutiny over Glencore’s dealings in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the company is facing another scandal. The issues stem from Katanga Mining Ltd., a Congolese copper producer owned by Glencore. The African company restated financial statements and is under investigation by Canadian regulators for its corporate governance and accounting practices. In a major sign of how toxic the problem…

Bidvest Unit Buys FinGlobal to Expand Portfolio

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – A unit of Bidvest Group Ltd. agreed to buy FinGlobal, a provider of financial services to South Africans living outside the country, as part of an acquisition drive to expand and diversify its business. Bidvest Financial Services will fund the purchase out of its 2 billion rand ($142 million) in cash reserves, Managing Director Japie van Niekerk said by phone on Tuesday, without disclosing the value of the deal….

Bitcoin Falls on $31 Million Hack of Cryptocurrency Peer Tether

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Bitcoin slipped from a record after the $31 million theft of a cryptocurrency peer renewed concern about the security of digital coins. The company behind tether, a cryptocurrency used by bitcoin exchanges to facilitate trades with fiat currencies, announced the theft on Tuesday. It said in a statement that a “malicious” attacker removed tokens from the Tether Treasury wallet on Nov. 19 and sent them to an unauthorized bitcoin address. The company…

China Seen Gaining Even More in Zimbabwe If Mugabe Leaves Office

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HARARE (Capital Markets in Africa) – China has seen its influence rise in Zimbabwe during Robert Mugabe’s nearly four decades in power, becoming the African nation’s third-largest trading partner and biggest foreign investor. Beijing might gain even more if he goes. Former vice president Emmerson Mnangagwa, whose removal sparked last week’s military intervention, is seen as more open to investment from China and other nations than Mugabe, according to researchers who advise President Xi Jinping’s government on Africa…

Half of Emerging-Market Bond Index Faces Election Risk in 2018

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) Investors set to bag the best returns in five years from emerging-market bonds this year should brace themselves for 2018. Political risk looms large. Countries that make up more than 50 percent of a Bloomberg Barclays developing-nation local bond index are gearing up for elections in the next 12 months. While the outcomes of votes in countries like Russia are predictable, tight contests in heavyweights like Brazil and Mexico have potential to…

Mugabe’s Woes Wipe Out $6 Billion From Zimbabwe’s Skewed Stocks

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HARARE (Capital Markets in Africa) – Investors dumped Zimbabwean stocks every day since the military seized power on optimism that 93-year-old President Robert Mugabe will be forced to step down. The stocks, which are denominated in U.S. dollars and were used to hedge against rising inflation, fell another 10 percent on Tuesday, bringing the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange Industrial Index’s retreat since the army’s takeover on the morning of Nov. 15 to 35 percent. The bourse’s market capitalization has…

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