The Editorial Team |

IMF Wants Full Mozambique Debt Audit as Bondholders Slam Default

MAPUTO (Capital Markets in Africa) – The International Monetary Fund said Mozambique must publish the full audit of hidden debt before it will consider resuming lending, as bondholders criticized the government’s latest default on its Eurobonds. The IMF welcomed the release last month of a summary of the Kroll LCC audit, saying it constituted an “important step toward greater transparency,” spokesman William Murray said at a briefing in Washington Thursday. The fund will consider re-engaging with Mozambique once the…

South Africa Cuts Key Rate for the First Time in Five Years

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – South Africa’s central bank cut borrowing costs for the first time in five years as inflation eases and after the country slipped into a recession. The Monetary Policy Committee reduced its key rate by 25 basis points to 6.75 per cent, Governor Lesetja Kganyago told reporters Thursday in the capital, Pretoria, citing concern about the nation’s growth outlook. Only three of 23 economists in a Bloomberg survey predicted a reduction. The cut is the…

Market Watch: Egyptian Major Equity Indices End in Red, Market Cap up EGP1bn

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Cairo (Capital Markets in Africa): The benchmark EGX30 index of the Egyptian Exchange (EGX) fell at Wednesday’s close by 0.08% or 10.4 points to the level of 13,707.13 points. Similarly, the EGX70, EGX100, and EGX50 indices declined by 0.25%, 0.10%, and 0.23%, respectively. The market capitalization increased by EGP 1 billion to EGP 708.99 billion. Trading volume reached 276.79 million shares exchanged at EGP 804.6 million through 23,200 transactions. Foreign and Arab traders were net…

South Africa Proposes Restriction on Renewal of Mining Rights

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – South African Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane proposed a restriction on granting and renewing mining rights that are needed by producers to operate in the country. Zwane has issued a request for submissions on the proposal, “having regard to the national interest and the need to promote the sustainable development of the nation’s national resources,” he said in a government gazette published Wednesday. The minister’s move raises the stakes in his dispute…

South Africa’s Inflation Rate Falls to a 19-Month Low in June

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – South Africa’s inflation rate fell to its lowest in 19 months in June, creating room for the central bank to shift toward looser monetary policy. Inflation slowed to 5.1 percent from 5.4 percent in May, Pretoria-based Statistics South Africa said Wednesday in a report on its website. That’s the lowest rate since November 2015. The median of 21 economists’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg was for 5.2 percent. Prices increased 0.2 percent in…

Kenya Bond Rally Fueled by Investors Who Are Out of Options

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NAIROBI (Capital Markets in Africa) – Kenya’s best bond rally in at least five years has less to do with faith in the sovereign than finding a place to hide. An index of the government’s local-currency debt has advanced for 68 straight days, the longest run since Bloomberg began tracking the data in 2012, as an increase in non-performing loans and high charges on investments by insurance companies outside of government debt boost demand for the bonds….

Taste Is Said to Delay Luxury Unit Sale as Buyers Balk at Price

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Taste Holdings Limited has suspended the auction of its business selling jewelery and high-end watches after failing to find a buyer willing to pay an asking price of as much as 400 million rand ($31 million), according to two people familiar with the matter. The South African company said in April it planned to fully focus on expanding its food unit, which includes the local franchises for U.S. brands Starbucks Corp. and…

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