The Editorial Team |

Kenya Central Bank Expects Current-Account Gap to Stabilize

NAIROBI (Capital Markets in Africa) – Kenya’s current-account deficit will stabilize after shrinking last year as the currency strengthens, exports increase, tourism improves and remittances climb, central bank Governor Patrick Njoroge said. The gap probably narrowed to 5.2 percent of gross domestic product in 2016 from 10.4 percent 1 1/2 years earlier, he said in an interview Thursday in Davos, Switzerland. The bank will continue to intervene to slow the shilling’s depreciation and appreciation, trying to smooth…

Mozambique Bondholders Lay Down Terms Ahead of Restructuring

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MAPUTO (Capital Markets in Africa) – A group of key Mozambique bondholders laid down terms to the embattled government ahead of restructuring talks, calling on it to revoke guarantees on loans taken on by two state-owned companies. The southeast African nation, which defaulted on its only Eurobond in January, should also liquidate the two firms — ProIndicus and Mozambique Asset Management — as well as a third, a tuna-fishing company known as Ematum, the so-called Global…

Africa’s Biggest Company Seeks Partnerships With Phone Companies

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Naspers Ltd., Africa’s biggest company by market value, is seeking partnerships with mobile-phone operators on the continent to boost its video-on-demand business and help compete with U.S. giant Netflix Inc. The owner of Africa’s biggest pay-TV provider is planning to build on a joint venture agreed to last year with Kenya’s largest company, Safaricom Ltd., to roll out online service Showmax at more affordable data prices. Safaricom is 40 percent…

Diamond Said to Mull Atlas Options Including Taking Private

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LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – Bob Diamond, co-founder of Atlas Mara Ltd., is weighing options including taking the sub-Saharan African bank acquirer private, people with knowledge of the plan said. One option being considered is to find an investor or private-equity vehicle to back such a move, one of the people said, asking not to be identified because the details are private. A merger with another financial institution with a presence in Africa is also being weighed,…

Nigerian Equity Market Sustained Rally in Banking Sector buoys Market Performance

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – It was a positive trading day for Nigerian equities market as the All Share Index (ASI) added 18bps to close at 26,373.83 points. Consequently, market capitalization improved by N16.5bn to settle at N9.1tn. Today’s positive performance was driven by further gains in Tier-1 lenders – ZENITH (+2.1%), ETI(+4.3%) and ACCESS (+2.9%). Market activity, however, remained mixed as volume traded improved by 17.1% to settle at 174.0m units while value traded fell 68.7% to settle at…

Kenyan Stocks, World’s Worst This Year, Set to Fall Further

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NAIROBI (Capital Markets in Africa) – Kenyan stock prices at more than three-year lows may have further to fall with domestic investors favoring bonds and foreign buyers waiting for lower valuations, the head of the bourse said. Shares on the Nairobi Securities Exchange have dropped 6.9 percent since Jan. 1, extending last year’s 8.5 percent decline, because of jitters among investors about elections scheduled for August. The yield on Kenya’s benchmark 10-year bond has fallen almost 200 basis points to…

Volatile Pound Stokes Life Into Emerging-Market Carry Trades

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LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – There’s life in the great emerging-market carry trade yet, although now it comes with a twist. Investors are betting a trade that reaped returns of more than 20 percent last year for borrowing dollars to buy Brazil’s real, Russia’s ruble and South Africa’s rand has further to run — only they’re using the battered British pound to fund long positions in emerging-market currencies. Citigroup Inc. on Monday named shorting the pound against the Russian…

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