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Trade | EU Seals Trade Pact With African Nations After 12 Years of Talks

LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: The European Union and six southern African nations will sign off on a trade accord Friday after 12 years of negotiations that were stalled mainly by differences over market access for agricultural products. The so-called Economic Partnership Agreements gives products from Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, and Swaziland duty- and quota-free access to the EU. South Africa, which has the region’s most-developed economy, will enjoy enhanced market access that goes beyond…

Nigeria | Airlines Exit Nigeria on Slow Economy Hit by Dollar Shortage

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LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: International carriers may follow the example of United Airlines and Iberia and halt operations in Nigeria or cut flights as they struggle to move revenue out of the country because the oil-price slump has depleted the West African nation’s foreign exchange reserves. Iberia suspended its route to Africa’s biggest economy on May 12, followed by United, which informed employees that it would end flights from the U.S. to Nigeria at the end of…

Nigeria Food-to-Logistics Company UAC Joins Naira Complaints

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LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: UAC of Nigeria Plc, an investor in foods, logistics and real-estate services in Africa’s largest economy, said the central bank’s delays in announcing details of a more flexible foreign-exchange system are holding back business decisions because of confusion over future costs. “They should have done it yesterday, rather than tomorrow,” Larry Ettah, UAC’s chief executive officer, said in an interview Wednesday in Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital. “We are hopeful that…

Informal Sector on Tax Radar as East Africa Boosts Spending

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NAIROBI, Kenya, Capital Markets in Africa: Governments in East Africa will levy more tax on their informal sectors as they seek to accelerate growth through increased spending, while economies slow in other parts of the continent. Kenya will reintroduce a new tool to collect revenue from hard-to-tax parts of the economy, Treasury Secretary Henry Rotich announced in his budget speech on Wednesday. His counterpart in Uganda also set out plans to improve compliance in the informal sector….

Egypt Approves Tougher Penalties on Black Market Dollar Traders

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CAIRO, Egypt, Capital Markets in Africa: Egypt approved tougher measures against illegal foreign currency traders as authorities seek to ease dollar shortages that are contributing to economic weakness. The government increased jail time for black market trading to as long as 10 years and raised fines, the cabinet said in an e-mailed statement. Other amendments to the central bank law give the governor the authority to suspend currency bureaus’ licenses and impose fines for violations. The…

Investment | Glencore Sells Agri Stake to Canadian Fund for $625 Million

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South Africa, Capital Markets in Africa: Glencore Plc agreed to sell just-under a 10 percent stake in its agriculture unit to Canada’s British Columbia Investment Management Corp. for $624.9 million in cash as it continues to cut debt. The commodities trader and miner, which sold a 40 percent stake in the business to Canada Pension Plan Investment Board for $2.5 billion in April, will retain a majority 50.01 percent stake, it said in a statement on Wednesday. The agreement takes the value…

Selling Dollars Instead of Lanterns Highlights Egypt Crunch

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CAIRO, Egypt, Capital Markets in Africa: Above the counter at Manal’s electrical store in Cairo are the lanterns and string lights that will illuminate homes during the holy Muslim month of Ramadan that began this week. Below it are dollar bills destined for the black market. The businesswoman is the kind of opportunist currency dealer authorities targeted in March when they devalued the pound and raised interest rates to draw dollars into a formal economy starved…

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