Banking | - Part 112

Nigeria | Out of Options Amid Economic Slump, Nigeria Abandons Naira Peg

LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: Battered by the oil plunge, starved of foreign currency and with the economy headed into recession, Africa’s second-biggest crude producer said Wednesday it will allow the naira to float, setting the stage for the currency to weaken. Free trade in the naira, set for Monday, will mark the end of more than a year of resistance by President Muhammadu Buhari, who reiterated his opposition to devaluation as recently as two…

Egypt’s Dilemma as Central Bank Meets on Rates

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CAIRO, Egypt, Capital Markets in Africa: Soaring inflation and a long-running dollar shortage suggest Egypt’s central bank has ample reason to raise interest rates when officials meet on Thursday. On the flip-side, doing so would increase interest payments for a government trying to plug a hole in its finances. A Bloomberg survey shows economists are split, with three predicting a hold and three predicting an increase to the benchmark rate. The central bank raised Egypt’s key interest…

Bank of Japan Keeps Policy Unchanged Even as Kuroda Warns on Yen

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LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: The Bank of Japan refrained from expanding monetary stimulus ahead of the U.K. vote on Brexit next week that could roil global markets, and before a domestic election in which the political opposition has made the bank’s negative interest-rate policy an issue. With the yen soaring to its strongest in almost two years after the decision Thursday, Governor Haruhiko Kuroda reiterated in a press conference in Tokyo that the central bank won’t hesitate to take…

Mozambique Raises Key Rate to 14.25% to Contain Inflation in June

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MAPUTO, Capital Markets in Africa: Mozambique’s central bank raised its key interest rate for a third time this year as a weakening currency led to soaring inflation in the southern African nation. Policy makers increased the benchmark policy rate by 150 basis points to 14.25 percent, the Maputo-based institution said in a statement on Monday. The interest rate on the standing deposit facility was raised to 7.25 percent from 5.75 percent. The annual inflation rate…

Nigerian Naira Devaluation Bets Surge Before Nigeria Unveils New Policy

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LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: Naira forward contracts surged to a record as traders anticipated Nigeria’s central bank would devalue the currency on Wednesday as part of a new foreign-exchange policy. Governor Godwin Emefiele will make a televised announcement from around 2 p.m. in Abuja, the capital, according to Isaac Okorafor, a central bank spokesman. Twelve-month non-deliverable naira forward contracts surged 3.3 percent to352 per dollar, a record on a closing basis, as of 11:27 a.m. in…

Nigerian Monetary Policy Committee Embraces Flexibility — Afrinvest

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LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) at the conclusion of its 3rd meeting for the year decided to hold all rates unchanged. More specifically, the Committee decided to; Retain the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) at 12.0% Maintain the asymmetric corridor around the MPR at +200/-500bps Retain Cash Reserves Ratio (CRR) at 22.5% Keep the Liquidity Ratio (LR) at 30.0% Adopt flexibility of the interbank exchange rate market with a small…

Nigeria’s Central Bank Seen Loosening Stranglehold on Currency

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LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: Nigerian policy makers may be about to loosen their stranglehold on the nation’s currency. The central bank of Africa’s biggest economy will decide Tuesday on whether to adjust borrowing rates as evidence mounts that a recession is looming. Barclays Plc, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Renaissance Capital Ltd. are among banks predicting it will also carry out a de facto devaluation of the naira, or even a gradual removal of capital controls that have…

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