Features

CASABLANCA (Capital Markets in Africa) – French food giant Danone is asking Moroccan cattle farmers and consumers to decide for themselves how much to charge for the fresh milk its Moroccan unit produces, in an effort to defuse a boycott that’s sent dairy prices and sales plunging. Chief Executive Officer Emmanuel Faber made the announcement during a quick visit to Morocco, where he said he talked with cattle farmers, bloggers and homemakers, and “listened to the legitimate…

LILONGWE (Capital Markets in Africa) – Malawian President Peter Mutharika had to deal with devastating floods, a famine and a foreign-aid freeze during his first term. Now, he’s seeking re-election to tackle the challenges of attracting billions of dollars in investment and reducing the economy’s reliance on tobacco. Mutharika, 78, is expected to be the sole contender for the leadership of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party when it meets next week. With the opposition fragmented and a…

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Sibanye Gold Ltd. shares fell after another worker was killed at its Driefontein operation in South Africa, bringing the total deaths at the company’s mines this year to 21. Sibanye accounts for nearly half of the 46 people reported killed at South African mines in 2018 and is already the subject of an investigation by the chief inspector of mines. The company said last week it named a new head of…

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – A U.K. judge told a Swiss asset management firm that it has until next week to explain hundreds of payments as U.K., Swiss and Angolan authorities probe what happened to billions of dollars of assets intended for an Angolan economic development fund. Quantum Global, which had a mandate to manage assets for the Fundo Soberano de Angola and the National Bank of Angola, must turn over details of every…

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – South Africa’s move to change the constitution to allow expropriation without compensation could deter investment, according to Moody’s Investors Service. Uncertainty over how this will be achieved “continues to limit near-term investment, and could ultimately lead to a more pronounced fall in investment should the final terms of land reform be particularly onerous to businesses,” Moody’s Vice President Lucie Villa said in an emailed report on Tuesday. Lawmakers have started the…