Finance

NAIROBI (Capital Markets in Africa) – The tech giant says a network of high-flying blimps can connect millions. Bringing fast, widespread internet to rural Africa has proven vexing for companies that have tried—and largely failed—with strategies ranging from drones to satellites. Now, a sister company of Google says it has the answer: balloons.   Loon, spun out of the search giant’s X innovation lab in July, is teaming up with Telkom Kenya Ltd. to build a…

KIGALI (Capital Markets in Africa) – MTN Group Ltd.’s Rwanda unit is considering a share sale on the country’s stock exchange to help fund planned network upgrades. The move would follow an initial public offering of MTN’s Ghanaian division earlier this year, pursued by Africa’s largest wireless carrier in exchange for new spectrum. MTN’s Nigeria business has pledged to sell shares in Lagos, while an IPO in Kampala is under review for Uganda. “It is…

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Commodity powerhouse Glencore Plc gave a ringing endorsement of the prospects for nickel, saying that most participants in the market don’t realize how strong demand for the metal now is and haven’t grasped the magnitude of the global deficit even as stockpiles dwindle. Worldwide consumption will outstrip supply by 124,000 metric tons next year after a shortfall of 178,000 tons in 2018 and deficits in the prior two years, the company said in…

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Africa’s most-populous nation has not yet signed a continent-wide free-trade deal because it wants to make sure it’s the biggest winner, and not the biggest loser, from this pact. Nigeria seeks to make sure third parties won’t be able to dump products and threaten local producers once the African Continental Free Trade Area is established, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said Friday at a conference in Lagos, the commercial capital. “We are…

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – The rand slumped to a three-week low against the dollar, leading emerging-market currency declines, as an unexpected monthly trade deficit added to a string of disappointing economic news making investors wary of South African assets. The currency of Africa’s most-industrialized economy declined 1.6 percent to 14.8307 per dollar by 4:18 p.m. in Johannesburg, heading for the weakest closing level since October 8. Yields on benchmark 2026 government bondsjumped nine basis points to…