News | - Part 17

Zambia’s Lungu Appoints Felix Mutati as His Finance Minister

LUSAKA, Capital Markets in Africa: Zambian President Edgar Lungu named part of his new cabinet, nominating accountant and ex-commerce and trade minister Felix Mutati as finance minister, the presidency said. Mutati, along with the rest of the partial cabinet Lungu announced, are scheduled to be sworn in Thursday, the presidency said in an e-mailed statement on Wednesday. Mutati, 57, will need to steady an economy that’s expanding at the slowest pace since 1998, where inflation is hovering near 20…

Congo to Appoint Caretaker Government Until Delayed Election

Posted on by The Editorial Team

CONGO, Capital Markets in Africa: Democratic Republic of Congo elections will be delayed until the voter register is updated and a new government will be appointed to run the nation until the vote, a joint delegation of the ruling party and some opposition members said. President Joseph Kabila will remain in power until the vote is held and will in the meantime reorganize the government to include representatives of the opposition, ruling party member and Justice Minister Alexis Thambwe told reporters in…

Visa Introduces Mobile-Money Product to Rival Safaricom’s M-Pesa

Posted on by The Editorial Team

Johannesburg, Capital Markets in Africa: Visa Inc., the world’s largest payments network, introduced a mobile-phone application to enable cashless transactions in Kenya, where the majority of wireless payments are being done through the nation’s biggest telecommunications company, Safaricom Limited. The mVisa app will initially facilitate transactions for people with accounts in four banks, including KCB Group Ltd. and Co-operative Bank of Kenya Ltd., according to Visa Emerging Markets Senior Vice President Uttam Nayak. The company estimates 84 million of Africa’s mobile-phone…

South Africa’s Jonas Worried State Firms Being Used Politically

Posted on by The Editorial Team

Johannesburg, Capital Markets in Africa: South African Deputy Finance Minister Mcebisi Jonas is “worried” about the impact of a perception that state institutions are being used to advance political agendas, saying the issue is a distraction to efforts to expand the economy. “Political behavior does sometimes impact negatively on certainty” and “times are tough, we should be focused on growing the economy,” he said in an interview on Johannesburg-based Talk Radio 702 on Tuesday. The National Treasury has…

President Zuma Turmoil Leaves South Africa’s Economy Down But Not Out

Posted on by The Editorial Team

Johannesburg, Capital Market in Africa: At first glance, South Africa appears on a road to nowhere, mired in leadership turmoil and economic stagnation that are rolling back many of the hard-won gains of 22 years of multiracial rule. President Jacob Zuma, who’s lurched from one scandal to the next, is warring with his finance minister over control of the National Treasury. Government and ruling-party officials are at each other’s’ throats over policy, appointments and alleged cronyism. And the…

Tight Security as East Africa Leaders Meet in Somali Capital

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SOMALI, Capital Markets in Africa: East African leaders met in Somalia’s capital for talks on issues including South Sudan’s crisis, a sign of improving security in the Horn of African country that’s trying to emerge from decades of civil war and hold elections next month. Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn were among those who arrived in Mogadishu on Tuesday, Somali Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdusalam Omer said on his Twitter account. The summit for the…

South African Rand Leads Currency Declines as Liquidity Dwindles

Posted on by The Editorial Team

JOHANNESBURG, Capital Markets in Africa: South Africa’s rand fell the most in more than two weeks against the dollar, leading global currency losses amid lingering political risks and as central banks signaled they are starting to question further monetary easing. The rand declined 1.9 percent to 14.3946 per dollar by 3:38 p.m. in Johannesburg, heading for the biggest drop since Aug. 23, after a police unit summoned Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan to answer to charges related to alleged irregularities…

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