The Markets | - Part 222

MTN Group to Consider Raising Its Dividend If Business Picks Up

South Africa, Capital Markets in Africa: MTN Group Limited will consider raising its full-year dividend above forecasts if business conditions improve after the settlement of a record fine in Nigeria led to the first-ever half-year loss at Africa’s biggest mobile-phone carrier. The company will consider a higher full-year payout than the forecast 7 rand-a-share “if operating conditions improve materially,” the Johannesburg-based carrier said in its first-half earnings statement on Friday. MTN paid 13.10 rand a share in 2015, while…

MTN Gains as Investors Look Beyond Losses Led by Nigeria Fine

Posted on by The Editorial Team

LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: MTN Group Ltd. shares gained the most in more than five weeks after Africa’s biggest mobile-phone operator booked the full value of a 330 billion naira ($1 billion) fine in Nigeria, drawing a line under a 10-month saga that wiped a third off the share price. The wireless carrier made a first-ever per-share loss as a public company in the six months through June, partly caused by a provision for the penalty…

South Africa’s Rand Strongest in World as Local Elections, BOE Boost Currency

Posted on by The Editorial Team

Johannesburg, South Africa, Capital Markets in Africa: The rand strengthened to a nine-month high against the dollar to lead global currency gains as results from South African local-government elections showed a swing toward the main opposition. The currency also gained to the highest since April last year against the pound as the Bank of England cut its main lending rate to the lowest on record as it tries to support the U.K. economy against fallout from Brexit….

Citi Sees Oil Bears ‘Gone Wild’ at $40 as Outages to Persist

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LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: While oil bears go “wild” at crude’s retreat to $40 a barrel, there’s some comfort on the way for the bulls, according to Citigroup Inc. As prices plunge and are pulled below support levels amid concerns over swelling global stockpiles, some supply disruptions including those in Nigeria are set to persist and crude at $40 a barrel may spur demand, according to a report from the bank dated Aug. 2. Crude has declined since…

South Africa’s Sins Forgotten as Rand Leads Post-Brexit Rally

Posted on by The Editorial Team

South Africa, Capital Markets in Africa: The currency that was forecast to perform the worst in emerging markets this year is also the one benefiting most from the clamor to boost returns in the wake of the U.K.’s Brexit vote. South Africa’s rand has strengthened 4.9 percent against the dollar since the day before the U.K. voted to leave the European Union on June 23, the most among 31 major and developing-nation currencies tracked by Bloomberg and…

Looking Beyond a Bear Market, Analysts See $57 Crude Next Year

Posted on by The Editorial Team

LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: Oil closed in a bear market Monday, but don’t abandon hope. Analysts are looking beyond the current slide to next year for a rebound. Crude has plunged by more than a fifth in less than two months as refineries created a glut of gasoline while failing to eliminate excess supply of crude. That wrecked refining margins and hurt the earnings of Exxon Mobil Corp., BP Plc and Royal Dutch Shell Plc. Yet, global…

Oil Rises From $40 After Dropping Into Bear Market on Oversupply

Posted on by The Editorial Team

LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: Oil rose in New York amid speculation the oversupply still weighing on global markets will diminish, even after prices fell into a bear market on Monday. Futures gained 1.2 percent after dropping below $40 on Monday for the first time since April. While crude and gasoline inventories are forecast to have declined, they will remain at the highest seasonal level in at least two decades. Still, the retreat is driven by a…

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