The Markets

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa): The second-biggest diamond in history will be cut, polished and turned into a collection of Louis Vuitton jewelry. Lucara Diamond Corp., which found the 1,758-carat Sewelo diamond at its Botswana mine last year, said it’s struck a deal with the luxury brand and Antwerp diamond manufacturer HB Company. It’s unclear how valuable the polished diamonds will be though, as Lucara previously said the Sewelo wasn’t a type of diamond that yields top…

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – Lekoil Ltd. sank to a record low in London trading after falling victim to an alleged scam, leaving the future of a Nigerian oil project at risk. A loan deal struck earlier this month is no longer valid, the company said, alleging that individuals claiming to be from the Qatar Investment Authority were in fact fraudsters. Lekoil now has until February to raise enough money to cover its drilling costs…

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Ever find yourself nodding along as a colleague delivers their latest political rant? For fund managers, that could be a problem. Portfolio management teams with similar political views trail those with different ideologies by 0.4% in benchmark-adjusted returns per year, according to new academic research based on U.S. political contributions data. Diversity is also linked to greater deviations from the benchmark, suggesting stock pickers in disagreement may be better at using…

CAIRO (Capital Markets in Africa) – Egypt’s currency, one of the world’s best performers in 2019, has breached a key threshold following inflows of more than $1.5 billion in the past week. The pound rose 0.9% to 15.92 per dollar Monday, trading stronger than 16 against the greenback for the first time since March 2017. Local banks saw $1.7 billion of inflows in the five days through Jan. 13, the central bank said in a…

ABIDJAN (Capital Markets in Africa) – An ambitious plan to adopt a common currency for 15 West African countries will become even more difficult to implement once France’s former colonies in the region follow through on an announcement to reform their single payment unit. At the heart of the matter is whether the single currency for the Economic Community of West African States should be free-floating or have a fixed value. Another consideration is France’s…

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc, the country’s biggest miller by market value, has revived plans to sell bonds to refinance debt and bolster working capital as borrowing costs decline in the West African nation. The company is looking to raise as much as 50 billion naira ($138 million) via the securities, of which 20 billion naira is planned in the first quarter, Chief Financial Officer Anders Kristiansson said by phone Tuesday….

NEW YORK (Capital Markets in Africa) – A Swiss wealth manager is pitching a way to bet on stocks ahead of potential market disruptions spurred by the U.S. presidential election. Julius Baer Group Ltd. is selling as much as $40 million of structured notes tied to large American companies hinging on which party holds the White House next year. Pick the note that corresponds to the winner and profit, at least in theory. The private bank’s…