China Dominates Bid for Africa’s Largest Dam in New Pact

China Dominates Bid for Africa’s Largest Dam in New Pact

LAGOS(Capital Markets in Africa) — Chinese and Spanish developers that want to build Africa’s biggest hydropower plant in the Democratic Republic of Congo agreed to form a single consortium in an accord the country says is a key step to realizing the plan. The $14 billion dams is part of a long-delayed project known as Grand Inga that’s eventually intended to harness as much as 40,000 megawatts of power from the Congo River. Inga III…

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Ivorian Leader Faces Revived Opposition in Third-Term Quest

Ivorian Leader Faces Revived Opposition in Third-Term Quest

ABIDJAN (Capital Markets in Africa) — Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara’s decision to run for a third term as the leader of the world’s top cocoa producer is galvanizing a divided opposition, marring his re-election odds. Ouattara rescinded his decision not to seek a third term on Thursday, saying he accepted the nomination of the ruling Rally of Houphouëtists for Democracy and Peace to run as its candidate in an Oct. 31 vote. Ouattara said…

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Macron Has Stake in Solving Mali’s Political Crisis: Bobby Ghosh

Macron Has Stake in Solving Mali’s Political Crisis: Bobby Ghosh

(Bloomberg Opinion) — Less than two months ago, French President Emmanuel Macron’s prescription for what ailed Mali was “the return of the state.” Taking the narrowest possible view of the West African nation’s problems, the French president suggested that the best inoculation against a resurgence of jihadist terrorism in the Sahel region was more government. This view required a willful disregard of the political crisis unfolding in Bamako, where the government of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita was…

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Zimbabwe Weighs Insurance for Investors in New Stock Market

Zimbabwe Weighs Insurance for Investors in New Stock Market

HARARE(Capital Markets in Africa) — Zimbabwe shut down its stock market and then ejected the continent’s oldest insurer from the bourse. Now it’s hoping to entice investors to a new exchange with a plan to package equity purchases with political-risk cover. Justin Bgoni, who is setting up the foreign-currency-only market at the iconic Victoria Falls near the Zambian border, knows it’s a tough sell. As chief executive officer of the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange, he had to…

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Egypt’s Real Rates Are World’s Highest After Inflation Letup

Egypt’s Real Rates Are World’s Highest After Inflation Letup

CAIRO(Capital Markets in Africa) — Consumer prices in urban parts of Egypt grew at the slowest annual pace since November as the global pandemic weighed on demand and food costs declined. Defying some analyst expectations for a moderate pickup, inflation eased to 4.2% from a year earlier in July, compared with 5.6% in June, according to data published on Monday by the state-run statistics agency, CAPMAS. The deceleration left the country with the world’s highest interest…

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Nigerian Central Bank Adjusts Exchange Rate on Website to 379/$

Nigerian Central Bank Adjusts Exchange Rate on Website to 379/$

LAGOS(Capital Markets in Africa) — Nigerian central bank adjusted the exchange rate of the naira on its website to reflect the devaluation of the local currency last month. The Abuja-based bank will exchange a dollar for 379 naira compared with 360 previously as an official exchange rate, according to an update of the rate on its website on Friday. The currency’s official value was reduced by 5.3% to 381 per the dollar last month on…

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World’s Best-Performing Gold Stock Doesn’t Operate Any Mines

World’s Best-Performing Gold Stock Doesn’t Operate Any Mines

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) — The most successful way to be a gold producer may be to not operate any mines. At least, that’s the business model of DRDGold Ltd., the best-performing stock on the MSCI ACWI Select Gold Miners Investable Market Index this year. The company, which specializes in recovering gold from mine dumps in and around Johannesburg, has surged 277% in 2020, also making it the biggest gainer on South Africa’s FTSE/JSE Africa…

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