The Editorial Team |

Signs of Election Bounce Undermine Case for BOE Rate Cut

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – A closely watched measure of U.K. economic activity unexpectedly surged to the highest level since 2018 in January, potentially undermining the case for a Bank of England interest-rate cut next week. IHS Markit’s flash index for output across the whole economy jumped to 52.4 as firms cited reduced political uncertainty in the wake of Boris Johnson’s decisive election victory. That’s up from 49.3 last month. The Purchasing Managers Indexes had…

Moroccan Bourse Expects Two IPOs in 2020, Bets on MSCI Comeback

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RABAT (Capital Markets in Africa) – Two companies are expected to go public on the Casablanca Stock Exchange this year, the Moroccan bourse’s managing director said Wednesday, in IPOs that could help revive trading and return the country to emerging market status. Karim Hajji, speaking at a conference in Marrakesh, didn’t identify the two companies. But Hamza Bennani, who heads Aradei Capital, a REIT that has property assets valued at 4 billion dirhams ($416 million), said in…

Fallen UBS Trader Adoboli Seeks Redemption in Bond Market Deals

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ACCRA (Capital Markets in Africa)~ – Former UBS Group AG trader Kweku Adoboli fought to avoid deportation from the U.K. to the nation of his birth after his conviction for a $2.3 billion loss at the Swiss bank. Now, he is seeking a comeback in Ghana with a plan to kick-start its mortgage-backed bond market. The 39-year-old was extradited to the West African country in November 2018 after being jailed in 2012. He spent the first nine…

Job Cuts Will Depress Limping South Africa Economy Even More

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Less than a month into 2020, South African companies have already announced thousands of job cuts. In a country where a third of the labor force is already unemployed, this will put even more strain on demand and economic growth. Almost 8,000 jobs are at risk as companies including Telkom SA SOC Ltd., the country’s largest fixed-line operator, and Walmart Inc.’s local unit Massmart Holdings Ltd. plan to reduce their headcount after…

Banker Tied to Billionaire Found Dead Amid Angolan Graft Probe

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LUANDA (Capital Markets in Africa) – A banker with ties to Isabel dos Santos was found dead on the same day that Angola’s prosecutor named both him and Africa’s richest woman as suspects in an investigation over alleged mismanagement at state oil company Sonangol. Nuno Ribeiro da Cunha, 45, appeared to have hanged himself in the garage of his apartment building in Lisbon, Portuguese police said in a statement Thursday. He had attempted to commit suicide earlier…

World Bank Urges Kenya to Slow Down on President’s Pet Projects

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NAIROBI (Capital Markets in Africa) – Kenya should slow down on borrowing to fund President Uhuru Kenyatta’s key legacy projects, the World Bank has warned. Kenyatta’s “Big Four,” a plan to boost manufacturing, farming, health care, and low-cost housing, has put pressure on the treasury to hike spending even as it struggles to grow revenue. The Treasury expects public debt to climb 11% to 6.45 trillion shillings ($64 billion) by the end of June from a year earlier….

Nigeria Demands U.K. Return Wanted Ex-Oil Minister

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – The U.K. should return Nigeria’s former petroleum minister to face a corruption trial unless it produces its own charges against her, The Cable reported, citing the West African nation’s top anti-graft official. A long-running British probe into Diezani Alison-Madueke, who served as petroleum minister from 2010 to 2015, has yet to yield any charges, the news website cited Economic & Financial Crimes Commission Chairman Ibrahim Magu as saying. The EFCC…

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