The Editorial Team

Pound’s Break With Tradition Casts Doubt on Rate Hike Playbook

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – The pound is breaking the time-honored tradition that higher interest rates will mean a stronger currency, as growth and inflation fears take their toll. U.K. two-year yields climbed this week to the highest since the start of the pandemic, buoyed by traders’ ramped-up expectations for Bank of England rate hikes in 2022. Yet the pound fell to a year-to-date low and suffered the most volatility since March — a sign that…

Inflation Gauge Hits Highest Since 1991 as Americans Spend More

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NEW YORK (Capital Markets in Africa) – U.S. personal spending growth accelerated by more than forecast in August, driven by goods purchases, while a closely watched measure of inflation exceeded estimates. Purchases of goods and services increased 0.8% from a month earlier, following a downwardly revised 0.1% decline in July, Commerce Department figures showed Friday. Spending in July was previously reported as a 0.3% gain. The personal consumption expenditures price gauge, which the Federal Reserve uses for…

Bitcoin Posts Biggest Increase Since July in a Matter of Minutes

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Bitcoin jumped, rising in a matter of minutes to its biggest daily gain since July, and other digital currencies surged in a shock rally that followed the largest monthly decline since May. The largest cryptocurrency gained as much as 10% to $47,884 early in New York trading before paring gains. Ethereum, Litecoin and EOS also jumped, with the Bloomberg Galaxy Crypto Index rising as much as 8.9%. Bitcoin had slumped 7.6%…

Mauritius Exits Longest Recession on Record as Textiles Recover

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PORT LOUISE (Capital Markets in Africa) – Mauritius exited a coronavirus-induced recession in the second quarter after construction and manufacturing rebounded. Gross value added grew 19.3% in the three months through June, compared with a year earlier, Port Louis-based Statistics Mauritius said in a report published on its website. That’s after five consecutive quarters of contraction — the longest recession on record. Manufacturing that rose 53% in the quarter led the rebound followed by construction…

In Bid to Lure Tech Unicorns, Nigeria Bourse Reviews IPO Rules

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – The Nigerian Exchange Group will review membership rules to lure tech unicorns and other companies to list on Africa’s second-biggest stock exchange, where there’s been a lull in new offerings. The Lagos-based bourse plans to ease requirements such as track record of profitability and the quarterly filing of financial statements, Olumide Bolumole, the divisional head of listings at NGX, said at a virtual conference on Thursday. “If you are looking…

Okonjo-Iweala Grows Frustrated With WTO Inertia, Floats Quitting

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa)~ Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the leader of the World Trade Organization, began the year with a plan to score quick negotiating victories that she said would help reboot the dysfunctional Geneva-based trade body. Now, seven months into her 4 1/2-year term, Okonjo-Iweala has fully grasped the frustrating reality of the WTO’s historical inertia, even privately floating the idea of resigning if no headway can be found on critical issues, according to five…

Emerging-Market Carry Bets Declared ‘Dead’ on Strong Dollar

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LAGOS (Capital Matkets in Africa) – A strengthening dollar is reducing the appeal of emerging-market carry trades, which handed investors their biggest monthly loss in 18 months. An index that measures returns from borrowing in dollars and investing the funds in eight high-yielding currencies, such as the Turkish lira, Brazilian real and Indonesian rupiah, lost 3.3% in September, the most since March 2020. The Bloomberg Cumulative FX Carry Trade Index is now down 1.2% this year. The…

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