For Stocks Pumped by Draghi’s Stimulus, The Only Way May Be Down

For Stocks Pumped by Draghi’s Stimulus, The Only Way May Be Down

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Ahead of this week’s European Central Bank meeting, investors mostly see the region’s equities weathering President Mario Draghi’s tapering signals. But in the short term, there are signals aplenty that the shares may be ripe for a pullback, particularly if the euro resumes its rally. Strategists on average now expect the Euro Stoxx 50 to decline by year-end. Here are five charts that indicate overheating in the stock market. Euro-area stocks are no longer…

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Moody’s Sees Angola as No-Go Zone for U.S. Banks as Risks Remain

Moody’s Sees Angola as No-Go Zone for U.S. Banks as Risks Remain

LUANDA (Capital Markets in Africa) – Angola is still a long way off from tempting U.S. banks into resuming dollar-clearing services despite making progress in combating money laundering, according to Moody’s Investors Service. “American banks are unlikely to come back to Angola anytime soon,” Akin Majekodunmi, a London-based senior analyst at Moody’s, said in an interview on Wednesday. “This industry, if you like, doesn’t make much commercial sense for them anymore.” Bank of America Corp….

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BOE’s November Rate Hike Isn’t Set in Stone After Crunch Week

BOE’s November Rate Hike Isn’t Set in Stone After Crunch Week

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – After a crucial week for the Bank of England, a November interest-rate increase no longer looks like a sure thing. Inflation may have hit 3 percent, but for some policymakers at the central bank, the domestic price pressures that justify raising now aren’t there. That view was backed up by data Wednesday that showed wage growth slowing. Dave Ramsden, the Monetary Policy Committee’s newest member, had said a day earlier that…

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HSBC, Standard Chartered Face U.K. Probe Over Gupta Ties

HSBC, Standard Chartered Face U.K. Probe Over Gupta Ties

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – United Kingdom regulators are looking into whether HSBC Holdings Plc and Standard Chartered Plc facilitated money-laundering as a result of possible ties to South Africa’s politically powerful Gupta family. The Financial Conduct Authority probe comes after Peter Hain, a member of the unelected House of Lords, wrote a letter raising concerns about the banks’ possible exposure to the Guptas. In the letter, Hain said allegedly illicit funds may have passed through the…

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South Africa September Inflation Uptick Limits Room for Rate Cuts

South Africa September Inflation Uptick Limits Room for Rate Cuts

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – South African inflation quickened for a second consecutive month in September, reducing room for the nation’s central bank to ease policy. The inflation rate rose to 5.1 percent from 4.8 percent the previous month, Pretoria-based Statistics South Africa said in a report on its website on Wednesday. The median of 24 economist’s estimates in a Bloomberg survey was 5 percent. Prices rose 0.5 percent in the month, the highest monthly rate since March….

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Kenyan Central Bank Moves to Ease Investors’ Vote Concerns

Kenyan Central Bank Moves to Ease Investors’ Vote Concerns

NAIROBI (Capital Markets in Africa) – Kenya’s central bank is communicating a sense of normalcy and continuity to investors amid uncertainty about the country’s protracted elections, Governor Patrick Njoroge said. Institutions including the nation’s courts show Kenya is a “mature” democracy, Njoroge said in an interview with Bloomberg TV in London on Tuesday. While liquidity in the country’s money markets is tight at the moment, it has “nothing to do with the political circumstances,” he said. Central…

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U.S. Treasury Keeps Currency Spotlight on Swiss, Germans

U.S. Treasury Keeps Currency Spotlight on Swiss, Germans

BERLIN (Capital Markets in Africa) – The U.S. Treasury once again singled out Switzerland and Germany for the value of their currencies and exports, suggesting the former could cut interest rates further to alleviate deflationary pressures. While the department said no major trading partner was manipulating its currency to gain an advantage, it kept the two on the list of countries it considers to have a big trade surplus with the U.S., a high current-account surplus or to…

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