Economy | - Part 69

IMF Says Nigeria’s Economy Will Probably Contract This Year

LAGOS, Capital Markets in Africa: Nigeria’s economy will probably contract this year as energy shortages and the delayed budget weigh on output, according to the International Monetary Fund. “I think there is a high likelihood that the year 2016 as a whole will be a contractionary year,” Gene Leon, the fund’s resident representative in Nigeria, said in an interview in the capital, Abuja, on July 8. While the economy should look better in second half…

Rising Energy-Import Bill Deepens Tunisia’s Economic Troubles

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TUNIS, Capital Markets in Africa: Social and political unrest in Tunisia is reducing energy production, adding to the economic pressure on the fragile nation that was the only real success story to emerge from the Arab Spring. The North African country’s energy-import bill has risen 45 percent to 5.5 billion dinars ($2.5 billion) since 2010, government data show. Domestic oil production dropped by about a quarter over the same period to 63,000 barrels a day last year, according…

Fitch: Global Sovereign Downgrades Set for a Record Year

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LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: Fitch Ratings-London-07 July 2016: Sovereign credit ratings are on track for a record number of downgrades in 2016, driven by the impact of lower commodity prices in emerging market economies, Fitch Ratings says in its latest bi-annual Sovereign Review and Outlook. There were 15 downgrades in 1H16 compared with the previous annual high of 20 in 2011, and 22 ratings are on Negative Outlook, suggesting this year’s final total…

South Africa Most Exposed to Brexit Fallout in Region, Moody’s Says

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South Africa, Capital Markets in Africa: South Africa’s reliance on foreign money to finance the shortfall on its current account makes it the most vulnerable in sub-Saharan Africa to fallout from the U.K.’s vote to quit the European Union, Moody’s Investors Service said. “South Africa’s current-account deficit leaves it vulnerable to short-term capital outflows amid changes in investors’ risk perceptions and appetite,” Moody’s Vice President and Senior Analyst Zuzana Brixiova wrote in an e-mailed report…

Ghana Cuts Growth Outlook to Lowest in More Than 30 Years

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ACCRA, Capital Markets in Africa: Ghana cut its economic growth forecast for 2016 to the lowest rate in more than three decades as the country reduced its targets for oil and gold production. West Africa’s largest economy after Nigeria will likely expand 3.2 percent this year after growing 3.9 percent in 2015, Finance Minister Seth Terkper said in a statement on the ministry’s website. That will be the slowest rate since 1983, when the economy contracted 4.6 percent, according…

Mozambique Yields at Record as IMF Warns of Debt Distress

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Mozambique, Capital Markets in Africa: Mozambique government bond yields jumped to a record 18.94 percent after the International Monetary Fund warned the south eastern African nation’s public debt was at a high risk of distress. The Washington-based lender said Friday Mozambique’s public debt stock had jumped to 86 percent of gross domestic product after the government revealed it had guaranteed $1.4 billion in loans to state-owned companies. “According to our technical assessment, public debt is now likely…

Credit Ratings | Fitch Downgrades Nigeria to ‘B+’; Outlook Stable

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LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: Fitch Ratings-Hong Kong-23 June 2016: Fitch Ratings has downgraded Nigeria’s Long-term foreign currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to ‘B+’ from ‘BB-‘ and Long-term local currency IDR to ‘BB-‘ from ‘BB’. The Outlooks are Stable. The issue ratings on Nigeria’s senior unsecured foreign-currency bonds have also been downgraded to ‘B+’ from ‘BB-‘. The Country Ceiling has been revised down to ‘B+’ from ‘BB-‘ and the Short-Term Foreign-Currency IDR affirmed at…

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