Finance

MAPUTO (Capital Markets in Africa) — Sasol Ltd. expects binding bids within weeks for its stake in a natural gas pipeline running from Mozambique to South Africa, as the company accelerates asset sales to pay off debt, according to people familiar with the process. The bidding round underway for the Rompco 865-kilometer (537-mile) gas pipeline stake concludes in late July, according to two of the people who asked not to be identified because the information…

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) — Poor African nations should be allowed to borrow more from the International Monetary Fund’s reserves to help mitigate the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic, according to Sudanese billionaire Mo Ibrahim. “There’s a lot of goodwill but where is the beef?” Ibrahim said in an interview during the virtual Bloomberg Invest Conference on Wednesday. “We are here waiting for the IMF to deploy this very powerful tool they have,…

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) — Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a $1.2 billion package to help U.K. children catch up on schooling they missed during the coronavirus lockdown. State primary and secondary schools will be able to draw on 650 million pounds of funding, with school principals to decide on how it’s spent, Johnson’s office said in an emailed statement, adding that small group tuition should be the favored intervention. A separate 350 million-pound…

DAKAR (Capital Markets in Africa) — An Orange SA West African subsidiary is issuing debt on the regional market for the first time to take advantage of higher demand for digital services amid the coronavirus pandemic. The outbreak of Covid-19 and subsequent lockdowns has made a plan by Dakar-based Sonatel’s to raise 100 billion CFA ($171 million) particularly timely, Chief Executive Officer Sekou Drame said in an interview. The bond sale is the largest in the history…

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) — African countries may get debt relief from China more easily than private creditors amid a global push to blunt the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic on poor nations, a Johns Hopkins University study shows. China has written off $3.4 billion and restructured or refinanced about $15 billion of debt in Africa over the past decade without slapping penalties or seizing assets from borrowers, it said. The study was…

NEW YORK (Capital Markets in Africa) — Apple Inc. is preparing to announce a shift to its own main processors in Mac computers, replacing chips from Intel Corp., as early as this month at its annual developer conference, according to people familiar with the plans. The company is holding WWDC the week of June 22. Unveiling the initiative, codenamed Kalamata, at the event would give outside developers time to adjust before new Macs roll out…