Finance

NEW YORK (Capital Markets in Africa) – FedEx Corp. founder Fred Smith, nearing the end of a legendary career, says he’s going to prove himself right one more time. Best known for disrupting the parcel delivery business by introducing overnight service, Smith is now getting disrupted by e-commerce and the rise of online shopping. He’s taking a pounding from Wall Street for FedEx’s disappointing performance, while analysts praise archrival United Parcel Service Inc. for reversing a…

KINSHASA (Capital Markets in Africa) – The Republic of Congo’s public debt may exceed $12.5 billion, more than a third higher than previous International Monetary Fund estimates, corruption watchdog Global Witness said. The debt could further complicate Congo’s three-year, $449 million loan program it began with the IMF in July. The Washington-based lender has already postponed its first review of the program while Congo restructures external commercial debt, an IMF spokesman said by email Friday…

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – U.K. business is lobbying for a say in shaping Britain’s post-Brexit immigration system as the government draws up plans for tighter controls on migration that could threaten the supply of foreign workers. In an open letter to Home Secretary Priti Patel, the country’s five largest business organizations and about 30 trade associations said the new regime needs to provide access to required skills and labor, while also curbing the inward…

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – With cash in the bank and friends with deep pockets, African Rainbow Capital Investments Ltd. is well-positioned to find the resources it needs to fund its next deal. “We can probably access a billion-and-a-half to 2 billion rand fairly quickly,” ARC co-Chief Executive Officer Johan van Zyl said by phone on Thursday. “You don’t have to have the money in the bank as long as you have access to someone else…

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….

HARARE (Capital Markets in Africa) – Corporates in Zimbabwe are moving to solar energy to stave off erratic electricity supply and escalating fuel costs. OK Zimbabwe, the largest retail operator with 64 stores in the southern African nation, is joining the move to renewable energy and will start using solar power at its suburban stores this year, according to Chief Executive Officer Alex Siyavora. Power cuts lasting as long as 18 hours a day have added…

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – A financial crisis at South African Airways deepened Tuesday as a funding squeeze forced the national carrier to cancel several domestic and international flights. Eight flights between Johannesburg and Cape Town will be cut this week, and 20 between Johannesburg and Durban, the carrier said in an emailed statement. It also canceled 10 flights between Johannesburg and Munich. The move is “in line with SAA’s usual policy of reviewing flights and consolidating…