Ivory Coast returns to sovereign sukuk market, after Togo debut

Ivory Coast returns to sovereign sukuk market, after Togo debut

ABIDJAN, Capital Markets in Africa: Ivory Coast plans to complete a sale of 150 billion CFA francs ($263 million) worth of Islamic bonds later this month, the transaction’s lead arranger said on Tuesday, following Togo’s debut sale of sovereign sukuk launched last month. The two West African nations join Senegal in tapping the market for sukuk, helping expand the use of Islamic financing options outside of the industry’s core centres in the Middle East and…

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Emerging Markets Rally to One-Year Highs on Stimulus Prospects

Emerging Markets Rally to One-Year Highs on Stimulus Prospects

LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: Emerging-market stocks and currencies rose to their highest levels in more than a year as prospects for central bank stimulus and a better-than-expected U.S. jobs report fueled demand for higher-yielding assets. Turkish bonds rallied and the lira strengthened after Moody’s Investor Service delayed a potential sovereign downgrade. South Korean stocks rallied after S&P Global Ratings raised the country’ credit ranking. Russia’s ruble rose for a fifth day as oil sold for more than…

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MTN Group to Consider Raising Its Dividend If Business Picks Up

MTN Group to Consider Raising Its Dividend If Business Picks Up

South Africa, Capital Markets in Africa: MTN Group Limited will consider raising its full-year dividend above forecasts if business conditions improve after the settlement of a record fine in Nigeria led to the first-ever half-year loss at Africa’s biggest mobile-phone carrier. The company will consider a higher full-year payout than the forecast 7 rand-a-share “if operating conditions improve materially,” the Johannesburg-based carrier said in its first-half earnings statement on Friday. MTN paid 13.10 rand a share in 2015, while…

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MTN Gains as Investors Look Beyond Losses Led by Nigeria Fine

MTN Gains as Investors Look Beyond Losses Led by Nigeria Fine

LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: MTN Group Ltd. shares gained the most in more than five weeks after Africa’s biggest mobile-phone operator booked the full value of a 330 billion naira ($1 billion) fine in Nigeria, drawing a line under a 10-month saga that wiped a third off the share price. The wireless carrier made a first-ever per-share loss as a public company in the six months through June, partly caused by a provision for the penalty…

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South Africa’s Rand Strongest in World as Local Elections, BOE Boost Currency

South Africa’s Rand Strongest in World as Local Elections, BOE Boost Currency

Johannesburg, South Africa, Capital Markets in Africa: The rand strengthened to a nine-month high against the dollar to lead global currency gains as results from South African local-government elections showed a swing toward the main opposition. The currency also gained to the highest since April last year against the pound as the Bank of England cut its main lending rate to the lowest on record as it tries to support the U.K. economy against fallout from Brexit….

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Citi Sees Oil Bears ‘Gone Wild’ at $40 as Outages to Persist

Citi Sees Oil Bears ‘Gone Wild’ at $40 as Outages to Persist

LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: While oil bears go “wild” at crude’s retreat to $40 a barrel, there’s some comfort on the way for the bulls, according to Citigroup Inc. As prices plunge and are pulled below support levels amid concerns over swelling global stockpiles, some supply disruptions including those in Nigeria are set to persist and crude at $40 a barrel may spur demand, according to a report from the bank dated Aug. 2. Crude has declined since…

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South Africa’s Sins Forgotten as Rand Leads Post-Brexit Rally

South Africa’s Sins Forgotten as Rand Leads Post-Brexit Rally

South Africa, Capital Markets in Africa: The currency that was forecast to perform the worst in emerging markets this year is also the one benefiting most from the clamor to boost returns in the wake of the U.K.’s Brexit vote. South Africa’s rand has strengthened 4.9 percent against the dollar since the day before the U.K. voted to leave the European Union on June 23, the most among 31 major and developing-nation currencies tracked by Bloomberg and…

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