Etisalat Nigeria Owners Said to Face Write-offs After Default

Etisalat Nigeria Owners Said to Face Write-offs After Default

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Lenders who took over Etisalat Nigeria last month after the wireless carrier defaulted on $1.2 billion in debt are being advised to take a writedown to ensure a planned sale of the company is successful, according to people familiar with the matter. Whether to write down the asset has emerged as a sticking point between the owners, who include Nigerian lenders Access Bank Plc, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc and Zenith Bank Plc, and investments…

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Dangote Cement Profit Jumps as Higher Prices Lift Revenue

Dangote Cement Profit Jumps as Higher Prices Lift Revenue

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Dangote Cement Plc, Africa’s largest producer of the building material and Nigeria’s biggest company, said first-half profit surged as an increase in revenue offset lower volumes and operations in the rest of the continent helped bolster sales. Net income rose 35 percent to 143.5 billion naira ($447.7 million) in the six months through June, compared with 106 billion naira a year earlier, the Lagos-based company said in a statement…

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Nigeria Holds Key Rate at 14% as It Seeks Currency Stability

Nigeria Holds Key Rate at 14% as It Seeks Currency Stability

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Nigeria’s central bank left its main lending rate unchanged for a sixth consecutive meeting as it seeks to hold on to gains it’s made in inflation and exchange-rate stability. The Monetary Policy Committee held the key policy rate at 14 percent, Central Bank of Nigeria Governor Godwin Emefiele told reporters on Tuesday in the capital, Abuja. That was in line with the forecast of all but two of 19 economists in a Bloomberg survey. While inflation in…

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Saudis Focus on Oil-Export Curbs as Libya, Nigeria Pump More

Saudis Focus on Oil-Export Curbs as Libya, Nigeria Pump More

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Saudi Arabia promised deep cuts to crude exports next month, emphasizing its commitment to eliminating a global supply glut even as fellow OPEC members Libya and Nigeria were told they are free to keep increasing output. Shipments from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ largest producer will be capped at 6.6 million barrels a day in August, 1 million lower than a year earlier, Saudi Arabia’s Energy and Industry Minister Khalid Al-Fali…

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Weak Naira, Inflation Leave Nigeria Little Room to Cut Rates

Weak Naira, Inflation Leave Nigeria Little Room to Cut Rates

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – A weak naira and stubborn inflation may prevent Nigeria’s central bank from following South Africa and Ghana in cutting interest rates. Only two of 19 economists in a Bloomberg survey predicted the Monetary Policy Committee will reduce borrowing costs on Tuesday. The rest said the key rate will stay at a record high of 14 percent, where it’s been for a year. Governor Godwin Emefiele, who is scheduled to announce the…

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Libya, Nigeria Oil Output Caps Said to Be Ruled Out for Now

Libya, Nigeria Oil Output Caps Said to Be Ruled Out for Now

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Limiting oil output from Nigeria and Libya won’t be on the agenda when OPEC and other producers meet on Monday, with both African nations saying they’ll need to keep pumping at a higher level before they can join a global effort to stem a supply glut, according to two people familiar with the planned talks. Nigeria is ready to cap or even reduce supply if it can maintain output of 1.8 million…

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Nigeria’s Former Ruling Party in Opposition Coalition Talks

Nigeria’s Former Ruling Party in Opposition Coalition Talks

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Nigeria’s former ruling party is in talks with other opposition groups to build a new coalition to try to prevent its main rival, the All Progressives Congress led by President Muhammadu Buhari, from winning a second term in the West African nation’s next vote in 2019. “We’re talking to more than 16 political parties to see how we can come and work together,” Ahmed Makarfi, chairman of the People’s Democratic Party,…

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