Category: Southern Africa

The United Kingdom financial regulator is investigating possible wrongdoing by the Swiss bank Credit Suisse and VTB of Russia in the scandal of the government guaranteed loans, totaling over two billion dollars, which they arranged for Mozambican state or quasi-state companies in 2013-14. According to a report in the “Wall Street Journal” (WSJ), the U.K.…

Standard & Poor’s decision to maintain South Africa’s investment grade credit rating has taken some pressure off President Jacob Zuma ahead of elections in August, although analysts said the country is still vulnerable to a downgrade to “junk” status. S&P kept its negative outlook on South Africa’s BBB- rating after a review on Friday, warning…

Russia’s VTB has shared the bulk of its $535 million loan to Mozambique state firm MAM with investors active in that region, the bank said on Sunday. Mozambique Asset Management (MAM) borrowed $535 million from VTB to build shipyards in capital, Maputo, and the northern town of Pemba on hopes of a rapid takeoff in…

The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange is cutting jobs and will soon announce a strategy to generate additional income after revenue fell by half in 2015 and has shown little sign of recovery this year, its chief executive officer said. Zimbabwe has suffered deflation for the past 18 months because of a fall in consumer demand and…

A team from the International Monetary Fund is visiting Angola to negotiate a loan facility after lower oil prices hammered the finances of Africa’s second largest crude exporter, the Ministry of Finance said on Wednesday. The ministry said the IMF team will be in Angola from June 1 to June 14 and would discuss options…

Recent shocks to growth and inflation in South Africa have created much uncertainty, the central bank governor said on Wednesday, adding he could not predict the outcome of a rating review due on Friday. South Africa’s economy has been hit by a ravaging drought and its economic prospects do not look promising, South African Reserve…

Angolan President Jose Eduardo dos Santos has appointed his daughter as head of state oil firm Sonangol, Angola National State Radio (RNA) reported on Thursday, as the government aims to turn around the struggling company after low crude prices hit revenue. Citing a presidential decree, RNA said Isabel dos Santos would head the company, after…

A severe drought in southern Africa has triggered a surge in food prices preventing central banks from loosening monetary policy to spur economic growth. Central banks in South Africa, Zambia and Mozambique have been forced to raise interest rates to rein in inflation after the El Nino-induced drought crippled the production of the staple maize…

Zimbabwe is seeking support from its neighbours to be allowed to engage in international trade in ivory and will not burn its 70 tonnes of ivory stocks as Kenya did last month, the environment minister said on Wednesday. Zimbabwe and Namibia are bidding to open up international trade in elephant ivory, against initiatives led by…

South Africa’s rand firmed on Wednesday as the dollar pulled back from a recent rally, but traders said the local unit was likely to tread a narrow range as investors await Friday’s credit rating review from Standard & Poor’s. Stocks were led lower by Nampak, which plummeted after scrapping its dividend to conserve cash, and…