Category: INTERNATIONAL
-
Dow breaks above 20,000 as US stocks hit all-time highs
U.S. equities rose to all-time highs on Wednesday after a series of executive orders from President Donald Trump increased bullish sentiment on Wall Street. The Dow Jones industrial average broke above 20,000 for the first time shortly after the open, rising more than 100 points as Boeing and Caterpillar contributed the most gains. “Traders have been waiting…
-
Angola’s debt lower, but continued fiscal adjustment needed
Angola’s public debt is projected to narrow to 62.8 percent of gross domestic product in 2017, from 71.6 percent last year, the International Monetary Fund said late on Tuesday. Weaker oil prices in the last three years has constrained growth and put state finances under pressure in Africa’s second- biggest crude producer. “…continued fiscal adjustment…
-
Congo central bank injects $50 million into market to prop up franc
Democratic Republic of Congo’s central bank injected $50 million into the interbank exchange market on Tuesday to prop up the Congolese franc, which has lost nearly 40 percent of its value in the last year, the bank’s spokesman said. The bank injected $50 million into the market five times in 2016 and hiked interest rates…
-
North Africa:Single Power Grid to Link Dar With Cairo and Cape Town
An ambitious project to connect the North and the South points of Africa with a single power line through the Cairo-to- Cape Town grid is in the pipeline and may be functional within three years from now. The Minister for Energy and Minerals Professor Sospeter Muhongo, revealed the proposed power project during the ongoing 24th…
-
Egypt: Germany Lifts Last Restriction On Tourism Flights to South Sinai – Foreign Ministry
The Egyptian embassy in Berlin managed to remove the last of the restrictions imposed on flights to Sharm al-Sheikh and other areas in South Sinai, the foreign ministry said in a statement on Tuesday. Germany, along with Russia, Britain, and others, suspended flights after Russian jetliner Airbus A321 crashed a few minutes after take-off from…
-
U.S. judge approves Volkswagen dealers $1.2 billion settlement
Volkswagen AG’s (VOWG_p.DE) dealers will receive an average of $1.85 million in a $1.2 billion settlement approved by a U.S. judge on Monday over its diesel emissions scandal. U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer said the 650 U.S. dealers would be paid over 18 months, ruling the settlement “fair, reasonable, and adequate.” VW also agreed to…
-
Trump pulls U.S. out of Pacific trade deal, loosening Asia ties
U.S. President Donald Trump formally withdrew the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal on Monday, distancing America from its Asian allies, as China’s influence in the region rises. Fulfilling a campaign pledge to end American involvement in the 2015 pact, Trump signed an executive order in the Oval Office pulling the United States…
-
Tanzania considers tax on charcoal to save forests
Tanzania is considering putting a tax on charcoal with the aim of discouraging the use of the fuel, which is a big source of energy for cooking but also a major contributor to deforestation. Officials say they believe making charcoal more expensive would significantly reduce demand for it and cut runaway tree felling in the…
-
Nigeria must not scare away MTN, says comms minister
Nigeria must not scare away MTN, its minister of communications said, as lawmakers investigate alleged illegal money transfers just three months after the government fined Africa’s biggest telecoms firm over $1 billion. The comments by Adebayo Shittu are the government’s first statement on the latest investigation into MTN, indicating the government does not want to…
-
Gambia’s central bank accounts intact, says president’s spokesman
Gambia’s central bank deposits are “intact”, a spokesman for President Adama Barrow said on Monday, a day after the new leader had said there was no money left in the state coffers. Barrow said on Sunday that it appeared his exiled predecessor, Yahya Jammeh, had looted state resources after his election defeat. A Barrow adviser…