BUSINESS - The African Mirror

Apr

2024

Surge in service sector investments globally to bolster intra-African services sector

A global shift in foreign direct investment (FDI) dynamics, with investors globally increasingly favouring the service sector over traditional manufacturing, could favour Africa, according to Tanzanian-based analyst, Musila Muoki. According to a new report by the UN Trade and Development Organization, the global FDI shift is being shaped by “trends in global value chains, technological advancements, geopolitical dynamics and environmental concerns.” “From 2004 to 2023, the share of cross-border greenfield projects in the services sector jumped from 66% to 81%,” the authors of the report released on April 23 explain. The trend has been echoed in Africa, where greenfield service…

Apr

2024

By CAMILLUS EBOH

Nigeria revokes 924 dormant mining titles, seeks new investors

BUSINESS

NIGERIA has revoked 924 dormant mining titles immediately and invites investors to freely apply for the affected licences which will be offered on a "first come, first served" basis, its minister of mines said. The affected titles include 528 exploration licences, 20 mining leases, 101 quarry licences, and 273 small-scale mining licences, Mines Minister Dele Alake said in a statement. In November, more than 1,600 mining titles were revoked for non-payment of statutory fees as part of sweeping reforms in the sector. Alake said the action was taken to curb "licence racketeering" where companies or individuals secure titles that hold…

Apr

2024

By ODONGO KODONGO

Kenya’s shilling is regaining value, but don’t expect it to last – expert

BUSINESS

SHORTLY after Kenya’s 2022 elections, the shilling depreciated rapidly against the US dollar – the country’s main currency for international transactions – fuelling a wave of political discontent. More than a year later, the Central Bank of Kenya, taking its cue from the International Monetary Fund, said that the run on the shilling was a market correction for a currency that had been overvalued by between 20% and 25%. By early this year, the shilling recovered. Finance scholar Odongo Kodongo answers our questions about Kenya’s exchange rate fluctuations. How is the shilling’s exchange rates determined? Kenya operates a floating exchange…

Apr

2024

By MAXWELL AKALAARE ADOMBILA

Nigeria seeking up to $2.25 bln in World Bank loans

BUSINESS

NIGERIA is seeking up to $2.25 billion in World Bank loans and expects the bank's board to approve the request in June, the government said in a statement following the IMF/World Bank spring meetings in Washington, D.C. Nigeria also aims to issue diaspora bonds later this year to attract much-need foreign exchange into the country, Finance Minister Wale Edun said in the statement. The World Bank loans would comprise $1.5 billion in development policy financing and $750 million in programme-for-results financing, the statement said, adding the bank would meet in June to consider final approval of the package. The World…

Apr

2024

By SERGIO GONCALVES

Portugal’s Galp says field off Namibia could contain 10 billion barrels of oil

BUSINESS

PORTUGUESE oil company Galp Energia said that it had concluded the first phase of exploration in the Mopane field off the coast of Namibia and estimated it could have at least 10 billion barrels of oil. Galp said it conducted testing operations at the Mopane-1X well in January and the Mopane-2X well in March. In both wells, which are 8 kilometres apart, it said "significant light oil columns were discovered in high-quality reservoir sands". The Mopane field is located in the Orange Basin, along the coast of the southern African country, where Shell and France's TotalEnergies have made several oil and gas discoveries.…

Apr

2024

By MAXWELL AKALAARE ADOMBILA

Ghana finance minister expects MoU with bilateral lenders in May

BUSINESS

GHANA'S Finance Minister expects a draft Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) from the country's bilateral creditors in May on a restructuring deal, he said. The MoU, once signed, would cement a deal to restructure $5.4 billion of loans with its official creditors, including China and France, agreed in January. The restructuring is a milestone in Ghana's quest for debt relief as it charts its way out of the worst economic crisis in a generation and should unlock further tranches of its $3 billion programme with the IMF. Speaking on the sidelines of the IMF and World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington, Mohammed Amin…

Apr

2024

By KARIN STROHECKER

South Africa faces upside risk to inflation, financial conditions, central bank governor says

BUSINESS

SOUTH Africa faces upside risks to its inflation outlook, Central Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago said, but the latest data has not shown evidence of price pressures from food despite adverse El Nino weather wreaking havoc across Africa. Data out on Wednesday had shown headline inflation fell to 5.3% year-on-year, down from 5.6% in February and coming in a touch below analyst expectations. In its March decision, the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) said headline inflation was expected to reach 4.5% - the midpoint of its target range - only at the end of 2025, later than previously forecast. "There are upside risks to the…

Apr

2024

By The African Mirror

Zando launches international unit to counter Shein and Temu in South Africa

BUSINESS

SOUTH African online fashion retailer Zando launched an international e-commerce division called Zando Global in the hopes of taking on fast-fashion Chinese e-commerce retailers Shein and Temu at home. The rapid rise of Shein and Temu - driven by robust demand for their low-priced apparel like $10 tops and $5 biker shorts - is putting pressure on local brick-and-mortar and online fashion retailers to find ways to respond to their budget prices. Temu launched in South Africa earlier this year. "With the rise of Shein and Temu, South African consumers have often found themselves hesitant to order internationally due to…

Apr

2024

By BRETT SILBERG

Two-pot postponed to September …but there’s much to do before then

BUSINESS

IN a webinar, Batseta – a non-profit organisation focused on the interests of principal officers, trustees and fund fiduciaries within the retirement industry – made it clear just how complicated the two-pot retirement system’s implementation will be for administrators, trustees and advisers of pension funds and how much they have yet to prepare. As such, Old Mutual Corporate senior consultant Nobuhle Mfeka said the [retirement] industry welcomed the six-month delay in the system’s implementation, as it would give stakeholders more time to hopefully implement the changes effectively. On Monday (4 December), the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Finance (Scopa) accepted Finance Minister…

Apr

2024

By CAMILLUS EBOH

Nigeria strikes deal with Shell to supply $3.8 bln methanol project

BUSINESS

NIGERIA has struck a deal for Shell to supply gas to its proposed $3.8 billion Brass methanol facility, resolving a major hurdle to a final investment decision on the project, the minister of state for gas said. Nigeria, which holds Africa's largest natural gas reserves of more than 200 trillion cubic feet, has struggled to tap the commodity due to capital constraints and a lack of infrastructure. Minister Ekperikpe Ekpo said in a statement that the Gas Supply and Purchase Agreement (GSPA), crucial for the Brass methanol project, will be executed next month following successful talks with Shell's Nigeria CEO and…