
<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="612" height="408" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1076949610-612x612-1.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-400697" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1076949610-612x612-1.jpg 612w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1076949610-612x612-1-300x200.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 612px) 100vw, 612px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Double exposure of coin stack with city background and world map, financial graph, world map and global network business concept idea, element by NASA.</figcaption></figure>



<p>JOHANNESBURG, July 15 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The following scheduled economic events, equity and currency market moves may affect South African markets on Monday.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-economic-events">ECONOMIC EVENTS</h2>



<p>Treasury bill auction</p>



<p>Offshore trading in South African stocks and bonds</p>



<p>South Africa&#8217;s government and World Bank hold conference on building resilience to climate change</p>



<p>Nuclear regulator to announce decision on extending Koeberg operations</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-south-african-markets">SOUTH AFRICAN MARKETS</h2>



<p>The South African rand extended its gains on Friday, as surprisingly soft U.S. inflation data spurred bets the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates in September.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-global-markets">GLOBAL MARKETS</h2>



<p>U.S. Treasuries slipped and the dollar firmed on Monday as investors wagered the attack on U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump made his victory more likely, while injecting a whole new level of political uncertainty into markets.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-wall-street">WALL STREET</h2>



<p>Wall Street closed higher on Friday, with the S&amp;P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average hitting intraday record highs, on bets that the U.S. Federal Reserve will cut interest rates in September, while big banks fell after reporting mixed results.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-gold">GOLD</h2>



<p>Gold prices dipped on Monday as the dollar held firm, while investors awaited economic data and comments from Federal Reserve officials for further cues on the trajectory of U.S. interest rates.</p>



<p>&#8211; &#8211; &#8211; &#8211;</p>



<p>Some of the main stories out in the South African press:</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-business-day">BUSINESS DAY</h2>



<p>&#8211; SA delegation to lobby against review of US relations</p>



<p>&#8211; Ramaphosa buoyant after cabinet lekgotla</p>



<p>&#8211; An outside chance of a rate cut, but market expects a hold</p>



<p>(Compiled by Alexander Winning)</p>


istockphoto-1076949610-612×612-1

South African Markets – Factors to watch on July 15


<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="2048" height="1336" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/FEWOQ7AP7VKRLHUUH22MJ7YJ3A-scaled.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-507731" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/FEWOQ7AP7VKRLHUUH22MJ7YJ3A-scaled.jpg 2048w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/FEWOQ7AP7VKRLHUUH22MJ7YJ3A-300x196.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/FEWOQ7AP7VKRLHUUH22MJ7YJ3A-820x535.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/FEWOQ7AP7VKRLHUUH22MJ7YJ3A-138x90.jpg 138w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/FEWOQ7AP7VKRLHUUH22MJ7YJ3A-768x501.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/FEWOQ7AP7VKRLHUUH22MJ7YJ3A-1536x1002.jpg 1536w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Kenya&#8217;s President William Ruto addresses delegates after signing the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission Amendment Bill 2024, backed by the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO), at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre in Nairobi, Kenya July 9, 2024. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



<p>NAIROBI, July 15 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Kenya&#8217;s government plans to cut 2024-25 spending by 1.9% and widen the fiscal deficit to 3.6% of GDP in a revised budget, the treasury said, weeks after it was forced to roll back tax hikes due to mass protests.</p>



<p>President William Ruto last week fired almost his entire cabinet and pledged to set up a broad-based government in his latest concession to demands from protesters.</p>



<p>Public demonstrations began last month against the now-binned tax hikes, but went on to demand Ruto&#8217;s resignation and deep-rooted political changes to tackle corruption and poor governance.</p>



<p>Ruto had earlier this month proposed spending cuts and additional borrowing in roughly equal measure to fill the nearly $2.7 billion budget hole caused by the withdrawal of the tax hikes.</p>



<p>When lawmakers return to parliament next week they will need to debate and pass the supplementary budget, which was signed by Chris Kiptoo, principal treasury secretary on July 11, and shared on parliament&#8217;s website.</p>



<p>The supplementary budget projects total spending at 3.87 trillion Kenyan shillings ($30 billion), down from 3.99 trillion shillings ($31 billion), Kiptoo said.</p>



<p>Recurrent expenditure is estimated to fall 2.1%, while development expenditure will drop 16.4%, he said.</p>



<p>Despite the withdrawal of the tax-hike legislation, the energy regulator on Monday raised the road maintenance levy to 25 shillings per litre of fuel, up from 18 shillings.</p>



<p>Facing the worst crisis of his two-year presidency, Ruto has been caught between the demands of lenders such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to cut deficits, and a population struggling with the high cost of living.</p>



<p>The IMF said on Thursday it was assessing recent developments in Kenya and making adjustments to evolving circumstances.</p>



<p>($1 = 128.7500 Kenyan shillings)</p>



<p>(Reporting by Hereward Holland; Editing by Arun Koyyur)</p>


Kenya’s President William Ruto signs the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission Amendment Bill 2024, in Nairobi

Kenya to cut spending in revised budget after tax-hike rollback


<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="612" height="357" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1030878162-612x612-1.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-400669" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1030878162-612x612-1.jpg 612w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1030878162-612x612-1-300x175.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 612px) 100vw, 612px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">World map with charts and graphs as symbols of global finance</figcaption></figure>



<p>July 15 (Reuters) &#8211; The following company announcements, scheduled economic indicators, debt and currency market moves and political events may affect African markets on Monday.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-events">EVENTS:</h2>



<p>Rwandan President Paul Kagame is expected to cruise to a fourth term in office in an election on Monday against two opposition candidates who were cleared to run against him but have only modest expectations.</p>



<p>Nigeria&#8217;s statistics office is expected to release the latest inflation data.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-global-markets">GLOBAL MARKETS</h2>



<p>U.S. bond futures slipped and the dollar firmed on Monday as investors wagered the attack on U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump made his victory more likely, while injecting a whole new level of political uncertainty into markets.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-world-oil-prices">WORLD OIL PRICES</h2>



<p>Oil prices fell for a second day on Monday as the dollar gained ground amid political uncertainty in the U.S. following an attack on U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump while investors eyed the progress of talks for a Gaza ceasefire.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-south-africa-markets">SOUTH AFRICA MARKETS</h2>



<p>The South African rand extended its gains on Friday, as a surprisingly soft U.S. inflation data spurred bets the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates in September.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-kenya-markets">KENYA MARKETS</h2>



<p>Kenya&#8217;s shilling weakened on Friday due to increased demand for dollars from general goods importers, while inflows from non-governmental organisations cushioned it from easing further, traders said.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rwanda-election">RWANDA ELECTION</h2>



<p>Voters in Rwanda headed to the polls on Monday to elect their next president, with 66-year-old incumbent Paul Kagame who has ruled the central African country for nearly a quarter of a century expected to cruise to victory.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-senegal-oil">SENEGAL OIL</h2>



<p>Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye said on Saturday the West African country planned to renegotiate its oil contracts, saying it could have negotiated better on the contracts.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-congo-politics">CONGO POLITICS</h2>



<p>U.N. peacekeepers are unlikely to proceed with an agreed withdrawal from Congo&#8217;s conflict-torn North Kivu for as long as Rwandan troops remain in the eastern province, the Congolese foreign minister said on Saturday.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-kenya-politics">KENYA POLITICS</h2>



<p>Luxury cars, private helicopters, mounds of cash. The lavish lifestyles of Kenya&#8217;s lawmakers, splashed across TikTok and X, added fuel to anger simmering last month among a young, plugged-in population over proposed tax hikes.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-somalia-security">SOMALIA SECURITY</h2>



<p>Eight people were killed in Somalia&#8217;s capital Mogadishu on Saturday after gunfire broke out between security forces and some prisoners who had acquired weapons and were trying to escape, state media and the prisons service said.</p>



<p>((Compiled by Nairobi Newsroom))</p>


World map with charts and graphs as symbols of global finance

African Markets – Factors to watch on July 15


<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2TU5RF27YVKWNPFXJZY3IBZPGI-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-507696" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2TU5RF27YVKWNPFXJZY3IBZPGI-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2TU5RF27YVKWNPFXJZY3IBZPGI-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2TU5RF27YVKWNPFXJZY3IBZPGI-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2TU5RF27YVKWNPFXJZY3IBZPGI-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2TU5RF27YVKWNPFXJZY3IBZPGI-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2TU5RF27YVKWNPFXJZY3IBZPGI-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Rwanda&#8217;s incumbent President and presidential candidate for the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) Paul Kagame addresses his supporters during his final campaign rally in Gahanga, Kicukiro district in Kigali, Rwanda, July 13, 2024. REUTERS/Jean Bizimana</figcaption></figure>



<p>KIGALI, July 15 (Reuters) &#8211; Voters in Rwanda lined up at polling stations on Monday to elect their next president, with 66-year-old incumbent Paul Kagame, who has ruled the central African country for nearly a quarter of a century, expected to cruise to victory.</p>



<p>Kagame has won more than 93% of the vote at each of the three previous elections. Eight candidates had applied to run against him, but only two were retained in the final list validated by the electoral commission.</p>



<p>The others, including Kagame&#8217;s most vocal critics, were barred for various reasons that included prior criminal convictions.</p>



<p>At the Rwandexco polling centre in the capital Kigali people started queueing 90 minutes before polls opened.</p>



<p>Voter Barimukije Pheneas said he had chosen to re-elect Kagame, who is praised for rebuilding the country in the aftermath of the 1994 genocide by prioritising development and putting in place effective social services.</p>



<p>&#8220;We voted smoothly without any crowding, and we are happy,&#8221; Pheneas said. &#8220;I voted for Paul Kagame because he has achieved a lot for us; he united us.&#8221;</p>



<p>Kagame is running against two other candidates, Frank Habineza and Philippe Mpayimana, who also challenged him at the last poll in 2017.</p>



<p>He is looking to win the endorsement of the more than 9 million eligible voters, who are also electing members of parliament. Provisional results are expected by July 20.</p>



<p>Motorcycle taxi driver Karangwa Vedaste said the voting process was calm and peaceful.</p>



<p>&#8220;I voted for a leader I trust. The one I voted for is a secret in my heart. We will share it when he wins,&#8221; Vedaste said.</p>



<p>Kagame won nearly 99% of the vote in the 2017 poll, which followed a constitutional change removing term limits that would have prevented him from standing again.</p>



<p>He has won acclaim for transforming Rwanda into a thriving economy but has also faced criticism from rights activists and Western nations for muzzling the media, stifling opposition and backing rebel groups in neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo.</p>



<p>Rwanda&#8217;s government has denied all the accusations against it, and while campaigning, Kagame promised continued development and stability.</p>



<p>Its human rights record was thrown into the spotlight when Rwanda struck a migration deal in 2022 with the UK to receive thousands of asylum seekers. Britain&#8217;s new government has said it would scrap the deal.</p>



<p>(Writing by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by Ros Russell and Michael Perry)</p>


Rwandan President Paul Kagame campaigns in Kigali

Rwandans vote in election expected to extend Kagame’s long rule


<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/NQFF6V3255MN7P5MFDWEA3F5UE-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-506788" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/NQFF6V3255MN7P5MFDWEA3F5UE-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/NQFF6V3255MN7P5MFDWEA3F5UE-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/NQFF6V3255MN7P5MFDWEA3F5UE-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/NQFF6V3255MN7P5MFDWEA3F5UE-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/NQFF6V3255MN7P5MFDWEA3F5UE-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/NQFF6V3255MN7P5MFDWEA3F5UE-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Residents walk between flooded shacks following severe weather from a cold front in Masiphumelele, Cape Town, South Africa July 11, 2024. REUTERS/Nic Bothma/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



<p>CAPE TOWN, July 12 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;More stormy weather loomed over Cape Town after days of high winds and drenching rain that have displaced hundreds of people, flooded homes and uprooted trees, authorities said on Friday.</p>



<p>Close to 33,000 dwellings in both informal settlements and suburbs have been affected, the city&#8217;s disaster management centre said.</p>



<p>Essentials such as meals, blankets, mattresses, roof sheeting and hygiene packs were being distributed to affected communities amid biting winds and plunging temperatures.</p>



<p>&#8220;We have a huge humanitarian situation to deal with and all authorities are working together to address this,&#8221; Anton Bredell, Western Cape Minister for Local Government, said in a statement.</p>



<p>All the city&#8217;s major catchment dams were full or nearing capacity, the Western Cape government said, warning the Breede River in Swellendam town was flowing at more than 1,000 cubic metres a second and was in danger of breaching its banks as more rain is expected.</p>



<p>&#8220;In Laingsburg, the Floriskraal Dam is at 118% and communities in the immediate downstream vicinity have been alerted of the risk of flooding,&#8221; Bredell said, referring to affected towns beyond the city&#8217;s boundaries.</p>



<p>The South Africa Weather Service has warned that an approaching cold front will cause strong to near gale-force winds of around 40 to 60 kph (25-37 mph) between Table Bay and Plettenberg Bay on Sunday.</p>



<p>Wave heights of up to five metres (16 feet) were expected on Saturday morning. Ships at Cape Town port, one of the busiest in South Africa, were advised to taking necessary precautions such as tending to moorings regularly to prevent snapping.</p>



<p>Despite the damage, some residents were enjoying the bad weather. Online videos showed youngsters frolicking about in flooded roads and even boogie boarding down saturated hills.</p>



<p>(Reporting by Wendell Roelf)</p>


Flooding in Cape Town

Cape Town braces for more wind and rain; thousands affected by stormy weather


<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="2048" height="1365" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-924883576-1-scaled.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-422955" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-924883576-1-scaled.jpg 2048w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-924883576-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-924883576-1-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-924883576-1-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-924883576-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-924883576-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Uganda shillings. Uganda. (Photo by: Godong/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



<p>KAMPALA, July 12 (Reuters) &#8211; The Ugandan shilling was flat against the dollar on Friday, with both dollar demand and supply subdued, traders said.</p>



<p>At 0805 GMT, commercial banks quoted the shilling at 3,695/3,705, the same as Thursday&#8217;s closing rate.</p>



<p>(Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by George Obulutsa)</p>


GettyImages-924883576-1

Ugandan shilling stable; market activity slow


<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="720" height="425" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/ANCK25OQIFMHTJYACOM5XU5T24.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-498541" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/ANCK25OQIFMHTJYACOM5XU5T24.jpg 720w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/ANCK25OQIFMHTJYACOM5XU5T24-300x177.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/ANCK25OQIFMHTJYACOM5XU5T24-152x90.jpg 152w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Kenya shilling coins and notes are pictured inside a cashier&#8217;s booth at a forex exchange bureau in Kenya&#8217;s capital Nairobi, April 20, 2016. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



<p>NAIROBI, July 12 (Reuters) &#8211; Kenya&#8217;s shilling weakened on Friday due to increased demand for dollars from general goods importers, while inflows from non-governmental organisations cushioned it from easing further, traders said.</p>



<p>At 0734 GMT, commercial banks quoted the shilling at 128.75/129.75 per dollar, compared with Thursday&#8217;s closing rate of 128.50/129.50.</p>



<p>Traders said there was no immediate reaction to President William Ruto dismissing all but one of his ministers on Thursday, yielding to one of the demands from nationwide protests that have created the biggest crisis of his two-year presidency.</p>



<p>(Reporting by George Obulutsa; Editing by Bate Felix)</p>


ANCK25OQIFMHTJYACOM5XU5T24

Kenya’s shilling weakens due to high dollar demand from importers


<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="567" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Z6ZWDH7YP5PTDIR6R7OWDNZ6MI-820x567.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-506707" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Z6ZWDH7YP5PTDIR6R7OWDNZ6MI-820x567.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Z6ZWDH7YP5PTDIR6R7OWDNZ6MI-300x208.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Z6ZWDH7YP5PTDIR6R7OWDNZ6MI-130x90.jpg 130w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Z6ZWDH7YP5PTDIR6R7OWDNZ6MI-768x531.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Z6ZWDH7YP5PTDIR6R7OWDNZ6MI-1536x1063.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Z6ZWDH7YP5PTDIR6R7OWDNZ6MI-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Kenya&#8217;s President William Ruto addresses the nation after he dissolved his entire cabinet apart from the foreign minister in the wake of nationwide protests over new taxes, at State House in Nairobi, Kenya July 11, 2024. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya</figcaption></figure>



<p>NAIROBI, July 12 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Luxury cars, private helicopters, mounds of cash. The lavish lifestyles of Kenya&#8217;s lawmakers, splashed across TikTok and X, added fuel to anger simmering last month among a young, plugged-in population over proposed tax hikes.</p>



<p>Weeks-long protests about the tax measures have increasingly drawn attention to the large salaries, perks and ostentation of members of parliament (MPs) in a country where three quarters of the population is young and well-paid work is scarce.</p>



<p>Fury boiled over on June 25, when protesters stormed parliament and set it ablaze, pelting fleeing politicians&#8217; vehicles with stones. Since then, private residences and businesses of several MPs, mainly those associated with the ruling coalition, have been attacked.</p>



<p>Now, TikTok and X are being wielded as protest tools. Politicians&#8217; videos are edited and reposted with negative comments. The platforms are awash with allegations of mismanaged funds and discussions on next steps for the as-yet largely leaderless youth movement.</p>



<p>Activists are sharing advice how to use recall powers to topple representatives and have even built an AI-powered chatbot that spits out media reports of corruption allegations when a politician&#8217;s name is entered.</p>



<p>In April and May during the build-up to the protests, ruling party MP Zaheer Jhanda posted videos of himself on TikTok admiring his gleaming Range Rover, a Mercedes G Wagon and a Lexus, triggering angry online commentary.</p>



<p>Protesters have since tried to storm his home, in the western town of Kisii.</p>



<p>Jhanda did not respond to requests for comment.</p>



<p>&#8220;Why would you show us your lavish lifestyle and still not do your job as a leader?&#8221; said artist and activist Rachel Stephanie Akinyi, referring to politicians&#8217; social media posts.</p>



<p>&#8220;What are you trying to show us? &#8216;We have the power to use your money the way we want to, to take care of our own needs.&#8217; But what about us?&#8221;, said Akinyi, who goes by the stage name &#8216;Spontaneous The Poet&#8217;.</p>



<p>In a sign of the pressure the protests are keeping on President William Ruto, on Thursday he said that after listening to Kenyans and reflecting, he had dismissed his entire cabinet apart from the foreign minister, with the aim of setting up a new &#8220;broad-based government.&#8221;</p>



<p>Last week, Ruto, 57, said some officials displayed &#8220;obnoxious opulence.&#8221; He announced austerity measures including cuts to his own offices budget and ordered a review of pay rises MPs and other officials had been due to receive in July.</p>



<p>Didmus Barasa, the ruling party MP for Kimilili in Western Kenya, told Reuters the protesters had valid concerns about what he called the &#8220;insensitivities&#8221; of the government&#8217;s handling of economic development. He did not give further details.</p>



<p>Barasa denied MPs were overpaid.</p>



<p>His personal wealth, including a private helicopter, was a reward for legitimate business activities, he said. Barasa, who is a former soldier and not widely known as a businessman, said he owned a hospital in Turkey.</p>



<p>&#8220;Yes, I have a helicopter. I have a helicopter that I purchased,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I am an inspiration of very many young people in this country.&#8221;</p>



<p>Barasa, after being questioned by a senator about the helicopter, previously said in online comments that he could afford it because he chose to maintain only one wife and believed in God.</p>



<p>Caroline Gaita, Executive Director of Mzalendo, an organisation that monitors parliament, said young Kenyans previously disinterested in politics are re-engaging, aware of the impact legislation has on their daily lives and demanding lawmakers listen to them.</p>



<p>Calling the protests an &#8220;awakening of Gen Z,&#8221; Tom Mboya, an expert on politics and corruption in Kenya, said there was a perception that politicians were rarely, if ever, held to account since Ruto took office in 2022.</p>



<p>&#8220;They have become bolder in their flashy and opulent lifestyles at a time when Kenyans are being taxed to their limit,&#8221; Mboya said of officials and MPs, some of whom have been filmed handing out wads of cash to people in their constituencies.</p>



<p>In 2023, Kenya ranked 126 out of 180 countries in the world by Transparency International&#8217;s Corruption Perception Index,&nbsp;down three places from 2022.</p>



<p>Ruto&#8217;s office did not respond to requests for comment on this story.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lawmakers-face-recall">LAWMAKERS FACE RECALL</h2>



<p>On June 26, Ruto scrapped the tax hikes that triggered the unrest. At least 39 people have been killed in violence related to the protests.</p>



<p>But the anger did not fade.</p>



<p>Having faced little opposition since his 2022 election, Ruto and MPs must now contend with smaller but ongoing country-wide protests that transcend political and ethnic divides that have historically shaped social movements in Kenya, a regional power and Western ally.</p>



<p>There is a growing push for lawmakers to be removed now rather than wait until elections in 2027, with guidelines published online on how to do it, in what would be the first use of recall powers introduced in 2010.</p>



<p>The process involves collecting signatures of at least 30 percent of registered voters in the constituency and then presenting them to the election commission.</p>



<p>Voters in Kabete constituency near Nairobi have collected 5,000 of the 10,000 signatures they need to recall their MP, Ndungi Githuku, a human rights activist involved in the process said.</p>



<p>&#8220;I&#8217;m hoping that Kabete will be able to inspire the rest of the country to take action&#8221; Githuku said. &#8220;We are taking this country back.&#8221;</p>



<p>Kenya&#8217;s opposition, wary of being caught up in the wave of discontent, has named six of its own members to be recalled, subject to the same process.</p>



<p>Even if the MPs who are under pressure escape being ousted, they have lost legitimacy in the eyes of Kenyans, said Senator Richard Onyonka, who was an MP for 15 years.</p>



<p>“I think they are heavily damaged,” he said.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dishing-out-millions">DISHING OUT MILLIONS</h2>



<p>Kenyan MPs earn around 33 times the national average wage, and are no strangers to accusations of corruption and waste.</p>



<p>Basic pay for MPs is currently 725,502 Kenya shillings ($5,650) per month in a country where annual per capita income is about $2,000, making them among the best paid in the world compared to average incomes.</p>



<p>They can claim extra money for sitting on committees, cheap loans for houses and extra vehicles, and thousands of dollars per month for travel to constituencies.</p>



<p>Every year, each of Kenya&#8217;s 290 MPs is given over $1 million under a scheme called Constituency Development Funds (CDF) set up to promote local development. The programme has long been plagued by accusations from Kenya&#8217;s Auditor-General (AG) and the national media that the money is inefficiently spent or embezzled.</p>



<p>Kenya&#8217;s Supreme Court ruled in 2022 that the scheme was unlawful but it has not been scrapped, providing MPs with cash to hand out on building classrooms, subsidising education or improving security.</p>



<p>A Reuters analysis of 100 audits of constituency spending by the Auditor-General found 42 constituencies where a total of about 1.7 billion shillings ($13 million) of spending under the CDF scheme on bursaries for school children could not be fully accounted for in the 2021/22 financial year.</p>



<p>The remaining 58 audits reviewed did not mention the bursaries.</p>



<p>The Speaker of the National Assembly did not reply to requests for comment.</p>



<p>MPs have long justified high pay saying that they are expected to distribute cash in their constituencies.</p>



<p>A 2021 report by UK and Dutch think-tanks the Westminster Foundation for Democracy Limited (WFD) and the Netherlands Institute for Multiparty Democracy found aspiring members of Kenya&#8217;s parliament had to spend over $180,000, mostly out their own pockets, to campaign in 2017, a figure likely to have risen in 2022, according to anti-corruption expert Mboya, one of the authors.</p>



<p>At weekends, it is not unusual for lawmakers to return home in fleets of SUVs or by helicopter.</p>



<p>&#8220;People are angry and hate us as leadership because every weekend, helicopters crisscross the sky, all of them going to functions where these millions are being dished (out),&#8221; Boni Khalwale told fellow senators on July 3.</p>



<p>(Additional reporting by Edwin Okoth, Edwin Waita and Aaron Ross in Nairobi; Editing by Frank Jack Daniel)</p>


Kenya’s President Ruto sacks cabinet after nationwide protests over new taxes

Social media fuels Kenyan youth backlash over lawmakers’ opulence


<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-1161864874-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-505638" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-1161864874-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-1161864874-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-1161864874-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-1161864874-768x513.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-1161864874-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-1161864874-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A South African one rand coin sits on South African rand banknotes in this arranged photograph in Pretoria, South Africa, on Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2019. The rand ended a tumultuous week on a positive note, gaining against the dollar for a second day and heading for its first weekly advance in four as technical indicators suggested recent declines are overdone. Photographer: Waldo Swiegers/Bloomberg via Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



<p>JOHANNESBURG, July 12 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The South African rand extended its gains in early trade on Friday, as a surprisingly soft U.S. inflation data spurred bets the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates in September.</p>



<p>Like most emerging market currencies, the rand often takes cues from U.S. economic data in addition to local factors.</p>



<p>At 0701 GMT, the rand traded at 17.98 against the dollar, about 0.2% stronger than its previous close.</p>



<p>Data on Thursday showed that U.S. consumer prices unexpectedly fell and the annual increase was the smallest in a year.</p>



<p>&#8220;This is important for the rand as monetary easing in the developed world will effectively inject fresh liquidity into global markets,&#8221; said Danny Greeff, co-head of Africa at ETM Analytics, on Thursday.</p>



<p>&#8220;Improved risk appetite is thus anticipated into the end of the year,&#8221; Greeff added.</p>



<p>U.S. inflation has been improving in recent months, and earlier this week Fed Chair Jerome Powell said that &#8220;more good data would strengthen&#8221; the case for central bank interest rate cuts.</p>



<p>South Africa&#8217;s benchmark 2030 government bond was slightly weaker in early deals, with the yield up 1.5 basis points at 9.585%.</p>



<p>(Reporting by Tannur Anders; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)</p>


South African Rand Rebound Snaps Streak of Weekly Losses

South African rand extends climb on soft US inflation data


<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="612" height="408" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1076949610-612x612-1.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-400697" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1076949610-612x612-1.jpg 612w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1076949610-612x612-1-300x200.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 612px) 100vw, 612px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Double exposure of coin stack with city background and world map, financial graph, world map and global network business concept idea, element by NASA.</figcaption></figure>



<p>JOHANNESBURG, July 12 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The following scheduled economic event, equity and currency market moves may affect South African markets on Friday.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-economic-events">ECONOMIC EVENTS</h2>



<p>South Africa&#8217;s government will hold its weekly auction of inflation-linked bonds.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-south-african-markets">SOUTH AFRICAN MARKETS</h2>



<p>The South African rand extended its gains on Thursday after U.S. inflation unexpectedly fell last month, fuelling bets that the Federal Reserve may cut interest rates in September.</p>



<p>On the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, the blue-chip Top-40 index closed 0.9% higher.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-global-markets">GLOBAL MARKETS</h2>



<p>The yen swung between losses and gains on Friday in volatile trade, reflecting investors&#8217; skittishness after Tokyo was thought to have intervened to prop up the Japanese currency in the wake of a cooler-than-expected U.S. inflation report.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-wall-street">WALL STREET</h2>



<p>The Nasdaq .IXIC ended sharply lower on Thursday, hit by losses in Nvidia, Apple and Tesla as investors rotated into smaller companies after softer-than-expected inflation data fed bets the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates in September.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-gold">GOLD</h2>



<p>Gold prices edged lower on Friday, but were headed for a third straight week of gains as cooler-than-expected U.S. inflation data boosted hopes of the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates in September.</p>



<p>&#8211; &#8211; &#8211; &#8211;</p>



<p>Some of the main stories out in the South African press:</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fin-24">FIN 24</h2>



<p>&#8211; &#8216;Not ashamed&#8217;: SA keen to boost trade with Russia, says Mantashe</p>



<p>&#8211; South Africans &#8216;jaded&#8217;, financially stressed and not hopeful for change, Sanlam survey finds</p>



<p>(Compiled by Tannur Anders)</p>


South African Markets – Factors to watch on July 12


<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="612" height="357" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1030878162-612x612-1.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-400669" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1030878162-612x612-1.jpg 612w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1030878162-612x612-1-300x175.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 612px) 100vw, 612px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">World map with charts and graphs as symbols of global finance</figcaption></figure>



<p>NAIROBI, July 12 (Reuters) &#8211; The following company announcements, scheduled economic indicators, debt and currency market moves and political events may affect African markets on Friday.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-global-markets">GLOBAL MARKETS</h2>



<p>The yen swung between losses and gains on Friday in volatile trade, reflecting investors&#8217; skittishness after Tokyo was thought to have intervened to prop up the Japanese currency in the wake of a cooler-than-expected U.S. inflation report.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-world-oil-prices">WORLD OIL PRICES</h2>



<p>Oil prices inched up on Friday amid signs of easing inflationary pressures in the world&#8217;s biggest oil consumer, the United States, though the contracts were headed for a weekly decline.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-south-africa-markets">SOUTH AFRICA MARKETS</h2>



<p>The South African rand extended its gains on Thursday after U.S. inflation unexpectedly fell last month, fuelling bets that the Federal Reserve may cut interest rates in September.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-africa-currencies">AFRICA CURRENCIES</h2>



<p>Zambia&#8217;s kwacha and Kenya&#8217;s shilling could fall against the dollar in the next week to Thursday, while Uganda&#8217;s shilling, Nigeria&#8217;s naira and Ghana&#8217;s cedi are seen broadly stable, traders said.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-nigeria-central-bank">NIGERIA CENTRAL BANK</h2>



<p>Nigeria&#8217;s central bank will do whatever is necessary to tame double-digit inflation but expects price pressures to moderate and interest rates to drop in the not-too-distant future, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor said on Thursday.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-nigeria-petroleum">NIGERIA PETROLEUM</h2>



<p>Nigeria&#8217;s oil regulator has struck a deal with producers to allow sales of crude to domestic refiners at market prices, ending a supply dispute that had strained relations with international oil companies.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-kenya-markets">KENYA MARKETS</h2>



<p>Kenya&#8217;s shilling was weaker on Thursday due to increased demand for dollars from oil-retailing companies and general goods importers, traders said.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-kenya-politics">KENYA POLITICS</h2>



<p>Kenyan President William Ruto on Thursday fired his entire cabinet apart from the foreign minister, bowing to pressure from nationwide protests that have created the biggest crisis of his two-year presidency.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-uganda-central-bank">UGANDA CENTRAL BANK</h2>



<p>Uganda&#8217;s central bank has begun buying locally-produced gold to bolster its depleted foreign reserves and tackle emerging challenges in international financial markets.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-zambia-electricity">ZAMBIA ELECTRICITY</h2>



<p>Zambia&#8217;s Maamba Collieries will build a 300 megawatt (MW) coal-fired power plant costing an estimated $400 million over a two-year period from August 2024, its local shareholder ZCCM-IH said in a statement.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-zambia-mining">ZAMBIA MINING</h2>



<p>China&#8217;s JCHX Mining plans to invest $300 million to breathe new life into Zambia&#8217;s Lubambe Copper Mines which it recently acquired, Zambia&#8217;s state mining investment unit, ZCCM-IH said on Thursday.</p>



<p>((Compiled by Nairobi Newsroom))</p>


African Markets – Factors to watch on July 12


<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="2048" height="1365" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/VHFMCME3UZO7DANJAKAOCLCA2U-scaled.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-495905" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/VHFMCME3UZO7DANJAKAOCLCA2U-scaled.jpg 2048w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/VHFMCME3UZO7DANJAKAOCLCA2U-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/VHFMCME3UZO7DANJAKAOCLCA2U-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/VHFMCME3UZO7DANJAKAOCLCA2U-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/VHFMCME3UZO7DANJAKAOCLCA2U-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/VHFMCME3UZO7DANJAKAOCLCA2U-1536x1024.jpg 1536w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Nigeria&#8217;s President Bola Tinubu looks on after his swearing-in ceremony in Abuja, Nigeria May 29, 2023. REUTERS/Temilade Adelaja/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



<p>ABUJA, (Reuters) &#8211; Nigeria&#8217;s labour unions told President Bola Tinubu on Thursday that soaring prices and a weakening currency were biting hard as they pushed for a new minimum wage they say will help cushion workers from the worst cost of living crisis in generations.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-it-s-important">WHY IT&#8217;S IMPORTANT</h2>



<p>Labour unions suspended a strike in early June to give negotiations on the new minimum wage a chance but a failure to reach an agreement could prompt unions to call for new action.</p>



<p>Leaders in Nigeria are mindful of deadly riots in Kenya that forced the government to backtrack from raising taxes and are trying to balance between appeasing restive workers and borrowing more to meet wage demands.</p>



<p>Any major disruptions to economic activity could tip over an economy struggling with tepid growth, low production of oil, its main export, and high cost of living.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-by-the-numbers">BY THE NUMBERS</h2>



<p>The government is offering a monthly wage of 62,000 naira ($40) but unions want 250,000 naira ($160) and have asked authorities to roll back increases in gasoline and electricity prices. The last minimum wage was agreed in 2019.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-s-next">WHAT&#8217;S NEXT?</h2>



<p>The labour leaders said they had agreed some issues with Tinubu, which they did not disclose, and added that they would reconvene another meeting in a week.</p>



<p>($1 = 1,560.00 naira)</p>



<p>(Editing by MacDonald Dzirutwe)</p>


FILE PHOTO: Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu looks on after his swearing-in ceremony in Abuja

Nigeria unions meet president in push for new minimum wage


<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="572" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/XFNOXFRHRNJ3PLPFQZF66W3MBE-820x572.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-506368" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/XFNOXFRHRNJ3PLPFQZF66W3MBE-820x572.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/XFNOXFRHRNJ3PLPFQZF66W3MBE-300x209.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/XFNOXFRHRNJ3PLPFQZF66W3MBE-129x90.jpg 129w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/XFNOXFRHRNJ3PLPFQZF66W3MBE-768x536.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/XFNOXFRHRNJ3PLPFQZF66W3MBE-1536x1071.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/XFNOXFRHRNJ3PLPFQZF66W3MBE.jpg 1822w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Kenya&#8217;s President William Ruto speaks at a press conference where he announced spending cuts in government after protests against Kenya&#8217;s proposed finance bill 2024/2025, in Nairobi, Kenya, July 5, 2024. REUTERS/Monicah Mwangi</figcaption></figure>



<p>NAIROBI, July 11 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Kenyan President William Ruto on Thursday fired his entire cabinet apart from the foreign minister, bowing to pressure from&nbsp;nationwide protests that have created&nbsp;the biggest crisis of his two-year presidency.</p>



<p>The youth-led protests against planned tax hikes started off peacefully but turned violent, killing at least 39 people in clashes with the police last month. Some demonstrators briefly stormed parliament, before Ruto abandoned the new taxes.</p>



<p>&#8220;I will immediately engage in extensive consultations across different sectors and political formations and other Kenyans, both in public and private, with the aim of setting up a broad-based government,&#8221; Ruto said in a televised address to the nation, adding that he would announce additional measures later.</p>



<p>He also dismissed the attorney general but said the office of the deputy president was not affected.</p>



<p>The sweeping cabinet changes were what Kenyans have been asking for, veteran anti-corruption activist John Githongo told Reuters.</p>



<p>&#8220;Let us see what happens now if the new ministers deal with big issues around corruption and just the arrogance and excess of his administration and the fact that a lot of Kenyans died during the demonstrations,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Hopefully this should temporarily calm things.&#8221;</p>



<p>Ruto has been caught between the demands of lenders such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to cut deficits and a hard-pressed population reeling from rising cost of living.</p>



<p>Last week he proposed spending cuts and additional borrowing in roughly equal measure to fill the nearly $2.7 billion budget hole caused by the withdrawal of the tax hikes.</p>



<p>Analysts have said the tax rollback means Kenya is likely to miss IMF targets although the government does not have debts that are due.</p>



<p>The budget deficit is now projected at 4.6% of gross domestic product in the fiscal year that started on July 1.</p>



<p>Ojango Omondi, a community activist from the Social Justice Centres Working Group in Nairobi, said dismissing so many cabinet ministers was a &#8220;move towards justice&#8221;, but activists would want to see who Ruto appoints in their place.</p>



<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s one thing to dismiss, the second is to ensure that the people that will be chosen in the cabinet are accountable to the constitution and the rule of law,&#8221; Omondi said.</p>



<p>(Additional reporting by Aaron Ross in Nairobi and Bhargav Acharya in Johannesburg; Writing by Alexander Winning; Editing by Bate Felix and Arun Koyyur)</p>


Kenya’s President announces government spending cuts after protest against Kenya’s proposed finance bill 2024/2025, in Nairobi

Kenyan president sacks cabinet, bowing to pressure from protests


<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/AU3TIBJDBBNTFCB7MP32IQ4O5A-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-506442" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/AU3TIBJDBBNTFCB7MP32IQ4O5A-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/AU3TIBJDBBNTFCB7MP32IQ4O5A-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/AU3TIBJDBBNTFCB7MP32IQ4O5A-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/AU3TIBJDBBNTFCB7MP32IQ4O5A-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/AU3TIBJDBBNTFCB7MP32IQ4O5A-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/AU3TIBJDBBNTFCB7MP32IQ4O5A-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: A man counts Nigerian naira notes in a market place in Yola, Nigeria, February 22, 2023. REUTERS/Esa Alexander/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



<p>LUSAKA, July 11 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Zambia&#8217;s kwacha and Kenya&#8217;s shilling could fall against the dollar in the next week to Thursday, while Uganda&#8217;s shilling,&nbsp;Nigeria&#8217;s naira&nbsp;and Ghana&#8217;s cedi are seen broadly stable, traders said.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-kenya">KENYA</h2>



<p>Kenya&#8217;s shilling is expected to slip on increased demand for dollars from oil-retailing companies at a time that some market participants are holding off from big bets because of uncertainty over the budget and an International Monetary Fund (IMF) disbursement.</p>



<p>Commercial banks quoted the shilling at 128.75/129.75 per dollar, compared with last Thursday&#8217;s closing rate of 127.75/128.75.</p>



<p>In mid-June Kenya reached a staff-level agreement with IMF, paving the way for a disbursement of about $976 million once board approval is granted.</p>



<p>But since the staff agreement was reached Kenyan President William Ruto withdrew planned tax hikes in response to nationwide protests, a move analysts say could result in the country missing key IMF programme targets.</p>



<p>&#8220;There&#8217;s an element of, you know, wait and see, we still need to hear from the IMF okay and even from Treasury in terms of what is the final budget going to look like,&#8221; one trader said.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-nigeria">NIGERIA</h2>



<p>Nigeria&#8217;s naira is seen little changed on the official market and in street trading.</p>



<p>LSEG data showed the naira at 1,534 to the dollar on the official market on Thursday, compared with around 1,507 a week ago. The unit was quoted at 1,558 on the parallel market on Thursday.</p>



<p>Central bank governor Olayemi Cardoso said at a conference on Thursday that the bank&#8217;s clearer communication had helped reduce market volatility.</p>



<p>&#8220;A lot of the wide swings that we saw are gradually beginning to smoothen out as a result of a better understanding of the market, greater transparency that is taking place and the comfort that those using the market see in it,&#8221; he said.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ghana">GHANA</h2>



<p>Ghana&#8217;s cedi is expected to hold its ground due to improved liquidity on the interbank market.</p>



<p>LSEG data showed the cedi trading at 15.35 to the dollar on Thursday, compared with 15.30 at last Thursday&#8217;s close.</p>



<p>&#8220;The cedi has seen continued stability this week amid increased volume of dollar supply even with reduced intervention from the central bank. We expect the stability to remain in the coming week,&#8221; said Chris Nettey, head of trading at Stanbic Bank Ghana.</p>



<p>&#8220;(The dollar/cedi pair) has been largely directionless in recent sessions, with very little trading activity between market makers. Improved flows from corporates have also contributed to tighter bid-offer spreads. Up ahead, we expect much of the same,&#8221; said Sedem Dornoo, senior trader at Absa Bank Ghana.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-zambia">ZAMBIA</h2>



<p>Zambia&#8217;s kwacha is expected to remain under pressure due to strong demand for hard currency.</p>



<p>On Thursday the currency of Africa&#8217;s second-largest copper producer was trading at 25.35 per dollar from 24.30 a week ago.</p>



<p>&#8220;In the foreseeable future, losses are anticipated for the kwacha,&#8221; Access Bank said in a note.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-uganda">UGANDA</h2>



<p>Uganda&#8217;s shilling is seen trading around its current levels as hard-currency demand is curtailed by mid-month tax payments due in the local currency.</p>



<p>Commercial banks quoted the shilling at 3,695/3,705 to the dollar, compared to last Thursday&#8217;s close of 3,692/3,702.</p>



<p>&#8220;Demand will be tepid as we have mid-month taxes around the corner,&#8221; one trader said, adding the shilling would likely trade in a range of 3,680-3,710 to the U.S. currency in the coming week.</p>



<p>(Reporting by Chris Mfula, George Obulutsa, Elias Biryabarema, Christian Akorlie and Elisha Bala-GbogboEditing by Alexander Winning)</p>


FILE PHOTO: Man counts Nigerian naira notes in a market place in Yola

Zambian and Kenyan currencies seen under pressure


<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="612" height="357" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1030878162-612x612-1.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-400669" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1030878162-612x612-1.jpg 612w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1030878162-612x612-1-300x175.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 612px) 100vw, 612px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">World map with charts and graphs as symbols of global finance</figcaption></figure>



<p>NAIROBI, July 11 (Reuters) &#8211; The following company announcements, scheduled economic indicators, debt and currency market moves and political events may affect African markets on Thursday.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-events">EVENTS:</h2>



<p>*Mauritius&#8217; central bank is expected to announce its latest benchmark lending rate decision.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-global-markets">GLOBAL MARKETS</h2>



<p>Stocks rose on Thursday, with markets from Tokyo to New York at record highs, while traders counted down to U.S. data that is expected to show inflation easing and pave the way for rate cuts in September.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-world-oil-prices">WORLD OIL PRICES</h2>



<p>Oil prices edged higher on Thursday as crude stocks fell after U.S. refineries ramped up processing and as gasoline inventories eased, signalling stronger demand.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-south-africa-markets">SOUTH AFRICA MARKETS</h2>



<p>The South African rand gained on Wednesday against a weaker dollar, as focus remains on the future interest rate path of the world&#8217;s biggest economy.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-kenya-markets">KENYA MARKETS</h2>



<p>Kenya&#8217;s shilling weakened on Wednesday, pressured by increased foreign-currency demand and a credit rating downgrade by Moody&#8217;s, traders said.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-uganda-airtel-shares">UGANDA AIRTEL SHARES</h2>



<p>Telecom firm Airtel Uganda, a unit of India&#8217;s Bharti Airtel, said on Wednesday it plans to sell shares left over from its undersubscribed initial public offering to comply with regulatory requirements.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ethio-telecom-results">ETHIO TELECOM RESULTS</h2>



<p>Ethiopian state-owned telecom company Ethio Telecom said on Wednesday that its full-year revenue and net profit rose by more 20% in the year that ended in June.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rwanda-election">RWANDA ELECTION</h2>



<p>Rwandan President Paul Kagame is expected to cruise to a fourth term in office in an election on Monday against two opposition candidates who were cleared to run against him but have only modest expectations.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ghana-inflation">GHANA INFLATION</h2>



<p>Ghana&#8217;s consumer inflation slowed for a third consecutive month to 22.8% year-on-year in June from 23.1% in May, the statistics service said on Wednesday.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-zimbabwe-economy">ZIMBABWE ECONOMY</h2>



<p>Zimbabwe has revised its economic growth forecast downwards as southern Africa&#8217;s worst drought in decades ravages crop yields, its finance minister told Reuters on Wednesday, but a bounceback in growth is likely in 2025.</p>



<p>((Compiled by Nairobi Newsroom))</p>


African Markets – Factors to watch on July 11


<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="543" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/LLWMXSWBVJMF3BMTIDLHLYEXLI-820x543.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-506323" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/LLWMXSWBVJMF3BMTIDLHLYEXLI-820x543.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/LLWMXSWBVJMF3BMTIDLHLYEXLI-300x199.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/LLWMXSWBVJMF3BMTIDLHLYEXLI-136x90.jpg 136w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/LLWMXSWBVJMF3BMTIDLHLYEXLI-768x508.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/LLWMXSWBVJMF3BMTIDLHLYEXLI-1536x1017.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/LLWMXSWBVJMF3BMTIDLHLYEXLI-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Rwanda&#8217;s President Paul Kagame of the ruling Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) party sits to submit his candidacy for an a July 15  election at Rwanda&#8217;s National Election Commission in Kiyovu, Kigali, Rwanda May 17, 2024. REUTERS/Jean Bizimana/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



<p>KIGALI, July 11 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Rwandan President Paul Kagame is expected to cruise to a fourth term in office in an election on Monday against two opposition candidates who were cleared to run against him but have only modest expectations.</p>



<p>Kagame, 66, helped lead the rebel movement that ended the 1994 genocide in Rwanda and has served as president since 2000. He faces only two rivals because six other potential candidates were not cleared to run by the state-run electoral commission.</p>



<p>Kagame won nearly 99% of the vote in the last election in 2017, which followed a constitutional change removing term limits that would have barred him from standing again.</p>



<p>His reelection could signal further stability but also continued global scrutiny, given accusations of rights abuses and continued tensions with neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo.</p>



<p>Kagame has won praise during his tenure for rebuilding the country of 14 million after the genocide, in which more than a million people were killed. Rwanda has emerged as a regional financial hub.</p>



<p>But his government has been accused by Western nations and rights activists of muzzling the media, assassinating opponents, and backing rebel groups in neighbouring Congo.</p>



<p>International scrutiny was intensified by the migration deal Rwanda struck in 2022 to receive thousands of asylum seekers from Britain. Newly elected British Prime Minister Keir Starmer confirmed on Saturday he would scrap the agreement.</p>



<p>Rwanda&#8217;s government has denied all the accusations against it, and while campaigning, Kagame promised continued development and stability.</p>



<p>&#8220;With you, there is nothing our country will not achieve, because today you have leaders who are not foolish and you are not foolish,&#8221; he told young supporters at a rally last week in Eastern Province.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-two-challengers">TWO CHALLENGERS</h2>



<p>Eight candidates had applied to run against Kagame, but only two were retained in the final list validated by the electoral commission. The others, including Kagame&#8217;s most vocal critics, were invalidated for various reasons that included prior criminal convictions.</p>



<p>The two approved candidates, Frank Habineza and Philippe Mpayimana, ran against Kagame in 2017.</p>



<p>In an interview with Reuters, Habineza, the leader of the Democratic Green Party, said he expected to exceed his total of 0.48% of the vote from 2017.</p>



<p>&#8220;People are only considering 2017 and say that I got 0.4%, but they forget that our party stood for parliament and got more than 5%,&#8221; he said.</p>



<p>Mpayimana, who works for the Ministry of National Unity and Civic Engagement, urged voters at a campaign event to consider his candidacy.</p>



<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s true you cannot change the winning team, but we also have to give opportunities to the junior teams to see if they can deliver on their pledges. That is what democracy means,&#8221; he said.</p>



<p>Over 9 million voters are registered for the polls in which they will also elect members of the 80-seat lower house of parliament. Provisional results are expected by July 20.</p>



<p>(Reporting by Aaron Ross, Editing by Bate Felix and Timothy Heritage)</p>


FILE PHOTO: Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame submits his candidature for re-election in Kigali

Kagame expected to cruise to fourth term in Rwanda election


<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="597" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/JQPE6SE4FVJ2TESCZASBTQHGQI-820x597.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-506072" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/JQPE6SE4FVJ2TESCZASBTQHGQI-820x597.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/JQPE6SE4FVJ2TESCZASBTQHGQI-300x218.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/JQPE6SE4FVJ2TESCZASBTQHGQI-124x90.jpg 124w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/JQPE6SE4FVJ2TESCZASBTQHGQI-768x559.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/JQPE6SE4FVJ2TESCZASBTQHGQI-1536x1119.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/JQPE6SE4FVJ2TESCZASBTQHGQI-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">File photo: A woman fetches drinking water from an unprotected well, as Zimbabwe is experiencing an El Nino-induced drought, resulting in malnutrition among children under the age of five, pregnant and lactating women, and adolescents, in Kotwa in Mudzi district, Zimbabwe July 2, 2024. REUTERS/Philimon Bulawayo/File photo</figcaption></figure>



<p>HARARE, July 10 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Zimbabwe has revised its economic growth forecast downwards as southern Africa&#8217;s worst drought in decades ravages crop yields, its finance minister told Reuters on Wednesday, but a bounceback in growth is likely in 2025.</p>



<p>Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube said economic growth is forecast at 2% for 2024, down from 3.5% forecast in November, due to an El Niño-induced drought which has led to widespread crop failure.</p>



<p>El Niño is a natural climate phenomenon in which surface waters of the central and eastern Pacific become unusually warm, causing changes in global weather patterns.</p>



<p>Zimbabwe is among the hardest hit by drought in the region, impacting crop yields. Neighbours Zambia and Malawi have declared states of disaster as a result of the drought.</p>



<p>Last month, the International Monetary Fund also said it expected Zimbabwe&#8217;s growth to fall to 2%, down from 5.3% last year.</p>



<p>&#8220;We are all downgrading our growth targets for 2024 because of deeper than expected impact on our agriculture, but next year is brighter,&#8221; Ncube said.</p>



<p>Growth is expected to recover to above 5% in 2025, he added.</p>



<p>In May, the Zimbabwean government forecasted that staple maize production will drop 72% in the 2023/24 season.</p>



<p>Ncube said the drought had affected agriculture output and the country expects to import 1.4 million metric tonnes of grain.</p>



<p>To ease hunger across the country, Zimbabwe received around $32 million drought insurance last week from an African Union agency. Government has also appealed to international donors to assist with food aid.</p>



<p>Ncube will give the mid-term budget review later this month.</p>



<p>(Reporting by Nyasha Chingono, Editing by Tannur Anders and Angus MacSwan)</p>


Reuters

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Reuters

South African Markets – Factors to watch on July 15

Kenya to cut spending in revised budget after tax-hike rollback

African Markets – Factors to watch on July 15

Rwandans vote in election expected to extend Kagame’s long rule

Cape Town braces for more wind and rain; thousands affected by stormy weather

Ugandan shilling stable; market activity slow

Kenya’s shilling weakens due to high dollar demand from importers

Social media fuels Kenyan youth backlash over lawmakers’ opulence

South African rand extends climb on soft US inflation data

South African Markets – Factors to watch on July 12

African Markets – Factors to watch on July 12

Nigeria unions meet president in push for new minimum wage

Kenyan president sacks cabinet, bowing to pressure from protests

Zambian and Kenyan currencies seen under pressure

African Markets – Factors to watch on July 11

Kagame expected to cruise to fourth term in Rwanda election

Lower growth forecast for Zimbabwe as drought ravages crop yields – finmin

News Tips

Advertise With Us

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