<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="548" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/XITIO74YJBM5XNTYYV6EQSSGSY-1-820x548.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-430986" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/XITIO74YJBM5XNTYYV6EQSSGSY-1-820x548.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/XITIO74YJBM5XNTYYV6EQSSGSY-1-300x201.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/XITIO74YJBM5XNTYYV6EQSSGSY-1-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/XITIO74YJBM5XNTYYV6EQSSGSY-1-768x514.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/XITIO74YJBM5XNTYYV6EQSSGSY-1-1536x1027.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/XITIO74YJBM5XNTYYV6EQSSGSY-1.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">South African bank notes featuring an image of former South African President Nelson Mandela are displayed at an office in Johannesburg, File. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, Nov 29 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;South Africa&#8217;s central bank has warned that systemic risk to the country&#8217;s financial stability has remained elevated, notably due to the government&#8217;s increasing debt levels and debt-servicing costs, as well as the impact of being put on a &#8220;grey list&#8221;.



The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) said in its biannual health check on Wednesday that the risk has remained elevated since the release of the May report.



Earlier this month, the finance minister&#8217;s mid-term budget showed debt peaking at a higher level than in February when the main budget was tabled, with gross debt expected to rise to 6.52 trillion rand ($352.40 billion) in 2026/27 from 5.24 trillion rand in 2023/24.



&#8220;As government debt has increased, so has the domestic financial sector&#8217;s exposure to it,&#8221; the SARB report said.



This is because foreign investor participation in the government bond market has declined steadily since 2018, with an acceleration following South Africa&#8217;s exclusion from the World Government Bond Index in April 2020.



&#8220;The increasing concentration of (government bonds) held by domestic investors, coupled with the high levels of government debt, presents a risk to the financial sector,&#8221; it added.



The country was also put on a &#8220;grey list&#8221; in February by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), a&nbsp;global&nbsp;financial crime watchdog, to force it to implement standards to prevent money laundering and terrorism financing.



While the immediate impact is higher processing, monitoring and reporting costs, the long-term consequence will be the reduction of the country&#8217;s attractiveness as an investment destination, the report said.



Risks that have eased somewhat include that of secondary sanctions on South&nbsp;Africa if its neutrality stance on Russia and Ukraine is not clear and that of electricity supply constraints following a marked increase in new power generation projects, the report said.



&#8220;Concerns over further spillovers from the global banking stress in March 2023 also reduced notably,&#8221; it added, referring to the collapse of Switzerland&#8217;s Credit Suisse bank.



($1 = 18.5018 rand)



(Reporting by Nqobile Dludla; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)

XITIO74YJBM5XNTYYV6EQSSGSY-1

South Africa’s central bank says systemic risk to country’s financial stability remains elevated

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/L6UULG4GG5NIDGTBYMBIPOWQRY-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-425798" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/L6UULG4GG5NIDGTBYMBIPOWQRY-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/L6UULG4GG5NIDGTBYMBIPOWQRY-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/L6UULG4GG5NIDGTBYMBIPOWQRY-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/L6UULG4GG5NIDGTBYMBIPOWQRY-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/L6UULG4GG5NIDGTBYMBIPOWQRY-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/L6UULG4GG5NIDGTBYMBIPOWQRY-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><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>



ABUJA, Nov 29 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Nigeria plans to narrow its budget deficit to roughly 3.9% of gross domestic product (GDP) next year from about 6.1% this year, President Bola Tinubu said on Wednesday, as he projected lower borrowing costs and higher revenues.



Tinubu has embarked on Nigeria&#8217;s boldest reforms in decades, removing a popular fuel subsidy in May and scrapping foreign exchange controls, which have pushed up inflation to its highest levels in nearly two decades.



His government is seeking to balance between cushioning the impact of the double-digit inflation and the removal of the fuel subsidy with keeping spending in check.



In his first budget speech to lawmakers, Tinubu projected higher oil production and tax collection would boost government revenues and his administration would borrow slightly less next year.



&#8220;Nigeria remains committed to meeting its debt obligations. Projected debt service is 45% of the expected total revenue,&#8221; Tinubu said while presenting his 27.5 trillion naira ($34.85 billion) expenditure plan for next year.



Spending priorities include security, infrastructure and measures to ease a cost-of-living crisis.



The president said the economy was expected to grow by at least 3.76% next year while inflation would moderate to 21.4%.



Analysts said the government&#8217;s revenue expectations looked ambitious and warned that there were downside risks to global prices of oil and production of crude, Nigeria&#8217;s biggest export.



The government would also need to keep its promise to do away with the petrol subsidy and allow the market to determine the exchange rate.



&#8220;They are going to have to increase the price of petrol and allow the exchange rate to move. If not, it may be difficult to achieve that deficit figure,&#8221; said Bismarck Rewane, managing director of Lagos-based Financial Derivatives Company.



Tinubu inherited an economy that is struggling with high debt levels, low revenue collections, widespread insecurity, including a long-running insurgency in the northeast and kidnappings for ransom in the northwest.



(Additional reporting by Camillus Eboh; Writing by MacDonald Dzirutwe; Editing by Alexander Winning and Bernadette Baum)

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

Nigeria plans to trim budget deficit to 3.9% of GDP next year

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="501" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LSSIDQPHZ5O3DAPY2A2HE3A7OE-820x501.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-430894" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LSSIDQPHZ5O3DAPY2A2HE3A7OE-820x501.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LSSIDQPHZ5O3DAPY2A2HE3A7OE-300x183.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LSSIDQPHZ5O3DAPY2A2HE3A7OE-147x90.jpg 147w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LSSIDQPHZ5O3DAPY2A2HE3A7OE-768x469.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LSSIDQPHZ5O3DAPY2A2HE3A7OE-1536x938.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LSSIDQPHZ5O3DAPY2A2HE3A7OE-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Clouds pass over the pit head at Sibanye Gold&#8217;s Masimthembe shaft in Westonaria, South Africa, file. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings</figcaption></figure>



Nov 29 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Diversified miner Sibanye Stillwater&nbsp;SSWJ.J&nbsp;said on Wednesday it would cut 287 jobs at its U.S platinum group metals (PGM) operations to reduce costs as metal prices decline, adding the move would not significantly affect production.



The price of PGMs, mostly used by automakers to curb emissions, have declined significantly over the past year amid concerns over global economic growth. The palladium price has plunged nearly 40% so far this year, particularly hit by weak demand in China, while primary metal platinum is down 14%.



The Johannesburg-based miner last year announced the restructuring of its palladium-dominated U.S operations in anticipation of a fall in palladium prices and because of the impact of inflation on costs.



The restructuring is expected to affect approximately 100 Sibanye-Stillwater employees and 187 contractors, Sibanye said in a statement.



&#8220;We have taken decisive action to address costs at the U.S PGM operations, to ensure the sustainability of these long-life operations during a challenging period of lower than anticipated PGM prices,&#8221; Sibanye CEO Neal Froneman said in the statement.



The restructuring is not expected to significantly impact current mine production or recycling operations, but will result in significantly lower costs and capital, the company said.



Last month, Sibanye announced plans to restructure its South African PGM operations, targeting four loss-making shafts in a move that could potentially result in the loss of 4,095 jobs.



Sibanye&#8217;s rival Impala PlatinumIMPJ.J has also started offering voluntary job cuts to workers in South Africa in a bid to cut costs amid the PGM price rout.



(Reporting by Nelson Banya; Editing by Mark Potter)

Clouds pass over the pit head at Sibanye Gold’s Masimthembe shaft in Westonaria

Sibanye to cut nearly 300 jobs at US ops after palladium price fall

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/3K2CS37WYNNUVIVKGJN5PCM5CM-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-430849" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/3K2CS37WYNNUVIVKGJN5PCM5CM-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/3K2CS37WYNNUVIVKGJN5PCM5CM-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/3K2CS37WYNNUVIVKGJN5PCM5CM-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/3K2CS37WYNNUVIVKGJN5PCM5CM-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/3K2CS37WYNNUVIVKGJN5PCM5CM-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/3K2CS37WYNNUVIVKGJN5PCM5CM-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Nigerian President Bola Tinubu arrives for the closing session of the New Global Financial Pact Summit, Friday, June 23, 2023 in Paris, France. Lewis Joly/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



ABUJA, Nov 28 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Nigeria&#8217;s President Bola Tinubu has asked lawmakers to approve the government&#8217;s external borrowing plan for 2022-2024, to finance projects across sectors of the economy, according to a letter read in parliament on Tuesday.



Tinubu asked parliament to approve $8.69 billion and 100 million euros ($109.71 million) for projects across infrastructure, agriculture, health, education, water supply, growth, security, employment generation, as well as financial management reforms.



The president needs parliament&#8217;s approval for the government, elected in May, to amend the 2022-2024 borrowing plan that was set by the previous government.



He added that African Development Bank and the World Bank have indicated interest in assisting Nigeria mitigate the impact of a fuel subsidy removal&nbsp;with potential loans of $1 billion and $1.5 billion respectively.



Nigeria&#8217;s parliament last week passed the country&#8217;s medium-term expenditure framework for 2024-2026, setting out the government&#8217;s fiscal plan for the next three years and paving the way for the president to present next year&#8217;s budget.



($1 = 0.9115 euros)



(Reporting by Camillus Eboh; Writing Chijioke Ohuocha; Editing by Alison Williams and Susan Fenton)

FILE PHOTO: Summit for a new global financing pact takes place in Paris

Nigeria’s president asks parliament to approve $8.6 billion borrowing plan

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LYW554QLQNJ4RACN24N6DUUM3E-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-430732" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LYW554QLQNJ4RACN24N6DUUM3E-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LYW554QLQNJ4RACN24N6DUUM3E-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LYW554QLQNJ4RACN24N6DUUM3E-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LYW554QLQNJ4RACN24N6DUUM3E-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LYW554QLQNJ4RACN24N6DUUM3E-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LYW554QLQNJ4RACN24N6DUUM3E-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A general view of Shaft 11 at Impala Platinum Mine, in Rustenburg, South Africa, November 28, 2023. REUTERS/Sumaya Hisham</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, Nov 28 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Impala Platinum&nbsp;IMPJ.J&nbsp;on Tuesday temporarily halted operations at its Rustenburg mining complex in South Africa after 11 workers died and 75 were injured in what the CEO said was &#8220;the darkest day&#8221; in the company&#8217;s history.



The Johannesburg-based platinum miner said in a statement that 86 workers were involved in the incident at its No. 11 shaft. All the injured had been admitted to four hospitals in the area. The company spokesperson said medical physicians classified 14 workers in the hospital as&nbsp;&#8220;high priority&#8221;.



&#8220;Today is the darkest day in the history of Impala and our hearts are heavy for the lives lost and the individuals affected by this devastating incident,&#8221; CEO Nico Muller said in a statement.



Impala said workers were being brought to the surface at the end of their shift on Monday, when the conveyance system, which carries workers up and down an underground shaft 1,000 meters (3,280.84 ft) deep, started a rapid descent.



All mining operations at the Rustenburg complex in South Africa&#8217;s North West province were suspended on Tuesday. The halt could be extended to Wednesday to allow the company to &#8220;mourn and heal emotionally&#8221;, Johan Theron, Impala&#8217;s spokesperson said.



He also said investigations into the cause of the accident had begun.



Impala&#8217;s shares in Johannesburg declined 6.74% at 0847 GMT.



South Africa has some of the world&#8217;s deepest, oldest and most costly platinum and gold mining shafts.



The deaths at Rustenberg add to the 41 fatalities that had been recorded in South Africa&#8217;s mining industry this year so far. Last year, 49 workers died in South Africa&#8217;s mines, which was the lowest number of fatalities to date, Minerals Council South Africa, the industry lobby group, said.



Spokesman Theron said he could not be precise about the impact of the stoppage on Impala&#8217;s metals output.



&#8220;It&#8217;s impossible to quantify the impact on production save to say (the) shaft on its own is a very large complex and contributes roughly 15% of Impala Rustenburg&#8217;s production,&#8221; Theron said.



&#8220;To the extent that it&#8217;s stopped for any length of time, it will have a corresponding impact on the entire company.&#8221;



(Reporting by Felix Njini and Nelson Banya; Editing by Kim Coghill, Jamie Freed, Louise Heavens and Barbara Lewis)

A general view of Shaft 11 at Impala Platinum Mine, in Rustenburg

Impala Platinum halts some South African mines after 11 workers died

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Kenya-President-reshuffles-cabinet-swaps-foreign-affairs-minister-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-427955" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Kenya-President-reshuffles-cabinet-swaps-foreign-affairs-minister-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Kenya-President-reshuffles-cabinet-swaps-foreign-affairs-minister-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Kenya-President-reshuffles-cabinet-swaps-foreign-affairs-minister-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Kenya-President-reshuffles-cabinet-swaps-foreign-affairs-minister-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Kenya-President-reshuffles-cabinet-swaps-foreign-affairs-minister-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Kenya-President-reshuffles-cabinet-swaps-foreign-affairs-minister-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Kenya&#8217;s President William Ruto attends the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Summit at United Nations headquarters in New York City, New York, U.S., September 18, 2023. REUTERS/Caitlin Ochs/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Nov 27 (Reuters) &#8211; Kenya will start its privatisation drive by offering stakes in 11 companies including the state oil pipeline, the finance ministry said on Monday.



The 11 firms are among more than 35 companies that are slated for sale to partially help the government raise revenue in the face of growing debt repayments.



Apart from the Kenya Pipeline Company, which is wholly owned by the government, investors can buy stakes in one of the main convention centres in Nairobi, a text book publisher, agri-business firms and industrial companies, the ministry said.



The pipeline firm, which is profitable, has a monopoly on the transport of gas and white oil products, the ministry said in a notice, which also invited the public to share its comments on the plan by Dec. 11, as required by the constitution.



&#8220;Privatisation and restructuring is geared towards the government&#8217;s efforts for fiscal consolidation and spurring economic development,&#8221; the ministry added.



The East African nation last privatised a state-owned company in 2008 with an initial public offering of a 25% stake in telecommunications firm Safaricom.



The government revised the law governing the sale of state companies last month to the eliminate bureaucracy that had made the process grind to a halt, the president said last week. (Reporting by Duncan Miriri Editing by Miral Fahmy)

FILE PHOTO: Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Summit at United Nations headquarters in New York

Kenya to begin privatisation drive, offers stakes in 11 companies

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="541" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Mozambique-fine-tunes-new-80-bln-energy-transition-blueprint-820x541.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-430432" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Mozambique-fine-tunes-new-80-bln-energy-transition-blueprint-820x541.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Mozambique-fine-tunes-new-80-bln-energy-transition-blueprint-300x198.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Mozambique-fine-tunes-new-80-bln-energy-transition-blueprint-136x90.jpg 136w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Mozambique-fine-tunes-new-80-bln-energy-transition-blueprint-768x507.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Mozambique-fine-tunes-new-80-bln-energy-transition-blueprint-1536x1014.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Mozambique-fine-tunes-new-80-bln-energy-transition-blueprint-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Mozambique&#8217;s President Filipe Nyusi attends a signing ceremony following the talks with Russia&#8217;s President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, Russia August 22, 2019. Sputnik/Alexey Nikolsky/Kremlin via REUTERS</figcaption></figure>



CAPE TOWN, Nov 27 (Reuters) &#8211; Mozambique has approved an ambitious new energy transition plan until 2050, hoping to attract investments of some $80 billion to boost renewable energy capacity and increase electricity availability, a senior energy official said on Monday.



Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi is expected to officially present the energy strategy to international partners and potential donors on Dec. 2 during the COP 28 climate summit in Dubai.



Priority plans between next year and 2030 include adding 2,000 megawatts of new hydropower capacity by upgrading existing plants and completing the new Mphanda Nkuwa hydro project, expanding the national electricity grid and switching to electric vehicles to reduce emissions from the transport sector.



&#8220;We are still fine tuning the document and hope to publicly release it later this week,&#8221; Pedro Simao, special advisor to the minister of energy, told Reuters on Monday.



The document was approved by Mozambique&#8217;s Council of Ministers on Nov. 21.



The southern African country exported its first liquefied natural gas in November, 2022 and is hoping huge gas discoveries, together with its renewable energy potential, will propel economic growth and help lift millions out of poverty. (Reporting by Wendell Roelf; Editing by Sharon Singleton)

FILE PHOTO: Mozambique’s President Nyusi attends a signing ceremony in Moscow

Mozambique fine tunes new $80 bln energy transition blueprint

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="526" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Sierra-Leone-president-says-calm-restored-most-leaders-of-barracks-attack-detained-820x526.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-430401" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Sierra-Leone-president-says-calm-restored-most-leaders-of-barracks-attack-detained-820x526.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Sierra-Leone-president-says-calm-restored-most-leaders-of-barracks-attack-detained-300x192.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Sierra-Leone-president-says-calm-restored-most-leaders-of-barracks-attack-detained-140x90.jpg 140w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Sierra-Leone-president-says-calm-restored-most-leaders-of-barracks-attack-detained-768x492.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Sierra-Leone-president-says-calm-restored-most-leaders-of-barracks-attack-detained-1536x985.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Sierra-Leone-president-says-calm-restored-most-leaders-of-barracks-attack-detained-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Sierra Leone&#8217;s President and ruling party candidate Julius Maada Bio speaks to journalists after casting his vote for national elections at a polling station in Freetown, Sierra Leone, June 24, 2023. REUTERS/Cooper Inveen/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



FREETOWN, Nov 26 (Reuters) &#8211; Sierra Leone President Julius Maada Bio said most of the leaders of an attack on a military barracks in the capital Freetown earlier on Sunday had been arrested, adding that security operations and an investigation were ongoing.



&#8220;We will ensure that those responsible are held accountable,&#8221; Bio said on national television.



&#8220;As your commander-in-chief, I want to assure everybody who is resident in Sierra Leone that we have overcome this challenge,&#8221; he said, and calm had been restored.



Earlier, the government said security forces had repelled &#8220;renegade soldiers&#8221; who attempted to break into a military armoury in Freetown during the early hours of Sunday.



A nationwide curfew was imposed. Gunfire was heard across the city as the assailants attacked a prison and a police station.



It was not immediately clear if there were any casualties in the barracks attack or during the gunfire in Freetown on Sunday.



The country&#8217;s former president Ernest Bai Koroma, said in a statement that a military guard assigned to his residence in the capital was shot point blank, while another was &#8220;whisked away to an unknown location&#8221;.



Koroma did not say who shot the guard. He condemned the killing and the attack on the barracks.



&#8220;I am deeply concerned that once again our beloved nation could be subject to such insecurity,&#8221; he said.



The West African country&#8217;s civil aviation authority urged airlines to reschedule flights after the curfew was declared, while a soldier on its frontier with neighbouring Guinea told Reuters they had been instructed to shut the border.



A Reuters journalist, who earlier witnessed an armed group of men commandeer a police vehicle near the Wilberforce barracks, said streets were mostly empty on Sunday as residents hunkered down.



&#8220;We&#8217;ll clean this society. We know what we are up to. We are not after any ordinary civilians who should go about their normal business,&#8221; one of the masked men, who was dressed in military fatigues, said before driving away.



Sierra Leone has been tense since Bio was re-elected in June, a result rejected by the main opposition candidate and questioned by international partners including the United States and the European Union.



In August 2022, at least 21 civilians and six police officers were killed in anti-government protests in Sierra Leone, which is still recovering from a 1991-2002 civil war in which more than 50,000 were killed. Bio said the protests were an attempt to overthrow the government.



In his address to the nation on Sunday night, Bio called on Sierra Leone&#8217;s political and traditional leaders, and civil society to work to preserve peace.



&#8220;Let us not succumb to fear or division,&#8221; he said.



Information minister Chernor Bah said earlier on Sunday that security forces were making progress in apprehending those involved in the attack, but gave no further details.



A video on social media showed three men, two in fatigues and one in civilian clothes, with their arms tied behind their backs sitting in a military truck surrounded by soldiers. Reuters has not authenticated the video.



Bah said that major detention centres including the Pademba Road prisons were attacked and inmates released by the unidentified assailants.



It was not immediately clear how many prisoners had broken out of the facility, which a U.S. State Department report said was designed for 324 inmates but held more than 2,000 in 2019.



Videos posted on social media, which were not authenticated by Reuters, showed several people fleeing from the area of the prison, while gunshots could be heard in the background.



&#8220;The security forces were forced to make a tactical retreat. The prisons were thus overran,&#8221; said Bah, who had earlier declared a nationwide curfew and called for people to stay indoors.



The Economic Community of West African States condemned what it called an attempt by certain individuals to &#8220;acquire arms and disturb constitutional order&#8221; in Sierra Leone. The U.S. embassy in Freetown said such actions were not justified.



There have been eight military coups in West and Central Africa since 2020. (Reporting by Umaru Fofana; Writing by Bate Felix; Editing by Alexandra Zavis, David Goodman, Jan Harvey, Alexander Smith, Louise Heavens and Giles Elgood).

FILE PHOTO: Sierra Leone’s President and ruling party candidate Julius Maada Bio speaks after casting his vote at the 2023 Sierra Leone general election

Sierra Leone president says calm restored, most leaders of barracks attack detained

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/IMF-World-Bank-to-proceed-with-annual-meetings-in-Morocco-in-October-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-427563" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/IMF-World-Bank-to-proceed-with-annual-meetings-in-Morocco-in-October-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/IMF-World-Bank-to-proceed-with-annual-meetings-in-Morocco-in-October-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/IMF-World-Bank-to-proceed-with-annual-meetings-in-Morocco-in-October-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/IMF-World-Bank-to-proceed-with-annual-meetings-in-Morocco-in-October-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/IMF-World-Bank-to-proceed-with-annual-meetings-in-Morocco-in-October-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/IMF-World-Bank-to-proceed-with-annual-meetings-in-Morocco-in-October-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) logo is seen outside the headquarters building in Washington, U.S., September 4, 2018. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



LONDON/JOHANNESBURG, Nov 24 (Reuters) &#8211; The collapse of Zambia&#8217;s $3 billion bond rework deal this week is reverberating well beyond the country&#8217;s borders, raising doubts about the very framework designed to get bankrupt nations back on track quickly.



Zambia&#8217;s government said on Monday an International Monetary Fund-approved deal with bondholders &#8211; agreed in principle less than a month ago &#8211; could not proceed due to objections from bilateral creditors, who say the terms of the deal are not comparable to relief offered by a group of countries including France, China and India.



The setback sent the bonds of countries in the midst of debt reworks such as Ghana and Sri Lanka tumbling. It also raised fresh questions about the commitment of Western nations and multilateral lenders to help poor countries claw their way out of unmanageable debt.



&#8220;To me there is a real problem, and the real problem goes beyond Zambia,&#8221; said Brad Setser, a Council on Foreign Relations fellow and former U.S. government official, suggesting the way debt sustainability and market accessibility for low income countries was assessed might need to be adjusted.



The core of the issue is the Common Framework, a G20-backed debt negotiation architecture that aimed to smooth and speed deals for insolvent low-income countries thrust into crisis during the COVID-19 pandemic with a historically complicated tangle of lenders that, for the first time, included China.



It established basic principles at its 2020 launch, with more to be defined and debated along the way. Progress has, however, proven more arduous than expected.



Zambia – the Framework&#8217;s test case &#8211; is entering its fourth year of default and its long, thorny path could deter other struggling countries such as Tunisia, Egypt and Kenya from Common Framework debt reworks.



International bondholders say the Framework failed to provide the transparency on other creditors&#8217; concessions needed to cut comparably fair deals. Most agree it provides no clarity on what fair treatment of various creditors would actually look like, nor how the value of concessions given to indebted nations should be calculated.



Milestones such as Zambia&#8217;s memorandum of understanding (MoU) with bilateral creditors on restructuring $6.3 billion of debt and similar successes for Ghana raised hopes the Framework was working. Now there are once again whispers that it&#8217;s failing.



&#8220;This has not been a success and we need a reset,&#8221; said Kevin Gallagher, director of Boston University&#8217;s Global Development Policy Center.



The IMF did not respond to a request for comment sent over a U.S. holiday.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-question-of-fairness">A QUESTION OF FAIRNESS</h2>



The current rift centres on &#8220;Comparability of Treatment&#8221; &#8211; a principle from the Paris Club of wealthy creditor nations aimed at ensuring its members don&#8217;t give outsized concessions compared to private lenders or others outside the group.



Zambia&#8217;s government said the Official Creditor Committee (OCC) sank the bondholder deal because it fell afoul of that principle under a &#8220;base case&#8221; scenario. This outraged bondholders, who say they offered more debt relief than bilateral lenders on a net present value (NPV) basis and a principal haircut of 18% when official creditors tabled none.



With no rules on how to calculate concessions, creditors can come to different conclusions regarding the figures.



&#8220;One of the founding principles of the Common Framework was indeed Comparability of Treatment. The fact that we&#8217;ve gotten this far without reaching a common understanding of what that is, is indeed unhelpful,&#8221; said Yvette Babb, a portfolio manager at William Blair.



Tallying different creditors&#8217; priorities is tricky: Bondholders target shorter-term cashflows but will accept principal writedowns, while official creditors favour maturity extensions.



&#8220;Are you willing to allow deals that allow bondholders to get a lot of money out before official creditors? And are you willing to let bondholders take money out when the IMF is putting money in?,&#8221; said Setser.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-to-fix-it">HOW TO FIX IT</h2>



Zambia&#8217;s government said there was no consensus between OCC co-chairs China and France on the concessions needed from bondholders to secure a deal. The OCC statement also did not say which creditor country raised concerns, making it harder to address them, investors said.



Convincing China, which emerged as a key creditor after a decade-long lending spree, to cut deals alongside other creditors has been a core challenge.



China&#8217;s repeated assertions that it must safeguard its taxpayers&#8217; money, its rejection of blanket acceptance that multilateral lenders do not take haircuts and its objections to the IMF&#8217;s debt sustainability assessments have upended the official lenders&#8217; historic approaches to debt deals.



China&#8217;s central bank and finance ministry did not respond to requests for comment.



Already, a group called the Global Sovereign Debt Roundtable &#8211; comprised of development banks, G20 chair India and official and private creditors – is trying to work through the Framework&#8217;s snags and seek a consensus on net present values and comparability of treatment.



Any such consensus, William Blair&#8217;s Babb said, would eliminate &#8220;a large degree of this discretionary assessment&#8221;.



&#8220;That is a fundamental principle that I think could be agreed on to avoid this becoming a stumbling block in other discussions,&#8221; she added.



The IMF has also promised to rejig its debt sustainability calculations – key figures in restructurings – and make its process more transparent.



With a record $554 billion of sovereign debt in default globally, according to the Institute of International Finance, getting countries out of distress quickly is key.



Zambia&#8217;s finance minister has said the long delays have curtailed economic growth and hit the poorest of the population.



Some say the Framework, while flawed, is the only way, and that countries outside it, such as Suriname and Sri Lanka, have also struggled to finalise deals.



&#8220;Sovereign debt restructuring is a very ugly, messy process,&#8221; said Mark Sobel, a former U.S. representative at the IMF, adding its aim was also to cut through the web of competing domestic powers within China to allow it to give debtor countries much-need relief.



&#8220;To me, the Common Framework, for better or for worse, is the only game in town.&#8221;



(Reporting By Libby George and Rachel Savage. Additional reporting by Jorgelina do Rosario and Joe Cash. Graphic by Rodrigo Campos, editing by Karin Strohecker and Kirsten Donovan)

FILE PHOTO: The IMF logo is seen outside the headquarters building in Washington

Zambia bond debacle calls for debt restructure rethink

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/ZBNZUOO7FFKPJEHOKA7AHZURUY-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429766" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/ZBNZUOO7FFKPJEHOKA7AHZURUY-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/ZBNZUOO7FFKPJEHOKA7AHZURUY-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/ZBNZUOO7FFKPJEHOKA7AHZURUY-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/ZBNZUOO7FFKPJEHOKA7AHZURUY-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/ZBNZUOO7FFKPJEHOKA7AHZURUY-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/ZBNZUOO7FFKPJEHOKA7AHZURUY-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: People crowd a market place in Lagos, Nigeria December 18, 2021. Picture taken December 18, 2021. REUTERS/Temilade Adelaja/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



ABUJA, Nov 24 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Nigeria&#8217;s economy recorded flat growth in the third quarter, data showed on Friday, as the oil sector contracted at a slower pace while the impact of government reforms aimed at boosting output were yet to take effect.



Africa&#8217;s largest economy grew by 2.54%, up from the 2.51% posted in the second quarter, but far from President Bola Tinubu&#8217;s ambition to expand the economy by at least 6% a year, which he promised during his inauguration in May.



Tinubu has vowed to lift barriers to investment, create jobs and tackle insecurity. He has embarked on Nigeria&#8217;s boldest reforms in decades to try to boost output, which has been sluggish for about a decade. But they have yet to impact growth.



&#8220;The performance of the GDP in the third quarter of 2023 was driven mainly by the services sector, which recorded a growth of 3.99% and contributed 52.7% to the aggregate GDP,&#8221; the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said.



Nigeria&#8217;s dominant oil sector, which accounts for the bulk of government revenue and 90% of foreign-exchange reserves, contracted 0.85% in the third quarter, a rise of 12.6% from the second quarter when the sector shrank by 13.43%.



Daily average oil output&nbsp;NGOIL=ECI&nbsp;stood at 1.45 million barrels per day (mbpd) in the three months to September, up from the 1.20 mbpd in the same period last year.



Tinubu in May scrapped a costly but popular petrol subsidy and lifted currency controls, which he said was to save the country from going under.



But his actions have worsened inflation currently in double-digits, fuelling anger and frustration for a population grappling with a cost of living crisis. Tinubu has been under pressure from unions to offer relief to workers.



He has travelled from Asia, Europe, Middle East and United States to promote investments to try to revive the economy rather than relying on borrowing.



The NBS said the agriculture and industrial sectors, which create jobs, contributed less to GDP in the third quarter of 2023, compared with the same quarter a year ago.



(Reporting by Chijioke Ohuocha; Editing by Alex Richardson and Alexander Smith)

FILE PHOTO: People crowd a market place in Lagos

Nigeria records flat Q3 growth as oil sector contraction slows

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/DWS3TK7MAVPAPFKEL2YX7GYITI-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429066" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/DWS3TK7MAVPAPFKEL2YX7GYITI-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/DWS3TK7MAVPAPFKEL2YX7GYITI-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/DWS3TK7MAVPAPFKEL2YX7GYITI-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/DWS3TK7MAVPAPFKEL2YX7GYITI-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/DWS3TK7MAVPAPFKEL2YX7GYITI-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/DWS3TK7MAVPAPFKEL2YX7GYITI.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Zambia&#8217;s Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane takes part in a panel during the annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, following last month&#8217;s deadly earthquake, in Marrakech, Morocco, October 14, 2023. REUTERS/Susana Vera/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



LONDON, Nov 24 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Long delays in Zambia&#8217;s debt restructuring have hamstrung much needed investments, curtailed economic growth, weighed on local financial markets and added to living costs for its people, Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane told Reuters.



Zambia defaulted three years ago and is trying to rework its debt under the G20 Common Framework, a programme designed to ensure swift and smooth debt overhauls for low-income nations.



But the process has been beset by delays, with Zambia suffering a major setback on Monday when official creditors rejected a preliminary deal agreed between the country and its bondholders to rework $3 billion over objections on whether it offered comparable debt relief.



The first African country to default in the COVID-19 era, Zambia&#8217;s debt restructuring had started with drawn-out negotiations with bilateral creditors including China.



&#8220;Zambia’s debt restructuring has dragged on too long,&#8221; Musokotwane said in emailed comments.



&#8220;During restructuring, we are experiencing vastly constrained fiscal space. We cannot attract vital foreign direct investment. We have no access to capital markets.&#8221;



Uncertainty or negative news on the restructuring progress have hit domestic bond markets, Musokotwane said, which may affect the government&#8217;s ability to fully finance the national budget.



They also made the currency more volatile, he added. The kwacha&nbsp;ZMW=&nbsp;stands at a record low of 23.525 to the dollar and has weakened more than 30% this year.



All this has resulted in a significant increase in the cost of living for Zambians and impacted the government&#8217;s ability to push through with vital investments.



&#8220;Projects in the water sector, among others, have been delayed in completion by over three years and have hence delayed the delivery of clean water and sanitation services to over 1.5 million Zambian people,&#8221; the minister said, adding infrastructure projects connecting some of Zambia&#8217;s poorest rural areas to markets and technology had also stalled.



&#8220;This undermines our development agenda and impacts the most vulnerable.&#8221;



Musokotwane said the country had implemented some serious reforms and committed to improving management of government finances and boosting growth.



&#8220;Problems facing Zambia are not simply numbers on a spreadsheet but impact the lives of real people. Continued delays serve the interests of no-one.&#8221;



He said the government would continue discussions in &#8220;good faith&#8221; to find a solution that was satisfactory to all sides.



(Reporting by Karin Strohecker, additional reporting by Rachel Savage, editing by Kim Coghill)

DWS3TK7MAVPAPFKEL2YX7GYITI

Zambia debt rework delaying impede key investments, hitting the ‘most vulnerable’ – FinMin

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="513" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/J2H2KZXCLBMJRANOGKF2IEX2CE-820x513.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429688" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/J2H2KZXCLBMJRANOGKF2IEX2CE-820x513.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/J2H2KZXCLBMJRANOGKF2IEX2CE-300x188.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/J2H2KZXCLBMJRANOGKF2IEX2CE-144x90.jpg 144w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/J2H2KZXCLBMJRANOGKF2IEX2CE-768x481.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/J2H2KZXCLBMJRANOGKF2IEX2CE-1536x962.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/J2H2KZXCLBMJRANOGKF2IEX2CE.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Eni&#8217;s logo is seen in front of its headquarters in San Donato Milanese, near Milan, Italy, April 27, 2016. REUTERS/Stefano Rellandini/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



ABIDJAN, Nov 23 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Italy&#8217;s Eni&nbsp;ENI.MI&nbsp;will invest $10 billion in the development of the Baleine field offshore Ivory Coast, which will take place in three phases from 2023 to 2027, Energy Minister Mamadou Sangafowa Coulibaly said on Thursday.



The Baleine field, where certified reserves are estimated at 2.5 billion barrels of oil and 3.3 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, was discovered in 2021 by the Italian energy group off the east coast of the West African country.



The field&#8217;s crude oil production should reach 200,000 barrels per day by 2027, compared with 30,000 barrels per day in 2023, the energy minister said.



&#8220;With a total investment estimated at $10 billion, the Baleine project will have a lasting impact on our economy,&#8221; he added.



Eni began oil and gas production from the field in late August, two years after its discovery.



Thursday&#8217;s announcement came as Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara and Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi met in Abidjan to mark production start-up from the Baleine field and review the company&#8217;s activities in the country, according to an Eni statement.



The field will also enable Ivory Coast to produce 200 million cubic feet of natural gas per year by 2027.



The energy minister said annual production of 150,000 metric tons of butane, equivalent to a third of current household consumption, will make the country less dependent on gas imports in the future.



Eni currently holds interests in the CI-101 and CI-802 blocks &#8211; where the Baleine field extends &#8211; as well as in five other deep-water Ivorian blocks, all with Petroci Holding as a partner.



(Reporting by Ange Aboa; Writing by Anait Miridzhanian; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)

J2H2KZXCLBMJRANOGKF2IEX2CE

Italy’s Eni to invest $10 bln in Ivory Coast Baleine field, minister says

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IQMT7SFA2RNQLAQHUEOA2VEMMQ-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-423556" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IQMT7SFA2RNQLAQHUEOA2VEMMQ-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IQMT7SFA2RNQLAQHUEOA2VEMMQ-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IQMT7SFA2RNQLAQHUEOA2VEMMQ-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IQMT7SFA2RNQLAQHUEOA2VEMMQ-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IQMT7SFA2RNQLAQHUEOA2VEMMQ-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IQMT7SFA2RNQLAQHUEOA2VEMMQ-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Illustration photo shows a two-rand coin above a South African flag April 12, 2017. REUTERS/Thomas White/Illustration</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, Nov 24 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The South African rand was stronger in early trade on Friday, extending its Thursday gains after the central bank kept its main interest rate unchanged.



At 0644 GMT, the rand traded at 18.7700 against the dollar&nbsp;ZAR=D3, 0.3% stronger than its previous close.



The dollar&nbsp;=USD&nbsp;last traded around 0.03% weaker against a basket of global currencies.



South Africa&#8217;s central bank stuck to its previous hawkish tone on Thursday as it kept its main lending rate unchanged for the third meeting in a row, boosting the rand, despite inflation quickening in October.



Next week investors will turn their attention to supply-side inflation when producer price index data is released.



South Africa&#8217;s benchmark 2030 government bond&nbsp;ZAR2030=&nbsp;was marginally stronger in early deals, with the yield down 0.5 basis point at 10.120%.



(Reporting by Tannur Anders; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)

Illustration photo of South African rand

South African rand extends gains after key rate left unchanged

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="573" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/OMZVR4AVEFLRFCSVUSQPSAY2HU-820x573.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429528" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/OMZVR4AVEFLRFCSVUSQPSAY2HU-820x573.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/OMZVR4AVEFLRFCSVUSQPSAY2HU-300x210.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/OMZVR4AVEFLRFCSVUSQPSAY2HU-129x90.jpg 129w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/OMZVR4AVEFLRFCSVUSQPSAY2HU-768x537.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/OMZVR4AVEFLRFCSVUSQPSAY2HU-1536x1074.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/OMZVR4AVEFLRFCSVUSQPSAY2HU-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) governor Lesetja Kganyago is seen during the SARB Biennial Conference in the Cape Town International Convention Centre, in Cape Town, South Africa, August 31, 2023. REUTERS/Esa Alexander</figcaption></figure>



PRETORIA, Nov 23 (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa&#8217;s central bank kept its main lending rate unchanged at 8.25% in a unanimous decision by its monetary policy committee (MPC) announced on Thursday.



It was the third meeting in a row that the bank has left its repo rate on hold. All economists polled by Reuters had forecast that the rate would be left unchanged.



Inflation rose sharply to 5.9% year-on-year in October from 5.4% in September, approaching the upper end of the central bank&#8217;s target range of 3%-6%.



&#8220;The uptick in inflation is unwelcome,&#8221; central bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago told a news conference, referring to October&#8217;s data. He also said &#8220;serious upside risks&#8221; to the inflation outlook remained.



Analysts expect the central bank to cut interest rates in early 2024, but some have warned it might delay its easing cycle until later over high inflation.



The South African Reserve Bank&#8217;s MPC has said it wants to see inflation sustainably around the midpoint of its target range before considering rate cuts.



(Reporting by Kopano Gumbi, Anait Miridzhanian and Tannur Anders; Writing by Bhargav Acharya Editing by Alexander Winning)

South African Reserve Bank’s Biennial Conference in Cape Town

South African central bank holds main rate but warns on inflation risks

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Investment-management-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-424734" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Investment-management-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Investment-management-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Investment-management-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Investment-management-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Investment-management.jpg 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Stock</figcaption></figure>



Nov 23 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Most emerging markets stocks edged up on Thursday and currencies were steady in holiday-thinned trade, though investors geared up for monetary policy decisions from Turkey and South Africa.



Turkey&#8217;s lira&nbsp;TRYTOM=D3&nbsp;was little changed at 28.82 against the dollar ahead of the local central bank&#8217;s interest rate decision where economists largely expect a 250 basis points raise to 37.5%. The decision is due at 1100 GMT.



&#8220;The one-week repo rate will likely peak around 40%,&#8221; said Bartosz Sawicki, market analyst at Conotoxia fintech.



&#8220;The Turkish central bank might opt to reduce the pace of rate hikes as the annual inflation rate inched lower in October and external price pressure dynamics have turned a tad more favorable.&#8221;



The lira has weakened more than 30% since the late-May election which was followed by a subsequent loosening of controls on the foreign exchange market and a pivot to more orthodox monetary policy.



Turkish stocks&nbsp;.XU100&nbsp;were up 0.6% during the session and have gained more than 75% since the vote.



More broadly, MSCI&#8217;s index tracking developing markets stocks&nbsp;.MSCIEF&nbsp;climbed 0.4%, hovering near a two and-a-half month high hit earlier in the week, while a basket of currencies&nbsp;.MIEM00000CUS&nbsp;inched up 0.1% against the dollar at 1005 GMT.



Trading worldwide was expected to be quiet due to the Thanksgiving holiday in the U.S.



In focus later in the day will also be an interest rate decision in South Africa, where economists largely expect the local central bank to hold borrowing costs steady at 8.25% at 1300 GMT.



Uncertainty remains on the outlook for monetary policy after data on Wednesday showed&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL1N3CN1SC&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">inflation rose unexpectedly in October</a>, nearing the top-end of the regulator&#8217;s target range.



Also in Africa, Kenya&#8217;s President William Ruto said the government was&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL1N3CO0EJ&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">poised to privatise 35 state companies</a>&nbsp;and was looking at a further 100 firms after enacting a law last month to cut down on bureaucracy.



Meanwhile, a Reuters poll of equity strategists believe&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL8N3CN34A&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">India&#8217;s stock market will hit new highs</a>&nbsp;in the next six months and rise over 10% from here by end-2024, driven by a sustained expansion in the fastest-growing major economy.



Moves on the south Asian country&#8217;s blue-chip indexes Nifty 50&nbsp;.NSEI&nbsp;and Sensex&nbsp;.BSESN&nbsp;were subdued on Thursday, however they have gained nearly 10% year-to-date.



Russia&#8217;s rouble&nbsp;RUBUTSTN=MCX&nbsp;strengthened, trading at 88.17 to the dollar and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL1N3CO0DC&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">was heading towards a near five-month high</a>&nbsp;hit earlier this week, helped by month-end tax payments, exporters&#8217; forced foreign currency sales and high interest rates.



(Reporting by Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru, Editing by William Maclean)

Investment-management

Stocks climb higher; Turkey, South Africa central bank decisions on tap

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HV3OXVMTAJNSBPE3ZZLYUIZMTM-1-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429348" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HV3OXVMTAJNSBPE3ZZLYUIZMTM-1-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HV3OXVMTAJNSBPE3ZZLYUIZMTM-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HV3OXVMTAJNSBPE3ZZLYUIZMTM-1-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HV3OXVMTAJNSBPE3ZZLYUIZMTM-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HV3OXVMTAJNSBPE3ZZLYUIZMTM-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HV3OXVMTAJNSBPE3ZZLYUIZMTM-1-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Nigerian naira banknotes are seen in this picture illustration, September 10, 2018. Picture taken September 10, 2018. REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde/Illustration/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



ABUJA, Nov 22 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Nigeria&#8217;s Senate passed the medium-term expenditure framework for 2024-2026 on Wednesday, setting out the government&#8217;s fiscal plan for the next three years.



Lawmakers in the House of Representatives, the lower arm of parliament, had passed the framework on Tuesday.



The framework, a key document in the Nigerian budget process, ensures that government spending aligns with its economic and social goals. It is a three-year rolling plan that sets out the government&#8217;s spending priorities and how it will fund them.



The passage of the framework by Nigeria&#8217;s two arms of parliament paves the way for President Bola Tinubu to send the country&#8217;s 2024 budget proposal of 26 trillion naira ($34 billion) to parliament for approval.



The document, which was agreed by Tinubu&#8217;s cabinet before going to lawmakers for approval, expects the naira currency to trade around 700 per dollar next year before firming slightly in 2025 and 2026.



(Writing by Elisha Bala-Gbogbo; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)

FILE PHOTO: Nigerian naira banknotes are seen in this picture illustration

Nigeria lawmakers approve mid-term fiscal plan for next three years

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="612" height="350" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1040865674-612x612-1.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-400879" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1040865674-612x612-1.jpg 612w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/istockphoto-1040865674-612x612-1-300x172.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 612px) 100vw, 612px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Stock market report. 3d illustration</figcaption></figure>



Nov 22 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Emerging markets stocks and currencies took a breather on Wednesday after a recent rally, while investors parsed South Africa&#8217;s inflation report and Israeli stocks and bonds gained on hopes of a temporary lull in the war with Hamas.



MSCI&#8217;s basket of developing markets currencies&nbsp;.MIEM00000CUS&nbsp;weakened 0.4%, while the index tracking equities&nbsp;.MSCIEF&nbsp;dipped 0.5% by 0926 GMT.



EM currencies had six straight days of gains and had hit an over one-and-a-half-year high on Tuesday on hopes that U.S. rates had peaked.



Also spurring some caution were minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve&#8217;s last policy meet where policymakers said they would proceed &#8220;carefully&#8221; and only raise interest rates if progress in controlling inflation faltered.



South Africa&#8217;s rand ZAR= slipped 0.5% and stocks .JTOPI gained 1.1% after data showed headline consumer inflation, rose to 5.9% on an annual basis in October from September.



But the reading was still marginally below the higher end of the domestic central bank&#8217;s target range of 3% to 6%, leaving investors jittery ahead of an interest rate decision on Thursday where economists largely expect rates to be on hold.



&#8220;Food and transport (fuel) have once again lead local CPI inflation higher&#8230; (and) might create some angst for tomorrow&#8217;s interest rate decision by the SARB (South African Reserve Bank),&#8221; Shaun Murison, senior market analyst at IG markets said.



&#8220;There is however still a slight chance that the SARB will raise by another 25 basis points although this is not our base case.&#8221;



Meanwhile, the blue-chip Tel Aviv 35 index .TA35 rose 0.7% and government bond prices rose as much as 0.4% after Israel&#8217;s government and Hamas agreed to a four-day pause to over of a month of fighting that had the world on edge.



The local shekel&nbsp;ILS=&nbsp;however, dipped 0.4%.



&#8220;A ceasefire is a step forward but it is temporary and does not suggest that an end to the conflict is imminent,&#8221; said Hasnain Malik, head of equity research at Tellimer.



India&#8217;s rupee INR=IN strengthened nearly 0.1% and was last trading at 83.32 as the currency got a boost by IPO-related inflows.



Sri Lanka&#8217;s benchmark index .CSE edged up 0.4% and the country&#8217;s dollar bonds gained after the country&#8217;s treasury secretary said it expects the International Monetary Fund&#8217;s executive board to approve the first review of its $2.9 billion bailout by Dec. 6.



The local central bank is expected to hold interest rates steady on Friday, as per a poll.



China&#8217;s blue-chips index .CSI300 closed 1.0% down and the Hang Seng index .HSI ended flat, though Reuters reported that Chinese government advisers will recommend economic growth targets for 2024 ranging from 4.5% to 5.5% to an annual policymakers&#8217; meeting next month.



(Reporting by Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)

Reuters

South Africa’s central bank says systemic risk to country’s financial stability remains elevated

Nigeria plans to trim budget deficit to 3.9% of GDP next year

Sibanye to cut nearly 300 jobs at US ops after palladium price fall

Nigeria’s president asks parliament to approve $8.6 billion borrowing plan

Impala Platinum halts some South African mines after 11 workers died

Kenya to begin privatisation drive, offers stakes in 11 companies

Mozambique fine tunes new $80 bln energy transition blueprint

Sierra Leone president says calm restored, most leaders of barracks attack detained

Zambia bond debacle calls for debt restructure rethink

Nigeria records flat Q3 growth as oil sector contraction slows

Zambia debt rework delaying impede key investments, hitting the ‘most vulnerable’ – FinMin

Italy’s Eni to invest $10 bln in Ivory Coast Baleine field, minister says

South African rand extends gains after key rate left unchanged

South African central bank holds main rate but warns on inflation risks

Stocks climb higher; Turkey, South Africa central bank decisions on tap

Nigeria lawmakers approve mid-term fiscal plan for next three years

Markets ease after rally; South African, Israeli assets in focus

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Reuters

South Africa’s central bank says systemic risk to country’s financial stability remains elevated

Nigeria plans to trim budget deficit to 3.9% of GDP next year

Sibanye to cut nearly 300 jobs at US ops after palladium price fall

Nigeria’s president asks parliament to approve $8.6 billion borrowing plan

Impala Platinum halts some South African mines after 11 workers died

Kenya to begin privatisation drive, offers stakes in 11 companies

Mozambique fine tunes new $80 bln energy transition blueprint

Sierra Leone president says calm restored, most leaders of barracks attack detained

Zambia bond debacle calls for debt restructure rethink

Nigeria records flat Q3 growth as oil sector contraction slows

Zambia debt rework delaying impede key investments, hitting the ‘most vulnerable’ – FinMin

Italy’s Eni to invest $10 bln in Ivory Coast Baleine field, minister says

South African rand extends gains after key rate left unchanged

South African central bank holds main rate but warns on inflation risks

Stocks climb higher; Turkey, South Africa central bank decisions on tap

Nigeria lawmakers approve mid-term fiscal plan for next three years

Markets ease after rally; South African, Israeli assets in focus

News Tips

Advertise With Us

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