<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="546" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/DFSLHXCTFBMB3IHZTWD4HAPD3E-820x546.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-539528" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/DFSLHXCTFBMB3IHZTWD4HAPD3E-820x546.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/DFSLHXCTFBMB3IHZTWD4HAPD3E-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/DFSLHXCTFBMB3IHZTWD4HAPD3E-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/DFSLHXCTFBMB3IHZTWD4HAPD3E-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/DFSLHXCTFBMB3IHZTWD4HAPD3E-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/DFSLHXCTFBMB3IHZTWD4HAPD3E-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Administrator of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Achim Steiner delivers the keynote speech at the Hamburg Sustainability Conference in Hamburg, Germany, October 7, 2024. REUTERS/Fabian Bimmer</figcaption></figure>



HAMBURG, Germany, Oct 7 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The world&#8217;s poorest countries are having to prioritize debt service over investments, United Nations Development Programme administrator Achim Steiner said on Monday, scuppering progress towards their sustainable development goals.



Speaking at an event in Hamburg, Steiner said the financial crunch meant countries worldwide were struggling to meet the goals &#8211; a set of 17 wide-ranging targets such as tackling poverty and hunger, improving access to education and health care, providing clean energy and protecting biodiversity.



&#8220;For many, least developed countries, they have literally been priced out of the financial markets. They cannot borrow any more money,&#8221; Steiner told the Hamburg Sustainability Conference, adding that they must draw down other spending to avoid debt default. &#8220;It&#8217;s a very extreme situation.&#8221;



Countries like Ghana, Sri Lanka and Zambia have defaulted on their debt in recent years, while others are struggling to make payments after the global interest rate hiking cycle sent borrowing costs higher.



At the same time, the world needs trillions of dollars more per year to meet climate spending goals. Steiner said boosting financing was &#8220;absolutely central&#8221; to meeting sustainable development goals – something his organisation is monitoring closely.



&#8220;We have to tackle this issue of our international financial architecture and our international financial system,&#8221; Steiner said. &#8220;If not, we are going to fall apart in our endeavour to find answers that our citizens are expecting us to find.&#8221;



World Bank President Ajay Banga, speaking at the same event, said official and multilateral lenders would not be able to provide the $4 trillion needed to reach the goals without help.



&#8220;That gap is going to need the private sector,&#8221; Banga said during a panel discussion.



Using public money to de-risk private investment was one way of leveraging multilateral balance sheets, he added, saying the Washington-based lenders had boosted the insurance for investors looking to get involved in renewables in developing world.



&#8220;We&#8217;ve already doubled where we were a year ago. There is more to come.&#8221;



The World Bank announced in July it had started operating a one-stop-shop loan and investment guarantee platform with the aim of tripling the provision of guarantees and risk insurance provided around the world to $20 billion a year.



Reaching the sustainable development goals would require standardizing financing vehicles and making it easier for public private partnerships to get off the ground, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said.



&#8220;Without the expertise and investment of the private sector, the sustainable development goals cannot be reached,” Scholz said during a keynote speech.



(Reporting by Libby George, writing by Karin Strohecker, Editing by Duncan Miriri, Gareth Jones, Ed Osmond and Christina Fincher)

Hamburg Sustainability Conference

Debt burden threatens poor countries’ development goals, UN official 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/2024/10/NUF6JEUE6JNDPJY5TZYOOXTLIY-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-539465" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/NUF6JEUE6JNDPJY5TZYOOXTLIY-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/NUF6JEUE6JNDPJY5TZYOOXTLIY-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/NUF6JEUE6JNDPJY5TZYOOXTLIY-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/NUF6JEUE6JNDPJY5TZYOOXTLIY-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/NUF6JEUE6JNDPJY5TZYOOXTLIY-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/NUF6JEUE6JNDPJY5TZYOOXTLIY-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">An illegal artisanal miner searches for gold in an excavated pit at the Prestea-Huni Valley Municipal District in the Western Region, Ghana August 17, 2024. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko</figcaption></figure>



PRESTEA-HUNI VALLEY, Ghana, Oct 7 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;At an unlicensed gold mine in Ghana, men in t-shirts, shorts and rubber boots wade through pools of muddy water laced with mercury, pull out rocks with bare hands and operate a rickety sluice as they search for the precious ore.



The ramshackle mine is part of a booming business that is generating livelihoods and informal revenue streams for Ghana&#8217;s economy, even as it harms miners&#8217; health, pollutes waterways, destroys forests and cocoa farms, and fuels crime.



&#8220;It&#8217;s risky but I just want to survive,&#8221; said one of the men at the wildcat site visited by Reuters in the Prestea-Huni Valley district in western Ghana.



The 24-year-old accounting student, who asked not to be named because he was involved in illegal activities, said he had been skipping classes to prospect for gold because he needed the money, having lost his father as a teenager.



There was no professional protective equipment at the mine. Men wore flimsy plastic shopping bags on their heads. One had swimming goggles and another a rice bag covering his torso.



The unlicensed gold mining industry, known in Ghana as &#8220;galamsey&#8221;, has grown at a breakneck pace this year as global gold prices have risen by almost 30%, enticing new entrants.



Small-scale mines produced 1.2 million ounces of gold in the first seven months of this year, more than in the whole of 2023, according to data from Ghana&#8217;s mining sector regulator.



About 40% of Ghana&#8217;s total gold output comes from small mines, as opposed to concessions operated by multi-national firms. Some 70-80% of the small mines are unlicensed.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-poisoned-profits">POISONED PROFITS</h2>



Martin Ayisi, head of Ghana&#8217;s Minerals Commission, the mining industry regulator, said most galamsey gold was smuggled out of the country and was therefore not contributing to national gold export revenues.



For Ayisi, the rise in gold prices is good for Ghana, helping it recover from a severe economic crisis in 2022 that required a $3-billion IMF bailout.



&#8220;We should be able to get a lot of money and probably exit the IMF programme earlier,&#8221; he said, forecasting national gold export revenues would more than double to $10 billion this year.



But industry experts say the lines between legal mining and galamsey are blurred, and gold from informal mines represents a larger proportion of revenues than the authorities acknowledge.



The dangers of galamsey, however, are not in dispute.



Dozens of miners have been killed in collapsing pits in recent years, according to news reports and human rights groups, while hospitals and health centres report high numbers of early deaths from pulmonary diseases of miners and residents of towns and villages near mines.



These are caused by inhaling dust that contains heavy metals such as lead, as well as poisonous fumes from the mercury and nitric acid the miners use to leach gold out of sediment.



The chemicals are then dumped on the ground or in rivers. Ghana&#8217;s water authority says mercury and heavy metals from mining have contaminated about 65% of water sources.



Meanwhile, thousands of hectares (acres) of cocoa plantations and virgin forest have been destroyed by illegal miners, according to data from Global Forest Watch, an online monitoring platform.



Protesters have taken to the streets in Accra in recent weeks to criticise President Nana Akufo-Addo&#8217;s government over what they saw as its failure to tackle these problems. &#8220;Leaders, you&#8217;ve failed us!&#8221; read some of the placards.



&#8220;Galamsey has to stop. We want to live long. We don&#8217;t want to fall sick. We don&#8217;t want to go to the hospital,&#8221; said Aboubacar Sadekh, who was taking part in a march on Sept. 22, draped in a Ghanaian flag.



The government denies that it is failing to act on galamsey. When he came to power in 2017, Akufo-Addo pledged to take action on the issue, and during his time in office the government has launched crackdowns, deploying soldiers to arrest illegal miners. In some cases, mining equipment was seized and destroyed.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-organised-crime">ORGANISED CRIME</h2>



Opinion polls suggest galamsey is one of the top five issues for voters ahead of a Dec. 7 general election.



The main candidates to replace outgoing Akufo-Addo as president, Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia and former President John Mahama, have pledged to formalise galamsey, for example by funding a state agency to explore for gold and map areas for locals to mine.



But successive governments have been promising for years to tackle the problem without making much headway, partly because powerful people are benefitting from the industry, experts say.



Chris Aston, head of a British-backed programme aimed at regulating small-scale gold mining in Ghana, said artisanal miners were vulnerable to organised crime gangs, who provide them with funding for equipment up-front, unlike other lenders.



&#8220;Miner pre-financing is one way that organised crime groups can penetrate the gold supply chain,&#8221; he said. Funders then &#8220;require miners to sell the gold they mine back to them at a subsidised rate&#8221;.



Emmanuel Kwesi Anning, a security consultant based in Accra, said galamsey was fuelling an increase in gun-trafficking because those overseeing illegal mines sought armed protection against rivals or thieves.



He also said politicians and traditional rulers in some areas were taking a cut of galamsey profits, further entrenching the problem.



&#8220;It has become an elite consensus that they&#8217;ll not touch this business.&#8221;



Ghana&#8217;s information minister did not respond to requests for comments on the allegations of organised crime involvement, gun running and corruption.



A top official in the National Security Ministry, who did not wish to be named because they were not authorised to speak about the issue in public, said authorities were working to address the links between illegal mining, money laundering and gun trafficking.



(Reporting by Maxwell Akalaare Adombila; Editing by Estelle Shirbon and Frances Kerry)

Ghana’s wildcat gold mining booms, poisoning people and nature

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/GettyImages-1037987712-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-539399" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/GettyImages-1037987712-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/GettyImages-1037987712-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/GettyImages-1037987712-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/GettyImages-1037987712-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/GettyImages-1037987712-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/GettyImages-1037987712-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A virologust works in the new Biological Security Level 4 laboratory of the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNI) in Hamburg, Germany, 25 January 2013. The new labroratory will contribute to the institute&#8217;s reasearch on tropical diseases, including dangerous diseases such as Lassa fever, Marburg virus, Ebola fever and leishmaniasis. Photo: CHRISTIAN CHARISIUS | usage worldwide (Photo by Christian Charisius/picture alliance via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



KIGALI, Oct 6 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Rwanda said on Sunday it had begun administering vaccine doses against the Marburg virus to try to combat an outbreak of the Ebola-like disease in the east African country, where it has so far killed 12 people.



&#8220;The vaccination is starting today immediately,&#8221; Health Minister Sabin Nsanzimana said at a news conference in the capital Kigali.



He said the vaccinations would focus on those &#8220;most at risk, most exposed healthcare workers working in treatment centres, in the hospitals, in ICU, in emergency, but also the close contacts of the confirmed cases.&#8221;



The country has already received shipments of the vaccines including from the Sabin Vaccine Institute.



Rwanda&#8217;s first outbreak of the viral hemorrhagic fever was detected in late September, with 46 cases and 12 deaths reported since then. Marburg has a fatality rate as high as 88%.



Marburg symptoms include high fever, severe headaches and malaise within seven days of infection and later severe nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea.



It is transmitted to humans by fruit bats and then spreads through contact with the bodily fluids of those infected. Neighbouring Uganda has suffered several outbreaks in the past.



&#8220;We believe that with vaccines, we have a powerful tool to stop the spread of this virus,&#8221; the minister said.



(Reporting by Philbert Girinema; Editing by Elias Biryabarema and Hugh Lawson)

New High security laboratory  at BNI

Rwanda begins Marburg vaccinations to curb deadly outbreak

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/6A7M3AO7TJLVNGKEVN2F6TDGYE-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-493882" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/6A7M3AO7TJLVNGKEVN2F6TDGYE-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/6A7M3AO7TJLVNGKEVN2F6TDGYE-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/6A7M3AO7TJLVNGKEVN2F6TDGYE-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/6A7M3AO7TJLVNGKEVN2F6TDGYE-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/6A7M3AO7TJLVNGKEVN2F6TDGYE-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/6A7M3AO7TJLVNGKEVN2F6TDGYE-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">International Monetary Fund (IMF) logo is seen outside the headquarters building in Washington, U.S., as IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde meets with Argentine Treasury Minister Nicolas Dujovne September 4, 2018. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas</figcaption></figure>



Oct 4 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;International Monetary Fund staff and officials in Ghana have reached an agreement on their third review of the West African country&#8217;s $3 billion IMF loan programme, the fund said on Friday.



The West African gold and cocoa producer is nearing completion of a debt-restructuring process under the G20&#8217;s Common Framework initiative, after it defaulted on most of its $30 billion international debt in 2022.



&#8220;Ghana has made remarkable progress on its public debt restructuring,&#8221; the fund said in a statement, adding that the performance of the programme was &#8220;generally satisfactory.&#8221;



More than 90% of Ghana&#8217;s bondholders have approved an overhaul of $13 billion worth of Eurobonds, the government said on Thursday, following a deal with bilateral creditors in June.



&#8220;The authorities are committed to pursuing good-faith efforts to reach an agreement with other commercial external creditors,&#8221; the IMF said.



Once the staff-level agreement is approved by the IMF&#8217;s executive board, Ghana will have access to $360 million in financing, the fund said.



The IMF board approved Ghana&#8217;s current lending programme, which expires in 2026, in May of last year.



Ghana&#8217;s debt restructuring is expected to reduce its debt stock by $4.7 billion and provide cash flow relief worth a total of $4.4 billion during the period of the IMF programme, the government said in June.



&#8220;Economic growth in the first half of 2024 was much higher than initially envisaged,&#8221; said the IMF.



Ghana&#8217;s economy grew at the fastest pace in five years in the second quarter, government data showed, and policymakers have started to lower interest rates on signs that inflation is easing.



(Reporting by Alessandra Prentice and Duncan Miriri; Editing by Mark Potter and Hugh Lawson)

IMF logo is seen outside the headquarters building in Washington

IMF and Ghana reach staff-level deal on $3 bln loan programme review

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="507" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/RAND-DOLLAR-820x507.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-533970" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/RAND-DOLLAR-820x507.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/RAND-DOLLAR-300x186.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/RAND-DOLLAR-145x90.jpg 145w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/RAND-DOLLAR-768x475.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/RAND-DOLLAR-1536x950.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/RAND-DOLLAR-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">South African bank notes featuring images of former South African President Nelson Mandela (R) are displayed next to the American dollar notes in this photo illustration in Johannesburg August 13 2014. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, Oct 4 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The South African rand recuperated some losses in early trade on Friday, ahead of a key U.S. payrolls data and after slumping on Thursday as tensions escalated in the Middle East.



By 0730 GMT, the rand traded about 0.5% firmer at 17.4275 against the dollar. Since the start of the week, however, the local unit was down nearly 2%.



&#8220;The ZAR had a tough week, largely driven by a USD resurgence fuelled by better-than-expected U.S. labour data and rising geopolitical risks,&#8221; said Andre Cilliers, currency strategist at TreasuryONE.



The dollar hovered near a six-week high ahead of a payrolls report that could give hints on the path of interest rate cuts in the world&#8217;s biggest economy.



The greenback was also supported by demand for safe-haven assets after an Iranian missile attack on Israel on Tuesday left investors assessing widening Middle East tensions and their impact on the global economy.



Like other risk-sensitive currencies, the rand often takes direction from global drivers in the absence of major local factors.



The local unit has gained more than&nbsp;4.5%&nbsp;against the greenback over the last three months.



&#8220;The ZAR&#8217;s correction was overdue after a period of significant appreciation, and the nonfarm payroll data today will play a key role in determining its next move,&#8221; Cilliers added.



On the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, the blue-chip Top-40 index was about 0.6% up in early trade.



South Africa&#8217;s benchmark 2030 government bond was slightly softer in early deals, with the yield up 3.5 basis points to 9.19%.



(Reporting by Tannur Anders; Editing by Varun H K)

Photo illustration of South African bank notes displayed next to the American dollar notes in Johannesburg

South African rand gains, focus on Middle East tension and US payrolls data

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="539" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/YNW7WLFOZJOXJBVUR4VLTBHO4A-820x539.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-538297" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/YNW7WLFOZJOXJBVUR4VLTBHO4A-820x539.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/YNW7WLFOZJOXJBVUR4VLTBHO4A-300x197.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/YNW7WLFOZJOXJBVUR4VLTBHO4A-137x90.jpg 137w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/YNW7WLFOZJOXJBVUR4VLTBHO4A-768x505.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/YNW7WLFOZJOXJBVUR4VLTBHO4A-1536x1009.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/YNW7WLFOZJOXJBVUR4VLTBHO4A-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A general view shows the Nation Centre and Lonrho Africa building in central business district in downtown Nairobi, Kenya February 18, 2022. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Oct 3 (Reuters) &#8211; Kenya&#8217;s government has asked the International Monetary Fund to conduct an official assessment of corruption and governance issues, the IMF told Reuters, after a push by Western nations.



Kenya has struggled with debt that has reached precarious levels in recent years, and its withdrawal of proposed tax hikes earlier this year &#8211; following deadly protests &#8211; complicated its efforts to unlock a $600 million disbursement from the IMF.



Countries themselves must request the so-called &#8220;governance diagnostic&#8221;, which investigates whether corruption and governance vulnerabilities are draining revenue or creating other problems in state finances.



“We have received a governance diagnostics request from the authorities,&#8221; an IMF spokesperson said in response to written questions.



&#8220;The government of Kenya aims to strengthen its governance and anti-corruption policies. They intend to utilize these diagnostics to enhance public spending efficiency, boost competitiveness, foster growth, and reduce poverty in an inclusive manner.”



One source familiar with the situation said the assessment, while not directly linked to the disbursement, would be a show of goodwill in the country&#8217;s efforts to get its finances back on track.



Perceived government waste and corruption were a core driver of mass demonstrations in June that forced President William Ruto to withdraw $2.7 billion in planned tax increases.



Kenya&#8217;s finance ministry did not respond to requests for comment.



Reuters on Tuesday first reported that Western nations were pushing for the IMF assessment.



(Reporting by Aaron Ross; additional reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Writing by Duncan Miriri; Editing by Libby George, Andrea Ricci and Lincoln Feast.)

General view of the central business district in Nairobi

Kenya asks IMF to review corruption issues after Western push

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="461" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108042845-1727966861492-gettyimages-2175574979-US_JOBS-820x461.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-538264" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108042845-1727966861492-gettyimages-2175574979-US_JOBS-820x461.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108042845-1727966861492-gettyimages-2175574979-US_JOBS-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108042845-1727966861492-gettyimages-2175574979-US_JOBS-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108042845-1727966861492-gettyimages-2175574979-US_JOBS-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108042845-1727966861492-gettyimages-2175574979-US_JOBS-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108042845-1727966861492-gettyimages-2175574979-US_JOBS.jpeg 1858w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Attendees at the Albany Job Fair in Latham, New York, US, on Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024.  Angus Mordant | Bloomberg | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



September’s jobs picture is expected to look a lot like August’s — a gradual slowdown in hiring from earlier this year, a modest increase in wages and a labor market that is looking a lot like many policymakers had hoped it would.



Nonfarm payrolls are projected to show growth of 150,000, from 142,000 the month before, with a steady unemployment rate of 4.2%, according to the Dow Jones consensus. On the wage side, the forecast is for a 0.3% monthly gain and a 3.8% increase from a year ago — the annual rate being the same as August.



Should the numbers come in as expected, they would hit close to a sweet spot allowing the Federal Reserve to continue to lower interest rates without a sense of urgency that it could be behind the curve and at risk of causing a recession.



“The jobs market is slowing down and becoming less tight,” said Katie Nixon, chief investment officer at Northern Trust Wealth Management. “The balance of power has shifted back to employers and away from employees, and that certainly will alleviate the wage pressure, which has been a key component of inflation. We’ve been team soft-landing for a while, and this is exactly what a soft landing looks like.”



Of course, there’s always the possibility of a substantial upside or downside surprise to the numbers. Then there are the monthly revisions that have been dramatic at times, causing the Labor Department to overcount hiring by more than 800,000 for the 12-month period through March 2024, adding uncertainty to jobs market analysis.



“While we’re looking at 150,000 jobs added, I would not be surprised if it comes in at 50,000 and I would not be surprised if it comes in at 250,000,” said David Kelly, chief global strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management. “I don’t think people should get too freaked out either way about this number.”



The Bureau of Labor Statistics will release the report at 8:30 a.m. While there will still be one more nonfarm payrolls count before the presidential vote next month, the October report is expected to be distorted by the dock workers’ strike as well as Hurricane Helene — making September the last “clean” report before Election Day.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-looking-for-clues"><a></a>Looking for clues</h2>



Still, markets will in fact be watching the report closely.



Specifically, they’ll be looking for indications as to whether the Fed will be able to loosen policy and lower interest rates in a gradual manner more in keeping with prior easing cycles, or will have to repeat the dramatic half percentage point interest rate cut it implemented in September.



At the same meeting where they approved the reduction, policymakers indicated another half percentage point, or 50 basis points, in cuts before the end of 2024 and another full percentage point in 2025. Markets, though, are pricing in a more aggressive schedule.



“A strong number wouldn’t really change their position,” JPMorgan’s Kelly said. “A weak number could tempt them to another 50 basis points.”



However, Kelly said the Fed is more likely to look at the employment picture as a “mosaic” rather than just an individual data point.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-bigger-picture"><a></a>The bigger picture</h2>



For the past several months, labor market indicators have been trending lower, though far from falling off a cliff. Manufacturing and services sector surveys have pointed to slower hiring, while Fed Chair Jerome Powell earlier this week characterized the labor market as solid but softening.



Excluding a brief slump at the onset of the Covid pandemic, the last time the monthly hiring rate was the level seen this summer — 3.3% of the labor force in both June and August — was in October 2013 when the unemployment rate was 7.2%, according to Labor Department data.



Job openings also have fallen and pushed the ratio of available positions to unemployed workers down to 1.1 to 1, from 2 to 1 just a couple years ago.



However, a kind of stasis has hit a labor market that not that long ago was wrestling with the “Great Resignation” as workers confident they could find better deals elsewhere left their jobs en masse.



Excluding the pandemic gyrations in 2020, the quits rate hasn’t been lower than its current 1.9% since December 2014, while the separations rate, even including Covid, was last lower than the current 3.1% in December 2012.



“Whatever leverage labor had, [it] has dissipated or just eased as the economy’s normalized,” said Joseph Brusuelas, chief economist at tax consultancy RSM. “So we’re going to have a lot less turnover. We’re seeing it in our business. We’re hearing it from our clients.”



Still, had someone told Brusuelas back during the Covid tumult four years ago that the economy would be adding nearly 150,000 jobs a month now with an unemployment rate in the low 4% range, he said, “I’d have bought you a steak dinner.”

108042845-1727966861492-gettyimages-2175574979-US_JOBS

Here’s everything to expect when the September jobs report is released Friday

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/TNUFZSJVAFIWBGPJVBHQEIKI3Q-1-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-537989" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/TNUFZSJVAFIWBGPJVBHQEIKI3Q-1-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/TNUFZSJVAFIWBGPJVBHQEIKI3Q-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/TNUFZSJVAFIWBGPJVBHQEIKI3Q-1-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/TNUFZSJVAFIWBGPJVBHQEIKI3Q-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/TNUFZSJVAFIWBGPJVBHQEIKI3Q-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/TNUFZSJVAFIWBGPJVBHQEIKI3Q-1-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">People walk in front of closed shops as traders lock up their stores in protest of Ghana&#8217;s worsening economic conditions in Accra, Ghana October 19, 2022. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI/LONDON, Oct 3 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Ghana&#8217;s investors have signed off on its proposal to restructure $13 billion worth of international bonds, the government said on Thursday, paving the way for the country to emerge from a painful 2022 debt default.



More than 90% of bondholders voted in favour of the plan, the government said in a regulatory news statement, calling it a &#8220;pivotal milestone&#8221;, adding that the new bonds would be issued as part of the debt restructuring on or around Oct. 9.



&#8220;Our economy has turned a corner,&#8221; Ghana&#8217;s President Nana Akufo-Addo said in a separate statement. &#8220;This will allow Ghana to stabilise our finances and focus all our efforts on continuing the implementation of the ambitious reform program to improve the well-being of the Ghanaian people.&#8221;



Ghana&#8217;s near completion of the debt restructuring process leaves Ethiopia as the only other country on the continent that is still working to overhaul its debt.



Ghana has secured investor approval of its bonds restructuring after data showed its economy expanded at the fastest pace in five years in the second quarter of this year. Inflation has also been falling, allowing policymakers to cut its benchmark interest rate last month, the first easing since January.



The West African gold and cocoa producer defaulted on most of its $30 billion of international debt in 2022, as the strain of the COVID-19 pandemic, war in Ukraine and higher global interest rates tipped it into crisis.



It secured an agreement in principle with two bondholder groups in June, paving the way for the exchange offer and consent solicitation.



The existing defaulted bonds will be swapped for a number of new instruments &#8211; including so-called &#8220;disco&#8221; bonds and a par bond option capped at $1.6 billion.



Ghana is restructuring its debt under the G20 Common Framework, which has seen Zambia and Chad also reach agreements.



Investors welcomed the results of the consent solicitation and bonds exchange.



&#8220;The overwhelming support from regional and international bondholders shows strong support of the Ghana&#8217;s economic reform programme,&#8221; said Samuel Sule, financial adviser to the regional bondholders group.



&#8220;The government can now, accordingly, focus on implementation and execution of programme including promoting economic growth and fiscal consolidation.&#8221;



(Reporting by Anait Miridzhanian, Duncan Miriri and Karin Strohecker; Editing by Toby Chopra and David Evans)

Ghana traders close shops to protest worsening economy

Ghana says bondholders have signed off on $13 bln debt overhaul

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="573" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/RWX7GTOMDNPMJHIAC5WECATPMQ-820x573.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-537951" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/RWX7GTOMDNPMJHIAC5WECATPMQ-820x573.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/RWX7GTOMDNPMJHIAC5WECATPMQ-300x210.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/RWX7GTOMDNPMJHIAC5WECATPMQ-129x90.jpg 129w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/RWX7GTOMDNPMJHIAC5WECATPMQ-768x537.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/RWX7GTOMDNPMJHIAC5WECATPMQ-1536x1073.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/RWX7GTOMDNPMJHIAC5WECATPMQ-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Workers load lithium concentrate at Prospect Lithium Zimbabwe mine in Goromonzi, Zimbabwe, January 9, 2024. REUTERS/Philimon Bulawayo/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



HARARE, Oct 3 (Reuters) &#8211; Zimbabwe has softened its requirements for lithium miners to process the mineral locally, a government official said on Thursday, as the industry battles to survive a price slump over the past year.



Africa&#8217;s top lithium producer, Zimbabwe had last year given producers up to March 2024 to submit plans of how they would produce battery-grade lithium in the impoverished southern African country.



Prices of lithium, which is mainly used in battery technologies, have fallen more than 80% in the past year largely due to overproduction from China and a drop in demand for electric vehicles.



The price collapse has forced companies like Chinese battery giant CATL to suspend production at certain mines. Albemarle, the world&#8217;s top lithium miner, implemented a second round of cost cuts earlier this year and laid off workers.



In Zimbabwe, lithium miners including Sinomine Resource Group&#8217;s Bikita Minerals, have been forced to cut production and lay off workers as the impact of weak prices has been compounded by the country&#8217;s poor infrastructure, currency volatility and policy inconsistencies.



The Zimbabwe government would now take a measured approach in its quest to localise lithium processing, deputy mines minister Polite Kambamura told Reuters.



&#8220;We are now considering them on a case by case basis and also considering the level of investments already put in the country,&#8221; Kambamura said.



Chinese firms including Sinomine, Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt, Chengxin Lithium Group, Yahua Group and Canmax Technologies have spent more than $1 billion over the past three years to acquire and develop lithium projects in Zimbabwe.



&#8220;Some commenced mining operations five months before the deadline, so we are considering where the project is,&#8221; he added.



Sinomine has said it plans to spend up to $500 million building a lithium sulphate plant at Bikita within the next five years.



Huayou has said it is conducting feasibility studies for a lithium sulphate plant at its Arcadia mine.



Kambamura said the government was open to dialogue with lithium miners over their struggles.



&#8220;We understand the prices are low but they are beginning to firm up. The fact that there are upcoming projects means the environment is favourable,&#8221; he added.



(Reporting by Nyasha Chingono; Editing by Nelson Banya and Angus MacSwan)

Workers load lithium concentrate at Prospect Lithium Zimbabwe mine in Goromonzi

Zimbabwe softens stance on local lithium processing after price collapse

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="572" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/6UEX6ZZXS5I7LFHDVDQZU4YJV4-820x572.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-537933" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/6UEX6ZZXS5I7LFHDVDQZU4YJV4-820x572.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/6UEX6ZZXS5I7LFHDVDQZU4YJV4-300x209.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/6UEX6ZZXS5I7LFHDVDQZU4YJV4-129x90.jpg 129w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/6UEX6ZZXS5I7LFHDVDQZU4YJV4-768x536.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/6UEX6ZZXS5I7LFHDVDQZU4YJV4-1536x1072.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/6UEX6ZZXS5I7LFHDVDQZU4YJV4-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed attends the 60th anniversary of the Organization of African Unity (OAU)/African Union (AU) at the African Union Commission (AUC) Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia May 25, 2023. REUTERS/Tiksa Negeri/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Oct 3 (Reuters) &#8211; A group of Ethiopia&#8217;s international bondholders rejected on Thursday the outlines of a government restructuring proposal for its $1 billion bond that was presented in an investors call earlier this week.



Ethiopia became Africa&#8217;s third default in as many years in December 2023. Progress on debt restructuring has been sluggish amid slow movement on reforms and drawn-out negotiations of a $3.4 billion programme with the International Monetary Fund.



During a call with global investors on Tuesday, the government sketched out &#8220;illustrative&#8221; terms of a bond restructuring, saying an 18% haircut &#8211; or writedown &#8211; on the nominal value of its sole outstanding dollar bond, excluding past due interest, would be compatible with debt sustainability targets.



&#8220;A haircut of the 2024 Notes principal claim is wholly inconsistent with the Committee’s evaluation of Ethiopia’s economic fundamentals,&#8221;&nbsp;the group of bondholders&nbsp;said in an emailed statement.



&#8220;As such, the Committee does not consider the illustrative terms to be a reasonable starting point for negotiation, a view that is shared by others in the wider bondholder community,&#8221; the&nbsp;group&#8217;s statement said.



A new bond issued to holders as part of the restructuring would have a 5% coupon and mature in June 2031, the government said in its presentation.



(Reporting by Duncan Miriri and George Obulutsa, editing by Karin Strohecker and Gareth Jones)

FILE PHOTO: 60th anniversary of the Organization African Unity (OAU)/African Union (AU) in Addis Ababa

Ethiopia bondholders reject government’s $1 bln bond restructuring outline

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/D4ASV6Y32RILJI4KL3SWHYT4ZY-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-537892" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/D4ASV6Y32RILJI4KL3SWHYT4ZY-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/D4ASV6Y32RILJI4KL3SWHYT4ZY-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/D4ASV6Y32RILJI4KL3SWHYT4ZY-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/D4ASV6Y32RILJI4KL3SWHYT4ZY-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/D4ASV6Y32RILJI4KL3SWHYT4ZY-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/D4ASV6Y32RILJI4KL3SWHYT4ZY-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Soldiers from the Rwandan security forces are seen near the Afungi natural gas site, Mozambique September 22, 2021. REUTERS/Baz Ratner/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, Oct 3 (Reuters) &#8211; Mozambique&#8217;s ruling party candidate in this month&#8217;s elections, who is almost certain to win, is likely to continue relying on Rwanda&#8217;s military and European money to secure its huge gas fields in a region beset by Islamist violence, analysts say.



Campaigning under the slogan &#8220;let&#8217;s get to work&#8221;, ex-high school teacher Daniel Chapo, 47, is expected to oversee the building of two liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects currently on hold because of insecurity in northern Cabo Delgado province.



To achieve this,&nbsp;he must lean heavily on Rwanda&#8217;s military, brought in by current President Felipe Nyusi in 2021 to bolster struggling local troops.



&#8220;The Rwandans are undeniably competent,&#8221; Tertius Jacobs, lead analyst for Mozambique at risk consultancy Focus Group, said. &#8220;Mozambique &#8230; has little to no better alternative.&#8221;



Rwandan units, including special forces, are tasked with securing territory around the Afungi site where TotalEnergies and ExxonMobil plan LNG projects.



Nyusi&#8217;s introducing Chapo to Rwandan president Paul Kagame in June was a nod to continuity, Jacobs said, amid civil society reports from Maputo that Rwandan security forces could build a new camp in Quissanga district to buffer against insurgent activity from the north, thereby enhancing security during elections.



Rwandan forces are shouldering larger responsibilities after regional southern African soldiers withdrew in July this year. A spokesperson did not respond to an emailed request for comment.



Recent attacks by suspected Islamists include a February ambush that killed more than 20 Mozambican soldiers, helping displace tens of thousands of people in one of the worst skirmishes since 2021, when TotalEnergies halted its $20 billion project.



ExxonMobil&#8217;s neighbouring project is also on hold, frustrating Mozambique&#8217;s ambitions to become a major gas exporter.



TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanne has said work could restart this year if security continues to improve, although funding is another concern.



ExxonMobil is expected to make a final investment decision by end-2025.



&#8220;Rwanda will remain the key. They have thousands of troops there to protect the LNG sites,&#8221; Robert Besseling, CEO of consultancy Pangea-Risk said.



Already a major funder, the EU is mulling further support to Rwandan efforts to quell the insurgency, a spokesperson said.



&#8220;The fight against terrorism in Cabo Delgado is a common fight,&#8221; she said.



(Reporting by Wendell Roelf; Editing by Tim Cocks and Alex Richardson)

FILE PHOTO: Soldiers from the Rwandan security forces are seen near the Afungi natural gas site

Mozambique’s presidential frontrunner likely to keep Rwandans protecting gas sites

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="462" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108042150-1727870753022-gettyimages-1402178496-mt_25085_c18473a3-f9fe-4ce4-93d8-345c2499380c-820x462.png" alt="" class="wp-image-537837" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108042150-1727870753022-gettyimages-1402178496-mt_25085_c18473a3-f9fe-4ce4-93d8-345c2499380c-820x462.png 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108042150-1727870753022-gettyimages-1402178496-mt_25085_c18473a3-f9fe-4ce4-93d8-345c2499380c-300x169.png 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108042150-1727870753022-gettyimages-1402178496-mt_25085_c18473a3-f9fe-4ce4-93d8-345c2499380c-160x90.png 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108042150-1727870753022-gettyimages-1402178496-mt_25085_c18473a3-f9fe-4ce4-93d8-345c2499380c-768x432.png 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108042150-1727870753022-gettyimages-1402178496-mt_25085_c18473a3-f9fe-4ce4-93d8-345c2499380c.png 1480w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Mario Tama | Getty Images News | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



President Joe Biden and his administration are sticking to their position of not invoking the Taft-Hartley Act to force International Longshoremen’s Association dock workers back on the job at East and Gulf coast ports where a strike is hitting day two on Wednesday, a political decision that reflects the power of unions one month out from an election but risks losing some progress on what is the No. 1 issue for many voters: the economy.



Rhetoric from Cabinet secretaries, including Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and acting Labor Secretary Julie Su, has become sharper in recent days, pointing the finger at the ports ownership and ocean carriers. But right now, there is no sign of any progress bringing the ILA and port owners back to the table for a new round of negotiations, according to CNBC sources. And there remains a big risk on the other side of the political decision-making: wage increases that are a win for workers but ultimately ripple through the economy in the form of higher prices, both domestically and around the world.



Much of the focus about the economic impact of the ports strike to date has been focused on the direct hit to the economy from the massive trade shutdown, and the ways in which supply chain congestion and delays can result in higher prices being passed along to consumers, which will become a bigger factor the longer a strike persists. But maritime and business experts are also warning about the risk of persistent wage inflation making its way into supply chain prices that the Federal Reserve has recently been successful in taming.



“The wage increase would indeed be passed on and eventually be paid by the importers,” said Lars Jensen, CEO of Vespucci Maritime, a maritime shipping consultant. “The inflationary impact would vary dramatically depending on the value of the goods inside the container,” he said, adding the influence would be an even bigger impact for agricultural exporters.



The ILA’s president, Harold Daggett, is seeking a raise as high as $5 per hour, per year, over a six-year period in a new contract for union port workers in a labor battle with the United States Maritime Alliance. The USMX, which represents port ownership, last offered what it described as a nearly 50% wage increase over six years on Monday, an offer rejected by the union. The USMX reiterated that offer on Tuesday, saying in a statement that its “current offer of a nearly 50% wage increase exceeds every other recent union settlement, while addressing inflation, and recognizing the ILA’s hard work to keep the global economy running.”



But Daggett countered claims of any “significant increase,” saying in the ILA’s own Tuesday statement that the USMX “conveniently omit that many of our members are operating multi-million-dollar container-handling equipment for a mere $20 an hour. In some states, the minimum wage is already $15.” The ILA president added that “the USMX also overlooks the fact that two-thirds of our members are constantly on call, with no guaranteed employment if no ships are being worked. Our members qualify for benefits only based on the hours they worked the previous year, making them vulnerable if there’s a downturn in work.”



Daggett told CNBC on Tuesday morning that the ILA is seeking a wage increase of 61.5%.



The USMX has not reached back out to the ILA with any new counteroffer, and the sides are not currently at the negotiating table, according to sources granted anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the labor discussions.



While a significant wage hike would undoubtedly be a big win for workers and a resurgent labor movement — which has used extreme terminology to tell Biden what it would think of a decision to intervene in the strike — with the union and port ownership group at an impasse, the ocean carriers have begun to take steps to protect their own financial position in the near term for as long as a strike persists. CMA CGM, one of the world’s largest ocean carriers, declared a force majeure on Tuesday, a legal maneuver to free itself of contract requirements with shipping clients due to forces beyond its control, and said it “may charge any additional operational costs” associated with vessels delayed due to the strike to cargo on the water as of Oct. 1, 2024 with a U.S. East or Gulf coast port of discharge.



Biden said Tuesday that his administration will be “monitoring for any price gouging activity” that benefits foreign ocean carriers, including those on the USMX board. He also said “foreign ocean carriers have made record profits since the pandemic, when Longshoremen put themselves at risk to keep ports open.”



Based on prior port strikes, ocean carriers normally profit from soaring freight rates based on demand for other ports as well as detention and demurrage fees on containers stranded during a ports shutdown. Analysts have been warning ocean spot rates could increase by 20%-50%. UBS forecast that 20% of Maersk’s total volume would touch a U.S. port that would be impacted by the strike. Maersk is on the board of the USMX. UBS estimated that if freight rates increased 30% over two quarters, a revenue tail wind of more than $1 billion would be generated.



Buttigieg said Tuesday that the DOT is monitoring “any attempts by companies to opportunistically raise prices, including ocean shippers or others,” and called on ocean carriers to withdraw surcharges. “No one should exploit a disruption for profit,” he said in a DOT statement. He added that the Federal Maritime Commission will use expanded authority signed into law by Biden to “ensure any fees assessed are legitimate and lawful.”



But the still more significant price hikes would occur after a successful deal for the ILA, according to some economists, even though the total number of workers involved in the strike, at around 50,000, is a blip in a U.S. labor market that employs well over 100 million people. It comes amid other union battles across the U.S. economy targeting aviation and automakers. “The scale of wage demands at the ports,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/09/23/boeing-labor-proposal-best-and-final-offer-strike.html">at Boeing</a>, and at&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/09/19/uaw-warns-of-potential-strikes-at-ford-stellantis.html">autoworkers</a>, make one laugh at the claims that the labor market is soft and that wage inflation is dead,” said Larry Lindsey,&nbsp;CEO of The Lindsey Group.



Acting Labor Secretary Su lashed out at the idea that labor wage increases would be passed onto U.S. exporters and importers.



“At the same time that we were urging them to put a fair offer on the table to avoid all the disruption, they were calculating how much of a surcharge they could charge for shipping in light of a strike,” said Su said in an interview. “I mean, it’s really an outrageous position.”



For months, logistics and business trade groups representing major industries from retail to manufacturing and agriculture have sent numerous letters to Biden and his administration urging intervention. Now, with the president sticking to his position that collective bargaining is the only means for a “fair deal” for the ILA, executives across the economy are beginning to weight the potential pricing impacts for their business models.



“It quickly renders our U.S. agriculture exports much less competitive in the global marketplace,” said Peter Friedmann, executive director of the Agriculture Transportation Coalition, of any logistics rate increases his sector would see. “Our foreign customers can satisfy their food, farm, and fiber needs from other countries, which is where they will go, &nbsp;as costs of moving containers through U.S. ports continue to increase.”



Su said she is very sympathetic to the needs of the business community, but stuck to the administration’s position. “I’ve been in many conversations with them too,” she said. “I understand just how important the impact of a good resolution is. I know they understand, just as consumers and American workers understand, that foreign companies who profit from our economy and who employ American workers and have an impact on American consumers should do the right thing, and in that battle, we are always going to stand with American workers, American businesses and American consumers.”



The Federal Reserve has recently become more concerned about the labor market than inflation and has begun cutting interest rates to “recalibrate” its monetary policy in a bid to prevent a rise in layoffs and betting inflation is on its way back to 2%, which recent data supports. In the most recent nonfarm payrolls report for August, average hourly earnings increased by 0.4% on the month and 3.8% from a year ago, both higher than estimates. The September nonfarm payrolls report is due out Friday and in the short term, the union battle could influence the data on both wages and layoffs.



The big payroll report immediately ahead of the government data, the ADP private payrolls report, showed on Wednesday that while hiring increased, pay growth has continued to trend down. The annual gain for those remaining in their jobs decreased to 4.7%, while it fell even more for job switchers, to 6.6%, down 0.7 percentage point from August. The upcoming nonfarm payrolls report is the last the Fed will receive before its next interest rate policy decision in November, and it could include downward pressures in the labor market as well, influenced by both layoffs related to the strike and Hurricane Helene.



“This would just completely complicate everything that the Fed is trying to do because they’re not getting a read to what the economy is actually performing,” Jim Bianco, head of Bianco Research, told CNBC’s “Fast Money” on Tuesday.



In the longer-term analysis, the wage increase being sought by the union will confirm that wage growth is not going back to its pre-Covid trend, of about 2.5%, according to Peter Boockvar, chief investment officer at Bleakley Financial Group. Instead, he estimates it will settle around 4%, which will put a floor under inflation.



“I continue to believe that after the disinflation plays out, which is mostly taking place in goods, 3-4% will be the normalized inflation rate,” said Boockvar. “And this wage deal, when it happens, will result in goods prices to inflect higher.”



At its recent September Federal Open Market Committee meeting, Fed officials lowered their inflation outlook to 2.3% from 2.6% previously, and the central bank’s own supply chain indicator has stabilized after the pandemic shocks. But its forecast of a long-run neutral rate near 2.9% has moved higher as the Fed continues to pursue its stated mandate of 2% inflation.



“For those dependent on functioning ports for their livelihood, the collateral damage is often underestimated by those watching from afar,” said Alan Baer, CEO of logistics firm OL USA. &nbsp;



On Wednesday, the National Retail Federation coordinated a coalition of 272 trade associations including manufacturers, farmers, wholesalers, retailers, restaurants, and importers and exporters, to send another letter to Biden pleading for him to end the strike.



Steve Lamar, CEO of the American Apparel &amp; Footwear Association, one of the groups which signed the letter, said it’s imperative that the Biden administration use all the tools at its disposal, including its authorities under Taft-Hartley, to keep the parties at the negotiating table, the ports opened and goods moving efficiently. “Allowing the status quo to persist increases the likelihood that this port crisis will hurt our industry and the overall U.S. economy through job losses, higher prices, and goods shortages,” said Lamar.



In December 2022, Biden signed legislation making a planned freight rail strike illegal, even though key issues sought by rail workers and their unions were not included in the bill. At that time, the president said it “helps our nation avoid what, without a doubt, would have been an economic catastrophe at a very bad time in the calendar.”



That situation put “union Joe” Biden in a difficult position, but he said at the time of the signing that while his support for unions was as strong as ever, as president of the United States, rather than a single senator from Delaware, it was his job to look out for all Americans.&nbsp;



— Reporting by CNBC’s Jeff Cox contributed to this article.



Correction: Lars Jensen is CEO of Vespucci Maritime. An earlier version misspelled his name.

108042150-1727870753022-gettyimages-1402178496-mt_25085_c18473a3-f9fe-4ce4-93d8-345c2499380c

The East and Gulf coast ports strike could be a no-win situation for the Biden administration

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="575" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/2YFSNLSNFRP7VNWQPEPCOAWUMU-1-820x575.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-454022" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/2YFSNLSNFRP7VNWQPEPCOAWUMU-1-820x575.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/2YFSNLSNFRP7VNWQPEPCOAWUMU-1-300x210.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/2YFSNLSNFRP7VNWQPEPCOAWUMU-1-128x90.jpg 128w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/2YFSNLSNFRP7VNWQPEPCOAWUMU-1-768x539.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/2YFSNLSNFRP7VNWQPEPCOAWUMU-1-1536x1078.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/2YFSNLSNFRP7VNWQPEPCOAWUMU-1-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: A man shows off Zimbabwean currency notes outside a grocery store in Harare, Zimbabwe, March 17, 2022. REUTERS/Philimon Bulawayo/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



HARARE, Oct 2 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Zimbabwe&#8217;s President Emmerson Mnangagwa on Wednesday vowed to implement corrective measures to protect people&#8217;s incomes after the country&#8217;s new gold-backed currency slid on the black market five months after it was introduced.



The ZiG, short for Zimbabwe Gold, was devalued 43% last Friday after it lost nearly 47% on the black market.



&#8220;We note with concern the resurgence of the parallel market activities driven by speculative tendencies. Corrective measures are being instituted to protect Zimbabweans from disruptions,&#8221; Mnangagwa said in an address to the parliament.



Since the devaluation, the ZiG has again weakened from Friday&#8217;s rate of 24.3902 to 25.2824 on Wednesday, while on the black market it has slipped to 32 per U.S. dollar.



Mnangagwa said the devaluation of the ZiG will allow &#8220;greater flexibility&#8221; and encourage people holding forex to trade on the official market.



&#8220;Government remains committed to backing the currency through setting aside 50% of royalties to build reserves,&#8221; he said.



The ZiG is the southern African country&#8217;s sixth attempt at a stable currency in 15 years after a bout of hyperinflation under former longtime leader Robert Mugabe.



Following a meeting with central bank officials, the Bankers Association of Zimbabwe on Wednesday said last week&#8217;s move would cause price hikes and weaken confidence.



(Reporting by Nyasha Chingono, Editing by Bhargav Acharya and Andrea Ricci)

FILE PHOTO: Zimbabwe’s poor feel the impact of far away Ukraine war

Zimbabwe’s president vows to implement measures to stop currency slide

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="548" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/IFNY65FOTJO4XHZDYY2W2UMXWQ-1-820x548.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-537523" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/IFNY65FOTJO4XHZDYY2W2UMXWQ-1-820x548.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/IFNY65FOTJO4XHZDYY2W2UMXWQ-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/IFNY65FOTJO4XHZDYY2W2UMXWQ-1-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/IFNY65FOTJO4XHZDYY2W2UMXWQ-1-768x513.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/IFNY65FOTJO4XHZDYY2W2UMXWQ-1-1536x1026.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/IFNY65FOTJO4XHZDYY2W2UMXWQ-1-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: A motorist drives on the Nairobi Expressway undertaken by the China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) on a public-private partnership (PPP) basis, in Nairobi, Kenya May 20, 2022. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Oct 2 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Kenya&#8217;s economy expanded by 4.6% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2024, down from 5.6% in the corresponding quarter of the previous year, the national statistics office said on Wednesday.



The second quarter of 2023 gross domestic product data was revised upward from a previous figure of 5.0%.



The Kenyan statistics office attributed second-quarter growth to the robust performance of sectors including agriculture, forestry &amp; fishing, real estate, financial and insurance activities, and wholesale and retail.



However, the mining, quarrying and construction sectors saw a contraction, the statistics office said in its statement.



Kenya&#8217;s finance ministry has projected a 5.2% economic growth for 2024, a slight decrease from 5.6% in the previous year.



At the end of the second&nbsp;quarter, nationwide protests against proposed tax increases resulted in disruption and violence in major cities.



President William Ruto subsequently scrapped the tax measures, but demonstrations persisted into the third quarter, with protesters calling for better governance, an end to corruption and better service delivery.



(Reporting by George Obulutsa; Editing by Louise Heavens and Bate Felix)

Shadow of Kenya’s borrowing binge to hang over next president

Kenya’s economic growth slows in the second quarter of 2024

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="573" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/VRATGRWGYVJ5ZNVGMF3E7MIYPQ-820x573.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-537495" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/VRATGRWGYVJ5ZNVGMF3E7MIYPQ-820x573.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/VRATGRWGYVJ5ZNVGMF3E7MIYPQ-300x210.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/VRATGRWGYVJ5ZNVGMF3E7MIYPQ-129x90.jpg 129w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/VRATGRWGYVJ5ZNVGMF3E7MIYPQ-768x537.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/VRATGRWGYVJ5ZNVGMF3E7MIYPQ-1536x1074.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/VRATGRWGYVJ5ZNVGMF3E7MIYPQ-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Ugandan Minister of Energy and Mineral Development Ruth Nankabirwa Ssentamu gestures during an Interview at the African Energy Week in Cape Town, South Africa, October 17, 2023. REUTERS/Esa Alexander</figcaption></figure>



KAMPALA, Oct 2 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Uganda has formed a state-owned mining company to manage the government&#8217;s equity interests in mining operations, its minister for energy and mineral development, Ruth Nankabirwa, said.



All mining activities in the east African country have previously been done by private firms after obtaining exploration and mining licenses.



Under a new mining law approved in 2022, the government can compulsorily take a 15% free carry stake in all mining operations in the country.



The move is part of broader efforts to expand Uganda&#8217;s share of the value from its mineral wealth, following in the footsteps of other African countries such as Tanzania.



&#8220;This company will manage the state&#8217;s commercial interests in the mining industry. It will do so through strategic partnerships with young developers in the private sector,&#8221; Nankabirwa told a mining conference in Kampala on Tuesday.



President Yoweri Museveni&#8217;s government has also been pushing investors in the sector to process minerals and add value domestically instead of exporting them in raw form.



In April, Uganda launched its first tin refining company by mining firm Woodcross resources, which refines tin ore to 99.9% purity.



Chinese-backed Sunbird Resources has also been licensed to mine limestone for cement production in Karamoja region in Uganda&#8217;s northeast region, while Australia&#8217;s Ionic Rare Earths IXR.AX has been licensed to mine and process rare earths.



Ugandan geologists say the country has large deposits of a range of minerals including gold, cobalt, copper, iron ore, rare earths, among others.



(Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by George Obulutsa and Rashmi Aich)

Interview with Ugandan Minister of Energy and Mineral Development Ruth Nankabirwa Ssentamu at the African Energy Week in Cape Town

Uganda sets up state-owned firm to take stakes in mining operations

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="800" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/TJORLERHRFO4NIRPMFSZ32CFMA.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-529012" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/TJORLERHRFO4NIRPMFSZ32CFMA.jpg 800w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/TJORLERHRFO4NIRPMFSZ32CFMA-300x205.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/TJORLERHRFO4NIRPMFSZ32CFMA-132x90.jpg 132w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/TJORLERHRFO4NIRPMFSZ32CFMA-768x525.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: An oil pump jack outside Almetyevsk in the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia, June 4, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Manzyuk/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



Oil watchers are now seeing a genuine threat to crude supplies after Iran launched a ballistic missile attack on Israel, escalating conflict in the Middle East.



Iran on Tuesday launched the strike on Israel in retaliation for its recent killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and an Iranian commander in Lebanon.



Iranian oil infrastructure may soon become a target for Israel as it considers a countermove, analysts told CNBC.



“The Middle East conflict may finally impact oil supply,” said Saul Kavonic, senior energy analyst at MST Marquee. “The scope for a material disruption to oil supply is now imminent.”



These latest developments could be a gamechanger, after a prolonged period of “geopolitical risk fatigue” during which traders brushed off threats of oil supply disruptions stemming from the situation in the Middle East as well as Ukraine, he said.



Up to 4% of global oil supply is at risk as the conflict now directly envelopes Iran, and an attack or tighter sanctions could send prices to $100 per barrel again, Kavonic added.



Iran’s latest missile attack followed Israel’s deployment of ground troops into southern Lebanon, intensifying its offensive against Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militant group. Most of the 200 missiles launched were intercepted by Israeli and U.S. defenses, and there were no reported fatalities in Israel as a result of the attack.



The attack came on the heels of Israel’s deployment of ground forces into south Lebanon, escalating its offensive on Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militant group. Oil prices gained over 5% in the previous session following the missile strike, before tapering to a 2% climb. Global benchmark Brent is now trading 1.44% higher at $74.62 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures rose 1.62% to $70.95 per barrel.



Since the armed Israel-Hamas conflict started Oct. 7 of last year, disruptions to the oil market has been limited. The oil market also remains under pressure as increased production from the U.S. add to the supply picture, and sputtering Chinese demand have depressed prices, said Andy Lipow, president at Lipow Oil Associates.



Iran is the third largest producer among the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, producing almost four million barrels of oil per day, according to data from the Energy Information Administration.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-new-phase-of-the-war"><a></a>New phase of the war?</h2>



Other analysts echoed Kavonic’s warning.



“As Israel turns from Gaza to Lebanon and Iran, the war is entering a new and more energy-related phase,” Bob McNally, president of Rapidan Energy Group, told CNBC, adding that he expects Israel’s retaliation for the missile attack to be “disproportionately large.”



“It’s going to get worse before it gets better,” he said.



Ross Schaap, head of research at GeoQuant, which leverages structural and high-frequency data to generate political risk scores, said that the organization’s risk analysis model of the Israel-Iran conflict, which has remained in three standard deviations of the average trend over the past 12 years, saw a significant spike after the latest missile strikes.



These results indicate that “much bigger events” are expected, said Schaap said.



Josh Young, CIO of Bison Interests, who is similarly observing an increasing likelihood of a potential strike on Iranian oil infrastructure oil supply disruption,&nbsp;said that this marks a “significant escalation” by Iran.



Should Iranian exports go offline due to an attack, Young predicts that oil prices will surge to more than $100 per barrel.

FILE PHOTO: An oil pump jack outside Almetyevsk, Russia

Oil watchers now see a real threat of supply disruptions after latest Iran-Israel escalation

<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/16/trump-iran-kill-plot-secret-service.html">Iran</a>&nbsp;on Tuesday launched a ballistic missile attack on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/09/24/we-have-much-more-on-the-way-if-they-will-continue-israels-president-warns-hezbollah.html">Israel</a>&nbsp;in retaliation for its recent killing of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/09/29/israel-pounds-lebanon-pressuring-hezbollah-after-killing-its-leader.html">Hezbollah</a>&nbsp;leader&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/09/28/hezbollah-leader-hassan-nasrallah-killed-in-strike-israeli-army-says.html">Hassan Nasrallah</a>&nbsp;and an Iranian commander in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/10/01/israeli-forces-launch-ground-offensive-in-lebanon-as-markets-eye-escalation-.html">Lebanon</a>.



The attack came on the heels of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/09/30/israeli-military-says-limited-operation-against-hezbollah-targets-in-southern-lebanon-has-begun.html">Israel</a>’s deployment of ground forces into south Lebanon, escalating its offensive on Hezbollah, a militant group backed by Iran.



“In response to the martyrdom of Martyr Haniyeh, Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah, and Martyr Nilforoushan, we have targeted the heart of the occupied territories,” the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/irans-revolutionary-guards" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps</a>&nbsp;said in a statement after missiles began appearing in the skies over Israel.



“Should the Zionist regime respond to Iran’s operation, it will face crushing attack,” said the IRGC, Iran’s paramilitary organization.



Abbas Nilforoushan was an Iranian Revolutionary Guards deputy commander, who was killed with Nasrallah in a bombing by Israel last Friday in Beirut, Lebanon.



<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/31/iran-says-hamas-leader-ismail-haniyeh-was-assassinated-in-tehran.html">Ismail Haniyeh</a>&nbsp;was the political commander of the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/07/hamas-new-political-leader-yahya-sinwar-is-seen-as-more-extreme.html">Hamas</a>&nbsp;terror group, who was killed in July by an Israeli strike on Tehran, the capital of Iran. Israel has been engaged in a brutal war on Hamas since the group launched the Oct. 7 terror attack on Israel from Gaza.



There were only two people reported lightly injured from shrapnel from the missile attack in the Tel Aviv area, according to Israeli authorities. There were also some minor injuries reported across Israel involving people moving to safe spaces.



The Israel Defense Forces announced that citizens were allowed to leave protected spaces across the country just after 1:30 p.m. ET.



A White House official on Tuesday warned that any direct attack on Israel by Iran “will carry severe consequences for Iran.”



“We are actively supporting defensive preparations to defend Israel against this attack,” the official said.



That official and a Defense Department official said that Iran was expected to target military and government sites, not civilian locations.



Sirens wailed around Israel during Tuesday’s attack.



President&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/joe-biden/">Joe Biden</a>&nbsp;met Tuesday afternoon with Vice President&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/kamala-harris/">Kamala Harris</a>&nbsp;and national security officials to discuss the attack, the White House said.



“They reviewed the status of U.S. preparations to help Israel defend against attacks and protect U.S. personnel,” White House senior deputy press secretary Emilie Simons said in a post on the social media site X.



<a href="https://il.usembassy.gov/security-alert-u-s-embassy-jerusalem-26/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem</a>&nbsp;directed all U.S. government employees and their families in Israel to “shelter in place until further notice.”



The embassy in the same notice said it “reminds U.S. citizens of the continued need for caution and increased personal security awareness as security incidents, including mortar and rocket fire and unmanned aircraft system UAS intrusions, often take place without warning.”



“The security environment remains complex and can change quickly depending on the political situation and recent events,” the notice said.



Iran’s suspected planned attack came a day after Israeli ground forces crossed into south&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/10/01/israeli-forces-launch-ground-offensive-in-lebanon-as-markets-eye-escalation-.html">Lebanon</a>&nbsp;as part of an attack on Hezbollah.



The number of Israeli troops who have entered Lebanon is in “the low hundreds,” an Israeli official told NBC News.



Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said the killing of Nasrallah and a senior Revolutionary Guards commander in that attack “will not go unanswered.” Araghchi said the United States was “complicit in this crime.”



The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/.DJI/">Dow Jones Industrial Average</a>&nbsp;fell more than 250 points by 10 a.m. ET, spurred by a surge in the cost of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/10/01/crude-oil-prices-today.html">West Texas Intermediate crude oil</a>, on fears of heightened tensions in the petroleum-rich Middle East.



The WTI November contract was up nearly 3% by midmorning, hovering shy of $70 a barrel.



In April, Iran launched an attack on Israel that included more than 300 drones and ballistic missiles after two top Iranian commanders were killed by an Israeli airstrike in Syria.



Most of the missiles and drones were shot down by the Israeli and U.S. militaries.

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Debt burden threatens poor countries’ development goals, UN official says

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Zimbabwe’s president vows to implement measures to stop currency slide

Kenya’s economic growth slows in the second quarter of 2024

Uganda sets up state-owned firm to take stakes in mining operations

Oil watchers now see a real threat of supply disruptions after latest Iran-Israel escalation

Iran launches missile attack on Israel for killing of Hezbollah leader, general

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featured

Debt burden threatens poor countries’ development goals, UN official says

Ghana’s wildcat gold mining booms, poisoning people and nature

Rwanda begins Marburg vaccinations to curb deadly outbreak

IMF and Ghana reach staff-level deal on $3 bln loan programme review

South African rand gains, focus on Middle East tension and US payrolls data

Kenya asks IMF to review corruption issues after Western push

Here’s everything to expect when the September jobs report is released Friday

Ghana says bondholders have signed off on $13 bln debt overhaul

Zimbabwe softens stance on local lithium processing after price collapse

Ethiopia bondholders reject government’s $1 bln bond restructuring outline

Mozambique’s presidential frontrunner likely to keep Rwandans protecting gas sites

The East and Gulf coast ports strike could be a no-win situation for the Biden administration

Zimbabwe’s president vows to implement measures to stop currency slide

Kenya’s economic growth slows in the second quarter of 2024

Uganda sets up state-owned firm to take stakes in mining operations

Oil watchers now see a real threat of supply disruptions after latest Iran-Israel escalation

Iran launches missile attack on Israel for killing of Hezbollah leader, general

News Tips

Advertise With Us

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