<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="461" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/108029570-1725536037667-gettyimages-122313864-66061432-820x461.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-527510" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/108029570-1725536037667-gettyimages-122313864-66061432-820x461.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/108029570-1725536037667-gettyimages-122313864-66061432-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/108029570-1725536037667-gettyimages-122313864-66061432-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/108029570-1725536037667-gettyimages-122313864-66061432-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/108029570-1725536037667-gettyimages-122313864-66061432-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/108029570-1725536037667-gettyimages-122313864-66061432.jpeg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Lion King directors Roger Allers (L) and Rob Minkoff. Kevin Winter | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Artificial intelligence is a “Wild West” with “very few rules” — but it has the potential to democratize the film industry in the long term, according to the director of “The Lion King.”



Rob Minkoff, who co-directed the classic 1994 animated Disney film with Roger Allers, told CNBC in an interview that AI has the potential to “democratize” filmmaking in such a way that it’ll become less costly to produce and direct motion pictures by slashing the amount of expensive equipment involved. 



“I think what AI will do is potentially democratize the process of making content, because if literally anyone is given these incredibly powerful tools, then what we should see is truly an explosion of content, an explosion of new voices,” Minkoff, 62, told CNBC.&nbsp;



Minkoff was speaking with CNBC ahead of the Reply AI Film Festival. The event, held by Italian tech firm Reply during the Venice International Film Festival, is a competition that awards filmmakers using AI to develop short films. Minkoff is a judge on the panel that decides the winners.&nbsp;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hyperbole-versus-legitimate-concerns"><a></a>‘Hyperbole’ versus ‘legitimate concerns’</h2>



The arrival of new technology has for decades been a fear among people working in the film industry, Minkoff noted. For example, when computer animation arrived in the 1990s, there were similar fears about the impact it would have on jobs.



“When computer animation came along, there were a lot of people that were very afraid about it — what it would mean, how it would impact people’s jobs,” Minkoff, who also directed 1999′s “Stuart Little” and 2003′s “The Haunted Mansion,” told CNBC.&nbsp;



“What became very apparent early on was that, if people wanted to maintain their own personal relevancy in the industry, it became very important for them to really learn and adapt to changes in technology,” he added. “We’re experiencing something quite similar now with AI.”&nbsp;



Minkoff recalls the use of computers to create the famous stampede scene in “The Lion King.” In the scene, dozens of wildebeests are seen rushing after Simba, the movie’s protagonist.&nbsp;



In that scene, Minkoff recalls, “we could have 1000s of wildebeests rendered, but the technique that we used made it look very seamless with the rest of the drawn animation.”&nbsp;



“People are naturally and understandably worried when they look at what AI can do,” Minkoff said. However, he added, he doesn’t think the technology can replace all filmmakers, and that there’s a lot of “hyperbole” at the moment surrounding AI’s capabilities.



Still, Minkoff said, there are concerns about the application of AI in film that are warranted, such as those relating to copyright and the use of intellectual property in entertainment for training AI models.



“I hope that technology ultimately&nbsp;will save us, in some regards, or make life better, easier or more more prosperous,” Minkoff told CNBC. “But it’s the Wild West, where it seems like anything is possible and anything can be done.”&nbsp;



&nbsp;Minkoff added that there are “legitimate concerns” with AI when it comes to issues like the protection of media IP and tackling copyright theft. “I understand why people might want to slow it down or put guardrails on it to be careful, to be safe,” he said.&nbsp;



But ultimately, he doesn’t think the AI positive momentum will slow. “My impression is that it probably&nbsp;won’t be slowed down, because these decisions are left to judges and courtrooms to decide what’s right and wrong,” Minkoff said.



On the copyright question, he suggested the creation of a dedicated body designed to protect filmmakers’ intellectual property and remunerate them, like what the American Society for Composers, Authors and Publishers and Broadcast Music, Inc. do for the music industry.&nbsp;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><a></a>‘Always the human behind the technology’</h2>



The Reply AI Film Festival, which awarded three winners this week, started out as an internal competition among employees, with staff using AI tools to produce movie-quality videos, Filippo Rizzante, chief technology officer of Reply, told CNBC.



“There has been a lot of progress with technology for producing creative work,” Rizzante said in an interview last week. “This is impacting a lot the quantity and quality of what we are producing as humanity.”&nbsp;



Rizzante pushed back on fears that AI will displace people working in entertainment. The technology, he said, “will completely change how the industry is delivering content today, but not necessarily change the number of people employed in the movie industry.”&nbsp;



In this year’s edition of the festival, one of the runners-up, “Gia Pham,” depicts a woman looking at a takeout menu before being transported to a colorful picturesque 2D world. The narrator of the video, who begins by speaking in English, starts talking in Japanese after the shift from 3D to 2D.&nbsp;



Alexander de Lukowicz, co-director of “Gia Pham,” told CNBC that humans are essential to how he and his team work to generate short films. AI tools such as DALL-E and Midjourney, he said, helped the directors of his short film “enhance worlds we weren’t able to generate before.”&nbsp;



“It’s always the human behind the technology that has to guide the technology to gain the proper result out of it. We wanted to produce something like a film to really check the boundaries of what’s possible,” de Lukowicz told CNBC.&nbsp;

108029570-1725536037667-gettyimages-122313864-66061432

Director of Disney’s Lion King says AI is a ‘West West,’ echoes how animation changed film

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="550" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NAE5BQB57NNCZEMRT4TCKAKPXA-820x550.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-527482" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NAE5BQB57NNCZEMRT4TCKAKPXA-820x550.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NAE5BQB57NNCZEMRT4TCKAKPXA-300x201.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NAE5BQB57NNCZEMRT4TCKAKPXA-134x90.jpg 134w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NAE5BQB57NNCZEMRT4TCKAKPXA-768x515.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NAE5BQB57NNCZEMRT4TCKAKPXA-1536x1030.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NAE5BQB57NNCZEMRT4TCKAKPXA-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: People gather as volunteers search to retrieve the bodies of residents killed by a landslide due to heavy rainfall in a landfill known as Kiteezi that serves as garbage dumping site, in the Lusanja village, outside Kampala, Uganda August 10, 2024. REUTERS/Abubaker Lubowa//File Photo</figcaption></figure>



KAMPALA, Sept 5 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The World Bank and French Development Agency (AFD) have given Uganda more than $600 million to fund infrastructure development and manage waste in the capital Kampala, the government and World Bank said on Thursday.



Ugandans have complained about waste management and the poor state of the roads in Kampala, which suffers chronic underfunding from the central government.



Last month a garbage landslide at a landfill site on Kampala&#8217;s outskirts buried houses as residents slept, killing at least 35 people.



A total of $566 million worth in funding, much of it credit, will come from the World Bank, and $42.7 million will be provided by ADF, the statements said.



&#8220;Rapid urban expansion has exposed significant gaps in infrastructure&#8221; the World Bank said.



Last year, the World Bank said it would stop lending to Uganda after the east African country passed a harsh anti-gay law.



In an emailed response to a Reuters&#8217; query the World Bank said the ban was still in effect but that the latest credit extended to Uganda was approved before the ban.



(Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by Hereward Holland and Barbara Lewis)

FILE PHOTO: Aftermath of a landslide due to heavy rainfall, in Kampala

World Bank, French Development Agency give Uganda aid of over $600 mln

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="461" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/108030079-1725572625010-gettyimages-2165961347-US_JOBS-820x461.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-527463" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/108030079-1725572625010-gettyimages-2165961347-US_JOBS-820x461.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/108030079-1725572625010-gettyimages-2165961347-US_JOBS-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/108030079-1725572625010-gettyimages-2165961347-US_JOBS-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/108030079-1725572625010-gettyimages-2165961347-US_JOBS-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/108030079-1725572625010-gettyimages-2165961347-US_JOBS-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/108030079-1725572625010-gettyimages-2165961347-US_JOBS.jpeg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo: via CNBC</figcaption></figure>



Wall Street is gearing up for one of the most important economic releases of the year Friday, when the Labor Department puts out a jobs report expected to go a long way in determining the future of Federal Reserve policy.



The Wall Street consensus is for nonfarm payrolls growth of 161,000 for August and a slight decline in the unemployment rate to 4.2%, according to Dow Jones.



However, recent data, including a massive downward revision to previous counts, has pointed to a sharp slowdown in hiring and has put some downside risk to that forecast.



In turn, markets are certain the Fed will start lowering interest rates in a couple weeks, with the possibility of a jumbo cut depending on what Friday’s report shows.



“The labor market has cooled faster than we originally had been told, so that’s what’s calling [Friday’s report] into question,” said Giacomo Santangelo, economist at job search site Monster. “What the Fed is going to do in response, how are they going to adjust rates, that’s why we are having this conversation.”



While job growth has been tailing off through much of 2024, the deceleration hit home for the market with a July report that showed payroll growth of just 114,000. That wasn’t even the lowest number of the year, but it followed a Fed meeting that stirred up sentiment the central bank was being too complacent about a weakening economy and might hold interest rates high for too long.



What has followed has been a series of reports indicating that while the economy is still on its feet, hiring is decelerating, the manufacturing sector is fading further into contraction, and it’s time for the Fed to start cutting before it risks overdoing its inflation fight and dragging the economy into recession.



The latest bad news came Thursday when payrolls processing firm ADP put August private job growth at just 99,000, the smallest gain since January 2021.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-contemplating-the-fed-s-next-move"><a></a>Contemplating the Fed’s next move</h2>



“If they’re too aggressive for too long a period of time, without easing on monetary policy, this could lead to the giant ‘R’ and we don’t even want to say the word,” Santangelo said, referring to “recession.” “If God forbid this does lead to an economic downturn, all fingers are going to point toward the Fed.”



Markets consequently are expecting the Fed to lower benchmark rates by at least a quarter percentage point when its next meeting concludes Sept. 18, with the possibility rising of a half-point reduction. The Fed hasn’t reduced its benchmark rate by half a point since the emergency cuts during the early Covid days.



Traders are pricing in a succession of cuts that would shave about 2.25 percentage points off the fed funds rate through 2025, futures contracts show. The benchmark overnight borrowing rate is currently targeted in a range between 5.25%-5.5%.



Such an aggressive easing posture would indicate not merely an effort to normalize rates from their 23-year high but also reflect a deeper economic pullback. In the more immediate term, though, the move lower would be targeted more at a labor market still feeling aftershocks from the Covid pandemic.



Monster job search data is still heavily tilted toward health care-related positions, which have flourished in the current era, while the most common search terms are “work from home,” “part time” and “remote,” reflecting the move to a hybrid environment.



Santangelo said there also is still a substantial skills gap in the labor market, despite a sharp narrowing in the gulf between open jobs and available workers, which has contracted to about 1.1 to 1 from 2 to 1 a couple years ago.



“The jobs that are being created are not necessarily suited for the people who are getting laid off. We still have a huge skills gap. The easiest place to see that is health care,” he said. “The No.1 thing that job seekers are looking for is more flexibility. There’s that kind of gap between employers and job seekers also.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><a></a>Worries from job seekers</h2>



Workers in turn are getting more pessimistic about the state of play in the labor market.



The Zeta Economic Index, which uses artificial intelligence to track various economic metrics, is showing that concerns about jobs are accelerating — even though the broader economy is still performing well.



A measure of job market sentiment fell 1% in August and is down 4.6% from a year ago, Zeta figures show. The gauge’s “new mover index” dropped 9.9% on the month, reflecting worries over job stability.



“Despite a resilient economy &#8230; job market concerns persist. The job sentiment dip, paired with the mixed bag of consumer behavior, signals an ongoing caution in the workforce,” said David Steinberg, co-founder and chairman of Zeta Global, which compiles the index. “As the economy shows signs of a ‘soft landing,’ the persistent caution regarding job stability continues to temper broader economic optimism.”



The Zeta data mirrors a recent Conference Board survey, which reflected a sharp narrowing of the gap between respondents saying jobs were easy to find as opposed to hard to get.



Markets also will be watching the wage component of Friday’s report, though that has become less of an issue lately as inflation has moderated.



The consensus is for average hourly earnings to post a 0.3% increase on the month and a 3.7% year-over-year move, both 0.1 percentage point higher than July.

108030079-1725572625010-gettyimages-2165961347-US_JOBS

Friday’s jobs report for August is going to be huge. Here’s what to expect

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="429" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/MQSXKM664RNJTKI3VB6WEU7UEM-1-820x429.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-527231" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/MQSXKM664RNJTKI3VB6WEU7UEM-1-820x429.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/MQSXKM664RNJTKI3VB6WEU7UEM-1-300x157.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/MQSXKM664RNJTKI3VB6WEU7UEM-1-160x84.jpg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/MQSXKM664RNJTKI3VB6WEU7UEM-1-768x402.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/MQSXKM664RNJTKI3VB6WEU7UEM-1.jpg 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">South Africa&#8217;s President Cyril Ramaphosa arrives at the Beijing Capital International Airport, ahead of the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing, China September 2, 2024. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/Pool</figcaption></figure>



BEIJING, Sept 5 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Thursday that he did not believe Chinese investments in Africa were pushing the continent into a &#8220;debt trap&#8221; but were instead part of a mutually beneficial relationship.



Ramaphosa made the remarks on the sidelines of a China-Africa summit in Beijing, where delegates from more than 50 African nations gathered this week.



&#8220;I don&#8217;t necessarily buy the notion that when China (invests), it is with an intention of &#8230; ensuring that those countries end up in a debt trap or in a debt crisis,&#8221; Ramaphosa said, when asked by reporters about China&#8217;s pledge at the summit of $51 billion in new funding for Africa.



Without providing details, Ramaphosa also said South Africa had reached agreement with China on aspects of its energy security.



Africa&#8217;s most industrialised economy has been plagued for years by rolling power blackouts that have constrained economic growth.



(Reporting by Joe Cash; Writing by Tannur Anders and Bhargav Acharya; Editing by Alexander Winning)

MQSXKM664RNJTKI3VB6WEU7UEM (1)

South African president: China not pushing Africa into ‘debt trap’

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="548" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/S7AF7BNBK5OYLGLCXAI33SOPYA-820x548.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-527198" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/S7AF7BNBK5OYLGLCXAI33SOPYA-820x548.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/S7AF7BNBK5OYLGLCXAI33SOPYA-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/S7AF7BNBK5OYLGLCXAI33SOPYA-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/S7AF7BNBK5OYLGLCXAI33SOPYA-768x513.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/S7AF7BNBK5OYLGLCXAI33SOPYA-1536x1027.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/S7AF7BNBK5OYLGLCXAI33SOPYA.jpg 1616w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Simon Stiell, talks to the press on the sidelines of the Copenhagen Climate Ministerial, in Helsingor, Denmark March 21, 2024. REUTERS/Ali Withers/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Sept 5 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The impact of global warming is costing African nations up to 5% of their economic output, the United Nations climate chief said on Thursday, calling for more investments to help adapt to climate change.



The 54-nation continent, which has borne the brunt of climate change despite releasing far less polluting emissions than the industrialised world, receives just 1% of annual global climate finance.



&#8220;The climate crisis is an economic sinkhole, sucking the momentum out of economic growth,&#8221; Simon Stiell, executive secretary of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), told a meeting of African ministers of environment in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.



African governments and their climate negotiators are considering various strategies at the pre-COP29, or Conference of the Parties, preparatory meeting in the West African country.



Although the continent has attracted new investors in climate mitigation and adaptation projects in recent years, it gets a very small portion of the $100 billion in financing available globally, African government officials say.



That is a drop in the ocean of the $1.3 trillion required, the officials say, without providing a time frame for by when the amount would be needed.



&#8220;Africa&#8217;s vast potential to drive forward climate solutions is being thwarted by an epidemic of underinvestment,&#8221; Stiell said.



The required investments include $4 billion annually to eliminate the use of traditional fuel for cooking on the continent, such as wood, which contributes to greenhouse gas emissions, Stiell said.



&#8220;Of the more than $400 billion spent on clean energy last year, only $2.6 billion went to African nations,&#8221; he said.



Climate change has been blamed for protracted drought and bouts of catastrophic flooding across Africa that have hit food production, driving up commodity prices and worsening hunger.



Stiell said there have been growing calls for Africa to secure more climate financing in the run-up to COP29 in Baku, where nations will be looking for consensus on new international climate finance goals.



&#8220;We must use innovative financing solutions for adaptation without exacerbating debt burdens,&#8221; Hanan Morsy, chief economist at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), told a climate finance conference last week.



Such innovations include debt refinancing and swaps as well as&nbsp;carbon markets, she said.



(Reporting by Duncan Miriri; editing by Mark Heinrich)

Climate ministers meet in Denmark ahead of COP29

Climate change costs Africa up to 5% of GDP, UN climate head 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/2024/09/HWPGQTLYHJLYXAPSSSZN7XH4SU-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-527159" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/HWPGQTLYHJLYXAPSSSZN7XH4SU-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/HWPGQTLYHJLYXAPSSSZN7XH4SU-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/HWPGQTLYHJLYXAPSSSZN7XH4SU-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/HWPGQTLYHJLYXAPSSSZN7XH4SU-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/HWPGQTLYHJLYXAPSSSZN7XH4SU-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/HWPGQTLYHJLYXAPSSSZN7XH4SU-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: A general view of the Pretoria skyline with smog in the air taken from the Union Buildings in Pretoria, South Africa, June 19, 2024. PHILL MAGAKOE/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, Sept 5 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;South Africa&#8217;s current account deficit narrowed in the second quarter, to 0.9% of gross domestic product (GDP) from 1.5% of GDP in the first quarter, central bank data showed on Thursday.



In rand terms the current account deficit narrowed to 64.6 billion rand ($3.62 billion) in April-June, from 106.9 billion rand in the previous three-month period.



The trade surplus widened further to 187.4 billion rand in the second quarter from 165.8 billion rand in the first quarter.



&#8220;The increase in the value of exports of goods and services in the second quarter of 2024 reflected higher prices while the increase in imports of goods and services reflected both higher volumes and prices,&#8221; the South African Reserve Bank said in a statement.



South Africa&#8217;s economy grew 0.4% in the second quarter, statistics agency data showed on Tuesday, supported by higher consumer spending and power availability, but output declines in agriculture, mining and transport meant growth was slightly weaker than expected.



($1 = 17.8493 rand)



(Reporting by Kopano Gumbi; Additional reporting by Tannur Anders; Editing by Alexander Winning)

Inauguration of South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa as President at the Union Buildings, in Pretoria

South Africa’s current account deficit narrows again in second quarter

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="536" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/KIHNVAE5M5NLLFD5WGKGLZZIDA-820x536.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-527142" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/KIHNVAE5M5NLLFD5WGKGLZZIDA-820x536.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/KIHNVAE5M5NLLFD5WGKGLZZIDA-300x196.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/KIHNVAE5M5NLLFD5WGKGLZZIDA-138x90.jpg 138w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/KIHNVAE5M5NLLFD5WGKGLZZIDA-768x502.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/KIHNVAE5M5NLLFD5WGKGLZZIDA-1536x1003.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/KIHNVAE5M5NLLFD5WGKGLZZIDA-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: The sun is reflected on railway tracks during sunrise in Harare, Zimbabwe, August 4, 2018. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



HARARE, Sept 5 (Reuters) &#8211; Zimbabwe&#8217;s state-owned railway operator has opened its network up to private players, including a unit of South Africa&#8217;s Grindrod, as it seeks to boost freight volumes that had collapsed after decades of underinvestment, an official said.



National Railways of Zimbabwe hauled 12 million tons of cargo annually at its 1990s peak, but now manages less than 3 million tons owing to a lack of locomotives and poor maintenance of its rail infrastructure.



The collapse also followed a sharp decline in agricultural and mineral output, triggered by the violent seizure of white-owned farms championed by Zimbabwe&#8217;s former leader Robert Mugabe in 2000.



However, mineral output is on the rebound, mainly driven by chrome and lithium demand from China.



Chinese companies such as Tsingshan Holdings, Sinosteel, Sinomine 002738.SZ, Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt 603799.SS and Chengxin Lithium 002240.SZ have in recent years established iron ore, steel, chrome and lithium operations in Zimbabwe.



They export the minerals to China through Mozambique&#8217;s ports, and the growing commodity export volumes exceed the NRZ&#8217;s current capacity. The state-owned group is now looking to restore its capacity with the aid of private companies.



&#8220;Last year we uplifted 2.8 million tons against available business of 3 million tons,&#8221; NRZ spokesperson Andrew Kunambura told Reuters in an interview on Wednesday.



&#8220;So these private companies are coming in with their locomotives and wagons to augment what we have.&#8221;



Grindrod, through its Zimbabwean subsidiary Beitbridge Bulawayo Railway, has deployed three locomotives and 150 wagons since March as part of the arrangement.



The South African logistics company is positioning itself for freight rail partnerships in southern Africa as under-funded state-owned operators open up their creaking networks to private investors.



The mineral-rich region holds some of the world&#8217;s biggest deposits of copper and lithium, needed for cleaner energy, and is seeing growth in new mining projects which require expanded rail capacity.



Grindrod has restructured its rail business to take advantage of emerging market opportunities in the region, CEO Xolani Mbambo told analysts last week.



The company has recently agreed a partnership with the DRC&#8217;s inland railway company and says it is ready to partner South Africa&#8217;s Transnet, which also plans to open up its network to private players.



(Reporting by Nelson Banya)

The Wider Image: Zimbabwe’s dingy trains mirror economic decline

Zimbabwe turns to private firms to boost freight rail volumes

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/CXVAOPAQTVLKREUIGTWRSKEOGU-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-527088" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/CXVAOPAQTVLKREUIGTWRSKEOGU-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/CXVAOPAQTVLKREUIGTWRSKEOGU-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/CXVAOPAQTVLKREUIGTWRSKEOGU-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/CXVAOPAQTVLKREUIGTWRSKEOGU-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/CXVAOPAQTVLKREUIGTWRSKEOGU-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/CXVAOPAQTVLKREUIGTWRSKEOGU-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">China&#8217;s President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan pose with Secretary-General of the United Nations Antonio Guterres for a photography during a reception at the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, 04 September 2024. ANDRES MARTINEZ CASARES/Pool via REUTERS</figcaption></figure>



BEIJING, Sept 5 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;African countries&#8217; inadequate access to debt relief and scarce resources is a recipe for social unrest, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Thursday, proposing fresh reforms to the international financial architecture.



A growing debt crisis across the 1 billion-strong continent has seen a conflagration of civil unrest in recent months, after protests in Kenya, where police clashed with demonstrators rallying against proposed tax hikes, inspired people to take to the streets in Nigeria and Uganda over the cost of living.



African nations have been seeking to restructure their debts through a rework architecture designed by the G20 called the &#8216;Common Framework,&#8217; but the scheme did not as expected expedite talks between a myriad of leaders from Chinese state-owned banks to London-based asset managers and New York banks.



Zambia in June became the first country to successfully restructure its debt through the scheme, more than three years after it defaulted on its loans.



Guterres told a major China-Africa cooperation summit in Beijing that Africa&#8217;s debt &#8220;situation is unsustainable and a recipe for social unrest&#8221;.



&#8220;They have no access to effective debt relief, scarce resources, and clearly insufficient concessional funding to respond to the basic needs of their population,&#8221; he said.



Guterres proposed &#8220;deep reforms to the outdated, ineffective and unfair international financial architecture&#8221; and further stimulus &#8220;to provide developing countries with the liquidity they need while seeking medium- and long-term solutions.&#8221;



Beijing, the world&#8217;s biggest bilateral lender, is hosting 50 African nations for the ninth Forum on China-Africa Cooperation Summit this week, at which China&#8217;s President Xi Jinping pledged 360 billion yuan ($50.70 billion) in fresh financing to the continent over the next three years.



China approved loans worth $4.61 billion to Africa last year, the first annual increase since 2016.



Guterres praised China&#8217;s initiatives across Africa and said they could drive a &#8220;renewable energy revolution&#8221; and &#8220;be a catalyst for key transitions on food systems and digital connectivity.&#8221;



Angola&#8217;s finance minister on Tuesday told Reuters that Luanda was considering proposals from Beijing, Brussels and elsewhere, with a view to quickly securing funds to help bring down inflation and do more through public-private partnerships.



($1 = 7.1005 Chinese yuan renminbi)



(Reporting by Joe Cash; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Michael Perry)

Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in Beijing

UN chief warns Africa’s inadequate access to debt relief is recipe for social unrest

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/BZN7UA65UJPHFLAB6CZSRO237U-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-527085" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/BZN7UA65UJPHFLAB6CZSRO237U-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/BZN7UA65UJPHFLAB6CZSRO237U-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/BZN7UA65UJPHFLAB6CZSRO237U-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/BZN7UA65UJPHFLAB6CZSRO237U-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/BZN7UA65UJPHFLAB6CZSRO237U-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/BZN7UA65UJPHFLAB6CZSRO237U-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">China&#8217;s President Xi Jinping delivers a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the ninth Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) Summit, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China September 5, 2024. REUTERS/Florence Lo</figcaption></figure>



BEIJING, Sept 5 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;President Xi Jinping pledged on Thursday to step up China&#8217;s support to the world&#8217;s fastest-growing continent with funding of nearly $51 billion, backing for more infrastructure initiatives and a promise to create at least 1 million jobs.



The world&#8217;s biggest two-way lender, Beijing showed a desire to move away from funding big-ticket infrastructure and focus instead on selling to developing economies the advanced and green technologies in which Chinese firms have invested heavily.



Still, Xi told delegates from more than 50 African nations that the world&#8217;s second-largest economy would carry out 30 infrastructure projects across the resource-rich continent, and offer 360 billion yuan ($50.70 billion) in financial assistance.



&#8220;China is ready to deepen cooperation with Africa in industry, agriculture, infrastructure, trade and investment,&#8221; Xi told delegates at a major China-Africa summit in Beijing.



He called for &#8220;a China-Africa network featuring land-sea links and co-ordinated development,&#8221; as he told Chinese contractors to return to the 1-billion-strong continent, after the lifting of COVID-19 curbs that disrupted its schemes.



Last year, China approved loans worth $4.61 billion to Africa, in the first annual increase since 2016.



Xi said 210 billion yuan of the financing pledge would be disbursed through credit lines and at least 70 billion in fresh investment by Chinese companies, with smaller amounts provided through military aid and other projects.



The Forum on China-Africa Cooperation Summit, held this year in the Chinese capital, chalks out a three-year programme for China and every African state bar Eswatini, which retains ties to Taiwan.



Besides 30 infrastructure connectivity projects, Xi added, &#8220;China is ready to launch 30 clean energy projects in Africa,&#8221; offering to co-operate on nuclear technology and tackle a power deficit that has delayed industrialisation efforts.



But the Chinese leader did not reiterate his pledge at the 2021 forum in Dakar for the Asian giant to buy $300 billion worth of African goods, pledging only to unilaterally expand market access.



Analysts say Beijing&#8217;s phytosanitary rules for market access are too strict, making China unable to meet that promise.



&#8220;We are ready to assist in the development of the African Continental Free Trade Area, and deepen logistics and financial co-operation for the benefit of trans-regional development in Africa,&#8221; Xi added.



($1=7.0976 Chinese yuan renminbi)



(Reporting by Laurie Chen; Writing by Joe Cash; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Michael Perry)

China offers Africa $51 bln in fresh funding, promises a million jobs

<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>



JOHANNESBURG, Sept 4 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The International Monetary Fund said on Wednesday that South Africa needed to pursue ambitious fiscal consolidation to restore the sustainability of its public finances.



&#8220;Durable expenditure-based consolidation of at least 3 percent of GDP over the next three years is required to place debt on a sustained downward path, while protecting vulnerable groups,&#8221; the IMF said in a statement.



The Fund said South Africa&#8217;s new government should build on a pre-existing reform agenda while increasing its ambition and accelerating implementation.



&#8220;The new government should use the opportunity of a new mandate to implement bold reforms to address long-standing challenges and achieve the economy&#8217;s full potential,&#8221; it said.



South Africa&#8217;s African National Congress has formed a broad coalition with several parties including the market-friendly Democratic Alliance after losing its parliamentary majority for the first time in 30 years in a May election.



(Reporting by Bhargav Acharya; Editing by Alexander Winning)

IMF logo is seen outside the headquarters building in Washington

IMF says South Africa needs ambitious fiscal consolidation

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/32L3MWAHXROGFE6KGT4XODIWQ4-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-526802" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/32L3MWAHXROGFE6KGT4XODIWQ4-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/32L3MWAHXROGFE6KGT4XODIWQ4-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/32L3MWAHXROGFE6KGT4XODIWQ4-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/32L3MWAHXROGFE6KGT4XODIWQ4-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/32L3MWAHXROGFE6KGT4XODIWQ4-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/32L3MWAHXROGFE6KGT4XODIWQ4-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Drone view of Durban harbour, one of South Africa&#8217;s busiest ports in Durban, South Africa January 31, 2024. REUTERS/Shiraaz Mohamed/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



Sept 4 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;South African business confidence rose in the third quarter, helped by improving optimism about the business climate after the formation of a coalition government and stable electricity supply, a survey showed on Wednesday.



The business confidence index rose to 38 points in the third quarter from 35 points in the prior quarter, according to the survey by the Rand Merchant Bank (RMB) and compiled by the Bureau for Economic Research.



&#8220;Fortunately, the widely anticipated interest rate cut in South Africa later this month, on the back of lower consumer inflation and a boost from the introduction of the two-pot retirement system should spur domestic demand through the remainder of the year,&#8221; Isaah Mhlanga, chief economist at RMB said in a statement.



The South African Reserve Bank is expected to start cutting interest rates from this month for the first time in four years.



The African National Congress lost its parliamentary majority for the first time in 30 years in May, and later formed a broad coalition with several parties including the market-friendly Democratic Alliance.



Additionally, state-owned power utility Eskom managed to keep the lights on for over five months without scheduled blackouts in the country where power cuts have hampered economic growth for over a decade.



However, businesses activity was still constrained especially from weak demand, but the survey indicated conditions are expected to improve in the next quarter.



Retail confidence improved to 45 points from 39 in the previous quarter helped by improvement in durable and semi-durable traders&#8217; sales volumes.



Manufacturing sector confidence remained stable 28 points as a drop in production due to declining exports and domestic demand was offset by optimism at new vehicle dealers surging to a one-year high.



Wholesale trade was the most optimistic sector surveyed, with over half of respondents satisfied with prevailing business conditions.



(Reporting by Radhika Anilkumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Varun H K)

FILE PHOTO: Durban harbour, one of South Africa’s busiest ports

South African business confidence gets boost from coalition government, survey shows

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="505" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/64EQ4QY5FRM5RKGDLFYQLITITE-820x505.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-526728" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/64EQ4QY5FRM5RKGDLFYQLITITE-820x505.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/64EQ4QY5FRM5RKGDLFYQLITITE-300x185.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/64EQ4QY5FRM5RKGDLFYQLITITE-146x90.jpg 146w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/64EQ4QY5FRM5RKGDLFYQLITITE-768x473.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/64EQ4QY5FRM5RKGDLFYQLITITE-1536x945.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/64EQ4QY5FRM5RKGDLFYQLITITE-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: The Hillbrow Tower, an iconic tower used to identify Johannesburg&#8217;s skyline, is seen as the sun sets, in Johannesburg, South Africa, October 18, 2023. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, Sept 4 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;South African private sector activity rose in August as firms received higher volumes of new orders for the first time since April 2023, a survey showed on Wednesday.



The S&amp;P Global South Africa Purchasing Managers&#8217; Index rose to 50.5 in August from 49.3 in July, the first time it has been above the 50 point mark &#8211; which separates growth from contraction &#8211; in three months.



&#8220;South African businesses saw demand growth emerge in August, as customers increased their spending on the back of falling CPI inflation figures and a general optimism that economic conditions are stabilising,&#8221; said David Owen, senior economist at S&amp;P Global Market Intelligence.



South Africa&#8217;s inflation fell to a more than three-year low of 4.6% year on year in July from 5.1% in June, offering some relief to consumers and cementing analysts&#8217; expectations for an interest rate cut this month.



&#8220;The rise in new orders was the first recorded in over a year, offering hope that the recent malaise in the private sector is starting to fade,&#8221; Owen added.



(Reporting by Tannur Anders; Editing by Christina Fincher)

View of Johannesburg’s skyline

South Africa business activity rises in August, PMI shows

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="2048" height="1381" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/H6GPW5QTMZLRVLBJ6PZD2Y4Y2M-scaled.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-526710" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/H6GPW5QTMZLRVLBJ6PZD2Y4Y2M-scaled.jpg 2048w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/H6GPW5QTMZLRVLBJ6PZD2Y4Y2M-300x202.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/H6GPW5QTMZLRVLBJ6PZD2Y4Y2M-820x553.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/H6GPW5QTMZLRVLBJ6PZD2Y4Y2M-133x90.jpg 133w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/H6GPW5QTMZLRVLBJ6PZD2Y4Y2M-768x518.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/H6GPW5QTMZLRVLBJ6PZD2Y4Y2M-1536x1036.jpg 1536w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: China&#8217;s President Xi Jinping attends Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Astana, Kazakhstan July 4, 2024. REUTERS/Turar Kazangapov/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



BEIJING, Sept 4 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;China, Tanzania and Zambia signed an initial agreement to rehabilitate a decades-old railway aimed at improving the rail-sea transportation in resource-rich East Africa, Chinese state media said on Wednesday.



President Xi Jinping witnessed the signing of the memorandum of understanding on refurbishing the 1,860 kms (1,156 mile) Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA) railway with the Tanzanian and Zambian presidents, who were in Beijing attending the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, according to&nbsp;the state-run Xinhua news agency.



The single-track TAZARA railway was built between 1970 and 1975 through an interest-free loan from China, offering a cargo transport route from Zambia&#8217;s copper and cobalt mines to the sea on Tanzania&#8217;s coast that bypasses South Africa and the former state of Rhodesia.



Commercial operations of the line, derided by some Western governments at the time as the &#8220;bamboo railway&#8221;, began in 1976. The multi-year project had involved the construction of two dozen tunnels and hundreds of bridges by tens of thousands of Chinese and African workers.



&#8220;China is willing to take this summit as an opportunity to make new progress in the revitalisation of the Tanzania-Zambia railway, cooperate to improve the rail-sea intermodal transport network in East Africa, and build Tanzania into a demonstration zone for deepening high-quality China-Africa Belt and Road cooperation,&#8221; said Xi, according to state media.



Earlier this year, the World Bank approved $270 million in financing to help improve connectivity between neighbours Tanzania and Zambia and boost regional trade.



In February, China proposed to spend $1 billion to rehabilitate the rail line through a public-private partnership model.



(Reporting by Bernard Orr and Ryan Woo; Editing by Kim Coghill and Michael Perry)

Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit held in Kazakh capital Astana

China to ‘revitalise’ ageing railway linking Zambia, Tanzania

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="559" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/74HKXN4YGJNTXLGUEOUE6H5HXI-3-820x559.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-526446" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/74HKXN4YGJNTXLGUEOUE6H5HXI-3-820x559.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/74HKXN4YGJNTXLGUEOUE6H5HXI-3-300x204.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/74HKXN4YGJNTXLGUEOUE6H5HXI-3-132x90.jpg 132w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/74HKXN4YGJNTXLGUEOUE6H5HXI-3-768x523.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/74HKXN4YGJNTXLGUEOUE6H5HXI-3-1536x1047.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/74HKXN4YGJNTXLGUEOUE6H5HXI-3-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">People work at &#8221;The Faktory&#8221;, a fashion design and clothing manufacturing company in Johannesburg, South Africa, March 4, 2021. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko</figcaption></figure>



PRETORIA, Sept 3 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;South Africa&#8217;s economic growth picked up in the second quarter, supported by higher consumer spending and power availability, but output declines in agriculture, mining and transport meant growth was slightly weaker than expected.



Gross domestic product (GDP) expanded 0.4% in quarter-on-quarter seasonally-adjusted terms in April to June, below the 0.5% growth forecast by economists polled by Reuters but above the first quarter&#8217;s flat output.



South Africa&#8217;s top statistics official said it was too early to say whether the coalition government that emerged after May&#8217;s election had contributed to the improved second-quarter performance, since President Cyril Ramaphosa was only sworn in for a second term in mid-June.



&#8220;Even in the next quarter, it would be too early to tell about the effects of the government of national unity,&#8221; Statistician-General Risenga Maluleke told reporters.



Seven of the 10 sectors tracked by Statistics South Africa registered growth in the latest three-month period, as the economy benefited from an unbroken stretch without power cuts for the first time in years.



But economists said lingering bottlenecks at ports and on the freight rail network and weak global demand remained a drag.



&#8220;It&#8217;s a big step forward to not have power disruptions, but (we&#8217;re) not there yet in terms of all the other constraints,&#8221; said Lisette IJssel de Schepper, chief economist at the Bureau for Economic Research (BER).



After the marked improvement in power utility Eskom&#8217;s performance this year, inefficiencies at state logistics group Transnet are among the biggest unresolved issues.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-faster-growth-ahead">FASTER GROWTH AHEAD?</h2>



South African factory activity also slumped in August, indicating that business conditions remain highly volatile in key sectors.



IJssel de Schepper said growth could start to pick up from the fourth quarter.



One reason is a government pension policy reform that came into effect on Sept. 1 and will allow fund members to withdraw some of their savings before retirement age.



The central bank estimates withdrawals could be between 40 billion rand and 100 billion rand ($2.2 billion and $5.6 billion) by the end of the year, boosting household consumption spending and GDP growth.



Another factor is that the central bank is expected to start cutting interest rates from this month for the first time in four years.



The BER forecasts 2.2% growth in 2025, up from 1% this year, but it says for that to be sustained there needs to be progress with reforms to enhance the country&#8217;s growth potential.



($1 = 17.9700 rand)



(Reporting by Kopano Gumbi and Tannur Anders: Editing by Alexander Winning)

People work at ”The Faktory”, in Johannesburg

South African economy gains momentum but not as much as forecast

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="515" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NKYFZRFDD5MS5NQEZSVZ6PYNTI-1-820x515.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-526361" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NKYFZRFDD5MS5NQEZSVZ6PYNTI-1-820x515.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NKYFZRFDD5MS5NQEZSVZ6PYNTI-1-300x189.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NKYFZRFDD5MS5NQEZSVZ6PYNTI-1-143x90.jpg 143w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NKYFZRFDD5MS5NQEZSVZ6PYNTI-1-768x483.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NKYFZRFDD5MS5NQEZSVZ6PYNTI-1-1536x965.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NKYFZRFDD5MS5NQEZSVZ6PYNTI-1-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Shoppers are seen outside the Shoprite store at the Garden City mall along Thika Road in Nairobi, Kenya November 13, 2020. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, Sept 3 (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa&#8217;s biggest grocery retailer, Shoprite, has agreed to sell its furniture business including the OK Furniture and House &amp; Home brands to discount retailer Pepkor, the companies said on Tuesday.



&#8220;The purchase consideration represents about 4% of Pepkor&#8217;s market capitalisation and will be settled in cash,&#8221; Pepkor, whose market value was 80.49 billion rand ($4.50 billion) on Monday, said in a statement.



That suggests a price about 3.2 billion rand ($179 million).



Pepkor will get a business operating more than 400 stores in South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, Eswatini and Zambia. The deal excludes the Angola and Mozambique operations.



It also includes the Shoprite Furniture credit loan book and related insurance arrangements in addition to inventory and certain fixed assets, Pepkor said.



Shoprite CEO Pieter Engelbrecht said in a separate statement that the supermarket group wanted to focus on its core grocery operations.



&#8220;We found ourselves at a crossroad with the business&#8217;s future growth and profitability hamstrung by the requirement of a level of investment that would have resulted in us re-directing capital and project management resources away from that currently dedicated to our food retail operations,&#8221; he said.



Shoprite&#8217;s furniture business contributed 7.2 billion rand or 3% to Shoprite&#8217;s group last full-year sales of 240.7 billion rand.



Pepkor already runs a Lifestyle business unit that comprises six household furniture, appliances and consumer electronics retail brands.



&#8220;The proposed transaction will allow Pepkor to expand its value proposition through a complementary product mix in furniture, bedding, appliances and consumer electronics, while also expanding its presence in under-represented regions,&#8221; it said.



($1 = 17.8907 rand)



(Reporting by Nqobile Dludla, Editing by Louise Heavens and Mark Potter)

Shoppers are seen outside the Shoprite store at the Garden City mall along Thika Road in Nairobi

South Africa’s Shoprite to sell furniture business to Pepkor

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="529" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/UM66JBLQ7VPINAMXMHYRISRV7U-820x529.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-526339" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/UM66JBLQ7VPINAMXMHYRISRV7U-820x529.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/UM66JBLQ7VPINAMXMHYRISRV7U-300x193.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/UM66JBLQ7VPINAMXMHYRISRV7U-140x90.jpg 140w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/UM66JBLQ7VPINAMXMHYRISRV7U-768x495.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/UM66JBLQ7VPINAMXMHYRISRV7U-1536x990.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/UM66JBLQ7VPINAMXMHYRISRV7U-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: An Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner plane is seen at the Asmara International Airport in Asmara, Eritrea July 18, 2018. REUTERS/Tiksa Negeri/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



ADDIS ABABA, Sept 3 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Ethiopia&#8217;s state-owned carrier Ethiopian Airlines&nbsp;said it&nbsp;has suspended flights to neighbouring Eritrea, citing unspecified difficult operating conditions.



Eritrea had previously said it would suspend all Ethiopian Airlines flights at the end of this month.



Flights from Ethiopia to Eritrea had resumed in 2018 after two decades, following a peace deal and resumption of diplomatic relations between the two neighbours that earned Ethiopia&#8217;s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed a Nobel peace prize a year later.



Five diplomats told Reuters the suspension was a tangible signal that the relationship between Asmara and Addis had soured significantly, but said the risk of conflict resuming was unlikely for now.



The two countries had previously severed ties in 1998, when a two-year war between the two nations started over their disputed border.



Eritrea fought alongside Ethiopia in a war that erupted in November 2020 against regional forces from&nbsp;Ethiopia&#8217;s Tigray region, but relations soured once again after Asmara was excluded from the peace talks that ended that conflict two years later, and because some of its troops remain in Tigray.



&#8220;Ethiopian Airlines regrets to inform its valued customers travelling to/from Asmara that it has suspended its flights to Asmara effective Sept.3 &#8230; due to very difficult operating conditions it has encountered in Eritrea that are beyond its control,&#8221; Ethiopian Airlines said in a statement late on Monday.



The airline said it would try to rebook affected passengers on other airlines at no additional cost or offer refunds, but did not give more details on the conditions it was referring to



Eritrea Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel did not immediately respond to a request for comment.



Ethiopian Airlines is ranked the largest in Africa by revenue and profit by the global industry body International Air Transport Association.



(Reporting by Dawit Endeshaw in Addis Ababa and Giulia Paravicini in Nairobi; Writing by George Obulutsa; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)

An Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 787 plane is seen at the Asmara International Airport in Asmara

Ethiopian Airlines says it has stopped flights to Eritrea

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1576" height="1051" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/MQSXKM664RNJTKI3VB6WEU7UEM.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-526049" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/MQSXKM664RNJTKI3VB6WEU7UEM.jpg 1576w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/MQSXKM664RNJTKI3VB6WEU7UEM-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/MQSXKM664RNJTKI3VB6WEU7UEM-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/MQSXKM664RNJTKI3VB6WEU7UEM-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/MQSXKM664RNJTKI3VB6WEU7UEM-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/MQSXKM664RNJTKI3VB6WEU7UEM-1536x1024.jpg 1536w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1576px) 100vw, 1576px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">South Africa&#8217;s President Cyril Ramaphosa arrives at the Beijing Capital International Airport, ahead of the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing, China September 2, 2024. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/Pool</figcaption></figure>



BEIJING, Sept 2 (Reuters) &#8211; South African President Cyril Ramaphosa told China&#8217;s Xi Jinping on Monday he wanted to narrow his country&#8217;s trade deficit with Beijing, days before the Chinese leader is due to urge a summit of 50 African nations to buy more Chinese goods.



China, which has the world&#8217;s second-biggest economy, is South Africa&#8217;s largest trading partner globally but last year the value of its imports from China far outstripped exports.



Ramaphosa&#8217;s remarks point to the challenge Xi may have in convincing African leaders gathering in Beijing to absorb more of the production powerhouse&#8217;s wares, particularly after China did not meet a pledge from the last Forum on China-Africa Cooperation Summit in 2021 to buy $300 billion of African goods.



With Western curbs on Chinese exports such as solar panels and electric vehicles looming, finding buyers for items that the U.S. and Europe maintain Beijing has overcapacity in is a top priority for Xi at this year&#8217;s summit, which opens on Wednesday.



This meeting of the three-yearly gathering&nbsp;is also likely to&nbsp;address China&#8217;s role as a major lender to Africa, where many countries are struggling under growing debt burdens.



China&#8217;s lending to Africa rose for first time in seven years in 2023.



&#8220;As South Africa, we would like to narrow the trade deficit and address the structure of our trade,&#8221; Ramaphosa told his host during talks at Beijing&#8217;s Great Hall of the People, a statement from his presidential office said.



&#8220;We urge for more sustainable manufacturing and job-creating investments,&#8221; Ramaphosa added ahead of the ninth Forum on China-Africa Co-operation Summit.



South Africa which co-founded the BRICS group of developing economies along with Brazil, Russia, India, and China is also seeking Beijing&#8217;s backing to help it move on from over a decade of economic stagnation by building up its infrastructure.



Signalling China&#8217;s willingess to help South Africa put an end to the persistent power cuts, poor port processing and sub-par railways that have throttled economic growth, Xi proposed elevating bilateral ties to the level of a &#8220;new era of all-round strategic partnership,&#8221; Chinese state media reported.



The two countries also agreed to deepen cooperation in fields such as agriculture, health, medical sciences and infrastructure development, as well as to&nbsp;&#8220;seize opportunities&#8221; in new areas such as artificial intelligence, the digital economy and new energy, a joint statement said.



Xi has expressed a desire to realign China&#8217;s&nbsp;ties with the Global South around &#8220;small but beautiful projects&#8221;.



Correspondingly, the world&#8217;s biggest bilateral lender has already started tweaking conditions for its loans to the resource-rich continent, setting aside more for solar farms and hydroelectric dams, while cutting back on big-ticket infrastructure schemes.



(Additional reporting by Nellie Peyton in Johannesburg; Editing by Timothy Heritage, Andrew Heavens and Angus MacSwan)

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World Bank, French Development Agency give Uganda aid of over $600 mln

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South African president: China not pushing Africa into ‘debt trap’

Climate change costs Africa up to 5% of GDP, UN climate head says

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China to ‘revitalise’ ageing railway linking Zambia, Tanzania

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