<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="459" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/D2QJG35CFJKZBIP4BJKWJG4LEE-820x459.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-416146" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/D2QJG35CFJKZBIP4BJKWJG4LEE-820x459.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/D2QJG35CFJKZBIP4BJKWJG4LEE-300x168.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/D2QJG35CFJKZBIP4BJKWJG4LEE-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/D2QJG35CFJKZBIP4BJKWJG4LEE-768x430.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/D2QJG35CFJKZBIP4BJKWJG4LEE-1536x860.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/D2QJG35CFJKZBIP4BJKWJG4LEE-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: The logo of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) sits outside its headquarters ahead of the OPEC and NON-OPEC meeting, Austria December 6, 2019. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



Nov 20 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies, including Russia, are known as OPEC+ and will meet in Vienna, Austria, on Nov. 26 to discuss their joint output policy.



Below are key facts about OPEC+ and its role.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-are-opec-and-opec">What are OPEC and OPEC+?</h2>



OPEC was founded in 1960 in Baghdad by Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela with an aim of coordinating petroleum policies and securing fair and stable prices. Now, it includes 13 countries, which are mainly from the Middle East and Africa. They produce around 30% of the world&#8217;s oil.



There have been some challenges to OPEC&#8217;s influence over the years, often resulting in internal divisions, and a global push towards cleaner energy sources and a move away from fossil fuels could ultimately diminish its dominance.



OPEC formed the so-called OPEC+ coalition with 10 of the world&#8217;s major non-OPEC oil-exporting nations, including Russia, at the end of 2016.



OPEC+ represents around 40% of world oil production and its main objective is to regulate the supply of oil to the world market. The leaders are Saudi Arabia and Russia, which produce around 9 and 9.5 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil, respectively.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-does-opec-influence-global-oil-prices">How does OPEC influence global oil prices?</h2>



OPEC member states&#8217; exports make up around 60% of global petroleum trade. In 2021, OPEC estimated that its member countries accounted for more than 80% of the world&#8217;s proven oil reserves.



Because of the large market share, the decisions OPEC makes can affect global oil prices. Its members meet regularly to decide how much oil to sell on global markets.



As a result, when they lower supply when demand falls, oil prices tend to rise. Prices tend to fall when the group decides to supply more oil to the market.



At the last OPEC+ meeting in June, Saudi Arabia pledged to make a deep cut of 1 million bpd to its output in July on top of a broader OPEC+ deal to limit supply into 2024 as the group sought to boost flagging oil prices.



Since then, Saudi Arabia has extended the additional voluntary cut until the end of this year.



Oil prices on Nov. 16 slumped by about 5% to a four-month low amid economic growth concerns. They have since recovered some ground on expectations that OPEC+ will take action to shore up prices.



Prices, however, have largely brushed off rising tensions in the Middle East.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-do-opec-decisions-affect-the-global-economy">How do OPEC decisions affect the global economy?</h2>



Some of the production cut decisions have had significant effects on the global economy.



During the 1973 Arab-Israeli War, Arab members of OPEC imposed an embargo against the United States in retaliation for its decision to re-supply the Israeli military, as well as other countries that supported Israel. The embargo banned petroleum exports to those nations and introduced cuts in oil production.



The oil embargo pressured an already strained U.S. economy which had grown dependent on imported oil. Oil prices jumped, causing high fuel costs for consumers and fuel shortages in the United States. The embargo also brought the United States and other countries to the brink of a global recession.



In 2020, during COVID-19 lockdowns around the world, crude oil prices slumped. After that development, OPEC+ slashed oil production by 10 million barrels a day, which is equivalent to around 10% of global production, to try to bolster prices.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-which-countries-are-opec-members">Which countries are OPEC members?</h2>



The current members of OPEC are: Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Iraq, Iran, Algeria, Angola, Libya, Nigeria, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and Venezuela.



Non-OPEC countries in the global alliance of OPEC+ are represented by Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Bahrain, Brunei, Malaysia, Mexico, Oman, South Sudan and Sudan.



Sources: Reuters news, World Economic Forum website, OPEC website, U.S. Department of State website



(Reporting by Nina Chestney, Ahmad Ghaddar and Olesya Astakhova; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

FILE PHOTO: The logo of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) sits outside its headquarters in Vienna

What is OPEC+ and how does it impact oil prices?

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/547EIZJLXJKH5IPLJO5YPR5XDM-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429150" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/547EIZJLXJKH5IPLJO5YPR5XDM-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/547EIZJLXJKH5IPLJO5YPR5XDM-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/547EIZJLXJKH5IPLJO5YPR5XDM-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/547EIZJLXJKH5IPLJO5YPR5XDM-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/547EIZJLXJKH5IPLJO5YPR5XDM-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/547EIZJLXJKH5IPLJO5YPR5XDM-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Opposition Unity Party and Liberia President-elect Joseph Boakai speaks during an interview with Reuters at his home in Monrovia, November 19, 2023. REUTERS/Carielle Doe/ File Photo</figcaption></figure>



MONROVIA, Nov 20 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Liberian President-elect Joseph Boakai, who defeated President George Weah in the Nov. 14 presidential runoff, says his administration will take a close look at mining concessions to ensure they benefit the country.



Boakai, 78, a former vice president who lost to Weah in the 2017 runoff and campaigned on a promise to &#8220;rescue&#8221; Liberia, told Reuters in an interview on Sunday evening that he expected a lot of challenges, particularly with the economy.



&#8220;The first step of rescuing Liberia is taking it from these people. It has been rescued. The next thing is to deal with the issues that have being hanging over this country,&#8221; Boakai said, citing corruption and lack of basic services.



Boakai said a key area from which Liberians had not benefited was the mining sector, despite the West&nbsp;African country&#8217;s rich mineral reserves, including diamonds, gold, iron ore and timber.



&#8220;To be frank with you, the mining sector has been one of the problems in this country. I have seen our resources exploited and the life of the people remains the worse,&#8221; Boakai said, adding that he would take a close look at the sector.



Asked if this would include reviewing mining concessions, Boakai said reviews would be pursued if warranted.



&#8220;We have to, because we are inheriting,&#8221; he said.



Several companies operate in Liberia&#8217;s mining sector, including ArcelorMittal&nbsp;MT.LU&nbsp;and Bao Chico Resources in iron ore mining concessions, Bea Mountain Mining and Avesoro Resources, which operates Liberia&#8217;s first commercial gold mine in gold.



Liberia&#8217;s economy grew 4.8% in 2022, driven by gold production and a relatively good rice harvest, but more than 80% of the population still face moderate or severe food insecurity, according to the World Bank.



(Reporting by Alphonso Toweh, Writing by Bate Felix, Editing by Sofia Christensen and Ed Osmond)

Liberia president-elect Joseph Boakai attends an interview at his home in Monrovia

Liberia’s President-elect Boakai to review mining concessions

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/AXIZJVFVSJPH5JV3TFFSZSORV4-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429146" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/AXIZJVFVSJPH5JV3TFFSZSORV4-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/AXIZJVFVSJPH5JV3TFFSZSORV4-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/AXIZJVFVSJPH5JV3TFFSZSORV4-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/AXIZJVFVSJPH5JV3TFFSZSORV4-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/AXIZJVFVSJPH5JV3TFFSZSORV4-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/AXIZJVFVSJPH5JV3TFFSZSORV4-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Zambia&#8217;s Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane attends the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Washington, U.S., October 15, 2022. REUTERS/James Lawler Duggan/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, Nov 20 (Reuters) &#8211; Zambia suffered a major setback in its debt restructuring efforts, after the government said on Monday a revised deal to rework $3 billion of Eurobonds could not be implemented at this time due to objections from official creditors, including China.



Zambia and the country&#8217;s official creditor committee (OCC) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had been at odds over whether the initial deal struck with a group of bondholders in late October offered comparable debt relief from bilateral as well as commercial lenders. The IMF approved a tweaked deal, but official creditors again rejected it, Zambia said.



&#8220;The OCC, through its Co-chairs, concluded that Comparability of Treatment would not be achieved in the Base Case scenario, although would be achieved in the Upside Case scenario,&#8221; the government said in a statement, referring to a two pronged-approach that foresaw different levels of debt relief depending on the country&#8217;s economic performance.



OCC co-chairs China and France said there was no consensus among official creditors on the magnitude of additional concessions that would be required from bondholders in the base case to comply with the Comparability of Treatment principle, according to Zambia&#8217;s government.



The country&#8217;s External Bondholder Steering Committee said it was deeply concerned with recent developments and that its latest offer would provide more debt relief than official creditors on a net present value basis, as well as a principal haircut when official creditors were offering none.



Zambia defaulted on its debts three years ago and its restructuring has been beset by delays. Western officials accused China of holding up the process, something China has consistently denied, while international bondholders complained about being shut out of negotiations.



Zambia&#8217;s international bonds dropped more than 2.6 cents on the dollar following the statement, Tradeweb data showed.&nbsp;XS1056386714=TEXS1267081575=TE



&#8220;The OCC is demanding debt relief from commercial creditors that is materially higher than either the Government or the IMF deem necessary to restore debt sustainability,&#8221; the bondholder committee said in a statement.



&#8220;It is creating very clear inter-creditor equity issues and is going far beyond the OCC&#8217;s envisaged role under the Common Framework in verifying Comparability of Treatment.&#8221;



Zambia&#8217;s debt restructuring is taking place under the Common Framework, a process set up in response to COVID-19 by the G20 to bring in China, India and other bilateral creditors that are not members of the Paris Club of creditor nations. The Common Framework has been severely criticised, as it is yet to provide any countries with debt relief.



An IMF staff assessment found that the first proposed deal with bondholders would have breached the fund&#8217;s Debt Sustainability Analysis (DSA) targets, Zambia&#8217;s government said.



The ratio of debt service to government revenue would have reached 16.7% in 2024, 2.7 percentage points higher than the 14% target. Meanwhile, the present value of the debt to exports ratio would have been 1 percentage point higher than the 2027 target, at 85%, it said.



The IMF did not immediately respond to a request for comment.



(Reporting by Rachel Savage, Bhargav Acharya and Karin Strohecker, Editing by Alexander Winning, William Maclean)

FILE PHOTO: Zambia’s Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane attends the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Washington

Zambia says international bond deal can’t be implemented at this time

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/YSW2TYFMANPY5KAJ4TA277YGZA-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429134" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/YSW2TYFMANPY5KAJ4TA277YGZA-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/YSW2TYFMANPY5KAJ4TA277YGZA-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/YSW2TYFMANPY5KAJ4TA277YGZA-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/YSW2TYFMANPY5KAJ4TA277YGZA-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/YSW2TYFMANPY5KAJ4TA277YGZA-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/YSW2TYFMANPY5KAJ4TA277YGZA-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara is welcomed by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz before the &#8220;Compact with Africa&#8221; summit in Berlin, Germany, November 19, 2023. REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch</figcaption></figure>



BERLIN, Nov 19 (Reuters) &#8211; Leaders from more than a dozen African countries will gather in Germany over the next two days for the G20 Compact with Africa conference, which aims to help bolster private investment in the world&#8217;s poorest, but fast-growing, continent.



Underscoring renewed interest in Africa, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, French President Emmanuel Macron and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte will be among those attending the summit in Berlin, hosted by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, according to German government officials.



Scholz, who has visited Africa several times since taking office in late 2021, will hold bilateral talks with several African countries on Sunday, before hosting a German-African investment summit at Berlin&#8217;s Marriott Hotel on Monday morning.



Europe and the United States are jostling with Russia and China for geopolitical influence, critical minerals and new economic opportunities in the world&#8217;s second most populous continent.



Those include Africa&#8217;s potential for renewable energy production, in particular green hydrogen, that could help its northern neighbor&#8217;s transition to a carbon neutral economy. The stability and prosperity of the continent is also seen as key to reducing illegal migration.



The Compact with Africa, which was created in 2017 under the German G20 presidency, aims to bring together reform-minded African countries, international organizations and bilateral partners to coordinate development agendas and discuss investment opportunities.



The event officially takes place on Monday afternoon in the German chancellery, preceded by a news conference with leaders of the African Union, which in September was made a permanent member of the group of the G20 group of the world&#8217;s most powerful countries.



&#8220;We will not make a common declaration, we do not want to force our African partners into a tight corset,&#8221; a German government official said on Friday. &#8220;Instead, we want concrete results.&#8221;



German government officials say Africa can play a key role in helping Germany better diversify its supply chains, secure skilled labour, reduce illegal migration and achieve its green transition.



African countries have long complained that while Europe talks about investment, China actually provides financing without any moral lecturing. Still, Chinese lending in Africa is in decline, while European interest is rising as it seeks to diversify supply chains.



German trade with Africa was 60 billion euros ($65.4 billion) last year, which is a fraction of its trade with Asia but up 21.7% on 2021.



Nearly two thirds of German companies want to expand their business in Africa, according to a study by KPMG and the German-African Business Association.



The member countries of the G20 Compact are Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Senegal, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Burkina Faso, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of Congo and Ethiopia.



($1 = 0.9168 euros)



Reporting by Sarah Marsh and Andreas Rinke; Editing by Mike Harrison

‘Compact with Africa’ summit in Berlin

G20-led summit for Africa highlights renewed interest in fast-growing continent

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/OMV4VRBVPNPIZPTCJKOJU2NR5Q-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429113" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/OMV4VRBVPNPIZPTCJKOJU2NR5Q-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/OMV4VRBVPNPIZPTCJKOJU2NR5Q-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/OMV4VRBVPNPIZPTCJKOJU2NR5Q-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/OMV4VRBVPNPIZPTCJKOJU2NR5Q-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/OMV4VRBVPNPIZPTCJKOJU2NR5Q-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/OMV4VRBVPNPIZPTCJKOJU2NR5Q-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Madagascar&#8217;s President and a presidential candidate Andry Rajoelina flanked by his wife Mialy Rajoelina as he arrives to cast his ballot at a polling station, during the presidential election in Ambatobe, Antananarivo, Madagascar November 16, 2023. REUTERS/Zo Andrianjafy</figcaption></figure>



ANTANANARIVO, Nov 17 (Reuters) &#8211; Madagascar&#8217;s President Andry Rajoelina took a predictably commanding early lead on Friday in his bid for re-election in a vote marked by low turnout and an opposition boycott, preliminary results showed.



The 49-year-old entrepreneur and former DJ rose to power on the Indian Ocean island in a 2009 coup, stepped down after almost five years as leader of a transitional authority, then won a 2018 election.



The opposition says he should not have run again in Thursday&#8217;s poll because he acquired French nationality in 2014 &#8211; which they say automatically revokes his Malagasy one &#8211; and has created unfair election conditions.



He says both accusations are baseless political tactics.



In preliminary results from the electoral commission CENI, Rajoelina had garnered more than 72.9% of the estimated total of 6.2% counted so far.



Votes counted so far indicated a turnout of 39.5%, compared to 55% in the equivalent first round of voting in 2018.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-enthusiasm-not-there">&#8216;ENTHUSIASM NOT THERE&#8217;</h2>



There were 11 million people out of a population of roughly 30 million registered to vote in this year&#8217;s polls, which were preceded by weeks of opposition-led protests.



Of 12 opposition candidates originally, only two took part in the vote. One was Marc Ravalomanana, the former president ousted in 2009, the other Siteny Randrianasoloniaiko.



&#8220;Enthusiasm was not there,&#8221; said Andriamanambe Raoto, editor-in-chief of Politika, a monthly publication.



The United States voiced concern on Thursday over low turnout, inadequate training for election staff and irregularities by party officials.



The opposition said participation was the lowest in Madagascar&#8217;s history and vowed to keep protesting.



Rajoelina says the constitution does not require the head of state to exclusively hold Malagasy nationality, and that any loss of nationality is subject to signed authorization by the government.



The opposition also called for changes to the makeup of electoral commission and for the formation of a special court to hear election disputes.



Regional observer groups did not respond to requests for comment on the early results. Full provisional results are expected on Nov. 24 while the High Constitutional Court is due to certify them on Nov. 30.



(Reporting by Lovasoa Rabary, writing by Giulia Paravicini, editing by Andrew Cawthorne)

Madagascar’s President and a presidential candidate Andry Rajoelina flanked by his wife Mialy Rajoelina as he arrives to cast his ballot at a polling station, during the presidential election in Ambatobe

Madagascar president takes huge lead in early results of low turnout vote

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



Nov 17 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Emerging market shares fell from two-month highs on Friday, led by a slump in Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, while currencies were set for their best week in four months as weak U.S. economic data boosted rate cut bets.



Alibaba&#8217;s Hong Kong listed shares 9988.HK dropped 8%, after the company scrapped plans to spin off its cloud business, citing uncertainties created by U.S. export curbs on chips used in artificial intelligence applications.



Its U.S. shares&nbsp;BABA.N&nbsp;closed down 9% on Thursday.



Hong Kong&#8217;s main index&nbsp;.HSI&nbsp;dropped 2.1% in the sharpest single-day drop in a month, while MSCI&#8217;s index of emerging market stocks&nbsp;.MSCIEF&nbsp;slipped 0.6%.



The EM index, however, is set to end the week about 3% higher as risk sentiment improved this week thanks to cooling U.S. inflation data as well as figures that showed the U.S. labour market was weakening.



Investors are betting that the U.S. Federal Reserve could begin interest rate cuts as soon as the second quarter of next year and lower the main rate by almost 100 basis points through the year.



As the dollar headed for weekly losses, developing market currencies&nbsp;.MIEM00000CUS&nbsp;ticked up, set for the best week since July, up 1.1%.&nbsp;FRX/



Most analysts expect emerging market assets, especially currencies, to perform well next year.



&#8220;Compared with developed market assets, our targets suggest modest outperformance for emerging markets next year,&#8221; said strategist at Goldman Sachs, citing a more &#8220;benign&#8221; global and EM macro outlook – with steady growth, lower inflation and the potential for rate cuts.



South Africa&#8217;s rand&nbsp;ZAR=&nbsp;was flat on Friday ahead of S&amp;P Global Ratings&#8217; review of South Africa&#8217;s sovereign credit rating later in the day.&nbsp;.J



S&amp;P downgraded its outlook to stable from positive in March, citing infrastructure constraints and a severe power crisis, and made no changes to the country&#8217;s sovereign credit rating or outlook in May.



Taiwan&#8217;s currencyTWD= rose 0.3%, boosted by the prospects of an easing in cross-strait tensions, while China&#8217;s yuan CNY=CFXS was also set for its biggest weekly gain in two months.



The Polish zloty&nbsp;EURPLN=&nbsp;hovered near record highs, while Hungary&#8217;s forint&nbsp;EURHUF=&nbsp;dipped slightly for the week amid calls for rate cuts by economic development minister Marton Nagy.



In EM bonds, hard currency bonds have returned 1% this week and 3.2% this month, which is the bulk of the year&#8217;s 3.6% rise.



(Reporting by Susan Mathew in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)

Investment-management

Alibaba slide dents stocks; FX set for best week in four months

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/BKHSPZMTG5JYPAQWLN2ZAM4CNQ-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429102" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/BKHSPZMTG5JYPAQWLN2ZAM4CNQ-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/BKHSPZMTG5JYPAQWLN2ZAM4CNQ-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/BKHSPZMTG5JYPAQWLN2ZAM4CNQ-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/BKHSPZMTG5JYPAQWLN2ZAM4CNQ-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/BKHSPZMTG5JYPAQWLN2ZAM4CNQ-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/BKHSPZMTG5JYPAQWLN2ZAM4CNQ-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: A man walks in the Central Business District on a rainy day, in Beijing, China, July 12, 2023. REUTERS/Thomas Peter/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



LONDON, Nov 16 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Global debt edged up to a record $307.4 trillion in the third quarter, and the debt-to-output ratio in emerging markets hit an all-time high, the Institute of International Finance said on Thursday.



The financial services trade group estimated that global debt will hit $310 trillion by the end of the year, a more than 25% increase in five years, and warned that a shift towards political populism could push debt even higher next year.



Emre Tiftik, director of sustainable research at the IIF, counted more than 50 elections coming in 2024, including the United States, India, South Africa, Turkey and Pakistan.



&#8220;In the face of increasing political polarization and heightened geopolitical tensions, these forthcoming elections might pave the way for populist policies,&#8221; he said, adding it could increase government borrowing and spending, and loosen fiscal discipline.



&#8220;This can create further volatility in the markets,&#8221; Tiftik said in a press briefing to present the report.



He also warned that servicing debt was consuming an increasing chunk of revenues worldwide, and had hit &#8220;alarming&#8221; levels in Pakistan and Egypt. In the United States, government interest expenses are projected to hit 15% of revenue by 2026, up from less than 10% currently.



Two-thirds of last quarter&#8217;s debt increase came from developed markets, led by the United States, Japan, France and the United Kingdom. Emerging markets China, India, Brazil and Mexico also notched sharp increases.



While the global debt-to-GDP ratio was little changed at 333%, it hit 255% in emerging markets &#8211; 32 percentage points above the same period five years ago &#8211; driven by Russia, China, Saudi Arabia and Malaysia. Chile, Colombia and Ghana experienced the largest declines in the ratio.



The IIF said government debt had the biggest increase in the third quarter, adding that budget deficits remain well above pre-pandemic levels in many countries.



The report noted that sovereign debt in default hit a record high above $554 billion through the end of 2022, roughly half of which is bonded debt.



The IIF warned that the debt burden for households and corporations is still rising in major economies, including China and the United States, with ramifications for everything from elections to the clean energy transition.



&#8220;With firms&#8217; borrowing appetite at multi-year lows amid still-tightening funding conditions and heightened geoeconomic fragmentation, the prospects for climate finance look increasingly at risk in recent quarters, as evidenced by a marked slowdown in ESG debt issuance,&#8221; it said.



(Reporting By Libby George in London, additional reporting by Rodrigo Campos in New York; Editing by Sharon Singleton, Kirsten Donovan)

FILE PHOTO: A man walks in the Central Business District on a rainy day, in Beijing

Global debt edges to fresh record, populism could push it higher- IIF

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="800" height="530" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/download-74.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429098" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/download-74.jpg 800w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/download-74-300x199.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/download-74-136x90.jpg 136w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/download-74-768x509.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo: via Reuters</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, Nov 17 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;South African petrochemical company Sasol&nbsp;SOLJ.J&nbsp;on Friday said Simon Baloyi will take on the role of President and CEO from April 1, 2024.



Baloyi succeeds Fleetwood Grobler, who will continue with the company as an executive advisor until Dec. 31, 2024 to ensure a seamless handover.



Baloyi, currently Executive Vice President of Energy Operations and Technology, was selected from both internal and external candidates and has served in various management positions since joining the company in 2002.



&#8220;We believe that his strategic outlook, excellent leadership skills, technical and business acumen and deep experience of our operations will stand him in excellent stead to take over the helm,&#8221; Sasol said in its statement.



(Reporting by Tannur Anders in Johannesburg and Chandini Monnappa in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee and Janane Venkatraman)

download (74)

South African petrochemical company Sasol names new CEO

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="550" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LO273AE3F5N4PLTPOFI563WO6I-820x550.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429094" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LO273AE3F5N4PLTPOFI563WO6I-820x550.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LO273AE3F5N4PLTPOFI563WO6I-300x201.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LO273AE3F5N4PLTPOFI563WO6I-134x90.jpg 134w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LO273AE3F5N4PLTPOFI563WO6I-768x516.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LO273AE3F5N4PLTPOFI563WO6I-1536x1031.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LO273AE3F5N4PLTPOFI563WO6I-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: A police officer walks next to an electric mass transit bus assembled by electric vehicle manufacturer Roam at the Green Park Terminus in Nairobi, Kenya October 19, 2022. REUTERS/Monicah Mwangi/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Nov 17 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Kenya could lose up to 7.25% of economic output by 2050 if it does not take strong action to adapt to climate change and mitigate its effects, the World Bank said on Friday.



Like other so-called frontier economies, the East African nation has been suffering from the effects of global heating, including prolonged droughts, in recent years.



&#8220;By 2050, inaction against climate change could result in a decline in real GDP of 3.61–7.25 percent,&#8221; the World Bank said in a new publication called Kenya Country Climate and Development Report.



&#8220;The impact of climate change on the economy could be partly buffered by a higher annual growth rate and structural transformation,&#8221; it said.



If Kenya&#8217;s economy grows 7.5% per year through to 2050, in line with the government&#8217;s target, the damage of climate change to economic output would drop to 2.78–5.3%, the report said.



It called for increased investments in water resources management, farming, energy, transport and digital systems to help reduce the impact of climate change.



With about 90% of its electricity coming from renewable sources like hydro-generation and geothermal wells, Kenya is well positioned to provide solutions to other countries looking to lower their emissions, the report said.



&#8220;If Kenya maintains a low-carbon growth path, it could seize opportunities created by the global decarbonization trend and create green jobs,&#8221; it said.



While achieving a carbon-free electricity energy system by 2030 will require investments of up to $2.7 billion, it will be cost effective in the long run as the investments will be offset by lower fossil fuel costs, the report said.



It also urged the government to broaden the range of climate financing available by increasing the scope of projects to make them national and bankable.



&#8220;Finance directed toward climate in the development budget disproportionately targets the renewable energy sector,&#8221; it said. &#8220;Agriculture, forestry and land use, transport, water management, and other key sectors are significantly underfunded.&#8221;



(Reporting by Duncan Miriri; Editing by Mark Potter)

FILE PHOTO: A police officer walks next to an electric mass transit bus assembled by electric vehicle manufacturer Roam at the Green Park Terminus in Nairobi

Kenya could lose up to 7.25% of GDP to climate change, World Bank says

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/YKUAEHSOXFJLJAZC3ANDYMQ2AY-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429088" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/YKUAEHSOXFJLJAZC3ANDYMQ2AY-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/YKUAEHSOXFJLJAZC3ANDYMQ2AY-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/YKUAEHSOXFJLJAZC3ANDYMQ2AY-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/YKUAEHSOXFJLJAZC3ANDYMQ2AY-768x513.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/YKUAEHSOXFJLJAZC3ANDYMQ2AY-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/YKUAEHSOXFJLJAZC3ANDYMQ2AY-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: The Airbus A350-1000 seen in the aerial display during the media preview of the Singapore Airshow in Singapore, February 13, 2022. REUTERS/Caroline Chia/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



DUBAI, Nov 16 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Airbus&nbsp;AIR.PA&nbsp;won a consolation order for 15 A350-900 jets from Emirates on Thursday after a public row between the Mideast giant and engine maker Rolls-Royce&nbsp;RR.L&nbsp;prevented a bigger deal for European jets at a Dubai Airshow dominated by Boeing.



Emirates Chairman and CEO Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum said the long-haul jets would &#8220;add to our fleet mix, and we are pleased to announce additional orders for this aircraft type&#8221;.



However, industry sources described the deal as a face-saving compromise after the influential carrier criticised the amount of maintenance needed to keep the engines for the larger A350-1000 flying in hot and sandy conditions of the Gulf.



Sheikh Ahmed said Emirates would &#8220;work closely with Airbus and Rolls-Royce to ensure our aircraft deliver the best possible operating efficiency and flying experience for our customers&#8221;.



The deal, which Emirates said was worth $6 billion, followed intense negotiations focusing on the needs of the Gulf as it fends off new competition from Turkey, India and elsewhere to its East-West transit model, while shedding light on broader industry tensions over rising engine costs.



Emirates is by far the biggest user of the Airbus A380 after investing heavily in the world&#8217;s largest airliner, and is now planning the fleet needed to keep its Dubai super-hub at the centre of the aviation map beyond the 2030s as the A380 retires.



The airline opened this week&#8217;s air show with a $52 billion order for 90 Boeing 777X airplanes, saying the U.S. planemaker appeared to be getting a grip on regulatory and other problems surrounding its entry to service after five years of delays.



But Emirates Airline President Tim Clark refused to place a large order for Airbus&#8217; broadly similar A350-1000 and blasted Rolls-Royce over the disruption and cost of dealing with frequent maintenance needed to keep the plane&#8217;s engines running.



Emirates would have ordered 35-50 of the planes, he said.



Rolls-Royce acknowledged its engine for the A350-1000 would need more servicing than Emirates would like, but denied Clark&#8217;s suggestion that the XWB-97 engine was &#8220;defective&#8221;.



Chief Customer Officer Ewen McDonald said deal for the A350-900, which uses a different variant of engine, was a sign of the airline&#8217;s trust in Rolls-Royce and held out hope for a future order for the A350-1000.



&#8220;We will continue our discussions with Emirates on the A350-1000 engine improvements and look forward to them choosing this aircraft in the future,&#8221; he said.



Emirates has already ordered 50 A350-900s which are scheduled to arrive from August next year.



Delegates said earlier a top-up order would be seen as a consolation prize for Airbus and Rolls-Royce after Boeing and its main engine supplier GE&nbsp;GE.&nbsp;won the majority of deals, but would leave questions over Airbus&#8217;s ability to compete with Boeing&#8217;s 777X in the lucrative Gulf market.



&#8220;It is&#8230;just to keep the relationship going and so they can talk again,&#8221; a senior aviation industry source said.



Investors are expected to quiz Rolls-Royce about the durability and pricing of its engines at a Nov. 28 investor day.



Rolls-Royce said earlier in week it was looking at applying technology from its Ultrafan research project to the XWB-97.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-boeing-dominates-orders">BOEING DOMINATES ORDERS</h2>



In a week dominated by soaring demand for wide-body planes, Boeing won new orders for 196 aircraft while Airbus agreed deals for 55 jets.



Airbus said it had reached an &#8220;agreement in principle&#8221; for a significant order from Turkish Airlines&nbsp;THYAO.IS, but industry sources said the deal had not yet been signed.



Emirates also agreed to buy five additional 787 Dreamliners, while sister airline flyDubai went for 30 with its first wide-body order.



Although political power is consolidated in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi, Monday&#8217;s high-profile announcement overseen by Dubai&#8217;s crown prince was symbolic of the value the UAE places on its bilateral relationship with the United States after a recent period of strain, said sources familiar with the matter.



In other business, Turkey-based budget carrier SunExpress announced an order for 45 Boeing 737 MAX narrow-bodies and used the spotlight to issue a reminder of the industry&#8217;s supply chain problems.



Ethiopian Airlines announced it was buying 20 737 MAX jets nearly five years after the fatal 2019 MAX crash that led to the grounding of the global fleet. It also ordered 11 Dreamliners.



EgyptAir said it was ordering 10 A350-900s from Airbus, while AirBaltic announced it was buying 30 Airbus A220-300s.



Royal Air Maroc signed a repeat order for two additional 787 Dreamliners. EgyptAir said it would lease 18 new Boeing 737 MAX jets from Air Lease Corp&nbsp;AL.N.



(Reporting by Tim Hepher, Alexander Cornwell and Pesha Magid; editing by Jan Harvey, Kirsten Donovan)

FILE PHOTO: The Airbus A350-1000 seen in the aerial display during the media preview of the Singapore Airshow in Singapore,

Emirates buys 15 Airbus jets in reprieve from engine row

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



Nov 16 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Emerging markets&#8217; stocks slipped on Thursday dragged by heavyweight China shares on glum domestic economic data, while the Philippine peso was steady against the dollar, paring early losses after its central bank kept interest rates steady as expected.



MSCI&#8217;s index tracking emerging market equities&nbsp;.MSCIEF, slipped 0.1% by 0955 GMT. The index was set to snap three straight sessions of gains if losses hold.



China&#8217;s new home prices fell for the fourth straight month, suggesting a broader weakening in the sector that could drag on the country&#8217;s overall recovery.



The Shanghai Composite Index&nbsp;.SSEC&nbsp;dropped 0.7%, while blue-chip shares&nbsp;.CSI300&nbsp;fell nearly 1%. Hong Kong&#8217;s Hang Seng Index&nbsp;.HSI&nbsp;dropped 1.4%.



The yuan&nbsp;CNY=CFXS&nbsp;was flat and the latest home prices data dampened recovery sentiment in the world&#8217;s second-largest economy and comes a day after positive industrial output and retail sales for October.



On the geopolitical front, signs of improving relations emerged after U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping agreed on Wednesday to resume military-to-military communications and cooperate on anti-drug policies.



However, some investors were disappointed at the lack of any major breakthroughs in the talks.



Capping broader equity losses, Pakistan&#8217;s benchmark stock index .KSE jumped 1.3% after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said it had reached a staff-level agreement with Pakistan on the first review of a $3 billion bailout, which will unlock $700 million in funding for the country.



India&#8217;s NSE Nifty 50 index&nbsp;.NSEI&nbsp;and the benchmark S&amp;P BSE Sensex&nbsp;.BSESN&nbsp;advanced 0.5% each, lifted by information technology stocks.&nbsp;.BO



The Philippine central bank kept its policy rate steady at 6.5% on Thursday, as expected, warning that its fight with inflation was not over and it could raise rates again.



The peso&nbsp;PHP=&nbsp;pared losses after the rate decision and was last seen steady against the dollar. The benchmark stock index&nbsp;.PSI&nbsp;rose 0.3%.



A basket of regional currencies&nbsp;.MIEM00000CUS&nbsp;inched up 0.1% led by gains in the South Korean won.



The won KRW=KFTC jumped 1.1% after authorities planned to loosen stock short-selling rules for retail investors, while tightening rules for institutional and foreign investors.



Having fallen earlier this week on cooling U.S. inflation, the dollar index =USD clawed back some gains on Thursday after a mixed set of U.S. economic data on Wednesday.



&#8220;We think investors are still under-pricing risks that Fed rates will pause for longer, which could weigh on EM asset performance during Q1, although easing longer-end rates and downwards pressure on the dollar could also marginally alleviate pressure on EM,&#8221; Tellimer Research said in a note.



The South African rand&nbsp;ZAR=&nbsp;weakened 0.2% against a steady dollar, while most&nbsp;central and eastern&nbsp;European currencies edged up against the euro.



On the data front, Israel&#8217;s preliminary third-quarter readings, Brazil&#8217;s September economic activity, Poland&#8217;s October core inflation and Colombia&#8217;s September trade balance are due later in the day.



(Reporting by Siddarth S in Bengaluru; editing by Eileen Soreng)

Stock market report. 3d illustration

Stocks set to snap 3-day winning run on China’s property sector woes

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="498" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LGH7TDQ2DNN3FKFRGO2SVYRP34-820x498.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429061" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LGH7TDQ2DNN3FKFRGO2SVYRP34-820x498.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LGH7TDQ2DNN3FKFRGO2SVYRP34-300x182.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LGH7TDQ2DNN3FKFRGO2SVYRP34-148x90.jpg 148w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LGH7TDQ2DNN3FKFRGO2SVYRP34-768x467.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LGH7TDQ2DNN3FKFRGO2SVYRP34-1536x933.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/LGH7TDQ2DNN3FKFRGO2SVYRP34-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: A view shows the Nairobi Expressway undertaken by the China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) on a public-private partnership (PPP) basis, in Nairobi, Kenya May 8, 2022. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Nov 16 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The International Monetary Fund has reached a staff-level agreement with Kenya, unlocking immediate access to a $682.3 million tranche and boosting the current lending programme by $938 million, the fund said on Thursday.



The East African nation is grappling with acute liquidity challenges caused by uncertainty over its ability to access funding from financial markets before a $2 billion Eurobond matures next June.



Its balance of payments and financial positions have also been strained by the legacy of the COVID-19 pandemic and frequent climate change-induced droughts, the fund said at the conclusion of a two-and-a-half week review mission to Nairobi.



&#8220;The tightening global financing conditions for frontier economies and global geopolitical tensions are compounding the challenges,&#8221; said Haimanot Teferra, the head of the mission.



Subject to the approval of the Washington-based fund&#8217;s executive board, Kenya will have access to a total of $3.88 billion, which would bring its total funding under the existing Extended Fund Facility and Extended Credit Facility arrangements to $4.43 billion, the IMF said.



The current programme, agreed in April 2021, was first bumped up in May by an extra $1 billion, including $544 million under the IMF&#8217;s Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF), and a new arrangement under the same RSF.



Kenya&#8217;s international bonds rose modestly on the news, with the $2 billion note maturing in June 2024 rising the most. It was up 0.43 cents on the dollar to 95.6 cents at 0928 GMT&nbsp;XS1028952403=TE.



Although the deal was widely expected after it was telegraphed by a senior adviser in Kenya&#8217;s presidency, it was still being viewed positively, said a Kenyan market participant who did not wish to be named.



The new IMF financing, together with expected funds from the World Bank and regional banks like Afrexim, would allow Kenya to pay maturing foreign debt without running down its hard currency reserves, said the market participant.



The additional money was more than international markets were expecting, said Thato Mosadi, a strategist at Jefferies in London.



&#8220;I am very positive that reserves could be higher than USD6.5bn following the payment of the (2024) eurobond, and even more confident now following the IMF&#8217;s augmentation,&#8221; she said.



(Reporting by George Obulutsa and Duncan Miriri; Additional reporting by Rachel Savage in Johannesburg; Editing by Christina Fincher)

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

Kenya gets additional $938 mln from IMF, soothing nerves

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/biden-x-xi-jin-ping-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429054" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/biden-x-xi-jin-ping-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/biden-x-xi-jin-ping-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/biden-x-xi-jin-ping-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/biden-x-xi-jin-ping-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/biden-x-xi-jin-ping-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/biden-x-xi-jin-ping-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to resume high-level military communication when they met in person Wednesday for the first time in a year in San Francisco on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference. FILE: President Biden/@POTUS</figcaption></figure>



BEIJING — U.S. President&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/joe-biden/">Joe Biden</a>&nbsp;and Chinese President&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/xi-jinping/">Xi Jinping</a>&nbsp;have agreed to resume high-level military communication, according to both countries.



The two leaders&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/11/15/xi-biden-at-apec-summit-china-us-leaders-meet-in-san-francisco.html">met in person for the first time in a year</a>&nbsp;Wednesday local time in San Francisco on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference.



“We’re back to direct, open, clear communications,” Biden said at a press conference after the talks.



China has conducted military exercises around Taiwan, while its navy has been engaging in aggressive maneuvers in the South China Sea in a standoff with the Philippines as both countries stake their territorial claims.



The U.S. has wanted to revive the military communication, especially after some&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/video/2023/06/05/us-destroyer-has-close-call-with-chinese-warship-in-the-south-china-sea.html">near-miss incidents</a>&nbsp;where China’s ships almost collided with American forces.



“Vital miscalculations on either side can cause real trouble with a country like China or any other major country,” Biden said at the post-meeting press briefing.



China’s Defense Ministry&nbsp;<a href="https://www.defense.gov/News/Transcripts/Transcript/Article/3293101/pentagon-press-secretary-air-force-brig-gen-pat-ryder-holds-an-on-camera-press/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">declined a call with its U.S. counterpart</a>&nbsp;in early February after the discovery of an alleged Chinese spy balloon over U.S. airspace. The balloon incident delayed U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s highly anticipated trip to China by more than four months.



In June, the defense chiefs from both countries attended an annual security summit in Singapore, but they <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/06/05/us-china-trade-barbs-at-security-summit-shangri-la-dialogue.html">did not have a formal meeting</a>.



When Blinken finally visited China, he said he&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/06/20/blinken-says-he-failed-to-revive-military-to-military-talks-with-china.html">“repeatedly” raised the need for direct communication</a>&nbsp;between the two countries’ militaries but failed to revive such talks.



China has yet to name a defense minister after<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/10/24/china-reportedly-ousts-defense-minister-after-two-month-absence.html">&nbsp;dismissing Gen. Li Shangfu from the position</a>&nbsp;without explanation in late October.



U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin will meet with his Chinese counterpart when the Chinese defense chief is selected, a senior Biden administration official told reporters after the Biden-Xi summit.



As part of the agreement, senior U.S. military commanders including that of Pacific forces in Hawaii will engage with their Chinese counterparts, the official said.



The two countries also plan to establish ways for ship drivers and others to discuss incidents and, potentially, best practices, the official said.



A readout published by Chinese state media added the resumption of such military talks was “on the basis of equality and respect,” according to a CNBC translation.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-taiwan"><a></a>Taiwan</h2>



At the presser, Biden reiterated the U.S. position that Taiwan maintains its sovereignty, despite China’s claims to the contrary.



“We maintain the agreement that there is a One-China policy and I’m not going to change that, that’s not going to change. That’s about the extent to which we discussed,” he said.



According to Chinese state media, Xi pointed out during the bilateral meeting that Taiwan has always been the “most important and sensitive” issue in China’s relations with the U.S.. He said in the report that China “takes seriously” positive statements the U.S. made during his meeting with Biden last year in Indonesia.



“The U.S. should use concrete actions to reflect its stance of not supporting ‘Taiwan independence,’ stop arming Taiwan and support China’s peaceful reunification,” state media reported. “China will ultimately be reunified and will inevitably be reunified.”



Beijing considers Taiwan part of its territory, with no right to independently conduct diplomatic relations. The U.S. recognizes Beijing as the sole government of China but maintains unofficial relations with Taiwan, a democratically self-governed island.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">AI, fentanyl and more</h2>



Chinese state media also said the two sides agreed to establish an intergovernmental dialogue on artificial intelligence, set up a working group on drug control, “significantly” increase flights between the two countries next year and expand exchanges in areas such as education, business and culture.



The U.S. senior administration official said the Chinese were already taking action on nearly 24 companies that make precursors for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/fentanyl-and-us-opioid-epidemic" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">fentanyl — an addictive drug</a>&nbsp;that’s led to overdoses and deaths in the U.S.



Biden said at the post-meeting presser that the two leaders agreed that fentanyl production needs to be “curbed substantially.”



On artificial intelligence, however, the official said it was too early for a joint declaration by the two leaders, and noted the need to prevent the incorrect use of AI in military or nuclear operations.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><a></a>Trade and sanctions</h2>



The Biden administration has announced export controls and sanctions on Chinese companies in an effort to limit U.S. companies’ contribution to technology that supports China’s military.



Xi noted the export controls, investment reviews and sanctions in the meeting, and called for the U.S. to lift the sanctions and provide a non-discriminatory environment for Chinese companies, Chinese state media said.



Biden also brought up difficulties around travel harassment of Americans in China, and a business environment that wasn’t as welcoming as it was in the past, the U.S. senior administration official said.



But overall the official described the meeting as more personal than the last time the two leaders met.



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">I’ve just concluded a day of meetings with President Xi, and I believe they were some of the most constructive and productive discussions we’ve had. We built on groundwork laid over the past several months of diplomacy between our countries and made important progress. <a href="https://t.co/0RT1q0FZHr">pic.twitter.com/0RT1q0FZHr</a>&mdash; President Biden (@POTUS) <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS/status/1724941601661718940?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 16, 2023</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
</div></figure>



In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Biden called his day of meetings with Xi “some of the&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS/status/1724941601661718940?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">most constructive and productive discussions</a>&nbsp;we’ve had.”



“We built on groundwork laid over the past several months of diplomacy between our countries and made important progress.”



— CNBC’s Christina Wilkie and Clement Tan contributed to this report.

biden-x-xi-jin-ping

U.S. and China agree to resume military talks. Takeaways from the Biden-Xi summit

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="728" height="484" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/U7GSX2DBZNPOLFHLJ3TVW2S62E.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-422637" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/U7GSX2DBZNPOLFHLJ3TVW2S62E.jpg 728w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/U7GSX2DBZNPOLFHLJ3TVW2S62E-300x199.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/U7GSX2DBZNPOLFHLJ3TVW2S62E-135x90.jpg 135w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 728px) 100vw, 728px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Ghana&#8217;s Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta speaks during a news conference in Accra, Ghana December 13, 2022. REUTERS/Cooper Inveen</figcaption></figure>



ACCRA, Nov 15 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Ghana&#8217;s finance minister said on Wednesday in a budget speech that the economy was getting back on track, pointing to a smaller budget deficit than targeted so far this year and higher economic growth than last year.



The West African country is grappling with its worst economic crisis in a generation, with a sharply weaker cedi currency&nbsp;GHS=&nbsp;and rampant inflation.



The government of the gold, oil and cocoa producer turned to the International Monetary Fund for financial support last year as it was locked out of international capital markets.



Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta told lawmakers on Wednesday that Ghana had recorded an overall budget deficit of 3.0% of gross domestic product (GDP) over January-August, better than a targeted deficit of 4.6% of GDP.



He said real GDP growth had averaged 3.2% in the first half of this year, an improvement on 2.9% growth in same period in 2022.



The central bank had bought gold worth more than $1 billion to boost its reserves since it launched a gold-for-reserves programme, he added.



For 2024, Ghana is targeting GDP growth of at least 2.8%, a year-end inflation rate of 15% from more than 35% in October this year&nbsp;GHCPIY=ECI&nbsp;and a primary budget surplus of 0.5% of GDP.



(Reporting by Maxwell Akalaare Adombila and Christian Akorlie; Writing by Sofia Christensen; Editing by Alexander Winning and Bate Felix)

Ghana’s Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta speaks during a news conference in Accra

Ghana’s economy getting back on track, finance minister says

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="615" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/QJAJECC3HVMQFBBQHIS3T7ICHI-820x615.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429028" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/QJAJECC3HVMQFBBQHIS3T7ICHI-820x615.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/QJAJECC3HVMQFBBQHIS3T7ICHI-300x225.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/QJAJECC3HVMQFBBQHIS3T7ICHI-120x90.jpg 120w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/QJAJECC3HVMQFBBQHIS3T7ICHI-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/QJAJECC3HVMQFBBQHIS3T7ICHI-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/QJAJECC3HVMQFBBQHIS3T7ICHI-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Customers check out at the cash register in a mall in Abuja, Nigeria, September 15, 2022. REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde</figcaption></figure>



ABUJA, Nov 15 (Reuters) &#8211; Nigerian inflation rose for the tenth month in a row in October, increasing pressure on the new central bank governor to raise interest rates when the monetary policy committee meets for the first time since his appointment.



Consumer inflation rose to 27.33% year on year in October from 26.72% in September, its highest in about 18 years, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed.



Olayemi Cardoso took over as governor of Nigeria&#8217;s central bank in September, after Godwin Emefiele was suspended earlier in the year.



Cardoso has pledged to pull the bank back from much-criticised fiscal interventions pursued by Emefiele that undermined the central bank&#8217;s ability to effectively manage inflation. Instead the central bank will take a &#8220;more limited advisory role&#8221; in support of the government&#8217;s economic growth agenda, Cardoso said.



Price rises for food and non-alcoholic beverages were the biggest driver of inflation in October in annual terms, the statistics bureau said.



Food inflation, which accounts for the bulk of Nigeria&#8217;s inflation basket, rose to 31.52% in October from 30.64% in September.



Inflation in Africa&#8217;s biggest economy and most populous nation has been in double digits since 2016, eroding incomes and savings.



&#8220;We are reaching almost four months since the central bank&#8217;s last policy meeting in July, a meeting which underwhelmed,&#8221; said David Omojomolo, Africa economist at research firm Capital Economics.



&#8220;The central bank will need to act with aggressive hikes to maintain its credibility and bring down inflation,&#8221; he said.



At the July monetary policy meeting, the central bank opted for a smaller-than-expected 25 basis point hike, saying it preferred a moderate increase to anchor inflation expectations while continuing to support investment.



President Bola Tinubu, who has embarked on some of Nigeria&#8217;s boldest reforms in decades, has been under pressure from labour unions as some of those reforms have contributed to price pressures.



(Reporting by Elisha Bala-Gbogbo; Editing by Alexander Winning and Toby Chopra)

Customers check out at the cash register in a mall in Abuja

Nigeria inflation rises further in October, upping pressure on new central bank head

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



Nov 15 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Emerging market assets jumped, hitting multi-month highs on Wednesday, as softer U.S. inflation data bolstered bets of an end to the Federal Reserve&#8217;s interest rate hikes, while positive Chinese economic data also boosted risk sentiment.



MSCI&#8217;s index tracking emerging market equities&nbsp;.MSCIEF&nbsp;jumped 2.3% by 0937 GMT, hitting its highest level in nearly two months.



A basket of regional currencies&nbsp;.MIEM00000CUS&nbsp;climbed 0.7%, marking the highest levels since August.



If gains hold, the broader equity index is set for its best day since June, while the FX index is on track for its best session since late March.



Data on Tuesday showed&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3ARR:220&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">U.S. consumer prices</a>(CPI) were unchanged in October and the annual rise in underlying inflation was the smallest in two years.



Cooling inflation will allow the Fed to hold off on further interest rate hikes and potentially start cutting rates by May, traders bet on Tuesday.



Investors will also monitor talks between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping and more U.S. economic data.



The dollar index&nbsp;=USD&nbsp;last stood at 104.260, after having slumped on Tuesday post the CPI data.



&#8220;While we agree with the peak Fed rate narrative, it is important to consider what we get from here,&#8221; Charu Chanana, market strategist at Saxo Markets said in a note.



&#8220;Growth data becomes extremely key from here and today’s (U.S.) retail sales print will be one to watch,&#8221; Chanana added.



China&#8217;s industrial output and retail sales growth beat expectations in October, but the underlying economic picture highlighted significant pockets of weakness.



Chinese shares&nbsp;.SSEC&nbsp;rose 0.6%, while blue-chips climbed&nbsp;.CSI300&nbsp;0.7%. Hong Kong shares jumped 3.9%, leading broader equity gains.



China&#8217;s central bank ramped up injections of liquidity but kept the interest rate unchanged when rolling over maturing medium-term policy loans on Wednesday, matching market expectations.



The yuan&nbsp;CNY=CFXS&nbsp;gained 0.1% against the dollar.



In Europe, Poland&#8217;s final October CPI on an annual basis came in at 6.60% compared to a previous estimate of 6.50% for the same period, data showed.



The Polish zloty&nbsp;EURPLN=&nbsp;rose 0.2% against the euro.



The South African rand&nbsp;ZAR=&nbsp;climbed 0.1% and the benchmark equity index&nbsp;.JTOPI&nbsp;jumped nearly 2% ahead of September retail sales data.



The Russian rouble&nbsp;RUBUTSTN=MCX&nbsp;on Wednesday soared to its highest levels since early July against the dollar, boosted by continued supply of foreign currency by exporters, high interest rates and relatively strong oil prices.&nbsp;RU/RUB



The rouble was last up 1.5%.



Kenya&#8217;s shilling KES= hovered around all-time lows against the greenback on Wednesday, hurt by higher demand for dollars from importers in various sectors, amid low hard currency inflows, traders said.



On the data front, October CPI for Israel and Nigeria and third-quarter GDP for Russia and Colombia are due later in the day.



(Reporting by Siddarth S in Bengaluru; Editing by Sharon Singleton)

World map with charts and graphs as symbols of global finance

EM assets hit multi-month highs on soft US CPI, positive China data

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="462" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/107315827-1697106175586-gettyimages-1482239218-kd_10030_m5nqidl3-820x462.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-429017" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/107315827-1697106175586-gettyimages-1482239218-kd_10030_m5nqidl3-820x462.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/107315827-1697106175586-gettyimages-1482239218-kd_10030_m5nqidl3-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/107315827-1697106175586-gettyimages-1482239218-kd_10030_m5nqidl3-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/107315827-1697106175586-gettyimages-1482239218-kd_10030_m5nqidl3-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/107315827-1697106175586-gettyimages-1482239218-kd_10030_m5nqidl3.jpeg 929w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, at a press conference at the IMF Headquarters on April 14, 2023. Kevin Dietsch | Getty Images News | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



SINGAPORE — Central bank digital currencies have the potential to replace cash, but adoption could take time, said Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the International Monetary Fund on Wednesday.



“CBDCs can replace cash which is costly to distribute in island economies,” she said Wednesday at the Singapore FinTech Festival. “They can offer resilience in more advanced economies. And they can improve financial inclusion where few hold bank accounts.”



CBDCs are the digital form of a country’s fiat currency, which are regulated by the country’s central bank. They are powered by blockchain technology, allowing central banks to channel&nbsp;government payments directly to households.



“CBDCs would offer a safe and low-cost alternative [to cash]. They would also offer a bridge to go between private monies and a yardstick to measure their value, just like cash today which we can withdraw from our banks,” the IMF chief said.



The IMF has said that more than 100 countries are exploring CBDCs – or approximately 60% of countries in the world.



“The level of global interest in CBDCs is unprecedented. Several central banks have already launched pilots or even issued a CBDC,” the IMF said in a September report.



According to a 2022 survey conducted by the Bank for International Settlements, of the 86 central banks surveyed, 93% said they were exploring CBDCs, while 58% said they were likely to or may possibly issue a retail CBDC in either the short or medium term.



But as of June, only 11 countries have adopted CBDCs, with an additional 53 in advanced planning stages and 46 researching the topic, according to data from the Atlantic Council.



Referring to a 2018 speech by her predecessor Christine Lagarde, when the former IMF chief encouraged policymakers to follow the “winds of change” and explore the use of CBDCs, Georgieva said: “Five years on, I’m here to provide an update on that voyage.”



“First, countries did set sail. Many are investigating CBDCs and are developing regulation to guide digital money developments,” said Georgieva referring to the speech.



On Wednesday, the fund launched a CBDC handbook as a reference guide for policymakers around the world. Georgieva said many countries are investigating CBDCs and developing regulation to guide digital money developments.



“Second, we have not yet reached land. There is so much more space for innovation and so much uncertainty over use-cases,” Georgieva told an audience which included industry experts, investors and journalists.



“In some countries the case seems dim&nbsp;today,&nbsp;but even they should remain open to potentially deploy CBDCs&nbsp;tomorrow. Why?” said Georgieva. “This is not the time to turn back.”



“The public sector should keep preparing to deploy CBDCs and related payment platforms in the future. Fourth, these platforms should be designed from the start to facilitate cross-border payments, including with CBDCs,” the managing director said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-potential-of-cbdcs"><a></a>Potential of CBDCs</h2>



Countries that have issued retail CBDC include the&nbsp;Bahamas, Jamaica and Nigeria.



Singapore’s Monetary Authority of Singapore has said that cash is “generally incompatible” with the digital economy. In a 2021 report, the country’s central bank said the demand for cash as a means of payment is set to decline further.



According to the BIS, using CBDCs for cross-border payments could lower the costs of obtaining, storing and spending foreign currency, depending on design and regulations.



Georgieva also said that artificial intelligence “could amplify some of the benefits of CBDCs” by providing accurate credit scoring and personalized support.



Demand for generative AI has boomed following the release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT in November last year, which was estimated to have reached 100 million monthly active users within two months after launch.



“It could improve financial inclusion by providing rapid, accurate credit scoring based on various data. It could provide personalized support to people with low financial literacy,” said Georgieva.



“To be sure, we need to protect personal privacy and data security, and avoid embedded biases so we don’t perpetuate inequality but aim to reduce it. Managed prudently, AI could help,” she added.

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What is OPEC+ and how does it impact oil prices?

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EM assets hit multi-month highs on soft US CPI, positive China data

IMF says central bank digital currencies can replace cash: ‘This is not the time to turn back’

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