West Africa: Nigeria's Investment Appetite Grows, Mutual Funds Up 89.5 Percent to N3.8trn
November 19, 2024--Nigerians' appetite for secured investment has pushed the Net Asset Value (NAV) of Mutual Funds to N3.781 trillion in the first week of this month, up 89.5 % from N1.995 trillion in the corresponding period 2023.
Analysts partly attributed the surge in the Funds to the impact of steady mark up in monetary policy rate, naira devaluation among other factors.
Data released by the Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, showed that the Fixed Income Funds contributed significantly to boost the Funds as it accounted for 47.76% of the total NAV. It was followed by Money Market Funds recording N1.524 trillion in the period under review and accounted for 40.31% of the total NAV.
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Source: allafrica.com
Africa Topples Asia, Europe, Us As Africa's Preferred Trade Market
November 18, 2024--African businesses increasingly prefer to trade across the continent's borders over out-of-the-continent markets like Asia, the US, and Europe, due to a rising quality of made-in-Africa goods, lower market prices, and accessibility.
The latest Standard Bank Africa Trade Barometer, which tracks 10 African countries among the 54 signatory nations of the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA) shows 37% of the businesses prefer partners based in African markets compared to Asia(24%), Europe(16%) and North America(3%).
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Source: allafrica.com
Nigeria: Stock Market Returns Bearish As Investors Lose N1.3 Trn in 5 Days
November 4, 2024--The Nigerian stock market ended last week ended on a bearish note, as both the Nigerian Exchange, NGX All Share Index, ASI and market capitalisation fell to 97,432.02 points, and market N59.038 trillion, down from the previous week's close of 99, 448. 91 points and N59. 432 trillion respectively.
Specifically, investors lost over N1.222 trillion of their investments on the Exchange following the bearish sentiments that was driven by decreases in the share prices of prominent stocks, including Aradel which was newly listed, declining by 10.00%, UACN 5.73% , UBA 2.68% among other shares...
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Source: allafrica.com
South Africa projects wider deficits and rising debt despite improved growth
October 31, 2024--South Africa's government forecasted higher budget deficits and debt for the next three years, even as improved electricity supply suggests better growth prospects. In its first budget review since forming a coalition,the National Treasury projected a 5.0% deficit of national output for the fiscal year ending in March 2025, up from the 4.5% previously forecast.
For the next fiscal year, the deficit is expected to be 4.3% of GDP,compared to the earlier 3.7% estimate. The rand weakened following these announcements. Revenue collection is under pressure due to declines in fuel and import taxes, and Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana emphasized the need for tough fiscal decisions in light of limited growth.
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Source: africanews.com
Options derivatives trading coming to Nairobi Securities Exchange
October 31, 2024--A big step forward for Kenya’s derivatives market NEXT, a part of the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE), as it moves to introduce options derivatives trading. These will be options on the existing NEXT securities, which are futures contracts for single stocks and indices offered by the NSE.
The Capital Markets Authority Kenya has approved the development.
The NSE has plans to introduce a wider variety of financial derivatives in future.
According to a press release (see here on African Markets website): "The introduction of options contracts is aimed at developing and deepening the derivatives market in Kenya by expanding the suite of financials instruments available to investors."
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Source: africancapitalmarketsnews.com
Uganda Joins BRICS As Partner Nation, Paving the Way for Increased Trade and Investment
October 24, 2024--Uganda has officially joined BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) as one of 13 new partner nations in a move set to reshape its international trade and investment prospects.
By aligning with the BRICS alliance, Uganda is positioning itself to benefit from deeper economic ties with some of the world's largest emerging markets.
Other nations joining as BRICS partners include Algeria, Indonesia, Turkey, Nigeria, and Vietnam, as the group seeks to expand its global influence and foster a more balanced, multilateral trade system
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Source: allafrica.com
BRICS: African leaders call for reforms of international institutions
October 23, 2024--African leaders attending the summit of BRICS nations currently underway in Russia, spoke out on Wednesday about what they see as important issues on the international stage.
The coalition that started with Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa has grown to include Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia.
Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Malaysia have officially submitted applications for membership, and many other countries have shown interest in joining as well.
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Source: africanews.com
Gender Parity Will Unlock $287bn for Africa's Economy By 2030-Report
September 19, 2024--Tackling systemic barriers towards the participation of young women in Africa's workforce will drive an estimated $287 billion to its economy by 2030, boosting GDP by 5 per cent, according to a new report commissioned by the Mastercard Foundation.
Conducted in collaboration with McKinsey & Company, the study reinforces the crucial role of women's economic empowerment in driving the continent into a new era of transformational growth.
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Source: allafrica.com
Africa: Climate-ECA Reveals Africa Loses Up to 5 Percent of GDP
September 4, 2024--The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the African Union Commission, jointly announced the continent Africa needs urgent and increased investment in climate adaptation and resilience.
Launching the 2023 State of the Climate in Africa report in Cote de Ivory, the three giant institutions reveled that African countries are facing an escalating climate change bill, with an average loss of 2-5% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) due to climate extremes, according to the UN Economic Commission for Africa-ECA's statement sent to The Ethiopian Herald.
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Source: allafrica.com
Uganda joins African exchanges link
August 27, 2024--The Uganda Securities Exchange (USE) has become the tenth African securities exchange to join the African Exchanges Linkage Project (AELP). The linkage platform enables stockbrokers on participating exchanges to send orders on behalf of their clients to stockbrokers on other exchanges, who will buy and sell shares on those exchanges.
Ten 10 stock exchanges representing 17 countries are participating, including Uganda.
The Dutch fund house has advertised for a UK sales manager for ETFs, who will be based in London, and plans to hire up to five more sales specialists in continental Europe in early 2025.
The African share-trading link aims to boost the potential for cross-border investment, collaboration and capacity building across Africa. The aim is better liquidity on the capital markets, wider access to capital and more opportunities for investors.
The capital market infrastructure interconnectivity platform is a joint project between the African Securities Exchanges Association (ASEA) and the African Development Bank (AfDB). The link is funded by the Korea African Economic Cooperation Fund (KOAFEC) Trust Fund, managed by the AfDB. KOAFEC also supported Phase 1.
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Source: africancapitalmarketsnews.com