<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="960" height="640" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/C765ORI3WFKWTHKDVZMO7IDY6Y.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-605266"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">U.S. President Joe Biden speaks with Lobito Atlantic Railway (LAR) Chief Operating Officer Nicolas Gregoir, during a visit to Lobito Port Terminal to receive a briefing on the Lobito Atlantic Railway, in Lobito, Angola, December 4, 2024. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz</figcaption></figure>



LUANDA, April 3 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The United States remains committed to funding the Lobito rail corridor, a project to help transport critical minerals from the central African copperbelt to the West, despite President Donald Trump&#8217;s aggressive&nbsp;spending cuts, a U.S. diplomat said.



The U.S, through its International Development Finance Corporation, set up during Trump&#8217;s first term in 2019, has pledged a $550 million loan to support Lobito, which is considered key in countering Chinese control over copper and cobalt supplies in the region.



Trump&#8217;s spending cuts had raised concerns for projects such as Lobito which has plans for Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia. But the U.S. Ambassador to Angola, James Story, sought to allay fears on Wednesday.



Story was accompanied by European diplomats, Angolan officials and executives from Lobito Atlantic Railways on a tour of projects in Angola.



Asked if funding for the Lobito corridor was at risk, Story said: &#8220;Not at the moment. All the projects with the DFC and also with the Exim Bank are there and we&#8217;re working on them.&#8221;



&#8220;Various organisations say that we&#8217;re moving away from this project, but that&#8217;s not true,&#8221; Story said.



In 2022, Angola handed a 30-year Lobito corridor concession to the Lobito Atlantic Railway consortium joint-venture led by commodities firm Trafigura, construction giant Mota-Engil and independent rail operator Vecturis SA.



The first phase of the venture involves refurbishing an existing 1,300 km (800 mile) railway through Angola and extending it into the Democratic Republic of Congo&#8217;s mining heartland, to facilitate exports of copper and cobalt through the Atlantic coast.



A second phase currently under feasibility study would link Zambia &#8211; Africa&#8217;s second largest copper producer after the DRC &#8211; to Lobito.



Lobito Atlantic Railways CEO Francisco Franca, who was part of the tour, said DFC financing contracts were &#8220;currently in the final stages&#8221;.



&#8220;In two or three months&#8217; time, we expect to have the contracts signed and then the normal international financing procedures will follow,&#8221; Franca said.



Rosário Bento, the EU ambassador in Angola who also took part in the visit, said Western governments including the U.S remained committed to the Lobito corridor project.



&#8220;The United States has an interest in the region and is already receiving shipments of raw materials that pass through the Lobito corridor,&#8221; she said. &#8220;I don&#8217;t see the United States being disinterested in something they are already benefiting from.&#8221;



(Reporting by Miguel Gomes; Writing by Nelson Banya; Editing by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo and Andrew Heavens)

C765ORI3WFKWTHKDVZMO7IDY6Y

US committed to funding Angola’s Lobito rail corridor despite spending cuts, diplomat says

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="720" height="416" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/I626AAIJRJP7DJDRYXCYV56KLA.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-605247"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The Hillbrow Tower, an iconic tower used to identify the Johannesburg skyline, is seen as the sun rises, in Johannesburg, South Africa, June 20, 2019. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG/ANTANANARIVO, April 3 (Reuters) &#8211; The U.S. government&#8217;s imposition of steep tariffs on African nations signals the end of the AGOA trade deal that was supposed to help African economies develop through preferential access to U.S. markets, trade experts said on Thursday.



Several African countries were hit by some of the highest tariffs announced by U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday, including levies of 50% on goods from Lesotho, 47% for Madagascar, 40% for Mauritius, 37% for Botswana and 30% for South Africa, the continent&#8217;s biggest exporter to the U.S.



Many of the hardest-hit countries are already struggling with very high levels of poverty and debt as well as, in some cases, other severe challenges such as food shortages or cyclones in Madagascar, and one of the world&#8217;s highest rates of HIV/AIDS infections in Lesotho.



The tariffs also compound the pain for Africa after Trump&#8217;s administration dismantled USAID, the government agency that was a major supplier of aid to the continent, and specifically cut bilateral aid to South Africa.



The AGOA trade accord is due to expire in September, and the raft of tariffs suggests that a renewal of the deal, a major part of U.S. policy towards the continent since the 1990s era of President Bill Clinton, is extremely unlikely.



&#8220;The reciprocal trade announcement policy will pull the AGOA rug from under our feet. That will be gone. It will replace AGOA, you don&#8217;t have to wait for September. It&#8217;ll be gone before then,&#8221; said economist Adrian Saville, a professor at South Africa&#8217;s Gordon Institute of Business Science.



It was unclear whether AGOA tariff exemptions on certain goods would continue to be applied between now and September in the wake of Trump&#8217;s tariff barrage.



&#8220;There is no indication that imports under AGOA are exempt from the 10% tariffs, so it appears that effectively immediately AGOA imports that previously were duty-free are now subject to a 10% duty,&#8221; the Washington-based African Coalition for Trade said&nbsp;in a memo to members on Thursday.



&#8220;This is obviously not a positive sign for the outlook for renewal of AGOA.&#8221;



However, the permanent secretary at Kenya&#8217;s foreign ministry, Korir Sing&#8217;Oei, said his understanding was that tariff exemptions under AGOA would remain valid until the act&#8217;s expiry.



FRESH BLOW FOR SOUTH AFRICA



In South Africa, whose second largest trading partner is the U.S., after China, the government struck a hopeful note despite the blow.



&#8220;The tariffs affirm the urgency to negotiate a new bilateral and mutually beneficial trade agreement with the U.S., as an essential step to secure long-term trade certainty,&#8221; the presidency said in a statement.



But a new trade deal with Washington looks like a mountain to climb for Pretoria.



Trump has repeatedly lambasted South Africa, the country that overcame apartheid, over what he described as discriminatory policies against white people.



U.S.-South African relations have soured since Trump cut U.S. financial aid to the country, citing disapproval of its land policy and its genocide case at the International Court of Justice against Washington&#8217;s ally Israel.



Trump&#8217;s latest tariffs are in addition to the 25% imposed on all vehicles and car parts imported into the U.S., which will kick in from Thursday.



South Africa&#8217;s exports of vehicles and parts into the U.S. are estimated at over $2 billion and could be hit hard by the levies.



Speaking at an investment conference in Johannesburg, South African Trade Minister Parks Tau said the current global economic uncertainty was affecting demand for South Africa&#8217;s products and its ability to create jobs.



&#8220;If there is one message that we must convey today, it is that diversifying trade relationships is absolutely critical.&#8221;



In 2024, U.S. imports from South Africa totalled $14.7 billion, up 4.9% from 2023, according to the Office of the United States Trade Representative.



Major South African exports to the U.S. include precious stones and metals, motor vehicle parts and accessories, iron and steel, machinery and aluminium products.



Lesotho, a tiny landlocked country surrounded by South Africa, is the second largest exporter of textiles and garments to the U.S. under AGOA. In 2024 it exported goods worth $237 million into the U.S., a 4.7% increase over 2023.



(Reporting by Nqobile Dludla, Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo and Catherine Schenck in Johannesburg, Aaron Ross in Nairobi and Lovasoa Rabary in Antananarivo; Writing by Bhargav Acharya and Estelle Shirbon; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

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Steep US tariffs on Africa signal end of trade deal meant to boost development

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="5000" height="3334" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/W6G6MVOXZ5MAPCA7IMBJFSHWMM.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-585151"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">U.S. President Donald Trump holds a joint press conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in the East Room at the White House in Washington, U.S., February 7, 2025. REUTERS/Kent Nishimura/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



ORANIA, South Africa, April 3 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;A group of white Afrikaners was so opposed to majority Black rule when apartheid ended some three decades ago that they carved out a separatist enclave, the only town in South Africa where all residents, including menial workers, are white.



Now, the residents of Orania &#8211; population, 3,000 &#8211; in the semi-arid Karoo region want U.S. President Donald Trump to help them become a state.



Last week, community leaders from Orania visited the United States seeking recognition as an autonomous entity. South African authorities acknowledge it as a town that can raise local taxes and deliver services.



&#8220;We wanted to&#8230; gain recognition, with the American focus on South Africa now,&#8221; Orania Movement leader Joost Strydom told Reuters, on a hill strewn with bronzes of past Afrikaner leaders, including from the era of&nbsp;racist white minority rule that was ended by internal resistance and international outrage.



The 8,000-hectare settlement is riding an unprecedented wave of support from right-wing Americans for Afrikaner nationalists, who irrevocably lost power when apartheid ended in 1994 and Nelson Mandela became South Africa&#8217;s first Black president.



In New York and Washington the Orania leaders met influencers, think-tanks and low-ranking Republican politicians.



&#8220;We told them South Africa is such a &#8230; diverse country that it&#8217;s not a good idea to try and manage it centrally,&#8221; said Strydom.



Three senior Orania officials interviewed by Reuters were vague about the help they sought in the U.S. They said they were not seeking handouts but wanted investment to build houses to keep up with its 15% population growth, infrastructure and energy independence that it has almost half-achieved with solar.



Strydom declined to say whether his delegation had contact with the Trump administration. The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.



South African foreign ministry spokesperson Chrispin Phiri told Reuters: &#8220;(Orania&#8217;s) not&#8230; a country. They are subject to the laws of South Africa and &#8230; our constitution.&#8221;



Other Afrikaner nationalist groups have also visited the U.S. to build alliances with overwhelmingly white, Republican audiences, prompting accusations back home that such trips stoke racial tensions.



The leftist Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) last week accused Orania&#8217;s leaders of &#8220;destroying the unity of this country&#8221;, a charge they reject.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-start-of-something">&#8216;START OF SOMETHING&#8217;</h2>



Afrikaners are descendants of Dutch settlers who began arriving in the 1600s. They resisted the British Empire in South Africa,&nbsp;but once in charge of the country, they hardened racial segregation using discriminatory laws.



&#8220;There were 17,000 laws on land alone,&#8221; foreign ministry spokesperson Phiri said.&#8221;We had&#8230; to reconstruct South Africa into a country that represents all those who live in it.&#8221;



In 1991, as the end of apartheid neared, a group of about 300 Afrikaners acquired Orania, previously an abandoned water project on the muddy Orange River, to create a homeland exclusively for white Afrikaners.



&#8220;It&#8217;s the start of something,&#8221; former Orania Movement leader Carel Boshoff, said of his community, comparing its desire for independence &#8211; Orania even uses its own informal currency &#8211; to that of Israel, established after World War Two despite&nbsp;stiff resistance from Arabs living in that territory.



Boshoff, whose father founded the town and whose grandfather, Hendrick Verwoerd,&nbsp;is widely viewed as the architect of apartheid, dreams of a territory stretching to the west coast nearly 1,000 miles away.



Orania&#8217;s activities are funded through local taxes and donations from supporters and residents.



Its leaders were dismayed to find the only solution that anyone in the United States was interested in discussing was U.S. residency, after Trump offered in February to resettle white South African farmers and their families as refugees.



&#8220;We can&#8217;t be exporting our people,&#8221; Boshoff told Reuters beside a framed photo of his late grandfather. &#8220;We told them &#8230; &#8216;help us here&#8217;,&#8221; he said.



Some U.S. right-wingers have sought to make common cause with Afrikaners in their opposition to diversity policies that aim to empower historically unjustly-treated non-white groups. South Africa&#8217;s Black empowerment laws have been ridiculed by Trump&#8217;s South African-born adviser, Elon Musk.



Those laws were the reason Hanlie Pieters moved to Orania eight months ago, after 25 years of living in Johannesburg, to become head of marketing for the town&#8217;s technical college.



&#8220;Our children &#8230; what opportunities&nbsp;will&nbsp;they have?&#8221; Pieters said, bemoaning quotas for Black workers, while trainee plumbers and electricians honed their skills in a shed nearby.



A third of all South Africans are out of work, most of them poor Blacks.



One such unemployed man, 49-year-old Bongani Zitha, said he thought &#8220;people in Orania&#8230; are doing very well&#8221; compared to many South Africans. &#8220;So many people looking for opportunities. It&#8217;s a struggle,&#8221; he sighed.



Zitha, who has lived in a corrugated shanty town in Soweto with no piped water or sewage since 1995, said at least the people of Orania have &#8220;rights to health, education, everything&#8221;.



And unlike himself under white minority rule, he added, Orania residents are free to live wherever they want.



(Reporting by Tim Cocks; Editing by Gareth Jones)

W6G6MVOXZ5MAPCA7IMBJFSHWMM

South Africa’s white Afrikaner separatists want Trump’s help to become state

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-1604532787-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-506008" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-1604532787-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-1604532787-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-1604532787-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-1604532787-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-1604532787-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-1604532787-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Ugandan shilling and US dollars in the draw at a foreign exchange currency bureau in Kampala, Uganda, on Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Uganda&#8217;s central bank said it stands ready to act if the World Bank&#8217;s decision to halt new funding over the country&#8217;s passage of anti-LGBTQ legislation impacts the currency further. Photographer: Luke Dray/Bloomberg via Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



KAMPALA, April 3 (Reuters) &#8211; The Ugandan shilling was little-changed on Thursday and was expected to strengthen due to increased dollar inflows from coffee and gold exports, traders said.



At 0908 GMT, commercial banks quoted the shilling at 3,639/3,649, compared with Wednesday&#8217;s close of 3,642/3,652.



(Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by George Obulutsa)

Ugandan Economy Following Rate Cut

Ugandan shilling steady, to gain ground due to gold export FX inflows

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="728" height="487" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/rand2-1.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-568119" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/rand2-1.jpg 728w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/rand2-1-300x201.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/rand2-1-135x90.jpg 135w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 728px) 100vw, 728px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">South African bank notes featuring an image of former South African President Nelson Mandela are displayed at an office in Johannesburg, File. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, April 3 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;South Africa&#8217;s rand was hovering near a three-month low on Thursday after being hit by a double-whammy of U.S. President Donald Trump&#8217;s announcement of new and higher tariffs and the passing of a contentious budget vote that has threatened the ruling coalition&#8217;s future.



At 0811 GMT, the rand traded at 18.90 against the dollar, not far from its previous close. It hit 19.0150 per dollar earlier in the day, its weakest since mid-January.



On Wednesday, Trump announced a 10% baseline tariff on all imports to the United States, and higher duties on dozens of countries, including South Africa, which was hit with a 30% rate.



Trump said the tariffs were a response to duties and other non-tariff barriers put on U.S. goods.



South Africa&#8217;s parliament had earlier passed the budget&#8217;s fiscal framework on Wednesday after weeks of political wrangling, but the second-biggest party in the coalition, the pro-business Democratic Alliance (DA), voted against the measure and said it would challenge the outcome in court.



The rand gradually weakened over the course of the day on Wednesday as markets fears grew that the DA may potentially exit the coalition, and went into freefall after the tariff announcement. It slipped as much as 2.6% against the dollar.



On the stock market, the Top-40 index was down about 2.5%.



South Africa&#8217;s benchmark 2030 government bond was weaker in early deals, with the yield up 7.5 basis points to 9.39%.



(Reporting by Sfundo Parakozov and Bhargav Acharya; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)

rand2 (1)

South African rand hit by double whammy of tariffs and shaky coalition

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="720" height="513" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/CPPMFTYQRZPC7D52YECMETYGTA.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-605165"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Trucks deliver containers to be loaded onto a ship at the port in Durban, South Africa, January 31, 2024. REUTERS/Rogan Ward/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, April 3 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;South Africa&#8217;s presidency said on Thursday that the new U.S. tariffs underscore the need to negotiate a new bilateral trade deal with Washington to ensure long-term trade certainty.



U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled global reciprocal tariffs on most goods imported to the United States on Wednesday.



Trump imposed a 30% rate on South Africa.



&#8220;The tariffs affirm the urgency to negotiate a new bilateral and mutually beneficial trade agreement with the U.S., as an essential step to secure long-term trade certainty,&#8221; the Presidency said in a statement.



The latest tariffs are in addition to the 25% imposed on all vehicles and car parts imported into the U.S., which will kick in from Thursday.



South Africa&#8217;s exports of vehicles and parts into the United States are estimated at over $2 billion and could be hard hit by the levies.



&#8220;Whilst South Africa remains committed to a mutually beneficial trade relationship with the United States, unilaterally imposed and punitive tariffs are a concern and serve as a barrier to trade and shared prosperity,&#8221; the President&#8217;s office added.



(Reporting by Nqobile Dludla; Editing by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtmabo and Sharon Singleton)

CPPMFTYQRZPC7D52YECMETYGTA

South Africa seeks new US trade deal after tariff hike, says presidency

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="720" height="521" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/2PLENK7UEVP6LHO27XU5VACMUU.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-605162"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">South African Rand coins are seen in this illustration picture taken October 30, 2020. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings/Illustration/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, April 2 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The South African rand dropped sharply on Wednesday as a fractious budget vote threw into doubt the solidity of the coalition government.



At 1640 GMT, the rand traded at 18.7725 against the dollar&nbsp;ZAR=D3, about 1.4% weaker than Tuesday&#8217;s closing level.



While the budget&#8217;s fiscal framework and revenue proposals passed in Parliament, the second-biggest party in the coalition, the pro-business Democratic Alliance, voted against them and said it would challenge the outcome in court.



Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana said he did not think a party could vote against a budget and then be part of its implementation.



&#8220;The clear divide between the ANC and DA puts the state of the Government of National Unity in question,&#8221; said Shaun Murison, a senior market analyst at IG.



The African National Congress, the biggest party in the coalition, secured the backing of an assortment of smaller coalition partners and parties outside the coalition to get the legislation passed.



The Johannesburg Stock Exchange&#8217;s Top-40 index&nbsp;.JTOPI&nbsp;closed down 0.9% while the yield on the benchmark 2030 government bond&nbsp;ZAR2030=&nbsp;rose 21 basis points to 9.315%.



(Reporting by Sfundo Parakozov; Editing by Alexander Winning and Hugh Lawson)

2PLENK7UEVP6LHO27XU5VACMUU

South African rand slides as budget vote puts coalition on shaky ground

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="720" height="480" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/IA4F5V5BOBKMZGXUYZUHEWQQVQ.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-605143"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The World Bank logo is seen at the 2023 Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund in Washington, U.S., April 13, 2023. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



LONDON, April 3 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The World Bank&#8217;s private investment arm is backing the rush into digital data in Africa with a $100 million investment in regional data centre developer and operator Raxio Group, funding centres from Ethiopia to Angola.



Digital demand on the continent is surging, but infrastructure remains scarce. Africa accounts for less than 1% of the world&#8217;s data centre capacity even as mobile data usage grows by around 40% annually &#8211; nearly double the global average, according to U.S. advocacy group Internet Society.



The debt funding by the World Bank&#8217;s International Finance Corporation (IFC) &#8211; its largest such investment to date in Africa &#8211; reflects rising interest from global institutions in the continent&#8217;s digital economy, where mobile money, AI-driven services and cloud-based platforms are rapidly expanding. Hosting data locally reduces costs, improves speeds and gives governments more control over cybersecurity and regulation.



&#8220;Data centres as such and overall digital connectivity is an important area of focus for the IFC,&#8221; said Sarvesh Suri, IFC regional industry director, infrastructure and natural resources in Africa.



Improving digital connectivity and building the backbones of digital infrastructure are of key importance to support economic growth in Africa, Suri added.



After launching its first facility in Uganda in 2021, Raxio is building a network of top standard data centres, including one in Ivory Coast with construction underway in Mozambique, Ethiopia and Democratic Republic of Congo.



The expansion comes as global tech giants and infrastructure investors view Africa as the next battleground for cloud services. Cloud computing and tech giants such as Amazon Web Services AMZN.O, Microsoft Azure MSFT.O and Huawei are ramping up partnerships and presence on the continent, but many still rely on Europe or South Africa for hosting.



&#8220;We see the interest, the support, the engagement, the collaboration we are getting from the governments where we operate, who really want this to happen,&#8221; said Raxio Group CEO Robert Skjodt.



Building data centres in frontier markets isn&#8217;t without risk. Unreliable power supply, complex regulation and political instability can deter commercial players.



Development finance institutions play a crucial role by de-risking early investments that can unlock long-term private capital, said Suri.



&#8220;We bring in the right kind of instruments to help support investors to reduce the risk over all this, to make sure that these investments continue to be long-term, sustainable, and profitable, but also economically beneficial for the countries,&#8221; said Suri.



(Reporting by Colleen Goko; Editing by Karin Strohecker)

IA4F5V5BOBKMZGXUYZUHEWQQVQ

World Bank backs Africa digital data push with $100 million Raxio deal

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1800" height="1200" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/VFKU2JNBTBIDVNPMOMLDRAUIO4.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-560171"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Pedestrians walk in front of Ghana&#8217;s central bank building in Accra, Ghana, November 16, 2015. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



ACCRA, April 2 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Two of the five&nbsp;members of the Ghana&nbsp;central bank&#8217;s&nbsp;Monetary Policy&nbsp;Committee (MPC)&nbsp;voted for its prime interest rate to be kept at 27% during the last meeting, at which the bank hiked the rate by 100 basis points to 28%, minutes showed on Wednesday.



The split decision highlights diverging views within the Bank of Ghana&#8217;s MPC over how aggressively to tackle inflation.



Announcing the surprise rate hike on Friday, governor Johnson Asiama said the tight monetary policy stance was needed to lower inflation.



Ghana&#8217;s annual consumer inflation slowed for a third straight month to 22.4% in March from 23.1% the previous month, the country&#8217;s statistics agency said earlier on Wednesday.



Asiama had previously warned that consumer inflation in the gold, oil and cocoa-producing West African nation remains &#8220;uncomfortably high&#8221; and above the bank&#8217;s target of 8% with a margin of error of 2 percentage points either side.



(Reporting by Christian Akorlie; Writing by Bate Felix; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

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Ghana central bank’s MPC split over rate decision, minutes show

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="5000" height="3101" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/BLHFUL2OK5O2NCFHI7QKTQ3YKA.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-604858"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Kenya&#8217;s Finance Minister John Mbadi gestures during an interview with Reuters where he says Kenya has started talks with IMF for a new program, in Nairobi, Kenya, February 5, 2025. REUTERS/Monicah Mwangi/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, April 2 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Kenya denied on Wednesday it had discussed debt restructuring with China&#8217;s finance minister after amending a reference in a social media post released in the wake of a meeting between the two country&#8217;s top finance officials.



China&#8217;s Finance Minister Lan Foan and his Kenyan counterpart John Mbadi had held talks in Beijing, aimed at securing stronger trade and investment ties between the East African nation and the world&#8217;s second largest economy.



&#8220;He (China&#8217;s finance minister) also expressed China&#8217;s willingness to facilitate discussions on debt restructuring and concessional financing to support Kenya&#8217;s economic stability,&#8221; the finance ministry said in a post on X on Wednesday morning.



The post was then deleted and later reposted without the reference to restructuring or concessional financing.



Kenya, which is struggling with a heavy debt load and the accompanying high debt service costs, caught investor attention last month when it ditched the final review of its programme with the International Monetary Fund, sending its dollar bonds lower.



Asked for more details, the Kenyan finance ministry said there had been no discussions on restructuring debt at the meeting in Beijing. China&#8217;s finance ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.



China has become Kenya&#8217;s biggest bilateral lender after Nairobi took a spate of loans to finance infrastructure construction projects, including a modern railway line from the port of Mombasa into the hinterland.



Kenyan officials have been engaging with their Chinese counterparts to secure funds for more projects, including the extension of that railway line to the border with Uganda.



&#8220;Kenya and China have reaffirmed their commitment to deepening economic cooperation, with a focus on trade, infrastructure investment, and financial collaboration,&#8221; the Kenyan ministry said in a summary of a meeting.



Kenyan President William Ruto, who took over in September 2022, has vowed that his government will not default on its external debt, pledging to cut waste and boost revenue to tackle the challenge.



But his efforts have been met with stiff resistance, including last year&#8217;s youth-led anti-tax hike protests, in which dozens of people were killed.



Ruto has also been seeking to diversify sources of financing, including striking a deal for a privately placed bond with the United Arab Emirates for $1.5 billion.



(Reporting by Duncan Miriri; Additional reporting by Ethan Wang in Beijing; editing by Karin Strohecker and Ros Russell)

BLHFUL2OK5O2NCFHI7QKTQ3YKA

Kenya retracts comment on China debt talks, sowing confusion

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="640" height="427" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/AXGKYDH4PFJ6TDMBPUR33LNVXM.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-573364"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A general view of the Makola market, one of the country&#8217;s largest trading centres in Accra, Ghana March 26, 2022. Picture taken March 26, 2022. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



ACCRA, April 2 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Ghana&#8217;s annual consumer inflation slowed for a third straight month to 22.4% in March from 23.1% the previous month, as food price pressures eased, the statistics agency said on Wednesday.



The easing of inflationary pressures is likely to be welcomed by Ghana&#8217;s central bank, which last week surprised the market with a 100-basis-point interest rate hike to 28%, saying a tight monetary policy stance was needed to lower inflation.



&#8220;The rate of 22.4% is the lowest in the last four months,&#8221; government statistician Samuel Kobina Annim told a press conference.



&#8220;In the month of March 2025, we recorded a much sharper decline in food inflation and a marginal decline in non-food inflation.&#8221;



Ghana&#8217;s central bank governor Johnson Asiama has warned that consumer inflation in the gold, oil and cocoa-producing West African nation remains &#8220;uncomfortably high&#8221;and above its target of 8% with a margin of error of 2 percentage points either side.



Finance Minister Cassiel Ato Forson said during his budget speech in March that steep spending cuts would allow Ghana to drive down inflation to 11.9% by the end of the year.



(Reporting by Christian Akorlie and Emmanuel Bruce; Editing by Bate Felix and Joe Bavier)

AXGKYDH4PFJ6TDMBPUR33LNVXM

Ghana consumer inflation eases to 22.4% in March

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="5000" height="3334" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/CRTJOWDTJBK3HC6RND6KFRQUB4.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-604324"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">John Steenhuisen, leader of the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) and Minister of Agriculture of South Africa, arrives at the Cape Town City Hall ahead of the State Of The Nation (SONA) address by South African president Cyril Ramaphosa in Cape Town, South Africa February 6, 2025. REUTERS/Nic Bothma/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



CAPE TOWN, April 2 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;South Africa&#8217;s Democratic Alliance (DA)partyon Wednesday rejected the country&#8217;s contested budget as lawmakers gathered to vote on it in parliament.



The budget has been the sternest test of the broad coalition government formed last year after the African National Congress (ANC) lost its parliamentary majority for the first time since apartheid ended in 1994.



The budget was meant to be presented in February but was postponed at the last minute, before a revised version was presented last month. Its most contentious elements include proposals to raise value-added tax and not adjust personal income tax brackets for inflation.



Lawmakers are due to vote later on Wednesday on a report by a key parliamentary committee supporting the budget&#8217;s fiscal framework and revenue proposals.



The DA and two big opposition parties say the process that led to the adoption of the report on Tuesday was flawed.



&#8220;As the DA, we will remain on our course of growth and jobs and vote firmly against this farce of a report. We reject it,&#8221; DA lawmaker Mark Burke told a sitting of parliament.



&#8220;If we&#8217;re forced to exit this government for driving a growth and jobs agenda, then so be it,&#8221; Burke added.



The ANC&#8217;s Joe Maswanganyi, chair of the committee that adopted the report, urged members of parliament to approve the fiscal framework and revenue proposals.



The ANC and DA, the two biggest parties in the coalition, have negotiated for weeks to try to agree a deal on the budget but have failed to do so.



The rand&nbsp;ZAR=D3&nbsp;has weakened over the past few days as the prospect of a deal between the ANC and DA has receded.



President Cyril Ramaphosa&#8217;s spokesperson said on Wednesday that Ramaphosa was still committed to the coalition with the DA.



The speaker of parliament earlier rejected calls to postpone Wednesday&#8217;s budget vote.



(Additional reporting by Bhargav Acharya and Sfundo Parakozov; Writing by Alexander Winning; Editing by Michael Perry, Aidan Lewis and Ed Osmond)

CRTJOWDTJBK3HC6RND6KFRQUB4

South Africa’s DA rejects budget before parliamentary vote

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="5000" height="3333" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/BDVHV2IAWBNVHPGGZKTIP7M4U4.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-604768"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A person holds a new 1000 Naira note as the Central Bank of Nigeria releases the notes to the public through the banks in Abuja, Nigeria, December 15, 2022. REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



ABUJA, April 2 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Nigeria&#8217;s net foreign exchange reserves stood at $23.11 billion at the end of 2024, their highest level in three years, the Central Bank of Nigeria said, signalling a major improvement in the country&#8217;s external financial position.



The NFER, which adjusts gross reserves to account for near-term liabilities such as currency swaps and forward contracts, stood at just $3.99 billion at the end of 2023, the CBN said in a statement late on Tuesday. The figure was $8.19 billion in 2022 and $14.59 billion in 2021.



The CBN said the improved position was due to &#8220;substantial reduction&#8221; in short-term foreign exchange liabilities, notably swaps and forward obligations. It also cited measures aimed at boosting forex market confidence and reserves, alongside increased non-oil foreign exchange inflows.



&#8220;This improvement in our net reserves is not accidental; it is the outcome of deliberate policy choices aimed at rebuilding confidence, reducing vulnerabilities, and laying the foundation for long-term stability,&#8221; Central Bank Governor Olayemi Cardoso said.



&#8220;We remain focused on sustaining this progress through transparency, discipline, and market-driven reforms.&#8221;



Gross external reserves also climbed to $40.19 billion at the end of 2024, up from $33.22 billion the previous year.



While reserves declined in the first quarter of 2025 due to seasonal factors and foreign debt interest payments, the CBN anticipates a &#8220;steady uptick&#8221; in reserves throughout the second quarter, supported by increased oil output and non-oil export growth.



(Reporting by Elisha Bala-Gbogbo; Editing by Kevin Liffey)

BDVHV2IAWBNVHPGGZKTIP7M4U4

Nigeria’s net FX reserves hit three-year high, central bank says

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="5000" height="3333" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/2CZKYYGDZZIGXBFDISQYFIWIUQ.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-604762"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Drivers wait in line to refuel their vehicles at a Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) station in Abuja, Nigeria, September 2, 2024. REUTERS/Marvellous Durowaiye/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



ABUJA, April 2 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has appointed Bayo Ojulari, a former Shell executive, to head the state-owned oil firm NNPC Ltd as the country seeks to raise oil production and revitalise its refining capacity, the presidency said on Wednesday.



After ending costly subsidies and twice devaluing the naira currency in his first year in office, Tinubu has shifted his focus to overhauling the state oil firm to maximise its contribution to the country&#8217;s revenue.



Ojulari replaces Mele Kyari, with the appointment effective immediately, presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga said in a statement.



Ojulari was most recently chief operating officer at Nigerian consortium Renaissance Africa Energy Co., which owns Shell&#8217;s former onshore subsidiary in the country. Prior to that, he was head of Shell Nigeria&#8217;s exploration unit.



Tinubu also replaced the board of NNPC, appointing an 11-member team to drive reforms and boost efficiency in the oil sector.



Nigeria, Africa&#8217;s biggest oil producer with output of 1.8 million barrels per day, relies on the commodity for around half of government earnings.



Nigeria under Tinubu aims to boost its oil and gas output, targeting 2 million barrels per day of oil and 8 billion standard cubic feet per day of gas by 2027, with further ambitions to reach 3 million barrels per day and 10 billion standard cubic feet per day by 2030.



Tinubu has also tasked the new NNPC leadership board with raising the company&#8217;s oil refining output to 200,000 barrels per day by 2027, and 500,000 barrels per day by 2030, despite its four 445,000 barrels per day capacity refineries being idle due to maintenance.



(Reporting by Ope Adetayo; Writing by Elisha Bala-Gbogbo; Editing by Peter Graff and Barbara Lewis)

2CZKYYGDZZIGXBFDISQYFIWIUQ

Nigeria names ex-Shell executive to lead state oil firm NNPC

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="5000" height="3334" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/2L22EPIT25NB3M5STX2UUF5ICY.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-604710"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Members of parliament stand in a makeshift dome after South Africa&#8217;s Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana&#8217;s 2025 budget speech was postponed, in Cape Town, South Africa, February 19, 2025. REUTERS/Esa Alexander/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, April 2 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;South African opposition party the Economic Freedom Fighters has written to the speaker of parliament seeking to block lawmakers from meeting on Wednesday to vote on the next stage of the budget process.



The EFF said in a letter to National Assembly Speaker Thoko Didiza that Tuesday&#8217;s proceedings at a key parliamentary committee, which supported the fiscal framework despite reservations about some budget revenue-generating measures, were &#8220;procedurally defective and vulnerable to legal challenge&#8221;.



It asked for the committee&#8217;s report supporting the fiscal framework to be withdrawn and for a Wednesday afternoon sitting of parliament to consider and vote on the report to be rescheduled.



&#8220;Should this not occur, the EFF &#8230; will consider urgent legal steps, including the possibility of an interdict, to prevent the tabling and processing of a report adopted in violation of the law,&#8221; the letter said.



The biggest political party in the ruling coalition, the African National Congress, relied on the small party outside the coalition, ActionSA, to get the support it needed on Tuesday in parliament&#8217;s Standing Committee on Finance.



The ANC&#8217;s main coalition partner, the Democratic Alliance has accused it of crossing a &#8220;line in the sand&#8221; by using a party outside the coalition to get the fiscal framework approved.



The country&#8217;s biggest trade union group COSATU, a longstanding ANC ally, said it would be a &#8220;travesty&#8221; if parliament&#8217;s reservations about raising value-added tax (VAT) and not adjusting personal income tax (PIT) brackets for inflation were ignored.



It said in a statement: &#8220;That will be a calamity and breach of trust that politicians heading into the 2026 local elections dare not play with.&#8221;



(Reporting by Alexander Winning; Editing by Michael Perry)

2L22EPIT25NB3M5STX2UUF5ICY

South African opposition party seeks to block parliament budget vote

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="720" height="480" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/https___cloudfront-us-east-2.images.arcpublishing.com_reuters_4LL3SONEEFM2JCCE6N2Y5SCJEE.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-604447" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/https___cloudfront-us-east-2.images.arcpublishing.com_reuters_4LL3SONEEFM2JCCE6N2Y5SCJEE.jpg 720w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/https___cloudfront-us-east-2.images.arcpublishing.com_reuters_4LL3SONEEFM2JCCE6N2Y5SCJEE-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/https___cloudfront-us-east-2.images.arcpublishing.com_reuters_4LL3SONEEFM2JCCE6N2Y5SCJEE-135x90.jpg 135w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The Cape Town headquarters of the South African Revenue Service (SARS) is seen in this picture, File. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, April 1 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;South Africa collected a net 1.855 trillion rand ($101.02 billion) of tax in the fiscal year that ended on March 31, more than 6% higher than the previous year, preliminary figures showed on Tuesday.



The South African Revenue Service (SARS) said collections were robust from the finance, community, wholesale and construction sectors.



There were also healthy gains from personal income tax, helped partly by withdrawals under the &#8220;two pot&#8221; pension reform, SARS said in a statement.



The reform implemented last year allowed fund members to make partial withdrawals from their pension funds before retirement to help those members in financial distress.



($1 = 18.3636 rand)



(Reporting by Sfundo Parakozov; Editing by Alexander Winning, Aidan Lewis)

https___cloudfront-us-east-2.images.arcpublishing.com_reuters_4LL3SONEEFM2JCCE6N2Y5SCJEE

South Africa’s tax take rises over 6% in 2024/25 fiscal year

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="4450" height="2821" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/A7SIENHHFZJPXGXH6CVMW2PNXQ.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-604368"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A general view shows the Tetra Pak factory floor in Durban, South Africa, April 4, 2024. REUTERS/Rogan Ward/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, April 1 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;A South African purchasing managers&#8217; index (PMI) survey showed that conditions in the manufacturing sector remained depressed in March, but there was a slight improvement in sentiment thanks to better demand.



The seasonally-adjusted PMI sponsored by South African bank Absa rose to 48.7 points in March from 44.7 in February, but it remained below the 50-point mark that separates expansion from contraction.



&#8220;While the headline PMI remained in contractionary territory for a fifth consecutive month, this is the highest reading since the 52.6 points recorded in October,&#8221; Absa said in a statement.



There was an improvement in the business activity sub-index as export sales helped demand recover.



But Absa said scheduled power cuts and strained South Africa-U.S. relations were likely putting a dampener on the mood.



President Donald Trump has cut U.S. financial assistance to South Africa, citing disapproval of the country&#8217;s approach to land reform and its genocide case against Washington&#8217;s close ally Israel at the World Court.



Businesses also fear South Africa&#8217;s preferential trade status under the U.S. African Growth and Opportunity Act could be under threat with Trump in the White House.



(Reporting by Sfundo Parakozov; Editing by Alexander Winning)

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Reuters

US committed to funding Angola’s Lobito rail corridor despite spending cuts, diplomat says

Steep US tariffs on Africa signal end of trade deal meant to boost development

South Africa’s white Afrikaner separatists want Trump’s help to become state

Ugandan shilling steady, to gain ground due to gold export FX inflows

South African rand hit by double whammy of tariffs and shaky coalition

South Africa seeks new US trade deal after tariff hike, says presidency

South African rand slides as budget vote puts coalition on shaky ground

World Bank backs Africa digital data push with $100 million Raxio deal

Ghana central bank’s MPC split over rate decision, minutes show

Kenya retracts comment on China debt talks, sowing confusion

Ghana consumer inflation eases to 22.4% in March

South Africa’s DA rejects budget before parliamentary vote

Nigeria’s net FX reserves hit three-year high, central bank says

Nigeria names ex-Shell executive to lead state oil firm NNPC

South African opposition party seeks to block parliament budget vote

South Africa’s tax take rises over 6% in 2024/25 fiscal year

South African manufacturing conditions still depressed, Absa PMI shows

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