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By Nyshka Chandran, Reporter, CNBC Asia-Pacific
For decades, China&#8217;s presence in Africa has largely focused on economic, commercial and peacekeeping activities. Now, Beijing is building on that by establishing greater military links to protect its national assets on the continent and gain greater geopolitical influence.
The People&#8217;s Liberation Army conducts regular joint training exercises across the region and, in certain countries that are home to major Chinese infrastructure projects under the Belt and Road initiative, the communist state has been especially active.
In Djibouti, where Chinese companies have constructed strategic ports and Africa&#8217;s first electric transnational railway, Beijing last year formally launched its first overseas military base, which also operates as a logistics and intelligence facility. Many experts now anticipate more Chinese bases in the years to come, with Namibia rumored as a potential location.
Meanwhile in Tanzania, where the state-run conglomerate China Merchants Holdings International is hoping to invest in the Bagamoyo mega port, China built a complex designed to train local armed forces earlier this year. And, at the first-ever China-Africa Defense and Security Forum in Beijing on Tuesday, the communist state announced it will provide African countries with &#8220;comprehensive support&#8221; on matters such as piracy and counter-terrorism. That includes providing technologies, equipment, personnel and strategic advice, local media reported.
All that comes amid expectations for the U.S. to reduce troops in Africa under President Donald Trump&#8217;s &#8220;America First&#8221; policy, which is set to boost Chinese President Xi Jinping&#8217;s government as the dominant foreign power on the continent.
The strengthened defense ties compliment China&#8217;s existing ventures, particularly weapons sales, according to specialists.
&#8220;In recent years, Chinese arms sales to Africa have surpassed the United States,&#8221; said Luke Patey, senior researcher at the Danish Institute for International Studies: &#8220;In particular, Chinese small arms and light weapons have spread rapidly since China is less inhibited by selling arms to countries in the midst of conflict than Western providers.&#8221; That goes hand in hand with Beijing&#8217;s expanding military cooperation, he continued.
A desire to safeguard Chinese workers and Chinese-funded projects on the continent is likely behind the government&#8217;s efforts.
&#8220;China’s security concerns are actually aimed at its own nationals, and military diplomacy is skillfully used to protect them and their interests,&#8221; the Netherlands Institute of International Relations, or Clingendael, said in a recent report.
&#8220;The evacuation of hundreds of Chinese and foreign nationals from Yemen in 2015 — on a People’s Liberation Army frigate that sailed from the coasts of Somalia — proves just how crucial the presence of a military logistics base on the eastern coast of Africa is for China,&#8221; it continued.
The world&#8217;s second-largest economy has long described Sino-Africa cooperation as a &#8220;win-win&#8221; arrangement — one that provides China with natural resources and African economies with badly-needed infrastructure. But while the flood of Chinese resources may be welcomed by the region&#8217;s cash-strapped governments, the fear is that increased capital could translate into political leverage.
In fact, many speculate that it was Beijing&#8217;s concerns over its investments that resulted in the 2017 coup that ousted Zimbabwe&#8217;s Robert Mugabe — a charge that Xi&#8217;s administration has denied.
&#8220;The concern from a lot of partners is exactly what role China is going to be playing in the region and how it&#8217;s going to fit with existing military organizations and security forums,&#8221; said Duncan Innes-Ker, Asia regional director at The Economist Intelligence Unit. &#8220;It&#8217;s really an unsettling element of something new coming into the equation that&#8217;s got a lot of people concerned.&#8221;
&#8220;African countries should be clear-eyed that the days of China’s strict adherence to its longstanding noninterference policy are over,&#8221; Patey added.

Why China is increasing its military presence in Africa

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ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) &#8211; The United States will send experts from the Federal Bureau of Investigation to Ethiopia to investigate a bomb blast that took place during a rally on Saturday, state-affiliated media said on Monday.
Fana Broadcasting Corporation quoted Under Secretary of Commerce Gilbert Kaplan as making the remark on Monday during his talks with Ethiopia’s minister of foreign affairs.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed survived the grenade attack on Saturday at a massive rally in support of his push for radical political and economic reforms, including a peace deal with regional arch-enemy Eritrea.
Reporting by Aaron Maasho; Writing by James Macharia; Editing by Alison Williams

US to send FBI investigators to look into Ethiopia’s bomb blast

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Kellie Ell
Source: <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/21/steel-company-jsw-usa-to-add-1000-new-jobs-ceo.html">Steel company JSW USA to add 1,000 new jobs: CEO</a>
<ul>
<li>The steel company will invest $1 billion in Ohio and Texas facilities, it says. </li>
<li>President and CEO John Hritz says the company will add &#8220;many, many high-tech jobs.&#8221; </li>
</ul>
JSW Steel USA is investing $1 billion in facilities in Mingo Junction, Ohio, and Baytown, Texas, President and CEO John Hritz told CNBC. 
&#8220;We are going to be hiring over 1,000 people,&#8221; Hritz said on &#8221; 
Closing Bell 
&#8221; on Thursday. 
The U.S. steel mill, headquartered outside Houston, produces hot-rolled plates and pipes. The capital expansion projects will introduce new manufacturing technology and create &#8220;many, many high-tech jobs,&#8221; Hritz said. 
He credits President Donald Trump&#8217;s steel tariffs for enabling his company to expand. 

&#8220;We are completely in lockstep with the president,&#8221; Hritz said. &#8220;Completely in lockstep with the administration.&#8221;
In March, Trump announced a 25 percent tariff on steel products and a 10 percent tariff on aluminum. 
&#8220;The whole idea of melt and manufacture, where this country is going, with regard to our ability &#8230; to supply defense, to supply infrastructure with heavy plate, to bring up the Mingo Junction facility, and to [improve] a community that was really decimated &#8230; all of this makes great sense,&#8221; Hritz said. &#8220;We would not have this capital from our parent company if they didn&#8217;t believe it.&#8221;

JSW USA is part of parent company JSW GroupJSWSTEEL-IN, an $11 billion multinational conglomerate based in India, with businesses in South America and Africa in addition to the U.S. The more than 40,000 employees around the globe work in sectors such as steel, energy, infrastructure, cement and sports.
And Hritz isn&#8217;t worried about competition among other U.S. steel manufacturers. 
&#8220;We will be the highest-technology, lowest-cost entity of its kind &#8230; in all of North America,&#8221; he said. &#8220;We&#8217;ll pick the markets we want.&#8221;

Steel company JSW USA to add 1,000 new jobs: CEO

What is OPEC? | CNBC Explains

Natasha Turak
Source: <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/19/south-africa-will-avoid-a-knee-jerk-reaction-to-currency-weakness.html">South Africa will avoid a ‘knee-jerk’ reaction to currency weakness, central bank deputy says</a>
<ul>
<li>Emerging markets have been under pressure as a result of a strengthening dollar and trade war fears, and central banks in turn are facing tough decisions on monetary policy.</li>
<li>But despite trade fears and a severely weakened currency, the bank is not rushing to raise interest rates, its deputy governor said 
Tuesday.
</li>
<li>Nonetheless, escalating trade tariffs between the world&#8217;s two largest economies and declining low confidence within the country will keep pressure on the bank&#8217;s policy makers.</li>
</ul>
Emerging markets have been under pressure as a result of a strengthening dollar and trade war fears, and central banks in turn are facing tough decisions on monetary policy.

South Africa central bank has plenty on its plate, especially within the context of a new president and unenviable credit ratings following years of corruption and economic mismanagement.
But despite trade fears and a severely weakened currency, the bank is not rushing to raise interest rates, its deputy governor told CNBC&#8217;s Annette Weisbach in Sintra, Portugal, on Tuesday.
&#8220;We are concerned — we are a small open economy, and conditions in our economy depend on the global economy, on trade conditions, on a strong demand for our goods. If there is to be a trade war, a slowdown in the global economy, that will affect us,&#8221; Kuben Naidoo said during the global summit for central bankers.
But despite the South African rand hitting a six-and-a-half-month low against the dollar, the bank is still taking a &#8216;wait-and-see&#8217; approach. The rand on Tuesday was at 13.8550 to the greenback at 2:09 p.m. local time. 
&#8220;So we don&#8217;t really act in a knee-jerk reaction to a currency weakness,&#8221; Naidoo said. He described what he saw as sound fundamentals in South Africa compared to other emerging markets that have had to hike rates, like Argentina and Turkey, adding that inflation is currently within range and the budget deficit, while high, is projected to decline.
Still, escalating trade tariffs between the world&#8217;s two largest economies and declining low confidence within the country will keep pressure on the bank&#8217;s policy makers, leaving the door open for future rate rises in response to the ongoing rand selloff.
&#8220;If there is persistence in that currency weakness and it feeds into other prices, we would have to act. It&#8217;s not an immediate response, we will wait — because the economy is weak we can afford to wait and see,&#8221; he said. &#8220;That may be a few months, maybe a few quarters.&#8221;
South Africa in March cut interest rates to their lowest in two years, down 25 basis points to 6.5 percent after judging that inflation would remain low and within the bank&#8217;s target of between 3 and 6 percent. Inflation in April jumped to 4.5 percent from March&#8217;s seven-year low of 3.8 percent.

Challenges ahead
The election by the ruling African National Congress (ANC) of 
pro-business President Cyril Ramaphosa 
 in December saw 
 business and consumer confidence improve 
, as well as a boost in the rand, following several years of damaged trust between investors and the government.
But the &#8220;Ramaphoria effect,&#8221; as many have called it, has faded alongside global trade worries and a depreciation in both the currency and domestic confidence, which has dipped to a seven-month low.
South Africa&#8217;s fairly new leadership faces a plethora of challenges, not least crippling unemployment at more than 26 percent, debt-ridden state-owned enterprises, high crime and poverty, and one of the highest inequality levels in the world.
The country&#8217;s government in late May passed a bill to 
 establish a minimum wage 
, meaning that millions of people will now earn 20 rand ($1.58) per hour, equivalent to 3,500 rand ($277) per month. South Africa&#8217;s main opposition party and several unions have opposed the bill, demanding a higher figure, and 
protests 
 surrounding the issue are set to continue.

South Africa will avoid a ‘knee-jerk’ reaction to currency weakness, central bank deputy says

What is Cannes Lions? | CNBC Explains

Justina Crabtree
Source: <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/18/united-arab-emirates-gives-ethiopia-1-billion-lifeline-to-ease-foreign-exchange-crisis.html">UAE gives Ethiopia $1 billion lifeline to ease foreign exchange crisis</a>
<ul>
<li class="">Ethiopia&#8217;s foreign exchange shortage is due in part to its spending big on infrastructure projects. The current total left in the East African country&#8217;s coffers is equivalent to less than one month&#8217;s worth of imports, Reuters reported.</li>
<li>Landlocked Ethiopia is keen to shore up its international trade infrastructure; for example, taking a stake in the Port of Djibouti in May.</li>
</ul>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cdn.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/18210224/105279279-GettyImages-975358548.1910x1000.jpg" alt="" height="1000" width="1910" data-licensor-name="Minasse Wondimu Hailu/Anadolu Agency | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images"/>
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is to deposit $1 billion in Ethiopia&#8217;s central bank to ease the latter&#8217;s foreign exchange shortage.
The sum is part of a total of a $3 billion aid and investment pledge from the UAE to Ethiopia announced Friday. The news came as Abu Dhabi&#8217;s Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan visited Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in Addis Ababa.
Ethiopia&#8217;s foreign exchange shortage is due in part to its spending big on infrastructure projects. The current total left in the East African country&#8217;s coffers is equivalent to less than one month&#8217;s worth of imports, Reuters has reported.

Over the weekend, Ethiopia and neighboring Somalia announced that they were investing in four seaports on the Red Sea to draw in foreign investment. Abiy and Somalian President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo, speaking in Somalia&#8217;s capital Mogadishu, issued a joint statement of pledges to cooperate on areas including infrastructure and visa services, according to Reuters.
In April, Abiy said that Ethiopia&#8217;s foreign exchange shortage could last up to 15 to 20 years, and that more cooperation with the private sector was needed to secure the country&#8217;s finances.
The Red Sea coastline is strategic because it leads to the Suez Canal, which serves as a gateway for shipping, moving between Eastern and Western markets.
Landlocked Ethiopia is keen to shore up its international trade infrastructure; for example, taking a stake in the Port of Djibouti in May.
The weekend&#8217;s news is the latest in a slew of reforms coming out of the Ethiopian government.
In early June, lawmakers voted to lift 
Ethiopia&#8217;s state of emergency two months 
 early. This was imposed following the sudden resignation of former Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn in February following anti-government protests fueled by ethnic tension.
Shortly after, the Ethiopian government said it would implement a historic peace deal with neighboring Eritrea, formerly a province of Ethiopia. The deal, though signed in 2000, did nothing to end a military standoff along the two countries&#8217; borders. Abiy, as reported by Reuters, said that Ethiopia and Eritrea should work to grow their economic and infrastructural ties.
In addition, the government also said it would allow private investment in some areas of the heavily state-controlled economy, including national carrier Ethiopian Airlines and the telecoms sector.
Ethiopia, a country that has seen double digit gross domestic product (GDP) expansion as recently as 2017, despite being among Africa&#8217;s poorest, has espoused a 
China-style state-led development model 
 in order to achieve economic growth.
According to the Central Intelligence Agency&#8217;s 2014 estimate, 29.6 percent of the population lives below the poverty line.

UAE gives Ethiopia $1 billion lifeline to ease foreign exchange crisis

Justina Crabtree
Source: <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/18/china-middle-east-are-spending-on-sudan-but-us-policy-is-confused.html">China and the Middle East are pouring money into strategic Sudan, but US policy is &#8216;confused&#8217;</a>
<ul>
<li>More interest from foreign investors is starting to trickle into Sudan after the U.S. lifted long-standing sanctions last October.
</li>
<li>But, China and the Middle East are currently the biggest international players in the East African country.</li>
<li>One expert on Sudan has told CNBC that the U.S.&#8217; policy on Sudan lacks clarity.</li>
</ul>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cdn.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/18210230/105221010-GettyImages-898553932.1910x1000.jpg" alt="" height="1000" width="1910" data-licensor-name="Kayhan Ozer | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images"/>
Since the U.S. lifted long-standing sanctions on Sudan last October, foreign investors&#8217; interest has started to trickle in, an expert on the region has told CNBC.
But it&#8217;s Chinese and Middle Eastern actors who already have first-mover&#8217;s advantage, Matthew Kindinger, sub-Saharan African analyst at emerging markets advisory firm Frontier Strategy Group, added.
&#8220;Any firm that was prevented from entering Sudan because of the U.S. sanctions now has much larger scope to expand in the market,&#8221; he said. &#8220;(But) the current administration&#8217;s Sudan policy appears to have become confused at the least, or at best a very low priority.&#8221;
Given the U.S.&#8217; sanctions, some of which date back to 1997 over human rights concerns and terrorism links, China and countries including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have instead been Sudan&#8217;s most prominent foreign investors.
&#8220;These countries want to maintain access to resource exports, such as petroleum to south Asian markets, and livestock to meet growing food demand in the Gulf states,&#8221; Chris Suckling, senior analyst at IHS Markit, told CNBC.
Sudan, located on the Horn of Africa and one of the continent&#8217;s largest countries by area, has suffered from brutal conflict for much of its history and saw its economy hit hard by the 2011 succession of its oil-rich southern region. The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued President Omar al-Bashir with arrest warrants for war crimes twice in the past decade.
Given its troubled past — and present — the country is yet to fully capitalize on its strategic potential.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cdn.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/18210234/105220968-GettyImages-958301068.1910x1000.jpg" alt="" height="1000" width="1910" data-licensor-name="Ashraf Shazly | AFP | Getty Images"/>
Sudan boasts a Red Sea coastline just ahead of the Suez Canal, a shipping passage that permits access between Eastern and Western markets. The country borders landlocked Ethiopia, Chad and South Sudan, with the former in particular keen to boost its export capacity and diversify the transport infrastructure it relies upon. Turkey, Qatar and Ethiopia have all inked deals to develop Sudan&#8217;s ports.
The country is also resource-rich, with significant gold and oil reserves.
Sudan, for its part, has been attempting to position itself as open to business after two decades as an investment pariah under the U.S.&#8217; sanctions. In 2013, the government passed its National Investment Encouragement Act, which prohibits discrimination against foreigners in business.
&#8216;Confused&#8217; U.S. foreign policy
According to Frontier Strategy Group&#8217;s Kindinger, the U.S. has been sending out mixed messages on its Sudan policy.
He said that while ties improved under former President Barack Obama&#8217;s administration, current President Donald Trump added Sudan to his travel ban list in 2017, only to remove it eight months later.
Last October, the Trump administration revoked sanctions on Sudan. &#8220;This decision was meant to be taken four months earlier, but couldn&#8217;t because Mr. Trump had not yet made the requisite appointees in the Africa department,&#8221; Kindinger said.
Nonetheless, Sudan remains on the State Department&#8217;s list of official sponsors of terror, despite sanctions being revoked partly because of Sudan&#8217;s backing of U.S. counterterrorism strategies. Inclusion on this list is an obstruction to any debt relief.
For its part, the State Department website says that trade and investment in Sudan is &#8220;not favorable for American firms,&#8221; citing &#8220;endemic corruption&#8221; on top of other factors including conflict, multiple exchange rates and poor banking and transport infrastructure.
An internationally untouched market
Shahram Safai, a partner at Dubai-based Afridi &amp; Angell Legal Consultants who advises on investment in Sudan, said that potential opportunities lie in mining, agriculture, livestock and industry. &#8220;Sudan is one of the few internationally untouched markets and the investment opportunities are unique,&#8221; he added.
Meanwhile, Kindinger pointed out increasing investor activity in sectors such as health care, information technology and consumer goods. He added that any much-needed expansion of the country&#8217;s infrastructure also presented an opportunity, highlighting Turkish firm Summa&#8217;s March deal to build a new international airport in the capital Khartoum for a reported $1.15 billion.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cdn.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/18210239/105220976-GettyImages-940963156.1910x1000.jpg" alt="" height="1000" width="1910" data-licensor-name="Ashraf Shazly | AFP | Getty Images"/>
But, moving into Sudan&#8217;s nascent market requires caution. The country ranks 170th out of 190 on the World Bank&#8217;s Ease of Doing Business index, for example.
Sudan&#8217;s &#8216;impending economic crisis&#8217;
Regardless of Sudan&#8217;s scope as a foreign investment destination, the country&#8217;s bloody conflict between the Arabic north and non-Arab south has spelled economic disaster thus far. South Sudan&#8217;s secession in 2011 took with it 75 percent of the country&#8217;s oil reserves. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), gross domestic product growth for Sudan plummeted by 10.6 percent the following year.
The removal of U.S. sanctions &#8220;has so far done little to avert the continued deterioration of Sudan&#8217;s oil-dependent economy or improve the country&#8217;s attractiveness to foreign investors,&#8221; Suckling said. The resulting rise in international trade has also compounded the country&#8217;s foreign exchange shortage.
Nonetheless, investment from the U.S. is expected to pick up, although China and the Middle East remain dominant for the moment. According to Afridi &amp; Angell&#8217;s Safai, the Sudanese authorities are working to improve the country&#8217;s banking sector to better facilitate the transfer of money.
&#8220;Once the full benefits of the lifting of U.S. sanctions is fully realized and implemented, we expect to receive far more interest,&#8221; he said.

China and the Middle East are pouring money into strategic Sudan, but US policy is ‘confused’

MOGADISHU, June 16 (Reuters) &#8211; Somalia and Ethiopia announced they were jointly investing in four seaports to attract foreign investment to their two countries, the latest move in a tussle for access to ports along one of the world’s most strategic waterways.
After Somalia’s president Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo hosted Ethiopia’s prime minister Abiy Ahmed for a meeting at the presidential palace in Mogadishu, the two leaders issued a joint statement of pledges to cooperate on everything from the development of infrastructure including roads linking the two countries to expanding visa services to promote cultural exchanges.
The statement did not elaborate on which ports the two countries would develop.
The Horn of Africa’s Red Sea coastline extending north of Somalia through Djibouti and Eritrea toward the critical Suez Canal is already dotted with ports owned or run by countries locked in a regional struggle: the United Arab Emirates and its ally Saudi Arabia on one side, and Turkey which backs Qatar on the other.
Landlocked Ethiopia, which has a population of 100 million, has been led since April by 41-year-old former intelligence officer Abiy, who has moved swiftly to assert his nation’s interests on the international stage.
“The leaders further agreed to invest in logistics and service provision specially to leading ports in the continent that can serve both the Indian ocean and the Red Sea,” the statement read.
The day before Abiy’s visit to Somalia, the United Arab Emirates pledged to give $3 billion to Ethiopia in aid and investments, in a major show of support for the new leadership in Ethiopia.
The strengthened partnership between Ethiopia and the oil-rich Gulf monarchy is significant in the context of Addis Ababa’s ties with Mogadishu.
Somalia and the UAE have been at odds for months over the broader dispute in the Gulf region.
That Middle Eastern feud is driving the desire to control the Horn of Africa and its waters, diplomats, businessmen, scholars and Somali officials have told Reuters.
In May, Ethiopian state media reported that Ethiopia had taken an unspecified stake in the port of Djibouti, its main gateway for trade.
Reporting by Abdi Sheikh Writing by Maggie Fick Editing by Stephen Powell

Why Ethiopia and Somalia are jointly investing in four seaports on the Red Sea

By Mari Blumenthal, H+K Strategies
Johannesburg, 18 June 2018. The Portuguese government has approved a shortlist of four potential buyers to participate in the second phase of the sale process of Mercantile Bank Holdings Limited (“Mercantile”). This approval allows the sale process of Mercantile by Caixa Geral de Depósitos, S.A. (“CGD”), a Portuguese State-owned banking and financial services group, to progress to the next phase.
CGD has received 18 non-binding offers for Mercantile, the bank controlling company and sole shareholder of Mercantile Bank Limited (“Mercantile Bank”), a niche business and commercial bank which specialises in serving entrepreneurs. CGD announced its intention to sell Mercantile last year as part of a strategic plan approved by the European Commission, requiring CGD to reduce its foreign assets. Mercantile is 100% owned by CGD. 
Pursuant to the recommendation of CGD, the Portuguese Government approved the shortlist of potential buyers after a thorough evaluation process by CGD and its advisors of the non-binding offers received.
The following potential buyers were selected based on the criteria set out in the Portuguese Decree-Law No. 153/2017 of 28 December 2017 which approved the sale process. The criteria included – amongst others – price, financial capacity and strategy.
• A consortium comprising Arise B.V. and Grindrod Bank Limited. Arise is an African investment company backed by the following shareholders: Norfund, a Norwegian investment fund for developing countries; FMO, a Dutch development bank; and Rabobank, a Dutch cooperative bank. 
• Capitec Bank Limited. Capitec is South Africa’s largest retail bank based on the number of customers who use it as their main bank. It has a market capitalisation of over R101 billion and PSG Group as its largest shareholder. 
• Nedbank Group Limited. Nedbank is the fourth largest bank in South Africa, ranked by assets. It has a market capitalisation of over R140 billion with Old Mutual plc as its majority shareholder. 
• A consortium comprising Public Investment Corporation SOC Limited (“PIC”) and Bayport Financial Services (Pty) Limited. The PIC is Africa’s largest asset manager, managing public sector funds in excess of R1.9 trillion. Bayport Financial Services is one of the largest non-bank providers of unsecured credit and allied products in South Africa. 
These approved potential buyers will now be allowed to conduct a due diligence process on Mercantile, including a full-day strategic engagement with Mercantile’s Board and management. This will be followed by the submission of binding offers. The entire process is expected to be finalised by the end of 2018, with the final approval by the Portuguese Government and with the completion being subject to South African regulatory approvals. 
Karl Kumbier, CEO of Mercantile, says Mercantile is pleased by the quality of the potential buyers on the list. “I believe interest in Mercantile from companies of this calibre is not only testament to the quality of our business, but also of our team. It is their hard work and commitment which has underpinned our success and strong growth trajectory over the past 5 years. I am excited that each of these potential buyers could open up new opportunities for Mercantile and add great value to our business, just as we can add great value to theirs.”
He adds it is also an encouraging sign for the South African economy to see a foreign corporation member of a consortium selected as one of the final four potential buyers. “It is very positive for South Africa to see foreign players willing to make a long-term investment here. Their interest in Mercantile not only shows that they believe in the growth potential of our business, but also in the potential of the South African entrepreneurs we serve.” 
Mercantile’s latest financial results for the year ending 31 December 2017 saw its net profit after tax climb by 20% to R213 million. This follows growth in net profit after tax of 21% in 2016 and 15% in 2015. Mercantile’s assets grew by 9% in 2017 to R13.4bn and deposits grew by 10% to R9.3bn.
ABOUT MERCANTILE BANK LIMITED 
Mercantile Bank traces back its origins in South Africa to 1965 and is owned by CGD, the largest bank in Portugal and a global financial services group with more than 140 years’ banking experience. Mercantile Bank is a niche business and commercial bank that seeks to differentiate itself through great service and a deep understanding of the needs of the South African entrepreneur.
Mercantile Bank has a comprehensive suite of products and services catering for the everyday banking needs of businesses.
While Mercantile Bank operates exclusively within South Africa, it has reach into other key African markets through CGD and fellow subsidiaries in Angola and Mozambique. There is an ongoing focus on capturing trade flows between these fast-growing economies.

Portuguese government announces shortlist of buyers for Mercantile Bank, here’s what you need to know

Justina Crabtree
Source: <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/14/google-ai-research-center-to-open-in-ghana-africa.html">Google&#8217;s next A.I. research center will be in Africa</a>
<ul>
<li>Google will open an artificial intelligence (AI) research center in Accra, Ghana, later this year, its first on the African continent.</li>
<li>Other African cities including Addis Ababa, Kigali and Lagos have also been pushing their credentials as tech hubs.</li>
<li>Ghana likely appealed to Google because of its high quality education system and political stability, an expert in the region told CNBC.</li>
</ul>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cdn.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/15070227/105273218-GettyImages-934210100.1910x1000.jpg" alt="" height="1000" width="1910" data-licensor-name="Seun Adatsi | Bloomberg | Getty Images"/>
GoogleGOOGL has announced that it will open an artificial intelligence (AI) research center in Africa, its first on the continent.
The Silicon Valley giant said that the new research hub will open in Accra, Ghana, later this year, announcing the move in a blog post published on Wednesday.
&#8220;We&#8217;re committed to collaborating with local universities and research centers, as well as working with policy makers on the potential uses of AI in Africa,&#8221; Google&#8217;s blog post said.
Accra, located in the west of Africa, joins cities including Paris, New York and Tokyo, as well as Google&#8217;s Mountain View headquarters, in hosting an AI research center.
While the decision is the first of its kind for Google in Africa, the company has had offices on the continent for the past decade. It already operates a digital skills training program that it believes can ultimately benefit 10 million Africans. In addition, Google runs a separate initiative called Launchpad Accelerator Africa that it says supports 100,000 developers and over 60 technology startups in Africa.
But, Accra isn&#8217;t the only city in Africa positing itself as a tech hub. Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa and Rwandan capital Kigali are both known for their credentials in tech development, for example. Meanwhile, 
Kenya has been singled out 
 by Microsoft founder Bill Gates for its &#8220;pioneering&#8221; innovation of digital payments platform M-Pesa.
Ghana likely appealed to Google because of the quality of its education system and other feeder institutions, Lucy James, associate consultant with Control Risks&#8217; Africa team, told CNBC via telephone on Thursday. The search company is focussed on &#8220;drawing in local talent and there&#8217;s no shortage of that in Ghana,&#8221; she said.
Ghana also enjoys relative political stability, James explained. Meanwhile, it&#8217;s neighbor Nigeria — the continent&#8217;s largest economy which also promotes business center Lagos as a burgeoning tech hub – is more prone to civil unrest.
Nonetheless, the choice may seem unusual given that Ghana ranks 12th for Sub-Saharan Africa in the World Bank&#8217;s latest Ease of Doing Business index. Rwanda, Kenya and South Africa – another of the continent&#8217;s big economies – all come in the top five by comparison.
But, Ghana&#8217;s pro-business government and entrepreneurial society may have contributed to its selection. People in Ghana share the &#8220;sense that you can disrupt something and make a difference,&#8221; James said.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cdn.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/15070232/104442872-rsz_gettyimages-619259384.1910x1000.jpg" alt="Google's Mountain View, Calif., headquarters. " height="1000" width="1910" data-licensor-name="bennymarty"/>

Google’s next A.I. research center will be in Africa

Justina Crabtree
Source: <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/15/zimbabwe-election-23-candidates-including-mnangagwa-chamisa.html">A record-breaking 23 people want to be the next president of Zimbabwe</a>
<ul>
<li>23 candidates have put themselves forward to contest Zimbabwe&#8217;s election on July 30.</li>
<li>Among those who will be on the ticket is incumbent President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who took power last November after long-term leader Robert Mugabe was ousted in a coup.</li>
<li>Mnangagwa has pledged that the vote will be free and fair. A delegation from the European Union will be present.</li>
</ul>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cdn.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/15150232/105275679-GettyImages-968434492.1910x1000.jpg" alt="" height="1000" width="1910" data-licensor-name="Jekesai Njikizana | AFP | Getty Images"/>
A record-breaking 23 people have put themselves forward to lead the southern African country of Zimbabwe in the country&#8217;s historic election next month, the highest number of candidates since the country gained independence from the U.K. in 1980.
Among those signed up to contest the presidency is incumbent President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who took power in November last year after long-term leader Robert Mugabe was 
ousted in a coup 
. Mnangagwa is Mugabe&#8217;s former deputy, and represents Zimbabwe&#8217;s ZANU PF party.
Also with his name on the ticket is Nelson Chamisa, the young leader of Zimbabwe&#8217;s main opposition party, Movement for Democratic Change.
The large number of candidates &#8220;is likely to work in Mnangagwa&#8217;s favor by splitting the opposition vote,&#8221; William Atwell, practice leader for Sub-Saharan Africa at emerging markets advisory firm Frontier Strategy Group, told CNBC via e-mail.
The election, to be held on July 30, is momentous because it will be the first without Mugabe on the ticket in nearly four decades. Mnangagwa has pledged that the vote will be free and fair, and has invited western observers. 
A delegation from the European Union 
 will be present.
Attwell added that he expected Mnangagwa to be re-elected, &#8220;albeit not with a thumping majority.&#8221; The sitting president could benefit from his incumbency, and has sought to present himself as a reformer.
Mnangagawa has pushed reform in Zimbabwe in an attempt to heal the economic wounds left from previous decades of mismanagement, which resulted in hyperinflation. He has 
courted foreign investors 
, and when launching the ZANU PF manifesto in early May, said that $11 billion had been committed.
Zimbabwe has also applied to re-join the Commonwealth, a bloc of former U.K. colonies which could bear economic fruit.
Earlier this week Mnangagwa hosted the China-Zimbabwe Business Forum in the capital Harare, at which he presented Chinese investors with an array of areas in which to put their money.
&#8220;The fact that we have 23 presidential hopefuls indicates that there is an opening of political space following the fall of former autocrat Robert Mugabe,&#8221; Attwell added.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cdn.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/15150240/105275726-GettyImages-969073530.1910x1000.jpg" alt="" height="1000" width="1910" data-licensor-name="Jekesai Njikizana | AFP | Getty Images"/>

A record-breaking 23 people want to be the next president of Zimbabwe

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