<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="640" height="390" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Z7OUSBHECZMJVEHQT7G2AZVSQU-1.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-615600"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">South African Rand coins are seen in this illustration picture taken October 28, 2020. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings/Illustration/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, April 30 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The South African rand slipped&nbsp;on&nbsp;Wednesday&nbsp;following mixed local economic data and&nbsp;as the dollar gained after data showed the U.S. economy contracted in the first quarter.



At&nbsp;1329 GMT, the rand traded at 18.62 against&nbsp;the dollar&nbsp;ZAR=D3, roughly 0.4% weaker than Tuesday&#8217;s closing level.



Domestic data showed South Africa recorded a trade surplus of 24.77 billion rand ($1.33 billion) in March, while the budget deficit stood at 13.11 billion rand in the same month.



The dollar=USD was last trading up about 0.25% against a basket of currencies, after a Commerce Department report showed U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) fell 0.3% in the first quarter.



The data was worse than market expectations, but better than the dire predictions touted by some of the biggest U.S. banks.



Earlier on Wednesday, South African Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana briefed reporters on the next steps for the local budget after he scrapped a fiercely-opposed increase in value-added tax and a court set aside parliament&#8217;s adoption of the fiscal framework.



He said a new budget would be presented on May 21, which would maintain a government focus on stabilising public debt.



Separately, central&nbsp;bank data showed private sector credit extension slowed slightly in March&nbsp;ZACRED=ECI&nbsp;to 3.45% year-on-year from 3.68% in February.



On the stock market, the Top-40&nbsp;.JTOPI&nbsp;index was last trading about 0.3% higher.



The benchmark 2030 government bond&nbsp;ZAR2030=&nbsp;was&nbsp;little changed,&nbsp;with the yield&nbsp;up 0.5 basis point at&nbsp;8.815%.



(Reporting by Sfundo Parakozov and Bhargav Acharya; Editing by Alexander Winning, Sharon Singleton and Mark Heinrich)

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South Africa’s rand weakens after mixed local data, US GDP dip

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="640" height="427" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/3GWHJ24G6BNGHDPVWY36IOPFFQ.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-615524"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">South Africa&#8217;s Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana speaks during his 2023 budget speech in Cape Town, South Africa, February 22, 2023. REUTERS/Shelley Christians/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



PRETORIA, April 30 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;South Africa&#8217;s finance ministry said on Wednesday that a new budget would be presented on May 21 which would maintain the government&#8217;s focus on stabilising public debt.



Africa&#8217;s biggest economy will adjust revenue and spending projections and growth forecasts after scrapping a contentious increase in value added tax that exposed deep rifts in the coalition government.



Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana&nbsp;said there would be thorough consultations with all political parties in the coalition before the revised budget is tabled in parliament, adding that fiscal consolidation was still in place.



His ministry issued a statement saying that debt stabilisation was &#8220;a crucial element in strengthening our public finances&#8221;.



Months of political wrangling over this year&#8217;s budget has caused investor unease, hurting the rand currency&nbsp;ZAR=D3.



The budget was postponed in February because of disagreements in the coalition over a plan to increase VAT from 15% to 17%.



A revised version in March proposed raising VAT by 1 percentage point over two years, but that plan was also deeply unpopular.



The Democratic Alliance, the second-biggest party in the Government of National Unity coalition, took the budget to court before agreeing an out-of-court settlement with the finance minister.



Godongwana acknowledged on Wednesday that the budget process had been messy.



&#8220;We are in a coalition government and we have to do things differently,&#8221; he said.



(Additional reporting by Bhargav Acharya and Sfundo Parakozov; Writing by Alexander Winning; Editing by Ed Osmond)

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South Africa says revised budget will keep focus on stabilising debt

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1080" height="720" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/AWIZDBZH5VO2XJX7G2VI2D5PBI.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-615478"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Ragui El-Etreby, Assistant Minister for Multilateral International and Regional Economic Affairs of Egypt, UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior and Reem bint Ebrahim Al Hashimy , Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov , Ethiopian Foreign Minister Gedion Timothewos, Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Indonesian Foreign Minister Sugiono, South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister on Economic Diplomacy, Seyed Rasoul Mohajer and Ambassador Dammu Ravi pose for a family picture, on the day of the BRICS Meeting of Ministers of Foreign Affairs in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, April 28, 2025. REUTERS/Pilar Olivares</figcaption></figure>



RIO DE JANEIRO, April 29 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Foreign ministers from the BRICS group of developing nations failed to agree on a joint communique on Tuesday, highlighting differences within the fast-growing diplomatic bloc,&nbsp;while&nbsp;the chair Brazil issued a statement condemning trade protectionism.



In the statement, Brazil said the group&#8217;s foreign ministers expressed &#8220;serious concern at the prospect of a fragmented global economy and the weakening of multilateralism&#8221; at their gathering in Rio de Janeiro.



The statement did not name the United States, which has taken a sharp protectionist shift under President Donald Trump, whose unilateral tariffs have raised concerns about a global economic slowdown.



The failure to reach a joint declaration was unexpected, a diplomatic source said, adding that there was room to iron out differences before July, when BRICS leaders will gather in Rio.



The expanded BRICS group, which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa as well as new joiners Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Indonesia and Iran, faces daunting challenges from U.S. trade actions.



&#8220;The ministers voiced serious concerns about the rise of unjustified unilateral protectionist measures inconsistent with WTO rules, including indiscriminate raising of reciprocal tariffs and non-tariff measures,&#8221; the statement said.



The statement reflected a broad consensus among the 11 countries, although a person involved in the negotiations said China &#8211; affected by 145% levies in the trade war with the U.S. &#8211; had pushed for a harsher tone.



&#8220;There was a consensus among all the countries, which is expressed in the declaration,&#8221; said Brazilian Foreign Relations Minister Mauro Vieira.



Still, the final declaration was a &#8220;chair statement,&#8221; falling short of a joint statement as the countries could not reach an agreement on all issues. Egypt and Ethiopia refused to accept some of the language calling for reform of the United Nations, including its Security Council, a longstanding aspiration of Brazil, India and South Africa.



That difference underscores the group&#8217;s new composition&nbsp;after&nbsp;new&nbsp;members that have&nbsp;competing views on some issues&nbsp;joined in 2024. The&nbsp;diplomatic source told Reuters that the new African members took issue with putting forward South Africa as a preferred BRICS candidate for a reformed Security Council.



&#8220;The expansion has its costs. Of course we have to work more to reach a consensus. But, at the same time, an expanded group has more power, more resources, more space for cooperation,&#8221; said the source.



Brazilian diplomats stressed the importance of a strong shared position on the central issue of &#8220;unjustified&#8221; trade barriers condemned in the declaration, which cited tariffs and non-tariff measures, such as the abuse of green policies for protectionist purposes.



&#8220;The main&nbsp;thing for BRICS is to ensure that the multilateral trade system doesn&#8217;t fall apart completely&#8221;, a diplomat told Reuters.



(Reporting by Lisandra Paraguassu; Additional reporting and writing by Andre Romani; Editing by Brad Haynes, Gabriel Araujo and Nia Williams)

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Growing BRICS group shows internal rifts as ministers fall short of joint statement

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="640" height="427" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/JT5FON3TKNLAVIU755DNGWMJVE.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-615451"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A fruit vendor stands in his shop at a market place in Nairobi, Kenya December 3, 2018. REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, April 30 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Kenya&#8217;s inflation rate&nbsp;KECPI=ECI&nbsp;in April rose to 4.1% year-on-year, up from 3.6% a month before, the statistics office said on Wednesday.



On a monthly basis, inflation was at 0.3% in April, the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics said in a statement.



Kenya&#8217;s inflation rate has risen steadily since a low of 2.7% in October, but remains well within the central bank&#8217;s 2.5% to 7.5% target range.



Earlier this month Kenya&#8217;s central bank cut its policy interest rate for the fifth meeting in a row to KECBIR=ECI 10.0%, a surprise move aimed at further stimulating private sector lending.



(Reporting by Hereward Holland; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Christopher Cushing)

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Kenya inflation rate rises to 4.1% in April

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/GettyImages-1258640786-1-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-427449" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/GettyImages-1258640786-1-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/GettyImages-1258640786-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/GettyImages-1258640786-1-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/GettyImages-1258640786-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/GettyImages-1258640786-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/GettyImages-1258640786-1-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Bill Gates, co-chairman of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, during the EEI 2023 event in Austin, Texas, US, on Monday, June 12, 2023. The event aims to address the major challenges and opportunities facing electric companies today. Photographer: Jordan Vonderhaar/Bloomberg via Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



April 29 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;A group of philanthropies including the Gates Foundation has set up a fund backed with nearly $500 million to help save the lives of newborn babies and mothers in sub-Saharan Africa, standing out against a bleak global health funding landscape.



The Beginnings Fund was launched on Tuesday in Abu Dhabi, the home of another key backer &#8211; the United Arab Emirates&#8217; recently established Mohamed Bin Zayed Foundation for Humanity.



The project has been in the works for at least a year. But its role has become more important as governments worldwide follow the U.S. in&nbsp;pulling back from international aid, its chief executive Alice Kang’ethe told Reuters in an interview.



“It is an opportune moment,” she said earlier this month, stressing that the fund aimed to work alongside African governments, experts and organizations rather than parachuting in experts or technologies, an approach she said differed from many traditional donor programmes.



The Beginnings Fund aims to save the lives of 300,000 mothers and newborn babies by 2030, and expand quality care for 34 million mothers and babies.



The partners also pledged $100 million in direct investments in maternal and child health, separate to the fund.



It plans to operate in Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Lesotho, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zimbabwe, focusing on low-cost interventions and personnel in high-burden hospitals. The work will track and target the key reasons babies and mothers die, including infection, severe bleeding for mothers, and respiratory distress for infants.



The world has made major progress in reducing newborn and maternal deaths, halving the neonatal mortality rate between 1990 and 2022. But that&nbsp;progress has stagnated or even reversed&nbsp;in nearly all regions in the last few years, according to the World Health Organization, which has warned that aid cuts could&nbsp;make this worse.



“Mothers and newborns should not be dying from causes we know how to prevent,” said Dr. Mekdes Daba, minister of health for Ethiopia, stressing that the majority of deaths are avoidable.



Kang’ethe said the Beginnings Fund, like other philanthropies, was getting calls to fill gaps in global aid funding, but remained focused on its long-term aim of changing the trajectory of mother and newborn survival.



The fund is also backed by the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, Delta Philanthropies and the ELMA Foundation, among others. It will be led from Nairobi, Kenya.

GettyImages-1258640786-1

Gates, others launch $500 million maternal, newborn health fund, bucking aid cuts trend

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/KC4JBNQVH5KDFMNHV4IGIF4FRY-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-546353" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/KC4JBNQVH5KDFMNHV4IGIF4FRY-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/KC4JBNQVH5KDFMNHV4IGIF4FRY-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/KC4JBNQVH5KDFMNHV4IGIF4FRY-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/KC4JBNQVH5KDFMNHV4IGIF4FRY-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/KC4JBNQVH5KDFMNHV4IGIF4FRY-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/KC4JBNQVH5KDFMNHV4IGIF4FRY-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: IMF African Department Director Abebe Aemro Selassie listens to a question during an interview with Reuters at the annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, in Marrakech, Morocco October 9, 2023. REUTERS/Susana Vera/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



April 25 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Sub-Saharan African economies should work to increase their domestic revenue collection to avoid having to take on debt amid &#8220;turbulent global conditions&#8221;, International Monetary Fund Africa Director Abebe Aemro Selassie said.



The region&#8217;s economy is likely to expand by 3.8% this year, the Fund said in its World Economic Outlook report this week, marking a cut from its previous forecast of 4.2% due to the potential impact of the U.S. administration&#8217;s stance on trade.



&#8220;There is a period where maybe relying on debt financing is not the right way to do development,&#8221; Abebe told Reuters, adding that policymakers have to also identify new sources of cheaper capital.



Investors sold off risky assets after President Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs on dozens of U.S. trading partners, pushing up the yields of most issuers in sub-Saharan Africa into double digits, a sign that such so-called frontier economies could struggle to access capital markets.



&#8220;You have to look for internal resources to address the development and address social spending needs,&#8221; Abebe said. &#8220;These policies that are to enhance resilience, there is a higher premium on those.&#8221;



The average debt-to-economic-output ratio in the region was steady last year at less than 60% of GDP, the IMF said, but some economies like Kenya have been struggling with high debt-servicing costs.



Although the United States is not a major trading partner for many economies in the region, the knock-on effects from its approach to international trade are also piling pressure on the foreign exchange rates of economies, he said.



&#8220;We have already seen oil prices decline&#8230; Countries like Nigeria and Angola are going to see a mark-down in economic activity, and they are some of the largest economies in sub-Saharan Africa,&#8221; he said.



The projected setback could interrupt a &#8220;hard fought economic recovery&#8221; from the global pandemic, a worldwide inflation spike and an interest rate surge that effectively locked many African economies out of foreign capital markets, the IMF said.



Growth in the region, home to a wide range of economies, including fairly diversified ones like Tanzania and Senegal, reached 4% last year, surpassing the IMF&#8217;s forecast of 3.6%, the Fund said.



Last year&#8217;s robust economic expansion in the region was accompanied by an improvement in macroeconomic imbalances, the IMF said, citing lower average inflation and stable debt levels.



&#8220;We have seen quite a lot of resilience in the region,&#8221; Abebe said, adding that 11 out of the 20 fastest-growing economies in the world will be in sub-Saharan Africa.



(Reporting by Karin Strohecker in Washington DC and Duncan Miriri in Nairobi; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

FILE PHOTO: IMF African Department Director Selassie at interview with Reuters during International Monetary Fund and the World Bank meeting in Marrakech

Sub-Saharan Africa must lift revenue to ride out global turbulence – IMF Africa head

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="720" height="474" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/INJ7YSACHNMCJGVADGR3LX4GQA.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-613563"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Members of the M23 rebel group mount their vehicles after the opening ceremony of Caisse Generale d&#8217;epargne du Congo (CADECO) which will serve as the bank for the city of Goma where all banks have closed since the city was taken by the M23 rebels, in Goma, North Kivu province in the East of the Democratic Republic of Congo, April 7, 2025. REUTERS/Arlette Bashizi/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



April 25 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Congo and Rwanda plan to sign an agreement in Washington on Friday to promote peace and economic development, sources told Reuters, part of a diplomatic push to end violence after an advance by Rwandan-backed rebels in eastern Congo.



The agreement, expected to be signed by the two countries&#8217; foreign ministers at a ceremony with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, comes as Washington is in talks to invest billions of dollars in mineral-rich Congo. Rwanda said this week it was also speaking to Washington about a possible minerals deal.



Congo has seen a surge in violence after Rwandan-backed M23 rebels launched a major offensive in January that led to the capture of the two largest cities in the east.



The United Nations and Western governments say Rwanda has provided arms and troops to M23. Rwanda denies backing M23 and says its military has acted in self-defence against Congo&#8217;s army and a militia founded by perpetrators of the 1994 genocide.



Both Qatar and the U.S. have shown an interest in mediating a resolution. The Gulf state has long positioned itself as a peacemaker, while Washington is interested in accessing a greater share of Congo&#8217;s mineral wealth.



A diplomatic source said the agreement to be signed on Friday aims to foster a &#8220;pathway to peace, stability, and integrated economic development&#8221; in eastern Congo and &#8220;the resumption of normal bilateral relations&#8221;.



Another source briefed on the agreement said it was intended to build investor confidence.



The Trump administration has taken a special interest in Congo since a Congolese senator contacted U.S. officials to pitch a minerals-for-security deal this year.



Washington wants greater access to minerals like copper, cobalt and lithium, which are used in mobile phones and electric cars, and are currently exploited predominantly by China and its mining companies.



(Reporting by Sonia Rolley and Jessica Donati; Editing by Robbie Corey-Boulet, Alison Williams, Alexandra Hudson)

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Congo and Rwanda to sign agreement in US on peace, economic development, sources say

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="2713" height="1897" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/MF7YJCVU2JJNLNHDA33ALMRGHM.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-613520"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">South Africa&#8217;s Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana speaks at a press conference ahead of his 2025 budget speech in Cape Town, South Africa March 12, 2025. REUTERS/Esa Alexander/File Photo </figcaption></figure>



WASHINGTON, (Reuters) &#8211; South African Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana said on Thursday he will not resign after the government&#8217;s U-turn on a planned value-added tax hike, despite opposition calls for him to quit.



&#8220;My job is to introduce money bills &#8211; nothing says they must be popular,&#8221; he told Reuters on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank spring meetings in Washington.



Godongwana,&nbsp;who&nbsp;landed in the U.S. capital this week already grappling with the worst rift in U.S.–South African relations in&nbsp;decades, was forced on Thursday&nbsp;to scrap a rise in&nbsp;the value-added tax that&nbsp;threatened the stability of the ruling coalition government.



The proposal to raise the VAT by 1 percentage point over two years, which was intended to boost state revenue, met resistance as Africa&#8217;s most industrialized economy grapples with sluggish growth and public discontent over rising living costs.



The about-turn blows a 75 billion rand ($4 billion)&nbsp;hole in the medium-term budget&nbsp;and leaves Godongwana with the task of drawing up what he said was &#8220;a different fiscal framework in line with the new realities of revenue and spending.&#8221;



&#8220;I still maintain that if the purpose for which the VAT was raised is taken into account, its reversal will have a negative impact on those issues&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;that cannot be disputed,&#8221;&nbsp;he&nbsp;said.



The revamped fiscal framework will be keenly watched by S&amp;P Global Ratings, which currently has a positive outlook on South Africa.



A credible outcome could secure the first credit rating upgrade for South Africa in two decades, while the opposite could raise future borrowing costs and dent investor appetite for the country.



&#8220;If you ask me, I don&#8217;t think what will inform them is the noise,&#8221; Godongwana said. &#8220;What will trigger them is whether the final product is a sustainable budget.&#8221;



($1 = 18.7792 rand)



(Reporting by Karin Strohecker in Washington and Colleen Goko in Johannesburg; Editing by Leslie Adler and Paul Simao)

MF7YJCVU2JJNLNHDA33ALMRGHM

South Africa’s finance minister says he won’t resign after VAT U-turn

<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/VZZUZJG5MVPPXDITWKEDW2SOB4.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-613502"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Chinese Finance Minister Lan Foan attends a press conference about a bill on raising ceilings on local government debt, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China November 8, 2024. REUTERS/Josh Arslan</figcaption></figure>



BEIJING, April 25 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;China warned a G20 meeting that world economic growth was &#8220;insufficient&#8221; as tariff and trade wars exacerbated economic and financial instability and sapped growth momentum, its finance ministry and central bank said.



Speaking at the group&#8217;s meeting in Washington, Finance Minister Lan Foan called on all parties to strengthen multilateral cooperation, saying that China supported dialogue and consultation &#8220;on equal footing&#8221; to settle trade and tariff disputes.



Meanwhile, People&#8217;s Bank of China Governor Pan Gongsheng said that economic fragmentation and trade tensions had disrupted supply chains, weakening the momentum of global economic growth, the central bank said in a separate readout on Friday.



Pan also told the meeting, which took place on Wednesday and Thursday, that the world&#8217;s major economies should strengthen their participation in international macroeconomic and financial policy coordination.



Other participants at the finance ministers and central bank governors meeting also flagged the significant increase in risks to global growth from trade tensions, tighter financing conditions and long-term structural challenges, according to the PBOC statement.



They also called for strengthening dialogue and policy coordination, the statement said without referring to the United States.



The Group of 20 major economies were meeting in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump&#8217;s announcement of hefty tariffs on imports that have triggered turmoil in financial markets and prompted the International Monetary Fund to cut its growth forecasts for most countries around the world.



While Trump later put some of the tariffs on hold, he raised China levies to 145%, and maintained a universal import tariff of 10% as well as 25% duties on cars, steel and aluminium.



The U.S. indicated talks were taking place with China on tariffs but Beijing on Thursday denied that, demanding the U.S. drop the levies.



Lan also urged for better implementation of the debt treatment mechanism under the G20&#8217;s Common Framework, and said all parties should pool more resources for Africa&#8217;s development and strengthen Africa&#8217;s capacity-building.



The finance ministry said Lan held bilateral meetings and exchanges with representatives from countries and organisations including South Africa, the European Commission, Pakistan, Germany, South Korea, Indonesia, Britain, Japan and the World Bank.



The meetings were mainly to discuss the macroeconomic situation, key issues of the G20 fiscal channels and bilateral cooperation, the readout said.



(Reporting by Liz Lee and Beijing newsroom; Editing by Himani Sarkar, Shri Navaratnam and Kate Mayberry)

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China warns G20 global economic growth ‘insufficient’, trade tensions weaken momentum

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="615" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/GettyImages-2191254056-820x615.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-613204" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/GettyImages-2191254056-820x615.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/GettyImages-2191254056-300x225.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/GettyImages-2191254056-120x90.jpg 120w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/GettyImages-2191254056-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/GettyImages-2191254056-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/GettyImages-2191254056-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">ZANZIBAR, TANZANIA &#8211; DECEMBER 14: A view of the Rock Restaurant, located on famous Paje Beach in Zanzibar, Tanzania, stands out for its unique location and atmosphere on December 14, 2024. Built on a rock in the middle of the Indian Ocean, this iconic restaurant offers its visitors an unforgettable experience with a landscape that changes with the tides. Known for its seafood menu and natural beauty, the restaurant is not only a popular dining spot but also one of Zanzibar&#8217;s landmarks, attracting both local and international tourists. (Photo by Mehmet Aslan/Anadolu via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



DAR ES SALAAM, April 24 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Tanzania has banned the importation of agricultural products from Malawi and South Africa, saying it was retaliation for similar hostile trade measures from both countries.



The three countries all belong to a regional economic bloc, the Southern African Development Community, SADC.



Tanzania had demanded that both countries rescind bans on imports of agricultural goods from Tanzania by Wednesday, but they had not done so, agriculture minister Hussein Bashe said in a video posted on his X account late on Wednesday.



Malawi had recently banned imports of Tanzanian commodities like maize flour, rice, ginger, and bananas, among others, while South Africa has also proscribed the import of bananas shipped by Dar es Salaam.



&#8220;I would like to officially announce that from this night&#8230; we won&#8217;t allow any agricultural products from South Africa in our country,&#8221; Bashe said, adding a similar ban was being imposed on Malawi.



Talks to resolve the trade impasse, however, would continue with both countries, he said.



He said Tanzania will start prohibiting the transit of agricultural goods from other countries through its territory to land-locked Malawi, and will also ban the export of Tanzanian fertilizer to Malawi.



&#8220;We are taking this measure to protect our business. This is business, and we should all respect each other,&#8221; Bashe said.



(Reporting by Nuzulack Dausen; Writing by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by William Maclean)

The Rock Restaurant on Zanzibar’s Paje Beach

Tanzania bans agriculture imports from South Africa, Malawi

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="4630" height="2675" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/I626AAIJRJP7DJDRYXCYV56KLA-1.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-613046"/><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</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, April 24 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;South Africa on Thursday scrapped plans to raise value-added tax after a political backlash that threatened the stability of the ruling coalition government.



The proposal to raise VAT by 1 percentage point over two years, intended to boost state revenue, met resistance as Africa&#8217;s biggest economy grapples with sluggish growth and public discontent over rising living costs.



The dominant African National Congress backed the hike, saying there were no other sustainable revenue sources, while the second largest coalition party, the Democratic Alliance, said the move would pile more pressure on struggling households.



As the DA celebrated the decision, announced by the finance ministry, senior party official Helen Zille said there was a lack of trust between the two groups, leaving the future of the coalition uncertain.



ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula described the differences over the VAT hike as a learning experience for the former liberation movement.



&#8220;If we had a wealth of experience, we may have approached this differently, meaning negotiations and engagement with political parties, with Treasury and parliament oversight prior the passing of the budget,&#8221; Mbalula told a media briefing.



VAT will be maintained at 15%,&nbsp;the finance ministry said.&nbsp;Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana will introduce a revised version of the Appropriation Bill and Division of Revenue Bill within the next few weeks,&nbsp;it added.



&#8220;Political flip-flopping about tax proposals has created confusion, which sends the wrong message to foreign investors,&#8221; Jee-A van der Linde, a senior economist at Oxford Economics Africa, said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lost-revenue">LOST REVENUE</h2>



Without the VAT increase, estimated revenue is expected to fall short by around 75 billion rand ($4.02 billion) over the medium term,&nbsp;the ministry said.



&#8220;Parliament will be requested to adjust expenditure in a manner that ensures that the loss of revenue does not harm South Africa&#8217;s fiscal sustainability,&#8221;&nbsp;the finance ministry said.



The withdrawn tax hike was a significant retreat from an initial proposal by the National Treasury in February to raise VAT by 2 percentage points to fund spending on health, transport and education.



The DA had challenged the planned tax hike in court and voted against the budget&#8217;s fiscal framework in parliament because of it.



Finance Minister Godongwana had argued in court papers that failure to raise the VAT would cause severe harm to state finances.



The DA had argued the government should cut expenditure instead and some smaller political parties had also proposed deeper expenditure cuts.



The finance ministry said while some suggestions were worthwhile, they &#8220;would not provide an immediate avenue for further revenue in the short term to replace a VAT increase&#8221;.



($1 = 18.6741 rand)



(Reporting by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo; Additional reporting by Sfundo Parakozov, Alexander Winning and Kopano Gumbi; Editing by Kim Coghill, Alison Williams and Andrew Heavens)

I626AAIJRJP7DJDRYXCYV56KLA

South Africa abandons planned VAT hike after pushback

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="5000" height="3186" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/M2ZI6JYVCRIEJFPLEKGFTIN3BA.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-613097"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">South Africa&#8217;s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola greets Ukraine&#8217;s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on his arrival ahead of talks with South African president Cyril Ramaphosa in Pretoria, South Africa April 24, 2025. Jacoline Schoonees/DIRCO/Handout via REUTERS</figcaption></figure>



KYIV, April 24 (Reuters) &#8211; Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he would cut short a trip to South Africa on Thursday and return to Kyiv following a Russian missile attack on the Ukrainian capital.



Zelenskiy, who has been trying to shore up international support for Ukraine&#8217;s defence against Russia&#8217;s invasion, said he would immediately travel back to Ukraine after meeting South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.



&#8220;The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine will hold all necessary meetings in South Africa to fully inform the country&#8217;s political and public leaders about the situation,&#8221; Zelenskiy wrote on the Telegram app.



Russia pounded Kyiv with missiles and drones overnight, killing at least eight people, wounding more than 70 and smashing buildings in the biggest attack on the Ukrainian capital this year.



(Reporting by Olena Harmash and Tom Balmforth; Editing by)

M2ZI6JYVCRIEJFPLEKGFTIN3BA

Zelenskiy cuts short S.Africa trip after Russian strike on Kyiv

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1080" height="720" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/HZRODE5UBVK35L6PSBZDHSBEBI.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-613079"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Chinese President Xi Jinping and Kenyan President William Ruto attend a welcome ceremony at The Great Hall of The People on April 24, 2025 in Beijing, China. IORI SAGISAWA/Pool via REUTERS</figcaption></figure>



BEIJING, April 24 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;China and Kenya announced they had upgraded ties to a &#8220;new level&#8221; on Thursday during a meeting between President Xi Jinping and Kenyan President William Ruto in Beijing, as they both pledged to create an &#8220;all weather&#8221; China-Africa community.



In a joint China-Kenya statement, both leaders said they were &#8220;committed to injecting more stability into the world with the certainty of China-Africa solidarity and cooperation&#8221;.



This would provide a backbone to safeguard the &#8220;common interests of developing countries&#8221;, it said, and defend the multilateral system, via &#8220;inclusive economic globalisation&#8221;.



The decision to upgrade China-Kenya relations was made &#8220;in the face of a turbulent international situation&#8221;, the Chinese president was quoted as saying in a separate media pool report.



Africa is a key focus of Xi&#8217;s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative, launched in 2013 to extend China&#8217;s geopolitical and economic influence through global infrastructure development.



Kenya has been a key BRI recipient, and Nairobi has taken a slew of loans from China to finance infrastructure construction projects that have made China the east African nation&#8217;s biggest bilateral lender.



Among the projects, China is helping fund the development of a modern railway line from the port of Mombasa into the hinterland.



Xi and Ruto signed 20 documents together on Thursday, according to a media pool report. These included agreements on science and technology cooperation, vocational education, water resources, ecommerce, intelligent transport systems and the railway sector.



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



The country has been struggling with a heavy debt load and the accompanying cost of servicing it.



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



It is Ruto&#8217;s first state visit to China as president of Kenya.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-increased-cooperation">INCREASED COOPERATION</h2>



Ruto and Xi&#8217;s joint statement said both countries would continue to uphold the World Trade Organisation&#8217;s values and basic principles and &#8220;resolutely oppose new hegemonic tactics such as illegal unilateral sanctions, &#8216;decoupling and chain breaking&#8217;, tariff barriers and technological blockades&#8221;.



The two sides said they would deepen peace and security exchanges by strengthening cooperation in personnel training, the military industry, counter-terrorism, joint exercises and training.



Chinese companies can cooperate with Kenya in building a local medical and health industry according to Kenya&#8217;s needs, the statement said.



Both sides are also willing to rely on major projects such as the Mombasa-Nairobi railway to enhance infrastructure construction and connectivity within Africa.



The opening of direct flights between Beijing and Nairobi was also being &#8220;actively explored&#8221; it said.



(Reporting by Farah Master in Hong Kong, Liz Lee and Beijing newsroom; Editing by Himani Sarkar, Kate Mayberry and Michael Perry)

HZRODE5UBVK35L6PSBZDHSBEBI

China, Kenya upgrade ties amid ‘turbulent international situation’

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="768" height="402" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/AA1DsPom.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-612780" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/AA1DsPom.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/AA1DsPom-300x157.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/AA1DsPom-160x84.jpg 160w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Selim Korkutata | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Bitcoin rose for a third day in a broad relief rally after President Donald Trump softened his tone on China tariffs and ratcheted down his rhetoric against Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.



The price of the flagship cryptocurrency was last higher by 2.4% at $93,660, according to Coin Metrics. Earlier, it rose as high as $94,499.86, its highest level since March 3. Bitcoin has now given back more than half of its losses since Inauguration Day and is hovering just under the flat line for the year.



“This recent surge primarily reflects a market seizing the opportunity to capitalize on a dip in an asset that consistently proves its value as a compelling option for portfolio diversification and hedge against macroeconomic uncertainty and U.S. dollar volatility,” Joel Kruger, market strategist at LMAX, told CNBC.



On Tuesday, exchange-traded funds tracking the price of bitcoin saw a spike in inflows as interest in the cryptocurrency’s potential as a hedge strengthened amid continued stock market turbulence and a diving dollar. Bitcoin ETFs logged $936.43 million in daily inflows, their biggest day since Jan. 17, according to data from SoSoValue.



Bitcoin’s rally this week has forced short sellers to buy bitcoin back from the market to close their positions, thereby pushing the price even higher. In the past 24 hours, bitcoin has seen more than $300 million in short liquidations across exchanges, according to CoinGlass.



Demand for spot bitcoin has been contracting on a monthly basis, although that contraction has slowed in recent days, taking downward pressure off the price, Julio Moreno, head of research at crypto data provider CryptoQuant, told CNBC. However, he warned, the demand growth indicators have a ways to go before getting to late 2024 levels, which is what bitcoin would need to sustain its rally and see new all-time highs.

AA1DsPom

Bitcoin heads toward $95,000, rising for a third day and turning positive on the year

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="536" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/34VAE6NZTJLMTNUVKTT6O3FWY4-820x536.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-529745" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/34VAE6NZTJLMTNUVKTT6O3FWY4-820x536.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/34VAE6NZTJLMTNUVKTT6O3FWY4-300x196.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/34VAE6NZTJLMTNUVKTT6O3FWY4-138x90.jpg 138w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/34VAE6NZTJLMTNUVKTT6O3FWY4-768x502.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/34VAE6NZTJLMTNUVKTT6O3FWY4-1536x1005.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/34VAE6NZTJLMTNUVKTT6O3FWY4-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Shoppers look for items as they shop at an outlet of retailer Checkers in Sandton City mall, in Sandton, South Africa, August 28, 2024. REUTERS/Lelethu Madikane</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, April 23 (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa&#8217;s annual inflation rate fell for the first time in five months in March to its lowest level since June 2020, due to a drop in fuel costs and softer price rises for tuition.



Headline consumer inflation eased to 2.7% year-on-year from 3.2% in February, below the 2.9% expected by economists polled by Reuters, and outside the South African Reserve Bank&#8217;s (SARB) 3% to 6% target range.



A breakdown by Statistics South Africa showed the fuel index was down 8.8% last month.



Education fees, which are surveyed once a year in March, increased 4.5%, slower than the previous year&#8217;s 6.4% rise.



Some analysts thought the latest inflation numbers gave the central bank scope to cut interest rates at its next monetary policy meeting in May.



&#8220;There is ample room for the (central bank) to cut rates further to support the economy, to soften the hit from the global trade war,&#8221; Elize Kruger, a South Africa-based independent economist,&nbsp;said.



The SARB left its key lending rate unchanged at its last meeting in March after three consecutive cuts, citing risks from U.S. President Donald Trump&#8217;stariffs and the country&#8217;s disputed national budget.



It stuck to that cautious tone in a biannual review of its monetary policy last week.



Elna Moolman at Standard Bank saw signs of weakness in the residential rental market in Wednesday&#8217;s release, which she said was helping keep inflationary pressures benign.



However, the SARB&#8217;s concerns around global tariffs and a weaker local currency meant further rate cuts may not necessarily happen soon, she said.



(Additional reporting by Bhargav Acharya; Editing by Alexander Winning and Rachna Uppal)

Shoppers look for items as they shop at an outlet of retailer Checkers

South African inflation falls to five-year low in March as fuel, education costs ease

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1258656549-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-523855" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1258656549-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1258656549-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1258656549-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1258656549-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1258656549-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1258656549-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Wamkele Mene, secretary-general of African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), during a Bloomberg Television interview at the Bloomberg New Economy Gateway Africa event in Marrakesh, Morocco, on Tuesday, June 13, 2023. The event brings together leaders in the private and public sectors to discuss the world&#8217;s most pressing issues and evaluate potential solutions in the context of local and regional priorities. Photographer: Hollie Adams/Bloomberg via Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



African Continental Free Trade Agreement Secretary General Wamkele Mene says African countries must unify trade policies in order to deal with the disruption caused by U.S. President Donald Trump’s global tariffs.



“The good news out of this crisis is that our heads of states understand that there is not a single market in Africa that will survive on its own,’’ Mene told CNBC Africa in an interview. ’’We are not going to be able to negotiate bilaterally successfully. I think that&#8217;s clear. We will have to leverage on our combined efforts, our combined market size, market share, and combined population size.’’



President Trump has slapped tariffs on almost every country in the world, complaining they have been taking advantage of the world’s largest economy’s openness for trade. Economists have however questioned the methodology used to arrive at the tariffs which saw the small mountain kingdom of Lesotho slapped with the highest tariff rate at 50 percent under Trump’s ‘reciprocal’ tariffs.



While most countries have sought to negotiate, China, the world’s second largest economy has retaliated with 125% tariffs on the U.S. after it jacked up the initial tariffs to 145%.



The tariffs on Africa have called into question the future of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) under which a number of African countries enjoyed duty free access to U.S. markets. The pact is due for renewal this year.



Mene said AGOA was practically dead anyway, given the sweeping nature of President Trump’s tariffs.



“I think if we look at the measures that the U.S. introduced, both the tariff and non-tariff measures, AGOA is no longer alive,’’ Mene said. “What we should always remember, though, is that it was a unilateral preference.’’



He said the disruption caused by the tariffs was going to hurt countries like South Africa and Nigeria, the continent’s largest economies as well as smaller ones like Lesotho, Madagascar, Angola and Kenya. But he suggests the continent should use the opportunity to diversify its markets and strengthen intra-African trade, which remains the lowest among global regions at under 20 percent.



He cited the example of Ethiopia which doubled its exports after being kicked out of AGOA by partnering with China.



‘’The benevolence of others is not going to get us anywhere. We&#8217;ve got to very, very quickly redouble our efforts to build this domestic market because we can&#8217;t rely on others.’’



To accelerate the implementation of the AfCFTA, Mene said African Ministers of Trade are looking at ways of simplifying the ‘’complicated method’’ used to reduce tariffs among member countries which was negotiated in 2017. ‘’It’s a very different world to today. So, how do we make sure that we have a liberalization modality that takes account for where we are, the reality of today?,’’ he said lamenting the $50 billion African countries expend annually to import grain when it has grain exporters.

Key Speakers at New Economy Gateway Africa Event

AfCFTA Secretary General Calls for Unified African Trade Policy as Trump Tariffs Hit

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="462" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/107004870-16427966702022-01-21t201709z_969185203_rc2w3s99wb9o_rtrmadp_0_argentina-imf-mexico-820x462.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-420118" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/107004870-16427966702022-01-21t201709z_969185203_rc2w3s99wb9o_rtrmadp_0_argentina-imf-mexico-820x462.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/107004870-16427966702022-01-21t201709z_969185203_rc2w3s99wb9o_rtrmadp_0_argentina-imf-mexico-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/107004870-16427966702022-01-21t201709z_969185203_rc2w3s99wb9o_rtrmadp_0_argentina-imf-mexico-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/107004870-16427966702022-01-21t201709z_969185203_rc2w3s99wb9o_rtrmadp_0_argentina-imf-mexico-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/107004870-16427966702022-01-21t201709z_969185203_rc2w3s99wb9o_rtrmadp_0_argentina-imf-mexico.jpeg 929w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The new economic measures laid out by the U.K. government “will likely increase inequality”, according to a spokesperson from the International Monetary Fund.
Yuri Gripas | Reuters</figcaption></figure>



The International Monetary Fund has cut its forecast for African economic growth by 0.3 percentage points, citing multiple shocks hitting the continent including U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs across the world.



While lauding resilience across the continent, the Washington-based lender now expects its 54 economies to expand by 3.9 percent this year, down from its October forecast of 4.2 percent, it said in a joint statement by its Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva and Hervé Ndoba, the Central African Republic’s Minister of Finance and Budget who is Chair of the African Caucus.



‘’The strong policy actions that have been taken to bring down inflation, stabilize public debt, and reduce external imbalances risk being undone in the face of further shocks,’’ the statement said. &#8220;Risks to the outlook are high amid elevated uncertainty and there are significant differences across countries, with fragile and conflict affected states facing particularly acute challenges.’’



President Trump’s universal tariffs threaten recovering growth across Africa and access to the world’s largest economy through the African Growth and Opportunity Act which is due for renewal this year. Lesotho, derided by Trump as a country nobody has ever heard of, ended with the world’s largest rate at 50 percent.



The continent has struggled to respond, with some countries including Zimbabwe and South Africa saying they would not retaliate and seeking talks, while Kenya has said it is confident it will secure a deal on its own.



The joint statement said African countries will need to intensify domestic reform efforts in the face of the disruption, in order to promote fiscal sustainability while strengthening economic integration through the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA). Central banks should cut rates where appropriate to support economic growth, it added.



‘’At the same time, ambitious structural reforms will unlock growth and drive job creation,’’ it said. “The IMF will remain agile in adapting our toolkit, policy advice, and capacity development to respond to emerging challenges, including from more frequent shocks and transformational shifts from digitalization and AI.’’



The IMF said it remained supportive of initiatives like the G20 Common Framework and the Global Sovereign Debt Roundtable on debt reduction to help countries battling high debt. World Bank figures show average African government debt to gross domestic product ratios remain high at around 60 percent.



The African Caucus, which is made up of African finance ministers and central bank governors, meets with fund management at its annual meetings while the African Consultative Group comprises the Fund Governors of a subset of 12 African countries who are members of the African Caucus and only meets at the Spring Meetings.

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Tanzania bans agriculture imports from South Africa, Malawi

South Africa abandons planned VAT hike after pushback

Zelenskiy cuts short S.Africa trip after Russian strike on Kyiv

China, Kenya upgrade ties amid ‘turbulent international situation’

Bitcoin heads toward $95,000, rising for a third day and turning positive on the year

South African inflation falls to five-year low in March as fuel, education costs ease

AfCFTA Secretary General Calls for Unified African Trade Policy as Trump Tariffs Hit

IMF Cuts 2025 African growth forecast as Trump tariffs disrupt trade

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featured

South Africa’s rand weakens after mixed local data, US GDP dip

South Africa says revised budget will keep focus on stabilising debt

Growing BRICS group shows internal rifts as ministers fall short of joint statement

Kenya inflation rate rises to 4.1% in April

Gates, others launch $500 million maternal, newborn health fund, bucking aid cuts trend

Sub-Saharan Africa must lift revenue to ride out global turbulence – IMF Africa head

Congo and Rwanda to sign agreement in US on peace, economic development, sources say

South Africa’s finance minister says he won’t resign after VAT U-turn

China warns G20 global economic growth ‘insufficient’, trade tensions weaken momentum

Tanzania bans agriculture imports from South Africa, Malawi

South Africa abandons planned VAT hike after pushback

Zelenskiy cuts short S.Africa trip after Russian strike on Kyiv

China, Kenya upgrade ties amid ‘turbulent international situation’

Bitcoin heads toward $95,000, rising for a third day and turning positive on the year

South African inflation falls to five-year low in March as fuel, education costs ease

AfCFTA Secretary General Calls for Unified African Trade Policy as Trump Tariffs Hit

IMF Cuts 2025 African growth forecast as Trump tariffs disrupt trade

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Advertise With Us

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