🔅 African entrepreneurs bank
A new record in venture capital investment
Good morning ☕
In today’s issue, African countries will advocate together at climate meetings, Kenya authorises GMO crops, and African entrepreneurs garnered a record in venture capital investment…
Markets Today
📉 Nigerian SE: 48,879.74 (-0.29%)
📈 Johannesburg SE: 66,312.81 (+3.25%)
— Ghana SE: No data
📉 Nairobi SE: 126.66 (-1.26)
📈 US S&P 500: 3,776.26 (+2.66%)
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*Data accurate as of close of markets
South Africa: The rand rose on Tuesday as US Treasury yields and the dollar fell. The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) estimated on Tuesday that projected power cuts undertaken by utility Eskom would reduce economic growth by around 1.0 percentage point by 2022. However, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange closed higher, owing primarily to advances in the mining index.
Global Markets: Inflation in Turkey has climbed to above 83% - a 24-year-high. Independent experts estimate the annual rate is actually 186.27%. Last year Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan took the unorthodox step of cutting interest rates to try to boost the economy. Most central banks raise interest rates to fight inflation.
CLIMATE CHANGE
African countries will advocate for a single energy position at COP27
African countries will use the COP27 climate meetings in Egypt next month to press for a shared energy approach that acknowledges the need for fossil fuels in the medium term to boost economies and electricity access.
The African attitude, which environmental groups have criticised, might overshadow climate talks in Sharm El-Sheikh. At the same time, African countries are still waiting for wealthier nations to fulfil their financial commitments to poorer countries, which have fallen far short of the projected $100 billion per year by 2020.
According to an AU technical report attended by 45 African countries on June 16 and obtained by Reuters, oil and coal would play a "critical role" in expanding modern energy access in the short- to medium-term.
Along with renewable energy, Africa sees natural gas and nuclear power playing essential roles as the continent concentrates on new technologies and decarbonisation initiatives to minimise harmful emissions from its fossil fuels industry.
Africa, regarded as having enormous prospects for renewable energy because of its immense solar, wind, and hydrogen potential, also has over 600 million people in the Sub-Saharan region who lack access to electricity and nearly 1 billion citizens who lack access to clean energy for cooking.
ACROSS THE CONTINENT
Other Headlines
🌱 Kenya's newly elected President William Ruto's government has authorised the growing and importing of genetically modified crops and animal feeds, lifting a 10-year prohibition. The announcement comes at a time when the country is experiencing its worst drought in 40 years. At least 4 million people are believed to be hungry. With this move, it becomes only the continent's second country to legalise genetically modified foods, following South Africa.
🛢️ Climate envoy John Kerry of the United States has asked the Democratic Republic of the Congo to withdraw some of the oil blocks it has placed up for sale to safeguard forests, he said on the sidelines of a climate conference in Kinshasa on Tuesday. In July, Congo auctioned off 30 oil and gas blocks. Environmentalists are concerned that the auction may provide access to areas of the world's second-largest rainforest. The Congolese government has stated that it needs to tap into its immense natural resources to grow its economy, power industries, and supply electricity to its people.
💻 In the first half of this year, African entrepreneurs garnered a record $3.5 billion in venture capital investment, defying a global drop in dealmaking tied to global economic instability. The cash, which 300 separate companies raised, represents a 133% increase over the same period last year. During the period, MFS Africa, a Kenyan fintech and solar startup, and Wasoko, an e-commerce company, all received capital ranging from $75 million to $125 million. The success of startups such as Nigeria's Paystack, purchased in 2020 by US payments firm Stripe, and fellow fintech unicorn Flutterwave has fuelled international interest in the continent's up-and-coming businesses.
AROUND THE WORLD
Saudi Arabia and Russia drive OPEC alliance plans to prop up prices
Saudi Arabia and Russia are driving efforts by the world's largest oil-rich countries to reduce oil production and so prop up prices as the rest of the globe struggles to reduce energy costs in the face of the ongoing war in Ukraine.
The 13 members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), led by Riyadh, and its 11 allies, led by Moscow, will meet in person for the first time since March 2020 on Wednesday.
In an effort to support prices, OPEC is set to agree to its most significant supply cut since the start of the Covid-19 outbreak at its summit in Vienna.
After Putin launched the invasion of Ukraine in February, energy costs skyrocketed, pushing inflation to decades-high levels that have put pressure on economies around the world and led to post-pandemic cost-of-living difficulties in some countries.
However, oil prices have decreased in recent months due to fears about demand amid a worldwide economic slowdown.
Consumer countries have urged OPEC+ to open more taps to lower prices, but the organisation has mainly ignored their requests. Putin has used his clout in the oil and gas markets to resist the crippling Western sanctions imposed on Russia for its incursion.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
Proverb of the Day
"The water of the river flows on without waiting for the thirsty man."
— Kenyan Proverb.