Breaking News Today - Monday 28 September 2026

New Nigerian Tax Framework Signed into Effect

President Bola Tinubu signed Nigeria’s four tax reform laws over the weekend in Abuja. The new package, called the Nigeria Tax Act, consolidates dozens of overlapping taxes into one framework and replaces FIRS with the Nigeria Revenue Service. VAT will remains at 7.5%. Individuals earning N800,000 a year or less pay no personal income tax; the top rate of 25% only applies to income above N50 million. Small companies, with turnover up to N100 million and assets up to N250 million, are exempt from company income tax. Other firms face a 30% CIT plus a 4% Development Levy that replaces several older levies. Capital gains tax on companies rises to 30%. The aim is simpler compliance, a wider tax base and less dependence on oil taxes. Implementation gaps are now under a government review.

Goldfields Pushes for Australian Mine Acquisition

South Africa’s Gold Fields has approached Australia’s largest gold producer, Northern Star Resources, about a potential takeover, in what could become one of the biggest deals in the gold industry. Northern Star rejected the initial offer, but Gold Fields is still weighing its options, signalling ongoing interest and possible further negotiations. Elevated gold prices are driving mining companies to consolidate and maximise asset value, spurring Gold Fields' aggressive expansion in Australia. Northern Star, is valued at around $31.5 (Australian)billion, and faces added pressure from activist investor Elliott Investment Management, alongside recent leadership changes, and operational setbacks at its Kalgoorlie plant.

New Markets Open For SA Defence Industry  

South African defence manufacturer Denel's group executive Thivian Vadivelu has disclosed that a North African customer acquired missiles for maritime helicopters and naval frigates from the company. The country was not named. Its defence division says production of A-Darter air-to-air missiles for South Africa’s armed forces is also continuing. The company has also delivered its Seeker 400 drone to the South African military. The disclosures come as Denel tries to rebuild a business still constrained by financial difficulties.

Breaking Business and Market News Shorts:  

• Copper futures are down today to around $6.6 per pound, and extending their decline from record highs last week. This as softening economic data from top copper consumer China, weighed on the demand outlook. Industrial profits in China increased 15.7% in the first eight months from a year earlier, slowing from a 17.6% rise during January-July

• Aliko Dangote, is partnering with Ethiopia and Djibouti to construct a 120km multi-product pipeline from Djibouti’s Damerjog port to Dewele in Ethiopia, and in addition will incorporate a major storage facility. Expected online in ~18 months, the pipeline will cut fuel transport time from five days to one, lower costs and boost energy security for landlocked Ethiopia

• Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index lifted 0.5%, or 124 points, to around 24,635 today, rebounding from three consecutive contracting trading sessions last week, as finance, technology and energy minerals provided support. The rally came despite a rise in Treasury yields to multi-decade highs as markets priced in the possibility of further Federal Reserve rate hikes.

• China's Shanghai Composite fell 0.8% to 3,859 today, while the Shenzhen Component lost 2.1% to a near two-month low of 13,033, as investors weighed the lack of breakthroughs at the Trump-Xi summit after returning from the holiday break. During the meeting, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced that the US and China had agreed to extend their trade truce through January
• Brent crude oil futures climbed above $106 per barrel this morning, spiking upward by over 2.4% and shedding losses from the previous session, after President Donald Trump rejected Iran’s latest proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, raising concerns that the restoration of oil flows through the critical waterway could face further delays. 

Markets by Numbers 

(All prices quoted at approximately 07H20 Central African Time) 

African General News Briefs:

• Two attacks, only hours apart, left at least 27 dead and dozens injured in South Africa over the weekend. On Saturday night near Johannesburg (Wedela/Carletonville township), eight gunmen with AK-47s and pistols stormed a tavern, killing 17 (13 men, 4 women) and wounding 15; they took phones and torched vehicles. Early on Sunday near Cape Town, in Lwandle, gunmen killed 10 and wounded 11 at a shisanyama venue. Police launched manhunts with no immediate arrests; motives may include robbery or illegal mining turf wars. These follow a recent Durban house-party shooting that killed 11.

• The military administration of Burkina Faso, led by Captain Ibrahim Traoré, has passed strict new regulations requiring non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to dedicate at least 80% of their budgets directly to field investments. These new rules aim to reduce administrative overhead and ensure more effective delivery of foreign aid to local populations. Aid groups must meet stricter legal criteria and are limited in how much they can spend on internal running costs. Organisations have two years to comply with the new regulations and are subject to audits during this transition period.