Business & Tech News
South Africa UK Trade Agreement Signed: A new bi-lateral trade agreement has been finalised, that seeks to bolster both trade and military co-operation between South Africa and the UK. This come in light of weakening trade and investment levels between the two countries over the past decade. UK foreign secretary David Lammy is in South Africa for talks with his South African counterpart, minister Ronald Lamola. The talks were aimed at bolstering the relationship between the two nations. Lammy confirmed the UK’s stance on African representation on the UN security council, stating, ”the U.K. has had a longstanding position that Africa must be represented on the U.N. Security Council and I’m keen to better understand if the recent position is supported by other members of the Security Council, particularly Russia and China.” Lamola insisted that the UK is an important partner for South Africa in his opening remarks, Lamola said he wished to acknowledge what he called the ‘‘close bonds of friendship’’ between the two countries and their people.
Ruto Pushes BRICS Agenda: Kenyan President William Ruto has met with senior Chinese official, Li Xi, who arrived in Nairobi for bilateral talks on Tuesday. Xi was welcomed by Kenyan officials, including William Ruto, at Nairobi State House. President Ruto has pledged to strengthen ties between the two nations, saying “Kenya, I want to assure you, is committed to promoting this partnership across Africa and also upholding the ‘One China’ policy”. The two nations are collaborating on development projects in the country, while Ruto has also requested China’s backing to support Kenya’s ambitions to join the BRICS group of economies. Currently, BRICS member countries’ economies constitute approximately 28% of the total global economy.
Stocks Gain, Oil down with Trump Win Likely: Treasury yields shot to four-month highs, while U.S. stock futures and the dollar surged with election forecasts heavily favouring a Trump win. The New York Time’s closely-watched “swingometer” has projected an 89% chance of him winning. At this stage Trump sits with 246 electoral points compared to Harris with 186 electoral points and 270 needed for a win. Final counts for several swing states are still due. Bitcoin prices jumped up by 8.54% to reach a record level of$75,060. Trump is seen as more supportive of cryptocurrencies than Harris. The sharp rise in the dollar pushed oil prices lower, U.S. WTI crude prices shed 97 cents to $71.05 per barrel, while Brent crude prices fell over a Dollars to $74.51
Trump has also just won Georgia State, a previously held Democrat State, and a major swing state in the US indicating the high chance of a clear win for the Trump team.
Market News
Markets: Indices in the US indices all closed in positive territory yesterday, after early election results favoured a Trump victory, with the NASDAQ gaining 1,32%, the S&P 500 up by 1,23% and the Dow Jones closing 1,02% up. There has been a spin-off effect in the Asian markets this morning with the Nikkei jumped 3,16% today and is at 39256, while the Hang Seng is up by 2,14% this morning at 21006 currently.
Currencies: The US Dollar is currently trading at 1.076 against the Euro, at 1,288 against the Pound, and at 153.63 against the Yen. The rand has lost ground to the stronger dollar and is currently trading at R17.68 to the US dollar.
Commodities:
- Gold prices are currently trading at $2,740
- Platinum prices are currently trading flat at $988 currently, with Palladium prices continuing to lose momentum in trade today and currently at $1053
- Brent crude is currently trading lower at $74,51 with WTI trading at $71.05 currently.
- Cocoa prices have remained above the 5800 mark and trading at 5803 pounds currently
(All prices quoted at 07H55 – Central African Time)
Other News in Africa Today
Nigerian Power Outage Outrage: Yesterday (5 Nov), saw the Nigerian power grid collapse over large parts of the country. Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) confirmed in a statement. The outages have become common place and yesterday was the ninth major outage in 2024. TCN reported that the national grid experienced a disturbance yesterday afternoon, that had been triggered by a series of line and generator trips that destabilised the system. While some regions, including the capital Abuja, regained power about an hour after the collapse, outages continued elsewhere. The Outages caused major disruptions and criticism on social media platforms across the country with businesses having to shut doors and services suspended.
Bridge Collapse in South Africa: A major road route, the N2 south in Kwazulu Natal, South Africa, has been closed and according to the National Roads Agency, SANRAL, the route from Durban to Amanzimtoti could be closed for up to two months. This follows the partial collapse of the south-bound section of the Ezimbokodweni River Bridge, which is a crucial link between the cities. According to reports, one of the beams supporting the bridge sunk into the river below while motorists were still on the bridge. The southbound lanes were closed, and motorists were advised to use alternative routes as authorities assessed the situation. A statement released by the MEC for Transport and Human Settlements, Siboniso Duma, states that authorities are doing all they can to control the situation.
