Nigeria
Nigeria’s regulator confirms the 2025 oil-licensing round opens 1 December, aiming to unlock dormant fields, attract upstream investment and boost crude output toward 2.8 mbpd. The move signals structural reform in Africa’s largest oil producer.
Algeria
Algeria and Somalia signed multiple cooperation agreements across education, agriculture and energy, establishing a joint ministerial commission and scholarships for Somali students. The partnership forms a North Africa–Horn economic corridor with deep implications for regional connectivity.
Egypt
Egypt’s FRA authorizes life insurers to invest in gold under fresh rules that require client consent, segregation of holdings and enhanced disclosure. The move broadens institutional-asset options, boosts financial-market depth and supports diversification beyond fixed-income.
Africa
Vodacom inks deal with Starlink to deploy LEO-satellite broadband across Africa, integrating mobile with space to reach remote markets and expand from voice/data into enterprise platforms. The move reshapes connectivity, real-economy integration and telco growth models.
Nigeria
Nigeria approves ₦1.15T in extra borrowing to fill a widening budget gap, signaling deeper fiscal stress. Higher debt raises funding costs, currency risk, and inflation pressures, reshaping financing conditions for banks and corporates.
Kenya
M-PESA processed KSh 20.2 trillion in six months, with 13.2B fee-free micro-transactions driving inclusion and SME liquidity. Its scale makes Safaricom a core financial-infrastructure provider shaping Kenya’s digital-commerce and credit ecosystem.
Egypt
Standard Bank opens a Cairo office to capture rising Gulf–Africa trade and investment flows. The expansion strengthens its pan-African network, linking capital, energy, and infrastructure financing between Egypt, the Gulf, and sub-Saharan markets.
South Africa
South Africa lowers its inflation target to 3% ±1pp, the first change in 25 years. The move aims to reset expectations, lower funding costs, and align fiscal and monetary policy as growth slows and debt stabilizes near 78% of GDP.
Philippine
OCBC cuts its 2025 Philippines GDP forecast below 5% after weak Q3 results and slow public spending. Consumption softens, credit tightens, and investment turns cautious, shifting growth from automatic to execution-dependent.
Greece
A subsidy freeze tied to a land-fraud scandal leaves Greek farmers without collateral for seasonal loans, creating a liquidity shock that threatens planting, yields, and rural credit quality as banks tighten lending.
Switzerland
Switzerland moves toward a tariff-reduction deal with the U.S., protecting margins for high-value exporters in pharma and precision machinery. The agreement strengthens bilateral leverage and diversifies Swiss trade reliance beyond the EU.
Austria
Voestalpine warns no improvement in conditions ahead and accelerates restructuring. With weak demand, high energy costs, and margin compression, the steelmaker pivots toward specialty metals and cash-flow discipline instead of volume growth.