Africa to solve Europe’s energy problem? -OZY

In an effort to reduce dependence on Russia, European states hope that African nations – such as Angola, Congo, Nigeria and Senegal can meet their fuel demand. Yet some officials are upset that this interest comes as the same European states pressure Africa to move away from fossil fuels. “We need long-term partnership, not inconsistencies and contradictions on UK and EU green energy policy,” Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari said in written comments. . (Source: Bloomberg)

The Zambian kwacha has overtaken the South African rand to become the second strongest currency in southern Africa. The kwacha strengthened following the debt restructuring and tighter government spending – but consumers are not yet seeing the benefits.

Gloria Ngulube, a 29-year-old entrepreneur who buys and sells fashion accessories in the Zambian capital, Lusaka, told OZY: “Prices are still high. The fuel is still in place, so everything is in place. I don’t see the changes.

Referring to Zambia’s recent economic difficulties, Joseph Kalimbwe of Zambia’s ruling United National Development Party, told OZY: “The kwacha is on the way to full recovery.”

Meanwhile, the South African rand has weakened as the country grapples with power outages due to supply shortages, as well as growing public debt and high food and energy prices. .

Twitter shares fell 7.8% on Monday, translating into a $2.2 billion loss in value after the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, announced last week that he would walk away from his planned $44 billion takeover of the company. On July 8, Musk, through his lawyer, made a deposit to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission saying he and his financial advisers had requested information about average daily monetized users and spam accounts from Twitter since May 9, but had not received the information. As a result, Musk believes Twitter breached the original agreement and he is now seeking to back out of the takeover deal. Meanwhile, Twitter continues legal action against Musk in order to enforce the agreement. (Source: Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal)

Mexico’s annual inflation rate hit a 20-year high of 7.99% last month as rising food and energy prices put pressure on the country’s economy. This increase is expected to force the country’s central bank, Banxico, to raise interest rates further. Whereas Russia’s war in Ukraine has caused prices to spike in Mexico and abroad, some experts say Mexican inflation will soon stabilize. “We think inflation will peak in August or September, and should remain more or less stable around 7.5% and 8.0% for the rest of the year,” said Adrian de la Garza, chief economist at Citibanamex, according to Reuters. (Source: Reuters)

China’s largest e-commerce company, Alibaba Group Holding Limited, and Internet and technology company Tencent Holdings Limited saw its shares drop on Monday following fines issued by the country’s State Administration for Market Regulation, which ruled the companies violated an anti-monopoly law. The move is seen as the latest move in the Communist Party’s crackdown on the country’s tech sector. Industry Insiders say that the handsome profits of recent years in the Chinese tech industry may never return. (Source: Bloomberg)

A Reuters survey of 1,700 Asia-based companies indicates a decline in these companies’ ability to pay interest on outstanding debt. Asian companies raised $338 billion in dollar and euro-denominated debt last year when rates were low. Today, amid interest rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve, the value of Asian corporate dollar-denominated debt has surged, even as these companies face economic headwinds. Companies in Indonesia and Vietnam in particular could struggle to repay their debt. (Source: Reuters)

North Stream Monday closed the largest gas pipeline between Russia and Germany for annual maintenance. Scheduled to reopen on July 21, European businesses fear the shutdown will last much longer due to Russia’s war in Ukraine. As a result, short-term energy prices doubled in Germany, Europe’s largest economy. According to Reuters, the The Nord Stream 1 pipeline transports 55 billion cubic meters of gas per year. European nations continue to seek alternatives to Russian energy after its invasion of Ukraine. (Source: Reuters, Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal)

European aerospace multinational Airbus has revised up planned deliveries of new planes over the next two decades as airlines come under pressure to seek more fuel-efficient models. Recently released data shows that Airbus plans to produce 39,490 new jets over the next two decades. Although passenger traffic has grown more slowly than expected, Airbus expects traffic to return to pre-pandemic levels between 2023 and 2025. Meanwhile, China is expected to overtake the United States as most active aviation market. (Source: Reuters)

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