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African economy

A brightly lit, modern exhibition stall for Uganda at the 138th Canton Fair. The stall features the national flag and the "Explore Uganda" branding, alongside large posters of gorillas and elephants. A diverse crowd of business professionals and visitors are gathered around the counters, discussing trade opportunities in agriculture, coffee, and tourism.

Geopolitics hastens China’s Hunan-led shift in Africa trade and investment

Beijing’s Hunan-based Africa strategy gains urgency amid US-China tensions and Middle East disruptions to trade and energy flows
A female worker at a garments factory

China’s Africa tariff reset: who wins, who loses

China grants zero tariffs to nearly all of Africa, but the gains are likely to flow to its more developed economies
Rise in gasoline prices concept with double exposure of digital screen with financial chart graphs and oil pumps on a field. Stock photo.

Uganda faces higher fuel costs as US-Iran war roils oil markets

Uganda faces dearer fuel imports and currency pressure as the US-Iran war pushes oil prices higher, but first oil in H2 2026 offers a longer-term upside
View of Joburg inner city from Gandhi Square, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa

The G20 must end the cost-of-capital penalty imposed on Africa

Africa's cost of capital crisis is not rooted in economics alone, but is perpetuated by perception and precedent, as well as the structural inertia of a global financial system that systematically overprices African risk
President Cyril Ramaphosa leads South African delegation to virtual G20 Leaders' Summit in November 2020

Africa’s debt crisis demands more than G20 declarations

African nations are trapped: spending more on debt servicing than on health or education, whilst climate shocks compound their struggles. South Africa's G20 tenure has highlighted the crisis, but substantive solutions remain elusive
An outdoor discussion, with two female panellists seated in the chair, and other female holding a microphone and standing, as well as an audience

IMF upgrades sub‑Saharan Africa forecast as reforms blunt external shocks

The IMF has raised its growth forecast for sub-Saharan Africa, crediting improved macroeconomic management in several large economies and resilience amid external pressures
Various currency notes of African countries are seen in this photo

Stronger currencies ease inflation pressures across sub-Saharan Africa

Strong currencies have helped curb inflation in several sub-Saharan African countries, giving central banks room to ease interest rates and stimulate business activity
A golden bust of Donald Trump, with his eyes closed, faces a globe.

What are the chances that African countries adopt a unified stance against Trump’s tariff assault?

Although some analysts and trade experts have called for a unified African response to Trump’s tariff assault, there has so far been no sign of one, either from the African Union or elsewhere
Four men working in an open-pit mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Why bartering Africa’s minerals for security is a bad idea

A US-brokered peace deal between the DRC and Rwanda binds the two nations in a worrying arrangement: one where a country signs away its mineral resources to a superpower in return for vague promises of security

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