Labour Unions call off strike

E kaaro o, Ututu Oma, Barka da Safiya - Good morning, and a warm welcome to ThinkBusiness Africa, your Monday – Friday dose of commentary, contexts, and insights on business and economic news that matter to you.

Delighted to share with you your newsletter today after a day marking Nigeria’s 63^rd independence anniversary. It is great to mark independence from British Colonial rule. However, independence is a journey – the journey to freedom from low standard of living, conflicts and crisis, poverty, misery, illiteracy etc.

So, it’s never ending, but the progress must be tangible.

Happy Independence to all Nigerians and Africans.

Please, also share so we can continue to build a community of “business thinkers”.

Markets

• Oil futures returns to the US $90 mark. Brent futures , were down 4% between Thursday trading and Monday.

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Africa Headlines

• Nigeria’s Labour Unions call off strike for 30 days – Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) have called off their planned strike for today after the government met their demand for increases in salaries following the removal of fuel subsidies in June 2023. The government and the Union representatives met over the weekend and the government agreed to pay N35,000 (US $35) a month on top of every federal workers’ salary for six months. By this agreement, it appears the government has avoided a shutdown coinciding with the 63^rd anniversary of Nigeria’s independence from British colonialism.

• IMF /World Bank Annual Meeting holds in Morocco next week – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank will hold its annual meeting in Marrakesh, Morocco from Monday 9^th October 2023. The annual meeting is back in Africa, 50 years after it was first held in Nairobi, Kenya. Amidst different waves of economic uncertainties around policies, energy transition, poverty, and economic growth, the theme for this year is, “Global Action, Global Impact.” This year, Nigeria’s delegation will be led by Wale Edun, the Minister for Finance, and the coordinating minister for the economy. Yemi Cardoso, the recently confirmed Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will also play a huge role in driving Nigeria’s new economic reform messages and narratives.

• Sean Summers returns to Pick n Pay as CEO after 17 years – Pick n Pay, struggling South Africa’s retail giant has hired its former CEO 17 years after he left the role. Sean Summers, now 70, will seek to reinvigorate the retailer with over 2200 stores across eight countries on the African continent. It has over 90% of its stores in South Africa, with the rest in Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Swaziland, Lesotho, and Nigeria – Victoria Island, Lagos. It currently has 16% of the market share in South Africa.

• DRC holds election 20^th December 2023 – The “Christmas” presidential and parliamentary elections of the Democratic Republic of Congo became even more interesting as the country’s Nobel Peace prize winner Denis Mukwege entered the fray in the last 24 hours. The current president Felix Tshisekedi will be contesting for his second term in office. The other major candidate in the forthcoming elections of the largest country in Sub Sahara Africa by size is Martin Fayulu who contested against the current president in the 20218 elections. The country suffers from the twin “African” challenge of economic hardship and escalating insecurity with an estimated 5 million people displaced.

• Senegal Navy intercepts boats carrying migrants – Senegal Navy says it has intercepted three boats carrying more than 600 people in the last three days, a sign of increasing desperation of Senegalese citizens trying to flee to Europe in search of a better life. The would-be migrants of the 15 million people of West Africa nation are attempting to escape economic insecurity and meagre labour income at home.

• Second Malaria vaccine to be rolled out next year – The Word Health Organisation (WHO) has recommended the roll out of a second Malaria vaccine from 2024. The first recommended vaccine RTS,S, is made by GSK while the second to be rolled out from early 2024 is by Serum Institute in India. It was developed in the University of Oxford in England and WHO says it will cost between US $2 – US$4 per dose. According to WHO 2021 data, 95% of all malaria cases and 96% of related deaths occurred in Africa, while children under the age of five account for 80% of all malaria deaths. repair and manage pipelines in 18 months.

Global Headlines

• World Bank projects 5.1% growth for China – The World Bank has said it expects growth in China this year to top 5%. It however cut the growth projection for 2024 from 4.8% to 4.4% on the back of weaknesses it sees in the country’s property sector. The World Bank released the report on Monday, emphasizing the links between trade in goods and services in China and the region. China has not recovered its stellar growth performance since Covid – 19 after its zero covid policy.

• Overzealous pledges on Climate Change – Ahead of COP 28 holding in UAE next month, top oil executives that gathered at the Abu Dhabi International Progressive Energy Congress say the recent changes by countries to targets on energy transition is a sign that the earlier pledges had been overzealous. In recent weeks, the United Kingdom about the most, have rolled back the targets on climate change. While they have kept policies and measures towards energy transition, the timelines have been extended and regulations weakened.