Tag: Oil
North Africa As A ‘Perfect’ Microcosm Of The Global Effects of Russia Ukraine War
The Russia-Ukraine conflict is worsening a food crisis in the North African region, as Ukraine and Russia are leading exporters of agricultural products to North Africa, while also forcing countries to do a geopolitical dance to avoid picking a side, especially when the countries have military and diplomatic ties to either Russia or the US or sometimes both countries. The conflict also presents opportunities for exporters who can fill gaps in the global supply chain, in particular energy…but then again, those gaps are the result of both economic and political challenges with the political challenges never being so simple to solve.
Higher Oil Prices Come At The Right Time for the Middle East…
Oil recently touched above $70 and continues to hover above $60 today. The uptick is a welcome breath of fresh air into the Middle East (financial) ecosystem. The new cash inflow is and will continue to allow the regional states to underwrite new financing in their banking sectors and evade the 2009-esque fallout as banks today effectively bridge finance regional corporates to 2022 (…or potentially 2023)…
Coronavirus: Will a price war force change in Angola?
The impact and longevity of COVID-19 and low commodity prices are putting acute pressure on African economies and pushing some sovereigns close to default. Besides Zambia, which has already begun the process to potentially hire an advisor for a sovereign restructuring, Angola is becoming the country with the highest risk for a potential debt restructuring…
Nigeria could be heading towards its second recession in three years
Most political analysts expected the re-election of Buhari in 2019 to signify stability and re-ignite business in the country. But nearly eight months after the election, economic growth has drastically slowed to 1.94% in the second quarter of 2019, which is the second straight quarter of declining growth numbers for the country…
Mozambique: Can elections and fresh finance reboot the nation?
Mozambique’s long-running debt scandal from 2014 drove the country into a financial and political crisis. As the October 2019 election approaches, voters wonder whether the nation can walk back from the brink of economic collapse…
It’s time to rethink oil and gas as a funding source for development
Oil-price volatility highlights the fragility of a development model based on a single resource. For oil-producing countries the imperative of adopting a more diverse investment strategy can no longer be ignored…