Africa Business News

In China, the yuan strengthened on Tuesday, with its offshore variant firming to within a whisker of 6.9 per dollar. This rise of the yuan came after senior U.S. and Chinese officials expressed optimism over resolving issues around their Phase 1 trade deal.
The offshore yuan rose to a high of 6.9007 per dollar on the news before pulling back. At midday in China, the currency stood at 6.9080, 61 pips firmer than Monday's close.


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In South Korea, shares closed 1.6% higher on Tuesday, their sharpest gain in nearly a month. The benchmark KOSPI closed up 36.90 points, or 1.58%, at 2,366.73.
Foreigners were net buyers of 151.8 billion won ($128.04 million) worth of shares on the main board.
On the foreign exchange market, the won ended at 1,185.1 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.34% higher than its previous close at 1,189.1. In offshore trading, the won was quoted at 1,185.6 per dollar, up 0.3% from the previous day, while in non-deliverable forward trading, its one-month contract was quoted at 1,185.6.


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This episode is sponsored by
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Japan’s Nikkei share average, on Tuesday, briefly recovered to levels before the COVID-19 crisis hammered markets early this year. The recovery also comes as sentiment was boosted by treatment hopes, but pared back gains after investors booked profits.
The benchmark Nikkei share average rose 1.35% to 23,296.77, after rising as high as 23,431.04, a level unseen since February 21. There were 207 advancers on the index against 16 decliners.


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This episode is sponsored by
· Afrolit Podcast: Hosted by Ekua PM, Afrolit shares the stories of multi-faceted Africans one episode at a time. https://open.spotify.com/show/2nJxiiYRyfMQlDEXXpzlZS?si=mmgODX3NQ-yfQvR0JRH-WA

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Etihad Airways is asking cabin crew to take up to six months unpaid leave from September as it tries to manage the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is according to an internal memo and two sources familiar with the matter.
The Abu Dhabi state carrier, which lost 758 million dollars in the first half of the year, has been gradually resuming passenger services since June after grounding flights in March. In an internal memo, staff were told that the airline has more cabin crew than are required and that many are not being rostered on flights, which is not sustainable for the business.


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This episode is sponsored by
· Afrolit Podcast: Hosted by Ekua PM, Afrolit shares the stories of multi-faceted Africans one episode at a time. https://open.spotify.com/show/2nJxiiYRyfMQlDEXXpzlZS?si=mmgODX3NQ-yfQvR0JRH-WA

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The German economy contracted by a record 9.7% in the second quarter as consumer spending, company investments and exports all collapsed at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is according to figures released on Tuesday by the statistics office.
According to the figures, Germany's economic slump was much stronger than during the financial crisis more than a decade ago, and it represents the sharpest decline since Germany began to record quarterly GDP calculations in 1970.


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This episode is sponsored by
· Afrolit Podcast: Hosted by Ekua PM, Afrolit shares the stories of multi-faceted Africans one episode at a time. https://open.spotify.com/show/2nJxiiYRyfMQlDEXXpzlZS?si=mmgODX3NQ-yfQvR0JRH-WA

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Researchers at the University of Hong Kong say a man who recovered from COVID-19 was infected again four-and-a-half months later, making his case the first documented instance of human re-infection.
The findings indicate the disease, which has killed more than 800,000 people worldwide, may continue to spread amongst the global population despite herd immunity.


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This episode is sponsored by
· Afrolit Podcast: Hosted by Ekua PM, Afrolit shares the stories of multi-faceted Africans one episode at a time. https://open.spotify.com/show/2nJxiiYRyfMQlDEXXpzlZS?si=mmgODX3NQ-yfQvR0JRH-WA

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Renewed optimism over a U.S.-China trade deal and a smaller-than-expected decline in German economic output fuelled gains in European stocks on Tuesday, with Frankfurt shares hitting a one-month high.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index rose 0.4%, extending Monday’s gains, which were driven by positive updates on COVID-19 treatment efforts.
Shares of AstraZeneca rose 0.8% after the British drugmaker said it had started testing an antibody-based cocktail for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19.


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This episode is sponsored by
· Afrolit Podcast: Hosted by Ekua PM, Afrolit shares the stories of multi-faceted Africans one episode at a time. https://open.spotify.com/show/2nJxiiYRyfMQlDEXXpzlZS?si=mmgODX3NQ-yfQvR0JRH-WA

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The South African rand extended its gains against the U.S. dollar early on Tuesday, helped by improved appetite in global markets for riskier currencies over the greenback.
At 0630 GMT, the rand traded at 16.8825 per dollar, 0.5% firmer than its close on Monday, as the dollar slipped.


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South African furniture and appliance retailer, Lewis Group Ltd reported a 30.8% drop in annual earnings on Tuesday, as the COVID-19 pandemic hit its last month of trading and increased impairments.
The retailer said its headline earnings per share fell to 260.2 cents in the year to March 31 from 376.2 cents a year earlier. Despite the effects of the pandemic, the company declared a final dividend of 65 cents per share for the year, taking the total dividend to 185 cents, 20.9% lower than the prior year.

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This episode is sponsored by
· Afrolit Podcast: Hosted by Ekua PM, Afrolit shares the stories of multi-faceted Africans one episode at a time. https://open.spotify.com/show/2nJxiiYRyfMQlDEXXpzlZS?si=mmgODX3NQ-yfQvR0JRH-WA

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South Africa’s Nedbank Group says Raisibe Morathi has resigned as the chief financial officer and executive director of Nedbank Group and Nedbank boards with effect from September 30. The lender made the announcement on Tuesday in a statement. According to the financial services provider, Mike Davis has been appointed as CFO designate with immediate effect. Davis will also serve as the group’s CFO from October 1.

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This episode is sponsored by
· Afrolit Podcast: Hosted by Ekua PM, Afrolit shares the stories of multi-faceted Africans one episode at a time. https://open.spotify.com/show/2nJxiiYRyfMQlDEXXpzlZS?si=mmgODX3NQ-yfQvR0JRH-WA

Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/newscast-africa/support