logo

Ethiopia reaches agreement in principle with official creditors, state finance minister says

Zawya21-03-2025
Ethiopia has reached an agreement in principle with its official creditors during debt default negotiations, the country's state finance minister said on Friday.
The East African nation opted to restructure its external debt under the G20's Common Framework, before it defaulted on its sole Eurobond in December 2023.
It struck a financing deal with the International Monetary Fund last July, enabling it to attempt to jumpstart the stalled debt restructuring process.
"AIP (Agreement In Principle) is reached," Eyob Tekalign told Reuters, without providing more details.
(Reporting by Dawit Endeshaw; Writing by Hereward Holland and Duncan Miriri; Editing by Tomasz Janowski)
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

US Fed to cut rates in September and once more this year: Experts
US Fed to cut rates in September and once more this year: Experts

Gulf Today

timea day ago

  • Gulf Today

US Fed to cut rates in September and once more this year: Experts

A Federal Reserve interest rate cut in September, the first this year, followed perhaps by another before year-end remains the base forecast for most economists polled by Reuters amid rising concerns about the health of the world's biggest economy. US inflation is rising again, with more upward pressure expected from President Donald Trump's tariffs, and there have been big downward revisions to hiring figures over recent months that suggest the job market is weakening. Trump has berated Fed Chair Jerome Powell over his reluctance to cut rates. And at the July meeting there was clear divergence from the steady rates position among a minority of Federal Open Market Committee members. Alongside simmering doubts over the Fed's independence from political interference and declining reliability of economic data, it has become more difficult for economists to make predictions with great conviction. August is not typically a month for big forecast changes either. Many are waiting for the next round of inflation and jobs data, as well as a speech from Powell, his last at the Fed's annual Jackson Hole conference held this month as his term as Fed chief ends in May. Economists are broadly sticking to a more cautious outlook than interest rate futures traders, whose pricing suggests a near-certainty of a September cut and strong likelihood of another, and the possibility of a third by year-end. A 61% majority, 67 of 110, predicted the Fed would lower its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 4.00%-4.25% on September 17 for the first time this year, up from 53% in July's survey. One forecast a 50 basis point move. The remaining 42 said the Fed would hold rates again. 'We think that market participants are excessively confident in a September cut, as they are misinterpreting both the FOMC's assessment of labour market conditions and its reaction function,' wrote economists at Barclays in a note. 'In our view, the main question is not so much about whether the Fed needs to ease policy to lean against job declines, but whether the situation warrants cuts on the grounds that the balance of risks has shifted away from inflation and toward the full employment mandate.' Over 60% of respondents, 68 of 110, predicted there would be either one or two rate cuts this year, broadly unchanged from last month. But there was no consensus on where the federal funds rate would be at end-2025. A near-80% majority of economists who answered an extra question, fewer than the usual sample, said the inflation impact from tariffs would be temporary. A 68% majority also expected no serious erosion of the Fed's independence during the remainder of Powell's term. Inflation forecasts were broadly unchanged from last month, averaging above the Fed's 2% target through at least 2027. The unemployment rate was expected to be around the current 4.2% or slightly above over the next few years, suggesting economists have not yet fully responded to the recent sharp downward revisions to hiring and may do so in the next poll if August jobs data are also weak. 'We come down on the side of thinking the Fed would prefer to retain optionality,' said Michael Gapen, chief US economist at Morgan Stanley. 'This would leave room for a soft August employment report to open the door for cuts, or a reasonably strong employment report plus another round of firming in CPI inflation to keep the Fed on hold.' Separately, Foreign holdings of US Treasuries rose to record levels in June, topping $9 trillion for a fourth straight month, data from the Treasury Department showed on Friday. Holdings of US Treasuries climbed to $9.13 trillion in June, up from $9.05 trillion in May. Compared with a year earlier, Treasuries owned by foreigners were up nearly $1 trillion, or 10% higher. However, on a transaction basis, the US experienced outflows of $5 billion after buying roughly $147 billion in Treasuries in May, the largest since August 2022. In April, there was an outflow of $40.8 billion as President Donald Trump's back-and-forth tariff policies roiled markets. Japan remained the largest non-U.S. holder of Treasuries, with a record $1.147 trillion in June, up $12.6 billion from the previous month's $1.134 trillion. UK investors, the second-largest owner of US government debt, raised their pool of Treasuries to another record of$858.1 billion, up 0.6% from $809.4 billion in May. The UK overtook China as the second-largest non-US holder of Treasuries in March. The UK is widely viewed as a custody country, generally a proxy for hedge fund investments. Other countries used by hedge funds for custody services include the Cayman Islands and the Bahamas. Treasury holdings of China, the third-largest owner of US government debt, were little changed at$756.4 billion, compared with $756.3 billion in May, which was the lowest since February 2009 when the country's stock of Treasuries dropped to$744.2 billion. Agencies

South Africa auto parts group Jendamark braces for US tariff hit
South Africa auto parts group Jendamark braces for US tariff hit

Zawya

time2 days ago

  • Zawya

South Africa auto parts group Jendamark braces for US tariff hit

South African auto parts manufacturer Jendamark Automation stands to lose R750m ($43m) of contracts in a US market it has built up to account for 50% of its exports, its operations director told Reuters. Jendamark automation engineer works on an automotive component for a vehicle to be exported, at Nelson Mandela University in Gqeberha, as the annual South African vehicle component manufacturers conference takes place, with a particular focus on how the industry is adapting to U.S. tariffs, in Gqeberha, Eastern Cape province, South Africa, 13 August 2025. Reuters /Shafiek Tassiem The 40-year-old company based in coastal city Gqeberha builds automated assembly lines for catalytic converters, engines and axles for automotive customers such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz among others. But like global automakers and suppliers far and wide, they have been hit hard by US tariffs. "As it stands now, we've got about R750m of deals with our American customers that (we're) at risk of losing," Siegfried Lokotsch said. "I don't know if they're going to still buy the lines from us. We thought we were going to get the orders, we were in a good position ... In my mind, they're gone (the contracts) because they've (the tariffs) just gone up." About 85% of Jendamark's business in South Africa is for export, with 50% of that to the US, where it also has an office. Jendamark is looking for new contracts in other markets, such as Saudi Arabia, but the company has its work cut out to replace the US business it expects to lose. "To find a new market and to understand how they operate in the country and where the opportunities are is not something that just happens overnight," he said.

SoftBank's PayPay applies for U.S. listing
SoftBank's PayPay applies for U.S. listing

Zawya

time2 days ago

  • Zawya

SoftBank's PayPay applies for U.S. listing

TOKYO - SoftBank said on Friday that payments app operator PayPay Corp has applied to list American depositary shares in the United States. The exact schedule, size and price for the public listing have yet to be determined, SoftBank said in a statement. Reuters reported this week that SoftBank had selected banks for a potential initial public offering in the U.S. The offering may raise more than $2 billion from investors and could take place as soon as the final quarter of this year, Reuters reported. PayPay will continue to be a SoftBank subsidiary following the listing, the conglomerate said. Reuters reported in 2023 that SoftBank was considering a U.S. listing for the business. PayPay has helped spur Japanese consumers to embrace digital payments and offers services such as banking and credit cards. (Reporting by Mariko Katsumura and Sam Nussey Editing by Chang-Ran Kim and Clarence Fernandez)

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store