African Markets – Factors to watch on Dec 5

The following company announcements, scheduled economic indicators, debt and currency market moves and political events may affect African markets on Friday.

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GLOBAL MARKETS

Japan’s Nikkei skidded on Friday, wiping out this week’s gains amid an otherwise subdued Asian session, after weaker-than-expected spending data underscored the scourge of inflation as bets grew that the Bank of Japan would hike interest rates.

WORLD OIL PRICES

WTI oil prices were heading for weekly gains of close to 2% in early trading on Friday, supported by an expected Federal Reserve interest rate cut, escalating U.S.-Venezuela tensions and stalled peace talks in Moscow.

EMERGING MARKETS

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AFRICA STOCKS

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SOUTH AFRICA MARKETS

The South African rand firmed on Thursday as the government began selling dollar-denominated eurobonds for the first time since 2024 when it raised $3.5 billion.

RWANDA DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO WAR

U.S. President Donald Trump gathered the leaders of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda to sign a peace deal in Washington on Thursday even as fighting continued in their war-scarred region.

NIGERIA ENERGY

Nigeria has approved the payment of 185 billion naira ($128 million) in longstanding debts owed to gas producers for supplies to power generators, aiming to restore confidence in the energy market and improve electricity supply.

SENEGAL IMF SUPPORT

The International Monetary Fund said on Thursday it had made “significant progress” with Senegal toward a new loan programme while the Fund continued an internal investigation into how it failed to detect billions of dollars in unreported debt.

SENEGAL DEBT

An external debt restructuring in Senegal is “increasingly likely” in the second half of 2026, Bank of America Global Research said in a note published on Thursday.

BOTSWANA RATES

Botswana’s central bank kept its main interest rate unchanged on Thursday, citing continued weakness in the diamond sector and its expectation that inflation will be within its objective range in the medium term.

KENYA EQUITIES

Kenya is selling a 15% stake in telecom operator Safaricom to South Africa’s Vodacom in a deal worth about $1.6 billion, the companies and the finance minister said, as the government seeks to raise cash by offloading some state assets.

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((Compiled by Nairobi Newsroom))

((Email: nairobi.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com))