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☆ Debt Standoff Between China and U.S. Hurts Poor Countries, Zambia’s President Warns
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Gabriele Steinhauser | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

LUSAKA, Zambia—Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema said China and the U.S. have a responsibility to set aside their differences and help countries such as his get the debt relief they need to avoid further damage to their economies. With finance officials from around the world gathering in Washington this week for the International Monetary Fund and World Bank biannual meetings, Mr. Hichilema’s country is emerging as a focal point of discussions on how to restructure poor nations’ debts. U.S. officials have criticized China, now the biggest government lender to the developing world, for failing to write down loans if borrowing countries such as Zambia run into trouble.

Atul Gupta and his brother Rajesh allegedly leveraged their close ties to South Africa’s government to build a business empire. South Africa’s justice minister said that the United Arab Emirates had refused the extradition of two India-born brothers who were allegedly at the center of a large government corruption scandal in Africa’s most developed economy. South African authorities say that Atul and Rajesh Gupta for years leveraged their close ties to former President Jacob Zuma and other senior officials in the ruling African National Congress to build a business empire that once stretched from media to mining. Failure to try them in South Africa would be a big blow for President Cyril Ramaphosa , who took over in 2018 after the ANC ousted Mr. Zuma largely because of his alleged ties to the Gupta brothers.

April 5 (Reuters) - When actor Russell Crowe began reading about the history of real-life Catholic priest Father Gabriele Amorth, who claimed to have performed over 50,000 exorcisms, he was intrigued. Crowe’s portrayal of Amorth in Sony’s (6758.T) horror flick “The Pope’s Exorcist” is based on the books the late priest left behind, which chronicled 36 years of exorcisms and other work for the Vatican. However, unlike previous exorcisms, the demon feeds off the exorcist's own guilt and regrets. While he knows this depiction of a religious figure may cause criticism from some, Crowe was determined to stick to Amorth’s accounts. “Everybody is going to have their own opinion, but these are books which are written from first-person experience,” he told Reuters.

Paul Rusesabagina’s detention had been condemned by the U.S. State Department. Rwanda’s justice minister on Friday commuted the 25-year prison sentence of Paul Rusesabagina, who inspired the movie “Hotel Rwanda” about the 1994 genocide and later used his Hollywood fame to criticize President Paul Kagame . A Belgian citizen and U.S. green-card holder, Mr. Rusesabagina was convicted by a Rwandan court in 2021 on a string of charges including terrorism, the financing and founding of armed groups, murder, arson and conspiracy to involve children in militancy. Rwandan authorities say Mr. Rusesabagina for years funded the National Liberation Front, the alleged armed wing of his opposition group, the Rwandan Movement for Democratic Change.

The U.S. central bank's two-day policy meeting will end at 2 p.m. ET (1800 GMT), with investors keenly awaiting Fed Chair Jerome Powell's conference at 2:30 p.m. ET to gauge the central bank’s rate-hike trajectory. While the central bank is likely to continue its hiking cycle with a 0.25% move, we think the guidance for future meetings will be considerably more open," said Gabriele Foà, co-portfolio manager at Algebris Investments. ET, Dow e-minis were up 24 points, or 0.07%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 1.5 points, or 0.04%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 12.75 points, or 0.1%.

☆ Somalia Drought Killed 43,000 People Last Year, Study Finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Gabriele Steinhauser | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

In Somalia, nearly half of the 17-million-strong population depend on humanitarian aid. An estimated 43,000 Somalis—around half of them children under the age of 5—died from the effects of a devastating regional drought last year and thousands more are expected to die in the first half of 2023, according to a study published Monday by Somalia’s health ministry, the World Health Organization and the United Nations Children’s Fund. The Horn of Africa region has experienced five consecutive below-average rainy seasons since 2020, leaving some 22 million people across Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia without sufficient food and water to meet their daily needs, according to the World Food Programme. No country has been hit harder than Somalia, where the drought has coincided with a government campaign against al Qaeda-linked militants and nearly half of the 17-million-strong population depend on humanitarian aid.

☆ Italian government tells Milan to stop registering same-sex couples' children
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Federico Maccioni | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MILAN, March 14 (Reuters) - Italy's right-wing government has told Milan's city council to stop registering same-sex parents' children, re-igniting a debate around Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's conservative agenda. In the absence of clear legislation on the issue some courts have ruled in favour of allowing same sex couples to adopt each others' children, and mayors of some cities, including Milan, have registered surrogate births to same-sex couples. Milan's centre-left mayor Giuseppe Sala said on Monday he had received a letter from the interior ministry telling him to stop registering the children of same-sex couples. Sala said in a podcast on Tuesday he would respect the prefecture's order but would keep fighting politically to guarantee that the rights of same-sex parents and their children are recognised. Fabrizio Marrazzo, a leading gay rights campaigner, called for Sala and other mayors to keep registering the birth certificates.

☆ Alex Murdaugh Receives Life Sentence: What Happens Now?
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Nigerians Cast Vote in Crucial Election Amid Economic, Security Crises Nigerians headed to the polls to elect their next president as Africa’s most populous country and largest oil producer grapples with severe economic and security problems. WSJ’s Gabriele Steinhauser reports from polling stations on what’s at stake. Photo: John Wessels/AFP/Getty Images

☆ Nigeria’s New Leader Faces Challenges on Economy and Credibility
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Gabriele Steinhauser | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Bola Tinubu won the election with the support of a fraction of Nigeria’s 210 million people. Bola Tinubu , the veteran political fixer who won Nigeria’s presidency after campaigning with the catchphrase “It’s my turn,” will take the reins of Africa’s largest economy under a cloud of accusations that he doesn’t have the mandate he claims. More than 87 million Nigerians had collected voter identification cards ahead of Saturday’s election, but according to the country’s electoral commission, only 25 million actually cast their votes in a process marred by violent incidents and delays at polling stations and a chaotic tallying of votes. Both main opposition candidates have pledged to challenge Mr. Tinubu’s victory in court, presaging what could be a prolonged period of uncertainty at a time when Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, is already struggling with a crush of security problems and a fall in oil production, the government’s main foreign revenue source.

☆ Guilty Verdict in Alex Murdaugh Murder Trial: What Happens Now?
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

☆ Nigeria’s Opposition Parties Call for Election Rerun as Vote Count Continues
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Gabriele Steinhauser | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Nigeria’s two main opposition parties called for a rerun of Saturday’s national presidential election claiming that partial results showing a sizable lead for the candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress had been manipulated. “We demand that this sham of an election should be immediately canceled,” Julius Abure, the chairman of the opposition Labour Party, said Tuesday in a joint news conference with representatives of the People’s Democratic Party in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja.

☆ Nigeria Governing Party’s Bola Tinubu Declared President-Elect
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Gabriele Steinhauser | Gbenga Akingbule | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

ABUJA, Nigeria— Bola Tinubu , a longtime kingmaker in Nigeria’s governing All Progressives Congress and two-time governor of Lagos, has been elected president of Africa’s most- populous nation, the country’s electoral commission said early Wednesday, an outcome that was disputed by opposition parties. Mr. Tinubu, who ran with the catchphrase “Emi lokan,” or “It’s my turn” in the Yoruba language, won 37% of the vote, ahead of Atiku Abubakar of the main opposition People’s Democratic Party, who received 29%, according to the commission tally. Peter Obi of the Labour Party, whose candidacy was propelled by young, social-media savvy Nigerians frustrated with an underperforming economy and rising insecurity, got 25%, with the balance going to candidates from smaller parties.

☆ Nigeria Election Criticized by International Observers, Opposition Parties
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Gabriele Steinhauser | Gbenga Akingbule | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

LAGOS, Nigeria—Early results from Nigeria’s presidential election showed a sizeable lead for the ruling party’s Bola Tinubu on Monday, as international observers said serious logistical problems, violence and the slow publishing on polling-station results had marred the vote in Africa’s largest economy and most-populous nation. By early Monday evening, results sheets from just over one-third of Nigeria’s 176,846 polling stations had been loaded onto the website of the country’s electoral commission following Saturday’s vote. The commission, which had previously vaunted the immediate publication of those results as a key step toward improving election transparency, said the delays were due to technical glitches and didn’t affect the integrity of the vote.

☆ Nigeria’s Ruling Party Candidate Takes Early Lead in Slow Vote Count
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Gabriele Steinhauser | Gbenga Akingbule | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

LAGOS, Nigeria—Early results from Nigeria’s presidential election showed a healthy lead for the ruling party’s Bola Tinubu , as the electoral commission said technical glitches were slowing down the vote count in Africa’s largest economy and most populous nation. By early afternoon Monday, results from just under a third of polling units had been loaded onto the electoral commission’s website following Saturday’s election. Parallel vote counts by civil-society organizations based on results uploaded so far showed Mr. Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress ahead of Atiku Abubakar of the People’s Democratic Party, followed by the Labour Party’s Peter Obi .

☆ Nigerians, Battered by Crises, Vote in Tight Election
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-25 | by ( Gabriele Steinhauser | Gbenga Akingbule | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

LAGOS, Nigeria—Tens of millions of Nigerians cast their votes Saturday in an election that many hope will be a turning point for Africa’s largest economy and most populous nation after years of debilitating economic and security crises. For the first time, the two established parties that have ruled Nigeria since its return to democracy in 1999 are facing a third-party challenger, Peter Obi from the smaller Labour Party, who has gained a following among young people frustrated with a lack of opportunities, rising prices and the struggles that define everyday life in the country.

☆ Nigeria’s Economic and Security Crises Lift Outsider Candidate Ahead of Presidential Election
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Gabriele Steinhauser | Gbenga Akingbule | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

LAGOS, Nigeria—It took Patience Moses two years to find a job after graduating from college with high hopes and a communications degree. Then, bandits raided her relatives’ village, burning down houses and killing her grandmother and cousin. Now, an attempt by Nigeria’s central bank to limit cash transactions just before Saturday’s national elections has left her struggling to pay her son’s school fees and for the bus that takes her to work. “I have never voted, but now I want to vote,” said Ms. Moses, who, like many young Nigerians, says she is backing Peter Obi , of the smaller Labour Party, over candidates from the country’s established parties. “I want my vote to count.”

☆ Ghanaian Soccer Star Christian Atsu Found Dead After Turkey Earthquake
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Gabriele Steinhauser | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Atsu previously played for Newcastle United. His body will be sent back to Ghana. Christian Atsu’s body has been found in the rubble of a building that collapsed in Turkey’s earthquakes, the Ghanaian soccer player’s agent and club said Saturday. “It is with the heaviest of hearts that I have to announce to all well wishers that sadly Christian Atsu’s body was recovered this morning,” Nana Sechere, the player’s agent, said in a message on Twitter.

☆ South Africa Criticized for Naval Exercise With Russia and China
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Gabriele Steinhauser | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

JOHANNESBURG—The navies of Russia, China and South Africa were due to begin an 11-day-long exercise off South Africa’s east coast on Friday that will overlap with the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine next week. The U.S. Embassy in South Africa and opposition politicians criticized the exercise, saying that it allowed Russia to test its military capabilities and show itself surrounded by allies at an important moment in its war in Ukraine.

In both the United States and Europe, the words of central bankers led investors to cut their estimates of the peak or "terminal" rate expected in the current tightening cycle. With financial conditions loosening despite rising policy rates, "central banks must...be resolute in their fight against inflation and ensure policy remains appropriately tight long enough to durably bring inflation back to target," Adrian and others wrote. The European Central Bank seems furthest from a likely stopping point. Combined, the statements mark the start of the endgame for central banks that were slow to recognize the onset of inflation last year before engaging in a record-setting round of rate increases. Central bankers long ago stopped using the word "transitory" in reference to inflation that proved faster and more persistent than any expected.

☆ Here's the real reason why American Express gives out such big rewards
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Juhohn Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Armed with impressive rewards and a loyal customer base, AmEx is a giant in the credit card industry. The company's revenue has increased by over 32% since 2017 when adjusted for inflation and the company's shares have shown resilience and growth in a tumultuous market. "Discount revenue," or fees charged to merchants that accept its cards, is the company's main source of revenue. "And merchants are willing to pay that premium because American Express is bringing them the most affluent, biggest spenders." Recent company reports claim that Amex card members spend, on average, three times as much annually as those who aren't members.

French troops who have been fighting Islamist militants in Burkina Faso will have to leave the West African nation, the country’s communications minister said Monday, dealing another blow to Europe’s presence in a region where Russia’s influence is growing. The decision by the government in Ouagadougou to abandon its military alliance with its former colonial power comes five months after France completed its withdrawal from neighboring Mali, which in 2021 hired the Russian paramilitary Wagner Group to support its war against jihadists affiliated with al Qaeda and Islamic State.

SAN LUIS, Ecuador—Built near a spewing volcano, it was the biggest infrastructure project ever in this country, a concrete colossus bankrolled by Chinese cash and so important to Beijing that China’s leader, Xi Jinping , spoke at the 2016 inauguration. Today, thousands of cracks have emerged in the $2.7 billion Coca Codo Sinclair hydroelectric plant, government engineers said, raising concerns that Ecuador’s biggest source of power could break down. At the same time, the Coca River’s mountainous slopes are eroding, threatening to damage the dam.

☆ Mafia boss Messina Denaro held in top security Italian prison
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] A general view shows the prison where Italy's most wanted mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro is detained, in L'Aquila, Italy, January 18, 2023. REUTERS/Gabriele PileriL'AQUILA, Italy, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro was being held on Wednesday in a high-security jail in central Italy, subject to special restrictions applied to the country's most dangerous prisoners. "I've no criminal record," Messina Denaro, who was caught on Monday after 30 years on the run, told prison guards when he was admitted to the Costarelle prison close to the city of L'Aquila, Italian media reported. Police on Tuesday found the apartment where they believe Messina Denaro had been living for the past few months under the assumed name of Andrea Bonafede. Prosecutors say Messina Denaro was one of the leading figures in Cosa Nostra but preferred to remain in his own region and was not the "boss of bosses" like the late Salvatore "Toto" Riina.

☆ Russian Ship’s Secretive South Africa Stop Prompts U.S. Questions
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Gabriele Steinhauser | Benoit Faucon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The Lady R last month at South Africa’s largest naval base, where according to witnesses a crane moved cargo off and onto the merchant vessel. JOHANNESBURG—A Russian merchant ship whose owner has allegedly carried weapons for the Kremlin turned off its transponder last month before surreptitiously docking at South Africa’s largest naval base, where it delivered and loaded unidentified cargoes, according to witnesses and a senior U.S. official. South Africa has declined to say what the ship was carrying or what was loaded onto it at the Simon’s Town navy base. The country’s defense minister shrugged off U.S. concerns, saying Washington “threatens Africa, not just South Africa, of having anything that is even smelling of Russia.”

☆ Italian soccer great Gianluca Vialli dies at 58
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

Gianluca Vialli, the former Italian soccer forward who helped Sampdoria and Juventus win Serie A and European trophies before becoming player-coach at Chelsea, has died. Vialli and Mancini also helped Sampdoria reach the 1992 European Cup final, which it lost to Barcelona at Wembley Stadium. Mihajlović also played with Mancini at Sampdoria after Vialli left the club for Juventus. Vialli won another Serie A title at Juventus and also raised the Champions League and UEFA Cup trophies with the Bianconeri. He ended his playing career while also managing Chelsea, leading the London club to FA Cup, League Cup and Cup Winners’ Cup titles.

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