South African Reserve Bank governor Lesetja Kganyago.
Image: Thobile Mathonsi
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Asian shares poised for 7th month of gains
Asian shares are set for a seventh straight month of gains on Friday, after upbeat earnings from Amazon and Apple buoyed Wall Street futures, and the dollar hovered near three-month highs on uncertainty over further Federal Reserve rate cuts. Nasdaq futures jumped 1.2% and S&P 500 futures gained 0.6% as Amazon's stellar earnings sent its shares up a staggering 13% after the bell, which added over $300 billion to its market value. Apple also rose 2.3% after its outlook on iPhone sales topped estimates. That offset the drag from Meta and Microsoft overnight amid worries over their surging AI spending. Six of the "Magnificent Seven" U.S. tech megacaps have now reported, and the results have been mixed. Nvidia, the world's first $5 trillion company, is due to report in three weeks.
Producer prices rise slightly in September
South Africa’s producer price inflation (PPI) for final manufactured goods edged slightly higher in September, rising to 2.3% year-on-year from 2.1% in August, according to data released by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA). Economists say the marginal increase is not a sign of inflationary pressure and remains comfortably below the consumer inflation rate. Stats SA said the PPI eased 0.1% month-on-month, with the main positive contributors to the annual inflation rate being food products, beverages and tobacco, which rose 3.8%. The main drag on the monthly rate came from coke, petroleum, chemical, rubber and plastic products, which fell 0.6%. Stats SA also noted a strong increase in intermediate manufactured goods, which rose 7.6% year-on-year, up from 6.5% in August, while mining PPI jumped to 16% from 8.5% in the previous month.
Kganyago warns some stablecoins may undermine African monetary authority
South Africa’s central bank governor, Lesetja Kganyago, has raised a sharp warning about the rise of private stablecoins in Africa, particularly those pegged to the US dollar. Speaking to CNBC Africa, he said: “The creation of stablecoins, especially the dollar stablecoins, is being used to undermine African currencies.” Kganyago argues that as dollar-backed stablecoins proliferate, a new form of “digital dollarisation” is emerging, one that risks draining demand for domestic currencies and weakening the ability of national central banks to fulfil their mandates. He warned that without careful regulation and oversight, these instruments might “usurp” central banks’ role in issuing money, controlling monetary policy and safeguarding financial stability.