Breaking News – Friday 18 July 2025

Business & Tech News 

TAAG in Boeing Purchase Deal with the USA:

Angolan National Airline TAAG, is set to expand its air fleet after receiving approval from the Export-Import Bank of the United States’ (EXIM) Board of Directors for a $297 million transaction for the purchase of Boeing’s 787-10 passenger aircraft and General Electric Aerospace spare engines. The Aircraft transaction is expected to support approximately 1,400 jobs in South Carolina, Ohio, and throughout the United States. This deal also forms part of Angola’s strategic goal to create an international air transport hub at its push to newly developed $3 billion Dr. Antonio Agostinho Neto International Airport in Luanda.

The deal follows on recent US investment announcements in Angola of $500 million for the development of the Lobito rail Corridor. Once completed it will link the DRC to Angola’s Atlantic port of Lobito. The project involves upgrading and extending the existing railway line to improve transportation of minerals from the copper belt to the port of Lobito.

New UK and SA Infrastructure Partnership Announced

On the sidelines of the G20 Financial heads summit in Durban yesterday, UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves took the opportunity to announce a new infrastructure partnership with the South African government, aimed at boosting investment in the country. “Infrastructure investment in both of our countries is absolutely key to driving productivity, economic growth and importantly job creation,” Reeves said. The deal, will be focussed on accellerating major infrastructure projects in the nation that have often been hampered and delayed due to financial mismanagement and lack of project accountability, leading to overspending on projects and causing long delays in project completion.

British expertise will be brought in to unblock these barriers on building, speeding up a pipeline of projects which British firms are well-placed to win tenders for,” the UK Treasury said in a statement on Thursday. “This will help growth and development in South Africa, and also help Britain get better return on its investments in the country.” The SA economy grew by a paltry 0,8% last year and by only 0,1% in Q1 of 2025.

Crypto Market Surges After New Legislation Passes in the US:

The new Genius Act, that creates a regulatory framework for US dollar supported Crypto-currencies or stable coins, was passed in the US House of Representatives yesterday, sending crypto markets into a bull market frenzy. This is a significant development for crypto currencies as The vote marks a watershed moment for the digital asset industry, which has been pushing for federal legislation for years and poured money into last year’s elections to promote pro-crypto candidates. The legislation establishes the first federal regulatory framework for stablecoins, cryptocurrencies pegged to assets like the U.S. dollar to maintain a stable value.

It mandates that stablecoin issuers back tokens with liquid assets (e.g., U.S. dollars or Treasury bills) and disclose reserves monthly, enhancing transparency and investor confidence. This is a move that legitimises stablecoins in the investor market, encouraging adoption by banks, retailers, and consumers for instant, low-cost transactions, potentially transforming global commerce. Markets reacted positively with almost every major crypto currency showing gains this morning.

Business, Tech & Market News Shorts: 

• Perplexity, has strategically expanded its reach via a partnered with Bharti Airtel, India’s second-largest telecom operator, to offer a free 12-month Perplexity Pro subscription — normally worth $200 — to all 360 million Airtel subscribers. This places Perplexity in a unique position to scale in its ambitions to take on search giant Google.
• China’s Commerce Minister Wang Wentao issued a statement earlier today, calling for a normalisation of US-China trade relations. “A forced decoupling and severing of supply chains is impossible, and some trade between the two sides is difficult to replace, at least in the short term,” said Wang. “Having weathered many storms, the two sides remain important economic and trade partners to each other,” Wang said, adding that the two countries can manage tensions through “equal dialogue and consultations”.
• Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has blasted the US administration yesterday, saying that he would not take orders over tariffs from a foreigner, in referring to U.S. President Donald Trump, and later called the United States’ threatened tariffs on Brazilian products “unacceptable blackmail.”

Markets by Numbers 

Currencies: 

Currency markets today indicate the US Dollar is continuing with gains against the Euro at 1.16132 and against the Pound at 1.34142. The Yen is currently at 148.79 to the dollar. The rand is currently at R17.82 to the US dollar. 

Commodities:

• Gold futures prices are trading slightly softer this morning, and are currently at $3336 per ounce.  
• Copper prices are trending around 0,5% higher today, with prices currently at $5.5037 
• Silver futures prices are trading marginally higher this morning, and are currently at $38.155
• Platinum futures are around 0,5% lower this morning after surging yesterday, and are currently trading at $1463. While Palladium prices are trading over 1% higher this morning and currently at $1332
• Brent crude oil prices are currently at $69.75, with WTI trading at $67.78. 
• Cocoa futures have dropped further by -3.8% this morning, and currently at $7349 per ton. 
• Coffee futures have slipped by -0,5% this morning, and currently at $312.78.

Crypto Currencies:

• Bitcoin prices have surged since yesterday, and are currently at $120446, up 2,46% this week
• Ether prices have jumped by over 5% this morning and are currently at $3654.30
• $Trumpcoin is currently trading around 7.8% higher at $10.60

(All prices quoted at approximately 07H50 Central African Time) 

Other Breaking News in Africa Today

France’s Final Withdrawal From Senegal Completed

France has returned its last two military bases to Senegalese forces as of yesterday, following a wave of anti-French sentiment in West Africa. General Mbaye Cissé and Chief of the French command in Africa, Pascal Ianni, oversaw the official handover ceremony in Dakar, which marks the end of France’s 65-year presence in Senegal. “This is an important turning point in the rich and long military history between our two countries.” General Cissé said in his speech during the event. He noted that the French and Senegalese armies had “defined new objectives” to “give new meaning to the security partnership” between the two countries. 

Burkina Faso – Military Rule Set to Stay

In a final blow against a possible democratic state being established in the country, Burkina Faso’s military rulers on Wednesday announced that they have dissolved the country’s independent electoral commission. Since taking power in a 2022 coup, the West African country’s military leaders have launched sweeping reforms, including the postponement of promised elections that would have seen a return to civilian rule, as well as the abolishment of all political parties. The government passed a law late on Wednesday abolishing the Independent National Electoral Commission, which was responsible for organizing elections, citing its high cost, Minister of Territorial Administration Emile Zerbo said after a Cabinet meeting. Abolishing the electoral commission will reinforce the country’s “sovereign control on the electoral process” and “limit foreign influences,” Zerbo added.