Breaking News Today – Friday 20 March 2026

Business News Today 

Brent Crude Prices drop – Still at high Levels

Brent crude futures fell to around $107 per barrel this morning, after surging to nearly $120 yesterday, as recent remarks from the US and Israel helped ease concerns over further damage to Middle Eastern energy infrastructure. US President Donald Trump said Washington is not considering deploying ground troops in the region, while Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested Iran’s regime could face internal collapse and noted that the US is exploring the removal of sanctions on Iranian oil. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would refrain from additional attacks on Iranian energy facilities and that the war could end sooner than expected, noting Iran’s reduced capacity to enrich uranium or produce ballistic missiles. Despite the pullback, Brent futures remain up almost 50% since the start of the conflict, as the disruption has effectively shut the Strait of Hormuz and forced major regional producers to sharply curb output.

Bezos’s New AI Venture – Seeking A $100 Billion Raise

Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon and a global heavy-weight investor, is reportedly seeking to raise $100 billion for a new fund, which will target companies in major industrial sectors for acquisition, with the goal of modernising them with AI automation and optimisation according to sources cited by The Wall Street Journal. The plan is related to Bezos’ AI startup, Project Prometheus which kicked off with a $6.2 billion in funding in October 2025. Bezos, whose involvement with the company was reported in November, is serving as co-founder and co-CEO, alongside former Google executive Vik Bajaj.

Project Prometheus is focused on creating high-level automation AI models targeting sectors such as manufacturing and engineering in aerospace, automotive, and others. The new manufacturing fund will support that mission by buying up companies that will ultimately use Prometheus’ models, essentially creating their own demand eco-system and providing proof of concept for other potential businesses.

South Africa Imposes Hefty Tariff on Chinese Structural Steel Imports

South Africa announced steep anti-dumping tariffs on Chinese structural steel imports to protect local producers amid rising competition and global trade tensions. The move, effective immediately, targets subsidized Chinese products flooding the market, supporting domestic steelmakers like ArcelorMittal SA. Industry groups welcomed it as a boost for manufacturing jobs, but construction firms warn of short-term cost hikes. This aligns with broader efforts to revive industrial capacity and reduce import reliance, though economists note it could fuel inflation pressures already high from oil shocks.

China will not seek reciprocity in its latest trade agreement with South Africa, its ambassador said, as Beijing prepares to roll out an expanded zero-tariff policy for African nations from May 1. The deal means South African goods can enter the Chinese market tax-free without any requirement for Pretoria to reciprocate by lowering its own import duties on products from China.

African Sovereign Borrowing Projected to Reach $155 Billion in 2026

S&P Global Ratings forecasted African nations to borrow $155 billion in long-term commercial debt this year—a 10% rise—to refinance maturities and cover fiscal gaps. Egypt, South Africa, and Morocco lead issuance, pushing total outstanding sovereign debt above $1.2 trillion (half of GDP). The report flags heightened risks from escalating Middle East tensions, which could tighten market access and raise costs. Early-year Eurobond taps by Kenya, Côte d’Ivoire, and others signal reopening, but oil importers face subsidy strains.

Breaking Business and Market News Shorts:  

• The value of building plans approved in South Africa rose by 0.2% year-on-year to ZAR 6275 million in January 2026, following a 14.3% decline in the prior month. Permits rebounded for non-residential buildings (27.7% vs -46% in December), but decreased for additions and alterations (-15.5% vs -12.5%)
• Tesla is looking to buy equipment worth $2.9 billion for manufacturing solar panels and cells from Chinese suppliers including Suzhou Maxwell Technologies, the world’s biggest producer of screen-printing equipment used to make solar cells. Elon Musk is aiming to add 100 gigawatts of solar energy capacity in the United States.
• The Bank of England (BoE) and the European Central Bank (ECB), both held their central interest rate unchanged at their respective monetary policy meetings yesterday. BoE held their rate at 3.25% while the ECB kept their rate at 2.15%, with the deposit facility at 2.0% and marginal lending rate at 2.4%. This morning the People’s bank of China followed suit and kept rates unchanged at record lows for a tenth straight month.
• India’s BSE Sensex climbed more than 1% to above 75,000 today, rebounding from the prior session’s steepest drop in nearly two years, and headed for a modest 0.6% weekly gain as easing oil prices offered relief to risk sentiment.
• US equity indices fell to their lowest in four months yesterday as the ongoing surge in energy prices risked stagflation in the US economy. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq dropped 0.7%, while the Dow dropped 300 points.

Markets by Numbers 

Currency markets indicate the US dollar trading marginally stronger against major currencies today. The Greenback is trading against the Euro at 1.15550 while trading against the Pound at 1.34026. The Yen is currently trading at 158.42 to the dollar. The rand (ZAR), has strengthened against the US dollar, and is currently trading at R16.77 against the US dollar.

Commodities:  

• Gold futures are trading 1.3% higher this morning, after a steep drop yesterday, and currently trading at around $4713.00 per ounce.  
• Copper prices are trending 0.95% higher today, with prices currently around $5.4858 per pound
• Silver futures are trending over 0.5% Higher today, and currently trading at around $73.210 per ounce.
• Platinum futures are trending 2.5% higher this morning, and currently trading at $1992.00, While Palladium prices have gained around 1.2% this morning, and currently trading around $1474.50 per ounce.
• Brent crude oil prices are trending lower this morning and around -1.9% down this morning, with prices currently at $106.64 with WTI is trading at $93.57 – lower by around -2% today.
• Cocoa futures are trending upwards and down around -0.7% this morning, with prices currently trading around $3347 per ton. 
• Coffee futures are trending upwards with a 2% spike today, and currently trading at around $3.009 per pound

Crypto Currencies: 

• Bitcoin prices are trending over 1% higher this morning, and trading at around $70 676 per coin currently 
• Ether prices have gained marginally today, and currently trading around $2141.79
• $Trumpcoin are currently trading lower at around $3.360

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

African General News Briefs:

• The Sahel region of Africa, has become the “global epicentre of terrorism,” with the region accounting for nearly half of all global terrorism-related deaths for the third consecutive year in 2025. This was revealed in the Global Terrorism Report released yesterday. The index, compiled by the Institute for Economics and Peace, has ranked 163 countries for 13 years according to the impact of “terrorism” based on indicators such as the number of attacks, deaths, injuries and hostages. The Sahel region, is a semi-arid belt in North Africa, stretching along the Sahara desert’s southern rim from the Atlantic to the Red Sea.
• The Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda have agreed to concrete next steps to further the implementation of” last year’s agreement, a joint US-DRC-Rwandan statement said.Conflict in the mineral-rich eastern DRC, where the Rwandan-backed M23 armed group controls key cities, has continued despite the two neighbours signing a peace deal with US President Donald Trump last year.The new pledge comes days after the United States increased pressure on Rwanda over the conflict, raising sanctions on its military and imposing visa restrictions on several unspecified senior officials.