Breaking News Today – Friday 30 May 2025

Business & Tech News

New African Development Bank Head Appointed;

The African Development Bank has a new president – Sidi Ould Tah, who had formerly served as Mauritania’s finance Minister. Tah was elected during a vote at the bank’s annual meeting in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, yesterday. He replaces Akinwumi Adesina, a Nigerian economist who will step down in September after completing the maximum of two five-year terms in office. ”Tah has extensive experience in both African and international finance having served as president of the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) for 10 years from 2015, where he led a full transformation that quadrupled the Bank’s balance sheet, secured a AAA rating, and positioned it among the top-rated development banks focused on Africa,” the bank said in a press statement Thursday. In total, five candidates contested for the bank’s top job.

US Trade Tariff Ruling Suspended:

A federal appeals court yesterday suspended the ruling made on Wednesday by the US trade court, which haddeclared the imposition of sweeping import tariffs by the US administration to be illegal. The ruling comes at a time when there is much at stake for the US economy, and where there are widespread trade deal discussions ongoing with trading partner countries. U.S. President Donald Trump had suspended the tariffs for 90 days for negotiations to continue, but the administration can now continue with tariff implementation until a final decision by the Appeals Court. Small businesses and a group of states had challenged the measures, which are at the heart of Trump’s agenda and have shaken up the world economic order, and seek to address trade imbalances and a mushrooming trade deficit.

Hugging Face Reveals Low-Cost Robots:

AI development and robotic company Hugging Face, has unveiled two new humanoid robots, HopeJR and Reachy Mini. HopeJR is a full-size humanoid robot that has 66 actuated degrees of freedom, including the ability to walk and move its arms. Reachy Mini is a desktop unit that can move its head, talk, listen, and be used to test AI apps. Hugging Face estimates that the HopeJR will cost around $3,000 per unit and the Reachy Mini will cost around $250 to $300, but has not disclosed an availability date yet. CEO, Clem Delangue, provided comment on the new robots saying “The important aspect is that these robots are open source, so anyone can assemble, rebuild, and understand how they work, and they’re affordable, so that robotics doesn’t get dominated by just a few big players with dangerous black-box systems,” 

Gold Price Wobbles:

Gold prices dropped to around $3,290 per ounce on Friday, but have since climbed just below the $3300 mark, but are on track for a weekly loss of more than -1,5%. Investors have shown some caution ahead of the US PCE inflation report due today, which could provide fresh insights on the Federal Reserve’s interest rate trajectory. On Thursday, bullion gained nearly 1% after a federal appeals court allowed President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs to temporarily stay in effect, a day after the US Court of International Trade blocked their implementation after deeming the method used to enact them “unlawful.”

Meanwhile, San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said Thursday that policymakers could still deliver two rate cuts this year, as projected in March, but emphasized that interest rates should remain steady for now to ensure inflation is on track to reach the Fed’s 2% target. So far this month, the previous metal has risen 0.4%, heading for its fifth consecutive monthly gain.

Business, Tech & Market News Shorts:

• A new supercomputer named Doudna, after a winner of the Nobel Prize in chemistry, Jennifer Doudna, will help power artificial intelligence technology and scientific discoveries, officials said Thursday. U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright announced the project yesterday alongside executives from computer maker Dell Technologies and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang.
• The South African Reserve Bank has, as expected, continued with its course of seemingly senseless rate policies and has cut the repo rate by 25 basis points or 0,25%, bringing the core inflation rate down to 7,25%. This, while the South African economy is crawling along at an excruciatingly low growth rate and low inflation, and is in great need of a new catalyst to drive its moribund economy.
• The Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) will shortly be welcoming two new listings on both the main bourse and the AltX. CEO of Marula Mining and the Chair of Neo Energy Minerals, Jason Brewer, has disclosed that they intend to list both companies shortly. This follows the new dual listing of Shuka Minerals last week.
• Nasrec Expo Centre, located in Soweto, Johannesburg, will be the venue for the G20 meeting this November, according to the Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, who emphasised the venue’s symbolism of South Africa’s journey from apartheid segregation to democratic unity.

Markets by Numbers

Currencies:

Currency markets indicate the US Dollar is currently trading lower against the Euro at 1.13428 and against the Pound at 1.34735. The Yen is currently at 143.91 to the dollar, with the rand currently trading upwards at R17.84 to the US dollar.

Commodities:

• Gold futures prices are trending lower this morning and are currently at $3297 per ounce.
• Copper prices are also trending lower this morning and are currently at $4.6485.
• Silver futures prices are trading downwards this morning and are currently at $33.062
• Platinum futures are trading downwards this morning, and are currently trading at $1068, while Palladium prices are currently at $958
• Brent crude oil prices are currently at $63.10, with WTI trading at $60.66.
• Cocoa futures have taken big losses yesterday and are currently at $9165 per ton.
• Coffee futures prices are trending lower today, and are currently at $348,73

Crypto Currencies:

• Bitcoin prices are currently trading at $106154
• Ether prices are currently at $2640.
• $Trumpcoin is trading 6,8% lower today, and is currently at $11.64

(All prices quoted at approximately 08H15 – Central African Time)

Other Breaking News in Africa Today

Justice for Joshlin Smith:

In what must be one of the saddest tales of the perils of children in Africa, Kelly Smith, mother of Joshlin, who disappeared last February in South Africa, was sentenced to life in prison yesterday for selling her 6-year-old daughter. Smith was sentenced by a judge alongside her boyfriend, Jacquen Appollis, and their friend Steveno van Rhyn, both also receiving life-imprisonment sentences. All three were convicted earlier this month on charges of kidnapping and human trafficking. Damming testimony was given during the trial of how Kelly Smith confessed to her neighbour that she had sold her daughter to a traditional healer. Their sentences were read out by Judge Nathan Erasmus at a sports centre in the west coast town of Saldanha Bay. The trial was moved to the sports centre so members of the local community could attend.