Breaking News Today – Friday 28 August 2026

African Start-up News Headlines:

•  Swvl, the mobility and transport Tech Startup, has announced the pricing of $1.5 Million Private Placement, Priced At-the-Market Under Nasdaq Rules Upsizing Its Strategic funding Round to $14.5 Million – Transport tech startup Swvl has received further backing from Egypt’s Sawiris family through a multi-million investment. Swvl plans to use the funds to expand in the US market, and launch a lending product for transport operators. Coefficient, backed by the Sawiris family, will invest $10 million and become Swvl’s largest institutional shareholder. The investment comes as Swvl’s revenue grows, with its share price jumping 50.3% after the deal was announced.
  

Business News Today 

Global Coal Demand increasing Driving Prices Higher

Coal prices have surged by over 6% today, moving towards the $140 per ton level this morning, and reaching a two-month high. This as growing global energy demand intersects with ongoing concerns over supply. Coal remains the world’s largest source of power generation, producing nearly 11,000 TWh in 2026, while surging electricity demand is slowing efforts to displace the fuel with renewable energy. The coal price spike sits on a mineral market that is still a major energy source.

South Africa is the core of Africa’s coal industry. The Minerals Council and Energy Institute figures put 2025 output near 236 Mt per year. The IEA’s mid-year outlook had South Africa rising about 3% toward 247 Mt in 2026. Of South Africa’s production, roughly two-thirds stays is consumed within South Africa by energy producer Eskom and coal extracted fuel company Sasol. Exports are the other third: about 57 Mt through Richards Bay in 2025, tracking toward 60–62 Mt in 2026

Aviation Fuel Shortages Not Affecting Flights Yet

Sasol’s Natref refinery in Sasolburg had an unplanned shutdown of a downstream unit this week, on top of planned maintenance. This cut Sasol Oil’s ability to meet full jet-fuel commitments to customers at Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International Airport this week. Sasol says it is still supplying part of the volume and is working to restore the unit. Separately, Namibia has had its own jet-fuel disruption after a contaminated cargo incident.

Regional airlines have however activated contingencies rather than cancelling scheduled flights. FlySafair says operations are covered by extra supply from other providers, while SAA has similar plans. Carriers are also tankering fuel from coastal airports such as Cape Town and Durban so aircraft do not have to uplift as much in Johannesburg. The Department of Energy held an emergency meeting with ACSA and the fuels industry. As of 28 August, no widespread cancellations had been reported. The risk in the situation is however duration. Inland stocks at OR Tambo are thin relative to a prolonged Natref outage, and South Africa already has limited domestic refining after earlier plant closures.

Prices of Cocoa Reach 2-Month High

Cocoa futures jumped above $6,200 per tonne today, reaching the highest price level since early July this year. Traders have reassessed supply prospects for the 2026/27 West African crop. Expectations of lower production are raising the prospect of a tighter market following the substantial global surplus recorded in 2025/26. Harvest forecasts for the Ivory Coast and Ghana, the two largest global cocoa producers, have already been revised substantially lower amid weather risks.

The timing of new-crop supplies is also becoming a concern. Both countries have brought forward the official start of the 2026/27 season by one month to September 1, but it does not imply an immediate increase in physical supplies. In Ivory Coast, the main crop is expected to get off to a slow start, with significant arrivals potentially delayed for several weeks. The outlook is further clouded by rising El Niño risks, which could disrupt weather patterns and reduce cocoa production in key growing regions.

Breaking Business and Market News Shorts:  

• Final manufactured goods producer inflation in South Africa (PPI), slowed to 5.7% year-on-year in July, down from 7.5% in June. That beat the Reuters consensus of 6.1%. Month-on-month PPI fell 1.0%. The rand was little changed after the print (around 15.98/USD), with a firmer dollar offsetting the cooler data.
• Brent crude prices slipped toward $88 per barrel today, shedding gains from the previous session as traders continued to monitor developments in the Middle East and efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Goldman Sachs said oil exports from the Persian Gulf have recovered to around two-thirds of pre-war levels amid increased flows through Hormuz.
• MTN Uganda has partnered with Starlink to extend the MTN Group–Starlink partnership in Uganda, bringing satellite-enabled connectivity closer to enterprise customers operating in remote, underserved and hard-to-reach areas.
• The US administration is in negotiations to take a major stake in Venezuela’s oil reserves, with a possible 100 lease placed on the negotiating table. The talks follow Maduro’s removal in January and the installation of a more cooperative government in Caracas.
• Bitcoin prices slipped by -0.7% today but is on track for a weekly gain of 1.7%. Bitcoin has gained over 24% in the past month after major investor momentum in the last two weeks driving most crypto coins up substantially. Solana is up over 45% in the last month while Ether has gained more than 30%.

Markets by Numbers 

Currency markets indicate the US dollar marginally stronger today. The Greenback is trading against the Euro at 1.16443 while trading against the Pound at 1.35877 The Yen is currently trading at 159.54 to the dollar. The rand (ZAR), is currently trading around the 16.0003 mark against the US dollar this morning.

Commodities:  

• Gold futures are -0.4% lower this morning, and currently trading at around $4578.57 per ounce.  
• Copper prices are up 0.12% this morning , with prices currently around $6.5975 per pound
• Silver futures are down around -0.79% today, and currently trading at around $68.742 per ounce.
• Platinum futures are down around 0.16% this morning, and currently trading at $1850.90 while Palladium is up around 1.1% today, and currently trading around $1355.00 per ounce.
• Lithium prices are up 0.33% today, and currently at CNY153 000
• Brent crude oil prices are trending -0.5% lower today, and currently trading around $88.07 with WTI trading lower at $83.08 currently
• Cocoa futures are up by 5.8 today, and currently trading at $6173 per ton. 
• Coffee futures are down over -3% today, and currently trading at around $3.0965 per pound

Crypto Currencies: 

• Bitcoin prices are down around -0.5% today, currently trading at around $79 804 per coin.
• Ether prices are trending -0.59% lower this morning, and currently trading around $2495.51

(All prices as quoted at approximately 07H45 Central African Time) 

African General News Briefs:

• Southern African State Eswatini, has said it “will not be coerced, disadvantaged or destabilised” over its foreign policy choices, the government stated after China told its citizens to immediately leave the country. Eswatini is one of 12 countries that still recognise Taiwan despite Chinese efforts to persuade them to break diplomatic ties with the self-ruled island. The Taiwan president visited Eswatini in May this year and China has responded by removing all tariffs for African state imports except from Eswatini.
• World renown Malian musician Salif Keïta has cancelled a planned music tour in South Africa over what he called “xenophobic violence”. This has been met with disappointment by the province hosting a festival he was due to perform at next month. The 77-year-old star added that this did not reflect the country that he knew and that cancelling the appearance was “a rejection of hate” rather than a rejection of South Africans,