Browsing: Global trade

AIM Congress 2025 Future of Finance

AIM Congress 2025: Where delegates will have a front-row seat to the future of finance

Africa
  • AIM Congress 2025 is poised to show innovations that promise to redefine the finance industry at every level.
  • The case for emerging digital currencies amid the need for cross-border regulatory requirements to feature in talks.
  • Future of finance discussions to encompass fintech, sustainable finance, and risk management.

Globally, an evolution is underway. Innovations are defining the future of finance as individuals and corporations adopt new ways of borrowing, transacting, and investing.

Policy decisions on interest rates in key markets, vice-like regulatory requirements, and the now ubiquitous digital currencies are increasingly pushing governments to adopt mechanisms to accommodate new demands, and a different era emerges.

The tokenization of digital assets

For instance, private lending, the tokenization of digital assets, and the adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the financial systems’ value chain are fast-defining new modes of cross-border transactions as the future of finance unfolds.

For policymakers, investors, companies, and non-state …

EAC Secretary General Dr Peter Mathuki.

EAC bloc starts digitizing imported goods tariffs

Industry and Trade
  • The programme, being implemented with the support of the World Customs Organisation (WCO), is aimed at bolstering the region’s private sector by encouraging participation in both regional and international trade.
  • Intra-regional trade within the East African Community (EAC) is on an upward trajectory, standing at $10.17 billion as of September 2022 while total trade with the rest of the world stood at $62 billion, highlighting a need for further improvement. This represents a 20 percent share of Intra-trade to global trade.
  • The digitisation of the CETs will see the region’s business community — exporters and importers- gain access to trade information from the private sector in international trade.

The East African Community (EAC) secretariat has embarked on the digitising its Common External Tariffs (CET) a move that is billed to encourage the countries’ participation in regional and international trade.

The CET is meant to protect the member countries of the …

AFTCA

West Africa: Economic sectors to benefit most from the AfCFTA

Business

For historic reasons, bilateral and regional trade in Africa has been hampered by trade routes designed for export away from the continent rather than for facilitating intra-Africa trade. Obstacles include long distances, inadequate transport services, and inefficient institutional and transit regimes.

In many landlocked African countries, economic centres are located several hundred kilometres away from the closest seaport. Overcoming geographic constraints or the lack of economies of scale caused by small transportation volumes is key for all countries, particularly transit countries. A renewed focus on the efficiency of transport and logistics services is long overdue, given that many countries retain policies that favour closed, small, and inefficient services markets.

By committing to no new barriers to services trade during the progressive liberalization process, at least in the five priority sectors—business, communication, financial, transport, and tourism services, and with declining trade costs—the transport sector is bound to expand.…

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Investment in Africa Risky but Rewarding

Africa needs to grow its stake in global trade

Investing

In as far as global trade is concerned Africa has a central role to play. So critical is this role that should Africa be absent from the global trade equation the global economy simply will not prosper. Africa’s mining sector offers in 2022 and going forward a real opportunity for expansion.

Africa’s economic transformation will come from its ability to leverage the comparative advantage position its natural resources offer. Africa needs to become the seventh corridor of the Belt & Road Initiative (BRI). China will be able to enhance its dominance in the global economy if it does more to invest in and develop economic ties with Africa.

Currently the BRI in as far as Africa is concerned restricts the role of Africa to providing access to raw materials.…

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Exports in Africa

Global trade marks $28.5 trillion in 2021, but not likely in 2022 

Africa

UNCTAD argued that in the fourth quarter of 2021, all major trading economies saw imports and exports rise well above pre-pandemic levels of 2019.  Moreover, the report pointed out that trade in goods increased more strongly in developing countries than in developed ones. 

It is essential to realize that Africa has more to tap into the intra-African trade, standing at around $21.9 billion, according to UNCTAD. 

Further, exports of developing countries were about 30 per cent higher than during the same period in 2020, compared with 15 per cent for wealthier nations. 

The UNCTAD report argued that growth spiked in commodity-exporting regions as commodity prices increased. …

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www.theexchange.africa

Global trade to hit $17.4 trillion by 2030 driven by digitization, fair trade

Business
  • Global trade will grow by 70 per cent from USD17.4 trillion to USD29.7 trillion by 2030, data by Standard Chartered has shown 
  • The Future of Trade 2030: Trends and markets to watch report reveals 13 markets that will drive much of this growth, identifies major corridors, and five trends shaping the future of global trade
  • The research found that 10 per cent of global corporates currently do or plan to manufacture in Kenya within the next five to 10 years

Global trade will grow by 70 per cent from USD17.4 trillion to USD29.7 trillion by 2030, a new research by Standard Chartered has projected.

The Future of Trade 2030: Trends and markets to watch report reveals 13 markets that will drive much of this growth, identifies major corridors, and five trends shaping the future of global trade.

Kenya is a key driver of this global trade growth, with its exports …