Emerging Markets Daily - May 23
Ethiopia's Historic $850M Telecom Auction, Brazil's Lost Decade of Investment, Hitachi Invests in EV Bus Infra in Pakistan, Indonesia's GoTo Eyes Global Expansion, DR Congo Volcano
The Top 5 Emerging Markets Stories from Global Media - May 23 (Weekend Edition)
Ethiopia Raises $850m from Historic Telecoms Auction
Financial Times
“Ethiopia has awarded its first telecoms licence for $850m to a consortium including the UK’s Vodafone in what could herald the start of an opening up of Ethiopia’s closed economy.”
“The consortium, led by Kenya’s Safaricom with Vodafone and Vodacom, also includes British finance development agency CDC and Japan’s Sumitomo. A bid for a second licence from South Africa’s MTN for $600m was rejected as too low and the licence will be retendered.”
“The opening up of what is the world’s largest remaining telecoms monopoly in a fast-growing country of 114m people had been billed by the Ethiopian government as the ‘deal of the century’.” David Pilling and Andres Schipani report
Brazil’s Lost Decade of Investment: 2011-20
Folha de S. Paulo
“From 2011 to 2020 investments in Brazil, both public and private, suffered the worst decade in 50 years. The contributions were equivalent to 17.7% of GDP (Gross Domestic Product), the weakest result since the 1961s to the 1970s, according to a study by researchers Juliana Trece and Claudio Considera, from Ibre / FGV (Brazilian Institute of Economics, from Getulio Vargas Foundation).”
“In addition, the calculations show that almost nine out of ten countries in the world (87%) had higher rates than those in Brazil last year and that the pandemic did not change the downward trend that was seen before the health crisis.” Douglas Gavras reports
Hitachi To Build EV Bus Infrastructure in Pakistan
Nikkei Asia
“Hitachi will help build charging infrastructure for electric buses in Pakistan, part of the Japanese industrial group's search for deals in this sector in South Asia and the Middle East, Nikkei has learned.”
“…Demand for electric buses is projected to surge as Asian nations seek to temper urban sprawl with low-carbon-emissions technology. By 2030, 3 million to 5 million electric buses will be in service worldwide, up from about 500,000 in 2019, the International Energy Agency forecasts.”
“In Pakistan, Hitachi ABB Power Grids will work with local bus company Daewoo Express and Chinese electric bus maker Sky-well New Energy Automobile Group to build a network. The Hitachi unit has reached a preliminary agreement to supply charging infrastructure for this effort.” Yoichiro Hiroi reports
GoTo Plots Global Expansion on Backbone of SME Merchants
Jakarta Post / The Star
“…At the event, Andre took turns alongside Tokopedia CEO William Tanuwijaya and Gojek CEO Kevin Aluwi in presenting the company’s vision, which included plans for regional and global expansion and turning the combined Gojek-Tokopedia network into an e-commerce juggernaut a la Alibaba.”
“‘It’s not a question of if, but when GoTo goes global. We want to be a global brand from Indonesia that future generations will remember, just like Alibaba in China,’ said William.”
“…The company’s next step would be to integrate the fleet of Gojek drivers with Tokopedia’s online marketplace as first and last mile carriers.” M. Taufiqurrahman reports
Mount Nyiragongo: DR Congo Residents Flee as Volcano Erupts
BBC
“Thousands of people have fled their homes in the Democratic Republic of Congo after a large volcano erupted.”
“Fountains of high lava burst from Mount Nyiragongo into the night sky forming a thick red cloud over the town of Goma, which has a population of two million.”
“The lava flow reached the city's airport but has reportedly now stopped.” BBC News reports
For more, see this Aljazeera English report below: