| Good morning Voornaam, Fresh out the oven: Ghost Bites: AB InBev is growing margins and earnings, but with no thanks to volumes. Lesaka announced a major FinTech acquisition. MTN Rwanda is going the wrong way. Renergen released financial statements. Read Ghost Bites>>> Chasing (returns from) the Sun: Grovest's Tivon Loubser joined me on a Ghost Stories podcast to talk about the 12BA allowances and how the government is giving returns from solar a serious boost for investors. With only a few weeks until normal load shedding programming is likely to return, listen to it here (full transcript included)>>> Electrifying stocks: speaking of electricity, Craig Antonie of AnBro was the guest on the brand new Magic Markets show to talk about the electrification theme and the global stocks that play give exposure to it. Thematic investing is powerful for "buy-and-forget" strategies. Enjoy it here (full transcript included)>>> |
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| In case you missed it: Ghost Wrap: You need under six minutes to get up to speed on MTN Nigeria, Datatec, Capital & Regional, Harmony Gold, Astral Foods and Quantum Foods, brought to you by Mazars. Listen to it here>>> Bond ETFs: Improve your understanding of bond ETFs and how they work in a portfolio. Siyabulela Nomoyi of Satrix joined me on a Ghost Stories podcast to unpack this type of investment. Listen to it here>>> Sanlam / Grovepoint: Private markets are fascinating, especially private credit. In this podcast featuring two highly experienced professionals (Reginald Labuschagne and Harris Gorre), we unpack the capital allocation and investment considerations. Full transcript included. Don't miss this! Find it here>>> Unlock the Stock: The recording of the recent presentation by Astoria Investments is available at this link>>> Investec: The demographic shift in the world has major impacts on retirement planning. How can structured products help? Read it here>>> |
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| LISTEN: Chasing Returns from the Sun |
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| Not only can you invest in solar, but you can do it with the benefit of tax-enhanced returns thanks to current government policy. Tivon Loubser of Grovest joined me to discuss this.
(full transcript included)
Listen to the podcast here>>> |
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Local company news:
AB InBev mainly sells beer, which you might think is a no-brainer as you look around at the braai or the next time you're in a restaurant at night. Look more closely though. People are drinking all kinds of different things. Also, is it just me or do they seem to be drinking less, perhaps more aware of health impacts? Either way, volumes aren't moving in the right direction at AB InBev. Pricing is on a positive trajectory, as are margins, so shareholders are getting some relief there. I'm very glad I don't hold shares in the SAB Zenzele Kabili structure that needs AB InBev to grow its dividends.
At the other end of the growth spectrum, we find Lesaka and the news of another major FinTech acquisition. Paid for with a mix of shares and cash, this brings the likes of Apis Growth Fund and African Rainbow Capital onto the register. More importantly, the Lesaka ecosystem after the Adumo acquisition will have 119,000 merchants and over R250 billion in processed payments per year. Scale is being delivered here.
Over at MTN Rwanda, changes to mobile termination rates are hurting voice revenue and overall monetisation of the infrastructure, leading to unpleasant results at profit after tax level.
Finally, Renergen released detailed annual financial statements, which gives the bulls and bears in the market some new things to fight over.
Get the details in Ghost Bites at this link>>>
The next Unlock the Stock event is CA Sales Holdings, scheduled for TODAY at midday. This company has been a superstar on the local market and I highly recommend putting this in your diaries so you can engage with the management team. Attendance is free, but you must register here>>>
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| LISTEN: Investing in Private Credit
(Reginald Labuschagne, Sanlam Private Wealth |
Harris Gorre, Grovepoint Investment Management) |
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| Get ready to learn - and in a big way. Reginald Labuschagne and Harris Gorre shared their extensive insights into how private credit can be used by investors for returns and diversification. Full transcript included. Listen to the podcast here>>> |
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| READ AND LISTEN: The Global Accelerator |
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| For Investec's views on how structured products can play a role in the context of shifting demographics and possibly delayed retirements, read this great article>>>
To learn about the Global Accelerator, which offers 100% capital protection in dollars at maturity after five years, while giving exposure to global equity indices, listen to this podcast with Japie Lubbe of Investec Structured Products. |
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| READ: What tiny pineapples can tell us about our future
(by Dominique Olivier) |
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| The Precious Honeyglow, roughly half the size and weight of a full-size pineapple, tells us a whole lot about changing demographics in the world and what this means for consumer trends.
Dominique Olivier unpacks it in this great article>>> |
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| READ: Satrix MSCI ACWI - Capturing Opportunities |
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| In this article, Satrix puts the spotlight on the MSCI All Country World Index ETF, which gives broad global market exposure.
Over 60% exposure is to the US, with China as the next highest. |
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International business news:
The battle against Netflix continues and it can only come from one mechanism: market consolidation. Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery will further bundle their streaming services in a way that sounds a lot like traditional linear TV. You know, pay once and get many channels?
Disney is the distributor here, with Warner Bros. Discovery taking a percentage of fees. Frankly, I'm not even slightly surprised to see that Disney doesn't have much of a role beyond operating the ticket machine. Their content track record speks for itself.
This isn't the first bundled offering that the groups have offered together. It's just the most impressive one and the most obvious example of what is happening in the sector.
Ready to understand more about risks and opportunities in global stocks? Subscribe to Magic Markets Premium for just R99/month. You'll get a subscribers-only weekly report and podcast on global stocks, covering strategy, financials and technical trading indicators. |
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| LISTEN: Cashing in on clean |
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| There are so many investment opportunities stemming from South Africa’s energy transition.
In episode 4 of Investec’s The Current, discover how you can get some skin in the clean energy game. Hosted by Iman Rappetti, listen to the discussion here>>> |
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| Macroeconomic Update Positive Chinese trade data gave equity markets a rally this morning. Over in Japan, the yen has lost more value after real wages dropped for the 24th month in a row, with wage growth lagging price hikes and eroding purchasing power of households.
Other than that, markets are sideways as they digest the ongoing hawkish theme of Fed speakers.
The BoE is due to make an interest rate decision today and there's also another round of jobless claims data in the US.
As a reminder of how difficult life is for African currencies, the Zambian Kwacha is at record lows as El Nino affects the electricity supply, with 85% reliant on hydropower. Zimbabwe also looks dire, with corn output expected to drop by nearly three-quarters in 2024 as the company is hurt by its first drought in nearly four decades.
Key indicators: USD/ZAR R18.56; US 10-year 4.51%; Gold $2,315; Platinum ZAR R18,239; Brent Crude $83.92
This macroeconomic update is based on TreasuryONE's morning update. |
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