Vodafone’s Ghana deal attracts SFO interest

The UK Serious Fraud Office has contacted Vodafone about its controversial deal to buy a controlling stake in Ghana’s third-largest mobile phone operator

• Vodafone faces challenge over deal in Africa
• Virgin Mobile expands in France

Demand up at Mondi but price levels struggle

Volumes are starting to recover at the paper and packaging group, although pricing levels remain depressed overall

• Mondi statement
• Anglo American takes axe to 2,700 managers

Investec gains from its African roots

Chief executive of Investec, Hendrik du Toit, claims his firm has a unique insight into the developing world

Ghana in talks as Exxon bid runs into trouble

The country’s national oil company is in discussions with foreign companies interested in a stake in the offshore Jubilee field, amid anticipation that ExxonMobil’s attempt to buy the stake may fail

Guarded welcome for Niger delta oil initiative

Presidential adviser hails plan to give 10 per cent of assets to region as ‘revolutionary’, but local groups are sceptical

De Beers remains confident about prospects

Sheila Khama, chief executive of the world’s largest diamond company, is beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel as sales pick up sharply in the second quarter

Biggest ad markets will see no growth until 2011

Agency sees 2.9% fall in 2010 in major markets while emerging nations like india and China could increase 7.8%

DeBeers points to diamond market revival

De Beers’s flagship mines in Botswana are operating at about 80 per cent of capacity, signalling a marked improvement in the international diamond market less than a year after demand for the gems collapsed