NIGERIA

Three people were killed and 21 injured by an explosive device thrown from a car at an election rally near Nigeria's capital Abuja on Thursday, the latest act of political violence ahead of nationwide polls next month.

The Nigerian naira weakened further against the U.S. dollar on the interbank market on Wednesday as strong demand for the greenback persisted in the face of static supply, traders said.

Nigeria's state oil company had the poorest transparency record of 44 national and international energy companies evaluated in a report published by international watchdogs this week.

Muammar Gaddafi launched a land and air offensive to retake territory in Libya's east at dawn on Wednesday, sparking a rebel call for foreign air strikes against African mercenaries they said were helping him cling to power.

OPEC output fell in February from a two-year high the previous month as the uprising in Libya curbed supplies from Africa's third-largest producer, even as Saudi Arabia pumped more, a Reuters survey showed on Tuesday.

Boosted by the soccer World Cup, South Africa saw a record 15.1 percent increase in tourist arrivals in 2010 although the total of more than 8 million was not an all time-high, the tourism minister said on Tuesday.

Brewer SABMiller is to spend over $100 million to build a new brewery in Africa's second largest beer market Nigeria to take on the country's brewing heavyweights Heineken and Diageo.

Nigeria's state asset management company said on Monday it was set to start the second round of non-performing loan purchases from the banking sector and was on track to soak up all bad credit by the end of next month.

A Illinoise man was in disbelief after learning that he invested two and a half years of his life as well as $200,000 on a fake online girlfriend.

Amidst reports of thousands of deaths in Libya as a result of a brutal crackdown against protesters, the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council is meeting in a special session in Geneva, Switzerland today to discuss possible sanctions against Moammar Gaddafi’s embattled government.

Nigeria's parliament has begun a detailed debate of the latest version of long-delayed reforms to Africa's biggest energy industry, just two months ahead of elections, the head of the state oil company said on Wednesday.

In the muggy forest of central Liberia, a gang of workers is inching its way along a railway track, cut long and straight through an otherwise impenetrable mesh of trees and vines. The drone of insects is interrupted by a high-pitched drill and the clang of hammers as workers put the finishing touches to the perfectly aligned steel tracks.

Pfizer Inc said it has settled all outstanding lawsuits involving accusations that it tested the experimental antibiotic Trovan on children in Nigeria during a 1996 meningitis outbreak without receiving adequate prior consent.

Nigerian Central Bank Governor Lamido Sanusi said on Monday he did not believe that the naira was over-valued and criticised advice from the IMF, which last week recommended greater exchange rate flexibility.

Ivory Coast's biggest bank, a unit of Societe Generale, suspended operations on Thursday, the latest in an exodus of foreign banks that is turning a political crisis into financial meltdown.

French oil major Total will reduce production of its Angolan crude grade Dalia in April for planned maintenance, trade sources said on Thursday.

Nigeria's economy is expected to grow around 7 percent this year, down from 8.5 percent in 2010, with growth moderating gradually in subsequent years, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Thursday.

Nigeria distributed 414.3 billion naira from federal accounts to its three tiers of government for January, up 0.85 percent on the previous month, the acting accountant general said on Monday.

Inflation is likely to rise further in Mauritius, central bank governor Rundheersing Bheenick said on Saturday, reinforcing speculation that the central bank may raise rates at its March meeting.

At least 11 people were trampled to death on Saturday in a stampede at an election campaign rally for Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan in the southern oil city of Port Harcourt.

China’s Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi has arrived in Zimbabwe to start a five-nation tour of Africa, amidst reports the two nations have signed a $10-billion trade deal.