Standard puts its money on Angola

REFLECTING THE growing confidence in Angola’s growth prospects, Standard Bank will open a representative office in the capital Luanda this month. The Bank’s Africa operations trade under the name Stanbic. According to Reuters, business has boomed in Angola since the end of a three-decade civil war in 2002 and economic growth is forecast at over 25% this year. Several South African companies – involved in projects ranging from construction to mining and food retailing – have edged in on the action.