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Amazon announces $200bn AI spending, shares tumble 7%

Amazon plans to spend $200 billion on artificial intelligence infrastructure in 2026, far exceeding analyst estimates of $145 billion and marking a 50 per cent increase from the $131 billion spent in 2025. The company’s shares fell 7 per cent in after-hours trading on Thursday after it also forecast first-quarter operating income of $16.5 billion to $21.5 billion, below expectations of $22.04 billion.

CEO Andy Jassy said most spending will focus on Amazon Web Services, where demand for cloud and AI services remains strong despite industrywide capacity constraints. The company invested heavily in the fourth quarter to ease those constraints, launching Project Rainier with nearly 500,000 in-house Trainium2 chips. AWS contributes just 15 to 20 per cent of overall sales but generates over 60 per cent of Amazon’s operating profit. The announcement comes as Big Tech collectively plans to spend over $500 billion this year on processors, data centres, and networking equipment.

Bitcoin tests $60,000 support as $1bn in positions liquidated

Bitcoin hit a 16-month low of $60,008 on Friday as a global selloff in technology stocks deepened and investors fled risky assets. The world’s largest cryptocurrency recovered to trade at $64,153 in volatile trading, having lost nearly half its value since reaching a record above $125,000 in October 2025.

More than $1 billion in cryptocurrency positions were liquidated over 24 hours, including $980 million in bullish leveraged bets forced to close as prices dropped. The selloff reflects broader weakness in risk assets, with investors rotating into traditional safe havens like gold. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the government does not have the power to step in and support cryptocurrencies in the event of a crash, dimming hopes of a rescue despite the Trump administration’s embrace of crypto. Institutional demand has reversed materially, with US Bitcoin ETFs now net sellers in 2026.

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Cape Town doubles tax on Airbnb properties to commercial rates

Cape Town plans to more than double municipal rates on homes rented out for short durations, including those listed on Airbnb and Booking.com, as a boom in private tourist accommodation drives up housing prices and stokes resentment among locals. South Africa’s second-largest city will introduce a bylaw in the coming months, ensuring properties used primarily for short-term lets pay commercial tariffs on par with hotels and guest houses.

About 26,500 housing units in Cape Town are listed for short-term rental on Airbnb, more than double the number in Barcelona, Amsterdam, New York, and Hong Kong combined, according to InsideAirbnb. The city is Africa’s most expensive for real estate, with long-term rental prices already high compared to other South African cities. The move mirrors restrictions imposed by cities like Amsterdam, Barcelona, Berlin, London, New York, and San Francisco to prevent entire neighbourhoods from turning into tourist areas.

Dangote warns coastal logistics could push petrol to N1,000 per litre

Dangote Petroleum Refinery said reliance on coastal delivery for petroleum distribution could add N75 per litre to the cost of petrol, pushing pump prices close to N1,000 per litre. The refinery warned Thursday that sustained dependence on coastal logistics could impose an additional annual cost of roughly N1.75 trillion on Nigeria’s economy.

The 650,000 barrels-per-day facility urged marketers and policymakers to adopt more efficient logistics options, highlighting its world-class gantry facility with 91 loading bays capable of dispatching up to 2,900 tankers daily. The refinery said direct gantry evacuation eliminates port charges, maritime levies, and vessel-related costs that add no value to end users. Dangote also denied allegations of importing finished petroleum products, explaining it only imports intermediate feedstock while its residue fluid catalytic cracking unit undergoes maintenance. The refinery noted that since operations began, diesel prices have fallen from N1,700 to between N980 and N990 per litre, while petrol prices declined from N1,250 to between N839 and N900.

NNPC in talks with Chinese firm over Port Harcourt refinery investment

Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited is in advanced discussions with a Chinese firm regarding potential investment in the Port Harcourt refinery, according to NNPC’s Chief Financial Officer, Bayo Ojulari. The talks come as the state oil company seeks partners to optimise operations at the recently rehabilitated 210,000 barrels-per-day facility.

Ojulari disclosed the discussions during the Nigeria International Energy Summit in Abuja but declined to name the Chinese company or provide details on the investment size. The Port Harcourt refinery resumed operations in late 2025 after years of rehabilitation, though it has struggled to reach full capacity. NNPC is pursuing similar partnerships across its downstream assets as part of efforts to attract foreign capital and technical expertise to Nigeria’s petroleum sector.