LONDON — Zambia has become the latest African country looking for help to tackle its hefty debt burden this week as international lenders and analysts are warning the pandemic crisis could push many of the continent's economies into debt distress. Below are four charts to show some economic and fiscal pressures faced by a number of African countries. 1/ RISING BORROWING COSTSThe premium demanded by investors to hold African hard-currency bonds has soared in recent weeks, indicating that borrowing costs have risen to painfully high levels for many governments on the continent. This means that African sovereigns - unlike their Western peers - have little space to provide stimulus at a time of waning growth and with the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic not yet foreseeable. The Africa composite reading also entered that territory for the first time in late March.

Source: International New York Times April 03, 2020 20:26 UTC