MTN managed to please the market with an update saying it is seeing signs of inflation stabilising in key markets, while the JSE reached another milestone in its battle for more listings.

Africa’s largest mobile operator MTN said on Tuesday revenue in its nine months to end-September climbed about 9% to R156 billion. But it was under pressure, falling almost 5% in reported terms, amid currency pressures, notably a devaluation of Nigeria’s naira. Group core profit rose almost 3% for the nine months, while subscribers grew 1.8% to about 190 million. Data traffic was up just over a fifth and fintech transaction volumes a third, with group CEO Ralph Mupita saying it was a “resilient” performance given inflation remained elevated across its markets. But network availability improved in SA to above 95%, and it is seeing signs of inflation subsiding in key markets. Shares in the mobile operator lifted initially after the announcement but were down more than 2% in late afternoon trade, having fallen about 29% in the past year.

Chemicals and explosives group Omnia said it saw strong sales volumes, market share growth and robust margins in its six months to end-September. But it expects headline earnings per share from continuing operations to fall in a range of 2% to 12%. An underperformance of local utilities and deteriorating infrastructure resulted in disruptions in the transportation of raw materials and production input, it said, notably affecting its chemicals segment, but it ensured an uninterrupted supply for its customers. High inflation and commodity price volatility added to the pressure. Shares in the group, valued at about R9.6 billion on the JSE, were down almost 2% after the announcement have given back more than a fifth in the past 12 months.