FNB CEO Says Iran War May Derail South Africa’s Fragile Recovery

The conflict in the Middle East could derail South Africa’s best economic start in a decade as higher food and fuel prices rein in the fledgling recovery in the continent’s biggest economy, the head of one of the nation’s top retail lenders said.

“The war does actually put a damper back on growth,” said Harry Kellan, the chief executive officer of First National Bank, a unit of South Africa’s second biggest bank by market value FirstRand Ltd.