Africa's biggest rivals forge closer ties amid global slump

Johannesburg

MISERY loves company. Africa's two biggest economic rivals - South Africa and Nigeria - are turning to each other as they fall on tough times.

South Africa's economy is threatened with recession as demand from China, its main trading partner, weakens and commodity prices plunge, while Nigeria has been hit by a collapse in oil revenue. To weather the global storm, the two countries are seeking closer trade and investment ties when South African President Jacob Zuma leads a high-level delegation of ministers and business executives to Nigeria on Tuesday. In the process, he may rebuild a relationship that's come under diplomatic strain in the past.