By Rafiq Raji, PhD
Twitter: @DrRafiqRaji, @macroafrica
Global Markets
- Asia shares extend gains as economies slowly re-open, oil rallies
- MSCI Asia-Pacific ex Japan up 0.9%; up 3.3% week thus far
- Australia shares up 1.2%, South Korea +1.2%
- China markets blue-chips up 0.6%
Oil Markets
- Oil prices climb as storage fills less rapidly than feared
- Brent up 1.8% at $20.82 a barrel (0038GMT)
- WTI up 8.8% at $13.43
Precious metals
- Gold ticks up on weaker dollar; Fed decision awaited
- Spot gold up 0.1% at $1,708.53/oz. (0126GMT)
- US gold futures up 0.2% at $1,725.50/oz.
Grains
- Corn ticks up for first time in four sessions
- Corn futures up 0.1% at $3.12-1/4 a bushel (0158GMT)
- Soybeans up 0.2% at $8.33-1/2 a bushel
- Wheat down 0.3% at $5.23-1/2 a bushel
Key African events or data releases today
[Posts & comments at my Twitter handles @DrRafiqRaji, @macroafrica]
- Central Bank of Kenya decides on interest rates [fcst. 7.0%, prev. 7.25%]
- Nigeria’s Buhari chief of staff pick awaited
- Key African countries on lockdown; subdued economic activity
- Covid-19 updates by authorities across the continent
Key African events or data releases yesterday & early a.m today
- Mali parliament approves new mining code
- Malawi launches $40 monthly cash transfers to combat coronavirus impact
- IMF approves $3.4 bln emergency aid for Nigeria’s pandemic response
- Mozambique forces killed over […] 100 insurgents in past month – govt
- Morocco rejects accusation of police abuse in enforcing lockdown
- Without naming Libya’s Haftar, France says unilateral action won’t solve conflict
- South Africa state airline SA Express faces liquidation
- Calls in Egypt for censored social media after arrests of TikTok star, belly dancer
- Africa Oil – Nigeria programmes begin to emerge, Angolan final waited
- South Africa union tells mineworkers to resist Harmony Gold mine restart
- South Africa rand, stocks rally as stimulus, easing lockdowns lift sentiment
- South Africa delivery firms switch to meds, groceries during pandemic
- Ivory Coast presidential candidate Soro sentenced to 20 yrs in prison
- Nigeria switches to domestic naira markets to finance 2020 budget
- Launch of Africa free trade deal postponed due to coronavirus – official
- South Africa mining firms work together against covid-19 as mines reopen
- Nigeria senate approves president’s 850 bln naira borrowing scheme
- Russia disapproves of Haftar’s power grab in Libya – Ifax cites foreign minister
- South Sudan central bank slashes benchmark rate to 13%
- Nigeria seeks $2.36 bln in domestic loans; external markets unfavourable
- Algeria annual inflation unchanged in March at 1.8%
- DR Congo locks down mining city and Zambia border town
- Escaped ebola patient hiding in Congo militia-held area – officials
- South Africa landlords step up assistance for retail tenants
- Sudan inflation rises to 81.64% in March – statistics agency
- Russia still committed to diplomatic process in Libya after Haftar power grab
- East Libya has expelled 1,400 refugees and migrants this year: UN
- Kenya estimates 2020 GDP growth of 2.5% but could go lower
- Kenya shilling loses ground under pressure from end-month demand
- Kenya economic growth slowed to 5.4% in 2019 v 6.3% in 2018 – finmin
- Russia ‘surprised’ by Haftar’s Libya power grab – RIA cites source
- Russia’s Novak says storage weighing on oil prices but output pact will help
- South Africa rand weaker on rescue package funding worries
N.B. Full stories of above headlines are available on Reuters