By Rafiq Raji, PhD
Twitter: @DrRafiqRaji

Global Markets

• Wall Street futures, Asia stocks jump back on GOP’s house prospects
• Shares gain as Republicans seen faring better than expected
• Dollar erase losses, US bond yields near 7-yr peak
• Trade worries likely to remain regardless of election outcome

Oil Markets

• Oil pirces extend falls on well supplied market, Iran sanction waivers
• Brent crude down over 17 pct since Oct, WTI down 20 pct
• Iraq plans output rise to 5 mln bpd in 2019
• US grants Iran’s biggest customers sanction waivers
• US WTI crude oil futures down 0.7 pct at $61.79 a barrel (0053GMT)
• Brent yet to trade

Precious metals

• Gold gains on weaker dollar; US election in focus
• Spot gold up 0.2 pct at $1,228.40 per ounce (0118GMT)
• US gold futures up 0.3 pct at $1,229.7 per ounce

Grains

• Wheat drops from 1-wk high; US crop condition caps losses
• Most active CBOT wheat futures down 0.2 pct at $5.11-1/4 per bushel
• Most active soybean futures down 0.1 pct at $8.83 a bushel
• Most active corn futures down 0.5 pct at $3.71-1/2 a bushel

Key African events or data releases today
[Posts & comments at my Twitter handle @DrRafiqRaji]

• Africa Investment Forum by AfDB in Johannesburg today; 7-9 Nov
• South Africa FX reserves data for October expected [prev. $50.394B]
• South Africa SACCI business confidence data for October [prev. 93.3]
• Prince Charles & wife state visit to Nigeria (day 2)
• Madagascar presidential election today
• Africa oil week in Cape Town continues; 5-9 Nov

Key African events or data releases yesterday & early a.m today
[Posted & commented on some headlines below at my Twitter handle @DrRafiqRaji]

• Feature – As slavery evolves in Mauritania, silent victims prove harder to find
• Cameroon leader tells seperatists to down arms after child kidnappings
• Madagascar set to vote in presidential election
• Egypt’s Sisi orders review of law curbing NGOs
• Thomas Cook plans hotel hygiene checks after Egypt deaths
• Nigerian unions, govt agree minimum wage to avert strike
• Egypt’s Sisi says army will defend Gulf Arabs in case of direct threat – newspaper
• Africa Crude – Nigerian diffs hold steady but buyers say prices too high
• Uranium levels force Glencore unit Katanga to halt cobalt exports
• Four of six rare black rhions die after move to Chad
• Ghana lauches commodity exchage for agric products
• Sudan in push for oil sector investment
• Mozambique offers to share gas revenue in “tuna bond” restructuring
• Standard Bank urges Brazilian firms to tap Africa market
• ABC Holding selling 24.9 pct in lender BancABC Botswana
• Thousands hiding in Central African Republic hospital risk attack – charity
• Lebanon minister apologies to Egypt for insulting its cleanliness
• Mauritanian activists hail US decision to end trade deal over slavery
• Kenya’s Safaricom takes M-Pesa global with Western Union
• Republic of Congo launches oil exploration licensing round
• Nigeria’s Mona Lisa shown at home for first time since it resurfaced
• Nigeria senate to probe state oil firm over Nigeria LNG revenues
• Uganda to launch next oil exploration bidding licence round next May
• Nissan signs deal to build assembly plant in Ghana
• South Africa’s Ramaphosa says shutting SAA could collapse public finances
• Tullow sees first Kenyan crude shipments in first half 2019
• Randgold ready to mediate in Acacia’s Tanzania row before Barrick tie-up
• Dry weather forces Mauritius to cut 2018 sugar output forecast again
• Feature – South African shack-dwellers’ movement fights for urban land reform
• EU tax haven blacklist drops to five with removal of Namibia
• 17 migrants perish crossing from Africa to Spain – Spanish Coast Guard
• South Africa’s Group Five says Ghanaian power project delayed
• Feature – Seeds of change: Mali farmers fight drought with hybrid crops
• Egypt central bank says to target inflation as part of monetary policy
• Sarwa Capital’s IPO prospectus contained no irregularities – Egypt’s Beltone
• Mozambique dollar bond jumps 7 cents after Maputo announces restructuring deal
• Ugandan shilling unchanged as players eye offshore inflows
• Mozambique to share gas revenue in ‘tuna bond’ restructuring – finmin
• Randgold says Q3 profit jumps helped by lower costs
• Feature – In Israel, African migrant families battle hunger, trauma
• South Africa’s Harmony Gold Q1 output surges on Hidden Valley, Moab Khotsong

N.B. Full stories of above headlines are available on Reuters