By Rafiq Raji, PhD
Twitter: @DrRafiqRaji

Global Markets

• Asia shares struggle to rally, oil skids further
• Asia shares ex-Japan inch up 0.4 pct, China shade firmer
• WSJ reports Fed weighing pause after Dec rate rise
• Bonds rally as markets price in less than one hike next year

Oil Markets

• Oil drops as OPEC makes supply cut dependent on Russian support
• Brent crude oil futures down 0.9 pct at $59.50 per barrel (0144GMT)
• US WTI crude futures down 0.5 pct at $51.24

Grains

• Soybeans set for 2^nd weekly gain on US-China trade deal hopes
• Most active CBOT wheat futures up about 0.1 pct at $5.15-3/4 per bushel (0106GMT)
• Most active corn futures down 0.6 pct at $3.82-1/2 per bushel
• Most active soy futures up 0.1 pct at $9.10-1/2 per bushel
• Most active rice futures unchanged at $10.83 per hundredweight

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

• South Africa’s Ramaphosa speech at 70^th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights at Constitution Hill, Johannesburg
• South African foreign exchange reserves for Nov-18 [prev. $50.2B]

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

• World cocoa supply surplus to grow in 2018/19 – JSG
• UK’s Tullow oil seeking partners in bid for additional Ghana block
• Libyan election commission says needs budget for February constitution vote
• No breakthrough at rare UN Western Sahara talks
• Developing nations say swifter climate action depends on cash to pay for it
• Africa Crude – Angolan cargoes linger, Qua offered lower
• South African slides as current account deficit widens, Eskom woes weigh
• Somali blast kills two generals and seven guards
• Niger adopts law to protect displaced people in first for Africa
• Fitch keeps South Africa’s sovereign rating unchanged
• South Africa’s Tiger Brands reopens meat plant after listeria outbreak
• South Africa’s Eskom bonds slide on debt restructuring talk
• Critic of Rwandan president cleared of insurrection and forgery
• Libyan election commission says has “zero” budget to prepare polls
• Kenya’s NIC Bank and Commercial Bank of Africa to explore merger
• Barrick Gold to sell assets, reduce head office mgt – WSJ
• Algeria mobile operator Djezzy added 1 mln customers this year – CEO
• South Africa’s Eskom bonds tumble as debt worries mount
• Plan to restructure $28 bln debt of South Africa’s Eskom due in 2019
• Zambian kwacha seen firm, Ugandan shilling weak; in week ahead
• OPEC agrees oil output cut, no final figure yet – delegate
• Bank Windhoek becomes first commercial lender in southern Africa to issue green bond
• Egypt to auction $1 bln 1-yr dollar t-bills on Monday – central bank
• In southern Ethiopia, herders join forces to revive rangelands
• Ugandan shilling steady, propped by charity and commodity flows
• South African business confidence index rises in November
• South Africa Q3 current account deficit widens 3.5 pct of GDP as trade surplus narrows
• Bad weather keeps Eastern Libyan oil ports closed
• Egypt’s non-oil business activity contracts in November, but pace of slowdown eases
• Steinhoff expects to publish 2017, 2018 results in April
• US military says strike kills 4 militants in Somalia

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