By Rafiq Raji, PhD
Twitter: @DrRafiqRaji
Global Markets
- Hong Kong leads Asian stocks lower, oil fragile at 5-mth lows
- HK shares down sharply for 2nd day after big street protests
- Soft oil prices bolster expectations of Fed rate cuts
- Bond yields plunge; Japan at 3-yr low, Australia at record
- European shares seen 0.2% lower
Oil Markets
- Oil surges after report of tanker incident in Gulf of Oman near Iran
- Royal Navy unit looking into tanker incident
- Brent rises by more than $2 a barrel
- WTI up by about 3% from previous close
- Brent up 3.3% at $61.97 per barrel (0646GMT)
- WTI up 2.7% at $52.55 a barrel
Precious metals
- Gold rises on Fed rate cut hopes, trade worries
- SPDR Gold holdings rise 0.5% on Wednesday
- Gold may see strong support at $1,330/oz – analyst
- Palladium hits more than 1-mth high
- Spot gold up 0.3% at $1,337.41 per ounce (0706GMT)
- US gold futures up 0.3% at $1,341.40 an ounce
Grains
- Corn jumps 1% as rains threaten to halt planting
- Most active CBOT corn futures up 1% at $4.34-1/4 per bushel (0043GMT)
- Most active soybean futures up 0.5% at $8.82 a bushel
- Most active wheat futures up 0.4% at $5.28-1/4 a bushel
Key African events or data releases today
[Posts & comments at my Twitter handle @DrRafiqRaji]
- Kenya 2019 budget policy statement by finmin Rotich
- Nigeria presidential election tribunal resumes
- Former Sierra Leone president Koroma to appear before Georgewill commission of inquiry
- South Africa mining production Apr-19 [fcst. -2.0% yy, prev. -1.1%]
- South Africa state capture inquiry continues
- South Africa business confidence Q2-19 [prev. 28]
- South Africa’s Ramaphosa 3-day cabinet lekgotla; day 2
- AfDB 2019 annual meetings in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea; 11-14 Jun
Key African events or data releases yesterday & early a.m today
[Posted & commented on some headlines below at my Twitter handle @DrRafiqRaji]
- Kenya shilling weakens against the dollar
- Public gatherings banned in Kasese District in Uganda after ebola outbreak
- South Africa rand slips on investigation into Ramaphosa campaign donation
- Algeria floats idea of larger OPEC+ oil cut, rollover still likely – sources
- IMF approves disbursement of $248.15 mln under Angola’s credit facility
- US joins diplomatic push to salvage agreement in Sudan
- South Sudan president appoints new oil minister
- Kenya’s rape survivors win right to abortion in landmark court ruling
- Ghana says its forces rescued 2 kidnapped Canadian women
- US names veteran diplomat Donald Booth as envoy for Sudan
- Algeria’s ex-PM, former minister detained over alleged corruption – state TV
- Ethiopian telecoms sector requires ‘huge’ investments – minister
- Sudan’s foreign ministry summons UK ambassador – agency
- Algeria’s supreme court places former transport minister in custody – state TV
- Mali revises down death toll from village raid, local official disagrees
- IMF disburses $247 mln loan tranche to Tunisia
- South Africa tribunal says it can’t change foreign banks in rand-rigging case
- Politics weighs on South Africa’s rand, stocks
- Africa Oil – Buyers elusive amid weak margins
- Algeria floats idea of larger OPEC+ oil cut, rollover still likely – sources
- New ebola cases in Uganda raise fears of spread beyond Congo
- Palestinians urge Egypt, Jordan to reconsider going to US-led conference
- Soccer – Semenya hopes to inspire South Africa at women’s World Cup
- WHO emergency committee to meet on ebola on Friday – statement
- Vodacom challenges 2G network suspension in Congo court
- Soccer – Nigeria upset South Korea for rare World Cup win
- Glencore puts Chad oilfields up for sale – sources
- Tunisia boosts renewables with ‘game-changing’ solar tender
- Gunmen attack 2 ethnic Dogon villages in central Mali
- Nigeria’s Buhari signals four more years like the last
- Ivory Coast cocoa grinding up 7.1% through May – exporter stats
- South Africa tribunal says it can’t charge foreign banks in rand-rigging case
- Nigeria’s economy is expected to grow 2.7% this year, President Buhari says
N.B. Full stories of above headlines are available on Reuters
