By Rafiq Raji, PhD
Twitter: @DrRafiqRaji
Global Markets
- Asian shares lower as investors book decade-end profits
- MSCI Asia ex-Japan -0.39%, still up 16% on year
- Profit-taking drives losses
- US, China expected to sign deal soon – White House officials
- China December manufacturing activity better than expected
Oil Markets
- Oil prices edge down but set for biggest yearly rise since 2016
- Brent, WTI futures each down 0.2%
- Benchmarks on track for biggest annual gain in 3 years
- US crude stocks fell about 3.2 mln bbls last week – poll
- Brent down 0.2% at $66.56 a barrel (0158GMT)
- WTI down 0.2% at $61.57
Precious metals
- Gold prices steady, set for best year since 2010
- Spot gold little changed at $1,515.23/oz. (0044GMT)
- US gold futures unchanged at $1,518.30/oz.
Grains
- US grains fall on profit booking
- Wheat set for 3rd straight yearly gain
- Wheat futures down 0.4% at $5.54 a bushel (0200GMT); +10.1% y/y
- Soybean futures down 0.1% at $9.51-3/4 a bushel; +6.3% y/y
- Corn futures down 0.3% at $3.87-1/4 a bushel; +3.2% y/y
Key African events or data releases today
[Posts & comments at my Twitter handle @DrRafiqRaji]
- Ghana’s December 31 revolution anniversary in Winneba; Rawlings to speak
- Uganda’s Museveni New Year address
- Guinea-Bissau runoff presidential vote-counting; results due Wed.
- Kenya inflation Dec-19 [fcst. 5.6% yy, prev. 5.4%]
- Uganda inflation Dec-19 [fcst. 3.4% yy, prev. 3.0%]
- South Africa PSCE Nov-19 [fcst. 7.7% yy, prev. 7.3%]
- South Africa M3 Nov-19 [fcst. 6.9% yy, prev. 7.3%]
Key African events or data releases yesterday & early a.m today
- Sudan to deploy troops to West Darfur after deadly unrest
- Militants kill 18 in attack in eastern Congo
- Sudan sentences 29 intelligence agents to hang for teacher’s killing
- Turkey may send allied Syrian fighters to Libya – sources
- Africa Oil – Angolan slow to sell due to freight rates
- South Africa’s rand slips; MTN drops on US complaint
- Somalia says unnamed country behind blast that killed 90 people
- Guinea-Bissau presidential candidate Embalo claims victory, opponent says wait
- South Africa’s MTN reviewing allegations after being named in US complaint
- Egypt’s central bank to auction $800 mln of 1-yr T-bills on Jan 6
- Morocco’s Cosumar to start operating Saudi sugar refinery in March 2020
- Exxon acquires over 1.7 mln exploration acreage offshore Egypt
- Young Libyans train as pastry chefs as state jobs dry up
- Turkey fast-tracks bill to deploy troops to Libya
- Merkel, Erdogan and Putin discuss diplomatic solution for Libya
- Turkish opposition says it opposes Libya troop deployment bill
- Mauritius closes main airport as cyclone Calvinia approaches
- Kenyan shilling weakens, pressured by end-mth dollar demand
- Ugandan shilling unchanged amid flat market activity
- US military says Somalia air strikes killed 4 militants
- Rio Tinto to restart South African unit in 2020 after security scare
N.B. Full stories of above headlines are available on Reuters
