By Rafiq Raji, PhD
Twitter: @DrRafiqRaji, @macroafrica
Global Markets
- Asia shares, oil slump as coronavirus fears take hold
- Equities slump on resurgence of coroanviru infections
- Oil futures extend sell-off on demand worries
- Yuan slips against dollar as coronavirus rattles Asian FX
Oil Markets
- Oil prices extend slump as US coronavirus cases climb
- Brent down 3% at $37.40/barrel (0011GMT)
- WTI down nearly 4% at $35.02
Precious metals
- Gold steady as firmer dollar offsets risk-off sentiment
- Spot gold flat at $1,727.24/oz. (0056GMT)
- US gold futures down 0.4% at $1,733.30/oz.
Grains
- Wheat hits near 3-wk low on ample supply forecast, set to end week 3.5% lower
- Wheat futures set for 3.5% drop for the week
- Soybean down 0.5% week thus far
- Corn futures down 0.5% for the week
Key African events or data releases today
[Posts & comments at my Twitter handles @DrRafiqRaji, @macroafrica]
- Democracy day in Nigeria; public holiday & Buhari speech
- South Africa’s Mabuza in North West to assess covid response
- Key African countries on lockdown or restricted; subdued economic activity
- Covid-19 updates by authorities across the continent
Key African events or data releases yesterday & early a.m today
- Kenya’s Centum Investment says full year pretax profit up 85% to 8.2 bln shillings
- Coronavirus crisis could see number of extreme poor rise to 1.1 bln worldwide
- Egypt raids activist’s family after US suit against former PM – lawyers
- US wary of Egypt truce effort in Libya, wants former Danish PM to lead UN peace bid
- Congo prosecutor seeks 20-yr sentence for president’s chief of staff
- UN decries reported mass graves found in Libya town after LNA retreat
- IMF approves additional $111.06 mln to Rwanda to address covid-19 pandemic
- South Africa activists threaten to sue over nuclear plan
- Mercy Corps says more than $600,000 lost in Congo aid scam
- Tanzania says it has begun negotiations over debt relief to shore economy
- Congo prosecutor seeks 20-yr sentence for president’s chief of staff
- Egypt to open seaside resorts to foreigners from July 1
- Burundi constitutional court to decide interim leader after president’s death
- South Africa rand tumbles on Fed, dismal domestic data
- Africa’s MultiChoice looks to Netflix and Amazon in strategy shift
- Africa free trade zone could launch on Jan. 1, says official
- Africa Oil – Nigeria offers steady with margins still under pressure
- Kenya arrests 3 policemen for dragging woman behind motorbike
- Kenya targets tax exemptions to boost coronavirus-hit revenue
- Pandemic accelerating in Africa, test kits needed, WHO says
- Tanzania has begun negotiations with G20 nations over debt relief – finmin
- Ethiopia 2020/21 growth seen at 8.5%, spending to rise 6.8% – finmin
- South Africa’s Harmony expects to be at full production by around mid-July
- At least 10 Ivory Coast soldiers killed in attack near Burkina border, army says
- Uganda to boost external funding to shore up budget
- Kenya sets a budget deficit of 7.5% of GDP in 2020/21 FY
- Nigeria Senate passes revised 10.8 tln naira budget based on $28/bbl oil
- Kenya currency under pressure, Uganda’s firming; in week ahead
- Angola oil export value plunges 48% in May – finance ministry
- Uganda to reduce taxes on mobile banking & mobile money transactions – budget speech
- International trade set to shrink 27% in Q2 after April “nosedive”, says UNCTAD
- South Africa court rules independent candidates can contest elections
- Death toll in migrant ship disaster off Tunisia rises to 46
- South Africa mining output plunges on covid-19 lockdown
- South Africa manufacturing output down 5.4% y/y in March
- Namibia economy contracts 0.8% in Q1 2020
- Turkey says US needs to play more active role in Libya
- Africa coronavirus “hotspots” in South Africa, Algeria, Cameroon – WHO
- Kenya shilling loses ground as importers exert demand
- Uganda shilling unchanged ahead of budget speech
- Tanzania raises 2020 growth forecast to 5.5% from 4% – finmin
- Jobs gone, investments wasted: Africa’s deserted safaris leave mounting toll
- Uganda wants people to leave flooded wetlands – and not come back
N.B. Full stories of above headlines are available on Reuters