By Rafiq Raji, PhD
Twitter: @DrRafiqRaji, @macroafrica

Global Markets

• Asia stocks touch 4-mth top on dogged optimism
• Asia ex-Japan nudges to highest since early March
• Market assumes economies to re-open even as virus rages
• Dollar remains inversely correlated to risk
• Gold near 7-1/2-yr peak, oil off a 4-mth top

Oil Markets

• Oil edges lower as US stockpiles grow more than expected
• Brent down 2 cents at $42.61 a barrel (0045GMT)
• WTI down 4 cents at $40.33

Precious metals

• Gold hovers near 8-yr high as second coronavirus wave fears mount
• Spot gold up 0.2% at $1,769.76/oz. (0234GMT)
• US gold futures up 0.2% at $1,785.80/oz.

Grains

• Corn falls for 3^rd session on US weather; wheat climbs
• Corn futures down 0.2% at $3.24-1/2 a bushel (0007GMT)
• Wheat up 0.2% at $4.92 a bushel
• Soybeans flat at $8.75 a bushel

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

• South Africa’s Mboweni delivers supplementary covid-19 budget speech
• Africa CDC webinar on covid-19 vaccine; Ramaphosa et al. to participate
• Corporate Council on Africa leaders forum; Kagame, Kenyatta, Nyusi & Akufo-Addo key speakers
• South Africa inflation Apr-20 [fcst. 4.1% yy, prev. 4.1%]
• Vote-counting of Malawi presidential poll rerun starts
• South Africa SACCI business confidence May-20 [prev. 77.8]
• 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

• IMF, Sudan reach agreement on macroeconomic policies structural reforms
• Algeria names new energy and finance ministers – state TV
• South Africa’s Aspen could supply 10 mln dexamethasone pills in covid-19 crisis
• Nigeria’s Buhari sees threat to West African currency plan
• Tanzania arrests opposition party leader, revokes newspaper licence
• Zimbabwe dollar falls at first weekly forex auction
• South Africa trade union takes state arms firm to court over wage payments
• Africa Oil – Nigeria raises term prices, trims Qua loadings
• UK Supreme Court hears Nigeria communities’ case against Shell
• South Africa sees investors putting billions into infrastructure drive
• World Bank lends Morocco $500 mln to improve access to online finance
• South Africa rand firmer as market awaits budget
• South Africa’s Comair administrators to present restructuring plan by June 30
• Egypt lifts night curfew, eases coronavirus restrictions from Saturday
• Libya and foreign forces mobilise at Sirte, Arab ministers urge calm
• South Africa unemployment rate hit record high, rises to 30.1% in Q1, before virus
• South Africa receives unsolicited proposals for new national airline
• Zambia approves $438 mln covid-19 economic stimulus package
• South Africa’s Comair gets cash offer, needs a week to secure funding, say administrators
• Former South Africa president Zuma appears in court for resumed graft trial
• Congo officials vow to tackle child labour at mines as virus threatens spike
• Kenya shilling holds steady against the dollar
• Uganda shilling weakens slightly on uptick in importer demand
• Zimbabwe’s Centragrid to scale up solar output

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