Bullish indicating open at $55-$60, IPO prices at $37
The following company announcements, scheduled economic indicators, debt and currency market
moves and political events may affect African markets on Thursday.
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GLOBAL MARKETS
Asian stocks perched near record heights, the dollar
languished at two-year lows and oil prices stood at their
strongest since March on Thursday, as monetary support and
the hope of fiscal stimulus in the United States put traders
in a festive mood. MKTS/GLOB
WORLD OIL PRICES
Oil prices hit a nine-month high early on Thursday after
U.S. government data showed that crude stockpiles fell last
week and on optimism over a coronavirus relief package in
the United States. O/R
EMERGING MARKETS
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SOUTH AFRICA MARKETS
South Africa's rand firmed on Tuesday as risk appetite
globally spurred by the roll-out of coronavirus vaccinations
continued to support demand for the currency. SECURITY
Families of more than 300 kidnapped Nigerian schoolboys
worried they may be radicalised or held for years as
security forces combed a vast forest on Wednesday for armed
captors possibly from the jihadist Boko Haram
movement. MARKETS
The Kenyan shilling KES= was stable against the dollar on
Wednesday amid slow activity as companies were closing for
the festive season, traders said. CONFLICT
The European Union has postponed nearly 90 million euros in
budget support payments to Ethiopia due to the bloc's
concerns over the crisis in the northern Tigray region,
according to an internal EU document seen by Reuters on
Wednesday. UNION CYBER
As diplomats gathered at the African Union's headquarters
earlier this year to prepare for its annual leaders' summit,
employees of the international organization made a
disturbing discovery. POLITICS
Somalia's opposition says it has written to Turkey urging it
not to send a planned shipment of weapons to a special
police unit that they fear incumbent President Mohamed
Abdullahi Mohamed could use to "hijack" forthcoming
elections. ECONOMY
Rwanda's economy, thwarted by the coronavirus pandemic, is
projected to contract 0.2% this year but will recover next
year to grow 5.7%, the International Monetary Fund said on
Wednesday. POLITICS
Uganda's long-ruling President Yoweri Musevni on Wednesday
appointed his son, a general in the military, to head the
country's special forces, a move some critics said signalled
a possible escalation of opposition harassment. CENTRAL BANK
Zimbabwe's central bank will unbundle its gold refining and
printing unit into two separate companies and sell a
majority stake in the new gold refinery business to miners,
governor John Mangudya said on Wednesday. CORONAVIRUS
The Democratic Republic of Congo will impose a curfew and
other strict measures, including the mandatory wearing of
masks in public spaces, to fight a second wave of the
coronavirus, its virus response team said on
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