March 24 (Reuters) &#8211;
For other diaries, please see:

Top Economic Events
Emerging Markets Economic Events
Government Debt Auctions
Political and General News
U.S. Federal Reserve
Today in Washington &#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212; This Diary is filed daily. ** Indicates new events &#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 24
** MANILA &#8211; Philippine central bank governor, Benjamin Diokno, holds a regular media briefing – 0600 GMT. CAPE TOWN – South Africa Reserve Bank starts its three-day monetary policy committee meeting – (to 25 Mar). MOSCOW &#8211; Russian central bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina speaks at a conference. (To Mar. 25) PRAGUE – Czech National Bank holds Monetary Policy Meeting. Statement and presentation will be published.
BANGKOK &#8211; Bank of Thailand to publish monetary policy report. REYKJAVÍK – Bank of Iceland releases its interest rate decision &#8211; 0855 GMT. THURSDAY, MARCH 25 MEXICO CITY &#8211; Central Bank of Mexico releases monetary policy statement MANILA &#8211; Philippines Central Bank holds monetary policy meeting.
FRIDAY, MARCH 26
BOGOTA &#8211; Bank of Colombia meeting of the board of directors of March &#8211; Monetary Policy Decision. MONDAY, MARCH 29
NAIROBI &#8211; Kenya&#8217;s Central Bank announces its latest lending rate decision. KINGSTON &#8211; Bank of Jamaica holds interest rate announcement.

TUESDAY, MARCH 30 SANTIAGO &#8211; Central Bank of Chile holds monetary policy committee meeting.
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31 REYKJAVIK – Bank of Iceland releases financial stability report.
MONDAY, APRIL 5
BOGOTA &#8211; Bank of Colombia Minutes of board of directors meeting March 26.
TUESDAY, APRIL 6
PRAGUE &#8211; Czech National Bank releases minutes from the March 24 monetary policy meeting &#8211; 0700 GMT.
SYDNEY &#8211; Reserve Bank of Australia holds interest rate meeting &#8211; 0430 GMT.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 7
BUDAPEST &#8211; Hungarian Central Bank to publish the minutes of its April 2021 rate-setting meeting &#8211; 1200 GMT.
WARSAW &#8211; National Bank of Poland holds one-day decision making monetary policy meeting.
BANGKOK &#8211; Thailand Central Bank releases quarterly monetary policy report.
THURSDAY, APRIL 8
MEXICO CITY &#8211; Mexico Central Bank issues the minutes of its March monetary policy meeting.
LIMA &#8211; Central Reserve Bank of Peru announces interest rate decision. COLOMBO &#8211; Central Bank of Sri Lanka announces monetary policy report.
FRIDAY, APRIL 9
BANGKOK &#8211; Thai central bank holds an analyst meeting on the economy and monetary policy &#8211; 0300 GMT
SYDNEY &#8211; Reserve Bank of Australia financial stability review &#8211; 0130 GMT.

TUESDAY, APRIL 13 BELGRADE &#8211; National Bank of Serbia holds Executive Board meeting and unveils interest rate decision.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 14 UGANDA – Bank of Uganda announces rate decision &#8211; 1500 GMT
ZAGREB &#8211; Croatia National Bank holds monetary policy meeting. WINDHOEK &#8211; Central Bank of Namibia holds Monetary Policy Meeting.
THURSDAY, APRIL 15 SEOUL &#8211; Bank of Korea holds monetary policy meeting to announce interest rates. ANKARA – Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey holds monetary policy meeting.
MONDAY, APRIL 19
JERUSALEM &#8211; Bank of Israel announces its interest rate decision. KYIV &#8211; National Bank of Ukraine holds monetary policy meeting.
JAKARTA &#8211; Indonesia&#8217;s Central Bank holds Board of Governors Meeting (To April 20)
TUESDAY, APRIL 20
PRAGUE &#8211; Czech National Bank Governor Jiri Rusnok speaks in an interview on topics including monetary policy and economic prospects. SYDNEY – Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) will release the minutes of April Monetary Policy Meeting – 0130 GMT.
FRIDAY, APRIL 23 MOSCOW &#8211; Central Bank of Russia holds board of directors monetary policy meeting &#8211; 1030 GMT. MOSCOW &#8211; Central Bank of Russia Governor Elvira Nabiullina gives press conference after interest rate &#8211; 1200 GMT. MONDAY, APRIL 26 BISHKEK &#8211; National Bank of Kyrgyzstan holds Board meeting on Monetary policy rate. NUR-SULTAN &#8211; Kazakhstan Central Bank Announces interest rate decision. &#8211; 0900 GMT. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 28 Tbilisi – National Bank of Georgia holds Monetary Policy Committee Meeting.
THURSDAY, APRIL 29 CAIRO &#8211; Central Bank of Egypt holds monetary policy committee meeting. GABORONE – Bank of Botswana Monetary Policy Committee Meeting – 1000 GMT. LILONGWE – Reserve Bank of Malawi monetary policy committee meeting (To April 30)
FRIDAY, APRIL 30
BAKU &#8211; Azerbaijan&#8217;s central bank to hold a monetary policy meeting, followed by a news conference. BOGOTA &#8211; Bank of Colombia Board Meeting of the Board of Directors, April &#8211; Policy Rate Decision. CHISINAU &#8211; National Bank of Moldova announces interest rate decision.

TUESDAY, MAY 4 SYDNEY – Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) holds interest rate meeting – 0430 GMT.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 12
BUDAPEST &#8211; National Bank of Hungary publishes minutes of its last rate meeting &#8211; 1200 GMT

TUESDAY, MAY 18 SYDNEY – Reserve Bank of Australia will release the minutes of April monetary policy meeting &#8211; 0130 GMT.

MONDAY, MAY 24
** ACCRA &#8211; Bank of Ghana&#8217;s monetary policy committee holds a press conference to announce its interest rate decision – 1100 GMT. &#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;
NOTE: The inclusion of items in this diary does not necessarily mean that Reuters will file a story based on the event. For technical issues, please contact Thomson Reuters Customer Support (TRCS) at https://customers.reuters.com/kccontactus/telephone.aspx
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

DIARY-Emerging Markets Economic Events to May 24

(Includes closing prices, adds comments)
NEW YORK/LONDON, March 23 (Reuters) &#8211; Raw sugar futures on ICE fell for the fifth straight session on Tuesday and hit their lowest since late December, weighed by risk-off sentiment in the wider financial markets and improved near term supply.
Coffee and cocoa also closed down.

SUGAR
* May raw sugar ​​settled down 0.1 cent, or 0.6%, at 15.43 cents per lb, having hit a low of 15.05.
* Dealers said a combination of limited physical demand and adequate supply thanks to good Indian exports is pressuring sugar, as is the broad sell-off in other risk assets.
* The premium for May sugar over July is at its narrowest since last September, indicating improved nearby availability. &lt;SB-1=R&gt;
* Cepea, an agricultural think-tank at the University of Sao Paulo, said Brazil ethanol prices fell sharply in the last days due to movement restrictions amid the pandemic. Smaller ethanol prices tend to lead mills to produce more sugar.
* But there are risks for shipments of the upcoming Brazilian sugar crop, due to expected port congestion in the country.
* May white sugar ​​settled down $8.90, or 2.0%, at $440.50 a tonne, having hit its lowest since early January at $432.40.

COFFEE
* May arabica coffee settled down 2.5 cents, or 1.9%, at $1.276 per lb​​, heading back towards a one-month low hit late last week.
* Dealers said there are almost no rains forecast for the next week in top coffee producer Brazil&#8217;s growing regions. On the downside for prices, however, measures to combat the coronavirus pandemic in Brazil, also a key coffee consumer, are getting more severe.
* Arabica coffee prices in Brazil in the last week retreated from a recent all-time high, Cepea said.
* Uganda&#8217;s coffee exports surged 16% year-on-year in February, helped by good yields and favourable prices, the state-run sector regulator, UCDA, said.
* May robusta coffee settled down $21, or 1.5%, at $1,377 a tonne.

COCOA
* May London cocoa ​​settled down 14 pounds, or 0.8%, to 1,714 pounds per tonne​.
* Dealers noted good rains are expected in West Africa this month, which should favour the tail end of the mid-crop. At the same time there are concerns over chocolate demand in Europe, which is grappling with rising COVID-19 infections.
* May New York cocoa ​​settled down $58, or 2.3%, to $2,447 a tonne. (Reporting by Marcelo Teixeira and Maytaal Angel; Editing by Mark Potter and David Gregorio)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

SOFTS-Raw sugar hits near three-month low; coffee falls

LONDON, March 23 (Reuters) &#8211; Nigeria slightly raised its planned exports of several main grades for May compared with April, while demand for West African crude remained muted.

* A notable drop in export volumes for the main Bonny Light stream was made up for by more oil exports planned from the Bonga and Forcados streams.
* Traders said slight decreases made to official selling prices for April, published by Nigeria&#8217;s NNPC on Monday, did not adequately reflect a strong slump in demand.
* Traders said April-loading Angolan cargoes had yet to sell out, with around three cargoes still available for sale.
* India&#8217;s MRPL bought a cargo of heavy sweet Brazilian Tupi crude, offers of which have soared in recent weeks, in a sign of further inroads into the Indian market of non-West African grades.
* Uruguay&#8217;s Ancap issued a tender for one cargo of May-arriving crude for which West African grades are eligible, set to close on Wednesday.
* Taiwan&#8217;s CPC closed its buy tender for June-arriving sweet crude, though results did not immediately emerge.
(Reporting by Noah Browning in London Editing by Matthew Lewis) ))
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

W. Africa Crude-Nigeria slightly raises May exports of main grades

NIAMEY, March 23 (Reuters) &#8211; Flags flew at half-staff and Koranic verses played on state media on Tuesday as Niger began observing three days of national mourning for the 137 victims of coordinated raids on villages in the southwest.
The killings on Sunday represented Niger&#8217;s worst civilian carnage in recent memory, surpassing an attack by suspected militants in January that killed at least 100 villagers and another last week that killed at least 58.
The scale of the violence this year has called into question claims of progress in the fight against Islamist militants by governments in West Africa&#8217;s Sahel region and former colonial power France, which has 5,000 troops there to support them.
A security source blamed Sunday&#8217;s attacks, which were carried out by men on motorbikes in the remote Tahoua region near the border with Mali, on the local Islamic State affiliate. Islamic State has claimed responsibility for previous raids against security forces and French aid workers.
Niger only finished a period of mourning for the previous attacks on Friday.
The rising death toll appears to be the result of the Islamists inserting themselves into ethnic conflicts between rival farming and herding communities, said Harouna Abarchi, a civil society activist who leads peace initiatives in the area.
The militants, largely drawn from the Fulani herding community, have targeted civilians in retaliation for killings of Fulanis by self-defence militias formed by the farmers.
&#8220;It&#8217;s a fragile zone that has seen inter-communal conflicts in the past,&#8221; Abarchi said. &#8220;They are now going after civilians, which &#8230; could set the zone on fire.&#8221;
The security crisis will land at the feet of President-elect Mohamed Bazoum, who takes office next week, succeeding Mahamadou Issoufou.
Abou Oumarou, a retired colonel and former regional governor, said the repeated attacks raised questions about the military&#8217;s response.
&#8220;How is it that 200 people can move around on motorcycles and no one is aware?&#8221; he said. &#8220;These forces need to surround these zones so that we know when there is a massive movement.&#8221;
The government said it is investigating the attacks. (Reporting by Boureima Balima and Aaron Ross; editing by Grant McCool)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

Niger mourns 137 victims after deadliest attack in recent memory

JOHANNESBURG, March 23 (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa&#8217;s state water infrastructure entity, the Trans-Caledon Tunnel Authority (TCTA), which needs to raise 33 billion rand ($2.21 billion) in 2021, said on Tuesday delays by treasury in guaranteeing its debt were pressuring its funding plan.
The delay is due to treasury&#8217;s tightening of conditions for guarantees and bailouts to state-owned entities (SOEs).
Government guarantees for SOEs stand at around 581 billion rand. Two-thirds is accounted for by state power firm Eskom debt. The TCTA has the second-largest share, with 43 billion rand.
Consecutive years of abnormally hot weather and below-average rainfall, which the government has partly attributed to climate change, have strained South Africa&#8217;s already-stretched water supplies, making funding for infrastructure backlogs even more pressing.
During a presentation of its delayed 2019/20 results, the TCTA said it had negotiated with lenders for the 15 billion rand it needs by May to fund a bond redemption and continue construction of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project.
&#8220;There were other takers, but they were outside the range in terms of how expensive their money is,&#8221; said TCTA&#8217;s chief executive, Percy Sechemane.
Treasury has yet to approve the request to guarantee the borrowing, the TCTA said. TCTA has also negotiated 4.5 billion rand from African Development Bank and New Development Bank (BRICS Bank), also awaiting government guarantees.
&#8220;Everybody wants to give you money only on the basis that it&#8217;s government-guaranteed,&#8221; said Sechemane. &#8220;But if you look at the performance of some of the other SOE&#8217;s, you have a potential cross default clause.&#8221;
State-owned agri-lender Land Bank missed payments on 50 billion rand of debt in April, raising fears of a cross default and a call on all SOE debt.
&#8220;Rightfully, treasury was a bit nervous and worried when we said that each of our projects needs to be looked at separately,&#8221; Sechemane said.
The balance of the TCTA&#8217;s funding requirement, around 12 billion rand, will mostly fund the Mokolo Crocodile River (West) Augmentation Project.
It will supply water to coal miner Exxaro Resources Ltd , Eskom&#8217;s Medupi power station, and possible new mines and independent power projects in the coal-rich but water-deprived northern Limpopo province. ($1 = 14.9068 rand) (Reporting by Mfuneko Toyana in Johannesburg Editing by Matthew Lewis)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

S.Africa’s treasury delays debt guarantees for water infrastructure arm

Mar 23 (OPTA) &#8211; Scores from the European Tour Kenya Savannah Classic on Tuesday -7 Alejandro Cañizares (Spain) 64 Justin Harding (South Africa) 64 Joost Luiten (Netherlands) 64 Clément Sordet (France) 64 -6 Marcus Armitage (England) 65 Jonathan Caldwell (Northern Ireland) 65 David Drysdale (Scotland) 65 Darren Fichardt (South Africa) 65 Mathiam Keyser (South Africa) 65 Ross McGowan (England) 65 Cormac Sharvin (Northern Ireland) 65 Danie Van Tonder (South Africa) 65 -5 Emilio Cuartero Blanco (Spain) 66 Gonzalo Fernandez Castano (Spain) 66 Scott Hend (Australia) 66 Sam Horsfield (England) 66 Jazz Janewattananond (Thailand) 66 Liam Johnston (Scotland) 66 Niklas Lemke (Sweden) 66 Matthieu Pavon (France) 66 Matthias Schwab (Austria) 66 Robin Sciot-Siegrist (France) 66 Lee Slattery (England) 66 Julian Suri (USA) 66 David Wakhu (Kenya) 66 -4 Maverick Antcliff (Australia) 67 Nino Bertasio (Italy) 67 Wil Besseling (Netherlands) 67 Ashley Chesters (England) 67 Victor Dubuisson (France) 67 Rhys Enoch (Wales) 67 Jens Fahrbring (Sweden) 67 Calum Hill (Scotland) 67 Masahiro Kawamura (Japan) 67 Romain Langasque (France) 67 Carlos Pigem (Spain) 67 Marcel Schneider (Germany) 67 Jack Senior (England) 67 Toby Tree (England) 67 Scott Vincent (Zimbabwe) 67 -3 Steven Brown (England) 68 Jorge Campillo (Spain) 68 Ben Evans (England) 68 Craig Howie (South Africa) 68 Daan Huizing (Netherlands) 68 Maximilian Kieffer (Germany) 68 Sihwan Kim (Korea Republic) 68 Tae Hee Lee (Korea Republic) 68 Jose-Filipe Lima (Portugal) 68 Adrian Otaegui (Spain) 68 Ricardo Santos (Portugal) 68 Sebastian Soderberg (Sweden) 68 Lars Van Meijel (Netherlands) 68 -2 Lucas Bjerregaard (Denmark) 69 Dean Burmester (South Africa) 69 John Catlin (USA) 69 Aaron Cockerill (Canada) 69 Lorenzo Gagli (Italy) 69 Kurt Kitayama (USA) 69 Alexander Levy (France) 69 Hurly Long (Germany) 69 Garrick Porteous (England) 69 Kristoffer Reitan (Norway) 69 Jayden Schaper (South Africa) 69 Shubhankar Sharma (India) 69 -1 Gaganjeet Bhullar (India) 70 George Coetzee (South Africa) 70 David Coupland (England) 70 Nicolai Von Dellingshausen (Germany) 70 Ewen Ferguson (Scotland) 70 Sebastian Garcia Rodriguez (Spain) 70 Julien Guerrier (France) 70 David Howell (England) 70 Jacques Kruyswijk (South Africa) 70 Joakim Lagergren (Sweden) 70 Francesco Laporta (Italy) 70 Richard Mansell (England) 70 James Morrison (England) 70 Benjamin Poke (Denmark) 70 Aaron Rai (England) 70 JC Ritchie (South Africa) 70 Robin Roussel (France) 70 Lorenzo Scalise (Italy) 70 Martin Leth Simonsen (Denmark) 70 Darius Van Driel (Netherlands) 70 Johannes Veerman (USA) 70 Dale Whitnell (England) 70 0 Pep Angles (Spain) 71 Rizwan Charania (Kenya) 71 Samuel Chege (Kenya) 71 Louis De Jager (South Africa) 71 Oliver Farr (Wales) 71 David Law (Scotland) 71 Richard McEvoy (England) 71 Adrian Meronk (Poland) 71 Chris Paisley (England) 71 Alvaro Quiros (Spain) 71 Richie Ramsay (Scotland) 71 Jordan L Smith (England) 71 Greg Snow (Kenya) 71 Connor Syme (Scotland) 71 Romain Wattel (France) 71 Oliver Wilson (England) 71 1 Jastas Madoya ASENA (Kenya) 72 Jamie Donaldson (Wales) 72 Grant Forrest (Scotland) 72 Garrick Higgo (South Africa) 72 Dismas Indiza (Kenya) 72 Tyler Koivosto (USA) 72 Ondrej Lieser (Czech Republic) 72 Mohit Mediratta (Kenya) 72 Kyung-Jun Moon (Korea Republic) 72 Gavin Moynihan (Republic of Ireland) 72 Wilco Nienaber (South Africa) 72 Bernd Ritthammer (Germany) 72 Adrien Saddier (France) 72 Jaydeep Singh Sandhu (Kenya) 72 Joël Stalter (France) 72 2 Balala Adel (Kenya) 73 Eirik Tage Johansen (Norway) 73 Anton Karlsson (Sweden) 73 Thriston Lawrence (South Africa) 73 Guido Migliozzi (Italy) 73 Edoardo Molinari (Italy) 73 Damien Perrier (France) 73 Tapio Pulkkanen (Finland) 73 Matthew Southgate (England) 73 C.J Wangai (Kenya) 73 Daniel Young (Scotland) 73 3 Richard Bland (England) 74 Yikeun Chang (Korea Republic) 74 Matt Ford (England) 74 Gavin Green (Malaysia) 74 Søren Kjeldsen (Denmark) 74 Isaac Ogolla MAKOKHA (Kenya) 74 Andrew Odoh (Nigeria) 74 4 S.S.P. Chawrasia (India) 75 Robson Chinhoi (Zimbabwe) 75 Oliver Fisher (England) 75 Rikard Karlberg (Sweden) 75 Zander Lombard (South Africa) 75 5 Edwin Inana Asuza (Kenya) 76 Pedro Figueiredo (Portugal) 76 Nicolai Hojgaard (Denmark) 76 Phillip Kasozi (Uganda) 76 Ooko Erick Obura (Kenya) 76 Haydn Porteous (South Africa) 76 6 Simon Ngige (Kenya) 77 Max Schmitt (Germany) 77 7 Njoroge Njonge Kibugu (Kenya) 78 Matthew Omondi (Kenya) 78 9 Matthew Baldwin (England) 80 11 Deo Akope (Uganda) 82 Taimur MALIK AM (Kenya) 82 29 Matthew Wahome (Kenya) 
(c) Copyright Opta Sports Data 2021. All Rights Reserved
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

European Tour Kenya Savannah Classic Scores

JOHANNESBURG, March 23 (Reuters) &#8211; South African maize farmers are expected to harvest 6% more of the staple crop in the 2020/2021 season compared with the previous season, boosted by favourable weather conditions and increased plantings, a Reuters survey showed on Tuesday.
South Africa’s Crop Estimates Committee (CEC) is expected to forecast the maize production at 16.289 million tonnes for the 2020/2021 season, up from the 15.300 million tonnes planted last season, an average estimate of five traders and analysts showed.
&#8220;Increased area plantings and generally good weather conditions across South Africa have boosted the crop yields,&#8221; said Agricultural Business Chamber chief economist Wandile Sihlobo.
&#8220;The feedback from farmers on the ground is largely positive about the yield prospects.&#8221;
The survey expects the crop to consist of 8.552 million tonnes of white maize, used mainly for human consumption, and 7.737 million tonnes of yellow maize used mainly in animal feed.
The CEC will release its second production forecast for the 2021 summer crops on Thursday. (Reporting by Akhona Matshoba Editing by Tanisha Heiberg and Jonathan Oatis)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

S.Africa’s 2020/2021 maize output seen rising 6% on previous season

By Marie-Louise Gumuchian
LONDON, March 23 (Reuters) &#8211; Turn on, tune in and stay at home. That&#8217;s what millions of music fans did in 2020, with a rise in subscription streaming leading global recorded music revenue growth of 7.4%.
The market reported total revenues of $21.6 billion, marking its sixth consecutive year of growth, industry trade body the IFPI said in its Global Music Report on Tuesday.
The year&#8217;s top five best-selling artists were K-pop stars BTS, songstress Taylor Swift, rapper Drake, singer The Weeknd and teen sensation Billie Eilish.
&#8220;As the world contends with the COVID-19 pandemic, we are reminded of the enduring power of music to console, heal and lift our spirits,&#8221; IFPI Chief Executive Frances Moore said.
Total streaming, including both paid subscription and advertising-supported, rose 19.9% to $13.4 billion, accounting for 62.1% of total global recorded music revenues, IFPI said.
Paid subscription streaming revenues rose by 18.5% and there were 443 million users of paid subscription accounts at the end of 2020, the IFPI said.
The streaming figures compared to a decline in physical format revenues, which fell by 4.7%.
And with concerts and festivals cancelled as countries went into lockdown to stop the spread of the coronavirus, revenues from performance rights dropped 10.1%.
&#8220;With so much of the world in lockdown and live music shut down, in nearly every corner of the globe most fans enjoyed music via streaming,&#8221; Moore said.
The IFPI said record companies had supported artists in making music despite the difficult circumstances.
Latin America remained the fastest-growing region, with recorded music revenues rising 15.9%, followed by Asia with growth of 9.5% and Africa and the Middle East with 8.4%.
The U.S. and Canada region grew by 7.4% in 2020, while Europe saw revenues rise by 3.5%.
In Britain, recorded music revenues rose to their highest since 2006, up 3.8% to 1.118 billion pounds ($1.54 billion), the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) said.
Streaming revenues, up 15.4% to 736.5 million pounds, led the growth while physical revenues fell 2.6% to 210.3 million pounds, with online sales cushioning the impact of lockdowns.
Online campaigns helped drive vinyl sales, which rose by nearly a third to 86.5 million pounds in Britain, their highest total since 1989, the BPI said. ($1 = 0.7253 pounds) (Reporting by Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Editing by Alexander Smith)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

Music soothes pandemic blues as 2020 record sales hit high note

(Updates prices)
LONDON, March 23 (Reuters) &#8211; Raw sugar futures on ICE hits their lowest since late December on Tuesday, down for the fifth consecutive session, weighed by risk-off sentiment in the wider financial markets and improved near term supply.

SUGAR
* May raw sugar ​was down 2.8% to 15.10 cents per lb at around 1400 GMT, having earlier hit a low of 15.05.
* Dealers said a combination of limited physical demand and adequate supply thanks to good Indian exports is putting sugar under pressure, as is the broad-based sell off in other risk assets.
* The premium for May sugar over July is at its narrowest since last September, indicating improved nearby sugar availability. &lt;SB-1=R&gt;
* May white sugar fell 3.1% to $435.60 a tonne &#8211; having hit its lowest since early January at $432.40.
* White sugar is benefitting relative to raws from the ongoing shortage of global shipping containers, dealers said.
* Russia&#8217;s government said on Monday it will discuss eliminating taxes on imports of up to 350,000 tonnes of white sugar between May 15 and Aug. 31.

COFFEE
* May arabica coffee fell 0.9% to $1.2925 per lb​​, heading back towards a one-month low hit late last week.
* Dealers said there are almost no rains forecast for the next week in top coffee producer Brazil&#8217;s growing regions. On the downside for prices, however, measures to combat the coronavirus pandemic in Brazil, also a key coffee consumer, are getting more severe.
* Uganda&#8217;s coffee exports surged 16% year-on-year in February, helped by good yields and favourable prices, the state-run sector regulator, UCDA, said.
* May robusta coffee fell 0.4% to $1,393 a tonne.

COCOA
* May London cocoa ​​was flat at 1,728 pounds per tonne​.
* Dealers noted good rains are expected in West Africa this month, which should favour the tail end of the mid-crop. At the same time there are concerns over chocolate demand in Europe, which is grappling with rising COVID-19 infections.
* May New York cocoa fell 0.9% to $2,484 a tonne.
(Editing by Mark Potter)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

SOFTS-Raw sugar hits near three month low; coffee falls

(Repeats item issued earlier. The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters.)
* GRAPHIC &#8211; India coal imports by source: https://tmsnrt.rs/3seLKFp
By Clyde Russell
SYDNEY, March 23 (Reuters) &#8211; Heavy rains and the worst floods in 50 years have shut the world&#8217;s largest coal-export harbour, but the impact from the closure of Australia&#8217;s Newcastle port is likely to hit hardest in India.
Rainfall of more than 1 metre (3.3 feet) in places in the past few days, and the threat of more to come, led to the shutdown of railways from coal mines in the Hunter Valley, north of Sydney, and the coal loaders at Newcastle Port, which shipped some 158 million tonnes of the fuel last year.
The bulk of the coal shipped from Newcastle is high-grade thermal coal used in power plants, along with smaller volumes of some grades of coal used to make steel.
While the bulk of Newcastle&#8217;s exports go to long-term customers in Asia, such as Japan and South Korea, in recent months increasing volumes of thermal coal have been shipped to India.
This would have previously been considered an unusual trade, as Indian buyers preferred cheaper, and less energy intensive, grades from Indonesia, which is closer to the South Asian nation, the second-largest coal importer behind China.
But China&#8217;s ongoing dispute with Australia over a range of issues has led Beijing to place an unofficial ban on coal imports from the world&#8217;s largest exporter of coking coal and number two in thermal coal.
As a result, coal flows across Asia are being forced to realign, with India buying increasing volumes of Australian thermal coal and China sucking up Indonesian cargoes that would have previously headed to India.
India&#8217;s imports from Australia have been above 5 million tonnes a month since October, having never previously exceeded that level since Refinitiv started monitoring coal flows in January 2015.
For March, India&#8217;s imports from Australia are estimated by Refinitiv at 6.7 million tonnes, up from February&#8217;s 6.13 million and in line with January&#8217;s 6.8 million.
The volume of imports from Newcastle Port has also been rising in recent months, with Refinitiv data showing 1.93 million tonnes being discharged in February, up from 1.72 million in January and 1.29 million in December.

PRICE BOOST
While Newcastle shipments will likely resume in a couple of weeks, the loss over even that relatively short period will boost prices and tighten the supply of coal in Asian seaborne markets.
While this will hit other importers from Newcastle such as Japan and South Korea, these north Asian countries are entering their seasonal slack demand period between the winter and summer peaks.
However, Indian imports tend to ramp up in the first half of the year as stockpiles are built ahead of the monsoon rains, meaning prices are surging and volumes dropping just as India would want the opposite to be happening.
Newcastle thermal coal futures ended at $94 a tonne on Monday, up from the previous close of $92.75 and the highest price in two years.
The price has rallied 94% since last year&#8217;s pandemic-led low of $48.50 a tonne, first as a cold winter across north Asia prompted higher demand, with the current flooding in Australia putting on an additional premium.
Indian buyers currently have few good alternatives to supplies from Australia, with South African coal, which is similar in quality, trading at higher prices than even the flood premium for Newcastle coal.
Coal at South Africa&#8217;s main port of Richards Bay , as assessed by commodity price reporting agency Argus, rose to a three-month high of $100.39 a tonne on Monday, up from the previous close of $98.25.
Indonesian coal is substantially cheaper, but Indian buyers will have to compete with their Chinese counterparts for supplies, meaning there may be limited cargoes available at short notice.
India could look further afield for thermal coal, with cargoes from the United States, Colombia and Russia all within the realms of possibility. But none of these are quick solutions and may not end up being that much cheaper once additional freight and insurance costs are added in, not to mention the potential difficulties of using different types of coal with varying properties in power plant boilers.
For the moment, India is facing a higher coal import bill and limited supplies, something sure to raise concerns in the government, which is already fretting about the impact of higher crude oil prices on the economy. (Editing by Richard Pullin)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

COLUMN-Australia’s rain will become India’s pain as coal flows halt: Russell

LONDON, March 23 (Reuters) &#8211; Raw sugar futures on ICE hits their lowest since late December on Tuesday, down for the fifth consecutive session, weighed by risk-off sentiment in the wider financial markets and improved near term supply.

SUGAR
* May raw sugar ​was down 2.5% to 15.14 cents per lb at 1212 GMT, having earlier hit a low of 15.08.
* Dealers said a combination of limited physical demand and adequate supply thanks to good Indian exports is putting sugar under pressure, as is the broad-based sell off in commodities and other risk assets.
* The premium for May sugar over July is at its narrowest since last September, indicating improved nearby sugar availability. &lt;SB-1=R&gt;
* May white sugar fell 3.5% to $433.50 a tonne &#8211; its lowest since early January.
* White sugar is benefitting relative to raws from the ongoing shortage of global shipping containers, dealers said.
* Russia&#8217;s government said on Monday it will discuss eliminating taxes on imports of up to 350,000 tonnes of white sugar between May 15 and Aug. 31.

COFFEE
* May arabica coffee fell 1.5% to $1.2810 per lb​​, heading back towards a one-month low hit late last week.
* Dealers said there are almost no rains forecast for the next week in top coffee producer Brazil&#8217;s growing regions. On the downside for prices, however, measures to combat the coronavirus pandemic in Brazil, also a key coffee consumer, are getting more severe.
* Uganda&#8217;s coffee exports surged 16% year-on-year in February, helped by good yields and favourable prices, the state-run sector regulator, UCDA, said.
* May robusta coffee fell 0.8% to $1,387 a tonne.

COCOA
* May London cocoa ​​fell 0.4% to 1,721 pounds per tonne​.
* Dealers noted good rains are expected in West Africa this month, which should favour the tail end of the mid-crop. At the same time there are concerns over chocolate demand in Europe, which is grappling with rising COVID-19 infections.
* May New York cocoa fell 1.4% to $2,469 a tonne.
(Editing by Mark Potter)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

March 23 (Reuters) &#8211; Evelo Biosciences Inc:
* CO AND ABDUL LATIF JAMEEL HEALTH ENTERED INTO A STRATEGIC COLLABORATION
* EVELO BIOSCIENCES-STRATEGIC COLLABORATION TO DEVELOP AND COMMERCIALIZE CO&#8217;S LEAD INFLAMMATION PRODUCT CANDIDATE EDP1815 IN MIDDLE EAST, TURKEY, AFRICA Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

BRIEF-Evelo Biosciences Says Co And Abdul Latif Jameel Health Entered Strategic Collaboration

By Andrius Sytas
VILNIUS, March 23 (Reuters) &#8211; Lithuania&#8217;s parliament on Tuesday approved regular mandatory COVID-19 testing for some workers and anyone refusing to be tested must work remotely or be suspended without pay.
Coronavirus cases in the Baltic country have climbed this week and the first infections of the variant that emerged in South Africa were detected on Tuesday.
A government medical advisor told reporters the rate of infections is likely to double by April due to the South African variant and another strain that first appeared in Britain.
The government will now draw up a list of workers that must have tests when the new rules come in on Friday and also determine how frequently they have to be retested.
Medical, social care and education staff will be among the first to undergo the mandatory tests, Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte told reporters, as well as workers at restaurants once they reopen.
&#8220;This is very important to control the situation&#8221;, she said. &#8220;We tried recommending the testing, but that didn&#8217;t get us as far as hoped.&#8221;
&#8220;Only aggressive testing at the hotspots and constant preventive testing elsewhere could keep the moderate coronavirus situation in places where it is still moderate,&#8221; she said.
The state will pay for the mandatory tests.
Lithuania has been in a lockdown since mid-December, with non-essential shops closed and meetings between households banned. (Reporting by Andrius Sytas; Editing by David Clarke)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

Lithuania launches mandatory COVID-19 tests for some workers

* Palm oil hits intraday high of 4.4%
* Market will track soyoil closely for next few days &#8211; trader
* Palm oil is entering seasonal high-production months (Updates with closing prices, adds details)
By Mei Mei Chu
KUALA LUMPUR, March 23 (Reuters) &#8211; Malaysian palm oil futures advanced over 2% on Tuesday, extending gains for a second session, as the market tracked a rally in soyoil fuelled by U.S. President Joe Biden&#8217;s green energy push but signs of higher production capped the gains.
The benchmark palm oil contract for June delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange settled up 87 ringgit, or 2.26%, to 3,930 ringgit ($953.88) a tonne.
Palm rose as much as 4.4% during the session.
Biden&#8217;s green fuel push using edible oils is helping drive up vegetable oil prices that are already near record highs, hitting key cost-sensitive consumers in India and Africa and stoking global food inflation fears.
&#8220;Prices moved up on strong soyoil overnight and Asian morning session, green fuel initiatives by the U.S president caused soyoil to spring up,&#8221; a Kuala Lumpur-based trader said.
&#8220;Market will be taking cues from soyoil in the next few days,&#8221; the trader said.
The selling pressure is, however, weighing on the market as crude palm oil enters the seasonal-induced productive months, he added.
Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade were up 1.4%. Dalian&#8217;s most-active soyoil contract rose 3.4%, while its palm oil contract gained 4.7%.
Palm oil is affected by price movements in related oils as they compete for a share in the global vegetable oils market.
Top producer Indonesia set its crude palm oil reference price for April higher at $1,093.83 per tonne, an official at the country&#8217;s coordinating economics ministry said, bringing export taxes higher.
Malaysia&#8217;s exports of palm-based biodiesel are likely to fall this year to their lowest since 2017 due to European Union restrictions and the coronavirus pandemic, the Malaysian Biodiesel Association (MBA) said at a conference. ($1 = 4.1200 ringgit)
(Reporting by Mei Mei Chu; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Shailesh Kuber)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

VEGOILS-Palm gains over 2%, tracks soyoil rally on Biden’s green fuel boost

JOHANNESBURG, March 23 (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa&#8217;s Northam Platinum said on Tuesday that it would buy back all preference shares from its Black economic empowerment vehicle, Zambezi Platinum, four years ahead of its 10-year maturation date.
The nearly 2 billion rand ($135.58 million) transaction will offer a 16% premium for the Zambezi preference share and will also include an overall 25% share buyback by Northam, the company said.
Northam had been buying back Zambezi&#8217;s preference shares from institutional shareholders to reduce its own preference share dividend expense and liability and potential financial exposure under the guarantee it gave to shareholders.
The platinum miner, which opted to buy back the preference shares instead of declaring dividends to return value to shareholders, owns 87.5% of Zambezi with the maturity of the preference shares issued by Zambezi originally due in 2025.
The South African government mandates companies to allow Black employees and investors to hold equity in the company to help to reverse decades of Black people&#8217;s exclusion under apartheid.
Zambezi Platinum was set up in 2015. It issued new preference shares that Northam bought and then, with the proceeds it bought ordinary shares in Northam.
Preference shares create a financial responsibility for a company to regularly pay dividends at a fixed rate over common shareholders and buy back all the shares on maturity at the then existing price. Preference shareholders do not have voting rights.
Through the transaction, which includes the issue of ordinary shares in the company to Zambezi&#8217;s shareholders, Northam has to implement an extended empowerment transaction for a period of 15 years, the company said.
Shares in Northam were down 1.4% against the broader market index which was down 0.26% at 10 GMT. ($1 = 14.7511 rand) (Reporting by Promit Mukherjee Editing by Tanisha Heiberg and Barbara Lewis)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

S.Africa’s Northam Platinum winds up Zambezi Black economic deal

March 23 (Reuters) &#8211; Pdz Holdings Bhd:
* PROPOSES DIVERSIFICATION OF BUSINESS TO INCLUDE MANUFACTURE, SALE AND MARKETING OF GLOVES AND OTHER RELATED ACTIVITIES
* PROPOSED CONSOLIDATION OF EVERY 10 EXISTING ORDINARY SHARES IN PDZ INTO 1 SHARE
* PLANS TO ACQUIRE, INSTALL AND COMMISSION UP TO 4 DOUBLE FORMER GLOVE-DIPPING LINES
* PROPOSED RENOUNCEABLE RIGHTS ISSUE OF UP TO 797.7 MILLION NEW SHARES ON BASIS OF 6 RIGHTS SHARES FOR EVERY 1 CONSOLIDATED SHARE HELD
* INTENDS TO USE PROCEEDS OF UP TO 25 MILLION RGT TO BUY A NEW FACTORY BUILDING IN KULAI
* PDZ HOLDINGS-INTEND TO EXPORT RUBBER GLOVES TO NATIONS WITH HIGH COVID-19 INFECTION RATES SUCH AS US, EUROPEAN COUNTRIES, AFRICA, SOUTH AMERICA, INDIA
* FOR EXPORT OF GLOVES TO EUROPEAN REGION, CO INTENDS TO OBTAIN CE MARKING CERTIFICATION (TYPICALLY RECOGNISED IN EUROPEAN REGION)
* FOR EXPORT OF GLOVES TO U.S. REGION, CO INTENDS TO OBTAIN FOOD &amp; DRUG ADMINISTRATION (FDA) CERTIFICATION Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage: (Reuters.Briefs@thomsonreuters.com)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

BRIEF-PDZ Holdings Proposes Diversification Of Business To Include Sale Of Gloves

JOHANNESBURG, March 23 (Reuters) &#8211; Steinhoff said on Tuesday it has reached an agreement with certain insurance companies underwriting the group&#8217;s directors and officers insurance policy to contribute up to 78.1 million euros ($93 million) to help settle claims against it.
The announcement sent Steinhoff&#8217;s Johannesburg-listed shares up 4.19%, while its primary Frankfurt-listed shares jumped by 7.85% by 1022 GMT.
The move takes the scandal-hit retailer a step closer to a proposed $1 billion global lawsuit settlement plan announced in July to settle about 90 separate legal claims in the Netherlands, Germany and South Africa.
The combined claims of those who have quantified their alleged damages are in excess of 136 billion rand ($9 billion) after an accounting fraud in December 2017 resulted in a dramatic share price plunge of Steinhoff.
As part of the agreement, also with Steinhoff&#8217;s certain former directors and officers (D&amp;Os) such as founder Bruno Steinhoff and former chair Christo Wiese, the insurers will offer an amount of up to 55.5 million euros to market-purchase claimants &#8220;in exchange for certain waivers and releases&#8221;.
The furniture and clothing retailer said 15 million euros would be paid to certain contractual claimants.
The agreement with directors and officers excludes former CEO Markus Jooste, former CFO Ben La Grange, former secretary Stehan Grobler and the group&#8217;s ex-Steinhoff Europe director Siegmar Schmidt, it said.
Steinhoff said it maintains the right to institute or continue claims against the four for their alleged involvement in the fraud and against certain legal entities and other individuals said to have received payments by the group&#8217;s companies.
The agreement will be in addition to that of its former auditor Deloitte, which agreed in February to support the plan and pay up to 77.94 million euros to settle some claims.
&#8220;Deloitte, the D&amp;O insurers and the settling D&amp;Os do not in any way admit liability for the losses incurred by Steinhoff and its stakeholders as a result of the accounting irregularities at Steinhoff,&#8221; the company said.
($1 = 0.8406 euros)
($1 = 14.8930 rand) (Reporting by Nqobile Dludla; editing by Jason Neely)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

Newsfeed

DIARY-Emerging Markets Economic Events to May 24

SOFTS-Raw sugar hits near three-month low; coffee falls

W. Africa Crude-Nigeria slightly raises May exports of main grades

Niger mourns 137 victims after deadliest attack in recent memory

S.Africa’s treasury delays debt guarantees for water infrastructure arm

European Tour Kenya Savannah Classic Scores

S.Africa’s 2020/2021 maize output seen rising 6% on previous season

Music soothes pandemic blues as 2020 record sales hit high note

SOFTS-Raw sugar hits near three month low; coffee falls

COLUMN-Australia’s rain will become India’s pain as coal flows halt: Russell

SOFTS-Raw sugar hits near three month low; coffee falls

BRIEF-Evelo Biosciences Says Co And Abdul Latif Jameel Health Entered Strategic Collaboration

Lithuania launches mandatory COVID-19 tests for some workers

VEGOILS-Palm gains over 2%, tracks soyoil rally on Biden’s green fuel boost

S.Africa’s Northam Platinum winds up Zambezi Black economic deal

BRIEF-PDZ Holdings Proposes Diversification Of Business To Include Sale Of Gloves

Steinhoff’s insurers agree to pay $93 mln to settle certain claims

News Tips

Advertise With Us

Newsfeed

DIARY-Emerging Markets Economic Events to May 24

SOFTS-Raw sugar hits near three-month low; coffee falls

W. Africa Crude-Nigeria slightly raises May exports of main grades

Niger mourns 137 victims after deadliest attack in recent memory

S.Africa’s treasury delays debt guarantees for water infrastructure arm

European Tour Kenya Savannah Classic Scores

S.Africa’s 2020/2021 maize output seen rising 6% on previous season

Music soothes pandemic blues as 2020 record sales hit high note

SOFTS-Raw sugar hits near three month low; coffee falls

COLUMN-Australia’s rain will become India’s pain as coal flows halt: Russell

SOFTS-Raw sugar hits near three month low; coffee falls

BRIEF-Evelo Biosciences Says Co And Abdul Latif Jameel Health Entered Strategic Collaboration

Lithuania launches mandatory COVID-19 tests for some workers

VEGOILS-Palm gains over 2%, tracks soyoil rally on Biden’s green fuel boost

S.Africa’s Northam Platinum winds up Zambezi Black economic deal

BRIEF-PDZ Holdings Proposes Diversification Of Business To Include Sale Of Gloves

Steinhoff’s insurers agree to pay $93 mln to settle certain claims

News Tips

Advertise With Us

Newsletters