DIARY – Italy to May 31

By Angela Ukomadu and Alexis Akwagyiram
LAGOS, April 9 (Reuters) &#8211; Chibueze Akukwe sticks a label on a bottle of an upmarket Nigerian spirit in a factory in Lagos. He hopes stylish branding will help sell the tipple, fermented in nearby villages using techniques dating back centuries, to upmarket customers.
A spirit called Ogogoro, referred to locally as &#8220;gin&#8221;, is extracted from palm trees before undergoing fermentation. The resulting drink is cheap, but varies in potency and quality.
Akukwe and his business partner Lola Pedro are aiming higher with Pedro&#8217;s palm spirit, combining traditional techniques with modern distillation processes to attract wealthy drinkers at home and abroad. Pedro&#8217;s is already sold in Ghana, Kenya and Britain.
&#8220;I didn&#8217;t see much of a difference between some of the big name brand spirits that we know all across the globe, when you compare those with Ogogoro,&#8221; said Akukwe, speaking at the company&#8217;s distillery in Lagos, which produces half-litre bottles sold for $50 in a country where most live on less than $2 a day.
The brand is hoping to tap into a growing appetite for spirits in Africa&#8217;s most populous country after coronavirus restrictions forced people to host friends at home. Pedro&#8217;s declined to give details of its sales.
Market research firm Euromonitor said Nigeria&#8217;s premium spirits market was growing from a low base, &#8220;creating interest among the younger, wealthier population whose budgets have been less affected by the COVID-19 epidemic&#8221;.
Spirits are more usually drunk more at home than other alcoholic drinks and are seen as a growth area in Nigeria because of their high price and low production costs, said Stanbic IBTC Africa analyst Fola Abimbola.
&#8220;The spirits market is fragmented,&#8221; said Abimbola. &#8220;Smaller players can compete.&#8221;
In the impoverished Lagos neighbourhood of Cele-Egbe, a group of men sit under a tree just before dusk and sample a copper-coloured Ogogoro from metal cups.
Pedro&#8217;s is distilled nearby but sold in the shops, bars and restaurants of more affluent districts. Its customers are not men sitting under a tree.
For Akukwe, the drink is more than just alcohol.
&#8220;Our spirits deserve to be showcased,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Our culture and our heritage deserve to be showcased.&#8221; (Reporting by Angela Ukomadu and Alexis Akwagyiram in Lagos; Additional reporting by Seun Sanni and Nneka Chile in Lagos and Chijioke Ohuocha in Abuja; Writing by Alexis Akwagyiram Editing by Giles Elgood)
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Nigerian duo hope to turn local spirit into premium brand

* Zloty set to add 2% to the USD this week
* EM stocks retreat, set for weekly losses
* Russian rouble among worst weekly performers
By Ambar Warrick
April 9 (Reuters) &#8211; Emerging-market currencies retreated on Friday after the dollar bounced back from two-week lows, but were set to rise for the week with the Polish zloty marking large gains after the central bank held lending rates.
Russia&#8217;s rouble and the South African rand led losses across currencies in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), while the MSCI&#8217;s index of emerging-market currencies fell 0.2%.
But the index was set to add about 0.2% for the week, benefiting from recent weakness in the dollar and U.S. Treasury yields. While the dollar rose from two-week lows on Friday, it was still set for its worst week this year, following dovish comments from the Federal Reserve.
&#8220;The Fed has been trying for a long time to dampen expectation of an imminent normalisation of monetary policy &#8230; Against this backdrop economic data coming in below expectations can put a dampener on the dollar. That means the dollar has not been able to turn the tables in its favour,&#8221; analysts at Commerzbank wrote in a note.
Following this sentiment, U.S. yields had retreated through the week, while emerging-market debt saw strong inflows. High-yielding currencies such as the rand also marked strong gains for the week.
Central European currencies were all set for weekly gains, with the Polish zloty rising the most against the dollar and the euro after the Polish central bank held interest rates earlier in the week.
The zloty was set to be the best-performing EMEA currency for the week, adding about 2% to the dollar and 0.8% to the euro.
Recent weakness in the dollar and U.S. yields came as a source of relief for emerging market assets, which are largely trading down for the year amid pressure from an increase in U.S. lending rates.
Bucking the trend, Russia&#8217;s rouble was set for a fourth straight weekly loss, its worst losing streak since the height of the COVID-19 pandemic last year.
Recent losses in the currency were driven by concerns over a possible military conflict between Russia and Ukraine, as well as Western criticism of Moscow&#8217;s treatment of prominent Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.
Turkey&#8217;s lira was muted for the week, with investors remaining wary over the country&#8217;s financial credibility after major shifts in central bank governance over the past two years.
Emerging-market stocks fell for the day, and were set for mild weekly losses.
For GRAPHIC on emerging market FX performance in 2021, see http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh For GRAPHIC on MSCI emerging index performance in 2021, see https://tmsnrt.rs/2OusNdX

For TOP NEWS across emerging markets
For CENTRAL EUROPE market report, see
For TURKISH market report, see
For RUSSIAN market report, see (Reporting by Ambar Warrick in Bengaluru, editing by Larry King)
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EMERGING MARKETS-EMEA FX dips on dollar bounce; Polish zloty outperforms for the week

RUSSIA SAYS SPUTNIK V VACCINES IS LESS EFFECTIVE AGAINST SOUTH AFRICA VARIANT &#8211; IFAX
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RUSSIA SAYS SPUTNIK V VACCINES IS LESS EFFECTIVE AGAINST SOUTH AFRICA VARIANT – IFAX

JOHANNESBURG, April 9 (Reuters) &#8211; The South African rand retreated from its six-week peak early on Friday as the market took a breather after dovish signals from the U.S. Federal Reserve spurred a risk rally.
At 0615 GMT the rand traded at 14.5725 against the dollar, 0.31% weaker than its previous close. It rallied to 14.4475 on Thursday, its strongest since Feb. 24.
The rand was awaiting a new catalyst to provide direction following the recent risk rally, said Citadel Global executive director Bianca Botes.
Emerging market currencies rose this week on weakness in the dollar and U.S. treasury yields after the minutes from the Fed&#8217;s latest meeting showed that the bank was in no hurry to tighten monetary policy.
Lower U.S. interest rate expectations boost investor appetite for emerging markets assets, such as the rand, which offer higher returns but carry more risk.
Government bonds also weakened in early deals, with the yield on the benchmark instrument due in 2030 up 1.5 basis points at 9.235%. (Reporting by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo Editing by David Goodman )
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South Africa’s rand retreats from six-week high

JOHANNESBURG, April 9 (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa&#8217;s net foreign reserves fell to $50.877 billion in March from $51.577 billion in February, the Reserve Bank said on Friday.
Gross reserves also edged lower, to $52.995 billion in March from $53.788 billion the prior month. The forward position, which represents the central bank&#8217;s unsettled or swap transactions, fell to $4.188 billion from $4.364 billion. (Reporting by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo Editing by Promit Mukherjee)
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South Africa’s net foreign reserves down to $50.877 billion in March

JOHANNESBURG, April 9 (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa&#8217;s Exxaro Resources Ltd&#8217;s said on Friday it would sell its Exxaro Coal Central (ECC) operations to Overlooked Colliery for an undisclosed amount.
The transaction, which is subject to approval by the mines ministry, is part of the coal miners internal review of its assets. (Reporting by Promit Mukherjee)
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South Africa’s Exxaro to sell ECC operations to Overlooked Colliery

(The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters.)
* GRAPHIC &#8211; China&#8217;s coking coal imports by origin: https://tmsnrt.rs/2RcTsm2
* GRAPHIC &#8211; China&#8217;s thermal coal imports by origin: https://tmsnrt.rs/3urtk4Y
By Clyde Russell
LAUNCESTON, Australia, April 9 (Reuters) &#8211; China is paying a high price for its unofficial ban on coal imports from Australia, with the cost of domestic and alternative foreign supplies rising for both thermal and coking grades of the fuel.
China, the world&#8217;s biggest importer, producer and consumer of coal, has effectively ended imports from Australia, the biggest shipper of coking coal used to make steel and number two in thermal coal used to produce electricity, as part of an ongoing political dispute between the two nations.
The restrictions on imports from Australia came into effect in the second half of last year, resulting in China&#8217;s imports dropping to virtually zero in the first two months of this year from a 2020 high of 9.46 million tonnes in June, according to Refinitiv vessel-tracking and port data.
However, China&#8217;s consumers of imported coal have been facing higher costs, with prices for alternatives to supplies from Australia, both local and foreign, rising as the market adjusts to the unofficial ban.
In coking coal, the price of free-on-board Australian cargoes has been weakening since the ban was imposed, apart from the usual seasonal gain for the northern hemisphere winter.
The Singapore Exchange contract for Australian coking coal ended at $113.71 a tonne on Thursday, down 18.8% from the $140 that it reached at the start of October, just as the Chinese ban was coming into effect.
If a Chinese importer switched from Australian cargoes to those from the United States, the price difference has entirely reversed since the ban started to affect flows.
Coking coal free-on-board at the U.S. east coast port of Hampton Roads, as assessed by commodity price reporting agency Argus, has surged to $152.75 on Thursday from $114 a tonne at the start of October last year, a gain of 34%.
This means that U.S. coking coal is currently about $39 a tonne more expensive that supplies from Australia, and this doesn&#8217;t account for the higher shipping costs given the longer distance from the U.S. east coast to China.
China&#8217;s domestic coking coal price has also been gaining since the restrictions on imports from Australia, with Dalian Commodity Exchange futures rising 16% from 1,353 yuan ($206.56) a tonne at the start of October to end at 1,573 yuan on Thursday.
This price isn&#8217;t directly comparable to the free-on-board prices in Australia and the United States, as it includes freight and other costs as well as import taxes and duties.
However, it does show that Chinese domestic prices have been pushed higher, partially reflecting the higher cost of imports from sources other than Australia.
China&#8217;s neighbour Mongolia has become its biggest supplier of coking coal, meeting 61.7% of imports in the first two months of this year, up from just 17.7% in the same period in 2020, according to official data.
Australia&#8217;s share of imports came down to zero from 68.4% in January-February 2020, according to the data, while the United States boosted its share to 9.1% from under 2%, and Canada went to 12.1% from 6.1%.
While coking coal supplies from Mongolia are cheaper than those from seaborne alternatives, it&#8217;s believed that they tend to track Chinese domestic prices, meaning it&#8217;s likely that they have risen sharply as well, especially once transportation and washing costs are factored in.

DOMESTIC THERMAL COAL PAIN
For thermal coal, the main impact from the ban of Australian cargoes appears to have been strength in Chinese domestic prices, with benchmark coal at Qinhuangdao &lt;SH-QHA-TRMCOAL&gt;, as assessed by SteelHome, closing at 747 yuan a tonne on Thursday, equivalent to about $114.
While this is down from the winter peak of 1,038 yuan a tonne, it&#8217;s still 22% higher than the 612 yuan that prevailed at the start of October.
It&#8217;s also believed that the Chinese authorities prefer a domestic thermal coal price in a range between 530 to 580 yuan a tonne, a level said to secure the profitability of mines while keeping electricity prices competitive.
China has turned to Indonesia, the world&#8217;s top exporter of thermal coal, to plug some of the gap caused by the absence of Australian cargoes, as well as buying more from Russia and South Africa, two countries that can offer similar quality coal to Australia.
But boosting supplies from these countries appears to have done little to lower domestic prices, meaning Chinese users are still paying substantially more for the fuel than what they were prior to the ban of Australian coal. (Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)
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COLUMN-China is paying a high price for its ban on Australian coal: Russell

CAPE TOWN, April 9 (Reuters) &#8211; An already depleted South Africa squad has been dealt a further blow after newly-appointed captain Temba Bavuma was ruled out of their four-match home Twenty20 International series against Pakistan with a hamstring strain.
Bavuma was injured while batting in the One-Day International series decider that was won by the tourists in Pretoria on Wednesday.
The opening T20 match is in Johannesburg on Saturday.
South Africa are already without five of their leading players, including batsmen Quinton de Kock and David Miller, and fast bowler Kagiso Rabada, who have been released to play in the Indian Premier League.
The loss of Bavuma will further weaken their top six, especially as the experienced Reeza Hendricks has withdrawn from the squad after the birth of his first child, while the in-form Rassie van der Dussen is doubtful for the first match of the series, at least, with a grade one left quadriceps strain.
Heinrich Klaasen will captain the side in the absence of Bavuma, while opening batsman Aiden Markram, all-rounders Andile Phehlukwayo and Wiaan Mulder, and seamer Daryn Dupavillon have been added to the squad from the one that took part in the ODI series.
South Africa T20 squad:
Heinrich Klaasen (captain), Bjorn Fortuin, Aiden Markram, Andile Phehlukwayo, Beuran Hendricks, George Linde, Rassie van der Dussen, Janneman Malan, Sisanda Magala, Wiaan Mulder, Tabraiz Shamsi, Lutho Sipamla, Kyle Verreynne, Pite van Biljon, Daryn Dupavillon, Migael Pretorius, Lizaad Williams, Wihan Lubbe.
(Reporting by Nick Said; Editing by Peter Rutherford )
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Cricket-Blow for South Africa as captain Bavuma to miss Pakistan T20 series

JOHANNESBURG, April 9 (Reuters) &#8211; The following scheduled economic events, company announcements, equity and currency market moves may affect South African markets on Friday.

ECONOMIC EVENTS
South Africa&#8217;s gross and net forex reserves

COMPANIES
Royal Bafokeng Platinum annual shareholders meeting

SOUTH AFRICAN MARKETS
South Africa&#8217;s rand rallied to its best level in six-weeks on Thursday, shaking off sluggish manufacturing data as global demand for high-yielding currencies was lifted by growing bets that lending rates in the United States will remain low.
Equities fell after local manufacturing output contracted 2.1% year on year in February, more than expected.

GLOBAL MARKETS
Global stocks held firm near record highs on Friday as receding inflation fears in the United States pushed down bond yields and lifted Wall Street, though softness in Chinese shares capped gains in Asia.

WALL STREET
The S&amp;P 500 closed at a record high on Thursday, as U.S. Treasury yields fell following softer-than-anticipated labor market data, boosting technology and other growth stocks.

GOLD
Gold prices fell on Friday as robust economic data from China boosted hopes of a swift recovery, although bullion was set to rise more than 1% on the week as the U.S. dollar and Treasury yields pulled back from recent highs.

EMERGING MARKETS
For the top emerging markets news, double click on
&#8211; &#8211; &#8211; &#8211;

Some of the main stories out in the South African press:

BUSINESS DAY
&#8211; Eskom makes plans to avoid Oracle switch-off (Compiled by Promit Mukherjee)
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South African Markets – Factors to watch on April 9

The following company announcements, scheduled economic indicators, debt and currency market moves and political events may affect African markets on Friday. &#8211; &#8211; &#8211; &#8211; &#8211; GLOBAL MARKETS Asian equities are set for a choppy trading session on Friday after technology stocks lifted the S&amp;P 500 to a new record even as investors weighed an unexpected rise in the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits. WORLD OIL PRICES Oil prices were little changed on Friday as investors weighed rising supplies from major producers and the impact on fuel demand from the COVID-19 pandemic. EMERGING MARKETS For the top emerging markets news, double click on AFRICA STOCKS For the latest news on African stocks, click on SOUTH AFRICA MARKETS South Africa&#8217;s rand rallied to its best level in six-weeks on Thursday, shaking off sluggish manufacturing data as global demand for high-yielding currencies was lifted by growing bets that lending rates in the United States will remain low. NIGERIA SECURITY One army officer and 10 soldiers were killed in Nigeria&#8217;s Benue state in what a spokesman said was an unprovoked attack on Thursday. KENYA MARKETS The Kenyan shilling strengthened against the dollar on Thursday as the market basked in healthy inflows via sale of government debt and new financing from the International Monetary Fund. KENYA REFUGEES A Kenyan judge ruled on Thursday against the closure of two refugee camps hosting hundreds of thousands of people mainly from neighbouring Somalia, according to a copy of the court order seen by Reuters. DJIBOUTI ELECTION Voters head to the polls on Friday in the tiny but strategically important Horn of Africa nation Djibouti, with President Ismael Omar Guelleh widely expected to win a fifth term and extend his 21-year-long rule. UGANDA MARKETS The Ugandan shilling traded steady on Thursday, drawing support from inflows from offshore investors who participated in this week&#8217;s Treasury auction. UGANDA EGYPT Uganda and Egypt have signed a military intelligence sharing agreement, the east African country said late on Wednesday, against a backdrop of rising tensions between Egypt and Ethiopia over a hydropower dam on a tributary of the Nile river. ETHIOPIA CONFLICT/USA White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan expressed U.S. concerns over the crisis in the Tigray region in a call with Ethopia&#8217;s deputy prime minister, Demeke Mekonnen, the White House said on Thursday. MOZAMBIQUE INSURGENCY Twelve people, possibly foreigners, were found beheaded following an attack claimed by Islamic State on the northern Mozambique town of Palma, a local police commander told the state broadcaster. CONGO SECURITY Congolese police detained scores of protesters and fired live rounds on Thursday to disperse crowds demanding the departure of the United Nations peacekeeping mission from the city of Beni, local authorities and witnesses said. CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC POLITICS A judge in Central African Republic has asked parliament to lift the immunity of four opposition lawmakers as part of an investigation into ex-president Francois Bozize, the interim justice minister said on Thursday. ANGOLA GASOLINE Angola&#8217;s state oil firm Sonangol has launched a tender for gasoline and diesel imports for one year starting July 1, the company said in a statement. IVORY COAST RUBBER Ivory Coast&#8217;s natural rubber output is expected to reach 1.1 million tonnes in 2021, up almost 16% from about 950,000 tonnes the previous year, a senior industry figure said on Thursday. For the latest precious metals report click on For the latest base metals report click on For the latest crude oil report click on 
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African Markets – Factors to watch on April 9

England&#8217;s Justin Rose just needed to get his bearings in the opening round of the 2021 Masters, shaking off a slow start with a memorable back nine to grab the lead with a 7-under 65 on Thursday at Augusta, Ga.
Playing on lightning-fast greens, Rose finished the day at Augusta National with a four-shot lead over Brian Harman and Japan&#8217;s Hideki Matsuyama.
It is the fourth time Rose has held the 18-hole lead at the Masters, tying Jack Nicklaus&#8217; record. He just missed the record for largest lead after one round set by Craig Wood when he was five shots in front after 18 holes in 1941.
&#8220;Decent,&#8221; Rose joked on the ESPN broadcast when asked to assess the round. &#8220;I didn&#8217;t know where my game was coming into this week. I had a month off and hadn&#8217;t played competitive golf for a good four weeks.&#8221;
Part of the reason for Rose&#8217;s downtime was a back injury that forced him to withdraw from the Arnold Palmer Invitational in early March. He said he could have returned two weekends ago but elected to dial in his game for Augusta National.
Sitting five shots behind Rose in a tie for fourth place at 2 under was a group of four that included South Africa&#8217;s Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Will Zalatoris, Webb Simpson and 2018 champion Patrick Reed.
Assigned a late tee time, perhaps it was the anticipation of getting the first major of 2021 underway that led Rose to two bogeys over his first seven holes. His reversal of fortune started with an eagle 3 at the par-5 eighth hole.
From there, Rose scorched the legendary course with seven birdies over his last 10 holes as he began his hunt for a second major title. The winner of the 2013 U.S. Open has come close to winning the Masters twice, finishing in second place in both 2015 and 2017, the latter when he lost to Sergio Garcia in a playoff.
In addition to a birdie at the ninth hole, Rose was a shot better than par at Nos. 10, 12, 13, 15, 16 and 17. It made his two-putt par at 18 pedestrian by comparison.
&#8220;Listen, I&#8217;ve had great experiences here and I&#8217;ve had heartache as well,&#8221; Rose said. &#8220;There is a long way to go to even get into the final group (Sunday). But even if I haven&#8217;t got an arm in the (winner&#8217;s green) jacket, I feel like I have been right there to see what it is all about. So hopefully I can draw on that.&#8221;
Rose&#8217;s 65 was his best score ever at Augusta National and was two shots off Greg Norman&#8217;s first-round Masters record set in 1996.
Harman, who qualified for the Masters just two weeks ago based on his world ranking, also used a solid back nine to charge into second place. After an even-par front, he was 3 under on the back with birdies at Nos. 13, 15 and 18.
&#8220;I&#8217;m happy with where my short game is; it&#8217;s something I always neglected,&#8221; said Harman, who is not known as one of the longer hitters in the game. &#8220;I just kind of took it for granted. It&#8217;s something that I can&#8217;t afford to be average. It&#8217;s got to be really good for me to contend.&#8221;
Matsuyama did most of his damage on the front nine with a birdie at No. 2 and an eagle 3 at No. 8. He was at 4 under until a bogey at No. 17.
&#8220;It&#8217;s my 10th year (at the Masters), but I&#8217;ve never seen the greens so firm and fast,&#8221; Matsuyama said. &#8220;So it was like a new course for me playing today, and I was fortunate to get it around well.&#8221;
Dustin Johnson, who won the delayed 2020 Masters in November, stumbled to a 2-over-par 74 that closed with a bogey at No. 16 and double-bogey 6 at the final hole. He is tied for 30th place.
Defending U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau was not able to take advantage of his long-hitting ways in the opening round. Often long with his short irons, DeChambeau was at 4 over and in a tie for 60th place.
PGA Championship winner Collin Morikawa was tied for 20th place after a 1-over 71. Ireland&#8217;s Shane Lowry, the most recent Open Championship winner in 2019, was tied for eighth place after a 1-under 71.
Jordan Spieth, the 2015 Masters winner, who also won last week at the Valero Texas Open, scrambled to his own 1-under 71 despite a triple-bogey 7 at the ninth hole.
England&#8217;s Tommy Fleetwood delivered the 23rd hole-in-one in Masters history with an ace at the 170-yard par-3 16th hole, but only managed to shoot a 2-over 74. Two-time winner Bubba Watson (2012, 2014) also shot 2 over to put him in the group in 30th place.
&#8211;Field Level Media
(c) Copyright Field Level Media. All Rights Reserved. 2021
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Justin Rose (65) opens with four-shot lead at Masters

NAIROBI, April 9 (Reuters) &#8211; Voters head to the polls on Friday in the tiny but strategically important Horn of Africa nation Djibouti, with President Ismael Omar Guelleh widely expected to win a fifth term and extend his 21-year-long rule.
Djibouti lies on one of the world&#8217;s busiest shipping routes, the Gulf of Aden, and hosts U.S., Chinese, and French military bases, letting it punch above its weight.
Guelleh, 73, is one of Africa&#8217;s longest-ruling leaders. He was picked to succeed his uncle, Hassan Gouled Aptidon, who led the country to independence from France in 1977.
During Guelleh&#8217;s presidency, the desert nation of less than one million people has invested heavily in its ports infrastructure, becoming the primary gateway to landlocked Ethiopia, Africa&#8217;s second most populous nation.
An international court ruled in 2018 that Djibouti had expropriated $1 billion of infrastructure in its port belonging to Emirati logistics giant DP World . Djibouti has ignored the ruling.
Guelleh faces only one challenger, relative newcomer Zakaria Ismail Farah, while the rest of the weak and divided opposition was boycotting the polls, analysts said.
&#8220;The president will easily secure a fifth term, but that does not suggest the election is free and fair in the eyes of many Djiboutians,&#8221; said Abel Abate Demissie, an associate fellow of the Africa Programme at Chatham House, a think-tank.
The constitution was tweaked in 2010 to scrap presidential term limits, though an age limit of 75 was set, meaning Guelleh&#8217;s expected fifth term should be his last.
His security forces quashed rare street protests last year following the arrest of a former air force pilot who had denounced corruption and clan-based discrimination.
Human Rights Watch says that since Guelleh came to office in 1999, the government has repeatedly restricted the media and civil liberties.
&#8220;This is a dictatorship,&#8221; said lawyer Maitre Zakaria Abdillahi, who has represented a number of detained activists. &#8220;The people are afraid of the regime, the population is terrorised.&#8221;
Djibouti has weathered the fiscal impact of the COVID-19 pandemic relatively well and the economy expanded by 0.5% last year, the World Bank said in a report last week, though extreme poverty increased to nearly 15% in 2020, it said.
(Reporting by Maggie Fick Editing by Katharine Houreld and Mark Heinrich)
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Djibouti president seen winning fifth term in election

Apr 8 (OPTA) &#8211; Scores from the PGA Tour Masters Tournament on Thursday -7 Justin Rose (England) 65 -3 Brian Harman (USA) 69 Hideki Matsuyama (Japan) 69 -2 Christiaan Bezuidenhout (South Africa) 70 Patrick Reed (USA) 70 Webb Simpson (USA) 70 Will Zalatoris (USA) 70 -1 Tyrrell Hatton (England) 71 Si Woo Kim (Korea Republic) 71 Jason Kokrak (USA) 71 Shane Lowry (Republic of Ireland) 71 Jordan Spieth (USA) 71 0 Cameron Champ (USA) 72 Mackenzie Hughes (Canada) 72 Kevin Kisner (USA) 72 Marc Leishman (Australia) 72 Jon Rahm (Spain) 72 Xander Schauffele (USA) 72 Michael Thompson (USA) 72 1 Abraham Ancer (Mexico) 73 Paul Casey (England) 73 Corey Conners (Canada) 73 Viktor Hovland (Norway) 73 Collin Morikawa (USA) 73 Scottie Scheffler (USA) 73 Henrik Stenson (Sweden) 73 Hudson Swafford (USA) 73 Justin Thomas (USA) 73 Brendon Todd (USA) 73 Gary Woodland (USA) 73 2 Stewart Cink (USA) 74 Harris English (USA) 74 Tony Finau (USA) 74 Matthew Fitzpatrick (England) 74 Tommy Fleetwood (England) 74 Max Homa (USA) 74 Dustin Johnson (USA) 74 Matt Jones (Australia) 74 Brooks Koepka (USA) 74 Martin Laird (Scotland) 74 Bernhard Langer (Germany) 74 Robert MacIntyre (Scotland) 74 Francesco Molinari (Italy) 74 Sebastian Munoz (Colombia) 74 Ryan Palmer (USA) 74 Ian Poulter (England) 74 Charl Schwartzel (South Africa) 74 Adam Scott (Australia) 74 Cameron Smith (Australia) 74 Matt Wallace (England) 74 Bubba Watson (USA) 74 Bernd Wiesberger (Austria) 74 3 Daniel Berger (USA) 75 Phil Mickelson (USA) 75 Kevin Na (USA) 75 Joaquin Niemann (Chile) 75 José Maria Olazabal (Spain) 75 Robert Streb (USA) 75 Jimmy Walker (USA) 75 4 Bryson DeChambeau (USA) 76 Dylan Frittelli (South Africa) 76 Sergio Garcia (Spain) 76 Lanto Griffin (USA) 76 Jim Herman (USA) 76 Billy Horschel (USA) 76 Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland) 76 Louis Oosthuizen (South Africa) 76 Ollie Osborne (USA) 76 Danny Willett (England) 76 Matthew Wolff (USA) 76 Ian Woosnam (Wales) 76 5 Jason Day (Australia) 77 Zach Harris Johnson (USA) 77 Sungjae Im (Korea Republic) 77 6 Brian Gay (USA) 78 Matt Kuchar (USA) 78 Victor Perez (France) 78 Mike Weir (Canada) 78 Lee Westwood (England) 78 7 Patrick Cantlay (USA) 79 Fred Couples (USA) 79 Cheng-Tsung Pan (Chinese Taipei) 79 Vijay Singh (Fiji) 79 8 Ty Strafaci (USA) 80 9 Sandy Lyle (Scotland) 81 10 Joe Long (England) 82 Carlos Ortiz (Mexico) 82 12 Larry Mize (USA) 84 
(c) Copyright Opta Sports Data 2021. All Rights Reserved
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PGA Tour Masters Tournament Scores

ABUJA, April 8 (Reuters) &#8211; One army officer and 10 soldiers were killed in Nigeria&#8217;s Benue state in what a spokesman said was an unprovoked attack on Thursday.
The army said in a statement that it would &#8220;fish out and deal decisively with these bad elements.&#8221;
Civilians, in fear of soldiers looking to root out the perpetrators, were fleeing the Konshisha local government where one local leader&#8217;s house had been burnt to the ground, sources told Reuters.
The violence in the restive Middle Belt region marked the latest bout of instability in Nigeria, Africa&#8217;s most-populous nation.
On Monday, heavily armed gunman freed more than 1,800 prisoners in the southeast, while armed gangs have kidnapped hundreds of school children in the northwest in recent months and Islamist militants in the northeast have waged a decade-long insurgency.
Troops patrol in the Middle Belt due in part to clashes between farmers and nomadic cattle herders that have killed thousands and displaced half a million over the past decade, according to estimates from French medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres.
Army spokesman Mohammed Yerima said the troops were initially declared missing while on a routine operational task, but a search-and-rescue team later found the bodies.
&#8220;Efforts are ongoing to track down the perpetrators of this heinous crime with a view to bringing them to justice,&#8221; Yerima said in a statement.
Yerima did not immediately reply to further queries about the attack. (Reporting by Abraham Achirga and Camillus Eboh; Editing by Peter Cooney)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
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Eleven soldiers killed in attack in Nigeria’s Benue state

(Repeats Thursday&#8217;s story with no changes to text)
By Muyu Xu, Sudarshan Varadhan and Melanie Burton
BEIJING/CHENNAI, April 8 (Reuters) &#8211; India and Indonesia have emerged as key beneficiaries of a Chinese ban on Australia&#8217;s coal exports which is expected to further shift global trade in the fuel used for power generation and steelmaking this year.
Australia, the world&#8217;s biggest coal exporter, will continue to benefit from growing Indian demand for its coal, made cheaper after it was shunned by China, analysts said. Coal traders and buyers expect India&#8217;s buying spree of Australian coal to last into next year due to its price and quality.
China has targeted various Australian products with unofficial import restrictions since March 2020 as relations between the two countries soured.
The ban has also benefited coal exporters in Indonesia, Mongolia and Russia as China&#8217;s buyers switched suppliers, according to the latest Chinese customs data. Indonesia&#8217;s coal miners signed a $1.5 billion supply deal with China in November.
&#8220;Global trade flows will be self-adjusting with Australian coal flowing to Indian and European markets and South African and Colombian sources coming into China,&#8221; said Winston Han, chief analyst from China Coal Transportation and Distribution Association at a Coaltrans seminar this week.
As the largest consumer of most commodities apart from oil, China has long had a heavy influence on resources trade through its sheer size. But the ban has particularly benefited Indian buyers, while Chinese importers are complaining that they are having to pay more for lower quality coal from other countries.
Indian cement companies last year started snapping up cargoes of Australian coal that were being offered at steep discounts after being turned away from China, said Kirit C Gandhi, joint president at Indian cement firm Shree Cement .
India became the second-biggest buyer of Australian thermal coal in February, according to data from consultancy Lavi Coal Info, as it bought less coal from its traditional suppliers Indonesia and South Africa.
Australia, already India&#8217;s biggest supplier of metallurgical coal, accounted for around 20% of India&#8217;s thermal coal imports in the first two months of 2021, up from a little over 4% on average in 2020, according to data from Lavi Coal Info.


Lavi Coal Director Vasudev Pamnani said he expects Australia to maintain a 15-20% market share in India&#8217;s market for thermal coal for the rest of 2021, mainly at the expense of Indonesia and South Africa, both of which have ramped up supplies to China.
&#8220;Australia has no (new) big market other than India,&#8221; said Rajendra Singh Talan, managing director at Komin India Resources Pvt Ltd, an Indian commodities trading firm.

Only in Japan, the world&#8217;s third-biggest coal importer, has Australia&#8217;s dominance remained steady around the 60% market share it had in 2020, according to official data.

CHINESE FALLOUT
China is expected to relax import restrictions on coal this year, apart from on Australia, with its total coal imports expected to reach around 300 million tonnes in 2021, compared to 304 million tonnes in 2020, Han said.
China has imposed import quotas on coal to protect domestic miners.


For Australia, the ban has cut total coal exports by more than 7% to 198 million tonnes in 2020-21 from 213 million tonnes in 2019-20.
&#8220;However, exports are projected to increase to 231 million tonnes by 2025-26 as supply chains adjust and global markets increasingly prioritise high-quality coal,&#8221; the government resources bureau said.
Analysts warned that the trade reshuffle will make it harder for China&#8217;s buyers to source the high quality metallurgical coal that Australia specializes in.
&#8220;If imports from Australia are absent long-term, it will force Chinese steel mills to adjust their coking coal recipe to replace the missing types,&#8221; said Dongbin Feng, analyst from China-based Fenwei consultancy.

&#8220;Theoretically, supply from Russia, Mongolia, Canada and the U.S. can be the alternative, but these countries have their own problems,&#8221; Feng said.
The ban has also hit Chinese utilities, which have complained to state planners about high prices and low inventories in the first quarter, said a Beijing-based coal trader. Record low temperatures during the winter that just ended sent demand for heating surging.
(Reporting by Muyu Xu in Beijing, Sudarshan Varadhan in Chennai and Melanie Burton in Melbourne; Writing by Aaron Sheldrick; Editing by Ana Nicolaci da Costa)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
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RPT-ANALYSIS-India, Indonesia benefit as China’s ban on Australian coal reshapes trade flows

April 8 (Reuters) &#8211; Private equity firm KPS Capital Partners LP said on Thursday it would buy packaging products supplier Crown Holdings Inc&#8217;s food, aerosol and promotional packaging business in Europe, Middle East and Africa for 2.25 billion euros ($2.68 billion).
Crown will retain 20% ownership of the business, KPS said. ($1 = 0.8394 euros) (Reporting by Praveen Paramasivam in Bengaluru; Editing by Ramakrishnan M.)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
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DIARY – Italy to May 31

Nigerian duo hope to turn local spirit into premium brand

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