The following company announcements, scheduled economic indicators, debt and currency market moves and political events may affect African markets on Monday. &#8211; &#8211; &#8211; &#8211; &#8211; GLOBAL MARKETS Global stock prices rose to a 1 1/2-month high on Monday after data showing a surge in U.S. employment while short-dated U.S. bonds came under pressure on worries the Federal Reserve may bump up interest rates sooner than it has indicated. WORLD OIL PRICES Oil prices slipped on Monday, paring strong gains made in the previous session that was driven by the decision by OPEC+ to gradually ease some of its production cuts between May and July. 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 extended gains against the U.S. dollar on Thursday, as positive manufacturing activity and new vehicle sales data pointed to a recovery in the economy. NIGERIA MARKETS Islamist insurgency Boko Haram claimed the shooting down of a Nigerian Air Force fighter jet in a video seen by Reuters on Friday, two days after the aeroplane went missing in the country&#8217;s northeast. KENYA MARKETS Kenya&#8217;s shilling was stable on Thursday, and was expected to gain ground, helped muted importer demand, remittance inflows and commercial banks shedding their long dollar positions, traders said. KENYA IMF The International Monetary Fund on Friday said its board had approved new three-year financing arrangements for Kenya valued at $2.34 billion to help the African country continue responding to the COVID-19 pandemic and address its debt vulnerabilities. SOMALIA ATTACK At least 10 people were killed on Saturday when a suicide bomber struck makeshift kiosks in the Somali capital, hitting hours after al Shabaab Islamist militants attacked two National Army bases outside the city, the government said. ETHIOPIA CONFLICT Eritrean forces have started withdrawing from the Tigray region in northern Ethiopia, the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry said, following mounting reports blaming the Eritreans for human rights abuses including rape, looting and killings of civilians. MOZAMBIQUE INSURGENCY Luisa Jose, a 52-year-old mother of five, says she came face-to-face with Islamic State-linked insurgents when they attacked the gas hub town of Palma in northern Mozambique 10 days ago. NIGER POLITICS Niger&#8217;s newly elected President Mohamed Bazoum has appointed former minister Ouhoumoudou Mahamadou as prime minister to lead his government, according to a decree read on national television late on Saturday. CHAD NIGER/SECURITY Chad&#8217;s government said on Saturday that soldiers accused of at least three rapes in Niger, including that of an 11-year-old girl, have been arrested and will face punishment. For the latest precious metals report click on For the latest base metals report click on For the latest crude oil report click on 
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
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African Markets – Factors to watch on April 5

By Nick Said
JOHANNESBURG, April 4 (Reuters) &#8211; Opener Fakhar Zaman&#8217;s scintillating 193 was not enough for Pakistan who lost the second one-day international to South Africa by 17 runs at The Wanderers on Sunday as the hosts levelled the three-game series.
Fakhar was left to do it all on his own as Pakistan reached 324 for nine in reply to South Africa&#8217;s 341 for six, his power-hitting including 18 fours and 10 sixes for the record score in ODIs in Johannesburg, beating the 175 by Herschelle Gibbs against Australia in 2006.
It was also the best score by a visiting player to South Africa, with the next highest in Sunday&#8217;s Pakistan innings being 31 from captain Babar Azam.
Fakhar’s magnificent innings of 155 balls ended in bizarre fashion when he cantered home for a second run off the first ball of the final over, but a throw from the fence by Aiden Markram was a direct hit and the batsman&#8217;s excellent chance for a second double-ton in the 50-over format was gone.
The tourists had elected to field first and South Africa’s impressive total was boosted by four fine half-centuries, each different in their make-up.
Newly-appointed captain Temba Bavuma scored 92 from 102 balls and warmed to his task as the innings wore on, while opener Quinton de Kock looked edgy and had luck in his 80 from 86 balls.
Rassie van der Dussen, who got a century in the first match in Pretoria on Friday, kept up his good form with a powerful 60 from 37 balls that included four sixes, before David Miller finished the innings with 50 not out from 27 balls.
Seamer Haris Rauf was comfortably the pick of the Pakistan bowlers with 3-54 from his 10 overs.
The third and final ODI is scheduled for Pretoria on Wednesday but South Africa will be without leading players De Kock, Miller, Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje as they head to the Indian Premier League. (Reporting by Nick Said; Editing by Ken Ferris)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
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Cricket-Stunning Fakhar ton not enough for Pakistan in second ODI vs S Africa

Apr 4 (OPTA) &#8211; Scoreboard at close of play of 2nd odi between South Africa and Pakistan on Sunday at Johannesburg, South Africa South Africa win by 17 runs South Africa 1st innings Quinton de Kock b Haris Rauf 80 Aiden Markram c Asif Ali b Faheem Ashraf 39 Temba Bavuma c Babar Azam b Haris Rauf 92 Rassie van der Dussen c Faheem Ashraf b Muhammad Hasnain 60 David Miller 50 Heinrich Klaasen c Haris Rauf b Shaheen Afridi 11 Andile Phehlukwayo c Faheem Ashraf b Haris Rauf 3 Kagiso Rabada 1 Extras 0b 1lb 1nb 0pen 3w 5 Total (50.0 overs) 341-6 Fall of Wickets : 1-55 Markram, 2-169 de Kock, 3-270 van der Dussen, 4-306 Bavuma, 5-317 Klaasen, 6-322 Phehlukwayo Did Not Bat : Nortje, Ngidi, Shamsi Bowling Ov Md Rn Wk Econ Ex Shaheen Afridi 10 1 75 1 7.50 1w Muhammad Hasnain 10 0 74 1 7.40 1w Faheem Ashraf 9 0 62 1 6.89 1nb Haris Rauf 10 0 54 3 5.40 1w Shadab Khan 9 0 64 0 7.11 Danish Aziz 2 0 11 0 5.50 &#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230; Pakistan 1st innings Imam ul-Haq c Aiden Markram b Lungi Ngidi 5 Fakhar Zaman Run Out Aiden Markram 193 Babar Azam c Temba Bavuma b Anrich Nortje 31 Mohammad Rizwan c Heinrich Klaasen b Anrich Nortje 0 Danish Aziz c Quinton de Kock b Anrich Nortje 9 Shadab Khan lbw Tabraiz Shamsi 13 Asif Ali c Aiden Markram b Andile Phehlukwayo 19 Faheem Ashraf c Quinton de Kock b Andile Phehlukwayo 11 Shaheen Afridi c&amp;b Kagiso Rabada 5 Haris Rauf Not Out 1 Muhammad Hasnain Not Out 12 Extras 1b 8lb 1nb 0pen 15w 25 Total (50.0 overs) 324-9 Fall of Wickets : 1-7 ul-Haq, 2-70 Azam, 3-71 Rizwan, 4-85 Aziz, 5-120 Khan, 6-186 Ali, 7-205 Ashraf, 8-273 Afridi, 9-312 Zaman Bowling Ov Md Rn Wk Econ Ex Kagiso Rabada 10 2 43 1 4.30 4w Lungi Ngidi 9 0 66 1 7.33 Andile Phehlukwayo 10 0 67 2 6.70 5w 1nb Anrich Nortje 10 1 63 3 6.30 1w Tabraiz Shamsi 7 0 60 1 8.57 1w Aiden Markram 4 0 16 0 4.00 &#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230; Umpire Allahudien Paleker Umpire Marais Erasmus Video Adrian Holdstock Match Referee Andrew Pycroft 
(c) Copyright Opta Sports Data 2021. All Rights Reserved
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Pakistan in South Africa 2021 Scoreboard

LISBON, April 4 (Reuters) &#8211; Portugal on Sunday extended restrictions on travel via land and sea to Spain that had been due to end this weekend until April 15 as it works to contain the spread of COVID-19.
The two countries imposed the restrictions on Jan. 28.
The interior ministry said the restrictions would remain in place for a further 11 days, adding that the measures did not prevent citizens or residents of Portugal from entering the country.
Vehicles transporting goods, emergency vehicles and seasonal border workers are also exempt.
Nationals from Britain, Brazil and South Africa &#8211; where more contagious coronavirus variants were first detected &#8211; or any country with an infection rate above 500 cases per 100,000 people must quarantine for 14 days if they have entered via the land border, the statement said.
Portugal, which has so far reported 780,322 COVID-19 cases and 16,879 deaths, is slowly lifting some other restrictions after a three-month nationwide lockdown came into force early this year.
Meanwhile, Greece said on Sunday it was extending restrictions on domestic flights until April 12 and on international flights until April 19 as the number of new infections there continues to rise. (Reporting by Victoria Waldersee; Editing by Alison Williams)
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Portugal extends restrictions on Spanish border until April 15

Apr 4 (OPTA) &#8211; Scores from the LPGA Tour ANA Inspiration on Thursday -6 Patty Tavatanakit (Thailand) 66 -5 Shanshan Feng (China PR) 67 Leona Maguire (Republic of Ireland) 67 -4 Ariya Jutanugarn (Thailand) 68 Moriya Jutanugarn (Thailand) 68 Megan Khang (USA) 68 Anna Nordqvist (Sweden) 68 -3 Georgia Hall (England) 69 Charley Hull (Great Britain) 69 Jessica Korda (USA) 69 Jennifer Kupcho (USA) 69 Bronte Law (England) 69 Mirim Lee (Korea Republic) 69 Yuka Saso (Philippines) 69 Jin Young ko (Korea Republic) 69 -2 Carlota Ciganda (Spain) 70 Daniela Holmqvist (Eswatini) 70 Sarah Kemp (Australia) 70 Christina Kim (USA) 70 Cheyenne Knight (USA) 70 Lydia Ko (New Zealand) 70 Azahara Munoz (Spain) 70 Inbee Park (Korea Republic) 70 Pornanong Phatlum (Thailand) 70 Gerina Piller (USA) 70 Sophia Popov (Germany) 70 Lexi Thompson (USA) 70 Michelle Wie (USA) 70 Amy Yang (Korea Republic) 70 -1 Pajaree Anannarukarn (Thailand) 71 Ally Ewing (USA) 71 Hannah Green (Australia) 71 Jaye Marie Green (USA) 71 Mi Jung Hur (Korea Republic) 71 Yui Kawamoto (Japan) 71 Nelly Korda (USA) 71 Nicole Broch Larsen (Denmark) 71 Jeong-Eun Lee6 (Korea Republic) 71 Yu Liu (China PR) 71 Stephanie Meadow (Northern Ireland) 71 Ryann O&#8217;toole (USA) 71 Sung Hyun Park (Korea Republic) 71 Melissa Reid (England) 71 Madelene Sagstrom (Sweden) 71 Sarah Schmelzel (USA) 71 Jenny Shin (Korea Republic) 71 Lauren Stephenson (USA) 71 Kelly Tan (Malaysia) 71 0 Perrine Delacour (USA) 72 Kristen Gillman (USA) 72 Caroline Inglis (USA) 72 Eun-Hee Ji (Korea Republic) 72 Danielle Kang (USA) 72 Cristie Kerr (USA) 72 Hyo Joo Kim (Korea Republic) 72 Sei Young Kim (Korea Republic) 72 Brittany Lang (USA) 72 Minjee Lee (Australia) 72 Xiyu Lin (China PR) 72 Pernilla Lindberg (Sweden) 72 Nanna Koerstz Madsen (Denmark) 72 Gabriela Ruffels (Australia) 72 So-Yeon Ryu (Korea Republic) 72 Jodi Ewart Shadoff (England) 72 Alena Sharp (Canada) 72 Hinako Shibuno (Japan) 72 Jennifer Song (USA) 72 Angela Stanford (USA) 72 Angel Yin (USA) 72 1 Aditi Ashok (India) 73 Ashleigh Buhai (South Africa) 73 In Gee Chun (Korea Republic) 73 Austin Ernst (USA) 73 Katherine Hull-kirk (Australia) 73 Aline Krauter (Germany) 73 Mi-Hyang Lee (Korea Republic) 73 Brittany Lincicome (USA) 73 Gaby Lopez (Mexico) 73 Caroline Masson (Germany) 73 Amy Olson (USA) 73 Hee Young Park (Korea Republic) 73 Maria Torres (Puerto Rico) 73 Ayako Uehara (Japan) 73 Jing Yan (China PR) 73 2 Marina Alex (USA) 74 Chella Choi (Korea Republic) 74 Cydney Clanton (USA) 74 Maria Fassi (Mexico) 74 Haru Nomura (Japan) 74 Su-Hyun Oh (Australia) 74 Robynn Ree (USA) 74 Lizette Salas (USA) 74 3 Brittany Altomare (USA) 75 Celine Boutier (France) 75 Jennifer Chang (USA) 75 Nasa Hataoka (Japan) 75 Brooke Henderson (Canada) 75 Tiffany Joh (USA) 75 Bianca Pagdanganan (Philippines) 75 Linnea Strom (Sweden) 75 Jasmine Suwannapura (Thailand) 75 Lindsey Weaver (USA) 75 4 Kim In-Kyung (Korea Republic) 76 Andrea Lee (USA) 76 Stacy Lewis (USA) 76 A Lim Kim (Korea Republic) 76 Yealimi Noh (USA) 76 Emily K Pedersen (Denmark) 76 Marissa Steen (USA) 76 Emma Talley (USA) 76 5 Jennifer Coleman (USA) 77 Annie Park (USA) 77 Morgan Pressel (USA) 77 Yani Tseng (Chinese Taipei) 77 Albane Valenzuela (Switzerland) 77 6 Erika Hara (Japan) 78 Mina Harigae (USA) 78 Wei-Ling Hsu (Chinese Taipei) 78 Jane Park (USA) 78 
(c) Copyright Opta Sports Data 2021. All Rights Reserved
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LPGA Tour ANA Inspiration Scores

By Philip Pullella
VATICAN CITY, April 4 (Reuters) &#8211; Pope Francis urged countries in his Easter message on Sunday to quicken distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, particularly to the world&#8217;s poor, and called armed conflict and military spending during a pandemic &#8220;scandalous&#8221;.
Coronavirus has meant this has been the second year in a row that Easter papal services have been attended by small gatherings at a secondary altar of St. Peter&#8217;s Basilica, instead of by crowds in the church or in the square outside.
After saying Mass, Francis read his &#8220;Urbi et Orbi&#8221; (to the city and the world) message, in which he traditionally reviews world problems and appeals for peace.
&#8220;The pandemic is still spreading, while the social and economic crisis remains severe, especially for the poor. Nonetheless – and this is scandalous – armed conflicts have not ended and military arsenals are being strengthened,&#8221; he said.
Francis, who would normally have given the address to up to 100,000 people in St. Peter&#8217;s Square, spoke to fewer than 200 in the church while the message was broadcast to tens of millions around the world.
The square was empty except for a few police officers enforcing a strict three-day national lockdown.
The pope asked God to comfort the sick, those who have lost a loved one, and the unemployed, urging authorities to give families in greatest need a &#8220;decent sustenance&#8221;.
He praised medical workers, sympathised with young people unable to attend school, and said everyone was called to combat the pandemic.
&#8220;I urge the entire international community, in a spirit of global responsibility, to commit to overcoming delays in the distribution of vaccines and to facilitate their distribution, especially in the poorest countries,&#8221; he said.
Francis, who has often called for disarmament and a total ban on the possession of nuclear weapons, said: &#8220;There are still too many wars and too much violence in the world! May the Lord, who is our peace, help us to overcome the mindset of war.&#8221;

&#8216;INSTRUMENTS OF DEATH&#8217;
Noting that it was International Awareness Day against anti-personnel landmines, he called such weapons &#8220;insidious and horrible devices &#8230; how much better our world would be without these instruments of death!&#8221;
In mentioning conflict areas, he singled out for praise &#8220;the young people of Myanmar committed to supporting democracy and making their voices heard peacefully&#8221;. More than 550 protesters have been killed since a Feb. 1 military coup in Myanmar, which the pope visited in 2017.
Francis called for peace in several conflict areas in Africa, including the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia and the Cabo Delgado province of Mozambique. He said the crisis in Yemen has been &#8220;met with a deafening and scandalous silence&#8221;.
He appealed to Israelis and Palestinians to &#8220;rediscover the power of dialogue&#8221; to reach a two-state solution where both can live side by side in peace and prosperity.
Francis said he realised many Christians were still persecuted and called for all restrictions on freedom of worship and religion worldwide to be lifted. (Reporting by Philip Pullella Editing by Frances Kerry)
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Pope, in Easter message, slams weapons spending in time of pandemic

Apr 4 (OPTA) &#8211; Scores from the PGA Tour Valero Texas Open on Saturday -12 Jordan Spieth (USA) 67 70 67 Matt Wallace (England) 69 68 67 -10 Charley Hoffman (USA) 75 66 65 -8 Cameron Tringale (USA) 66 69 73 -7 Anirban Lahiri (India) 71 69 69 -6 Lucas Glover (USA) 73 67 70 Tom Hoge (USA) 68 76 66 Matt Kuchar (USA) 70 70 70 Gary Woodland (USA) 71 72 67 -5 Chesson Hadley (USA) 73 72 66 Chris Kirk (USA) 72 72 67 Sebastian Munoz (Colombia) 68 74 69 Brandt Snedeker (USA) 72 67 72 Kyle Stanley (USA) 71 68 72 Erik Van Rooyen (South Africa) 71 68 72 Camilo Villegas (Colombia) 64 76 71 -4 Corey Conners (Canada) 71 74 67 Brandon Hagy (USA) 70 70 72 Keith Mitchell (USA) 72 69 71 Kevin Stadler (USA) 69 70 73 -3 Rickie Fowler (USA) 76 68 69 Kyoung-Hoon Lee (Korea Republic) 70 73 70 Troy Merritt (USA) 76 69 68 Ryan Palmer (USA) 72 71 70 Doc Redman (USA) 72 68 73 -2 Abraham Ancer (Mexico) 72 73 69 Keegan Bradley (USA) 71 73 70 Joseph Bramlett (USA) 72 73 69 Rafael Campos (Puerto Rico) 72 74 68 Adam Hadwin (Canada) 70 73 71 Sung-hoon Kang (Korea Republic) 66 76 72 Si Woo Kim (Korea Republic) 72 72 70 Kelly Kraft (USA) 75 71 68 Luke List (USA) 73 71 70 Hideki Matsuyama (Japan) 67 74 73 Graeme McDowell (Northern Ireland) 74 71 69 Martin Trainer (USA) 70 74 70 Jimmy Walker (USA) 72 72 70 -1 K.J. Choi (Korea Republic) 72 74 69 Cameron Davis (Australia) 71 71 73 Lanto Griffin (USA) 75 71 69 Patton Kizzire (USA) 71 74 70 Pat Perez (USA) 70 73 72 Rory Sabbatini (South Africa) 71 70 74 Scottie Scheffler (USA) 68 78 69 Greyson Sigg (USA) 73 72 70 Vaughn Taylor (USA) 71 74 70 Vincent Whaley (USA) 69 76 70 0 Sam Fidone (USA) 74 72 70 Branden Grace (South Africa) 75 71 70 John Huh (USA) 72 73 71 Denny McCarthy (USA) 71 74 71 Matthew NeSmith (USA) 73 71 72 Chase Seiffert (USA) 72 70 74 1 Tyler Duncan (USA) 73 71 73 Martin Laird (Scotland) 72 73 72 Seung-Yul Noh (Korea Republic) 67 76 74 Sepp Straka (Austria) 71 72 74 Nick Taylor (Canada) 73 70 74 2 Sebastian Cappelen (Denmark) 74 71 73 Doug Ghim (USA) 74 72 72 Padraig Harrington (Republic of Ireland) 70 74 74 Tain Lee (USA) 73 73 72 Ben Martin (USA) 73 73 72 Charl Schwartzel (South Africa) 71 73 74 Scott Stallings (USA) 77 69 72 3 Rafa Cabrera Bello (Spain) 70 71 78 Cameron Champ (USA) 77 69 73 Joel Dahmen (USA) 74 72 73 Beau Hossler (USA) 74 72 73 Tom Lewis (England) 73 72 74 D.J. Trahan (USA) 74 71 74 Bo Van Pelt (USA) 74 72 73 4 Aaron Wise (USA) 75 70 75 5 Ryan Moore (USA) 71 72 78 6 Brendan Steele (USA) 70 76 76 7 Will Gordon (USA) 72 74 77 Kristoffer Ventura (Norway) 74 72 77 
(c) Copyright Opta Sports Data 2021. All Rights Reserved
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PGA Tour Valero Texas Open Scores

DUBAI, April 3 (Reuters) &#8211; U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry said the United States was hopeful it could work with China to tackle climate change, despite longstanding disagreements that have affected the bilateral relationship.
&#8220;Our hope is that we&#8217;re going to be able to deal with yes, China,&#8221; Kerry told reporters during a visit to the United Arab Emirates capital Abu Dhabi on Saturday. &#8220;President Biden has made it clear and I&#8217;ve made it clear: none of the other issues we have with China &#8212; and there are issues &#8212; is held hostage to or is engaged in a trade for what we need to do on climate.&#8221;
Sino-U.S. relations have been strained in recent years by disagreements about trade, China&#8217;s treatment of its Uighur minority, as well as China&#8217;s actions in Taiwan and Hong Kong.
China has pledged to become carbon neutral by 2060 while U.S. President Joe Biden&#8217;s administration is expected to announce a new target for reducing emissions at a global climate summit on April 22.
Kerry will take part in a climate dialogue for the Middle East and North Africa hosted by Abu Dhabi on Sunday. The UAE said the dialogue would focus on national and regional preparations ahead of a United Nations climate summit to be held in Glasgow in November.
Kerry said the countries would discuss how to reduce a reliance on coal, as well as how to &#8220;raise ambitions&#8221; on climate change ahead of November&#8217;s conference.
&#8220;I think the next generations are screaming at us to fulfill our promise,&#8221; he added. (Reporting by Raya Jalabi; Editing by Christina Fincher)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
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Kerry: U.S. ‘hopeful’ it can work with China to tackle climate change

Thanks to a run of five consecutive birdies Friday, Cameron Tringale holds a two-shot lead at the midpoint of the Valero Texas Open in San Antonio.
An up-and-down, 3-under-par 69 in the second round at TPC San Antonio&#8217;s AT&amp;T Oaks Course left Tringale at 9-under 135.
England&#8217;s Matt Wallace, who shot 68 on Friday, and Jordan Spieth, who shot 70, are tied for second at 7 under.
Brandt Snedeker (second-round 67), Kyle Stanley (68), Kevin Stadler (68) and South Africa&#8217;s Erik van Rooyen (68) share fourth place at 5 under.
First-round leader Camila Villegas of Colombia (76) fell into a tie for eighth at 4 under with Lucas Glover (67), Doc Redman (68), India&#8217;s Anirban Lahiri (69), Brandon Hagy (70) and Matt Kuchar (70).
Tringale, 33, has been in good form as he seeks his first career PGA Tour win. He has five top-20 finishes in his past nine events, including a third-place result at the RSM Classic in November.
Starting on the back nine Friday, Tringale bogeyed each of his first two holes but bounced back to birdie Nos. 13-17.
&#8220;I just hit a lot of really good iron shots to those holes,&#8221; he said of the birdie streak. &#8220;I think my furthest putt was 4 feet after (No.) 13, so just good approaches to the green. Still gotta roll those in, but was able to do it.&#8221;
On the front nine, he had one birdie and bogey prior to closing birdie-bogey.
&#8220;My takeaway was that it was a good day,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I made a lot of birdies and &#8230; when I was in the fairway, I took advantage most of the time. Except for the last hole, I kept it in play and just had a lot of looks and a few went in.&#8221;
Wallace&#8217;s round featured two birdies on each nine and no bogeys.
&#8220;Whenever you go bogey-free, whatever golf course it is, it&#8217;s nice, but especially here,&#8221; Wallace said. &#8220;Wind&#8217;s picking up now, greens are firming up. I drove it nice for the most part of the day and felt comfortable.&#8221;
Spieth started with birdies at Nos. 1 and 2. He fell back to even-par for the day with bogeys at Nos. 11 and 13 but recovered to birdie Nos. 14 and 15.
&#8221; thought 2 under was a good score today and certainly could have shot lower, but was able to climb back from a couple bogeys on the back nine,&#8221; Spieth said. &#8220;It&#8217;s kind of just stay in there, stay in there, stay in there and give yourself a chance come the back nine Sunday.&#8221;
Phil Mickelson missed the cut by two strokes despite improving from a 7-over 79 on Thursday to a 3-under 69 on Friday. He took a 10 on the par-5 18th hole Thursday; if he had parred that hole, he would have comfortably made the cut.
&#8211;Field Level Media
(c) Copyright Field Level Media. All Rights Reserved. 2021
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Cameron Tringale charges to Valero Texas Open lead

(Repeats story from April 2; no changes to text)
* India asks refiners for joint oil buying negotiations-oil secy
* Sellers must be mindful of India&#8217;s huge oil demand-oil secy
* Supply cuts hit refiners&#8217; procurement plan-oil ministry official
By Nidhi Verma
NEW DELHI, April 2 (Reuters) &#8211; When India&#8217;s government last month asked refiners to speed up diversification and reduce dependence on the Middle East &#8211; days after OPEC+ said it would maintain production cuts &#8211; it sent a message about its clout and foreshadowed changes to the world&#8217;s energy maps.
It was a move that had been in the works for years, fuelled by repeated comments from Indian Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, who in 2015 called oil purchases a &#8220;weapon&#8221; for his country.
When the Organisation of Oil Exporting Countries and Major Producers (OPEC+) extended the production cuts into April, India unsheathed that weapon. Indian refiners plan to cut imports from the Kingdom by about a quarter in May, sources told Reuters, dropping them to 10.8 million barrels from monthly average of 14.7-14.8 million barrels.
Oil secretary Tarun Kapoor, the top bureaucrat in the ministry, told Reuters that India is asking state refiners to jointly negotiate with oil producers to get better deals, but declined to comment on plans to cut Saudi imports.
&#8220;India is a big market so sellers have to be mindful of our country&#8217;s demand as well to keep the long-term relationship intact,&#8221; he said.
The Saudi state oil company Saudi Aramco and the Saudi energy ministry declined to comment.
Pradhan, who sees high oil prices as a threat to India&#8217;s recovering economy, said he was saddened by the OPEC+ decision. India&#8217;s fuel import bill has rocketed, and fuel prices – inflated by government taxes imposed last year &#8211; have hit records.
The International Energy Agency forecasts India&#8217;s consumption to double and its oil import bill to nearly triple from 2019 levels to more than $250 billion by 2040.
An oil ministry official, who declined to be named because of the sensitivity of the matter, said the OPEC+ cuts have created uncertainty and made it difficult for refiners to plan for procurement and price risk.
It also creates opportunities for companies in the Americas, Africa, Russia and elsewhere to fill the gap.
If India is successful, it will set an example for other countries. As buyers see more affordable choices and renewable energy becomes increasingly common, the influence of big producers like Saudi Arabia could wane, altering geopolitics and trade routes.


DIVERSIFICATION DRIVE
India&#8217;s oil demand has risen by 25% in the last seven years &#8211; more than any other major buyer &#8211; and the country has surpassed Japan as the world&#8217;s third-largest oil importer and consumer.
The country has already curbed its reliance on the Middle East from more than 64% of imports in 2016 to below 60% in 2019.
That trend reversed in 2020, however, when the pandemic pummelled fuel demand and forced Indian refiners to make committed oil purchases from the Middle East under term contracts, shunning spot purchases.
As India shifts gears again after Pradhan&#8217;s call for faster diversification, refineries are looking for new suppliers, the oil ministry official said.
Costly refinery upgrades that allow for the processing of cheaper, heavier oil grades have encouraged importers to seek out far-flung sources. HPCL-Mittal Energy Ltd bought the country&#8217;s first cargo from Guyana this month, and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd just imported Brazilian Tupi crude for the first time.
In past years, refiners have jointly negotiated https://www.reuters.com/article/india-iran-oil-idINKCN1G10L5 oil deals with sanctions-hit Iran, which offered free shipping https://www.reuters.com/article/us-india-iran-oil-idUSKCN1G10T4 and price discounts, and now plan to do the same with other producers.
Since the break with Saudi Arabia began, Pradhan has had meetings with United Arab Emirates&#8217; minister of state and chief executive of Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC), Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, and U.S. energy secretary Jennifer Granholm to strengthen energy partnerships.
Pradhan recently said African nations could play a central role in India&#8217;s oil diversification. The country is looking at signing long-term oil supply deal with Guyana and exploring options to raise imports from Russia, the oil ministry source said.
A separate Indian government source said the government expects Iranian sanctions to ease in three to four months, potentially offering India a cheaper alternative to Saudi oil.
Two traders agreed that Iran stood a good chance to benefit from India&#8217;s shift, as did Venezuela, Kuwait and the United States. An Indian refinery source said the U.S., Africa, Kazakhstan&#8217;s CPC Blend and Russian oil would probably get a look too.
Although Indian importers will scoop up increasing volumes of attractively priced global grades, most analysts expect the Middle East to remain India&#8217;s primary oil supplier, mainly because of lower shipping costs.
India&#8217;s oil ministry is working with refiners on a framework to jointly negotiate terms with suppliers.
&#8220;Buyers have alternatives in today&#8217;s market and these alternatives are going to multiply going forward,&#8221; Kapoor said. &#8220;There are so many companies in India that do buying at their own level, so these companies coming together also becomes quite a big bloc.&#8221;
On Thursday, Saudi Arabia and OPEC+ agreed after discussions with U.S. officials to ease oil curbs beginning in May.
Saudi energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman conceded that the production cuts had put state oil company Aramco &#8220;in some difficulty with some of its partners.&#8221;

THE RELATIONSHIP
Analysts say the oil spat does not need to spill over into broader strategic ties in other sectors, including defence.
&#8220;Until recently, the balance of power was skewed towards Saudi Arabia, but increasingly, India is using access to its market and the diversity of options to put pressure on Saudi Arabia,&#8221; consultancy Eurasia said in a note. &#8220;For Saudi Arabia, losing market share in a global environment in which most developed economies are already seeing their oil demand decline due to green policy implementation, would be a blow.&#8221;
Abdulaziz confirmed that Aramco had maintained normal April oil supplies to Indian refiners while cutting volumes for other buyers &#8211; a sign Saudi Arabia is concerned about India&#8217;s search for new sources.
Saudi Arabia is India&#8217;s fourth-biggest trade partner, importing a slew of items, including food. Saudi Armaco is looking at buying a 20% stake in Reliance Industries&#8217; oil and chemicals business. It is also a part of a joint venture to build a 1.2 million barrels per day refinery in India.
But Amitendu Palit, senior research fellow at National University of Singapore, said it would be difficult for Saudi to find a stable alternative buyer if India continues with reduced purchases for too long.
&#8220;This bilateral relationship should not be impacted due to any decisions on one commodity. However in a global surplus, market buyers have a lot of negotiating power and sources,&#8221; Palit said.
(Reporting by Nidhi Verma Editing by Florence Tan and Gerry Doyle)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
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ANALYSIS-Power play: India wields oil ‘weapon’ to cut dependence on Saudi

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria, April 2 (Reuters) &#8211; Islamist insurgency Boko Haram claimed the shooting down of a Nigerian Air Force fighter jet in a video seen by Reuters on Friday, two days after the aeroplane went missing in the country&#8217;s northeast.
Reuters was unable to verify the authenticity of the video.
The loss of Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Alpha Jet 475 dealt a blow to Nigeria&#8217;s efforts to combat jihadist insurgencies in the northeast, where air power has been crucial in attempts to stem the spread of Boko Haram and its more powerful offshoot, Islamic State West Africa Province.
Soldiers have for years relied on jet bombardments to turn the tide of battles against the insurgents, while the air force often claims successful strikes on the militants.
In Boko Haram&#8217;s video, the wreckage of a plane lies burned on the ground, the charred fuselage bearing the phrase &#8220;NAF 475.&#8221;
A masked fighter stands atop the wreckage and identifies the plane as &#8220;jet fighter of the Nigerian Air Force 475&#8221;, the footage shows. Later, a mangled corpse is shown in military fatigues.
&#8220;As you can see, this is the pilot of your aircraft, whom you sent to harm the servant of god,&#8221; the fighter says. &#8220;This is what god did to him. He fell from the sky, and if you do not repent this will be your reward.&#8221;
An air force spokesman said a statement would be issued soon.
In a statement earlier on Friday, the air force had said: &#8220;the Alpha Jet aircraft (NAF475) that went off the radar with 2 crew members on board on 31 March 2021 might have crashed. The cause of the crash as well as the whereabouts of the 2 pilots remain unknown.&#8221; (Reporting by Maiduguri Newsroom; Additional reporting by Camillus Eboh in Abuja; Writing by Paul Carsten; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
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Boko Haram claim shooting down of Nigerian Air Force jet

MILAN, April 2 (Reuters) &#8211; Serie A said on Friday it has awarded sports marketing agency Infront the management of most of its international broadcasting rights for the next three seasons in a deal worth 417 million euros ($490.39 million).
Owned by China&#8217;s Wanda Sport Group, Infront will manage Serie A&#8217;s global media rights for all platforms, excluding the United States, the Middle East and North Africa regions.
&#8220;Thanks to its established network of media distribution experts, Infront will enable Serie A to broaden the relationship with regional and national partners, accelerating the process of the league&#8217;s internationalisation,&#8221; Infront said in a statement.
Last week Serie A awarded CBS Sports exclusive rights to screen Italy&#8217;s top flight matches in the United States for the next three seasons for 170 million euros.
The Italian soccer league is also tendering its broadcast rights in the Middle East and North Africa in a separate sale process.
However, Serie A would likely face a drop in its revenue from international licenses as under a current three-year agreement, the Italian league raised some 1 billion euro from U.S. media agency IMG, in a deal including the Italian Cup.
($1 = 0.8503 euros) (Reporting by Elvira Pollina, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
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Soccer-Infront wins most of Serie A’s international broadcast rights

PRETORIA, April 2 (Reuters) &#8211; An imposing century from skipper Babar Azam spurred Pakistan to snatch a last-ball, three-wicket win over South Africa in the first one dayer of a three-match series on Friday.
Babar scored 103 off 104 balls to lay the foundation for his side’s success at the Centurion as Pakistan scored 274-7 in reply to South Africa’s 273-6.
Rassie van der Dussen hit an unbeaten 123 for the home side after they were put into bat but his efforts proved to be in vain.
Azam featured in a 177-run partnership for the second wicket with opener Imam-ul-Haq, who scored 70.
The 26-year-old Azam produced a stunning array of strokes to emphasise his ranking as one of cricket’s top ODI batsmen.
The pair looked to have taken the game away from South Africa, although three quick wickets for Anrich Nortje put a temporary brake on Pakistan’s march as they slumped from 186-2 to 203-5.
Forty runs for Mohamed Rizwan and Shadab Khan’s 33 put them back in charge and Pakistan needed just three runs off the last over to win.
But they made heavy weather of securing success before Faheem Ashraf secure a single off a wide delivery to secure victory.
South Africa struggled initially and had been reduced to 55-4 before Van der Dussen and David Miller put on a 116-run partnership for the fifth wicket.
It ended when Miller went tamely after a brisk 50 off 56 balls but Van der Dussen and his next two partners &#8212; Andile Phehlukwayo and Kagiso Rabada &#8212; added 102 more runs off the last 14 overs to set a decent target.
The next ODI will be played in Johannesburg on Sunday. (Writing by Mark Gleeson in Cape Town; Editing by Pritha Sarkar)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
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Cricket-Pakistan win opening ODI with last ball triumph

Apr 2 (OPTA) &#8211; Scoreboard at close of play of 1st odi between South Africa and Pakistan on Friday at Centurion, South Africa Pakistan win by 3 wickets South Africa 1st innings Aiden Markram c Faheem Ashraf b Shaheen Afridi 19 Quinton de Kock c Babar Azam b Shaheen Afridi 20 Temba Bavuma c Shaheen Afridi b Muhammad Hasnain 1 Rassie van der Dussen Not Out 123 Heinrich Klaasen c Mohammad Rizwan b Faheem Ashraf 1 David Miller c Mohammad Rizwan b Haris Rauf 50 Andile Phehlukwayo c Shadab Khan b Haris Rauf 29 Kagiso Rabada Not Out 13 Extras 0b 2lb 1nb 0pen 14w 17 Total (50.0 overs) 273-6 Fall of Wickets : 1-34 de Kock, 2-41 Markram, 3-43 Bavuma, 4-55 Klaasen, 5-171 Miller, 6-235 Phehlukwayo Did Not Bat : Nortje, Ngidi, Shamsi Bowling Ov Md Rn Wk Econ Ex Shaheen Afridi 10 1 61 2 6.10 1w 1nb Muhammad Hasnain 10 2 52 1 5.20 2w Faheem Ashraf 9 0 25 1 2.78 1w Haris Rauf 10 0 72 2 7.20 3w Shadab Khan 8 0 45 0 5.62 4w Danish Aziz 3 0 16 0 5.33 &#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;.. Pakistan 1st innings Imam ul-Haq c Kagiso Rabada b Anrich Nortje 70 Fakhar Zaman b Kagiso Rabada 8 Babar Azam c Quinton de Kock b Anrich Nortje 103 Mohammad Rizwan c Kagiso Rabada b Andile Phehlukwayo 40 Danish Aziz c Quinton de Kock b Anrich Nortje 3 Asif Ali c Andile Phehlukwayo b Anrich Nortje 2 Shadab Khan c Rassie van der Dussen b Andile Phehlukwayo 33 Faheem Ashraf Not Out 5 Extras 0b 0lb 1nb 0pen 9w 10 Total (50.0 overs) 274-7 Fall of Wickets : 1-9 Zaman, 2-186 Azam, 3-193 ul-Haq, 4-198 Aziz, 5-203 Ali, 6-256 Rizwan, 7-271 Khan Did Not Bat : Afridi, Hasnain, Rauf Bowling Ov Md Rn Wk Econ Ex Kagiso Rabada 10 1 51 1 5.10 1w Lungi Ngidi 10 1 65 0 6.50 1w 1nb Anrich Nortje 10 0 51 4 5.10 1w Andile Phehlukwayo 10 0 56 2 5.60 1w Tabraiz Shamsi 10 0 51 0 5.10 3w &#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;&#8230; Umpire Adrian Holdstock Umpire Marais Erasmus Video Allahudien Paleker Match Referee Andrew Pycroft 
(c) Copyright Opta Sports Data 2021. All Rights Reserved
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By Hereward Holland
KINSHASA, April 2 (Reuters) &#8211; A new measles outbreak has flared up in the Democratic Republic of Congo just eight months after authorities declared an end to the worst known outbreak in the country&#8217;s history, medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said.
More than 13,000 cases of measles have been recorded in the country since Jan 1., the medical charity said, despite vaccination campaigns that have targeted millions of children across the country&#8217;s remote jungle areas in the last two years.
The vaccine drive greatly reduced the number of patients, but failed to cut the chain of transmission, MSF said in a statement on Thursday.
Congo&#8217;s response to the epidemic has been hobbled by a health service suffering from decades of underfunding, mismanagement and war, as well as an Ebola outbreak in the east of the country.
The country has also had to contend with the COVID-19 pandemic, with more than 28,000 people testing positive and 745 dying, according to figures from the Africa Centres for Disease Control.
Between 2018 and 2020, more than 460,000 children contracted Measles and nearly 8,000 died from it, MSF said. Three-quarters of them were under five years old.
&#8220;Unfortunately, since the end of 2020, several provinces have started recording new increases in patients with measles,&#8221; said Anthony Kergosien, coordinator of MSF’s emergency response team in Congo.
Vaccination campaigns for other diseases across Africa have strained as manpower and funding are stretched thin in order to undertake large-scale coronavirus vaccination schemes, though Congo&#8217;s COVID-19 vaccine roll-out has yet to begin.
Medical charities and health workers say measles is often overlooked, with donor funding and manpower often mobilised to contain more high-profile diseases such as Ebola or the coronavirus.
&#8220;Measles is the most contagious disease in the world, nearly ten times more than COVID-19,&#8221; said Kergosien.
&#8220;Winning the fight in DRC against this killer will require a vaccine coverage of 95 percent with two doses per child, and regular mop-up campaigns to vaccinate those who slip through the cracks.&#8221; (Reporting by Hereward Holland Editing by Peter Graff)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
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Measles resurgent in Congo eight months after epidemic declared over

By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON, April 2 (Reuters) &#8211; The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday said fully vaccinated people can safely travel at &#8220;low risk&#8221; after the agency had held off for weeks on revising guidance that discouraged all non-essential trips.
The announcement lifting the agency&#8217;s guidance that all Americans should avoid non-essential travel should be a shot in the arm for a U.S. travel industry still significantly struggling since the COVID-19 crisis began in early 2020. The new CDC guidance specifically greenlights vaccinated grandparents getting on airplanes to see grandchildren.
A group representing major U.S. airlines including American Airlines, Delta Air lines, United Airlines Southwest Airlines and other trade groups on March 22 had urged the CDC to immediately update its guidance to say &#8220;vaccinated individuals can travel safely.&#8221;
The new guidance will also say fully vaccinated people do not need to get a COVID-19 test before or after travel and do not need to self-quarantine after travel.
The CDC said grandparents that have been fully vaccinated can fly to visit grandkids without getting a COVID-19 test or self-quarantining as long as they follow CDC advice for traveling safely.
But the administration is not lifting restrictions that bar most-non U.S. citizens from the United States who have recently been in China, Brazil, South Africa and most of Europe. It is also keeping requirements that nearly all international U.S. air visitors getting a negative COVID-19 test before traveling to the United States.
The CDC did not revise guidance for non-vaccinated people.
&#8220;Vaccines can help us return to the things we love about life, so we encourage every American to get vaccinated as soon as they have the opportunity,&#8221; CDC director Rochelle Walensky said in a statement
The CDC&#8217;s new guidance says fully vaccinated people do not need COVID-19 tests before international travel unless it is required by the international destination and vaccinated people returning from foreign travel do not need to self-quarantine after returning to the United States, unless required by state or local authorities.
The CDC had repeatedly declined in recent weeks to change the guidance and repeated it was still discouraging all non-essential travel because of a concern about new variants.
Many Americans have not been heeding the CDC&#8217;s advice. The Transportation Security Administration screened 1.56 million people at U.S. airports, just below Sunday&#8217;s 1.57 million, which was the highest daily total since March 2020. The last time the number of airport passengers screened was below 1 million was March 10.
The Biden administration has taken steps to reduce international travel and mandated masks in nearly all forms of public transit. The administration is not eliminating any mask rules. (Reporting by David Shepardson Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
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U.S. CDC: Vaccinated people can resume travel at ‘low risk’

LONDON, April 2 (Reuters) &#8211; Britain said on Friday it would add Bangladesh, Kenya, Pakistan and the Philippines to its travel &#8220;red list&#8221;, banning entry to people arriving from those countries unless they are British or Irish nationals.
Those who come to Britain from countries on the red list will be refused entry, while returning Britons must submit to 10 days of mandatory quarantine in hotels.
From 4 a.m. on April 9, Pakistan, Kenya, the Philippines and Bangladesh will be put on the list, the government said, joining about three dozen other nations mainly in Africa, the Middle East and South America.
There have been calls for the inclusion of some European countries where COVID-19 cases have surged, but the government has said it currently has no plans to do so. (Reporting by Michael Holden; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
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