NAIROBI, Jan 24 (Reuters) - The following company announcements, scheduled economic

indicators, debt and currency market moves and political events may affect African markets on

Thursday.

- - - - -

*Zambia - Bank of Zambia auctions 91,182,273 and 364-day T-bills at its

weekly auction.

*Kenya - Central Bank auctions 91-day Treasury bills.

GLOBAL MARKETS

Asian shares edged higher on Thursday after manufacturing data from

China confirmed a recovery in the world's second biggest economy was on

track, easing nervousness caused by a sharp drop in Apple Inc

shares after its earnings report.

WORLD OIL PRICES

Brent crude held above $112 a barrel on Thursday, supported by upbeat

manufacturing data from China that could mean higher fuel demand to

come in the world's second largest oil consumer.

EMERGING MARKETS

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AFRICA STOCKS

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AFRICA DEBT

Nigeria and Kenya will hold their first bond auctions of the year,

which are expected to be well subscribed thanks to attractive

yields.

SOUTH AFRICA MARKETS

The South African rand slumped to a near four-year low against the

dollar on Wednesday, breaching the psychologically key 9.0 level, on

growing uneasiness about the economy and officials' recent comments on

the mining sector.

South African stocks ended on a higher note on Wednesday, boosted

by strong iron ore production figures from mining giant BHP Billiton

and a positive trading update from industrial group Barloworld

NIGERIA FX RESERVES

Nigeria's foreign exchange reserves have climbed to their

highest in more than three and half years, hitting $45.26 billion by

Jan. 21, up 33.27 percent year-on-year, figures from the central bank

showed on Wednesday.

NIGERIA CURRENCY

Nigeria's naira eased against the U.S dollar on the interbank

market on Wednesday, pressured by strong forex demand from importers

and lower than expected dollar supplies.

KENYA MARKETS

Kenya's central bank intervened in the market on Wednesday to prop up

the shilling after it dropped to a one-year low against the dollar.

Shares fell 1 percent as investors increased the pace of

profit-taking at the bourse.

KENYA DEBT

The weighted average yield on Kenyan 20-year Treasury bond

rose to 13.694 percent at the auction from 13.540 percent at its last

sale in November, the central bank said on Wednesday.

GHANA INFLATION

Ghana's annual producer price inflation rose to 17.1 percent in

December from 15.8 percent in November, led by rising gold prices, the

West African country's national statistics office said on Wednesday.

UGANDA OIL

Uganda will auction 13 blocks for oil and gas exploration when the

country's president signs a new bill governing the petroleum sector

into law, its junior energy minister said on Wednesday.

CAMEROON COFFEE

Cameroon robusta coffee exports more than tripled to 629 tonnes in

December, the first month of the 2012/13 season, compared to the same

period of the previous season, data from the National Cocoa and Coffee

Board (NCCB) showed on Wednesday.

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((Compiled by Nairobi Newsroom))

($1 = 87.4500 Kenyan shillings) Keywords: AFRICA FACTORS/

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