By Dipo Olowookere

The last trading session of 2024 on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited ended on a bearish note on Tuesday with a 0.22 per cent loss.

The decline occurred despite the bourse closing with 36 appreciating stocks and 27 depreciating stocks, implying a positive market breadth index and strong investor sentiment.

Eterna and Union Dicon Salt topped the losers’ chart after they shed 10.00 per cent each to settle at N24.30 and N7.20 apiece, Champion Breweries lost 8.19 per cent to trade at N3.81, PZ Cussons depreciated by 6.90 per cent to N24.30 and Cadbury Nigeria tumbled by 6.52 per cent to N21.50.

On the flip side, Prestige Assurance, Beta Glass, and Universal Insurance gained 10.00 per cent each to quote at N1.21, N64.90, and 66 Kobo, respectively, as Okomu Oil grew by 9.98 per cent to N444.00, and Thomas Wyatt increased by 9.88 per cent to N1.89.

Yesterday, the insurance space gained 4.93 per cent, the energy index rose by 0.43 per cent, and the industrial goods counter appreciated by 0.17 per cent.

However, the banking sector depreciated by 0.34 per cent and the consumer goods industry went down by 0.29 per cent.

At the close of transactions, the All-Share Index (ASI) shrank by 222.95 points to 102,926.40 points from 103,149.35 points and the market capitalisation decreased by N136 billion to N62.763 trillion from N62.899 trillion.

During the session, investors transacted 437.8 million shares valued at N40.3 billion in 8,830 deals, in contrast to the 641.1 million shares worth N15.5 billion traded in 13,778 deals in the preceding day, representing a jump in the trading value by 160.00 per cent, and a slip in the trading volume and number of deals by 31.71 per cent and 35.91 per cent, respectively.

Access Holdings finished the day as the busiest equity with 30.3 million units sold for N723.9 million, Universal Insurance traded 24.6 million units worth N16.1 million, Prestige Assurance exchanged 24.3 million units valued at N29.3 million, SAHCO transacted 22.2 million units worth N662.2 million, and Aradel Holdings traded 21.7 million units valued at N13.0 billion.

By Adedapo Adesanya

The value of the Nigerian Naira appreciated against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) in the final session of the 2024 year (Tuesday, December 31) by 0.15 per cent or N2.25 to N1,538.25/$1 from the preceding day’s N1,540.50/$1 on the back of operational efficiency and transparency in the nation’s currency market.

Equally, the domestic currency improved its value against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the session by N4.76 to sell at N1,925.45/£1 compared with the preceding session’s N1,930.21/£1 and against the Euro, it gained N2.68 to quote at N1,595.41/€1 versus the preceding rate of N1,598.09/€1.

Also, in the parallel market, the local currency gained N5 against the Dollar during the trading session to settle at N1,645/$1, in contrast to the N1,650/$1 it was exchanged a day earlier.

Since the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) introduced the Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System (EFEMS), which sets new guidelines for authorised Foreign Exchange (FX) dealers earlier in the month of December, the Naira has continued to regain its footing.

However, Fitch Ratings said that while the introduction of the electronic FX matching platform is a step towards greater transparency, progress in addressing FX challenges has been slower than anticipated.

In the cryptocurrency market, profit-taking synonymous with the end of the year occurred with traders expecting the current price action to likely continue until February, weeks after US President-elect, Mr Donald Trump, takes office in the U.S. and set into motion a barrage of policies that may help the market.

Ethereum (ETH) lost 1.9 per cent to trade at $3,333.72, Solana (SOL) slid by 1.7 per cent to $189.36, Cardano (ADA) shrank by 1.6 per cent to $0.8496, Dogecoin (DOGE) fell by 1.4 per cent to $0.3148, Bitcoin (BTC) slumped by 1.2 per cent to $93,237.72, Binance Coin (BNB) declined by 0.6 per cent to close at $701.85, and the US Dollar Tether (USDT) lost 0.02 per cent to finish at $0.9981.

However, Litecoin (LTC) rose by 3.3 per cent to sell at $103.44, and Ripple (XRP) grew by 1.9 per cent to $2.12, while the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00.

By Adedapo Adesanya

The oil market appreciated on Tuesday, December 31, 2024, though it posted an annual decline of 3 per cent, the second straight year it closed in the negative region amid a slowdown in the Chinese economy as the United States and other oil producers not in the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) pumped more crude into a well-supplied global market.

Yesterday, Brent crude futures went up by 65 cents or 0.88 per cent to $74.64 a barrel and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained 73 cents or 1.03 per cent to trade at $71.72 a barrel.

A weaker demand outlook in China forced both OPEC and the International Energy Agency (IEA) to cut their oil demand growth expectations for 2024 and 2025.

The IEA sees the oil market entering 2025 in surplus, even after OPEC and its allies delayed their plan to start raising output until April 2025 against a backdrop of falling prices.

China, which is the world’s largest oil importer, faced a lot of headwinds which impacted oil as it also saw increased adoption of Electronic Vehicles (EVs).

OPEC+, which pumps about half the world’s oil, at its December meeting pushed back the start of oil output rises by three months until April 2025 and extended the full unwinding of cuts by a year until the end of 2026.

Rising production from non-OPEC countries like the US and Brazil is expected to keep the market well-supplied.

The market is also bracing for substantial policy shifts, encompassing tariffs, deregulation, and tax amendments as Donald Trump is set to return to the White House in January 2025.

So far, the former US president has called for an immediate ceasefire in the Russia-Ukraine war and could re-impose a so-called maximum pressure policy toward Iran, which could have major implications for oil markets.

He has also threatened to place higher tariffs on China, a move that could have a ripple effect on oil demand.

On the Middle East front, the US military said it carried out strikes against Houthi targets in Sanaa and coastal locations in Yemen on Monday and Tuesday.

The Iran-backed militant group has been attacking commercial shipping in the Red Sea for more than a year in solidarity with Palestinians amid Israel’s year-long war in Gaza, threatening global oil flows.