Economy
Local Stocks Shed N189bn as Selling Pressure Heightens
By Dipo Olowookere
It was still not a good day for local stocks on Thursday as the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited depreciated by 0.33 per cent at the close of transactions.
The heightened selling pressure sank the All-Share Index (ASI) by 333.18 points to 99,468.90 points from the 99,802.08 points it closed a day earlier, and the market capitalisation went down by N189 billion to finish at N56.268 trillion versus the preceding session’s N56.457 trillion.
The loss recorded yesterday happened despite an improvement in the financial services industry, as the banking space rose by 0.13 per cent, the insurance counter improved by 0.09 per cent, and the industrial goods index jumped by 0.05 per cent.
The profit-taking witnessed during the session was from the energy sector, which declined by 4.00 per cent, and the consumer goods industry, which waned by 0.16 per cent.
A total of 18 equities depreciated on Thursday, while 21 equities appreciated, representing a positive market breadth index and a strong investor sentiment.
Ikeja Hotel fell by 9.29 per cent to trade at N6.35, Honeywell Flour declined by 8.41 per cent to N3.16, Seplat retreated by 8.30 per cent to N3,480.00, Champion Breweries plunged by 7.55 per cent to N3.06, and Sunu Assurance shrank by 4.62 per cent to N1.24.
On the flip side, Linkage Assurance appreciated by 9.80 per cent to N1.12, DAAR Communications rose by 9.62 per cent to 57 Kobo, Vitafoam grew by 7.61 per cent to N21.20, Livestock Feeds expanded by 7.32 per cent to N2.20, and Mecure Industries gained 4.49 per cent to settle at N10.00.
At the trading session, investors bought and sold 296.7 million stocks worth N5.5 billion in 7,126 deals compared with the 935.2 million stocks worth N11.8 billion in 8,160 deals transacted on Wednesday, implying a decrease in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 68.27 per cent, 53.39 per cent, and 12.67 per cent, respectively.
At the close of business, Fidelity Bank was the most active equity after it exchanged 46.8 million units valued at N482.5 million, Linkage Assurance traded 32.1 million units valued at N36.0 million, Access Holdings sold 23.2 million units for N445.7 million, Transcorp transacted 22.1 million units worth N266.1 million, and AIICO Insurance traded 15.6 million units valued at N17.3 million.
Economy
BNB Price Reflects Changing Dynamics in the Digital Asset Market
Economy
NASD Unlisted Security Index Crosses 4,000-point Benchmark Again
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange achieved a milestone on Friday, April 24, 2026, after five securities on the platform helped with a 1.85 per cent growth.
Data showed that the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) again crossed the 4,000-point benchmark yesterday.
The index chalked up 73.64 points during the trading day to close at 4,052.59 points compared with the preceding session’s 3,978.95 points, while the market capitalisation added N5.38 billion to finish at N2.424 trillion versus Thursday’s closing value of N2.380 trillion.
The price gainers were led by Okitipupa Plc, which grew by N25.00 to sell at N305.00 per share compared with the previous price of N280.00 per share. Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc gained N6.92 to close at N76.26 per unit versus N69.34 per unit, Afriland Properties Plc appreciated by N1.00 to N17.00 per share from N18.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc improved by 55 Kobo to N99.55 per unit from N99.00 per unit, and Food Concepts Plc increased by 5 Kobo to N2.70 per share from N2.65 per share.
However, there was a price loser, MRS Oil, which dipped by N21.75 to N195.75 per unit from N217.50 per unit.
During the final session of the week, the value of securities jumped 75.2 per cent to N41.3 million from N23.6 million units, and the number of deals expanded by 62.9 per cent to 44 deals from 27 deals, while the volume of securities declined marginally by 0.9 per cent to 447,403 units from 451,522 units.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc was the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, trailed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units traded for N1.2 billion.
GNI was also the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 59.6 million units transacted for N4.0 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.8 million units exchanged for N1.9 billion.
Economy
Naira Slips to N1,358/$1 as FX Reserves, Policy Uncertainty Concerns
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was not a good day for the Nigerian Naira in the currency market on Friday, April 24, as its value depreciated against the major foreign currencies at the close of transactions.
In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), it lost N4.53 or 0.33 per cent against the United States Dollar yesterday to trade at N1,358.44/$1, in contrast to the N1,353.91/$1 it was exchanged on Thursday.
Equally, the domestic currency slipped against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the session by N8.14 to close at N1,834.02/£1, compared with the previous rate of N1,825.88/£1 and dropped N8.01 against the Euro to sell at N1,590.73/€1 versus N1,582.72/€1.
Also, the Naira depreciated against the US Dollar at the GTBank FX desk on Friday by N4 to quote at N1,370/$1 compared with the previous session’s N1,366/$1, and at the parallel market, it depleted by N5 to settle at N1,380/$1 versus the preceding day’s N1,375/$1.
Data published by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) indicated that NFEM interbank turnover surged to N43.562 million across 68 deals, up from N28.117 million the previous day.
Despite the CBN’s reassurance that the recent drop in external reserves is not worrisome, the market remains unsettled by persistent concerns over liquidity constraints, policy transparency, and weakening confidence in Nigeria’s FX market as gross reserves continue to decline to $48.4 billion.
The outlook for the Dollar appears supported by broader macro risks, including elevated oil prices tied to the tanker traffic disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and a continued US-Iran standoff over ceasefire negotiations.
A look at the digital currency market showed that investors are sitting on the edge as the US Dollar rebounded amid geopolitical and inflation risks despite continued inflows into US spot bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).
Solana (SOL) rose by 1.2 per cent to sell $86.45, Cardano (ADA) appreciated by 1.1 per cent to $0.2517, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 0.9 per cent to $0.0989, Ripple (XRP) improved by 0.3 per cent to $1.43, Ethereum (ETH) soared by 0.2 per cent to $2,316.83, and Binance Coin (BNB) chalked up 0.1 per cent to sell for $637.44.
However, TRON (TRX) depreciated by 1.3 per cent to $0.3235, and Bitcoin (BTC) lost 0.2 per cent to close at $77,562.27, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
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