Economy
Crude Oil Prices Rise Over Fresh Middle East Tensions
By Adedapo Adesanya
Crude oil prices rose by more than $1 on Monday as traders braced for potential supply disruptions in the Middle East due to rising tensions in Yemen.
Brent crude futures rose $1 or 1.7 per cent to $61.64 a barrel and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were up $1.10 or 1.9 per cent to $57.84 per barrel.
In Yemen, the Saudi-led coalition has vowed to retaliate against any military moves by the main southern separatist group backed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Meanwhile, Iran declared a “full-scale war” against the US, Israel, and Europe.
Reuters reported that an escalation of fighting on Thursday killed two people from the separatist group Southern Transitional Council’s Hadhrami Elite Forces in Hadramout, the group said in its statement. Saudi airstrikes followed early on Friday, targeting the STC forces in the area.
Ongoing conflicts and political friction have been creating market jitters and the risk of supply disruptions over the past couple of weeks.
Recent developments, such as the Ukraine war (including attacks on Russian energy infrastructure) as well as unrest in the Middle East has led investors to price in a small risk premium for crude.
Russia accused Ukraine of launching a drone attack on the Russian presidential residence in northern Russia, due to which Moscow now plans to review its position in peace talks.
Ukraine dismissed Russian statements about the drone attack and its foreign minister said Russia was seeking “false justifications” for further strikes against its neighbour, which it has been attacking since February 2022.
Prior to these developments, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy had said on Monday that significant progress had been made in talks with US counterpart Donald Trump and agreed that US and Ukrainian teams would meet next week to finalise issues aimed at ending Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The US government also said President Trump had also held a “positive call” with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the war in Ukraine.
Data on US stockpiles for the week ended December 19 remain missing as the report, which was expected to be published on Monday was delayed without assigning a new publication time.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Unlisted Security Index (NSI) of the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange expanded by 0.32 per cent or 11.31 points on the first trading day after the Christmas break on Monday to 3,552.00 points from the 3,540.69 points it ended in the preceding trading session, which was last Wednesday.
Equally, the market capitalisation of the trading platform increased during the session by 0.32 per cent or N6.78 billion to N2.125 trillion from N2.118 trillion.
The growth recorded yesterday was spurred by four price gainers led by Central Securities Clearing System Plc (CSCS), which expanded by N3.25 Kobo to close at N35.80 per share against the previous trading value of N32.55 per share.
Further, Golden Capital Plc improved its value by 93 Kobo to sell at N10.22 per unit versus N9.29 per unit, Geo-Fluids Plc appreciated by 50 Kobo to trade at N6.00 per share compared with the preceding session’s N5.50 per share, and IPWA Plc added 8 Kobo to quote at 93 Kobo per unit versus 85 Kobo per unit.
Business Post reports that yesterday, there were three price losers led by MRS Oil Plc as it dropped N21.65 to sell at N194.94 per share versus N216.59 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc depleted by N2.18 to N49.12 per unit from N51.30 per unit, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc slid by 6 Kobo to 58 Kobo per share from 64 Kobo per share.
The volume of trades went up by 4,346.3 per cent on Monday to 29.6 million units from 665,419 units, the value of transactions skyrocketed by 9,832.8 per cent to N1.5 billion from N15.5 million, and the number of deals jumped by 371.4 per cent to 33 deals from 7 deals.
Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company (InfraCredit) Plc remained the most active stock by value with 5.8 billion units exchanged for N16.4 billion. This was followed by Okitipupa Plc with 187.6 million units valued at N10.9 billion, and MRS Oil Plc with 36.1 million units worth N4.9 billion.
In terms of volume, InfraCredit Plc also led on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units traded for N16.4 billion, IGI Plc ranked second with 1.2 billion units worth N420.7 million, while Impresit Bakolori Plc ws third with 536.9 million units valued at N524.9 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira resumed from the Christmas holiday on Monday, December 29, with an 87 Kobo or 0.06 per cent gain against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) to sell for N1,442.51/$1, in contrast to last Wednesday’s price of N1,443.38/$1.
Equally, the Naira appreciated against the Pound Sterling in the official market yesterday by N3.91 to close at N1,945.66/£1 compared with the preceding session’s rate of N1,949.57/£1 and gained N3.91 on the Euro to finish at N1,697.40/€1 versus the previous session’s closing price of N1,701.65/€1.
At the GTBank FX counter, the Nigerian currency improved its value against the greenback during the session by N8 to settle at N1,457/$1 compared with the preceding trading day’s rate of N1,465/$1 and at the black market, the Naira gain N5 to finish at N1,480/$1.
The value of the Naira firmed up on Monday after receiving support from the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, who reassured investors and international partners that Nigeria’s economy remains stable and resilient despite a recent joint security operation conducted by Nigerian and the US forces in Sokoto on Christmas Day.
The operation, carried out on December 25, targeted ISIS-linked camps in Sokoto, with no reported civilian casualties.
US President Donald Trump described the strikes as “powerful and deadly” against “ISIS terrorist scum,” endangering Christian communities.
Ahead of the market reopening from the long Christmas break, Mr Edun stressed that Nigeria was “not at war with itself, nor with any nation,” but was decisively confronting terrorism in collaboration with trusted international partners.
This alongside efforts by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) helped eased pressure on the local currency. The apex last week stepped up FX intervention with $150 million.
The market expects near-term exchange rate stability to persist underpinned by policy measures and improving market confidence.
As for the cryptocurrency market, major tokens declined in thin year-end trading, with Bitcoin (BTC) hovering around $87,300, down about more than 2 per cent alongside some top coins, with BTC losing 2.3 per cent to finish at $87,366.73.
Further, Cardano (ADA) declined by 6.5 per cent to $0.3521, Solana (SOL) went down by 3.1 per cent to $123.76, Ethereum (ETH) lost 2.9 per cent to quote at $2,944.55, Dogecoin (DOGE) depreciated by 2.8 per cent to $0.1232, Ripple (XRP) shrank by 2.1 per cent to $1.86, Litecoin (LTC) slumped by 1.7 per cent to $78.15, and Binance Coin (BNB) fell by 1.3 per cent to $853.03, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 apiece.
By Dipo Olowookere
The first trading session after the Christmas break ended on a positive note on Monday with a 0.55 per cent appreciation.
The market resume trading activities yesterday after it closed last Wednesday and investors returned with high expectations, resulting in the uptick recorded at the close of business.
The portfolios of traders went up during the session by N542 billion to N98.432 trillion from the N97.890 trillion it ended in the previous trading day, and the All-Share Index (ASI) grew by 849.70 points to 154,389.53 points from 153,539.83 points.
Austin Laz and Ecobank topped the gainers’ group after rising by 10.00 per cent each to settle at N3.52 and N41.80 apiece, Eunisell rose by 9.95 per cent to N96.70, Honeywell Flour expanded by 9.86 per cent to N19.50, and Guinness Nigeria surged by 9.82 per cent to N349.90.
On the flip side, International Energy Insurance slipped by 10.00 per cent to N2.34, Meyer declined by 9.92 per cent to N11.80, eTranzact decreased by 9.92 per cent to N11.35, and Livestock Feeds depreciated by 9.60 per cent to N5.65.
The market breadth index remained positive after Customs Street ended with 41 price gainers and 37 price losers, indicating a strong investor sentiment.
A total of 1.5 billion shares worth N35.4 billion were traded in 47,892 deals on Monday compared with the 1.8 billion shares valued at N30.1 billion transacted in 19,372 deals last Wednesday, showing a shortfall in the trading volume by 16.67 per cent, and a jump in the trading value and number of deals by 17.94 per cent and 147.22 per cent, respectively.
Access Holdings was the most active stock for the session with 594.4 million units worth N12.4 billion, Champion Breweries traded 122.1 million units for N1.8 billion, FCMB exchanged 116.6 million units valued at N1.3 billion, Japaul transacted 66.2 million units worth N155.3 million, and First Holdco sold 51.5 million units valued at N2.6 billion.
-
Feature/OPED6 years agoDavos was Different this year
-
Travel/Tourism9 years ago
Lagos Seals Western Lodge Hotel In Ikorodu
-
Showbiz3 years agoEstranged Lover Releases Videos of Empress Njamah Bathing
-
Banking8 years agoSort Codes of GTBank Branches in Nigeria
-
Economy3 years agoSubsidy Removal: CNG at N130 Per Litre Cheaper Than Petrol—IPMAN
-
Banking3 years agoFirst Bank Announces Planned Downtime
-
Banking3 years agoSort Codes of UBA Branches in Nigeria
-
Sports3 years agoHighest Paid Nigerian Footballer – How Much Do Nigerian Footballers Earn