Economy
Uncertainty About Tariffs, Looming Jobs Report May Lead to Choppy Trading
By Investors Hub
The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a modestly higher opening on Thursday following the mixed performance seen in the previous session.
Despite the upward momentum, traders may be reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the release of the Labor Department?s closely watched monthly jobs report on Friday.
Employment is expected to jump by 200,000 jobs in February, matching the increase seen in January. The unemployment rate is expected to dip to 4.0 percent from 4.1 percent.
Uncertainty about the details of President Donald Trump?s planned tariffs on steel and aluminum imports may also keep some traders on the sidelines.
After initially moving to the downside, stocks fluctuated over the course of the trading session on Wednesday. While the major averages all climbed well off their worst levels of the day, only the Nasdaq managed to close in positive territory.
The major averages subsequently turned in a mixed performance on the day. The Nasdaq rose 24.64 points or 0.3 percent to 7,396.65, but the Dow fell 82.76 points or 0.3 percent to 24,801.36 and the S&P 500 edged down 1.32 points or 0.1 percent to 2,726.80.
The mixed close on Wall Street came after White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders suggested Mexico and Canada could be exempt from President Donald Trump’s planned tariffs on steel and aluminum imports.
“We expect that the President will sign something by the end of the week,” Sanders said. “And there are potential carve-outs for Mexico and Canada based on national security and possibly other countries as well based on that process.”
She added, “That will be a case by case and country by country basis. It would be determined whether or not there is a national security exemption.”
Stocks initially came under pressure in reaction to news of the resignation of White House chief economic advisor Gary Cohn on Tuesday.
The resignation by Cohn, a free trade advocate, reportedly came amid a dispute over Trump’s plans to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports.
In a statement, Trump said Cohn did a “superb job in driving our agenda, helping to deliver historic tax cuts and reforms and unleashing the American economy once again.”
Trump said in a post on Twitter that he would make a decision on a new chief economic advisor “soon,” adding, “Many people wanting the job – will choose wisely!”
In U.S. economic news, payroll processor ADP released a report showing private sector employment increased by more than expected in the month of February.
ADP said employment in the private sector jumped by 235,000 jobs in February after surging up by a revised 244,000 jobs in January. Economists had expected an increase of about 195,000 jobs.
A separate report from the Commerce Department showed the trade deficit widened by more than expected in the month of January.
The report said the trade deficit widened to $56.6 billion in January from $53.9 billion in December, reaching its highest level since October of 2008. The deficit had been expected to widen to $55.1 billion.
Later in the day, the Federal Reserve released its Beige Book, which reinforced expectations the central bank will raise interest rates at its monetary policy meeting later this month.
The Beige Book, a compilation of anecdotal evidence on economic conditions in the twelve Fed districts, said economic activity expanded at a modest to moderate pace in January and February.
The Fed noted wage growth picked up to a moderate pace, with employers raising wages and expanding benefit packages in response to tight labor market conditions.
With regard to overall inflation, the Fed said price increases were seen in all twelve districts and most reports noted moderate inflation.
Most of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves, although considerable weakness was visible among gold stocks.
Reflecting the weakness in the gold sector, the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index slumped by 2.5 percent after jumping by 2 percent in the previous session. The pullback by gold stocks came amid a decrease by the price of the precious metal.
Energy stocks also saw significant weakness, moving lower along with the price of crude oil. While retail stocks also moved to the downside on the day, some strength emerged among biotechnology and real estate stocks.
Economy
46 Stocks Gain Weight, 53 Equities Lose on NGX in One Week
By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited was bullish last week despite investors’ mood swing, triggered by happenings in the country and across the globe, especially the Middle East crisis.
The All-Share Index (ASI) and the market capitalisation appreciated week-on-week by 3.94 per cent to 225,722.49 points and N145.335 trillion, respectively.
Similarly, all other indices finished higher with the exception of the growth and commodity indices, which depreciated by 0.02 per cent and 0.41 per cent, respectively, while the sovereign bond index closed flat.
A look at the price changes of shares in the five-day trading week showed that
46 stocks gained weight versus 61 stocks of the previous week, 53 equities shed weight compared with 36 equities a week earlier, and 47 shares closed flat, in contrast to 49 shares of the preceding week.
UAC Nigeria led the gainers’ chart after it chalked up 42.00 per cent to trade at N142.00, Union Dicon appreciated by 32.73 per cent to N21.90, NASCON expanded by 32.63 per cent to N206.90, Trans-Nationwide Express rose by 30.58 per cent to N7.90, and Zichis improved by 25.71 per cent to N15.60.
On the flip side, Infinity Trust Mortgage Bank led the losers’ group after it gave up 50.79 per cent to close at N9.35, Abbey Mortgage Bank declined by 33.33 per cent to N5.40, Guinea Insurance slipped by 15.20 per cent to N1.06, Stanbic IBTC lost 13.82 per cent to settle at N162.50, and Living Trust Mortgage Bank slumped by 10.98 per cent to N3.65.
As for the activity log, Customs Street recorded a turnover of 3.805 billion shares worth N213.955 billion in 297,202 deals in the week compared with 3.588 billion shares valued at N195.313 billion transacted in 254,553 deals in the previous week.
Financial stocks led the activity chart with 2.739 billion units sold for N106.269 billion in 135,101 deals, contributing 71.99 per cent and 49.67 per cent to the total trading volume and value, respectively.
Services equities traded 212.324 million units worth N4.024 billion in 17,042 deals, and consumer goods shares exchanged 180.076 million units valued at N13.269 billion in 32,457 deals.
Access Holdings, UBA, and First Holdco were the busiest with 814.060 million units traded for N39.032 billion in 37,195 deals, contributing 21.40 per cent and 18.24 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value, respectively.
Economy
NGX Group’s 65th Annual General Meeting Holds April 29
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The 65th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Group Plc has been fixed for Wednesday, April 29, 2026, at 11:00 am at its corporate head office on 2–4 Customs Street, Lagos.
Business Post gathered that the meeting would be streamed live on the company’s website and social media platforms to enable broader participation by shareholders and stakeholders unable to attend physically.
As part of a special business, shareholders will consider a proposed bonus issue of one new ordinary share for every three existing shares held as at the close of business on April 10, 2026, subject to regulatory approvals.
The proposal also includes an increase in the organisation’s share capital from N1,102,309,954 to N1,469,746,605, to accommodate the bonus shares and amendments to the Memorandum of Association to reflect the new capital structure.
Also at the gathering, shareholders will consider and, if deemed fit, approve the company’s audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2025, alongside the reports of the directors, auditors, board evaluation consultants, and audit committee.
The meeting will also deliberate on the declaration of a final dividend and the re-election of three non-executive directors retiring by rotation, who are Mr Umaru Kwairanga, Mrs Ojinika Olaghere, and Dr Okechukwu Itanyi.
Other ordinary business items on the agenda include authorising the board to fix the remuneration of the external auditors, determining the remuneration of managers, and electing members of the statutory audit committee.
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