Economy
Asian Stocks Rally as Investors Await Venue for Trump-Kim Meeting
By Investors Hub
Asian stocks ended broadly higher on Thursday as rallying oil prices helped lift energy stocks and U.S. President Donald Trump said he would announce the site for a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un within three days.
China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose 16.02 points or 0.5 percent to 3,175.17 after official data showed the country’s consumer price inflation eased to a three-month low in April on weak food price growth, while producer price inflation increased for the first time in seven months on commodity prices. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index advanced 273.08 points or 0.9 percent to 30,809.22.
Consumer prices in China were up 1.8 percent year-over-year in April. That was beneath expectations for 1.9 percent and down from 2.1 percent in March. Producer prices advanced an annual 3.4 percent, matching forecasts and up from 3.1 percent in the previous month.
Japanese shares rose on improved risk appetite as crude oil prices surged and investors digested a raft of local economic data. The Nikkei 225 Index climbed 88.30 points or 0.4 percent to 22,497.18, led by energy stocks and automakers. The broader Topix index closed 0.3 percent higher at 1,777.62.
Toyota Motor rallied 2.3 percent to reach a fresh three-month high after publishing its annual results and announcing a share buyback.
Ajinomoto jumped 4.3 percent after announcing a share buyback. Mitsubishi Motors Corp soared 9.4 percent after it forecast a 12 percent increase in operating profit in the current financial year, driven by higher vehicle sales in Asia.
In economic news, the Ministry of Finance said that Japan posted a current account surplus of 3.122 trillion yen in March, up 4.2 percent year-over-year. That beat expectations for a surplus of 2.899 trillion yen. Japan’s trade balance reflected a surplus of 1.190 trillion yen, up an annual 37.6 percent.
Australian shares closed higher as a stronger Aussie dollar and surging commodity prices helped lift financial and resource stocks. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index edged up 10.70 points or 0.2 percent to 6,118.70, while the broader All Ordinaries Index inched up 11.50 points or 0.2 percent to 6,215.90.
BHP Billiton, South32 and Rio Tinto gained 1-2 percent after copper prices surged overnight amid falling inventories and strong import numbers from top consumer China.
Woodside Petroleum soared 5.1 percent and Oil Search jumped 4.8 percent after oil prices rose more than 3 percent on Wednesday on data showing a bigger-than-expected drawdown in U.S. oil inventories.
Banks ANZ and Westpac eked out modest gains, while Commonwealth Bank of Australia extended losses to close 0.6 percent lower after reporting a drop in its third quarter profit.
Boral shares advanced 2.3 percent as the building products maker announced the sale of its non-core U.S. Concrete & Quarries business to Brannan Sand and Gravel Company for $127 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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