Economy
US Stocks Open Higher on Bargain Hunting
By Investors Hub
The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a higher opening on Wednesday, with stocks likely to regain some ground following the weakness seen in the previous session.
The markets may benefit from bargain hunting following the pullback on Tuesday, which saw the Dow slump by nearly 300 points.
Notable strength seen in the overseas markets on the day may also generate some early buying interest on Wall Street.
Trade concerns may continue to weigh on the markets, however, as traders worry about an escalating trade dispute between the U.S. and China.
After showing a significant move to the downside early in the session, stocks regained some ground over the course of the trading day on Tuesday. The major averages climbed well off their worst levels of the day but still closed in negative territory.
The major averages all finished the session in the red, although the Dow underperformed its counterparts by a wide margin. The Dow tumbled 287.26 points or 1.2 percent to 24,700.21, while the Nasdaq fell 21.44 points or 0.3 percent to 7,725.58 and the S&P 500 slid 11.18 points or 0.4 percent to 2,762.57.
Trade war concerns weighed on Wall Street after President Donald Trump directed U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to identify $200 billion worth of Chinese goods for additional tariffs at a rate of 10 percent.
Trump said the tariffs will go into effect if China refuses to change its unfair trade practices and insists on going forward with recently announced tariffs.
The potential tariffs announced by Trump come as the U.S. and China both announced plans to impose tariffs on up to $50 billion worth of goods imported from the other country.
Trump threatened to pursue additional tariffs on another $200 billion worth of goods if China increases its tariffs yet again.
“The United States will no longer be taken advantage of on trade by China and other countries in the world,” Trump said. “We will continue using all available tools to create a better and fairer trading system for all Americans.”
Despite the threat from Trump, China vowed to retaliate with “strong” countermeasures if the U.S. goes ahead with the new tariffs.
“This practice of extreme pressure and blackmail deviates from the consensus reached by both parties on many occasions and is disappointing for the international community,” the Commerce Ministry said in a statement.
The statement added, “The United States has initiated a trade war that violates market laws and is not in accordance with current global development trends.”
In U.S. economic news, the Commerce Department released a report showing a much bigger than expected jump in new residential construction in the month of May, although the report also showed a much steeper than expected drop in building permits.
The report said housing starts spiked by 5.0 percent to an annual rate of 1.350 million in May after tumbling by 3.1 percent to a revised rate of 1.286 million in April.
Economists had expected housing starts to climb by 1.8 percent to a rate of 1.310 million from the 1.287 million originally reported for the previous month.
Meanwhile, the Commerce Department said building permits plunged by 4.6 percent to an annual rate of 1.301 million in May after falling by 0.9 percent to a revised rate of 1.364 million in April.
Building permits, an indicator of future housing demand, had been expected to edge down by 0.1 percent to a rate of 1.350 million from the 1.352 million originally reported for the previous month.
Steel stocks turned in some of the market’s worst performances on the day, as traders worried about the potential impact of a trade war between the U.S. and China.
Reflecting the weakness in the steel sector, the NYSE Arca Steel Index slumped by 2.3 percent to its lowest closing level in over two months.
Significant weakness was also visible among chemical stocks, as reflected by the 1.8 percent loss posted by the S&P Chemical Sector Index.
Transportation, semiconductor, and computer hardware stocks also saw notable weakness, while biotechnology and utilities stocks showed strong moves to the upside.
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.
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.
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