19.2% Ease in FX Trades Bolsters Naira by 0.01% at I&E

By Adedapo Adesanya The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange recorded a 1.6 per cent appreciation on Friday, December 8, as investors gained about N19.12 billion to push the valuation of the unlisted bourse to N1.202 trillion from the N1.182 trillion it closed in the preceding session. This achievement was influenced by the gains recorded by the trio of Aradel Holdings Plc, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc, and Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc. Data showed that Aradel Holdings Plc improved its value by N30 to settle at N900.00 per unit compared with the previous day’s N870.00 per unit, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria

By Aduragbemi Omiyale One of the players in the personal healthcare and consumer goods sectors, PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc, has published a list of its shareholders with unclaimed dividends. Unclaimed dividends are cash rewards given to investors, mainly from the profits from the company’s operations, but are yet to be collected by the beneficiaries. This has been a major source of sleepless nights for the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which is working to bring down the number of unclaimed dividends. It has been reported that the value of unclaimed dividends in the nation’s stock market is over N185 billion.

By Adedapo Adesanya The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has cautioned Nigerians to be wary of fake Naira notes currently in circulation, vowing to prosecute those engaged in the illicit acts. The apex bank in a release signed by Mrs Hakama Sidi Ali, the acting Director of Corporate Communications, said the counterfeit notes have been spread by some individuals for transactions in food markets and other places where commerce takes place across the country, noting that this is a punishable offence. “The attention of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been drawn to the circulation of counterfeit banknotes, especially

By Adedapo Adesanya The South African division of Anheuser-Busch InBev has cancelled a further 2.5 billion rand ($165 million) investment after the government banned alcohol sales for the third time to control a resurgence of coronavirus cases. The move brings the amount of spending called off by South African Breweries (SAB) to 5 billion rand since the COVID-19 pandemic began to take off in the country 10 months ago. SAB, the country’s biggest brewer, recently said it would challenge the prohibition in court, describing the government’s action as unconstitutional. Recently, South Africa’s President, Mr Cyril Rampahosa banned alcohol sales as

By Cowry Asset In the just concluded week, Naira/Dollar rate moved in mixed directions across the foreign exchange market segments. Specifically, the exchange rate closed flat at the interbank foreign exchange market and parallel (black) market at N356.92/$ and N361/$ respectively amid sustained weekly injections of $210 million by Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) into the forex market via the Secondary Market Intervention Sales (SMIS). During the injection, the apex bank allotted $100 million to the Wholesale SMIS segment, $55 million was allocated to Small and Medium Scale Enterprises sector and another $55 million was sold for invisibles. During the

By Dipo Olowookere In the just concluded week, performance of Nigerian corporate Eurobonds recorded mixed performance. It was observed that while yields rose on a number of instruments, some others recorded buying interest. Analysts at Afri Invest noted that ACCESS 2017 (down 1.7% W-o-W), FIRST BANK 2021 (down 30bps W-o-W) and ZENITH 2019 (down 3bps W-o-W) enjoyed positive sentiment while yields rose 30bps, 24bps, 41bps and 12bps on the FIDELITY 2018, ACCESS June 2021, ACCESS October 2021 and FIRST BANK 2021 respectively. Also, year to date (YTD) return on all outstanding Nigerian corporate debt instruments remain in the positive region

By Investors Hub The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a roughly flat opening on Tuesday, with stocks likely to extend the lackluster performance seen over the two previous sessions. Another quiet day on the U.S. economic front may keep some traders on the sidelines as they continue to digest last Friday?s weaker than expected jobs data. The disappointing job growth raised concerns about the economic outlook but also reinforced expectations of another interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve next week. Traders may also be reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the European Central Bank meeting on

By Aduragbemi Omiyale The federal government has been commended by the Chief Technology Officer and co-founder of Kuda Technologies Limited, Mr Musty Mustafa, for its digital economy policy, noting that it is a step in the right direction. In an interview, Mr Mustafa said cashless payment systems, bolstered by fintechs and digital solutions providers like Kuda, are poised to significantly impact Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), describing fintechs as a strategic non-oil contributor to national socio-economic growth. “Fintech has a crucial role in enhancing the cashless policy’s impact on the overall economy. “By improving accessibility and affordability, innovative solutions like

By Investors Hub Most Asian stocks fell on Wednesday as bond yields tumbled, metals prices plunged sharply, oil eased on supply worries and the Japanese yen gained ground on Middle East concerns as well as worries over a possible U.S. government shutdown. Chinese stocks fell after a senior researcher at the People’s Bank of China urged central banks to tighten monetary policies. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index dropped 9.55 points or 0.3 percent to 3,293.13, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index plunged 618.00 points or 2.1 percent to 28,224.80. Japanese shares fell sharply as geopolitical worries and concerns over a

By Adedapo Adesanya The Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) has pledged to work with the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) to implement and enforce compulsory insurance in all the 36 states of the federation. This came at the beck of a courtesy visit by the management of NAICOM led by the Commissioner for Insurance, Mr Sunday Thomas, to the office of the Chairman of the forum and Governor of Ekiti State, Mr Kayode Fayemi, in Ado-Ekiti on Tuesday. Mr Fayemi noted that the forum may invite the insurance sector regulatory agency to meet with the 36 state governors to enlighten them of

By Adedapo Adesanya The federal government through the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has ordered the suspension of processing of new passport applications in all passport offices nationwide till June 1. The directive, which took effect on May 17, was disclosed in a statement signed by the Deputy Comptroller General, Mr AB Yarima. According to the service, which is under the Federal Ministry of Interior, the suspension was necessary in order to ease the preparation for the commencement of a new passport regime. “This directive, which comes into effect from today, May 17, 2021, has become necessary to allow enough time