Economy
Asian Shares Close Lower on Tuesday
By Investors Hub
Asian stocks closed mostly lower on Tuesday as the initial euphoria over the U.S.-China truce on import tariffs subsided and investors wondered if a 90-day tariff truce was enough for the two countries to resolve their differences on a range of issues.
According to media reports, U.S. President Donald Trump has appointed Robert Lighthizer, one of his cabinet’s most strident trade hawks, to oversee the next round of trade negotiations with China.
Chinese stocks bucked the downtrend in the region, with China’s Shanghai Composite Index rising 11.16 points or 0.4 percent to 2,665.96. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index closed up 0.3 percent at 27,260.44.
China’s central bank chief said in an article in the China Finance magazine that the central bank would keep its monetary policy flexible and adjust it appropriately according to changes in the country’s economic situation.
Japanese shares fell on profit taking after a strong rally in the previous session. The Nikkei 225 Index slid from a two-week high to end the session down 538.71 points or 2.4 percent at 22,036.05. The broader Topix Index also closed 2.4 percent lower at 1,649.20.
Falling U.S. yields on expectations of a slower pace of rate hikes by the Federal Reserve pulled down financials, with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group and Dai-ichi Life Holdings losing 2-3 percent.
Companies sensitive to China also fell, with Yaskawa Electric and Hitachi Construction Machinery tumbling 3-4 percent. Sharp Corp. plunged 5.7 percent on a Nikkei report that it has laid off more than 3,000 foreign workers in Japan.
Australian stocks also succumbed to profit taking after the previous session’s sharp jump. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index fell 1 percent to 5,713.10 after climbing 1.8 percent on Monday. The broader All Ordinaries Index also closed 1 percent lower at 5,797.50.
Financials led the decliners, with the big four banks ending down between 0.9 percent and 1.4 percent. Grocery wholesaler Metcash slumped 7.2 percent to extend losses from the previous session after the company warned of tough times ahead in the supermarket sector. Wesfarmers lost 2.4 percent.
ResMed dropped 1 percent on news the sleep device manufacturer would acquire U.S.-based asthma and pulmonary specialist Propeller Health for $225 million.
In economic news, Australia posted a seasonally adjusted current account deficit of A$10.688 billion in the third quarter, official data showed. That missed expectations for a shortfall of A$10.2 billion following the upwardly revised A$12.056 billion deficit in the three months prior.
The Reserve Bank of Australia left its benchmark interest rate on hold at a record low of 1.5 percent, citing sluggish wage growth and low inflation. The central bank said that the low level of interest rates is continuing to support the Australian economy.
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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