Economy
Asian Stock Markets Rise as China Cuts Interest Rate
By Investors Hub
Asian stock markets ended mostly higher on Monday as investors awaited further progress on a U.S.-China trade deal, while China’s central bank surprised markets by cutting a key interest rate for the first time since 2015.
On Saturday, Chinese state media said that the U.S. and China had ?constructive discussions? regarding a phase one trade deal in a high-level phone call.
Chinese shares closed higher after the People’s Bank of China unexpectedly lowered the rate on seven-day reverse repurchase agreements by five basis points to 2.50 percent. The move stoked hopes of more stimulus measures to revive the slowing economy.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index added 17.86 points or 0.6 percent to finish at 2,909.20. Hong Kong shares closed notably higher, after suffering hefty losses last week. The Hang Seng Index advanced 293.05 points or 1.1 percent to close at 26,619.71.
Japanese stocks also rose in choppy trading as investors awaited further progress on a potential U.S.-China trade deal. Tech stocks were among the major gainers. The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index climbed 113.44 points or 0.5 percent to close at 23,416.76.
In the tech space, Advantest gained 3.7 percent and Tokyo Electron rose 1.8 percent. Market heavyweight SoftBank Group and South Korean internet giant Naver said they have reached a basic agreement on a merger by October 2020 of Z Holdings, formerly known as Yahoo Japan, and the Line chat app.
Shares of Z Holdings rose 1.2 percent. SoftBank Group advanced 1.6 percent, while Fast Retailing added 0.6 percent.
The major exporters closed mixed despite a weaker yen. Sony rose 1.8 percent and Canon added 0.5 percent, while Mitsubishi Electric declined 1 percent and Panasonic lost 0.8 percent.
Among the other major gainers, Eisai Co. rose 4.4 percent, while Recruit Holdings and Hitachi Zosen advanced 2.2 percent each.
On the flip side, DIC Corp. lost 4.1 percent, Nippon Suisan Kaisha dipped 3.4 percent and Toray Industries declined 3.3 percent.
The Australian market closed lower as investors awaited further progress on a potential U.S.-China trade deal. Banking, telecom and utility stocks were among the major losers.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index fell 26.90 points or 0.4 percent to close at 6,766.80, while the broader All Ordinaries Index lost 27.20 points or 0.4 percent to finish at 6,871.70.
In the banking space, ANZ Banking, Westpac, Commonwealth Bank and National Australia Bank fell in a range of 0.2 percent to 0.8 percent ahead of the release of the minutes of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s November meeting on Tuesday.
National Australia Bank is seeking to raise A$1.4 billion through the issue of medium-term notes to bolster its capital ahead of a regulatory deadline.
Among gold miners, Evolution Mining lost 2.3 percent and Newcrest Mining declined 0.9 percent.
Saracen Mineral Holdings has agreed to acquire a 50 percent stake in Kalgoorlie’s Super Pit from Canada’s Barrick Gold for $750 million. The company’s shares were in a trading halt for a capital raising.
Smartgroup Corp. fell 13.7 percent after the salary packaging company said its long-term chief executive would retire in early 2020.
Among the major miners, Rio Tinto advanced 0.9 percent and BHP added 0.2 percent, while Fortescue Metals edged down 0.1 percent.
oOh!Media rejected rumors it has hired Macquarie Capital to help find a private equity firm to back a management buyout and delist from the ASX. Shares of the outdoor advertiser dipped 1.7 percent after emerging from a trading halt.
Appen raised its earnings outlook for the full year and also reiterated a lowered outlook for annual recurring revenue from its Figure Eight machine learning software. The tech company’s shares rose 13.4 percent.
Seoul stocks edged lower as investors booked profits. The benchmark Kospi declined 1.49 points or 0.1 percent to settle at 2,160.69. Market heavyweight Samsung Electronics dipped 0.4 percent, while chipmaker SK hynix added 0.4 percent.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has defended its decision to allow Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) to invest in the parent companies of their custodians, insisting that adequate safeguards are in place to protect contributors’ funds.
The director-general of the pension regulator, Ms Omolola Oloworaran, speaking on Tuesday during the Meet the Press Briefing at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, said the commission’s decision to relax the investment restriction followed a comprehensive risk assessment that found minimal conflict of interest.
She explained that under PenCom’s investment regulations, PFAs are only permitted to invest pension assets in carefully selected instruments that meet stringent criteria, including profitability, strong credit ratings and proven track records.
According to her, the commission regularly reviews its investment regulations, conducts routine examinations and spot checks on PFAs to ensure strict compliance with established risk management guidelines.
“PFAs cannot just go into the stock market and buy any kind of stock. There are strict guidelines. Companies must demonstrate profitability, have a proven track record and satisfy other criteria before pension funds can invest,” she said.
Ms Oloworaran noted that each PFA also operates under the oversight of a board, an investment committee and a risk management committee, providing additional layers of governance to safeguard contributors’ funds.
She said PenCom recently issued a circular allowing PFAs to invest in the parent companies of their custodians after determining that the potential conflict of interest was negligible.
The PenCom boss explained that the parent companies involved are largely Tier-1 banks, including First Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA) and Zenith Bank, which she described as A-rated institutions with strong financial foundations.
She said the policy was intended to widen investment opportunities for pension funds without compromising safety.
Using Stanbic IBTC as an example, Ms Oloworaran explained that if its custodian is Zenith Bank, the previous restriction prevented the pension administrator from investing in Zenith Bank shares despite the bank’s strong performance.
“We reviewed the risks and any potential conflict of interest and found the risks to be very low. That is why we opened that investment window,” she said.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Analysts at Meristem Research have predicted that the inflation rate for June 2026 in Nigeria should marginally rise to 15.95 per cent on a year-on-year basis from the 15.93 per cent reported in May 2026.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) is expected to release inflation numbers for last month later today, Wednesday, July 15, 2026.
In its report sighted by Business Post, Meristem Research said it expects inflationary pressures to re-emerge across key economies in the near term, as the re-escalation of the US-Iran conflict has reignited upward pressure on global oil prices.
It disclosed that this marks a sharp reversal from most of June, when the ceasefire between the two countries helped drive oil prices lower, raising expectations of some relief on the inflation front.
With conflicts now flaring up again, oil prices are likely to increase again, and the anticipated easing in energy-driven inflation may not materialise as broadly as earlier envisaged.
“Nonetheless, some relief is likely from the food segment, where robust supply conditions across major producing regions and softening demand should continue to ease food price pressures,” it stated.
The team also explained that it projected a 15.95 per cent inflation rate because of the lingering effects of persistent food price pressures.
“However, we expect core inflation to moderate as the sharp reversal in energy prices begins to filter through to transportation, distribution, and other energy-related costs, easing underlying price pressures.
“On a month-on-month basis, the combined effect of lower petrol prices, a relatively stable Naira, and the gradual pass-through of reduced energy costs across the supply chain should exert further downward pressure on inflation.
“Based on our assessment, food inflation is expected to remain the key swing factor, as seasonal pre-harvest supply constraints are likely to offset some of the gains from lower logistics costs,” it said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The duo of Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc and Afriland Properties Plc weakened the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.61 per cent on Tuesday, July 14.
CSCS Plc saw its stock value drop N9.08 to close at N82.40 per share compared with the preceding session’s N91.48 per share, and Afriland Properties Plc slid by 17 Kobo to sell at N15.00 per unit versus N15.70 per unit.
The losses recorded by the two securities pulled back the market capitalisation by N41.64 billion to N2.546 trillion from N2.587 trillion, and cracked the NASD Security Index (NSI) by 69.36 points to 4,242.31 points from 4,311.67 points.
It was observed that the exchange witnessed two price advancers during the session, led by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc, which gained N1.37 to end at N151.37 per share compared with the previous day’s N150.00 per share, and Food Concepts Plc chalked up 5 Kobo to settle at N2.50 per unit versus N2.45 per unit.
The volume of securities traded by market participants surged by 50.7 per cent to 13.7 million units from the previous 9.1 million units, while the value of securities went down by 79.7 per cent to N65.2 million from N320.4 million, and the number of deals crashed by 3.6 per cent to 27 deals from the previous session’s 28 deals.
At the close of transactions, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with the sale of 3.4 billion units for N8.4 billion, trailed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc, which exchanged 2.3 billion units valued at N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 73.9 million units transacted for N5.2 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the trading day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units traded for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.7 million.
