Economy
Asian Stocks Close Mixed as Google Cuts Ties With Huawei
By Investors Hub
Asian stocks ended mixed on Monday as trade worries persisted, offsetting a surprise election victory for Australia’s pro-coal ruling coalition and upbeat Japanese GDP data.
Markets remained fragile after Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi told U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in a call that negotiating on an equal footing is the only way to solve pressing trade issues.
Chinese shares closed lower as trade war fears simmered. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index dropped 11.69 points or 0.4 percent to 2,870.60, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index ended down 158.85 points or 0.6 percent at 27,787.61.
China’s offshore yuan strengthened after the country’s central bank said that it would maintain the stability of its yuan within a reasonable and balanced range.
Japanese shares inched higher as first quarter GDP data topped forecasts. Growth in the nation’s economy unexpectedly accelerated to an annualized 2.1 percent in the first quarter, defying expectations for a 0.2 percent contraction. However, the surprise expansion was mostly caused by imports declining faster than exports.
The Nikkei 225 Index rose 51.64 points or 0.2 percent to 21,301.73, while the broader Topix index closed nearly flat at 1,554.92. Exporters edged higher as the yen weakened to a two-week low versus the dollar. Honda Motor rose 0.6 percent, Panasonic added 0.7 percent and Canon gained 1.1 percent.
Technology firms followed their U.S. peers lower, with electronics and semiconductor company Tokyo Electron tumbling by 3.1 percent.
Paper manufacturing company Hokuetsu Corp soared 9 percent after forecasting a 62.9 percent jump in operating profit for the year ending March 2020.
Australian stocks hit their highest level since December 2007 following the ruling conservative party’s surprise victory in the country’s federal election.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index jumped 110.80 points or 1.7 percent to 6,476.10, while the broader All Ordinaries Index surged up 1.6 percent to 6,564.70.
Financials did particularly well, with the big four banks spiking 6-9 percent. Miners and energy stocks turned in a mixed performance despite strong gains in iron ore and crude oil prices in recent sessions.
Chemicals and fertilizer manufacturer Incitec Pivot tumbled 2.7 percent after it reported a 72 percent slump in profit for the first half of the year.
South Korea’s shares came off their highs to end little changed with a negative bias as foreign investors continued to offload shares for an eighth consecutive session, marking the longest selling spree since November last year.
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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