Economy

Asian Stocks Close Mixed on US-China Trade Negotiations

Published

7 years ago

30/01/2019

By Investors Hub

Asian stocks ended mixed on Wednesday as strong earnings from U.S. industrial giant 3M Co. as well as Apple CEO Tim Cook?s comments about U.S.-China trade tensions helped investors put growth and trade worries on the back burner.

The dollar index dipped slightly ahead of the Federal Reserve?s policy statement, while the British pound nursed losses after British lawmakers rejected most amendments that sought to avoid Britain leaving the European Union without a deal.

Oil prices edged higher on concerns about supply disruptions after the U.S. imposed sanctions on state-owned Venezuelan oil company PDVSA.

China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell 18.68 points or 0.7 percent to 2,575.58 as investors awaited the conclusion of the Fed policy meeting and U.S.-China talks. Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.4 percent to 27,642.85.

Chinese Vice Premier Liu He is in Washington this week to meet with U.S. officials, including President Donald Trump.

Japanese shares fell on earnings concerns and after drugmaker Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma said a clinical trial for a new drug failed to complete. The Nikkei 225 Index dropped 108.10 points or 0.5 percent to 20,556.54, while the broader Topix closed 0.5 percent lower at 1,550.76.

Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma shares slumped 18.6 percent. Apple supplier Alps Alpine fell 3 percent despite Apple reporting sharp growth in its services business.

Akebono Brake Industry Co. plunged 18.2 percent despite the company announcing a turnaround plan.

On the data front, retail sales in Japan were up a seasonally adjusted 0.9 percent in December, a government report showed. That exceeded expectations for an increase of 0.4 percent following the downwardly revised 1.1 percent decline in November.

Australian stocks eked out modest gains as miners extended gains from the previous session on the back of strong iron ore and copper prices following a mining disaster in Brazil.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 12.50 points or 0.2 percent to 5,886.70, while the broader All Ordinaries Index ended up 11.70 points or 0.2 percent at 5,951.20.

BHP Group rallied 2.6 percent and Rio Tinto soared 4.5 percent to hit multi-month highs, while smaller rival Fortescue Metals Group jumped 7.8 percent.

Energy stocks Woodside Petroleum, Oil Search and Santos climbed over 1 percent after oil prices gained more than 2 percent on Tuesday, supported by U.S. imposed sanctions on a Venezuelan state owned oil company.

Online furniture retailer Temple and Webster Group soared 11.2 percent after it reported a 40 percent surge in revenue for the first half of the year.

On the economic front, a government report showed that consumer prices in Australia rose 0.4 percent sequentially in the fourth quarter of 2018, unchanged from the third quarter and in line with expectations.

On a yearly basis, inflation advanced 1.8 percent, exceeding expectations for 1.7 percent but down from 1.9 percent in the three months prior.

Economy

FrieslandCampina Wamco, Three Others Raise NASD OTC Exchange by 1.41%

Published

57 minutes ago

16/05/2026

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange closed higher by 1.41 per cent on Friday, May 15, supported by four securities on the platform.

During the session, FrieslandCampina Wamco Plc added N14.24 to its share price to sell for N159.00 per unit, in contrast to the previous day’s N144.76 per unit.

Further, Central Securities and Clearing System (CSCS) Plc appreciated by N1.34 to N72.34 per share from N71.00 per share, Geo-Fluids Plc improved its price by 4 Kobo to N2.94 per unit from N2.90 per unit, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc gained 1 Kobo to trade at 61 Kobo per share compared with Thursday’s closing price of 60 Kobo per share.

As a result, the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) rose by 58.20 points to 4,188.41 points from 4,130.21 points, and the market capitalisation soared by N34.82 billion to N2.506 trillion from N2.471 trillion on Thursday.

During the session, the volume of trades went up by 180.8 per cent to 1.2 million units from 417,349 units, and the value of transactions increased by 29.8 per cent to N29.8 million from N23.2 million, while the number of deals fell by 22.6 per cent to 24 deals from 31 deals.

Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc ended the day as the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 60.8 million units exchanged for N4.1 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.9 million units valued at N1.9 billion.

GNI Plc also closed the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units transacted for N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units traded for N1.2 billion.

Economy

Profit-taking Sinks Nigeria’s Equity Market by 0.76% as Bears Take Control

Published

1 hour ago

16/05/2026

Dipo Olowookere

By Dipo Olowookere

The bears overpowered the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited on Friday, sinking it further by 0.76 per cent when the closing gong was struck by 4 pm.

The nation’s flagship equity market was under selling pressure during the session, as investors booked profits after the shares witnessed price appreciation in the past trading sessions.

The energy sector was the most impacted, as it shed 4.43 per cent. The consumer goods index declined by 0.90 per cent, the banking counter decreased by 0.15 per cent, and the industrial goods sector lost 0.08 per cent, while the insurance counter gained 2.42 per cent, which was not enough to salvage the situation.

Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) contracted by 1,912.19 points to 250,330.92 points from 252,243.11 points, and the market capitalisation moderated by 1.225 trillion to N160.444 trillion from N161.669 trillion.

Zichis was the worst-performing stock for the session after it gave up 9.97 per cent to close at N29.43, FTN Cocoa slipped by 9.95 per cent to N8.96, The Initiates slumped by 9.90 per cent to N32.30, LivingTrust Mortgage Bank tumbled by 9.88 per cent to N3.83, and International Energy Insurance dropped 9.71 per cent to trade at N2.79.

The best-performing stock was ABC Transport, which grew by 10.00 per cent to N6.27. May and Baker also appreciated by 10.00 per cent to N47.30, SCOA Nigeria surged by 9.98 per cent to N33.05, Trans-Nationwide Express expanded by 9.97 per cent to N7.06, and DAAR Communications jumped 9.76 per cent to N2.25.

Yesterday, investors traded 1.1 billion shares worth N44.3 billion in 65,744 deals compared with the 1.0 billion shares valued at N41.6 billion transacted in 74,822 deals a day earlier. This indicated a dip in the number of deals by 12.13 per cent, and a rise in the trading volume and value by 10.00 per cent and 6.49 per cent, respectively.

Chams was the busiest equity for the day, with 328.5 million units sold for N1.1 billion. UBA traded 61.6 million units worth N2.7 billion, First Holdco transacted 58.7 million units valued at N4.2 billion, Secure Electronic Technology exchanged 51.9 million units worth N45.0 million, and Access Holdings traded 51.8 million units valued at N1.3 billion.

Economy

Naira Weakens to N1,371/$1 at Official Market

Published

2 hours ago

16/05/2026

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The last trading session of the week at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) ended on a negative note for the Naira on Friday, May 15, as it lost N15 Kobo or 0.1 per cent against the Dollar to trade at N1,371.04/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,370.89/$1.

However, it further appreciated against the Pound Sterling in the same market segment yesterday by N20.77 to close at N1,830.61/£1 versus Thursday’s value of N1,851.38/£1, and gained N7.91 against the Euro to settle at N1,595.07/€1 versus N1,602.98/€1.

At the GTBank FX desk, the Naira lost N2 against the US Dollar during the session to sell at N1,383/$1 compared with the preceding session’s N1,381/$1, and at the black market, it remained unchanged at N1,385/$1.

The Naira is forecast to be broadly stable, supported by Dollar sales by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) amid steady, higher oil receipts, with the ‌market settling ⁠into a balance.

Policy direction is also expected to give the market some boost as the CBN said the new edition of the FX market guidelines will deepen liquidity, improve transparency and strengthen confidence in the country’s foreign exchange market.

According to the Governor of the CBN, Mr Yemi Cardoso, the update is due to changing global economic realities, domestic reforms and the need for a more coherent and forward-looking regulatory framework. According to him, the last edition of the FX manual was issued in 2018, making the latest review both timely and necessary.

Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market plunged into the red zone as rising bond yields hit risk assets across markets, while traders are increasingly betting the Federal Reserve may need to raise rates again. Rising energy prices and resurging inflation could force central banks back into tightening mode.

Cardano (ADA) shrank by 4.4 per cent to $0.2557, Dogecoin (DOGE) slid by 3.7 per cent to $0.1104, Ripple (XRP) depreciated by 3.5 per cent to $1.41, Solana (SOL) crashed by 3.5 per cent to $87.81, and Binance Coin (BNB) slumped by 3.4 per cent to $659.64.

Further, Bitcoin (BTC) declined by 2.6 per cent to $78,547.49, Ethereum (ETH) lost 2.1 per cent to quote at $2,209.19, and TRON (TRX) tumbled by 0.7 per cent to $0.3509, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 each.