Economy
Asian Stocks Finish Mixed on Wednesday
By Investors Hub
Asian stocks turned in a mixed performance on Wednesday as some disappointing U.S. data added to investor worries about global growth. Brexit-related developments and U.S.-China trade talks also remained on investors’ radar.
Chinese stocks gained ground as a drop in industrial profits in the January-February period added to speculation the government might announce fresh measures to prop up growth.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 25.62 points or 0.9 percent to 3,022.72, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbed 161.34 points or 0.6 percent to 28,728.25.
Meanwhile, Japanese markets fell as growth worries persisted and many stocks began trading ex-dividend. The Nikkei 225 Index dipped 49.66 points or 0.2 percent to 21,378.73, and the broader Topix closed 0.5 percent lower at 1,609.49.
Investors offloaded stocks with high dividend yields, with Kansai Electric Power plunging 4.2 percent and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group losing 2.4 percent. Automakers Mazda Motor, Toyota Motor, Nissan Motor and Subaru Corp fell 1-4 percent.
On the other hand, biopharmaceutical firm AnGes Inc soared 9.5 percent as it received government approval for HGF plasmid to treat patients with critical limb ischemia.
Australian markets recovered from early losses to finish marginally higher. Lenders ANZ, Commonwealth and NAB rose between 0.2 percent and half a percent as heads of the top banks faced parliamentary questioning.
Mining heavyweights BHP and Rio Tinto advanced 0.9 percent and 1.5 percent, respectively, while gold miners such as Newcrest and Northern Star fell over 1 percent after gold declined the most in nearly two weeks in the previous session.
Eclipx Group soared 22.8 percent after it received interest from multiple parties for its Grays and Right2Drive businesses.
Investment manager Challenger rose 1 percent to extend gains from the previous session after expanding a partnership with MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings.
Rare earths miner Lynas Corp advanced 1.9 percent after saying it would not engage with conglomerate Wesfarmers on its “highly conditional” A$1.5 billion takeover offer for the company.
Tech stocks such as Appen, Afterpay Touch and Xero jumped around 2 percent.
Seoul stocks edged lower as investors braced for a gloomy earnings season. The benchmark Kospi eased 3.18 points or 0.2 percent to finish at 2,145.62 in thin trading, dragged down by healthcare stocks.
Tech heavyweights Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix rose 0.2 percent and 1 percent, respectively.
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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