Economy
Brexit Deal Triggers Early Buying Interest on Wall Street
By Investors Hub
The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a pointing to a higher opening on Thursday, with stocks likely to move back to the upside after ending the previous session modestly lower.
Early buying interest may be generated in reaction to news that the U.K. and EU negotiators have reached a last-minute Brexit deal.
European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker described the deal as ?fair and balanced? for the EU and the U.K. and urged member nations to back the agreement.
The deal could eliminate some of the Brexit uncertainty hanging over the global markets, although it remains to be seen if the agreement will be approved by U.K. lawmakers.
A positive reaction to the latest batch of earnings news may also contribute to some early strength on Wall Street.
Following the rally seen on Tuesday, stocks showed a lack of direction over the course of the trading day on Wednesday. The major averages spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line.
Eventually, the major averages finished the day modestly lower. The Dow edged down 22.82 points or 0.1 percent to 27,001.98, the Nasdaq dipped 24.52 points or 0.3 percent to 8,124.18 and the S&P 500 slipped 5.99 points or 0.2 percent to 2,989.69.
The choppy trading on Wall Street came as traders digested mixed U.S. economic data as well as the latest batch of earnings news.
Before the start of trading, the Commerce Department released a report showing an unexpected decrease in U.S. retail sales in the month of September.
The Commerce Department said retail sales fell by 0.3 percent in September after climbing by an upwardly revised 0.6 percent in August.
The drop came as a surprise to economists, who had expected sales to rise by 0.3 percent compared to the 0.4 percent increase originally reported for the previous month.
Excluding a notable pullback in auto sales, retail sales still edged down by 0.1 percent in September after rising by a revised 0.2 percent in August.
Economists had expected ex-auto sales to rise by 0.2 percent compared to the unchanged reading originally reported for the previous month.
The drop in retail sales raised some concerns about the economic outlook but also added to optimism about further interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.
Meanwhile, the National Association of Home Builders released a separate report showing homebuilder confidence unexpectedly climbed to its highest level in well over a year in the month of October.
The report said the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index jumped to 71 in October after inching up to 68 in September. Economists had expected the index to come in unchanged from the previous month.
With the unexpected increase, the housing market index rose for the fourth straight month and reached its highest level since hitting a matching reading in February of 2018.
Later in the day, the Federal Reserve released its Beige Book, which said the U.S. economy expanded at only a slight to modest pace over the past month.
The Beige Book, a compilation of anecdotal evidence on economic conditions in the twelve Fed districts, noted business activity varied across the country.
Traders were also reacting to the latest batch of earnings news, with Bank of America (BAC) moving notably higher after reporting better than expected third quarter results.
Most of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves, contributing to the lackluster performance by the broader markets.
Steel stocks showed a significant move to the downside, however, with the NYSE Arca Steel Index slumping by 2 percent amid renewed uncertainty about a U.S.-China trade deal.
Software and semiconductor stocks also saw considerable weakness, dragging the Dow Jones U.S. Software Index and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index down by 1.7 percent and 1.5 percent, respectively.
On the other hand, gold stocks moved sharply higher over the course of the session, resulting in a 1.8 percent jump by the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index. The rally by gold stocks came amid a notable increase by the price of the precious metal.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) has disclosed that seven additional insurance companies have secured full recapitalisation approval from the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), bringing the industry-wide recapitalisation exercise to a successful conclusion.
In a statement on Friday, NIA Chairman, Mrs Ebelechukwu Nwachukwu, said the milestone represented significant progress towards building a stronger, more competitive and trusted insurance market in Nigeria.
She said the seven companies, alongside the 41 insurance companies and two reinsurance companies earlier approved, had demonstrated resilience, financial discipline and corporate strength by successfully completing the final verification process.
“Having successfully navigated the rigorous final verification process, these companies, alongside the earlier approved 41 insurance companies and two reinsurance companies, have demonstrated exceptional resilience, corporate fortitude, and financial discipline,” Mrs Nwachukwu said.
She added that the successful recapitalisation had positioned the companies to deliver greater value to policyholders and contribute to deeper insurance penetration nationwide.
Mrs Nwachukwu commended NAICOM for its regulatory oversight during the exercise, describing the commission’s approach as fair, structured and focused on strengthening market integrity.
“NAICOM’s strategic foresight and structured execution have elevated the Nigerian insurance industry, reinforcing its position within the broader financial sector as a substantially stronger, highly resilient, and globally competitive market,” she said.
The NIA chairman reaffirmed the association’s commitment to supporting insurance companies as they adapt to new regulatory requirements under the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA) 2025.
She said the association would continue to work with NAICOM to promote a sustainable and future-ready insurance sector.
Mrs Nwachukwu also assured policyholders, investors and other economic stakeholders that the recapitalised industry was better positioned to support economic growth.
“With this recapitalization complete, the Nigerian insurance sector enters a transformative era. The industry is fully equipped to settle genuine claims promptly, absorb higher local and international risks, and serve as a cornerstone of financial stability, directly supporting President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s vision of achieving a $1 trillion economy by 2030,” she said.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Capital market operators have been directed to immediately freeze the assets, funds, and other economic resources belonging to six individuals and three entities designated as terrorist financiers by the Nigeria Sanctions Committee (NSC).
This directive was given by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) via a circular to all Capital Market Regulated Entities (CMREs), warning that failure to comply would constitute a violation of the Investments and Securities Act, 2025, and the SEC Anti-Money Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Rules and Regulations.
It said violations could attract regulatory sanctions, including fines, suspension of operations or revocation of registration, reminding capital market operators that all unusual or suspicious transactions must be promptly reported to the NFIU.
The regulator, which stated that the designations were made in line with the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act (TPPA) 2022, listed the six individuals as Babangida Muhammed Adamu Hammajam, Abdullahi Umar Usman, Ibrahim Abubakar, Adamu Chiroma, Muktar Muhammad Adamu and Yakubu Ogirima Ibrahim. The three designated entities are Nine to Nine BDC Ltd, Generation Currency BDC Ltd and Abbal Bako & Sons Bureau de Change.
According to the SEC, Hammajama was listed on June 18, 2026, for involvement in terrorism financing and support for the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), while Usman was designated for providing material support to a designated terrorist organisation through repeated financial transactions.
The commission said Abubakar was listed for involvement in terrorism financing and membership of ISWAP, while Chiroma was designated for allegedly using Bureau De Change (BDC) operations and related corporate entities to facilitate the movement of funds linked to terrorist activities.
Muktar Muhammad Adamu was listed on June 15, 2026, for providing financial support and facilitating transactions linked to the financing network of the ISWAP Okene cell, while Ibrahim was designated for providing material and financial support to the ISWAP Kogi cell.
The SEC said the three entities were listed for their alleged involvement in facilitating and channelling funds connected to the ISWAP Okene financing network.
The commission directed CMREs to immediately identify and freeze, without prior notice, all funds, assets and other economic resources in their possession belonging to the designated persons and entities.
They are also required to report frozen assets and other compliance actions, including attempted transactions, to the Secretariat of the Nigeria Sanctions Committee.
In addition, the SEC directed regulated entities to immediately file suspicious transaction reports with the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) for further analysis of the financial activities.
It further instructed operators to report as suspicious transactions all cases of name matches in financial transactions, whether occurring before or after receipt of the sanctions list.
The regulated entities are also required to prohibit dealings with the designated persons and entities and continue monitoring for transactions involving them.
The SEC said any findings should be reported to the Nigeria Sanctions Committee through its designated reporting channel.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc, Nigeria’s biggest sugar producer, has raised N486 billion ($356 million) through an oversubscribed rights issue as the company moves to reduce its debt burden and strengthen its capital base after three consecutive years of losses.
The company, founded by Mr Aliko Dangote, raised the funds through the issuance of 8.1 billion ordinary shares at N60 per share, according to a filing with the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited on Friday.
The development follows shareholders’ approval of the capital-raising plan at the company’s 20th Annual General Meeting held in April.
In a statement signed by the Company Secretary, Mr Temitope Hassan, the sugar firm said the rights issue is part of efforts to improve its financial position and provide funding to support its long-term growth plans.
The company’s directors are authorised to raise up to N500 billion through a rights issue, on terms and at a time to be determined by the Board.
Dangote Sugar increased its share capital to accommodate the new shares issued under the rights issue. The sugar producer’s board also authorised to allot the shares and the management of any fractional holdings in accordance with regulatory requirements.
The organisation said any shares remaining unallotted after the offer would be cancelled as permitted by law, describing the capital raise as one of the largest rights issues in Nigeria’s corporate history.
The capital raise comes against the backdrop of improved revenue performance but continued losses at the company.
In its 2025 audited results, Dangote Sugar recorded a 24.56 per cent increase in revenue to N829.2 billion, compared with the previous year. The growth was driven largely by strong demand for 50kg sugar, which generated N807 billion in revenue.
Retail sugar sales contributed N17.7 billion, while molasses and freight income generated N4.02 billion and N66.4 million, respectively.
Cost of sales increased by 11.35 per cent to N706.5 billion, largely due to raw material costs of N573.3 billion. This resulted in a gross profit of N122.6 billion.
Despite the improvement in revenue and gross profit, the company recorded a pre-tax loss of N72.2 billion in 2025, although this represented a significant improvement from the N270.8 billion loss reported in 2024.
Lagos remained the company’s largest market, accounting for 55.82 per cent of regional sales, followed by the North with 35.35 per cent, the West with 6.45 per cent and the East with 2.38 per cent.
The fresh capital is expected to provide Dangote Sugar with additional financial capacity as it works to reduce its debt obligations, strengthen its balance sheet and advance its long-term expansion plans.
