By Adedapo Adesanya

Four  stocks led by Newrest ASL Plc rooted the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange in the positive zone by another 0.39 per cent gain on Friday, October 24.

Newrest ASL rose by N4.18 to N45.94 per unit from N41.76 per unit, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc appreciated by N3.62 to N48.45 per share from N44.85 per share, NASD Plc added N3.50 to end at N38.59 per unit compared with the previous day’s N35.09 per unit, and Geo-Fluids Plc gained 21 Kobo to close at N4.20 per share versus N3.99 per share.

As a result, the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) surged by 14.31 points to 3,654.80 points from the previously quoted 3,640.49 points and the market capitalisation added N8.56 billion to close at N2.186 trillion, in contrast to Thursday’s N2.178 trillion.

Business Post reports that three securities finished in red yesterday, with Okitiupa Plc down by N23.95 to end at N215.55 per unit versus N239.50 per unit, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc dropped N1.18 to quote at N56.30 per share versus N57.48 per share and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc declined by 4 Kobo to 42 Kobo per unit from 46 Kobo per unit.

The volume of securities traded at the session jumped by 156.2 per cent to 2.9 million units from the previous 1.2 million units, the value of securities bought and sold by investors increased by 30.8 per cent to N44.1 million from N33.7 million, while the number of deals executed decreased by 33.3 per cent to 24 deals from 36 deals.

Okitipupa Plc was still the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 170.3 million units transacted for N8.0 billion, followed by Air Liquide Plc with 507.3 million units worth N4.2 billion, and FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with 46.3 million units valued at N2.1 billion.

IGI Plc was the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 1.2 billion units worth N419.7 million, trailed by Impresit Bakolori Plc with the sale of 536.9 million units for N524.8 million, and Air Liquide Plc with 507.3 million units valued at N4.2 billion.

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Naira posted a N5 appreciation against the Dollar in the black market window of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Friday, October 24, selling at N1,485/$1 compared with the previous day’s value of N1,490/$1.

In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) segment, it improved against the Dollar during the session by N2.53 or 0.17 per cent to close at N1,457.96/$1 compared with Thursday’s exchange rate of N1,460.49/$1.

It further gained N2.51 against the Pound Sterling in the official market yesterday to quote at N1,946.52/£1 versus the preceding day’s N1,949.03/£1, but lost 84 Kobo against the Euro to settle at N1,696.33/€1, in contrast to the N1,695.49/€1 it was traded a day earlier.

At GTBank, the domestic currency gained N5 against the United States Dollar on Friday to finish at N1,470/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,475/$1.

The Naira continued to strengthen as FX pressure continued to ease as economic reforms continue to drive positive sentiments and confidence across markets, complimenting liquidity into the market from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and other channels as well as rising compliance with regulations.

On Friday, Nigeria was officially delisted from the grey list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), after two years of sustained effort, reform and inter-agency coordination aimed at strengthening the country’s Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) framework.

The development could influence the FX market by increasing foreign investments leading to capital inflows and ease frictions associated with cross-border flows and drive more stability.

However, analysts say Nigeria must ensure that conditions for the exit from the grey list must be improved upon, adding that a slide back may undo good impact already established.

A look at the cryptocurrency market showed most tokens were in green, though market sentiment remained cautious, with traders opting for selective exposure amid ongoing macroeconomic volatility.

October has been defined by forced selling and false starts and on track to become the worst since 2015, dampening an otherwise bullish month.

Ripple (XRP) increased by 4.3 per cent to $2.54, Solana (SOL) went up by 1.1 per cent to $194.09, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 0.8 per cent to $0.1980, Bitcoin (BTC) rose by 0.6 per cent to $111,537.38,  Cardano (ADA) jumped by 0.5 per cent to $0.6517, and Litecoin (LTC) soared by by 0.5 per cent to $96.52.

On the flip side, Binance Coin (BNB) slipped by 0.9 per cent to $1,112.69, and Ethereum (ETH) went down by 0.3 per cent to $3,929.77, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained at $1.00 each.

By Adedapo Adesanya

Oil prices fell on Friday after worries about President Donald Trump administration’s commitment to impose sanctions on Russia’s two biggest oil companies over the war in Ukraine.

Brent crude futures lost 5 cents or 0.1 per cent to trade at $65.94 a barrel, and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures tumbled by 29 cents or 0.5 per cent to $61.50 a barrel.

Despite this, both benchmarks ended the week over 7 per cent higher.

Market analysts noted that there is renewed skepticism that these sanctions will be as harsh, based on previous occurrences.

Mr Trump hit Russia’s Rosneft and Lukoil with sanctions to pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the Ukraine war. The two companies together account for more than 5 per cent of global oil output as Russia was the world’s second-biggest crude oil producer in 2024 after the US.

The US said it was prepared to take further action, while Russian President Vladimir Putin played down the sanctions as an unfriendly act, saying they would not significantly affect the Russian economy and talking up Russia’s importance to the global market.

The sanctions prompted Chinese state oil majors to suspend Russian oil purchases in the short term while refiners in India, the largest buyer of seaborne Russian oil, were set to sharply cut Russian crude imports.

China may be insulated considering the diversification of crude sources and stock availability while India is at risk.

Also, the United Kingdom imposed sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil last week and the European Union (EU) approved a 19th package of sanctions against Russia that includes a ban on imports of Russian liquefied natural gas.

The EU also added two Chinese refiners with a combined capacity of 600,000 barrels per day, as well as Chinaoil Hong Kong, a trading arm of PetroChina to its Russian sanctions list.

Now, investors will be focusing on a meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping next week as the duo work to ease long-standing trade tensions and find solutions to retaliatory tariff measures.