Economy
CNBC Africa Clocks 10 in Grand Style

By Dipo Olowookere
When on June 1, 2007 CNBC Africa launched its first studio in Johannesburg, South Africa, not many thought it would stand the test of time let alone becoming an authority in the financial reporting arm of journalism.
But a decade after, it is all glaring even for the blind to see the success the organisation has made on the continent of Africa since its inception.
Even founder of the ABN Group, the parent body of CNBC Africa, Mr Rakesh Wahi, attested to the fact that the beginning was never rosy when he came up with the idea.
Mr Wahi made his journey to South Africa in 2004, armed with the vision of a Pan-African business and finance network that would be set up in the economic hub of Africa. And so, the vision of CNBC Africa was realised with the inception of the Johannesburg bureau.
“Selling the dream was never easy when you had nothing to show and no comparable project to correlate to,” he explained.
On Thursday, June 1, 2017, the baby of yesterday clocked 10 and this was marked with a special broadcast and markets opening from the JSE in South Africa.
The special anniversary broadcast brought together key stakeholders, supporters, regular analysts, shareholders, senior management and media, to look back on the past decade of bringing the African economic story to a continent-wide and international audience.
CNBC Africa’s success has not been achieved overnight. The network has survived periods of political and financial turbulence, including the recession of 2008, and has continued to prosper despite the volatile environment of the African continent. CNBC Africa operates studios in Lagos, Nairobi, Johannesburg and Kigali, making it the only financial network to of its size to broadcast live to a pan-African audience daily.
The network has played an important role in the changing the perception of Africa’s economies, by attracting investors, showcasing opportunities and cultivating interest in African markets.
“Investors follow information. In the past, economies had been defined by the differences in access to information; in economics we call it information asymmetry. Those who have better information tend to go for opportunities for investment. The channel has given Africans a profile, because we have capital that is not well mobilized in Africa.
“Because we are exposing and talking about the business opportunities and economic opportunities that are provided by the continent, we have seen mobilization of capital with Africans themselves. When we profile a country or a region, the investments prospects are now known to those who are directing capital,” comments founding non-executive director, Mr Sam Bhembe.
Analysts, entrepreneurs and business men and women from across Africa continue to make CNBC Africa their primary source of information as the channel provides 24-hour coverage of the day’s markets trading, from the open of each stock exchange in East, South and West Africa, to the closing of the day’s activities.
“Today, when I see a simultaneous conversation between our anchors in East, West and Southern Africa, I realise that the channel has come so far,” says executive director, Bronwyn Nielsen.
The next ten years will be no less a challenge than the last, but one can be certain that CNBC Africa will continue to grow and thrive on the African continent.
“As CNBC Africa turns 10, we need to understand the direction of the industry. In the past years, the future of TV has been questioned. Television news has changed – consumers are no longer silent viewers, they are informed contributors. Never has it been easier to create expression; social media has made creating, expressing and accessing information so much easier. As a brand we are ready for the challenge, our niche being not just to quantify pan-African content we bring our viewers, but the sheer quality of financial and business news we offer. My faith in the brand we represent, and the people we have, has never been stronger,” says managing director, Roberta Naicker.
“In October we renewed our franchise agreement with CNBC International for another 15 years; our 10th anniversary is but a milestone in greater things to come. We have built meaningful structures of succession and the next phase will see the baton of leadership change to the younger leaders who will be responsible to build the legacy of the Founders until the next milestone – our silver jubilee in 2032,” concludes Mr Wahi.
Economy
Stock Market Gains N2.367trn as All-Share Index Rises 2.06%
By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited appreciated by 2.06 per cent on Friday, amid a rush for local equities due to encouraging earnings of companies for 2025.
Business Post reports that the buying pressure was across the key sectors of Customs Street yesterday, with the banking index growing by 2.49 per cent. The energy industry appreciated by 2.05 per cent, the consumer goods counter grew by 0.78 per cent, the insurance space improved by 0.64 per cent, and the industrial goods sector expanded by 0.44 per cent.
At the close of trades, the market capitalisation went up by N2.367 trillion to N117.027 trillion from N114.660 trillion, and the All-Share Index (ASI) gained 3,687.45 points to close at 182,313.08 points compared with the previous day’s 178,625.63 points.
Cornerstone Insurance, Infinity Trust, and Nestle Nigeria appreciated by 10.00 per cent each to sell at N6.38, N9.90 and N2,662.00, respectively, while Okomu Oil rose by 9.99 per cent to N1,327.00, with RT Briscoe up by 9.97 per cent to N17.42.
Conversely, SAHCO depleted by 10.00 per cent to M135.00, Guinness Nigeria lost 9.97 per cent to trade at N103.00, Omatek shrank by 9.39 per cent to N2.99, NPF Microfinance Bank decreased by 6.51 per cent to N5.60, and eTranzact slipped by 6.33 per cent to N10.80.
A total of 53 stocks ended in the green side and 33 stocks finished in the red side, representing a positive market breadth index and strong investor sentiment.
Data showed that 936.4 million shares valued at N52.7 billion were transacted in 50,068 deals on Friday versus the 698.3 million shares worth N28.438 billion traded in 50,886 deals on Thursday, indicating a rise in the trading volume and value by 34.10 per cent, and 85.56 per cent apiece, and a slip in the number of deals by 1.61 per cent.
First Holdco closed the session as the most active equity with 106.3 million units worth N5.1 billion, Zenith Bank transacted 72.6 million units valued at N5.7 billion, United Capital traded 45.4 million units for N963.2 million, GTCO sold 45.0 million units worth N4.9 billion, and Fidelity Bank exchanged 31.4 million units valued at N639.0 million.
Economy
OTC Securities Exchange Extends Positive Run by 0.86%
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange rose further by 0.86 per cent on Friday, February 13, with the market capitalisation growing by N20.27 billion to N2.378 trillion from the previous session’s N2.357 trillion, and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) rising by 33.87 points to 3,974.77 points from the 3,940.90 points it ended a day earlier.
The improvement recorded by the bourse yesterday was influenced by six price gainers led by Okitipupa Plc, which went up by N18.00 to sell at N260.00 per share compared with the previous day’s N242.00 per share.
Further, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc added N3.39 to quote at N80.47 per unit versus N77.08 per unit, IPWA Plc chalked by 31 Kobo to finish at N3.44 per share versus N3.13 per share, Lagos Building Investment Company (LBIC) Plc gained 31 Kobo to settle at N3.41 per unit versus N3.10 per unit, Afriland Properties Plc appreciated by 31 Kobo to N16.51 per share from N16.20 per share, and Food Concepts Plc increased by 8 Kobo to N3.28 per unit from N3.20 per unit.
There were three price losers, led by MRS Oil Plc, which weakened by N10.00 to close at N170.00 per share compared with Thursday’s price of N200.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc lost N2.59 to sell for N65.52 per unit compared with the preceding session’s N68.10 per unit, and Geo-Fluids Plc depreciated by 33 Kobo to N3.30 per share from N3.63 per share.
During the session, the volume of securities transacted by the market participants went up by 9.5 per cent to 9.4 million units from 8.6 million units, the value increased by 1,206.5 per cent to N703.6 million from N53.9 million, and the number of deals grew by 7.1 per cent to 45 deals from 42 deals.
CSCS Plc remained the most traded stock by value (year-to-date) with 27.1 million units exchanged for N1.5 billion, followed by Resourcery Plc with 1.05 billion units traded at N408.6 million, and Geo-Fluids Plc with 29.9 million units valued at N152.6 million.
Resourcery Plc ended the day as the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 1.05 billion units sold for N408.6 million, followed by Geo-Fluids Plc with 29.9 million worth N152.6 million, and CSCS Plc with 27.1 million units sold for N1.5 billion.
Economy
Naira Value Further Dips 0.13% to N1,355/$1
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira depreciated further against the United States Dollar by N1.76 or 0.13 per cent on Friday in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) to close at N1,33.42/$1, in contrast to the N1,353.66/$1 it was exchanged a day earlier.
However, the Naira appreciated against the Pound Sterling in the same market window yesterday by N5.05 to trade at N1,844.59 versus Thursday’s closing price of N1,849.64/£1, and against the Euro, it improved by 75 Kobo to quote at N1,60/€1 versus the previous day’s N1,608.68/€1.
At the GTBank FX desk, the domestic currency lost N6 on the US Dollar on Friday to settle at N1,365/$1 versus the preceding session’s N1,359/$1, and at the parallel market, it chalked up N10 to trade at N1,430/$1 versus the previous day’s N1,430/$1.
The weakening of the Nigerian currency in the official market happened as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) refrained from intervening in the official window.
The FX supply side was eclipsed by growing demand for foreign payments. Exporters’ inflows, non-bank corporate supply, and other market participants’ contributions had enhanced the FX liquidity level.
Pressure came with the entry of all duly licensed Bureau De Change (BDCs) into the official foreign exchange, although there are indications that the move will help the Naira-US Dollar exchange value, as BDC operators have started approaching their banks to understand the operational modalities and framework for accessing Dollars.
As for the cryptocurrency market, benchmarked tokens improved as US interest rate futures on Friday raised odds of rate cuts by the Federal Reserve after a report that showed inflation rose less than expected in January.
Data showed the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 0.2 per cent last month after an unrevised 0.3 per cent gain in December, with Solana (SOL) up by 7.9 per cent to $85.17, and Ethereum (ETH) up by 6.5 per cent to trade at $2,059.78.
Further, Cardano (ADA) added 5.3 per cent to close at $0.2758, Ripple (XRP) jumped 5.1 per cent to $1.42, Bitcoin expanded by 4.8 per cent to $69,357.35, Litecoin (LTC) grew by 4.7 per cent to $55.27, Binance Coin (BNB) jumped 4.0 per cent to $621.88, and Dogecoin (DOGE) increased by 3.8 per cent to $0.0965, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 each.
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