By Adedapo Adesanya

The Nigerian Naira recorded improvements in the official and black markets on Wednesday as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced its intention to launch an FX code designed to boost the integrity of the market.

The apex bank explained the code will serve as a guideline for the ethical conduct of FX dealers in the Nigerian forex landscape.

“The Central Bank of Nigeria has approved the release of the Nigerian Foreign Exchange (FX) Code as a guideline to the banking industry to promote the ethical conduct of Authorised Dealers in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market.

“The bank will formally launch the code at the CBN Head Office Auditorium, Abuja, on Tuesday, January 28, 2025,” a statement from the regulator read.

At the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) segment of the forex market window, the local currency gained 0..01 per cent or 20 Kobo against the US Dollar to close at N1,552.58/$1 compared with the preceding day’s N1,552.78/$1.

However, the domestic currency depreciated against the British Pound Sterling in the official market yesterday by N8.55 to wrap the session at N1,915.53/£1 compared with Tuesday’s N1,906.98/£1 and against the Euro, the Naira lost N4.24 to sell for N1,617.72/€1 versus N1,613.48/€1.

At the parallel market, the Nigerian currency improved its value against the greenback yesterday by N10 to quote at N1,660/$1, in contrast to the preceding session’s N1,670/$1.

In the cryptocurrency market, it was bearish after it was clarified that an earlier leak on the website of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), showing regulated XRP (XRP) and Solana (SOL) futures could start trading on February 10 pending regulatory approval, was an error.

This, coupled with profit-taking from the Mr Donald Trump rally, saw Dogecoin (DOGE) fall by 3.9 per cent to $0.3537, as Ethereum (ETH) depreciated by 3.1 per cent to quote at $3,213.39, and Bitcoin (BTC) depleted by 3.0 per cent to trade at $102,654.79.

Further, Cardano slumped by 2.9 per cent to $0.9708, Litecoin (LTC) weakened by 2.7 per cent to $113.62, Solana (SOL) recorded a 2.5 per cent depreciation to sell at $249.58, Binance Coin (BNB) shed 1.9 per cent to close at $686.40, and Ripple (XRP) dropped 1.2 per cent to end at $3.14, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 each.

By Adedapo Adesanya

Oil fell further on Wednesday as the market considers how the US President, Mr Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs could affect global economic growth and demand for energy.

Brent futures declined by 29 cents or 0.4 per cent during the session to settle at $79.00 a barrel and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) lost 39 cents or 0.5 per cent to trade at $75.44 per barrel.

Possible sanctions under the new Trump administration remain unclear, with possible tariffs related to Canada and Mexico now seemingly at the forefront of trader uncertainties.

The American president also vowed to hit the European Union with tariffs and said his administration was discussing a 10 per cent duty on Chinese imports because the narcotic fentanyl is being sent from China to the US via Mexico and Canada.

Mr Trump had previously threatened a 10 per cent duty on Chinese imports but realigned that with the February 1 deadline.

On its part, China said it was willing to maintain communication with the US and sought to promote stable and sustainable ties.

In Europe, French President, Mr Emmanuel Macron, and German Chancellor, Mr Olaf Scholz, insisted Europe was strong while expecting difficulties due to threats of tariffs from the US.

The US president also said his administration would “probably” stop buying oil from Venezuela, a member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) under US sanctions.

The US imported about 200,000 barrels per day of oil from Venezuela during the first 10 months of 2024, up from an average of 100,000 barrels per day in 2023, according to the latest data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Saudi Arabia’s crude oil exports in November jumped to their highest in eight months while Libya is planning to boost its crude refining capacity from the current 300,000 barrels per day to 400,000 barrels per day.

The American Petroleum Institute (API) estimated that crude oil inventories in the US increased by 1 million barrels for the week ending January 17. For the week prior, the API reported a draw of 2.6 million barrels in US crude oil inventories amid build season, while product inventories saw a hefty build for multiple weeks in a row.

In 2024, crude oil inventories dropped by more than 12 million barrels, according to the API’s inventory data, with the downward trend continuing beyond the new year.

Official data from the US EIA will be released later on Thursday with both weekly reports delayed by a day due to the US Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday on Monday.

By Dipo Olowookere

The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited came under selling pressure on Wednesday, resulting in a 0.29 per cent loss at the close of trading activities by 2:30 pm, when the closing gong was struck.

Data showed that investors booked profit on equities that have recorded a reasonable price appreciation in the past trading days.

As a result, the All-Share Index (ASI) was down by 301.86 points to 102,836.13 points from the preceding day’s 103,137.99 points and the market capitalisation went down by N186 billion to settle at N63.147 trillion versus Tuesday’s value of N63.333 trillion.

Business Post reports that apart from the banking sector, which gained 0.61 per cent yesterday, every other space turned red.

The insurance counter declined by 0.91 per cent, the consumer goods index tumbled by 0.26 per cent, the industrial goods counter crashed by 0.18 per cent, and the energy industry shrank by 0.11 per cent.

Multiverse topped the losers’ chart during the session after it lost 9.87 per cent to close at N10.05, May and Baker slipped by 9.78 per cent to N8.30, Prestige Assurance retreated by 7.69 per cent to N1.32, Guinea Insurance crumbled by 7.45 per cent to 87 Kobo, and Red Star Express moderated by 4.75 per cent to N4.81.

On the flip side, SCOA Nigeria appreciated by 9.70 per cent to N3.28, Cadbury Nigeria jumped by 9.65 per cent to N25.00, Secure Electronic Technology gained 9.59 per cent to 80 Kobo, C&I Leasing expanded by 5.85 per cent to N4.34, and FTN Cocoa grew by 5.41 per cent to N1.95.

On top of the activity log was Access Holdings with a turnover of 92.0 million shares valued at N2.2 billion, UBA exchanged 27.0 million stocks worth N919.3 million, Sterling Holdings traded 23.0 million equities for N124.1 million, AIICO Insurance transacted 17.9 million stocks worth N31.7 million, and Zenith Bank sold 17.0 million equities for N802.2 million.

In all, the market participants bought and sold 394.8 million stocks worth N15.2 billion in 10,766 deals at midweek versus the 440.3 million stocks valued at N12.0 billion transacted in 13,087 deals a day earlier.

This showed that the value of transactions increased during the session by 26.67 per cent as the volume of transactions and the number of deals decreased by 10.33 per cent and 17.74 per cent, respectively.