By Adedapo Adesanya

The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange weakened by 0.05 per cent on Monday, January 19, with the market capitalisation declining by N1.1 billion to end N2.194 trillion from N2.195 trillion and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) down by 1.83 points to end at 3,667.22 points, compared with last Friday closing price of 3,669.05 points.

There were seven price movers, with four gainers and three losers led by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc, which dipped by N1.29 to N73.71 per share from N75.00 per share, Food Concepts Plc lost 31 Kobo to close at N2.75 per unit versus N3.06 per unit, and UBN Property Plc went down by 4 Kobo to N2.01 per share from N2.05 per share.

On the flip side, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc led the gainers as it rose by N1.80 to settle at N41.80 per unit compared with last Friday’s rate of N40.00 per unit, Air Liquide Plc appreciated by N1.40 to N15.40 per share versus N14.00 per share, IPWA Plc improved its value by 15 Kobo to end at N1.63 per unit versus N1.48 per unit, and Geo-Fluids Plc added 14 Kobo to trade at N7.14 per share compared with the preceding trading day’s N7.00 per share.

Meanwhile, the volume of securities traded rose by 642.2 per cent to 2.7 million units from 364,080 units, the total value of securities jumped by 288.0 per cent to N18.2 million from N4.7 million, and the number of deals increased by 104.8 per cent to 43 deals from 21 deals.

CSCS Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 3.2 million units valued at N126.9 million, trailed by MRS Oil Plc with 271,121 units worth N54.1 million, and Geo-Fluids Plc with 7.5 million units sold for N51.2 million.

The most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis was Geo-Fluids Plc with 7.5 million units exchanged for N51.2 million, followed by CSCS  Plc with 3.2 million units traded for N126.9 million, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc transacted 3.1 million units valued at N1.9 million.

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Naira opened the week heading south against the US Dollar on Monday, January 19 in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) after it lost N2.33 or 0.16 per cent to sell for N1,420.28/$1 compared with the preceding trading day’s N1,417.95/$1.

Equally, the Nigerian Naira depleted against the Pound Sterling in the same market window during the session by N4.56 to close at N1,905.8/£1 compared with last Friday’s value of N1,901.32/£1 and depreciated against the Euro by N5.27 to quote at N1,652.78/€1 versus the preceding session’s N1,647.51/€1.

But at the GTBank FX desk, the domestic currency appreciated against the greenback yesterday by N3 to sell at N1,424/$1, in contrast to last Friday’s price of N1,427/$1, and at the black market, it remained unchanged at N1,485/$1.

The weakening of the Nigerian currency in the official market on Monday was driven by relatively higher demand than the available supply as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) made no visible intervention.

Regardless, there are expectations that improved supply conditions from the apex bank will be readily available to keep the market within range supplemented by exporters’ and importers’ inflows in addition to non-bank corporate supply enhanced liquidity.

Nigeria has seen projections of a stronger economic or gross domestic product (GDP) growth and lower inflation in 2026, with these forecasts citing improved macroeconomic fundamentals and reform impacts.

The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) projected a single interest rate for the year, while it made further positive forecasts regarding the Nigerian economy.

Despite oil earnings fluctuations, Nigeria’s gross external reserves balance increased by $40.71 million to the previous day’s balance, bringing total reserves to $45.90 trillion.

In the cryptocurrency market, benchmarked tokens were largely down as renewed tariff threats between the US and Europe, tied to President Donald Trump’s comments on Greenland, have pushed investors back toward traditional safe havens. Gold and silver rallied, while cryptocurrencies underperformed.

Ethereum (ETH) declined by 2.3 per cent to $3,119.97, Bitcoin (BTC) slumped by 1.7 per cent to $90,940.76, Binance Coin (BNB) went down by 0.9 per cent to $915.39, Solana (SOL) dipped by 0.9 per cent to $131.81, Ripple (XRP) slipped by 0.2 per cent to $1.95, US Dollar Tether (USDT) slid by 0.1 per cent to $0.9990, and US Dollar Coin (USDC) lost 0.01 per cent to settle at $0.9997.

On the flip side, Cardano (ADA) jumped by 1.5 per cent to $0.3666, Litecoin (LTC) appreciated by 0.3 per cent to $70.17, and Dogecoin (DOGE) went up by 0.2 per cent to $0.1269.

By Dipo Olowookere

It was bearish start of the week for the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited after it printed a marginal 0.01 per cent loss on Monday due to mild profit-taking.

It was observed that the 0.47 per cent decline recorded by the consumer goods index and the 0.06 per cent shrink posted by the insurance counter crumbled the Nigerian bourse during the session, as they overpowered the gains achieved by the other key sectors of Customs Street.

The banking space grew by 0.28 per cent, and the energy industry expanded by 0.06 per cent, while the commodity and the industrial goods indices closed flat.

At the close of business, the All-Share Index (ASI) decreased by 17.00 points to 166,112.50 points from last Friday’s 166,129.50 points and the market capitalisation contracted by N11 billion to N106.343 trillion from the previous session’s N106.354 trillion.

Industrial and Medical Gases gave up 9.95 per cent to sell for N34.85, Haldane McCall lost 9.88 per cent to close at N3.83, LivingTrust Mortgage Bank depreciated by 9.57 per cent to N4.44, Ikeja Hotel slipped by 7.28 per cent to N32.50, and Union Dicon dipped by 5.26 per cent to N9.00.

Conversely, Learn Africa gained 10.00 per cent to sell for N7.15, Champion Breweries appreciated by 10.00 per cent close at N19.25, NCR Nigeria also grew by 10.00 per cent to N141.40, Trippe G jumped by 9.94 per cent to N5.86, and Neimeth soared by 9.90 per cent to N11.10.

Business Post reports that 45 stocks ended on the gainers’ log during the session and 24 stocks finished on the losers’ chart, representing a positive market breadth index and strong investor sentiment.

Traders bought and sold 629.6 million shares worth N14.8 billion in 57,858 deals on Monday versus the 539.9 million shares valued at N16.7 billion transacted in 48,023 deals last Friday, showing a moderation in the value of trades by 11.38 per cent, and a spike in the volume of trades and the number of deals by 16.61 per cent and 20.48 per cent apiece.

Secure Electronic Technology led the activity log with 83.3 million equities valued at N98.2 million, Access Holdings traded 52.9 million units worth N1.2 billion, Jaiz Bank exchanged 39.7 million units for N339.1 million, Tantalizers sold 34.2 million units valued at N103.1 million, and Fidelity Bank transacted 23.7 million units worth N473.5 million.