Economy
Disappointing Retail Sales Data May Weigh on Wall Street

By Investors Hub
The major US index futures are pointing to a mixed opening on Monday, as stocks appear poised to extend the lacklustre performance seen over the past several sessions.
A sharp increase by the price of crude oil may lead to strength among energy stocks after the Saudi Arabian and Russian energy ministers indicated an agreement to freeze oil output would be extended until March of 2018.
However, other stocks may come under pressure amid concerns about the impact of the WannaCry ransomware attack, which has reportedly affected 200,000 victims in 150 countries.
With traders shrugging off disappointing retail sales data, stocks turned in another relatively lackluster performance during trading on Friday. The choppy trading seen on the day extended a recent trend on Wall Street.
The major averages eventually ended the session on opposite sides of the unchanged line. The Nasdaq inched up 5.27 points or 0.1 percent to 6,121.23, but the Dow edged down 22.81 points or 0.1 percent to 20,896.61 and the S&P 500 slipped 3.54 points or 0.2 percent to 2,390.90.
Reflecting the lack of direction seen in recent sessions, the major averages also turned in a mixed performance for the week. While the Nasdaq rose by 0.3 percent, the Dow fell by 0.5 percent and the S&P 500 dipped by 0.3 percent.
The mixed close on Wall Street came following the release of a Commerce Department report showing a smaller than expected increase in retail sales in the month of April.
The Commerce Department said retail sales climbed by 0.4 percent in April compared to economist estimates for 0.6 percent growth.
However, the report also said retail sales inched up by a revised 0.1 percent in March versus the 0.2 percent drop originally reported.
Excluding a rebound in auto sales, retail sales rose by 0.3 percent in April, matching the increase seen in the previous month as well as economist estimates.
A separate report from the Labor Department showed that consumer prices rebounded in line with economist estimates in the month of April.
The Labor Department said its consumer price index rose by 0.2 percent in April after falling by 0.3 percent in March.
Excluding food and energy prices, core consumer prices inched up by 0.1 percent in April after dipping by 0.1 percent in March. Core prices had been expected to rise by 0.2 percent.
Meanwhile, the University of Michigan released a report showing a modest improvement in consumer sentiment in the month of May.
The report said the preliminary reading on the consumer sentiment index for May came in at 97.7 compared to the final April reading of 97.0. Economists had expected the index to inch up to 97.3.
Most of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves, contributing to the lackluster close by the broader markets.
Oil service stocks saw substantial weakness, however, with the Philadelphia Oil Service Index slumping by 1.9 percent. Rowan (RDC), Diamond Offshore (DO), and Transocean (RIG) turned in some of the sector’s worst performances.
Considerable weakness was also visible among steel stocks, as reflected by the 1.2 percent drop by the NYSE Arca Steel Index. The index fell to its lowest closing level in six months.
On the other hand, biotechnology stocks showed a notable move to the upside on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index up by 1.1 percent.
Gold stocks also moved higher along with the price of the precious metal, with the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index climbing by 1.1 percent.
Economy
BNB Price Reflects Changing Dynamics in the Digital Asset Market
Economy
NASD Unlisted Security Index Crosses 4,000-point Benchmark Again
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange achieved a milestone on Friday, April 24, 2026, after five securities on the platform helped with a 1.85 per cent growth.
Data showed that the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) again crossed the 4,000-point benchmark yesterday.
The index chalked up 73.64 points during the trading day to close at 4,052.59 points compared with the preceding session’s 3,978.95 points, while the market capitalisation added N5.38 billion to finish at N2.424 trillion versus Thursday’s closing value of N2.380 trillion.
The price gainers were led by Okitipupa Plc, which grew by N25.00 to sell at N305.00 per share compared with the previous price of N280.00 per share. Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc gained N6.92 to close at N76.26 per unit versus N69.34 per unit, Afriland Properties Plc appreciated by N1.00 to N17.00 per share from N18.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc improved by 55 Kobo to N99.55 per unit from N99.00 per unit, and Food Concepts Plc increased by 5 Kobo to N2.70 per share from N2.65 per share.
However, there was a price loser, MRS Oil, which dipped by N21.75 to N195.75 per unit from N217.50 per unit.
During the final session of the week, the value of securities jumped 75.2 per cent to N41.3 million from N23.6 million units, and the number of deals expanded by 62.9 per cent to 44 deals from 27 deals, while the volume of securities declined marginally by 0.9 per cent to 447,403 units from 451,522 units.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc was the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, trailed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units traded for N1.2 billion.
GNI was also the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 59.6 million units transacted for N4.0 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.8 million units exchanged for N1.9 billion.
Economy
Naira Slips to N1,358/$1 as FX Reserves, Policy Uncertainty Concerns
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was not a good day for the Nigerian Naira in the currency market on Friday, April 24, as its value depreciated against the major foreign currencies at the close of transactions.
In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), it lost N4.53 or 0.33 per cent against the United States Dollar yesterday to trade at N1,358.44/$1, in contrast to the N1,353.91/$1 it was exchanged on Thursday.
Equally, the domestic currency slipped against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the session by N8.14 to close at N1,834.02/£1, compared with the previous rate of N1,825.88/£1 and dropped N8.01 against the Euro to sell at N1,590.73/€1 versus N1,582.72/€1.
Also, the Naira depreciated against the US Dollar at the GTBank FX desk on Friday by N4 to quote at N1,370/$1 compared with the previous session’s N1,366/$1, and at the parallel market, it depleted by N5 to settle at N1,380/$1 versus the preceding day’s N1,375/$1.
Data published by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) indicated that NFEM interbank turnover surged to N43.562 million across 68 deals, up from N28.117 million the previous day.
Despite the CBN’s reassurance that the recent drop in external reserves is not worrisome, the market remains unsettled by persistent concerns over liquidity constraints, policy transparency, and weakening confidence in Nigeria’s FX market as gross reserves continue to decline to $48.4 billion.
The outlook for the Dollar appears supported by broader macro risks, including elevated oil prices tied to the tanker traffic disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and a continued US-Iran standoff over ceasefire negotiations.
A look at the digital currency market showed that investors are sitting on the edge as the US Dollar rebounded amid geopolitical and inflation risks despite continued inflows into US spot bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).
Solana (SOL) rose by 1.2 per cent to sell $86.45, Cardano (ADA) appreciated by 1.1 per cent to $0.2517, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 0.9 per cent to $0.0989, Ripple (XRP) improved by 0.3 per cent to $1.43, Ethereum (ETH) soared by 0.2 per cent to $2,316.83, and Binance Coin (BNB) chalked up 0.1 per cent to sell for $637.44.
However, TRON (TRX) depreciated by 1.3 per cent to $0.3235, and Bitcoin (BTC) lost 0.2 per cent to close at $77,562.27, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
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