Economy
Equity Market Gains 1.09% as Ministers Take Oath
By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) finished 1.09 percent higher on Wednesday to reverse the bearish closure of the previous session.
Investors reacted positively to the swearing in of the 43 Ministers appointed by President Muhammadu Buhari to drive his Next Level agenda.
Of huge interest to investors was the retaining of Mrs Zainab Ahmed as the Minister of Finance, while a former Governor of Bayelsa State, Mr Timipre Silva was picked by the President as Minister of State for Petroleum.
At the close of transactions on the floor of the NSE, the All-Share Index (ASI) appreciated by 294.32 points to settle at 27,352.94 points, while the market capitalisation increased by N120.7 billion to finish at N13.307 trillion.
A look at the sectoral performance showed that the consumer goods sector was the biggest gainer, going up by 3.46 percent and followed by the insurance industry, which improved by 1.85 percent, with the banking sector closing 0.39 percent higher.
However, the oil and gas index went down by 0.74 percent, while the industrial sector depreciated by 0.08 percent.
Business Post reports that the renewed buying pressure witnessed yesterday resulted in the market breadth closing positive with 23 price gainers and 16 price losers.
Topping the gainers’ chart was Nestle Nigeria, which went up by N78.80k to settle at N1200 per share, with MTN Nigeria following with a gain of N3.40k to finish at N136 per unit.
Ecobank appreciated by 60 kobo to close at N6.85k per share, Dangote Sugar improved its share value by 50 kobo to end at N9.60k per unit, while C&I Leasing increased by the same amount, 50 kobo, to trade at N6.70k per share.
At the other end, Okomu Oil dominated the price losers’ table after suffering a decline of N4.50k to finish at N44.50k per share.
Forte Oil, which followed, depreciated by N1.70k to close at N15.30k per unit, while International Breweries went down by 50 kobo to end at N11.50k per unit.
Access Bank declined yesterday by 30 kobo to finish at N6.20k per unit, while Cadbury Nigeria also depleted by 30 kobo to close at N9 per share.
On the activity chart, UBA was investors’ delight as the lender sold 64.7 million units of its shares worth N381.9 million at the market on Wednesday.
Access Bank transacted 58.1 million equities for N372.3 million, while GTBank traded 44 million shares valued at N1.2 billion. FBN Holdings exchanged 36.1 million shares for N177.9 million, while Zenith Bank transacted 34.6 million equities worth N608.1 million.
At the close of business, the volume of shares traded by investors increased by 73.63 percent from 209.6 million to 364.0 million, while the value of the transactions went up 39.54 percent from N3.2 billion to N4.5 billion.
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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