Economy
FG Begins Global Offering of $300m Diaspora Bonds
The Debt Management Office (DMO) on Wednesday announced the commencement of a global offering of Nigeria’s first Diaspora Bond.
The Federal Government hopes to raise about $300 million from the exercise, which had been in the pipeline for months now.
The sale of the diaspora bonds was earlier thought to begin in March this year, but it was shifted.
In a statement released yesterday by the DMO on its website, the country’s debt office noted that “Nigeria has filed a registration statement for the bonds with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.”
It explained that application also will be made for the bonds to be admitted to the official list of the UK Listing Authority and to the London Stock Exchange for the bonds to be admitted to trading on the London Stock Exchange’s regulated market.
DMO pointed out that, “The bonds will be direct, general obligations of Nigeria, denominated in US Dollars.”
“The international Joint Lead Managers are Bank of America Merrill Lynch and The Standard Bank of South Africa Limited and the Nigerian Joint Lead Managers are First Bank of Nigeria Limited and United Bank for Africa Plc,” it added.
The statement further stated that, “There will be a series of investor meetings in the United Kingdom, the United States and Switzerland commencing on June 13, 2017.”
“Pricing is expected to occur following the investor meetings, subject to market conditions,” the DMO emphasised.
Economy
NASD Index Gains 0.74%
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange appreciated by 0.74 per cent on Wednesday, January 22 as a result of buying pressure on the market.
Yesterday, the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) garnered 22.86 points to wrap the session at 3,123.19 points compared with 3,100.33 points recorded in the previous session, as the value of the unlisted securities market went up at midweek by N5 billion to close at N1.076 trillion, in contrast to the preceding day’s N1.071 trillion.
The alternative bourse ended with three price gainers and two price losers at the Wednesday session.
Mixta Real Estate Plc improved its value by 25 Kobo to end at N2.83 per unit compared with the previous day’s N2.58 per unit, Okitipupa Plc jumped by N3.56 to close at N43.55 per share versus N39.99 per share, and First Trust Mortgage Bank Plc added 2 Kobo to settle at 39 Kobo per unit compared with Tuesday’s trading price of 37 Kobo per unit.
On the flip side, UBN Property Plc lost 16 Kobo to end at N1.86 per share, in contrast to the preceding session’s N2.00 per share, and Mass Telecomm Innovation Plc went down by 1 Kobo to 41 Kobo per unit from 40 Kobo per unit.
During the session, there was a 216.2 per cent rise in the volume of securities traded to 581,160 units from 183,780 units, the value of securities traded by investors decreased by 48.9 per cent to N2.3 million from N4.5 million, while the number of deals increased by 84.6 per cent to 24 deals from 13 deals.
When the bourse closed for the day, Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc was the stock with the highest trading volume (year-to-date) with 25.3 million units valued at N5.9 million, followed by Geo-Fluids Plc with 9.1 million units sold for N44.0 million, and FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with 4.1 million units worth N162.9 million.
By value, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc topped the activity chart after selling 4.1 million units worth N162.9 million, trailed by Geo-Fluids Plc with 9.1 million units sold for N44.0 million, and 11 Plc with 55,358 valued at N14.5 million.
Economy
Naira Value Strengthens at Official, Parallel Markets
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.
Economy
Oil Extends Loss as Market Weigh Wider Trump Sanctions
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.
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