Economy
Futures Pointing to Initial Strength on Wall Street
By Investors Hub
The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a higher opening on Thursday following the mixed performance seen in the previous session. The upward momentum on Wall Street comes as traders digest the latest batch of earnings news as well as several U.S. economic reports.
Traders are also likely to keep an eye on developments in Washington, as House Republicans prepare to vote on a revised bill to repeal and replace Obamacare.
Nonetheless, trading activity may be somewhat subdued ahead of the release of the closely watched monthly jobs report on Friday.
After spending much of the day in negative territory, the major averages ended Wednesday’s trading mixed following the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy announcement. While the Dow managed to creep into positive territory, the Nasdaq pulled back off yesterday’s record closing high.
The Dow inched up 8.01 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 20,957.90, while the Nasdaq fell 22.82 points or 0.4 percent to 6,072.55 and the S&P 500 edged down 3.04 points or 0.1 percent to 2,388.13.
The mixed close by the major averages came following the Federal Reserve’s widely expected decision to leave interest rates unchanged.
After a two-day meeting, the Fed said it decided to maintain the target range for the federal funds rate at $0.75 to 1 percent.
The accompanying statement said recent data indicates that the labor market has continued to strengthen even as growth in economic activity slowed.
The Fed said it views the slowing in economic growth during the first quarter as likely to be transitory and called the near-term risks to the economic outlook roughly balanced.
The central bank also reiterated that it expects economic conditions will evolve in a manner that will warrant gradual increases in interest rates.
Earlier in the day, some negative sentiment was generated in reaction to quarterly results from tech giant Apple (AAPL), which reported better than expected second quarter earnings but weaker than expected revenues and iPhone shipments.
Apple also announced a 10.5 percent increase to its quarterly dividend and a $35 billion addition to its stock buyback program.
On the economic front, payroll processor ADP released a report showing that private sector employment increased roughly in line with economist estimates in the month of April.
ADP said private sector employment climbed by 177,000 jobs in April after surging up by a revised 255,000 in March.
Economists had expected employment to increase by 175,000 jobs compared to the jump of 263,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.
A separate report from the Institute for Supply Management showed that activity in the service sector grew at a faster than expected rate in the month of April.
The ISM said its non-manufacturing index rose to 57.5 in April from 55.2 in March, with a reading above 50 indicating growth in the service sector. Economists had expected the index to inch up to 55.8.
Steel stocks showed a substantial move to the downside on the day, dragging the NYSE Arca Steel Index down by 3.2 percent.
Allegheny Technologies (ATI), Ryerson (RYI), and Olympic Steel (ZEUS) turned in some of the steel sector’s worst performances.
Considerable weakness was also visible among telecom stocks, as reflected by the 3.1 percent slump by the NYSE Arca North American Telecom Index. The index tumbled to its lowest closing level in a month.
Frontier Communications (FTR) fell sharply after reporting a wider than expected first quarter loss and cutting its quarterly dividend.
Commercial real estate and chemical stocks also saw notable weakness on the day, while some strength emerged among banking stocks.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The pre-registration training and examination for capital market operators (CMOs) for the second quarter of 2026 has been postponed.
Business Post gathered that the new date for the exercise is now Monday, June 15, 2026.
This information was disclosed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) through a circular on Monday, June 8, 2026.
The Nigerian capital market regulator stated that this postponement has also resulted in the extension of the deadline for registration to Friday, June 12, 2026.
In the notice today, the SEC expressed its regret for the inconvenience this action may cause operators, who had prepared for the initial date of the training and examination.
“Further to the recent circular on Q2 2026 Pre-registration Training and Examination, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) hereby informs all eligible applicants for the Q2 2026 Pre-registration Training and Examination that the commencement date has been postponed to Monday, June 15, 2026.
“Registration on the designated portal has also been extended to Friday, June 12, 2026. All other conditions contained in the circular remain unchanged.
“The commission regrets any inconvenience this postponement may cause and appreciates the understanding of all applicants,” the disclosure noted.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
One of the leading healthcare firms in Nigeria, Fidson Healthcare Plc, has listed additional shares on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
The new stocks absorbed into the stock market were 600 million units, raising the total issued and fully paid-up shares of Fidson to 3,000,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each from 2,400,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.
The fresh equities came from the company’s rights issue of 600,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N35.00 per share.
They were issued to existing investors on the basis of one new ordinary share for every existing four ordinary shares held as of the close of business on Wednesday, November 12, 2025.
Confirming the development, the regulator in a notice said, “Trading licence holders are hereby notified that an additional 600,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each of Fidson Healthcare Plc were on Tuesday, June 2, 2026, listed on the daily official list of Nigerian Exchange Limited.
“The additional shares arose from the company’s rights issue of 600,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N35.00 per share on the basis of one new ordinary share for every existing four ordinary shares held as at the close of business on Wednesday, November 12, 2025.
“With the listing of the additional 600,000,000 ordinary shares, the total issued and fully paid-up shares of Fidson Healthcare Plc have now increased from 2,400,000,000 to 3,000,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.”
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
This news will surely excite local contractors with verified claims of N100 million or less, as the federal government has approved their payments.
This approval for the disbursement was given by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Taiwo Oyedele.
This followed a verification and reconciliation exercise designed to ensure only validated claims qualify for payment.
The beneficiaries cover contractors across multiple ministries, departments and agencies. The release of the funds is expected to enable contractors to return to project sites, pay workers, settle suppliers and meet outstanding financial commitments.
In an announcement on Monday, the Federal Ministry of Finance also said this latest batch of payments would ease liquidity pressure on small businesses and accelerate economic activity nationwide.
It was noted that the payments for verified claims of N100 million below were strategically done to spread economic impact broadly rather than concentrate disbursements among a handful of large firms.
The payments form part of a broader push to clear inherited contractor obligations, with over N700 billion verified in recent months.
“For many beneficiaries, the release of funds represents more than a financial transaction. It provides the certainty needed to sustain operations, preserve jobs, complete ongoing projects, and contribute to economic recovery and growth,” the ministry said in a statement.
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