Economy

Futures Pointing to Roughly Flat Open on Wall Street

Published

6 years ago

06/08/2018

By Investors Hub

The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a roughly flat opening on Monday, with stocks likely to show a lack of direction after ending last Friday?s trading mostly higher.

Traders may be reluctant to make any significant moves amid a lack of major U.S. economic news following the slew of data and events last week.

The economic calendar remains relatively light throughout the week, although traders are likely to keep an eye on reports on producer and consumer price inflation.

On the earnings front, Disney (DIS), Tyson Foods (TSN), Tenet Healthcare (THC), Office Depot (ODP), CVS Health (CVS), and 21st Century Fox (FOXA) are among the companies due to report their quarterly results this week.

Stocks moved mostly higher over the course of the trading session on Friday, as traders digested to the Labor Department’s closely watched monthly jobs report. The tech-heavy Nasdaq fluctuated as the day progressed but managed to close in positive territory.

The major averages all closed higher, although the Nasdaq underperformed its counterparts after Thursday’s rally. While the Nasdaq inched up 9.33 points or 0.1 percent to 7,812.01, the Dow climbed 136.42 points or 0.5 percent at 25,462.58 and the S&P 500 rose 13.13 points or 0.5 percent to 2,840.35.

For the week, the Dow crept slightly higher, while the S&P 500 advanced by 0.8 percent and the Nasdaq jumped by 1 percent.

Before the start of trading, the Labor Department released a report showing weaker than expected job growth in the month of July due in part to a drop in government employment and the closing of Toys “R” Us stores.

The report said non-farm payroll employment climbed by 157,000 jobs in July compared to economist estimates for a jump of about 190,000 jobs.

However, the report also showed upward revisions to the increases in employment in May and June, which surged up by 268,000 jobs and 248,000 jobs, respectively.

With the upward revisions, employment gains in May and June combined were 59,000 more than previously reported.

The report also showed a modest decrease in the unemployment rate, which edged down to 3.9 percent in July from 4.0 percent in June. The drop matched economist estimates.

Meanwhile, the Labor Department said the annual rate of average hourly employee earnings growth was unchanged from the previous month at 2.7 percent.

Gregory Daco, Chief U.S. Economist at Oxford Economics, said gradually firming wages, steady labor force participation, and falling unemployment is expected to persist into the second half of the year.

“We expect around 180,000 jobs per month to be added through the rest of 2018,” Daco said. “In this context, we continue to foresee four Fed rate hikes in 2018, unless trade policy foils these plans.”

A separate report from the Commerce Department showed the U.S. trade deficit widened in the month of June amid an increase in imports and a decrease in exports.

The report said the trade deficit widened to $46.3 billion in June from a revised $43.2 billion in May. The deficit had been expected to widen to $46.5 billion from the $43.1 billion originally reported for the previous month.

The Institute for Supply Management also released a report showing growth in U.S. service sector activity slowed by much more than anticipated in the month of July.

The ISM said its non-manufacturing index dropped to 55.7 in July after rising to 59.1 in June. A reading above 50 still indicates service sector growth, although economists had expected a much more modest drop to 58.6.

Despite the notable advance by the broader markets, many of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves.

Steel stocks saw considerable strength, however, with traders going bargain hunting following yesterday’s sell-off. Reflecting the strength in the sector, the NYSE Arca Steel Index climbed by 1.1 percent.

Utilities, retail, and chemical stocks also move to the upside on the day, while significant weakness was visible among biotechnology stocks.

Economy

Unlisted Securities Gain 0.04% as UBN Property, Three Others Appreciate

Published

2 hours ago

15/01/2025

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange recorded a 0.04 per cent appreciation on Tuesday, January 14 after the share prices of six stocks on the platform recorded movements.

Business Post reports that the bourse ended with four price gainers and two price losers during the session trading session of the week.

FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc lost N2.50 yesterday to finish at N39.50 per share versus the previous day’s N42.00 per share and Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc dropped N1.15 to wrap up the day at N22.05 per unit compared to Monday’s N23.20 per unit.

On the flip side, 11 Plc gained N25.53 to close at N280.84 per share versus N255.31 per share, UBN Property Plc increased by 20 Kobo to N2.20 per unit from N2.00 per unit, Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc added 10 Kobo to close at N16.20 per share compared with the previous day’s N16.30 per share, and Geo-Fluids Plc gained 10 Kobo to settle at N4.66 per unit versus N4.56 per unit.

When trading activities ended for the day, the market capitalisation went up by N410 million to remain relatively unchanged at N1.061 trillion as the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) inflated by 1.19 points to 3,096.19 points from 3,095.00 points.

The volume of securities traded in the session was up by 28.4 per cent during the session to 3.97 million units from 3.1 million units, the value of shares jumped by 161.8 per cent to N8.3 million from N3.2 million, and the number of deals declined by 16.7 per cent to 25 deals from 30 deals.

FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc remained the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 3.4 million units worth N134.9 million, Geo-Fluids Plc occupied the second spot with 8.9 million units valued at N43.0 million, and the third position claimed by Afriland Properties Plc with 690,825 units sold for N11.1 million.

IGI Plc ended the session as the most active stock by volume (year-to-date) with a turnover of 23.5 million units valued at N5.3 million, followed by Geo-Fluids Plc with 8.9 million units sold for N43.0 million, and FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with 3.4 million units worth N134.9 million.

Economy

Nigeria’s NaFarm Foods Gets $1m Zayed Sustainability Prize

Published

2 hours ago

15/01/2025

Aduragbemi Omiyale

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

A pioneering agricultural solutions provider based in Kaduna, Nigeria, NaFarm Foods, has been named as the winner of the food category of the 2025 Zayed Sustainability Prize for its Hybrid Solar Food Dryer.

The company clinched the accolade for its groundbreaking innovation in reducing post-harvest losses, improving food security, and promoting sustainable agricultural practices across Nigeria.

Hybrid Solar Food Dryer was designed by NaFarm Foods to address the critical issue of food spoilage by combining solar heat and electricity generated from solar panels for efficient, all-weather drying of food, even during rainy or cloudy days.

With a capacity of 500kg per unit and the ability to retain the nutritional quality of food while minimising energy costs, the technology has already benefited over 80 communities across six Nigerian states.

By reducing post-harvest losses for over 65,000 farmers, the dryers contribute significantly to food security and rural economic empowerment.

The Hybrid Solar Food Dryer is transforming food preservation by reducing spoilage rates, decreasing greenhouse gas emissions from decomposing food, and lowering reliance on fossil fuels.

With a whole-of-life cost of less than 1 cent per 100 litres, the dryers are accessible and economically viable for smallholder farmers and food processors.

By 2030, NaFarm Foods aims to empower two million farmers and reduce carbon emissions by 50,000 metric tonnes annually.

Business Post reports that NaFarms Foods has won $1 million from Zayed to scale its operations by manufacturing and distributing 100,000 dryers across Nigeria and West Africa.

“We are deeply honoured to be recognised as a winner of the Zayed Sustainability Prize. It signifies global recognition of our efforts to tackle food insecurity and promote equitable and sustainable agriculture in Nigeria and beyond.

“This opportunity inspires us to continue pushing boundaries, knowing that our work is not only transforming lives locally but also contributing to a more sustainable and equitable world. For us, this is more than an achievement; it’s a call to action to drive greater impact,” the chief executive of NaFarms Foods, Ms Fatima Jimoh, said.

The Director of the Zayed Sustainability Prize, Dr Lamya Fawwaz, said, “NaFarm Foods’ innovative approach to sustainable food preservation not only improves food security but also empowers rural communities, particularly women and youth, by creating income-generating opportunities. This aligns with the Prize’s mission to drive progress and improve livelihoods.”

NaFarm Foods plans to expand training programmes to empower an additional 25,000 women and youth, fostering entrepreneurship and sustainable economic growth.

Additionally, it intends to establish distribution hubs and implement advanced cluster mapping systems to ensure technology accessibility and improved marketability of produce.

Each year, the Zayed Sustainability Prize rewards organisations and high schools for their groundbreaking solutions, fostering innovation on global challenges. Over the past 17 years, through its 128 winners, the prize has positively impacted 407 million lives worldwide.

Economy

Naira Falls Further to N1,549.65/$1 at Official Market, Gains N5 at Black Market

Published

3 hours ago

15/01/2025

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Naira depreciated against the United States Dollar for the third straight session by 0.05 per cent or N1.36 in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Tuesday, January 14.

During the second trading day of the week, the exchange rate closed at N1,549.65/$1 in the official market, in contrast to Monday’s closing price of N1,548.89/$1.

The renewed pressure on the Naira occurred as analysts expected the introduction of the electronic matching FX market system, increasing foreign portfolio inflows, greater access to dollar-denominated debt, rising FX reserves, and a positive current account balance to support the domestic currency in 2025.

Investment banking firm, CardinalStone Securities Limited, said the Naira movement, which has contributed about 20.0 per cent – 30.0 per cent to inflation in the last few years, is likely to be relatively stable in 2025.

Also in the spot market, the local currency weakened against the Pound Sterling yesterday by N2.22 to trade at N1,879.64/£1 compared with the preceding day’s N1,877.42/£1 and against the Euro, the Nigerian currency lost N7.17 to quote at N1,586.05/€1 versus the N1,578.87/€1 it was traded a day earlier.

However, in the black market, the Naira appreciated against the greenback during the session by N5 to finish at N1,650/$1 compared with the previous day’s value of N1,655/$1.

In the cryptocurrency market, the bulls took charge of reports that US President-elect Donald Trump is preparing first-day executive orders that will benefit the crypto industry. The advance continued today, supported by softer-than-expected US Producer Price Index (PPI) readings for December.

Mr Trump’s expected crypto policies and broader economic plans have brought back positive sentiment among traders — bumping up crypto prices.

Ripple (XRP) added 12.1 per cent to its value to close at $2.84, Cardano jumped by 6.8 per cent to trade at $1.02, Dogecoin (DOGE) rose by 5.0 per cent to $0.3589, Litecoin (LTC) grew by 3.2 per cent to $101.80, Bitcoin (BTC) expanded by 2.2 per cent to $96,866.89, Binance Coin (BNB) appreciated by 1.5 per cent to $699.45, Solana (SOL) also gained 1.5 per cent to end at $188.57, and Ethereum (ETH) improved by 1.3 per cent to $3,219.28, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 each.