Economy

Futures Pointing to Roughly Flat Open on Wall Street

Published

7 years ago

08/11/2019

By Investors Hub

The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat opening on Friday, as traders seem likely to retreat to the sidelines once again.

Stocks may resume the lackluster performance seen earlier in the week amid renewed uncertainty about a potential U.S.-China trade deal.

News U.S. and Chinese negotiators had agreed to roll back existing tariffs as part of a phase one trade deal contributed to early strength on Thursday.

However, buying interest waned after a report from Reuters said the idea faces fierce internal opposition from President Donald Trump?s advisers.

Multiple sources familiar with the talks told Reuters the idea of a tariff rollback was not part of the original October ?handshake? deal between Trump and Chinese Vice Premier Liu He.

Citing current and former administration officials, Reuters said there is a divide within the administration over whether rolling back tariffs will give away U.S. leverage in the negotiations.

The latest reports have sparked renewed uncertainty about what type of trade deal Trump will ultimately be willing to accept.

Trump has repeatedly criticized past administrations for being too weak on China, but he would also like a big political victory ahead of next year?s presidential election.

After sticking to the sidelines for two consecutive sessions, traders rushed back into the markets in early trading on Thursday amid signs of progress in U.S.-China trade talks. The major averages reached new record intraday highs but gave back some ground as the day progressed.

Nonetheless, the major averages managed to remain in positive territory, with the Dow and the Nasdaq ending the day at new record closing highs.

The Dow advanced 182.24 points or 0.7 percent to 27,674.80, the Nasdaq climbed 23.89 points or 0.3 percent to 8,434.52 and the S&P 500 rose 8.40 points or 0.3 percent to 3,085.18.

The early strength on Wall Street came after a spokesman for the Chinese Commerce Ministry said the U.S. and China have agreed to lift existing tariffs in phases.

“The trade war started with tariffs and should end with the cancellation of tariffs,” said ministry spokesman Gao Feng, who noted phase one of a trade deal must include both countries simultaneously canceling tariffs on each other’s goods.

The U.S. has widely been expected to scrap tariffs on about $156 billion worth of Chinese imports currently set to take effect on December 15th as part of phase one.

“Both sides have agreed to cancel additional tariffs in different phases, as both sides make progress in their negotiations,” Gao added without providing a timetable.

A report from Reuters said an anonymous U.S. official confirmed the planned rollback as part of a phase one trade agreement President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping hope to sign before the end of the year.

However, the Reuters report also noted the prospect of lifting tariffs, even in phases, has drawn fierce opposition from many of Trump’s advisers, contributing to a notable pullback by stocks.

In U.S. economic news, the Labor Department released a report showing a bigger than expected decrease in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended November 2nd.

The report said initial jobless claims slid to 211,000, a decrease of 8,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 219,000.

Economists had expected jobless claims to dip to 215,000 from the 218,000 originally reported for the previous week.

Networking stocks pulled back off their best levels but still ended the day significantly higher, with the NYSE Arca Networking Index jumping by 2 percent.

Within the networking sector, CommScope (COMM) posted a standout gain after reporting better than expected third quarter earnings.

Considerable strength also remained visible among steel stocks, as reflected by the 1.7 percent gain posted by the NYSE Arca Steel Index. The index ended the session at a three-month closing high.

Telecom, oil, and chemical stocks also saw notable strength on the day, while gold stocks showed a substantial move to the downside amid a steep drop by the price of the precious metal.

Utilities, tobacco, and housing stocks also came under pressure over the course of the session, partly offsetting the strength seen in the aforementioned sectors.

Economy

Nigerian Stocks Chalk up 0.33% on Positive Market Breadth Index

Published

13 minutes ago

09/06/2026

Dipo Olowookere

By Dipo Olowookere

Renewed buying interest raised the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited by 0.33 per cent on Monday, with gains recorded in almost all the major sectors of the bourse at the close of transactions.

According to data harvested by Business Post, the insurance counter expanded by 0.62 per cent, the banking index grew by 0.59 per cent, the energy sector appreciated by 0.40 per cent, and the consumer goods space improved by 0.10 per cent, while the industrial goods segment closed flat.

When the closing gong was struck by 4 pm to signify the close of business on Customs Street, the All-Share Index (ASI) was up by 1,113.76 points to 243,707.07 points from 242,593.31 points, and the market capitalisation chalked up N714 billion to close at N156.308 trillion compared with the previous session’s N155.594 trillion.

Interest in Nigerian stocks yesterday resulted in a rise in the activity level, with the trading volume soaring by 17.86 per cent to 717.2 million units from 608.5 million units. The trading value advanced by 77.19 per cent to N56.7 billion from N32.0 billion, and the number of deals surged by 36.22 per cent to 73,321 deals from 53,826 deals.

FCMB was the busiest stock during the trading day, with a turnover of 152.3 million units worth N1.8 billion, Premier Paints exchanged 61.0 million units valued at N135.3 million, Dangote Cement traded 34.7 million units for N29.7 billion, The Initiates sold 32.8 million units worth N1.0 billion, and Jaiz Bank transacted 32.6 million units valued at N293.3 million.

Yesterday, the market breadth index was positive after the exchange closed with 37 price gainers and 28 price losers, representing strong investor sentiment.

International Energy Insurance gained 9.92 per cent to settle at N7.98, the Initiates added 9.91 per cent to its share price to quote at N32.15, ABC Transport garnered 9.68 per cent to trade at N6.80, Abbey Mortgage Bank grew by 9.63 per cent to close at N10.25, and Linkage Assurance soared by 9.36 per cent to N1.87.

On the flip side, Fidson Healthcare gave up 10.00 per cent to finish at N122.85, Academy Press crashed by 9.70 per cent to N7.45, RT Briscoe depreciated by 9.43 per cent to N13.45, SUNU Assurances tumbled by 9.37 per cent to N4.06, and Learn Africa decreased by 8.70 per cent to N10.50.

Economy

NASD OTC Exchange Opens Week Lower as Valuation Dips N1.27bn

Published

15 minutes ago

09/06/2026

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange recorded a marginal 0.05 per cent drop on Monday, June 8, depleting the market capitalisation by N1.27 billion to N2.606 trillion from N2.607 trillion, and cutting the Unlisted Security Index (NSI) by 2.12 points to 4,356.20 points from the previous 4,358.32 points.

The contraction witnessed during the session was triggered by a price loser, which overpowered that gains recorded by two securities on the trading platform.

Data indicated that MRS Oil Plc lost N6 at the close of business to settle at N165.00 per share compared with last Friday’s price of N171.00 per share.

Conversely, Lighthouse Financial Services Plc added 9 Kobo to sell at N1.03 per unit versus 94 Kobo per unit, and Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc appreciated by 8 Kobo to N78.48 per share from N78.40 per share.

The volume of securities traded by investors yesterday soared by 51.9 per cent to 213,188 units from 140,345 units, and the value of securities increased by 12.6 per cent to N20.2 million from N17.9 million, while the number of deals executed fell by 7.4 per cent to 25 deals from 27 deals.

Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units valued at N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 64.8 million units exchanged for N4.4 billion.

GNI Plc also remained as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, trailed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units transacted for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units traded for N415.7 million.

Economy

Naira Loses Against Dollar Official, Black Markets

Published

3 hours ago

09/06/2026

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Naira opened the new trading week on a negative note on Monday at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) and the black market.

At the parallel market, the Nigerian currency weakened against the US Dollar by N5 to sell for N1,380/$1 compared with the preceding session’s rate of N1,375/$1, and at the GTBank FX desk, it shed N1 to trade at N1,373/$1 versus N1,372/$1.

At the official market, it lost 63 Kobo or 0.05 per cent against the Dollar during the session to close at N1,362.84/$1, in contrast to last Friday’s value of N1,362.21/$1.

However, the Nigerian Naira gained N2.30 against the Pound Sterling at the spot market yesterday, quoting at N1,821.29/£1 compared with the previous rate of N1,823.59/£1, and improved against the Euro by 23 Kobo to settle at N1,574.35/€1 versus N1,574.58/€1.

Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed that interbank forex turnover increased to $92.248 million across 90 deals, from $73.565 million last Friday.

On the policy front, participants believed that the application of the fourth edition of the Foreign Exchange Manual of the central bank, which introduces updated guidelines for foreign exchange transactions and tightening compliance requirements for authorised dealers and market participants, will enhance market flexibility and ease previous restrictions.

Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market snapped from recent declines, jolted by Strategy’s purchase of 1,550 Bitcoin for approximately $101 million, increasing its total holdings to 845,256 BTC. The company raised $181 million through common stock sales, using the proceeds to fund the bitcoin purchase and increase its cash reserves to $1 billion, pushing the price of the coin higher by 3.2 per cent to $63,731.69.

Cardano (ADA) appreciated by 8.4 per cent to $0.1738, Ethereum (ETH) rose by 5.2 per cent to $1,711.54, Solana (SOL) expanded by 5.1 per cent to $67.82, and Ripple (XRP) improved by 4.9 per cent to $1.18.

Further, Dogecoin (DOGE) jumped by 4.3 per cent to $0.0873, Binance Coin (BNB) soared by 2.7 per cent to $609.50, and TRON (TRX) increased by 0.7 per cent to $0.3274, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $0.9997 and $0.9998, respectively.