Economy
Maize Sheds 10.43% in One Week as Soybean Gains 11.0%
By Ashemiriogwa Emmanuel
The price of maize per contract in the open market declined by 10.43 per cent week-on-week to N20,170 at the close of last week compared with the N22,518 it recorded in the preceding week.
Data from the AFEX Weekly Commodities Price Report also revealed that the value of the product at the exchange dropped in the week by 3.3 per cent to N23,200 per contract from N24,000 per contract.
It was gathered that the price of maize at the open market depreciated as a result of a supply glut, meaning more of the commodity was in the market than what the buyers could take.
Maize is in the harvest season at the moment and this is why the market has more than it can consume as farmers are flooding the space with the commodity.
Business Post reports that also in the week, the price of soybean increased by 0.74 per cent in the open market to N35,783 from the previous week’s N35.519, while the exchange-traded price appreciated by 11.0 per cent as it closed at N37,183/contract versus N33,500/contract of the earlier week.
However, the paddy rice recorded a decline of 4.33 per cent in the week as its price ended at N16,812 at the open market compared with the preceding week’s N17,573, while at the exchange, it closed flat at N22,000.
As for sorghum, the value went down by 2.80 per cent at the open market to N22,675 from N23,327 and closed flat at the exchange at N20,340, while the price of cocoa appreciated by 0.87 per cent at the open market to N99,022 from N98,167 and also gained 1.38 per cent at the exchange to N97,637 from N96.309
Last week, ginger was sold at the open market at N96,233 per contract in contrast to N92,387 of the earlier week, indicating an appreciation of 4.16 per cent, while the exchange-traded price stood at N27,362, the same price of the preceding week.
Sesame closed flat at the open market and exchange last week at N54,971 and N48,117 respectively, just as cashew remained flat at both markets N47,417 and N44,500 apiece.
It was learned that in the five-day trading week, the total contracts executed on the exchange were 146,289 with maize accounting for 99 per cent of the trades.
A look at the performance of the market in the week showed that the AFEX Commodities Index (ACI) declined by 3.82 per cent, while its Export Index (AEI) dropped 1.42 per cent.
However, the case was different for the Standard & Poor’s Goldman Sachs Commodity Index (S&P GSCI) Agriculture as it improved by 2.31 per cent within the period under review.
Consistently, the ACI outperformed the S&P GSCI Agriculture Index on a season-to-date basis but the AEI underperformed when compared to both indexes.
AFEX noted that its ongoing crop production survey showed that farmers are careful in speculating their yield from the current planting season as some are experiencing heavy rainfall which is not favourable to the growth of their crops.
Consequently, it would be noted that the price of grains in the open market has declined earlier than expected, that is, in three consecutive weeks, unlike in previous years where the prices of grains in the open market reached their peak around the month of August.
Economy
Xenergi in Talks to Acquire 51% Stake in Premier Paints
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
One of the paint makers in Nigeria, Premier Paints Plc, is currently in talks with a new investor, Xenergi Limited, for the purchase of 51 per cent stake in the company.
Xenergi Limited intends to acquire shares of Clover Global Resources Limited and TGHL Capital Limited in the organisation.
Business Post gathered that the new investor will buy 39.02 per cent from Clover Global Resources Limited and 15.20 per cent from TGHL Capital Limited.
The deal, according to a regulatory notice issued on Tuesday on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited, will involve about 63 million shares of Premier Paints.
At the current share price of the paint producer, this should be about N630 million as it closed at N10.00 per unit on NGX on December 16, 2025.
“Subject to obtaining required regulatory approvals, the transaction is expected to close before January 31, 2026.
“The company will continue to inform the public of the progress of the transaction,” the disclosure signed by the company secretary, Alozie Nwokoro, said.
Economy
Naira Trades Flat Across FX Market Windows as CBN Moves to Ease Pressure
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira was flat against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Tuesday, December 16, retaining the previous closing value of N1,451.82/$1.
In the same vein, the local currency saw no movement against the Pound Sterling and the Euro in the spot market during the session at N1,943.98/£1 and N1,705.74/€1, respectively.
Also, the Nigerian Naira remained unchanged in the black market yesterday at N1,475/$1 and was N1,460/$1 at the GTBank forex counter.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has strengthened US Dollar supply with $250 million to authorised dealer banks at the official window cumulatively as foreign portfolio investors, exporters and non-bank corporate supply dripped.
The spread between official and other non-regulated markets decreased to N30.59$/1 from N44.57/$1, from the previous week, research subsidiary of Coronation Merchant Bank Limited said in a report.
FX analysts said foreign exchange inflows through the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market decreased to $716.3 million from $844.70 million in the previous week , a 15 per cent drop in a week.
Foreign portfolio investors accounted for the highest share of inflows at 32.98 per cent, followed by exporters at 30.84 per cent, the CBN (17.36 per cent), Non-bank Corporates (16.94 per cent), others (0.72 per cent) and Individuals (0.63 per cent).
On Monday, Nigeria’s headline inflation rate eased to 14.45 per cent in November 2025, down from 16.05 per cent recorded in October, according to the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), representing a decrease of 1.6 percentage points month-on-month and marks a significant moderation compared to the same period last year.
As for the cryptocurrency market, there was some recoveries after overall capitalization falling below $3 trillion for the third time in a month. Large-cap assets, particularly those with Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) exposure, are experiencing selling pressure as institutional investors reassess risk.
Ripple (XRP) appreciated by 1.5 per cent to $1.92, Litecoin (LTC) expanded by 1.5 per cent to $78.91, Dogecoin (DOGE) rose by 0.8 per cent to $0.1308, Solana (SOL) went up by 0.4 per cent to $127.60, Binance Coin (BNB) grew by 0.3 per cent to $865.40, and Bitcoin (BTC) gained 0.2 per cent to sell at $86,735.17.
On the flip side, Cardano (ADA) depreciated by 1.0 per cent to $0.3802 and Ethereum (ETH) slumped by 0.4 per cent to $2,935.85, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) were flat at $1.00 each.
Economy
Stock Investors’ Portfolios Swell N14bn as Index Rises 0.01%
By Dipo Olowookere
A marginal 0.01 per cent rise was recorded by the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited on Tuesday. This was different from the flattish mode of the market the previous day.
Investor sentiment remained bullish as Customs Street finished with 31 price gainers and 26 price losers, implying a positive market breadth index.
Aluminium Extrusion topped the gainers’ log after it improved its price by 10.00 per cent to N9.35, Guinness Nigeria appreciated by 9.98 per cent to N263.40, Multiverse expanded by 9.95 per cent to N12.15, MeCure Industries also soared by 9.95 per cent to N45.85, and Sovereign Trust Insurance advanced by 9.89 per cent to N4.11.
Conversely, Haldane McCall led the losers’ chart after it shed 9.93 per cent to settle at N3.72, Veritas Kapital lost 9.09 per cent to close at N1.60, LivingTrust Mortgage Bank also declined by 9.09 per cent to N3.50, and Linkage Assurance depreciated by 5.71 per cent to N1.65.
During the trading day, the All-Share Index (ASI) went up by 21.23 points to 149,459.11 points from the previous day’s 149,437.88 points and the market capitalisation increased by N14 billion to N95.281 trillion from N95.267 trillion.
Yesterday, traders transacted 1.0 billion equities for N21.8 billion in 23,701 deals compared with the 553.1 million equities valued at N13.3 billion traded in 28,907 deals on Monday, representing a decline in the number of deals by 18.01 per cent, and a surge in the trading volume and value by 80.80 per cent and 63.91 per cent apiece.
Access Holdings traded 385.8 million stocks worth N7.7 billion, Champion Breweries transacted 111.8 million shares valued at N817.8 million, Sterling Holdings exchanged 85.5 million equities for N589.9 million, FCMB sold 74.7 million shares valued at N791.5 million, and First Holdco transacted 51.9 million equities worth N1.8 billion.
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