By Adedapo Adesanya

The exchange rate of the Naira to the Dollar ended at N1,372.31/$1 in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Thursday, May 21, indicating an appreciation of N1.03 or 0.07 per cent against the United States Dollar. In the preceding session, the rate closed at N1,373.34/$1, according to data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

The Nigerian currency further improved its value against the Euro in the same market segment yesterday by N1.75 to settle at N1,590.78/€1 compared with midweek’s value of N1,592.53/€1, but depreciated against the Pound Sterling by 26 Kobo, closing at N1,840.26/£1, in contrast to Wednesday’s rate of N1,840.00/£1.

In the black market and at the GTBank forex counter, the Nigerian Naira maintained stability against the US Dollar at N1,390/$1 and N1,379/$1, respectively.

It was gathered that interbank FX liquidity turnover for the session was $116.043 million across 105 deals, higher than the $68.020 million achieved a day earlier.

The central bank will continue with its current policy direction to sustain the fight against inflation and stabilise the exchange rate, with Governor Yemi Cardoso noting earlier this week that exchange rate stability remained the centrepiece of the apex bank’s policy toolkit.

The central banker said the structure of Nigeria’s foreign exchange market has changed significantly under the ongoing reforms introduced by the apex bank, adding that increased market liquidity has reduced the need for heavy intervention by the CBN.

According to him, daily foreign exchange market turnover has risen sharply from about $100 million when the current administration took office to roughly $550 million presently, with transactions occasionally climbing to as high as $1 billion in a single day.

He said the apex bank expects turnover to consistently hit the $1 billion mark in the future as more reforms take effect.

Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market was mixed during the session, as liquidations were split between longs and shorts and did not reflect a one-sided capitulation. Market analysts noted that rising long-term US Treasury yields and geopolitical tensions, particularly around US-Iran relations and oil prices, are seen as the main headwinds.

TRON (TRX) rose by 1.3 per cent to $0.3647, Binance Coin (BNB) jumped 0.7 per cent to $655.16, Cardano (ADA) added 0.7 per cent to trade at $0.2495, and Solana (SOL) appreciated by 0.4 per cent to $86.55.

However, Ripple (XRP) declined by 0.9 per cent to $1.35, Bitcoin (BTC) slid by 0.5 per cent to $77,227.47, Ethereum (ETH) went down by 0.3 per cent to $2,121.80, and Dogecoin (DOGE) slipped by 0.1 per cent to $0.1049, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 each.

By Adedapo Adesanya

Oil prices settled lower by 2 per cent on Thursday as uncertainty over prospects for resolving the US-Israel conflict ‌with Iran weighed on the market, with Brent crude futures trading at $102.58 a barrel after it shed $2.44 or 2.3 per cent, and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures at $96.35 per barrel after it lost $1.9 or 1.9 per cent.

Prices had earlier surged on reports that Iran’s supreme leader issued a directive that dented hopes for a swift resolution to the war, before reversing course later in ​the day.

The directive ​from Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei could further complicate negotiations and frustrate US President Donald Trump’s efforts to broker an end to the war.

President Trump then later said the US will eventually recover Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium, which the US believes is destined for a nuclear weapon, though Tehran says it is intended purely for ​peaceful purposes.

Meanwhile, Iran has announced a new “Persian Gulf Strait Authority,” which would oversee a “controlled maritime zone” in the Strait of Hormuz, the key waterway that controls about 20 per cent of crude and gas flows. It also warned against further ​attacks and unveiled steps to entrench its control of the strait, which remains mostly closed.

Economic activity ‌in the Euro ⁠zone shrank at its sharpest rate in more than 2-1/2 years in May as a war-driven surge in living costs hammered demand for services across Europe, and firms accelerated layoffs.

Seven leading oil-producing countries in the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) will likely agree to a modest hike in July output when they meet on June 7. The monthly target ​set by the members is expected to be raised ​by about 188,000 barrels per day, a figure which has been trimmed since May after the United Arab Emirates (UAE) left the group.

OPEC+ ​held output steady in the first quarter of 2026 but has raised its ​target each month since April, despite the war. Despite the hikes, the war has reduced oil production ⁠to 33.19 million barrels per day in April from 42.77 million barrels per day in February, with output by Gulf producers falling by 9.9 million barrels per day.

In the US, an Energy Information Administration (EIA) report on Wednesday showed that the country withdrew nearly 10 million barrels of oil from its Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) last week ⁠for its ​biggest drawdown on record. US crude inventories also fell by more than expected last week, according to EIA data.

By Dipo Olowookere

The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited rebounded by 0.05 per cent on Thursday following renewed buying interest in Unilever Nigeria, International Breweries, Wema Bank, and others.

The upliftment recorded yesterday happened amid weak investor sentiment as the bourse ended with 18 appreciating equities and 45 declining equities, implying a negative market breadth index.

According to data from Customs Street, International Energy Insurance gained 10.00 per cent to trade at N3.41, ABC Transport grew by 9.93 per cent to N9.08, Unilever Nigeria appreciated by 9.80 per cent to N168.00, Academy Press soared by 9.74 per cent to N8.45, and Eunisell chalked up 9.41 per cent to sell for N209.95.

On the other side, Berger Paints depreciated by 10.00 per cent to finish at N147.60, Learn Africa moderated by 9.96 per cent to N11.75, DAAR Communications eased by 9.95 per cent to N1.90, RT Briscoe retreated by 9.93 per cent to N12.79, and May and Baker lost 9.61 per cent to settle at N46.55.

Yesterday, the consumer goods and the banking indices were up by 0.52 per cent and 0.03 per cent, respectively, while the insurance sector went down by 0.55 per cent, the energy index decreased by 0.10 per cent, and the industrial goods segment crumbled by 0.01 per cent.

When trading activities ended for the session, the All-Share Index (ASI) increased by 113.02 points to 249,175.39 points from 249,062.37 points, and the market capitalisation expanded by N72 billion to N159.733 trillion from N159.661 trillion.

A total of 1.1 billion stocks valued at N31.0 billion exchanged hands in 62,448 deals during the session versus the 600.2 million stocks worth N32.7 billion traded in 58,958 deals at midweek, indicating a shortfall in the trading value by 5.20 per cent, and a surge in the trading volume and number of deals by 83.27 per cent and 5.92 per cent, respectively.

Sterling Holdings led the activity chart with 322.7 million units valued at N2.6 billion, Japaul exchanged 96.4 million units worth N416.2 million, Fidelity Bank traded 57.0 million units for N1.3 billion, Access Holdings sold 52.2 million units worth N1.3 billion, and Lasaco Assurance transacted 42.5 million units valued at N86.7 million.