Nigerian Bourse Loses 0.31% as Investors Liquidate Shares

By Adedapo Adesanya  Oil prices fell on Friday as the release of some hostages in Gaza reduced the geopolitical risk premium and indicated that the Israel-Hamas tensions may not have much effect on the oil market. Brent crude futures depreciated by 84 cents or 1 per cent at $80.58 a barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude dropped $1.56 or 2 per cent to close at $75.54. There was no settlement for WTI on Thursday owing to the US Thanksgiving holiday. Prices notched their first week of gains in over a month ahead of next week’s meeting of

By Dipo Olowookere The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited posted a 0.25 per cent growth at the close of trading activities on Friday, influenced by persistent bargain-hunting. Business Post reports that the market breadth index was positive yesterday after 33 stocks closed on the gainers’ chart and 21 equities ended on the losers’ table, indicating a strong investor. Secure Electronic Technology was the best-performing stock for the trading session as its value rose by 10.00 per cent to 55 Kobo, followed by MeCure, which gained 9.90 per cent to close at N9.21, Neimeth appreciated by 9.85 per cent to N2.23, Multiverse

By Adedapo Adesanya The Naira depreciated in the opening session of the week in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Monday, November 27 against the Dollar by N19.71 or 2.5 per cent as the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Olayemi Cardoso, said the lender was committed to clearing a backlog of foreign exchange (forex). “We have initiated the payment of unsettled forward foreign exchange obligations, and these payments will continue until all obligations are cleared,” he told bankers last Friday during a dinner speech in Lagos. However, his assurance could not ease the pressure

By Modupe Gbadeyanka The sum of N27.5 trillion has been approved for the 2024 budget by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Monday. The Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Mr Atiku Bagudu, confirmed this development to newsmen after the FEC meeting in Abuja. He also disclosed that the council, which was chaired by President Bola Tinubu, said the 2024 Appropriation Bill should be funded from N18 trillion revenue expected to be generated by the country. “The federal executive council considered the 2024 Appropriation bill. The Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) was earlier approved by the National Assembly. It has

By Modupe Gbadeyanka The duo of Miss Elah Ajene of Nigeria Tulip International School, Abuja; and Prosper Okarike of Graceland International School, Port Harcourt have emerged winners of the DStv Eutelsat Star Awards competition for 2017. The contest was organised by MultiChoice, the parent company of DStv, the popular payTV firm in Africa. The winners were announced after a two-day adjudication process with Miss Ajene emerging winner in the essay category, while Okarike came top in the poster category. The awards are part of efforts by MultiChoice to promote science and technology education in Nigeria. Managing Director of MultiChoice Nigeria,

By Modupe Gbadeyanka In order to achieve $25 billion Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) by 2020, surpassing the Nigeria’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) set target, Federal Government has assured American investors that they would get highest returns on investments if they come to Nigeria. Minister of Trade, Industry and Investment, Mr Okechukwu Enelamah, and his Foreign Affairs counterpart, Mr Geoffrey Onyeama, gave this assurance this week at the Nigeria-US Business and Investment Forum held in New York on the sidelines of the 72nd United Nations General Assembly. The forum was attended by Minister of Solid Minerals, Mr Kayode Fayemi;

By Dipo Olowookere The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) recorded its first loss in straight eight sessions on Monday, going down marginally by 0.01 percent. This was majorly caused by activities of profit takers, which brought both the All-Share Index (ASI) down by 1.18 points to 22,920.41 points from 22,921.59 points, and the market capitalisation by N1 billion to N11.945 trillion from N11.946 trillion. Business Post observed that the downtrend recorded on the first trading day of the week was influenced by selloffs in the banking space. The index fell by 4.01 percent, while the oil/gas counter depreciated by 0.45 percent.

By Dipo Olowookere There are strong indications that the payment of Value Added Tax (VAT) on transactions conducted on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) may again be suspended for another period soon. This is because federal government is looking into the requests made stakeholders in the nation’s capital market for an extension for the VAT exemption on NSE transactions. Business Post reports that in 2014, the federal government, through the Minister of Finance, Mrs Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, had announced a 5-year tax holiday for players in the stock market so as to encourage more participation. This VAT exemption

By Adedapo Adesanya Recently, the International Energy Agency (IEA) cuts its oil demand growth forecast for 2024, saying it saw evidence of demand destruction in some countries, including Nigeria, after the rise in global prices that ran throughout September. In its Oil Market Report (OMR), the Paris-based agency put 2024 demand growth at 880,000 barrels per day compared with 990,000 barrels per day in its previous OMR. For this year, the IEA raised its demand growth forecast slightly to 2.3 million barrels per day from 2.2 million barrels per day, citing “buoyant” results from major demand centres China, India, and

As schools break for mid-term holidays and a peak travel period kicks off from October 14 onwards, Emirates announces a myriad of ways to ensure a smooth and swift travel experience for families, including new updates to the Emirates app and digital check-in options. All passengers are advised to arrive at the airport up to 3 hours before their flight and take advantage of Emirates’ multiple smart technologies to ensure seamless travel during the busy period. Plan everything on the Emirates App Passengers are encouraged to download the Emirates app on their mobile phones to get all the flight details at

By Adedapo Adesanya The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) opened the new week in the positive zone with a 0.06 per cent lift on the back of the bullish price movement in FrieslandCampina WAMCO Plc on Monday, July 5. The milk producer closed the session at N119.24 per unit after it gained 34 kobo or 0.3 per cent. At the preceding session, it ended at N118.90 per unit. The appreciation in the stock price of this security expanded the total value of stocks on the exchange by N310 million to N536.09 billion from N535.78 billion. It also boosted the NASD Unlisted Security

By Adedapo Adesanya The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group has approved a policy that will strengthen and bring transparency to debt management among low-income countries. The board of the pan-African lender approved the Sustainable Borrowing Policy which targets recipients of the African Development Fund, the concessional window of AfDB Group. The Fund caters to low-income and transitional countries on the continent. According to AfDB, the policy responds to a changing debt landscape in Africa, especially among the low-income countries. “In recent years, low-income countries have gained access to new sources of finance, including private creditors and creditors outside the Paris