Economy
Nigerian Stocks Suffer 0.07% Loss as Inflation Spikes to 19.64%
By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited closed 0.07 per cent lower on Monday after the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) announced that the country’s inflation increased by 19.64 per cent in July 2022.
The inflation numbers triggered profit-taking in the market yesterday, causing Nigerian stocks to remain in the red territory at the close of transactions.
The prices of food and services in the country have been on the high side for months and yesterday, the consumer goods sector was mainly responsible for the downfall of the stock exchange.
The counter lost 0.33 per cent and erased the gains posted by the other sectors. The industrial goods space grew by 0.17 per cent, the banking index rose by 0.15 per cent, the energy sector increased by 0.03 per cent, while the insurance counter closed flat.
At the close of business, the All-Share Index (ASI) went down by 34.64 points to 49,629.43 points from 49,664.07 points, while the market capitalisation depreciated by N18 billion to N26.769 trillion from N26.787 trillion.
A total of 17 stocks finished on the losers’ log on the first trading session of the week, while 12 stocks were on the gainers’ table.
Presco recorded the biggest fall as it declined by 9.97 per cent to N142.60. Multiverse lost 7.79 per cent to trade at N2.25, Ikeja Hotel depreciated by 5.51 per cent to N1.20, Dangote Sugar fell by 4.19 per cent to N16.00, while Jaiz Bank decreased by 3.30 per cent to sell for 88 Kobo.
On the other side, Neimeth led the gainers’ group with a price appreciation of 9.29 per cent to trade at N1.53, Unity Bank improved by 4.65 per cent to 45 Kobo, FCMB gained 4.18 per cent to quote at N3.49, Zenith Bank grew by 2.12 per cent to N21.70, while Transcorp increased by 0.93 per cent to N1.08.
Business Post reports that the activity level was low during the session as 210.8 million shares worth N2.2 billion were traded in 4,122 deals compared with the 759.3 million shares worth N5.3 billion traded in 4,076 deals at the earlier trading day, indicating a decline in the trading volume and value by 71.90 per cent and 58.78 per cent respectively and an increase in the number of deals by 1.13 per cent.
The most traded stock for the day was eTranzact, which sold 52.6 million units valued at N119.8 million and was trailed by FBN Holdings, which traded 23.1 million units worth N249.8 million. UBA exchanged 21.9 million equities worth N153.5 million, GTCO transacted 15.5 million stocks for N315.9 million, while Transcorp traded 12.7 million stocks for N13.7 million.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The Debt Management Office (DMO) on Monday allotted bonds worth N929.3 billion to investors from the N1.7 trillion bids it received from subscribers.
The exercise, which took place on Monday, July 20, 2026, was oversubscribed by market participants, reflecting the confidence investors have in the government’s ability to redeem the debt instrument on maturity.
On offer for sale for the July auction was N1.2 trillion worth of the FGN bonds, but the DMO allotted below this, despite receiving bids above the offer.
The papers were offered in 10-year, 15-year, and 20-year tenors, at N400 billion each.
For the decade-old note, investors staked N444.47 billion, but the debt office sold N245.73 billion at an 18.34 per cent coupon rate. For the one and a half-decade-old paper, bids valued at N518.00 billion were received by the DMO, with a non-competitive bid of N50.00 billion, with N302.13 billion allotted to investors at 18.40 per cent, and for the two-decade paper, the DMO got competitive bids of N665.19 billion and N381.46 billion was sold to bondholders at 18.35 per cent.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Yemi Cardoso, disclosed that Nigeria’s external reserves had risen to $52.5 billion, enough to finance about nine months of imports.
He disclosed this on Tuesday at the end of the 306th meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) held in Abuja, where the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) retained the benchmark interest rate at 26.50 per cent as well as the standing facilities corridor at +50/-450 basis points around the MPR.
Similarly, the Cash Reserve Requirement (CRR) was maintained at 45 per cent for Deposit Money Banks, 16 per cent for Merchant Banks, and 75 per cent for non-Treasury Single Account (TSA) public sector deposits.
Speaking on FX developments, the central banker said at the $52 billion level, the country’s external reserves were significantly above the internationally recommended threshold of three months of import cover.
On the Naira exchange rate, Mr Cardoso said the foreign exchange market had deepened and was now operating on a transparent willing-buyer, willing-seller basis.
He said the apex bank remained committed to maintaining a liquid and functional foreign exchange market, adding that daily market turnover sometimes exceeded $1 billion.
According to him, the long-term stability of the naira would depend on key economic fundamentals, including increased oil exports, foreign direct investment, and improved domestic productivity to reduce dependence on imports.
He also added that the MPC welcomed the federal government’s renewed commitment to stronger policy coordination, particularly collaboration between fiscal and monetary authorities, which he said had helped reduce the impact of the Middle East crisis on the Nigerian economy.
Mr Cardoso said members of the committee also commended efforts to improve crude oil production and urged relevant agencies to intensify reforms in other sectors, including solid minerals, to boost government revenue.
On the regulatory forbearance granted to banks during the COVID-19 period, he reiterated that this had been discontinued because it had served its purpose.
According to him, the policy had “outlived its time” and was no longer necessary in assessing the health of the banking sector.
“Forbearance, we felt, had outlived its time. Many of you will recall this is something that came as a result of COVID. And now we are in 2026; we did not see the reason why that should continue to form part of the analysis of the banking system,” he said.
Mr Cardoso explained that banks had begun recalibrating their portfolios following the end of the policy, leading to a temporary reduction in outstanding risk assets.
He, however, assured that the development was part of a transition towards a stronger and more sustainable credit environment.
“It reflects a transition to a more sustainable and better quality credit environment, which is what we all want. We don’t want unanticipated shocks that come in a boom-and-bust fashion,” he said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange extended its recent positive run by 1.17 per cent on Tuesday, July 21, triggered by appreciation seen in four bellwethers.
Leading the pack was FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc, which added N12.00 to its value to close at N153.15 per share compared with the previous day’s N141.15 per share. NASD Plc appreciated by N1.90 to N36.00 per unit from N34.10 per unit, Food Concepts Plc improved by 23 Kobo to N2.48 per share from N2.25 per share, and Afriland Properties Plc grew by a marginal 1 Kobo to N15.01 per unit from N15.00 per unit.
As a result, the market capitalisation of the bourse increased by N30.40 billion to N2.637 trillion from Monday’s N2.606 trillion, and the NASD Security Index (NSI) gained 50.70 points to finish at 4,393.97 points, in contrast to the 4,343.27 points it ended a day earlier.
The unlisted securities exchange recorded a price loser yesterday, and it was Geo-Fluids Plc, which shed 1 Kobo to settle at N2.30 per share versus N2.31 per share.
During the trading day, the volume of securities traded by market participants on Tuesday dropped 99.4 per cent to 322,147 units from the previous day’s 52.6 million units, the value of securities dipped by 89.8 per cent to N19.4 million from the preceding session’s N191.2 million, and the number of deals contracted by 3.6 per cent to 27 deals from 28 deals.
Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc ended the day as the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units traded for N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units transacted for N6.5 billion, and Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc with 75.4 million units exchanged for N5.3 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units valued at N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units sold for N415.7 million.
