Economy
S&P Sees “Very High Levels of Corruption” in Nigeria, Affirms Ratings
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Renowned rating agency, S&P Global Ratings, has affirmed its ‘B/B’ long- and short-term sovereign credit ratings on Nigeria with a stable outlook.
In a statement issued by the firm last Friday, it also affirmed its long- and short-term Nigeria national scale ratings at ‘ngA/ngA-1’.
It was explained that the stable outlook reflected the balance between risks of heightened domestic political tensions, against the potential for an improving external position.
According to S&P, the ratings on Nigeria were supported by a relatively low general government debt stock, but stressed that the “debt-servicing costs are high.”
It further noted that the ratings remain constrained by Nigeria’s low economic wealth, weak institutional capacity, lower real GDP per capita trend growth rates than peers at similar development levels, and external risks.
“Although external indebtedness is relatively modest, significant stock-flow data mismatches raise external risks, in our view,” the statement said.
The rating agency disclosed that the “political decision-making in Nigeria can be unpredictable and we perceive very high levels of corruption in the country.
“We view government institutions as relatively weak, with slow decision-making on policy issues. Fiscal budgets are frequently passed well after the year has begun, which impedes the government’s responsiveness to economic challenges. We also view decision-making at the federal level as largely centralized in the office of President Buhari.
“We note, however, that the federal system of government helps to redistribute wealth and spread power to some extent. While security risks have slightly abated compared with the last two years, we still see sporadic attacks by Boko Haram in the North East, as well as attacks on oil pipelines in the Niger delta.”
According to the company, Nigeria has a democratic political system with a tested transfer of power between different political parties, last witnessed in the 2015 general (presidential and parliamentary) elections and the next general elections are scheduled to take place in February 2019 and state elections are set for March 2019.
“Following some switching of parties by key leaders from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), we expect the forthcoming elections will be hotly contested between the two main political parties.
“Our base case is that the elections will proceed smoothly, as was the case in the last general election in 2015.
“However, there could be downside risks related to subsequent increased tensions and potential political unrest hindering the effective functioning of government institutions. Sitting president Muhammadu Buhari will stand as the APC candidate, whereas the PDP has not yet chosen its presidential candidate. We do not expect any major changes in policy direction as a result of the elections. However, there could be some fiscal slippage,” it said.
Economy
BNB Price Reflects Changing Dynamics in the Digital Asset Market
Economy
NASD Unlisted Security Index Crosses 4,000-point Benchmark Again
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange achieved a milestone on Friday, April 24, 2026, after five securities on the platform helped with a 1.85 per cent growth.
Data showed that the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) again crossed the 4,000-point benchmark yesterday.
The index chalked up 73.64 points during the trading day to close at 4,052.59 points compared with the preceding session’s 3,978.95 points, while the market capitalisation added N5.38 billion to finish at N2.424 trillion versus Thursday’s closing value of N2.380 trillion.
The price gainers were led by Okitipupa Plc, which grew by N25.00 to sell at N305.00 per share compared with the previous price of N280.00 per share. Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc gained N6.92 to close at N76.26 per unit versus N69.34 per unit, Afriland Properties Plc appreciated by N1.00 to N17.00 per share from N18.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc improved by 55 Kobo to N99.55 per unit from N99.00 per unit, and Food Concepts Plc increased by 5 Kobo to N2.70 per share from N2.65 per share.
However, there was a price loser, MRS Oil, which dipped by N21.75 to N195.75 per unit from N217.50 per unit.
During the final session of the week, the value of securities jumped 75.2 per cent to N41.3 million from N23.6 million units, and the number of deals expanded by 62.9 per cent to 44 deals from 27 deals, while the volume of securities declined marginally by 0.9 per cent to 447,403 units from 451,522 units.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc was the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, trailed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units traded for N1.2 billion.
GNI was also the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 59.6 million units transacted for N4.0 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.8 million units exchanged for N1.9 billion.
Economy
Naira Slips to N1,358/$1 as FX Reserves, Policy Uncertainty Concerns
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was not a good day for the Nigerian Naira in the currency market on Friday, April 24, as its value depreciated against the major foreign currencies at the close of transactions.
In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), it lost N4.53 or 0.33 per cent against the United States Dollar yesterday to trade at N1,358.44/$1, in contrast to the N1,353.91/$1 it was exchanged on Thursday.
Equally, the domestic currency slipped against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the session by N8.14 to close at N1,834.02/£1, compared with the previous rate of N1,825.88/£1 and dropped N8.01 against the Euro to sell at N1,590.73/€1 versus N1,582.72/€1.
Also, the Naira depreciated against the US Dollar at the GTBank FX desk on Friday by N4 to quote at N1,370/$1 compared with the previous session’s N1,366/$1, and at the parallel market, it depleted by N5 to settle at N1,380/$1 versus the preceding day’s N1,375/$1.
Data published by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) indicated that NFEM interbank turnover surged to N43.562 million across 68 deals, up from N28.117 million the previous day.
Despite the CBN’s reassurance that the recent drop in external reserves is not worrisome, the market remains unsettled by persistent concerns over liquidity constraints, policy transparency, and weakening confidence in Nigeria’s FX market as gross reserves continue to decline to $48.4 billion.
The outlook for the Dollar appears supported by broader macro risks, including elevated oil prices tied to the tanker traffic disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and a continued US-Iran standoff over ceasefire negotiations.
A look at the digital currency market showed that investors are sitting on the edge as the US Dollar rebounded amid geopolitical and inflation risks despite continued inflows into US spot bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).
Solana (SOL) rose by 1.2 per cent to sell $86.45, Cardano (ADA) appreciated by 1.1 per cent to $0.2517, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 0.9 per cent to $0.0989, Ripple (XRP) improved by 0.3 per cent to $1.43, Ethereum (ETH) soared by 0.2 per cent to $2,316.83, and Binance Coin (BNB) chalked up 0.1 per cent to sell for $637.44.
However, TRON (TRX) depreciated by 1.3 per cent to $0.3235, and Bitcoin (BTC) lost 0.2 per cent to close at $77,562.27, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
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