Economy

Trade Concerns May Continue to Weigh on US Stocks

Published

8 years ago

28/06/2018

By Investors Hub

The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a lower opening on Thursday, with stocks likely to extend the pullback seen over the course of the previous session.

The downward momentum on Wall Street may partly reflect concerns about the global economic impact on the ongoing trade dispute between the U.S. and other major economies.

Negative sentiment may also be generated in reaction to a Commerce Department report showing weaker than previously estimated U.S. economic growth in the first quarter.

After failing to sustain an early move to the upside, stocks turned lower over the course of the trading session on Wednesday. The major averages all pulled back off their best levels of the day and into negative territory.

The major averages ended the session just off their worst levels of the day. The Dow fell 165.52 points or 0.7 percent to 24,117.59, the Nasdaq plunged 116.54 points or 1.5 percent to 7,445.08 and the S&P 500 slid 23.43 points or 0.9 percent to 2,699.63.

Stocks initially benefited from news that President Donald Trump’s plan to crack down on Chinese investments in the U.S. is less harsh than feared.

Administration officials told reporters Trump wants to strengthen the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. to prevent foreign companies from violating intellectual-property rights of American companies.

Trump expressed support for legislation that would expand CFIUS’ authority in a White House statement released Wednesday.

The president said the bill known as the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act would enhance the administration’s ability to protect the U.S. from new and evolving threats posed by foreign investment.

Trump argued the legislation would still sustain the strong, open investment environment to which the country is committed and which benefits the U.S. economy.

Reports earlier this week suggested Trump intended to use the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 to limit Chinese investment in the U.S.

However, technology stocks came under pressure over the course of the session, contributing to the steep drop by the Nasdaq.

In U.S. economic news, the Commerce Department released a report showing a smaller than expected decrease in new orders for U.S. manufactured durable goods in the month of May.

The Commerce Department said durable goods orders fell by 0.6 percent in May after tumbling by a revised 1.0 percent in April.

Economists had expected durable goods orders to drop by 1.0 percent compared to the 1.6 percent slump that had been reported for the previous month.

Excluding orders for transportation equipment, durable goods orders dipped by 0.3 percent in May after spiking by 1.9 percent in April. Ex-transportation orders had been expected to rise by 0.5 percent.

Meanwhile, a separate report from the National Association of Realtors showed an unexpected decrease in pending home sales in May.

NAR said its pending home sales index fell by 0.5 percent to 105.9 in May after slumping by 1.3 percent to 106.4 in April. Economists had expected pending home sales to climb by 0.5 percent.

Biotechnology stocks moved sharply lower over the course of the trading session, dragging the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index down by 2.8 percent. With the drop, the index fell to its lowest closing level in over a month.

Substantial weakness also emerged among semiconductor stocks, as reflected by the 2.5 percent loss posted by the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index. The index also slid to its worst closing level in well over a month.

Financial, steel, gold and computer hardware stocks also came under pressure over the course of the session, contributing to the pullback by the broader markets.

On the other hand, significant strength remained visible among energy stocks, which moved higher along with the price of crude oil.

Reflecting the strength in the energy sector, the Philadelphia Oil Service Index surged up by 2.9 percent, while the NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index and the NYSE Arca Oil Index both climbed by 1.1 percent.

Economy

FrieslandCampina Wamco, Three Others Raise NASD OTC Exchange by 1.41%

Published

1 day ago

16/05/2026

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange closed higher by 1.41 per cent on Friday, May 15, supported by four securities on the platform.

During the session, FrieslandCampina Wamco Plc added N14.24 to its share price to sell for N159.00 per unit, in contrast to the previous day’s N144.76 per unit.

Further, Central Securities and Clearing System (CSCS) Plc appreciated by N1.34 to N72.34 per share from N71.00 per share, Geo-Fluids Plc improved its price by 4 Kobo to N2.94 per unit from N2.90 per unit, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc gained 1 Kobo to trade at 61 Kobo per share compared with Thursday’s closing price of 60 Kobo per share.

As a result, the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) rose by 58.20 points to 4,188.41 points from 4,130.21 points, and the market capitalisation soared by N34.82 billion to N2.506 trillion from N2.471 trillion on Thursday.

During the session, the volume of trades went up by 180.8 per cent to 1.2 million units from 417,349 units, and the value of transactions increased by 29.8 per cent to N29.8 million from N23.2 million, while the number of deals fell by 22.6 per cent to 24 deals from 31 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 sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 60.8 million units exchanged for N4.1 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.9 million units valued at N1.9 billion.

GNI Plc also closed the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units transacted for N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units traded for N1.2 billion.

Economy

Profit-taking Sinks Nigeria’s Equity Market by 0.76% as Bears Take Control

Published

1 day ago

16/05/2026

Dipo Olowookere

By Dipo Olowookere

The bears overpowered the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited on Friday, sinking it further by 0.76 per cent when the closing gong was struck by 4 pm.

The nation’s flagship equity market was under selling pressure during the session, as investors booked profits after the shares witnessed price appreciation in the past trading sessions.

The energy sector was the most impacted, as it shed 4.43 per cent. The consumer goods index declined by 0.90 per cent, the banking counter decreased by 0.15 per cent, and the industrial goods sector lost 0.08 per cent, while the insurance counter gained 2.42 per cent, which was not enough to salvage the situation.

Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) contracted by 1,912.19 points to 250,330.92 points from 252,243.11 points, and the market capitalisation moderated by 1.225 trillion to N160.444 trillion from N161.669 trillion.

Zichis was the worst-performing stock for the session after it gave up 9.97 per cent to close at N29.43, FTN Cocoa slipped by 9.95 per cent to N8.96, The Initiates slumped by 9.90 per cent to N32.30, LivingTrust Mortgage Bank tumbled by 9.88 per cent to N3.83, and International Energy Insurance dropped 9.71 per cent to trade at N2.79.

The best-performing stock was ABC Transport, which grew by 10.00 per cent to N6.27. May and Baker also appreciated by 10.00 per cent to N47.30, SCOA Nigeria surged by 9.98 per cent to N33.05, Trans-Nationwide Express expanded by 9.97 per cent to N7.06, and DAAR Communications jumped 9.76 per cent to N2.25.

Yesterday, investors traded 1.1 billion shares worth N44.3 billion in 65,744 deals compared with the 1.0 billion shares valued at N41.6 billion transacted in 74,822 deals a day earlier. This indicated a dip in the number of deals by 12.13 per cent, and a rise in the trading volume and value by 10.00 per cent and 6.49 per cent, respectively.

Chams was the busiest equity for the day, with 328.5 million units sold for N1.1 billion. UBA traded 61.6 million units worth N2.7 billion, First Holdco transacted 58.7 million units valued at N4.2 billion, Secure Electronic Technology exchanged 51.9 million units worth N45.0 million, and Access Holdings traded 51.8 million units valued at N1.3 billion.

Economy

Naira Weakens to N1,371/$1 at Official Market

Published

1 day ago

16/05/2026

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The last trading session of the week at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) ended on a negative note for the Naira on Friday, May 15, as it lost N15 Kobo or 0.1 per cent against the Dollar to trade at N1,371.04/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,370.89/$1.

However, it further appreciated against the Pound Sterling in the same market segment yesterday by N20.77 to close at N1,830.61/£1 versus Thursday’s value of N1,851.38/£1, and gained N7.91 against the Euro to settle at N1,595.07/€1 versus N1,602.98/€1.

At the GTBank FX desk, the Naira lost N2 against the US Dollar during the session to sell at N1,383/$1 compared with the preceding session’s N1,381/$1, and at the black market, it remained unchanged at N1,385/$1.

The Naira is forecast to be broadly stable, supported by Dollar sales by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) amid steady, higher oil receipts, with the ‌market settling ⁠into a balance.

Policy direction is also expected to give the market some boost as the CBN said the new edition of the FX market guidelines will deepen liquidity, improve transparency and strengthen confidence in the country’s foreign exchange market.

According to the Governor of the CBN, Mr Yemi Cardoso, the update is due to changing global economic realities, domestic reforms and the need for a more coherent and forward-looking regulatory framework. According to him, the last edition of the FX manual was issued in 2018, making the latest review both timely and necessary.

Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market plunged into the red zone as rising bond yields hit risk assets across markets, while traders are increasingly betting the Federal Reserve may need to raise rates again. Rising energy prices and resurging inflation could force central banks back into tightening mode.

Cardano (ADA) shrank by 4.4 per cent to $0.2557, Dogecoin (DOGE) slid by 3.7 per cent to $0.1104, Ripple (XRP) depreciated by 3.5 per cent to $1.41, Solana (SOL) crashed by 3.5 per cent to $87.81, and Binance Coin (BNB) slumped by 3.4 per cent to $659.64.

Further, Bitcoin (BTC) declined by 2.6 per cent to $78,547.49, Ethereum (ETH) lost 2.1 per cent to quote at $2,209.19, and TRON (TRX) tumbled by 0.7 per cent to $0.3509, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 each.