Economy

Trade Deal Pessimism Weigh on US Stocks

Published

6 years ago

18/11/2019

By Investors Hub

The major U.S. index futures have erased an earlier advance and are currently pointing to a roughly flat opening on Monday following last week?s climb to record highs.

The pullback by the futures came after a tweet from CNBC?s Beijing Bureau Chief Eunice Yoon suggested Chinese officials have grown pessimistic about the chances for a trade deal.

?Mood in Beijing about #trade deal is pessimistic, government source tells me. #China troubled after Trump said no tariff rollback. (China thought both had agreed in principle.)? Yoon tweeted.

She added, ?Strategy now to talk but wait due to impeachment, US election. Also prioritize China economic support.?

The futures had previously benefited from a weekend report from Chinese state media indicating the U.S. and China had ?constructive discussions? regarding a phase one trade deal in a high-level phone call.

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin reportedly talked with Chinese Vice Premier Liu He about the core issues for an agreement.

Traders have recently put tremendous faith in reports and comments about the trade talks, highlighting the importance of a trade deal to the global economic outlook.

Optimism a trade agreement will eventually be reached has helped propel stocks to record highs, although it remains to be seen if a deal will be finalized and actually benefit U.S. producers.

Following the lackluster performance seen over the past several sessions, stocks showed a strong move to the upside during trading on Friday. With the upward move on the day, the major averages all reached new record highs.

The major averages saw continued strength going into the close, ending the session at their best levels of the day. The Dow jumped 222.93 points or 0.8 percent to 28,004.89, the Nasdaq climbed 61.81 points or 0.7 percent to 8,540.83 and the S&P 500 advanced 23.83 points or 0.8 percent to 3,120.46.

For the week, the Dow surged up by 1.2 percent, while the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 climbed by 0.8 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively.

The strength on Wall Street came amid renewed optimism about a U.S.-China trade deal following comments from White House officials.

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said Thursday that U.S. and Chinese negotiators are in contact every single day and are “getting close” to a phase one trade deal.

“It’s not done yet, but there has been very good progress and the talks have been very constructive,” Kudlow said at an event at the Council on Foreign Relations.

In an appearance on the Fox Business Network on Friday, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said the talks are “down to the last details” and a deal will be completed “in all likelihood.”

Adding to the positive sentiment, China has lifted a nearly five-year ban on imports of U.S. poultry in a goodwill gesture that could lead to more than $1 billion in annual shipments to China.

Traders also reacted positively to a report from the Commerce Department showing U.S. retail sales rebounded by slightly more than expected in the month of October.

The Commerce Department said retail sales climbed by 0.3 percent in October, reversing the 0.3 percent drop in September. Economists had expected retail sales to rise by 0.2 percent.

Excluding a rebound in auto sales, the report said retail sales rose by 0.2 percent in October after edging down by 0.1 percent in September. Ex-auto sales had been expected to increase by 0.4 percent.

Meanwhile, traders shrugged off a report from the Federal Reserve showing a steep drop in industrial production in October, as the decrease was partly due to the since-resolved strike at General Motors (GM).

Healthcare stocks turned in some of the market’s best performances on the day, resulting in a 2.2 percent jump by the Dow Jones U.S. Health Care Index. The index ended the session at a new record closing high.

Significant strength was also visible among biotechnology stocks, as reflected by the 2 percent gain posted by the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index. The advance lifted the index to its best closing level in over three months.

Oil service stocks also saw considerable strength on the day, driving the Philadelphia Oil Service Index up by 1.9 percent. The strength among oil service stocks came amid a notable increase by the price of crude oil.

Natural gas, steel, pharmaceutical and computer hardware stocks also turned in strong performances amid broad based buying interest.

Economy

NBA Demands Suspension of Controversial Tax Laws

Published

10 hours ago

24/12/2025

Modupe Gbadeyanka

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

The federal government has been asked by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to suspend the implementation of the controversial tax laws.

In a reaction to the tax reform acts, the president of the group, Mr Afam Osigwe (SAN), the suspension of the laws would allow for a proper investigation into allegations of alterations in the gazetted and harmonised copies.

A member of the House of Representatives, Mr Abdussamad Dasuki, alleged that some parts of the laws passed by the parliament were different from the gazetted copy.

To address the issues raised, the NBA said it is “imperative that a comprehensive, open, and transparent investigation be conducted to clarify the circumstances surrounding the enactment of the laws and to restore public confidence in the legislative process.”

“Until these issues are fully examined and resolved, all plans for the implementation of the Tax Reform Acts should be immediately suspended,” the association declared.

It noted that the controversies “raise grave concerns about the integrity, transparency, and credibility of Nigeria’s legislative process.”

“These developments strike at the very heart of constitutional governance and call into question the procedural sanctity that must attend lawmaking in a democratic society,” it noted.

“Legal and policy uncertainty of this magnitude has far-reaching consequences. It unsettles the business environment, erodes investor confidence, and creates unpredictability for individuals, businesses, and institutions required to comply with the law. Such uncertainty is inimical to economic stability and should have no place in a system governed by the rule of law.

“Nigeria’s constitutional democracy demands that laws, especially those with profound economic and social implications, emerge from processes that are transparent, accountable, and beyond reproach. Anything short of this undermines public trust and weakens the foundation upon which lawful governance rests.

“We therefore call on all relevant authorities to act swiftly and responsibly in addressing this controversy, in the overriding interest of constitutional order, economic stability, and the preservation of the rule of law,” the organisation stated.

Economy

MRS Oil, Two Others Raise NASD Bourse Higher by 0.52%

Published

12 hours ago

24/12/2025

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

Demand for hot stocks, including MRS Oil Plc, buoyed the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 0.52 per cent on Tuesday, December 23.

The energy company was one of the three price gainers for the session as it chalked up N19.69 to sell at N216.59 per share versus the previous day’s value of N196.90 per share.

Further, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc gained N2.95 to close at N56.75 per unit versus N53.80 per unit and Golden Capital Plc appreciated by 84 Kobo to N9.29 per share from Monday’s N8.45 per share.

Consequently, the market capitalisation went up by N10.95 billion to N2.125 trillion from N2.125 trillion and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) rose by 18.31 points to 3,570.37 points from 3,552.06 points.

Yesterday, the NASD bourse recorded a price loser, the Central Securities Clearing System Plc (CSCS), which gave up 17 Kobo to close at N33.70 per unit against the previous trading value of N33.87 per unit.

The volume of securities traded at the session went down by 97.6 per cent to 297,902 units from the previous day’s 12.6 million units, the value of securities decreased by 98.5 per cent to N10.5 million from N713.6 million, and the number of deals remained flat at 32 deals.

By value, Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company (InfraCredit) Plc ended as the most actively traded stock on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units exchanged for N16.4 billion. This was followed by Okitipupa Plc, which traded 178.9 million units valued at N9.5 billion, and MRS Oil Plc with 36.1 million units worth N4.9 billion.

In terms of volume, also on a year-to-date basis, InfraCredit Plc led the chart with a turnover of 5.8 billion units traded for N16.4 billion. Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc ranked second with 1.2 billion units sold for N420.7 million, while Impresit Bakolori Plc followed with the sale of 536.9 million units valued at N524.9 million.

Economy

NGX All-Share Index Soars to 153,354.13 points

Published

12 hours ago

24/12/2025

Dipo Olowookere

By Dipo Olowookere

It was another bullish trading session for the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited as it closed higher by 0.59 per cent on Tuesday.

The market further rallied due to continued interest in large and mid-cap stocks on the exchange by investors rebalancing their portfolios for the year-end.

Yesterday, Aluminium Extrusion sustained its upward trajectory after it further appreciated by 9.96 per cent to N14.90, as Austin Laz gained 9.81 per cent to close at N2.91, Custodian Investment improved by 9.69 per cent to N38.50, and First Holdco soared by 9.35 per cent to N50.30.

Conversely, Royal Exchange declined by 7.22 per cent to N1.80, Champion Breweries shrank by 6.57 per cent to N15.65, NASCON lost 5.36 per cent to trade at N105.05, Sovereign Trust Insurance depreciated by 5.28 per cent to N3.77, and Japaul went down by 4.51 per cent to N2.33.

At the close of business, 29 shares ended on the gainers’ table and 27 shares finished on the losers’ log, representing a positive market breadth index and bullish investor sentiment.

This raised the All-Share Index (ASI) by 895.06 points to 153,354.13 points from 152,459.07 points and lifted the market capitalisation by N579 billion to N97.772 trillion from the previous day’s N97.193 trillion.

VFD Group finished the day as the busiest stock after it recorded a turnover of 192.0 million units worth N2.1 billion, GTCO exchanged 63.5 million units valued at N5.6 billion, Access Holdings traded 49.8 million units for N1.0 billion, First Holdco sold 45.8 million units valued at N2.3 billion, and Secure Electronic Technology transacted 38.3 million units worth N28.4 million.

In all, market participants bought and sold 677.4 million units valued at N20.8 billion in 27,589 deals compared with the 451.5 million units worth N13.0 billion traded in 33,327 deals on Monday, showing an improvement in the trading volume and value by 50.03 per cent and 60.00 per cent apiece, and a shortfall in the number of deals by 17.22 per cent.