Economy
Trade Talks Optimism Triggers Buying Interest on Wall Street
By Investors Hub
The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a higher opening on Tuesday, with stocks likely to add to the gains posted in the previous session.
The markets may continue to benefit from optimism about a potential U.S.-China trade deal ahead of high-level negotiations next week.
Recent comments from Trump officials downplaying reports about efforts to restrict U.S. investment in China have helped to ease concerns about trade tensions.
Buying interest may be somewhat subdued, however, as disappointing manufacturing data from overseas has added to worries about the global economy.
Shortly after the start of trading, the Institute for Supply Management is scheduled to release its report on U.S. manufacturing activity in the month of September.
After coming under pressure over the course of last Friday?s session, stocks moved back to the upside during trading on Monday. The major averages all climbed into positive territory, although buying interest was somewhat subdued.
The major averages pulled back off their best levels late in the session but held on to gains. The Dow rose 96.58 points or 0.4 percent to 26,916.83, the Nasdaq advanced 59.71 points or 0.8 percent to 7,999.34 and the S&P 500 climbed 14.95 points or 0.5 percent to 2,976.74.
The rebound on Wall Street came after a Treasury Department spokeswoman denied reports the Trump administration is considering delisting Chinese companies from U.S. stock exchanges.
“The administration is not contemplating blocking Chinese companies from listing shares on U.S. stock exchanges at this time. We welcome investment in the United States,” Treasury spokeswoman Monica Crowley said in a statement.
Crowley’s statement comes on the heels of reports suggesting the administration is contemplating ways to curb U.S. investments in China.
White House trade adviser Peter Navarro attacked the media reports in an interview with CNBC on Monday, claiming “over half” of a Bloomberg report about potential restrictions was “highly inaccurate or simply flat-out false.”
“This story was just so full of inaccuracies and in terms of the truth of the matter, what the Treasury said I think was accurate,” Navarro said.
Better than expected manufacturing data out of China also tempered some of the recent concerns about the impact of the U.S.-China trade war.
Meanwhile, MNI Indicators released a report showing Chicago-area business activity unexpectedly returned to contraction in the month of September.
MNI Indicators said its Chicago business barometer slumped to 47.1 in September after rebounding to 50.4 in August. A reading below 50 indicates a contraction in Chicago-area business activity.
The index indicated a contraction for the third time in four months, while economists had expected a much more modest decrease to a reading of 50.2.
MNI Indicators said its reading on prices at the factory gate rose 4.1 points to 57.7 in third quarter, with anecdotal evidence pointing to tariffs affecting prices and business activity.
Despite the advance by the broader markets, most of the major sectors finished the session showing only modest moves.
Semiconductor stocks showed a notable move to the upside, however, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index climbing by 1 percent.
Housing, software, chemical and healthcare stocks also saw some strength on the day, while gold stocks fell sharply along with the price of the precious metal.
With gold for December delivery plummeting $33.50 to $1,472.90 an ounce, the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index plunged by 3.5 percent to a two-month closing low.
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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