Economy
Trump’s Comments Push Asian Stocks Higher
By Investors Hub
Asian stocks rose on Friday after U.S. President Donald Trump hinted at progress in his high-stakes trade battle with China and Chinese news agency Xinhua reported that Beijing was willing to reach an agreement to avoid further escalation.
Chinese Vice Premier Liu He told Chinese state-run media Xinhua the Chinese delegation has come to the talks with “great sincerity and is willing to make serious exchanges with the U.S. on issues of common concern,” raising hopes that the two countries would reach a deal to end their protracted trade war.
China’s Shanghai Composite Index climbed 25.95 points, or 0.9 percent, to 2,973.66, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index soared 600.51 points, or 2.3 percent, to 26,308.44.
Japanese shares advanced as the safe-haven yen weakened on optimism about the U.S.-China trade talks. The Nikkei 225 Index jumped 246.89 points, or 1.2 percent, to 21,798.87, its highest level since October 1. The broader Topix closed 0.9 percent higher at 1,595.27.
Shipping companies benefited from trade optimism, with Kawasaki Kisen climbing 5.7 percent and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines adding 3.4 percent. Market heavyweight Fast Retailing advanced 2.6 percent after the Uniqlo chain operator reported record profits and sales for the fiscal year through August. Seven & i Holdings soared 4.9 percent on restructuring news.
Australian markets rose sharply amid bets that high-level U.S.-China trade talks would yield at least a partial deal. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index climbed 59.70 points, or 0.9 percent, to 6,606.80, while the broader All Ordinaries Index ended up 59 points, or 0.9 percent, at 6,721.90.
Mining heavyweights BHP and Rio Tinto jumped over 2 percent each as investors awaited quarterly production reports from major Australian miners next week. The big four banks rose between 0.6 percent and 1.1 percent.
IOOF Holdings rallied 3.6 percent after it sold its stake in domestic fund manager Perennial Value Management to focus on its core wealth management business.
Michael Hill International soared 19.3 percent after the jeweler reported an 11.9 percent increase in same-store sales for the first quarter compared to the prior year.
Energy stocks such as Woodside and Santos rose around 1 percent after crude oil prices gained overnight, but gold miners Evolution and Newcrest declined around 1.5 percent each as gold prices fell from a one-week high.
Seoul stocks ended on a firmer note as investors cheered signs of progress in trade talks between the United States and China. The benchmark Kospi climbed 16.46 points, or 0.8 percent, to finish at 2,044.61.
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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