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Trump’s Speech: Wall Street Risks Choppy Trading

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By Modupe Gbadeyanka

The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a roughly flat opening on Tuesday as traders await President Donald Trump’s highly anticipated speech to a joint session of Congress.

The markets have recently benefited from optimism about pro-business policies under Trump, and traders will be looking additional details on his policies on tax reform, deregulation, and infrastructure spending. Early trading may also be impacted by reaction to a slew of U.S. economic data.

After initially moving to the downside, stocks turned higher over the course of the trading session on Monday. With the turnaround on the day, the Dow and the S&P 500 once again climbed to new record closing highs.

The major averages ended the session modestly higher. The Dow crept up 15.68 points or 0.1 percent to 20,837.44, the Nasdaq rose 16.59 points or 0.3 percent to 5,861.90 and the S&P 500 edged up 2.39 points or 0.1 percent to 2,369.73.

Profit taking contributed to the early weakness on Wall Street following recent strength, although selling pressure remained relatively subdued.

The subsequent rebound reflected recent upward momentum amid optimism about pro-business policies under President Donald Trump.

Trump is due to speak to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday, and traders will be looking for details on his promises of tax reform, deregulation and infrastructure spending.

In economic news, the Commerce Department released a report showing a rebound in durable goods orders in the month of January.

The report said durable goods orders jumped by 1.8 percent in January after falling by a revised 0.8 percent in December. Economists had expected orders to climb by 1.7 percent.

Excluding a sharp increase in orders for transportation equipment, durable goods orders edged down by 0.2 percent in January following a revised 0.9 percent advance in December. Ex-transportation orders had been expected to rise by 0.5 percent.

A separate report from the National Association of Realtors unexpectedly showed a steep drop in pending home sales in the month of January.

NAR said its pending home sales index tumbled by 2.8 percent to 106.4 in January after climbing by 0.8 percent to a revised 109.5 in December.

A pending home sale is one in which a contract was signed but not yet closed. Normally, it takes four to six weeks to close a contracted sale.

The steep drop by the index came as a surprise to economists, who had expected pending home sales to increase by 0.8 percent.

With the unexpected decrease, the pending home sales index fell to its lowest level since hitting 106.0 in January of last year.

Biotechnology stocks moved sharply higher over the course of the trading session, driving the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index up by 3.8 percent. With the jump, the index reached its best closing level in over a year.

Significant strength was also visible among oil service stocks, as reflected by the 1.7 percent gain posted by the Philadelphia Oil Service Index.

Steel and housing stocks also saw considerable strength, with the NYSE Arca Steel Index and the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index climbing by 1.7 percent and 1.6 percent, respectively.

On the other hand, gold stocks moved sharply lower on the day, dragging the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index down by 5.1 percent. With the drop, the index fell to its lowest closing level in well over a month.

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Modupe Gbadeyanka is a fast-rising journalist with Business Post Nigeria. Her passion for journalism is amazing. She is willing to learn more with a view to becoming one of the best pen-pushers in Nigeria. Her role models are the duo of CNN's Richard Quest and Christiane Amanpour.

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Economy

Zichis Confirms Intention to Borrow from Capital Market

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By Aduragbemi Omiyale

One of the newest members of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited, Zichis Agro-Allied Industries Plc, has confirmed its intention to approach the capital market to raise funds, subject to shareholder and regulatory approval.

However, it denied reports suggesting it’s “set to undertake an Initial Public Offering (IPO) or related capital raising activity.”

In a notice on Monday, the firm affirmed proposing “to seek shareholders’ approval at its forthcoming Annual General Meeting (AGM) to raise additional capital, which may be through equity, debt, or a combination of both, subject to regulatory approvals and market conditions.”

“At this stage, the structure, timing, and details of any such capital raising have not been finalised, and no specific transaction has been concluded,” a part of the statement signed by the company secretary, Solomon Itsede, stressed.

Zichis expressed its commitment to upholding “the highest standards of corporate governance, transparency, and timely disclosure.”

“Accordingly, any material corporate actions or capital market activities will be formally communicated through the appropriate regulatory channels,” it said, advising shareholders and the investing public “to rely solely on official disclosures and filings made by the company through the NGX and other authorised regulatory platforms when making investment decisions.”

Zichis welcomed the “continued interest of investors and market participants in its operations and performance,” promising to remain focused on delivering sustainable value through disciplined strategic execution.

It also lauded the continued support of its shareholders, saying it remains committed to maintaining transparency in all its communications.

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Economy

NERC Orders Transparent Reporting of Transmission Loss Factors

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By Adedapo Adesanya

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has issued a directive to ensure transparency in reporting the Regional Electricity Transmission Loss Factor, as it remains above the 7 per cent threshold.

In a public notice posted on its official X (formerly Twitter) on Monday, the order, contained in No. NERC/2026/026 is aimed at improving transparency and efficiency in Nigeria’s power grid through enhanced reporting of Regional Transmission Loss Factors (TLF).

The regulator disclosed that the order is backed by the provisions of the Electricity Act 2023, which enables the commission to regulate, monitor, and ensure efficiency in the power sector.

According to the statement, the Data from the Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) indicate that the national average TLF was 8.71 per cent in 2024 but was reduced to 7.24 per cent in 2025.

The statement added that the report exceeds the 7 per cent benchmark approved by NERC in the Multi-Year Tariff Order (MYTO).

The statement reads, “The Order dated 8 April 2026 establishes a formal framework for reporting transmission losses across regions operated by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).

“Taking effect from 13 April 2026, the Order is backed by provisions of the Electricity Act 2023, which empower NERC to regulate, monitor, and ensure efficiency in the electricity market.”

The directive reads, “NISO to install smart meters at all boundary regional interconnection points by December 2026 to accurately measure energy flows for each region of the transmission network.

“NISO to measure and document all energy flow of power transformers at transmission substations.

“NISO to file quarterly reports on TLF to NERC on a regional basis.”

It added, “TCN to file an action plan by July 2026 on the reduction of TLF to a value within the 7 per cent approved benchmarks in the regions.

“TCN to ensure that TLF across transmission regions shall not exceed 6.5 per cent by December 2026.”

NERC concluded that the order is designed to strengthen accountability in transmission operations and support better grid performance through structured loss reporting.

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Economy

Dangote Refinery Plans Cross-border Listing of Shares

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Dangote Refinery Crude Supply to Local Refineries

By Adedapo Adesanya

Nigerian businessman, Mr Aliko Dangote, is planning to list shares of his $20 billion oil refinery on multiple African stock exchanges.

The landmark cross-border public offering on the continent was disclosed by the chief executive of the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE), Mr Frank Mwiti, following a meeting held last week in Lagos between Mr Dangote and several heads of African exchanges.

Last year, Mr Dangote unveiled plans to list a 10 per cent stake in his Lagos-based refinery on the Nigerian Exchange this year.

According to a Bloomberg report, citing an email from the chief executive of FirstCap, Mr Ukandu Ukandu, Stanbic IBTC Capital Limited, Vetiva Advisory Services Limited, and FirstCap Limited have been appointed as advisers for the initial public offering of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE.

Mr Mwiti said the proposed listing is designed to cut across multiple markets and deepen investor participation across the continent.

“The plan is to structure a pan-African IPO,” he said.

Bloomberg also reported that a spokesman for the Dangote Group confirmed that discussions had taken place between Mr Dangote and exchange officials but declined to provide further details.

In February 2026, Mr Dangote said that the IPO could be launched within the next five months.

“But individually Nigerians too will have an opportunity in the next maximum four or five months, they will actually be able to buy their shares,” he said at the time.

He added that investors would have flexibility in how they receive returns.

“People will have a choice either to get their dividends in naira or to get their dividends in dollars because we earn in Dollars.”

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