Economy

Upbeat Jobs Data May Generate Continued Buying Interest

Published

8 years ago

07/08/2017

By Investors Hub

Major US index futures are pointing to a higher opening on Monday, with stocks likely to add to the modest gains posted last Friday. The markets may continue to benefit from positive sentiment generated by the Labor Department’s upbeat monthly jobs report.

Overall trading activity may be somewhat subdued, however, with a lack of major US economic data keeping some traders on the sidelines.

Following the release of better than expected employment data, stocks saw modest strength during trading on Friday. While buying interest was somewhat subdued, the Dow still reached another new record closing high.

The major averages ended the day modestly higher. The Dow rose 66.71 points or 0.3 percent to 22,092.81, the Nasdaq edged up 11.22 points or 0.2 percent to 6,351.56 and the S&P 500 crept up 4.67 points or 0.2 percent to 2,476.83.

For the week, the major averages turned in a mixed performance. The Nasdaq fell by 0.4 percent, while the S&P 500 rose by 0.2 percent and the Dow jumped by 1.2 percent.

The modest strength on Wall Street came after a closely watched Labor Department report showed employment in the U.S. jumped by much more than anticipated in the month of July.

The Labor Department said non-farm payroll employment surged up by 209,000 jobs in July after spiking by an upwardly revised 231,000 jobs in June.

Economists had expected employment to climb by 183,000 jobs compared to the addition of 222,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.

With the stronger than expected job growth, the unemployment rate edged down to 4.3 percent in July from 4.4 percent in June. The modest decrease matched economist estimates.

The report also said average hourly employee earnings were up by 2.5 percent year-over-year in July, unchanged from the previous month.

The data generated optimism about the economic outlook, although it also raised concerns about the possibility of future interest rate hikes.

“Following the disappointing ISM surveys for July, released earlier this week, this employment report provides reassurance that the real economy remained solid at the start of the third quarter,” said Michael Pearce, U.S. economist at Capital Economics.

He added, “If the labor market continues to tighten over the coming months, as the survey evidence suggests it will, the Fed will press ahead with rate hikes and balance sheet normalization later this year.”

A separate report from the Commerce Department showed the trade deficit narrowed more than expected in June amid rising exports and falling imports.

The report said the trade deficit narrowed to $43.6 billion in June from $46.4 billion in May. Economists had expected the deficit to narrow to $45.0 billion.

After falling sharply over the past few sessions, natural gas stocks showed a strong move back to the upside on the day. The NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index jumped by 1.8 percent after ending Thursday’s trading at its lowest closing level in over a month.

Considerable strength was also visible among trucking stocks, as reflected by the 1.9 percent gain posted by the Dow Jones Trucking Index. YRC Worldwide (YRCW) led the sector higher after reporting its second quarter results.

Steel, financial, and telecom stocks also saw some strength on the day, although buying interest was somewhat subdued.

On the other hand, gold stocks came under significant selling pressure on the day, dragging the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index down by 1.6 percent. The weakness among gold stocks came amid a notable decrease by the price of the precious metal.

Economy

Conoil Ships First Cargo of Obodo Crude from Nigeria to Germany

Published

5 hours ago

14/05/2025

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) says the first cargo of the new Obodo crude blend has been shipped.

Business Post gathered that the first cargo could be headed for the North Sea port of Wilhelmshaven, Germany.

In a statement by the chief executive of NUPRC, Mr Gbenga Komolafe, Conoil Producing Limited was congratulated on the successful shipment of the first cargo of the Obodo crude blend.

Mr Komolafe said this development marks a significant milestone for Nigeria’s upstream sector, demonstrating the growing capacity of indigenous operators to contribute meaningfully to national crude oil production and exports.

“The introduction of the Obodo crude blend further diversifies Nigeria’s export portfolio and aligns with the commission’s strategic objectives to enhance production output, maximise hydrocarbon resources, and attract investment through operational efficiency and innovation,” he said.

Mr Komolafe maintained that this achievement by Conoil, under the production sharing contract framework with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, also reflects the positive outcomes of collaborative regulatory support, enabling indigenous players to thrive.

“As the regulator of Nigeria’s upstream petroleum industry, the NUPRC remains committed to providing a transparent, predictable, and investment-friendly environment that encourages the development of new crude streams and ensures optimal value for the Nigerian people.

“We look forward to more milestones of this nature that advance national energy security and economic resilience,” he said.

According to tracking data from Kpler, the Suezmax Atlanta Spirit loaded on April 25 from the floating production, storage and offloading vessel Tamara Tokoni.

Obodo has a gravity of 27.65°API and a very low sulphur content of 0.05pc, according to Argus.

Obodo joins the list of crude grades launched by Nigeria in the last year.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) restarted production of similar-quality Utapate in 2024 and launched Nembe a year earlier.

Obodo could find favour with European refineries, as Nigerian medium sweet grades — including Forcados, Escravos and Bonga — have gone predominantly to Europe, the largest market for the country’s crude.

Economy

Dangote Refinery Cancels June Maintenance on Petrol Producing Unit

Published

5 hours ago

14/05/2025

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

Dangote Oil Refinery has reportedly cancelled planned maintenance on its 204,000 barrels per day petrol-producing unit for June.

This comes as the $20 billion structure has carried out the necessary work during an unplanned shutdown from April 7 to May 11, according to industry tracker, IIR.

Dangote Refinery had originally scheduled a 30-day maintenance shutdown in June for its gasoline-producing Residue Fluid Catalytic Cracking (RFCC) unit.

The refinery has since pushed back on reports of the unit being under unplanned repair, stating that such claims are not entirely accurate.

According to data from shipping analytics firm, Kpler, during the unplanned outage, the refinery ramped up exports of residual products such as straight run fuel oil, while shipments of finished fuels like jet fuel and gasoil declined.

The 650,000 barrels per day refinery, built by Africa’s richest man, Mr Aliko Dangote, began producing diesel, naphtha, and jet fuel in January last year, followed by petrol production in September.

Dangote refinery could potentially end the long-standing gasoline trade from Europe to Africa, which is valued at $17 billion annually.

Already, the refinery has triggered a spate of changes in fuel prices locally with back to back cuts down to N825 per litre earlier this week from N835 previously sold.

The refinery, however, has not been able to operate at its optimal level due to challenges around feedstock. So far, in addition to local crude acquisition, it has bought crude from the US, Brazil, Angola, and Algeria.

Economy

Unlisted Stocks Rise N19.77bn Amid High Activity

Published

8 hours ago

14/05/2025

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange rose further by 1.02 per cent on Tuesday, May 13, buoying the market capitalisation by N19.77 billion to close at N1.967 trillion compared with the preceding day’s N1.947 trillion.

In the same vein, the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) went up by 33.77 points to finish at 3,359.79 points, in contrast to the 3,326.06 points reported a day earlier.

Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc increased during the trading session by N2.35 to N27.20 per share from N24.85 per share, NASD Plc added N1.90 to close at N20.90 per unit compared with the previous day’s N19.00 per unit, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc gained 87 Kobo to close at N41.30 per share versus the previous closing value of N40.43 per share, Mixta Real Estate Plc climbed higher by 51 Kobo to end at N5.51 per unit compared with Monday’s price of N5.00 per unit, and AG Mortgage Bank Plc appreciated by 5 Kobo to settle at 58 Kobo per share, in contrast to the preceding session’s 53 Kobo per share.

The level of activity was higher yesterday, with the volume of securities transacted going up by 61,474.7 per cent to 414.5 million units from the 673,233 units traded in the previous trading day, the value of trades jumped by 16,714.4 per cent to N1.05 billion from N6.3 million, but the number of deals fell by 28.6 per cent to 25 deals from 35 deals.

Impresit Bakolori Plc remained the most active stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 536.9 million units worth N524.7 million, followed by Geo-Fluids Plc with 266.3 million units sold for N470.5 million, and Okitipupa Plc with 153.6 million units valued at N4.9 billion.

Okitipupa Plc also remained the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 153.6 million units sold for N4.9 billion, trailed by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with 20.2 million units valued at N770.6 million, and Impresit Bakolori Plc with 536.9 million units worth N524.7 million.