Economy

US Shares Open Higher on Rally by Chinese Stocks

Published

7 years ago

22/10/2018

By Investors Hub

The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a higher open on Monday, with stocks likely to move to the upside following the mixed performance seen last week.

The upward momentum on Wall Street comes on the heels of a rally by Chinese stocks, which extended the substantial rebound seen last Friday.

Chinese stocks surged higher amid optimism about additional stimulus to stimulate the world?s second largest economy after last week?s disappointing GDP data.

After three top Chinese financial regulators stepped in to bolster investor confidence last Friday, Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed ?unwavering? support for the country’s private sector.

In an open letter published in state media, Xi said Beijing would continue to value and protect the country’s private business owners to ensure a ?better tomorrow.?

Overall trading activity may be somewhat subdued, however, as a lack of major U.S. economic data may keep some traders on the sidelines.

After failing to sustain an early move to the upside, stocks turned mixed over the course of the trading session on Friday. The major averages pulled back well off their highs of the session, with the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 ending the day in negative territory.

While the Dow rose 64.89 points or 0.3 percent to 25,444.34, the Nasdaq fell 36.11 points or 0.5 percent to 7,449.03 and the S&P 500 edged down 1.00 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 2.767.78.

The major averages also turned in a mixed performance for the week. The Nasdaq fell by 0.6 percent, while the Dow rose by 0.4 percent and the S&P 500 was nearly flat.

Early buying interest was generated by a rally by Chinese stocks, which rebounded strongly from an initial move to the downside despite disappointing GDP data.

Data showed Chinese GDP climbed an annual 6.5 percent in the third quarter, shy of estimates for 6.6 percent and down from 6.7 percent in the previous quarter.

However, investors reacted positively after three top Chinese financial regulators stepped in to bolster investor confidence.

The heads of the People’s Bank of China, the Securities Regulatory Commission and the Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission all issued statements expressing support for the markets.

A positive reaction to upbeat earnings news from big-name companies such as Procter & Gamble (PG), American Express (AXP) and Honeywell (HON) also contributed to the early strength on Wall Street.

Traders seemed reluctant to make more significant moves, however, as concerns about rising interest rates and tension between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia continued to weigh on the markets.

Meanwhile, traders largely shrugged off a report from the National Association of Realtors showing a much steeper than expected drop in existing home sales in the month of September.

NAR said existing home sales plunged by 3.4 percent to an annual rate of 5.15 million in September after edging down by 0.2 percent to a revised rate of 5.33 million in August. Economists had expected existing home sales to drop by 0.7 percent.

With the much bigger than expected decrease, existing home sales slumped to their lowest annual rate since November of 2015.

Utilities stocks showed a significant move to the upside on the day, driving the Dow Jones Utilities Average up by 1.6 percent. With the gain, the average reached its best closing level in ten months.

Notable strength was also visible among telecom stocks, as reflected by the 2.2 percent advance by the NYSE Arca North American Telecom Index. The index rebounded following the pullback seen in the previous session, climbing further off the two-month closing low set last Thursday.

On the other hand, biotechnology stocks came under pressure over the course of the session, dragging the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index down by 1.8 percent.

Oil stocks also moved to the downside despite an increase by the price of crude oil, moving notably lower along with housing, semiconductor, and networking stocks.

Economy

NBA Demands Suspension of Controversial Tax Laws

Published

7 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

9 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

10 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.