Economy
US Stocks Poised to Stretch Upward Trend
By Investors Hub
The major US index futures are pointing to a higher opening on Monday, with stocks poised to extend the upward trend seen in recent sessions.
The markets may continue to benefit from recent upward momentum, which has propelled the major averages to record highs.
Trading activity may be somewhat subdued, however, with traders reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the key earnings news later this week.
Traders are also digesting remarks by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, who spoke at the Group of 30 International Banking Seminar on Sunday.
Despite subdued inflation, Yellen reiterated her belief additional gradual interest rate hikes are likely to be appropriate over the next few years.
“My best guess is that these soft readings will not persist, and with the ongoing strengthening of labor markets, I expect inflation to move higher next year,” Yellen said.
Stocks moved modestly higher during trading on Friday, offsetting the pullback seen last Thursday. With the upward move on the day, the Dow and the Nasdaq climbed to new record closing highs.
The major averages ended the day in positive territory but off their best levels. The Dow crept up 30.71 points or 0.1 percent to 22,871.72, the Nasdaq rose 14.29 points or 0.2 percent to 6,605.80 and the S&P 500 inched up 2.24 points or 0.1 percent to 2,553.17.
For the week, the Dow climbed by 0.4 percent, while the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 both edged up by 0.2 percent.
The modest strength on Wall Street came following the release of some upbeat economic data, including a Commerce Department report showing a substantial increase in retail sales in the month of September.
The Commerce Department said retail sales surged up by 1.6 percent in September after edging down by a revised 0.1 percent in August.
Higher gas prices contributed to the jump in retail sales, as sales by gasoline stations soared by 5.8 percent during the month.
Closely watched core retail sales, which exclude automobiles, gasoline, building materials and food services, rose by 0.4 percent.
The University of Michigan also released a report showing an unexpected improvement in consumer sentiment in the month of October.
The report said the consumer sentiment index jumped to 101.1 in October after dipping to 95.1 in September. Economists had expected the index to edge down to 95.0.
With the unexpected increase, the consumer sentiment index surged up to its highest level reaching 103.8 in January of 2004.
A separate report from the Labor Department showed consumer prices increased by slightly less than expected in the month of September.
The Labor Department said its consumer price index climbed by 0.5 percent in September after rising by 0.4 percent in August. Economists had expected prices to increase by 0.6 percent.
Excluding food and energy prices, core consumer prices inched up by 0.1 percent in September after edging up by 0.2 percent in August. Core prices had been expected to rise by another 0.2 percent.
Traders were also digesting the latest earnings news, including results from financial giants Bank of America (BAC) and Wells Fargo (WFC).
While Bank of America reported third quarter results that beat analyst estimates on both the top and bottom lines, Wells Fargo reported third quarter revenues that came in below expectations.
Steel stocks showed a significant move to the upside on the day, as upbeat Chinese trade data has generated optimism about the outlook for demand.
Reflecting the strength in the steel sector, the NYSE Arca Steel Index surged up by 3.7 percent to its best closing level in over seven months.
Considerable strength was also visible among computer hardware stocks, as reflected by the 1.5 percent advance by the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index. The index reached its best closing level in two months.
HP Inc. (HPQ) led the hardware sector higher after the computer and printer maker provided upbeat full-year earnings guidance and announced a 5 percent increase in its dividend.
Oil service and semiconductor stocks also saw some strength on the day, while weakness among utilities and transportation stocks limited the upside for the markets.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange lost its gaining streak on Wednesday, July 22, after it fell by 0.24 per cent despite the presence of five price gainers.
Yesterday, the market capitalisation went down by N6.32 billion to N2.631 trillion from the previous session’s N2.637 trillion, and the NASD Security Index (NSI) depreciated by 10.49 points to 4,383.48 points from 4,393.97 points.
The poor outcome was caused by the losses recorded by two securities, led by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc, which lost N5.60 to settle at N147.55 per unit compared with Tuesday’s closing price of N153.15 per unit, and Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc, which tumbled by N1.01 to N98.32 per share from N99.33 per share.
On the flip side, Nipco Plc added N38.00 to sell at N422.00 per unit versus N384.00 per share, Afriland Properties Plc gained 75 Kobo to close at N15.76 per share versus N15.01 per share, Geo-Fluids Plc improved by 23 Kobo to N2.53 per unit from N2.30 per unit, Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc appreciated by 2 Kobo to 52 Kobo per share from 50 Kobo per share, and Food Concepts Plc increased by 1 Kobo to N2.49 per unit from N2.48 per unit.
At midweek, the volume of securities surged by 3,438.9 per cent to 11.4 million units from 322,147 units, the value of securities rose by 122.2 per cent to N43.1 million from N19.4 million, and the number of deals jumped by 81.5 per cent to 49 deals from 27 deals.
Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most active stock on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units worth N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 75.4 million units exchanged for N5.4 billion.
GNI Plc was also the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units transacted for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units traded for N415.7 million.
By Dipo Olowookere
The domestic stock exchange slipped into the negative territory on Wednesday by 0.50 per cent after the consumer goods sector closed lower by 5.04 per cent despite the gains recorded by the other key sectors.
The insurance index shed 1.64 per cent, the banking space gained 1.51 per cent, and the industrial goods segment expanded by 0.81 per cent, while the energy counter closed flat.
At the close of business, the market capitalisation declined by N800 billion to N158.319 trillion from N159.119 trillion, and the All-Share Index (ASI) shrank by 1,241.19 points to 245,418.37 points from 246,659.56 points.
The duo of BUA Foods and Nestle Nigeria crumbled by 10.00 per cent each to N845.10 and N2,812.50, respectively. Mecure lost 9.94 per cent to trade at N69.30, International Energy Insurance slumped by 9.84 per cent to N4.40, and UAC Nigeria dipped by 7.75 per cent to N184.45.
On the flip side, the trio of Unilever Nigeria, Trans-Nationwide Express, and Cadbury Nigeria improved by 10.00 per cent each to quote at N137.50, N3.08, and N137.50, respectively. Thomas Wyatt moved up by 9.95 per cent to 4.09, and UPDC REIT jumped by 9.40 per cent to N12.80.
A total of 37 stocks ended on the advancers’ chart and 28 stocks finished on the laggards’ log, indicating a positive market breadth index and bullish investor sentiment.
Market participants transacted 1.3 billion shares worth N158.3 billion in 47,458 deals at midweek, in contrast to the 932.5 million shares valued at N49.3 billion traded in 50,059 deals in the preceding day. This implied that the number of deals declined by 5.20 per cent, while the trading volume and value increased by 39.41 per cent and 221.10 per cent, respectively.
First Holdco led the activity chart, with a turnover of 736.0 million units valued at N80.8 billion, Access Holdings exchanged 79.6 million units for N2.1 billion, GTCO transacted 34.1 million units worth N4.4 billion, Mutual Benefits sold 24.4 million units valued at N85.3 million, and Zenith Bank traded 21.5 million units for N2.6 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira further appreciated against the United States Dollar by N5.68 or 0.41 per cent to N1,369.63/$1 on Wednesday, July 22, from the preceding session’s N1,375.31/$1 in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX).
Similarly, the Nigerian currency improved its value against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the session by N8.01 to trade at N1,833.12/£1 compared with the previous day’s N1,841.13/£1, and against the Euro, it gained N4.75 to sell at N1,563.03/€1, in contrast to Tuesday’s closing price of N1,567.78/€1.
In the same vein, the Naira strengthened its rate against the US Dollar in the black market yesterday by N5 to quote at N1,400/$1 compared with the N1,405/$1 it was traded a day earlier, and at the GTBank FX desk, it chalked up N5 against the greenback to settle at N1,383/$1 versus N1,388/$1.
FX liquidity was boosted by inflows from foreign portfolio investors, exporters and non-bank corporates. The significant liquidity and strong investor sentiment aided the naira recovery from the recent slump.
As a result, total turnover settled at $416.420 million on Wednesday, up by 29 per cent from $322.664 million recorded the previous day.
The number of deals counted at the NAFEM window also increased to 198 from 110 on Tuesday, signalling higher demand for foreign payments matched adequate FX inflows.
With more than $52 billion in gross external reserves, analysts said the FX market is expected to remain stable in the near term.
As for the digital currency market, Bitcoin (BTC) slipped by 0.4 per cent to $65,658.75 as rising oil prices and higher Treasury yields pressured risk assets and weighed on major cryptocurrencies, which later saw some recovery.
Market sentiment was further dampened by an apparent escalation in US military strikes linked to Iran, while traders also looked at regulatory uncertainty as key US Senate Democrats criticised the latest draft of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, which is designed to define and separate regulatory oversight for cryptocurrency, stablecoins, and digital commodities.
Dogecoin (DOGE) crashed by 0.1 per cent to $0.0724, and TRON (TRX) dropped 0.01 per cent to trade at $0.3287, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 each.
However, Cardano (ADA) rose by 1.6 per cent to $0.1741, Ethereum (ETH) gained 0.2 per cent to close at $1,921.85, Binance Coin (BNB) also grew by 0.2 per cent to $569.38, Ripple (XRP) increased by 0.1 per cent to $1.13, and Solana (SOL) soared by 0.02 per cent to $77.50.
