Economy
Veterans Day Holiday May Lead to Choppy Trading on Wall Street
By Investors Hub
The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a lower open on Monday, with stocks likely to see further downside after moving notably lower last Friday.
Lingering concerns about the outlook for global economic growth and a continued increase in interest rates may contribute to early weakness on Wall Street.
Government officers, the bond markets, and most banks are closed in observance of Veterans Day, however, potentially leading to limited trading activity.
A lack of major U.S. economic data may also keep some traders on the sidelines, contributing to a relatively choppy trading day.
In the coming days, traders are likely to keep a close eye on reports on consumer price inflation, retail sales, and industrial production.
A speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Wednesday is also likely to attract attention, as traders look for additional clues about the outlook for interest rates.
Last week, the Fed left interest rates unchanged as widely expected but indicated it remains on track to gradually raise rates despite signs of a slowdown in the pace of growth in business investment.
CME Group’s FedWatch tool currently indicates a nearly 76 percent chance the Fed will raise rates by a quarter point following a two-day meeting scheduled for December 18th and 19th.
Following the mixed performance seen on Thursday, stocks moved mostly lower during the trading day on Friday. With the drop on the day, the Dow pulled back off its best closing level in a month.
The major averages climbed well off their worst levels of the day but remained firmly in negative territory. The Dow fell 201.92 points or 0.8 percent to 25,989.30, the Nasdaq tumbled 123.98 points or 1.7 percent to 7,406.90 and the S&P 500 slid 25.82 points or 0.9 percent to 2,781.01.
Despite the pullback on the day, the major averages all moved higher for the week. The Dow surged up by 2.8 percent, the S&P 500 jumped by 2.1 percent and the Nasdaq climbed by 0.7 percent.
The weakness on Wall Street partly reflected renewed concerns about the outlook for interest rates on the heels of the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy announcement on Thursday.
The Fed left interest rates unchanged as widely expected but indicated it remains on track to gradually raise rates despite signs of a slowdown in the pace of growth in business investment.
Adding to the concerns about interest rates, the Labor Department released a report showing a much bigger than expected increase in producer prices in the month of October.
The Labor Department said its producer price index for final demand climbed by 0.6 percent in October after rising by 0.2 percent in September. Economists had been expecting another 0.2 percent uptick.
Excluding food and energy prices, core producer prices still rose by 0.5 percent in October after edging up by 0.2 percent in September. Core prices had been expected to rise by another 0.2 percent.
Compared to the same month a year ago, producer prices in October were up by 2.9 percent, reflecting an acceleration from the 2.6 percent increase in September.
The annual rate of growth in core consumer prices also accelerated modestly to 2.6 percent in October from 2.5 percent in September.
“Overall, the producer prices data show that inflationary pressures remain fairly strong, which will keep the Fed hiking rates once a quarter in the near term,” said Andrew Hunter, U.S. Economist at Capital Economics.
A separate report from the University of Michigan showed a slight deterioration in consumer sentiment in the month of November.
The report said the consumer sentiment index edged down to 98.3 in November from the final October reading of 98.6. Economists had expected the index to dip to 98.0.
Extending a recent sell-off, tobacco stocks moved sharply lower over the course of the session, dragging the NYSE Arca Tobacco Index down by 3.5 percent. The index tumbled to its lowest closing level in well over two months.
The steep drop by tobacco stocks was partly due to a report from the Wall Street Journal indicating FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb plans to pursue a ban on menthol cigarettes.
Substantial weakness was also visible among biotechnology stocks, as reflected by the 2.8 percent slump by the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index.
Steel stocks also saw considerable weakness amid concerns about the outlook for global demand, with the NYSE Arca Steel Index plunging by 2.5 percent.
Technology, gold, retail and brokerage stocks also showed notable moves to the downside, reflecting broad based weakness on Wall Street.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has promised to work with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Group Plc for the prevention of financial crime, and the reinforcement of trust and confidence in Nigeria’s capital market.
The Inspector General of Police, Mr Kayode Egbetokun, gave this assurance on Wednesday at the closing gong ceremony in his honour at the NGX in Lagos.
The police chief said, “A transparent and well-regulated capital market is vital to Nigeria’s economic growth. The Nigeria Police Force remains committed to working with regulators and market operators to prevent financial crime, protect investors, and uphold the integrity of our financial system.”
Earlier in his welcome address, the chairman of NGX Group, Mr Umaru Kwairanga, commended the leadership of the police in supporting market integrity.
“Market integrity is a shared responsibility. By honouring the Inspector-General of Police, we are reinforcing the importance of institutional alignment in protecting investors and preserving trust in our financial system.
“Strong collaboration between regulators, enforcement agencies, and market infrastructure institutions is essential to building a resilient and credible market that supports economic growth,” he stated.
The Director-General of SEC, Mr Emomotimi Agama, while speaking, emphasized the importance of coordinated enforcement, noting: “Investor protection is at the core of market regulation, and today’s engagement highlights how critical collaboration with law enforcement is to achieving that mandate. This partnership strengthens our enforcement capacity, enhances deterrence against illegal investment activities, and reinforces confidence in the Nigerian capital market.”
As for the chairman of NGX Limited, Mr Ahonsi Unuigbe, “A transparent and orderly market can only thrive where rules are respected and misconduct is addressed decisively. The presence of the Nigeria Police Force in this collective effort sends a strong signal that safeguarding the market is a national priority.”
Similarly, the chief executive of NGX Group, Mr Temi Popoola, stressed the importance of aligning innovation with oversight, pointing out that, “Technology and market growth must be supported by strong enforcement and investor protection frameworks. Our collaboration with the SEC and the Nigeria Police Force reflects a unified approach to preserving the credibility of Nigeria’s capital market.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange rallied by 0.09 per cent on Wednesday, February 4, amid renewed appetite for unlisted stocks.
This lifted the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) by 3.18 points to 3,641.30 points from the previous session’s 3,641.30 points and raised the market capitalisation by N1.9 billion to N2.180 trillion from the N2.178 trillion quoted on Tuesday.
The bourse recorded three price gainers and four price losers at the midweek session.
The advancers were led by Air Liquide Plc, which went up by N2.04 rise to end at N22.53 per share versus the previous session’s N20.49 per share, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) added 97 Kobo to sell at N44.97 per unit versus N44.00 per unit, and Acorn Petroleum Plc appreciated by 2 Kobo to N1.37 per share from N1.35 per share.
On the flip side, Geo-Fluids Plc lost 55 Kobo to sell at N6.26 per unit versus N6.81 per unit, Nipco Plc depreciated by 48 Kobo to trade at N259.00 per share versus N259.48 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc declined by 40 Kobo to N63.10 per unit from N63.50 per unit, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) depleted by 1 Kobo to 65 Kobo per share from 66 Kobo per share.
Yesterday, the volume of trades slid by 64.5 per cent to 2.5 million units from 7.0 million units, the value of transaction decreased by 53.2 per cent to N17.7 million from N37.9 million, and the number of deals went down by 47.1 per cent to 18 deals from 34 deals.
CSCS Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 16.0 million units valued at N652.6 million, followed by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with 1.7 million units exchanged for N111.2 million, and Geo-Fluids Plc with 11.7 million units traded for N76.1 million.
CSCS Plc was also the most active stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 16.0 million units sold for N652.6 million, trailed by Mass Telecom Innovation Plc with 13.3 million units worth N5.3 million, and Geo-Fluids Plc with 11.7 million units valued at N76.1 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira rallied at the different segments of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Wednesday as supply continues to outweigh demand, giving it an edge against the United States Dollar.
In the parallel market, the Nigerian Naira improved its value on the greenback yesterday by N5 to quote at N1,450/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,455/$1, and at the GTBank FX desk, it gained N3 to trade at N1,383/$1, in contrast to Tuesday’s exchange rate of N1,386/$1.
In the the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), which is also the official market, the Naira firmed up against the Dollar at midweek by N14.63 or 1.1 per cent to settle at N1,358.28/$1 versus the preceding session’s N1,372.91/$1.
Against the Pound Sterling, the domestic currency appreciated on Wednesday by N14.16 to N1,863.43/£1 from the previous day’s N1,877.59/£1, and gained N13.73 on the Euro to end at N1,606.03/€1 versus the N1,619.76/€1 it was exchanged a day earlier.
The strengthening of the Naira value has been driven by the injection of forex into the financial markets by foreign investors seeking attractive investments in the emerging markets, helping to boost Nigeria’s external reserves, which provide the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) with the capacity to support the local currency.
As of February 4, 2026, the reserves reached $46.59 billion.
The local currency has been able to find a solid path despite no indications of any intervention from the apex bank in recent week, strengthening the case of price discovery.
Policy moves by the CBN is also offering a backbone for the FX market as it considers some strategic reforms through a policy known as the Single Regulatory Window.
In its 2025 Fintech Report, the central bank said this scheme will significantly reduce time-to-market for new digital financial products by streamlining licensing and supervisory processes across multiple agencies.
Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market was in red amid a broad sell-off in global technology stocks, with reports showing that liquidity was notably thin, amplifying price moves and contributing to forced liquidations. The decline followed a sharp sell-off in global technology stocks overnight, where concerns over the pace of artificial intelligence adoption and rising capital spending by major firms weighed heavily on valuations.
Bitcoin (BTC) lost 7.9 per cent to sell at $70,534.94, Ripple (XRP) declined by 11.2 per cent to $1.42, Binance Coin (BNB) slumped by 9.4 per cent to $689.70, Ethereum (ETH) crashed by 8.9 per cent to $2,072.46, and Solana (SOL) dipped by 8.7 per cent to $89.86.
In addition, Dogecoin (DOGE) depreciated by 6.9 per cent to $0.1008, Cardano (ADA) slipped by 6.8 per cent to $0.2792, Litecoin (LTC) dropped 5.1 per cent to trade at $57.56, and US Dollar Tether (USDT) went down by 0.1 per cent to $0.9980, while the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00.
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