Author: Julius Alagbe
Julius Alagbe is a senior financial journalist and Editor at MarketForces Africa with nearly two decades of experience in finance, accounting, and economics reporting.He is one of Nigeria's most prolific financial market reporters, covering capital markets, monetary policy, corporate earnings, banking, telecoms, and macroeconomic developments across Africa.Julius has built a strong footprint reporting on Nigeria's leading corporates and financial services sector, including coverage of the Nigerian Exchange Group, Central Bank of Nigeria monetary operations, MTN Nigeria, GTCO, and major investment banking transactions.He regularly monitors the CBN’s open market operations, interbank FX markets, and equity market movements, providing readers with real-time intelligence on Nigeria’s financial landscape.His reporting draws on direct access to institutional research from firms including Moody’s Ratings, CardinalStone Securities, Fitch, and other leading African investment houses.Julius brings analytical depth and editorial rigour to every story, making complex financial data accessible to professionals, investors, and policymakers across Africa.Julius Alagbe is based in Lagos, Nigeria.
Equity investors on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) traded 1.683 billion shares across sectoral names, worth N109.438 billion, in 76,557 transactions on Wednesday.
OPEC Oil Output Tumbles 1.7 mbpd in April Crude oil production by the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) fell by around 1.7 million barrels per day (mbpd) in April 2026 compared with March. In April, OPEC’s total output stood at about 18.98 million bpd, according to the group’s latest Monthly Oil Market Report on Wednesday. The steepest production declines were recorded in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq and Iran. Saudi Arabia’s crude output dropped by roughly 958,000 bpd to about 6.77 million bpd, while Kuwait’s production fell by about 561,000 bpd to 600,000 bpd. Output in Iraq declined by…
The naira regained value at the Nigerian foreign exchange market (NFEM) on Wednesday as improved hard currency liquidity reduced pressures from surging FX demand for international payments and settlements.
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) year-to-date return climbs to 62.27% on Wednesday as funds continue to rotate into risky assets, though stockbrokers spotted a slowdown in momentum.
The global oil market rallied over fading hopes for a lasting ceasefire between the US and Iran, renewed concerns that prolonged geopolitical tensions in the Middle East could threaten global oil supplies.
MTN Group (MTN) released an update for the first quarter ended 31 March 2025. Service revenue increased 20.5% to R56.7 billion. The topline was buoyed by 5.4% increase in customer base, which expanded to 312.7 million.
The South African rand weakened against its major crosses, trading at R16.50 per dollar, R19.34 per euro, and R22.30 per pound, First National Bank (FNB) said in its morning brief on Wednesday.
Persistent volatility over the United States (US)-Iran ceasefire and higher-than-expected US inflation rippled through global markets, with Wall Street closing mixed.
Nigeria’s Yields slipped in the secondary market for government short- and long-term borrowing instruments as investors circled around naira assets ahead of the release of inflation data.
Asked what message he had for Xi regarding the war, Trump said the two would have “a long talk” about it. “I think he’s been relatively good, to be honest with you,” Trump told reporters.