Author: Julius Alagbe

MTN Nigeria Halts Negative Earnings, Profit Soars by 134% MTN Nigeria Plc has halted its negative earnings performance in the first quarter of 2025, as the telecom company’s profit soared by 134% to N133.638 billion year on year. A review of its audited financial scorecard showed that the telecom company’s revenue surged by 40.5% year-on-year to close at N1.057 trillion from N752.983 billion in Q1-2024, supported by higher data tariffs pricing allowed by the regulator. Data and voice remain the company’s major revenue drivers, growing by 51.5% and 27.7% to close at N529.44 billion and N407.412 billion in the first…

GCR Keeps FBNQuest Merchant Bank on Rating Watch Negative African-focused rating agency GCR has affirmed FBNQuest Merchant Bank Limited’s national scale long- and short-term issuer ratings of BBB (NG) and A3 (NG), respectively, with the outlook maintained as Rating Watch Negative. According to the rating note, the affirmed ratings balance FBNQuest Merchant Bank Limited’s good risk profile, stable funding, and strong liquidity against a modest competitive position, as well as a low capitalisation assessment. In its report, GCR said the negative ratings watch reflects potential non-applicability of group support uplift upon the completion of FBN Holdings Plc’s divestment from the…

CBN Closed Interest Rate on OMO Bills Offer at 22.73% The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has issued fresh OMO bills at the primary market across two tenors to banks and foreign portfolio investors at spot rates of 22.73% for longer tenor and 22.69% for lower duration. The monetary authority opened N500 billion on Tuesday to eligible market participants—banks and offshore investors-—after it successfully raised about N1.01 trillion on Friday. The CBN priced rates higher as part of efforts to keep the naira assets attractive and draw foreign portfolio investors’ money into Nigeria, causing the auction to outperform its target…

NGX Lost N116bn as Investors Exit Positions in MTN, INTBREW The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) lost N116 billion as investors exited positions in MTN Nigeria, International Breweries Plc and other lightweight stocks on Tuesday.  The downturn was driven by selling pressure in some large- and medium-cap stocks. Despite positive market breadth, the equities market closed the trading session on a negative note, with key performance indicators dropping by 0.17%, which effectively reversed the previous day’s gains. Notable losers included LIVESTOCK, MTNN, FTNCOCOA, INTBREW, and others, which collectively contributed to a loss of approximately N116 billion in investors’ wealth. According to data…

Afreximbank Launches $3bn Revolving Intra-African Oil Import Financing Support To address Africa’s persistent reliance on imported refined petroleum products, which accounted for an amount of US$30billion annually in petroleum import costs due to inadequate refining, the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has launched a US$3 billion Revolving Intra-African Oil Trade Financing Programme to finance the purchase of refined petroleum products by African and Caribbean oil buyers. As a revolving facility, the bank said it expects this to finance about US$10 billion to US$14 billion of intra-African petroleum imports. This programme seeks to leverage the growing refining capacity that Afreximbank has helped…

Nigeria’s Debt Office Sells 9-Year Bonds at 19.99% The Debt Management Office (DMO) kept spot rates on the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) bonds tight at an auction that reflected weak investors’ interest in shorter duration. At the auction, the DMO offered a total of N350 billion across two reopened instruments: N200 billion for the APR 2029 bond and N150 billion for the FEB 2031 bond. Apart from non-competitive allotment, investors’ total subscription settled at N495.95 billion, reflecting relatively weak demand for Nigerian local bonds compared with treasury bills and OMO bills papers. The DMO allotted Nigerian reopened bonds worth…

MTN, Jaiz Bank Drive Intraday Loss in Equities Market The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) All-Share Index is tracking lower during the intraday trading session as equities investors sell down interest in telecommunication company MTN Nigeria Plc, Jaiz Bank, and others. International Breweries is experiencing sell pressures, according to stockbrokers, reversing its non-stop rally that started last week.  The local bourse is, however, poised to reverse the trend in the absence of significant profit-taking activities that could drag the local bourse downward. At midday, the NGX All Share Index posted a slight loss of -0.02%, Alpha Morgan Capital Limited told investors in…

Naira Falls Softly as CBN Keeps Tab on FX Supply The naira fell softly at the Nigeria Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM) against the US dollar on Monday as the Central Bank (CBN) FX intervention sales became the norm in the currency market. The CBN has already pumped more than $1.3 billion to support the local currency in April, with analysts saying the authority has doubled down on its aggressive dollar intervention sales to ease pressure in the FX market. At the close of trading, the naira slipped slightly, depreciating by 2 basis points to finish at N1,599.9452 from N1,599.54 on…

Nigeria’s Non-Oil Export Receipt Hits $1.79 billion in Q1 The Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC) says the country’s non-oil products exported in the first quarter of 2025 were valued at 1.791 billion dollars, reflecting government efforts to diversify the country’s revenue sources. Dr Nonye Ayeni, Director-General of the NEPC, said this on Monday in Abuja while presenting a First Quarter Progress Report on the non-oil export performance for the year 2025. Ayeni said that the figure showed a 24.75 per cent increase above the 1.436 billion dollars reported in the first quarter of 2024. She said that the volume also…

Nigerian Bonds Yields Steady as DMO Opens N350bn Offer The Nigerian bonds traded quietly on the secondary market before the Debt Management Office (DMO) opened its April auction for subscription on Monday. Traders said in separate updates that the Nigerian government bonds market traded quietly throughout last week, with steady but cautious interest in mid-curve papers. Investors showed interest in FGN bonds maturing in 2031 and 2034. Ahead of the auction, market participants largely adopted a wait-and-see approach with cautious optimism given the mixed spot rate outlook. The Central Bank of Nigeria cut spot rates on Nigerian Treasury bills on…