Author: Julius Alagbe

Despite six consecutive FX sales to banks totalling $364 million, the naira slumped further in the official market

FG, West Indian Cable Company Launch Fibre-to-Home Internet Connectivity  The Ministry of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, in partnership with the West Indian Ocean Cable Company (WIOCC), is set to commence the first batch of Fibre-to-home internet connectivity in the country. The Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani made this known after the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), between the Ministry and WIOCC group on Wednesday in Abuja. Tijani said that the project was worth ten million dollars. According to him, the initiative will boost the nation’s digital economy and Nigerians will have option of…

Nigerian Bonds Yield Climbs to 20.4% Ahead of Q1 Auction The average benchmark yield on Nigerian government bonds increased further as riskoff sentiment nudged yield above 20.4% in the secondary market ahead of the first auction to be conducted by the Debt Management Office (DMO) next week. Uncertainties in the fixed income market have increased after the headline inflation rate increased to 34.80% while the monetary authority put up series adjustments that put the benchmark interest rate at 27.50% in 2024. The current market equation revealed that the real return rate printed higher immediately after Nigeria’s inflation rate surged by…

GTCO Hits All-Time High on Earnings Outlook Optimism GTCO Plc share price climbed to close at an all-time high of N59 in the stock market as investors’ appetite for Tier-1 banking group increased. The banking group gained attention on new optimism and surged to N59 per share ahead of 2025 earnings. Investors bet on GTCO on the expectation that the financial services group would continue to deliver results and boost shareholders returns. According to trading data, GTCO’s share price rose to N59 on Tuesday after more than 4 million shares were traded on the Nigerian Exchange platform, up from N58…

Naira Plunges as Banks Resume FX Sales to Customers The naira plunged in the official foreign exchange (FX) market on Tuesday on the back of an increased demand for US dollars for payments. According to data from the FMDQ platform, the naira depreciated by 0.31% in the official window, closing at N1,552.78 per dollar. Deposit money banks (DMBs) informed customers in a series of emails that foreign currency sales for personal and business use have been restored. At the beginning of the week, exchange rates worsened by N2.47 to close at N1,550.05 in the official market. “We are excited to…

NPA, NLNG Collaborate to Boost Nigeria’s Export Growth Abubakar Dantsoho, the Managing Director, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), has reaffirmed the authority’s commitment to strengthening its partnership with the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) to boost exports. A statement by the NPA said that Dantsoho made the pledge when he received the NLNG’s Chief Executive Officer, Dr Philip Mshelbila, at its headquarters in Lagos on Tuesday. Speaking during the visit, Mshelbila expressed the Nigeria LNG’s appreciation for the NPA’s continued support, and solicited increased synergy. He said that the company was expanding its LNG production capacity to take advantage of increased…

Equities Investors Gain N10bn as Nigerian Exchange Rebounds Equities investors gained N10 billion on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) as investors sentiment improved at the beginning of the week. The local bourse resumed trading activities for the new week on a positive note, as the market performance indicators saw marginal growth of +0.02%. This slight upturn was attributed to bargain hunting in some medium and large-cap stocks, such as CAVERTON, NASCON, and TRANSCORP, among others. Stockbrokers at Atlass Portfolios Limited said these gains helped lift the bourse out of the red zone. The market lost N1.45 trillion last week due to…

Ban: Trump Wants 50% U.S. Ownership of TikTok U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday told his supporters that he wants Chinese-owned short-form video app TikTok to be at least 50 percent owned by U.S. investors. On the eve of his swearing-in, Trump told a rally in Washington that he would allow the app to continue operating in the U.S., “but let the United States of America own 50 per cent of TikTok.” “TikTok is worth nothing, zero without an approval,” to operate, Trump said. “If you do approve, they’re worth like a trillion dollars, they’re worth some crazy number. “I’m…

Nigerian Eurobonds Yield Dips to 9.4% as FPIs Appetite Rises The average yield on Nigeria’s sovereign US dollar bond declined in the international market as foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) appetites improved. The yield declined by 2 basis points to 9.44% as offshore investors boosted their portfolios with Nigerian Eurobond, according to Cowry Asset Limited. Market analysts spotted demand for NOV-2025, NOV-2027, SEP-2028, MAR2029, FEB-2030, JAN-2031, FEB-2032, and FEB-2038 tenors. The Eurobond market experienced a volatile week, facing a bearish trend as prices in Sub-Saharan Africa and North African regions plummeted due to reduced expectations for Fed rate cuts following a…

Treasury Bills Yield Dips to 25.2% Ahead of Midweek Auction The average yield on Nigerian Treasury bills dipped to 25.2% as investors’ interest in naira assets increased amidst buckets of uncertainties in the local economy. The inflation rate is trending higher, and the exchange rate conditions have continued to drive appetite sideways in the fixed income market segment with a widening real return on investment. There was a mixed trading pattern in the fixed income market generally, with a significant selldown in local bonds ana risingng appetite for Treasury papers after data showed the inflation rate widened. The Treasury bills…