- Market Cap Slips as Nigerian Exchange Halts 2-Week Rally
- Germany Approves 17-Cent Fuel Tax Cut To Ease Pump Prices
- Trump to Xi: China Helping Iran Is Unacceptable
- Dangote To Fund $660m Fuel Pipeline Between Ethiopia And Djibouti
- NNPC Ltd Welcomes $800m Ima Gas Final Investment Decision
- Iran Proposes 7-day Plan to Reopen Strait of Hormuz
- Ethereum Price Drops on Rising U.S. Treasury Yields
- Crude Oil Prices Decline, Brent Hovers Below $106
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.
Oil Prices Climb Concerns over Russian, Iranian Flows Oil prices climbed further on Wednesday in the global commodities market amidst concerns over Russian and Iranian oil flows. Prices surged on the back of stronger-than-expected demand indicators in the US, the world’s largest oil consumer, and President Joe Biden’s ban on offshore drilling along most US coastlines. . Brent crude rose by 0.5%, reaching $77.24 per barrel. The US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) increased by 0.6%, rising to $74.23 per barrel, compared to its prior session close of $73.76. ICE Brent pushed above US$77 per barrel yesterday with sentiment still…
Rates Decline as Investors Double Down on CBN OMO Bills Investors doubled down on OMO bills investment in 2025; data showed significant oversubscription at the primary market auction yesterday. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) offered investors N500 billion worth of OMO bills as part of liquidity management and efforts to attract foreign inflows. The CBN’s first OMO auction of the year was oversubscribed by N1.1 trillion, with stop rates for 350-day and 364-day bills at 23.81% and 23.84%, respectively. In December, OMO bill spot rates were reduced to 23.93% for the 258-day standard tenor, while the 365-day was priced…
Interbank Rates Increase despite OMO Repayment, CRR Refund Interbank rates increased sharply due to funding pressures despite inflows from cash reserve maintenance refunds, OMO bill repayments, and other maturing instruments. On Tuesday, OMO bill repayment worth ₦164.68 billion boosted the liquidity level in the banking system by 67% to ₦797.66 billion, TrustBanc Financial Group revealed in a note. Also, AIICO Capital Limited told investors in a note that liquidity level in the financial system was boosted by cash reserve refunds. This happened amidst the latest OMO bills auction conducted by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which dragged the financial…
Nigerian Exchange Declines by N152bn as Investors Hit Red Button The equities market capitalisation of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) declined by N152 billion as investors hit the red button in a bid to book profit on stocks that rallied recently. The sell order executed by stockbrokers and individuals trading highs and lows outpaced hunting for value, the first daily loss in 2025. As a result of today’s profit-taking, the local bourse closed trading activities for today on a negative note. The Nigerian Exchange performance indicators dropped by 0.24% on Tuesday, while year-to-date returns moderated ahead of December inflation data next…
China’s Foreign Exchange Reserves Drop to $3.2024 Trillion China’s foreign exchange reserves totalled 3.2024 trillion U.S. dollars at the end of December 2024, down by 63.5 billion dollars, or 1.94 percent, compared to the end of November last year, official data showed Tuesday. The decline in foreign reserves was the lowest in eight months, from $3.26 trillion in November and below expectations of $3.25 trillion. The drop comes amid a strengthening US dollar. The yuan weakened by 1.2% while the dollar gained 2.6% against major currencies. The State Administration of Foreign Exchange said in a statement that the U.S. dollar…
Investors Boost Treasury Bills Holdings Ahead of Auction The average yield on Nigerian Treasury bills slumped slightly in the secondary market due to buying interest ahead of the primary market auction (PMA) scheduled for Wednesday. Trading activities opened on a calm note with a bullish tilt. Fixed income market participants leveraged improved liquidity in the money market to boost portfolios. Traders said despite the sizeable amount in the financial system, money market managers maintained a cautious stance in anticipation of the upcoming T-Bills auction. Bids came in from investors expecting a decline in yields at the next auction, as well…
Bitcoin Rises Near $102,000, other Digital Assets Rally The bitcoin price has climbed near the $102,000 level in a fresh rally that started in the New Year ahead of Donald Trump’s, U.S. President elect, inauguration. The latest rally appears all-encompassing as all the top digital assets gained traction. The top 10 cryptocurrencies assets across cryptos exchange were making an uptrend that could lift their individual market price higher in the absence of profit-taking activities from retail investors. Consequently, the global crypto market cap has advanced to $3.59 trillion on Tuesday, representing a 1.83% increase over the last day as volume…
The Nigerian naira fell against the US dollar in the foreign exchange (FX) market as demand pressure began to take shape. Spot FX data from the FMDQ platform
The naira traded at N1535 per US dollar in the Nigerian foreign exchange market, NFEM, on Friday after year-end aggressive FX sales
Nigeria’s top five banks that need no introduction have extended their market value due to investors’ position taking in tier-1 stocks. Details gathered by MarketForces Africa showed that the combined market value of the top five banks surged past N6.2 trillion in the local bourse on Friday close.