Author: Julius Alagbe

The Kebbi Government has disbursed N6.5 billion to 65, 000 people under ‘Kaura Cares’ of Livelihood Support Programme in the state.

The Katsina State Government says it will invest N30 billion in irrigation farming to boost agricultural sector in the state.

S&P Global Ratings has lowered its long-term sovereign credit rating on Kenya to ‘B-‘ from ‘B’ with outlook accorded as stable. At the same time, the global

US Dollar Mixed on Powell’s Rate Cut Signal The US dollar was mixed against its major trading partners early Monday as markets now turn their attention to the usual end-of-month data releases before the long holiday weekend. The dollar strengthened against the euro and pound, but the greenback dropped against the yen and Canadian dollar in the foreign exchange market on Monday. Analysts said last week the market seems to be in the mood to sell US dollars as the index wobble in the past week. Fuel for that dollar selling could be some benchmark revisions to US job numbers,…

Oil Hits $80 Amidst Escalating Tensions in Middle East Oil prices jumped near $80 per barrel in the global commodities market following a major clash between Hezbollah and Israel over the weekend. On the positive side, U.S. Fed interest rate cuts lifted the demand outlook even with downside demand pressure relating to weak data in China. Brent crude rose by 2.6% to $80.20 a barrel, breaking above $80 a barrel for the first time since mid-August, while US WTI increased by 3.2% to $77.18 a barrel at last look early Monday. The Israeli – Hezbollah latest clash raised fears that…

FBN Holdings Cancels Annual Shareholders Meeting Again FBN Holdings (FBNH) Plc, a group that warehouses First Bank of Nigeria (FBN) Limited, has cancelled its annual shareholders meeting again. In a regulatory filing submitted to the regulator on Monday, the financial services group told the Nigerian Exchange that the annual general meetings of the members of FBN Holdings Plc that was fixed to take place on August 22, and then rescheduled to September 3, 2024 has been cancelled. MarketForces Africa reported that a disgruntled shareholder had asked the court to stop the annual general meeting in the midst of an ongoing…

United Capital Rises by 27% as Employees Buy More Shares United Capital Plc (Ticker: UCAP) rose by about 27% in the equities market last week as demand for the investment firm increased.  Data from the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) showed the United Capital Plc share price rose to N19.75 in the equities market from N15.6 per share at the beginning of the week. The investment banking firm’s popularity caused the market to increase its market value by 26.6% week on week to N355.50 billion. In its regulatory filing, the company told the Nigerian Exchange about its directors dealing with its shares.…

Zenith Bank Public Offer: Why It Makes Sense to Buy Now Investment is all about fundamentals, market sentiment and the numbers. Zenith Bank Plc has all these in place, plus strong capital and shareholders willingness to inject additional capital when necessary. The ongoing public offer gives everyone a chance to own shares of one of the profit machines in the banking sector.  And silently, some investors are betting on its new group managing director and chief executive office capability to grow Zenith Bank Plc in the next five and perhaps 10 years. When the dust settled, Umeoji would have a…

Nigeria’s Top 5 Banks Market Value Falls to N4.7Trn or $3bn Selloffs in Nigerian big bank stocks dragged their combined market valuation lower to about N4.7 trillion, an amount equivalent to #3 billion on the Nigerian Exchange, according to trading data tracked by MarketForces Africa. Four out of the five big banks in the tier-1 category ended the week negative due to sell pressure. With mixed activities seen from both the sell and buy side equities traders in the Nigerian, the banking index gained 0.37% week on week due to buying interest in Access Holdings PLC. The largest bank by…

Oando Soars by 34% after Funding Acquisition of NAOC Oando Plc is on the way to reclaim losses following profit taking activities that happened when the oil stock reached a 52 week high in the local bourse.  Data from the Nigerian Exchange showed that the indigenous energy company gained 33.5% in the equities market last week, rising from N35.85 per share to N47.85 due to a fresh rally. MarketForces Africa reported that after the oil stock peaked at N49.1, sell side stock traders started to book profit and investment banking firms announced decision to go underweight after significant loss in…