Author: Olu Anisere

FX Spread Narrows as Naira Falls Across Official, Parallel Markets The FX spread, or the gap between official and unofficial exchange rates, narrowed as the naira traded negatively across currency markets.  The Nigerian foreign exchange market suffered US dollar scarcity last week, a development that forced the Central Bank intervention. The Apex Bank injected $250 million to strengthen FX supply and redirect the naira exchange rate at the official window, but the local currency had been cut too deep. The naira closed at N1454 per dollar at the official window as demand for US dollars surged amidst a slowdown in…

African Eurobonds Rally as Foreign Investors Rotate Portfolio Nigerian US dollar bonds alongside African Eurobonds rallied as foreign investors adjusted their portfolios in reaction to a weak US dollar, unemployment conditions and delayed consumer price index data. Foreign investors assessed market trends alongside targets to maximise returns, demonstrating interest in oil-related issuers such as Nigeria, while expressing optimistic sentiment towards Angola, Egypt, Ghana, and other countries. Nigerian sovereign instruments enjoyed a week of positive momentum, according to investment analysts across Broadstreet. In its note, Cowry Asset said investors repositioned ahead of the maturity of the November 2025 sovereign bond totalling…

ETH Rises by 4% on Upgrade Optimism, Dip Traders Positioning Ethereum (ETHUSD) price surges by about 4% in 24 hours as Fusaka upgrade optimism boosts investors’ sentiment amidst cryptocurrency sell-offs while dip traders begin to take positions. The world’s second-largest cryptocurrency 24 hours rally combines upgrade optimism, technical mean reversion, and macro-driven crypto inflows.  Crypto analysts explained that while bullish in the short term, ETH needs to hold $2,800 and show Fusaka execution progress to sustain momentum. The Fusaka upgrade is highly important to Ethereum’s future, as it is a foundational step designed to dramatically improve scalability, enhance efficiency, and…

BTCUSD Gains 3% as Crypto Market Struggles to Rebound Bitcoin (BTCUSD) climbed by about 3% in 24 hours in a struggle to rebound amidst sell pressures in the cryptocurrency market. According to data from CoinMarketCap.com, Hovering above $86.6K, bitcoin price inched higher by 2.84% over $42.45 billion in trading volume. The traction lifted market value of the largest crypto asset to $1.721 trillion, pushing the global market cap of digital assets to $2.95 trillion. Top cryptocurrencies are struggling to climb amidst twisted sentiment spurred by rising liquidation. Trading patterns suggest that retail investors seeking to take advantage of buying the…

Sterling Swings versus Dollar, Euro Ahead of UK Budget The British pound, or the sterling, traded on a mixed note against the United States (U.S.) dollar, euro and Japanese yen in the forex market ahead of the UK budget. The British pound declined versus the US dollar but was relatively steady against the European single currency after weak sales data in the week and sharp fluctuation in the purchasing manager index (PMI). The Pound to Dollar exchange rate ended the week at 1.3102, a touch higher after several sessions in which Sterling repeatedly recovered dips from the low-1.30s. GBP/USD traded…

Oil Prices Drop Week-on-Week as Demand Optimism Slows Oil prices are on track for a weekly decline as signs of diplomatic engagement between the US and Russia eased supply fears, while cautious US Federal Reserve (Fed) signals and weakening US demand added pressure. International benchmark Brent crude traded at $61.47 per barrel, down 3.8% from last Friday’s close of $63.90. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was at $57.48 per barrel, falling around 3.8% compared with $59.76 last week. Oil prices opened the week on a negative note as diplomatic contacts between the US and Russia over a potential resolution…

Fitch Affirms Namibia at ‘BB-‘ with Outlook Stable Fitch Ratings has affirmed Namibia’s Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at ‘BB-‘ with a stable outlook. According to Fitch, Namibia’s ratings are supported by its strong governance indicators and institutional framework relative to rating peers and fiscal financing flexibility underpinned by the large non-banking financial sector (NBFS), with assets amounting to about 180% of GDP in 2024. Ratings analysts said this is balanced against high fiscal deficits and government debt relative to peers, large fiscal financing needs and a rigid expenditure profile. Fitch expects real GDP growth to slow to 2.6%…

Crypto Market Cap Sinks to $2.9trn as Dips Keep Dipping The global crypto market plunged to $2.91 trillion in total value as dips keep dipping over sustained deteriorating investors’ sentiment, according to trading data. All the top 10 crypto names are bleeding, reflecting fading bargain hunting in digital assets while the market awaits a possible Fed rate cut as a catalyst to trigger a fresh rally. According to data from CoinMarketCap.com, the sell-offs heated up on Friday, with top crypto assets, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Solana, Cardano, and Dogecoin, bleeding value. Settling at $2.91 trillion after losing an additional 2.1%…

Nigerian Market Shrinks as Equity Investors Lose N295bn The Nigerian stock market shrank as equity investors lost an additional N295 billion on Friday due to profit-taking activities across sectoral indexes – reflecting deteriorating sentiment. Investor repositioning and continued profit-taking contributed to a soft close for the market this week, stockbrokers said, noting a 32 basis point decline in key performance indicators.   Sector rotation stayed prominent on Friday, and trading activity remained resilient amidst some sort of year-end portfolio rebalancing activities. The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) All-Share Index weakened further by 0.32% to settle at 143,722.62 points, while market capitalisation contracted by…

GCR Upgrades TrustBanc Holdings Issuer Ratings, Outlook Stable GCR Ratings has upgraded TrustBanc Holdings Limited’s national scale long- and short-term issuer ratings to BBB+ (NG)/A2 (NG) from BBB (NG)/A3 (NG), with a stable outlook. The ratings upgrade reflects TrustBanc Holdings Limited’s good risk profile and strong financial leverage metrics, which are driven by regular equity injection, GCR said in a new report. The firm explained that TrustBanc Holdings issuer ratings also consider the group’s stable funding structure and adequate liquidity against its modest competitive position. Ratings analysts acknowledge TrustBanc as a diversified financial services group, with operations in asset management,…