Author: Olu Anisere

Rates Shift as Banks’ Placements at CBN Window Declines Amidst a slowdown in banks’ placement, Nigerian interbank rates showed mixed movements on Wednesday, with overnight rates falling 0.2% to 24.83% due to enhanced system liquidity exceeding ₦1.6 trillion. The financial system liquidity was spurred by ₦300 billion in OMO bill maturities on Tuesday. The funding system fluctuated, closing lower from more than N2 trillion surplus on record. Banks continue to deposit funds with the CentralBbank, aiming at earning a standard deposit rate of 24.5% versus a lower yield on Nigerian Treasury bills. Despite improved macroeconomic data, commercial banks’ lending appetite…

British Pound Climbs Ahead of UK Economic Data The British pound climbed to $1.3375 on Wednesday, its highest level in two weeks, as the US dollar slumped.  The sterling rally came ahead of UK economic growth data. On Wednesday, the sterling reacted positively following remarks from US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, who hinted that more rate cuts were likely on the way. Powell expressed concerns that the US labor market has continued to weaken even though the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not publish the September jobs numbers because of the ongoing government shutdown. Early trading data revealed…

Court Delivers Ruling in Binance Motion Challenging FIRS’ Substituted Service The Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed Nov. 12 for ruling in a motion filed by Binance Holdings Limited seeking to void the substituted service of court documents served on it by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS). Justice Mohammed Umar, on Wednesday, fixed the date after Binance lawyer and counsel for the FIRS adopted their processes and presented their arguments for and against the application. The agency had, in the suit dragged Binance, Tigran Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla, who were the company’s representatives, to court, demanding 79.5 billion…

Market Cap of All Listed Companies on NGX Rises by N20bn Equities market capitalisation of all listed companies on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) rose by N20 billion, supported by light buying momentum in the local bourse on Wednesday. The stock market reversed losses by 0.02 per cent on Wednesday, recording N20 billion gain for investors after a day negative run. The positive performance was due to returned investors’ interest in stocks like Skye Shelter Fund, Royal Exchange, International Energy Insurance, Julius Berger, Omatek and 29 other stocks. Specifically, the market capitalisation, which opened at N93.756 trillion, added N20 billion to…

Elumelu Seeks AI, Digital Investments to Unlock Africa’s Potential Chairman of Heirs Holdings, Tony Elumelu, has called for a deliberate and coordinated global effort to invest in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and digital infrastructure across Africa to unlock the content’s productivity potential. Elumelu made the call on Wednesday, in Washington at a seminar on “Boosting Productivity Growth in the Digital Age” on the sidelines of the annual meetings of the IMF/World Bank Group. He said that such investments were essential tools for unlocking the continent’s productivity and prosperity in the 21st century. According to him, true productivity goes beyond mere output…

IMF Upgrades Nigeria’s Economic Growth Forecast to 3.9% Reflecting improved macroeconomic indicators, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised Nigeria’s 2025 growth forecast up to 3.9% as reforms begin to yield results. In its latest World Economic Outlook released during the IMF/World Bank Annual Meetings in Washington DC, the Fund now expects Nigeria’s economy to expand by 3.9% in 2025 and 4.2% in 2026. These represent significant upward revisions of 0.5, and 0.9 percentage points, respectively, from its earlier forecasts. The IMF attributed the improved outlook to a combination of factors, including a stronger exchange rate, better fiscal management, increased…

Kenya’s Loan, Eurobonds Action Reduce Interest Burden – Note Kenyan government decisions to restructure China’s loan and buy back Eurobonds, as well as monetary policy rate cuts, are expected to reduce the country’s interest burden, Moody’s Ratings said in a commentary note. Kenya’s Finance Minister John Mbadi announced that the government had converted approximately $3.1 billion in loans from the Export-Import Bank of China (A1 stable) related to the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) from US dollars into Chinese yuan (RMB). Although the conversion does not affect the principal outstanding, the government will benefit from a lower interest rate on the…

Naira Weakens to N1463 at Official Window – CBN FX Update The naira weakened against the US dollar for the second day and traded at N1463 at the Nigerian foreign exchange market on Tuesday. The local currency fell as demand for the dollar increased. At the global forex market, the US dollar posted gain against all the major trading partners amidst U.S shutdown. FX demand in Nigeria has been on the rise, reflecting seasonal demand. The spot rate at the official and parallel market depreciated versus US dollar, though analysts said the Central Bank has strong buffer to tame demand…

NGX Index Climbs, Market Cap Nears N94trn on Soft Rally The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) All-Share Index (ASI) climbed by 0.06%, or six basis points, on Tuesday as buying momentum continues but at a slow pace.  The market index was up by 50 basis points, and the slowdown in bargain hunting cut across sectoral names. With year-to-date return climbing to 43.6%, the local bourse key performance indicators were driven north by investors’ interest in some mid- and large-cap companies’ shares. The market’s upward trajectory despite negative breadth. Today’s gainers include REGALINS (8.82%), PRESTIGE (6.71%), WAPIC (6.45%), LEGENDINT (5.45%) and CWG (4.74%),…

Pound Falls, UK Jobs Data Fuels BoE Rate Cut Expectation Investors sold down the British pound, with the US dollar taken as a replacement amidst disappointing UK job data, and now markets are anticipating that the Bank of England will be disposed to cut the rate. FX data revealed that Sterling fell below $1.33, hovering at its weakest level as markets reacted to weaker wage growth, fuelling Bank of England rate cut expectations. Sterling gave back about half of its pre-weekend gains yesterday at around $1.3315, with the retracement near $1.3300. The disappointing jobs data has sent sterling slightly below…