Author: Marketforces Africa

Amazon CEO says AI to Reduce Number of Workers Needed Amazon’s management on Wednesday said that it expects that artificial intelligence (AI) software will reduce the number of office workers at the world’s largest online retailer. “We will need fewer people doing some of the jobs that are being done today, and more people doing other types of jobs,” Amazon chief executive Andy Jassy wrote in an email to employees. He said it is difficult to predict how the overall workforce will evolve, but in the next few years, it is expected that AI efficiency gains will lead to fewer…

Oando Rallies Turn to Head Fake, Loses 15.6% in 2 Days Indigenous energy company Oando Plc lost its steam in the equities market; its share price dropped twice in the last two trading sessions on the Nigerian Exchange trading platform after a series of uptrends last week, which suggested that the oil-linked stock had escaped the bear trap. Oando Plc’s price has declined by about 15.6% in two consecutive trading sessions. This has raised concerns about whether its past week’s positive price movements were a head fake. According to data from the Nigerian Exchange, Oando Plc’s share price fell sharply,…

CBN to Offer N162.02bn Bills for Subscription Midweek Ahead of N27.19 billion that is about to mature, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is set to conduct its second Treasury Bills (T-Bills) auction for the month on Wednesday. The total offer size is N162.02 billion, split across three maturities, and analysts said rates could taper further on the expectation that demand will remain healthy. The authority will open 91-day bills worth N22.02 billion for investors’ subscription; the expected cutoff rate is projected to range between 17.84% and 17.94%. The Central Bank also planned to open N40 billion worth of 182-day…

Moody’s Upgrades Dangote Cement Ratings, Revised Outlook Moody’s has upgraded Dangote Cement Plc’s credit or long-term corporate family rating (CFR) to B3 from Caa1, probability of default rating to B3-PD from Caa1-PD and long-term national scale CFR to A3.ng from Baa3.ng. According to the rating note, Moody’s analysts also upgraded the senior unsecured ratings of Dangote Cement’s two N300 billion senior unsecured domestic medium-term note programs (DMTN) to (P)B3 from (P)Caa1 and the senior unsecured medium-term note program (MTN) national scale ratings (NSRs) to A3.ng from Baa3.ng. “We also upgraded the senior unsecured ratings of the notes issued by Dangote…

Equities Investors Lose N170bn as Oando, First Holdco Fall Equities investors lost more than N170 billion on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) as sell pressures on Oando, First Holdco, and other decliners dragged down market indicators. Oando Plc lost 10% of its market value, and First Holdco slipped by 4.2%, though telecom company MTN Nigeria climbed by 2.2%, and Mutual Benefit Assurance rallied. According to data from the local exchange, the all-share index reduced by 0.28%, shedding 328.08 basis points, to close at 114,910.16 as sell pressure persisted. Equities market capitalisation or portfolio value of listed stocks lost ₦170.36 billion, representing…

IEA Cuts Global Oil Demand Growth Forecast The International Energy Agency (IEA) cuts its global oil demand growth forecast for this year by approximately 21,000 barrels per day (bpd) compared to its previous estimate, citing weak demand in the second quarter from the world’s two largest oil consumers, the US and China. Global oil demand is expected to reach 103.76 million bpd this year, representing an increase of about 720,000 bpd compared to last year, according to the IEA’s Oil Market Report. In the previous report, the growth estimate was approximately 741,000 bpd. Demand in OECD countries is expected to…

Oil Prices Jump as Geopolitical Tensions Stoke Supply Fear Oil prices rose on Tuesday amid renewed concerns that escalating tensions between Iran and Israel could disrupt energy supplies from the Middle East. Brent crude increased by around 1.84%, trading at $73.46 per barrel, up from $72.13 at the previous session’s close. Similarly, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) increased by about 1.97%, settling at $71.39 per barrel, compared to $70.01 in the prior session. Prices retreated to $69.96 on Monday following reports that Iran was seeking to de-escalate hostilities and resume nuclear negotiations with the US. However, prices rebounded after…

Short-Term Interest Rates Rise as CBN Mops Up Liquidity The short-term benchmark interest rates surged in the money market as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) mopped up liquidity levels in the financial system. The authority conducted an open market operation (CBN) to reduce the amount of free cash flow around in the money market, effectively reducing banks’ capacity to create credits. The week had opened with excess liquidity levels in the financial system due to the absence of primary market auctions and foreign exchange market interventions in the previous week. Yesterday, the CBN conducted simultaneous cash reserves ratio (CRR)…

Nigerian Eurobonds Yield Eased to 9% on Disinflation Foreign portfolio investors were all out in the international market for Nigeria’s Eurobond as the country’s statistics office reported a slowdown in the consumer price index for the month of May, 2025. The Nigerian sovereign Eurobond market recorded strong bullish sentiment, driven by robust demand for the NOV-25, NOV-27, and SEP-28 maturities as disinflation boosts sentiment in the international market. Fixed income market analysts at Cowry Asset Management Limited said in their investor note that due to bargain hunting on the Nigerian Eurobonds, the average yield declined by 25 bps to 9.00%,…

Headline Inflation Rate Reduces to 22.97% in May – NBS Nigeria’s headline inflation rate declined for the second consecutive month to 22.97% in May, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in its monthly consumer price index (CPI) report. According to data released by the statistics office on Monday, the inflation rate eased by 74 basis points (bps) to 22.97% year-on-year in May from 23.71% in the month of April. On a month-on-month basis, consumer prices moderated to 1.53% as against 1.86% in the previous month. The report also revealed that food inflation moderated by 12 bps to 21.14% y/y…