Author: Marketforces Africa

Dangote Refinery Reduces Diesel Price to N1,020 per Litre Dangote Petroleum Refinery & Petrochemicals has reduced the cost of its diesel product to N1,020 per litre, down from N1,075 per litre at the gantry price, in an effort to better serve its customers and Nigerians in general. Since it began diesel production in January 2024, the refinery has reduced the price of diesel more than three times, from an initial N1,700 per litre to the current rate, thus providing much-needed relief to manufacturers and consumers alike. The latest reduction of N55 per litre for diesel follows the revelation by Development…

Senate to Receive 2025 Budget Report for Final Consideration The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, has announced that the budget defense report for the N54.2 trillion 2025 budget will be presented to the Senate in plenary. He confirmed that members of the Committee on Appropriations will present the report either Wednesday or Thursday this week. Akpabio made this statement on Tuesday during plenary, following a debate on a bill to establish a Federal University of Agriculture in Abak, Akwa Ibom State. He emphasised the urgency of concluding the debate on the 2025 budget. “You will observe that some of…

CBN Releases Updates on ATM Charges, Cancels Free Withdrawal The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has released new updates on automated teller machine (ATMs) fees, citing rising costs and need to improve efficiency in the banking industry. In a circular signed by John Onojah, acting director of financial policy and regulation department, the CBN said the revised charges will take effect from March 1. The CBN said the review will accelerate deployment of ATMs and ensure that appropriate charges are applied by financial institutions to consumer of the service. The CBN review maintained no charge for banks customers using the…

Firm Forecasts Gentle Naira Depreciation in 2025 The naira has continued to court Broadstreet analysts’ attention as the local currency has enjoyed stability due to significant improvement in the foreign exchange market. The Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) reforms policies implemented to eliminated lacuna which have been acting as disincentives to sufficient foreign inflows have boosted market confidence. Still, some analysts foresee a mixed outlook despite the authority’s move to keep the supply side strong by selling US dollar to banks, and allowing informal currency traders access to foreign currency at official rate. The CBN reforms have brought down speculative…

South African Equities Bullish, Index Closed 36bps Higher South African equities remain bullish, with the JSE FTSE Top 40 Index closing up 0.36%, approaching the 80,000-point psychological level. However, the potential for a near-term correction looms, as profit-taking could weigh on market sentiment, Daniel Wesonga, Senior Manager at Pepperstone said in a commentary note.  Despite the overall positive momentum, 13 out of 20 sectors ended in the red, with producer manufacturing, process industries, and consumer durables losing 2.03%, 0.88%, and 0.82%, respectively. This sectoral divergence suggests a mixed outlook for the market, as weakness in cyclical sectors could dampen the…

Oil Rises, Gas at 2-Year High as Supply Risks Heighten Oil prices rose as Russia’s production underperformed the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies (OPEC+) quotas, while sanctions and export bans further tightened global supply. Energy sector in Ukraine and Russia continue to face drone assaults, while signs of tighter supplies in Russia and rising geopolitical tensions further pushed the energy complex higher. According to media reports, drones attacked a Russian oil refinery plant in the Saratov region. The affected plant is part of the Rosneft oil company known as Kreking, one of the oldest Russian oil refineries. Meanwhile,…

Traders Raise Bets on Nigerian Bonds Ahead of Inflation, Auction Investors in the fixed income market raised bets on Nigerian government bonds ahead of inflation figure, Debt Management Office auction for February. On Monday, the local bonds market showed a mixed trend, leaning towards bullish sentiment. There were offers across the curve, matched by similar buying interests. Trading activities were largely driven by sustained investor confidence in the high-yield environment and expectations of a potential shift in monetary policy. Traders said there were significant interest in the April 2029, February 2031, and January 2035 bonds, causing a drag in mid-yield.…

US Dollar Climbs Amidst Tariffs Threats, Consumer Price Expectation The US dollar rose against its major trading partners early Monday before a busy week that includes testimony from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and consumer price data and retail sales data for January later in the week. Amidst expectations, U.S consumer price data and the Treasury’s budget statement are due Wednesday, as well as the second day of testimony from Powell, this time before the House Financial Services Committee. Producer price data and weekly jobless claims are scheduled to be released Thursday. A quick summary of foreign exchange activity heading…

Naira Rises to N1500, Exchange Rates Gap Collapsed to N50 The naira rose against the US dollar across foreign exchange (FX) markets due to sufficient foreign currency liquidity. Spot FX data from the FMDQ platform showed the naira appreciated by 0.04% in the official window, closing at ₦1,500.95 per US dollar after FX intervention sales to banks. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) sold $60 million to banks last week to boost the amount of foreign currency on the supply side. The Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM) remained stable, with most transactions consummated between N1,480.00 and N1,515 per greenback. Similarly,…

Access, Transcorp, Oando Drive Intraday Gain in Equities Market Demand for Access Holdings Plc, Transcorp and Oando Energy Plc and other companies stock like Presco drove the Nigerian All share index higher during midday trading session. Investors staked huge bet on these early risers amidst ongoing corporates earnings releases on the Nigerian Exchange. In anticipation of good earnings, the market has seen increased trading activities after a positive close last week. Demand for growth, value stocks heated up key performance indicators, which advanced by 4 basis points intraday in the local bourse. At mid-day trading, the NGX All Share Index…