Author: Marketforces Africa

Market Reacts as UBA Plans to Pay Interim Dividend Investors demand for United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc shares increased on Monday on the Nigerian Exchange as the pan-African lender revealed a plan to distribute part of its profit to shareholders. The United Bank for Africa Plc has hinted at a plan to pay an interim dividend to shareholders following the release of the group’s half year audited financial statement. In a regulatory filing, the pan-African lender told the Nigerian Exchange that sequel to its announcement dated June 28, 2024, the Board of United Bank for Africa Plc at its…

NGX Sees Intraday Gain as Investors Ramp Up BUA, OANDO The equities market flexed up during the intraday trading session on Monday as buy side activities in GTCO, UBA, Fidelity Bank, and Oando boosted the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) record. After losing about N847 billion last week, the local bourse opened positive with strong buy side trading on banking names, and oil stocks. The market witnessed sell pressure on four out of five big banks, though price movement was moderate. At mid-day, the NGX All share Index trended positive, experiencing a growth of 0.40%, according to Alpha Morgan Capital Limited. Stockbrokers…

US Secures 54.7% of Global High Value VC Investments in H1 2024- GlobalData The US was home to majority of the high-value, more than $100 million, venture capital (VC) investments globally, accounting for 54.7% and 55% in terms of deal volume and value, during the first half (H1) of 2024. This trend reflects the country’s strong innovation ecosystem in shaping the competitive investment landscape, reveals GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company. An analysis of GlobalData’s Deals Database revealed that the US is distantly followed by China and these two countries collectively accounted for more than two-thirds of the total…

N5Trn Debt: AMCON Gets Backing to Go After Debtors Irrespective of Status The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) has gotten backup from the lawmakers to go after all debtors, irrespective of status, according to an official statement. The Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Banking & Ancillary Institutions, Honourable Eze Nwachukwu Eze; at the weekend in Enugu renewed the campaign for all agencies of the Federal Government to join the debt recovery drive of the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON). Eze said the recovery of the humongous amount of nearly N5 trillion owed AMCON by a few obligors…

R.T. Briscoe Nigeria Tops Performers Chart, Gains 34% R.T. Briscoe Nigeria PLC, a diversified holding company, saw significant price movement in the stock market last week as investors queued to pick up its shares amidst an ongoing earnings release on the Nigerian Exchange.  The share price appreciated by about 34% week on week in the equities market as investors showed interest in diversified, multi-portfolio investment options. The holding company traded against the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) which ended trading session on negative note as investors took profit on stocks irrespective of their individual fundamentals. The company share price increased to N1.70…

Equities Market Falls by N847bn as Investors Exit Positions Equities investors lost about N847 billion due to crunching selloffs on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) platform in the just concluded week. Investors were seen exiting positions as interim dividend announcements failed to boost buying sentiments. The sell pattern was little different from past bearish tone in the equities market. Data from the Nigerian Exchange showed that All-share index closed down 1.5% week on week to print at 97,100.31 points, and market capitalization settled at N55.13 trillion – while year to date return moderated to 29.86%. There was records of notable profit-taking…

NESG Inaugurates Advisory Council to Champion Economic Reforms The Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) has inaugurated its National Economic Advisory Council to strengthen its mission of fostering an open, inclusive, sustainable, and globally competitive Nigerian economy. In a statement, the group said the Council was launched on Friday, August 16, 2024, at the NESG office in Abuja, and consists of distinguished economic experts with significant research experience in African and Nigerian economic issues. The Advisory Council will convene quarterly to receive briefings on the Nigerian economy, deliberate on key findings and challenges, and provide strategic advice to the NESG on…

UK Fined PwC £15m over London Capital & Finance Audit The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) imposed a 15 million-pound-sterling fine on PricewaterhouseCoopers for not reporting suspected fraudulent activities at London Capital & Finance plc. The regulator said despite facing “significant issues” during its audit of the mini-bonds issuer in 2016, with a senior individual acting aggressively towards auditors and providing them with inaccurate and misleading information, PwC did not report it to FCA and ultimately convinced itself that their accounts were correct. London Capital & Finance collapsed in 2019 over unfair marketing of its mini-bonds. “The FCA has fined…

Gold Tops $2,500 First Time on US Fed Rate Cut Expectation Gold rose above $2,500 per ounce for the first time on expectations that the Federal Reserve is inching closer to cutting interest rates. In the commodity market, spot gold rose above $2,500/oz on Friday afternoon, exceeding the previous record hit last month, ING analyst Ewa Manthey said in a note. The increase followed disappointing US housing data that has reinforced bets of faster and deeper cuts from the Federal Reserve. According to Manthey, lower borrowing costs are positive for gold as it doesn’t pay interest. The Fed has held…

GTCO, ACCESS, OANDO Drive Intraday Gain on NGX GTCO, ACCESS and OANDO are gaining at noon in the stock market, stockbrokers said. The equities market is seeing rapid buying interest in some banking names during the intraday trading session on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) on Friday. The market has started recovering from four day downtrend due to demand for Access Holdings, GTCO and other bellwether financial services companies shares. At mid-day, the NGX All share Index trended upward, reflecting a marginal gain of 0.02%, Alpha Morgan Capital Limited told investors in an emailed note. Stockbrokers attribute the positive movement in…