Author: Marketforces Africa

Era of Silos Over: Shettima Hails Kaduna Skills Council Setup Vice-President Kashim Shettima has hailed Gov. Uba Sani of Kaduna State for establishing and chairing the state’s first Council on Skills. Shettima made the commendation during the 7th meeting of the National Council on Skills (NCS) at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, describing Sani’s leadership as exemplary and urging other states to replicate the initiative. He emphasised the need for collective action to drive the administration’s skills acquisition agenda under President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda. “The era of operating in silos is over. “We must collaborate, across agencies, ministries, and…

Fitch Upgrades World GDP Forecast on Better Incoming Data Fitch Ratings has raised its world growth forecasts for 2025 moderately since the June Global Economic Outlook (GEO) on better-than-expected incoming data for 2Q25. But there is now evidence of an underlying US slowdown in ‘hard’ economic data and positive surprises on eurozone growth have partly reflected US tariff front-running. Fitch still expects world GDP to slow significantly this year. Global growth is now forecast to be 2.4% in 2025, up 0.2pp since June but a sizeable slowdown from 2.9% last year and below trend. China’s forecast has been raised to…

Fidelity Bank Drops as Earnings Delay Stokes Pressure Fidelity Bank Plc market value declined by about 3% in the stock market as earnings delay stoked sell pressures in the tier-2 lender shares, based on trading data obtained from the Nigerian Exchange. Investment firm Apel Asset Limited downgraded Fidelity Bank share to sell on the notion that the Tier-2 lender has 15.66% downside potential. Analysts at the firm estimated Fidelity Bank fair value at N17.71, trading above its reference price of N21. Stock analysts at Atlass Portoflio Limited kept the bank stock on hold, taking a neutral positions on the back…

Nigeria Leads 6 African Countries to Global Gas Summit in Italy Nigeria will lead six other African countries to the forthcoming global gas summit, scheduled to hold from September 9 to 12 in Milan, Italy. The African countries include Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Mauritius, Libya, and Congo, will join representatives from 143 countries across Asia, Europe, North America, and South America for the Gastech Exhibition and Conference. The event will bring together industry-leading CEOs, government ministers, policymakers, and innovators to drive immediate action on pressing energy challenges and foster partnerships that support long-term ambitions. Nigeria’s delegation will speak on the nation’s…

Bonds Market Rallies, Wealth, Asset Managers Boost Portfolio The benchmark yield on Nigerian government bonds declined as wealth, asset managers ramped up local bonds in the secondary market ahead of fresh supply. Last week, investors increased bets on naira assets via secondary market transactions ahead of inflation data, and sustained expectation that consumer price index will maintain downtrend. The market anticipates rates repricing amidst positive real interest rate of 5.62% ahead of Debt Management Office bonds supply at the primary market auction in Sept. Rates pricing will mirror market conditions, liquidity positions and long standing appetite for local borrowing instruments…

Rates Stay Low as Infrastructure Funds Boost System Liquidity The short-term benchmark interest rates dipped as liquidity level in the financial system closed positive despite the monetary authority’s effort to sulk in surplus fund profile. The interbank market was sufficiently liquid throughout last week, keeping rates movement in check amidst aggressive activities of the Central Bank while local banks borrowing from the authority reduced sharply. The market saw funding rates broadly stable from the beginning of the trading session, with the system liquidity which opened with N1.39 trillion in credit and closed higher at N2.22 trillion on the last trading…

Equities Investors Lose N832bn, Oversold Stock to Gain Attention The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) sank by N832 billion to N89.94 trillion as sell pressures continue to dominate trading activities in the local bourse. However, stockbrokers said some counters have been oversold, and possibility those under-priced stock could court investors’ attention in the new week. Trading details revealed strong bearish trend persisted driven by investors’ weak buying sentiment and risk-off positioning, dragging key performance indicators lower. Stockbrokers reported that the NGX All-Share Index (ASI) shed 0.94% week-on-week to close at 138,980.01 points, down from 140,295.49 points in the prior week. As a…

US Dollar Inflows into Nigerian FX Market Declines by 27% Aggregate U.S. dollar inflows into Nigerian foreign exchange (FX) market fell by about 27% month on month in August 2025 driven by slacked supply by offshore investors in the local economy. Inflows from foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) into the forex market fell by 64% in August to $1.06 billion, according data from the FMDQ cited by analysts. The report highlighted that US dollar inflow declined despite successive open market operations conducted by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to replaced expired OMO bills. Offshore positioning in the market remained strong,…

Total Value of Equities Transactions on NGX Rises by 5.73% Stock market investors traded 3.117 billion shares worth N90.295 billion in 118,018 transactions on the Exchange during the week just ended. This compares with 3.199 billion shares valued at N85.399 billion exchanged last week in 142,477 deals. Consequently, the total value of transactions increased by 5.73 per cent week-on-week. The market opened for four trading days, as the Federal Government declared Friday, Sept. 5, a public holiday for Eid el Maulud. The Financial Services Industry led activity with 2.542 billion shares worth N30.357 billion traded in 52,390 transactions. This represented…

United Bank for Africa Extends Rights Issue Offer by 2-Week Pan-African lender, United Bank for Africa Plc has notified its shareholders, the Nigerian Exchange Limited, stakeholders, and the public that the acceptance/application period for its ongoing Rights Issue, has been extended. In an official statement, the financial services group said the offer which was initially scheduled to close on Friday, September 5, 2025, has been extended by two weeks and will now close on Friday, September 19, 2025. UBA stated that the Right issues was extended following the receipt of approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission, adding that the…