Equity Market Sustains Growth, Gains N618bn

The local equity market Tuesday crossed the N38 trillion mark, sustaining a bullish run to gain N618 billion. The trading result showed that gains recorded in the shares of Airtel Africa, Cadbury Nigeria Plc, UBA, FBNHoldings, FTNCocoa and others impacted positively on the market activities. Market capitalisation of listed equities appreciated by 1.65 per cent to N38.038 trillion from N37.420 trillion reported the previous day. The NGX All Share Index also appreciated by 1124.48 basis points to 69236.19 points from 68111.71 traded yesterday. An analysis of the investment showed that Airtel Africa led gainers table in percentage terms, increasing by 10 per cent to close at N1540.10 per unit, Cadbury Nigeria Plc followed with a gain of 9.92 per cent to close at N13.85 per share. Northern Nigeria Flour Mills also appreciated by 9.92 per cent to close at N19.95 per share, Chams Plc added 9.90 per cent to close at N2.22 per unit, ABC Transport added 9.92 per cent to close at N0.79 per share. On the contrary, Betaglass topped losers chart dropping by 9.93 per cent to close at N60.30 per share, UPL followed with a drop of 9.74 per cent to close at N2.12 per unit, EllahLakes fell by 5.56 per cent to close at N3.50 per share, Sovereign Insurance declined by 8.82 per cent to close at N0.31 per unit, Learn Africa down by 8.79 per cent to close at N3.01 per share. Volume of trades increased by 52.876 million, representing 12.29 per cent as investors traded traded 483.269 million shares valued at N6.044 billion in 8027 deals against 430.393 million shares valued at N8.257 billion exchanged hands the previous day in 7656 deals. Transactions in the shares of Japaul Gold led market activities with 155.594 million shares valued at N181.858 million, United Bank for Africa followed with account of 33.932 million shares worth N688.200 million, Zenith Bank traded 29.899 million shares cost N996.447 million, AccessCorp traded 27.435 million shares valued at N468.662 million while Chams Plc exchanged 22.516 million shares cost N4.806 million.

Nigeria’s eCommerce Revenue To Hit $6.710m By December

Revenue in Nigeria’s eCommerce market is projected to reach $6,710.00 million by December 2023, a new report by Statista has said. In its eCommerce in Nigeria report, the data company stated that revenue is expected to show an annual growth rate (CAGR 2023-2027) of 10.79 per cent, resulting in a projected market volume of $10,110.00 million by 2027. With a projected market volume of $1.319 billion in 2023, the report noted that most revenue will be generated in China. “In the eCommerce market, the number of users is expected to amount to 143.9m users by 2027. “User penetration will be 45.3% in 2023 and is expected to hit 58.6% by 2027. “The average revenue per user (ARPU) is expected to amount to $66.23, the report said. 

OPEC projects ‘solid’ oil demand in 2024

Prospects for the global oil market look healthy for the second half of the year, OPEC said on Thursday as the producer group stuck to its forecast for robust oil demand in 2024 and nudged up its expectations for global economic growth. Reuters report that upbeat view from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) comes as global oil prices have reached their highest since January. Tight supply has given impetus to the rally and OPEC’s monthly report also showed Saudi Arabia delivered on a voluntary output cut in July. The oil cartel said it expects global oil demand to rise by 2.25 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2024, compared with growth of 2.44 million bpd in 2023. Both forecasts were unchanged from last month. “Prospects for healthy oil fundamentals in the second half of the year, along with the pre-emptive, proactive and precautious approach of OPEC and non-OPEC producing countries to assess market conditions and take necessary measures at any time and as needed, will ensure stability of the global oil market,” the body said. In 2024 “solid” economic growth amid continued improvements in China is expected to boost oil consumption, it added. According to the newspaper, OPEC and its allies, known as OPEC+, began limiting supplies in late 2022 to bolster the market and in June extended supply curbs into 2024. Tighter supply has underpinned a rally in oil prices, with Brent crude trading above $88 a barrel on Thursday, its highest since January. The report nudged up OPEC’s forecast for world economic growth this year to 2.7% from 2.6% and raised next year’s figure by the same increment to 2.6%, saying growth in the United States, Brazil and Russia had surpassed initial expectations in the first half of 2023. “Despite the latest positive developments, several uncertainties regarding economic growth in the second half of 2023 and 2024 require cautious monitoring,” OPEC said, adding that these include continued high inflation and the prospect of further increases to interest rates.

NGX market cap gains N1.8trn in July

Transactions at Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) closed the month of July 2023 on a positive note as earnings and dividend declarations from quoted companies helped NGX’s market cap to gain N1.814 trillion. The gain was also supported by insider dealings among companies as directors and related parties consolidated their positions in a show by such investors of their belief in the inherent values of such companies, as well as sustained positive reactions to the ongoing reforms by President Bola Tinubu. Despite the profit taking, selloffs and FX pressures witnessed within the period, the benchmark NGX All-Share index which opened the trading month at 60,968.27 points, closed at 64,337.52 points, representing a 5.53 per cent growth while year-to-date (YTD) close at 25 per cent in the month under review.  Also, market capitalization- listed value of equities rose by N1.814 trillion from N33.197 trillion to N35.011 trillion. There were also better-than-expected corporate earnings, higher dividend payouts and relatively improved liquidity as fixed income yields were not stable in the face of soaring inflation which supported buying interests in the market and flow of funds into the equity space. It will be recalled that a total turnover of 2.854 billion shares worth N37.645 billion in 41,547 deals was traded by investors on the floor of the Exchange last week Friday. The high traded volume and mixed sentiment experienced during the month reflected the buying interests by majority shareholders and activities of institutional investors as they sought to hedge against inflation on a mixed outlook for fixed income rates and yields. This followed the fact that the second quarter (Q2) performance of some quoted companies beat the inflation rate, raising hopes of better earnings that will support price and payout at the end of the financial year. Given the outcome of the Monetary Policy Committee meeting in the month under review, the prevailing mixed economic data and as well more corporate earnings now looking up, analysts believe that positive earnings surprises and possible interim dividend declarations from companies would spur increased bargain-hunting activities on the bourse. They also added that profit-taking activities on stocks that have experienced substantial appreciation might be possible. Analysts at Cordros Research said, “In the medium term, we expect investors’ sentiments to be influenced by developments in the macroeconomic landscape and the movement of yields in the fixed-income market”.