Nigeria’s Equity Sustains Bullish Run, Gains N85bn

The Nigerian equity market closed positively on Tuesday, gaining 133.98 basis points as the market remained favourable. The NGX All Share Index advanced by133.98 basis points or 0.20 per cent closing at N70613.60 points compared to previous day gain of 0.40 per cent which closed at 70479.62 points. Market capitalisation of listed equities also appreciated by N85 billion to N38.787 trillion from N38.712 trillion reported the previous day. The NGX trading result showed that market activities lifted as result of increase in the share price of FBNHoldings, PZ, FCMB, Fidelity Bank Glaxosmith among others. An analysis of the investment showed that PZ Cusson led gainers table in percentage terms, increasing by 10 per cent to close at N22.00, Glaxosmith followed with a gain of 9.93 per cent to N14.95 per unit, Daar Communications added 9.52 per cent to N0.23 per unit, Japaul Gold up by 9.35 per cent to close at N1.52 per share, International Breweries gained 8.43 per cent to close at N4.50 per share. On the contrary, Northern Nigeria Flour Mills topped losers chart, dropping by 10 per cent to N18.00 per share, TIP followed with 9.65 per cent to close at N1.03 per share, Royal Express down by 9.26 per cent to close N0.49 per unit, Omatek fell by 8.77 per cent to close at N0.52 per share while Eterna Plc fell by 8.62 per cent to close at N13.25 per share. Volume of activities during the day rose by 58.27 million, representing 14.90 per cent as investors traded 449.283 million shares valued at N5.444 billion in 7100 deals against 391.013 million shares worth N7.705 billion exchanged hands the previous day in 6837 deals. Transactions in the shares of FBNHoldings led market activities during the day with 52.023 million shares valued at N1.026 billion, Chi Plc followed with account of 49.525 million shares cost N49.462 million, Fidelity Bank traded 42.020 million shares valued at N381.493 million, United Bank for Africa exchanged 41.466 million shares cost N847.006 million while Japaul Gold traded 37.079 million shares cost N55.154 million.

Equity Market Sheds N21bn

Nigeria’s equity market began the week on a bearish note, shedding N21 billion following profit-taking in the shares of Dangote Sugar, GTCO Plc and other stocks. The development impacted on the market forcing the NGX All Share Index to decline by 38.49 basis points to 66876.92 points from 66915.41 points reported the previous day. Market capitalisation of listed equities also declined by 0.06 per cent to N36.742 trillion from N36.763 trillion reported the previous day. An analysis of the investment showed that Thomas Way led gainers table in percentage terms, gaining 9.92 per cent to N3.99 per share, Academy Press followed with a gain of 9.71 per cent to close at N1.92 per unit, Ikeja Hotel added 9.52 per cent to close at N3.45 per unit, Chams Plc increased by 7.38 per cent to close at N1.60 per unit, Tantalizer added 6.90 per cent to close at N0.31 per share. Volume of trades increased by 135.726 million, representing 65.92 per cent as investors traded 314.619 million shares valued at N4.388 billion in 6133 deals against 205.893 million shares costing N6.380 billion in 4986 deals. On the contrary, VFD group recorded the highest loss during the day, shedding 9.99 per cent to close at N242.40 per share, Mcnichols followed with 9.69 per cent to close at N0.56 per share, UPL dipped by 9.32 per cent to close at N2.14 per unit, Chi pls declined by 5.22 per cent to close at N1.09 per unit, Omatek down by 4.44 per cent to close at N0.43 per unit. Transactions in the shares of United Bank for Africa led market activities with 47.150 million shares valued at N900.695 million, AccessCorp followed with a gain of 40.348 million shares valued at N666.866 million, FCMB group traded 29.054 million shares cost N173.552 million, GTCO Plc exchanged 27.393 million shares worth N959.246 million while Transcorps sold a total of 16.435 million shares valued at N102.039 million.

Equity Market Rebounds, Gains N140bn

Nigeria’s equity market on Thursday rebounded and gained N140 billion following gains recorded by small and medium stocks in the market. Market capitalisation of listed equities increased by 0.38 per cent to N36.526 trillion from N36.386 trillion reported the previous day. The NGX All Share Index also appreciated by 87.91 basis points to 66570.19 points from 66482.28 points traded on Wednesday. A review of the trading activities showed that Wema Bank led the gainers table in percentage terms, gaining 9.93 per cent to N4.65 per share, Thomas Way followed with a gain of 9.74 per cent to close at N2.14 per share, Regal insurance added 8.82 per cent to close at N0.37 per unit, Daar Communications and Royal Express increased by 8.70 per cent to close respectively to N0.25 per share and N0.50 Kobo per unit. On the contrary, Champion Breweries topped losers’ chart, shedding 9.87 per cent to close at N3.38 per share, Chellaram trailed with a loss of 9.84 per cent to close at N3.48 per unit, ABC Transport fell by 9.72 per cent to close at N0.65 per unit, APDC dropped by 8.57 per cent to close at N1.28 per share, MCNICHOLS dipped by 7.69 per cent to close at N0.60 per unit. Volume of trades increased by 356.485 million, representing a growth 54.22 percent as investors exchanged 1.014 billion shares valued at N4.733 billion in 6959 deals against 657.515 million shares worth N4.597 billion made in 6647 deals the previous day. Transactions in the shares of Neimeth international Pharmaceutical led market activities with 657.094 million shares valued at N985.649 million, Oando Plc followed with account of 75.146 million shares cost N771.243 million, Fidelity Bank traded 35.143 million shares cost N288.091 million, Sterling Bank exchanged 24.430 million shares worth N87.369 million while Ellah Lakes traded 19.018 million shares valued at N76.074 million.

Telecoms Investment Jumps From $38bn To $77bn, Says NCC

Prof. Umar Danbatta, the Executive Vice-Chairman, Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC), says telecoms investment inflow grew from $38 billion to $77 billion by the second quarter of 2023. Danbatta, who spoke in Kano on Saturday at a media parley, revealed that the sector had contributed 16 per cent to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) within the period under review. He said that the statistics by the NCC was based on the computation by the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics (NBS). He said: “From about eight per cent contribution to GDP in 2015, when I came on board as the EVC of NCC, quarterly GDP has increased significantly to reach its current threshold of 16 per cent. “And this has continued to positively impact all aspects of the economy.” Danbatta, however, attributed the success to “thorough sustained regulatory excellence and operational efficiency by the Commission”, adding that the industry has grown in leaps and bounds over the past two decades. “We have witnessed explosive growth, improved regulatory standard, digital innovation that have generated global recognition,” he said. He said that telephone users in Nigeria had hit 218.9 million, internet subscribers 159.5 million, while broadband users in the country now are 88.7 million within the period under review. Danbatta listed issue of Right of Way (RoW), fibre cuts, high capital requirement for deployment, multiple taxations and regulations, among other frustrations, constituting barriers to broadband deployment in the country. The EVC, however, assured that the NCC would “navigate regulatory complexities, digital divide and literacy to tackle the challenges”. He said that the commission would establish an emergency communication centre in each of the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. Danbatta said establishing the centres was necessary, so as to bridge the gap between distressed and emergency response agencies in the country. He explained that the commission had increased the amount of research grants being given to universities from N20 million to N30 million. He said that three universities had benefitted from the new grant, so far. “NCC as a regulator is mindful of the fact that telecom is an enabler and catalyst for economic advancement of the country. “It has consistently made available, affordable and accessible telecoms service to check certain telecoms barriers,” he said. Danbatta added that the task of the commission as a regulatory agency in the development of the telecommunications sector was to ensure best practices. He said that this was in view of the fact that NCC was one of the sectors that had contributed to the enhanced growth of the Nigerian economy. The vice-chairman pointed out that other major challenges confronting the commission included wilful destruction of its facilities and the number of taxes imposed on telecommunication companies. “The challenges being faced by the commission include 41 categories of taxes imposed on telecommunications companies and wilful destruction of our facilities,” he said. He said that the commission would continue to engage stakeholders in the media industry in order to keep members of the public abreast of its activities.

As profit taking persists, Nigeria’s equity market sheds N112bn

Trading activities on the floor of Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Thursday continued on a negative note, shedding N112 billion as profit taking by investors persisted in the market. Profit taking in the shares of Dangote Sugar, Dangote Cement, Nascon impacted on the market at the end of the trading session. Specifically, market capitalisation of listed equities declined by 0.30 per cent to N37.261 trillion from N37.373 trillion reported the previous day. The NGX All Share Index also depreciated by 204.17 basis points to 68082.11 points from 68286.28 points reported on Wednesday. Betaglass led gainers table, gaining 9.97 per cent to close at N51.85 per unit, Cadbury Nigeria Plc followed with a gain of 9.86 per cent to close at N15.60 per share, CWG gained 9.81 per cent to N5.26 per unit, Tantalizer gained 9.52 per cent to close at N0.46 per share, Guinea Insurance added 9.09 per cent to close at N0.36 per share. On the contrary, Morison Industry recorded the highest loss with 9.89 per cent to close at N2.55 per unit, Courtvellle Business Solutions trailed with a loss of 7.69 per cent to close at N0.60 per unit, Nascon dipped by 6.83 per cent to close at N56.60 per unit, RTBriscoe went down by 6.82 per cent to close at N0.41 per share while Wema Bank dipped by 6.42 per cent to close at N5.10 per share. Investors traded 378.089 million shares valued at N8.376 billion in 8106 deals against 378.654 million shares valued at N5.482 billion in 7671 deals. Transactions in the shares of Oando led market activities with 91.635 million shares valued at N678.965 million, Omatek trailed with account of 29.972 million shares valued at N19.207 million, Dangote Sugar Refinery traded 23.393 million shares valued at N1.483 million, Fidelity Bank exchanged 22.165 million shares cost N193.576 million, AccessCorp exchanged 20.803 million shares cost N361.865 million.

Stock market swells N867.7bn, as forex gap widens across trades

The Nigeria Exchange (NGX) last week grew by an additional N867.7 billion to cap at N35.7 trillion. All Share Index (ASI) rose by 0.1 percent. This is as the crude oil price rise in the international markets failed to grow the country’s foreign reserves, leading to a widening gap across markets. At the domestic stock market, Year-to-Date (YTD) return improved to 26.9 percent (previously 26.8 percent). Activity level dampened as average volume and value traded fell 31.7 percent and 62.0 percent to 570.9 million units and N7.5 billion week-on week (w/w) respectively. At the global equities market, resilient corporate earnings encouraged bullish sentiment. Last week, the global equities market performance was shaped by a mix of the International Monetary Fund (IMF’s expectation of a better growth in China, unsurprising rate hikes by the US Feds and European Central Bank (ECB), and exciting corporate earnings. Overall, the MSCI World index rose 0.3 per cent w/w. The US market closed the week positive as investors continued to digest impressive corporate earnings releases and recent economic data. Specifically, PCE headline inflation slowed to 3.0 per cent in June from 3.8 per cent in the prior month – further solidifying expectations of the Fed to halt its ongoing hawkish monetary campaign. A the foreign exchange (fox) market, Brent crude oil price rose 3.9 per cent w/w to $84.00/bbl. backed by strong demand from the Sino economy as it reopens economic activities. This also comes with supply being artificially contained by OPEC+ members and frail supply pulls from the US. “Meanwhile, Nigeria’s foreign reserves still falls short of expected accretion from crude earnings as it declined 0.1 per cent w/w to $33.9 billion as of July 26th, 2023”, said analysts at Afrinvest. Across the forex market last week, naira traded within a similar band to the previous week. At the Investors & Export (I&E) window activity level improved 8.3 per cent, 32,3 million to $421.6 million, leading to 0.3 per cent w/w appreciation of the naira N775.76/$. In the parallel market the dollar appreciated 0.6 per cent w/w to N870/$, bringing a weekly average spread increase of 60.6 per cent to N89.02. At the treasury bills market, the OPR and OVN rates (interbank rates) fell 19.5ppts and 19.6ppts w/w respectively to 0.9 per cent and 1.4 per cent due to buoyant system liquidity. Specifically, liquidity level advanced 180.2 per cent  w/w to N593.0bn as higher opening balances of banks (9.0x w/w) and Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) payment largesse more than offset NT-Bills outflows of N264.3 billion during the week. The secondary market for domestic bond instruments closed the week on a bearish note as investors reacted negatively to the outcome of the MPC meeting. As such, average yield rose three basis points (bps) to 12.8 per cent backed by repricing across the curve. Specifically, yield on the short, mid, and long-dated instruments expanded by 145bps, 25bps and 19bps respectively.