*Greenback softens as Naira buying pressure mounts
By Bamidele Famoofo
WorldStage– The Nigerian equities market opened the week on a negative note on Monday, with the NGX All-Share Index declining
1.13 percent to settle at 247,560.66 points, pulling the year-to-date return down to +59.09 percent and erasing ₦1.81 trillion from market capitalization, which closed at ₦158.7 trillion.
Market breadth was negative at 0.6x, as 37 decliners led by BUACEMENT, TRANSEXPR, JOHNHOLT, REDSTAREX, and DEAPCAP outpaced 23 advancers, with INTENEGINS,
CONHALLPLC, TIP, RTBRISCOE, and IKEJAHOTEL recording the most notable gains. Sectoral performance was mixed, as Insurance (+0.79%) and Consumer Goods (+0.02%) finished in positive territory, while Industrial (-3.85%), Banking (-1.49%), and Oil & Gas (-0.23%) weighed on the index and the Commodity sector ended flat.
Trading activity was varied, as volume and deal count declined 6.38.percent and 1.86.percent to 1.13 billion shares and 91,880 transactions respectively, while
turnover edged up 1.96 percent to ₦44.28 billion. Heading into Tuesday’s session, the market is expected to sustain its bearish
tone as continued profit-taking activity weighs on investor sentiment.
In the foreign exchange market, the naira strengthened across both market segments on Monday, appreciating 0.47.pervent to ₦1,366.80/$ at the NAFEM
window and gaining a further 0.44 percent to ₦1,366/$ in the parallel market, reflecting broad-based buying interest in the local
currency across both the official and informal foreign exchange segments.
The Nigerian interbank offered rates rose across the board on Monday, with the overnight rate edging up 8bps to 22.34.percent, reflecting tightening system liquidity. The 1-month, 3-month, and 6-month tenors followed suit, advancing 11bps, 44bps, and 64bps respectively. Funding costs were mixed, as the Overnight rate climbed 5bps to 22.24 percent while the Open Repo rate remained unchanged at 22.00 percent.
In the Treasury Bills secondary market, yields were similarly varied, with the 1-month and 6-month bills rising 6bps and
11bps respectively, while the 12-month tenor declined 6bps and the 3-month tenor closed largely flat. Overall, the average
NT-Bills yield eased 3bps to 17.48 percent, reflecting increased investor demand and a broadly positive tone across the fixed-
income space.
The FGN Bonds market closed on a bullish note on Monday, with average yields easing 1bp to 16.31 percent, reflecting
strengthened domestic investor confidence and improved appetite for naira-denominated sovereign debt.
The Eurobond market echoed this positive sentiment, as average yields retreated 2bps to 6.76 percent, underscoring
strengthening global investor interest and a broadly favorable outlook toward Nigeria’s dollar-denominated sovereign
obligations.
