The Markets | - Part 188

Nigerian Naira Forward Contracts Jump as Nigeria Eases Interbank Rules

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Naira six-month non-deliverable forward contracts rise 1.3%, most on closing basis since April 27, to 360 per dollar. 1-month contracts +0.8% to 331/USD, 3-month contracts +1% to 342.

Nigerian Banks Outstrip Peers on Returning Dollar, Old Mutual Up

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Since the Nigerian central bank eased a dollar shortage by opening a currency-trading window for foreign investors in April, lenders in Africa’s biggest economy have soared. The local banking index is up 35 percent this quarter, outstripping South Africa’s equivalent stock gauge and MSCI’s emerging-market financials index. Even after the jump, Guaranty Trust Bank is the sole Nigerian lender in the index to trade above its book value, while none of…

Nigerian stocks rise to 11-month high on banking, cement shares

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Nigeria stocks jumped to a 11-month high on Thursday, driven by gains in banking and cement shares as investors took advantage of the low valuation for some commercial bank shares. The stock market index rose 2.37 percent to cross 30,197 points, lifted by gains in First Bank Holdings and Dangote Cement. The banking index rose 1.61 percent amid expectations Africa’s biggest economy would exit recession soon as higher oil revenues…

OPEC Can Still Do What It Takes to Prop Up Oil: Robin Mills

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – The cartel needs to make deeper reductions or a long-term commitment to higher output. “We’re going to do what it takes,” Khalid Al-Falih, Saudi Arabia’s energy minister, said in March. But by agreeing to an unexciting extension of cuts on May 25, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries is merely tinkering. Unless the group acts decisively, it faces a slow process of attrition in rebalancing the market. But it…

Emerging-Market Bulls Are Cooling Off After Impressive Rally

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa)- After a surprisingly good run in emerging markets that sent equities to a fifth monthly gain, some bulls are easing up. Credit Suisse Group AG forecasts developing-nation equities will underperform in the short term, while Deutsche Bank Wealth Management said it’s not as positive on emerging-market bonds as a year ago. Goldman Sachs Group Inc.said strong returns have partially eroded a previously compelling valuation signal, and BNP Paribas SA said the best gains in…

Trouble Brews for OPEC as Expensive Deep-Sea Oil Turns Cheap

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Reports of deep-sea drilling’s demise in a world of sub-$100oil may have been greatly exaggerated, much to OPEC’s dismay. Pumping crude from seabeds thousands of feet below water is turning cheaper as producers streamline operations and prioritize drilling in core wells, according to Wood Mackenzie Ltd. That means oil at $50 a barrel could sustain some of these projects by next year, down from an average break-even price of about $62 in…

South Africa Posts Third Straight Monthly Trade Surplus in April

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – South Africa recorded a surplus on its trade account for a third straight month in April as imports of equipment components decreased. The 5.1 billion-rand ($388 million) surplus with March’s revised 11.3 billion-rand surplus, the Pretoria-based South African Revenue Service said in an emailed statement Wednesday. The median of four economist estimates compiled by Bloomberg was for a surplus of 7.4 billion rand. A smaller trade gap eases pressure on the current account,…

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