FIXED INCOME MARKETS
Money Market
The Open Repo Rate (OPR) increased by 253 bps to 27.50%, and the Overnight Rate (O/N) increased by 85 bps to 26.35% due to tight system liquidity.
Outlook: We expect interbank rates to nudge higher tomorrow.
Treasury Bills
The treasury bill market ended on a bearish note due to tight system liquidity. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) also sold ₦758.00 billion worth of OMO bills, focusing only on the long-dated paper, despite offering a total of ₦500.00 billion across the three tenors. The stop rate for the one-year OMO bills declined by 2bps to 21.87%. Overall, the average mid-rate for the benchmark NTB papers rose by 76 bps to 19.18%.
Outlook: We expect the bearish sentiment to persist tomorrow.
FGN Bonds
Today, the local FGN bonds market witnessed mixed to bullish sentiments, with persistent interest observed on May 2033 and 2053 papers. Overall, the average mid-yield declined by 7bps to 18.76%.
Outlook: We expect the mixed sentiment to persist tomorrow.
Equities
The Nigerian stock market closed bullish today, with the All-Share Index increasing by 0.49% to reach 96,510.13 points. The year-to-date return and market capitalization settled at 29.07% and ₦55.44 trillion, respectively. VERITASKAP led the volume charts with 83.07 million, while ACCESSCORP led the value charts with ₦1.06 billion.
Outlook: We expect a similar occurrence tomorrow.
Foreign Exchange
Naira appreciated against the USD by 0.15% to $/₦1,594.27.
Outlook: We expect volatility to persist.
Eurobonds
The African Eurobonds market posted a mixed-to-bearish session today. Overall, the average mid-yield increased by 4bps to 9.83% from 9.79%.
Outlook: We expect the momentum in tomorrow’s activities to ease.
Commodities
Crude oil prices fell today, following a surge in the previous session triggered by OPEC member Libya’s decision to halt production and exports. Brent prices dropped by 1.39% to $80.30, while WTI prices fell by 1.58% to $76.18. Gold prices also decreased by 0.07% to $2,553.40 per ounce.
Outlook: We expect the volatility to persist.
