FIXED INCOME MARKET
Money Markets
System liquidity opened ca ₦25.04 billion long, significantly higher than the previous day’s opening balance of ca ₦1.69 billion short. Nonetheless, the Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) and Overnight Rate (O/N) trended higher to close at 14.38% and 14.50% respectively, from the 14.00% recorded at yesterday’s session.
Treasury Bills
The NTB secondary market traded on a tepid note, as participants focused on the outcome of the 2-day MPC meeting. On the side, offers for short-dated papers were seen at c.10.00% levels, as banks sought to raise liquidity to fund their obligations. Overall, the average rate stayed flat day-on-day, to close at 7.03%.
Bonds
The FGN bonds market had offers repriced lower, following yesterday’s FGN bond auction result and today’s MPC meeting. Offer yields on 2025s, 2032s and 2042s inched up on average c.45bps to 10.85%, 12.90% and 13.40% respectively. Surrounding bonds also witnessed an uptick in offers, however, bids were very wide amid uncertainty in yield direction. Overall, the average yield rose by c.25bps day-on-day to settle at 11.86%.
Eurobonds
Following a strong positive move across the SSA Eurobonds space yesterday, the market opened a little softer today, mostly driven by negative US Equity trading, as investors re-assessed the outlook for corporate earnings amid concerns about global growth and Europe’s deepening energy crisis. Overall, the average yield across the Nigerian sovereign curve settled at 13.39%.
Equities
The domestic bourse closed trading activities on a negative note, as the Nigerian Stock Exchange All Share Index (NGX ASI) lost ca 0.02% day-on-day to close at 52,308.88pts, while market year-to-date return receded to ca +22.46%. This performance leaned heavily to profit-taking activities in Bellwethers like Access Bank Holdings Plc (-1.08%) and MTN Nigeria Communications Plc (-0.43%).
The NGX Oil & Gas and Industrial indices gained ca 0.75% and 0.19% while NGX Banking and Consumer Goods indices lost ca 0.41% and 0.13%, day-on-day, respectively.
United Bank for Africa Plc led the volume chart with ca 74.28 million units while MTN Nigeria Communications Plc topped the value charts with ca ₦876.34 million worth of trades.
Foreign Exchange
FMDQ’s Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Fixing (NAFEX) rate appreciated to ₦424.17/US$1.00 from ₦429.13/US$1.00, recorded the previous day.
Commodities
Global crude prices slightly dropped today, after gaining more than US$5/barrel in the previous session, as market concerns that rising crude prices will contribute to a recession-killing slump outweighed worries about constrained supply. Brent Crude Oil price lost ca 0.22% day-on-day to settle at US$106.02pb, while WTI dipped ca 0.34% day-on-day to settle at US$102.25pb as at report time. Spot Gold lost ca 0.07% day-on-day to close at US$1,709.00per ounce as at report time.
