FIXED INCOME MARKETS

Money Market

Opening system liquidity remained in the negative. Although, some inflows from bond coupon relatively supported system liquidity. Thus, the Open Repo Rate (OPR) declined by 1 bp to 31.84%, while the Overnight Rate (O/N) decreased by 5 bps to 32.38%.

Outlook: We expect interbank rates to stay elevated tomorrow.

Treasury Bills

The treasury bills market closed on a bearish note today, with selling interest concentrated at the belly of the curve. As a result, the average mid-rate across the benchmark NTB papers increased by 27 bps to 22.36%.

Outlook: We expect the bearish bias to persist.

FGN Bonds

The domestic FGN bond market concluded on a bearish tone, with the focus directed towards the March 2027s, May 2033s, and June 2038 papers. Overall, the average mid-yield rose by 8 bps to 19.30%.

Outlook: We expect a mixed to bearish sentiment tomorrow.

Equities

The Nigerian stock market ended on a positive note, mainly driven by increased interest in AIRTELAFRI (+4.76%). The All-Share Index rose by 0.47% to reach 100,503.21 points. The year-to-date return and market capitalization concluded at 34.41% and ₦56.91 trillion, respectively. GTCO had the highest trading volume at 39.74 million units, while AIRTELAFRI topped the value chart at ₦2.25 billion.

Outlook: We expect market to trade sideways in the interim.

Foreign Exchange

Naira appreciated against the USD by 0.94% to $/₦1,581.65.

Outlook: We expect volatility to persist.

Eurobonds

Today’s performance in the SSA Eurobonds market was mixed, with Angola closing on a positive note, while the Kenyan and Nigerian curves experienced a bearish trend. As a result, the average mid-yield for the Nigerian curve increased by 3 bps, reaching 9.81%.

Outlook: We expect a similar trading session tomorrow.

Commodities

After three consecutive weeks of declines in crude inventories, crude oil prices held onto their gains. As a result, Brent prices rose by 0.06% to $85.13, while WTI prices climbed 0.11% to $82.94. During the same period, the price of gold gained 0.38% to reach $2,469.20 per ounce, reflecting the growing expectations of a September interest rate cut from the U.S. Federal Reserve.

Outlook: We expect the volatility to persist.