*Financial markets.
26 April 2016, Sweetcrude, Houston — Local and international financial market products and services update.
NIGERIA: Barely four months after the visit of the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Ms. Christine Lagarde, the President of the World Bank, Dr. Jim Yong Kim is billed to arrive Nigeria this morning on a three-day visit.
Although the details of this visit are not known, the press gathered that Kim is coming to Nigeria in connection with issues pertaining to the economy and the support of the country’s efforts to rebuild the Northeast, which has been ravaged by an insurgency.
The World Bank announced recently that it was setting aside $800 million in support of the rebuilding of infrastructure devastated by years of Boko Haram insurgency in the North East.
FIXED INCOME: Market remains cautious in bonds; intermittent selling was seen but overall we closed stronger yesterday. Expectations of higher rates also continue to feed into the longer dated T-bills but modest demand still on short-dated bills. A few buy side enquiries on the long end of the bond curve but other than that flows remain light. We expect mixed sentiments today in the fixed income market.
FX: The results for the CBN weekly special intervention held last week was released late yesterday. The intervention rate was maintained at $/NGN 197.00.
U.K: A measure of risks to sterling following the June 23 vote on Britain’s membership of the European Union has tumbled by the most in the country narrowly avoided an inconclusive general election result last year. And though the pound is still the worst-performing currency in the developed world in 2016, during the past week it’s been the biggest gainer.
The U.K. currency has been a barometer of sentiment throughout the referendum debate, sliding to a seven-year low versus the dollar about a week after the date of the vote was announced, and now rallying as the “remain” camp gains traction. These latest moves point to renewed optimism that a Brexit will be avoided, and suggest traders are reassessing whether they went too hard, too fast in betting against sterling.
U.S: Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen and her colleagues will have a chance this week to signal whether they want to raise rates as soon as June. The message is likely to be it’s still an option, but far from a certainty.
Here’s what to expect when the Federal Open Market Committee releases its post-meeting statement at 2 p.m. Wednesday following a two-day meeting in Washington
Fed policy makers will keep the federal funds target range unchanged for a third meeting following the initial hike in December, which lifted rates held near zero since 2008, according to 91 economists and strategists surveyed by Bloomberg News.
COMMODITIES: Oil traded near $43 a barrel amid signs that, while global markets remain oversupplied, the surplus is gradually diminishing.
Futures were little changed in New York after slipping 2.5% Monday, the first decline in five days. U.S. crude stockpiles probably expanded by 1.5 million barrels last week, according to a Bloomberg survey before an Energy Information Administration report Wednesday. BP Plc Chief Executive Officer Bob Dudley, who in February joked that swimming pools might be needed to hold the global oil surplus, said markets may re-balance by year-end.
Macro Economic Indicators
Inflation rate (Y-o-Y) for March 2016 12.80%
Monetary Policy Rate current 12.00%
FX Reserves (Bn $) as at April 22, 2016, 27.266
Money Market Highlights
NIBOR (%)
O/N 4.0500
30 Day 8.0302
90 Day 10.2136
180 Day 12.0632
LIBOR (%)
USD 1 Month 0.4364
USD 2 Months 0.5230
USD 3 Months 0.6358
USD 6 Months 0.9086
USD 12 Months 1.06675
Benchmark Yields
Tenor Maturity Yield (%)
91d 21-July-16 8.07
182d 27-Oct-16 8.84
364d 20-Apr-17 11.31
2y 31-Aug-17 11.28
3y 30-May-18 11.72
5y 13-Feb-20 12.57
Indicative Currency Exchange Rates
Bid Offer
USDNGN 197.50 199.50
EURUSD 1.1188 1.1390
GBPUSD 1.4448 1.4651
USDJPY 110.82 110.82
USDCHF 0.96925 0.9794
GBPEUR 1.2786 1.2990
USDZAR 14.3877 14.5909
JPYNGN 179.5297 179.6303
CHFNGN 203.44 205.13
EURNGN 224.51 225.88
GBPNGN 285.77 287.17
