Forex

Japan Stocks Drop on Stronger Yen as Energy Shares Fall With Oil

Published

6 years ago

February 24, 2016

Japanese stocks fell as the yen strengthened and Iran and Saudi Arabia doused hopes for a rebound in crude prices, sending global energy shares lower.

The Topix index declined 1.1 percent to 1,276.57 as of 9:53 a.m. in Tokyo, as 27 of the measure’s 33 industry groups slid. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average lost 1.2 percent to 15,856.77. Shares in the U.S. tumbled with oil after Saudi Arabia said a recent agreement to freeze output won’t lead to production cuts, while Iran called the deal “ridiculous.”

“Iran and Saudi Arabia are showing little desire to lower production, so despite the agreement by the main countries to freeze output, it’s clear that alone won’t push oil prices back up to $50 or $60 a barrel,” Chihiro Ohta, general manager of investment information at SMBC Nikko Securities Inc. in Tokyo, said by phone. “There are no catalysts to purchase stocks now. We’re not seeing buying ahead of the G20 either.”

Crude fell 4.6 percent in New York on Tuesday. Last week’s proposal to cap output at January levels puts “unrealistic demands” on Iran, the country’s oil minister said Tuesday. Saudi Arabia’s oil minister said the deal won’t cut oil production as other countries would be unlikely to assist in restraining output. Oil futures continued falling, slipping an additional 1.5 percent on Wednesday.

Yen, Oil

The yen gained for a second day, trading at 111.98 per dollar after jumping 0.7 percent on Tuesday. That sent exporters lower, including Toyota Motor Corp. which declined 1.6 percent. Subaru manufacturer Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. lost 3.4 percent, while TDK Corp., the Apple Inc. supplier that gets more than 90 percent of revenue abroad, fell 4.1 percent.

Shippers led losses in Tokyo on Wednesday, with Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd. falling 3.3 percent. Resource-related shares were also among the biggest losers. Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp. dropped 3.3 percent after gaining 4 percent on Tuesday.

Declines among Japan’s energy companies were buffered as several brokerages lifted ratings on some companies. Fuji Oil Co. jumped 1.2 percent after Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities Co. boosted its outlook on the crude miner and refiner. Chiyoda Corp., which provides services to oil companies, rose 0.1 percent after Credit Suisse Group AG raised its rating on the firm.

Chairman Exit

Honda Motor Co. led car manufacturers lower after shaking up management, including the exit of its chairman. The changes at Japan’s second-largest automaker come amid internal quality woes and an air-bag safety crisis with its top supplier Takata Corp. Shares of Honda fell 3.3 percent.

E-mini futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index slipped 0.1 percent after the underlying equity gauge tumbled 1.3 percent on Tuesday, the most since Feb. 8. The recent rally’s strongest performers lost momentum, with banks and tech shares declining. Economic data was mixed, as a report showed previously owned home sales unexpectedly rose in January to the second-highest pace since early 2007, while February’s consumer confidence decreased.

Investors awaited the start of a Group of 20 meeting on Friday in Shanghai. The weakening global-growth outlook was expected to dominate the agenda as officials from the world’s biggest economies gathered.

Bloomberg

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Samed Olukoya

CEO/Founder Investors King Ltd, a foreign exchange research analyst, contributing author on New York-based Talk Markets and Investing.com, with over a decade experience in the global financial markets.

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Naira

Dollar to Naira Today January 24, 2022

Published

1 day ago

January 24, 2022

Samed Olukoya

Here is the daily dollar to Naira exchange rates at both the official and black markets today, January 24, 2022.

Read and follow Investors King daily update on the official exchange rate for the dollar as well as Black Market rates, Bureau de Change (BDC) rates and CBN rates.

How Much is Dollar to Naira Exchange Rate Today, January 24, 2022, at the Official Market?

The official exchange rate for $1 dollar to naira = ₦415.64/$1, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria official exchange rates.

However, FMDQ Group forex data puts the dollar to naira exchange rate at ₦416 to $1 on Friday, 21st January 2022. The Investors and Exporters forex platform is yet to be updated today.

How Much is Black Market Exchange Rate for Dollar to Naira Today?

The dollar to naira exchange rate at the unregulated forex market popularly known as the black market is N560 for buyers and sells at N565 today, Monday, January 24, 2022, according to sources cited by Bureau De Change (BDC).

The Central Bank of Nigeria has warned against patronising the black market and directed all Nigerians to visit their banks for their forex needs.

How Much is Bitcoin to Naira Today?

Bitcoin to Naira exchange rate dipped by 0.25 percent in the last 24 hours to N14.630 million while Ethereum [ETH] to Naira stood at N979,245, representing a decline of 3.40 percent.

The entire cryptocurrency plunged in December 2021 after the US Federal Reserve announced plans to adjust its monetary policy to accommodate the change in the nation’s economic realities. Experts are predicting that an increase in interest rate will impact the crypto space as capital inflow is projected to drop.

Meanwhile, the minister of finance Mrs Zainab Ahmed on Monday said the federal government has suspended plans to remove fuel subsidy in 2022 given the nation’s inflation rate.

Speaking at National Assembly, she said “We discovered that practically, there is still heightened inflation and that the removal of subsidy would further worsen the situation and impose more difficulties on the citizenry,” Ahmed said at the meeting.

“Mr. President does not want to do that. What we are now doing is to continue with the ongoing discussions and consultations in terms of putting in place a number of measures.

“One of these include the roll-out of the refining capacities of the existing refineries and the new ones which would reduce the amount of products that would be imported into the country.”

Naira

Naira Slides Marginally Against US Dollar, Exchanges at N415

Published

1 week ago

January 18, 2022

Samed Olukoya

The Nigerian Naira fell slightly against the United States Dollar on Monday, according to the last update from the Central Bank of Nigeria.

The local currency was exchanged at N414.89 per dollar on Friday before depreciating by N0.11 or 0.03 percent to N415 on Monday.

It should be recalled that the Naira plunged to N435 against the United States on Friday 31, December 2021 when the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) adjusted its exchange rate by N2 to accommodate the change in Nigeria’s economic realities.

The Naira has now improved by about 4.6 percent against the United States Dollar from the year to date. The improvement was after the market digested and interpreted the CBN action as the usual forex devaluation in line with the apex bank policy.

At the unregulated black market, traders in Abuja sold the greenback at N570 a unit and buy it at N569. CBN had attributed Nigeria’s forex challenges to the activities of black market operators and warned Nigerians to stop patronising that section of forex.

Meanwhile, the crypto space remained bearish across the board ahead of US Federal Reserve rate decisions. Bitcoin to Naira exchange rate declined by 2.5 percent to N17.346 million in the last 24 hours while Eth shed 3.6 percent.

Other cryptocurrencies suffer the same fate as Binance coin, Tether, Cardano and XRP depreciated by 3.70 percent, 0.31 percent, 1.72 percent and 2.93 percent.

Bitcoin looks vulnerable above the $41,000 support level, largely due to the drop in capital inflow into the crypto space ahead of a possible interest rate increase in the world’s largest economy, the United States.

“Bitcoin continues to look vulnerable having failed to bounce back strongly off the recent lows. It appeared to be gathering some upside momentum at times last week but it quickly ran into resistance just shy of $45,000 where it had previously seen support. All eyes are now on $40,000 and whether we’re going to see another run at that major support level,” said Craig Erlam, Senior Market Analyst, UK & EMEA, OANDA, in an email to Investors King.

Naira

Naira Gains 1.58 Percent to N416 at Official FX Market, Bitcoin, Other Cryptocurrencies Plunge

Published

3 weeks ago

January 6, 2022

Samed Olukoya

Naira Dollar Exchange Rate - Investors King

The Nigerian Naira gained 1.58 percent or N7.56 against the United States Dollar at the official forex market on Wednesday.

The local currency opened the day at N423.56 to a US Dollar before improving in value to N416 against the greenback. At the official forex window managed by the FMDQ Group, investors traded $114.95 million on Wednesday.

The improvement in Naira value was after the market had digested the Central Bank of Nigeria’s currency adjustment. The central bank had adjusted the Naira to Dollar exchange rate by N2 from N411 to N413 on Friday, leading to devaluation outcry across Africa’s largest economy.

On Friday, the Naira plunged to as low as N435 against the United States Dollar at the official forex trading market and N575 at the unregulated parallel market, popularly known as the black market, before moderating to N416.

Meanwhile, bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies plunged across the board. Bitcoin depreciated by 7.16 percent to $43,058 per coin in the last 24 hours. The decline does not stop there as the second most capitalised digital asset, Eth dipped by 9.77 percent to $3,441.

Solana, Ripple (XRP), Luna and Cardano (ADA) lost 11.48 percent, 8.13 percent, 9.5 percent and 8.6 percent, respectively.

The decline was after the US Federal Reserve minutes of December 14 – 15 meeting released on Wednesday revealed that policymakers are planning to raise interest rates as early as March 2022 to curb escalating inflation rate. Generally, hawkish monetary policy is negative for cryptocurrency as it drags on capital inflow into the space and encourages investors to look into more stable assets for higher interest rates.

According to The Wall Street Journal, the “Federal Reserve officials at their meeting last month eyed a faster timetable for raising interest rates this year, potentially as soon as in March, amid greater discomfort with high inflation.

“Minutes of their Dec. 14-15 meeting, released Wednesday, showed officials believed that rising inflation and a very tight labor market could call for lifting short-term rates “sooner or at a faster pace than participants had earlier anticipated.”