Forex

Stocks Drop, Gold Leads Havens After Korea Missile

Published

7 years ago

August 29, 2017

Stocks Drop, Gold Leads Havens After Korea Missile

Headwinds stacked up for global markets on Tuesday, with stocks slumping across Europe and Asia and havens including gold jumping after North Korea fired a ballistic missile over Japan. Gasoline gained with oil as energy companies braced for another hit from Tropical Storm Harvey.

From London to Sydney equities retreated and volatility jumped amid classic risk-off moves, with U.S. stock futures also tumbling. Japan called Kim Jong Un’s latest provocation an “unprecedented, grave and serious threat.” Gold surged to the highest this year, while the Swiss franc and the yen were the best performing major currencies. Gasoline added to its rally as storm Harvey picked up strength again after inundating refineries along the Texas coast. The euro climbed above $1.20 for the first time since 2015.

Tuesday’s missile has thrust the confrontation between the U.S. and North Korea back to the fore after the hermit kingdom had been praised by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson last week for its “restraint.” Tillerson said that North Korea hadn’t carried out “provocative acts” since the UN Security Council imposed new sanctions earlier this month, and that Pyongyang’s temperance might lead to negotiations “in the near future.” Kim Jong Un last tested a missile on July 28.

“Some observers had thought the U.S. and North Korea were pursuing discussions behind closed doors, but it turns out North Korea continues to pursue missile development,” said Chihiro Ohta, a Tokyo-based senior strategist at SMBC Nikko Securities. “The risk-off stance is likely to continue even if the U.S. responds calmly.”

Here are the main moves in markets:

Asia

Japan’s Topix index closed 0.2 percent lower after falling as much as 0.7 percent, while South Korea’s Kospi index lost 0.2 percent, paring a drop of as much as 1.6 percent. The S&P/ASX 200 Index in Sydney declined 0.7 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.3 percent, while the Shanghai Composite Index fluctuated before edging higher.
Thailand’s SET Index bucked the main trend, rising 1.9 percent. Concern about political violence has eased, according to CLSA.
The yen advanced 0.6 percent to 108.57 per dollar.
The won slid 0.5 percent to 1,126.15 per dollar.

Stocks

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index dipped 1 percent as of 8:29 a.m. in London to the lowest in almost seven months.
The U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index fell 1 percent, the biggest decrease in more than two weeks on a closing basis.
Germany’s DAX Index sank 1.2 percent to the lowest in more than five months.
Futures on the S&P 500 Index fell 0.7 percent to the lowest in seven weeks.

Currencies

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index dipped 0.2 percent to the lowest in more than two years.
The euro gained 0.3 percent to $1.202, the strongest in almost three years.
The British pound climbed 0.1 percent to $1.2951, the strongest in more than two weeks.

Bonds

The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined five basis points to 2.11 percent, the lowest in almost 10 months.
Germany’s 10-year yield dipped four basis points to 0.33 percent, the lowest in two months.
Britain’s 10-year yield decreased four basis points to 1.012 percent, the lowest in two months.

Commodities

West Texas Intermediate crude increased 0.2 percent to $46.68 a barrel.
Gold rose 0.9 percent to $1,320.72 an ounce.
Gasoline for September delivery climbed 0.8 percent to $1.7256 a gallon, after climbing 2.7 percent on Monday.

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Samed Olukoya

Is the CEO and Founder of Investors King Limited. He is a seasoned foreign exchange research analyst and a published author on Yahoo Finance, Business Insider, Nasdaq, Entrepreneur.com, Investorplace, and other prominent platforms. With over two decades of experience in global financial markets, Olukoya is well-recognized in the industry.

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Naira

Naira Drops 0.04% to N1,659.69/$1 at Official FX Market, Dips at Parallel Market

Published

16 hours ago

October 17, 2024

Iyanuoluwa Martins

The Naira fell to N1,659 per Dollar on Wednesday in the official foreign exchange market, the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX).

The local currency fell by 72 Kobo or 0.04 percent to close at N1,659.69/$1 compared with Tuesday’s closing rate of N1,658.97/$1.

The market continued to weigh the recent inflation rise after the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Tuesday said Nigeria’s inflation rose to 32.70 percent in the month of September, the first time after moderating in July and August.

Analysts from the World Bank ranked Nigerian Naira as among the worst-performing currencies in sub-Sahara Africa in 2024, noting that the local currency has lost about 43 percent.

The World Bank, in its latest edition of Africa’s Pulse report, disclosed that the Naira is at the same level with the Ethiopian Birr, and South Sudanese Pound in terms of decline in the region.

The report disclosed that the continued increase in the demand for Dollars and limited Dollar inflow is responsible for Naira depreciation in the last months.

The daily supply of FX as measured by secondary data from FMDQ Securities Exchange Limited indicated that turnover slumped by $40.85 million or 18.7 percent to $177.01 million from $217.86 million.

The Naira weakened its value against the Pound Sterling in the official market by N64.28 to sell at N2,153.90/£1 compared with the preceding session’s N2,089.62/£1.

It followed the same route against the Euro as it depreciated N51.67 to quote the midweek session at N1,800.79/€1 versus the preceding rate of N1,749.12/€1.

In the Parallel market, the Naira weakened on the American currency as it closed at N1,693.32 to the US Dollar, a drop of N29.61 compared to N1,663.71/$1 it closed during the Wednesday trading session.

The Naira also dropped in its value against the British Pound Sterling in the official market by N38.17 to sell at N2,159.12/£1 compared with the preceding session’s N2,120.95/£1 and followed the same pattern against the Euro as it depreciated N31.51 to quote at N1,847.94/€1 versus the previous day’s rate of N1,816.43/€1.

The local currency also depreciated N7.07 to close at N1,204.66 per Canadian Dollar, compared to Tuesday’s N1,197.59 per CAD.

Naira

World Bank Lists Naira Among Africa’s Worst Performing Currencies

Published

1 day ago

October 16, 2024

Ugwoke Ogbodo

The World Bank has ranked Nigerian Naira as among the worst-performing currencies in sub-Sahara Africa in 2024.

The World Bank, in its latest edition of Africa’s Pulse report, disclosed that the Naira is at the same level with the Ethiopian Birr, and South Sudanese Pound in terms of decline in the region.

The report disclosed that the continued increase in the demand for dollars and limited dollar inflow is responsible for Naira depreciation in the last months.

According to the report, as of August, the Naira lost about 43 percent.

It added that by August 2024, the Ethiopian birr, Nigerian naira, and South Sudanese pound were among the worst performers in the region.

According to the report, the Nigerian naira continued losing value, with a year-to-date depreciation of about 43 percent as of end-August.

It stated that the increase in demand for US dollars in the parallel market, driven by financial institutions, money managers, and non-financial end-users, combined with limited dollar inflows and slow foreign exchange disbursements to currency exchange bureaus by the central bank explain the weakening of the naira.

The Naira plummeted to a new record low, closing at N1,700 per dollar in the parallel market on October 14, 2024, according to data from Bureau de Change (BDC) operators.

This represents a 0.29% drop from its previous rate of N1,695/$1 recorded on October 11, despite a surge in crude oil prices, which have surpassed $80 per barrel.

Naira

Naira Falls to N1,658.97/$1 at Official Market, Gains at Black Market

Published

2 days ago

October 16, 2024

Iyanuoluwa Martins

The Naira weakened to N1,658.97 per Dollar on Tuesday, October 15 at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) as the local currency fell by N106.05 or 6.8 percent to close at N1,658.97/$1 compared with Monday’s closing rate of N1,552.92/$1.

The daily supply of FX as measured by secondary data from FMDQ Securities Exchange Limited indicated that turnover slumped by $125.85 million or 36.6 percent to $217.86 million from $343.71 million.

The fall in the local currency came as the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) released the headline inflation rate for September 2024 which showed that the Consumer Price Index rose to 32.70 percent.

This represents an increase of 0.55 percent from the August 2024 figure of 32.15 percent, after inflation dropped consecutively in the previous two months of July and August.

“In September 2024, the Headline inflation rate was 32.70% relative to the August 2024 headline inflation rate of 32.15%. Looking at the movement, the September 2024 Headline inflation rate showed an increase of 0.55% compared to the August 2024 Headline inflation rate.

“On a year-on-year basis, the Headline inflation rate was 5.98% points higher compared to the rate recorded in September 2023 (26.72%). This shows that the Headline inflation rate (year-onyear basis) increased in September 2024 when compared to the year-on-year in the preceding year (i.e., September 2023).

“Furthermore, on a month-on-month basis, the Headline inflation rate in September 2024 was 2.52%, which was 0.30% higher than the rate recorded in August 2024 (2.22%). This means that in September 2024, the rate of increase in the average price level is higher than the rate of increase in the average price level in August 2024,” the NBS report said.

Meanwhile it was a different outcome in the Parallel market, the Naira gained on the American currency as it closed at N1,663.71 to the US Dollar, a rise of N9.84 compared to N1,673.55/$1 it closed during the Wednesday trading session.

The Naira strengthened its value against the Pound Sterling in the official market by N16.41 to sell at N2,120.95/£1 compared with the preceding session’s N2,137.36/£1 and followed the same pattern against the Euro as it appreciated N13.39 to quote at N1,816.43/€1 versus the previous day’s rate of N1,829.82/€1.

The local currency also appreciated N4.07 to close at N1.197.59 per Canadian Dollar, compared to Monday’s N1,201.66 per CAD.