ECONOMY AND CAPITAL MARKET NEWS

For the Week Ended August 21, 2026

          

CAPITAL MARKET NEWS

• Nigerian stocks show healthy market correction as smart money seeks bargain entry

Nigerian equities trade nearer to the 243,000-mark, demonstrating an impressive year-to-date (YTD) trajectory. The market is currently in a calculated phase of consolidation, backed by an incredible Year-to-Date (YTD) growth of more than 56%, and the overall market capitalization is above N156 trillion. Recent changes in domestic and structural factors have, over the medium term, by unifying FX exchange rates, partially expunging legacies of fiscal losses (fuel subsidies), among others, led to improved operating profitability and better disclosure and financial reporting by corporates, attracting long-term foreign investment. Read More

• Nigerian stocks face selloff risk as CBN opens OMO to retail investors

The Central Bank of Nigeria’s decision to reopen Open Market Operations (OMO) securities to individuals and corporates has created a new investment option for domestic investors. Under a circular issued on August 12, 2026, individuals, companies and non-bank financial institutions can now participate in primary and secondary OMO markets through Deposit Money Banks. The change reverses a key restriction introduced in 2019 and comes at a time when investors are already showing strong appetite for high-yielding fixed-income securities. Read More

• FGN Bond Demand Rises as DMO Allots N805.2bn at Primary Auction

At Monday’s FGN Bond auction, the DMO sold N805.2bn across the January 2035, April 2037, and June 2038 maturities, with total sales reaching almost N1.6trn, including N752.3bn in non-competitive allotments. Subscriptions of N1.7trn produced a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.1x, up from 1.9x, suggesting yield considerations rather than weak demand as the driver of the lower competitive allotment. The June 2038 bond drew bids of N821.3bn against sales of N631.0bn at a marginal rate of 17.79%. Demand reflects expectations that yields may have peaked, following the moderation in inflation. Year-to-date, the DMO has raised nearly N7.2trn against a domestic funding target of around N29trn. Read More

• SEC considers pegging investors’ digital assets exposure at N10m

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has proposed new investment limits that would restrict the amount retail investors can commit to digital asset offerings in Nigeria.

Under the proposed rules, a retail investor would be allowed to invest a maximum of N1 million in a digital asset offering by a single issuer, while the total amount invested across digital asset offerings would not exceed N10 million within 12 months. The proposal is contained in the SEC’s proposed rules on Digital and Virtual Assets Operations, Custody and Markets, published on August 20, 2026. The rules are designed to strengthen regulation of Nigeria’s growing digital asset market while providing greater protection for investors. Read More

• DMO allots N1.56 trillion FGN bonds as demand hits N1.73 trillion, lowers rates

Nigeria’s Debt Management Office (DMO) allotted a combined N1.56 trillion across three Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) bond offerings at its August 17, 2026 auction, after investors submitted bids worth N1.73 trillion. This is contained in DMO’s auction results, which showed that the debt office allotted well above the amount offered on the back of a heavily subscribed non-competitive window. The settlement is scheduled for Wednesday, August 19. The auction, which offered a combined N1.10 trillion across the reopened 22.60% FGN January 2035, 16.2499% FGN April 2037 and 15.45% FGN June 2038 bonds, recorded strong demand for long-dated government securities, with the 15.45% FGN June 2038 bond attracting the largest subscription and allocation. Read More

MONEY MARKET NEWS

• CBN: IMTO inflows hit record $1.29 billion in Q1, jump 45%

Inflows through International Money Transfer Operators (IMTOs) rose to a record US$1.29 billion in the first quarter of 2026, representing a 45% increase from the US$888.47 million recorded in the same period of 2025. This is according to data from the Q1 2026 Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) quarterly Statistical Bulletin. The CBN data shows that IMTO inflows increased across all three months of the first quarter, with January recording the highest monthly inflow of US$506.66 million. Read More

• CBN data shows net FX flow drops 29% to $4.94 billion

Nigeria’s net foreign exchange (FX) flow stood at US$4.94 billion in March 2026, representing a 38% increase compared with the US$3.58 billion recorded in March 2025, despite a 29% monthly decline. This is according to data from the Q1 2026 Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) quarterly Statistical Bulletin. The net FX flow through the Nigerian economy fell from US$6.98 billion in February 2026 to US$4.94 billion in March. Read More

• Balancing market growth, bank profits as CBN changes money supply rules

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recently reopened its Open Market Operations (OMO) market to individuals, companies and financial institutions that are not banks. OMO is a way the CBN controls the amount of money in circulation by buying or selling government securities, such as Treasury Bills. The move means more people and businesses can now take part in this market, marking a major change in how the CBN manages money and how investors access Nigeria’s fixed-income market. The move reverses a restriction introduced in 2019, when access to OMO bills, among the naira market’s most liquid and attractive low-risk instruments, was largely limited to banks and selected institutional investors. Read More

THE NIGERIAN ECONOMY

• FG borrows N11.9 trillion in two years, says subsidy removal prevented more debt

The Federal Government borrowed N11.9 trillion between June 2023 and December 2025, but says the amount would have been significantly higher without the fiscal space created by its economic reforms. Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, disclosed this while presenting the government’s reforms scorecard. He said the government’s incremental resources from subsidy savings, independent revenues and additional borrowing amounted to N20.4 trillion during the period, while incremental expenditure by the Federal Government stood at N30.64 trillion. Read More

• Energy inflation drops to 4.37% in July, lowest in four months

Nigeria’s energy inflation rate fell to 4.37% in July 2026, its lowest level in four months, according to the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The latest figure represents a sharp decline from the 9.83% recorded in June, continuing the volatile movement in energy-related prices recorded in the first seven months of the year. The data also show that energy inflation has remained below 10% in four of the first seven months of 2026, although price pressures remain a major concern for Nigerian households and businesses. Read More

• Nigeria spends N4.14 trillion more on debt service than infrastructure

Nigeria incurred N10.61 trillion in additional debt-service costs between June 2023 and December 2025, about N4.14 trillion more than the N6.47 trillion spent on strategic infrastructure development over the same period. This is according to the Federal Government’s Nigeria’s Reform Scorecard: The Benefits, Costs and Harms Prevented, released by the Federal Ministry of Finance on Wednesday. An analysis of the expenditure data shows that external debt service arising from exchange-rate depreciation amounted to N9.37 trillion, while the impact of higher monetary policy rates on domestic debt service added another N1.24 trillion. Read More

• 30 months after subsidy removal, FG spends N30.6tn, saves N15.8tn

30 months after President Bola Tinubu removed petrol subsidy and introduced other sweeping economic reforms, the Federal Government has spent N30.64tn as government expenditure to ease the effects of its policies, while the policies generated N15.8tn in savings for the Federation. The government said its total incremental expenditure between June 2023 and December 2025 was N30.64tn, exceeding the N20.4tn in additional resources available to the Federal Government from subsidy savings, higher revenue and borrowing by N10.24tn, or 50.2 per cent. This shows that the removal of petrol subsidy created significant fiscal space but did not produce a pool of idle cash for the Federal Government. Read More

• Nigeria needs $23bn to fix power sector

Nigeria’s electricity challenge could deepen as population growth, artificial intelligence, digitalisation and the increasing electrification of transportation, agriculture and other sectors drive an unprecedented rise in demand, the Rural Electrification Agency has warned. The Managing Director of the REA, Abba Aliyu, gave the warning on Friday in Abuja during the signing of a collaboration agreement between the agency and Alpha Morgan Bank, which committed up to N50bn in financing for renewable energy developers. Aliyu said the agreement was part of efforts to close the huge financing gap confronting Nigeria’s electricity sector, particularly in rural and underserved communities where millions of households and businesses remain without reliable access to power. Read More

• States get special N435bn for security, infrastructure

State governments are receiving billions of naira through a relatively new Federation Account Allocation Committee intervention for infrastructure and security, with available half-year budget implementation reports showing that at least N435bn in revenue was recorded under the funding window by 29 states between January and June 2026. The intervention, classified in state financial records as “State Infrastructure and Security” under the National Chart of Accounts code 11010313, is distinct from the FAAC conventional statutory allocations but distributed as regular FAAC revenue. No amount was disbursed for this purpose in the corresponding period of 2025. Read More

THE GLOBAL ECONOMY

• Global goods trade surges to $13.7 trillion as AI, EV demand fuels growth

Global goods trade rose to about US$13.7 trillion in the first half of 2026, representing a 12.5% increase compared with the same period in 2025. This is according to the recent United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) report titled “Global trade continues to expand amid rising price pressures”. UNCTAD said the increase was supported in part by higher prices, while global services trade grew at a slower pace, rising 10.5% compared with the first half of 2025. The strong performance in goods trade was supported by robust activity in East Asia and strong demand for AI- and electric vehicle-related products, including critical minerals and semiconductors. Read More

• Iran vows ‘devastating’ response as U.S. threatens toughest ever economic hit

Iran said on Friday that its response to any new U.S. threats would be “devastating” after Washington pledged to impose the toughest financial penalties in history to topple the Iranian leadership. U.S. Treasury chief Scott Bessent’s comments on Thursday followed a warning from President Donald Trump of economic consequences against any country that provided “any type of lifeline to Iran.” Bessent promised details on Monday. The chief of staff of Iran’s Armed Forces, Maj. Gen. Ali Abdollahi, said the Islamic Republic’s reaction would be broad and decisive. Read More

• Trump warns of economic consequences for any country that supports Iran

More than 80% of Iran‘s shipped oil is bought by China, 2025 data shows, but the U.S. risks retaliation should it engage in further economic warfare with Beijing. President Donald Trump warned of economic consequences against any country that provided “any type of lifeline to Iran “as the United States looks to resolve a war it began alongside Israel nearly six months ago. Thousands have been killed in the war, which quickly drew in Gulf nations and shocked global markets as Iran flexed its ability to curb shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which carried about a fifth of the world’s traded oil before February. Read More

• The Iran war is pushing U.S. allies and rivals to a risky new frontier for global trade

A container ship set sail from South Korea on Saturday on a voyage that will take it along a daring new route for commercial shipping from Asia to Europe. It is the kind of ship that makes you stop and take notice whether you’re an American official keeping a wary eye on both rivals and allies, or a worker at one of Europe’s biggest ports preparing to play your part in a daring new era for global trade. Read More

DISCLAIMER 

This compilation is for information purposes only. Investors are advised to always consult their Stockbrokers for reliable and specific investment guidance at every point in time. The names of certified individual Securities and Investment experts in Nigeria can be found on the website of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers, www.cisinigeria.org.

CIS Research