Business

Hong Kong stocks rebound on PBOC’s US$70 billion finance facility, fiscal stimulus hopes

Published

2 years ago

October 10, 2024

Ekwutos Blog

Investors open accounts at a securities firm in Qingdao, east China's Shandong province, on Tuesday. Photo: Xinhua

The Chinese central bank’s liquidity boosting tool sparks a 3 per cent surge in Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index

Hong Kong and Chinese stocks both rebounded from sell-offs after China’s central bank kicked off a US$70 billion financing facility to fund institutional buying and traders bet on more fiscal stimulus to shore up growth.

The Hang Seng Index jumped 3 per cent to 21,251.98 at the close, snapping a two-day, 11 per cent decline. Still, the benchmark tumbled 6.5 per cent for the shortened trading week, as the city’s financial markets will be shut on Friday for a public holiday. The Hang Seng Tech Index gained 2.1 per cent on the day.

The CSI 300 Index rose 1.1 per cent, bouncing back from a 7.1 per cent slump a day earlier. The Shanghai Composite Index finished 1.3 per cent higher. Trading on the mainland’s markets remained wild, with the 10-day realised volatility of the CSI 300 rising to its highest since August 2015, according to Bloomberg data.

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Sentiment on the Hong Kong and mainland’s markets seemed to have stabilised after the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) started the swap facility with an initial size of 500 billion yuan (US$70.7 billion). Under the programme, qualified brokerages, mutual-fund firms and insurance companies will be able to swap their holdings of bonds, stock exchange-traded funds and stocks on the CSI 300 for highly liquid assets such as government bonds and central-bank bills, the PBOC said in a statement on Thursday. The scale can be expanded and applications from qualified institutional will be accepted immediately, it said.

The swap facility is part of a combined 800 billion yuan in new funding tools announced by the PBOC last month to bolster the stock market. The package also includes a 300 billion yuan relending programme to finance stock buy-backs and stake increases by listed companies and major shareholders.

Investors will closely scrutinise a press conference by Finance Minister Lan Foan on Saturday. Hopes are high that Lan will announce or offer clues on the much-heralded fiscal stimulus after top leaders signalled an all-out pivot to prop up economic growth.

“The steep dip in Chinese equities could present a more tempting entry point for investors, banking on the hope that Beijing will eventually roll out a fiscal lifeline,” said Stephen Innes, managing director at SPI Asset Management in Bangkok.

Chinese and Hong Kong markets have emerged as the best performers among the world’s major benchmarks over the past month, with the key equity gauges rising at least 20 per cent in the span and turnovers jumping to record highs. For the bull run to sustain, Beijing will need to deliver on no less than 3 trillion yuan in fiscal packages to revive economic growth, according to Daiwa Securities.

As part of the fiscal stimulus, China’s legislative body will probably approve the issuance of 2 trillion yuan of government bonds later this month, said Lu Ting, chief China economist at Nomura Holdings.

The stock markets will remain volatile until more fiscal policies and measures to support the property market are implemented, which will make re-rating of stocks more sustainable, according to HSBC Jintrust Fund Management.

All but five stocks on the 82-member Hang Seng Index rose. Ping An Insurance Group surged 5.9 per cent to HK$51 and China Life Insurance advanced 4.7 per cent to HK$16.46 on optimism they will be eligible to participate in the swap facility. Alibaba Group Holding rallied 2.8 per cent to HK$105.80 and Tencent Holdings advanced 1.1 per cent to HK$438.80.

On the mainland, both Guotai Junan Securities and Haitong Securities jumped by the 10 per cent daily limit in Shanghai after the two brokerages unveiled detailed merger plans. The stocks resumed trading after being suspended since September 5.

Other major Asian markets trader higher after US stocks rose to new highs overnight. Japan’s Nikkei 225 edged up 0.3 per cent, while South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.2 per cent and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.4 per cent.

Business

Fuel may hit N2000/litre. Subsidize crude feedstock now – TUC tells FG

Published

1 month ago

April 10, 2026

Ekwutos Blog

The Trade Union of Nigeria, TUC, has raised the alarm that the price of Premium Motor Spirit aka Petrol may climb to about N2,000 per litre if urgent measures are not taken to cushion the impact of rising global crude prices and the depreciating naira.

Speaking to newsmen on Thursday, April 9, the president of the TUC, Festus Osifo, called on the Federal Government to immediately deploy 60 percent of excess crude oil revenue above the 2026 budget benchmark to subsidise crude feedstock supplies to the Dangote Refinery and other modular refineries, a move it says will slash pump prices of petrol, diesel, and jet fuel within two weeks

“Today, comrades, we are seeing that the cost of petrol is edging towards N2,000 per litre depending on the part of the country that you are. Nigerian workers are already passing through excruciating pain as we speak.

The same way it is affecting transportation, it is also affecting manufacturing. The cost of diesel has also gone northward, meaning that the cost of production has increased. When production costs rise, the final price of goods on the shelves will also skyrocket.

If this continues unchecked, the inflation that we are currently celebrating as going downwards will reverse and start moving up again,” he stated.

Osifo outlined the proposal as an urgent intervention to cushion Nigerian workers from excruciating pain caused by petrol prices edging towards ₦2,000 per litre in some parts of the country

Business

Fuel price hike: Gov Makinde announces N10,000 transport support for workers

Published

2 months ago

March 23, 2026

Ekwutos Blog

The governor of Oyo state, Seyi Makinde, has approved a N10,000 transportation allowance as a palliative for the state workforce to cushion the effects of the increase in the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit, otherwise known as petrol.

The Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Oyo State chapter, Kayode Martins, in a statement released on Monday, March 23, disclosed that the governor has granted the request of the union on the issue of transportation allowance.

The statement read

“Following the intervention and formal request made by the State Council of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) earlier this morning, the state government has approved a N10,000 transportation allowance for all workers in the state.

The newly approved allowance is set to take effect from April 2026, providing much-needed relief to workers grappling with rising transportation costs amid current economic challenges.

This development comes as a direct response to sustained advocacy by the state NLC, aimed at cushioning the impact of increased living expenses on the workforce.

Further details on implementation are expected to be communicated by the relevant government authorities in due course.”

Business

CBN Releases New Age Limit, Guidelines On BVN Operation.

Published

2 months ago

March 13, 2026

Ekwutos Blog

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has declared that banks and financial institutions must establish and maintain a temporary watch-list for Bank Verification Numbers (BVN) implicated in suspected fraudulent transactions.

According to the CBN in a circular dated March 12, 2026 and signed by its Director of Payments System Policy Department, Musa I. Jimoh, the apex bank said such a suspected BVN may remain on the temporary watchlist for a maximum period of twenty-four (24) hours during which the owner would be contacted to make clarifications.

The circular explained that the move is part of several new measures under a revised regulatory framework aimed at enhancing financial system stability.

“A BVN may remain on this temporary Watchlist for a maximum period of twenty-four (24) hours, during this period, the BVN owner shall be contacted to provide clarification regarding the identified transaction(s),” the circular stated.

The circular also sets an age requirement for BVN enrolment, restricting registration to individuals who have attained eighteen (18) years and above.

The CBN also added that amendments to phone numbers linked to a BVN shall be allowed only once.

“Amendments to phone numbers linked to a BVN shall be allowed only once,” the circular noted.

The apex bank stated that access to BVN databases will remain tightly controlled.

“Access to the BVN databases shall be exclusively granted to Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) licensed financial institutions.

“Notwithstanding this provision, the Central Bank of Nigeria (the Bank) reserves the right to approve access to the BVN databases in extenuating circumstances and in accordance with the provisions of extant laws,” the circular said.

Financial institutions are expected to comply with the new requirements, and customers may be contacted by their banks if their BVNs are temporarily flagged during the new fraud monitoring process.

The new policy, as stated by the CBN, takes effect from May 1, 2026.