Economy
Osinbajo Advocates Market-Driven Approach to Boost FX Flows
By Adedapo Adesanya
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has said that a more market-driven approach would be best for the country’s exchange rate management as it would boost confidence and inwards flows.
Mr Osinbajo made this submission in his presentation at the 3rd Ministerial Performance Review Retreat for Ministers, Permanent Secretaries, and top Government Functionaries at the State House Banquet Hall, Abuja, which started on Monday.
The VP, while giving his presentation, The President Muhammadu Buhari Administration: Reflections on the Journey So Far, said that there must be a synergy between fiscal and monetary policy.
“The failure of that synergy has led to unnecessary drawbacks in our economic performance and planning.
“What imports are eligible for foreign exchange must agree with the fiscal ambitions for manufacturing and industry.
“The second is that our exchange rate management continues to be an issue; the exchange rate of the naira to convertible currencies continues to face significant downward pressure because demand substantially outstrips supply.
“On one hand, we have tried demand management and rationing, which has not really worked because fixing the price while the parallel market reveals a massive arbitrage merely creates the opportunity for massive rents,” Mr Osinbajo said.
He noted hat such demand management and rationing would also compound the backlog of remittances for foreign businesses who wanted to repatriate their legitimate earnings.
According to the vice president, the imperative discussion is how best to manage the situation by finding a mechanism for increasing supply and moderating demand which will be transparent and boost confidence.
“I think a more market-driven approach will be best; some price discovery within the context of a managed float is certainly required.
“Some efforts at controlled price discovery that had been made in the past include the Foreign Exchange Market (FEM), interbank Foreign Exchange Market (IFEM), various iterations of the Dutch Auction System(DAS), Wholesale Dutch Auction System (W-DAS), Retail Dutch Auction System (R-DAS).
“While they may not have been perfect, it would appear as if the rules were clear and there was relative stability.
“When people know how to access foreign exchange competitively, this will boost confidence and inward flows will increase,” he submitted.
The vice president said the focus must be on value addition and productivity in our economy, adding that the ideas were well articulated in the Medium Term Economic Plan 2021-2025–the importance of loosening generalised restrictions on trade.
Mr Osinbajo said that blanket import restrictions dampened economic activity because many items that might be needed in the manufacturing process might be affected with a consequent negative impact on value addition in the economy.
“Importation itself is not the problem; it is what you import and what you do with it; it is a value-added that matters.
“This is how jobs and wealth are created; many countries of the world that manufacture are huge importers, and they import far more than Nigeria.
“Let us take the example of garment manufacturing; Bangladesh, the world’s leading garment manufacturer, does not produce most of the cotton it uses.
“It only grows two per cent of its annual cotton requirement; in 2019, Bangladesh imported $11.8 billion worth of textiles and apparel while it exported $37.94 billion worth of garments in the same year,” he said.
By Dipo Olowookere
It was a windfall for shareholders of Zichis and Japaul on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited last week as the prices of the two stocks expanded by over 60 per cent each.
Business Post reports that on the part of Zichis, it chalked up 60.74 per cent to trade at N17.36, while Japaul appreciated by 60.16 per cent to N4.02.
Further, Infinity Trust Mortgage Bank expanded by 59.09 per cent to N15.75, Fortis Global Insurance rose by 53.85 per cent to 60 Kobo, and Jaiz Bank surged by 32.53 per cent to N11.00.
However, the losers’ group was led by RT Briscoe after it shed 20.78 per cent to close at N13.80, Mecure depleted by 18.99 per cent to N84.25, Tripple G slipped by 18.80 per cent to N5.40, Sovereign Trust Insurance moderated by 17.14 per cent to N2.32, and Ellah Lakes dropped 14.67 per cent to end at N12.80.
In the week, 71 equities appreciated, lower than 79 equities in the previous week, as 41 stocks depreciated versus 27 stocks in the preceding week, and 36 shares closed flat versus 42 shares of the previous week.
A look at the performance of the bourse showed that the All-Share Index (ASI) and the market capitalisation appreciated week-on-week by 6.95 per cent to 194,989.77 points and N125.164 trillion, respectively.
In the same vein, all other indices finished higher apart from the Growth index, which fell by 15.06 per cent, while the sovereign bond index closed flat.
As for the trading data, 7.662 billion shares worth N252.566 billion were exchanged in 345,118 deals, in contrast to the 4.652 billion shares valued at N193.326 billion traded in 286,751 deals a week earlier.
Financial stocks dominated the activity chart with 5.625 billion units sold for N113.599 billion in 129,729 deals, contributing 73.41 per cent and 44.98 per cent to the total trading volume and value apiece.
Services equities exchanged 493.131 million units worth N5.866 billion in 30,396 deals, and energy shares transacted 425.657 million units valued at N35.742 billion in 23,136 deals.
FCMB Group, Access Holdings, and Zenith Bank accounted for 3.594 billion shares worth N69.147 billion in 33,802 deals, contributing 46.90 per cent and 27.38 per cent to the total trading volume and value, respectively.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Investment Authority (NSIA) and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) have finalised agreements to launch a $50 Sovereignmillion impact innovation fund aimed at strengthening the Nigerian start-up ecosystem.
The fund is expected to provide patient capital to pre-seed, seed, and early-stage startups addressing critical social challenges in sectors such as agriculture, healthcare, education, energy, waste and water management.
JICA will provide $14 million in grant support, while NSIA contributes up to $20 million to match the grant.
Structured as an onshore public fund, the initiative combines financial support with technical assistance to help startups refine products, scale operations, and expand into new markets.
The fund is expected to create jobs, improve livelihoods, and contribute to sustainable economic development across Nigeria.
Speaking at the agreement signing ceremony between NSIA and JICA at the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Mr Aminu Umar-Sadiq, the chief executive of NSIA, said: “The Fund represents a transformative step for Nigeria’s startup ecosystem. By providing early-stage ventures in high-impact sectors with the capital and support they need to grow, we are enabling innovators to tackle some of Nigeria’s most pressing challenges. Our collaboration with JICA underscores our commitment to entrepreneurship, inclusive growth, and sustainable development.”
Preparations are underway to operationalise the Fund and develop a pipeline of high-impact startups ready for investment. NSIA remains committed to advancing socio-economic development through strategic partnerships that scale impact, expand innovative solutions, and unlock access to capital.
On his part, the Japanese Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Suzuki Hideo, said, “The Government of Japan hopes this new project will take root in Nigeria and bear fruit swiftly.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
Seven price gainers flipped recent declines at the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange, raising the alternative stock market by 2.19 per cent on Friday.
According to data, the market capitalisation added N51.24 billion to end N2.389 trillion compared with the previous day’s N2.338 trillion, while the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) climbed 85.65 points to close at 3,994.32 points, in contrast to the 3,908.67 points it ended a day earlier.
Business Post reports that the advancers were led by MRS Oil Plc, which improved its value by N13.00 to N200.00 per share from N187.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc gained N7.40 to settle at N91.55 per unit versus the previous day’s N84.15 per unit, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc appreciated by N6.08 to N71.00 per share from N64.92 per share, Afriland Properties Plc added 66 Kobo to finish at N17.17 per unit versus N16.51 per unit, IPWA Plc rose 37 Kobo to N4.15 per share from N3.78 per share, First Trust Mortgage Bank Plc grew by 11 Kobo to N1.20 per unit from N1.09 per unit, and Food Concepts Plc went up by 10obo to N3.70 per share from N3.60 per share.
On the flip side, there were two price losers led by Geo-Fluids Plc, which depreciated by 28 Kobo to N3.32 per unit from N3.60 per unit, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc dropped 5 Kobo to sell at 45 Kobo per share from 50 Kobo per share.
Yesterday, the volume of trades went down by 92.0 per cent to 3.7 million units from 45.8 million units, the value of transactions fell by 59.4 per cent to N84.5 million from N208.2 million, while the number of deals went up by 7.7 per cent to 42 deals from 39 deals.
CSCS Plc remained the most traded stock by value (year-to-date) with 32.6 million units exchanged for N1.9 billion, trailed by Geo-Fluids Plc with 119.6 million units valued at N470.3 million, and Resourcery Plc with 1.05 billion units traded at N408.6 million.
Resourcery Plc closed the day as the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 1.05 billion units sold for N408.7 million, followed by Geo-Fluids Plc with 119.6 million units worth N470.3 million, and CSCS Plc with 32.6 million units worth N1.9 billion.
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