Economy
Rice Farmers now Millionaires in Nigeria—Buhari
By Dipo Olowookere
President Muhammadu Buhari has disclosed that success of the agriculture revolution under his administration has turned thousands of rice farmers into millionaires and drastically reduced rice import.
He also said the Anchors Borrowers’ Programme (ABP) launched by his government has made a huge success because according to him, about 12.2 million farmers have joined the rice and wheat revolution while the country is moving closer to self-sufficiency in major grains.
Speaking at the 25th Edition of the Nigeria Media Merit Award (NMMA) Ceremony in Lagos last Wednesday, Mr Buhari noted that, ”Apart from the successes we have achieved in tackling insecurity and fighting corruption, perhaps our most remarkable progress has been in the area of agriculture. Quietly but steadily, our agriculture revolution is bearing fruits.
The President, who was represented by the Minister of Information and Culture, Mr Lai Mohammed, further said, ”According to the Rice Exporters of Thailand, rice imports from Thailand fell from 644,131 tons in Sept 2015 to 20,000 tons in Sept. 2017, representing a 95% drop.”
He emphasised that self-sufficiency in rice was so important because it is the most widely consumed staple in Nigeria, and also because Nigeria’s daily expenditure on rice for over three decades stood at $5 million a day.
He said Nigeria was also doing well in Millet, Sorghum and Maize cultivation, adding that, “We are now the second largest producer of sorghum after the US, the third in millet after India and our breweries are now enjoying local sourcing of those commodities.
“For maize, we are producing 10 million tons while we need about 13 million tons for both human and animal nutrition.”
The President said Nigeria leads the world in the yam and cassava production and that efforts were being made to restore and improve on the country’s ranking in cocoa production, where it has fallen from 2nd to 7th position.
“We are also investing in a new line of tree crops targeting local and foreign end users and certain to earn foreign exchange.
“These are shea butter, palm trees, coconut, mangoes, bananas and plantains, kenaf and sisal hemp, castor and pineapple, among others.
“Overall, our ambition is that agriculture should rise from 25% to 40% of GDP so that we can banish poverty and overcome our economic anxiety,” he said.
President Buhari hailed the NMMA, which he called the preeminent media excellence award, and said the Nigeria media has done well over the years hence it deserves to be celebrated.
He, however, urged the media not to allow those who brought Nigeria to a sorry pass to muddle the waters by creating their own narrative which is far from reality
“This is important because there seems to be a feeling of numbness among the citizens about the conduct of those whose actions brought us here.
“Suddenly, these same people are engaging in revisionist history and blaming those who are working themselves to the bone to correct the misdeeds of the past. They are blaming everyone but themselves for the mess they threw the country into,” the President said.
He said those who mismanaged the country have shown no contrition, no apologies, no shame, but instead have engaged in sheer bravado, unbridled arrogance and revisionism, saying “The media owes it a duty not to allow Nigerians to forget, to say ‘Never Again’ to those who view Nigeria as nothing but a cash cow to be milked to death.”
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Those interested in buying or selling the shares of Aluminium Extrusion Plc on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited will not be able to do so for now.
This is because trading activities on the company’s securities on the Nigerian bourse have been suspended by the NGX Regulation Limited.
The reason for this is that the organisation has failed to submit its financial statements as required by the listing rules for the perusal of the investing community.
After being given grace periods to file the results, the board of the firm has not done the needful, necessitating the wielding of the stick on the entity.
A notice from Customs Street disclosed that the suspension became effective last Wednesday. It will be lifted when the financial results are submitted.
“In accordance with the default filing rules, the suspension of trading in the shares of the company shall be lifted upon the submission of the relevant financial statements,” a part of the notice said.
Business Post reports that Aluminium Extrusion has not filed its financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2025, more than three months after it was required to submit its financial performance for the last fiscal year.
“Trading license holders and the investing public are hereby notified that pursuant to Rule 3.1, Rules for Filing of Accounts and Treatment of Default Filing, (Default Filing Rules), which provides that if an issuer fails to file the relevant accounts by the expiration of the cure period1, the exchange will: a) send to the issuer a second filing deficiency notification within two business days after the end of the cure period; b) suspend trading in the issuer’s securities; and c) notify the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the market within 24 hours of the suspension.
“Trading in the shares of Aluminium Extrusion Plc has been suspended from the facilities of Nigerian Exchange Limited effective Wednesday, July 22, 2026, for not filing its Audited Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2025,” the disclosure stated.
Shares of Aluminium Extrusion last traded on the domestic stock exchange at N9.90 per unit.
By Dipo Olowookere
Last week on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited, 57 equities appreciated, higher than 44 equities in the previous week, while 38 equities shed weight versus 35 equities in the preceding week, with 51 equities closing flat versus the 67 equities recorded a week earlier.
UPDC REIT chalked up 33.33 per cent to trade at N14.20, First Holdco gained 25.59 per cent to finish at N120.50, Unilever Nigeria rose by 19.31 per cent to N147.95, Cadbury Nigeria improved by 18.42 per cent to N67.50, and AXA Mansard expanded by 17.86 per cent to N13.20.
On the flip side, Mecure lost 26.97 per cent to N62.40, Royal Exchange shrank by 12.84 per cent to N1.29, Tripple Gee slumped by 12.34 per cent to N3.41, SUNU Assurances crumbled by 10.00 per cent to N3.60, and BUA Foods dropped 10.00 per cent to close at N845.10.
In the week, the All-Share Index (ASI) went up 1.60 per cent to 247,357.40 points, and the market capitalisation appreciated by 1.61 per cent to N159.588 trillion.
Similarly, all other indices finished higher with the exception of the consumer goods, Lotus II, growth, sovereign bond and commodity indices, which fell by 3.76 per cent, 1.55 per cent, 20.24 per cent, 0.14 per cent, and 1.25 per cent respectively.
As for the trading data, 4.433 billion shares worth N306.143 billion in 255,589 deals were transacted in five days versus the 2.819 billion shares valued at N182.499 billion traded in 226,729 deals in the previous week.
The financial services segment led the activity chart with 3.422 billion shares valued at N207.206 billion traded in 117,545 deals, contributing 77.18 per cent and 67.68 per cent to the total trading volume and value, respectively.
The consumer goods sector traded 201.978 million shares worth N17.171 billion in 28,666 deals, and the ICT industry posted a turnover of 169.481 million shares worth N21.194 billion in 23,107 deals.
First Holdco, Access Holdings, and GTCO accounted for 2.151 billion shares worth N170.793 billion in 44,768 deals, contributing 48.51 per cent and 55.79 per cent to the total trading volume and value, respectively.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigeria’s crude oil exports to the United States rebounded strongly in May as shipments rose by nearly 150 per cent month-on-month as American refiners increased purchases of overseas crude.
Latest data from the US Census Bureau showed that crude imports from Nigeria climbed to 2.36 million barrels in May, compared with 946,000 barrels recorded in April.
This indicated renewed demand for Nigeria’s premium light sweet grades amid shifting global patterns and higher international oil prices as the Middle East disruption weighed on trade.
The value of the imports also rose sharply to $279.8 million, up from $85.2 million in the previous month, reflecting both the higher volume of purchases and stronger crude oil prices during the period.
The rebound coincided with a broader increase in crude oil imports by the US.
According to the latest US International Trade in Goods and Services Report, total US crude imports increased by $1.5 billion in May, making crude oil one of the largest contributors to the $12.3 billion rise in overall goods imports during the month.
The report also showed that imports of industrial supplies and materials increased by $3.1 billion, with crude oil accounting for nearly half of the increase.
The recovery marks a significant turnaround after two consecutive months of declining Nigerian crude shipments to the US market. Export volumes had fallen from 4.64 million barrels in February to 1.54 million barrels in March, before dropping further to 946,000 barrels in April.
Despite the fluctuations, cumulative exports between January and May 2026 reached 11.15 million barrels, valued at approximately $926.6 million, reaffirming Nigeria’s strategic position as a key supplier of premium low-sulphur crude grades to the world’s largest economy.
Concerns surrounding crude shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s busiest oil transit routes, are encouraging refiners to increase purchases from Atlantic Basin producers such as Nigeria, whose crude grades offer lower geopolitical shipping risks than some Middle Eastern supplies.
Nigeria’s flagship crude grades, including Bonny Light, Qua Iboe and Escravos, remain highly sought after by US Gulf Coast refiners because of their low sulphur content and high yields of premium petroleum products such as petrol, diesel and aviation fuel.
Although the US has emerged as one of the world’s largest crude oil producers following the shale revolution, many American refineries continue to import light sweet crude to complement domestic production and optimise refining operations.
The rebound in exports also comes as Nigeria gradually restores crude production following improved security operations in the Niger Delta and intensified efforts by government agencies and operators to curb crude oil theft, pipeline vandalism and illegal refining.
