Economy

Presidency Reacts to 6.1% Shrinking of Economy in Q2 2020

Published

6 years ago

26/08/2020

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

The presidency has reacted to the 6.10 per cent decline in the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the second quarter of 2020 as released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Monday.

In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, the presidency said the shrinking of Nigeria’s economy in the period under review was expected.

However, Mr Adesina said when compared with GDPs of advanced countries around the globe, Nigeria did not do badly.

“It also appears muted compared to the outcomes in several other countries, including large economies such as the US (-33 per cent), UK (-20 per cent), France (-14 per cent), Germany (-10 per cent), Italy (-12.4 per cent), Canada (-12.0 per cent), Israel (-29 per cent), Japan (-8 per cent), South Africa (projection -20 per cent to -50 per cent), with the notable exception of only China (+3 per cent),” the statement said.

On Monday, the stats office released the figures showing the economic growth of the country between April and June and from the numbers, there was a contraction of 6.10 per cent (year-on-year) in real terms, ending the 3-year trend of low real growth rates since the 2016/17 recession.

Consequently, for the first half of 2020, real GDP declined by 2.18 per cent year-on-year compared with 2.11 per cent recorded in the first half of 2019.

In the statement, the presidency said things could have been worse if not for the proactive measures put in place by the government when key economic states of the federation were placed on lockdown because of COVID-19.

In almost half of the second quarter, there the federal government totally locked down Lagos, Abuja and Ogun State to control the spread of coronavirus.

According to Mr Adesina, the anticipation of the impending economic slowdown made the government of President Muhammadu Buhari to introduce “various initiatives” to cushion the economic and social effects of the pandemic, through the Economic Sustainability Programme (ESP), contributed immensely to dampening the severity of the pandemic on growth.

According to him, a robust financing mechanism was designed to raise revenue to support humanitarian assistance, in addition to special intervention funds for the health sector.

“Adjustments to the national budget as well as emergency financing from concessional lending windows of development finance institutions were critical in supporting governments’ capacity to meet its obligations,” he said.

Also, Mr Adesina said the monetary authorities came up with “moratorium on loans, credit support to households and industries, regulatory forbearance and targeted lending and guarantee programs through NIRSAL were some of the measures implemented in response to the pandemic during the second quarter.”

He said since the start of the third quarter, the phased approach to easing the restrictions being implemented centrally and across states have resulted in a gradual return of economic activity, including the possibility of international travel.

“It is anticipated that while the third and fourth quarters will reflect continued effects of the slowdown, the fiscal and monetary policy initiatives being deployed by government in a phased process will be a robust response to the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said.

“Furthermore, as the country begins the gradual loosening up of restrictions, and levels of commercial activity increase by people returning to their various livelihoods and payrolls expand, it still remains imperative that all the necessary public health safeguards are adhered to so the country avoids an emergence of a second wave,” he concluded.

Economy

CSCS Sinks NASD OTC Exchange by 1.13%

Published

49 minutes ago

30/04/2026

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc weakened the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.13 per cent on Wednesday, April 29, after its share price shrank by N5.06 to N71.99 per unit from N77.05 per unit.

As a result, the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) went below the 4,000 mark after it lost 45.73 points to 3,999.23 points from 4,044.96 points. The market capitalisation declined by N27.36 billion during the session to N2.392 trillion from N2.420 trillion.

Midweek trading data showed that the volume of transactions slid by 76.2 per cent to 308,698 units from 1.3 million units, and the value of trades decreased by 7.1 per cent to N25.2 million from N27.1 million units, while the number of deals rose by 3.7 per cent to 28 deals from 27 deals.

At the close of business, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with the sale of 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 59.9 million units exchanged for N4.1 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.8 million units traded for N1.9 billion.

GNI Plc also finished as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with a turnover of 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, trailed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units transacted for N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units sold for N1.2 billion.

Economy

Naira Strengthens to N1,379/$1 at NAFEX as FX Demand Pressure Eases

Published

1 hour ago

30/04/2026

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Naira was able to tame the pressure building at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Wednesday, April 29, after it gained N1.25 or 0.1 per cent against the United States Dollar to close at N1,379.46/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,380.71/$1.

Also, the outcome was the same against the Pound Sterling in the same window, as it added N2.18 to trade at N1,861.58/£1 versus Tuesday’s closing rate of N1,863.76/£1, and against the Euro, it appreciated by N2.14 to settle at N1,612.87/€1 versus N1,615.01/€1.

However, the Naira depreciated further against the Dollar at the GTBank forex counter by N10 to quote at N1,389/$1 compared with the preceding session’s N1,379/$1, and at the parallel market, it maintained stability yesterday at N1,390/$1.

The improvement witnessed across official market points to NFEM interbank turnover increasing sharply on Wednesday, with data released by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showing $249.905 million in transactions among institutions across 180 deals.

This indicates improved market liquidity and greater market confidence, leading to tighter bid-ask spreads across all foreign exchange deals.

Market analysts noted that improved liquidity and growing investor confidence now allow the market to function more independently.

Meanwhile, in the cryptocurrency market, Bitcoin (BTC) and major benchmarked cryptocurrencies fell as Brent crude surged to a four-year intraday high on renewed fears of US military escalation against Iran.

The jump in oil prices reflects a growing war premium tied to the effective shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz and expectations that hypersonic US weapons could be deployed in the region.

Analysts say BTC is unlikely to break above $80,000 unless Middle East tensions ease. Its value shrank by 1.5 per cent to $75,931.00.

In addition, Ethereum (ETH) slipped by 3.2 per cent to $2,254.51, Solana (SOL) depreciated by 1.9 per cent to $83.11, Ripple (XRP) lost 1.6 per cent to sell at $1.37, Binance Coin (BNB) dipped by 1.5 per cent to $616.58, and Cardano (ADA) dropped by 1.4 per cent to $0.2463.

But Dogecoin (DOGE) rose by 1.9 per cent to $0.1062 and TRON (TRX) appreciated by 0.5 per cent to $0.3242, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) were unchanged at $1.00 each.

Economy

Value of Nigerian Stocks Soars Above N152trn, as YtD Return Hits 52.53%

Published

2 hours ago

30/04/2026

Dipo Olowookere

By Dipo Olowookere

The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited rallied by 3.77 per cent on Wednesday on the back of sustained bargain-hunting in equities with sound fundamentals.

The growth reported by Nigerian stocks at midweek raised the year-to-date return above 50 per cent, precisely at 52.43 per cent.

According to data, only the insurance sector ended in red after it shed 1.01 per cent at the close of business.

The industrial goods index appreciated by 6.14 per cent, the energy segment grew by 4.54 per cent, the banking counter expanded by 1.92 per cent, and the consumer goods industry rose by 1.01 per cent.

Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) went up by 8,465.40 points to 237,205.59 points from 228,740.19 points, and the market capitalisation increased by N5.450 trillion to N152.728 trillion from N147.278 trillion.

The quartet of UAC Nigeria, Zichis, CAP, and Airtel Africa gained 10.00 per cent each to sell for N165.00, N19.80, N132.00, and N3,021.30, respectively, and Jaiz Bank surged by 9.99 per cent to N8.81.

On the flip side, the duo of John Holt and Cadbury Nigeria lost 10.00 per cent each to trade at N12.60 and N66.15, respectively, as eTranzact shed 9.97 per cent to close at N15.80, Morison Industries slipped by 9.92 per cent to N10.62, and Haldane McCall shrank by 9.74 per cent to N3.43.

The busiest stock for the day was Access Holdings with 281.3 million units worth N7.3 billion, UBA transacted 160.6 million units valued at N7.0 billion, Lasaco Assurance traded 78.6 million units for N153.6 million, Wema Bank sold 65.7 million units worth N2.3 billion, and Morison Industries exchanged 65.0 million units valued at N690.3 million.

At the close of trades, investors bought and sold 1.3 billion equities for N69.1 billion in 83,445 deals versus the 908.0 million units worth N68.2 billion in 72,886 deals on Tuesday.

This showed that the trading volume, value, and number of deals increased yesterday by 43.17 per cent, 1.32 per cent, and 14.49 per cent, respectively.