Economy
AIICO, Zenith Bank, 14 Others Lift NSE Index by 0.03%
By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) was saved from the claws of the bears on Tuesday, bringing a sigh of relief to investors, who had been forced to endure a turbulent time lately.
The market appreciated by 0.03 per cent, thanks to AIICO Insurance, Zenith Bank and 14 other equities.
Zenith Bank on its part contributed chiefly to the growth witnessed yesterday as a result of the release of its 2020 full-year earnings and the declaration of N2.70 final dividend.
This announcement triggered buying pressure and lifted the All-Share Index (ASI) by 10.77 points to 40,164.86 points from 40,154.09 points and pushed the market capitalisation higher by N6 billion to N21.015 trillion from N21.009 trillion.
At the close of transactions, the volume of shares rose by 16.80 per cent to 338.0 million units from 289.3 million units, while the value of traded equities increased by 7.59 per cent to N3.9 billion from N3.6 billion, with the number of deals rising by 5.63 per cent to 5,232 deals from 4,953 deals.
For another trading day, FBN Holdings was the most active stock with the sale of 64.6 million units valued at N471.8 million, while Zenith Bank traded 52.7 million units worth N1.3 billion.
Transcorp exchanged 42.0 million equities for N38.1 million, United Capital transacted 21.0 million stocks valued at N128.2 million, while UBA traded 18.2 million shares for N153.2 million.
During the session, AIICO Insurance and Livestock Feeds topped the gainers’ table with a price appreciation of 7.14 per cent each to finish at N1.20 per unit and N2.25 per share respectively.
Flour Mills improved by 6.16 per cent to close at N31 per unit, Zenith Bank gained 4.84 per cent to trade at N26 per share, while Cutix appreciated by 4.65 per cent to sell for N2.25 per unit.
Sitting on top of the losers’ list was Sunu Assurances, which lost 9.88 per cent to settle at 73 kobo per share and was deputised by LASACO Assurances, which declined by 9.87 per cent to trade at N1.37 per unit.
Africa Prudential depreciated by 9.85 per cent to quote at N5.95 per share, ABC Transport lost 8.57 per cent to close at 32 kobo per unit, while University Press depleted by 8.53 per cent to trade at N1.18 per share.
For the sectors, only the banking index closed positive with a 1.68 per cent growth as the consumer goods and insurance sectors lost 1.61 per cent and 0.92 per cent respectively, with the energy and industrial goods counters closing flat.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) is seeking a reduction in import duty exemptions, which rose to N34 trillion, limiting its ability to increase its revenue generation threshold.
The Comptroller-General of the Customs Service, Mr Adewale Adeniyi, disclosed that the value of import duty exemption certificate approvals increased to that level in 2025, describing the policy as one of the major factors restricting its revenue generation.
At an investigative session of the Senate Committee on Finance with revenue-generating agencies in Abuja on Monday, Mr Adeniyi explained that government fiscal policies have continued to impact the revenue-generating capacity of the Customs Service, both positively and negatively.
“The NCS would have generated significantly higher revenue over the years if not for government-approved import duty waivers and other external factors affecting collections,” he said.
He added that the Import Duty Exemption Certificate scheme, introduced in March 2020, accounted for about N34 trillion in approvals in 2025, with nearly 60 per cent covering duty-free importation of military hardware due to Nigeria’s prevailing security challenges.
Other government-backed duty waivers, he noted, covered the importation of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), electric and hybrid vehicles, healthcare equipment and medical supplies, industrial machinery and manufacturing inputs, as well as food import intervention programmes.
While acknowledging the impact of the waivers on Customs revenue, Mr Adeniyi argued that fiscal policy should not be assessed solely on the basis of revenue generation but also on its broader economic and social objectives.
He, however, urged the federal government to establish stronger monitoring mechanisms to ensure beneficiaries of duty waivers deliver the intended economic outcomes, including lower consumer prices, increased local production and improved healthcare access.
The committee also expressed displeasure over the absence of several heads of government agencies invited to the hearing, including the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Industrial Training Fund (ITF), and the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Jabi.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Mr Sani Musa, warned that the affected chief executives must appear at the committee’s next sitting or face severe sanctions under the Senate’s rules.
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By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange rose by 0.40 per cent on Monday, July 13, buoyed by buying interest in 11 Plc, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc and UBN Property Plc, which offset the profit-taking in Food Concepts Plc, the parent company of Chicken Republic.
11 Plc gained N20.69 to end at N227.64 per share compared with last Friday’s price of N206.95 per share, CSCS Plc grew by N1.83 to N91.48 per unit from N89.65 per unit, and UBN Property Plc added 1 Kobo to sell at N1.81 per share versus N1.80 per share.
On the flip side, Food Concepts Plc depreciated by 24 Kobo to close at N2.45 per unit, in contrast to the preceding session’s N2.69 per unit.
As a result, the market capitalisation increased by N9.2 billion to N2.587 trillion from N2.578 trillion, and the NASD Security Index (NSI) improved by 15.33 points to 4,311.67 points from 4,296.34 points.
Yesterday, the volume of securities traded by investors surged by 615.9 per cent to 9.1 million units from the previous 1.3 million units, and the value of securities rose by 997.1 per cent to N320.4 million from the preceding session’s N29.2 million, while the number of deals decreased by 12.5 per cent to 28 deals from last Friday’s 32 deals.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units worth N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 73.9 million units exchanged for N5.2 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units traded for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units transacted for N415.7 million.
