Economy

Akeredolu Proposes Port Ondo to Solve Apapa Gridlock

Published

3 years ago

28/09/2021

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

To solve the perennial Apapa gridlock in Lagos, the federal government can consider establishing a deep seaport in Ondo State, the governor of the state, Mr Rotimi Akeredolu, has suggested.

Speaking on Tuesday at the South-West Export Enlightenment and Engagement Forum held at the International Culture and Event Centre, Igbatoro Road, Akure, the state capital, he said the state was strategically positioned to allow the easy movement of goods to the Southeast, South-south, North-west and North-central regions of the country.

According to him, investors have already shown interest in developing the port, saying the state has the deepest draught in West Africa.

“Everything going to southeast or South-South and the North pass through Ondo State; all these activities will make us advise the federal government on the importance of Port Ondo,” Mr Akeredolu said at the event themed Maximizing Export Potentials In The South-West Region For Economic Growth.

“Apapa will be decongested. We can boast of the deepest draught in West Africa. We are ready and we have done our work and people have shown interest. It is a pity we have to go through a lot of protocols including the port declaration,” the Governor said.

Mr Akeredolu, who also highlighted his administration’s efforts on agriculture development, disclosed that Governors in the Southwest are steadily working together on the sector through the Southwest Agric Company (SWAgCo).

According to him, SWAgCo is a registered company under the Oodua conglomerate which was created for effective exploration of agricultural resources in the region.

He said the Akure airport, which was originally designed as a cargo airport, should be given due attention so that it can serve its purpose.

“The airport in Akure is very busy now but it is not serving the purpose for which it was established. The Akure airport was established as a cargo airport. We have said it should have a refrigerated area where people can refrigerate their goods before exporting them,” he said.

While speaking on the efforts of his administration in improving cocoa production, the Governor said, “In Ondo State, we have had some transformation since we got in. Ondo is the leading exporter of cocoa in Nigeria. It is an unfortunate development that we are not the leading producer in West Africa.

“When we came in, we knew there must be a transition. I see agriculture as a business. When we came in, I met experts who spoke to us. They made a case for Agricpreneurs. That led us to Youth on the Ridges. We have trained about 5000 youth. That was our approach to it.

“Today, we try to unlock the agricultural sector by creating a conducive environment. In creating it, we are a One-Stop-Shop. We have the Ondo State Development and Investment Promotion Agency (ONDIPA) here, when you need land they must look for it.

“Today, we are not seriously exporting cassava but we need to do that. Many countries are in dire need of cassava. We have the cassava to the ethanol plant. We have gone into partnership with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). Another cassava-to-ethanol company is coming up in Ose. Cassava for us becomes very important.

“And poultry. We have set up an industry that will be producing powder eggs. The company is almost afoot to produce powder eggs. And on cocoa added value, we have tried to do that. Today, Ondo State can be proud of a chocolate factory.

“We have put a lot of intervention in place to double our cocoa export. We have a single estate approach in Jugbere. We have 10,000 hectares in Jugbere. We should be able to improve to 150,000 metric tons per year from the 80,000 that we currently produce.

“We have started a major revolution in Nigeria here in Ondo State called red gold. It has to do with palm. We must support the zero oil economy,” Governor Akeredolu stated.

Economy

Geo-Fluids, Afriland Properties Lift NASD Bourse by 0.13%

Published

1 day ago

11/01/2025

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The duo of Geo-Fluids Plc and Afriland Properties Plc propelled the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange up 0.13 per cent on Friday, January 10.

Investors gained N1.4 billion during the trading session after the market capitalisation of the bourse ended at N1.053 trillion compared with the previous day’s N1.052 trillion, and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) increased at the close of business by 4.07 points to wrap the session at 3,073.93 points compared with 3,069.86 points recorded at the previous session.

Geo-Fluids added 25 Kobo to its value to close at N4.85 per unit compared with the previous session’s N4.60 per unit, and Afriland Properties Plc gained 24 Kobo to close at N16.25 per share versus Thursday’s closing price of N16.01 per share.

There was a 35.4 per cent fall in the volume of securities traded in the session as investors exchanged 4.3 million units compared to 6.6 million units traded in the preceding session, the value of shares traded yesterday went down by 37.4 per cent to N17.2 million from the N27.5 million recorded a day earlier, and the number of deals decreased by 47.2 per cent to 19 deals from the 36 deals recorded in the preceding day.

FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc remained the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 1.9 million units worth N74.2 million, followed by 11 Plc with 12,963 units valued at N3.2 million, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI )Plc with 10.7 million units sold for N2.1 million.

IGI Plc closed the day as the most active stock by volume (year-to-date) with 10.6 million units sold for N2.1 million, trailed by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with 1.9 million units valued at N74.2 million, and Acorn Petroleum Plc with 1.2 million units worth N1.9 million.

Economy

Naira Depreciates to N1,543/$1 at Official Market

Published

1 day ago

11/01/2025

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Naira witnessed a depreciation on the US Dollar at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Friday, January 10.

According to data from the FMDQ Exchange, the local currency weakened against the greenback yesterday by 0.12 per cent or N1.80 to sell for N1,543.03/$1 compared with the preceding day’s N1,541.23/$1.

The pressure on the domestic currency came as the access granted to the Bureaux de Change (BDC) operators by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to purchase FX from the official market through the Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System (EFEMS) platform prepares to end next week, precisely on January 19.

The CBN had given a 42-day window to the operators to access the platform to help stabilise the Naira in December, and this expires next week.

On Friday, the Nigerian currency tumbled against the Pound Sterling in the official market by N30.78 to sell for N1,889.29/£1 compared with the previous day’s N1,858.51/£1, but gained N5.48 against the Euro to finish at N1,583.81/€1, in contrast to Thursday’s rate of N1,589.29/€1.

As for the parallel market, the Nigerian Naira remained stable against the US Dollar during the trading session at N1,650/$1, according to data obtained by Business Post.

In the cryptocurrency market, it was bearish as the US economy added 256,000 jobs last month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Friday, topping forecasts for 160,000 and up from 212,000 in November (revised from an originally reported 227,000).

However, the readings came after a number of recent economic reports triggered a broad-market pullback across asset classes such as crypto as investors quickly scaled back the idea of a continued series of Federal Reserve rate cuts in 2025.

Cardano (ADA) fell by 3.6 per cent to trade at $0.921, Solana (SOL) slumped by 2.8 per cent to $185.93, Ethereum (ETH) depreciated by 1.4 per cent to $3,233.27, Litecoin (LTC) lost 1.3 per cent to finish at $103.62, Dogecoin (DOGE) shed 0.5 per cent to sell at $0.3315, Bitcoin (BTC), waned by 0.2 per cent to $94,154.43, and Binance Coin (BNB) went south by 0.1 per cent to $693.30.

On the flip side, Ripple (XRP) jumped by 1.5 per cent to settle at $2.34, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) sold flat at $1.00 each.

Economy

Customs Street Crumbles by 0.08% as Profit-Takers Take Charge

Published

1 day ago

11/01/2025

Dipo Olowookere

By Dipo Olowookere

Profit-takers took control of Customs Street on Friday, plunging it by 0.08 per cent at the close of trading activities.

The sell-offs were across all the key sectors of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited on last trading session of the week.

The insurance space went down by 1.53 per cent, the banking index depreciated by 0.41 per cent, the consumer goods sector weakened by 0.16 per cent, and the energy counter slumped by 0.08 per cent, while the industrial goods sector closed flat.

At the close of business, the All-Share Index (ASI) tumbled by 79.68 points to 105,451.06 points from 105,530.74 points and the market capitalisation retreated by N48 billion to N64.303 trillion from N64.351 trillion.

Yesterday, investors traded 1.5 billion shares worth N19.4 billion in 12,877 deals compared with the 489.5 million shares worth N13.1 billion transacted in 13,010 deals in the preceding day, indicating a decline in the number of deals by 1.02 deals and a rise in the trading volume and value by 203.14 per cent and 48.09 per cent, respectively.

Wema Bank was the busiest stock with 976.2 million units valued at N9.8 billion, Tantalizers traded 53.0 million units worth 129.6 million, Universal Insurance sold 34.8 million units for N26.8 million, Access Holdings exchanged 33.9 million units valued at N843.8 million, and Nigerian Breweries traded 27.3 million units worth N873.3 million.

The heaviest loss was suffered by Sunu Assurances with a decline of 9.99 per cent to trade at N7.30, Eunisell shed 9.96 per cent to N17.35, SAHCO crumbled by 9.87 per cent to N30.15, DAAR Communications plunged by 9.28 per cent to 88 Kobo, and Sovereign Trust Insurance went down by 7.04 per cent to N1.32.

On the flip side, C&I Leasing gained 10.00 per cent to close at N4.51, Honeywell Flour appreciated by 9.99 per cent to N10.02, Trans Nationwide Express jumped by 9.89 per cent to N2.00, RT Briscoe rose by 9.83 per cent to N2.57, and Secure Electronic Technology grew by 9.46 per cent to 81 Kobo.

Business Post reports that the bourse ended with 33 price gainers and 25 price losers, indicating a positive market breadth index and strong investor sentiment.