Economy
Customs Agents Allege Arbitrary Increase in Haulage Fare at Onne Port
By Bon Peters
There has been palpable tension at Onne Port in Rivers State over what the Association of Nigeria Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Eastern Zone, described as an alleged arbitrary increase in haulage fare by the transport unions, maritime flat and cargo and freight forwarding transport, in connivance with the Nigeria Shippers Council (NSC).
Our correspondent reports that trouble started last week following an arbitrary increase in transport fare at Onne to about 200 per cent, according to ANLCA.
In an exclusive interview with our correspondent on the sidelines of an emergency meeting at Onne, Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, the Zonal coordinator of ANLCA Eastern Zone, Mr Joshua Ahuama, said, “The recent attempt by the truckers’ association to increase transport rate by more than 200 per cent is mostly unjust, unwarranted and inhibitive to trade. Hence, the freight forwarders’ leadership’s interface with the NSC.”
Mr Ahuama regretted that after all valid arguments have been made on the matter, the South-South Zonal Director of NSC, Mr Glory Onojedo, felt compelled, and put a call across to the truckers’ association, directing them to suspend the implementation of the new rate, pending the conclusion of all necessary deliberations on the matter.
He said his association was piqued at the behaviour of the transport unions who, according to him, walked out of a meeting among ANLCA, NSC and the transport unions chatting solidarity songs, vowing to stand on their mandate.
Mr Ahuama insisted that the freight forwarders’ leadership requested that the council to put its instruction and directive to the truckers in writing to allow for concrete evidence and ease of reference.
According to him, the truckers’ union have refused to revert to the old rate but rather had gone ahead to implement the new price regime even to the extent of locking up some trucks that have refused to increase their fares.
He wondered why the increment at this time, when the roads have improved due to the various construction and rehabilitation works going on in the South-South and South East.
Recall that in May 2022, the two transport unions, maritime flat and cargo and freight forwarding transport unions clashed over what those in the Maritime industry described as an unwarranted and astronomical increase in transport fare of containers from the port to their destinations and who controls the park.
The development resulted in a free-for-all and damage beyond repair of two vehicles, a Toyota Sienna car and a Mitsubishi bus, belonging to the two unions, including their office, a 40-foot container which an eyewitness say was lifted with bare hands and turned upside down by the warring factions.
The incident resulted in the loss of billions of naira to the federal government and maritime business stakeholders until the intervention of the Nigerian Shippers council and other relevant authorities.
But in this case, the freight forwarders said they perceived an alleged unholy union between the transporters, the and the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) to extort the freight forwarders and the shipping companies.
“The refusal of the Nigerian Shippers Council to put their directive in writing is strong evidence and indictment against them, and only indicates that they are in cahoots with the truckers to extort agents.
“This is quite disheartening, considering that a council that should model transparency and help in facilitating trade has made itself a cheap tool for manipulation and treachery, for the shameful reason of undue financial benefit,” Mr Ahuama said.
“We are insisting that due process must be followed towards arriving at what’s fair to all concerned. All necessary parties must be consulted and considered. Only then can a fair rate be actualised,” he added, warning that “we are also putting all relevant authorities and interested parties on notice that if the shippers council fails to put their directive in writing, and ensure that status quo remains within a reasonable time, that we the agents are going to engage the services of other transport companies who are not members of their unions, and will resist any attempt of any form from them to prevent other non-union trucks/drivers to load out cargo from the port.”
He also said this group would “prevent them from having access to the port by upholding the position of the law as regards haulage in the port and may withdraw our services if the NPA does not wade in and exercise their authority on this issue.”
According to him, the ripple effects of these will geometrically hike the prices of goods in the market in an already tensed situation in the country.
As at the time of filling this report, every attempt to reach the two transport unions leaders proved abortive as their phone numbers continued to say you are not allowed to call these numbers.
Economy
BNB Price Reflects Changing Dynamics in the Digital Asset Market
Economy
NASD Unlisted Security Index Crosses 4,000-point Benchmark Again
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange achieved a milestone on Friday, April 24, 2026, after five securities on the platform helped with a 1.85 per cent growth.
Data showed that the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) again crossed the 4,000-point benchmark yesterday.
The index chalked up 73.64 points during the trading day to close at 4,052.59 points compared with the preceding session’s 3,978.95 points, while the market capitalisation added N5.38 billion to finish at N2.424 trillion versus Thursday’s closing value of N2.380 trillion.
The price gainers were led by Okitipupa Plc, which grew by N25.00 to sell at N305.00 per share compared with the previous price of N280.00 per share. Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc gained N6.92 to close at N76.26 per unit versus N69.34 per unit, Afriland Properties Plc appreciated by N1.00 to N17.00 per share from N18.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc improved by 55 Kobo to N99.55 per unit from N99.00 per unit, and Food Concepts Plc increased by 5 Kobo to N2.70 per share from N2.65 per share.
However, there was a price loser, MRS Oil, which dipped by N21.75 to N195.75 per unit from N217.50 per unit.
During the final session of the week, the value of securities jumped 75.2 per cent to N41.3 million from N23.6 million units, and the number of deals expanded by 62.9 per cent to 44 deals from 27 deals, while the volume of securities declined marginally by 0.9 per cent to 447,403 units from 451,522 units.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc was the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, trailed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units traded for N1.2 billion.
GNI was also the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 59.6 million units transacted for N4.0 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.8 million units exchanged for N1.9 billion.
Economy
Naira Slips to N1,358/$1 as FX Reserves, Policy Uncertainty Concerns
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was not a good day for the Nigerian Naira in the currency market on Friday, April 24, as its value depreciated against the major foreign currencies at the close of transactions.
In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), it lost N4.53 or 0.33 per cent against the United States Dollar yesterday to trade at N1,358.44/$1, in contrast to the N1,353.91/$1 it was exchanged on Thursday.
Equally, the domestic currency slipped against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the session by N8.14 to close at N1,834.02/£1, compared with the previous rate of N1,825.88/£1 and dropped N8.01 against the Euro to sell at N1,590.73/€1 versus N1,582.72/€1.
Also, the Naira depreciated against the US Dollar at the GTBank FX desk on Friday by N4 to quote at N1,370/$1 compared with the previous session’s N1,366/$1, and at the parallel market, it depleted by N5 to settle at N1,380/$1 versus the preceding day’s N1,375/$1.
Data published by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) indicated that NFEM interbank turnover surged to N43.562 million across 68 deals, up from N28.117 million the previous day.
Despite the CBN’s reassurance that the recent drop in external reserves is not worrisome, the market remains unsettled by persistent concerns over liquidity constraints, policy transparency, and weakening confidence in Nigeria’s FX market as gross reserves continue to decline to $48.4 billion.
The outlook for the Dollar appears supported by broader macro risks, including elevated oil prices tied to the tanker traffic disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and a continued US-Iran standoff over ceasefire negotiations.
A look at the digital currency market showed that investors are sitting on the edge as the US Dollar rebounded amid geopolitical and inflation risks despite continued inflows into US spot bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).
Solana (SOL) rose by 1.2 per cent to sell $86.45, Cardano (ADA) appreciated by 1.1 per cent to $0.2517, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 0.9 per cent to $0.0989, Ripple (XRP) improved by 0.3 per cent to $1.43, Ethereum (ETH) soared by 0.2 per cent to $2,316.83, and Binance Coin (BNB) chalked up 0.1 per cent to sell for $637.44.
However, TRON (TRX) depreciated by 1.3 per cent to $0.3235, and Bitcoin (BTC) lost 0.2 per cent to close at $77,562.27, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
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