Economy
Electricity Tariff Hike Not Good for Business Environment—MAN
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has described the plans to increase the electricity tariff from July 1 as another bad policy that could threaten businesses in the country.
The association, through its Director General, Mr Segun Ajayi-Kadi, said the real sector was currently uncompetitive due to high energy costs, especially at a time alternative energy sources were also very expensive.
The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) said the electricity tariff hike was in response to the rise of the pump price of premium motor spirit (PMS), the inflation rate at 22.41 per cent, and the devaluation of the Naira from N465/$1 to N750/$1.
Mr Ajayi-Kadir said a 40 per cent tariff increase at this time would engender higher production costs, lower profit margins, manufacturing activities paralysis, and lower revenue remittances to the government, among others.
He stated that the absence of a stable, effective and fairly priced electricity supply in Nigeria had been a long-standing challenge for manufacturers, which compelled them to supplement with alternative energy sources.
Regrettably, he noted that the available alternative energy sources, such as diesel, had become exorbitantly expensive.
The MAN DG said that manufacturers spent at least N144.5 billion on alternative energy in 2022, up from N77.22 billion in 2021, translating to an 87 per cent increase.
He said the fact that the government itself owned N75 billion in unpaid electricity bills was an indication of how burdensome the cost of electricity had become.
“Already, we have power constituting between 28-40 per cent in the cost structure of manufacturing industries.
“You can imagine the impact on manufacturing industries that are energy-intensive such as metal processing, heavy machinery, and chemicals manufacturing.
“A spike in the electricity tariff will erode the profit margin of the manufacturers and reduce their ability to expand operations and create new jobs.
“Manufacturers will ultimately pass on the additional cost to the consumers of their products, and this will increase the cost of the products in the market and complicate the rising inflation rate in the country.
“Also, the sector’s competitiveness will definitely worsen as the high cost of the products will make locally produced items less competitive when compared with imported alternatives,” he told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in an interview in Lagos on Friday.
Mr Ajayi-Kadir advised the federal government and Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to instead ensure improved electricity generation, transmission and distribution to meet the revenue needs of the electricity supply industry stakeholders.
He stressed that government should ensure that at least 90 per cent of electricity consumers were metered to ensure consumption-reflective electricity bill payment.
He also tasked the government to formulate electricity policies that would aid investments in the energy industry to increase generation capacities and usher in large-scale production of electricity.
“There is an urgent need for diversification of energy sources and intensifying infrastructure investment in the power sector.
“As it is today, the manufacturing sector, which is the engine of growth, is still struggling as a result of the inclement production environment in Nigeria.
“The expectation is that government will engage in extensive and intensive consultations with the manufacturers, focus on measures that will salvage the sector and halt the trend of the shutdown of factories, knowing the implications and the multiplier effects on employment and the economy.
“Care should be taken to avoid introducing burdensome measures that will further strangulate the manufacturing sector and the whole economy,” he said.
Recall that the association also kicked against the planned increase of the excise duty for beer and tobacco for the 2023 fiscal year.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Three bellwether stocks weakened the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.31 per cent on Monday, May 18.
This brought the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) by 54.71 points to 4,133.70 points from 4,188.41 points, and shrank the market capitalisation by N32.73 billion to N2.473 trillion from N2.506 trillion.
Yesterday, FrieslandCampina Wamco Plc contracted by N12.45 to sell at N146.55 per share compared with last Friday’s closing price of N159.00 per share, Central Securities and Clearing System (CSCS) Plc declined by N2.34 to N70.00 per unit from N72.34 per unit, and NASD Plc lost 50 Kobo to trade at N34.50 per share versus N35.00 per share.
The trio overpowered the N5.56 gained Newrest Asl Plc. This stock ended the trading session at N61.15 per unit, in contrast to the previous session’s N55.59 per unit.
During the trading day, the volume of securities traded by investors slid by 56.1 per cent to 514,142 units from 1.2 million units, and the value of securities dropped 29.8 per cent to close at N17.4 million versus N29.8 million, while the number of deals jumped 12.5 per cent to 27 deals from 24 deals.
Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 60.8 million units exchanged for N4.1 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.9 million units traded for N1.9 billion.
GNI Plc also ended the day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis 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 transacted for N1.2 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was a horrible day for the Nigerian Naira in the different segments of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Monday, May 15, as its value further weakened against the United States Dollar.
In the black market window, the Naira lost N5 against the Dollar yesterday to sell for N1,390/$1 compared with the previous value of N1,385/$1, but at the GTBank forex counter, it remained unchanged at N1,383/$1.
In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), the Nigerian currency depreciated against the greenback by N2.66 or 0.19 per cent to sell for N1,373.70/$1 compared to last Friday’s rate of N1,371.04/$1.
Equally, it fell against the Pound Sterling in the same market segment by N9.05 to trade at N1,839.66/£1 versus N1,830.61/£1, and lost N5.42 on the Euro to close at N1,600.49/€1 versus N1,595.07/€1.
The performance of the local currency during the session indicates early worries despite all signals pointing to stability, amid improved Dollar sales by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), with steady, higher oil receipts to bolster the nation’s reserves.
Activity at the market showed that turnover rose 57.3 per cent to $76.29 million on Monday from $48.49 million posted on Friday.
Over the weekend, S&P raised Nigeria’s credit ratings for the first time since 2012 and highlighted improved FX market liquidity and $10 billion turnover recorded in April 2026 as one of the major gains of the CBN-led FX reforms.
The agency said the liberalisation of the exchange rate has bolstered access to foreign currency and enabled a market-driven exchange-rate environment while supporting investor and consumer confidence.
Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market was bullish on Monday as investors monitored developments in the Iran conflict and weighed the impact of surging oil prices on inflation and US interest-rate expectations.
Ethereum (ETH) gained 0.7 per cent to trade at $2,134.10, Cardano (ADA) rose by 0.6 per cent to $0.2515, Solana (SOL) expanded by 0.3 per cent to $85.11, Binance Coin (BNB) jumped 0.2 per cent to $643.29, TRON (TRX) increased by 0.03 per cent to $0.3565, and Bitcoin (BTC) advanced by 0.02 per cent to $76,912.12.
On the flip side, Dogecoin (DOGE) slid by 1.5 per cent to $0.1044, and Ripple (XRP) decreased by 0.5 per cent to $1.38, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 apiece.
By Dipo Olowookere
A marginal 0.05 per cent loss was recorded by Customs Street on Monday, as sell-offs by market participants remained.
This was driven by the desire of investors to book profits, having witnessed a significant price appreciation on the stocks in their portfolios.
Yesterday, bargain-hunting in the banking space, which resulted in the sector closing 0.17 per cent higher, could not prevent the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited from going down.
Data showed that the consumer goods segment lost 0.26 per cent, the insurance counter depreciated by 0.20 per cent, the industrial goods index shed 0.09 per cent, and the energy industry retreated by 0.03 per cent.
As a result, the All-Share Index (ASI) eased by 126.09 points to 250,204.83 points from 250,330.92 points, and the market capitalisation contracted by N81 billion to N160.363 trillion from N160.444 trillion.
NCR Nigeria and Zichis declined by 9.99 per cent each to sell for N161.20 and N26.49, respectively, Industrial and Medical Gases shrank by 9.93 per cent to N38.10, Sovereign Trust Insurance depreciated by 9.86 per cent to N2.65, and DAAR Communications slipped by 9.78 per cent to N2.03.
On the flip side, Oando gained 10.00 per cent to finish at N51.70, University Press also rose by 10.00 per cent to N5.50, Deap Capital soared by 9.96 per cent to N5.96, May and Baker expanded by 9.94 per cent to N52.00, and Trans-Nationwide Express grew by 9.92 per cent to N7.76.
Yesterday, 800.5 million equities worth N37.1 billion exchanged hands in 87,096 deals compared with the 1.1 billion equities valued at N44.3 billion traded in 65,744 deals last Friday. This showed that the number of deals went up by 32.48 per cent, while the trading volume and value went down by 27.23 per cent and 16.25 per cent, respectively.
The most active stock on the first trading session of this week was UBA with a turnover of 65.0 million units worth N2.8 billion, Fidelity Bank traded 57.3 million units for N1.3 billion, Access Holdings sold 42.3 million units valued at N1.1 billion, DAAR Communications exchanged 36.7 million units for N81.8 million, and Secure Electronic Technology transacted 36.6 million units worth N33.0 million.
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