Economy
FG to Accelerate Nigeria’s Emergence as Top 20 Global Economy by 2025
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The federal government has promised to continue to support and implement policies aimed at accelerating the emergence of Nigeria as a top 20 global economy by 2025.
The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, made this known in Abuja on Monday when she received the Revised Nigerian Capital Market Master Plan (2021-2025) from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
She explained that the review of the plan underscores the fact that capital market growth resonates with the current administration’s unwavering commitment to deepening and re-positioning the country’s financial markets as a key anchor to achieving a private sector-led development of the economy as encapsulated in the National Development Plan objectives.
According to her, under her watch, the Ministry has supported the Capital Market Master Plan implementation efforts since inception, adding that the scheme represents the collective aspirations of the capital market community which is focused on driving initiatives geared towards growing and deepening the market, noting that that the initiatives are being implemented with the ultimate goal of accelerating the emergence of Nigeria as a top 20 global economy by the year 2025.
Mrs Ahmed commended the agency and other stakeholders for the laudable accomplishments so far recorded in the implementation journey, especially in the areas of dematerialization of share certificates, e- dividend mandate, facilitation of access to alternative investments like Sukuk and specialized funds, review of CAMA and ongoing review of the ISA, demutualization of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, enhancing the commodities eco-system, design of a National Savings Strategy among others.
“Our capital market is growing and evolving. To sustain this growth and eventually transform it into a world-class capital market, transparency and investor confidence are key.
“Investor confidence will accelerate the growth of our market and increase both domestic and foreign investor participation. To this end, we will continue to support and strengthen the regulator to effectively do its job of regulating and developing the capital market.
“I see the capital market as an important driver of our economic growth objectives and we will continue to support efforts to position our market where it deserves to be – a capital market that will broaden access to economic prosperity by enabling the emergence of financially responsible citizens, accelerate wealth creation and wealth distribution, provide capital to small and medium scale enterprises, and catalyse housing finance.
“As you chart the course for the next phase of the Capital Market Master Plan’s implementation, I assure you of this Administration’s support and look forward to working with you and other stakeholders in the financial market to realize the plan’s outcomes,” she said.
The Director-General of SEC, Mr Lamido Yuguda, said through the implementation of the 10-year Nigeria Capital Market Master Plan (2015 – 2025), the commission and other stakeholders have recorded significant milestones over the years.
He listed some of them to include full dematerialization of certificates, direct cash settlement, recapitalization of CMOs, E-Dividend Mandate Management System, National Savings Strategy to grow domestic risk capital formation, the Roadmap on Enhancing Commodities Trading Ecosystem, Establishment of the West African Securities Regulators Association (WASRA) to encourage the integration of capital markets in West Africa, among others.
The DG stated that the Master Plan document recommends a periodic review of the assumptions, goals and objectives of the Plan to better align it with current realities and innovations in the global financial system.
As part of the review, he said the agency embarked on a comprehensive review of the Plan, driven by PriceWaterHouseCoopers with funding support from Financial Sector Deepening Africa (FSDA).
The main objective of reviewing the Master Plan, he noted, is to produce an updated version of the document primarily to engage stakeholders on the current level of market development and opportunities for further capital growth; review and update the assumptions and vision of the CMMP and develop targets for the various thematic areas of the CMMP.
Other objectives of the review are to introduce a Strategy Map and Key Performance Indicators for the CMMP and use the Balanced Scorecard Approach for performance measurement; align existing and derive new initiatives based on targets and strategic objectives; develop an implementation plan for initiatives with clear milestones, deliverables, timelines, resource requirements, dependencies, and identify challenges, opportunities and risks associated with the CMMP implementation and recommend ways of effective and more efficient implementation.
He said, “The comprehensive review of the Master Plan is now complete and a Revised Capital Market Master Plan has been produced.
“The revised Plan has incorporated the views and aspirations of stakeholders in our market as well as best practices globally to produce a well-articulated strategic plan for the next four years.
“The revised Capital Market Master Plan is designed to chart the strategic position and future direction of the capital markets while providing both the SEC and market participants clarity on the vision of the capital market and the road map required to facilitate a conducive business environment to encourage innovation, investment, growth and expansion of economic and employment opportunities in our country.
“Our vision is to be Africa’s most modern, efficient, and internationally competitive market that catalyses Nigeria’s economic growth and development. We believe the Plan provides a solid roadmap for achieving this vision as we collaborate with all our stakeholders under your continued support and proven leadership.”
By Dipo Olowookere
About 0.04 per cent was recovered on Friday from the loss recorded by the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) the previous due to profit-taking.
Yesterday, investors were in the market with renewed vigour, mopping up stocks trading at relatively cheaper prices.
According to data, the insurance counter gained 0.41 per cent, the banking sector appreciated by 0.38 per cent, and the consumer goods index grew by 0.14 per cent.
The gains achieved by these three sectors were enough to lift Customs Street at the close of business despite the 0.26 per cent decline printed by the industrial goods segment and the 0.14 per cent loss suffered by the energy industry. The commodity counter was flat during the session.
A total of 43 equities gained weight on the last trading day of this week, while 26 equities shed weight, indicating a positive market breadth index and strong investor sentiment.
Red Star Express increased its share price by 10.00 per cent to N13.20, NCR Nigeria grew by 9.97 per cent to N128.55, SCOA Nigeria inflated by 9.96 per cent to N14.90, Omatek appreciated by 9.94 per cent to N1.77, and Deap Capital expanded by 9.85 per cent to N4.46.
On the flip side, McNichols decreased by 8.81 per cent to N6.00, Legend Internet crumbled by 7.56 per cent to N5.50, Cornerstone Insurance crashed by 6.48 per cent to N6.35, C&I Leasing contracted by 6.29 per cent to N8.20, and Austin Laz slipped by 5.78 per cent to N3.75.
Yesterday, 539.9 million shares valued at N16.7 billion were transacted in 48,023 deals versus the 1.0 billion shares worth N31.6 billion executed in 51,227 deals in the preceding day, implying a shrink in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 46.01 per cent, 47.15 per cent, and 6.26 per cent apiece.
Zenith Bank was the most active for the day with 54.6 million stocks sold for N3.8 billion, Jaiz Bank traded 41.5 million units worth N359.4 million, Secure Electronic Technology transacted 37.7 million units valued at N39.2 million, Access Holdings exchanged 30.5 million units for N699.2 million, and Lasaco Assurance transacted 27.2 million units worth N68.3 million.
When the market closed for the day, the All-Share Index (ASI) went up by 72.21 points to 166,129.50 points from 166,057.29 points and the market capitalisation gained N31 billion to N106.354 trillion from N106.323 trillion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was a positive ending for the Naira this week after it further appreciated against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Friday, January 16 by N1.33 or 0.09 per cent to sell for N1,417.95/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,419.28/$1.
The domestic currency also gained N2.41 against the Euro in the official market to close at N1,647.51/€1 versus the preceding session’s closing price of N1,649.92/€1, however, it suffered a N7.97 loss against the Pound Sterling in the same market window to trade at N1,901.32/£1, in contrast to Thursday’s closing price of N1,893.35/£1.
In the same vein, the Nigerian Naira depleted against the Dollar at the GTBank FX counter by N2 to quote at N1,427/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,425/$1, but strengthened against the greenback at the black market yesterday by N5 to settle at N1,485/$1 versus the N1,490/$1 it was exchanged a day earlier.
Improved supply conditions helped keep the market within range as exporters’ and importers’ inflows in addition to non-bank corporate supply enhanced liquidity as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) made no visible intervention.
Stronger external inflows from foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) and improving current account dynamics, continue to align with structural support in the wider economy.
Nigeria has seen projections of a stronger economic or gross domestic product (GDP) growth and lower inflation in 2026, with these forecasts citing improved macroeconomic fundamentals and reform impacts.
As for the cryptocurrency market, it was mixed following selloff in precious metals and lower US stocks appeared to be denting crypto sentiment.
Gold and silver, both of which also enjoyed big rallies earlier this week, tumbled 1.2 per cent and 5 per cent, respectively while key US stock indexes — the Nasdaq, S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average — all reversed from early gains to modest losses in Friday trade.
Dogecoin (DOGE) shrank by 2.2 per cent to $0.1370, Ripple (XRP) slipped by 0.8 per cent to $2.05, Ethereum (ETH) went down by 0.7 per cent to $3,228.56, and Bitcoin (BTC) slumped by 0.6 per cent to $95,086.80.
Conversely, Litecoin (LTC) appreciated by 3.2 per cent to $74.48, Solana (SOL) rose by 0.4 per cent to $143.70, Cardano (ADA) jumped by 0.2 per cent to $0.3942, and Binance Coin (BNB) increased by 0.1 per cent to $935.88, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 each.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Oil prices settled higher amid lingering worries about a possible US military strike against Iran, a decision that may still occur over the weekend.
Brent crude settled at $64.13 a barrel after going up by 37 cents or 0.58 per cent and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude finished at $59.44 a barrel after it gained 25 cents or 0.42 per cent.
The US Navy’s aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln was expected to arrive in the Persian Gulf next week after operating in the South China Sea.
Market analysts noted that it doesn’t seem likely anything will happen soon. However, the weekends have become the perfect time for actions so as not offset the markets.
The market had risen after protests flared up in Iran and US President Donald Trump signalled the potential for military strikes, but lost over 4 per cent on Thursday as the American president said Iran’s crackdown on the protesters was easing, allaying concerns of possible military action that could disrupt oil supplies.
Iran produces approximately 3.2 million barrels per day, accounting for roughly 4 per cent of global crude production, so it was not a coincidence that markets rallied sharply through Tuesday and Wednesday as President Trump canceled meetings with Iranian officials and posted that “help is on its way” to Iranian protesters, raising fears of potential US military strikes that sent prices surging toward multi-month highs.
Weighing against those fears are potential supply increases from Venezuela.
The Trump administration is exploring plans to swap heavy Venezuelan crude for US medium sour barrels that can actually go straight into Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) caverns, since not all all oil belongs in the reserve.
According to Reuters, the Department of Energy is considering moving Venezuelan heavy crude into commercial storage at the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port, while US producers deliver medium sour crude into the SPR in exchange.
Analysts expect higher supply this year, potentially creating a ceiling for the geopolitical risk premium on prices.
Some investors covered short positions ahead of the three-day Martin Luther King holiday weekend in the US.
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