Economy
Global Food Prices Jump to Almost 7-Year High in March
By Adedapo Adesanya
The United Nations through the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has disclosed that global food commodity prices rose for the 10th conservative month in March, led by vegetable oils and dairy products.
The FAO said this in its Food Price Index report released on Thursday, noting that in the third month of the year, the FAO food price index averaged 118.5 points in March, 2.1 per cent higher than in February and reaching its highest level since June 2014.
It said the March increase was led by the FAO Vegetable Oil Price Index which rose 8.0 per cent from the previous month and making its highest level since June 2011.
“The persistent strength of the index was driven by higher values of palm, soy, rape and sunflower oils.
“International palm oil prices registered a tenth conservative monthly increase as lingering concerns over tight inventory levels in major exporting countries coincided with a gradual recovery in global import demand.
“Meanwhile, soy oil prices rose sharply, largely underpinned by prospects of firm demand especially from the biodiesel sector,” it said.
The FAO Dairy Price Index averaged 117.4 points in March, rising for the 10th conservative month and lifting the index to nearly 16 per cent above its value in the corresponding month last year.
“In March, international butter prices rose mainly underpinned by somewhat tight supplies in Europe due to a slow start to its milk production season and increased internal demand in anticipation of a foodservice sector recovery.
“Milk powder prices also rose, supported by a surge in imports in Asia, particularly China due to declining production in Oceania and scarce shipping container availability in Europe and North America,” the report said.
According to the report, the FAO Cereal Index averaged 123.6 points in March, down 1.7 per cent from February, ending the eight-month rising trend but still 26.5 per cent above its March 2020 level.
“Among major cereals, wheat export prices declined the most in March falling 2.4 per cent.
“However, they remained 19.5 per cent higher than in the same month last year.
“The month to month decline in wheat prices mostly reflected generally good supplies and favourable production prospects for the 2021 crops.
“International maize and barley prices also fell in March although continued strong import demand from China prevented them from falling more significantly, and sorghum prices even rose,” it said.
In the report, the FAO Meat Price Index averaged 98.9 points in March up 2.3 per cent from February.
“Poultry and pig meat quotations increased, underpinned by a fast pace of imports by Asian countries, mainly China.
“A surge in internal sales in Europe in preparation for the Easter celebrations also supported pig meat prices.
“Bovine meat prices remained steady at close to the February levels.
“By contrast, ovine meat prices fell on increased supplies from New Zealand as farmers offloaded animals early due to prevailing dry weather,” the report said.
The report said the FAO Sugar Price Index averaged 96.2 points in March, down 4.0 per cent from February, marking the first decline after sharp increases registered in the previous two months.
“The recent monthly decline in international sugar price quotations was triggered by prospects of large exports from India despite persisting logistical constraints.
“Sugar quotations remained more than 30 per cent above its year-earlier level, underpinned by concerns over tight global supplies in 2020/21,” it said.
Giving its forecast, FAO said it expects world cereal production in 2021 to increase for the third consecutive year.
It said for the current 2020/21 marketing season, global cereal utilisation is now forecast at 2777 million tonnes, 2.4 per cent higher than the previous year, driven largely by higher estimates of feed use of wheat and barley in China where the livestock sector is recovering from Africa swine fever.
It said world cereal stocks at the end of 2021 are forecast to decline by 1.7 per cent from their opening levels to 808 million tonnes.
“Combined with the utilisation forecasts, the global cereal stock to use ratio for 2020/21 is foreseen to dip to a seven-year low of 28.4 per cent.
“Global wheat production is forecast to reach a new high of 785 million tonnes in 2021, up 1.4 per cent from 2020, driven by a likely sharp rebound across most of Europe and expectations of a record harvest in India,” it said.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The federal government has been asked by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to suspend the implementation of the controversial tax laws.
In a reaction to the tax reform acts, the president of the group, Mr Afam Osigwe (SAN), the suspension of the laws would allow for a proper investigation into allegations of alterations in the gazetted and harmonised copies.
A member of the House of Representatives, Mr Abdussamad Dasuki, alleged that some parts of the laws passed by the parliament were different from the gazetted copy.
To address the issues raised, the NBA said it is “imperative that a comprehensive, open, and transparent investigation be conducted to clarify the circumstances surrounding the enactment of the laws and to restore public confidence in the legislative process.”
“Until these issues are fully examined and resolved, all plans for the implementation of the Tax Reform Acts should be immediately suspended,” the association declared.
It noted that the controversies “raise grave concerns about the integrity, transparency, and credibility of Nigeria’s legislative process.”
“These developments strike at the very heart of constitutional governance and call into question the procedural sanctity that must attend lawmaking in a democratic society,” it noted.
“Legal and policy uncertainty of this magnitude has far-reaching consequences. It unsettles the business environment, erodes investor confidence, and creates unpredictability for individuals, businesses, and institutions required to comply with the law. Such uncertainty is inimical to economic stability and should have no place in a system governed by the rule of law.
“Nigeria’s constitutional democracy demands that laws, especially those with profound economic and social implications, emerge from processes that are transparent, accountable, and beyond reproach. Anything short of this undermines public trust and weakens the foundation upon which lawful governance rests.
“We therefore call on all relevant authorities to act swiftly and responsibly in addressing this controversy, in the overriding interest of constitutional order, economic stability, and the preservation of the rule of law,” the organisation stated.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Demand for hot stocks, including MRS Oil Plc, buoyed the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 0.52 per cent on Tuesday, December 23.
The energy company was one of the three price gainers for the session as it chalked up N19.69 to sell at N216.59 per share versus the previous day’s value of N196.90 per share.
Further, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc gained N2.95 to close at N56.75 per unit versus N53.80 per unit and Golden Capital Plc appreciated by 84 Kobo to N9.29 per share from Monday’s N8.45 per share.
Consequently, the market capitalisation went up by N10.95 billion to N2.125 trillion from N2.125 trillion and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) rose by 18.31 points to 3,570.37 points from 3,552.06 points.
Yesterday, the NASD bourse recorded a price loser, the Central Securities Clearing System Plc (CSCS), which gave up 17 Kobo to close at N33.70 per unit against the previous trading value of N33.87 per unit.
The volume of securities traded at the session went down by 97.6 per cent to 297,902 units from the previous day’s 12.6 million units, the value of securities decreased by 98.5 per cent to N10.5 million from N713.6 million, and the number of deals remained flat at 32 deals.
By value, Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company (InfraCredit) Plc ended as the most actively traded stock on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units exchanged for N16.4 billion. This was followed by Okitipupa Plc, which traded 178.9 million units valued at N9.5 billion, and MRS Oil Plc with 36.1 million units worth N4.9 billion.
In terms of volume, also on a year-to-date basis, InfraCredit Plc led the chart with a turnover of 5.8 billion units traded for N16.4 billion. Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc ranked second with 1.2 billion units sold for N420.7 million, while Impresit Bakolori Plc followed with the sale of 536.9 million units valued at N524.9 million.
By Dipo Olowookere
It was another bullish trading session for the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited as it closed higher by 0.59 per cent on Tuesday.
The market further rallied due to continued interest in large and mid-cap stocks on the exchange by investors rebalancing their portfolios for the year-end.
Yesterday, Aluminium Extrusion sustained its upward trajectory after it further appreciated by 9.96 per cent to N14.90, as Austin Laz gained 9.81 per cent to close at N2.91, Custodian Investment improved by 9.69 per cent to N38.50, and First Holdco soared by 9.35 per cent to N50.30.
Conversely, Royal Exchange declined by 7.22 per cent to N1.80, Champion Breweries shrank by 6.57 per cent to N15.65, NASCON lost 5.36 per cent to trade at N105.05, Sovereign Trust Insurance depreciated by 5.28 per cent to N3.77, and Japaul went down by 4.51 per cent to N2.33.
At the close of business, 29 shares ended on the gainers’ table and 27 shares finished on the losers’ log, representing a positive market breadth index and bullish investor sentiment.
This raised the All-Share Index (ASI) by 895.06 points to 153,354.13 points from 152,459.07 points and lifted the market capitalisation by N579 billion to N97.772 trillion from the previous day’s N97.193 trillion.
VFD Group finished the day as the busiest stock after it recorded a turnover of 192.0 million units worth N2.1 billion, GTCO exchanged 63.5 million units valued at N5.6 billion, Access Holdings traded 49.8 million units for N1.0 billion, First Holdco sold 45.8 million units valued at N2.3 billion, and Secure Electronic Technology transacted 38.3 million units worth N28.4 million.
In all, market participants bought and sold 677.4 million units valued at N20.8 billion in 27,589 deals compared with the 451.5 million units worth N13.0 billion traded in 33,327 deals on Monday, showing an improvement in the trading volume and value by 50.03 per cent and 60.00 per cent apiece, and a shortfall in the number of deals by 17.22 per cent.
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