Economy
June Inflation to Drop to 15.64% from 16.25%—FSDH

By Dipo Olowookere
A new report by FSDH Research has predicted that inflation rate for the month of June 2017 will drop further to 15.64 percent from 16.25 percent in the month of May.
Last month, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) revealed that inflation for May deflated to 16.25 percent from 17.24 percent in April 2017.
FSDH Research, in its report released on Thursday titled Inflation Watch, it observed that the increase in the price of food items moderated in the month of June compared with May 2017.
“We also observed increases in some divisions that contribute to the Core Sub-Index, with the highest price observed in the clothing and footwear divisions.
“Based on the data release calendar on the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) website, we expect the NBS to release the inflation rate for the month of June 2017 on July 17, 2017,” the report said.
It was noted that the monthly Food Price Index (FPI) that the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) released today shows that the Index advanced further in June 2017.
The Index averaged 175.2 points, 1.43 percent higher than the revised value for May 2017, and 6.89% higher than the June 2016 figure. Movement in the food prices were in varying directions. Dairy, cereal and meat prices were mostly responsible for the uptick in the value of the Index while sugar and oil prices depreciated.
The FAO Dairy Price Index appreciated by 8.26 percent in June 2017. Prices of all dairy products which include milk powders, cheese and butter appreciated significantly during the period.
The FAO Cereal Price Index gained 4.21 percent from the previous month, representing a one-year high. Wheat and rice prices firmed up and were primarily responsible for the uptick in the value of the Index.
The FAO Meat Index was up by 1.85 percent on the backdrop of generally higher prices as import demand strengthened.
On the flip side, the FAO Vegetable Oil Price Index was down by 3.88 percent, driven by falling quotations for both palm and soy oils.
Good production prospects and bumper harvests contributed to the fall in prices. The Sugar Price Index dropped by 13.45 percent in June 2017 on the heels of weak global import demand and improved supply conditions in the main sugar producing regions in Brazil.
In addition, analysts at FSDH Research said, “Our analysis indicates that the value of the Naira depreciated at the inter-bank market while it appreciated at the parallel market.”
The Naira lost 0.16 percent to close at N305.90/$ at the inter-bank market while it gained 2.96 percent to close at N371/$ at the parallel market at the end of June 2017. The appreciation of the Naira in the parallel market is expected to counter the effect of the rising prices of food at the international market.
Hence, this should lead to a moderation in the pass through effect of imported prices on consumer goods in Nigeria, the report noted.
It pointed out that there was a general price increase in most of the food items that FSDH Research monitored in June 2017.
The prices of onions, yam, tomatoes, garri, sweet potatoes, palm oil, vegetable oil, Irish potatoes and rice were up by 33.89 percent, 24.6 percent, 11.11 percent, 6.67 percent, 4.76 percent, 4.62 percent, 3.03 percent, 2.96 percent and 2.69 percent respectively.
Meanwhile, the prices of beans, meat and fish were stable. The movement in the prices of food items during the month resulted in 1.25 percent increase in our Food and Non-Alcoholic Index to 243.34 points.
“We also noticed increase in the prices of Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuels divisions between May 2017 and June 2017.
“Our model indicates that the general price movements in the consumer goods and services in June 2017 would increase the Composite Consumer Price Index (CCPI) to 233.25 points, representing a month-on-month increase of 1.18 percent.
“We estimate that the increase in the CCPI in June 2017 would produce an inflation rate of 15.64 percent lower than the 16.25 percent recorded in May 2017,” the report predicted.
Economy
Four Securities Erase N51.17bn from NASD Exchange
By Adedapo Adesanya
Four securities weakened the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.95 per cent on Friday, erasing N41.17 billion from the bourse, which had its market capitalisation at N2.567 trillion compared with the previous session’s N2.618 trillion.
In the same vein, the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) decreased at the close of business by 85.28 points to 4,277.07 points from 4,362.32 points.
The price decliners were led by 11 Plc, which gave up N20.50 to sell at N200.50 per share compared with the preceding day’s N221.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc dropped N16.94 to close at N155.20 per unit versus Thursday’s closing price of N172.14 per unit, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc went down by N2.11 to N84.68 per share from N86.79 per share, and Afriland Properties Plc lost 11 Kobo to end at N16.74 per unit, in contrast to the N16.85 per unit it closed a day earlier.
During the trading day, the value of transactions jumped by 172.1 per cent to N29.9 million from the preceding session’s N10.9 million, and the volume of trades soared by 136.5 per cent to 955,096 units from the previous 403,901 units, while the number of deals went down by 11.4 per cent to 31 deals from 35 deals.
Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units worth N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 68.6 million units sold for N4.7 billion.
GNI Plc also ended the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units exchanged for N8.4 billion, trailed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units traded for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units transacted for N415.7 million.
Economy
Cautious Trading, Profit-taking Weaken Nigeria’s Stock Exchange by 0.66%
By Dipo Olowookere
The last trading session of this week on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited ended on a negative note, with a 0.66 per cent loss on Friday.
This was influenced by sustained selling pressure and cautious trading, which forced investors into profit-taking.
Data obtained by Business Post showed that the energy sector fell by 4.66 per cent, the insurance counter dipped by 2.23 per cent, the consumer goods index depreciated by 0.96 per cent, and the banking segment shed 0.28 per cent, while the industrial goods space remained unchanged.
At the close of business, the All-Share Index (ASI) of Nigeria’s stock exchange went down by 1,531.81 points to 232,049.02 points from 233,580.83 points, and the market capitalisation dropped N983 billion to settle at N148.905 trillion compared with Thursday’s N149.888 trillion.
Aradel was the worst-performing equity after it lost 10.00 per cent to close at N1,417.50. International Energy Insurance slipped by 9.95 per cent to N5.79, Trans-Nationwide Express depreciated by 9.89 per cent to N3.28, eTranzact crashed by 9.79 per cent to N14.75, and UPDC slumped by 9.72 per cent to N28.12.
The best-performing equity for the day was Universal Insurance, which gained 6.32 per cent to close at N1.01, McNichols grew by 5.52 per cent to N8.60, Linkage Assurance expanded by 4.67 per cent to N1.57, NGX Group appreciated by 4.35 per cent to N120.00, and Transcorp increased by 3.62 per cent to N41.50.
As look at the activity level indicated that investors traded 388.7 million stocks worth N18.4 billion in 44,631 deals compared with the 393.7 million stocks valued at N19.2 billion executed in 45,813 deals a day earlier, representing a decline in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 1.27 per cent, 4.17 per cent, and 2.58 per cent, respectively.
Economy
Official FX Market Sees Naira Dip to N1,380.93/$1
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira recorded a loss of 82 Kobo or 0.06 per cent against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Friday, June 26, exchanging at N1,380.93/$1, in contrast to the previous day’s rate of N1,380.11/$1.
Equally, the domestic currency further weakened against the Pound Sterling in the official FX market yesterday by N6.06 to settle at N1,824.90/£1 versus the preceding session’s N1,818.84/£1, and lost N10.74 on the Euro to sell at N1,577 .58/€1 versus N1,566.84/€1.
At the GTBank forex counter, the Naira depreciated against the greenback during the session by N4 to close at N1,387/$1, in contrast to Thursday’s value of N1,383/$1, and at the parallel market, it was unchanged at N1,395/$1.
Interbank FX activity among financial institutions has fluctuated amid a sharp slowdown in forex market interventions by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), as it allows demand and supply to move the market.
Also, a stronger greenback has generally put significant pressure on emerging-market currencies.
Nigeria has accessed the first tranche of a proposed $5 billion derivatives financing arrangement with First Abu Dhabi Bank PJSC, the largest lender in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The $5 billion facility, approved by the National Assembly earlier this year, is part of the federal government’s plan to diversify external financing sources and reduce borrowing costs. Structured as a Total Return Swap with First Abu Dhabi Bank, proceeds are earmarked for refinancing debt and supporting infrastructure financing.
If the proceeds are brought into the country through the official FX market, the transaction will increase the currency reserves or Dollar liquidity.
At the cryptocurrency market, Solana (SOL) grew by 2.2 per cent to $71.92, Cardano (ADA) gained 1.1 per cent to trade at $0.1474, Ripple (XRP) also appreciated by 1.1 per cent to $1.05, Dogecoin (DOGE) expanded by 0.9 per cent to $0.0755, and Ethereum (ETH) improved by 0.4 per cent to $1,578.84.
On the flip side, TRON (TRX) slid 0.6 per cent to $0.3203, Binance Coin (BNB) slumped by 0.3 per cent to $564.33, and Bitcoin fell by 0.2 per cent to $60,219.37, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 each.
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