Economy
NDEP Boosts NASD OTC Exchange by 0.4% Wednesday
By Adedapo Adesanya
As the year 2020 winds down, the bull made an appearance on the floor of the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange on Wednesday, December 30, causing the market to rise by 0.4 per cent.
The day’s favourable outcome was boosted by the Niger Delta Exploration and Production (NDEP) Plc which recorded a rise in its stock price.
At the previous session, which was the first trading day after the Christmas holidays, the unlisted securities market closed in a stalemate.
But at the midweek session, this changed as the NASD unlisted securities index (NSI) moved up by 2.89 points to 732.30 points from 729.41 points, while the market capitalisation gained N2.06 billion to wrap the day at N525.43 billion in contrast to N523.37 billion it ended the preceding day.
On Wednesday, NDEP Plc recorded a price appreciation of N11.40 or 3.5 per cent to close at N340 per share in contrast to N328.60 per share it closed the previous day.
During the midweek session, the trading volume improved by 6.7 per cent as a total of 8,000 units of shares exchanged hands compared with the 7,500 units transacted previously.
However, there was a decline in the number of deals by 50 per cent as only a single deal was executed as against the two deals recorded at the previous session. The single deal was executed on the day’s lone price mover, NDEP Plc.
But at the close of business, the trading value went up by 229.7 per cent to N2.7 million compared with the previous day’s N825,000.
Business Post reports that ARM Life Plc maintained its position as the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 7.4 billion units of its shares worth N4.6 billion. Central Securities Clearing Systems (CSCS) Plc was in second place with 213.7 million units traded at N2.9 billion, while Food Concepts Plc followed with 152.2 million units traded at N109.5 million.
In terms of the most traded stock by value (year-to-date), ARM Life Plc also retained the top spot after transacting 7.4 billion units worth N4.6 billion. NDEP Plc came next with 12.0 million units of securities exchanged for N3.7 billion, while CSCS Plc sat in third place trading 213.7 million units valued at N2.9 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) is seeking a reduction in import duty exemptions, which rose to N34 trillion, limiting its ability to increase its revenue generation threshold.
The Comptroller-General of the Customs Service, Mr Adewale Adeniyi, disclosed that the value of import duty exemption certificate approvals increased to that level in 2025, describing the policy as one of the major factors restricting its revenue generation.
At an investigative session of the Senate Committee on Finance with revenue-generating agencies in Abuja on Monday, Mr Adeniyi explained that government fiscal policies have continued to impact the revenue-generating capacity of the Customs Service, both positively and negatively.
“The NCS would have generated significantly higher revenue over the years if not for government-approved import duty waivers and other external factors affecting collections,” he said.
He added that the Import Duty Exemption Certificate scheme, introduced in March 2020, accounted for about N34 trillion in approvals in 2025, with nearly 60 per cent covering duty-free importation of military hardware due to Nigeria’s prevailing security challenges.
Other government-backed duty waivers, he noted, covered the importation of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), electric and hybrid vehicles, healthcare equipment and medical supplies, industrial machinery and manufacturing inputs, as well as food import intervention programmes.
While acknowledging the impact of the waivers on Customs revenue, Mr Adeniyi argued that fiscal policy should not be assessed solely on the basis of revenue generation but also on its broader economic and social objectives.
He, however, urged the federal government to establish stronger monitoring mechanisms to ensure beneficiaries of duty waivers deliver the intended economic outcomes, including lower consumer prices, increased local production and improved healthcare access.
The committee also expressed displeasure over the absence of several heads of government agencies invited to the hearing, including the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Industrial Training Fund (ITF), and the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Jabi.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Mr Sani Musa, warned that the affected chief executives must appear at the committee’s next sitting or face severe sanctions under the Senate’s rules.
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By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange rose by 0.40 per cent on Monday, July 13, buoyed by buying interest in 11 Plc, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc and UBN Property Plc, which offset the profit-taking in Food Concepts Plc, the parent company of Chicken Republic.
11 Plc gained N20.69 to end at N227.64 per share compared with last Friday’s price of N206.95 per share, CSCS Plc grew by N1.83 to N91.48 per unit from N89.65 per unit, and UBN Property Plc added 1 Kobo to sell at N1.81 per share versus N1.80 per share.
On the flip side, Food Concepts Plc depreciated by 24 Kobo to close at N2.45 per unit, in contrast to the preceding session’s N2.69 per unit.
As a result, the market capitalisation increased by N9.2 billion to N2.587 trillion from N2.578 trillion, and the NASD Security Index (NSI) improved by 15.33 points to 4,311.67 points from 4,296.34 points.
Yesterday, the volume of securities traded by investors surged by 615.9 per cent to 9.1 million units from the previous 1.3 million units, and the value of securities rose by 997.1 per cent to N320.4 million from the preceding session’s N29.2 million, while the number of deals decreased by 12.5 per cent to 28 deals from last Friday’s 32 deals.
At the close of trades, 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 73.9 million units exchanged for N5.2 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed 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.
