Economy
Nigeria Must Negotiate More Reciprocal Trading Deals—FSDH Research
**Says External Sector Highly Vulnerable
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
One of the investment firms in Nigeria, FSDH Merchant Bank, has stated that the external trades of the nation remain one-sided instead of being reciprocal.
In a report this week, the research arm of the company said this has left the external sector very highly vulnerable and called on government to work out ways to get trading deals that would be beneficial to the nation.
It noted that a one-sided relationship is rarely good or sustainable for individuals, organisations or countries because most enduring relationships are anchored on mutually beneficial tenets.
“Our review of Nigeria’s external trade figures over the years and the relationships with her trading partners show that there is a need to negotiate more reciprocal trading relationships that benefit Nigeria.
“One of the principles governing international trade is that a country should concentrate on the production of goods that it can produce more cheaply than other countries, export those goods and import other items it cannot produce or could only produce relatively more expensively than other countries,” the report said.
It stated further that, “Natural endowment in certain resources allows a country to be able to produce certain goods cheaper than other countries. Nigeria has huge petroleum deposits which, over the years, it has been exporting in its crude form, since the local refineries are not operating at reasonable capacities. With the huge investments going into Dangote Refinery, this situation may change very soon.
“FSDH Research also expects the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) to sell the four non-functional refineries in the country to private investors. Alternatively, the FGN may convert the refineries to a form of joint venture arrangements with the private sector so that the wasting assets are used to generate export earnings for Nigeria.
“The country also has natural endowment in agriculture, but the country has not taken full advantage of this to increase its exports or to reduce its imports.”
Continuing, FSDH Research disclosed that its analysis of the external trade figures that the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) published for Q1 2019 showed that Nigeria’s exports and imports by destination are not well-aligned.
It pointed that in the NBS report, Nigeria did not export anything to the three leading countries (China, Swaziland and United States of America) which accounted for over 50 percent of its total imports.
China, which accounts for over 26 percent of Nigeria’s total imports, is not even among the 10 leading countries buying goods from Nigeria.
“Remember, China is not an oil-producing country. There should be high-level negotiations with Chinese authorities to buy goods made in Nigeria on a consistent basis to compensate for the large market China enjoys for its products sold in Nigeria. This will make the trading relationship between China and Nigeria a mutually beneficial one. Otherwise, the trading relationship will become one that drains away Nigeria’s hard-earned foreign exchange.
“On a medium to long-term basis, Nigeria must develop strategies that will enable it to enjoy cost advantage in the production of many exportable goods from its natural resources. Although both the fiscal and monetary authorities have announced particular import-substitution measures, the Next Level agenda should include clear strategies on how to make the business environment more conducive for the manufacturing sector to thrive.
“Most export-led economies around the world that we can identify today formulated and implemented specific programmes at certain points in the past to invest in their local competitiveness. This generally included massive investment in infrastructure to enable companies to scale up production at low costs, maintenance of law and order that support the growth of businesses and entrepreneurial development, maintenance of security in the country to protect lives and property, and the development of the financial system that can act as catalyst for economic growth,” it said.
Concluding, FSDH Research said there should be a system where producers of raw materials can interface with the industrial sector so that the necessary raw materials may be sourced in the local market, saying this would help to increase the quality of raw materials produced locally in order to meet specific needs of the industry.
“Ultimately, more job opportunities would be available for the growing population of the country, rural-urban migration would reduce, external reserves grow, the value of the currency more stable, inflation rate remain within an acceptable region, and savings and investments would grow as more investible funds become available in the local financial system, bringing down the interest rate,” it stated.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange rose by 2.30 per cent, spurring the NASD Security Index (NSI) to close higher by 96.61 points to 4,296.34 points from 4,199.73 points, and raising the market capitalisation by N57.99 billion to N2.578 trillion from N2.521 trillion.
The market was up yesterday despite a lower activity level, as the volume of securities traded slumped by 94.7 per cent to 1.3 million units from the previous 23.9 million units. The value of securities slipped by 57.2 per cent to N29.2 million from the preceding session’s N68.2 million, while the number of deals executed by market participants increased by 6.7 per cent to 32 deals from the 30 deals carried out on Thursday.
At the close of transactions, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with a turnover of 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, trailed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units valued at N6.5 billion in trades, and Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc with 70.8 million units traded for N4.9 billion.
GNI Plc was also 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 exchanged for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units transacted for N415.7 million.
During the trading day, there were three price gainers and two price losers, led by Afriland Properties Plc, which shed N1.48 to sell at N15.17 per share compared with the previous session’s N16.65 per share, and Food Concepts Plc, which slid by 7 Kobo to close at N2.69 per unit versus N2.76 per unit.
Conversely, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc improved its value by N9.50 to trade at N150.00 per share compared with Thursday’s closing price of N140.50 per share, CSCS Plc went up by N7.95 to N89.65 per unit from N81.70 per unit, and 11 Plc soared by N6.94 to N206.95 per share from N200.01 per share.
By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited lost its footing by 0.07 per cent on Friday as a result of renewed profit-taking by investors.
The fall happened after Thomas Wyatt and Guinness Nigeria led other price losers group comprising 27 stocks at the market yesterday due to selling pressure.
Thomas Wyatt Nigeria shed 10.00 per cent to quote at N2.70, Guinness Nigeria drowned by 9.99 per cent to close at N329.00, Ikeja Hotel slipped by 9.96 per cent to N42.50, Zichis shed 9.94 per cent to trade at N26.37, and McNichols depreciated by 9.91 per cent to N5.00.
On the flip side, International Breweries gained 9.92 per cent to finish at N13.30, NEM Insurance appreciated by 9.61 per cent to N27.95, Jaiz Bank grew by 6.36 per cent to N9.20, UPDC expanded by 6.33 per cent to N4.20, and Livestock Feeds increased by 6.32 per cent to N9.25.
Business Post reports that investor sentiment remained bullish despite the loss recorded during the session, as there were 27 price decliners and 30 price advancers, representing a positive market breadth index.
Yesterday, market participants transacted 441.3 million equities for N19.4 billion in 44,938 deals compared with the 1.7 billion equities worth N112.0 billion traded in 44,780 deals a day earlier. This showed that the trading volume contracted by 74.04 per cent, the trading value declined by 82.68 per cent, and an uptick in the number of deals by 0.35 per cent.
Access Holdings led the activity chart on Friday after selling 40.2 million shares valued at N1.0 billion, Sterling Holdco traded 30.3 million stocks worth N228.8 million, Fidelity Bank sold 26.3 million equities for N505.6 million, Zenith Bank transacted 22.3 million shares valued at N2.5 billion, and First Holdco exchanged 19.0 million stocks worth N1.3 billion.
During the last trading session of the week, the consumer goods sector rose by 0.49 per cent, the insurance counter increased by 0.06 per cent, and the industrial goods index closed flat, while the banking and energy indices lost 0.78 per cent and 0.52 per cent, respectively.
As a result, the All-Share Index (ASI) shrank by 159.97 points to 243,798.76 points from 243,958.73 points, and the market capitalisation moderated by N103 billion to N156.445 trillion from N156.548 trillion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira performed poorly against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Friday, July 10, losing N1.19 or 0.09 per cent to close at N1,379.62/$1, in contrast to Thursday’s exchange rate of N1,378.43/$1.
It also depreciated against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the trading session by N3.80 to trade at N1,850.62/£1 compared with the previous day’s N1,846.82/£1, but gained 43 Kobo on the Euro to sell at N1,575.66/€1 versus the preceding day’s N1,576.09/€1.
At the GTBank FX desk, the Naira weakened against the Dollar yesterday by N1 to quote at N1,386/$1 compared with the previous session’s N1,835/$1, and maintained stability in the black market at N1.400/$1.
Data showed that interbank FX turnover fell by about 10 per cent on Friday to $71.044 million from $78.708 million the previous day. Also, interbank forex market deals reduced to 87 from 106 trades executed at the window on Thursday.
The total forex inflows into the Nigerian foreign exchange market have been fluctuating, with about $1 billion in total inflows reported last week.
Total FX inflows settled at $0.99 billion last week, according to the research subsidiary of Coronation Merchant Bank, with Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) accounting for the largest share at 35.81 per cent, or $0.35 billion.
Exporters accounted for 28.72 per cent or $0.28 billion, while the CBN contributed 11.15 per cent or $0.11 billion. Non-Bank Corporations also made up a notable 10.92 per cent of total inflows, reflecting continued support from both market-driven and official sources.
In the cryptocurrency market, Bitcoin rose above $64,100, retesting the price level that rejected it on Monday, with a clean break above, opening the path toward the June 15 high of $67,250. It gained 0.3 per cent to sell at $64,114.16.
Ethereum (ETH) appreciated by 1.6 per cent to $1,798.81, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 0.6 per cent to $0.0742, Binance Coin (BNB) added 0.6 per cent to sell for $576.47, Cardano (ADA) also grew by 0.6 per cent to $0.1674, and Ripple (XRP) jumped by 0.4 per cent to $1.10.
But Solana (SOL) lost 1.1 per cent to settle at $77.95, and TRON (TRX) declined by 0.2 per cent to $0.3296, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 apiece.
