Economy
Nigerian Shippers Seek CBN Intervention Fund
By Adedapo Adesanya
**Target N7trn Maritime Contribution to GDP
The Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NCS) has appealed to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to extend its intervention programmes to the maritime industry in order to unlock the potential in processing various commodities for export.
This call was made by the Executive Secretary of the council, Mr Hassan Bello, on Tuesday, saying if assisted, the sector has the potential to contribute about N7 trillion to the Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
He added that the council was working towards improving from the current contribution which was less than N2 trillion.
He revealed that the organization was in talks with industry stakeholders to harness the country’s huge maritime potentials.
Mr Bello further said the council was mulling revoking the licence of dormant Inland Container Depots (ICDs), otherwise known as dry ports.
“Our Nigerian ginger is the best, but the logistic chain is bad and CBN can look into it.
“We need to look at the dry ports and make them viable and to urgently look at value addition, packaging and processing through which massive jobs can be created. With these initiatives we won’t care about oil anymore,” he assured.
According to him, Nigeria boasts of vast coastline and huge natural resources that can be tapped, processed and exported via the seaports to boost its foreign reserves.
He noted that the federal government has approved the modernisation of the Nigerian ports to reduce clearing cost, cargo dwell time and ultimately make them more globally competitive.
He described the maritime sector as the engine room of economic growth if only concerted efforts were made to leverage on its many deliverables.
“We have been too glued our economy to crude oil as if it won’t dry up. Now, the value is down due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“But Nigeria has robust maritime endowments that can buoy the economy if well harnessed. Currently, we’re doing between N1.9 to N2 trillion contribution to the GDP but our target is N7 trillion.
“In achieving that, we need to modernise our ports. We’re targeting that by March 2021, 90 percent of our port operations will digitalised.
“We are currently at 60 percent. We want to increase efficiency, boost revenue and facilitate legitimate trade. The port must be digital.
“Physical contact is spoiling the port and we can’t continue that way,” he stated.
The NSC chief further said that strong lessons have been learnt from the COVID-19 pandemic that will change the fortunes of the country.
“We found out that our ports could run daily 24/7. We can and we have to operate round the clock. This is what we have in developed nations. We have a good partner in the Customs and we can achieve that target. It would boost efficiency.
“We have made the train work in the port, likewise barges. The roads are being worked on. We’ve restored the train service.
“There are three train trips to bring in empty containers and take out the cargo-laden ones. For every train trip, about 38 trucks are taken out. So, it means we would not have all the trucks at the ports and this will crash the haulage cost.
“Barges will also give the trucks a run for their money. You can imagine that it costs N800,000 to move a container from Apapa to Funtua by truck. That’s high.
“So, the train service will crash the prices, save lives and preserve the roads. Cargo dwell time to be reduced from 20 days to seven days when the trains and barges are fully deployed to the ports,” he said.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has refuted claims that it sells substandard premium motor spirit (PMS), otherwise known as petrol, at its retail stations, especially in Lagos.
The state-owned oil company was reacting to a viral video, which said petrol bought at NNPC retail stations burns faster.
Reacting to this in a statement on Saturday, the Chief Corporate Communications Officer of the NNPC, Mr Olufemi Soneye, said the said fuel being talked about in the video may have been the product bought from a rival refinery in the country, Dangote Petroleum Refinery.
“It is important to emphasize that a significant percentage of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) sold at NNPC retail stations in Lagos—where this deceptive video was created—is sourced from the Dangote Refinery, a strategic partner in promoting local production and energy security. Dangote Refinery adheres to strict industry standards, guaranteeing the quality of petroleum products supplied to our consumers,” a part of the statement said.
It, therefore, described the allegations in the viral video as “false and misleading,” adding that it is also “baseless and entirely unfounded” as it originated “from unverified and amateur research that lacks credibility, accuracy, and professional oversight.”
“NNPC reaffirms that its fuel is carefully formulated with one of the best compositions, ensuring optimal efficiency, durability, and environmental sustainability for consumers,” the company stated.
However, it warned that, “Henceforth, NNPC will take firm legal action against individuals or groups who intentionally spread falsehoods about our brand and operations. Those engaged in such malicious activities will be held fully accountable under the law.”
It lamented that the video was done by “economic saboteurs to misinform the public and tarnish NNPC’s reputation,” warning that it “will not tolerate deliberate misinformation designed to undermine our operations and mislead Nigerians.”
NNPC urged “the public to disregard such fabricated content and rely on verified sources for accurate information,” noting that it “remains steadfast in its mission to ensure fuel availability, affordability, and quality for all Nigerians while maintaining global industry standards.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
Four price gainers lifted the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 0.54 per cent on Friday, February 14.
Okitipupa Plc improved its share price by N11.29 to close at N124.18 per unit versus N112.89 per unit, Mixta Real Estate Plc appreciated by 34 Kobo to finish at N3.76 per share versus the preceding day’s N3.42 per share, Afriland Properties Plc went up by 62 Kobo to settle at N21.03 per unit compared with N20.41 per unit, and FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc jumped by 5 Kobo to trade at N39.95 per share, in contrast to the preceding day’s N39.90 per share.
At the close of business, the market capitalization rose by N9.91 billion to N1.828 trillion from N1.818 trillion and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) increased by 17.49 points to 3,227.53 points from the 3,210.04 points recorded on Thursday.
During yesterday’s session, the volume of securities transacted by investors jumped by 1,001.3 per cent to 5.1 million units from the 465,820 units transacted in the previous trading day.
Also, the value of transactions surged by 1,025.4 per cent to N108.5 million from N9.6 million, while the number of deals went south by 10 per cent to nine deals from 10 deals recorded on Thursday.
Impresit Bakolori Plc finished the day as the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 519.5 million units worth N504.3 million, trailed by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with 7.4 million units valued at N293.2 million, and Geo-Fluids Plc with 9.3 million units sold for N44.8 million.
Similarly, Impresit Bakolori Plc ended the session as the most active stock by volume (year-to-date) with 519.5 million units worth N504.3 million, followed by Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc with 69.6 million units sold for N23.6 million, and Geo-Fluids Plc with 10.7 million units valued at N51.2 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira was relatively stable against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Friday, February 14, though it shed 10 Kobo or 0.01 per cent to sell at at N1,510.10/$1 compared with the previous day’s value of N1,510.00/$1.
However, it depreciated against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the trading day by N7.32 to quote at N1,879.42/£1 versus the N1,872.42/£1 it was sold at the previous session and lost N6.27 against the Euro to settle at N1,566.23/€1, in contrast to Thursday’s closing rate of N1,559.96/€1.
At the parallel market, the Nigerian Naira improved its value against the US Dollar yesterday by N5 to finish at N1565/$1 compared with the preceding session’s value of N1,570/$1.
As for the cryptocurrency market, it was positive on Friday after investors overlooked recent data that frustrated the landscape.
This week, the US data released showed increment in the Consumer Price Index (CPI). This shows the US Federal Reserve will likely wait till June before making changes to the current interest rate levels.
Over the last two weeks, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has also acknowledged applications for Litecoin and Solana exchange traded funds (ETFs) — indicating that the SEC’s leadership under the Donald Trump administration has changed its tact to crypto-related listings.
Ethereum (ETH) expanded its value by 5.4 per cent to sell at $3,394.79, Solana (SOL) recorded a 4.4 per cent appreciation to end at $260.86, Cardano (ADA) jumped by 2.9 per cent to trade at $1.00, and Litecoin (LTC) saw a 2.6 per cent surge to quote at $116.78.
In addition, Bitcoin (BTC) appreciated by 2.1 per cent to settle at $1o4,978.31, Ripple (XRP) rose 0.7 per cent to $3.16, Dogecoin (DOGE) increased by 0.6 per cent to finish at $0.3572, and Binance Coin (BNB) gained 1.6 per cent to sell for $710.31, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 each.
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