Connect with us

Economy

Nigeria’s Economy Grew 3.46% in Q3 2024 With N20.1trn—CBN

Published

on

Nigeria Economy challenges

By Adedapo Adesanya

Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), as computed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), expanded by 3.4 per cent in the third quarter (Q3) of 2024, with output reaching N20.115 trillion, different from the 3.19 per cent growth quoted in Q2 2024 from an output of N18.285 trillion, according to the latest Economic Report for the third quarter of 2024 released by the apex bank.

The CBN said despite persisting headwinds, this growth was driven mainly by the non-oil sector.

The report said inflation moderated during the quarter, reflecting the fall in the food component of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) basket, and driven by the restrictive monetary policy stance.

Domestic crude oil production increased, following enhanced security measures around oil pipeline infrastructure in the Niger Delta region.

The growth of 3.46 per cent recorded in Q32024, represented the third consecutive expansion year-to-date surpassing the 3.19 per cent and 2.54 per cent recorded in Q2 2024 and the corresponding quarter of 2023, respectively.

“Growth was on account of continued efforts to improve the business environment, streamline cumbersome business processes and deepen the quality of business infrastructure,” the report seen by Business Post said.

The 24-month window period opened for the banking sector re-capitalisation (according to their license category and authorisation) supported the robust growth in the services sector, particularly, the finance and insurance sub-sector, the report explained.

The continued drive of the government to improve crude oil production to a target of 2 million barrels per day by year-end of 2024, helped the oil sector to maintain positive growth for the fourth consecutive quarter.

Thus, the oil sector grew by 5.17 per cent (year-on-year) in Q3 2024, compared with a growth of 10.15 per cent in the preceding quarter, and contributed 0.28 percentage points to the overall increase in the period under review.

The performance was slower than the preceding quarter, owing to a drop in prices of Nigeria’s Bonny Light crude in the international market, to $82.07 per barrel from $86.92 per barrel in Q22024.

However, with the increase in crude oil production from 1.27 million barrels per day in Q22024 to 1.33 million barrels per day in Q3 2024.

The non-oil sector growth accelerated to 3.37 per cent in Q32024 compared with a growth rate of 2.80 per cent in the preceding quarter, contributing 3.18 percentage points to total growth.

The expansion of the non-oil sector was driven by the performance of the financial & insurance, information & communication, crop production, trade, transportation & storage, and real estate sub-sectors.

Regarding sectoral performance, CBN said all the sectors, (agriculture, industry and services) grew in Q32024.

The Services sector expanded at the fastest pace by 5.19 per cent in Q32024, compared with 3.79 per cent in Q2 2024 and 3.99 per cent in Q32023, remaining the most dominant sector and accounting for 53.58 per cent of aggregate Gross Domestic Product.

Within the services sector, financial & insurance sub-sector grew by 30.83 per cent, compared with 28.79 and 28.21 per cent in the preceding and corresponding quarters of 2023, respectively. This performance was spurred by gains from the recapitalisation exercise that was announced by the CBN, according to the report.

Other factors such as profits from interest gains (following continued hikes in interest rates), consultancy fees, and ATM & transfer fees contributed to the growth of the sub-sector.

Also, given the financial sector’s ongoing digital transformation (including the significant growth of fintech companies, mobile banking, and digital payment systems), the information and communications subsector grew by 5.92 per cent (contributing 0.95 percentage points to GDP growth).

The performance of the ICT sub-sector was further boosted by the ongoing demand for digital services like e-commerce and data/internet services, which helped to grow economic activity in the other sub-sectors like trade and real estate 0.65 and 0.68 per cent, respectively.

The transport and storage sub-sector grew by 12.15 per cent, compared with contractions of 13.53 and 35.85 per cent in the preceding and corresponding quarters of 2023, respectively.

The growth was driven by the increase in road transport owing to improved security conditions and substitution from air transport (due to higher air fares). Also, sustained investments in road infrastructure, as well as investments in alternative sources of energy (CNG) for road transport contributed to the uptick in the sub-sector.

The agriculture sector grew modestly by 1.14 per cent, compared with 1.41 and 1.30 per cent in the preceding and corresponding quarters of 2023, respectively.

The growth was driven by the favourable weather conditions and increased harvests of some staples.

Crop production grew by 1.18 per cent, compared with1.65 per cent in Q22024, while the forestry and livestock sub-sectors grew by 2.23 and 1.03 per cent, respectively, compared with a growth of 2.77 per cent and a contraction of 1.71 per cent in Q22024.

Adedapo Adesanya is a journalist, polymath, and connoisseur of everything art. When he is not writing, he has his nose buried in one of the many books or articles he has bookmarked or simply listening to good music with a bottle of beer or wine. He supports the greatest club in the world, Manchester United F.C.

Economy

Unlisted Securities Market Rises 0.59% Week-on-Week

Published

on

Nigeria's unlisted securities market

By Adedapo Adesanya

The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange increased by 0.59 per cent in Trading Week 16 of 2026, with the market capitalisation adding N13.58 billion to settle at N2.329 trillion compared with the previous week’s N2.315 trillion, and the NASD Unlisted Securities Index (NSI) up by 22.70 points to 3,893.15 points from 3,870.45 points in week 15.

Over the course of five trading sessions of the week, the total volume of stocks transacted by market participants went down by 50.2 per cent to 3.87 million units from 7.77 million units, but the value increased by 20.9 per cent to N150.9 million from N124.9 million. These trades were carried out in 162 deals across 20 stocks.

The most traded stock by value for the week was Okitipupa Plc with N46.7 million, followed by Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc with N36.3 million. Friesland Campina Wamco Nigeria Plc recorded N31.9 million, MRS Oil Plc posted N14.6 million, and 11 Plc achieved N12.6 million.

The most active stock by volume was Geo-Fluids Plc with 1.5 million units, and trailed by UBN Property Plc with 0.828 million units. CSCS Plc traded 0.609 million units, Friesland Campina Wamco Nigeria Plc quoted 0.325 million units, and Okitipupa Plc sold 0.26 million units.

Last week, 11 securities recorded movements, with eight on the green side and three on the red side.

MRS Oil Plc gained N33.75 to close at N197.75 per unit versus N164.00 per unit, Nipco Plc which rose by N31 to N344.00 per share versus N313.00 per share, Okitipupa Plc appreciated by N20 to N280.00 per unit from N260.00 per unit, Friesland Campina Wamco Nigeria Plc improved by N5.21 addition to N97.21 per share from N92.00 per share, NASD Plc chalked up N1.14 to sell at N38.50 per unit versus N37.36 per unit, Food Concepts Plc appreciated by 26 Kobo to N2.94 per share from N2.68 per share, Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc increased by 6 Kobo to 63 Kobo per unit from 57 Kobo per unit, and Lighthouse Financial Plc expanded by 6 Kobo to 72 Kobo per share from 66 Kobo per share.

Conversely, 11 Plc lost N10.22 to quote at N212.08 per unit versus N222.30 per unit, CSCS Plc declined by N5.50 to N58.00 per share from N63.50 per share, and First Trust Mortgage Bank Plc shrank by 2 Kobo to N2.30 per unit from N2.32 per unit.

Continue Reading

Economy

World Bank Report: FG Counters Claims of Diverted Federation Earnings

Published

on

dampen growth in Nigeria

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

The federal government has said there is no iota of truth in reports making the rounds that a significant portion of federation earnings is being “diverted”.

The claims came from a recent World Bank report, which the government said the media misinterpreted as “hidden spending.”

In a statement signed on Sunday by the Minister of State for Finance, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, the federal government emphasised that the characterisation of the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) deductions as “waste” or missing funds was “incorrect,” noting that the World Bank report presented the deductions as statutory transfers, savings and investments, security-related expenditures, cost-of-collection charges, refunds to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), and transfers and interventions benefiting subnational governments.

“It is important to emphasise that refunds and transfers to states and other tiers of government are not leakages. They represent legitimate fiscal flows, including repayments of obligations and statutorily backed allocations,” the statement said.

It was further stressed that, “The World Bank explicitly notes that reforms implemented in early 2026, including the recently signed Executive Order to safeguard remittance of petroleum revenues, are already addressing concerns around deductions, and are expected to improve transparency while increasing revenues available to all tiers of government by about 0.4 per cent of GDP annually.”

“Misinterpreting one aspect of the analysis without acknowledging the progressive reforms and measures already introduced to enhance distributable federation revenues gives a distorted picture,” it submitted.

The Nigerian authorities averred that the broader message of the World Bank report is positive and forward-looking, as economic growth is becoming more broad-based across sectors, inflation is declining due to deliberate policy actions, Nigeria’s external position has strengthened, and debt indicators have improved.

The government declared that the World Bank did not say in the report that “Nigeria’s fiscal system is collapsing or that reforms have failed. Rather, it states that reforms are working, and they must be sustained and deepened to translate macroeconomic gains into inclusive growth.”

The statement appealed to “stakeholders, media organisations, and the public to engage constructively with fiscal information and avoid twisted interpretations that may undermine reform efforts and fuel public discord.”

Continue Reading

Economy

Nigerian Stocks Attract N195.3bn Investments in One Week

Published

on

Nigerian stocks

By Dipo Olowookere

On the floor of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited last week, 3.588 billion shares valued at N195.313 billion exchanged hands in 254,553 deals, higher than the 3.361 billion shares worth N151.948 billion traded in 229,442 deals a week earlier.

Over a quarter of these transactions were centred around the trio of Sterling Holdco, Access Holdings, and Zenith Bank, which specifically accounted for 1.038 billion stocks worth N46.081 billion in 33,067 deals, contributing 28.92 per cent and 23.59 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value, respectively.

They helped the financial equities to lead the activity chart with 2.498 billion units sold for N94.005 billion in 111,052 deals, contributing 69.62 per cent and 48.13 per cent to the total trading volume and value, respectively.

Services stocks traded 329.034 million units valued at N3.452 billion in 14,050 deals, and energy shares transacted 152.472million units worth N42.511 billion in 19,022 deals.

In the week, 61 equities appreciated versus 25 equities in the previous week, as 36 stocks depreciated compared with 54 stocks of the preceding week, while 49 shares remained unchanged, in contrast to 67 shares of the previous trading week.

Trans-Nationwide Express gained 60.48 per cent to sell for N6.05, Ecobank appreciated by 46.30 per cent to N67.30, Stanbic IBTC rose by 36.63 per cent to N188.55, Royal Exchange improved by 29.37 per cent to N1,85, and Aradel grew by 28.93 per cent to N1,649.00.

On the flip side, Coronation Insurance lost 14.38 per cent to close at N2.50, Ikeja Hotel declined by 14.36 per cent to N33.40, International Energy Insurance shrank by 13.80 per cent to N3.06, Academy Press slumped by 12.57 per cent to N7.65, and Honeywell Flour crumbled by 11.01 per cent to N19.00.

Business Post reports that the All-Share Index (ASI) went up by 6.57 per cent to 217,167.57 points, and the market capitalisation advanced by 6.60 per cent to N139.827 trillion, as the demand for Nigerian stocks soared.

Also, all other indices finished higher apart from the insurance and growth indices, which fell by 0.04 per cent and 0.99 per cent, respectively.

Continue Reading

Trending