Economy
Nigeria’s FX Reserves Swell to $35.4bn Amid Oil Production Shortfall
By Ashemiriogwa Emmanuel
The external reserves of Nigeria, the largest economy in Africa, grew by 1.7 per cent in one week to $35.4 billion from $34.8 billion, data obtained by Business Post has revealed.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which publishes the amount left in the nation’s account, disclosed that on Thursday, September 9, 2021, the foreign exchange (FX) buffers stood at $34.8 billion but expanded to $35.4 billion on Thursday, September 16.
The week-on-week growth happened few days after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) release its latest report which showed that the nation’s crude oil production fell to 1.239 million barrels per day in the month of August.
The organization, in its monthly oil market report last Monday, said that the development represented a 6.7 per cent drop from the 1.323 million barrels per day Nigeria recorded in July.
Despite the performance of the Nigerian oil in the international market as its principal source of forex flows, the nation’s external reserves, in recent weeks, have maintained an upward trend which could be attributed to earnings from other sources, including non-oil exports, capital importation, as well as foreign investment flows.
The recent rise in the price of crude oil has been the major reason, covering up in the oil production shortfall. It means if Nigeria produces 1.2 million barrels of crude oil at a global price of $70 per barrel, it earns $84 million but when it produces 1.3 million barrels at $50, it only earns $65 million.
A look at the movement in the country’s reserves showed that on September 9, the total amount in the external savings stood at $34.8 billion but the next day, the buffers increased by $79.9 million to $34.9 billion.
On the first business day of last week, the reserves gained about $250 million to close at $35.1 billion and on Tuesday, September, 14, the forex reserves rose by $82.2 million to $35.3 billion and at the midweek, the amount jumped to $35.4 billion.
Business Post reports that the total amount in the country’s external reserves is projected to hit $40 billion by the end of October 2021 as a result of the proposed $3 billion Eurobond sale slated for the month.
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.
