Economy
Rise in MTN Nigeria Mobile Subscribers Buoys Q3 Earnings
By Adedapo Adesanya
Top telecommunication service provider, MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, has released its year-on-year nine months interim financial statements ended September 30, 2019 with result indicating there were rise in both profit and revenue in the period so far.
The company recorded a revenue of N856.5 billion compared with N764.5 billion recorded as at September 2018, meaning that the company’s profit within a period of 12 months by over 10 percent or N92 billion.
The profit for the year also went up by N33.3 billion in the period under analysis to N148.3 billion against NN115.0 billion it was during the same period of 2018.
The telecommunication company attributed this growth to the increase in mobile subscribers by 0.1 million (100,000) to 61.6 million users and complemented by active Internet data users which rose by 1.6 million to 22.3 million subscribers this year.
The company made N72.5 million from other income sources in the first nine months of 2019 while as at September 2018, the figure stood at N69.8 million.
MTN Nigeria was able to reduce its direct network operating cost this year to N117.9 billion against N227.3 billion that was expended during the same period last year. Following suit, value added services cost also dropped this period to N8.9 billion from N14.2 billion as at September 2018.
The company also saw reductions in its roaming and transmission costs, which went down to N2.9 billion and N4.1 billion from N3.4 billion and N4.2 billion respectively.
Employee benefits and sales promotion means (advertisements, sponsorships) both saw increases as the company spent a total of N23.1 billion on the former from N19.1 last year September while the latter went up to N13.6 billion as against N12.3 billion in the same period, 2018.
The company’s operating profit culminated into N286.3 billion as at September, a difference of N80.5 billion compared to N205.8 billion last year. This brought about a Profit Before Tax (PBT) of N212 billion despite recording a higher finance cost (equal to N92 billion) and lower finance income (N17.7 billion) compared to N171 billion recorded before tax despite its relative lower finance cost (N53.2 billion) and higher finance income (N18.4 billion)
MTN Nigeria paid a total of N63.7 billion in taxes as at September 2019 compared to N56 billion at the period under review in 2018.
The company which listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange earlier this year also disclosed that its earnings per share rose by 29 percent to N7.29k.
It will be recalled that in early September, Business Post reported that the telco suffered a set back in its operations as result of retaliatory xenophobic attacks on the company’s facilities across the country.
By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited recorded another milestone after it further closed higher by 1.18 per cent on Thursday amid renewed confidence in the market.
The All-Share Index (ASI) crossed the 170,000-point threshold during the session as it added 1,975.18 points to the preceding day’s 168,030.18 points to settle at 170,005.36 points.
Also yesterday, the market capitalisation of Customs Street was up by 1,268 trillion to N109.129 trillion from the N107.861 it ended a day earlier.
The growth recorded during the session was powered 55 equities, which outweighed the losses recorded by 19 other equities.
Guinea Insurance expanded by 10.00 per cent to N1.43, Seplat Energy grew by 10.00 per cent to N7,370.00, RT Briscoe increased by 9.95 per cent to N11.49, Neimeth chalked up 9.90 per cent to close at N11.10, and Zichis rose by 9.89 per cent to N6.11.
At the other side, Deap Capital lost 9.62 per cent to trade at N6.20, Universal Insurance slipped by 9.43 per cent to N1.44, Haldane McCall declined by 9.09 per cent to N4.00, Red Star Express went down by 9.04 per cent to N15.60, and UPDC depreciated by 7.02 per cent to N5.30.
Business Post reports that the energy index was up by 4.68 per cent, the industrial goods improved by 0.79 per cent, the banking space grew by 0.64 per cent, and the consumer goods sector soared by 0.11 per cent, while the insurance counter lost 0.31 per cent.
Yesterday, market participants traded 713.0 million stocks valued at N22.3 billion in 46,104 deals versus the 694.8 million stocks worth N20.6 billion transacted in 42,095 deals on Wednesday, showing a spike in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 2.62 per cent, 8.25 per cent, and 9.52 per cent, respectively.
Access Holdings sold 106.6 million shares valued at N2.5 billion, Chams transacted 44.5 million equities worth N201.3 million, Champion Breweries traded 44.5 million stocks for N774.3 million, Universal Insurance exchanged 34.8 million shares worth N53.6 million, and Deap Capital sold 22.7 million equities valued at N141.9 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira weakened against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Thursday, February 5, by N7.78 or 0.57 per cent to N1,366.06/$1 from the N1,358.28/$1 it was traded on Wednesday, according to data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The Nigerian currency also depreciated against the Euro in the same market segment yesterday by N5.92 to close at N1,611.95/€1 versus the preceding session’s closing price of N1,606.03/€1, but appreciated further against the Pound Sterling by N8.05 to N1,855.38/£1 from the previous day’s value of N1,863.43/£1.
The domestic currency’s exchange rate for international transactions on the GTBank Naira card was further strengthened after an N8 price appreciation on the greenback to settle at N1,375/$1 compared with the N1,383/$1 it was exchanged at midweek, and at the black market, it maintained stability at N1,450/$1.
The loss suffered by the Nigerian Naira in the official market appears to be an isolated event, as Nigeria’s gross external reserves rose to $46.80 billion as of February 4, 2026, from $46.70 billion a day earlier, underscoring improved capacity to meet foreign obligations and support market confidence.
The local currency has been able to find a solid path despite no indications of any intervention from the apex bank in recent week strengthening the case of price discovery.
As for the digital currency market, Bitcoin (BTC) tumbled more than 13 per cent over the past 24 hours, selling at $63,075.23, its steepest one-day decline since the FTX-driven crash in November 2022.
The sell-off extended beyond crypto, with silver plunging 15 per cent and gold sliding more than 2 per cent. US stocks also fell.
The latest downturn comes as investor confidence in crypto’s utility as a store of value, inflation hedge, and digital currency falters.
Ripple (XRP) plunged by 23.4 per cent to $1.15, Dogecoin (DOGE) went down by 14.2 per cent to $0.0879, Cardano (ADA) declined by 13.4 per cent to $0.2459, Binance Coin (BNB) slumped by 13.2 per cent to $606.83, Solana (SOL) dipped by 13.1 per cent to $78.70, Ethereum (ETH) crashed by 13.0 per cent to $1,841.67, and Litecoin (LTC) lost 13.1 per cent to trade at $50.70, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) were at $1.00 each.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Crude oil was down by almost 3 per cent on Thursday in choppy trading, after the US and Iran agreed to hold talks in Oman on Friday.
Brent crude futures depleted by $1.91 or 2.75 per cent to trade at $67.55 per barrel, and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures slumped by $1.85 or 2.84 per cent to $63.29 per barrel.
The US and Iran are set to hold nuclear talks in Oman today after President Donald Trump warned the country’s supreme leader should be “very worried.”
The high-stakes talks are scheduled to take place on Friday in the Omani capital, Muscat, and will involve Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and President Trump’s special envoy, Mr Steve Witkoff.
Tensions between the two countries have escalated sharply in recent weeks following a deadly crackdown by Iranian security forces on nationwide anti-government protesters. The crackdown prompted Trump to send a US military “armada” to the region and threaten to launch strikes.
Now, market analysts noted that the talks are being given the benefit of the doubt, but noted scepticism that any reasonable deal could be made with Iran.
The discussions come as the US builds up forces in the Middle East, and regional players seek to avoid a military confrontation that many fear could escalate into a wider war and impact the Strait of Hormuz.
About a fifth of the world’s total oil consumption passes through the Strait of Hormuz between Oman and Iran. Other OPEC members, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq, export most of their crude via the strait, as does Iran.
Strength in the US Dollar and volatility in precious metals also weighed on commodities and risk sentiment more broadly on Thursday. The greenback getting stronger makes oil expensive for holders of other currencies.
On the supply side, discounts on Russian oil exports to China widened to new records this week as sellers cut prices to attract demand from the world’s top crude importer and offset the likely loss of Indian sales. This week, a trade deal was announced between the US and India, which agreed to halt purchases of Russian crude.
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