Economy
Tinubu Insists Nigerian Economy Not in Distress, Calls for Patience
By Dipo Olowookere
President Bola Tinubu has emphasised that the Nigerian economy is not in distress as claimed by the opposition and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
On Monday, the IMF, which admitted that Mr Tinubu “inherited a difficult economic situation marked by low growth, low revenue collection, accelerating inflation, and external imbalances built up over years,” said the indices were showing a challenging outlook, especially when there is the possibility of subsidies on petrol and electricity could gulp up to 3 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2024.
But President Tinubu, at the Leadership Conference and Awards 2023, held at the Congress Hall of the Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, on Tuesday, March 5, 2024, disagreed that the Nigerian economy was in distress, explaining that, “Distress suggests helplessness, being at the mercy of something we have no control over. But that is not the case here.”
He stated that since he assumed office on May 29, 2023, his administration has made efforts to revamp the country’s economy.
“I have approved the disbursement of N200 billion through three new special intervention funds established to support Nigerian businesses.
“The first is a N50 billion Presidential Conditional Grant Scheme (PCGS) that will provide business grants and loans to traders, food vendors, transport workers, ICT businesses, creatives, and artisans; verification of all submitted applications is ongoing, and disbursements will commence through the Bank of Industry (BOI) as soon as this verification is completed.
“The second is a N75 billion FGN MSME Intervention Fund [that] will provide single-digit-interest loans to our MSMEs.
“The third is a N75 billion FGN Manufacturing Sector Fund targeting manufacturing businesses, with selected beneficiaries eligible to access up to N1 billion each,” he said through the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mr Mohammed Idris Malagi, who represented him at the event.
The award ceremony, which was attended by several personalities, including the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 general elections, Mr Peter Obi, was themed An Economy in Distress: Which Way Forward?
Speaking further, President Tinubu noted his efforts made the “Nigerian economy to record a better-than-anticipated performance in the last quarter of 2023, growing by 3.46 per cent (year-on-year) compared with 2.54 per cent in the preceding quarter.”
“Capital importation into Nigeria was up 66 per cent in Q4 2023, reversing a 36 per cent decline in the previous quarter [and] in In January 2024, the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited’s All-Share Index (ASI) crossed the 100,000 points mark, its highest ever,” he added.
He stated that his administration has been able to attract about $30 billion in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) commitments.
According to him, these offshore investments cut across the real sectors of the economy, including manufacturing, telecoms, healthcare, oil & gas, and others, adding that the investments have already started coming into the country.
“Just a few days ago, I was in Qatar on an official visit, where the Emir assured [me] that a senior government delegation would visit Nigeria after Ramadan, to begin taking action on some of the new investments they are looking at here.
“I have asked the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy (Mr Wale Edun) to directly interface with the Qatari authorities to ensure that speedy progress is made,” the President said.
“I ask for the continuing patience and support of all Nigerians, including the elites that are very well represented in this room today.
“To the Nigerian media, I urge you to strive to report not only the challenges but also the solutions and the opportunities as well.
“Ours is a story of a country that is taking the right steps, and feeling the fleeting pains that will come with this course of action. A glorious dawn is indeed assured,” he stated.
By Dipo Olowookere
About 0.04 per cent was recovered on Friday from the loss recorded by the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) the previous due to profit-taking.
Yesterday, investors were in the market with renewed vigour, mopping up stocks trading at relatively cheaper prices.
According to data, the insurance counter gained 0.41 per cent, the banking sector appreciated by 0.38 per cent, and the consumer goods index grew by 0.14 per cent.
The gains achieved by these three sectors were enough to lift Customs Street at the close of business despite the 0.26 per cent decline printed by the industrial goods segment and the 0.14 per cent loss suffered by the energy industry. The commodity counter was flat during the session.
A total of 43 equities gained weight on the last trading day of this week, while 26 equities shed weight, indicating a positive market breadth index and strong investor sentiment.
Red Star Express increased its share price by 10.00 per cent to N13.20, NCR Nigeria grew by 9.97 per cent to N128.55, SCOA Nigeria inflated by 9.96 per cent to N14.90, Omatek appreciated by 9.94 per cent to N1.77, and Deap Capital expanded by 9.85 per cent to N4.46.
On the flip side, McNichols decreased by 8.81 per cent to N6.00, Legend Internet crumbled by 7.56 per cent to N5.50, Cornerstone Insurance crashed by 6.48 per cent to N6.35, C&I Leasing contracted by 6.29 per cent to N8.20, and Austin Laz slipped by 5.78 per cent to N3.75.
Yesterday, 539.9 million shares valued at N16.7 billion were transacted in 48,023 deals versus the 1.0 billion shares worth N31.6 billion executed in 51,227 deals in the preceding day, implying a shrink in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 46.01 per cent, 47.15 per cent, and 6.26 per cent apiece.
Zenith Bank was the most active for the day with 54.6 million stocks sold for N3.8 billion, Jaiz Bank traded 41.5 million units worth N359.4 million, Secure Electronic Technology transacted 37.7 million units valued at N39.2 million, Access Holdings exchanged 30.5 million units for N699.2 million, and Lasaco Assurance transacted 27.2 million units worth N68.3 million.
When the market closed for the day, the All-Share Index (ASI) went up by 72.21 points to 166,129.50 points from 166,057.29 points and the market capitalisation gained N31 billion to N106.354 trillion from N106.323 trillion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was a positive ending for the Naira this week after it further appreciated against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Friday, January 16 by N1.33 or 0.09 per cent to sell for N1,417.95/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,419.28/$1.
The domestic currency also gained N2.41 against the Euro in the official market to close at N1,647.51/€1 versus the preceding session’s closing price of N1,649.92/€1, however, it suffered a N7.97 loss against the Pound Sterling in the same market window to trade at N1,901.32/£1, in contrast to Thursday’s closing price of N1,893.35/£1.
In the same vein, the Nigerian Naira depleted against the Dollar at the GTBank FX counter by N2 to quote at N1,427/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,425/$1, but strengthened against the greenback at the black market yesterday by N5 to settle at N1,485/$1 versus the N1,490/$1 it was exchanged a day earlier.
Improved supply conditions helped keep the market within range as exporters’ and importers’ inflows in addition to non-bank corporate supply enhanced liquidity as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) made no visible intervention.
Stronger external inflows from foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) and improving current account dynamics, continue to align with structural support in the wider economy.
Nigeria has seen projections of a stronger economic or gross domestic product (GDP) growth and lower inflation in 2026, with these forecasts citing improved macroeconomic fundamentals and reform impacts.
As for the cryptocurrency market, it was mixed following selloff in precious metals and lower US stocks appeared to be denting crypto sentiment.
Gold and silver, both of which also enjoyed big rallies earlier this week, tumbled 1.2 per cent and 5 per cent, respectively while key US stock indexes — the Nasdaq, S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average — all reversed from early gains to modest losses in Friday trade.
Dogecoin (DOGE) shrank by 2.2 per cent to $0.1370, Ripple (XRP) slipped by 0.8 per cent to $2.05, Ethereum (ETH) went down by 0.7 per cent to $3,228.56, and Bitcoin (BTC) slumped by 0.6 per cent to $95,086.80.
Conversely, Litecoin (LTC) appreciated by 3.2 per cent to $74.48, Solana (SOL) rose by 0.4 per cent to $143.70, Cardano (ADA) jumped by 0.2 per cent to $0.3942, and Binance Coin (BNB) increased by 0.1 per cent to $935.88, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 each.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Oil prices settled higher amid lingering worries about a possible US military strike against Iran, a decision that may still occur over the weekend.
Brent crude settled at $64.13 a barrel after going up by 37 cents or 0.58 per cent and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude finished at $59.44 a barrel after it gained 25 cents or 0.42 per cent.
The US Navy’s aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln was expected to arrive in the Persian Gulf next week after operating in the South China Sea.
Market analysts noted that it doesn’t seem likely anything will happen soon. However, the weekends have become the perfect time for actions so as not offset the markets.
The market had risen after protests flared up in Iran and US President Donald Trump signalled the potential for military strikes, but lost over 4 per cent on Thursday as the American president said Iran’s crackdown on the protesters was easing, allaying concerns of possible military action that could disrupt oil supplies.
Iran produces approximately 3.2 million barrels per day, accounting for roughly 4 per cent of global crude production, so it was not a coincidence that markets rallied sharply through Tuesday and Wednesday as President Trump canceled meetings with Iranian officials and posted that “help is on its way” to Iranian protesters, raising fears of potential US military strikes that sent prices surging toward multi-month highs.
Weighing against those fears are potential supply increases from Venezuela.
The Trump administration is exploring plans to swap heavy Venezuelan crude for US medium sour barrels that can actually go straight into Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) caverns, since not all all oil belongs in the reserve.
According to Reuters, the Department of Energy is considering moving Venezuelan heavy crude into commercial storage at the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port, while US producers deliver medium sour crude into the SPR in exchange.
Analysts expect higher supply this year, potentially creating a ceiling for the geopolitical risk premium on prices.
Some investors covered short positions ahead of the three-day Martin Luther King holiday weekend in the US.
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