On Monday, the naira depreciated at the official market, trading at N1,690.37 against the dollar.

Data from the official trading platform of the FMDQ Exchange revealed that the naira lost N38.12.

This represents a 2.3 per cent loss compared to the November 15 trading date when it exchanged at N1,652.25 a dollar.

Also, the daily turnover was reduced to $173.14 million on Monday, down from $296.63 million recorded on Friday.

At the Investor’s and Exporter’s (I&E) window, the naira traded between N1,699.00 and N1,633.52 against the dollar.

On Friday, the naira slightly depreciated at the official market, trading at N1,652.25 against the dollar. Data from the official trading platform of the FMDQ Exchange revealed that the naira lost N2.05.

This represents a 0.12 per cent loss compared to Thursday’s trading, when it exchanged at N1,650.20 to a dollar. However, the daily turnover increased to $296.63 million on Friday, up from the $214.73 million recorded on Thursday.

At the Investor’s and Exporter’s (I&E) window, the naira traded between N1,699.00 and N1,620.00 against the dollar.

The World Bank has uncovered $32 million in unaccounted funds in Nigeria’s water project.

This was disclosed in the banks’ recently released FY2024 Sanctions System Annual Report.

The report showed that the missing funds were intended to bolster water infrastructure in Nigeria but were not adequately accounted for, prompting an intervention to safeguard the project’s integrity.

“INT followed up on risks identified regarding a project in Nigeria’s water sector and flagged to operations the risk, which was associated with $32 million of unaccounted funds.”

In a move to recover the fund, the World Bank engaged with the project team, including Nigeria’s task team leader, operations manager, and financial management specialist.

As a recommendation, the Central Bank of Nigeria has asked to reimburse $22 million, while $6 million remains in the project account to cover anticipated operational expenses.

There are indications of a looming debt crisis as Nigeria’s external debt may rise to $45.1 billion by the end of 2024, with the Federal Government planning to secure additional external funding.

This follows a report from the Debt Management Office (DMO), which revealed that the country’s external debt stock increased by $780 million in the second quarter of 2024, growing from $42.12 billion in March to $42.9 billion by June 2024.

Last Thursday, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved a $2.2 billion external borrowing plan as part of the Federal Government’s 2024 Appropriation Act financing programme.

Speaking on the fresh borrowing plan, the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, during a briefing after the FEC meeting, stated that it comprises Eurobond and Sukuk offerings, valued at $1.7 billion and $500 million, respectively.

He added that Nigeria’s ability to access the international capital market indicates acceptance and support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s economic reforms.

With the additional borrowing plan of $2.2 billion, the country’s external debt is projected to reach $45.1 billion by the end of 2024.

However, the borrowing plans come at a time when Nigeria spent $3.58 billion servicing its foreign debt in the first nine months of 2024, a 39.77 percent increase from the $2.56 billion spent during the same period in 2023, according to data from the Central Bank of Nigeria.

Recall that the DMO reported in October 2024 that Nigeria’s total debt stock had risen to N134.3 trillion by the end of June 2024.

Reacting to the rising debt profile, the Director of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), Muda Yusuf, criticized the increasing debt burden, citing insufficient revenue capacity and ongoing infrastructural deficits as major concerns.

The Nigeria Labour Congress has accused Dangote Group and oil marketers of ganging up to rip Nigerians off in the Premium Motor Spirit (Petrol) pricing.

NLC disclosed this in a communiqué on Sunday after its National Executive Council Meeting held on Friday.

The Union noted that the current price of petrol, which stood between N1060 and N1,200 per litre, is higher than the market value.

According to the NLC, the high petrol price in Nigeria is an indication of the prevalence of cost padding and abnormal margins in the country’s oil and gas sector at the detriment of Nigerians.

The Union called on the Nigerian government to immediately activate the Port Harcourt refinery takeoff and other government-owned refineries.

“The NEC-in-session noted with increasing dismay the shenanigans around the appropriate pricing of petrol (PMS) in Nigeria.

“It was observed that there may be a gang-up against Nigerians by fat cats in the industry as the current price of the product
is significantly higher than the real market price.

“Padding of costs and abnormal margins seems to be the order of the day considering the revelations from the
ongoing controversy between Marketers and Dangote Group.

“It is entirely possible that Nigerian workers and masses are being ripped off by those who control the levers of economic power in Nigeria, which explains why the domestic public refineries may not immediately be allowed to come on stream.

“NLC demands appropriate pricing of petrol and calls for the public domestic refineries in PH, Warri, and Kaduna to quickly come back on stream to break up the monopolistic stranglehold the big players have on the industry,” NLC stated.

Recall that in the past days, Petroleum marketers and Dangote Refinery have been enmeshed in controversy over petrol pricing.

Dangote Group had announced that its petrol was sold at N960 and N990 per litre.

However, Petroleum Marketers had insisted that imported petrol is cheaper than Dangote Petrol.

But Dangote Refinery accused petrol marketers of importing cheap and substandard fuel, which was denied.

Recent data from the Major Energies Marketers Association showed that the landing cost of imported petrol stood at N971 per liter.

Japan stepped into the foreign exchange market on July 11 and 12 this year, spending a total of ¥5.53 trillion (about $36 billion) to prop up the yen.

This is after it had weakened to around a 38-year low against the U.S. dollar, the Finance Ministry said on Friday.

According to the ministry’s quarterly data, Japanese authorities spent ¥3.17 trillion on July 11 and 2.37 trillion on July 12 in the dollar-selling and yen-buying operation.

This is bringing the total spent on currency interventions this year to ¥15.32 trillion.

The Finance Ministry had previously revealed it spent the amount during the period from June 27 through July 29 without releasing daily breakdowns.

The data confirmed the belief that Japanese authorities had intervened in the currency market.

Over those two days in July, the yen rebounded to as high as 157.30 against the U.S. dollar from as low as 161.76.

On April 29, when the U.S. currency briefly climbed to ¥160.24, its highest level in 34 years, the Japanese government and the Bank of Japan spent some ¥9.8 trillion at the end of April.

Early May slowed the yen’s rapid fall, official data showed. ($1 dollar equals ¥152.96 Japanese).

The Naira recorded its first appreciation against the dollar at the foreign exchange market since Friday last week as FX supply increased.

FMDQ data showed that the Naira strengthened to N1,601.20 per dollar on Thursday from N1,654.09 exchanged on Wednesday.

This represents a significant N52.89 gain against the dollar compared to the N1,654.09 exchange rate the previous day.

Meanwhile, at the black market, the Naira dropped to N1,735 per dollar on Thursday from N1,730 traded on Wednesday.

The development comes as FX transaction turnover increased to $230.99 million on Thursday from $136.68 million the previous day.

Since Monday this week, the Naira had dropped at least N52 per dollar at the official market.

The Nigerian Naira is among the worst-performing currencies in sub-Sahara Africa at the end of August 2024.

The World Bank disclosed this in its latest edition of Africa’s Pulse report.

Report showed that the Naira is at par with the Ethiopian Birr, and South Sudanese Pound in terms of decline in the region.

The report blamed the continued increase in the demand for dollars and limited dollar inflow for Naira depreciation in the last months.

According to the report, the Naira lost about 43 percent as of August.

“By August 2024, the Ethiopian birr, Nigerian naira, and South Sudanese pound were among the worst performers in the region.

“The Nigerian naira continued losing value, with a year-to-date depreciation of about 43 percent as of end-August.

“Surges in demand for US dollars in the parallel market, driven by financial institutions, money managers, and non-financial end-users, combined with limited dollar inflows and slow foreign exchange disbursements to currency exchange bureaus by the central bank explain the weakening of the naira,” it said.

The Naira weakened significantly on Tuesday to N1658.97 per dollar from N1552.92 exchanged on Monday.

In the past months, the Naira has continued to fluctuate against the dollar in the foreign exchange market despite interventions by the Central Bank of Nigeria.

Nigeria’s inflation rose to 32.70 percent in September from 32.15 percent recorded in August 2024.

Despite this, the World Bank’s Economic growth in Nigeria is projected at 3.3 percent in 2024 and 3.6 percent in 2025–26.

The Naira at the close of workday Monday, October 14 appreciated to N1,680 per dollar in the parallel market compared to N1,690 per dollar over the weekend.

Following the same vein, the Naira appreciated to N1,552.92 per dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market, NAFEM as data from FMDQ showed that the indicative exchange rate for NAFEM fell to N1,552.92 per dollar from N1,641.27 per dollar last weekend, indicating a massive N88.35 appreciation for the naira.

This happened even as the volume of dollars traded (turnover) in the official market declined by 44 percent to $343.71 million from $616.73 million traded last week Friday.

The price of Liquefied Petroleum Gas, also known as cooking gas, has increased to N1,500/kg.

According to the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of NIPCO Plc, Suresh Kumar,
over 60 per cent of cooking gas consumed in Nigeria is being imported therefore the emergence of
Dangote refinery and other domestic refineries would bring down the price of cooking gas .

However, on Sunday, October 14, the prices of cooking gas peaked at N1,500/kg in retail outlets in Ogun and Lagos States while in Abuja, the average price for refilling a 12.5kg cylinder of cooking gas has increased by 41.6 per cent to N17,000 in different areas.

This sharp price rise has implications for consumers, many of whom rely on LPG for their daily cooking needs.

Speaking at the just-concluded National Conference of the Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers 2024, held in Lagos, Kumar, revealed that local production of LPG remains inadequate, urging the Federal Government to encourage Chevron to convert more of its propane output into butane.

“Currently, less than 40 per cent of the 1.5 million metric tonnes consumed domestically is produced locally. This is why the government must encourage companies like Chevron to convert more of their propane output into butane, which is more suitable for domestic use,” he explained.

“With the Dangote refinery and other refineries now sourcing crude oil in local currency, the volume of LPG produced locally is expected to increase, which will, in turn, drive down the price of the commodity,” the MD explained.

He added, “There is hope that the reliance on imported LPG will decrease, which will positively influence the prices at which the product is sold domestically. Greater local production will make LPG more affordable since it reduces exposure to foreign exchange fluctuations and international pricing dynamics.”

The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Joe Ajaero, has queried the decision of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, to decide the fuel pricing for Dangote Refinery.

Ajaero remarked while condemning NNPCL for increasing the pump price of fuel.

NNPCL had increased the retail price of petrol to N1,030 from N897 per litre in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT.

Speaking in Abuja on Wednesday, Ajaero said: “As we are sitting down here, they have gone to increase the pump price of petroleum again. Now what do you do in such instances?

“They expect us to buy it. Even, things we have been asking for; CNG as an alternative; for more than one year, we have been asking for the commencement of work at the Port Harcourt refinery; we had an agreement to that effect—NLC, TUC, and the federal government.

“We have heard that Dangote Refinery is producing locally and prices are going up. All the indices they gave to us about the need to deregulate have proven negative. You are fixing prices as a private company.

“As far as I’m concerned, except something has happened to CAC, NNPCL is now a private company. Can that same NNPCL dictate the price for Dangote and other private companies? Those are issues, those are questions begging for answers.”

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, has again jerked up the pump price of the Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, also known as petrol to N1,030 per litre.

The development was observed by our correspondent at some NNPCL outlets in Abuja on Wednesday.

The recent development came after the NNPCL decided to terminate its exclusive purchase agreement with Dangote Refinery.

This means the NNPCL will no longer be the sole off-taker, and marketers can now negotiate prices directly with Dangote Refinery.

In the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, the product was previously sold for N897 per liter.

Our correspondent further gathered that in Lagos, fuel which previously sold for N885 per litre, is now being sold at N998 amid long queues.

The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Olayemi Cardoso, has defended the bank’s decision to raise the Monetary Policy Rate to 27.25 per cent, describing it as a necessary move to control inflation and curb excess money in circulation.

This is according to a press statement from the apex bank on Sunday.

Speaking during an address at the Harvard Club of Nigeria over the weekend, Cardoso emphasised that the rate hike, while tough on borrowers, is crucial for the country’s economic stability.

“Our decision to raise the Monetary Policy Rate to 27.25 per cent was a bold move. Higher interest rates, while painful for borrowers, are necessary to curb excess money in circulation and control inflation. Leadership is about making hard choices to secure long-term stability over short-term comfort in moments like these,” Cardoso said.

He noted that the CBN’s focus on core objectives, such as containing inflation, restoring credibility, and building public trust in the financial system, is critical to any meaningful recovery.

Cardoso’s remarks came as he reflected on his tenure as the head of the CBN, marking one year in office. He pointed out that trust is at the core of central banking, and without it, the effectiveness of the bank’s policies would diminish.

The CBN governor also said the introduction of the Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System is a key initiative to enhance transparency and restore market confidence.

“Trust is the currency of central banking. If the public loses trust in the institution, the efficacy of its policies diminishes. Our decision to implement the Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System is rooted in this understanding.

“By enhancing transparency and providing more accurate oversight of forex transactions, we send a strong signal that the CBN is serious about fair and efficient markets,” he said.

Cardoso also revisited the bank’s controversial decision to float the naira, a move that was met with public criticism.

He explained that the decision was necessary to bring the official exchange rate closer to market reality and reduce speculative trading.

He asserted that the move had started stabilising the currency markets and reducing speculative trading.

While the CBN has yet to fully achieve its inflation targets, Cardoso expressed optimism, citing recent reports from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), which showed inflation had begun to decline in July and August 2024.

He acknowledged that the bank’s policies are gradually steering the economy in the right direction, though challenges remain.

The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, has asserted that electricity prices in Nigeria are the lowest compared to other African countries. Adelabu made this statement on Thursday, October 3, during a meeting with the Secretary of the Lottery Trust Fund, Tosin Adeyanju, at his office in Abuja.

In his remarks, Adelabu emphasized that Nigeria, along with the rest of the world, are currently facing two critical challenges: food security and energy security. He stated, “All over the world today, we are faced with two basic issues and these are food and energy securities.”

Highlighting the price of electricity in Nigeria, he remarked, “It is worth noting that the price of electricity is still the cheapest in Nigeria compared to even other African nations.”

Adelabu urged Nigerians to be patient, assuring them that the government is committed to their welfare. “If Nigerians are patient, they will realize that the government means well for them,” he added.

The Nigerian government through the Bank of Industry, BoI, said it disbursed loans amounting to N77.65 billion to businesses especially medium, small and micro-enterprises, MSMEs, in the last nine months of 2024.

The Managing Director of BoI, Olasupo Olusi, disclosed this at an event held on Wednesday in Abuja.

He revealed that the loans were given to MSMEs across the country.

He stressed that MSMEs remained the bedrock of Nigeria’s economy.

According to him: “MSMEs which represent 90 per cent of all businesses, contribute 80 per cent to employment and 50 per cent to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product.

“So far this year, the bank has supported MSMEs across the country through the disbursement of loans totaling about N77.65bn. These loans were given to almost 1,000 MSMEs across the country to enable them to boost their operations. Those who have benefitted through several of our financing facilities range from the local palm kernel oil processor in the east to the woman with a printing press in the north and a local furniture maker in the south, amongst others.”

This comes as the majority of Nigerians grapple with economic hardship occasioned by high inflation which stood at 32.15 per cent in August 2024.

The import of Automotive Gas Oil (Diesel) into Nigeria increased by 22.66 percent to 4.94 billion liters in 2023 from 4 billion liters in 2022.

The National Bureau of Statistics disclosed this in its latest Petroleum Products Distribution Data released recently.

The data also showed that 109.39 million liters of Diesel were locally produced in 2023, compared to 102.47 million liters reported in 2022.

This represents a 6.76 percent growth rate in locally produced diesel in Nigeria.

Comparatively, Nigeria heavily depends on the import of diesel to meet its consumption demand based on the NBS data for 2023.

On the other hand, the Data also showed that the import of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) dropped 13.77 percent to 20.30 billion liters in 2023 compared to 23.54 billion liters in 2022.

Recall that in April 2024, Dangote Refinery commenced the domestic sale of diesel in Nigeria.

The naira depreciated slightly against the dollar at the foreign exchange market ahead of Nigeria’s 64th Independence Day holiday on Tuesday.

FMDQ data showed that the naira closed at N1541.94 per dollar on Monday from N1540.78 exchanged on Friday last week, losing N1.16.

Meanwhile, the naira remained flat and unchanged at N1700 per dollar exchange recorded at the black market last Friday.

This comes as foreign exchange transaction turnover dropped further to $181.86 million on Monday from $213.3 million recorded on Friday, according to FMDQ data.

In the last two days of last week, the naira gained N126 against the dollar at the official FX market.

The World Bank has approved three operations for a total of $1.57bn to support Nigeria in strengthening human capital through better health for women, children, and adolescents and preventing the effects of climate change by improving dam safety and irrigation.

The new fund includes $500m for addressing governance issues that constrain the delivery of education and health (HOPE-GOV), $570m for the Primary Healthcare Provision Strengthening Program (HOPE-PHC) and $500m for the Sustainable Power and Irrigation for Nigeria Project (SPIN).

In support of FG’s newly launched reforms in the health sector, the World Bank said under the Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative, the HOPE-PHC project will improve the quality and utilisation of core reproductive, maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent health and nutrition services to substantially reduce maternal and under-five mortality and to improve the resilience of the health system— benefiting 40 million people, especially vulnerable populations.

The project is financed by a concessional $500m International Development Association (IDA) credit and an additional $70m in grant financing from the Global Financing Facility for Women, Children and Adolescents (GFF).

“Effective investment in the health and education of Nigerians today is central to increasing their future employment opportunities, productivity, and earnings while reducing poverty of the most vulnerable. This new financing for human capital and primary healthcare will help to address the complex difficulties faced by Nigerians, especially women and girls around access and quality of services, but also the governance arrangements that also explain these difficulties” said Dr. Ndiamé Diop, the World Bank Country Director for Nigeria.

“The SPIN program is timely and will protect Nigerians from floods and droughts in the areas where it will be implemented while enabling an increase in hydropower generation. The direct positive impact of this project on people and livelihoods is enormous, The World Bank is pleased to work with the government and other stakeholders to deliver this program,” Diop added.

Olayemi Cardoso, Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said that multiple interest rate hikes have restored confidence in the naira.

Speaking at a press conference after the monetary policy committee’s (MPC) 297th meeting in Abuja, Cardoso highlighted how the consecutive interest rate hikes encouraged people to view the currency differently.

“There was a situation where exchange rate was really running at an incredible pace and people were beginning to lose confidence in the currency,” Cardoso stated. “We believe that these multiple hikes have helped for people to now begin to take a different look at their currency, and there is a greater incentive to hold naira as opposed to a situation that we had before where this was not the case.”

The MPC has raised the monetary policy rate (MPR) from 22.75 percent in February to 27.25 percent in September this year, a move aimed at moderating inflation and stabilizing the naira.

Nigeria’s external reserves, which represent the country’s stock of foreign currency, have reached a 22-month high of $37.39 billion as of September 19, 2024.

Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) revealed that as of September 19, 2024, the reserves hit the highest level since November 4, 2022, when it stood at $37.36 billion.

On a year-to-date basis, the country’s external reserves rose by $4.37 billion from $33.02 billion recorded at the start of the year on January 2, 2024.

The development showed a recovery in Nigeria’s foreign currency position in the period under review.

This comes as the Naira stood at N1544.02 and N1663 per dollar at both official and parallel foreign exchange markets last Friday.

The Central Bank of Nigeria will during the 297th Monetary Policy Committee on Monday and Tuesday decide on whether to continue interest rate hikes or pause.