Business

Naira records marginal gain at N1,450 to dollar

Published

10 months ago

February 2, 2024

Trends Admin

Naira records marginal gain at N1,450 to dollar

The naira on Thursday made a marginal gain against the dollar, closing at N1,450 at the parallel market.

The rate represents N70 gain from N1,520 to dollar it closed on Wednesday.

Although the local currency was trading at N1,400 to dollar in the morning hours, it went back to N1,450 at the close of business.

A BDC trader in Central Lagos said the naira was trading at N1,400 to dollar around 12 noon, but was surprised as buying rates later surged, as many dealers moved to cut losses.

The Aboki Forex website kept the dollar buying rate at N1,450 to dollar and N1,500 to dollar for selling rate.

Meanwhile, bank customers resident in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have decried the continuous fall of the naira to the dollar.

According to them, their purchasing power has reduced drastically.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that one dollar to Naira exchange rate at the parallel market is between N1,440 and N1,500 while the official rate is N1,356.

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Some of the customers who spoke in Abuja yesterday, appealed to the Federal Government and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to urgently evolve measures to address the situation.

They also lamented that the situation had inflicted untold hardship and had reduced their standard of living, saying the development had also negatively affected all sectors of the economy.

A bank customer with Access Bank, Mrs Irene Igunmado, said the fall of the naira had reduced the purchasing power as the prices of goods and services had skyrocketed.

Igunmado also said the increase in the prices of food items had made her family to reduce their standard of living.

”Nobody tells anyone in Nigeria about the situation now. Even my little children understand that times are hard.

”This naira fall is worsening the situation because when you go to the market and ask traders why the prices of everything have increased, they will tell you it’s because of the dollar.

”Companies are closing down, relocating to other places. This is not the ‘renewed hope’ that the present government promised us,” she said.

Mrs Victoria Emeka, a bank customer with Guaranty Trust Bank, said although the food monthly allowances for her family had increased, it could not cater for their needs.

”Every month, my husband usually give me N30,000 to buy food items that will last us for the month because I have a permanent list that I use.

”Now, although he has increased the amount to N60k but the money will still not buy half of the things in the list which was usually purchased entirely with N30k. The government needs to do something urgently,” she said.

Mr Franklin Ogunleye, a bank customer with First Bank Plc, said the naira fall was the reason for the relocation of many Nigerians to other countries.

Ogunleye said he was feeling the heat of the naira fall as he was sending money to his family abroad, who just relocated recently and were yet to fully stabilise and get a job.

”This Naira fall is biting me so hard because my business is about to collapse.

”I relocated my family to the United Kingdom (UK) in 2023 and every month, I change money and send to them.

”Sometimes, I change as much as two million naira but it will still not be enough for them because of the exchange rate.

”I am thinking seriously of leaving this country to join them so that I can reduce this untold hardship,” he said.

A banker who preferred anonymity told NAN that banks would always strive to reduce the hardship faced by customers due to the scarcity and fall of the Naira.

The CBN on Jan. 31, ordered Deposit Money Banks to sell their excess dollar stock latest February 1.

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The CBN also warned lenders against hoarding excess foreign currencies for profit.

It would be recalled that Bureau De Change (BDC) operators in Abuja had shut down operations due to scarcity of the dollar.

The CBN removed the cap on the allowable limit of -2.5 percent to +2.5 percent around the previous day’s closing rate for the International Money Transfer Operators (IMTOs). This adjustment signifies a shift in the regulatory framework, providing IMTOs with more flexibility in determining exchange rates.

This comes after the banking and financial institutions regulator on Wednesday announced limits on how much banks can hold in foreign currencies and expressed concern about the growth of forex exposures on their balance sheets after the local currency tumbled against the U.S. dollar.

Naira is the cheapest and best value of any in Africa, or any of the emerging or frontier markets – according to FIM Partners currency model.

In a new circular (TED/FEM/FPC/GEN/001/003) dated January 31, 2024, the CBN announced a significant change in the regulations governing exchange rate quotes by International Money Transfer Operators.

Previously, IMTOs were required to quote rates within an allowable limit of -2.5 percent to +2.5 percent around the previous day’s closing rate of the Nigerian foreign exchange market, according to the circular TED/FEM/PUB/FPC/001/009 dated September 13, last year.

All Authorized dealers, International Money Transfer Operators, and the general public are advised to take note of this development and ensure compliance with the revised regulations. The CBN’s decision reflects ongoing efforts to adapt and enhance the dynamics of the Nigerian foreign exchange market, the circular stated.

“The reason for the removal of the cap is to incentivize the IMTOs to transparently transfer their receipt into the country,” Aminu Gwadabe, president of Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), said.

Naira records marginal gain at N1,450 to dollar

Aviation

Disaster averted as bird strike hits Abuja-Lagos Air Peace flight

Published

5 hours ago

November 14, 2024

Trends Admin

Disaster averted as bird strike hits Abuja-Lagos Air Peace flight

An Abuja-Lagos flight was on Thursday aborted following a bird strike on the airplane belonging to Air Peace, forcing the authorities to ground the aircraft.

The bird strike experienced in the early hours reportedly prompted a ramp return to ensure the safety of passengers onboard.

All the passengers quickly disembarked and were calmed down before they were moved into another plane for the one-hour journey.

A bird strike is a collision between a bird and an aircraft, or other airborne animal, while the aircraft is in flight, taking off, or landing. And it can be a significant threat to aircraft safety.

Air Peace in a statement by its Head of Corporate Communications, Ejike Ndiulo, said the bird strike occurred at 6:30am, and all passengers disembarked normally.

The statement read, “We wish to inform our esteemed passengers that our Abuja- Lagos 06:30 flight experienced a bird strike before take-off, prompting a ramp return as a safety measure. All passengers disembarked normally.

“We have deployed a replacement aircraft for the affected flight in order to minimize disruptions, thus ensuring that passengers continue their journeys promptly.

“We appeal for the understanding of our valued passengers impacted by this development, as well as those on other flights that may experience delays.

“At Air Peace, we are committed to providing safe, comfortable, and reliable air travel for all our passengers.”

Business

NNPC achieves 1.8mbpd crude oil production

Published

5 hours ago

November 14, 2024

Trends Admin

NNPC achieves 1.8mbpd crude oil production

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) and its partners have revved up crude oil and gas production to 1.8million barrels per day (mbpd) and 7.4standard cubic feet per day (scfd).

The company which announced this at a press briefing said the feat was achieved in compliance with the mandate of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Speaking on the development, the Group Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Mele Kyari, congratulated the Production War Room Team that anchored the production recovery process.

“The team has done a great job in driving this project of not just production recovery but also escalating production to expected levels that are in the short and long terms acceptable to our shareholders based on the mandates that we
have from the President, the Honourable Minister, and the Board,” Kyari explained.

Giving details of the efforts of the Production War Room, the Chief War Room Coordinator and Senior Business Adviser to the Group Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Lawal Musa, disclosed that the feat was achieved through the collaborative efforts of Joint Venture and Production Sharing Contract partners, the Office of the National Security Adviser, as well as government and private security agencies.

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He said the interventions that led to the recovery of production cut across every segment of the production chain with security agencies closely monitoring the pipelines.
He stressed that when the Production War Room team was inaugurated on 25th June 2024, production was at 1.430mbpd, but the team swung into action, culminating into sustaining the production recovery to 1.7mbpd in August and hitting the current 1.808mbpd in November.
“We are confident that with this same momentum and with the active collaboration of all stakeholders, especially on the security front, we can see the possibility of getting to 2mbpd by the end of the year,” he stated.
Also speaking on the development, Chairman of the NNPC Ltd Board of Directors, Chief Pius Akinyelure, who also congratulated the team, said he was happy to be part of the production recovery process, adding: “today, I will leave this place with my heart full of joy”.

He charged the Company’s Management to come up with a cashflow projection based on the new production figures to facilitate planning, stressing that he was looking forward to further production increase to 3mbpd.

On his part, the Honourable Minister of State for Petroleum (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, expressed satisfaction with the performance of the team and pledged the Federal Government’s support for the company to do more.

NNPC achieves 1.8mbpd crude oil production

Business

FG gets fresh $134m loan from AfDB for agric projects

Published

5 hours ago

November 14, 2024

Trends Admin

FG gets fresh $134m loan from AfDB for agric projects

The Federal Government has secured a loan facility of $134million from the African Development Bank (AfDB) to help farmers boost seeds and grain production in the country.

This is contained in a statement issued by Anthonia Eremah, Chief Information Officer, Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, on Thursday, in Abuja.

Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Sen. Abubakar Kyari, made his know at the unveiling of the 2024/2025 National Dry Season Farming in Calabar, Cross River State capital.

Kyari explained that with the re-introduction of the national dry season farming to boost year-round agricultural production, the loan would be handy and guarantee national food security in the country.

The minister said the initiative is under the National Agricultural Growth Support Scheme-Agro Pocket (NAGS-AP) Project.

He said the federal government had declared an emergency on food production to enable all Nigerians to get easy access to quality and nutritional food at affordable rates.

Kyari also said government wants to use the agricultural sector for national economic revival through increase in production of some staple food crops such as wheat, rice, maize, sorghum, soybean, and cassava during both dry and wet season farming.

He added that 107,429 wheat farmers were supported under phase 1 of the 2023/2024 dry season, and 43,997 rice farmers under the second phase of the 2023/2024 dry season.

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The minister said recently, government supported 192,095 rice, maize, sorghum/millet, soyabean and cassava farmers under the 2024 wet season across the 37 States including the FCT.

He said Cross River was leading 16 other states in wheat production, adding that over 3000 wheat farmers have been listed to benefit from the support to grow the grain.

Kyari noted the Cross River government’s commitment to wheat production.

He said it informed why the federal government is partnering with the state to kick start the maiden wheat production and enlisting them among states commencing the current 2024/2025 dry season farming.

“The 2024/2025 dry season farming, the project is targeted to support 250,000 wheat farmers across the wheat-producing states with subsidised agricultural inputs.

“This is to cultivate about 250,000 hectares with an expected output of about 750,000 metric tonnes of wheat to be added to the food reserve to reduce dependence on importation of the product and also increase domestic consumption.

“Equally the programme will provide support to 150,000 rice farmers under the second phase to cover all the 37 states, including FCT, with an expected output of about 450,000 metric tonnes,” he said.