Business
WTO: US again rejects Okojo-Iweala, wants DG race reopened
The United States has not backed down on its desire to have another candidate different from Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as director-general of the World Trade Organisation.
It has suggested that the process to find a new director-general of the WTO should be reopened, according to BBC.
Donald Trump’s trade representative Robert Lighthizer told the BBC that the WTO needed “someone with real experience in trade”.
Despite widespread support from 110 out of 164 member countries of WTO, the US is doubling down on its rejection of Ms Okonjo-Iweala, a former Nigerian minister of finance and former managing director (MD) of the World Bank.
The WTO operates based on consensus, that is, if one country opposes a candidate, a final decision cannot be made.
Robert Lighthizer’s remarks to the BBC confirm that there is no way the Trump administration will be persuaded to back the Nigerian ex-finance minister in its remaining weeks in office.
He said the WTO is “massively in need of reform”, especially its dispute-resolving appellate body, which according to him, has evolved into a body creating a common law of trade, “taking away benefits” that members had negotiated for ” and putting restraint on things that had been conceded”.
The appellate body of the WTO has been rendered inactive by Donald Trump’s administration vetoing the appointment of new judges.
“I think there’s a consensus developing at the WTO that we need the appellate body reform,” Lightizer said.
“We need to start negotiating again, we need to start making headway. So I’m glad you brought up the WTO, it’s been clearly a focus for us and to us its an organisation that started off as a good idea and basically isn’t functioning very well, but I think that can be sorted out also.”
The impasse at the WTO comes at a sensitive time for global trade, which has suffered because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on her part has insisted she is the right person for the job and has the right experience with both trade and delivering reform. Her spokesperson told the BBC: “Dr Okonjo-Iweala looks forward to engaging with the Biden administration and is hopeful that final consensus can soon be reached. The WTO urgently needs to get to work at this time of global crisis.”
Business
90 million litres stuck as NNPCL shuts petrol purchasing portal – Marketers
90 million litres stuck as NNPCL shuts petrol purchasing portal – Marketers
Oil marketers have raised concerns about a potential fuel scarcity following the shutdown of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) petrol purchasing portal.
The shutdown has prevented dealers from placing new orders for fuel, leading to supply disruptions.
According to marketers, over 90 million litres of petrol, worth approximately N79 billion, are pending delivery from NNPCL.
The National Publicity Secretary of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Chinedu Ukadike, confirmed that while marketers can still load fuel, they cannot access the portal to check prices or make new purchases.
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Ukadike stated that there are currently over 2,000 pending tickets for 45,000-litre petrol trucks, which amounts to a significant volume of fuel awaiting supply. He warned that the continued closure of the portal could result in another wave of fuel shortages across the country.
Other marketers, speaking anonymously, echoed concerns that the portal’s shutdown is already causing fuel shortages.
One marketer mentioned, “Everyone is affected because we all go to the NNPC portal to place our orders, and when the portal is inaccessible, supply is disrupted.”
As of now, there has been no official response from NNPCL spokesperson Olufemi Soneye regarding the situation. However, some marketers believe the portal was shut down temporarily to resolve backlogs of pending orders.
90 million litres stuck as NNPCL shuts petrol purchasing portal – Marketers
Business
Naira appreciates to N1,685 in parallel market
Naira appreciates to N1,685 in parallel market
The Naira yesterday appreciated to N1,685 per dollar in the parallel market from N1,700 per dollar on Monday.
Similarly, the Naira appreciated to N1,659.26 per dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market, NAFEM.
Data from FMDQ showed that the indicative exchange rate for NAFEM fell to N1,659.26 per dollar from N1,669.15 per dollar on Wednesday, indicating N9.89 appreciation for the naira.
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The volume of dollars traded (turnover) in the official market increased sharply by 155.2 percent to $450.39 million from $176.45 million traded on Wednesday.
Consequently, the margin between the parallel market and NAFEM rate narrowed to N25.74 per dollar from N30.85 per dollar on Wednesday.
Naira appreciates to N1,685 in parallel market
Business
Naira records marginal appreciation, exchanges for N1,700/$
Naira records marginal appreciation, exchanges for N1,700/$
The Naira yesterday appreciated to N1,700 per dollar in the parallel market from N1,705 per dollar on Monday.
Similarly, the Naira depreciated to N1,669.15 per dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market, NAFEM.
Data from FMDQ showed that the indicative exchange rate for NAFEM fell to N1,669.15 per dollar from N1,541.94 per dollar on Monday, indicating N127.2 appreciation for the Naira.
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The volume of dollars traded (turnover) in the official market declined by 2.97 percent to $176.45 million from $181.86 million traded on Monday. Consequently, the margin between the parallel market and NAFEM rate narrowed to N30.85 per dollar from N163.06 per dollar on Monday.
Naira records marginal appreciation, exchanges for N1,700/$
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