BUSINESS ROUNDUP: Nigeria’s inflation jumps to 15.75%; Naira crashes to N470/$1 as turnover drops by 59%; See other stories that made our pick

Hello, and welcome to Business Roundup this week. Here, we bring you highlights of events that happened during the week -from the capital market to the mainstream business activities, while not forgetting the tech/economy build up.

Here are the Headlines:

• Abia, Kwara, paid highest price for petrol in December – NBS
• Nigeria’s inflation jumps to 15.75%, highest in 36 months
• Ardova Plc in bid to buy Enyo Retail outlets
• Naira crashes to N470/$1, as turnover drops by 59%

Summary:

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Saturday residents of Abia, Kebbi and Kwara States paid the highest price for Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as petrol in December last year.

The NBS, which disclosed this in its “PMS Price Watch for December 2020,” said residents of Abia paid N176.19 for petrol while those in Kwara and Kebbi paid N172.43 and N169.92 respectively. Read more

Nigeria’s inflation rate rose by 15.75% (year-on-year) in December, nearly 1% compared to 14.89% recorded in November 2020 on the back of border closure and insecurity.

Read also: BUSINESS ROUNDUP: Nigerians spent N9.28tn on imported goods in nine months; FG to replace stamp duty with N50 electronic levy; See other stories that made our pick

This is according to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). This is the highest figure since 2017, as Nigerians will be hoping the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) finds a way to help drive down inflation within the single-digit band. Read more

Ardova Plc (AP) a downstream player has announced that it is in talks with the shareholders of Enyo Retail and Supply Limited relating to acquire the company before the end of Q1 2021, in a deal that will see the company expand its footprints in the downstream market.

This announcement is however in pursuant to the acceptance in the principle of AP’s offer and acquisition framework by the shareholders of Enyo. This is subject to the successful completion of a due diligence exercise and the receipt of all required regulatory approvals. Read more

The Naira has, once again, weakened at the black market as the exchange rate at the parallel market suffered its second depreciation of the year.

The exchange rate between the Naira and Dollar at the black market closed at N475/$1 representing a N3 drop when compared to the N472/$1 it closed on January 8, the last trading day for the previous week.
This is the second time the Naira will depreciate this year after it had traded at N470/$1 for almost two weeks since December 29, 2020. Read more

On NSE ROUNDUP: Market cap higher by N325bn on Thursdays trading

It was a Bullish Day again on Thursday as Investors Increase Risk Appetite pushed the market’s benchmark performance indicator –the NSE All Share Index (ASI) by +1.54% to close at 40,963.14 basis points as against +0.11% appreciation recorded on Wednesday.

The value of listed stocks increased from N21.093trillion to N21.418trillion, up by about N325billion. Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc rallied most, from day-open low of N496.5 to N540, up by N43.5 or 8.76percent. Dangote Cement Plc also rallied from a low of N230 to N237, adding N7 or 3.04percent. Read more

MEANWHILE, on the tech scene, the week was filled with an array of new developments from news of product launch to venture expansion. Nigeria, through an indigenous startup, also recorded increase in funds raised.

On fund raiser, Lagos-based solar technology startup, Daystar, raised a fresh $38-million in a Series B Investment. The raiser comes amidst news of Nigerian TeamApt’s plans to expand footprint to West/North Africa. Read full review

Thanks for joining the roundup this week. See you next week for another serving. Don’t forget, for the latest news and updates from around the globe, keep reading Ripples Nigeria.

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