BUSINESS ROUNDUP: NRC generates N3bn from rail services; Fuel pump price goes up; 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, mainstream business activities while not forgetting the tech/economy build up.

Here are the Headlines:

• NRC generates N3bn from rail services in one year
• Nigeria set to capture illicit gold sales to bolster reserves
• Govt agencies should stop extorting businesses –Osinbajo
• Fuel pump price goes up, as PPPRA stays silent

Summary:

The Nigerian Railway Corporation Friday said it generated revenue worth N3.09 billion from rail services last year, noting that N1.5 billion of that sum came from the Abuja-Kaduna rail service.

Fidet Okhira, the NRC chief, made the revelation in a statement released in Abuja and signed by Taiye Elebiyo-Edeni, Media Assistant to the Minister of Transportation. Read more

Nigeria is looking to end illegal gold exports in the hope of capturing the millions of dollars lost each year through the process to shore up its international reserves, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday.

Fatima Shinkafi, the Presidential Artisanal Gold Mining Development Initiative (PAGMI)’s Executive Secretary said government’s plan will regulate exploitation actions by artisanal miners who currently provide no revenue to the state. Read more

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said on  Friday that government agencies needed to stop milking businesses in order to improve Nigeria’s prospects of climbing higher on the Ease of Doing Business Index.

He stated government’s aspiration of bettering the Nigeria’s status by making it feature in the top 100 nations on the World Bank-backed international rating at the virtual edition of the Presidential Policy Dialogue arranged by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Read more

Reacting to the observed silence from the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), oil marketers have gone ahead to set new pump prices (between N148 and N150/litre), shooting well above the initial market price.

According to oil marketers and workers, the regulatory agency had left the industry confused, registering its displeasure on what it called an attempt to “deregulate” the downstream petroleum sector. Read more

On NSE ROUNDUP: Week-long bull run ups gains by N182bn

Monday through Friday, the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) added gain to gain, consolidating a fiercely bullish market that reached back to the two days before last week’s Eid-Kabir break.

Read also: BUSINESS ROUNDUP: External reserves shed $315m; Nigerian manufacturing sector shrinks further; See other stories that made our pick

Not since the days before the pandemic’s outbreak had the NSE seen the fairly long uptrend that added N181.623 billion to the market capitalisation this week.

Investor confidence has been spectacularly low for weeks on end as the market battles to regain grounds lost to the current economic downturn of the coronavirus crisis and the bar on trade imposed to contain the virus spread. Read more

MEANWHILE, Atarapay has increased the number of Fintech players offering escrow service (third-party money security) in Nigeria. Although,it told press that it ventured into the uncommon space to provide a trusted and reliable service for online vendors and shoppers, however, analysts have noted that it’s emergence might jack up prices of commodities as its escrow escrow service will add to the cost of making transactions online.

Recall that ListBuy, another ecommerce solution company, recently integrated escrow interface to its features, looking to help shoppers trust the electronic market. While an enhanced online space might be achieved, shoppers are seemingly reluctant to accommodate more cost in the line of making payment for a purchased item online.

Considering the ‘Nigerianess’ of most buyers in this region of West Africa, market leaders have said that, an escrow service might not be the next milestone to invest in, especially if the Fintech players are not ready to should the cost attached to it.

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

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