Author: Julius Alagbe

Daily FX Update: Naira Falls to N1,495 in Parallel Market The Nigerian naira exchange rate worsened in the informal sector, or parallel market, during the early hours on Tuesday due to rising demand pressures from users.  According to channel checks in Lagos and Abuja, the local currency depreciates by N10 to N1,495 per dollar in the informal segment, widening fx spread in the foreign exchange market. According to fx data reviewed by MarketForces Africa, the exchange rate gap between the official and the parallel market quotes has risen to N72, creating fresh arbitrage risks in post-reform market development. In the…

NCS Launches New Procedure for Duty-Paid Courier Operations Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) says it has begun the implementation of a new Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for regulating courier companies operating under the Delivered Duty Paid (DDP) Incoterm. NCS`s Comptroller-General (C-G), Bashir Adeniyi, made the announcement in a statement by the spokesperson of the service, Abdullahi Maiwada, on Monday in Abuja. Maiwada said that this implementation provides a unified framework for registration, manifest submission, declaration, valuation, clearance, delivery and compliance monitoring, in line with global best practices. Under the newly commenced procedure, he said, courier companies intending to operate the DDP…

U.S. Growth Forecasts Revised Up After Delayed GDP Release Fitch Ratings has raised its estimate of US GDP growth in 2025 and its forecast for growth in 2026 after incorporating economic data releases that were delayed because of the government shutdown late last year. GDP is now estimated to have expanded by 2.1% in 2025 compared to a forecast of 1.8% in Fitch’s December 2025 Global Economic Outlook (GEO). Fitch analysts now forecast growth of 2.0% in 2026 compared to 1.9% in the last GEO. Growth in the third quarter of 2025 was considerably stronger than anticipated at 1.1% quarter…

Nigeria’s Budget Sets Ambitious Revenue, Spending Targets –Fitch Nigeria’s 2026 budget broadly aligns with Fitch Ratings’ fiscal deficit forecast, partly because analysts expect that revenue and expenditure are likely to miss targets. This reflects long-term challenges to raising both oil and non-oil revenues and persistent under-execution of budgeted capital spending, Fitch Ratings says. “We expect revenue to undershoot despite new tax reform laws effective from 1 January 2026, as these face near-term execution risks. “Expenditure will also fall short, despite election-related spending pressures. The government has allocated about 40% of expenditure to capex, but the execution rate for capital projects…

Eterna Opens Rights Issue at 37% Discount to Raise Capital Eterna Plc has launched a N21.52 billion rights issue to shareholders, marking a key step in its capital-raising programme and long-term growth strategy. The Chairman, Dr Gabriel Ogeechee, confirmed this in a statement issued in Lagos on Sunday, describing the offer as “pivotal” to strengthening finances. He said the rights issue would accelerate strategic expansion and reinforce the company’s balance sheet amid industry challenges. The offer comprises 978,108,485 ordinary shares of 50 kobo each, priced at N22.00 per share, which is 37% discount to its stock market price of N35.…

KPMG Flags Major Errors, Inconsistencies in Nigerian Tax Laws UPDATED: KPMG has exposed gaps, errors, omissions, and inconsistencies in the new Nigeria Tax Act (NTA), calling for urgent reviews to ensure the attainment of the stated tax reform objectives. The advisory firm said this in its “Nigeria’s New Tax Laws: Inherent Errors, Inconsistencies, Gaps and Omissions”, reaffirming the potential of the laws to transform tax administration in the country. It stated, “There are many provisions in these laws that will result in increased revenue for the government if well implemented. However, there is always the need to strike a delicate…

FG Orders Reuse of Textbooks in Schools, Streamlines Graduation Ceremony The Federal Government (FG) has unveiled a comprehensive policy framework aimed at reducing the cost of education for parents and improving learning outcomes. The policy also seeks to promote sustainability in schools through the adoption of reusable, high-quality textbooks and strengthened quality assurance mechanisms. The policy, jointly issued by the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, and the Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Ahmed, was made available to newsmen in Abuja on Friday. The ministers said the policy formed part of ongoing reforms to reposition the education sector…

XRP Rises Amidst Crypto Selloffs as Ripple Boosts Adoption Ripple (XRPUSD) climbed slightly on Friday, up by 0.67% over the last 24 hours, slightly outpacing the broader crypto market’s 0.28% gain. XRP’s ecosystem is advancing through institutional infrastructure partnerships and real-world adoption in Asia, though price action lags the on-chain utility surge. At the time of writing, XRP is hovering around $2.10 after a mild profit-taking earlier in the day, caught between bull and bear trading activities.  Its trading volume dropped by 15% to $3.82 billion on Friday, with market capitalisation settling at $127 billion. According to crypto market analysts,…

Faroukgate: Dangote Takes Petition against Ex-NMDPRA Boss to EFCC The Chairman of Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), Aliko Dangote, through his legal representative, has filed a formal corruption petition against the former Managing Director of the Midstream Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed, at the headquarters of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). This move follows the withdrawal of the same petition from the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), a strategic decision aimed at accelerating the prosecution process. In the petition signed by Lead Counsel Dr. O.J. Onoja S.A.N, Dangote urged the EFCC to investigate…

Benchmark Yield on Nigeria’s Bonds Steady at 16.73% Still higher than the headline inflation of 14.45%, the benchmark yield on Nigerian government bonds steadied at 16.73% as trading activities softened in the secondary market on Thursday. The market sentiment is influenced by expectations about increasing bond supply in the first quarter and re-rate repricing signals. Inflation is descending, but the monetary authority has continued to raise the spot rate on Treasury bill papers. The Debt Management Office had also pushed marginal rates on bonds upward at the last auction in 2025 despite clear disinflation signals. There were initial sell pressure…