1. Moody’s: Nigerian Economy Resilient Despite Oil Plunge - ThisDay One of the leading global credit rating agencies, Moody’s Investors Service has said that the Nigerian economy remains resilient in the face of falling oil prices even as the currency slumped to a record low and growth in Africa’s largest crude producer is set to slow. The Nigerian economy, the continent’s biggest, would probably expand by five per cent next year, Moody’s Senior Analytical Adviser, Aurelien Mali was quoted to have said in an e-mailed statement to Bloomberg. That was line with forecasts from the International Monetary Fund and the government’s revised estimate of 5.35 per cent. The West African nation’s government relies on crude exports for about 70 per cent of its income and 95 per cent of foreign exchange earnings, leaving it vulnerable to price and quantity shocks. The Coordinating Minister for the Economy/ Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is seeking to cut spending in next year’s budget by eight per cent to N4.36 trillion as revenue plunges. thisdaylive/articles/moody-s-nigerian-economy-resilient-despite-oil-plunge/197466/ 2. Substandard Products, Economic Loss To Nigeria —SON Standards Organisation of Nigeria has described its destruction of fake Century brand of stabilizers and other items valued at N5.5 billion in 2014 as economic loss to the country. The sub-standard products that penetrated into the country and were destroyed by the agency include electric armored cables, tyres, expired breakfast cereals, extension sockets, mini led flashlights, rechargeable lamps, shaving sticks, mobile phones, engine oil, ball pens, among others. In a review of its destruction exercise for the year at the Sagamu dumpsite in Ogun state, the agency disclosed that it destroyed over N5.5 billion worth of substandard goods from January till-date. “These goods were destroyed to save the lives of Nigerians who are not aware of the harmful effect of these products. So many people have lost their loved ones by consuming these substandard products,” said Engr. Bede Obayi, Head of Inspectorate / Compliance. vanguardngr/2014/12/substandard-products-economic-loss-to-nigeria-son/ 3. Nigeria Still Vulnerable To Oil Price Volatility, Says IMF - Guardian Despite assurance from the Federal Government that it has put measures in place to reduce the effect of fall in crude oil prices on the economy, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said that Nigeria remained vulnerable to oil price volatility and global financial developments. The IMF which admitted that the country has already taken measures cushion the effect of the crude oil price decline, however believed that fiscal and external buffers are low and that there is less policy space for maneuvering, compared to the onset of the 2008-09 financial crisis. In its report tagged: “2014 Article IV Mission to Nigeria”, released recently, IMF disclosed that the Excess Crude Account (ECA) in 2008 was $21 billion compared to $3 billion now, while gross international reserves was $52 billion. “Further, the exigencies of public financial management apply equally to all tiers of government: although the focus has been on the response of the federal government, lower oil receipts, low internal generated revenues, and a constrained ability to reduce recurrent expenditure could have a significant impact on delivery of social services by state and local governments, suggest the need for robust risk management frameworks across all tiers of government”, it added. ngrguardiannews/business/191292-nigeria-still-vulnerable-to-oil-price-volatility-says-imf 3. World Bank Pledges N282bn To Nigerian Power Sector - Punch The World Bank has pledged $1.75bn (N282.6bn) to support the Nigerian power sector reform over the next four years, the Bureau of Public Enterprises has said. A statement issued by the Head of Public Communications, BPE, Mr. Chigbo Anichebe, in Abuja on Monday, said the World Bank’s Country Energy Task Team Leader for Nigeria, Mr. Eric Fernstrom, disclosed this at a capacity building programme on post privatisation monitoring for the power sector jointly organised by the bank and the privatization agency. Fernstrom said the $1.75bn was 25 per cent of the total of $7bn earmarked for Nigeria in the next four years. He noted that the bank was greatly encouraged to offer the additional assistance to ensure that the reform objectives were realised as a result of the transparency exhibited in the transaction process and the robust post-reform measures put in place by the BPE. punchng/business/business-economy/world-bank-pledges-n282bn-to-nigerian-power-sector/
Posted on: Thu, 25 Dec 2014 13:58:03 +0000
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