Dollar Scarcity Pushes Naira to 352

The acute scarcity of foreign exchange, especially the United States dollar, made the naira to fall further on Tuesday to 252 against the greenback at the parallel market.

The increasing pressure on the naira is caused by high demand for the dollar by importers and speculators, foreign exchange dealers said.

The local currency had weakened to 345 at the parallel market on Monday, having hit 338 last Friday as importers scrambled for the dollar to meet overseas obligations

The central bank has left its official rate unchanged at N197 to the dollar on its interbank window.

“Most individuals who sell (dollars) to us are no longer willing, but demand is piling up,” the acting President, Association of Bureau De Change Operators, Aminu Gwadabe, told Reuters on Tuesday.

Last month, the Central Bank of Nigeria banned dollar sales to BDC operators, sending the naira to record lows at the black market, and later stopped daily sales to the interbank market, in an effort to conserve the external reserves, now at their lowest in more than 11 years.

The nation earns around 90 per cent of its foreign exchange earnings from crude oil exports. The foreign exchange reserves fell to $27.83bn as of February 12, data from the CBN website showed.

Some retail currency operators have few dollars in their vaults and depend on other members to fill orders when they have excess demand, fuelling the weakness in the currency, Reuters reported quoting forex traders.

The naira has depreciated by over 13 per cent in less than two weeks.

The currency hit a then record low of 338 against the greenback on Friday, a day after the Bankers’ Committee announced that it might stop providing foreign exchange for school fees and medical bills payment.

The naira, which has been on a free fall in the past few weeks, depreciated steadily from 310 last week Monday to 335 on Thursday at the parallel market.

“The current naira-dollar exchange rate is artificial; it is as a result of the negative perception about the naira and the fear that it may be devalued,” Gwadabe said.

President Muhammadu Buhari is concerned that further depreciation will hurt poor Nigerians, but the CBN’s refusal to revise the pegged exchange rate has widened a chasm between official rate and the parallel market.

The Chief Executive Officer, Economic Associates, Dr. Ayo Teriba, said there were several ways the Federal Government could attract forex into the country to stabilise the naira, stressing that the currency needed not be allowed to depreciate to the current level.

Teriba said, “Saudi Arabia has started attracting foreign investments. The country opened an Initial Public Offer that banks were falling on one another to buy. Nigeria seems not to be doing something. I don’t think that Nigeria needs to allow the naira to be this weak; we are not helpless, we can do something.

“This is 2016 and not 1986, 1992 or 1995; the conditions are not the same. The global environment has liquidity now that Nigeria can attract. The situation is not like 1986 when the global environment was tight.

“Nigeria has investment opportunities; we have the largest population in Africa, we are the biggest oil exporter in Africa. I have told you that I don’t think that we need to borrow to build infrastructure. We can open critical sectors like rail and power, among others, and you will see the huge forex that will come into the country.”  Source PUNCHNG

Criticism trails CBN policy on ATM withdrawal limit AUG

 Some bank customers in Jos on Monday criticised the
new Central Bank of Nigeria’s policy which cut down
withdrawals from Automated Teller Machines.
The customers, in separate interviews with the News
Agency of Nigeria, expressed disappointment with
the policy which cut down ATM withdrawals from
N100,00 to N60,000.
Mr. Sunday John, a trader, said the policy would
cripple business activities especially during
weekends.
According to him, the new CBN policy contradicts its
cashless policy and should be reversed.
“This is because most banks customers, who have
become used to going to ATMs to withdraw whenever
they have need of cash, are now constrained to make
maximum withdrawals.”
Mr. Emeka Chika, another customer, said the policy
was “not business-friendly.”
He said as a businessman, the policy would affect his
capacity, especially during weekends.
Mr. Emmanuel Chukwu told NAN that the policy had
delayed him from finishing a project at the weekend
due to insufficient funds.
He appealed to the CBN to “provide an alternative or
increase the cash withdrawal limit.” 

Omotola celebrates 20 years in Nollywood

One of Nigeria’s most accomplished Nollywood actresses, Omotola Jolade-Ekeinde, has just celebrated 20 years on the screen, CHUX OHAI writes

Unknown to many movie fans, popular screen actress, Omotola Jolade-Ekeinde quietly celebrated 20 years in Nollywood in her Lagos home recently.

And to show just how modest and kind hearted she is, she chose to celebrate with widows and orphans.

As part of the occasion, the actress hosted her annual ‘Give and Let Give’ party – an event in which gifts were handed out to the less priviledged.

Once nominated by TIME magazine as one of 100 most influential women in the world, Jolade-Ekeinde has, no doubt, come a long way in the Nigerian film industry.

From being a pimply young actress under the close supervision of the likes of producer, Zeb Ejiro, she has moved up the ladder in Nollywood to become one of the most sought-after and respected members of the Thespian family in the country.

Jolade-Ekeinde has, no doubt, had a chequered career in Nollywood. Like many other actors and actresses, she has had her fair share of challenges. At a time Nollywood was virtually an all-comers affair and run by traders, who were largely driven by plain commercial interests and had very little regard for professionalism; she had found herself making some sacrifices for the future of the industry.

At a point in her career, a powerful cabal comprising some movie marketers and distributors had slammed the actress and a few others with a ban. As punishment for refusing to bow to the wishes of the almighty marketers, who virtually held the fledgling film industry in a vice grip, they made her to wait for almost three years before she could return to the screen.

The actress said, in a recent interview with Encomium magazine – a Lagos-based tabloid – that she had to stick her neck out for Nollywood because of an urgent need to make some changes in the industry.

“Personally, I was fighting for all movie artistes, I wasn’t fighting for myself alone. I was fighting alongside many other colleagues of mine. They just decided in those days that we’re getting too powerful and demanding too much,” she was quoted as saying.

Even now, it seems that Jolade-Ekeinde is not done with making sacrifices and giving Nollywood a deserving push in her own little way. There is an indication that she is currently working behind the scenes to help drive the expected transition from cheap home video films to big budget movies that conform with global standards.

The actress was recently overheard telling some associates that she had decided to wash her hands off home videos and would play for higher stakes, including high standards for Nollywood, a higher standard of living for actors and actresses, a code conduct for older and incoming artistes, as well as good work ethics.

What this means is that this diva may decide to stay away from the screen if the present conditions fail to improve. If this is true, then movie fans had better brace themselves for her absence.

With many appearances in the movies – over 200 in all between ‘Venom of justice’ and ‘Ije’ – Jolade-Ekeinde has certainly carved a niche for herself in Nollywood. While receiving an award in Cyprus last year, she dedicated it to her husband, Captain Matthew Ekeinde who she has repeatedly described as very supportive.

Posted by kenics and team

IMF faults report blaming policies for Ebola outbreak

THE International Monetary Fund, IMF, has faulted a report  that blamed its policies for the Ebola crisis in West Africa.
Three weeks ago, professors from three leading British universities in a report  said that policies of the IMF favoring international debt repayment over social spending contributed to the Ebola crisis by hampering health care in the three worst-hit West African countries

From left: Mrs. Ibiye Ekong, Executive Director, Skye Bank; Mr. Sunkanmi Olowo, Head SME / Value Chain Banking, Ecobank Nigeria; Mr. Tony Okpanachi, Deputy Managing Director, Ecobank Nigeria and Mr. Rasheed Olaoluwa, Managing Director, Bank of Industry during the signing of Memorandum of Understanding between Bank of Industry and some SME friendly banks in Lagos

Conditions for loans from the IMF prevented an effective response to the outbreak that has killed nearly 8,000 people, the academics allege in a report in The Lancet Global Health journal this month.
This allegation was faulted by Sanjeev Gupta; Deputy Director, IMF Fiscal Affairs Department, saying the assertions made by the professors  was incorrect.
He said, “First, it is not correct to say that health care expenditures declined in these countries. As my colleagues, Benedict Clements, and Masahiro Nozaki, and I note in a recent blog, spending on health and education have increased faster in low-income countries with IMF-supported programs, than those without.
“What about the Ebola-hit countries? Here too, we find an increase in health spending as a percent of GDP. In Guinea, spending increased by 0.7 percentage points, in Liberia by 1.6 points and in Sierra Leone by 0.24 points (from 2010 to 2013). More generally, World Bank data show that health outcomes in Sub-Saharan Africa, including the three Ebola-hit countries, have improved significantly over the past decade or so, including improvements in mortality rates (falling by about 30 percent), child nutrition (improving by 9 percent), and sanitation (improving by 9 percent).
Low income countries
“Second, it is simply not correct to say that the IMF requires caps on the public sector wage bill. Since 2007, the IMF announced a new policy on wage bill ceilings, as part of an overall effort to promote more effective and sustainable use of aid flows to low-income countries. In fact, IMF programs in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone have not had any limits on the wage bill during the period 2000 -2014.
“The fact is that Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia were doing relatively well trying to overcome years of instability as they emerged from conflict, including civil wars that claimed tens of thousands of lives and had a devastating impact on social infrastructure.
The arrival of Ebola put severe pressure on already fragile infrastructure and health care systems. The IMF recognized the urgency of the situation—and moved quickly to help, as you yourself note. The IMF made available an additional $130  million to the three countries to fight Ebola.
“And we are doing more. The international community is helping affected countries meet their needs to fight Ebola. The IMF is working on mechanisms to allow us to move rapidly to provide more debt relief to these countries—which would free up more resources that could be used for health care spending.”

Posted by kenics and team