TheCable

Here are the seven top business stories you need to track this week — December 11 to December 15.

DANGOTE REFINERY RECEIVES 1M BARRELS OF CRUDE

Last week, the Dangote Refinery received its maiden one million barrels of Agbami crude grade, from the Shell International Trading and Shipping Company Limited (STASCO).

In a statement on Friday, the company said the STASCO vessel sailed to the refinery’s single point mooring (SPM), where its content was discharged into the refinery’s crude oil tanks.

The firm said the inaugural one million barrels, representing the first phase of the six million barrels to be supplied to the refinery by a range of suppliers, should sustain the initial 350,000 bpd to be processed by the facility.

The refinery said it will receive the next four cargoes — to be supplied by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited — in two or three weeks.

NBS REPORT

The Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS) will release two major reports during the week.

On Monday, the bureau will publish a report on internally generated revenue at the state level for the first half of the year (January to June 2023).

Also, on December 15, 2023, the NBS is expected to release a report on the consumer price index (CPI) for May 2023.

In October, the CPI, which measures the rate of change in prices of goods and services, rose to 27.3 percent — up from 26.72 percent in the previous month.

MOODY’S UPGRADES NIGERIA’S CREDIT OUTLOOK TO POSITIVE

On Friday, Moody’s, a US-based rating agency, upgraded Nigeria’s credit outlook from stable to positive.

A credit rating measures how likely a company or government entity can pay back its debts, based on an independent assessment of its financial health.

The agency affirmed the country’s ‘Caa1’ long-term foreign and local currency issuer ratings.

Moody’s said the assessment was based on a possible reversal of the deterioration in the country’s fiscal and external position as a result of the authorities’ reform efforts.

FG EXEMPTS LPG FROM VAT, EXCISE DUTY

The federal government has exempted the importation of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and its equipment from the payment of customs duty and value-added tax (VAT).

The move is expected to reduce the cost of cooking gas in the country and drive investment in the gas sector.

The ministry of finance disclosed this in a letter (dated November 28, 2023) to the special adviser to the president on energy; the comptroller-general of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS); and the chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).

The ministry also directed the NCS to comply with the presidential directive, dated July 29, 2022, and withdraw all debit notes issued to petroleum marketers who have imported LPG “using codes 2711.1.2.00.00 and 2711.13.00.00 from August 26, 2019, to the present date”. 

Other items exempted from VAT and duty payment are LPG cylinders, LPG cascades, gas leak detectors, steel pipes, steel valves and fittings, LPG dispensers, gas generators, LPG trucks, among others.

MASSIVE JOB LOSS, HIKE IN PRICES AS P&G EXITS NIGERIA

Procter & Gamble (P&G), an American multinational consumer goods company, says it has plans to transition from local production to solely importing its products as it winds down its on-ground presence in Nigeria.

Andre Schulten, chief financial officer at P&G, disclosed this on Tuesday, during his presentation at the Morgan Stanley global consumer & retail conference in New York.

Schulten said the decision is a result of the challenging business environment in Nigeria, as well as the difficulty in creating US dollar value.

The move is likely to create worry for consumers as prices of essential Nigerian household items such as Pampers, Always, Oral B, Ariel, Ambi-pur, SafeGuard, Olay and Gillette, might escalate.

Also, the development is raising fears of significant job losses.

NIBSS ASKS BANKS TO DISCONNECT NON-DEPOSIT INSTITUTIONS FROM TRANSFERS

The Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) has directed banks to delist non-deposit payment service providers from the instant payment (NIP) outward transfer channels.

According to a circular, Ngover Ihyembe-Nwankwo, executive director of business development at NIBSS, said the directive seeks to address regulatory concerns regarding non-deposit-taking financial institutions (NDTFIs) holding customer funds.

CBN WARNS NIGERIANS OF COUNTERFEIT NAIRA NOTES

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on Friday, warned banks to beware of the circulation of counterfeit naira notes, particularly higher denominations, in major cities across the country.

The warning was made in a statement signed by Hakama Sidi Ali, CBN’s acting director of corporate communications.

Ali said these counterfeit naira notes were mainly used for transactions in food markets and other commercial centres across the country.

She said any person found complicit in the circulation of counterfeit currency would face severe sanctions.