Business News
Nigeria’s foreign reserves fall to 6-weeks low, lose $81.10 million
Nigeria’s foreign reserves depleted to 6 weeks low in July. This is reflected in the latest data released by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on its website.
Nigeria’s foreign reserves depleted to 6 weeks low in July. This is reflected in the latest data released by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on its website.
According to the CBN’s data, Nigeria’s gross foreign reserves currently stand at $45.09 billion, from the estimated value of $45.17 billion on the 10th of June 2019, representing almost two months low. Within the period, total reserves inched down by $81.10 million.
Nigeria’s reserves: Nigeria’s foreign reserves crossed the $45 billion thresholds in May 2019. Hence, the reserves had continued building up until the recent decline.
- Nairametrics reported in May, that the external reserves increased by $212.2 million to hit $45 billion mark.
- In June 2019, Nigeria’s external reserves increased by $155.6 million.
- The reserves posted in June marked a 35% point increase within a period of three weeks in 2019. This is the highest figure posted so far in 2019.
- The recent decline means foreign reserves maintain a free fall.
Nigeria’s External Reserves Moving Average on the CBN website
[READ: Nigeria’s External Reserves hit $45bn mark]
Reasons for the fall: Essentially, Nigeria’s foreign reserves have improved in recent months when the gross value hit $45 billion. Meanwhile, the reserves have fluctuated in recent weeks, and this may partly border on the movements in prices of oil, due to the sustained tension in the Middle East and the U.S/China trade war.
- Other factors responsible maybe the slow down in the capital market and possibly CBN interventions in the Investors and Exporters’ window (I&E).
- Recently, while delivering a lecture at the University of Benin, the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, disclosed that the introduction of the Investors and Exporters’ window had helped in shoring up the country’s external reserves.
“We have seen the reserves moving up but unfortunately, we still have issues and those issues border on the unemployment rate and those issues border on how we prepare our country.
“The turnover in the I&E FX Window had reached over $48bn since the inception of the window and that the nation’s foreign exchange reserves had risen to $45bn in April 2019 from $23bn in October 2016.”
CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele
Why building reserves matters: While recently reeling out the CBN’s 5-year plan, Mr. Emefiele disclosed that the apex bank was committed to stabilizing the Exchange Rate and building the country’s reserves through a coordinated policy approach.
“We will also work with our counterparts in the fiscal arm in supporting improved FDI flows to various sectors, such as agriculture, manufacturing, insurance, and infrastructure. These measures while supporting improved inflows into the country will help to stabilize our exchange rate and build our external reserves.”
- One of the ways the CBN has been able to maintain Naira stability, in recent months, was by drawing from the reserves to defend the currency.
- The CBN builds reserve buffers and periodically uses it to intervene in the currency exchange market, to prevent the value of Naira from depreciating.
- The apex bank has made clear its resolve to maintain a stable exchange rate, while building external reserves on the side.
CBN’s next move: The CBN Governor recently listed the conditions that could warrant him to devalue the Naira. He made this disclosure at the African Investors’ Conference (AIC) which took place in London from June 25 to 27.
- According to Emefiele, the CBN could consider devaluing the exchange rate if the price of crude falls to between $50-$45, which means depleting reserves.
- The Governor also mentioned that if this happens and the reserves drop to between $30 billion and $25 billion, the CBN could consider moving on the exchange rate.
In the meantime, the reserves stock at the current estimate is able to finance nine months of Nigeria’s current import commitments and this means the economy is relatively viable.
Billionaire Watch
Here is the exciting 2021 list of the richest football clubs in the world
Here’s Forbes 2021 list of the most valuable clubs in the world.
Billionaires are fond of investing in sports franchises. This is because there is a lot of money in it and the income stream is pretty consistent. Authoritative wealth watch magazine, Forbes yesterday released its official list of the most valuable clubs in the world.
It also gave a summary of the business side of the football world which we found quite interesting.
Nairametrics did a thorough review of the list and highlighted the parts which we believe will resonate well with our readers. Let’s get to it!
Top 10 richest clubs in 2021 by value
Tottenham (2.3bn)
Tottenham hotspur comes in at the 10th position with a valuation of $2.3bn. The English club is owned by Joseph Lewis and Daniel Levy. They generated $494m last year.
PSG (2.5bn)
Paris St Germaine comes in at 9th position with a valuation of $2.5bn. The French league 1 giants generated more money than arsenal last year. They generated $599m. PSG is owned by an investment group, Qatar Sports Investments.
Arsenal (2.8bn)
Arsenal football club, another London side club comes in at 8th position with a valuation of $2.8bn. The club is solely owned by Stan Kroenke, an American Businessman who invests in sports and media. Arsenal generated $430m in 2020 making it the 8th most valuable club.
Chelsea (3.2bn)
Chelsea football club comes in 7th on the list with a valuation of $3.2bn. The London side club has retained its longstanding owner Roman Abramovich, a Russian Oligarch. Chelsea generated $520m last year.
Manchester City (4bn)
Manchester City, an English club with a long history of billionaire owners comes in at 6th position. The very successful English club generated total revenue of $609m last year. The club is valued at $4bn and is owned by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
Liverpool (4.1bn)
Liverpool comes in 5th at a $4.1bn valuation. The English club is the second wealthiest in England with a generated revenue of $619m. The club is owned by a joint partnership between Billionaire, John Henry and Tom Werner.
Manchester United (4.2bn)
Manchester United is the wealthiest English club on the list. The club is valued at $4.2bn, taking up the 4th position on the list. The club has been owned by a Jewish business family, the Glaziers for years. They are the largest shareholders and practically own the club. They generated $643m last year.
Bayern Munchen (4.215bn)
Bayern Munchen comes in at the third position with a value of $4.215bn. The German giants have bossed the German league for years. They generated $703m last year, coming in at the 3rd position.
Real Madrid (4.75bn)
Real Madrid Fc comes in at the second position. The football club which had previously dominated this list was edged out by bitter rivals, Barcelona. Real Madrid is valued at $4.75bn and the club is also owned by the club members. Real Madrid generated $729m, the same amount of revenue as Barcelona last year.
FC Barcelona (4.76bn)
Fc Barcelona is the most valuable football club in 2021 with a market value of $4.7bn. The club sits gallantly in the first position.
The Spanish giants generated a massive $792m in revenue last year and succeeded in holding on to their key player Lionel Messi. They also edged out Real Madrid and Man Utd who have dominated this list for 16 years. FC Barcelona is owned by the club supporters. It has no major shareholder or billionaire financier. The club has over 160,000 members forming its governing body.
What you should know
- 6 of the 10 richest clubs in the world are owned by billionaires; the rest are owned by club members and an investment group.
- In the last 16 years, the world’s richest football clubs list has been topped by only two clubs – Real Madrid and Manchester United.
- Football clubs generate revenues through advertisements, sponsorship deals, jersey deals and ticket sales. These are the 4 major revenue streams of a football club.
- The top 3 teams on the list – Fc Barcelona, Real Madrid and Bayern Munchen generated a combined revenue of $2.3bn in 2020.
Corporate Press Releases
UBA Business Series to equip SMEs with Performance Management Strategies for Organisational Growth
UBA has been assisting with essential tips to help businesses ensure that they stay afloat and remain thriving.
As part of its commitment to support the growth and sustainability of Micro, Small and Medium-scale Enterprises (MSME) in the continent, Pan African financial Institution, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, is set to organise the next edition of its UBA Business Series.
The UBA Business Series which is a monthly event, is an MSME Workshop as well as a capacity-building initiative of the bank where business leaders and professionals share well-researched insights on best practices for running successful businesses, especially in the face of the difficult operating environment that dominates the African business landscape.
Through this initiative, UBA has been assisting with essential tips to help businesses re-examine their models and strategies and ensure that they stay afloat and remain thriving.
The topic for the next edition of the series is ‘ Managing Performance for Business Growth,’ and it will be held on Wednesday, April 14, 2021, via Microsoft Teams. At this session, the Managing Director, Secure ID Limited, Mrs Kofo Akinkugbe, will be sharing useful tips and insights on the key strategies of performance management to boost business growth.
Akinkugbe is the founder of SecureID Nigeria, a MasterCard, VISA and Verve certified Smartcard Personalization Bureau and Digital Technology company. She currently serves as the Managing Director/CEO, Secure Card Manufacturing, – a Smartcard manufacturing plant producing high-security identity cards and documents for the Banking, Telecoms and Public sectors across Africa and beyond.
The capacity-building event is a virtual session which is open to all – including business owners and leaders – and will be held on Wednesday, April 14th, 2021, at 2pm WAT. Interested participants can register via http://bit.ly/UBASMEWorkshopMarch2021
UBA’s Head, SME Banking, Sampson Aneke said of Akinkugbe, ‘with her vast experience garnered over the years from various sectors, she will help business owners understand how performance management strategies can be effectively implemented to ensure business growth’.
He emphasised UBA’s commitment and deep passion for small businesses, which according to him, remains the engine of any developing economy adding, “We know small businesses are the backbone of the economy in every country. In many climes, businesses with fewer than 100 employees account for 98.2% of all businesses. This no doubt captures the importance of SMEs to a thriving economy which is why UBA is committed to seeing them flourish.”
