In June 2023, Nigeria’s decision to float the naira marked a historic turning point in its foreign exchange regime.
What followed was a steep and prolonged depreciation of the local currency the naira fell from about N460/$ in June 2023 to N1,535/$ by year-end 2024.
This sharp devaluation exposed Nigerian companies to massive FX translation losses and rising interest burdens, eroding shareholder value across the NGX.
The pain was widespread but especially pronounced in the consumer goods and ICT sectors, where companies relied heavily on imported raw materials or carried substantial foreign-denominated loans.
However, by late 2024, the tides began to shift. The foreign exchange market started showing signs of stabilization.
By Q1 2025, relative calm had returned to the naira, now trading within a more predictable band. The improved FX liquidity, coupled with stronger pricing power and cost-cutting strategies, helped many companies swing back into profitability
Consumer goods sector:
By the end of 2024, seven major listed consumer companies — BUA Foods, Cadbury Nigeria, International Breweries, Nigerian Breweries, NASCON Allied Industries, Dangote Sugar, and Nestlé Nigeria had reported a combined pre-tax loss of N507.57 billion, up from N359 billion in 2023.
Over the two-year period, these companies collectively lost N867 billion, dragged down by foreign exchange exposure and ballooning interest expenses.
Notably, only BUA Foods and NASCON managed to stay profitable in the two-year window, reflecting just how widespread the damage was.
- FX losses for the group surged by 56% year-on-year, hitting N1 trillion in 2024, compared to N710 billion in 2023.
- Finance costs more than doubled, rising by 131% to N365 billion in 2024, up from N158 billion the previous year.
The telecoms and ICT sector was not spared. MTN Nigeria; one of the biggest companies on the NGX also took a major hit.
The company reported a staggering N550 billion pre-tax losses in 2024, following a N178 billion loss in 2023.
MTN Nigeria attributed the devastating performance to the sharp depreciation of the naira, which directly affected its foreign-denominated liabilities, especially tower lease obligations and other infrastructure-related contracts.
“In the foreign exchange market, the naira depreciated to N1,535/US$ by the end of 2024 (from N907.1/US$ on 31 December 2023), as businesses and consumers continued to grapple with escalating costs. These headwinds significantly impacted MTN Nigeria’s costs, particularly those related to tower leases and other foreign currency obligations,” said Karl Toriola, CEO of MTN Nigeria.
Between 2023 and 2024:
- MTN Nigeria reported N1.67 trillion in FX losses, with N926 billion recorded in 2024 alone.
- Finance costs jumped to N433 billion in 2024, bringing the two-year finance cost total to N669 billion.
- As a result, MTN’s accumulated losses rose to N607 billion, wiping out shareholders’ equity and pushing it to a negative net worth of over N458 billion by year-end 2024.
The turnaround
By the last quarter of 2024, signs of stability began to return. The foreign exchange market grew more orderly, with the naira settling into a relatively stable band. FX volatility eased, and market liquidity gradually improved.
At the same time, companies adjusted their cost structures, refined pricing strategies, and restructured foreign obligations creating a foundation for recovery.
By the end of Q1 2025, that foundation began to yield results.
Consumer goods: Back in the black
After nearly two years of losses, the consumer goods sector posted a sharp turnaround in Q1 2025.
The seven companies that had reported a combined loss of N418 billion in Q1 2024 returned to a combined pre-tax profit of N289.8 billion in Q1 2025.
- Only Dangote Sugar remained in loss territory, with a N23 billion pre-tax loss, though this was a marked improvement from the N121 billion loss recorded in Q1 2024.
- The rest of the group including BUA Foods, Nestlé, NASCON, Nigerian Breweries, Cadbury, and International Breweries swung back into profit, supported by FX gains, easing finance costs, and operational efficiencies.
Foreign exchange losses moderated with a combined foreign exchange gain of N2.511 billion in Q12025 compared to the N423 billion loss in Q1 2024, with some of them recording foreign exchange gains.
Similarly interest expenses came down to about N94 billion compared to N170.1 billion seen in Q1 2024
The rebound extended to the ICT sector, with MTN Nigeria continuing the profitability it had regained in Q4 2024.
In Q1 2025, MTN posted a pre-tax profit of N202.6 billion, compared to a devastating N575.7 billion loss in Q1 2024.
While still recovering from prior accumulated losses, MTN’s return to profit was driven by:
- Reduced FX losses to N5.25 billion from N656 billion in Q1 2024.
- Slower growth in finance costs,
- Increased tariff.
- Continued strength in data and fintech revenue streams.
By the end of Q2 2025 all the consumer goods companies had returned to profitability with a combined pre-tax profit of about N264 billion.
Combined foreign exchange losses stood at just N896 million with the greatest leap from Dangote Sugar that saw its foreign exchange loss drop to N160 million from N208.903 billion in the prior period of last year.
MTN Nigeria recorded a massive pre-tax profit of N419.6 billion taking the H1 2025 profit to N622.26 billion, reducing its retained losses to N192.889 billion and shareholders’ funds to just N42 billion from N458 billion as of December 2024
With the results, MTN Nigeria may be just one profitable quarter away from reversing the two years of retained losses triggered by the naira devaluation and FX volatility.
This sharp earnings reversal highlights how currency stability and internal cost controls can quickly shift the fortunes of companies previously dragged down by macroeconomic headwinds.
As investor sentiment recovered, capital markets responded in kind. MTN Nigeria surged to become the most valuable company on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) as of the end of July 2025.
Its share price hit N480 as of close of trading last week, taking market capitalization to N10.1 trillion.
In the consumer goods space, Nigerian Breweries and International Breweries joined the billion-dollar club, standing alongside Airtel Africa, Dangote Cement, BUA Foods, Seplat Energy, Geregu Power, Aradel Holdings, BUA Cement, Transcorp Power, GTCO, and Zenith Bank.
Cadbury also emerged as one of the top-performing NGX stocks in July 2025 a testament to investor optimism and earnings recovery.
