APA – Lagos (Nigeria)
The report that Nigeria’s crude oil output rose to an all-time high of 1.35 million barrels per day in September 2023, as the country pumped its highest volume of crude oil so far since this year is one of the trending stories in Nigerian newspapers on Thursday.
The Punch reports that Nigeria’s crude oil output rose to an all-time high of 1.35 million barrels per day in September 2023, as the country pumped its highest volume of crude oil so far since this year.
Latest figures obtained from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, on Wednesday, showed that the country’s output in September was about 14 per cent higher than what it pumped in the preceding month of August 2023.
Data from the commission indicated that in September, Nigeria’s crude oil production (excluding condensates) was precisely 1,346,562 barrels per day, which was a 165,429bpd increase when compared to the 1,181,133bpd produced in August this year.
Further analysis of figures obtained from the NUPRC indicated that in January, February and March, the country’s oil outputs were 1,266,659bpd; 1,292,240bpd; and 1,266,737bpd respectively.
In the months of April, May, June and July, Nigeria produced 1,004,392bpd; 1,189,332bpd; 1,260,928bpd; and 1,089,089bpd respectively.
The above crude oil production figures therefore showed that Nigeria’s oil production in September was the highest output so far recorded by the country this year.
The Federal Government has been making concerted efforts to shore-up the country’s oil production, which is far below the about 1.8 million barrels per day quota approved for Nigeria by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries.
The newspaper says that camps of the Peoples Democratic Party standard bearer, Atiku Abubakar and the Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, have protested the BBC report that there is no evidence to back the diploma forgery allegation against President Bola Tinubu.
BBC’s Global Disinformation Team had in a fact-checking report published on Wednesday said there was no evidence that Tinubu forged the Chicago State University certificate he submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission to contest the February presidential election.
The camps of the Peoples Democratic Party standard bearer, Atiku Abubakar and the Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, have protested the BBC report that there is no evidence to back the diploma forgery allegation against President Bola Tinubu.
BBC’s Global Disinformation Team had in a fact-checking report published on Wednesday said there was no evidence that Tinubu forged the Chicago State University certificate he submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission to contest the February presidential election.
The BBC report concluded that the allegation that Tinubu submitted a forged CSU certificate to the INEC was false.
The Global Disinformation Team explained that it fact-checked the most widely circulated claims to arrive at its conclusion.
The allegation of certificate forgery levelled against Tinubu has been roiling the polity with his opponents in the last election-Atiku and Obi-taking the ex-Lagos State governor to task over the issue.
Reports that the ex-Lagos State governor’s certificate was faked went viral on social media following the release of his CSU academic records.
The release of the president’s academic documents is the culmination of a judicial case filed in August by former Vice President Atiku, who is seeking to overturn Tinubu’s electoral victory at the Supreme Court.
The Guardian reports that the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has again lamented the daily rising cost of production, owing to scarce and unavailable manufacturing inputs.
The body said these rising costs continue to shrink profits and threaten the existence of this critical sector of the economy. MAN added that more worrisome is the fact that the sector, which should propel job creation, productivity and economic growth, is being dwarfed with a series of challenges that constantly limit its contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth.
“Challenges such as epileptic power supply, insecurity, inadequate infrastructure, shortage of Forex and Naira depreciation are prevailing issues that are impacting negatively on the sector and threaten our continued existence in this country,” it stated.
Announcing the association’s forthcoming 51st yearly General Meeting (AGM) scheduled to hold from October 17 – 19, at the Lagos Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, the body’s president, Francis Meshioye, said the theme for the AGM is, “Setting the Agenda for Competitive Manufacturing Under the AfCFTA: What Nigeria Needs to do.”
He revealed that the theme was couched with a deep reflection on the growth trajectory of the manufacturing sector in Nigeria and Africa and they are focused on the role of the manufacturing sector in the actualisation of the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA) and the integration of the African economy as envisioned in the Agenda 2063: “The Africa we want.”
Meshioye regretted that industries were being left to die. He said for local manufacturers to compete effectively, a comprehensive and concerted effort needs to be deployed by the government to overtake the binding constraint that limits local production and look to attract foreign investment that will bring about a reduction in the FX chase and ensure sufficient FX inflow that the country clearly requires.
He urged the government to prioritise investment in infrastructure and power, combat insecurity and corruption as well as introduce incentive policies that would make domestic production more attractive as against the importation of finished products.
Meshioye added that the AfCFTA window should be maximised in such a way that products manufactured in Nigeria would be the preferred in terms of quality and pricing.
The newspaper says that institutional investors from the United States of America under the Institutional Investor Network have expressed interest in allocating their capital and exploring more direct investment opportunities in the Nigerian capital market.
This was the subject of discussion at an engagement between Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) and a delegation from the U.S. facilitated by Chapel Hill Denham.
The delegates consist of United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Prosper Africa and Power Africa. During the engagement, which was marked by a Closing Gong Ceremony, the Chairman, Nigerian Exchange Group Plc (NGX Group), Dr. Umaru Kwairanga called for a deeper collaboration between the U.S. and Nigeria.
He noted that the NGX Group has been engaging the government in various areas of market development, especially in the removal of capital controls; legislation to enhance attractiveness of listings, pension reforms, policymaking to facilitate dollar-denominated market transactions, and the establishment of a private market. “Significant opportunities for mutual economic expansion abound between the United States and Nigeria. NGX Group is positioned to facilitate more investment inflows.”
Chief Executive Officer, NGX, Temi Popoola, said: “We are working hand-in-hand with government to create an attractive environment for listings and also on product innovation that can creatively channel more funds into the market.
Senior Investment Advisor, Prosper Africa, Cameron Khowsroshahi, who led the US delegation to Nigeria emphasised the U.S. institutional investors’ readiness to work with Nigerian institutional investors including pension funds to explore more avenues to invest in the Nigerian capital market.
Meanwhile, following gains recorded by many bluechip stocks, especially BUA Cement and Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN), the Nigeria equities market rebounded yesterday as market capitalisation increased by N63 billion.
GIK/APA
Nigeria: Press zooms in on new oil production figure of 1.35mb/d, others
