Nigeria, Egypt, and South Africa account for more than four-fifths of the total illegal capital outflows from Africa annually with Abuja alone making up nearly half of that, a recent report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development has said. Collectively, Africa loses an estimated $88.6 billion in illicit financial flows – that is equivalent to 3.7 percent of the continent’s gross domestic product.
The total illicit capital flight has surpassed what the continent receives in developing aid annually, and almost as much as the combined total annual inflows of official development assistance ($48 billion) and yearly foreign direct investment pegged at $54 billion, per 2013 to 2015 average. More details here.
Below is the Ventures Africa Weekly Economic Index for the week ending 9th of October 2020. This economic index gives you a glimpse into other recent activities in Nigeria’s economy as well as changes and prices that could affect the economy:
Nigerian Stock Exchange
Data released by the Nigerian Stock Exchange as of October 9, 2020, showed that the NSE All-Share Index and Market Capitalization both appreciated by 5.30 percent to close the week at 28,415.31 and ₦14.852 trillion respectively. All other indices finished higher with the exception of the NSE ASeM Index which closed flat.
Top price gainers and decliners in the week under review:
Top five price gainers
Eterna Plc.
International Breweries Plc.
Africa Prudential Plc.
Trans-Nationwide Express Plc.
FBN Holdings Plc.
Top five price decliners
UACN Property Development Company Plc.
Tripple Gee and Company Plc.
Deap Capital Management & Trust Plc.
Academy Press Plc.
Conoil Plc.
How did the Naira fare?
The Nigerian currency rose against the dollar at the close of last week, trading at ₦382 per dollar, a slight appreciation from the ₦383 a dollar recorded a week before. The exchange rate in the parallel market – where forex is traded unofficially – closed at ₦457/$1, from ₦465 per dollar last week.
How did the price of oil fare?
Oil prices posted strong gains last week with West Texas Intermediate trading at $41 and Brent Crude close to $43, putting crude close to a 10 percent gain from the previous week. The international benchmarks closed the week at $41.14 and $43.33, respectively.
Prices climbed as Hurricane Delta shut in over 90 percent of production in the Gulf of Mexico. Analysts are of the opinion that crude is not expected to move much higher than current levels of around $40 a barrel until the rest of the year, but neither are prices likely to fall much as bearish factors have been priced in.
