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Nigeria’s inflation figures dropped for the third consecutive
month in November to 12.8 per cent.

According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics,
released on Tuesday, this is significantly lower than 13.4 percent recorded in
October and 13.6 per cent in September. This is coming on the back of
suggestions by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that emerging markets will
need to guard against rising inflation, surging capital inflows and the
associated risk of bubbles in asset and credit markets and the threat of rapid
currency appreciation.

According to the Bretton Woods institution, “In coming years,
emerging market economies will face challenges very different from those of the
advanced economies.”

Food prices rise

The statistics office, in its report for November, stated that
average monthly food prices rose marginally by 0.3 percent in November 2010
when compared with October. “The level of the Composite Food Index was higher
than the corresponding level a year ago by 14.4 percent, meaning that the
average price of foodstuff has risen by that margin in the last one year.”

It however observed a near price stability with some non food
items. The highest food price increase were recorded in Delta and Ebonyi States
at 118.6 per cent and 118.3 per cent in that order, while the least increase
were recorded in Ekiti and Benue with 108.8 per cent.

Regional Head of Research, Africa, Standard Chartered, Razia
Khan, suggested a tightening of monetary policy to ensure continued foreign
exchange rate as well as price stability. The naira currently trades for
N149.06 to the dollar. “Foreign exchange reserves may remain under pressure,
and offsetting policy will be required from the authorities to ensure price
stability,” she said in her assessment of the N4.2 trillion 2011 budget presented
yesterday by President Goodluck Jonathan.

IMF statistics

According to the IMF, emerging economies having ridden out the
negative impact of the global financial crisis better than the developed
economies should be less concerned about weak growth and deflation.

According to the latest edition of Finance & Development
Magazine, an IMF publication, there was variation among regions, however.
“Emerging Asia saw the most favourable outcomes, with modest declines in
growth. The emerging economies of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and
those in sub-Saharan Africa also enjoyed only small declines in output,
possibly due to their modest exposure to trade and financial flows from the
advanced economies.”

Nigeria is the second largest economy in sub Saharan Africa
after South Africa.The report hinged the success of these countries on a
combination of factors, including macroeconomic policies that brought inflation
under control and limited public debt; reduced dependence on foreign financing;
current account surpluses that insured against reversals of capital inflows;
and diversification in production and exports. “Improved trade and financial
linkages increased resilience, and rising incomes and a burgeoning middle class
translated into growing domestic markets for emerging market economies,” the
report said.

It was bound to bubble to the surface one day, that the
multinational oil companies operating in Nigeria had a certain foothold on the
Nigerian government that is more than having a toe in the door. The WikiLeaks
reports showed a brash Shell official boasting of how they have infiltrated
every facet of the Nigerian government.

This should, however, not surprise anyone. Did they not draw up
Nigeria’s Vision 20/20 under the Abacha/Shonekan regime? When the government
broached the idea of a new oil sector bill, didn’t Shell’s Ann Pickard, the
then vice-president for sub-Saharan Africa, warn that the oil company would not
accept any law that is against the interest of the company? And that was stated
at a meeting in Abuja, not in the creeks of the Niger Delta; yet no government
official made even a whimper in protest of such an affront on a sovereign state
by a company.

Miss Pickard was then quoted by the Financial Times (24 February
2009) as saying “We do see that the legislation, the bill, will have a profound
impact on the way the industry functions and how the companies move
forward…Getting it right [is] absolutely essential. Getting it wrong will not
be acceptable for Nigeria or the [oil companies].”

WikiLeaks tells the world that Shell had intelligence to share
on militant activities as well as on business competition in the Niger Delta.
We are also told that Shell knows how leaky the Nigerian government is. What a
sorry picture the then minister for petroleum resources, Odein Ajumogobia, must
have cut when he denied a letter from the government inviting China to bid for
oil concessions.

Sneaky Shell already had a copy of the letter. And they also
knew that similar letters had been sent to Russia, according to WikiLeaks. The
meeting with the Russians was even recorded, transcribed and sent to Shell.
Interesting, but not surprising. These Shell spies must be so trusted and well
paid by the company, otherwise one would have asked if the transcripts were
accompanied by sworn affidavits.

Shell’s Pickard is quoted as saying to the US ambassador that
“the GON [government of Nigeria] had forgotten that Shell had seconded people
to all the relevant ministries and that Shell consequently had access to
everything that was being done in those ministries.”

It can be suggested that today, with a former Shell director
sitting as the minister of petroleum, Shell may not need small fries to snoop
and scan pages from that ministry’s bulging filing cabinets. They may not have
to rely on low level officials with tape recorders concealed in pens, tie
clips, belt buckles, eyeglasses, or cufflinks to record meetings and send
transcripts to them. Now they may have copies of whatever document they want
forwarded directly as a matter of routine. Hopefully, that would not be the
case.

Like Nigeria, like United
States

The game of infiltration of public office by oil companies is
not limited to Nigeria. It was revealed in the BP Deepwater Horizon fiasco that
regulatory agencies in the USA were very chummy with the oil mogul’s official
and that this contributed to the lax oversight. How else would BP had claimed
several times over, in the oil spill response plan as well as their
environmental impact assessment, that there were virtually no risks associated
with such an operation?

In BP’s Deepwater Horizon exploration plan, the company
specifically stated in Section 10 that, “A description of the measures that
would be taken to avoid, minimize, and mitigate impacts to the marine and
coastal environments and habitats, biota, and threatened and endangered species
is not required.”

The company went ahead to say in Section 14 that “No adverse
impacts to endangered or threatened marine mammals are anticipated” and that
also “No adverse impacts to endangered or threatened sea turtles are
anticipated”; and “No adverse impacts to marine or pelagic birds are
anticipated”.

Impunity is the word in this sector. Disrespect of the
sovereignty of nations is the norm.

How do you regulate companies who play the game by any rule they
chose to set to ensure their dominance and profiting? How do you regulate an
industry that engages, as suggested by these leaks, in espionage possibly under
the guise of business research?

The response of the NNPC’s spokesperson, Levi Ajuonoma, as
published in The Guardian (London) is pitiful. Mr. Ajunoma is quoted as saying
that “Shell does not control the government of Nigeria and has never controlled
the government of Nigeria. This cable is the mere interpretation of one
individual. It is absolutely untrue, an absolute falsehood, and utterly
misleading. It is an attempt to demean the government, and we will not stand
for that. I don’t think anybody will lose sleep over it.”

It is true we have lost so much to the activities of Shell and
other oil companies in Nigeria, including the NNPC. We have lost lives, our
environment, and our dignity. We can say that we are tired of losing things to
this sector.

However, to not lose sleep over this revelation of the dealing
between oil companies and embassies and our government circles is to ask us to
shut our eyes to a dangerous travesty.

The indices for measuring market performance at the Nigerian
Stock Exchange (NSE) have been unsteady since trading hours were extended last
Monday.

While some market watchers attributed the wobbly stock
performance to the extension of trading hours, some market analysts said it is
too premature to judge the success of the extension.

Analysts at Proshare Nigeria, an investment advisory firm, said,
“Although it is too early to judge the success or otherwise of the trading
hour’s extension based on only the first week of trading, but it is obvious
that the trading volume, price trend, and the NSE share index were not
positively impacted by the extension.”

“We believe that the NSE should have worked on improving the
liquidity of the exchange before extension of trading hours,” they addded.

Meanwhile, stockbrokers at GTI Capital said the market is
expected to pose some resistance following the “swinging character” in recent
period.

“Nevertheless, this may be defiled considering the ongoing
market fundamentals enhanced by festive season. Good investment strategy
remains the medium and long term. Traders may position for expected fourth
quarter result; targeting exit between February-March,” they said.

Banks dominate

The banking subsector of quoted equities at the NSE boosted
market performance on Wednesday, as measuring indices inched up by 0.84 percent
after days of decline.

The banking subsector lead as the most active subsector
yesterday with 195.710 million units valued at N1.578billion, while Access
Bank, First Bank, Guaranty Trust Bank, Zenith Bank, and Intercontinental Bank
were the most traded stocks.

The Exchange market capitalisation of the 201 First-Tier
equities closed on Wednesday at N7.830 trillion after opening the day at N7.765
trillion, reflecting N65 billion gains. Although the market gained N6 billion
after Tuesday’s session, it had lost over N126 billion in the last one week
since the new trading period commenced.

The NSE All-Share Index also gained 0.84 percent or 204.21 units
on Tuesday’s figures of 24,306.83 basis points, to close on Wednesday at
24,511.04.

Low gainers

A total of 25 stocks appreciated in price on Wednesday while 28
stocks depreciated in value. Lafarge Wapco Cement and Nigerian Bottling Company
topped the price gainers’ table with an increase of N1.94 and N1.57 on their
opening prices of N39.00 and N31.53 per share respectively. Dangote Cement and
Dangote Sugar followed in the chart with an increase of N1.50 and 74 kobo, to close
at N124.50 and N16.59 per share.

On the flip side, two petroleum marketing companies, Mobil Oil
and MRS Oil, led the price losers’ chart with a loss of N3.88 and N3.68, to
close at N141.00 and N70.06 per share respectively. Northern Nigeria Flour Mills
and African Petroleum followed with a decrease of N2.09 and 99 kobo on their
initial prices of N41.97 and N23.00 per share respectively.

Following
the cash payment which the Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC), bottlers of
Coca Cola and other drinks, proposed to pay its shareholders as
compensation for the planned delisting exercise, the demand for the
stock has increased, hence, pushing up its value significantly.

The
price, which was N30.03 per share before the announcement was made on
Tuesday, now stands at N34.75 per share as at Thursday, representing an
increase of 15.72 percent in two days.

While
some market watchers suggested that the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE)
should have placed the company’s share on “technical suspension” to
protect price movement on the stock, the spokesperson for the NSE, Wole
Tokede, said he was not sure if the Exchange is considering that option.

The
management of the NBC had, on Tuesday, notified the Exchange of its
“proposed scheme of arrangement between the company and its members,
involving a cancellation of part of its share capital.”

The proposed scheme envisaged a cash payment of N43 per NBC share as consideration to the minority shareholders.

Market declines

Meanwhile,
the Exchange market capitalisation of the 201 first-tier equities
closed on Thursday at N7.807 trillion after opening the day at N7.830
trillion, reflecting 0.29 percent decline or N23 billion losses. The
market had gained N65 billion after Wednesday’s trading session.

The
NSE All-Share Index also lost 0.29 percent or 72.26 units on
Wednesday’s figures of 24,511.04 basis points, to close yesterday at
24,438.78. Zenith Bank, Guaranty Trust Bank, Dangote Sugar, and United
Bank for Africa were the most traded stocks on Thursday.

Gainers increase

A
total of 34 stocks appreciated in price on Thursday, higher than the 25
gainers recorded the previous day, while 28 stocks depreciated in
value; same as recorded on Wednesday. UAC Nigeria and Nigerian Bottling
Company topped the price gainers’ table with an increase of N1.80 and
N1.65 on their opening prices of N36.16 and N33.10 per share
respectively. Ashaka Cement and Flour Mills Nigeria followed in the
chart with an increase of N1.22 and N1.21, to close at N25.72 and
N68.01 per share.

On
the losers’ side, Dangote Cement and MRS Oil led the price losers’
chart with a loss of N4.25 and N3.50, to close at N120.25 and N66.56
per share respectively. Nigerian Breweries and Okomu Oil followed with
a decrease of 84 kobo and 69 kobo on their initial prices of N76.00 and
N13.90 per share respectively.

Active subsectors

Trading
activities in the Banking subsector maintained lead as the most active
subsectors with 165.981 million shares valued at N1.586 billion. Deals
in shares of the four banks mentioned in the most traded stocks boosted
volume in this subsector.

The
Insurance subsector followed with 30.424 million shares valued at
N21.430 million. The Food/Beverages subsector was third in the activity
chart with 26.902 million shares worth N465.808 million.

Some finance
experts have commended the Central Bank of Nigeria for its attempt to
save the naira from falling freely, especially in an era when
currencies are struggling to maintain their value.

Ayo Teriba, the
managing director, Economic Associates, a finance research and
investment advisory firm, said the Central Bank made a good decision to
help the nation’s local currency.

“I think the
Central Bank did well in helping the naira by attempting to meet the
demand for Forex at the Forex market. If they hadn’t, it would have
resulted into the conversion of a global problem into a domestic one,”
Mr. Teriba said.

He said this on
Wednesday at the firm’s one-day conference on ‘Economic and Financial
Outlook in 2011’ held in Lagos. The event was to deliberate on outlook
for global and domestic markets for 2011, the extent to which the
post-crisis economic and financial rebalancing forces that currently
dictate the pace of global demand, commodity prices, and financial
markets are expected to continue into 2011.

“We were able to
hold rates reasonably stable, even though it costs us our reserves. The
Central Bank has helped stabilise our exchange rate even though it’s at
the expense of our foreign reserves,” he added.

Sanusi Lamido
Sanusi, the Central Bank governor, has said that the regulatory body
would not allow a free fall of the nation’s currency and that it would
also endeavour to meet foreign exchange demands at the auction markets.

Fairly stable outlook

Most members of the
audience from strategic planning units of various banks, pension funds,
and other finance firms agreed that outlook for the global and domestic
economy is fairly stable.

“Output for the
global economy is positive, as far as commodity prices are concerned.
We anticipate that there could be growth next year without as much
fluctuations as we experienced this year,” Mr. Teriba said.

Participants, however, pointed out that there may be uncertainties next year from political concerns and the elections.

While accepting
that likely election risks should be anticipated, Mr. Teriba says the
financial outlook for the nation is not likely to depreciate beyond its
present level.

Akintola
Akinbamidele, a Research Analyst, Renaissance Capital, an investment
firm, says sharp political uncertainty should be anticipated, which
could restrain investor participation in some of the nation’s markets.

“One main concern
arises from the increment in recurrent spending as a percentage of
total spending, which is projected at 75 percent in 2011 versus 49
percent in 2010. With historically low execution levels of capital
projects, the much needed period of sustained high economic growth will
be delayed. Exacerbating this scenario is the “potential” laggard
effect on project execution by newly appointed public officials
following an election period.

“We are of the
opinion that post April 2011 elections and into 2012, fiscal and
monetary policy will be mirrored. Thus the outlook for lower yield
outlook in 2012 should drive significant valuation on bond prices,” he
added.

He further said
that the firm’s major catalyst for its outlook is the nation’s
continuation in the anticipated reforms in power, oil and
infrastructure.

The conference was the fourth in a quarterly series of economic event by the firm this year.

When I was with
Sketch Press as a cub-reporter, I was asked to cover an assignment
where Bolarinwa Babalakin, retired Supreme Court justice, was the
chairman. It was a gathering of old students of St. Anne’s School,
Ibadan. His speech that day is one I would remember for life.

He spoke eloquently
and it was from him I first learnt that quote, “Pursue the good you
can, with all the means you can, at all places you can, and with the
people you can.” He used the occasion as reminder to the old students
and guests to continually do good so that there will be great causes to
remember them for in life. This happened 20 years ago, and I can still
recollect vividly how people listened with rapt attention to the jurist.

Public speaking
skills are essential in our lives. It is one skill that everyone should
desire in order to express oneself and make great impact. If public
speaking is this important, then our people need to be very careful
when they speak.

My observation over
the years has left me bewildered because of the way people, especially
public officers, speak in public without considering the implications
of their actions. Public speaking is more than giving a speech or
making a statement just for people to hear. It should be one that
should strike a chord in the heart of the listeners. When you speak,
you should leave something for your audience to reflect upon.

I have listened to
several people, but only very few have impressed me with their delivery
style. I am not looking for someone with great oratorical prowess or a
good command of Queens English alone, but speaking to make an impact in
the listeners’ lives.

Public speaking
demands that one organises his/her ideas in a logical manner while
tailoring one’s message to meet the needs of the audience. It should
also be one that creates a good story telling format to drive home the
point.

Frederick Fasehun,
the Odua Peoples Congress founder, made a wonderful delivery during the
week when he spoke extempore at a book launch. He propelled his
audience to action after challenging them in a thought provoking
manner. Even though he spoke extempore, his speech was in very
structured, with brevity of expression and formal language devoid of
abusive or insulting words.

I mentioned our
public officials earlier on and the whole essence is for them is to
learn how to speak well in public. It has been discovered over time
that some of them do not prepare adequately before they speak. Even
when they prepare, they speak on issues without relevance.

Perception is important

What some people do
not also know is that perception is important when it comes to public
speaking. You create an impression about your person the way you speak
and act in public domain. The public disposition of our elected
officers leaves much to be desired. They engage in careless and
illogical statements that demean the office they occupy. If not, how
can we describe a governor who said the nation’s number four citizen
from his state is a curse to the state?

Regardless of
political affiliations, such statement is not expected to form the
fulcrum of the event at hand. The event in question was not solely
organised to pour incentives on the other personality. In public
speaking, there is the need for ethical speaking and the purpose, goals
should adhere to ethical standards. A good public speaker should also
be honest in what he says and not turn issues upside down.

This was the case
of a former Attorney General who said at an international Bar
Association event that he was conferred the SAN title with the Lagos
State governor the same year. This was debunked in a matured manner by
Governor Babatunde Fashola. If the governor had sent a representative,
the public would have been fed with falsehood. This is a blatant
contempt for the truth in public speaking and several people still
engage in such.

The use of abusive
language that has pervaded public speaking is indeed an unbecoming act.
It is totally wrong to use language to defame and demean the other
person. It is important to avoid bias in public speaking. I read in the
newspaper where a governor was also quoted to be saying, ‘The state
cannot be governed by vagabonds’. The occasion was a political debate
by governorship candidates.

The question is who
were the identified vagabonds that signified interest in the exalted
office? This is a serious issue that elected officials should look into
and put ethical principles into use when speaking publicly.

Also, elected
officials should attend public speaking schools to polish themselves.
There are basic guidelines to public speaking as caution should not be
thrown to winds because of personal animosity, bias, and prejudice on
certain issues or against some people.

It is indeed true
that we may not have the prowess of great speakers, but if there is a
strict adherence to some basic guidelines, public speaking can indeed
be a delight.

AYOPO, a communication strategist and public relations specialist,
is the CEO of Shortlist Ltd. email-shortlistedprspecialists@gmail.com

Hundreds of
customers of Union Bank of Nigeria were stranded in Enugu on Thursday,
following the strike embarked on by workers of the bank.

A News Agency of
Nigeria correspondent who visited branches of the bank at Okpara Avenue
and Ogui Road in Enugu,reported that some of the aggrieved customers
were seen at the bank premises looking helpless.Nkechi Onah, a customer
with the bank said that the strike which commenced on Tuesday had cost
her a lot, she said she needed money urgently to settle the hospital
bills of her daughter who was hospitalised.

Another customer,
Mr Nnamdi Okoh,lamented the hardship the customers had been subjected
to, saying that he will stop patronising the aggrieved bank after the
strike.

New vehicle imports
into Nigeria fell almost a quarter during the first 11 months of the
year as consumer credit, which dried up in the wake of last year’s
banking crisis, struggled to recover, importers said on Thursday.

Vehicle sales in
Africa’s most populous nation are a proxy measure for private
purchasing power, a leading economic indicator which is not formally
available in Nigeria.

Port figures showed
new vehicle imports fell to 32,409 units in the 11 months to November,
down 24 percent on the same period last year, according to Mohan Sethi,
general manager at Dana Motors, which imports Kia vehicles to Nigeria.

The rate of price
falls in Rwanda doubled in November, resulting in an inflation rate of
-5.38 percent from -2.28 percent in October, the National Institute of
Statistics of Rwanda (NISR) stated on Thursday.

The index fell 0.47
percent compared to the previous month,prices of food decreased by 3
percent, meat prices by 9.73 percent while non-alcoholic beverages
prices dropped by 6.04 percent, NISR said.

Prices in the landlocked central African nation have been on a
downward trend for a large part of the year on the back of good
supplies.