Echotitbits – Nigeria News

Tag: Inflation

  • Vitafoam Posts Major Profit Rebound as Consumer-Goods Earnings Surge

    Vitafoam Posts Major Profit Rebound as Consumer-Goods Earnings Surge

    2025-12-30 15:30:00

    According to Punch, Vitafoam Nigeria Plc recorded a sharp rebound in full-year performance, reporting net profit of about ₦14.54bn for the year ended September 2025, alongside stronger revenue and operating profit.

    The numbers reflect a consumer-goods firm navigating FX pressures, cost dynamics and price adjustments, with improved operating metrics helping lift the bottom line.

    Investors will watch how the company sustains margins amid inflation and currency volatility, including raw material sourcing and working-capital discipline.

    Premium Times reported profit “leaped more than fifteen times” and referenced a dividend and bonus-share plan. Nairametrics said the company’s pre-tax profit jumped “1,775% year-on-year,” also noting dividend/bonus actions.

    Echotitbits take: The key question is durability—was this driven by demand, pricing power, or a one-off cost/FX swing? Watch quarterly momentum, input-cost trends, and whether consumer spending holds up into Q1 2026.

    Source: The Punch — December 30, 2025 (https://punchng.com/vitafoam-posts-n14-5bn-profit-surge/)

    The Punch 2025-12-30

    Photo Credit: The Punch

  • PZ Cussons rebounds into profit as half-year results show a turnaround

    PZ Cussons rebounds into profit as half-year results show a turnaround

    Photo Credit: The Punch

    2025-12-24 07:11:00

    Reporting by PUNCH indicates PZ Cussons Nigeria returned to a strong profit position in its half-year results, reversing prior weakness and pointing to better pricing, improved margins, and tighter cost control.

    The interim numbers showed a notable lift in profitability, suggesting management is gaining traction on operational efficiency despite Nigeria’s tough consumer environment.

    If the trend holds, investors will watch for whether the profit is driven by sustainable volume recovery or largely by pricing and currency-linked effects—especially as purchasing power remains under strain.

    MarketScreener’s data summary of the filing notes: “For the six months, sales was NGN 127,902.6 million… Net income was NGN 21,428.3 million.” In the company’s NGX interim highlights, it lists: “Basic and diluted earnings per share (Naira) 5.17.”

    Echotitbits take: This is a snapshot of how consumer-goods firms are navigating inflation and FX pressures—reprice, optimize, and protect margins. Watch next for evidence of volume growth, not just margin expansion.

    Source: The Punch — December 24, 2025 (https://punchng.com/pz-posts-n21-4bn-half-year-profit/)

    The Punch 2025-12-24

  • Dangote petrol rollout: ₦739/litre hits MRS outlets as supply test begins

    Dangote petrol rollout: ₦739/litre hits MRS outlets as supply test begins

    Photo credit: The Punch
    2025-12-22 09:00:00

    In an update published by *The Punch*, Dangote Refinery has begun a nationwide petrol price rollout tied to its distribution arrangement with MRS Oil outlets, putting pump price at about ₦739 per litre in participating stations.

    The move is being positioned as a stabilisation push—aimed at reducing downstream volatility, narrowing price dispersion across regions, and increasing locally refined supply into retail channels.

    Market watchers say the real test will be continuity of supply and whether other marketers match the pricing—especially in high-transport-cost corridors where pump prices typically climb.

    For consumers, the announcement lands as a pocketbook story: transport costs, food logistics, and small-business energy spending often respond quickly to fuel pricing shifts.

    Channels TV reported Dangote’s statement that “Starting from Tuesday, MRS will start selling petrol at N739/litre,” while Vanguard also reported the refinery “commenced nationwide sales… at a pump price of N739 per litre” via MRS outlets.

    **Echotitbits take:** This is not just a price headline—it’s a supply-chain stress test. Watch for (1) sustained volumes, (2) whether queues return, and (3) how regulators respond if pricing triggers new tension among marketers.

    Source: The Punch — December 22, 2025 (https://punchng.com/dangote-launches-n739-litre-petrol-at-mrs-stations-nationwide/)

  • MRS stations begin ₦739 petrol sales in Lagos as marketers push back

    MRS stations begin ₦739 petrol sales in Lagos as marketers push back

    Photo Credit: Punch
    2025-12-17

    As pump prices remain a major political and household issue, MRS filling stations in Lagos have begun selling petrol at ₦739 per litre, triggering long queues and renewed debate about how quickly price cuts reach consumers.

    The development follows Dangote Refinery’s gantry price reduction and an effort to push retail prices lower through selected partners. However, marketers’ groups — including PETROAN — have criticised aspects of the rollout and the market disruption it could cause.

    For consumers, the immediate story is relief at the pump (where available) and confusion elsewhere as competing stations adjust prices or pause sales to manage supply and crowd control.

    For the industry, the key question is whether the ₦739 benchmark becomes nationwide — or remains a limited, Lagos‑first price in the face of logistics, inventory and competitive pressures.

    Vanguard: “Starting from Tuesday, MRS will start selling petrol at ₦739 per litre. We will enforce that low price…” Dangote said.

    P.M. News: “From Tuesday, MRS will begin selling petrol at ₦739 per litre. We will ensure that price is enforced and implemented,” Dangote said.

    Analysis/Echotitbits take: If the price cut holds and spreads, it will reset expectations across the downstream market. Watch for wider station participation, any regulatory guidance on pricing/competition, and whether supply disruptions emerge from sudden demand spikes.

    Source: Punch — December 17, 2025 — https://punchng.com/mrs-begins-n739-litre-petrol-sales-petroan-kicks/

     

  • Senate backs ₦54.46trn 2026 spending framework, cuts oil price benchmark to $60

    Senate backs ₦54.46trn 2026 spending framework, cuts oil price benchmark to $60

    Photo Credit: Punch
    2025-12-16

    Lawmakers in the Senate have approved the 2026–2028 medium‑term expenditure and fiscal strategy framework, endorsing a ₦54.46 trillion 2026 spending plan and lowering the crude oil benchmark for 2026 to $60 per barrel.

    According to reports on the debate, the lower benchmark reflects caution about global oil volatility, even as output assumptions remain aggressive. The framework also keeps key macro assumptions such as the exchange‑rate projection and multi‑year inflation and growth targets.

    The decisions matter because they set the ‘envelope’ for the 2026 budget — shaping how much government can borrow, what it can spend on capital projects, and how it prioritises debt servicing and social spending.

    Markets will be watching whether the conservative oil price assumption reduces revenue disappointment — and whether reforms, including tax administration changes, can realistically close the gap between projections and collections.

    BusinessDay: Musa said the adjustment was necessary “in recognition of the global geopolitical tensions in Europe and the Middle East and the sensitivity of global crude oil prices.”

    THISDAY: “A key decision was the downward review of the crude oil benchmark price for 2026 from $64.85 per barrel to $60.”

    Analysis/Echotitbits take: A lower oil benchmark can improve budget credibility — but only if production and revenue assumptions aren’t over‑optimistic. Watch the final budget draft, borrowing plans, and how the government hedges against oil‑price and FX shocks.

    Source: Punch — December 17, 2025 — https://punchng.com/senate-lowers-oil-benchmark-approves-n54-46tn-budget/

     

  • Food Price Hike Compounds With Border Closure, VAT Increment – University Don

    Food Price Hike Compounds With Border Closure, VAT Increment – University Don

    A professor of Finance and Capital Market at the Nassarawa State University, Uche Uwaleke, says the rise in commodity prices experienced across Nigeria was expected, but that it would trend down by December.

    Reacting to inflation rates which picked at 13.22% according to Consumer Price Index (CPI), which measures prices of goods and services, released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Tuesday, Prof Uwaleke stated that the pressure is not unconnected to the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, security challenges in the country and other fiscal policies of government.

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    “The uptick in inflation rate in August was expected and will likely continue till the harvest season sets in,” Uwaleke said. “This is particularly so, given the fact that the inflationary pressure is coming more from the food component which increased by as much as 16 per cent.

    “ It is not difficult to see where the pressure is coming from. The economy is still reeling from the negative impact of COVID’19 on the food supply chain. This situation is compounded by the border closure, increase in VAT, electricity tariff, stamp duties and upward exchange rate adjustments by the CBN to ease pressure on the market.”

    The University don also observed that the recent increase in pump price of fuel presented downside risks to inflation, as well as insecurity.

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    “There is also the insecurity challenge affecting the food belts of the country, and this partly explains the high rate of food inflation, at over 20 per cent, in states like Kogi. I expect the inflation rate to moderate towards the end of Q4 2020 in the wake of the harvest season as well as a likely increase in external reserves following gradual recovery in crude oil price, which helps stabilise exchange rate.

    “I also think the COVID’19 interventions by government and the CBN, especially in the Agric value chain will begin to manifest in Q4 2020.The way forward to rein in inflation is for government to tackle insecurity so that farmers can return to their farms and put in place deliberate policy to promote large-scale mechanised Agriculture. This will involve scaling up interventions in Agriculture, including recapitalizing of Development Finance institutions like the Bank of Agriculture,” Prof. Uwaleke advised.