Daily Watch – Inflation rises, Nigerian brewer gets Belgian boost

Data from the NBS showed Monday that Nigeria’s annual inflation stood at 11.61 percent in October, the highest since May last year, compared with 11.24 percent in September. This indicates an inflation rise by 0.37 percent. The food price index showed inflation at 14.09 percent in October, compared with 13.51 percent in September. Meanwhile, Core inflation dropped to 8.88 percent from 8.94 percent recorded in September 2019. The rise in the food index, according to the NBS, was caused by increases in prices of Meat, Oils, and fats, Bread and cereals, Potatoes, yam, and other tubers, Fish and Vegetables. Costs have been pushed up upon the border closures that President Buhari ordered to curb the smuggling of rice and other commodities. The CBN may hold its key rate next week, going by the increase in inflation as pressure on the naira persists. The faster price growth is expected to increase the spread between the inflation rate and yields on one-year Treasury bills even further, having a negative impact on local funds that have been restricted from investing in the CBN’s higher-yielding securities. Prices are likely to increase even faster in the next two months as consumer demand and spending rise over the Christmas season.

Aiteo Eastern Exploration and Development Company says sustained economic sabotage by vandals on Nigeria’s oil-exporting Nembe Creek Trunk Line has led to significant losses in production. The oil firm said it’s constrained to alert all stakeholders of the recent spate of attacks on the key national oil infrastructure in its asset base, the NCTL, which had been shut down for 61 days this year. The NCTL, which is 100km long with a capacity of 150,000 barrels per day at Nembe Creek, evacuates crude to the Bonny Crude Oil Terminal. According to Aiteo the destructive pattern of pipeline vandalism still persists despite significant investments in security, technology, and civic engagements. The firm said the attacks have become sophisticated, and appear timed to inflict debilitating and disruptive effects. It assumes that the attacks are indisputably calculated to decimate Aiteo’s production output in the short if not medium term. The NCTL, one of two that exports Bonny Light crude oil, has been shut down more than once this year. It was shut down due to a fire in April, and placed under force majeure in September and over the last four years, more than 200 shut down days had been recorded on the oil facility.

International Breweries will secure about ₦123 billion in investment from a Belgian company, Anheuser-Busch InBev, as the world’s largest brewer is looking to expand its footprint across Nigeria and other markets in sub-Saharan Africa. The new capital injection is expected to solidify the grip of AB InBev on its African markets through its subsidiaries, one of which is the International Breweries, producers of Trophy Lager, Hero Lager and Betamalt – a non-alcoholic malt drink. The International Breweries will raise ₦164.39 billion through a rights issue of 18.266 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at ₦9 per share which will be pre-allotted on the basis of 17 new ordinary shares of 50 kobo each for every eight ordinary shares of 50 kobo each held as at the close of business on November 6, 2019. With the rights’ ratio, about 13.72 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each will be pre-allotted to AB Inbev. Sources said AB InBev was in support of the rights issue and had committed to participating fully in the new capital raising exercise. The subsidiary will issue the shares as a registered company on the Nigerian Stock Exchange where shares are sold to existing or new shareholders. The company has filed for final regulatory approvals to raise the funds. AB InBev had in 2017 merged its three indirect Nigerian subsidiaries-International Breweries Plc, Intafact Beverages Limited and Pabod Breweries Limited. The merger was done through a scheme of merger with International Breweries subsisting as the post-merger company. The merger was seen as a major strategic move by Anheuser-Busch InBev to upend competition and consolidate its Nigerian base for further expansion into sub-Saharan Africa.

Air Peace and Brazilian aerospace conglomerate, Embraer, have entered a contract for three additional E195-E2 confirming purchase rights from the original contract, signed in April this year. The Nigerian airline has made a total firm order of 13 E195-E2s with 17 purchase rights for the same model, whose delivery would begin in May 2020, going by the new signing at the Dubai Airshow. The new E195-E2s with a value of $212.6 million, based on Embraer’s current list prices, would be included in Embraer’s 2019 fourth-quarter backlog. It added that the new aircraft would have dual configurations with 12-seater business class and 102-seater economy class. Air Peace Chief of Finance and Administration, Ejiroghene Eghagha, who signed the new deal on behalf of the airline, said that the E195-E2 was the perfect aircraft to expand the carrier’s domestic and regional operations. She said the new order would gradually replace the airline’s existing fleet.