Connect with us

Business

MD Toyota Nigeria Laments Poorest Vehicle Sales Recorded In Decades

Published

on

Toyota

The Managing Director of Toyota Nigeria Limited, Mr. Kunle Ade Ojo, has lamented the poor vehicle sales recorded in the country in the first quarter of the year which fell to an all time low of 2,000 vehicles within the period.

Briefing newsmen at their Lekki, Lagos office during their quarterly meeting, the managing director disclosed that the total sales figure of vehicles across the country including all brands stood at 2,000 units when compared to 5,500 vehicles sold within the same period in 2016.

He, therefore, forecast that given the way the industry was going, it would be difficult for all the car companies to sell 9,000 vehicle before the end of the year Economic shortfall He attributed the poor sales and import figure of vehicles to scarcity of foreign exchange, devaluation of the naira, high interest rate and high duty being paid by automobile companies in the country.

Ade-Ojo said, “The scarcity of foreign exchange, devaluation of the naira and the high interest rate coupled with the economic shortfall hiked prices of vehicles and crippled buying power of many buyers,” adding that 3500 units of vehicles were imported in the first quarter of 2016, while 350 units of vehicles were imported in the first quarter of 2017, the lowest in the last decade.

Annual import vehicle figure before 2016 was between 50,000 to 100,000. He added that even with recent efforts made by the government to tackle the forex challenge, the sector has not seen positive results, stressing that vehicles were being overvalued by customs official at ports of entry.

“If we add everything we pay like VAT and other taxes, you will discover that the vehicle importer pays as much as 85 per cent duty on a single car,” noting that his company paid as much as N15m on one Land Cruiser vehicle. Despite all the challenges, he said that Toyota still leads the market in terms of vehicle sales and import and attributed Toyota’s lead to quality of product, excellent after sales and availability of spare parts.

According to him, Toyota sold about 7,000 cars in 2015 and about 4,000 vehicles in 2016 to further its share from 24 per cent in 2015 to about 26 per cent in 2016. The total retail market in the country stood at 42, 000 in the country in 2015 and fell to about 15, 000 by the end of 2016 to indicate market drop of about 42 per cent.

Ade-Ojo added that vehicle import for 2015 was at 18, 000 but came down to 7, 000 in by the end of 2016. Despite the challenges in the market, the company has continued to lead the sector, importing 43 per cent of the vehicles in 2015 and in 2016 has share of 38 per cent.

Business

Johannesburg Stock Exchange suspends Oando over failure to submit financial results

Published

on

By

Oando Plc says trading on its shares has been suspended by the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) due to its inability to meet the extended deadline to publish its 2022 audited year-end results.

The company is listed both on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) and JSE.

Oando said it also failed to meet the deadline to publish its interim results for 2023.

According to a statement filed on the Nigerian bourse, Oando said the suspension was contained in a letter dated March 27.

The oil company, however, said its audited financial results will be approved by April 15.

“The Company had earlier unsuccessfully appealed to the JSE seeking a further extension of time within which to file the relevant accounts and requesting that it hold off its communicated intention to suspend Oando’s listing on the Exchange,” Oando said.

“Consequently, investors cannot trade the shares of the company during this period on the JSE Limited.

“The 2022 Accounts are scheduled to be approved by the Board of Oando PLC on or before the 15th of April 2024 and will thereafter be sent to the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria for regulatory approval prior to its release to the market.

“The interim results for 2023 will also be released to the market soon after the 2022 Accounts are published.”

The company said further updates will be communicated to the market upon changes to the current situation.

This is not the first time Oando has been suspended from JSE.

On October 19, 2017, JSE suspended Oando after the review of subsequent correspondence received from the NGX and Securities Exchange Commission (SEC).

Prior to this, the NGX, on October 18, 2017, suspended Oando’s trading following the directive of the SEC.

Continue Reading

Business

CBN raises capital base of commercial banks to N500bn

Published

on

By

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced an upward review of the minimum capital requirements for commercial, merchant and non-interest banks.

In a statement on Thursday, CBN said the increase was necessary due to prevailing macroeconomic challenges and headwinds occasioned by external and domestic shocks.

The statement was signed by Haruna Mustafa, director, financial policy and regulation department.

According to the apex bank, the upward review will enhance their resilience, solvency and capacity to continue to support the growth of the Nigerian economy.

CBN increased the capital base for commercial banks with international licences to N500 billion, while national and regional financial institutions’ capital bases were pegged at N200 billion and N50 billion, respectively.

Also, CBN raised the merchant bank minimum capital requirement to N50 billion for national licence holders.

The financial regulator said the capital base for national and regional non-interest banks is N20 billion and n10 billion, respectively.

To meet the minimum capital requirements, CBN advised banks to consider the injection of “fresh equity capital through private placements, rights issue and/or offer for subscription”.

CBN also suggested merger and acquisition (M&A), as well as upgrade or downgrade of licences.

OTHER REQUIREMENTS FOR EXISTING BANKS

  • The minimum capital specified above shall comprise paid-up capital and share premium only. For the avoidance of doubt, the new capital requirement shall not be based on shareholders’ funds.
  • Additional tier 1 (AT1) capital shall not be eligible for the purpose of meeting the new requirement.
  • All banks are required to meet the minimum capital requirement within a period of 24 months commencing from April 1, 2024 and terminating on March 31, 2026.
  • Notwithstanding the capital increase, banks are to ensure strict compliance with the minimum capital adequacy ratio (CAR) requirement applicable to their license authorization.
  • In line with extant regulations, banks that breach the CAR requirement shall required to inject fresh capital to regularise their position.

OTHER REQUIREMENTS FOR PROPOSED BANKS

  • The minimum capital requirement shall be paid-up capital.
  • The new minimum capital requirement shall be applicable to all new applications for banking licences submitted after April 1, 2024.
  • The CBN shall continue to process all pending applications for banking licences for which capital deposit had been made and/or approval-in-principle (AIP) had been granted. However, the promoters of such proposed banks shall make up the difference between the capital deposited with the CBN and the new capital requirement not later than March 31

CBN said all banks are required to submit an implementation plan, clearly indicating the chosen option{s) for meeting the new capital requirement and various activities involved with their timelines.

“The plan shall be submitted to the Director, Banking Supervision Department, Central Bank of Nigeria, not later than April 30, 2024,” the apex bank said.

CBN said it will monitor and ensure compliance with the new requirements within the specified timeline above.

Continue Reading

Business

EKEDC board debunks recall of Tinuade Sanda as CEO, says ‘It wasn’t authorised’

Published

on

By

The board of the Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) says a communication recalling Tinuade Sanda from her role as managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO) does not represent its position.

In a statement on March 28, Babor Egeregor, a director and chairman, legal and regulatory committee, said the directive terminating the appointment of Sanda has been nullified.

However, in a statement on Thursday, the board said it did not authorise Egeregor to issue any statement on its behalf.

“The attention of the Board of Directors has been drawn to the recent statements online and in print media from Mr. Babor Egeregor, supposedly acting on behalf of the board,” the board said.

“This is to state that the Board of Eko Electricity Distribution Plc (“EKEDP”) did not and has not authorized Mr. Babor Egeregor to issue any statement or press release on its behalf. We therefore urge the general public to regard all communications from him as his personal views and does not represent the position of the Board of “EKEDP.”

The board said only communications signed by the chairman are authentic and represent the position of the company on any issue.

Continue Reading

Bodex F. Hungbo, SPMIIM is a multiple award-winning Nigerian Digital Media Practitioner, Digital Strategist, PR consultant, Brand and Event Expert, Tv Presenter, Tier-A Blogger/Influencer, and a top cobbler in Nigeria.

She has widespread experiences across different professions and skills, which includes experiences in; Marketing, Media, Broadcasting, Brand and Event Management, Administration and Management with prior stints at MTN, NAPIMS-NNPC, GLOBAL FLEET OIL AND GAS, LTV, Silverbird and a host of others

Most Read...