COVID-19 Deepens Merchandise Trade Deficit

Vetiva Research
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COVID-19 Deepens Merchandise Trade Deficit

According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria recorded higher trade volumes in the first quarter of the year (+7.0% q/q; +14.1% y/y). This represents the highest quarterly trade flows (Q1’21: ₦9.8 trillion) Nigeria has recorded since the pandemic disrupted global supply chains (Q1’20: ₦8.5 trillion).

While the recovery in trade could be attributed to the reopening of economic activities, the surge in trade flows was predominantly driven by a higher import bill (+54.3% y/y), which was responsible for 70% of total trade flows. With exports sustaining its plunge (-29.3% y/y) for the fifth consecutive quarter, the merchandise trade deficit expanded.

Data from the NBS confirmed that machinery & transport equipment, chemical products, and petroleum products dominated the import segment. We believe the increased demand for machinery & transport equipment was triggered by the reduction of import duties on tractors, mass transit vehicles, trucks, and cars, as enshrined in the Finance Act 2020. This, in addition to increased manufacturing activities, contributed to import growth during the quarter.

Border-reopening had a muted impact on exports

Despite the reopening of economic activities which propped up oil prices, exports slipped 9.0% q/q and 29.3% y/y respectively to ₦2.9 trillion (Q1’20: ₦4.1 trillion). This could be attributed to OPEC+ production restrictions and a resurgence of COVID-19 infections in India. Due to the slump in crude exports, crude oil’s dominance moderated to 66.4% in Q1’21 (Q1’20: 71.7%).

On the flip side, non-oil exports expanded strongly (+80.5% q/q) quarterly, as agricultural (+128% q/q) and manufacturing (+94% q/q) exports picked up. This could be the low hanging fruits from the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), as Nigeria exported helicopters, marine vessels, drilling platforms, and storage units to other African nations including Ghana, Cameroon, and Equatorial Guinea. On a yearly basis, however, non-oil exports are yet to climb to pre-pandemic levels (-30.2% y/y).

High trade intensity with India exposes external vulnerabilities

India retained its position as Nigeria’s top export destination, followed by Spain, China, the Netherlands, and France. On the flip side, China remained Nigeria’s top trade partner by imports followed by the Netherlands, the United States of America, India, and Belgium.

Of these 7 countries, Nigeria’s trade relation is more intense with India as both export and import intensity indexes exceeded 4.0, indicating that bilateral trade relations between these two are stronger than their respective average trade relations with the rest of the world.

This explains the plunge in Nigeria’s exports despite the steady recovery in global crude demand and the ascent in oil prices experienced in Q1’21, as COVID-19 resurgence in India dragged demand for Nigeria’s crude.

External position hangs in the balance

In the second quarter of the year, we see India’s health situation dragging trade deficit further into the red zone, given the identification of two variants of the virus and the resurgence of restrictions in major cities in India.

Imports, on the other hand, could swell significantly on a year-on-year basis, riding on a sustained appetite for foreign products. With machinery, mineral and chemical products being the major drivers of imports, these commodities are relatively inelastic and as a result, increased currency-related costs could easily be passed on to final consumers or borne by the government (PMS products).

However, the fall in the value of the Naira could yield lower import volumes. Nonetheless, we expect the enacted provisions of the Finance Act to buoy importation of vehicles, given the gap in local supply. Ultimately, lower demand for Nigeria’s crude by India as a result of the health crisis could deepen Nigeria’s merchandise deficit in Q2’21.

First international treaty to address violence and harassment at work comes into force

Esan Bolaji
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First international treaty to address violence and harassment at work comes into force

GENEVA – The first international treaty on violence and harassment in the world of work comes into force on June 25th 2021 – two years after it was adopted by the ILO’s International Labour Conference (ILC).

To date, six countries have ratified the Violence and Harassment Convention, 2019 (No. 190)  – Argentina, Ecuador, Fiji, Namibia, Somalia and Uruguay. Ratifying countries are legally bound by the provisions of the Convention a year after ratification.

Together with Recommendation No. 206, Convention No. 190 recognizes the right of everyone to a world of work free from violence and harassment and provides a common framework for action.

harassment at work
© Andrey Popov

It provides the first international definition of violence and harassment in the world of work, including gender-based violence and harassment.

Violence and harassment at work takes a range of forms and leads to physical, psychological, sexual and economic harm. Since the adoption of the Convention, the COVID-19 pandemic has further highlighted the issue, with many forms of work-related violence and harassment being reported across countries since the outbreak began, particularly against women and vulnerable groups.

To mark its entering into force the ILO will launch a global campaign to promote its ratification and implementation. The campaign aims to explain in simple terms what the Convention is, the issues it covers and how it seeks to address violence and harassment in the world of work.

“A better future of work is free of violence and harassment. […] I urge countries to ratify the Convention and help build, together with employers and workers and their organizations, a dignified, safe and healthy working life for all.”

Guy Ryder, ILO Director-General

“A better future of work is free of violence and harassment,” said Guy Ryder, the ILO Director-General in his message to launch the global campaign.

“Convention 190 calls on all ILO Member States to eradicate violence and harassment in all its forms from the world of work. I urge countries to ratify the Convention and help build, together with employers and workers and their organizations, a dignified, safe and healthy working life for all.”

The global campaign will be launched during the ILO Action Week on Convention No. 190, which takes place from 21-25 June 2021.

The Action Week calls for renewed commitment from countries to ratify and implement the Convention.

The Action Week begins on 21 June with a virtual high-level dialogue. The speakers will include the ILO Director-General, Ministers of Labour from Argentina and Madagascar, and representatives of the International Organisation of Employers (IOE), the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).

Following the Action Week, the ILO will launch a guide aimed at helping constituents and other stakeholders promote and implement the Convention and Recommendation. The guide covers core principles and measures that countries can take to prevent, address and eliminate violence and harassment in the world of work, including examples of national laws, regulations and policies.

Soaring e-waste affects the health of millions of children, WHO warns

Esan Bolaji
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Soaring e-waste affects the health of millions of children, WHO warns

First WHO report on e-waste and child health calls for more effective and binding action to protect children from growing health threat

Effective and binding action is urgently required to protect the millions of children, adolescents and expectant mothers worldwide whose health is jeopardized by the informal processing of discarded electrical or electronic devices according to a new ground-breaking report from the World Health Organization: Children and Digital Dumpsites.

“With mounting volumes of production and disposal, the world faces what one recent international forum described as a mounting “tsunami of e-waste”, putting lives and health at risk,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General.

e-waste

“In the same way the world has rallied to protect the seas and their ecosystems from plastic and microplastic pollution, we need to rally to protect our most valuable resource –the health of our children – from the growing threat of e-waste.”

As many as 12.9 million women are working in the informal waste sector, which potentially exposes them to toxic e-waste and puts them and their unborn children at risk.

Meanwhile, more than 18 million children and adolescents, some as young as 5 years of age, are actively engaged in the informal industrial sector, of which waste processing is a sub-sector. Children are often engaged by parents or caregivers in e-waste recycling because their small hands are more dexterous than those of adults. Other children live, go to school and play near e-waste recycling centres where high levels of toxic chemicals, mostly lead and mercury, can damage their intellectual abilities

Children exposed to e-waste are particularly vulnerable to the toxic chemicals they contain due to their smaller size, less developed organs and rapid rate of growth and development. They absorb more pollutants relative to their size and are less able to metabolize or eradicate toxic substances from their bodies.

Impact of e-waste on human health

Workers, aiming to recover valuable materials such as copper and gold, are at risk of exposure to over 1,000 harmful substances, including lead, mercury, nickel, brominated flame retardants and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).

For an expectant mother, exposure to toxic e-waste can affect the health and development of her unborn child for the rest of its life. Potential adverse health effects include negative birth outcomes, such as stillbirth and premature births, as well as low birth weight and length.

Exposure to lead from e-waste recycling activities has been associated with significantly reduced neonatal behavioural neurological assessment scores, increased rates of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), behavioural problems, changes in child temperament, sensory integration difficulties, and reduced cognitive and language scores.

Other adverse child health impacts linked to e-waste include changes in lung function, respiratory and respiratory effects, DNA damage, impaired thyroid function and increased risk of some chronic diseases later in life, such as cancer and cardiovascular disease.

“A child who eats just one chicken egg from Agbogbloshie, a waste site in Ghana, will absorb 220 times the European Food Safety Authority daily limit for intake of chlorinated dioxins,” said Marie-Noel Brune Drisse, the lead WHO author on the report.

“Improper e-waste management is the cause.  This is a rising issue that many countries do not recognize yet as a health problem. If they do not act now, its impacts will have a devastating health effect on children and lay a heavy burden on the health sector in the years to come.” 

A rapidly escalating problem

E-waste volumes are surging globally. According to the Global E-waste Statistics Partnership (GESP), they grew by 21% in the five years up to 2019, when 53.6 million metric tonnes of e-waste were generated.  For perspective, last year’s e-waste weighed as much as 350 cruise ships placed end to end to form a line 125km long. This growth is projected to continue as the use of computers, mobile phones and other electronics continues to expand, alongside their rapid obsolescence.

Only 17.4% of e-waste produced in 2019 reached formal management or recycling facilities, according to the most recent GESP estimates, the rest was illegally dumped, overwhelmingly in low- or middle-income countries, where it is recycled by informal workers.

Appropriate collection and recycling of e-waste is key to protect the environment and reduce climate emissions. In 2019, the GESP found that the 17.4% of e-waste that was collected and appropriately recycled prevented as much as 15 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents from being released into the environment.

Call to Action

Children and Digital Dumpsites call for effective and binding action by exporters, importers and governments to ensure environmentally sound disposal of e-waste and the health and safety of workers, their families and communities; to monitor e-waste exposure and health outcomes; to facilitate better reuse of materials, and to encourage the manufacture of more durable electronic and electrical equipment.

It also calls on the health community to take action to reduce the adverse health effects from e-waste, by building health sector capacity to diagnose, monitor and prevent toxic exposure among children and women, raising awareness of the potential co-benefits of more responsible recycling, working with affected communities and advocating for better data and health research on the health risks faced by informal e-waste workers.

“Children and adolescents have the right to grow and learn in a healthy environment, and exposure to electrical and electronic waste and its many toxic components unquestionably impacts that right,” said Dr Maria Neira, Director, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, at the WHO.

“The health sector can play a role by providing leadership and advocacy, conducting research, influencing policy-makers, engaging communities, and reaching out to other sectors to demand that health concerns be made central to e-waste policies.”

May 2021 Inflation: Base Effects Ease Pricing Pressures

Vetiva Research
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May 2021 Inflation: Base Effects Ease Pricing Pressures

Headline inflation moderated for the second time in a row to 17.93% y/y (Vetiva: 18.85% y/y).

While this seems contrary to anecdotal evidence, we believe the high base effect was the primary driver of the moderation in the headline figure, as the reopening of the economy, restoration of supply chains, and reopening of the land borders eased pressure on the headline figure. On a month-on-month basis, however, headline inflation rose at a faster pace by 1.01% m/m (Apr’21: 0.97% m/m).

Food prices rise at a slower pace

Although food inflation eased to 22.28% y/y (Vetiva: 22.78% y/y) from 22.72% y/y in Apr’21, insecurity in food-producing regions continues to take its toll on food prices, as food inflation (May’21: 1.05% m/m) rose at a faster pace month-on-month (Apr’21: 0.99% m/m). The major driver of food inflation remains the food and non-alcoholic beverage segment, which is mostly affected by insecurity, adverse weather conditions, and higher pump prices.

Amid the reduction in food inflation, imported food inflation sustained its upward momentum to 16.97% y/y (Apr’21: 16.91% y/y) reflecting the pass-through effects of a weaker Naira and FX restrictions on food imports.

Structural headwinds squeeze core prices

Non-edible items are still reeling from pandemic-induced disruptions and structural factors (pump price adjustments and dual currency adjustments). This is evident in May’s core inflation outcome – 13.15% y/y (Vetiva: 12.78% y/y). While health and transport inflation lead the pack, we witnessed a moderation in both health (-5bps) and energy (-2bps) inflation for the first time since the pandemic struck. We also attribute this to base effects, given the absence of severe waves of the virus, reduction of PMS prices in Apr’20 and relatively flat PMS prices this year.

FX Reforms to intensify core inflationary pressures

In June, headline inflation could ease further, as base effects come to play. Notwithstanding, we note possible headwinds from the adoption of the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange (NAFEX) rate as the official exchange rate and the consequent impact on the parallel market.

Nonetheless, we pen down a higher m/m print of 1.12% y/y for the month of June (May’21: 1.01% m/m) which translates to a headline inflation expectation of 17.82% y/y for the ongoing month. Having adjusted our expectations for the outer months, we now anticipate an average inflation reading of 17.34% y/y for 2021 (2020: 13.25% y/y).

While food inflation has moderated, the Onion Producers and Marketers Association of Nigeria is mulling over stripping the southern region of access to onions. While this shock is not broad-based, the resurgence of a food blockade across other key food items could have dire consequences for food inflation, especially if such threats re-emerge close to the harvest season. While we expect the prompt intervention to subdue this risk, high base effects could influence a further decline in food inflation to 21.79% y/y in June. Going forward, we note headwinds from the proposed addition of wheat and sugar to the restriction list and tailwinds from the reopening of the borders.

Thus, we expect an average food inflation outcome of 21.11% y/y in 2021 (2020: 16.11% y/y).

With new FX pressures on the scene, core prices could remain elevated in the near term as the Naira slips below ₦500/$ in the parallel market. Thus, we envisage a sustained rise in core inflation to 13.36% y/y in June. This translates to an average core inflation outcome of 13.05% y/y for 2021 (2020: 10.29% y/y).

Ayo Ajayi, MTN Foundation Celebrate Nigeria’s Icons

Brand Spur
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Ayo Ajayi, MTN Foundation Celebrate Nigeria’s Icons

…Promote Youth Empowerment In OMG The Musical

The reenactment of one of Nigeria’s best-known musicals, OMG the Musical, was staged at Shell Hall, MUSON Centre. The show was a product of another successful partnership between the MTN Foundation and Ayo Ajayi, the producer of the musical.

The musical details the story of a fictional Gafuma, a woman marginalized by the patriarchy and denied opportunities she was qualified for, who time-travels to the past where she meets Nigerian icons, including, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, Margaret Ekpo and Gambo Sawaba.

The musical highlights the systemic oppression of women and its manifestation in form of female genital mutilation, rape and workplace inequality.

Reputable actor, Wale Ojo, who was spotted enjoying the show, described it as “excellent” and stressed the need to remember and celebrate the feminist icons that toiled hard to create change, “First of all, my rating of the show is like nine on ten.

It is such an excellent show. I think it addresses some of the major ills of Nigerian society at the moment which is “collective amnesia.” The term “collective amnesia” means that we forget easily those who have shaped our future. Those same people are the strong women of yesterday — the Funmilayo Ransome Kutis, Margret Ekpos, Zulu Shofolas.

Ayo Ajayi, MTN Foundation Celebrate Nigeria’s Icons-Brand Spur Nigeria
Ayo Ajayi, MTN Foundation Celebrate Nigeria’s Icons-Brand Spur Nigeria

They are the women that have shaped our future but we have forgotten them. We have deserted them. Most importantly, we have deserted our fountains of wisdom and teaching and this play teaches us to go back to that.”

Explaining why the MTN Foundation chose to support the project, the Executive Secretary, MTN Foundation, Odunayo Sanya, stated, “At the MTN Foundation, we are committed to promoting stories that are capable of positively shaping society.

We believe that stories with messages that advance efforts towards creating a more equal and safer world for all women are very important because beyond entertaining the audience, they spark conversations on this very important issue. More importantly, we support the arts, especially young people like Ayo Ajayi because we believe in the youth and we see arts as a veritable tool for youth empowerment.”

Speaking on the challenges the production team and theatre industry face and MTN’s role in helping them overcome, Ajayi said, “The process of bringing this musical to the stage was very challenging. The problem we have in this sector is finance. People don’t believe in investing in this kind of thing and I can tell you that the greatest export that can come out of Nigeria is the arts. We are very good at what we do.

Nigeria can create the next Broadway, the next West End. But are we thinking in that direction? Absolutely not! This production has actually brought together almost 100 youths from different fields — acting, dance, drama, light, designing, costume, amongst others. As such, without proper financing, things like this won’t happen.

That’s why we really appreciate MTN for looking into this sector and they have been doing it consistently. Without organizations like MTN, this would not have happened.”

Further expressing his gratitude to MTN for its support and contribution to youth empowerment, he said, “I will like to say that I love MTN with all my heart. They are the greatest supporters of the arts industry in Nigeria.

The thing is that when you support the arts industry, you end up supporting and empowering a lot of young people. What MTN is doing goes beyond the arts and culture sector, rather, I regard it as a full-blown youth empowerment scheme. Based on MTN’s contribution I’m sure a lot of people would still come into this sector.

The youths of this country are our oil. We should focus on them because they show a lot of creativity ranging from digital media, light design, motion graphics, amongst others.”

Comercio Partners Eyes Merchant Banking License

Esan Bolaji
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Comercio Partners Eyes Merchant Banking License

Comercio Partners, a limited liability company in Nigeria with core business in trading fixed income securities and equities, has expressed its readiness to secure a merchant banking license in the next two to three years.

Speaking yesterday at a press conference held in Lagos to mark the firm’s five years anniversary, Comercio Partner Co-Managing Partner/ Head, Investment, Tosin Osunkoya, said the financial institution will be seeking an operating license from industry regulators to begin merchant banking business.

He said: “So, we plan to have a regional bank or a merchant bank in the next two or three years, we also plan to retain those entities that are in existence right now. So, you have the trading arm of the business- which is commercial trading, Comercio Asset management and Comercio Partners capital.”

Comercio Partners

The company recently participated in the Lagos State bond issuance process as one of the leading indigenous firms having only operated in the last three years.

Osunkoya said the move was part of the target set by the company to drive growth and expansion despite the economic challenges facing the country.

According to him, the plan was to continue providing financial advisory and asset management services to domestic and international investors in the Sub-Saharan African Capital Markets that are interested in the newly emerging frontier market in Nigeria.

According to him, “We are looking beyond 2021. The target we set for ourselves for the next five years is for Comercio Partners Limited to be a one-stop shop. As a client, if you are looking to do any kind of financial transaction or looking for financial services, Comercio Partners should be your first thought.

Comercio Partners

Osunkoya said that in the next five years, the company plans to capture the minds of the retail investing community, institutional investors, High Net worth Individuals (HNIs) and house outlets. Our plan is to set up an organogram with different entities under a single structure.”

He said the company recently participated in the Lagos State bond issuance process that raised about N100 billion. This, he said, not only connoted their competence in the industry but conveyed a strong message to the market and further boosted their penetration in the industry, the co-founders stated at the conference.

“We are able to demonstrate this at the last Lagos state bond issuance. Lagos state raised about N100 billion and we were ranked the number two. So, you can imagine a company that is just about three years in operation competing with those that have been in the market for a number of years. Also, our participation showed we are building a brand that would last for a long time.”

Meanwhile, recounting the major successes the firm has recorded since its inception and its plan for the future, Osunkoya disclosed plans are underway to diversify its operations into investments banking operations to give its clients base more robust financial options.

“We are thinking of having the license to operate regional banking and trading; which is going to be security, asset management and you also have capital and investment banking which is investment banking or advisory services.”

“Recently, in the last 18 months, we have also been instrumental in breaking new frontiers. With Covid-19, we are able to break into other markets outside the Nigerian markets in the Euro-bond space. We got into Angola, Rwanda, Kenya and some of our clients are able to diversify their portfolio from Nigeria or the local instruments to foreign instruments,” he stated.

This, Osunkoya noted, led to some institutional investors and HNIs looking into buying instruments in other countries which was never done in the country before now.

“We have recorded a number of successes. For us, a lot of milestones were achieved in the last five years, having started with two clients but now the clients are in hundreds,” he stated.

However, as the firm continues to expand into new frontier markets, having secured its asset management license in 2017, noted that it has pioneered a platform in the fixed income markets that would liberate the sector which has been largely ignored by the investing community.

“What we are pioneering right now is to build a platform called tradefi that allows you at the comfort of your home buy and sell treasury bills and bonds. It is so convenient and fast. With this achievement, it has put us in the limelight for people to expect a lot from those products going into the future”.

The company conducts rigorous research by utilizing both macro and microanalytical tools to generate a statistical analysis of the prevailing market trends in achieving the stated goal of client asset appreciation.

Also speaking, other co-founders, Steve Osho, Head, Financial Advisory and Nnamdi Nwizu, Head Trading, stressed the need for the government to continue to create a stable policy that would allow free entry and exit for foreign investors to invest in the country.

According to them, when yield starts to rise there would be less interest in the equity market, which is riskier than the fixed income markets.

“When people see they can get better income in the fixed income markets they will reduce their appetite for the equity market. So, one thing that is key is for us to grow our reserves again because we have little participation from foreign investors,” they emphasised.

Radisson Hotel Group Debuts In A New African Market With The Signing Of Radisson Hotel Djibouti, In Partnership With Salaam Properties

Brand Spur
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Radisson Hotel Group Debuts In A New African Market With The Signing Of Radisson Hotel Djibouti, In Partnership With Salaam Properties

Radisson Hotel Group is proud to announce the signing of Radisson Hotel Djibouti. The hotel marks the Group’s entry into the country and brings its East African portfolio to 18 hotels and over 2700 rooms in operation and under development, strengthening its strategic position in the region.

This new signing further underscores the Group’ presence as the hotel company active in the most countries on the African continent with close to 100 hotels in operation and under development.

This new-build 144-room hotel, scheduled to open in 2024, will comprise not only of modern standard rooms and suites, but will also have accessible rooms, designed for wheelchair access. Dining options will include light snacks at the lobby café, international and local cuisine at the all-day-dining restaurant, and refreshing drinks at the poolside juice bar. Boasting an expansive meetings and events area, the hotel will offer a variety of versatile venues, including a ballroom, five meeting rooms, a pre-function area, as well as break out areas. The leisure facilities will include a spa, gym, and an outdoor swimming pool.

Just 15 minutes away from Djibouti International Airport, Radisson Hotel Djibouti will be located in the heart of the city, surrounded by key infrastructures such as the Djibouti Port, Djibouti Free Zone, international headquarters, shopping malls and the seaside, providing the ideal base for business and leisure.

Erwan Garnier, Senior Director, Development, Africa, Radisson Hotel Group said: “We are delighted to mark our entry into Djibouti with Radisson, currently our fastest growing upscale brand in Africa. With its existing limited branded hotel supply, we are confident that Radisson Hotel Djibouti will be the country’s leading internationally branded hotel. Along with our partners, Salaam Properties, we are proud to be contributing to the Djibouti Vision 2035 strategy for economic diversification which relies strongly on the growth of the tourism industry.”

Fatima Zahra, Manager, Salaam Properties, the hotel’s owning company, said: “We are thrilled to be contributing to the growth of the region’s upscale tourism industry, together with our partners, Radisson Hotel Group. We are confident that Radisson Hotel Djibouti will help boost the capital’s economy through hundreds of jobs created both directly and indirectly, a significant achievement, especially during these challenging times the world is witnessing. The hotel is another great milestone in Salaam Properties’ successful investments within Djibouti’s burgeoning tourism sector. The country truly is a leading regional tourism and economic hub with significant potential to be further explored.”

Djibouti’s strength lies in its strategic location at the southern entrance to the Red Sea, forming a bridge between Africa and the Middle East. Djibouti is a key market in East Africa due to its port complex, considered one of the most sophisticated in the world at the intersection of major international shipping lanes connecting Asia, Africa, and Europe.

Radisson Hotel Group’s top priority is the continued health, safety and security of its guests, team members, and business partners. The Group applies its Radisson Hotels Safety Protocol (https://bit.ly/3iYLusu) created in collaboration with SGS, the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company, and recently unveiled its new comprehensive testing program as the first hotel group to roll out a rapid testing service for meeting and event attendees at properties across its EMEA portfolio.

Do Consumers Care About Sustainability In Smartphones?

Kantar
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Do Consumers Care About Sustainability In Smartphones?

Manufacturers are increasingly putting sustainability at the core of their business, believing it goes hand-in-hand with future profitability.

The impact of human behaviour on our planet and environment is now well documented. We are at a critical point where consumers need to make a behavioral change. In Britain, the WWF reports that 75% of consumers agree that if we don’t change the way we live in the next 10 years, the state of the planet will put the survival of future generations in jeopardy. But do consumers make sustainable choices when it comes to their smartphones?

Smartphone manufacturers are increasingly putting sustainability at the core of their business, believing it goes hand-in-hand with future profitability. Both Apple and Samsung made the headlines when they removed charging adapters from their smartphone retail packaging, claiming that the change will reduce carbon emissions. OPPO has also adopted sustainable production processes, spanning from design, packaging, and material processing.

However, it is interesting to note that consumers aren’t rushing to embrace the newer, sustainably led brands just yet. Fairphone is the first smartphone company to integrate Fairtrade gold into its supply chain, yet Kantar’s Worldpanel ComTech shows them to have <1% installed base share across the EU5 (France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy and Spain) and US markets. Kantar will be tracking the key consumer trends, adoption of sustainable brands over time and the impact of sustainability strategies from the big global brands.

Smartphone lifecycles

Consumers often must balance cost and convenience when managing their environmental impact. In the smartphone market, simply keeping your current device for longer saves money and positively impacts the planet – and we know that consumers are holding onto their smartphones for longer. In March 2021 across the EU5, the length of time consumers hold onto their devices has increased +2.8 months compared to March 2019. In the United States this has jumped +2.4 months.

Sustainable legislation

Wider macro trends are also at play, in Europe a ‘right to repair’ bill is being introduced this summer. The bill will legally oblige manufacturers to make spare parts for products available to consumers for the first time, increasing the ease to repair a broken phone. Across the EU5 markets, 1 in 2 consumers purchased a new smartphone because their previous device broke (12 months to March 2021), and it will be interesting to monitor how this evolves in the coming months following the introduction of the bill.

These market developments pose a challenge for smartphone manufacturers, network providers and retailers, who are turning to sustainable practices to drive sales. But what exactly are these levers and do consumers care?

Trade-in

One such lever is the ability to trade in your old device, at the time of purchasing a new handset, and this is an increasingly popular mechanic used to drive sales, notably amongst US consumers with 1 in 5 trading in their previous device, versus 5% of EU5 consumers (12 months sales March 2021). Whilst trade-ins are not a new concept, manufacturers, network operators/carriers and retailers are beginning to promote the environmental benefit of these schemes. Understanding the audience and behaviours of those that trade in is increasingly important in driving sales and encouraging the behaviour across the wider population. In the US, Millennials are more inclined to trade in their previous device with an increasing proportion turning to network providers to conduct their purchase – notably AT&T.

Refurbished phones

Refurbished devices are also increasing in popularity, promising to provide consumers a lower cost handset with a positive environmental impact. The EU5 refurbished space is currently valued at €1.5bn and offers great potential growth. These are particularly popular in France, where 9% of consumers purchased a refurbished device (12 months sales March 2021). Across the EU5, Apple dominates the refurbished market accounting for 6 in 10 refurbished devices sold.

Refurbished buyers are split between Gen Z and older consumers, with an over-index across students and retirees.

Smartphones graph

Interestingly, refurbished consumers are more likely to have purchased as they ‘wanted a newer phone’, suggesting that correctly positioning refurbished can generate an uptick in demand across the wider Smartphone category.

Consumers will increasingly expect brands to lead the way in improving sustainability. For many, a smartphone is viewed as an extension of themselves, from the logo on the back to the case that it’s wrapped in. In the future, these devices will also reflect our environmental stance.

Somewhat ironically, mechanics that reduce the cost and inconvenience of a purchase are often positive for the environment – for example buying a refurbished phone is cheaper and greener than buying new. Manufacturers, network providers and retailers will increasingly look to new ways of promoting sustainability whilst driving sales – we expect to see significant developments in this space in the coming years.

Average Price Of 1kg Of Yam Tuber Increased By 6.8% In May – NBS

Esan Bolaji
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Average Price Of 1kg Of Yam Tuber Increased By 6.8% In May – NBS

The National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, on Friday said that the price of yam increased in May 2021. According to the bureau, the average price of 1kg of yam tuber increased year on year by 13.96% and month on month by 6.80% to N269.98 in May 2021 from N252.80 in April 2021.

Data released by the Bureau for May 2021, tagged ‘Selected Food Price Watch’ revealed that the average price of 1 dozen of Agric eggs medium size increased year-on-year by 17.10% and month-on-month by 2.10% to N541.53 in May 2021 from N530.40 in April 2021.

Data obtained by Brand Spur showed that the average price of a piece of Agric eggs medium size (the price of one) increased year-on-year by 22.41% and month-on-month by 1.72% to N49.99 in May 2021 from N49.14 in April 2021.

Yam tuber

Also, the report stated that the average price of 1kg of tomato increased year-on-year by 9.09% and month-on-month by 9.47% to N303.51 in May 2021 from N277.26 in April 2021.

Similarly, the average price of 1kg of rice (imported high quality sold loose) increased year-on-year by 17.46% and month-on-month by 0.65% to N544.09 in May 2021 from N540.58 in April 2021.

In May 2021, the food inflation rate on a year on year basis was highest in Kogi (32.82%), Kwara (26.02%) and Enugu (25.43%), while Akwa Ibom (20.06%), Bauchi (18.65%) and Abuja (16.91%) recorded the slowest rise in year on year inflation.

Nigeria’s Inflation rate- galloping towards 15% Brandspurng2
Wempco Road, Nigeria | www.brandspurng.com

On a month-on-month basis, however, May 2021 food inflation was highest in Kogi (3.11%), Ogun (2.89%) and Anambra (2.37%), while Edo, Sokoto and Ekiti recorded price deflation or negative inflation (general decrease in the general price level of food or a negative food inflation rate).

Nigeria’s Inflation Rate
Photo by Eva Blue

In May 2021, all items inflation on year on year basis was highest in Kogi (25.13%), Bauchi (23.02%) and Sokoto (20.11%), while Katsina (15.69%), Imo (15.52%) and Delta (14.85%) recorded the slowest rise in headline Year on Year inflation.

On a month-on-month basis, however, in May 2021 all items inflation was highest in Kogi (2.22%), Ogun (2.17%) and Cross River (2.07%), while Ekiti (0.02%) recorded the slowest rise in headline month on month with River and Sokoto recording price deflation or negative inflation (general decrease in the general price level of food or a negative food inflation rate).

Seplat Petroleum Development Company Changes Name to Seplat Energy Plc

Esan Bolaji
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Seplat Petroleum Development Company Changes Name to Seplat Energy Plc

Nigerian Exchange Limited has implemented the change of name of Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc, a leading Nigerian independent energy company listed on both the Nigerian Exchange and the London Stock Exchange, to Seplat Energy Plc, Brand Spur reports.

This is in line with the approval obtained from the shareholders of the Company at its Annual General Meeting held on 20 May 2021 and the receipt by the Company of a new certificate of incorporation from the Corporate Affairs Commission. However, the Company’s trading symbol remains the same.

Why the change of name?

The company changed its name to Seplat Energy PLC to reflect the evolving strategy around the future direction of the Company.

Seplat energy Announces Q3 2020 Interim Dividend Currency Exchange Rates

Seplat Grew Revenue By 16.8% to $152.4M in Q1 2021

  • Board adopts quarterly dividend policy; declares Q1 2021 dividend of US2.5 cents per share
  • Revenue up 16.8% to $152.4 million
  • EBITDA of $77.8 million
  • Cash at bank $236.3 million, net debt of $458.1 million
  • The successful issue of $650 million 7.75% senior notes to redeem existing $350 million 9.25% senior notes and repay $250 million drawn on $350 million RCF
  • Refinanced $100 million Westport RBL facility
  • Total capital expenditure of $32.6 million
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