·Edun: There's global uncertainty at huge level
·Naira falls to N1,629/$ on official, N1,565/$ on parallel markets
·Global stock market on free fall
·W'Bank calls for more transparency in government-owned enterprises
Ndubuisi Francis in Abuja and Nume Ekeghe in Lagos
In a bid to navigate the turbulence and uncertainty in the global economy created by United States' President, Donald Trump's new tariffs on countries, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's Economic Management Team (EMT) yesterday disclosed plan to appraise the various scenarios in the ongoing trade war and advise the federal government on the way forward.
The EMT may advise the federal government to consider adjusting the 2025 budget.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister, Mr. Wale Edun, disclosed this in Abuja, while reacting to the global trade war, adding that the federal government would appraise the various scenarios and options and advise the government accordingly.
This was as the naira in line with global trend since the announcement of additional tariffs by Trump, depreciated further yesterday, closing at N1,629 per dollar at the official Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM), a 1.81 per cent decline compared to N1,600/$1 on Friday, despite sustained interventions by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
On the parallel forex market segment, the naira also weakened to N1,565/$1, down from N1,550/$1. This represented a N15 depreciation in one day as demand pressure persisted across both the formal and informal markets.
Data from the NAFEM window showed that the naira traded between N1,590 and N1,655 per dollar on April 7, with a weighted average rate of N1,612.23/$1.
The fresh slide in the exchange rate came despite the CBN's intervention of $197.71 million last Friday in a bid to calm volatility and ensure market liquidity.
But even though major stock markets tumbled yesterday owing to concerns over Trump's global trade war, the US President insisted that he won't pause the tariffs and threatened China with an extra 50 percent levy while suggesting he was open to negotiations with other countries
The Trump's administration recently imposed various tariffs ranging between 10 per cent and 65 per cent on different countries across the world, including Nigeria which got a 14 per cent tariff on its exports to the United States.
However, fielding questions from journalists on the sidelines of the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) Corporate Governance Forum, Edun noted that the US, which is at the centre of the tariff war, had on April 2, announced that it would exempt mineral exports, including oil.
"Therefore, it's the price effect, the oil price effect that may affect Nigeria. And it is the job and responsibility of the economic management team of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, amongst others, to look at the various scenarios that might play out.
"There's global uncertainty at a huge level, so nobody knows exactly what will happen- the announcement that has been made. We're not sure what will be delayed, what will be reversed, or what will be implemented.
"So, it is not an announcement that the budget is being reviewed. It's an announcement that it is our responsibility to look at the various scenarios and options and advise government accordingly."
Earlier in his address at the event themed, "Ensuring Value Creation in State Owned Enterprises Through Better Corporate Governance," Edun highlighted plans to look at budget adjustment, expenditure prioritisation as well as innovative non-debt financing strategies.
According to him, Nigeria had recorded trade surplus in the last three years (2022-2024) with the US.
"Nigeria-US Trade has been in surplus in the last 3 years (2022-2024). Nigeria's exports to the US was N1.8 trillion, N2.6 trillion and N5.5 trillion in 2022-2024 respectively.
"Fortunately, oil and mineral exports accounted for 92 per cent. Implying oil and minerals exports amounted to N5.08 trillion in value while non-oil was just N0.44 trillion
"Consequently, the tariff effect on exports is negligible if we sustain our oil and minerals exports volume.
"The adverse effect on Nigeria will be through oil price plunge. We are intensifying efforts to ramp up crude oil production to curtail any price effect
"We are also focusing on non-oil revenue mobilisation by FIRS and Customs, budget adjustment and prioritisation where possible, and also and innovative non-debt financing strategies," the minister said.
On MOFI's focus on good corporate governance, the minister noted that at a time when nations across the globe were contending with economic uncertainties, financial vulnerabilities, and the demand for structural reform, the discourse on corporate governance assumes an even greater relevance.
"The interplay between economic performance and corporate governance is neither incidental nor superficial. Instead, it constitutes the bedrock for establishing sustainable development, investors' confidence, and institutional integrity.
"In this context, it is imperative that we not only discuss the state of our economy but also underscore the transformative role that sound corporate governance can play in fostering resilience, efficiency, and long-term value creation," he said
According to him, notably, State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) form a critical component of the national economic framework as they wield considerable influence across key sectors, including energy, infrastructure, telecommunications, and financial services.
"However, their potential to drive economic expansion, job creation, and industrial growth has often been constrained by inefficiencies, poor financial stewardship, and, in some instances, governance deficiencies," he said.
The Managing Director, MOFI, Dr. Armstrong Takang, said the aim of the corporate governance scorecard, which was launched at the event, was to offer a structured mechanism to evaluate how organisations align with both local regulatory requirements and international best practices.
He stated that the goal was also to ensure that enterprises operate optimally, adding:
"We need them to be efficient, we need them to grow, and we need them to contribute substantially."
Corporate governance, he stressed was an innovation that allows organisations to be aware of what they should be doing, how they should be doing it, and how they need to be transparent, frugal, and accountable.
Responding to questions, Takang said MOFI was currently undergoing an asset monetisation exercise, "where we are doing due diligence on each of those assets and speaking to the respective managers and the boards of those companies to get a deeper understanding of where they are, where they intend to go in alignment with the agenda of the administration."
On the audit of the assets, he disclosed that the asset management company was also currently going through a process of producing an annual assets report.
"Part of that work has been completed. It is now going an audit opinion process. Once the users have gone through and they validate those figures, we will publish them using the same forum, and you get to know the exact figures, but it will be significantly higher than the N18.2 trillion that we started off with.
"For those assets that have gone the due diligence are certain, and the auditors have independently verified the value of those assets. We will publish them in an actual report, and you will be the first to know once that is ready," he said.
In his remarks, the outgoing World Bank Country Director for Nigeria, Dr. Ndiaye Diop, called for greater transparency on the part of Nigeria's state-owned enterprises.
Diop, who has been elevated to Regional Vice President of the World Bank, remarked that to ensure that the federal government's share of revenue was based on accurate financial reports, improving transparency was cardinal.
"It is also essential to ensure fairness and to build quality of how much discomfort and cost they pose for public resources.
"Full value of ongoing reforms can only be realised through strong corporate governance, driven by consistent effort and adherence to global best practices," he said
Global Markets in Turmoil
Meanwhile, the S&P 500 lost more than 10 percent the last three sessions in its worst stretch since the outbreak of Covid in 2020.
Commodities prices fell further overall, with oil closing at $61 a barrel. Copper prices, often an indicator for industrial demand, fell too.
Asian equities collapsed on a black Monday on April 7 for markets after China hammered the United States with its own hefty tariffs, ramping up a trade war many fear could spark a recession.
Chinese stock market movements on a screen in Beijing on Monday.Wang Zhao / AFP - Getty Images
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The tariff meltdown on Wall Street earned Trump the distinction of presiding over the biggest losses in the S&P 500 of any president's early term, going back to World War II, according to research from CFRA, an independent financial solutions firm.
According to CNBC, despite the sell-off, the White House has remained defiant, reiterating that the set of shockingly high tariffs unveiled last Wednesday would take effect April 9, as scheduled.
China retaliated on Friday and other countries are readying their own counter-tariffs.
Trump threatened Beijing yesterday with even higher tariffs via Truth Social: "If China does not withdraw its 34 percent increase above their already long term trading abuses by tomorrow, April 8th, 2025, the United States will impose additional tariffs on China of 50 percent, effective April 9th.
"Additionally, all talks with China concerning their requested meetings with us will be terminated!"
Trump also reiterated to reporters later Monday that no pause in the tariff plan was being assessed.
"The president is losing the confidence of business leaders around the globe...this is not what we voted for," wrote Bill Ackman, billionaire head of Pershing Square, on X.
"The President has an opportunity on Monday to call a time out and have the time to execute on fixing an unfair tariff system. Alternatively, we are heading for a self-induced, economic nuclear winter, and we should start hunkering down."
The administration said at least 50 nations had reached out to start negotiations.
Wall Street's fear gauge, surged as high as the 60 level yesterday, an extreme threshold seen mostly only during bear markets.
"Margin calls are going out as we speak," said Chris Rupkey chief economist at FWDBONDS. "For a third straight day investors in U.S. equity markets have turned (a) huge thumbs down on the White House Liberation Day tariffs which have rocked Wall Street."
According to the NBC, US markets whipsawed as investors grasped for any shred of news that indicated Trump would relent on his tariffs plan. A widely circulated but false headline saying the president was considering a 90-day pause sent markets skyrocketing for a brief time.
The White House debunked the news, and stocks again slipped into the red for a time.
