Daily Watch – FG revenue declines in May, Inflation drops in June
18th July 2017
- The FG has expressed concern over the increased usage of drones, and has commenced the formulation of regulations to address this. Hadi Sirika, the aviation minister, said, “The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority’s Regulations Committee is putting a regulatory framework in place to address the commercial use of the RPAS. Let me draw the attention of Nigerians and plead with them that our systems, values, norms, tradition and culture are very different from that of the United States, so, we cannot afford to allow drones to roam about our airspace uncontrolled and unregulated. They will for sure be regulated, but we will not kill the enthusiasm of hobbyists and other users of drones. We will only regulate to ensure that all of us remain safe and secure.” Sirika stated that there was a need to incorporate remotely piloted aircraft and their users into the culture of safety and responsibility, and added that the best way to accomplish this was to work with a wide range of stakeholders, including the government, aviation regulators and manufacturers.
- The latest NBS Consumer Price Index shows that inflation dropped from 16.25 percent in May to 16.1 percent in June. “The CPI which measures inflation increased by 16.1 percent year on year in June 2017. This was 0.15 percentage points lower the rate recorded in May. Accordingly, this represents the fifth consecutive decline in the rate of inflation since January,” the report said. On a month-on-month basis, the headline index rose by 1.58 percent in June 2017, representing a decline of 0.30 percentage points from 1.88 percent in May. Cumulatively, Month on Month inflation rose by 9.28 percent since January 2017. For the food index, the NBS in its report explained that this increased by 19.91 percent (year-on-year) in June, down by 0.64 percentage points from 19.27 percent in May. This, according to the NBS, is an indication of the continued pressure in food prices.
- The Senate Committee on Customs, Excise and Tariff has accused the Nigerian Ports Authority of failing to provide records of 282 vessels, which berthed at its terminals across the country between 2010 and 2016. Senator Hope Uzodinma, the committee’s chairman alleged that the NPA failed to properly account for the vessels and their contents over the period. “We want the Nigerian Ports Authority to come and explain what happened to 282 vessels that disappeared from terminals. We have names of the releasing officers. This shows that there is no security at the terminals,” he said. Uzodinma criticised the NPA for not attending the hearing even though the exercise was focused on the activities of the organisation.
- The Federal Inland Revenue Service has closed four companies in Lagos and Port Harcourt over their failure to meet their tax obligations totalling ₦630 million. The leader of the FIRS enforcement team, Anita Erinne, told the defaulting firms that their premises would be unsealed when they clear their outstanding tax bills. She said that the firms had been officially notified of their indebtedness to the FIRS, stating that all the taxes should be paid before their premises could be reopened.
- The CBN’s economic report for the month of May, puts oil and non-oil receipts at ₦238.09 billion and ₦220.33 billion, respectively, constituting 51.9 percent and 48.1 percent of the FG’s total revenue. This represents a cut in Nigeria’s gross federally collected revenue of 13.42 percent to ₦458.42 billion. Crude oil earnings decreased from the ₦292.82 billion recorded in February. Crude oil export was estimated at 1.18 mbd or 36.58 mb in the review month.