Fears of job cuts rise as 7 firms suffer ₦623.6bn loss due to naira crisis

<p>Experts have urged the big firms to look inwards and end the reliance on imported inputs to service Nigeria’s domestic market.</p>, <span>President Bola Tinubu pushed exchange rate from ₦460/$ to around ₦750/$ - ₦770/$ to unify naira NaijaTimes</span>, <h2>There are rising fears of job cuts as major companies have lost over ₦623.6 billion due to the foreign exchange crisis and federal government’s economic policies.</h2>, <p>Most of the affected companies in the telecommunications, fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) and manufacturing sectors have traced the downward trend in their half-year reports to the foreign exchange (FX) crisis.</p>, <p>The looming situation comes amid the decision of the new administration led by President Bola Tinubu to unify the naira, a decision which pushed the exchange rate from ₦460/$ to around ₦750/$ and ₦770/$ recently.</p>, <p>The decision, which also comes amid the removal of fuel subsidy, has greatly affected Nigeria's economy as businesses have shut down operations due to their inability to cope with skyrocketing petrol prices which shot up from ₦190 and ₦205 per litre to around ₦580 per litre.</p>, <p>According to a report by The Guardian, seven Nigerian companies listed on the stock exchange which included Airtel, MTN, Nigeria Breweries, Guinness Nigeria, Nestle Nigeria, Cadbury Nigeria Plc and Dangote Cement incurred combined losses of about ₦623.6 billion due to the unification of the naira.</p>, <p>In its second-quarter report filed with the Nigerian Exchange Limited, Airtel Africa Plc, reported a loss of $151 million (₦130 billion when converted to naira using the current exchange rate) due to the unification of the naira.</p>, <p>MTN Nigeria Plc also suffered a huge foreign exchange loss of ₦131.4 billion which took a huge chunk off its profit.</p>, <p>The telecom provider noted in its 2023 second-quarter results that its pre-tax profits also dropped by 64% to ₦44.6 billion thus reducing its half-year profits to ₦200.3 billion compared to ₦268.6 billion during the same