- Abdul Samad Rabiu praised the CBN's overseas speech reforms for eliminating the request for businesses to lobby for FX, highlighting the existent market-driven and transparent regime
- Despite overseas speech losses, BUA Cement's income surged to N877 cardinal successful 2024, with a 48.2% summation successful nett earlier taxes, driven by improved operational ratio and strategical pricing
- Rabiu besides forecasted a stronger naira and predicted that the institution would proceed its growth, with plans for further concern successful vigor ratio and section content
Legit.ng writer Zainab Iwayemi has 5-year-experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market.
Abdul Samad Rabiu, president of BUA Cement Plc, claims that the Central Bank of Nigeria's overseas speech reforms person eliminated the request for businesses to lobby for FX.

Source: UGC
During a media briefing held Monday successful Abuja aft BUA Cement Plc's 9th Annual General Meeting, Rabiu made the statements.
In opposition to earlier practices that, successful his opinion, produced an artificial scarcity and compelled businesses to inquire for favors successful bid to get dollars, helium characterised the existent FX authorities arsenic being much transparent and market-driven.
“I was making a gag a fewer weeks agone that I’ve lone seen the existent CBN Governor possibly doubly since his appointment. That’s due to the fact that I don’t request him. “Before now, I utilized to visit the CBN each 2 weeks to lobby for FX. That was the lone mode to survive,” Rabiu said.He criticised the erstwhile FX system, pointing retired that it led to distortions and restricted entree for galore businesses due to the fact that the authoritative complaint was overmuch little than the parallel marketplace rate.
“The complaint was N500 oregon N600 officially, but cipher could get it. On the street, it was person to N1,000. It was an artificial rate,” helium said.The BUA president praised the existent reforms for unifying the market, saying, “Now, the complaint you get is what everyone other gets. You spell to the bank, you get FX astatine the marketplace rate.”Naira dollar prediction
Rabiu predicted that the speech complaint mightiness driblet to astir N1,200/$ successful the upcoming months, from highs of astir N2,000 earlier successful the year, and voiced optimism that the naira would proceed to rise.
He went connected to accidental that the stronger naira was already lowering the outgo of nutrient and cement, among different things.
In effect to queries astir cement prices, Rabiu clarified that caller terms increases were caused successful portion by the precocious outgo of production, which was influenced by energy expenses, overseas equipment, and fluctuations successful overseas speech rates. He claimed that BUA had made an effort to support terms stableness successful spite of these difficulties.
Regarding the company's financials, Rabiu stated that contempt N93.9 cardinal successful overseas speech losses, BUA Cement accrued its income from N460 cardinal successful 2023 to N877 cardinal successful 2024.
He said that the company's instrumentality connected mean superior employed accrued to 15% from 10% successful 2023 and that nett earlier taxes accrued by 48.2% to N99.63 billion.
In 2024, net per stock climbed 6.3% to N2.18 from N2.05 successful 2023.Even arsenic the institution absorbed rising input costs, this show was fueled by a operation of prudent pricing strategies and accrued dispatch volumes.
“Cash procreation grew significantly, enabling accrued superior expenditure financing and supporting our strategical efforts to trim vulnerability to overseas currency obligations. This was achieved by paying down import concern facilities and aligning accrued involvement payments with disposable currency flows,” helium said.Additionally, Rabiu disclosed that BUA Cement's Q1 2025 nett aft taxation was N81 billion, exceeding the company's full 2024 earnings. According to his projections, full-year 2025 net mightiness scope N250 billion. He attributed this summation to greater accumulation capacity, little overseas speech losses, and improved operational efficiency.
In airy of the caller commissioning of 2 much cement lines successful Sokoto and Edo States, helium affirmed that the institution has nary urgent intentions to summation its capableness beyond its contiguous 20 cardinal metric tons.
A N2.05 dividend per share, oregon a 94% payout ratio, would beryllium paid out, Rabiu added, reinforcing BUA's dedication to shareholder value.

Source: Getty Images
The institution has demonstrated outstanding fiscal performance, resilience, strategical agility, and a beardown committedness to maturation successful a dynamic environment, according to Yusuf Binji, Managing Director and CEO of BUA Cement.
In bid to guarantee supplies and prevention costs, Binji claimed the institution was constructing a 700-tonne-per-day LNG regasification works to grip its biggest outgo driver, energy.
In bid to little operating expenses and lessen FX exposure, helium said that BUA Cement had renegotiated existent work contracts successful favour of section content.
Rewane predicts caller naira against US dollar
Legit.ng reported that Bismarck Rewane, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Financial Derivatives Company, has projected that the naira volition commercialized betwixt N1,600 and N1,650 successful the authoritative overseas speech marketplace successful June and July.
He cited information that indicated effectual measures by the Central Bank of Nigeria to negociate wealth proviso growth, which peaked astatine 78% successful May past year, arsenic the ground for his projection astir the Nigerian currency.
He gave this projection portion speaking astatine the caller Lagos Business School meal nine meeting.
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Source: Legit.ng