The release of the old naira notes and the beginning of Ramadan has driven prices of commodities, particularly tomatoes higher in recent days, Bismarck Rewane, Chief Executive Officer of Financial Derivatives Company (FDC) has said.
“During the naira cash saga, the price of a 50kg bag of tomatoes dropped by 6.25 per cent to N15,000 as its high perishability forced traders to lower price. However, this month, its price rose to N25,000 from N19,000 in March due to the coming of old and new naira notes and rising demand for fruits and vegetables stemming from the Ramadan period. Other domestic commodities with high perishability, such as pepper, also saw price increases after declining in the previous months.
“Shockingly, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies agreed to increase their global oil supply cut by 1.66mbpd after their meeting on April 3. This brings their total supply cut to 3.66mbpd. The news caused oil prices to surge by over five per cent, with Brent price climbing to $84.77pb from $79.89pb at the end of March”, said Rewane in the latest publication of FDC on commodities.
