Matthew Otoijagha
Nigeria’s pension fund portfolios are expected to show continued growth in the second quarter of this year, the National Pension Commission (PenCom) has said. The Commission, in a report, said this is based on the upward trajectory of the equity market in the first Quarter of the year.
PenCom disclosed that this is premised on the expected drop in yields and interest rates on fixed income securities as a result of the improving macro-economic environment and the restructuring of the Federal Government debt portfolio.
The report read: “Other factors expected to impact on the performance of the equity market include stable or increased global crude oil prices, increased liquidity in the foreign exchange market and improved foreign investors’ confidence and interest in the Nigerian equity market.“
‘‘It is also envisaged that the inflation rate would trend downwards from the average inflation rate recorded in the fourth quarter, 2017 at 15.72.01 per cent. Overall, pension fund portfolios are expected to show continued growth in first quarter of 2018.
Meanwhile, a total of 17,828 workers under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), who lost their jobs have received N6.54 billion in the fourth Quarter of 2017.
The amount given was 25 per cent of each person’s Retirement Savings Account (RSA) balances. This was made known in a report released by the National Pension Commission (PenCom).
According to PenCom, the RSA holders are those under the age of 50 years and were disengaged from work and unable to secure another job within 4 months of disengagement.
The Commission revealed that the cumulative total number of disengaged RSA holders, who were paid 25 per cent was 250,293 and were paid N82.57 billion from inception of the CPS to date.