The Director-General, the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Dr. Muda Yusuf, and Managing Director of the Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM), Abba Bello, have called on the government to create policies that would increase the contribution of non-oil export to foreign exchange earnings.

At a workshop organised by the Association of Business Editors of Nigeria (ABEN) in Lagos, the duo said non-oil economy and export have the potential to drive the needed inclusive growth, hence the need to double efforts to grow the boost activities in the areas.

Yusuf said the government must deliberately create an environment that supports non-oil exports to liberate the business environment; reduce poverty and fast-track economic development.

Muda Yusuf, said non-oil exports could not grow in a market where exporters “do not have free and unfettered access to their export proceeds”.

He added, the differential between the investors’ and exporters’ (I & E) window, where exporters sell their dollar proceeds, and the rate at the parallel market, which is over N70 per dollar, was a major disincentive to exporters.

He said exporters should, at least, be allowed given free access to their proceeds if they could not be given an incentive similar to that of diaspora emitters.

According to him, Nigerian exporters need a wide range of information relating to packaging and the international market to compete with the rest of the world, adding that capacity building is required to bridge the information gap.

Sudan announced Wednesday it had secured a multi-million-dollar bridge loan from the United Kingdom, Sweden and Ireland to clear its arrears to the African Development Bank.

The move comes as Sudan pushes to secure much-needed debt relief, access international financing and attract investment to rebuild its battered economy.

“The finance ministry signed… a deal for a bridge loan worth $425 million to clear the arrears to the African Development Bank,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that the financing would be provided United Kingdom, Sweden and Ireland.

It also signed a separate deal “for a grant of $207 million from the African Development Bank to support economic and financial reforms”, the ministry said.

Finance Minister Gibril Ibrahim hailed the deals, saying in a statement, “we no longer have arrears with the bank.”

Sudan has been undergoing a rocky transition since the April 2019 ouster of president Omar al-Bashir, whose three-decade rule was marked by economic hardship, internal conflicts and international sanctions.

Last year, Washington removed Sudan from its state sponsors of terrorism blacklist –- a major step to unlocking debt relief and international funding.

In January, Sudan signed a memorandum of understanding with the US for a $1 billion bridge loan to clear Sudan’s arrears with the World Bank.

Sudanese authorities are still in talks with the Washington over further financial steps to help the post-Bashir transitional period, according to US officials.

“We have not completed the forgiveness of all the bilateral debt between the US and Sudan. It’s about three billion in this year’s spending bill,” US Senator Chris Coons told reporters on Wednesday during a visit to Khartoum.

“We will begin that process but it will take some time.”

Sudan has in recent months undertaken painful reforms to attract investors, including a managed currency float.

The measures are central to a reform programme agreed last year with the International Monetary Fund.

Later this month, France is set to host a conference aimed at attracting investment to Sudan.

The US service sector last month continued its recovery from the pandemic, according to an industry survey released Wednesday, but the pace slowed slightly as companies faced supply chain complications.

The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) said its service sector index dipped to 62.7 percent in April, below expectations and one percentage point lower than March.

But the index remained well above the 50-percent level indicating expansion.

The survey was good news for the sector, which was the hardest-hit by business restrictions that began in March 2020.

Those measures are now being rolled back across the United States as vaccinations become widespread, and Americans increasingly venture out to travel, shop and dine.

However, the economic reopening is not going completely smoothly, with supply chains struggling to deal with resurgent demand for raw materials and finished products, challenges the services sector is not immune to, ISM said.

“Production-capacity constraints, material shortages, weather and challenges in logistics and human resources continue to affect deliveries, which has resulted in a reduction of inventories,” the survey’s chair Anthony Nieves said in a statement.

ISM reported a more than five point increase in the supplier deliveries index indicating slower deliveries, as well as 2.8-point increase in prices to 76.8 percent.

However, employment rose almost two points to 58.8 percent as the economy reopens, spurring companies to bring employees back.

Oren Klachkin of Oxford Economics said the supply chain issues may drag on growth temporarily, but the sector was poised for a sustained rebound in the months to come. “The underlying details stayed positive overall, as business activity and new orders remained firmly in expansion territory and the employment recovery gained momentum,” he said.

Global equities rebounded Wednesday as investors focused on bright earnings and data pointing to an economic recovery, narrowly lifting the Dow to a new record high.

London rose 1.7 percent during the session on the strength of miners to reach its highest close since the Covid-19 pandemic first hit Europe just over 14 months ago.

Frankfurt rose 2.1 percent and Paris added 1.4 percent as a survey said April saw the fastest growth for Eurozone companies in nine months, sparking hope that the bloc would exit a double-dip recession.

“Having seen large falls yesterday, markets appear to have recovered some of their mojo, rebounding strongly today,” commented Michael Hewson of CMC Markets.

On Wall Street, payroll services firm ADP released data before markets opened showing strong US private sector hiring last month, though the economy remains short millions of jobs.

The Institute for Supply Management also reported the US services sector was bouncing back strongly in April.

The data offer further evidence of an accelerating economic recovery, although analysts say markets continue to fear the rebound will cause prices to rise.

That reticence explains why the Nasdaq fell again, even as the Dow climbed 0.3 percent to finish at a fresh all-time high.

The weakness in the tech sector is among the indicators that “suggest that the near-term markets can remain choppy,” said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA Research.

Among individual companies, General Motors surged 4.1 percent after reporting higher first-quarter profits and reaffirming its full-year outlook Wednesday, despite a global shortage of semiconductors that has constrained auto manufacturing.

Moderna fell 6.2 percent and Pfizer was flat after US President Joe Biden’s administration announced its support for a global waiver on patent protections for Covid-19 vaccines, a move that could limit both drugmakers’ profits from their groundbreaking inoculations.