Apprehension as Naira Crashes to N700/£1 at Parallel Market

By Adedapo Adesanya The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has raised the alarm over alleged secret reintroduction of fuel subsidy payments by the federal government. In late May, after taking the oath of office, President Bola Tinubu announced the total removal of subsidy on petrol, which saw prices jump to over N600. The removal of fuel subsidy and the resulting increment in the pump of petrol by almost 300 per cent had quadrupled the inflation rate in the country and affected the purchasing power of Nigerians, especially the middle class and low-income earners. It was expected that as

By Aduragbemi Omiyale The value of unsold finished products in the inventory of Nigerian manufacturers in the first half of 2023 increased by 44/9 per cent on a year-to-date basis to N272 billion from N187 billion in the same period of 2022. This information was contained in the report released by the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) on Tuesday. According to Punch, the document also revealed that in the period under review, the manufacturing sector laid off 3,567 workers due to the harsh business environment triggered by high inflation, the foreign exchange (FX) crisis, and fuel subsidy removal. “This increase

By Aduragbemi Omiyale The Vice President, Mr Kashim Shettima, has said Nigeria is in dire need of foreign direct investment (FDI) more than ever before, tasking domestic and foreign investors to make Nigeria their investment hub because efforts are being made to formulate business-friendly policies. Mr Shettima, while speaking when he hosted the management of First Surat Group, as well as top management of MTN Nigeria at the presidential villa in Abuja, charged MTN Nigeria to facilitate and spearhead digital mobile money and digital education. He assured that President Bola Tinubu was willing to partner with various stakeholders in the

By Adedapo Adesanya The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange weakened by 0.30 per cent on Tuesday, September 26 after Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc witnessed a decline in its closing price. This brought down the value of the unlisted securities market by N3.50 billion to end at N1.146 trillion versus the N1.149 trillion it ended a day earlier, as the NASD Unlisted Securities Index (NSI) dropped 2.48 points to end at 810.87 points compared with the previous day’s 813.35 points. The share price of CSCS Plc declined by 70 Kobo yesterday to settle at N17.50 per share, in contrast

By Dipo Olowookere The local currency appreciated against the Dollar on Monday at the black market, selling at N362 against N363 it traded last Friday. This occurred as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) sustained liquidity in the foreign exchange market with the release of $210 million to the interbank market. A breakdown of the intervention showed that the sum of $100 million was allocated to authorised dealers in the wholesale segment of the market. Furthermore, the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) segment received $55 million, while another $55 million was earmarked for the invisibles segment to cater for customers

By Dipo Olowookere No fewer than 100 teachers have been posted to Oyo State by the federal government to boost the quality of the education in the south-west state. The educators were transferred to Oyo State through the Federal Teachers Scheme (FTS) facilitated by the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC). Business Post reports that the 100 teachers sent to the state were among the 3700 candidates who met the cut off marks of the FTS examinations conducted across the country last month. Recall that in November, about 14,729 candidates sat for the 2020/2021 FTS exam for teachers simultaneously in 74

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Social innovators and entrepreneurs across Africa, including Nigeria, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, South Sudan, Rwanda, Uganda, Cameroon, Tanzania, and Zambia, have been urged to register registration for the 2023 Sahara Impact Fund (SIF) programme. The scheme is an initiative of Sahara Foundation, the corporate citizenship vehicle for the leading energy and infrastructure conglomerate, Sahara Group. The fund is a strategic partnership between Sahara Foundation and LEAP Africa, which aims to provide support to business ideas and solutions which will increase access to clean energy and promote sustainable environments. The organisers said SIF is open to African social

By Dipo Olowookere The continuous increase in demand for the greenback by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) weakened the local currency at the foreign exchange (forex) market last week. It was observed that the Naira did not perform well at the various market segments despite the intervention of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) by providing the sum of $210 million to authorised dealers at the interbank market last Tuesday. The apex bank had supplied the sum of $100 million to the Wholesale segment, while $55 million were each given to dealers at the Small and Medium Scale Enterprises and the

By Dipo Olowookere The Rivers State government has sealed the regional office of 9mobile in Port Harcourt, the state capital, over an alleged non-payment of Pay As You Earn (PAYE) taxes of expatriates on its payroll. The office, according to information, was closed down by officials of the Rivers Internal Revenue Service (RIRS), who accused the telecom firm of owing about N108 million. However, the management of 9mobile denied owing the state government such a huge amount, emphasising that that it has no expatriate residing in the state on its payroll. 9mobile faulted the state government for clamping down on

By Modupe Gbadeyanka The management of Unity Bank Plc has come out to clear the air on a purported deal it had with an private equity firm based in the United States, Milost Global Incorporated, which had planned to pump $1 billion into the financial institution. This week, the foreign company issued a statement where it announced terminating the transactions with the local lender. Milost alleged in its statement that while it was in talks with Unity Bank, the lender agreed to move its listing from Nigeria to the United States. But Unity Bank, while reacting to the issue in

By Dipo Olowookere Building on the success of The Voice Nigeria, Airtel Africa Plc is partnering with FAME Studios Africa to sponsor the debut edition of The Voice Africa. At a high-profile event in Lagos to unveil the programme on Wednesday, the leading telecommunications and mobile money services provider explained that it was throwing its weight behind the music talent hunt show to budding artists in all 14 Airtel Africa markets a platform to showcase their skills. Airtel sponsored seasons three and four of The Voice Nigeria, and to expand the reach, it decided to include other African countries. The

By Dipo Olowookere The equity price of Nigerian Breweries Plc has been changed on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). Business Post reports that the alteration to the price of the brewery giant was done by the exchange on Thursday, March 11, 2021. The price of the company’s stock was modified by deducting 69 kobo from the previous day’s closing price of N50. This adjustment was done to reflect the dividend recommended for payment to shareholders of the organisation by its board of directors. The qualification date for the cash reward was Wednesday, March 10, 2021, which necessitated